Disclaimer: All anime characters portrayed in this series are owned by
their respective creators, as are any original characters that appear.
This is a work of fanfiction and is not to be taken literally.
------Introduction------
I yawned, "I dunno what you're talking about. Crystal is a character I designed."
Washu persued her statement, "Ah, but where did the primary basis for your character come from?"
"Myself I guess," I answered, "but how could she and I be one and the same?"
"You and she are more alike than you want to admit. She shares your feelings of being alone and scared. She has your determination and spirit. She also has the confidence and courage that you believe you have lost. Sure she has a bunch of cool special powers, but those are what you imagine you would have in a world like the one your dream about," said Washu. "Maybe when you figure out who you really are you will be able to go home if you want to."
I let the idea sink in, "Well for now I plan to keep being Crystal. After all, the people around here expect to see Crystal, not Rachel."
------Who Agreed to This?!------
My early morning stroll through town was pleasant enough. At least it was quiet and I was given a little time to clear my head and go over the things that had occured in the last twenty-four hours. At that time I was rather confused and so deep in thought that I didn't notice much of what was going on around me. To be honest it was much like what happened when I got to school early in my world and just wandered aimlessly around the school grounds; the big difference was I wasn't yet at school and I was wandering aimless around a much larger area.
In fact I was so involved in my thoughts that I failed to realize just where I had wandered to. I was at Nerima District Park yet again. It was a fitting location and a place I quite often used as the central location for role playing. A peaceful place like the park in early morning was the perfect place to try and clear one's head.
I was about to sit down by the park fountain when something caught my eye and stopped me in my tracks. Wandering around the park was the same little black piglet I had dropped off at the Tendo House the previous evening. I sighed and walked over to P-chan/Ryoga.
"You look like you could use some help," I said.
The little pig nodded, obviously recognizing who I was and that was more than capable of being helpful. I snapped my fingers and materialized two things of importance, his clothes and a tea kettle full of hot water. I placed the clothes beside him, poured the contents of the kettle over his head and turned around so he could put his clothes on.
"I assume Ranma had something to do with this," I said without turning around.
Ryoga muttered, "I define him kicking me out of a window as having a lot to do with my present situation. Well you can turn around now..." The fact that I was a girl registered to him after he stopped muttering about Ranma. "S..s..so uh...wh...what..br..brings..y..you...h..here?"
I turned around and sweatdropped, "You realize that yesterday you had no trouble talking to me even though by all means I've been a girl the whole time and now suddenly you are stuttering like an idiot. I was just wandering around aimlessly to clear my head and relax a little before going to school."
Ryoga snapped out of it almost instantly as the fact that I was indeed the same person I had been the day before hit him. Then he asked the question I had been expecting, "So if you're a girl, what in the world were you doing in the boys locker room yesterday?!"
"Uh...the funny thing about that is," I answered trying to sound at least partially serious, "I have no clue."
It was Ryoga's turn to sweatdrop.
"I did manage to get back to my apartment though," I stated before he asked the other question that had probably been eating away at the people who knew about my little 'problem'.
"Uh...I don't suppose you could help me get back to the Tendo House?" asked Ryoga.
I shrugged, "Not a problem. I have plenty of time before school starts." I started walking, "Just follow me."
*~*~*~*~*
There was little need for explanation once I had taken Ryoga to the Tendo House. Ranma and Akane were just heading out on the way to Furinkan and it turned out I had less time on my hands than I thought [ok so I should have been wearing a watch, big deal]. Ryoga said hello to Akane and then wandered off saying something about a training trip in the mountains.
Since all of us were kind of behind schedule, I ended up joining Ranma and Akane in running to the school.
"So you're trying to look more like a girl today I see," noted Ranma from his place running on top of the fence.
Akane swung her bookbag at Ranma's head, and he dodged it. This happened about eight more times before Ranma lost his balance on a loose section of fence and fell in the water that was on the other side, going instantly female.
"This is just great," muttered a very soaked Ranma as she jumped back over the fence.
I shrugged, "I wasn't actually trying to look more like a girl, but you know Ranma, you don't even have to try."
Ranma was about to make some rude comeback, but I was ready for that too. With a snap of my fingers I was holding yet another kettle of hot water.
"You want this, don't you?" I asked.
Ranma nodded and decided to back off. She took the kettle and poured the contents over her head returning to being a boy.
"We should get moving or we're going to be late," noted Akane.
"Uh...right," agreed Ranma and I at the same time.
All three of us broke into a run for Furinkan High School once again.
*~*~*~*~*
As we entered the school gates, we were greeted by Tatewaki Kuno, who was as usual trying to free both of his beloveds from the clutches of Ranma Saotome. He probably would have issued a morning challenge, except for the fact that I was with Ranma and Akane and by all means he couldn't seem to register who I was. "I see you've lured another young girl into your clutches you tyrant!"
"I am not being lured into anything!" I shouted defensively.
At the same time Ranma shouted, "I am not a tyrant!"
Akane decided to resolve the situation so that the three of us wouldn't be any later than we already were. "Upperclassman Kuno, you remember Crystal don't you?"
Kuno couldn't seem to register the name to my current appearence. "You must be joking, this is a lovely girl. The one called Crystal is a man."
"I really have been meaning to clear that up, but it is quite difficult to clear the public opinion when popular belief states that I am a boy," I said.
"What brainwashing spells have you cast on this one Saotome?!" shouted Kuno drawing forth his bokken ready to strike Ranma. If he couldn't find an answer he liked, the obvious solution seemed to be 'blame Ranma'.
*CRACK!* A rather large phonebook connected with Kuno's head. He fell over with a nice thud and proceded to lose consciousness.
"That always seems to come in handy," I smirked to myself.
Ranma couldn't help asking, "How did you do that?"
"The same way I materialize everything else out of thin air," I answered.
"How's that?" probed Ranma.
"It's a trade secret," I answered. "Now I believe we should be getting to class before Miss Hinako gets any ideas that involve the draining of battle aura. I like my energy right where it is."
With that we headed to class, leaving a very unconscious, and sure to be confused Tatewaki Kuno on the ground.
*~*~*~*~*
Because of the little interruption when we tried to get to class, we ended up late. At least all we had to do was stand in the hall holding buckets of water, because I really didn't feel like losing my energy. Being quiet was something I was naturally good at, I didn't have any trouble standing quietly.
Ranma was fuming, obviously thinking of a dozen things he wanted to do about the Kuno problem. His battle aura was quite visible and was causing the water in his buckets to boil. Akane and I subconsciously edge away so as not to get burned.
*~*~*~*~*
It was a relief when school was over. I stayed an hour after school to do my homework so I wouldn't have to do it in the middle of the night again. After that I made my way to Nerima District Park. I highly doubted Washu would be interfering today and the odds were it would take me a much longer time to reach my apartment.
"I could start looking now," I said to myself while sitting up in a tree overlooking most of the park, "or I could explore Nerima a bit."
I decided to go with the latter. It made more sense to try and enjoy my time in my new world rather than make myself miserable going on another wild goose chase that I already knew the end result of. I jumped out of the tree and started walking in a random direction to do some exploring.
*~*~*~*~*
As I was walking, I started looking up at the sky thinking ~Those clouds are cool looking...that one looks like a dragon...and oh, there's a phoenix...and even...~ I was rudely knocked back to planet earth as I crashed head on into a brick wall. It took me a few minutes to reorient myself enough to peel back from the wall and regain my composure. My head was spinning.
"Where the heck did that wall come from?!" I muttered, beginning to walk away back in the direction of Nerima District Park.
A sensation of danger made me stop in my tracks. I ducked down just as a bonbori went flying over my head. Just what I needed, the Amazon known as Shampoo.
"What in the world was that for?!" I shouted.
Shampoo merely answered, "New girl seen with Ranma, Shampoo remove before cause trouble."
"First of all the name is Crystal! Secondly, I don't have a clue what you're getting at because quite frankly I have a severe lack of interest in getting involved in relationships!" I shouted trying to get my point through to Shampoo.
I jumped aside as a flurry of spatulas flew past me. This was not going well. I obviously couldn't talk my way through this situation if the people I was trying to reason with weren't even listening.
"I'm not going to let you have all the fun Shampoo," said Ukyo jumping down from a nearby rooftop.
I argued, "I didn't do anything!"
Ever since this little show had left the storyboard of that role playing game and started writing itself it had been nothing short of confusing. Now I was scared and I had no idea what I should be doing. I really wished that I had my sword, but that was back at my apartment. It struck me that I was totally alone and I was the only one that could control how this would effect me.
"Then what were you doing with Ranma-honey this morning?" asked Ukyo.
At least she was listening to me, which was less than I could say about Shampoo who took another swing at my head. I dodged it again of coarse.
After I was out of harms way I answered, "Well I was sort of helping Ryoga get to the Training Hall to see Akane and it turned out I was short on time for reaching school. Ranma and Akane invited me to go along with them and I went along with it since we were all headed the same way. It doesn't really mean anything..."
Then a third figure came in out of nowhere, twirling a ribbon and laughing maniacally. I sure as hell did not need this. Before I knew what was happening, I was paralyzed. I sighed ~Do what you want with me, but I won't fight back.~ I lost consciousness a split second later.
*~*~*~*~*
I woke up and took in my surroundings. It took me a second to figure out where I was, and then there was a matter of me remembering what had happened. My head was killing me and I was sore all over. It must have been the side-effect of the paralysis poweder or something, but one thing was certain, I was still very much alive.
"You were out of it for a while," said Akane.
I tried to talk, but had trouble finding my voice.
Ranma added, "Ukyo already explained everything that happened. Apparently when Kuno got involved, the news about you being a girl spread fast. Of coarse it hit everyone differently..."
I sighed, "Well I hope that was the worst of it..."
"Sorry I attacked you," said Ukyo.
"Don't worry about it," I said, "everyone makes mistakes. It's all a part of being human." I attempted to sit up and fell right back to lying on the floor of the Dojo.
Akane said, "It looks like Kodachi decided to test a new stronger version of her paralysis powder on you."
I muttered, "Well it worked." I was tired and within a few minutes I was asleep again.
*~*~*~*~*
I woke up later, able to move and no longer in pain. I was on the couch in my apartment and my schoolbag was on the table with a note attached to it. I read the note.
-To Crystal, We decided to take you back to your apartment so you wouldn't have to waste your time with that when you woke up. It wasn't all that hard to find which might suggest that it does sprout wings and fly away when you are looking for it. See ya at school tomorrow. ~Ranma, Akane and Ukyo
I smiled, "Well at least that is something to look forward to."
It was almost summer and I was starting to fit into the happenings in Nerima. Things were going my way.
*~*~*~*~*
To Be Continued...
*~*~*~*~*
Author's Note3: From here on in the episodes will be a bit more random and most likely more comical. This episode took a little longer to write because I've been so caught up in my role playing and doing stuff away from the computer. The next episode will be up as soon as it is done.
I feel more like writing when I know people are looking forward to it. That means that when I get good reviews I feel more inspired to continue writing. Well that's all for now.
------Introduction------
I yawned, "I dunno what you're talking about. Crystal is a character I designed."
Washu persued her statement, "Ah, but where did the primary basis for your character come from?"
"Myself I guess," I answered, "but how could she and I be one and the same?"
"You and she are more alike than you want to admit. She shares your feelings of being alone and scared. She has your determination and spirit. She also has the confidence and courage that you believe you have lost. Sure she has a bunch of cool special powers, but those are what you imagine you would have in a world like the one your dream about," said Washu. "Maybe when you figure out who you really are you will be able to go home if you want to."
I let the idea sink in, "Well for now I plan to keep being Crystal. After all, the people around here expect to see Crystal, not Rachel."
------Who Agreed to This?!------
My early morning stroll through town was pleasant enough. At least it was quiet and I was given a little time to clear my head and go over the things that had occured in the last twenty-four hours. At that time I was rather confused and so deep in thought that I didn't notice much of what was going on around me. To be honest it was much like what happened when I got to school early in my world and just wandered aimlessly around the school grounds; the big difference was I wasn't yet at school and I was wandering aimless around a much larger area.
In fact I was so involved in my thoughts that I failed to realize just where I had wandered to. I was at Nerima District Park yet again. It was a fitting location and a place I quite often used as the central location for role playing. A peaceful place like the park in early morning was the perfect place to try and clear one's head.
I was about to sit down by the park fountain when something caught my eye and stopped me in my tracks. Wandering around the park was the same little black piglet I had dropped off at the Tendo House the previous evening. I sighed and walked over to P-chan/Ryoga.
"You look like you could use some help," I said.
The little pig nodded, obviously recognizing who I was and that was more than capable of being helpful. I snapped my fingers and materialized two things of importance, his clothes and a tea kettle full of hot water. I placed the clothes beside him, poured the contents of the kettle over his head and turned around so he could put his clothes on.
"I assume Ranma had something to do with this," I said without turning around.
Ryoga muttered, "I define him kicking me out of a window as having a lot to do with my present situation. Well you can turn around now..." The fact that I was a girl registered to him after he stopped muttering about Ranma. "S..s..so uh...wh...what..br..brings..y..you...h..here?"
I turned around and sweatdropped, "You realize that yesterday you had no trouble talking to me even though by all means I've been a girl the whole time and now suddenly you are stuttering like an idiot. I was just wandering around aimlessly to clear my head and relax a little before going to school."
Ryoga snapped out of it almost instantly as the fact that I was indeed the same person I had been the day before hit him. Then he asked the question I had been expecting, "So if you're a girl, what in the world were you doing in the boys locker room yesterday?!"
"Uh...the funny thing about that is," I answered trying to sound at least partially serious, "I have no clue."
It was Ryoga's turn to sweatdrop.
"I did manage to get back to my apartment though," I stated before he asked the other question that had probably been eating away at the people who knew about my little 'problem'.
"Uh...I don't suppose you could help me get back to the Tendo House?" asked Ryoga.
I shrugged, "Not a problem. I have plenty of time before school starts." I started walking, "Just follow me."
*~*~*~*~*
There was little need for explanation once I had taken Ryoga to the Tendo House. Ranma and Akane were just heading out on the way to Furinkan and it turned out I had less time on my hands than I thought [ok so I should have been wearing a watch, big deal]. Ryoga said hello to Akane and then wandered off saying something about a training trip in the mountains.
Since all of us were kind of behind schedule, I ended up joining Ranma and Akane in running to the school.
"So you're trying to look more like a girl today I see," noted Ranma from his place running on top of the fence.
Akane swung her bookbag at Ranma's head, and he dodged it. This happened about eight more times before Ranma lost his balance on a loose section of fence and fell in the water that was on the other side, going instantly female.
"This is just great," muttered a very soaked Ranma as she jumped back over the fence.
I shrugged, "I wasn't actually trying to look more like a girl, but you know Ranma, you don't even have to try."
Ranma was about to make some rude comeback, but I was ready for that too. With a snap of my fingers I was holding yet another kettle of hot water.
"You want this, don't you?" I asked.
Ranma nodded and decided to back off. She took the kettle and poured the contents over her head returning to being a boy.
"We should get moving or we're going to be late," noted Akane.
"Uh...right," agreed Ranma and I at the same time.
All three of us broke into a run for Furinkan High School once again.
*~*~*~*~*
As we entered the school gates, we were greeted by Tatewaki Kuno, who was as usual trying to free both of his beloveds from the clutches of Ranma Saotome. He probably would have issued a morning challenge, except for the fact that I was with Ranma and Akane and by all means he couldn't seem to register who I was. "I see you've lured another young girl into your clutches you tyrant!"
"I am not being lured into anything!" I shouted defensively.
At the same time Ranma shouted, "I am not a tyrant!"
Akane decided to resolve the situation so that the three of us wouldn't be any later than we already were. "Upperclassman Kuno, you remember Crystal don't you?"
Kuno couldn't seem to register the name to my current appearence. "You must be joking, this is a lovely girl. The one called Crystal is a man."
"I really have been meaning to clear that up, but it is quite difficult to clear the public opinion when popular belief states that I am a boy," I said.
"What brainwashing spells have you cast on this one Saotome?!" shouted Kuno drawing forth his bokken ready to strike Ranma. If he couldn't find an answer he liked, the obvious solution seemed to be 'blame Ranma'.
*CRACK!* A rather large phonebook connected with Kuno's head. He fell over with a nice thud and proceded to lose consciousness.
"That always seems to come in handy," I smirked to myself.
Ranma couldn't help asking, "How did you do that?"
"The same way I materialize everything else out of thin air," I answered.
"How's that?" probed Ranma.
"It's a trade secret," I answered. "Now I believe we should be getting to class before Miss Hinako gets any ideas that involve the draining of battle aura. I like my energy right where it is."
With that we headed to class, leaving a very unconscious, and sure to be confused Tatewaki Kuno on the ground.
*~*~*~*~*
Because of the little interruption when we tried to get to class, we ended up late. At least all we had to do was stand in the hall holding buckets of water, because I really didn't feel like losing my energy. Being quiet was something I was naturally good at, I didn't have any trouble standing quietly.
Ranma was fuming, obviously thinking of a dozen things he wanted to do about the Kuno problem. His battle aura was quite visible and was causing the water in his buckets to boil. Akane and I subconsciously edge away so as not to get burned.
*~*~*~*~*
It was a relief when school was over. I stayed an hour after school to do my homework so I wouldn't have to do it in the middle of the night again. After that I made my way to Nerima District Park. I highly doubted Washu would be interfering today and the odds were it would take me a much longer time to reach my apartment.
"I could start looking now," I said to myself while sitting up in a tree overlooking most of the park, "or I could explore Nerima a bit."
I decided to go with the latter. It made more sense to try and enjoy my time in my new world rather than make myself miserable going on another wild goose chase that I already knew the end result of. I jumped out of the tree and started walking in a random direction to do some exploring.
*~*~*~*~*
As I was walking, I started looking up at the sky thinking ~Those clouds are cool looking...that one looks like a dragon...and oh, there's a phoenix...and even...~ I was rudely knocked back to planet earth as I crashed head on into a brick wall. It took me a few minutes to reorient myself enough to peel back from the wall and regain my composure. My head was spinning.
"Where the heck did that wall come from?!" I muttered, beginning to walk away back in the direction of Nerima District Park.
A sensation of danger made me stop in my tracks. I ducked down just as a bonbori went flying over my head. Just what I needed, the Amazon known as Shampoo.
"What in the world was that for?!" I shouted.
Shampoo merely answered, "New girl seen with Ranma, Shampoo remove before cause trouble."
"First of all the name is Crystal! Secondly, I don't have a clue what you're getting at because quite frankly I have a severe lack of interest in getting involved in relationships!" I shouted trying to get my point through to Shampoo.
I jumped aside as a flurry of spatulas flew past me. This was not going well. I obviously couldn't talk my way through this situation if the people I was trying to reason with weren't even listening.
"I'm not going to let you have all the fun Shampoo," said Ukyo jumping down from a nearby rooftop.
I argued, "I didn't do anything!"
Ever since this little show had left the storyboard of that role playing game and started writing itself it had been nothing short of confusing. Now I was scared and I had no idea what I should be doing. I really wished that I had my sword, but that was back at my apartment. It struck me that I was totally alone and I was the only one that could control how this would effect me.
"Then what were you doing with Ranma-honey this morning?" asked Ukyo.
At least she was listening to me, which was less than I could say about Shampoo who took another swing at my head. I dodged it again of coarse.
After I was out of harms way I answered, "Well I was sort of helping Ryoga get to the Training Hall to see Akane and it turned out I was short on time for reaching school. Ranma and Akane invited me to go along with them and I went along with it since we were all headed the same way. It doesn't really mean anything..."
Then a third figure came in out of nowhere, twirling a ribbon and laughing maniacally. I sure as hell did not need this. Before I knew what was happening, I was paralyzed. I sighed ~Do what you want with me, but I won't fight back.~ I lost consciousness a split second later.
*~*~*~*~*
I woke up and took in my surroundings. It took me a second to figure out where I was, and then there was a matter of me remembering what had happened. My head was killing me and I was sore all over. It must have been the side-effect of the paralysis poweder or something, but one thing was certain, I was still very much alive.
"You were out of it for a while," said Akane.
I tried to talk, but had trouble finding my voice.
Ranma added, "Ukyo already explained everything that happened. Apparently when Kuno got involved, the news about you being a girl spread fast. Of coarse it hit everyone differently..."
I sighed, "Well I hope that was the worst of it..."
"Sorry I attacked you," said Ukyo.
"Don't worry about it," I said, "everyone makes mistakes. It's all a part of being human." I attempted to sit up and fell right back to lying on the floor of the Dojo.
Akane said, "It looks like Kodachi decided to test a new stronger version of her paralysis powder on you."
I muttered, "Well it worked." I was tired and within a few minutes I was asleep again.
*~*~*~*~*
I woke up later, able to move and no longer in pain. I was on the couch in my apartment and my schoolbag was on the table with a note attached to it. I read the note.
-To Crystal, We decided to take you back to your apartment so you wouldn't have to waste your time with that when you woke up. It wasn't all that hard to find which might suggest that it does sprout wings and fly away when you are looking for it. See ya at school tomorrow. ~Ranma, Akane and Ukyo
I smiled, "Well at least that is something to look forward to."
It was almost summer and I was starting to fit into the happenings in Nerima. Things were going my way.
*~*~*~*~*
To Be Continued...
*~*~*~*~*
Author's Note3: From here on in the episodes will be a bit more random and most likely more comical. This episode took a little longer to write because I've been so caught up in my role playing and doing stuff away from the computer. The next episode will be up as soon as it is done.
I feel more like writing when I know people are looking forward to it. That means that when I get good reviews I feel more inspired to continue writing. Well that's all for now.