"AKANE?!!" Ranma gasps on seeing the person standing at the doorway of Ukyou's bedroom, then quickly covers himself as his usual "get-the-hell-out-of-Dodge-NOW!!" reaction to being discovered in a VERY compromising situation takes control of his body. "You don't understand...!!"
Now, Akane Tendou could, as Ranma quite *painfully* knew well, react to this situation in any number of ways.
Giving him a Shampoo-like glomp wasn't one he expected!
"YOU KNOW!!!" she cries out joyfully as she nearly squeezes all the air out of her fiance's body, then starts showering him with a flurry of kisses. "Oh, Ranma, you know now!!! I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you...!!!"
Ranma freezes up like a statue as this most UN-Akane like expression deluges him, then as Akane gives him a very deep, warm kiss, shudders as his arms reach up to draw her close. Ukyou remains in place, smiling contently as her now half-nude fiance/best friend finally gets a chance to show his true feelings for her sister android/ex-rival. Akane playfully purrs as they continue to kiss, her arms roaming up and down his back. They stop on feeling the cold skin under his shirt, then make a dancing circle over his buttocks.
"Um, Ranma...?" she whispers as they pull apart.
"Huh...?"
"Would you want to put your pants back on?"
Silence.
"Ah, r-right!" Ranma's cheeks flame as they pull apart, then he quickly dresses before staring once more on the youngest Tendou. "Akane...?"
"Hai?"
"Are you...?"
"An android?"
Ranma nods. Akane gazes at him, then in response, reaches up to her jumper. Slipping the shoulder loops off to expose her shirt, she unbuttons that, revealling a frilly, front-closing bra and flawless skin. One she has adjusted her shirt to expose a good portion of her upper chest, she reaches up to press into the U-shaped indent at the top of her breastbone.
Click! Ranma's eyes widen as a section of skin, shaped like an elongated home plate pad used in baseball, appears over Akane's cleavage. It flips up to reveal a metal breastbone and ribs, plus flickering lights and glowing conduits under the ribs. A rectangular cavity has been cut into the breastbone, it containing several single-prong plugs. Programming ports? Ranma wonders, memories of his computer classes -- perhaps the most boring school subject outside of math in the martial artist's mind -- coming forth.
Ignoring that, he reaches up to insert an index finger into Akane's open circuit hatch. He pauses just as his fingertip is about to make contact, a questioning look now focusing on the youngest Tendou. She blinks, then gives him a nod, a smile crossing her face at his show of respect for her personal space. With that, Ranma presses in, touching her breastbone, then relaxes as his chi senses project forth. After a minute, he pulls his hand back, then shakes his head, his eyes misty. "It's really you..." he whispers.
"I'm surprised you didn't sense this before Ataru-kun came along and force the truth on you, Ran-chan," Ukyou muses as she slips on her panties and pants. "You've always been pretty good in sensing chi, you know..."
"I don't always check out people I know and care for, U-chan," Ranma sighs as he sinks onto the bed. "It's like spying on them. It's not right." He then gazes on Akane. "Though I think I should've before this happened..."
"It's alright, Ranma," Akane chuckles as she walks up to stand in the space between her fiance's legs, uncaring that she is partially undressed and has a circuit hatch open as she squeezes his shoulders. "You're human. You make mistakes. And you couldn't begin to predict something like this."
He takes that in, then wraps his arms around her waist, leaning his head against her belly. "Thanks, Akane...! Hey!" he perks, then squeezes his ear against her skin. "I can hear your heart beat...!"
"That's Akane's main power pump, Ran-chan," Ukyou provides. "Works the same way as the human heart does: it sends plasma energy to help fuel all our internal systems. You'll be surprised at how much our systems are designed to mimic the functions of an organic body. Though..." she sits behind him, then reaches over to lean against his back, resting her chin on his shoulders.
"Though what?" he glances at her.
"There are a lot of things we can't do now," the android chef whispers, her eyes glistening with tears. "We don't age like people do..."
"We can't have children," Akane hoarsely adds, her own eyes tearing.
Ranma blinks, then pulls himself away from Akane as a finger comes up to trace around her navel. He doesn't press in enough to click open her abdominal panel, though. "It hurt you, didn't it?" he stares up at her.
"It hurt all of us," Akane nods, wiping her eyes. "Sayuri, Yuka, Mika, all the other girls at school, my sisters, Ukyou here..."
"Like Ataru-kun told you, Ran-chan. Every girl in Nerima from 14 to 45 was hit by this," Ukyou closes her eyes. "And now..."
"Now?" he prods.
"We have to find ways to get ourselves imprinted so we can't be used to hurt people," Ukyou pulls away from her fiance. "Believe me, even if we're androids meant primarily for intimate companionship, our martial arts skills have been seriously upgraded here. Given how strong I am now..."
"We can kill people easily," Akane finishes, then tilts Ranma's head around to place a warm kiss on his forehead. "And after seeing how you reacted to what you had to do to Saffron on Mount Phoenix, Ranma..."
"We're not going to go through that," Ukyou shakes her head.
Ranma considers that, then reaches up to close Akane's chest hatch before guiding her onto the bed beside him. "It goes away with time..."
"Not with us," Akane shakes her head. "Ranma, we have perfectly eidetic memories now. We can't forget *anything* we experience now."
"Unless you pour acid into our CPUs and melt them," Ukyou sighs.
Ranma winces. "That'd kill you!"
"My point," the chef mutters.
He gazes on her, then Akane. Seeing the raven-haired android nod in confirmation, he takes a deep breath, then sighs. "This sucks!"
"That it does," Akane gently hugs one of his arms. "All we can really do now is accept what's been done and make the best of it."
He considers that, then nods. It was one of the basic premises of Musabetsu Kakutou-ryuu: if you confront possible defeat, adjust to the situation to make it a victory. But to apply that to something as life-shattering as THIS...?! "Akane-chan?" he stares at her.
"Hai?"
"Do you want me to...?"
"Imprint yourself on me? Hai, Ranma, I want that," she nods, then smiles. "Once you do that, you can adjust my programming any way you want. Heck!" she holds up a finger to emphasize her point. "You can probably help me learn how to cook and swim finally..." a sad look crosses her face, "...not to mention making me stop getting angry and hurting you all the time."
He blinks, stunned that Akane actually WANTED him to do THAT to her. "Akane..." he whispers, then blinks as she places a finger on his lips.
"I love you, Ranma," she leans up to gaze deeply into his eyes. "Becoming this..." she indicates where her chest hatch is, "...hurt me a lot. It hurt us all a lot, Ranma. But it also made me realize something. It made me finally face up to all the things I've done wrong when it came to you. I don't want to do that to you anymore, Ranma. I don't. After all the crap you've been through, you don't deserve that! Not at all!!" Her hand drifts to his cheek. "I want to make it up to you, Ranma. Please let me."
"Akane..."
Akane leans in to cut him off with another warm kiss. Ukyou keeps her peace as the others allow their feelings to flow forth through their lips, arms and tongues. Finally, they pull apart, then Ranma takes a deep breath. "Fix yourself up," he whispers, then stands up to place himself before Akane.
The youngest Tendou exchanges a curious look with Ukyou. Seeing the chef give her a "play along with it" look, Akane quickly buttons her shirt, then slips her jumper back into place. Once that is done, she gazes on Ranma -- who has now switched to his female body. "Ranma!!" she gasps.
"Feels nice to have some control over the curse, eh, Ran-chan?" Ukyou smirks, trying desperately not to fall off the bed laughing.
"Hai, that it does," Ranma winks, then lowers herself to her knees before prostrating herself before Akane. "Tendou-hime?"
Akane's jaw nearly drops into her lap at Ranma's display of profound respect, then she catches herself. "Hai, Saotome-sama?" she nods.
"Tendou-hime, you are an unbonded android, correct?"
"Hai!"
"You desire my unworthy self to imprint myself on you, correct?"
"Hai!"
"You realize that I've already imprinted myself on another android?"
An understanding nod tilts Akane's head. "Hai, I do."
"And this will not affect your decision?" Ranma stares at her.
Akane smiles. "No, Saotome-sama. I am not programmed to be jealous."
Ranma considers that, then bows her head once more. "Tendou-hime, I am also very inexperienced in matters of a..." she blushes, then mutters, "...sexual nature." A look at Akane. "Does this affect your decision?"
"No, it does not. I am programmed to compensate for this."
"What about other androids who want to be with me?"
"I am also programmed to be fully and functionally bisexual, Saotome-sama. I am properly equipped to be your intimate companion and function as same regardless of the situation," Akane smiles, then reaches down to draw Ranma up so they can gaze into the other's eyes. "Please, Ranma?"
Ranma blinks, then...
(Posted Sat, 11 Jan 2003 09:45)
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