Adrienne Gonzales A Ranma 1/2 Fan Fic Remind My Heart By Stephanie A. Gonzales ________________________________________________ My heart That was rapt away By the wild cherry blossoms- Will it return to my body When they scatter? -Kotomichi ________________________________________________ Early evening. A man stood at the door of his dojo, looking up at the rapidly darkening night sky. His hair was all grey, but he stood straight and his chest was as broad as it had been when he was still a young man. His countenanace held the wisdom of his 80 or so years lightly; there were very few wrinkles on his face. The years had indeed been kind to him. A cool breeze blew by, picking up fallen cherry blossoms and depositing them in the small pond by the dojo. He shivered just slightly as the wind gently tugged at his clothes, but he didn't pull his eyes from the sight above. The full moon was beginning to rise in the east and the evening star was setting in the west. The Milky Way cut clean across the sky between the two. It was the evening star that he was looking at, thinking of a time long ago when he had done the same. There had been someone with him that time though. Tonight he was alone. She used to love doing this, he mused. He stood there several minutes before a look of pain washed over his expression. But as soon as it appeared it was gone again. He sighed and walked into his house to escape the chill in the air. Once inside, he made tea then went to sit in the living room. He found himself thinking about what he'd been doing outside. I haven't done that in years, he thought to himself. He had avoided doing anything that reminded him of her. Tonight, however was different. Now, he wanted to remember her. He wanted to remember their short time together, all that she had meant to him. Because tonight, he had lost her forever. No, I lost her 60 years ago, when I didn't come back for her in time. With that thought, all the pain he felt at losing her then came rushing back. He no longer fought the tears, instead letting them flow over unfamiliar territory. He had considered himself immune to the tearing he felt in his chest. How can it still hurt after all this time? He remembered the day he came back and found out that she'd married another. After the initial shock had worn off, anger and denial set in and he left again without speaking to her. How could she have married _that_ man? Why hadn't she waited? Didn't she know how much he had loved her? No, she didn't know. I never told her. I thought I'd have all the time in the world to tell her once I got back. But it was too late. He had travelled Japan, improving his skills, refusing to think about her. But no one had ever taken her place in his heart. No one else had her gentle smile or her light laughter. No one else had her beautiful eyes; those brown eyes that held both strength and passion. He had never met another woman like her. And so, he had never married, devoting himself instead to his training, and later, teaching. He refilled his teacup and sighed. News of her death had come this afternoon, when he had finished with his last student. Takuma, who helped him teach at the dojo and would later inherit it, had brought the message to him. He thought of the young man he had raised as his son, after the boy had lost his own parents. Now Takuma had his own family to look after. He smiled. Has it been that long? He rose and brought the teapot and his cup to the kitchen, then went to his room. He set up his futon and closed his eyes, but his mind was still full of thoughts of his lost love. Finally, after about an hour, he fell into a fitful sleep. Only to awaken some time later to a faint sound, like someone calling him. He sat up and looked around, then finally spotted something on the wall facing him. The wall was beginning to glow. In that glow, a shape was beginning to resolve itself into a person. He saw that the figure was a woman, then gasped as he recognized her. He stood and walked over to her and was only faintly surprised when he turned back and saw himself still sleeping on his futon. She looked as she did when he had first met her, her long, dark hair falling in waves over her shoulders. His heart pounded in his chest. "Am I dreaming this?" The words came out as a whisper as he looked at the vision in front of him. But she wasn't a vision. She's right here in front of me, real enough to touch! Tentatively, he reached out and touched her cheek, then gasped again when she smiled up at him. She reached up and covered his hand with her own. "No, you're not dreaming. It's been a long time, my love." Her voice was the same as he remembered, sweet, almost musical. He started at her last comment. "You call me that, even with all that happened?" "I may have married someone else, but my heart was always yours until the day I died." There was a hint of sorrow in her voice. "But your husband..." He had never thought that she had felt the same way. He never stopped loving her, but she... "I grew to love him in time. He seemed to know that my heart lied elsewhere, but he was a good man and always took care of me." He was silent as he thought about this. He took her hands into his and said quietly, "I'm sorry if I caused you any pain. I...I had always meant to tell you how I felt-" She put her finger to his lips to stop him. "I knew. I always knew. But I was given no choice in my marriage. Father thought you had left for good and in his eyes, he had to redeem the family honor by marrying me to the son of a wealthy man. I was very unhappy and angry at first...but I resigned myself to the fate that I'd been given." She paused and a look of pain crossed her features, quiet pools forming in her eyes. "Why didn't you come back for me?" With that, the tears fell silently down her cheeks. "I did, but by that time, you had married. There was nothing I could do, so I left." He stopped and wiped her tears with his thumb. He then saw his reflection in her eyes. He appeared as he had all those years ago, her last image of him. "I travelled all over Japan, concentrating on my training and trying to forget you. But you were always there in my heart." He smiled and brushed a strand of hair back from her face before continuing. "After a while I started teaching, opening my own dojo and training new students. I was content, but there was always a piece missing in my life. At least until I found Takuma." "Who is that?" she asked, a hint of jealousy in her voice. He laughed briefly. "He's an orphan that I raised as my own son. He will inherit the dojo when I'm gone. Takuma helped to ease the pain and loneliness I had carried with me for years. He's become quite a remarkable young man." "If he has, it is because his father has raised him that way. I wish I could meet him." "Me too," he said quietly. He had so many questions, but he asked the one that was uppermost in his mind. "Why? Why are you here now?" She smiled again. "Let's just say I was allowed to return to you, even for this short time." She paused and glanced out his window. "The night is still young - let's enjoy it together." The moon was now high overhead and casting its soft glow over the yard. They sat outside by the pond talking quietly, not thinking of their sixty years spent apart, just happy with this one night together. He didn't even know how they had ended up outside and he didn't care. Time had ceased to have any meaning to him now that she was beside him again. They talked all night under the stars, watching the cherry blossoms float softly to the ground and occasionally onto the pond. Once, a shooting star streaked overhead and they both made a wish, smiling because they each knew they had made the same one. Too soon, though, the moon dipped lower into the western horizon, signaling the coming dawn. She gave his hand a squeeze. "It's time for me to go." They were inside again, near the wall where she had appeared. He had known she was going to leave, but didn't want to think about it. In one night, they had managed to relive a lifetime. Now, again, his heart was tearing in his chest at the thought of being apart from her once more. She looked up at him sadly, wet streaks already on her lovely face. "It seems I'm the one who must leave this time." He gazed down at her and felt the longing and regret that were apparent in her expression. For the first and last time, he reached out and enfolded her in his arms, never wanting to let go. "We were meant to be together, you and I. Does it really end like this?" She spoke into his chest. "Someday we'll be together again. I truly believe that. You must also, if it is to come true." One tear escaped from his eye before a fierce look of resolve appeared on his face. When he spoke, though, his words were quiet. "If we meet again, I'll never let anyone come between us. No one will take you away from me. And I'll never let anything happen to you. I swear it." His vow echoed in her mind as she closed her eyes and clung to him with all the strength in her arms before finally stepping back. He let go reluctantly and looked at her one last time. She moved back into the soft glow that she had come from before turning back to him again. She gave him the smile that had always stopped his heart. "Remember me," she said, then she was gone. He found himself back on his futon and sat up. A dream, he thought as he looked around. Then he noticed the wall. It was still glowing. What? In the glow, he saw strange passing images: a land with many pools and bamboo poles; a girl, no, a boy with a pigtail, performing a kata. There was something familiar about him. The boy reminds me of...well...of me when I was younger. He saw a girl with short hair watching the boy fight someone. He then saw the boy and girl arguing. He chuckled. Did she just hit him with a wooden sword? The last image he saw was of the two of them standing by a river looking down as the water reflected the light of a billion stars. He gasped as he got a closer look at the girl. Her eyes... She has beautiful brown eyes... Could it be? Someday... * * * "...Someday I won't come here to wake you up and you can go hungry because your dad will eat your breakfast!" She looked down at him again and saw that he was at last waking up. (Yep, that did the job.) Akane had considered dumping cold water on Ranma, but decided that she didn't want to hear him yelling at her on such a beautiful day. Besides, last night had been so...well, special to her. Ranma had gone through so much trouble to retrieve her tanzaku, even getting knocked out by fireworks. But he had said the strangest thing when he had regained consciousness.... Something about those reunited lovers, Orihime and Hikoboshi. Sometimes the strange things he said were cute. She smiled and started to rise when she noticed that Ranma was looking at her. Wow! was all he could think when he opened his eyes. Akane was smiling at him. "What's wrong, Ranma? Why are you looking at me like that?" Although she didn't mind, it was beginning to freak her out. He wasn't saying anything, he was just staring at her. "Hey, are you awake?" She bopped him lightly on the head. Ranma sat up. "Huh?! What did you do that for, Akane?" "You were acting weird, Ranma." She blushed slightly. "You were staring at me like something was on your mind..." "I was?! Geez, sorry." He scratched the back of his head. "I had the strangest dream. Do you believe in reincarnation?" The question sounded odd to his own ears. Did I just say that? Did he just ask what I think he asked? "I don't know. I never thought about it." This was getting really weird for her. She decided to change the subject. "Well, breakfast is almost ready, so you'd better get up now." She rose and went to the door. "Okay," he said, watching her as she silently left. He recalled the events of the last night, and that look on Akane's face when she thought she had lost her tanzaku. He couldn't stand for her to be unhappy, so he went after it, only to end up in the path of an exploding fireworks rocket. The things I do for that uncute girl. But the explosion- induced dream I had was kind of cool... Then his heart quickened as he remembered details from this most recent dream. Soft moonlight. The small pond and the cherry blossoms floating on it. How he held Akane in his arms and the anguish he felt when she had left him for the final time. Wait a minute! That girl wasn't Akane! He wasn't the guy in his dream...or was he? And that definately wasn't the Tendo Dojo. But why did it seem so familiar? "Get a grip, dummy, it was just a dream," he said to himself He and Akane destined to be together? That's not too bad a thought. Ranma shrugged and went downstairs to breakfast. I must have gotten a hold of some bad takoyaki last night, he thought as he reached the staircase. It gave me the strangest dreams... Fin. Copyright 1996 Stephanie A. Gonzales Author's Notes: This Fan Fic was inspired by two very different sources. -Volume 35, part 11 of the Manga. -An X-Files Fan Fic called "Grey Fox" by Sarah Stegall. Many thanks to J. Palmer and Michelle Mista whose comments and suggestions helped to straighten out the kinks in this story and whose own Fan Fics inspired me in the first place to write a love story of my own. Ranma and Akane are property of Rumiko Takahashi, Shogakukan, Viz, etc. and are used here without permission. No offence intended. :) Takuma is mine. Comments can be sent to jrhaye@earthlink.net with my name under the Subject line.