Chapter 1: Akane Tendo True Heart's Desire Happosai would never suspect that she had stolen the locket. Akane told herself that, and to some degree she believed it, but the thought of the old pervert chasing after her was still disturbing. Well, it was always disturbing, but especially now. She had a decision to make. So Akane left Nerima, traveling across Tokyo to a park on the other side of the city. There she planned to decide what to wish for. The locket worked; they had all seen evidence of that. Frankly, she didn't want to know what Happosai had wished for to make that thing appear. Akane had snuck back to the dojo while the others hid at the Saotome's house, and had been lucky enough to get to the locket while the old lech slept off his big day. Now it was clasped around her neck, hung from a simple golden chain. It was a breezy day in the park, and the wind was awash with the scent of flowers. Akane strolled down a rocky path, trying to clear her mind. She wasn't used to thinking seriously about the past, or about what the future might bring. Since the engagement, she had been especially reluctant to think about the future. She had her dreams, but - but nothing, she realized with a shiver. They could become real now. She had to do this systematically, Akane decided. She needed to isolate what was important to her and analyze it. She had only one wish, and a wish was not a thing to be wasted. The first thing to come to mind, as it was all too often, was Ranma. She thought she might be in love with him. Should she spend her wish to make him hers forever? A part of Akane shouted no, that she shouldn't waste her wish on that pervert; another part shouted yes, that there was nothing she wanted more. But the frightening thought was that she might already have him. Whenever she considered the battle with Saffron, the only thing she could manage to think of was "I love you;" everything else was a dark miasma beside the light of those words. And they almost been married, already. The whole thing was terrifying; she didn't want to think about it anymore, and she didn't want to wish for Ranma. She could do something about Ranma's other fiancees. See how Shampoo likes being a cat all the time, or Ukyou being a real man. Akane giggled, shaking her head. She would never do that. She wasn't the vindictive sort; she didn't really want to hurt anyone, just to sort of get them out of the way. It crossed her mind to set them up with somebody else; Mousse and Konatsu would be very happy. There was something wrong with changing people's minds, though. It was too underhanded, too much like Shampoo's potions. Kunou? Akane dismissed the idea. Her sisters? Here was some room for improvement, she thought. Kasumi was a few cards short of a full deck, Nabiki as cold as ice, and as for herself, well, she had real problems showing her affection. How could a wish help them, though? Nothing struck her, and she didn't want to wish for anything general enough to be misinterpreted. Material visions swam before her as she took a seat on a wooden bench. She could be rich, richer than anybody, or have perfect grades, or admission to the university of her choice. She could make herself a great warrior, and finally show Ranma what was what. She could cook a great meal and shove it in his face. But no; she wanted to do something huge, something significant, not just to change a tiny corner of her life. Suddenly an idea hit her and she was struck by the simplicity of it, grabbed by the force of it, carried away by its allure. It was perfect, it was perfect, and she had wanted it so much for so long. Akane pulled the locket out of her blouse, held it firmly in her hand, and spoke clearly the words upon which she had decided. The locket grew red-hot in her hand; she dropped it with a yelp. It rolled between her legs and underneath the bench. Akane dropped to her knees, searching frantically. The locket was easy to find; it flashed like a strobe light in a mesmerizing array of colors, though it made not a sound. It ceased to glow without a moment's warning. Akane reached for it tentatively. When she could feel no heat radiating from it she plucked the locket from the ground and reattached it to her chain. Akane rose to her feet, a nervous tremor running down her legs. Had the wish worked? Would her will finally be done? She walked hurriedly out of the park, heading for the train station. In the end, she had no reason to worry. When she ran home her mother was waiting for her.