Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Know this, Saotome ❯ I Hate You ( Chapter 1 )

Jen Tai Yaung AKA ToMboy-Inu-Rae: Hey, it's me again!

I don't own any anime. I own this fic and my original characters. There might be some OOC. Please don't flame me for that, I'm attempting to write a fic without even seeing the series, only reading one manga, and reading loads of fanfiction / looking at sites. Sorry for repetition and strangeness!

I downloaded the Inuyasha 4th opening, and there's this black-haired braided guy who looks a lot like Ranma and Duo combined (he's even got the grin!). Isn't that odd? Hmm…

"…" talking `…' thinking *…* stressed words <…> Chinese

~ section dividers

Know this, Saotome

I Hate You

~

"No!" The attack sliced through the air. Dust kicked up around the girl named Yoko.

The neko-boy landed, hearing another tree fall in the distance.

Growling at his miss, he sat back and waited. Something drifted down, catching his eye. He whipped his head around to find the intruder, but the object turned out not to be threatening at all. It landed lightly on the dirt clearing, and he crept forward to examine it.

The item was a green lock of hair, with jagged edges showing that the owner had moved away. The girl was fast.

A something came hurtling toward him, hoping to catch him on surprise. The boy tensed and leapt skillfully out of the way of the incoming sakabatou.

The sword imbedded itself into the ground, spraying pebbles and dirt everywhere. The neko-boy landed on all fours, now alert. He stared at a sudden movement near the clearing's edge, tensing once again.

The sword-wielder herself stepped out of the shade of the trees. A section of her bangs was cut unevenly, showing both that she had escaped, alive, and that it had caught her off guard. Her eyes held a cool, irritated tone. She surveyed her new opponent carefully, taking in the worn gi and his gloves.

She stopped at the sight of his ears, his curled hands, and at his face. Keeping herself from gasping, her eyes widened as she saw how he resembled Ranma. They then narrowed, all of the surprise vanishing from the slate-blue orbs.

"So not only are you a trespasser, you try to duplicate him?!" Although he didn't understand what she had just said, he understood the intention of her words. He too narrowed his eyes and bared his fangs, ears pressed back in warning.

"Reoowwl!"

As if it were an invitation, Yoko took it and sprinted forward. The boy sprang to the side and coiled himself, hand raised to strike. Yoko ducked under the strike and jumped at him. She lashed out and kicked him in the side. He twisted, landing on his hands and feet.

She landed on top of him, pinning him to the ground by the arms. He thrashed wildly, trying to swing at her face. With one swift jerk, he got free and struck at his enemy again. Forced to get off him, she planted her hands on the dirt and tried to turn over. As soon as she was on her back, she found herself weighed down instead.

The neko-boy snapped at her face, and she held him back, hands curling around his neck. Her sweaty hands burned as he fought against her grip on him. Their eyes met, and in his eyes she spotted a predatory glint that grew as he snarled. This spurned her on to get the adversary off and as far away as possible.

Yoko managed to get one foot under him and she pushed upwards. He leapt backwards and landed on the dirt, skidding from the momentum. The girl got to her feet, wiping off her hands on her pants. They had turned red from trying to keep the neko-boy from biting off her head.

Her opinion of him dropped from wild to a plain outright slaughterer.

There wasn't too much of a chance beating him like she was fighting right then. She spotted her katana and ran for it.

The neko-boy, however, had different ideas.

He made his way over and leapt for her once with a set of ki claws.

"Rowwl!"

"Nugh!" She dodged the flying projectiles and slid under him. He soon followed, dashing to the left and the right, making it impossible for her to get to the sword. Unless…

Yoko crouched low and waited for the boy to reach her. He sprang for her overhead.

She made her escape under him, barely missing his feet. She bent down as she ran.

"Kuh-yah!" She bounded upwards and headed for her sakabatou. She flipped into the air and pulled at the weapon as she went. She met the ground with her feet and pulled the sword back into a stance.

Back leg bent, katana by her head, and hand out in front she faced the boy. He readied himself in return, crouching low to the ground. With a yell Yoko charged toward him, readying her weapon.

He jumped up to meet her, and they clashed.

*Shuckkt* the katana imbedded itself into a tree trunk, beyond Yoko's reach once again. The neko-boy playfully batted her head, as if mocking her. She shot up with a punch and missed; he had retreated to the other side of the clearing.

"Mreow…" Her eyebrow twitched. He was playing with her, now that he knew there was no chance to beat him. She lunged forward, and just when she had him in her grasp, he sidled away from her. Tripping forward from having no stop, she heard him settle down behind her. Gritting her teeth at her miss, she prepared herself for another shot.

Many times she tried to catch him, but he always slid out of her holds somehow. Every time he let her eat dust.

Yoko twisted around and got him within her sights. He was smirking. *Smirking*. How the heck would a neko-boy know how to smirk?! Her eyebrow proceeded to twitch.

Alas, it would be a question left unanswered for many years, as apparently Yoko wasn't about to find out anytime soon. Her fighting abilities and clear mind were being over-come by the "mocking". Apparently the boy also knew how to get on one's nerves like any Saotome could.

Then he went even further into unknown intellect and adopted an innocent look. He cocked his head.

"Meow." As if he were the guiltless cat in the world.

If one looked closely, you could still see the dangerous glint in his eye, not to mention his aura was darkening with a plot in hand…err, paw.

Yoko snarled. The neko-boy finally drove her off the edge, and soon he would pay. She lunged for him blindly, fist cocked back to hit him. The boy sitting there got off his haunches and streaked under the incoming attack. He slid under her feet, effectively tripping her. Shimmying away, he prepared himself.

He raised his paw, eerie red claws flickering into life.

The martial artist fell forward with a cry, landing hard on the dirt clearing. She tried to get up with as much speed as she could muster, but it was too slow. As soon as Yoko had stood up and spotted the neko-boy, he had already launched his attack. There was no way she could avoid it, as all of her reflexes had been tossed to the winds.

It struck.

Yoko felt an immeasurable pain through her right cheek. A searing fire ran its way through her body, and as she fell, she saw blood. Her blood and tears.

Eyes widening she gasped…

Falling, falling…

Someone called out. Was it her scream, or her guardian's cry?

A thud…was he gone…?

~

Sorano Akamatsu, also known as Yoko's sensei, finished bandaging up her student's hands for the second time. They had been rubbed raw from the earlier fight, both from hitting the ground and keeping the neko-boy at bay. She tore off a piece of medical tape and secured the bandages.

Sitting back, she sighed and looked at her patient. A large section of her green bangs had been sheared off, and the cut ends were singed. A stained bandage covered most of her right cheek. The wound itself was shallow, and it wasn't anything particularly fatal.

However, it would leave a scar that would be particularly noticeable. The longest gash started an inch near her nose and extended down to the side of her jawbone.

Currently a calm face was on this peculiar girl, one only seen in katas. Sorano reached over and pulled the futon covers up to Yoko's chin, being careful of her injuries.

Next to her pillow she laid a letter.

She straightened up and made her way out of the sparsely decorated bedroom.

At the doorway she paused. Nevertheless, she continued out into the hall and slid the door shut behind her. Now onto that new little addition in her plans…

She took off silently down the hall, finding her way to the dojo. Her next student should have been waking up by then,

and Sorano needed to subdue the boy before he got free.

As soon as she had disappeared, Yoko reentered the conscious world.

Her vision was blurred, and all she could make out was a grey-white blob. It happened to be a ceiling, covered in dust.

Slate-blue eyes in slight confusion, she tried to make out the fuzzy ceiling in her view. Slowly the eyes adjusted to her surroundings, and she took her gaze off the white ceiling.

Looking over the room, she spotted the familiar bedroom that she slept in every night. Suddenly she shot up in realization, and she saw the absence of the clearing. Yoko immediately regretted doing so, as a dull throbbing pounded in the back of her head.

Falling back onto the futon she clutched her head and groaned, willing the pain to go away. One of her bandaged hands brushed her ear, and she froze. Awkwardly she brought them in front of her face. They were new, recently done over.

She flexed her fingers experimentally, wincing as the cloth rubbed against her raw palms.

Letting them drop to her sides, she closed her eyes and tried to recall what had happened.

`I'd gotten up and tried to get a shot at him, but he got me- ` She cut off her thoughts at that statement.

"No…" she breathed.

~Flashback~

Yoko snarled. The neko-boy finally drove her off the edge, and soon he would pay. She lunged for him blindly, fist cocked back to hit him. The boy sitting there got off his haunches and streaked under the incoming attack. He slid under her feet, effectively tripping her.

The martial artist fell forward with a cry, landing hard on the dirt clearing. She tried to get up with as much speed as she could muster, but it was too slow. As soon as Yoko had stood up and spotted the neko-boy, he had already launched his attack. There was no way she could avoid it, as all of her reflexes had been tossed to the winds.

It struck.

Yoko felt an immeasurable pain through her right cheek. A searing fire ran its way through her body, and as she fell, she saw blood. Her blood and tears.

Eyes widening she gasped…

Falling, falling…

Someone called out. Was it her scream, or her guardian's cry?

A thud…was he gone…?

~End Flashback~

Yoko squeezed her eyes shut and started shaking her head.

"No, no, no, no, no!" She grabbed the nearest item and threw it. Her former pillow was made into a missile, bouncing off the wall. It knocked a small mirror to the ground, glass side down.

She didn't care. She'd lost all of her concentration and almost blew it. She almost let him…

Yoko drew in a shuddering breath, trying to forget what she'd just brought up. Remembering that flash of ki, she reached up to see what had been done.

Almost mechanically, she took her right hand and traced the bandage on her cheek.

The wound began throbbing and she ceased, but didn't bother to lift her fingers off of it. She lay like that as the minutes passed on.

~

Yoko lay curled up, still staring at the letter, even though the sun had gone down and it was too dark to read. It was the day after she had woken up, and she hadn't moved farther than letting one leg rest on the floor.

Her blank gaze would have easily scared someone without wits. It would even have given someone who *did* have wits chills up their spine had they seen that vacant look.

Had it been light enough, one could see that the letter read this:

Yoko:

I found you just when the boy's attack caught you in the face. I was able to knock him out, fortunately before he got to the Inners. I don't want you to train, but you are allowed to walk and enjoy yourself outside. You *cannot* come to the dojo. I have the boy in there, and he could easily hurt you again. I found out that he is part of Ranma, and we need to keep him here and under control…or else. Why he has just appeared or what he is I can't figure out. Help yourself to any of the food in the refrigerator.

Also, we need to keep a watch on the Inners, especially Fury. He has been acting up once more, and something might happen. Again, do not come to the dojo at all, unless it's an emergency. If you need me, I will find you.

Sorano

Yoko kept staring at the neat print, as if trying to see if it were a trick. But it wasn't an illusion of some sort, and Sorano had written it herself.

`*Him*?! Stay HERE?!' The thought ran itself over and over, repeating in a shocked voice.

Why? He had almost killed her, and Ranma would have died. How could he have been a part of the pony-tailed martial artist himself?

It didn't make sense, but then many things about the Mind didn't.

She mulled over the facts, piecing together a picture of the neko-boy. Although his image had all the parts, what he was had many holes in it. He had blue eyes flecked with gold and grey, gold streaked black hair, and those gloves. He resembled Ranma a lot more than she or Sorano did.

How come? They were all connected to him, so why had he taken that particular shape. Eyes pouring over the imaginary picture, his ears caught her attention.

"Of course!" she yelled. Yoko rolled over and jumped up, ignoring the returning throbs in her head. Grasping onto the letter she wrenched the door open, nearly taking it off its runners. The girl skidded out on the hardwood floor and bolted for the library.

The doors and windows flashed by as she ran past them, skidding at corners and sharp turns because she was wearing socks. `It makes too much sense! How could Sorano have not known it?!'

If the circumstances were different when Yoko discovered that Sorano didn't know about what she'd figured out, she would have been bouncing off the walls. However, the girl's expression darkened as she found out that fact.

*BTAM* the library door flung open and Yoko rushed into the room and descended the stairs, skipping two to three steps at a time. Nearly crash-landing on the marble floor Yoko finally slowed down a bit. She twisted, balancing out so she didn't fall flat on her face.

When she had regained her footing she took off once again, spanning the large marble floor.

The uneven-banged girl weaved through the large book shelves, heading to a large section with about 11/12 of the shelves empty, waiting to be filled. Darting to the books she hopped onto the ladder and slid down, looking through the titles as they flashed by. One caught her attention, and she pulled it out before she passed by it.

Holding the book up by the spine she tried to get a better hold on it. She ran out of time, however, as the sliding ladder met the end of its track. Yoko fell off and landed on the floor with a thud. The letter drifted lazily to the ground, slightly crumpled from its misadventure(s).

"Ite…"

With one eye squeezed shut in pain, she pulled herself off the floor. The throbbing lashed through her head and she bent over, clutching the back of her cranium.

`Itai! They should have some shock endurance on that ladder…'

Eventually the pulsing left, and she straightened from her hunched over position. Moving slowly this time she picked up the book and brought it over to where she was sitting.

The girl pulled the book into her lap and flipped it open. A thick chalk-like dust rose out of it, and she covered her nose.

Narrowing her eyes, she peered through the dust at the pages, skimming through the paragraphs. Near the end of the book, she found what she was looking for and stopped turning the pages.

Yoko read what had been inscribed on the page, and involuntarily shuddered at what she was examining. And to make matters worse, the subject was described in great detail.

"I swear…if I ever meet him I'll skin him alive…" she muttered. Whatever she was reading proceeded to fuel her bad mood even further.

Putting her index finger where the gruesome entry started, she reached out with her foot and slid the letter to her. She bent over and picked up the paper. The girl stuck it in forcefully as a bookmark.

Then, slamming the book shut, she closed her eyes momentarily.

`So that's why he was so vicious…' Gripping the book with both hands she opened her eyes once again.

`…little bastard!' She gritted her teeth and stood up.

Quietly making her way to the stairs, her anger subsided and gave way to a cooler, calculating expression. There was no time to be plotting revenge.

~

Sorano closed the sliding dojo door behind her, concealing a knocked out neko-boy who wouldn't have woken up any time soon. It shut with a quiet snap, which echoed down the empty hall.

She leaned against the paper-thin doors, hearing the wood creak as it tried to support her weight. Sighing, she wiped off her forehead with her sleeve and stared at the ceiling.

The boy had a persistent block that she still wasn't able to pass; it kept him free and unbounded, and she had a heck of a time trying to break it down. Not to mention that he was also fast and had claws that had already torn apart the inside of the dojo. Although she could have easily taken him out with one strike, she needed to win over his trust, or he would only become a slave from the force of her "beatings".

The little bugger looked incredibly like Ranma, and it was funny how he carried his innocence with him even as he tried to slay her.

So wrapped up deep in her thoughts, she only acknowledged Yoko's existence about thirty feet away from her. She blinked.

"Yoko, shouldn't you be in bed?"

The girl in question brushed off the comment with silence and handed her one of the record books.

"I'm surprised that you couldn't figure it out." Yoko alleged.

Sorano turned the volume over, reading the title. "Ranma Saotome-6 Volume 9 (11|18)…" She looked back at her green-haired student.

"Why the Nek- ?" She stopped in mid-sentence as she realized what Yoko had. It was so obvious, why hadn't she known?

"Exactly."

The girl turned on her heel at that statement, walking away from her sensei. At the doorway, she stopped and stood there, as if in thought.

"Don't call him "boy", he has a name."

Just when she had disappeared into the darkness, she spoke again.

"Kanaye."

And she was gone.

Sorano was left dumbfounded at her actions, both by the book and the name. Finally she reacted.

"Kanaye… zealous one." she whispered.

~

Three Days Later

~

Sorano stuck her head inside the dojo. "Yoko! Lunch is ready!"

The girl paused with her annihilation of what used to be a wooden post and acknowledged her sensei's presence. Nodding her reply, she stomped on the splintered wood once more and made her way to the door.

Once exiting the training hall, Yoko ran upstairs and changed rapidly. She streaked downstairs, passing by the library doors and past the courtyard. Finally reaching the dining room, she sat herself down at the table and arranged the cushion beneath her. Sorano was bending over for some odd reason, and she shrugged it off.

Not bothering to even wait for Sorano's consent to start, she took up her chopsticks and reached for all the food within her reach. Her bowl and teacup were hastily filled to their full capacity, and soon were emptied just as fast.

Yoko quickly downed her portion of the lunch that had been prepared and set her bowl down. Actually, she more or less dropped it onto the table without care.

Her instructor's head shot up from where she had bent over, slightly bewildered at her student's actions. She straightened up and faced her with a stern look. "Yoko, we can't get any new bowls until Tomo(1) decides to pick up with his work. And seeing how he hasn't been working for almost 4 years, he isn't about to start again anytime soon. Don't drop them, onegai?"

The girl muttered to herself in reply, not looking directly at her sensei.

Sorano crossed her arms. "Is this about me spending all that time with Kanaye, and not you?" she inquired. Yoko kept her eyes away from the latter's, this time keeping silent.

The woman's eyes narrowed. "It is." Yoko looked back at her, and met her unwavering stare. Something moved in the corner of the room, and her eyes shifted and set her attention towards it. "It" happened to be the neko-boy himself, tearing into his lunch of assorted fish.

"What is he doing here?"

"Eating."

"So you found yourself a new pet, now have you?" she stated icily. Sorano's mouth set into a straight line.

"Kanaye is not my pet, nor will he be anyone else's. Just because I haven't let you know what I'm doing with him doesn't mean I have suddenly found him for my liking."

Yoko sent a hardened gaze toward Kanaye, who was busy dining on his fresh fish. He paused as he felt her glaring at him, but made no action of it. He kept on eating his lunch. She opened her mouth to insult him once again, but was stopped as Sorano took a step towards her with an expression of anger that was ever growing.

"Leave him alone, Yoko. He still has a lot to learn, be grateful that you're not at his level." she rebuked.

The girl closed her mouth and stomped her way out of the dining room, trying to make the point that she was upset with both of them. She continued with it as she proceeded outside, slamming the sliding doors with loud bangs. Sorano could just picture the new cracks forming in the walls and the dust shaken from the ceiling. Several crashes also accompanied her anger and more sounds came forth. After a few moments, the house fell still once again.

Sorano dropped her serious tone, sighed, and collected the empty dishes one by one. It was true that the neko-boy's appearance was sudden, and that she had devoted most of her time towards him to get him settled down. Taming him to a reasonable level took several days before he trusted her completely, and even then he was still unpredictable.

She had gotten her share of wounds herself from his ki-claws as well, although they had healed too quickly for Yoko to see outright. Kanaye himself also had several bruises also, which was enough proof to show that Sorano hadn't been babying him.

A small "plunk" came from where he had been eating, and she turned to see what he had done. There was no sight of him, as he had snuck out of the room without her notice. However, he had left the fish bones scattered about on the floor which signaled that he had been there.

The woman sighed and bent over to pick up the discarded garbage. Of course, he still had a long way to go before he could amount to more than an unleashed killer. He needed to become a true martial artist, or he wouldn't be able to serve his future purpose.

Ranma would most likely be lost when it came unless…

She had to give it to him though; Kanaye was a great practitioner in stealth. Sorano scooped up the thin bones in her hand and straightened up, also carefully balancing the eating utensils in her other hand. She made her way into the kitchen, stepping over the pillows that had been previously occupied.

Tossing the garbage into the trash, she whisked around to face the sink. She plugged the sink and turned the tap. As water came gushing out of the faucet, the woman tensed and slid one foot back.

Dawdling never got anyone anywhere, and she intended not to do so.

With an invisible signal, she threw the dishes up into the air and jumped after them, soap and sponge already in her hands.

~

Yoko trudged down the path, stomping her right foot angrily once every few minutes to express her anger. Right then she didn't care that her stomping was putting dents in the ground, or that she was acting like a three-year-old.

The girl muttered curses under her breath, pausing only to blow at her chopped up bangs in frustration. Every time it happened, it reminded her of what had happened in her first meeting with Kanaye, and it proceeded to deflate her ego even further.

Kanaye had ruptured and demolished her calm reputation that she'd worked up over the years of training in a moment. Everything. A hand closed into a tight fist, shaking as she recalled details of her past. She had worked from day in and out to carry out her job, and that required control.

Although Yoko knew she could get over the incident, she hung onto it, bringing up moments in which she could have made a mistake. Had Sorano not been able to stop him, then they'd all be gone. Dead. Ranma would have been stuck as a cat forever.

The fist tightened, and then dropped loose at her side. Nothing was going right. She continued to berate herself even further for what had happened several minutes ago.

She took a small step forward, and stopped. A moment later she flung herself out of the way as a scythe-like blade slashed through the air. Yoko landed and skidded backwards, bringing out her sakabatou forcefully.

"Thought-oni…" she commented quietly.

As if it were its cue, the demon stepped out of the underbrush, making a show of crushing the bushes in its way. It was dark, standing on two legs easily towering over her smaller form. Starting from its forearms protruded a pair of nasty looking blades, covered in sharp teeth.

However intimidating it proclaimed to be body wise, it didn't work particularly on this little girl. Instead she smiled. No, correction; *grinned* like a certain braided Maxwell (2) when he went in for the kill.

"Exactly what the doctor ordered; a punching bag!" With that she charged forward and sprang up. She brought down her katana, aiming for the head. The thought-oni roared and swung one arm up to defend and the other to slice her in half. Yoko deftly twisted, bounding off the blocking arm with one foot and letting the other pass by harmlessly.

She swung herself backwards to land behind the demon, letting one hand off of the katana and brought it back by her side. A cloud of dust rose where her feet contacted with the hard path.

Yoko set herself into a stance as the thought-oni turned to face her. With a roar it charged towards her, intent on squashing the girl like an insect. It didn't get far in its approach, though.

Before it had traveled ten feet it was sliced into five steaks of tar, meat, and odd inner organs. Each separate piece collapsed to the ground heavily, tar oozing out in a black, sticky river. Grime and dirt flew up as they were displaced by the sudden drop of the thought-oni.

The girl shielded her eyes from the dust blown at her face and made out Kanaye sitting on the other side of the carcass.

She opened her mouth to yell at the neko-boy for interfering with her fight, when her danger sense went off. The severed body moved suddenly. Yoko closed her mouth immediately took in what was happening in front of her.

The thought-oni's blood seemed to come to live as it writhed and twisted, flailing wildly and singeing everything in its path. Yoko started to back away out of the blood's range. There was always a last ditch attempt built into those monsters, and this particular one acted like a volcano. Kanaye had also become wary of the creature.

A piercing shriek shot through the air, and Kanaye leapt clear of the thought-oni, his ears pressed flat against his head as he hissed. The demon steaks convulsed with a steady throb, and they tensed up for one final moment. The blood started glowing with a dark aura, flailing. Yoko headed away, speeding up with every hurried step backwards.

The tar-like blood shot out in several directions, burning sizzling holes through tree trunks. Kanaye jumped up as he was targeted at the chest. A burning trench lanced through the dirt, melting everything in its way as it passed. Then the thought-oni faltered, now twitching slightly.

A moment passed, and the two ten-year-olds stared at the lifeless form that had fallen in front of them.

The neko-boy then leisurely made his way over to the fallen form, acting as if it were a rather interesting butterfly.

The green-haired girl's eyes left the demon's carcass and fixed themselves upon the neko-boy, who was peering at the bubbling blood. Her anger appeared once again, regardless of what had just occurred.

His ears didn't swivel toward her as she took notice of him, so one could know he wasn't paying attention to her.

Yoko's eyebrow twitched, and her grip on the katana tightened.

"I'm not a damsel in distress, you know, I can take care of myself!"

The neko-boy took no notice of her comment and proceeded to clean himself. The girl sighed and let the subject drop. He couldn't talk back to her, so there was no point in holding a verbal argument.

She dropped to the ground, letting her weapon clatter onto the dirt next to where she kneeled. As if she was in a trance, she smoothly moved into a sitting position and settled down heavily.

The girl leaned forward and put her head in her hands. Already she was sick of him sticking around, and now he taking *her* job.

"Mou…what a show off." The sun beat down on her back mockingly, and she proceeded to sulk even further. Kanaye stopped in his grooming and lifted his head to her in curiosity.

Slowly he righted himself so that he was on all fours, and yawned cutely. Fortunately for Yoko, she didn't see him doing so, or she would have gagged at all of the innocence. He closed his mouth and trotted over to his new comrade.

Approaching carefully, he sidled up to her almost lazily and checked her for any hostile movements. She sat there like a sack of bricks and didn't budge.

The neko-boy stopped and placed himself next to her, lying down once again and curling up. The girl felt his presence next to her leg and brought her head out of her hands. She glared at him distastefully.

"Go away. Don't try and suck up to me, kitty." The boy glared back and hissed as well.

The two of them sat there and let the minutes tick by. Finally Yoko spoke up.

"Fine, be that way." Kanaye dropped his gaze and moved onto his back with his belly turned up to the sun. He closed his eyes and basked in the warm sunlight.

Yoko sat there, anger starting to ebb away. There really wasn't too much point in holding a grudge; that she knew…but he was so annoying!

The girl stared at him wondering why he acted so much like a cat, when he should have been human. His bearing on the ground also made her right hand twitch for some odd reason, and she suddenly had an urge to pet him.

She immediately stomped on the thought and crossed her arms, annoyed that she had started to think he was worth petting. After all, he'd torn her face open when they'd first met, so she had a right to have a grudge against him.

Yoko slowly drew up and traced one finger across the white bandage on her features. Her cheek had already healed, but she didn't have any desire to let her new scars show. The hand dropped, and she sunk into a deep sulk.

Once again they sat there, one sunbathing and the other having a storm cloud form over her head.

The girl looked back over to the black and gold-streaked haired boy lying there peacefully, as if he hadn't torn a thought-oni to pieces just a few minutes previous.

Right then he carried an aura of happiness that seemed to radiate out from his form.

A euphoric feeling swept over her darkened mood when she felt his aura and it was getting harder to maintain her grumpiness.

His head jerked. The girl noticed this and leaned in for a better look. Kanaye's nose twitched and he "ht-chooed" in an adorable way.

Yoko finally caved in at this act. She scooted closer, trying not to bother the neko-boy in his trance, but she managed to accidentally bump into him. He opened his eyes and squinted at the hand in the bright light. He then traced the hand back to its owner, finding that Yoko had disturbed him.

Yoko paused, her hand suspended over Kayane's head. He blinked at her curiously. She held in her breath and watched him look at her intently.

`If you scratch me again I'll make sure I have a new kitten-eared trophy…'

Finally he just turned away and lay back down on his side. The girl breathed out in relief and lowered her hand to his head, feeling the smoothness of his hair.

She fingered the soft oversized ears gently, running her fingers over its smooth and silkiness. They twitched and fell still as she continued to rub them.

A small sound was elicited from the neko-boy, and he stretched out. Now it was the girl's turn to blink. She stopped her rubbing in confusion and sat back. Abruptly the boy opened his eyes, irritated that his massage had faltered.

Realization dawned on her and she reached over once again.

Kayane quickly fell to submission, purring loudly. Yoko smirked. It was funny how one could subdue a being as wild as he by just petting him.

Although they had gotten off to a bad start, it was turning out better. A little, anyway.

~

Consecutive 1st Chapter Finished!

Please Review!

-Jen Tai Yaung

(1)- Tomo is Ranma's creativeness. Obviously since his days were taken charge of by Genma, there was no way for himn to be creative.

(2)- I don't own Duo Maxwell, although I'd like him as a friend.