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Inverse Property	By : Mike256bit Category: +M to R > Ranma ½ Views: 13916 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 4
- 5
- 6
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Chapter
Five

"Back-stabbing
is a spectator sport."

"Ouch. . ."

"Why is it that the center of
attention always wakes up last?"

Ranma fluttered her eyes, a generous
amount of light filtering down from the trees above, causing her to clamp her
lids tight and raise a hand to the sun as rays darted in all directions, both
pinpoints and blobs on the forest floor and on her face. She blinked a few time, peeking through her
fingers to see some unusually parallel branches line the canopy. "What's goin' on?" She reeled back slightly when Ryouga
appeared, peering down at her from his seat at her head. She tipped back, seeing him frown at her as
he spoke.

"Took you long
enough."

She sneered, sitting up. "Do you hover over me all the time or
just when I'm sleepin'? Where are we?"

Ryouga reached back and tapped a
tree. Wait, that wasn't a tree— a cage? "Amazons."

The redhead fished something out of her
ear before she asked in a rather deadpan tone, "What?"

Ryouga stood, cracking his neck to the
side as he surveyed the other captures in the cage. "Some Amazons got
us." Ranma swore bitterly, not wanting to hear him the first time. Ryouga ignored her as he passed over the
others for the fifth time since he had woken up. Ukyou was sitting on her own,
looking rather distressed, as Akane and Shampoo were giving each other
particularly evil glances. As best and Hibiki could figure, Akane was still pretty steamed about
that whole near-death thing. Ryouga
looked back to Ranma and thanked her again, her not knowing what the hell he
was talking about. The
directionally-screwed boy recalled that Shampoo did make the attempt to
apologize, but unfortunately, no one heard her tiny whisper.

Ranma followed his gaze, tempted to either
go resolve things or end up making them worse.
Her back was still killing her and the instant she remembered why it hurt, she'd bring hell down upon the culprit. Her brief memory lapse was interrupted,
however, when she came to a certain realization. "Where's pop?"

"No clue. Do you think that a panda is easy to capture?
He must have run like the big ol' coward he is."

"Alright, smartass,
what about that other old, ugly and nasty thing d'came
wid'us?"

Ryouga shrugged. "She's probably been released based on
being an Amazon, you twit."

Ranma growled, turning away. "Watch it. Hey, Shampoo!" Akane and her opponent
looked up, one delighted and one slightly irritated. Akane was winning that staring match.

"Ranma forgive Shampoo?" she
cried quite readily, those being the first words she'd spoken to her since
she'd yelled her and Ukyou silly. Akane
narrowed her eyes, turning away from the both of them.

"Um, sure. Why are you still in here with the rest of
us?"

Shampoo sighed, a mix of relief and
upset. "Aiya.
. . this not Shampoo's village. If
Amazon try visit other village, is still
outsider!"

The redhead snorted, looking through the
bars. "Great." She leaned
against the wood, intently gazing out into the camp as a few spectators passed
by. She met eyes with each of them,
eventually practicing a bit of stare-down.
She managed to creep out about two of the nine muscle-chicks that
passed. This was one hell of a scary
village. Was it just her or were these
girls a little bigger than those from Shampoo's tribe? She shuddered slightly, moving her eyes from
the people to the surrounding buildings.
It was indeed a bit daunting, sharp construction and large doors putting
a bit of a nervous streak through Ranma's confidence about getting out of there
with less than a flesh wound. The circular layout of the camp made it look like
a fortress. Escape would require something a little less direct than a bust. "Dang. . ."

Akane watched from her place in the other
corner, her memory of last night fading slightly as the sun above arched to midday. What she and Ranma had done last night was of
little consequence now -- they were all trapped, Shampoo was a jerkass and. . . well, that's all that was running through her mind. She glanced back to her momentary bane and
snarled at the smile on her face. Why
should she be so happy? And why the hell
should Ranma have forgiven her so easily?
Some honor she has.
"I mean, he."

Surprisingly, Akane wasn't nearly as mad
at Ukyou. The tongue-lashing Ranma had
given her almost made the Tendo girl feel sorry for her. Especially since they
had been friends and the voyage seemed to putting a serious strain on that
word. After all, the recent string of
actions and double-cross seemed to betray that idea. Akane swallowed uneasily; somehow, she got
the feeling that there was a reason that Ukyou and Shampoo had upped the
ante. The struggle for Ranma was coming
to a close and Akane knew it.

Too bad Ranma didn't.

The girls in question were also on
non-speaking terms. Shampoo's bungling
led to Ukyou getting in trouble and frankly, she didn't like it. Although, Ukyou never
recalled a giant boulder as being part of the plan. . . She shook her
head, giving Shampoo a suspicious glance.
"I wonder--"

She was suddenly interrupted when Ranma
squeaked, causing Ryouga to leap away and cling to the bars. "I've got it!" she cried. Ryouga was about to question before Ranma
skipped back, walking with a good pace in the direction of Akane. She looked up, perplexed, but also smiling as
she welcomed the sudden advance. Take that
Shampoo. She stood as Ranma stopped
before her and prepared to say 'yes' to whatever she was about to say.

"Shampoo, come with me."

"Yes!
Shampoo come right now!" She hopped up
with a squeal and walked off with her as she approached the bars again. Akane twitched, void of a
reaction. Ryouga took a step
closer but a lightning bolt seared the ground before his feet.

"Don't," she murmured, holding
up the tear in her sleeve.

"Yo! Amazon babes!"

Shampoo's pupils disappeared and soon
found that she could only stumble over her words. "Wh. . . what Ranma doing?" she asked, a quaver in her voice.
Ran-chan grinned slightly, sticking her tongue out at a few of the bigger women
as they hulked by.

"Big Bertha! Yeah, you, the bulldozer! What's it take to get a good fight around
here?"

Shampoo tried to back up but Ranma shot
her hand out and clamped down on her arm.
"AIYA!!
Shampoo say she was sorry for hurting
Akane! Shampoo not
want to die!! These big Amazons,
Ranma! They hurt bad!"
Ranma shoved her into the bars of the cage and pinned her steady by the
shoulder with a grunt. The girl under her desisted in her resistance, sighing in defeat. From behind, Ryouga and Akane watched with
curiosity as Ukyou viewed with a passing fancy.
"Ouch! Ranma, you too rough.
. . "

Already, Akane hated this plan.

Ranma pointed through the bars at the
battle post, not a single movement made in the hot breeze as it sat like a
stone. Or better yet, a giant tree. The enormous log was suspended by bull
rope, strung up between four thick, shaven tree trunks. It was decorative, that
was for sure. Ranma feared, though, that the red was not paint. Not that it deterred
her from saying: "What'chu say we get a battle royale
going on?"

An usually
feminine girl shoved through the growing crowd, stomping up to the cage with an
annoyance in her step. From afar she was
rather petite but it soon became clear that she towered at least a foot over
Ran-chan's head. Gulping silently, Ranma
took her eyes from the girl's bulging chest and up to her white-paint smeared
face. Her dark blue hair hanged about
her tanned shoulders, pulled back with a tattered black bow near her left
arm. The rest of her clothes, how little
there was of them, were in unusually good condition; slightly marred white
harem pants and two strips of cloth crossing over her front to somehow cover
her chest. She mumbled something in
Chinese to which Shampoo nodded carefully.

"Um, girl say is rude to barge around
like boar."

Ranma snorted. "She so didn't say that. Tell her I wanna talk to the head hancho -- the battle-babe around here."

"Speak-ing,"
the Amazon muttered brokenly.

Pausing for just a moment, Ranma let out a
high-pitched laugh, rubbing the back of her head. "You don't say? Uh, Shampoo, let her know that we're willing
to spar for our freedom. Include some coaxin' insults
for me."

"Airen, you crazy! Shampoo no tell—"

Ranma pressed against her back, whispering
harshly. "You want me to forgive you or not?" Shampoo nodded ardently
as Ryouga ran up and grabbed Ranma by the neck, yanking her back from the bars
while the captured Amazon stubbornly translated. "Eii! Let me go, Ryouga!!"

"Are you mad, woman?! We won't have
to go to Jusenkyou if you die!"

Ranma grinned, bearing a fang as his arm
slackened from about her neck. "I
didn't know you cared."

Ryouga threw her back against the bars
with a frown, snuffing her as he turned to stand with Akane. "Don't bank on it. The moment she murders you, I'm headed
home. I got nothin'
to do with you from here on out." The redhead sneered.

"Good luck finding your way
back! I hope you walk to Canada!" She stuck
her tongue out and turned around to face her new friend.

The Tendo girl leaned over, tapping Ryouga
on the shoulder. "That was a little
harsh."

Ryouga shrugged. "Whatever."

"So," Ranma said, turning to
Shampoo, "is it a date?"

Akane grunted, cracking her knuckles as
she walked forward. "I take it back."

A little pale, the Chinese girl nodded,
swallowing a bit. "Yes, is deal. .
." Saotome punched her fist, grinning like a cat
when someone tapped her on the shoulder.

"Perfect."

She fell back down from the top of the
cage, Akane's belting not able to send her through the tightly lashed bars.
Ranma bounced off the ground, groaning slightly. Akane turned and sat back down
as Ran-chan got to her feet, rubbing her cheek. "I owed you from a few
minutes ago," Akane mumbled.

". . . Perfect."

In a nearby and particularly well-adorned
hut, Cologne set down a cup of
tea. "I'm glad you understand our
situation."

The Priestess across the table chuckled,
taking a sip from her own mug. "Of course.
You'll all be released and escorted to the Springs. It is a rather unusual scenario but I've no
reason to not trust you."

Cologne nodded,
about to thank her before a ruckus snapped both their attentions to the window.

"Those are battle cries!" The
Priestess hopped up, running for the door as Cologne sighed, tapping
after on her staff. They hastily made
way to the outside, seeing a crowd expeditiously round about the cage and
battle post. A few women danced as the
beat of drums filled the air, the cries of the audience the melody for the
tune. Was that her son-in-law up there?

". . . Damnit."

Ranma stood upon the slippery wood, sudden
recollections of her bout with Shampoo coming to mind as she touched her
reddened cheek one more time. She had
been an easy win since Ranma had been able to watch her fight but she felt a
pang of fear strike her heart when it dawned on her that she was fighting
blind. What? Not that big a deal? It's an Amazon, you remember. Glancing back to make sure that her partner
hadn't turned yellow, she saw Shampoo reluctantly ready her bonbori. "Good girl."

"Ranma owe Shampoo big time if
we not die. . ."

"Yeah, don't count on it."

"We going to
die?!"

"No, dummy! Just do as I do!"

"Enough!" the tall Amazon across
from them cried as she pounded the flat of her staff off the log. "This is now time for fight!" Ranma
stepped back slightly, placing her hand on one of the ropes suspending the log
in the air. She swallowed as she gripped it tightly, looking back to give Shampoo
a wink when a voice rumbled like thunder. "I COME!!"

The blue tresses shot forward in a flash,
her staff ripping around from the left like a helicopter blade. Ranma jumped
onto the rope as Shampoo hopped back, startled.
The rod bounced off the taut line but the Amazon gave it no thought,
swinging the shaft behind her back and then down over her head. Ranma took no
time in waiting once the staff had rebounded and she jumped forward off the
rope, grabbing the stick in mid air as it passed under her feet. She suddenly cried out, however, letting it
go as she tumbled down to the log.
Ran-chan began to slide but grappled for a crack in the wood, hanging by
a sliver of luck before she crawled back onto the tree. The Amazon grinned back over her shoulder as
Ranma blew on her hands, wiping a bit of blood onto her jacket.

"That was coral in the end," she
mumbled, the sting in her palms subsiding just a bit. Shampoo snapped out of her shock and looked
as Ranma got to her feet, the blue-haired Amazon pausing only out of a lack of
humility. "Ranma is okay?!"

"Yeah, don't worry about me!"

Shampoo
nodded as the Amazon turned to her, smirking and prodding with her staff. "You not hurt my Ranma.
. ." She darkened for a moment as the blue-haired girl silently
raised her staff for a blow, startled from her attack when Shampoo suddenly
roared, launching her bonbori up to knock the rod from its path. "NO!" Shampoo cried again, sending her other weapon
for the girl's midsection. The Amazon
quickly spun her staff before her, the gleam of rod in the light making it
appear as a solid wall. The Amazon leered as she rotated the shield against
which the bonbori smacked, freeing it from Shampoo's hand and sending it to the
tree off which it rolled, falling to the ground like a stone. Shampoo looked at her single weapon, snarling
slightly. She glanced through the
Amazon's legs as the spinning slowed to see what Ranma was up to, catching
sight of her as she was seemingly standing still, facing the ropes. "What Ranma doing?!"

Ranma looked back and grunted, winking at
her again. Shampoo watched as a blur
formed at her hands, Ran-chan moving at speeds unmatched by even the incredible
rate at which the Amazon's shaft buzzed. "What you do?" she whispered
slightly before she knocked wood to her opponent's weapon.

The Amazon grinned, the two struggling
back and forth before Shampoo put on a burst of speed, shoving her back to the
center. "Why don't you give up
on your friend? She doesn't care about
you." She mumbled in their native tongue, Shampoo shaking her head violently.

"Ranma never abandon Shampoo!"
In a fit of rage she swung her bonbori up as the staff started its descent to
clash with her face. Shampoo, prepared
for the collision, braced back and put her arm up to ready herself for the blow
but it never came. As Shampoo's bonbori
wisped by her opponent's face, a mere inch let's say, the Amazon watched in
confusion as her weapon did not come down.
Instead, Ranma's face took place, hair hanging down like an upside-down
flame.

She grinned. "Hi." Her hands gripped near where
the Amazon held the staff, the wood carved smooth and untouched by the
coral. Ranma swung around the axle,
pulling her weight down along with the pole as the Amazon struggled to
comprehend. Not even mere seconds having
yet passed, Ranma swept the coral rod all the way around and through the ropes,
weakened by her previous, blindingly-fast battery. They were thinned and thus snapped like
twine, sending the Amazon tumbling back and Shampoo falling toward the
ground. Ranma jumped forward off the
staff to the Amazon's shoulders and from there to the log, grabbing Shampoo by
the waist, running up the tree as the other end picked up from the ropes,
creating a ramp. She reached the top and
jumped off into the air, and amidst the howls and cries of the crowd, the two
disappeared into the trees.

Ryouga and Akane stared in shock as the
Amazon never left the log, standing on the slanted wood to howl out in rage. Hibiki jumped when the black-haired girl with the torn
sweater made it clear that she was boiling over like a pot of water over an
oven fire. "WHAT THE FUCK WAS
THAT?!" Ducking to the side, Ryouga sighed. He knew she had been up to
something. As Akane twitched and
shivered, he looked to the Amazons surrounding the cage.

"Hey, can I have some water?"

From somewhere behind the crowd, the
Priestess snarled. Cologne nodded
knowingly. "Feel free to change
your mind."

"Done."

Panting, Ranma settled down in the
dripping trees, letting Shampoo touch feet on the branch next to her. "Whew, she was nuts. . ."

Shampoo struggled to breath, pulling her
collar loose as she fanned her neck.
"Ranma have no honor!!"

"Are you kidding me? I looked back -- she was still on the
freaking log. She was not going
down." She chuckled, almost.
"Did you think we could beat her?
She was massive!"

Shampoo stared at her, gaping. "You gamble with our life! You know Amazons hunt! Worse than being beat
by outside is being disgraced by outsider!
We get Kiss of Death for sure!" Shampoo cringed. "Shampoo no want write will. . ."

"Duh, how can we get the Kiss of
Death if we aren't there?"

"Ranma. . .
we not going back for others?" Shampoo suddenly looked hopeful. "Ranma pick Shampoo?!"

"No, calm down!! We're going back. It's just easier to work on things from the
outside." Shampoo nodded, scratching her head as a few droplets of water
shook from the trees. Ranma looked up
into the leaves, the light above sending smears of green over her face like war
paint. She glanced back to Shampoo,
nodding. "We've got two brains workin' here, we can bust 'em
out."

"Shampoo vote leave Akane,
okay?"

". . .Alright,
fine, I'll do this on my own. We are not leaving
anyone, got it? Not Akane, Ukyou. . . or Akane or Ukyou."

"Bwe."

"That'-- did you just say 'bwe?'" Shampoo shrugged, shaking her head.

"Shampoo not say
anything!" Ranma looked around, gripping the trunk with a bit of
alarm. There was a slight rustling in
the trees around them, the wind blowing too soft to cause that kind of a shake.

"Then what. . . "

"REEEE!"

"AUGH!!" Ran-chan cried as a black, round mass
shot out of the leaves above, clamping around her face in a steel grip. "WAUGH! GET IT OFF! IT'S A GIANT LEECH! IT'S KILLING ME!"

"Aiya, is
Ryouga!" Ranma clawed at her face as she tossed herself back on a bough,
writhing as she dug her fingers into porkfat. She ripped P-Chan from her head, holding him
up in the air as she wiped at her scratched face, gasping.

"Ryouga! What the hell are you doing here?" The
little piglet squirmed, shaking out her grasp as she sat up. He fell into her lap and bit at her leg,
causing Ranma to fall from her perch.
"OUCH! You
little turd!" She grappled for a branch,
dangling above the ground below. P-Chan
held on by the thigh of her pants, squealing like a mad-pig.

"Ranma and Ryouga want help?"

"YES!"

Shampoo nodded, hopping down and to the
forest floor ten feet below. "Ranma
can drop now! Will
catch!" The redhead glanced down and sighed stupidly, reaching for
her leg to grab the pig before she dropped to the ground.

"Ryouga, how the hell did you get
out?"

The little pig gave her a dull squeal as a
response, almost motioning to his current state.

"Oh, right." She looked around
before a warm drop of water tapped her on the head. Nearby, she saw a puddle ripple in the mud
and almost grinned as she hefted the pig into the air. "You'll thank me later." She
reached over and let him fall shrieking into the shallow pond, turning her head
away once the naked boy sprang from the muddy water.

"I will kill you, Ranma."

She glanced to Shampoo, seeing her watch
without reserve and sighed. "Nice to see you, too. Ryouga, I did you a favor. Here's another." Before the steam come
finish shooting from Hibiki's nose, Ranma tugged her
pants down and tossed them onto his lap.
"Glad my femmy undies
are all dirty."

Ryouga quickly pulled the bottoms on but
did not desist in stalking up to her as she yanked her jacket down over her
boys' underwear, a bit of modesty showing on her face. "You little coward. What kind of a backstabber leaves his pals
behind?" He grabbed Ran-chan by her red jacket and gave her a rough shake,
growling like a dog.

"Chill out! Wha'd'ja do that for?! We were gonna come back,
ass!"

"Well why didn't you use me then? You know that you and I could'a beat the crap outta her!"

Shampoo snorted, nodding away. "Ass. . ."

Ranma shoved him back into a tree,
sneering at him. "Yeah, you're
right. So we beat her, I get the Kiss of
Death, and you gotta marry her! Tell
me I didn't do you a favor! I figured
that Shampoo and I could'a 'scaped
if we had to, but you're too proud! Tell
me you aren't thankful, you twit." She crossed her arms, glaring at
him as he watched with a startled gaze.

"Wh. . .
Ranma. . . you did all that for me?"

"Don't let it go to your head,"
she said quietly. "I was just helpin' a friend." She sighed, rubbing her
forehead. "Dang, this sucks! How're we gonna save Akane and Ukyou? Akane's probably too mad and Ucchan's probably sulkin' like
crazy."

"As I recall, she deserved it."

"Maybe we were a little hard on
her." Rubbing her back, she snorted. Oh, yeah, that's right – that stupid
vine thing. Shampoo scoffed, whining as she spoke.

"Too hard on
spatula girl but yell plenty at Shampoo."

Ranma groaned, hushing her. "Eh. . . don't
give me grief, alright? Idn't it enough that I forgave you? Shut up about it." Blinking, Shampoo
sank back against as tree as Ryouga and Ranma got back to talking.

"Ranma tell Shampoo to shut up. . .?" She shook her head slightly as if to clear
her ears. When she looked back to the pair, they were both nowhere to be
found. "Aiya,
where Pig-boy and airen go?" She looked
to the side where a large panda took a seat and smiled. "Nihao!
Panda, you know where is Ranma?"

"Bauh buh bah, buh bow."

Back in the village, Akane leaned against
the bars, reaching out to those who passed like a lost child. "It's not my fault! I don't know those people! Really!
Let us go!" Cologne hopped up and gave
her a bat. "Ouch!"

"That's enough, girl. There's no arguing with these people. We must wait for the others to return."

"Hah!" Akane cried. "They'll. . .
they'll have eaten us before then!"

Cologne gave her another
whack. "We aren't cannibals."
Akane moaned, running over to Ukyou, tugging at her arm.

"C'mon, let's go! Help me out here!" Ukyou yanked her arm
back, sighing raggedly. "What is
it? You wanna die?" Kuonji
looked to the side, grunting slightly.
"God. . ." Tendo ran back to the bars, rattling them slightly. It was getting darker and frankly, that only
made the girls look bigger, meaner and scary. "We're screwed. . ." As
she stared out to the now disinterested inhabitants, her heart sank a bit. How could Ranma do this? How was she capable of leaving them
behind? She had to bite her tongue to
think it, but was it possible that she was running away with Shampoo? No!
How could she not come back?
She bit her tongue again, flinching slightly. Hell, if not for her, what about Ukyou?

She stuck out her tongue. She didn't want Ranma anyway.

Akane blinked. "Say. . ." Akane turned around,
leaning back against the bars. "You
think she really wanted to just run off with Shampoo?" Ukyou snuffed her,
looking at the ground.

"Lay off, already."

"No, really! I mean, it wasn't her idea to hurt
Ryouga and me, so it seems to make sense." Ukyou 'gurked', scrunching up slightly. "I can understand, almost.
. . kinda sad that she won't be back. . ."

"Stop it!" Ukyou leapt to her
feet, standing over the Tendo girl with a bit of a glare. "I said I was sorry, alright? I wasn't out to kill you." She
sucked her teeth, crossing her arms.

"Just maim us, huh?"

"Well the way you talk, I wonder why
you're still here! Sugar, this whole time you've been going on about how you
hate Ran-chan 'n' stuff and that's fine with me until you get mad about bein'
kept from him!"

"I was mad 'cause you almost killed
me!"

"I didn't set the trap!" The two
stood as a leaf drifted by, smacking Akane in the face. Ukyou was broken from
her stare as she sighed. "I know that wasn't right." She
snorted. "Look, I just wanted you
out of the way! Lost! Trapped!
Not hurt! You. . . " She shrugged, turning away. "You're my friend too, really. . ."
Akane blinked in response, removing the leaf from her cheek.

"S-seriously?"

"Hey!" she shouted, turning
around. "Don't make me look like a
bad guy, here. If I hated you, don't you
think you'd be dead by now?
Do you think I'd stand by and watch as Ranma got even more confused
about who he wants?" She grinned despite herself, wiping at the dirt that
smeared her face. She took a deep
breath, a bit of her old fire rekindling within. "Love is the only battle I'm fighting,
hon. We'll see who gets Ranma."

"Whoa whoa whoa!" Akane shouted,
waving her hands. "Wh-who said I wa--"

Ukyou shoved her up against the cage bars
and shouted, "Stop!" Akane just watched her as she went on. "Don't mess with me. You know and I know how you feel about him
and girl, you are not going to play dumb with me. Don't you dare say you don't love him and
then get mad when he acts like he doesn't love you too."
She bit her lip, looking down to the ground.
"Ran-chan. . . he. . . "
She let Akane go, stepping back.
She smiled slightly as Akane blushed, looking around. "We'll see."

"Y-yeah. . ." She looked up when
Ukyou suddenly stuck her hand out, Akane grabbing it carefully and shaking it.

"Now, how are we gonna get outta
here?" Akane put her fist to her chin, trying to think. Ukyou followed
suit, tapping on the bars. They thought
about breaking them from the start but it quickly dawned on them that these
cages were meant to hold people like them -- to hold super strong
Amazons. If an Amazon like Shampoo
couldn't do it, what hope did anyone else have?
Well, that is, the two who could were nowhere to be found. Kuonji sighed a bit when she thought about
one of them, a small pit in her stomach growing.

"Hey," Ukyou suddenly asked.

Akane looked up, still tapping her
chin. She gave her a wary glance, replying,
"What's up?"

"Why are you always so reluctant to
admit it?"

Her eyes bugged as she looked to the
sky. "U-ucchan,
is now the time? Shouldn't we talk about getting out of here--?"

"It's just you and me, isn't
it?"

Akane turned red, stumbling back against
the bars. How could it be that obvious
when she declared her contempt so vehemently?
Dumbly, Akane darkened. That was
probably what made it obvious.
"Because," she murmured.

Ukyou growled, clenching her fist. "I swear, if
you ever yell at him for calling you uncute, you
should really look in the mirror. . ."

"Shut up!" Akane shouted,
stomping her foot. "Look, I just
don't know, okay?!" Her eye twitched as she took a deep breath. "You got me, you know I
like him! Just leave me alone! Why should you care, anyway?! He probably doesn't care at all about
me!!" Blinking, Ukyou's hard gaze cracked as Akane's blatant lying puzzled
the hell out of her.

"Ar. . . are you nuts?"

"He's not here, is he?! Wh-why should he like me if all I do is turn him away?!"
She covered her mouth, looking away with a moan. She'd said waaay
too much. "I mean, she. No, wait, he!"

"A. . . Akane. . .
I. . . jeez, I shouldn't say anything but why do you
think he got mad when you got hurt? I
don't like to admit it, but. . . he has to care about
you." She winced, the pit in her stomach not being helped by her aiding
her enemy. "Damnit.
. ." Her rival was silent, staring out into the camp. Ukyou lifted a brow, tipping her head to the side. "Yo?"

". . . "

"What did you say?" Akane
pointed and said it again.

"Is that P-Chan?"

Off in the distance, a squeal rang in the
air as feet trampled after the tiny black swine. Ryouga ran like mad as a group of Amazons
followed, food cries sound far too much like war cries. As he raced even faster, tears squeezed from
his eyes as nearly the entire population of hunters fell into step behind him.

Akane leapt to the bars, reaching
out. "Peee-chaaaan!
How the hell did he get here?
Oh, they're going to kill him!
Ukyou, help me here!"

"What can we do? We're in a cage."

They jolted, startled by a tap to the
bars. Cologne looked rather
lazily, cracking her neck. "You're not in there for long!" Akane
couldn't help but smile, clutching her hands to her chest. Ukyou grinned as well, waving like a maniac.

"Ranma!!"

The girl hopped off the panda, Shampoo
following, and the two landed atop the cage. Genma, as he was due, had picked
just the right moment to stop looking for food. Ranma gave them a smile and
winked. "In the
flesh."

Akane stopped beaming and hopped up,
jabbing her in the foot. "Took you."

"Jeez!" Ranma cried, looking
back to Shampoo. "Maybe we should
leave them."

"Don't even joke like that,"
Ukyou warned, tapping her foot. Ranma
took a deep breath, inspecting the bars.

"Yeah yeah,
I know. . . " she mumbled, tapping on a few of
the poles. "Damn, these are
tough." She snapped her fingers.
"Why didn't Ryouga do his bakusai tenketsu? That can
break stone."

Akane nodded. "I asked but he said that there were too
many people around!"

Ranma swore, sitting on the corner of the
cage. "Well that's what we need."

Akane snorted. "Some help you are! Where'd Ryouga go? I turned around and he was gone! Is he with you?" Ranma shrugged and
suddenly perked up to a yell. She stood
and looked down a path when a black bullet instantly shot by the cage. Ranma's stomach sank as a dust storm
followed, Shampoo tugging at her arm.

"Aiya, Amazons say they see us!"

Before Ranma could respond, a spear sped
by her face, a few hairs dropping to the ground below. "You don't say.
. .?"

Ranma had known better than to run,
figuring that she'd be playing with the lives of those still in the bars. Ryouga had also returned to the cage quite
abruptly, confusing the life out of Akane. However, the circumstances presented
to them made it clear that Ryouga wouldn't stay locked up for long. The Priestess of the camp made an unusual
decree once they had recaptured their prisoners and decided to still grant them
their freedom and escape from the murmurs of the Kiss of Death on a particular
stipulation. She pulled Ranma from the
group and labeled her as the main instigator and had Ryouga follow. Now, Cologne, Ukyou, Akane,
Shampoo and a visiting panda watched in interest as the Priestess spoke to the
gaijin.

"You have invaded our camp and have
disrespected us as a people. However, I
know all about your situation and understand Saotome Ranma's problem quite
well." She swept back a lock of white hair. "It occurs to me that the only way to
allow your release is to test just how much Ranma wants to fix.
. . his problem. Ranma, pick a female
from your group."

Ranma quirked her brow. "Wha?"

"DO IT!" she roared, shaking her
arm.

"Ah!
Uh, um, Shampoo!" She held a hand to her chest, trying to calm her
breath.

"Shampoo," the Priestess
demanded, "step forward." The Amazon did so quickly, silently
standing nearby. "Ranma, you and
Shampoo will fight for your freedom."

"What?!"
Ranma shouted, turning white.

"Ryouga," the Priestess turned,
not honoring Ranma's shock. "You, I
know, are Ranma's friend. Your fight
will also determine your freedom. If
Ranma should win, you all go free. If
Ranma should fail, you all stay.
However, regardless of Ranma's fight, if you should win, Ryouga, you
will exempt your group from further harm.
If you should fail, then you'll have no safe passage."

Ryouga swallowed. "But if I win, that means.
. . that means that I have to marry her!"

The Priestess grinned. "Yes.
Will Ryouga's opponent step forward!"

Akane yelped slightly as a huge girl
stepped by her, giving Ukyou a shove towards the leader, causing her to tumble
into the dirt. Ranma and Ryouga shouted
in alarm, staring at the Priestess.

"But she's not an Amazon!" Ranma
cried.

"But she's on Amazonian land. For you people, I will make exceptions to our
laws."

Ryouga scoffed, helping Ukyou up from the
ground. "How do you expect to
enforce it? We'll leave, eventually!"

The Priestess chuckled, a few of the
Amazons knocking spears. "We have
our chapel ready. I must also mention that the honeymoon is considered a
spectator sport." Ryouga paled, not prepared to match wits with the whole
tribe. He and Ukyou exchanged a glance,
her stuttered to make sense of what just happened.

Akane looked between all of her friends,
seeing sunken features all around. Ukyou
look perfectly sick and Ryouga was white as a ghost. The four shriveled slightly as the people
around snickered and chuckled. Ranma
gazed upon Ukyou as she balled and unballed her fist,
her sense of compassion flaring up to unusual highs. "STOP!"
Akane shouted, running forward.
"I'll fight Ryouga!!"

Ranma choked as she shot forward, grabbing
her by the arm. "NO! If you lose, you'll have to get
married!" She curled her fingers into her arm, trying not to jump up and
down.

Akane looked at her, swallowing
slightly. "It. . . It's not fair to
Ukyou. It's not like it's her
fault."

"It's not your fault, either!"
Ranma cried.

"Too bad!"
Akane returned, nodding to Ukyou.
"I'll fight Ryouga!"

The Priestess held up her hand as a mumble
wrapped around the crowd of Amazons.
"It is decided! Ranma will first battle Shampoo and Ryouga will battle. . . this one."

Ranma sank back next to Shampoo, staring
after Akane with lost eyes as she and Ryouga were marched off. Akane looked back, their gazes meeting for a
scant second before they both turned to watch Ukyou being pushed into the
cage. "Why.
. . ?"

Ranma stood on the log, a brick in her
chest weighing down on her heart. She
turned to the left, where the sun finagled its way through some of the trees,
what little of the exposed sky burning pink with the sunset. Somehow or
another, Ranma realized that this would be more than a sparring match and
beyond that that Shampoo would not let her win. She sneezed. Then she coughed. The--

"That's enough stalling!" The
Priestess cried as the Amazons gathered around, Ryouga and Akane standing at
opposite side of the log, Shampoo and Ran-chan unable to look each other in the
eye from their perches on the wood. The
dim light cast gray shadows on the two, only small patches of their faces lit
by brighter bursts of the dying sun.
"I said begin. A win
is determined by the opponent falling to the ground! We are experts, too, so it
will not be a thrown fight."

Drat.

Ranma shut her eyes, dropping into a wait,
her hands brought up and ready for Shampoo's advance. When her eyes opened, they were suddenly
glimmering with a fierce blazing flame.
"No hard feelings," she mumbled, "but I'm getting to that
spring." Shampoo just ran forward, jumping into the air.

"Kyyaaaa!!" She swung her lone bonbori down,
sending it flying for Ranma's head. The
redhead smacked it back up to Shampoo when she batted it with her elbow,
running forward and under her as the Amazon caught her weapon. Ran-chan yelled curtly twice as she swung two
kicks around behind her, Shampoo ducking under the first and jumping over the
second, bringing her bonbori down upon her foot. Shampoo hopped up and in a bizarre balancing
act, quite similar to the one she used in the bathroom back in Tokyo, she
remained perfectly upright, following Ranma's leg around as it slowed to a
stop. Slightly transfixed, Ranma watched as Shampoo arched forward to land her
feet on Ranma's quivering knee. Ran-chan snapped out of it, though, when she
reflexively blocked a fast kick coming for her head, all the while dropping her
shaking leg.

"Get off!" She swatted for
Shampoo's midsection but she was quick, and pulled her weapon down, smacking
her in the head. Ranma yelped, tumbling
back as she grabbed her throbbing skull.
She hissed as Shampoo advanced again, shoving her weapon forward. Ran-chan darted to the side caught it,
wrenching it out of her grasp with a roar and returning to her a punch. It sailed over Shampoo as she ducked back, all the way back so that her chest was
now on the log, and she grabbed Ranma's arm with her thighs. She rocked forward
so that she was doing a handstand, forcing Ranma back. Ran-chan yipped and fell
down, tugging Shampoo with her and causing the Amazon to drop to her buttocks.

"Aie!" Shampoo yelled,
releasing Ranma's arm as the redhead stood.

"What are you doing, Shampoo? Can't you just lose?"

Shampoo flipped up onto her hands again,
looking up from the log. "No. Is matter of honor now. Shampoo love Ranma very much but will not
lose for him!"

Ranma gulped as Shampoo pushed off her
hands, launching her feet toward her face.
"I knew you'd say that." She brought her hands up, crossing
her arms to stop the kick. For moments,
Shampoo was suspended in the air, pressed against Ranma's quaking arms.

"Shampoo lose
against him, though." She smiled a bit as Ran-chan suddenly nodded,
grabbing her ankles and twirling her around.
Ranma let her go, sending her flying off the log. However, Shampoo's
hand shot out and grabbed the retied rope with a smirk, undoing one of the
knots that now supported the log. As the
wood tumbled with a crash, Ranma cried out and slid, grabbing onto the tree
before her foot touched the ground.
Shampoo hanged helpless from the pole to which the log was attached,
grinning at her. Narrowing her eyes, Ranma hopped up and sped down the log,
jumping up onto the other rope, bouncing off to reach the Amazon as she was
about to skip down to the battle post.
Ranma turned in the air, kicking off the pole and after Shampoo.

Shampoo swiveled and brought her leg up,
aiming a kick for Ranma's shoulder but in a flash, Ranma had turned in the air
once more. Their feet met and Ranma
kicked hers to the side. She rotated and brought her other foot around,
knocking hard against Shampoo's chest.
She flew from the log with a cry, skidding into the dirt below. She tumbled through the crowd as Ranma set
down, panting for breath.

The Priestess stood. "Ranma wins!"

Shampoo looked up to the trees as she
spread out on the ground, coughing slightly.
"Ranma. . ." Saotome looked up,
hearing her called through the crowd of hisses and boos. Jumping down, she pushed through the swarm
around the Amazon and knelt nearby. "Ranma?"

"I. . . you.
. . "

"No be sorry," she smiled,
wiping a bit of blood from her lip, "win fair and square. Good fighter.
Besides, Shampoo already give you Kiss of Death
before. Now you owe me two!" Ranma
groaned, sitting back in the dirt.

"Great."

After retying the log, hopefully for good,
the crowd was once again gathered around the tree. Ranma watched from Ryouga's side, giving him
icy glares. "You better not win."

He sighed, looking back to her. "What choice do I have? We wanna get to the springs safely, right?"

"Nice try! I'll kill you if you beat her."

". . . Sorry Ranma. All's fair."

"Fucker!"
Ran-chan shouted, exploding with rage as she tried to clamber up onto the log
to take him out, but was dragged down by the combined strength of three
Amazons. Ryouga gulped, looking back up
to face his opponent. Akane nodded to
him, tosses her torn sweatshirt down to the dirt. Her white undershirt was riddled with sweat,
sticking to her chest and stomach.
Ryouga choked back another mouthful of saliva and brought his hands
up. Akane did the same, stepping
forward.

"Begin!"

The two didn't waste nearly as much time
as Ranma and Shampoo had. Ryouga whipped his umbrella out and swung at her
fiercely. She skidded from her advance, leaning back as it sailed just over her
stomach, the generated wind ruffling her shirt. Immediately, she was concerned,
but didn't let it show as she moved in for a counter. The umbrella was coming
back, but Akane was feeling wiry. She jumped above it and spun like a lathe,
socking Ryouga clear across the face. She bounced off his shoulders and landed
behind him, panting already. The punch had absolutely no effect.

To his body, anyway.
Unlike Ranma, Ryouga was completely unable to entirely detach his emotions from
his fights. Ranma was a true combater, able to put friendships aside. However,
Akane landing one on his face set into motion a range of mental pops and
flashes. He automatically slowed down, and seeing this, Akane went for the
throat and Ranma watched on, absolutely amazed.

"KYA!!" She cried, feral-like and primal,
kicking him in the spine. Pulled from his shock, he jumped clear over the
second, attempting the stab the umbrella down onto her head. She swatted it
away painfully, sending another agile kick up to meet his face. He grabbed her
leg, though, giving her a whipping motion that set her off balance. Growling as
he landed, she ran forward and, in true clutzy
fashion, she tripped. Ryouga was immediately set into an emotional havoc, not
knowing what to do until she somehow regained
her balance, plowing right into him. They toppled, still on the log. Akane
groaned as she got up, holding her arm. A little dazed, Ryouga watched her
flash him an apologetic stare before she went for the dismounting kick. Ryouga
suddenly launched up onto his hand, bring his umbrella around to do the same to
her.

The silence that followed was incredible.
Akane, with a strange mix of luck and absolute disgrace, landed on the
umbrella, and was pulling one hell of a sloppy balancing act. Ranma's toes were
curling, as she watched, her fingers
digging into her palm. Ryouga looked as Akane struggled to stay upright on his
weapon, but with a grim smile, he flicked his thumb and the chute opened. Akane
squealed as she fell to her butt, bouncing on the log. Caught in a moment of
pain, Akane was unaware that Ryouga had risen with a demented grin on his face.

"BAKUSAI TENKETSU!!"

Ran-chan screamed, straining against the
girls who held her. "NO!"

The wind froze as the slow beat of a heart
boomed over the countryside. Ryouga took
two fingers and held them into the air, launching them down to the center of
the log. Akane took in a shallow breath,
diving back to grab the ropes and hang for dear life. For visual purposes only, a bolt of energy
shot down and cracked the log, rattling the land and sending the two halves
booming as splinters rained over the spectators. Akane was tossed around like a paper doll but
held tough, the ropes pulled to their extreme tensions. Ryouga stood still as stone until the tribe
went quiet, a small, greasy sound filling the air.

In moments, Ryouga stood from the ground,
sighing in defeat. His blast has
loosened the knot holding his half of the log up and he went down,
stumbling. Akane was whimpering, legs and arms wrapped around the rope when the Priestess
approached. "Wh.
. ."

"The winner."

--

In a few hours, the troupe had escaped the
tribe and was deep into the jungle. The
sun had long since disappeared from above, abandoning twilight in the name of
perfect darkness. A fire was quick to be built. Genma later rejoined them,
Ranma tired of both his antics and just about everyone around. She had nearly suffered a heart attack when
Ryouga shattered the log and nearly fainted when he lost. Ranma made sure to both scream at him and
thank him with her life and once that was out of the way, decided that she need
a splash of water to chill her nerves.
Ryouga leaned against his tent with a sigh, watching as Ranma stumbled
off to find a stream.

"Why does it take me being an ass for
her to be nice?" He glanced around, two other tents set up in a triangle
around the flames. Ukyou and Shampoo
were practically ordered to share while Akane slept with Genma and Cologne. She called it a personal preference. Today's events not withstanding, Ryouga was
not very happy about sharing with Ran-chan.
Her period not having been a problem since Nanking, she was more apt
to put the hurt on him when she felt like it.
He managed a chuckle, however, thinking that his supposed generosity would win
him a quiet rest.

"Ryouga?"
He reddened. That was so Akane's
voice. He whipped his head to the side,
startled to see the Tendo girl smiling down at him. She had a small bandage around her arm,
exposed by her torn-off sleeve but looked positively angelic in every other
respect. He immediately stood and bowed.

"A. .
.Akane-san. . . I never meant to hurt
you it was all an accident I was only being selfish and I--"

She laughed, punching him in the
shoulder. He stumbled back, giving her a
small noise as a question of her actions.
"Gosh, calm down! It's just
a rope burn. . . I never really liked this tee-shirt." She made a cute face,
smiling. "Too
tight."

He nodded slowly, seeing exactly what she
meant. She was being awfully
friendly. "Ak--"

She cleared her throat, looking to the
side, slightly. "Ryouga. . . if anyone else had thrown the fight for me, I'd beat
the snot out of them. But what you did was. . . it was sweet."

He blinked, falling to the dirt. "What?"

She knelt after him, nodding
enthusiastically. "Yeah! If Ranma lost to me on purpose, that'd be an
insult! But. .
. you were really thinking of my feelings weren't you?" Ryouga stared back
at her, confused beyond his ability to. . .well. . .
blink. She stumbled slightly, looking to
the fire. "Well. . . You knew the
rope was weak and you knew your attack would loosen it up. . . Ryouga,"
she choked, "I'm so glad you did that!
I wasn't sure that I could beat you!"

Ryouga just nodded, giving her an "Uh
huh. . ."

She bit her lip slightly, looking to the
side. "Ryouga, can.
. . would you mind taking a walk with me?" He launched to his feet,
looking around to make sure that someone saw this momentous
occasion. Everyone presumably in his or
her tents, he let out a sigh but smiled.

"Of course."

Ran-chan sighed, stuffing her hands into
her pockets. It was victory after
victory today and yet triumph was stabbing at her like an icepick. Beating Shampoo was nothing but 'shoddy frauda,' or whatever it was called. She got a brief joy out of beating the snot
out of the girl but the circumstances surrounding the battle made her sure that
she'd have rather not have been there in the first place. She couldn't help but feel that she needed to
apologize. Again, that is.

Ran-chan grinned, slightly. "What's up with me?" She yawned a
bit, folding her fingers together in front of her. As she stretched, she brought her arms up and
held them over her head, going up on her toes and cracking her back
forward. She dropped her hands, her ears
suddenly perking to a snap. "What
do you want?"

Ukyou shuffled from the shadows as Ranma
turned to her, giving her a small wave.
"Hey."

Ranma cocked her brow, crossing her
arms. "Followin'
me? I gotta piss," she lied.

Ukyou rubbed her nose, stepping up to
her. "Look, I just want to
apologize. I've been weird this whole
time."

"Ucchan. . .
" Ranma stepped back, leaning against a tree as
Kuonji continued her advance. "Um,
look, don't worry about it. We're pals,
right?" She giggled uneasily, scratching her head. "We girls are kinda--"

Ukyou sighed, slapping her hand over
Ranma's mouth. "Shh. I'm droppin' outta
the pact." Ranma's eyes widened but she was unable to voice a
question. "Listen up, would you
Ran-chan? I. . . I know I've been really
weird on this trip. But it's like this.
. . I'm not used to seeing you all the time, for days at a time. I liked that a lot, y'know.

"But I also saw more than I wanted of
your other girls. I thought
I was the only serious one but. . ." She wiped at her forehead, laughing
casually. "But damn. . . Ranma,
honey. . . I think I know your intentions, too.
I kinda realized that I never saw you acting the way you do all the
time, s-so. . ."

"Ucchan. . .
?"

She didn't bother to wipe at her tears
this time, simply letting her hands rest on Ranma's shoulders as her eyes
watered the ground. "God, I'm such
a wuss. .
." She smiled at her, vaguely, blinking her vision back to a certain clarity.
Ranma opened her mouth to speak again but Ukyou shook her head. "It's okay, honey, I know, even if you
won't admit it." She suddenly leaned down, tipping Ranma's face up with
her palms and sealed her lips to hers, a small touch finishing what would take
hours for her to word. She pulled back a
few moments later, Ranma completely dead in shock.

"I'll see you back at camp,
kiddo." She gave her a blurry wink and let her go,
Ran-chan's face still warm after Ukyou disappeared into the shadows of the
night.

"Wh. . . what the hell was that. . . ?"

Ryouga nodded faintly as he and Akane
returned from the forest, both falling silent.
"I. . . I follow. Akane. . . thanks for telling me."

She smiled at him, stopping before his
tent as Ukyou walked slowly into the clearing.
"Thank you, Ryouga." He glanced up to see Ukyou's face in the
firelight, startled by two wet streaks marking her cheeks. She returned the gaze, smiling softly.

"Ranma's off that way." Akane
mumbled the name but Ryouga beat her to the punch, running off into the
woods. "What's with him?"
Kuonji asked as she pressed her sleeves to her face.

"I think he wants to play the
messenger," Akane mumbled, blushing slightly.

"I knew it."

Akane looked away. "Is that why you were crying?"
Ukyou snorted.

"Don't be a bitch." They
were quiet, the night sounds of crickets exploding in volume before the fire
cracked. "And thanks for what you
did. You. . .
you sacrificed Ranma for me."

Akane shrugged, unzipping Ryouga's
tent. "I think I owed you. . . to thank you for understanding." Ukyou grinned
grimly, turning to walk back to her quarters.

"Whatever."

Ran-chan slumped against her tree, her
head smacking against the bark. "What. . . the. . . hell. . . was . . . that. . ." She
blew out a rush of air, bringing her head back once more to perhaps put her out
of her confused misery when it instead touched a fleshy pad of hand. She yelped as she was suddenly yanked up by
her pigtail, her knees buckling before she could stand. "OUCH!!"

"C'mon, Ranma, that's disturbing
behavior." She froze, whipping her head around.

"Ryouga! What the hell are you doing here?!" He
grabbed her by the shoulders, turning her to face him. She flinched, feeling unusually familiar to
this. "Uh, don't do that."

"What did you do to Ukyou?"

Ranma stepped back, a sudden splash of
moonlight spilling over her face. "Wha?"

"She was crying when she got back to
camp."

"Hey!" she hissed, shoving him
off her. "Ukyou was crying because'a nothing I did. She. . . " Ranma
stopped short, puffing up her cheeks.
She let the breath rush through her nose and went quiet. "Never mind. What do you want? You know how much stress I been through
already?"

"You're not alone," Ryouga
growled, looking to the ground. "Ranma. . . Akane wants to talk to you, you know. You gonna jerk around much longer or should I
go tell her you aren't available?" She hopped forward, racing into the
trees and would have vanished had Ryouga not grabbed her by the collar. "Slow down!"

"Yikes, that hurt. . ."

He tossed her back into the moonlight,
hiding his expression in the darkness.
"Ranma. . . would you do me a favor?"
Ranma was quick to nod, trying to move closer.

"Well, yeah, of course man. Why's everyone bein' so goofy? I thought I was the screwy one, today."
Ryouga managed to chuckle, pushing Ranma a tad once more. He stepped into the moonbeam, a stubborn grin
on his face. "What do you want me
to do?"

Ryouga grabbed her by the back of the
head, to which she gave a tiny eep, before he pulled
her forward, pressing her mouth to his.
His eyes shut, he murmured into the kiss, tipping his head to the
side. It was rough, but Ranma could
scarcely deliver her opinion on it.
Ryouga let her go, wiping at his lips as she fell back with a splash and
a high-pitched squeak. The sounds of a
creek had been obvious but the closeness of it was ignored until Ranma was
sitting in its cold stream. Ryouga
grinned, looking down at him. "Mind
giving that to Akane for me?"

Wait a second, him?

"R. .
.Ranma-kun?" Ranma's particularly male voice filled the air afterward, his
body hopping up to its feet. He looked
at Ryouga dumbly, sputtering. "Y. . . you're a boy."

"I'm a boy?"

There was a pause before the two exploded
in celebration, dancing up and down and through the trees. "YEAH-BABY! I'M FINALLY A BOY AGAIN!!" Ranma nearly
giggled with delight as Ryouga ran after him, calling his name. Did Ranma-kun just giggle?

"Ranma, slow down! Stop!
How the hell are you a boy?! I swear to God, if you were a boy when I
kissed you--"

"No no! I was a girl, I know. But then, before I know it, I'm sittin' in that ice-cold stream! And suddenly, look at me!" He gave
Ryouga a little clap, smiling with glee.
What the hell was that clap? "Who
cares how it happened? I'm a boy
again!" Ryouga furrowed his brow and was about to pose another round of
questions before Ranma threw his arms around him, mewling happily.

"Okay! That's way too freaky! Get off'a me!"
Ryouga shoved him back as Ranma fell into a stance that scared ten years off
his life. "R-ranma-kun, put your hand down."

"What?"

Ryouga pointed, freaking out. "Your hand, your hand! You- you're acting like a girl!"

"Huh?"

Ryouga ran forward and slapped him across
the face, watching his head whip to the side. "Sorry, but it had to be
done." Ranma sucked his teeth, snorting at him.

"Well fuck you too." He shoved
Ryouga to the side, walking back towards camp.
"Now if I'm not mistaken, that tom-- Akane wanted to talk to
me." Ryouga only had to glance once to see the twitch in Ranma's butt before
he knew something had gone seriously wrong.

"WAIT FOR ME!"

Ryouga eventually chased Ranma down,
terrified to see him run like he did.
His hand clamped over Ranma's mouth, Ryouga hissed at him. "Don't move, you hear me? Stay right here in this bush."

"If you screw around with
Akane--"

"I'm doing the both of you a
favor," he growled. He shoved Ranma
back down below the leaves and stepped further into the camp, rubbing his
forehead with irritation. If he was
going to lose Akane, it was not going to be to some femmy-ass
boy Ranma. Ryouga dragged his palm down
over her face, squeezing his chin.
That's right, he lost.

"Man. . . why
did I have to stumble over this goddamn trip?
I could be blissfully getting lost on some island.
. . no Ranmas. . . no heartache. . ." He
grinned. "No Amazons." Pulling
out a pot of water, he placed it over the fire and sat nearby as it approached
a boil. "Figures. You take one life changing journey into China and the girl you
love is bound to tell you that she has eyes for some cross dresser."
Ryouga blinked as the shadows danced across his face. "Ukyou knew it to.
. . why else would shave have been crying?"

Rubbing his head, he looked back to where
Ranma had obediently stayed. "Man.
. . that smarts. . ." As he hunched over with a
sigh, a small zipping sound tugged at his ear.
"I guess I'm a liar, Ranma. . ."

"Ryouga?"

He looked back over his shoulder,
startled. "A-Akane-san!"

". . . Did you ever find Ranma?"

"Here I--"

"Nope!"
Ryouga shouted, whipping the steaming teapot into the brush. It clanged off what Akane assumed was a rock
-- a rock with an unusually high-pitched voice.
Ryouga glanced to Akane as she peeked sheepishly from his tent and
thumbed to the bushes. "She, uh,
just got here."

"What the hell. . . " Ranma mumbled as she climbed out of the brush,
soaking wet.

Akane gave her a queer look but asked for
her by name. "Ranma, can I talk to
you?"

The redhead instantly forgot about the
bruise on her head and nodded, stumbling over and around the fire. "Yeah, sure."
She ducked into the tent without another word, Akane giving Ryouga a thankful
nod. The tent flap closed and Hibiki had to wonder if he had gone stir crazy. He sat back
down by the fire when a voice suddenly picked up behind him.

"Shampoo sorry, Ryouga.
. ." His arm shot out and grabbed her bonbori, his leg swinging out
to trip her to the ground as she tried to walk towards Akane's new tent. He grinned.

"Don't even think about it."

Akane finished zipping the flap, tapping
on the material once she was done.
"Not exactly soundproof but I can't imagine that no one doesn't
know what I'm gonna say," she mumbled, gazing back to see Ran-chan picking
water from her ear and undoing her jacket with the other hand. "'Cept you. .
."

"What was that?"

"Nothin'. .
. " She scooted over, sitting across from Ranma
as the redhead finished shaking out her clothes. She sat, her jacket
open and her boxers showing, looking like hell.
"Man, Ranma, this trip hasn't been good on your constitution."

"Tell me that's
not all you wanted to say."

"Do yourself
a favor and just be quiet," Akane said with an icy tone. "I guess I'm not surprised. You're juggling a week long tour of China with.
. . some girls tearing for your heart." Ranma gave her a glance but shook
it off. Akane suddenly smiled at her,
looking to the ground. "Ranma. . . why did you get so worried when I wanted to fight
Ryouga?"

"Are you kidding me?" Ran-chan
cried, leaning forward a bit. "How am I supposed to react?! Am I supposed to let him.
. . gurk. . . no!" She sat back, crossing her
arms. "Y-you're my fiancée."

"So it's about me being a slab of
meat, or something?"

"That's not what I said," Ranma
mumbled. "But you're right. I feel like hell." They fell into
silence, Ran-chan looking at her hands, idling with her fingers. Akane watched her curiously, the pre-battle
spectacle she had put on coming back to her mind. She smiled again, Ranma's unusually quiet
reserve almost charming.

"You won't lose me to Ryouga, Ranma. . ."

Ranma blinked, looking up. She opened her mouth to speak but Akane held
up a hand.

"N-no, he knows. I. . . I told him a little while ago. It's like I've told everyone but you and I
guess that's not very fair. . . " Her smile faded
for a moment, her cheeks suddenly tightening.
"R-ranma," she mumbled, looking
away. "I can't keep
stalling--"

"NO!" Ranma shouted, scooting
forward. Akane was jolted out of her
tears, looking at her with wild eyes when she suddenly placed a gentle touch to
her lips, her finger dancing under her chin.
Akane fell back onto her elbows, feeling like a feather floating to the
ground. She wanted to freeze and enter
dramatics but was lost in how soft the kiss was, eagerly returning the soft
embrace. Ranma leaned back, shakily
putting a hand to Akane's cheek as every near miss was blown to bits by the
reality of what had just happened.

"I. . .I. .
." she stuttered quietly as her heart raced like a hummingbird, "I
didn't wanna wait anymore. . ."

Akane swallowed, watching her
carefully. "R-ranma--"

"I love you," she whispered,
shutting her eyes tightly. For a moment
she was sure she messed up, Akane unmoving and unspeaking as she sat below
her. Afraid to open her eyes, Ranma
began a slow retreat before a hand tugged her down via the back of her
neck. Akane sighed against her ear,
causing the redhead to shiver like it was thirty below.

"I love you, too. . ." Allowing
Ran-chan to pull back slightly, Akane beckoned her down again, pressing her
lips to those for which she'd longed so much.

Ryouga and Shampoo let their hands fall to
their sides, unable to hear anything past the confessions that had erupted from
the tent. They exchanged a glance, a
trace of a smile on Ryouga's face, a blur threatening his eyes. "Ryouga not surprised, either?"

"It's a bitch, ain't
it?"

Shampoo touched her middle finger to her
eye, wiping at a rogue tear. She laughed
a bit, though, nodding. "Aiya, she
is." Ryouga looked away, chuckling like a mad man.

--

I
know you shivered. Tell you didn't
I'll be all "naw-uh!" End of part five!
- 4
- 5
- 6
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Inverse Property