*NOTES*  Previous parts can be found on my WiSC web page at:
http://www.emich.edu/public/llb/wisc.html
Or by email from me.  Actually, this part has only implied lemon type
situations, but you never know who might have a fit.  Turns out that
Chapter 3 ended up being shorter than the others by one part.  I just
couldn't squeeze anythign else out of the situation and I was very 
anxious to get on with Chapter 4.  Anyway, enjoy.



{These characters are not property of me. I would never attempt to claim 
them as my own. This story may not be used without my permission, and 
may not be used to make money in any way, shape or form. Characters and 
certain situations were created by Rumiko Takahashi, so don't try any 
funny stuff!}


                      A Wolf in Samurai's Clothing

                            by Lara Bartram
                            ---------------

Part 1, Chapter 3


	
	Akane was downstairs, trying to keep her composure with Kasumi and 
Tofu. It wasn't easy, but she was managing. Barely. A sudden thumping 
from upstairs startled her, and what sounded like a herd of bowling 
balls coming down the stairs made her whip her head around. She saw Kuno 
charging down the stairs, his eyes wide, his muzzle covered in red. He 
ran past the three of them, outside and disappeared into the night.
	
***

	Is a virus alive? Or is it not alive? It has characteristics of 
living creatures, but also lacks several components of life. Does that 
mean it is a living thing? They certainly don't have any sort of brain 
or the ability to think. They don't know what they do, they don't choose 
their victims. They have only one purpose, however unconscious it may 
be. Infection.
	This virus hadn't been discovered. Whether it was alive or not 
couldn't be said, but it was very adept at achieving its purpose. 
Virulent when passed and nearly impossible to cure, this virus could, 
with only a few viral bodies present in a strong host, achieve complete 
infection within a month's time.
	More insidious and complete than other viruses, it managed to do 
some very complicated, near impossible, recoding, reworking of the host 
deeper than the cellular level.
	When complete infection was finally achieved, it had almost 
stopped being a host with a virus. The virus didn't 'die', it continued 
to exist, and even help its host. So, as the ivy grows and clings to a 
building, hiding the walls behind it, becoming almost a fixture of the 
building, the virus and the host had the lines blur between them, 
shifting toward the formation of one complete being.
	And once again, the virus was introduced into a new host. The host 
was weak; a boon, for it made infection easier, the process faster. 
Naturally, a healing and recovery period was required, but that was 
minimal with a total infection. As the virus flooded throughout the 
body, it effectively attached itself to each organ, beginning its work 
there, including the brain where the most unpredictable changes took 
place.
	Though healing the host was the first order of business, the virus 
also happened upon one, no, two more hosts in the earliest stages of 
development. They were already partially infected, which accounted for 
their rapid growth, but the virus wasn't so picky and took hold in them 
as well.
	The result of being infected, especially to a host barely a day 
old, was an amazing amount of growth in a very short amount of time. And 
with the mother of the two also newly infected and requiring 
considerable healing, the amount of growth was even more so...
	
	Nabiki opened her eyes, wondering if she was dead. She thought she 
should be. The fire... The pain... Then darkness. And here she was, 
awake and alive?
	She could identify herself as being in bed, covered by a very 
light blanket, and there was in incredible pain in her arm. Sitting up 
slowly, she could hear and feel the blood pounding through her head. Her 
body ached all over and she felt very nauseous. Slowly turning and 
swinging her legs out of bed, she realized she was naked and her skin 
was very sensitive.
	Nabiki put her feet down and tried to stand. Unfortunately, her 
legs refused to support her in any way. Again, the pain in her arm, 
throbbing. It wouldn't go away. She looked down at it and almost vomited 
at the sight. Her stomach revolted at the torn flesh and exposed muscle, 
the wound caked with dried blood.
	She tried to call out for her family, for someone, anyone, but she 
couldn't find her voice. Where was everyone? Maybe she really was dead 
and she was all alone... But there was one person that should have been 
there. "Mother!" she yelled.
	
	Akane was sleeping on the floor, her head resting on Ranma. He had 
a sick look on his face even as the sun started to shine above the wall 
around the property. He stared blankly out at the yard, at the red-
stained grass. At some point in the night, the whole mess had changed 
from just a huge smear to some sort of... shape.
	It was actually a mass, though it looked like just a huge lump of 
goo. Red, oozing goo. He had been staring at it ever since he had seen 
it move on its own slightly. It was a thing that nightmares were made 
of, and Ranma was just glad Akane had gotten her sleep before seeing it.
	As the sun rose higher in the sky, the beams coming closer and 
closer to the mass, Ranma watched with anticipation. And as soon as one 
ray touched just a stained portion of the grass, an odorous black smoke 
began to rise into the air. The light drew closer to the mass, a cloud 
of thick black smoke following its progress.
	Ranma put one hand over his mouth and nose as the smell filtered 
into the house. And then it happened. The sunlight hit the mass, and 
with an inhuman squealing noise, it burst into flames, giving off more 
of the smoke.
	After about five minutes of flames and smoke, in which Ranma 
couldn't see a thing, it all seemed to die down. A gentle breeze came by 
and dispersed the smoke and the smell, revealing the yard, completely 
devoid of any remnants of what had happened the previous night.
	Ranma realized his fingers were dug into the cushion Akane had her 
head on, nearly ripping through it. Then he heard the scream and his 
heart nearly stopped. Akane's head jerked upright, her eyes mostly 
closed and her hair in disarray. She looked back at Ranma, her hands 
holding onto his leg and the cushion. "Ranma?" she asked quietly, but 
not calmly.
	"U... upstairs?" he said, his voice sounding tired and a little 
scared. He stood up as quickly as his wobbly legs would allow and helped 
Akane up, then they both headed upstairs.
	
	The footsteps, heavy, pounding... Not the footsteps of her mother. 
She wasn't dead... Nabiki forced herself to stand, the blanket held in 
front of her. Small, painful footsteps carried her closer to the door, 
her hand outstretched. Before she could reach it, the door opened, and 
there was...
	"Mother," Nabiki said before collapsing into Kasumi's arms.
	Soun was already passed out, and Tofu was standing behind Kasumi, 
looking pretty shocked himself. Ranma and Akane came up the stairs, 
skidding to a halt on the wooden floor. Ranma's eyes blinked rapidly, 
unsure if they were actually viewing real life. Akane simply froze in 
shock at the sight.
	
***

	Kodachi was sleeping peacefully, a thing Tatewaki was very glad to 
see. Whenever he tried to leave her alone she would wake up screaming, 
so it was important that he be there so she could get her rest. That 
meant he had a purpose, even if Nabiki hated him. He knew she wasn't 
dead. What he had done had worked because he would have known if she was 
dead. She was not dead.
	It was almost 10 am. It was probably time to wake Kodachi up 
anyway. "Kodachi," Tatewaki said, patting her hand.
	Kodachi stirred and opened her eyes slowly. "Tatchi?"
	"I am here. It is time to awaken."
	Kodachi's eyes fixed on his, even if they weren't entirely 
focused. "Is it light out?"
	"Yes, Kotchi. The sun is out this fine morning." The look in her 
eyes scared him.
	"The sun is out, Tatchi?"
	"Yes, Kotchi."
	"I'm glad." Kodachi closed her eyes again and squeezed her 
brother's hand once before her grip went slack. She would not squeeze it 
again for quite some time.
	
***

	"How do you feel, Nabiki?" Kasumi asked, sitting on the bed. She 
had done her best to explain the thing Tatewaki had done and how that 
was responsible for Nabiki's miraculous recovery to everyone downstairs. 
She wasn't sure if they had understand since they all still seemed to be 
in shock.
	Nabiki opened her eyes the rest of the way and looked at Kasumi. 
"Is this a dream?"
	Kasumi laughed quietly and squeezed Nabiki's hand. "No. You're 
awake, but how do you feel?"
	Nabiki noticed that she wasn't in any pain except for her arm. "I 
feel... fine. Except for my arm." She looked at it to see that it was 
heavily bandaged. "I guess that would be why."
	Kasumi nodded, but didn't say anything.
	"I'm starved. Is there anything to eat?" Nabiki asked. Her stomach 
rumbled ominously.
	"Yes, just a moment and I'll get you some soup." Kasumi got up and 
left the room.
	Tofu was waiting for her outside the door. "Did she seem healthy?"
	"Yes. She seemed perfectly fine. I was just going to get her some 
soup."
	
	Kasumi had said it wasn't a dream. So why did she feel like she 
wasn't quite all there? Why did everything feel so strange, so 
different? But no, not everything felt different. Just her. Just her, 
but she felt very different, so strange. Nabiki reclined in her bed to 
wait for Kasumi.
	That was when she... heard? Felt? There was something... Her heart 
rate increased, sounding very loud. And again, almost like a tiny heart 
beating very slowly. And another, but at a different rhythm. Like two 
hearts. Maybe she wasn't feeling as well as she thought.
	Still feeling tired, Nabiki's thoughts began to drift and she 
closed her eyes. Her horrible dream of fire and darkness, and pain 
within the darkness... but they were all OK. Her family was fine, and 
thanks to him, the two pups were fine...
	Two pups? What the hell? Nabiki opened her eyes and shook the 
sleep away. Thanks to him? Kuno? PUPS? The two heartbeats...
	"Kasumi, I don't know how, but she looks perfectly healthy to me."
	Dr. Tofu's voice drifted in from the hall. But it didn't really 
drift. It was more like he was standing right next to her.
	"And, I shouldn't tell you this, but under the circumstances... I 
obviously don't know the details, but it seems that Nabiki is two months 
pregnant."
	Kasumi's "Oh my" blended wonderfully with Nabiki's "Oh shit".
	
***

	"Nabiki, I thought you said you were taking precautions," Kasumi 
said, looking slightly stern.
	"I was! I haven't even been screw..." Nabiki changed her choice of 
words. "I haven't even been doing that for two months."
	"You have to take response..."
	"I know, I know. Just save the lecture." Nabiki picked up her 
jacket slowly, as if it was very heavy. She slipped it over her bandaged 
arm, then put it on the rest of the way. "I'm about to take care of that 
responsibility," she said quietly.
	
	Nabiki walked through the gate with determination. She went up to 
the door and was about to knock when she saw him. Out of the corner of 
her eye, she glimpsed Kuno walking around the corner of the house.
	Sprinting to catch up. Nabiki rounded the corner and saw Kuno 
wandering around the yard, carrying Kodachi. Kodachi wasn't moving. 
"Kuno-chan?"
	"You do not hate me?" he asked, not looking at her.
	"Hate you for what?" If things hadn't been strange enough 
before...
	"You do not know?" Kuno looked at her, very surprised. They hadn't 
told her?
	Nabiki was momentarily confused, but then remembered why she had 
come over. "There's one thing I do know, and I have you to blame for 
it," she said crossly.
	He looked at her sadly for a moment, then his face seemed to light 
up. "You... you are..." Kuno walked up to her and stood still for a 
moment. "Two," he said quietly with a touch of awe.
	Nabiki nodded. "You heard them?"
	Kuno nodded, shifting his sister in his arms.
	"So did I, and Dr. Tofu and Kasumi know too." The implication of 
what she said didn't even occur to her. "But the strange thing is," 
Nabiki said, mocking thoughtfulness, "that Dr. Tofu said I was two 
months pregnant. You wouldn't happen to have an explanation, would you?" 
She gave him a dangerous look.
	Two months? How? But first things first. "They did not tell you?"
	"Tell me what?"
	No, they hadn't said anything. "You... you would have died. Died 
unless..." He looked at some trees off to the side.
	"Unless what?" Nabiki was suddenly fearful. What had he done?
	"Unless I..." Kuno straightened and looked Nabiki in the eye. "I 
did what I had to. I did what I thought was best." He held on to Kodachi 
even tighter. "I bit you."
	The birds chirped happily in the sun. Some insects droned in the 
neatly trimmed hedges. There was the sound of a siren in the distance, 
and the wind ruffled their hair.
	"You did what?"
	"You were dying. I had no choice. I would not do things 
differently if given a chance." He held his head high, secure in the 
knowledge that he believed everything he said in his heart.
	"I can't believe you did this to me." Nabiki held her hands around 
her stomach. "I can't believe you did THIS to me!"
	"But don't you feel..."
	"No! I don't feel fulfilled! And I don't want any kids! Let alone 
your kids!"
	"But it is..."
	"I don't give a damn about any laws of nature. Right now, I don't 
give a damn about you or these... these..." Nabiki looked down at 
herself, an angry frown on her face. 'Pups. Half-breeds. They're not 
even human.'
	"I will not allow you to harm them," Kuno said calmly. There were 
horrible things women could do to their unborn children.
	"And what say do you have in this?"
	Kuno growled. "If you do not want them, then I will care for them. 
They are mine and I have as much say in what happens to them as you do."
	Strangely enough for her, Nabiki snarled and growled back. Where 
did he get off making demands of her? Nabiki turned and walked toward 
the front gate.
	Kuno set down his comatose sister gently and trotted after Nabiki. 
He wouldn't let her go so easily, not without knowing the fate of his... 
children. He grabbed her from behind and turned her to face him. "You 
will not harm them."
	They looked at each other, anger simmering just below the surface. 
"You don't ever tell me what to do," Nabiki said dangerously. "I'm not 
either one of my sisters, or my father. Or my mother."
	"You are so much more than any member of your family now." Kuno's 
tone had changed radically from anger to sudden desire.
	Nabiki snorted. "Don't give me that bullshit. You think I want to 
have sex with you after everything you've put me through? Think again."
	Kuno was unaffected by her comments. "I want to see you change," 
he said bluntly, holding her arms tightly.
	"Yeah, so keep dreaming. You think I'd ever..."
	"You will. Eventually, you will. You took your opportunities with 
me, and now I will have with you the same opportunities."
	Nabiki laughed. "I'd like to see you try. Now get your hands off 
me." The look of hatred on her face made Kuno release her. "And now I 
will be going. Give my regards to your sister." Then she walked away.
	Kuno watched her go until she was almost at the gate, and called 
out weakly, "Don't hurt them." He saw Nabiki turn and look. "Please, 
don't hurt them..."
	Nabiki turned and left.
	
***

	He attended to his sister nearly night and day. Kuno knew he 
needed someone to take care of her professionally, but who could he 
trust? "Kotchi, it's time for your bath. Don't you want to wake up and 
wash yourself?"
	Kuno waited for her answer, but as usual, there was no response. 
He sighed and lifted her from the bed. It was too much of a toll, he 
couldn't go on day after day, taking care of her. He carried her to the 
bathroom where he undressed her. The dreams had stopped, so even when 
she was nude, he could only see his sister as a hollow shell of her 
former self.
	In his robe, he began to bathe her, speaking gently, trying to get 
her to awaken from her coma. "'Tis a full moon tonight. We can sit 
outside and watch its ascendance." His response from her was her quiet 
breathing.
	He took as clinical an approach to washing her as he could. "What 
do you think, Kotchi? Would you like that?" Kuno ran the sponge down 
Kodachi's arm, cradling her body against his.
	He cleansed her delicately, a sad smile on his face. "I should 
have told you about the dream I had. You would have laughed at me for 
such a thing." Using lukewarm water, he rinsed the soap away. "Aren't 
you happy to know you shall be an aunt? I know Nabiki is not your 
favorite person, but you two shall be related by blood. I am sure you 
will want to see your new relatives when they are born."
	Kuno choked back a sob as he rinsed her other arm.
	
***

	"Nabiki, I will not allow this. You must..."
	"No! Like hell I am. I'm going to do what I damn well please, and 
I don't really care what the responsible or proper thing to do is!" 
Nabiki dismissed Kasumi with the wave of her hand. "Forget it. I don't 
want to talk to you."
	Nabiki picked up her jacket, her arm feeling much better, and 
walked away. Just what she needed. Kasumi blackmailing her. So who cared 
if everyone knew she was... The thought frightened her. Not that 
everyone would know, but just the fact that she was. Pregnant. And with 
what? Surely not... pups.
	But what difference did it make? It was expected that a bitch has 
pups... The way that sounded, the terminology made her sick. And Kuno's 
attitude... 'Eventually my ass. I'll be dead before I turn into a wolf.'
	
***

	"She's coming, Kodachi. Maybe she has finally decided." For the 
first time in a long while, Kuno felt excited about something. The 
window was open and a rather stiff breeze was blowing in. It was 
carrying Nabiki's scent with it. It was possible to tell, with the way 
it was getting stronger, that Nabiki was getting closer.
	In fact, sometimes at night, he would stand at his window, the 
breeze blowing in his face, and inhale the faint traces of her. Even 
just her smell made him want her desperately.
	Being without her was turning out to be more difficult than he had 
anticipated, and he was desperate to reclaim her. It seemed it might 
finally be his chance. Kuno tucked in the blanket over his sister and 
ran through the house. He burst out the door and ran to wait by the 
front gate. It would be so nice if she decided to...
	The gate opened and Nabiki stepped through. That was Kuno's sign 
to immediately latch on to her, hugging her tightly. Even though she 
didn't pull away, she didn't return his affection either.
	"You can let go now," Nabiki said, suddenly, frighteningly not 
wanting him to let go.
	And Kuno didn't let go, relearning the feel of Nabiki's body 
against his own. The four days he had been without her had been very 
stressful, very difficult on him, and he wasn't about to just let her go 
so easily.
	Nabiki started to lift her arms to put them around Kuno, but 
stopped herself. Yet, with her face pressed into his chest... He smelled 
so good... She inhaled deeply, and had to wonder. Was it how Kuno had 
felt? There had to be more to this 'curse'.
	And he wanted her. No one had ever wanted her, needed her as badly 
as he did. Except for that piece of shit Kinnosuke, and that had been a 
lie, even if he was her first l...
	Not that she loved Kuno at all. It was obviously just some affect 
of his change... her change. And now she was pregnant and turned into a 
wolf. That effectively killed the rest of her social life. Her arms went 
around Kuno anyway.
	She rubbed her face against his chest, breathing deeply. He leaned 
down and kissed her next to her ear. Then he growled, moving his hands 
up and down her back. "I'll help you," he whispered. "It's not so bad."
	Nabiki almost jerked away. How could he ask her to do something 
like that? He had a lot of nerve to even suggest that she might turn 
into an animal... She found herself thinking the same things he had, the 
same things he had told her he didn't like to consider, and she felt 
pretty... awful. Nabiki shook her head.
	Kuno refused to let things go that easily though. He separated 
from her, taking her hands in his own. He pulled her gently toward the 
house. "It won't be so bad. You'll see." He tugged on her hands and she 
took a reluctant step forward. "Would this help?"
	Nabiki watched him start to change, and quickly shook her head. 
That definitely didn't help at all.
	Kicking it into reverse, Kuno resumed his fully human appearance. 
"You might even find it enjoyable." He tried to appear reassuring.
	"Do you?" Nabiki asked, taking another step.
	"Sometimes. There are things I find far more pleasing..."
	"I bet." Nabiki took another step forward.
	"One of those things is you."
	Nabiki began blushing, which made her feel stupid. She knew how 
she must have looked, but she didn't know why she was blushing. "I 
can't. I don't want to." Why did her voice sound so weak? 'Because 
you...'
	"You can not deny it forever. I am very sorry for putting you 
through this, but it can not be undone. So now I simply wish to help you 
adjust to the inevitable." His smile grew a little firmer.
	'I bet that's not all,' Nabiki thought. Still, he felt really nice 
against her, and he smelled incredible, and what could it hurt? 'And 
what the hell am I thinking?' But she was taking regular steps now, 
allowing Kuno to lead her to the house.
	He led Nabiki inside and to his room. "It may be uncomfortable at 
first, but it will get easier." Kuno dropped to his knees in front of 
her and began to undress her slowly.
	It was Nabiki's turn to fight the insecurity and questions. The 
fact that her clothes were being removed didn't even register to her 
brain. What was she doing? Why was she doing it? What was happening to 
her?
	Kuno ran his hands up Nabiki's nude body. She was looking at him, 
but she wasn't really seeing him. Maybe he had pushed too hard. Maybe he 
should have just let her be... But she was so close, just on the edge, 
and he didn't think there would be anything better than sharing his 
existence with her if they were both wolves.
	Kuno barely fought down the maddening desire to change. "I... I 
need you."
	What the hell was he going on about? He sounded half insane. Half 
insane, but inviting. Nabiki could hear the quiet noises he was making, 
probably subconsciously, but she was definitely starting to respond to 
them. 'I don't want to do this. I really don't want to do this,' she 
repeated to herself, closing her eyes.
	Then Kuno held her face in his hands and kissed her deeply, 
drowning out all her thoughts with the pure assault on her senses. The 
smell, the sound, the feel, the taste...
	Kuno pulled away and Nabiki felt a strange sensation in her hands 
and feet. It was a kind of tingling, like a low electric current, almost 
a buzzing. And she was suddenly cold... Looking at Kuno confusedly, 
seeing the sparkle in his eyes, Nabiki shook her head. "I can't..."
	Then her own experience with the pain of change began and there 
were no words left to say.
	Kuno watched Nabiki with a satisfied smile on his face. It 
faltered somewhat when he heard her cries, but he made no move to assist 
her.
	He winced a bit when it came to Nabiki's head. That was always the 
most uncomfortable part for him. It was just such a massive change that 
it didn't get a whole lot easier. But, looking at Nabiki's new form, the 
results were very impressive and well worth the trouble.
	"Nabiki, please stand up." This would be the test.
	Opening her eyes, Nabiki got slowly to her feet, wobbling 
slightly. She was not used to making the rapid physical adjustments that 
martial artists dealt with and had to hold on to Kuno to keep her 
balance.
	Everything was so strange now. Things looked... smaller. In fact, 
she was looking down at Kuno. And everything was in black and white. 
That was the most disconcerting thing of all.
	"How do you feel?" Kuno asked, trying not to get knocked over.
	Nabiki looked at Kuno and growled. She cuffed him and ended up 
knocking him to the floor with a bloody gash on his forehead. Feeling 
somewhat satisfied and a little surprised at her strength, Nabiki looked 
in the mirror Kuno had replaced. All she could do was stare.
	Oh God, that wasn't really her, was it? Yet, when she blinked, the 
piercing red eyes blinked too. She lifted her hand and placed it against 
the mirror's surface. Why did things have to happen this way? The truth 
was, things didn't have to be like this. Nabiki's anger started to grow. 
But if things hadn't gone the path they did, then she'd be dead, and she 
didn't want to be dead.
	"Are you upset about this?" Kuno asked, getting to his feet, 
touching his forehead gingerly.
	Nabiki glared at him, still very upset about it, even if it had 
been the only choice at the time. She was about to yell, really wanting 
to ream Kuno out, but the most threatening noise she could muster was a 
deep growling. Instead of the verbal, Nabiki turned to the physical. She 
grabbed the front of Kuno's shirt, lifted him into the air and 
unceremoniously flung him across the room.
	Kuno slammed against the wall and slumped to the floor. That was 
enough of her attitude in one day for him. He had given her fair warning 
before, and now it seemed he would have to go through with his threats. 
Not that he minded. Kuno stood, removing his shirt as he rose.
	When he saw Nabiki staring in the mirror again, he could imagine 
what she was thinking. She hadn't had time to acclimate herself to her 
'condition' the way he had, so of course she would be upset. Eventually 
she would come to see the beauty in her form the way he did. Wolf or 
man, it made no difference. She really was irresistible.
	Kuno tossed his shirt aside and changed, keeping his eyes locked 
on Nabiki. She would learn very quickly that the dominant male was not 
to be toyed with. Though, once he changed, he couldn't keep his hormones 
from going berserk. She was what he had been waiting for, and she was 
all his.
	His change seemed to cool her fire a little as she turned and saw 
him. Nabiki put her back to the dresser, her tail whipping back and 
forth subconsciously. He was definitely a threat, but not really... She 
lifted her hands in a weak gesture of self-defense.
	Kuno stalked toward her until he was within arm's reach. Instead 
of making an aggressive move, he looked from Nabiki's face down to her 
stomach. In her current state, it seemed to be slightly swollen, which 
was strange that she should be showing so soon. He put his hand on her 
stomach, ignoring the snarl on her face.
	Kuno imagined he could actually feel it... two of them... He 
closed his eyes. A male... and female. Then his hand was knocked away 
and he snapped his eyes open. Why was Nabiki so uncooperative all of a 
sudden? Kuno was trying his hardest not to get upset.
	He stepped closer, grabbing hold of Nabiki's wrists, feeling her 
strength that was present, and forced them behind her back. Instead of 
returning her snarls, he leaned down and nuzzled her neck, pinning 
Nabiki's body against the dresser.
	The snarl was the only way Nabiki knew how to express her 
displeasure with the entire situation. What she really wanted to do was 
hit something, or someone. She just wasn't feeling well as a whole, and 
Kuno wasn't helping in the least.
	Nabiki growled and struggled against Kuno, but he wasn't giving 
her any space. As he lowered his head and gently nuzzled her, Nabiki bit 
down on the thick, loose skin around his neck. It wasn't enough to draw 
blood, but it was enough to get his attention.
	Letting out a strange gurgling yelp, Kuno pushed away from her. 
Then he did snarl. Apparently, Nabiki didn't give a damn about being 
treated with kindness and gentleness. That was fine, he could play her 
game too.
	Nabiki watched Kuno snarl at her, then he dropped down on all 
fours and inched toward her. While standing upright, Kuno looked a bit 
slow and lumbering, but when he was down... He moved like a true animal. 
He was powerful and graceful, a beautiful and deadly, living machine. 
And he was making his way toward her.
	
***

	"This is nuts! I didn't do nothin'!" Ranma was yelling loudly, but 
also keeping himself carefully guarded. He didn't need to say the wrong 
thing now. A single drop of sweat rolled down the side of his face. 
"Tell the truth." Slowly, the pig-tailed young man would break down and 
tell what had happened. "I... I am." Ranma swallowed. "N... nothin' 
happened," he said with less conviction this time.
	"I won't tell anyone. I just want to know the truth. You won't be 
in any trouble. Just tell the truth."
	Ranma felt the pressure coming down quickly. "I... I... I can't do 
it anymore!" He threw his hands in the air. "Yeah, I did it. I just 
couldn't help myself."
	"That's perfectly fine, Ranma. I'm happy to hear it," Kasumi said, 
smiling gently.
	"She was smilin' and... and... Argh!" Ranma suddenly looked like a 
trapped animal. "You won't tell Pop what I said, will ya?" he asked 
desperately.
	"No. I'm just happy to see you two getting along better." Kasumi 
stood up and smoothed her apron. She opened the door before saying, 
"Good luck, Ranma. You've made Akane very happy."
	Ranma sighed dejectedly, as if he had just donated both his arms 
to science. "If Pop hears about this..."
	
	"What's with you?" Nabiki asked a widely smiling Akane.
	"Oh... nothing," Akane answered dreamily.
	"Sure. Now why don't you just tell me what Ranma said?"
	"Ranma didn't... say anything." Akane was a bad liar.
	"Right. Did he tell you he loved you?"
	"No!"
	"Did you tell him you loved him?"
	"No!"
	"Why not?"
	"What? I don't love that... that..."
	"Macho pervert? He called you cute, didn't he?"
	Akane didn't answer.
	"Why don't you just admit it? It would make everyone's life much 
easier."
	"Me? What about you?" Akane asked, quickly changing the subject 
away from herself.
	"What about me?"
	"You know. You and Kuno-sempai."
	Nabiki's face automatically assumed a neutral mask. "Yeah. So?"
	"Don't you l..."
	"No."
	"But you..."
	"That has nothing to do with love."
	"Don't tell me you're doing it just to get his money."
	"I would never sink that low. I wouldn't need to."
	"Then why..."
	"Look, Akane, you wouldn't understand, so just don't worry about 
it. One day I'll explain, but not now."
	Akane's voice got very quiet. "Am I going to be an aunt or..."
	"Where did you hear that?" Nabiki asked darkly, her eyes narrowed.
	"I heard Kasumi and Dr. Tofu talking. I didn't really believe it, 
but now..." Akane almost felt betrayed that no one had told her.
	"Does Dad know?" Nabiki asked worriedly. She knew she'd be able to 
handle him, but still.
	Akane shook her head. "Kasumi and Dr. Tofu didn't know I was 
there. They don't know that I know."
	"Oh. Well... yeah, I guess you might be," Nabiki said quietly.
	"Might be? Either I am or I'm not."
	"I haven't decided yet." Nabiki's words were barely audible.
	"You... don't mean..."
	"Look, it's a long story. They might not be... right."
	Akane moved to sit closer to Nabiki. "Why don't you tell me what 
happened then?"
	Nabiki shook her head slowly. Akane was just so naive. "You just 
wouldn't..."
	"Understand? It sounds like you don't really understand either. 
Why don't you just tell me? It might make you feel better." Akane smiled 
reassuringly. "Does it have something to do with what Kuno-sempai did to 
you?" she added quietly.
	Nabiki looked at Akane with surprise. Maybe she would 
understand...
	
***

	Kuno looked at his sister. "You're sure nothing will happen to 
her?" he asked worriedly.
	"Of course not, sir. I'll watch over her all the time I'm here." 
The nurse was appropriately respectful and solemn.
	"Good. Then I shall retire for the evening." Retiring for the 
evening at six o'clock, like he was some old man. He left the nurse and 
went back to his room. The woman would do well enough with his sister, 
he was confident.
	He considered his encounter with Nabiki. It hasn't gone over well 
at all. She had only gotten more angry with him, and once again, she 
refused to see him...
	
***

	Nabiki stared up, looking into the darkness. That incident with 
Kuno... That had been upsetting. He had been able to get any response 
out of her he had wanted. And then he had easily overpowered her, taking 
his liberties with her unfamiliar body...
	Actually, she hadn't minded the liberty-taking. They had... fit 
very well together, and it had been enjoyable, but... After. The change 
back. It had been horrible, more painful than the change to a wolf. And 
her stomach had felt like someone had driven a white hot spear through 
it.
	The remembrance of that pain made Nabiki roll over and curl up. It 
was definitely something she didn't want to experience ever again. And 
damn it, that made her feel guilty for several reasons. First and 
foremost, what made her feel the worst, was that she had poked and 
prodded, and made him change whenever she wanted him to. Also, the fact 
that actually being in that wolf's body (her body) had been enjoyable... 
The strength and power... It had been more than just enjoyable.
	Nabiki shivered pleasantly. The simple memory of the way she had 
felt was enough to get her excited. A breeze ruffled her curtains, 
bringing with it a faint, faraway howling. There was also the wonderful 
scent of...
	Nabiki closed her eyes and shook her head. If only she could close 
her ears and nose as well. The howling continued, softly, but steadily, 
as if Kuno was making sure she knew he was there. She just wanted him to 
shut up so she could get some sleep. Or did she? It was getting hard to 
figure out exactly what she wanted any longer.
	And then the howling stopped, leaving only the chirping of the 
crickets to make their noise. Nabiki tried to sleep, but found herself 
much too restless. She got out of bed and paced silently around her 
room. She wasn't happy, she shouldn't be feeling like this, shouldn't be 
so troubled over the whole situation.
	Nabiki went to her window and looked out, her eyes gazing 
wistfully at the sky. Why? It was someplace new, away from everything... 
Maybe that was it, the appeal. Nabiki got the urge to run off and leave 
everything behind suddenly. Before she knew what she was doing, she was 
sitting in the window with her feet hanging outside. She took one deep 
breath and pushed herself away from her perch.
	The sensation of free-fall was amazing, if short-lived. And then 
the landing, which Nabiki expected to be jarring, was just as if she had 
hopped out of bed. The wet grass was cold on her bare feet, but it 
didn't matter to her; only being outside, being free mattered.
	
	Kuno sat out in the yard, howling quietly. At least, more quietly 
than normal. He would make her respond to him eventually, damn it. She 
couldn't ignore him forever, he wouldn't allow her to.
	It was all so frustrating. He had really wanted to be cured (or 
had he?) and he really only wanted what was best for everyone. It had 
worked out half way, but more problems had ensued. Now he was in a worse 
predicament than before.
	Maybe, as a peace offering, he could find a cure for Nabiki, by 
himself this time. She didn't seem to like turning into a wolf at all, 
even if she knew all about it from him. That was fine. He could cope 
with her not wanting to deal with the change like that, but she hadn't 
mentioned anything about the babies... His babies. His son and his 
daughter...
	The fact that she could even consider... killing them... It didn't 
matter if she didn't want them because he would take care of them as 
best he could, but he could not allow them to be killed. That meant he 
had to watch Nabiki closely, and that would be a lot easier if she would 
actually consent to see him. Which meant finding a cure and keeping his 
eye on her at the same time.
	Where to begin though? Sure, Gosunkugi had cured Kasumi, but that 
had obviously been magic. Kuno had no magic, no special powers to speak 
of... But hadn't they determined (or at least in his mind, assumed) that 
Gosunkugi had somehow infected Kasumi? That wasn't magic completely 
because Kasumi hadn't had any sort of contact with Gosunkugi. So 
whatever he had used, maybe he had a way to counter it. A pill or 
potion... something, anything at all.
	So that was that. He would go over to the Gosunkugi home, sneak in 
and ransack the monster's room. In fact, with the very barest of 
crescent moon out, that night would do almost perfectly. He didn't 
really like running through the neighborhood in his condition, but this 
night, it couldn't be helped.
	
	The house was dark when he arrived. Not surprising really since it 
was a little past midnight. As Kuno snuck up to the side of the modest 
home, he carefully peered into a window. The sudden smell coming from 
inside was awful, even through the closed window. Something was rotting 
inside. Kuno tried the window, and finding it unlocked, lifted it the 
rest of the way. The stink of decay came at him in waves; he could only 
imagine what it was.
	Kuno climbed through the window and into the house. It took a 
moment to locate Gosunkugi's scent through the stink, but when he did, 
he followed it straight to his room. The interior of the house that Kuno 
saw was rather nondescript, with plain walls and very few decorations.
	Arriving at the door to Gosunkugi's room, Kuno carefully opened it 
with just the tips of his claws, as if he was afraid it might bite him. 
The door slid open easily, however, revealing the blackness of the room 
behind it. Not seeing anything threatening, Kuno entered the room and 
shut the door behind himself.
	Fumbling for a light switch and eventually finding it, Kuno turned 
on the overhead light, illuminating the room. Squinting, he looked 
around the mess at the various books and candles. Nothing that he could 
tell offhand that might be what he was looking for, but there was still 
the closet, a set of drawers, and a desk to look through. Kuno wasn't 
sure he wanted to mess with the books on the shelves.
	Rifling through the desk, Kuno found nothing. Then through the 
drawers, and finding nothing, Kuno opened the closet. He shrank back 
from the sight. Propped up in the closet were two decomposing bodies. A 
man and a woman Kuno figured to be the parents. Even they hadn't know 
the truth about their son until it was too late.
	Kuno shook his head and searched around the bodies, but still 
couldn't find anything. He closed the closet door and exhaled heavily. 
Nothing. His eyes were drawn to the books on the shelves. Maybe it was 
one of those... It couldn't hurt to browse at least. Then if he happened 
to see something, all the better.
	Running his finger along the spines of one row of books, Kuno saw 
nothing that looked of any interest. The next row was just as 
uninteresting as the first one. For the most part, they looked like 
books available at any store. The silly titles and faux gold embossing 
were dead giveaways. Suddenly, Kuno ran his hand along the top of the 
bookcase, knocking all the candles there to the floor.
	So far, it had turned out to be completely pointless to search the 
room, to even be there. What could he possibly accomplish on his own 
when he had seen what happened to Gosunkugi. Gosunkugi had tried it on 
his own and ended up a... a monster. Kuno brought his fist down on the 
shelves in frustration, doing a pretty good job of breaking the top in 
two.
	That was when the book caught his eye. Looking down between the 
split board, Kuno could see a book tucked behind all the others. This 
one looked quite different from all the others though. He pulled out the 
other books, dropping them to the floor. Apparently, this was a book 
Gosunkugi had been eager to keep from prying eyes.
	Kuno pulled out the mysterious volume and looked at it curiously. 
The cover was made out of some sort of hide, though it was ashen gray in 
color. There wasn't any sort of writing or print on it, no indication of 
any sort of title. It was just plain gray.
	He opened it slowly, as if it might be a demonic pop-up book, 
holding it away from his body. The only thing that came from the open 
pages was a puff of dust. Deadly flames weren't going to shoot from the 
pages or anything. Kuno looked at the book and tried to decipher the 
strange writing. The foreign language covered every inch of each page 
where there weren't any illustrations.
	Flipping past each page, it was all gibberish to Kuno. The book 
could hold the secrets of the universe, but it wouldn't matter. He was 
about to toss the book away with the others when an illustration grabbed 
his attention. It was a picture of a man in front of a portal, a mass 
connecting the man to the portal. Kuno turned the page and almost 
dropped the book. There was a picture of him! Well, sort of. Not really 
him, but of a wolf creature like him.
	The other page had a series of drawings that looked to be some 
sort of notes. There were drawings of what looked like cells, labeled 
with increasing amounts of gibberish. Kuno turned the page to see a 
drawing of a human skeleton and nervous system. There were dots on 
various points of the body and extensive amounts of writing. And on the 
facing page was the same drawing, but not of a human. It was a wolf 
creature.
	Being able to see the differences in the bone structure made 
Kuno's entire body ache. To think he went through those changes every 
time...
	But this was obviously how Gosunkugi had been able to cure Kasumi. 
Maybe it was even how he infected her. So maybe Kuno couldn't read the 
book, but he was betting that he could find someone who could. Kuno 
closed the book and was about to leave when he noticed something very 
odd.
	Reflecting in the mirror, there seemed to be a tiny patch of... 
blankness. Not blackness, merely blankness. A spot about the size of an 
American quarter where nothing was reflected. It was just a shiny spot 
in the mirror. A reflective surface being mirrored on a reflective 
surface...
	Facing the mirror, the blank spot was in the middle of Kuno's 
chest. The concept was mind-boggling. How was that spot there, or not 
there? Kuno approached the mirror, his eyes on the blank spot. He 
touched the mirror, feeling the cool, flat surface beneath his hand. 
Just what the hell was that spot?
	Kuno looked down at his chest. No hole there. He waved his hand 
through the air in front of him. No hole there either. No hole in the 
mirror... Completely unnerved, Kuno backed quickly from the room, 
turning the lights off and closing the door.
	He left the house the same way he had entered, clutching the book 
tightly in his hand. He planned on heading home for the night and 
getting to work on the book in the morning.
	
	Nabiki wandered through Nerima in the darkness. She wasn't sure 
why she had the desire to be outside in the middle of the night, but she 
just couldn't stay cooped up inside. She had to continually fight the 
internal urge to change, the memory of the pain she had experienced 
helping her.
	Why had this all happened? It seemed to be a question Nabiki asked 
herself all the time, though she never got an answer. She found herself 
walking through an area she didn't recognize too well and sighed. 
Figures she'd manage to pull a Ryoga Hibiki in the middle of the night, 
wearing only her pajamas. "Damn it," Nabiki swore softly.
	She looked around and started in the opposite direction she was 
facing. 'Hold on a minute,' Nabiki thought. 'This shouldn't be so 
difficult. I'm just not using my asse... abilities.' If Kuno could use 
them to his advantage, then so could she. How she was supposed to do it 
though, she didn't know. Nabiki didn't even know what to expect, but it 
was as good a time as any to try.
	Standing still, Nabiki was about to kick herself for feeling like 
a complete moron when she suddenly smelled something familiar, however 
faint. It wasn't home, but it was good enough.
	
	What was she doing out? She was supposed to be in bed, yet she was 
heading toward him. Holding the book tightly, Kuno decided to meet her 
half-way and see what the problem was. 'What is she doing?' he thought 
as he tracked her.
	If she had started to act out of control like Kasumi did... That 
was a guarantee for trouble. Apparently, it was up to him to reign her 
in since none of her family seemed to be able to. Not surprising really. 
No one had been able to before except Kasumi, but he'd bet his tail that 
Nabiki wouldn't listen to Kasumi in the least.
	
	As Nabiki walked, it seemed that the entire night was crowding in 
on her. From every side there was noise... a lot of it. Just the wind 
through the trees seemed like it was incredibly loud. Passing by a 
darkened alley, Nabiki looked down it and could see all the night 
denizens moving. Even worse was that she could smell them.
	Staggering a little, Nabiki leaned against a post office box and 
panted. When had she gotten so winded? She swallowed, her mouth and 
throat feeling incredibly dry. Sliding down, Nabiki sat roughly on the 
ground, her entire body trembling.
	Nabiki brought a shaking hand to her forehead and felt the sweat 
pouring off her. "Oh no you don't..." It was a stealthy bastard, 
sneaking up on her just when she wasn't expecting it. She tried to fight 
back the sick feeling in her stomach, tried to fight back the 
inevitable.
	But at one point, hadn't she told Kuno that he only changed 
because he wanted to? Well right now, she most definitely did not want 
to change. That didn't seem to stop the way she felt though. Maybe, just 
maybe, a part of her did want it.
	'Yeah, right. It was so much fun, I just had to do it again,' 
Nabiki thought, letting out a low moan.
	
	The scent was intensifying, but not in the manner Kuno was used 
to. Of course, as you move closer to something the scent will get 
stronger, but this was getting much stronger, much faster than it should 
have been. He knew he was close, but he didn't know why the smell was 
stronger than if he was standing right next to Nabiki.
	It wasn't fear, that much he could tell, so he knew she wasn't in 
any trouble. His ears picked up a faint moan that was unmistakably 
Nabiki's, and Kuno started running like his life depended on it.
	
	Kuno had said it was his head that bothered him the most. It was 
obvious that he had never been pregnant when he changed or he would have 
said it was his stomach, the entire area, that bothered him most. Nabiki 
could just imagine that what she was feeling was a pretty good 
simulation of giving birth.
	She had her eyes closed tightly, holding on to anything within her 
reach. "It'll get better eventually... It will..." she said, trying to 
get her mind away from the pain. It basically felt like someone was 
using a bulldozer to rearrange all her intestines, but kept hitting a 
rock that refused to move.
	"You little brats cooperate before I explode," Nabiki said half 
joking. She knew she wouldn't explode, but she was sure it was the 
Talbot twins that were giving her so much trouble. Still, the pain was 
too much.
	"Come on, kids, give me a break. You're not making this any 
easier," Nabiki said, feeling close to passing out.
	The creepy thing was that they seemed to understand, if not her 
words, then her desire, and the intense pain in her abdomen suddenly 
ended. That meant the rest of the change proceeded as smoothly as could 
be expected.
	
	No wonder the scent had been so potent. As Kuno arrived, Nabiki 
was just struggling to her feet. She looked like she was in pain and 
disoriented. One of her hands was on the post office box while the other 
was on her stomach. Somewhat comically, she had managed to retain her 
pajamas, though they were ridiculously stretched.
	Kuno walked up to her slowly and put his hand on her shoulder. It 
was almost possible to feel the surrender in her. She had gotten things 
she'd never asked for, never wanted, yet was forced to deal with them. 
Forced to deal with such life-changing events a day after recovering 
from death itself. Kuno whined, squeezing Nabiki's shoulder and leaned 
his head in, licking her ear.
	Not used to the show of affection in that manner, Nabiki jerked 
away, though she couldn't manage any show of anger, she felt so drained. 
And, really, being angry was getting very tiresome. It always made her 
stomach queasy and gave her a throbbing headache, as if it was her 
body's way of disagreeing with her mind.
	Maybe it was time to just put it all aside and come out and say 
it. She was afraid and she didn't know how to deal with anything she was 
supposed to anymore. Sure, Kuno would understand, and so would her 
family, but did she really want to admit it? "Kuno-chan," Nabiki tried 
to say.
	The strange combination of sounds surprised her, but Kuno seemed 
to know exactly what she was trying to say. He grunted and tried to lead 
her away back to his house or her house, any place but in the middle of 
a neighborhood, under the lights.
	Unfortunately, it didn't seem that Nabiki was quite up to walking 
all the way to either home. Her steps were unsteady and it was plain to 
see that she didn't have complete control over her alternate form, let 
alone was she comfortable with it. It was his doing so he would take 
responsibility for Nabiki's safety and well-being.
	Kuno lifted her, feeling the added weight of her form. Yes, she 
was heavier, but at the same time he could feel her heartbeat and her 
deep breathing, finding it very pleasant. He looked down at her covered 
stomach and sighed happily. If anything, Kuno hoped Nabiki could adjust 
to make everything easier during the birth.
	The idea thrilled him, but also worried endlessly. He didn't know 
anything about childbirth. What if something went wrong and... and 
something awful happened? What if one of them were to die? The thought 
made him sick to his stomach.
	Kuno hid in some deep shadow as a single person turned a corner 
and walked toward them. He held completely still as the person crossed 
the street and went to the door of a house. Only when the person was 
inside and the lights were out did Kuno relax. He hated being forced to 
hide in the shadows, always wondering whether he had been seen or not. 
Always wondering if he would end up reading about about himself in the 
next day's paper, the horrible monster someone had spotted... And now 
Nabiki had to worry about it too. And he had to worry about her.
	
End part 1