Greetings, all. I thought I'd post the first draft of the first part of
my next fic, "Barracuda". Please be warned that it is fairly dark, and
includes both sex and violence.

Thank you to everyone who gave me feedback on "Skippy", my last fic. To
the many who asked, I had no plans to write a sequel (preferring to
leave the events after Skippy to the reader's imagination), but since I
got so many requests, I might write one someday. I'd like to finish
Barracuda first.

I promise that parts 2 and forward will *not* be what you expect :-) And
now, without further ado...

*****

BARRACUDA

A Ranma 1/2 fanfic by Jonathan S. Haas

*****

WARNING * PLEASE READ * WARNING * PLEASE READ * WARNING * PLEASE READ *
WARNING

This fanfic contains both sex and violence. If it were a movie, it would
be rated R. Read at your own risk.

*****

"This is the stuff," explained the wizened old man, his gnarled claw
holding forth a small, clear bottle filled with a thick amber fluid.
"Use this, and results are guaranteed."

His customer leaned forward, intrigued. The transaction was taking place
in a dark alley, far from prying eyes, at a time when decent people were
asleep. But this customer was not a decent person -- not decent at all.
And this time of night suited her perfectly. It was when she truly came
alive.

"How will this help me achieve my goal?" she inquired. After a short,
barking laugh, the merchant said in his gravelly voice, "It is pure love
potion. Give it to him, and he won't care about anything but you.. He
will be deliriously happy living with you, and no power in the world
will convince him to leave your side."

Her eyes lit up. "A worthy plan indeed," she whispered. "This shall
snare my prey as surely as a noose snares a rabbit. How much?"

A figure was named. Coins were pressed into a ragged palm, a bottle was
pressed into a delicate one. 

Black rose petals scattered as the girl leaped away into the night.

---

"Kodachi-sama", sighed Ranma, "I love you so."

"Oh, Ranma-sama," came the reply, "I love you too."

The couple was entwined on a thick futon, decorated in pastels. Balloons
hung from the ceiling, and the delicate scent of roses was in the air.
Ranma was dashing in a crisp black suit, and Kodachi had doffed her
traditional leotard in favor of a wedding dress... a dress Ranma was
even now removing.

First came her veil, revealing a face glistening with expertly applied
makeup, shining half-lidded eyes, and lips that were turned up in a
kissable pout. He accepted the invitation, rewarding Kodachi with a slow
but promising kiss, before turning his attention back to her dress.
Gentle and tantalizing, he undid the clasps, and ever so slowly, the
front of her dress fell away. Kodachi couldn't suppress a sigh as Ranma
lightly flicked each of her nipples with his tongue.

Suddenly, their repose was interrupted by a series of bone-jarring
vibrations, as of giant footsteps getting closer. Kodachi clutched Ranma
to her and cried, "What is it? An earthquake?" Ranma grimly shook his
head, and wrapped his arms around Kodachi protectively. The rumbling
kept getting louder and louder, as the walls shook, dropping some of
Kodachi's framed photographs to the floor. A vase filled with black
roses fell off its pedestal to shatter below. Plaster fell from the
ceiling in white clouds.

The door began bulging inward and cracking, as though someone were
pounding on it from the outside. Finally, it imploded in a blizzard of
splinters, showering the couple on the bed. Kodachi shrieked and held
Ranma tighter, squeezing her eyes shut. Ranma just stared ahead, his
face a mask of anger. The dust slowly cleared, and Kodachi opened her
eyes.

Akane Tendo was standing in front of the futon, a giant mallet in her
hands, and murder on her face. "RANMA!!" she bellowed, the veins on her
forehead standing out. "What are you DOING here?"

To Kodachi's surprise, Ranma didn't cower in front of Akane's mallet, or
try to make excuses. Instead, he got to his feet, frowning, and said,
"I'm spending time with the woman I love. What's it to you?"

Akane turned even redder, hoisting her mallet like a sledgehammer, and
shouted, "RANMA, YOU..." before suddenly stopping. Her face cleared a
bit, and she blinked twice. "Did you say... did you say with the woman
you love?"

"Yeah, that's what I said," Ranma answered. He pulled Kodachi to her
feet and put his arms around her waist. It was only then that Akane
noticed Kodachi's opened dress. "And you interrupted us," Ranma
finished.

Akane's face had made the journey between cherry red and sheet white.
Her mallet clattered to the floor from her boneless fingers. "Do you...
mean that?"

"Yeah, I mean that!" Ranma snarled. "Why'd you have to barge in here,
you uncute sexless tomboy? Go home!" And before a stunned Akane could
react, Ranma had grabbed her arm. Twisting easily and then jerking, he
hurled Akane towards one of the front windows. The window was not open,
and Akane's body broke the glass before coming to a crumpled landing on
the front lawn. A soft moan was Akane's only sound.

Ranma turned back to Kodachi, his features in a smile. "Sorry about
that, Kodachi-sama... I'll buy you a new window."

Kodachi, overcome with the sheer ludicrousness of the situation, burst
out laughing. And laughing and laughing and laughing. "Never mind,
Ranma-sama, the Kuno fortune can easily replace a mere window. Now where
were we?" She opened her arms to him. Ranma smiled and accepted her, her
bare breasts crushing against his chest. He tilted her head back and
leaned in for a kiss... before being interrupted again. "Wait!" came a
cry from the door.

Ranma turned angrily to see Akane standing there. She looked awful. Her
face was muddy, and her hair was a tangled fright. Her clothing had been
torn in many places... as had two nasty cuts on her face and shoulder.
She was standing a little wobbly, and was only able to remain on two
feet with the assistance of the doorframe. Tears mingled with the blood
and dirt on her face. "Ranma..." she said. "Tell me this is a joke... or
a dream... or a mistake... or a misunderstanding. Please, Ranma, don't
let this be what it looks like."

Ranma let go of Kodachi and walked over to Akane. "You don't give up, do
you?" he snarled at her.

Akane squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head desperately. "Ranma...
come back with me. I'll forget this. Don't leave me... please... it
hurts..." 

He grabbed her shoulders, hard. "I already threw you out of here once.
Are you going to make me do it again?"

She cried out, then raised her head and looked him straight in the eyes.
"I love you, Ranma," she said, pouring her heart into her voice.

Ranma's answering look was one of disgust. And then, without a word, he
slapped her hard across the face. And then again with the other hand.
And again, and again. And then his fist slammed into her stomach,
causing her to double over. An uppercut to her face followed, with the
clear snap of a nose breaking. Another punch, and teeth flew. Akane made
no attempt to defend herself, her shattered face covered in blood and
shock. Ranma didn't let up at all, and he kept hitting her and hitting
her and hitting her and hitting her and Kodachi was laughing and
laughing and laughing and laughing and laughing...

...and laughing, and laughing, and her eyes snapped open and she was
sitting in bed. It took her awhile to realize where she was, and awhile
longer to stop laughing. How long have I been laughing in my sleep, she
wondered? It could have been seconds, it could have been minutes, it
could have been hours. Judging by the apprehensive look Sasuke was
giving her as he entered with her breakfast, it had been a long time
indeed. Kodachi's heart soared with the memory of her glorious dream.
And that dream had the power to come true, she realized. She looked down
at her right hand.

The bottle she'd bought was still there, still clutched in her hand, as
it had been when she fell asleep. Here is the key to my dreams, she
thought. Ranma-sama, I shall use this tonight, and tonight you will be
mine.

The Kuno mansion once more rang with the sound of Kodachi's insane
laughter.

--JSH