4cw6@qlink.queensu.ca (Erin Mills & Chris Willmore) =========================================================================== Ranma 1/2 Special! =========================================================================== UKYOU: WARPED REFLECTIONS --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yet another offering from the Anything-Goes School of Indiscriminate Fanfic Writing Brought to you by Erin Mills and Christopher Willmore based on characters and situations created by Rumiko Takahashi --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Suggested Retail Price: 1,000,000 Ucchan Florins --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dedicated to Zen and Sean Gaffney With apologies to Rumiko Takahashi and Ukyou Kuonji --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ukyou trudged up the walkway to the Tendo home. Finally. She had finally made it back. Two months of wandering around Japan with that...that JACKASS Ryouga. What made the whole trip even more ridiculous was the fact that they had only gone out to buy more food for the party Ranma was throwing for everyone. she asked herself. She had yet to answer that question. The other question on her mind was She hoped to get the answer here. She knocked on the door. It was answered by Kasumi, who was looking even happier than usual. This in itself was a bad sign. "Oh, hello Ukyou." Kasumi said. "How are you today?" "I'm fine," Ukyou replied. "Is Ran-chan home?" Kasumi raised a hand to her mouth. "Oh, my. You mean no one told you?" Ukyou frowned. "Told me what? Has something happened to Ran-chan?" She began to panic. Kasumi held up her hands in a placating gesture. "It's all right, Ranma's fine. It's just...Ranma doesn't live here anymore." Ukyou looked up at Kasumi with wide eyes. "Nani?" Kasumi smiled uneasily. "You see, while you were gone, he and Akane were married." Ukyou sat down on the cobblestone walkway in shock. Kasumi went on. "They left two weeks ago on their honeymoon and were planning on getting an apartment for a short time, before coming back here. They wanted to see if they could make it on their own. I'm sorry, Ukyou." "Liar." Kasumi looked down at the chef. Ukyou's face was a mask of barely- controlled rage. She stood up and stared angrily at Kasumi. "I don't believe you." she said. "He's hiding somewhere, and you're helping him." "Now, Ukyou, I don't think you should-" Kasumi started. "GET OUT OF MY WAY!!!" Ukyou grabbed Kasumi's arm and shoved her across the hall. Kasumi hit the wall and cried out, more out of surprise than pain. Ukyou stormed past her and up the stairs, intent on finding Ranma. Her search didn't take long. She ripped through the upstairs rooms in record time. It wasn't until she reached Akane's room that she spotted the photo. The wedding photo. Ranma and Akane's wedding photo. She stared at it, not believing what she was seeing. She stared, not allowing the tears to fall. "I tried to tell you." came a voice. Ukyou turned to see Kasumi standing in the doorway, no anger in her eyes. Only compassion.. "Why?" she asked. "Why didn't he tell me?" "He didn't want what happened at the first wedding to happen again. He also thought that you would need time to get used to the idea." Kasumi entered the room and put a hand on Ukyou's shoulder. "He just doesn't think sometimes. If you need anything--" Ukyou gave Kasumi a look. "If I need anything, what? Come to you? The sister of the woman who stole my fiancee? Right. Just leave me alone!" Kasumi looked at the teenager, then nodded sadly and left the room. Ukyou stared at the picture for a few moments, the tears still refusing to make their presence known. She stood up, clutched the photo to her chest and left the room, intending to leave. She hadn't gone far when she passed Happosai's room. The door was open and a flash of something reflected in the sunlight caught her eye. Ukyou turned, intrigued. She walked into the room. As she did so, she became aware of a faint scrabbling noise. Like something moving under one of the many piles of feminine undergarments in the room. she thought. She sat the photo down and began looking for the source of the flash. She shoved a few piles of panties aside, feeling mildly disgusted while doing so and soon uncovered what she had been looking for. It was a large, ornately framed mirror. The mirror had a crack in the centre, but it was otherwise undamaged. She picked up the silver-edged reflector and stared into it. She despised what she saw. A puffy-eyed, mousy-haired nobody who no one loved. That no one would ever want. She had been dumped by her fiance again. Again! "I wish that there was some other way..." she whispered. Then, finally, the tears began to flow, running down her cheeks and onto her skirt. A few managed to drip off her chin and onto the surface of the mirror. Which began to glow with an eerie blue light. Ukyou stopped crying and stared at the artefact in shock. The light grew brighter, until she could see nothing but blue. She heard the scrabbling noise again, and thought she heard a voice scream "NO!" but by then, it was too late. There was a flash, and the mirror clattered to the floor. --- // --- "Moukou Takabisha!" A distant shout, a flash of light, and an explosion sent sharp rock shrapnel hurtling towards the two of them. Ukyou ducked out of a self-preservation reflex, but Akane, ever the slow one, launched herself in just the wrong direction. An incoming boulder connected with her skull mid-leap, crushing it and sending her crumpled body flying into a nearby pool. *... tragic story ... girl drown there .... take body of ... I love you, Akane ... * These words echoed through Ukyou's mind as she stared ahead in shock, looking at the odd caern that falling boulders had formed upon the submerged corpse. There was no visible sign left of her late friend and rival; only a makeshift mountain poking out of a muddy pool. Kuonji knelt at the edge of the spring, cupped her hands in the water and splashed it hastily onto her face. She barely felt the change. * * * * * The wedding was quick. It was felt by all involved that it was best to get it over with as soon as possible, as if the happiness of true love finally fulfilled could somehow counter the tragic nature of the losses they had sustained at Jusenkyo. Both bride and groom were tearful when they sealed their covenant western-style with a long, impassioned kiss, and the mix of love and sorrow didn't end that night. The cried into each other's arms and braced themselves together, trying to gain from union something that would ease the bitterness that came of thinking of those with whom they could never again be together. When they were done, Ranma took a picture from the night-table and held it above his reclining self. It was a group shot, taken on the floating island of Togenkyo. "I love you, Akane," he said after some time. "I know," murmured Ukyou. "If only Shampoo, and Ukyou and the others hadn't-" His new wife hushed him, putting a finger on his lips and pressing him once again against her. "You're not the tomboy you used to be," commented Ranma. "Death changes people." * * * * * Akane stepped into the hot bath, allowing herself to dissolve into Ukyou. The girl uttered a quick prayer blessing her cursed form and asking its forgiveness for not being able to remain in it for all time; the same blast in which it had been birthed had seen the destruction of Herb and his bucket. She took a mirror from the side of the bath and looked into its foggy surface. A pair of large brown eyes looked back, glinting with joy yet covered with a film of sorrow. Her marriage was a mixture of the two emotions - from a death had come her own rebirth, and from the massacre by the Musk, a new life. A breeze coming in through an open air vent cooled the water slightly, allowing the steam to clear. When it thinned, a second face was visible on the mirror's polished surface. Ranma's mouth was set in a tight line and his eyebrows were forced into a relaxed position. His eyes were covered with a layers of tears, through which Ukyou thought she could read... Disappointment? Grief? Betrayal? Perhaps that was just what she thought she deserved to have him feel. The girl watched wordlessly as the man in the mirror rose from the bath, grabbed a towel and prepared to leave the room. Before opening the door, he turned towards her. "Shishi Houkodan!" ---//--- Ukyou's eyes flashed open, letting the early morning sunlight in. She sat up and wiped the sweat from her brow. she thought. She shuddered and looked over at the clock. 7:45. Time to make some breakfast. Ukyou stepped out of bed, wrapped a robe around herself and went to the small kitchenette of the apartment above her shop. She put the kettle on to boil and stretched. Yes, life had been difficult when Ranma and Akane were finally married. Ukyou hadn't taken it well at all. She had retreated to her apartment and cried for a week. She'd refused to see anyone for any reason, even Ranma. Then, by chance, she had gone out for some food afterwards and met the person that now shared her bed nightly. She found that they had some similar interests and were both feeling the same pain of neglect as a fiancee had left them. Ukyou blushed slightly as she remembered how she had invited her 'significant other' up for some tea and how, out of the blue, her guest had told her she was beautiful and began kissing her. It was so different than what she had ever imagined. Their night together was the first night that Ukyou had ever felt truly loved, truly wanted, truly together with someone. The sex wasn't half bad either. The kettle began to whistle. Ukyou poured the hot water into the teapot and began to stir the leaves. She heard a clicking noise as the door to the apartment was unlocked. From behind her, she heard her lover enter the living room. Then she felt strong arms wrap around her waist, squeezing slightly and a pair of soft lips brush against her cheek. "You're awfully affectionate today." Ukyou observed as she turned to face the newcomer. "It because you so beautiful." Shampoo replied, leaning forward and kissing the chef, her hands finding their way into Ukyou's robe. Ukyou moaned as the amazon's hands glided over her breasts and gently teased the nipples, causing them to harden. Shampoo stroked her lover's chest, knowing all the right spots to evoke a reaction. Her tongue danced with Ukyou's, sending more thrills of pleasure through both of their spines. After a few moments, Shampoo broke the kiss and looked at Ukyou with a mischievous look. "How about Shampoo show you special recipe for Japanese Okonomiyaki with Hot Chinese Cat On Top?" she asked. Ukyou responded with a wry grin. "Y'know, I've always wondered why you go jogging every morning when we both get enough exercise right here." The two young women laughed. "Show me." Ukyou said. "First, we prepare equipment." Shampoo began, leading Ukyou into the bathroom. "Chinese-style okonomiyaki require mixing in large kettle filled with hot water." She knelt down and ran hot water into the tub, letting it fill. She stood back up and faced Ukyou. "Next, we unwrap ingredients." The amazon reached down and undid the knot in the belt of the robe, allowing it to fall open. Shampoo slipped behind the chef and slowly removed the robe, planting kisses on Ukyou's shoulders and neck as they were revealed, while her hands caressed her lover's breasts and stomach. "Then," Shampoo continued, dropping the robe to the floor. "We place ingredients into water." Ukyou stepped into the large tub and eased herself down. Shampoo began to remove her own clothing. When she was finished, she slid into the tub behind Ukyou, placed her hands on the others shoulders, and began massaging them. "Now, we knead batter." Shampoo whispered, and her breathing grew heavier. Ukyou's own breath was coming in short, husky gasps. She could feel the desire throughout her entire body as Shampoo's skilled hands roamed, squeezing her breasts, massaging her thighs, rubbing her buttocks. Always coming close to the centre of her need, but never quite touching. Ukyou was fighting to keep from turning around and taking the advantage. But, it was an unspoken rule that when one of them had started a game, the other had to hold out until the instigator was ready to allow the passion to flow freely and unreservedly. The young chef allowed herself a small smile as she remembered the high points of *her* last game. Shampoo had been begging for the "Happy Chopstick Thing," but Ukyou had held off until she was good and ready. It felt like Shampoo was out for revenge. Especially when she felt a hand lightly touching her mound. "Ohhhh, Sham-chan." she whispered, the contact causing the fire between her legs to intensify. Behind her, Shampoo grinned, then stepped out of the tub. Ukyou looked at her, confused. Shampoo held out a hand. "Next, we take batter to griddle." she said, conversationally. Ukyou took the warrioress' hand and allowed herself to be led to the bedroom. Shampoo motioned for Ukyou to lay down on the futon, on her stomach. Ukyou complied, wondering what was to come next. Shampoo got down on her knees, and began running her fingers along Ukyou's spine. The sensations sent white hot bolts to Ukyou's brain and sex, causing her juices flow even more freely. "Now, we spread batter out on griddle using spatula." said the Amazon. Ukyou looked to see Shampoo brandishing her combat spatula. Shampoo looked at Ukyou inquisitively. Ukyou nodded, wanting the contact. Shampoo raised the blade of the spatula and brought it down upon Ukyou's buttocks with a loud smack. "OH, GOD!" Ukyou cried out, pleasure and pain vying for the #1 impulse spot. Shampoo raised the blade again, and brought it down. Ukyou moaned as her sex began to work overtime, soaking the mattress of the futon. Shampoo brought the blade down once more, causing tears to come to the young chef's eyes out of pain and need. "Next," Shampoo said between gasps. "We add egg to nearly finished dish." Ukyou, her eyes squeezed shut in rapture, heard Shampoo crack an egg and felt the slimy coldness as the yolk and the white were applied to the small of her back. Shampoo began to massage Ukyou, rubbing the bits of egg into her skin. She ran her fingers up the spine and worked the egg into the shoulders and along the upper arms. Then, she worked her way down the spine and began to caress the buttocks and thighs. Ukyou had her face buried in the pillow and was, in fact, biting it to keep from losing her mind completely. Shampoo ceased her ministrations, and placed her hands on Ukyou's hips, turning her over so she was now lying face up on the futon. "Now, we add Hot Chinese Cat topping." she said, laying on top of her lover and kissing her gently. Ukyou's eyes rolled back into her head as Shampoo kissed her way down her body. Along her neck, over her breasts, down her stomach and onto her abdomen. Suddenly, Shampoo stopped. Ukyou, now aching with desire for Shampoo to finish what she'd started, propped herself up on her elbows and looked at the amazon. "Now what?" Ukyou gasped. Shampoo smiled innocently. "Why, we eat, of course!" she exclaimed, and dove in. Ukyou's world exploded in light and pleasure. The last thing she saw, before the sensations overwhelmed her, was her smiling face in the mirror that hung from the ceiling over the bed... ---//--- Ukyou moaned. Pictures were flashing through her mind; pictures that had no right to be there, and though her unconscious self tried to brush them away, it was only the strength of will brought about by wakefulness that was able to at last dispel them. Last night's take-out ramen must have been worse than she thought for her to be dreaming about herself and... Shampoo?!? She shook her head to clear off any of the remaining mental cobwebs. Why would she want to... to... with THAT hussy, when she had _Ranma_ all to herself? She looked across the hotel's double bed, to where her beloved sat with his back propped against the headboard. A smile crept quite involuntarily across her face. Akane had left him forever, Shampoo was back in China, and Kodachi was in an asylum, so Ran-chan was all for her now, right? She looked to him for confirmation, but her twinkling eyes were met only with silence and her beloved's head hung low. "Oh, Ran-chan, we _can_ be happy together, can't we?" Ukyou scooted closer to him, taking his hands in hers and holding them tightly. "You can't deny that there's something between us. I'm the only one for you now, don't you see? I'm the only one who still wants you, the only one who still _needs_ you!" Still silence. "Oh, Ran-chan..." Ukyou cried, clutching Ranma's hands to her breast and covering them with tears, but still the warrior was cold as stone, and just as unresponsive. A mischievous grin formed itself upon Ukyou's countenance, and she raised one of her eyebrows. "I know something that'll warm you right up." Without waiting for a response, she squeezed herself in between her fiance's back and the headboard, and began to smooth his hair and cover his neck with kisses, but still he did nothing, accepting her attentions with all the emotion of a Chesterfield. After barely a minute of this she grew more audacious, draping her arms over his shoulders and beginning to work the buttons of his shirt. Once they were all undone she removed the (oh-so-familiar!) piece of red cloth and massaged Ranma's biceps and pectorals, relishing their resilience under her touch. Ukyou's breath came in short bursts as she anticipated what was to come. Namely, her. Ukyou whispered her fiance's name into his ear and moved her fingers down to his waist, undoing the knot of his trousers' sash. She slipped her fingers in between the garment and his skin. A soft sigh escaped her lips as she palmed his firm buttocks, and as she caressed his stiffness only one image damped her spirits. From the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of the gaping hole in the middle of Ranma's chest reflected in the closet mirror. "It's too bad that the accident had to kill you, too," she said, before proceeding with her divertissement. ---//--- Ukyou forced herself once more to look upon the eyes that lay upon the bed. That's all there were, all that were left - the eyes. All else was bandaged, warped or missing. Nothing remained of the Ranma she had known - he'd left, and she had been the cause of his departure. She closed her eyes and tried to remember, as if her memories could somehow coalesce into a soul that could infuse the vegetable lying on the stretcher and bring her fiancee back to her, back to- Wait. No. Not her fiance, any longer. He _had_ been married, if only for a few seconds. The memories of that last day, of that last second started rushing back. Ukyou tried to stop them from materialising, but they burst the floodgates of her mind and poured over her consciousness, sending her back almost bodily to that fatal moment. She saw herself as from above - she tried to reach and stop the foolish girl she saw from reaching into her bag, but her arms weren't long enough, and no matter how loudly she yelled, her voice would not be heard. The Ukyou-of-then stormed into the dojo along with Kodachi and Shampoo. Ranma was getting married - how dare he! They would stop it; they would show him once and for all that Akane was not the one for him, by force if need be. It was then, when they'd prepared their weapons, that they'd found they'd been too late. The Western ceremony had already been concluded, and the groom had only now to kiss the bride. In a blind rage, Ukyou pulled the bomb which she'd been fingering all along out of her satchel and flung it at Akane. If only at the eleventh hour, she would triumph! It worked all too well. She remembered in excruciating detail how the projectile had arced straight towards Akane's head, and how Ranma had flung himself in its path to shield the one... to shield the one he loved. Too late. He missed by a fraction of a second. The bomb hit Akane's head, which shattered like an egg in a microwave. The resulting shockwave split Ranma's spine in two with a resonating crunch, and bone shrapnel from his late wife's shattered skull buried itself deep within his own head. That was all she'd stayed to see. After that, she'd run. She didn't know what else to do. She couldn't stay and be caught, not by the police - she didn't think she could bear to stand on trial for what she'd done, and much less be found guilty - and she couldn't kill herself because... because there was a chance that Ran-chan might recover, and that he and she might... Ukyou snapped out of her reverie looked at the figure lying on the white institutional linen. That last was a dream, now, it would never happen. The best she could hope for - the best she could have hoped for - was that Ranma would awaken, and that she could beg for his forgiveness, for his understanding... And even that was now beyond the realm of possibility. The foreign matter in his brain made him incapable of speech, they told her, or even perhaps (they were not sure) of any coherent thought. It was so hard to tell with patients in a coma... Regardless, it was that need to be forgiven that had brought her back to Tokyo. When she'd first run she'd changed her name, her hair, her clothes... She'd even switched to cooking ramen, thinking no one would suspect her then... But every time she tried to start a new life with her new identity, the leash of memory would drive her to the old. There were sores, there was unfinished business that had to be concluded before she could even try to begin anew... And so, just hours ago, she'd found the hospital where they'd put Ranma, and 'his cousin Ranko' had been ushered to his bedside. "Look at you," she said with tears in her eyes. She did not know why, for she could not truly look at HIM. His limbs were in casts and his body strapped to a frame, so that his seizures wouldn't cause the tubes within him to damage his internal organs. A respirator hung over what had been his wide and manly chest, and with the exception of the eyes, his face was completely bandaged - not for any medical reason, but aesthetically, out of respect for the almost-dead. The blast had charred his visage past all recognition. His jaw, in particular, was completely unhinged, and he was fed his food through an intravenous line - there'd be no more okonomiyaki for him. But the worst part... The worst part was what they had left uncovered. Those eyes... HER Ranma had been strong, and active, and his eyes had shone with _life_. These were dull and covered by a sickly yellow patina, looking more like lumps of rotting chicken fat than the sky-blue orbs they used to be. Their colour, when she thought about it, was now almost exactly that of the liquid which every now and then would stream down his catheter and be pulled by gravity into a bag lying on the floor. Ukyou wrinkled her nose. The smells, too, were awful. There was no danger of him changing into his female form with the heat and stench of decomposition engulfing him. No, it was definitely not HER Ranma. Her fiance had left that day, not long enough ago, and wherever she may find him, it was not going to be here. This was... this was a used house, and abandoned temple... Words came unbidden into Ukyou's mind. < Ranma doesn't live here anymore. > thought Ukyou, agreeing with herself. Her wavering disposition suddenly snapped itself into firm resolution. She fancied that she knew his new address, and if the gods would be so kind, that night she'd meet him at his doorstep, by the bridge over the canal... When someone leaves a residence, it's impolite to leave the utilities running. Costs build up, resources are needlessly drained, and when there's no one home to enjoy them... Ukyou reached over to the blinking terminal on his night-stand, and flipped a switch. For a brief moment there was a whine as the respirator powered down, and the ECG made its last beep, and then - nothing. Before leaving, the woman went to the sink at the front of the room and washed away her tears. While she patted her face dry with a hand towel, she managed to smile at the note in the nursing station she saw reflected in the mirror: 'Will the last one out please turn off the lights?' ---//--- Ukyou stretched languidly as the warm morning light burst into her bedroom. Through her open window she could see that it was a beautiful day. A few wispy white clouds made their way through a brilliant blue sky, birds were chirping merrily in the trees, and a cool, refreshing breeze was tickling her cheeks. she thought, Not wanting to waste any time, she hopped out of bed, ran a brush quickly through her hair, slipped into her favourite outfit and sprinted downstairs to the restaurant. In a matter of minutes, two Ucchan's deluxe okonomiyakis were steaming inside of a take-out box. Kuonji smiled, cleaned up the griddle, picked up her food and made her way to the dojo. Once she'd reached the main entrance, she knocked at the door. Kasumi opened. "H-how are you today, Ukyou?" "Very well, Kasumi." She grinned. "Such a beautiful day! Is Ranma in?" The eldest Tendo sister vacillated. Ukyou raised an eyebrow. "Well, is he or isn't he?" "R-right this way," said Kasumi, her gaze fixed upon her feet. "Are you sure you're all right, sugar?" "Of course, Kuonji-san!" "Uh-huh. Right." When they found Ranma and Akane, the pair were arguing at the breakfast table. They stopped when Kasumi cleared her throat. When they noticed Ukyou, their looks, as well, were fixed to the ground. "Ucchan," said Ranma, "how... nice to see you?" "Hello, Ukyou," added Akane. She seemed to think that one of the floor tiles was named 'Ukyou'. "Gee, guys, did someone die? You all seem so... down..." "No! Nothing's wrong!" said Ranma. "It's just that..." "Everything's fine and dandy!" chimed in Akane. "So, what can I do for you, Ucchan?" Ukyou held up her box of okonomiyaki. "It's a lovely day outside, and I was wondering if you'd like to have lunch with me in the park. That is, if Akane doesn't mind..." Ranma looked taken aback. "Uh... Ah... In the park? But it's... so... public, and-" "Go ahead, Ranma," said Akane, a mischievous smile on her face. "I don't mind." "No! You're wrong! You DO mind, right, Akane?" "Not at all!" She shoved her fiance forward. "Ukyou, Ranma would LOVE to go to the park with you today." "But-" "What's the matter, Ranma? At least you won't have to be seen with an uncute tomboy like ME!" "Yeah, but compared to her, you're _beautiful_!" Silence. "Uh-oh..." Akane draped her hand over her face, perhaps hoping that she could hide behind it. "Ranmaaaaaa..." she growled. Ukyou was dumbfounded. "What do you MEAN, she's beautiful?" Her eyebrows narrowed, and her battle aura grew to levels that would have precipitated a massive ki-blast in a suitably-trained martial artist. "I'M Ranma's CUTE fian..." Her voice trailed off as she looked at her reflection in a windowpane, and the image of a beast looked back. ---//--- Ukyou screamed. Suddenly, a hand clapped on her shoulder. She whirled around, fear clutching her chest, expecting to see the hideous apparition she had become. Instead, there was Ranma. "Ucchan? What's wrong?" There was concern in his voice. Behind him, a worried Akane looked on. Ukyou collapsed against Ranma's frame, burying her face in his chest. "Ran-chan, it was horrible! I thought...I thought--" Ranma looked at the mirror, seeing his own reflection mutated into a hideous monster. He stroked Ukyou's hair and looked back at Akane. Akane still had a look of concern on her face. Both of them knew the wedding had been hard on Ukyou. She had just barely gotten out of the hospital after... Ranma decided not to think about that. The point was, he and Akane had decided to take her to the carnival that was in town that week to cheer her up. Akane and Ukyou had buried the hatchet long ago, so the possibility of sparks flying were slim. Still, the way she was trembling, the trick mirror had disturbed her greatly. Ukyou detached herself from him, sniffled, and ran a hand through her hair. "I'm sorry," she said quietly. "It just caught me by surprise is all. It seemed so real." "It's all right." Ranma said. "This place does that to you. Let's hurry so we can get out of it, okay?" Ukyou nodded, and the three of them continued making their way through the Maze of Mirrors. "Is she all right?" Akane whispered to Ranma as they made their way through the maze. "She's fine, the monster mirror just surprised her is all." Ranma whispered back. Akane glanced at Ukyou, who was slowly treading along behind them, keeping her hands to the walls so she wouldn't get lost. "I hope so." Akane said. "I wouldn't want her to have to go back... there, again. Not after what happened to Konatsu." Ranma nodded his agreement. "She'll probably be back to her old self after we get out of here. This place screws with your perception." The married couple turned a corner... Outside, the attendant on duty checked his watch. Yep, time to reconfigure the maze again. Kept things interesting for those who went through more than once. He went to the control box and began flipping switches... Ukyou turned the corner, hurrying to catch up with Ranma and Akane. She came face to face with herself. She blinked. Hadn't the Saotomes turned this corner a minute ago? Maybe she had seen a reflection. She turned back the way she came and began to retrace her steps. Ranma and Akane exited the maze. "That was fun." Akane said. "We'll have to do it again sometime." Ranma didn't answer. He was gazing at the exit door. "What's wrong?" Akane asked. "Wasn't Ukyou right behind us?" Ukyou was lost. There. She admitted it. She had pulled a Hibiki. She had tried to backtrack to the entrance, but it was as if the walls of the maze were conspiring against her, keeping her from leaving. She shook her head, trying to clear it. she mentally chided. She decided to stay where she was and see if she could hear anyone else that might be near her. The maze was disturbingly silent. Suddenly, she became aware of a low squeaking sound, like bedsprings. she wondered. Intrigued, she began to follow the sound. Ranma and Akane found the attendant. He was sitting at the desk at the entrance, reading a magazine. As they approached, he put it down. "Well, well," he grinned. "Come back for another go at the maze, have you? You're in luck. I just changed it, never the same way twice." "You just changed it?" Ranma and Akane exchanged a glance. Akane stepped forward. "I'm sorry, we're not here to go through again, but we think a friend of ours might be lost in the maze." "Lost, hm?" said the attendant. "Well, let's see if we can find him." "Her." Ranma corrected. "Her, then." the attendant amended. He motioned them around the desk where a small television monitor was built in. "This keeps tabs on every place in the maze, just in case of emergencies like this." he explained. He began pressing some buttons. Each press brought up a different part of the maze. They went through several areas, until they came to a large circular room surrounded with mirrors. Ukyou was standing in the centre, looking around dazedly. Then, without warning, she let out a scream and began smashing the mirrors with her bare fists. The three outside watched as she dashed from mirror to mirror, destroying her reflections. "What the hell--?!" the attendant yelped. Ranma looked at Akane. "I'll call Dr. Takahashi." she said. Ranma nodded and dashed into the entrance of the maze. Ukyou followed the squeaking bedsprings around several twists and turns in the maze. She soon found herself in a large circular room, obviously a dead end. The walls were lined with mirrors, reflecting those in the room back and forth into infinity. The squeaking was even louder here, but there was no bed to be found. Ukyou stared at the various panes of glass, wondering how and why the sound had drawn her here. Suddenly, the sound became louder as if it were... Right behind her. She turned to face another mirror. Only this one didn't reflect the room she was in. It showed her, naked, screwing a noticeably inactive Ranma. Ukyou stepped closer, perversely fascinated by the scene. She watched as the her in the mirror orgasmed explosively, sending out a sigh of delight. The mirror-Ukyou rolled off of her lover, and the Ukyou in the maze recoiled in horror at the gaping wound in Ranma's chest. She turned away from the scene... And encountered another couple in a bedroom. Herself and... She tried to turn from that image too, only to see another reflection. Her in a bathroom, with Ranma looking at her with unbridled hate. Suddenly, her mind saw a pattern to all that she saw. She remembered the party, remembered going with Ryouga to get groceries. She remembered coming back and Kasumi telling her the news of the wedding, she remembered tearing through the Tendo household looking for them. She remembered going into Happosai's room. She remembered the mirror...and her wish. Oh, God, she remembered it all. And now, new reflections appeared in the mirrors... ...Her accepting a piece of Ranma's corpse... ...Her dying body cradled in Ranma's arms, as water from a shattered vial flowed across the floor... ...Her, dressed in a black tunic with a white scarf around her neck, surrounded by glowing flames of green ki... ...Her, wearing an eye-patch, travelling across an endless desert, with Ranma, Kuno, and Ryouga... ...Her, amidst a crowd of anime characters like Lupin III and the Sailor Senshi, in Washington D.C.... ...Her, dressed in a black body-suit and a purple hooded cloak, standing on a set with her other, equally outlandishly dressed, friends... They were all different, yet all the same, an endless stream of Ukyous, each one mere possibilities of the others. Even herself, she realised, an Ukyou who had made a fatal mistake and was now hanging on to her sanity by an extremely taut thread. And she knew if she dared to look into another mirror, she would change again, and possibly lose herself. Forever changing, forever wandering... "NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!" She smashed her fists into the closet mirror, shattering it. Shards of glass flew from the wall, cutting her face, gouging her hands. She rushed across the room and shattered another mirror, destroying yet another hateful image. She proceeded around the room, shattering the mirrors, trying to stop the cycle. Blood ran in rivers down her hands as the glass bit deeply into her flesh, but the pain was ignored in the desire to destroy the hated images of herself. To banish the endless permutations. To eliminate the warped reflections. Soon, she collapsed in the centre of the room, exhausted. Her breathing was deep and ragged. Destroying the mirrors had not worked. Her mind still reeled with possibilities, images and words that were not her own, but yet were. She had to stop them. Stop them once and for all. And her ravaged mind found the solution. It was a clear as her reflection in the large fragment of glass in front of her... Ranma made his way through the maze, turning left and right. He had been going by Ukyou's screams. The screams of a mind on the verge of breaking. He refused to let his friend be broken again... Ukyou picked up the shard of glass, looking at the reflection in it. It was her. The her that was here, in this hell of mirrors. Of possible truths. Truth? There was only one truth and it was here, in this scrap of mirror she held. She took a deep breath and aimed the point of the glass at her stomach. Suddenly, she felt strong arms grab her shoulders and lift her to her feet, spinning her around. Dear God, were the reflections now trying to prevent her escape? She flailed around wildly, her arms and legs swinging, trying to escape from the grip she knew led to her endless torment. She felt the shard come down and embed itself solidly in her attacker. The grip freed and Ukyou flung herself across the room, looking to put some distance between her and her assailant. She picked up another large piece of mirror and whirled around to face her opponent. There was only Ranma, on his knees, the jagged piece of glass embedded in his stomach. Blood was pouring out of the wound, turning his shirt from a bright red, to a darker scarlet. Ranma looked at Ukyou, his face a mixture of pain, betrayal and regret. He opened his mouth to speak, and a trickle of blood came from his lips along with his words. "U--Ucchan, why?" His eyes rolled up in his head and he began to fall. Ukyou dropped the mirror she held and hurried to catch him. She kneeled down and pillowed her former fiance's head in her lap. She felt the tears begin to flow, washing away the blood that streaked her face. "Ran-chan..." she whispered. There were footsteps coming towards her. Ukyou looked up to see Akane, the ride attendant, Dr. Takahashi and two police officers staring in shock at the scene before them. Ukyou looked down at Ranma's lifeless eyes, and gently closed the eyelids. "Forgive me..." she said quietly. She raised Ranma's head, got out from under him, gently laid him on the floor, and stood to face the gathered. She stood before Akane. The two said nothing. Akane, with sadness and anger in her eyes, found it impossible to lash out at this woman - the woman who had taken her only love. She found it impossible, for Ukyou's eyes were those of a person who is already dead and knows that she is in Hell. Ukyou bowed deeply before Akane. "Sumimasen." she said. Ukyou then rose and turned to Dr. Takahashi. "I'm ready to go back to the hospital now." she said to the older woman. Dr. Takahashi nodded and gently took Ukyou's arm. They began to make their way down the corridor. Ukyou looked back to see Akane in the position she had been in before, her tears flowing freely. Perhaps in the way it was always meant to be. She returned her gaze forward. And saw another non-reflection. The mirror at the head of the corridor did not show herself and Dr. Takahashi. Instead it showed a bright room filled with mounds of feminine undergarments. Happosai's room. A way home! Ukyou broke from Takahashi's grasp and flung herself towards the mirror, arms wide. Here was a chance for redemption, one she intended to take. She barely heard the psychiatrist pleas for her to stop. She ignored the police officers order to halt. There was only the mirror. She smashed into it, glass cutting her face and sending jagged edges of pain into her body... She collapsed on the floor. She slowly opened her eyes, expecting to see the forms of Dr. Takahashi or the police officers over her. Instead she saw panties. She sat up and pulled the undergarment from her face. She looked around in awe at the room, taking it all in. She didn't care if it was the room of the old letch. It was something familiar. She was HOME. She stood up quickly, the mirror in her lap falling and reflecting the sun through the window. She stretched and took it all in. Home. The nightmare was over at last. She became aware of footsteps in the corridor. Kasumi! Ukyou hung her head as she remembered how rudely she had treated the eldest Tendo sister. She couldn't face her. Not now. Not pausing to think, she hid behind one of the larger piles of underwear in the room and watched the doorway, expecting Kasumi to walk in at any minute. She was rather surprised when she saw HERSELF enter the room, tears rolling down her face. She watched, transfixed, as her double found the cracked mirror and began to cry again. Then she heard herself say the words, "I wish there was some other way..." Instantly the mirror flashed green. The glow filled the room. In that instant, Ukyou realised what was happening. She leaped from her hiding place, trying to prevent herself from going through the torment she had already been through once before. She would stop it, even if she had to follow herself through all of it again. "NO!" * * * * * Outside, across the street from the Tendo home, two young bespectacled gaijin males watch with interest as the green glow from one of the upstairs bedrooms fades. The taller one, dressed in a black leather jacket, his brown hair tied back into a short ponytail turns to his companion, a similarly-aged man sporting a red bandanna tied across his forehead. "She's off again." "It would appear so." says the bandanna'd one. "Endless ending..." "Beginningless beginning." "Perhaps there was another way?" The leather-clad one asks. "Perhaps," his companion replies. "But then, this wasn't truly about her, was it?" "No...I guess not." "Shall we head back?" "I suppose." The ponytailed one flicks his wrist and a small remote control slides out of his sleeve and into his hand. He presses a button and a glowing blue hole in reality appears before them. As they step into the hole, they look back at the house. "They're going to kill us for this, you know." "Wasn't that the point?" The blue glow closes itself up, taking the two gaijin with them. =========================================================================== ENDLESS ===========================================================================