Disclaimer: Ranma 1/2 and all it's characters and quoted events are property of Rumiko Takahashi and Viz video. This story is intended for free distribution amongst its fans.

Chapter Four

By Michael Fetter

Have you ever seen two hurricanes meeting over the sea? Their spin is strong and congruent in its path. Most of the time they work around each other to maintain their independence and move in their own direction. It is true that alone they depend on nothing but themselves, but in those rare instances when the storms meld, their strength grows until the clouds above part and the sun shines down upon them.

In that moment, before the wind dissipates, something unexpected and magnificent will happen. The sun will strike the sea caught in the vortex and light it up, a shimmering crystal of their union would hang in the sky for that one perfect moment.

But the shimmer of two joined hurricanes would not last long. The sea would settle, the sun will set, and the winds would pick up elsewhere.

~

"One . . "

Ranma's shoulders worked back and forth with the tempo of the beat. His head bobbed to this pepped music that had woken him with energy that day. On top of clouds he could look back down and see things clearly like they were meant to be seen.

"One . . Two . ."

Angels descended from Heaven and Devils rose from Hell, but in the mix all they really wanted was a good time. See the danger in a room of music as it plays to opposing forces. He was there with a groove running through his legs, not standing in one spot too long or be tainted. Keep moving, swing, rock, hit the deck, and ride the wave back out; no longer water, Ranma was fire today and the flames in his eyes were burning to see.

"One-Two-Three-GO!" Head ducked, his body tucked, and Ranma Saotome was on the loose. The first kick missed his head by an inch, close for some, but a mile gap to the fire. Nothing touched without getting burned. Still low, Ranma threw himself into a flip that hovered a foot over the ground, legs on a flight.

Stiletto heels scratching the ground, Ukyou pulled her leg back from the kick and whipped the heavy bar behind her back. She'd expected the pigtailed martial artist to take to the air like last time. The air couldn't slow her movements and she ended up taking an extra rotation, plenty of time for her target to roll and kick both legs out towards her stomach. Wincing before the impact, she braced herself as best she could.

"So baby." Ranma remarked casually, sitting astride Ukyou's waist, looking down upon her surprised expression. "What can I do . ."

Ukyou glanced down her body to where Ranma's crotch was rubbed against her own. Only her leather and his Kung Fu jeans kept them from actually touching. No stranger to lap-dances, Ukyou was not quite used to getting one herself.

Ranma rotated his hips a bit and smirked at the girl's reaction. "What can I do for you today?"

Not once, not in ten years, ever since he had left, had she ever felt . . felt so . . Her face was hot and the leather covering her privates were rubbing the sensitive skin and if she didn't get out of this she was going to . . "You . . you can die slowly?"

Her face flushed further as Ranma leaned closer, his lips were not so far and she could almost touch them if she tilted her head just a bit. He held there, looking into her eyes, his blue mirrors conveying a storm of lust that she felt in the pit of her stomach. Ranma leaned closer and spoke to her ear, warm breath brushing her skin, "Is that your way of asking for my permission to suck me dry?"

"Wha!?!" She sputtered and her eyes grew wide.

Ranma flipped over her body and landed on his feet a few meters away, missing her knee thrust. "Now, now." He clucked at her. "I'm very flattered but you see I'm already engaged." He grabbed the young Tendou girl by the waist and wrapped her into a deep kiss for everyone to see. The girl melted in his grasp and lost all self-consciousness for the gawkers.

Lip trembling with disgust and hatred, Ukyou rolled onto her feet and glared at the couple. "I hate you! You're a stupid, transsexual, bitch!"

The crowd laughed, but not at Ranma as she hoped. They all stood around her in a circle, pointing and laughing. Her anger was growing and she swung the heavy pole in wide arcs. The tip only passed through the students and they laughed harder. Everything was a mist but Ranma, a fire. He was burning away the background, staring her down with a condescending look.

"You still want me!" His voice rolled with laughter and ridicule. This was not what she wanted. She wanted to prove herself. She was a woman, couldn't they see that? Not some stupid little cross-dressing girl, a full woman! "No you're not! You're a slut! Just another stupid whore!"

"No." She shook her head, but it didn't drive out his laughter. "No!" His fire spread and the laughter boomed off of invisible walls to hit her from all sides.

~

"NO!!"

Ukyou was greeted by the sun and cool breeze of the early morning. Had she been out here all night? Ranma and Akane had returned home late, Ukyou must have fallen asleep even as she sat watching the room Akane would be sleeping in. The tiled roof was making her back sore and the pole in her hand was getting heavy. Her skin was cool and she shivered for a moment; leathers this skimpy did little to protect her from the weather.

"Oh, hello there."

Blinking out the sun, Ukyou sat up, cracking a few things in her back, and found a young woman in a blue housedress with an apron around her waist.

Kasumi smiled gently at Ukyou, though she hardly approved of the skimpy outfit. "Can I help you with something?"

The wind chilled Ukyou's skin as she stared down at the traditional woman. There was a power there in her simple grace and unassuming attitude. It was cheery and insulting, kind and condescending; Ukyou felt an acute embarrassment and swallowed down bitter words while she stared. This was a woman she thought.

Ukyou stood up, though hesitantly. She felt the wind all the more and her body was naked. How this woman made her feel dirty and false. "No, I was just leaving."

"All right." Ukyou nodded. "Feel free to stop by again."

The sun hit her eyes, just coming up over the horizon. Ukyou had to turn her head away to hide the scowl, staying barely long enough to see someone thrown through a window. A redhead pulled herself out of the koi pond. Not wanting to look, Ukyou left them behind. She'd be back later, but now . . now she needed to get something to eat, then she would be back to deal with Ranma.

~

"What was that, Kasumi," Nabiki asked, stretching out her back as she yawned. Her eyes looked heavy with exhaustion that she couldn't explain it. After Ranma and her sister had returned home she had slept like a . . well like Ranma. What an amazing person to be able to break through her little sister's fear of love and the opposite sex.

Smiling - a morning person - Kasumi greeted her sister and headed for the kitchen where breakfast was keeping warm while everyone else was waking up. "Oh, a girl was sleeping on the roof last night. She was dressed rather . . briefly."

Blinking, Nabiki tried to make sense of it, but it was still too early. A cup of coffee, some breakfast, and she'd think about it later. "Whatever."

As Kasumi headed into the kitchen, their father walked into the room, opening up the paper he retrieved from the front door. Without asking he handed the business section to Nabiki and sat down at the head of the table, a cup of tea appearing in front of him as Kasumi breezed in and out of the dining room once again.

The paper had its usual glamour: mutual fund highlights, stocks, big business news, and new advancements. Nabiki set it aside, suddenly unfamiliar with the paleness of the numbers. Her mind, though groggy, was still running through an unfocused number of images that had kept her busy since Ranma's arrival. A cocky little grin that was not condescending and yet spoke so much of the pride and power of the individual. She had a grin like that, only it always came out colder, with intent to reveal piranha's humor. Slightly baggy pants that would hang around a little girl's butt, but fit so nicely around a man, short-licked hair, like flames of a campfire. All of that thrown together with a body the spun and rolled through the air like a bird with an idea of hotshot flying.

Over his paper, Soun briefly caught a glimpse of one of his daughter's daydreaming away at the table. Kasumi had already come in with breakfast and had called the Saotomes away from their sparring session. One panda and one redhead jogged into the house, slightly dripping from the exercise, and planting themselves before two plates of food.

The tea was still warm as he took a sip, considering the unusual nature of his middle daughter since Ranma's arrival. Truth be known, each of his daughters had been acting differently. So much seemed to change in just a few days, which caused him worry and relief. After all, his baby girl was falling in love and about to grow up before his eyes.

"WAHHHH!!!!"

Nabiki was startled out of her thoughts as she was splashed by a sudden spout of tears from her father who wailed like a police siren. What had brought that on? Frowning as she wiped away at the dampness on her arm, Nabiki considered again the wisdom of a doctor's refusal to give her father some sedatives.

Shaking her head, Nabiki looked at the plate in front of her and the slowly cooling coffee. Kasumi was beside her father attempting to calm his nerves again. It seemed like a useless gesture after so many years, but that was Kasumi. Thank God she could cook because no one else, especially Akane, had such talent. For that alone, Nabiki was willing to let Kasumi have her way in the house, for the most part.

"Knock it off, pops!" Ranma was in another war with her father over the food. Chopsticks blurred across the table in an infantile struggle for survival. Was any of that really necessary?

"You've been slacking off, Ranma." Genma pushed harder, gaining himself a few extra pieces off of his son's . . daughter's plate.

"Like hell I have, old man!" The redhead caught the bits before they could disappear into her father's mouth and threw them into her own. The two Saotomes were huge empty pits when it came to food.

Nabiki watched the exchange for a moment and wondered not for the last time about the curses. If she had been Akane, Nabiki would have asked a number of questions about the effects and changes that came with the curses. She was too distant for something like that though. Ranma likely didn't trust her enough to want to explain anything to her right now.

"Akane is running late." Kasumi observed from her seat.

Nabiki blinked at the statement and blankly looked at the spot normally taken by her little sister. It was empty.

"Another late night, son?" Soun asked with some nervous amusement.

While defending her plate from her father and stealing bits off of his, Ranma shrugged at Soun and added with a grin, "Not too bad."

Soun nodded at this. It set a bright smile on his face to hear Akane had gone after her fiancé and that the two of them had reconciled. He knew his baby girl wouldn't let him down. All that was left was to start planning the wedding. Of course, Soun still wanted to check in on his two youngest to be sure they had stopped their sinful . . . private excursions. "That's good."

Kasumi excused herself and stood up. Nabiki watched her pad softly up the stairs and out of sight, heading to Akane's room no doubt.

When Nabiki returned her attention to breakfast, poking at some of the food with an idle play of her chopsticks, she found her appetite had returned with a grumbling stomach. There was no need to blush for such a thing, a lack of emotion was one of those things Nabiki had become so accustomed to it would take a major event to really catch her off guard anymore. So far only Ranma had done that for her.

Ranma - Ranma-chan. The curse was not just a body of some unknown woman. A person would have to be blind not to see the similarities between the two sides of the individual. Nabiki couldn't quite classify Ranma as a boy since he often played in his girl form as comfortably as he did in his male. She couldn't bring herself to refer to Ranma as 'it'. A macho punk in male form and a tomboy as a female, Ranma was still undeniably Ranma. If Ranma-kun ran by a lake, Nabiki would not be surprised to see Ranma-chan running within the water's reflection.

The similarities were small, but they were also numerous. Blue eyes speckled with black, wild mop of hair, the same swagger and erect stance - a statue of pride in himself nothing could knock down - and the grin, which was cocky and cute for either form. Where the similarities stopped, the differences also paralleled each other. Ranma-kun's strength was not lost in the female half, it was simply less pronounced. Ranma was in equal parts handsome as a man as he was beautiful as a girl. Soft, full curves compared to the hard, lean muscle; totally woman and man.

"OH MY!!"

The table lurched for a second at the occupants' surprise. That was maybe the loudest Nabiki had ever heard her older sister speak. She did wish Kasumi would come up with some new alarmed expressions, maybe even a curse or two, because it was too hard to tell what was meant by an 'oh my'.

Soun stood up quickly and headed up the stairs. It couldn't be too important or Kasumi would have called down for help. Ranma and Genma waited a few seconds longer, watching Soun walk upstairs, before they returned to their breakfast sparring and speed eating.

There was a mumbled discussion Nabiki couldn't make out, but when there was only silence for a few moments she shrugged and started to eat herself.

Soun's panicked cry pierced the quiet, "NOT AGAIN!!"

Eyes wide, Nabiki's cheeks flushed and her jaw hung open. She remembered the other time her father had run into a room and screamed just like that. What could Akane and Kasumi have been doing up there in Akane's room?!

~

The nine-foot bar weighed heavily against Ukyou's shoulders as she made a slow path through one of Nerima's downtown streets. The feel of cold leather irritated her skin, but scratching didn't help. She tried to forget about it and just find some place to eat. Her long ponytail was flatted between the bar and her back, sometimes stretching the hair uncomfortably.

Storeowners looked at her scornfully as she passed by, wanting to yell, but not wanting to raise a ruckus. Ukyou had seen it before from many people. There were a few who grinned, but she liked their look even less.

With her head down, arms thrown over the bar crossing the back of her shoulders, she looked like a lost messiah. Ukyou never did like the mornings. There was so much light and everything looked fresh. Dew hung off of trees and silence was almost crystal clear in the same purity. It was like the back of a Chevy Camero with a real new car smell.

"You look like shit."

Ukyou knew that voice. Without looking she twisted so one end of the bar collided with Ryouga's face. There was a momentary pause while the boy swayed on his jelly legs and collapsed onto the ground. "Get lost, shit for brains."

Feeling his head ring like a church bell, Ryouga saw the sun blink away for a moment as Ukyou stepped over him. He hadn't been outside all that much since he'd begun his training with Ranma. Most of the time Ryouga was lost in clubs. He decided to lie there a moment until he'd recovered a little more then chase after the bitch to give her a piece of his mind, if it wasn't already attached to the bar of hers. How did a girl like that get so damned strong?

There was a murmur on the street as Ukyou felled the 'Lost Boy'. Store owners and early risers were staring at her, a slow rise of filthy language polluting the air. Normally she was a sweet and affectionate person, but the morning, and that dream, had worn at her nerves. It agitated her to no end to have been brushed aside so easily yesterday. Ukyou had gotten better looks from unconscious eunuchs. After all of this time, Ranma was still an asshole.

It took a few minutes to find a cheap breakfast place. Ryouga was still following her around, spouting his trash and ranting about this and that. Ukyou had heard a lot of his complaints in the past month, most dealing with some Amazon guy who had gotten in the way of Ryouga macking on some purple-haired bimbo.

Ryouga was still grousing about the blind Amazon and his invisible knives when Ukyou ordered from a waitress. Hopefully, Ryouga would be paying again. He seemed strangely honorable like that. It was an old concept like opening the door for a woman. Ukyou liked guys like that because they were easy cash.

Ryouga took a gulp of his miso soup when it came to him and brushed a bit of juice from his chin with the back of his hand. "I tell you this bitch was fine. She had it all going on."

The food on Ukyou's plate made her stomach grumble. She stabbed at a few pieces and stuck them in her mouth.

"Baby-suckin tits and some fine ass."

"Uh-huh," Ukyou tried to look irritated, but Ryouga wasn't looking. So she tried a little harder. "Where's this chick now? Find out you packin a pickle?"

"Shut up, bitch," Ryouga frowned and drowned the rest of his miso. "Fuckin ditz brute bitch shoved her ass in the way and fuckin dominatrixed her way inta some slit sliding."

"Love those fuckin girls," Ukyou smirked. She could see Ryouga sulking for his injured ego, though it was probably more over the fact he couldn't get in on the action. Ukyou herself hadn't had much experience with women, but it certainly wasn't bad. It was better than dealing with a guy who thought you should be praying before his dick.

"Man she was fuckin fine," Ryouga continued. "If that box-muncher hadn't gotten in the way I'd be makin rounds right now."

"Whatever. You're still a cherry and you know it. Fuckin palm grease is what you are."

Ryouga turned red in the face and glared at Ukyou from across the table. He'd like to have proven Ukyou wrong, but she still had that steel pole and she was conscious. Nothing was easy when the girl could toss you one handed. "And you're still pining for my bud though he knows yer some convenience store. You ain't gettin nuthin with that. Ranma breaks'em. He doesn't fix'em."

Scowling again, Ukyou snapped her chopsticks. Her tea tumbled onto its side and ran across her hand. It was still hot and she hissed with a little pain. What the hell was wrong with her? She was going to make Ranma see her as a woman whether he wanted to or not. Ukyou hadn't forgotten what he'd said to her in the club so long ago.

It was ten years ago . . .

"Hey, Ranma-baby, who's your squeeze?"

Ukyou was smiling broadly with her hand in Ranma's. She didn't know why they were in the dance club; she thought they might go for ice cream, but he'd taken her straight to this dark place where mostly teenagers hung out. It was weird with all the people taller than she was and so close. She'd been bumped a few times by people shaking their asses.

They stopped near the edge of the dance floor where some lights were left on so people could see what they were drinking. The main floor had been dark and noisy, but it was nice with Ranma holding her so close. She was so lucky to have him for a fiancé.

"Yo guys," Ranma waved his hand and pulled Ukyou closer, throwing an arm over her shoulders. "This is Ukyou, my fiancée."

"Oh yeah," one of the boys was trying hard not to laugh. He had a number of silver piercing in his nose, lip, and eyebrows. Some tattoos started around his ear and ran down the side of his neck; it frightened Ukyou a little, but she could deal with anything while Ranma was around. The older boy leaned over so closely in her face that she couldn't help but blush.

One of the girls, a tall skinny girl with bleached hair, squatted down beside Ranma and circled him with her bony arms. "You're so young though, Ranma-chan," she spoke huskily and bit his earlobe lightly. "I thought I'd have plenty of time to get you."

"Sorry," Ranma smirked; he knew she was joking. These were his friends. Ranma had seen them almost every night since arriving in Hokkaido. "Yer just gonna hafta deal."

Another girl, picking up on the fun, leaned over and pressed her arms together, pushing out her breasts and forming a good line of cleavage. "You sure about that, honey?" Her tongue stroked over her lips. "She's not a real woman like me."

Ukyou blinked at the statement and turned red in the face. "Yes I am!"

"Naw," the boy in her face snorted and patted her chest with the back of his hand. "You're a surf board, little boy."

"I'm not a boy! I'm a woman!" Ukyou growled. If only she had her spatula she'd have brained them already.

Instead the group laughed loudly and pointed at her.

"Get that!" the first girl jeered. "Her daddy musta busted her."

This brought up another round of laughs. There were tears in her eyes as Ukyou glared at the group. She didn't understand what they meant, but it was mean. Ukyou didn't like being here anymore. She wanted to leave. "Let's go, Ranma."

"With a boy like you?"

Ukyou's heart stopped and the background filtered out as she focused in on Ranma. He wasn't holding her hand anymore. Instead he was standing beneath the girl with the big chest, his head between her breasts and he was staring at her with a little smile. "Wh-What are you doing?"

"Go away, little boy," he shooed her, looking to his friends with a smile. "I only go out with real women."

"But I'm your fiancée!" Ukyou cried harder.

Ranma sneered and patted the big girl's chest. "This is what a woman looks like."

Then the world came into being again. The flashing lights and loud noise made her queasy and the smell of sweat only made things worse. The group of teens and Ranma were laughing at her. They pointed and sneered. She couldn't take it. Ukyou screamed through her tears and rushed back into the crowd, blindly groping through the dancers for a way out.

Damn him. Ukyou's face scrunched up and she slammed her hand onto the table making the rest of its contents tumble over. The restaurant's crowd was staring at her, but Ukyou didn't notice while lost in her thoughts. She was going to make Ranma pay.

He humiliated her again, displayed himself a woman better than herself, and walked away without a thought. She was six years old all over again!

Ten years of her life Ukyou had spent to becoming a woman, a real woman that people noticed and he hadn't even cared!

"Damn you Ranma!" Ukyou screamed and stood up from her chair, toppling it over. "Because of you I've seen hell! I'll make you pay!"

The front door of the restaurant jangled and slammed shut. Ryouga stared in the direction for a moment and then pulled himself off the ground. What had gotten into her?

A young woman came over to his table and pulled out a slip of paper, "So you'll be paying then?"

Ryouga grimaced.

~

Akane's face was a cherry red that rivaled Ranma-chan's hair. She couldn't believe how humiliating her morning had already been. Head bowed, she walked along the sidewalk on the other side of Nabiki from Ranma. What must Ranma think of her after being yelled at by her father?

It wasn't that what she was doing was bad. A lot of surprising things had happened last night, catching Ranma-chan with that guy, and then kissing the girl. Jealousy had overridden her normal pervert control, but when Akane'd seen . . . The sex-changing pervert was her fiancé!

Last night, Akane had been trying to figure out which she liked better; being kissed by Ranma-chan or Ranma-kun. Ranma's male side was firm, tall, and powerful. She'd felt helpless in his embrace and wanted to be captured, swept off her feet. But with the little redhead, Akane had been the stronger, taller one. Ranma-chan tasted sweeter and was soft to the touch. She couldn't help but crush that wonderfully lithe form against herself in a need to absorb Ranma-chan into herself and keep her protected.

So Ranma had released some of the tension that had been building within Akane since Kuno had first started the challenge at school. All of those boys made her so angry with the way they treated her. Ranma was a jerk, but he at least respected her and made her feel like a girl again. He'd gotten her excited, but Akane was still unready to go all the way.

In her room that night, Akane had stripped herself quickly and did something she hadn't done in a while . . . all night long, just thinking of Ranma, in either form, sometimes with both at the same time.

That's what Kasumi found that morning in Akane's room. Akane had passed out with her hand between her legs and the sheets a mess. Blushing badly, but with a duty to perform, Kasumi tried to wake Akane for school and ignore the position her little sister was in. It was very unladylike behavior, Kasumi had no doubt thought.

With a hand on each of Akane's shoulders and shaking the girls slightly, Kasumi tried to deliver her message quickly and leave. But Akane was too exhausted and required a little more persuasion. Kasumi leaned over to speak into Akane's ear.

Suddenly the door had opened.

Kasumi's wide eyes suddenly met Akane's and they both froze as they heard, "NOT AGAIN!"

Staring more intently at the ground, Akane tried to forget it had even happened. The look on her older sister's face would have been unbearably funny except that their father was holding them by the arms and lamenting over the evils of incest. She never would have even thought about something like that existing until her father charged in on her. Now it seemed to take up a good portion of Akane's thoughts.

Next to Akane, Ranma and Nabiki were chatting it up. They'd been on much better terms since the confrontation a few days ago. Nabiki still had her tricks, but she had toned it down, slightly.

~

The days began to pass like a tripping record player. Things became slightly routine for Ranma and the rest. He functioned during the day, dealing with school, fights, and the workouts with his father, and the nights he partied. Akane became an almost permanent fixture to Ranma's side. They touched and kissed while they were alone, but little more.

Ukyou was his best sparring partner. She was sexy, but Ranma met lots of sexy girls in the clubs. He was immune to flesh so it didn't mean much to him when Ukyou tossed her clothes as an attack. In a fight a few days ago, Ukyou had overzealously stripped herself bare when she'd cornered him against the side of a building. She had grinned widely and reached down for another piece of clothing. The audience snickered as it looked like she was fondling herself until she came to the realization that she had nothing on.

Ranma found out that Ukyou apparently shaved.

Brushing down his shirt a little, Ranma gave a small non-committal wave to the unconscious figure on the ground. She was mostly naked again, but the boys around the school had seen the fights enough to know taking advantage of her was a bad idea. "Later, Ucchan," Ranma picked up his book bag and continued heading for the side of the school.

Nabiki was leaning against the wall watching him. She shook her head at Ukyou then followed Ranma to wherever he would sit. "You know, Ranma. Some guys don't like to hit girls."

"Yeah, me neither." He smirked at her.

Nabiki's lips went up in a little amusement. "Whatever."

Already seated, Akane waved to Ranma and held up a bento. "Come on, Ranma. I made you lunch today."

Ranma nodded, "Hold up, Spunky."

Frowning at the cloth wrapped lunch her little sister was waving by the strings, Nabiki felt a need to warn the pig-tailed boy. "Ranma, I wouldn't if I were you."

"What's that?" He asked.

"Akane doesn't cook, she pollutes."

Ranma gave her a questioning glance, but they were already by the wall. A tree shaded the area and hid half of the school from view. Frowning slightly, Ranma sat down beside Akane and had the bento shoved in his hands. It felt a little too heavy for rice and meat. Slowly he began to unwrap it.

"Well?" Akane's eyes shined as she watched him.

Ranma stared and the thing seemed to stare right back. The edges of the 'food' drew back when it was exposed to the light. It looked like something you would find in a backed up high school toilet. Ranma poked it for a moment with his chopsticks. Did she really expect him to eat this? A quick look at Akane told Ranma that she did. "Eh . . C'mere, baby."

Akane was surprised to find herself bodily picked up and placed in Ranma's lap. If it were anyone else she would have clocked them. Instead she blushed as he hugged her from behind and kissed her cheek.

"Thanks for the bento," Ranma whispered and picked up a piece with his chopsticks, which Akane could easily see. She couldn't watch him eating so Ranma tossed the bit over his shoulder. "Mmm," he hummed and pretended to savor whatever it had been. On the side he could see Nabiki's mask of indifference breaking once again. She had to bite her lip to keep from laughing.

Ranma almost smiled himself then he heard the pained squeals of something. A quick glance over his shoulder showed a squirrel quivering on its back with the piece of gunk Akane had concocted lying beside it. Ranma shivered.

"You like it?" Akane asked excitedly. She turned around a little to see him suddenly put up a grin.

"It's killer, Spunky," said Ranma, and Nabiki began to lose control of herself and let loose a few sobbing snickers. Digging back into the bento, Ranma brought up a piece to Akane's mouth. "You take a bite."

"That-" Akane was thinking how romantic it was for him to feed her out of the same bento. She didn't get the chance as the food was inserted the moment her mouth opened.

Ranma and Nabiki waited while Akane examined the taste in her mouth.

" . . ." Akane had gone stiff, probably from shock, and her jaw was set in place for a moment. When her face went green, purple, then black, Akane bolted up right and tore off for the bathroom. "Scuse me!"

Nabiki was on her back with her legs kicking at the air as she howled in laughter. There were tears streaming down her face and her arms were wrapped about her waist. She hated laughed in a long time, and to most around the courtyard it still sounded like she hadn't. Nabiki was just too unused to laughing like a normal girl, but in her mirth she just didn't care.

Sniffling a little and wiping away a few tears that were running over her make-up, Nabiki sat up and tried to collect herself. She chuckled a little dying breath and then stared at the bento. "What are you going to do with that?"

Ranma held it up to her, "Want some?"

"Yeah, right," Nabiki snorted.

Grinning, Ranma tossed the bento into a nearby trash can and then the chopstick, which were unusable with the food stains on them. "She's got to know her cooking sucks."

"I think that's the first time she's ever eaten it herself." Nabiki was not being sarcastic. Akane had tried to cook for the family before and she had luckily made it out of the house after seeing the spread. Ranma had gotten off light actually.

Ranma shook his head and leaned back against the wall. "And Kasumi's such a good cook."

Nabiki laughed with him.

~

The week was finally coming to an end to which Akane was grateful. Keeping up with Ranma was hard at the beginning and she had yet to make up that sleep. There were benefits to going out and dancing so often, Akane noticed in her sparring sessions with Ranma. He was still quicker, stronger, and more skilled, but she beamed happily the first time he had been forced to block a few punches.

When they sparred he would goad her into fighting harder and sloppier, making it easier to hit certain spots on her body. The first few times Akane had gotten angry when Ranma had tweaked her breast. As the week passed her defense got tighter to the point where she had to leave an opening to feel the contact again. With the new experiences she was having with Ranma her body almost screamed to be touched.

She (Akane ground her teeth) was not the only one. Ukyou had been getting more daring each time she fought with Ranma. Akane had been there when Ukyou attacked and ended up losing all of her clothes 'accidentally'. A normal girl would have run for cover, but Ukyou had stood there, looking embarrassed and not covering herself back up. The bear hugs and leg locks seemed a little too unrefined for martial arts.

Jealousy at the prettier girl began to stack in Akane's mind. The succubus was trying to steal away her Ranma. It wasn't like Ranma could be taken in by a set of tits being thrust in his face. After all, he did love her. This didn't mean she approved.

Each time Ukyou dropped in, usually while she and Ranma were getting closer, Akane scowled and found herself set aside so the two could 'fight'. With eagle eyes, Akane watched Ukyou's every movement. If she caught the girl getting too close then Mr. Mallet would have to make a new appearance.

Akane felt unready to go to the next level in her relationship with Ranma. But there was pressure. Ukyou's advances must have had some effect on the cursed boy. He wasn't talking to her as much as they used to. Well, they talked, but nothing was ever said. Ranma almost seemed . . . bored around her.

It was all Ukyou's fault. Akane clenched her fist as she stood over a small stack of bricks in the dojo. Five others had already met their end a minute ago. Ranma had been distant again after their last sparring session after school. He'd left after an hour and sat down in front of the TV. Concerned and angry over Ukyou, Akane headed back into the dojo to work off a little more stress.

"Slut Ukyou," Akane growled and poised herself over the bricks. She stared at them hatefully. With a loud 'KYAH!' her hand descended and broke through all of the bricks, smashing them to dust.

With a satisfied grunt, Akane pulled her hand back and wiped off the dust. "Let's see who's stronger now."

The roof creaked and someone landed softly on the ground outside the dojo.

Akane paused and strained her ears to see if she'd heard right. She caught the sound of footsteps in the grass, and growled. "Ukyou."

As silently as possible, Akane crept to the entrance of the dojo and pulled back the shoji. She found Ukyou edging along the wall towards the house. This was the perfect time to humiliate the girl and run her out of Nerima for good. "Looks like we've got a stain on the wall. Really Ukyou, don't you think it is cowardly to sneak up on a person for a martial arts fight?"

The scantily clad girl jumped a little and turned to face her. Ukyou growled and leveled her steel bar at Akane. "Stay out of this little girl or you might get hurt again."

"You got lucky last time," Akane smirked, "Course, dressed like that I would say luck wouldn't have anything to do with it anymore."

"You got something to say, surf board?" Ukyou snapped.

Akane growled at the barb to her chest. She couldn't help it if her breasts were smaller. People just developed at different times is all! "I'd tell you to get ready for a pounding, but you've probably heard that line a hundred times before."

Two women stood outside the door leading to the house. Their battle auras were a dangerous red that fought for control. Fire was building in each of their eyes.

Inside however, the looks being shared between one man and one woman was that of something more intimate. In a low whispering tone came the feminine voice, "Ranma."

Ukyou and Akane blinked at each other and then turned to the door. For a minute the world froze for them as they stared. Inside, arms wrapped about each other, were Ranma and Nabiki. Ranma had his hands firmly set on Nabiki's sides, while the girl entangled her fingers within his black hair and wrapped one leg about his waist.

Ranma might have stopped had he noticed the deathly glares directed towards him, but he was too wrapped up in current events to care that much.

End Chapter Four

* * *

Look! A new chapter has finally made an appearance! Yes, I know it's been a while, but this is what happens with college students. Sometimes extra-curricular activities have to take a back seat.

A little explanation of things going on: I think you can figure out how the little scene in the beginning fits in with the way Ranma's relationship with the girls have changed. Ukyou is a good deal like cannon Ryouga except that she has had a pleasant past relationship with Ranma before he ran off.

Ranma himself is still a partier and more like a succubus than Ukyou. So when things get routine or boring for him, he changes things. I actually know a guy just like this in California. He is a real player and for whatever reason the girls just seem to be drawn to him.

Life is so unfair sometimes.

Let me know what you think. Send email to [email protected]

Or visit my website at: www.geocities.com/jehtek/

Ja ne.