What came before: Akane lives in a world where monsters have become a reality. Five years ago, a newscaster outed his girlfriend as a werewolf on national television. Now, Akane works as a receptionist for a realty agency, and one night is attacked by one of her co-workers who was bitten. She tries to escape, but is about to be killed when a young man with a sword, Kenshin Himura, shows up and kills the wolf.

Ranma meanwhile, is in China, killing monsters and looking for his father. He decides to find Himura, who has been mentioned by his father in passing. Himura mentions that Genma was looking into visiting Chinatown.

Kenshin is worried that Akane might become a werewolf from being bitten, and lock her in his apartment building basement to guard her. Meanwhile, another couple has decided to try the same thing. The woman turns into a werewolf, and Akane and Kenshin barely escape her. They tranquilize her (her male partner has long disappeared) and take her back to Kenshin's apartment. Ranma reappears as well, not having had much luck in Chinatown.

Chapter Five

Akane sipped the steaming hot green tea that Kenshin had made for them. She was curled up in one of the couches in the swordsman's living room, watching Kenshin as he poured tea for Ranma.

"So there's a werewolf in your spare bedroom," the pigtailed boy commented.

"That's right," Kenshin nodded and handed the cup to Ranma. "If you're wondering what I'm planning to do with her, I really don't know. The tranquilizer should be good for the night. We'll decide in the morning."

Ranma accepted the cup and sat back, marveling how the decadent comfort of the couches went surprisingly well with the stone walls. He looked down at his bare feet, the dark reflection of his toes mirrored in the highly polished black marble floor. It was cool to the touch. Solid.

This must be one of the newer buildings created to be ‘monster proof’, he reflected. Since the 'outing' of monsters the world over, architects had started designing more expensive, stronger buildings. It probably explained why the mysterious Stella and Kristof had picked it for her transformation.

With one ear, he listened to the radio switched on in a corner. The announcer was talking about a demonstration against werewolves by earth witches. They were protesting outside the office building of a well known businessman, Ian Willoughby, claiming that he was a werewolf.

He also watched Akane. Kenshin had given a short explanation of her frightening experience with her colleague-turned-werewolf. She also looked exhausted from the bout with Stella, curled up in her robe as she was. Ranma was amazed that she had made it out alive of either attack.

“So, what did you find in Chinatown?” Kenshin asked as he leaned back in his chair with his own cup of tea.

Ranma grimaced. “Not much. It was raining, and the photo I was showing around of Dad quickly became pretty soggy. I had to put it away before it came apart in my hands. No one recognized him anyway. But I’ll go back tomorrow.” He didn't see the sympathetic glance Akane sent him.

“I have a friend in Chinatown,” Kenshin said slowly.

Ranma sat up. “Well, why didn’t you say so before?” he demanded.

Kenshin flushed slightly. “To be honest, it’s a while since I saw him, and I was a bit busy making sure you weren’t going to kidnap Akane.”

His guests coloured in turn. Akane sent Ranma a mini glare, which Ranma returned. She annoyed him, for some reason. She had as soon as she had opened the door to him with her tousled hair and wrapped robe, and Ranma had jumped to the conclusion that she was Kenshin's girlfriend. He'd been inordinately relieved to find out she was not. But it's not like he cared who she screwed. He glared at her some more.

Kenshin noticed the rising tension. “Anyway,” he stood up. “Okina-dono keeps pretty late hours. Why don’t we go try our luck?”

“Now?” Akane squeaked, distracted into breaking her glaring contest with Ranma. “But, it’s nearly midnight…and there’s a sleeping werewolf in your spare bedroom!”

Ranma took a hasty gulp of his tea, nearly scalding his tongue, and jumped up. “You don’t have to come! Stay here. Kenshin and I will go.”

Furious, Akane jumped up too. “No way are you leaving me here by myself!! Are you insane? What if the werewolf wakes up and decides she has a case of the midnight munchies? Huh?”

Ranma slowly closed his eyes and leaned back with a smirk. “Big loss.”

“WHAT did you say?!”

Ranma opened his eyes and leaned in again, until he and Akane were nose to nose. “You heard me.”

“Why, you…”

“Children, children, no fighting. You might wake the monster.” Kenshin interspersed himself between the two teens. He was smiling at Akane, but laid a light hand on Ranma’s chest, pushing him slowly but inexorably back. Ranma was impressed. Kenshin seemed to be coaxing, but Ranma found it impossible to gain even an inch he had lost.

“My clothes must be dry.” With that, Akane disappeared in a huff.

“You’re a lot stronger than you look. A lot.” Ranma commented.

Kenshin turned to look at him. “So are you. I was expecting you to give ground faster.”

Ranma smiled. “I don’t give ground easily.”

Akane fumed as she marched down the hallway and hauled her clothes out of Kenshin’s large, gleaming space-age dryer. She looked down to the end of the hall at the bathroom. But she would have to cross the door of the guest bedroom before she could make it to the bathroom. She looked at the inviting bathroom door, then at the guestroom door, slightly ajar.

Clutching her clothes, she inched forward slightly. As she approached, the gap between the door and the frame grew clearer, and she could see a section of black, furry torso rising and falling as the werewolf slept on the large queen bed. All she could see was the section of chest. She crept closer, drawn by curiosity.

As she slowly pushed the door slightly wider, more of the wolf came into view. The neck, the crushing jaws, the eyes…

The werewolf made a snarling noise that so frightened Akane that she screamed. Only it was so high pitched she, let alone Ranma and Kenshin, didn’t even hear it.

She froze, waiting for the werewolf to rush her. But it didn’t rise. Looking closer, Akane realized that its eyes were still closed. It was snorting, or snarling, in its sleep.

Akane drew a deep shuddering breath as her heart jumpstarted and began to thump loudly in belated relief. She closed the door and backed away quietly. Forget the bathroom. If she went in there, she'd just have to cross the hallway again. Looking around, she took off her robe and quickly drew on her panties in the hallway, next to the still warm dryer.

Ranma turned the corner and braked to a halt. Akane, her back turned to him, was slipping on a silky pink bra. He caught sight of the curve of her left breast under her arm before she arched away, her fingers focusing on closing the clasp. She hadn’t seen him.

His gaze wandered in a shocked daze down the curve of her spine, the snug fit of her underwear, and the length of her legs before his eyes shot back up to encounter her furious gaze.

She opened her mouth, ready to yell, then glanced behind her shoulder at a closed door.

Ranma realized that the sleeping Stella snored there, preventing Akane from verbally shredding him to pieces.

Akane turned back, and there was fury in her gaze when she found him still there. ‘Pervert’, she mouthed, grabbing her skirt to quickly shimmy into it.

He grinned. He had been about to leave when his conscience caught up with his brain, but now he couldn’t resist. He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall, making a point of enjoying the show. He even raised a finger to his lips, miming a ‘shh’ sound.

Akane glared at him again, looking like she wanted to crucify him. She turned her back and quickly pulled on her blouse, her haste forcing her to fumble with the buttons. She was getting ready to march up to Ranma and punch him in the face when he slipped past her. The bathroom door closed gently, and Akane heard the sound of the lock.

Choking down her rage, she stomped back quietly to the living room. Kenshin was settling his scabbard against his back, where it faded in with his long black coat, and was hidden by his long red pony-tail.

“You don’t have to come with us, Akane,” Kenshin reminded her. “You haven’t caught the lycanthropy so you’re still normal. You can go back home and forget about all this.”

Akane nodded. She had been thinking about that as she sipped her tea earlier, but the thought of going back to her fragile apartment with its wooden walls, where she would be all alone, gave her the living creeps.

Besides, she had a score to settle with that Ranma! The cursed peeping tom!

But she didn’t want to be an obligation to Kenshin. He was just about a complete stranger. He had saved her life, but he wasn’t obliged to do more.

“I have money for cabfare,” she said. She bowed. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me, Kenshin. I can never repay you.”

Kenshin was waving her thanks aside already, a grin on his gamine face. "Oh, no, Akane, not at all. Anyway, it will be nearly impossible to catch a cab at this time of night. Ranma and I can drop you at home on the way.”

Ranma joined them then, and with a slight smirk to Akane, indicated that he was ready to leave. They took a quiet, carpeted elevator down to the basement carpark. The parking lot was well lighted, but there were pools of shadow in places, nonetheless, and Akane was glad she wasn’t alone as they walked to Kenshin’s sleek Bentley and climbed in.

“We’ll drop Akane home first, and then stop at Chinatwon,” Kenshin informed Ranma.

“What? Why?” Ranma swung around from his seat in the front to look at Akane, and she decided it was the dim lighting that seemed to show disappointment in his eyes.

“Akane stumbled into this world by accident, Ranma,” Kenshin explained patiently. “She has no part in your quest for your father, and she will be safer at home.”

“Oh I see….you’re scared, are you?” Ranma taunted her. “It’s not your fault, I suppose. Girls always have been scaredycats, I guess…”

Akane sat forward, wanting to wring Ranma’s neck. “No, we’re not! We just know what the smart thing to do is, okay!”

“I’ll tell you what the smart thing to do would be, it would be…”

Kenshin had turned the radio volume higher to drown out the teens, and the announcer’s voice came loud and clear- “…rioting in the streets. The earth witches are struggling against the street gang of goblins that showed up to argue with them… The police have completely closed off Cormier Street, as well as all access to the area…”

“Wait!” Akane tossed up a hand mid-argument. “That’s my street!” she exclaimed in a slightly panicked voice.

"I don't think you wanna be heading back there right now," Ranma commented. "Spells and goblins flyin' about ain't a pretty sight, and one of 'em could hit you."

Kenshin nodded with sympathy. “Indeed. It looks like your trip home will be delayed, Akane. I'm sorry.”

Ranma smiled at them. “Chinatown it is!”

Ranma looked around as he, Akane and Kenshin walked through the brightly coloured, rain lashed streets of Chinatown. The snow had turned to slush now. Even in this weather, there were crowds moving with them, people shopping or drinking beef soup at little joints as they laughed and gestured to each other. Ranma could see them through the plate glass windows as he passed them.

Next to him, Akane stalked angrily, her slim figure encased in a clear plastic collared rain slicker that Kenshin had unearthed from the trunk of his car. Kenshin’s long coat kept him dry, and Ranma was wearing a hoodless slicker as well. The rain was matting their hair to their faces, allowing rivulets to run down their cheeks.

What Ranma didn't know, however, was Akane's secret relief at being here with them. She felt safe with Kenshin, and Ranma's cocky attitude had given her a strange sense of security as well. Not that she had seen him fight. But she could tell that he did. She'd grown up as a martial artist, and she knew that much, even if her skills were long rusting by the wayside.

Kenshin led them with a purposeful step, and it looked as though he knew exactly where he was going. That man was one deep well, Ranma thought to himself. He was a obviously a warrior, and moved with a speed and grace that Ranma had rarely seen in anyone else before.

They were slowly coming into an older area now. The blocks were filled with older apartment buildings, and small shops tucked away here and there. They passed a Chinese monastery as well, and Ranma turned to watch rain drip from the stone curls of the leonine guardian dogs at the gates.

“Here we are.” Kenshin stopped at a small shop almost right next to the monastery, and led them in. They went down a flight of stairs, Kenshin in front. They reached a door, and Kenshin pushed his way through.

Within, the shop had a hundred tiny things tucked away on shelves and in cabinets. An old Japanese man with a narrow face, a curl to his beard, and a jaunty cap stood behind the counter.

He saw Kenshin and his face brightened. “Himura! It’s been a long time, my friend. How are you?”

Kenshin smiled back. “You’re right, Okina-dono. I apologize for not visiting more often.”

“And where is Sannosuke?” Okina inquired.

“Party,” Kenshin explained shortly.

Okina nodded knowingly. “And these youngsters? Friends of yours?” Youngsters! Ranma rolled his eyes. He was eighteen now, and one of the most powerful martial artists in the world. He didn’t need to be patronized by some old shopkeeper!

“Yes, that is correct, though all of us have only known each other for a short time. Ranma, Akane, this is Okina-dono.

Okina-dono, meet Tendo Akane and Saotome Ranma.”

The old man smiled at them. “Tendo and Saotome, eh? And you two don’t know each other? Interesting…”

“Ranma here,” Kenshin continued, “is looking for his father, Genma. Genma came to the city two weeks ago, and came into Chinatown. None of us have seen him since then.”

Ranma, abruptly serious, took out the damp picture of his father and handed it over.

Okina took the picture and looked at it. Then he said, “Ohhh…HIM.”

Everyone’s ears perked.

Okina sighed. “I hate to be the one to tell you this, Ranma my boy, but your father has been kidnapped.”

A/N: Wow, this chapter was hard to write! My plot bunny for this story has slowly starved, and brining it back to life isn't quite as easy as sending a jolt of lightning through Frankenstein's monster. Please review and let me know what you thought.