Heaven's light graced the traveling party of Prince Tatewaki Kuno, glinting off the gilded carriages and jingling harnesses. The sky was clear of any signs of trouble, the flowers blooming in his path wilted gracefully under his horse's hooves. It seemed nothing, on this day when he would again behold his beloved, could harm him. His love for the Princess Akane would simply overwhelm all predators.

They were nearing the magnificent gates, and Tatewaki was in a fine mood. Ukyou, who had long since abandoned her donkey hide and instead simply dressed as a man, was not in a fine mood at all. In fact, she had seldom in her life been in a worse mood. She certainly didn't plan to spend the rest of her life as a cook in the court of the boorish Tatewaki, but she couldn't seem to find a way out of it.

The guards over the gate had seen them, and were lowering the drawbridge for them to enter. The castle was just an ordinary castle, stained stones and a rotting wooden drawbridge. This was a far cry from the alabaster abode of the poet's version of Princess Akane. Princess Akane, so much more blessed than she had been, was probably just another girl.

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"I am NOT in love," Ranma muttered under his breath, crouching in the treetops over Akane's head. Akane was playing in her garden, tossing a small gold ball in the air and then catching it. So what if the sight of her smile made his heart leap? That didn't mean a thing. So what if she was completely unlike any girl he'd ever hoped to meet? So what if she was a warrior? So what if the sight of all those other men vying for her attention made him sick with jealosy?

Ranma wasn't in love, couldn't be in love, because the very second Akane saw him as a man she'd turn away from him. Beat him, like all the other men. All her kindness and beauty would vanish in a mass of flying fists and feet. Not that he didn't thoroughly enjoy watching her beat up other guys.

Anyway, what would that make him? Wouldn't falling in love with someone because she was so much like a guy make him. . . no, she wasn't like a girl at all, how could he love that?

"There you are, my love," a deep voice sounded across the garden. Ranma glowered at the intruder, a tall handsome man with dark brown hair. Akane rolled her eyes and took a step backwards.

"To what do I owe this pleasure, Kuno-san?" she asked politely. Ranma frowned in suspicion. That was different. She never talked to them before hitting them.

"To my undying devotion to you, of course," he smiled, an easy smile that flashed pearly white teeth. "I, Tatewaki Kuno, age seventeen, the pride of my kingdom and joy of all hearts, have come for you."

Ranma hated him already.

"You know men are never allowed in my garden," Akane said softly, taking another step backwards. What about this man had her so afraid? Ranma saw a glint of steel at the man's side, and it all rang clear. He was armed, and Akane was wearing one of those ridiculous things with corsets. She would never be able to fend him off.

"My love, how coy you are," Kuno smiled, stepping in and reaching out for Akane. Ranma had seen more than enough. He jumped out of the tree, landing between Kuno and Akane.

"Back off!" he growled, aiming a kick at Tatewaki's head. It landed, solid, but Kuno simply rocked back and absorbed the blow.

"Who are you?" Akane asked him, and he realized all too late that he was, currently, a guy. Crap.

"Not now!" was all he could reply, because Kuno drew his sword at that point. And Akane stood stupidly behind him, as if she didn't realize that was sharp, naked steel in the hands of an idiot. "Kuno! Away from the princess!" he shouted, and vaulted into the trees, to come out again behind Kuno.

The tall, brunette boy slashed at him, and he jumped on top of the sword. He delivered a series of kicks, fast and hard, to Kuno's face. The tall, arrogant prince fell, unconscious.

"That was way too easy," Ranma muttered. "Why was she afraid of him?"

"Who are you?" Akane repeated, glowering at him. Why was she mad at him now?

"Don't tell me you actually like this guy?" Ranma asked, feeling it like a stab through the heart.

"Don't be stupid," Akane snarled, and he felt instantly better.

"Ah. Well, see ya around," Ranma smiled awkwardly, jumping back up into the trees.

"Wait!" she called after him, but he ignored her.

Akane watched the young stranger leap from tree to tree. Something about his face and clothing was familiar, but she couldn't place it. She would ask Ranma if she knew the young stranger. Perhaps he was a part of some Prince's entourage, but surely Ranma would know the name of a martial artist with skills to rival her own.

Princess Akane stalked through her garden and back into the castle, in search of her friend. She forgot all about her little golden ball, which she had accidentally dropped into an ornamental fish pond when Kuno surprised her. In fact, she was so busy wondering who the young raven-haired stranger was, she didn't notice the oddly dressed young man jumping out of the trees behind her. She didn't even notice the splash as the young man jumped in the water, or the grunting squeals of effort as a little black pig climbed out of the pond, holding her golden ball in its mouth.

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"Ranma!" a clear voice sounded behind him. Ranma turned, with a preemptory glance down to make sure he was in the right body. Assured that all breasts and hair colors were correct, Ranma looked up and smiled at Akane.

He knew full well why women wore those ridiculous things now that he'd seen Akane in men's clothing. They were softer, more feminine, encouraged feelings of protectiveness and longing.

Not that he cared what stupid girls wore. Stupid, no good, ridiculous girls and their stupid fashions.

"Hey, what's up?" Ranma asked, trying to sound casual.

"I, ah. . ." Akane murmered, blushing a little bit. "There was a strange man in the garden, I thought you might know who he was."

"What was he doing there?"

"I don't know. He just beat up Prince Kuno and vanished," Akane answered, frowning.

"Kuno, eh? I've heard stories about him. He sounds like a real jerk," Ranma muttered.

"Well, I wouldn't go that far, nessecarrily," Akane frowned. Ranma fought the urge to shake her until her brains rattled. "He's an enthusiast, I think."

"So the great Akane has finally fallen to a man's charms?" Ranma asked, the question coming out a hell of a lot more bitter than it had been in her head. Angry, even. Jealous.

Crap.

"Pah!" Akane grunted. She started pulling off some of the rather heavy jewelry customary in her more formal garb. It was a sure sign she was about to get all dolled down and head for the dojo. "There were a few incidents when I was much younger, but that's all water under the bridge now. Now there's some guy I've never seen in my life hopping out of trees and rescuing me from . . . enthusiasts. As if I need rescuing." Akane paused, and looked closely at Ranma. "Come to think of it, he sort of looked like you."

"What kind of incidents are you talking about?" Ranma asked quickly, deciding that that particular topic would be unproductive. Akane frowned a bit.

"Oh, you know. Little stolen kisses in the garden after a ball, sparring matches that turned into things a bit less. . . martial. Kuno was quite charming when he was younger. Or maybe it was when I was younger. When the archaic speech was still impressive," Akane shrugged it off and smiled at Ranma. "But it all seems so foolish now. You've probably done the same thing."

Stolen kisses. Less . . . martial. That was it, Kuno was dead. Not out of any kind of jealousy, of course. A martial artist is bound to protect society from a public meance like that. Smooth talkers are the WORST kind of public menace.

Or so Ranma told himself.

"Nope, I've never kissed anybody," Ranma said absently. "Let's get back to that other guy. What's he look like?"

"Well, he was dressed in a gi that was just a bit too small for him. It was open in the chest, and looked as if it was too tight to close at all. It looked familiar somehow, maybe I've seen that style before," Akane paused for a moment. "He had a very muscular chest, and very muscular arms. Not big and hulking, more. . . wiry, I guess. A very good martial artist, his style was something like yours. Fast. Ah . . . Black hair."

"Handsome? Ugly? Black hair isn't an awful lot to go on, you know," Ranma smiled, with just a hint of a mischevious grin. Akane glared at her for a moment, then gave up and sighed.

"All right, all right, fine. He was. . . sort of. . . he has a kind of innocent face, the sort you know will look younger than it really is for years. Light-colored eyes, I think, maybe blue or green. Handsome. . . . if you go for that sort of thing, that is," Akane corrected herself, frowning slightly. "I didn't get a good look at him, really," she amended, shifting her gaze away from Ranma's eyes.

::Man, I've still got it. One look at my male form, and she's gone. Too easy,:: Ranma thought to herself, grinning openly now.

"You sound like you got a pretty good look. I thought the lovely Princess Akane didn't like men?" she cooed. Akane glared at the small redhead, her hands curling into fists.

"I DON"T. And when I see THIS one again, I'm gonna PUMMEL him for being in my garden. You should have seen him, Ranma, he was just so. . . . arrogant!" Akane retorted, anger rising with the flush in her throat. "He interfered with a fight between myself and Kuno, as if I couldn't take care of myself! I bet he's just another one of those idiots who want to sweep me off into the bloody sunset!"

::Ooooookay, maybe I don't still have it,:: Ranma thought, taking a half-step back. ::I guess I pushed a button. . . ::

"ARRRRAGGGGH!" Akane snarled, reaching out and grabbing Ranma by the hand. "Come on! We're going to go spar!"

"But I. . . I can't fight you back. . . ."

"Bull! You can too!"

"I don't fight girls. . . ." Ranma muttered. Akane turned on her, throwing a punch at her stomach. The smaller girl dodged to the side, slippery as waterweeds. Getting more angry by the minute, Akane threw a kick at the Ranma's head—or tried to. She was still wearing the monstrous dress witht eh corset, and the metal contraption bit hard into her hip as she was bringing her leg up. With a startled squak, Akane fell over.

"Aw, jeez, you stupid tomboy, can't you even kick right?" Ranma sighed in exasperation. "And you wanna fight ME?"

"You. . . ." Akane began, but then she stopped. She didn't get up, she just sat there with her head bowed, holding her hip. Little drops of water were falling to the floor. ::Is she. . crying?:: Ranma wondered. She'd never figured out how to deal with crying women.

"Akane, are you hurt? Really hurt?" Ranma asked, kneeling and reaching out to touch Akane's shoulder. The blue-haired princess jerked away from her hand, then glared at her, tears still in her eyes.

"Don't worry about me," she muttered, rising to her feet and stalking off down the hallway. Ranma stared after her, petrified. A girl had just told her to mind her own freaking buisness. In her entire spoiled life as a highly desireable prince, no one had ever done that to her. No girl, anyway.

Akane stalked around the corner and down the corridor to her chambers, throwing open the huge, ornate doors and slamming them behind her. As soon as she was in her sanctuary, she allowed herself a moment to lean against the doors and cradle her head in her hands.

"Ranma, you dummy," she muttered. She'd already felt weak and stupid when she;d found her friend, and now. . . Wasn't it enough for one day that Kuno would resurface? Wasn't it enough for one day that some strange guy was apparently following her? ANOTHER one? Did she have to listen to this from her . . . only friend. . . was Ranma really her only friend?

Akane put a hand to her mouth, eyes widening in shock.

She did have other friends. . . far away. In other kingdoms. And she was sort of friendly with some of the servants. But ever since that nonsense started with her father trying to marry her off, no one had wanted anything to do with her. Her friends had stopped answering her letters. . . the servants had become cold. . .

Ranma was the first person in years to actually talk to her as an equal, to actually want to be her friend. Yet, even Ranma thought she was a weakling.

Akane shook herself, standing back up. Who needed friends, anyway? Not her. She was just fine on her own, she'd managed on her own for years. Just because she knew she was alone now didn't change anything.

She struggled out of her dress, deliberately shutting down her mind and heart. She didn't want to think just at that moment. She didn't want to think at all, much less feel. She changed into pants and a loose shirt with a sigh of relief. Dressed like this, she didn't have to worry about things. She could pretend that the stresses of her body were the only realities. She could lose herself in kicks and punches. . .

Carefully numb, she strode out of her room and down the hall, out the doors toward the dojo. A flash of light by her feet made her look down.

"My . . . ball?" she whispered, bending to pick up the golden sphere. A soft chuckle around the corner made her freeze. She looked up tiredly. More stupid boys.

"I fished it out for you. I'd like payment for it, of course," a deep voice said. Akane glowered at the corner. The sky was darkening above her. Soon it would be raining, and hard to see. Perfect. She just LOVED fighting off idiots in the rain.

"What sort of payment?" she asked. She wanted to know how stupid he was. He might ask for anything from her hand in marriage to a happy smile. These boys could be so stupid.

"A . . . .a . . .. a . .. k-k-k-k-k-iiiiisssss ack!" the voice said, just as the skies opened and rain began to plop on the ground. Sighing as she felt the water soak through her clothes, she picked up the ball and walked around the corner.

"What the. . .?" she gasped, noticing the distinct lack of a man in front of her. There was only a pile of clothes, a yellow shirt and some pants. . . which were SQUIRMING. . . .

"Squuee!" the pants yelped, and Akane took a step back. She was about two seconds away from bolting when a little black head poked out of the waistband. The rest of the pig followed shortly after, its only decoration a yellow and black bandanna around its neck. The little pig looked up at her with big, adoring eyes.

"Oh, aren't you cute!" Akane smiled, scooping the piglet up in her arms. "A talking piglet!"

"Squeeeee," the pig murmered, sounding sad. Akane carried the pig and the golden ball into the dojo with her, sitting them down.

"You poor thing, you must be cold. If I only had some towels in here. . . ." Akane muttered, looking around. The pig just stared up at her with big eyes, then glanced at the ball. "Oh, that's right! You asked for a kiss in exchange for the ball! I don't mind a pig," Akane laughed, picking it up and pecking it's snout.

"Akane, what are you doing with that pig?" a voice asked from the door. Akane looked up to see Ranma, dripping wet, in the doorway.

"This pig found my golden ball, and asked for . . . oh, never mind. Why are you here?" she snapped, setting the pig back down. The pig, it might be interesting to note, had extraordinarily dilated pupils at this point.

"I. . . I came to . . . spar, with you," Ranma said slowly. Akane frowned.

"But you said. . ."

"I'm . . . I. . . do you want to fight or not?" Ranma asked, closing the dojo door behind her and flipping her pigtail back over her shoulder.

"Yeah," Akane said, rising to her feet. "I do." She narrowed her eyes.

Ranma nodded and waited for the taller girl to charge her, trusting to her speed to carry the fight. She wouldn't actually HIT a girl. . . but if it would keep Akane from crying, she could play a little. As expected, the popular princess came at her with a slow, strong attack. ::For most people, it would be fast,:: Ranma conceded, mentally, as she dodged. ::Just, compared to me, it's nothing. Not even trouble.::

"Fight back!" Akane yelled, aiming a flying kick at Ranma's head. The redhead was about to jump up and let it sail under her but her foot slipped in a puddle. . . . just in time for Akane to make contact and then fall into a heap with her.

Akane landed sprawled across the smaller girl, just long enough for Ranma to realize that there was nothing but two very wet layers of cotton between them. Blood crept up into her face as Akane lifted herself up. For a second, just a second, their eyes met. And then Akane was up again, up and glaring.

::Get a grip, man, you're losing your damn mind! Getting worked up over a tomboy like her!:: Ranma thought, rising to her feet just in time to dodge another attack. She felt a sharp pain in her ankle, and looked down to see the small black piglet biting her as hard as it could.

That was all the opening Akane needed.

"Hhhhhyaaaaaah!" she screamed, punching Ranma in the chin hard enough to send her flying through the roof, in a direct arc towards the kitchens. The pig, still atttatched, squeeed in panic as the ground loomed closer. . . no, not the ground at all but a giant steaming cauldron. . . .

Ranma and the pig landed in the gargantuan tub of water with a splash that sent most of the hot liquid onto the person who'd hauled all the water in the first place. The two came sputtering to the top, and opened their eyes with the resounding cry of:

"You're a GUY!"

Ranma and Ryouga stared at each other in the hot water, as the boy with the long brown hair and giant spatula fumed.

"Just what are you doing? Does this look like a bathtub to you?" the long-haired boy fumed. Ranma and Ryouga ignored him.

"Who. . . who are you?" Ryouga asked, staring at Ranma's black hair and noticably flatter chest. Ranma frowned at him, crossing his arms.

"Ranma Saoto. . . ah!" he yelped in surprise as the strange boy in the bandanna punched him on the arm.

"I knew you looked familiar! I'm Ryouga Hibiki, we used to train together back when our countries were allies! Remember?"