Subject: [ffml] [ranma-esque] NARRABUNDAH 1/2 - Volume II, chapter 8
From: Ratbat
Date: 4/19/1997, 7:44 AM
To: fanfic@fanfic.com

I'm getting fast now! As usual, C&C welcome, and thanx to those who have
already given it! :)


                        NARRABUNDAH 1/2
                               
                by Urac Sigma with Suzy Styles
                               
                               
                   Volume II, chapter eight
                               
                 Dare ga nani o shimashitaka?
                               
                               
                      CAST OF CHARACTERS
                               
                       SIGMATOME RATBAT
                            One-one
                               
                          TENDO SUZY
                            One-one
                               
                          TENDO NIKI
                            One-one
                               
                          TOBOKI EUAN
                            One-two
                               
                         KUNOU JARRAH
                            One-two
                               
                       HAPPOUSAI GRAHAM
                           One-seven
                               
                       SIGMATOME NICOLE
                            One-six
                               
                          TENDO BOBBI
                            One-one
                               
                         SIGMATOME LEN
                            One-one
                               
                          TENDO FIONA
                            One-one
                               
                         HODJSUKE TIM
                            One-two
                               
                        KUONJI COLLEEN
                            One-ten
                               
                        LIFE'S CHAMPION
  Hasn't appeared in this series previously for even a moment
             A. RATBAT'S BEDROOM IN HAKODATE.

             [It  looks  different to the one she now  has  in
             Tokyo,  but  basically  it's  the  same  sort  of
             thing.]

             [CAPTION:  Hakodate, Japan - Friday 29  September
             1994 ]

             [Euan  drops back onto the bed, into shot. He  is
             dressed pretty much as he is in the present,  and
             his hair is shorter.]

EUAN:        No-one?

             [Ratbat  also  appears  in shot,  lying  half-on,
             half-beside  Euan.  He [obviously  Ratbat-kun  at
             this  stage,  as  there's  no  alternative]  also
             looks  the  same.  His hair is the  same  length,
             although here untied [Ratbats' hair always  takes
             ages to grow].]

RATBAT:      Iie.  [Giggles like a schoolgirl.  How  the  hell
             Ratbat  managed to pass herself as  a  guy,  even
             with  the  body  for it, I don't  know.]  They've
             both gone to Tokyo for the weekend.

EUAN:        No paranoid watching of the door, then?

RATBAT:      [Sigh]  Gomen...it's just...I don't think  Chichi
             would take well to...uh...

EUAN:        To you being gay?

RATBAT:      Nh!

             [He pokes Euan's nose. Euan sighs.]

EUAN:        Sorry,  I know. Asexual, but seeing another  guy.
             He wouldn't like that?

RATBAT:      Mochiron. I don't think he'd like it were I  a...
             'pillow-biter', as he says.

             [Euan taps Ratbat's fangs.]

EUAN:        I  don't  really  think I'd want those  near  any
             pillows I valued, either.

RATBAT:      Han...I  dinna  think that's  quite  was  he  was
             thinking of.

             [Euan  half-rises above Ratbat,  running  a  hand
             through his hair.]

EUAN:        I  think  I just might know what he was  thinking
             of...

             [Yes, we all know what he's driving at.]

RATBAT:      Euie-chan...

             [Leans up and kisses his forehead.]

RATBAT:      ...I'm not thinking of it.

             [Euan nods, playful.]

EUAN:        Ee, ee... it was worth a try.

RATBAT [Just as   playful,  but  rather  serious  behind  it]:
             It's just...not what I do, is it?

             [And  on this happy scene we suddenly freeze  and
             go to black and white. An audible beat sounds.]



             B. EUAN'S ROOM AT KOCHAN'S.

             [Again  frozen.  A  still of Ratbat,  half-naked,
             blood  on  the  sheets,  shocked  expression.  We
             start in colour, then fade straight to black-and-
             white. The beat again.]



             C. RATBAT'S DEN.

             [The  beat  sounds again, and we find  Ratbat-kun
             [this is the present, incidentally] lying on  his
             bed, remembering, and deep in thought.]



             TITLE SEQUENCE.

             [Opening  theme: Little Date [alternate version].
             Finishes  with  a  voice-over from  Suzy  and  an
             appropriate art-card.]

SUZY [VO]:   Dare ga nani o shimashitaka? 



             1. RATBAT'S DEN.

             [Pretty much straight on from the pre-titles.]

             [CAPTION:  Neribanda, Japan - Sunday 17 September
             1995 ]

             [Knock on door.]

SUZY [OOV]:  Ne, R-- Komori-chan?

RATBAT [Self]:    Cute. [Aloud] Come in.

             [The door opens and Suzy enters.]

SUZY:        Sumimasen.  I  just  had  to  check  that  B-chan
             hadn't  ended  up  in  the  washing  basket  ag--
             [realises]  Ano, why are you in your otoko  form?
             If Nicole-san sees you like that, it's...

             [Does  a rather charming mime of seppuku.  Ratbat
             sits up.]

RATBAT:      Because Komoriko did something I'm really  trying
             to  block out of my head, so I thought I'd  spend
             a bit of time not being her!

SUZY:        Oh  yeah.  That whole wake-up-unable-to-remember-
             what-you've-done-but-evidently-having-lost-your-
             virginity-to-someone-you-didn't-want-to-lose-it-
             to-especially-seeing-as-you-planned-never-to-
             lose-it-anyway thing.

RATBAT:      Aye.  I just wish I could remember what on  Earth
             made me do that. And with him, after...

             [Suzy sits herself on the clothes-basket.]

SUZY:        How much can you remember?

RATBAT:      I   remember   going  to  the   restaurant   with
             Euan...then it all gets a bit...fuzzy as soon  as
             I  tasted  his wine. Glenda, that must have  been
             some bloody strong stuff.

SUZY [Dry]:  Really.

RATBAT:      Oi! I can hold my drink, I can.

SUZY:        Ratti  - you couldn't hold your drink if you  had
             glue on your hands.

RATBAT:      Och,  I  was  yopparatta, OK?  Even  so  -  going
             and...well...Euan...that was still a bit much!

SUZY:        Nerf.  I  don't  suppose you've  talked  to  Euan
             since any of this?

RATBAT:      Havenae  seen  the geezer. Like I  said,  he  was
             outta  there by the time I woke up. Glenda  knows
             where he is now.



             2. CONSOLE ROOM.

             [A  big,  slightly  gothic-looking  room  with  a
             large,     six-sided    console    covered     in
             anachronistic-looking  controls  on  it.  Working
             there  is a man in Victorian-era clothes, looking
             at a screen suspended from the ceiling.]

             [CAPTION:  Time and Relative Dimension  in  Space
             ]

             [Euan  enters  into  all this  from  an  internal
             door.   He  looks  about  himself  in  his  usual
             confused manner.]

EUAN:        Ano...sumimasen?

VICTORIAN:   Can  I help... [trails off, realises] ...how  did
             you get in here?

EUAN:        Could you please direct me to Neribanda?

             [The  operator is genuinely caught out and  tries
             to think of it.]

VICTORIAN:   Neribanda...no, don't tell me, what planet is  it
             on  again...? Oh, of course. I thought it sounded
             like   an   Earth  name...  Well...  [Goes   into
             thought]

EUAN:        Oh,  don't bother. If you don't know, I'm sure  I
             can find my own way. Suman.

             [He  heads towards the huge doors at the edge  of
             the room.]

VICTORIAN:   No, wait! I don't even know where we've--

             [But  Euan opens the doors and is gone. The long-
             haired  man  rushes over to the doors  and  looks
             out.  He looks left and right, but can't seem  to
             see  Euan. He comes away from the doors, and they
             close. He shrugs, and heads back to his work.]



             3. RATBAT'S DEN.

             [Suzy  looks up as there is another knock on  the
             door.]

RATBAT:      Un?

SUZY:        Dare desuka?

NIKI [OOV]:  It's me, the cute one.

             [She enters.]

SUZY:        'The cute one'. How are you the cute one?

NIKI:        Oh,  it's just a gift. Ne, what are you  guys  up
             to?

             [She  places  herself on the bed quite  close  to
             Ratbat.  He recoils, but then notices  once  more
             that she's not doing anything else.]

SUZY:        We...han...oi, what's happened to you?

NIKI:        Nan?

             [Ratbat  sits  up,  pretending  that  he  doesn't
             really  know  why  Niki's been doing  what  she's
             been doing.]

RATBAT:      It's  just  that, well...for the past  few  days,
             ye've  been  acting  a mite...odd  in  behaviour.
             Particularly around me.

             [Light shines into Niki's mind.]

NIKI:        Oh,  I  see.  Yes. I can see what you might  have
             thought  about  that, Batti-chan, but  it  wasn't
             like that at all.

             [Ratbat and Suzy, knowing full well what it  was,
             exchange glances.]

RATBAT:      Oh no?

NIKI:        Oh,  no - that was just because I had the panting
             hots for you.

             [Ratbat face-faults.]

SUZY:        Then  what  on Earth did you think we thought  it
             was?

NIKI:        Ja...you  might  have thought  I  had  herpes  or
             something.

             [Ratbat's brain is blown.]

RATBAT:      Why in Glenda's name would you have herpes?

NIKI [Sulking]:   I could get it if I wanted to.

SUZY:        Nerf?

NIKI:        Yeah. In fact, I could pick it up wholesale  from
             my supplier, and pass it on at double-price.

             [Suzy turns to Ratbat.]

SUZY:        I'm  beginning  to wonder she wasn't  better  off
             preoccupied.

NIKI:        Ano,  you  are talking about something you  don't
             want  me  to  hear. Otherwise you  wouldn't  have
             changed  the subject when I asked what  you  were
             doing.

             [Suzy looks at Ratbat. He nods.]

SUZY:        Ja...it   seems  that  Ratti  might   have   done
             something that she's not entirely proud of...



             4. LIVING ROOM.

             [Len  the  panda  is  humming  to  himself  while
             flipping  channels on the TV.  Nicole  and  Bobbi
             are sitting on the couch.]

NICOLE:      You  know,  Bobbi-san...that really is  a  clever
             panda.

BOBBI:       Hai...sometimes a little too clever...

             [Len  takes  the  hint  and  turns  the  TV  off,
             sitting there contented. There is a pause.]

NICOLE:      Bobbi-san...have you ever considered  having  any
             more  children?  I  mean, you're  not  completely
             past it yet.

             [Bobbi  scowls  at  that last  part,  but  moving
             right along...]

BOBBI:       Well,  I've  thought about it,  that's  certainly
             true.  But  ever since my husband died, I...well,
             I can't, really. You see?

NICOLE:      Oh,  that.  Len's your best friend.  Couldn't  he
             help you with that part?

             [Both Len and Bobbi stare at her.]

BOBBI:       Uh...I'm kind of surprised to hear you say  that,
             Nicole. Isn't he sort of...your husband?

NICOLE:      Oh,  but  if  it  was only for  that.  I  mean...
             [conspiratorial]  ...it's not like  he  was  ever
             much good at it, anyway!

             [She smiles naughtily. Bobbi's eyes bug out.  Len
             the  panda blushes slightly, then keels over.  In
             the  background, Fiona walks through,  unaffected
             as  ever. She carries a clothes-basket with  her.
             Follow her.]



             5. RATBAT'S DEN.

             [Now  devoid  of  youngsters.  Fiona  walks   in,
             carrying the clothes-basket. She stops. She  sees
             the  basket  already  there,  the  one  Suzy  was
             sitting on. CU on her face.]

FIONA:       Oh, my. That's rather odd.

             [Cut back to the other basket to show that it  is
             now not there, if you get my drift.]

FIONA:       Oh.

             [She puts the basket down, shrugs and exits.]



             6. ON A STREET.

             [Suzy  and Niki, with Ratbat walking slightly  up
             ahead.]

SUZY:        Are you going to tell me or not?

NIKI:        Suzy-chan, we've already been through  that  part
             about where babies come from.

SUZY:        Not  that. Incidentally, I refuse to believe that
             you're  the  majority shareholder in  Stork  plc.
             Yesterday  you  were  ready  to  burst  something
             because  you  were as confused as all  fuck  over
             you and Ratbat. And now?

             [She snaps her fingers.]

SUZY:        Completely over it.

NIKI:        Oh,  that.  I...um...let's just  say  I  found  a
             solution.

             [She tries to walk on, but Suzy restrains her.]

SUZY:        Let's just say what it is.

NIKI:        [Giggle] I slept with someone else.

SUZY:        You  what?  Shit  - am I the only  person  around
             here  who  didn't lose my virginity  last  night?
             [Pause] Wait a minute... Ratbat lost it before  I
             did?!   But  she's,  well...frigid!  [Going   off
             again] It's because of this, isn't it?

             [She palms her left breast.]

SUZY:        Nobody  wants  a girl with only one,  so  they're
             going for the other end of the scale.

             [At this point Ratbat is returning.]

SUZY:        Argh!  I  knew  this kind of thing would  happen!
             Ratbat no baka!

             [And she mallets him.]

RATBAT:      Ne? Nan da yo?

SUZY:        IT'S ALL BECAUSE OF THAT FUCKING NIPPLE!!

             [Everyone else in the street stops and stares  at
             them.  Even the flap on the nearby postbox  opens
             and  a  pair of eyes peep out. Our heroes  become
             aware of all the stares.]

SUZY:        Umm...hi.

NIKI:        Ne, ohayo gozaimasu.

RATBAT:      Genki da?

             [The  people  mill away again,  and  the  postbox
             closes. Ratbat turns to Suzy.]

RATBAT:      Han...  ye  do remember that that was Euan's  hat
             that mammarially impaired you, don't you?

SUZY:        Nerf.  Ja,  Euan  just  seems  to  have  to  take
             something from every girl he meets, doesn't he?

             [Looks at Ratbat, who is unimpressed.]

SUZY [Laughing]:  I'm sorry, that was rather terrible.

             [Ratbat  throws up his hands and walks  on.  Niki
             smiles wickedly.]

NIKI:        That was a bit, wasn't it?

             [The two of them start to walk on.]

SUZY [VO]:   Chotto              NIKI:        Suzy-chan,
             matte...Did  we                  doko         ni
             tell   her   it                  ikimasuka?
             was Euan?

SUZY:        Hum? What was that one, sorry?

NIKI:        Where are we actually going to?

SUZY:        Kochan's.  Ratti wants to return  to  the...scene
             of the crime, as it were.

NIKI:        Ne? Dooshite?

             [They start to walk on.]

SUZY:        I   think   it's  like  she...wants  to  convince
             herself   it  actually  happened.  Or  maybe   it
             didn't.  You  know  how her mind  works  when  it
             comes to sex.

NIKI:        Hai.  It doesn't. Anyway, getting back -  I  told
             you  I  slept  with  someone. Cheap  losing-stuff
             joudan aside, I didn't have sex with him.

SUZY:        Nani?

NIKI:        It  was  something  I'd actually  wondered  about
             right  at the start. That maybe I'd just  latched
             onto  Ratbat because he'd been the one  I'd  been
             close  to  by  sleeping with.  I  worked  out...I
             worked  out that Ratbat's female side  didn't  do
             it for me at all, which wasn't quite right...

SUZY:        ...it being Ratbat we were dealing with.

NIKI:        Exactly.  But  I  couldn't just accept  that.  So
             I...did it again, to make sure.

SUZY:        And what happened? You felt the same way?

NIKI:        Hai.  So, somehow that, along with knowing why  I
             felt  it...well,  you know,  it  and  the  Ratbat
             thing...

             [Makes a semi-exploding gesture.]

SUZY:        ...cancelled each other out! Aa, wakatta ne...

RATBAT [Off]:Hey!  I  dinna  like being referred  to  as  'the
             Ratbat thing'!

NIKI [Calls]:Don't  worry,  it's  not  you,  Batti-chan,  it's
             another Ratbat-thing!

RATBAT [Off]:Hurt...!

SUZY:        Honestly, Niki...sometimes your mind can be  more
             trouble than it's worth.

             [Niki  suddenly returns to that mock-sexy  status
             we've been seeing so little of.]

NIKI:        Well...we  can  always  forsake  the  mind,   and
             concentrate on my body...

             [Suzy joins in, embracing her sister.]

SUZY:        But   Niki-   Niki-  Niki-chan...I'm  a   martial
             artist. I know the mind and the body must  be  as
             one...

NIKI:        Then  I'll just have to make my body just as much
             trouble... [giggles sexily]

             [Look  up  the street to Ratbat, sitting  on  the
             ground,  leaning on a vending machine and looking
             at his watch.]

RATBAT:      Today would be nice, kids...

SUZY [Off]:  Don't  worry,  Ratti. Niki usually  doesn't  take
             very long!

NIKI [Off]:  Hey!  Are  you  saying I suffer from  premature--
             Oh, chikusho.



             7. TRAINING ROOM, KUNOU MANOR.

             [Here  once  more. Kunou and Graham  facing  each
             other off.]

GRAHAM:      Now,  Kunou  m'boy...this  shall  be  your  final
             test!

             [Kunou is taken slightly aback.]

KUNOU:       'Final'? We have been training but days!

GRAHAM:      I   let   you  underestimate  yourself   at   the
             beginning  of  my teaching, my boy -  your  skill
             wasn't  too bad at all to start with. And,  given
             the...relaxed nature of our opponents, this  bare
             week  of  intense  training  will  be  more  than
             sufficient.

KUNOU:       But, sensei...less than a week?

GRAHAM:      I've  been  teaching you only the  high  fighting
             techniques.  Nowhere  near  the  full  array   of
             Rejinra  martial arts, but certainly  enough  for
             the  battle  you'll be fighting! Anyway!  To  the
             test!

             [Kunou looks around him.]

KUNOU:       And what might this test be, sensei?

GRAHAM:      I  want you to unleash all your skills, and  make
             us of everything you've learnt...to fight me!

KUNOU:       Anata? Demo, sensei--

GRAHAM:      Don't argue with your elders and sexiers!

             [Kunou starts, but moves into the battle pose.]

KUNOU:       Hai!

             [Graham  nods  to  Tim,  who  stands  by  with  a
             handkerchief.]

TIM:         Kunou   Jarrah-sama   versus  Happousai   Graham-
             sensei. Victory on a knockout, leaving the  ring,
             or    otherwise   fighting   to   a   standstill.
             San...ni...ichi...sanjo!

             [He  drops  the handkerchief. A moment later,  he
             stoops  down, picks it up, and blows his nose  on
             it.  In the ring that is the centre of the  room,
             the  two  opponents are staring  at  each  other.
             Suddenly,  Graham  reaches  behind  himself   and
             reveals a couple of fuse-bombs.]

GRAHAM:      Happo dai karin!

             [He   throws  the  bombs  towards  Kunou.   Kunou
             grimaces, but:]

KUNOU:       Kunou gomu no kyoi!

             [He  swipes his rubber sword, flinging the  bombs
             back  at  Graham, who has to jump out of the  way
             as  they  explode. He then stands on the  ground,
             and  starts  to focus his chi as he did  when  he
             fought Ruthie.]

GRAHAM [VO]: Not  bad, my seito, not bad...but have you  truly
             learnt  of what I've been teaching you? Will  you
             prove to be the fighter I need for this event?

             [Kunou glowers at Graham as he focuses.]

KUNOU [VO]:  Do  thy  worst  to me, sensei, and I  shalt  show
             thee  what Kunou Jarrah is truly made of. [Pause]
             A  pity Ruthie-sensei's already taken, she was my
             sanban after Tendo Suzy and ponīteru no onna.

             [Cut to Tim.]

TIM [VO]:    I wonder when Fiona-chan's birthday is?

             [Now,  his  hair  all over the place,  Graham  is
             ready,  and  he  leaps  towards  Kunou.  Keep   a
             Graham's-eye-view as he soars towards  the  young
             samurai. Kunou suddenly tosses his sword  out  of
             his hand and pulls a bra from his pocket.]

GRAHAM:      Aa! Shitagi!

             [He  ignores  Kunou  himself, launching  straight
             for  the  support garment. Kunou lets  it  go  as
             Graham  gets it, then Graham flies right out  the
             ring.  Tim looks at them both a moment,  slightly
             astonished.]

TIM:         Victory to...Kunou Jarrah.

             [Laughing, Graham leaps to his feet.]

GRAHAM:      You've beaten me!

             [Kunou recoils for a moment.]

GRAHAM:      Excellent!  Wonderful,  m'boy!  You've  shown  me
             that  you  truly  did  learn  my  most  important
             lesson!  Always  be  sure  that  you  know   your
             opponent! Now, come! We have a challenge to  plan
             out!



             8. OUTSIDE KOCHAN'S.

             [An establishing shot.]



             9. KOCHAN'S.

             [Colleen  is  here, cleaning things up.  Business
             as usual.]



             10. EUAN'S ROOM AT KOCHAN'S.

             [It  looks  pretty much like it did earlier  this
             morning,  except  that less of  Ratbat's  clothes
             are around. Niki, Suzy and Ratbat are here.]

NIKI:        How  come  you didn't tell Colleen what  we  were
             doing? Isn't she your mate from waaaayy back?

RATBAT:      Ee,  but she still gets sensitive about the whole
             engagement thing...she's cross enough about  you,
             if  she  finds  out that Euan  beat  you  to  me,
             then...[trails  off,  looks  wide-eyed  at  Suzy]
             Kuso. I hadnae thought of it that way, Suzy-kun.

             [Suzy's face betrays that she hadn't either.  She
             now struggles to keep her emotions in check.]

SUZY:        Let's...let's  talk about that one later,  Ratti-
             chan.

RATBAT:      ...Hai.  [Pause]  I'm  just glad  Colleen  hasn't
             come back here yet.

NIKI:        Matte-yo! Did you say Euan? You and Euan?

RATBAT:      Hai.  [Beat] That's right. We never told you that
             much,  did  we?  It must have led  on  from  that
             deto.

NIKI:        It's  not  just that! Euan was sleeping  with  me
             last night as well, back at Dr Callum's!

             [Everyone looks at each other.]

RATBAT:      Nani? How late did you get to him?

NIKI:        Not very late. Not far from here, in fact.

             [Pause.]

SUZY:        He's very...eager, isn't he?

RATBAT:      Hai.

             [Niki is looking around.]

NIKI:        There's an awful lot of blood, Batti-chan.  What,
             were you trying to write your name or something?

SUZY:        Niki...!

             [Niki points to a spot on the floor.]

NIKI:        Say, that bit even looks like a o1!

RATBAT & SUZY:    Niki!

NIKI:        [Sigh] Gomen. Just trying to lift the mood.

RATBAT:      Lift it later. I'm wallowing.

             [While  Ratbat  checks something out,  Suzy  goes
             over to Niki, and they talk discreetly.]

SUZY:        Niki...

NIKI:        Hm?

SUZY:        Well,  we already know Ratbat wasn't at her alert
             best  when she came here. Euan moved on  quickly,
             and  there  is  a lot of blood. You  don't  think
             maybe...

             [Portent facial expression.]

NIKI:        What?  You think he might have [pause, then comes
             out with it anyway] raped her?

RATBAT [Normal level]: I doubt that, somehow.

             [The Tendos start.]

SUZY:        Hey!  How  come sometimes those ears mean  you've
             got   great  audio  skills,  and  sometimes  they
             don't!

RATBAT:      Sometimes  I'm  pretending I can  hear  you,  and
             sometimes I'm pretending I can't.

NIKI:        Uh.

RATBAT:      But,  no...Euan and goukan? It's too much like  a
             long  word: quite, quite beyond the geezer.  I've
             known him too long.

SUZY:        True.  I guess we have seen the way he reacts  to
             women.

             [Mimes a blush and a nosebleed.]

SUZY:        I  don't think he could actually bring himself in
             physical range.

NIKI:        But--

             [Ratbat glares at her.]

RATBAT:      D'ye  think  maybe we can eliminate that  option,
             just while I've got a chisai bit of sanity left?

NIKI:        Oh.   Right.  [Thinks]  But  why  is   the   mess
             everywhere?  There  must  have  been  a  bit   of
             action, whatever happened!

VOICE:       That's it!

             [They all look at each other.]

SUZY:        Now,  I didn't see either of you say that, but  I
             don't think that it was me!

             [The  top  of a cabinet (which, come to think  of
             it,  wasn't there this morning), flips open,  and
             someone  climbs out. Wearing a nice  frilly  blue
             dress  and  white blouse, we can see a  brownish-
             purplish-haired girl of about sixteen within.]

SIXTEEN:     That's because it was me!

             [The other three just stare at her.]

SIXTEEN:     Kurenai Charlotte. Doozo yoroshiku.

             [Our  heroes  stare at each other, then  back  at
             the newcomer.]

SUZY:        Han...ohayo. Te--

CHARLOTTE:   Tendo  Suzy,  Tendo  Niki,  Sigmatome  Ratbat.  I
             heard  earlier.  Sorry  -  I  couldn't  help  but
             overhear your conversations this morning.

SUZY:        What?  You  mean  you've actually been  shadowing
             us?!

             [Suzy starts to seethe.]

NIKI:        I never saw you.

CHARLOTTE:   I'm a master of disguise. It comes with the job.

NIKI:        Oh. OK.

CHARLOTTE:   And  not only that, but enough disguise work  can
             teach  you to a bit of detective work, as well...
             I  think  I  might  know  the  solution  to  your
             problem.

             [Suzy's mallet materialises in her hand.]

SUZY:        Kurenai no--

             [Niki and Ratbat stop her strike.]

SUZY:        Nan  da  yo?  You  heard her!  Shadowing  us  all
             morning, disguised as who knows what?

NIKI:        Never  mind  that!  She said she  knew  what  had
             happened!

SUZY:        So? Oh, yeah. I see.

             [She lowers the mallet.]

RATBAT:      Un.  Hear  her out, then you can pummel her  into
             the ground.

CHARLOTTE:   Well, charming.

NIKI:        Tell us, or my sister gets the blue light.

CHARLOTTE:   Righto.  Ja,  I can't say for sure, but  I  think
             this  must  be  what happened.  Ratbat,  at  some
             point  last night, did you get wet, or dirty,  or
             whatever...?

             [Flashback to:]



             11. OUTSIDE KOCHAN'S.

             [CAPTION:   Neribanda,  Japan   -   Saturday   16
             September 1995 ]

             [Last  night. Euan walks into shot with a passed-
             out and dirty Ratbat-chan on his back.]

RATBAT [VO]: Dirty,  aye. I think wherever Euan-kun  took  me,
             it was probably a bum route.

CHARLOTTE [VO]:   Then it all fits into place...

             [Euan sees the building.]

EUAN:        ...Kochan's!

EUAN [VO]:   Colleen's  probably  still got  the  room  I  was
             using set up! That'll do for one more night!

             [Hoisting   Ratbat  up,  he  goes   towards   the
             okonomiyaki-ya. Dissolve.]



             12. EUAN'S ROOM AT KOCHAN'S.

             [Euan walks in, and puts Ratbat on the bed.]

RATBAT [Drunk/asleep]: Hssefff...

             [Euan looks at her.]

EUAN:        No...I can't really leave you to sleep with  your
             clothes in that state, can I?

             [The  words might look lecherous, but he's  being
             genuine.  He starts to undress her. He  gets  her
             to  about the stage she was at when she  woke  up
             this morning when his brain kicks in.]

EUAN:        Chotto matte...what am I doing?

EUAN [VO]:   Awww no! Naked girl!

             [His  nose suddenly starts to bleed. He tries  to
             stop  it  with  one hand while he continues  with
             his  task, but it's too much and he has to  stop.
             Panicking, he manages to bleed over the place  in
             the same pattern we've already seen.]

EUAN [Hand over nose]: Bathroom...!

             [He dashes out.]



             13. STREET.

             [Still last night, Niki comes down the road.]

CHARLOTTE [VO]:    And  Niki, as we've heard, has  a  plan  to
             solve her problem.

             [She comes across Euan, wiping the final bits  of
             blood from his nose.]

NIKI:        Oh. Konbanwa.

EUAN:        Oh, it's you.

NIKI:        What are you doing out here?

EUAN:        I  was  looking for the way back to  my  room  at
             Kochan's after I went to the bathroom, but...

             [Niki makes a show of looking around her.]

NIKI:        Chikusho. I don't know where that could  be  from
             here.  [Fakes  having an idea] I  know  where  we
             could go, though.

             [Euan starts to follow her, then stops.]

EUAN:        Wait  a  moment...how much is this going to  cost
             me?

             [Niki fakes offence.]

NIKI:        Euan-kun! Do you really see me that way,  sucking
             everyone for everything they've got?

             [Somehow,  a  girl  acting  annoyed  can  trigger
             Euan's guilt complex.]

EUAN:        Gomen.

             [She leads him off.]

NIKI:        No,  so  long as you've got five grand on you,  I
             won't ask for a yen more!

             [He  sighs,  and they're gone. As  they  go,  the
             shot  angle changes to show that they were  right
             in   front  of  Kochan's  the  whole  time.   End
             flashback.]



             14. EUAN'S ROOM AT KOCHAN'S.

             [Niki is now being glared at by Suzy.]

SUZY:        The worst part is, that all makes perfect sense.

             [Ratbat sighs with enormous relief.]

RATBAT:      Waaii!  Yatta! [Kiddy-chant] Watashi wa mukizu...
             Watashi wa mukizi...

NIKI:        Aaa...Batti-chan, most of us wouldn't find  still
             being a virgin an achievement.

CHARLOTTE:   Are   you  kidding?  At  age  sixteen,  in  1995?
             Statistically,  it's lower  than  the  amount  of
             white people on The Cosby Show.

             [Ratbat gives Charlotte a funny look.]

RATBAT:      Aye,  whatever.  [Still  in  utter  relief  mode]
             Glenda,  I should have known Euan didn't have  it
             in him!

SUZY:        Isn't  it more important that he didn't  have  it
             in you?

RATBAT:      Ooh! Good call.

             [Niki remembers.]

NIKI:        Aa...now  that we've saved Ratbat's mental  state
             and  the  local social structure, isn't  there  a
             question left to be answered?

             [They  all look at Charlotte. Suzy picks  up  her
             mallet again.]

CHARLOTTE:   Dame!  Look,  I  wasn't after  snooping  on  your
             problems! I was only after him, the wet-trannie!

             [Points  at  Ratbat. (Duh, really? I thought  you
             meant the other wet trannie.)]

RATBAT:      Why  me?  [Pause] Please don't tell me I have  to
             marry you, an' all!

CHARLOTTE:   Umm...I  don't  think so. No, it  was  because  I
             knew  enough  to know that you'd eventually  lead
             me here!

RATBAT:      Here   where?  Here  Euan's  old  room,  or  here
             Kochan's?

CHARLOTTE:   Kochan's,  tozen! The home and  workplace  of  my
             first and only true love, Kuonji Colleen!

             [The  others  react.  Speak of  the  devil,  etc:
             Colleen walks into the doorway at this point.]

COLLEEN:     Hey, do you guys wa-- [Sees Charlotte] You!!

CHARLOTTE:   Colleen-chan!

             [She leaps towards her, laughing insanely.]

COLLEEN:     Ahh!! Kuonji hera no kogeki!

             [She  whips  the huge spatula off her  back,  and
             uses  it  to hit Charlotte out the window  (which
             mercifully  opens as she hits it).  Colleen  then
             goes back to the window and bolts it closed.]

COLLEEN:     Harrrggh!

SUZY:        So,  Col...not a relationship you want to  renew,
             huh?

COLLEEN:     That  was  Kurenai Charlotte. He is the  guy  who
             has   been  maybe  the  most  annoying  -   apart
             possibly  from  you - [Ratbat] pain  in  my  arse
             over the past sixteen years!

             [On Ratbat, Suzy and Niki.]

SUZY:        He?

NIKI:        Guy?

RATBAT:      Only possibly as annoying as me?



             END CREDITS.

             [With the alternative version of Equal Romance.]

                       Sigmatome Ratbat
                          URAC SIGMA
                               
                          Tendo Suzy
                          SUZY STYLES
                               
                          Tendo Niki
                         NIKI O'BRIEN
                               
                          Toboki Euan
                          EUAN BOWEN
                               
                       Kurenai Charlotte
                       CHARLOTTE SAROSSY
                               
                       Happousai Graham
                        GRAHAM HENSTOCK 
                               
                          Tendo Bobbi
                         ROBYN SCHOLES
                               
                       Sigmatome Nicole
                         NICOLE WYLIE
                               
COLLEEN [VO]:Hey...did Euan have another nosebleed in here?
                               
                        Kuonji Colleen
                         COLLEEN HICK 
                               
                       Hodjsuke Timothy
                           TIM HODGE
                               
                          The Doctor
                          PAUL McGANN
                               
                               
                          written by
                          URAC SIGMA
                             with
                          SUZY STYLES
                               
                   creation and development
                          URAC SIGMA
                          SUZY STYLES
                          EUAN BOWEN
                         LEILA FETTER
                               
                       with apologies to
                       TAKAHASHI RUMIKO
                       (amongst others)
                               
    http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/1778/bundahalf.html
                               
                 (c) Recycadelic Cacti MCMXCVII