Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

But I will 
I will keep fighting 
I won't fade away 
I will face every day 
As if it's my last one 
And I will keep you safe 
Just like our past was 
Fight for love every day 

Heat warms her face, unexpected when she last remembered falling into snow. It’s a jarring feeling; in a panic she tries to get up but finds the weight of her body too much. Struggling to open her eyes or move any limbs, she begins to panic.  

The smells of a garden surround her, vegetal and breezy; she hasn’t smelled this in months. In years as pungent as it is. Her mouth opens but nothing comes out, she wants to scream, feels the growing need to, but nothing comes out, no thrashing, not even tears. She’s full of fear, why can’t she see, she can’t lift her hands but can feel the ground beneath her fingers. Her lips tremble for a moment but then feels a cool hand against her forehead.  

Then suddenly her eyes open, the sky is bright blue and cloudless.  

And the smell of sunflowers is so strong it makes her head ache.  

She releases a deep breath and turns to the person next to her. Her breath comes in high and tight, her sight going blurry as she adjusts her head, her hair pressing into the bright green grass around her.  

“Mom?” She squeaks out, her voice seemingly gone.  

Sat next to her, her mother gives her a soft smile, just like Kasumi’s. Her blue hair pulled back into a low bun, she looks just as she did before she got sick. She wears a soft blue corn linen dress that Akane remembers pulling the hem of when she needed her attention, when she was scared or upset. She looks down and can see the frayed edges remain even here. 

“Akane, you came back.”  

She says it just so, not as a question or with sadness, just a simple statement. Akane sits up a little, and her mother puts a small, rolled blanket behind her back to prop her up to speak. She looks around for a moment, hazy memories of this place draw back into her mind. She’s been here before, hasn’t she? But did she really come here or was it only in dreams? Or was it - 

“Mom, am I dead?”  

Her mother shakes her head. Pushing her bangs from her face, she holds her face for a moment.  

“No darling, but you are hurt.”  

She nods a moment, considering her surroundings and realizes the last time she saw this place was when she had nearly died in China. And that she’s returned here only occasionally in dreams, like it called back to her when she least expects it. That it beckoned for her to return, or perhaps she was pushing herself and trying to see if she could return on her own.  

“I came back to find you? To see you?”  

“I think it’s a little bit of that, a little bit of this place. I think because you came back to China, it’s brought you closer to me.”  

“Because of what happened in Jusenkyo?”  

“Exactly.”  

She sits up a little more, gone are her winter clothes, now in a soft, white summer dress. It reminds her of one she wore as a child on a vacation to the beach, taking in the scenery around her, the coast against water, the high sunflowers and wildly grown greenery around them. It's quiet, peaceful, and perfect.  

“It’s so beautiful here, anyone would want to come back.” She smiles at her mother. “And being able to see you again.”  

Her mother drops her hands and squeezes Akane’s, her smile with a touch of sadness.  

“I adore seeing you Akane, but I don’t want you to stay, I know what that means.”  

“But I want to stay with you, everything is almost perfect and I’ve missed you so much.” Her eyes begin to tear up. “I miss you so much, Mom.”  

“I understand darling, but this can’t be your time. As much as I miss you, you’ve come back to this place that I wish you wouldn’t have. I told you not to return to Jusenkyo, Akane. Don’t you remember?” 

“Not you too, I had to.” She huffs out. “I needed to come back for him.”  

“For Ranma?” His name out of her mouth is surreal and strange; she wonders if she ever knew his name when she was still alive. Her mother tilts her head knowingly and looks out to the horizon beyond them. 

“Genma’s son. You care so dearly for him.” She nods, embarrassed. “You remind me so much of your father, you certainly inherited his devotion.” She smiles and brushes her hair again.  

“I promised his parents that I would bring him home, but now I... don’t know if I’m strong enough.” Her eyes get warm and well up. This can’t be paradise, why would she cry here, shouldn’t it be painless? Maybe it’s somewhere else, the passing of worlds. There was always a spark of strangeness in the cursed lands around here. Maybe this place is a reflection of that, of worlds’ loose threads and energies that draw you in. Or maybe it’s all in her head. Maybe this is just a head injury or a dying light. 

“Akane...” she sighs and grips her daughter’s hand for a moment. “You always were so fearless. To the point you used to scare me the lengths you would go as a child, and I see nothing has changed.” Akane’s eyes have begun to well up in tears.  

“I don’t think I can do it, the people who have him are so strong and I don’t think I have that same strength. I’m already injured and I think I’ve taken on more than I can take. I worry that I’m not going to make it out of here, but I have to try to get him back, to get him home.” Her hands go to her eyes. “I’m sorry mom, this isn’t what I wanted to be like when I saw you again.” She lets out a groan and lets her tears drop. “I can’t do this, I’m ruining everything, I’m weak and everything is being ruined because of me and my emotions, I just want to control it and be strong and I can’t...I can’t!”  

She feels reassuring hands on her shoulders and back, turning her head towards her mother, she puts her hands on Akane’s and pulls them into her lap.  

“You can, Akane. You’re strong, you’re so strong.” She holds her hands harder, “You have to believe in yourself. You can save him. He’s waiting for you.”  

“But does he...does he even love” she cuts her off and brushes her hair from her face.  

“You know this Akane, you have for some time. You’ve both been seeking each other through a storm you’ve both created. But he’s waiting for you, because he trusts you’ll be here. He knows how strong you are, you have to believe it too.”  

“Mom...”  

She brushes her face one more time, her thumb lingers on her face as Akane’s tears stop.  

“It’s time to wake up darling, you have work to do.”  

“But what if I wanted to stay here a little longer?”  

“You can’t, he needs you more.”  

They take in the other, and Akane chokes out another small round of tears.  

“I don’t want to leave you.”  

“I know, but it’s time.” She leans in and kisses her forehead. 

“She’s waking up, get some water Mousse!” Her ears ring as she blinks multiple times, her mouth dry and mind confused. She immediately starts coughing, eyes stinging as she chokes on the roughness of her throat. She feels throbbing flashes behind her eyes that strike her brain and makes her nauseous. A large hand lifts her head up off a rolled pillow and guides a cup of luke warm water to her lips. She takes it but chokes slightly as she lifts her head. After finishing she looks around the large tent she’s in, holding her head and water cup is Mousse, his glasses framing his nervous face. Around him in a semi-circle are Shampoo, Ukyou, Ryoga and Cologne to her right.  

“We thought we lost you child.” The elder lays out clearly. Akane shuts one eye to see her without her figure doubled and smiles.  

“I’m still here, no worries.” The two other girls smile lightly and Cologne sighs. Akane looks over at the group and her eyes land on Ryoga, pinning him down with her stare. He looks at her pathetically and before he can speak his mind, her arms shoot out, thrusting herself towards him. She’s caught before she can completely reach him, Cologne telling him to leave the tent for a moment of peace. Turning back to Akane who is catching her breath as she leans back down.  

“Akane.” Her voice tells her everything; she needs to collect herself and her thoughts.  

Akane settles back down, taking a large breath, centering herself. She apologizes for the outburst. Cologne watches her as the room’s energy drops.  

“Mousse, check on Ryoga.” He hesitates for a moment, before rising and leaving the women in the tent. It’s dark out now, she’s not sure how long she’s been out, is it still the same day?  

“Shampoo, Ukyou. Take your leave as well.” 

“But great-grandmother -”  

Cologne snipes at her in Mandarin, and Shampoo stands quickly, waving Ukyou out to follow her as well. They walk to the entrance, Shampoo lingers a moment looking at the other two before she takes her leave as well.  

Cologne watches them leave and turns to Akane. There’s no sympathy or empathy in her eyes, they are hard-set and focused. Releasing a breath, she turns to the warm water next to her, dips and squeezes the water out before placing it on Akane’s forehead. Her touch is gentle, and Akane wonders how many times in her life she’s administered this for the injured. And if this is what she does shortly before bringing the bad news, the letdown. She gulps and closes her eyes for a moment. 

“How is your head?”  

“Fine, my vision is back to normal. No headache, no nausea.” 

“Dizziness?”  

“Nothing.”  

“You took a bad hit Akane Tendou, I don’t believe that you are completely immune from injury.” 

“My nose aches.” 

“It was very nearly broken, you have coloring under your left eye again. I set it while you were out.”  

She lifts her hand to her nose and feels the sensitivity.  

“Thank you so much for taking care of me, how long was I-” 

“Since the fight earlier today, you’ve been out for a few hours. Unconscious, but never to a point I was too worried.” She dips and wrings the towel again, bringing it to her face. The warmth on her nose feels so incredibly good, like dipping her sinuses into a bath. Akane takes the towel from her and holds it to her own face.  

Cologne watches her for a moment, the youngest Tendou had very nearly broken her nose taking that hit from Dariole. It very well could have been devastating considering it had been a direct hit to her head. With a new streak of brown and violet beneath her left eye, her pupils remain the same; her ribs seemingly healed from the first encounter. She’s tough; she’ll give her that. She looks down at her fist, holding the cloth against her face. Her scraped knuckles, holding something to herself there.  

Akane removes the cloth from her face, she can see why Curl was so taken with her. In the dim light, her features are further defined. Her large, hazel eyes, brighter now with the pond of murky purple below it. Her naturally pursed lips, the soft features of her face.  

This place is not for someone like her. No matter how strong she may be. 

“Akane, we need to discuss you remaining on this trip.” 

“Elder, please.”  

“Please don’t interrupt me, Akane.” Her eyes drop to her lap.  

“I was concerned when you joined us to begin with, I promised your family I would care for you, but I could not promise your safe return. With each encounter, I grow more uneasy at your chances of returning. Dariole has focused her attacks on you, her aggression on you. And while I know you are a competent fighter, I feel she will best you because of her upbringing and discipline.”  

Cologne stood up on her stick, pacing and bobbing in the tent, being sure to check that they were given privacy.  

“This is all to say, Akane, I think you are a talented fighter. But this is above what you can handle. We are trying to focus our efforts on Dariole and with her centering her attacks on you, that becomes difficult.”  

She stopped and turned to face her completely.  

“I believe it is time we consider that it may be in your and our best interest, that you return to Japan to await our return.”  

The silence within the tent was heavy. Akane gripped the towel in her fist, releasing slightly. She felt now would be the worst time to have an outburst. She had already been too quick in her feelings with Ryoga and doing so again would seal her fate. Considering her words, Cologne watched her with patience that offered no comfort nor scorn.  

“I’m sorry Cologne, I can’t.”  

“Because you won’t?”  

“Because I promised I would bring him home. And I have to do that.”  

“We can do that without you, we can bring Ranma home to the Saotomes.”  

“But I promised them.”  

“And I believe you have done all you can, Akane. To go forward may mean you don’t come home.”  

“Then I don’t come home.”  

She said it with such certainty that she almost misheard her.  

“Even if I don’t return home, if he comes back to his parents, I will have fulfilled my promise. And I intend to keep that promise.”  

“Akane-” 

“Cologne, I won’t leave until it’s time.”  

“Alright.” She walks over to her, sitting next to her, she leans so they can only hear one another. She takes a deep, measured breath.  

“Akane. I implore you to reconsider this decision. At your weakened state, you are a liability for us. I am trying to be patient in this decision of yours, but I believe staying is foolish and puts us all at great risk. I am asking you to take time and think about your next steps. Not only for your promise to the Saotomes, but the promise you made to your family. Think about the rest of us along with you. Think about Ranma.”  

“You think me being here does that much damage?”  

“I believe you being here puts us at a disadvantage.”  

She couldn’t produce the tears that she wanted to reflect her sadness, her frustration.  

The building anger.  

“I will think about your suggestion Cologne, can I take the day?”  

“You have one day.”  

Cologne didn’t give her the chance to reply and left the tent.  

The remaining water of the cloth was squeezed until only the rough cotton strained across her palm.  

At the fire made at the campsite, the remaining group watched as Cologne exited the larger tent.  

“For the remainder of the evening, I do not want any of you to visit with Akane. She needs rest and time with her thoughts. You may see her in the morning, but for now. Let her be.” Her eyes connected with Ryoga’s. “This is a command, not a suggestion.” 

The group nodded slowly, Ukyou and Shampoo continuing to cook food for the group.  

“She’s only to have congee, let me know when it’s finished and I will bring it to her.”  

“Of course, great-grandmother.” Shampoo turns stirring the mushy rice cooking separately from the cooking rice. Her elder was very hard with Akane, she can tell. Cologne often carries an air about her when she’s given an ultimatum. She imagines she’s told the girl it’s time to go home, she’s putting not only them in danger but Ranma as well. Akane must not have taken the news well. 

For a moment she feels bad for the girl, to come all this distance, nearly make it all the way in bringing him home only to be struck down in the end. To be so close to grabbing him and running him back to the rest of them to leave.  

But now all of this was different, she knew that Ukyou and herself were strong, competent fighters and Akane was always seen as the weakest of the fiancées in her abilities. For most girls from Nerima, Akane stood out in strength and skill, but against the two of them? She never had a chance.  

Until she saw her on this trip.  

Shampoo was well versed in Dariole’s style of combat, a defiled version of Xingyiquan, meant to be destructive to the point of fatality in every fight. Each movement explosive and aggressive, a constant short-range onslaught. It was a terrifying form to challenge because of how casual she was in the use, no second thought in shattering bones, attacking areas that could leave the opponent forever changed. She was nonchalant about the pain she caused, which made her kidnapping of Ranma so much worse.  

Shampoo knew Akane was highly skilled in Judo, already a physically tasking form of martial arts. Her school had always been more focused on ground maneuvers and heavy take downs, Akane’s fists for one saw to that regularly.  

But during their last battle against Dariole’s group, Shampoo recognized a new stance from Akane. Her typical Judo style removed, she had squared her shoulders and hips in such a way that she was immediately taken aback, recognizing the Bajiquan style immediately. Akane had unknowingly taken on a style that could challenge Dariole’s style. Akane had the ability to have explosive and devastating short attacks against Dariole’s wild, pointed short range of attacks.  

And Akane’s face when she had set out against her earlier, the browns of her eyes slit into focus only on the girl ahead of her. Even after she had taken the first hit, there was a deep sense of calm unlike her.  

Akane was an emotional, bad-tempered girl. Quick to anger, embarrassment, her feelings easily read on her face.  

This Akane saw nothing but her opponent, her eyes shifting to her target's movements never letting up her face or next move.  

Her focused movements and unwavering stare had given Shampoo something new to consider in the challenge for Ranma’s heart.  

“Akane seems a lot better.” Ukyou threw out first. Sure to keep her voice low so she wouldn’t be heard from the tent she currently occupied.  

“I’m...just glad she’s awake.” Ryoga answers uneasily. Ever since their return after battle, there’s been a heavy feeling having him around. Everyone had known about his curse, all except her. And now that she had been viciously made aware, they considered him a marked man. It would only be a matter of time before she came for him and his actions over the last two years. Sleeping in her bed, under the guise of her pet, invading her space and breaking every semblance of trust.  

“I too am glad she woke up.” Mousse answers to try to finish the conversation. But not before Ukyou steps in.  

“You should’ve known this was going to happen.” She points her accusation towards him. “That your curse would’ve reared its ugly head.” He snaps his head towards her, ready to argue.  

“You wouldn’t understand.” He sneers.  

“That you would rather lie than face the truth, just admit who you really were? Yeah, I understand completely.” She shoves veggies around the pan she uses, as if she’s the one scorned.  

“If it was ‘Ranma-honey’ and you were in my position, would you really tell me you wouldn’t?” 

“Fuck you, Ryoga.” She says with venomous crass.  

“That’s enough.” Cologne slams her walking stick down. “We are facing enough of a challenge; we don’t need inner fighting now. What is done is done. Now we must push forward.”  

“With Akane?” Shampoo asks quietly.  

Cologne stares her down.  

“That is up to her.”  

“Shampoo think she too weak, she will get hurt worse.”  

“You don’t know that!” Ryoga yells, Mousse tries to calm him.  

“Akane did take some bad hits, we can’t ignore that. Maybe it’s better that she goes home.”  

Ryoga says nothing, his jaw taunt, ready to sling an insult.  

“What do you want to say Ryoga?” Ukyou asks pointedly, she’s ready for a fight now.  

“I have nothing else to add to this discussion.”  

“You sure about that sugar? Seems like you have something sitting in the holster.”  

He looks her square in the face. “I’m not sure your reason for wanting Akane gone is not all altruistic.”  

“Oh yeah?” She takes the spatula she’s cooking with into her hand like a weapon. “How’s that?”  

“Because with her gone you could pretend that Ranma would look at either of you like he looks at her.”  

This time Shampoo joins in a pained, angry look.  

“Call me stupid and untrustworthy all you want, at least I know where I stand with the person I care for, I don’t ignore the obvious in front of me.”  

“Oh yeah? And what’s the obvious Ryoga, since you’re so smart all of a sudden.” Ukyou bites back her emotions, but the way she snarls “smart” she gives herself fully away.  

“That he’s in love with her and has been for years.”  

The fire pops and crackles. Mousse looks away, suddenly everything is too heavy, and he looks quickly at and away from Cologne. She takes a deep breath about to stop this conversation when Ukyou shoves the pan away from her and walks away from the fire and group. Cologne stops Ryoga after he stands to go after her, either to dig in further or apologize.  

“We need to eat. Let her go. Shampoo give me the congee, I will give it to Akane.”  

A pipping bowl balances on her staff as she goes walking into the tent. Inside Akane looks to be asleep, her chest lightly rising and falling. She hopes she heard nothing as she leaves the bowl next to her, slipping out quietly.  

Akane adjusts slightly, knowing she needs to eat as well.  

In the morning, the air feels thin but the heaviness of the last day floats over the camp. With tired eyes, Akane blinks them awake, nightmares having invaded her sleep. For the last few times she was asleep in China she’s dreamt of the garden, of that in-between place where she can find her mother. But last night, there was none of that calmness to be found, none of the soft spring air nor the massively grown sunflowers.  

Last night was darkness, cold. She was in Jusenkyo again, in the place where there was no light, no life. Silence, overwhelming. Back in the tunic she woke up in when she was first kidnapped to this place, alone with no way to see her environment. Running in directions to try and find a light, she ended up falling to her knees her hands falling through freezing snow. She gripped it, screaming for help, and her voice was swallowed away with howling winds. Feeling her body slip further into the snowbank, her screams became panicked and visceral until she could feel her vocal cords strain and tear.  

Waking up felt like a gift, even if it came slowly. She shook her head, drinking deeply from the water next to her, having gone deeply cold overnight. The coldness washed over her throat, and she was relieved to find pain there, no indication that she had been screaming through the night.  

But the dream stuck with her, displayed on her pallid face as Cologne entered the tent. Akane was sat up, fully aware of her surroundings, her body showed to be healed but the bruising on her face was only more pronounced around her eyes. She remained calm as she approached her, trying to think of anything else instead of a walking corpse while in her presence.  

“You’re awake, good. Did you sleep well?”  

“Not particularly.” She turned away and drank more water. Cologne made a noncommittal sound as she approached her bedside. 

“Let me check you.”  

She checked her for fever, her nose, and eyes. She checked her throat, her ribs, and back.  

“Can you stand for me?”  

She did so with little to no issue, for a moment she wobbled but was able to stretch and showed no strain. A good sign.  

“You’ve healed up well.” She spoke to her back as she inspected her spine, Akane rolling her top back down. “You can join us for breakfast if you’d like.”  

“I would.” Cologne nodded and led her out to Shampoo building a new fire.  

“Good morning Akane.” She said with no venom or spite, probably the nicest she had ever greeted her.  

“Good morning.” She sat by the fire and was offered a cup. “Tea?” She nodded and took it from Shampoo.  

Slowly everyone emerged from their tents, taking seats around the breakfast fire. They were quiet, likely still reeling from the night before. The last to come out was Ryoga who took a quick look at Akane before looking away and taking a seat as far from her as he could. She looked at him over her tea that Shampoo refilled, the feelings bubbling up, bitterly drinking down the acidic taste.  

Cologne speaks first.  

“We need to regroup and rethink our approach. At this point, they will need to heal up as well, and neither of us are ready for an immediate fight. We are near their village, and I imagine they will wait for us there.” She points to mountains in the distance, tall but far enough to see that it will not be an easy journey. “It will take a few days to arrive, they may think we are ready to leave, they are wrong.”  

She takes a long drag from her pipe, pushing the tobacco as it’s still cherry red.  

“We will take today to rest and prepare. We are drawing to our end. I don’t believe we will get more opportunities after our next. They will either kill him out of spite, or they will move underground and from there we will lose track. The next days are of great importance, I need everyone at their best.” She looks around at all of them but only stays on Akane a moment. “Take the day to get your minds in order, we move at dawn.”  

And the sky was all violet 
I want it again, but violent, more violent 
Yeah, I'm the one with no soul 
One above and one below 

Akane spends most of the morning in front of the fire, stretching her limbs, her hands, arms, and legs. She performs a few katas, the pain in her rib isn’t strong but there is a numbing ache. Likewise, everyone is sharpening weapons, resting their bodies and performing light katas and sequences to prepare themselves. Mousse and Shampoo take some time to have a small fight, focusing on blocks and heavy attacks.  

Akane watches on, ignoring the occasional glances that Ryoga sends her way, resigning herself to passive anger. Cologne has dealt with enough and to lash out now feels childish. As well, she waits for Akane’s answer about staying.  

She looks over to Cologne and finds the elder is watching her with knowing eyes, not with malice but a patience of what’s to come. Akane looks down before she hears feet approaching. She looks up and sees a small smile looking down.  

“Hey Akane, you wanna go for walk and get outta here?” Ukyou offers a hand her way.  

She smiles back and takes her hand, standing to meet her.  

“That sounds great.”  

They head out into the forest, sure to keep their wandering parallel with the camp, so they don’t cause any worry with the rest of the team. They walk in general silence, unsure of what to say or how to put it. Ukyou’s mind in swimming from the previous night, but Akane’s look causes her to reconsider her questions and thoughts. How damaged is she really? Can she handle a tough conversation, can she be trusted to give a real answer.  

The walk feels good, but the silence is stifling. Before Ukyou can put together a safe question, Akane asks first.  

“Do you miss your dad?”  

Ukyou stops ahead of her and looks back, considering. Akane waits, still in the clothes from yesterday, the dried blood splattered on her top.  

“Sometimes. Sometimes I miss him a lot.”  

“Do you ever talk to him? Let him know what you’re doing?”  

“I write to him, I know he travels a lot, but I get letters back, so I know he reads them. It’s easier when one of us is in one place.”  

“I hope you tell him how well your business is doing. It’s amazing what you’ve done since you came to Nerima. It’s so admirable.”  

“Thanks, Akane.”  

The two share a moment of comfortable silence, as friends, not as rivals as their fates deem them so.  

“You miss your family too, huh?”  

She nods a little and looks away.  

“Being here must feel...weird. After everything that happened before.”  

“...It does.”  

“Do you...want to talk-”  

“Ukyou.” 

She stops her offer. 

“Do you ever think that your life was easier when you were being raised as a boy?” 

“What?” She looks at her strangely as Akane continues their walk, pacing pass her.  

“Was your life easier when you were raised as a son, rather than a daughter?” 

Ukyou stares at her feet, thinking back to her childhood. The harshness she faced, the critique and ridicule. The way her father acknowledged her sex but refused to adhere to it. The long days, the chest binding.  

“In some ways, I think it was yes. I think my dad thought, if I raise her hard, she’ll persevere. She can handle it all. I think he wanted a son so bad that putting me through the ringer somehow, I'd come out that way. But when the Saotomes showed up...suddenly what I was...was a commodity he could trade.”  

“Did that make you angry?”  

“...It did. But when I found out Ranma was my fiancée, I thought it was okay. He was my friend and I cared about him.”  

Akane keeps the same pace, she doesn’t look back but Ukyou is uneasy. This subject is sensitive between them both, and last night’s outburst is still heavily on her mind.  

“Sometimes I wish I was born a boy.”  

Ukyou follows behind closely.  

“Why?”  

“Life would be easier. I wouldn’t be engaged; it could be Kasumi or Nabiki and I... I could just have the dojo. No expectations as a woman, to produce an heir as if that’s the best I could do.”  

“Akane-”  

“I think maybe, I would be stronger. I’d be better than I am now. People would take me seriously as a fighter. They wouldn’t think I’m so weak.” She turns back and stops, looking at Ukyou. Her pale face, graceful against the snowy forest as the sun prepares its descent. “If I was a boy, they would tell me to get up and rest, to fight. They wouldn’t treat me so gently. Like I was going to break.” 

“Akane, we just... Cologne wants to make sure you’re alright, that this isn’t something worse.”  

“That I’m going to die here?”  

Ukyou stops completely. Akane stops and turns to face her.  

“I-” She looks up at the sky and glares. “I think I’m going to die here Ukyou.”  

“What! Akane!” She moved towards her. 

“I’ve had visions of my mother here. I’ve been there before, the last time we were in Jusenkyo. I don’t think I was ever supposed to come back and because of that, I don’t think I’m going home.”  

She stares back at Ukyou, her eyes are dry, there are no more tears to cry.  

“Maybe if I was a boy, this would be honorable, now it feels...like I walked right back into hell and did so foolishly. But...I can’t let him stay here. He has to come home.”  

“That doesn’t mean you have to die, Akane. You can come home too.”  

“I think it does Ukyou. I think something is waiting for me in the mountains, I think it’s death.”  

“That’s so stupid Akane!” She runs up to her and grabs her by the shoulders. “How can you talk like that, you’ve it made this far, you can do this!”  

“Will you take care of him?”  

“What?” She whispers.  

“Will you take care of Ranma, if-” Now the tears are building.  

And Ukyou feels her heart drop into her stomach, the nauseating emptiness that sits there. Akane’s deep set eyes look her over as a tear finally falls. The trust that she’s putting in her has such a deep heaviness, it’s not just the looking that he gets home.  

It’s the aftermath of this trip.  

It’s the potential of her not returning, that she will never be there again for him.  

The loneliness that waits for him.  

The emptiness of a heart that will not find replacement.  

How do you outdo the girl that gave her everything for you? The sacrifice she gave in the face of impossible because of her heart? The undying love that will live on well after her time with you, that you will always reach for but never hold. Never touch, never make love to, never hear from her lips, the canonization you venerate for all times because no one can or ever will take the place of in your heart.  

“What happened between you both?”  

Akane opens her mouth, but Ukyou stops her.  

“Don’t LIE to me Tendou. I’ve been seeing and hearing lies for weeks and I’m tired. Tell me the truth.” She straightens up. No more tears. Her lip quivers but she holds her stance.  

“Have you...hugged? Have you...kissed?”  

Her minds flashes with moments in her closet.  

“...Yes.”  

“Which one?” Ukyou chokes a bit. 

“We’ve...kissed.”  

“When, how?”  

“After the spell Dariole put on him...he came to my room. He...wanted to just talk but then Shampoo and Ryoga came in and we were hiding and...”  

Flashes of fast and heavy kisses. She sees herself with no sweater on, the feeling of her bra against his chest as his tongue entered her mouth.  

“We kissed and...” 

“Did you, oh my God did you-”  

“No! We, we didn’t.”  

“How many?”  

“What?”  

“How many kisses did you get?”  

“Ukyou I-” 

“Tell ME!” 

The silence cuts through everything. Her grip on Akane’s shoulders is harsh, nails digging in more than she means.  

“I... don’t know.”  

“Because there was so many?”  

“Yes.”  

“And he...he kissed you?”  

“Yes.”  

She watches as Ukyou thinks about the next question, but there is no question to happen. Her eyes well up, the enormity of this confession weighing on her.  

“Ukyou-” 

“Sh-shut up Akane.”  

Akane looks away for a moment before she shakes her back. Tears flow freely from Ukyou.  

And she laughs, choking and aching she laughs, holding onto the shoulders of the woman who has bested her finally. She has waited for and abhorred this day, the day that she would have to acknowledge. Her fiancée, the fiancée she had before her, the one she was rightfully owed.  

He loved this woman.   

The best she had ever received was a hug, a shoulder hug.  

The best day she had had was when he was under the influence of Dariole, she had fed and flirted, and he had done so right back. She almost got him home and what that could’ve been. Her mind’s eye goes to the fantasy for a moment but it’s not real. It’ll never be real.  

Because he didn’t love her.  

In her hands, under her fingers, was the girl he loved.  

Her fingers lifted away, the gravity of it all falling on her. She knew what her death would mean.  

Akane loved him as well.  

And in that moment, maybe loved him more than she did, in her realization of their true feelings.  

She quickly brushed the back of her hand against her eyes, swiping the tears away.  

“Ukyou-” 

“STOP! Just stop, Akane.” She choked out a bitter laugh. “Oh my god, what have I been doing? What have any of us been doing?”  

“Ukyou, please I just-”  

“Akane, I need time away from you. Please.”  

With that she turned her back and ran away from the other girl back to the camp. 

She spends what feels like hours in the forest. She doesn’t go far, she doesn’t want to get lost and give them another thing to worry about.  

You’re just a weight to them. Another thing dragging them down.  

She walks around, trying to collect her thoughts and her feelings but she feels weak. Not physically, not in the way they want her to be, but emotionally, spiritually. Everything is loose and bare threads. Is this what she’s supposed to process alone? Was it not enough to accept her own death? Now there is more to bear witness to while she stays on a camp that abhors her presence.  

She can’t make any of this right.  

She wants to cry but now the tears don’t come.  

It grows in her chest.  

She told Ukyou the truth; it’ll come out soon. They’ll all know what she did, who she is.  

And judge.  

They’ll still think she’s weak, simple, and less than.  

A girl in love with no direction, no focus.  

She tries to sit down and release the pressure inside her, but it forces her back up. She feels the jittering of too much energy, too much to swallow.  

They see her as the weak link, the victim, the damsel. 

Always the damsel, Akane. Once and always.  

And the camp she goes back to? Two rival fiancées, one who wants to kill her and one who she considered a friend who wants her dead now. An elder that doesn’t trust her, sees her as weak and useless. A friend who treats her like delicate glass, like the last time she was here.  

And Ryoga.  

Who has been her pet pig for years.  

The anger prickles behind her ears, spreads across her spine, metastasizes into her shoulders.  

The years of betrayal, every moment of secrets, of undressing herself and her soul. All of it waiting for her, the knowledge of being out of the loop.  

The butt of an unfair joke.  

Left out of the truth, like so much of her life. Left out of decisions. Left out of a choice. Left to her own feelings.  

And what are they now?  

Rage.  

Sadness sat quietly, but like an alarm building. Building, building and crescendoing.  

Only the rage.  

The ivory prickles of rage built like monuments in her shoulders, the icy trickles into her upper arms.  

She tilted her head, no longer sad. No longer holding the weight of sadness. Washed away, it was in a pure, magenta plume of fury that shrouded her eyes.  

The gathering of trees, strong and unmoving. Still within ancient amounts of time, forceful and unwilling to bend.  

My failure will make them bend.  

She pulls her arm back, her eyes open with new focus, new concentration.  

The marking in one trunk looks like Dariole, she sees it. It mocks her.  

Everything swells within her fist.  

With one focused hit, her arm releases into a straight punch, her fist vertical, her elbow extending out to meet the tree. But when she expects the splintering of a single tree, she watches as the Oak in front of her shatters as well as the surrounding trees. The hit damages not only the trees in front of her, but creates a line of destruction, blasting away the next dozen trees behind it.  

She holds her hand as the remnants fall away from what once stood for centuries. Her face pale, not from pain or weakness, but shock. 

“Oh my god.”