Saipan
Chapter 7
By Alessia '79
http://www.akane.it
 
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* The characters in this story belong to Rumiko *
* Takahashi, while the setting to Banana Yoshimoto, *
* two great authors for a great story? Enjoy it! *
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It was late; very late. The stars had been shining for 
hours now and the moon watched over Saipan with 
interest, because tonight was not an ordinary night.
 
Ukyo readied her spatula. The hotel was in sight and 
she could feel it in her skin that something wasn't 
right. <It's quiet! Too quiet if you ask me.> she 
thought.
 
<Why is airen not shouting or fighting or something? It
must be because it's so late and he is already
asleep.> Shampoo thought. (She thinks in chinese, that's
why she doesn't seem like a bimbo here.)
 
Kuno was lost in his bliss and doesn't seem to have any 
thoughts at the moment, while Kodachi started laughing 
like a maniac.
 
"Shh! Kodachi! Why don't you just go to Ranchan and tell
him we are here?" Ukyo whispered covering the gymnist's 
mouth with her hand.
 
"No one have to know we here!" added Shampoo doing the
same thing.
 
Kuno just kept on walking.
 
/////\\\\\
 
Nabiki and Michael were walking hand in hand towards her
hotel when she noticed four familiar figures talking on
the pavement in front of the palace.
 
"Michael, we are in trouble, real trouble!" she 
whispered taking his arm, but without stopping.
 
"What does you mean?"
 
"Just humor me, we have guest from Nerima!" she added
pointing the four with her chin.
 
"Oh, ok..."
 
They walked 'til they were in earshot, then Nabiki 
said: "Well, well! Look how small the world can be!
If it isn't my little sister's friends from Nerima?"
 
"We aren't anything near friends with your sister!" Ukyo
replied.
 
"What are you doing here, then?"
 
"I want to see Ranchan!"
 
"Mmh...I think he would be asleep right now. Why don't 
you guys go to sleep and come back tomorrow morning to
say hello?"
 
"We can sleep here, then." Kuno said.
 
"Sorry Kuno-baby, but there are no rooms avaible, right
Michael?"
 
"Right. You can try the Splendor, over there."
 
"Who are you?" Shampoo asked "How you know no rooms in
hotel?"
 
"He is..." Nabiki froze, she hadn't thougt anything for
this.
 
"I'm a waiter here." Michael answered confidently.
 
"She is right. There is no reason to stay here now. 
We'll come back tomorrow morning." Kodachi stated then, 
walking away. She stopped and said to Michael: "You are
seem very sweethoney, maybe I'll come to say 'hello' to 
you, too!"
 
"So it's a habit to look at the Tendo's boys!" Nabiki
replied hugging Michael. "Just in case you haven't 
noticed yet, he is private property!" and then she
kissed him passionately.
 
"We'll see, impudent girl. I'll make you pay! Ohohohoh!"
 
"Oh, Nabiki?" Ukyo said. "Don't tell Ranchan we are 
here, we want to surprise him."
 
<A big surprise, indeed.> Nabiki thought crossing her 
middle and index fingers behind her back. "Sure, Ukyo.
Whatever you want."
 
/////\\\\\
 
Nabiki ran through the corridors of the hotel, her hand
linked with Michael's, It could have been a romantic
scene if her face wasn't so seriously worried.
 
In front of the door of her room she stopped, explaining
to Michael her plan:
 
"You tell my sisters what happened while I'll go find
Dr. Tofu and Ranma!"
 
She reached the boy's room which was on the upper floor
and knocked at the door, but surprisingly it was Akane
who opened it.
 
<I haven't mixed up the rooms, have I?> she thought, 
then aloud she said, "Akane, what are you doing here?"
 
The younger Tendo was too sleepy minded to answer at the
moment and Nabiki took the chance to look her better. 
Her clothes were in disarray, with her shirt half 
unbottoned, her hair was a mess and her skirt was not in
the proper position.
 
"Akane...you didn't...do you?!?" without waiting for an
answer, she entered the room and froze seeing Ranma 
sleeping on the bed with only his boxers on.
 
"Oh my God! Sis, you...oh my God! Were you careful
at least?"
 
The question reached Akane's brain which started working
again. "Careful? For what? Oh! You don't think...do 
you?"
 
"What did you think I'd think seeing you like this and
him half naked on a bed?"
 
"We didn't do anything! We just...well, you know...but
we didn't do _that_!"
 
"Really? And what are you doing here this late at 
night?"
 
"I fell asleep here! We wanted to give Kasumi a 
little privacy!"
 
Nabiki put her hands on her hips ready to say something
else, then she sighed noisily and said "Whatever...
we'll discuss this later. Wake up sleeping beauty over 
there and come down to our room. You two are in big 
trouble. You have no idea what's going on!"
 
/////\\\\\
 
In the room of the Tendo girls, there were six people
with worried expressions thinking about the situation at
hand.
 
Ranma took Akane's hand in his own to reassure his 
fiancée and himself that everything will be all right.
She smiled at him nervously and after a moment of 
hesitation she hugged him tightly, without a word.
 
Nabiki smiled at Michael and Kasumi stood to hug Akane
and Ranma.
 
"What are you going to do?" asked Tofu.
 
"I want to talk to Akane privately if you all don't 
mind." answered Ranma, breaking the hug.
 
Everybody exchanged glances then slowly nodded and left 
the couple alone, but just before the door closed Ranma
said, "Nabiki, thanks for buying us some time."
 
"You are welcome." she answered and closed the door.
 
"How can we break the news to them?" asked Akane.
 
"They'll take it the wrong way no matter what we say."
 
"Yeah, and then Kuno will attack you."
 
"And Ukyo, Shampoo and Kodachi will attack you."
 
"We have to show them our love is really strong, because
if they see even the slightest possibility to break us 
up, they'll go for it."
 
"How can we show them somethin in a few hours when it 
took me a whole year to show you?"
 
Akane hugged her fiancé lovingly "I've always known you 
loved me, from the thousands of things you did for me 
and I'm sure they know as well. They just can't admit 
it."
 
"We could confront them at breakfast."
 
"Ok...together...it'll be alright...you'll see..."
 
"I love you, and only you."
 
"I love you, too."
 
/////\\\\\
 
"I wish We'd stayed longer at the Casino!" Soun said
crossing his arms. He and Genma were in a taxi that was
taking them back to the hotel.
 
"Look, Tendo! It's dawn! I think we'll be able to join 
the children for breakfast!" At the last statement, 
both men's stomaches growled noisily.
 
"I'm starving, Saotome!"
 
"Me too, Tendo, me too!"
 
Chapter 8
 
The telephone rang and Ranma answered it. "Yes?...Ok, we'll 
be down in a minute. Bye."
 
"Time to go, I guess." said Akane, taking his hand.
 
"Yeah. Nabiki said there's a surprise, I don't know
what she meant, though."
 
They took the elevator, secretely wishing that it would 
stop between floors, but it didn't happen. When they 
entered the hall, they could just barely see the shocked
faces of the Nerima crowd before hearing various battle cries.
 
"Saotome! How dare you take Akane's hand? Die!"
 
"R-Ryoga? What are you doing here?" Ranma said, 
positioning himself between Akane and the pig-boy.
 
"I was looking for you! I've seen Hell because of you! I
didn't know I arrived in Tokyo, though."
 
"We're in Saipan, dummy!"
 
"Saipan? You've kidnapped Akane, then?"
 
"Are you kidding? We're here on vacation!"
 
"Ahem! Excuse me, but we'd like an explanation as well!" 
Ukyo said.
 
"Ucchan, we..."
 
"Don't call me Ucchan while you're holding her hand 
Ranc...Ranma!"
 
"Airen must be drugged. He not hold violent girl's hand
otherwise!" Then she shot a side glance to Akane 
adding, under her breath in Mandarin. "She must be 
drugged too. She would never let Ranma hold her hand so
casually."
 
"Ranma-sama drop the hand of this poor girl and come 
hug your true love!"
 
Ranma looked at his fiancée with a panicked expression. 
"What a mess!"
 
"Saotome, you sorcerer, you'll die to wash the honor of 
the fair Akane!"
 
"Ranma, you bastard!"
 
Akane dragged Ranma away from the others and tightening
the grip on Ranma's hand she said, "Listen carefully 
everybody: we are in love! We are not drugged, we are not
nuts, we are simply in love, of our free will! Understood?"
 
Ranma felt the tension build and before anything happened he 
added, "Akane is right: I love her and she loves me, sorry if
it causes you trouble! Ucch...Ukyo...I'll repay your 
dowry as soon as I start working. Shampoo...sorry but I
don't want to be an Amazon husband. Kodachi...well, you
don't have any right claim on me, so I guess you'll just
have to deal with it."
 
"I will never let you take her, Saotome!" Kuno said.
 
"Ranma, you don't deserve her!" Ryoga added.
 
It was Akane's turn to speak. "Why can't you see this? It's not 
just me loving him or vice-versa. We're both in love, and if we 
are in love with each other we can't be in love with anybody else!"
 
"Oh, Akane! You made your father so happy!" the voice of
Soun Tendo thundered from the door. "Our families can be
united at last!"
 
You can easily imagine the confusion that followed...do
you remember the failed wedding?
 
/////\\\\\
 
When everybody regained the control, Ranma was a 
shapeless form on the floor while Akane was tied up 
with a ribbon and generally beated up. Under other
circumstances Ranma could have easily dodged Kuno and
Ryoga's combined attack, but his task was made difficult
by his attempts to preserve Akane from the blows of his
other fiancées. In the end, he was caught off guard by 
the other boys and Akane couldn't fight three people at 
the same time. At last, however, everybody left the room to 
clear their minds, leaving the couple alone.
 
Akane was feeling dizzy and her right arm was hurting a
lot, suddenly she felt two strong arms trying to loosen
the grip of the ribbon.
 
"Ranma? Are you all right?" she asked worried.
 
"Yeah...my leg hurts a bit, though. You?" the ribbon was
defeated.
 
"My arm...do you think they understand?" she said 
hugging him.
 
"Not likely."
 
"Akane! Ranma! We are so proud of you!" Soun said 
watering like a fountain.
 
"Well done boy! Facing your troubles was very manly of you!" Genma added.
 
"We can have the wedding now!"
 
"Wait a minute!" Akane interrupted. "Ok, you've heard we
are in love and I'm not gonna take it back, but can't this 
be enough for now? I mean, I want to marry him, but not now.
give us some time..."
 
Soun and Genma exchanged glances, then the Tendo's 
father said, "But, I'm growing older Akane, and I would like to rest.
With the dojo and the students I can't..."
 
"There is no problem daddy! If what you worry about is
the dojo, well...me and Ranma can teach your students!"
 
"Sure, Mr. Tendo! Akane could teach the kids while I 
teach the advanced classes." Ranma added, winking at 
Akane after explaining the fathers what she told him the
day before.
 
"But..."
 
"No buts daddy. We could start the union of the schools
and, some time in the future, when we'll be comfortable
with the thought, we'll unite the families."
 
Genma took Soun away from the couple's earshoot and
talked with him for a while, when they returned he was
the one to speak.
 
"Ok guys, we accept your terms, but you have to accept
ours."
 
"Sounds fine with me."
 
"Let's listen to what they have in mind, first," the girl
suggested.
 
"We want you to make the engagment public..."
 
"Ok, go on."
 
"Ok."
 
"Ranma has to train Akane the Saotome's techniques and
vice-versa."
 
"We can do it."
 
"Yeah."
 
"And you have to marry within a year from now."
 
Ranma nervously glanced Akane and when she nodded 
lightly, he took her hand and asked, "Are you sure?"
 
"Yes...a year sounds fine with me."
 
"Ok then."
 
/////\\\\\
 
Ukyo wandered alone on the sand, lost in her thoughts. 
She had a huge sense of despair. All her life has had
only one target: Ranma. In the beginning it was revenge
that guided her. She had to find the boy to make him 
pay. When she finally found him, she was stupid enough to
fall in love with him. If it was love. Deep in her heart
she always knew there was only Akane for him, but he was
the first person to care for her, to show her there was
something else than revenge in life. That there was 
friendship and love...but she can't let him go so 
easily, even if he had finally admitted his true 
feelings. He had kept the truth to himself far too 
long. The wait has been hope for her, hope he would fall
for the cute fiancée rather than the violent one, and
now that the hope was gone...to admit defeat was to be 
alone once again.
 
/////\\\\\
 
Shampoo was happy, really happy. The comedy has
ended at last! She had followed Ranma to Japan because 
she had to (due to the Amazon Laws). But now, she had been
defeated by true love and she could accept it, the 
Elders of the Tribe could accept it too. Now she could 
return to China, to her family and start to enjoy life again. To
find somebody to love. She didn't love Mousse, he was a
very close friend but nothing near a potential 
boyfriend. She felt sorry for his blind love for 
her. She had followed Ranma only for the honor of her 
family, but she had made sure that the boy wouldn't fall
for her by glomping onto him and shouting her love for him...
a way of acting she knew he would despise.
 
<Good job Shampoo! Time to go home now!> she thought 
smiling <Good luck Ranma and Akane!>
 
to be continued