Nabiki stepped on to the street her family's home was on, and looked over at Ranma longingly. She didn't want their date to be over, but it was about to be. She was finding herself sneaking glances at him now just as often as he did with her.
Ranma was holding her hand and walking next to her casually using his modified battle aura technique to keep her warm as they walked back home from the train station in the unseasonably cold evening weather.
When they were within a few blocks of her home, he paused and tugged on her hand to stop her. She looked over at him quizzically. He looked into her eyes earnestly, and she felt herself blush.
Oh, I hope he's not going to try to kiss me to end the date. I don't think I have the strength to even pretend like I care about the promise anymore. She worried as he pulled her into a hug. She let herself melt against him. At the moment, she had very little willpower when it came to him. Right now, I think I would say yes to damn near anything he might ask of me. She thought warmly.
"Don't look around or act afraid, but someone's waitin' for us up on the rooftops near your house." He whispered into her ear.
She sighed. Of course. He had just wanted to warn her without tipping off whoever was waiting for them. She pulled her head back so she was nose to nose with him and smiled as she lidded her eyes. She could smell him strongly when he held her. The urge to just lean forward and kiss him was intoxicatingly strong.
"I'm not worried. Nobody can hurt me when you're with me." She whispered back softly; it was a statement, not a question. She stared into his eyes searchingly as she waited for a reply.
God, I want to do so many things with him! She thought as her body ached and tried desperately to push her to act on her desires.
He nodded at her nervously. "I won't let them hurt you, don't worry. Do you want me to just carry ya in, or do you wanna try walkin' past them and see if they'll let us go without fightin'?"
She thought about it for a moment as she sucked on her lower lip, then smiled. "Let's try to walk past them. I don't want to give them the satisfaction of running unless we have to." She said after a moment.
He nodded and stepped back as he released her, and resumed simply holding her hand. She sighed and started walking with him again. It seemed so easy for him to go in and out of being close with her. For her, she had to fight herself strongly not to jump on him whenever he was that close to her. She was starting to really worry about being able to control herself tonight if they slept in the same room together.
If I can figure out how to keep Akane out, anyway. She groused to herself.
"We're gettin' close." Ranma whispered. She nodded in reply.
"I trust you." She whispered absently.
He nodded and they walked for a bit longer in an easy silence. He paused her a moment later and leaned in close to her as he slid his hand from her hand to the small of her back. To a casual observer it might look like he was leaning in for a kiss. Her body certainly seemed to think so as her back arched towards him automatically. The dragon inside her was straining against her willpower and pushing as hard as it could to get her to do exactly what people might expect them to be doing.
"If they attack, I'm just gonna grab you and run for it. Doctor Tofu should be watchin' the house, so once we're past the wall you'll be safe." He said quietly. She nodded her head against his and squeezed her eyes tightly closed for a moment as she took a deep breath and steadied herself. Now was not the time to be obsessing over her desires to be physical with him.
Ranma straightened up, looked into her eyes confidently, winked, then grabbed her hand and resumed their walk. A moment later he tensed as a voice called down to them from the darkness.
"Ni hao, Ranma." It was Shampoo's voice. Even thought it was coming from the rooftop, it still sounded oddly ... weak.
A dark figured hopped down to the street level in the shadows. Ranma flinched towards herself, but didn't pick her up and run away just yet. Shampoo stepped into the light of the streetlights, and they both relaxed a little. Shampoo didn't seem like she was ready to attack. She seemed ... worried.
Shampoo looked over at Ranma and smiled weakly at him while tears slipped down her cheeks. The young warrior girl was obviously trying hard to prevent herself from crying, but wasn't succeeding. Shampoo's lower lip was trembling, and it was obvious she had been crying for some time now.
Ranma tensed up and moved a little bit closer to herself as he replied. "Hey Shampoo." He said in a neutral voice.
"Is ... is she OK?" Shampoo asked in a hesitant voice.
With Shampoo's issues with pronouns, it took her a moment to realize that Shampoo was referring to herself. She looked up again at Shampoo and found the young Amazon staring at her with ... concern?
"I'm ... fine." She said hesitantly.
Shampoo walked towards them slowly and approached carefully with her hands out to show she wasn't attacking. "Is you sure? Shona very dangerous." Shampoo said in a wavering voice.
So Shampoo was involved with her sister's actions earlier. She wasn't all that surprised by that. "I'm sure. Ranma took care of it." She said softly as she remembered the warmth of his arms around her, and his quiet confidence when he had saved her from what she had thought was certain death.
"You no is hurt at all?" Shampoo asked in a concerned voice as she stepped even closer to them and looked at her intently. Shampoo was now in striking range.
"That's far enough, Shampoo." Ranma said as he flashed a hand up and braced it against Shampoo's shoulder. Shampoo immediately flinched backwards away from his touch but didn't say anything.
She looked carefully at the young Chinese warrior and frowned. Shampoo was standing in an awkward stance, like she had just run a very long distance and needed to catch her breath. Shampoo was favoring her left side heavily, and was standing awkwardly with her palms facing them, instead of the backs of her hands. Something was wrong. Ranma picked up on it as well.
"What's goin' on, Shampoo?" He asked gently.
"Nothing going. I only is worry about you, is all." Shampoo said in a voice that was attempting to be nonchalant, but she could tell the young Amazon was faking it.
"We're fine ... no thanks to you and your sister." She said in a calm but frosty voice.
Shampoo didn't say anything to that for a moment, then slowly started to shake her head. "No ... no was me ... I tried ... I tried stop them. They no listen me." Shampoo said sadly as she fixed her gaze sternly on Ranma. "I told you, I told you they serious! Why you no listen me?!" Shampoo asked in a shaking voice as she pointed at Ranma.
Ranma sucked air in through his teeth in surprise. She looked where he was looking, and her eyes widened. "Shampoo ... what happened to your hands?" Ranma asked gently.
"Is nothing." Shampoo said quickly as she tucked her hands back behind her back urgently.
"Doesn't look like nothin' ... it looks like you've been fightin'." Ranma said softly as he took a step towards Shampoo and reached for her hand. The young Amazon didn't resist him, but she did bite down on her lower lip and wince when he grabbed her hand gently and held it up.
Ranma stepped back and held Shampoo's hand gently in his own hands and swore under his breath. All of the knuckles on Shampoo's hand were cracked and bleeding, several had the top layer of skin all the way scraped off. "What ... what happened, Shampoo? Who did this to you?" He asked softly.
"When Shampoo find out ... when Shampoo find out Great Grandmother send older sister after weak girl ... Shampoo ... Shampoo ..." The young Chinese girl's voice broke as tears streamed down her cheeks faster than they had been, and Shampoo changed from having a trembling lower lip, to a mouth opened softly in a silent wail. Ranma looked back at her for permission, and she nodded grudgingly.
Ranma stepped forward and gently took Shampoo's hands in his own and pulled her closer to himself. It wasn't a hug, but it wasn't a handshake either. He leaned towards Shampoo, and whispered softly until the young Amazon stopped crying and slumped against him, Shampoo shuddered as she tried to fight back her tears.
"I sorry, I sorry! It not right they attack weak girl no who can fight. I tried warn you! They ... they keep trying." Shampoo said in a shaking voice as she buried her face against Ranma's chest.
She watched Shampoo carefully, and could tell that even as gently as he was holding her, that Shampoo was in pain.
"Who'd you fight?" Ranma asked quietly.
"Sisters." Shampoo whispered.
"Why?" He asked.
"When Shampoo find out they plan, Shampoo try stop them. Great Grandmother stop Shampoo. When Great Grandmother not watching, Shampoo hurry try stop plan, was fight to leaving ... no get to Shona fast enough. Saw older sister fight you. Not want you think me attack too, so Shampoo hide. Shampoo would have save weak girl, but husb—you save her, so no have to." Shampoo said in a quavering voice as she tried to smile bravely for Ranma.
Shampoo took a small step towards him and held her rough and bloodied hand up to his face. He let Shampoo trace her hand down the side of his face with her shaking hand. It left a tiny trail of blood on the edge of his face. 
Ranma was swaying on his feet a little bit. Most people wouldn't be able to tell, but she could tell. She now knew that he absolutely hated women being brutalized. Seeing Shampoo suffering on his behalf had to be killing him. She also knew there was more to Shampoo's story that hadn't been voiced yet. But she wanted to ask a question before she told him.
"Shampoo?" She asked carefully. The young Chinese warrior looked over at her with eyes that were both dismissive, and fearful ... mostly dismissive. She suspected the Amazon thought of her more as a pet than a person. People who couldn't fight were probably little more than property in Shampoo's village.
She shrugged inwardly and pressed on. She could ignore Shampoo's personal bias. "Why was Ranma able to beat your sister so easily? I thought she was supposed to be one of the best from your village?" She asked carefully.
Shampoo smiled bitterly at her. "Husb—He use chestnut fist, yes?"
She nodded.
"Shona no know that one, no could defend it." Shampoo said somewhat sarcastically.
"Really?"
"Yes, really." Shampoo said mockingly. "Shampoo no know that one either." The young Amazon added with a definite tone of bitterness in her voice.
Ranma raised his eyebrows at that. "What? Come on, you were there, Shampoo, you saw the old ghoul training me to do it." He said with disbelief.
Shampoo looked back at him and nodded sadly. "Shampoo see. Shampoo understand how it supposed to work. Shampoo not master it yet. It very secret, very special technique. Not every can master." Shampoo whispered.
"Special? I thought it was just a normal technique for your village?" Ranma asked, with confusion in his voice.
Shampoo shook her head emphatically. "No. Great Grandmother give great honor train you special technique. Shona no know. Shampoo no know. Only Great Grandmother, and other elders know some them. Great Grandmother only one whole tribe knows all them. Great Grandmother first elder is."
Ranma blinked at Shampoo, then looked over at herself with wonder, and what seemed like fear, in his eyes.
She decided that Shampoo's sacrifice deserved to be known, despite her bitterness. So she prompted the Amazon to tell him the rest. "What happened when you returned?" She asked softly.
"Shampoo being ... punish ..." The young Amazon said with a fierce pride in her voice and her head held up high.
"What did they—?" Ranma started to ask.
"Her chest, Ranma. Didn't you notice that she winced when you stopped her?" She said softly.
Ranma looked back over at Shampoo, and the young Amazon nodded proudly. "Punish for fight own sister and disobey elder, is hundred kick from sisters Shampoo fighted." Shampoo said proudly.
"How bad?" Ranma asked miserably.
In answer, Shampoo pulled up on the hem of her shirt and lifted it up to show her chest. Ranma sucked his breath in and swore darkly. Shampoo stood in front of him unashamed in just her bra, with her shirt held loosely at her side. Her entire torso was covered with bruises.
Ranma looked away out of respect and, she also knew, anguish. She now had a much better understanding of how he worked inside, from their talks on their date. He couldn't handle people being brutalized, especially women. His stance on the issue wasn't entirely logical, considering that she knew that he could and would fight women to protect herself. But she also knew, and he had demonstrated with Shona, that he would only do as much as he absolutely had to, and nothing more. Seeing a woman hurt like Shampoo had been, was probably enough to trigger what he had talked about at dinner. She was impressed that he was keeping it together as well as he was.
"Why, Shampoo?" She asked sadly as the young Amazon put her shirt back on.
Shampoo fixed her with eyes filled with both determination and sadness. "你知道为什么。"[1] The young Amazon said simply to her as if it was obvious.
She locked eyes with the Amazon, and nodded. Then she drew herself up to her full height and bowed formally to Shampoo. "Thank you." She replied just as simply as she straightened back up.
Ranma looked back at herself again and inclined his head towards their home a millimeter. His message was obvious. She hesitated for a moment, then nodded her assent. Ranma smiled at her and reached back for her hand. She loved how kind he was. She also loved how warm his hands were.
"Did you want to come inside? We can make you some tea, and Kasumi and Doctor Tofu can maybe help you heal..." Ranma started to ask, but trailed off as Shampoo shook her head sadly.
"You no understand... I try tell you earlier. Shampoo only break law because is you. Shampoo proud Amazon. Happy be punish for honor of tribe. Break law help you, but Shampoo no need you help." The young Amazon said with simple pride as she refused to acquiesce.
"What can I do?" Ranma asked sincerely.
"There only one thing can do ... is only thing won't do." Shampoo said sadly as she turned to leave. The young warrior turned and looked over her shoulder at him and smiled sadly at him. "Please being careful. They no stop until they win. Shampoo do what can, but I no can stop them." Shampoo said in a voice that was a mixture of pride, and worry. Then the young Amazon bounded up to the wall, then the nearest roof, and was gone.
After a moment she squeezed his hand gently until he looked at her. "You all right?" She asked him softly.
"Y-yeah. I don't like seein' stuff like that, but she's strong, and she seems okay." He said weakly.
She nodded and smiled softly at him. "You can't save everyone, Ranma ... especially from themselves." She said as she nudged him to start walking again.
He nodded and walked with her in silence until they reached the gate to her family's lands. He paused and looked at her shyly. She smiled nervously. They both knew the date was over. Traditionally, after a successful date he would have at least earned a kiss on the cheek, but she had made him make that stupid promise.
Because I am an idiot. She thought bitterly as she stared into his eyes and willed him to ignore the promise. She knew how important honor was to him, so she didn't want to break the promise and have him think less of her. But ... if he broke it, then she wouldn't say anything either.
He smiled at her and shifted his hand in hers gently. "Well, I guess we should go inside..." He said hesitantly.
She nodded and waited to see what he was doing with his hand. A moment later she sighed as he finished repositioning his hand so it was in the Western handshake position. He squeezed her hand softly as he looked into her eyes and smiled.
"I had a great time, Nabiki." He said in a happy tone of voice.
"I did too, Ranma." She said as she released her hand from his, and pushed his arm out of her way as she dove into his arms and hugged him fiercely. She squeezed her eyes shut and rubbed her cheek on his silky shirt and wished for the moment they were sharing to freeze in time. "Thank you for everything." She whispered to him.
In reply, he tightened his arms around her and picked her up softly. Warmth flooded her body, and she let herself melt into him. She knew what he wanted to say when he picked her up. Someday soon, she hoped he would be able to actually say it.
She had no idea how long he stood and held her outside the walls to the Tendo household, but eventually he slowly relaxed his arms and let her slide back down to her own feet.
She looked up at him and saw in his eyes everything that he couldn't seem to bring himself to say to her or Akane. She knew what he wanted to say though, and that was enough for her right now.
Without another word, she turned and faced the gates as she held her hand out for him. He took it, also wordlessly, and they stepped through the gate, and officially ended their date. It didn't feel as bad as she had feared it would. She was sad it was over. But he was still with her, and he was holding her hand. She no longer had him all to herself, but she hadn't lost him either.
They quietly entered the front door and slipped their shoes off while they continued to hold hands. They were just heading towards the stairs when Akane walked out of the hallway.
She saw Akane's eyes flash down to their hands, and then over to Ranma's face. She felt Ranma's hand twitch, and knew that he was warring with his instinct to let go of her in front of Akane.
Akane looked over at her softly for a second with eyes filled with both pain and what seemed like betrayal. She met Akane's gaze with her own unflinching gaze. She had told Akane she wasn't going to back down, and she had meant it.
Akane pulled in a deep breath and nodded to both of them as she stepped back to let them pass while she cast her gaze to the ground. She couldn't tell if Akane was refusing to look at them out of embarrassment, anger, or ... something else. Ranma eagerly nodded and hurried to take advantage of the easy way out of the situation Akane had provided. He tugged on her to follow him. She allowed him to lead her from the room, but looked back at Akane as she headed down the hallway towards the stairs with him. Akane was standing where they had left her, with her head tilted to the side. Her little sister was now gazing after them with a thoughtful expression on her face.
A moment later Ranma pulled her around a corner and she lost sight of her little sister. She walked with Ranma quietly up the stairs. He led her straight to her bedroom door then let go of her hand and turned around to look at her. He was smiling softly.
"I guess your Dad and mine want me to stay with ya again tonight ta watch ya..." He said with embarrassment in his voice.
She smiled softly at him. "I'm sure." Then she winked at him. "I also want you to." She said in a teasing tone.
"O...o-okay." He stammered as he looked down at the floor.
She rolled her eyes and reached out and grasped his chin softly and tilted his head up so he was looking at her again. "You don't have to, if you don't want to, Ranma. I can get Daddy or Doctor Tofu to instead..." She trailed off. She knew he wanted to, and she was getting a bit tired of his shy routine.
He shook his head softly. "No, I want to ... if you want to..." He said softly.
She smiled as happily and sincerely for him as she knew how to. She knew it was going to be a journey to de-program his somewhat awkward social problems, especially with women. But, as the ancient Chinese proverb said, even the longest journey started with a single step. She nodded and winked at him again. "Yes, Ranma. I do want to. See you in a few minutes?" She asked.
He nodded and quickly bounded down the hallway to his own room to do whatever it was he wanted to do before bed. She smiled after him. She could have sworn he had a bit of a skip in his step.
As soon as he slipped into his room she followed his example and entered her own room and closed the door behind herself. She stood and looked in her mirror for a moment as she let out a tremendous sigh. It was a sigh that was equal parts relief and frustration. She was relieved that she was finding solid ground to build a relationship with him on. She was also relieved that he obviously was interested in her. She was frustrated with many things, not the least of which was the situation with the Amazons, Akane still being a competing factor, and everything else that had gone wrong.
She locked eyes with herself in the mirror, pulled in a deep and steadying breath, and shrugged. She was wise enough to know that stressing about things she had no control over, was counterproductive. She chose to focus on the things she could at least influence, if not directly control. She couldn't control the Amazons at all. But she could help influence Ranma's choice. And ... she could help Ranma find a way to let Akane down easily ... somehow.
She stared at herself for a few more moments, then let out a smaller, softer sigh. Sure, an easy way to let Akane down. No problem. While I'm at it, I can figure out a way to grow money on trees. She thought sarcastically.
She shrugged and ran her eyes over her body as she reached behind herself to find the clasp for the dress so she could unzip it. Overall, she looked good. If she hadn't known where to look, the small signs from the fight with Shona were barely noticeable. Ranma had done an incredible job protecting her. Her makeup wasn't in the same state it had been in when she had left. Kasumi's better efforts had been replaced with her own meager makeup artistry. She smiled at herself as she unhooked the clasp and grasped the zipper. Having an expertise in applying makeup wasn't a problem she encountered often enough to really care about.
A soft knock sounded at her door. She looked over at it with some trepidation. She seriously considered calling out for Ranma to come in, and then asking him to help her out of the dress. She smiled wickedly at herself as she discarded the idea. The poor boy just wasn't ready for something like that yet.
"I'm changing, Ranma, can you give me another couple of minutes?" She called out softly instead, as she turned to face the door.
"It's just me." Came Kasumi's voice from the other side of the door.
"Oh, well come in then." She said warmly as she slid the zipper further down her back.
Her door opened only wide enough to allow her older sister to slip in. Kasumi entered the room quickly with her usual quiet grace, and then leaned against the door softly to close it, as she clasped her hands loosely in front of herself and looked at her expectantly.
"So, how was it?" Kasumi asked while running her eyes over herself.
She looked away from Kasumi's searching eyes with unaccustomed shyness. It was hard for her to put into words how she felt about what happened with Ranma on their date and how happy but worried she was. She swallowed nervously and tried anyway. "It was w—"
"Nabiki! What happened?" Kasumi asked in a shocked voice, interrupting her.
She pulled her eyes back up to her older sister who was rushing across the room towards her. She flinched as Kasumi grasped her head softly in her gentle hands and tilted her face back and forth and clucked with disapproval. "You've been crying! What happened to your makeup?" Kasumi asked as she stepped back from her and looked at her closely. She could tell that her elder sister's keen eyes were finding the blemishes in the silk of her special dress.
She sucked air in nervously through her teeth. She hadn't really wanted to get into all of it tonight.
Kasumi stepped forward earnestly and wrapped her up in a protective hug. Her older sister just held her for a moment before finally speaking. "Something happened, didn't it? He didn't ... did he?" Kasumi asked fearfully.
She flushed with anger and found herself shoving Kasumi violently off herself before her mind caught up with what she was doing. She was so shocked and angry at the suggestion that Ranma would hurt her, that she had actually balled her hands into fists and taken a step towards Kasumi, before she was able to regain control. She was breathing heavily, and her heart was hammering away pumping adrenaline into her system as her body prepared for a fight; she couldn't control that.
Kasumi stood where she had pushed her to, with her entire attention on herself. She could tell Kasumi was shocked too.
"NO!" She yelled in a voice bristling with outrage. "You listen to me, Ranma would never, EVER hurt me! EVER!" She hissed in a softer voice that was still very close to yelling. She was flooded with anger, rage even. She was sucking air rapidly past clenched teeth as she battled a burning, aggressive itch in her chest that cried out for her to act. The dragon inside her was straining to break free and lash out. It was taking every gram of her self control not to slap Kasumi for even suggesting that Ranma would hurt her.
She felt hot, angry tears start to slip down her cheeks, and she felt that she had to ball her hands into fists again, just to keep herself in check. Kasumi just stood there and waited.
After many long seconds in tense silence, she was able to control herself enough to trust herself to keep from screaming. She locked her eyes with Kasumi and frowned. "Ranma is the kindest, sweetest, most honest and loyal person I have EVER known. He protects me! He would NEVER hurt me! I am one hundred percent positive that he would die for me! He has saved everyone in this family at least once! How DARE YOU suggest such a thing!" She said in a low, dangerous voice. Kasumi flinched with every sentence she said, but didn't retreat.
As soon as she was done speaking, Kasumi hesitantly spoke up. "But ... your dress ... your makeup ..."
She nodded. "I'll tell you about it in a minute. But I want you to be clear about Ranma first. He is the best person to ever step through the doors of this house in a long time. I trust him completely. I want you to get rid of any thoughts about him like that. All right? I trust Ranma more than I trust Doctor Tofu!" She said vehemently.
Kasumi nodded, almost fearfully. Then her older sister took a few hesitant steps towards her and reached for her hands as she looked into her eyes. "So ... what did happen?"
She smiled grudgingly at Kasumi as the rage left her and her nerves settled down from preparing to fight. "It was wonderful." She said as she began to tell Kasumi about the unbelievable heroism that Ranma had shown for her on their date, and the incredible things he had done for her.

***

When she was done telling Kasumi about her date with Ranma, her older sister hadn't had much more to say. She could tell Kasumi was still in shock with how angry the suggestion that Ranma had forced himself on her had made her. Kasumi had hugged her again softly when she was done telling her the story, and left her room quickly with a soft smile on her face. Only a minute after Kasumi had gently closed the door, she had quickly changed, and re-opened the door. She had left her special earrings in.
She found Ranma on the other side of the door dressed in his own sleeping clothes, with his hand raised to knock on her door.
She slipped into his arms immediately and tried to melt into him. The remaining anxious, irritated and angry feeling in the center of her chest immediately evaporated. He just stood there somewhat in shock and held her loosely. She didn't know why she was so emotionally on edge, but she was. Eventually she felt buoyed enough to push herself back from him a bit. She brought her face right next to his and positioned her lips so they were right next to the corner of his mouth. "It's good to see you, Ranma." She whispered to him softly.
"But ... I just ..." He stammered.
"I know, but it felt like longer." She whispered happily to him. She felt him nod. She knew he was confused. That was all right, she was confused too. She shifted her lips to his neck and pressed them there lightly. "I'm going to go get ready for bed. I'll be back in just a minute okay? Don't go anywhere." She whispered to him. She wasn't technically kissing him. She knew that anyone who saw what she was doing would think she was, but technically all she was doing was talking to him while resting her lips on his neck. She didn't know why, but that small detail made her feel impish and very happy. She loved finding loopholes. She smiled into his neck and held him tighter.
He shifted his arms so that he was holding her a little more tightly, but otherwise he didn't react. She was really going to have to work on his fear of intimacy with women in the near future. If they committed to each other, she fully intended to have a physical relationship with him, and she didn't want to coax him every time into doing things with her, like luring a scared bunny out of its warren.
Patience, girl. First get him to commit, then train him. She thought to herself wryly.
After another few happy moments, she sighed and pushed herself off of him. She could tell, both by his facial expression and his body language, that he was relieved that she wasn't being so intimate with him any more. She knew it made him nervous to touch her while standing in the public parts of the house. She knew he would have to be worried about being seen by Daddy or Akane, or even Kasumi.
She smiled at him and stepped around him with a wink as she hurried to the bathroom. She closed the door softly behind herself as she gazed at him until the door blocked her sight of him. He simply stood there and smiled at her nervously.
As soon as the door was closed, she leaned her forehead against it and sucked in several deep and steadying breaths. She was teetering on the edge of something, she could feel it. She knew damn well that if she slept with him tonight, she was going to try to get physical with him. She was completely ready to be with him ... but she knew he wasn't ready.
If I push him too fast, I'll push him away. She thought fearfully as she turned and looked at herself in the bathroom mirror. She looked good. She turned back and forth in the mirror and nodded approvingly at what she saw. Her hair looked good, her body looked good, and her face looked ... well, it will look better once I wash off the ruined makeup. She thought to herself wryly.
As she set herself to doing just that, she tried to figure out what the limits should be. I made him promise that we wouldn't kiss until the end of the week ... I never said anything about doing anything else. She thought nervously to herself as she fully examined the loophole she had found in her stupid promise. She looked at herself seriously in the mirror and frowned.
He's not ready. Hell, I'm not sure I'm ready.
Yes I am.
He liked kissing me, I bet he would like ... other stuff...
You'll scare him off if you push him.
Will I?
Maybe...
What if we just do ... a little bit ... we don't have to do ... everything. Would he be all right with that?
Her inner self had no answers for her. She glared at herself in the mirror, then smiled, then frowned, then let her face relax. She wasn't sure what the answer was. What she was sure about was that she loved him, and she wanted to show him she loved him.
Even if he doesn't end up picking me... She thought sadly.
She sighed and nodded to herself in the mirror. She was going to try it. She would start with very small stuff, and see how he responded. She wouldn't kiss him, unless he kissed her, but if he responded well to her, she fully intended to do as much with him as he was ready to do tonight.
It might be my only chance with him. She thought fatalistically to herself as she finished up in the bathroom and opened the bathroom door again.
I know he cares for me, he might even love me. She thought as she walked slowly to her bedroom door.
But he might care for Akane more. Can I live with myself if I don't do everything I can to show him how I feel before our week is up? She asked herself. She stopped in the hallway and frowned at her bedroom door.
You're rationalizing, and you know it. You want to be with him, because you want to. You don't want to do it to try to compete with Akane. Her conscience told her.
So what if I do? Is that so wrong? He's amazing, and he saved my life today! I don't owe it to him. I WANT to. She thought defiantly as she bit her lower lip and took a hesitant step closer to her door. Her conscience shrugged at her.
She reached for the doorknob to her room with a shaking hand as she made her decision.
She opened the door and entered it quickly. She locked the door behind herself as she closed it. She didn't know where Akane was, or what her sleeping situation was ... and she didn't care. She was sure Doctor Tofu and Daddy and even Mister Saotome would make sure Akane was safe during the night.
Ranma is ... mine. She thought possessively as she smiled nervously at him and chewed on her lower lip. Her body was totally and completely ready to be with him. She knew on a chemical and biological level she was sending signals to him that he had to be picking up on, even if he didn't understand them. She could tell he was picking up on at least some of it, because he looked at her with a nervous expression on his face from where he was standing by her window. It was an expression she hadn't seen on him before. He was looking at her with a mixture of anticipation, nervousness, and ... was that fear?
She took a tentative step towards him, then paused. "Are you ready for bed, Ranma?" She asked softly as she clasped her hands together in front of her like Kasumi had done earlier. Her palms were warm.
He didn't move from the window. He was in his soldier's stance. She waited patiently until he responded. She had learned a while ago that Ranma sometimes had to gather his thoughts before he spoke.
"They're attackin'." He eventually said without looking away from the window.
"The Amazons?" She asked.
"Yeah. Pop, your dad, and the Doc are fightin' them."
She nodded but stayed where she was, blocking the door. She gathered her courage for a moment before she spoke again. "Just ... just for tonight, can you stay with me? You don't need to go fight, Ranma. The three of them should be strong enough to keep the Amazons away from the house. Can you stay with me, and trust the rest of them to do their duty? You can be a hero another night. Can you stay with me and just sleep tonight?" She whispered to him nervously. She knew it was an incredibly selfish thing to ask him ... but she didn't care. He'd done enough for the day. He'd fought for her, and he'd saved her life. She didn't want to let him go right now. She wanted him with her, in her room. She wanted to be together with him. She didn't care if that meant the other three men would have a tougher time of it tonight. Ranma deserved a break.
And so do I. She thought defiantly.
He turned from the window and nodded. "Sure." He said in his usual easygoing voice. She could tell he was acting for her benefit, but she would take what she could get. She smiled at him and turned back and flipped off the lights. She let her eyes adjust to the darkness before she spoke again. Ranma had moved silently to sit on the futon. He was in the process of pulling the blankets up over himself.
"Ranma ... " She began carefully. She hadn't moved yet.
Easy girl, easy, don't scare the bunny. She thought nervously.
"Yeah?" He asked in a quizzical tone of voice. He was responding to the longing tone in her voice she wasn't able to hide very well.
She took a hesitant step towards him. "Is it okay ... if I sleep in your bed with you tonight?" She whispered. Her legs were shaking. Her body was flushing with warmth.
Oh God, I am NOT going to be able to control myself if he lets me into his bed! She thought with a building longing as she sucked on her lower lip nervously.
"Oh ... um, sure, I guess ... why?" He asked as he scooted over in his futon and held open the blankets to let her in.
She was moving before her mind even registered what she was doing. She damn near fell into the bed with him. Her movements were rushed, almost panicky. As soon as she slipped into the bed with him, he pulled the blankets up over her and she wrapped herself around him and let out a contented sigh. She could already feel the heat inside herself building, but just being next to him was relieving some of the incredible longing that had been building up inside her.
"Because you make me warm." She whispered into his ear as she repositioned herself so her body was pressed up against him in strategic ways. She had deliberately chosen flimsy silks to wear to bed.
She felt him freeze in place under her. She frowned at that and pulled herself back from him a bit. Don't scare the bunny. She admonished herself.
Neither of them moved or spoke for several seconds while she regrouped and tried to figure out what to do next while he just sort of laid there.
Let's try the direct approach. She thought to herself as she moved her lips close to his ear. He shifted a little bit, but didn't move away from her.
"Ranma, is it all right ... if I hold you?" She asked him softly. She would settle for just sleeping in the same bed with him, but she really wanted to at least cuddle.
"Yeah ... sure." He whispered in reply after a pause. She didn't wait around for him to second guess himself and quickly moved herself back to wrapped around him like she had been earlier. He lay perfectly still and allowed her to do it, but didn't make any moves of his own. She luxuriated in the physical contact for a while before she gently tried to get him to reciprocate.
"You can hold me too, if you want." She whispered in his ear. He didn't move. She waited for a while, then sighed and resigned herself to just sleeping with him.
"Do you want me to?" He finally whispered back in the darkness.
She smiled happily and nodded strongly enough that he could feel it. He didn't move again for several more seconds, but after what felt like an eternity to her, he finally, gently, turned so he was facing her, and started threading his arms and legs around her to mirror what she was doing with him.
Oh God, it's really happening! She thought to herself with a mind that was quickly fogging over with desire. He finished shifting around and ended up holding her loosely around her waist with both his arms while he entwined his legs with hers. She had her right arm draped across his waist and was pulling him close to her with her hand on his back. Her left arm she had wrapped around the back of his neck.
She could feel herself flushing with heat, and something inside her was straining strongly to break free. She didn't know if it was her inhibitions or something else, and she didn't care. All she cared about at the moment was being with him. She pulled him as close to her as she could, so her chest was pressed up against his, and rested her head on his neck. He held her gently but firm enough that she could tell he was participating too. But ... that was all he did.
It became clear to her, after several frustrating minutes, that he absolutely was not going to take the lead. She sighed, but smiled at the same time. Part of what made him so wonderful was that even though she had given him a green light that could probably be seen from space, he still didn't seem willing to touch her without her explicit permission, every step of the way. That made it very difficult for her to let passion take over and be with him the way she wanted. But, it also reinforced her growing faith in him.
He would never, EVER, hurt me. I just have to be patient with him. Once he understands, he'll get more comfortable and I won't have to hold his hand all the time. She vowed to herself.
She smiled softly, even though she knew he couldn't see it, and gently pulled her left arm out from under him. She leaned into him even more so she was putting more of her weight on to him, as she reached back with her left hand and reached for his arm. She felt him tense up under her for a moment, so she just waited and held him. A moment later he relaxed again. She smiled softly. C'mere bunny bunny bunny. She thought to herself with a happy smirk on her lips as she gently reached down for his hand and guided it to her hip. As soon as he got the idea and held her where she wanted him to, she greedily arched her back to press herself into him more fully as she snaked her hand back under him again.
She stayed that way with him for many long moments, just savoring the delicious heat of him, his wonderful smells, the strength she could feel in his body, and how gently he held her. She could tell he was enjoying himself as well. For the first time ever, he moved without her prompting him. He brought his head in closer to hers, and buried his face in her hair next to her neck and breathed in deeply. She smiled at that. It was a small thing, but it was a start. She congratulated herself on her foresight to dab a tiny bit of perfume behind her ears before she came to bed. She could tell he was responding to her stronger smell. She had reapplied her special perfume she had worn on their date. She wanted to reinforce that smell with his memories of being together with her.
Let's see if I can get the bunny to poke his nose out of the hole. She thought happily as she lifted her head up and brought her lips up to the base of his jaw, just below his ear. As the same time she gently reached back again with her hand and put it on his hand which was still resting on her hip. He tensed under her again, but relaxed faster than the last time. When she was in position, she pulled on his hand, so that by extension he pulled her hips into him. He got the idea quickly and put his own strength into it, and shivers ran down her spine as she arched her back involuntarily. She murmured a soft mmm sound into his neck, to reward him.
He stopped immediately.
Damn it all to hell! She growled to herself as she exhaled softly in frustration.
"Did ... did I hurt you?" He whispered to her.
She sighed and shook her head softly as she smiled into his neck. I really am going to have to teach him absolutely everything. She thought wryly as she grinned into his neck. It was a good thing he couldn't see the expression on her face, because she was so frustrated she was on the verge of tears and she was also on the edge of laughing at the situation. She knew that seeing either emotion on her face would back his little scared bunny butt back into his hidey hole, fast. She sighed and strengthened her resolve. I can do this, I just have to be patient with him. She coached herself as she reassured him.
"No, you didn't hurt me. I don't think you are capable of hurting me." She said carefully. Here bunny bunny bunny, Nabiki has a carrot for you. She thought happily. She wanted to be together with him, but the situation was quickly turning into a fun little game as well. As frustrated as she was, she had to admit that she was kind of having fun chasing him out of his emotional hiding.
"Oh ... okay." He whispered to her nervously. He had removed his hand from her hip.
She sighed and pushed herself off him a bit as she reached back and felt for his arm until she found it. As soon as she did, she slid her hand down his arm gently as she reached for his hand. She settled her weight back into him as she found his hand and entwined her fingers with his. She held his hand for a moment before she pulled his hand back to her hip and placed it back there firmly. She kept her hand on top of his until she felt him nod, then she smiled as he pulled her towards him again softly. She arched her back happily as she murmured into his neck again as she mirrored his actions and pulled him to herself as well. She'd managed to get the bunny out of his warren!
She was quickly growing more and more excited, all thoughts of any self control about the situation had completely fled her mind. She wrapped her legs around one of his legs strongly, and squeezed him tightly as she reached for his other hand to guide him further.
Now I just have to get him to— 
She wasn't able to complete the thought because someone with a death wish chose that moment to knock on her door. Ranma stopped immediately, and took his hands off her.
Damn it, damn it, damn it! She ranted to herself as she twisted in Ranma's bed and barked at the door. "WHAT?!" I swear to God, if that's anyone but Kasumi, I'm gonna slap them. She growled to herself.
"It's me ... there's trouble..." Kasumi's voice sounded from outside the door.
"Trouble?" Ranma called out. "What's goin' on?"
"Your ... Your dad's hurt. Doctor Tofu and Father are holding them off, but they need your help. Father asked me to bring you." Kasumi said in a regretful voice. She was sure her older sister knew very well what she was interrupting.
Ranma was already standing up. He even took a step towards the door before he stopped and looked back at her in the dim light of her room. She knew he would stay if she asked him, but she couldn't do that to him. She nodded to him and smiled a brave smile for him that she knew he couldn't see very well in the dim light.
"Go be a hero, Ranma. I know you love it." She whispered to him with fear in her heart. She knew that the main reason he was going, was to protect her and her sisters.
He nodded back at her, and was gone a moment later. Kasumi was framed in her doorway with the light of the hallway behind her.
"Sorry." Kasumi whispered to her.
She didn't reply. She wasn't mad at Kasumi, or really anyone. She was just ... incredibly frustrated. She wanted to cry, and to hit something. But she'd settle for sleeping in Ranma's bed, and hoping he would come back before the dawn.
At least his bed smells like him. She thought as she settled down in the bed. She looked back over at her doorway in annoyance as she realized that Kasumi hadn't left yet, and her door was still open. She opened her mouth to call for Kasumi to close it, but her older sister beat her to the punch.
"Father ... doesn't want you sleeping alone. I've ... set up beds for us downstairs. Akane's already down there." Kasumi said softly as she turned to leave.
She seriously considered refusing to join them, but sighed after a moment and stood up.
I can do my duty while Ranma is doing his. She groused as she slipped off her silks and changed into warmer flannel pajamas. She did grab Ranma's pillow on her way out of her room though. It was a small comfort, but she felt that she was entitled to it at the moment.
She made her way down the stairs almost in a daze. She found Akane already asleep in the main room, and a makeshift group bed set where the family table normally was. Kasumi was standing by the sliding doors and peeking out from a crack in the doors.
"Are they fighting?" She asked as she set her pillow down on the edge of the bed opposite from Akane. It was weird to her that the fighting was silent.
Kasumi nodded as she turned around and walked over to the bed as well. Her older sister climbed into the middle of the bed and lay still. "It will be all right." Kasumi said. She didn't know if her older sister meant that they would be safe, or Ranma would be.
She nodded. She didn't trust her voice at the moment. She was still very frustrated, and now she had to add worry to the list. After many long minutes, she turned over in the bed to face Kasumi, and reached for her. Her older sister reached right back, and they held each other. She realized that Kasumi was just as worried for Doctor Tofu as she was for Ranma. She whimpered softly as she and her sister clutched each other in fear as poor substitutes for the men who were out fighting for them. Sleep mercifully pulled her away from those worries.

1. "你知道为什么。" (Nǐ zhīdào wèishéme. — You know why.)