NEUTRAL GROUND 2: pre-reader version
Nabiki Nekomimi   by Gregg Sharp
A Ranma 1/2 fanfic
  "Konnichi wa, all characters, situations, places, 
are: (c) of Takahashi Rumiko, Viz, Kitty Films, 
Shogokukan, and a number of other VIPs. Just like I 
said in the last episode. You were paying attention,
weren't you. Gold Digger and associated characters and
conventions are (c) Fred Perry & Antarctic Press."
  Thank you, Kasumi, you must be back on decaf.
  "Hai. Oh, and Nabiki turns into a nekomimi (catgirl),
Akane set up the Akanenichuan, and Ranma turns into a
dragon-girl. Oh my, it's almost a super-saiyan powerup
isn't it? Because the Tendo family meets the Saotomes
on the way to Juusenkyo, Ryouga has attacked Ranma with
the entire family there, so most of us have curses.
  "At this point, everyone thinks that I fell in Spring
Of Drowned Twin. They will learn the truth in this 
chapter, right, Gregg-san?"
  Uhm, no actually. that's in Neutral 3
-------------------------------------
	Nabiki-n flicked her feline ears back and forth,
checking them out. Her tail twitched as she glared at
the boy responsible for her current predicament.

	"Thissss rrrreally sssssuckssss," she managed.
It was obvious that while her appearance was easily 90%
human, that this was just the surface of her cursed 
form. "Give me one rrrreasssson that I don't take thisss
out of yourrrrr hide."

	"Uhm, I'm really sorry, but isn't this all 
Ranma's fault for running out on our duel earlier?"

	Nabiki-n noticed that Ranma-d wasn't paying any
attention to the drama behind her. She was still 
trying to get Akane to breathe after Akane had 
submerged in one of the springs.

	"Live, damn you!" Ranma breathed in to the
girl's mouth again. Nabiki could hear the whisper
clearly from where she was.

	"Son," Nadoka said sadly, looking on at the
scene.

	Nabiki-n hissed, baring her fangs as she
looked at the figure backed up against one of the
springs by Ranma's mother. Her tail lashed back and
forth, agitated. Her ears twitched as she listened
to Ranma. The dragon-girl was whispering something
about Akane's smile when they had met on the trail.

	Nabiki-n stopped and regarded Ranma. Had all
this been too much for him? Her hearing was above 
human levels in this form, she could hear the pleading
about how much the boy needed a friend and there had
been that brief moment on the trail. Her eyes tracked
back to the boy she held responsible for this tragedy.
	
        Placing both hands above Akane's heart,
Ranma arched her back, and SCREAMED in rage and loss.

	Nabiki-n stopped watching the boy as a 
pillar of chi energy suddenly formed around Ranma,
the ground smouldering around them as gold fire
erupted.

	Golden eyes in Ranma's face met Nabiki-n's 
catlike eyes briefly. Ranma was reaching deep within
himself, tapping the increased reserves of ki of his
dragon-girl form.

	Nabiki-n watched as the energy flowed from 
Ranma into her little sister.

	Drawing her legs under her, Nabiki-n continued
to watch as her sister was brought back from the edge 
of death. She just hoped that Ranma knew what she was 
doing.

	Ranma would have agreed.
----------------------------
	Cologne and the elders looked up from their
preparations for the tournament. A pillar of chi 
lanced up into the sky, and a tremor could be felt
through the ground.

	Cologne's eyes narrowed as she considered what
the Musk Dynasty might be up to. Herb was the immediate 
suspect, his idiot cousin Kagashi having a more powerful
chi level but wasn't able to use it except in strength
and durability enhancement.

	Perhaps a little quiet investigation was in
order.
-----------------------------
	Nadoka watched in astonishment hidden behind
a cool facade as Ranma-d glowed with golden flames that
seemed to writhe like serpents. Her wings had manifested
again, turning from the red of her hair to a buttery
golden color. As she watched the hair changed to the
same hue, and the glow spread from Ranma's hands into
the drowned girl's body.

	The "drowned" girl abruptly coughed up blood
and water, her back spasming as she rolled over onto
her side.

	Ranma-d's glow vanished, the wings folded back
and also vanished, and her coloration returned to normal.
Looking at the weakly coughing girl in front of her, she
managed to smile.

	Ranma-d looked up at her mother. "I did it, 
mother. I did it." She managed a weak grin before she
collapsed like a marionette with cut strings.
-------------------
	Nabiki snarled as Ryouga tried to run, only
to find that Ranma's mother was pretty quick with that
sword. Ryouga fell backwards into the pool that Akane
had just come from, exited the other side and was out
and running in a flash.

	Nabiki-n noticed that his scent had changed,
and the clothes seemed to hang a little funny on their
attacker. She shrugged and started cleaning herself,
she certainly wasn't going to go chasing the boy through
these cursed pools. If they met afterwards, though...

	"Akane's breathing all right now, both she and
Ranma are out cold, and I'm certainly not chasing that
boy when these pools turn you into something else. You,
Mister Guide, can you provide a few explanations, 
please?" Nadoka sheathed the family katana and bowed
politely to the Jusenkyo Guide.

	"Ah do not worry, you can temporarily cure
curses by hot water. Only until next time get splashed
with cold water, though."

	"Why is my daughter acting like a cat?"

	"I can answer that," an old woman hopping on
an oversized walking stick came from the overhead cliffs
to land on the ground nearby.

	Nabiki-n pretended to ignore everything around
her, seemingly absorbed in the task of licking her 
hands and arms clean. Anyone who knew cats would know
that she wasn't ignoring anything.

	"My name is Ku Lon," said the old woman. She
indicated the collapsed Ranma. "I take it that THIS
is the person responsible for the burst of chi I
detected earlier."

	"Cologne?"
	
	"Close enough."

	"You said you could explain," Soun reminded. He
pointed at his middle daughter. 

	"As for THAT child, each of the pools or 
combinations of pools carries a second curse. For the
most part it is being a 'water magnet' but in the case
of a cat/girl combination, the feline instincts and
attitudes are much more in control. She'll act very
catlike in that form, that's all.

	"There's no cure?" Soun repeated.

	"No, that's not true. Jusenkyo is not easily
cured, however. In many cases simply a bath in Spring
Of Drowned Man is enough for a man to return to normal.
However, the curse has to be ready to release you."

	Nabiki flicked an ear. Like the pool could have
really have had much of an effect on her. Moving to this
Ranma's side, she decided that Ranma needed some company
while the others worried about everything.

	Akane watched with a certain horrified 
fascination as her sister curled up next to Ranma and
started purring.
-------------------
	"He, no, SHE's still asleep?"

	"What do you mean I drowned?"

	"Oh my."

	"In stereo, yet. This was NOT one of your
better ideas, daddy." Nabiki watched as a splash of
hot water turned the twin Kasumis into one. The
Jusenkyo Guide turned his attention to the sleeping
dragon girl.
	
	As the hot water touched Ranma, she shifted 
back to the male Ranma and he awoke. He still looked
like he'd done a triathalon.

	"Oh man, do I hurt." Ranma looked over at where
Akane was sitting. "Are you..."

	"I..." Akane seemed to hunt for the words. "I
guess you saved my life. Thank you."

	"I...couldn't...I." Ranma saw his mother behind
Akane putting a finger over her lips. "ah."
----------------------------
	"This, sirs and ladies, is amazon village of
Nichieju," the Guide thought that considering how the
one young lady was acting, she should fit in fine. "Oh,
very lucky, today the woman have tournament."

	Genma motioned to Soun, ignoring the still
groggy Ranma. A banquet had been laid before them and
it would be impolite not to indulge.

	"Are you sure that's a woman," asked Nabiki in 
a sarcastic tone as a huge woman carrying a studded club
got on one side of a suspended log.
	
	"Well, that one more pretty." The Guide directed
their attention to the other warrior. "You watch this,
winning tournament is very great honor."

	The clash of weapons back and forth paused 
briefly, and in that lull carried an idle comment with
all the impact of a rifle shot. "They're not so hot."

	Nabiki exchanged a glance with Kasumi and both
stepped back away from their sister. Nadoka looked at
Akane with a "I can't believe you said that" expression.

	"Outsider girl want to try," came a sweet voice.
One of the younger girls, perhaps fourteen, tapped Akane
on the shoulder. "Outsider girl great warrior, maybe
demonstrate how good she is?"

	"Why not?" Akane shrugged off the Guide's look
of horror. 

	The other girl motioned towards a ring of dark
sand within a smaller ring of white sand. "We fight
in circle, okay? I Rie Ga of Nichieju."

	Akane stood opposite of Rie Ga and bowed, not
taking her eyes off her smaller opponent. "I am Akane
Tendo of the Tendo Training Hall."

	Rie Ga smiled. She hadn't understood much of
what the other had said, but this Akane had the same
name as her village. Maybe she was of a highly placed
family, in which case the spoiled girl would get her
comeuppance.

	"Fight!" Another amazon slashed the air between
the two with a flag then stepped away.

	Nadoka was watching this when a commotion behind
her drew her attention. The younger amazon from the log
battle was yelling at the two men who had started eating
from the table. Nabiki swore. If the situation hadn't
been so bad, Nadoka would have been scandalized.

	"You eat prize," the purple-haired girl was
yelling again, "you die."

	"Wait a minute," Ranma said, groaning as he
got up. "If it's the prize, then if I beat you then
there's no problem, right?"

	An old woman called out something in Chinese,
but the girl replied in the same language in a tone
that certainly carried her disdain for the outsiders.
Nadoka looked again, recognizing that this was the
elder that had been at the pools.

	Meanwhile, Kasumi was wincing as Akane was being
pounded into the sand by her shorter and younger 
opponent. 

	<THUD BLOCK SMACK> "You give yet?"

	"NO! This doesn't hurt."

	<WHAMWHAMWHAMWHAM> "You give yet?"

	"You just wait, I'm just getting warmed up!"

	<WHAMWHAMWHAM> "Now?"

	"Hold still!"

	"Akane of Tendo very stubborn," Rie Ga smiled.
"She have much pride, would make good amazon." <WHAM>

	"Ungh. Just wait'll I..."

	Rie Ga interrupted Akane by picking the outsider
up and tossing her outside the ring. "Now Rie Ga not
have to give kiss of death to outsider. Rie Ga win, now
say you good fighter, just not good as Rie Ga. Think
Akane of Tendo much like Rie Ga, very proud, very 
strong, very much speak mind."

	"Kiss of death?" The statement was enough to
get Nadoka's attention from the match about to take
place up on the log.

	"Yes, if outsider defeat amazon then amazon must
give 'kiss of death' - is vow to track to ends of Earth
and kill." Rie Ga glanced over at the old woman and said
in a much quieter voice. "Village Elders really stickler
for old fashioned laws like that."

	<THWACK> Said Village Elder (Cologne again)
almost seemed to teleport behind Rie Ga and brought her staff down on the
young girl's head. "A little more 
respect for your Elders, girl."

	"Uh oh," came from Nadoka, Kasumi, and Nabiki
as they turned towards Ranma was currently kicking his
opponent completely off the log.

	"Oh my." Kasumi grabbed her backpack.

	Nabiki swore again, this time using German (she
only knew a few of the wrong words, but it sounded like
a language built for swearing in.)

	Nadoka grabbed her husband and Mister Tendo and
yelled "Ranma, get your butt in gear, we are outta 
here." Usually she was the calm in the eye of the storm,
but this had already been a pretty bad day.
	
	The decision to return to Japan was unanimous.
-------------------
Second part of Neutral Ground finished.
   NEXT: Ranma discovers his power up and the price
tag. Akane tries to spar Ranma. Nabiki figures out
what her other form is good for. Kasumi makes plans to
return to college, after all, she CAN be in two places
at the same time.
Voiceover: Will Nabiki's cursed form trigger the 
Nekoken?
        Nabiki looks up from counting her yen and meows.
Voiceover: Will Genma and Ranma pay the price for Ranma
not being a "Man among men?"
	Ranma and Genma bigsweat as Nadoka starts 
unwrapping her bundle.
Voiceover: And what of Tatewaki Kuno?
	Kuno grins at the camera. "Ah, I, the fierce 
and noble Tatewaki Kuno shall smite the evil dragon!"
Voiceover: Will he be as clueless as ever?
	Kuno sticks tongue out at camera.
Voiceover: It's all in "Neutral Ground 3": 


NOTES: go to episode 15 to the scene where Ranma has 
  just challenged Shampoo, see the little girl looking 
  belligerently up at the panda in the sweeping crowd 
  shot? Rie Ga unless i hear otherwise. Likewise the
  amazon in the grey tunic resting her hands on the 
  hilt of a sword will be her big sis, Shu Ga.

ja ne!