I am reposting this due to fact that I reposted the last part under
another name.
Thanks to everyone who sent comments regarding this series...
PM Productions Presents
A Phillip Masters Fanfic
Feelings Are Blind
Part Two:  A Fickle Mistress

	Tenchi walked home slowly.  The evening air was crisp and cool, and
filled with 
the odors of spring.  As he strolled along past people who seemed so
intent on their 
destinations he thought of why he came to Nerima in the first place.  He
needed to get 
away from it all, away from the constant stress and tension of the
temple.  It was an 
incredible irony that the big city had a more relaxed environment than
an ancient temple 
buried deep in the woods.  A hideous irony, and an unfortunate one.  He
could still recall 
the days when everything was carefree and pure.  Nothing could disturb
the calm and 
pleasant feeling the shrine grounds gave him.  Especially the cave; the
cave that years 
later he would find to be occupied by a pirate from outer space.  
	However, regardless of her sorted history, Tenchi was undyingly
grateful to her 
for watching over him.  He could always feel her presence at the cave,
even though he 
could not know what it was there that comforted him.  Then, when he had
released her, 
and she had stopped attempting to kill him, he found the friend he had
always truly 
wanted.  A companion who was wild, unlike him, and knew how to have
fun.  What he 
didn�t expect was for that friend to fall in love with him.  As well, he
didn�t expect her to 
be beautiful and so easy to fall in love with.  Had it only been him and
Ryouko he most 
likely would have married her by now.  Thing was, it was not just him
and her by any 
stretch of the imagination.
	No, there were others.  They came like a storm after the first few
raindrops.  
Pouring in from all corners of the galaxy, focused on this one point for
various reasons.  
Ayeka had her vendetta against Ryouko, and was searching for her
half-brother Yoshou.  
Sasami, Ayeka�s younger sister was simply along for the ride.  Their
fates all brought 
them here... Ayeka found Tenchi�s grandfather to be her dear Yoshou...
Sasami turned 
out to be one with the greatest of battleships, Tsunami, and helped save
both the Earth 
and Tenchi�s life.  This was only the surface scrapings of the whole
mess.
	Next came Mihoshi, the ditsy blond Galaxy Police officer who, quite
literally fell 
from the sky one day.  Tenchi sometimes wondered how such an
incomparably idiotic 
person could become a detective in an organization that guards the
entire galaxy.  He 
didn�t know whether to be happy for her, or fearful for everyone in the
galaxy.  The only 
thing that kept him from packing up and leaving was the fact that she
was phenomenally 
lucky and always seemed to come out on top in the end.  She seemed
enamored with him, 
but he didn�t really feel anything for her, beyond friendship, in
return.
	The last addition to the Masaki home was Ryouko�s mother, Washu.  She
was the 
self-proclaimed �greatest scientist in the universe.�  Thing was, she
was believably so.  
Tenchi had never met anyone with even a fraction of her knowledge and
intelligence.  
She seemed to be so smart as to be on another level than everyone else. 
The good news 
was, she came in handy in a tough situation.  The bad news was, she fell
in love with him 
too.  Tenchi didn�t know what it was about him that aliens seemed to go
for, because it 
sure didn�t extend into the Earthly realm, much to his constant
chagrin.  He always had a 
problem getting a girlfriend, mostly because of his upbringing, so
isolated and 
mysterious.  His girl skills lacked something major.  Now, he had too
many of them.
	It must be the Universe�s final grand jest on his part to make him fall
in love with 
someone who isn�t even a girl.  Well, not all the time anyway, and
certainly not in mind, 
which was the important part.  Ranma came out of nowhere to steal his
heart.  He had 
almost the exact same problems he did, and understood them completely. 
He was also 
the most gorgeous person Tenchi had ever laid eyes upon.  As a female,
he was perfect, 
from the lonely sparkle in her beautiful blue eyes, to the supple curve
of her breast.  It 
was hard to use the proper nouns when dealing with someone so obviously
female.  
When Ranma didn�t talk, it was impossible at that moment to tell him
from any other girl 
who seemed like she needed someone more than anything else.  
	He knew they were right for each other.  They were both brought up to
be 
fighters.  They both had the world's worst woman problems.  They both
connected on a 
level that surpassed gender, and possibly even humanity.  He knew they
should be 
together.  Now, he just needed to figure out how to prove that to Ranma.

 _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

	Ranma leapt into his room.  He felt his hand still shaking due to his
recent ordeal.  
He also felt an inescapable need for hot water.  The hotter, the
better.  The martial artist 
left his room stealthily, not wanting to talk to anyone at that moment. 
He crept to the 
bathroom and turned the knob on the sink slowly to make the least
possible noise.  The 
small trickle of water took longer to get warm than a strong blast, but
it did eventually.  
He carefully splashed himself, feeling the instantaneous change occur,
accompanied by a 
loosening and a release.  He sighed and leaned against the wall.
	He touched his lips again.  Even after changing he could still feel the
touch of 
Tenchi on him.  He leaned forward and looked into the mirror.  A guy
stared back... a 
guy who was blushing.  Ranma�s eyes widened in shock and he felt his
face to make sure 
it wasn�t some sort of trick.  The overly warm flesh he felt there gave
him chills.  He 
couldn�t believe what was happening to him.  How, in one hour, he could
actually 
become enamored with someone, and that that someone was a man.  
	He began to think up reasons for his new ailment.  Perhaps someone had
fed him 
something, a love potion, or a passion spice of some sort.  Maybe he had
gotten hit on the 
head too hard by Akane.  Any of this stuff was highly likely in his
life, and he knew it 
very well.  It was that life he wanted to escape from so much.  It was
that life that made 
him fall for Tenchi.  
	Ranma slid down the wall completely and wrapped his arms around his
legs.  No 
matter what the cause, no matter what anyone had done to him, Dr. Tofu
could fix it.  He 
could fix anything.  He�d have to go see Dr. Tofu.  He stared at the
wall opposite himself 
for a moment, trying to pull himself together.  He inhaled deeply and
rose from the floor.  
With a final glance into the mirror to reassert reality, he ran from the
bathroom and 
headed for his room.  Once there he jumped from his window and hopped
with all due 
haste straight to Tofu�s office.  He found Kasumi just walking into it. 
He skid to a halt 
right outside the office door, looking at it like someone standing
before the very gates to 
Hell.  He knew what was beyond the door, and he knew the pain he would
be promised if 
he crossed the threshold.  
	Ranma may have received injury every day since his arrival in Nerima,
but it 
didn�t mean he liked pain.  He backed away from the clinic turned nut
barn with a wary 
look in his eyes.  Nothing exploded in his face by the time he got to
the street, so he 
figured everything was okay.  Of course, this is the moment a car dove
by and splashed 
him with water from the roadside.  For the briefest of seconds he
entertained the thought 
of seeing what the Mokou Takabisha could do to a vehicle. 
Unfortunately, or fortunately 
according to who you were, he didn�t have much confidence at that
moment.  Wet and 
dejected, he headed down the street in a random direction.

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

	Tenchi noticed he had gotten himself lost.  His musings had taken his
mind from 
the unfamiliar path to his apartment, and he soon found himself
wandering the back 
alleys of an entirely unknown part of town.  He cursed softly as he
turned a corner only to 
find a solid wall.
	"You lost, buddy?"
	Tenchi turned to find five guys standing behind him.  They were dressed
in 
typical gang uniform consisting of blue jeans and black leather
jackets.  He figured they 
meant him harm, but he would give them the benefit of the doubt for
now.  "Yeah, could 
you help me get to Tokashi Street?" he asked in his most innocent tone,
which made him 
sound almost as bad as a tourist.  Of course, that was not the actual
road he lived on, but 
one nearby.  
	"Sure we can, but how much is it worth to ya?"  One of the punks
replied, 
seemingly the leader.
 	Tenchi could have guessed he would say that.  "Aren�t you going to do
it out of 
the generosity of your heart?"
	The gang almost instantly burst into laughter.  After a minute they all
finally 
regained control of themselves.  Tenchi simply stood, watching them with
a bored 
expression.  The leader grinned after he calmed down.  "You don�t get
out much do 
you?"  His face darkened slightly, "Okay, we�ll get right down to it. 
We just want your 
money, and then we�ll even tell you how to get where you�re going, and
you can go 
safely.  Refuse, and you may not make it home at all."
	Tenchi raised an eyebrow.  "Threatening me with death?  That seems a
bit harsh, 
doesn�t it?"
	The shorter guy to the right of the leader spoke up, "Don�t give us any
bullshit!  
You are going to give us what we want."
	The last line was said so matter-of-fact that Tenchi couldn�t help but
smile and 
say, "You want an ass whoopin�?  Because that is what I�m going to give
you."  With 
that, he lashed out and punched the leader right in the gut.  The thug�s
stomached caved 
under the force with little resistance.  His eyes widened and he fell to
the ground 
clutching his wounded abdomen while gasping for air.  He pulled back his
fist and looked 
around nonchalantly at the rest of the group.
	They all looked down at their leader for a moment, as if unsure what
had just 
happened.  Then, they all looked up at Tenchi in disbelief.  After
another second, as 
Tenchi was just about to walk off, they all reached into various pockets
and procured a 
multitude of weapons.  Everything from a butterfly knife to numchucks. 
Tenchi sighed 
and moved into a defensive position.  "So," he said, "you�re going to
continue to be a 
nuisance are you?"
	They all answered with a battle cry that echoed throughout the alley
and charged 
him simultaneously.  He found himself in a flurry of blades and blunt
objects.  He 
deflected blow after blow, keeping a step ahead of his attackers.  If he
had Tenchi-ken the 
fight would have been over by then, but he had left it at home in his
room.  There was no 
way these simple hooligans could activate the Light Hawk Wings, so
Tenchi had little 
fear of killing the men.  Two of the gang dropped to join their leader. 
The remaining two 
backed away for a moment to assess their situation.  By the looks on
their faces they 
didn�t like it one bit.  
	Tenchi pressed his advantage and stepped menacingly toward the rest of
the gang.  
They flinched backward, seemingly unable to help themselves.  Then,
Tenchi felt a 
presence to his left and he flipped around with his arms in a defensive
posture.  He almost 
fell over when he came almost face to face with Ranma... Ranma, as a
girl.
	Of course, the rest of the gang had to comment.  Tenchi closed his eyes
and 
breathed a sigh as shouts of, "Whoo-hoo!" and, "Hey, babe!" came from
behind him.  His 
eyes opened and he spun around in a vicious roundhouse.  It connected
with both 
remaining attackers, laying them out cold.  He came to a stop at his
original starting 
point, looking at Ranma.  "Hey, Ranma." he greeted as though they were
meeting under 
everyday circumstances.
	Ranma�s gaze told volumes, and was very serious.  "Tenchi, we need to
talk."
	Tenchi nodded affirmation and followed Ranma around a few more corners,
to 
get away from the recently recycled street trash.  They finally came to
a halt in a darker 
alley deep within the backstreets of Nerima.  They had a more likely
chance of running 
into more of the darker element of the town, but they both knew they
could handle 
whatever came up.  Even if someone had a gun, Ranma may not have been
bulletproof, 
but Tenchi was effectively so.  They sat down on some old boxes, facing
one another.
	Ranma took in a few short breaths, as if preparing himself.  
Tenchi was simply rather curious as to what Ranma was going to say.
"Tenchi," he sighed, "ever since that time in the bar earlier today I
have not been 
able to get  you out of my head."
Tenchi was instantly elated.  He would have bet everything he had that
there was 
no chance of him being able to win Ranma.  He was a guy after all...
"But, Ranma... 
aren�t you a man?"
Ranma winced, then he looked into Tenchi�s eyes.  He right, Ranma
thought, I am 
a man... but...  He closed his own eyes and sighed.  "I was born a man,
that�s true.  I 
came upon this curse, and that�s exactly what it was, a curse.  I hated
it with all my being.  
It effected me in more ways than I care to admit.  I�ve never told
anyone this before, but 
when I am in my female form, I have more... female thoughts.  Dr. Tofu
said I may 
experience problems due to the feminine hormones I would be producing,
but I never 
thought it would be this serious.  I never thought it would actually
jeopardize my 
manhood entirely."  His lids parted and he stared at Tenchi again, "I
like you, as a friend.  
However, my body is telling me something different.  I can�t help but
feel... something 
more for you."  
Tenchi just sort of sat there for a moment, digesting what had just been
said.  
"This makes you uncomfortable, doesn�t it?"
Ranma nodded, "Hell, I never used to be able to open up like this
before."  He 
took on a frightened look for a moment, "I�m changing... inside.  I can
feel it."
"It worries you?"
            Ranma smirked, "It scares the shit out of me!"  His face
became a little more 
somber and whispered, "I�m not used to being this helpless."
Tenchi felt such a need to hug Ranma that he almost burst.  However, he
knew 
even touching him at that moment could have caused him to leave.  Tenchi
found he 
really didn�t want Ranma to leave, ever.  "Ranma, you are still who you
are, even if your 
gender changes.  The line between man and woman is purely physical.  Any
other 
differences can be chalked up to chemical and hormonal differences.  You
will still be 
Ranma, and you will still be a fighter, you will just consider yourself
female."
Ranma laughed, "For the past seventeen years I�ve been told that being a
man is a 
unique honor.  That it should be all that is important to me... that if
I didn�t become that 
rarest of specimens I would be killed.  Was it all a lie?  Truly?"
Tenchi nodded slowly, "I�m afraid so, Ranma.  I can understand the
feelings of 
your family, and can see where they are coming from.  However, it is an
age long past 
now, and we can�t get stuck in it.  In the civilized world there are no
borders or 
boundaries.  Do what you want, as long as it doesn�t hurt anyone else."
Ranma looked thoughtful, "If I became a full woman, plenty of people
would be, 
and could be hurt."
"It�s possible, but I�m sure they would get over it.  They should be
able to 
understand, and if not, they are not worthy of being your friends. 
You�ve got to think 
about yourself for a change, Ranma!"
	Ranma looked up at Tenchi, "Do you love me?"
	Tenchi was taken aback.  He tried to figure out what possessed Ranma to
ask that 
question at a time like this.  He couldn�t work it out, so he just
replied, "Huh?"
	Ranma brow furrowed and he leaned forward, almost to the point of
entering 
Tenchi�s lap.  He articulated his words very carefully, "Do You Love
Me?"
	Tenchi looked at the serious blue eyes before him, deep inside them he
could see 
a need.  Unfortunately, he couldn�t place what the need was for.  He
figured he couldn�t 
lie to her though, "Yes, yes I do."
	"How?  How can you love me after only meeting me once?"
	He shrugged, "Who knows?  I�ve spent the last two years trying to
figure out what 
love is, and I�ve come no closer to a definitive answer.  All I know is,
in my heart I care 
for you, I�ve never met anyone like you and most likely never will
again.  Let it be 
known that I will not give up on you.  You may be a man, but I still
love you."
	Ranma blinked, then he frowned, "Could you love me as a man?  I mean,
if I 
stayed a man?"
	Tenchi�s brow furrowed in thought.  He grinned, "Wanna find out?"
	Ranma smacked Tenchi in the head, "Ecchi!"
	He threw his hands up in defense, "Hey!  You suggested it!"
	They both laughed together, two friends who had more in common than
either 
cared to admit.  Two friends who had more feeling for one another than
Ranma cared to 
admit.  He stopped laughing suddenly and watched Tenchi.  He was still
snickering, his 
eyes closed and his face turning a light shade of red.  Then, Ranma
looked out into the 
alley, and unusual place for a date.  He shook his head trying to remove
that thought from 
it, but failed.  He couldn�t fool himself anymore, after turning into a
girl for over a year 
he just could not deny the fact that it effected him.  His mind was
being altered, changed 
by the chemical imbalances between his girl side and his boy side.  It
was an internal 
struggle for power that would most likely make a man of lesser will go
insane.  He 
sighed, getting Tenchi�s attention once more.
	"Ranma," Tenchi said seriously, "I am not going to force myself upon
you.  I 
would never do anything to hurt  you.  I want you to be happy, that�s
all.  No matter what 
it takes.  Take all the time you need to think about what�s happened
today.  If you do 
decide you can love me in return, come to me.  If not, then I won�t
search you out."  He 
reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper, then handed it
to Ranma.  "My 
address," he stated simply, then rose to leave.
	Ranma felt like saying something, felt he should.  He figured he had an
obligation 
to tell Tenchi what he felt as soon as possible.  He couldn�t decide in
his own mind 
whether he loved the kind young man or not, but he knew he didn�t want
him to be hurt at 
all.  His mouth opened to say something, then shut almost as fast.  He
couldn�t think of 
anything to say, or wouldn�t.  It still scared him the way he was
changing, opening up 
where he never would have before, having feelings in a way he never
could have thought 
possible before.  He was raised to be a �man-among-men,� and it seemed
he was going to 
fail after all.  Regardless of his feelings for Tenchi, he would never
be the same.  Perhaps 
his mother would slay him, make him take his own life with the blade. 
The cold steel 
would free him of his dishonor, wouldn�t it?  He shook his head.  No,
killing oneself is 
never an answer, it was a barbaric ritual from long ago.  It�s too akin
to running away.  
He would never run away, because then he would become his father.  The
last thing he 
wanted to become was his father, the cause of his troubles.  The reason
for his curse.  As 
he watched Tenchi turn the corner at the end of the alley he wondered if
that was such a 
crime.
END PART TWO
This is shaping up I suppose.  Never thought I would be doing a
�Ranma-meets-boy� type 
fic, but it seems it�s happened.  Of course, I am extremely curious as
to what everyone 
thinks of this story, and would highly appreciate comments and the
like.  Some of you 
may be asking, "Why Tenchi?"  Well, I reply, "Why not?  He gets the
adoration of every 
other woman he meets, he�s just a nice guy."  Anyway, send everything
here and I will 
assess whether or not I should finish this or not.
Thanks for reading,
PMasters (3-25-98)