"That's...that's alright. No big deal. I mean, I'm still a guy, right?" replied Ranma-chan with no small amount of uncertainty. She blushed a bit and turned away from Ranma. She could almost still feel his hand on her breast, even though he wasn't touching it. It was like it was still there. , thought Ranma-chan as she tentatively rubbed her breast, to get the phantom feeling off her skin. "I didn't mean to...uh...grab you in there. I was aiming for the remote." "I know. Don't worry about it. It was all my fault anyhow." "Alright...if you say so. Now, gimme the remote." "No." "Say again?" "No. No means no." Ranma-chan grabbed the remote and started to smile a bit, awaiting Ranma's inevitable reaction..... Ranma pretended to relax, then he snapped into action and lunged at Ranma-chan, straddling her and wrestling with her again, trying to rip the remote from her hands. She laughed, and shrieked, and kicked her legs ineffectually, and turned her body from side to side, denying Ranma the chance to get the remote. Ranma finally pinned Ranma-chan on her back with one strong hand, then he snatched the remote from her hands and held it up in triumph. "Finally!! Now I can watch something more interesting!!" he cried. "That...that was fun!! Let's do it again!" squealed Ranma-chan between bouts of giggling fits. "Do what again?" Ranma and Ranma-chan froze at that voice. Akane. Ranma looked up and he saw Akane watching both of them. P-Chan, in her arms, watched with wide eyes and perked ears. Ranma was suddenly aware that his legs were on either side of Ranma-chan, and his left hand was just beneath Ranma-chan's breasts, the fingers splayed out to keep her immobile. He was also aware of the fast beat of her heart in synchronization to his own. Likewise, Ranma-chan was also aware of how close Ranma was to her. His legs were on either side of her and touching her sides, and his body blocked the light from above. She felt a bit of heat between her legs, a not-unpleasant sensation that turned her face red with shame as she realized that she *liked* the way her body was reacting to Ranma's. Her nipples were starting to harden a bit, and they were starting to show through her shirt. Either Ranma or Akane would notice her sexual arousement in a moment - Akane more so, as she was a girl too - and Ranma-chan felt her face redden some more. "Uh...Akane! I...I...uh....", began Ranma somewhat intelligently. "Aw, come on, Akane. It's not like you have anything to worry about when I'm around him. I mean, we were just fighting over a dumb, old remote, and we weren't doing any of *that*...!" "Hey! It wasn't like that at all!" cried Ranma. Ranma-chan smiled mischeviously at Ranma. "Smile at me, will you?!" growled Ranma with mock anger as he began the attack dreaded by people worldwide. He slid two hands up Ranma-chan's sides and began to.....tickle her. She squirmed about on the couch, squealing with laughter and trying to pull Ranma's hands away from her but failing. Akane relaxed as she saw the innocence of the whole incident, as Ranma and Ranma-chan play on the couch. The shrieks of Ranma-chan's protest and laughter, mingled as one, brought a half- smile on Akane's face. She was happy that it was nothing more than play fighting, but she still felt a portion of jealousy. Ranma had *never* played with her the way he was playing with Ranma-chan. He had never tried to tickle her, nor play fight with her, and she felt more jealousy as she watched Ranma and Ranma-chan. Jealousy because she hadn't received as much attention as Ranma-chan was. Jealousy because Ranma-chan was genuinely enjoying herself, while Akane was left out of it. Akane wondered how much better her relationship with Ranma would have been if he played with her, the way he was doing with Ranma-chan, instead of insulting her. Even now, deep within her, she felt the desire to be in Ranma- chan's place, enjoying and having fun with Ranma. But since she was a latecomer, she was already out of it and unable to join in. And Akane being the way she was, she was *NOT* likely to tell Ranma of her feelings. So Akane concealed her feelings of envy and desire beneath a mask of calm and curiosity, out of a deep and abiding consideration for the feelings of the two roughing it up on the couch in a play fight. , thought Akane as she walked up to the couch where Ranma-chan was being tickled to such a degree that she actually had tears in her eyes. "Okay, enough, Ranma. Can't you see that she's already given up?" said Akane to Ranma. Ranma gave Ranma-chan a last tickle then he got up from her and sat down on the couch, changing the channel. Ranma-chan wiped the tears from her eyes and she began to sit close to Ranma - perhaps unconsciously, perhaps intentionally. Literally butting in, Akane interposed herself between Ranma and Ranma-chan, sitting quite close to Ranma. She stared straight ahead at the TV, P-Chan in her arms, as Ranma and Ranma-chan looked at her with surprise and confusion, respectively. Akane had never sat quite so close to him as she did now and it surprised Ranma quite a bit. She was closer to him than she was to Ranma-chan, he noted. Ranma-chan was confused, and a little hurt. She didn't know how she knew, but she knew that Akane had butted in because she seen her as a threat to her relationship with Ranma. , thought Ranma-chan with more than a little unkindness. Feeling bold, Ranma-chan sat closer to Akane, until their legs were touching. She was a girl as well, at least for the time being, and that gave her more courage to do what she did. As Akane looked at her with surprise, Ranma-chan leaned in close to Akane. "It was just in fun, Akane. We weren't doing anything other than play fighting," said Ranma-chan to Akane in a whisper. "Why are you trying to explain? There's nothing to explain", replied Akane in a whisper as well, a forced smile on her face. Ranma-chan knew and she was not fooled by it. "Look, I'm the same person as he is, Akane, so don't worry. But tell me....why're you so mad?" "I'm not angry." Akane turned away. "Yes you are." Ranma-chan leaned closer. "No, I'm not. You and Ranma were just playing, that's all, right?" "Y-yeah....and...your point is?" Akane took a while to answer as she wondered if she should tell this female version of Ranma. She seemed different than Ranma already, despite her protests to the contrary, and she seemed more.....more reasonable. And easier to talk with. The barriers of gender seemed to have been lifted between Akane and this female Ranma, and somehow Akane knew she could disclose more of her mind to her than to Ranma. Somehow, Akane felt more comfortable around Ranma-chan than Ranma. There was an absence of that element of awkwardness she always felt around Ranma, or Ryoga, or other guys for that matter. In summary, Ranma-chan was *different* in some way. Akane stood up and she motioned for Ranma-chan to follow her. Ranma-chan followed Akane, leaving a confused Ranma behind. They needed to have a private talk - girl talk as it were, and Ranma was not included in it. Akane led Ranma-chan up to the upper deck, then she turned and faced the outside world, turning her back on Ranma-chan. "Okay, what was it you wanted to talk to me about, Akane?" "Well....Ranma....? You were just playing with Ranma, right?" "Duh! What else? I'm him, and he's me! Of course I was just playing with him! What's wrong with that?" "Nothing." Ranma-chan could still sense that Akane was not quite finished, and she was withholding something. Ranma-chan went up to Akane and she laid a hand on her shoulder. Akane jumped a little. "What's wrong, Akane?" Ranma-chan asked. "Nothing's wrong, Ranma. Nothing." Akane hugged P-Chan a little tighter. "That's not true. You're not telling me something. Come on, Akane. You can tell me. I'll not say a word about it if you do. You look like you're sad, or something." "I'm not sad." "Yes you are. That long face, and the way you're looking out at something that I can't see. Come on, Akane....", Ranma-chan squeezed Akane's shoulder, "Tell me." There was a long moment of silence, then Akane sighed and turned to Ranma-chan. If she wanted to know, then so be it! "Al....alright. It's just that...you know....Ranma has never...I mean...." Akane faltered a little. "Go on," encouraged Ranma-chan. "I mean...he's never shown such...affection for me. He...he hasn't ever played with me the way he did with you. I mean, you're him and he's you, but I'm....well...." Akane trailed off into silence, leaving Ranma-chan to interpret as best as she could. P-Chan blinked a little, then he narrowed his eyes. There was silence as Ranma-chan digested Akane's words. So that was it. Akane was jealous of Ranma-chan and Ranma. , thought Ranma-chan, Really, Akane had nothing to worry about. After all, Ranma-chan would find a cure and then she would become one person again, with Ranma. That was all there was to it. Then Akane wouldn't have to worry, right? "Akane....that's...uh...." Ranma-chan faltered and Akane turned away. "Why don't you have anything to say, Ranma? After all, you're him and he's you, right?" Akane sounded a little cheated, a little betrayed. P-Chan squealed in agreement. "What I was going to say was......you know....he...no, me and him, wouldn't have.....minded playing with you. It's just that...uh...we didn't know how you'd take it....and we were afraid you might get...m-mad." They had wanted to, but didn't do it for fear of getting her mad? Akane felt all the weight of the missed opportunities to get on better terms with Ranma, and she suddenly felt a lot sadder than before. She kept him at a distance because of her frequent use of the mallet or the avenging fist to hit him for things which she later found out were not really his fault. The magic mushrooms that Shampoo had fed Ranma, and later Akane, had been one such incident in a line of many. As far as she could remember, that was one of the few times when she had openly apologized to Ranma for mistaking the facts of the situation. She felt the hand on her shoulder reach down to her free hand and squeeze it. She looked up in surprise at Ranma-chan, who was smiling a little as she held Akane's hand. The wind blew and ruffled both Ranma-chan and Akane's hair, and clothing. "Don't worry, Akane. Everything will work out. When I get cured, and become one person again, I'll...I'll try to be...n-nicer to you. I'm also kinda sick of getting hit by you....maybe things will change. Who knows until we try, r-right?" "Ranma...." began Akane. P-Chan jumped out of Akane's arms and he started to run away at full speed. "P-Chan!! Come back!!" Akane pulled her hand from Ranma-chan's, and she started to run after P-Chan, then she turned back and looked at Ranma-chan with gratitude. For a moment, as their eyes locked, Ranma-chan and Akane shared a bond like no other. Then the moment shattered as Akane turned and dashed after her pet pig, calling loudly. Ranma-chan sighed and she started inside, after Akane. Ranma was perplexed, again. First, Ranma-chan and Akane had left to talk about something which did not involve him, to his knowledge anyways, and now Akane was thumping down the stairs and chasing after P-Chan, who was running as fast as he could. As P-Chan ran by the couch, Ranma snagged him by the bandanna and held him up. P-Chan's legs moved furiously as he squealed threats at Ranma, but Ranma just dangled him until Akane came to retrieve her pet. "P-Chan! What's wrong, baby?" asked Akane to P-Chan, yet not expecting an answer. Ranma turned to Ranma-chan. "Hey, what's up with Ryoga?" he asked her. Ranma-chan sighed. "Ask him yourself later on. I can't tell you." With that, Ranma-chan turned on her heel and left the living room. As Ranma-chan was on the way to the dojo, she was just passing by the front door when it slid open and a figure stepped inside, a long bundle on her back. Ranma-chan stopped dead in her tracks as her gaze travelled from the floor to the beautifully embroidered kimono up to the face that resembled her own to an uncanny degree. There was only one word she could form at the moment. "M-mom...", whispered Ranma-chan. "Ranko-chan! How are you?" said Nodoka Saotome in greeting as she stepped up to Ranma-chan and hugged her. Ranma-chan was still too stunned to do anything but slowly hug her mother back. Akane came upon the scene while on the way to the kitchen, P- Chan in her arms, and she too stopped dead in her tracks. Nodoka disengaged herself from Ranma-chan and hugged Akane in greeting as well. "Akane-chan! You're looking well, and growing up too!" exclaimed Nodoka. "A-Auntie Saotome...! We weren't...expecting you....", began Akane. "I'm sorry, dear. I really should call before coming over, don't you think? Silly me." "Hey, Ran...M-mom?" said Ranma as he rounded the corner in pursuit of Ranma-chan. Time seemed to stop for a moment. The effect of seeing her son, after ten long years, was absolutely profound on Nodoka. Her sword-shaped bundle slid to the ground from nerveless fingers, her eyes widened with astonishment, then she ran over to Ranma and hugged him, the tears already coming to her eyes. She couldn't form any words to express her joy and excitement at seeing her son, her only son, standing before her in the flesh. Long were the times when she had imagined holding her son again, like she had done over ten years ago when he was just a child of six. Now, her dreams realized, she was as happy as any mother reunited with her child can be. Then she held Ranma out at arm's length and looked into his face, and eyes. "Tell me you're him!! Tell me you're my son, Ranma Saotome!!" she whispered fiercely. "M-mom...I'm Ranma", whispered Ranma, feeling a lump in his heart - and an incredible amount of strange emotions in his throat. He had never experienced this before, not in his life, but it seemed like he had been saving all of it up for this moment. , thought Ranma. And Nodoka wept tears of incredible joy, and of hopes fulfilled. Ranma wept too, for reasons he did not know but would understand later on. Akane wiped tears from her eyes and hugged P-Chan a little tighter. Then she thought to turn to Ranma-chan, to see how she was reacting to all of this, but she was nowhere to be seen. Ranma and his mother sat down for a long reunion talk - after a thoroughly frightened Genma was hauled out by Soun, that was. Ranma-chan reappeared and she sat down next to Akane, who was also sharing the couch with her two sisters. Genma, Nodoka and Ranma sat down at the table, while Soun stood behind the couch. Mother embraced father, and son, and questions were asked, and answered. Periodically, Nodoka threw in comments on how `manly' Ranma looked, earning huge sweat drops on Genma's forehead, and general assent from the Tendos. Ranma and Genma recounted their travels, albeit cutting out the part about Jusenkyo, and Nodoka listened intently. Akane glanced over at Ranma-chan, who was looking down at her feet and sighing once in a while. She looked to be quite unhappy, and sad, and Nodoka picked up on that with a mother's instinct. "Ranko-chan....why do you look so sad? This should be a time for joy, not for long faces!" said Nodoka as she laid a hand on Ranma-chan's knee. "Time...for joy?" mumbled Ranma-chan. "Why, yes. My son has returned after ten years - only God knows how much I have missed him!" "Yeah. I know, A-auntie Saotome." Ranma-chan's shoulders slumped a little. "Have you met him yet? Isn't he so much like a man now? Why, to think that only ten years ago he was just a child in my arms...!" "Y...yes, Auntie. I've met Ranma. E...excuse me, I've gotta go some...somewhere." With that, Ranma-chan got up. "Oh, I'm sorry, Ranko. Is that why you're looking so worried? You must have a date with your boyfriend, right? Yes, I understand the feeling." Ranma-chan stopped and she turned around, slowly. Ranma and Akane watched Ranma-chan intently. Nodoka looked up into Ranma- chan's face and she smiled. "Come now, don't let me keep you waiting! He might get impatient and leave, you know. Boys are like that, always looking for someone better when the best person for them is right in front of their noses. Well, not all of them. Anyway, a healthy girl like you really should enjoy life to the fullest, while you're young and beautiful." Ranma-chan looked as if she was about to disclose something to Nodoka; her mouth worked silently, and her hand was half-raised, but she looked uncertain as to what she was going to say. Finally she turned around and left without a word. Akane got up, excused herself, and followed after Ranma-chan. Inside her room, Ranma-chan reached back and deliberately pulled her hair tie off. Her pigtail untwirled and spread out into a fan of red hair, covering half of her back. She brushed it out with her fingers and looked into a mirror. , she thought to herself. Now, even more so, she looked like any normal girl, and she was a little disturbed by that. She quickly tied her hair back in a pigtail, then she flopped down on her bed, letting the soft futon accept her body and comfort it. , she repeated over and over in her mind, tears coming out even though she tried hard to keep them in. Downstairs, the chatter increased in volume, as Nodoka let all her pent-up emotion out, gathered over ten, long, years. She could hear Ranma telling Nodoka more about his training and journeys to many places, and Nodoka exclaiming in joy and happiness. Ranma-chan pulled the comforter closer to her, trying to find solitude in the dark confines of her room, but she failed. The clock read six in the afternoon, hardly even time for bed. At last, she grabbed Ranma's pillow and stuffed it around her ears. With the sound muffled, she drifted in and out of sleep, always on the edge of the land of dreams, but never setting foot within that fabled country - for the sounds of merriment from below keep her from sleeping. Her door opened and somebody stepped inside, hesitantly. "Ranma?" It was Akane. Ranma-chan turned away from Akane. "Go 'way. Just leave me alone," muttered Ranma-chan. "I can't, Ranma. I...know what you're...." "No, you don't," said Ranma-chan, sulking a bit now. "Yes, I do, if not even better. I....I don't even have a mom anymore, Ranma. Think of how sad I am whenever I think of her. I'm sorry for you, and all that, but....at least you still have a mother." "It doesn't seem that way, though. I'm only Ranko-*CHAN*. Your country cousin. How the heck am I supposed to tell her that I really am Ranma, too?!" Ranma-chan's voice was starting to rise. "Who says you have to tell her? If you get cured then...." "But what if I don't get cured?! Then suppose what if I told her the truth of me and Ranma? I think `ritual suicide' kinda sums up the whole thing, in two words." Ranma-chan hugged her comforter tighter. Akane started to step towards her. "But...." "But what? Heck, what if she doesn't even believe me?" "She will....after your dad changes into a panda, in front of her. Come on, Ranma, stop being sorry for yourself. You'll find a cure, and then everything will be back to normal." "I've been looking for a cure for so long, and after this Nullifier `cure', I don't think I'll be looking for a cure again." "Don't say that, Ranma! Keep searching for one!" Akane reached over and she touched Ranma-chan, briefly. "Akane! Akane! Where is my son's fiancee? Come down, Akane, so I can see how well the two of you look together!" cried Nodoka from downstairs. "Ack! I can't believe she just yelled tha....Ranma?" Akane quickly swallowed her embarrassment as she turned Ranma-chan over. Ranma-chan had a few tears in her eyes, and she wiped them away quickly. "You...you go on downstairs, Akane. I'll...I'll be fine. I haven't seen my mom for ten years...so what's a little while longer, anyhow?" Ranma-chan sounded quite depressed. "Ranma...." "Go already. I...I need time to think. I mean, I've only lost my manhood, maybe my best friend, my identity, and....and...." Ranma-chan trailed off as she looked at Akane, then she reached over and tentatively touched Akane's hand. Akane watched in wonder as Ranma-chan squeezed her hand in her own. Akane watched as Ranma-chan struggled to find the words to finish her sentence, to tell Akane what or *whom* she had also lost. Then Ranma-chan seemed to give up and she let Akane's hand go. "Ranma....are you sure you'll be alright?" "Yeah. Go and sit next to Ranma, or something. Let my mom see how the *two* of you look, together." "That's not what...." "Akane!! Where are you?" called Nodoka again. "Ranma...!" pleaded Akane. Ranma-chan did not answer. After a moment's hesitation, Akane got up and she left, gently shutting the door after her. * * * Ukyo finally closed her restaurant, relieved to be able to breathe easily once more. She counted the cash in her drawer; almost seventy thousand yen in bills, cheques and coins. She sighed. This money would go to paying for her overhead, and her suppliers and a whole bunch of others. She expected to pull out a profit of about 28 000 yen out of today, but that was about it. Ukyo swept the restaurant up - it was in remarkably clean condition considering how busy it had been. Then she scraped her griddle clean, threw the grease away and began to put her ingredients away. She methodically put away the sauce, the prepared toppings and anything she could find. At last, only a tray covered with some wax paper remained. She lifted the wax paper, to see where this thing would go to. An extra-large size bowl of batter, covered with cling-wrap, sat on a plate in the middle of the tray. Her specially prepared ingredients, intended only for the most expensive okonomiyaki on her menu, were arranged neatly around it, and there was a little piece of paper on top of the bowl written side facing down. Curious, she picked the paper up and read it. It was in her own handwriting and it read, "For the other Ranchan." It was as if her heart had stopped, and there was nothing in the world but the bowl of batter and the piece of paper in her trembling hands. Ukyo sat down heavily, and she felt the sensation of having failed someone. In her rush for much-needed profit, she had neglected Ranma-chan, when she had already promised herself that she wouldn't. Now that she thought about it, she hadn't even seen Ranma-chan leave the restaurant. She had probably been too busy to notice. Ukyo put the bowl of batter, and the ingredients, in the refrigerator and she finished cleaning. Then, with a last look at the seat where Ranma-chan had been sitting on, she turned the lights out and headed upstairs for a shower. * * * Ranma finally managed to leave the little company gathered in the living room, and he headed upstairs, fully intending to crash and sleep for a week. He entered his room and shut the door behind him. Then he fumbled around in the darkness for the light switch, and flicked it on. The first thing he saw was Ranma-chan, curled up on her futon and with her back to the door, facing the window. Even with the bright light, she did nothing more than stir a little bit. He remembered how Ranma-chan had left the living room, as if she had been very glad to leave. Seized by some emotion, or perhaps sympathy, Ranma made his way over to Ranma-chan and he slowly knelt down near her. Something caught his eye, and he leaned over to see what it was, blocking the light from Ranma-chan's face. , thought Ranma as he hesitantly touched the wet spot on the pillow, near Ranma-chan's eyes. "I would really appreciate it if you turned the lights off...", mumbled Ranma-chan as Ranma withdrew his hand from the pillow. "S-sorry," stammered Ranma as he got up quickly and turned the lights off. "That's alright....everybody's sorry. Sorry for me, that is." "How long...have you been in here?" asked Ranma. "Since I left the living room. Haven't been able to sleep since." Ranma-chan did not even twitch, and Ranma laid a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, are you alright?" he asked with concern. Ranma-chan seemed to hesitate, then she turned over and sat up. Ranma couldn't see her face, because of the darkness of the room, but he imagined she looked tired. At least, that was what her body posture seemed to suggest. Her shoulders were down, her neck bent a little, and her arms lay limply on her lap. "No, I'm not alright. So, did you tell mom all about what we did?" There was a note of jealousy, and a bit of anger in her voice. It made Ranma flinch, to be on the receiving end of such personal bitterness - made even more personal since Ranma-chan was the same as he, barring physical differences. "Y-yeah. Except for the Jusenkyo part. We cut that one out." "Why?" It seemed to Ranma that this was the real question that Ranma- chan had been leading up to. Why not tell their mother about Jusenkyo, about the spring of drowned girl? Why not speak of how she had nearly had a heart attack when she had felt her new body all over? Why not relate about all the troubles and worries that her female body had gotten her into? Why not come out with the truth, the truth about `Ranko-chan' and Ranma? "You know as well as I do why I did not. Are you forgetting that stupid promise our dad made before he left to train?" Ranma-chan looked at him like one would look at an idiot, as if to say "of course I know that, why ask?", then she folded her arms up over her knees and drew her legs close to her. At length, she spoke. "I've been thinking. Can we tell mom about....about me and you? I mean, tell her that I'm really Ranma." "It may not be a good idea. See, if she believes our story, she might hold *you* to the promise. Remember, dad said that he'd make us `a man amongst men', or we would commit seppuku - and....and you don't look like a....man right now. Sorry." Ranma-chan narrowed her eyes involuntarily at Ranma's words, but she knew he meant no harm. She had already known the direction Ranma's answer would take - she just needed to hear it. For what reason, she did not know, but she just...had to. Maybe to convince herself that telling her mother was not the best course of action. Maybe not. At any rate, not only might her mother, in the name of honor, force her to commit seppuku but she might also force Genma to commit seppuku as well - thereby following the promise to the word. Ranma-chan fidgeted a bit, then she turned a little away from Ranma. "I'm....I'm glad that you and mom are happy at being reunited. But I think you understand why I....couldn't stay and listen. She refers to me as `Ranko'. I'm NOT Ranko. I'm Ranma. Ranma Saotome. But she does not know that, does she? Did you hear that comment she made about a `boyfriend' for...for me?" "Yeah. I nearly choked." "*I* choked. And I was not very happy. In fact, I was more than a little mad at her....and you." "Why me?" "You're the one getting all the attention. Mother finally meets her long-lost son. Long-lost son finally meets mother, without the curse. But what about me? I'm the curse. I don't belong. Sorry, I'm just rambling. Don't mind me." Ranma laid a hand on Ranma-chan's shoulder and he turned her around. She did not resist, but neither did she look up to meet his eyes. Ranma spoke, softly. "Do you really want to tell mom? I mean, right now. Tell her, and get it over with. Are you afraid of dying, Ranma?" "You know the answer as well as I do. But....there's another reason. Not only is the threat of death stopping me from telling mom, it's also....also...I dunno. Let me put it this way. She was expecting a manly son. Like you." Ranma-chan stopped and she waited for Ranma to reply. He should know what she meant. "And...and you don't want to tell her, because it could be a great disappointment for her.....and for you." "Yeah." "I know. I was kinda expecting that." Both of them knew the real reason behind the unspoken decision to keep the secret from their mother. Ranma-chan didn't want to go before her mother as a girl, when she really was a guy inside. Their mother had gone through ten years of hoping that her son would be manly, and masculine - and, as well, fearing that her son would not be a `man amongst men'. Ranma-chan did not want her mother to see her as she was - not until she got a cure for the Nullifier 122 *and* a cure for the spring of drowned girl curse. Then the whole matter can be hushed up and nothing more would be said of it. End of all their worries, and troubles. At length, Ranma and Ranma-chan lie down to sleep in their respective futons, and Ranma-chan fell asleep - secure in the knowledge that someone, at least, knew her dilemma. She should have told Akane about her problem. That thought floated through her mind just before sleep fell upon her and whisked her away to the land of dreams. Within her body, strange and weird changes were happening. Ranma-chan tossed and moaned as her body went through a change according to a schedule that only it knows. It readjusted itself to its new condition, starting to erase old instincts and replacing them with instincts of the new body. The wind rustled the leaves of trees in the Tendo backyard, blew the drapes open and let the light from a million million stars bath Ranma-chan, in starlight. Tomorrow would come soon enough, and with it, explorations of the new self. -------------------------- Whew. Part two down. Four more to go. If you have any comments, please post them on whatever mailing list we are currently using at the moment. ^_^ - WD