Oscir portion provided by Matthew Lewis who is also editor of The Other
Cheek from which this story is a part of. The Other Cheek is in turn a
sequel to The Butt, of which Gary Kleppe is the editor of.
C & C welcomed.
------------------------------------------------
"Another bowl, Nabiki? You're certainly hungry today," Kasumi said
as she took Nabiki's empty bowl. Her sister was eating almost as fast as
Ranma and her father.
"Yeah. I'll need my energy for tonight," Nabiki said, giving Ranma
a wink at the same time as if it was some kind of joke between the two of
them. She made good on her point by finishing her third helping in
record time.
"Tonight? Oh, yes. It's your turn to help Ranma settle in tonight.
Well it isn't a school night, so I guess it will be okay if you two
decide to stay up all night."
Akane gave Nabiki a sharp look. That headache her sister had
complained to her about in secret the other day was now starting to
sound fishy. Akane had of course helped her sister out by switching
turns and took care of Ranma the previous night. Now, she didn't know
if that had been such a smart move.
Ranma edged closer to her Pop as soon as she saw Nabiki look her
way. She had the sudden urge to take a shower. Dirty thoughts filled her
mind as Nabiki's pink little tongue darted out and licked the now empty
bowl in a slow and very thorough manner. "I... ah, I think I can manage
tonight. Kasumi and Akane have helped a lot and I'm not exactly alone
anymore. I mean, I now have P-Chan to keep me company." While she was
kind of excited and looked forward to the night, her conflicting
emotions stopped her short. It wouldn't be fair. This won't be like
the time she had gotten between Usagi and Rei.
"Oh," Nabiki whispered and shrank back as if struck by a blow. "I
guess a pig would make a better companion than me."
Ranma winced and quickly mollified Nabiki, "I didn't mean it that
way. I just thought that maybe you wouldn't like sleeping in the same room
with a pig. If you don't mind, I'll be glad to have you stay with me if
you want to."
"Okay!" Nabiki exclaimed cheerfully and attacked her fourth bowl of
breakfast.
Ranma blinked at the sudden change. She gulped as the other girl's
cunning eyes remained on her. Tonight was going to be interesting.
<Snap>
Kasumi sighed as she watched Akane's twitching eyes and looked at
the broken chopsticks in her hands. It was becoming clear to her that her
sisters were not at all adverse to Ranma as she might have thought. It
was really too bad, but Kasumi had never been the type that fought over
anything with her dearest family.
* * * * *
Ranma looked across the street before she took a step. It was an
open area and no place for any fiancée to hide. She breathed a sigh of
relief as she walked across it.
The whole day had been marked with Nabiki's frequent but unexpected
appearances. Whether she was in gym, home ec., or even the hallway, the
Tendo sister seemed to be there. Akane, of course, would happen by
right after and catch them in them in a shared moment. She flinched
inwardly as she remembered the worst of it all.
* * * * *
"Nabiki!" Ranma gasped as the door to her stall was opened.
"Ranma! I didn't see you there. You should have really locked this
door," Nabiki exclaimed. She had figured that Ranma wasn't the type to
lock doors given her upbringing. Heck, the girl didn't even lock the
bathroom at home with two grown men running about. When she had seen
Ranma go into the school lavatory she just couldn't resist.
Ranma sat uncomfortably on the toilet as it appeared Nabiki had no
intention of leaving. Her legs shuffled in nervousness, causing her
panties that had already been hanging precariously over her knees to
fall the ground along with her silk, black pants. To get them she would
have to get up, exposing herself in the mean time. Somehow this type of
exposure felt very different to when they had showered together the
previous day. *I knew I should have stayed with those boxers with the
elastic band on the waist,* she thought as she sighed with defeat. "Um,
can you close the door," Ranma whispered.
*Yes!* Nabiki thought enthusiastically and quickly shut the door
behind the both of them.
* * * * *
"Ranma, you in there?" Akane asked as she tried opening the door to
the lady's room. The door was stuck. She tried giving it another shove.
Did something happen to Ranma? Another shove later and the door
literally burst open. *Oops.*
She stepped over the remains of the wooden door and into the
bathroom. She smiled as she saw Ranma standing near the sink washing her face.
"Ranma, I was worried when you didn't answer and the door wouldn't
open."
Ranma scratched the back of her head nervously. "I think I might
have accidentally knocked the broom beside the door down and it somehow
barred the door."
Akane nodded absently as she something about Ranma's appearance
struck her as being odd. "Ranma, you forgot the tuck in your shirt and there's
a button missing...," Akane stopped as the sound of the toilet flushing
caught her attention. There was someone else in the room.
"Akane and Ranma. What a coincidence meeting you two in here? You
two weren't planning anything 'naughty' were you?" Nabiki asked lazily as
she stretched as if feeling relieved. She headed to the sinks where the
two of them stood.
"Nothing. Just telling Ranma to hurry or she'll miss the next
class," Akane answered, her eyes not leaving Nabiki. There was something
strange going on. The way Ranma flinched and blushed as the word
'naughty' sent warning signals off in Akane's head. This was not the
only such strange occurrence. At least three times today, she had
caught Nabiki standing somewhere close to Ranma and each time they had
been standing _very_ close together.
* * * * *
Ranma's knees turned to jelly as she remembered the incident in that
stall. Nabiki's hands, hot breath, and tongue had been sooo nice. If
Akane had not come into the room at that time...
"Hey! Quit it!"
Ranma was brought out of her reverie by a sudden cry. It sounded
like a cry from a girl. The yell had come from a back lot on the other side
of the street. She quickly bounded across the street and over an
adjoining fence into the small area. Her eyes scanned the area for
trouble with practiced ease. There were three masked men and one girl
who seemed to only have a thin ribbon for defending herself. Ranma
cracked her knuckles and quickly joined in the melee. "Hold it right
there! What do you three think you're doing, picking on a helpless,
nice, cute girl?"
The girl looked at the newcomer in surprise. It actually made her
pause in the use of her ribbon.
"Picking on her? She's the one that beat us up! We're just getting
revenge"
"What?" Ranma asked before quickly turning around. It couldn't be.
From the glimpse of the girl that she had managed to steal, the girl
looked nice enough.
"Just a friendly match of Martial Arts Rhythmic Gymnastics that I
had with them before our real one in a week's time. I'm sorry if you were
injured but there are no eyes on weapons," she answered back loftily.
She was so disturbed by the newcomer's words she forgot attack while
their attentions were diverted. No girl, even her classmates, had ever
openly defended her before. She focused her anger at the concerned
words for they could easily have meant that she was weak.
"She's right, these things happen. Besides, it's three against one
and if you still lose you can't blame anyone," Ranma agreed as she chided
the three bawling men. Jeez, these guys were wimps. With a smile she
turned back to the other girl and gave her a more normal greeting. "I'm
Saotome Ranma, nice to meet you."
"I am called the black rose, Kuno Kodachi. Anyway, I must be off.
You seem like a reasonable girl. It is nice to see one of the peasant folk
so well mannered. We'll meet again," Kodachi said before quickly
leaving the scene in a hurry. She glanced over her shoulder at the girl
in the lot. Ranma was still looking back at her.
Kodachi quickly turned around again to avoid those friendly eyes.
The girl was messing with her mind. So much so that her usual magnificent
introduction was cut short to just a few words that was hardly worthy of
her. So much so that she actually hesitated before calling the girl a
peasant even though her state of attire suggested it quite clearly. So
much so that Kuno Kodachi actually found herself smile in reply to
Ranma's own. Making friends with a peasant. The most insane of ideas.
"Stop crying!" Ranma yelled as she finally turned back to the
blubbering trio. "You're men!"
It was then that the three removed some of the bandages that covered
their face, revealing their actual genders to be female. "We're girls!"
*Uh, oh!* Ranma thought. "You're girls from my class. I'm sorry, I
didn't notice. I'm sorry, Akemi, Kyoko, and Yagami."
Akemi clenched her fist and started to give Ranma a sharp reply
before her hand was caught by her other two teammates.
"Oh, Ranma! That's alright. You couldn't see our faces," Kyoko
bubbly quickly shook off Ranma's apology. The poor girl looked as if she
were about to cry at the mistake.
"Right, you were only looking out for someone you thought was in
trouble. I'm sure I was surrounded by a gang you would have jumped in
to help," Yagami said, hope in her voice. She felt deliriously happy as
Ranma's expression made her look foolish to even suggest otherwise. She
was even more happy as it occurred to her that Ranma remembered her
name.
"Oh, it doesn't look too bad. Why don't I take you to Dr. Tofu's to
get patched up," Ranma asked as she ran her hand across Akemi's cheek.
"Um... ah, okay. Whatever you say, Ranma," Akemi blushed. That
caress was so soft. It made her wonder how she could have gotten so angry in
the first place.
* * * * *
"You want me to take your place?" Akane asked as she looked at her
three classmates.
"Yes, you, and Ranma if that is possible," Akemi replied. "There
isn't anyone else more suitable. The honor of the school is at stake."
Akemi kept herself from asking Akane to get revenge on Kodachi. Ranma would
feel bad and that, Akemi did not think she could bear to see after the
way the ponytailed girl had helped their team out after their initial
encounter.
"It might be fun," Ranma said. Kodachi's face came back to her and
Ranma knew she definitely wouldn't mind being at the match next week.
"Oh, alright," Akane answered, more for getting them out of her
house than anything else. She did not like the looks they were giving her
fiancée.
* * * * *
"This is hopeless. I'm a klutz," Akane cried.
"No, you're doing quite well for a beginner," Ranma quickly said as
she noticed Akane's hopes dropping.
"You really think so?" Akane asked hopefully.
"Of course not. She's lying," Ryoga said as he walked in from where
he was standing.
"Ryoga-chan!" Ranma laughed and ran up to hug her friend. "You came
back."
Ryoga was ready for his over exuberant best friend this time.
Carefully keeping his eyes away from Ranma's heaving chest he whipped
out a hot water kettle and splashed Ranma. "If I'm going to be training
you I might as well train your male body. That would make it easier on
Akane to adapt as we're both roughly the same height. She might not be
able to take to well to practicing with me and then you in female form,"
Ryoga quickly explained as he took in Ranma's confused expression.
"Training us?" Ranma asked. "You know Martial Arts Rythmic
Gymnastics?"
"A little," Ryoga smiled as he picked up a ribbon laying on the
ground and demonstrated by snapping the ground near Akane's feet.
Akane glared at Ryoga and nearly told his secret before her gaze
found the happiness on the now male Ranma's face. "Well, let's begin then,"
she snapped.
* * * * *
"Oh, Ranma! Time for bed!" Nabiki called out as she stepped into
the dojo.
Ranma immediately went red in the face as he caught Nabiki's wink.
"Um, we're still training here."
Ranma was not the only one to catch Nabiki's brazenness. Ryoga and
Akane glared at the second Tendo daughter with hostility.
"Oh, please. You have a week before the match and from what I've
seen. Akane is really the only one that needs help. No reason to give
up your sleep also," Nabiki said and proceeded to tug Ranma's arm and
bring him out of the dojo. It surprised her at how _solid_ Ranma was in
male form in contrast to his softer more yielding female side.
"Cold!" Ranma yelled out as Nabiki brought out a glass of ice water
and splashed him. Where she carried the glass, Ranma could never tell.
"Oh, good. I didn't dump all of the ice out yet. I know something
we can do later with it... in bed," Nabiki whispered to Ranma. Instant
pudding. Nabiki grinned and easily led the girl to their room.
"What are you looking at?" Akane asked irritably. Her sister was
starting to wear thin on her nerves.
"Nothing. Let's work on the pins next," Ryoga replied all the while
his mind focused on Nabiki and Ranma. *If that pervert girl tries to do
anything to you, Ranma...*
* * * * *
"Not there... please no..."
"A little to the side... oh!"
"Ah!"
"Stop... stop it... argh! Don't stop, don't you dare ever stop!"
"More... please more."
* * * * *
"Did you hear something?" Ranma asked as, her ears perking up. "It
sounded like a crash in Akane's room!"
"W-what is it?" Nabiki asked dazedly.
Ranma quickly turned her head away from Nabiki's glistening chest,
wet with exertion. She needed to focus. "It was a crash, I'm sure. I...
should go see what it was. I'll be back," Ranma quickly added at the
sight of Nabiki's skeptical look.
"It's not that. You're going to go out in just your bra and
panties?"
"Oh."
* * * * *
Akane dodged another blow. Her concentration divided between the
hammer wielding maniac and the piglet that was scrabbling around the
room looking for the exit. When she had caught sight of Ryoga trying to
sleep with Ranma again as a piglet after their training session, she had
cornered him in her room. That had been when the girl, claiming to be
her opponent in the upcoming match surprised her. She finally knocked
the hammer away with a well-aimed kick.
"You are good." Kodachi gave Akane a better look. The girl had
just worked out by the look of the sweat on her face. Kodachi knew she
should have warmed up before coming here, but hadn't expected the girl
to be any competition. All reports indicated that Akane did not know
anything about rhythmic gymnastics. Kodachi should have known that that
did not mean lack of hand-to-hand skill. "I will return at another
time!"
Akane blinked as the gymnast disappeared out through the window,
leaving a swirling cloud of black rose petals in her wake. She was
about to follow when she caught sight of Ryoga trying to sneak out when
her back was turned. "Oh, no you don't. You're staying right here
where I can watch you."
* * * * *
Ranma scrambled out of the window was she heard the noise from
Akane's room dissipate and heard footsteps on top of house. She saw a blur
of motion. She quickly ripped a shingle off of the roof and threw it at
the figure.
"Ahh!"
That was a female cry, Ranma suddenly realized. She raced up and
over the top of the room, only to see the figure falling to the ground. She
jumped down, catching the girl's body just in time. Cradling the girl's
head in her arms, she landed safely and jumped back on to the roof.
"You okay?" she asked, while she sat down, still holding the girl in her
arms and then noticed who she was asking. It was that Kodachi girl.
Kodachi was not prepared to see who it was that saved her from that
fall. It was that nice girl from earlier. Again, the girl looked at
her with concern. She tried to raise up indignation at being treated as
a weakling but found she could not. The girl really was quite nice and
she found it hard to get angry at her especially after this rescue.
"Yes, I think I am fine."
"That's good. Um, what were you doing on the roof? I heard a crash
in Akane's room. Was that you? You weren't trying to have another 'fair'
match before the real one again were you?"
Kodachi found herself at a loss at how she could feel pain at seeing
the accusation in the girl's voice. It was all for the better, then.
She had lived without another girl's friendship before and would
continue to do so.
"Wait, you shouldn't move so fast, you could still be dizzy," Ranma
said as the girl tried to move out of her hands. Somehow this movement
caused something to fall out of Kodachi's leotard. How this could
happen, Ranma really didn't know as the clothing the girl wore left no
room for anything to be carried.
"Quick, cover your no...," Kodachi said belatedly as soon as she saw
her bouquet of flowers filled with paralysis gas fall out into the
open. Though she was nearly immune to the gas due to frequent exposure,
it still left her a little weak in the limbs.
Ranma blinked. She found her muscles suddenly stiffen up and her
joints lock into place. "What?"
Kodachi struggled but found that despite Ranma's size, the girl was
quite strong and in her weakened state she could not break free of the
rigid lock they were in. "There as something in the flowers. It should
wear off in a few hours," Kodachi sighed resignedly to her fate.
"Hours?" Ranma asked hoarsely, her mouth having gone dry. Nabiki!
Kodachi weakly nodded, and shivered. Inactivity made the cold wind
more noticeable than from before. She suddenly felt body grow warm and
found Ranma had somehow managed to bring their bodies closer together.
Ranma groaned in pain as she made her body flip over to the side
using every ounce of energy she had left. This caused Kodachi to be
semi-sandwiched between her and the hard roof. "Better?"
Kodachi was surprised to hear the same gentleness in Ranma's voice
without any hint of the accusatory tone from before. "But won't you get
cold? You back is totally exposed to the wind now."
"Actually, I'm feeling a bit warm now," Ranma croaked out feeling
her voice beginning to face. Her jaw muscles were beginning to clamp shut.
"Oh?" Kodachi asked as she caught the crimson color Ranma's face was
turning. Their faces were only inches apart from their new position.
One of her arms cushioned Kodachi's back on the roof, while the girl's
other arm was still under the crook of the legs. Ranma's body was half
leaning over Kodachi's own so that one of their breasts was touching
each other. The coldness of the night, making their nipples stand out,
did not help matter any. "Oh!" Kodachi said again, finally getting
Ranma's meaning.
The wind rustled Ranma's loose silk shirt causing the fabric to slap
itself over one of the jutting points on Kodachi's chest. She
involuntarily moaned as another shiver ran through her for a totally
different reason this time. Her weak body gave a groan, twisting in
Ranma's arms and somehow managing to draw even more of the girl's body
over her own. Kodachi blushed as she tried regaining some control over
herself. *The gas has made my body more sensitive,* she noticed. *Is
the same happening to Ranma?*
"C-can... you... not... move?" Ranma gasped through her clenched
teeth, her mouth still not working quite properly. It was pure torture not
being able to move as her body was teased, not on purpose she was sure,
by the other girl's wriggling.
A moment of silence passed before, Kodachi decided to break the
silence. "Why did you just do that? Helping me to keep warm, I mean,
when you knew I had a 'match' with the Tendo girl."
"..."
Kodachi giggled suddenly as she looked at the pained look Ranma gave
her. She gasped and put her hand to her mouth. She hadn't laughed like
that in an a long time. "Oh, that's right, the paralysis gas still has
its effect on you. So do you live here with them? You don't look much
like her," Kodachi continued to talk, more to take her mind away from
the way she was feeling that in keeping a non-existent conversation
alive.
* * * * *
Ranma moved her jaw around and found it to be moveable again. She
let out a loud groan as she carefully got up, making sure that Kodachi was
safe from falling. Her entire body ached from lying in that awkward
position.
Kodachi blinked as she woke up, still being held by Ranma. She
blushed as she pushed herself reluctantly away. She couldn't remember when
she had fallen asleep exactly. All she could remember was the concern in
the other girl's eyes as she was being watched over. Those _open_
eyes. "You didn't sleep, did you?"
"Well, I had to make sure I didn't accidentally fall, carrying you
with me, when I could move again," Ranma said blushing. The truth was it had
been kind of nice watching Kodachi's face while she slept. The leotard
covering Kodachi's body had also provided a nice distraction.
"Thank you, Ranma," Kodachi said after a moment of deciding what to
say. She had already decided the previous night, but had wanted to wait
until they stood on equal grounds. "I am in your debt."
"Oh, it was not much of a problem. It wasn't like I had anywhere to
go anyway," Ranma said truthfully. She glanced at Kodachi nervously, not
sure how to ask this. "Um, I wanted to ask you a favor. Could you give
Akane a fair match? I don't mean that you cheat or anything. Just
overly enthusiastic in sparring before the real one starts."
Kodachi looked at Ranma as she mulled over what Ranma had said. She
could easily ignore the girl and go on with what she had been doing
before and keep her undefeated record intact. She could go on with
being respected and feared by her peers. Could she go back to life
without this girl named Ranma, who seemingly saw her, if that could be
imagined, to be a friend? Kodachi found to her surprise that she did
not want to find out the answer. "I always give them a fair match.
Perhaps, this girl is not as enthusiastic as I am. I can't say that I
blame her as I hear she is a beginner in this area and to face me as the
first opponent would make anyone feel some apprehension."
Ranma smiled gratefully. Though the girl's words were filled with
disdain, she felt that she could trust them. "Thank you."
"Well, I must be off. My brother and servants will be wondering
where I have been for the past few hours," Kodachi lied. She made her way as
slowly as possible to the other side. Neither her brother, nor anyone
in the Kuno mansion would be waiting for her with a cup of warm milk and
her bath drawn unless she asked it herself. She waited a few seconds
for Ranma to say something before sighing and making her way home.
"Wait, Kodachi!" Ranma called and winced as she saw the gymnast
nearly fall over the roof at as Kodachi stopped in mid-jump. "Today's the
weekend. I thought maybe, you would like to do something today with me
and my friends. I mean if you're not doing anything."
"I don't know," Kodachi said exaggeratedly, "I might have time on my
schedule. Yes, I believe I do. I'll come by in the morning."
Ranma watched with appreciation as the girl bounded home across the
rooftops. The sun was just coming up, illuminating the girl in a yellow
glow. She stayed there watching before the realized what the dawn
meant. She had left Nabiki all alone for the whole night!
* * * * *
Ranma breathed a sigh of relief as she entered the room through the
window. Nabiki had fallen asleep. Ranma hoped it hadn't been from
waiting up all night for her. She quickly shrugged her clothes off
before lifting the blanket and getting into bed with Nabiki. She had a
few hours before breakfast would start and she was determined to get as
much sleep as she could.
Sometime later, Nabiki awoke to find her fiancée asleep beside her.
*I knew I shouldn't have eaten so much. All the food made me sleepy. That
massage you gave me just before you left just took the rest of my
strength. Sorry, Ranma. I'll make it up to you. Must have been awful
finding me asleep when you got back,* Nabiki thought. She threw the
blanket that covered the both of them off. A lusty smirk crossed her
face as she discovered Ranma in her underwear. Now that was a sight to
wake up to.
Ranma sighed lazily in her sleep. She had a sudden dream of four
scantily clad girls appearing and forcing her to their whim. One of
them approached her on hands and knees. All she could make out of the
figure's face where very sharp teeth and a dainty tongue flickering in
and out of the dark shadow of a mouth.
* * * * *
"Ryoga, come back here!" Akane yelled as she chased the piglet over
the roof. She didn't think Ryoga could have been strong enough to break
free of that rope.
"Bwee!" Ryoga ran as fast as his little legs could carry him. The
roof wasn't big enough and he was soon running out of places to escape. He
ran over the edge and bent over to see where he could land safely. He
thanked the gods as he caught sight of an open window.
Akane cursed as Ryoga somehow managed to find Nabiki's room. There
was no telling what might happen. She raced over and grabbed the edge of
the roof. She flipped herself over while still hanging on to the ledge
and then managed to swing herself into the open window. Perfect. Or it
would have been if the piglet wasn't directly beneath her foot and
caused her to trip.
"What in the hell?" Nabiki yelled out as she quickly got off of
Ranma.
"Akane?" Ranma asked as the sound awoke her from her beautiful
dream. "What are you doing in here?"
"Um, I thought I saw Ryoga," Akane said before quickly biting down
on her lip. She had promised the lost boy that she would not tell Ranma
and she had nearly blown it.
"I don't see Ryoga here, do you Ranma? Really, Akane if you wanted
to peek, you could have been quieter about it. You can stop staring now,"
Nabiki said she watched where Akane's eyes were focussed on.
"Both of you are barely wearing anything!" Akane suddenly noticed.
They had been sleeping in the same bed without any clothes on. A series
of sordid images of what had happened the previous night passed through
her mind. It was made worse by the sight of Nabiki's body over Ranma
when she had fallen in.
Nabiki rolled her eyes at Akane's prudishness. "What's the big
deal?"
"Um, Nabiki, your tank top is nearly falling off," Ranma said
helpfully and pointed at the shirt. It must have been three sizes too big
as the shoulder straps could barely stay on the shoulders. In fact the left
strap had fallen off and gave a very tantalizing view of Nabiki's pert
left breast.
"So? So's your panties by the way," Nabiki muttered. She was in a
bad mood. Things had been progressing so well.
"Eep!" Ranma looked down and indeed, somehow her panties dropped
lower, but still covering her parts barely. She blinked at the sudden
cold wet feeling as she pulled them up higher over her hips. *These
dreams have to go,* Ranma thought.
Akane gave Nabiki a withering stare. "You're not taking advantage
of Ranma are you?"
"Akane, do you know what you're saying? Two girls, remember,"
Nabiki smoothly countered. "I don't know how these thoughts cross your mind.
With this peeping thing I think I might know now."
Akane faltered for a moment, not sure how to answer that, since she
had been thinking of 'taking advantage' of Ranma in her dreams lately. Not
that she would ever admit it. "Hmph!"
Nabiki grinned as her sister finally left in a huff. "Finally. Now
where were we Ranma. I think I as going down...," she stopped when
Ranma suddenly dropped to the floor by the window.
"P-Chan!"
Ryoga lay in a small pool of blood.
* * * * *
"Good job, Akane. You do your father proud!" Soun cried.
"Can someone pass me the rice?" Genma asked.
"Akane, it isn't right. Sneaking around and peeping in the middle
of the night is wrong," Kasumi admonished more forcibly than she normally
did. *There I go again. They want Ranma, so I shouldn't stand in the
way,* she berated herself.
"I personally don't mind. But it's my duty to protect my fiancée
from perverts," Nabiki added, enjoying the situation. It made up for a bit
of Akane's barging in.
Akane buried her head in her hands at how everybody was getting if
all wrong. If there were perverts in the house it was that damn pig and her
sister.
"Open wide, P-Chan!" Ranma said to her piglet, not paying any
attention to the conversation. "Honestly, I don't know how you keep having
nose bleeds."
"Is anyone home?"
Ranma turned her head at the sound of the voice. "Oh, it's Kodachi.
Come in. We're in the dining room!" she called out.
"Who?" Nabiki asked, her mind knowing already that she would not
like the answer. Ranma has been here too little a time to have made a friend
that she didn't know about.
"Kuno Kodachi? That psycho from last night?" Akane asked suddenly.
"Uh, yeah. I caught up to her last night when I heard a crash in
your room. Turns out it was just her overzealous nature to get the fight on
the way. You know how some of these athletes can get. I invited her
over so she can make nice with you and spend the day with us," Ranma
replied.
"Kuno-chan's sister?" Nabiki blinked as Akane and Ranma
facefaulted. "You mean you didn't know?"
"She's the sister of that guy who has been giving me flowers right
before the start of school for the past two days? There's a
resemblance, but she looks and acts much nicer than him," Ranma said as
an afterthought.
Three stares with differing degrees of anger immediately swerved to
look at the hallway opening, expecting a succubus to suddenly appear.
So dangerous were their auras, Genma and Soun thought a nice game of
shogi at this time would be good and hastily retreated to a safer part
of the house. Three pairs of eyes widened and then narrowed as a girl
appeared and was not all that ugly.
"Oh, there you are Ranma. Quite a 'quaint' place you have here,"
Kodachi sniffed as she entered the room, ignoring the smoldering looks
that were directed at her.
Akane took a better look at Kodachi under the morning light. Gone
was the seeming constant haughty visage from the last night. In its place
was a confused smile meant only for Ranma, which made her slightly more
pleasant to look at than the witch from before. The obvious disdainful
words Kodachi just uttered appeared to be more from habit than actual
feeling.
Nabiki had heard of Kodachi, but did not expect to see a rather
normal if stuck up girl. She half-expected a psychotic gymnast flying into
the room in only a leotard. She should have known better than to believe
the 'facts' from people that lost to the girl. Most of them were most
likely exaggerated claims. The girl was actually not bad to look at and
she somehow didn't trust the wandering gaze of her fiancée not to notice
this.
Kasumi sighed as she saw the eyes that Kodachi made at Ranma. They
were confused, but there was definitely a strong undercurrent of
attraction in them. "I'll get you a cup, so you can join us for tea,"
Kasumi spoke up as soon as she realized her sisters were not going to
offer this simple courtesy. Her heart warmed as Ranma gave her a
grateful glance.
Kodachi was surprised to see another person other than Ranma treat
her so well after what she had done to Akane the night before. She was even
more surprised at the very warm smile the eldest Tendo sister gave her.
"T-thank you," Kodachi stammered losing her cool for a second. Being so
near her new friend disarmed even the most ingrained habits that she
had. So much so that she actually didn't tip the girl for her efforts.
"We're just having breakfast. Would you like to share some of our
meager helpings? I understand that you're used to better." Kasumi had
often heard of the fatted calf Kuno family that Nabiki mentioned, but
felt it would be impolite to refer this as her source of the
information.
"I'll get the bowl," Akane finally said, putting her differences
with Kodachi aside. There was nothing really that she could be mad about
other than the attack the previous night which Ranma had already
explained to her as mere enthusiasm. Besides that, Kyoko, Yagami, and
Akemi, would have asked for revenge if Kodachi were really bad.
Kodachi could only stare flabbergasted at the smiling family. She
had come prepared with her weapons underneath her shirt if things turned
ugly. Even going so far as to load up on anti-toxins into her body,
just in case. They were not acting like anything that she expected.
"Kodachi? You okay? You seemed dazed. You're not still feeling
the effects of the paralysis gas are you?" Ranma asked this last question
quietly away from the ears of the others. Of course to do this, she had
to bend her mouth towards Kodachi's ear.
Nabiki's decision on what to do was made for her as she watched
Ranma about to neck Kodachi. How much time did they spend together last
night? She was really regretting falling asleep. "Maybe, she should go
home if she's feeling sick. Kasumi just washed the floors yesterday."
Kodachi grinned as gave Ranma as slight shake of her head to
indicate she was alright. The middle sister's greeting had been just what
she had expected and her senses righted themselves and she forced her
jumbled emotions to concentrate on the new perceived threat. "Oh, I'm
feeling much better now... Nakiki, was it?"
"Why you arro..." Nabiki's eye twitched at the mauling of her name,
but before she could reply, she saw Ranma take Kodachi's attention.
"No, this is Nabiki. I guess it's my fault of not introducing you
at first. That is Kasumi and you already know Akane. I'm really sorry
about this, Nabiki," Ranma apologized to her fiancée. She had seen the
anger in Nabiki's face and knew she had blown it again.
Two hearts nearly broke at seeing Ranma's head down, blaming herself
for their tension. "No, no, Ranma. I should have confirmed it before I
made such a horrible mistake," Kodachi said. Seeing Ranma's face so
down caused a guilty feeling to well up in Kodachi.
"Yeah, I shouldn't have expected too much. This is the first time
that we've met each other." Nabiki grudgingly extended her hand out and
Kodachi did the same.
Ranma's responding smile brought a tingling feeling to both girls as
they gazed into her beautiful face. Nabiki felt her hand grow warm
suddenly as goose pimples raised on her arm. She had wanted to jerk her
hand back after it was over and done with, but suddenly found herself
reluctant to do so.
Kodachi found that all feeling in her body appeared to have decided
to congregate on her hand. Her entire body was numb to the outside world.
Her pleasure centers finding that they liked where they were. Ranma's
happiness at seeing her in friendship with Nabiki only increased the
strength of the feelings.
"Hey, what's going on?" Akane asked as she came out of the kitchen
with a bowl for Kodachi. She was surprised to see Nabiki and the girl shake
hands. Her sister didn't make friends easily. "So, you all set for
some shopping after this?"
"Yes. I think I need to buy a pair of panties," Nabiki answered
quite suddenly.
Kodachi was shocked at the openness of underwear being discussed but
realized that there were only girls in the room. It was nice that
Nabiki felt they were close enough to talk of such intimate apparel.
"Yeah, I need some too," Akane quickly agreed. "Ranma, do you think
we bought enough for you the last time?"
"They were a little tight, but I think I have enough," Ranma
answered meekly as Akane and Nabiki seemed to be staring her down.
"They were probably the wrong size. We should get you some new
ones. I think the store will take them back and exchange them," Nabiki said,
knowing full well that she had made sure Ranma bought pairs that were a
size too small. "Maybe we can get some 'other things' while we're
there?"
"What other things?" Kasumi asked simultaneously with Kodachi, both
curious at the grins Akane and Nabiki were sporting and the effect it
was having on Ranma. "Oh my!" they both replied at the same time when
they got their answer.
* * * * *
"Out of the way, hot stuff coming through!"
"Oof!" Kodachi cried out as she was suddenly pushed aside by an
oncoming bicycle carrying a delivery boy.
"Oh, sorry, miss... where are you going? Never seen anyone react
that badly to hot soup before," the boy said, scratching his head confused.
"Kodachi, you alright?" Akane asked as she helped the girl to her
feet.
"I am, but Ranma isn't. I think this idiot spilled boiling soup on
her."
"She's um... hot water and her...," Akane tried thinking of a
plausible explanation.
"She's afraid of hot water. She has an aversion to it from a
childhood incident. Can only take luke warm baths, the poor girl," Nabiki
interjected before Akane could bungle it.
"It's my fault. I saw her jump in front of me to stop the bike! I
better find her," Kodachi said and raced in the direction Ranma has run
off to.
"Ranma hasn't told Kodachi her secret yet?" Kasumi asked, not liking
the lie she was now caught up in.
"The more people know the worse it will be for Ranma. You don't
want her uncomfortable, do you?" Nabiki asked. "Right now, we've got to find
Ranma before Kodachi does."
* * * * *
"Oh, sir? Have you seen a girl fly past here? She was wearing...
what you're wearing actually. It didn't look very unisex on her." Kodachi
blushed as she realized she was staring. The boy in question even
shared some of the same features as Ranma. Long pony tailed hair and
clothing not withstanding. Later in the day, she would wonder why she
had asked instead of demanded help. Her concern over Ranko was again
making long habits of hers forgotten.
"Um, I think I saw someone like that across the street over there,"
Ranma said after a moment of hesitation. Hesitation due to the obvious
concern in Kodachi's eyes. He could not help but feel good at the flash
of appreciation Kodachi passed her way before going towards the place he
indicated. Nothing could ruin his day.
He was wrong of course. A broken hot water tap in a bathroom and a
clumsy waiter in a restaurant would all prove to him false in his
conclusion.
* * * * *
"I think you have a secret admirer, Ranma," Kodachi said not too
happily to her friend as the two of them walked back to the Kuno Mansion
after what had to be the greatest day of her life. The other three
sisters having gone home, all suffering from cramps apparently as they
walked home funnily from the lingerie store. Kodachi's training in
gymnastics made her much more limber and it wasn't as noticeable. At
least she hoped it wasn't, blushing red at the thought. "Every where we
go, there's this guy that shows up dressed exactly like you. If that's
not obsession I don't know what is."
"Uh... ah, I know who your talking about. That's Ran... that's it.
That's Ran. He's an old friend of mine that drops in once in awhile to
look after me. He's really overprotective, but I think of him as a
brother," Ranma lied.
"That's really admirable of him. Why aren't you staying with him
instead of the Tendo's," Kodachi asked. Though after spending a day
with them, she could see how much fun a bunch of girls might be over an
overprotective brother.
"Oh, I'm engaged to be married to one of them..." *Oops!* Ranma
thought belatedly. She tried to explain the situation to Kodachi but
the girl had frozen solid into place.
* * * * *
Kodachi looked out the window, watching the limo take Ranma back to
the Tendo dojo. She supposed she couldn't blame the sisters for her
friend's situation. In fact they were probably helping Ranma by
prolonging a decision. How dumb could their fathers be? Engaging two
girls together just because neither had a boy.
Kodachi tried thinking of some way that she could help Ranma, also.
She convinced herself it was purely on Ranma's behalf and not on the
girl's ripe full body that was plump in all the right places that would
make any man or wom... Kodachi stopped the thought abruptly. Friends
weren't supposed to think that way about other friends. It was shameful
enough how she acted in that store. She looked down at the flimsy
nightie she had bought and had nearly tried on right then and there for
Ranma.
That boy, Ran! She recalled the uncomfortable look Ranma had when
she described Ran. It could be that it was Ranma copying Ran's mode of
dress, Kodachi figured. Placing two and two, she got her answer. If
she could put the two of them together fast enough, the farce of an
engagement could be stopped. She ignored the jealousy and anger she
felt at Ran. She had a friend to help. The very idea of that brought
contentment to Kodachi that she had never known before. A friend.
That didn't mean she would let up on Akane though. She beat the
girl, _fairly_, in two hours the next week. The longest match ever recorded
in history.
Back to Lesbian 1/2 Index - Back to Ranma 1/2 Shoujo-Ai Fanfiction