Akane ran to the school terrified, hurtling Ranma by the hand. She had overslept! She never oversleeps! She knows what’s waiting for her at school, why would she ever make that mistake!? ...Well, she knows why. The hour and a half she had spent last night staring at the ceiling, intrusive thoughts preventing her from sleeping.

She was so overwhelmed, though! Between the usual routine, and on top of that, not only the horde of boys, but Tatewaki’s misunderstanding, and… and all that came with Ranma! She had her own stuff to deal with, so why did he have to appear now and be so… intriguing? There was a part of her that wanted to completely stop thinking about anything but figuring what was his deal. He was strange and wild, and he was making her life as wild as him, yet she couldn’t help but start to see a pattern! She had barely known him for five days, what was she doing getting in over her head like this?

Cynicism told her she only wanted to focus on him so she wouldn’t have to think about herself.

...Stalker label be damned she would figure the boy out before she would think for any second more about the strange thoughts her engagement to a half-woman was giving her.

As they arrived to the school gate, she tackled him against the grid and spoke to him. “No asking to help me with the boys today, Ranma!” Her eyes wandered downwards at the tenting under his shirt. “Wait, when did you…?”

“Some ol’ granny down the street.” The decidedly female Ranma replied, staring her down. “I tried to tell ya but ya were like in your own lil’ world, idiot.” His gaze suddenly shifted to something behind Akane.

She turned her head around, only to see the sports clubs captains loitering there, seemingly waiting for their argument to end. She grumbled and shifted herself into a fighting stance. “Okay, who first!?”

Tears pearled at the corners of every single eye from the crowd in front of them.

Akane blinked.

“We won’t fight you anymore.” the cricket player stated on behalf of all the men. The baseball player took over the explanations. “We had a meeting. We all decided to choke back our sorrow… and accept your engagement to Ranko Saotome!” The crowd exploded into pained wails and tears flowing like water out of fountains.

Akane stepped back, words failing her for a second, before she was overtaken with the most furious anger she had ever produced. “You mean to tell me I have asked you to stop with this whole charade for the better part of a month but the MOMENT a BOY shows up in the picture, THAT’S WHEN YOU ALL DECIDE TO REGAIN YOUR SENSES AND STOP HARASSING ME EVERY MORNING!!? HOW DARE YOU!!!? HOW DARE EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU!!!? WERE MY PLEAS NOT ENOUGH!!!!?” Some of the boys were blown away, caught in the flurry of wind displaced by Akane’s roar. “YOU COULD DISRESPECT ME ALL YOU WANTED, BUT THE MOMENT A MAN REPEATS MY WORDS IS WHEN YOU FINALLY DECIDE TO LISTEN!!!!?”

“Aaaaah!” The sumo wailed, his hands covering his ears, and his weight helping him stay in place. “We said Ranko, not Ranma! Ranma’s sister!”

Akane’s words failed her for the second time in less than a minute.

Wowee can that girl pack a wail when she wants to. Ranma’s ears were still ringing.

And yet, Kuno still managed to get through the noise a clear sounding clack from his sword striking the ground.

“Of course ya couldn’t be far.” Ranma said coldly.

“Whatever is not yours: let go of it. Your letting go of it will be for your long-term happiness and benefit.” The kendo trainee proclaimed, stepping towards Akane and Ranma. “It has come to my attention, fair maidens of charcoal and fire hair, that your parents have planned a most respectful engagement between you two, after the failure that a more conventional one had been between Tendo Akane and your brother Saotome Ranma.”

Ranma stayed silent, waiting to see where the idiot was going with this. He threw a glance at Akane… Funnily enough, she seemed to be turning a lovely shade of red.

“Therefore! Based on past clues and this new information, I have deduced that you, beautiful Akane, are bisexual! AND I OFFER THIS MATTER THE GREATEST RESPECT ONE HONOR-BOUND KENDO MASTER SUCH AS I CAN GIVE!!”

Akane’s lips trembled for an instant, before she blurted out a reply, her whole face painted vermillion from her chin to the top of her head. “I’m not a lesbian!!”

“That you are indeed not, Akane! You are ONE VALID BISEXUAL WOMAN!” Tatewaki reached for a thread stuck to the nearest tree - wow, had it been there this whole time? - and pulled on it hard, unrolling a pink, magenta and blue flag with a very poor rendition of Akane’s face sewn on it. Beat Ranma what that flag meant though. He didn’t know of any country with purple tones in theirs. “And you have I’s, the Blue Thunder of Furinkan, kendo master Kuno Tatewaki, blessing on this romantic adventure you have set on with Saotome Ranko! I shall pursue you no more.” He moved to the next tree and pulled on a second thread - seriously when were these set up -, revealing a second flag, a gradient from pink to orange, with girl form Ranma’s face as talentlessly depicted as Akane’s. “Do you like these? I stayed up all night lovingly, and I mean that in a totally platonic manner, crafting them.”

For some reason Ranma started to suspect these weren’t country flags.

Akane felt small. So very small. Every pair of eyes was on her, judging, assuming, convinced she was one of those women-loving tomboys. But no! She wasn’t a lesbian, nor a tomboy!! She was a normal girl with normal desires, she knew that! She could look at a boy and understand that she would have to marry one one day, it was just the fact that it was happening now that she wasn’t okay with! Nothing more! It didn’t make her a lesbian! Why were they all so convinced otherwise!?

She almost fell over as her knees failed for a moment. She clutched her chest. Why was her breathing so chaotic?

Ranma put his hand on her shoulder. “Woah, Akane, y’alright?”

“I’m not-- Ranma, I’m not--” She gulped the saliva that was clogging her throat. “I’m not, I’m not, I’m not!”

Ranma’s expression went sour. He turned his head towards the crowd. “All a’ y’all better leave right now before I kick your asses one by one, ya hear me!!?”

The boys didn’t stick for any second longer, leaving only Tatewaki to linger. “I shall entrust her precious safety to you, Ranko.” He bowed, before taking down the flags, handing them to Ranma, and heading for his classes.

The boy growled, but put his attention back onto Akane, shaking her a bit. “Y’alright? Ya seemed real’ overwhelmed there, never seen ya in such a state.”

Akane tried to reply, she really did. She wanted to tell Ranma so much. Explain, clarify how she was straight, remind him never to imply she was a tomboy, but… Her mouth was still stuck repeating “I’m not” like a broken record, unable to pronounce the words she intended to finish the sentence with. I’m not a lesbian was all she wanted to say, but it refused, refused to come out!

“Ya know what? Forget school for the day.” He grabbed her by the hand and pulled her along, heading into town. “We’d just spend the first class in the hallway again ‘nyways!”

They walked in silence for a dozen minutes or so, wandering with no particular goal in mind. They found their way to the biggest river in Furinkan. Akane eyed the levee with an absent look on her face, before letting go of Ranma’s hand, heading down to the river and sitting there.

Ranma observed her from a distance away.

He couldn’t say he had much of a clue why that situation had triggered a catatonic state like this one onto Akane. So what if the school thought she was gay? Heck, they didn’t even think that, they thought she was bi. Like… If the school thought he was a girl, he wouldn’t really blink an eye. He didn’t in fact, when they mistook him for his own nonexistent sister… But apparently being falsely labelled a lesbian was a hang-up for Akane?

If anything, he was more concerned that the engagement secret was out. Well, actually… It wasn’t? It was and wasn’t. They thought his girl half was the one engaged to Akane, for the strangest reason. Where did Kuno even get that idea? ...Bah, knowing the guy, he’d probably jumped to the conclusion some way or another. Maybe Kuno heard Ranma was living at the Tendos and that’s all that was enough for his imagination to go wild.

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Speaking of, Ranma headed for the nearest trashcan and disposed of the flags.

He headed back to watch over Akane. She had started throwing pebbles into the water, and was moving onto a rock. It fell in the water with a respectable splash.

She eyed a boulder and wrapped her arms around it to lift it. She pulled with all her strength and managed to pull it out of the ground, to Ranma’s surprise. She hefted it and threw it into the river, panting.

Worried that she was crying, Ranma headed down and approached her. Not like the water could turn him into even more of a girl than he already was.

Akane didn’t want to have anything on her mind right now. She closed her eyes and sighed. When she opened them again, her idiot of a fiancée was making faces at her. She grabbed his head and slapped it into the ground for good measure. “Leave me alone!”

“Well, ya sure look grumpy.” Ranma replied.

“What? Are you trying to cheer me up, maybe?” Akane growled.

“Shouldn’t I?” He said, lifting himself back up.

She huffed and turned her head.

“Aaah, I much prefer to see ya angry than unresponsive.” He grinned.

She continued to snob him, grabbing her school bag and heading back up the levee. Of course, turning around, she confirmed the idiot was following her, but she ignored him and went on her way.

...For about ten seconds. “Why are you following me? I don’t need your worry. I can handle myself.” Akane said.

“And I can just happen to go in the same direction as ya.” Ranma replied. She turned her head towards him and scowled, he stuck out his tongue with a mean grin.

If this was his idea of a cheering up, there was much room for improvement. “You can be so annoying when you put your mind to it.”

“Thank ya for the compliment!” He replied, looking very self-satisfied.

“No. I’m serious. Stop it.”

His cocky smile faded. “O-oh. Sorry, Akane.” He replied in a meek tone.

Akane stopped dead in her tracks. She knew that voice. That… switch? Was the real Ranma back? Was there any way she could confirm it? ...An idea hatching in her head, she waited for him to catch up to her and resumed her walk.

Thinking about it, Ranma still knew little about the Furinkan neighborhood, beyond the Tendo house and the school. He let himself be guided along by Akane, his hands behind his back.

“Say, Ranko,” Akane said, prompting Ranko to attention, “do you have money on you?”

Ranko checked her pocket. Since they had ended up skipping classes, she had the money that was originally intended for buying a lunch at the school café. “A bit, why?”

Akane did a little fistpump for reasons that escaped Ranko. Was she really that happy to know they had money to spare? “Let’s get something to eat, then! I’m starving.” Akane said.

“Oh… Sure.” Ranko replied.

They sat down at a park, with a bag of fast food set between them. They grabbed a burger each. Akane dug in earnestly, then turned her head towards Ranma. If she had correctly guessed, the Ranma in front of her was the more gentle one, taking soft measured bites out of his own food.

Ranma returned her glance. “Are we in a hurry, Akane? You seem to be eating fast…”

Akane paused. If this Ranma was the kindly girl she had attempted to befriend on their first afternoon together, the one that called herself Ranko, then… this probably wasn’t mockery? It most likely was concern. “No, we’re not… I’m just, you know… not the daintiest flower around.” …She hoped she wasn’t reading too much into things. The last thing she wanted was to let herself be vulnerable around someone that’d mock her for it.

“Do you wish you were?” Ranko(?) asked, sipping away at her(?) soda.

“Daintier? When I was younger, not really. I was okay with being a bit of a brute. I had to anyways, or the boys wouldn’t respect me. If they didn’t see me as one of them…” Akane sighed, crumpled the wrapping paper and fetched a second burger. “But I’m not seven anymore. I have to grow up eventually. I can’t continue to just… punch what bothers me. I can’t continue to be a tomboy.”

“Why not?” Ranma said innocently.

Akane frowned. “Do you think it’s fun to be mistaken for a lesbian everywhere I go?”

“I can understand that…” He looked pensive. “Half of the time people think I’m a girl.”

She felt her fingers curl up in frustration. “What? No! That’s nowhere near the same thing!”

Ranma’s face scrunched up like he was deeply hurt, before his expression was replaced with a scowl. “Well, I also got called a lesbian even more than ya, but ya don’t see me wailin’ about it!” Dammit. Now he was back. “Plus, ya think I can’t understand how much it’d suck if they thought I was into men!?”

Akane stood up and glared down at him. “Like that could happen! They are certain even ‘Ranko’ is into women!”

“Stop sayin’ that like that was my idea! You’re the one that invented the whole sister story!” He threw the empty wrapper back in the bag and took the last burger, biting in it furiously. “And it’s not my name!!”

She shook her head. “Just a minute ago you were perfectly fine with it when I called you that, you bipolar disaster!”

His eyes jumped from his meal to Akane. “What!? You did not, I woulda’ noticed!”

Urgh. She clearly had overthought it again. He was just an oblivious jerk, nothing more. There’s no second Ranma, just a single one that sometimes fails at being terrible. “I’m heading home. Don’t follow me.”

“Not like I’d want to, uncute tomboy!” Ranma shouted.

Akane grit her teeth and ran.

After finishing his meal and throwing the empty bags away, Ranma stomped around town, grumbling to himself. He wanted to head home and take a bath, switch out of his girl form like he should have already, but it was still too early to head home without running into Akane.

“Pigtailed girl! Saotome Ranko!” He heard an approaching voice call from a distance.

He sighed, seeing Tatewaki running towards him. “Oh boy, what the hell’s he doin’ here,” he muttered to himself.

“Saotome Ranko!” The kendo student repeated after stopping a feet away from Ranma. “The moment I heard you and Tendo Akane had stormed off, I knew I had to come offer my assistance. Where is your beloved at this time?”

“Just… go back to school, Kuno.” Ranma walked past him.

That didn’t deter Tatewaki, who quickly set himself besides Ranma. “If it was important enough to get you two to engage in the act of truancy, then it is all the justification the Blue Thunder of Furinkan needs to do the same. Where is Tendo Akane?”

“She went back home.” Ranma grumbled, hands in his pockets.

“And you did not follow after her?” Tatewaki asked.

Ranma rolled his eyes. “We had a fight, okay? Sheesh, leave me alone.”

“Ranko, my friend,” that we’re definitely not, big guy, thought Ranma, “Hatred is never appeased by hatred in this world. By non-hatred alone is hatred appeased. This is a law eternal. If you have left Akane in anger, it is your duty to quell your own and help her.”

“Yeah, well that goes both ways.” Ranma said.

Tatewaki energetically nodded. “Of course it does! I shall tell her the same next I see her.”

Ranma thought the situation was worrying if Tatewaki started to make sense. “‘Aight, ‘aight, whatever, just gimme some time to cool and I’ll go talk to her, big guy.”

“Thank you, Saotome Ranko.” Tatewaki bowed. “Now, I must be back to school before recess ends. I hope to see your brother and Tendo Akane there tomorrow. To the next time, honorable Ranko!” The kendo boy ran back in the direction he came from.

...Wait, Ranma should’ve asked him what the flags meant. Ah well. Maybe next time.

Three more cinder blocks crumbled under Akane’s strike. Her knuckles had long since stopped turning red at the exercise. She stood up, a cemetary of cement at her feet.

Akane breathed slowly, holding herself against the dojo’s wall. “Gotta snap out of it…” She muttered to herself.

She heard the door of the dojo slide open. Ranma, still a girl, walked towards Akane, before attempting a punch she promptly dodged.

Heh. She was no fool, he had gone easy on her just now.

He followed with a kick she easily bounced over.

Akane growled. “If you’re gonna fight me, put some heart into it, dammit!” She ran towards him and tried a kick of her own he dodged in the same fashion. “How do you want this to help me unwind if you don’t take this seriously?”

“Ainit’ tirin’ to be angry all the time?” Ranma asked.

“Shut up, idiot! My anger is my problem!” She threw a couple punches he bent backwards to avoid.

“Well, if ya want some motivation to improve yourself, just imagine a cute gal like me tellin’ ya you’re cuter when ya smile.” Ranma gave her a goofy grin.

The mental image made Akane freeze up for a moment.

Ranma pushed her on the forehead with his finger. “Gotcha.”

Akane stumbled backwards and fell on her butt.

Wait…

Wait a minute this shouldn’t have had so strong an effect.

She shook off the confusion and stared Ranma down. “Stop trying to act like I’m a lesbian!”

“Who between the two a’ us acts like it’s true I wonder…” Ranma teased, leaving the dojo with his hands behind his head.

The two teens took their turn taking their bath, with Ranma having gone first.

After thoroughly cleaning herself up, Akane laid down into the warm, steaming bath and did her best to let her mind wander away from her worries.

So what if her classmates thought she was a lesbian? So what if Ranma was gonna tease her endlessly over it? She was in a bath, and that’s all that mattered right now. She was in her own little world of relaxation and she didn’t need to think about any of this.

The image of Ranma in his girl form, with his usual cocky smile, telling her she was cute, came to her mind. It was almost a good image. Almost.

Blood rushed to her face and she hoped it was from the heat.

Akane spent some time in her room practicing how to smile in front of a mirror that night.