Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Neko's Mate ❯ Neko's Mate 4 ( Chapter 4 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Here's another NekRamna tale. As usual, I own nothing.

Oh. I had some review and email asking about how intelligent NekoRanma seems. Here's my view on the nekoken:

It sucks. It's a horrible thing to do to a person and Genma should fry in hell for it.

Now, as for Ranma. Let's not forget one thing: He IS a human being. Even when under the nekoken, he's human. It doesn't turn him into a cat, or he'd have fur and whiskers. Being that he is a human who thinks he's a cat, and not an actual cat, I feel that he'd be a little brighter while under the curse. Still easily distracted and highly emotional, but with a human mind burried under all the feline instincts. He'd still have access to that human intelligence, but with a cat's point of view and therefore wouldn't understand words.

That's how I think the nekoken works. It doesn't replace the person's mind, so much as covers it with a thin layer of 'feline' mannerisms that the trainee would have observed during the torturous training. It's like a form of hypnotism. A person under hypnosis will not commit or perform an act that goes against their core psyche. It's the same here. Otherwise, try explaining why a nekoRanma would not kill those that attacked him, or something that would make a handy snack (Pchan). In his heightened state of speed and strength, Ranma can easily defeat Cologne and Happosai, so why aren't his enemies dead? Because Ranma has been trained to PROTECT life, and not to take it. A martial artist of Ranma's caliber would see the taking of life as a loss of honor and as a reflection of his own lack of skills. By the end of the canon series, Ranma is able to defeat Saffron, something that no one among the Amazon's would have thought to do. Saffron was powerful enough, even in his unfinished growth, to throw a blast that destroyed a mountain. He could wipe out entire villages with one blast, yet Ranma defeated him.

If he truly lost control and went into the nekoken, then nekoRanma would destroy anything and anyone that got in its way that was less powerful than him. Not to mention his behaviour if any of the more than willing females(even those in denial) were ovulating. I don't want to offend anyone, but scent is a strong factor in animal mating rituals, and even humans give off pheremones that indicate that they are 'ready, and able' to be impregnated, or are looking for potential mates. If that wasn't true, than there would be no such thing as a perfume and cologne industry.

So Ranma's concious mind is sublimated, not erased during the periods that he's under the nekoken. At least, that's the way I see it.

Uh. This is slightly different during the second part. I hope it works.

Anywhoo. Let's get the next story going.

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NekoRanma mewed politely to his mate's eldest sister. He'd come upon her at market near the fish merchant. He'd hoped to be able to get a meal from the large selection while the merchant was dealing with a customer, but a familliar scent came to his nostrils and he'd paused to await for the Provider's appearance.

He had not waited long as within seconds of noting the pleasant, peacefull smell, quite similar to his mate's, she had rounded a corner and approached the merchant he'd been studying. He carefully approached from downwind, staying low to avoid detection from one of his rivals. He knew that stickfool was around, since he last remembered awaking not long ago with a scattering of cats and the stickfool's old servant standing nearby.

His silent approach was unobserved by all save his mate's sister, who turned and glanced down as he took a spot near her back, protecting her for his mate. He knew his mate loved her sister, and he was fond of her himself. Of the females he'd met since meeting his mate, he thought that Provider was perhaps the worthiest of having been chosen as his mate. She was the most gentle, caring being nekoRanma could remember knowing. If he had not already bonded his mate the second they crossed eyes, he would have found some way of having his human self choose Provider.

But the gods had other ideas and he'd seen his mate's face first. And nothing could break their bond, no matter how much she and his human self denied that same bond. He could admit to himself that both he and Provider were happiest with the way things had gone. Though he thought they could have come to love each other, each knew that the other was not quite what they needed.

He cocked his head to his side as Provider made more of those gentle sounding but incomprehensible sounds and pointing at the fish. He mewed, guessing that she was asking him if he wished for a snack. He approved, as he could tell that his human self had not eaten in several hours and that, combined with the divine smells of the fish, had been what had attracted him this way after fleeing from stickfool and his dogbitch sister, crazyflower.

He watched as Provider spoke those odd sounds at the merchant and the two conversed in this manner for several moments before the merchant wrapped a large tuna and placed it in a bag for Provider. He waited patiently as the merchant also selected a second fish, this one a small shark. Before the merchant could cover it in the wrapping, Provider motioned for him to toss it to the crouching figure next to her. NekoRanma looked up and mewed questionly at her, wondering if the fish that landed at his feet was indeed for him. Seeing her smile and nod, he purred and stropped her legs, before picking the fish up and trotting after her as she walked back towards their dwelling. He could have stripped the fish to it's bones in seconds, but he would prefer to eat it in the safety of his territory. There were too many of the human people walking around and he could smell other cats, and even worse: dogs. He hated dogs. Unlike the cats, they weren't smart enough to stay away when nekoRanma was in their territory and would often approach and harrass him. Though they only did so once, he thought with a purr around the fine tasting mouthfull of shark in his mouth.

Upon reaching their home, he happily stropped Provider's legs again before leaping the fence she had to open to enter, and sniffing the air to find his mate's scent. She didn't approve of his eating uncooked foods near her, and he wished to know where it would be best to eat his snack. After he ate, he'd seek her out and see if she'd pet him again. He'd had a rough morning and deserved a few minutes of pleasure with his mate before allowing his human self to regain control of their body.

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Kasumi smiled as she watched the various people go about their business in the open market. She prefered getting her groceries at this market instead of the closed in and mass produced stuff at the chain stores. She found most of the fresh goods here were of better quality and size than those available at the stores. She spotted an oddly silent and scratched up Kuno followed by his loyal ninja, Sasuke as the two limped out of a small shed in the field next to the market. Running from out of the shed, she noticed, were several cats and kittens of various ancestry.

From the clues, she gathered that Kuno had again attempted to harrass Ranma's nekoken self and had been thrashed soundly. She shook her head sadly at the thought. The poor Kuno boy was out of his league. Ranma was a far superior martial artist than he, yet he insisted that Ranma was only able to defeat him through magic and foul means. She hoped that Kuno did not push Ranma too hard, for the poor boy was under enough pressure from the far more serious threats that constantly plagued his life.

As she neared the fish stalls, she remembered that Kuno had been scratche up like a cat had attacked him. She realised that Ranma was now somewhere nearby in the nekoken, and decided to seek him out near the closest source of food: the rather open and odorous fish stalls. Ranma, even when fully human, had a great preference for fresh fish and without a doubt, his heightened nekoken senses would sooner or later draw him to this stall.

A faint sound from behind her caused her to turn. She was far from surprised to notice that it was nekoRanma creeping up behind her. She smiled down at the crouched figure, who was looking around and sniffing slightly.

"Hello Ranmakun. I see it's been a rough day for you." she said quietly, knowing that he would not understand the words, but that the tone would convey her affection for him. He was a handsome boy, she thought, and if not for the instant spark she'd felt from her seat when Akane and Ranma had first made eye contact, she might had relieved Akane of the engagement and taken it upon herself. He was a very caring and loving young man who had been stiffled under Genma's heavy handed approach to teaching. She felt certain that with a little love and understanding, Ranma would make a fine man and loving parent. He'd certainly never treat any children the way his father had treated him.

But as fate would have it, she had seen and felt that spark when her sister met Ranma's eyes. It hadn't mattered at the time that Ranma was female and embarassed by Nabiki's prodding. She'd sensed that all was not as it seemed and that their life was about to change drastically. And it had. Mostly for the better. Until Genma's arrival, her father had become rather lazy in his approach to life. He had trained Akane only since he could not find a way to get out of it.

Genma had brought a spark back into her father that had been missing since her mother's death. And Ranma was a joy and blessing. He'd managed to open some of her younger sister's walls and Akane had become steadily more capable in her martial arts and much more outgoing. She'd been somewhat shy, a factor that increased after that Kuno boy's idiotic proclamation.

Ranma's arrival had brought a whole new slough of problems, but they in turn only strengthened the bond between the two. Neither was ready to admit it, but it was easy to see that they loved each other. That was a large part of the reason their rivals behaved the way they did. They knew that the two already loved each other, and could not stand letting them go. She herself could understand that, since she felt similarly for a slightly older doctor of her acquaintance.

She noticed Ranma's eyes straying to the fish in the stall and smiled. "Are you hungry, Ranmakun? Would you like a special treat?"

Ranma's face light up and he purred happily. She giggled and turned to the merchant.

"I'll take that tuna there." she stated pointing gently at the large fish.

The merchant was an old friend and had been selling her fish at this stall for years. "Planning a special meal tonight, Tendo-san?"

Kasumi smiled warmly at the elderly man. "Hai, Omane-san. I'm making a casserol and a special fish desert. I need a large tuna for the recipe."

Omanesan smiled kindly at the angelic girl. He picked out a larger fish than the one she hadd selected and started wrapping it. "Here we go than. I know that Ranma-kun there and his father tend to eat more, so I'll give you this one at the same price as the ones you usually get."

Kasumi's smile grew and the whole day seemed to brighten for those nearby. "Thank you Omane-san. That is very kind of you. I'd also like a smaller fish, something different than what I usually get, if you have anything."

Omane grinned. "I have just the thing. My son caught a couple of these last night. I wasn't sure if I'd sell them or keep them, but my wife decided to have me sell them." He reached into a small cooler and pulled out a 15inch stripped shark. "Here we go, a little shark to go with the tuna. It's a little sharper tasting and the meat is slightly orange tinged, but it will go well with the tuna." He started to wrap it, but Kasumi stopped him.

"Oh, thank you Omane-san, but that's not necessary. It's for Ranma-kun. He's in his nekoken state right now and he's had a rough day. I thought he deserved a special treat for having to deal with that strange Kuno boy today."

Omane snorted. Like all true Nerimites, he was aware of the Kuno family and their mental states, as well as Ranma's own difficulties. He tossed the boy-cat the fish, and watched as he happily picked it up in his mouth and started purring. "In that case, Tendo-san, permit me to make a gift of this tidbit. Anyone who has to spend so much of their time dealing with that family does deserve a treat every now and then. Let Ranma know that anytime he's nekokenned, he can come by and I'll have a treat for him. I'm not fully sure how much he understands, but I'll make sure to either keep a little something special for him, or to look the other way when he sneaks a quick bite from my stall."

Kasumi tried to refuse, but Omane-san insisted. She agreed to pass along the message and after paying and bowing, she started towards her home, Ranma trotting proudly beside her. She was a little surprised to see that he hadn't eaten the shark yet, but guessed that he'd rather eat it in his own home territory. She'd noticed that several alleycats were staring at him, and there was even a stray dog or two who growled as they passed by. She had never given thought to what real animals thought of nekoRanma. She supposed that they viewed him as they did other animals: either an intruder to be warned off of a challenger to be fought.

They reached the Tendo Dojo within minutes. As Kasumi moved to open the gate, Ranma stropped against her legs again before leaping over the wall into the grounds. She passed through the gates just in time to see him scamper up into the branches of his favorite tree where he made himself comfortable and started to tear into his treat. She wondered if she should get some water for him, but decided that he'd likely seek out Akane after his snack, and the two so rarely had time together in which to share their true feelings.

Feeling happy for her sister and future brother, she made her way into the kitchen and laid out her ingredients and began tackling a more challenging problem than her sister's love life: Making enough food of her quality to feed a small army.