The  characters  of the Ranma 1/2 universe  are  the
creation   and   possession  of  the  brilliant   Rumiko
Takahashi.  They  belong  to Rumiko  Takahashi  and  her
licensees   (Shogakukan   Inc.,   Kitty-Fuji   TV,   Viz
Communications   Inc.)  No  copyright  infringement   is
intended.   
     
I would like to thank my pre-readers, B. Na and Angel de la
Hoya. I would also like to thank the many other readers who
offered C&C.  Thank you. Your efforts have made this story
immeasurably better.  As always, any errors or omissions are
mine. 
     
On advice of some pre-readers I am providing the following
warning. This fanfiction contains scenes of extreme violence
and may be considered DARK.
     
I apologize for the lateness of this post. Due to computer
problems 'Cats' and 'With Friends Like These . . ." will
suffer some delays. :(
               

C&C is both appreciated and encouraged.

************************************************


          Cats have no tears


     
     
Chapter 5
     
     Ghosting through the night the small black cat was
only slightly more substantial than the cloaking shadows. Her
belly was full, the loud people were not chasing her and
 . . .and . . . 

     There had been something about the big-one-with-
sweet-food . . .something that made her feel angry. She had
wanted to attack the big one because . . .because . . .

     She couldn't remember.  

     The big-one had smelled nice. She'd almost gone up
to the big-one when the voice came from the darkness. She
shuddered. She'd never been so frightened as when she'd
heard that voice. She remembered it, remembered pain and
fear. She remembered that voice . . .

      But the shadows were deep, there were cracks and
hollows for hiding, walls and trees for climbing. She was
safe. The bad voices couldn't find her . . . couldn't hurt her.

       A sudden presence distracted her from her fears.
Whirling, she pounced. A small terrified shriek answered her
attack. Playfully she batted the small, furry shape tumbling
across the ground.  The little-squeakers were FUN. The
terrified rodent frantically dogged and twisted away from it's
enormous attacker.  With a feline grin the small cat let the rat
get almost away almost. 
     At the very edge of her range the cat would leap,
pinning the squirming animal beneath her claws. Again and
again she repeated this play. Once, the rat turned on it's
tormenter razor sharp teeth bared. A lightning slash
dissuaded the cornered rat. 

     *Hah . . .too slow? Too slow! I'll show him that I'm
not too slow. . .* The cat's thoughts broke off in confusion.
*Show . . .him . . .???* Who would she show? Who? ]

     Shaking her head in confusion she saw a motion on
her periphery. Turning to the motion she faced a plate-glass
door. The rat, sensing her distraction, scuttled away.
Ignoring her escaping play-thing the cat stalked this new
thing. A shadow that moved when she did . . .moved AS she
moved. Slinking forward with a feral growl the cat inched
toward the glass. Suddenly she sprang thumping painfully
against the unyielding surface. Shaking away the pain in her
head . . .the shadow cat did the same. Raising a paw, she
batted at the strange cat. Her paw hit strange frozen air and
slid off. She batted again, with the same result. At the third
attempt she froze, her paw flat against the glass. Glass . .
.glass . . .mirror?

      She snorted in disgust. Her reflection she was
trying to fight her_ reflection_. If he ever found out, she
would never live it down.  If he found out? . . . He?
Something niggled at her memory. Why couldn't she
remember . . .him. She knew him as well as she knew her
own . . .name. Name?

      What was her name . . .her name? 

     Frantically the small cat shook it's head, as if trying
to shake loose the elusive memory. Her name was . . . her
name was . . .Rage blossomed and she attacked her reflection
in a rage. WHO . . .ARE . . .YOU? WHO ARE YOU? 
WHO!!!

     *AKANE!*

     * I am . . .Akane. Tendou Akane.* 

     She latched onto that memory. 

     *Tendou Akane, daughter  of . . .daughter of Tendou
Soun and . . .and . . . daughter . . .*

     With an angry mew the small cat shook her head,
trying to clear away the fog that even now threatened to
swallow her humanity. 

     *I AM . . .I AM . . .Tendou Akane. Sister of 
Tendou . . . Sister  of . . .Tendou Kasumi.* Panting as if
she'd run a marathon Akane sank onto her haunches.

      *I am Tendou Akane. Daughter of Samurai, Grand-
daughter of Samurai.*

     *RANMA!!!* A face burst on her consciousness.

      *Ranma . . .Ranma.* She wept inside. For almost
losing herself. For almost losing HIM. *Ranma, Ranma,
Ranma.* Chanting the name to herself like a mantra Tendou
Akane streaked through the night
     
************************************************
*

     Ukyou was being chased. She couldn't see what was
chasing her but she knew it was getting closer. The harder
she ran, the slower she went. It was like running through 
mud . . .pulling at her feet, dragging her back. It was getting
harder to breath . . .there was a weight on her chest . . .
crushing her . . .crushing . . .

     Her eyes snapped open, to the starlight dimness of
her bedroom. 

     "Rrrrrrrrrrrrr!"

     Ukyou's hand froze on it's way to the bedside lamp.

     "Rrrrroooooooo." The low growl, like tearing metal
was accompanied by a sharp blow to her cheek.

     Her attempt to sit up was halted by another low
growl. Five needle sharp claws snicked into existence just
beside her left eye to reinforce the command to stay still.

     "A . . ." Ukyou flushed in embarrassment at the
hollow squeak that came out of her mouth. "Akane?" That
sounded better steady, confident.

     "Akane, is that you?"

     Ukyou could feel the answering growl deep in her
bones.

     "I'm glad you're 

     The claws tightened against her skin.

     "NO, no. I AM glad you're OK." Ukyou was
encouraged by the stillness of the slight figure on her chest.

      "You must have heard Cu Lon.  I . . .I called her."
Ukyou could feel the slight figure on her chest tense. 

     "It was a stupid thing to do. I saw the phone number
on your collar . . .I thought . . .I don't know what I thought.
I didn't think." Ukyou took a long breath. "Cu Lon told me I
was stupid and silly."

     There was a rumble of agreement from the shadowed
figure.

     "I've spent so long trying to get Ranchan . . .with
you out of the way I finally had a chance."

     Ukyou had spent the last days in an agony of shame
and fear. Shame that she had, in a thoughtless moment,
betrayed Akane to Cu Lon. Behaved with the same kind of
dishonor that had led Ukyou on a ten year vendetta. Fear
that Ranma would discover her betrayal. 

     She had swung wildly between thoughts of
confessing all; throwing herself on Ranchan's mercy. But
then she would imagine Ranma's face turning cold,
condemning. Ranma would turn from her in disgust. Every
one would turn away. She would be alone again. She was so
tired of being alone.

     Then Ukyou would try to ignore it all. Pretend it had
never happened. It wasn't her fault. SHE hadn't done
anything to Akane . . .she'd just called about a cat. Just a cat.

     And for a little while the guilt and fear and shame
would go away. 

     Until the cycle started again.

     Three days of self torture . . .

     "We . . .I . . .I'll call Ranma. He'll know what to do"

     @Ranchan . . .Ranchan . . .I love you.@

      . . .seventy two hours  waiting for Ranma to
discover her betrayal . . .

     "We can go to Cu Lon. All of us. We'll make her
turn you back."

     @And then you'll tell. Tell Ranma  what I did.@

     "Everything will be all right." 

     @It's not my fault. I didn't do anything. I'm sorry.  I
just called about a cat. Just a phone call.@

        . . .four thousand minutes of exquisite shame that
shredded her nerves and filled her belly with bile and acid.
Ukyou wanted it to END.

     As Ukyou reached for the phone her hand
accidentally brushed against her bandoleer of spatulas.

     "It's-not-my-fault. It's not MY FAULT!!!"

     Moonlight glinted off the surgical steel blade in her
hand.

************************************************
*

     "Please, hurry. Hurry!" The widowed teacher
clutched the phone in a death grip. "Please . . ." She was
almost sobbing. "It's horrible."

     "Yes ma'm." The police dispatcher was calm and
soothing. "A car it on it's way. They will be there soon.
Please stay on the line."

     "It's horrible . . .horrible . . ." She pressed her hands
over her ears trying to close out the dreadful keening wail.
Like a dying child . . .a dammed soul in the fires of hell. And
it went on . . .and on . . .

     "Horrible . . .horrible . . ." She clutched her blankets
to her, trying to block the sound . . .  "Horrible . . ."

************************************************
*

     "Someone give me a hand here!"  Hyobe looked over
at his partner, puking in the bushes.  A policeman came up,
looked at what lay on Hyobe's stretcher. He clamped his jaw
against a sudden surge of nausea but stood his ground. 

     "What . . .what do you want me to do?"

     "Here . . .hold this here." Hyobe handed the
policeman a sterile pad and positioned it over a gaping chest
wound. 

     "Press! Tight . . .TIGHTER!" The policeman leaned
on the pad and the flow of blood slowed.

     Hyobe started an IV in the right arm as his partner
struggled back into the back of the ambulance.

     "I'm sorry Hyobe. It's just . . ."

     "Forget it Misao. Just help me with this bleeder."

     Miaso grabbed sterile sutures from his kit.

     "Who could have done this?  WHAT could have
done it."

     "BP's dropping. Start a Ringers-lactate." Hyobe
ordered. "And someone see about that medivac-chopper.
She'll never make it over surface streets."

     "Helicopter's on the way." A policeman called from
outside.

     "OK, BP's coming up." Hyobe relaxed slightly,
feeling a little hope for the first time since he'd arrived on the
scene.

     "Who could have done this." Miaso repeated as they
continued to work.

     "Dunno'." Answered the policeman, wiping a sweat
soaked face with a clean towel. "But whoever did it was one
sick son-of-a-bitch. He wrote all over the walls, in
blood her blood."

     "That's sick. What did he write?"

     "That's what's really strange. He wrote 'Tokyo lives'
in kanji  all over the place."

     "Tokyo lives??? What the hell does that mean?"

      Hyobe finished suturing one ripped artery, then
started another. If he could just SLOW the blood loss.
Enough for the IV's to keep up. If the helicopter got to her
in time . . .

     The policeman shrugged. "With a sick'o like this,
who can tell what . . ."

     Miaso hissed in shock. "Not Tokyo . . .Aka . . ."

     "Huh? What do you 

      Miaso pointed to the mutilated face of the girl laying
in the back of his ambulance. "He wrote it on her face,
'Aka'. On the walls, the blood must have run, smearing the
kanji."

     Studying the ruined face, Hyobe could see where
kanji had been ripped into her face stroke by stroke. AKA.
Or maybe, he thought looking more closely, AKANE.
                              
************************************************
*

     "Did you hear what happened? Someone's been
going all over Nerima and . . ."

     "Don't' mind me ladies."  Nabiki had noticed
conversations would die out when she approached, then start
again when she left.  "I'm just a little curious . . .what's so
interesting in the paper?"

     "Uhhhhh . . .you haven't seen the paper?"

     "No!" Nabiki answered shortly. "We haven't been
watching TV either."

     "Sorry . . .sorry," Mari stuttered. "it's just . . ."

     Nabiki reached for the news paper and was shocked
when Ruri grabbed her hand.

     "You don't want to see that, Nabikichan."

     "Have they written something about 

     "No . . . it's not about Akane," Ruri hastened to
reassure her. "At least, not directly."

     Nabiki's face went cold. "What do you mean . . .not
directly?"

     Ruri hesitated, then reluctantly handed the paper to
her. The paper fell open to a well read section. Nabiki paled,
then flushed with anger.

     "No one NO ONE," the two girls shrank a little
under the force of her anger. "talks about this to Ranma."

     "He's bound to find out about it eventually." Ruri put
in reasonably. "It's all over the news, and everyone at school
is talking . . ."

     "Stop talking." Nabiki turned savagely on her friends.
"I don't want this . . ." Her voice dropped, cold and toneless.
"Ranma doesn't need to hear this. I will be unhappy if he
does hear. Pass the word." A humorless smile crossed her
face. "Point out to anyone not afraid of ME . . .Ranma will
NOT be pleased if he thinks anyone is being disrespectful to .
. ." her voice broke, " . . . to Akane's memory. I don't know
what kind of sick joke this is." She slapped the paper angrily.
"But I'm going to find out." Throwing the paper to the
ground Nabiki stalked out of the class room. Ruri looked
after her departing friend, then picked up the paper. Again it
fell open to a lurid headline and sensational pictures.

     AKANE LIVES!!!
     Written in Blood.
      Bizarre Vandal terrorizes district.

Police seeking link to earlier attack on local businesswoman.


************************************************
*

     "Shan Pu!"

     The Amazon warrior looked over her shoulder to see
Tendou Nabiki striding toward her.  Sighing she slowed her
steps and allowed Nabiki to catch up with her.

     "Nihao, Nabikisan."

     "Don't Nihao me." Nabiki thrust a paper in Shan
Pu's face. "What do you know about this!"

     Shan Pu jerked back, startled. Looking at the paper
she tried to puzzle out the script. Languages were not Shan
Pu's forte. 

     "Ummmm. It say . . ." Her head tilted to one side,
then the other. "Ummm. Shan Pu not read Japanese very
well. Look like someone painting on wall." She grinned.
"Some one write rude word?"

     Shan Pu's head rocked back under the force of
Nabiki's blow. A second blow stopped short, held in Shan
Pu's fist. She casually wiped blood from her split lip.

     "Why so mad, Nabikisan?"

     Nabiki swung her free hand and it was also caught.
     "Shan Pu let Akane sister hit one time. No let hit
again. Unless make Ranma happy?"

     "You bitch. I'll kill you. Ranma will . . .'

     "OK, Nabiki coming with Shan Pu." Dragging the
spitting and cursing Nabiki behind her Shan Pu moved
quickly off the main street and down a side alley.

     "Nabiki tell Shan Pu why mad?"

     "This! THIS!!!" Nabiki thrust the paper in Shan Pu's
face again. "How could you do this to us?" Nabiki was
sobbing now and Shan Pu looked on in concern. 

     "Shan Pu not read Japanese good. Not know why
Nabiki upset. Please tell."

     Something in her tone got through Nabiki's anger
and anguish. "You don't know. You really don't know?"

     Shan Pu shook her head, bewildered.          

     "In the paper . . .on the news."She unfolded the
paper and smoothed the wrinkles. "Here . . ." she ran her
finger along the column. "It says 'Vandal strikes again.
Grotesque message written in blood. AKANE LIVES."
Nabiki read about the attack on Ukyou, describing her
injuries.

     Shan Pu stumbled back, her shock so real that Nabiki
was convinced she was telling the truth.

     "Who write this? Who DO this bad thing?" She
paused, looking at Nabiki. "Nabiki think Shan Pu do this?"
Hurt was evident on her face. "Nabiki think Shan Pu do bad
thing. Try kill spatula-girl?  Write thing hurt Nabiki . . .
Kasumi . . . Akane Father. Hurt Ranma?" Tears pooled in
Shan Pu's eyes. "This thing . . .bad, bad thing. Ranma soul
hurt. Spirit bleed. Nabiki, Kasumi, father soul hurt. Shan Pu
Amazon. Fight with honor. No fight when soul hurt. No
make spirit bleed more." She looked Nabiki in the eye. "This
evil thing. Thing make hurt from dark. Coward thing. Shan
Pu never do."

     Nabiki pulled back in fright as a blade appeared in
Shan Pu's hand. She was stunned when Shan Pu pressed the
hilt in her hand.

     "Shan Pu never do this." She pulled back her dress,
exposing her heart. "Shan Pu swear on life. Nabiki think
Shan Pu do this. . . .Nabiki kill." 

     She pressed forward until the tip of the knife pierced
the skin and a drop of blood welled up. 

     "Nabiki look Shan Pu eye." Nabiki felt her head
wrenched around until she was staring Shan Pu in the eyes.
"Shan Pu not have money, land. Shan Pu not have paper
from school. Shan Pu not have big doujou. All Shan Pu have
is Shan Pu. Have honor, good name. Shan Pu say she
NEVER do this evil thing."

     She grabbed Nabiki's wrist and started to press
forward, driving the knife into her chest. Nabiki found herself
in the odd position of trying to KEEP the knife out of Shan
Pu's heart, when moments ago she'd wanted nothing so
badly as to cut it out of her chest and roast it on a stick.

     "You stupid Chinese . . ." Nabiki panted with the
effort of pulling back with both hands and her entire body
weight against ONE of Shan Pu's hands. And still the blade
continued it's slow journey into Shan Pu's body. "ALL
RIGHT. I BELIEVE YOU! Alright? I don't think you did
it."

     She stumbled back as Shan Pu released her wrists and
would have fallen had Shan Pu not caught her. "YOU,"
Nabiki growled. "are CRAZY."

     "Shan Pu not crazy, Shan Pu Amazon."

     "If you didn't do this." Nabiki muttered, thinking out
loud. "Who did?"

     "Why think Shan Pu do?"

     "I couldn't think of why ANY one would do it. I
guess I picked you because . . .well because . . ." 

     "Because Shan Pu not Japanese?"

     Nabiki looked down, shame faced. "Yes," she
answered in a small voice. "And because it's like you're
replacing Akane with Ranma."

     "Shan Pu no replace Akane. Shan Pu die, Ranma sad,
maybe long time sad. Akane die Ranma lose part of self.
NEVER get back. Maybe learn live, but never same."

     "OK, we still need to know who would do this. Write
this . . .and in blood. AND attack Ukyou."

     "How spatula-girl do?"

     "She'll live . . .just. And the doctors say they can
probably put her face back together. But she's going to be in
and out of the hospital for a long time."

     "Spatula-girl no say who do this? Maybe we ask?"

     "They're not letting anyone in to see her. She's still in
intensive care. The police aren't talking but I've got a friend
who's father is a police inspector.  She tells me that Ukyou
hasn't given the police any useful information. She just raved
about monsters and kept repeating . . .repeating Akane's
name." Nabiki closed her eyes against a sudden stab of pain
as she tried to hold back her tears. 

     "Is OK Nabiki cry. Tears honor dead. Help heal own
heart."

     "I'm not crying." Nabiki sniffled. "I just have
something in my eye."
               
     Shan Pu chose to ignore that and continued. "Who
want hurt Ukyou, hurt Akane family, hurt Ranma?"

     "Alphabetically or chronologically." Nabiki put in
sarcastically. "Or maybe country of origin? Since Ranma
showed up we've had wierdo's visiting on a regular basis."

     "This different." Shan Pu insisted. "This . . .this 
evil . . .attack from dark. Attack when soul sick . . .no can
fight back. Strange, dark attack. Who know crazy for
Akane? Have big hate?"

     "Crazy for Akane? Most of  Furinkanen was
obsessed. So that's not much help. Let's see  . . .obsessed,
crazy . . ."

     "KUNOU!" Both girls shouted together.

     "Oh . . ."

     "Shit!" Nabiki finished.

     The two girls looked at one another.

     "We'd better get back to the school."        

     Shan Pu nodded and the two sped toward Furinkanen
high school.