I would like to thank my friends Bryan and Ryan for introducing me to my
first and favorite anime, Ranma Nibunnoichi. I would also like to thank all the
random AOL otaku who Role-Play and/or Emote in chatrooms. I don't remember all
of your names, but I know many of you dubbed me "Neko," Shampoo's twin sister,
whom this fan-fic is written about. I'd like to thank my friend and soundboard
Darien for his great insights into both Mousse and Neko. He contributed a LOT
of the ideas that went into Chapter 3. Without his help, I'd still be in
"Writer's Block" mode. ^_^

Ranma Nibunnoichi is (c) Rumiko Takahashi, Shounen Sunday Comics, Kitty TV, and
Viz Video.


Here Comes Neko!
A Ranma Nibunnoichi fan fiction
By Luna Hinomura
http://fly.to/Luna's

Chapter 1: Shampoo Times Two

Late again. As usual. Couldn't that blasted Ranma just get up earlier?
He was constantly making them *both* late for school. If she hadn't have been
so worried that Shampoo would intercept him and try another one of those tricks
of hers, she would have just gone to school by herself, leaving him behind. She
turned to glare at him.

He scowled. "Jeez, Akane, stop looking at me or people'll think we're
goin' out or somethin'," Ranma said. He recoiled as soon as the words were out
of his mouth, realizing what he'd just done.

"Stare at *you*?! No way, you pervert! I try *not* to look at you!"
Akane screamed back.

If they hadn't begun to argue, Ranma probably would have missed it. As it
was, he'd turned his head to the left to look at Akane. As his feet
instinctively pounded on the fence, (automatically knowing where every next step
was), a splash of pinkish-purple hair, blue Chinese silks flashed by. Was
someone standing in the alley? He had opened his mouth to yell an insult back
at Akane, but his words disappeared. "Was that...Shampoo?" he murmured to
himself instead.

"Shampoo?! Don't tell me you're actually *looking* for her! Ranma, you
jerk! I thought you hated her attention!"

"Don't be stupid, Akane! I just thought..." He backtracked a few steps,
looked into the alley where he had supposedly seen Shampoo.

"Fine! You stay and look for your *darling* Shampoo! I'm not going to
wait around and watch!" Akane left in a huff.

"W-wait, Akane!" Ranma chased after her. "I'm just worried she's after
me again!"

The girl turned to watch them leave. [That boy... He almost saw me. Did
that girl call him 'Ranma'? I'd better follow them!], she thought to herself in
her native language. Clutching her spear, she used it like a pole vault and
gracefully launched herself high over their heads, landing quietly on one of the
many large drainage pipes in the ditch. By ducking down and hopping quietly
from one to the other, she was able to follow from a safe distance. [They'll
never suspect that I'm down here], she thought smugly, [maybe if I listen
carefully, I'll find out if he really *is* Ranma, and if Shampoo...]

Stars. Pretty stars. All different shapes and sizes. They flashed
through the girl's mind as a sleek and well-used bike crashed into the back of
her head, knocking her from her precarious stance. [Aiya!] She landed with a
splash into the cold waters of the ditch.

"Nihao, Ranma!" the bluish-purple haired girl atop the bike said,
pinning him underneath it.

"Shampoo...! So it *was* you!" Ranma growled.

Making sure only her eyes and nose were sticking out of the water, she
scrutinized the newcomer. Upon recognition, she gasped, nearly choking on the
water. Finally, after so long... *Shampoo*.

"Did you hear a splash?" Akane asked, directing her question to no one in
particular.

Her eyes widened, and she quickly submerged herself under the water with
barely a trace. She watched from underneath until the three blurry figures
left. Then, she turned away and paddled rapidly, quickly swimming away.

* * * * *

She stood outside the school she'd seen the boy and girl enter. She
looked at the mixture of kanji and hiragana written on the sign attached to the
wall. Fu... Rin... Kan... High School? She really needed to work on her
Japanese. Even though it was pretty hard, she was a quick learner, though she'd
only recently begun to learn. [Fu-rin-kan High School], she repeated to
herself. Frustrated, she pounded the butt of her spear on the dirt.

If that *was* Ranma, she would test him. He couldn't possibly be worthy.
Not even that blue haired girl had seemed interested in him! What did Shampoo
see...

She was startled as a bell rang eight times, all different notes, and all
very clear. Her heart was pounding, but she relaxed when she realized it was
only a school bell, nothing to be upset about. Students, both male and female
began rushing past her. They were wearing school uniforms, the same kind that
the blue-haired girl had been wearing. It *had* to be this school.

She spotted them. There they were, walking together again. She jumped
onto the wall and watched them pass by, too busy talking to notice her. She
leapt from her position, aiming to touch down in front of them.

Before she landed, she brandished her spear with flair, went through a few
movements of the Chinese spear form. It was a trick she'd learned from Shampoo.
To fool or psych out your opponent, making them think your skills were twice as
good. Not that she really needed it, her skills alone without all the fanciness
were enough to scare anybody. Shampoo's other trick, speaking in broken
Japanese, worked better. She could make anybody believe she was not as smart as
she really was. Of course, the girl's Japanese was so bad she really couldn't
pass off that one.

"Saotome Ranma! I challenge you!" she called out, pointing her spear
directly at his neck. She'd landed about five feet in front of him, the
distance she had estimated. Perfect.

"Sh-Shampoo!" the boy whom she assumed was Ranma stuttered, "what the
hell'd you do to your hair?"

"Shampoo, leave us alone!" Akane ordered.

How impertinent. They couldn't even take a challenge seriously. Very
well, then... A few quick movements and Ranma was down on his back, caught off-
guard. She rammed the spearhead directly at his face, but he anticipated the
move, and her spear dove deep into the dirt, less than an inch from his temple.

Her eyes widened as soon as she realized she'd missed. Not missing a
beat, she flipped over her spear, simultaneously pulling it out of the circular
hole she'd made as she descended once more to the ground. Then, she turned back
to look at the two. Ranma was only starting to get up, still stunned by the
sequence of events.

"You lose. I still standing. You weak, no good for husband. I tell
great-grandmother!" she said, and left in the direction of the NekoHanten,
sometimes running on the ground and sometimes leaping to the building tops.
Such disgrace must be kept out of the family...

* * * * *

"Did Shampoo just dump you?" Akane said incredulously.

"Don't ask me," Ranma said, rubbing the back of his sore head. That
Shampoo sure could bash people well. And the ground wasn't exactly the softest
place to go banging your head into. "I just wish she'd go away; back to China
or somethin.'"

Something else smacked him from behind. It knocked him off balance, but
he was able to regain it, and turned around. Then, he was looking into
Shampoo's eyes. Their normal red-violet brightness was gone, and she was
definitely crying. Her mouth twitched into a pout.

"Ranma hate Shampoo that much?" she asked in between sobs.

He involuntarily took a step back and noticed a bonboris lying on the
ground. One of Shampoo's famous Chinese martial arts weapons, the so called
'double hammer.' Well, it was double when she had her other one out. It must
have been what she'd thrown at him. Something about her was troubling him,
though...

"What's with your hair, Shampoo, and why did you attack me a few minutes
ago?"

"I no attack you, baka! Shampoo just finish delivery, and come visit.
Ranma no appreciate Shampoo, that is why hit you."

"No, no, before that," Ranma said.

"Don't you know how dangerous it is to use a spear? It's a long range
weapon! You could have hurt a bystander!" Akane told her.

"Spear? Shampoo no use spear, is bonboris." She pointed down at it for
added emphasis. Her forehead furrowed for a minute, but then her eyes widened
much the same way they had before (or so Ranma thought), and she gasped.

"Is pink hair?" she asked Ranma and Akane, gesturing at her own.

"Yeah, your hair was a lot pinker before, now it's a darker purple," Ranma
answered.

"And you were wearing blue, not pink," Akane added.

"Shampoo go now," she said curtly, then leapt to the roof of the nearest
building. She was headed in the direction of the NekoHanten.

[Again?] Ranma thought. "Shampoo, wait!" he called, leaping after her.

"Bother. How did I get caught up in this?" Akane muttered to herself,
then began a pursuit by ground.

"Akane, come up here! It's faster!" Ranma called back down to her, after
a quick glance over his shoulder.

"In case you haven't noticed, I'm wearing a dress!" she yelled back.

"So what?"

"So I can't exactly go leaping around! It's called feminine modesty! You
could stand to learn some!"

[Bah. Why should *I* learn about feminine modesty?] he thought to
himself. "Yeah? Well, no one wants to see your polka-dot panties anyway!"

"That does it!" she screamed, flinging her schoolbag at Ranma.

"Ahh, Tendo Akane, the sweet sound of thy youthful voice denouncing Ranma
is music to mine ears!"

Ranma stopped. He couldn't just leave her there to face Kuno alone. He
turned around and yelled, "Whadda ya think you're doing to Akane, you...!" but
he stopped and never finished his sentence. The schoolbag hit him in the face
midway through his next leap. He landed on the ground below Akane. By the time
he brushed the dirt off his shirt and glanced around, Kuno was already flying
from Akane's kick, most likely to land in the next city.

"As if *you* care," Akane said scornfully. "I can take care of myself!"

"That's fine with me, next time I'll just leave you two alone. I'm going
to figure out this business with Shampoo."

Akane fumed and her face turned a slight shade redder. Somehow, Ranma
thought (ok, *knew*) that it wasn't a blush of embarrassment. "Ooh! Well, then
I'm coming with you! I'm not letting you run off with Shampoo."

Ranma blinked. Run off with Shampoo? As if! That tomboy. She couldn't
be...jealous? He'd had the same thought many times before, but had brushed it
off every single time. Yet, each time it resurfaced, the distinction was
greater, his doubt much higher. This time, the feeling was very hard to fight
off. He was lucky that he was holding her schoolbag. She wouldn't have
anything to hit him with this way. She held out her arm, expecting to get it
back. He sighed and placed the handle in her outstretched hand.

"Thank you," she said. He could practically see icicles dripping from her
words.

"Let's go, then," he said uncertainly.

* * * * *

By the time they got to the NekoHanten, Shampoo was out of sight. Of
course, they had been by the NekoHanten so often that Ranma or Akane could find
it with their eyes closed. Then again, if Ranma happened to be particularly
hungry, he could probably find it with his nose instead of by memory.

Ranma slid open the door to the NekoHanten, a slightly out-of-breath Akane
behind him. Shampoo was standing just inside, and he nearly crashed into her in
his haste. Akane almost bumped into him, but when she saw him stop, she raised
her hands to cushion the collision. Her hands landed on his back, and she
fairly bounced off of Ranma. He didn't seem to notice.

She was about to yell at Ranma, but something stopped her. That instant
her hands connected with back... It was brief, but she could feel the
well developed muscles rippling underneath that Chinese silk shirt of his. The
fact surprised her, that his muscles were so incredibly toned...

She shook herself out of it. Why weren't Shampoo or Ranma saying
anything? A quick glance inside told her everything.

Shampoo was frozen, her head turned in the direction of a solitary table.
The NekoHanten was vacant, save the two figures sitting at the same table her
gaze fell upon.

Ranma was staring at the table too.

Akane followed their gazes, and saw Cologne and...

[Oh!]

A girl... A girl who looked exactly like Shampoo!

"Nihao, Jie-Jie," the girl said, apparently directing her words to
Shampoo.

"Nihao, Mei-Mei," Shampoo replied.

"'Jie-Jie?' 'Mei-Mei?' What do those words mean, Shampoo?" Ranma asked.
Shampoo didn't reply.

Cologne sighed. "'Jie-Jie' means O-nee-chan, or 'older sister'," she
explained.

"So... 'Mei-Mei' means 'younger sister'?" Ranma guessed.

"Why, what a very smart boy you are, muku-dono," Cologne said, her voice
echoing with pride. She was watching Ranma, so only Shampoo, Ranma, and Akane
saw the girl's wince and her eyes narrow at the word 'muku-dono'. Apparently,
she had something against Cologne's maternal nickname for Ranma: 'son-in-law'.

Shampoo seethed with contempt for the girl. "Mao, ni wei shen ma lai de?"

"In Japanese, Great-granddaughter, Japanese!" Cologne scolded.

"Neko, why you come?" Shampoo said instead.

"Neko?" the girl asked.

"'Neko' shi Mao," Cologne explained to the girl in Chinese. "So your
name is Neko in Japanese."

"Hao," Neko replied.

"Hai," Cologne corrected.

Neko pounded her fist on the table and spewed off Mandarin at a rapid
pace.

"If Neko no can learn Japanese, Neko go home," Shampoo ordered.

"Whoa, talk about sibling rivalry..." Ranma whispered to Akane.

"No kidding..." Akane whispered back.

"Neko learn," the girl vowed.

"Neko no can learn. Is too hard for *weakling*," Shampoo said.

"Neko can learn better than Shampoo!" she retorted.

"Well... Maybe we should be going..." Ranma said, trying to pull Akane
through the door.

"Why? Neko should meet her future brother-in-law," Cologne said.

Neko fumed silently.

"What's going on here?" Ranma heard Mousse say from the hallway before he
entered the restaurant's dining area. Oh, yay. More Chinese greetings.

"M-mao! Why are you here?" Mousse said.

Neko's eyes brightened when she saw Mousse, but then she quickly looked
away. She couldn't let Shampoo see... She *wouldn't* let Shampoo see...

But Cologne hadn't missed it.

"Neko just come from China," Neko explained, "Come see o-nee-chan and
great-grandmother."

"But why?"

"Neko miss family."

Shampoo snorted at the word 'family.' "Ranma, you leave. We stay talk.
No want to you two hear. Is 'family' business."

"Just tell me one thing..." Ranma said. Akane's brow furrowed. What did
Ranma want to ask her?

"Ne?" Shampoo said.

"Is Neko *really* your sister? I mean, after RinRin and RanRan, I'm not
really sure who's related. Maybe you guys *all* look alike."

"Hmph. Not quite, muku-dono," Cologne said, "Neko *is* her sister.
Moreover, she is Shampoo's twin."

"Holy--!" Ranma started.

"We should really get going, Ranma..." Akane hissed.

"Perhaps I was mistaken. It really would be best if you left, muku-dono.
Sibling rivalry is best kept away from outsiders. No offense, of course,"
Cologne said to Ranma.

"None taken," he replied lightly, and the two left.

After they had left, Shampoo turned back to Neko. "Why you really come?
Shampoo no need weakling sister to come ruin wedding with Ranma."

"Luan Ma is no good for Shampoo. Is he who is weakling," Neko stated.

"Aiya, use Japanese, good-for-nothing sister! Is not 'Luan Ma,' is
*Ranma*," Shampoo said, exasperated.

"Take it easy on her, Shampoo. Please. Mao -- I mean, Neko -- hasn't
been in Japan as long as you have," Mousse said.

"What you care, Mousse?" she replied coldly

"Come, now, Grandchild, don't be so harsh on your sister. She claims to
have trained extra-hard since we left China and the village."

"Sister is disgrace to family."

Neko stood up, slamming both her palms down on the table. The sound
shocked both Shampoo and Mousse, but Cologne kept her cool. The table visibly
bent underneath the pressure, and it almost regained its former shape. Almost.
It was slightly U-shaped now.

"Is he who is disgrace! Neko fight him. He lose! No can marry such weak
male, will ruin bloodlines of village!" Neko argued.

"No. Shampoo strongest Amazon of village, Shampoo lose to Ranma. Shampoo
marry Ranma. Is law."

"Ranma not worthy of Shampoo. Is only one man worthy Shampoo," Neko
replied.

"Is only Ranma!" Shampoo's pink battle aura began to swirl around her.

"Mousse only man worthy Shampoo!" Neko's battle aura began to make itself
seen, but it was purple rather than Shampoo's pink.

"What?!" Shampoo yelled, her ki still growing. "Never! Shampoo beat
Mousse many time!"

"Is true," Neko said. "Mousse can beat Shampoo. Neko know."

"How you know?"

"Mousse never attack Shampoo with full strength. Mousse love Shampoo.
Mousse no can bear to hurt Shampoo. Mousse rather see Shampoo happy with Ranma
than sad with Mousse."

Mousse's eyes widened behind his thick lenses. What Neko said made sense.
Though it pained him to see Shampoo in Ranma's arms, it gave him joy to know
Shampoo was happy. Only that bastard Saotome didn't appreciate-- *couldn't*
appreciate Shampoo. If only he would open his eyes see what a wonderful fiancée
he had, the beautiful, purple-haired goddess...

No.

He would never let Shampoo be won by Ranma. He would rather die a
thousand deaths than see the two of them in love. Letting him near
Shampoo was enough. Letting him see Shampoo, letting him converse with her as
friends... Even that pushed the line. Never.

"Deep in heart, Mousse no can hurt Shampoo. He not know, Shampoo
not know, but Neko can see. Neko can see!" Neko grabbed her spear, which had
been lying on an table. "Neko prove Ranma no good for husband!" With that, she
ran out the door.

"Finally, stupid sister gone," Shampoo snorted, but regretted her words as
soon as she'd said them. It wasn't that she hated her sister, no... It was
just... Her sister didn't know what it meant to be an Amazon. Argh, she
couldn't even explain it to herself. Her sister just wasn't up to her
standards, that was all...

* * * * *

Neko raced along the streets of Nerima, tears flowing down her cheeks.
She'd tried so hard to follow Shampoo here, only to become ostracized by her
family once more. It wasn't like it was so bad to marry Mousse rather than
Ranma, was it? After all, Ranma was an outsider to their village.

She noticed that the ditch she'd been following had expanded, and there
was a grassy bank above the concrete that lined it. A nice place to go and
contemplate what had happened, or to ponder about what she should do next. She
sat down on the soft grass, her spear next to her. The tears still rolled down
her cheeks unheeded.

"Neko..." a voice said from behind her. She recognized it.

"Mousse, why you follow?" she replied.

"Neko, why did you follow us here?" he asked instead.

"Answer Neko question first!"

"Does it really matter?"

Neko was silent.

"Don't worry, I'm not here to chide you. I'm not here to pick on you,
either. I was just worried, that's all."

"Why Mousse worry Neko? Mousse love Shampoo."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

Neko tried to hold back the tears, willing them to stop. Mousse sat down
next to her.

"You're really trying to help me marry Shampoo?" he asked.

Neko nodded. The tears had finally ceased their endless flow. "Ranma no
good for Shampoo. Shampoo marry Mousse. Mousse stronger Ranma."

"How do you know?" Mousse asked. "He's always beaten me before."

"Mousse defeated-- Neko beat Ranma." Neko hoped he hadn't heard the
correction in her sentence.

But he had. "You still remember?"

"I not forget."

"It was an accident," Mousse said, stressing the word.

"It wasn't just an accident, Mousse. It was... A mistake..."

Then they both fell silent, both their thoughts returning to an event long
ago... Though they remembered the same occurrence, each did so from their own
point of view.

It wasn't hard for Mousse to see how it happened. Yes, Neko and Shampoo
were twins, and yet, they were so very different. Where Shampoo had excelled in
combat, Neko had lagged behind, and vice versa. When Neko chose to learn the
straight sword first, Shampoo immediately chose the broadsword instead. When
Shampoo had chosen the staff, Neko had chosen the spear. Their sibling rivalry
was well known throughout the entire village.

So when he became infatuated with Sha-- no, wait, make that 'fell in love
with' -- Shampoo, Neko was immediately jealous of the attention. It wasn't that
she loved him, no... She just wanted to be able to do the same thing Shampoo
did. Scorn males whom she felt were not worthy, would never be worthy. Neko
wanted to feel special like Shampoo. She wanted to know that she was good
enough to win many suitors, but also wanted suitors that were not good enough
for her. Her self-esteem had been killed by Shampoo.

Not to mention Cologne.

Mousse had hung around their family long enough to know who
Cologne's favorite was. She was always trying to help Shampoo, always calling
her 'Great-granddaughter' or simply 'Granddaughter'. He'd never once heard
Cologne refer to Neko as a granddaughter, rarely even calling her by her name.
She was only known to Cologne as "Shampoo's sister."

And then there was that terrible accident...

It was after Shampoo and Cologne had left for Japan; Shampoo's second
trip. Of course, they had refrained from telling him where they were going so
he wouldn't follow. So when he visited Shampoo, he hadn't known that only Neko
remained...

"I challenge you!" he'd called out as soon as he saw a person whom he'd
thought was Shampoo.

The girl had rushed at him, answering his dare, and a long battle ensued.
He was punched, kicked, but he could feel his own strikes getting through. It
wasn't until he began to tire, when he was sure he would lose that he realized
he would be defeated by Shampoo again. No. He couldn't let that happen. As
much as it pained him to see Shampoo hurt, he would win. He *had* to win.

"Forgive me, Shampoo!" he'd cried, and launched his yo-yo in her general
direction.

"Shampoo?" he heard the girl say before the yo-yo hit her squarely in the
forehead.

He didn't hear anything else, and he realized he must have knocked Shampoo
out cold. A great feeling of joy spread from his heart and set his whole being
aflame. The thought of winning, of knowing Shampoo was now his, nothing could
compare to it...

Except the feeling of utter despair when he'd put on his glasses
to examine Shampoo's wounds.

It wasn't Shampoo lying there.

It was Neko.

End of Chapter 1