FULFILLMENT III
		      by Scott K. Jamison
		    (Takahashi disclaimer)

	The Blue Thunder struck.  Like his namesake, he was swift, 
powerful and destructive.  The training dummy never stood a chance.  
	Still, there was something a bit off today.  His strokes were 
perfect of course, his aim on target, his senses undimmed.  But still, 
Tatewaki Kunou knew that something was missing.
	He assumed a meditative position, and began to center himself.  
He found his ki, and used it to probe his surroundings.  It is true he 
was not particularly good at the use of ki, but this he could do.  No, 
nothing amiss in the garden.  Perhaps it was not a physical thing wrong, 
but a malaise of the spirit?
	That was it, probe a bit further.  Yes, he was missing 
something.  He had lost a focus, a goal.
	Once, he had but one goal, to master kendo, the art of the 
sword.  But he had long since achieved a certain plateau, captain of the 
Furinkan High Kendo Club, and Citywide Junior Champion.  Further mastery 
of the blade was simply a lifelong occupation.
	Then, another goal had come to him.  The fair Akane Tendou.  
Gentle of mien, but possessed of a tigress' spirit.  She had spurned his 
advances, but that had only inspired him to greater efforts.  He recalled 
his speech to the assembled boys of Furinkan somewhat ruefully.
	Deprived of parents at an early age, surrounded by obsequious 
servants, his sister less than completely sane, and the other boys at 
school either in awe or contemptuous of him, he'd picked exactly the 
wrong way to win Akane's heart.  And no one could (or would) tell him. 
	Then two more goals came, almost simultaneously.  Ranma Saotome, 
and the pig-tailed girl.  One a mortal enemy, the other a seemingly 
unattainable love.  Unattainable for reasons Kunou had been completely 
unable to grasp.
	Ah, there was the irony of it.  The two goals were in fact one, 
but his obsession blinded him to the evidence.  And his two loves hated 
him.  This too, his obsession would not admit.  After all, the great and 
powerful Blue Thunder was perfect, was he not?  No woman would fail to 
admire him, unless dark sorcery were involved.
	So there had been battle after battle, most of them utterly 
pointless.  Well, not entirely pointless.  So much combat with the 
accursed Saotome had sharpened his skills considerably.  In the last 
interschool kendo competition, Kunou had won every bout by even wider 
margins than usual.
	And there had been the bizarre romantic moments, dates that 
weren't dates, blows instead of kisses, the tape incident...  Things that 
any reasonable man would have taken as hints to stop.  But then, thunder 
wasn't reasonable, was it?
	And then, only two weeks ago, Ranma had come to him under flag of 
truce, and revealed a secret truth.  The accursed Saotome was just that, 
a victim of dark sorcery rather than its master.  And the pig-tailed 
goddess a prison made flesh for him.  And to flee that prison, his enemy 
needed his help.
	It was a strange bargain, true, but not without its attractions.  
The pig-tailed girl was freed from Ranma, who did not want her, and bound 
to Kunou, who did.  In exchange, Tatewaki had given up all claim to 
Akane.  Though it broke his heart to lose one of his loves, he felt he 
had chosen wisely.
	Now he and Osage were one flesh, one spirit.  He could worship 
her at his leisure, no longer needing mere photographs to see her.  He 
could caress her body, speak the words he wished without interruption or 
disapproval.
	More, in Osage's body, he was able to explore an entirely 
different realm of experience, one forbidden to him as a man.  It was as 
though half the world had been hidden to him before.
	And there were other compensations.  For the first time since 
shortly after he met her, Akane Tendou was actually being civil to 
Kunou.  In his headlong pursuit, he'd lost track of why he'd begun the 
chase in the first place.  At long last, he again saw the kind and 
smiling girl who had taken his heart.  And all it had taken was giving 
her up forever.
	Nabiki Tendou had taken Tatewaki under her wing.  He knew full 
well it wasn't love of him, but more of his money.  But still, they'd 
gone from supplier and pigeon to something approaching friends.  Nabiki 
seemed to take a genuine delight in introducing him to the feminine 
mysteries.
	And Ranma himself...They were still rivals, of course, one day 
Kunou *would* overcome the younger boy's infernal luck, but now they were 
also colleagues of a sort.  Ranma knew full well what being in Osage's 
body was like.  He'd had some good advice about what to do in various 
situations dealing with the curse.  Advice Ranma admitted he hadn't 
always followed himself.
	And the bargain had been good for Ranma, too, Kunou had seen.  
The strain of living a lie, even if flesh made it truth, had been 
responsible for much of his boorish behavior.  Freed of his other self, 
Ranma no longer needed so much to overcompensate with macho bluster.  He 
too was actually being civil to people around him.  And if Nabiki was 
correct, he'd even taken an interest in school.  (Nabiki was usually 
correct, if not always precise.)
	However, with Osage attained, Akane lost, and Ranma no longer an 
enemy, that left only kendo mastery as a goal.  And somehow, that just 
wasn't enough any more.
	Not to mention, that while narcissism has its advantages, 
eventually it becomes just a bit unsatisfying.
	But what to do about it?  Perhaps it was time to find a new love 
to pursue, this time one that wanted to be caught.  That cheerleader 
girl, Mariko was her name?  She had seemed quite enthusiastic.  He'd ask 
Sasuke to look up her number. 
	Kunou's meditations were disturbed by a laugh unnervingly 
reminiscent of the American cartoon character Woody Woodpecker.  He'd 
enjoyed those cartoons once, when he was a child.  They'd come on right 
before his favorite chambara show.  But now the laughter only made him 
shudder.
	"Principal."  Kunou preferred not to think of this mockery of a 
man as his father.  
	"Hey Boy!  Tatchi, we're about to have a visitor, a very special 
surprise!"  Principal Kunou *loved* surprises, as long as he was the one 
handing them out.
	"And what has that to do with me?"
	"It be having everything to do with you and your sister!  You go 
get ready now, Osage!"
	"I do not care to receive visitors at this ti--"  He'd said 
"Osage"?!  He knew.
	Kunou had thought the Principal as oblivious to the changes as he 
was to most everything not involving Hawaii or haircuts.  
	"When did you?..."
	"As soon as I be seeing you in that pigtail! Your Daddy may be a 
little strange, but not stupid!"  So it *was* the haircut. 
	"I suppose I can fit one visitor into my schedule.  But I reserve 
the right to leave at any time."
	"Oh, I don't think you be leaving, no sir!"  Principal Kunou 
tossed a bucket of water on his son.
	A servant (Osage could never remember her name) was ready and 
waiting in her suite.  Despite her remonstrations, she fitted her into a 
formal woman's kimono, and quickly arranged her scarlet hair. 
	"Hmm... not quite... but the best I can do on such short 
notice."  The mirror showed Osage an old-fashioned Japanese girl, except 
for the hair color.  The effect was quite striking.
	She allowed herself to be escorted to the reception room, curious 
as to what the Principal had in mind.  Osage seated herself opposite her 
sister Kodachi, who was also in a kimono.  The gymnast shot a venomous 
glance at her transformed brother.
	Kodachi apparently did *not* know about Tatewaki's new state of 
existance.  Perhaps he should have told her before.
	"What are *you* doing here, you little minx?"
	"The Principal required my attendance at this meeting, for 
reasons I am not yet fully aware of.  Are you feeling better, dear 
sister?" 
	"How *dare* you call me `sister'?  I still have not forgiven you 
for what you did to me!"  She obviously was referring to the rhythmic 
gymnastics match nearly a year before, or then again, perhaps there were 
other offenses the female Ranma had done.
	"That was...before..."
	The Principal burst in, leading two men.  One was about the 
Principal's age, and had once been quite handsome.  He'd obviously aged 
badly, premature gray and wrinkles of worry.
	The other was about Kunou's age, a very handsome youth, and 
clearly related to the elder.  He carried himself with grace, like a cat 
gliding across the room, and with as much arrogance.  There was something 
very familiar about him.  They were both in well-tailored business suits, 
as was Principal Kunou.
	They were seated, and tea was served.  As yet, no one had been 
introduced, but the boy seemed very interested in both Kodachi and 
Osage.  Osage began to get the creepy feeling that she knew *exactly* 
what this meeting was about...
	There was some polite conversation about the weather, and the 
beauty of the seasonal blossoms.  And that concluded, the introductions 
finally began.
	"I am Houjou Sanzenin, executive vice president of the Mitsugawa 
Corporation.  This is my son, Mikado."
	The younger boy smiled, revealing perfect, sparkling teeth.  "It 
is my very great pleasure to meet you."  Mikado Sanzenin?  The skating 
star?  Kunou had met his partner, the cute but highly annoying Azusa... 
	The Principal laughed.  Not quite the madman's laugh he normally 
used, but close.  "These are my daughters, Kodachi Kunou, age 17; and 
Osage, age 18."
	"I'm not--"
	"Hush, Osage.  You'll get your chance to speak later.  Well, 
Mikado?  Which of these would you like as your bride?"
	The boy seemed a little less confident than before.
	"Well, I, er, that is to say..."
	"I think my son needs to know a bit more about his prospective 
wives before making a choice."
	"Yes!  That's it, I can't decide between such beauties!  I must 
date them *both*!"
	Osage felt faint.  She could swear she'd heard that somewhere 
before... 

	TO BE CONTINUED


SKJAM!
(Don't worry, Kunou gets to say something about this predicament next 
time...)