Sweet Surrender
by Minako
Rights to Ranma 1/2 go to Rumiko Takahashi and all the other people
involved in its making. The song Sweet Surrender is from the CD
Surfacing by Sarah McLachlan. I claim no right to that either.
-------
It doesn't mean much
It doesn't mean anything at all
The life I've left behind me
Is a cold room
-------
"Believe me Nodoka, I will raise Ranma to be a man among men."
Nodoka ran one hand over the sheathed katana she was carrying.
"You'd better, Genma." Genma gulped. Ranma looked back and
forth between his parents, confusion written all over his face.
"Come along son." Ranma blinked, then looked up at his dad.
"Where Daddy? Where are we going?" Genma looked down at his
son.
"On a trip." Ranma looked confused.
"Isn't mommy coming?" Nodoka walked over to her young son,
tears in her eyes.
"No dear, I'm going to stay here." Ranma looked up at his
mother. "You be a good boy for your father, alright?" Ranma nodded
enthusiastically, not quite understanding the situation.
"I'll be good!" He promised. Then Genma took him by the hand
and led him away from their house. "Bye-bye Mommy!!" He called as they
left.
"Goodbye Ranma! Remember Genma, a man amongst men!" Genma
stiffened at that, but continued walking down the street with his son
in tow.
-------
I've crossed the last line
From where I can't return
Where every step I took in faith
Betrayed me
And led me from my home
-------
"Here we are sirs. This is Spring of Jusenkyou." Ranma looked
around, He was surprised. His father had talked about this place as if
it was some kind of death trap.
"This isn't half as bad as I thought it would be." He said with
a half grin. He and his father each leapt onto one of the narrow poles
sticking out of the springs. Ranma absently heard the guide yelling at
them in broken Japanese.
"I won't go easy on you boy." Ranma grinned and took a stance.
"Good, that's just the way I like it." They started the fight,
and Ranma quickly got a good hit in on his father, who fell into one of
the springs. Ranma chose to ignore the guide, who was yelling over by
the edge of the ponds. "Hey old man, what's wrong? Had enough already?"
After a moment, a large panda emerged from the water. Ranma's eyes
widened as the panda took a stance on one of the poles. He pointed at
it. "What... What the hell is that!?" The guide answered something
Ranma didn't understand, but he made out one bit. 'Cursed spring!?' He
glared down at the guide "You didn't say anything about that to us!"
The error he'd made occurred to him a split second to late, as he
turned to look at the panda, who was sure enough flying at him. He
didn't even have time to block. He felt the panda's fist connect with
his chin and flew into one of the springs. He felt a little strange,
but he was still human. 'Maybe I got lucky...' I thought to himself as
he reached the surface. But something definitely felt wrong. He
couldn't quite put his finger on it.
"... Spring of drowned girl." He surfaced to hear that
sentence, and what was wrong occurred to Ranma and he looked down at
himself. Closing his eyes he opened the front of his gi, then got up
the courage to look down again.
He screamed.
-------
And sweet
Sweet surrender
Is all that I have to give
-------
"Listen up old man! I'm not interested in marrying some girl
I've never met! Just leave me alone!" Genma promptly whacked Ranma
upside his head.
"Stupid boy! Can't you see I'm doing this for your own good!?
You'll thank me for this one day." Ranma responded to that by kicking
at his father's head.
"I ain't gonna marry her and that's that." Genma glared at
Ranma, and got into his defenses long enough to grab him by the front
of his shirt.
"Do you really want to be thrown out in the streets again, huh
boy? We have an offering of a place to live! All you have to do is
marry her, and all will be alright." Ranma broke his father's grip on
his shirt.
"We weren't thrown out on the streets! You dragged me there. Is
this all I am to you? Just some excuse to get something you want!?"
Genma walked deeper into the forest, towards the spot where their camp
was.
"Have it your way, boy. You'll understand why I've done this
soon enough." Ranma blinked as his father left the clearing.
"Understand what? That you're a selfish idiot?" Glowering at
nothing, or maybe something only he could see, Ranma went into a
complex kata and practiced until late into the night, before giving up
and going to sleep.
-------
You take me in
No questions asked
You strip away the ugliness
That surrounds me
-------
"Good morning Ranma, breakfast will be ready in a while, so
why don't go outside and spar with your father for a while, he's
waiting for you." Ranma blinked.
"Um, ok. Thank you Kasumi." She smiled at him as he left the
room. He went outside and found his father, and they began a
decade-long habit of early morning sparring. Ranma was distracted from
his fighting by the voices in the dojo.
"So maybe they are kinda good." He made a face. Kinda!? Why
that stubborn girl...
"Mr. Saotome, Ranma! Breakfast is ready." Taking his
frustration and his confusion out on his father, he kicked him into the
pond. Why were they even here, for a free meal? He made a face. It
wasn't like they could be serious about the whole fiance thing, there
wasn't a chance he'd marry that uncute tomboy.
"Oh my, It looks like Mr. Saotome will need something different
for breakfast." He watched as Kasumi pulled out a plate of bamboo. His
confusion increased. Didn't it bother anyone other than Akane that they
were freeloaders, come in off the road. Ranma sighed and sat down for
breakfast aloing with the rest of the Tendous, feeling oddly out of
place.
-------
Are you an angel?
Am I already that gone?
-------
'Man, has it really already been two years?' Ranma sighed, and
rolled over to stare at the ceiling. He thought of all the fiances he
was now aware of, and how much they'd all made it through. He couldn't
believe that Akane still put up with him. 'Why can't I just... just
tell her?' He thought back to when they'd first come, and how much he'd
protested. He couldn't believe that his old man had been right, he had
fallen for her. Hard. He rolled back onto his side and stared at
nothing. 'There's no chance she feels the same... is there?'
-------
I only hope
That I won't disappoint you
When I'm down here
On my knees
-------
Ranma gathered his strength and dropped to one knee in front of
Akane, watching her confused expression and praying that she wouldn't
reject him.
"Um, Akane?" He caught a slight hope in her eyes, and that gave
him a bit of needed strength 'Don't let me mess this one up...' "Will
you... uh... marry me?" He blushed and looked down at the ground,
holding up one hand with a small silver band in the center of it. He
couldn't afford anything fancy, not even gold, or any kind of ornament.
This was one thing he hadn't been willing to take out a loan from
Nabiki for. There was a long silence and he felt worry grow in him.
'Why is she taking so long? Is she trying to torture me? Why won't she
answer?'
-------
And sweet
Sweet
Sweet surrender
Is all that I have to give
-------
It had been a week since he'd proposed. A week. She still
hadn't answered, and he hadn't gotten up the courage to ask her about
it. 'Dammit Ryouga, I know you have no directional sense, but did you
have to wander in just then?' He sighed. He had no idea what to do now.
He wanted to know her answer, but he was afraid that her not saying
anything meant she wasn't interested, meant she'd rejected him. It
occurred to him then that he was probably better off without an answer.
As long as she didn't say no, he was fine. But the suspense was still
killing him...
-------
Sweet
Sweet
Sweet surrender
Is all that I have to give
-------
"Um, Akane? Can I talk to you." Two weeks had passed since he'd
decided he didn't want to know. Now, he couldn't stand not knowing. He
still didn't know if he could handle her refusing him, but he needed
her to answer him.
"Sure Ranma. What do you want?" He took a deep breath, then
fixed his gaze on the carpet of her room. This was it.
"Uh, remember a couple of weeks ago... when I um..." He trailed
off, he wasn't ready to ask about it. He cursed himself for being weak.
"It was three weeks and a day Ranma." He looked up at her, and
she smiled at him. "Go on."
"Um... I've kinda been wondering what your answer was." Akane
smiled at him and he looked down at her in surprise.
"Yes." She said, then she hugged him tightly around the neck.
He couldn't breathe, but at the moment, it really didn't matter to him.
At all.
-------
And I don't understand
By the touch of your hand
I would be the one to fall
-------
"Akane is mine Saotome!" Ranma didn't recognize the boy
standing in front of him. It wasn't one of the regulars who tried to
get between him and Akane.
"We'll just see about that!" Ranma felt Akane take one of his
hands. He turned to look at her in surprise. "What?"
"Don't fight him." Ranma blinked.
"Why not?" She lay her head on his shoulder.
"Just don't. Please." He stared down at her, never leaving his
ready stance.
"Who is he Akane?" She choked on her tears, and buried her face
in his chest, wrapping her arms around his waist.
"Don't fight him Ranma, you can't win... trust me." Ranma was
torn, he didn't know what to do.
"Akane..." He sensed movement, and turned his attention away
from Akane to look at the boy, who's name he still didn't know.
"An opening!" Ranma blinked. 'Too fast!' he thought to himself
as he twisted around so the blow would hit only him and not Akane.
"RANMA!!" Akane's scream was the last thing he heard.
-------
I miss the little things
Oh I miss everything
-------
Ranma sat down near a tree trying to remember what had
happened. He remembered getting into a fight with some guy over
Akane... but what came after that? He leaned back, and yelped as he
fell through the tree. He sat up, and spun around to stare at the tree.
Cautiously, he reached out to touch the tree with his hand. His fingers
passed through the bark. He gulped and looked down at himself. He
jumped up with a yell as he realized he had no feet. 'A ghost? That
would mean... he killed me... Akane...' worry for his fiance filled him
as he tried to come to terms with the fact he had died.
-------
It doesn't mean much
It doesn't mean anything at all
The life I left behind me
Is a cold room
-------
It was dark when Ranma made it to the Tendou's. No one was
awake, so he headed upstairs to Akane's room. He paused in front of his
room. The door was open, and his father's things were missing. Ranma's
few belongings were still strewn about the room, exactly the way he'd
left them. He let out a heavy sigh, then continued to Akane's room. He
paused outside the door, and he could hear her crying. Then he heard
another voice.
"It's ok Akane..." The voice was familiar... and male. It took
Ranma a split second to recognize it. 'Ryouga... I'll kill you if
you...' He walked through the door, not caring that he couldn't feel
the resistance of it. When he entered the room, he froze at the sight
of his worst nightmare. The window was open and Akane was kneeling on
the floor crying. Ryouga was sitting beside her, holding her, and doing
his best to comfort her. After a moment Akane pulled back from him.
"I'm sorry, it's just... it was so real." Ryouga reached over a
stroked a piece of her hair out of her eyes.
"I know... I know it still hurts. It still hurts everyone."
Ranma watched helplessly as Akane curled up in Ryouga's lap with her
head on his shoulder. He didn't think anything could hurt this much,
especially not after he'd already died. She brought her left hand up
and pulled a small silver chain out from under her shirt. On the end of
it was the ring he'd given her when he'd proposed.
"I hope he's not mad about this... wherever he is." Ranma's
anger slowly seeped out of him, and he gave up. Turning he went to
leave the room. He paused, facing the door, and took a deep breath.
"It's ok Akane, I understand... I'm not mad." He said the words
softly and felt tears on his cheeks as he said it. He couldn't remember
the last time he'd cried when he was alive... he sighed. And continued
through the door.
"I'm glad... Ranma..." He spun around as she said the words
softly, half asleep in Ryouga's arms. He watched the worry on Ryouga's
face. Wondering if Akane'd heard him, or it was just a coincidence, he
looked at Ryouga.
"Be good to her man, you know she deserves it." He said,
glaring at Ryouga. Then he left. When he reached the door of the dojo,
he paused. "Sayonara." He whispered, before leaving.
-------
This is the part where we all pity poor Ranma-kun. I really didn't want
to end it like that, but it occurred to me that it kinda worked with
the song that she'd have to fall in love with someone else after he'd
died and Ryouga's cool anyways. Comments and stuff are welcome at
daybreak_impression@yahoo.ca flames make me cry, but constructive criticisms
I can deal with. Ja ne.
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