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    The Dragon and The Ghost

    Part 16

    The way to a beast man's heart...

++++++++++++

    "What?" hissed Akane in shock as she looked at what was in hands.

    "I said put it on," said Ranma calmly as she undressed herself.

    "I won't!" snapped Akane with anger in her eyes.

    "Come on, don't tell me you're scared of a little outfit like
that," said Ranma teasingly.

    "This isn't an outfit! It's lingerie!" snapped Akane angrily.

    Ranma blinked and smiled at her for a moment. "Look, you can stand
here if you want, but I'm going to get out of here. I've got to get
back with the others soon, and I don't want these idiots following us
still." She stood and looked herself over for a moment. It was a thin
material that hid nothing from view. The only cover was a tight thong
under the veil like pants. A small see-through vest, which buttoned in
the front, also hid nothing from view.

    "I can't believe this," grumbled Akane as she stared at the cloth
in dismay.

    "Don't tell me you've never used your wiles to get your own way
before," said Ranma with a chuckle.

    "Not once," snapped Akane in retort. "Certainly not in a fashion
as brazen as this!"

    "Well you should, you have no idea how much fun it is," said Ranma
with a small wink. The redheaded elf was currently placing a veil over
her face as well. Her outfit was bright orange, making her stand out
even more. The one Akane was holding was a lavender color.

    "Is this a man or not?" snapped Akane as she watched her sneak
towards the party again. Finally, she clenched her fists, and blushed
heavily as she began to disrobe.

++++++++++

    "Hello, my. Why are you dressed like that young lady? Out looking
for a lover? You are aware of what dance those are for?" said the
elder in shock as Ranma walked up to him with a smirk on her face. The
man was standing on the outskirts of the nightly party, watching
intently. The redheaded elf, was covered in a blanket that was draped
over her shoulders.

    "No, unfortunately for you, I'm not. This is part of my
distraction plan," said Ranma with a small chuckle.

    "Distraction?" asked the Gypsy cautiously.

    "Yes, the man you took in, is a minor noble of the Emperor. He's
the one we're trying to avoid," said the elf calmly.

    "Then you should leave," said the man with a small frown.

    "Hardly. I couldn't leave your little village to the mercy of him
and his two beast-men," said the redhead with a cold smile.

    "Beast-men?" The elder went pail as he looked over at the traveler
and his two companions, looking at the pair on either side of Kuno, it
was now obvious to him that she was right. "How could I not see it?"

    "Easy, a simple spell that tells you not to notice," replied Ranma
as she watched them with him. "They appear to be ogling your women as
well. How quaint."

    "What is it that you want?" snapped the man angrily as he glared
at the things that sat within his friends and family. No one seemed
even slightly aware of them.

    "We can take care of them, quietly, for a hundred pieces of
silver," said Ranma with a smirk. "You just have to move on as soon as
we come back. It won't do for you to be found too near the bodies."

    "Right," muttered the man as he glanced at her nervously. "You're
robbing me blind you know."

    Ranma giggled with a strange look in her eyes. "Don't pretend to
be so ignorant. I could easily ask that much in gold for a single
beast-man. I just find silver to be strangely appropriate." She turned
her head, and saw Akane stalking towards her angrily. She was dressed
in the outfit.

    "Let's just get this over with," said Akane bitterly.

    "Right," said Ranma with a small smirk as she glanced back at her
companion for a moment.

    "What are you looking at?" snapped Akane bitterly as she covered
her chest.

    Ranma chuckled and looked at the elder for a moment. "We're going
to need the help of some of your young women."

    "Are you sure she's up to this? Your friend doesn't appear to be
very enthusiastic about this," commented the elder.

    "Trust me," said Ranma with her smirk returning again. She turned
towards Akane and handed her a length of rope. "Hide this behind your
back..."

++++++++++++++

    Tatewaki Kuno sat watching the festivities around him lazily. "How
quaint, the commoners are quite...colorful," said Kuno with a slight
raising of his eyebrow. One of the drunker men became violently sick
in the dirt a few yards away.

    "Lord Kuno, can we try and talk to some girls?" said Mint with a
nervous twitch forming in his eyes.

    "Are you not a bit young for such things?" commented Kuno in
surprise.

    "We've never seen girls like these before," said Lime in
agreement. The women were almost as drunk as the men, and were hanging
off of their chosen men, and in some cases, one another, rather
passionately.

    Kuno chuckled slightly. "Go, spread the seed of the nobility. I
may choose to give some young maiden the honor of my time as well."

    Lime and Mint's jaws dropped like lead weights. No one had ever
given them permission before, not even Herb. Tears of joy formed in
their eyes for a moment, and they stood up to rush away.

    That is, until the crowd parted in front of them, revealing a
small group of younger girls. Most of them in their mid to late,
teens. They formed a messy looking group in front of a bonfire,
spreading out to reveal two very scantily clad women, who were eyeing
them directly.

    "Woah!" said one of the younger men nearby to Kuno. "I never
thought this'd happen tonight!"

    "What is going on here?" said Kuno as he turned towards the man
for a moment.

    "Well, those two girls in the middle. They're signaling to the
whole camp that they're ready to lose their virginity. It's a sort of
tradition, they'll choose the man they wish to couple with tonight."

    "Pardon? This is some sort of marriage ceremony?" said Kuno with a
slight frown.

    "No, not marriage. Lust! Passion! We're gypsies remember?" said
the man with a small snort of laughter. "The girls can choose married
men if they wish. Any man she chooses is obligated to spend his
evening with her. After that, they usually go their separate ways.
Marriages that happen because of this are very rare."

    "Ah, I see," said Kuno with a nod. "No doubt they were smitten by
my noble personage, and sought to bed me upon gazing on my handsome
face. I shall give them a night they shall cherish forever!"

    "Hey...Mint...you can see...their..." muttered Lime as he stared.

    "T-t-titties!" stammered Mint.

++++++++++

    Ranma and Akane glared at their targets calmly. "You take the
younger one, Wolf-boy," said the elf girl.

    "Right, what am I supposed to do? I can't dance," said Akane with
a frown.

    "Follow my lead and don't worry, you're dressed so skimpily that
none of the men will care," said Ranma firmly.

    "That's supposed to make me feel better?" snorted Akane.

    "Focus on the target. It's how I got through this the first time I
had to do something this way," said Ranma in reply. Her tone was
serious, all business, once again.

    "All right," agreed Akane, slightly comforted by the attitude
change.

    The music started, a few drums accompanied by flutes, and low
sounding wind instruments.

    Both girls began to move slowly, curving their arms up and down
their bodies as they writhed like serpents to the music. Ranma was
moving gracefully, lightly. Akane was moving much slower, but still
managed to keep a rather quiet grace about her. It was clear that all
attention was focused on the redhead, and at the moment, that suited
her fine. Akane focused her attention on copying Ranma, hoping for the
situation to end soon.

    Suddenly, Akane felt a slight daze overcoming her. It was slow,
and crept up on her cautiously. She felt her eyes glaze over, and
staggered for a moment, her head lolling around as if she was in a
drunken state.

    Ranma paused nearby, still staying with the music, swaying her
hips and moving her belly slowly. Her arms moved up and down her body
as Akane walked up next to her, and began to move in perfect unison.

    Slowly, the music began to build up tempo. Both of the women moved
faster, writhing like sirens, their hands moving up and down each
other's bodies, and reaching out to the trio of men who sat
dumbfounded, directly in front of them.

    The music climaxed, bursting into an insane speed. Ranma and Akane
spun around violently, whipping their hair through the air, their
bodies shaking violently as they moved ever closer to the trio.
Finally, the music stopped in an instant, and both girls fell to the
ground in a kneeling bow. Right in front of Lime and Mint.

    "Huh?" was the unanimous reply to this from both of them.

    "Oh, how noble I am! That they have both chosen to lose themselves
to me!" said Kuno with tears in his eyes. He was sitting directly
between both beast-men.

    Lime and Mint almost sighed with relief, it certainly made more
sense than the pair choosing them. That is, until the girls stood up,
and grabbed their hands.

    "Come with us," they said in unison. "Come."

    "Heh heh," said Lime nervously.

    "Who? Us?" agreed Mint with a huge blush on his face.

    "Hold! Did I give you permission to take these women! You shall
have them after I have given them the honor of..." Kuno was promptly
silenced as both girls slammed their fists into his face, moving as
one.

    "Hey. I like these girls," said Mint as he watched the unfortunate
noble slump to the ground. He allowed himself to be led away by the
dark haired girl.

    Akane spared Ranma a dark glare for a moment. As she hit Kuno, the
haze in her eyes seemed to clear finally.

    The redhead was smirking at her, and gave a small wink as she lead
the tiger-boy away into the woods.

+++++++++++++

    "What are we doing out here?" said Lime nervously as he looked
around. "Hey, can I touch that?" he said as he pointed at her breast.
"I've always wanted to touch one of those..."

    Ranma frowned as he reached out and grabbed her. "This is far
enough," she thought as she pushed him against a tree, while seeming
to jump into his arms. "Oh! Be gentle with me!"

    Lime's instinct began to take over, and Ranma felt the fur
starting to grow across the man's chest.  He growled and shifted
forward as if to grab her, his movement was stopped by some unseen
force. The redhead jumped back, pulling the veil from her face as she
did so.

    "Well, well, look what I've caught!" said the elf coolly.

    "What? You!" snarled Lime angrily. He pulled at the ropes that had
appeared around his torso somehow. "I'll kill you!" snarled the tiger-
man as he struggled.

    "I wouldn't do that, those are enchanted ropes you know," said
Ranma as she sat down.

    "What do you mean?" said Lime as he stopped struggling for a
moment.

    "The more you struggle, the tighter they become," said Ranma with
a small shrug. "If you struggle enough, the string of silver inside
them will cut through the rope."

    That got the monster's attention. "What?"

    "You heard me, the only way out of that rope is for you to relax,
and wait for someone to untie you," said the elf coolly.

    "I'll get you for this thief," said Lime angrily.

    "Calm down will ya? I'm going to keep your little knight safe for
now, she's safer with me than at the palace."

    Lime looked away and snorted in disgust. He knew the elf was
right.

    "You seem to like her, so I'm assuming that you don't want the
Emperor to kill her. Right?"

    "Fine, go then. We won't lead Lord Kuno to you again," said Lime
in frustration. "Not until you recover the Kajakan. Then we'll hunt
you down, and destroy you."

    "Oh?" said Ranma with her eyebrow arched.

    "I know it was you, I was in that dungeon. My nose doesn't lie
like my eyes and ears might," said Lime coldly.

    "Well, we'll see," said Ranma as she backed away into the shadows.

++++++++++++

    "Lady Akane! It's you!" said Mint as he stared at the woman in
shock. She had removed her veil and was glaring at him.

    "Shut up and stand against that tree," said Akane coldly.

    "Right!" said Mint cheerfully. "Thank you for letting me see your
titties! They're very nice!"

    Akane growled as she began to wrap the rope Ranma had given her
around him. He made a small noise as she pulled it tight for the
comment.

    "You sure are nice to us!" continued the boy obliviously. "I never
thought I'd really get to see a girl's chest! Most girls won't talk to
us, cause of what we are! It's really hard to get a date, especially
since Lord Herb keeps us so busy!"

    "Be quiet, I've got something to tell you!" said Akane angrily.

    Mint blushed and stared at her for a moment. "Oh! You mean you
really do want to...?"

    Akane hung her head for a moment and clenched her fist in
frustration.

    A moment later, a dazed looking Mint was slumped against the tree,
being held up by the ropes around him. Several large lumps were
visible on his head, he laughed deliriously for a moment and looked up
at her again.

    She was leaning against the tree trunk and glaring at him with
barely held back rage. "Listen carefully. I don't have much time."

    "Okay," said the boy sheepishly. He was watching her breast bounce
as she breathed heavily from the exertion of beating him.

    "Stop looking at those and pay attention!" she snarled, giving him
another bop on his head.

    "Right!" said Mint as he looked at her face again.

    "I have a message for you to deliver to my father. Tell him I am
on the trail of the Kajakan, but I need more time. I have someone who
is delivering me right to it, and I will find a way to signal once I
find out where we are going. Understand?"

    "Right!" said the boy again as he nodded up and down.

    "Be careful with those ropes, and wait for Kuno to untie you!
They're enchanted, and can kill you if you struggle," warned Akane as
she walked away.

++++++++++++++

    Ranma and Akane were back in their traveling clothes once again,
standing outside the gypsy camp as they finished loading their camp
away. The moon hung in the sky overhead still, but morning would be
arriving in an hour or so.

    "Well, we appreciate your services," said the elder with a small
chuckle as he handed Ranma a bag of silver coins. "And the show!" he
winked at the both of them and chuckled.

    Akane looked at the elf in disbelief. "What?"

    "One should always look for a way to get paid, even if you're
going to do it for free anyway," said Ranma with a small wink as she
placed half of the coins in her hand.

    They started walking away from the camp together, Akane was
keeping up the rear. She was sulking again, and glaring at Ranma's
back as she walked.

    "Oh what is it?" said the elf with a heavy sigh.

    "What did you do to me back there?" said the knight irritably.

    "Huh? Oh that," said Ranma with a small wave of her hand. "It's
nothing."

    "You took control of my body, don't tell me it was nothing," said
Akane angrily.

    "I didn't," said Ranma as she looked over her shoulder for a
moment and chuckled.

    "What do you mean? Explain?" said Akane sharply.

    "All right, jeez. I just hypnotized you, that's all," said Ranma
lazily.

    "What?" said Akane in shock.

    "It's a trick I learned a while back. I did a job once, where I
had to sneak into a thieves' guild. I stole a necklace from the guild
master. In order to do so, I hid in his harem. He used to give big
parties, and had his girls dance for him there. I learned how to do
that trick from a young pair of elf girls, named Ling Ling and Ran
Ran. They were working for him at the time."

    "As slaves?" snorted Akane bitterly.

    "As prostitutes, they were paid for what they did," replied Ranma
with a small shrug. "He was a rather nice guy for a guild master. I
did a few jobs for him after that."

    "Disgusting," snorted Akane.

    "Better than cutting people up with a big sword for a living,"
retorted Ranma.

    Akane felt a blush rise to her face. "What's that supposed to
mean?" she snapped angrily.

    "It means it's all a matter of perspective. Some people would
rather do things like that than kill, or starve in the streets,"
replied the elf girl calmly.

    "Is that why you became a thief, so you wouldn't have to kill?"
snorted Akane lazily.

    "No, I'm as much of a killer as you are," replied the girl. She
continued to walk forward, not speaking again after that.

+++++++++

    "So? Lime and Mint failed to locate the Kajakan," said Nabiki as
she watched Herb pace back and fourth.

    "You know as well as I that I never intended for them to retrieve
it," said Herb as he looked up at her.

    The cold smile on her lips widened somewhat. "An ingenious plan.
Sate the Emperor's suspicions by appearing to seek out his lost
artifact quite intently."

    "Yes, I'm glad you thought of it," snorted Herb lazily.

    "The things I do for love," said Nabiki as she wrapped her arms
around his neck playfully.

    "Love of power," pointed out Herb lazily.

    "Yes, it is such a turn on," said the girl with a feral looking
grin appearing on her face suddenly. "I'm hungry Herb darling, but
since it isn't time to feast on the Emperor's power just yet."

    "I may have something to sate your appetite," replied Herb as he
lifted her off her feet.

    Nabiki responded by biting him on the neck, which made him pause
and let out a low growl. "Planing on letting out the beast inside
you?" she whispered.

    "You would not survive that," commented Herb.

    "Hmm, perhaps I should find a way?" she purred. "Would that please
you?"

    Herb growled again, glaring at her with his golden eyes for a long
moment. "Perhaps I underestimated your worth Tendo."

++++++++++++

    "Well, there it is, the border," said Ryu as he pointed to a
simple road sign ahead of them. It was sitting in the middle of a long
dirt road that twisted through the forest on the edge of Joketsuko.

    The sun was high in the sky above, hidden by the occasional
passing cloud. It was amazingly good weather, despite the chilling
temperatures only a few miles behind them in the mountains. Even the
types of wildlife around them had changed dramatically. Smaller
animals were visible now, such as squirrels and different types of
birds as well.

    "What an incredibly boring trip," commented Ukyo.

    "I'm glad it was," commented Shampoo.

    "Indeed," agreed Ryoga.

    "Aren't you ever satisfied?" said Ryu as he crossed his arms and
looked at her.

    "Well, you were a lot more exciting in Morid," she said with a
small sigh.

    "Whatever, let's keep going," said Shampoo lazily.

    "We're going to wait for Ranma," said Ryu calmly.

    "What?" said the rest of the group in shock.

    "We're going to wait for Ranma. We're much safer here, and there's
a safe house nearby we can use." said Ryu calmly.

    "Oh, I get it. This is some sort of plan you two idiots have
worked out," snorted Ryoga.

    "Right," said Ryu calmly. "Ranma does all of the transactions, and
it looks weird if I show up at the end of a job. He'll be along in a
day or two. If not, we'll go on without him."

    "Are you sure?" muttered Ukyo nervously.

    "No, but we've got a job to do, and I know how to find him if we
don't link back up during the job," said Ryu.

    "Where is this safe house?" snorted Shampoo.

    "I'll show you, it's a cabin a few miles away from here," said Ryu
as he led them away.

++++++++++

    "What an incredible dump," said Ukyo as she stared at the rickety
old wooden cabin in front of her. It was falling apart, and didn't
look very inviting at all. "This thing must be older than Shampoo!"

    "Hey!" snapped the elf girl. "What the heck is that supposed to
mean?"

    "Exactly what it sounds like! You hag!" snarled Ukyo in retort.
The pair was at each other's throats in a moment, each grabbing the
other's collar.

    "Ranma certainly brings out the best in women," commented Ryoga as
he walked by Ryu.

    "Right," agreed the human as he opened the door. "Come on, let's
get this cleaned up a bit. I'd rather do it before they come in here
and start fighting over him."

++++++++++

    Almost an hour later, Ryu emerged from the cabin and sat with a
cup of tea in his hands. Ryoga sat down just beside him and shook his
head in disgust.

    Both women were still locked in combat, each covered in dirt and
bruises, but neither appearing to have the upper hand. They had kept
the contest purely physical so far, and had yet to resort to weapons
or magic. Finally, they slumped down against each other.

    "I'll get you next time, sugar!" gasped Ukyo.

    "You're a hundred years too slow to beat me!" countered Shampoo.

    "Hag!"

    "Tomboy!"

    "Witch!"

    "Man impersonator!"

    "That's enough damn it!" said Ryu as he walked up between them,
pushing them away from one another with an almost casual air about
him. "He's not even here right now. You two are impossible!" With that
said he turned away and walked back into the cabin, followed by the
disgusted looking Ryoga.

    Both girls looked at one another and blushed.

    "This is all your fault you know," said Ukyo.

    "My fault? You started this!" snapped Shampoo.

+++++++

    Inside the cabin, Ryoga sat up and grumbled. He was lying on his
futon and glaring at the door. "Again?"

    "Just ignore them, get some rest," muttered Ryu as he pulled his
blanket a little. "They'll wear each other down eventually."

++++++++++

    A short time later, outside the cabin, Shampoo and Ukyo were both
lying on the ground with their hands gripped firmly around each
other's throats. Both had their eyes closed, and were muttering
insults under their breath as they slept.

    "Hussy."

    "Tramp."

    "Slut."

    "Bitch..."

+++++++++

    TBC...

    Next Time: The reunion.

    I felt like being nice this time, and cut this one off before it
became a cliffhanger. Oh well. Don't expect this too happen again
anytime soon, as things are about to pick up again.

C&C to Carrotglace@juno.com

Previous parts can be found at Http://www.fanfiction.net and R&C Books
International Fanfic Company at Http://www.rcbooks.org

Ja!


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