Epiphany Chapter 9

By Tripolar Disorder.

A new day, and a new curse, and old fears.

Previous Chapters of this story and all my Fanfics can be found
at my site:
http://sio.midco.net/tripolar/fanfic.htm

Bear with as all the links will be functional soon, if not
already.

Now, on with the continuing saga.....

*****************************************************************

Akane was sitting on the examining table in Doctor Tofu's office.

Ranma-chan was sitting across from her. She was currently
watching Akane's tail as it rhythmically curled up and down.

Tofu came back in with a folder in his hands. "Well Akane, I
have to say that you are in fine shape, despite your new look.
However I did notice a couple items that I think you should be
aware of."

As he said this Ranma-chan began to pale. Akane noticed this and
her ears easily picked up the redhead's nervous gulp.

Tofu noticed this as well. "I would not worry Ranma, these are
minor things that Akane will have to adjust to in her cursed
form, much like the adjustments you have to make when you are a
girl."

Ranma-chan looked back at Tofu, completely lost as to what he was
referring to.

Akane began to giggle. "You girl form is a bit more top-heavy,
isn't it Ranma?"

Ranma-chan still had the quizzical dog-head tilt.

Tofu had to start laughing. "Ranma, is your balance the same
when you are a girl?"

Understanding hit the redhead. "Oh you mean my breasts." She
put her finger on one. "Yeah, I gotta balance different."

Akane had to smile as she shook her head. "You are so silly
sometimes Ranma. It is so cute."

Ranma-chan began blushing. Meanwhile, Akane turned back to the
doctor. "What adjustments, Tofu?" She asked.

"First of all, you seem to be a bit stronger in your legs then in
human form. That would explain how you jumped out of the pond.

Your arms are also just a touch weaker. In fact I would say they
are matching your legs. You seem to be more even in muscle
distribution.

You may also find yourself more agile in this form Akane.
It is difficult to tell at this point, but you may notice it
after a few days."

"Okay Doc, Can we go? I'm hungry." Said Ranma-chan.

Tofu nodded and showed them out.

*****************************************************************

Ranma-chan was walking a few feet in front of Akane. She seemed
to be trying to keep distance between them.

"Ranma, is there something wrong?" Asked Akane. Her ears
twiching to hear Ranma's breathing.

"Uhm, no Akane. I'm fine."

"What's wrong then? You have been jumpy this morning. What is
your prob...."

Ranma-chan stopped. Still facing away from Akane, she spoke.
"Yes Akane, I am scared of you." My fear of cats is taking over
and you are what is causing it. I am having...."

Akane could see Ranma-chan's knees buckling under her. <This is
hurting her.>

"Ranma, can you force the change? So I am normal? And less
painfully then your number on Ryoga?"

Ranma put out her hands behind her. "Hurry Akane, I have to be
in contact with you."

Akane wrapped her arms around Ranma-chan, and the redhead
shuddered, and then closed her eyes. Akane felt her hearing
become muted, and felt like she had cotton in her ears.

As this happened, Akane noticed Ranma starting to collapse.
Akane swept Ranma-chan's feet out from under her, and cradled her
in her arms. Then she began sprinting the last block home.

*****************************************************************

Kasumi and Nodoka were sipping tea at the table when Akane
brought Ranma-chan inside the patio shoji doors.

"Oneechan, Auntie, come quick! Something is happening to Ranma!"

Sure enough, Ranma-chan was shaking and curling up into a ball.

Kasumi was the first to respond. "Akane, he is having an attack
like I told you about. You need to ...."

Akane interrupted. "I am the reason he is having an attack, I
have to get away from him!"

Nodoka took Ranma-chan out of Akane's arms. She held her
daughter while Kasumi got a blanket and wrapped it around her.

Akane was curled up in the corner. Her knees nearly hiding her
face.

"What happened Akane?" Asked Nodoka.

"His fear of cats, he said he needed a hug, but my ears were
causing the problem. He can't even be near me."

Akane was starting to cry. Kasumi and Nodoka could hear the pain
in her sobbing.

Ranma-chan soon started to return to reality. She looked around
and saw what was going on. "Akane, please don't be mad at me."

Akane stiffened. "Mad at you? No, I am not mad at you." She
slid up the wall until she was standing up. "I am mad at
someone else, for all the things he did to you. But I am not
going to let him win Ranma."

"What do you mean Akane?" Asked Ranma-chan.

"What I mean is, that I am going to get you over your fear of
cats."

Another nervous gulp. "I was afraid you were going to say that."

*****************************************************************

Nodoka, Tofu, Kasumi and Ranma-chan were in the Dojo. Nodoka and
Tofu stood against the wall, and Kasumi was holding Ranma-chan
from behind as they stood in the middle of the floor.

Ranma-chan was taking deep breaths. She also had her eyes closed
as she was doing her best to remain calm.

"Ok, Ranma. When Akane comes in you have to look at her. If you
want to be rid of your fear, you must face it." Tofu relayed.

Ranma-chan nodded. "I d-d-don't wanna be afraid of Akane. I-I
wanna be normal."

Kasumi giggled. "Ranma, you are never going to be normal. No
one expects you to be normal, just be yourself, and be happy for
once."

Just then the Shoji door opened and Akane-neko stepped in. She
was wearing a bathing suit, which now sported a hole for her
tail.

She set the Thermos bottle that she was carrying down and turned
to look straight at Ranma-chan.

The redhead was shaking and tears were coming out her eyes. "I
w-w-will not be s-scared." Akane could barely see the look in
Ranma's eyes, but glimpses told her that Ranma-chan was trying
her best not to freak out."

Akane thought about how fearless Ranma always seemed, and his
courage to face any opponent. How this same person looked so
terrified, and over something such as lovable house cats.

She then noticed Ranma began struggling out of Kasumi's grip.
"I-I-I c-c-can't do this. I c-could hurt you."

*****************************************************************

Inside Ranma's mind, Ranko stood in a braced stance, trying to
hold herself against the torrents of pain and fear that were
trying to take over.

As she stood there, covering her face from the winds, she could
not understand why he had not gotten this bad in the furo that
morning.

<She was on top of him, and her ears nearly in his face, what was
going on?>

*****************************************************************

Akane stood there, Ranma-chan had stopped moving. Her head
hanging low as Kasumi held her in her grip. Ranma-chan suddenly
looked up into Akane's eyes. "I.... love.... you.... Akane.
I.... want... to.... show.... you."

Ranma-chan gritted her teeth. She stiffened and Tofu felt an
energy escaping the girl. <She is using every ounce of internal
strength to fight it. If her aura becomes more powerful, it
could burn Kasumi.>

Ranma-chan's breathing was heavy, but through gritted teeth she
spoke. "Akane, please come closer."

Akane hesitantly took a step forward.

*****************************************************************

Ranko was barely holding her own against the winds when she felt
something else, another force from out in front of Ranma.

<Ye Gods, That's it. It was Akane. He could feel her thoughts
and it was calming him down.>

As Ranko reached out to touch Akane's presence. <Shit, and she
isn't helping him this time.>

*****************************************************************

Ranma-chan stopped shivering for a moment. "Akane, I-I can
f-feel how n-nervous you are. I c-can actually f-feel it."

Akane was shocked, she stopped, balancing on her heel, ready to
retreat quickly.

Akane stopped. "So I am making him worse? Because I am not
calm?"

Tofu nodded. "You need to calm yourself Akane. You need to put
away your fear of his problem, you are only adding to whatever is
happening in his mind."

*****************************************************************

Ranko could hear it, and the storm was getting worse. <The
doctor is right, maybe this link can help.>

She felt Akane getting closer, and Akane's thoughts became
clearer.

As the howling winds and the echoing pain got worse, Ranko could
no longer hold on. <I need some help here, wait.... that's it.>

*****************************************************************

Akane could see Ranma-chan eyes. They were full of tears. But
suddenly she watched them glaze over.

Ranma-chan stopped shaking, and Tofu felt the aura die down.
Everyone gasped as they thought the cat had taken over.

Ranma-chan's head slumped forward for a moment then came back up.

Tofu felt a new presence, however. One unlike his patient. "Who
are you, and why have you possessed Ranma?"

She turned toward the questioner. "I am Ranko, formerly Ranma's
curse magic. You must promise that no matter what, that Akane
and Ranma do not separate."

Before Tofu could question Ranko, she had turned to Akane. "I am
sorry Akane, but I need your help in a way you will not
understand until I show you."

With that, she lunged at Akane, breaking Kasumi's grip and
knocking both girls to the ground.

Tofu ran over to the pile. He noticed that Ranma-chan had a
locking grip around Akane's chest and that both girls were out
cold.

He stood up and turned to Nodoka. "Ranko has bridged the gap
between them. Ranko needed Akane's help inside Ranma's mind."

Kasumi gave the "Oh my!" Nodoka asked. "Is there anything we
can do about it?"

Tofu nodded. "Ranko said not to separate them, and I will stay
here to make sure that it does not happen. It could be fatal to
either of them."

*****************************************************************

Akane looked around. She was standing in a cold, dark desert of
gray sand that seemed endless. A foul wind blew around her and
made her shiver. She felt her ears fold backward and her tail
wrapped around her. It made her feel a little warmer.

She sensed someone behind her and turned. It was a female Ranma.

"Ranma, where are we?"

The girl sighed. "I am not Ranma, I am Ranma's curse. Call me
Ranko."

As Akane understood what had happened in the Dojo, she asked.
"So this is Ranma's mind?"

Ranko nodded. "This is it. The total expanse of darkness caused
by a life of utter pain and loneliness."

Akane shivered. Ranko saw this and shivered with her. "Consider
yourself lucky Akane. You mind is a bit warmer and I would
personally love to be there right now, but I need your help."

Akane puzzled. "What do you need my help with?"

Ranko took her hand. "I have something to show you."

Akane found herself being lead across the vast windy planes.
Ranko sighed as she walked. "A few minutes ago, I could not even
stand up because the wind of pain was so strong. That is when I
figured out that you can help and I took over Ranma to get
you."

Akane had tears in her eyes. "I never realized that Ranma was
this way. That he was tortured in his own mind. I would never
have hurt him. I never realized how alone he felt."

Ranko turned and put her arms around Akane. "I know hon, his
life has been much worse then even you knew, until now. But with
your help, maybe we can change it."

Akane collected herself, and Ranko continued onward. "Where are
we headed Ranko?"

Ranko giggled. "We are looking for Ranma's sensitive side. It
is very small and I don't remember exactly where he left it
last."

"Can you tell me what it looks like, so I can help you look?"
Asked Akane.

"It looks like a chibi-Ranma-chan. About the same size as a
toddler type too."

Suddenly Ranko tripped and Akane found herself tumbling to the
ground after Ranko.

Ranko swore. "Kuso, there it is." She spun around on her knees
and brushed off a stone statue of a chibi-Ranma-chan. In the
center of it, a dim glow seemed to resonate from where a heart
should have been.

Akane helped Ranko pull it out of the dune of sand it was buried
under. They set it upright. Akane swore she noticed the stone
eyes followed her, as she walked around it.

"It is really weird, isn't it Ranko?"

Ranko swore again. "Please refrain from insulting it. That's
partially why it looks this way in the first place."

"You have to understand Akane, This entire place is merely a
physical representation of Ranma's mind. Everything you see is
metaphorical for part of himself."

"Ranma was forced to suppress his feelings. So you could say he
incased them in stone. He was never able to express himself
because of it. But you and his mother have helped to break the
stone."

"Then why does it look like this again?" Asked Akane, still
circling the statue.

"Because you both are helping to rebuild it again."

"I'm confused."

"You should be. You're sending Ranma mixed messages, and they
are confusing him as much as I am to you now."

Ranko smiled as she watched the expression on Akane's face. 
"Allow me to explain."

"Genma and his training trip. I barely have to explain this.
First off, he convinced young Ranma that his mother hated him,
that she sent him away because he wasn't fit in her eyes."

"Then Genma's taunting and goading, though making him a stoaic
fighter, forced him to bottle up his emotions. Crying wasn't
allowed, even when the bastard stole away his food and made him
go to sleep hungry."

"But it all builds up, and down here it collected together into
this little boy who is always suffering and scared and may never
really grow up. Blocking these emotions created a skin of stone,
see?"

"Alright."

"Then I enter this picture." Gestured Ranko to herself. "I
should explain the events of that day....."

*****************************************************************

[Moments after Ranma was cursed, deep within his mind.]

Ranko, completely nude, wandered around in a foggy pitch-black
darkness. She had this strange grin.

"Why are you here?" Spoke a clear voice behind her, causing her
to spin to face a little boy. The blackish cloud seemed to have
parted to allow them to look at each other eye to eye.

"You're alot older outside, did you fall into the man spring
first?"

Again, the boy repeated his question. "Why are you here?"

"Pushy sort, aren't you. Well, I am part of your brand-new
curse. How do I look?"

"Why are you here?" asked the boy again, this time his voice
betraying a hint of frustration or anger.

"Well, if you must know, my job is to 'Guide' your actions just a
touch, in order to make you change more often, and especially
when it's least convienent."

"Why?" The boy's tone was calm.

"Because it's my job. Oh, and now that we've met, do you mind
terribly if I redecorate? This place is depressing. I think
splashes of pink will fit right in with your new female body."

"I can't let you do that?"

"Really? Why not?"

"Because I am trying to make momma love me again. I have to be a
man."

"Well, then I have news for you, tiny tot. You're curse gives me
a bit of control over that, and if that is your goal in life,
then I'm going to make your life a living hell."

*****************************************************************

"Then what happened Ranko?"

They were sitting on the ground in front of the statue. Ranko
was having difficulty continuing, while Akane tried to confort
her.

"Ranma proved me wrong." She replied as she looked into Akane's
face, tears streaming from her eyes. "He said that if I thought
I could make his life hell, I had to see something. He told me
that I had no idea what hell was."

"Then what?" Questioned Akane.

"He opened the floodgates."

"What?"

"He linked himself to me, and all of his pain and suffering now
had a new outlet and I was unprepared for the deludge that he
inflicted upon me."

Ranko wiped tear her cheek, and Akane put her arms around her.
Ranko calmed down after a moment, then continued.

"I cannot tell you what that experience was like Akane. I
thought my head was being ripped apart. I saw in the span of
mere moments, his entire life. I felt the claws, the whips, the
burns, everything. I tried to get everything off me, but I found
that it was useless. I was in more pain then I could possibly
imagine."

"I tried to find a single happy memory to hide within, but I
could not find anything. I saw his dream, his only really happy
memory. He endured all of this pain because he wanted it to end
and he could be home and warm and loved. I saw for a moment, his
happy place, but it shattered as his fear took over and I knew I
had destroyed it."

"Then I found myself being pulled into this statue. He had
broken out and in anger had linked to me to hurt me the only way
he knew how. What he didn't know was that when he linked
together, He accepted his curse and I became a part of him."

"Now I was charged with his emotion and being pulled back into
the shielding, to protect him. No matter how hard I fought, it
was futile."

"Is that why it's a 'She' now?" asked Akane.

Ranko nodded. "A side effect. Being both his curse and the
keeper of his locked away emotions affected how he acted."

"Everytime he changed into a girl, accident or otherwise, the
stone weakened and bits of sensitivity leaked out. I know you
noticed it. He didn't, but her personality was a bit more
rounded."

Akaned nodded. "I noticed. So, how did you get out?"

"Ahhh, I was wondering when you would ask."

"Well, all this time I was still holding all his pain. I was
forced to watch events unfold in his life, hoping someone or
something would happen to free me from his suffering prison. But
now I was a part of him and no longer wanting to hurt him. I was
truely caring for him, which I shouldn't have."

He started having attacks because of his emotions were more
exposed and he couldn't hide or defend them. His curse was
making things worse. More emotions made people abuse him more,
which made him draw back in."

"I'm sorry Ranko."

"...Then Nodoka showed up. She scraped together that dream I had
destroyed, threw a female version of Ranma into it and make it a
near reality. It went nuts down here."

"What happened?" Asked Akane. She made a sweeping gesture
across the barren dunes. "Why does it still look like this
then?"

Ranko giggled again. "Still? It was NEVER this bright until
Nodoka came along. When she said she loved him, this place went
nuclear."

"This statue shattered with a force so violent that I think I
ceased to exist for a few seconds as my body recollected itself.
I was free, and my own entity again, but I had changed."

"Years of pain washed over him and you remember how long it took
for him to calm down. Everything he had endured, all for that
moment, and he couldn't hold it back anymore."

His dream had come true, and for about ten minutes after he
calmed down, this place seemed bright and nearly beautiful.

I watched as the walls of fog he had spent a lifetime building to
protect himself were vaporized into the dunes of dust you see
around us. His entire concept of life changed, in a single
instant. He had someone who still loved him, who wasn't going to
hurt him. No more running, no hunger and all the pain he went
through to get his mother back, was over."

At the mention of it, Akane hung her head. "I know, I could have
been there for him."

"Yes you could have, Akane, but you didn't. He never let you
know how much he hurt and how much you could have helped. He
really didn't know himself. His mother saw pain through his
eyes, and she let him let it out."

"Then why is it a stone statue again?" Asked Akane. "You said
it exploded and..."

Ranko interrupted her. "His mother has no idea what her actions,
have done to him. You actions too for that matter."

"What do you mean by that?" Akane asked, her hand now on her
hips.

Ranko sighed. "His mother missed 'Ranko Tendo', we heard her say
it. She likes Ranma as a girl. She wasn't as pleased with
Ranma-Kun as he thought she would be, at least by the expression
on her face the first time she witnessed the change.

And your treatment of Ranma until yesterday was still horrible at
best. Thanks to all the mixed emotions, Ranma is struggling to
find who he is, and so he started protecting himself again. He
only wants to make you both happy, but its hurting him. He
doesn't know who he is anymore."

As she said this, Akane wiped her eyes, and seemed to steel her
resolve. She got on her knees and embraced the statue. Ranko
watched as she gently wrapped her arms around it's chest.

"I'm sorry Ranma. I'm sorry for everything. I.. I don't know
what to say to make everything better but I wish I did. I'm
sorry I took out my own insecurity on you."

"You're not the only one with a crisis. Do you know what
happened the first time I saw you? I fell in love with you. I
saw you and I fell in love with you. Then dad discovered your
assets and I freaked."

"All the boys at school that wanted me but I couldn't feel a
thing for them, then you show up. Red hair, perfect little face,
and suddenly this new fiancee is a girl." 

"Finding that out hit me like a brick. I'm not supposed to swing
that way. So I tried to be friends, hoping that you would do
something that I could use to justify hating you, but you didn't
do anything until I saw you in the bath."

"Ranma, I love you. Forget everything I've ever said to you that
hurt, because I was lying to myself. I was too angry to care
about you and your feelings as a person. I'm sorry.

As she watched, the statue began cracking and shattered. A
myriad of whispering spirits and phantoms emerged. They were all
brightly colored, and they swirled and collected back together
and formed into a young redheaded girl.

She looked about seven or eight years old. She ran forward and
hugged Akane. Akane hugged her back. The little girl suddenly
broke out into tears, bawling and wailing intensly. Akane was
joined as Ranko put her arms around them both.

Akane whispered into the girl's hair. "Let it all out Ranma.
Give up the pain. I'll hold you as long as you need."

*****************************************************************

(End Part One of Two)