Ukyou's Other Woman  4/6
by, Trisha Sebastian
[insert standard disclaimer here.  Megumi is my character, so any uses of 
her must be done with my prior permission]




	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 of 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.  "See, Meg-chan, there's some-
thing 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.


TO BE CONTINUED......



AUTHOR'S NOTES:

11-30-97:

	Just in time for the tail end of the Thanksgiving holiday comes 
the next episode in the saga of Megumi and Ukyou.  As always, comments and 
criticisms can  sent to me at <sebast5228@theonramp.net> because I'm hoping 
that my e-mail account will be up by then.  Anyone who wants to read the 
first parts, can also contact me at that address, too.  Special thanks go 
to my pre-readers, especially Travis Butler who should be getting back to 
work on "Ranma's Pride."  <sound of a cattle prod firing up>


Foxtrot the Furryous, CBTFH, retired.