Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma 1/2, nor do I take any repsonsibility for the OOC acting in my story. So, if you so much as blink at me... I'll slap you silly.

I find it hard to understand why people act the way they do…When they insult me I try to envision why from their point of view and you know what I've realized? Most of the time they only do hurt people because they like seeing the reactions, not because they really want to be utterly cruel… though there are exceptions. When they truly want to be utterly and completely cruel, it's usually because of jealousy or spite of some sort. I've always wondered what would make people evil and I realize they only treat the world as the world treated them…so are they really all that evil? Don't they deserve to a measure of revenge? Of course this doesn't mean that I'm not selfish in my own way… It's human nature to be selfish and make mistakes, right?

My sister hates my attitude. She tells me to stop questioning everything and instead concentrate on living… but questioning things is what makes my life worth living, right? Curiosity on human nature… why they do what they do, why they react the way they react… Is there really a soul that makes us all so different from each other and if so then if we were without souls, would we all have reacted the same to the situations we've encountered in our lives? Would all of us react in the same way? Weather we had different memories or not?

I suppose this interest in me stems from the pain I felt in my life… A deep searing pain called lost love, rejection and betrayal. All three of these drove me to the being I am today… A person who tries to listen to and comfort people. A person who want's nothing more than to be loyal and kind… I don't want those around me to ever feel the suffering I've felt. Though there is one problem that rears it's head in my relations. When they want me to trust them… To share myself with them… Well… I can't… I don't trust their judgment of me… I regret some of the things in my life so strongly yet I don't believe they'll see that. All that'll matter to them is the act.

So here I am in collage now…alone… My social skills are almost zero and I can't seem befriend anyone, not that I really want to… Sometimes my desire to be alone outweighs my humanitarian urges. When I look at their faces I see selfishness and arrogance. Even in a close relationship… when I see a couple kissing each other… I don't see any real true love in that… only lust. I've yet to see a love, unconditional, like a mother's to a child.

I was walking the mile to where I'd parked my car after my exam that evening. The sun was already gone over the horizon and campus was dark and almost completely empty. The after-five students were milling around the cafeteria for some dinner before the last classes. The hike to my car was quite a distance… since I was but first year, I wasn't allowed to park on the campus grounds, so I'd parked just outside one of the gates that opened into the club district in town.

My mind whirled with almost incoherent thoughts as the darkness wrapped itself around my form. The people around me became less and less as I reached the outskirts of the campus…I drearily whished I could disappear… just thinking about the exam I'd just taken made my stomach churn… 'In a stressful situation the factual part of your brain thrives above the logical part. So logical thinking could be almost impossible if you had a time limit.', I lamented mentally, 'Damn I hate my life.' I wearily pulled out my student card to swipe at the gates and make my exit into the streets. I had to swipe at least twice before the green light blinked and unlocked the turning gates so I could exit.

The streets in town were better lit than the campus itself so I could easily find my way. I idly adjusted the strap of my pack. It was starting to cut into my shoulder… 'Damn I wish there was an easier way to lug these things around. All these books are weighing me down.', I grumbled as I walked on. As I wandered I let my imagination run free, I imagined having a girlfriend… I'd have taken her out on the town tonight since it was Friday… But alas… I had none. My sister always told me I scare people away with my, 'Don't fuck with me' expression, so that must be why. I really thought myself to be quite handsome, I mean, the dark brown hair coupled with my stormy gray-green eyes made quite an impression. Not that I was as good looking as some of they guys on campus but that wasn't the point. I've always been one of the tall ones… Just tall enough, a scratch below too tall. Lucky for me I was well built too… I didn't want to look like those skinny towers that walked around campus. I had muscle on me, all natural of course since I didn't even bother to do any exercises. I always told my mother that walking across campus each time I had a class was enough to keep me fit. Not that she stopped bothering me though…

As I entered the club district I noticed the flashing red, pink, blue and green lights of the different club signs. A few people moved around in the street, still buying some things at the 'open till late' shops that were nearby or downing some alcohol and passing out on the sidewalk. It was a pretty good location for some of the shops, since most of the ex-teens liked buying supplies and books before stuffing them in the boot of their cars and running off to drink themselves into a delirious stupor.

I ignored the drunken girls that walked by me… their sickly laughter rang through the cold night air, making me grimace. I hate drunks, those two'll probably wake up in some gutter the next morning, having passed out in their own puke… not the kind of people I like to mix with… Not that a socially inept person like me would mix with anyone.

As I pulled out my keys to unlock my car I suddenly saw a flash of movement out of the corner of my eye. When I turned I saw an old man, somewhere in his early eighties, disappear around a corner. He was terribly out of place around here… This was a place for people between eighteen and thirty… Not senior citizens like him.

Something that I could only describe as curiosity compelled me to follow after the old man… When I actually reached the corner I was surprised to spot him going into an alleyway. I headed there and then walked down the alley trying to figure out where he'd disappeared to. Then I saw a noticed the shop hidden away there… the glowing sign on the wall, next to the door, said 'Misc', As I looked in the window I saw some small jade dragons and ornamental knives. With renewed interest I walked up to the door and pushed it open with a barely a glance at the open sign. A small bell announced my arrival… I was surprised at the wares around me… it looked like some kind of 'Chinese antiquities' shop. To me the place was utterly beautiful. It had an air of age to it that dated back millions of years. It was like all the technological advancements in the world was excluded from this space and disappeared the moment I'd stepped through the door. It felt wonderful…

I had vaguely nostalgic feeling, stemming from the times I'd rummage through my grandmother's attic, looking for picture of my ancestors or some odd aged toy to play with. After she'd died a few year back the feeling had been lost to me since all the old things had been divided up under my aunts and uncles while the rest were sold or given away. It's been a long time since I felt so… so… at home?

I walked through the shop looking at the various things from urns to intricate and detailed statuettes. I suddenly stopped at a display case containing a single Japanese katana. It was more beautiful than I could have imagined. The dragons cut into the handle seemed almost alive… I was completely in awe of the piece. I idly took it out of its glass case and held it in my hand, drawing it from its sheath. I stared in shock at the perfect blade. The balance in the sword was absolutely perfect… not like those stupid ornamental swords you got in some of the shops around town… and it's blade was razor sharp… the metal gleamed with an odd purple sheen as I gazed at it, speechless. Suddenly I jumped when I saw the old mans reflection in the blade. I whirled around before quickly placing the sword back in its sheath.

The old man seemed to be of eastern origin, though I couldn't quite place it, maybe a mixture. I bowed slightly in greeting…it somehow seemed like the right thing to do… He bowed as well…"Welcome to my shop young man…You're the first visitor we've had for quite some time…", he said, nodding his head as if agreeing with himself. "Are you interested in that katana?", he asked in true salesman style. "Oh, um yeah, I guess." "Ahh…It's a very old sword, that it is. Some say it has a strange power and only it can choose it's master…", said the old man sagely. "Um… how much?" I asked, thinking about how much money I had in my wallet. I was quite a bit since I'd just drawn it from my bank account this morning (saves money on bank charges to draw large amounts instead of bit by bit)… but it certainly wasn't enough to buy such an exquisite piece. Imagine my surprise when he quoted the exact amount I had in my pocket… I hurriedly pulled it out, without even thinking of why the man was selling it to me so cheap… all I knew was I had a wonderful sword and at a great bargain too. He quickly counted out the money.

"Well… thank you sir…", he said as he ushered me out of the shop. As I was pushed out the door I felt completely disorientated. I quickly turned to ask him for a receipt but stopped wide eyed as I was staring down the street at the clubs. "Wha? Where'd?", I stared at the scene for a moment trying to shake of the eerie feeling running down my spine. I looked at the sword in my hand and shrugged, turning and heading towards my car… as I got there I suddenly felt like I could be sick… someone had spilled their guts all over my front window. "Shit!", I cried. "Damn, I wish my life could be different.", I mumbled. My eyes widened in surprise as I suddenly tingled all over, like there were a million spiders crawling all over my skin and then I noticed the sword I was holding glowing a bright white from within it's sheath… I gulped. "Oh, shit.", was all that came out before there was a flash and the world disappeared around me.