Sweet Dreams Or Why Ranma never wants any Night Terrors: Cats The tiger yowls, flees, and Ranma chases it. A tabby-cat flung aside by the tiger screams, clutches, panicked, at Ranma's shoulder, and she curls into a ball, trying to climb over her shoulder after it. *Thump* she blinks, looking for the cat, and stares at the floor of her room, wondering where it went. After a moment she gives up, slowly waking, and turns to climb back into bed. She starts. Furry! Big! She stares at her claws, stretched out in front of her, leaving gashes in the floor and bedding. Instinctively she balls her hands into fists, her claws vanishing as she tucks her fingertips to her palms. With a tiny mew she bolts, barely taking the time to paw the door open with her knuckles, and curls up in the hall. She shivers, away from what she now realizes was just Pop, but unwilling to risk going back to sleep, let alone back to her bed. An indeterminate time later a soft hand touches her back, `What do you want, Kasumi?' she asks, softly. `What's wrong?' `Nothing,' Ranma answers. She can feel Kasumi's smile without looking at it, and the other girl slips open the door to the guest room, and pauses. `I'll have to make him clean that up in the morning,' she tells Ranma, then slides the door closed, `Let's get you out of the hall?' `Nah, I'm good here,' Ranma shakes her head, still without opening her eyes. `No, you're not,' Kasumi answers, and gathers the smaller girl into her arms, `Oof, you're heavy.' Ranma stays curled into a tense little ball, whimpers, and shakes her head. `All that muscle,' Kasumi starts the short walk to her door, `You're going to need to open the door, or I'm going to have to set you down to open it.' Ranma opens her eyes, finding that yes, the softness her face is pressed against is Kasumi's breast, and the door to Kasumi's room is right in front of them. She reaches out, and carefully relaxes her hand, spreading her fingers. No claws. She turns the knob and pulls gently. A few steps later Kasumi sets her burden down on the center of her bed, shakes her arms out as she watches the girl shiver slightly, `Roll over,' she tells Ranma, `Let's get you under the covers.' `No,' Ranma shakes her head. Kasumi smiles, and rolls the girl-ball to one side, tosses the covers up next to her, and rolls her back, `There we go,' she says, pulling the covers back over the girl, and spooning herself around Ranma before pulling them over herself, too. One of her hands settles on Ranma's bare thigh, caresses the smooth flesh, and the girl relaxes against her. Neither of them sleep again that night. -*- Dream One: The Pervert. Ranma finishes her form, and smiles to herself, knowing it was right that time, breasts and all. She glares down at the outsized masses on her chest, and grumbles to herself, why couldn't she be as flat-chested as the uncute girl she's engaged to? `Just lucky, I guess,' she mumbles, then looks up into the pale brown eyes of the girl she was thinking about, `Akane,' she says more firmly. `Ranma,' the word is accompanied by Akane's hands wrapping around her face, cupping her cheeks gently, a soft smile on the taller girl's face. `Yes?' Ranma grins, liking the feeling, and Akane leans in, planting her lips on the smaller woman's. Ranma groans, softly, into the kiss, stepping backwards even as she leans forward, going on tiptoes as she tries to deepen the kiss and escape at the same time. Akane's tongue slips over Ranma's lips, which part eagerly, admitting a firm, eager explorer. Akane turns them, presses Ranma back against the dojo wall, and drops her hands to cup Ranma's soft, round ass, pulling her up against her as she presses forward. `Akane,' Ranma gasps, her hips jerking in Akane's hands as the taller girl's gi-clad thigh slips between her own. Akane pulls her tighter, sighing, her legs spreading slightly to accomodate Ranma's thigh as Ranma pulls her foot up the wall, applying pressure to the seam between her legs. Akane gasps at the pressure, clutching Ranma's ass with bruising force, and rocks forward, one knee pressed to the wall and the other free as she rubs that thigh between Ranma's dark-clad thighs, `You're such a soft little girly-girl, Ranma,' she whispers into Ranma's ear, `You love this so much, don't you, you little slut?' Ranma whimpers, her face pressed to Akane's neck, the girl's warmth on her thigh consuming her world, so right, so perfect, and she gasps as she comes. Akane gasps, pulling Ranma tight, then lets go and steps back, straightens her gi, and starts laying out bricks. `Akane?' she whimpers. `We're both girls,' Akane turns to look at her, `It's not like it means anything, is it?' `Don't you . . . ' Ranma trails off, doesn't continue, "want me?" or "like me?" or . . . anything, but fights back tears as they try to slip down her face. `What is it? I'm busy,' Akane says. With a whimper, Ranma wakes, stares about, and glares at the sleeping panda next to her, uncomfortably aware of the wetness between her legs. She staggers from the room, not crying, no, not crying, she would not cry over a dream, and knocks on Kasumi's door. `Who is it?' a gentle, sleepy voice asks. `Kasumi?' Ranma's voice is scratchy, tight. Kasumi opens the door, and waves Ranma in, `Nightmare?' Ranma opens her mouth to answer, then decides not to as a sob half-escapes, and nods instead. Kasumi pulls the comforter off the bed, spreads it in the corner formed by her bed and the wall, tosses her pillow on it, and settles herself on the cushion, gathering the spread in her hands, `Come here.' Ranma almost throws herself in the taller woman's lap, tucking her head under Kasumi's chin as Kasumi wraps the blanket around them both. `Do you want to talk about it?' Ranma shakes her head, curls herself a little tighter, settles her head against Kasumi's bosom, and tries, very hard, not to think about how nice it feels to be held. Kasumi just cuddles her close, `I'll be here if you ever do,' she presses her cheek to the top of Ranma's head, and doesn't mention the spreading dampness as Ranma doesn't cry onto her breasts, body shaking and her breath catching oddly as she forces herself not to sob. `Thank you,' Ranma manages after a while, her breath steady again, and slowing. `You're welcome,' Kasumi lets herself pet Ranma once, from shoulder down to butt, then follows her into sleep. -*- Dream Two: The Truth `I'm going to show you why I'm the better woman for my Ranma-sama, Ranma!' Kodachi declares, a wide grin on her face, `I, though the glories of the internet and machine translation, have come upon the answer!' `And the answer is you're a little cracked?' Ranma asks, a half-smile on her face as Kodachi poses, leotard clad form arranged to show off her well-toned body to the best effect. `Well, that may be, but I will make you cry my name in passion, and then you will be forced to give up your quest for my Ranma-sama.' `Oh,' Ranma frowns, `I don't think that will work. That "Mind, body, and soul" line Nabiki fed your brother? We're more like the Corsican brothers, what one of us knows, the other knows. What one of us feels, the other feels. When you bruise one of us, both of us show it.' `Then I have just to make him happy, and we need never see you again!' Kodachi wraps a ribbon around the smaller girl. `It doesn't quite work like that!' `Then I must make both of you happy, and I shall have him for my own!' `Maybe,' Ranma says, suddenly not feeling light fighting anymore, `I don't think I know how to be happy.' `It is easy!' Kodachi gathers Ranma up, still bound in the ribbon, into her arms, and bounds off. She sets the trussed girl on satin sheets, and smiles down at her as she manages, somehow, to gracefully extract herself from her leotard, exposing firm breasts and carefully trimmed pubic hair. Ranma's eyes get wide, and Kodachi leans down to kiss her, agile fingers opening her shirt. Ranma kisses back eagerly, pressing forward, hands still bound. `You like what you see, don't you?' Kodachi smiles, and sits back on her heels, admiring the way the tiny woman's nipples are so hard, her pupils dialated. Ranma nods, mute, aching. A few quick movements remove Ranma's shoes, and her pants follow, leaving her in just her shirt, bound with her arms around her middle. Kodachi's fingers are soft, not callused like Ranma's own, and gentle as they stroke around Ranma's breasts, then Kodachi gathers Ranma in her arms again. She settles the woman in her lap, facing away, bound hands just barely able to touch Kodachi's waist, and wraps her arms around her, cupping a breast in one soft hand and the other slipping between Ranma's labia, gentle and soft as they slip through well-lubed folds, holding her tight even as she twitches uncontrollably. Ranma whimpers, and Kodachi whispers soothing noises into her ear, kisses her neck, strokes with such agonizing tenderness. After a sudden convulsion Kodachi lays her down on the satin sheets, and whispers in Ranma's ear, `Now, my Ranma-sama should know, and come to us, right?' `Hot water,' Ranma says, softly, `Pour it on me.' Kodachi looks confused, but comes back with a towel and carafe of hot water, and settles the towel under Ranma before pouring the hot water on her. Ranma moans, constricted painfully by the ribbon that was firm on her smaller form, and Kodachi faints, dropping to the ground. After a bit, she stirs, `I had the most dreadful dream, Ranma-sama. I must have passed out at the sight of your manliness, that must be it,' and she begins to rub Ranma's soft member. `Gyeh!' Ranma screams as she awakes. Her father doesn't even growf before he turns his fat panda ass over away from her. Ranma rubs her hand over her face, makes a face at the smell and feel of her lube, and gets up, staggers out of the room. `Ranma?' Kasumi asks from her doorway, concerned. `Nightmare. I'm gonna take a bath.' `I'll be here if you need me.' Ranma nods. In the bathroom she scoops up lukewarm bathwater, scrubs quickly, trying her best to strip her skin off with the brush, remove the dirty, unwanted feeling. She doesn't even think about changing back before she staggers, still damp, up the stairs in a towel, leaving her soaked boxers and shirt in the hamper. `Ranma?' Kasumi asks, then bodily pulls the smaller woman into her room, throws back the covers and pulls the shivering woman into her bed after her. Ranma just pillows her head on Kasumi's bosom and falls asleep before Kasumi has even pulled the covers over them. Kasumi worries a while about where to place her hands, for Ranma's towel has fallen open, and it is easy for her to tell there is nothing under it. Finally she wraps both arms around Ranma, and holds the girl to her gently. Neither mentions it when, in the morning, they wake to find that Kasumi's nightshirt is rucked up around her waist, Ranma's towel is well on its way out of the bed, Ranma's thigh is between Kasumi's, and Kasumi's hand is on Ranma's bare ass. Kasumi just gives the tiny woman a little kiss on the top of her head, `Grab your towel and run, it's almost five,' and pulls her hand back a little so she can give her a slap on that (perfect) warm ass. `Thank you, Kasumi,' Ranma pushes herself to her hands and knees over the taller woman, smiles adorably, and blushes all the way to her nipples. `You're welcome, Ranma,' Kasumi smiles back, and forces herself not to reach up and molest the trusting person in her bed. -*- Daydreams: What if. Ranma stares up at the waning moon, and polishes the day in her mind again. It started so normally, and then went all weird. A fight with Akane, over breakfast. A storm to school, and a fight with Kunou. A whining-at by Hinako over, for once, having his homework done. The weird started normally enough, a new fiancee over lunch. She represented a school of martial arts taxidermy, and was tall, bosomy, with a nice ass that Ukyou noticed before anything else . . . `Ranchan, check out the ass on that girl,' Ukyou starts, forgetting, again, that she isn't in an all-boys school anymore. Ranma smiles at the outraged smack Akane plants on her shoulder, then looks for the girl. She's talking to one of the other students, who points in their direction. She walks over, just a faint, unselfconscious, sway to her hips as she moves, a fighter's grace to her movement, her skirt fluttering about her knees, and Ranma tries to hide behind Ukyou. She'll have none of it, and calls out to the girl, `Hello! You looking for someone?' The girl starts, then practically bounces over, her short hair fluttering in the wind, `Yes, I'm looking for Saotome Ranma? I was told he's over here somewhere.' `That's the pervert you're looking for,' Akane points to Ranma, who's still trying to hide behind Ukyou. `Oh,' she smiles, `You're very pretty,' she says, and takes Ukyou's hand. `Sorry,' Ukyou smiles, gently tugging her hand back, `He's the one trying to hide. Are you a fiancee or a challenger?' `Which will get him to stop hiding?' `Challenger,' Ranma says, `but I guess you're a fiancee instead.' `Yep. My parents are saying that I have to marry a boy, and they found that they'd made an arrangement a while back.' `How do you "find" a marriage arrangement?' Ranma asks, a little puzzled. `They covered your father's bar tab, so,' she laughs. Ranma groans, `I hope it was a big one. This is the third one he's sold me for,' he hangs his head, `The last one was for fifteen hundred yen.' `They didn't write it down, so it couldn't have been too big.' Ranma, somehow, slumps further, `I hate my life sometimes.' `Why? You're sitting here with two pretty girls, and a third one's talking to you?' `Tendo Akane,' he introduces the shorter girl, `Arranged with a friend of the family before either of us were born.' `Not that I want the jerk,' Akane says, firmly implying no one else should either. `Kuonji Ukyou,' he introduces the taller, `Arranged when we were seven, and Pops ran with the dowery, but left her behind.' `Leading me to spend the next ten years of my life as a boy,' Ukyou further explains. `Wow! I bet that was fun,' the new girl smiles, `Nakahara Miku, Matsumoto School of Martial Arts Taxidermy,' she grabs Ranma's hand, and kisses the back, `I'm only here for the day, so I've arranged with your principal to let me have you for the afternoon.' `How'd you get old palm-tree-head to do that?' `He said I needed a bowl-cut, and I said where's the bowl. He pulled one out, and lo, it was longer than my hair,' she shrugs, `So I had to whup his ass when he said he'd trim my hair free-hand instead, and made off with the pass he'd signed,' she tugs Ranma up by the hand she's still holding captive. Ranma comes willingly enough. Miku hands Ukyou the pass, `Could you show this to the teachers? I just need to spend the day with him, then I can tell my folks I've met him and you can have him back.' Ukyou nods, then watches with Akane as they walk off. `She's taller than he is!' Akane gripes. `Uh huh,' Ukyou agrees, `She is.' - `Martial Arts Taxidermy?' Ranma asks, once he's gotten slightly used to the idea of this tall, pretty girl dragging him around by the hand. `Yep. Not much use for competetion, but it's a good defensive art. You have to be careful when you fight people, though, since you can't always prove it was self-defence when the cops arrive.' `Why would the cops?' `To pick up the body. Most families don't want their dead person back stuffed, so you have to call the cops if they die, and it's really rather difficult not to kill someone, they're so fragile compared to a bear or an elk.' `Oh,' Ranma goes silent, and walks alongside Miku, who's rubbernecking like she's never been to the Ginza before. `OK, that's enough,' she turns to Ranma, `Akihabara?' `What?' `We'll go there next, OK?' `Sure,' he shrugs, not terribly interested. Water, as is it's wont, finds Ranma on their way down into the subway station, splashing from a water fountain over two meters of intervening space to hit her in the face. She sputters, and grabs her pants as they try to slip off her hips. `Always, always, always,' Ranma gripes, shaking her head firmly, and smacking Miku with her pigtail. Miku just stares, keeping a firm grip on Ranma's hand, her already large brown eyes getting huge, `That's just soo cool,' she says, and drags Ranma into a dark corner, `How'd you do that?' `It's a curse,' Ranma grabs her tail and tries to wring it out, getting a few drops out of it, `Cold water turns me into a girl, hot water turns me into a boy.' `A very pretty girl,' Miku places her hands on Ranma's shoulders. Ranma absently notes that each hand is as broad as the shoulder it is resting on, before looking up at the much taller girl, only to find her unexpectedly close. `Yah!' she squeeks, surprised. Miku freezes, bent over, her face only a dozen centimeters from Ranma's own, `Sorry,' she says, and starts to pull back. Ranma just blushes, `You startled me. I didn't expect you to be so close,' she starts, then goes silent as Miku's lips brush her own. Miku feels the short girls lips start to curve up at the corners, then Ranma's knees go limp, and she collapses to the floor. Ranma smiles, that was a nice, weird, but nice, dream. Pretty fiancee, decides to kiss her when she finds out she's a girl. Her fingers brush her lips, nice dream, and her eyes flutter open, to see a pretty face crowned with short black hair, and concerned brown eyes. OK, not a dream. `You OK?' Miku asks. `Sure, fine,' she presses her face into her hands, `Much better than my other first kiss,' she mutters. `Other first kiss?' Miku says, shifting to sit next to Ranma. `First kiss by a boy. On a skating rink, by a masher who was trying to kiss a thousand girls.' `That must have sucked.' `It woulda sucked worse if I liked boys. As it was, I was just pissed off, and whupped his ass for it.' `Good. I'm sorry for stealing your first kiss by a girl,' Miku hangs her head. `Nah, it's OK. You're real cute, and I like you, so,' she shrugs, `And this is only my first because they don't count if there's drugs or tape involved.' Miku gathers her into a hug, `They shouldn't be kissing you if there's drugs or tape involved,' she says firmly, `So can I drag you the rest of the way to Akihabara?' `Sure, let's go!' Ranma bounces up, and holds out a hand for Miku to take. - On the train back to Nerima, Miku asks, `So, are you a girl who turns into a boy, or a boy who turns into a girl?' `I'm a girl. I'm not very good at it, but.' Miku gives her a hug, `I'm way too tall to be good at it, so I sorta know where you're coming from,' she squeezes Ranma tighter, `But you are just utterly adorable. If I didn't need to marry a boy, I'd keep you no matter who I have to fight for it.' `Except your parents?' `Whell, they said that once I'd married a boy we could have as many girlfriends as we could afford, but,' she shrugs. `If you want a boy who looks, well, he's a better girl than I am, other than being a boy, that is, you should visit Utchan's shop.' `Isn't Ukyou a girl?' `Her waitress, Konatsu. Her stepmother and stepsisters raised him to be a girl.' `Wow,' she gives Ranma another hug, `Show me?' - Ranma stares up at the moon, not crying, that's sweat running down her face, not regret, no, she wouldn't be any good for a girl like Miku, she's a man, after all. She looks over at the faint sound of bare feet on tile, and Kasumi smiles down at her. `What are you doing up here?' Ranma asks, getting to her feet. `You woke me up by crying too loud, so I had to come get you,' Kasumi answers, `Miku seems like a nice girl.' `Yes, she does. She shouldn't be involved in this mess.' `But you introduced her to Konatsu.' `Konatsu's a nice girl, too,' Ranma pads after Kasumi, holds her hand as she climbs back down through her window, then flips herself in after her. `You're cold,' Kasumi wraps her in a hug, pressing Ranma's face to her bosom. `Yes,' Ranma huddles close. `Out of those clothes and into bed.' `Hai, Oneesama,' both of them shiver at that, and hurry under the covers. -*- Dream Three: Okonomiyaki Ranma turns to her wife, and smiles, `Good take today,' she says, shrugging out of her over-kimono, the ornate obi already folded away, and flounces over in a single layer of white cotton kimono and cord belt, tilts her head back for a kiss. `Aren't you going to get changed first?' Ukyou frowns down at her, arranging her coat on its hanger. `We're going to bed in a moment,' Ranma shrugs, `And I thought you didn't mind me sleeping naked,' she ducks her head, and flutters her lashes up at her wife. Ukyou scowls, `Into a boy, smart ass.' `When are you going to get over this? We've been married for years,' Ranma looks down at her cleavage, noticing the faint blue veins showing through the pale skin, `and you only sleep with me when I'm a girl if there's just no way for me to be a guy. Don't you like me like this?' `Not particularly, no,' Ukyou doesn't look when she says this. Ranma's face goes white, then melts, and she bites her lip to keep from crying, feeling way too vulnerable, `Why not?' she manages, her voice nearly steady. `Because I don't like girls like that,' Ukyou says. `You don't have to like girls like that,' Ranma says, `Just me.' `But you're a girl.' `Fucking duh!' Ranma yells, angry now, rather than sad. Ukyou looks up finally, `What did I say?' `I'm a girl! You don't have to have sex with me like this, but damnit, I have needs, really simple ones, as you should have fucking noticed before you fucking married me.' `What?' Ukyou asks, befuddled. `Hold me?' Ranma asks, arms spread, anger draining away nearly as fast as it rose. `Just go change so we can have sex and go to bed,' Ukyou turns away. Ranma curls up in a ball and whimpers, `She's not like that, Utchan's not like that, she isn't.' Not terribly convinced she climbs out the tangled covers on her futon, and staggers off to wash her face, wash away Utchan's indifferent face. `Ranma?' Kasumi asks, then follows when Ranma doesn't answer. She places a gentle hand on Ranma's shoulder as the short woman splashes water on her face, startles when Ranma whirls, presses her face to Kasumi's belly, mutters, `Why?' Kasumi wraps her in her arms, holds her firmly, `Why what?' `Why do people like boys?' `Because they're nice people?' `Why are people attracted to boys?' Ranma pulls back a little, looks up into Kasumi's face, `They're hard, and boney, and not curvey, and their faces just,' she shudders a little, `Who in their right mind would find that attractive? And when they've got enough fat that they wouldn't be boney, they don't look good, they just look lumpy. I,' she shakes her head, `Why,' she presses her face against Kasumi. `I don't know either. I guess it helps preserve the species, since it means that girls want to sleep with them, but.' `That doesn't mean they're sane, it just means that they're wired like that. I've met a few scary girls, but boys -- girls don't want to rape you just 'cause you're there.' `Most guys don't.' `You don't get to listen to them talk.' `Do you really think that Ryouga wants to kill you?' `Nah, he just likes to rile me up.' `Most of the time it's the same thing, they don't really mean it, but want to sound tough or something.' `They need to stop doing it around me.' -*- Dream Four: Man Ranma curls her toes in the cool mud of the village street, and stretches, her pregnant belly supporting her breasts, and smiles at the young man across from her, who's sweeping his porch. He waves, blushing, and she shakes her head, careful of her basket of laundry, and walks around the side of the house to hang it up. The house is small, and easy to take care of, which is good, since Shampoo's always off training. The laundry is hung quickly, and Ranma wipes her feet before stepping back up into the house, returning the basket to it's place. She is, unfortunately, bored out of her skull. She's read all of the scrolls a man is allowed to read, learned all of the techniques a man can learn, and practiced as much as Obaba would let her, being pregnant and all. That, of course, is the real problem, the isolation. Amazon men know better, but a husband who turns into a girl is a good thing for an Amazon -- they can cook, clean, keep house, and have the babies. A pair of Warriors waddle down the street in front of her house, and she smiles at the way they dote on each other, remembering when Shampoo paid her that much attention, the last time- `Ranma! Make dinner!' Shampoo orders, appearing behind her. Ranma startles, loses her balance. Shampoo grabs her, `Carefull, don't fall down and hurt my daughter,' she says, turning Ranma towards the kitchen, `You need to practice if you're going to be as good a cook as my father.' `Yes, dear,' Ranma smiles up at the taller woman, leaning back, twisting to bring her lips closer to her wife's, hoping Shampoo will take the hint this time. `Go on,' Shampoo says, giving her a little push. Ranma turns, throwing her arms around Shampoo's slim waist, pressing her face to the woman's breasts, `Do I have to beg?' `What for?' `Do you love me?' `Of course I love you.' `Why don't you kiss me anymore?' `I do kiss you.' `When?' Shampoo pauses, `Go cook my dinner, stupid male,' she huffs. `Sham-' Ranma twitches, hugging her knees to her breasts, `And I went to bed as a guy last night,' she whimpers to herself. She rocks to her feet and wanders from the room, arguing with herself about the dream in a soft voice, `Same pattern as always, I don't trust 'em. Duh. What's new about that?' she spashes water on her face, nearly as annoyed by the post-nightmare analysis as by the nightmare, `Why did I read those books anyway?' She looks up at her damp face and smiles, `Right, right.' `What's that, Ranma?' Kasumi asks, brushing Ranma's braid to one side to lay her hand on the back of the small girl's neck. `You,' Ranma smiles up at the tall woman, twisting to look at her. Kasumi smiles back, `Oh?' she asks, leaning forward. Ranma's eyes go wide, and she turns a little, reaching up to rest a hand on Kasumi's shoulder, leaning closer, `May I?' `What, Ranma?' Kasumi asks, leaning closer. `Kiss you?' Ranma asks, up on her toes so that her lips almost brush Kasumi's. Kasumi leans in the last centimeter between them in answer. --- Log: Yet another dark story that just wouldn't let me go. Sigh. Kodachi, Shampoo, and Ukyou to follow. 2007/Jan/11: Started. Kodachi. I think I'll swap Sham and Ukyou, and add Miku -- original, queer as a three dollar bill, and sweet. 2007/Jan/??: Miku and Ukyou. Decided to throw in a few `normal' nightmares, too. 2007/Feb/4: A bit more. I dropped it long enough to lose most of the nastyness that was floating about in my head for Shampoo, and this is all that remained of it. Less dark this way, I do believe. Lost most of the nightmares, too ^_^