Ranma 1/2: Permanent part 6
A veil of lies.

	Two weeks had passed since his failed attempt at Ranma's life.
Mousse stood and looked into the cracked mirror in the old abandoned home
he was sleeping in. He frowned as he placed his glasses on. "My vision is
almost normal again." he muttered bitterly. His eye had gone into shock
and rendered him totally blind when Ranma had stabbed his left eye out.
He took the bandage off and examined the wound. He snorted at the now
empty hole on his face. "Another injury to me you must suffer for Ranma
Saotome." He spat at his reflection. "You have made it impossible for my
Shampoo to ever feel my love again, and I will make you suffer."

	Three days later...
 
	Akane Tendo walked into the bath room and began to undress for
her bath. She stood at the mirror and smiled. She heard the door open
behind her and gasped. A naked Ranma stepped out and stopped cold staring
at her.
	"Ranma I'm sorry I didn't know you were in there." said Akane
blushing.
	"Its OK I guess." said Ranma as she wrapped a towel around her
hair and waist and stepped out of the room. Akane stared at Ranma wide
eyed in disbelief, her body was covered in scars the two big ones going
down her back and stomach were the most prominent. 
	"I had no Idea it was that bad." she muttered to herself.

	"Do you always smile at yourself like that, or were you just
testing your cheeks?" asked Ranma as they walked to school together a
short time later.
	Akane blushed and looked at the ground nervously. "Whats she
talking about?" asked Yuka from beside her. 
	"I-its nothing." said Akane.
	"I understand why you like to bathe alone now." said Akane
walking over to Ranma as she walked along the fence.
	Ranma stopped cold and stared at her nervously. �I had no Idea
the scars were that bad." continued Akane.
	 Ranma relaxed and kept walking. "You get used to it." she
replied.

	At the gates of Furinkan Kuno stood in waiting. "Ah tis the
beauteous pig tailed girl and Akane Tendo." he said with his usual
arrogance. "Surely today you will pledge your love for me." he said
throwing two roses at the pair. Ranma swatted hers out of the air. 
	"Kuno we should talk, alone." she said with a smile Akane didn't
like.
	"What are you going to do?" she said nervously.
	"I'm going to force the truth down this fool's throat." growled
Ranma. The crowd gasped as Ranma drug a elated Kuno off behind the
building muttering something to herself. 
	Nabiki nodded to her underling and she followed discretely
nervously glancing back at her employer. No one else had dared to follow
Ranma and Kuno. They all knew what Ranma was capable of when she was
angry, and most of them doubted if Ranma was going to give herself to
Kuno. Those who though she might glanced at the corner they were behind
nervously.

	A few minutes later Nabiki's 'friend' came back shaken and
screaming. Nabiki stood from her place under one of the tree's in the
courtyard. Akane frowned, she had seen enough, no matter how much of a
pain he was, Ranma would not kill Kuno. If she had tried to explain
things to him calmly like she thought she was doing she could easily end
up frustrated and lose her temper. Desperate cries of pain came from
behind the building as the two sisters ran towards the spot. What they
found was not what Nabiki was expecting and what Akane was afraid of.
	
	Ranma pulled Kuno behind the building. "My l-love tis not right
that you should show your love for me here, we must retire to some place
more private surely." stammered Kuno nervously.
	"No one will bother us. I put a small spell that makes them to
nervous to investigate on every one. You should be flattered Kuno I've
been planning this for a while. You wouldn't believe how long it took to
find just the right spell." she said with an evil grin.
	"Surely such magics could only be spawned from your undying love
for me." stuttered Kuno.
	"Or hatred." sneered Ranma.
	"Tell me who it is you hate so badly and surely I shall slay
them!" said Kuno getting on his knees and grabbing Ranma's hand.
	"It is you." replied Ranma coldly.
	"Ah, I understand. You hate me for not bringing my undying love
to you sooner!" cried Kuno grabbing Ranma in a hug.
	"I tried allowing you to see the truth for yourself, now you must
suffer my way." said Ranma pushing him off. Her hands glowed white and
Kuno was pressed against the wall by an invisible force.
	"Alas I cannot show my love for you! The foul sorcerer Gosunkugi
has placed a spell to force me from movement! I shall smite the weakling
after I free myself and profess my love to you my pig tailed goddess!"
screamed Kuno as he struggled on the wall.
	"Gosunkugi?" thought Ranma Idly and quickly pushed it away, she
had more pressing matters to attend at the moment.
	"You cannot run from the truth forever Kuno. I shall make it so
that is all you can see!" said Ranma with an evil grin. She sat down and
began chanting and a blue aura surrounded her and Kuno. She heard someone
scream and run away. "Damn." muttered Ranma. The spell she used was very
weak, anyone would follow with enough of a reason or enough prodding.
Then Kuno began to scream as well.
	A few moments passed and Ranma saw Akane and Nabiki turn the
corner and stop cold in their tracks. Nabiki stared at Ranma and Kuno in
disbelief and Akane ran towards her. "Akane don't interfere, never
interfere with a spell -ever- understand me?" sneered Ranma as she turned
and looked at the youngest Tendo.
	"What are you doing to him?" said Akane glancing between Ranma
and the Kendoist who was writhing in pain against the wall.
	"Making him see the truth." said Ranma.
	"How?!" she cried stepping towards Kuno.
	"Akane if you touch him you may make this worse." warned Ranma.
	"Will he die?" asked Akane.
	"There are worse fates than death." replied Ranma as the glow
died around her and Kuno.
	Kuno fell in a quivering mass on the ground. He stood and stared
at Akane and Ranma.
	"What did you do to him?" said Akane staring at Ranma with tears
in her eyes.
	"Simple, he can no longer see or hear any lie, not even the ones
he creates himself." said Ranma with a smirk.
	"Where is the pigtailed girl?" asked Kuno standing and looking
around in confusion.
	"I am her." said Ranma.
	"You are." said Kuno and his eyes went wide in suprise, no matter
how badly he wanted to deny it his mouth would not comply.
	"But you are a..." he started to talk.
	Ranma glanced at him warningly and put her finger to her lips.
"That is not any fault of mine." she said as Kuno stared at the boy
before him.
	His attention was only momentary as Akane stood before him. "Oh
Akane no doubt you have come to profess your hatred for me!" he cried and
ran up to her and hugged her warmly. He looked at her as she gazed at him
coldly. "You don't love me at all." he said and began to realize what
Ranma had done to him.
	"What have you done!?" he cried and fell to his knees holding his
head protectively.
	"You can no longer hear or see any lie. If you behave yourself I
will remove the spell in a few days." said Ranma coolly.
	"Wha?" said Kuno staring at her blankly.
	"That means that you really are a..." said Kuno with a cool gaze
at Ranma.
	Ranma nodded and glared at him. Kuno caught the implied threat
and kept the rest to himself.
	"You don't love me." he said to Akane who stared at him in
disbelief.
	Nabiki walked up to the group and stared at them in shock. "Ah,
Nabiki, You will tell no one of what you saw here and keep your lackey
quiet." said Ranma with a smile.
	Nabiki quickly regained herself and smirked. "Why should I?" she
said smugly.
	"Because if you do not I will make it so the very site of Yen
will repulse you. You won't ever be able to touch money without throwing
up." said Ranma with a smirk.
	"See if I care." said Nabiki.
	"What?" said Kuno.
	"Oho, looks like Kuno can't hear you Nabiki." said Ranma.
	Akane frowned and looked at Ranma in disbelief. She was enjoying
this far to much. "Ranma stop it your scaring me." she said backing away.
	Ranma stopped and stared at her. "I-I'm sorry Akane." she said
looking at her blankly. With that she turned and walked into the school.
"What happened to me?" she said to herself as she walked in followed by
the other three students, they all went to their respective classes
walked in.

	A few moments later in the hall....

	"Ranma what happened to you?" asked Akane as she shifted her
bucket.
	"I don't know, I was enjoying myself. I'm not sure why but I
actually had fun doing that." said Ranma calmly. 
	"It was terrible to do that to him, even if he deserved it." said
Akane in shock.
	"In a few days, after I release him, He'll be thanking me for
it." said Ranma calmly.
	"What do you mean?" asked Akane.
	"Kuno has been lying to himself for a very long time, I don't
think he even knew he was doing it anymore." said Ranma with a heavy
sigh. "I released him from an eternal loop of lies. If someone hadn't
stopped him it would have continued forever." said Ranma looking at the
ceiling.
	
	Down the hall...
	
	"Nabiki, My poetry is bad." sighed Kuno.
	"Yes it is Kuno chan." replied Nabiki.
	"You say that to annoy me." said Kuno not really paying
attention.
	"Kuno?"
	"Yes?" 
	"Shut up."

	Later that day...

	 Soun Tendo sat on the porch of his home and sighed. "I shall
drink to your memory my old friend." he said looking up at the sky as the
panda he was speaking of plopped down beside him. Soun poured himself a
small glass of sake and downed it quickly.
	Akane walked into the room and sat at the table. Ranma leaned her
head against the table and read one of her many books as she watched the
television with Akane and Nabiki, who was playing with her camcorder.
	"Eh?" said Soun and Genma in unison as Kuno walked across the
yard towards the house.
	"Ah, Mr. Tendo, it is agreeable to see you again. I have come to
annoy your daughter with bad poetry and my unwanted advances." he said
cheerfully and then stopped. He hung his head and faced the pair on the
porch. He bowed to Soun "I apologize for the intrusion." He then turned
to the naked Genma. He sweat a little and bowed to him as well. "The same
to you good sir." he said and turned to walk away.
	"What was that all about?" said Soun in suprise.
	"Growf." answered Genma.
	
	"Its kind of nice having Kuno chan so truthful isn't it Akane."
said Nabiki as she walked up the stairs with her camcorder pointed at
him.
	"I guess, but I still think you shouldn't have done it Ranma. I
mean Kuno can get into real trouble if he can't even tell a little lie."
she said watching him sulk away.
	"Who said he couldn't lie?" said Ranma with a smile on her face.
	"What?" said Akane a bit suprise.
	"He can lie all he wants. He just couldn't hear it if he did. Its
not my fault he didn't understand what I did to him." replied Ranma.

	A few hours later...

 	A frustrated Kuno walked out of a movie theater. "I don't
believe it. I couldn't see or hear the film I so wanted to see!" he
ranted. He turned and looked at a book store and frowned. Almost half the
books in the store looked totally blank to him, every thing under fiction
and even a good portion of the non fiction. He  turned away and looked at
a news paper, about half its pages were blank. Near by a large group of
children stood watching what appeared to be blank television screens in
the front of an appliance store. "This is most irritating." he muttered
and walked towards his home. He stopped and paled as a naked boy with a
bandanna tied around his neck wandered by on his hands and knees.
"Perhaps I should hasten my return, My sister is no doubt Unconcerned
with my absence." he said as he sped up his stride.
	
	At a dock on the other side of Japan...
	
	Two young women in Chinese clothes stepped off the plank and onto
the soil of Japan. the took positions on either side of the boarding
plank and held their long spears at their sides standing like an honor
guard. An aged woman in Chinese robes balancing delicately on a crooked
staff pogoed down and hopped between them.
	<You two go and find Young Mousse, tell him of the situation and
make sure he complies, I warn you not to let your guard down he is more
powerful than you think. He is not the weak boy you once knew, it will
take all your skills to keep yourselves alive until you can speak to him
if he decides not to listen to you. I will deal with this 'Ranma'.> she
said to them with out turning.
	<Yes, mistress Cologne.> replied the pair.
	<One more thing. If he still has it, make sure you get it back
intact.> she said before disappearing from view.
	<Yes, mistress.> replied the pair bowing before they went of on
their own quest.
	TbC.....

C&C to Catbert25@aol.com

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