Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ One-Half a Wing and a Prayer ❯ Icee that we have a Problem ( Chapter 15 )

Author’s Note: Ranma’s world was dreamed up by Rumiko Takahashi, produced by Kitty in Japan, and was licensed in the U.S. by Viz Communications, I’m just going to borrow them for a while to tell another story. This isn’t for money, just for fun. This story also contains adult themes, like sex and violence so be warned. Then again, if you like sex and violence, come on down.
P.S.: still and always for Janice.


Ranma was lacing up his rental skates as he watched Nabiki pull on her own pair across from him. They sat in the preparation area for the municipal skating rink, and Ranma had to admit it was more than he was expecting. When he thought of skating, he figured that a frozen pond somewhere was needed, but now he saw that his father had not only kept him away from other people, but modern technology as well.

To be perfectly honest, the first time Nabiki’s cell phone went off, he had to be peeled off the ceiling and convinced that there wasn’t some kind of alien invasion going on.

He finished lacing and looked up to see Nabiki stand, and let out a whistle. She had worn tight black pants and a baggy sweater, but the extra layers didn’t hide her figure, and Ranma was grateful.

“You make that look good,” he smiled at his fiancé.

Nabiki smirked and helped him up, “And you make anything look good, in either form. So why didn’t you come as a girl? That is what you are competing as, right?”

Ranma’s smile flickered for a moment, but he answered, “Five days from now I have to face my old man, and the more time I spend getting up to speed in my male form, the better.”

Nabiki frowned slightly, “That’s not it, is it?”

“No fooling you,” he sighed and continued, “He’s a jerk, but Pops may be right about one thing, I have been relying on my powers too much lately. I need to stand up on my own if I’m ever to show him that I’m…well…not what he thinks I am.”

“Good enough,” Nabiki smiled and gave him a kiss, “Now let’s get out there and see what you can do.”

Ranma smiled, “Right on.” He took a step onto the rink’s ice, and instantly the blade of his skate slid wide, flipping him backwards as his other foot caught on the lip of the rink. A loud crash echoed through the rink as Ranma crashed into the ground, his legs split wide. He managed to croak out two words in a high pitched voice.

“New pain…”


One Half a Wing and a Prayer
By Seth

Chapter 15
Icee that we have a Problem


Back in the prep area, Nabiki poured a small amount of cold water over Ranma’s head, and his black hair seemed to wash away to red as the transformation swept over him. With a sigh she looked up at Nabiki with a grateful smile.

“That helped,” Ranma said, “The pain is a lot less in this form. I guess there is an advantage after all.”

Nabiki smirked and answered, “That and all the flexibility training you did before. I think your whole muscle structure is different when you change, you need to get used to the way you move in both forms.”

Ranma nodded at the logic and stood up, “I’ll work on the other half later on then. For now, I guess I need to learn how to skate.” She shifted to a pout and widened her eyes to a needy expression, glancing at Nabiki, “Will you help me?”

“Ack, not the puppy dog look! I give, yes I’ll teach you, you sneaky little minx,” Nabiki said, making humorous warding gestures at Ranma. The two girls returned to the ice, hand in hand, and started out. Right away, Nabiki could tell she had her hands full as Ranma almost pulled both of them down after only a short distance.

Starting again, Nabiki concentrated on getting Ranma to be able to simply stand on the ice, recognizing that the girl seemed to have an issue with balance. At first she thought it was that Ranma was rather top-heavy in this form, but then two things occurred to her. Ranma’s fighting style was one of constant motion, his or her body always moving in one way or another, the idea of letting the ground do the moving and standing more or less still was throwing the redhead off.

Then there was the fact that Ranma was hiding a set of wings in her back that she had been using to augment her balance in combat. Not having those extra limbs for balance, and deliberately not using them was probably a strain on the determined girl. Fortunately, Ranma was more then willing to fight on, and was struggling to adapt.

Nabiki was leading the girl through the first few meters of a controlled slide when something rammed into her from behind, causing her to stumble and release Ranma. Spinning around, Nabiki caught sight of Azusa Shiratori skating by with a smug look, and Nabiki had to take a moment to reconcile the whiny hyperactive girl with what Azusa wore.

The skater girl had on what almost passed for a sequined leotard, with fishnet stockings covering her legs down to her skates. The bottom of the leotard was trimmed with a partial skirt of translucent material that started at the girl’s crotch and ran up around her hips. It seemed like the airhead was trying to draw attention to the fact that she was jailbait on the prowl.

“Oh I’m sorry,” she gave a false smile at Nabiki and drawled out, “Did Azusa hit the ugly, clumsy skank on her ice?”

Nabiki fought down the urge to psychically rip the girl’s legs off, and simply countered, “At least I don’t look like a poster child for pedophilia.”

A flash of anger crossed Shiratori’s face, but it soon washed away with a light smile, “I think your friend is having a little trouble on the ice, don’t you?”

Nabiki spun around to see Ranma sliding away at high speed, out of control and headed backwards towards a wall. She kicked off and tried to sprint over to catch the flailing girl, but was intercepted by a blindingly fast Azusa who came in and almost kicked her again. She growled and wished that Ranma’s combat lessons had already begun.

Just before the out of control redhead slammed into the wall, a pair of hands grabbed her sides from behind and lifted her into the air, and she curved away from the wall. Ranma looked behind her, confused for a moment, and found the light smile of Mikado Sanzenin. The skater pulled Ranma in close so he could softly speak into Ranma’s ear and spoke in a soothing voice.

“I must say,” he began, “it’s a real pleasure to see you again, Miss.”

Ranma grunted, “Pleasure is all yours, creep.” She braced herself and kicked off him, jumping away to land unsteadily next to Nabiki, who took hold of the smaller girl to lend support. Azusa slid to stand next to her partner and elbowed him.

“Enough of spending time with your toys, it’s time to practice,” she told him and gestured to a large hockey team moving on to the ice. The two partners moved towards the large assembly of men who were milling about, checking their hockey sticks and pads in preparation for activity.

Ranma and Nabiki watched, and the Golden Pair took a ready pose on the ice as the mob finished preparations and moved towards them. Azusa leaped up, landing nimbly on Mikado’s shoulders as he began a graceful push into the middle of the armed men.

“The Attack of One Hundred Foes,” Mikado intoned as the hockey players began to move.

On wobbly legs, Ranma watched with a clinical martial artist eye as the pair launched into a series of almost choreographed attacks, using every limb in a whirl of motion the duet struck out. Mikado would toss Azusa up, elbowing an opponent and kicking out at another, then catching Azusa as she came down from an airborne knee strike to swing in his arms, slicing at the padding of yet another opponent with her skates. It progressed in this fashion as one after another the attackers were knocked away, or retreated out of range of flashing silver blades.

“Whoa,” Nabiki commented as number fifty crashed into a nearby retaining wall.

Ranma’s expression remained unchanged as she leaned against Nabiki and said, “Maybe, but it’s all orchestrated. The hockey guys are attacking in a pattern, no more then two or three at a time.” She considered for a moment, “This is a show, put on to intimidate us by a display of seemingly unbeatable skill.”

“I hate to tell you,” Nabiki said, “but its working. You can barely skate, and I can barley fight. They may be faking a fight, but they are still good enough to move like that, and the truth is we are not.” She sighed and looked at her grinning companion in resignation, “We are so screwed.”

Ranma shook her head as number seventy whizzed by heading for the wall to land in his fellow’s lap, “Five days is all the time we need, I promise you. Ranma Saotome never loses, and neither will Nabiki Tendo.”

With a final attack, the Golden Pair finished their demonstration, Azusa landing gracefully in Mikado’s arms as he smugly said, “Finito.”

Bolstered by Ranma, Nabiki was about to fire off a rude comment to the showy duo, but a commotion from across the rink drew her attention as she saw her sister had arrived and was showing off her pet piglet to a group of friends.

“Don’t look now, but we may have trouble,” she told Ranma as the redhead groaned at the sight of the girl snuggling the transformed Ryoga.

“One of these days, I’m gonna have to kill him,” the redhead growled. They were about to join Akane, when a sequined blur shot past them and snatched Ryoga out of Akane’s arms.

As she retreated away from Akane, Azusa growled out, “What are you doing with Azusa’s Charlotte?”

Akane’s eyes locked onto the other girl in disbelief, “That’s my P-Chan you just stole! Give him back!” She was about to charge the other girl, but pulled up short growling, reigning in her temper.

Nabiki skated over, leaving a mostly stable Ranma and said, “That’s what the match is about, remember, Akane. We told you about that in class yesterday.”

“I know,” growled the younger Tendo, “But that doesn’t give her the right to snatch poor P-Chan right out of my hands.” The piglet nodded franticly in agreement as he struggled against the clutches of Shiratori.

“We’ll see about that,” Azusa said smugly, “until then, I got a widle pwesent for my pwecous widdle piggy.” With that she flicked her wrist, snapping a collar around P-Chan’s neck. Akane quickly snatched the piglet back and examined him. It was a simple gold band with a heart shaped pendent with the English name Charlotte inscribed on it.

“How could you,” she snarled and tugged at the collar, but was unable to pull it free without hurting her pet.

Azusa held up a key and almost crowed out, “If your friends somehow win, then you get little Franklin here, otherwise, I keep Charlotte. And judging by your friends attempts, it will be easy.”

Nabiki whipped her head around and caught sight of a panicked Ranma as she flailed to stay upright. She made a break for the redhead before she could fall, but saw plainly that she wouldn’t make it. Just as she was about to hit the ice, Ranma was scooped up once again by Mikado, this time from the front as he skated away from Nabiki.

Holding Ranma close, Mikado leaned closer and softly said, “I could teach you to skate, beautiful.”

Wincing at the closeness of the male, and how it was affecting her demonic physiology, Ranma managed, “No thanks, we’re doing fine.”

“Then at least you can thank me for the rescue,” he smiled and leaned in. Before Ranma could object or react, he was in contact with her, their lips touching. Her eyes bugged out as Sanzenin kissed her, warmth passing to her as he slid one hand along the side of her breast and lingered on her lips.

Nononononononononononononono, was all Ranma could think as higher brain functions refused to respond, and for a moment, it seemed like she was going to give in to the base urges that grew from the dark portions of her mind. She almost gave in to the siren song in her core, and drained the fool dry.

Suddenly she was back on the ice, and Mikado stood there with a satisfied smile. She took one step away, and saw out the corner of her eye that Nabiki was rushing to her aid, a half shocked, half grinning Akane right behind her. But she could not face them.

Taking one step away, she let out a long scream that echoed throughout the rink with such intensity that everyone had to cover their ears and flinch away from the pressure and emotion it carried. Only Nabiki was spared the brunt of the outburst by using her mental power to deflect most of the pressure wave away from her, and so she was the only one to see Ranma’s wings rip out her back as the redhead launched herself into the air, sending a large blast of demonic fire into the skylight, and escaping at high speed.

Falling to the ice, for a moment she despaired that Ranma had gone off the deep end, but she refused to give up. Trying to reign in the chaos of her own mind, she reached out to the fleeing demon.

“Ranma,” she called out, seeking the wayward girl. All she got was a jumble of emotions ranging from confusion, to lust, to raw blood red rage. She grabbed on to the knot of conflicting feelings and gave her lover an additional anchor against the storm. Soon the emotional tsunami boiled down to one thought.

I’m going to KILL that fuck!

She saw a comet like form drop back into the arena as the last echo of the scream faded away, and as it landed steam poured up from the ice. Ranma had came back down surrounded by hellfire, instantly superheating the ice and causing the boiling mist to transform him back into a male. Slamming his feet into the rink hard enough to plant his skate blades halfway into the ice, he marched out of the mist and confronted the recovering Sanzenin.

“For that little stunt,” Ranma told him in a low voice, “you’re dead.”

Mikado looked confused, “The young lady just seemed to be a little overwhelmed by my…”

“Wrong thing to say, punk,” Ranma interrupted and launched at the taller boy, murder in his eyes as he executed a high kick, aiming for the neck. Quickly Mikado slid out of the way, and whipped his leg up and down on top of Ranma’s head, planting the pigtailed boy face first into the ice.

“Fool,” the skater commented, “going for a clumsy attack when you can’t even stand. I…” He was about to go on, but Ranma shot up from the ground behind him and attacked again. With one hand he pressed off the ice, as the other stretched out, a knife edge strike going for Mikado’s heart. The only thing to save the male half of the Golden pair was Ranma’s continued awkwardness on skates, and once more he slipped away missing his mark. The strike was not totally ineffective though, as Mikado felt his shirt come open where Ranma had grazed him, leaving a clean cut section open to the cold. He again skated away as Ranma began to stand, and decided to end the fight now.

As Ranma launched at him again, Mikado stood his ground, and began to spin in place.

Off to one side, Nabiki heard one of the beaten hockey players gasp out, “The Dance of Death. Nobody can survive that kind of attack!” She was about to launch herself at Sanzenin, hoping that some kind of telekinetic attack would throw him off, but Akane raised an arm to block her path.

“What are you doing,” she asked her sister, on the verge of panic.

Akane only stood there, counting, “Twenty…forty…seventy…one hundred…”

Nabiki looked at her sister in disbelief, and was about to push past. Then she saw the clinical look in Akane’s eyes, and she wasn’t watching the spinning skater. Soon the Dance of Death stopped and Ranma landed head first a few meters away from the two girls, and Akane finally lowered her hand and announced, “five hundred forty two.”

Nabiki rushed to Ranma’s side to check on the downed boy, but before she reached him, he used his arms to lever himself up to a sitting position. He looked like he was about to attempt to stand, but he could not manage to get any more strength out, and collapsed back to the ice.

Nabiki finally reached him and he gasped out, “That showed him.”

Azusa looked on with slight contempt as every other skater looked on in awe. An unknown had survived the unstoppable ultimate attack of Mikado Sanzenin, and was still able to move. She glided over to stand in front of Ranma and Nabiki.

“I guess we call that round a draw,” she said, not really wanting to compromise with her opponent.

“Nope,” Akane said, coming up behind her sister, “Ranma won that one. Go look yourself.”

Azusa looked at the girl, and then turned to her partner, who was still holding the finishing pose for his attack. Skating over, she waved her hand in front of Mikado’s still open eyes, but there was no response. She began to poke his side in a manner she knew would annoy him, but still no movement.

Akane leaned down to help Ranma off the rink and announced, “Ranma hit him five hundred forty two times in less then a minute. The letch passed out after the first hundred and momentum kept them going.” She looked over at her sister, supporting Ranma’s other side and quietly said, “You had better win this contest coming up, or I will beat the hell out of your boyfriend for loosing P-Chan to that weirdo.”

“I guess the therapy is working, huh sis.”

Akane shrugged, “Not really. The creep thought I was repressing my own sexuality or something, so I hit him for being a pervert. I’m just trying not to upset Daddy anymore after the chewing out I got.” She helped Nabiki get Ranma to the benches off the ice and dropped the pigtailed boy on one, “I’m still mad at you, and I hate him, but I’m never going to disappoint Daddy again.” With that, she walked off, taking an unusually quiet transformed Ryoga with her.

“I don’t think that was the point of therapy,” Nabiki said quietly to her sister’s back, then turned to tend to Ranma. His wounds were minor, and it seemed that the worst injury he suffered was a few cuts on his torso when the Dance of Death had begun. He was simply worn out, having used everything he had to pour fist after fist into his target.

She managed to get him upright, and after a little food and drink to give him a quick boost of energy; the two teens were able to slowly make their way home. After that, and one of Kasumi’s meals, Ranma was at about half strength, and he announced that it was enough to begin Nabiki’s training.

They retreated into the dojo, and Ranma leaned against the wall as Nabiki, now clad in one of her sister’s spare gi’s, stood in the middle of the practice mat, waiting for instruction. Nabiki could feel the emotional pain rolling off Ranma, even though he was trying to suppress it, and was about to try and get the martial artist to open up.

That is until Genma burst into the dojo.

“What is this, boy,” the older man barked out at the still tired Ranma, “I’m told you are going around seducing men now! Oh the shame! This must come to an end, or you will truly be lost...”

Once again, Genma found himself held against a wall by Nabiki’s invisible force. She shook her head at Ranma, who was about to stop her, and slowly growled out, “Who…Told…You?”

Genma found himself struggling for air, and couldn’t answer if he wanted too. Then he felt it, a clawing in his mind as Nabiki entered, looking for the answer. He didn’t even try to resist as he felt the pressure on his chest and in his head increase.

Nabiki let him down and turned to Ranma, “Ryoga.”

Ranma shook his head, sighing, and said, “He probably thinks it will motivate Pops here into turning our little match into something more. Or maybe he figures that it’s a way he can get his revenge by spreading it around. This has to be the most embarrassing thing ever to happen to me, so in a way, he’s right.”

“And Genma,” Nabiki asked.

Ranma looked at his father and spoke softly, “I was violated, but you know all about that, don’t you. You’re just pissed off that you didn’t think of it first. As long as I think I’m not strong enough to defend myself as a girl, and I think I’m too weak to measure up as a man, you win.” Ranma stood and glared down at Genma, “Well guess what, Pops. Sure, I got shook up bad, and it will probably take a while for me to recover. But it won’t stop me from putting those skating brats down, because that Sanzenin guy is no better then you, and I KNOW I’m going to put you down.”

With that, Ranma gave a nod to Nabiki, and she telekinetically lifted the struggling Genma up, and tossed him out of the dojo and into the koi pond where he shifted to his panda form. After closing the door, she went over to where Ranma was once more leaning against the wall and gave him a warm hug.

“Are you really going to be all right,” she asked.

Ranma shivered and welcomed her embrace, “Not for a while. It was like Kuno all over again, I had to fight off those damn demon instincts, and it gave the creep the opening he needed to kiss me. I thought I had better control, but I’m still learning I guess.”

“Maybe you should have drained him dry,” Nabiki chuckled, “Then at least we wouldn’t have to fight him.” Her joke however, seemed to fall flat as soon as she said it. She let go of Ranma and gave him an apologetic look, and he gave a simple nod in reply.

“Ok,” Ranma began, “let’s get back to getting ready so it won’t be a problem fighting those two wackos.” He led her back to the center of the dojo and assumed a lose stance, “Did your father teach you any of the Tendo style?”

Nabiki shrugged, “A little when I was a kid. After a while, I just didn’t want to keep going, so he focused on Akane. Look how good that turned out.”

Ranma gestured to her to take a stance and said, “We’ll just take what you remember, and add to it. I’m going to concentrate on defense with you and I’ll handle the offence.”

“Is that a good idea,” Nabiki asked, “we may need to bail each other out of tight spots, and I can’t do that with a block.”

Ranma smirked, “Actually, you can. I’m going to show you Aikido and Tai Chi styles that can reverse an opponent’s force, turning it against them. I figured it would suit you better then the ground and pound that Akane does.”

Slowly, Ranma took Nabiki through the beginnings of the different styles, allowing her to feel out how the movements went as she moved to block slow punches from Ranma. To Nabiki it seemed that only music was required to turn it into a graceful dance, but she remembered that every time a hand touched her in this dance, it represented a blow that could break bones.

After an hour of this Nabiki was covered in sweat, and Ranma wasn’t even breathing hard. She felt sore, but at the same time she felt a sense of accomplishment. For the last few minutes before Ranma had stopped, his speed had increased to what Nabiki thought of as matching her sister’s own, and she was able to block or deflect over half the strikes.

Panting, but refusing to give up just yet, she told Ranma, “Let’s go a few more minutes, but this time I want to try and use my powers.”

Ranma blinked, “Are you sure? I mean, I’m trying to prove that I don’t need mine, and you want to use yours?”

Nabiki smiled, “I’m not the warrior you are, lover boy. I don’t think I’m going to be up to your level in five days.”

Sighing, Ranma conceded the point and took a ready stance again. Nabiki closed her eyes, and let her mind drift for a moment. She had worked on her power for the last month that Ranma had been around, and this would be the real test of how far she had come.

She opened her eyes again, and nodded that she was ready. Ranma launched a punch at the same speed as before, and Nabiki flowed around it, sensing where it was directed. Bringing one hand up, she deflected the following punch and was inside Ranma’s guard, stepping away from a low kick, she tapped him on the chest and spun back out again. The pace increased again, but Nabiki, in her self induced trance, was able to see each punch and each kick a split second before Ranma attacked. She moved into close range and made openings to tag him several times over the next two minutes.

Trying another approach, she spun around one of Ranma’s punches, and with one hand caught his arm in a telekinetic grip and pulled him past her as she whipped around. In a heartbeat her concentration was lost as she felt Ranma’s surprise as he was casually tossed into the air to land on the far side of the dojo.

Slumped upside down against the wall, Ranma looked wide eyed at Nabiki, and let a small smile crawl onto his face, “Now that’s what I’m talking about. That’s a big difference, isn’t it?”

“How do you keep from using your power all the time,” Nabiki asked in wonder.

“It’s hard,” Ranma admitted, flipping upright, “but at least mine have an off switch. Anyway, I think that’s enough for today. You were right, you aren’t a warrior, but if you keep this up then you will be able to dance around anyone who comes after you.”

Nabiki chuckled, “I’ll take dancing over fighting every time.” Ranma righted himself, and Nabiki sat next to him, opening her gi slightly to cool off after the workout. “I feel like I got put through the wringer, and you aren’t even sweating a little. How do you manage that?”

“Ten years of suicidal martial arts training is my guess,” he said, and was about to continue, but when he turned to look at her, he saw out of the corner of his eye that she was fanning herself with one of the flaps to the top of her gi, and with every flap, her large breast was exposed.

Nabiki noticed his sudden silence and looked at her fiancé, seeing the line from his eyes to her chest. She smiled and pulled back on the flap, showing more skin and enjoying the loud gulp that came from Ranma.

“See something you like,” she asked sweetly.

Ranma nodded dumbly, and Nabiki was once more amazed at the difference in inhibitions between the boy and girl forms of her lover. Holding her top open, she used her free hand to grab hold of Ranma’s hand, and guide it to rest on her exposed breast. She felt him freeze up, and quickly moved in close to give him an encouraging kiss on the cheek.

“I guess it’s not like I haven’t done this before,” Ranma said, half to himself, “It’s just that there are differences, and I’m only starting to understand them.” He relaxed a little and began to give Nabiki’s breast a massage, kneading it gently as she relaxed in his arms. The two teens shared warmth and company as the quiet surrounded them for a moment of peace. Nabiki knew that Ranma wouldn’t go any further then a grope right now, so she luxuriated in the soft sensations, finding them just as comforting as they were stimulating.

The two teens were halfway asleep when there was a soft knock on the dojo door, and Ranma pulled his hand away, moving it to simply hold Nabiki as she called for whoever it was to enter. The door slid open, and quickly slid shut again as Kasumi entered, holding a small glass of water.

“We have a guest here to see us,” she said looking at Ranma, “Kodachi Kuno wants to speak with the Black Rose Queen, and apparently the Black Rose Princess.”

Ranma groaned at this, and Nabiki had to stifle a laugh as a pained expression crossed her lover’s face. She got up, and taking the glass from her sister held it over Ranma’s head.

“One of these days,” Ranma groused, “I’d like to actually DRINK a glass of water instead of having to absorb it through my head.” He nodded to Nabiki, and with a splash of water, black turned red, a muscled chest became a well endowed bosom, and a put upon boy became an equally put upon girl. Kasumi gave Ranma a sympathetic smile and opened the door again to allow Kodachi in.

Ranma and Nabiki were expecting the bombastic Kuno to charge in and attack them, but the sight that greeted them was a bit of a surprise. The gymnast wore a formal kimono of dark green, her hair in a bun. As she entered she bowed politely to Ranma and Nabiki, and sat off to one side as Kasumi closed the door behind her and sat with the bewildered couple.

Kasumi cleared her throat and began, “Now why did you wish to speak to the two of us, Kodachi?”

Kodachi again bowed, this time her head touching the floor and as she sat up again she said, “I wanted to apologize for my actions, my Queen. When I took up your mantle, I thought it was in tribute to the person I admired. I did not recognize you, but I do now, and I apologize to you, and your apprentice for attempting to usurp her place.” Again her head touched the floor, this time in Ranma’s direction, and the redhead had no idea how to react.

“Kodachi, please sit up,” Kasumi said quietly, “There is no need for such formality here.” She took a deep breath as the gymnast sat up again and a curious expression crossed her face. “You need to understand something,” Kasumi continued, “originally; the Black Rose Queen was just something that was between me and my friends that we kept after a certain, less then reputable, event. You seem to have misinterpreted that and turned it into something larger. Yes, I used that name for competition, and I feel a special attachment to the memories it holds. That is why I trained Ranma, to protect those memories. I haven’t used the name Black Rose Queen in almost two years now.”

“And I ain’t no Princess,” Ranma added for good measure.

Kodachi paused, and then asked, “But what of those techniques that you used against me and the wager over the title and the boy Ranma. Surely those were the actions of a Queen defending her property.”

Ranma blushed, and Nabiki chuckled, “Kasumi didn’t want you running around making her look bad. The two Ranma’s are complicated. And those tricks you got hit with are kinky sex games; you only thought they were gymnastics techniques.” Ranma blanched at her fiancé’s bluntness, but Kasumi nodded confirmation. Kodachi was rocked back by this, and sat stunned for a moment while she sorted it all out.

“I am not sure I understand all that you say,” she finally said, “I thought that when you were queen, those under you served you to relieve your stresses so you could perform to a superior standard.”

Kasumi blushed, “Actually we were a bunch of horny girls who enjoyed that kind of thing. I never abused the trust they put in me, everything we did was give and take. I was a much less reserved person back then.”

“What about you,” Kodachi asked, her surprise growing, “You were so powerful and demanding in the ring, and this girl seems to be your property. Surely this isn’t just a game?”

“I am no one’s property,” stated Nabiki flatly, “but yes, I am Ranma’s lover.”

“As for the attitude in the ring,” Ranma continued before Nabiki began to tear into the obviously disoriented girl, “there are a few reasons for that. Primarily, it seemed like it was the only way to get through to you.”

Kodachi considered this, and felt the ring of truth. She admitted to herself that her in ring attitude was a little…intense. But it still left many questions unanswered.

Quietly, she asked, “So what do I do now? I came here to try and resolve the dilemma in my mind. I was going to offer myself as a slave to you, and now I find you have no interest in such things.” Her eyes filled with tears and she had to choke back an unexpected sob, “I can’t have my own servants around me anymore, and with no one there I feel…I feel…”

“Alone,” Ranma whispered in realization, “You’re just like me, aren’t you? Don’t you have friends, or family?”

Kodachi wiped her eyes and gave a humorless laugh, “You know my brother, and that is all I have.” Ranma winced at that, figuring that the elder Kuno was just as bad as his father.

Kasumi picked up on what Ranma was thinking and moved to sit beside the distraught girl, “You did the right thing in coming here. I may not take you as a servant, as you thought, but I could use a friend. Would that be all right?”

“Hold on a second,” Nabiki interrupted, “not to be little miss downer or anything, but how do we know this is on the up and up. Ranma may see loneliness in you, and my sister tries to make friends with everyone, but I’m not as easy to convince. Only last week you poisoned the boy Ranma and molested him on our roof. Then you tried to kill my younger sister and my favorite redhead. How do I know I can trust you after all that?”

“You could always make her your slave,” Kasumi pointed out.

Nabiki blushed and waved her arms, “I already have a girlfriend, a boyfriend and all that other stuff. Plus I don’t get off on that kinky stuff like you two.”

Ranma blushed and mumbled, “That’s the demon. Complain to it.”

Kodachi looked up and asked, “Demon?”

Ranma and the Tendo girls winced at this, but before Ranma could say anymore Kasumi spoke up, “That is a matter of trust, Kodachi. And my sister has a point, what will you do to prove that we can trust you?” Nabiki nodded at her sister in thanks for her quick thinking and sat back to hear Kodachi’s answer.

The girl simply said, “I’ll do anything. I want to become stronger, better, and someone worthy of the reputation you created. If that means I have to start from scratch, so be it. I need to be the best…and…I don’t want to be alone anymore.”

Nabiki had been watching the girl while she said this, and skimming her surface thoughts to see if there was any deception. She mentally told the other two girls, “It seems like she really does want this, she really wants to be better. She’s driven, almost obsessed with being number one. You were right, Ranma, she is just like you.”

Kasumi nodded and put an arm around the gymnast, “As long as you stay true, I would be glad to call you a friend, and a student.”

“What about you,” Kodachi asked Ranma.

“I hate to say it,” Ranma shrugged, “but you’ll have to work on getting me to trust you all the way. But you don’t have to worry about me as a competitor, once was enough for me.”

Then Kodachi turned to Nabiki, who added, “I’m with Ranma, earn my trust and we’re good.”

“Then what about this demon you spoke of?”

The three winced again, hoping that Kodachi had been sidetracked by their partial acceptance. Sharing meaningful looks, and a mental conversation, the Tendo sisters decided that the decision was up to Ranma, and left it in her hands.

“I have secrets, and when you are ready I may share them with you. But they are secrets that could cause a lot of trouble, not just for me, but also for anyone who knows them. Please just leave it alone for now, and when you’re ready we’ll tell you,” Ranma explained.

“What do you think,” Kasumi asked, “You get friends and a teacher, and all you have to do is strive to be a good person. Will you?”

Kodachi looked from girl to girl. Nabiki seemed grudgingly accepting, and recognized that she was a girl who did not easily let people past her armor. Ranma had an unmistakable allure about her, but at the same time seemed to be on unsure footing regarding friends. She had even admitted to feeling some of what Kodachi had experienced. It was easy to see why her brother was obsessed with the mysterious beauty.

Then there was Kasumi, the girl Kodachi had idolized throughout her gymnastics career. Even looking like a housewife, the older girl…no, the young woman…held an air of grace and confidence about her. Even if she denied it, Kodachi still felt that she was in the presence of royalty. And now this wonder had said she would take her on as a student, and maybe a friend. Kodachi had no trouble making up her mind.

She turned to Kasumi and gave her a hug, kissing lightly on her lips, and after a moment she parted slightly and simply said, “Thank you.” My Mistress, she added in her head.

The four of them spent the next hour hearing how Kodachi had seen Kasumi’s early career, Ranma blushing at the parts where Kodachi had spied on the Furinkan team’s lovemaking, and how the ideal of the Black Rose had become Kodachi’s diving goal. Ranma answered by giving an edited version of her training, and Nabiki again commented on the fact that both were obsessed with being the best in their fields.

Meanwhile, on the outskirts of Tokyo, Shampoo had set up camp in a stand of trees off the railway tracks leading into the city. She marveled at the sight in the growing dusk as artificial light replaced the sun. In the last few hours since she had jumped off the freighter and swam ashore she had seen more then in her entire life back in the village. Cars, Bullet Trains, even aircraft flying overhead. Then there was the city itself, building tall enough to be seen miles away, scraping the clouds.

In the back of her mind she remembered that someone had told her about these wonders, but she still couldn’t remember who. It didn’t really matter, however, as tomorrow she would set out to find Nerima, and then the demon imposter.

She felt excitement at the prospect of finding her prey, but for some odd reason, it was not the thrill of battle she was expecting. Instead, as she lay on a simple blanket on the ground, she found herself picturing what the demon may look like, and always the same image popped into her mind. A short, energetic girl with fire red hair, generous endowments, and a warm smile, and for a moment each time there was a spark of recognition.

Shampoo put it aside as part of the succubus’ demonic charm, but tonight it did not stop her hand from sliding into her silk pants to gently stroke her sex. She let the fantasy continue, and could almost taste the girl on her lips as she imagined the redhead leaning down, opening her shirt, exposing Shampoo’s own large breasts to the night air, and licking one enlarged nipple while her hand drifted down to penetrate the cleanly shaven nether lips of the panting Amazon.

Shampoo was soon vigorously pumping fingers in and out of her canal as she all but tore her clothing off in the sexually induced heat. She knelt in the dark, one hand between her legs, the other lifting a breast to her mouth as she moaned into the night. She lightly bit her own nipple, and began bucking her hips as the image of the redhead that consumed her became clearer for an instant, and in that moment, Shampoo reached climax.

Falling back onto her bedroll, she squirmed as the sensation washed over her and continued to rub her clitoris through the spasms. The fast, intense pace of her masturbations left her drained as she rocked from a small aftershock, and soon she drifted off to sleep, one hand comfortably nestled between her legs.

Just before sleep took her completely, a simple sound escaped her.

“Ra…”


To be continued.