Disclaimer: Unfortunately, as you all surely know, I do not own Ranma ½ or its characters, even though I'd like to.

Chapter 1

As Shampoo peddled swiftly down the streets of Nerima she had just one thing on her mind…Ranma Saotome. Glancing down at the bag she wore on her side, a smile spread across her face. This was going to be it. Finally, after all this time, she was going to have him all to herself.

Or at least I better…Shampoo thought. Especially after all the trouble I went through. Images began to race through her mind as her feet peddled faster. The plan was simple…first of all, she would invite him down to the Cat Café for a bowl of ramen. Of course, being a determined Amazon in love, it would be no regular ramen, as he would thereafter soon find out. As she rounded a corner, she again glanced down into the pack she was carrying…Oh yes, she knew the contents of that pack would be exactly what she needed to reel him in…the only thing she had left to worry about was whether he would take the bait…

"RANMA!!!! YOU JERK!!!" screamed a furious Akane Tendo, mallet at the ready. She swung with enough force to drive a railroad spike, but Ranma Saotome merely leapt out of the way, the mallet striking the ground where he had just stood.

"Geez Akane," the young martial artist retorted. "Lighten up will ya, it was just a joke!"

"Oh right a joke, sorry….if I didn't find it funny!!!" She swung again, but to no avail.

" All I said was 'a boulder could swim better than you' is that such a crime!? I mean after all even you can't deny the fact that you can't swim!" Unfortunately for the youngest Tendo girl, tomorrow's gym class would be utter hell. Their fitness exam included a swimming portion. It goes without saying that her confidence had not been boosted by her fiancee's comment.

"Yeah, well you didn't have to say it quite like that!" She readied her arm for another swing, but Ranma quickly grabbed her by the shoulder.

"Look Akane, seriously I didn't mean it…I'm…sorry…" Suddenly, Akane dropped her stance, mouth agape.

Did…did he just apologize? She thought to herself. On his own no less… "I-It's okay Ranma…I shouldn't have snapped at you like that…" She looked up to see a slight grin on his face.

"Hey don't worry about it…I mean even you have to admit it's kinda funny! Who's ever heard of a Tomboy who can't swim?!"

"RANMA!!! YOU IDIOT!!!" She struck out with her mallet, ready to pummel him into the ground…but somebody beat her to it.

"Nihao, Airen!" Shampoo shouted gleefully as she slammed into her reluctant fiancée with her bike.

"Y-Yo, Shampoo…" Ranma managed to say as he stood up and dusted himself off. "What brings you here?" As if I had to ask…he thought to himself.

"Shampoo have special surprise waiting for Ranma back at Cat Café!" Ranma and Akane both rolled their eyes.

"Uh…Shampoo, this surprise…it wouldn't have anything to do with another love potion would it?" Ranma asked, already knowing the answer.

"NO!!! Shampoo never do such a horrible thing to Ranma, how you even think such thing?" she gasped, feigning as much hurt as she could muster.

"Right…don't know where I even got that idea from…" Ranma said sarcastically. "And anyway I can't today Shampoo…I gotta…um…"

"He's gotta come back home with me!" Akane shot back at the Amazon, staring her straight in the eyes.

"I-I do?" Ranma asked, puzzled. Great, what have I forgotten this time…

"We have to work on our school project…" she gave her fiancée a slight wink.

"We do?" Ranma asked at first, but then caught her meaning. "I-I mean we do! Oh darn, guess it's gonna have to wait till some other time Shampoo."

"Mmmmm." Shampoo gracefully walked towards Akane. "Great way to start 'project', violent girl….if project involve you two fighting…"

"F-Fighting…w-we haven't been fighting!" Akane said tensely. "Whatever could have given you that idea?" Shampoo pointed to the mallet still present in Akane's hand. " Oh…t-this old thing? Why, I was just practicing my swing was all…"

"Yeah, if you call trying to clobber me 'practicing your swing'!" Ranma said, placing his hands behind his neck.

"Ranma!" Akane hit herself in the forehead. Way to spoil it, jerk! Ever since the failed wedding a few months ago she had been trying to lessen how often she got into fights with her…difficult… fiancée. She hoped that maybe if she and Ranma started to act a little more…civil with one another, maybe the other fiancées would back off a little. Of course it's not as if she really cared one way or the other, but… inside she was beginning to grow annoyed at the fact that the other suitors for Ranma's affections never considered her a true threat to their goals. She wanted them to think that she was still in the game…she wasn't, of course... how could she ever love a jerk like Ranma? But for some reason, she had to make them think otherwise.

"Well, in any case, all Shampoo was offering was a free dinner. She not think that cut into too much…'project' time." The Amazon smiled evilly. Suddenly Ranma's stomach growled. Unfortunately for him, Akane decided that today was the perfect day to practice her paltry cooking skills, and had been the one to pack Ranma's lunch. Needless to say, he hadn't eaten anything since breakfast.

"Well…come to think of it I am getting a little hungry…considering I haven't eaten lunch and all…" Suddenly Ranma felt a mass of energy swelling up behind him.

"You didn't eat my lunch?!" Akane shot at him. "Do you know how long it took to make that?!!!!" She slammed him on the head with her mallet. "You're such a JERK!!!!"

"OW!" Ranma fell to the ground as the mallet hit him full force. He felt anger beginning to rise within him."Geez, I wouldn't have a problem eating your cooking…if I didn't nearly choke to death every time I took a bite!"

"Well if my cooking's so bad why don't you just go have lunch with Shampoo!" She shrieked, barely restraining herself from hitting him again.

"Well fine!" Ranma yelled, pushing himself back off of the ground. "Maybe I will… C'mon Shampoo!" Shampoo smiled gleefully as she grabbed him by the arm.

"Aiyaa! Shampoo so happy! Ranma gonna have the biggest bowl of ramen he ever had!" As the two walked off, Akane felt her blood boil.

"Fine! Go get yourself poisoned for all I care! Idiot!" she turned and started walking home, toward the dojo. That jerk…I can't believe him! And after all that time I spent cooking for him this morning…he doesn't even eat it! And to make matters worse he went and ran off with that..that…blue-haired bimbo! I hope she feeds him a stupid love potion…. Suddenly she stopped dead in her tracks. But if he falls for Shampoo…then I…Oh, what am I thinking! She reproached herself. Without him I'd be far better off… That last sentence reverberated through her mind. Without him…how close she had almost been to that reality on several occasions, like back when she thought that Ranma had been eaten by the Orochi during her trip to Ryugenzawa…or a few months ago back in Jusendo when she died trying to save Ranma's life. She was close to spending an eternity without him…and would have, too, if it wasn't for what Ranma had said, or rather thought, as he held her lifeless body in his arms… Could she really spend her life without him…? As if answering her own question, she was startled by the sound of her own stomach growling (since she decided to cook her own lunch, too, she hadn't been able to eat anything either). Well…She thought to herself as she turned around and began heading for the Cat Café. I guess one bowl of ramen couldn't hurt.