Nabiki woke up slowly the next morning. The first thing she realized was that she was warm, very warm, almost too warm. The second thing she realized was that Ranma was wrapped around her and sleeping soundly. He had to be the source of the heat. He was also the source of the cedar and subtle flower scent she smelled all around her. She was sure she smelled like him now. That made her happy.
She enjoyed that he was so warm. She took stock of their sleeping situation without moving or changing her breathing pattern, so she didn't wake him up. She was under the blanket she had gone to sleep with. Based on how warm she was, she figured that Ranma had to be under his own blanket as well, as no heat was escaping anywhere. So, at some point in the night, they must have merged somehow.
Well, she had told herself that she had faith that Ranma would figure out how to make the sleeping arrangement work so he would know if she was attacked. I ... wasn't wrong. She thought with a smile. Her head was positioned higher in the bedding than she usually slept.
Ranma was resting his head in the middle of her back, so he must have slid down a bit during the night. He had his arms encircling her around her hips with his left hand resting on the flair of her right hip, and his right on her left. He had his left leg draped over both of her legs, while his right was pressed up close against her. His hands were resting on her bare skin, as her pajama top had also slid up a bit during the night, but not too far.
Well ... so much for keeping this all innocent and detached. She thought to herself nervously. She wasn't nervous about him. She knew he would never hurt her. But, despite what she had told him last night, she actually was a little bit worried about being found in a position like they were in at the moment. She considered waking him up and making sure nobody saw them like they were. But the dragon inside her growled at her.
She was warm and happy, and it was peaceful and quiet in his arms. She didn't get moments like this very often. So she relaxed her muscles and lay still in his arms, enjoying their time together. She tried to imagine what it would be like to be married to him.
She couldn't really enjoy those thoughts that much at the moment though, because her worry about Akane overshadowed all of that. Not only was she still worried that Ranma would eventually choose her younger sister, but she was also extremely afraid of what it would do to Akane if Ranma didn't choose his first fiancée.
Why does everything in life have to be so complicated? She thought miserably. I mean, sure, their situation really wasn't that complicated, lots of people want what they can't have. They will cry and move on. But, for Akane ... Ranma was her first love.
Ranma wasn't just some random high school boyfriend. Because of Daddy's meddling, Ranma had been promoted directly to fiancé and skipped over the boyfriend stage entirely. The weight of that title, that he hadn't earned from her, made everything so much more serious and hard to dismiss.
To top things off, Akane and Ranma had walked in on each other in the bath on the very first day they had met. That had set the embarrassed and strained tone on their relationship from the start. It hadn't helped that Ranma had been insulting about it, nor had it helped that Akane had overreacted to it.
The biggest problem between the two of them had been a combination of Ranma's lack of proper social training coupled with Akane's inability to be honest about her feelings. That plus the fact that both of them had fairly high levels of pride, and their relationship was pretty much guaranteed to include bickering like children ... or siblings. She didn't have any brothers, but she had friends with brothers. And Ranma certainly acted like her friend's brothers a lot, especially with Akane, especially when he was trying to annoy her and provoke a reaction out of her.
With her and Ranma, though, it was different. They hadn't started out on the wrong foot. They also hadn't started out thrown together and engaged against their wills. And, while she did have her own pride, she didn't let it control her life. She knew about Ranma's social issues, and she made allowances for them. Oh, she knew Akane did as well, but Akane seemed to forget about them when Ranma was annoying her.
Not that she blamed Akane, sometimes Ranma was annoying. If one was to stoke the fires of Ranma's immaturity, one could quick see that he had definitely been raised by his father, almost exclusively. Additionally, Akane didn't know it, but she had her own social issues as well. Mom's death had messed Akane up and made it very hard for her to be honest about her feelings.
Why am I thinking about Akane so much? She wondered. To quiet her mind, she leaned back slightly in Ranma's arms, and gloried in how right it felt. She knew that Ranma wasn't perfect. She knew that he wasn't her soulmate or any other such nonsense. But she also knew that she felt good when he was with her. She liked to think that he was happy to be with her as well. At least, I hope he does. She thought. She didn't get to luxuriate in his arms for long though, because she felt him starting to stir behind her.
As he stirred, he called out from his dreaming. "—kane! Hang on! Akane! ... Akan— hold on!" He was getting more agitated, and she could feel his legs flexing like he was trying to run. So she quickly spun around in his arms and wrapped her own arms around him and tried to calm him down. Not only was she genuinely worried about the noise he was making, but she also didn't like that he was dreaming about Akane being in trouble. She rocked side to side with him and whispered soft nonsense noises to him to quiet him.
He did stop yelling almost immediately. But, she could tell he was waking up. Oh well, nothing lasts forever. She thought wistfully. She relaxed a bit before she realized that he now had his face buried into her navel, and his hands had shifted from around her hips to under her top and on her back. He nuzzled her as he slept and sighed deeply and contentedly as he held her even more tightly than he had been.
Well ... sure ... this is keeping things detached and innocent. Nothing anyone could raise an eyebrow to here or anything. She thought sarcastically to herself as she blushed. She knew he wasn't doing anything on purpose, but this was the most intimate she had ever been with anyone since she had been a little girl being held by her parents. And this was a completely different kind of intimate.
His breath on the hairs of her navel was tickling her. She really wanted to squirm, but she knew that would wake him up all the way, and when she thought of doing that, the dragon inside her looked back at her and scowled with an extremely disapproving face.
OK, well, I mean, this is nice and all, but it doesn't even count if he's asleep, and now my top has ridden up even further, and he has his face buried in my tummy. I really am going to have to marry him if Daddy sees us like this. She thought worriedly as she stroked his hair and held him.
It crossed her mind that he might be faking being asleep, and just using that as an excuse to nuzzle her. But, she really didn't care. It wasn't like he was groping her, he was basically just hugging her ... sideways. She smiled at that thought. And swatted the dragon inside her aside and willed it to behave itself as she started to stroke Ranma's hair more deeply as she rocked with him a little less soothingly as she brought him up gently from sleeping.
She knew immediately when he had woken up, because he stiffened in her arms like he had suddenly found himself standing at the edge of a cliff. In a way, he had. He was certainly standing at the edge of a new frontier with her. Although what he was probably the most afraid of was imagining Akane or Daddy's reaction to the position they were in. She was very happy they had locked the door last night. She decided not to say anything first, to see how brave he would be. Several moments passed with him not saying anything as she continued to stroke his hair and rock with him.
"I have no idea what's goin' on, but I'm sure I'm in trouble." He finally mumbled into her soft skin.
She smiled happily at that. She liked that he had chosen to respond to the situation with a joke. "You're not in trouble, Ranma." She said softly to him.
"All right ... well ... why are we— what am I—" He stammered with his face still pressed into her skin softly. The vibrations from him speaking with his lips pressed against her tickled, and now that he was awake, she let herself squirm happily.
She looked up to the ceiling and smiled lazily as she decided what to do, then shrugged and pulled on his jaw to lift him up higher. As she did so, she wiggled downward so they could more or less meet in the middle. She let go of his head then and pulled her top all the way back down so she wasn't showing her tummy any more. Ranma was now at her eye level. He still had his arms around her, and they were still in bed together.
So, you know, all in all, a net positive. She thought happily to herself.
I'll just know.
He looked into her eyes with a trace of confusion and embarrassment on his face, but it was fading. "How did we..." He trailed off as he shifted his eyes from hers and looked at her chin in embarrassment. It was sweet that he couldn't even get the words out.
She answered his unspoken question. "I don't know. I woke up with you wrapped around me." She couldn't help herself, she had to go for the joke. "You're quite the little Romeo." She added with a small smile as she reached up with one hand and poked him in the nose teasingly.
He frowned at her as he looked back into her eyes. "I am not. I ... " He looked away again and blushed.
"You ... what, Ranma?" She asked gently as she smiled. She knew she shouldn't enjoy it so much when he was flustered, but she did.
"I ... I didn't mean to ... I'm so—"
She interrupted him. "You don't need to apologize, Ranma. Do I look mad?" She asked him with a trace of annoyance. She had been hoping he was going to say something ... else.
He shook his head no.
"I would like you to explain one thing, though." She added in a playful tone.
He nodded nervously.
"Why do you dance while you're sleeping?"
"I ... I dance?" He asked, incredulous.
"Yes." She said in a deadpan voice as she held his gaze. "It was very entertaining. I thought about taking pictures."
"I...I...I... I dunno. Pops never said anything about me doin' that I—"
He trailed off as she started laughing. It was a quiet laugh, but he clued in then that she had been joking. He scowled at her. "I'm gonna have to get you back for that." He promised.
She grinned at him for an answer. You'd better. She added silently.
"Well ... should we ... get up?" He asked softly.
She sighed and nodded. Then she added a request, mostly on a whim, but also just because she was curious if he could do it. "But you have to hold me until you're standing."
He looked at her blankly and blinked in surprise. Then he nodded. "Sure," was all he said. Then she felt his arms tense around her as he quickly shifted his weight under himself. She was briefly in a sitting position as he pulled her into his lap while he moved his arms so one was under her legs by her knees and the other was wrapped around her back and shoulders. Then he popped up to his feet effortlessly and stood there proudly while holding her. He was very strong. She smiled gleefully and kicked her legs like a kid at an amusement park and squealed happily. "Again, again!"
He smiled at her but didn't move. The cold morning air in the room was hitting her skin now, and she shivered. But it was all right, because he was holding her, and his warmth was making the transition less abrupt than most mornings usually were. She turned in his arms and looked at him and shivered again. But not because she was cold.
I'll just know. She kept repeating Mom's words to herself as she looked at him. She was scared, and she was happier than she could ever remember being.
He set her down gently but kept his arms around her waist. She reached up languidly and wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned into him as she sighed happily. She didn't want the moment to end. She knew that Daddy was going to have the wall of her room fixed today. So last night had been their last night together. Unless ... he chose her. She bit her lower lip as she looked up at him and tried to control her fears. She shook her mind away from those thoughts. Those thoughts led to doubt which led to pain. She didn't want to dwell on her doubts, she wanted to be in the moment and to make memories with him. That way ... that way when he chose Akane, at least ... at least she would have her memories.
Good job not dwelling on your doubts. She chided herself. She knew her emotions were flashing across her face, despite her efforts to hide them from him. He could read her, so she didn't even know why she bothered. He was looking at her with worry etched on his face.
"You all right?" He asked her as he pulled her in a little closer.
"I'm fine. Just don't like getting up in the morning." She lied. She could tell he knew she was lying, but he was gracious enough to leave it alone. "Well ... shall we?" She asked, as she readied herself to face the day and loosened her arms from around him.
He mimicked her movements, and loosened his own grip on her. Both of them took a step back and their hands slid down until they were just holding hands. The dragon inside her was pushing frantically up against the back of her and determinedly trying to make her kiss him, but she ignored it.
Finally, she sighed and let her hands drop from his. He looked at her curiously. She knew he was trying to figure out what she was thinking. Mentally she stuck her tongue out at him. He might be able to read her when she was showing signs on her face and with her body language. But, he couldn't read her mind.
Good thing too, or the poor boy would probably go blind. She thought with a smirk which she let appear on her face. Ranma just looked at her, even more confused. She was all right with that. Always keep them guessing. She said to herself. It was one of her personal mantras.
"See you at breakfast?" He asked he as she stepped backwards from him.
"Of course, and we can walk to school together, if you want." She said with a small smile on her face. He nodded to her. She continued to smile as she backed towards the door, reached behind herself and fumbled for the lock, then opened it, stepped through, and slowly closed it. She didn't break eye contact with him until she closed the door between them.
Perfect. She thought to herself happily. That had been a perfect moment. It had been sweet, and full of promise and desire and everything else she didn't have words for yet. She smiled happily to herself and turned around to go to her room to get clothes for the day, and froze.
Akane was standing in the hall looking at her with a crestfallen face. She had obviously been crying. Her little sister was frozen in place in the position she had been in as she had been exiting the bathroom. She was still in her pajamas and she was positioned like she had been walking back to Kasumi's room.
Well ... crap. She thought as she swallowed nervously. She knew she had to have a talk with Akane, but she didn't know what to say. She had made a promise to Ranma not to interfere with him and Akane during the week of their promise. Anything she said to Akane would be tainted not only by Akane's resentment and jealousy, but also by her own desires for Ranma to pick her.
Still, she thought she should try to at least help Akane calm down. "Akane ... I—" She started to say.
"How could you?" Akane whispered, interrupting her, while obviously fighting to keep herself from crying. Before she could react to what Akane had said, her little sister spun on her heel and walked quickly to Kasumi's room. She opened and closed Kasumi's door quietly, and didn't look back at her.
She stood in the hallway for a moment just staring at Kasumi's door sadly. Well ... that could have gone better. She thought, chagrined. Then she shook herself mentally and physically and forced herself to walk to her own room. I love you, Akane, but I can't stop now. If you want him, you are going to have to take him from me. She thought with iron resolve.
She took a deep breath and steeled herself to brace for the cold in her room, then yanked her door open. Even though she was ready for it, the cold still took her breath away. She shuddered and hurried into the room, yanked open her dresser, grabbed a clean school uniform, her underthings and a shirt, and hurried out of her room. She kicked the door closed behind her as she continued to hurry across the hall with her things. She wanted to get into the bathroom before she ran into anyone else again.
"Nabiki?" She heard Kasumi's voice just as she reached the door to the bathroom.
So close. She lamented to herself as she seriously considered pretending she didn't hear, as her hand met the cold metal of the doorknob. Then she sighed and turned her head slightly to face her older sister. Kasumi was hurrying over to her, but didn't look overly concerned or alarmed. She didn't say anything to her, she just raised an eyebrow and waited for her older sister to speak.
Kasumi stopped and stood right behind her with a strained look on her face. A moment passed and neither of them spoke as her older sister's eyes scanned her face. Finally, Kasumi said what was on her mind. "Akane isn't ... doing so well." She said quietly.
She nodded. "I know."
"It's about Ranma."
"I know." She said with a frown. Kasumi wasn't really going to try to ask her to give him up, was she? Especially after what she had done at dinner last night?
"I ... I just thought, you should know ... Akane ... hasn't given up on him."
"I know." She said, sadly. "Is she going to fight for him?" She whispered.
Kasumi shrugged. "We talked last night. A lot. She cares for him ... deeply. She doesn't want to let him go. But, she is still afraid of talking about her feelings publicly."
"Her words, or your words?" She asked carefully.
"My words. But the sentiment was there." Kasumi said softly.
"Well, thanks Kasumi, but I already knew that Akane wasn't over him." She smiled and turned her head back to the door to enter the bathroom. She stopped when she felt Kasumi's hand dart out and rest gently but firmly on her shoulder. She didn't turn back around to face her, but she stopped to listen.
Kasumi leaned in and put her mouth next to her ear and whispered. "If you love him, it's now or never. Don't let up, and don't back down. Fight, fight like its your life on the line. I ... I made the mistake of not fighting for the one I loved years ago, and I don't think I'll ever get the chance again that I had then." Her sister whispered sadly to her.
She turned back and looked at Kasumi. Her sister's smiling mask was still mostly firmly in place, but it had slipped around her eyes. She saw pain, dread, longing and regret in Kasumi's eyes.
"Akane loves him too." Was all she could think to say as she whispered back.
Kasumi shook her head emphatically at that and whispered with heavy emotion in her voice back to her. "Not like you, Nabiki ... not like you. I can tell the difference between puppy love, and real love. I remember it from watching Mother with Father. And I've felt it myself, once, when I missed my chance."
She recoiled at that and looked at Kasumi with entirely new eyes as she turned around again from the door. She was sure the love Kasumi was talking about was Doctor Tofu ... wasn't it? But what chance was she talking about that she had missed? She had never heard anything about that. She wanted to ask Kasumi about it, but out in the hallway outside the bathroom was neither the time nor the place.
"I plan to fight, don't worry." She whispered and gave her a wink. She started to turn towards the bathroom again, but Kasumi's voice stopped her.
"Mom used to say ..." she turned back and looked at Kasumi, "... Mom used to say to me that it would be easy to tell when I had met the right person. She told me—"
"—That you would just know."
"—That I would just know." Kasumi finished as she said the same thing with her. Kasumi's eyes widened. Her older sister must have realized she was quoting Mother as well.
She shivered as the meaning hit her. Mom had been training them to help them find the right person. It made her very happy that Mom had given her the same advice that she had given Kasumi.
"That's right, Nabiki. That's what Mom used to say. Did she tell you that too?"
She nodded quickly. She didn't trust her voice with the emotions running through her right now.
Kasumi smiled. "I didn't know what Mom meant when she told me that. And then I forgot about it. By the time I remembered, it was too late. I had known, but I missed my chance by playing games and waiting for signs and doing other foolish things." She whispered sadly with tears in her eyes. "Mom ... never got to tell Akane that. At least, I don't think she did. I should have ... I should have told her, when she was much younger..." Kasumi's voice caught as she fought to stop herself from crying.
She looked at her in a panic. Kasumi didn't cry. Kasumi never cried. She felt the rock that she had built her world on starting to crumble a little bit. Kasumi looked down for a moment and took a deep breath. Then she looked back up and her mask was firmly back in place. It was even covering her eyes again.
"I should have told Akane, before she reached junior high. Just like Mom did for me, and, for you too."
She nodded her head. She had been in second grade when Mom had told her the rules for boys.
Kasumi smiled. "Mom must have only given her advice on boys when she thought we needed it. I was in fourth grade when Mom told me. I had just told her I had a crush on a boy in my class."
She looked up at Kasumi sharply then, which startled her sister into silence for a moment. That had been ... exactly the time period that Mom had told her the same thing, and under almost identical circumstances. Had mom known she was running out of time? Had Mom known even then?
Kasumi continued her sad whisper. "I ... I failed Akane. I have to make it right."
She shook her head. "You didn't fail her, Kasumi. It wasn't your responsibility to raise us."
"If not me ... then who?" Kasumi whispered back with unshed tears swimming in her eyes.
She couldn't take it any more. She dropped her clothes and pulled Kasumi into a fierce hug. Kasumi hugged her back just as fiercely. "Thank you, Kasumi ... for trying. Mom would be proud of you." She whispered to her older sister.
Kasumi shuddered in her arms as she fought back the tears. A moment later she whispered back to her. "Mom would be proud of you too, Nabiki. You never give up." Kasumi stroked her hair as she held her.
"I love you too, sis." She said as she hugged her older sister.
"I have to tell Akane what Mom told us."
"I know."
"Things might change..." Kasumi replied in an uncertain voice.
"That's all right, I can handle change."
Can I? She thought in trepidation as she slowly came to terms with the idea of Akane fighting hard for Ranma.
"You smell like Ranma." Kasumi added in an approving tone.
"I know." She said happily in her older sister's arms.