Epiphany chapter 14

Previous Chapters of this story and all my other works can be
located at my site:
http://www.geocities.com/tripolareq/fanfic.htm

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As Ranma-chan stared at the rock where Shampoo had been only a
moment ago, she was stunned at what she had just seen.

As she continued to look at the rock, she felt a pair of arms
around her waist. She turned to see Shampoo's smiling face on
her left shoulder.

"C'mon inside Ranma. If you think about it too hard, you'll have
a brain freeze. Lets go get some sleep.

Shampoo could see the glimmer in the other girl's eyes.

"Wow, that was so cool. You are gunna hafta show me that."

Shampoo snickered. She picked up Ranma-chan and set the girl on
her feet. "Not tonight Ranma, I'm too tired now."

Ranma-chan seemed visibly upset and pouting, but only for a
second before giggling.

Shampoo asked. "What's so funny Ranma?"

Ranma smiled. She turned around and gave Shampoo a hug. "I hope
that we can finally be friends. Just like you wanted. No more
Amazon glomping."

Shampoo was giggling too. "And I thought you liked those."

Ranko interrupted from the doorway. "Don't let her fool you,
cause she did enjoy it, but not from the fact your breasts were
squished against him."

Shampoo started to laugh. "True, Ranma has what some men only
dream of and she's never taken advantage of it. She needed
something more emotional."

Ranko nodded. "Ranma's too innocent and pure to be like that."

Ranma-chan turned toward Ranko. "What're you two talkin' about?"

Ranko and Shampoo sweat dropped. Shampoo added. "Or maybe it's
she really doesn't have a clue what were talking about."

"Yeah- HEY!!" Ranma-chan tried to defend herself.

Ranko ruffled her sister's hair. "Don't worry about it. We'll
explain it to you someday."

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<The next morning>

Tatewaki Kuno stood atop the clock tower at Furikan. His gaze
was to the road in front of the school.

He felt deep within him that everything had changed. His Enemy,
his only worthy opponent... his friend, was gone.

Gone forever, and there was nothing he could do about it.

So he stood watch every morning. He began speaking aloud,
knowing only the wind could hear him.

"As the sun again rises, I find myself alone on the battlefield
once again. I should be joyous as I have prevailed, but yet I
weep."

"Indeed, my eyes could not have missed what my heart had
prevented me from seeing that which was the truth. A truth which
shows me for the fool that I am, yet mine is not the true
hardship."

"My heart will heal, I can only hope, that wherever you are, you
are finally able to heal as well. My only comfort is knowing you
are surrounded by those who care for you, and that the pain I
myself have brought upon you, is gone."

"I vow that I shall right my wrongs against you, and no longer
allow your name to be shamed as I have done so in the past."

As he continued to look forward his eyes glimpsed two walking
figures. He strained to see them and his eye widened upon
recognition.

Anguish in his voice was evident. "No, please. Only suffering
lies here if you return. Please, I beg of you to leave this
place." 

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

Ranko and Akane were walking through the gates of Furikan High.
Ranma had taken to the rooftops earlier, saying something about
taking care of some business beforehand.

Several boys had seen the two walk up, and now they were starting
in on the insults. 

"Hey look guys, it's Ranma-chan!!"

"He finally decided to become a girl."

"Akane's probably been teaching him to be a perfect little
princess."

"He thinks they will let a pervert into the girl's locker room!" 

"I knew it! He'd rather be someone's wife"

Ranko started to cross the courtyard and pummel the loud boys
when Kuno dropped down in front of her, bokken at the ready. The
sound of cracking pavement under his bare feet as he landed.

Kuno stayed in a crouched position. A bright aura lit the Kendo
master as he seethed through gritted teeth. "Foul Knaves. How
dare you cause further trauma to the fair Ranko. I shall bring
upon you the worst pain you have ever imagined."

The boys were reeling back. Never had they seen Tatewaki in such
a state. His angry face easily readable. Several of the boys
swore they were seeing heat radiate from the bokken.

Kuno placed his free hand upon the wooden blade above the hilt.
"Allow me to show you the true extent of your transgression."

With this the onlookers heard a hard metallic click and Kuno
unsheathed a forged steel sword from its hiding place within the
bokken's blade.

"KREATANS, MEET THYNE END!!!" Kuno shouted as he sprang forward,
holding the sharp instrument over his head ready for a downward
strike.

Suddenly, Tatewaki was stopped mid-charge by a pair of hands on
his shoulders. He turned to see a very evil grin upon a very
male Ranma. "Calm down Kuno. That isn't needed, not now at
least. Maybe some other time." Kuno slumped forward in shock.

Ranma turned toward the boys. He held out one hand in front of
him, toward the boys. Bits of blue light seemed to fly out of
the air and collect in front of his palm. "Now, who became a
pervert again? I didn't quite catch that." He asked, as his
eyes began to glow an unnatural color. He pointed his hand at a
tree and the ball of energy left his palm and struck it.

There was a flash and the tree was severed by the blast created.

Their faces paled, as their gaze flashed between the Saotome
twins. They were gone within moments.

Kuno gained his senses and stood up to face Ranma, sheathing his
sword within its confines once again. He had a strangely
surprised look upon his face. "It is good ... to see you again,
Saotome. Thank you for retraining my change. I do not know what
came over me."

Ranko and Akane turned to look at each other. Ranko was the
first to speak. "Did he thank Ranma for stopping him?"

Akane nodded. "Crazy, isn't it."

Kuno bowed toward Ranko and Akane. "I finally have the honor to
address you properly, Ranko Saotome. I hope that we can be
friends instead of enemies. Your brother as well as yourself has
repeatedly impressed me with your skill in the Martial Arts.
Your father must have been proud."

Ranko giggled. "As much time as I spent around here, I guess it
was about time to start school."

Ranma looked down at Kuno's leg. "I hate to sound like a party
crasher, but your leg looks broken."

Kuno nodded. "That it is, but I wasn't concerned about the
pain." 

Ranma shouldered the Kendoist and began to walk him inside to the
nurse's station. "You two go on, I'll catch up. "

After laying Kuno on the cot the nurse pointed them to, Ranma bid
farewell and dashed off to make it to class.

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

As he lay upon the cot, Kuno commented to himself. "Indeed.
Welcome 'Ranko'."

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

Akane, and Ranko both sat down in class. Ranko sat in Ranma's
seat while Ranma himself was hanging outside the window, barely
visible.

When the teacher walked in, he stopped to observe Ranko.
"Saotome, you are dressed differently today. Is there a reason?"

Ranko looked at him with her best puppy-dog eyes. "I thought
this is the uniform all girls wear? Am I not correct?"

The teacher stopped in mid-thought. "Well, I suppose it is. But
why are you dressed like a girl today as opposed to other days?"

Ranko had a confused look. Not for being truly confused, but a
completely fake confused face. It should have been easy to spot.

"I don't know what you are talking about. I have never been here
before." She continued flatly. "I just transferred here."

At this point, Ranma stepped in through the open window. "Sorry
for bein' late teach. I had to help a few students remember
sumthin'." He cracked his knuckles loudly, to accent his point.

The entire class was reduced to gibberish. Several sets of
gaping jaws nearly impacted the floor, as everyone in the room
tried to figure out what was going on.

Ranma walked over to his desk, and Ranko stood up and vacated it.
Ranma then turned toward the young man sitting in the row across
from him. "I think that my sister should be near her big
brother, don't you agree?"

The boy seemed confused. Ranma grinned.

He placed his fingertips upon the boy's book, and the entire
class watched as long blue claws materialized from his knuckles.
They extended nearly a foot over the side of the desk. What most
didn't notice were the cat-like ears that protruded from the top
of his head. They were too busy watching electrical current
discharge from one claw to another like a Jacob's ladder.

"Let me put it another way. Move."

Understanding was reached immediately, and the boy found a seat
in the back, far away from Ranma. Ranma's claws disappeared and
he ran a hand through his hair, having felt something disturb it
a moment before, but did not know what.

Ranko thanked the young man for his seat and sat down. She was
in front of Akane and next to Ranma. Perfect in her opinion.

Ukyo was stupefied as to what she had just seen, and so mumbled
incoherently for nearly an hour she wasn't the only one.

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

Lunchtime came and Ranko, Akane and Ranma were walking out to
their favorite tree. Suddenly Ranko and Ranma stopped and looked
toward the east. Ranko said. "That's Shampoo, I'll bet." Ranma
nodded. "Yup, and here she comes."

They were rewarded with said purple cat hopping over the wall and
bounding over toward them.

Ranko bent over and picked up Neko-Shampoo and cuddled the furry
form in her arms. Ranma laughed once and reached over to give
the cat a rub. Ranko handed him Shampoo and he laid her against
his chest while they sat down at Ranma's favorite tree.

Shampoo eyes were closed. Her body was limp and she was in
heaven. Ranma wasn't scared anymore, and he was even petting
her. She mewed softly to signal how happy she was.

Ranma spoke. "She must have been lonely, so she came here
knowing it was lunch break. We'll take her with us the rest of
the day. I don't think that anyone will have a problem with it.
If they do, they'll have a problem with me instead."

Ranma lifted Neko-Shampoo onto his shoulder and she just lay
there, hanging limp over either side of him.

Then they all started eating. Ranma took a tiny bit of fish from
his bento and held it up to Shampoo, who sniffed it and ate it
from his hand. 

This was when Ukyo showed up.

She was about to confront Ranma when he turned to her and smiled.
She stopped in her tracks. She quickly checked her heart rate.
She could plainly see a very docile Neko-Shampoo on his shoulder,
whom he was feeding.

"Uhm, did I miss something Ranchan? I see you must have split
somehow, but aren't you afraid of the cat?"

Ranma looked at her. "Oh hiya Ukyo. Haven't seen you in awhile,
and it's better than a split."

"Ranma, what about the CAT?" Ukyo nearly shouted as she pointed
to the furry feline on his shoulder.

"Cat? What cat? Oh, you mean this cat?" He took Shampoo off
his shoulder and stroked her once. Shampoo simply curled up in
his lap and began staring at Ukyo.

Ranma started talking in a strange voice. It sounded like a
German Kermit the Frog with a sore throat. "Don't worry about
Mister Biggles. We managed to find the local chapter to the hair
club for cats of evil geniuses." Ranma then placed his pinky
finger horizontally against the right side of his mouth.

Ranko was snickering. "Don't mind him Ukyo. He doesn't have
that little voice in his head anymore. The one that tells him
when not to put his foot in his mouth."

Akane tried to stop spraying rice out of her mouth while
giggling. "You should have spent less time sleeping on the job
then, Ranko. He eats those size nines of his at least once an
hour."

Ranma didn't seem phased at all by the wisecracks. "Ukyo, meet
Ranko. She was my curse."

Ukyo squealed. "So you ARE cured Ranchan? Congrats!!"

"Uhm, not exactly."

Ukyo was stunned. "What do you mean? You said she was your
curse. But you aren't cured?"

Ranma smiled. "I said she was my curse, the source of the magic
that made me into a girl. She is my sister now, but I still
become a girl."

Ranko tapped his shoulder and handed him a small cup of cold
water. Ranma thanked her and overturned it on his head. He then
shifted forms. Ranko nodded and winked at Akane.

Ranko and Ranma both giggled at Ukyo's reaction. Her eyes were
wide. Her lips tried to form words.

"D-D-Do you WANT to be a girl forever Ranchan?"

Onna-Ranma stroked Neko-Shampoo a few more times before
continuing. Her smile suddenly gone. "Actually Ukyo." Ranma
paused for a few seconds. "That's not a bad idea. I'd rather be
a girl the rest of my life if it meant people would actually care
about me and not treat me like some kind of toy to win a carnival
fairway."

"Shampoo told me something that makes sense. She could get what
she really wanted, love, if she accepted her curse and gave up
everything. She'd be a cat, but at least she'd be loved."

"Momma loves me as a girl and the Tendos care about me like
family now. I'm not asking for much. Becoming a girl gives me
exactly what I have always wanted. I just didn't see it until
lately. I-I-I..."

Akane and Ukyo were both stunned. Ranko grabbed Ranma-chan and
pulled her into her lap. Shampoo was licking Ranma-chan's open
palm while Ranko put her arms around her sister's waist. "Don't
cry neesan. No one is going to hurt you again. I promise."

Akane was pulled out of her shock. She couldn't see either
redhead's face, but she added her arms to the huddle. "Ranko is
right. We're here for you."

Ukyo was staring at Ranma-chan's face. The calm, yet unnerving
stare directed at her. Two eyes, which now had tears rolling
down her face, seemed to bore holes through her. She looked
toward Ranko, and though she could only see one eye behind
Onna-Ranma's hair, it held the exact same gaze.

Ranko finally spoke. "I'd leave now if I were you Ukyo. The
Ranma you remember, the one you think you love, is gone. We care
about Ranma and give her the kind of love she needs. She doesn't
need you and your abuse. I'm not locked in her head anymore and
I will never let her be hurt again."

The Spatula-wearing chef broke out in tears and ran off, jumping
the wall and disappearing from view.

"Wow Ranma, that was the best performance you ever done." Said
Ranko, as she ruffled her twin's hair.

Akane was ready to grind her teeth. "You mean all that was a
lie?"

Ranma sighed. "No Akane. It wasn't a lie. What Shampoo said
hit home. She in a way was willing to accept her curse, long
before I accepted mine."

Ranko gave her sister another squeeze. "I'm sorry. Are you ok?"

Ranma shifted back into his male form. "Yeah, she just pissed me
off, that's all."

"Being able to control this curse gives lets me decide. Before
then, I had to fight to be a boy. It never gave me any time to
enjoy being a girl."

"Now I know how much I'd miss if I had found a cure. Taking hot
bathes in the furo as a girl feels really good. But I would like
to go to the beach without being ogled by boys." 

Ranko and Akane giggled. Ranko got out between chuckles. "Aww,
poor baby." She giggled and squeezed his shoulder with her hand.

Then Ranma picked up Shampoo and held her to his nose. "I wonder
if Shampoo misses swimming like I do."

Shampoo's paws each planted themselves on one of his cheeks. She
licked the tip of his nose once, followed by a soft mew.

Ranma smiled. "That's so cute. I'll take that as a yes,
Shampoo." He laid her back in his lap and continued petting her.

Akane had her eyes closed and her head was pointed down slightly.
"Should I be jealous, Ranma?"

Her position had not gone unnoticed by Ranko. "Akane, please
don't hit him." She pleaded with her friend.

Ranma was looking at her with surprise. A sense of renewed fear
and pain welled up deep within him.

Akane opened her eyes. She saw the looks she was getting from
both Saotome twins. Ranma had a single tear falling down his
cheek, while Ranko had balled up her fists.

She grinned. "You pet her more then me. It's not fair. I'm
totally jealous."

Ranko's eyes rolled back and her body fell backward onto the
grass.

Ranma's face changed instantly into an amused smirk. "I think I
can make it up to you. But not here at school, your curse might
cause some trouble."

Ranko laughed from her position. "I think I'm going to die.
Ranma is not only using his head but is starting to think before
using his mouth."

Akane slapped Ranko lightly. "C'mon, he isn't that bad." She
turned toward Ranma who was smiling as he looked back at her.

Akane turned to Ranko. "He's worse. You're right Ranko. My
cooking is bad, but he is definitely worse."

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

That evening after dinner, Akane and Kasumi sat down to watch
television. Nabiki and Nodoka were going over the house
finances. Ranko had decided to take a bath and Ranma disappeared
to his room.

When Ranma-chan came walking into the room and became the
recipient of several cat-calls.

"Oh yeah, looking good cutie."

"Shake that butt."

Several giggles followed. Ranma-chan just stood there staring.

"What's so funny?"

Akane hopped up off the floor and grabbed Ranma-chan around her
waist and gave her a hug. "Sorry Ranma, but you looked nice in
your training outfit there. We couldn't help ourselves."

Ranma looked down at herself. She had a black spandex cat suit
with a blue leotard over it. A diagonal red stripe crossed her
left breast and ended on her right hip. She was barefoot and she
lifted her foot and watched her toes wiggle.

"You really think so? It's comfortable but it feels weird."

Akane nodded. "The tight fit I'll bet. You'll get used to it
and in a few minutes you won't notice it at all. Best of all
your breasts are stationary and won't affect your balance."

Ranma-chan blushed. "Well, I was wondering what all of you were
doing, and if I could join you." Ranma-chan was being very
polite and pronouncing each word, like Nodoka had been insisting.

In return she found herself sitting in front of Kasumi who
stretched her legs out on either side of Ranma-chan. A few
minutes later said neo-girl was sleeping and Kasumi was cuddling
her like a big stuffed animal.

That was when Cologne entered. She hopped in on her staff and
surveyed the room. Her gaze stopped on Ranma-chan and her eyes
closed.

"Is Ranma asleep?"

Kasumi nodded. "I can wake her."

Cologne shook her head. "This will be better if she remains
asleep. Where is my great granddaughter?"

Shampoo stepped in from the doorway on the other side of the
room. "I am here Matriarch." Shampoo's hands were in tight
fists, so tight that her knuckles were white.

Cologne's eyes never opened. "Would you rather be Ranma's sister
and friend, then his wife?"

Shampoo nodded. "I know I can never go back. So you may banish
me from the tribe. I don't care. I never intend to marry her."

Cologne stood there. She was silent for several uneasy seconds
until finally her eyes opened. She turned toward Ranma, who was
still soundly sleeping. "When you spoke to her last night out
over the pond, were you telling the truth? Can you swear that
every word you spoke was honest?"

Shampoo nodded.

Cologne hung her head slightly. "Kasumi, when did Ranma start
having his attacks?"

Kasumi stared at her blankly. "I don't remember the date, but I
can give you point of reference."

Cologne interrupted. "The Cat's Tongue."

Kasumi nodded.

Shampoo was glaring daggers. "You finally figured it out. 

Cologne's face paled. She removed a small box and a large
envelope from her robes. "These are for you." She turned back
toward Ranma and Kasumi. "I hope that she will forgive me, if
she ever finds out. And no, I would still like to see you
together."

With that Cologne hopped on her staff and disappeared over the
wall.

Everyone turned toward Shampoo. "What was that about?"

Shampoo hung her head. "She is responsible for some of Ranma's
mental problems, and could be punished if word ever got to the
village."

The room was full of confused faces, all except Kasumi and
Shampoo. Ranma's face was unreadable, but she seemed to be
smiling from a good dream.

Akane decided to ask. "What do you mean? Ranma was never
affected by her."

Shampoo sighed. "That is something you need to work on, Akane.
Ranma isn't the impervious emotional wall you think he is.
Things you and others say have much more of an effect than he
lets on."

"When Ranma was forced to stay in girl form thanks to the Cat's
tongue, her curse drove her off the edge."

"The stress of being stuck as a girl, her classmates constant
ridicule, the sheer hostility she got from people in this house,
PLUS her own father nearly disowning her during the ordeal,
finally broke her wall of strength."

Kasumi added in her viewpoint. "When I found Ranma that first
time, she was lying on the floor in the bathroom. She was naked,
and curled into a ball. I noticed that the skin on her lower
arms was nearly rubbed raw. She was also bleeding."

"BLEEDING!?!" Exclaimed both Nodoka and Akane.

Kasumi nodded. She pulled back the sleeve on Ranma-chan's right
arm, and pointed to a faint scar across her wrist. It was nearly
invisible unless you looked for it. Nodoka was on her knees
holding her daughter's hand, while Akane turned away with tears
streaming down her cheeks.

Kasumi continued. "She had decided to end it. She had only made
a small cut in the skin, and must have changed her mind, but she
realized she wouldn't be able to explain it to anyone."

"She was lost and almost zombie-like. The shock had stopped her
from crying, but it took nearly six hours before she came back
around. I had Doctor Tofu over to check on her wound and make
sure she was going to come around. He then went to look over the
bathroom."

"There were puddles of water on the floor, a trail from the hot
furo to where she had been lying. He thought she had tried to
tough out the pain to be able to change and couldn't do it.
That's when she wanted to die."

"She swore me to tell no one and I haven't until now. She comes
to me whenever she can't take the stress anymore. She has also
gone to sessions with Tofu in secret. He didn't want the news to
cause any more stress. At home or from people like Ryoga and
Kuno."

Shampoo interjected at this point. "For three days, I watched
Ranma as she worked at the Nekohanten. She lacked the
determination and she just seemed to go through the motions. I
know that Cologne is still faster than Ranma in the Chestnut
fist, and she let her win only when she didn't show an increase
in speed when trying to get the pill."

"It's obvious that Ranma wants to be a girl. The proof lies
right in front of you. If Ranma were ever brought to the
village, her state of mind would come under scrutiny. Cologne
would most likely lose her position as matriarch for subjecting a
girl to mental torture in this way."

Shampoo sat down in front of Ranma-chan, still sleeping soundly
against Kasumi. "I wish she had just run home. The stubborn
fool."

At this point Ranma-chan spoke up, stunning everyone. "I didn't
know where home was." She never opened her eyes afterward, and
simply continued lying there, slowly breathing. As if she was
still asleep.

"Ranma. Are you awake?" Asked Nodoka.

Ranma-chan slowly nodded. "I was, but some people talk too much,
and I can't sleep through it."

Kasumi mockingly growled. "Oooh, you little..." She began
tickling Ranma's exposed sides. Ranma-chan squirmed around and
giggled, as she couldn't protect herself.

They both stopped as they noticed everyone watching them.
"What's wrong?" They both asked in unison.

Nodoka took her daughter's hand. "I don't want you to hide
anything from me anymore. You have suffered enough for several
people. Just tell me what you need and I'll do it for you."

Ranma-chan stretched her neck upward and her gaze was on the
items Cologne left on the table. "Well, I am a little curious as
to what the old ghoul left."

Nodoka put her arms around Ranma-chan. Shampoo smiled. "So
Innocent and forgiving."

Attention turned toward the folder on the table. Nabiki opened
the folder and took several documents out. She glanced through
the first, and set it down. "Shampoo, I hope you know how to
cook."

Shampoo sat down next to her. "What are you talking about?"

Nabiki handed her the paper. "This says you are the new owner of
the lot, building, and all property contained within the
Nekohanten. Here, take a look."

Shampoo grabbed it, and began reading it.

Shampoo squealed. "I am going to need to hire waitresses."

At this point Ranko walked into the room. "Count me in, I need
the money."

Ranma-chan giggled. "Me too, I am just as broke as she is."

Nabiki, Kasumi, and Akane looked at each other and nodded.
"We'll all help." Kasumi said.

"But we'll try to keep Akane out of the kitchen." Added Nabiki.

Everyone but Akane laughed at that.

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

<Author's Notes>
Finally, another chapter. Yes, I covered a lot, but it isn't as
much as I started with.

I know this chapter needs more, but I want to keep the story
moving and I have a direction so I'll rewrite later.