Passing Strangers on a Moonlit Night
(A Ranma One Half / Sailor Moon Alternate History)
By Ammadeau
Roy.Fokker@UNSpacy.org
http://Ammadeau.tripod.com/fanfiction.htm

Chapter 3

	Ami stared for sometime out the window down into a small 
park area that was part of their apartment building.  Ranma was 
still practicing.  He'd been at it ever since they had gotten home 
and didn't look ready to stop any time soon.  When she had brought 
up the sports club again, he had made some excuse about the walk 
there was time better spent training.  Ami thought it was much 
more likely that he just didn't want to be around other people right 
now.
	She frowned slightly.  She had tried her best to bring him 
out of the shell he surrounded himself with, but every time she 
thought that she thought she was making progress, he'd either pull 
away from her or put on this false cheerfulness routine that Ami 
had seen Usagi use a few times.
	It was clear to her that their father's death had hit him much 
harder than he pretended to, that his usual cheerfulness was a mask 
that she could sometimes see through.  The mask was gone now as 
he practiced.  His face was stern as he punched the dummy over 
and over again, his eyes narrowed, his mouth a thin line.  He 
radiated a cold anger that made her feel uncomfortable.
	Ami shook her head.  She just wasn't good with this sort of 
thing.  Usagi was the one who always cheered everyone up, Usagi 
was the one they always relied on to pick up their spirits when 
things were looking bleak, Usagi was...
	Ami practically dove for the telephone.

	Usagi was salivating.
	"Usagi, you're drooling," Ami pointed out.
	"No, I'm not," she answered immediately, wiping her 
mouth, her eyes never leaving the shirtless Ranma practicing 
before her, as he danced through a kata whose complicated 
maneuvers she couldn't hope to follow, much less emulate.  That, 
however, was much less impressive than his muscled chest 
gleaming with sweat...
	"You're drooling again," Ami mentioned once more, 
keeping her own eyes averted from the sight that Usagi was 
studying so intently.  Why did her brother have to be so... good 
looking?
	Ami noticed that Ranma had stopped what he was doing, 
but before he could go into yet another routine, she called out, 
"Ranma!"
	Ranma's head snapped up and Ami sucked in a breath.  His 
eyes were dead as he stared back at her, his face slack.  But it was 
only for a moment before the mask was snapped firmly back into 
place, the cocky smile never quite reaching his eyes.
	Taking a deep breath, Ami couldn't help notice the ease 
which Ranma walked over to them.  He'd been practicing non-stop 
for hours now.  Even Makoto, who was in better shape than anyone 
else Ami knew, would have been exhausted.  How hard did their 
father push Ranma during that training trip?  As hard as he had just 
pushed himself now?
	Usagi couldn't tear her eyes from Ranma as he walked over 
to them, moving though the grass silently on bare feet, towel 
around his shoulders, dropping past his bare chest to loose black 
pants.  Black hair wild, nearly dipping into his eyes, eyes so much 
like Ami's yet different, harder somehow.  Full lips drawn into a 
half-smile...
	Usagi violently shook her head.  She had Mamo-chan!  She 
shouldn't be having such thoughts about another guy.  But then 
again, what was the harm in looking?
	"Ranma, I'd like you to meet another good friend of mine, 
Usagi Tuskino."
	"Pleased to meet you," Usagi told him, bowing quickly.  
She blinked and sighed when coming back up from the bow her 
eyes were only inches from his, who was staring at her intently.  A 
blush began to color her cheeks.
	Ami nearly snapped her neck going from Ranma to Usagi 
and back again.  They were only staring at each other silently as the 
minutes began to pass.  She couldn't help notice her brother's intent 
stare or Usagi's blush.  Just what was going on here?
	Before Ami could think of what to do, Ranma took a step 
away from Usagi and said to her.  "You're in the same class as us, 
aren't you?"
	"Huh?" Usagi started to snap back to reality after a pleasant 
fantasy of her and Ranma...  She violently shook her head again 
and replied firmly, "Yes!  Wait, how did you notice me?"
	Ranma smirked.  "Well, you're hard not to notice with that 
silly hair style of yours.  What is it supposed to be, spaghetti and 
meatballs?"
	Usagi frowned.  *And for a moment I thought he was cute.*  
She frowned even more when Ranma started to laugh.  "And what 
do you think is so funny?" she demanded of him, stomping her foot 
for emphasis.
	This only made Ranma laugh harder.  Eventually, he settled 
down enough to stop laughing, though there was still a large smile 
on his face.  "It's just that," Ranma struggled to explain as a new 
wave of chuckles hit him, "It's just that you look so ridiculous 
trying to act stern like that!"  Ranma began to a laugh again.
	Ami took a step back from a friend who she normally 
thought of as the kindest and sweetest person in the world.  Usagi 
frowned mightily, her posture ridged as she very slowly walked 
over to the practice dummy Ranma had been using and picked it 
up, giving it a few practice swings like a batter warming up before 
stepping up to the plate.
	Ami blinked several times as many things seemed to 
happen at once.  Before she knew it, Usagi was chasing her brother 
all over the yard, occasionally hitting him with the practice dummy 
she was swinging around.  Ranma might have been able to escape 
her, but he was laughing too hard.
	Then Ami smiled to see that this time at least Ranma's 
happiness was genuine.  She didn't know how Usagi did it, but it 
worked.

	"Ami, do you know anything about this Stone Blood gang?" 
Ranma asked her suddenly.
	She knew he was just using this as an excuse to get away 
from their studies, but decided to answer this anyway.  They were 
currently in his room and she was trying to help get a grasp at least 
of how much her brother knew and how much he would need to 
know.  So far she'd found Ranma to be a quick study, but was 
disappointed by his large lack of actual education.  Even at the rate 
he learned, it would be a while before he was up to speed.  She was 
already mentally setting aside time each day to help him with his 
homework.
	"The gangs around here only usually fight amongst 
themselves.  It may be some sort of rule or something, but I 
wouldn't know for certain.  I've never heard of them harassing 
innocent kids, but that doesn't mean that they haven't."
	It was clear that this wasn't really the answer Ranma was 
looking for.  "What do you think about me training them then?"
	"Personally, I think it's a bad idea.  I don't trust this Sai 
person, and training him and his gang can only lead to trouble."
	Ami could tell by the look in her brother's eyes that he was 
still tempted by their offer, despite what she had to say about it.
	"If you want someone to train, why not train my friend 
Makoto?" Ami asked to try and lead her brother away from the 
Stone Blood.  "She's into martial arts and I'm sure she'd love to 
train with you.  I wouldn't mind a few lessons myself."
	"Training girls?" Ranma said, a frown on his face.
	"And just what is wrong with being a girl?" Ami asked, a 
bit more angrily than she had intended.  She knew her mother 
suffered some prejudice being a woman doctor and did not like the 
idea that gender dictated what someone could and could not do, 
especially from her own brother.
	"Nothing, nothing," Ranma replied immediately, hands 
before him to defend himself.
	Ami relaxed immediately.  "Sorry, Ranma.  I didn't mean to 
get mad at you.  I guess that's just a sore issue with me."
	"Do you think your friend Usagi would want to train?" 
Ranma asked suddenly.
	Ami frowned slightly.  "I think I should tell you that she 
already has a boyfriend."
	"No, no, I didn't mean it like that!" Ranma protested.  "It's 
just I have the feeling that she reminds me of someone, a friend 
that I can't remember.  Somehow, I feel peaceful when I'm around 
her.  I'm probably not making any sense."
	Ami smiled as she put one arm around her brother.  "No, I 
understand what you mean.  Usagi has that sort of effect on people.  
Five minutes after meeting her for the first time and it felt like 
we've been friends forever."
	"Yeah, it's something like that," Ranma admitted.
	"Okay, how about this?  After my juku tomorrow, I'll round 
up as many of my friends as are interested and we'll all go to the 
sports center to train.  They have all the equipment there that we'll 
need.  And I'll get Usagi there, even if I have to drag her by the 
ponytails to do it.  How's that sound?"
	"Sounds good," Ranma said with a laugh, then his 
expression grew suddenly nervous.  "Does that mean that girl... 
Minako will be there too?"
	"Don't tell me you're actually afraid of a girl, Ranma?"
	Ranma was about to protest, but then admitted in a small 
voice, "Maybe a little bit."
	"Minako isn't as bad once you get to know her," Ami lied.  
"Besides, the others will be there to keep her in check.  Don't 
worry, everything will be fine."
	Ranma had the sudden feeling that training the Stone Blood 
would be a whole lot safer for him.

	Ami went to wake up her brother the next morning, 
shocked to find his bed was empty.  She worried about everything 
from running away to suicide until she heard sounds from outside 
of someone hitting something over and over again.
	Sure enough, Ami noticed as she gazed out the window, her 
brother was down in the little park practicing his martial arts again.  
She had to wonder how long he'd been at it already.  Was he going 
to spend his every spare moment in training?  Ami herself liked to 
study, but she still spent time with friends and things.  She didn't 
spend every waking moment with a text book in her hand, though 
some people probably thought she did.
	"Ranma!" she shouted out the window.  "It's time to get 
ready for school!"
	He seemed confused for a moment, then he shouted back, 
"Okay!  I'll be right up!"
	When Ami met her brother at the door, he was smiling 
apologetically.  "Sorry.  I guess I lost track of time."
	Ami got a sudden whiff of him.  He must have been 
practicing for much longer than she had originally guessed.  
"Bathe, now," she ordered, pointing in the direction of the furo.
	Ranma blushed in embarrassment and headed off in the 
direction indicated.
	Ami giggled once he had slammed the door behind him.  
Her brother seemed to be in good spirits today.  She hoped that this 
was a good sign.

	Ami quickly served her brother breakfast, a double portion 
considering his appetite, and sat down to eat herself.  Ranma didn't 
start in on his food right away, instead he kept glancing around as 
if he were waiting for someone.
	"Mom has already left for work, Ranma," she told him.
	"I kind of already guessed that," he replied nervously.  "It's 
just that..."
	"Just that what, Ranma?" Ami asked gently, having a 
feeling that this was about their father.
	"It's just that me and pops had this... well, I guess it was a 
game, though pops said that it was more training.  He'd try and 
steal food off of my plate and I'd try to stop him while stealing 
from his.  We did this most meal times, but especially breakfast.  I 
guess I still expect an attack to come any minute, even though I 
know it won't."
	"Well, you can never be too careful," Ami said seriously, 
popping a piece of purloined food into her mouth, stolen from her 
brother's plate near the end of his little monologue.
	"Hey, that was my pickle!" Ranma shouted, outraged.
	Ami did something she hadn't for over ten years.  She stuck 
out her tongue at him.
	Soon the chopsticks were flying furiously over the dinner 
table.  Ami was no match for Ranma, she knew that immediately.  
She couldn't even compare to his quick reflexes, but he didn't try as 
hard as he could have either.  It was a game, and in the end they 
each ended up with the same amount of food they had started with, 
more or less.  Actually, less, since some of it lay scattered all over 
the table or on the floor.  Ami didn't like the resulting mess, but it 
was worth it to hear her brother's laughter again.

	"Well, what a coincidence," Rei said as she 'just happened' 
to have run into Ami and Ranma on the way to school.  "Hello 
Ami-chan, Ranma-kun."
	Ami frowned a bit.  It didn't take a genius to see that Rei 
had planned this.  Ami didn't mind the idea of her friends hitting on 
her brother since she loved them all, but they didn't have to be so... 
aggressive about it.  "Hello, Rei.  Isn't your school in the opposite 
direction?"
	"I just had a quick errand to run before school, that's all," 
Rei explained quickly.  "But since we're all here, I can remind your 
brother to wait for me after school so I can take him to the shrine."
	"I hadn't forgotten," Ranma told Rei seriously.  "I'm always 
eager to learn a new martial arts technique.  But I'm going to be 
teaching Ami some martial arts later at the Sports Center.  You're 
welcome to join us.  Maybe it would be easier if you taught it to 
me there."
	"No, no, no," Rei replied immediately.  "These sort of 
lessons have to be given in private, one on one.  Family secrets and 
all that.  But I'd still be happy to learn some techniques from you, 
Ranma."
	"Fine, then," Ranma said with a smile, completely missing 
the innuendo.  "I'll have all the details when I see you after school."
	"Well, we have to get going.  Don't want to be late for 
school," Ami butted in.  "Bye, Rei."
	"Bye, Ami-chan!" Rei replied with a wave as Ami 
practically pushed her brother in the direction of the school.  "See 
you later, Ranma-kun!"

	Ami and Ranma arrived at school to find Makoto waiting 
for them.  "The others late?" Ami asked with a smile.
	"As usual," Makoto answered, returning the smile.
	"Huh?" Ranma said, not getting it at all.
	Makoto explained, "Our other friends Minako and Usagi 
both seem to have some difficulty getting up on time.  Usagi 
usually gets here right before the bell, and Minako is nearly as 
bad."
	Ami was a little relieved that Minako wasn't there at the 
moment, especially after having just dealt with Rei.  Makoto had a 
bit more sense than the others.
	"But enough about them," Makoto changed topics with an 
airy wave of her hand.  "I made a very special bento today using 
some of my best recipes.  You and I can share it at lunch, Ranma-
kun."
	Ami groaned.  Makoto tended to have more sense, except 
when it came to boys.
	In Ranma, instincts were battling with appetite.  His 
instincts were screaming danger, danger, avoid girls at all costs.  
His appetite was yelling I'm hungry, must accept offer of food 
always.  Despite a number of differences, Ranma was still Genma's 
son.  Appetite won.
	"Sure," he told her, only somewhat nervously.  "That'd be 
great."
	Makoto smiled, and was about to say something, when 
there was the sound of running and labored breathing behind them.
	Ranma spun around just as he heard a scream right next to 
him, and then something warm and soft landed in his arms.  He 
caught and cradled whatever it was on instinct.  Ranma looked 
down into the face of Minako who was looking back up at him, a 
heavy blush on her cheeks.  That was when he realized that he was 
currently holding her body close, so close that Ranma would have 
no difficulty in identifying her as female even with his eyes closed.  
His eyes open made this even more clear as he was currently 
looking right down her uniform.
	Ranma panicked.  He immediately held her as far away 
from himself as his arms could reach and set her back on her feet.  
He let her go, dropped his arms to his sides, and struggled for 
something to say.  "Uhh," was the best he could do at the moment.
	Minako was still blushing and didn't look likely to be 
saying anything anytime soon, her eyes shining like twin stars.  
Ami and Makoto also seemed to be blushing, but for very different 
reasons from their fellow senshi.  Ami had no idea what to say at 
that moment, but Makoto didn't have the same difficulty.
	"What was that, Minako?!" she demanded.
	Minako blinked and seemed to notice her friend for the first 
time.  "I tripped," she explained weakly.  "And Ranma caught me."  
The blush return to her cheeks and her eyes began to glaze over 
again.
	That started a full-scale argument between the two, 
eventually drawing Ami in as well.  Ranma was feeling out of his 
element when a boy walked up to him and tapped him on the 
shoulder.  Ranma noticed he was wearing a red arm-band.
	"Sai wants to speak with you," the boy told him.  "Follow 
me."
	Ranma, seeing no reason to argue, shrugged and followed.

	Usagi ran up to her friends who were still arguing by the 
school gates, and spent some time catching her breath.  She had 
tried setting her alarm clock half an hour ahead and still ended up 
waking up late.  At least she had gotten there before the bell rang 
this time.
	Curious, Usagi tried to follow the on-going argument, but it 
mostly went right over her head.  The crux of it seemed that 
Minako had done something to make Makoto upset.  So it couldn't 
be that important.  She herself was doing that sort of thing to Rei 
all the time.  Rei needed to learn to lighten up still, but Usagi never 
figured Makoto for the serious type.
	"Hello, Usagi," Ami greeted her with a smile.  It was nice 
to have one friend who would be throwing herself at her brother, 
even she knew though Usagi still liked to look.
	"Hi, Ami-chan," Usagi responded, returning the smile.  
Then she glanced around the school yard.  "Hey, where's your 
brother?"
	Usagi was a bit startled when Minako's and Makoto's 
argument ended immediately and they both turned to face her.  
"How do you know Ami's brother, Usagi?" they asked in unison 
while staring her down.
	Usagi was intimidated by their stares.  "Well, Ami invited 
me over yesterday to watch Ranma practice martial arts," she 
explained weakly.
	Ami had to shrink back when the twin glares became 
directed at her.  "Both of you had already met Ranma..."
	"He's just a jerk anyway," Usagi interceded for her friend.  
"Acting all macho like that, practicing with his shirt off."
	Minako and Makoto's glares immediately changed to that of 
pure shock.  "You saw Ranma practice with his shirt off?" Makoto 
asked very slowly.
	"Ami-chan!" Minako shouted, grabbing hold of her friend 
and shaking her.  "I want to see Ranma practice with his shirt off 
too!"
	Ami was unable to reply, mainly because it was too hard 
for her to speak with Minako shaking her like that.

	"Where did you go?" Ami asked her brother with some 
irritation.  They had all made it to class just as the bell rang, in 
Ranma's case, only seconds before.
	Ranma didn't seem to notice her attitude.  "Sai wanted to 
know my answer about training his gang," he told his sister as he 
took the seat behind her.
	"And you told him no, right?"
	"Well, actually I told him that I still need a few days to 
think about it."
	"Ranma!"
	"I need to train with someone who is at least near my level 
if I'm going to get better, Ami.  I still need to see how good your 
friends are before really deciding if I can teach them or not.  
Besides, training with girls... it'd be really odd for me.  It might not 
work out."
	"Ranma, to be a good sensei you'll need to be able to train 
martial artists of all skill levels, including beginners.  Some of my 
friends already know martial arts, but I'm not really sure how they'd 
compare to you.  Some, like me, only know the very basics.  If you 
really want to open a successful school, you'll have to train people 
like us all the time without being bored."
	Ranma blinked, as if this had never occurred to him before.  
"You're right, Ami.  What did they say when you asked them?"
	Ami blushed a little.  "Um, actually I forgot to tell them 
about it, but I'm sure most of them will be interested.  I'll ask them 
at lunch."  They want to watch you train, at least.
	Ranma was unable to reply since class had begun.

	At his sister's insistence, Ranma was actually trying to pay 
attention in class this time.  He wanted to please her by learning 
and doing better in school, which seemed to be something very 
important to her, but most of the things that the teacher droned on 
about went right over his head.  He wished Ami could just explain 
some of the things to him, but there was a strict no talking rule in 
class, unless of course you had a question about the material.  
Ranma had several, but he didn't want to embarrass himself in 
front of the class by asking.  Besides, he didn't know where to start.
	As such, his attention began to wander regardless.  He 
stared out the window, at the tall trees in the school yard, when 
something bumped his hand.  He quickly glanced at the teacher, 
but her focus was on the chalk board.  Looking down, he noticed 
the folded note on his desk, which read 'from Minako' and had a 
doodle of a smiling girl on it.  He noticed that it mirrored the 
expression of the girl who had drawn it, as she was currently 
staring at him.
	Ranma looked back down at his desk and put the note 
aside.  He tried to study the notes he had already taken in class, but 
couldn't make much sense of them.  His eyes kept getting drawn 
back to the note the blonde girl had tossed on his desk.  Minako 
was quite possibly the strangest person he had ever met.  He still 
didn't know what had happened with her that morning.  So he was 
curious to know more about her, yet admittedly afraid at the same 
time.  After a few minutes, he realized that he wouldn't be able to 
concentrate on anything else until he knew what the note 
contained.  Shrugging a little, he unfolded the note and began to 
read.
	"Yes!" Minako suddenly shouted, focusing the attention of 
most of the class on her.  She could only laugh nervously.

	The note was a little longer than Ranma had expected.
	"Hi there, Ranma.  It's Minako.  You might not know me 
very well, but I'm your sister's best friend.  Well, one of her best 
friends.  I guess we are all equally the best friends of each other 
now that I think about it.  I'm the blonde one, but not the one with 
the ridiculous hair-style.  That's Usagi, who is very bunny-like 
outside of her hair looking like long ears.
	"Where was I?  Oh, you might remember me from when I 
sort of fell into your arms this morning.  Thanks for catching me, 
otherwise I might have had a nasty spill.  I was in a rush to get to 
school on time and I guess I slipped on a rock or something.  I also 
shared my lunch with you yesterday.  You can have some of my 
lunch today too, I brought plenty.
	"Ami told me that you're really into martial arts and 
practice all the time.  Want to be an instructor yourself one day, 
right?  I'm in training myself to become a world-famous idol 
someday.  I think that makes us pretty similar, don't you think?

See you at lunch!
Minako ^_^
P.S. Write me back!"

	Ranma could read over the note a few times, but it didn't 
make any more sense to him than the first time did.  What was 
worse was no having read it, he felt obligated to write something 
back, but he didn't have the slightest idea what to say.
	Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Minako 
occasionally glancing in his direction, though she wasn't the only 
one.  His sister's other two friends, Usagi and Makoto, also glanced 
at him once and a while, though he found their gazes a bit less... 
intimidating.
	Sighing a bit, Ranma began to write whatever came into his 
head.

	Minako nearly jumped out of her seat in surprise when a 
folded note landed right on top of her notebook.  Her eyes went 
wide when she realized the name on the note was Ranma.  Quickly 
glancing all around to check if anyone was watching her, Minako 
carefully unfolded the note and began to read.

	"Hi, Minako.  I'm glad to hear that my sister has so many 
friends, and that you're all so close.  She doesn't seem very social 
but then neither am I, I guess.  No need to thank me for catching 
you, sort of did it on instinct.  You should try and be more careful 
though.  Makoto already offered to share her food with me, and I 
don't want you feel obligated to do things for me or anything just 
because I'm Ami's brother.
	"Is training to be an idol really like martial arts.  I saw this 
martial arts movie on the way home from China but the guy in it 
didn't really act like he knew was he was doing.  Maybe he just had 
a bad teacher though.

Ranma."

	Minako frowned a bit.  Ranma could use a few lessons on 
how to properly write a note to a girl, but still she had gotten him 
to write back and that was more than anyone else in he class had 
done so far.  She could tell that Ranma had a shell around him that 
he used to keep other people away, probably because of the recent 
death of his father.  The only person he really seemed to let in was 
Ami, which made sense being his twin sister and all.
	Ranma must have had a hard time coming back from China 
alone.  Being alone was something Minako had known all too well.  
She could still remember her solo times as Sailor V, being 
constantly on call made making friends impossible.  Artemis had 
been with her, but it wasn't the same.  Usagi had opened the door 
to friendship for her.  Now she had four people in her life that she 
knew she could count on for anything.  Maybe she could be the 
only to do that for Ranma.  Break his shell to let the world in.

	Lunch was an ocean of calm compared to yesterday.  Ami 
was especially thankful that they could use the door this time 
instead of the window.  They gathered around the same tree that 
Makoto had found Ranma in the day before, the pig-tailed boy and 
his sister in the center with the rest of the senshi gathered around 
him.
	"You can have this, Ranma," Makoto told him as she held 
out the box, faint blush on her cheeks.
	"Thank you," Ranma said a bit hesitantly, setting it down 
next to the one his sister had made.  He stared at them for a few 
moments, wondering which to start on first.  He had been surprised 
to find that Ami had made him a double portion crammed into the 
same bento, and the one Makoto had just given him was packed 
with even more food, so Ranma was a little doubtful that even he 
could finish it all.
	"This is for you too, Ranma-kun!" Minako shouted, 
shoving another bento in his hands.  Ranma had no choice to 
accept it with more thanks.
	As Ranma stared down at the bentos, still unsure where to 
start, the senshi gathered around stared at him.  Ami found herself 
wishing that her brother would choose hers first, and then shook 
her head.  Even if she had put some extra work into making his 
bento and it would be a shame if it went to waste, that was no 
reason to treat this as if it was that important.  If he didn't start on 
hers first he wouldn't be any less her brother, it wouldn't mean that 
he loved her any less.
	Makoto was confident that her bento would be the one to be 
chosen.  After all, the care that she had so lovingly put into crafting 
it was easily apparent to the eye, as well as the delicious aroma that 
wafted up from it.  Makoto wasn't blind to the fact that both 
Minako and Rei also seemed to have an interest in Ranma, but she 
had learned from Ami that Ranma's biggest weakness was food.  
And there she was queen.  The others didn't stand a chance.
	Minako was confident that her bento would be the one to be 
chosen.  It had nothing to do with the bento itself in her mind, she 
hadn't even made it, but who had given it.  She knew that both 
Makoto and Rei were interested in Ranma, but they didn't have a 
chance.  It was obvious that she was the prettiest girl among them, 
the prettiest in the whole school.  And she was already much closer 
to Ranma than they were.  Who had Ranma written his innermost 
thoughts to?  Who had he held in his arms?  Minako almost 
laughed out loud, she had won the contest before it had even 
begun.
	Usagi was hungry, really, really hungry.  Her stomach 
growled loud enough to frighten away pit bulls, not that her friends 
intently staring at Ranma noticed at all.  Usagi had been in such a 
hurry to get to school, teachers were threatening her with all sorts 
of punishments if she were ever late again, that she had made the 
gave error of forgetting to grab her lunch.  And now she was 
paying the price.
	This wasn't the first time this had happened, but normally 
her friends were more than happy to spare some of their own 
lunches.  This time, however, they weren't being quite so nice.
	"Ami-chan, can I please have some of your bento?"
	No response.
	"That looks good, Makoto-chan.  You're such a good cook.  
Can I try some?"
	No response.
	"Minako-chan, please give me your pickles!"
	No response.
	Well, only one person left to try.  He was a jerk who would 
probably tease her about her hair or something again, but she didn't 
have any choice.  She was starving.
	"Ran--"
	"Did you forget your lunch, Usagi?" Ranma asked 
suddenly, unintentionally cutting her off.
	Too surprised to do anything else, Usagi simply nodded.
	"Well, there's no way I can eat all this food, so why don't 
you take one of these bentos?  Since everyone here is your friend, 
I'm sure that they wouldn't mind.  They wouldn't want you to 
starve."
	The senshi all nodded in agreement, but their eyes were 
hard as they stared at Usagi, making the moon princess feel a bit 
nervous under their collective glares.  Still, Usagi's stomach won 
over her fears and she quickly snatched up Makoto's bento, 
knowing her to be the best cook, before anyone could change their 
minds.
	Minako and Ami both smiled, while Makoto's glare 
intensified.  Usagi was really thankful that her friend wasn't 
currently transformed into Sailor Jupiter at the moment or she 
might have been dodging lightning bolts.  Instead, Makoto huffed 
and silently begun on her own meal, stabbing at it nearly hard 
enough to break her chopsticks.
	Nervously, Usagi did the same and was surprised to find 
just how good it was, even better than Makoto's normal fare.  She 
was about to compliment her on it, but seeing her still angry, 
decided against it.  Usagi slowly ate her food, despite it's great taste 
and her ravenous appetite.
	*Just why was this so good?* she wondered, especially 
when she just gave it away like that.  Wait, it was meant for 
Ranma.  Usagi blinked as the realization hit.  Makoto had made 
this meal especially for Ranma, putting a lot more care into it 
because...  Usagi remembered how extra hard she worked when she 
had made cookies for Mamo-chan, even if the result was less than 
the best.  Extra care for the one who you truly cared for.
	Usagi began to grasp the scope of her blunder.  In her own 
greed for grabbing the best food, she had ended up hurting her 
friends feelings, intercepting a token of caring meant for someone 
else.  Usagi imagined someone else eating Mamo-chan's cookies 
and frowned.
	Everyone turned in Usagi's direction when she loudly set 
her chopsticks down on the bento.  "I'm done," she announced, 
trying to smile.
	"Usagi, you've hardly eaten," Ami pointed out, her voice 
tinged with concern.  The bento looked barely touched, while 
Ranma had devoured the one she had made and was already half-
way though Minako's.  Even Ami herself, the slowest eater among 
them, had already consumed much more than her dumpling-haired 
friend.
	"I guess I wasn't very hungry after all," she explained with 
the same smile.
	"You feeling all right there, kiddo?" Minako asked as she 
proceed to poke and prod her friend.  Usagi's appetite was 
legendary, the only time she ever lost it was when something was 
really wrong, but as far as Minako knew everything was fine.  No 
monsters to fight and she had seen Usagi with Mamarou only 
yesterday.
	Usagi laughed as she pushed Minako's hands away.  "I'm 
fine, I'm fine!  I just... had a big breakfast that's all."  Then she 
picked up the bento and presented it to Ranma, who looked back at 
her in confusion, Minako's half-eaten lunch still in one hand.  "But 
this is really delicious and it's a shame for it to go to waste after 
Makoto put all that effort into it.  Could you please finish it for me, 
Ramna?"
	"Usagi-chan," Makoto whispered, her eyes wide in surprise.
	Ranma could only stare back at Usagi, who was smiling but 
her eyes looked sad to him somehow.  The background seemed to 
fade away and her hair changed, turning darker, red.  She no longer 
held a bento in her hands, but a...
	"Please?" Usagi repeated.
	Ranma blinked in surprise as the vision abruptly ended, 
everything returning to normal.  With a small nod, he took the 
bento from her and prepared to eat, his mind still on his sudden day 
dream.  Once he had brought the first morsel into his mouth 
however, he knew nothing but food.  It was simply the best thing 
he had ever tasted.
	"This is great!" he shouted and proceeded to inhale it at a 
rate that was above and beyond his normally accelerated pace.
	Makoto could only smile as she watched him consume the 
bento she had made.  *Thank you, Usagi-chan.*
	"Here," Minako said to Usagi, handing her the half-eaten 
bento she had brought for Ranma.  "You're actually starving, aren't 
you?"
	"But this is for Ranma," Usagi replied.  Once her eyes had 
been opened, Usagi couldn't help noticing that Makoto wasn't the 
only one trying to ply Ranma with tokens of affection.
	"It's okay, he already ate some of it, and I don't want it to go 
to waste," Minako told her with a smile similar to the one Usagi 
had just worn.  "Besides, I really don't want him eating something 
from me after having Makoto's cooking.  I know I can't compete 
with her there."
	Usagi nodded slowly and took the offered bento.  She ate 
slower than her normal rate, but at a speed that would seem a little 
faster than average.
	"But this doesn't mean I've given up.  After all, man can not 
live by food alone."  Minako stood up and declared.  "I will not rest 
until I've made Ranma mine!"
	"We're still here, you know," Ami said in embarrassment.  
Makoto immediately began to plan countermeasures against her 
now formal rival.  Ranma was too focused on finishing his meal 
before the bell rang to notice.