*** Earth  0.000,0.000

Once, she had a name.

Once, she had a dream.

Once, she had a life.

Now, Setsuna Meioh sat in a quiet room and drew, her only relief from 
the whirling torrent of images that filled her mind.  Anonymous men had 
done this to her, to try and strengthen the Gift she had.  Their 
foolish actions had shattered her mind, scattering it across infinity.

Sometimes, she could almost remember her name.  Her mother's voice 
would whisper it to her.  Setsumi?  No, but that was close.  It was not 
important.  It would come to her.

She had a gift for drawing, and she used to amuse her classmates with 
stories of different worlds.  The ten-year old girl she once was had 
enjoyed bringing her visions to life, tales of angst and adventure, 
stories of love, magic and romance.  All of them from worlds she could 
see out there, somewhere across Time.  Different futures.  Different 
pasts.

Men took that from her, greedy men who desired to harness the future to 
their own ends.  Once, her visions were tales of hope, that love would 
win out in the end.  But for years, after what had been done to her, 
all she could see was an end to dreams, a yawning nothingness that 
sought to consume worlds.

Her mind had sought an escape from that dark future, where a void of 
hunger older than the stars snuffed out their lights, both in this 
world and in countless others.  Something had to stop it, somehow.  She 
could not bear to see her wonderful dreamworlds swallowed up like that.  
But, even if she took action, there was no guarantee of success.  The 
future is always in motion, she remembered someone once saying.

Worlds would live.

Worlds would die.

Yet, if she did nothing, then all would perish, billions upon countless 
billions of lives screaming out their last, before passing away into 
that horrible nothingness.

The undermind, the collective subconscious of mankind, yielded up a 
secret to her blind grasping, one last roll of the dice that had not 
yet revealed its number.  She gave that secret to a boy who reminded 
her of one of her heroes, a boy she had passed by in dreams.

A girl joined him, then another, and still others, both male and 
female.  Magic waited in the wings to enter into this play of passions, 
to be brought forth by water and an ancient curse set upon a distant 
land.  The same prideful men who had all but destroyed her mind had 
studied that curse, finding value in it.  Their actions, which had been 
her bane, would offer up salvation.

The one she sought must be baptized by this water, unleashing a torrent 
of events that might, _might_, save all the beautiful worlds from her 
dreams.

All of the actors were not yet upon the stage, and their futures were 
not set in stone.  Each of them still remained stories waiting to be 
told.

One of her keepers had noticed the pause in her actions.  The page that 
was completed beneath her hands was gently pulled away and replaced 
with a clean sheet.

"Any changes?" one of them asked another.

"No," the second replied.  "She's still lost in those dreams of hers.  
You ever wonder what it is that she sees?"

"I try not to think about it," answered the first.  "A terrible shame 
though.  I was told she wanted to be an artist.  Now look at her."

"Yeah.  Poor woman.  The telepaths say she's not even aware of us.  
We're only motes in everything else she's experiencing.  Sometimes I 
wonder what life would have been like for her, in another time and 
place."

"Well, this is the real world, my friend.  This is the real world."


xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Quantum Destinies
A Ranma 1/2 Fanfic
By Jurai Knight (sthesken@earthlink.net)

Ranma 1/2 and its characters are owned by Rumiko Takahashi.  This story 
is inspired by her works and the stories from some of my fellow fanfic 
authors.  Among these are D.B. Sommer's "Shampoo 1/2", Jim Bader's "A 
Very Scary Thought -aka- Nabiki 1/2", and John Biles' Elseworlds 
series.  All C&C is welcome.

NOTE: This story takes place right after the first Quantum Destinies 
side story: "Roses and Swords" by D.B. Sommer.  You can find it at his 
website: http://angcobra.jumpfun.com/dbsommer.html

Other chapters of this story may be found at this website, or you can 
email the author for them:

The Quantum Destinies Homepage
http://home.earthlink.net/~sthesken/fanfics/qd.html


The list of worlds reoccurring in this chapter:
Earth  0.000,0.000 - The world of Scholar Ranma (Baseline cluster)
Earth  +1.612,+1.509 - The world of Shampoo 1/2 (Shampoo 1/2 cluster)


NOTE: This chapter takes place soon after DB Sommer's first side-story 
set in the QD universe, Roses and Swords.  It is available on his 
website at http://angcobra.jumpfun.com/dbsommer.html


What has gone before in this story (or at least what will help you 
understand what is going on):

On a parallel Earth that diverged from the standard Ranma timeline over 
five hundred years ago, the Empire of Japan rules almost half the world 
and has done so for almost a century.  A young scientist named Ranma 
Saotome, through a device of his invention, is now possessed of the 
skills and memories of a martial artist version of himself.  That same 
device has also given the Nabiki of this timeline an accidental copy of 
the skills and memories from an alternate version of herself, one who 
went on the ten-year training journey with Genma instead of Ranma.  The 
engagement meetings with the three families are now complete, and Ranma 
has been engaged to Kodachi, Nabiki, and Ukyo.


xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Chapter 13 - The Cook, The Spy, The Lady, and Their Fiancé

         AFFIANCED, pp. Fitted with an ankle-ring for the
         ball-and-chain.

                   -Ambrose Bierce: The Devil's Dictionary

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx


*** Earth  +1.612,+1.509

Genma was trapped, unable to escape from the accusing voices that kept 
pursuing him.  Terror gripped his heart, his breath rasping from his 
lungs as he ran, the ragged white gi his only protection from the cold 
in the air, vainly hoping to find escape or succor.  But he could 
discover nowhere to hide.

"You don't belong here," accused Soun Tendo, appearing for only a few 
brief moments, emerging from out of the surrounding darkness like an 
angry, vengeful god.  "You've opened doors that should not have been 
opened, changed things that should never have been changed.  You broke 
my daughter's heart, Genma Saotome.  She was meant to be married to 
Ranma.  Running away to Nodoka won't save you.  They'll all figure out 
that you aren't who you say you are.  You think you're so smart, but 
you and I know different."

"What are you talking about?" demanded Genma, turning around to try and 
find some means of escape.  Another figure emerged from the gulf of 
shadows that surrounded him.

"Just forget about your old life and embrace this one with both hands, 
Genma m'boy," said Happosai, his eyes glowing with a reddish light.  
"Become the Genma Saotome that you know you truly are inside.  Come on, 
it's easy.  You can be just like him.  You and he aren't so very 
different, after all."

"I'm nothing like him!" shouted Genma, but both Soun and Happosai 
simply laughed in reply.  "I'll never be like that!"

"Oh no?" whispered Happosai, quietly.  "You think yourself so much 
better than him?"

"Of course I am!" shouted Genma.  "He was a coward, a fool, a liar, and 
a thief!"

"And you’re so much better?" whispered Happosai tauntingly.

"Yes!"

"Then how do you explain this?" came Soun's voice from behind him.

Genma turned and saw his son as he had been so many years ago, a small 
boy less than five years of age.  He was lying on a hospital bed, one 
among several children of similar age.  Each small body was hooked up 
to an intravenous drip feed, a greenish-golden fluid slowly flowing 
down tubes leading to their arms.  Ranma, as well as many of the other 
children, was sweating, shivering, and his breathing was labored, as if 
caught up in the midst of some sort of fevered illness.  Genma tried to 
turn from the sight, but he could not.  Shame filled him, and even 
after all these years, the guilt from what he had done tormented him so 
much at times.  Like now.

"It wasn't my idea!" shouted Genma.  Then more quietly, he added, "at 
least, not at first."  A tear rolled down his cheek.  "They told me it 
would make him faster, smarter, and stronger - a more perfect human 
being.  He was my son, my only son, and I wanted nothing but the best 
for him, for him to be the best that he could be."  Genma's voice 
slowly trailed off as he realized how hollow his words sounded to his 
own ears.  He had watched his son suffer for over two weeks like that, 
as Imperial science remade Ranma into what they called 'the next stage 
of human evolution.'

The sounds of cats ravaging a small boy was heard behind him, cries of 
pain and despair rising from a pit dug into the ground, calls for help 
going unanswered.  Genma didn't want to look.  He knew exactly what he 
would see.  The sounds gradually faded into a pitiable sobbing that 
wrenched at Genma's heart.  Tears filled his eyes.

"And how is that so different from this version of you?" suddenly came 
Happosai's sarcastic voice from another direction.  "My apprentice 
believed it would make his son faster and stronger.  Not smarter, but 
then Genma Saotome always felt that intellectual pursuits weren't very 
manly.  Are you really so much better than him?"

"I don't know," whispered Genma, tears streaming from his eyes, unable 
to think due to the clamor of voices that arose around him, accusing 
him of wrongdoing.  So many things done wrong in this life that he felt 
obligated to try and atone for while he was here.  Perhaps this was 
even to be his fate, to live with these mistakes, trapped here until 
the end of his days.  A tide of despair rose up within him, even as he 
was dimly aware of someone shaking him.  "I'm sorry.  Oh, Ranma, I'm so 
sorry."

"Genma!" came Nodoka's voice, penetrating through the clamor of voices.  
"Genma!  Wake up!"

Professor Genma Saotome woke to find Nodoka shaking him hard, the 
nightmare that had enfolded him shredding away.  The moon was low in 
the sky, heralding the dawn as it bathed the room in a silvery light.  
He blinked several times, his cheeks wet with tears.  He was uncertain 
where he was, what had happened, why he felt so very frightened.  But 
seeing Nodoka's face, so very close and familiar to him was a comfort 
to him.  He pulled her into a tight embrace, certain that the nightmare 
was over.

Just a dream, thought Genma with a sigh.  The whole experience was all 
just a horrible dream.  He snuggled his head a bit against Nodoka's 
bosom, letting his fears drain from him.

Nodoka murmured soft words to her husband as she saw him quickly 
regaining control of himself from what must have been a very terrifying 
nightmare, somewhat guiltily enjoying the feel of his arms around her.  
She began gently kissing the top of his bald head, rubbing her hands up 
and down his back as she felt the tension leaving him.  "Poor Dearest," 
she murmured softly.  "That must have been a horrible dream."

Genma nodded and held her warm body close.  Something was tickling at 
the edge of his thoughts though, trying to gain his attention.  He 
ignored it for now, reveling in the feel of his beloved wife in his 
arms.  He hugged her to him and sighed with relief.  The nightmare was 
over.

"It's all right, Dearest," whispered Nodoka.  "You're awake now.  
Everything is all right.  Your family is right here.  Me, Ranma, that 
nice girl Shampoo."  She felt him clutch her a little more tightly for 
a moment.

The nightmare hadn't ended, Genma realized sadly, remembering where he 
was now as he looked up at Nodoka's face.  He pasted a brave smile on 
his own visage, and he was gratified to see her smile at him in return.  
He could not think of her as his wife, but it still felt so good to 
hold her like this.

Then he noticed the see-through negligee that she was wearing, not the 
first such thing that she had donned around him.  He tried to gently 
release her, but her arms now had him in a solid grip even as she 
continued to hold him and caress him.  It was becoming extremely 
difficult to ignore her hands.

"Oh, Dearest, I've missed your touch so much," whispered Nodoka 
passionately, still kneeling and holding him close.  She moved in for a 
kiss and Genma reared back slightly, his sense of honor leaving him 
uncertain what to do.  She was not his Nodoka, not really, despite the 
yearning signals coming from his body at the smell of her hair, the 
feel of her skin.

"I'm fine now, Nodoka," said Genma nervously, feeling oddly like he was 
a teenager again.  The sight of the woman before him, dressed as she 
was in sheer silk that left little to his imagination, was arousing 
him.  And he felt like he was betraying his real wife because of that.

Nodoka sighed.  Genma was acting skittish again, and she was tired of 
it.  She put her hands to either side of his face and turned him to 
look her in the eyes.  "Dearest, whatever is the matter?  Ever since 
you returned home, you haven't once taken the opportunity to enjoy your 
husbandly rights.  It's been a week."

"Uh, that is," said Genma uncertainly.  He saw her gaze harden a bit.

"There's someone else, isn't there, Dearest?" Nodoka asked, feeling her 
heart growing heavy in her chest at the painful thought of having 
possibly lost her husband to another woman.  That would explain why he 
no longer seemed attracted to her.  A sense of loss filled her, one 
that could lead to a deeper sadness or anger in the next few moments.

"No!" cried Genma, surprised at the question.  To emphasize his point, 
he touched her cheek, feeling the first tears rolling down.  "No," he 
said more emphatically when she met his gaze.  He lifted her hand in 
his own and kissed it gently.  "From the first moment I knew her, there 
has only been a woman named Nodoka for me, she who is my wife."

"Then why?" whispered Nodoka, her eyes still welling with tears.

"I-I'm just not the same man you knew when we were first married, 
Nodoka-chan," said Genma quietly.  He desperately tried to think of a 
reason why he would have been avoiding his own wife like this, and then 
a sudden inspiration came.  He looked deeply into her eyes.  "He's gone 
now, and I don't know if he's ever coming back.  I didn't want to take 
advantage of your trust, if you found you didn't want the new me."

"Oh, Dearest," sighed Nodoka, her tone of voice evident that she 
thought he was being a complete idiot.  "Of course I love you, now more 
than ever.  You're my Genma, the man I gave a son to, the man I grow to 
care for more deeply the longer that you are back in my arms."  She 
pulled him close into a tight embrace and kissed him on the lips.  "I 
never want this Genma to leave me."

But he may have to someday, you dear, sweet woman, thought Genma sadly.  
He was coming to realize that if he did, no, when he did, a piece of 
his soul would be left behind on this world, with this simple, loving 
woman.  She was not his Nodoka, but she was so much like her that it 
was very difficult for him to not respond to her pain.  He put his arms 
firmly around her and kissed her warmly, feeling her initial surprised 
resistance quickly melt away into a return of passion, her tears 
stopping.  She needed him, as a woman needed the touch of the man she 
loves, and he could not in good conscience refuse her any longer.  If 
it was wrong, then so be it, but he did not think it was.

Nodoka felt Genma's hands beginning to roam gently around her body, 
smiling as they continued to kiss.  She felt him touching her in those 
special places that only her husband had ever explored, and she knew 
that the man she loved so achingly deep still desired her as a woman.

Two bodies slowly came to rest on the futon beneath them, and kisses 
and touches gradually became more as passions long denied arose within 
each of them.  Hands groped and fondled.  Lips touched, teased and 
caressed.  And after a time, the two bodies became one with each other.

"I love you, Nodoka-chan."

Nodoka knew bliss when Genma whispered those words softly and with 
sincere passion into her ear, even as his body began to move with hers 
in that most ancient dance of man and woman.

In another room, Shampoo started awake at the distant sounds coming 
from somewhere else in the house.  It sounded like someone was being 
tortured or something.  It was a woman's voice, but other than that she 
couldn't be sure.  She started to clamber out of her futon when she 
heard Genma's name being called out, followed by more of those odd 
sounds.  Her lips quirked as she suddenly realized what she was 
hearing.

"It about time," muttered the Amazon.  Nodoka had been looking so 
longingly at the man for days, ever since they came to this house.  It 
was good that the two of them were acting more like a proper married 
couple now, but Genma's attitudes for the last week might have 
explained why Ranma was so clueless when it came to dealings between 
the sexes.  But now that Shampoo was awake, the faint sounds of 
pleasure kept her from falling back to sleep.

"Stupid Pop," Shampoo growled.  "Why he not do this when Amazon warrior 
not trying to sleep?"  She pulled her pillow over her head and tried to 
ignore the sounds, even as her thoughts kept drifting to the boy 
sleeping in the other room.

Ranma, sleeping deeply, was blissfully ignorant of the events taking 
place around him in the Saotome household.

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

*** Earth  0.000,0.000

In the distance, lightning flashed across a cloud-drenched and darkened 
sky as two warriors fiercely engaged each other in single combat, their 
forms remaining indistinct in the gloom.  Scattered bodies lay strewn 
about the field of battle around them, a few of the fallen groaning in 
a state of semi-consciousness, but most lying quiet, mute witnesses to 
the struggle now taking place.  The grunts of pain-wracked and wearying 
flesh, and the distinct sounds of fists and feet impacting hard against 
tissue and bone, sounded across the landscape.  One warrior staggered, 
a blow to the stomach having robbed the victim of breath.  Taking 
advantage of the momentary weakness, the other figure landed a bone-
breaking punch across the victim's face.  The first figure dropped to 
the ground, where it too now lay unmoving.

Lightning flashed nearby, illuminating the face of Akane Tendo as she 
gave a disdainful look to her fallen foe, her breath coming to her in 
shallow gasps.  She stood dressed in a gi made of yellow silk, the 
cloth crusted with mud and the stains of old blood.  Her hands were 
wrapped with cloth bandages that were once white, but were now dark 
with blood as well.  However, even as battered and bruised as she was, 
she felt heady at her victory, and a broad smile washed across her face 
at having finally defeated her remaining foe.  She lifted her eyes up 
to the sky, and raised her arms, as if basking in the storm of 
lightning and thunder raging as backdrop to this scene.  At her feet 
lay the badly-beaten and unconscious form of Utena Tenjou, the young 
woman dressed in a dark green gi, her face swollen and bloodied.

"I am the strongest!" Akane shouted to the skies.  They responded with 
another clash of lightning arcing across the heavens.  "I have proven 
myself worthy!  The prize is mine!"

"You have defeated all challengers to your claim?" asked a rumbling 
voice from the skies, a resonant female voice.

"Yes!" Akane shouted, her face upraised and almost blissful.  She 
dropped her arms, but her hands remained locked into fists.

"Then claim your prize, most noble warrior," rumbled the voice, its 
words punctuated by more arcs of lightning and cracks of thunder.  "For 
your skill and strength have earned it for you."

Several bolts of energy suddenly roared down from the heavens, crashing 
together in a blast that almost knocked Akane off her feet, before 
finally solidifying into the form of Ranma Saotome.  He stood for a 
single moment, glowing with celestial glory, the image of a god of 
battle, before the light faded to leave behind a man.  He wore a white, 
sleeveless tunic of purest silk, loose black pants gathered in at the 
ankles and waist, and slippers of costly make.  A golden sash encircled 
his hips.  A smile that warmed Akane like the sun rested upon his lips 
when he turned his gaze to her.

With a glad cry, Akane rushed into his waiting arms in almost a single 
bound, her tears of joy at finally having won the man of her dreams 
filling her eyes.  She had fought so hard for him, her love for this 
man carrying her through battle after battle.  The pains of her recent 
injuries faded out, washed away by the touch of his hands upon her.  
She was content, her body enjoying a feeling of bliss at feeling his 
warmth against her.

"You have done well, young warrior," rumbled the voice from above, the 
clouds parting to reveal an angelic being that somewhat resembled 
Kimiko Tendo.  "Let no one take your prize from you.  Struggle with all 
your might to keep him against all future challengers, for men like him 
love women of spirit and strength.  Be strong, and he will come to love 
you."

"I will," whispered Akane, turning her gaze upwards to capture Ranma's.  
For a timeless moment, they stood there, as Akane felt her heart 
thundering in her chest.  She closed her eyes as his face moved gently 
down towards hers, and she held him tightly in her arms.  "I'll never 
let you go, Ranma Saotome.  You're the warrior I've been waiting for 
all my life.  I love you."

Their lips moved closer to forge a kiss together-

-and the beeping of Akane's alarm clock shattered the perfect image as 
she roused from slumber, her arms firmly clutching her pillow tightly 
to her chest.  She blinked at the morning light from the sun just 
peeking over the horizon, the happiness of a moment ago now lost.  She 
grumbled at the clock, her hand fumbling to turn off its incessant 
noise.  Her lips curled into a snarl as memories of the events of the 
weekend filled her thoughts.  Her head still hurt a little from the 
impact of the barbell into the back of her skull, and it had taken her 
hours to scrub the last traces of manure from her skin and hair.

"That pink-haired bimbo is going to pay for that," Akane muttered, "and 
she's not going to take my Ranma away from me."  She sat up in bed and 
stretched, feeling her drowsiness fade away to full wakefulness within 
moments.  The image of the girl's face was seared into her mind.  She 
had only seen the other girl for mere moments, before she fell from her 
perch outside Ranma's room the other night, but that had been more than 
long enough.  Akane Tendo never forgot a face.  She would find out who 
that other girl was and convince her to stay away from him, since she 
was now certain of one thing.

Ranma Saotome was destined to be hers.

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

"Oh, Kodachi," Ranma murmured into the noblewoman's ear softly, his 
lips brushing lightly against her skin.  A shiver of pleasure ran 
through her at his actions.  "How could I have been so blind to your 
incredible beauty and grace?  You are my one, true love."  His hand 
stole upwards to take hers in its grasp as he sat back to gaze lovingly 
at her, his eyes meeting hers.  He was richly dressed as a nobleman of 
centuries past, in a red and black kimono of fine cottons, his feet 
shod with sandals.  A smile lit his face.

"And you are mine, my beloved," whispered Kodachi softly, feeling her 
face reddening at his boldness, even as she felt herself yearning for 
him to do more.  Much more.  "Never has any man made me feel such 
glorious passions."  She lowered her gaze, suddenly unable to contain 
the feelings that the sight of his blue eyes generated within her.  Her 
nose inhaled the sweet scent of cherry blossoms from the blooming trees 
surrounding them, further heightening her feelings.

Kodachi was dressed in an expensive kimono of greens and purples, her 
delicate feet protected from the rough stones by sandals of her own.  
Her hand felt so warm in his, and she felt so safe in his presence.  It 
was a perfect moment.

"Is this what your dreams about Saotome-kun are always going to be 
like?" asked a wondering voice, sounding a little exasperated.  "Every 
time it's the same thing.  I would expect them to be a little bit more 
exciting than holding hands by now."

"Who?" asked Kodachi, looking around.  The scene around her had 
suddenly frozen in place, and Ranma was like a statue next to her.  A 
movement nearby caught her eyes, and who it was surprised her.

"Just me," replied the figure who stepped out from behind a tree, 
dressed in the gray and white uniform of Furinkan Reformatory High 
School on a different Earth.  It was another Kodachi, her mannerisms 
somewhat harder, tougher, but there was a glint of amusement in her 
eyes as she nodded her head slightly in greeting.  "Hello, Kuno-dono."

Kodachi stood up, her hand released from Ranma's unresisting one.  He 
sat where she had left him, like a marionette waiting for the guiding 
hand of a puppeteer.  Kodachi went over to Sukeban-Kodachi and bowed 
politely.  "Hello, Kuno-san."

After a few moments spent with the two just staring at each other, 
Sukeban-Kodachi coughed once and stepped past Kodachi to approach 
Ranma's unmoving form.  She reached out and touched his cheek gently, 
saying, "A good-looking guy we've got here, Kuno-dono.  I know I'd do a 
damn sight more with him than hold his hand."  After briefly glancing 
back at the noblewoman with a grin, she knelt down a bit and gave Ranma 
a passionate kiss on the lips, one that was returned eagerly when the 
figure of the boy suddenly came alive again, as if the puppeteer had 
returned.  Her hands went behind his head to run her fingers through 
his hair, tugging playfully on his pigtail, and his hands slid up and 
down her flanks and sides.

Kodachi blushed to see another version of herself acting so forward 
with Ranma.  It was so scandalous, even if it was nothing more than 
some sort of dream-simulation version of him.  But she did not 
interrupt and simply watched the other girl demonstrating her kissing 
technique, one which apparently involved tongues as much as lips.

"Fascinating, isn't it?" calmly asked a now-familiar voice from right 
behind Kodachi.

The noblewoman turned around to see yet another version of herself 
standing there, this one dressed in the blue uniform of an Imperial 
Academy science cadet.  The other Kodachi adjusted her glasses as she 
studied the scene playing out before the two of them with clinical 
detachment.  Kodachi had forgotten she once needed glasses, and she was 
grateful that she did not need them in her present existence.  That 
life as a shy scholar seemed like, well, like it was a lifetime ago.  
Behind her, soft, animal sighs, and moans of pleasure could be heard 
coming from Sukeban-Kodachi.

"She certainly seems to be really getting into the spirit of her 
demonstration, doesn't she?" asked Scholar-Kodachi placidly, watching 
the kissing and groping going on between Sukeban-Kodachi and the Ranma 
simulacra growing more heated and passionate.  "She's definitely a free 
spirit.  I think I'm jealous."

"Who are you?" asked Kodachi, feeling more than a little weirded out at 
the direction her dream had gone.

"Oh, sorry about that," said Scholar-Kodachi sheepishly.  "I was just 
playing around with you.  I keep forgetting that it takes you a little 
while to remember in these dreams who we all are.  The one currently 
sating her passions over there you already know, the Black Rose of 
Furinkan Reformatory High School.  I'm the you that once was, before 
your first use of the resonator, the shy, girl scholar who was 
intrigued at the thought of seeing alternate quantum realities with 
Ranma's device.  Now I'm just part of the greater whole, the gestalt 
that was gradually formed by multiple versions of one person all sort 
of co-existing in one brain.  And you're the dreamer, so I guess that 
makes you the manifestation of that gestalt personality.  It's all 
quite interesting from a psychological perspective."

"We've talked like this before?" asked Kodachi hesitantly.  "I don't 
recall-"

"Not to worry," interrupted Scholar-Kodachi placidly.  "We've had 
almost this same conversation at the beginning of every one of these 
lucid dreams you have.  When you're awake, we all merge back into that 
gestalt personality, composed of the memories from every one of the 
alternate lives we've absorbed.  It's only when you're asleep that this 
playground of the subconscious forms, and we can talk as relative 
equals.  Some memories of that can carry back into the waking world, 
but I guess it's not very much."  She made a grandly sweeping gesture 
that encompassed all three versions of Kodachi.  "The three of us are 
the main personas, but there are others that might pop in from dream to 
dream."

"Like who?" asked Kodachi.

"Oh, there's also the Kodachi who lived under her mother's thumb all 
her life, never questioning her role and always being the obedient and 
dutiful daughter," said Scholar-Kodachi.  "She's the version of you 
that once wholly owned this body and mind we all share now.  She was so 
terribly lonely in her life, practicing her dancing and acrobatics with 
all her passion, since it was all she really had.  Meeting a man like 
Ranma, even as merely a part of us, has made her happier than she was 
for a long, long time."

"Speaking of happy girls, check out the Black Rose over there," said 
Scholar-Kodachi as she pointed over at Sukeban-Kodachi.  That version 
of Kodachi and Ranma were partially undressed now, and they were also 
currently involved in some extremely amorous activities that brought a 
bright red blush to Kodachi's face to see.  "She always likes it when 
you bring her favorite playmate to dream-life, and I've learned not to 
disturb her until she's satisfied her desires.  Whenever you feel the 
urge to just pin Ranma against a wall or some piece of furniture and 
have your wicked way with him, that's pretty much her.  Anyway, gang 
girl over there is almost pure libido, both lover and warrior.  In a 
way, I admire her, and watching the memories of our fights with Asuka 
and Akane is a lot of fun."

"Now me, I'm the planner and thinker," continued Scholar-Kodachi, 
gesturing at herself.  "I observe what goes on around us, and I prefer 
to concern myself with intellectual pursuits.  A lot of me is in you.  
How much?  I'm not sure, but since you think of yourself as being me, 
then it's probably a good portion of the gestalt personality."  Her 
little lecture apparently at an end, Scholar-Kodachi turned to watch 
the activities going on between Sukeban-Kodachi and the Ranma image, 
and she shook her head in amusement.  "She's such an animal."

"Oh my," said Kodachi, turning to look at what was now going on.  The 
two figures had all but ripped the clothes off each other now, both of 
them struggling against each other with licentious abandon.  Kodachi 
could only stare, fascinated to see another version of herself doing 
such things with Ranma.  "So, she wasn't..."  She trailed off, unable 
to ask Scholar-Kodachi.

"Virgin?  Unblemished?  Unsullied?  Pure as the driven snow?" asked 
Scholar-Kodachi with a straight face.  "What do you think?"  Seeing the 
deep blush on the other girl, she smirked.  "No, but I think Ranma's 
performance is taken from memories of an old boyfriend of hers from her 
Earth, Miki something-or-other.  I certainly never did anything like 
that with my Ranma, and the Kodachi of this world only imagined ever 
doing that sort of thing with a boy."

"Would Ranma like that, do you think?" asked Kodachi softly.  While 
watching what Sukeban-Kodachi was doing to her companion, she tried to 
recall why the name Miki sounded familiar, but she gave up when the 
memory eluded her.  The sight of what was going on before her was too 
distracting, but she could not seem to bring herself to turn her gaze 
aside from witnessing the spectacle.

"I'm sure he would," said Scholar-Kodachi, looking rather flushed 
herself.  Her previous demeanor of cool indifference had washed away as 
the moans and cries from the other Kodachi finally reached a peak, the 
two figures on the bench locked together in a sweating tangle of limbs.

When it was over, Kodachi began fanning herself with a large, painted 
fan she removed from a fold of her kimono.

"Well, while she pulls herself back together," said Scholar-Kodachi 
slowly.  "Have you given any thought as to what you're going to do 
about this Utena Tenjou situation?"

"We trash the little bimbo!" snarled Sukeban-Kodachi, startling the 
other two with her sudden appearance.  Though only a moment had passed, 
she was dressed once again in her uniform, her yo-yo gripped in her 
hand.  "Nobody steals a man away from the Black Rose!  Especially not 
my Ranma!"  She cast a fond look back at the apparently-slumbering form 
of her recent partner in coital activities, before her face returned to 
its fierce look.

"Quite," said Scholar-Kodachi mildly, after blinking at her fellow 
Kodachi-variant's outburst.  "After we give her a fair warning to stay 
away from him, though."

"I agree," said Kodachi.  "Ranma may have simply been using the little 
tramp to gain some experience.  Men are like that, although Ranma doing 
it was a bit of a surprise to me."  She could not quite hide the hurt 
she felt in her heart at not being her beloved's first taste of the 
pleasures of the flesh.  Utena's theft of that privilege from Kodachi 
awakened an anger from deep within her.

"It looks like you've been outvoted this time, Black Rose," said 
Scholar-Kodachi.  "Maybe we can go pick a fight with Akane to tide you 
over in the meantime."

"That sounds like fun," said Sukeban-Kodachi, lashing out with her yo-
yo to take the head off a marble statue.  It snapped back into her 
waiting palm a moment later.  "She and I still have an unfinished score 
to settle."

"You're so violent, you rage-aholic," teased Scholar-Kodachi.  "How I 
can share a mind with an emotional jock like you is beyond me."

"Can it, geek girl!" snarled Sukeban-Kodachi, although there was not 
much venom in her tone, more like the teasing done between friends.  
Her grim look faded as she turned to look at Kodachi.  "So when are we 
finally going to bed the real Ranma?  Doing it with these dream images 
is fun for awhile, but a girl's got needs, ya know."

Kodachi blushed and muttered something incoherent as she stared at the 
ground.

Scholar-Kodachi came to her rescue, saying, "Stop pushing her, gang 
girl.  I think once we get Nabiki occupied with Tatewaki, that'll clear 
the field for us to claim Ranma's heart.  The two of them seem to have 
some attraction for each other.  If I do say so myself, I think it's 
one of my best schemes.  With Akane gone to Furinkan, and after we warn 
off this Utena girl, then all will be well.  We'll be the only one in 
Ranma's life.  None of the rest of those cows at the Imperial Academy 
hold a candle to the grace and beauty we have."

The trio continued to talk about many things, hours seeming to pass in 
this dream-world.  Despite their strong differences in personality, 
there were enough things they all held in common that they could talk 
about.  Whenever Sukeban-Kodachi got bored, she would wander off from 
the other two, either to fight with dream images of Akane, Nabiki, or 
sometimes Utena.  Occasionally she would go for another session of 
'wrestling' with the Ranma-image.

After a time, off in the distance a bell suddenly began to sound.  The 
scenery around Kodachi faded away, preceded by her other two selves 
vanishing within her as if drawn by a powerful magnet.

Kodachi heard the soft chimes of her alarm clock, waking her from a 
pleasant dream involving Ranma.  The details were somewhat vague, many 
of them quite erotic, but she felt very refreshed by it.  Still only 
half awake, her mood darkened as she recalled Ranma had ended his 
innocence in the arms of another woman.  That experience should have 
been hers.

"Utena Tenjou," muttered Kodachi venomously.  "No woman steals a man 
from the Black Rose."  Then she blinked, now fully awake, startled at 
the level of her aggressive feelings for the other girl.  She ran a 
hand through her hair, feeling a few tangles that would have to be 
combed out before classes.

A sigh escaped Kodachi's lips once more as she gazed out the window, 
her mind awash with thoughts of love for the pigtailed boy in her life.  
She had felt so lonely on this world, a stranger in a strange land.  
Now she had found someone who understood what it was like for her, and 
she would fight to her dying breath to have him by her side.  She 
clenched a fist as her thoughts of love faded away, replaced by an iron 
determination to overcome any obstacle in her way.  No other woman 
would have him.

Kodachi was only dimly aware of the other selves within her mind, long 
ago having subsumed them all into herself.  Sometimes, she could 
imagine their voices speaking to her in her dreams, and, like now, 
occasionally elements of their personalities would emerge from deep 
within her while she was awake.  She had once feared that she might 
have been going mad, but she was reasonably certain that was not the 
case.  She did know one thing though, and that was that all of the 
individual selves within her had come to love the pigtailed boy, each 
in their own way.

As long as I have Ranma, then all will be well, thought Kodachi with a 
loving smile.  After she had come back, almost in tears from what she 
had heard while visiting Ranma's house that night, Sasuke had noticed 
how upset she had been and had shared a secret with her to try and 
cheer her up: Ranma was her fiancé.  The noblewoman still did not know 
if she dared believe it or not, but she would not force the man she 
loved to marry her only out of obligations of honor.  She wanted Ranma 
to come to her willingly, to choose her above all the other women now 
pursuing him.  After she had dealt with Utena Tenjou, she would tell 
him how she felt.

Maybe.

If she could find the courage to do it, since her heart quailed in fear 
at the thought of telling him her innermost feelings.  If he ever 
rejected her, she knew she would be devastated.

Drawing her knees up to her chest, Kodachi hugged them and slowly 
rocked back and forth on her bed.  Ranma will come to love me, she 
reassured herself, and his love will keep me sane.

In the back of her mind, a small chorus of voices, each identical to 
her own, murmured agreement with the sentiment.

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

Ukyo Kuonji spun the naginata around in her hands, feeling the weapon 
responding to her with ease.  Her eyes were closed as she used her 
other senses to reach out and feel what lay in the area around her.  
The movements of air against her face, and the slight sounds heard, 
gave her mind a clear picture of what surrounded her.  She deftly cut 
and thrust with both the butt and blade of the weapon.  The balance was 
quite a bit different from her battle spatula, but polearms had always 
been her favorite weapons, especially the naginata.  She shifted her 
grip slightly as she spun down into the conclusion of her kata, and she 
grounded the butt of the weapon with a final flourish.

"Your form is good," Yumi commented mildly from behind Ukyo.  "But your 
thoughts are distracted.  If I'd been an enemy, you'd be dead now."

"I was aware of your presence, Aunt Yumi," said Ukyo calmly as she 
opened her eyes and turned around.  A workout always eased her mind, 
and, despite her irritation over the events of the weekend, this time 
was no exception.  She spun the naginata around once more, showing off 
her control a bit, before ending with the haft of the weapon beneath 
the pit of her arm.

"Care to talk about what's bothering you yet?" Yumi inquired.  "You 
came back in a foul mood the other night, not to mention smelling of 
lard."

Ukyo grumbled.  She set the naginata down in the weapon rack in the 
backyard region of her aunt's restaurant and picked up a ninjato.  
Without replying, she began working through a new kata with the short 
sword, trying to regain the serenity of a few moments ago.

"I see," said Yumi.  "Man trouble, eh?"

Ukyo's precise movements faltered for a split second, and her facial 
expression changed to a frown as she said, "I went over to Ranma's 
house to visit him.  Things didn't go too well."

"Did you two have some sort of a fight?"  Yumi picked up a second sword 
from the rack and moved to engage Ukyo.  The two of them fell into a 
rhythm, cutting and thrusting at each other with live steel.

Ukyo sidestepped a lunge that would have impaled her through the 
sternum, and growled, "No, but there was some bimbo in his room."

"A rival," said Yumi with a slight frown.  "I guess I was wrong about 
young Ranma."

"She won't be one for long," Ukyo muttered, her blade ringing against 
Yumi's.  "He's my fiancé."  Just the thought of someone else poaching 
on her 'territory' bothered the young ninja, and she had never felt 
this possessive about a guy before.  But Ranma was pretty cute, fun to 
be with, not to mention nicer to her than any guy near her age she had 
ever met.  And then there was the engagement to consider; she had never 
been engaged before, and family honor was also involved.  Losing Ranma 
to another girl was not going to happen.  Ukyo would fight to keep him, 
using everything she had within her, every scrap of skill and strength.

Ukyo suddenly ducked, her distracted thoughts having let her aunt get 
through her defenses to nick her hair, trimming off a few stray locks.  
For the next several moments, both of them were too involved in their 
duel to talk, but Ukyo felt herself actually relaxing a bit as the 
sparring match went on.  Fights were easy.  It was relationships that 
were hard.

"Where there's one rival, there can be others," commented Yumi a minute 
or two later.  A slightly darker look was upon her face, as if 
remembering something unpleasant.

"Too bad for them," responded Ukyo quietly.  "He's my fiancé, and I 
don't feel much like sharing him."  She suddenly leaped at Yumi, her 
blade moving with great speed.  Her aunt blocked, and their blades 
briefly locked together, the two of them straining against each other.

She's stronger than she looks, Yumi thought.  Despite her heavier (what 
someone feeling particularly suicidal would even call mannish) build, 
she was actually feeling her strength being challenged a bit by the 
younger girl.  The two of them bared their teeth at each other as the 
contest of strength continued, but the older ninja took advantage of 
her greater size and strength to slowly shove a resisting Ukyo back.  
When her niece was slightly off balance from her efforts, Yumi suddenly 
slipped to one side and spun around quickly, her sword blurring in an 
arc of motion.

Ukyo whipped around to defend, but she was a fraction of a second too 
slow to block the strike.  Her vision filled with stars as Yumi 
backfisted her hard across the face, her aunt putting a fair amount of 
her shoulder strength into it, as well as her fist being weighted with 
her weapon.  Ukyo backed away, shaking her ringing head to try and 
clear it.  A kick slammed into her gut, but she instinctively rolled 
with the blow this time, minimizing the damage.  A second kick narrowly 
missed her head as she twisted to one side, but the follow-up sword 
stroke neatly disarmed her, her weapon twisted from her grip to go 
flying.

"That old man taught you well," remarked Yumi with a sudden smile, 
holding her blade just beneath a still dazed Ukyo's chin.  It had taken 
Yumi more effort than she had expected to best her niece this time, and 
the girl's speed was astonishing for one so young to have.  "But you're 
going to need to get even better if you have a rival for Ranma's 
affections, since I'm willing to guess that she gave you those bruises 
you had."  And I won't see you lose Ranma to another woman, not like I 
once lost-  Yumi quickly quashed that painful memory from her youth.  
Anyway, I won't see you suffer that pain, not if I can help it.

Ukyo grumbled an affirmative to her aunt's last statement, angry with 
herself for letting the pink-haired girl surprise her like that.  Her 
hands closed into tight fists, as she growled, "So what should I do?"

"I want you to learn everything you can about the girls you might be 
dealing with," said Yumi thoughtfully, "starting with the one that 
bruised up your face.  Consider her to be your first assignment.  Study 
this girl from a distance, learn all of her strengths and weaknesses, 
and figure out the best methods to defeat her.  A ninja strikes best 
when she strikes at an enemy from surprise, after having studied her 
opponent carefully."

"I see," said Ukyo tightly.  She caught her breath and tried to calm 
herself.  "I'll make you proud of me, Aunt Yumi.  No way am I going to 
fail my family and lose my fiancé to some bimbo."

"That's the Kuonji Clan spirit, Ukyo," cheered Yumi, clapping her niece 
on the shoulders.  "Our ancestors would be proud of you."

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

Nabiki's fist slammed into the heavy bag once again, rocking it back on 
its chain.

"Stupid jerk," she muttered, a sad heaviness in her chest.  She hated 
feeling like this, so weak and vulnerable, all because she lov- liked 
Ranma Saotome.  The feelings from her analog had mixed with her own, 
and now she could not tell where one left off and the other began.  And 
the clear memory of what she had discovered in her father's desk the 
other day, while she had been innocently looking for a pen, only 
increased the pain in her heart.

Ranma had been her fiancé for over a week, and her father had kept this 
fact a secret from her.  Nabiki suspected the fake Genma's hand in 
this, and she made a mental note to beat him senseless if Ranma should 
prove unable to rescue his real father.  Revealing herself to the man 
would only be used as a last resort.  She did not know what he would do 
if he learned that she was another heir to the Anything-Goes School.

That their engagement had been kept a secret did not really hurt, and 
she assumed that her father had his reasons for letting her think she 
and Ranma were only a 'semi-official' couple.  But learning he was her 
fiancé made Ranma's recent actions hurt her all the more, even though 
she knew he was still unaware of their engaged status.  Her head said 
one thing, her feelings another.  She felt betrayed.  That other Nabiki 
may have been content to share Ranma with other women, but this one 
hated the idea.

As Nabiki retracted her arm, her other fist hit the bag with equal 
force to the other savage strike.  Sweat rolled down her face from the 
intensive efforts she had been making since long before dawn.  She had 
slept poorly, her thoughts refusing to let go of the image of Ranma 
inviting Utena Tenjou to his house for the night.

"Womanizer," Nabiki growled, lashing out with a swift series of punches 
to pummel the bag.  She still had not mastered the Chestnut Fist, but 
she could feel the skills within her.  But her body still lacked the 
rarefied levels of speed that were the requirement for performing it.  
It was only a matter of time until her training built her up to that 
level, then she would show Ranma who was the strongest, as well as any 
girl that tried to come between them.  Ranma had only gotten lucky in 
their last fight.  She had more experience, heavier training in her 
skills.  The next time they battled, Ranma would be the one laid out 
unconscious.  Her analog never lost, not when it really counted, and 
Nabiki refused to accept her temporary defeat.  She just needed to 
train harder, then victory over the pigtailed boy would be hers.

Nabiki's fists drove hard into the bag in a staccato pattern.  It was 
filled with small, steel ball bearings, and her mother had always made 
her use it to toughen her hands and feet into weapons.  Akane still 
used this bag daily, and Nabiki was quickly regaining the ground lost 
to her sister due to her long period of half-hearted training.  Her 
hands were growing tougher, more callused and solid from her efforts, 
inured to any sort of pain as she dealt out punishing blows.  She was 
grateful for that.  Nabiki could see that she would have her work cut 
out for her with the level of competition that was now around, and she 
needed to be in top shape.

"That little, pink-haired, cross-dressing bimbo," Nabiki snarled, 
switching her efforts back to her legs.  Strike after strike was hurled 
into the bag, immense force precisely channeled by her skills.  A final 
kick actually blew the bag off its chain, snapping the links cleanly.  
Nabiki watched it fly out the door of the training hall to slam into 
the wall of the yard, and the heavily-abused bag promptly burst open to 
spill out a pile of ball bearings beneath it.  Her breathing was deep 
as she struggled against the frustrations still welling up within her, 
the feeling that her property was being taken from her.  Finally, her 
control won out, and Nabiki quickly regained her composure as she went 
over to the other still-hanging bag.

Utena Tenjou was not going to complicate Nabiki's plans for Ranma.  He 
was _her_ fiancé, and no one else's.  Kodachi Kuno was no real threat 
to her as competition, and Akane could be finessed out of the way, 
given enough time and someone other than Ranma as a target for her 
passions.  Perhaps the marriage meeting taking place this week at Kuno 
Manor would give her little sister that new target.  That only left one 
person that Nabiki could admit to some concern about, even if only to 
herself.

Ukyo Kuonji.

The okonomiyaki chef had managed to appear in Nerima to complicate 
Nabiki's life in this timeline, a quite unwelcome random factor in her 
plans, and her abilities as a fighter were still unknown.  Nabiki felt 
certain that she was probably quite good.  Yuka had given her an update 
on the weekend, covering Ranma's activities that week, before his fight 
with Utena.  Among the entries was the status of the other two marriage 
meetings.

Nabiki felt somewhat reassured to hear that neither of the meetings had 
apparently resulted in any firm agreement between the Saotomes and the 
other two families, but she did not trust Genma to leave things well 
enough alone.  And Ranma, that idiotic jerk, had taken the little, 
cross-dressing, backwoods bimbo out on a date.  To make matters worse, 
only a few days later, he had taken the other cross-dresser, Utena 
Tenjou, to his home for the entire night.  Nabiki found herself 
wondering about that.  Just what was it with Ranma and his attraction 
to these cross-dressing girls?  Did he like that type?

Feeling her levels of frustration rising once again, Nabiki began 
working them off on the other punching bag.  Fists and feet began 
brutalizing the thick leather skin of the bag, and she muttered a 
mantra as she drove blow after blow into it as hard as she could, the 
muscles in her shoulders and arms burning with each effort.

"Stupid jerk."

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

"That Utena girl was very nice, Ranma," said Nodoka with a smile as she 
set out breakfast.  Genma began eating from each serving dish less than 
a moment after they hit the table, earning Nodoka's wrathful gaze each 
time.  But she was more interested in the marked improvements to her 
son's social life than chastising her husband on his chronically bad 
habits of late, so she let it pass for now.  A wonderful vision of 
grandchildren that she could help take care of filled her mind, cute 
pink-haired girls and darling black-haired boys.

"Yeah, she was," Ranma said absently, his attention more on getting 
enough to eat at the moment.  He fought off Genma's efforts to take 
food from his plate with moderate ease, even stealing from the other 
man's plate now and then.

"So would you like me to speak to Utena's guardian about arranging a 
marriage with her?" asked Nodoka, settling down to eat.  She kept Genma 
in line with only a glare from her eyes, allowing Ranma to focus on 
what she was saying.

"What?" Ranma yelped.  "Of course not!"  Judging by his mother's 
reaction, he thought that might not have been the expected response.

"Well, I suppose I could wait until you try out the other three girls, 
to see which one is most compatible for you," said Nodoka with a placid 
expression.  "You are welcome to bring any of them home with you, of 
course.  Just try to be a little quieter when you show them how manly 
you are.  All that banging and crashing was quite distracting."

Ranma almost did a spit-take with a mouthful of rice.  A shiver ran 
down his spine at the thought of what the other girls would do to him 
if they thought he was trying them all out _that_ way.  A vision of a 
wrathful Nabiki, who he could admit was _almost_ as good a fighter as 
he was, caused his pigtail to stand out straight from his neck.  He 
swallowed his rice nervously, hoping the conversation would change to 
something else.

"So when are you taking the other girls on dates?" Genma interjected, 
apparently enjoying how things were progressing.  

Ranma glared at the man, adding a mental tally mark to the list in his 
mind.  It was growing fairly long.

"I'll do it when I get around to it," growled Ranma.  "Don't push me, 
old man!"

"Ranma!  That's no way to speak to your father!" Nodoka scolded.

"He's NOT-" Ranma started to shout, before freezing up.

"Yes, boy?" said Genma ingenuously, before munching on a fried egg.

"Sorry," Ranma muttered, staring down at his rice bowl as if it had 
mortally offended him.

"Nabiki and Kodachi should really be your first choices for a wife 
anyway," said Genma smugly.  "That Kodachi girl's father and I go way 
back, and the Tendo's connections would make for a good match."

"And that Ukyo girl also seemed quite taken with you," Nodoka 
contributed, glad to see how many girls desired her son.  "But you 
should date all of them until you make your choice.  It's only fair, 
after all.  They all deserve a chance."

"Yes, Mother," said Ranma, hoping that sounding agreeable might stop 
her from pressing the issue.  He was already dreading what was surely 
waiting for him at the Academy after his loss to Utena in front of the 
Dean and his coach.  The girls could wait until he settled that matter.

Genma smirked and took advantage of Ranma's distraction to steal some 
more food for himself.  Things were going well as far as he was 
concerned.

"I'm finished," mumbled Ranma as he stood up from the table and went to 
retrieve his things for school.

"Have a good day, Ranma," said Nodoka with a smile.  She would have to 
remember to give him Utena's panties, the ones that she had found in 
his room after the girl had left.  Returning them would give him an 
excuse to see his new lover, and Nodoka was sure that Ranma must have 
been looking forward to seeing the other girl again.  After all, he had 
returned home looking so distracted from escorting Utena to the train 
station.

Then, Nodoka's expression darkened as she recalled the challenge letter 
that had arrived that morning.  She would have to train extra hard to 
ensure that she crushed Kenseiko's desires for revenge.  The idea of 
that pompous woman thinking she can beat me is just simply ludicrous, 
thought Nodoka scornfully.  Still, she also thought it might be wise to 
consult with Achika or her grandfather to see what they thought.  Her 
friend's grandfather, Katsuhito Masaki, had always been like a wise 
uncle to her, ever since the day she had first met him.

Nodoka knew she never would have been able to keep up with Achika 
without the old man's assistance, and his knowledge of swordfighting 
techniques was astonishing in both breadth and depth.  Over the years 
spent as both rival and friend to Achika, Nodoka had learned of the 
Masaki's illustrious history, going all the way back through the 
centuries to the mysterious Yosho, the enigmatic wanderer who once 
saved an Emperor and did battle with powerful demons.  To this day, 
Nodoka could not say why he had decided to teach her, the brawling 
ragamuffin she had once been, the true art of the sword.

Ranma went out the door feeling like a condemned man.  His only bright 
thought was at least the girls weren't aware of Utena's presence at his 
house overnight.  Training would relax and focus him, and he was sure 
that this week wouldn't have any new surprises.  After all, how many 
complications could one be dealt?

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

Ghost Sweeper Manami Minami frowned a bit as she concentrated upon her 
reflection in her bedroom mirror.  Today was an important day for her, 
her first day attending classes at the Imperial Academy, so she wanted 
to present just the right image.  She stood nude, save for a slender 
pair of pale pink panties, contemplating her appearance with mild 
distaste.  The few extra kilograms of mass she carried upon her frame 
had long distressed her, but they stubbornly resisted diets and her 
occasional short-lived efforts at exercise.

If Minami would have taken the time to ask the average boy's honest 
opinion of her appearance, then the young Ghost Sweeper might have been 
surprised to hear herself called 'cute.'  She did not think of herself 
that way and was often very critical of her visual appeal, so she was 
often guilty of a tendency to bolster her self-esteem by being a bit 
louder and more overbearing than was considered proper in a young lady.  
This tendency came to the fore most often whenever she was confused 
with fellow Ghost Sweeper Reiko Mikami, who Minami (she disliked using 
her first name at all) considered to be nothing more than a mercenary, 
self-promoting relic past her prime.

On the other hand, Minami looked up to Ayaka Kisaragi, yet another 
fellow Ghost Sweeper.  Of course, this was despite her now being far 
past her prime for such things as well, at least as far as a girl 
Minami's age was concerned.  Why, Kisaragi-sensei was only just a few 
years shy of thirty!  That was ancient!  Still, regardless of that, 
Ayaka was a woman who epitomized the image of a beautiful, ghostbusting 
priestess in Minami's eyes.  She was looking forward to seeing her old 
mentor once again, especially when she showed off the 'new' Ghost 
Sweeper Minami to the boys at the Academy.

Having lived a life that revolved around magic, Minami possessed powers 
capable of blasting a demon or other sorts of evil denizens of the 
spirit world into so much primordial ash.  So it was perhaps inevitable 
that, when her own dedication and self-proclaimed perseverance at diets 
and exercise had failed to give her the sexy body that she yearned to 
have, she turned to magic.  She considered it to be a necessary action, 
especially since she had not had a date in months.  Magic would solve 
that, she was certain of it.

The young Ghost Sweeper's thoughts darkened.  If the boys training at 
the Academy shared similar tendencies to those of their Institute 
compatriots, then they were likely enamored of trim-bodied bimbos with 
room-temperature IQ's.  At the Institute, Minami's rivals for the boys 
attentions had been the unfairly attractive, so-called 'magical girls' 
that populated a portion of the female ranks there.  While she knew 
they were a publicity project on the part of the Institute, an attempt 
to mainstream Mobius' activities in order to get more funding, having 
to compete with them for the boys attentions hurt.  Even her Gosunkugi 
seemed to have some brain-dead bimbo or muscle-headed jock girl that he 
liked better than her, she could almost see it in his eyes.

How could a bright and intelligent girl like herself, who was 
admittedly somewhat less glamorous and gorgeous than some fuku-clad 
superheroine with long legs, compete with the likes of a bimbo like 
Sailor V?  It just wasn't fair, but at least there weren't any more of 
her type around.  A team of Sailor Scouts would have sent Minami into a 
state of deep depression.  Give some ditz a totally sexist costume and 
some magical paraphernalia, and the boys went berserk, she grumbled.  
Pictures of the particular floozy in question, Sailor V, were adorning 
the lockers of most of the boys attending the Institute right now, and 
even some of the girls.

Then again, even the more normal girls at the Institute seemed to have 
better social lives than she did, such as her oldest friend, Rei Hino.  
If she closed her eyes and remembered, Minami could still hear the 
unintentionally-cutting remarks from Rei, bubbling on endlessly about 
her new fiancé, Tenchi Masaki.  She had been engaged to the guy for 
weeks already, and her happiness was getting to be grating.  As much as 
she valued having Rei for a friend, sometimes she seemed to border on 
being a bimbo as well.  Maybe that was how she snagged the attention of 
her fiancé, Minami mused darkly.

Still, if that sort of superficial fluff was what the boys wanted, then 
Minami would use magic herself to become just as attractive.  

Getting away from the Mobius Institute would be good for other reasons 
as well.  Minami looked forward to the fact that, being the only Ghost 
Sweeper in residence at the Imperial Academy (an older lady like 
Kisaragi-sensei not counting), she was certain to earn a goodly amount 
of prestige among her future female classmates that she had not had at 
the Institute.  Not to mention having better luck with the boys.  And 
if the Academy turned out to be crawling with hidden pockets of ghosts 
or demons, then she could finish earning her status as a fully-licensed 
Ghost Sweeper in no time at all.  So this had been the optimal time to 
remake her outward image.  Finding that book on a back shelf of the 
Institute's library, detailing out all the ways and means of cosmetic 
sorcery had been a gift from the heavens for her and her plans.

Enough standing around, thought Minami, quickly calling up the memory 
of the spell from the recesses of her mind.  With her arms crossed 
before her, she closed her eyes and began to chant, the tips of each of 
her index fingers beginning to glow brightly with greenish-white light.

"In Benten's name, goddess of love and beauty, I summon the power to 
me," she intoned.  The Ghost Sweeper lifted her hands, reaching above 
herself as her chanting became more commanding in tone.  "Let my flesh 
be as clay, that I shall craft by my will.  By Benten's grace, I bind 
the power to my commands."

Above Minami's head, the light trailing from her fingertips did not 
fade away, but resolved itself into thin traceries of mystic runes and 
symbols, the bright glow somehow imprinting itself into the very air.  
She completed the elaborate glyph with a swooping circle that enclosed 
the other symbols.  When that was done, she felt a very faint tugging 
at her powers, and a transparent column of yellow sparkles now enclosed 
her.

Her nude form, reflected in the mirror, began a slow series of changes 
as it altered under the control of her will.  The soft, golden radiance 
clothed her figure as her invoked sorcery changed what nature had given 
her.  The young Ghost Sweeper's eyes narrowed slightly as her attention 
focussed upon her torso.

Easy does it now, thought Minami, as her gaze swept up and down her 
figure.  After all, it just wouldn't do to rush perfection, now would 
it?  Despite being slightly overweight, she was already a cute girl, 
but she wanted more.  She wanted to be more desirable than merely being 
cute, and her magics were about to make it real for her.  She had been 
carefully constructing the image she wished to become in her mind for 
the last several days, and now she was being equally careful in molding 
herself into that form.

Minami smiled joyously as her waist, hips, and thighs gradually 
narrowed, each area of her lower torso losing centimeters off of their 
respective circumferences.  Her breasts had already been a good size 
for her frame, and nicely firm, but she still took a portion of that 
excess mass and shifted it up to her bustline, expanding her endowments 
by a couple of centimeters.  The unused mass vanished away.  Minami 
watched the entire process with glittering eyes, as her body morphed 
from being plumply cute into one that would have left many typical 
teenaged boys totally bereft of their wits, especially if they ever 
witnessed it unclothed like this.  A few more changes and then she 
could finish the spell and lock it into place until the next sunrise.

The adjustments to her figure slowed and stopped, the muscles running 
beneath her skin having firmed up just enough to satisfy her without 
giving her too athletic an appearance, her will imposing the semblance 
of increased tone upon them.  The color of her skin took on a lightly 
tanned hue, just enough to add to the overall image of beauty she was 
crafting with her flesh.  She was rather proud of the fact that she was 
getting better with this particular spell, and it showed in the smile 
on her face as she studied her newly-enhanced figure.  She felt the tug 
on her powers as her old shape sought to reestablish itself.  She could 
not take too much longer, but she still had enough time to complete her 
adjustments.

Now for the eyes, and then I'm done, Minami thought with pleasure.  She 
turned her attention to her face, grateful that nature had already 
given her attractive features.  She was still uncertain enough of the 
use of her skills with these magics that she did not care to risk 
modifying the bone structures of her face.  That was a much more 
delicate change than the alterations to her figure, and, if she messed 
up, she would have to begin the spell from scratch all over again.

Minami's eyes glowed slightly, the irises changing to an emerald green.  
She experimented a little bit by adding some flecks of gold to the 
coloring, staring closely into the reflecting glass.  She could not 
wear her glasses during this part of the spell, so she was standing 
quite close to the mirror.  She blinked at the sight of her newly 
recolored eyes and nodded with satisfaction.

The tugging on her energies was slowly becoming more insistent, like an 
itch that she could not allow herself to scratch without undoing all of 
her work in an instant.

The young Ghost Sweeper ran her hands through her hair, a playful smile 
on her lips, deciding to leave it the rich red color nature had given 
her.  Minami was quite pleased at the results of the changes to her 
appearance.  She stepped back a half pace from the glass and began the 
chant that would seal the spell into place.

"Great goddess of beauty who dwells amidst the heavens," Minami intoned 
in a deep voice, her hands sweeping back and forth in front of her body 
as her fingers went through mystical gestures with grace and certainty.  
Waves of power emanated from her bare skin with each pass.  "I call 
upon you to bless this work that I have wrought upon my own flesh, to 
anoint your power upon me and seal it upon my form.  I call upon you, 
Benten, to bless my flesh with thy power.  Let this body be as it now 
is until the next dawning of the sun, in the name of eternal womanhood.  
Let the pact be now made and the blessing be now sealed.  So it is 
commanded, so shall it be."

There was a brief flash of white light, and then Minami sensed the 
tugging on her powers abruptly release as the spell completed and 
locked into place.  Feeling a little tension in her upper back, she 
stretched her arms and shoulders backwards to relieve the kink in her 
spine.  When she released herself from her stretch, she let loose a 
soft sigh and surveyed her reformed body in the mirror.  A smile lit 
her face as she posed briefly in a few ways, enjoying the look of 
herself as she moved.

The young Ghost Sweeper's smile returned briefly to a frown as an old 
hurt reared up in the back of her mind, her hand briefly closing into a 
dainty fist.  That insensitive, little jerk, Gosunkugi-baka, will see 
just what he's missing when I start going out with cute guys at the 
Imperial Academy, she grumbled.  He'll be sorry with the way that he's 
overlooked me for all these years.  A girl has limits to how long she 
can wait to be noticed as a desirable woman before striking back, you 
know.  Yeah, just you wait, Hikaru Gosunkugi.  You'll be begging me for 
a date before too much longer.  And you'd better, she thought 
venomously, if you know what's good for you.  A disturbing sort of 
feminine laugh rose up from deep within Minami to fill her bedroom for 
several long moments.

Feeling somewhat cheered by the planned changes to her social life, 
Minami pulled out her new Imperial Academy uniform from the closet and 
laid it over her desk chair.  She would miss wearing her traditional 
Ghost Sweeper robes all of the time, as she did at the Institute, but 
it was a relatively small price to pay.  She had picked up this uniform 
yesterday afternoon, one of several she had ordered tailored to fit her 
modified figure.  But before she started to put it on, she slipped on 
her brassiere and adjusted it, feeling it snugging her newly-enhanced 
figure a little tightly.

"Well, it's a little small on me," Minami considered.  "But if I know 
guys, a little extra up top won't hurt my chances at getting a date.  
Maybe I'll just let them be their normal size when I have to recast the 
spell tomorrow."  Studying herself once more in the mirror, she made a 
mental note to pick up some more underwear, maybe some sexy new 
lingerie to sleep in.  She had saved up quite a bit of money for a 
spending spree, and she was looking forward to using it.

Minami pulled on her new uniform, starting with the white cotton 
blouse, tailored to fit her figure, and quickly buttoning it up.  Next 
came the skirt, cut slightly high, but it showed off a satisfying 
amount of calf to her eyes.  After her skirt was zipped up, she flopped 
down into the chair at her desk and put on her socks, briefly running 
her hands up her newly-trimmed calves with obvious delight as she did 
so.  Realizing she had almost forgotten something, she opened her desk 
drawer and pulled out a small box.  Within it was revealed a platinum 
and gold signet ring, engraved with the symbol of the Mobius Institute.  
She studied it for several long moments before putting it on, noting 
the subtle markings etched upon it to designate her status as a Ghost 
Sweeper trainee.

She could have worn a pin, fastened on the collar of her uniform jacket 
like most cadets did, but she preferred the ring.  It had the added 
advantage of being functional as well as symbolic, a special 
enchantment within it allowing her to transform her clothes into the 
traditional robes of her calling whenever she so chose.  She hoped that 
wearing it wouldn't frighten off any boys at the Academy, but she was 
required to wear something to identify herself as a Ghost Sweeper by 
Imperial Edict.

Minami flipped open her bookbag, checking to make sure that she had her 
standard-issue kit of supplies from the Institute within it.  A Ghost 
Sweeper must be ready to oppose evil spirits and demons at all times, 
Minami thought, remembering one of her earliest lessons from Kisaragi-
sensei.  She checked it over a second time to make doubly sure that 
everything was there and also added a few small wands from her private 
collection for good measure, just in case she needed some extra 
firepower.  After all, a girl can't be too careful, she thought.

Picking up the hangar with her jacket on it, as well as her scuffed 
bookbag, Minami went downstairs to have breakfast.  She was planning on 
leaving pretty early this morning, since she wanted to make a good 
first impression on her new instructors.  Judging by the smell leading 
her to the kitchen, breakfast was already prepared.

"Good morning, Manami-chan," her mother pleasantly greeted her upon her 
arrival in the kitchen.  The matriarch of the Minami family was dressed 
in her usual garb as she prepared the last of breakfast, the white and 
red robes of a Shinto priestess.  A rustling of newspaper was heard 
from the breakfast table, her father's version of a greeting.

"Good morning, Mother," said Minami brightly, her attitude dimmed only 
slightly at hearing her first name being used.  Perhaps equally as 
bothersome, her parents seemed to take no notice of the changes to her 
appearance.  Seating herself at her usual place, she turned to face the 
wall of newspaper and said, "Good morning, Father."

Breaking the usual pattern of morning events, her father folded up his 
newspaper and put it down, finally revealing his appearance to view.  
Dressed in the robes of a Buddhist priest, he looked solemnly at his 
daughter.

Minami was shocked to see him paying so much attention to her this 
morning.  Normally, he occupied himself with his newspaper whenever she 
was around, or prayed at the family altar, or busied himself at the 
small temple he took care of nearby.  Any communication from her father 
usually came by means of her mother relaying it.  To this day, Minami 
wondered how such an intensely private and ascetic man like her father 
could ever have attracted the attention of her mother, especially when 
they had such strong differences in their religious beliefs.

"Today you are starting school at the Imperial Academy," he said 
solemnly, every word uttered as if it was of great import.

Swallowing to hide her sudden nervousness as she looked down at the 
table, Minami said softly, "Yes, Father."

"While you are there, I want you to carry yourself with the utmost of 
dignity and honor."  The patriarch of the Minami family studied his 
daughter for a long moment.  "Your mother and I know that you will not 
disappoint us in this."

"Yes, Father."

"I am glad that you understand.  You have a responsibility to carry on 
the traditions of the Minami family as its heir."  He paused and 
studied Minami's mother.  "This is a great day of new beginnings for 
our daughter, honored wife."

"Yes, honored husband," she replied.  The elder Minami turned to smile 
at her daughter.  "Your father and I know that you will make a fine 
priestess someday.  When you take over my duties at my shrine-"

"You mean at my temple, don't you, honored wife?" her father quickly 
interjected.  He glared at Minami's mother irately.

"My daughter is going to carry on after me and become a shrine 
priestess and spirit exorcist, Husband."  She stalked over to the man 
as Minami sighed and began getting out of the line of fire, serving 
herself breakfast as the argument began to escalate.

"She will most certainly NOT!" roared her father.  "MY daughter will 
serve this community as a guide along the path of the Buddha and become 
a holy nun, as well as destroying the odd demon or two if needs be."

Both of her parents began summoning their powers to back up their 
respective points of view.  Minami gulped down her breakfast on the run 
and grabbed her things before hightailing it out of the house at high 
speed.  Bright flashes could be seen in the vicinity of the kitchen.  
The occasional muffled shouts of anger could also be heard.

"Shrine priestess!"

"Holy nun!"

"Shrine priestess!"

"Holy nun!"

"You don't care anything about my feelings, you insensitive lout!  Take 
that!"  There was a blast of yellow lightning from one side of the 
house.

"You harpy from hell!  My father warned me about taking up with you!  
Take this!"  Another gout of lightning, this time in a bright green, 
briefly illuminated the other side of the house.

"I'll have you know that I had my pick of men when I was younger, you 
ingrate!  Try some of this!"  Purple lightning flashed out through the 
windows this time.

"Every day it's the same old argument between them," sighed Minami as 
she briefly watched the flashes of power roar back and forth before 
heading off to her new school.  "I hope I'm adopted," she muttered.  
Luckily, in addition to the regular protection spells employed upon the 
house as a whole, her room was heavily warded to safeguard it from any 
sort of damage.  Nothing short of the magical equivalent to a tactical 
nuclear warhead would harm its contents.  Another loud blast was heard 
behind her, and she shook her head.  "When will they ever learn?"

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

"Dean Fuyutsuki, might I have a moment of your time?"

The Dean turned around to see just who had addressed him, almost 
instantly recognizing Cadet Kashuoh standing there before the boy bowed 
briefly in greeting.  The three strikingly attractive young women with 
him made this particular cadet rather hard to forget, even without the 
catlike features they all had.  The boy's father had pulled quite a 
number of strings to have the three catgirls allowed to accompany him 
on campus as his bodyguards.  He smiled at the boy, and said, "Yes, 
Cadet?"

"Word around the campus is that Ranma Saotome lost us an important 
match over the weekend," said Kinnosuke, sounding sad at that.

"Yes, Cadet Saotome did not do as well as I had hoped he would," 
admitted the Dean.  "But what concern is that of yours?"

"Well, I am wondering if a rematch against Ohtori might be in order?" 
asked Kinnosuke ingenuously.  "As a loyal cadet at this fine 
institution, I feel obligated to see that the honor of the Imperial 
Academy is restored."

"A rematch?" asked the Dean, considering the idea.  "I suppose that 
something could be worked out, but I still don't see how this concerns 
you, Kashuoh-san."

"Oh, I was thinking that if a rematch were to take place, then Ranma 
will need to do some extra training to prepare.  Right?"

"That's true," admitted the Dean, still wondering where this was all 
going.

"Then I wish to offer to you the services of my bodyguards for this 
honorable endeavor," said Kinnosuke, smiling charmingly.  He gestured 
at the three catgirls.  "Pick any one you want, and she'll be Ranma's 
sparring partner."

Dean Fuyutsuki blinked, astonished at the thought of using a Genom 
synthetic human, a replicant, as a sparring partner for Ranma.  But, it 
was a very intriguing idea.  He turned to study the trio of catgirls, 
all of them dressed smartly in highly-modified versions of the standard 
female Security Cadet uniform.  They stood in a state of parade rest, 
gazing back at him.  Each of them looked quite fit and capable.

"Kashuoh-san, they each look to be excellent examples of Genom's 
mastery of genegineering," said the Dean.  "I assume these are the new 
prototype models to replace the Puma series?"  Receiving a nod from the 
boy, he continued, "I confess that I am not familiar enough with their 
different performance specifications to decide myself.  Which one would 
you suggest?"

"I think Tiger would be the one best suited for this assignment," said 
Kinnosuke, after a moment spent in apparent contemplation of the 
question.  He was rewarded to see the redheaded catgirl's eyes shine a 
bit brighter at his words.  "Consider her to be at your disposal for as 
long as you need her."

"Very generous, Kashuoh-san.  You have my gratitude."

"It is the least I can do to show my support for the Academy, Dean 
Fuyutsuki," said Kinnosuke with that same charming smile.  He turned to 
the trio of catgirls.  "Tiger?"

"Yes, Kashuoh-dono?" Tiger answered, stepping forward a half pace.

"I am placing you in the Dean's service," said Kinnosuke.  "I want you 
to follow his orders as if they were my own.  Do you understand your 
assignment?"

"Yes, Kashuoh-dono," replied the redheaded catgirl.  She stepped over 
to the Dean and knelt down for a moment.  "It is my honor to serve you, 
Dean Fuyutsuki."  She stood up and smiled.

"I thank you again for the loan of your bodyguard, Kashuoh-san," said 
Dean Fuyutsuki.  A faint smile appeared on his face, and he found 
himself to be looking forward much more to his meeting with Ranma.  The 
catgirl offered up a number of wonderful opportunities.  Her enhanced 
strength, speed, and physical durability would be perfect for a 
sparring partner for the boy.  "Good day to you now."  He turned and 
walked off, Tiger marching along behind him.

When they were alone once again, Kinnosuke turned to the other two 
catgirls and smiled wickedly.

"I am puzzled as to why you did that, Kinnosuke-sama," said Lynx.  "Why 
did you choose Tiger?"  Next to her, Panther nodded in agreement.

"After the news she gave me the other day, I gave the matter some 
careful thought," said Kinnosuke, a brief memory flashing in his mind, 
of his temper tantrum upon learning Ranma Saotome once again stood in 
the way of his plans.  "I chose Tiger because she knows what I have 
decided to do about Saotome, and I trust her to carry out my desires."  
His hand firmly grasped Lynx's chin, tipping her face upwards slightly 
to meet his gaze.  He smiled at her.

"I want him to know pain," Kinnosuke continued softly, "and Tiger will 
administer that pain to him in carefully measured doses, all under the 
guise of training him.  You see, I want him to grow stronger than he 
now is, Lynx, and pain is an excellent teacher.  Defeating him now 
would be too quick, too easy.  I want to savor the memory of his fall 
for the rest of my life.  Saotome is enhanced, as I am, though my dear 
great-grandfather chose to gift me with far superior abilities to those 
offered by those inane fools who now run Project Phoenix.  I am faster, 
and a more powerful warrior than he will ever become, despite his new 
level of skill."  His finger stroked along Lynx's jawline, caressing 
it, as he gazed into her eyes.  He noted with pleased satisfaction the 
rapturous look she gave him in return, in response to his touch.

After a moment spent admiring Lynx's features, he continued, "Her 
upgraded status is also why I have chosen Nabiki Tendo.  Although she 
is admittedly an inferior being when compared to my own abilities, she 
is still a most exquisite woman, both intellectually and physically 
superior to normal humans.  She will become my consort, the mother of 
my future children, and I will be her undisputed lord and master.  Once 
I have crushed her organization and broken her expected defiance to my 
will, she will then be eager to take her proper place at my side.  As 
for Ranma Saotome, like all the rest of those so-called Adams, he is 
unworthy of her."

He studied the two catgirls calmly.  "Lynx.  Panther.  You can't know 
how long I've waited for an opponent like him to make my claiming of 
Nabiki Tendo complete.  His defeats of my chosen agents showed me his 
hidden strength, as did his battle with Nabiki.  When the time comes to 
reveal my true self, my true talents, I want to test myself against an 
opponent who is worthy of my efforts to try and stop me, as futile as 
that will be.  I have chosen Ranma to be that opponent, and I will bide 
my time and watch him until I judge him to be sufficiently skilled.  
Then I will crush him, as well as any other of those sad and pathetic 
pretenders to true eugenic supremacy.  When Ranma Saotome is utterly 
and completely broken, then I will rightfully claim my beautiful prize 
from over the remnants of his beaten body.  Destiny calls to me, and it 
tells me that it will be glorious."

Mesmerized in the spell of his charisma, their eyes shining with unshed 
tears, both catgirls softly whispered, "Yes, Kinnosuke-sama."

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

Scattered cheers filled the air as Akane finished off her current 
opponent, one of the upperclassmen in the Combat Club, a brutal-looking 
figure at least ten centimeters taller than she was and thick with 
heavy ropes of muscle.  Her fists struck hard across the boy's face, 
each powerful blow slamming into toughened flesh.  After the abuse her 
body had suffered during their fight, she was dealing back as much 
payback as she could.

"Tendo!  Tendo!  Tendo!" chanted the crowd, truly awed to see her 
pulling a victory from what had seemed like a certain defeat at first.

Akane's nose oozed blood in a slow-moving stream from one nostril, and 
her face felt puffy under her eye.  She was aware of the cheers of the 
crowd, but it was an unimportant thing to her right now.  All that 
mattered was keeping herself moving, striking, winning.  Seemingly her 
will alone sustained her as she rained blow after heavy blow into the 
slab of human meat that she had been fighting for several minutes.  One 
last uppercut sent a thin stream of blood and spittle geysering upwards 
from the boy's mouth before falling and splashing across her cheek.  
His knees finally buckled, the brain inside that shell of heavy muscle 
and dense bone finally seeming to realize that it was defeated.  As he 
dropped with a crash, Akane stepped back and breathed heavily, gazing 
at her handiwork with satisfaction, like a master craftsman studying a 
completed work.

"I won," Akane muttered, a broad smile appearing on her face as she 
brushed the back of her hand against the crimson fluid still streaming 
slowly from her nose.  Her body ached now, her face numbed by her foe's 
blows, but her blood seemed to sing within her.  She had been hard 
pressed by her opponent's strength, but she felt almost exalted now to 
be the last one standing.

"Congratulations, Akane," said Sakura Kasugano, handing the other girl 
a clean towel to wipe the blood and sweat from her face.  Despite the 
number of fights (not to mention victories) under Sakura's belt, she 
was pretty impressed with what she had just seen.

"Thanks, Sakura," replied Akane, wiping her face gingerly.  She felt 
the glow of her victory fading somewhat, but her body still seemed 
charged with excitement right now.  Even so, Akane could hardly wait to 
take a long soak in a nice hot bath.  Luckily, her challenge matches 
had been taking place early enough in the mornings that she could spare 
a half hour for a soak before classes.  She grinned at her friend, the 
two of them having discovered a great deal they had in common since 
their first meeting.  "I'm one step closer to joining the Combat Club.  
Only one more fight to go, and then I'll be a full member."

"Which is why I want your final fight to be with me, Akane," said 
Sakura gently, a smile on her face as she spoke her challenge.

"W-what?" exclaimed Akane, a little surprised at her friend's words.

"After what I saw today, I know that a battle with you would be 
glorious," Sakura said softly, her eyes bright.  "I'll give you a few 
days to heal up, as many as you feel you need, but I want you to 
promise me that I will be your next opponent."  A grin crossed her 
features.  "After all, I want to make damn sure that you're worthy of 
the honor of becoming a member."

"O-okay."  Akane smiled back.  She held out her right hand.

"Thanks, Akane," said Sakura.  "I know we'll have a wonderful fight 
with each other."  The two clasped hands with a firm grip.  It was a 
gesture of mutual respect between warriors that other martial artists 
at Furinkan used.

"We will," said Akane, her eyes tearing up.  Sakura was rated as the 
best female fighter at Furinkan Academy, even though she was only a 
first-year cadet like Akane was.  To be challenged by her like this was 
a singular honor.  Akane could hardly wait to fight the other girl.

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

Nabiki noticed Ranma passing by as he entered the campus while she was 
conducting some business with a few of her lackeys, underclassmen 
wearing gray uniforms.  She left them after giving out a few last 
orders.

"Care to explain what happened over the weekend, Ranma?" Nabiki asked 
as she caught up to him in a few strides.  "I heard you lost your big 
fight in under five minutes."  Not to mention the fact that you and 
that pink-haired bimbo were doing the Kami knows what in the showers 
and at your house, you womanizer, Nabiki thought angrily.  Despite her 
feelings, she still smirked at seeing her verbal barb strike home as he 
stiffened his spine and whirled to face her.

"I didn't _lose_," Ranma growled.  "And I don't want to talk about it."  
He turned away from her and started stalking towards the main building.  
He left a rather irritated Nabiki behind him, both of them ignoring the 
whispers taking place in various groups of cadets.

"Jerk," Nabiki muttered towards Ranma's departing back.  Regaining her 
composure quickly, she coolly surveyed the cadets who had witnessed her 
brief exchange with Ranma.  All of them pretended that they had other 
things to do than meet the gaze of the Iron Bitch.  Satisfied, she 
stalked over to where Yohko was talking with some of their agents.  A 
little time spent focussing on business would help calm her.

Standing off to one side, Kyosuke snuck glances at Yohko, glad that 
they finally seemed to be on the road to making up.  The Devil Hunter 
perplexed him at times, and he wished that she would not get so 
jealous.  Of course, he could admit to himself that he was a little 
weak in showing initiative when it came to women, so perhaps a more 
possessive one like Yohko was better for him.  And she also had such a 
marvelous pair of legs, and the nicest figure, from her training.

"Hello, Kasuga-senpai," Minami greeted him from behind.

Startled out of his ponderings about Yohko before they got too 
perverted, Kyosuke turned to see a very attractive redhead addressing 
him.  It took him a moment to figure out where he had heard that voice 
before.  "M-Minami-chan?"

"It's been a while, Senpai," said Minami pleasantly.  "Today is my 
first day here at the Academy."

"And who is this, Kasuga-kun?" purred an ominous-sounding voice from 
behind him.  "Please, introduce us."

Kyosuke turned to see Yohko standing right behind him, her eyes tight 
with suppressed anger.  He was amazed at how quietly she could move 
when the mood struck her.  He had not even been aware that she had been 
watching him that closely.  "Uh," he said in reply, his brain appearing 
to have locked up for the moment.

Minami eyed the taller girl behind Kyosuke speculatively.  This must be 
Kasuga-senpai's girlfriend, she thought.  The Ghost Sweeper bowed to 
Yohko.  "Hello.  My name is Minami."

Yohko eyed the ring on the other girl's finger, her grandmother's 
training having covered such things and allowing her to recognize it.  
She returned the bow.  "You're a Ghost Sweeper.  It seems we share a 
common interest."  Just so long as it isn't in my boyfriend, Yohko 
thought, studying the other girl's figure and feeling a little jealous.

"Oh?"

"Allow me to introduce myself," said Yohko, noticing that Kyosuke still 
seemed a little out of it.  "My name is Yohko Mano, the 109th-
generation Devil Hunter, at your service."

"Aren't you the one that killed that oni a few weeks back?" asked 
Minami.  "The one that was tearing up that restaurant in downtown 
Nerima?"

"That was me, all right," Yohko nodded, a smile appearing on her face.  
She had managed to defeat the creature after a hard fight, her soul 
sword finally running it through the chest while she narrowly avoided 
getting eviscerated by its claws.  Her grandmother had even praised her 
for dispatching it so quickly.

Minami was impressed, and an idea occurred to her.  Having a Devil 
Hunter to team up with would make her Ghost Sweeping missions a little 
easier, especially one with a growing reputation at the Institute like 
Yohko Mano had.  Although she normally loathed 'magical girls' with a 
passion, Minami could see definite advantages to having some doughty 
Devil Hunter around to draw fire, er, join forces with.  And with her 
brains combined with Yohko's brawn, they could make an unbeatable pair.

The two girls fell into a conversation, both of them quickly finding a 
kindred spirit in the other.  Yohko's initial impression of Minami as 
some man-stealing bimbo was dispelled when she was quickly informed by 
the other girl that she had no interest in him.  That eased Yohko's 
insecurities when it came to boyfriends a little, the last few 
relationships she had been involved with having ended... badly.  The 
Devil Hunter could also see value in having someone handy with magic at 
her back, so she talked with Minami about their common interests and 
treated her like a newfound friend.

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

A short time later, up in the Dean's office, Ranma stood rigidly in a 
semblance of military posture.  Coach Fujinami was seated to one side 
of the room, glowering unpleasantly at him, the large man's gaze 
promising unhappy things for Ranma's future.  The Dean himself was 
seated behind his desk, his elbows and forearms resting on it, his 
hands folded together as he studied Ranma placidly.

"I was quite surprised at your poor performance, Cadet Saotome," Dean 
Fuyutsuki said calmly.  Far too calmly for Ranma's tastes.  "Quite 
surprised indeed.  The match between you and Utena Tenjou should have 
taken far longer to resolve itself than barely five minutes, based on 
what I have seen of your capabilities against Nabiki Tendo.  Perhaps I 
was wrong to think you were the one who could carry the honor of this 
institution.  Perhaps I should have given that chance to young Nabiki.  
I'm sure that Cadet Tendo would not have folded up quite so quickly in 
a match against the Tenjou girl."

"Sir, I-" Ranma started to say.  One look at the unforgiving look 
appearing on Dean Fuyutsuki's face halted his words in midspeech.

"Our Academy has lost a great deal of face due to your debacle, Cadet 
Saotome," said Dean Fuyutsuki, his posture having not changed one iota 
since Ranma first stood before him this morning.  "Until that failure 
of yours, that black stain, is removed from the reputation of the 
Imperial Academy, I am going to see to it that you have your mind and 
body focussed on nothing less than perfection.  Perhaps I have been too 
easy on you, Cadet."

Ranma started a bit at that one.

Without appearing to notice, Fuyutsuki continued.  "In truth, the time 
you have already spent in your life, learning at the various 
institutions you visited around the world, has covered everything we 
could teach you, at least in your first year here.  Your instructors 
consistently give you the highest of marks in all subjects, and have 
since you began here.  I must say that you have outperformed even my 
expectations when it comes to your scholastic achievements here.  You 
consistently outscore even young Cadet Ami Mizuno, our former star 
prodigy before your arrival, and that's no mean achievement.  Your mind 
is obviously a well-honed instrument."

Ranma could almost hear the unspoken 'but.'

"That being said," the Dean looked intently at Ranma now, "it is 
obvious that your physical training has been lax somehow.  Despite the 
intensity of the regimen you have been undergoing, Ohtori has done even 
more with young Utena than we have done with you.  Now-"

"I want a rematch with her, sir," said Ranma quickly, interrupting the 
Dean's slow buildup to the point that he was surely going to make.  The 
man had already made himself quite clear the other day, shortly after 
the match with Utena.  Something about 'training night and day' to be 
exact.

"You aren't in a position to make demands, Saotome," growled Coach 
Fujinami.  His fellow coach from Ohtori had taken great pleasure in 
rubbing his nose in the swiftness of Ranma's defeat as he collected his 
winnings.  "You were a disgrace."

Ranma winced, the urge to shout back at the man barely reined in.  
Giving into the impulses that came from his analogs would be foolish at 
this time.

"You'll have your rematch, Cadet," said Fuyutsuki, the very faintest of 
smiles on his lips.  "I trust you won't fail me again."

"No, sir."

"After this meeting is concluded, I'm going to inform your parents that 
you will be remaining at the Academy day and night until the time of 
your match."

"What?"  To say that Ranma was startled was an understatement.  The 
retrieval of his father seemed to be getting farther and farther from 
his grasp, pulled away by complicating circumstances.

"You heard me, Cadet," said the Dean, frowning now.  "The dorms have 
just added a new building, and I am going to place you and your 
training partner in it.  You will work night and day to improve your 
abilities, stopping only to sleep, eat, and bathe."

"Training partner?  Do you mean Nabiki or Kodachi?"

"No, Kuno-sama and Tendo-san will retain their current training 
schedules," said Fuyutsuki calmly.  "The Academy has obtained the use 
of an opponent who will test your abilities to their limits."  He 
pressed a button on the intercom on his desk.  "Tiger-san, please come 
in here now."

Tiger-san?  Ranma felt a creeping fear scuttle up and down his spine.

The side door to the room opened and Ranma blinked at the sight of the 
redheaded catgirl standing in the doorframe, not realizing her to be 
anything other than a normal girl at first.  His eyes traversed her 
body instinctively, starting at her booted feet.  She was tall, almost 
taller than Ranma himself was, and broad of shoulder.  Her figure was 
nicely proportioned though, her chest endowments balancing out her 
build and giving her a noticeably feminine appearance, especially since 
her outfit was tailored to emphasize the fullness of her bosom.

Then Ranma's gaze found its way to her face.  His mind froze at the 
sight, or he would have run to hide behind some furniture.  The fear 
that hit him was almost like a palpable force.

Tiger smiled, exposing her slightly enlarged canines as her ears 
swiveled forward to direct her attention at Ranma.  The vertical slits 
of her luminous green eyes focussed on him.

She's a c-c-c-  Ranma could not complete the thought.

"Hello, Saotome-san," said Tiger pleasantly, the purring undertones in 
her voice not helping out Ranma's attempts to calm himself.  "I am 
looking forward to the time that we will spend together."  She stepped 
forward into the room, her eyes casually studying the young man who had 
thwarted several of her master's plans so far.  She was looking forward 
to hurting him because of the pain she had caused her beloved.

Ranma managed to shake himself from his stupor, sheer will forcing the 
fear back down into his hindbrain and locking it up temporarily.  That 
the fear of cats from his counterparts had taken root in him so 
strongly was annoying, to say the least.  However, he was certain that 
he could cure himself of that phobia with sufficient time and effort, 
though even now he could feel raw terror clawing at the walls erected 
by his will.  Realizing that he had been staring at the catgirl during 
his struggle for control, Ranma lifted a hand to the back of his head 
and chuckled nervously, before saying, "N-nice to m-meet you."

"Tiger here is on loan to us from one of your fellow cadets," said the 
Dean.  He glanced over at the catgirl.  "Tiger, please introduce 
yourself to Cadet Saotome.  I think your beauty has him flustered."

Tiger's ears flattened ever so slightly for a moment, her green eyes 
taking on a dangerous cast, before quickly returning to her former 
pleasant-appearing state.  "Certainly, Fuyutsuki-san.  Saotome-san, I 
am a Genom Tiger, the experimental prototype for this particular model, 
serial number 0001-TX1-1.  I have been in service since my date of 
inception for four months, one week, and three days.  I am programmed 
to act as a bodyguard and personal companion, as well as to provide 
security for any premises that I am stationed at.  As I am now to be 
your sparring partner for the time being, I must inform you that I am 
hardwired with a significant repertoire of barehanded and armed combat 
techniques.  My strength and neuroreflexive capabilities are also far 
beyond the norm for a human.  I am confident that I will be able to 
provide you with a challenging opponent."  Her hands flexed slightly at 
her sides, her mind filled with a very brief fantasy of closing them 
around Ranma's throat and squeezing until his trachea was crushed.

Ranma blinked, his mind not working at normal efficiency right now.  
They wanted him to spar with a replicant?  Now that the initial shock 
had passed, he could study her somewhat more dispassionately, but the 
fear generated by her catlike features kept him feeling edgy.  The part 
of his mind he was controlling for the moment kept stuttering about 
'cat demons' and such things.  He saw her simply standing there, 
watching him.

"An amazing piece of genetic engineering, isn't she?" commented the 
Dean, forgetting for a moment that he was supposed to be acting stern 
right now.

"I'll say," replied Ranma, feeling leery of the catgirl, but also 
hating finding such a weakness in himself.  But if she meowed at him, 
he would be out the nearest door without bothering to open it.  He was 
vaguely familiar with her model, having read through its technical 
specs in one of the bioengineering journals.  He knew that the catgirl 
somatype was especially popular around the world, which was why Genom 
(the undisputed leader in the production of humanoid replicants) had 
made almost their entire fortune off of the Puma series.  The two-meter 
tall, Amazonian catgirls were adored by the rich and powerful as status 
symbols.  High-level corporate executives often enjoyed having a Puma 
bodyguard/companion as a company perk.

A Tiger model's strength was capable of pressing upwards of half a ton 
over her head at full maturity.  Since this one had apparently been 
decanted and activated prematurely, before achieving her full height 
and stature, he would guess that she could lift somewhat less than 
that.  Still, a blow from her fists would hurt as much as ones from 
Ryoga Hibiki did.  As to how fast her neuroreflexes were, Ranma could 
only guess that they were fast enough to give him a hard time.

"After your homeroom period is over, report to Coach Fujinami," 
commanded the Dean.  "He will get you and Tiger-san set up with bunks 
in the dorm building, and your training will begin immediately after 
that.  I will request a rematch from Ohtori against Tenjou-san to be 
tentatively set for six days from today.  I would suggest that you take 
advantage of Tiger-san's presence as your new sparring partner to use 
that time preparing yourself.  You are dismissed, Cadet."

"Yes, sir," said Ranma, sparing one last look at the redhead.  Her 
catlike eyes and ears, not to mention her canines when she smiled at 
him again, left him feeling twinges of fear.

After Ranma had left, Fuyutsuki paused and turned his gaze to look at 
Tiger.  "Tiger-san?"

"Yes, Dean Fuyutsuki?"

"You are dismissed as well.  I would suggest that you take the time to 
set things up at the dormitory for this week's activities.  Do you know 
where it is?"

"Yes, sir.  I am very familiar with the campus."

"Excellent.  Coach Fujinami will join you shortly at the dorm.  You may 
go now."

"Yes, Fuyutsuki-san," said Tiger, bowing respectfully before she turned 
and departed.

When she was gone, Fujinami said, "She will be an interesting test of 
young Saotome's abilities."

"I agree," replied the Dean.  He turned to look at Fujinami.  The other 
man had a thoughtful expression on his face as he stared at the door 
Ranma had just departed through.

"What do you think of his chances, Coach?"

"I thought they were good before, sir."

"So did I.  Ranma had best not fail me again, for his sake."

"Don't worry, sir.  Tiger and I'll have Saotome whipped into shape for 
his rematch against the Tenjou girl.  She won't win again."

"Going to bet on the boy again, Coach?"

"How did you-?"  Coach Fujinami stared at the Dean, surprised at his 
knowledge of the wager.

"Did you tell your wives how much you lost last time?" asked Fuyutsuki 
mildly, smiling a bit more broadly now.

"Ah, you know women, sir," replied Fujinami with a slight chuckle.  
"Keiko and Yurimi only agree on a few things, one of those being how 
little to give me back from my paycheck.  I'd saved the money I used 
for that bet for weeks, and I was positive that Ranma would win."

"Marrying two women," said the Dean in wonder.  "I know that a man can 
have more than one, but I've seen those two together.  How did you ever 
keep them from killing each other?"

"By marrying both of them," replied Fujinami ruefully.  Perhaps dating 
two women at the same time when he had been attending Tokyo University 
had not been the smartest thing he could have done with his social 
life, but after twenty years of marriage to them, he no longer 
regretted it in the slightest.  "I love both of them, and they've since 
learned to tolerate each other."

"You're a braver man than I, Coach," said Fuyutsuki with a smile.  
"Well, you should get ready to supervise Ranma's intensified training.  
I want daily progress reports on his improvement.  Utilize Tiger to 
stretch Saotome's abilities to the breaking point."

"Yes, sir.  What do you want me to do about Kodachi and Nabiki?"

"Leave the two of them in Coach Takami's care," replied the Dean.  "I 
want you to focus on Ranma.  A week spent apart from the girls might 
help him concentrate.  And I've noticed that they've both been showing 
some competitive spirit around each other."

"You could call it that, sir."

"Anyway, keep me informed on Ranma," said the Dean, picking up some 
papers from a stack on his desk.  "I want him to be a champion, Coach.  
I'm counting on you."

"He won't fail you, sir," said Fujinami, standing up and heading for 
the door in answer to the unspoken dismissal.

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

Ranma stared out the window in his class, his eyes tracking Tiger's 
progress as she strolled across the campus to the dormitory area.  The 
building she was heading towards was brand new, to handle increases in 
the number of students housed on campus.  Watching her trim figure 
stride along, Ranma was starting to wonder at times if the only other 
people in his life would all be female.  He was even beginning to think 
that he would welcome the appearance of Ryoga, or maybe even Kuno 
showing up more often to harass him.  That would be like a semblance of 
having some guy friends, at least.  His mother kept urging Ranma, along 
with her annoying efforts at securing for him a wife, to come along 
with her to meet her friend Achika's son, Tenchi.  And a month ago, his 
father had also suggested he look up the son of an old friend of his, 
Makoto Mizuhara, a boy his own age who was studying science at one of 
the less prestigious academies in the area.

Maybe after things calmed down a bit, Ranma thought.  Still, the idea 
of kicking back and relaxing with some male companions was fairly 
attractive.  With the memories of his other selves to judge from, his 
male identity was going to atrophy if he didn't make some guy friends, 
and soon.

"Class, today we have a new student joining us," announced Ayaka from 
the front of the room.  "Minami-san, please take a moment and introduce 
yourself."

Ranma's head jerked around at the sound of the name.  He stared at the 
redhead standing in front of the class and almost leaped out of his 
chair.  She _can't_ be a Ghost Sweeper on this timeline, he thought. 
After all, Ranma was quite different from his own analog on that other 
Earth.  Besides, she was thinner and appeared to be in better shape.  
So he forced himself to calm down, but the thought kept running through 
his mind, I ain't afraid of no ghosts.

"Hi there, everyone!" Minami greeted the class with a cheery wave.  
"Minami's my name, and Ghost Sweeping's my game!"

Ranma almost fell out of his chair.  Luckily, no one had apparently 
noticed.  I do _not_ believe this, he subvocalised.  Who's next to walk 
into my life?  I hope she's not here to bust some damn spook.  That'd 
be all I need right now.

Minami smiled at the class, her ego exulting in the many interested 
looks she was getting from the boys.  She had sensed some odd energies 
swirling around the campus, even stronger in this room.  She swiveled 
her gaze among the students, quickly noticing one boy (a good-looking 
one too, she saw) who seemed to recognize her.  There was something odd 
about his spiritual aura though.

Ranma and Minami locked gazes for a few moments.  Ranma looked suddenly 
nervous and Minami looked more intense.

Gosunkugi, seated in the back of the class and enjoying anonymity as 
was his preference, blinked and frowned deeply at the sight of the two 
looking so intensely at each other.  An odd feeling suffused him, but 
he was positive it wasn't jealousy.  That would be a betrayal of his 
feelings for Akane.  But in ten days was the next new moon.  Then Ranma 
Saotome was really going to get it.

"He's possessed!" Minami suddenly announced, fumbling in her bag for 
her pad of o-fuda (anti-evil wards).  She whipped one out, letting a 
small portion of her magics charge it with power.  It snapped straight 
in her hand, burning with flames that did not consume the paper.  With 
a skill born of many hours spent in the target ranges practicing such 
maneuvers, she flipped her wrist and the flaming strip of paper sailed 
across the room to affix itself to the boy scholar's forehead.

The whole class seemed to hold its breath as one.

Ayaka took a moment to sense Ranma's aura, but she did not detect 
anything really out of the ordinary in him.  His spirit was a rather 
strong one, like a torch fire when most people were mere candleflames, 
but he was not possessed.  She sighed, realizing that Minami had just 
mistakenly read Ranma as possessed when he was simply a strong soul, 
perhaps a very old soul with many lives under its proverbial belt.  The 
two sorts of energy patterns were very similar though.

Ranma blinked, having been too startled by her announcement to even try 
dodging out of the way.  He plucked the o-fuda from his face.

The class exhaled as one.  Several of the girls glared at Minami.  The 
boys seemed to be concentrating on the Ghost Sweeper's figure, and a 
few of the cadets in blue uniforms appeared to be attempting to 
calculate her measurements.  All but Ranma, who had seen more naked 
women in the past few weeks that would put even Minami's figure to 
shame.

"Are you through embarrassing me to my classmates now?" Ranma asked 
sarcastically, crumpling the o-fuda into a ball and tossing it into the 
trash can next to Ayaka's desk, without getting up.  He did not appear 
to notice, or care about, the angry glare he was receiving from the 
young Ghost Sweeper.

Minami was blushing as red as her hair, mortified at the thought of how 
she must have appeared.  A second glance at Ranma with her spirit 
senses showed her that her initial reaction had been overly hasty.  
Nobody laughed though, an awareness of what a former Institute cadet 
might be capable of doing was muting that reaction.

"Well, perhaps you should take your seat now, Minami-san," Ayaka said, 
feeling sorry for the girl.  "There's one near the back, next to 
Gosunkugi-san."

Ranma blinked and slowly turned around to see the sunken-eyed boy, a 
bit surprised at never noticing him before, then he muttered something 
under his breath and turned back to face the front of the classroom.

Her spine ramrod straight, Minami walked stiff-leggedly to the rear of 
the classroom before dropping into her assigned seat.  Her gaze at the 
back of Ranma's head was glaring.  She briefly glanced over at Hikaru 
Gosunkugi and narrowed her eyes into a glare at him as well.

"You say one word about what just happened, and I'll make your life a 
living hell," Minami stage-whispered to the thin boy.  Ranma Saotome 
had made a fool out of the wrong girl, she thought.  She would find a 
way to get him back.

Ayaka shook her head in bemusement.  When the class had finally settled 
back to normal, she began her lecture on the latest chapter in the 
textbook, how it was the duty of every citizen to marry and raise law-
abiding children who would further strengthen the Empire.

Ranma sat in his seat and tried not to twitch.

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

Tiger prowled the dormitory building while she waited for Ranma to show 
up for their first training session, investigating the many rooms to 
see what they contained.  The second through fourth floors had a number 
of identical bedrooms, each with a pair of bunk-beds that had a thin 
mattress wrapped in plastic and a pair of small writing desks with 
hookups for computer terminals.  At one end of each hall was a fairly 
large-sized tiled room with bathing fixtures, including a large tub for 
soaking, one big enough for a dozen people.  At the other end of the 
hall were the lavatory facilities.

The more interesting things were located on the first floor.  The 
building had a small kitchen facility and pantry, and a communal dining 
room.  There was a room set up with connections for television hookups, 
as well as tables and chairs for studying.  Tiger was uncertain how a 
person could study with other people watching television in the same 
room though.  There was even a small laundry room available.

The place that caught Tiger's attention most was the small gym area, 
currently empty of weight machines.  It was large enough that it could 
be used for sparring indoors, since the weather at night could get 
quite cold and Tiger did not much care for that sort of thing.  If she 
was going to be spending several days beating the stuffings out of 
Ranma Saotome, then she wanted to be comfortable while doing it.

The catgirl chose one of the rooms on the second floor near the bathing 
facilities for her own, setting down her small travel bag on the bed 
and ripping off the plastic sheet covering the mattress.  She had 
brought it with her to the Academy after Kinnosuke had explained his 
plan to her.  It contained enough clothes for a week, mostly underwear 
(and Tiger had an admitted fondness for lacy, see-through things), 
since she was mainly going to be wearing a gi for most of the week 
while she performed her assignment.  The laundry facility was going to 
come in very handy.
 
                   *****************************

Ranma stood in his Chinese-style clothes on one side of the mat the 
coach had provided, finally done with loosening himself up.  Coach 
Fujinami had provided it, having several of the upperclassmen drag the 
pieces in here and set them up.  A twelve-meter square of blue padding 
now rested in the center of the dining area.

Standing across the mat from Ranma was Tiger, her body clothed in a 
light green gi made of tough silk, her namesake animal stitched into 
the cloth with golden thread and running around her torso.  She was 
currently smiling at him rather unpleasantly, her enlarged canines 
clearly visible as she popped her knuckles, her head rolling for a 
moment from one side of her shoulders to the other.

"Ready, Saotome-san?" asked Tiger, taking up her position on the mat.

"Yeah," said Ranma, already fighting down the fear that the girl 
generated in him.  It was not bad enough to trigger the Cat Fist, but 
it could provide enough hesitation in his movements to prevent him from 
winning.  Not that he thought he would lose, since she was only a girl, 
despite whatever modifications science may have done when creating her.

Tiger moved towards him across the mat in ground-devouring strides, her 
long legs bringing her to him quickly.  Her fists lashed out at him, 
powerful blows blocked or evaded.  Seeing a frontal assault was getting 
her nowhere, Tiger crouched down and sprang over Ranma's head.  Her 
body flipping over behind him.  A kick slammed into the pigtailed boy's 
back before he could fully turn around, and his body hurtled into the 
wall to impact with a crash.  Tiger retracted her leg, bouncing up and 
down lightly on the balls of her feet.

Fujinami clapped his hand over his face and groaned.  If that was the 
best that Ranma was going to do, he was going to need something to 
drink.  He got up from his position and walked over to Tiger.

"Yes, Fujinami-sensei?" Tiger asked.

"I'm going to make myself some tea.  I want you to put Ranma through 
his paces while I'm gone.  But remember, this is only the first day.  
We have an entire week ahead of us."

"Yes, Fujinami-sensei," said Tiger, nodding her head.  She noticed 
Ranma standing up, a glint appearing in her eyes.  "I will do as you 
say."

Fujinami grunted, before going into the kitchen area to make himself 
some tea.

"All right, ya just got lucky that time," said Ranma as he stepped back 
on the mat.  "I'm ready for you now."

Fujinami heard what sounded like a body being slammed around, but he 
ignored it.  This intensive training was for Ranma's own good, after 
all.

Ranma slid down the wall he had impacted hard into once again, his body 
upside down as it crumpled into a heap at the baseboards.  "Ouch," he 
muttered.  This may be more of a challenge than I thought, he mused.

And so it continued throughout the day, and on into the evening.

"That was pathetic, Saotome," said Fujinami, standing up.  "I'm going 
home and to bed.  Tiger, work with him for another hour and then put 
him to bed.  I'll be back in the morning."

"Yes, Fujinami-sensei," Tiger purred, a happy smile on her face.

After watching the man leave while he gathered himself, Ranma struggled 
to stand once again.  I hate this, he thought.  I hate being beaten up 
by a girl!

"Ready for another try, Saotome-san?" Tiger asked, kneeling down next 
to him.  The purring undertones in her voice were not helping Ranma's 
efforts to control his fears.  He added a few more check marks to his 
list concerning beatings to be administered to Genma Saotome.

"Ye-" was all Ranma got out, before his body was picked up and slammed 
down on the mat.  Tiger's knee came crashing down on his stomach a 
moment later, knocking him unconscious.

Pathetic weakling, Tiger snorted in her thoughts.  She went to fill up 
the bucket with cold water again.  It amused her to see her foe wake 
and immediately take stock of his parts, as if looking for something 
and being surprised each time when he failed to find it.

Ranma lay where he was, his body looking as if it had been worked over 
by experts.

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

Assistant Director Hinako Ninomiya frowned at her computer screen.  I'm 
no closer to breaking this damned encryption lock than I was days ago, 
she thought with annoyance.  Many hours of her free time spent on this, 
and she still had nothing to show for it.  All of her personal 
decryption algorithms, some of them she was not even supposed to have, 
had just come back again with the same answer they had been reporting 
to her since she first began her fruitless quest to unlock the secrets 
contained on the silvery disk.  I just know that bastard Tendo is 
laughing at me.  He knows something that he's not telling.  But, what?

Hinako shut off her computer system and sighed.  The sounds of the 
shower had stopped a few minutes ago, so she forced herself to relax 
and mentally prepared to enjoy the remainder of her night.  She got up 
and softly padded over to the mirror in her bedroom, taking a moment to 
loosen her light robe and adjust the fit of her silk nightgown, one cut 
just right to show off to their best effect her trimly athletic figure, 
the length of her well-toned legs, and the fullness of her breasts.  
She smiled softly at her reflection as she slowly ran a hand up along 
her torso, feeling the solid muscle underlying her very womanly curves, 
like warm velvet covering steel.  She was pleased as always with the 
striking image staring back at her.  Random memories from the path that 
had led her to this point flashed across her mind even as she made 
minute adjustments to her outfit.

Born a sickly child with a weak constitution, Hinako never would have 
imagined at that young age the athletic and sultry figure of the woman 
she would eventually mature into.  An orphan from her birth, a ward of 
the Empire, all she could remember of her youngest childhood was a 
nameless hospital being her home.  But then, at the age of four or so, 
an unexpected miracle had come into her life.  She was adopted by a 
mysterious patron, taken away to a new home deep in the mountains of 
central China, where her life began anew.

Hinako remembered little of those days before her time spent in her new 
home, one among nearly a dozen young Japanese, Chinese, and Korean 
girls.  On her first night there, a nameless figure had given her a 
shot, knocking her unconscious.  The next few days or weeks were a hazy 
recollection, a period of alternating bouts of painful cramps, severe 
nausea, raging fever, and chills.  When all of that finally passed, her 
body began changing, growing stronger and healthier than it had ever 
been before, and Hinako Ninomiya started her new life.  It was a life 
that was as cruel as it was occasionally enjoyable, but she came to 
realize that it was a gift from Heaven as she grew strong and capable 
from the trials she underwent.

While still recovering from the last stages of her illness, young 
Hinako had been introduced to the woman who would make the next decade 
a living hell.  She was a withered, ancient crone who rarely smiled, a 
martial arts teacher who was only ever addressed as 'Sensei.'  Hinako 
had also been introduced to the man who their teacher only ever called 
'Master,' a very tall, dark, and coldly menacing figure.  His face was 
hawklike, his body athletic and strong, and he was a man of undeniable 
charisma.  He would appear like a phantom, watching the progress of 
Hinako and her fellow students, rarely if ever speaking, and then he 
would vanish off elsewhere into the vast depths of the vast mountain 
fortress that Hinako came to call home.  She was never even told its 
name or location.

Years passed.

The group of girls training with Hinako maintained a distance with each 
other, viewing their peers as rivals for the rare praise of their 
teacher.  And a rough sort of pecking order established itself over 
time.  She could remember many nights spent recovering from beatings at 
the hands of the other girls, until her own strength and skill finally 
grew great enough to bring her up from the bottom of the cadre to the 
top.  Pain taught her to be strong, and she used it to force herself to 
be better and faster than she had been before.

When Hinako was thirteen or so, she finally began to mature into a most 
strikingly beautiful young woman.  The years of intensive training had 
given her an athletic grace that was quite remarkable.  Each of the 
other girls in her cadre grew to be beautiful, but Hinako considered 
herself to be the most lovely.  The Master began to visit more often, 
offering special techniques to those whom he felt were worthy.  To 
Hinako, he taught one that she avoided using much, despite the rush it 
gave her, due to the questions it could raise in her present calling.  
It was a chi draining ability that left few warriors able to stand 
against her, one that added even more strength and speed to her body 
while the charge lasted.  The only limitation was that she required a 
circle of some sort to act as a focus for her abilities.

Late one night, sometime after that, the Master paid a visit to her 
chambers, whispering to her that it was now time to begin repaying her 
debt to him.  Frightened of his wrath if she attempted to resist him, 
she allowed him to take from her what he desired.  It was painful at 
first, but he was not cruel to her and he taught her that the act could 
be quite pleasurable.  She even came to welcome his attentions to a 
degree.

Growing up with as little caring human contact as she had, Hinako 
treated his infrequent attentions as a form of love.  It gave the 
little orphan girl she once was a feeling that someone indeed cared 
about her welfare, perhaps even loved her.  It was a pleasant fantasy, 
but one she valued highly to maintain her own sanity.  She cultivated a 
hope that someday she would meet a man who could indeed love her, but 
it was a feeling now deeply buried within her.

Shortly before she turned sixteen, the Master sent all of his young 
students back out into the world.  Hinako vaguely remembered the old 
woman doing something to her head, somehow blocking memories from her 
time growing up.  However, all of her martial arts skills were left 
intact, along with the fruits of a well-rounded scholastic curriculum.  
In the years since, she had become an even more capable fighter.

Hinako, an orphan once again, was accepted to study at the Imperial 
Academy.  It was there she took her first steps to becoming an elite 
operative of the Security Directorate.  At the Academy, she was exposed 
to a much larger world, one that challenged her mind and body to their 
limits.  She matured into a woman, tall and strong, and her skills grew 
ever greater with each passing day.

Hungry to claim a place in society that no one would ever dare take 
away from her, Hinako exploited this opportunity as much as she could, 
honing herself and her abilities to razor sharpness.  She dedicated her 
life to her Security training.  As a sort of hobby, she began ferreting 
out every secret of her peers and her instructors that she could, for 
she knew quite well even then that information was power.  And it was 
also there at the Academy that she had first learned how easy it was to 
utilize her burgeoning femininity as a potent weapon, charming males 
both old and young alike with the beauty of her body.

After a time, and a few early, somewhat fumbling mistakes, no male 
could resist eventually succumbing to her will.  Her potent skills at 
learning valuable secrets, backed up by an increasingly seductive body 
as she matured into an adult, proved far too formidable a combination 
to overcome for her rivals.  And, after her graduation with honors from 
the Academy, she then quickly rose through the ranks of the Security 
Directorate, sometimes undercutting and ruthlessly crushing the careers 
of anyone who dared oppose her.

Now she was within reach of her ultimate goal, the only real 
competition remaining for the final rank up being a man named Soun 
Tendo.

Hinako frowned at the thought of him, her nominal equal despite over 
ten years in age difference between them.  Soun Tendo was one of the 
rare men who had proven able to resist her rather considerable feminine 
wiles.  It was quite irritating to her in a number of ways.  Still, 
there was a sense of excitement, an intensity in the game that they 
played with each other, a duel of minds and wills.  In a way, it was 
oddly satisfying to her to have there be at least one man who was able 
to resist her so ably, even if she sometimes hated him with a level of 
passion that burned like a fire within her.

Studying the sensuous beauty of her face reflected in the glass, Hinako 
was mildly annoyed to see it marred by her look of anger, and she 
smoothed her features with the skills of a consummate natural actress.  
My ambitions will not be thwarted by that cold bastard, she thought, 
holding her anger beneath the surface.  After all, I deserve to head up 
the Security Directorate more than any man.  I've worked hard to get 
where I am, sacrificed so much in order to rise so far in the service 
of the Empire.  With a sigh, a brief thought of having Soun Tendo 
removed permanently from her path was discarded, after being idly 
considered with a certain amount of relish.

The door to the bedroom suddenly opened, interrupting her musings, and 
Hinako smiled seductively at the shadowy figure of the man standing 
there, backlit by the light from the other room.  It was a half-genuine 
smile, but she had learned long ago that her body had strong needs that 
required her to play such parts as this from time to time.  It would 
have shocked some of her underlings at the Directorate to know, but 
there were times when she simply needed to feel the gentle touch of a 
man.  There were moments when she needed to just be Hinako Ninomiya, 
the flesh and blood woman of passions and desires, and not the mask she 
had carefully crafted, called Assistant Director Ninomiya.

Yet being so vulnerable like that with a man was an uncomfortable thing 
for her, so she chose her sexual companions carefully.  To her, they 
were all but toys, simply an easily-manipulated means for her to 
satisfy the animal lusts that welled up within her, demanding their 
satisfaction.  So, with these desires filling her mind and a seductive 
sway to her hips in her walk, she languidly strutted over and pulled 
him into the room.

"I've missed you, Hinako-chan," he whispered, his face hidden to view 
as he nuzzled at her neck.

Hinako gasped with delight as he found the spot on her neck that sent 
shivers of pleasure through her.  "H-how long will you be back this 
time?" she whispered, passion making her breathing heavy.

"I've been given a new posting locally," he whispered.  Drawing back, 
the face of Gendo Rokubungi became visible.  "I'm to become the new 
Headmaster of Furinkan Military Academy.  They felt a younger man would 
be best, since the Empire's war machine seems to be gearing up for a 
campaign again.  We'll be able to be together more often, eh?"  Without 
waiting for an answer, he held her close and crushed his lips against 
hers.

Reveling in the feel of his kiss, Hinako still had enough presence of 
mind to remember how it had began between the two of them.  Shortly 
after her promotion to the rank below her present one, a function at 
the Imperial Court had required her attendance.  It had been there that 
she had first seen Major Rokubungi, still only a captain then, but one 
who was on the fast-track to the senior ranks of the military.

A dance had turned into two.  Then, before she realized it, an entire 
evening had passed.  They ended up in bed together, but nothing more 
was expected to come of it.  Both of them had their careers to concern 
themselves with.

Over time, their relationship had matured.  It was a casual thing 
though, something that waxed and waned with their moods.  After rising 
to her present rank, Hinako was amazed at how similar Gendo was to her 
new nemesis.  Sometimes, she even went so far as to pretend Gendo was 
Soun, and she would have been hard-pressed to say why.  Both of them 
were stern figures of men, hardened by their lives, but Hinako refused 
to believe that she was looking for some sort of father figure.

There were other people in their lives, of course.  Gendo had a roving 
eye, and Hinako had other men that she cultivated relationships with.  
However, when Gendo announced his intentions to marry Yui Ikari, the 
woman he claimed to have fallen in love with, Hinako had felt angry.  
The girl had been assigned to her section less than a month after 
graduating from the Imperial Academy, so she had taken Yui under her 
wing.  Arranging for pictures of Gendo with one of his other women was 
child's play.  After Yui had received an anonymous batch of photos, the 
relationship was off.  Hinako had been happy to play the consoling 
woman to him, as well as the older sister to a devastated Yui.  Gendo 
had taken a temporary posting on the Russian border, but now he was 
back.  After several months freezing in Siberia, he was surely over his 
fascination with Yui Ikari.

Afterwards, Hinako lay staring up at the ceiling of her bedroom, Gendo 
sleeping contentedly on his stomach, one arm loosely around her waist.  
She sighed discontentedly as her naked body cooled down from their 
recent activities.  Despite over two hours of amorous exertions, she 
still felt vaguely unsatisfied.  Frowning for a moment at Gendo's body 
slumbering away in her bed, she pondered why she felt as she did, for 
it had been this way for many months.  Physically, she was quite 
satisfied by tonight's activities, a number of rather intense orgasms 
having taken most of the edge off of those particular tensions in her 
body.  No, she did not have a single complaint about that, but she 
still felt somewhat empty inside, perhaps even... lonely?  With a 
frustrated growl, she rolled over onto her side, cuddling against the 
sleeping figure as if he were one of the stuffed animals she kept 
hidden in the back of her closet, and tried to fall asleep.  As she 
drifted off, the feelings of aloneness continued as she held onto the 
man in bed with her.


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Special thanks go out to D.B. Sommer for his permission for me to use 
characters from his story (Ghost Sweeper Minami and the entire Shampoo 
1/2 world).

Thanks to my pre-readers for all of their help and advice:

D.B. Sommer
Wade Tritschler
Stardragon
Mike Allen