Subject: [c&c] The More Things Read on 'Ill Met by Starlight'
From: RPM - acct 3/5
Date: 7/30/1997, 5:19 PM
To: fanfic list <fanfic@fanfic.com>, Mike Loader <mike@thekeep.org>


reviewer's note:
I've been using this bunch as a c&c set privately for
a while now, but I figure now's a good time to
go public with this.  Besides, I really like this fic.

and if you're wondering where this bunch came from,
I suggest you read 'The More Things Change' :)

-rpm

--------------

 Once upon a time there were these four siblings, who happened to
 be martial artists, who also happened to be movie buffs...

 One was a rather skinny fellow, looking a lot like Hikaru Gosunkugi,
 the other a short-haired girl with a fair tan, the next a sloppily
 dressed lad with long hair and eyeglasses, and finally, a rather
 cute 12 year old with a hyperactivity problem....

 ROLL CALL!
 Ryo Muhoshin, snide yet debonaire
 Ryoko Muhoshin, a teen girl with flare
 Megs Muhoshin, a pervert beyond compare
 Kyoko Muhoshin, tiny tot without a care

Megs: So, what's showing today?
Ryoko: 'Ill Met By Starlight' by Susan Doenime & Mike Loader
Kyoko: Wai!  A space movie!
Ryoko: Um... no...
Ryo: A great series.  Ryoga's already dead!
Kyoko: Wai!  Violence!
Megs: This sucks.  Ain't 'Kama Sutra' playing in the next theatre?
Ryo: How many times have you watched _that_ movie?
Megs: Not enough. *snort*

On Wed, 30 Jul 1997, RPM - acct 3/5 wrote:

Chapter 5 - Idle Conversation

But do you come to take me out
Or do you come to put me in?
Do you come to yield to me?
...Or do you come to win?
   -The Flash Girls

Megs: Ne'er heard'em.
Ryo: Rather nice quote, though, yes?
Megs:  I guess.. although if you come for those reasons, y-
Ryo: Please, it's too early for _those_ jokes.

   In this particular case, a sixteen-year-old Chinese boy was
smiling at the ten dockworkers closing in on him with
hammers, belaying pins, and lengths of wood or pipe. He had
made the mistake of knocking out the man who lay unmoving
behind him, who had in turn made the mistake of thinking that
Chinese could be spit upon without fear of reprisal.

Ryo: Hrm... 16 years old... Chinese... Mousse?
Megs: Nah.  The way the story's been going, it might be Mousse's
      brother, out to avenge Mousse, who died a tragic death
      involving skewering knives or sheep.
Ryo: Sheep?
Megs: Oh, sorry.  Forgot Chris WIllmore wasn't in this one.
Ryoko: Maybe that IS Mousse and he's Ranma's spurned lover?
Megs: Don't be stupid.
Ryo: Egads.  Scary thing is she just might be right.

   "Go away," the boy told them. They didn't.

   He shrugged. Warning had been given. It wasn't his fault.

   One of the dockworkers died in the hospital a week later.
Two of the other nine were released from intensive care at
around the same time, and it was hoped the other seven would
regain mobility of a sort within the month.

Megs: Ooooh, kickass.

   The boy, had he known, would have taken no satisfaction in
this. On the other hand, neither would he have felt any grief.
The moment his weapons had been put back in their places, the
men had ceased to matter. They weren't of his tribe, or that of
his allies or enemies. They were Japanese, and foolish,
unskilled ones at that. Whether they lived or died was of no
import to him.

   After all, none of them was named Saotome Ranma.

Megs: <blinking> you know... that theory of Ryoko's... naaaah.
Ryo: Don't go there.

^_-

   Akane ran, almost sobbing.

   Everything had changed. Everything. One second her life was
speeding along, right on track - a new friend and sparring
partner, Ranma beginning to open up to her - and the next...

   Derailment.

Ryo: I swear, some people just can't get along with psychotics.

   Her 'friend', along with her brother, had just tried to kill
Ranma. And Ranma had apparently not opened up to her all
_that_ much, because he had neglected to mention the fact
that he had killed someone a few years back. She fought back a
hysterical giggle; it admittedly wasn't exactly the sort of
thing you worked into conversation over dinner. "Pass the
rolls, please, Kasumi. I had a good day at school, think I got an
A on my calc test. I like your shirt today, Akane. I murdered
someone a few years back. Can I have some more soy sauce,
please?"

Ryo: But what are friends for if not for a little excess violence?
     And as for the murder... well it was ONLY Ryoga.
Ryoko: Oh shut up!

   Okay, she could see how he might not want to talk about it,
how he wouldn't tell his only friend. He had said he was
friends with that other boy, didn't he? So he had a few
problems, but she had known that, and it wasn't like he didn't
feel _bad_ about it, how many people feel bad about killing
someone, how many people kill someone in the first place oh
god oh god oh god...

Ryo: frail nerves, that woman.

   She had a lot of questions to ask Ranma when she caught up
to him. He had gotten a head start on her, but that wasn't
really a problem.

   She choked back another spate of tears as she barreled
around a corner, leaving a shoeprint in the puddle of blood on
the sidewalk.

Kyoko: Wai!  Blood!
Ryoko: <glares at Ryo> This is YOUR fault!
Ryo: I don't see the problem.
Megs: Wake me up when the scantily clad chicks show up.

   Ranma was leaving her a trail. If he left much more of one,
she didn't think he'd survive. There were streaks of crimson
marring the street all the way to...

   Panting, she pulled to a stop. The clinic.  That's right, he had
asked her to point it out to him the second day he was here.

   "Planning on getting injured?" she had teased.

   He had grinned back. "Not really. Just like to be prepared."

Ryo:  Damn.
Ryoko: What?
Ryo: I've got the strongest urge to make a Boy Scout joke and yet
     I can't think of a thing.
Megs: Don'cha hate it when that happens?
Ryoko: Morons.

   Doctor Tofu would take care of him. Yes. He always took care
of her, after all...

Megs: Huh?  Wha?  Lemon?
Ryo: False alarm, terribly sorry.
Megs: *grumble*
Ryoko: Pervert.

   Not that she had ever been in danger of bleeding to death.

   With a low moan, Akane began to walk toward the clinic,
forcing herself to ignore the trail of red on the sidewalk. She
was going to walk. Not run, walk. Ranma would be fine, and
things would be straightened out.

   Walk. One foot in front of the other, don't look down.

   He killed someone.

Ryo: Yes, yes, we've covered _that_
Ryoko: It's called shock, you insensitive moron.
Ryo: whatever.

   Walk.

Megs: o/" Like an Egyptian o/"
<insert sounds of brutal violence here>

^_-

Ryoko: It's kinda creepy how Mike uses those damn wink asciis to
       seperate parts in this fic.
Ryo: Why?  It really is a happy story.
Ryoko: ...

   A cold, damp cloth brushed against his forehead, the
sensation wonderfully soothing against the pain. Leaning his
head back, he saw his sister slowly wipe his forehead. She
didn't look happy.

   "Hey... how'd we do?"

Ryo: <narrows eyes> Oh, is this the Hibiki part?
Ryoko: Yah, why?
Ryo: I'm gonna get some soda. You guys want any?
Kyoko: Me! Me! Me!
Megs: Whazat?  Hibiki sister and brother?  Hey, I didn't know
      we were watching an incest thing...
Ryoko: *WHAP*  Shut up, moron!

   Koji flashed her a toothy smile. "Yeah, well, Hibikis are
tough. Comes from clean living and healthy exercise."

   "You call this healthy exercise?"

   "What does not kill you makes you stronger."

Ryo: Heh.  Lemme try an'make you stronger, punk.
Ryoko: Weren't you going somewhere?

   "Excuse me? Who was the seven-year-old who got into a
headbutting contest with the goat in the petting zoo? And
won?"

Ryoko: Ha!  I like this girl.
Megs: Why sis, I didn't know you-ACK!
Ryoko: <removing mallet> Don't even start.

   She grinned. "Well, it ate my sun hat. My Speed Racer sun hat.

Kyoko: WAI!  Speed Racer!
Ryo: Oh my... she's starting to get rather redundant...

   "So why do I feel so guilty?" she muttered to a passing
butterfly.

   The butterfly lit on her nose and told her at great length, but
the effort was wasted since Hibikis didn't speak Butterfly.

Ryo: Consciense makes cowards.  Best to not be laden with one.

^_-

   Akane arrived at the clinic to find Doctor Tofu waiting for
her, a serious expression on his normally smiling face. Her
heart froze.

Ryo: No, Megs, this isn't a lemon scene.
Megs: sh*t.

prescription pad. Jotting a note on it, he handed it to her.
"Here. This says that there was a medical emergency, and I
recruited you to help out. Not too terribly far from the truth,
and enough to satisfy your teachers, I should think."

  Taking the note, Akane smiled up at him gratefully.

Megs: Abuse of authority, oh yeah baby.

^_-

   Kuno Tatewaki was irked.

Kyoko: Aw, no poetry?

   He was back on his noble feet after nearly a week of
recuperation and hobbling about. He had lovingly crafted a new
Sword of Honour out of the finest and most sturdy polycarbon
wood substitute. He had gathered his vassals, the mighty
Furinkan Kendo Club, in case Saotome brought an army. He had
ordered Mishima Heavy Industries Anti-Elephant Sonic
Emitters in case the fiend tried to use his hell-spawned power
over pachyderms again. He had watched 'The Seven Samurai' 23
times last night.

   He was ready to Smite.

Megs: o/"YOU GOTTA SMITE!  FOR YER RIGHT! TO PAAAAAAAAAAAARTY! o/"
Ryo: Cut out the Beastie Boys tribute.  Now.

   But no-one wanted to play with him today.

Megs: So Nabiki DOES-ack!
Ryoko: <removing mallet> Don't be stupid.

   "WHERE IS SAOTOME RANMA!"

Megs: Kuno is GAY?
Ryoko: I give up.

    The playground was silent. This wasn't surprising, since
everyone else had given up and gone to class 15 minutes ago.

   Kuno fumed and stalked imperiously across the field of
battle, which also served as the field of hopscotch at recess.
That coward! How dare he not show for his just punishment!

   "SAOTOME! TRULY YOU ARE THE BASEST OF MEN!"

Megs: No... I can think of a few good blues guitarists that are
      true bassists among men...
Ryo: Megs, please.
Megs: Okay, okay, bad joke.

   "He suffered an injury earlier today, I'm afraid. He's out of it
for right now."

   "An outrage! No doubt his wound was self-inflicted to avoid
the fury of my just wrath!"

   Nabiki nodded. "That's exactly what I heard, Kuno-chan."

   "Do not call me that."

   "Okay, Tatchi."

   "Or that."

   "Anything you say, Kunster."

   "I hate you."

Ryo: Kuno, The Kuno-man, Kuno-rama, The Kendo-meister
Ryoko: The Kendo King, Kuno-Tate-wacky, The Bokken-Wielding One
Megs: Tate-man, The Tater-totter,  Tate-ness
Kyoko: Tatewaki, lookin'for Ranma, The Blue Thunderrr, lookin'to 
       smiiiiite

   Ranma was definitely a killer. If he had murdered his best
friend, he could do it again here and now. And he probably
would, eventually. Not only that, but a maniac with a shotgun
had almost killed Akane earlier this morning.

Ryo: Shotgun... umbrella... shotgun... umbrella... I liiiike.

   Nabiki shivered, feeling suddenly cold. When had someone's
death become an ordinary objective for her? She was going to
help kill a human being. What was she becoming?

Ryo: This story is just _full_ of squeamish people.
Ryoko: _Normal_ people.
Ryo: Normal?
Ryoko: Compared to you, yeah.

   "TENDO AKANE!" Kuno gleefully bellowed, leaping through the
trees. "YOUR LOVE IS HERE!" With the skill born of months of
practice, he glomped onto...

   Something was wrong. The build... the height... the breast
size...

   Kuno realized that the person he was clutching was, although
female, not Akane. 

Megs: Misdirected glomp.  I hate it when that happens.

A split second later, a very heavy umbrella
slammed into his skull. He found himself flying into a very
hard tree, and then was surprised to note that his face seemed
to be in buried in the dirt.

   Mariko, who was not at all in a good mood, kicked him hard in
the stomach. "Hentai! Try to grope defenseless women, will
you? Sheesh, and I thought the parks in Japan were safe during
the day..."

    "A thousand pardons, madam," he tried to say. What came
out was more like "Whurgle wagga whoosh?"

   "OH, NOW MAKING FILTHY SUGGESTIONS?" *WHAMWHAMWHAM*

Megs: Oh-ho, so he knows the secret technique of Whurgle wagga whoosh.
Ryo: What?
Megs:  S'true.  It requires that you and your partner be double-jointed,
       but...
Ryoko: Thaaaaat's enough.

   "It was years ago. I was in a school... boys' school, back then
I was male all the time, twenty-four hours a day, rain or shine.
And there was this kid called Ryouga who would spar with me.
And I'd win. I was better than him.

Megs: Oooh, so this is one'a them man-to-man fics...
Ryo: No, that one's playing next door.
Megs: Oh-ho, and how would YOU know.
Ryo: It was listed by the door, you moron!  You suggesting something?!
Megs:  Who?  Me? Nooo.
Ryo: This is where he tells how he slaughtered Ryoga.  Shush, I wish
     to hear this.

   "So one day, just before I left for China, he calls a duel."
Ranma laughed again, the thin sound a curious contrast to the
expression on his face. "He had the worst sense of direction,
you know. I waited two days in this vacant lot where the fight
was set to be, and it took him three days to make it. I'd have
left on day four if he still hadn't shown, I think.

   "But he showed, and we fought. And he was good. Had a new
trick. An umbrella."

   Ranma pulled his shirt up off over his head, and Akane
colored slightly. "Uh, Ranma..."

   "Just illustrating a point." Taking her hand, he put it on his
side. "Feel that?"

   "What..." she began to say, then stopped, feeling a
imperfection marring the soft skin, a slight depression.
Removing her hand, she looked carefully at the area.

   Although it was well-healed, there had obviously been a
long, deep cut running along the length of his side.

   "You saw that trick Ry... I mean, Koji did with the umbrella.
The buzzsaw. I got this from that." His face contorted
suddenly.

   "I couldn't believe it, all the blood... I thought he had killed
me, that I was dying... and so I hit him, and hit him, and hit
him, and they screamed at me to stop but I COULDN'T!" His
voice was shrill, thin, a man trying to scream in a whisper. "I
just kept hitting him so that he wouldn't finish me off, so that
maybe I'd live, so that I wouldn't die without a fight, and then
he didn't move. And I'd killed him, somehow. I don't know what
I did to make him die. I didn't do anything special, really, just
hit him. God, I didn't. I didn't want to, and I thought that maybe
I hadn't but I did. I did. I did." He stared at her for a second,
looking almost pathetically confused, and slowly began to cry.

Ryo: <frowning> It can't be that easy...
Megs: Well, guess it was.

   Akane reached out and pulled him close to her, her mind
flooded with pity and grief and guilty relief. A stupid
playground fight, with two boys who didn't know when to stop.
And the result is one of them dead and the other dying slowly
from guilt. It was better than what she'd feared... although
part of her had hoped he'd tell her he hadn't killed anyone.

Megs: Oh-ho.  Body contact.  Maybe we can get some sympathy sex here?
Ryo: Shut up.

   "God, I killed him, I killed him..."

Ryo: Smile, you moron!  You killed Ryoga!

   "Shh. Shh. Come on, now. You didn't mean to, and you... you
weren't entirely in control of your actions. People do funny
things when they're faced with death, and it sounds like you...
snapped for a few minutes."

   The sobs grew deeper, more despairing. "I'm not _supposed_
to snap, I can _never_ snap, I'm a killer, I killed him..."

   "Ranma, it's okay. Come on, now."

   "It's not okay. It'll never be okay."

   "Ranma, tearing yourself up like this isn't going to bring him
back. You've got to come to terms with it, face it."

   He lifted his head from where it was buried in her shoulder
and looked at her soundlessly, tears trickling their way down
his cheeks.

   "I thought you'd hate me," he said simply.

   "I could never hate you."

   And he actually managed to smile.

   "Uh," he said hesitantly, pulling away a bit, "maybe I'd
better put my shirt back on. Bit of a draft."

   Akane blushed, realizing that she'd been holding a half-naked
boy embarrassingly close. "Yeah."

   He pulled the shirt on, and smiled again, hesitantly, as if
trying the expression on to see if it fit.

   "Thanks. I think I needed... well... it's been in the back of my
mind for years now. I just didn't know, and now that it... that
I... well..."

   "I know. You just can't keep things like that inside you, or
they'll eat away your soul."

   He shuddered, and a shadow seemed to flicker across his
face for a second. "Yeah."

   Standing, she walked for the door. "Come on. We're eating
dinner in a few minutes, and you want to get your share,
right?"

   "Of course." He gave a mock bow. "After you, Akane."

Ryoko: Aw, how sweet.  Maybe this'll be a romance after all.
Ryo & Megs: We're leaving.

^_-

   The boy entered Nerima at roughly the same time the Tendos
and Saotomes sat down to dinner.

   Exactly where his quarry was, he did not know. Subtlety,
save in the nuances of combat, was not his forte. The sources
he had used to track Ranma this far had been unreliable, or
mystical, or in many cases both.

   Now, staring out the window of the train at the shadowy
forms of buildings, he wondered what he would do once he
_did_ catch up. He was good, among the best of his people, but
Ranma... Ranma had already beaten him once. It had been a long
fight, a close one at times, but it had been decisive. Unless
Ranma had made a major error, the outcome of the fight had
never been in doubt.

Ryo: Tribe, beaten.... Mousse.  Gotta be Mousse.
Megs: Yep.

   "Hey, kid! Can you see okay?"

   The boy shrugged. "Fine, yes, yes. Thank you."

   "Okay, just thought with that eyepiece you have on..."

   "Can see fine, thank you."

Ryo: Mousse with one less eye.  Oh my.

    <-Great-Grandmother! What is that?->

Megs: Great-Grandmonter?

    <-He gathers forces around him, child->

    < The whirlpool spiraled around him, water roaring against
the jagged rocks lining it, and at it's heart was Ranma. Ranma,
standing over the bleeding body of a red-haired girl, his
triumphant laughter mingling with her screams of horror and
the crashing of the waves. The waters took forms; a twenty-
armed woman of deceit, two siblings of flame, a woman
superimposed upon a small boy, a man who held a beam of
sunlight, and a girl who was somehow a key, and a sword, and
something too blindingly pure to be real....>

Megs: Groovy.  Someone pass me a joint.

   <The waves converged.>

   <Shouts arose, of fury and grief and of savage joy, only to be
drowned out by the rising crash of the waves. >

   <-Great-Grandmother, I cannot see! What is the outcome?->

   <-Child, this is an omen, not a film. I have given you the
place and the players. You must be the one to tell me how it
ends.->

   <-Yes, Great-Grandmother.->

   <-Mu Tsu, do you understand?->

   He forced his memories away. Stupid Mousse.

   Stupid, stupid Mousse.

Ryo: um... hrm.  Either Mousse is talking to himself or that 
     isn't Mousse.

   Perhaps Saotome was training. He did, after all, seem to live
for his killer's skills. Yes.

   He would need a room with a telephone, and a business
directory.

Ryo: Reach out and kill someone.

   The Hibikis, aware that Ranma might decide to find them,
had chosen the most defensible place in the park to set up
camp. The fact that police or park custodians would likely be
unable to find them was also appealing.

Ryo: Oh, are _they_ back?  Wake me up when they're gone.
Ryoko: Hey, just because they're Hibikis doesn't mean-
Ryo: Yes, yes, whatever.
Ryoko: Well... _I_ like'em.

   At least, thought Nabiki, those were probably the reasons for
building it there. They were certainly the reasons she'd select
the site for.

   She stood on the shoreline, staring across the water at the
isle, shivering slightly beneath her toggle coat. It was cold out
here in the mornings, especially when you were standing next
to a large body of water.

   And she really didn't feel like wading.

Kyoko: How she gonna get across?
Megs:  o/" I believe I can fly!  I believe I can touch the skyyyy! o/"
Ryoko: Don't make me hurt you.

   Okay. The Hibiki lunatics wouldn't stand for ruining their
clothing every time they wanted to go for a walk. Ergo, there
must be a way to cross without getting soaking wet.

   Perhaps a boat of some sort?

Megs: o/" Sittin'on the dock on the bay, waaaaasting tiiiiime o/"

   Trotting around the shoreline, Nabiki peered into the denser
clumps of reeds. Nothing.

   Maybe a, hmm, a glider?

   She shook her head. That was ridiculous.

   Something to carry them over the water, perhaps? A line,
or...

   Nabiki looked up at the trees, checking to see whether any of
the branches were long enough to bridge the lake. Nope. Nor did
any of them hold a rope to go hand over hand across.

Megs: o/" Nabs! Nabs! Nabs of the jungle! o/"
Ryoko: DIE!

<insert sounds of violence>

   She swore. Unless they were the next coming of the
Christian Jesus and could walk across water, she just didn't
see how they managed it.

    Okay. Analytical thinking time. She didn't know how they got
across and back. What did she know?

   Peering about the shore, Nabiki looked for anything out of the
ordinary, anything that didn't blend. A broken bush, perhaps,
or...

   There. There was a jagged hole in the ground, a shallow
crater.

   Walking over to it, Nabiki examined it critically. How did a
hole in the ground help them cross?

   No, wrong line of thought. Better - why was there a hole in
the ground?

   Answer - something had been pulled out of the earth. What?
A rock.

   Nabiki grinned.

   Doing a swift circuit of the area, she found five other holes.
She also found a bamboo shaft that would do nicely, once she
harvested it. Closing her eyes, she focused herself.

   "TAO!"

   Her hand impacted the hard bamboo, and the slender tree
snapped neatly in half. Wincing, Nabiki picked up the newly-
made staff. Akane might break piles of bricks into rubble for
jollies, but Nabiki was only up to stacks of wood, and those
infrequently at best. Martial arts were a handy tool for self-
defense and self-discipline, but Nabiki felt no urge to progress
beyond a simple black belt.

Megs: Nabiki... has... a _black_ belt.  Huh.
Ryoko: Hey, women can fight too!

   Moving to the shore, she poked at the water with the staff. It
was around here some.. ah, there it was.

   Clever, those two. They had taken rocks and placed then just
under the waterline, perhaps an inch or two below the surface.
The murky, algae-filled water hid them from sight, and gave
the Hibikis a set of concealed stepping stones. Very cute.

Ryoko: Clever, really.   Niiiice trick.

   Carefully, using the pole as a balance, Nabiki stepped onto
the first stone. It felt slightly greasy beneath her rubber
soles; lake scum had already begun to grow on it. Lifting the
pole, she poked about until she found the next step.

   Extending her right leg forward as far as possible, placing
the staff to the bottom to serve as a stabilizer, she hopped
across. Two down, four more...

   Her eyes narrowed. If the rocks were evenly spaced... and a
quick prod with the pole told her that the next one was... then
only three more stones should have been needed.

Megs: o/" AAAH! AAAH! LOOK OUT FOR THAT- o/"

   Hefting the bamboo pole, she forcefully pressed it against
the submerged top of the next stone. Sure enough, it tilted
when weight was placed on it. Had she hopped to it, she would
have found herself in the lake.

Megs: ah, she spotted it.

   Smirking to herself a bit, Nabiki poked a ways behind the
rock. The staff's tip hit the fourth stone almost immediately.

   Nabiki sighed. This was going to be more of a jump than a
hop.

   She tensed the muscles of her legs and leaped, using the pole
as a vaulting aid. Her jump brought her down on the fourth rock
in a crouch; she swayed, tightened her grip on the pole to
steady herself, and rested for a few seconds.

   A few seconds work found the fifth stone, and then the sixth.
Stepping onto the shore, Nabiki carefully set the pole down
against a stand of similar bamboo trees.

   Then the sound of clapping reached her.

   Turning, she noticed the two Hibiki siblings sitting on a
hammock slung between two trees, neutral expressions on
their faces as they applauded.

Megs: Ah, bummer.  No 'wet t-shirt' scenes.

   Ranma walked across the lawn. The boy watched him.

   Interesting. He was laughing. He hadn't known Saotome could
laugh, any more than a tiger or a crocodile could.

   "Your turn, Akane!"

   The black-haired girl picked up the golf club and swung,
sending the ball skittering to the very mouth of the overturned
drinking glass that was apparently serving as the third hole.
"Ha! A birdie for sure, Ranma. This game's mine."

   "Oh yeah? I'll have you know, Miss Tendo, that I've never lost
a game of backyard golf in my life."

   "Oh really? And have you ever played before?"

   "Nope."

   More laughter, from both of them. The boy shook his head in
disbelief. THIS was the demon who had ripped through his life
and mangled it? He had expected to find him at home
disemboweling babies and torturing virgins, not being beaten
in lawn golf by a Japanese schoolgirl.

Ryo: Well, everyone needs a hobby.
Ryoko: *sigh* They seem so right for each other.

   "Hi Akane, Ranma. How's it going?"

   "Hi Oneechan! Just playing golf. I'm winning."

   "Hello, Nabiki-san."

    The boy stiffened.

Megs: AHEM.
Ryoko: Not like THAT you pervert!

   "Ranma. I see my sister is getting the best of you."

Megs: AH-AHEM.
Ryoko: Cut it out, deviant.

    A knocking on the door to her bedroom caused Nabiki to
glance up from her laptop. Quickly saving and closing the
letter, she slid across the bed to within easy reach of a
certain switch. "Come in."

   The door opened, and Ranma strolled in, shutting it behind
him. A unpleasant sensation began to form in the pit of her
stomach.

   "Ranma. What a pleasant surprise. What can I do for you?"

   He smiled widely, and the unpleasant sensation increased.

Megs: Now if we don't get a sex scene outta THIS...
Ryo: You know, Kama Sutra IS still playing three theatres down...

    "Nabiki, Nabiki.... while I do enjoy our little verbal fencing
matches, I think it's time to talk plainly, don't you?"

   Her heart leapt. Perhaps she could end it all right here,
without anyone killing anyone else. "Sure, Ranma. I think
you're a sick little boy who gets his thrills by playing games
with people. I think you enjoy hurting people. And I _know_ I
want you out of my house as soon as possible. Plain enough for
you?"

   As she finished her speech, she flicked the switch, turning
on the audio mike hidden behind her dresser. The one which
recorded into a tape, and also played on the speaker she had
placed in the living room.

   Ranma laughed softly. "You think I enjoy hurting people? Me?
Poor, lonely, guilt-wracked Saotome Ranma?" Before Nabiki
could blink, he had crossed the room and grabbed her by the
throat, pushing her back against the wall. "How very
perceptive of you."

Ryoko: Oh my.
Ryo: I like this guy.  Knows how to get to business.

   Nabiki swallowed, fighting back the waves of pure terror
that threatened to overwhelm her. "Get your hands off me.
Now."

   "Sure thing."

   She was airborne for a second, and then landed hard against
the far wall. Something broke underneath her, cutting painfully
into her right leg.

    "I don't like you very much, Nabiki. I don't like your nasty,
suspicious, catty little mind. I don't like the way you try to
get Akane to turn against me. And I especially don't like how
good you are at seeing things."

Ryoko: Oh my, this isn't what I was expecing at all...
Ryo: Ranma, you fool, if you're going to kill someone do it somewhere
     secluded.

   "You don't care about Akane at all, do you?" Say you don't,
say you don't and that will clinch everything.

   "Akane's mine. It's none of your business what I feel about
her. Or what I decide to do with her. She Is Mine."

Megs: Love toy.
Ryoko:  WHAT?
Megs:  Nothing.

    Perfect. Nabiki struggled to her feet, smiling slightly.
"Surprise, Ranma. You're on the air as we speak. The game's
over."

   Ranma clapped his hands to the sides of his mouth in mock
surprise. "Oh no! My evil plans are undone! Curses, foiled
again!"

   Nabiki eyed him warily, an uneasy feeling adding itself to
the legion of worries and outright fear she was barely
managing to contain. He looked about, peering at the walls and
ceiling in an exaggerated manner.

   "Well, drat. Hey, Akane! I'm going to rape and kill your sister,
okay?" He cocked his head to one side, and listened for a few
seconds. "Hmm. No objections."

   Nabiki shrank back as he advanced. "You're... you're only
digging yourself in deeper, Ranma... someone's probably already
called the police, if you... if you run now, you could probably..."

   He tossed something at her, and she caught it reflexively. It
was a small circuitboard.

Ryo: Oh, smooth.  I'll give the lad a 10 for cunning.

   "Nabiki-chan, did you really think I wouldn't check to see
what toys you had in your room before coming in to have our
little chat?"

   "I'll scream..."

   Like a striking snake his hand was again at her throat, this
time tight enough to cut off all noise. She could see the light
in his eyes, feel the warmth of his breath, and she tried to
scream, as she had told him she would.

   "I can feel the air coming from your lungs, Nabiki... but I
don't hear anything. You might as well stop; screaming will
only hurt your throat."

   His other hand moved to the front of her shirt, fiddled
almost playfully with the top button.

   "I wanted to kill you that first day, you know. The second you
poked me in my girl-body's chest," the hand moved inside her
shirt to cup her left breast, fingers squeezing painfully, "I
decided I'd... remove you." His grip tightened, and tears
appeared in her eyes despite her resolve. She wanted to vomit.

   "And so here we are, just you... and me... didn't I tell you not
to ever be alone?"

Megs: Nah, this just doesn't work.  I don't get high off of
      Rape scenes.
Ryo: Oh, but this is sharp material here!  This is a _real_
     psychopath's mind working.  On par with such greats as
     Ted Bundy and Charles Manson, this fellow.
Ryoko:  You guys are twisted.  This is just wrong, wrong, wrong...
        Kyoko, close your eyes.
Kyoko: Huh?  Hey!  Sister, I can't see!  Move your hand!

   Her mind began to compartment itself off, distancing itself
from what was going to happen.

   The pressure on her breast eased, the hand withdrew, and a
new fumbling began around her jeans, then a loosening as the
front button was undone...

Megs:  Okay, I'll admit, I'm getting turned on.
Ryo:  Here's my therapist's card.  See him tomorrow.

   "I thought, that night, that I'd have you a couple times, break
your neck, and leave you under a bridge or in a dumpster." The
buttons on her fly began to pop open, one by one by one. "It took
me a while to decide which, but I finally settled on the
dumpster as being more appropriate. There's a great one down
behind the slaughterhouse; the smell of all the other decaying
pigs should keep everyone away but a few hungry rats."

Ryo: Again, there's that urge to make a boy scout joke... drat.

   There was a touch moving down along the outer surface of
her underwear, she noticed absently.

   "That was my idea, anyway." Fingers slid underneath the
silk, brushed lightly through the hair that lay underneath. The
urge to vomit came again, almost pierced the wall of distance
she had built.

Ryoko: Oh my gosh...

   "But I decided against it."

   And with that, he released her throat and shoved her, sending
her tumbling against the bed. Gasping for air, she crawled
away from where he stood, an amused look on his face.

Ryo: <sighs> Well, no murder today.

   "I know you've been cooking up something, Nabiki. Whatever
it is, shut it down. Or you'll trip and fall in front of traffic, or
take a tumble off a bridge, or go swimming and drown. And if
I'm really upset, or just feeling playful, I might have a bit of
fun with you first. Okay?"

   She wanted to tell him what he could do with his fun. She
wanted to rip his eyes from their sockets. "Okay," she rasped,
massaging her throat with one hand. She would wait.

   "Good. I'm glad we had this little talk, Nabiki-san. I feel
we've really cleared the air. You go back to your work, now."
Turning, he opened the door and strolled out.

    Slowly, carefully, Nabiki stood up and rebuttoned her jeans.
She didn't, her mind noted, feel the urge to bathe. And he hadn't
actually touched her _there_, which was something. She hadn't
been raped, which had been a certainty just a few moments
ago. And she was alive.

   She just needed a few more days to prepare a trap, one from
which he wouldn't be able to escape alive. Any hesitation she
had felt towards killing him was gone.

   And now she needed to finish the report to her colleagues,
not mentioning this of course, not this not thisnothisnotthis...

   She was crying, which was intolerable. She _never_ cried. A
confrontation like that was nothing to cry about, she was okay,
she was a businesswoman and not a scared girl...

    In just a few minutes, she would stop crying and finish the
report. And then she would be just fine.

Ryo:  Of course.  Nothing like planning a murder to clear the mind.

   Akane frowned again. If Nabiki was blackmailing him, or...

   The bonbori crashed into the back of her head, then, and she
knew nothing more.

Ryo: <blinks>  Bonbori?
Ryoko:  Well, that's the end of part 5.  Any comments?
Ryo:  Would've liked to see more violence.
Megs: Is it too much to ask that we see something with an NC-17
      rating soon?
Ryo/Ryoko:  _yes_.
Ryoko: Well... I'm disturbed by what Ranma might plan for Akane...
Kyoko:  Ano...
Ryoko:  You have something to say, sis?
Kyoko:  Ano... the story was well-polished, no mistakes in continuity
        or grammar, the characterization flowed nicely, and the way
        that Ranma is being shaped, it seems he is the closest to
        a 'true' psychopath that any Ranma fan fiction has ever
        had.  Certainly one of the best portrayals of one.  The
        Scene with Nabiki was bold, disturbing, and classic.
Ryo/Ryoko/Megs: ...
Ryo: since when did she get THIS long-winded?
Ryoko: <shrugs> Got me.
Megs: Hey, weren't you covering her eyes during the bit with
      the pubic hairs?
Ryoko: I.. I thought I was!  Kyoko, don't peek next time!
Kyoko: awww.


-end-