[Reminder: If you are enjoying this story (and I would assume you are if you are reading chapter 48), please take a moment to tell me what you like (and don't like) about the writing. The reason why this fanfiction is up where you can see it, is because I am looking for feedback on writing techniques I am practicing for my novel. Please send me a PM if you don't want to review, but please do let me know how I am doing. I am looking for reasons WHY you like what I write (and WHY you think I need to work on stuff you don't like) Do you like the romance, the single-person point of view, the links to the past, the way emotions are portrayed? (note: "all of it" — isn't helpful) Even if you just send one word such as: characters, emotions, romance, or whatever, that would be helpful. Thanks ;) ]

[soundtrack for this one: Umbrella, by Marié Digby] 

Nabiki sat through class and tried to pay attention, but it was a losing battle. Her ability to focus was completely gone. She felt like squirming in her seat. It was a burning, uncomfortable feeling, like how it felt when she was laying awake in bed after drinking caffeine too late at night, and not being able to sleep even though she was tired.
She didn't think she would regain her ability to pay attention until the situation with Ranma was resolved one way or another. She spent a lot of time in class looking over at the door and hoping to see Ranma standing there, even though she knew that was ridiculous. Her friends passed her notes that ranged from the silly random nonsense they always said to each other, to more serious things such as, "you seem distracted, you all right?" The only answer she gave any of the notes was to turn and smile at whomever sent it. Of all of her friends, only Riko didn't smile back. Riko was watching her with a worried frown on her face.
She sighed but shrugged internally. She knew what Riko was worried about, but there wasn't anything she could do about it. She wasn't willing to walk away from Ranma now, but she also wasn't willing to go any further with her efforts to pursue him, either. She was stuck until he made a decision.
When the bell rang for lunch she packed up her stuff quickly and stood next to her desk with her bag already slung over her shoulder. Yui, and Nanami joined her and chatted with her on their way out of the room. Chihiro had already left in a rush to attend yet another club meeting. Riko stood off a bit and just watched her. Riko had worried eyes. She smiled for Riko's benefit as she chatted with Yui and Nanami.
For the most part she kept her eyes on the door and waited for Ranma. Yui and Nanami excused themselves a few moments later as they left for their usual meeting spot. Riko hung back and waited with her for Ranma. She knew that was what Riko was doing, even though her friend didn't mention it. As Yui and Nanami left, Riko stepped over and took up the conversation with her smoothly, like it had been a planned changeover. They talked about anything and nothing. The only thing they didn't talk about was the subject both of them were worried about.
She kept her eyes on the door, but did her best to laugh and joke with Riko to try to reassure her friend that she was still the same person inside, and that there was no cause for worry. She could tell that Riko wasn't buying it though.
A moment later her efforts to reassure Riko had to be put on hold, because Ranma was now standing in the doorway. It was somewhat amusing to her that even bigger guys in her own class either scooted carefully around him to get through the doorway, or stood back and waited for him to clear the doorway. It was almost unheard of for upperclassmen to defer to younger guys ... but Ranma ... was no ordinary guy. He might have been younger, but his presence was raw and intimidating. He had the kind of eyes that could stop a charging bull at a thousand meters. Those same eyes could also make her weak in the knees when he smiled at her.
Riko picked up on his entrance without even turning around. She knew that her friend could tell he had arrived simply by her own body language changes. She was aware that he had that affect on her, but she was well past the point of caring.
Riko smiled at her and stopped trying to chat. Instead her friend laid a warm hand gently on her forearm and squeezed gently for a moment, before stepping back and winking at her. Riko then spun on her heel and marched to the doorway, straight at Ranma.
Unlike the guys, none of the girls in the school were afraid of Ranma, unless they believed some of the nastier rumors about him. But none of the girls who actually knew him, were afraid of him. He had proven time and time again that he was kind and gentle when it came to women.
Riko marched right up to him with a brisk gait, and made him dodge out of her way. Just as Riko was passing him, her friend paused and leaned in to him and whispered something in his ear as she continued on her way out the door. Riko also decided to tease him by trailing her hand lazily across his cheek in a seductive and sensual way.
The guys in their class gazed at the display with open jealousy while most of the girls in her class either rolled their eyes at Riko's antics or glared at what they considered to be improper behavior. Riko, of course, thrived on all of it. She couldn't help but smile as Riko left with her usual trailing stares of lust, admiration, jealousy and disapproval. Her friend was one of a kind.
Ranma stepped back into the doorway and smiled at her somewhat nervously. It amused her that Riko was still able to unsettle him so much. She smiled back at him as she walked to him as quickly as her dignity would allow. As soon as she reached him she sank into a hug and buried her face into his warm and silky chest and breathed him in deeply.
He smelled like his usual flowery-cedar scent, and she could smell the laundry soap on his clothing, but there was also a very faint hint of stale sweat as well. He had been working hard fighting to protect her and her family last night, and clearly hadn't gotten a chance to shower in the morning. The smell didn't repulse her though, if anything it attracted her to him more. She didn't know why, but it did.
He held her and allowed her to hug him without pulling her off. She didn't know if he was just getting more used to public displays of affection, or if he just didn't care what people in her class thought about anything.
It's probably a bit of both, she thought as she reluctantly slid back out of his arms and smiled at him shakily.
"Ready to go to lunch?" He asked in his usual calm voice.
She nodded in response and fell into step with him as he turned to walk out of the doorway with her. It amused her to watch the guys pour out of the doorway, as soon as he cleared it, and sprint off towards wherever they had to be. She knew it was somewhat childish, but it was fun being with a guy who so casually intimidated other guys.
They made their way out towards the sports fields and their tree. She walked hand-in-hand with him and tried to focus on the life she could have with him. She knew there were some fairly major problems with their relationship being able to work long-term, not the least of which was people were attacking her for being together with him, but she wasn't willing to give him up.
They'll have to try a lot harder than they have been. She promised herself.
Ranma spent most of their walk talking to her about what they were covering in his class, and various pieces of gossip about various people in his class she didn't even know. Strangely though, she found herself riveted to what he was saying, and ignoring everything else. The background shouts of people in the school and those around her became a dim murmur as she focused on him, and held on to his warm hand. She had a weird feeling like she needed to hold on to him for some reason.
Not that he'd leave me. He promised...
...he promised... 
She thought idly as they reached their tree and she shook the dark thoughts out of her mind.
Ranma walked them right up to the group this time. He didn't pause on the outer rim anymore and wait to be waved in. Yui and Nanami waved to him and greeted him enthusiastically. But Riko ... Riko was leaning against the tree and staring at her while frowning.
Her oldest friend in the world had her lips pressed together in a thin line, and had drawn her eyebrows down into a facial expression that was half worry, and half a downright glare.
She returned Riko's stare for a moment and put a little weight of her own into her eyes. She would not have Riko scaring Ranma away! Riko blinked and nodded, and before her eyes her friend brought up one of her many masks, and transformed into the laughing and joking Riko that most people knew. She could still see in Riko's eyes an uneasiness though. And her friend kept darting her eyes over to her every now and then, almost like Riko was watching for something.
She sighed and winked at Riko as she led Ranma over to the bench and sat down with him. She would have to sort things out with Riko soon. It wouldn't do for Riko to stay worried. Riko was ... unpredictable ... when worried.
"So, what are we all talking about?" She asked as she opened her lunch and began to eat next to Ranma on the bench. Ranma watched everything, but was keeping to himself for the moment. Not that that surprised her. When food was available, that tended to be his highest priority.
"Oh ... I am not even sure how to describe it." Yui said with exasperation in her voice.
"What do you mean?" She asked.
"Riko's got ... plans..." Nanami said with a wide grin.
"What sort of plans?" She asked with a smile.
"Well, they're about ... hmm ... I don't know how to—"
"They're about my ascendancy to divinity." Riko interrupted Yui with a wolfish grin.
"Yeah ... that." Yui said as she rolled her eyes.
"Your ascendancy to divinity?" She repeated.
"Yup."
"Going to become a Goddess again?" She asked with a wink.
"Again?" Nanami asked with a blink of surprise.
"Oh yeah, she rises to godhood every four years or so." She said with a smile as she finished up her lunch and sipped on her water bottle.
"I see, and just why would she need to ascend to the divine more than once?" Nanami asked with a laugh.
"Oh ... well ... there've been ... incidents." She said with a laugh.
"Now THAT, I believe!" Yui chimed in with a fist raised to the heavens.
"Hey! There were extenuating circumstances! I was innocent!" Riko protested.
"And yet, here you are, planning your ascendancy again, instead of, you know, just being a Goddess." Yui taunted happily.
"Look, sometimes the Gods just get a little bit too uptight, okay? How was I supposed to know about the red door? It could have happened to anyone!" Riko protested with a sulky expression on her face.
"Red door?" Nanami asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Don't ask." She said with a lazy smile pulling up a corner of her mouth.
"Right, well, anyway, what sort of powers will you have as a Goddess, Riko?" Yui asked.
"That's Riko-Sama to you, mortal." Riko said haughtily.
"Yes, pardon me, Riko-Sama, your grace, um ... what powers will you have? Oh, and also, you have seaweed stuck in your teeth, m'lady." Yui chirped happily.
Riko glared at Yui for a few beats before closing her mouth and making loud, and decidedly unlady-like, not to mention un-Goddess-like, sucking noises to clear her teeth. With that done, Riko cleared her throat and started listing powers like she was rattling off a shopping list.
"Well, I'll be omnipotent, of course. And I'll fly. And I'll be immortal, obviously. And able to read minds, and be invisible. That last one makes it super easy to spy on my little Nanami in the locker room." Riko said with a wink.
"Um ... Riko—" Nanami began with a confused look on her face.
"Riko-Sama." Riko corrected.
"Right, Riko-Sama, um ... you're a girl ... nobody would stop you from going into the locker room." Nanami said with exasperation and a rising blush on her neck that was creeping up to her cheeks.
Riko winked at Nanami and leaned in closer to her. "Yeah, but I get to stare when I'm invisible." Riko whispered conspiratorially.
Nanami blushed and looked away shyly. "Oh, you're such a pervert, Riko!"
"Riko, you're burying the needle on my creepy-meter again." Yui said with exasperation while burying her face in her hands. "I can't even look at you right now." Yui mumbled through her hands.
"Only for you, my Crimson-Goddess. I ascend to the divine for you, my love!" Riko said dreamily as she stared at Nanami and sucked on her lower lip in a display that was surely meant to be seductive.
Yui looked up and rolled her eyes. "I think Nanami already lets you be her special friend, Riko, sorry, Riko-Sama..." Yui hastily corrected herself as Riko glared, "But that seems like a lot of powers. Are you sure you aren't exaggerating a bit?"
Riko sighed. "Yui, my love, I am the Alpha and the Omega of the divine. Look to me for Enlightenment and Rebirth. Only through me, will you find your salvation." Riko said in a low, serious voice.
"Well, so long as she isn't worshiping at Nanami's alter at the time." She said with a smirk.
"Hey!" Riko said indignantly.
"Yeah, seriously, who'd worship such a fickle Goddess?" Yui asked with a grin.
"Don't make me slap you, mortal." Riko growled.
"So ... you're a wrathful Goddess?" Yui asked.
"C'mon Riko, play nice." Nanami purred.
"Fiiiiine, no slapping, but I might pull out an eyelash." Riko said sulkily.
"Oh, ow! No! I'd rather take the slap!"  Yui said while scooting back away from Riko.
Riko responded to that by raising her hands and flexing them towards Yui like they were claws. "Put your money in the bowl for your Riko-Sama, Yui, or beware my wrath."
Yui playacted at cowering behind Nanami while sticking her tongue out at Riko.
While that was going on Nabiki leaned in to Ranma and whispered to him. "You okay?"
He smiled at her and nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine."
"They're not too much for you?" She asked.
"Nah, it's fine. I'm ... sorta used to them now." He said.
"Okay." She said as she leaned into him more and cuddled with him. She wanted him to relax and have fun. Not that it was hard to have fun when around her friends.
She smiled as she watched her friends' antics. Riko and Yui's play-fight had progressed to Riko lunging at Yui who was using Nanami as a shield. Although Riko was doing more pawing at Nanami than she was making any real effort to get to Yui. Nanami seemed to be enjoying the attention.
She decided to pull the girls back into warring with words and called out to Riko in a happy voice. "Hey, Riko-Sama, I heard Kuno say he might ask you out, do you think he caught wind of your ascendancy?" She plastered an innocent look on her face as Riko's head whipped around like a hunting tiger catching sight of new prey. Riko's eyebrows came together, and a frown pressed her mouth downward.
"What?! No! I think I just threw up in my mouth a little!" Riko said with a look of disgust on her face as her friend pantomimed dry-heaving.
"Oh come on, it could be interesting. He's rich you know." Yui piled on.
"Seriously? He wants to go out with me? I knew it might come to this some day." Riko said with an exaggerated sigh as she retreated from Nanami and Yui and walked back over towards the bench. "I can see no other way out of this ... we're going to have to hang him." Riko said as she sat down next to the bench with a determined look on her face.
"Really? You're going to kill Kuno?" She asked, amused.
"No ... just test his reflexes." Riko said in a deadpan as she made snapping motions with her hands with a silly, childish expression on her face, like a kid playing with a favorite toy.
"Seriously?" Yui asked with a slow smile creeping up her face as she sat down next to Riko and began playing with Riko's hair. All signs of their little Goddess play-fight already gone.
"It would be a kindness, Yui. I would be setting him free." Riko continued still in her deadpan.
"Is she always this ... murdery ...?" Nanami asked sweetly with a raised eyebrow as she walked over and joined the group.
"She gets worse when you're not around." Yui said tiredly.
"True story." She joined in with a wink.
"Aww, that's sweet." Nanami said in a saccharine voice as she leaned over to Riko and pulled her into a hug. Riko leaned back away from Nanami and eyed the red-head suspiciously. 
"You're not just saying that to try to get into my pants, are you?" Riko asked with a frown.
"Mmmm ... you're not wearing pants, silly." Nanami purred as she slid her hands down Riko's waist to rest on her friend's hips.
Yui grinned in approval. The general consensus was that everyone preferred Riko lusting after Nanami over planning murders, even jokingly.
"So ... does this mean you'd consider going out with Kuno?" She had to ask. Yui and Nanami both looked over at her in shock. There was diverting Riko, and then there was deliberately riling her up, and Yui and Nanami could tell she was riling Riko up. Riko tore her eyes off Nanami and stared back at her with an incredulous look in her eyes.
"I cannot stress this enough, I need you to not be stupid today." Riko growled.
She shrugged. "I was just curious." She said with an impish grin.
"Well, as much as I want to hear what Riko is going to do about this, I have to go, but Riko ... try not to kill anyone until I get back, 'kay?" Nanami asked as she stood up and started to step back from Riko. 
"Okay I'll try, but no promises." Riko said as she stood up with Nanami and tried to hang on to the red-headed girl. But eventually they separated so that they were only holding on to each other's arms, then hands, then fingertips, then Nanami was floating backwards softly away from Riko with her hands clasped over her heart.
"Meet me after school, Riko. We can have a proper cuddle then, all right?" Nanami asked.
Riko nodded vigorously. "In the name of my Crimson Goddess, thy will be done!" Riko promised while blowing goodbye kisses.
"And you don't need to worry about Kuno, Riko. Everyone knows he's in love with Akane, and Ranma, depending on how the wind is blowing that day." Yui said with a wink towards Ranma.
Ranma made gagging motions.
"Aww, come on, it's kinda sweet, isn't it?" Yui asked.
"If by sweet, you mean sad, sure." Riko piped up.
"He's kind of a hopeless romantic. I mean ... he's terrible at it, and kind of creepy, okay super creepy, but ... it's still kind of sweet ... in a way." Yui said defensively.
"Yeah, no, sticking with sad." Riko said as she stuck out her tongue.
Nabiki looked over at Ranma and smiled at him, then smiled wider as she caught him sneaking a look at her again. Her heart swelled up and ached that he was still doing that. After everything that had been happening, and after having to fight for her all night, he was still sneaking looks at her.
A thought occurred to her then, and she couldn't not ask. She smiled and leaned in to him and whispered to him. "Ranma ... how come I never see you sneaking looks at Akane?" She was genuinely curious.
He looked away from a moment, and she thought he was going to refuse to answer. She sighed and got ready to lean back away from him, when he finally answered in a very quiet whisper.
"I used to..." He said in a voice she couldn't read.
She leaned back away from him, and smiled as she reached for his hand and squeezed it softly. He glanced at her quickly and smiled back before he went back to sweeping his eyes around for danger while watching her friends as much as he could. They were currently in the middle of planning what to do after school.
"We should go out to eat tonight." Yui said.
"I think this is an excellent idea, and would like to subscribe to your newsletter." Riko said with an easy smile.
"I'm thinking sushi." Yui said.
"Oh, Yui, my poor deluded soul, you just lost a subscriber." Riko said.
"Wait, what?" Yui asked, confused.
"Sushi me no likey." Riko said with a shrug and a grimace on her face.
"My god, woman! Were you born with a broken sense of taste or something?" Yui asked incredulously.
Riko grinned and shook her head. "No my dear, it is you who have a lack of a refined palate. Sushi is a crime against food. It should be banned." Riko declared haughtily.
"Are ... are you serious? You know what country you live in, right?" Nabiki said as she couldn't hold back any longer from joining in.
Riko stuck her tongue out at both of them. "Sushi is an abomination, and should be banished. When I'm elected Empress, I'm going to ban it." Riko said with a smile.
"You're impossible. I'd keep that to yourself if I were you. There are a LOT of companies involved with the production and sale of sushi, you know. You could be eliminating a large number of future employers with your opinion, you know." Yui said with exasperation.
Riko shrugged. "They won't be in business anymore anyway, when I ban their filthy abominations." Riko said with a determined frown on her face.
Yui sighed. "Fiiiiiine, well, what do you want to have instead?"
"Pizza." Riko said with a smile and a smack of her lips.
"Pizza." Yui repeated in an unamused voice.
"Yup."
"So, you don't want to go have a wonderful food native to your homeland, that is prized by all of your normal countrymen. And, instead, you want to go have a greasy, fattening, smelly Western food that's cheap and mass produced?" Yui asked incredulously.
"Yup." Riko said with a wink.
"You know ... I have seen you eat sushi in the past." Yui said slowly, with determination.
"Lies! Lies crafted by the sushi industry! I see they've gotten to you too. They're everywhere." Riko said with haunted eyes as she turned to face Nabiki.
Nabiki rolled her eyes and shared a knowing glance with Yui. Neither one of them knew what Riko's angle was, but both of them recognized it for what it was. Riko was just pushing their buttons.
"Fine, but if you pick the food, then I get to pick the activity." Yui said with a gleam in her eye.
"What ... activity?" Riko asked suspiciously.
"We're going to go dancing, Riko."
"Nope."
"C'mon, I don't have anyone to go with." Yui's voice changed to a plaintive tone.
"Take Nabiki."
"Kinda busy these days." Nabiki said.
"Well, then take Ranma."
Ranma looked at them with panic in his eyes, and shook his head as he looked at Nabiki and they shared a knowing look. She smiled at him reassuringly.
Yui turned her attention back to Riko in a huff. "Riko! This has to happen! The club is only going to be open for a few more days! It's the event of our generation! Besides, you're picking the food, so I get to pick the activity. It's only fair!" Yui continued to press.
"Don't caaaaaare." Riko replied in a sing-song voice.
"This must happen! I will disgrace my family if I don't go!" Yui whined.
"Then go by yourself."
"I'm just one little girl alone in a sea of perverts, Riko. I need you there to protect me. It'll give you a chance to use your Goddess powers." Yui suggested hopefully.
"I would rather be stripped naked at the top of Tokyo Tower and painted neon green, live on TV, then get dropped into a locked room with Kuno, than go dancing in a club."
"You're being ridiculous. My family will never forgive you if I disgrace them because you refused to take me."
Riko sighed theatrically. "Apparently I have to spell it out for you. Think of it like this. Imagine me as regular matter. Now imagine dancing in public as antimatter. It is a line never to be crossed, Yui. It could destroy everything we hold dear! It could destroy the universe! If that line is crossed..." Riko trailed off dramatically as she made blowing up motions with her hands, and mouthed an explosion sound effect in slow motion while maintaining sullen eye contact with Yui.
Yui stared at Riko with squinted eyes and an unhappy frown.
"SERIOUSLY?! It's just dancing! I know you dance, you've even done it it my room."
"I dance in private with my friends. I do not dance in public. Ever."
"But—"
"Listen, Yu-chan, my poor deluded little dear ... some of us have ... problems... with certain things ... you are just going to have to accept this about me."
"C'mon! I'll buy you dinner first! It'll be a proper date and everything, I'll even let you get to second base with me if you want!" Yui whined in a tone that was approaching begging.
"Yui, my love, I admire your tenacity, I do ... even when staring into the gaping maw of the absolute death and destruction of your idea, you press on, that's adorable, even admirable. You do your Samurai ancestors proud. But Yu-chan, my sweet child, you are never going to convince me to go dancing in public. Ever. My no-public-dancing rule is carved in stone. And that stone is in a locked box, inside another locked box, in orbit. It cannot be changed. I don't enjoy stomping all over your dreams, but in this case, it's necessary. No dancing in public ... ever." Riko said as she pivoted her body smoothly and shifted to look at something.
"Hey Ranma?" Riko said in a breezy tone as her eyes tracked something. It was clear Riko was changing topics. It was also clear there was a note of concern in Riko's voice.
Yui looked where Riko was looking, and scowled. "This isn't over!" Yui hissed as Riko smiled and winked knowingly while Yui rose to her feet.
Ranma looked over at Riko and raised his eyebrows. "Yeah?"
"I think Akane is on her way over here ... you want us to stop her?" Riko asked, still maintaining her breezy tone, but with a bit of an edge in it. Riko could be just as ruthless as she was. Yui was already moving into position to intercept Akane.
She smiled as she watched Ranma process what her friends had already acted on. It was probably amazing to Ranma how efficiently her lieutenants communicated with each other, and executed plans without even speaking about them. She was very proud of them.
Ranma sat up straight and craned his neck to look where Riko was looking. Sure enough, Akane was on her way over to them. He looked back to her, and she shrugged. Akane was her sister, she didn't really care if Akane came to visit or not. She certainly wasn't going to shut Akane out. If Ranma wanted to avoid Akane though, she would actually be kind of happy about that.
Ranma looked back over at Riko. "Why ... would you ... stop Akane? What's she done?" He asked in a confused tone.
Riko looked back over at him and smiled as she shrugged. "Nothing. She hasn't done anything. I actually like Akane."
"Then why..." Ranma trailed off in confusion.
"Because you're one of us now, and we protect each other." Riko said simply.
Ranma nodded slowly at that and smiled nervously. "I ... don't need anyone to protect me, especially from Akane ... but thanks, though." He said.
Riko winked at him. "You say that now, but just wait, we've had to protect other guys before from women's wrath."
"True story, remember when Miko was after Chihiro over Sora? Yikes. I think Nanami actually has scars from the scratching from that one. Well ... more scars than the ones Riko gives her anyway." Yui said with a laugh and she walked back to the group and stood down from readying to intercept Akane.
Riko whipped her head around in a flutter of hair and glared at Yui in mock-anger. "You like living dangerously, don't you." Riko growled at Yui.
Yui scowled back at Riko in defiance. "What? You brag about your cuddle conquests all the time."
"I am going to have to boot you off this ship if you can't behave. Next time you come around you might find a little sign with your name on it that says, permission to come aboard, denied!" Riko hissed with a smile on her face.
"Permission to deny, denied. You don't outrank me, oh delusional one."
"Oh! An insult! This is war! I'll have you know I outrank you across the board."
"True story, you rank the highest in the delusional power trip category."
"You're just jealous because my Nanami cuddles with me."
"I could get Nanami to cuddle with me if I wanted to."
"Now who's delusional?"
Nabiki tuned them out as they devolved into their usual antics with the histrionics reaching astronomical heights. Ranma's head was bouncing back and forth between the two of them almost comically, like he was watching a tennis match. She smiled and reached over and grasped his chin loosely and pulled his attention back to her.
"Shouldn't we—"
"They're just playing, Ranma." She said with a smile.
"Oh..." He said as his eyes darted over to them again, then back to her. "It doesn't seem like they're playin'..." He said with disbelief in his voice.
She sighed and smiled then let go of his chin and clapped her hands once. Riko and Yui paused and looked over at her. She nodded at Ranma and rolled her eyes. "All right, that's enough. You're freaking Ranma out. Kiss and make up." She said in a sing-song voice.
Riko and Yui both grinned and lunged for each other and playacted making out. Ranma's eyebrows were threating to climb off his face again.
She would have said more, but Akane had finally reached them. Her little sister paused at the imaginary boundary around their group and waited for someone to wave her in.
She smiled and obliged her sister and waved her over. Akane nodded and walked over to where she and Ranma were sitting. Even though Akane was present, she didn't feel the need to stop leaning on Ranma though. She could feel him tense up under her though, but he didn't try to pretend he wasn't sitting with her. Not that it was that big of a deal, it wasn't like they were making out or anything.
Akane walked right past Yui and Riko who were only now winding down from their playacting. Akane was far more used to her friends than Ranma was.
Akane paused in front of their bench and looked at her with Ranma for a moment with eyes she could tell were both sad, but determined. She knew that Akane hadn't given up yet.
Akane put a small smile on her face and nodded to her, then addressed Ranma. "A lady from the principal's office sent me to come get you." Akane said quietly.
"Really? For what?" Ranma asked.
Akane shrugged. "I don't know. She just stopped me in the hall and told me to come get you."
"Do ya think it can wait until after lunch?" He asked.
Akane shook her head. "They told me to tell you to come right away."
He sighed, but nodded. "Fine." He said as he stood up and turned to her. "Want to go on a walk to the principal's office with me?" He asked.
"I can stay with her." Akane jumped in, almost eagerly.
She raised an eyebrow at her younger sister before she answered him. "Sure, Ranma, I can come with you."
"If he goes alone, he can go and come back much faster, can't he?" Yui asked innocently.
She sighed and nodded. Yui didn't know about the subtle power play going on at the moment. She made a note to herself to inform her friends about the delicate situation with Akane.
"Yeeees, I guess so." She said carefully. "But, Ranma needs to stay with me for other reasons."
"It's fine, Nabiki, I can stay with you. Maybe we can ... talk?" Akane asked quietly.
Oh, so that's her angle. She wants to get me alone to talk. All right, fine I guess. She thought as she nodded at Ranma. "Go ahead Ranma, it'll be fine for a few minutes for you to run there and back."
He nodded and stood up.
Akane stepped closer to him and smiled. "I don't know what's going on, but the lady from the office told me to take you to that building over there, and she would take you to the principal. He's probably doing something weird again." Akane said with exasperation in her voice.
Alarm bells went off in her mind as Akane said that, but she knew that Akane would not deliberately put her in danger just to get a minute alone with Ranma.
Ranma looked down at her, still seated at the bench, and she could see in his eyes that he was uneasy as well. "I'll be ... right back ... okay?" He said reluctantly.
"And I'll run right back even faster. Back in a second." Akane said as she tugged on Ranma's arm, and they ran towards the second building from the left. Ranma looked back once at her with worry in his eyes, and she met his eyes with her own worried eyes as she stood up to watch him leave.
Then she felt a hand on her shoulder pulling her backwards. She tensed up for a moment before she realized it was Riko. Her friend pulled her into a hug and just held her for a moment. Then Riko whispered into her ear. "You feeling all right?"
She shrugged and didn't respond. She wasn't feeling all right, but she didn't want to get into it right now, so she nodded.
"You sure? You don't seem like you're feeling all right..." Riko prodded her.
"I ... don't know... I can't remember ever feeling like this before." She replied in her own whisper without lifting her head from Riko's shoulder.
"I can." Riko said confidently. She could tell without looking that Riko was smirking.
"Really? When?" She asked, slightly irritated.
"It was back in second grade, when you had that giant crush on Kin Maeda." Riko said quietly.
Her mind flashed back to second grade and the boy who's name triggered the memory of her mother talking to her about boys. Kin ... Kin Maeda. That had been the random boy she'd told Mom about. She shook her head softly, but firmly. "No, not like that. This ... is much more serious." She said.
"No it isn't. You're acting the same as you did when you had that crush on Kin." Riko said lightly. She could tell Riko was trying to be gentle about it, but at the same time that her friend was trying to steer her towards something.
"If ... if you say so, Riko. I don't really remember it very well."
"I do. You were super into him for like a week, and couldn't think about or talk about anything other than him. Then, just like that, it went away, and you never mentioned him again." Riko said with a snap of her fingers.
She sighed. She was fairly certain Mom had gotten sick right around that time, but she didn't feel like arguing with Riko about it. "All right, well, so what? I had a crush on a boy when I was younger, and it went away. So? Ranma isn't Kin." She protested.
"Oh, Ranma absolutely is Kin. You just don't see it yet. But you're losing yourself in him, just like you did with Kin back then. I know you, Kiki. You give yourself totally to things you commit to. I can tell you've committed to him in your mind. You need to pull back a bit. It's just a crush. You need to refocus back on business. Your financial empire won't run itself after all. And we can't run it for you." Riko whispered to her softly while stroking her hair.
If it had been anyone other than Riko saying such things to her, she would have gotten furious. But it was Riko, and she knew that Riko was right about some of it. She was losing focus. But her feelings for Ranma weren't just a crush. He was the real deal. Beside, she hadn't abandoned her financial empire, she was still running it just fine... even if she was a little distracted.
"It's fine, things are just a bit crazy right now." She said. "I haven't forgotten about taking care of business." She protested.
"Yes you have." Riko said with a laugh in her voice.
"What do you mean?" She asked.
"Well, let's take today for instance. What do you remember about walking out here to join us at the tree for lunch?" Riko asked in a voice she could tell was feeling smug.
"There wasn't anything remarkable about it. We held hands and walked out here, and he talked, and I listened." She said.
"Yeah, I saw that. I saw you staring at him like he was spouting lines of poetry to rival Shakespeare, and that he was more beautiful than Adonis — even though he is obviously very tired today, and not looking his best. And I saw you holding on to his hand so tightly your knuckles were white." Riko said softly.
"So? What's your point?" She said defensively.
"My point, my dear, is what you left out of your recollection of the event. Which I knew you would, because I could tell you missed it. Did you happen to hear anyone saying anything to you?" Riko asked.
She shook her head no. "No ... just the usual lunchtime background noises." She said.
Riko sighed. "Yeah, that was there too, but three different people approached you as you walked with Ranma, and called your name, and tried to get your attention. They were trying to do business with you. They wanted to make bets, and buy information, and stuff like that." Riko said gently.
"Really?" She asked in confusion. How could she possibly have missed that?
"Really. Ask Yui, she saw it too."
She nodded and just held Riko for a moment in silence. She was starting to feel like the ground was slipping out from under her again.
Riko stepped back a half step and slid her hands around her neck and pulled her in so that their foreheads were touching. Riko's hands were cold.
"I know you. You aren't fooling me. I know what's going on. I love you Kiki-chan. I want you to take a step back and really look at how you have been acting the last few days." Riko whispered to her.
"I know..." She whispered in a voice that was a mixture of shame and defiance.
"You're losing yourself in him."
"I know..." She said a little bit more weakly.
"You haven't been yourself."
"I know..." She whispered as she squeezed her eyes shut.
"You're losing your perspective. I don't want you to get hurt."
"It's too late..." She whispered as she clenched her eyes shut and willed herself not to cry.
"What do you mean?"
"I ... I love him." She whispered as the tears fought back to get out.
"Oh, Nabiki, come on, you've barely even dated him. How can you—"
"I just know ... I can't explain it. It just is." She said in a shaky voice.
"But ... what if he picks Akane?" Riko asked gently.
"I don't want to think about it." She said as she tried to pull away from Riko, but Riko held firm.
"Listen to me... There will be other guys. He's special, but he isn't the only one out there." Riko whispered fiercely as she started to break down.
"It's too late, Riko. It's too late ... too late..." She whispered back as she admitted defeat and let a tear escape down her cheek.
"Oh ... Kiki ... I'm so sorry ... is it that bad?" Riko whispered remorsefully as she pulled them down to sit together on the bench.
She nodded her forehead up against Riko's. Her lower lip was trembling. Riko was making her face the very real possibility that he might not pick her. And she was finding out she wasn't as ready to be an adult about it as she had thought she was. She was also feeling more and more uneasy in his world, and that was making it harder for her to justify holding on to him, which was making it worse.
"I'm sorry ... I'm a mess." She whispered as more tears slipped down her cheeks.
"Don't be sorry."
"You should just ignore me until this is all over." She whispered in a shaking voice.
"You know I can't do that"
"Riko ...I..."
"After what we've been through? You think I can just walk away from you, ever?"
"But I—"
"I swore an oath that I'd never forget what you did for me. We're sisters, Kiki. You know I'd do anything for you!" Riko whispered urgently as her friend pulled her in hard and hugged her fiercely. "If you're determined to keep this up, then I'll support you, Kiki, you know that." Riko said softly into her ear as she held her.
She sniffled as she tried to fight back the tears in a valiant final effort to not break down in public at school.
"You listen to me ... LISTEN TO ME..." Riko whispered to her urgently as she failed and started to cry. "You are the strongest person I know. If ANYONE on this Earth has earned the right to have a good cry, it's you, Kiki." Riko whispered to her gently. She heard the sound of fingers snapping and knew that Riko was summoning people to her.
She felt shadows surround her a moment later and knew that Riko had pulled in people to stand on all sides of her so that no outsider would see her lose control. She buried her face into Riko's warm neck, and let go and cried as she clutched the back of Riko's shirt as hard as she could. Riko just rocked with her and held her. Her oldest friend in the world sat and held her and stroked her hair and tried to make it better for her.
A little while later she forced herself to regain control and just hugged Riko for a while.
"Akane is on her way back. Yui's intercepting her." Riko said quietly while stroking her hair against her neck softly.
She felt herself smile. "Of course she is. Akane wouldn't have lied about something like that."
"We can keep her out..."
"No, it's fine. Akane's seen me much worse than this."
"If you want, I can go send someone to fetch Kuno or Gosunkugi here. We can light their pants on fire or something, you know, to take the edge off." Riko said in a dead serious voice.
She couldn't help herself, she laughed at that. It started out at a low giggle, and before she knew it she was shaking in Riko's arms as she laughed harder than she had laughed in a long while. She eventually leaned back and grinned at Riko and found her friend grinning back at her as Akane's shadow fell on her.
She was still giggling with Riko as Akane spoke up. "Do I even want to know?"
"Probably not." She said happily.
Akane smiled gently at her and looked around pointedly at the people surrounding her. She realized with mild surprise that many of them were members of the Brute Squad. Riko must have just pulled in anyone who was nearby when summoning people.
"Can we talk? Maybe go on a little walk?" Akane asked in a small voice.
She nodded and held her hand up to Akane, who pulled her to her feet effortlessly. "Sure, let's talk." She said as she linked arms with her younger sister and started to walk away towards the South end of the field, away from most of the buildings, and her friends.
"Should I—" Riko started to ask.
"No, it's fine, Akane's with me." She said with a wink as she set off to talk with her little sister.
"All right, well, Yui and I will be waiting here for you when you're done ... just sitting here, all alone, being normal, NOT planning on lighting anyone on fire, or anything like that." Riko called out after them in a worried tone of voice. Her friend was joking, but she could tell that underneath it, Riko didn't feel right. She didn't blame Riko, things didn't feel quite right to her, either.