{These characters are not property of me. I would never attempt to claim them as my own. This story may not be used without my permission, and may not be used to make money in any way, shape or form. Characters and certain situations were created by Rumiko Takahashi, so don't try any funny stuff!}

"How can you stand having that pig drool all over you?"

"Don't talk about P-chan that way, Ranma." Akane scratched under the pig's chin. "He's a cute little pig."

P-chan almost nodded in agreement, his eyes closed and his chin lifted so Akane could get at it easier. Ranma had sent him through hell, but Akane was definitely showing him heaven.

"Akane, that's a pig. The way you're treatin' it is just sick."

"I'd almost think you're jealous."

Ranma blushed furiously. "I ain't jealous!"

Akane smirked at him. "OK, Ranma. You're not jealous." She looked down at the pig in her arms. "You don't think he's jealous, do you, P-chan?"

Akane couldn't see the look of piggy hate on P-chan's face as he glared at Ranma. He bweed softly, not giving Ranma any reason to do anything.

Ranma looked at the pig and scowled. "Maybe you're right, Akane," he said suddenly. "Maybe I am jealous of that pig." He smiled disarmingly at her. "But hey, if you'd prefer a pig over me..." He turned and quickly left the room, Akane staring at his back in stunned amazement.

She scratched P-chan's head for a moment. "What do you think, P-chan? Should I keep him?" Akane was smiling as she asked, knowing very well that she very much wanted to keep him.

The look on the little pig's face was pure hatred.

"Faster!"

Grunting.

"Faster!"

"I can't!"

"Do it!"

"I'm... trying!"

"Just forget it." Nabiki walked away from the console. "Just give it up. You'll never be any good at 'Track & Field'."

Tatewaki sighed, defeated. "I can't help it that I'm not able to hit the buttons as fast as you. It's a hard game."

Nabiki shook her head. "You're just making excuses now."

Tatewaki gave her a look of disbelief as she walked away. That did it. He ran up behind her and swept her into his arms. "Faster you say?"

Nabiki shrieked, then began laughing. "Tate-chan, don't you even think about it!"

"Think about what?" he asked innocently. "Maybe, you mean something like this," he said and leaned down to kiss Nabiki's neck.

Nabiki giggled, making a show of fighting him off, but not really doing so.

"Look at them. They're like animals in heat," came a spiteful voice.

Tatewaki and Nabiki lost the looks of moderate happiness they had been wearing. Carefully, Nabiki was set on her feet, and they walked away from the voice without looking back. They refused to be pulled down to Yukiko's level.

"Whore," Yukiko said as she watched them go.

"Bitch," Nabiki swore quietly.

Tatewaki kept silent, but he had to admit that his feelings were quite similar to Nabiki's.

"Where does she get the nerve to insult us like that? Next time, I won't stop with just knocking her on her ass." Nabiki's fists were clenched tightly as she glared out the large window of the cafe.

"I don't think that would make any difference. She seems determined to torture us, and I think that would only fuel her anger."

"Yeah. Well, it would sure make me feel better."

Tatewaki chuckled, breaking the dark mood a little. "Yes, I'm sure it would, but I don't think it would help all that much. Besides, if we can deal with it, put it away, then won't we be that much happier?"

Nabiki's fingers slowly intertwined with Tatewaki's as she sighed heavily. "I still don't like her."

"Oh, Nabiki-chan," he took her hand in his, "it won't be too much longer and you'll graduate. Then you won't ever have to deal with her again. Why don't you just let that carry you through..."

"That's not enough, and you know it. Don't tell me you didn't care what she said, what she _did_ to you because I know you do. This type of treatment isn't something I should have to deal with until graduation." Nabiki clenched her hand into a fist

"I'm afraid there's nothing else that can be done," he said quietly. "It's best to just ignore her and know that she's a small and petty person."

Nabiki swallowed hard, staring at the floor and frowning. Looking back up at Tatewaki, she asked, "Like I used to be?"

He stared at her for a moment. "Like you... No. You were never like her. You always had a very definite source and target of your anger. Yukiko, she doesn't understand and never will. She'll never know what we have between us." Tatewaki stroked Nabiki's cheek, their eyes making contact.

Suddenly, with ferocious intensity, Nabiki had to wonder just what it was that they had between them. What was it that composed their bond? Guilt and fear? His guilt and her fear? And Takuma.

Nabiki had wanted him to have a father, a real father. Or maybe she had just wanted someone else to shoulder the responsibility. It wasn't so easy to tell. And she had heard that hindsight was 20/20. It was only making her doubt the choices she had made.

"What's wrong?" Tatewaki asked, worried by the vacant look on her face.

She answered, "I'm not sure. I... I don't know that what we... what I did was the right thing."

That sent a lance of fear through Tatewaki. "What do you mean? What did you do?" he whispered.

"I don't know if I made the right choices. I don't know if it was the right thing for you and I..." She sighed, feeling rotten about the things she was saying. "Maybe it wasn't right that I... accepted things so quickly."

He stared, jaw agape. "You can't mean that," Tatewaki said finally.

Shrugging, Nabiki looked out a window at the trees swaying in the breeze. "I don't know. Sometimes I just feel like the decisions I made weren't the best thing..." She turned and looked into his eyes, flinching at what she saw there. "I just don't want to make anymore mistakes," she finished weakly.

"Anymore mistakes? Implying that..." Tatewaki choked a little then straightened. "Implying that the decisions you made before were." He wanted to go back to those days in which he could not be swayed from his emotions, when nothing affected him. "Implying that I was a mistake."

"No! I'm not saying that!"

"You are. Don't try to deny it. You've let your defenses down one too many times with me; I can see how you feel in your eyes." Tatewaki laughed somewhat bitterly. "Still as stupid as ever I guess. To think that things would ever be different. That nine months in that place would change anything." At this point, there were tears in his eyes.

"So everything up to now was just... just a lie? I don't want to believe it was your way of getting back at me because you know you didn't have to go through all the trouble. If you wanted money, I would have given it to you."

"Just shut up!" Nabiki finally yelled. "Don't make this any harder on me than it already is! Can't you see that I just don't want to make either of us suffer more than we have in a relationship based on the wrong things?" The look of betrayal in his eyes hurt more than she could have possibly imagined.

"The wrong things? How could what I feel be wrong? Hasn't it been long enough for us to..."

"It's long enough that I know I feel for you, probably more than I should." Nabiki took his hand and squeezed. "And that's the problem. How can I be sure that what _I_ feel is real? How can I be sure that what you 'feel' isn't just guilt? How can you be sure?" She looked at him, her eyes pleading with him to answer her, to say some way to be sure, but he did not.

Tatewaki shrugged and opened his mouth to say something, then hung his head. He couldn't face her when she confronted him with those types of doubts. "You're leaving, aren't you? After all of that... At least... don't take Takuma away from me. Please. There's no doubt in my feelings for him." He added in a whisper, "He's my son."

Nabiki put her hand on his cheek, sharing with him a look of muted anguish. Then she was gone.

"Nabiki, why?"

"Because I don't know! It's not just 'yes I love him' or 'no I don't'. I know I feel... something for him, but I don't know why. And I don't want to stay with someone just because I'm too afraid to be by myself. I don't expect you to understand, Kasumi." Nabiki looked away, tears threatening to fall. "I don't expect anyone to understand."

"I know what that means. Why didn't you think about this before you agreed to marry him? How could you just dismiss Tatewaki's feelings so easily?" Kasumi could feel her hand clenching into a fist of anger. "Don't throw what you have away."

"I don't know what I have! Why can't you see that? Why aren't you helping me with this? Why are you acting like my mother instead of my sister!?" With those words hanging in the air, Nabiki took off upstairs to hide in the sanctuary of her room.

That, of course, got Takuma crying. Kasumi lifted him into her arms and tried to shush him. "It's fine, Takuma-chan. There's no need to cry," she said soothingly, rubbing his back.

"Kasumi! I'm back!" Akane called from the other room.

Knowing how uncomfortable things could get when Akane heard what had happened, she hurried out of the kitchen. "How was shopping?" she asked pleasantly, trying to hide that there was anything wrong.

"Just fine. Where's Ranma? I bought him something." The mischievous grin she wore spoke volumes to Kasumi.

"Akane, please don't tease Ranma. You know how he dislikes his curse."

Akane blinked innocently. "Tease him? I wouldn't do _that_."

Sighing, Kasumi shook her head. "I believe he's in the dojo."

Akane giggled and went running out of the house, bag in hand. There wasn't anything wrong with teasing Ranma. It was fun, and he never seemed to mind.

Akane giggled as Ranma's fingers ran up over her ribs. "Stop that," she whispered vehemently. "It tickles! Stop that!"

"Could you two keep your hormones under control? This display is making me ill," Nabiki snapped.

"Yow. Give birth to whatever crawled up inside you and died already," Ranma said before he realized what was going on.

There was a moment of stunned silence.

Before he could recover and apologize, Nabiki was gone, back up to her room. "Shit."

"Way to go, Ranma. Why don't you just traumatize my sister," hissed Akane. "She's already in bad enough condition with this thing with Kuno."

"It just slipped out! I didn't mean it!"

"I swear, Ranma, sometimes you are such an idiot."

"Yeah? And sometimes you're an uncute macho chick!"

Violence ensued.

Nabiki looked at Takuma, sleeping peacefully in her arms and cried silently. It was exactly what she had feared. She couldn't get along without him; he was her crutch, who she relied on because she couldn't fend for herself.

What was even more torturous was that it didn't have be that way. It didn't really matter if she relied on him or not. He claimed to love her and she felt for him, and she didn't mind their physical relationship... If she just went back to him, nothing would matter. Not even her self-respect.

Wiping her eyes as best she could on her shoulder first, Nabiki reclined on her bed and sent furtive glances at the phone. Sure that Takuma was soundly asleep, she held him with one arm and picked up the phone.

She dialed and held the handset up in her free hand. With the rest of the house silent, the ringing sounded like the loudest thing in the world. It was only a few rings before the phone was answered at the other end.

*'Hello?'*

It took her a moment to find her voice and her courage. "Hi. How are you?"

*'Fine.'* There was a single breath's worth of silence. *'I miss you. A lot. And Kuma-chan.'*

Nabiki wasn't sure how to respond. "I know." She had to cut off the rest of her reply. As much as she did miss him, she couldn't tell him. If he knew, he would only try to convince her to come back and she would probably give in. "I just wanted to say," she began, taking a shaky breath, "that I... you can see Takuma whenever you want. I don't want to keep you away from him."

*'What about you?'*

Damn. He just had to go through all this. "What about me?"

*'Do you still think it's over? I want to see you. I don't want to go through this.'*

The desperation in his voice was clear. "We have to. I have to. If it was possible, I wouldn't want you to go through this, but it's not something I can help."

*'Why are you doing this to me?'*

One tear ran slowly down Nabiki's cheek. "I'm not doing anything to you. It's something I have to do for myself. If you can't give me the answers I need, I have to find them for myself. It's simple as that."

She wiped the tear away, still clutching the phone tightly. "If you think this isn't hurting me, that you're the only one that's feeling anything..." She lowered her head, tears flowing freely. "I wish I didn't have to," she said quietly.

*'You don't. I'll take care of you. You don't need to do this. Please.'*

"I'm sorry. I have to. I have to know things about myself that you can't help me with. I need to do it alone, to find out what I've got left." She smiled grimly at the sleeping baby she was holding. "I've changed and I need to find out just how much."

*'Can't you... Can't we find out together?'*

"No. We can't. We just can't."

*'I won't give up that easily. I won't let you discourage me like this. I won't let Kuma-chan grow up like this.'*

"If you want to see him, call. Good bye... Tate-chan." Without listening to anything else he might say, Nabiki hung up the phone.

"Don't hang up!"

The phone clicked and the dial tone buzzed in Tatewaki's ear.

"Damn it!" he yelled and slammed the phone down. She wouldn't listen to him, refused to believe that he would take care of her, so what could he do?

The only comfort was that she wasn't going to take Takuma completely away from him. He'd still get limited contact with his son, but it still wasn't much comfort.

Tatewaki wanted to cry. What made it so much worse was that he could tell she wanted to see him, that she did still care. The only thing left for him was to see about Kuma-chan and wait. Whenever Nabiki was over with her search, he would be waiting.

It was the only thing he could do.

Akane stood in the doorway to her sister's room. "You look like you could use someone to talk to."

"I get along without it," was Nabiki's reply.

"Nabiki, you..." Telling her she looked like hell was probably not the right thing to say at the moment. "You have every right to be mad at Ranma."

"Yeah, I do."

"But he feels sorry about what he said. He didn't mean to upset you. Just sometimes he says stuff without thinking first. He didn't mean it."

Waving her hand at her sister, Nabiki shook her head. "It doesn't matter Akane. I had a lot worse things said about me. Something from him doesn't... mean a whole lot."

"It means something to us though. To the rest of the family. We don't like to see you upset. It's not worth it over such stupid things. Please just come downstairs for a little bit."

"So what if I told you I was going to move out?" Nabiki asked suddenly, as if she hadn't heard what Akane had said.

Blinking in confusion, Akane asked, "Moved out? To Kuno's?"

"No, not with him. Just someplace I can be by myself. With Takuma and no one else." She glanced back at Akane. "You see, I'm nothing. I have no identity, no skills, no confidence... nothing. So I'm not going to sit behind a wall built for me by my family and Tatewaki. I don't want to be protected like that."

"But we didn't..." Akane started.

"But you did. I know you meant well, but that doesn't help me now." Nabiki smiled wryly, still looking at Akane. "I suppose you could say I'm going on a journey of self-discovery."

Akane looked like she wanted to say something for a moment, but kept quiet. This was something new from her sister.

"I lost a part of myself, Akane. I want it back, but I have to look for it. I don't know if I ever will though, and that scares me more than anything because I don't want to live behind that wall." She smiled a little, her eyes sad. "You're right, Akane. I did need to talk to someone. Thanks."

"I don't get it. What... what did you lose?"

This made Nabiki stop and think, how to explain it to Akane. "Well, you know how you have something, a drive, desire, that tells you you want to do martial arts and you like acting, and you want to cook and do all that other homemaker stuff?"

Akane nodded slowly.

"The only thing I want to do is sit and wonder what my life turned into. Sit and just let someone else deal with things. Sit and just... just..."

Akane looked uncomfortable and didn't know what to say. She shifted nervously.

Nabiki continued quietly. "So I'm going to look for whatever it is that made me... me."

"So you're really leaving?" Akane was finally able to get out.

"Eventually. Not right away or anything. As soon as I can get some things together I will be though." Reading the look on Akane's face, Nabiki shook her head. "It's not really your fault. You guys were just doing what you thought was best. I don't blame you for anything.

"Like I said, this is something I need to do for myself." She actually laughed a little. "Damn. I sound greedy and self-centered. Ah well. I guess when life hands you lemons, you suck on them and pucker."

"O... OK, Nabiki. Just... don't leave without saying bye."

"Don't worry, Akane. I'm not going to sneak out in the middle of the night. And I won't stay away forever. I plan on coming back better than I am now."

"Look, I know Akane went ahead and said somethin' for me, but I really am sorry about what I said the other night. My brain can't always keep up with my mouth." Ranma looked sheepishly at Nabiki, then down at the floor.

"I know, Ranma. Really, I'm over it."

Looking hopefully up at her, Ranma asked, "Really? Cause you know I wouldn't really..."

"Come on, Ranma. I know you're far too wishy-washy when it comes to women to actually mean anything like that. And you're not nearly sensitive enough to actually keep your mouth under control. It's forgotten," Nabiki said, trying to convince him.

"Um, thanks, I think. You know, you're not nearly as bad as Akane warned me. I'll miss you when you're gone." Ranma's cheeks blossomed red with his confession, but he managed to maintain eye contact.

"Thanks, Ranma. That really means something to me. I'll miss you too."

The two shared an awkward hug.

Nabiki sniffed a little when they broke apart. "Now all I have to do is explain this to Kasumi and Dad. He's probably going to explode."

"What about Kuno? Don't you..." Ranma stopped when he saw the look on Nabiki's face. Back up, try again. "I mean, I don't... Never mind."

"Still a little sensitive, Ranma. But I know you're friends so I won't hold it against you. You probably don't want to mention this to him though. He's not taking it very well."

Ranma nodded. "I understand."

Quietly, Nabiki added, "Neither am I."

Ranma continued to nod, then it suddenly struck him. He lifted his eyebrows for a moment, but managed to keep the realization to himself. Whatever was really going on was too deep for him.

"I just got the idea that she wasn't real happy about it either. And I don't know if I should tell Kuno about it or not. I _know_ he's real broken up about it. Man... this sucks." Ranma rested his chin in his hand and looked dejectedly at the koi pond.

"I don't think we should get involved, Ranma. I don't mind talking if Nabiki wants to, but..." Akane shook her head. "I don't want to cause any more trouble than what's already there."

Ranma scooted a little closer to Akane and started to put his arm around her. "Ow! You little sh..." he yelled, jerking his arm away.

"Bwee! Bukee!" P-chan's eyes were crossed he was so upset.

"P-chan! Stop that! If you bite, I won't be able to keep you," Akane scolded, shaking her finger at the pig in her lap.

"Damn that pig!" Ranma cursed. "Why the hell does he keep doin' that to me?"

"You're not picking on him, are you?"

Ranma gave her a disgusted look. "Hell no. Why would I pick on a pig?"

"Jealousy, of course."

"I ain't jealous of that stupid pig! It's probably got fleas anyway." He gave a disgusted look at the pig, which oddly enough seemed to give it right back to him. Frowning, Ranma turned away to look at the other side of the yard.

Akane looked at P-chan and scratched him between the ears. The little beast leaned against her and closed his eyes in contentment. "He doesn't have fleas. If he did, I'd know it. And I don't have fleas."

"So he doesn't have fleas, he's just extra violent. I'd rather have you get fleas than me get bit on the ankle every day," Ranma said sourly.

Akane couldn't help herself and began to giggle. "Ranma, that's... that's just..."

"Just laugh it up with your stupid pig. I'm the one gettin' rabies here!"

Gently putting he hand on his shoulder, Akane stopped giggling. "Ranma..."

He shrugged his shoulder away from her, still frowning.

She replaced her hand on his shoulder and pulled a little, trying to get him to turn.

Due to her coaxing, Ranma turned, ready to be angry and annoyed. Instead, her face was very close to his and she had a look of... he wasn't sure on her face. Immediately he felt the heat crawl up his neck, and keeping himself from doing something that he might get hit for was a struggle. "Akane," he whispered.

"BUKIIIII! BWEEEE!"

The two jumped apart a bit at the loud squealing coming from between them. Akane almost dropped P-chan as she put out her hand to steady herself on the rocks around the pond.

"P-chan! What's gotten in to you tonight?" she said harshly, giving the pig a stern look. "Ranma..." she began, but when she looked back up, he was gone. "Damn it."

It was the middle of the night and Ranma couldn't sleep. Not surprising since his father sounded like he was going overtime on cutting down the Amazon rainforests...

He chuckled quietly to himself. His senses honed to a fine edge from years of martial arts training. Ha. More like he was always on edge and jittery from not getting a good night's sleep.

Wandering downstairs, he plopped in front of the TV and turned it on, hoping it would lull him into unconsciousness. Unfortunately, he was in that dreaded state where he was too tired to even fall asleep.

Giving up on the TV, he turned it off and headed to the kitchen. Maybe some water would... do something. Besides turn him into a girl. Yawning, Ranma fetched himself the glass of water and was about to head outside to stargaze for a bit when he heard the quiet clip-clop approaching.

He stared as P-chan came wandering down the hall, looking very confused. For a moment, Ranma thought the pig was going to attack, but it just wandered into the bathroom.

Curious, Ranma followed. The light was off, the room was dark, and he didn't want to get too close to a savage pig in the middle of the night. While he was tired, it was hard to predict how he might react to getting attacked by the little runt.

Instead of an attack though, Ranma heard the water turn on. Things were getting stranger by the moment, and he didn't think he was dreaming. Rubbing his eyes for a second, Ranma peered into the darkened bathroom.

"Prepare to die!"

Ranma didn't react quick enough to the incoming fist and flew back. Slamming against the wall and falling to the floor, he lifted his head to see a blurry figure march toward him from out of the bathroom. "Who..."

"Because of you, Ranma Saotome, I've seen hell," he seethed. "I was almost killed. And you don't even remember me."

Ranma stood slowly, one hand on his side. "Look, buddy, I don't know who you are, and ain't too sure what's going on, but..."

"Don't even try to talk your way out of this. Nothing will stop me."

So whoever it was wasn't interested in talking. Well that suited Ranma just fine. "Fine. Whatever you got, bring it on." He adopted a basic stance, preparing to immediately retreat from the cramped confines of the hallway when the stranger made his move.

"I'll crush you." In the darkness there was the sound of cracking knuckles.

Ranma shifted his balance ever so slightly so he could get a quick push off to the right. "Don't be chicken. Come an' get me," he taunted. As long as he stayed calm, he had the upper hand.

"Don't even try to trick me. I know how you work. Think you're so good... better than every one else..."

Ranma smirked. "Well I am."

"You're nothing."

For some inexplicable reason, that touched a nerve in Ranma. His eyes narrowed and he glared at the shape in the darkness. "I don't know who you are, but..."

"Think, back to junior high, lunch... Think about all those kids trying to get the best lunch. Think about how many people you stepped on just so you could have _your_ lunch. Remember me now?"

"Junior high... lunch..." Ranma shook his head. "Not really. That was years ago."

"And you, everyday, stepped on me to get what you wanted even though it rightfully belonged to ME!"

Ranma made the lunge to his right as the strike came in, almost without warning, toward his face. He dodged instinctually until he made it outside and was able to face his opponent. This time, the light was sufficient to see him.

"You'll pay. For everything. You'll pay, Ranma."

"Look, I don't want to fight you. I'm tired and I have no idea who you are. So why can't we just call it a truce?" Ranma didn't mind fighting, but the whole situation was just too weird. He just hoped his father hadn't done anything stupid and ripped off any...

"You've dishonored the Hibiki name for the last time! Now DIE!"

It dawned on Ranma. Finally. Hibiki... "Ryoga, right?" He maintained his cool even as Ryoga launched a series of attacks. "Yeah! Ryoga Hibiki! I remember you now!" He was dodging all of Ryoga's attack effortlessly as he spoke. "Junior high... Seems like it's been forever, man."

"Don't talk to me like that! I'm not your friend! I'll kill you!" Ryoga was getting annoyed. Ranma was easily evading all his punches and kicks and acting like it was a friendly sparring session on top of that. "Fight! Don't run!"

"I don't even know what you're mad about." Ranma was perilously close to the pond, and he most definitely loathed to get wet if he could help it.

"What I'm mad about? Because of you I've seen hell!"

"Yeah, I heard you say that before, but why?" Instead of dodging, Ranma leapt straight up over one of Ryoga's attacks.

Overextended and improperly compensating for the direction he had thought Ranma would dodge, Ryoga teetered for a moment, then plunged into the pond.

"Aw man," Ranma groaned. He didn't think the Tendos would want some wet, violent stranger in the house in the middle of the night. Standing on the rocks, looking into the water, Ranma looked for Ryoga. "Hey, you OK in there?"

There was a spray of water, to which Ranma flinched away from and then...

"BUKI BWEE BWEE!"

Having thrown his arm up across his face, Ranma now had an angry pig latched on to him. "What the hell? P-chan? What's going..."

"Ranma?"

Turning, he saw Akane standing in the doorway, still half-asleep.

"Go back to bed, Akane. This is nothin'." He tried to hide P-chan behind his back.

"I thought I heard P-chan, and he wasn't in my room."

"Er... I'm sure he'll turn up soon. Just go back to bed." He shook his arm a little, trying to shake the pig loose.

Akane walked a few steps outside. "What do you have behind your back?"

"Nothin'. Just go..."

"Bwee!"

Akane was instantly awake. "Is that P-chan?"

Ranma looked a little embarrassed and didn't say anything.

"Bwee! Bwee!"

Akane shook her head quickly. "That's P-chan! Where is he?"

Hesitantly, Ranma revealed his arm to Akane and the pig still clamped on it. "Um, here."

"P-chan!"

Ranma cringed. He was sure she was going to yell at him for picking on her poor little P-chan.

"P-chan! You let go of Ranma's arm right this instant." Her voice held no room for argument, from either of the, and the pig released his hold on Ranma's arm.

Trotting slowly over to Akane, looking back a few times to give Ranma black looks, P-chan grunted softly in apology.

Akane picked him up, looking at him somewhat angrily. "P-chan, you can't do things like that. If you do, we'll have to... sell you."

"Hey yeah, I bet Nabiki could..."

"Quiet, Ranma. I'm going back to bed, and I'm locking my door so P-chan won't escape again." Akane turned and headed back inside.

"But Akane, that pig is..."

"Not now, Ranma. I just want to go back to sleep. After all the noise you were making down here."

Ranma watched her go, frowning. No way in hell was he going to let that psycho sleep with Akane. Whatever had happened in school, it didn't justify that.

He waited a while longer until he was sure Akane was asleep, then quietly slipped in her room. As he feared, P-chan was nestled against Akane, and they were both asleep. So Ryoga Hibiki turned into a pig, a Jusenkyo curse, and was now sleeping with his fiancee.

He wouldn't stand for that. Walking quietly to her bedside, Ranma tried to remove the pig from her grasp. He grabbed the spotted tie around the pig's neck and tried to pull him away.

Akane mumbled something and held on tighter.

Muttering, Ranma pulled harder, trying not to wake Akane. The pig was stubborn, but she seemed even more stubborn. "Dammit," he whispered.

He leaned down to pull Akane's arms off the pig. One arm came away easily, but the other refused to budge. Ranma grabbed the pig again and tried to pull it free.

Somehow, he stifled the cry of pain as his hand was bitten, and covered the pig's mouth to prevent it from waking Akane. Still, Akane would not release her pet, and P-chan would not release his hand.

He bit his lower lip, his arm trembling. Ranma really wanted to yank his hand free and throw the little monster across the room, but if Akane found him in her room, she'd probably kill him. It made no difference that he was just trying to keep a psychotic freak from sleeping with her without her knowing it.

"Ranma?"

His entire body froze and his eyes snapped up to meet Akane's half-lidded gaze. "Uh... uh..."

"Ranma, what are you doing?"

"I just... uh... I didn't..."

"Ranma..."

Even though he had started to break from his paralysis, it took hold again when Akane leaned up slowly, her lips close enough that he could feel her breath on his face. "A... Akane..."

His brain could barely register what was going on when she kissed him.

"I've got the numbers worked out and the only thing left is to put my stamp on things."

Akane grimaced. "So how long do you think it'll be?"

Nabiki shrugged. "Not too long. The sooner the better, of course, but it's hard to say definitely. Within the week, I imagine."

"Does it really have to be that soon?"

"Akane, please. Don't play that now, like we've always been best of friends. I think we'll make it through this without too much trouble."

Looking sheepish, Akane shrugged. "Maybe, but we're over that stuff. And it'll be weird to not have you around. And what do I tell Kuno-sempai if he calls? Ranma's..."

"Now that you mention Ranma, what was that look you were giving him the other day? I'd almost say you were mooning over him. But my little sister the man-hater would never do that, would she?"

Blushing, Akane looked at her feet and smiled a little. "Maybe a little."

"As I thought. You'll get along just fine without me here, since you have to concentrate on Ranma now."

"I still don't think you should go. Really, we can work everything out here. I know we can."

Nabiki leaned over to Akane. "Have you seen our father lately? Have you seen the way he acts? Kasumi's not a whole lot better. It feels like I've got a 500 kilogram gorilla holding one hand and a 300 kilogram gorilla holding the other. I need to get away from them."

Akane sighed and nodded.

"RANMA!"

Nabiki rolled her eyes. "Not that idiot again. He's going to slip up one of these times and going to get the crap kicked out of him."

Akane looked outside at Ranma and Ryoga fighting. "Ranma's been pretty good at keeping him away from the house. And both of them try to keep it away from other people..."

"One of these days though..."

Tatewaki wandered around the room, looking at the bleak emptiness. She had done it, she had moved out. She had taken Takuma and moved out to a place he didn't know.

After almost a month, he still couldn't believe it. He barely saw her, and saw Takuma even less. It was a situation Tatewaki hated to his core. Nabiki had become his first, and one of his very few, friends since his release from the hospital, and that hurt more than anything.

If she didn't want to stay married to him, he could understand. If she kept custody of Takuma and only let him visit his son every weekend, he wouldn't like it, but would understand. As it was, he couldn't take care of Takuma anyway. The child deserved more of a family than he could provide.

He sat on the bed and propped his chin in his hands. For a brief moment, the thought of moving on presented itself, but he quickly rejected that.

There was no way he was just going to move on when he was married and had a son. The idea of even explaining what had happened to some woman he didn't know that well gave him a headache.

That wasn't something he could just slip into a conversation. "I'm a convicted rapist and spent nine months in a mental institute. Where did you go to high school?"

At that, he laughed though. As bleak as his situation seemed to him, it really couldn't get any worse either. One bright spot in the whole thing.

"At least you don't have some nutcase trying to kill you every day. And sleeping in Akane's bed... She won't listen to me for some reason about that. Just keeps telling me I'm jealous of that stupid pig." Ranma sighed. "It's something about this family, isn't it? They're cursed even worse than I am."

Tatewaki matched his sigh. "I think so. How has it been with that person attacking you? No one's gotten hurt, have they?"

"Nah. I wouldn't let that happen. And if anything ever happened to... someone because of a fight I was in, I think I'd hate myself."

Tatewaki looked over at Ranma. "Someone?"

"Yeah. Duty to protect the innocent and all that. Can't get people that can't protect themselves involved."

Tatewaki arched an eyebrow. "Someone?"

Ranma looked at him out of the corner of his eye, then looked back at the empty closet. "Yeah. Someone. Anyone. Just don't think people should be gettin' hurt in one of my fights."

"If that's what you say, Ranma."

Ranma sat for a moment, fidgeting. He just couldn't contain himself. "She kissed me!" he whispered excitedly.

"On your mouth?"

"Yeah! That night I was trying to get P-chan away from her. She woke up and just kissed me!"

"Oh, and I bet it hasn't stopped since then."

Ranma's cheeks glowed a healthy pink, but his smile didn't falter. "Mostly it has. But every once and a while..."

Let me guess," Tatewaki said, putting one finger on his chin, "On the roof, watching the stars, maybe after you come home from school when no one's looking..."

"Stop! It's not nearly that often!"

"But you'd like it to be." Tatewaki waved his hand. "Don't worry about it. You'll stop worrying about that soon enough and move on to... bigger things."

"Oh man, don't bring that up. I don't even want to consider it. You know how bad her dad and my pop want us to get married. Just getting the idea about that kinda stuff is gonna end us up married before I even get through a year of algebra."

Tatewaki laid back on the bed. "You don't even know what you're saying, Ranma. I can guarantee that once you do it, it's the only thing you'll think about."

"Oh man, don't tell me that. No sex, even thinkin' about it until I get married. None at all."

"I remember right here." Tatewaki patted the bed. "The first time she let me..."

"Here!?" Ranma stood up quickly from the bed.

Tatewaki made a face at him and threw a pillow. "It's not like there are standing puddles or anything."

"Yeah, but it's just something that, you know, you did together. In private."

"Oh please. Like it matters. You think anyone cared whether it was private or not when... Well, when my face and family name was plastered all over the papers? It's not like we don't know that people do it. It's not something you need to make a big deal out of."

"Yeah, but..." Ranma looked like a trapped animal. "I don't want to think about my fiancee's sister and my friend... havin' sex. I just don't." He shuddered.

"I wouldn't dismiss it so quickly. At least not until you try it."

"Yeah, well... Maybe. But I doubt it."

Tatewaki grinned.

Ranma looked out the window for a moment. "Hey man..."

"Hm?"

"Don't think I'm asking this because I'm bein' mean or anything, but..."

"What is it?"

Ranma looked back at Tatewaki, who sat up. "I said somethin' really stupid to Nabiki a ways back, and I was just wonderin'..."

"Ranma, what is it?"

Ranma blew out a breath. "Could you tell me... tell me what happened? If you don't want to, I understand."

"You said something like _that_. I bet the reaction wasn't pretty."

"No, and she was right when she said I wasn't sensitive enough to actually mean what I said, but..." Ranma shrugged.

"Huh. I never would have imagined a kinder, gentler Ranma. Are you going to start handing out flowers at the airport?"

"Nothin' like that. I just..."

"Wait, let me guess. You hate to see a girl cry."

Ranma shrugged uncomfortably then nodded.

"So do I, though I guess it's a little too late for me to espouse about chivalry, isn't it?" Tatewaki gave Ranma a sad, ironic smile.

Sitting back on the bed, Ranma asked, "So why don't you tell me what happened? It might help."

"I think too many things went wrong for it to help, but it can't hurt either..."

"Is he here?" Nabiki asked as she entered the kitchen with Takuma in her arms.

"Yes. He's upstairs with Ranma, waiting in your room." Akane wiped her hands, giving up on her cooking attempt for the moment. "Is there something wrong?"

Nabiki sighed. "Not really. I just hate doing this."

"Then why don't you..."

"No, Akane. I'm not giving up. This is all part of it. I'm not ready to quit now."

"And what about Takuma? You know you're punishing him for this, don't you?" Akane could not release the anger she was feeling toward the selfish way her sister was acting. It was all about Takuma and what was best for him.

She would not yell in front of the child, would not dredge up that kind of environment for him, even if it was only for a moment.

That was Nabiki's breaking point though, and she could not hold it in for her son. "And don't you think I deserve a little peace for once? Just because you don't get to see Takuma as much as you want, I'm just supposed to give up everything? Don't you think _you're_ being selfish? And what do you know about raising a kid anyway!?"

Akane answered quietly, "I know that he needs to be around people that love him, all the time, and that family is better than..."

"My sanity. It's better to worry about whether he sees his aunts everyday than whether I'll be capable in five years to take care of him or not. Five years, maybe five months!"

She gave Akane a look capable of cutting through steel. "Akane, you don't know anything about me. And I don't appreciate you shunting me aside so you can play house with my son."

Nabiki marched out of the kitchen and headed upstairs. That was not the way she had wanted to start out the visit.

"...I must have been coming down off those drugs because I was ready to do it. It's like jumping off a building expecting to hit the ground, but seeing that someone's dug a huge hole at the bottom. You just fall farther and get to watch the end coming longer."

Nabiki stopped outside the door to listen, knowing full well what was being discussed.

"You really loved her?" Ranma speaking.

"Right then, I don't think so. I don't think I felt anything then. I was just dead inside. Trust me, it's not something you ever want to experience." Tatewaki talking. "I like to think that that's the only way something like that could ever happen, the only way I could ever do anything even remotely that terrible."

"That's rough. I really think I'd just go off and do it. No matter what the girl said. I couldn't live with myself."

"The only thing that stopped me were the police that promptly escorted me to the hospital. Once I was there... Well, I just proved to everyone that I belonged there."

Nabiki took a deep breath and opened the door, not wanting to hear anything more. "Hey," she said casually, avoiding eye contact with Tatewaki. "Here he is." She handed Takuma over and quickly moved to the other side of the room. "Hope I didn't keep you waiting too long."

"Of course not. I don't mind waiting to see Takuma." Tatewaki held him up and bounced him a bit. "I just don't get to see him often enough."

Ranma looked back and forth a moment before standing. "I'll just see how long until dinner's done." He exited the room and shut the door.

"It's a tight situation up there," he said, entering the kitchen.

"Yeah, well, that's their business and not mine," Akane replied tersely.

He saw the way she was mixing whatever was in the bowl and backed up a little. "What's wrong, Akane?"

She spun around, a mixed look of anger and hurt on her face. "Do you know what she said to me? She accused me of putting my want to see Takuma above her own health. She said all I wanted was for Takuma to be around more and that I didn't care how she was doing. She _yelled_ at me!"

"Akane, you're yellin' at me right now."

Snorting, Akane turned around and went back to her cooking. "Fine. Be that way, Ranma. Take her side when I just wanted what was best for Takuma. I don't care."

He stepped up behind her quietly and put his hands on her hips. "Akane, I know you care. And Nabiki does too. You just gotta give her some space. She's not really _mad_ at you," he said quietly.

Akane's violent stirring stopped and she leaned against the counter. "I still don't understand. Why did this have to happen to us?"

"I dunno, Akane." He didn't know what to do when he heard her start to cry.

Ryoga looked in the window. They couldn't see him apparently, and it took him only a moment to see why. Akane was crying. And Ranma had his hands on her.

Whatever it was, he didn't care. He was angry. Akane was crying. Ranma was standing there. That was all he needed. "RANMA! This is YOUR fault!" he yelled, his face showing a mask of pure rage.

"Huh?" Ranma looked out the window. "Aw, not you again. Ryoga, why don't you just..." That look in Ryoga's eyes was something he couldn't miss. "Akane, get out of here," he whispered and pushed her behind himself.

"Don't shove me!"

"Akane, shut up and get out of here. Something very bad is about to happen." Ranma never removed his eyes from Ryoga outside. "If you don't wanna get hurt, get out of here. And see if you can get everyone else out. I dunno what this psycho's gonna do."

"RANMA!" Ryoga howled, spittle flying from his lips. "Ikari no funka!" The wispy red aura around his body swirled and seemed to gather in his cupped hands before a red beam flew straight at Ranma's face.

Ranma ducked, swearing under his breath, and yanked Akane to the floor with him. He might have screamed, but he wasn't sure, wasn't able to hear anything except the crackling sizzle of the energy blast flying overhead.

He could feel bits of the wall and window land on his back, but didn't dare lift his head to see if Akane was injured. The only thing he knew was that when he could finally hear Akane screaming like it was the end of the earth, the blast had ended.

Lifting his head, Ranma opened his eyes slowly. There was no way he could have avoided seeing the damage simply because it included everything that had stood in the path of that ki blast. His cursory assessment was that the house was devastated. And Akane...

"RANMA! I'm not through with you yet!"

"Akane, get up. Go upstairs, get everyone out of here!" he said, giving up any pretense of whispering. He stood, shaking the debris from his back, and tried to pull Akane to her feet as well. "Get up!"

Akane staggered to her feet, her hand on her head. "What was that?" she asked dazedly.

"Trouble. Go upstairs. Get everyone out of here. Ryoga's here for a fight, and this time he's not playin' around."

Akane responded more to the tone of urgency in Ranma's voice than his actual words. As she stumbled to the stairs, the destruction in the house spurred her to move faster.

The entire house shuddered, followed by the sounds of destruction from downstairs. Takuma immediately began to cry, and Tatewaki held him protectively to his chest.

"What the hell was that?" Nabiki asked, a look of mild panic in her eyes.

"I don't know, but I think we should get downstairs. Someone might be hurt."

Nabiki was already out of the room, hurrying to the stairs and down them. She was almost at the bottom when Akane appeared, dust-covered and wild-eyed. "Akane, what was..."

"Dammit, Akane! Get out of here!" Ranma yelled, nearly screaming, the desperation very clear in his voice.

"Hurry, we have to get out of here," Akane said, taking Nabiki by the hand and pulling. "The house..."

"But Tate-chan's upstairs..." Nabiki started to head back up the stairs, but Akane's hand was firm and would not allow her to do so.

"What's going on down there?" Tatewaki appeared at the top of the stairs with Takuma in his arms, wrapped in the blanket off Nabiki's bed.

"We have to get out of here!" Akane pulled on Nabiki's arm again.

Tatewaki started down the stairs, and then all three of them heard it.

"Ikari no funka!"

Akane pulled Nabiki away from the stairs and down to the floor.

The house shook again, but it was more violent as the blast ripped through the wall and incinerated the stairs. The sound of wood creaking and splitting could be heard even through the blast.

The groaning continued after, until the point was reached and the stairs collapsed entirely, tearing away from the second floor landing.

The noises of fighting, of Ranma and Ryoga battling replaced most of the sounds of splintering wood. Akane looked up slowly, then stood quickly and tried to get Nabiki to her feet. "Get up! Let's go!"

Lifting her head, Nabiki looked at the remains of the stairs, a low moan escaping her throat. "What about..."

"He probably went back upstairs. We need to get out! The next time it might be us!"

Nabiki stood and allowed her sister to pull her along, never taking her eyes off the remains of the stairs.

Akane got them both outside, where Kasumi was already waiting. "Akane, what happened?"

"It was that guy, Ryoga. He... he..."

"Father was upstairs. I hope he's not hurt." Kasumi tried to see in through any of the upper floor windows, but the sun reflected off and prevented any glimpse inside.

As if the sound was at a level only she could hear, Nabiki heard it. A plaintive cry from the house. Immediately her panic went into overdrive. "I heard him! I heard Takuma! I have to go back in there!" Before Akane could grab her arm, she was running back inside.

Her path to the stairs was blocked as Ryoga flew back and hit the wall. He was quickly back to his feet and started to glow a faint red.

Nabiki froze, unsure of what to do. She certainly couldn't run past him, but she was sure she had heard the cry. She had heard Takuma in the house, and she wasn't going to stop until she found him.

Ryoga didn't seem to have noticed her and was more engrossed with whatever he was doing with his hands.

Nabiki grabbed the first thing her hand fell on, which happened to be a vase full of flowers that she remembered being around since she was very young, when her mother was still around. Putting the vase on the floor, Nabiki grabbed the stand the vase had been on and lifted it over her head.

"Ikari no funkUUUhhhh..."

The stand broke alarmingly easy over Ryoga's head, leaving Nabiki holding a pair of legs. She tossed them aside and ran past the stunned young man.

At the debris formerly called the stairs, she began tossing remains aside. For the most part, it consisted of the smaller boards that had formed the steps themselves, but parts of the wall as well as support for the second floor had collapsed too. Those things she couldn't move on her own.

One large beam she shifted as best she could to get at more debris and heard the cry again. It was coming from under the wreckage, under the place where the top of the stairs had collapsed.

Throwing things aside violently, she cried out when she saw a scrap of blanket under it all. "Someone help me!" she screamed. "Help! They're under here!"

Ranma spared a quick glance over at her. "What's wrong?" He had to get Ryoga out of the house, but the pig seemed to know that keeping him in a confined area would neutralize a lot of his advantage.

"They were on the stairs! They're under here! I can hear him crying!" Nabiki tried to move some of the larger pieces, but couldn't do so. "Tate-chan! Can you hear me?"

Ranma looked back over and swore. "Ryoga, you've done it this time. I warned you about ever hurtin' anyone, and this is the last time." He snarled and charged forward.

Ryoga waited, ready for the attack, the eerie red glow surrounding him. There wasn't enough time for him to fire off another one of those blasts so he'd just have to do it the old fashioned way.

With fist raised, Ranma ran forward and slid at the last moment, leg tackling Ryoga and dropping him to the ground. Springing back to his feet, Ranma grabbed his fallen opponent and picked him up just enough. "I've had enough of you. There are people hurt and all you can think of is some damned stupid fight over bread I took from you in JUNIOR HIGH!"

Something that sounded like a bat hitting a baseball solidly sounded, and Ryoga was flying through the air, out of the house and away to parts unknown.

Looking at the minor hole Ryoga's body had made, Ranma dismissed it amongst the greater destruction. "Akane! Come in and help! We've got trouble!" he yelled, then went to help Nabiki.

"They're under there, Ranma. I can hear him crying. I can't move this thing..." She had her arms wrapped around a beam and was trying to move it aside, but she was too frazzled and could barely make herself stand.

"Let me do that," Ranma said gently, and moved Nabiki to the side. He lifted the beam slowly, the dense, hardwood heavier than he had anticipated.

Akane came in then and the two managed to remove the obstacle, then began removing the rest of the remains. When Akane's hand grabbed on to a piece of wood smeared with blood, she calmly tossed it away, not calling any attention to it.

"Nabiki, maybe you should call for an ambulance.," Akane suggested, trying not to give her own worries away.

For a moment, Nabiki stood against the wall and stared at the corner of blanket that had escaped the ruin. Her entire body was shaking, but she would not allow anyone to see it. She would not look weak and helpless while Ranma and Akane rescued her baby.

Hands shaking, she walked over to Akane. "Akane, why don't you call. I'll do this."

Akane looked back at her, then at what she was doing and shook her head. "You call, I'll do this. You don't look like you're in any condition to be doing this."

"No! I'm doing this! I'm going to get him out of there!" She didn't go quite so far as to shove Akane out of the way, but she was very prepared to.

Akane jerked back. Slowly turning her head, she looked at her sister. Catching the look in her sister's eyes, Akane nodded and cleared the way.

Nabiki began clearing the junk away like a woman possessed. Even Ranma could not keep up with her progress. Her entire being was focussed on freeing her son from underneath the wreckage of their home.

Dimly she heard Akane speaking, asking for an ambulance to be sent. Ranma helped, but moved around her, keeping out her way as the areas was cleared.

Finally, a few boards were removed and the unmoving form of Tatewaki was revealed, covered in dust and plaster. Cradled protectively against his chest, one arm over it, was a bundle wrapped in a blanket.

Reluctantly accepting Ranma's help, but needing it anyway, she dragged him out into the ruined main room. The blood decorating his clothing did not register to Nabiki. She would not allow it to, not until she knew everything was all right.

Ranma stepped back, not sure what else he could do to help.

Nabiki slowly lifted the arm that was protecting the bundle and moved it to the side. She then pulled back the blanket to reveal the confused and unhappy face of Takuma, alive and very grumpy.

A sob of relief escaped, and she lifted the baby into her arms. That seemed to break through his paralyzing fear because he immediately began to cry.

Laughing a little, tears rolling down her face, Nabiki rocked the baby in her arms. She leaned over and rested her forehead against Tatewaki's side, feeling the slow rhythm of his breathing. Everything was going to be fine. It really was.

Nabiki opened the door and peaked in. The room was empty except for the patient. She entered and went to sit on the bed, eyeing the sleeping patient. Running her fingertip over the cast on his arm, she couldn't help but think...

"Is Takuma all right?"

She smiled and nodded. "He's fine. More scared than anything. How are you?"

Tatewaki opened his eyes. "Sore. My arm hurts." He focused on Nabiki.

"There's something I thought I should tell you because what happened was a rather... eye-opening experience. I think... maybe..."

Tatewaki sighed and closed his eyes. "Just say it. Please don't drag this out."

"I think I found what I was looking for."

Tatewaki kept his eyes closed, face in a small grimace.

"Tate-chan, did you hear me?'

"No. I was imagining things and missed it."

"I said I think I found what I was looking for. How do you feel about that?" Nabiki leaned forward and stroked his cheek. "It wasn't exactly what I lost, but it'll do."

"So you're saying..."

"Oh, open your eyes already. I want you to look at me."

Tatewaki reopened his eyes, not sure what to expect. "What you found... what was it?"

"Responsibility. That's mainly it, but it's because I love my family. I was right that I couldn't live without you, but not because you're a crutch." Her fingers intertwined with his even in the cast. "Are you going to make me say it?"

"Maybe. I'm not sure if I'm awake or not."

She pinched the skin on his neck. "I love you and I can't live without you. Not because I have to, but because I want to. I _can_ live without you, I just don't want to."

"Please say you'll finally move in with me. I'm tired of being alone when you're so close."

"Considering what happened to the house, I might take you up on that offer. And because... sometimes I get lonely at night, and there's no one there to take care of me."

"I'll take care of you."

"And protect me."

"I'll protect you."

"And to hold me."

"I'll hold you as much as you want."

"And to..."

"Whatever you want, I'll do it for you. Just tell me..." Tatewaki stopped and laughed a little. "I feel like I'm asking you to marry me all over again."

"This time, I think I'm ready to take that step the first time you ask. Yes, I'll move in with you. It's not really that big a step is it?"

"I suppose not, but will you be able to handle me every day... every night? I don't want to screw things up again."

"We'll just have to find out. And as for every night... I think I can handle you. After all, you're nothing but a big kitten."

Tatewaki gave her a lop-sided smile and gave her a growl. "Careful. I bite when I'm riled up."

"So do I."

Ryoga wandered the streets, trying to find his way. His business with Ranma was still unfinished, and he wasn't going to let his bad sense of direction get in the way.

The lack of street signs was infuriating; he thought he was somewhere near Nerima, but wasn't sure which direction to go. Wandering _too_ far was a mistake because then there was no way to predict where he'd end up, and the further he got away from Ranma, the angrier he got.

"Don't I know you from somewhere?"

Ryoga stopped and looked around, eye settling on the young woman watching him from across the street. "I don't know. I'm not even sure where I am."

She crossed the street and eyed him up and down. "Yes, I remember those ragged clothes and that vacant look. You..." She shook her finger at him while trying to think. "You showed up while we were on that field trip, didn't you?"

"I... don't..."

"Yes! You were that boy that got beat up! I remember now."

"Yeah, well, I've got things to worry about now," Ryoga said grumpily and started to walk away.

Gears in Yukiko's mind started to turn at an alarming rate. "Hey, hey... Don't go yet. I've got something to talk to you about." She followed him, setting her hand on his shoulder.

Shrugging it off, Ryoga walked a bit quicker. "I don't have anything to talk to you about. Leave em alone."

"You want to get somewhere? Somewhere in Nerima?" Yukiko's expression was one of smug, dangerous mischief.

"Yeah. So what?"

"I bet it wouldn't be too hard for me to... point you in the right direction. Maybe even get you there." Her voice held an unspoken request.

Nodding, Ryoga stopped walking and faced her. "And what do you want from me?"

"Just a little favor. Nothing too difficult for you, I'm sure."

"I figured. And what is this favor?"

"Do you know Tatewaki Kuno and his little 'wife', Nabiki Tendo?"