Neko-phobia Part 1: Akane-san Wa Neko-chan Da Yo by David Eddy A fan fiction based on Takahashi Rumiko's Manga series, Ranma 1/2. The characters of Ranma 1/2 are the property of Takahashi Rumiko and her licencees. See the author's notes at the end for credits and rambling. C&C is welcomed! Please! ======================================================= Akane was cooking... under Kasumi's supervision. "Kasumi-oneechan, I'd like to make some cookies. Would you help me?" Kasumi had smiled lovingly at her youngest sister. "Of course I will, Akane. What sort of cookies did you want to make?" Akane had hung her head a little. "Something... simple. Would you help me choose, oneechan?" She looked up. "I want them to be delicious!" "I think we can do that, Akane. Why don't you find an apron and I'll get out a recipe for you?" "Akane, stop!" Akane looked at Kasumi, salt canister in her hand. "What is it, oneechan? I was about to add the sugar." "What are you holding in your hand?" "The sugar... why, that's the salt!" Kasumi picked up the sugar canister from its home. "Here, *this* is the sugar." "What are you *doing*, Akane!?" The smile fell from Akane's face at the exasperation in Kasumi's voice. "I'm just going to add a few spices to make them more interesting," she said uncertainly. "I don't think that cinnamon, paprika, and oregano would combine to make a pleasant flavour." Akane looked at Kasumi in surprise. "But they all smell nice." "Yes, but when you put them together...." Kasumi frowned thoughtfully at Akane. "You do well at chemistry, don't you?" "Eh?" grunted Akane indelicately, caught unaware by the change of subject. "I got an A last term, oneechan," she said proudly. "That's very good! When you're doing experiments, what happens if you don't mix the chemicals properly, Akane? If you use the wrong amounts, or the wrong chemicals?" Akane frowned. "Then it doesn't work, or the results are wrong. Once we had a small explosion." She tilted her head, looking at Kasumi curiously. "Why do you ask, oneechan?" "Cooking is a form of chemistry, Akane. The end result is measured in terms of nutrition, taste, aroma, and texture." A look of comprehension dawned on Akane's face. * * * "Ranma, would you like a biscuit?" Akane's voice was nervous as she stood, holding a plate of cookies in the shade of the large cherry tree by the dojo. Ranma was working out, doing katas and conditioning exercises in the humid heat of early afternoon. He was wearing only his ubiquitous Chinese black pants; his torso was covered in a film of sweat. He turned to face Akane and looked suspiciously at the plate held in Akane's hands. She had arranged a number cookies on it in a pleasing pattern. He leaned over to examine them closely. The cookies looked normal enough: The star shapes produced by a cookie cutter were clean and precise; the cookies were a pleasant golden-brown; and the texture looked okay. They smelled nice, too. But... experience was a hard teacher. "Did Kasumi cook these?" Akane shook her head. "I... I cooked them especially for you, Ranma." She smiled winningly. "Don't they look nice?" "You cooked them?" Ranma looked at her accusingly. "Are you trying to poison me?!" "What do you mean?! They're perfectly alright!" Akane's expression became angry. "You stand there and accuse me of attempting to poison you and you haven't even tried one yet?!" She dropped the plate and pulled a mallet from nowhere and cocked it in both hands over her head. "Eh? Why shouldn't I? You can't cook at all! Unfeminine!" Akane was now emitting a blue aura; her eyes were ablaze. "Ranma no..." The mallet descended quickly, Akane's final word becoming a kiai. "...BAKA!!" Ranma managed to dodge the hammer blow, but he felt a tingle as it whistled past his body and noted a momentary glow about the hammer out of the corner of his eye as he jumped out of danger. Akane chased after Ranma, the mallet again cocked over her head. Ranma backpedalled into the pond, his normally-excellent coordination deserting him, his expression shocked. He quickly disappeared under the water. Akane ran to the edge of the pond and waited for Ranma to emerge. The murky waters of the pond started to still. Akane stood radiating fury, mallet still cocked, a hunter waiting for her prey to emerge. Kasumi stepped onto the porch and called to the waiting Akane. "Akane, would you please do a little shopping for me? I need some things for dinner." Akane looked over at Kasumi, then down at the pond. There was still no sign of Ranma. After a moment she released her grip on the mallet and dropped her hands to her sides, her shoulders slumped forward and her head hung in a pose of dejection. "Hai, oneechan." With a last venomous glare at the pond she walked into the house. "Baka!" * * * Soun and Genma sat on the porch playing shogi, the occasional clack of the tiles barely heard over the singing of the cicadas. All the shoji in the house were wide open to catch any passing breeze. An electric fan hummed to itself, trying to move the still, humid air about. Nabiki sat near the fan, reading a manga. Ranma sat comfortably on the porch facing the pond, brooding. Kasumi stepped out of kitchen, wearing an apron, looking slightly concerned. "Ranma, has Akane returned yet?" "Eh? No." "I sent her shopping over two hours ago and she should have returned well before now." "She can take care of herself." "I'd appreciate it if you'd try and find her, Ranma." "But..." Soun looked up from the shogi board. "Yes, Ranma, go look for Akane. It would be terrible if anything had happened to her." "But I.... Hai." Ranma uncurled from his seated position and ran out the gate. * * * An hour later, Ranma was running in a ground-eating lope back towards the dojo. `Akane, where are you?' he asked to himself worriedly. `The shopkeepers remember seeing her, and I found where she did the shopping for Kasumi, but that was hours ago.' He turned a corner, his eyes quartering the surroundings, his every sense on alert. `She wasn't at the park, nor under the bridge, nor was she in any of the other places she likes to go. She wasn't even at school.' Ranma turned another corner, and saw Akane lying by the dojo gates. For a moment it seemed as though his heart had stopped. "AKANE!!" Ranma sprinted to where Akane lay. He knelt by her and lifted her head. "Akane!!" The dojo gates slammed open as Kasumi, Soun, Nabiki, and finally Genma came running at his cry. "Akane!" repeated Ranma, shaking her gently, his face filled with concern. Akane's eyes flickered, then opened slowly. "R... Ranma? What's wrong?" "Are you alright, Akane?" asked Kasumi, kneeling by Akane opposite Ranma. "I... I don't know." She sat up slowly. "I feel fine. Why are we in the street?" "Let's go inside," said Nabiki. Ranma stood easily and offered a hand to Akane to help her up. Akane ignored it and stood up under her own power. Kasumi grabbed Akane's shopping basket and also stood. Ranma, the last one through the gates, slammed them closed with a crash. In the living room, Kasumi served tea. "Akane, what happened after I sent you shopping?" Akane frowned and at length finally shook her head. "I can't remember. I bought the things you wanted and had started home. Then... Ranma was shaking me." "You don't remember anything?" asked Nabiki. "No. But I don't know what you're all so worried about. I feel fine." "I think you should visit the doctor, Akane," said Kasumi. "I don't think that's necessary, oneechan." There was a pregnant pause. Soun looked sternly at Akane for a long moment, then delivered his judgement. "If you don't think it's necessary, Akane, then don't go. But I want you to promise me you'll go immediately if you begin to feel odd." "Of course, otousan. Thank you." She looked at the wall clock, then turned to Ranma. "Ranma, isn't it time for our sparring session?" Ranma grunted. "Do you feel up to it?" "I've just said I feel fine!" He shrugged. "Whatever. Meet me in the dojo in five minutes." * * * The lowering sun lit the undersides of the gathering clouds brilliant crimson. Ranma sat on a big rock by the pond, relaxing after dinner and contemplating the beauty of the sunset. A small corner of him, which usually only surfaced when he meditated in this way, wished that Akane was here with him sharing the sunset. But Akane had been cold to him at dinner and had said she wanted to have Kasumi look at her bruises and to take a bath. The sparring that afternoon had been unusual compared to all their previous sparring sessions. Instead of merely defending as usual, Ranma had taken an active role, spending most of his time attacking, feeling out Akane's defences in detail, trying to get her to lift her speed. He had pushed, and pushed... but finding the right level was difficult; if he attacked too hard Akane had no chance to block his blows and he ended up hitting her. It had been hard, so hard to force himself to continue. It had been a spur-of-the-moment decision. Akane's disappearance had shaken him. In retrospect it was not surprising, but at the time he had felt guilty and had determined to do whatever he could to lift Akane's skill level until she could hold her own against their enemies. A curtain of grey started in the distance, the edge near the lowering sun glowing orange-crimson in stark contrast with the dark slate of the clouds from which the rain came. Ranma felt himself slipping into a true meditative state as he watched the progress of the distant rain. It was all about speed. Akane already had plenty of power. She was quick, too, but not compared to a top-rank martial artist. He wondered idly if her speed was untrained, in which case her potential was high, or if it was the result of intensive speed training by her father and she was close to her limits. No, it was natural. Her speed when attacking him with her mallet was evidence enough of that. Her father. It occurred to Ranma that he had never seen Soun train Akane... yet he must have in the past. Could it be that he had been expected to take over her training... and he had not? No, something would have been said. But... Akane had not trained seriously in Kempo since he had come, and their past sparring sessions had been little but exercises in ego for him. Guilt assailed him. Akane had been able to defend herself before he came into her life. She had done so regularly because of Kunou's stupid pronouncement. But for whatever reason, when he and his father had moved in they had brought with them enemies against whom she had no chance at all of defending herself. Maybe this, too, was a curse... the curse? Ranma pushed *that* thought to one side. Akane would one day be his wife, and it was *his* responsibility to keep her healthy. He had to train her. Giri. Waitaminutewaitaminutewaitaminute! When had he decided that he wanted to marry Akane? That uncute, unfeminine tomboy who had tried to kill him earlier today with her cooking? But the words felt hollow, untrue... and the look that had passed over her face when he had rejected her cookies earlier today, just before she got angry, tore at him as he replayed the incident in his memory. Perhaps, Ranma thought, it's time to be honest with myself... and Akane. But what of Ukyou? What of his obligation to her? The sharp *ding* of a bicycle bell jerked Ranma back to reality. "Nihao!" Ranma looked up to see Shampoo on her bike, descending from a jump over the garden wall. She was on a collision course with his head. Ranma leaned out of the way. Shampoo missed him and landed in the pond instead. He tensed himself to run from the cat that would soon emerge from the pool but was distracted momentarily by the change sweeping through him as the splash of Shampoo's landing hurled water over him. The water cleared from Ranma's eyes and her first sight was of Shampoo, her short silk dress clinging wetly to her delectable curves, standing in the pond with a soup carrier in one hand. She was smiling. She wasn't a cat. A synapse spat in Ranma's brain. Shampoo's curse had been cured. "Shampoo!" Ranma jumped off the rock into the pool next to Shampoo, her red braid dripping water, and grabbed her by the shoulders. "You're cured! Tell me how you did it!" Shogi pieces went flying as Genma leaped from the porch straight into the pond. Now a panda, Genma attempted to grab Shampoo as well. She twisted out of onna-Ranma's hands to avoid the panda's grip. Ranma tackled Shampoo, submerging both of them in the pond. They popped up, Shampoo hugging Ranma's face to her chest, Ranma with big eyes trying to get away form her. Genma materialised a sign saying, "Tell us!" and used it to lambaste Shampoo, usually hitting Ranma instead. Finally Ranma squeezed out of Shampoo's grip and clocked Genma behind his round furry ears. "Stop it, oyaji!" Shampoo stood in the pond and looked angrily at the soup container which was now bobbing in the pond. "Husband waste the ramen Shampoo cooked for him!" "You're cured, Shampoo!" said Ranma intelligently. Shampoo smiled at Ranma. "Aiya. Of course Shampoo is cured. Is Shampoo a cat?" She struck a pose. "Shampoo is a whole woman now." "How did you do it? Tell me!" Genma held up his sign and knelt down in a pose of supplication. "That not matter." Shampoo glomped onto Ranma again. She spoke in a seductive voice. "Now Shampoo is a whole woman again, Ranma can marry Shampoo. When do we get married, husband?" With that she jumped again to embrace Ranma. On the porch, Soun was kneeling by the upside-down shogi table. Beside him stood Akane, Kasumi, and Nabiki. All had been drawn by the noise of Shampoo's dramatic arrival and were watching the unfolding scene with fascination. As Shampoo embraced Ranma, Akane could finally stand no more. Her aura flamed. She ran over to the pond, hoisting the top of the stone lantern on the way, and tossed it at Ranma and Shampoo. Shampoo saw it coming and managed to jump clear in time. It hit onna-Ranma on the head, again submerging her. Shampoo glared at Akane. Akane ignored her and stood over the pond, hands clenched at her sides. "This time, stay down there!" she yelled to the pond before spinning and stalking back into the house. "I'm taking a bath!" she said to Kasumi as she went past her. Shampoo left and onna-Ranma staggered out of the pond carrying the huge stone lantern. She plonked it back onto its stand and sat down on the porch and started to wring her hair out before removing her shirt and wringing that, too. Soun and Genma righted their table and began to replace the game pieces. Kasumi wandered back into the kitchen and Nabiki headed towards the stairs. The return to what passed for normality in the Tendo household was shattered when the scream of a lost soul rang out from the depths of the house. It went on and on, finally collapsing into sobbing. "Akane!" shouted Kasumi. She sprinted for the bathroom, for once ahead of Ranma who followed her closely. Nabiki grabbed onna-Ranma's arm as she went by. "Let Kasumi deal with it," she said to Ranma. "And cover those up before otousan has a heart attack." She pushed past Ranma and hurried down the hallway to the bathroom. Ranma wandered into the kitchen and changed herself back to male form using the kettle that Kasumi kept hot all the time. After refilling it he walked back into the living room, a towel draped about his neck, and knelt down at the table. He looked nervous, sitting in seiza. For a time, the only sounds which could be heard were the enthusiastic singing of the cicadas, the clack of shogi tiles, and occasional sobs coming from the bathroom. At length the bathroom door opened and the three Tendo girls emerged, Akane in a bathrobe with her hair damp. Ranma watched closely as the three girls came in. Kasumi's expression was grave. Akane looked as though her world had ended. Ranma found Nabiki's expression more than a little odd... she was boiling mad, absolutely furious in a quiet way. He had never seen her like this before, and he found himself wondering if Nabiki was capable of killing. Kasumi went into the kitchen while Nabiki guided Akane to her usual seat at the table. Ranma covered his continued observation of Akane by changing into his normal, comfortable seated posture. Nabiki went into the kitchen briefly, and reappeared with the large kettle that was kept hot for tea and Ranma. Kasumi followed with a tray which she set on the table. Tea things were on it, plus a tumbler of cold water. A thrill went up Ranma's spine. Cold water. Could it be... "Otousan... ojisama," said Kasumi calmly. "We have tea." Soun and Genma came over to the table and sat. Soun accepted a cup of tea and drank. He waited until the others had been served before asking the only possible question. "Kasumi... what has happened?" "Otousan, it would be best to demonstrate. Akane, please forgive me." Akane looked up briefly with haunted eyes before closing them and nodding. Ranma's spine chilled anew as Kasumi took the untouched tumbler of cold water and moved towards Akane. She up-ended the tumbler over Akane's head. The bathrobe fell loosely to the floor. A lump under it stirred briefly. Ranma leaned over to get a closer look, heart in his throat. A black paw reached out and pushed the robe aside, to reveal a white cat with black socks, ears and tail. Akane had become a cute little cat. "Waaaa!" cried Ranma as he backpedalled inelegantly across the porch and yard to plaster himself flat against the fence. * * * Soun lay on the tatami mats, crying, his daughters clustered about him. It was a scene very similar to that when Ranma and Genma first arrived... except that Akane too was crying and Nabiki was utterly furious. Kasumi took refuge in making fresh tea for everybody, her expression calm. Somehow the simple operations of making tea helped her find her wa and by the time she has finished, she was once again centred. "Please, otousan, drink some tea. Everything will be alright." Tears streamed down Soun's face, but he sat up from his prone position and accepted a cup of tea from Kasumi. "How can it be?" he asked in a broken voice. "Now my daughter will never marry Ranma!" There was a pregnant pause. Ranma looked uncomfortable. Finally, he spoke. "She must have been cursed with Jyusenkyo water," he said. "Has Ha... the master been about?" asked Soun. Ranma shook his head. "He's still at that gymnastics competition in Kobe," spat Nabiki contemptuously. Nabiki leaned forward. She couldn't believe that everybody could be so dense! Couldn't they *see* the obvious answer? There was only one possible culprit, and the thought of what had been done to Akane, to *her family* made her so angry she could hardly speak. She held up her finger to get everybody's attention while she composed herself. "I don't think Akane was cursed with water from Jyusenkyo." Everyone at the table stared at her. "Look at the facts," she continued, her voice intense. Her throat ached from the effort of control. "Shampoo is no longer cursed and refuses to say how it was done. Akane is now cursed and her cursed form *just happens* to look very similar to Shampoo's." Nabiki looked around. Incomprehension everywhere, except Ranma who was beginning to get the idea. "It must have been Shampoo or that demon grandmother of hers," she said, spelling it out. "They must have somehow transferred Shampoo's curse to Akane. Remember, Akane disappeared this afternoon and cannot remember what happened during that time." Ranma's eyes blazed at this. Nabiki watched as he looked at Akane for a long moment then got up and bounced out of the compound in the direction of the Nekohanten without saying a word. Akane stared after him, her eyes first big in amazement and disbelief then narrowed in anger. "Why that... unfaithful, inconsiderate, transvestite, perverted BAKA! I guess he just showed his true colours! He's gone off to cuddle that Chinese strumpet! Now that she's no longer cursed he can't wait to go to her!" Akane gathered herself, ready to leap up and run after Ranma with intent to perform grievous bodily harm. Kasumi placed her hand on Akane's shoulder. She looked a little nervous. "Akane, please wait. I think that all may not be as it seems." Akane relaxed a little under her big sister's influence. "What do you mean, Kasumi-oneechan?" "Remember when Shampoo first came, Akane. Ranma never encouraged her, not really." "But I'm a cat! He hates cats!" "I think you should be patient and watch what happens. You may be surprised." "I agree." Akane glanced over at Nabiki, and stared. Nabiki was smiling nastily. "What?" "I agree. I think Ranma's gone to tell Shampoo exactly what he thinks of her, Akane." Her smile twisted into an expression of mock concern. "I *do* hope she survives the experience," she said sarcastically. * * * Ranma landed outside the Nekohanten. Oddly, it wasn't open for business. Only a few lights were on inside. A sign on the door said, "Closed due to unforseen circumstances. We apologise for any inconvenience. Please come back again." Ranma ignored this and flung the door open and ran inside. "Nihao, Ranma! Husband want ramen?" Ranma quickly scanned the interior of the restaurant, his senses extended fully. What he saw added fuel to his fury. The tables and chairs had been stacked against the walls, leaving the bulk of the floor-space empty. A large tub sat in the middle of the floor with three braziers spaced about it. Some ribbons still hung from the ceiling but there were many more and some other, unidentifiable things in a pile near where Shampoo stood, posing seductively with her broom. It looked like the site of a ritual. Ranma glared at Shampoo, holding himself back from attacking her. An ugly part of him which wanted to unleash his full fury on her was straining to be released, yanking at the restraints of morality, honour, and intelligence. He held it back firmly, knowing that a ritual of this nature was almost certainly beyond Shampoo... and besides, bloody scraps of meat don't answer questions. Ranma stared at Shampoo for a long moment, bringing his temper under control. Finally he spoke. "Why?" he ground out. "Why did you do it, Shampoo?" Shampoo tried to look confused but didn't quite succeed. "What do you mean, husband?" The demon inside Ranma surged against its restraints. "WHY DID YOU TRANSFER YOUR CURSE TO AKANE?!!" "But... but... Shampoo not know what Ranma is talking about." Ranma sawed back on his temper, bringing it under control again, but his eyes blazed. "Shampoo... normally I don't like to hit girls... but I think in this case..." "You think in this case what, son-in-law?" asked Cologne contemptuously from behind Ranma. She moved so that she was next to Shampoo. The demon surged again inside Ranma, and this time broke free. "Kun baba, this is all your fault!" he yelled, launching himself towards the pair. Cologne found herself fighting for her life. She was shocked at how easily he had dispatched Shampoo despite also being fully engaged against her. She analysed his moves even as she struggled to block them, looking for a weakness, admiring in spite of herself how he brought the speed of the Kashuu Tenshin Amiguriken attack to all his movements while at the same time maintaining a stunning power in his attacks. She saw now that Ranma had been holding back in his previous encounters with her, using only as much force as necessary... but now, for the first time, he was truly fighting beyond himself, and there was something in his eyes that frightened her. She was growing desperate, for his power and speed were growing with each moment and she could not hold him off much longer. Ranma was growing impatient. As usual, the old ghoul was holding him off but for some reason he was able to block everything she threw at him, which was just as well given how she liked to use pressure- point moves that could win a fight in one blow. An ugly part of him, the source of the hot blaze of anger that filled him, delighted at the growing desperation he could see in her eyes. He wanted to break off but he could not risk her getting in some paralysing move. His only choice was to finish the fight quickly before he did something he would regret. He summoned his ki, amazed at how easily it came. He felt light- headed with power. He darted in to begin the dragon's spiral. Cologne saw what he was doing and yelled. "How dare you!" she cried as she attacked him desperately, trying to break his concentration. "HIRYUU SHOUTEN HA!" * * * "Look!" cried Kasumi, wonder in her voice. "How beautiful." Everyone followed her pointing arm. Even Akane looked up, yanked out of her black study by Kasumi's voice and the beauty of the display. A red-orange glow was just fading from the low clouds, tendrils floating down, fading rapidly but pulsing with terrible power. Soon the display ended. "I don't think that was a firework shell," said Genma. Nabiki noted the direction from which the display had come. She smiled slightly to herself. "Yes, how beautiful." Kasumi looked at Nabiki, a slight expression of concern on her face. Akane stared off into the distance, thinking about what she had just seen. Could it be? Thunder rumbled. Soun, Kasumi and Nabiki looked at Genma accusingly. He held his hand over his stomach guiltily. Kasumi laughed lightly. "Perhaps I'd better prepare some supper. I'm sure Ranma will want some." * * * The sensation of the change awoke Ranma with a jerk. She sat up and almost immediately regretted it. Aches and twinges were all over her body, but she felt no major pain. She was sitting in the ruins of the Nekohanten. It was raining, the warm rain of summer. Nearby, half-concealed by inky shadow, lay Cologne and Shampoo. They looked battered but not bloody, she was relieved to see. Onna-Ranma stood and exhaustion assailed her. Her legs felt weak, but she tottered across to the others and checked for a pulse on each. They were alive. She was glad; she would not have wanted to have been responsible for their deaths. A voice attracted Ranma's attention. Some people were standing on the street, looking at the Nekohanten's remains and pointing... fortunately, not at her. She was glad for the shadows cast by the wrecked walls. A part of her regretted destroying the cafe as it would no doubt cause hardship for them, but another part felt gratified and happy. Disgusted by the feeling of satiated blood-lust, Ranma wiped her hands convulsively on her legs, trying to wipe away the feeling. Voices attracted Ranma's attention again. A crowd was gathering. It was time to go. She had done enough. She crept out the back, down the alley there, and tiredly set out for home. Sirens began to sound in the distance. * * * Ranma felt vaguely surprised to see the lights of the Tendou home shining over the garden wall. The rain had stopped. Too tired for strong emotion, she pushed open the gate and walked unsteadily in. "Ranma!" She was almost knocked off her feet by Akane, who was crushing her ribs in a boa-constrictor grip. Ranma went red in the face. "A-Akane! I can't breathe!" Akane released Ranma, who leaned forward and blew a little. "Ranma, are you alright?" asked Kasumi. "We were worried about you!" accused Akane. She nodded. "I'm just tired." Kasumi said, "Would you like some brownies? I saved some for you." Genma turned and ran for the kitchen. Ranma watched this display of gluttony with a kind of detached dismay and shook her head. "I just want to sleep." "Did you get them?" asked Nabiki eagerly. Ranma looked at Nabiki. Nabiki was surprised to see that Ranma's expression was slightly sad. "I confronted Shampoo and Cologne. We fought. I won." Ranma shook her head. "I didn't find out why they did what they did." She looked around at the faces of the family and sighed. Nabiki felt confused. Why wasn't Ranma interested in revenge anymore, after what had been done to Akane? "They should be punished," she said. "Then do it yourself. I'm not a puppet who will dance to your strings." Onna-Ranma looked at the ground, and Nabiki thought she saw an expression of loathing cross Ranma's face briefly before she looked up again. "I want to go to bed." She looked at Akane, taking a half-step towards her. "Akane, I..." She gestured vaguely, somehow indicating Akane's curse and the events before and since. "Gomen, ne? Honto ni gomen." Her voice broke a little on the last word. Akane and the others watched mutely as Ranma stepped around them and staggered into the house and trudged tiredly up the stairs, supporting herself against the wall with one hand. =================================== Author's Notes: This is the final draft of part one of a series of at least four parts with the working title of "Neko-phobia". The title of this part translates loosely as "Akane is a cat!" (Its actual meaning is not quite this but that's Japanese for you.) The original idea for this story came from a "fanfic ideas" post by Korhonen Kai Petteri (kkorhone@server.finhost.fi) in which he said (in part): > What if Shampoo succeeded somehow moving her curse to Akane? (OK, I > got the idea from Joseph Palmer's 'Ninja no Himitsu', sue me.) How > would Ranma react to this, could he start to get more control over > his cat-phobia (he does, after all, in certain way care of Akane), > how would Akane react of seeing Ranma trying to control his phobia? > Shampoo would probably think that this would get Ranma to her. I may as well stick with tradition and say, "This is my first fanfic." Spelling and grammar weenies, the spelling used is *Commonwealth* English so please don't gig me for "colour", "honour", "centred", and numerous "s" <--> "z" replacements. I'd like to thank my pre-reader Chris Jones for his invaluable input. Thanks also to Kun-chan for some incisive comments and everybody else who C&C'd to the original version. I couldn't have done it without you. This 'fic uses a fair few Japanese words. I've tried to use them only where the meaning they express is more precise than the English equivalent... or where there is no easy equivalent in English. I've attached a glossary. Baba: Old lady/crone/whatever. Giri: Duty or obligation. It is a very complex and all-encompassing thing, inextricably intertwined with honour. Gomen: An informal way of saying "sorry". "Honto ni gomen" = "I'm really sorry". Hiryuu Shouten Ha: One of Ranma's ki attacks which causes massive destruction. Kashuu Tenshin Amiguriken: Ranma's "roasting chestnuts on an open fire" attack. It depends upon extreme hand speed. Kiai: The yell used by many martial artists as they perform some high- power action is called a "kiai". Its purpose is to focus the mind and body. Kun: A perjorative more extreme than chikuso (damn) or kuso (shit). *Not* -kun, BTW! Ojisama: Uncle (very respectful). The Japanese also use this term to refer to males not related through blood. Oneechan: "elder sister", here used with a mixture of respect (o- prefix) and familiarity (-chan ending). Onna: Female. (Male is otoko.) Otousan: Father. Here the usage is fairly respectful. Oyaji: Old man (very disrespectful). Ranma uses this to refer to his father. Ronin: A warrior for hire (originally a masterless samurai). Generally regarded as being without honour. Shogi: A chess-like game. It is *not* go. (However, Soun and Genma often play go in the anime.) Shoji: The wood and rice-paper sliding doors in a traditional Japanese house. There are many different varieties, each with its own name (and purpose). Seiza: A formal kneeling pose. Tatami: A mat made from compressed rice straw and covered with something (e.g. a stiff no-slip textured vinyl). They are 6' by 3' by about 2" thick. They make a very firm but comfortable floor, slightly less resilient than wood. Wa: Peace, harmony. To find one's wa is to become calm and centred, and is the object of many meditation exercises.