Author's Note: So, here you are, Chapter The Next. Thanks again for all the comments and remember to remind me to post! Things are getting crazy now because I am preparing to move away for college and what not, so I am very liable to forget. ;)

Also, some food for thought…there is something going on in the background, kinda. It's pretty important, and no one has noticed it yet (in the story or any of my readers). Someone will notice in the story sometime within the next few chapters. Just thought I'd throw a torturous curiosity bone out there. Good luck and enjoy:)

Worlds Fall Apart

Chapter 10-Conversations

Ranma walked along with her hands in her pockets and looking up at the clear blue sky. She shifted her shoulders again and grimaced…this was the first time she was wearing a bra of any kind out in public, and she had been horribly nervous about going outside with it on. Sure, it was just a plain black cotton sports bra, but she was horribly paranoid that you could see it through her shirt. The Chinese silk she wore WAS rather thin…But I'm a girl, it's okay if I have a bra on…she thought. She had to admit, it was infinitely more comfortable, and she had run around and jumped about quite a bit during her walk, amazed at how much more comfortable it was without everything bouncing around.

"Yo, Akane!" Ranma said suddenly as she saw Akane sitting on the swings in the park. She had tried, on random occasions when she decided she'd risk the almost definite glare, to make attempts at reconciliation with the girl.

Aaaaand there it is…the glare…Ranma thought as Akane pierced her with a death glare that could scare a piranha.

"Awww, come on! Quit being so pig headed! You can't stay mad at me forever!" Ranma said.

"Leave me alone, Ranma," Akane said, and turned her head huffily to the side.

"Akane…" Ranma tried again.

"I believe the lady said to leave her alone," Ryoga said suddenly. He had appeared, apparently from his campsite, holding two steaming cups of ramen, one of which he handed to Akane, and Ranma was a bit startled to see them…hanging out like this. What on Earth? Why's she all hanging around Ryoga and stuff now? Is she trying to make me jealous or something?

"Speaking of pigs…" Ranma said cleverly.

"What was that?" Ryoga asked, digging his elbow into Ranma's head.

"Well, I'll leave you two love birds alone," Ranma said in the most infuriating voice she could muster, just to embarrass Ryoga to make things incredibly awkward. It was her duty, after all, to make his life a living hell, right?

"Oh, shut up, Ranma!" Akane said, "You know it's not like that!"

"Y-yeah!" Ryoga said, turning red. No, it's more like Akane coming over constantly to cry to me about how hurt and confused she is over stupid Ranma!

"Whatever," Ranma shrugged, "But you can't just ignore me forever, you know. I am living in the same house as you, it's not as if you ignore me I'll just go away,"

"Yeah, freeloading at my house!" Akane screamed, "We're obviously not engaged anymore, why don't you just go away!"

"Hey, I ain't got nowhere to go, and it's your stupid Dad's fault I'm like this!"

"Well, it's your stupid fault that it all fell apart!"

"You think I WANTED it to? I never asked Ukyo and Shampoo to come putting spells on me!"

"Don't you blame them," Akane said, "You're the idiot who didn't read the directions on that clarity spell, so it was you who messed things up in the first place! What on Earth were you using such a powerful clarity spell for anyway? Probably to pick between all the girls you keep dragging along!"

"Shows what you know! I was using the stupid spell because of you! I only wanted to know how I felt about you so I could be sure if we should really get married or what!" Ranma shouted, realizing too late that he had just given her way too much information. Oh no! she thought, clapping her hand over her mouth. She had been intending to never to tell anyone about the spell, it had so conveniently been forgotten in the rush following the great tragedy…but now…

"You…you were…?" Akane said, her eyes growing big and wet, "And…did you…I mean…what…"

"Look, whatever, I ain't got time for this!" Ranma said hurriedly, "I gotta go, Dr. Tofu is waiting for me, later!"

And with that, she ran off, leaving a startled Akane and a confused Ryoga in the park. Ryoga shifted uncomfortably and cursed Ranma silently for making things so uncomfortable. He knew Akane only came to talk about Ranma, but she was finally starting to ease up on that a bit and have an actual conversation with him, and then Ranma comes and ruins it, the jerk!

As much as Ryoga knew Akane was in love with Ranma, and he knew it was a bad idea and he should just try to get over her, she kept…coming over. And that was making it all very difficult for him. He had to admit though…his feelings were different now. They were tinged with bitterness. He didn't seem able to move on from Akane, and he wasn't sure he wanted to, but whenever she came, he was no longer filled with pure joy, but also with regret and bitterness and a little anger. Yet, for some reason, that made him able to be around her. He was no longer looking at her like a moon eyed fool in love, and so he could speak without stuttering, he could give her advice…in short, he didn't feel like Dr. Tofu around Kasumi. He could talk to Akane like a person. Heck! They even had a few laughs!

It was the bitterness that had done it, he was sure of it. He had been so upset, so depressed when she admitted she loved Ranma, and he couldn't forget the pain she had put him through easily, especially when she still sighed and lamented her fate regarding the jerk. This had, in a way, humanized her for Ryoga. She wasn't perfect, a flawless Goddess. She was still absolutely amazing, but she was human…she was capable of heartlessly hurting Ryoga, not taking his feelings into consideration. Heck she was doing it right now…

"Ryoga…why does Ranma always have to hurt me like that?" She said sadly, her eyes filling with tears.

"Hey, don't worry, Ranma's just going through some stuff. Besides, she's never been all that great at expressing feelings anyway, you know that…Ranma can be a damn insensitive jerk," Ryoga said, silently wishing they could go back to their conversation about Shogi from before Ranma came by. It had been a nice change.

"He was always so obsessed with being manly," Akane said, "I guess I just can't fathom that he's a…a girl, ya know?"

Ryoga made a non-committal grunting sound, and Akane went on.

"I guess I should have seen it coming, he did change into a girl a lot when he was…a he. You know, like he always used to become a girl to win fights or to tease you or to get free food. I guess, maybe he has always been a girl at heart,"

"I don't think so, Ranma will just do anything to win, you know that," Ryoga said.

"I just can't help but think that Ranma never cared about me at all…that I was always just his dumb, un-cute fiancé who was in his way all the time," Akane said with a sigh.

"Akane, you're not dumb! You are amazing! You are smart, and beautiful, and any guy in their right mind would be lucky to have you! I know I…" Ryoga started, heart pounding as he seemed to be barging recklessly into a confession.

But he never finished because Akane interrupted him with a smile (a welcome thing) and a sentence that was the bane of many poor guys, "Oh, Ryoga! You are such a great friend!"

"Gee, thanks," Ryoga said, slumping down slightly.

Not noticing his sarcasm, Akane went on, "Really! You are so kind to me and such a good listener! I have really been enjoying talking with you and hanging out with you these past few weeks…really,"

Ryoga beamed. It wasn't a confession of love, but damnit! It was a start! Was Akane really starting to appreciate him? Was he really starting to become more than her pet P-Chan? Ryoga smiled at her, but behind that smile was some reserve…it wasn't the jump for joy thing it once would have been…his mind was screaming at him that this should be the happiest moment of his life, but his heart just didn't seem to care as much as it once did. It cared, it definitely cared, a whole lot, but…not as much as it used to…The thought vaguely passed through Ryoga's mind that maybe he was finally getting over Akane, but only vaguely. It flitted by, and then was gone when he looked at her sweet smile. He smiled back and then looked out at the setting sun.

"Hey, what's up, Doc?" Ranma asked Dr. Tofu as he wandered into his office to see her.

"Ranma, you came, excellent!" Dr. Tofu said.

"Of course," Ranma said, "So, what did you want to see me about?"

"A check up," Dr. Tofu said, then motioned for Ranma to come into a room, "It's been about 3 weeks since you were last in here. Usually I do check ups two weeks after a major incident, but I didn't want to rush you. Kasumi tells me you have been doing better, so I thought I had better drag you in here and poke and prod you with stethoscopes and thermometers,"

"Erm…okay," Ranma said, and sat down on the table as Dr. Tofu proceeded to do exactly as he had promised and poked and prodded her with a variety of medical equipment.

"Was the spell you did on me really that dangerous?" Ranma wondered.

"Well, yes…but…" Dr. Tofu began, then pulled up a chair and sat down, looking at Ranma, "That is not the only reason I called you here,"

Ranma froze up as she wondered what he could possibly be about to break to her, and she was sure she must have gone a bit pale and possibly stopped breathing because he laughed good naturedly and said, "Don't worry, it's nothing bad. I was just wondering how you are holding up, you know, mentally…"

"Oh…" Ranma said, and breathed a sigh of relief, "Okay, I guess,"

Dr. Tofu nodded at Ranma seemingly motioning to her to go on.

"Well…I was pretty upset at first, you know, obviously…I was angry, and I thought it must be a mistake…I…" Ranma stopped, looking at the ground awkwardly. She had never been real big on talking about her feelings, and she didn't even know how Dr. Tofu had gotten her to say that much.

"Go on," Dr. Tofu said, "Ranma, you can talk to me. I am your doctor, after all, and I may not be a psychiatrist, but I am a good listener, and I will keep everything said between us in the utmost confidentiality,"

Ranma bit her lower lip…she DID want to talk to someone, and, well…Dr. Tofu was a nice guy, and easy to talk to, and he was pretty neutral to the whole situation…but, well, this wasn't exactly the easiest thing to talk about and…

"Ranma, you can trust me, I promise," Dr. Tofu said with a smile so disarming that Ranma just caved and started to spill.

"I didn't want to believe it, it destroyed everything I knew, so I kept denying it, but then I started to get those memories, and they keep coming, and I can remember bits and pieces of my life as a girl. It is kind of foggy and very pieced, but I can remember it…I was a girl…" Ranma said, then took a deep breath, "And as much as I want to deny it, I can't because I know it is real, so that means my only option is to accept it and try and get used to it. But I am afraid of what other people will think if I do. I know I have to do that, but other people don't…can't know what I have to do, so what if they think I am a freak or pervert for wanting to get used to this?"

"Who would think that?" Dr. Tofu said, "I know I don't, and I'm sure your friends don't either, they might just have a little trouble adjusting,"

"Try a lot of trouble! Akane won't even talk to me!" Ranma said, "Pop ignores me, I haven't even heard from Shampoo or Mousse, Nabiki thinks I am her new dress up doll, and Ryoga was being way too nice! Only Ukyo seems able to cope since she has the most memories because we were kids together…"

"Has she been remembering?" Dr. Tofu asked.

"Yeah," Ranma said, "Those memories are pretty strange. They are almost like seizures. They come at random, and I sieze up, and my eyes shut, and I can see, hear, taste, smell, or feel whatever happened, sometimes clearly, sometimes not. Then I snap back and have to shake it off…I've seen it happen to her,"

"The memories should help people to cope, the more they remember you as a female, the more they will be able to fathom it," Dr. Tofu suggested, "The ones without memories of you as a girl will just have to get used to it,"

Ranma nodded and thought of what Ryoga had said, about how he would never see Ranma as a girl, he would always be a guy. And Ranma suspected that Ryoga might also be having those strange memories, but he seems to not be admitting it for some reason.

"I dunno," Ranma said with a hopeless shrug, then went on, "It's just, I feel like everyone thinks I am a total freak!"

"Well, I don't," Dr. Tofu said, "And I'm sure others don't either, they probably just don't know how to deal, and sometimes we say hurtful things when we are angry,"

"But…sometimes I think, what if they are right?" Ranma said.

"Do you think you are a freak?" Dr. Tofu asked.

"I…I…for Gods sake I am wearing a bra!" Ranma blurted out, throwing her hands in the air, "Ranma Saotome, man among men, is wearing a bra! And you know what the worst part is? I don't MIND! I kind of like it! It's more comfortable than going braless, and you know what that means, that means I am thinking like a girl, acting like a girl! I am having a girls thoughts!"

"Well, you are a girl. You've accepted that, right? So what's so bad about having a girls thoughts?" Dr. Tofu wondered.

"It's not…me…" Ranma said dejectedly, "Or maybe it is…the thing is, I am changing, and I can't seem to stop it. I can't seem to think and feel the way I used to. Like, they aren't my thoughts, but they are. It's hard to explain…"

"You, the male Ranma, never would have had those thoughts, so you feel they are not like you. But as you spend more time as a girl, regaining memories of your former life, these thoughts are occurring naturally, and you seem to know they are your thoughts, even if the current you would never dream of having them," Dr. Tofu ventured.

Ranma simply blinked at him and nodded dumbly, "Exactly…"

"Well, Ranma, allow me to get philosophical here…you think, therefore you are, right?"

"Whazzat?" Ranma asked, raising a confused eyebrow.

"What I mean is, you are having these thoughts, so clearly they are yours," Dr. Tofu said, "In a way, your thoughts make up who you are, right? Because only you can have them…maybe you should listen to your thoughts, and not other people. Worry, for now, about what you are thinking, and not about what other people would think of your thoughts. You need to become comfortable with yourself before you can expect other people to feel comfortable with you,"

"I guess," Ranma said, slumping and looking at the floor.

"Besides, trying to deal with other people and your own issues at the same time is very tiring," Dr. Tofu said, "One thing at a time, don't you agree?"

"Yeah," Ranma said, "I do…thanks, Dr. Tofu…thanks a lot, it has been…really helpful to be able to talk to you about this…"

"Anytime," Dr. Tofu said, and then when he saw the look on Ranma's face, a look that clearly said she had not said everything on her mind and couldn't not in one day, he added, "How about once a week?"

"I don't want to be a burden…" Ranma said politely.

"It's my pleasure! Dr. Tofu said, "Same time next Friday then?"

"Okay!" Ranma smiled, and headed out the door.