Darling Charlotte

Itoshi no Sharurotto (愛しのシャルロット) is the 23rd chapter of the manga and the first chapter of the Martial Arts Figure Skating Arc.

Akane and her friends from school decide to spend an afternoon at the skating rink. Akane soon realizes she's lost P-chan. Unfortunately, Azusa Shiratori found him and has taken to calling him Charlotte.

At the Skating Rink
Akane is skating when her friends call her over, telling her that they should take a break. Akane agrees and goes to sit with them. While at a table next to the Skating Rink Akane's friends tell her that she should join the school skating team and that she'd be the representative in no time. Just then Akane realises that she's left P-chan on the skating rink (to her friends slight surprise).

Meanwhile, P-chan is struggling on the ice, looking for Akane when another girl skates up to P-chan and begins calling him Charlotte. P-chan tries to run away, but the girl takes a hammer and knocks P-chan out with it. The girl then hugs "Charlotte" and tells it how cute it is.

Later That Day
Ranma is being questioned by Hiroshi and Daisuke about the "Ranma Saotome" who replaced Akane in the Martial Arts Rhythmic Gymnastics fight against Kodachi. Hiroshi and Daisuke tell Ranma not to play dumb and deny any connection, since she calls herself "Ranma Saotome"; has the same pigtail and is as good a fighter as he is. The two then begin to try and guess the connection Ranma has to this girl and demand he introduces her to them.

Ranma has had enough by this point and jumps out of his seat and dismisses Hiroshi and Daisuke's claims as ridiculous. This angers Hiroshi and Daisuke who tell Ranma it's bad enough he got Akane as his fiancé, they then begin to beg Ranma to let them have this girl as it isn't fair he gets all the fun. This causes Ranma to shout at Hiroshi and Daisuke, telling them that what they're saying is moronic as nobody wants Akane since she has zero in sex appeal.

Just then Akane enters the shop which Ranma, Hiroshi and Daisuke are in. Ranma backs away from the very angry Akane, but before Akane tries to hit Ranma she begins crying.

Akane Tells Ranma of P-chan's Disappearance
Seeing Akane's face Ranma tells her that there's no reason to cry about it since who's he to judge if she has no sex appeal. However, before Ranma can finish Akane shouts at him telling him to find P-chan (much to Ranma's disbelief as to that being what Akane was upset about). Akane's friends then walk in and explain that Akane's pet pig was taken from the skating rink and that they have witnesses.

As Akane continues to cry, Ranma asks if the person had any distinguishing features (as Ranma just saw someone carrying an unconscious pig that looks identical to P-chan) to which Akane tells Ranma not to play games with her. Ranma then points at the person carrying P-chan, who is the same person who knocked P-chan out at the skating rink. Akane then goes to get P-chan, but the girl carrying her tells Akane that this is Charlotte.

While Akane and the girl argue about who P-chan/Charlotte belongs to another person takes P-chan out of the girl's hands. The girls tries to get "Charlotte" back but the man who took it from her holds it just out of her reach. Akane's friends look on at the man and note how handsome he is. The man then returns P-chan to Akane and tells Akane to forgive his companions rudeness. The man then explains that his companion likes to collect things and when she finds something she likes she names it on the spot and take it home. The girl then hits the man with a chair which really annoys him (she had been hitting him with increasingly larger objects, demanding he returns her Charlotte, while he explained to Akane and co. about her "hobby"). The man tells her to cut it out just before she's about to hit him with a table.

The Challenge is Set
The girl then begins to cry, she then points at Akane and says she challenges her. Akane says if it's a fight she wants then fine, but the girl tells Akane that they won't be "fighting" and they'll actually be in a skating match. This surprises Akane. The girl then explains that if she wins Akane will have to give her back her Charlotte. One of Akane's friends then says she remembers now as she thought she recognised these two and that they're the Golden Pair of Kolhotz High School.

The Golden pair then introduce themselves as Azusa Shiratori and Mikado Sanzenin. Akane's friends then tell her that she shouldn't try to out-skate these two as they're the best of the best, but Akane doesn't care if they are. Azusa tells Akane that if she wants to back down she'd better do it now, Akane refuses to do so. Azusa tells "Charlotte" that she'll make a little bed for her and wait, while Akane tells P-chan not to worry as there's no way she's going to lose. Ranma, meanwhile, listens in and calls the two of them a pair of idiots.

Mikado then walks up to Akane and says he's sorry that his partner has caused her trouble and moves in to kiss her as way of apology. However, Ranma flicks some Narutomaki at Mikado just before he does kiss Akane. This causes Mikado to turn to Ranma and tell him that he accepts Ranma's challenge, Ranma just sits and glares at Mikado. Mikado then tells them that the challenge will take place in one week at their Kolhotz High School.

Azusa then calls the Narutomaki Ranma threw at Mikado "Françoise", while Mikado asks Ranma if pair skating is acceptable, to which Ranma agrees that's fine. Azusa then begins to hit Mikado over the head wanting him to give "Françoise" to her. Mikado shouts at Azusa telling her she ruined the dramatic tension. While Ranma, Akane and co. leave the owner of the restaurant they'd all been talking in (who'd been asking if anyone in the group was here for lunch since Akane's friends walked in), angrily asks Mikado and Azusa if they're here for lunch or not.

Ranma and Akane Walk Home
Ranma and Akane are walking in an awkward silence until Ranma tells Akane that he isn't jealous of Mikado he just can't allow perverts like him to live. Akane then tells Ranma she didn't need any help from him. This angers Ranma slightly who then jumps down from the fence he was walking on and is about to shout at Akane with regards to all the trouble he went through, only to stop when he sees her expression. Akane then continues to walk, while Ranma asks her if she really likes Mikado to which Akane tells Ranma that's absurd.

Akane then tells Ranma that if he'd flicked the Narutomaki at Mikado a tenth of a second later she'd have broken his jaws. Ranma then mutters to himself that it's true that Akane has zero sex appeal. Akane hears this and tells Ranma that if she met a boy she liked then maybe she would develop some sex appeal.

That Night at the Tendo Dojo
Ranma and Akane explain the situation to Nabiki and Kasumi. Nabiki is skeptical of the paring since she thought skating partners were meant to have perfect harmony with each other. Kasumi, however, says that Ranma and Akane get along well together (much Akane's slight objectivity). Ranma then says he doesn't care what happens to P-chan.

Just then Ryoga barges into the room. He then sits next to Akane and begs her to allow him to be her partner. Ranma is skeptical of Ryoga and asks him what he knows about the "skating business", Ranma then calls Ryoga "Charlotte" causing Ryoga to hit Ranma and ask him who he's calling Charlotte. Ranma tells Ryoga he's the one who through the challenge, Ryoga retorts that they'll decide who competes by skating one-on-one.

The next day at the Skating Rink, Ranma and Ryoga both try to go on the ice to see who'll be Akane's partner, only to fall over as soon as they try to move. Akane looks on unimpressed and tells them that they should practice standing first.

Cast in Order of Appearance

 * Akane Tendo
 * Yuka and Sayuri (debut)
 * Ryoga Hibiki (P-chan)
 * Azusa Shiratori (debut)
 * Ranma Saotome (female, in photographs)
 * Ranma Saotome (male)
 * Hiroshi and Daisuke
 * Mikado Sanzenin (debut)
 * Kasumi Tendo
 * Nabiki Tendo
 * Ryoga Hibiki (human)

Quotes

 * Does widdle Charlotte... want to go home wif mummy? - Azusa when she first finds P-chan on the Skating Rink.
 * You're so cuuuuute! - Azusa after she knocks P-chan out and takes him with her.
 * At least let us have this girl! Don't hog all the fun! - Hiroshi and Daisuke demanding Ranma let them "have" the girl who faced Kodachi in the Martial Arts Rhythmic Gymnastics match.
 * That's... that's moronic! First off who'd want to "get to" a girl like Akane... who's a total zero in sex appeal?! RANMA! - Ranma insulting Akane before she enters the restaurant and Akane when she enters.
 * The poor piggie disappeared at the skating rink. He was kidnapped! There were witnesses! - Akane's friends explaining what happened at the Skating Rink.
 * Give back my Charlotte! Give back my Charlotte! Give her back! Giver her back! Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! Pleeeeeeease? - Azusa while she hits Mikado while he explains about Azusa's "hobby".
 * ''Françoise! My dear stupid girl... you've completely ruined the dramatic tension! This is mi-i-i-i-ine! - Azusa trying to get her "Françoise" back along with Mikado's reaction and Azusa's reaction to Mikado.
 * If your Fish-Cake had been a tenth of a second later... I'd have broken that guy's jaw. - Akane telling Ranma what she'd have done if he hadn't challenged Mikado.
 * It's true. You do have zero sex appeal. Perhaps if I met a boy I liked... I'd develop some sex appeal. - Ranma's response to the above quote and Akane's response to Ranma.