A/N: I own nothing from Ranma ½, don’t claim to nor am I going to make any money off this, my past time. (So, don’t sue me dammit!)

Forced Admission, Stunned Expressions

Ukyo’s expression was one of anger and betrayal, glaring at both Ranma and Nabiki as he set the girl down to her feet and turned to face his friend.

“What’s up, Ukyo?” he asked, feeling rather nervous when he truly saw the girl’s expression.

“What’s up? WHAT’S UP?” she yelled at him, taking a step closer to him, her fist shaking with anger as it rose.

Her eyes were wide with indignation. “I’ll tell you what’s UP, Ranma,” she snarled at him, hating his innocent act.

“I got word today that you got some guy named Bill to buy off my father so you don’t have to be engaged to me anymore, and I wanna know why!” she yelled into his face.

Ranma looked at her with an expression of confusion. “Um, Ucchan, I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he started to say, his mind finally realizing she’d mentioned Bill’s name. “Hold on a minute, did you say Bill?” he asked, beginning to get a grasp on the situation.

Nabiki swallowed hard as she watched the irate chef accost Ranma over the deal she’d made with Bill. ‘Uh oh, this isn’t going to end well,’ she thought, trying to pull together something that would salvage this situation before it spiraled out of control.

“Yeah, he said that was his name,” she told him, her tone and volume dropping slightly as she saw the recognition on his face as the mention of the name. “You...you mean it’s true?” she whispered to him, icy dread filling her once more.

Nabiki walked over to stand next to Ranma, though she stayed quiet and didn’t interrupt, simply wanting to show him support with her presence.

He nodded sadly at Ukyo. “Yeah, I guess it is Ucchan...I’m sorry,” he mumbled, licking his suddenly very dry lips with an equally dry tongue.

Before she could start yelling again at him, he tried to explain to her his thoughts about it. “I’ve been tryin’ to tell ya for ages now; I just don’t see you like a fiancée. You’ve always been just plain ol’ Ucchan to me, the guy I grew up with and played with when we were kids,” he told the girl, inadvertently defeminizing her once more.

“But...but Ran-chan, I thought...” she stammered, trying hard to stop the tears even as they fell from her eyes.

Ranma couldn’t turn away from her eyes; instead he forced himself to look into the face of pain he’d helped to create. “Things ain’t ever gonna be more than that Ucchan...I’m sorry,” he whispered to her.

Ukyo’s world collapsed around her, forcing the normally perky young girl to fall to her knees, sobs once more racking her body as her world shattered.

“Aw geez, don’t cry, Ukyo...” he said, starting to kneel down, only to be stopped by a firm hand on his shoulder. He looked up into the eyes of Nabiki, her head shaking from side to side, stopping him from going to the girl whose heart he’d just broke.

“Don’t do that to her, Ranma, don’t give her false hope if what you just told her is true,” she said quietly after the boy had stood back upright. Though her tone was firm, she showed him the depth of her sympathy with her eyes, not liking the events playing out, but knowing they had to happen if her own plans would come to bear fruit.

The voices swirled around the heart broken girl, though they were gibberish to her ears, so crushed was she by the news that Ranma had finally given her. She wanted to be held by him, comforted by him, and told that everything was going to be fine. That her life wasn’t for nothing, that she’s wasn’t going to lose him. In the end, there was nothing that came from him to ease her suffering, and it was then she understood what Bill had meant.

Akane, having watched the scene play out, stalked out onto the lawn to stand behind Ukyo, glaring at her sister. “I know you had a hand in this somehow, Nabiki...” she growled at them, getting the full attention of her sister.

Nabiki faced Akane’s rage with cool detachment. “Why Akane, what EVER do you mean?” she asked, folding her arms across her chest and striking up her normal indifferent posture.

“You know EXACTLY what I mean! There’s no WAY Ranma could have found enough money to pay off her father...much less come up with the idea! It was all this guy Bill’s doing, but I think that you had a hand in it as well,” she accused the Ice Queen, pointing a finger at the girl.

The argument had drawn the attention of the residents of the dojo, all coming to stand under the overhang on the porch, watching the drama unfold between them.

Soun, seeing his two daughters fighting, started to make his way towards them, only to be stopped by a gentle hand on his wrist.

“Let them be, Soun,” said Nodoka, watching with intense scrutiny at the interaction between the sisters, and the resulting expression on Ranma’s face. “Let’s see what happens here,” she whispered, getting a supporting nod from both Kasumi and Mutsumi.

“So, let me see if I’ve got this straight then. It was actually me all along that was pulling the strings on this little drama. Including bringing in some guy, that’s obvious wealthy, to take the fall for it all? To what end, Akane? There’s no money in it,” answered the shrewd business woman coldly, laying out the seemingly ludicrous plan.

Akane’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t know, but I can tell you’re up to something, and I mean to find out what it is. Don’t think I haven’t noticed how close you and Ranma have gotten lately, or that we haven’t noticed your nightly rendezvous on the roof when everyone is asleep,” the girl blurted, a smirk on her angry face.

Ranma, watching them argue back and forth, was stunned that Akane had figured out Nabiki’s plan so easily; until he heard Nabiki explain it as if it were the most far fetched idea he’d ever heard. ‘Wow, she’s good...or is she pulling my leg again?’ he wondered, doubting his feelings about the girl next to him.

He turned to look at her as she silently withstood the full brunt of Akane’s anger, never flinching or backing down. It was only when the fact was brought to light of his talks with her on the roof that he got involved in the argument.

“Hey! For someone that don’t care, you’re sure nosy!” he accused, angry now at Akane for spying on him. “What I do or who I talk to up there ain’t NONE of your concern, Akane!” he said finally, taking a step closer to her.

“Yeah? Well, who said I cared anyways? I just wanted the whole world to know what a lying, cheating, pervert you are!” she yelled back, her fist clenching in rage.

“CHEATING?” Ranma practically screamed back at her, now really upset. “How the hell can I be cheating? It ain’t like you wanna be with me, right? Ain’t you the one always sayin’ how YOU’RE stuck with ME?” he told her, hooking a thumb at his chest.

“Besides, maybe I just like talkin’ to someone that ain’t uncute or gonna try and knock me into next week for somethin’ that AIN’T EVEN MY FAULT!” he yelled, tired of being falsely accused for everything.

“UNCUTE?” she screamed back, doubling up her fist and unloading with what was supposed to be an uppercut into his unprotected chin.

There was a dull clanging noise as her fist collided with a rather large and now dented battle spatula, placed directly between her fist and his chin.

“Akane, don’t do that again,” said a quiet Ukyo, giving the girl a glare.

Akane blinked in surprise that Ukyo would defend the boy that just broke her heart. “What’d you do that for, Ukyo? Don’t you realize this idiot’s been cheating on all of us?” she sputtered to the battle chef.

Ukyo slowly stood, not breaking eye contact with the angry young girl. “Ranma-honey may not be the sharpest spatula in the drawer,” she said, drawing an angry “HEY!” from Ranma.

“But he ain’t never CHEATED on any of us,” she finished, ignoring the indignant cry from Ranma.

Standing now firmly between Ranma and Akane, she brandished her spatula so the broad head was resting by her feet. “He’s always tried to do the right thing without hurting any of us...only I never realized it until tonight,” she told her sadly, looking over her shoulder to meet Ranma’s eyes.

“I’m sorry, Ran-chan, for everything...including my stunt at your wedding,” she told the stunned boy, and then turned back to Akane.

“And I’m sorry to you as well, Akane. I got so wrapped up with what I wanted that I never looked at what else was going on,” she apologized to the similarly stunned girl.

Akane, however, wasn’t about to let that admission go. “You should be sorry! Do you know how much damage you caused my home with your stupid little ploy?” she demanded.

Ukyo hung her head. “Yeah, I do. I just couldn’t bear the thought of losing my Ranma-honey...” she said quietly.

“YOUR Ranma-honey? Since WHEN was he EVER yours?” Akane snorted in outrage at the arrogant statement.

Looking back up at her, Ukyo’s face was hard once more. “He’s been as much mine as he was yours Akane, thanks to that worthless man that calls himself Ranma’s father!” spat back Ukyo, fingers tightening around the battle spatula’s handle.

Nodoka raised an eyebrow to Soun, who immediately began sweating while nervously whistling and rocking on his feet, not meeting her eyes. “Excuse me, I think it’s time I had a...discussion...with my husband,” she said firmly, rising back to her feet and walking towards the stairs.

Kasumi smiled after the woman. “I’ll be right up to bring him his medication, Auntie,” she called out.

Mutsumi, used to such displays of rage and anger from Naru, also got to her feet. “Would you mind if I used your bath before I eat dinner, Kasumi?” she asked her friend.

“Not at all, Mutsumi. Here, let me show you where everything is,” offered her friend, both of them walking up the stairs, leaving the Tendo Patriarch alone with the volatile situation.

Akane narrowed angry eyes at the girl before her. “But he isn’t your fiancé now, is he, Ukyo?” she asked Ukyo, seeing the pain in her eyes as the remark struck home.

Not willing to show weakness or give her the satisfaction of seeing her head hand, Ukyo stood stiffly. “No...he’s not. Not any more. But,” she said with a growl, holding up a hand in point, “he’s STILL my BEST friend, something more than YOU’LL ever have!” she told Akane, a cold smile showing on her face.

Ranma blinked in surprise from Ukyo’s words, shocked at hearing her accept him as her best friend.

Nabiki felt a moment of elation and trepidation at the declaration, wondering how this would complicate things. ‘Well, I’ll just have to make sure that he understands where lines are that shouldn’t be crossed,’ she thought, turning eyes to Ranma and watching his expression as he listened to Akane and Ukyo fighting.

“You actually want this loser as a friend?” spat Akane. “After everything he’s done to you? All he cares about is whether or not you’ll give him free food!” she accused, pointing to Ranma.

Ranma, getting fairly tired of being talked about like he wasn’t there, jumped into the fray once more. “That ain’t true, Akane! Well, yeah I DO like her cooking, especially when it’s free, but...” he started, earning himself the glare of both girls and the groan of Nabiki. ‘Saotome foot in mouth disease strikes again,’ she thought, beginning to wonder about a Ranma shaped muzzle.

“I also like going there to just talk and stuff. It’s kinda nice having someone to talk to, without them jumping to conclusions all the time,” he told her, almost redeeming himself by the rather poignant statement.

Unfortunately, he didn’t know when to stop when he was ahead. “That’s why me n’ Nabiki are always hanging out on the roof. She listens to me for a change without jumping to stupid conclusions, not charging or nothin’! So don’t go poking your nose into things that you don’t understand,” he told her angrily.

Now it was time for both Akane and Ukyo to turn and look at a stunned Nabiki. ‘I should’ve known something like this would happen,’ she thought, giving the two girls a confident smile that belied her suddenly nervous stomach.

Cocking an eyebrow at them, she smiled. “And this should surprise you? After all this time, no one EVER listened to him, gave him a chance to explain. It took the destruction of our house to make me see it, destruction at the hands of everyone NOT listening and simply acting,” she told them, silently thanking the heavens above when Ranma took a protective step closer to her, placing himself between the girls and herself.

‘Here goes nothing,’ she thought ready to now position herself into the fray for Ranma’s heart. “I gave him a chance, and a friend. No blackmail, bribery or threats. Not a single yen have I charged him. Instead, I GAVE him something he didn’t have. A friend, someone that would take HIS side for a change, without trying to gain from it,” she told the stunned women before her.

Even Ranma turned and looked at Nabiki, surprise and pleasure easily read on his face at her admission.

“But, Nabiki, YOU were the one that sold the information about the wedding to THEM. It was YOU that actually helped create the whole situation!” argued Akane, stunned at the news her sister had just dropped on them.

Ukyo nodded with her rival. “Yeah, Nabiki, what gives? It’s not like you were innocent in that whole mess,” she challenged.

Nabiki gave the two girls a crooked smile. “Yes, I was complicit in that whole mess. I’m sure everyone noticed how well THAT turned out,” she admitted, cocking her head to the side once more.

Turning her gaze to Ranma, she looked at him with something close to affection. “Since then, however, I’ve noticed our resident hero trying to make amends to everyone in the house, including me. Sometimes by helping out, others by giving what little money he had to make sure we had food and utilities,” she told the boy, finally revealing that she’d been aware of his assistance the whole time.

Ranma blushed at having been discovered, it was something that he’d taken pride in, the simple acts of assisting rather than mooching. “How’d you know, Nabiki? I was careful to not make it obvious what I was doin’, even from you,” he told her, looking confused.

She smiled at him broadly. “Ranma, you should know by now that NOTHING gets by me when it involves my family,” she said to the shocked young man.

Looking back over to the other two girls, her expression hardened back into the mask she wore. “That includes all the games and schemes everyone put him through as well, especially after the wedding. I admit it freely, what I did was underhanded and despicable, yet that’s negligible compared to what everyone else put him through for it,” her voice as hard as her expression.

“NO ONE listened to him, no one. Every single one of his fiancées blamed him for what happened. His parents blamed him, and yes, so did Daddy. Something odd I noticed with all this blame flying around...he NEVER blamed anyone for it. Oh sure, he vented about the situation and how it forced him to act, but he NEVER tried to pin this on anyone; including the one person that had the most to do with the whole mess: me,” she told them quietly, looking back at Ranma once more.

Her constant attention to Ranma wasn’t lost to either girl standing there, nor was his protective stance before her. “So what, Nabiki? Maybe he was too dumb to realize it was you or maybe he was just too scared of what you’d do to him if he DID blame you. You’re not exactly someone anyone wants to cross, ya know,” spouted Akane, pointing out the rather ruthless reputation her sister had with the populace.

Ukyo looked at the girl and began to realize that she wasn’t just considering herself to be his friend, but was stepping into a role none of them had been able to fill: that of a legitimate and dangerous suitor for Ranma’s affections. ‘She let us all play right into this as well, getting us to do our own dirty work while she comes out smelling like a rose,’ she thought, anger and shame warring inside her heart for her actions.

“If that was true, sister dear, than Ranma wouldn’t have come within a hundred yards of me after the wedding. Instead, he’s helped me win on various betting pools as well as convincing some of the people that owed me money to pay up. No, Akane, ask him yourself, he’s not the dumb jock everyone believed him to be. Not that he’s very mature most times, but he’s not dumb,” she allowed, smiling at Ranma as he went from a happy agreement to upset expression in the span of a second.

“Now wait just a second, Nabiki!” he said angrily, realizing he’d been insulted.

Raising an eyebrow at him. “Yes Ranma?” she asked casually.

“Who’re you calling immature?” he asked.

“How do you feel about me, Ranma?” she asked him, making the boy blush and stutter almost uncontrollably.

Shaking her head, she smiled lightly at him. “Case in point, Ranma,” she told him.

Akane’s voice stopped the conversation from continuing. “Ranma, is that true? Have you really been helping Nabiki? Even after all the pictures she’s taken and scams she’s pulled on you?” she asked, face showing that she couldn’t believe it.

“Well, yeah...I guess that’s about right. I mean, she’s stopped selling pictures to Kuno and everyone of my girl side. Most of the other stuff wasn’t much really, just asking the guys for the money...they gave it to me, no problem,” he told her, as if it wasn’t a big deal in the least.

Her mouth fell open at the admission. “You were her enforcer?” she asked him slowly, not comprehending his actions.

“Huh? What’d ya mean enforcer? I never threatened them or nothing. All I did was ask for the money they owed her and they GAVE it to me,” he explained, offended that she’d think of him like that.

Nabiki jumped in, also bearing the look of having her name slighted. “He NEVER had to threaten anyone, Akane. They were going to pay me anyways; it just made things simpler by having Ranma collect them while I ran the daily pools. It was a matter of saving time while making money,” she told her sister coldly, taking a side step from behind Ranma.

“Yeah, right, Nabiki! Like we’re supposed to believe that! The toughest boy in school starts asking you for the money you owe to the most vicious girl in school...” she started to say, only to have her words cut short by the arrival of Ranma’s face in hers, an irate expression staring into her now fearful eyes.

“THAT’S IT, AKANE! I don’t know what the heck your problem is with her, but she don’t deserve you talking crap about her like that. Do you even realize how much money she brings in around here?” he yelled at her, causing her to take a step back.

“Your pop ain’t teachin’, Kasumi’s too busy taking care of the house and then you got me, my old man and the old goat all freeloading as well! If she didn’t bring in any money, how the heck do’ya think we’d eat around here, huh? So don’t go making insults against people that are just tryin’ ta put food on the table!” he finished, oblivious to the three looks of incredulity from the three girls at his tirade.

Ukyo was the first to break the uneasy silence. “Ranma-honey, exactly HOW close are you and Nabiki?” she asked innocently, turning her expression to the aforementioned girl.

Nabiki, still blinking at the fact of Ranma’s verbal tirade in her support, looked into the pained and now openly suspicious face of Ukyo, tolling her eyes. “He’s my FRIEND, Ukyo. Haven’t you been listening?” she asked with a tired sounding voice.

Akane’s eyes narrowed once more as her jealousy and anger overwhelmed her senses. “Some friend he IS! Maybe if you two like each other so much, YOU should be engaged to him!” she yelled at her sister.

Nabiki’s face went deadly serious. “We’ve been down this road before, Akane, remember?” she asked darkly.

“Yeah, I do, and I ALSO remember how you tried to SELL him back to me, Nabiki. In fact, you’d lower your price when I wouldn’t TAKE him back,” said Akane, glaring in return.

Nabiki gave her a smile vaguely reminiscent to that of a shark. “Times change, Akane,” was all she said, raising an eyebrow at her.

Ukyo remembered those days as well, having spent 10k yen for two hours with Ranma herself. “Uh, Akane...” she started to say, seeing the look in Nabiki’s eyes and recognizing it for what it was.

“If you want him, he’s yours Nabiki! I HATE HIM!” she screamed at her, then turned her rage to Ranma.

“And YOU!” she snarled at the boy still standing before her. “Don’t think for a minute that you can come crawling back to me after she wrings every little bit outta you that she can! I can’t stand you! YOU MAKE ME SICK!” she yelled, shoving the boy viciously, causing him to fall over backwards into the koi pond.

A petite and well built red headed Ranma emerged from the water, sputtering in outrage and indignation. “LIKE I’D EVEN ASK TO BE WITH AN UNCUTE, VIOLENT, TOMBOY LIKE YOU AGAIN!” she yelled back at her/his now former fiancée.

Jumping from the pond, water pouring off her soaked clothing, she landed before the fuming girl. “And another thing,” she said, pointing a finger into her face.

“I’m GLAD we’re through! Now I don’t havta worry about whether or not I’ll live to see old age!” she told the girl.

Ukyo closed her eyes as she watched the two argue, seeing Akane’s infamous temper taking control of her once again. ‘Akane, you jackass...’ she thought to herself dismally, not liking this new development.

Soun watched his daughter once more transfer her engagement to Nabiki, shaking his head in annoyance. “There is something amiss here,” he said quietly, used to watching her temper tantrums, though all her previous ones paled in comparison to those she’d had lately.

Walking across the grass, he held up his hands, “That’s enough! All of you! An engagement isn’t something to be thrown around so easily you two. Nabiki, Ranma; is this something the both of you are willing to accept?” he asked the two, eyeing everyone with a serious face.

Nabiki nodded immediately. “I have no problems with this, Daddy, provided Ranma wants to be my fiancé,” she told him, looking at Ranma with a knowing smile. “Still wanna be my fiancé?” she asked her, echoing their earlier conversation.

She met her smile with her own. “Yep, that’s fine with me. ANYTHING’LL be better then having ta be stuck with gorilla girl here!” she said, falling into familiar patterns once more.

Nabiki shook her head. “Saotome, you SO know how to make a girl feel appreciated,” she told her with a dark chuckle.

Akane’s face screwed up at the insult, her fists doubling up in preparation for pummeling the arrogant young woman before her. “RANMA! DIE!” she screamed at her, sending a punch at the girl’s face.

Used to such displays of rage from Akane, Ranma easily tracked the punch, moving her head to the side, avoiding the devastating blow. “Not this time, not ever again, Akane,” she told her darkly, catching the other fist in her hand, effectively stopping the attack.

Before further hostilities could commence, a voice lofted out towards them. “Her sentiments shouldn’t be ignored, after all, they’re HEART FELT,” said a man’s voice from the trees. A moment later a figure in all black dropped to the ground, followed by three others in similar garb.

Ranma turned her blue eyes to the intruder. “Don’t you guys ever learn?” she growled, releasing the hand of Akane and turning to face the attackers.

The man stood upright, bowing in greeting. “Your message was received, yes. Though we will not under estimate you twice, Ranma Saotome,” he said, pulling twin blades from thigh sheaths.

The three behind him each pulled weapons as well, swords and in the last case, twin hooked blades. They began to fan out around the people on the lawn.

Ranma cut eyes at Nabiki. “Nabs, stay close to me...they’re gonna try to get to you again,” she whispered to her new fiancée.

“What is the meaning of this?” demanded Soun, giving everyone the patented glare, which was ignored.

Ukyo’s spatula came up to the ready position, her eyes trying to keep track of the men around her as she moved. “Ranma, friends of yours?” she asked tightly.

“Not hardly, these are the guys that tried to kill me n’ Nabiki earlier,” she responded, trying to keep her body between the men and Nabiki.

Akane moved to the side of Ranma, also dropping into her fighting stance. “This is all your fault, Ranma,” she growled at the girl next her, still fuming about being disgraced by her.

“Now ain’t the time, Akane, these guys play for keeps,” shot back the redhead, not bothering to turn and argue with the girl.

Soun also fell into stance, stalking one of the men that was threatening his family. “Ranma, let’s show them the true power of the Anything Goes Style!” he said to the heir to the Saotome school.

The leader of the group leapt at Ranma, pulling her into a guarding position to protect Nabiki from the twin blades. Trying to hold her ground, she soon found herself at a disadvantage as a kick strayed into her side, knocking her off balance and right into the whirling of her primary attacker’s blades.

Akane was stunned by the speed and ferocity of the sudden attack, and was only able to throw a belated kick towards the man as he made it past her and slammed a kick home into Ranma’s side. Before she could turn and force the man to pay for ignoring her, the third attacker was upon her as well.

The wicked hooked blades swished past her, catching on loose clothing and threatening to pull her off balance. Rolling under the last strike she tried to lead with and uppercut, only to find her chosen opponent had danced away from her reach.

His blades rang with chilling clarity as he closed once more, tapping one on the other as if taunting her. Dancing lightly on the balls of his feet, he easily began to force the inexperienced girl back with feinting strikes and false openings. Slowly but surely Akane found herself with her back against the koi pond, no room left to maneuver.

Ukyo closed with the forth man, leading with a wave of three thrown spatula’s before leaping up and bringing her main battle spatula down in a cleaving motion. The man parried her thrown weapons easily with the sword, not moving from his stationary position as he did. He waited for the girl’s attack to reach him before side stepping the attack while catching the leading edge of her spatula with the sword, sliding it harmlessly into the ground.

He launched a snap kick that scored a direct hit to the side of the girl’s head, almost tumbling her to the ground by the force of it. Her fingers clutched desperately to the handle, almost as if by the simple act of holding it, she also held onto her consciousness.

Gritting her teeth through the sudden tunnel like vision and ringing in her ears, she ripped the spatula free from the rich, moist earth and heaved it with a powerful side stroke at knee level at the man who’d kicked her.

He was caught off guard by the sudden move, having never faced anyone wielding a giant kitchen implement before. The edge of the battle spatula folded the man’s knee inwards, a wrenching pain followed by a hollow pop as it continued it’s path and swept him from his feet.

She used the momentum of the swing to arc it back behind her and over her head, bringing the flat of the spatula down to finish off the man.

Even with the damage done to his knee, the man saw the attack coming and rolled from beneath it. As it clanged into the ground, burying itself several inches into the turf, he swung the sword at the handle. The resulting clash shattered his blade, but also bent the handle of the battle spatula at an almost right angle, rendering it useless for the rest of the battle.

Her hands numbed by the power of the counterstrike, she shook them to gain some feeling back in them, eyeing her opponent carefully.

“I’ll handle this one, help Akane!” came the stern voice of Soun, taking up a stance next to her to cover her retreat from the fight.

Looking over to the desperate situation Akane now found herself in, Ukyo nodded, “Gotcha!” she said, darting over to distract the man with the hooked blades.

Soun had waited for the two armed combatants to finish before entering into the fray. Seeing the skills the men used while wielding the weapons, he knew it would have been fool hardy to jump into the battle prematurely. Once Ukyo had wounded and disarmed her foe, he moved in to take up the slack and allow the girl to assist his daughter.

He frowned at the masked man before him, “You’ve asked for this!” he said, taking a running leap and launching a heel strike at the still rising man. The man, still almost immobile from the crippling blow by Ukyo, couldn’t maneuver fully out of the way. The heel missed hitting true, but did catch the man solidly on the hip, throwing him back towards the trees he leapt down from. His rolling tumble did little to lessen the impact from the kick, his entire, left leg now dangling uselessly by his side.

Soun walked towards the man, his eyes narrowed menacingly, “DO YOU KNOW WHAT YOU’VE DONE?” came the booming voice as he unleashed the demon head attack on him.

The man crawled desperately from the fight, dragging his crippled appendage behind him as he tried to escape the approaching man. As he reached the shadows, they seemed to darken for a moment before a set of seven clawed hands reached out and pulled him within.

The demon head disappeared immediately, Soun being so surprised by the sudden revelation that he stood dumbfounded staring into the darkness. He watched with mute fear as the shadows lightened then disappeared, leaving nothing more then the bushes that surrounded his home’s wall.

Akane ducked and weaved, desperately trying to find a route out of the man’s moving blades before they hooked into her tender skin. Her sweat was cool against the evening air, giving testament to how worried and pressured she was by the man. ‘He’s toying with me,’ she thought angrily, though the anger was rapidly giving way to fear.

A series of small spatula’s flew towards the man, chasing him back from Akane as he tried to deflect them with his blades. One succeeded in cutting into the man’s arm, drawing blood that flowed freely down the now exposed skin.

Ukyo back flipped next to Akane, landing with throwing spatula’s in each hand, eyeing the recovering man warily. “Hey sugar, need a hand?” she asked the girl, a sly smile on her face.

“I can handle myself!” she shot back, already feeling humiliated by the man, much less having Ukyo coming to her rescue.

“Sure ya can, I’m just here to make sure it goes quick,” the taller girl told her, shaking her head at the stubborn nature of Akane.

The man crossed his blades before him, forming and X in front of his chest. Extending his arms outwards, the swords began to glow with a sickly green light that grew steadily brighter the further his arms went out.

“Uh oh, that can’t be good,” muttered Ukyo, remembering a time when Ryoga gave off a similar light, and the resulting destruction that had ensued.

“What do we do?” asked the now worried girl, also remembering the fateful attack from the lost boy.

Before the girl could answer, the light began to shimmer and expand before them, growing into a rather large orb. The man gave a cry in a language neither girl understood, causing the orb to rocket towards them.

Akane stood transfixed before the attack, her arms covering her face in a defensive posture, determined to withstand the attack through sheer brute will.

Ukyo wasn’t about to find out how strong the man’s attack was. Tackling the motionless girl, she propelled them clear of the attack and into the nearby bushes and tree. They rolled to a stop, Ukyo straddling the girl and panting heavily from the sudden exertion.

“You ain’t that strong, Akane! That guy’s trying to KILL us!” she admonished the girl beneath her.

Akane tried to throw the girl from the top of her. “I can take care of myself, I don’t need your HELP!” she yelled, finally dragging herself from beneath Ukyo.

Both girls righted themselves to find the man’s swords once more dancing around them, forcing them to separate. “He’s trying to isolate one of us Akane!” cried Ukyo, ducking under a swing and trying to get a foot into the man. It was blocked, but the sheer power of her strike set the man off his rhythm.

“I know that!” she growled back, beginning a series of punches towards the man, forcing him back into Ukyo.

‘Geez, when’s she gonna figure out I’m on HER side?’ thought the frustrated girl, glaring at Akane for not acting more like a partner. Rather then add fuel to her already considerable fiery temper, Ukyo tumbled into the man’s legs from behind rather than strike at him.

The move took him by surprise, unaccustomed to such unorthodox tactics. As the girl slammed into then through the backs of his legs, they kicked up before him, sending him crashing backwards into the ground head first.

Akane, having seen the girl coming, easily leapt over Ukyo’s rolling body and propelled herself forwards into a jumping side kick, her battle cry echoing even over the combat that was taking place. “Take THIS!”

Her foot crushed into the man’s chest, just as his body hit the ground below, further driving him into the ground. As a last ditch effort, he’d brought up his swords in a vain attempt to thwart the angry young girl’s assault. The scissored before him after the kick connected, cutting deeply into her leg even as he was driven into the ground.

Her triumphant yell turned into a scream of pain, her body crumpling downwards as her lead leg failed beneath her. Blood cascaded downwards from the cuts on both sides of her calf, white peeking out from beneath the bright red.

Ukyo rushed to her side, ripping off the leg of her gi and tightly tying it above the horrible wounds, knotting the ripped fabric and tightening it as hard as she could. “Mr. Tendo!” cried Ukyo through clenched teeth as she struggled to hold the make shift tourniquet in place even while Akane fought her.

Her eyes were wide with pain and shock, looking at the quickly pooling blood beneath her, HER blood. Even as Ukyo ripped the leg off her uniform, showing more leg then she was comfortable with, ‘Are those my panties showing?’ her mind wondered distantly through the hazy pain, she struggled to stand.

As the knot tightened on her leg, she reflexively jumped, trying to force the girl off of her to stop the pain. “Quit it!” she said, pulling back her leg while shoving at the girl’s shoulders with her hands.

Soun, having heard the call, broke from his investigation of the bushes the man had disappeared into. Turning he saw Akane down, Ukyo bandaging her heavily bleeding leg, all atop of a very wounded and unconscious attacker. As he ran over, the girls struggled as if fighting one another; it was then that he could see how badly Akane was wounded.

Power: Online.

Systems: Fully charged and primed.

Status: Emergency Generation.

Initiate Sprinkler System on mark...3...2...1...MARK!

Thus began the Soun ‘Oh my god, my baby girl is going to die!’ water fall.

“Oh my god, my baby girl is going to die!” he wailed, kneeling next to his annoyed daughter and now soaking wet Ukyo.

Ukyo growled at the man, releasing a hand from the tourniquet to deflect the stream of salty warm gushing tears, pushing them back from her. When they’d been sufficiently stifled, Ukyo reached through the remainder of the fountains and slapped the man...HARD...twice. “Snap outta it ya jackass! She needs her father not a BATH!” she yelled at the now stunned man.

Soun blinked, not having remembered a time in his history that he’d ever been struck like that before, and then remembered the situation at hand. As he began to tear up once more, he caught sight of the twitching eyes of Ukyo, eyes that promised him pain and suffering if he didn’t wise up quick.

“Here, let me,” he told her finally, swallowing the urge to cry hysterically as he did.

A pair of gentle hands met theirs, Nodoka’s cool and serene face appearing next to them. “I’m here child...there’s no need to fuss,” she said soothingly, her hands bracing the quivering one’s from Soun.

Ukyo breathed a sigh of relief as a responsible adult had arrived...well, MOSTLY responsible. She DID let Genma take Ranma on a training trip with the threat of ritual seppuku hanging over them both, knowing what type of a man Genma was.

Shaking her head clear of the thoughts, ‘They ain’t helping anyways,’ she thought, she turned to the fading sounds of combat. Watching Ranma still battling desperately against two armed opponents, all the while still protecting the very vulnerable Nabiki as she did. Her shirt was a mass of cuts, some showing blood, though she didn’t hesitate nor stop her incessant motions, truly dancing with death as she fought.

“I’m coming, Ranma-honey!” she said, getting to her feet before racing over to help her friend.

Ranma ducked under the first slice and kneed the wrist of the second hand as it tried to disembowel him. The kick had surprised her, though she’d managed to recover quick enough to avoid being serious injured or allowing either man a clear shot through her to Nabiki. “Nabs, don’t let’m near ya!” she called, turning to keep both men in her direct line of sight.

“Ya think?” asked Nabiki sarcastically, not unaccustomed to Ranma fighting, just to being so close to the action, much less a direct target of such an attack. Her body was well toned for a reason, as she still kept in shape, just not to the degree Akane did. The result was a form that was supple and reasonably flexible.

Nabiki ducked under the swords that swept in close to her as she moved to get behind the defending Ranma, careful not to touch her without his knowledge. “Ranma, you need to get some more room to maneuver,” she told him, eyeing the distance to the wall uncomfortably.

“Can’t, I move...you die,” she told the girl grimly, fingers tightening as she prepared to repel them once more as they rushed the girls.

They attacked at right angles, ensuring that if she faced one the other would have an open opportunity towards her undefended side or the other girl behind her. Gritting her teeth, Ranma spun on her rear leg and swept the feet from under Nabiki, sending the girl to the ground with an undignified squawk of surprise.

Completing the spin, she launched herself up, fist extending to the man on the right while her foot struck out towards the approaching attacker to the left.

Knives came up and intercepted her fist, pushing it up and over the man’s head, sending the airborne girl into a gyroscope like rotation. The foot she’d sent at the other man connected solidly with his chest, blasting the air from his lungs, though he managed a long cut on the outside of her thigh.

The man flew backwards to land heavily on the side of the pond, hand clutching his chest as he struggled to breathe. He got to his feet and watched the fight for a moment, eyeing the dark haired girl. He rushed towards her once more, launching himself into an airborne somersault that would land with both his sword points into the girl’s exposed back.

As Ranma spun wildly, she managed to get both feet into the first attacker. ‘Big mouth,’ she thought for an identity, knocking him to the ground even as the blades cut into her back, reopening an old wound while adding a fresh one.

Big mouth landed heavily, his teeth clinking together painfully in surprise. Never had the man been prepared for such an opponent that could redirect attacks while in the air. Running his tongue over teeth, finding more than one chipped, he got to his feet in time to watch the girl land lightly on her feet facing him.

He kipped up, rushing the girl once more, this time with alternating strikes of his knives, designed to force him back and off balance. Each thrust was met with the dull thud of connection to her muscled forearms bracers, easily turned away without breaking her skin.

One moment she was there before him the next she leapt up and gave a mighty roundhouse kick into the side of his partner’s chest, sending him spiraling out of control into the far wall of the compound, sliding down to the dirt below.

Landing at the side of Nabiki, Ranma smiled at the man even as he approached. “You shoulda listened to my warning,” she told him, eyes narrowed dangerously.

Ducking and weaving from the man’s attacks with ease, she taunted him. “C’mon man! That the best you can do? The PANDA is faster’n you! Can’t even hit a GIRL?” she said, slapping his hands and wrists rather than strike back at him.

Nabiki hadn’t known the other man was even close until Ranma’s vicious kick sent him sailing into the far wall. She blinked in surprise at the girl’s poise and spatial awareness, beginning to truly appreciate how good she truly was. As she began the taunting banter against the man, Nabiki found herself smiling lightly at the insults.

The man’s actions sped up, only to be met by and then surpassed by those of Ranma. Her smile was devious as she kept the running commentary against the man, trying to make him lose his temper and force him from his normal routines.

The other man stumbled to his feet, rubbing the back of his head where a rather large lump was forming. His chest ached and burned when he tried to breathe. He took several tentative steps forwards, testing his reserves before breaking into a light run to re-engage the fighting redhead.

Nabiki heard the man’s approaching footsteps, turning her head to glance in the direction, ducking just in time to avoid the incoming slash aimed at her throat. Her muffled scream distracted Ranma, allowing both men to score wounds upon her chest and arms.

Stumbling back from the now bloodied weapons, the girl cradled her arms, checking the wounds, finding them to be deep but not serious. She frowned at them, her face losing its hateful playing expression, “Okay, NOW I’m mad,” she glowered at them.

Nabiki swallowed her heart back into her chest, finding her pulse racing with the near brush with death. She scrambled to her feet, lightly touching Ranma on her shoulder. “I’m okay, Ranma, sorry for distracting you,” she apologized quietly before retreating once more behind the girl.

Nodding slightly in acknowledgment, Ranma couldn’t answer the simple apology. The men, using the momentary distraction Nabiki had inadvertently provided them, rushed the girl from opposite sides once more.

Ranma ducked and whirled from blades, fists and feet. Her footwork was sure and steady, her hands and arms controlled. Her expression was one of calm, almost nonchalance as she spun with the men, using their own momentum and strikes against them. With a deceptive ease she blocked a foot headed towards her head, spinning to deflect a knife thrust then ducking beneath an answering punch.

Grabbing an arm that strayed too close, she gave the locked elbow joint a palm strike, forcing the hand to release the sword as the hand went numb. Rather than release the arm, she pulled the man forwards as she slipped underneath the incoming attack, which then proceeded to slice the man’s top open from shoulder to navel.

Rather than gloating over the mistake, she leapt up to the man’s shoulders landing with her shins on his shoulders so that she was facing away from him, wrapping her legs around his head as she leaned forwards. Locking her ankles under the man’s chin, she pulled her legs forward while standing on her hands behind him, launching the man once more into the far wall. This time the man didn’t get back up from the crater creating landing, rather he hung bonelessly within the damaged wall.

The knife wielding man paused at the sudden disappearance of his compatriots, seeing the rushing Ukyo coming to the aid of Ranma. Cursing quietly, he started to back away from the fight, attempting to reach the wall behind him before Ranma could reach him.

“Oh no you don’t!” she cried, leaping at the man and cutting off his escape. Her hands blurred around her as she unleashed the attack she’d been waiting to use into his face, chest and lower abdominal region. “Kachu Tenshin Amaguriken!” she yelled into the man’s face.

Big mouth was unable to block or pose any type of counter attack against the brutal strikes. He felt bone and muscle pulverized before the assault, his body suddenly going slack as knives dropped from nerveless fingers.

Growling at the man that had not only injured her but threatened her very family, Ranma felt the power of his confidence mingled with his anger. Thrusting her hands out before her, she pulled it all into a ball before her and sent it crashing into the man’s battered body.

“Moko Rakuchi Sei!” yelled the angry girl, sending the man arcing far into the distance, disappearing into a gleaming sparkle of light.

Breathing heavily, she looked over to the shocked face of Nabiki, “Yo, Nabs! You okay?” she called over to the girl.

Nabiki, turning back from watching the man disappearing over the horizon, looked over to the beaten and bloodied form of Ranma. Nodding, she crossed shakily to where she was standing and embraced the girl deeply. “Thank you, Ranma!” she said into the girl’s neck.

Ranma was too shocked to move at first, then without really thinking about it, replied in kind, hugging the shaking girl back. It was only after she noticed that Nabiki’s breasts were pressing against hers uncomfortably that she realized she was still in girl form.

Trying to leap back from the intimate contact with the girl, her eyes grew wide. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” she yelled, almost into Nabiki’s face, as the other girl hadn’t released Ranma yet.

Grabbing a hold of the girl’s arms, she thwacked her in the nose, instantly stopping her panicked retreat and loquacious apologies.

Holding both hands over her now throbbing nose, she glared at Nabiki over her fingers. “Hey! That hurt!” she accused the girl.

Leaning into the girl’s face, “Ranma, whether or not you’re in boy OR girl form doesn’t matter to me. You’ll still be just RANMA to me, understand?” she said firmly, forcing the blue eyes of her fiancé to meet hers.

“But Nabiki...we’re GIRLS! People’ll think we’re some kinda perverts!” she protested.

Nabiki gave him a stern look. “Ranma, are you a guy? Even when you’re in your girl form?” she asked him.

The redhead bobbed frantically. “Yeah, of course!” she told her, as if the answer was obvious.

“Then even if you’re in girl form, to me you’re still a GUY, got it now?” she explained once more.

Ranma gave the girl a blank look, before slow comprehension started to dawn on her beautiful face. “Okay...I think I got it,” she said, stilling eyeing her with a bit of trepidation.

Ukyo stared hard at them as she stopped her approach. The power and determination she’d witnessed Ranma using against the men was staggering to her. Her mouth hung open at the shameless embrace given Ranma by Nabiki, not to mention the subsequent explanation of her sudden display of affection for Ranma, no matter the form.

Seeing them simply looking at each other, she cleared her throat uncomfortably as she approached. Fighting the urge to pound Ranma for touching the girl that was TECHNICALLY his only remaining fiancée. “Hey you two, Akane’s hurt pretty bad,” she announced pointing back to where Soun and Nodoka were struggling to bring her into the house.

“I’ll get the doc!” announced Ranma, taking to the wall and then the rooftops before anyone could stop or warn him.

Nabiki’s hand was extended out to grasp him just as he disappeared, her fingers closing over the moving air of where he used to be standing. “BE CAREFUL, RANMA!” she called after him, surprising Ukyo with the volume of her yell.

Raising an eyebrow at the expression. “What? Ain’t ever heard a girl yell before?” she asked, before crossing over to help with Akane.

“No, just not the Ice Queen,” muttered Ukyo, following after them at a jog, realizing that perhaps Akane and Nabiki had more in common then she thought.

The battle chef paused, and turned to look around the grounds, attempting to locate the fallen men they’d just battled, only to find them missing. The only traces they’d been there was the damage the grounds had suffered and the small puddles of blood quickly being absorbed into the soil beneath.

“What the hell?” she muttered, pulling spatulas and doing a thorough search of the area. Not a trace remained of them; even weapons lost in the heat of battle, were gone. The only weapons left being her spatula’s, each of which showed some scars of the fight.

Collecting the weapons, she hurried back into the dojo, eyeing the quickly darkening shadows warily as she moved.

A few minutes later...

A now male Ranma landed within the yard, his wounded arms wrapped tightly in bandages, running to the doors of the dojo and throwing them open. He saw Akane’s pale form sitting very still on the floor, surrounded by Soun, Nodoka and Nabiki. Ukyo paced warily between the wounded girl and the doors, her hands wrapped tightly around the battle spatula.

Kasumi, hearing the sudden noise, poked her head in. “Oh Ranma! Is Dr. Tofu on his way?” she asked him, walking back into the room with fresh water and bandages.

He nodded, concern etched into his serious face. “Yeah, he should be...” he started to say only to be stopped by the sound of the door bell and the concerned voice of the aforementioned doctor. “It’s Dr. Tofu, where’s Akane?” he called into the home.

“This way, Doctor,” said a smiling Kasumi.

The effect was instantaneous on the man. His glasses fogged up and he began to dance with the umbrella holder by the front door. “Oh, why Kasumi, fancy meeting you here,” he said with a blank smile, crashing into various large stationary objects.

“Aw geez, Doc’s gone to la-la-land again,” griped Ranma, trying to get his hands on the happily prancing man.

“YO DOC! SNAP OUTTA IT!” yelled Ranma into his face, almost getting his arms relocated to his hips for the trouble. As the boy yelled in pain, Nodoka walked over to the man and firmly slapped him across the cheek.

“That’s quite enough of that, young man, you have a patient to deal with,” she said firmly, watching in satisfaction as his glasses slowly unsteamed.

He blinked owlishly at the woman, holding a hand to the palm imprinted cheek. “I’m sorry, what was I doing again?” he asked her.

Pointing to the still form of Akane, the man nodded and began to walk towards her, until once more the voice of Kasumi almost forced him into a relapse. “Thank you for coming on such notice, Doctor Tofu,” she told him quietly as he passed her.

Nodoka kept a firm hand on the man’s shoulder, forcing him to look into her stern visage. “Ranma, be a dear and take Kasumi upstairs to check on her friend, would you? I’m sure Akane would appreciate it,” she ordered her son, almost focusing the doctor’s attention through sheer force of will.

“Um...right. Good idea. C’mon, Kasumi, we ain’t heard from Mutsumi in a while,” he said, taking the surprised girl’s arm.

She looked longingly back over her shoulder at the man but allowed herself to be led away without a fuss. “Doctor Tofu acts so strangely sometimes,” she said quietly to Ranma.

As soon as the eldest Tendo sister left the room, Tofu snapped out of it. “What happened to her?” he asked, kneeling next to the girl and checking her wound.

Soun and Ukyo explained as best they could from their different perspectives. He nodded with a grim expression. “She’s going to need some emergency work. I know someone that will help out, I’ll give her a call,” he said, nodding to the Saotome Matriarch to take over with Akane as he moved towards the phone.

The silence in the dojo was thick, hanging heavy in the night air. Ukyo spent the quiet moments watching both the remaining Tendo sisters. It was Nabiki that brought the most of her attentions, as she realized exactly what had taken place and the rapport that she now held with Ranma.

‘This has gotta be some kind of scam, it’s just gotta be,’ she thought, eyeing the girl suspiciously.

Nabiki noticed the glances she was getting but chose to ignore the girl until approached. ‘You need to work on your poker face there Ukyo, I can read you like a book,’ thought Nabiki, turning her attention back to the pale Akane.

Upstairs...

Kasumi paused by her door. “Just a moment, Ranma, I want to get Mutsumi a robe to wear. I didn’t think anyone would be coming up and only gave her a towel,” the girl said, cracking the door open.

Ranma nodded at her, “Okay Kasumi, I’ll, uh, wait here then,” he acknowledged, leaning against the far wall across from her room.

She smiled sweetly at the boy and entered her room, the door slowly swinging shut behind her on its hinges.

The house was deathly silent, a fact that made the normally boisterous and exuberant martial artist nervous. He kept playing the fight back through his head, remembering styles and moves used against him, deciding on what he could have done better.

There was a muffled sound from the bathroom, followed the sound of rapid pounding. Ranma moved to the door in a flash, only to almost collide with the resident pervert and panty thief. “Hey ya, old goat! What do ya think you’re doin?” he growled at the old man.

Happosai looked up at Ranma with a stunned and fearful expression. “I only wanted her to try on this extra large silky brassiere...” he told the boy, looking back into the bathroom and starting to back away.

Ranma looked to the pink and white frilly bra clutched tightly in his hand, and then slowly back to the door which was still cracked open. Snatching the old man up by his lapels, Ranma yelled at the man, “WHAT DID YOU DO?” he demanded, shaking him as he did.

The man’s ever present pipe whirled into his hand before knocking Ranma on the head with it. “I told you, I haven’t done anything!” he countered, landing on the floor after Ranma dropped him to grasp his own aching head.

Before Ranma could grab him again, he bounded away, still tightly clutching the bra.

“Ya old freak!” muttered Ranma, turning to look back at the door with a set of wide eyes. His mouth went dry as he reached a hesitant hand out to touch the door as if it would bite him.

Steeling his nerves, he pushed the door open. Steam from within the bathroom rolled out, coiling and wrapping around his legs before slowly trailing down the hallway in either direction.

Placing a cautious foot in, he blinked. “He..Hello?” he called, his voice timid.

Just as the boy made it into the bathroom, a large form collapsed on him from the side of the door, taking him off balance and crashing him to the floor.

He gave a cry of panic and alarm as he hit the floor, arms and legs flailing in an attempt to get away from the surprise attack. His mind noticed that the body on him was not only VERY wet but also NOT moving.

Calming slightly, he focused on the face of what looked to be a sleeping Mutsumi. “Hey...HEY! Wake up, will ya?” he asked the girl, his voice taking a tone of desperation as he further realized that not only was he alone with her in the bathroom...she wasn’t wearing any clothes.

“Aw c’mon! Please! They’re gonna kill me if they find...us...like...this,” he trailed off, looking up into the faces of Kasumi, Soun and Nabiki.

“Oh my!” said a blushing Kasumi, blinking at her friend and Ranma in such a position on the bathroom floor.

“Something you want to tell me, Saotome?” asked a bemused Nabiki, though her eyes flashed dangerously at the sight of Ranma holding the beautiful, and BOUNTIFUL, naked woman.

Soun spun abruptly, blushing almost as deeply as Ranma was at the sight of Mutsumi. “Son, perhaps you should allow her to get dressed...ALONE,” he told the boy.

Ranma groaned to himself. “It ain’t like that, I tell ya! I just heard a noise and caught the old pervert comin’ outta here with some underwear. When I went ta check on her, she, uh...FELL on me,” he finished lamely, seeing his life flashing before his eyes.

Kasumi knelt down and helped extricate her friend from Ranma, wrapping her in the robe she’d been holding as she did. “Mutsumi is anemic and can pass out in extreme temperatures or situations,” she elaborated, never losing her smile. “I’m sure Ranma isn’t at fault here,” she assured the others while massaging Mutsumi’s cheeks.

“SEE! I told ya I ain’t no pervert!” said Ranma triumphantly, though his eyes were solely on Nabiki’s.

She looked at her fiancé and cocked her head. “Why Ranma, maybe I LIKED you as a pervert,” she told him with a straight face.

As the boy stuttered, blushed and promptly fell to his butt, she started to laugh. “Sometimes, it’s just too easy,” she told him, squatting down next to him and offering him her hand. “C’mon lover boy, I know you aren’t like that,” she assured him, helping him to his feet.

Downstairs...

Dr. Tofu stepped back into the room, a smile on his face. “I got a hold of her and she agreed to meet me at my clinic. She’ll be able to fully help Akane there. I’ve also called an ambulance to take her there as well, it should be here any moment,” he told the two remaining women.

“They went upstairs when they heard Ranma yell,” said Ukyo to his questioning look as he realized there were a few people missing.

They could hear sirens in the distance, all heads involuntarily turning to regard them. “You might want to pack her a few changes of clothing and her bathroom kit as well, she’ll be staying with me a few days,” Tofu said.

Ukyo looked down at Nodoka. “I’ll go up and let’m know,” she offered, walking from the room towards the stairs.

After the girl had left, Dr. Tofu knelt by the side of Akane, checking her vital signs. “She’s been acting strange, hasn’t she?” he asked the woman quietly.

Nodoka looked at the man curiously. “Perhaps a bit more aggressive when it comes to Ranma,” she allowed.

He nodded but didn’t push any further, his hands tracing invisible patterns on her body. Nodoka watched in silent curiosity as the man moved, not feeling the need to interrupt his work.

The front bell rang, startling the woman slightly. Rocking to her feet, she moved towards the door. “I’ll get it, dear,” she called up the stairs as she passed them.

Nabiki and Ranma were descending the steps as she opened the door, revealing one very disheveled looking Bill. “Hey, sorry to barge in like this, but, uh...is everything okay over here?” he asked the woman, before catching sight of Ranma and Nabiki.

The man’s relief could be easily read at seeing his young friend. “Whew...okay, good. Thought stuff might’ve happened...” he started to say; only to notice the battle scarred clothing Ranma wore.

Nodoka looked at the man intently for a moment, and then moved aside. “Won’t you come in?” she offered, her tone stiff and formal. ‘This is the man that helped to harm my husband,’ she thought, hands itching for her sword.

Her tone wasn’t lost on Bill, who wisely decided to stay clear of the woman. “Ah, NO...thanks, really. I just wanted to stop by and see if everyone was okay,” he said, stepping back a pace.

“Akane’s hurt really bad Bill,” said Ranma walking down the rest of the stairs, Nabiki still holding his hand.

The man frowned, “I heard something like that, in fact a doctor friend of mine got the call from your buddy Tofu. She’s meeting them over at his clinic, I just didn’t realize how bad it was. I’m sorry,” he said to them, eyes falling.

Nabiki stepped forwards, “I take it that your doctor friend is well informed then?” she asked, giving him a meaningful look.

Bill nodded to her, “Yep, she’s one of the best. Her name’s Julia, but I wouldn’t call her that, she likes to be called Jules. She’s, uh...worked with me before I guess you could say.” he said with a sheepish grin.

Ranma sighed in relief, “Good, I’d hate to have anything happen to her...she maybe violent, uncute...OUCH!” cried Ranma, holding his ribs.

Nabiki smiled cutely at him. “We get the point Ranma, thank you,” she told him, having elbowed him sharply.

“Anyhow, I’ve got some people here I’d like you to meet. They’re going to help keep an eye on your place,” Bill told them, motioning two people into the gates from the street.

A short blonde with odd pigtails and a full length trench coat that went clear to her ankles walked in, followed by a rather tall dark haired man also wearing a black trench coat. Their expressions were serious to the point of almost being grim as they walked up. The girl stepped forward. “We’re here to help, my name’s Robin and this is my partner Amon,” she introduced them, the man nodding his greeting.

Nodoka looked at them curiously. “I believe there is some explaining to do regarding this turn of events, Ranma,” she said to her son, turning from the newcomers to regard him.

Ranma blushed and avoided looking into his mother’s eyes. “Well, ya know, it’s kinda funny really...” he said quickly, unable to formulate an excuse or cover story.

‘Great, just GREAT!’ thought Bill, wondering how deeply he was going to get into trouble for all of this. “It’s my fault, Mrs. Saotome. Ranma’s been working for me...along with Ryoga and Shampoo. The reason you all got attacked is because of a job they did for me,” he told her, stepping back forwards to shift blame from the pig tailed boy.

Amon looked at the man, and then back to Nodoka. “I would like to thank you, Mrs. Saotome, for allowing Ranma to help us out during a time of crisis. My peers and I work for an elite and unique counter insurgency unit within the country. Ranma’s prowess in the combat arts and his unshakable confidence were well documented and proved to be of the utmost assistance to us to assure the security of our nation,” he told the woman, pulling a silver badge from his deep pockets and showing it to her.

Bill looked at the man with outright surprise, as did Robin, though she wore a faint smile as she did. “Yes, his help proved to be the deciding factor on more than one occasion,” she backed up Amon, smiling warmly at the older woman.

Nodoka, upon hearing that her son had not only helped, but that he was actually recruited for his skills, was euphoric with the news. Holding her hands to her cheeks, she smiled at her son broadly. “Oh! My manly, MANLY son! I’m so proud of you!” she gushed to him.

Ranma blushed at the attention, though when he started to speak, Nabiki stepped on his foot. “He’s something else, isn’t he?” she asked sweetly, turning to look at the boy next to her. “Don’t say a word,” she hissed through clenched teeth without moving her lips.

Ranma, impressed at how she could talk without moving her lips like that, nodded and smiled under his mother’s adoration.

Bill sighed in relief. “Thanks, Amon, I owe you one,” he said quietly to the man next to him.

“I’ll be sure you’re properly billed,” he replied, looking at him with bemused expression.

Groaning, Bill turned as an ambulance pulled up before the house. A man and woman hopped out and began to pull a gurney from within the truck.

Amon and Robin moved aside, walking back towards the street without saying a word to anyone, noticed only by Bill as they departed. ‘Thanks guys,’ he thought to them, watching as the EMTs moved into the home, directed by Nodoka.

Nabiki, Ranma, and Bill stood by the doors. “So, what happened?” asked Nabiki.

Bill shook his head. “Not sure, but it looks like someone decided that they wanted to take out you, Ryoga, and Shampoo,” he told her, pointing to Ranma.

Ranma nodded. “Yeah, that was the second time tonight,” he told the man, his tone dark and angry.

“Yeah, well they got their clock cleaned by Cologne and Shampoo over at the Cat Café. Chances they won’t be trying that again,” he assured the boy.

As if on cue, Shampoo and Mousse leapt into view, Shampoo bearing the Bonbori that she used. “Ranma is okay?” she asked hesitantly, looking at the man before her.

Mousse, his glasses firmly in place, looked at him closely. “I see they came after you as well. I take it you gave them what they deserved?” he asked, without a trace of hostility towards his rival.

Ranma nodded at his friends. “Yeah, they tried to kill Nabiki though...” he said, all three teens now showing their outrage at that action.

“Ranma, Shampoo...Shampoo happy you no killed, you too, mercenary girl,” the Chinese girl told them, her voice hesitant.

Nabiki nodded at them. “Thanks Shampoo, it’s good to see you’re okay as well,” she replied, suddenly very aware of the close proximity of Ranma next to her.

“Yeah, good to see you guys. How’s Ryoga?” asked Ranma, looking at them curiously.

“The dried up old monkey is keeping an eye on him. She sent us over here in case they tried to come after you as well,” said Mousse, not missing the fact that it was Nabiki and not Akane standing protectively next to Ranma.

The gurney reappeared along with Soun, Nodoka, and Ukyo. Everyone moved from the doorway then followed the EMTs outside as they loaded the wounded girl into the ambulance. Dr. Tofu walked out a moment later, carrying his kit bag. “I’m heading back to my clinic with your father, Nabiki. We’ll give you a call when we know something, okay?” he asked the girl while he climbed into the rig.

Nabiki nodded as she watched her father following him. “That’s fine, Doctor Tofu, please take good care of her,” she said, her face serious.

“Don’t worry, she’ll be fine,” assured the doctor before slamming the door shut. The small group of remaining people stood and watched it move away into the night.

As the group moved back inside, Ranma and Nabiki explained to Bill, Shampoo and Mousse what had occurred earlier. They all sat within the living room as the conversation turned to the present.

“I think that we’ve heard the last of them for now. Getting spanked like that isn’t going to do much for morale, and no amount of money is worth the hurt you guys put on them,” theorized Bill, nodding his admiration to the young people.

“I wouldn’t be so sure, Bill,” said Nabiki, sitting next to Ranma, earning her the glares of jealousy from both Shampoo and Ukyo. “After all, they did go through a LOT of trouble to arrange the contracts on us and they aren’t going to take defeat lightly. I know I wouldn’t,” she told him, crossing her legs and lightly kicking her foot as she thought.

“Perhaps having a quiet discussion with our resident ninja would shed some light on the matter,” she offered, looking at him.

He nodded in agreement. “I hadn’t thought about him, but he ain’t what I’d call prime choice as far as ninja go. I mean, look who he works for.” countered Bill, unsure of the benefits.

“Sasuke isn’t much of a ninja, but his FAMILY is. Just talk to him, I’m sure he’d be more than willing to help, especially if those guys came from a rival clan,” Nabiki told him, her reasoning swaying the man’s decision.

“Alright, I’ll look into it. In the meantime, I need the rest of you to sit tight and watch each other’s backs. Until we figure out everything that’s going on here it isn’t safe to be alone, you all got that?” he asked, looking at the faces of the people.

Ukyo glared at him. “I knew something was up with you, I just KNEW it!” she said, glaring at the man.

“Insurance agent, my ass! Who’re you and why the hell do you know so much about us? Am I the ONLY one that doesn’t have a clue who the hell you are?” she demanded, her anger rising again at the man.

Bill looked at the girl. “I told you before, I can’t go into that right now. Just the fact that I’m including you in this is probably pushing my luck,” he told the upset young woman.

“Ukyo, Bill’s been helping me out around here. He needed some help and we lent him a hand, that’s it,” Ranma told his friend, trying to draw off some of her anger.

“But...but, this guy fixed it so that me and Shampoo ain’t engaged to you anymore, Ranma!” she pleaded with him, leaning forwards in her seat.

It was Shampoo’s quiet voice that stopped her from continuing. “Spatula girl no understand! He do what have to do. Shampoo no like it, but have to accept it. Besides, it what Ranma want, right?” she asked him, her eyes sad.

Ranma nodded dumbly at her, he hadn’t expected her to take up his defense like that. “Yeah, Shampoo, you’re right. After the wedding and everything, my life went to hell. Everyone blamed me for what happened and all I did was try to stop everyone from killin’ each other. It had to stop before someone DID get killed,” he told her, voicing his feelings on the matter for everyone.

Ukyo wasn’t giving up that easily; pointing a finger at Nabiki. “Then WHY are you still engaged to HER then?” she asked him.

“It’s HIS choice Ukyo, just like I told you and Shampoo. It’s not YOUR decision who he’s engaged to. If that’s what he wants, who’re YOU to tell him differently?” asked Bill quietly, looking at her with open sympathy once more.

“You, you really WANT to be engaged to her?” asked Ukyo quietly, even Shampoo’s eyes watered at the news.

Ranma’s eyes narrowed at her question. “Yeah, I do. It’s not like she’s forcing me to get married or nothin’. She ain’t even pressuring me about it. We’re friends that got engaged by our families, that don’t mean we gotta get married,” he told her, defending Nabiki to them.

“If WE do decide to get married, it’ll be under OUR terms, no one else’s. Unlike Akane, I’m NOT going to get conned or coerced into something or be forced into a marriage with him if it’s not what we BOTH want. And unlike my sister, I happen to LISTEN to Ranma before I judge what’s happening so the likelihood of any misunderstandings is drastically reduced, wouldn’t you say?” she asked them, unconsciously leaning against Ranma’s shoulder for support.

He didn’t move nor flinch from the contact, instead nodded in support of her words.

Mousse looked at the boy, pushing his glasses up onto his forehead. “Ranma, I would like to apologize to you as well. I acted dishonorably at your wedding, all I wanted was the Nanniichuan and helped with the chaos that almost got somebody killed,” the young man told him.

Ranma looked at him with surprise, but smiled at him. “I told ya before, Mousse, don’t worry about it. But, uh...thanks and all, for being a man and owning up to it,” he said, nodding at him.

“Ranma, can I speak with you for a moment?” asked Kasumi, walking into the room with Nodoka and setting down a tray that held crackers, cookies, and a pot of tea with glasses onto the table.

“Sure, Kasumi, what’s up?” he asked, rising from the couch and following the girl back into the kitchen.

“I don’t want to cause a fuss, but it seems that Grandfather Happosai was peeping on Mutsumi while she was bathing,” she told him, blushing at the thought of someone doing that to her friend.

Mutsumi sat at the kitchen table, blushing as well, her eyes looking downwards. “I didn’t want to cause problems because I’m a guest here in Kasumi’s house and he IS family...” she started to say, only to be interrupted by Ranma’s outburst.

“That old lecher ain’t no FAMILY of mine! Just cuz’ pop and Mr. Tendo are afraid of him don’t mean I am!” he told her, shaking his fist in anger.

Kasumi looked back at her friend, laying a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Maybe you should tell him,” she said quietly, to which Mutsumi nodded.

“I heard some fighting outside and went to look out the window to see what was going on. That’s when I noticed that old man leering at me from outside the window,” she admitted, raising a hand to her cheek.

Ranma’s face went pale with rage at hearing this. “You mean while we was fighting for our stinkin’ LIVES, that stupid old man was busy getting his jollies on?” he almost shouted.

Nabiki arrived just as Ranma finished speaking, a concerned look on her face. “Everything okay in here, sis?” she asked Kasumi, seeing the unspeakable rage on Ranma’s face.

Kasumi looked at Nabiki, then back to Ranma. “Oh my! I think Grandfather Happosai has made Ranma angry,” she told her.

“I’m gonna beat that old man until he ain’t nothing but old DUST!” promised Ranma, glaring at the window, as if he could see the grandmaster of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts.

“Hold on a second there, Ranma, let’s not get ahead of our selves. Tell me what’s happened first, then WE’LL plan to do something, okay?” said Nabiki calmly, catching Ranma’s attention by flicking her finger menacingly before him.

Covering his nose in a hurry, he nodded at her. “Okay Nabiki, but lemme tell everyone at the same time,” he said, moving with her back to the living room.

Mutsumi looked at her friend. “I hope I haven’t made thing difficult for you, Kasumi,” she said quietly.

Kasumi smiled at her friend. “Don’t worry about it, it’s been some time since Ranma and his friends have really worked together. I’m sure this is JUST what they need to have some fun again,” she told her, sitting back down at the table.

“Are you hungry?” asked Kasumi, pouring herself some tea.

“I think I have a watermelon somewhere,” answered Mutsumi, pulling a watermelon from beneath her chair and setting it on the table.

There was a roar of outrage and shouting from the front room, drawing both girls’ attentions. Sighing, Kasumi stood up to retrieve her cutting board and knife. “I guess I should take some into them before they do anything rash,” she said.

Mutsumi smiled knowingly at her. “It would seem that our work is never quite finished,” she agreed, moving to help her friend keep the peace.

On the street outside...

“So, you noticed it as well?” asked Amon, looking out the window of his silver vehicle that was parked in an inconspicuous spot near the Tendo home.

Robin nodded from the passenger seat. “Yes, it was so thick on her you could almost smell it,” she agreed, wrinkling her nose while she absently played with her glasses on the dashboard.

“Is she possessed?” he asked her, looking back now at the girl next to him.

Robin paused before answering, thinking about her answer. “I don’t think so, probably just being influenced. I won’t be able to tell without speaking to her,” she allowed, not sure of exactly what they’d seen in the wounded girl.

Amon grunted at her statement, turning his attentions back outside. “We’d better find out why before we move then,” he told her leaning back into the seat to get more comfortable.

Robin nodded, turning to look at him as he rested. “You think this has anything to do with what we found at the Hinata Sou?” she asked him, remembering their investigations there.

Amon nodded slightly, though he didn’t open his eyes. “Probably, but I’m not willing to take chances. After she’s better, we’ll pay her a visit and find out how similar they are,” the man said.

He opened his eyes and regarded the empty street before him, “That girl, Kanako...is she capable of handling things while Keitaro and Motoko are out?” he asked, unsure of the newcomer.

There was no answer for a long moment. “Yes, though I don’t think she’ll be well liked or accepted by the others. Her methods are...distasteful at times, but effective,” the blonde girl allowed.

The man smiled faintly in the dim light. “So long as she’s effective, her methods are the least of my concerns,” he told her.

Robin didn’t comment. While she agreed and supported Amon through most everything, their methodology to getting their jobs done was diametrically opposed at times. ‘Not that I’d ever let that interfere with us...’ she thought, stealing glances at the handsome man next to her.

Inside the Tendo Living Room...

The group leaned forwards, each bearing a stern expression. “Okay then, it’s agreed. We gotta do something about the old pervert once and for all!” said a very upset and determined Ranma.

“I would like to help as well,” said a calm Nodoka, smiling at the shocked faces. “He has caused my family more trouble that I can count with his teachings and unmanly behavior,” she explained.

Ranma, smiling at first his mother, then Nabiki, turned back to the assembled group. “No problems with my mom joining us?” he asked.

Not one of them dissented, but rather all of them smiled devilishly, knowing full well the bundle she carried.

Bill gave a crooked grin. “I’ve got one more I’d like to add to this little soiree. Seems like the little pervert groped Tsuruko not too long ago. She’ll be more than willing to lend a hand I’m sure,” he offered, with Ranma and Shampoo wincing at the thought of what she’d do to the old man.

“Here’s my idea...” Bill said, beginning to speak slowly and carefully, outlining his thoughts on dealing with the pervert of Nerima.

On the other side of Town...

Happosai was gleefully running the rooftops, once more a large satchel on his back of stolen lacy goods. “Life is good!” he shouted, leaping to a higher building.

A sudden sneeze forced him to halt his running, followed by a shiver that ran down his spine. Shaking his shoulders, he looked behind him for a moment, seeing nothing. ‘Huh? Must be catching a cold...perhaps a long hot soak will do these old bones good,” he thought, remembering the fine young woman he’d spotted in the bathroom earlier.

Cackling madly as he ran off into the night, he promptly forgot about the sneeze and chill, a fact that would come back to haunt him later.

End of Chapter notes:

Well, another long one. This was supposed to be with the chapter before this, but not only was my head threatening a full revolt( I HATE being sick) but I just couldn’t in good conscious type all that at once. I would’ve ended up not paying attention to detail and thus not giving the characters the full credit due them. Well, things are turning out rather interesting for everyone, I hope it’s keeping you all interested. I have to give credit to Wonderbee31 for figuring out that Akane’s not actually possessed. (Hmmm...perhaps you are too smart for your own good? Note to self; have the Burger King visit him) LOL...one of my reviewers threatened me with that before (thanks to Chemical Love, you rock!)and I found it to be a VERY motivating and sadistic threat. (My reviewers are the BEST!)

Hangs head And I jumped the gun on the last chapter and posted it before I got back the copy from Innortal. I should’ve waited on his input before posting it, but got impatient and just went ahead anyhow. Not going to do that here...lol. So, thanks once more to the almighty Innortal! R&R if it moves ya to do so. Until next time :)