[soundtrack for this one was: Again, by Yui, and ChAngE by Miwa]

The rest of the day passed in a blur for Nabiki. She walked back to her class after she managed to pull herself together enough to be around other people. She just sat in her desk for the rest of the day, looking at nothing, and saying nothing, and doing nothing, and trying to feel ... nothing. Her friends could all tell that something was really wrong with her, and were wise enough to give her the space she needed. Kuno did try to get her attention once, but the baleful glare she skewered him with got through to even him.
When the bell chimed signaling the end of the day, she simply stood up and walked slowly to the door. She hadn't needed to pack up her bag, because she hadn't ever unpacked it. She made her way down the stairs slowly, like she was walking through a fog. She didn't bother waiting for Ranma, she knew he wouldn't want to walk home with her today. Her steps came slower and felt heavier as she walked and thought about how badly she had messed everything up. So much for her being older and more mature. She didn't deserve Ranma. She didn't deserve anyone ... she ... she would just be the ice queen that people liked to call her. Nobody is going to love me anyway, she thought morosely as she walked out of the school into the main courtyard.
She thought she heard someone behind her call her name ... they sounded panicked, but she didn't care. She thought bitterly to herself, it doesn't matte—
She was ripped back off her feet before she could finish her thought as someone yanked her backwards hard while something crashed to the ground in front of her. She landed roughly on her backside and looked back in a daze to see Akane breathing heavily behind her and looking furious, her sister's eyes were blank with rage. But Akane wasn't looking at her, she had her eyes fixed forward. As her mind tried to process what had just happened, Akane disentangled herself from her and stepped out in front of her and spread her arms wide protectively as she screamed something so loud it hurt her ears. Everything ... seemed to be coming from ... so ... far away. Sounds were muting and her vision was blackening around the edges.
As she slumped to the ground, she saw Ranma leap over her and land next to Akane as he also spread his arms wide protectively and yelled something too. Oh, good, Ranma's here ... it'll be ... okay ... she thought to herself as she passed out.
***

She woke up later that evening in her own bed in her darkened room. Kasumi was sitting on the bed next to her, and stroking her hair again. She was completely disoriented and started to thrash around for a moment when she remembered that someone had attacked her.
"It's okay, you're all right." Kasumi said softly in her soothing voice as she lay a cool palm on her forehead that smelled faintly like sweet ginger and gently pressed her back to lay flat on the bed.
"W-whuh happen'?" She rasped out as her eyes came into focus and she was able to read the clock on her night stand. It was several hours after school had let out.
"You fainted." Kasumi said simply.
"T-that's ... ridiculous." She said as she summoned her strength and sat up and met Kasumi's eyes.
"That's what Ranma says Doctor Tofu said had happened." Kasumi said with a shrug.
"Doctor ... Tofu?" She asked as her head started to hurt and she winced and rubbed it.
"Yes. Akane carried you to him after the fight."
"A-Akane?" She asked in disbelief.
"Oh, yes, she was quite worried about you. Ranma said that she cried the whole way there carrying you, and wouldn't let him do it."
"She ... she did?" She asked in wonder. After all that I've done to her? She thought to herself.
"Yes." Kasumi said kindly. Before she could add anything else, there was a knock at the door. Kasumi looked at her, she shrugged. Kasumi nodded and called out for whoever it was to come in.
The door opened slowly and Ranma poked his head in. He smiled when he saw that she was awake. "Oh, hey, Nabiki. Good to see you up again."
"Hello, Ranma." She said dryly. Honestly, they were acting like she had been yanked back from death's door. It was a bit much.
"How are you feelin'?" He asked as he stepped all the way into her room. Kasumi looked down at her and smiled kindly as she stood up and walked quietly out the door while Ranma moved to sit on the bed next to her. Kasumi closed the door as she left. He smelled good. Why does he have to smell good too? She thought bitterly as she scooted a little bit away from him, trying to keep him physically distant as well as emotionally distant. He smiled down at her as he looked deeply into her eyes and leaned over and put the back of his palm on her forehead. His hards were warm. "Are you sure you're okay? Doctor Tofu said that you'd fainted because you hadn't eaten enough today, and that you were showin' signs of too much stress or somethin' like that." He asked softly as he sat back and pulled his hand away.
She smiled bitterly to herself as she thought, overly stressed, that's one way of putting it. She took careful stock of herself and decided she had a few aches and pains, and a splitting headache, but overall she felt fine ... physically. Emotionally ... emotionally she wasn't all right, but that wasn't Ranma's problem. Not that it mattered anyway, all that mattered to her right now was trying to fix the mess she'd made. She met his eyes and said in as relaxed a tone as she could, "I think I'm fine. What happened?"
"Oh," he said as he straightened up and tapped his fist in his palm as he realized she hadn't seen what had happened. "It was Kodachi. She's still mad about ... you know ... you bein' engaged to me and all." He said quietly.
"Kodachi ...?" She asked, confused. She would have expected Shampoo.
"Yeah. She was up to her usual nonsense. She swung one of those giant mallets at you. Akane managed to get to you in time and pull you back. Doctor Tofu couldn't find any injuries from it on you." He smiled as he remembered the battle.
"A-Akane... right, I remember her yanking me back. I think I remember her yelling something too before that..." She trailed off as she looked up at him while she toyed with the idea of suing the Kuno family into oblivion.
He nodded. "Yeah, Akane could see her waiting for you in the tree you were about to walk under. She yelled to warn you, but I guess you didn't hear her." He said kindly.
"She did?"
"Yeah, and holy crap, let me tell you, I've seen Akane mad before ... okay, I've made Akane mad before ... but yeah, anyway, it was amazin'. She was livid. I've never seen her fight like that. She countered Kodachi's first attack and then she was inside her guard and on her like a sunburn. Kodachi couldn't get another attack in, and Akane broke through her defenses almost immediately. She didn't stop until Kodachi ran off. And when I say ran, I mean limped, and when I say she stopped, I mean I had to hold her back to keep her from chasing after her. Then she picked you up and ran with you to Doctor Tofu's office faster than I have ever seen her move before."
She just looked at him, speechless as the urge to cry hit her like a train crashing into her room. Akane had done that? She crushed the urge with sheer willpower and tried to keep her emotions off her face.
Ranma, oblivious to the affect his words were having on her, sat up straight and held his hand behind his head in embarrassment and continued. "Yeah, I don't think Kodachi is gonna try to do anything about the change in engagement again, at least not for a while anyway."
She frowned at that. Was he just going to ignore what she had said earlier? He still considered her his fiancée? She looked at him quizzically and he just smiled at her. She guessed that after what Akane put him through on a fairly regular basis, what she had put him through so far wasn't all that bad in comparison. Well ... she would have to do something about that, she couldn't keep him, she just ... couldn't.
"Yeah ... about that engagement stuff ... " she said in a weak voice, not really knowing how to say what she needed to say.
As she paused to think of how best to tell him to go back to Akane, he jumped in. "Oh, don't worry about it, Nabiki. I know you like to joke around. It's fine, we can talk about it more later."
Why did he have to be so nice right now? Why right now? She tried to open her mouth to tell him that he needed to go back to Akane, but no sound would come out. She could feel the tears welling up inside her.
Stop it! She yelled at herself. Do what needs to be done! She willed herself. She opened her mouth again, and strained against the urge to cry while Ranma looked down at her in concern from the edge of her bed.
He could tell that she was trying to say something and couldn't, so he reached down and grabbed her hand and tried to encourage her. "What is it, are you okay? Do you want me to go get Kasumi?"
Damn it ... damn it, damn it ... damn it! And damn him ... she thought bitterly as she tried and failed to hold back the tears. She turned quickly away from him in a panic as she shook him off her hand to curl up in a ball. She didn't want him to see her cry.
Ranma stood up quickly at that and backed away in a hurry, "I'll get Kasumi, she'll know what to do! Hang on, Nabiki!" He yelled as he dashed out of the room. She turned back around as soon as he got up and thought about getting up to close the door, but she couldn't seem to will her body to get up.
Kasumi ran into the room, took one look at her, gasped, and slammed the door after her so hard it rattled the walls, and sprinted to her side. Kasumi pulled her up into surprisingly strong arms and held her tightly as she ran her fingers through her hair and rubbed her back.
She felt herself let go, and she started to sob. Kasumi rocked her back and forth and let her cry.
"It will be okay, ... it'll be okay..." Kasumi tried to comfort her.
She made the most painful decision she had ever made in her life in that moment and choked it out as best she could in between her sobs. "No it won't ... no it won't! I've ruined everything!"