[Ranma][FanFic] The Taming of the Horse (part 4/6)

[Vincent Seifert]

[This part 4 of 6 contains Chapter 7]

The Taming of the Horse

a Ranma 1/2 fanfiction by Vince Seifert (seif...@csus.edu)

TotH webpage: http://www.csus.edu/indiv/s/seifertv/toth/index.htm

Ranma 1/2 characters and situations are copyright 1987, 1998
by Takahashi Rumiko. Publishing rights (Japan) by Shogakukan
Inc. Publishing rights (North America) by Viz Inc. This work
is not intended to infringe those rights.

Thanks to Lord Archive and Reid Carson for pointing out the gap
between "Herding" and "Mating" and suggesting what to fill it
with, and to Darniil Entroth and Dave Roeder for prereading.

~~~~~ Chapter 7: Competition ~~~~~

To the layman, the point of equestrian competition, be
it a race, steeplechase, jumping, or even polo, is to
determine who has the better horse. The equestrian,
however, knows that competitions are won by the best team of
horse and rider... without trust between them, neither horse
nor rider is able to perform at full potential...

-- "The Taming of the Horse: An Equestrian's Guide"

"TE--!" Crash!

"Hey, Akane."

Akane turned. "Hai, Sensei?" *I love the look he gets
every time I say that.* She left the fragments of destroyed
concrete block and went up the steps into the dojo.

Ranma tightened his gi belt a little. "Since Kasumi's not
trainin' with us today, I want to try something different."
Akane raised an eyebrow at him. "No, really. You know about
auras, right?"

Akane felt an electric tingle of excitement. *Is he finally
going to teach me--* "A little," she said, as casually as she
could manage.

Ranma noticed that she was jittering up and down a little on
the balls of her feet and smirked. "Calm down and pay attention.
Tell me what you know."

Akane controlled herself. "Well, there's Happosai's battle
aura, and there's Father's demon-head, and Oji-san did that huge
panda that one time, and of course there's the Hiryu Shoten Ha
you do, and-- Oh, Ranma, are you finally going to show me how to
do those?!"

Ranma held up a hand. "Calm down, I said! Jeez, the reason
I haven't shown ya any of this yet was because you keep losin'
control. Usually at me," he added.

"Well, if you wouldn't make me mad, I wouldn't get mad!"

Ranma shot her a disgusted look. "You expect your enemies
to be all nice-nice?" Akane froze with her mouth open as she
digested the implications. "Yeah, you're gettin' it now. You
got plenty of power, you just don't know how ta use it. It sorta
pops out when ya get mad, but then it does what it wants, not
what you want. I think. I hope."

"Oh...." Akane thought about that. "You don't do any of
those visible aura manifestations. Why not?"

"Good phrase, that." Ranma shrugged. "I want my opponents
to think I'm weaker'n I am, not stronger. I wanna surprise 'em,
not bluff 'em." He grinned suddenly. "I'm not gonna teach you
to do a demon-head. You're frightenin' enough as it is."

"Ba-a-ka."

"Tomboy." Ranma sobered. "You were there when I learned
soul-of-ice for the Hiryu Shoten Ha, but I've gone a lot farther
since then. C'mere and stand right in front of me." Akane did
so. Ranma looked past her, and suddenly Akane felt a wave of
cold coming from him. It intensified. Akane shivered and
stepped back a little. A faint mist appeared in the humid air.
Drops of water ran down Ranma's bare forearms, and then they
stopped moving, and a film of ice spread over his skin.

"Brrr." Ranma slapped his arms against each other, and the
ice cracked off and clattered on the floor. "Any more and I'd'a
changed."

Akane's mouth hung open. "Ra... Ranma...."

"I used that to... to destroy Saffron," Ranma said quietly,
still not looking at her. "There was no way I was going to teach
you anything like that until I was sure you wouldn't use it when
you didn't really mean to." He gazed into her eyes very
seriously. "You've been gettin' better about your temper lately,
and I think you'll keep gettin' better, so I think you're
ready... but you need to think about this, because this is
dangerous."

Akane nodded, matching his seriousness. "A lot of the
things I've learned are dangerous. I haven't crippled anyone
yet. My control might be better than you think."

"I hope so. Don't get overconfident."

"YOU'RE telling ME?!"

Ranma laughed. "All right. This idea I had isn't
dangerous, though. Auras are good for more than makin' ice cubes
or scaring people. If you do it right, it's like a second skin,
and you can feel with it. If you do it, and I do it, then we can
sense what we're doin' when we're fighting as partners."

Akane thought about that. "I think I see. How do I do it?"

Ranma smiled faintly and blushed a little. "You've done it
already. Uh, we've done it already."

Akane stared at him for a moment, perplexed, and then her
eyes widened. "Ranma! That first time we kissed!"

Ranma nodded bashfully. "And the second time... and a few
times after that, but I sorta lost count."

Akane's lips curved into a small, fond, anticipating smile.
"I think I'm going to enjoy practice."

~~~~~

Junko waved as Ranma and Akane came into the locker room.
"Hasegawa-sensei has posted the roster for the next meet," she
said as they came up to her. She paused for effect. "You're on
it, of course."

"Yeah!" Ranma slapped palms with Akane.

Junko shook her head and smiled. "And I thought Michi was
exuberant." She sobered. "Michi didn't make it this time, and
neither did Sachi, but Eriko and I are in. Thanks, Ranma. We
couldn't have done it without you."

"We haven't done it yet," Ranma said slowly. "When's the
meet?"

"In a week and a half. Why?"

"When does Kodachi usually start takin' out the other team?"

Junko thought. "A few days before, I think. Have you
decided what to do about it?"

Ranma half smiled. "Yup." She started changing into her
leotard. "I'm gonna talk to her."

~~~~~

"Hey, Kodachi."

Kodachi turned from watching the practice. "Ranma-sama!
I'm pleased to see you looking so well."

Ranma seized on the conversational lead-in. "Yeah, you're
looking healthy, too, so whaddaya say we let the other team make
it to the meet this time?"

Kodachi frowned in puzzlement for a moment, and then her
expression cleared. "Oh, that. How direct you are, Ranma-sama.
One could wish you were as direct in other matters."

Ranma looked uncomfortable. "Whatever. The thing is, we
were hopin' to actually have a meet this time, so we could win
for real, instead of winnin' by forfeit."

"Why, whatever are you implying?"

Ranma gritted her teeth. "I'm askin' ya not to take out the
other team before the meet."

Ranma and Kodachi stared at each other while the silence
stretched. Finally Kodachi sighed, looked away, and massaged her
temple with a finger. "Even if I were to admit to doing such a
thing, which I do not-- at least, not here-- I fail to see why I
should change my accustomed practices on this occasion."

There was a pause while Ranma worked that out. "Some of the
girls just wanna compete in a gymnastics meet, that's all," she
said finally. "I was thinkin' it'd be kinda fun, too."

"Hmm," Kodachi said. "So. You want something from me."
Ranma saw the gleam in her eye. "It occurs to me that if I were
otherwise occupied, I would have neither time nor incentive to
interfere with anyone." Kodachi looked around. "Come, Ranma-
sama, let us move apart a little so that we will not be
overheard." She took Ranma's elbow delicately and guided her
away from the other gymnasts.

"I remember our last date fondly," Kodachi said quietly,
"but that was so many months ago. Perhaps it is time for us to
spend a pleasant evening together. This Saturday will do nicely.
My treat, I believe the saying is, of course."

A sweatdrop appeared on Ranma's head. "Uh...."

"Is the prospect so very unappealing? Am I so hideous that
you can't stand the thought of being seen with me? Is that it?"
Tears began to well from Kodachi's eyes.

"Uh, no, it's not like that, it's just...." Ranma sagged.
"Lemme think about it, all right?"

"Certainly. But do not think too long. If I do not hear
from you tomorrow, well...." Kodachi shrugged elegantly.

"Sure." Ranma tottered off.

~~~~~

"She wants WHAT?!"

Ranma looked around the dojo, hoping Soun wasn't in earshot,
and gestured for Akane to lower her voice. "Hey, you went along
with it the last time, when that White Petunia gal showed up."

"And I remember what happened! You got run over by cows,
drugged, bombed with roses AND lilies, trapped, smoked, and
kicked through the roof, and it ended up a draw!"

"You're the one who kicked me through the roof," Ranma said
darkly.

"Oh. Right. Still, you deserved it. She was about to take
advantage of you."

"Just how does that--" Ranma began indignantly, then stopped
and waved his hands. "Oh, forget it. It's not like I care. I
get enough fights to keep in shape. I just thought maybe you an'
Eriko an' Junko wanted to compete."

Akane bit her lip. "I do. They do. But there's got to be
another way."

"Yeah, well, when ya think of it, lemme know. We can't
exactly stake out the Kuno place for a week an' a half, and we
can't stake out the opposition even if we knew who they all were,
and we can't warn 'em for the same reason, and even if we did,
Kodachi's prob'ly good enough to take 'em out anyway; she always
was before."

Akane stared. "You've been thinking again. Amazing."

"Look, you--!"

Akane sighed. "Oh, all right. But make her promise: no
drugs, no bombs."

"Good idea. No cows, either."

"And you... do you promise not to kiss her?"

Ranma looked convincingly revolted. "Hell, I bet her
lipstick is toxic. I won't kiss 'er, and I'll try ta keep 'er
from kissin' me. Just trust me."

Akane looked searchingly at her fiance. "I have a bad
feeling about this."

"That makes two of us, then."

~~~~~

Akane flopped on her bed after Ranma had gone home for
supper. *Trust, he says. Hmph. I have to go along to keep him
from... from doing anything.* She resolutely steered her
imagination away from contemplating definitions of "anything".
*After all, he's followed me whenever I went out with anyone.
Like Ryoga. It's not like he can complain.*

Cheered by her rationalization, she jumped to her feet and
started going through her wardrobe. An awful thought struck her.
*Some of the places Kodachi is likely to take him, I'll need a
guy to keep from standing out. Argh! Where am I going to get a
guy who can handle rooftops?!*

She thought of one.

~~~~~

"Welcome to the Nekohanten. One?"

"I need to talk to you, Mousse."

Mousse slid his glasses down over his eyes. "Akane?" He
looked behind her. "Where's Ranma?" A horrible thought occurred
to him. "Nothing's gone wrong-- he's not after Shampoo, is he?!"

"Keep your voice down!" Akane hissed. "Meet me outside."
She left, as inconspicuously as she could manage.

Mousse looked around. A roomful of curious customers looked
back at him. Some of them were already whispering to each other.
"A-heh." He went to the window to the kitchen. "I'm taking a
break," he said quickly, and fled before he could hear anything
Cologne might have to say about that.

"Over here!" Akane whispered when Mousse came out of the
Nekohanten.

He joined her in the shadow of a telephone pole, not
noticing that it wasn't nearly wide enough to hide them. "What's
going on? What's Saotome up to?"

"He's going on a date with Kodachi."

Mousse straightened. "Oh. Is that all? Another girl might
distract that cad from Shampoo long enough for me to-- Why are
you growling like that?"

Akane subsided and remembered how to influence Mousse.
"Listen. He's taking Kodachi on a date so Kodachi won't put the
other gymnastics team in the hospital, so we can have a meet. If
Ranma, um, does anything with Kodachi, I'll break the engagement.
If I don't marry Ranma, he'll probably marry Shampoo, because
there's no way he'll settle for Kodachi, right? You don't want
that to happen, do you? So you have to go with me while I keep
an eye on them, because a girl can't really go to a fancy
restaurant alone. Are you free Saturday night?"

Mousse's mouth opened and shut. "Can't I just chain him to
a post or something for the evening? I think I can manage
that..." he said plaintively.

"No. Ranma has to show Kodachi a good time, dammit. I just
need to make sure it's not too good. What part of 'are you free
Saturday night' are you having trouble with?" A thought struck
her. "You still owe me for the onsen race ticket, remember."

"Aaah." Mousse gripped the sides of his head tightly and
wished he were back in China, where life was simple if one stayed
dry and didn't fall in love. He forced himself to focus. "I
suppose I can be free Saturday night. It's only the busiest
night of the week, so they'll probably punish me when I come
back, but they do that anyway, so I might as well deserve it for
a change."

Akane shook her head. *And I thought Ranma was a
masochist,* she thought. "Great. I'll pay. Wear something
nice, but be prepared to do a lot of roof-hopping. I'll meet you
just down the street across from Ranma's house at ten 'til seven.
'Bye!" She left.

Mousse muttered something in Chinese, shook his head, and
went back inside.

On the corner of the rooftop above, Shampoo fiddled absently
with an empty delivery box, considered what she'd just heard, and
wished she'd heard more of it. *If stupid Mousse is going
somewhere, I think I'm going too... just to make sure he doesn't
do anything to disgrace the Joketsuzoku, of course. Airen and
Kodachi, eh? Akane and Mousse. Shampoo and... I need a date.*
She frowned attractively. *Where have all the boys gone?
Ryoga's not likely to show up.* She rejected Kuno without
consideration. *There's no one! No boys! No--* A candidate
occurred to her. "Aiyaa...."

~~~~~

Ukyo looked up as Shampoo walked into Ucchan's, then did a
double-take. "Hiya, Shampoo," she greeted her. "Got tired of
ramen?"

Shampoo slid onto one of the seats in front of the grill.
"Need talk private."

Ukyo surveyed her crowded shop. "It's not a good time."

Shampoo shrugged. "No say I no warn." She stood and
turned.

Ukyo bit her lip. "Konatsu."

The waitress came over, taking tiny steps in his tight
kimono. "Yes, Ukyo-sama?"

"You're on the grill until I get back."

The kunoichi's eyes widened. "I shall not disappoint you,
Ukyo-sama!" He hurried around behind the grill. There was a
sudden explosion of brightly-colored silk and Konatsu reappeared,
with the kimono redeployed to be less restrictive. Some of the
customers applauded as Konatsu took up his place at the grill.

Ukyo led Shampoo upstairs and into her room. "So, what's so
urgent?" she asked once the door was shut.

"I need date," Shampoo said, looking slightly embarrassed.

Ukyo snickered. "You and me both, honey. Don't forget, I
saw him first."

Shampoo smiled sweetly. "Airen no date you or me. Not
while Akane in way."

Ukyo's smile disappeared. "Yeah. So what does this 'date'
have to do with me?"

"Need you to dress up like boy and date me," Shampoo said,
looking more than slightly embarrassed.

Ukyo stared at her in astonishment. "Look, just because I
dress as a boy doesn't mean I'm that way about girls! You got
the wrong--"

Shampoo silenced her with a slashing gesture. "No want--
aaah! Stupid talk!" She calmed with a visible effort. "No want
girl," she said carefully. "Need DATE. Person go with fancy
place."

"Oh. Well, why didn't you say so?"

Shampoo's fingers flexed convulsively. "Did say so," she
said in a strained voice. "Say first."

"So you did. Now say why."

That took a little longer.

~~~~~

"Oh, Ranma, how handsome you look!" Nodoka enthused,
fiddling with Ranma's bow-tie. Ranma looked down at his black
suit with its short, open jacket and cummerbund and couldn't help
but agree. "Now, you be nice to Kodachi-chan," his mother
continued. "Remember, a woman likes to be handled gently but
firmly."

"I, uh, I'll keep that in mind," Ranma managed, blushing.
*Akane'll kill me if I 'handle' her at all!* He sidled out the
front door. "See ya later, Momma."

"Stay out as late as you like!" Nodoka said, smiling. She
closed the front door behind Ranma, and Ranma relaxed a little.
He looked up at the sky; there were a few clouds, their gray
bellies illuminated by the lights of the city below, but it
didn't appear to be about to rain just yet. He heard a faint
sound of feet landing on the street and turned.

"Ah, Ranma-sama! You are wonderfully punctual." Kodachi
posed for his inspection. Her dress was long-skirted, elegant,
and, of course, black, but it was rather more restrained than the
black wedding-gown she'd worn the time Ranma had pretended to be
her boyfriend for her competition with Asuka the White Lily. A
silver pendant hung from a black velvet ribbon around her neck.
She inspected him in return. "And quite dashing."

Ranma fidgeted. "Ya look, uh, nice."

"It pleases me that you should say so." Kodachi produced a
black rose and stepped closer. "If you will permit me?"

Ranma stepped back and eyed the rose suspiciously. "You
remember what we agreed, right? No drugs, no bombs?"

Kodachi gave him a look that mingled impatience and
amusement. "And no cows. Do trust me, Ranma-sama."

"Well... all right, then." Ranma watched as she slipped the
rose into his lapel buttonhole and adjusted it slightly. Her
hand lingered on his chest a moment longer than necessary.

"There. Shall we go, Ranma-sama?"

"Sure. So, where are we going?" Ranma matched Kodachi's
leap to the roof.

"To begin with, I have a bite to eat planned. I hope this
meets with your approval?"

Ranma's stomach growled underneath the cummerbund. "You
bet," he said unnecessarily. "Let's go!" They flitted off over
the rooftops.

Ranma watched Kodachi's effortless bounds covertly as they
went. *She's not bad, considerin' that skirt,* he thought.
Another thought occurred. *I sure am glad Akane can do this now
too....*

Fifty yards back, Akane was thinking the same thing, more or
less. *I sure am glad I can do this now. Last time I had to
follow them on the street.* "Move it, Mousse," she growled.

Mousse didn't answer. He saved his breath and wondered if
perhaps he'd packed a little too much weaponry into his black
robes this time.

Fifty yards further back, Ukyo's jaw was hanging open.
"When the hell did Akane learn to roof-hop?!" she called to
Shampoo as she followed the Chinese girl.

"You know Ranma train Akane," Shampoo tossed back over her
shoulder.

"Looks like Ran-chan did a good job. I don't know why I
should be surprised."

~~~~~

"No-ru-su-ma-n," Ranma spelled out, looking at the
restaurant sign. "That sure is a funny-lookin' boat."

"I believe it is called a longship," Kodachi said casually.
She linked her arm through Ranma's and urged him towards the
doors.

Ranma looked around. The Norseman looked like a fancy
place; it had a strip of landscaping around it, rather than being
built right up to the edge of the lot. Strange music and
stranger smells drifted out of the doors.

"Good evening, Sven," Kodachi said to a Japanese man wearing
a strange helmet with horns on it and a furry vest.

"Kuno-sama! Welcome! Your table is right this way," the
man said effusively, leading them into the restaurant.

"They know you here?" Ranma asked.

"Of course."

"So, what kinda place is this?" Ranma asked after they were
seated in a tall-sided booth.

"Scandinavian. The cuisine is actually a little like our
own, so it may not seem completely unfamiliar to you," Kodachi
replied. A waiter appeared. Kodachi said something Ranma didn't
understand to him. The waiter bowed and slipped away. Kodachi
returned her gaze to Ranma. "This is quite pleasant, is it not?"

Ranma shrugged uncomfortably. "Yeah, I guess." He quelled
the dislocated feeling. *I've been in lotsa stranger places.*
He looked across the table at Kodachi and smiled uncertainly.
*At least she can't grab me from over there--* Agile toes
slipped up his pants leg and caressed his ankle above the sock.
"Yeep!"

Kodachi looked disappointed. "Really, Ranma-sama. Most men
would be delighted to have a beautiful woman play footsie with
them while waiting for their dinner. Why do my attentions
distress you so?"

Ranma got his heartrate under control and gave Kodachi a
stern look. "Look, I'm not most men, all right?"

Kodachi smiled appreciatively. "You certainly are not. You
stand out from the oafs who populate this town as a diamond
stands out in the sand. But that doesn't explain why you
continue to resist my charms so vigorously." Her smile had
become a hurt look. "Are my charms deficient in some way that is
not apparent to me? Am I so unattractive?"

"It ain't like that," Ranma muttered. "I keep-- You're--
Look, I just don't feel that way about ya. You know I don't.
You said so when we were goin' out for that White Lily gal."

Kodachi sighed and looked away. "Yes. I hoped, and I
continue to hope, that you may yet discover some feelings for me,
though." She looked back at him. "Please be frank with me,
Ranma-sama. Is there some approach, one that has not occurred to
me as yet, that might open the way to your heart?"

Ranma opened his mouth and closed it. "Ya might quit
grabbin' me," he said cautiously. "That really drives me up a
wall."

Kodachi's glossy lips twitched. "Yes. I have seen it do
so." Her mirth vanished and she gave Ranma a serious look.
"Ranma-sama, if you are expecting a pale, shy blossom, a girl who
will wait for you to make all the advances, you will not find one
among the martial-artist women of Nerima. I am the Black Rose,
and I take what I want. You know I want you."

Ranma grimaced. "Yeah. I dunno why, though. But ya can't
take me." He had a sudden flash of insight. "If ya could take
me, I don't think you'd want me."

Kodachi half-smiled. "Perhaps you are right." She looked
up. "Ah. Our supper."

Ranma's eyes traced over the wide platter loaded with
foreign-looking goodies, and he started salivating. He didn't
notice the waiter until a hand reached across to fill his glass.
*Hey, that's a girl's hand!* He looked up. The waiter winked
the eye away from Kodachi at him. Ranma's eyes bugged out.

~~~~~

A little earlier....

Shampoo and Ukyo watched from a rooftop across the street as
Mousse and Akane walked into the Norseman. "Explain this plan to
me again," Ukyo muttered.

"Is simple," Shampoo said impatiently. "Akane and Mousse
want mess up date. We want date go good. We get in way Akane
and Mousse. So simple, even--" Shampoo bit off what she was
going to say.

"I still don't understand why we want the date to 'go
good'," Ukyo complained. "I don't want my fiance dating ANY
other girl!"

"Akane number one now," Shampoo said absently, watching the
restaurant. "I-- We next. Kodachi last. Even if Ranma like
Kodachi a little more from tonight, we still ahead. But if Ranma
and Akane big-fight, my-- our chance better."

Shampoo and Ukyo looked at each other. Each had the same
thought: *MY chances will be better. I'm number two. You're
number three.* Their smiles were as sweet as saccharine, and
just as phony.

"This better be worth it," Ukyo grumbled. "I had to close
Ucchan's for the evening."

Shampoo raised an eyebrow. "How much Ranma worth?
Nekohanten close too."

"Huh. So now what?" Ukyo asked, shifting a little and
wishing for a moment that she'd brought her spatula, just
because.

"We food-place people, yes? We go in back, get clothes, go
in." She bounded away, and Ukyo followed. Shampoo leapt from
rooftop to rooftop until she landed above the Norseman's back
door, with Ukyo right behind. She dropped to the ground and
slipped inside while Ukyo waited.

"Nihao!" "Hey--!" Thump. Shampoo came back out with a
waiter draped over her shoulder, leapt to the roof, and laid the
man out on the sloping tiles.

"No waitress." Shampoo frowned. "I want go in, but you
better waiter." She started stripping the unfortunate man of his
coat and trousers. Ukyo put them on over her dark suit; the man
was a little bigger than her, and the extra bulk helped the fit.

"How do I look?"

Shampoo rolled her eyes. "Like waiter. Go quick." Ukyo
grinned, dropped to the ground, and went inside. Shampoo prowled
silently over the roof, looking for an air vent or a skylight so
that she could see events in the room below, or at least hear
them.

~~~~~

"I hope this isn't what I think it is," Ranma said, eyeing
the goblet of fizzing amber liquid with suspicion.

"It's apple juice," Kodachi said, taking a sip of hers. "No
drugs, bombs... or cows. The sparkle is aesthetic, not
anaesthetic. Oh-ho-ho-ho!"

"I thought maybe it was some kinda wine or beer or
somethin'." Ranma sipped, then drank. "Hey, not bad."

Kodachi studied him. "You don't drink alcohol, Ranma-sama?"

"Nah. It messes ya up. I spent my whole life ta get fast
reflexes an' perfect control, why would I do anythin' ta take 'em
away? I see what it does, too. My pop drinks, and look at him.
Happosai drinks a LOT, and look at HIM!" Ranma shuddered.

"I would rather... not. I take your point." Kodachi
grimaced slightly.

"How about you?"

Kodachi shrugged. "A little wine or sake, from time to
time. It can be pleasant, in moderation."

"If ya say so." Ranma took another open-faced sandwich,
shooting a glance across the room at Ukyo from time to time.

~~~~~

Akane conserved her bowl of soup (the prices of the other
items on the menu had given her a little trouble with her
breathing) and tried to hear what Kodachi and Ranma were saying
to each other, but her table by the windows was too far away, and
the diners in between were too talkative. Mousse had already
finished his soup and was waiting patiently; for what, he did not
know, but he'd had a lot of practice at waiting, and it came
naturally to him.

The table was off to one side of the booth a little, so
Akane could see Kodachi, but she couldn't see Ranma, except for
his hands when he gestured. Kodachi appeared to be having a
great time: her eyes were sparkling as she leaned forward,
nodding and laughing occasionally. Every sparkle stabbed Akane
in the heart. *Why can't that baka treat me like that?!*

Akane gritted her teeth. "Let's get closer," she told
Mousse in a low voice. "I have to hear what they're saying."

"Isn't it enough for you to be able to watch them?" Mousse
objected.

"No." Akane pointed at the next booth over on Ranma's side.
"I want to sit there."

"But there's a man there already--"

"Come ON, Mousse! And keep your glasses on this time!"
Akane got up and headed for her target, careful not to expose
herself to Kodachi's view too much. It turned out to be a wasted
precaution. *She's watching Ranma so hard, it's a wonder her
eyes haven't fallen out....*

Akane slipped into her booth of choice, smiled brightly at
the astonished diner occupying it, and promptly forgot him. She
bent her ear to the next booth over. Mousse sat down next to her
and favored the man with an inscrutable look which would have
come off better had he not been wearing his glasses.

"Now look here," the man began.

Ukyo, who was getting tired of replenishing the smorgasbord
by this time, saw her chance. She hurried over to the manager.
"Got a problem," she whispered. "A couple of customers are
creating a disturbance...." The manager collected a pair of
waiters and followed her.

"Excuse me. Are these people disturbing you?" Akane looked
around, and saw that the manager was addressing the man whose
booth they'd usurped.

"Well, he is," the man said, indicating Mousse, "but she
isn't. She can stay as long as she likes." He smiled at Akane
enthusiastically. Akane's jaw dropped.

"I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to leave," the manager said
politely to Mousse. Mousse looked at the manager. Mousse looked
at the two ersatz vikings behind the manager. Akane looked at
the enthusiastic man. Ukyo turned away to keep from being
recognized, quivering with suppressed laughter.

"Let's go, Mousse," Akane said quietly. *If we make any
more of a scene, Ranma will notice....* Mousse shrugged and slid
out of the booth. Akane followed, careful not to pass into
Ranma's line of sight. They left, followed closely by the
manager and the vikings.

~~~~~

"You certainly have a healthy appetite," Kodachi observed
over the crumbs of a light Scandinavian meal for six.

Ranma scanned the platter for any morsels that might have
escaped consumption, but found none. "Everybody says that. I
dunno why." He shrugged. "You ate a fair share yourself...."

Kodachi patted her lips with her napkin and laid it down.
"Gymnastics is quite effective at keeping one trim, wouldn't you
say?"

Ranma smiled and cocked an eyebrow. "The way we do it, you
betcha. Hey, whatsa matter?"

"I implore you not to do that in public, Ranma-sama,"
Kodachi said in a husky voice. "It makes my blood boil to see
you smile at me like that. I can barely restrain myself from...
well!" She produced a fan, snapped it open, and fanned herself.

Ranma gulped. "Urk. Sorry. Uh, thanks for the warning."

"Quite." Kodachi put the fan away, turned the inside of her
wrist up, and consulted a slim watch. "Well, shall we go?"

"Hm? Oh, sure." Ranma slid out of the booth, waited for
Kodachi, and accompanied her to the door.

~~~~~

"This is demeaning," Mousse grumbled from his place among
the bushes outside the Norseman's front door. "And
uncomfortable." He straightened to his full height, his patience
exhausted.

"Ssh!" Akane hissed, peering over the hedge. "They're
coming out! Get down!" She dropped, grabbed Mousse's robe, and
yanked hard. Mousse, already crouching, lost his balance and
fell-- on top of Akane. "Eek!"

Ranma heard a strangely familiar noise from behind the hedge
as he and Kodachi walked out into the evening. "Hang on a sec,
Kodachi." He took two steps and peered over the shrubbery.
Akane and Mousse stared up at him from their compromising
position. "Akane?!"

"Ranma! It, it's not what it looks like!" Akane cried.

Ranma snorted in disgust. "Well, of course it ain't.
You're just tryin' ta make me jealous. But with Mousse? Gimme a
break!" He stepped back. "C'mon, Kodachi, let's go."

"As you say, Ranma-sama." Kodachi's voice was amused.

"AARGH!" Akane's roar of chagrin and embarrassment split
the night. "Get OFF me!" Mousse appeared briefly on a rising
trajectory. Akane stood, her aura flaming around her, and looked
around. Ranma and Kodachi were nowhere in sight. Crash! Akane
turned. "Oh, it's you," she said to Mousse, who was lying in a
heap on the ground. "About time you got back."

Mousse sprang to his feet. "Shampoo!" he cried gladly,
embracing her. "What are you doing here?!"

"Just where do you see Shampoo?!" Akane snarled, decking
him.

Mousse got up slowly. "I have come to the conclusion," he
said with as much dignity as he could manage, "that you and
Saotome deserve each other." He straightened his sleeves.

Akane smiled. "It's very sweet of you to say so, Mousse."
Her expression changed. "Aah! They got away! Go! Go!" They
leapt to the top of the Norseman.

"There!" Akane called, pointing. Two figures were dimly
visible, bounding away over the roofs.

"I'll have to take your word for it," Mousse said wearily,
rummaging in his sleeve for another pair of glasses.

~~~~~

Ranma followed Kodachi over the roofs, dodging television
antennas and the odd clothesline, until they came to a large
park. Dim lights glittered among the trees. "What're we doing
here?" Ranma asked as they slowed to a walk outside the park
gate.

"The moon will rise soon, and we shall observe it," Kodachi
replied. "Have you never been to a moon-viewing before, Ranma-
sama?"

"Well... I seen the moon lotsa times, o'course, and
sometimes it was real pretty, but nobody ever called it a 'moon-
viewing'."

"Well, you must not think yourself unfortunate, Ranma-sama.
I am sure that some of the places you have seen complement the
moon far better than this one, but this was the best place that
we could reach without undue effort."

"I guess." They had come to the shore of a small lake in
the park. Boats with lanterns on them drifted to and fro on the
water, each containing a small party of merrymakers. "So what's
the deal?"

Kodachi strolled out on the dock. "I have hired a boat,"
she said, gesturing to a boat tied to the dock. It had an oar at
the stern and a canopy over several flat cushions in the
midsection. Candle-lanterns hung from the canopy, and rolls
along the edges of the canopy betrayed the presence of bamboo
screens.

Ranma stared at the lake. "Uh, that's not a real good
idea."

"Whyever not, darling?"

"Uh... well... you know about me and water. If I go out
there, it's a real good bet I'm comin' back as a girl."

Kodachi raised an eyebrow. "But that's what the boat is for,
surely."

"Ya don't understand," Ranma said desperately. "Water,
like, finds me. Sometimes I could swear it leaps out at me.
I'll go in the boat if ya like. I'm just tellin' ya that this
much water, well...." He shrugged.

"Amazing," Kodachi remarked. "Well, as I certainly wish you
to remain male, the boat is out of the question.... Ah! I have
it! There are pavilions along the lakeshore. Come, we shall
engage one." Kodachi bounded away. Ranma shrugged again,
glanced at the lake, and followed.

~~~~~

Akane and Mousse arrived at the park shortly after their
quarry, hanging well back to avoid being seen. They watched as
the two figures held a short discussion on the dock, then got
into a boat and sculled out onto the lake.

"Great," Akane said. "Boats. I hate boats. Actually,
boats are all right, it's falling out of them and sinking I can't
stand."

Mousse shrugged. "Water's fine for me. It's the trouble
finding hot water afterward I can't stand."

"Well, let's just not fall out, then," Akane told him,
marching out onto the dock. She stared at the sole remaining
boat, and especially at the cushions. "Look at this thing! It's
a floating makeout palace!" She glared out over the lake. "Come
on, Mousse. We have to find them before it's too late."

Mousse sighed, folded his arms into his sleeves, and waited
out the short negotiation with the boatkeeper. Akane came back,
grim-faced, and got into the boat. Mousse boarded after her,
cast off the mooring line, picked up the sculling oar, and eased
the boat away from the dock. Akane watched him. "You do that
pretty well," she said admiringly.

"For some reason, I'm better at it now than I was before I
fell into the Yazunichuan," Mousse said. "So what do we do now?"

"We cruise around and look for Ranma's boat, and when we
find it, we hang around," Akane said determinedly.

~~~~~

"Adequate," Kodachi pronounced, looking around the interior
of the pavilion. It was about four yards square, with four shoji
walls and a low table. She slid open the shoji facing the lake
and sank to sit on one of a pair of cushions on the floor. "Do
sit down, Ranma-sama." She poured tea from the pot on the table
into a cup and placed it before the other cushion.

The situation was altogether too cozy for Ranma's peace of
mind. "Uh... look, no grabbin', all right?"

Kodachi shot him a half-annoyed, half-amused look. "You
sound like a nervous virgin bent on defending her chastity at all
costs," she remarked. "Has your curse affected you that much?"

Ranma flushed. "No! It ain't like that at all!"

"Well, then, what IS it like?" Kodachi looked suddenly
doubtful. "You ARE interested in women, are you not?"

"Well, sure! Well... some women." *One woman....* His
mind's eye supplied him with the image of Akane as he'd seen her
that first day in the bathroom, and then with a more recent image
of Akane looking happily at him because of something he'd done.
Then the image of Akane under Mousse replaced it, and his lips
thinned. *Uncute baka. She said this was all right. She said
she'd trust me. Hah.*

"Ah. I dare not ask whether I am one of the women you are
interested in," Kodachi said, watching her hands pour another cup
of tea for herself.

"Well, look," Ranma began. "You don't get the hots for
every guy ya see, do ya? And you wouldn't boff every guy ya get
the hots for, would ya?"

Kodachi smiled slightly. "Indeed not. But I am a woman.
You are a man." Kodachi frowned slightly. "Please sit, Ranma-
sama. Having to look up at you is giving my neck some
discomfort."

"Oh. Sorry." Ranma dropped to sit cross-legged on the
cushion. He gazed out over the lake. "It's startin' ta really
bug me, how people think just because I'm a guy, I'm supposed ta
get the hots for everything in a skirt," he grumbled. He looked
at Kodachi accusingly. "The guys at Furinkan thought that, my
momma thinks that, and now you."

"Well, I am accustomed to being an object of desire. What I
am not accustomed to is the great self-control you display by not
responding to my advances."

"You know the spot I'm in. If I respond to ANYone's
advances, I'm in a world o' hurt. I ain't about to boff anyone I
don't lo--, uh, like a whole lot. The way things are goin', I'd
better be married to 'er, too."

"You have just given me yet another incentive to wed you,
Ranma-sama," Kodachi said, smiling slyly. Ranma groaned. "Do
face your fate with courage, darling. I assure you, it will be
far from terrible. But it intrigues me that your attitude is
more typical of a woman than a man, especially one of your age."

Ranma began to look angry. "You don't have a katana, and
you aren't my momma. I don't need to care if ya think I'm manly
or not."

"Oh, there's no doubt of my opinion, Ranma-sama," Kodachi
said passionately, turning to face him fully. Ranma recognized
the look in her eye and resigned himself to being assaulted,
guiltily aware that a tiny corner of his mind was looking forward
to it. Kodachi collected herself with obvious difficulty and
produced her fan again. She watched the lantern-lit boats
floating about on the lake, but did not speak.

"Look, Kodachi, ya gotta understand," Ranma said finally.
"I told ya, I just don't feel that way about you. I wouldn't
mind bein' friends with ya, though."

Kodachi laughed shortly. "I have heard girls say that to
their would-be suitors a time or two," she said in a controlled
voice. "What a bitter pill it is to find in one's own mouth,
though." She sighed. "Still, you have done nothing but confirm
what I already knew." She glanced at Ranma suddenly. "Do not
imagine that I have given up, Ranma-sama. If I can be your
friend, perhaps I can yet be more."

Ranma sagged. "Can we talk about somethin' else, maybe?" he
said desperately.

"If you insist." Kodachi watched him for a moment longer,
then looked out at the lake again. "Look. The moon is coming
out." The clouds that had hidden the moon were parting.
Filtered and magnified by miles of urban air, it was ruddy and
baleful: impressive, but not beautiful. Ranma looked at the
boats on the lake instead, and wondered idly why two of them
seemed to be moving much faster than the others.

~~~~~

"Faster!" Akane urged Mousse. "That's got to be them, we've
looked in all the others--" She blushed, thinking about some of
the things they'd seen while looking in the others, and wondering
if Ranma would ever take her out in a boat like this, and what
she'd do if he did.

Mousse put more weight into the sweeps of the sculling oar,
but they were already gaining on the other boat. "How close do
you want to get?" he asked.

"Close, hell! RAMMING SPEED!"

The occupants of the other boat turned in surprise at
Akane's shout. The one on the cushions jumped up just as the
boats collided, teetered on the brink for a moment with
windmilling arms, then fell in. "Aiyaa!" Splash!

Mousse dropped the scull. "Shampoo?! I'll save you,
Shampoo!" He shucked off his robes and dove into the water.
Surfacing as a duck, he shook the water from his head and swam
straight for the foundering cat. "Wak!"

"What the hell are you doing, idiot?!" The other boat's
pilot was hanging onto the scull for dear life as the boat
rocked.

Akane stared in amazement. "Ukyo?! But-- Where's Ranma?!"

"How the hell should I know?! Why'd you ram us?"

"Um, I thought you were Ranma and Kodachi," Akane blurted.

There was a brief pause. "Riiiight. Let me put it this
way: why'd you think ramming Ran-chan and Kodachi was a good
idea?"

"He-- she-- they-- I had to stop them! He's my fiance! I
can't let her have him!" Akane paused for a moment, wondering if
that was the right approach to use with Ukyo, and then forged
ahead. "Look, you don't want them to, um, do anything either, do
you? I mean, you're out here to stop them, aren't you?"

"Uh, yeah. Absolutely. Stop them," Ukyo agreed, suddenly
struck by a brilliant idea. "What else would we be doing out
here? Say, you want to join forces?"

Akane looked around. "Well, considering what happened to
Mousse, I think we'd better."

"Mrraaooww! Mrruggl! Fft! Ft-ft-ft!"

"Wak! Wakwakwak!"

"Oh, there you are," Ukyo said to the cat, and to the duck
that was trying to rescue the cat over the cat's strenuous
objections. "Chin up, I'll be right there." She sculled the
boat over, reached down, and pulled the transformed pair out of
the water. "Gosh, you look miserable," she told them, depositing
them in the boat and fishing for their floating clothes.

"Mew."

"Where can they be?" Akane moaned. "We've looked in all the
other boats!"

"Well, if they're not in the boats, and they're not in the
water-- I think we'd have noticed that-- that leaves...." Ukyo
turned and looked at the west shore of the lake, where several
small pavilions stood.

"Sure! Let's go!" Akane's enthusiasm collapsed suddenly.
"How do you work this thing, anyway?" She got up cautiously and
made her way aft to the scull. Her first tentative sweeps caused
the boat to rotate slowly.

Ukyo snickered, tempted to leave her out on the lake, but
then remembered about Akane and swimming. "Hold still. We'll
come alongside and you can get in our boat."

~~~~~

The moon had risen out of the smog somewhat, and was
pleasant orange rather than baleful red. "Isn't the moonlight
romantic, Ranma-sama?"

Ranma glanced at Kodachi and saw that she wasn't looking at
the moon. "Yeah, I guess." He cast about for a change of
subject. "Say, Kodachi, why'd ya get us transferred to St.
Hebereke's, anyway?"

"Well, isn't it obvious? I thought that if I could get you
away from Kuonji and Tendo, at least during school hours, their
influence on you would wane and you might become enamored of me.
Hmph. I should have known my father would sabotage my plan."

"Yeah, mine's kinda annoyin' that way too."

Kodachi's look turned curious. "I must say, I wasn't
expecting you to take to it so well. It must be dreadful, for a
man such as yourself to spend so much time as a schoolgirl."

*Ya coulda thought about that before havin' me transferred,*
Ranma did not say. "Yeah, well, I manage... and St. Hebereke's
is a way better school than Furinkan." *Akane was right about
that. Akane....*

"Yes. I imagine it has other compensations as well. All
those girls around you all day... even in the showers. Well, I
suppose that if your self-control is sufficient to restrain your
desire for me, it can't have much trouble with the others."

Ranma blushed. "It ain't like that," he muttered. "You
don't use the showers when I'm in there anyway."

Kodachi smiled coquettishly. "Why, Ranma-sama! I'm so
pleased that you noticed! If you wish to behold my hidden
beauty, darling, you have but to ask."

"Urk." Ranma ran a finger around the inside of his collar
and wondered why the conversation kept steering him toward
pitfalls. "I, uh...."

"I live in anticipation of the moment." Kodachi relented,
seeing that Ranma was about to break and flee, meet or no meet.
"I see you've made some little friends, too. Starting a clique
of your own?"

"Uh, joinin' theirs, more like. They're not bad. A couple
of 'em made the roster for this meet comin' up."

"Well, don't forget that I'm the team captain." There was a
slight edge in Kodachi's voice.

Ranma smiled, but it was his grim combat smile. "Not
likely."

"I'm so glad you understand, Ranma-sama." Kodachi looked at
the moon again.

~~~~~

Akane crept up to the back of the third pavilion, listened
for a moment, then nodded in satisfaction and flashed Ukyo a high-
sign. Ukyo nodded. Akane pointed to herself and pointed up,
then pointed to Ukyo and pointed around the side of the pavilion.
Ukyo nodded again and moved off quietly.

Akane sprang to the roof of the pavilion, landed as silently
as she could, and listened. Ranma and Kodachi were still
talking; she could hear their voices, but couldn't make out what
they were saying. She crept around the edge of the roof, heading
for the front where the shoji was open, hoping to hear better.
She didn't see the cracked roof-tile.

"So when they--" Ranma stopped and looked up, then over at
the shoji on his side of the pavilion. He landed next to it in
one silent hop.

Ukyo was eavesdropping shamelessly at the side of the
pavilion when she heard Akane slip. She looked up, saw Akane
falling, and caught her neatly.

Ranma slid the shoji open. He looked at Ukyo, in her man's
suit, who was holding Akane in the classic back-and-thighs
rescued-damsel pose. He looked at Akane, in her dark blue frock,
whose arm had fallen naturally around Ukyo's neck. They stared
back at him. "I do not," he said firmly, "want to know." He
closed the shoji gently.

Akane and Ukyo looked at each other. Akane blushed. Ukyo
made a strangled noise. Then-- "BWA-HA-HA-HA!" Ukyo collapsed
backward into the landscaping, still braying laughter.

Akane rolled off Ukyo and lay with her face in her hands,
hoping for a sudden lightning bolt to put her out of her misery.
Over the pounding in her ears she heard Ranma say, "If ya had
anythin' in mind after this, I think we better go there."

"Actually, Ranma-sama, there's a nice French place...."
Kodachi's voice faded as they departed.

Ukyo finally managed to stop laughing and sat up. "Did you
see the look on his face? Boy, I sure wish I'd had a camera.
That was a Fuji moment if I ever saw one." She chuckled. "I'd
pay a night's profits for a picture of us, too." She nudged
Akane. "Maybe you should take some lessons from Konatsu, hey?"

"I'm so glad you're enjoying yourself," Akane said in a
muffled voice. She pushed herself up to hands and knees and got
up.

Ukyo recoiled from the look on her face. "Hey, you're the
one who slipped! Should I have let you fall on your butt?"

"It might have been less humiliating," Akane said, but her
anger ebbed a little. She looked around. "They got away, but
there's only one French place in the area. Come on."

"Let's see if Shampoo and Mousse found hot water first,"
Ukyo suggested. Akane grumbled a bit, but followed Ukyo along
the path at a run.

~~~~~

Akane, Ukyo, Shampoo, and Mousse crouched in a row on the
rooftop across the street from "Chez Jules", looking a little
like stylish gargoyles. "You sure this is the right place?" Ukyo
asked skeptically.

"Well, it's the only one I know about," Akane replied.

Ukyo shrugged. "Only one way to find out." She looked at
Shampoo. "Shampoo, you and Mousse go in the back; we'll go in
the front."

"You no give order," Shampoo said coolly. "YOU go in front.
WE go in back. Mousse!" She leapt to the next roof. Mousse
followed. Akane and Ukyo exchanged glances, shrugged, and
dropped to the street. They were barely inside the front doors
when a sudden shower of rain soaked the street.

"Hope they were already inside," Ukyo muttered. She smiled
at the waiter and pitched her voice deeper. "Table for two?"

~~~~~

"Wak." Mousse struggled out of his robes, put his glasses
on, and looked at Shampoo. The cat squelched dejectedly towards
the back entrance of the restaurant. The duck settled his
feathers and followed, secretly glad of the way the rain was
running off his back. He was barely inside the door when a hand
closed around his neck. Mousse stared up into a pink face with a
chef's hat and an awe-inspiring mustache. Out of the corner of
his eye he saw Shampoo strolling through the kitchen in her best
"Of course I belong here, I'm a cat" manner.

"Zut!" the face expostulated. "Now I make ze canard a
l'orange!" A finger prodded Mousse in a ticklish spot. "Hmm.
He is not fat, zis one, but I bet he has ze good flavor. Hey,
useless, prepare zis duck!" Mousse was handed off to a young man
with a less lofty hat.

"How do you want it prepared?"

"What, do zey teach you nossing? Kill, scald, pluck, and
clean! Vite, vite!" The chef gestured expansively and turned
back to his work. "Les canards, les canards, how I love les
canards...."

Mousse watched the counter approach. *If only it were
'scald' first!* Razor-sharp steel glinted between his wing
feathers as he waited for his chance. The apprentice put Mousse
on the block and reached for a cleaver. It wasn't where he
thought it was, and he glanced aside for a moment.

Whitwhitwhit thunkthunkthunk! "YAAAA!" Mousse took wing,
leaving the white-faced apprentice stapled to the chopping block
by his sleeve. He made it out the door and hid, panting. *Now I
know how Ryoga feels....* He saw the piles of fabric that were
his robe and Shampoo's dress. *Shampoo!*

~~~~~

"Well, you were right," Ukyo admitted. She looked across
the restaurant to where Ranma and Kodachi were selecting from an
assortment of pastries on a cart.

"Of course I was right." Akane was still seething from the
encounter at the pavilion. She jabbed her fork at her cherry pie
a la mode with excessive violence. It flipped over and landed in
her lap. "Eeep!"

Ukyo craned her neck over the table and looked down. "Oh,
dear. You'd better rinse that out right away, or that expensive
dress will stain. Go ahead, I'll keep an eye on Ran-chan."

Akane scraped the mess up with her napkin as best she could,
dropped the bundle on her plate, and got up. "I am NOT having a
good evening." She stalked off towards the restrooms. Ukyo hid
a smile.

~~~~~

Shampoo lurked in the women's room, hoping someone would
forget and leave the hot water running. She heard someone come
in and sigh heavily, then mutter "Honestly!" under her breath.
Shampoo poked her head out under the privacy panel and watched as
Akane looked around, bit her lip, and unzipped her dress. Akane
peeled the dress off and began to wash the wasted dessert out of
it.

~~~~~

Ranma was caught gesturing with his fork when a passing
diner jostled their table, just enough. His water glass fell
over, sending a flood of cold water over the table and into his
lap. Ranma looked up into Kodachi's wide eyes. "See? I told
ya," she muttered.

"I'll order some hot water," Kodachi said.

"Nah. I don't wanna change back in public. I'll be right
back." Ranma picked up her empty glass, got up, and headed for
the restrooms. *Get a glass of hot water from the women's room,
take it inta the men's room, change... no sweat.*

~~~~~

Akane finished rinsing her dress, shivering in the chilly
restroom, and turned on the hot-water tap to warm things up a
bit. She hung her dress carefully over a towel bar and began to
dry it as best she could.

Shampoo saw the steam rising from the sink and acted,
dashing across the floor and leaping for the sink. Akane saw the
motion out of the corner of her eye and turned, but it was too
late. Shampoo stuck her paw in the flow from the faucet,
ignoring the pain briefly to send a spray of hot water over
herself. Suddenly there was a naked Chinese girl perched on the
sink. "Aaah!" She snatched her hand out of the scalding water
and shook it. "Stupid rain, stupid Mousse, stupid--" Shampoo's
eye fell on Akane's dress. "I borrow dress, yes?"

"Over my dead body!" Akane hissed, stepping in front of it
and dropping into a ready stance.

Shampoo shrugged. "Okay." She hopped off the sink and
skidded on the wet floor. "Aiyaa!" Akane mistook the skid for
an unusually cunning attack, stepped forward to counter it, and
found her arm seized by Shampoo as the other girl tried vainly to
stay upright. Shampoo went down, and her head hit the floor hard
enough to daze her. Akane fell on top of Shampoo, putting out a
hand to catch herself. Goosh!

The door opened. Ranma froze in the doorway. *Shampoo,
naked as a... as a... as a girl with no clothes on, writhing on
the floor and moaning. Check. Akane, wearing bra, panties, and
shoes, lying half on top of her, looking at me and blushing.
Check. Akane's hand is on Shampoo's--* "Waah!" Ranma grabbed
her nose and fled. The door swung mercifully shut.

~~~~~

Kodachi looked up as Ranma returned. "Ah, you found hot
water. Good." She noticed that he was pale and trembling.
"Whatever is the matter, Ranma-sama?"

"We gotta leave right now," Ranma said urgently. "Sorry,
but we gotta." *If we're still here when Akane comes out, we are
so dead....*

Kodachi glanced down at her half-finished slice of torte,
shrugged, and stood gracefully. "As you wish." She headed for
the doors. Ranma followed, casting nervous glances at the
hallway to the restrooms.

A minute later, Akane came back out, wearing a damp dress
and a furiously embarrassed expression. She stalked over to
Ukyo's table, but did not sit down. "I've had it," she stated.
"If you want to keep Ranma out of trouble, you go right ahead.
I'm going home."

"They just left," Ukyo said, surprised. "I was about to
come looking for you." She eyed Akane curiously. "What the heck
happened in there?"

Akane's color deepened. "I do NOT want to talk about it.
Not now, not ever." She dropped money on the table and stomped
out.

~~~~~

"Look, Kodachi, can we talk?" Ranma said, unable to stand
the silence as he escorted Kodachi through a darkened temple
park.

Kodachi squeezed his elbow slightly. "I don't know, Ranma-
sama. Can we? Between the frequent sudden interruptions and
your attempts to change the subject, I'm beginning to wonder."

"You got a point there," Ranma admitted. "I was just
wonderin'... why'd ya get interested in me in the first place?"
*Maybe I can talk ya out of it if I know why....*

"Don't you own a mirror, Ranma-sama?" Kodachi's voice was
teasing.

"Well, sure, I figured that, but that's not what I meant. I
mean, my crazy pop promised me to Akane an' Ukyo, and Shampoo's
followin' that Joketsuzoku law, but you decided to on your own."

Kodachi was silent for a time as they walked along the
graveled path. They came out into a clearing where a five-
storied pagoda stood. Kodachi looked up. "I will give you your
answer... up there," she said, releasing Ranma's elbow. She ran
forward and bounded up the outside of the pagoda to the top roof
in five amazing leaps: since each roof of the pagoda was the same
size, there was no setback, and it was necessary to leap straight
up, catch the edge, and swing over. Kodachi not only did it, she
made it look easy and graceful. Ranma followed her up the same
way.

"That is why," Kodachi said when they both stood thirty
meters above the ground. The usual amused, superior tone of her
voice was gone. Ranma looked at her in surprise, and saw that
her expression was different too, as though a mask she had long
worn had been removed. "You, too, know well the taste of the
freedom of leaping through the night, far above the heads of the
ground-bound masses." She swept her arm out over the city lights
that stretched nearly as far as they could see. "Where in all
this is a man to match me? Shall I wed one who requires ladders
in order to stand here? Shall I spend my life practicing my
gymnastics alone? How can I respect a man who cannot best me?"

Ranma's heart sank. "Shampoo talks like that too."

"Perhaps. But she was constrained by her law; I chose you
freely." Kodachi sighed and looked out over the city. "Perhaps
it was not as free as I thought. Even that first night I met
you, you displayed such extraordinary physical prowess that I
knew I had finally met my match-- in all senses. You were so
very fine. You were everything I had feared I would never find
in a man. How could I help but love you?"

"I, uh...." *I can't talk her out of that! It makes too
much sense!*

Kodachi turned back to Ranma and took two steps closer. She
did not need to stretch; she was nearly as tall as he was. She
took his face in her hands without haste and kissed him firmly.
"There," she said. "Now you have your answer, and I have what I
wanted." The mask was back. "Shall we go?"

She dropped off the roof without waiting for an answer and
swung down to the next. Ranma followed, wishing he knew what to
wish for.

~~~~~

"Would you care to come inside?" Kodachi asked when they
stood on the roof of the Kuno mansion.

"Well--"

"Saotome! I have given thee leave to date my sister, but
that does not permit thee to pollute our place with thy putrid
presence, poltroon! Get thee gone at once!"

Ranma looked down at Tatewaki. "I don't think that'd work,"
he told Kodachi, not without some relief.

"No, I suppose not." Kodachi smirked. "Well, I enjoyed our
time together immensely. I shall consider our bargain fulfilled.
Good night, Ranma-sama."

"G'night." Ranma bounded off, following his heart for the
first time in several hours.

~~~~~

Akane was tossing and turning in bed, exhausted but unable
to sleep, when the familiar rap at her window came. The latch
opened by itself before she could force herself to fling the
covers aside and get up. The window slid open and Ranma dropped
quietly into her room, still wearing his fancy clothes. He
closed the window. Akane sank back onto her pillow. "You came
to laugh at me, I suppose," she said without heat.

"Nah."

"Well, why did you come, then?"

"I need a reason? Fine!" Ranma glared at her and folded
his arms. "I came to find out what the hell made you act up that
way!"

Akane stared at Ranma in the dark. "Look, I'm too tired to
fight about it," she said finally. "Can we just sort of forget
it ever happened?"

Ranma relaxed. "Best offer I've gotten tonight," he
admitted, "and I've gotten a few."

"I'll bet." Akane hesitated, then patted the bed beside
her. "Come sit down where I can slug you without getting up."

Ranma snorted, but he sat down carefully and turned to half-
face her.

"None of it was what it looked like, you know," Akane said
in a small voice.

"Of course it wasn't. Stuff like that happens ta me all the
time. Maybe next time you'll gimme a break." Ranma's voice
paused, then resumed with a mischievous tone. "Still, I wanna
know what's goin' on between you and Shampoo-- ow! Jeez, you ARE
tired; that was pretty feeble."

"You didn't even stay to help me out," Akane accused.

"It looked like ya were handling her pretty well-- ow!"

"You said we'd forget about it!"

"Okay, okay. Sorry. Jeez." *That scene, I ain't likely ta
forget soon....*

"Um... so how did the date go?"

Ranma shrugged. "I guess we got what we wanted. The meet's
on."

"She didn't get what she wanted, did she?"

"Well, she said she did--" The words slipped out before
Ranma could stop them.

"What?! What happened?!"

"Nothin'! Hey, YOU said to forget about it!" Ranma
protested.

"Rrraaannnmmmaaa..." Akane growled.

Ranma cringed. "Nothin'! Really! I didn't kiss her, and
she only kissed me once, and yours are better!" He waited to get
slugged again, but by some miracle he'd said the right thing for
a change.

"They are?" Akane's voice was hopeful.

"Well, sure. I'm here, ain't I?"

"So why did you really come here?" Akane asked shyly after a
moment.

"Really?"

"That's what I said. Really."

"Uh... promise ya won't laugh? Or slug me?"

"Promise."

"Uh... well... I figured from the way you were actin' that
ya might not exactly rest easy until I showed up and told ya the
date was over and I was goin' home." Ranma twiddled his fingers.

"Ranma... that was nice of you. Thanks."

Unseen in the dark, Ranma blushed. "Sure. So, uh, I'm
goin' home now. See ya tomorrow."

Akane felt her bed rebound slightly, then heard the window
open and close, and knew Ranma had gone. *Darn. I was hoping
he'd kiss me good-night, or at least hold my hand for a moment.
Baka.* She smiled a little and turned over. This time, sleep
came quickly.

~~~~~

The day of the gymnastics match was cold and cloudy, but it
was not raining. Kodachi led the team through the gate of
Teiketsu Academy, waving graciously to the onlookers. Among the
gaggle of other St. Hebereke's girls, Ranma and Akane formed a
tight group with Junko, Michi, Sachiko, and Eriko, wearing sweat-
suits and carrying bulky duffel bags. Students swarmed around
the gymnasium as they approached, and they heard the murmur of
the crowd inside.

"Nervous?" Ranma muttered to Akane.

Akane shook her head. "Excited." She glanced at Ranma
mischievously. "Why should I be nervous? I hear my partner
never loses."

"Damn straight," Ranma said firmly. Michi and Junko
exchanged smiles and followed them into the gym.

"Let's have a big welcome for the St. Hebereke's martial-
arts rhythmic-gymnastics team!" the PA called. The crowd roared
as the team waved.

~~~~~

Ranma started to cheer as Eriko scored a knockout, dropping
her opponent with her clubs, then cursed as Eriko fell to the mat
as well, taken out by her opponent's simultaneous strike. The
gong rang. "Damn, a draw!" She leapt into the ring and helped
Sachiko pick Eriko up, carry her into the corner, and revive her,
not noticing the activity around the judges' table.

"Winner: Eriko To--, er, Thompson, of St. Hebereke's!" the
PA blared.

Ranma looked up. "What?" She looked down. "Eriko! You
won!"

Eriko looked up groggily. "Won? I--" She got to her feet,
supported on both sides by Ranma and Sachiko. "But--"

By that time Akane was there, jumping up and down excitedly
on the floor just outside the corner of the ring. "You won,
Eriko! The combat part was a draw, but the judges thought your
form was better!"

Eriko straightened. "I won..." she breathed. She looked at
Ranma. "We won... sensei." She waved to the crowd, then let
Sachiko and Ranma help her out of the ring.

"Wonderful!" Akane bubbled when Eriko was seated and Ranma
had straightened.

Ranma shook her head. "I dunno. Since when does someone
else get to say whether I win or lose? I don't like it."

"Well, I meant Eriko," Akane said. "You know the rules,
Ranma."

Ranma cocked an eyebrow. "Musabetsu Kakuto's not real good
about rules--"

"Oh, Ranma-sama!" Ranma and Akane turned. Kodachi was
standing a little ahead of what appeared to be a pair of
identical twin teenaged girls, with one hand on her hip and an
enigmatic smile on her face. "I thought you might like to meet
your opponents," she said, gesturing with her free hand. "Souda
Tomomi, Souda Tomoko, these are my team-mates, Saotome Ranma and
Tendo Akane."

"Pleased to meet you," Akane said automatically. *Wow,
they're pretty. It's a good thing Ranma's not a guy right now.*

"Hey," Ranma said casually. *Good muscles, good balance.
They might put up a fight. It's a good thing Akane's been
practicin'.*

Tomomi eyed Akane. "So, Tendo Akane, we meet again at
last," she sneered. "You destroyed our innocent happiness, and
now we will have our revenge by humiliating you before all these
people!"

"It sure is a big crowd," Tomoko agreed.

Akane's jaw dropped. "What?! What in the world are you
talking about?!"

"Don't tell me you don't remember," Tomomi said
incredulously.

"She doesn't," Tomoko put in.

Tomomi drew herself up. "Well, Akane, cast your mind back
to a sunny day on the beach...."

"Ten years ago," Tomoko specified.

Suddenly Akane remembered where she'd seen these twins
before:

Little Akane was walking along the beach, looking for
shells, when she saw two girls about her own age arguing
over something. She hurried closer and saw that they each
had hold of a few arms of an extremely distressed-looking
octopus.

"Let go! I saw it first!" One girl pulled on her end
of the octopus.

"Mine!" The other resisted.

"Don't hurt the poor fishie!" Akane cried, running up
to them. She tripped over a bit of driftwood and knocked
both girls sprawling. "Oops!" The octopus, knowing the
Sucker of the Tako-God when it saw it, carefully squirted
both its tormentors in the face with ink and fled to the
safety of the ocean in a flurry of tentacles.

"You let it get away!" one girl protested, getting up.

"Waah!" the other girl added.

"Well, you shouldn't have pulled it like that!" Akane
yelled, embarrassed by her clumsiness.

The two girls studied her through their respective ink-
blots. "What's your name?" one asked.

"Yeah, what?"

"Tendo Akane," Akane answered hopefully. *Maybe they
want to be friends after all....*

"Die, Tendo Akane!" Suddenly the two little girls were
holding large mallets. They swung. Akane reacted as she'd
been taught. Pow! Wham! Two little girls and their
mallets went sailing high into the air.

"Honestly," Akane muttered, straightening from her
stance. "Some people." She ignored the distant splashes
and went on looking for shells.

Akane blinked and returned from her reverie in time to hear
Tomomi say to Ranma and Kodachi, "...so after she assaulted us,
we devoted our lives to martial arts so that we could humiliate
Tendo Akane when we next met."

"And now here she is," Tomoko said happily.

"It wasn't like that!" Akane yelled. "You attacked me!"
She caught a glimpse of Ranma out of the corner of her eye and
rounded on her. "What are YOU grinning at?!"

Ranma backed out of range, holding her hands up in front of
her shoulders but keeping the grin. "Hey, it's just nice ta see
someone else catch this kinda crap for a change."

Tomomi noticed Ranma. "So, you're Akane's partner for the
pairs combat? I don't know who you are, but I warn you: to
choose Tendo Akane is to choose--"

"Death?" Ranma broke in, looking as bored as though she'd
heard it a hundred times before.

The Souda twins gave her identical peculiar looks. "What a
silly thing to say," Tomomi scoffed. "No, I was going to say--"

"--a violent tomboy with a nasty temper," Tomoko finished.

Ranma grinned again. "Tell me something I don't know-- ow!"
She rubbed her shoulder and glared at Akane. "Cut it out!"

Tomomi smiled. "By all means, alienate and injure your
partner before the fight," she told Akane. "Just don't think of
forfeiting."

"We will have our revenge!" Tomoko said. They turned
simultaneously and left.

"Cool," Ranma exulted. "For once it's not me. This is
great." She noticed Akane's stunned look. "What's your
problem?"

"Well, you may be used to having perfect strangers come up
to you with a grudge they've held for years and challenge you to
savage combat, but I'm not!"

Ranma shrugged. "So? We'll kick their butts," she said
lightly, flicking her pigtail over her shoulder. Akane took in
her partner's confident smirk, and her expression turned to
determination. Ranma bent down to open her duffel bag, then
pulled a ribbon out and ran its thin, tough silk through her
fingers. Kodachi had offered to supply them from her arsenal,
but both Ranma and Akane disdained to use trick tools.

~~~~~

"And now, the final match of the day!" the announcer shouted
over the PA. "Our own Souda Tomomi and Tomoko against St.
Hebereke's best pair, Saotome Ranma and Tendo Akane!"

Akane leapt into the ring with Ranma. They landed at the
same moment, turned, and waved at the cheering crowd. Akane
smiled brightly, but she felt the weight of duty. Junko had lost
her match, thrown out of the ring by a clever rope-trick.
Kodachi had won easily, entwining her opponent in her ribbon and
forcing surrender. The other girl from St. Hebereke's had lost,
so with Eriko's victory, the tally was tied, and the outcome of
the meet would depend on the final match. Michi and Sachiko
stood ready to supply them with tools.

Tomomi and Tomoko entered the ring with side-by-side forward
flips, landed, and posed. The crowd cheered. The referee
stepped forward. "Ready?" She looked both ways. "Begin!" The
gong rang.

Ranma set her ribbon twirling and waited to see what the
twins would unleash. Akane crossed her clubs, ready to parry.
The twins each had a ball; they raised them over their heads and
pirouetted gracefully. "Crap," Ranma muttered. "Nice form."
She continued to wait.

"Souda Specialty Attack!" Tomomi shouted suddenly, leaping
high into the air, matched by Tomoko.

"Mighty Globes!" Tomoko completed. They hurled the balls
down at Ranma and Akane. Ranma flicked the ribbon into the air
and Akane did the same with her clubs, intending to catch the
balls and hurl them back, then catch their own tools. It didn't
quite work that way; Ranma and Akane were slammed into the mat by
the balls. The ribbon draped itself over them, and Akane's clubs
dropped neatly on her head. The crowd roared-- with laughter.

"Ow, dammit!" Ranma got up, picked up the ball on the
second try, and stared at the three holes in one side. "Heh.
Heh. Cute. Reeeeal cute." She glanced at Akane, who was on her
feet rubbing her head and hefting the ball that had felled her.

"No more Miss Nice Gal," Akane said grimly. She glanced at
Ranma. Ranma nodded. "Ball Return!" Akane cried, rifling the
ten-kilo sphere at the left Souda. Ranma let fly at the same
instant. The twins swayed out of the way, and the balls shot
past.

There was a crashing noise somewhere in the stands, and a
yell: "Yaay! I caught a ball!" Pause. "Medic?"

"Hoops!" Tomomi shouted to their seconds. The twins caught
their hoops and started a graceful hoop routine leading up to a
vicious attack.

Ranma recovered her ribbon and flicked it at Tomomi's hoop
just as it was leaving her hands. Tomoko's hoop sliced at Akane.
Akane rolled, picking up her clubs, and parried with them; the
hoop glanced off and sailed away. The crowd clapped. Ranma
whipped the other hoop around in a wide circle, aiming at Tomoko,
but Tomomi caught it and spun it free of the ribbon. Ranma
lashed at her ankle, hoping to drop her, but Tomoko was there to
parry. Ranma paused, ribbon twirling. "They're good," she
muttered to Akane. "Could drop 'em in two seconds if it weren't
for the damn rules, though."

"Clubs!" Tomoko and Tomomi shouted in stereo.

"Great. Just great. Close in?" Akane suggested.

"Fine. Clubs!" They spun up from Michi and smacked into
Ranma's left hand. Akane slipped into stance next to her. Ranma
snapped the ribbon hard at Tomoko's face, then discarded it as
they darted in. Whack! Smack! Pow-pow-pow-pow! "Ow!"

"Ha!" Tomomi gloated from the other side of the ring,
gesturing with her clubs. "Now you see our skill and power!
Surrender before you are injured!"

"Give up now," Tomoko advised, although a lump had sprouted
on her head.

"The hell with that!" Akane shouted. "What happened?" she
said quietly to Ranma.

Ranma rubbed her head with the hand that wasn't holding her
clubs. "Well, YOU hit me a coupla times," she muttered. "They
blocked and countered for each other. Damn confusing, but I
think I saw it. Man, I wish we could train with them....
Ribbon!" she shouted, caught it, and dropped her voice again.
"Here. Cover me."

Akane deployed the ribbon Ranma handed her and flicked it at
Tomomi as Ranma darted in alone. Snap! Flick! Whackity
whackity smack pow! Ranma came flying out of the blur of arms,
legs, and tools, bounced off the ropes, and landed. More lumps
were showing on Ranma, but Tomoko and Tomomi had some new ones,
too. Ranma looked satisfied-- until the crowd booed. Tomoko
picked up Ranma's discarded ribbon.

"What?!" Ranma demanded, flipping to evade a ribbon-flick.

"I think they think I'm lazy," Akane whispered, mortified.
"Eek!" Four clubs streaked at her, and she blocked. Bang-bang-
bang-bang! Akane leapt out of a cloud of smoke, flipped, and
landed, coughing. She wiped soot from her face with her arm.
"That's it," she growled, and attacked. Tomoko and Tomomi
flipped deftly out of her way and she ran into the cornerpost.
Clong! Fortunately, the post escaped serious damage. Akane
turned, still fuming.

"Clubs!" the twins called.

Ranma landed next to Akane. "Hey! Cool it!" she hissed.
"They're real good together, but I think I got this figured out.
You gotta help. Not enough arms, no time to explain. Rope!" A
rope flew into her hand. "Get your--" she ducked a hoop-- "aura
going and follow my lead." Ranma turned to face the twins, and
Akane felt the chill of her aura. Akane thought about kissing
momentarily, and then managed to concentrate. The play of
Ranma's emotions and movements tickled her senses as Akane's aura
flared. Her arms came up, holding her clubs, just... so. Her
left foot shifted slightly....

The crowd gasped as Ranma and Akane darted forward, seeming
to be tangled up with each other, but not stopping or falling.
Tomoko and Tomomi gaped an instant too long, and were snatched
into the tangle by a blur that looked a lot like a loop of rope.
Whack! Smack! Pow! "Owww!" "Eeek!" Tomomi and Tomoko emerged
from the tangle, braided into a sort of pretzel configuration
held together by a rope knotted around one of Tomomi's wrists,
looped strategically, and secured to Tomoko's ankle. Akane
grabbed the rope and heaved, tossing the protesting twins out of
the ring without touching them. Ranma dusted off her hands and
smirked.

The crowd murmured. Ranma raised an eyebrow at the referee.
"Legitimate use of tools," the ref told the judges, shrugging.
The gong rang.

"The winners: Saotome Ranma and Tendo Akane!" the PA blared.

Twin screams of "NOOOO!" were drowned out by the roar from
the crowd.

~~~~~

"And now for a girls' night out to celebrate!" Michi said
cheerfully as the six walked out of the Teiketsu gymnasium. "How
about this: we'll go home, bathe and change, and then meet at the
Harlequin at seven. After that, well, I'm sure we'll think of
something!"

"Sounds good," Junko said. "Eriko, are you up to it? Good.
Sachi? Akane? Ranma?"

"I'll be there," Sachiko affirmed.

Akane glanced at Ranma. Ranma shrugged. "Sure!" Akane told
Junko.

"I need a pit-stop first, though," Junko said. "Anyone
else?" She blinked at the nods. "Well, let's leave the stuff
here, and Michi and Ranma can watch it." Four girls dropped
their duffels and headed off, talking. Ranma put down her bag
and stretched.

"Ranma-sama!"

Ranma turned and saw Kodachi beckoning to her. She turned
back to Michi. "I'll be right back. Gotta see what our captain
wants." She walked over to Kodachi, irked at how subordinate her
actions appeared. "Yeah?"

Kodachi looked around for eavesdroppers, then focused on
Ranma. "I have the most delightful evening planned to celebrate
our victory," she told Ranma quietly. "I'll come by for you at
seven--"

"Sorry, Kodachi," Ranma interrupted. "I already got plans."

Kodachi gave her an annoyed look. "How inconsiderate.
Well, you'll simply have to break them, won't you?"

"No way," Ranma said firmly. "I'm goin' with Akane and some
of the gals from the team." She locked gazes with Kodachi and
wished she were taller.

Kodachi broke the staring contest first and examined her
nails. "It certainly would be a pity if your friends were to
find out about your curse," she pointed out. "I doubt they'd be
quite so friendly if they knew you weren't really a girl. I, on
the other hand, am prepared to be quite friendly indeed, curse or
no curse...."

Ranma realized what Kodachi was implying and her jaw
dropped. Suddenly it dawned on her: *I can't! If I do this, she
can make me do anythin' she wants!* "You do that," she said
slowly, "and I'M not gonna be real friendly. I'm goin' with my--
my other friends. Seeya." She turned her back on Kodachi and
trotted back to Michi.

"What was that all about?" Michi asked interestedly.

"Personal," Ranma muttered, avoiding her eyes.

"I'll bet," Michi said, looking over Ranma's shoulder.
"Whatever you said, it ticked her off big-time. If I didn't know
better, I'd say she put the moves on you and you turned her down--
what?"

Ranma stopped coughing. "It ain't like that!" she said
weakly.

Michi eyed her. "Well, you must know there's been a lot of
gossip about you and Kodachi. If Kodachi wasn't so obviously guy-
crazy, there'd have been a lot more. As it is, we keep telling
people you and Akane are just buddies, but some still think
you're, um, interested in girls." Michi watched Ranma turn white
and smiled to herself. *Bingo!*

"Urk." Ranma cleared her throat. "Look, don't tell Akane
any of that, all right? She'd, uh, take it wrong."

"Sure." Michi patted Ranma on the arm and leaned closer.
"I understand. Your secret is safe with me." She smiled
sympathetically, then looked up before Ranma could protest
further. "Oh, good, they're back!" She waved at the approaching
four. Ranma sagged and wished for something to pound her head
against.

~~~~~

"Why so quiet, Ranma?" Akane asked. They were walking home
after the party had broken up. Akane was in high spirits,
twirling occasionally from sheer exuberance and even singing from
time to time, but Ranma had not said much since leaving the other
girls.

"Dunno. Thinkin'."

Akane laughed. "Oh, come on, Ranma, you can think later.
Now's a time to have fun!"

Ranma glanced at her sidelong and half-smiled. "That's what
I was thinkin' about." She looked ahead and sighed. "I dunno.
I just wish more guys would act like Junko an' Sachiko, or even
Michi or Eriko. I never had this many friends before." She
started to say something else, but closed her mouth firmly.

"Does it bother you that they're girls?"

"Nah. I'm not tryin' ta grab them, and they're not tryin'
ta grab me, so it doesn't really matter. Maybe it bugs me that
I'M a girl. No, it bugs me that I gotta BE a girl to have
friends like that."

Akane was silent for a moment, knowing what was really
bothering Ranma and wondering how to approach it. "Being a girl
isn't so bad, is it?" she said finally.

Ranma flinched. "Ya know how I feel about that."

"I know how you felt a few weeks ago," Akane said gently.
"How do you feel now?"

Ranma looked up, saw the Tendos' front gate not far away
down the street, and stopped. "No. It's not so bad," she
admitted reluctantly. "Bein' a girl like Momma wants me to be is
pretty bad. Bein' a girl like you, though... that's turnin'
out... pretty good."

Akane gulped against a sudden tightness in her throat as the
full impact of Ranma's words flooded through her. "Oh, Ranma!"
Suddenly her body was pressed up against Ranma's, her arms were
around Ranma, and her lips were-- *WHAT AM I DOING?!* Akane
froze, her lips a scant inch away from a kiss that part of her
wanted very much and another part was desperate to deny. The
fraction of her mind that was still working noted dispassionately
that Ranma's eyes were very wide, and Ranma's heart was pounding
rapidly against her chest. *Bosom. Oh, dear.*

Akane pulled back slowly, letting go of Ranma, who hadn't
moved at all since speaking. "I... um.... See you tomorrow,
Ranma, good night!" she said in a rush, then turned and ran for
the front gate.

Ranma stood motionless and watched Akane disappear through
the gate without looking back. She heard the front door open and
shut. *What the hell just happened? Oh. Oh, crap.* She moved
finally, rubbing her forehead with one hand. *Nothing just
happened. That's the way it's gonna be.* She turned and started
walking towards home and hot water.

~~~~~

Ranma followed Akane into the showers, trying not to admire
the delightful rear-view too much, and headed for her usual spot
on the end. Michi, using the shower next to Akane's, waved at
them, but for once didn't say anything. Ranma double-checked the
label on the cold-water tap, reached for the handle, and twisted.
"Waahaa!"

Akane heard Ranma's voice, and was starting to shake her
head-- *you'd think he'd be used to the cold water by now--* when
it clicked: Ranma's voice was male! Her hand darted for her taps
even before she started to turn her head. Ranma was crouched
tightly, trying not to display any aspect of his masculinity, and
manipulating the taps while holding the shower-head away from him
on its flexible hose. Akane slammed her hot tap off and her cold
tap full on, careful not to wreck them, and turned her shower on
Ranma. Ranma shrank and curved.

"Eeeep!"

Akane's head snapped back around, and she saw Michi. The
other girl's eyes were wide, and her shaking hand was pointed at
Ranma. "She-- he-- I heard-- I saw--" Michi turned wonder-
filled eyes on Akane. "It's, it's all true, isn't it?"

Akane looked past Michi. Other girls using the showers were
watching the commotion, but their expressions reflected curiosity
rather than shock. *Looks like none of them saw anything....*
She was about to deny anything and everything, when--

"Yeah. It's true. Sorry about this...." Ranma's voice was
not loud, but it was quite clear. She stood up slowly and faced
Michi, not quite looking at her.

An expression of delighted amazement came over Michi's face.
"My god! It all makes sense now!" She took a couple of steps
closer and examined Ranma's body closely. Ranma suffered her to
do so, not moving at all, but pink spots flared on her cheeks.
"How...." Michi looked at Akane. "You know, don't you."

Akane lowered her eyes. "Yes. I'm sorry about this too."
She looked up into Michi's smile and began to hope. "Please, if
there's any way you can keep this a secret...."

Michi stepped back and her smile faded. "Um... I have to
tell Junko and see what she thinks. I'm no good at implications
and stuff." One implication occurred to her, and she covered her
breasts with her arm and her groin with her other hand.

"Wait," Ranma said quietly, still looking a little away from
Michi. "If ya feel like ya owe me any favors at all, bring Junko
to the dojo. Bring Sachi an' Eriko, too. They deserve to know.
I'll explain the whole thing there."

Michi nodded slowly. "It's a deal." She grinned suddenly.
"They might not believe me, anyway. See ya!" She left quickly.

"What were you thinking?!" Akane hissed quietly to Ranma.

"I was thinkin' I don't wanna lie to my friends any more,"
Ranma said firmly, keeping her voice low. She turned away from
Akane and squatted at the taps. "Now what the hell happened
here?" She picked up the shower head, twisted the cold tap, and
stared at the steaming spray. "Crap." She turned the cold tap
off, shrugged, and twisted the hot tap.

No steam.

Ranma flicked a finger through the spray. "Cold. Damn!"

Akane looked at her taps, then at Ranma's. "The plumbing
must have been tampered with. Someone set you up. Someone who
knows you use this shower every time."

"One guess who and why," Ranma said with finality. She
shook her head, turned the cold spray up a little, and proceeded
with her interrupted shower.

~~~~~

Ranma stood in the dojo, wearing only boxer shorts and a
determined expression. A kettle and a bucket of water rested
near her feet; her shirt and trousers lay near the wall. Michi,
Junko, Eriko and Sachiko stood before her. Akane was guarding
the closed doors.

"Michi told us you wanted all of us here," Junko said in a
flat voice. "She also told us something I'm not sure I believe."

"She told you there's only one Saotome Ranma, and I'm a guy
and a girl," Ranma said resignedly.

"See?!" Michi burst out. "I told you! You wouldn't
believe me, but I saw it!"

"Not now, Michi," Sachiko said gently. She looked at Ranma.
"You'll forgive me if I ask you to prove it...."

Ranma sighed. "I was plannin' to. I'm really sorry about
this." She reached down, picked up the kettle of hot water, held
it over her head for a moment, and poured.

Eriko took two steps backward and turned her back. Michi
covered her eyes with her fingers and peeked out between them.
Junko nodded slowly. Sachiko looked Ranma over, smiled slightly,
and went to soothe Eriko.

"Wow," Michi said in admiration. "Akane, you lucky girl!
He's just sooo gorgeous!" Ranma blushed, but stood still.

"So hot water... turns you into a boy," Junko said slowly.
"How do you, er, turn into a girl?"

"Cold water." Ranma picked up the bucket of water and
poured half of it over his head.

"Amazing." Junko inspected Ranma again. "If I hadn't seen
it, I still wouldn't believe it. Sorry, Michi."

"This must be very hard on you," Sachiko said to Ranma.
Eriko had turned to face them again, but she was having a lot of
trouble meeting Ranma's eyes.

"You don't know the half of it," Ranma snorted.

"So are you a boy who turns into a girl, or a girl who turns
into a boy?" Junko asked.

Ranma looked her in the eye. "What do you think?"

"Judging by the way you act, and, er, some other things, I
think you're a boy who turns into a girl. How did this happen,
and when?"

Ranma sighed. "About a year and a half ago, my crazy ol'
man took me to a place in China called Jusenkyo." Her voice took
on the Guide's intonations. "There are many springs there, each
with a tragic story. Fall into a spring, get a curse. I fell
into the Nyannichuan. I turn into a girl." She hesitated. "I
guess there are worse curses, because I know some people who got
'em."

"Why did you come to St. Hebereke's if you're really a boy?"
Junko demanded. "Are you some kind of pervert?"

Ranma flushed. "No! I--"

"He did it because I asked him to," Akane broke in from her
place by the doors. The girls looked at her. She lowered her
voice slightly. "Kodachi arranged for Ranma to be transferred.
You know how much pull she has. For some reason, I was
transferred too. I thought St. Hebereke's would be better than
Furinkan, and it was. Ranma doesn't like being a girl, but I
talked him into pretending to be one so we could go to St.
Hebereke's together."

"And of course you two are really engaged to each other. I
can hardly imagine how she, er, he must feel about you, to do
something like that for you," Michi said in an awed voice. She
picked up the kettle. "Um... do you mind if I...?"

"Go ahead," Ranma said dully. Michi poured the water and
watched as Ranma gained twenty centimeters in height and lost
some curves.

"But why would Kodachi--" Junko stopped and snapped her
fingers. "Of course! That's why Kodachi was after you all the
time! She knew! Why, that sneaky... bitch. She thought she'd
found the perfect way to smuggle a guy into the school. No
wonder she was calling you 'Ranma-sama' all the time." Junko
giggled. "Oh, this is rich. I wonder how long it'll take her to
live down the rumors that she's, um, interested in girls now...."

"You lied to us," Sachiko said without emphasis.

Ranma sighed. "I know."

"Wait a minute," Junko said suddenly. "I remember that
conversation. She-- he didn't exactly lie. Everything they said
was the literal truth, but misleading in context. Very clever."

"I lied," Ranma said firmly, but he cast a grateful look at
Junko. "I had to. All I can say is I hated it."

"You peeped at us in the locker room," Eriko said faintly.
All four girls glared at him.

"It wasn't like that," Ranma muttered. "I didn't ogle ya or
nothin'. I tried ta act just like a girl. Believe me, I know
just what it's like to be ogled an' groped by guys ya want
nothin' ta do with. I knew you'd hate me when you found out.
I'm really sorry about this."

"How sorry, Ranma?" Michi said suddenly. She gestured at
Ranma's boxers. "Drop 'em."

"Whaa--?!"

Michi persisted. "You've seen all of us. We should see all
of you. It's only fair."

Ranma's mouth opened and closed as he tried to think of a
rebuttal. "What, right now?" he temporized.

"RANMA! Don't you DARE!" Everyone looked at Akane. Akane
stormed over. "Honestly!" She glared at the other girls.
"What's the matter with you? You've seen all of his female body;
that ought to be enough!"

Michi pouted. "Spoilsport." Everyone looked at her.
"Well, how often do you think I get a chance for a look at a guy
like him?!"

Junko shook her head. "You're a bigger lech than I thought
Ranma was, Michi," she said after the embarrassed laughter had
trailed off.

"I think Akane's right," Sachiko said. She glanced at
Junko. "Now what?"

Junko looked even more thoughtful than usual. "I don't want
our friend to get kicked out of our school. We sure don't want
to lose our sensei. We've come so far in just a few weeks; I
don't want to stop now. We'll have to treat him-- no, her-- the
same, or someone else might guess the secret, and then we would
lose our friend... both of our friends; I imagine Akane would
find a way to go with her." Akane nodded firmly, and Junko
continued. "I believe Ranma about the ogling. I'm willing to
share a locker room with her. Michi?"

Michi shrugged. "Sure. No problem. I think it's kinda
cool."

Junko snorted. "You would. Sachiko?" The quiet girl
nodded. "I thought so. Eriko?"

"I... I'm not sure I can. I'll try...."

Junko shrugged. "One can't ask more than that." She picked
up the bucket, looked Ranma in the eye, and sloshed the rest of
the water over him. "I'll try to think of you as a sort of, er,
honorary girl. We'll keep your secret, Ranma." Junko bowed to
Ranma and stepped back. Michi winked at Ranma and kissed her on
the cheek. Sachiko patted her on her bare shoulder.

Ranma looked hopefully at Eriko. Eriko hesitantly held
out her hand, and Ranma held it for a moment. "Thanks," Ranma
said. She looked at the others. "Thank you all. I owe ya."

"Yes," Junko agreed. "You freely gave us a lot of your time
and skill, though, and that's worth something too. See you in
school."

Akane opened the doors and stepped back as the other girls
filed out of the dojo. She slid the doors shut and turned to
Ranma. Ranma avoided her eyes and picked up the kettle. There
was just enough hot water left in it for one more change.

"Well, that went better than I thought it would."

"Yeah, it surprised me too, a little." Ranma quickly pulled
his pants on and slipped into his shirt. "'Honorary girl'. Huh.
Part of me wants to get mad, but Junko didn't mean nothin' but
good by it, did she."

"Never mind that. What on EARTH were you thinking?! Were
you really going to drop your shorts in front of five girls?"

Ranma blushed and put his hand behind his head. "I dunno.
Maybe. Michi made it sound so reasonable...."

"You should have known better! She just wanted to, to ogle
you!"

"I guess. Good thing ya made 'em let me keep my shorts on."

"Baka. That's not for them. That's not for anybody but me,
when I'm your wife."

Ranma looked at her with wide eyes. "Akane...."

There was a sudden commotion outside the dojo. "Heheheheh!
Girlies!" "EEEEE!!" "Hyaa--!" Crash! "Hotcha!" "Hey! My
pan--!" "Sweeto!" "Yuck! Get it off me!" "TE--!" Wham!

Ranma and Akane exchanged horrified glances and dashed for
the doors.

~~~~~

"Saotome-san. Tendo-san." Ranma and Akane paused in the
act of heading for the locker room to change into their leotards.
Coach Hasegawa was standing in the doorway to her office and
looking at them.

Ranma glanced at Akane. "Oh, hell. Now we get it." Akane
nodded, tried to smile despite the sinking feeling in her
stomach, and followed Ranma into the office.

Hasegawa walked around behind her desk and settled into her
chair. "Close the door, please." Akane complied, then stood at
attention beside Ranma and fixed her eyes on the coach. Hasegawa
was a petite woman, only a little taller than Akane, with
shoulder-length hair that was just starting to show a little
gray, and a face whose primary distinguishing features were the
webs of faint crinkles at the corners of her eyes. Ranma let her
gaze slide around the office, lingering on the framed photos of
Hasegawa in her gymnast's tights at various meets and
competitions. She looked at the wall of trophies, and noticed
the one from the meet at Teiketsu Academy on the end.

"So," Hasegawa said after studying them for a while. She
opened a file folder and held up a sheet of paper. "I have here
a note-- from an anonymous source-- that alleges that you,
Saotome-san, are not really female, and that if I douse you with
hot water, I will get, I quote, 'the surprise of my life'." She
eyed Ranma carefully, holding up a hand when Ranma seemed about
to speak. "Please. I haven't finished." She held up another
paper. "I also have a rather confusingly-worded note, signed by
four young women on the team, which appears to both contradict
and confirm the first note, but asks me to ignore it."

Ranma seemed about to speak again, but Akane elbowed her:
Akane was beginning to hope. Hasegawa smiled a little and
nodded. "Yes. I do not wish you to comment on this, because I
suspect that if you did, I would have to take action.
Fortunately, I need not act on suspicions." Under Ranma's
astonished gaze, she carefully tore both notes into tiny pieces.

"Why?!" Ranma burst out.

Unruffled, Hasegawa tapped the other documents in the
folder. "I also have here your records from Furinkan-- my, what
a checkered past you have-- and your records from this school,
and I have spoken to your instructors." She shook her head.
"It's amazing what a difference there is." Hasegawa leaned back
in her chair and regarded Ranma over her steepled fingers. "To
send you back to Furinkan would seem to do you a disservice,
considering how well you're doing here. To drop you from the
team would do the team a disservice; your martial-arts
scholarship appears well-deserved, and I appreciate your
initiative in tutoring others."

Ranma began to smile. Hasegawa leaned forward and looked
Ranma in the eye. "Do not give me ANY cause to regret this,
Saotome-san. Do I make myself quite clear?" Ranma lost the
smile and nodded quickly. "Good." Hasegawa looked at Akane. "I
expect you to keep her out of trouble, Tendo-san."

Akane nodded with more firmness than she felt. *As if I
can!* "Hai, Hasegawa-sensei!"

"That's what I wanted to hear. You may go now. Oh, by the
way," she added as Ranma and Akane turned to leave,
"congratulations on your part in our victory over Teiketsu. It
was much more enjoyable than winning by forfeit, wasn't it?"

"Sure was!" "Thanks!" Akane and Ranma left with much more
enthusiasm than they'd come in with.

Hasegawa smiled, shook her head, and put away the file
folder.

~~~~~ end of Competition ~~~~~

[end of part 4 of 6]