"Memories"
Written by MmeFleiss 
All characters are owned by Rumiko Takahashi.
**************************************************************************

     Ranma watched the rain in dismay. There was a thunderstorm outside
and the power was out. It was alredy late in the afternoon so Akane was in
the kitchen looking for some candles.

     The house was unusually quiet, with Kasumi and Nabiki visiting
relatives in Okinawa and their fathers leaving earlier that day after
angering Happosai once again.

     He idly watched a raindrop as it lazily rolled down the window, only
to land on a puddle by the windowsill. He had never really liked the rain,
but ever since Jusenkyo he had despised it.

     He wished it would stop soon so the broken powerline could be fixed.
It was very inconvenient to have the power out, especially since it was
supposed to be cold out tonight.

     His thoughts were cut off as Akane entered the room, yelling, "I
found them!"

     He watched as she carefully put the candles on the table and started
to light them one by one. The room was soon aglow with soft candlelight;
a smile formed on Akane's lips as she set up the table with the food
Kasumi left for them.

     "I also found this beside the candles," she said as she took the
small battery-operated radio out of the kitchen.

     She put it on the middle of the table and turned it on, an upbeat
song filling the room.

     He watched as she started to hum along, singing out the parts that
she knew. He had never heard her sing before and was surprised to hear her
sweet, clear voice. It was so different from the one one he usually heard
from her, which was always filled with anger.

     He started to clap as she sang the last word, eliciting a blush from
her. She seemed to have forgotten that he even was in the room and she
gave an embarassed bow before sitting next to him.

     She seemed to be avoiding his gaze but started to relax as the meal
progressed. After they had cleared their plates, Akane went to stand next
to the window and sighed.

     "This brings back so many memories," she said to no one in particular.

     "Like what?" he asked as he watched her turn around and sit back down
across from him.

     "I remember when I was five," she said softly. "There was a
thunderstorm just like this one. The power went out right before bedtime
and Kasumi, Nabiki, and I were so scared of the dark. We sneaked into our
parents' room and begged them to let us sleep with them."

     A smile formed on her lips as she remembered more of that night.
"They refused at first, but they gave in when they realized we had no
intention of leaving."

     She then gave a low chuckle. "We drove them crazy screaming after
each clap of thunder. Daddy even swore that he had gone deaf."

     He watched her closely as she told him the story. He noticed her eyes
turning brighter with each word as she relived a happy moment in her
childhood. He was glad that she trusted him enough to tell her most
treasured memories. He wished he could tell her a special childhood memory
of his own, but sadly, all he could remember was his decade-long training
trip with his pop.

     She was still smiling as she finished her story, a comfortable
silence between them as another song started to play on the radio. He
unconsciously started to sing along, causing Akane to smile at him with
wonder before she too started to sing.

     After awhile, Ranma stood up and held out a hand. "May I have this
dance?" he asked her, his eyes twinkling with amusement as she stood up
and did an exaggerated bow.

     "I'd love to," she said with a silly grin as they started to dance,
their laughter filling the room with each mistake they made.

     A slow, romantic song started to play and Ranma instinctively brought
her closer to him. His hands moved from her waist to the small of her
back as she rested her head on his shoulder.

     He started to blush as he realized what they were doing and was about
to apologize to Akane for acting on impulse when he noticed that she was
still smiling and was making no objections.

     He relaxed and decided to just enjoy the moment. He noticed for the
first time the intoxicating scent of her shampoo. It smelled like lemons
and it reminded him of the lemon meringue pie that they were supposed to
have for desert.

     Ranma mentally laughed at his last thought. 

     After the last few bars of the song played, he reluctantly got out
of the cozy embrace and tried to gather his courage.

     "A-Akane,..." he said as he swallowed the lump on his throat
nervously. "...I..."

     "Yes?" Akane asked, a slight blush on her cheeks as her mind informed
her that she had enjoyed the dance TOO much.

     Ranma also noticed the blush which he thought made her look even
cuter. He felt his courage dissolve and his brain turn to mush as she
looked up at him.

     "...I..." he mumbled nervously as he tried to find the words that he
had waited so long to stay.

     They stood in silence for a couple of minutes in the warm, candle-
scented air, their hearts beating wildly as they watched each other from
the corners of their eyes.

     Finally, Akane broke the silence by saying, "I had fun too." She then
smiled before giving him a small peck on his cheek.

     Ranma, in his shock, could only nod his head in agreement as he
watched her ascend the stairs. A smile formed on his face as the last
couple of minutes replayed in his mind.
 
     He might not have been able to tell her how he felt, but he knew that
he'd remember this night forever.

                                THE END
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AUTHORS NOTES:
        Well,that the end of this story.I have no idea why I'm suddenly
writing romantic type fics.I really don't have a lot of experience writing
these type of stories,so if you  hated it/loved it  tell me!
        What song were they dancing to? An instrumental of "Beauty and the
Beast" of course! The song just fits the mood,you know "Both a little
scared,neither one prepared..."
         I'm rambling aren't I? Anyway, send all comments and criticism to

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