Ranma Nibunnoichi - Reflections : Vol. 01 - Stuck in the Middle With You
A. V. Morgan <avmorgan27@comcast.net>


Diverging continuation of the Two Ranmas story (V35 P1-4). Revision.
Mature Content Warning. Disclaimer and Notes at the end of Part One.
Original Version can be found at FanFiction.Net in the R rated category:

http://www.fanfiction.net/s/1029261/1/


Part Two: Divide and Conquer


A peaceful calm fell over the Tendo household after Anma and Anko were 
deposited
in separate rooms to sleep off the battle. Soun finished his cigarette 
out on the
veranda, listening to the koi splashing inn the pond, and let out a long 
sigh. Nabiki,
walking by sucking on the last of a Popsicle, just shook her head and 
smiled to
herself. Under one arm, she carried a basket with her bath things 
crammed inside.
She passed by Genma, still in panda form, carefully setting up the 
pieces on the
Shogi table, glancing earnestly in his old friend's direction. Ranma 
entered the sitting
room, spotted his father, and slumped across from Akane at the table 
with a grunt of
disdain. The evening breeze tickled the wind chimes, eliciting the 
feeling that the
calm would last. The middle Tendo daughter knew better. It was simply 
too much to
hope that the clones would remain unconscious through the night. Nabiki 
would not
have even covered a bet that the two would remain out of commission 
until the rest
of the household was ready to turn in for the night. As a result, Nabiki 
was hardly
surprised to find the couple mooning over each other in the furo when 
she went in to
take her bath. She surreptitiously snapped a few pictures and thanked 
the Kami that
Akane had allowed her to bathe first tonight. Finishing up the last of 
the roll of film in
her camera, Nabiki cleared her throat.
"It's probably a violation of some natural law that Akane did not find 
you in here
first," she grinned, watching them both start in shock. It did not take 
much
imagination to picture the explosion accompanying a visit from Akane. 
Shallow as
their experiences were, the death-trap-in-a-dress with the hair-trigger 
temper who
was known as Akane had made an impression on both of them. Since her 
target of
choice was Ranma shaped, it was not hard to classify her as a threat to 
their own
well being. Most importantly, however, their privacy had been 
interrupted. Not
feeling comfortable continuing their activities in Nabiki's presence, 
they tripped over
each other to vacate the bath. Shaking her head, Nabiki shut the door 
after them
and sighed, "Unbelievable. They're both just like him."
A short while later, as Nabiki rinsed the soap and shampoo away, and 
slipped
into the warmth of the furo, Kasumi was trying to complete her chores 
for the night.
Opening the closet under the stairs, to put a couple of small boxes up 
for storage,
she was surprised by the sight of the clones furiously ablaze with 
tension, struggling
with nerves and apprehension to consummate a kiss.
"Oh my! Please excuse me," she blushed, quickly stashing the boxes on a 
shelf
above the pair, and shutting the door. Having averted her eyes at once, 
she had not
noticed the two jumping apart, their hair standing on end, clutching 
their hearts and
panting in shock. Entering the living room, Kasumi cautiously approached 
Genma.
"Mr. Saotome, I really think you need to talk to Ranma's twins."
The panda grunted, his attention unwaveringly focused on the game with 
Soun.
"About what, Kasumi?" Ranma asked, rising from his spot at the table and
facing her curiously.
"Ah, well�" Kasumi blushed and fidgeted uncharacteristically.
Ranma swallowed nervously.
"It's kind of startling. I mean, they are so much like you, Ranma-kun."
Ranma opened his mouth to protest, but Akane interrupted. "What have they
done this time, Oneechan?"
"I think they are trying to make out under the stairs. Only, they don't 
seem to
be doing a very good job of it�" Kasumi trailed off as Ranma and Akane 
rushed out
of the room. It was hard for her to determine which of them had looked more
disturbed.
Ranma and Akane found the closet door ajar as they approached. Looking
inside, it was evident that the couple had fled after being discovered. 
They looked
around the house and dojo for a while, trying to find them, but had 
little success.
Frustrated by the fruitless search, and reminded by his stomach that he 
had not
finished dinner, Ranma wandered into the kitchen to prepare a snack. 
Turning on the
lights, he spotted the couple in the corner, eyes closed and lips a hair 
away from
touching. Ranma stood there for a moment in a kind of shock. With one eye
twitching, he struggled with a feeling he could not describe. It was if 
he was standing
outside of himself, trying to stop what was happening by sheer will, but 
at the same
time feeling a perverse fascination. He could feel their chi billowing 
around them like
a furnace. The harder they tried to close the distance, the more 
powerful the energy
surrounding them became. It was like they were trying to force two magnets
together the wrong way.
In spite of himself, Ranma became intrigued by the phenomenon. On the
surface, the energy they were generating was consistent with their 
respective
genders, so they ought to have been clicking together. It certainly was 
not a product
of shyness or uncertainty, such as Ranma had experienced the time Akane 
had dared
him to kiss her in the dojo. If there was a truly shameless couple 
anywhere in Tokyo,
it was the pair right in front of him. On some obtuse level, Ranma took 
their inability
to succeed in their endeavor as a personal insult. Finally he could not 
take it.
Oblivious to Akane frozen in outrage and apprehension behind him, he 
grabbed the
girl and whipped her around to face him. "What's with you? You didn't 
have any
problems kissing Ryouga!" he accused. The couple blinked at him in 
confusion.
"Ranma!" Akane shouted in disbelief, startling her fiance and causing his
duplicates to cringe. The surge of anger washed out the concern that had 
gripped
her when she caught Ranma staring at Anma and Anko. "Are you trying to 
encourage
her!?" Akane demanded righteously, as she pounded Ranma to the floor.
"That's not it at all!" Ranma raged, rebounding instantly.
"Seemed like it to me," the clones muttered, mystified.
"You stay out of this!" Akane and Ranma growled.
The couple slipped away as Akane and Ranma continued shouting at each 
other.
Even when they slipped outside they could still hear the quarrel. The 
exchange
quickly devolved into insults and violence followed by an eerie silence, 
punctuated
only by Akane stomping up to her room. Unconcerned, the couple sought out a
private perch on top of the house, determined to get on with "binding" 
as Anko so
eloquently put it.
Ranma slowly picked himself up off the kitchen floor, swallowing the 
surge of
fury inspired by Akane's "conversation stopper" and looked around. As 
expected, the
lovebirds had flown the coop. While he had tried to explain to Akane, 
who did not
listen to a word, that he had only been confused by odd repulsion he had 
detected
between the copies, they had gotten away. Taking a deep breath and 
letting it out in
a long sigh, Ranma shook his head. Why didn't Akane notice something 
weird was
goin' on with those two? Ranma asked himself. He had seen then snuggle 
and kiss
before on their return from Mirror Mansion. Kasumi noticed they were havin'
problems, and she usually misses stuff like that. What's really strange 
is, why did it
make me feel so strange? Kinda dizzy, like I was workin' out on top of a 
mountain,
and kinda like maybe I was fallin' off the edge�
Ranma shook his head. There was something very strange about this 
situation,
stranger than having the two of them around, stranger than the usual 
weirdness that
scared him. The funny part was, he was not afraid, it was just the 
feeling, like when
he first heard a c- one of those furry, pointy eared demons meowing. 
Squaring his
shoulders, Ranma assured himself that he was not afraid of what his 
reflections
might do. It was just creepy. Why am I even tryin' to stop them? I don't 
care what
they do together as long as they aren't getting me in trouble with 
anyone else.
But, Ranma knew he would be held responsible, that everyone would keep on
judging him on the basis of what they did. Frowning, he slipped out into 
the
backyard through the kitchen door. He knew he would have to continue 
searching for
the troublemakers, but for the moment he just wanted to be alone and 
look at the
stars. He was still angry about the things Akane had said to him before 
stomping off.
The beating he had received was already forgotten, but her accusations 
still burned
in his mind. The fact that she refused to hear his explanation gnawed at 
him worse.
The fact that she still held him responsible, and despised him, for 
things that he was
not responsible for--for things that happened to him, rankled the worst. 
He could
have come to terms with and gotten over all of the things that had 
happened to him
since Jusenkyo, if they had not earned him so much pity, spite and 
contempt from
Akane.
Why do I care what she thinks anyway? Ranma thought petulantly, turning
around and preparing for a leap to the roof. Before he could make 
another move
toward his closest sanctuary, Ranma's mind flashed over a number of moments
when a different Akane had allowed herself to be glimpsed. An Akane that 
appeared
more frequently before strangers and casual acquaintances, Ranma noted 
unhappily.
The only time Akane had been unconditionally sweet and kind and 
understanding
with Ranma had been that short time after they first met, when Akane had 
believed
Ranma was really a girl. Even after Akane had accepted the curse, she 
had still been
quick to call Ranma a pervert or a freak. Sometimes, Ranma thought, It's 
like� I'm
not enough of a girl for her.
Ranma pushed that thought out of his mind and leaped up to the roof. As he
landed lightly on the tiles, he caught sight of Anma and Anko. From the 
first glance,
it was obvious that the pair of them were trying to get back into the 
mood, stroking
each other in a loose embrace while leaning in toward each other for a 
kiss. Ranma
stared at the two of them for a moment, all indifference toward their 
antics blown
away by their invasion of his roof top retreat, and finally lost it. The 
minute he tried
to get away from his troubles with them, they cut in ahead of him. 
Unless he did
something now, he would never have a moment's peace. It was time to put 
his foot
down. Whipping the compact mirror out of his shirt, he advanced on them. 
"That
does it. If the two of you don't break it up this instant, and go to 
your rooms, one of
you is going inside this with Happosai for the rest of the week!" Ranma 
threatened.
"Ha! We know all about that trap, Ranma!" Anko declared, jumping to her 
feet
with Anma. The clones took up guard positions against Ranma, waiting for 
him to
make the first move. "You'll never trick us into it!"
"I've seen you use it, and Anko's told me all about it," Anma informed 
Ranma
with a smirk.
Ranma bit his lip, cursing himself silently. It would have been nice if 
they had
just taken his threat as a warning. He was dead serious, and prepared to 
carry out
his threat. By opposing him, they forced him to, and being trapped in a 
confined
space with the warped old master was not a pleasant fate. Clearly, they 
did not think
he was capable of beating them, looking eager and ready to meet his 
challenge, but
Ranma felt confident he could trick one of them into the mirror. As his 
copies, he
knew exactly what they were capable of, and no one could know him better 
than he
knew himself.
"Have it your way." He tucked the compact away and stared them both down.
Without warning, he darted in close. Ranma started with a careful 
sequence of
thrusts and feints. Each move exploded from him, as he forced the other 
two into
motion. As expected, they evaded the initial string of kicks and foot 
sweeps, jumping
high to get clear and landing on opposite eaves of the roof. Ranma stood 
alone at
the peak and center of the roof.
"Why are you doing this?" Anko asked, touching down at one end of the peak.
"Why won't you leave us alone?" Anma demanded from the opposite end.
"Like you don't know!" Ranma accused, glaring.
Anma and Anko did not linger. They sprinted in toward Ranma along the tiled
crest, silently coordinating a high-low attack. Ranma literally climbed 
out of the way,
hopping onto Anko's striking foot, then bouncing up to spring board off 
of Anma's
striking fist. He stayed in the air, riding the tide of blows for a few 
moments as the
two worked through a series of close in strikes and grappling moves.
"Hold him, Anko!" Anma commanded.
"I'm trying, Anma!" she cried, trying to take advantage of her superior 
speed.
"Come on! Give it up!" Ranma retorted, easily slipping out of her grasp 
before
she could pin him effectively. "Why do you have to be so difficult!?" he 
complained.
"You started this!" the pair protested.
Anma and Anko redoubled their efforts. They struck quickly and precisely,
hoping to disrupt the rhythm of Ranma's evasions, wearing grins of 
concentration
and determination the equal of Ranma's own. Each strike, grab, thrust, 
punch, kick,
and reverse was met and countered, but all of it was a smoke screen. 
Ranma knew
that they were really trying to trump this threat by taking the compact 
from him.
"I didn't start this! You two are out of control!" Ranma accused.
"We're not hurting anyone!" Anko declared.
"Why do you have to interfere?" Anma asked angrily.
Their close-in grappling disguised their attempts to pat him down and 
locate the
compact. He put up enough to a defense to keep their hands from diving 
into the
folds of his clothing, and keep them focused on their efforts to snatch 
the compact
he had carefully palmed and shifted into ki-space. It was the same 
technique Mousse
used, on a massive scale, for his hidden weapons technique. Ranma was 
still trying
to figure out the version Akane used, which allowed her to occasionally 
summon an
familiar weapon to hand in moments of righteous anger--but since she 
could not do
it consciously at will, and she typically used it when Ranma was 
distracted, he had
not yet solved the mystery.
"I can't let you two�" Ranma could not complete the sentence. He still 
could not
really deal with their mutual affection. His mind flashed back to the 
sight of them
pawing at each other, and he experienced a sudden queasiness as it 
crossed threads
with the feel of their hands darting all over his body, trying to slip 
inside his shirt and
pant's waist.
"Hey!" Anma cried out as Ranma lashed out in a burst of desperation.
"Gotta get away�" Ranma gasped, on the verge of a panic attack. He broke
through the fence of lashing limbs and launched himself over the length 
of the
covered walkway, landing on the dojo roof. Anma and Anko followed 
immediately,
working together to pin Ranma down, forcing him to expend energy dodging 
their
gauntlet of attacks.
"You can't run away now, Ranma!" Anko declared, determined to disarm Ranma
of his one effective weapon.
"If you'd just keep your hands to yourselves," Ranma pled angrily, 
blocking and
deflecting their probes more forcefully, "I wouldn't have t' fight with 
you!" He could
feel his skin tingling from every contact they had made, and he was growing
desperate to end the fight.
"It's much more fun putting my hands all over you!" Anko taunted, 
allowing one
of her probes to turn into a caress. Watching Ranma cringe, she realized 
she had
found the hole in his defenses. With a wicked grin, she looked at her 
counterpart and
proposed, "We'll stop fighting if you agree to take turns snuggling with 
us."
Ranma stared at her in wide-eyed alarm, grabbing Anma and thrusting him
forward as Anko lunged forward in a patented glomp attack. From that 
point, the
conflict dissolved into utter chaos. The battle coursed between the 
roof, nearby trees
and the compound wall. Oddly, none of them attempted to leave the immediate
premises. One way or another, they each sought to resolve the conflict 
right there in
the yard. Unfortunately, their contest had drawn itself out long enough 
for the rest of
the household to pour out onto the veranda to see what the commotion was 
all
about.
"Oh, look! Ranma's playing with his new twins," Kasumi chirped in delight.
"What are they fighting about now?" Nabiki inquired laconically.
"See, Tendo? I told you my son would deal with those two," Genma announced
proudly, towling himself off from a recent application of hot water. 
"Come on, Boy!
Put those impostors in their place!" he goaded his son on aggressively.
"Which one is Ranma?" Soun asked, studying the fight with a frown of
confusion.
"Why are you still encouraging them, Ranma!?" Akane shouted angrily.
As everyone commented or complained, their heads bobbed and turned
following the action. Nabiki, in particular, focused in on the exchange 
studiously.
 From listening to the shouts, threats and insults that were being 
traded, she realized
that Ranma was trying to capture one of the clones in the trap mirror. 
"I think he's
trying to trap them in the compact with Happosai," she informed the group.
Akane glanced at her sister, and then turned back to the action with a more
pensive look. It had sounded to her more like the two reflections were 
trying to
encourage Ranma to do perverted things with them, as they molested her 
fiance in a
fashion only Happosai could duplicate.
"Where is it!?" Anko demanded petulantly, pressing herself up against 
Ranma's
chest.
"I'll beat it out of you, if that's what it takes!" Anma threatened.
"Fine!" Ranma shouted back. "Just don't TOUCH me like that again!" Ranma 
did
not know if Anma was just following Anko's lead in probing into more 
daring regions,
or if she had goaded him into searching where it would be too forward 
for her to
reach as a girl. If anything could provoke him to bring out the compact 
without a
clear shot at one of them it would be either of them trying to stick a 
hand down his
pants again.
"That must be where he's hiding it!" Anko cried enthusiastically, making 
a move
to dive right at Ranma's crotch. "He sure has something there worth 
hiding!"
"Well, a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do!" Anma declared, grabbing
Ranma by the belt and preparing to thrust a hand in.
Ranma twisted free and jumped across the yard to escape, clutching one hand
over his heart while the other was clamped securely over the cloth belt 
holding his
pants up. "Whatta ya think you're doin'? You're a guy, damn it!" he 
cried out in
disbelief. He had thrown away a chance to catch one of them in the 
mirror, but he
had not been willing to risk being dragged in along with them. The new 
tactics Anko
was employing were making Ranma more desperate to end this fight than 
any other
in his life. The same tactics did not work in reverse, since Anko simply 
welcomed any
threateningly intimate gestures on Ranma's part. "I gotta stop this�" 
Ranma panted
under his breath.
Anma and Anko were being far cautious, however, leading Ranma to think they
had figured out his strategy. When they tried to retrieve the compact 
from where
they thought it was, they were prepared for him to try springing it on 
them. They
would actually open themselves up for an instant hoping to lure the 
compact out into
the open where one or the other could make a grab for it. But, that gave 
Ranma an
idea.
"That's enough!" Ranma turned on his opponents with renewed confidence.
Anma paused, wary of the change in Ranma's demeanor.
Anko grabbed her partner by the shoulder and nudged him on, "Come on. He's
not that tough. I wish I'd known your weakness before, Ranma."
"Give it up. You're nothing next to Happosai," Ranma snorted, conjuring 
up the
mental and emotional defenses that allowed him to prevail in combat 
against the
master molestor himself. Taking a stance, he urged them to come at him.
With a shared nod, the copies indulged him.
To everyone's surprise, Ranma suddenly became the only one capable of 
getting
in clean hits. Taking advantage of the openings they created to provoke 
or sucker
him into using the compact, he was able to strike them soundly and 
solidly. That
brought their flirtation and molestation to an end. They resumed the 
offensive with
more conventional attacks, but they were still limited by their 
determination to bring
the compact into play. He employed his new strategy brilliantly, holding 
the compact
in reserve while gradually wearing them down with clean, unopposed 
shots, and
focusing everything else on defense.
Unfortunately, Akane had been stuck on the sidelines for too long. Having
watched Ranma strugging against two to one odds, she convinced herself 
that he
could not beat them on his own. After all, they were both as good at 
martial arts as
he was, if their experiences with the female copy the week before were 
anything to
go by. So, without any warning, she decided to jump in and help him.
As she did, the clones instantly changed their strategy.
"Akane! This is my fight! Get out of the way or you'll get hurt!" Ranma 
warned
at once.
"Don't be an idiot, Ranma! It's two against one!" Akane retorted angrily.
"Look who wants to play!" Anko stopped focusing on Ranma, and turned to
confront Akane.
Anma continued pressing Ranma with probing thrusts. "I don't need your 
help,
Akane!" he shouted, adding to the confusion.
"Don't you dare pretend to be me!" Ranma growled, engaging his duplicate 
with
more fury.
"Oh no you don't! That's my line!" Anma responded with equal animosity.
"Pay attention to who you're fighting!" Anko shouted, driving forward at 
Akane
with an aggressive series of strikes.
Akane dodged frantically, straining to evade the lightning kicks and 
punches
Anko was delivering. The diminutive redhead pressed on, deliberately 
pushing Akane
to her very limits, but carefully not exceeding them.
Ranma could only spare part of his attention to follow the fight between 
the
girls as Anma danced around him, forcing him to spin inside his orbit to 
keep his
opponent in his field of view. The fighting was more equal now that the 
other boy
was concentrating on keeping Ranma tied up while Anko dealt with Akane.
"Akane! Get outta there before you get hurt!" Anma paused to shout.
"I can handle myself! Just hurry up and use the compact!" Akane returned
between wild punches. She could not understand her failure to connect 
with Anko,
but her temper was rising, and the mallet that never let her down was 
itching to
come into play.
"You're talking to the wrong guy!" Ranma shouted out in indignation, then
followed up with, "But go ahead and listen to him. This isn't your fight!"
"Which one IS Ranma?" Soun asked from the sidelines.
"I've lost track," Nabiki admitted.
"Oh, Akane! You girls shouldn't be fighting!" Kasumi reprimanded, holding a
hand over her mouth in shock.
"You call this fighting?" Anko jeered, giving Akane a speculative look. 
Dodging
casually around all of the raven-haired girl's attacks, she yawned. With 
a precisely
timed series of gentle thrusts, she deflected a storm of heavy blows and 
tapped at
Akane's ankle, hip and shoulder, sending the girl into a wild spin that 
ended with the
girl crashing face first into the grass. "Give it up, Akane. You're just 
to fat, slow and
clumsy to be a real martial artist," Anko criticized dismissively.
Ranma and Anma whipped around a few more times, with Ranma's head
snapping around in alarm to track his fiancee's fall. On the next 
revolution, he
spotted Akane angrily heaving herself back to her feet and summoning her 
mallet.
"That was a dirty trick!" Akane snarled furiously, hefting her mallet and
charging Anko.
Ranma's back was to the action when the two girls met. Only a solid 
thunk and
a whoosh of air blown out of stunned lungs served to announce the result 
of their
clash. Ranma's fears were confirmed when he glimpsed Anko tapping 
Akane's mallet
against her palm while watching the youngest Tendo struggle to remain on 
her feet,
bent over and gasping like a fish out of water.
Anko was hefting the mallet, in position for a devastating down swing when
Ranma was forced to return his attention to Anma's next offensive. The two
exchanged a violent series of blows, one of them desperate to end things 
quickly,
the other determined to stretch the fight out. While there was one 
rebellious thought
in Ranma's head about Akane finally learning what it was like to be on 
the receiving
end of that infameous hammer, genuine fear for her safety drowned it out.
Ranma heard the horrible thunk of wood on flesh and whipped around, 
standing
amazed for a second to see that Akane had actually kicked the hammer out 
of Anko's
hands. One arm was clenched over her bruised diaphragm, the other raised 
in a
fisted defense as Akane glared at her foe.
Ranma could not take the suspense anymore. Trying to end the fight before
Akane got seriously hurt, or distracted him enough for Anma to get the 
upper hand,
Ranma took the first opening his clone offered and tried to end it. 
Producing the
mirror and flipping it open lightening fast to catch the wide-eyed gaze 
of his
opponant, Ranma thought his victory was assured. Anma, prepared for this
maneuver since the start of the fight, moved his hand just an instant 
before Ranma
brought the compact in line, and caught him by the wrist. In a deft 
motion, he
twisted Ranma's wrist and broke his hold on the mirror. Catching the 
mirror in the
same movement, he flipped it around in Ranma's face.
"Oh, man!" Ranma barely got out, before being sucked into the mirror.

-----

It was not uncommon for Ranma's mind to rapidly rehash events, whenever an
opponent managed to out maneuver him. It pulled up every incident in recent
memory that had a bearing on and could have contributed to his current 
setback,
and then tried to find a common denominator. The first thing that 
flashed to mind
was when Akane had dragged him into the panty fight with Anko. The next 
thing that
popped up was when Akane had pounded him one time too many in the kitchen,
sending him up to the roof where he got into another battle with the 
clones. The
third, and most damning recollection was of the point in the fight where 
Akane had
jumped in and caused him to act in haste, falling into Anma's trap. A 
conclusion was
quickly reached and then rejected on the grounds that it was too 
obvious--and
beyond his ability to circumvent. That entire process was worth about 
one blink. The
next blink of thought was devoted to the situation his current set back 
was thrusting
him into. Being captured in the trap mirror was a little like falling 
off a cliff, or down
an open manhole. Having been sucked into it several times before, he was 
already
prepared for the ambient light of the crystal faceted chamber. Like a c- 
creature he
was loathe to name, he flipped in the air and landed gracefully on his 
feet, adjusting
automatically to the internal gravity of the compact. All in all, the 
transition was no
more disorienting than stepping inside the house after an evening workout.
With the exception of several things. First, what he had just left was 
more than
just a work out. His final challenge to separate the mirror clones had 
ended
disastrously. Thanks to that, he was barreling headlong into�
The sudden spash of water as a cold waterballoon burst on the back of 
Ranma's
head and drenched him forced her mind to jump straight to its second point.
"Hotcha! I knew you wouldn't leave your dear old master alone for too 
long!"
the shriveled old man crowed as he rested his bald head on the bosom of 
damp
martial artist.
"Oh man! I really don't need this!" Ranma-chan wailed, kicking herself into
overdrive to escape from the pervert's relentless glomp attack. Armed 
with a wealth
of lingerie and his favorite "student", the old man could not contain 
his glee.
"Oh, Ranma-chan! Let me help you try on these silky darlings!"
In spite of her terror, Ranma-chan turned part of her mind to wondering how
much worse things outside must have turned. With her out of the way, 
there was no
one left in the house who could stop his twins from� It did not bear 
thinking on.
On the other side of the mirror, Anma came to a graceful landing, 
snapping the
compact closed. Straightening up, head slightly bowed to hide a smirk of 
victory, he
held up and clenched his fist. "Got him!" The rest of the household 
looked on as a
pillar of chi spiraled around him in a halo of illumination. Naturally, 
this display put
no one at ease. In the heat of combat, it had been impossible to keep 
track of which
Ranma was which.
The battle between Akane and Anko had stopped abruptly when Ranma was
suddenly whisked into the mirror. The exchanged glances and then focused 
on the
Ranma that had emerged victorious. The same question was on eveyone's 
mind, but
rather than simply put it into words, Genma appeared at the boy's side 
with a bucket
of water drawn conveniently from the pond.
As Genma attempted to douse him, Anma jumped up, catching the bucket with
his knee and spilling its contents over the panda-man. "What do you 
think you're
doin'?"
"Take a wild guess!" Akane shouted, picking up the garden hose laying
conveniently at her feet and aiming at "Ranma-kun" as Nabiki helpfully 
turned on the
faucet. The boy danced away from the sudden stream. Akane dutifully 
pivoted in
place, sending the spray in pursuit and unintentionally giving 
Anko--standing right
next to her--the first blast in the face.
"Hey! What didja do THAT for!?" she gasped in shock.
"Quit tryin' to turn me into a girl!" Anma yelped, still evading Akane's 
attempts
to drench him.
"Quit hopping around and take it like a man!" Nabiki groused.
Anma ignored that comment, managing to evade the stream until he was able
to land on the hose, cutting off the flow with his foot. "I'm serious! I 
ain't goin' to
bed all soakin' wet!"
"Won't be the first time," Akane pointed out, shaking the hose to squirt 
the last
of the water on him. He twisted artfully to evade the splash. "I'm not 
going to bed
until I know which of you is in there!" she pointed at the compact.
"And give HER the opportunity let him out in the confusion?" he challenged,
pointing to Anko. It was an obvious point. Once "Ranma" was changed, 
there would
be little way to tell "her" from an equally soaked Anko. Anma hoped 
everyone bought
it. He and Anko had been given ample opportunity to converse, so he had 
already
heard how masterfully she had exploited her resemblance to sow 
confusion. He did
not want to resort to his final option if Akane called his bluff. He was 
prepared to tell
them he would shatter the mirror if they did not back off and leave him 
and Anko
alone, but he had no idea what would happen to Ranma and Happosai if he 
actually
did. Fortunately, he was not playing cards. Sagging a little, he 
confessed, "I really
don't wanna go through all of that again. Can't we just call it a night?"
"Besides," Nabiki put in thoughtfully, "if he IS the wrong Ranma, we'd 
have to
let Happosai out to get the real one back."
"Good point," Akane muttered. She dropped the end of the hose and nodded to
her sister to turn off the faucet. There was more than one way to see if 
"Ranma-kun"
was a counterfeit. "Go put this love bird to bed, and we'll clean up the 
mess," she
clapped a hand on Anko's shoulder.
Nabiki quirked an eyebrow. It was not hard to guess what her little 
sister was
thinking. The real Ranma would march the copy up to bed and go to his 
own room.
The fake, if it was he, would have to decide between revealing himself 
or acting like
the real Ranma. I am going to have to keep an eye on her, if she can 
come up with
something this devious, Nabiki thought.
Anko gazed at Anma suspiciously, as he approached to escort her away. 
During
the battle, the extent of her coordination with her confederate had been 
an exchange
of knowing looks. She thought she had kept track of which boy was which. 
Now she
was not so sure. Either way, her best option was to go along with 
"Ranma" until she
had a chance to determine who he was, and thus, what her next move 
should be.
"I'm takin' you to Akane's room. Are you gonna to give me any trouble?" he
confronted her.
"Are you gonna let him out of that thing?" she asked, allowing her 
concern to
reinforce the belief that Anma had been the one trapped in it just in 
case he really
had not.
"Please, Son! Don't let the Master out!" Soun wailed, kneeling before 
Anma and
pulling on his shirt. The tears gushing forth were almost enough to make 
a true
Jusenkyo victim retreat.
"I dunno," Anma debated, carefully shying away from the fountain of tears.
"Can't let them starve in there. Guess I haveta let 'em out in the 
morning, if they
haven't killed each other by then," the boy rubbed the back of his head. 
He shrugged
and looked at Anko meaningfully. "If you behave tonight, I'll let them 
out in the
morning," he promised offhandedly.
For a moment, the thought of ANYONE trapped in a confined space with
Happosai hung grimly over everyone's heads. Akane itched to douse the 
boy, just to
make sure the worst had not happened. While she debated, Anko nodded in
agreement with the boy's conditions and followed him meekly upstairs. 
After helping
put things in order, a quick task since there had been no real property 
damage for
once, Akane made a detour through the kitchen on her way to bed. As she 
came
upstairs, with a glass of water in her hand, Anko was dragging Ranma's 
futon into
Akane's room, looking dejected. Akane peeked into the guest room and saw 
Ranma
laying out a blanket on the hard floor. She went in to "talk" to him. As 
she entered
the room, Nabiki stepped out from beside the door and snatched the glass 
from her
hands.
"Nabiki!" Akane squeeked in surprise and irritation.
The middle sister casually gulped the contents of the glass and handed 
it back
to her. "Thanks, Akane!" she stepped out into the hall and jerked her 
head for Akane
to follow her to her room. Closing the door after her little sister, 
Nabiki caught her
with a stern look, "I know what you're thinking. I think it's a set up 
too, but as long
as they think we believe them, they have to play their parts. It's a 
shame if we're
right, but Ranma can take care of himself for one night. It's a small 
price if it allows
us to sleep peacefully tonight."
"If there was room to run in there, I might not be worried�" Akane 
commented
uneasily.
"He was a boy when he went in," Nabiki assured her sister. "Happosai might
drive poor Ranma crazy, but he certainly can't molest him. He will be 
huddled up in
his collection, staying as far away from the boy as possible. Probably."
"I suppose you're right," Akane sagged and returned to her room. She 
noticed
the redhead was already sprawled on the futon, fast asleep. Slipping 
into bed, she
quickly resolved to fake sleep and keep an eye on the girl. It did not 
matter if the
other Ranma was real or not. SHE was still trouble.
In a short time, a peaceful quiet descended once more over the Tendo Dojo.
Genma and Soun quickly faded to sleep followed shortly by Kasumi and 
Nabiki.
Akane held out for a couple of endless hours. Anma slipped away from her 
door on
silent bare feet as the sound of Akane tossing and turning became 
evident. Slipping
out the guest room window, and over the roof, he was soon at Akane's 
window. He
was surprised to find it locked, but shrugged and pressed his hand to 
the window.
Summoning up his confidence, he allowed his aura to flare up, watching 
as some of
it materialized inside the glass. He sharpened his concentration, until 
the energy
inside the room shaped itself into a tiny ball. The almost harmless, mini-
mokotakabisha sped away from the window and slammed into the girl on the 
futon.
Rather than blasting her out of bed, it passed harmlessly into her, 
causing her own
aura to flare up with a shock.
Jumpstarted into consciousness, the girl sat up like a bolt and stared 
out the
window. A second ball of light shot at her from the window, and her hand 
rose
unconsciously to catch it. It dissipated on contact as if were a ball 
she had
summoned and tossed from one hand to the other. Again, her aura flared 
around
her, infused with the energy of her "other half."
Anko smirked in wonder, then stood and crossed silently to the window. With
great caution, she eased the glass open and swung herself out into the 
arms of her
beloved. Her quick impulsive kiss brushed across his lips, and the two 
padded over
the roof. Dropping down into the yard, they found a shadow behind the 
training hall
and slipped into each other's arms. She licked her lips, savoring the 
first kiss they
had managed since they had been broken apart on the train. Looking up 
into Anma's
eyes, in heated anticipation of another, she noticed that strange 
resistance had
suddenly sprung up between them again. The same look of frustration 
crossed their
faces, as they leaned in with determination. The mixed emotions fed into 
their auras,
causing them to clash with a palpable resistance.
"What is going on?" the boy frowned and pulled back.
"I don't understand. Why are you pushing me away?" Anko sounded hurt and
confused.
"I'm not!" Anma protested earnestly. The problem that had stumped Ranma
earlier now reared its head for his twin to contemplate. Turning the 
same type of
mind on the problem he began trying to puzzle his way through the mystery.

-----

The moon was high and almost full in the skies of Nerima. The eternally 
lost boy was
grateful for the light, since he was forced to walk through the night to 
make up for
that detour in Osaka. He was fairly certain he had wandered into Kyoto, 
as he
paused to reorient himself once more for Tokyo. Glancing up at the sky, 
fixing on an
arbitrary grouping of stars, he pumped his fist into his palm with 
assurance. Without
a doubt, that way led to Nerima! As he raced the other way down the street,
following a disturbingly familiar wall, he stumbled through a powerful, 
and familiar
aura.
"Ano! That was Ranma! I am sure of it!" he screeched to a halt. "I 
wonder what
he's doing in Kyoto?" He puzzled that imponderable for a moment before 
grinning,
"This is my chance to pay him back without anyone around to interfere!" 
Thinking
back to the horrifying and humiliating scene he had endured a few days 
earlier, a
sickly green and purple aura pulsed around him. There he had been, 
sitting on a
bench awaiting his date with Akari, when that perverted transsexual had 
jumped on
him and kissed him like there was no tomorrow. Even when his nemesis had 
been
under the influence of the koi fishing rod, he had not managed to 
disgrace Ryouga
so! "This time, I really AM going to kill him for the hell he has put me 
through!"
Unfortunately, his quarry was not exactly in sight. Ryouga tried to compose
himself as he slipped carefully up the wall. He did not dare attack 
until he had
Ranma in his sights. As he cleared the top of the wall, he remembered 
the lame
excuse Ranma had come up with to explain his actions. The very notion of 
a cursed
mirror that spat out perverted copies of who ever looked into it was 
ludicrous. If that
was true, he criticized, peering down from the top of the wall, why had 
Ryouga not
seen Ranma and this alleged duplicate together, like he was seeing now? 
Even if
such nonsense were true, knowing Ranma, he would have been hiding behind 
the
bushes molesting his female half like the two Ranma's before him. No 
chance that
pervert would let such a cute girl have a chance at Ryouga!
As his eyes narrowed in on the boy in that embrace, targeting the lethal
bandannas whirling in his right hand, he suddenly felt a twinge of 
recognition. "You
sick, perverted bastard! Cheating on Akane with YOURSELF!!? PREPARE TO 
DIE!!!"
Ryouga hurtled forward, in the wake of the iron cloth shuriken, readying 
his umbrella
in his other hand.
Too shocked to prepare for the attack, the couple was only saved by the 
force of
their strange repulsion throwing them away from each other the instant 
they were
distracted from trying to overcome it. The rigid bandannas embedded 
themselves in
the outer wall of the training hall, as the couple rolled to their feet 
on either side.
"What didja do THAT for?" they shouted in unison.
"Shut up! It's time for you to die!"
"Uh� who?" the boy asked, shocked by this intrusion.
"What do you mean, 'Who?'"
"Who do you mean, 'Die'?" the boy pointed between himself and Anko.
"Don't I know you from somewhere?" the girl asked timidly.
"Who is he?" the boy asked, frowning.
This actually stopped Ryouga for a second. Gaping in sheer disbelief he 
roared,
"What is this!? Have you been playing with Shampoo's shampoo? I've been 
through
hell because of you! Both of you!"
Anko stiffened at this, "You're that guy I kissed! Geez, I'm not THAT bad!"
"YOU KISSED HER!? And you're COMPLAININ' about it?" the boy shouted at
Ryouga and slid into an aggressive stance. "Oh, that does it. You've 
gotta die!"
"Bring it on, little girl!" Ryouga matched him.
"You asked for it," Anko fumed, catching him off guard with a roundhouse 
kick
to the jaw. Ryouga staggered back a hair and glared at her.
"I was talkin' to him!" Ryouga roared.
"Who are you calling a girl!" Anma lashed out with a series of 
lightening kicks
and punches. The first barrage slipped through the lost boy's guard, 
forcing him back
a step. "Man, you're tough!" Anma noted in surprise. Even Ranma would 
have tried
to evade those blows, but the stranger just blocked them cold.
"You really have forgotten me, haven't you, Ranma?" Ryouga looked vaguely
surprised. "Not that it matters, I am still going to kill you!"
"I don't know what your problem is, bandanna boy, but you picked the wrong
couple to mess with!" Anma warned. Anko nodded in agreement. Without a 
word,
the couple slipped into a devastating, coordinated attack. In an 
instant, Ryouga
found himself at the center of a whirlwind of unstoppable blows. Even 
with his
incredible toughness, he was feeling the blows raining down upon him. He 
had not
counted on a copy of Ranma being as good as Ranma. He closed his guard and
waited for an opening, a cloud of gloom settling around him as he 
realized the folly
of his assault. Finally, an opening presented itself.
"SHISHIHOKODAN!" he roared, releasing a massive chi-blast into Anko's
midsection. She flew back and became imbedded in the wall surrounding the
compound with a resounding boom.
The noise roused everyone from their beds. Akane sat bolt upright and 
noticed
at once that Anko's futon was unoccupied. She raced to the window and 
threw it
open. The distant sound of fighting revealed that the commotion was 
taking place
around at the front of the house, by the training hall. Racing out her 
door, she
almost collided with her sisters in the hallway. Dodging past them, she 
flew down the
stairs and out the front door, followed at a distance by her family and 
Genma.
In the yard, she saw "Ranma" and Ryouga whirling around each other as Anko
limped towards them with murder in her eyes. Before Akane could do 
anything,
Ryouga continued in his derisive rant.
"I can't believe you'd do THAT with a copy of yourself!" Ryouga sneered. 
"It's
bad enough that you always cheat on Akane, but doin' it with yourself!? 
You make
me sick!"
"Who are you to judge m�" Anma collapsed under the concussion of Akane's
mallet.
"RAAANMAAAAA! I can't BELIEVE you!" Akane was pissed. At last, Ranma had
shown his true stripes, getting rid of the male copy and molesting the 
female copy
himself! It did not even occur to her that Ryouga could not know there 
was now a
male copy of Ranma. Anma barely managed to twitch out of the way as she 
reared
back and brought the hammer down again.
Before Ryouga could take advantage of this interruption, Anko stopped an 
arm's
length behind him and thrust forward with an expanding ball of energy. The
devastating chi attack was released as her palms hit him in the middle 
of his back,
"MOKOTAKABISHA!"
Ryouga flew to the opposite end of the compound, his body making an
impression similar to the one Anko had climbed out of on the other side 
of the front
yard. Anko raced after him, charging up for another blast, as Anma 
lurched off in the
same direction to escape from Akane's wrath.
"You can't run away, Ranma!" she raced after the couple, determined to help
Ryouga fulfill his oft-repeated pledge. Ryouga, peeling himself out of 
the wall, took
one look at the oncoming traffic and bolted down the side yard. As he 
barreled
forward, he spotted the moon reflected in the koi-pond and skidded to a 
halt. Akane
was right behind him. There was no way he could safely pass that water 
in a combat
situation. Turning around, he raced into the teeth of the clones' 
combined attacks.
The couple was so surprised at his sudden charge that they barely 
managed to
dodge his lunging thrust. The umbrella's tip caught at Anma's shirt and 
ripped the
front open. A small, flat, oval object flew out of the torn garment to 
land at Akane's
feet.
"Hey! That was my favorite shirt!" Anma cried out. Then, after a double 
take, he
protested in misery, "That was my ONLY shirt!"
"What is it with you and your shirts!? Pay attention to the fight, 
sissy!" Ryouga
goaded.
Akane, recognizing the mirror instantly for what it was, threw herself 
into a flip
to avoid stepping on it. Carefully, she turned and crouched to pick it 
up. Behind her,
as she had turned her back to retrieve the fragile mirror, the fighting 
slowly
advanced upon the pond. In spite of his best efforts, the couple was 
hemming
Ryouga in, forcing him back to the waters of doom. With each step, his 
panic grew.
Akane was hardly paying attention as she turned the trap over in her hands
suspiciously. She flipped it open, and bit her lip.
 From behind her there was a loud splash.
Akane turned and looked, seeing both boy-type and girl-type versions of 
Ranma
regaining their feet in the pond and turning to peer for their opponent 
in the dark
depths of the pond.
"I knew it!" Akane cried, quickly patting on the back of the mirror.
"Gyaaaah! Keepawaykeepawaykeepaway!" Ranma-chan was screaming as she
plopped onto the grass, followed by Happosai. The girl rebounded and 
took flight
before the old man could land on her bare back. Her tattered clothing 
streamed
around her like so much tangled thread clutched tight to her private 
regions with
white knuckled fists.
"You can't dodge forever, Ranma-chan! Just try on one set! Please!" Happi
pleaded.
"Don't TOUCH me! Try one more time and I'll kill you!" Ranma promised
hoarsely.
Akane stood there in horror, helpless as she envisioned the last few 
hours of
Ranma trapped alone with Happosai. "Wh� where did he get cold water in 
there?"
she asked in shocked disbelief.
The clones stepped up beside her, holding a struggling, familiar black 
pig in a
combined grip. "We threw in some food and bottled water when we trapped 
the old
man in there," the boy commented idly.
"Hey! What are you doing with P-chan!?" Akane cried out accusatively.
"Huh? Dunno, the little bugger was swimming in the pond," Anma responded
casually.
"Where's Ryouga?" Akane glared at Anma suspiciously. The little pig 
froze in
horror at Akane's question. Peering curiously through the darkness, 
Akane did not
notice.
"Who?" Anma and Anko blinked in confusion.
"The boy you two were fighting," Akane retorted with strained patience.
"Oh, him." Amna shrugged and looked off over the koi pond. Turning back to
look at Akane, he deduced, "Apparently he fled in terror from our 
superior skill, while
we were trying to get out of the pond." The little pig fumed, and began 
scratching
and biting at the couple.
"Oh, here. Give him to me. He hates Ranma, so of course he doesn't like 
to be
held by either of you," Akane reached over and took the piglet into her 
arms. Though
shaking in rage, P-chan gradually relaxed into her grip, a funny look in 
his eyes.
Ranma came around the opposite corner of the house, having run a complete
lap through the yard. "Excuse me," Anko said, picking the mirror from 
Akane's grasp
and hefting a bundle under her other arm. As Ranma-chan whizzed by, Anko 
held
out the bag of lingerie, food and water, in one hand, pulling the front 
of her shirt
open with the other. "Hey! Old man! Look at what I have for you!"
"Sweetie-pie honey-pot!" Happosai swerved, coming in for a landing on 
Anko's
chest. At the last minute, she let the cloth fall away from her right 
hand, revealing
the open mirror and Happosai's startled expression. "Drat! Not again�" 
Still, as his
body was sucked once more into the mirror, his outstretched hand closed 
on the bag
of loot and dragged it in with him.
"It's almost not fair," Anma sighed.
Ranma-chan, rising up from where she had cowered behind him, thumped him
on the head. "I have seen hell because of you!"
"Oh please! Don't start. I've already heard it!" Anma rolled his eyes.
"But you haven't heard the end of it!" Ranma promised darkly.
Akane cleared her throat. While the clones turned to look at her, Ranma
snagged the mirror from Anko's grasp. The two girls glared at each other 
for a
moment, and then Anma draped the remains of his shirt over Ranma's 
shoulders.
"Sorry, it's kind of torn up. Still, it's in better shape than what you 
were� er�
wearing." Anma rubbed at the back of his head nervously. Ranma-chan 
looked at
him in surprise as he stepped carefully away from her. As her look 
turned suspicious,
he broke down and confessed, "I� er� um� I forgot that he had water in 
there."
In a sense, it was an apology, and remained unexpected. Akane gave them 
all a
funny look, shook her head, and went back into the house. The trio stood 
baffled,
wondering what she had been about to say. Shrugging, the couple turned 
to Ranma-
chan as she cleared her own throat. Holding up the compact, she prepared 
herself
for the next battle with resignation.
"Now. Once again, while I appreciate you getting Happosai off my back, 
there
remains the problem of both of you." Her expression was tired but 
determined.
"You wouldn't put us in there with HIM, would you?" Anma cringed.
"If YOU had a curse, I'd be tempted," she glared at the boy.
"I said I was sorry!" he lamented.
"No you didn't. But that's not the point. Are you gonna follow the 
rules, or are
you gonna force me to make more threats?" Ranma allowed her gaze to 
travel from
one to the other. They both seemed meek enough for once. But, there 
remained an
air of stubborn determination around both of them. The two sulked 
unrepentantly
until Ranma-chan sighed, opening up the mirror.
Anma stopped her just as she was about to pat it on the back. "What do you
think you are doing!?" The last thing Anma wanted was to have to go a 
few more
rounds with the tiny, psychotic pervert. Considering the state Ranma had 
been
reduced to, he could not believe she would dare to let him back out.
"I can't put one of you in there with him, so I gotta let him out 
first," Ranma
explained.
"You're serious about putting one of us in there?" Anko could hardly 
contain her
disbelief.
"I can't let you two cause any more problems for me," Ranma insisted half
apologetically.
"Then you might as well put both of us in there," they sighed.
Ranma-chan looked at them in disbelief. She opened her mouth to explain how
that was hardly a solution when she suddenly deflated. Turning to 
reenter the house,
she surrendered. "If that's all that matters to you then fine. Sleep in 
the dojo. Have
a blast." She stopped at the door and bowed her head. "I never liked 
people tellin'
me what I have to do. I guess I sorta think of you both as a part of me, 
and that I
have an obligation to control you, 'cuz a martial artist has to have 
self control." Her
hand went to the doorjamb. "I don't really know what you are, but you're 
both made
from me, by the same spirit. If you ask me, it don't seem like you've 
really found
someone ELSE to love. It's just� wrong." With that, she slipped inside 
in a cloud of
dejection.
The couple stared after her, disturbed by her parting comments.

-----

Revision Note: The first chapter absorbed part of the original second 
chapter, and
this one has absorbed the original third chapter. This is going to occur 
several times
as I go through the earlier parts of the story, because the later 
chapters were all
closer to nine-thousand words each--twice the length of my original 
chapters. So, in
each chapter there will be a degree of expansion, new content filling in 
details that
were previously only hinted at in a paragraph or two or merging of 
smaller chapters
with new chapters to fill in the space. That should hopefully allow the 
faster,
clustered events of the later chapters to be spread out a little bit as 
well. Also, the
original title of the second chapter was transferred to serve as the 
title of this first
volume.






             .---Anime/Manga Fanfiction Mailing List----.
             | Administrators - ffml-admins@anifics.com |
             | Unsubscribing - ffml-request@anifics.com |
             |     Put 'unsubscribe' in the subject     |
             `---- http://ffml.anifics.com/faq.txt -----'