Muyami Academy

What if they ALL went to the same school?


        It's alternative history Ranma with multiple crossovers and
lame, filky
songfics!    I control the vertical, I control the horizontal, and I
have no idea
what to do with it.  Is it that obvious?  Beware, for all may not be as
it seems!


        DISCLAIMER:  Ranma 1/2 characters and stuff, and Inu Yasha
characters
and stuff, copyright 1999 Rumiko Takehashi.  Mamono Hunter Yohko
characters and stuff copyright AD Vision, NCS, Toho Company, LTD, Mad
House, and I don't know who else.  Dilbert characters and stuff,
copyright 1999
Scott Adams, and will only appear in the disclaimer.


Chapter One
A Sort Of Homecoming

Well I'm... back in Nerima again,
And I bet you're wondering where I've been,
Got myself cursed out in Jusenkyo,
Got fianc�es waiting here back home,
Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right,
Here I am... stuck in Nerima with you
                                        (Stuck In The Middle With You,
Stealer's Wheel)


        The two women were clearly related.  The younger one had red
hair, tied
back in a braided pigtail, and wore a red silk top of Chinese design
with loose
black silk pants tied off at the ankles.  She sat nervously, glancing
about the
living room like a child in a toy store, her gaze never resting long on
any one
object, until it finally returned to the one seated across from her.

        The older woman was dressed in a beautiful white kimono, with
hair a
darker shade of red.  She sat ramrod straight, and she looked on the
young girl
with a mixture of joy, sorrow, confusion, and not a little wonder.

        "Ranma?" she asked.  "Is it really you?"

        The younger girl nodded her head sadly.  "It's really me,
mother.  Sorry
'bout this."

        The older woman put a hand to her mouth.  "Oh, this is so...
strange... to
see you like this."

        "It's been strange for me, too," the girl said.

        "When I got your letter I didn't believe it.  Ancient curses?
Transformations?  Who can believe such things?  To think that my son is
now a
girl, and my husband, a panda..." she paused, choking back a sob.

        The girl looked like a wild animal about to bolt.  Her eyes
shimmered, on
the brink of tears.  "Mother, I... I've wanted to come home for so long,
but I...."

        The woman, Nodoka Saotome, suddenly leaned forward and gathered
her
daughter into her arms.  Ranma wrapped her in a tight embrace and sobbed
repeatedly.

        "It's okay, Ranma," she said.  "It's okay.  I know it's been
hard... it must
have been so very hard for you.  I've missed you too, Ranma, I've missed
you
so very much.  It's going to be all right.  I'm here, and I still love
you no matter
what.  Everything will work out, you'll see."

        The sobbing ebbed, and Ranma pulled away.  "But mother... what
if I'm
stuck like this?  I haven't found a cure yet.  What will I do?"

        "Well," Nodoka said, "we won't know until we reach that point,
Ranma.  I
won't lie to you; you might be a woman for the rest of your life.  I
don't know.
A friend, who knows of such things, assured me that Jusenkyo exists, and
that
the curses are real, but he knew no more than that.  We'll do what we
can to
find a cure...."

        "But I don't want to be a girl!"

        Nodoka smiled and traced Ranma's jaw line from ear to chin.

        "Ranma, dear, you are a girl, whether you want to be or not.
And you
look so much like I did at your age... I would not have believed it was
you, if
not for that and your memory of this house."  She smiled warmly.  "Oh,
Ranma, you are so very beautiful...."

        "I'm not supposed to be beautiful, mother!"

        "No, but your beauty cannot be denied at present, child.  Oh,
I've waited
so many years to see you again, but this... thank goodness I refused to
sign that
stupid agreement your father came up with...."

        Ranma raised an eyebrow.  "Agreement?"

        "Never mind, so... child.  It was a long time ago."

        Ranma stood up and shook herself.  "These last three weeks have
been a
nightmare!  If only pop hadn't heard of that stupid place... we waltzed
right in,
like two idiots.  Pop had absolutely no idea what we were getting into!
The
guide tried to warn us...."

        "Did you ask him of a cure?"

        Ranma shrugged.  "I would've, but pop ran off so fast... he's
been pretty
useless since."  They both glanced into the back yard, where a forlorn
panda sat
waiting.  Mrs. Saotome had flatly refused to allow her husband into the
house
as he now was.

        "Well, we'll look for a cure, of course, Ranma.  I'll start
asking around and
see what I can dig up.  Perhaps there's a way to reverse it."

        Ranma shuddered.  "I... I hope there is.  But if there isn't?"

        Mrs. Saotome grasped her daughter by the shoulders and looked
her
square in the eye.  "Listen to me, Ranma.  If you're stuck, it will not
be the end
of the world.  I will love you, whether you're my daughter or my son.
There
are far worse fates than being a girl, Ranma.  I was one once, you
know!"  She
paused to smile at the girl.  "I know you have the strength, Ranma, to
see you
through whatever lies ahead, and it will get easier as time goes by.

        "Now," she said, standing up, "as for the rest, we'll hope for
the best, but
assume the worst.  It may take time to find a cure -- perhaps a great
deal of
time -- and we can't go around telling people you're my son when you
obviously aren't.  So for now, Ranma, you are my daughter.  That being
the
case, we'll have to get you some appropriate clothing.  I also want to
get you
into a good school -- the kami alone know how poorly your education has
been
under your father.  I have a particular school in mind.  It's private,
but I have
some money saved up, and I want your education to be as good as
possible...."

        "But...."

        "No buts, Ranma.  You may be a martial artist, but you will also
have an
education.  Do you understand?"

        Ranma nodded her head.

        "Good.  Now, your first lesson, Ranma, is hygiene.  Do you
realize how
absolutely filthy you are?"        Ranma smiled weakly.  "Being on the
road with
pops, I haven't had a hot bath in several weeks," she said.

        "Well, I'm afraid the water heater's been broken for a while
now, but at
least you can get yourself clean," Mrs. Saotome said.  "Now, go on,
young
lady, while I look for something clean for you to wear.  Perhaps the
neighbor
girl...."

***

        Ranma stared at herself in the mirror.

        In the three weeks since the transformation, she'd rarely had
the chance to
really examine herself, nor the desire to do so.  Looking into her
reflected face
caused her to flinch; this was not her face, not her body, not anything
her
mental image of herself.  This girl that moved when she moved, and
smiled or
frowned when she did, was a stranger.  And yet....

        Her mother was right.  She did look a lot her mother.  And...
she was
beautiful.

        At least I'm clean again, she thought.

        Ranma padded barefoot down the stairs and into the living room.
Her
mom was outside, talking to the panda... Ranma smiled ruefully at that.
If it
was hard being treated as a daughter, imagine being treated as nothing
more
than a pet animal....

        Served him right, the idiot.

        Ranma ran a hand down her stomach, across the buttoned front of
the
sundress she wore.  It was bright yellow and sleeveless, with a low-cut
front, a
hem that reached her knees, and a sash about the waist, tied in a bow at
the
back.  The fabric was worn -- mother had borrowed it from next door --
but it
fit well enough.  Yet it felt strange, as if she weren't fully dressed.

        Ranma sighed.  Her other clothing was in the wash, but she
suspected that,
even when dry, she wouldn't be allowed to wear it.  She didn't want to
cross her
mother, but....

        If she stayed here and remained a girl, there would be more
dresses, more
strange underwear, and who knew what else.  Ranma knew very little about
what it meant to be a girl, but her mother clearly intended for her to
find out.

        She opened the front door and walked out onto the lawn.  The new
green
grass felt cool on her feet, and the sun warmed her arms and forehead.
Ranma
smiled, taking in the sights and sounds of spring.  On a whim, she
jumped to
the roof of the house and lay back on the warm roof tiles.

        *It feels like a dream,* Ranma thought.  *This is my house -- my
home.
What did that word mean, anyway?  I live here, now.  I won't be leaving
tomorrow, chasing after some new training ground in some hidden valley.
I'll
sleep in the same place every night.  I'll sleep in a bed, with the
moonlight
shining through the window curtains....

        *It doesn't seem real.  I'm wearing a dress.  I should be
embarrassed, or
depressed, but... I just felt light-headed, like my body is empty, like
I'm adrift
on the sea, at night....*

        It wasn't the homecoming she'd envisioned, but she was here, and
that was
enough.  She felt an instant bond with her mother, unlike anything she'd
ever
felt for her father.  She was willing to wait and see where it all led.

        It was spring, after all  -- a time for fresh starts and new
beginnings.

        Ranma lay in the sun, her eyes closed, and let her mind drift
away.  The
next thing she knew, someone was yelling up at her... a girl's voice,
one she
didn't know.

        Ranma sat up, blinking.  She shaded her eyes and, leaning over
the edge,
looked down.

        A girl stood there.  She wore a sailor-style school uniform,
white with a
green collar and skirt and a red sash tied in front.  Her hair was waist
length
and dark, and she was carrying a book bag.  She looked up at Ranma with
a
curious expression.

        "Hello," she said.  "Are you new here?"

        Ranma nodded.  "My name's Ranma Saotome.  I've only been here
since
this morning."

        "Oh? you must be Mrs. Saotome's daughter, then."

        Ranma frowned, trapped between the lie that everyone would
assume, and
the truth that no one would believe.  She didn't like to lie, but it
seemed the best
strategy at present.

        "That's right," she said, smiling.

        "My name's Kagome Higurashi," the girl said.  "I live in the
weird old
temple next door.  Sorry to bother you, but I just couldn't help
noticing... that
dress looks familiar...."

        Ranma blushed.  "Uh, your mom lent me this, I guess.  She said
you didn't
wear it much...."

        The girl smiled.  "Oh, that explains it.  Mom's right; I don't
wear it much."

        "Thanks, I guess," Ranma said.

        "No problem.  It looks good on you."

        Ranma blushed again.  "If you say so."

        Ranma leapt from the edge of the roof, as she'd done a hundred
of times
before.  Immediately realizing her mistake, she tried in vain to hold
her dress
down, but it billowed out and up.  Ranma landed unsteadily and smoothed
the
dress out as quickly as possible, hoping Kagome had seen nothing.

        The girl raised an eyebrow.  "My panties as well?"

        "Ah..." Ranma said.  Her face flushed a bright crimson.

        "You should keep it.  It's not like I've needed it lately,"
Kagome said.
"The dress, I mean," she added, her own face flushing red.  "Although,
really,
you should keep the underwear, too...."

        "So," Ranma said, desperate to change the subject, "you live in
a temple?
Funny, I never knew my mom lived next door to a temple.  Most of my
memories are of being on the road with her pop.  I, uh... I guess living
in a
temple is about as strange as being a wandering martial artist...."

        "At least," Kagome agreed.  "Really, you don't know the half of
it....  So,
will you be going to the same school as me?"

        "I don't think so," Ranma said, with a shake of her head.
"Mom's sending
me to some private school.  Muyami Academy."

        "Really?  I think Yohko goes there.  She lives just down the
street, about
two blocks."

        At that point, the door opened, and Nodoka Saotome stepped out
on the
front porch.

        "Ah, Kagome-chan!" she exclaimed with a smile.  "How are you
doing
this afternoon?"

        "Very well, Saotome-san."

        "That's good to hear!   When your grandfather told me about the
gout, I
was so worried for you!"

        Kagome's face grew red.  "Well, grandpa likes to exaggerate...."

        "I see you've met my daughter Ranma.  We were just about to go
shopping.  Ranma has just come home from a very long trip, and she
really
doesn't have a thing to wear."

        "So I noticed," Kagome said.  Ranma's face grew red yet again.
"Mind if I
tag along?"

        "Not at all, dear.  I was just about to ask you if you wanted
to."

        "Great!" Kagome exclaimed.  "Just let me dump my things at home,
and
I'll be right out!"

        As Kagome ran down the street, Nodoka sighed.  "Poor girl," she
said.
"She's been so sick lately... I hope you two become friends, Ranma; you
could
both use a friend."

***

        A week passed, and Ranma remained a girl.  She'd thought that
finding a
cure was the first order of business, but her mother saw things
differently.  "If
you haven't changed in three weeks," Nodoka said, "then there's a good
chance
you never will.  If a cure does exist, it could be a long time coming,
so the first
priority is that my daughter learn to dress and act like a young lady."

        Ranma hated it, at first -- but this was her mother, whom she
hadn't seen
in ten years.  Her father was occasionally proud of her -- very
occasionally --
but her mother loved her, unconditionally.  She found, quite quickly,
that she
was willing to do just about anything to please her mother.  She didn't
complain
about the feminine clothing, the new gender pronouns, or the constant
instructions on how to be a young lady.  She was almost growing used to
it.



        The first light of dawn was still stretching it's cold, clammy
fingers across
the sky when Ranma awoke.  She slipped out of her bed -- funny how you
could grow so used to a soft, warm bed in only a week -- and slipped out
of her
pajamas.  Her old Chinese outfit still felt more comfortable than
anything else
she'd worn lately, but she only wore it early in the morning, in
deference to her
mother.

        Ranma tiptoed down the hallway, down three steps, and through
the
kitchen to the back porch.  She slipped outside and slid the door shut
quietly,
then stepped to the center of the yard.

        As she began her stretching exercises, the panda on the porch
finally
rolled over.   It stood and waved it's arms about in what passed for
kata for a
fat, furry martial artist.  After a few moments it lumbered out onto the
lawn and
took up a position opposite Ranma.

        The panda paused to scribble furiously on a sign, then held it
up.  Ranma
read, "You're turning into a girl, boy!  You're becoming weak!"

        Ranma smirked.  These morning training sessions had been her
father's
only opportunity to try and counteract the affect Nodoka was having on
her.
Ranma was glad the panda couldn't talk... the signs were much easier to
take
than her father's booming voice.  Still, the words had stung at the
beginning of
the week, but now....

        She cracked her knuckles.  "Is that all you've got to say,
oyaji?" she
growled.

        The panda held up another sign.  "Foolish boy!  You're acting
like a
woman!"

        "And you're acting like a panda, old man!" Ranma responded.
"Give it a
rest, pop!  You sound like a broken record!"

        The panda struck, but Ranma leapt back, avoiding the blow.  Her
dad was
still quick, and very strong, but Ranma was faster as a girl, and had
been the
better martial artist for nearly a year.

        Ranma leapt to the rooftop, and the battle began in earnest.
The punches
and kicks flew swiftly as they lept from rooftop to rooftop.  When Ranma
had
finally had enough, she took the next opening and clobbered her father
into the
street.

        "See ya back home, oyaji!" she called out, bouncing away.



        After a quick bath, Ranma slipped into a bra and panties and
donned a
blouse and skirt with hardly a second thought.  She was, however,
thinking
about her father's insults, and how little they stung.

        *It's only been a week,* she thought.  *Am I turning into a girl
so
quickly?*

        The idea had terrified her after the transformation, but now,
she was
almost comfortable with it.  She considered this, probing deep within
for an
answer to this riddle... and she kept coming back to the image of her
mother,
smiling, full of love.

        When she looked in the mirror, Ranma saw a girl who would grow
up to
be like her mother.

        And, really, who wanted to be like pop?

***

        Ranma broke the surface of the water and swam to the side of the
pool.
She climbed out, shook the water from her hair, and then lay down on the
towel
next to her two friends.

        "We've been here more than an hour," Kagome said.  "We should
probably head back."

        "Yeah," Yohko said.  Yohko Mano was one of Kagome's friends, a
slender girl with extremely long brown hair, which she always kept in
two
braids which were looped and held in place with special ornaments of red
stone.

        Hanging with Kagome and Yohko had seemed weird the first day.
Ranma
had never had any friends that were girls before, but these girls were
fun to be
with.  Both were active athletes, and very competitive, so they enjoyed
many of
the same things Ranma did.  She was only uncomfortable when the
conversation turned to subjects like makeup, hairstyles, clothing, or
boys.

        "How about we stop at the ABCB kissaten for some ice cream?"
Yohko
asked.

        "You bet!" Ranma and Kagome both exclaimed.  Ranma had quickly
learned to appreciate fancy ice cream sundaes, something she would have
never
been caught dead eating as a guy.

        The three headed back to the changing room, Ranma managing not
to
stare or blush as they stripped naked.

        "Oh, man," Ranma said, as they stepped into the showers.  "You
have no
idea how long I've been looking forward to a hot shower...."

        Ranma turned the handle, and water sprayed out.  A piercing
scream
echoed off of the tiled walls.

        Kagome watched as Ranma jumped to the far side of the room.
"Cold?"
she asked.

        "It's f-f-freezing!" Ranma said, shivering.

        "Ah, all of the hot water's gone," Yohko said.  "It happens."

        "Damn it!" Ranma growled.  "It's been weeks... it's like I'm
doomed to
never have a hot bath or shower ever again!"

        Kagome and Yohko laughed.  "I know what you mean," Kagome said.
"When I was back in... when... I mean..." her voice trailed off.   "I
mean, I was
stuck where I couldn't get a hot bath for days and days, and I was so
relieved
when I finally got back home....

        "I'll tell you what, Ranma.  You come over to my house tomorrow,
and I'll
let you use our bathroom.  No girl should be without a hot bath for that
long."

        Ranma smiled.  "That would be nice, Kagome...."



        Five minutes later the three girls were headed up the street to
their favorite
ice cream & coffee shop, when Kagome nudged Ranma's arm.

        "Look at that woman," Kagome said, "across the street.  Her
face... it's just
like a noh mask."

        Ranma glanced at the woman, who had two large scars running down
her
face, one from forehead to cheek, the other across her lips.  Kagome was
right -
- her face was pale and rigid, as if it were a mask and not actual
flesh.  There
was a strange look in the woman's eyes:  hungry, searching, yet somehow
vacant, as if she were an empty mug waiting to be filled.

        Ranma shivered, and the three continued up the street, the
strange woman
forgotten.

***

        Later that evening, Ranma and Kagome followed Yohko up a short
path to
the front door of the Mano household.  Yohko paused, her hand halfway to
the
doornob, and glanced over her shoulder.

        "Please step to the side," she said.  "Just in case."

        "In case of what?" Ranma asked, but Kagome was already pulling
her to
the side of the path.

        "Trust her on this one," Kagome said.  "Better safe than sorry."

        Yohko opened the door.

        A short, elderly woman, her hair in a white ponytail, came
flying through
the doorway, feet first.

        "Yohko!" the woman screamed, delivering -- or, attempting to
deliver -- a
flying kick to the face.  The attack failed, because Yohko immediately
flipped
backwards toward the street.  The old woman landed in a defensive
crouch,
then launched a series of kicks and punches at the young girl, who
dodged all
of them.  However, on her last dodge, she accidentally landed in a thorn
bush.

        "Ow!  Ow!  Shit!" Yohko exclaimed, leaping back out.  The old
woman
used the distraction to tag her lightly on the forehead.

        "Not good enough, Yohko," the woman said.  "Again!"

        "Aw, come on, grandma...."

        "No mercy!" the grandmother growled.  "You won't get any from
your
enemies, so don't expect it from me!"  She launched into another series
of
attacks, with Yohko gyrating and bouncing across the lawn, once again
evading
nearly every blow.

        Ranma watched the whole spectacle with a bemused expression on
her
face.  "Wow," she said.  "I knew Yohko was a martial artist, but this...
it's like
deja vu all over again!"

        Kagome laughed.  "I know what you mean!  I saw you training,
early
yesterday -- you're pretty good!"

        "Thanks," Ranma said.

        "But tell me," Kagome continued, "how did ever you train your
pet panda
to fight so well?"

        "Ah," Ranma said, "I, ah... it was mostly my pop's doing."

        "That's another thing," Kagome said.  "You were yelling at it,
calling it
'oyaji'...."

        "Well," Ranma said, a giant sweat drop appearing on her head,
"when my
pop's not around, I talk to panda-san as if he were my pop."

        "I hope you don't talk to your father that way!  That would be
rude."

        "Well, yeah, but you don't know my pop...."

        "Much better, Yohko!  Much better!" the old woman exclaimed.
Ranma
glanced back up, realizing that Yohko had finally tagged her
grandmother,
bringing an end to the impromptu fight.  "Now, Yohko, I know who Kagome
is, but I don't think I've met your other friend yet.  Is this Ranma
Saotome,
then?"

        "Hai!" Ranma said, bowing.  "Pleased to meet you, Mano-sama!
And
might I add, you are an exceptional fighter!  I am very impressed!"

        "My, what wonderful manners!  If only my granddaughter were half
as
charming and graceful!  Pay attention, Yohko!  You could learn a thing
or two
about being a lady from your new friend!"

        "Ah," Ranma said, as sweat drops appeared on all three girls'
heads.  Even
after only a few days of being together, they all knew Ranma was by far
the
least "ladylike" of the bunch.

        "Well," the grandmother continued, "how nice that you've all
dropped by.
Are you having a slumber party, Yohko?  If so, why not invite your
friend
Chikako?"

        "Slumber party?" Yohko replied.  She looked to her two friends.

        "Hey, that would be fun!" Kagome said.  "How about it, Ranma?"

        "Uh, sure... I mean, if it's okay with mother...."

***

        "Your grandmother kind of reminds me of my father," Ranma said.
"I
mean, she's always training you, right?"

        The girls were sprawled out on futons in the family room,
half-watching a
late-night horror movie.  There were four of them, now that Chikako
Ogawa,
Yohko's self-proclaimed best friend, had arrived.  The girl had blonde
hair and
large glasses, and was clearly smarter than anyone else Ranma knew.  She
was
very self-confident, and at one point proclaimed herself "Yohko's
business
manager", whatever that meant.

        Chikako had brought her own nightgown for the sleepover, but
Kagome
and Ranma had to make due with spare pajamas of Yohko's, which didn't
quite
fit.  Still, they were having a good time, and Ranma had managed to
avoid any
pitfalls in the conversation.  Ranma had slept in a thousand different
places
over the years, but this was her first official sleepover, as a guy or a
girl, and
she was nervous.  She didn't want to say something stupid that no normal
girl
would ever say.  She wanted to fit in, as much as possible.

        "Yeah," Yohko said, nodding, "that's grandma, all right.  She's
always
pushing me to train harder.  She can be a real pain at times."

        "That's what pop is like," Ranma said.  "Always trying to teach
me
something new, or find a way to test my skills.  He can be pretty
sadistic about
it."

         The movie ended, and a news show came on.  The first story was
about
several murders that had happened the night before, in a park less than
a mile
away.  They'd found blood everywhere, but only one body... but at least
one
witness said four others had been killed.

        "There was this strange woman," the witness, a middle-aged man,
said,
"with a face like a noh mask... her neck just grew and grew, and then
she ate all
four of them!"

        "Guy must have been drunk," Ranma said.

        "Face like a noh mask?" Yohko said.  She glanced at Kagome and
Ranma.

        "What?" Ranma asked.

        "Oh, that woman we saw earlier today!" Kagome said.

        "Oh, come one, you don't really think that...." Ranma's voice
trailed off.

        Yohko and Chikako exchanged glances.  "You think it might
be...?"
Chikako asked.

        "I don't know," Yohko said, "but I don't like it."

        "What?" Ranma asked.

        Yohko laughed, although it sounded somewhat forced.  "Oh, family
business.  You really don't want to know."

        By this point, the news show was doing a profile on a boy who
they said
had saved the world.

        "What, by playing tag with an alien?" Ranma said.  "You gotta be
kidding
me!  Boy, they sure know how to pick 'em."

        "But it's true," Chikako said.  "Don't you remember?  It was
just last fall!"

        "First I've heard of it," Ranma said.

        "Yes," Chikako countered, "but didn't you say you were wandering
about
China with your father at the time?"

        "Well, yeah," Ranma admitted.  "I guess we didn't pay much
attention to
the news."

        "I can't believe you never heard of it!" Kagome said.  "It was
on every
station, in every country!  He stopped an invasion of the earth!"

        "All he did is touch her horns," said Yohko.  She sounded
supremely
unimpressed.

        "That's right," Kagome said.  "Considering how she could fly, it
was a
pretty amazing feat!  And then he proposed to her, right on television!
Can you
believe it?"

        "But," Ranma said, "if she's an oni...."

        "She's not a real demon," Yohko said with certainty.  "She's
just some
weird alien."

        "Anyway," Kagome said, "it sure was romantic."

        "I suppose," Yohko said, in a voice that suggested she didn't
actually
suppose.  "Say, Ranma, do you have a boyfriend?"

        "What?  Uh... no, no I don't."

        "Neither do I.  How 'bout you, Kagome?"

        Kagome looked doubtful.  "I'd have to say no," she said.

        "Neither do I," Chikako said.
        "I know that," Yohko replied.  "So, Kagome, what's your type?"

        "Hmm?"

        "What kind of boy do you like?"

        Kagome looked thoughtful.  "Well, a guy who's not too wild, not
too full
of himself, not too angry, not too stubborn, and is always
understanding...."

        *Like me,* Ranma thought smugly.

        "How about you, Ranma?" Yohko asked.  "You like boys, don't
you?"

        "S-sure," Ranma replied.  "I mean, they're okay."  *As long as I
ain't
dating them or nothin'.*

        "What kind of boy do you like, then?"

        Ranma felt a blush creeping up her face.  She tried to stay out
of these
conversations.  She still found girls like Yohko or Kagome more
attractive than
any boy.  For that matter, she still turned herself on just by looking
in a mirror.
Boys?  She didn't want a boyfriend... not now, and perhaps not ever.

        "Um..." Ranma tried to reverse the question, to put it in terms
of what kind
of a boy she'd like to be herself.  She tried to think of her best
qualities.  *Okay,
you don't really like boys, of course, but you want to fit in... think.
What kind
of person do I want to be?  Not like pop, that's for sure.*

        "Someone who's strong," she said.  "Someone who doesn't break
their
promises, who isn't a coward, who isn't afraid of women...."

        "Afraid of women?" Yohko said.

        "You're thinking of your father, aren't you?" Kagome said.
"I've heard
your mom talking to mine.  He's kind of misogynistic, isn't he?"

        "I guess," Ranma replied, wondering what misogynistic meant.

        "It must be strange, having a father like that... but at least
you have a
father...."



        The girls continued to talk, until finally Yohko's grandmother
showed up
and turned out the lights.  "No more television, no more talking," she
said.
"Time to get some sleep, or you won't wake up in the morning!"

***

        Ranma tossed and turned for more than an hour.  Finally she got
up and
padded to the nearby open window, and stared out into the night,

        She almost jumped when someone -- Yohko, as it turned out --
placed a
hand on her shoulder.

        "Sorry," Yohko said.  "Can't sleep?"

        Ranma shook her head.

        "Me either.  There's something...."

        "Something in the air," Ranma agreed.  "Something that's got me
on
edge."

        Yohko nodded.  "Something's going to happen," she said.
"Something
bad.  Maybe we should wake Kagome...."

        "I'm awake, guys," Kagome said, sitting up.

        "Look, guys," Yohko said, "I know this might sound strange, but
I'm
going outside.  Whatever's out there, I need to know what it is."

        "I'm coming with you," Ranma said.

        "Oh, heck," Kagome said.  "Okay, I'm coming.  Just give me a
second."

        "Oh, for the love of my ancestors!" Chikako said, rolling over.
"Okay,
okay, hang on, I'm coming...."





        Several minutes later four girls stepped out into the silent,
moonlit street.

        "Full moon," Kagome noted.

        "I have to warn you two," Yohko said.  "Strange things happen
around me.
Really, you don't want to be involved.  Maybe you should go back to
bed...."

        "And leave you out here alone?" Ranma replied.  "Not a chance!"

        "She's right," Chikako said.  "I'm her business manager, so I
have to
stay...."

        A loud crash shattered the night.  The girls looked at each
other.

        "That came from up the street," Kagome said.  "A block or two
away...."

        Ranma and Kagome's houses were only two blocks away, in the same
direction.

        "Come on!" Ranma yelled, running down the street.  The other
three
followed as quickly as they could, with Chikako falling the furthest
behind.

        "Wait up, you three!" she called out.  "If something's going to
happen, I
want to get a first-hand account!"

        As they neared Kagome's house, they heard more shouts, and doors
slamming.  Ranma came to a halt before the shrine.  Someone bolted from
the
gateway, running straight towards her, and before she knew it, Kagome's
kid
brother, Sota, was in her arms.

        Yokho and Kagome came to a halt beside Ranma.  "Wow, Ranma, you
can sure move when you want to," Yohko said.  "Now... where is it?"

        "Where is what?" Ranma asked.

        "That!" Kagome said, pointing to the open gate of the shrine.

        Ranma saw it, and still didn't know what it was.  It looked like
a massive,
lumpy blob, but as it rolled into the street, moonlight flashed off of
chalk-white
skin.  Multiple arms and legs protruded from the mass, and the blob
itself was
formed from several heads and torsos, somehow combined into one huge
blob,
as if several sumo wrestlers had slammed into each other too hard, and
were
now welded together.

        One of the faces floated above the rest, on a neck that was long
and thin
like a pale snake.  It had a spark of intelligence in it's eyes, where
the other
faces had none.  Its face was scarred, and immobile, like a noh mask.

        "Give... me... shards...." the creature moaned.  Ranma backed
up, not at all
sure what to do.  Her training didn't take into account weird blob
creatures.

        "Must... have... new... body...." the thing groaned, and then
the noh-mask
head darted forward.  It split down the middle, from forehead to chin,
revealing
a row of large, sharp teeth on each side of the split.  They looked like
they were
made of wood, but Ranma sensed they could rip flesh apart quite easily.

        Grabbing the kid, Ranma lept up and over the head.  She flipped
and
landed a kick to the back of the head before landing on the pavement on
the far
side of the creature.

        "Sota!" Kagome yelled.  "Run to the well!  Call for Inu-Yasha!"

        The kids struggled out of Ranma's arms and started to run back
towards
the house.  The head swung forward like a darting snake, whipping right
by
Ranma, heading towards the kid.

        "Hey!" Ranma yelled, and delivered a powerful two-handed blow to
the
long, white neck.  It seemed to be just enough.  Rather than biting Sota
in two,
as the creature was attempting to do, it merely caught him in the
shoulder, then
flung him several feet through the air.

        The head whipped about.  Ranma leapt over it, delivering a punch
to the
side of the face.  She landed next to Sota, who appeared to be
unconscious.

        "It wants me!" Kagome said, running up the street.  Ranma had no
idea
why she thought this, but apparently she was right -- the creature,
whatever it
was, lumbered after the girl, with Yohko and Chikako chasing after it.

        Ranma grabbed Sota and ran to her own house.  She could see her
mother
coming out the front door, and her father, the panda, bounding around
the side
of the house.

        "Ranma?" her mother said, "what's going on?"

        "I don't know," Ranma said, "some sort of demon or something.
Watch
the kid, mom.  Kagome's in trouble!"

        His mother nodded numbly as she took the bleeding Sota in her
arms.  As
Ranma sprinted back to the street, she called out,  "Ranma!  Be
careful!"



        Ranma caught up to the rest at a nearby construction site.  Bare
steel
girders rose into the night, perhaps six stories high.  A wire fence
went around
part of th site, but one side was open.  Kagome had apparently headed
straight
there, and was now running up a steel staircase.  The thing had paused
at the
bottom of the stairs... it didn't seem able to navigate them.

        "What the hell is it?" Ranma yelled.

        "A demon!" Yohko yelled back.  "Just as I thought!  Stay back,
Ranma,
I'll handle this!"

        Ignoring her, Ranma ran straight at the creature.  "Take that!"
she yelled,
attempting a flying kick.          The creature looked up, obviously
annoyed.
One huge arm rose up and swatted Ranma away.  She landed hard on her
hands
and knees, but bounced right back up.

        "I'm serious, Ranma!" Yohko yelled.  "Stay back or you'll get
hurt!"

        "Ranma?  Yohko?" Kagome called out.  "Get out of here!  It's me
it
wants!"

        "Forget it, Kagome!" Ranma yelled.  "We ain't leaving you!"

        Crouched in a defensive stance, Ranma approached the creature
warily.  It
seemed to be devoting more attention to solving the staircase problem
than in
worrying about one puny martial artist.

        *So much the better,* Ranma thought, preparing another series of
attacks.
*Although, what I'm supposed to do against a demon....*

        In the background, Ranma heard Yohko beginning some sort of
weird
challenge or chant.

        "I hold no enmity against those coerced into evil," Yohko
declared, "but to
those vile beings who toy with the hearts and souls of men, we, since
the time
of the ancient gods, have been  your destroyers!  Now the 108th
generation
devil hunter, Yohko, is here!  Beware!"

        Ranma spared a glance her way.  What she saw caught her off
guard.

        Yohko was spinning about in mid air.  Her ring was glowing, and
then her
clothing flew off her body.  Moments later a new outfit materialized
around
her -- a Chinese-style red silk dress, split up the sides, with a
yin-yang symbol
on the chest.

        A massive, glowing sword appeared in her hands.

        Ranma glanced back at the creature.  It's head shot out,
stretching three
stories straight up to where Kagome stood.  It bit down on the edge of
the metal
flooring, and then, incredibly, it began to pull it's body up after it,
heading
straight for their friend.

        Kagome screamed.  Ranma jumped up, hoping to punch the strange
blob
creature and distract it.  From the corner of her eye, she saw Yohko
also
leaping straight up....



*to be continued*



Comments?

Operating without a net, or, at least, without prereaders, and I'm sure
I'll regret it.
If you would be willing to preread future chapters let me know.

Chapter two is half written, and the next few chapters after that are
plotted and
partially written.  I don't really know how far I plan to take this, but
multiple
chapters, at least.  And in case you think I'm doing some weird
magical-girl
demon hunting team with Ranma, Kagome, and Yohko... I'm not.  Although,
it
would certainly be fun....

Next:  Well, we've got a demon to deal with, but somewhere along the
line
Ranma will meet the Tendos.  Whether she'll be engaged to Akane remains
to
be seen.  How much longer before Ranma learns of the wonders of hot
water,
anyway?  And just who is Soun Tendo's uncle?  Hint:  he runs a
shrine....

If you must know, I�m also working on Seven Fianc�es, and have some
stuff up
on my web site.  I'm not ready to post anything, but soon.  On the other
hand, I�m
not, at present, working on Both Halves or I Can See Clearly Now.  I
will work on
those when I have the time.  Ciao!


Miko!

"When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said, in a rather scornful tone, "it
means exactly what I choose it to mean -- neither more nor less."
"The question is," said Alice, "whether you can make words mean so many
different things."
"The question is," said Humpty Dumpty, "which is to be master -- that's
all."

(Lewis Carroll, Through The Looking Glass)

Nausicaa@sprynet.com  Belldandy@angelic.com
Anime RPG at http://come.to/akane/
Fan Fiction at http://listen.to/bell/