"Akane." The beautiful voice from her dream calls to her. "Do you love
this one?"


"Yes." She whispers, admitting it to herself finally, now that she
cannot do anything about it. She swallows hard, grief threatening to
overwhelm her.


"There is a chance to change this, but it will be hard. And dangerous.
Do you love him enough?"


Akane nods.


"Enough to give some of your life for him?"


Akane nods again.


"If I fail, it may kill you."


"I don't care." Akane answers flatly, thinking that she'd rather die
than spend the rest of her life without him.


Ranma-chan's body rises out of her arms, Ranma-kun's following to spin
together, back to back, faster and faster until with a blinding flash,
they merge. Ranma's male form whole, undamaged and returned to it's
almost seventeen year old self, but still dead, floating gently down to
rest in the position on Akane's lap that Ranma-chan had just recently
held.


"Call him back, Akane." The voice instructs.


"How?" She asks, unsure.


"Hurry!" The voice warns.


Akane gulps, mind whirling, leans down and kisses his lips, putting all
her love and passion into that one act.


(Please! Come back to me, Ranma!) She feels a rush of heat pass from her
into him and sways, draws back, light-headed and weak. Ranma draws a
huge breath into his lungs, moves his hand to cover one of Akane's and
sinks into sleep, her hand clasped firmly in his own.


Akane smiles, brings his hand up to her cheek, presses it there, then
faints over him as the glowing light around her winks out.

--Excerpt rom "Chiesai: Dreams of Darkness" chapter 14 by Shannon M.
Richmeyer