Original concept by Chris Jones, used with permission.

     Dr. Tofu smiled softly as Akane stumbled into his office for the
third time in so any days.  "Good afternoon, Akane... what happened?" he
asked as though there were nothing unusual about the frequency of her
visits.  Mostly they were just for scrapes and bruises, something a
mother would normally handle.  Unfortunately, she had passed on the
previous year, and he had found himself becoming even more attached to
Soun's daughters.  For many months while the man had buried himself into
a deep depression, Tofu had been worried for the girls.  Especially the
eldest, Kasumi, as she had decided it was her responsibility to take up
the mantle of matriarch of the Tendou home.        
     It wouldn't have been so bad had Kasumi been older, but as things
were it could potentially ruin her young life.  So, Tofu had been glad
when Soun suddenly came up out of his funk and began to rejoin the world
of the living.  His face still bore the mark of one who had experienced
a great loss, but it was now more a badge of honor and rememberance.
Now, if only he could get motivated to bring in students to his dojo
everything would be wonderful.      
     "Dr. Tosu!!!"
     The young doctor startled as the high pitched squeal cut through is
very nerves.  He blinked and looked downward toward the source of the
sound, only to find a lightly glowing Akane.  Her chi had manifested
itself powerfully at a very young age, he was sure she would head down
the road of a true martial artist.  "I'm sorry, Akane... I drifted there
for a moment.  What was it you needed to see me about?"      
     The little girl's face went from anger to confusion at a speed only
the young could achieve.  "What were you thinkin' about, Dr. Tosu?" she
asked curiously.      
     The smile on his face grew as he always got a kick out of the way
Akane pronounced his name, due to her two missing front teeth.  The
adults were growing in fine, and she would have a perfectly beautiful
smile when she grew up.  As he didn't particularly relish the thought of
bringing up the past he had been reviewing in his mind, he attempted a
little white lie.  "I was just wondering what will happen tonight on
Star Trek... it's the second part of an episode shown last week."      
     "Stalu T... t..."  Her face scrunched up cutely as she tried to at
once pronounce and decipher the alien words.  What she finally produced
sounded more like "Salute Track" in English, and Dr. Tofu couldn't help
but laugh.        
     "Star Trek," he corrected patiently.  "It's an American science
fiction television program.  I missed the re-runs as a child, and I was
just sucked into it recently."        
     "What's it about?" she said, her eyes full of wonder at this new
development.  She had come in for a slightly twisted ankle, which she
had received trying to pull off a kick her father had taught her.  He
had requested she not try while he was not supervising, but she rarely
listened to him when it came to the appropriateness of martial arts
practicing.  
     Tofu looked upward for a moment, compiling his thoughts and trying
to figure out a way to explain Star Trek to a seven year old.  "Well,"
he began, "it's about a group of people who are on a space ship,
exploring the galaxy."  He told this with a bit of drama, waving his
hand across Akane's face and out toward the wall.  He wished briefly
that somehow the warp whooshing noise could have accompanied the motion,
and his eyes sparkled slightly... he was a true Trekker, and this was
his land.      
     Akane laughed, though her eyes never lost their sense of
wonderment.  "You look funny, Dr. Tosu."      
     He chuckled softly.  "I suppose I do, Akane."  He blinked a few
times to wash away the Tribbles and turned his full attention back to
his seemingly uninjured patient.  "So, what would be the problem,
Akane?" he inquired for the third time.      
     Akane froze a moment, as if pondering the question.  Then, she lit
up and pointed to her ankle.  "I twisted it!" she exlaimed as though it
were some sort of achievement.      
     Tofu kneeled down in front of her and felt he ankle lightly.  He
smiled again after a moment.  "This is nothing, Akane... the soreness
should go away in an hour or so.  Just walk it off."
     Akane beamed.  "'Kay, Dr. Tosu!" she cried, and turned about, only
to bolt out the door like a shot from a gun.       
     Dr. Tofu grinned and shook his head.  The endurance of the young
was a sight to behold.  So fragile, and yet so versatile and tenacious
at the same time.  He glanced at his clock in passing... and his eyes
widened into saucers.  Tonight was the preiere of Star Trek: The Next
Generation... and it started in a half an hour.  He had almost
forgotten.  He scrabled up the stairs to get to a tape and his VCR
before it was too late.      
     Dr. Tofu had officially crossed the line in Otaku-dom.  Thing was,
a person rarely made the transition alone... and he had unwittingly
brought another to the dark side as well.

PM Productions Presents
A Phillip Masters Fanfic
Star Trekkin'
Or
The Secret to Akane's Heart

     The years had passed like photon torpedoes, swiftly and without
mercy.  Then, one of them struck ome, witht he arrival of a certain
pig-tailed boy and his virtual caravan of fiancees.  After this days
stretched into years, as no one ever knew what would happen next.  Akane
found herself getting kidnapped more often, which was annoying.  Even
moreso was how Ranma saved her each time... though she had to admit he
was growing on her as much as he seemed to do so with everyone else.  
     There was a time, that no one knew of, that she denied being taken
by some prince.  He had fallen for her charms, just like all the other,
thing was he picked a bad time.  First Contact was being released soon,
and damned if she was going to miss opening day of the first Frakes-made
feature.      
     Now, Ranma had been around for a couple of years, and no one yet
knew of Akane's addiction.  Being an Otaku was nothing to be proud of,
after all.  First she caught the start of Star Trek: TNG, as Nabiki had
been watching it for want of something better to do that fateful evening
after Dr. Tofu had introduced her to the series.  She was instantly
hooked, as the show was just too cool for words.  The main characters
were all so pretty and intelligent... and even the bad guy was cute and
only wanted to save the poor space station creatures in the end.  After
that, she joined Dr. Tofu at his place to watch, saying to her family
that she was just learning more about anatomy with him.  She hated lying
to everyone, but she knew her father would frown on a hobby outside of
martial arts... and especially one that would brand her an Otaku.  At
the time she was perhaps overreacting, but now she was glad for her past
trepidation.  For now, years later, she would be considered downright
geeky by her peers.      
     It was unfortunate that such a fantastic series would become
branded as such, but that was the way of society.  Couldn't they see
that it was simply a metaphor for the current situations and problems in
the world?  That if maybe some people would take heart to its message
the world would be a better place in which to live?      
     Akane sighed, then she put down the copy of Star Trek: Insurrection
she had been reading the back of.  A friend of hers in America had sent
her a copy once it had been released there.  After all, Star Trek was
the sole reason Akane was so passionate about learning English... though
everyone else just assumed she was naturally good at learning other
languages.  Every time someone asked her if they could do something at
school she had to fight down the urge to say "Make it so."
     "What's that, Akane?"
     The girl nearly jumped out of her seat.  She glared up at Ranma,
who was hanging from the edge of the roof outside her window.  "Nothing,
you idiot!  I really wish you would stop doing that all the time!"
Actually, she never minded when he dropped in unexpectedly... it just
wouldn't be Ranma otherwise.  Of course, she would never let him be the
wiser.
     "Aw, come on, Akane... I just asked a question.  What's Stalu...
T... t... er... that tape you have there?"
     Akane giggled, recalling her own trouble with the pronounciation as
a youth.  "It's nothing you need to worry about!  Now, could I get some
privacy here?"
     "What's the matter?" he asked in his usual haughty attitude.
"Don't you think I'll get it?  Is that it?"
     Actually, it was, Akane thought to herself.  However, she knew she
would never get to bed if she said so much to Ranma.  "No... I just
don't think you'll be interested is all, it's girly stuff."  So, it was
a lie, but just a small one.  Anyway, she knew what was coming next...
the "t" word.
     "What would a tomboy like you be interested in that could be called
'girly stuff'?" Ranma shot back with a grin.  He knew he wasn't being
original, and he even knew that she expected it. Maybe that's why he
kept doing it.  After all, he saw what was coming next.
    "Ranma... no... baka," she said slowly with a grin and pushed him
backward.
     Ranma swung backward, then fell, only to grab onto the bottom of
her window sill.  He flipped upward and crouched in front of her desk
grinning in return.  "Come on, Akane, I really want to know what you're
interested in."
     Akane lifted an eyebrow.  That was pretty deep from Ranma, it
surprised her.  "Okay... if you really want to, I suppose it's alright."
She had kept this secret for years, yet she didn't seem to mind if Ranma
knew.  Did this mean she loved him?  A blush sprang to life on her face
as she brought the box she was holding up into the light once more.  
     Ranma blinked, as he had no idea what he was being shown.  "What is
it, Akane?  Some sort of sci-fi flik?"
     Akane laid the video on her table and nodded her head.  "No, not
just a sci-fi flik... the sci-fi flik... it's Star Trek: Insurrection,
the ninth movie in the series."
     Ranma's eyes widened a bit.  "Nine?  That's a lot, isn't it?  Must
be pretty popular."  
     "Well... it is in certain circles, but it's not really considered
cool to be into it as much as I am.  You see, there are also three
seperate television series also based off the same premise." Akane
explained.  
     "What premise?" Ranma wondered, "What's it about?"
     She smiled and lowered her voice slightly.  "It's about a group of
people who are on a space ship, exploring the galaxy."  She let her hand
pass in front of Ranma's face, mimicking Dr. Tofu's motions as he had
described the show to her all those years ago.  
     "What's so interesting about that?" Ranma asked, confused.
     Akane grew slightly irate, she knew he would just make fun of her.
"It's not about that, idiot!  The show was originally created as a
metaphor for the times and trials of America in the sixties.  It's at
once entertaining and a piece of history...." she trailed off, realizing
she was falling into the standard Otaku defense posture when confronted
with non-Trekkers.  It was what she would say to any old schmuck on the
road, not Ranma.  "Look, it's fun, exciting, and the characters are
nice... you just have to see it to understand, okay?"
    Ranma shrugged.  He wasn't all that into watching television, but if
Akane was so passionate about it it couldn't be that bad, right?
"Alright, then show it to me."
     Akane balked.  "Huh?"
     "You said I had to see it to understand, so show it to me... geez."
He rolled his eyes to accent his words.  
     "Well, okay." Akane answered, getting up and digging out the copy
of TNG she had received from Dr. Tofu as sort of a memorium of her
passage into Otaku-dom.  She had always kept it in her secret shoebox
underneath her bed, along with other momentoes from her childhood.  
     "Hey, you have one of those too?" Ranma asked from the window.  
     She looked up, then back down at her shoebox.  "What?  A shoebox?"
     "No!  I mean, a box you keep hidden with things that are special to
you in it," he corrected.
     Akane's face lit up as she understanding dawned.  "Yeah!  What, you
really keep a box like this too?"  She wouldn't have pegged him to be
the sentamental type.  Of course, Ranma never ceased to surprise her on
a daily basis... maybe that's why she felt the way she did about him.  
    He nodded, stepping fully into the room, being careful not to knock
anything off Akane's desk.  "I started keeping it when I was little...
the first thing I put in it was a small spatual from Ukyou.  After pops
ran off without her, it became the only thing I could remember her by of
any lasting value."  
     Akane frowned slightly, feeling upset that she didn't know him from
that time of his life.  She had really only just met him in the scheme
of things, missing his youth almost entirely.  How was she to compete
with such knowledge as Ukyou had?  Such a friendship couldn't be
duplicated... could it?  
     "What wrong, Akane?" 
     She shook herself out of her reverie, allowing a smile to sprout to
life on her face again.  "Nothing, lets just watch this... now, while
everyone's asleep."  
     Ranma shrugged again.  "Whatever... let's go."
     They walked down the hall to the stairs together, side by side.
Akane glanced over at Ranma, who she found was glancing at her.  
     Both blushed furiously as they turned their eyes back to the path
before them.  Descending the stairs, they piled into the living room,
Ranma sitting next to Akane on the couch.  He seemed slightly
uncomfortable, and she said as much.
     "Sorry... it's just that this is an aweful lot like a date.  You
know how I get...."  He turned his head, embarrased at his weakness.  
     Akane stood up and put her hands on her hips.  "Hey!  It's only a
date if I say so!  Now, sit up straight and get ready to be impressed!"
With that she turned about and prepared the equipment, sliding the tape
into the VCR.  
     Ranma sat patiently while she set things up, not noticing how she
had not actually stated whether this was a date or not.  Once she was
finished readying everything she came to sit beside him once again. 
     The show came on, and at once Ranma found himself interested.  The
tape was dubbed into Japanese, but the voice acting wasn't bad.
However, what really impressed him were the special effects.  "What year
did this start, Akane?" he asked, though his eyes never let the screen.
     Akane smiled at Ranma's apparent interest in the show, and the
opening was only about to come on.  "'87," she replied, not wanting to
talk over the beginning sequence... still one of her favorites, although
Voyager's was truly something to behold.  She considered Jerry Goldsmith
to be one of the premiere composers of the times, of course.

END PART ONE OF TWO
Sorry to divide this, but it's getting long and late... I will finish
tomorrow.  I am getting a computer most likely next week, so this will
hopefully be the last fanfic to be written in parts due to necessity.  I
am writing this out of fun, and the fact that I'm a little rusty after
my forced hiatus... real life and all that rot.  I will be working on my
regular fanfics from now on as well, and I have received a FFVII
strategy guide to continue Eugenics... as soon as my computer is up and
running, I will be going like crazy once more.  Love to hear what you
think of this so far, and any thoughts on how it should end as well,
always interested.
Thanks for reading,
PMasters (5-30-99)               

"Never underestimate the Akogi hat!" - Caravan Kidd
"I don't believe this... Sailor Moon gets the handsome and mysterious
Tuxedo Mask, but I get a frickin' CAMEL?!" - Magical Drama Queen Roxy
(ie. the one good thing to come from Gen13)
"I'm only holding back the rain.  So many raindrops, so many pains.  I
want to find my train someday.  As seasons go past the station." - Tokyo
Babylon OVA 1
/ E-mail: PhilMasters@webtv.net /
"...has anyone ever used something alive for a coat of arms?" - The
Sailor Who Fell From Grace With The Sea (Mishima Yukio, 1965) / 
"You see, what you call a cat, we use as armor." - Rune (El-Hazard,
1994)