Azumanga Daioh Fan Fiction / Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Cat's Crossing ❯ Chapter 1

Ranma 1/2: Azumanga Daioh

Cats Crossing

 

Shan Pu listened calmly to the teacher's excited introduction, wondering just what was going on with the older woman. "This year," Miss Yukari said cheerfully, "I've managed to acquire a special transfer student for our class! She comes all the way from China."

 

"From China!" Tomo repeated the words eagerly, gazing at the busty, purple haired woman standing by their teacher in awe.

 

"I'd like you to meet," Yukari double checked the spelling, "Shan Pu!"

 

"Shampoo?" Yomi blinked, her glasses shining as the taller girl looked on curiously.

 

"Yes," Shan Pu nodded agreeably, bowing. "Shan Pu hopes class will support her."

 

"I think that's two words," Chiyo-chan pointed out politely to the others. "Shan," she paused intentionally, "Pu."

 

"Aw," Kagura waved it off as the athletic young woman grinned, "Shampoo will make a good nickname for her."

 

"But if it sounds just like her real name," Osaka offered up thoughtfully, "can it really be called a nickname?"

 

"Take any seat you like," Yukari waved towards the empty chairs, casually tuning out her students usual conversations.

 

"Thank you," Shan Pu nodded respectfully, her eyes sweeping the room warily. Her gaze landed on a black haired woman sitting in the corner by the window and she felt a sudden surge of powerful fighting energy. 'Maybe this detour will be worthwhile after all.' she thought, striding to a empty seat nearby the other woman.

 

"She gets to sit by Sakaki?" Kaorin sighed, the black haired girl tossing adoring glances at Sakaki, "I envy her."

 

"Who you?" Shan Pu asked softly as she sat down, looking at the dark haired girl beside her thoughtfully. Her physical presence was striking, almost like electricity danced around her, and she had a striking beauty to her, too.

 

"Sakaki," she answered Shan Pu calmly, opening up her books and watching their teacher without saying another word.

 

'Secretive,' Shan Pu noted, 'interesting.'

 

Her quest for vengeance against the hated red headed girl had taken Shan Pu to the island of Japan, but she didn't know exactly where to go next. As her Grandmother and the elders of the Amazon tribe worked to find the evil Saotome bitch she had been placed in this school, in the hopes of preparing her better for Japanese society. Watching Osaka completely fail in answering the question Miss Yukari asked she somehow doubted it was going to work.

 

"Welcome to our school," Yomi offered her hand politely, her long mane of brown hair flowing down her back.

 

Instead of shaking Shan Pu bowed, her expression politely respectful. "I was wondering," she looked towards Chiyo, "what is that child doing here?"

 

"She jumped ahead several grades," Yomi calmly explained, "Chiyo-chan is probably smarter than most of us."

 

"Ah, hidden gifts," Shan Pu nodded gravely.

 

Yomi sweatdropped, "Well, something like that."

 

Nearby where they sat Sakaki ate from her bento, the box decorated with frolicking kittens as Kagura chatted away to her. Sakaki was paying attention to the conversation but the majority of her focus seemed more to be on the magazine sitting beside her, depicting cats in the wild as well on the streets of the city.

 

'She likes cats,' Shan Pu noted, 'isn't that interesting?'

 

As classes ended Shan Pu slipped away, finding a secluded spot beside a pond of crisp, cold water. Stripping her school uniform off she braced herself then splashed herself with water. In an instant the change came and a purple furred cat stood in Shan Pu's place. Retracing her steps she found where she had last seen Sakaki, the unique scent tickling her nose.

 

'Strange,' Shan Pu thought as she followed the scent, 'I haven't encountered a human that smelled like this before.' She swiftly traced it through the crowds, then off in the distance she heard a sullen growl. Urgently Shan Pu raced on, coming around a corner to see Sakaki struggling with a cat biting her hand.

 

Sakaki bit back her pain, trying to get the cat's teeth free from her finger. Looking up she was startled to see the purple cat gazing at her intently, then it raced forward. With a lunge it struck the gray cat, forcing it free from Sakaki's hand, then took up a guarding position in front of Sakaki, hissing furiously. The gray cat cringed, then bolted in fear.

 

Shan Pu slowly let her growl fade away, glaring after the other cat. Somehow Sakaki smelled like family, like the wild cats that she was cursed to become, and the instinct to defend her overrode all conscious thought. That scent suddenly enveloped her as Sakaki held her close and Shan Pu felt a purr begin deep in her chest.

 

"Thank you," Sakaki said, her voice touched with a bit of wonder at meeting a cat that didn't hate her. Carefully she began to scratch behind the cat's pointed ears and was rewarded with a even more throaty purr.

 

Shan Pu almost wallowed in Sakaki's arms, purring happily at the girl's touch. She knew that she should be spying on the girl, trying to find out the source of the girl's hidden power, but she couldn't seem to help herself. She felt Sakaki get up, still holding her in a careful grip and Shan Pu just cuddled close.

 

"My parents are going to be gone a few weeks," Sakaki murmured after a moment, "would you mind if I took you home with me?"

 

For a moment Shan Pu wondered if Sakaki suspected the intelligence hidden by her cursed state, but finally decided that the girl was just being kind. "Meow," she answered cheerfully.

 

"Good," Sakaki nodded as they headed out. The tall girl talked about the neighborhood as they walked, her voice happy as she talked about the people and animals that lived there. Eventually they reached a smaller house and she pushed open the gate then opened up the door with her key.

 

Shan Pu swept the place warily with her eyes, but no foes presented themselves. Instead it was quiet and neat, and surprisingly there were no lingering scents of pets in the air. 'Is there some reason Sakaki can't have pets?' she wondered.

 

Sakaki looked at the cat thoughtfully a moment. "I should make sure that there's not too much cat fuzz around to bother my mom's allergies," she said a bit regretfully.

 

Shan Pu purred sleepily, the day's excitement overwhelming her a bit. She barely registered their going through the house or the water starting, in fact she only realized she was in trouble when Sakaki was readying to put her in the hot bath. 'Oh no," Shan Pu thought, and attempted to wiggle free from her firm grip. She managed to get free from the startled girl, but then dropped right into the water.

 

Splash! Poof!

 

Sakaki gazed in shock as the cat was replaced by a familiar young woman, her long purple hair soaked as she sat in the sudsy water. Rather sheepishly she brushed sudsy water from her face, covering her full bust reflexedly. "Here," Sakaki gallantly offered to help her out of the tub, holding out a towel in the other hand.

 

"Thank you," Shan Pu answered, smiling wryly as she was pulled out then dried herself off vigorously.

 

"How did...?" Sakaki asked.

 

"Is long story," Shan Pu admitted. A few moments later and they were sitting in Sakaki's cat-decorated room where she had explained the curse and sketched in details of her quest. A bit more sheepishly she explained why she had come after Sakaki only to get a blank look in return.

 

"I'm not a martial artist," Sakaki shook her head firmly, "I don't even know how to fight."

 

'She has that much of a battle aura and she's untrained?' Shan Pu thought in surprise. The idea of what she might be capable of if Sakaki was actually trained was mind boggling. She noticed a faintly sad look on Sakaki's face and Shan Pu asked, "What's wrong?"

 

"I like cats but they don't like me," Sakaki explained a bit sadly, "I should have known there was something odd going on when I met one that liked me."

 

Shan Pu met those sad eyes and felt a moment of deep compassion towards her. "Do you have some cold water?" she asked curiously.

 

"Well, yes," Sakaki picked up a glass from the bedside table and handed it to her.

 

Carefully Shan Pu splashed herself once more, and the towel dropped away as she shifted back to cat form. She bounded towards Sakaki and let her pick her up, purring again as she rubbed her furry cheek against Sakaki's hand.

 

'I may not be here long,' Shan Pu mused as Sakaki scratched behind her ears worshipingly, 'but I'm going to be comfortable while I'm here.'

 

End

 

Notes: I'm pretty sure I didn't get Shan Pu quite right, but I'll try to fix it when I do my second draft. I'm assuming the spring of drowned cat was created by a wild feline rather than a domestic cat, but other than that I'm working with the regular Ranma 1/2 world.