Ukyou's Other Woman
by Trisha Sebastian

[insert standard disclaimer here.  Megumi is my character, so
nobody uses her without my permission]


PROLOGUE


	Sometimes I wonder if the fates were smiling on me that day.  I was
walking home from school alone, something my parents had taught me never,
ever to do.  But it was a beautiful day, and I decided to take the shortcut
through the temple gardens.  After all, what harm could come to me there?

	I was wrong, because I had just reached the middle when I saw them.
They were from the all-boys school just down the street.  I recognized 
them immediately.  They were bullies, plain and simple.  And they were 
after my brother because he tattled on them.  

	One day, they'd stopped by the house whem my parents weren't home,
to see if they could catch him off guard.  But I sure put a stop to that.  
A quick flick of the wrist, a leg extension and an arm lock sent them
scurrying away from me.  Now they were after me, too.

	Usually, I don't like to pick fights, but when it's family, there's
when I draw the line.  I also know my limits.  I can fight small groups,
but the group that was laughing and kicking the cherry trees in the gardens 
was larger than I could handle.  So naturally, I ran in the other direction.

	Unfortunately, one of them spied me.  It was Kaneda, the ringleader 
of the little gang.  He shouted, and they all gave chase.  Normally, I could 
outrun them, but I twisted my ankle during the track meet last week, so they 
caught up to me just as I had reached the temple wall.

	One of them grabbed my arm and yanked me back towards him.  I tried
to punch him in the gut with my other hand, but another goon grabbed it and
together, they pinned me to the wall.

	I had no leverage whatsoever, since they were so close to me.  I 
tried to knee them in the groin, but they evaded the blows easily.  They 
laughed in my face, the whole lot of them, before Kaneda finally spoke.

	"What have we here?" he sneered.  "A pretty girl like yourself all
alone?"  He tsked in a condescending manner.  "Didn't your parents ever 
teach you not to walk alone from school?"

	"What do you want?" I spat in his face.  He recoiled and wiped the
spittle from his cheek.  His eyes narrowed.  Kaneda grabbed my chin with 
one hand, squeezing until tears blurred my vision.

	"What do I want?  I'll tell you want I want.  I want you to
apologize for getting me in so much trouble.  I want you to apologize for 
kicking me in the head last week.  And most of all, I want you to hurt, 
like you hurt me."  Kaneda laughed harshly and I flinched away from the 
sound.  He released my chin and gave me a sharp slap in the face.

	"Get her, boys," he commanded, eyes glittering.  One of the goons 
who was standing behind Kaneda replied, "With pleasure," as he advanced 
towards me.

	His name was Hikaru, and I'd kicked him in the shins, before 
kneeing me in the chest.  Something told me that was going to do the same 
to me.  I braced for the impact as his foot swung back--

	--and then he howled in pain, hopping around on his other leg.  He
fell to the ground, and I saw that a small spatula was embedded in his calf.

	"I wouldn't do that if I were you," said a voice above me.  I looked
up and saw that a young boy was perched on the wall.  He was wearing the 
usual school uniform, but he'd added a bandolier of spatulas, and slung a 
larger spatula on his back.  His brown eyes were flat as he surveyed the 
scene.

	"Get out of here," Kaneda snarled.  "It's none of your business.  We
were just having a little fun, weren't we, sweetheart?"

	"In your dreams," I retorted, and I wriggled out of their grasp.  I
was about to run for the gate, when Kaneda grabbed my arm and put a hold on 
me.

	"You're staying here, kid, and you--" he pointed to the boy on the
wall, "are going to butt out."

	The other boy sighed, and brushed his hair back from his shoulder. 
"I see I'm going to have to do this the hard way."  He leaped down from the
wall, landing close to Kaneda.  With one deft movement, he unslung the large 
spatula and brought it down hard on Kaneda's arm.

	Kaneda howled and released me.  I backed into Kaneda and elbowed him
in the guts.  Turning, I lashed out and struck him with a forward kick.
Then I crouched down and swept his legs out from under him.

	The goon squad had recovered by that time, and charged me.  The boy
took two of them out with two swings of his spatula, while I punched one in 
the nose, and another in the chest.  Then, he swung again, and knocked out 
the one I was fighting.  Hikaru hobbled up to us, and yanking out the spatula
in his leg, he taunted the boy.

	He answered by throwing more of his smaller spatulas towards Hikaru,
pinning him to the wall by his clothes.  Then as he kicked a final goon in
the knees, I lashed out and punched him in the back of the head.

	It was all over in a matter of seconds.  Above the groans of the 
felled goons, I heard the other boy muttering how boys weren't supposed 
to gang up on girls.

	"Thanks for the help," I said, sticking out my hand to him.  "You 
fight well for a boy.  My name is Megumi."  He looked at my hand, and then 
gave me a strange look before shaking it tentatively.

	"I'm Ukyou," he said.

	I grinned up at him.  "So, you do this sort of thing often, saving
lives?"

	He grinned back.  "Not normally, no.  Are you okay?"

	"Sure, I'm fine," I said, taking in a deep breath through my teeth.

	He looked at me again, and said, "No, you're lying.  You've hurt
your ankle, haven't you?  I can tell because of the way you're standing on 
it."

	"But I'm not," I protested.

	Ukyou smiled.  "See what I mean?  Let me help you home."

	And that's how my friendship with Kuonji Ukyou started.  He walked 
me home, and explained to my parents how I hurt my ankle without mentioning
Kaneda and his goons.  We started talking that evening at supper when he
insisted on preparing okonomiyaki for dessert.  We found out that we liked 
the same sort of things, felt the same way about martial arts and we started training
together.  He explained about his fighting style while giving me pointers
on my own and we got along great.

	He walked my brother and me home from school everyday.  At first I
thought that he was doing that just to protect me, but then I realized that 
he really wanted to be around someone that didn't ask stupid questions about
his cooking or his other habits.  He needed a friend.

	We talked about everything.  I found him to be, well to put it 
bluntly, the sibling I never had.  He didn't brag or boast like all the 
other boys did.  He was quiet and reserved, a little melancholy, but on the 
whole, fun to be with.  He never made fun of me, never talked down to me, 
and just understood me.

	There's one thing that understood, though, and that was about his 
past.  He mentioned his father every now and then, like someone would 
mention an acquaintance, or someone you met on the street.  Every time I 
asked him about his childhood, he would clam up immediately, his brows
would darken and a strange sneer of malevolence crossed his lips.  And once,
I caught him killing a tree in the park.  That was the only time I was 
afraid of Ukyou.  He was vengeance personified.  I wasn't surprised, then, 
when two days later, he disappeared.

	A week after, I got a letter from Ukyou.  It said that he had to 
leave because of a debt he had left uncollected.  Ukyou was going to finally
seek the peace he'd longed for since he was six years old.  He said that 
he'd miss our walks, and that we'd always be the best of friends.  The 
postmark read Nerima, Tokyo.  My eyes watered up, and I pounded my fist on 
my bedspread.  It was then that I realized that I was in love with my best 
friend.

	Well, after that revelation, there was only one thing left to do.
I finished out the school year, and gathered up all my savings to take a 
holiday trip.  I kissed my parents and brother goodbye, and boarded the 
train to Tokyo.

	I just hope Ukyou still remembers me.


CHAPTER ONE


	Not five minutes into the train ride, I started to wonder if I was
doing the right thing.  I sat back in my seat and thought back to that day
when my feelings for Ukyou started to change.

	I couldn't find him anywhere.  He wasn't waiting at the corner where
he usually waited for my brother and me.  I walked my brother home, and then
ran back to the spot, hoping that I could find Ukyou there.  No such luck.  
I went back to the temple, to the arcade, to all the places where we went
together.  Still no sign of Ukyou.  I was passing the park when I noticed a 
glint of metal through the trees, deep into the wooded area.

	Weaving my way around the people milling in the walkways, I
rushed to that spot.  When I got there, I saw something I will never forget. 
Ukyou was wearing an okonomiyaki chef's outfit, holding only his big combat
spatula.  He had squared off against the biggest tree in the park, his feet 
planted and his eyes steeled.  Then he attacked.

	His combat spatula whizzed through the air in complex patterns, 
almost too quickly for me to watch.  He jabbed and feinted, his opponent 
whirling and kicking around and above him.  It was a beautiful sight.  
Then I heard him shout, "Ranma!  This is the day you die!"  And then he 
proceeded to slice through the tree as if it were mere butter.  As he 
attacked and sliced and screamed, my ears were pounding.  I couldn't 
believe my eyes.  My Ukyou, the calmest, most centered person in the 
universe was a fury personified, a whirling dervish of raw anger.  For one 
brief moment a glimmer of indigo light shone around Ukyou.  Then it 
flickered out as the tree began to fall.

	It landed heavily, and no matter what those Zen koans tell you, 
when a tree that big falls, everyone can hear it.  I jumped back in 
surprise and that's when my surprised eyes locked with his dark angry ones.
I was truly afraid in that moment.  I got the feeling that if Ukyou wanted
to, he could cut me down in a flurry of strokes without me even noticing 
the pain.  I didn't even know that my feet were taking me to him until 
we were face to face.

	"Ukyou, what are you doing?" I asked.  I knew it was a stupid 
question the minute it left my mouth, but I had to know what was going on.

	"You wouldn't understand," he snorted.  "It's a guy thing."

	"Please, tell me what's going on," I pleaded.  "How can I help you
if you don't tell me what's happening.  What was that," and I gestured
to the fallen tree, "all about?"

	"I said, you wouldn't understand," he replied, gathering up his 
things.  "Go home, Megumi.  Just go home and leave me alone.  I don't need 
your help."

	Well, right then I got pissed, for lack of a better word.  I 
reached out for  his shoulders, and spun him around.  I placed one hand 
on each shoulder and held him firm.  "Like hell you don't need my help!  
You demolish an innocent tree over 'a guy thing?'  Ukyou, honey, if that 
isn't a cry for help, I don't know what is!"  I softened my tone and 
loosened my grip.  "I'm here to help you.  We're best friends, right?"

	His eyes widened in surprise.  "You mean it, Meg-chan?" he asked 
in wonder.  "You think we're best friends?"

	"Of course we are, silly," I answered.  "I always mean what I 
say, Ukkun."  Looking straight into his eyes, I pronounced, "You are 
my best friend, Ukyou, and I will never let you forget it."

	He started to cry then, ugly wrenching sobs.  I held him tightly and 
borrowed from my mom all the soothing gestures and words she used on me 
when ever I was hurting that badly.  He clutched at me and howled his 
sadness into my shoulder.  I felt so protective right then.  I felt that 
whoever this Ranma person is, he better not meet me anytime soon.

	As his sobbing subsided, he pulled back from me, a little 
embarrassed.  "Guys don't cry," he said, rubbing his eyes on his arm.

	"Yes, they do," I insisted, pulling out a handkerchief from my 
pocket.  "They're just too stupid to admit it."

	Ukyou laughed, and I began to wipe the tears from his eyes.  He 
caught my hand easily, as to forestall me and suddenly, I realized how 
firm his grip was.  I saw his hand for the first time, small, but firm, 
callused from years of working as a chef, but still gentle.  He saw 
mine, and then we saw each other.

	My heart was beating so loud I thought he could hear it.  For a 
moment, it was just me and Ukyou, alone in the world.  Two people in 
a bond, responsible only for each other.  I leaned forward slightly, 
and so did he.  Our eyes locked for the second time this day, only they 
were filled with meaning, instead of fear and anger.  We leaned in a 
little more closer and then-

	A voice rang out from behind us.  "Who is responsible for this 
mess!"  We turned to see one of the park officials gesturing towards 
the tree.  The spell was broken.  I broke away from Ukyou to try an come 
up with an explanation.  I was so busy talking to the official that I 
didn't even notice Ukyou slip away.

	That was the last time I saw him.  I sighed and sat forward in 
my seat on the train.  When I decided to go after Ukyou, I didn't know 
what I was going to find.  Would I find my best friend?  Or would I find 
a murderer?  I think I made my decision as I passed that same park one
day.  I knelt at the spot where the tree stood.  I realized that no one
would ever remember him except for me, and I had to find Ukyou.

	The train started slowing down as it entered the Nerima station.
The sun was almost setting and I got off the train with the rest of the
commuters.  They had people to go home to.  So did I.

	I didn't know where to start looking for Ukyou, but I knew I was 
in the right city when I saw a small advertisement in the waiting room 
at the station.  It was for a new okonomiyaki shop in the business district.
The name of the restaurant was Ucchan's.  I figured that if Ukyou was to 
get a job anywhere, it would probably be at an okonomiyaki shop.  He might 
even be the head chef!

	When I reached the restaurant, the dinner hour was in full swing.  
A pretty girl called out the welcome, and I took a seat near the back.
She was about to take my order when a couple entered.  Instantly, the 
room fell quiet.  The waitress glared at the couple, the boy in particular.
He was dressed in a Chinese shirt and a pair of baggy trousers.  He, in 
turn, glared at the waitress.

	The tension broke when the chef barked at the waitress, "Tsubasa!
Get out of my restaurant!  You are not a waitress here!  Get out!"  The 
chef bounded over the counter and with one quick motion flung the erring
waitress out the door.  He slammed down the spatula and the customers
returned to their meals.  

	I couldn't believe my eyes.  It was him.  "Ukyou!" I shouted.

	He turned and a huge smile spread across his face.  "Megumi!
What are you doing out here?"

	I held up the letter.  "I got your message.  Thought I'd stop in
to see how my best friend was doing!"

	The boy in the Chinese shirt bristled and the girl beside him
elbowed him fiercely in the gut.  Ukyou's smile faltered as
she took in what I just said.  I began to worry.

	"Listen, Ukkun, I just got in, and I'm beat to hell," I continued
ignoring the boy's gaping look.  "Can't you give a proper welcome to your
best friend?"  I walked over to Ukyou and gave him a big hug.

	That's when I noticed that something was very different about Ukyou.
He was wearing a white bow in his hair, like a hair band.  And his hair was
flowing down his back.  And when I hugged him, I knew that something was 
terribly wrong.

	Ukyou Kuonji had breasts.


CHAPTER TWO


	Megumi stepped back a little, and I could tell what she was
backing away from.  She looked at me, really looked at me, and started to
giggle.

       Her giggle grew louder and louder, and she finally started to belly
laugh, drawing odd stares from Ranma and Akane.  She clutched her stomach
and howled all the while pointing at me and shaking her head.

       "Ukkun," she laughed, "you know, for a minute there, I thought
you had breasts!"  She laughed again, this time slightly hysterically.
I saw Ranma grimace at the sound.  It was eerie to hear it coming
from Megumi.  "I must be really tired!  Because if you really do have 
breasts, then you wouldn't be Ukyou Kuonji, would you?"

       I scratched the back of my head, and gave a sheepish grin.  "No,"
I said.  "I'm not the Ukyou Kuonji you know."  I didn't know what
else to say.  Of all the people I have ever known in my life, she is both
the first and the last one I had ever wanted to meet again.

       "That's what I thought," she said, her giggles subsiding.  
Megumi edged towards the door.  "No, you're not Ukyou, and I'm in the 
wrong place.  I'm sorry to have troubled you folks."  She turned to 
leave and found Ranma standing in her way.  "Excuse me," she said.  
"I have to find Ukyou."

       Ranma gave her a funny look and opened his mouth.  Before I 
knew what I was doing, I crossed the distance and clamped my hand tightly
over his mouth, effectively shutting him up.  "Go on, now," I said,
"and I wish you luck."

       Megumi paused at the door, then opened it briskly and took off into
the evening.  I had almost forgotten how quickly she could run when she
wanted to.  Right now, she was running like a demon was after her.

       The restaurant was deathly still.  All the customers had turned
in their seats to watch the little drama play out.  I felt the weight of
a dozen pairs of eyes on me, daring me to explain what just happened.  I
snapped.

       I slammed my spatula down on one of the tables real hard.  "Eat!"
I screamed.  They all turned back to their dinners muttering about the
incident.  I knew, that within hours, the gossip mill of Nerima would
be all a-buzz over the latest incident in Ucchan's.  That was the last
thing I needed.

       Ranma leaned over and inquired, "So who is she?  Another loopy person
from your past?"

       Akane shoved him in the shoulder. "As if your past isn't any more
loopier."  She turned towards me with a look of compassion.  "Is she a 
friend of yours?" she asked gently.

       Tears began to form in my eyes.  I brushed them back with my arm.
"Yes," I replied, "she was a real good friend of mine.  She was probably 
the only person who really understood me."  I looked out the window
into the night.  "She probably hates me now."

       Akane smiled, "I don't think things would be all that bad."

       Sometimes Akane's optimism is so blinding that it borders on Kasumi-
ness.  I managed a weak smile in return.  "I think they might.  Listen, 
Akane.  I don't ask you for favors much, but this is a real big one.  
Could you try and find her?" I asked.  "I have the feeling that she's 
gone somewhere else in the business district to try and look for me.  
Can you put her up for the night?"

       "What will I say to her?"

       "Say that you're a friend of mine and that I heard she was here."  I
paused.  "And please, promise me you won't tell her I'm not a boy--"

       Ranma interrupted, "Why not?"

       I sighed.  "It's a long story, and I'll tell you tomorrow, Ranchan.
Please, find her."

       Akane smiled again.  It's almost contagious the way she does that.
"It would be my pleasure."  She grabbed Ranma by the shoulder.  "C'mon, 
baka," she said.

       "Hey, I don't want to go looking for some crazy girl," he protested.
"I wanna find out what's going on."

       "Please, Ranchan, go with her," I begged.  "I want to be alone right
now."

       Ranma looked like he was about to argue the point, but Akane
gave him another strong poke in the shoulder, and the both of them left 
the restaurant.  After that, the evening dragged closer and closer to 
quitting time.  As I cooked and avoided the prying eyes of my customers, 
I thought about Megumi.  I thought about what might have brought her all 
the way to Nerima to find me.  And I shuddered at the thought.  Finally, 
when the last customer left the shop, and the grill was
turned off, and the lights dimmed, I began to cry.

       I didn't get much sleep that night.  I kept wondering if Megumi
was alright, if she was mad, if she would stay.  Most of all, I was
hoping Akane would keep her promise and not tell her anything.

       The following day, I didn't open the restaurant.  I sat there
in the dark, my mind going around in circles.  Tsubasa knocked on the
door several times, but I didn't even move to spatulate him.  I just kept
thinking and worrying.

       I was about to go over to the Tendou's when I heard a knock at 
my door.  Enough was enough.  I yanked the door open and screamed, "Get
away from me, you cross dressing freak!"

       "Gee, if that's the way you treat your friends, I'd hate to see how
you treat your enemies," Ranma grinned.  Akane was standing next to him,
a strange expression on her face.

       My heart leaped.  "Is there anything wrong?  Did she stay in 
Nerima?  Did you get to her in time?"

       "Yes, we did," Akane replied.  "Megumi's resting up at our house
right now.  She had a long train ride and she said she was exhausted
from the trip."  Akane cocked her head at me.  "She also kept asking me
about you."

       I froze.  "What did you tell her?"

       Akane smiled.  "I kept my promise, like you asked me to."

       I sagged against the doorway.  Ranma stuck his hands in his pockets
and whistled.  "So, she thinks you're a guy?"

       I grinned weakly.  "Yeah, it seems to be my curse in life."

       Ranma flinched and I asked them to come inside.  Automatically 
I started up the grill and began cooking their orders.  When the 
okonomiyaki were steaming on their plates, I began to speak.

       "Remember when I made that vow, never to live as a woman
again?  I took it seriously.  So did my parents.  So much, that they
forced me to go to school in another city and take on a whole new
identity.  I couldn't tell anyone, because to do so would compromise
my family honor.  So, everywhere I went, I was a boy."

       I looked down at my hands.  "I never made any friends because
I went to all-boys' schools, and I didn't like any of the boys.  They
were all bullies.  One day, I caught some of them overpowering
a girl in a temple garden.  I guess you could say I snapped.  I
went into samurai mode and stepped into help her."  I grinned at the 
memory.  "But Megumi proved that she could handle herself in a fight;
that day, she was just outnumbered.  I helped her home, and that's
how we became friends."

       "Hey, that sounds pretty normal," Ranma said.  "So why'd she
follow you here?"

       I lied.  "I don't know.  Maybe she just got worried about me."  I 
changed the subject.  "That's not important now.  All I need to do is
get her out of here.  I can't let her see me like this."

       "Wait a second, Ukyou," Akane broke in, "You're not ever going
to tell her the truth?"

       I shook my head.  "I'll go visit her at your house tomorrow, 
let her know I'm fine and get her back on that train.  She'll thank 
me for it later."

       Akane stood up.  "I think that's a rotten thing to do.  She came
all this way, and you're just going to tell her to buzz off?"  She leaned
over the counter towards me.  "I may not have told her about your
gender like I promised you, but I did tell her about you.  She's real 
excited to see you.  I'm not going to let you do this to her."

       "Oh, come on, Akane," Ranma interrupted.  "Let Ukyou handle
this in her own way.  She don't need you butting into her business."

       Akane growled at Ranma.  "Oh really, Mr. Know-it-All?
What do you think she should do?"

       Ranma shrugged.  "If it were me, I'd walk up to her and say, 
'Gee, you've been real nice to come all the way out here, but I can't 
let you stay.  I have a secret life-threatening illness, and I have 
only four days to live.'"

       I looked at Ranma as if he'd turned into a panda.  "You really
are your father's son, aren't you?"

       Ranma bristled, "Hey!  He may not be the smartest man in the 
world, but he's right about some things.  Like telling the
truth only gets you a table in the head."  Ranma glared at Akane
while he said this, and I knew what was coming next.

       As I watched them argue, I thought about what Ranma said.  
Of course I couldn't lie like that; I couldn't tell her the truth, 
either.  She would never believe me, and most importantly, 
she'd hate me forever.

       Akane booted Ranma out the window, and slammed her mallet onto
the counter.  "Honestly, he's got no sensitivity whatsoever!" she
huffed.

       I suppressed a grin.  "You're no better, Akane Tendou,
and you know it."

       Akane's eyes widened, and then she settled down.  "Well anyway,
there's something else Megumi told me."  She paused and fidgeted with
her fork.  "She said that she thinks she might be in love with you."

       I sighed.  "I was afraid of that.  Now I know I can't tell
her I'm really a girl."

       "All the more reason to tell her, Ukyou," Akane replied.  "You
may think that she'll hate you for it, but it will all work out in 
the end."  Akane turned to leave.  "At least say you'll come for 
dinner tonight?" she asked.  "I told Megumi I'd at least try for that.
What do you say?"

       "I don't know, Akane.  We'll see."

       Akane stopped by the door and turned to give me one last pleading
look.  I turned my head away, and I heard her close the door, shuffle over
to Ranma and heft him over her shoulder.

       I went back to my supply closet and got out the spare building
materials.  As I repaired the window, I pounded out my decision.

       WHAM!  I go.  WHAM!  I don't go.  WHAM!  I tell her.  WHAM!  
I don't tell her.

       WHAM!  WHAM!  WHAM!

       Needless to say, dusk approached very quickly.

       WHAM!  WHAM!  WHAM!  WHAM!  WHAM!  WHAM!


CHAPTER THREE


	After Akane and Ranma left to go see Ukyou, I moped around the
house.  Kasumi offered to show me the market, and Nabiki wanted to
go shopping, but I declined.  After what Akane told me yesterday, I had
a lot of things to think about.

	I remember running out of the restaurant, berating myself, for
immediately jumping to conclusions.  Ukyou Kuonji is a guy, therefore,
that woman is not Ukyou.  It didn't dawn on me until later that the
woman knew who I was or that she responded to the nickname.  All I could
remember were her words to me:  "I'm not the Ukyou Kuonji you remember."
The words hammered themselves into my brain until I stopped running.

	Akane and Ranma found me at the bridge overlooking the canal.  They
said that they were friends of Ukyou's and that they told Ukyou what had
happened there at the restaurant.  Akane assured me that I didn't embarrass
the owner of that restaurant at all and that Ukyou insisted that I stay
with them for the evening.  I accepted, knowing full well that I didn't
have any other place to go for the night.  To tell the truth, I really
didn't know what to expect once I did find Ukyou.  Ranma ran off to tell
the family that there was going to be a guest, and Akane and I walked
home together.

	The curious side of myself asked the question before I even knew
I was asking it.  "You're a friend of Ukyou's right?"  Akane nodded
in the affirmative.  "Has he ever mentioned me?"

	Akane stopped.  I saw a look of indecision on her face before she
answered.  "No," she said, "Ukyou never talked a lot about his past."

	I laughed.  "And don't I know it!  He was always so quiet and
secretive.  It took me over two days to figure out where he lived!"

	Akane gave me a piercing look.  "So you know nothing about his
past or his... childhood?"

	I looked her straight in the eyes and said, "No.  He never told
me anything about his past.  Every time I tried to bring up the subject,
he would clam up and change topics."  I paused slightly before continuing.
"I do know this: what ever happened, he was tormented by it until the
very last day I saw him."

	Akane swallowed nervously.  "How can you tell?"

	I affected a light tone.  "Oh, lemme see... The last time I 
saw Ukyou, he was training for a challenge duel."  I paused, wondering
how I should put this.  "You know how good Ukyou is.  I knew that he
was a good martial artist, and that he was strong."  I looked over at 
Akane, and she motioned at me to continue.  "There was a large tree
he was squaring off against.  The trunk was about three feet
in diameter.  Ukyou sliced through it like it was nothing."

	I turned to Akane and I saw that she looked uncomfortable under
my gaze.  My heart felt like it was breaking.  "Akane, you must know
the people he was fighting against."  I brandished the letter.
"He said he was seeking peace.  Ukyou said that he'd always miss me.
It's like he's telling me that he'd never see me ever again.  The look in
his eyes that day was a look of pure rage.  My gut feeling is that 
either Ukyou is severely hurt or dead or in jail for murder."  I grabbed 
Akane by the shoulders.  "Tell me that this isn't true!"

	Akane sighed with relief and said, "No, Ukyou's fine.  He's
not dead, and he's a little hurt, but he didn't kill anyone. Just severely
hurt one of them."

	"One?  I asked, my eyebrows raised.  "He had a challenge match
against two people?"

	"Yes," she said.  "They were father and son."

	I could see that Akane didn't want to talk about it, as if she 
knew who the people were and was defending them.  I let the subject drop.
I didn't want to know about the matter from any other person but Ukyou.

	We walked on a couple more blocks, and then Akane asked me a 
question.  "Why did you decide to follow Ukyou all the way here?"

	I thought about it for a while.  "When I got the letter, I felt
this sense of fear that I'd never see him again.  And I knew that it wasn't
right for him to go away without at least telling me."  I looked down at 
the ground.  "I was afraid for him, and I was angry at him."  I laughed
a little harshly and Akane jumped back a little.  "And that's when
I figured out that I had fallen in love with him."

	Akane looked uncomfortable.  "How do you know?"

	I smiled.  "It's a feeling that you never forget when it hits you.
All of a sudden, you want to be with the person you love all the time.  
You find yourself fantasizing about what might have been, or what might be.
And most importantly, you feel as if you'd protect this person under any
circumstances."  I stopped in my tracks, turned around and looked back
in the direction of the restaurant.  "I think I love Ukyou.  I would follow
him to the ends of the earth.  And though I don't think I could kill,
anyone who has ever harmed Ukyou will have to deal with me."  I looked
at Akane.  "You feel that way about Ranma?"

	Akane's reaction surprised me.  "That baka?" she replied, incred-
ulous.  "Of course not!  I'm not in love with that insensitive jerk!
We're not even going out!"

	"But he lives with you?"

	She stopped walking to look at me and I shrugged.  Akane started
to smile and then she laughed.  "Well, yeah, he lives with me.  You see...."

	Akane proceeded to explain the circumstance of Ranma and his 
father living with them at their house, the martial arts school, and the
promise their drunken fathers had made.  I, in turn, explained all about
how I met Ukyou and our friendship.  By the time we had reached the dojo,
we were good friends.  I got to match faces with names, but I was very 
tired from the my trip.  So after dinner, I begged off a bath and 
went straight to sleep.

	I looked at the clock in the living room.  Kasumi was cleaning
up the dining table and Nabiki was in her room.  Tendou-san and Saotome-
san were playing shogi on the porch.  Akane and Ranma were still out; they
had missed lunch.  I got up hurriedly and went to the front gate.  No
sign of either of them.  I walked slowly back to the living room and
was about to plop back down on the rug when Kasumi stuck her head in the
doorway.

	"I have found that a tranquil work out will always calm my
nerves when I'm worried about anything," she suggested.  She gestured
towards the dojo.  "You are free to use it, as our guest."

	I looked up in surprise.  I hadn't noticed it much, since it
was well after dark when we got here, but then I remembered that Akane 
said it was the part of the house she was the most proud of.  I bowed
in gratitude and hurried off to change.

	I entered the dojo somewhat cautiously.  From what Akane
told me, and from the looks of the fight outside this morning, the
dojo took a lot of beatings.  This morning, Ranma had narrowly
missed falling into the koi pond by crashing through the side of the
dojo instead.  Saotome-san called a draw at that point, because as he 
punched Ranma towards the pond, he had to turn sideways to absorb Ranma's
kick.  As a result, he sent himself sprawling across the porch.

	I bowed to the shrine, and started my work out.  Usually it
calms me, but as I kicked and punched, I realized that much of my
routine was full of things that Ukyou had taught me.  There was a spare
2 x 4 on the floor, and picking it up, I went through the katas again,
swinging it around like one would a spatula.  As I finished up with a 
vaulting spin kick, I heard the door slide open.  I turned towards the
door to  find Ranma watching me.

	"Not bad," he said, as he entered the dojo.  He was dressed in
his Chinese shirt and trousers.  "Mind if I join in?"

	"Of course not," I said, out of breath.  "It's your dojo, or 
at least it will be."

	Ranma flushed and looked down at the ground.  I instantly regretted
the words as they came out of my mouth.  "Sorry, Ranma," I apologized.
"I didn't mean to stick my foot in--"

	He interrupted me with a brief shake of his head, and said, "It's
okay, Megumi."  He started up with an intricate kata that defied description.

	I tried to breach the silence again.  "I mean with the kind of stuff
you can do, it would be a shame if you didn't have a dojo to teach in."

	He looked up at me in surprise, and then continued with the kata,
his face wiped of all expression.

	I turned to leave.  "I don't want to bother you."

	"Wait!" he said.  I turned back around to find him looking at me
strangely.  "I got a question."

	"What's it about?"

	"It's about Ukyou."

	I gave him my full attention.  "Go ahead."

	Ranma put his hand behind his head, and scratched it for a while.
He opened his mouth, thought better of it, then closed it again.  His foot
traced a pattern on the floor and then he turned away.  "Nah, never mind." 

	He went back to his kata, leaping spectacularly across the dojo,
landing on one foot, turned and punched from the position.  Then he dropped
to one knee, swept his foot out and rolled over onto his feet.

	I shrugged.  "If there isn't anything else--"

	"You love Ukyou, don't you?"  Ranma was still engrossed in the kata,
kicking and punching and leaping, but the air was heavy with the inquiry.

	I gave that question a lot of thought and I said, "Yes, I do." 

	"Well, what if... he don't love you?"

	I paled.  I hadn't thought of that before.  I slumped against the
the sliding door, and slid to the floor.  In all the conversations we
had together, Ukyou had never mentioned loving any one, much less liking
any one.  In fact, there was this one girl he told me about who kept 
pestering him with gifts and letters.  The look of disgust on his face
told me that Ukyou didn't go for the hearts and flowers routine.  The 
intensity in his eyes told me that if he ever did like anyone, it would
be with a quiet passion.  Then it hit me.

	I lifted my head towards Ranma and said, "He's engaged, isn't he?"

	Ranma turned back towards me so quickly that he lost his balance
and crashed into the wall.  I continued on quickly, so I could get the
words out of my mouth.  "That's why he came here.  He had to fight for 
this girl, fight for her hand in marriage.  And that's why he didn't want
to see me last night.  Because he's ashamed to face me, because he didn't 
tell me before.  And now I can never see him again...."  I ran out of the
dojo, my eyes filled with tears.  I stumbled across the lawn, into the
house and up the stairs.  I passed Akane in the hallway and she grabbed
me shouting, "Megumi!  What's wrong?"

	I hiccuped and sobbed, "Ranma said...  Ukyou's engaged...."

	Akane set her face in anger and tore down the stairs.  I heard the
door slam and as I ran into her room, I heard the sounds of shouting and
crashing coming from the dojo.  I threw myself across the bed and sobbed.
Last night when I unpacked my things, I had taken out the one picture I
had of Ukyou, at my brother's birthday party.  My dad had one shot left,
and he had grouped us hastily together.  My arm was around Ukyou and his
head was tilted towards mine.  We were happy in that picture.  I was
miserable right now.

	Akane called me down to dinner several times, and once I heard
Ranma's hesitant step outside the door, but I made no answer.  I just
kept staring at that picture, wondering how foolish I could have been
to follow a person I barely knew all the way across Japan.  My eyes were
red and puffy when I heard a knock at the door.  "Come in," I replied,
listlessly.

	The door opened behind me, and a voice I hadn't heard in a while
said, "Hello, Megumi."

	It was Ukyou.


CHAPTER FOUR


	I closed the door behind me.  Megumi swiveled around and she 
gasped.  "Ukkun?" she asked, her voice unsteady.  "Is it *really* you 
this time?"

	I gave a short nod.  "It's really me."

	She got up from the bed and walked over to me.  She gave me a
long scrutinizing gaze, then hugged me.  I hugged her back, and
supressed the urge to blush when I felt her hands probing at my shoulders,
feeling for a bra strap.  There would be none of that; I made sure I 
wound the bindings tighter than usual.

	Megumi stepped back and gave me a wry smile.  "Funny, the last
time we were together, I didn't think that I would ever get to see you again."

	I nodded sheepishly.  "I guess you're a bit mad at me, aren't you?"

	Megumi turned away from me, her shoulders trembling.  A choked sob
wracked her body.  I reached out to touch her when she whirled back, ex-
ploding with anger.  "Hell, yes! I'm mad at you!  Did you know how worried 
I'd been about you!  Did you even care?  Right after you got that letter 
from home you started moping about, brooding and snapping at everyone.  I 
wanted to help you, but you kept pushing me away.  And then, there was that
tree thing and you disappear!"  She grabbed my hand.  "It's not that I have 
a right to pry into your life--" Megumi stopped abruptly and cocked her ear
at the door.  "Did you hear that?"

	I nodded towards the door, mouthing the words, "They do this all
the time."  With a silent maneuver, I slid toward the door as Megumi
sat down on the bed and yanked the door open to find Ranma, his dad, Tendou-
san and Nabiki all clustered by the door, glasses in hand, trying to scurry
away.  Akane was standing behind Ranma and she had an embarrassed grin on 
her face.  I gave them all a withering glance and they scooted off, mut-
tering excuses.

	I closed the door and shook my head ruefully.  Megumi laughed.
"They really are a close knit bunch, aren't they?"  She had a smile
on her face, but it didn't reach her eyes.

	"A real bunch of comedians.  Wanna go for a walk?"

	Megumi nodded, her false smile mocking me.  I reached 
out for her hand automatically, and she looked at it briefly before 
placing her hand in mine.  As soon as I helped her up, she dropped 
my hand abruptly.  We looked at each other silently, and I opened 
the door for her.  We walked down the hall, down the stairs, past the 
curious glances of the Saotome and Tendou clan.  Kasumi called out, 
"Don't be out too late!" and I turned to her and gave her a reassuring 
nod.  We left the front gate and walked down the street.  I kept stealing 
glances at Megumi, trying to gauge her mood, but she kept her face 
neutral.  When we reached the bridge over the canal, she turned to me,
her eyes alit with determination.

	"Listen, Ukkun, like I said earlier, I don't have a right to pry 
into your life, but I do have a right to know what's going on."  Her eyes
blazed into mine.  "Or am I wrong?  Do I have a right to know what's 
going on?"

	I turned to her fiercely, "Of course you do!  You're my best 
friend!"

	She laughed mirthlessly.  "Am I?  I'm starting to wonder about
that.  There's so much you never told me, so much I'm starting to realize
now."

	"What do you mean?"

	"You don't need to say anything, Ukkun.  I already know."

	I felt a twinge of panic and I managed to ask, "Know what?"

	"I know you're engaged already to someone from your past
and you had to fight to regain your honor."  Megumi turned away.  
"I just feel stupid for not realizing it earlier."

	I felt an icy grip seize my heart.  "How did you figure that
out?"

	"I was talking to Ranma," she replied.  I turned and started
walking back to the Tendou dojo.  "Where are you going?"

	"I'm going to kill Ranma."  I was about to start running when I
heard a startled cry behind me.  I turned around to find Megumi staring at
me with an expression of shock on her face, her hand trembling by her
mouth.  I rushed to her side.  "What's wrong now?"

	She looked like she was in deep thought.  Her eyes were looking
at me, but it was like she wasn't even seeing me.  Instead she was seeing
something that startled her to the bone.  I shook her shoulders and waved
my hand in front of her face.  "Meg-chan?" I ventured.  She walked away
from me, towards the edge of the bridge.  Megumi's eyes were unfocused
and she was mouthing something to herself.  I went over to her, my heart
pounding with fear and curiosity.  She finally looked up at me and 
murmured, "Ranma, this is the day you die."

	"Huh?  Meg-chan, are you sure you're all right?"

	Her eyes searched my face.  "That's what you said, right before
you sliced down that tree.  "You said, 'Ranma, this is the day you die.'
That's a name you don't forget.  I could tell from the way you were training
on that day that you were up against a real tough opponent."  The words spil-
led out of her mouth and she started to pace.  "I watched Ranma this morning.
He's good.  I mean real good.  His father could barely touch him, and he 
could barely touch his father.  They're both real, real good.  You're good, 
too, but not in his league.  From what I've seen of both of your styles, you
could do well against him, but he'd eventually win."

	She turned around and headed back towards me.  "That's what 
happened isn't it?  You fought Ranma and Ranma beat you  That's why your 
honor is gone."  She stopped pacing and giggled.  "I was way off on that 
fiance thing."

	I started to interrupt her, but she continued.  "That explains 
one part-- why you didn't come back.  But why did you go in the first 
place?  And why did he ask me about...?" she paused, a blush stealing 
across her face.

	My head whirled with confusion.  "Wait a second, Meg-chan, what
exactly did Ranma say to you?"

	"We were in the dojo and he asked me if I..." she paused, looking
at the ground, unsure as how to continue her thought.

	"If you what?"  I was really confused at this point.

	"HeaskedmeifIlovedyou."  She let out a huge breath and looked up
at me with worried eyes.

	I reeled.  "Love me?  Why would you love me?"

	Megumi gave a short bark of laughter, "That's what I keep asking
myself.  You're stubborn, you slurp your drinks, your main topics of
conversation are okonimiyaki and martial arts and you never tell people 
anything, especially when they care about you.  But yes," she paused and 
a determined gaze settled on her features, "I love you.  Don't ask me how
or why, but I love you."  A small hopeful smile was on her face.  "Well, 
say something."

	I couldn't believe she actually said it.  "Megumi, you can't be 
in love with me.  We barely know each other--"

	"Hah!  We spent a whole school year together and every
day we talked about everything."  She shrugged.  "Okay, well almost
everything.  Don't even tell me that I don't know you."

	"But you don't."  I sighed and ran a hand through my hair, settling
it on the back of my neck and scratching.  My mind was made up; I had to
tell her now, before things got out of hand.  All I'd have to say was, "See,
Meg-chan, there's something I've got to tell you."  Before I could say it 
though, Akane came barreling down the street.  "Hey you two!  It's getting 
late!  Kasumi was getting worried."  She paused, noticing the looks on our 
faces.  "Is anything wrong?"

	Megumi shook her head and gave me a careful glance, "No, I don't
think there's anything wrong; I think I've just given Ukkun a lot to think
about."

	I nodded listlessly.  Megumi put an hand on my shoulder.  "Can we have
lunch tomorrow?  I want to see where you work."

	I nodded again.  "Okay," she said, "pick me up around 11:30 and
we can have a lunch date."  I winced at the word 'date' but I don't think
Megumi noticed.  She turned and headed for the dojo.  Akane remained
behind and she asked worriedly, "What's wrong, Ukyou?"

	I shook my head and murmured, "I'm fine."  I started walking across
the bridge back to my restaurant.  Akane called out after me, and hearing her
voice, I broke into a run.  I didn't stop until I reached my restaurant.  
I flung aside the mailbox that blocked the door, and I heard Tsubasa yelp 
in surprise as he made contact with the wall.  I tore through the dining area
and up the stairs to my room.

	As I slammed the door, my mirror canted and fell to the floor,
landing heavily with a thud.  I stared at my reflection in the mirror and
bile started to rise in my throat.  I tore off my school uniform, and rip-
ped off the bindings until I lay on the floor, panting, dressed only in my
tank top and my underwear.  A whisper escaped my lips, "Megumi loves me."
Panting, I rolled over, looking at my reflection in the mirror, seeing my 
limbs and bosom uncovered by the stiff, starchy manly uniform.  "And I am 
a girl."

	I jumped to my feet and grabbed my spatula.  I went through my closet
and got out all my school uniforms.  The one from my grade school went first.
Shorts and a white dress shirt, the little cap covering my short, short hair--
all torn to bits.  My junior high uniform was next.  I had put on the bind-
ings for the first time in my aunt's house, her face mildly disapproving as
she wound the fabric around me tighter and tighter, obscuring all hint of my
femininity.  I ripped the bindings in two, then again until they lay on the 
floor, then the uniform joined it, buttons flying across the room.  The 
Furinkan uniform was next.  I remembered that first day of school, my face 
blushing bright red when I heard Ranma say that I was cute.  Then, my blush 
fading as I looked over to see Akane, her pretty dress and her pretty face, 
comparing her full beauty to my flat-chested ugliness.  As I ripped the 
jacket in two, I screamed to the ceiling, "I AM A GIRL, DAMNIT!"

	My eyes flew to my dresser drawer and I rifled through it, taking
out all my boy's clothes and tossing them to the floor.  I reached
down into the second drawer and was about to fling those clothes out when my
hand ventured on a picture frame hidden at the bottom of the drawer.  I with-
drew the picture and noticed that it was one of me and Megumi at her 
brother's birthday party.  Something white was stuck to the back, a piece
of paper, creased with many folds.  I unfolded it to reveal a letter whose 
words I knew by heart:

		Kuonji Ukyou--

		I am writing to inform you that your mother
		has just given birth to a baby boy.  I release
		you from your obligation to uphold the family
		honor.  I renounce your claim as the heir
		to the family dojo.

		Kuonji Hiro

	I cried myself to sleep.


CHAPTER FIVE


	I woke up early the next day.  Akane had already woken up and was 
chasing Ranma around the koi pond.  She gave him a hefty swing with a mallet
and knocked him in.  I heard the splash as I turned away, but I wasn't in-
terested in watching them practice.  I had a date.

	I picked out the perfect outfit.  It was a light blue sundress, 
edged with lace on the bodice.  I debated over wearing a hat, but chucked
it in favor of a silk scarf, wound around my hair.  Satisfied with my
choices, I went downstairs and sat down to breakfast next to Akane.

	Ranma entered from the kitchen, carrying an empty kettle of water 
and wearing a different shirt.  He plopped down on the other side of Akane 
and glared at her.  She pointedly ignored Ranma and continued feeding some 
rice to a little black piglet.

	"Oh, how cute!" I exclaimed.  I tickled the pig on the chin and it 
squealed a bit nervously.  "Is that your pet?"

	Akane nodded and a soft look appeared in her eye.  "Yes, he's my 
little P-chan, aren't you, baby?"  She continued making baby talk to the pig
who looked like it was in heaven.  Ranma scowled and grumbled, "You're
makin' a fool of yourself, Akane, treatin' that pig the way you do."

	Akane scowled back and they started to argue over the pig.  He 
called her a tomboy and she called him a pervert.  I smiled as I watched 
them, remembering certain conversations with Ukkun that degenerated into 
name-calling contests.  I picked through my food but couldn't eat anything
because I was so excited.  Kasmui looked at me with a concerned look,
but I waved it off with a confident smile.  Later, I helped her clear off 
the table and as we carried the dishes to the kitchen, she turned to me
and asked, "Are you alright, Megumi?"

	"I'm fine, Kasumi-san.  I'm just a little bit nervous about my date 
today."  I placed the dishes near the sink.

	"Oh?  Who are you going out on a date with?"  She started the water
running in the sink.

	"Oh, just Ukkun."  I couldn't stop beaming, just thinking about it.  
Finally, I would have my date with Ukyou.

	Kasumi stilled and for a brief moment, I could see her hands tense 
up on the plates.  Then she started calmly washing the dishes again.  "Just 
be careful, Megumi.  Don't expect things to be the way they were.  Ukyou
has changed a lot since the last time you met."  I furrowed my brow, but she
started humming a happy song, and I realized that she wouldn't say anymore 
on the subject.  Puzzled, I turned and walked through the living room where
Akane was pounding Ranma into the floor and the pig was biting Ranma's ankle.
I laughed at the sight and Ranma glowered at me.

	"What's so funny?" he growled, deftly tossing the pig aside and 
evading one of Akane's blows by rolling next to the coffee table.

	"Nothing, really."  I couldn't stop giggling and I laughed so hard 
that I fell to the floor and started gasping.

	"C'mon... tell us?"  Akane stopped her swing just a hair's breadth 
from his face and put it aside.  Even the pig looked interested.

	I pressed a hand against my belly and drew in a deep breath.  "Well, 
I just was remembering one time when Ukyou and I were arguing like
that... we ended up on the floor tickling each other."  The pig's eyes
grew wide as I sighed, remembering the feel of Ukyou's face so close to
mine, his quiet triumphant smile evolving into something more serious.

	"Man, you've really got it bad for Ukyou, don't you?" Ranma 
commented.

	I sighed again.  "I guess I do."  The pig started squealing wildly 
again and it was Ranma's turn to sigh.  "Ya mind if I borrow this piece of 
bacon, Akane?  He really needs a bath."

	Akane's eyes grew wide.  "You mean you actually want to be nice to 
P-chan for a change?"

	Ranma smirked.  "Naw, it's just that he stinks and I figure a hot 
bath would do him a world of good.  He sorta smells like Ryouga, ya know?"

	The pig squealed furiously and resumed biting Ranma's ankle.  He 
laughed and carried off the struggling animal to the bathroom.  Akane sat 
down next to me and opened her mouth to say something, but then she closed 
it again.

	"What is it, Akane?  Is there something wrong?"  I turned to Akane
and gave her a steady glance.  "I get the feeling that you don't approve of
my loving Ukyou."

	"Whatever gave you that idea?" Akane asked, her hands fidgeting with
the hem of her dress.

	"Well, when I told you about our date last night, you refused to talk
about it.  You kept changing the subject."

	"I did not do that!  Hey, Megumi, you want to play shogi with me?"

	I giggled.  "You're doing it again!  Listen, I consider us to be
real friends now, right?  Anyone who's been such a good friend to Ukyou
is a good friend of mine, right?  I think we can talk about this, don't
you?"  I stretched out on the living room floor.  "What's bothering you?"

	Akane fidgeted with her dress again.  "Well, are you sure you're in
love with Ukyou?  I mean, it could just be a crush.  I had a crush once,
on an older man, but I got over it."

	My eyes grew wide.  "Really?  Would you tell me about it?"

	She looked furtively in the direction of the kitchen, then down the
hallway towards the bathroom.  She grabbed my hand and we both went up to
her room.  After she had seated herself on the bed, she started playing with
the comforter for a long time.  Then, she looked up at me with an uncomfort-
able, but determined look on her face.

	"Well, I was in love with this older man for quite a while.  Every
time I saw him, my heart would beat really, really quickly and my hands
would get all clammy."  She blushed bright red and gave me a silly grin.
"He's such a nice man.  He always helped out our family whenever we needed 
help, and after my mother died, he was a real big help to me."  Akane paused
and she seemed to be reminiscing about her crush.  She walked over to the 
window and gazed outside.  "That was when I fell in love with him.  I would 
find excuses to go over and see him whenever I could.  Kasumi would almost 
have to drag me away every afternoon after school."  She gave a nervous 
giggle.  "I imagined us getting married, and him running his business while
I ran the dojo.  It was perfect."

	She turned away from the window.  A sad look appeared on her
face and she started to frown.  "But I slowly started to realize that he was
in love with someone else.  And that someone else kinda had feelings for him,
too.  It finally hit me about a half a year ago."  She sighed and sat back 
down on the bed heavily, the springs creaking.  "I realized that I wasn't 
the right girl for him, and quite frankly," and here she blushed, "he wasn't
the right man for me, either."

	She gave me a long scrutinizing gaze and her voice grew hesitant.
"You see, what you think is love may not be love.  It may just be feelings 
of intense 'like' or even just an infatuation."  She looked down at her 
fingers and said quietly, "I would hate for you to be hurt by this feeling 
you have.  Love isn't supposed to work that way."

	Akane turned to the window.  Her eyes lost her focus, and she
was seeing something that I couldn't see.  "The Ukyou you described to me
two nights ago doesn't seem like the Ukyou I know now.  He's more driven,
less happy, more prone to anger, less prone to laughter."  Her mouth tight-
ened in anger.  "He's chasing after something he cannot have.  And it's 
changing him completely."

	"I'm afraid that when you go out on this date today, when you
see the same Ukyou I see, you won't just stop loving him anymore.  I'm
afraid that you'll start hating him."

	I blinked.  "But I could never hate Ukyou.  He's just so sweet and
kind and loving..."  I trailed off, remembering his face at the park, the
moment he cut down that tree.  It was not a face of sweetness, nor kindness,
nor love.  It was a visage of murder.

	I mentally shook myself and said, "Akane, thank you very much for
your concern, but I think I'm going to have to find out for myself exactly
what has changed.  I really appreciate your help, but I'm just gonna have
to wing it, I guess."  I gave her a smile.  "That is the reason I came here,
right?"

	Akane nodded slowly and said, "Right."  She got up and said, "I
have to make a phone call.  Will you please think about what I said?"

	I nodded in return and watched her leave the room.  After she closed
the door, I turned towards the picture I had of Ukyou and me at my brother's
birthday party.  The party was just about to end.  My dad was busy seeing 
people off at the door and my brother was holed up in his room, trying
to break the toys he'd just gotten.  Ukyou and I were stuck with clean
up.  He accidentally tossed some of the streamers at my head while I wasn't
looking, I retaliated.  One thing led to another and we ended up tangled
together, laughing so hard our stomachs hurt.  My dad came in at that point,
and he suggested taking the picture.  Ukyou was uncomfortable with it, as he
usually didn't want to have his picture taken, but I insisted and firmly
placed my arm around his waist.  Instantly, I felt a tingling sensation in 
my chest and I looked up in surprise to see his handsome face smiling at me.
Flustered, I turned towards the camera and FLASH! that image of my happiness
was captured forever.

	I sighed and looked out the window.  Just like on the train, I start-
ed to wonder what I'd find.  Would I find the love of my life?  Or would I
find the vengeful Ukyou that I was just now beginning to realize existed?

	A knock on the door interrupted my reverie.  Ranma poked his
head in and said, "Hey, that was Ukyou on the phone.  He wants you to meet
him in the park.  I'm supposed to tell you how to get there."

	"Sure," I said.  "Give me a couple minutes to get ready and I'll
meet you downstairs."  He gave a noncommital grunt and closed the door.

	I dressed slowly, my excitement from earlier tinged with dread.
Did I really love Ukyou?  Was it just infatuation?  I reviewed what I knew
about him.  He was kind, he made me laugh, we worked well together... what 
was there not to like about Ukyou?  He had a strong work ethic, and a 
strong sense of family.  I could tell that from the way he studied his dad's
Forms everyday.  He really *really* wanted to inherit the family dojo.
He wasn't in the least interested in revenge when I knew him.  In fact, it
was him who told me not to immediately seek revenge against Hikaru and Kaneda
for trying to hurt me.  He said that the best kind of justice came only to
those who were patient enough to wait for it.  And he was right.

	I walked downstairs as if in a dream.  I didn't notice anyone else
around except for Ranma who was pacing impatiently at the foot of the stairs.
"So?" I asked, descending the stairs and twirling around.  "What do you
think?"

	"Huh?"  Ranma gave me a once over and grinned.  "Oh, you look fine."

	I grinned back with mock anger.  "Only fine?  Aren't I cute?"

	He smiled secretly.  "Naw, I know a girl who's way cuter than you 
are."

	"Meanie."  I gave his shoulder a shove and said, "Well, lead the
way, O gallant knight."

	He grinned back at me and we started walking to the park.  Actually,
I was walking, he was balancing on the fence that bordered the canal.  "Hey,
Ranma?  Is it alright if you just tell me how to get to the park?  I kinda 
want to be alone."

	"Well, sure, but I'm supposed to meet Akane at the park, too.  I
don't know what she wants."

	"Maybe she wants to go out on a date, too."  I couldn't help
but grin as I added, "With you."

	"What?" Ranma sputtered.  "Me?  Go out on a date with a tomboy like
her?  You've got to be crazy!"

	I laughed.  "I was just teasing.  So she doesn't want to go out
on a date with you.  Maybe she wants you to be her chaperone for her date
with..." and I fumbled in my memory for the name Akane told me, "Kunou
Tatewaki!"

	Ranma got bright red.  "No way in hell is she going to go out on
a date with him!"

	I laughed so hard right then.  "Goodness, Ranma.  You're so fun
to tease."

	"Well, how 'bout if I tell you that you're not Ukyou's best friend?"

	"What?"

	"Yeah," he grinned.  "I was Ucchan's best friend even before he ever
met you.  And we're still best friends.  So there!"

	"Well then," I said with a sultry voice, "maybe I should hope to be
something more than just a best friend."  I laughed again when I saw Ranma
blushing.

	We reached the park and I heard a familiar shout come from a wooded
area of the park.  Ranma and I both ran to the area and found Ukyou in a 
chef's outfit battling a gigantic tree.  What was more amazing was that the
tree was fighting back.

	His hair had come loose from its ponytail and it swang freely around
his face as he smacked with the flat of his blade so hard that it threw the
tree back a couple steps.  The tree charged forward and threw its branches 
around Ukyou and shouted, "No one else can have you, Ukyou-sama!  Can't you 
see I'm the only one for you?"

	Ukyou screamed, "Get off of me, Tsubasa!  You know that Ranchan's
the only one for me!"  He took two throwing spatulas and tore off both the
right and left branches, leaving only a pair of arms.  Tsubasa dashed 
forward and knocked Ukyou to the ground.  Before I realized it, I had run
up to Ukyou and hovered over him.  "Are you alright?" I asked, worriedly.

	"Just what the hell are you doing here?"

	"Ranma said that you called and wanted to meet me in the park."

	"I did no such thing."  Ukyou frowned and looked towards Ranma
who had a helpless look on his face.  Just then, Akane ran up and shouted,
"Oh good, you're all here."  She turned to Tsubasa.  "What are you doing
here?"

	Tsubasa shrugged.  "I was following Ukyou-sama, like I always
do.  We are destined to be together."

	Ukyou shrieked, "We are not!"  He turned to me and said, "Get out
of here Megumi.  I can handle this alone."

	I grimaced.  "But--"

	Ukyou furrowed his brow.  "Meg-chan, it's nothing I can't handle.
Just an overzealous ass who can't take no for an answer."

	I frowned and turned towards the tree.  "I don't know who you are,
but Ukyou just said that he didn't want you.  He said--"  I paused.  Just
what *did* Ukyou say?

	Tsubasa laughed, his voice dripping with sarcasm.  "Yeah, *she* said
that she wanted Ranchan."

	While I digested that new bit of information, Ukyou gave a strangled
cry and leaped into the air.  Spinning, he tore off the crown of the tree, 
leaving a girl's head sticking out of a trunk.  "Now get the hell out of 
here before I have to really hurt you!"  He gave a mighty heave with his 
combat spatula and flung the erring tree high into the air.

	I looked over to Ranma who had turned as pale as a ghost.  Akane
grew silent and Ukyou was shouting curses at the rapidly disappearing tree.

	Just as before, I didn't know where my feet were taking me until
I was face to face with Ukyou.  As calmly as I could, I asked, "Okay, who 
are you and what have you done with Ukyou?"  I ran my fingers through my hair.
"That Tsubasa person just said you were a female."  I looked over this per-
son's attire.  It was a navy blue okonomiyaki chef's outfit, with navy blue
leggings.  The V-neck of the blouse exposed a decent amount of clevage.
"You are a female.  But you're also Ukyou?"

	Ukyou(?) sighed and putting an elastic around his(?) hair, he(?) 
turned to face me and said, "Yes, I am Kuonji Ukyou, the boy you knew from 
your hometown.  I am also Kuonji Ukyou, a woman living in Nerima."  Ukyou 
sighed and ran a hand through his(?) hair.  "I'm sorry about all this."

	I stared at Ukyou for a minute, then back at Ranma and Akane, whose
pale faces were confirming the words.  Then I did the very next thing that 
came to mind.

	I fainted.


CHAPTER SIX


	When Megumi came to, she sat up groggily and put a hand to her
head.  She looked around, recognized the walls of the Ucchan and turned 
towards me.  She took in my chef's uniform and for the second time this
week, I felt her scrutinizing eyes on my body.  This time I knew I wouldn't
blush.

	"Ukyou?"

	I sighed reluctantly.  "Yes, it's really me this time."

	She struggled to her feet and looked around warily.  She took in the
walls, the ceiling, the tables, the booths.  Finally, her eyes were drawn
to a picture on the wall next to the griddle.  It was a picture of me and
Ranchan, taken not long after I found out about his curse.  I grimaced as 
she traced my image, then the lip prints.  Then she turned to me with a 
icy stare.  "Just who the hell are you?"

	"Like I told you, I am Kuonji Ukyou.  I was born on--"

	"Spare me."  The look in her eyes were deadly.  She paced around 
the restaurant.  I watched her shove tables and chairs out of the way as the
took the circuitous path back to me.  Every time she passed a chair, she would
shove it towards the table.  I winced, hearing the screech of wood against
linoleum get closer.  She finally reached me, staring me dead in the eyes.
"Why didn't you tell me?"

	"I didn't think it was important--"

	"Important?  I share all my secrets with my best friend, hoping that
he can tell me anything, but he doesn't even bother to tell me about his 
little gender problem?" she spat in disgust.  "What are you, a transsexual?"

	I widened my eyes, horrified.  "No, nothing like that!  I'm a girl
I've always been a girl.  Back when you met me, I was a girl."

	"Uh-huh.  I see."  Her eyes grew cold again.  "And why didn't you 
tell me *that* important piece of information?"

	"Because I was sworn to secrecy."

	"What?"

	I took a deep breath.  "A long time ago, when I was six, a boy
and his father showed up in my hometown.  They were martial artists,
traveling from town to town in search of training.  My dad, heir to the 
Kuonji-ryuu, offered to train them in the art of okonomiyaki cooking in ex-
change for shelter and food.  The man showed a little proficiency, but the 
boy was excellent.  His name was Saotome Ranma."

	At Megumi's grunt of recognition, I continued.  "The training went 
like this: every day, Genma and Ranma would attack us, attempting to swipe
the food we prepared.  Every day, my father and I would fight them, at the 
same time teaching them our Forms."  I smiled.  "Ranma was like lightning.  
At six years old, he had already absorbed most of the Saotome-ryuu, and 
could repeat any martial arts kata shown to him.  I couldn't touch him.  He 
would run and leap, and I'd swing my little spatula where I thought his body
would be, but before I could blink, he'd reappear in another place and snatch
the heated 'yaki off the griddle.  He was unstoppable."

	Megumi nodded and I settled down in my chair.  Propping up my
head in by hands, I asked, "Can you imagine how it felt, time after time,
being beaten by a boy who was the same age as me?  It was humilating.
I kept asking my dad what was wrong with me, why I couldn't beat him.  My dad
said that our schools were too different, that the Saotome-ryuu had several
tricks up its sleeve that was too incompatible with the Kuonji-ryuu.  But he
knew what my real fear was because he always insisted that I would be the 
only heir to our school, because *that* was what I was afraid of.  I was 
afraid that my dad would want to have Ranma as his son instead of me as his 
daughter."

	Megumi sat down slowly and I continued.  "I told you once before how 
I was an only child.  Because I was a girl, my grandfather almost didn't 
want to have my father teach me the Art.  My father begged and pleaded, and 
when I was old enough, I made a formal vow to my grandfather to always 
uphold the Kuonji-ryuu, that I would never let the school slip through my 
grasp."

	I got up and walked over to another picture on the wall, a family
portrait, taken next to our ancestors' shrine.  I laughed bitterly.  "My dad
was an idealist.  He wanted the ryuu to be perfect.  He thought that if he 
could get Genma to train me in their Art, we would be able to incorporate 
some of it into our Art.  So, he offered Saotome Genma a deal.  He would 
give me to Ranma in marriage and as a dowry, he would throw in the yatai, 
the symbol of our school."

	"But didn't Saotome-san and Tendou-san promise that their schools
would unite?"

	I laughed again.  "Yes, they did.  It didn't stop Genma from accept-
ing the deal.  I was very happy when I learned that I would living with Ranma.
He would teach me, I would teach him and we would be happy together.  Every-
thing was set."  I snorted.  "When the big day finally came for me to travel
with the Saotomes, I woke up very early.  Dawn was just barely creeping up
over the distant mountains.  I put all of my clothing in a satchel and I 
crept out to the roadside, where Genma said that they'd wait for me.  As 
early as I got there, Genma was far ahead of me, pulling the yatai with 
Ranma perched on top cheerfully waving goodbye.  Genma stole the ryuu."

	Megumi gave a gasp.  "He took your school?"

	I nodded.  "Yes.  By taking the yatai, they had also taken our
school.  I'm not sure exactly how it ties in, but once the yatai was gone,
the school was gone, too.  You have no idea how horrible it was.  I was 
teased, made fun of.  'Oh, there goes Ukyou, nobody wants her, not even her 
fiance,' they would say."  I shuddered.  "It may seem like nothing to you, 
but when you're in a town that small, even the slightest bit of bad news can
spread like wildfire.  It was worse for my dad.  When my grandpa found out 
about it, he was furious."

	I sat down, shakily.  "I can still remember how embarrassing it was 
for my parents, having to explain to my grandparents why they lost the yatai.
I remember clearly every word my grandfather said as he disowned me."  My 
voice hitched.  "I remember my parents creating my new gender, in the hopes
that it would appease my grandfather.  I remember my father presenting me 
to him, the hope shining on his face, saying I was no longer his daughter 
but his son.  And I remember what my grandfather said in reply:

	" 'From here on, this child will no longer be a girl, but will
be a boy.  He will carry on the tradition of the Kuonjis and in that
tradition, he is obligated to avenge the family's honor.  Until he
does so, he will remain a boy until he dies.' "

	The tears were running down my face.  "And so it goes.  I swore on 
the bones of my ancestors that I would avenge my honor, not knowing the price
I would have to pay."  I got up again and started pacing around the room.  "I
couldn't tell you.  I just couldn't because I was honor bound to silence."

	Megumi was silent.  "I see.  I can understand about honor and how
one needs to uphold it."  She became very thoughtful and reached out her hand
to touch my arm, but drew it back almost immediately.  "No wonder you never
talked about your dad much.  You must have hated him."

	"Oh no, I didn't hate my dad, not then." I protested.  "I loved him 
very much, I owed him very much.  He didn't have to train me, but he did.  
For that, I can never repay him.  But because of his foolish dreams, he made
it impossible for me to live in my hometown.  I had to move to my aunt's 
house, where you lived, and make new friends, *male* friends, and give up all
chance of being a woman ever again, especially when *these* showed up.  
*That* is when I started to hate him."

	I pounded the table in frustration.  "You know what it's like going
through puberty.  The mood swings, the soreness, everything.  I didn't have
my mom to go to because she was so far away.  And my aunt didn't approve of
the whole 'must-retain-honor' bit, so she was no help.  I had nowhere
to turn; I was a woman, trapped in a male's body."

	"And so, we became friends."

	I sighed with relief.  "Yes, you became my best friend.  Through
you, I could understand how to deal with the things I was going through.
You helped me deal with a lot of the problems I was facing.  Remember
the time when I failed that math test?  I wanted to cry like a baby, and I 
wanted to punch that guy who was cheating off of me, but you helped me get 
through the anger and the pain and helped me get over it.  Don't you see?  
Because of you, I was finally happy."

	"I see."  Megumi tapped her fingers on the table, a sure sign she
was contemplating everything I said.  She glanced over to the range again,
her eyes lingering on the picture of me and Ranchan for a full minute.  When
she spoke, her voice was as sharp as a knife.  "So you used me, tapping into
my emotions and my pain because it suited you for your own purposes?  That
is real sick, Ukyou.  And not once after you left did you ever let me know
that you were okay.  And even when I got here and faced you, even then you 
couldn't tell me the truth.  Why?"

	I was taken aback.  I sputtered, "I don't know!  When I saw you,
I guess I panicked.  You were the last person I ever expected to see.  When
I left to go find Ranma, I didn't think anyone would want to see me again.
They hated me at school, except for that Tsubasa freak, and no one wanted
me back at home.  I didn't think you'd show up!"

	"Really?"  Megumi took a hold of my right arm and pulled up my sleeve
to the elbow.  She pointed to a small scar, its tiny lines forming a faint
Y-shape.  "Remember when you got that scar?  You were caught in an unfair
fight and you were able to fight them off with my help.  Remember the promise
we made after that?  I certainly do.  I promised to you, Kuonji Ukyou, that
whenever you needed me, I would be there for you.  And you promised the same."
She yanked down the sleeve and from her pocket she took out a well-worn piece
of paper.  "Read this letter.  I received it a long time ago.  I got it
about the same time you sent me yours.  It's from your dad."

	I stiffened with shock.  The letter read:

		Hino Megumi--

			It is with great trepidation that I write
		to you.  I understand you are familiar with 
		Kuonji Ukyou.  I have not heard from Ukyou in
		over four years.  I have written a letter to
		Ukyou explaining about the birth of my new son.
		I am worried about the lack of response.  I need
		to know if you have been in contact with Ukyou.

		Kuonji Hiro

	"My dad told you to come here?"  I was rigid with anger.  How dare
he use her like that!

	Megumi had a sad smile on her face.  "You don't get it, do you?
He didn't send me.  I came because I care for you.  I came because I thought
you might need me.  But right now, it's clear that you don't either need
me or care for me.  I'm sorry to be all this trouble for you."

	I didn't know what to say.  I sat down on the floor and put my head
in my hands.  I sat there in silence, trying to sort out my thoughts.  I 
heard Megumi cross the floor.  For the briefest, craziest second, I hoped 
that she would stop, put her arms around me and comfort me.  As her footsteps
approached, my heart leapt and I lifted my head.  But then, I heard the tin-
kle of the door chimes and watched incredulously as she walked right past
me, opened the door, took one last look at me and closed it again.

	I sat there, dumbstruck.  What just happened?  How could she think
that I was using her?  I was never dishonest to ever when we knew each
other, not once.  Okay, I laughed ruefully, I *was* dishonest to her, but 
it didn't change the fact that everything I told her, everything I felt
was the honest truth.  I thought back to that day when those bullies were
chasing Megumi.  I didn't know why I intervened; I guess I just thought
it wasn't fair that they beat up on her like that.  When we walked back
to her house together, I could tell she was a little dazzled.  I mean,
it's not everyday you meet someone who uses cooking utensils for fighting
purposes.  We did talk about everything together, her troubles, my troubles.
And if I did prod her a bit to tell me more about what it was like going 
through puberty, well so what?  It's not that big of a deal.

	I dusted off my pants and automatically, I went over to the grill.
I poured the batter and as I started adding the ingredients, I thought about
what she said.  She came out all this way, just because she cared about me.
I gave a snort.  Well that just proves her loyalty.  It's one of the things
I could never get over back then.  No matter how much we were teased for
being together, she never once stopped hanging out with me.  In fact, the 
more she was goaded, the more she stayed with me.  I was angry at the time,
but at the same time I was afraid also.  Tsubasa was already starting
to scare me with his talk of loving me and always wanting to be with me.
I didn't need that kind of hassle.  I needed someone to be with, who didn't
fawn over me, or pick on me or toss me away.  I needed someone I could
talk to about my problems, and hope that I would be understood.  I needed
Megumi.

	My fingers stilled on the pan.  How could I be so stupid?  I let her
go.  I didn't move to stop her.  I didn't call out her name.  I just sat 
there, and watched her leave.  Perhaps the best thing to ever come out of my 
crazy childhood just walked out of my restaurant door and out of my life.  
Stupid, stupid, stupid me!  Stumbling, I lurched to the door and flung it 
open.  She was gone.  I closed the door, turned off the grill and flipped
over the sign.  What did I do?

	I took off, certain that she was going back to the Tendou-ke.
When I reached the front gate, I noticed that all the lights were on, the
light spilling over into the courtyard like a beacon.  I knocked on the
front door and started when Ranma answered the door.

	"Have... you.. seen Megumi?" I panted.

	"Just missed her.  She threw all of her things into her suitcase,
thanked us for our hospitality and took off for the train station.  Akane
went with her to see her off."

	"Thanks."  I was about to run off when Ranma snagged my elbow.  "Hey,
what's going on?"

	I gave a rueful grin.  "I think I just screwed up.  I'm gonna go and
fix it."

	He scratched his head.  I smiled at him.  "I'll tell you later, okay
Ranchan?"

	He nodded and I turned once again to the street.  I ran as fast as I
could, the sun setting behind me.  Its orange rays lit the way to the train
station.  Everything was a blur to me, street signs flashing past as I kept
chanting to myself, "I have to make it in time, I have to make it in time."

	As I veered around the corner and ran towards the platform, the train
was pulling away and Akane was looking thoughtfully after it.  "Akane!" I
shouted.  "Where's...?"

	"Megumi?  You just missed her.  She went--"

	"Damnit!"  I kicked the trash can next to me and it tipped over,
spilling its contents to the floor.  "I know, I know.  She went home.  
She went home because I was too stupid to let her know what I was really 
feeling.  How could she leave like that without saying goodbye?  She knows 
that I need her."  I turned to Akane.  "I need her to be an anchor for me.
I need her to keep me normal.  I need to explain everything the right way.
I need her!"

	"Actually," a voice behind me said, "you *need* to pick up that trash
first.  Everything else can come later."

	I whirled around to see Megumi standing in the doorway of the train
station office, holding a ticket.  She had a bemused smile on her face.
"You heard all that?" I asked.

	She nodded.  I sagged, sliding down to sit on one of the benches.
She sat next to me.  "Ukyou, when you left after that park incident, I didn't
know what to think.  I thought I would never see you again, and I knew that
wasn't right.  I fell in love with you right then."

	I bristled and she laughed.  "You'll think it's silly now, but 
I had such romantic hopes for what would happen when I finally found you.
We would have a romantic walk in the park, combat spatulat not included, and
we'd go have a romantic dinner at a fine restaurant... all that hearts
and flowers stuff that you never liked."  She looked down at her hands.
"I guess it was a little unrealistic, but I was hoping that when I came here
to find you, I would save you from whatever trouble you were in and you'd
fall just as madly in love with me.  I know that can't happen now.  I guess
I'm a little sad, and I guess I'm still a little angry.  I accept your apol-
ogy, Ukyou, but I'm still going home."

	"My apology?  I didn't apologize," I grinned.

	"No, you didn't, but you'd be a heel not to do it before I leave,"
she grinned in return.  "You've given me a lot to think about, and I can't
think clearly right now.  Right now, I'm hurting because I just lost
my best friend.  I need to go home."

	I nodded sadly.  I couldn't expect her to absorb my new gender over-
night.  "You're really leaving, Megumi?"

	She nodded.  "I have to.  I have to say goodbye to Ukkun.  But
maybe," and here she smiled, "I might find a new friend in Ukyou?"

	I smiled.  "It's a deal."

	We shook hands and she boarded the next train.  The sun had set com-
pletely, and Akane and I waved as she receeded from sight.  As we turned to
go back to town, Akane stopped and asked, "Do you think she's coming back,
Ukyou?"

	"Maybe," I answered.  "Maybe."


THE END................?



EPILOGUE


FROM THE DIARY OF HINO MEGUMI


August --, 19--:

	I boarded the train, leaving behind a part of my life.  I didn't
want to leave, but I had to.  It was what my heart told me to do.

	When I got home, I cried for two days.  My mom told me that it was
all for the best, that I was too young to be so involved with another person.
When I told her about Ukyou, really about Ukyou, she was just as surprised
and shocked as I was.  We sat there for half an hour, no sound in the room
but my sniffling and her silence.  Then she said, "Do you think you're ever
going to see... her again?"

	I shook my head.  "I don't know."  And I honestly didn't.  How do
you get over the fact that your friend--someone you trusted--sorta used you
and lied to you?  I kept remembering what Ukyou said, about needing me to 
keep her normal.  And gradually, I stopped remembering those feelings of 
love I felt for... him.  

	I eventually did go back later.  I had to see for myself how things 
really were between Ranma and Akane, and especially between Ukyou and Ranma.
I knew what those lip prints meant on that picture; I had a couple on my 
picture of Ukkun (of course I wiped those off in a hurry).  When Ukyou met 
me at the train station, she greeted me with a tentative hug, which I return-
ed, equally as tentatively.  I got to stay with her at the Ucchan and she 
even let me help out at the restaurant.  The first time Ranma and Akane came
over, they were a little tense, but the warmth with which they greeted me was
real.  I really did like them, and they liked me, too.  After a couple of 
really tense moments, we warmed up to each other and every thing was like it
used to be... almost.  That first time, Akane suggested that we all go out to
the movies and Ukyou got a silly grin on her face, gushing about being out 
on a date with Ranma.  Of course Akane got mad, Ranma got flustered and I got...
jealous.  We all ended up going to the movies together, with a Chinese 
girl showing up near the end of the evening to beat the crap out of Ranma 
and a man dressed in a kendo outfit hugging Akane to him (probably Kunou 
Tatewaki).  That night, I found out about Ranma's curse and for the slightest
moment I was tempted to pour hot water on Ukyou, to see if she'd change back...
but I knew that it wouldn't happen.

	I ended up going back a few more times over the summer, gradually
building up my trust in Ukyou again.  I could see the reasons why she liked
Ranma so much and I could understand her reasoning for chasing after him.
I just didn't like it, that's all.  It seemed a little underhanded, want-
ing to have Ranma because of a claim made by her parents a long time ago.
Then again, that's also why Akane's engaged to Ranma, but I had a feeling
that *that* arrangement had more potential.  I don't know if Ukyou sees how
Ranma looks at Akane when he thinks no one else is looking.  It's a look
of surprise and wonder, tinged with a sad fondness.  And she returns that
look, when his back is turned.

	I asked her once about that, if she felt that she honestly had
a chance with Ranma.  This was after Tendou-san and Saotome-san had devised
a scheme for their children to go out on a date by themselves that ended
up in a gigantic epic battle with *all* the martial artists in Nerima
involved and Ukyou getting her arm severly bruised by a well placed hit
from Shampoo, the Chinese Amazon.  As I was applying some salve and wrapping
Ukyou's arm in a bandage, she turned away from me and the question.  She
lowered her head and whispered in a soft voice, "He's all I have left."

	Her voice broke my heart.  I hugged her to me, feeling her wince
and told her that I'd always be there for her.  And that's when l truly
forgave her for her deception.  It's like I said to Akane.  I could never
hate Ukyou.

	The rest of the summer passed like that.  I would go to Nerima, or
Ukyou would come back with me.  We would talk about everything, even
more than before.  We got into a couple fights, especially when all of 
Ukyou's old classmates found out she wasn't really a guy.  Turns out that
a lot of the guys hated Ukyou because their girlfriends were infatuated
with Ukyou's male persona.  So we trounced them like usual, Ukyou taking 
point and me covering her rear.  She also taught me how to make okonomiyaki,
Kuonji-ryuu style.  Let me tell you, you haven't been cooking unless you've
cooked five different 'yakis at the same time, all while blindfolded.

	I was happy again, happier than before.  Every time I saw her I got
a warm happy feeling, like it was my birthday or New Year's.  Every time we
fought together, her back against mine, I felt invincible.  Yet, a part of 
me mourned the loss of Ukkun.  I would always remember him as my first love,
even if he wasn't real.  

	It was with these mixed thoughts that I boarded the train for the
last time.  I waved goodbye, the tears falling down my face.  Quickly, the
scenery flew by, a sight I didn't feel like seeing.  Instead I took out a 
picture, one of me and Ukyou, the real Ukyou, taken after we celebrated her 
birthday.  She had her arm wrapped around me and my head was leaning on her 
shoulder.  I sighed and tried to sleep.

	The train stopped at the station just after sunset.  I looked around
at the advertisments on the bulletin board.  Sadly, I wandered out,
my feet automatically taking me through the streets I knew by heart.  I
passed by a park, remembering the two Ukyous I found there: one, a man
driven by vengeance, another a girl, hoping for love.  I passed by a temple,
remembering the first time I saw him.  I passed by a school, where I'd
be going in about a couple of weeks.  I passed by shops, brilliannt with
lights, beckoning to their customers, enticing them.  And I reached a
restaurant door.

	"Irrashimase!" the call came out, a pretty girl bouncing towards
me, pad in hand.

	"Hey, Tsubasa.  You know Ukyou'd kill you if she knew you were
doing this?"

	"I know," he grinned.  "That's why I do it."  He led me to my usual
booth in the back and left to get my drink order.

	Ukyou was in the groove tonight.  She tossed a 'yaki in the air
and spun around, flipping it over and adding the sauteed pork.  Dancing
her way over to the counter, she picked up some more spices and tossed
them over her head, under one leg and dashed the spices onto the 'yaki.
Picking up two of her smaller spatulas, she tossed the rapidly cooking 
'yaki onto a plate and cut the 'yaki into six slices, her hands a blur
of motion.  She danced her way over to the counter and with a flourish, set
down the finished masterpiece in front of Ranma.  The restaurant burst out
into applause.

	I laughed and she looked over my way.  "Meg-chan!"  She hopped over
the counter and bounded towards my table.  "What can I get you tonight?"

	"Just my usual, Ukyou."  I grinned as she went back to the grill,
an Ukyou special dancing on her spatulas.  She turned to me and asked, "So,
what did your mom say to our proposal?"

	I smiled.  "She likes it.  She said that I can move in with you
right away.  Quite frankly, it makes a lot of sense.  I mean, I can go to
school with you at Furinkan, work here and go home on weekends.  It's
perfect."

	She laughed and finished up the okonomiyaki quickly, hand delivering
it to me with a soda.  She put her hand on my arm and squeezed it.  "I'm
glad you're here, Megumi."

	I squeezed back, feeling a familiar tingling sensation in my chest.
"I'm glad I'm here, too, Ukyou."

	I smiled as she went back to work, teasing Ranma and laughing
as Akane fumed.  I cradled my head in my palm and eating my dinner, I 
watched her.  For a moment, my vision blurred and I saw the old Ukkun I 
knew.  But then I realized, with a growing confidence, that Ukkun and 
Ukyou have been and always will be, the same person.  I just watched her,
dancing behind the grill, her hair shining in the light, her face wreathed 
with a happy smile as she looked towards me and beamed.

	I smiled back, my heart filling with love.  My Ukyou--I will love
you forever.







AUTHOR'S NOTES:

1-20-98:

Much love goes with this epilogue.  I would like to thank all of
my prereaders and all of my friends.  And especially, I would like to thank
my fiance and my true love, Damon Collier.  Without him, I would never
have been able to finish this piece.  It is with my love for him that I in-
fused Megumi.  I hope that this story has pleased you.