------------------------------
THE CLAN

Chapter 16 - Healing (Lemon)
------------------------------

	Tofuu trembled. Betty had deserted him upon actually entering
Kasumi's room. Funny, he thought to himself. It looked just like
Kasumi's room always did on the few occasions he had to see it. It
wasn't as if a vampire demon from hell lived there at all.

	"S-s-s-s-so, K-k-k-kas-s-s-sum-m-m-mi?" Tofu stuttered at
length. "W-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w--"

	"Are you cold, Tofuu-sensei?" Kasumi asked. He could just barely
see her through the fog on his spectacles...

	Tofuu shook his head. No, 'cold' didn't describe the situation
at all. It was just the opposite, as a matter of fact.

	"Silly," Kasumi whispered. "Wearing sunglasses at night," she
accused, reaching up to pull at the man's glasses. "You're so
mysterious, Tofuu-sensei..."

	"Urr..."

	With his glasses gone, he could *see* her. She was standing
there in front of him, her breasts heaving slightly, a flush on her
neck and face. There was a hunger as well. It threatened to eat him
alive. In a way, he guessed, that was what he had just volunteered
for.

	Her hands kept going nervously to the top button of her dress.
Tofuu couldn't help but think why.

	"Kasumi doesn't want to get blood all over her nice dress!"
Betty called in from the hallway.

	"Yes, that must be it," he realized. "What do you n-n-eed m-me
t-to--"

	"Sit here, Sensei," Kasumi urged, motioning Tofuu to a cushion
near her bed.

	He nodded, and sat cross-legged. He gripped his knees to try to
stem the trembling. It was little use.

	"Now I'm-- Oh, my..."

	"What's the matter, Kasumi?" Tofuu asked, concern overriding his
nervousness.

	"I... We really should take our clothes off for this."

	"YES!!!" Betty called from her position out in the hallway.

	"Umm... if you think so, Kasumi," Tofuu encouraged. "A-re we
likely t-to make a-a mess?"

	"It's not-- Well--" Kasumi put one hand to her mouth in anxiety
and indecision.

	Tofuu wrinkled his brow. Something was causing her anguish. He
stood, reaching out for her hand.

	"What is it, Kasumi?"

	Kasumi began to tremble as well. Just seconds ago she had been
so sure. Now, she was *petrified*. What would Tofuu think of her?
Could she be so brazen as to actually disrobe in front of him? It
wasn't actually *necessary*, she supposed. 

	Did she *want* Tofuu to... to.. touch her body?

	"Are you okay?" Tofuu asked.

	Kasumi nodded anxiously, turning her head away from the doctor. 

	Inside her, a battle began. 'Good girls don't do things like
this,' her mother's voice seemed to call out. At the same time, she
could see the woman crouched in a locker room (or was it a darkened
alley?) excitedly running one hand in between her naked legs.

	"You didn't!" She could hear Nabiki chiding her, just after
Kasumi had... had... sinned...

	Tofuu's presence was like a spike in her mind. She could *see*
the heat emanating from his body. With her enhanced senses, she could
hear the thump and swish of his heart beating in excitement and feel
its pulse thrumming through his hand.

	Just under the skin of his neck, Tofuu's carotid seemed to be
outlined in red, daring her to come closer.

	But if Kasumi allowed herself to go that way...

	She could already feel the heat rising in her belly, the urges
that would no doubt follow the intense pleasure of *feeding* from
Tofuu. In her mind, she could see the two of them writhing together,
their arms and legs tangled together in a web of desire and passion.
	
	She could easily smell Tofuu's excitement. It was coming off him
in waves, powered by the man's near fever. Her own scent was beginning
to permeate the room as well, just as it had in the alley... and when
she was by herself in bathroom after she and Nabiki shared blood...
and... 

	Kasumi, still turned slightly away from Tofuu, moaned quietly.
Tofuu could not discern the tone of the sound. It almost sounded like
Kasumi was.. in pain? 

	"What's wrong, Kasumi?" he asked insistantly. "Is something
hurting you?"

	Kasumi began to cry, her free hand going to her face.

	Tofuu's heart broke as she began to sob gently.

	"Are you in pain?" Tofuu asked gently, pulling the girl closer
to him.

	Kasumi shuddered as he wrapped his arms around her.

	"I'm such a horrible person," she whispered.

	"Because of this?" Tofuu guessed, gesturing to his neck. "Or
because... because..." He gulped loudly. "Or is it because t-the w-
way... a man... and a w-w-woman--"

	Kasumi nodded, cutting him off.

	"Don't back down now, Tofuu-sensei!" Betty encouraged him.

	Resolutely, Tofuu nodded and took Kasumi's chin in one hand.
Calmly, he stared into her eyes. They began to glow slightly as he
gazed into them.

	"Regardless of what has happened to you... what you've changed
about yourself... You are still a woman, Kasumi. And I am a man. The
things we feel are natural. They're not 'horrible'."

	"I--" Kasumi hesitated.

	A calm washed down over Tofuu. He had never felt this at peace,
even when he had been tested upon the mastery of the art of his
Shiatsu. This... this, being with Kasumi, was the next peak in his
life.

	"I have wanted to be this close to you ever since I have known
you," he whispered to her, allowing his head to dip down toward her
ear. "From.. from what you have shown me, I believe you feel much the
same way."

	Kasumi nodded, uncertainty still prevalent on her face.

	"Then... then let your feelings tell you what is right and what
is wrong."

	He tightened his embrace. "Is this wrong?" he asked. "Or this?" 

	Brazenly, he leaned in, and let his lips rest against hers.
Kasumi gave out a muffled cry at the kiss. Suddenly, Tofuu felt the
force of his embrace returned.

	"Or this..." he continued, wrapping his arms completely around
her. He cradled her head against his shoulder, feeling the wetness on
her face seep through the cotton of his gi.

	"I love you, Kasumi," he stated finally, drawing her face up to
his. "Vampire or woman or whatever you care to be." He pressed his
lips to hers again, savoring the sweetness of the woman he loved most
in the world.

	Kasumi felt a dam break inside her. Hot tears began to flow down
her cheeks, but she did not break the kiss. 

	If this was wrong, these feelings of warmth and security and
desire that were coursing through her blood, then Kasumi resigned
herself to be a sinner. She leaned into Tofuu and returned his kiss.

	"Way to go, Tofuu-sensei!" Betty cheered.

	Tofuu wasn't paying any attention.

* * *

	Soun strode angrily up the stairs, followed closely by Athia. By
the time he reached the second floor landing, Both Nabiki and Kasumi's
doors were shut and locked.

	"Kasumi!" he shouted, loudly enough to be heard through the
walls.

	There was no answer, but when he put his ear to her door, there
was quiet, muffled talk behind it. He could just make out Kasumi's and
Tofuu's voices.

	"No problem there, *yet*," Soun noted to Athia, who was doing
her best to keep from smirking behind his back. "Nabiki! What are you
doing in there?"

	There was quiet giggling coming from behind her door.

	"Daughter, do you have Ryouga in there?" Soun demanded, a hint
of anger creeping into his voice.

	"He got lost, Daddy!" a muffled voice replied after several
seconds of similarly muffled whispering.

	Soun grimaced at the door.

	Athia shook her head, doing her absolute best not to laugh at
the poor man.
	 
	"Even if he is there," Which he almost certainly was, Athia kept
to herself, "There's no way he can hurt her. You really shouldn't
worry."

	"It's not my daughter's *safety* I'm worried about!" Soun
snapped.

	Athia nodded exasperatedly. "I know. Believe me, I know. I had
to go through this as well, you know."

	"On her side, or my side?" Soun demanded sarcastically. 

	"Both."

	"Oh."

* * *

	Tired of her father's interruptions, Nabiki erected a auditory
illusion around her room. Sort of a 'bubble of silence,' she thought.
She was rather proud of it.

	It only added to her excitement. 

	Ryouga groaned as she reached behind her to allow her fingers to
trace a path over his naked chest. Her fangs were sunk deep into his
left wrist as she reclined against him on her bed. His face and skin
were growing pale, but not so pale as to alarm her. Yet.

	She let go of Ryouga's wrist, and began to lick up and down his
arm with her still bloody tongue.

	He began to shake and babble nervously.

	"What is it, Ryogua-kun?" she asked, her voice sweet, yet
predatory at the same time. It was so much fun to tease him like this.
She brought his strong hand up against her neck so that his  forearm
rested between her naked breasts.

	"Ah-a-ah..." Ryouga stuttered as much in shock as desire. Nabiki
gently began to rub his arm with the sides of her breasts. His slight
trembling worsened. He was fairly shaking and his teeth were
chattering in anxious excitement.

	"You like that." It was more of an observation than a question.
"Don't you, Ryouga-kun?"

	Ryouga gulped and nodded.

	"Do you love me, Ryouga-kun?"

	Again, Ryouga nodded. He was trying to control the chattering of
his teeth through his excitement, but didn't trust himself to speak,
lest he embarrass himself with more stuttering. 

	*Nabiki is so sexy,* he thought as she ground her naked buttocks
back into his waist. The feeling of the two soft rounded curves
sliding over the rough canvas of his pants was almost more than he
could take. He could feel the front of his pants becoming tighter. She
seemed to take special care to rub her back and hips against his bound
erection.

	"You want to make me happy, don't you?"

	Ryouga nodded excitedly. He knew what was coming, and it made
him miserable with anticipation.

	Nabiki was still holding Ryouga's wrist. It was amazing, she
thought, the way the deep punctures just healed over as she was
watching. She sighed and snuggled warmly against the powerful man
behind her.

	"You know what to do, Ryouga. Be a good lover, won't you?"

	Ryouga nodded excitedly.

	Nabiki shifted in his lap. She turned, lifting one limber leg
over his head.

	Ryouga inhaled sharply and thought he would pass out from the
glimpse it afforded him.

	Her legs spread around his waist, she laid back, offering him a
choice view. She smiled wickedly as Ryouga's face lit up in joy.

	Ryouga marveled at her perfection. He gazed in a kind of rapt
wonder as his hand reached out involuntarily to stroke her.

	Her tiny blossom was perfectly formed. Her outer lips were
symmetrical, delicately blushed and spread apart by her swelling nub
and inner petals.

	"Go ahead, Ryouga-kun," Nabiki prompted, her smile widening.
"You know what I like."

	Ryouga nodded and licked his lips. He leaned forward and inhaled
deeply. "Mmmm..." he groaned, letting the smell of her excitement fill
his nostrils.

	He looked up, his face pleading.

	"You already have permission, Ryouga-kun. Go ahead," she
prompted.

	Ryouga sighed deeply and dipped his nose into Nabiki's petals.

	She dropped her head back and moaned loudly as Ryouga's tongue
began to lash across her sensitive button, allowing her bubble of
silence to soak up the noise.
	
	It only took a few minutes for Ryouga's mouth, skilled by the
last few days of practice, to bring Nabiki to screaming orgasm. She
arched her back, clutching at the young man's head in her ecstasy.
	
	Still shaking, Ryouga pulled back away from her slightly and
wiped his mouth on the back of his hand.

	"Oh... that was wonderful, Ryouga-kun."

	Ryouga smiled happily, his shaking diminishing somewhat.
	
	"Mmmm..." Nabiki laid back, allowing Ryouga to disentangle
himself from her legs. Her eyes closed sleepily, she felt the
comforter on her bed being drawn up around her naked breasts, and a
firm weight sitting on the bed next to her.

	Comfortable and still reveling in the sensations, Nabiki dozed
off briefly, visions of herself and Ryouga running naked through her
mind.

	A stray ray of moonlight hit her face, gently jostling her from
near sleep. She looked up, the massive shadow of Ryouga still looming
protectively over her. She smiled and let her eyes close again.

	He was such a large, healthy boy. His blood tasted so wonderful,
and after only such a few days he was an expert at doing what Nabiki
had only ever been able to do for herself with her fingers.	 

	He was so willing, too! Nabiki almost thought that she didn't
need to worry about... guiding... his actions.

	She turned restlessly. There was no reason to be restless about
that little thing, was there?

	She pushed the thought out of her head with a simple fantasy.
She was chasing Ryouga around the house. He was wearing only his dark
canvas pants, and running from her, almost in panic.

	She knew he really did want her, though, and Nabiki wanted him
too.

	Ranma happened to being laying across the sitting room to trip
Ryouga up as Nabiki pursued him relentlessly through the house.
Together they fell in a heap and began to move against each other.

	Nabiki looked up again to see Ryouga still sitting over her. He
had dozed off as well, his chin resting against his chest and his
folded arms resting in his lap.
	
	Nabiki made a noise of appreciation and sat up next to the lost
boy. It would be so wonderful if she could have all of him. 

	"Ryouga-kun?" she whispered.

	The lost boy seemed not to notice. Her whispers did nothing to
wake him.

	Nabiki attacked. She sprang and clamped her jaw down on his
carotid.  She sucked with all her might, soaking up pleasure and blood
in equal quantities. Ryouga, having finally been awakened by her
attack, struggled weakly against her attentions.

	Paying his struggles no heed, Nabiki continued to drink until
she was sated. His struggles weakened further and abated. Nabiki was
so pleased that he was submitting to her.

	"Did you like that, Ryouga-kun?"

	Ryouga fell against her now that she was finished. Luxuriating
in the smell and taste of blood, Nabiki languidly wrapped her arms
around Ryouga's torso. Outside, the clouds were moving so quickly that
the bright spots of moonlight seemed to roam across the skin of
Ryouga's chest.

	"Ryouga-kun?"

	Ryouga's head fell over, his unseeing eyes staring lifelessly up
at her and his jaw hanging loosely open. His skin was pale white, and
growing cold.

	Nabiki's stomach wrenched in shock and revulsion. She screamed--

	--And jerked awake.

	Ryouga was lying on the floor next to her bed. She could hear
him snoring lightly. Nabiki exhaled, her breath coming in rapid gusts.
Ryouga was indeed still breathing. His chest rose and fell ponderously
in the still moonlight. Guiltily, Nabiki couldn't help but notice the
exposed wrist, still with a deep black bruise that marked the spot
where she had fed earlier.

	Feeling more alone and frightened than she had in a long time,
Nabiki pulled the covers up around her naked body and buried her face
in her hands.

* * *

	Ranma shivered as Kodachi's hard, naked nipples dragged up the
length of his unclad chest. He strained at the cords holding his hands
to her bed frame, but her every touch seemed to leave a burning fire
on his skin.

	She cradled his head to her chest. Almost involuntarily, Ranma's
lips opened and closed against the soft flesh on the side of her
breast. He leaned back...

	And blinked his eyes twice. He very nearly fell out of the plush
recliner he had been sleeping in.

	His hands went to his sweating face, reassuringly dragging over
the fabric of his shirt.

	*Oh man...* Ranma thought to himself, checking to make sure that
yes, Kodachi was still sleeping across the pile of luggage she had
accumulated since he had insisted that she leave the country.

	He blinked again and exhaled heavily, reassuring himself that he
was awake.

	He glanced briefly at the other occupant of the sitting room he
had decided to sleep in. Kodachi, insisting that she didn't feel safe
alone, abandoned her bedroom, piled her luggage for the next day's
trip in one corner, and lighted upon the flat sides of the suitcases.
It defeated Ranma's purpose for refusing her offer to sleep in her
bed, but at least this way she kept all her clothes on.

	Sleeping on her luggage was something she said she had learned
to do on innumerable gymnastics trips with her teammates.

	Ranma, still not quite believing he was awake, rubbed at his
eyes with his sleeve.

	"This place is gonna make me crazy," he mumbled, standing up
groggily from the chair.


* * *


	After what they had shared, the feeding seemed almost an
afterthought.

	Tofuu sat in the rocker in the corner of Kasumi's room. It had
been her mother's, but Kasumi didn't mind. In the back of her
thoughts, she knew that mother wouldn't mind either.

	He cradled the naked vampire in his lap. As she gently nursed at
his neck, he allowed one hand to caress the body he had just so
caringly made love to.

	Calmly, now, he noted the way her toes curled and uncurled as he
ran his hands up and down her bare torso.

	He gazed lovingly at her nakedness. He marveled at her shape,
and the wonderful definition of her every little muscle. He gently
rocked her in the moonlight, wondering at what kind of exercise she
had to do to get such perfect musculature.

	She was a beauty in every sense. If Tofuu had his way, he'd
never give her up.

	In a flash he understood what Genma had told him earlier in the
evening when all the girls were trying not to fall asleep. 

	 "I would have given anything. A few pints wasn't very much to
ask at all at all."

	"Hmmm?" Kasumi dislodged herself from Tofuu's neck, and gazed
lovingly up into his eyes.

	"I love you, Kasumi. That's all."

	"I love you too, Tofuu."

	"More than anything," Tofuu whispered. 

	They slept together in that same chair, gently holding each
other through the night. 

* * *

	A ray of moonlight fell across her eye. After several minutes of
groggy dreaming, she opened her eyes. Between the parted curtains, the
clouds streamed past the window as quickly as if it were storming.

	She blinked again. Suddenly the clouds and moonlight were still.
She had been... dreaming?

	Was it all a dream?

	There was the memory of pain and then...

	Akane felt a weight twitch on her back.

	"nonononononono..." she begged to no one in particular.

	In her near panic, the weight twitched again. They had gone to
sleep, and felt like they needed to be stretched.

	Akane stood suddenly, reeling from the sudden change in height.
Her eyes carefully shied away from the mirror as...

	*I'm a monster. A demon.*

	Her long, indigo wings stretched to either wall of her room.

	They seemed willing to collapse back around her after a couple
of seconds. Naked, scared and alone, she did her best not to think
about them.

	"Where is everybody?" she wondered aloud. 

	As her head cleared, and she began to glance around her room,
she could feel a lethargy draining away from her. It was almost as if
she had drunk a little too much. She wasn't sure, but it seemed like
there had been drugs. Yes, she remembered. Uncle Saotome had hit a
pressure point on her neck, and then Tofuu-sensei had injected her
with a powerful drug.

	It was better to concentrate on the faces rather than to
remember why they had all been huddled around her. She wondered how
Ranma had reacted to her new...

	Her eyes lit upon a tiny silver glint.

	It was the ice skater. Ranma had given the tiny, immaculately
sculpted figurine to her only a few days before. She could see the
almost-shy, almost-embarrassed expression on his face as clearly as on
her birthday. She reached out and snatched it up to her naked breast. 

	She didn't know why just at first, but twin streams of wetness
began to course down her neck.

	She was crying?

	"You're..." the voice called out to her, as clear as the last
time she had heard it. "You-You-You... *disgust* me, Akane! You’re a
monster and you became one willingly!!!! I never wanna look at you
AGAIN!!!!"

	Her wings twitched again, guiltily trying to hide themselves
behind her.

	"Leave me alone, God-dammit!"

	"Oh, Ranma, please... I'm sorry..."

	"Your fangs are stickin' out! You gettin' ready to  drink my
blood? You gonna eat me alive? Huh? HUH? HUH?"

	"No, please no, Ranma..." Akane covered her mouth, feeling her
fangs pushing into the skin of her palms.

	Jerking her out of her reverie, there was a click. To Akane's
ears it resounded through the house like a gunshot.

	Trembling, but unable to turn back, she stepped out into the
hall.

	From one side, there were... smells. The scents were so powerful
to her that it was like they were painted in the air in shades of
pinks and reds and dark blues. They were familiar, she realized. They
were the smells of her sisters. They were also the smells of...

	Akane blushed deeply, realizing that Ryouga and Doctor Tofuu
were in the rooms as well.

	Across the hall, she could tell that Nodoka had been making love
to her husband. There was a deep earthy smell coming from the room as
well. Akane wished she knew what it meant.

	And then...

	It was like a siren tearing across her world. The scent was
polar. Both a man's and a woman's scent, yet somehow the same. It was
the brightest, fiery red and the darkest, earthiest green. 

	Was this what Auntie Nodoka meant by 'seeing' the scents?

	As she turned the corner of the hall, the sight backed up the
olfactory presence.

	"Ranma..." she breathed.

	True enough, down the hallway, a certain martial artist was
raiding the hall closet. He was carefully sorting through various
shirts and pants, pulling choice items down into the floor.
		
	He sighed out loud at his task, but he was going be damned if he
was going to wear a school uniform... any school uniform again. Still,
it was uncomfortable being so close to where he knew his mother and...

	His ears twitched involuntarily. He knew she would be there
before his eyes really made her out.

	Ranma froze and stared at the girl. She was naked, but half in
and half out of the shadows. Even with most of her figure concealed,
he could see that something was... different. 

	"Ranma..." Akane murmured, her hand holding the figurine going
to her unclad breasts.

	"Akane," Ranma acknowledged.

	Wordlessly, he clenched his jaw and began to rummage through the
closet again.

	Akane felt her throat catch. She could feel the pain down in her
chest at seeing him taking his clothes away.

	There was a rustle in the darkness. Akane's mouth opened in
pained surprise, praying that Ranma wouldn't see.

	She was disappointed. Ranma's face jerked back in her direction.
She made no move to cover her nakedness, but instead did her best to
will the... things... on her back out of the light.

	"Please, Ranma.... please don't look at me..." she begged.

	Ranma turned back to the closet.

	"And I thought Nabiki was lying to me," Ranma admitted
accusingly. "Are you happy now? Do you have what you want now?" 

	"You have no right to say that, Ranma..." Akane stated quietly.
There was no fire to her rebuttal, however.

	For perhaps the first time, Ranma noted the glint against
Akane's breast out of the corner of his eye. His eyes darted back to
her. 

	Her.... Her... Her...
	
	"Admit it, Ranma" he hissed under his breath. "They're *wings*."

	Her wings had spread slightly. She seemed to want to hide inside
them. Out in front, however, held in her hand was the present he had
given her for her birthday.

	It was kinda stupid, he'd thought when he bought it. It was just
a little metal statue thing that girls usually seemed to like. He had
just picked it out because he didn't feel like shopping all day for...

	Ranma's thoughts ground to a halt as he began to feel a
thickness in the back of his throat.

	"I'm..." Akane gulped and lowered her face. Ranma could see the
tears that began falling from her face glint in the moonlight as they
dropped towards the floor. Above her, there was a glint of blue as one
of her delicately clawed wing tips crossed the beam of moonlight.

	"I'm... sorry... Ranma..." she choked out.

	Ranma clenched his eyes shut and gritted his teeth. *Why does
this have to be so damn hard!* he cried out inside himself. *Why does
it hurt when she looks at me?!?! Why is she still playing with that
damn statue?*

	He heard a loud gulp from her. 

	"I..."

	"You betrayed me, Akane," he stated quietly. "Or Nodoka made you
betray me. You promised me... an' you lied."

	Akane choked back a sob. It was like a knife in Ranma's heart.

	"I Kn-n-now... P-p-please," she sobbed quietly. "I-I-I
promise..."

	"Promise?" Ranma asked.

	"I... I promise I won't hurt you... or drink your blood... or--"

	Akane's hands, still holding the ice-skater, went to her face.
She knelt and began to sob out loud, her wings beginning to fold
around her body.

	Ranma clenched his eyes shut, willing away the...

	*NO! I will *not* cry!* Ranma resolved.

	"I'm s-so s-orry, Ranma," Akane weeped. "Please... please don't
leave me a-a-alone... please... I-I-I'll do anything..."

	Ranma's breath caught in his throat. Before he really realized
what was happening, his cheeks were coursing with tears. He knelt
down, and reached unashamedly through her wings. Akane's arms reached
out...

	And the two were embracing.

	Ranma wanted to say it as the girl was sobbing into her chest,
but he just couldn't. He hadn't forgiven her, not in his heart. The
lie, no matter how much he was feeling, wouldn't pass his lips.

	Crying, he gritted his teeth.

	"Please... Ranma..." Akane begged.

	Ranma broke off the embrace and stood, pulling away from the
girl and beginning to pile his clothes back up.

	"Why..." Akane cried.

	"I... I can't stay here. Not here... with *HER*," he glared in
the direction of the guest room. "She's... she's poison, Akane. I've
got to beat this thing.... the raveners *and* the vampires..."

	"Ranma..." Akane choked out.

	Ranma glanced at her as he began to tie his bundle of clothes
together.

	Without a word, he leapt for the window, alighting on the sill.

	"Ranma..." she called out. 

	He glanced back at her, ready to jump to the ground.

	"Ranma," she continued. "Do you... did you... ever..."

	"Akane?"

	"Love me?" she whispered. "Any? At all?"

	Ranma's heart was awash with the feelings. 

	For a second, he was back at Jusendou. Akane lay dying or dead
in his arms, and he had never gotten the chance to tell her.

	Then he was back at the playground, with Akane's fist in his
gut.

	Anger... rage... injustice... sorrow... fear... pity...

	He stared briefly at her wings, now fully visible in the
moonlight. Could they be cured? he wondered briefly. Would cutting
them away from her body do any good?

	Without a word, Ranma set his bundle down. He crossed the two
paces to Akane.

	He took her face in one hand... and pressed his lips against
hers.

	She was sobbing as he broke the kiss. He couldn't look, though,
because he knew he would be trapped if he did. He couldn't stay here
again until it was finished. All of it.
	
	Turning, his head down low, Ranma grabbed his bundle and leapt
out into the night.

	Akane dropped back to her knees, and then to her bottom. She
covered her face with her hands and cried.

	*Please, Ranma,* she willed out. *I'll show you... Please...*


* * *

	Ryouga's left eye twitched. 

	There was something wet on his face. He brushed the trickle off
in his sleep.

	After a few seconds, his well-honed water-induced survival
skills kicked in. A trickle usually meant more trickles, and more
trickles usually meant a rain shower. Even in his sleep, Ryouga had no
desire to end up as a BLT.

	His eyes snapped open so that he could assess the situation. He
was lying on something hard. That could mean anything from a rock to
an ice rink. His shirt was gone *and* he wasn't uncomfortably cold.
That ruled out the artic wastes, but still left the possibility of the
ice rink.

	No, his body heat would have probably melted the ice to make
enough water to--

	"Ryouga-kun?" a voice whispered from above.
	
	It all came back to him in a rush. Nabiki... the vampires, the
blood... kissing Nabiki's... parts.

	He blushed in the darkness at the memory and tried to calm
himself. He hadn't had a nosebleed in days, but he didn't want to risk
staining Nabiki's floor.

	"Are you awake, Ryouga-kun?"
	
 	He looked up, just in time to catch another tear across the
bridge of his nose. Nabiki was naked, and standing over him. She was
smiling, but there were tears running down her face.

	"What's wrong?" Ryouga asked sleepily. Even after what they had
done together, Nabiki still confused him so badly.

	"You're sleeping on the floor," Nabiki noted, her calm voice at
odds with her tear-streaked face.

	"Unh..." Ryouga replied, moving into a sitting position.

	"I... there's a warm spot in the bed. It's not very large,
but..."

	Ryouga looked into her eyes quizzically. She seemed so... upset,
but at the same time, so... eager. His inexperience with people in
general, as well as his confusion with Nabiki, hampered him. What was
she feeling?

	"I haven't been very fair to you," she stated. "I've taken
and... you've repaid your debt. I won't tell Akane if you don't want
me to."

	Ryouga blinked. He should have been ecstatic, he thought, but
something was amiss. What--

	Another tear streaked down her face, completely interrupting the
lost boy's train of thought.

	"Please come to bed with me, Ryouga," she asked.

	Ryouga nodded. She was actually going to allow him to sleep next
to her? He felt so... so... so...

	Ryouga's heart tried to burst. It was as if Nabiki was giving
him all the affection as a man that Akane had given P-chan, but never
to Ryouga. Crawling up to the bed, he began to weep in joy.

	Nabiki's arms wrapped around Ryouga's body. He could feel the
girl lay her face on his back.

	*I've taken so much,* she thought to herself. *I've made him do
so much..."

	"I think I love you, Nabiki," Ryouga stated calmly, reveling in
the feel of the slender arms around him. "So...  I want you to know,
you can have my blood any time you need it." He turned his head as far
back as he could and smiled, his *almost* fanged grin.

	For just a second, Nabiki wondered about Ryouga's ancestry.

	"Ryouga," she commanded.

	"Huh?"

	"Take me," she said. "I've... you've touched me, but it was
because... " she trailed off.

	"Because?" Ryouga asked. A deep blush covered Ryouga's face and
chest. "I really kinda... *liked*--"

	"No..." Nabiki cut him off. "Fuck me, Ryouga! I want you... I
want you inside me," she growled. Ryouga gasped and began to tremble
in desire and expectation.

	*Even if you liked it, you couldn't have stopped if you wanted
to. I was *making* you do it. If you wanted to go further, or you did
something I didn't like or...* Nabiki silently berated herself.

	Still trembling, he reached out, and took Nabiki by the wrists.
He clumsily pushed his face onto hers and kissed her.

	Nabiki, the scent of his desire clouding the air around her, had
a difficult time keeping her guilty feelings quiet. Ryouga's clumsy
kiss was rapidly beginning to break through to her, though. The longer
it went on, the less and less clumsy and more and more passionate the
kiss became.

	Guiltily, she began to return it.

	Even for as... *intimate* as Ryouga's mouth was with Nabiki's
organs, it was only the second time they had kissed, he noted. She
struggled for a second against his firm grasp on her arms, but almost
immediately melted into his embrace.

	Ryouga decided that he liked this pair of lips much better than
the other as he let go one wrist and wrapped his arm around her.

	Nabiki broke the kiss, gasping for air. Tenderly, Ryouga reached
out to caress his face callused fingers.

	"Now! Ryouga! Now!"

	"Huh?"

	Almost angrily, Nabiki shifted her weight under Ryouga and
pulled her knees up on either side of her. Ryouga's mind may have been
left wondering, but his body was more than up to the task.

	Bucking her naked sex against the rough canvas pants he wore was
enough to make his organ swell to almost tearing the canvas. Trembling
again, Ryouga reached down to slide them off, over his hips.

	"Nnnn..." Nabiki called out. *Hurt me. Punish me.*

	The seconds dragged out into years as Ryouga gingerly placed his
shaft at her opening.

	*Take the guilt away,* Nabiki prayed.

	Slowly, but firmly, Ryouga penetrated her.

	Nabiki's virgin barrier posed little resistance against Ryouga's
ridiculous strength. It ripped under Ryouga's pressure as if it were
cheesecloth.

	Nabiki cried out in pain, trying to feel the most of it she
could.

	Ryouga looked down in worry. Had he hurt her? Carefully letting
his weight rest on her hips, he thought quickly and carefully as he
could. If he had hurt her, what would make it better? She certainly
liked it when he kissed her down there. He didn't think he could bend
that far, but if perhaps he touched it...

	Nabiki was reveling in the pain of having her hymen broken so
abruptly, and almost didn't notice it when Ryouga reached thumb and
forefinger down between them. Carefully, not wanting to bruise her,
Ryouga began to firmly massage her tiny clitoris between his fingers.

	To her dismay, Nabiki came almost instantly.

	Ryouga smiled, and used his free hand to gently caress her side.
The yells Nabiki was making now were the ones he liked. Steadily, he
began to rock against her, sliding in and back out of her.

	Nabiki came a second time under Ryouga's firm ministrations. The
guilt gave way to pleasure and the sensation of Ryouga's huge shaft
filling her utterly. She began to buck with him.

	"Nnnnnnnn....." Ryouga groaned out, his steady rhythm
disintegrating. It was only a minute or two since they started, but he
had already lost control, his semen spraying up into Nabiki.

	It was his first time, of course, Ryouga thought wearily as he
let his head rest against Nabiki's shoulder. Next time would probably
be longer.

	Maybe next time he could do better for her, he thought.

	For the second, her feelings forgotten, Nabiki continued to
writhe under her lover's weight. The pain was already gone. The
fullness felt so right. Even after the two orgasms she wanted to start
again.
	
	"Oh... Ryouga..." she whispered into the night.

	"Mmmmmmm...."

	"Oh, Ryouga... please... please don't ever leave me. I'll do
anything..." she whispered.

	Her declaration was met with a light snoring.

	Nabiki began to stroke the dozing youth's head. She began to
weep again, but not tears of horror or guilt.

	Then she felt it.

	It was a 'knock at the door', inside her. There was a force... a
life force that wanted inside her body. It...

	It was Ryouga's sperm, trying to begin the long trek inside her
body to impregnate her.

	Ryouga was healthy, and she was fertile, she suddenly knew. She
also knew that she could forbid the microscopic genetic couriers from
entering her with the merest twitch of her will.

	She did so, instantly destroying them all. She didn't want to
become pregnant! Not with... Ryouga's child...

	Guiltily again, Nabiki sighed. Why did this have to be so damn
hard! She was a vampire now! Everything was supposed to work our
right. Why couldn't everything be... easy?

* * *

	The Nameless Girl found herself in the Tendous' front room. She
took several steps through the room, twirling as she walked, taking in
as much of the house at a time as she could.

	In the hallway, just before the stairs, she stopped in front of
a mirror to check her appearance. 

	She was dressed in a sheer lace teddy and thigh-high stay-ups.
Her long red hair was pulled back with a pink ribbon. Her lips and
long nails were also a pink shade. 

	"Mmm..." she purred, adjusting her hair slightly. She pulled
slightly at the tops on one of her stockings and arched her back in a
classic pose. She produced short, sheer lace gloves in the same
pattern as her teddy and pulled them over her hands. Almost lovingly,
she cupped her breasts in the mirror. Her nipples were erect and
clearly visible through the transparent lace, as was her thin, red
delta.

	"Dressed to kill!" she exclaimed.

	Something like that, at any rate.

	She pranced up the darkened stairs, stepping lightly as she
reached the top. She paused before each of the first three doors. Her
slender fingers slid over the decorations. She took special care to
trace each of the western characters etched into the carvings hung
from the center of each door.

	At the third door she paused. She leaned up against the door, as
if trying to feel what was inside. Playfully, she let one long pink
nail touch the 'A' carved into the duckling.

	"A-Ka-Ne..." she giggled quietly.

	Unashamedly, she opened the girl's door and walked inside.

	Akane was lying naked on her bed still clutching at the figurine
Ranma had given her. There was a wet spot on her pillow, indicating
that she had probably cried herself to sleep. Her wings were folded in
behind her body.

	"A sleeping angel," the nameless girl pronounced. 

	Akane stirred restlessly in her sleep. Her wings shifted behind
her, trying to fold into the most comfortable position. Her sleep was
obviously troubled.

	"So *you're* the one he's mad at," the nameless girl informed
the sleeping Akane. "What have you done to incur his wrath so?"

	Akane stirred in her sleep. Her expression became frightened.

	In her dream, she was alone in the dark. It was on a dark street
in a place she did not know. There was a dark figure near. He held his
head low, and his fists were out at his sides. He was approaching her,
getting nearer.

	"Should I punish you?" the nameless girl asked. She let the
backs of her nails run down Akane's trembling cheek and onto her neck.
"Would that make him happy? I think that he should like to hear you
scream, don't you?"

	The dark figure was chasing Akane. She ran and ran, but no
matter how hard or fast she ran, the figure kept up with her. It
seemed that he could match her pace no matter how she pushed herself.
Akane screamed out in fright.

	With one gloved hand, the nameless girl caressed Akane's face in
her lap. Her legs were crossed under Akane's shoulders, forcing the
girl's wings out. Her other hand gently traced the thin, strong bones
in Akane's left wing.

	"I think you've been a bad girl," the nameless girl announced.
Her hand trailed down Akane's neck, to her chest. She twirled her lace
covered finger over Akane's areola, teasing the girl's nipple up. "You
*are* a bad girl! Oh, how wicked! I shall punish you for him," she
stated, gently tweaking Akane's nipple between two fingernails.

	The dark figure caught Akane with one strong hand around her
slender throat, almost choking her. She struggled in blind panic,
clawing uselessly at the man's fist. With his free hand, he reached
around and gripped her breast, squeezing brutally. Akane cried out in
pain and terror.

	"Hmmm? Didn't you like that?" The nameless girl giggled again as
she let each of her hands run down the backs of Akane's wings, running
her fingers through the thin fibers covering them as she went. "Then I
shall do something else. Perhaps this will please you," she informed
the sleeping girl in a petulant voice.

	Twisting her arm up above her head, the man spun Akane around
and slammed her back against a wall. Akane cried out, but the man
caught her chin in one hand and held her mouth closed.

	For the first time, Akane could see her attacker. It was Ranma,
and he had death in his eyes. His expression was cold and mean. Akane
had no doubt that he would have any trouble tearing her arms out of
their sockets if she gave him cause.

	He glared at her and held his face close to hers.

	"Please..." Akane begged. She could feel his hot, angry breath
on her lips. "Please don't hurt me..."

	"Hmmm?" the nameless girl wondered. "Wouldn't you rather he
did?"

	Akane's pleas seemed to affect Ranma somehow. His murderous
expression became softer and confused. He calmed and his grip on her
throat loosened.

	"Is this what you want?" the nameless girl asked.

	"Please, please, Ranma," Akane begged. "I'll do anything..."

	"Anything?" the nameless girl asked, grinning wickedly all the
while.

	"Anything!" Akane promised, crying.

	Ranma's grip suddenly tightened.

	Akane convulsed in fear, but suddenly, she felt Ranma's lips
against hers. His tongue plunged into her open mouth.

	"Ooommppph!" she cried out. Ranma gripped her breast again,
letting his thumb run across her still erect nipple. For the first
time, Akane realized she was quite naked. Ranma's hips ground against
hers. In a few seconds, Akane forgot that she had been frightened, and
began to rub back. She let one arm close around Ranma's back. Ranma
let go Akane's neck and plunged his hand down between them, roughly
gripping Akane's vulva. Gingerly, in stark contrast to his previous
roughness, he began to run his fingers back and forth in the wetness
growing between Akane's nether lips.

	The nameless girl let her face rise from Akane's. For just a
second, she let her lips hover over Akane's face. She darted in again,
letting them brush against the dark haired girl's again.

	"I wonder how he can stay so mad at you," the nameless girl
asked, still caressing Akane's wings.

	"Nnnnn...." Akane answered. Her eyelids fluttered, and she began
to writhe in the other girl's lap.

	The redhead smiled down. "How anyone could be mad at such cute
prey is beyond me..."

	"Mmmmm..... ah...."

	* * *

	"So then, after he drank all the stolen sake, Genma just picked
him up and dropped him in the barrel!" Soun proclaimed.
	
	Athia giggled lightly, sipping at her coffee.

	Soun laughed wistfully as well. He pulled up a mug and sipped as
well.

	Athia set hers back down on the coffee shop table.

	"So then what?" she demanded.

	"I hammered all the nails into place and Genma locked the
chains. You have to understand that after three years of constant
abuse we were both homicidal. To the master of course."

	"Of course," Athia agreed.

	"So then we heard it."

	"Hmmm?"

	Soun carefully set his mug down, placed both his hands on the
table, and closed his eyes. He concentrated for several seconds.

	"Ahem. Getting into character, you understand."

	Athia giggled like a school girl, and kicked her legs under the
table.

	"Okay," Soun announced. He leaned his head back.

	"Well?" Athia asked.

	"ZZZzzzZZZZzzzzZZZZzzzz...." Soun snored.

	Athia burst out laughing.

	"Even after all the hammering, the master was still asleep!"
Soun guffawed.

	"And he survived all this?"

	Soun sighed mournfully, but his happy expression didn't quite
fade. "We even dynamited the cave shut. I knew, though, that one day
he'd return... if I had daughters."

	"Such a shame," Athia agreed, sipping at her coffee again and
doing her best not to giggle again.

	Soun chuckled and turned slightly. Out of the corner of his
eyes, he noted the bright flash of orange as the sun began to peek
over the horizon. He smiled and rested his head in one hand, carefully
avoiding placing any pressure on the large, dark bruise just under his
jaw.


* * *

	From the sitting-room window, Ranma watched the sun rise over
Nerima. His eyes were a little bloodshot, but the long night had left
him primed rather than weary.

	He jumped a little as Sasuke entered the room, but kept his
composure.

	"Ranma-san?" Sasuke asked. "Have you seen the mistress or the
young master?"

	"Yeah. They got on a plane for Hawaii a couple hours ago."

	"Oh." Sasuke's eyes drooped. "And... you're still here?"

	"Yeah. Kodachi said I could use a room till they got back. You
mind?"

	"No, of course not," the diminutive ninja quickly replied. "May
I inquire as to what you've been--"

	"Been thinkin'," Ranma cut him off. "'Bout the killings, 'bout
my mom. 'Bout Akane."

	Sasuke blinked, not quite sure how to respond.

	Ranma, knowing this, pushed on, needing to voice his decision.
"And all along, I've been playing by their rules. By the ravener’s, by
my Mom's or by Akane's. An' I decided it just ain't gonna work that
way."

	"R-r-ranma-san?" Sasuke stammered, more than a little taken
aback with the blaze of spirit in Ranma's eyes.

	"So I decided..." Ranma explained. "Musabetsu Kakuto ain't about
playin' other's peoples games. It's about making those games *your*
games. So I decided..."

	"D-decided, Ranma-san?"

	"Yeah. Ain't gonna play the game anymore. It's time that was
over with. Time..."

	"Time?" Sasuke asked, still not sure what Ranma was talking
about.

	"Time to do what always wins the fight. It's time," Ranma said,
"Time to change the rules."

	With that, Ranma was up and out the door.

- - -

To Be Continued...

* * *
C. Jones
http://www.furinkan.net