[Ranma][FanFic] Ranma's Secret Admirer

[The Sebastians]

Ranma's Secret Admirer
by Trisha L. Sebastian

[All the characters herein are the intellectual property of Rumiko
Takahashi and the physical property of Viz Communications and who
ever else has their greedy fingers in the pie. Except for the new
character, she's mine.]

PROLOGUE

"Hey, glad you could make it! Everyone else is in the living
room."

I walked through the door, took off my shoes and carried my
sleeping bag to the living room. Already the rest of the gang was there,
laughing at the cartoons on the TV. Everyone except for....

"Where's Akane? Isn't she coming?"

"Um, she had to cancel at the last minute. Something about a
demon at school that she and Ranma have to get rid of."

I nodded, a sad expression on my face, but inside a secret blossom
of joy filled me. I sat down, spread out my blankets and grabbed some
chips from the table.

************************

"So who do you think is the cutest?"

All slumber parties eventually get down to the most important topic:
the cutest guy in school. Usually, we'd be discussing the merits of
Hiroshi's smile or Daisuke's hair, but tonight with Akane gone, we could
really warm up to the topic.

"Oh, Ranma, definitely. Those eyes draw you in from a mile
away!"

"But Kunou-sempai is older! And he's so tall."

"Eh, neither of them can hold a candle to Ryouga-kun!"

They all giggled and another girl decided to add her opinion.
"But what about Mousse? His hair is so nice and it's real cute when
he's bumping into things..."

They laughed. "Come on! There's no way that Mousse will
ever give you the time of day. He's too hung up on his 'Shampoo'!"

I retorted. "Like there's any chance that Ranma, Kunou-sempai
and Ryouga would give you the time of day? They're all hung up on Akane.
Everyone is!"

The rest of the girls fell silent. They knew I was right.
One girl got up to go to the bathroom, and another flipped on the TV. Soon,
all of them were engrossed in the newest music video by the latest idol
singer, but I didn't care. I hated being right.

*************************

"It's time for bed, girls. You've been up way too late."

Reluctantly, the girls turned out their flashlights, cleaned
up the food and snuggled down into their sleeping bags. I slipped
out a penlight from her overnight bag and began to write. I had
put it off long enough. It was time to reveal my true feelings,
once and for all.

"Dear Ranma......."

CHAPTER ONE

"So anyway, I try and hit this 'demon', but it's like he
ain't there! It was kinda like fightin' the old lech, so I figured that..."

"Oh come off it, Ranma! You had no idea who we were up against."
Akane grumbled. "And it was two weeks ago! Everyone knows what happened
already!" She bit into her sandwich angrily.

"Yeah, but Megumi ain't heard it yet. She just got here, remember?"

Megumi laughed. "Actually, Ukyou told me all about it yesterday
after I got off the train. We talked about a lot of things."

"Oh." Ranma looked dejected. He gathered up his lunch box. "Well,
I gotta go now." He got to his feet and started to hurry off when he felt
someone run into him. He quickly sidestepped, while grabbing a hold of an
out-stretched arm. "Watch where you're going!"

"Oh, sorry about that," I replied. He was touching me! He was
actually holding my arm! "It was my fault, I didn't look where I was going."
Quickly, I slipped the note into his bento, hoping that Akane didn't notice.

"Well, okay then." He hurried off, waving to Daisuke.

I looked off in the distance at him, watching him fade into the
distance. The sound of my name caught my attention. "Hmm?"

Akane grinned. "I was just wondering if you could join me
and Megumi for lunch."

I shook my head absent-mindedly. "No, I've got an appointment
to keep." I took off, deliberately avoiding the path Ranma was taking,
but instead circling around the school to the spot where all the boys hung
out. There, I watched him smile, watched him laugh. I ate my lunch
quietly basking in the sight of Ranma Saotome.

***********************

Ranma trudged wearily to the door. Flinging it open, she called out,
"I'm home!" She shucked off her shoes and dropping off her bento in the
kitchen, she flopped down on the couch in front of the TV. Every muscle
in her body ached. Her head was still ringing and she could feel a nasty
bruise start to form on her right flank. Damnit, she thought, wringing
out her shirt, why do they all have to gang up on me all at once?

Akane shuffled in shortly afterwards, a tired expression on her
face. Instead of neatly taking her shoes and her bookbag to her room, she
dropped them in the corner of the hallway. She flopped down on the couch
next to Ranma and they looked at each other, a silent compliment in their
eyes as they noted each others' skill.

Finally, Ranma spoke. "Damnit, Akane! I can't keep watchin' your
back all the time!"

"You watching my back? I had everything under control! You were
the one who messed up!" Akane growled, her muscles tensing up and instantly
regretting it. She groaned, flinging herself back on the couch.

Kasumi entered from the kitchen and seeing them boneless on the
couch, she said, "Oh, my! Were you in a fight?"

Akane nodded, "Yeah, seems like everyone decided to gang up on
us today." She counted them off in her mind: Ukyou, Shampoo, Tsubasa,
Ryouga, Kodachi, Mousse, Kunou-sempai... the list was endless.

Ranma sighed. "Why can't they leave me alone? It ain't my fault!"
She got up to go to the dojo and work out the kinks in her muscles. As she
passed Kasumi in the kitchen to get a kettle of water, Kasumi stopped her.
"I found this note in your bento. It's addressed to you."

Ranma frowned. A note? Who in the heck could it be from? She took
it with listless fingers and grabbed the kettle off the stove. Once outside,
she poured the kettle over her head, relishing in the warmth and the change.
He looked down at the note and unfolded it.

"What's that, Ranma?"

Ranma jumped. "Oh, hey it's you, Nabiki." He must have been really
out of it to let her sneak up on him like that. He took a quick glance at
the note and grimaced. "It's nothin'."

Nabiki smiled craftily. "If it really were nothing, you wouldn't
mind if I took a look at it, would you?"

Ranma panicked. "Well, maybe it's not somethin' you'd wanna see."
He tried to stuff it in his pants pocket, but Nabiki was quicker than
him and she managed to snag it. She read out loud:

"I wish you were mine. I can't stand seeing
those other girls with you. Sometimes I dream
that you tell them that I'm really the only
one for you. I love you.

Your secret admirer"

Nabiki whistled. "Man, she's got it bad for you. Anyone we know?
We definitely can rule Shampoo out. She can't write this well."

He grabbed it away from her. "It's none of your business, Nabiki."

"Oh, dear brother-to-be, it is. Anything that concerns my family
concerns me." She steepled her fingers under her chin, and Ranma flinched
at the look.

"Okay, how much do I owe you for keeping this quiet?"

She smiled. "I'll just consider this a favor, in exchange for a
favor to be named later."

Ranma grimaced. "Just as long as it don't involve bathing suits
and cameras, okay?"

Nabiki adopted a pout. "Like I'd do anything like that, Ranma-kun."
She grinned at him and turned away. She hurried to her room. She had a lot
of research to do.

************************

Ranma sighed, taking in the night air on the roof. That was a real
close call, having Nabiki find out like that. He took the rest of the notes
from his pocket, two weeks worth of notes. Whoever this girl was, she
was nothing but persistant. The first one showed up in his locker, the
second in one of his text books, the third on his chair. She must be
getting real bold to put one in his lunch box. He rifled through them,
reading snatches of thoughts:

"I hope you don't think me rude if I say this..."

"I saw you at the park yesterday..."

"Does it hurt when you change into a girl?"

"Don't you wish you weren't engaged to all those girls...?"

"I wish that I could have you all to myself..."

"Those other girls don't deserve you..."

"I love you, Ranma Saotome...."

He thought back to the people who could have put it in there and no
one came to mind. Kodachi? She doesn't even go to the same school...
but she could have hired someone from school to do this for her.... It
couldn't be Shampoo; Nabiki's right, she can't write too well. Ukyou?
Now there was a real possibility, but she wouldn't be this secretive, would
she?

Naw, it wasn't any of them, but someone new. Someone he hasn't met
before. He sighed again, muttering to himself, "Whoever you are, I'm gonna
find you out and I'm gonna put a stop to this."

Far away, a girl sneezed as she put the finishing touches on another
note to her dearest love.

CHAPTER TWO

Nabiki slipped down the stairs with a telephoto lens in her hand.
She grabbed her bento from the counter where Kasumi was preparing break-
fast. Quickly she picked out an apple and a small bag of chips from the
pantry and turning, she was about to leave when Kasumi stopped her.

"Nabiki, aren't you going to have breakfast this morning?"

"Nope," she said, taking a large bite out of the apple. "I've got
some work I have to do this morning before school starts. If Ranma and
Akane ask, tell them that I left early to meet with some associates of mine."
She spit a seed out into the wastebasket and opening the refrigerator door,
she snagged a can of soda. "Gotta run!" She sped her way out the door,
grabbing her camera bag and her book bag at the same time. The door slammed
shut and Kasumi shook her head with a smile.

************************

"Ranma! Hurry up, we're gonna be late!"

"In a minute, Akane!" Ranma hurriedly stuffed some clothing into
his book bag, taking out his kanji book and his math book. He mentally
checked his items, then satisfied, he shut his bag and tore open his door,
colliding with Akane.

"Let's go!" he said, grabbing her arm and tugging hard on it.
Before she could protest, they had flown out the door and were running hard
down the street.

"Hey, what's the rush?" she asked, trying her best to keep up with
him.

"It's nothin' Akane, I just don't want to be late for school," he
muttered, his eyes darting from left to right, on the lookout for obstacles.
He vaulted over an overturned garbage can, veered right to avoid a telephone
pole and leapt to the top of an enbankment, scrambling down the other side.

Akane shrieked, as she missed the pole by a mere centimeter and
struggled to maintain her balance down the slope. "Ranma, stop!" she
shouted.

"No time for that, Akane!" He poured on the speed, leaping to the
top of a fence and running full tilt across it, Akane shrieking and holding
his hand in a death grip. His eyes were scanning the tops of the houses to
the left of him when he heard a female voice shout, "Nihao, Ranma!"

Jumping off the fence, Ranma vaulted over a wall, just barely avoid-
ing a rapidly descending Shampoo. Surprised by his sudden disappearance,
she missed the rail of the fence and tumbled into the canal. Surfacing, she
gave a little start to see Ranma leaping from rooftop to rooftop, holding
Akane's hand. She cursed, hissing and crawled out of the canal.

Ranma spied the gates from the top of the last house and jumped
off the roof. Akane screamed and grabbed a hold of his back convulsively.
That's how the whole school saw them, Ranma falling from the sky, Akane's
arms and legs wrapped around him tightly.

He landed with a thud, his legs bending deeply to absorb the fall,
his arms reaching back to shield Akane's legs and without pausing, he ran
through the open gates. Kunou stood flabbergasted in the middle of the path
and didn't even raise his bokken in a token defense before Ranma leaped to
the top of Kunou's head, bearing down with all his weight, causing
the kendoist to crumple in his tracks. He dashed into the building and
screeched to a halt in front of their lockers. Ranma dropped Akane and she
slid bonelessly to the ground.

Quickly, he stuffed his bookbag into his locker and turned around,
seeing Akane slumped to the floor. "Hey, what's wrong, Akane?" he asked,
crouching down to her level. Akane worked her mouth slowly, but he couldn't
hear a thing she said. He leaned closer.

"CRAZY BAKAYAROU!" Akane scrambled to his feet and cuffed him on the
back of the head. "You could have gotten us killed! What in the world
did you think you were doing?"

Ranma recoiled and shouted back, "Hey, you're always going on and
on about us being late for school. Well, we're right on time, and you don't
even thank me for it, stupid tomboy!" He put his hands into his
pocket and smiling secretly, he strolled down the hall.

Akane growled and ran after him, mallet held high.

*********************

I watched him all during class, replaying the scene from that
morning, seeing him falling from the sky like a graceful swan... with Akane
stuck to his back, hugging him like a leech. Why does Akane always have
to be so close to Ranma? She noticed that he was holding her legs, too.
What could that mean? Does Ranma really like Akane?

I snorted. By the way that they had entered the classroom, it
looked like they were anything *but* close. Akane was chasing after Ranma,
batting him around with that gigantic mallet and he was hurling names at her.

No, he could never like Akane, because he was always saying how he
hated tomboys like her. He needed a girl like me, sweet, kind, gentle,
not someone who would bash him over the head and shriek in his ear.
He couldn't like any of them, because they beat him up so much.

"Five minutes, and then the quiz will be over."

I gave a guilty start. Frowning, I looked down at the paper
in front of me and the doodles all over it.

"Mrs. Saotome... I love Ranma forever... Death to Akane, Ukyou,
Shampoo and Kodachi..." I sighed and crumpled up the paper, taking out
a new sheet and finishing up my math quiz. I was so engrossed with the
last question that I didn't notice a hand reach over and steal the
crumpled ball of paper.

*************************

Akane tapped her foot impatiently. Where could that baka be?
Ukyou leaned against the lockers and sighed. "So what was that all about
in class, Akane? He acted like he had been poisoned."

"Stupid Ranma, how dare he say that I made him sick! My cooking's
not *that* bad!" she growled. "He probably just wanted to get out of class
early. When he gets back from the infirmary..." Akane made a
menacing gesture with her hands.

Megumi laughed. "He has been gone an awful long time. Isn't he
going to be late for gym?"

Ukyou grinned. "What? And miss a chance to show off in front of
his friends? Don't worry, he'll be there. Come on, Akane, let's
go change."

Akane sighed and let Megumi and Ukyou lead her off to the girls'
locker room.

*************************

A figure stole out from the shadows. She peeped around the corner,
and carefully adjusted her hair and blouse. She took big breath and crept
into the quad.

Ranma was in disguise. Normally, Ranma's disguises are silly,
consisting of a large pair of horn-rimmed glasses, "borrowed" from her dad,
and a straw-colored wig. This disguise was no different.

To this, she added a black kerchief, tied under her nose, for this
was no ordinary disguise. This was Ranma's 'I'm being sneaky' disguise.
She tiptoed around the building, hugging the walls. Spying a bush near her
target, she sprinted towards it and dived into the bush. She took some of
the branches and crawled over to the small building, shielding herself with
the branches. When she reached the wall, she threw away the branches and
leapt to the roof, trying to make as little noise as possible. She
crawled over to the center of the building and peered in through the skylight.

There they were, all the girls in her class, chatting happily amongst
themselves. Once in a while, one of them would say something that would
make them all roar with laughter, and then they'd continue undressing.
Carefully averting her eyes, Ranma eased over to the open pane
of glass for a better listening point.

"Nihao, Ranma!" Ranma gave a start as a black tire loomed ominously
overhead. She tried to get out of the way, but Shampoo landed heavily on
her chest, sending them crashing through the skylight. A chorus of terrified
screams greeted her as she landed on a bench, Shampoo on top of her.

Shampoo threw down her bike and cuddled Ranma's head to her chest.
"Ranma is okay, now? Why you run away from me when I come to go on date?"
She hugged him more tightly to her, Ranma's arms pinwheeling, her vision
getting blurry from the pressure to her temples.

"Oh, I see what your game is now, Ranma!" Akane strode up to them,
her shirt hastily buttoned. "You pretend to get sick and then you take her
out on a date?" She held her mallet up high. "Die, Ranma!"

Shampoo stopped Akane's swing with one hand. "What you want,
ugly tomboy girl? You stay away from airen." Shampoo pulled out her maces
and getting up to her feet, she faced off against Akane. Ranma slumped
down, cracking her head against the floor. "Is ready."

Akane and Shampoo circled each other warily, with the rest of the
girls cheering on. Ukyou and Megumi dragged Ranma out of the crossfire
and were trying to wake her up. With a cry, Akane and Shampoo rushed at
each other, swinging away. In the commotion and the fight, no one noticed
the black and maroon blur enter the girls' locker room.

Happosai whizzed around in and out of the lockers, feeling
up all the girls, shouting, "What a haul, what a haul!" He noticed Ranma
laying unconscious on the floor. "Come to me, my dear!" he cried
out, leaping towards her chest.

Simultaneously, Ukyou and Megumi launched high kicks at him, dropping
Ranma's head back onto the floor and booting Happosai back towards Shampoo's
direction. Without missing a beat, Shampoo parried one of Akane's thrusts
and with the other mace hurled him out the door, where the rest of the girls,
who had finished dressing, chased him with brooms, mops and large heavy
objects.

Kunou rushed in to the room, covering his eyes and loudly proclaimed,
"Ah! I know the villain Saotome is near at hand! Doubtless he has defiled
all these girls in an attempt to add them to his harem. Nonetheless, I,
Tatewaki Kunou, shall smite thee, O foul sorceror!" He peered through a
crack in his fingers. "Where is the foul sorceror?"

Unfortunately, Ranma chose this time to wake up. She shook
her head to clear the cobwebs and saw Kunou standing valiantly
at the entrance, with one hand over his eyes, the other clutching his
bokken dramatically. She groaned, and his head swiveled towards the sound.

"Dost mine ears deceive me, or do I hear the voice of my lovely
pig-tailed goddess?" Kunou uncovered his eyes and his face lit up with joy.
"Come with me, fair princess, and I shall save you from your torture!"
He ran towards her, just in time to be clocked by Akane's mallet, as
she over-extended a blow to Shampoo's torso. Kunou fell towards Shampoo,
causing her to lose her balance and her grip on her mace, sending it flying
towards Ukyou, hitting her in the face.

"Why you--!" Ukyou scrambled towards Shampoo, flinging her
spatula-shuriken at the Amazon, who merely leapt out the door and taunted
both Akane and Ukyou from outside. The two girls rushed out the door,
Megumi trailing behind, shouting after Ukyou.

Ranma struggled to her feet, surveying the damage done to the
locker rooms. Pausing to give Kunou an absent-minded boot into the
stratosphere, she weaved her way to the door.

"Well, that was effective," an amused voice spoke in Ranma' ear.
Ranma whirled around to find Nabiki grinning smugly, a camera with a tele-
photo lens in her hand. "It wasn't a bad idea, eavesdropping on the girls
in your class to try and find out who your admirer is, but quite frankly,
scheming isn't your strong point." She laid a friendly hand on his shoulder.
"Besides, I think I know who it is."

"You do? Who is it?"

"I'm not exactly sure, but I've got a good suspicion." Nabiki
steepled her fingers under her chin. "Remember that favor you owe me
from yesterday?"

Ranma grimaced. "Yeah?" she asked, a wary tone in her voice.

"I'm calling it in right now. There's some things I need you to
do tomorrow. Don't question it, just do it." Nabiki smiled at Ranma.
"Trust me; I've got everything under control."

Ranma sighed, "That's what I'm afraid of." She shuffled off,
weaving slightly. "What's the plan?"

CHAPTER THREE

"Come on, Nabiki, I ain't wearing that!"

"If you want to find out who this girl is, you have to wear
it. It's all a part of the plan."

"I don't think I like this plan..."

"You have no choice. Do you want this girl to keep bugging you
with notes? Furthermore, do you want the rest of them to find out?"

"...no..."

"Then, you do exactly what I tell you to do, understand?"

"I guess. But does this 'plan' have to involve me looking
like a complete idiot?"

"Yes."

"Damn."

*************************

I wanted to stay behind and help Ranma recover from his fall in
the girls' locker room, but if I did, it would be too risky. Besides, that
perverted old freak felt me up! I couldn't let him get away with that.
So, after we pounded him to a pulp, I went back to the locker rooms.
No sign of Ranma anywhere, except for a puddle of water in the shower room.
I went home and crafted another note to my love.

The next day, I woke up bright and early as usual, and after eating
a quick breakfast, I rode my bicycle to school, parking it in my usual spot.
Locking it up, I looked over at the school gates to see Akane walking alone.
Alarmed, I ran over to Akane and asked, "Hey, Akane, where's Ranma today?
Is he sick?"

Akane looked perplexed. "I'm not sure; he left very early this
morning with Nabiki. She said they had some business to take care of."

I giggled. "Knowing your sister, she probably wants him to take
care of someone who's behind on their payments."

Akane threw me a shocked glance, then giggled, too. "I guess so,
I can't imagine else she would want... him.. to..." Her voice trailed
off as she stared at the school gates, and more specifically, at the
person who was perched on top of them. It was Ranma, in his male form,
wearing a very short light blue dress, like our school uniforms, only his
reached to mid-thigh and was tighter. The shirt was stretched tight over
his chest, showing the outline of his pectorals. He looked around at the
school yard, at all the guys staring at him, and after a long pause, he
jumped down, making the skirt flare up and expose his... panties?

Akane recovered first. She ran over to him and cuffed him on the
top of the head. "What in the world do you think you're doing? Have
you no decency whatever?" She stood directly in front of Ranma, shielding
him from the growing circle of gawkers that stood around her. She cocked her
head at him. "Oh, I get it, you probably lost a bet with Nabiki, right?"

Ranma took a deep breath, and looking at her hands, he said, "No, I
didn't lose a bet with Nabiki." He fumbled with his skirt, making it inch
up on his thigh. "I wanted to wear this."

"Why?" Ranma looked down and mumbled something unintelligible, and
everyone leaned in closer to hear. Akane yelled at him, "Answer me, Ranma!"

"...becauseilikewearingwomen'sclothes..." Akane recoiled, her hand
flying to her mouth. Ranma shuffled his feet and finally looked up, his
eyes rimmed with thick black eyeliner and false eyelashes glued to his eye-
lids. Ranma's cheeks were painted red with blush, and his lips bore heavy
red lipstick. As the whole crowd tittered, his eyes focused in on a spot
just behind Akane, and for a second his face darkened. Then, he set his jaw
and focused in on Akane. "And what do you care about it, tomboy? It's none
of your business if I want to wear women's clothing! In fact," and here,
he preened, fluffing up his pigtail, "even as a man in women's clothing,
I'm *still* sexier than you!"

Akane went pale as a ghost, then flushed redder than a tomato.
My heart stopped in my chest. Before Akane could make any sort of rebuttal,
he angrily picked up his bookbag and sauntered off to the steps of the
school. He passed a flabbergasted Kunou and entered the school. I looked
over to Akane, who was still staring off at Ranma, while the crowd around us
erupted into conversation. No one noticed me slip away. I stalked angrily
to the school doors. What in the world was going on? Only one person had
the answers: Nabiki Tendo.

**************************

Ranma stood in the hallway, two pails of buckets in either hand.
After the teacher recovered from fainting, he immediately sent Ranma out
in the hallway, while the teacher rushed off to the principal's office,
no doubt to call his old man and Mr. Tendo. Ranma fidgeted, the panties
riding up his butt. Oh man, why did he let Nabiki talk him into this?
He sure hoped that this great plan of hers was going to work.

"I scare can believe the sight upon mine eyes, and yet it is here!"
a booming voice echoed from down the hallway. A figure carrying buckets
slid around the corner, then sprinted up to Ranma. Ranma dropped his head
in resignation. "Finally, the conjurer has been revealed through his
own perversion!" crowed Kunou, a maniacal expression of glee upon his face.
"Now, foul offal, prepare to meet the might of the great Kunou Tatewaki!"

Kunou threw off the water bucket yoke and Ranma leaped over the
buckets falling at his feet, throwing his at Kunou. He twisted in mid air
and kicked his legs out wide, hitting Kunou in both temples, then back
flipping to a ready stance. He heard a gigantic RIIIIIIIP! and an even
softer click! The windows of the classroom flew open and the entire class
saw Kunou prone in a puddle of water and Ranma in a ready stance, with a
gigantic rip in his skirt, showing off his butt in a pair of pink lace
panties. Ranma decided he had had enough. He took off running, his dress
flapping behind him in the draft.

************************

It didn't take me long before I found her. Nabiki was holding
court on the roof, an air of amused detachment on her face. I stalked to
the front of the crowd of people waiting to speak to Nabiki. "We have to
talk," I said in a low, mean voice.

"I'm sorry, I'm all busy for the rest of the lunch period. If you
like, I can have Sayuri pencil you in for--"

"It can't wait. It's about Ranma." My fists were clenched at
my sides and I was breathing heavily. I caught a quick flash of smugness
in her face before she said, "Alright, I can see you now, if it's that
important."

I nodded curtly. "It is." She dismissed her group and a few went
away with obvious disappointment. We walked to a corner of the roof,
overlooking the lunch yard. "What the heck was that stunt about at the
front of the school today?"

"Hmmm? I don't know what you're talking about."

"Of course you do!" I hissed. "Akane said that you and Ranma went
off to school together. Then he comes along and says 'he wants to wear
women's clothing'! There is no way in hell that my Ranma would ever
say anything like that without being forced." I leaned in closer to her,
my face inches from hers. "You're behind it, I know you are!"

"Maybe I am, and maybe I'm not," Nabiki said in that cool, detached
voice of hers. "Besides, what business is it of yours? You have no claim
to Ranma."

I seethed. "Of course I do! He's my--"

Nabiki tilted her head. "Your what?"

I shut up and took step backwards. "It's not important what he
means to me."

"Of course not." She smiled again and steepled her fingers under
her chin. We were silent for about a minute. Then she broke the ice.
"I talked to Ukyou earlier, too."

"You did?" I asked warily. I had almost slipped up. I couldn't let
Nabiki know about my love for Ranma.

"Yes, she was just as upset with me as you are." Nabiki leaned
over the railing and looked out over the courtyard. "She was ranting and
raving like a jealous lover. Just like you."

I laughed weakly. "Well, yes, she does sound like that sometimes."
Nabiki gave me a sweet smile. My stomach churned. "Anyway, I'd better
be going soon." I edged away from Nabiki, who was still looking out
at the courtyard. Without turning, she said, "Oh, and by the way, I have
something of yours."

"You do?" I squeaked. She held out two pieces of paper. Weakly,
I snatched them out of her hand. One was the note that I had left him in
his lunchbox. The other was my math quiz, with the doodles and my name
at the top of the page. The handwriting was identical. My heart sunk.
"You're not going to tell anyone are you?"

Nabiki didn't answer. Fear stopped up my throat. Finally, she
turned to me and said, "I'll make you a deal. I can get you one date with
Ranma, just one. In exchange, you have to promise to leave him alone from
now on."

I couldn't believe it. My mouth fluttered open. Why was she being
so nice to me? There had to be a catch.

"There's no catch. One date. Then, you leave him alone for
good. Do we have a deal?"

I thought it over for a second, then said, "Yes."

She smiled. "Good. I'll have him meet you at the movie theater
at seven o'clock."

My head was spinning with joy. "Thank you, Nabiki, thank you!"

She smiled again. "Just thank me later."

I practically skipped off of the roof. I had a date with Ranma!

*******************************

Nabiki sighed. That part was almost too easy. She grinned.
Too easy, but worth it. She placed her hands in her pockets, fingering
two rolls of film that she had taken at the school gates and during Ranma's
fight with Kunou in the hallway. She walked to the door to the stairs.
"You can come out now, Ranma."

Ranma emerged from his hiding place on top of the clock tower and
jumped down to the roof. "*That* was my secret admirer? I can't believe
it was her!"

Nabiki shrugged. "That's not important now. What's important is
Phase Two."

"Phase two? You mean there's more?" Ranma raised his eyebrows
in surprise.

"Yes, there's much more. All you have to do is go out on a date
with her."

"What? I thought you said we were gonna get rid of her?"

"We are." She smiled at Ranma, clapping a friendly hand on his
shoulder. "Don't worry about it, I got all the details covered. All
you have to do is just be yourself."

"No dressing up funny or wearing make-up?"

"Nope, just be yourself."

"That don't sound too bad."

"Indeed."

CHAPTER FOUR

Akane dumped an unconscious Ranma on the floor in the foyer,
not caring if he cracked his skull in the process. She stomped off
towards the kitchen were Kasumi was busy preparing dinner. Growling, she
yanked open the refrigerator door and glared at the contents.

"Akane, how was school today?" Kasumi asked, chopping a carrot.

"That idiot Ranma! How dare he say such a thing! And wearing
those ridiculous clothes!" Akane grabbed an apple from the crisper and
savagely tore into it. "Thinks he's sexier than me, hah!"

"Oh my, sounds like you had some problems at school."

"Hah! I don't care if that idiot goes around making a complete
fool of himself!" Akane muttered. "But when he decides to drag me into
it! He's gonng regret ever waking up this morning!" She ravaged the
apple, bits of pulp flying in the air. "Well, I don't care about that
stupid, idiotic, lame-brained, moronic..." She stalked towards the
living room.

Nabiki was sitting at the table frowning at a ledger book when
Akane swung into the room, vibrating with angry energy. She flopped down
on the couch, and grumbled at the world in general and Ranma in particular.
Nabiki looked up to see her sister grab the remote control and jab at
it, flipping through the channels on the TV. Time to start Phase Two.

"Oh, Akane, one of your friends called earlier," she said, still
looking at the ledger book. "She wanted to know if you wanted to see a
movie tonight."

Akane looked up with interest. "Really? That sounds great! I
need to get away from *a certain person* for a while."

Nabiki smiled. "She said for you to meet her at the movie theater
around seven."

"Okay, I'll go and get changed!" With a smile on her face, she
ran up the stairs.

Nabiki smiled again. One down, three more to go.

**************************

I couldn't figure out what to wear. Should I be casual and relaxed?
In that case, I'd wear my new jeans and a short sleeved sweater. Or should
I be more formal? A dress in that case, in a soft blue. Or maybe I could
go the more sexy route. A short skirt, and an off the shoulder blouse.

Decisions, decisions. I was finally going on a date with my one
true love, Ranma Saotome. I danced around my room with joy. A date that
was arranged by Nabiki Tendo, the most conniving and manipulative person in
the entire world. I sat down glumly on the edge of my bed. Why would she
do such a thing? What would she gain from my date with Ranma?

When I started writing my love notes to Ranma, I had no idea what
kind of response I'd get. Would he look for me? Would he reciprocate?
Two weeks full of notes, and no acknowlegement, other than a wariness
in his eyes whenever he went to his desk. It was like he was afraid to get
another one. Then came the incident in the locker rooms, and the little
transvestite charade in the schoolyard, probably both engineered by Nabiki.
And now I have a date with Ranma.

I narrowed my eyes. Nabiki was up to something, something I had
a feeling I wouldn't like. I'd have to be on my guard tonight.

***********************

Across Nerima, other people were making similar preparations.

At a Chinese restaurant, a solemn faced young woman was mixing up
a potion on the stove. Absent-mindedly, she raised a fist and the duck
that was arrowing towards her met it head first and collapsed to the floor.
She poured it into a bottle, and tucked it into her shirt. She picked up her
maces from the counter and examining them for wear and tear, she slipped out
the back door and onto her bike, pedaling like crazy to the movie theater.
Moments later, a man with wet hair and a white robe leapt out after her,
taking to the rooftops, keeping a watchful eye on her.

A woman with long brown hair hung up the phone hurriedly and grabbing
a gigantic spatula, she leaped over the counter of her restaurant, causing
the other woman behind the counter to look up in surprise. Muttering an
explanation, the first woman tore out the door, pausing only to clonk a
trashcan over the head. The second woman looked out the door with wry
amusement, as the trashcan got to its feet and waddled down the street after
the first.

A ninja knelt before his mistress and looked up fearfully at her
anger-infused face. Snatching up a gymnastics ribbon and a cloak, she
bounded out of the room laughing hysterically, cursing the woman who
dared to stand between herself and her lover. A man in a kendo gi sat near
by, meditating to himself about the proper course of action to take. Finally,
he, too, leapt to his feet and cursing the man who dared to stand between
himself and his loves, he bounded out of the room, laughing robustly as
lightning crackled outside. The ninja just bowed his head in resignation.

*************************

I looked at my watch for the third time in five minutes. Where was
he? If Nabiki welshed on our deal... No, she wouldn't do that. If there
was anything that Nabiki would never do, it would be to welsh out on a deal.
She gave me her word that I would have a date with Ranma, and I would have
my date with Ranma. I tried to relax, shifting my weight to my other foot.
The lines for the movies were pretty long, and everyone seemed to be in
pairs, all couples out on dates. And it seemed to me like they were all
staring at me, pitying the girl who got stood up. I sighed. Where could
he be?

Just then, I saw him walking up to the movie theater, Akane right
beside him, and both of them were arguing, gesturing wildly. When Akane
saw me, she burst out into a smile and ran up to me. "Sorry I'm late,
Satomi-chan," she apologized, "but my dad insisted that this baka come
with me to the movie theater. Honestly, you'd think Dad's afraid I'll get
snatched off the streets by some *other* pervert."

"Late?" What was this? I was supposed to meet Ranma, not Akane.
I gritted my teeth. "I don't understand."

"Nabiki told me that you wanted to go see a movie tonight," Akane
said. "I would have come alone, but like I said, Dad wanted Ranma to go
with me. It's the only way I would have been able to come."

A light dawned on me. Since her dad and Ranma's dad really wanted
them to be married, they'd use every opportunity to try and get them to-
gether. Even to the point of having Ranma tag along with her on an outing
with a friend. And there's no way that they'd let Ranma go alone on
a date with another girl. Not bad, Nabiki, not bad at all... Half
a loaf was better than no loaf at all.

"Well, no harm done," I shrugged. "Why don't you get the tickets,
Akane, and Ranma and I will wait for you here." Akane looked a bit surprised
at that, but shrugged and went to the end of the line.

I turned towards Ranma, who had a sullen look on his face. I
cleared my throat and attempted to start a conversation. "So, Ranma,
how are you today?" A subvocal grunt was his answer. He had his arms
crossed, like a barrier in front of him, and his lips were turned down
in a scowl. Um, perhaps another icebreaker. "Boy, that English test was
hard today, wasn't it?" He grunted again, and scowled at the line of
couples on dates. He was like one of those stone guardian statues, not
budging an inch. Finally, I decided on the direct approach. "What the hell
is wrong with you?"

Ranma exploded. "What's wrong with me? I'll tell you what's wrong
with me! You start in on me with all those silly letters, and then *Nabiki*
finds out and concocts that stupid scheme and now here I am, stuck with
Akane, when I'd rather be watching TV, or fighting with the old man." He
turned towards me. "If it hadn't been for you, Satomi, I wouldn't be in
such a mess!"

"Me? What do you mean by that?"

"Well, you started it, by sending all those stupid love notes."
He crossed his arms again, daring me to deny that fact.

"Well, yes, I did," I started, "but I only did it because I really,
really like you."

"Well, I don't care. I didn't ask for any of this." He glared
at me, an intense look in his eyes. "I want you to stop all this love
nonsense, and stop sending me notes!" He paused, watching Akane walk towards
us with the tickets. "I'll bet she got tickets for some sappy romantic
film," he muttered. Stunned, I watched him snatch one of the tickets out
of her hand, and stalk off towards the concession stand.

"What's wrong with him?" Akane asked, passing me a ticket.

"I don't know." I couldn't believe it. I had never seen Ranma that
angry before. He looked at me as if he hated me. I passed through the
theater doors in a daze. He was angry at me. He didn't want me, he just
wanted to be left alone.

I watched him more closely, snapping at Akane, scowling at the floor,
inhaling his bucket of popcorn as we waited for the movie to start. He was
on the other side of Akane, glaring at the movie screen, glaring at Akane
when the credits rolled. Sure enough, the movie was a romantic one, with
the male lead falling head over heels for not one, but two women. Somehow,
this managed to put not only Ranma, but Akane in a foul mood, and they
were sniping at each other all throughout the movie, causing the patrons
around us to hiss and try to shush us. Finally, at the moment where
the man was about to be confronted by both women, Ranma got up.

"I can't take anymore of this sentimental crap," he scowled, throwing
his empty cup to the floor. "I'm outta here." Akane muttered something
like, "Fine, good riddance," and just as he was about to leave, a loud
explosion rocked the movie theater.

Light streamed in from the hole in the wall and clearly silouhetted
against the light was a woman, holding a pair of maces. As the rest of the
audience booed at the intrusion, I heard Ranma mutter under his breath,
"Oh, no, not her."

In two leaps, she crossed the distance between the wall and Ranma
and fiercely latching on to him, she cried out, "Ranma no go on date with
Akane! Ranma date Shampoo!"

"Will you quit making out with her, Ranma?" Akane glowered angrily.

"What? I ain't doing nothing like that!" With a savage push, he
managed to pry himself free from Shampoo, making her land on her butt.
Shampoo narrowed her eyes, and leaped up again, this time confronting Akane.

"You make Ranma not like Shampoo," she declared through clenched
teeth. "You pay for this." She pulled out a bottle from her blouse and was
about to pour the contents into Akane's mouth when Ranma pushed her hand out
of the way, spilling it on the couple in the row in front of us, who instantly
started bickering and calling each other names. Ranma grabbed Akane's hand
and yanked her backwards, arrowing for the exit doors, me trailing inef-
fectively behind him. He threw the doors open and we barreled through
them into the alleyway behind the theater. As we ran through, I heard a
crack of lightning and a woman's voice laughing in the darkness. At the end
of the alley, two figures stood tall facing us. Akane yanked her hand out
of Ranma's and they got into their ready positions.

The two figures strolled down the alley way, overlapping each other
in their speeches. "For the crime of taking me away from my love..."
"...and depriving me from the embraces of the pig-tailed one..." "I, the
Black Rose..." "I, the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High..." "...SHALL
SMITE THEE!" Kodachi and Kunou emerged from the darkness, she with her
gymnastics ribbon and he with his bokken. Kunou attacked first, rushing
headlong to meet Ranma, but Ranma was faster and leaped high, twisting in
mid-air to deliver a kick to the back of Kunou's head. Akane and Kodachi
rushed at each other, and delivered blows with mallet and ribbon. They
danced around each other, occasionally scraping the walls, while I stood
pressed up against the wall, watching their artistry. For a while, it looked
like Akane was holding her own against Kodachi, her strong parries getting
through Kodachi's weaker evasions, but just as Akane was about to deliver
a bruising blow to Kodachi's torso, the doors burst open again, and Shampoo
entered the fray, shouting, "Akane is dead!" before wading through Ranma and
Kunou's fight to get to Akane.

"Look out, tomboy!" Ranma yelled, delivering a punishing blow
to Kunou that sent him spinning into the wall.

"I can take care of myself, idiot!" Akane shouted, punching Kodachi
twice in the stomach, and trying to sweep kick Shampoo. The Chinese Amazon
merely leaped over the Akane's outstretched leg and started in on her
with the maces, delivering combination strikes to her head and torso.
She reeled back from the strikes and up against the alleyway wall.

I saw Shampoo's eyes glitter with the smell of victory, as she
brought both of her maces to bore on Akane's head and shouted, "Akane!"

Ranma's head whipped around and he leaped for Akane, snatching
her out from against the wall. Shampoo's maces smashed against the brick
wall, leaving a sizable crater. He picked her up and leaping to the roof
of the store behind the theater, they took off across the rooftops.

Kodachi, Kunou and Shampoo snarled and leaped up after them, and the
battle resumed over the rooftops. I ran along side, trying to catch a
glimpse of Ranma as he parried a blow from Kunou, a kiss from Shampoo, a
ribbon wrap from Kodachi. Suddenly, someone crashed into me from behind
and as I dropped to the pavement, I saw Ukyou leap up to the roof, coming
to Ranma's aid, followed by Mousse and a trashcan that I can only assume
was Tsubasa.

Someone helped me up and I found myself face to face with Nabiki,
a camera in her hand. "What's going on?" I asked.

Nabiki grinned. "This is normal for Ranma. Where ever he goes,
he always finds trouble, or trouble finds him." She looked at her watch.
"We'd better hurry if we're going to catch the end of this fight."

"You know where they're going to be?"

"Trust me. Group fights always end up at the park."

Nabiki was right. When we reached the park, the inevitable happened.
Ranma fell into one of the fountains, and after transforming, Kunou leaped
to be at her side, shouting, "Pig-tailed girl! You've come back to me!"
while Kodachi leaped to bludgeon her into pulp. Ranma kicked Kunou away
into orbit while Akane parried Kodachi into a tree. Ranma gave Akane
a profound look of gratitude, while she shrugged and ducked a blow from
Shampoo.

I blinked as Ranma seemed to return the favor, absorbing the heavier
strikes from Shampoo before deflecting her into the fountain. As Shampoo
crawled out from the water, Akane picked her up and tossed her into Ranma's
face.

"What the--?" I turned to Nabiki. "But he's afraid of cats!"

Nabiki put her hand on my shoulder. "Just watch."

Ranma ran screaming around the park for a while, Shampoo latched
on to her face. Then, after a full minute of screaming, Ranma... changed.
She became more feline and threw Shampoo back into the fountain. She
crouched on all fours, yowling like a cat and suddenly, she sprang, tackling
Mousse to the ground and shredding his clothing, sending him scurrying away
like a mouse. Tsubasa backed away, but Ranma caught him, too, and batted
him around a tree before heaving him into Ukyou, knocking the both of them
unconscious. All threats eliminated, she calmly strutted back to Akane,
where she lay at Akane's feet, lapping at her ankles.

My eyes widened as Akane knelt down and placed a hand on Ranma's
head, stroking her hair, murmuring, "Good, good kitty." The look in her
eyes was tender, full of warmth. Ranma rewarded Akane's petting by licking
her on the cheek.

Nabiki cleared her throat and Akane looked up, startled. She blushed.
"Do you have a kettle, Nabiki?"

Nabiki pulled one out from behind her back, and Akane poured it over
Ranma, making him change back into his male form. It seemed to snap Ranma
out of his feline trance, for he jumped to his feet and glared at Akane.

"You know, you didn't have to do that, Akane. I was taking care
of everything myself," he growled, wringing out his shirt.

Akane cuffed him on the back of the head. "Baka." She walked
away. "Fine then, see if I care about you."

Ranma ran after her, sticking his tongue out at her. "Well,
I don't care about you, either." They walked out of the park, insulting
each other, leaving me and Nabiki alone.

I turned to her and sighed. "So that's why you let me have this
'date'. So I could see how things really are between Ranma and Akane."
I stared out after them. "I never stood a chance, did I?

Nabiki shook her head, a flicker of sympathy on her face. "No,
none of them do. And they're so blinded by obsession that they don't see
it." I flincked slightly and she grinned at me. "But, I'll give you credit
for figuring it out, Miramoto-chan."

"Gee, thanks Nabiki." I stared at the camera in her hand. "Uh,
about how many pictures did you take?"

"Mmm?" She peered at the film counter. "Just enough."

"Did you get one of Ranma licking Akane's cheek?"

Nabiki grinned ferally. "Of course."

I smiled at her. "Can I have a copy? For a souvenir of this night?"

She clapped her hand on my shoulder again. "For you, I'm willing
to give you a discount." We walked out of the park, leaving behind the
unconscious martial artists and my love for Ranma Saotome.

******************************

EPILOGUE

It was a beautiful day at Furinkan High. The sun was shining, the
birds were chirping, and Ranma was booting Kunou high into the air.
The girls watching in the corner of the schoolyard applauded and he took
his bows. Then Akane cuffed him in the back of the head, and he stuck
his tongue out at her.

As the bell rang, they walked up the steps together. If Ranma
gave me a scrutinizing glance, like he was checking to see if I was still
bonkers over him, I didn't let it slip. I just waved to them, and was
about to go in myself, when I heard it.

"Just what does Kunou-sempai see in Akane Tendo?" one of the girls
asked rhetorically. "I mean, she's polite to him, but she's never
shown him that she cares about him."

Uh-oh, I thought. Here's another one. I could see the signs already:
the glassy stare, the unkempt clothes, the loss of appetite. It could
mean only one thing: infatuation. I smiled as Kunou-sempai was dragged off
to the infirmary by Nabiki. Linking my arm in hers, I said, "Listen, let me
tell you a little story. It's about a girl who was head over heels in
love with someone she knew....."

THE END

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

7-6-98: This story takes place about two weeks after the epilogue of
my other story, "Ukyou's Other Woman." In addition, in continuity,
it takes place about two weeks after that episode in the anime
where Ranma, Akane, and their fathers are trying to get rid of a
demon at the school.

Much thanks goes to my prereaders, especially RpM, David
Tai, and Mike Loader. If you are interested in reading
"Ukyou's Other Woman" or if you want to comment
on this story, please send e-mail to sebas...@earthlink.net
and direct it to me.

Trisha L. Sebastian