Lines of Destiny: Destiny's Intersection Chapter 14, a Sailor Moon + Ranma Crossover fanfic

Chapter 14:

Ranma sat in his small apartment, biology textbook open in front of him. What he was doing might have come as a surprise to anybody who hadn't actually seen him trying to get into Mizuharo University. He was studying. Nominally.

Despite the lack of distractions which had plagued him back in Nerima, he was finding it hard to actually concentrate on the text in front of him. His eyes would automatically pass through word after word, but when he actually got to the bottom of the page he would realize that he had absorbed absolutely none of the terms or descriptions he had supposedly just read. This was the third time he was going through the same wall of text, trying to let something of the mass of definitions and diagrams actually leave an impression on his racing mind.

Even in the best of times Ranma found studying difficult. He was a martial artist, not a scholar. The only reason he was even getting a degree was to aid in his ability to attract and subsequently teach students. It was a means to an end, rather than an end unto itself of becoming more educated or of getting a degree for its own sake. In this light some of the courses he was taking, such as physiology, were boring but were obviously useful for his future career. Other subjects, such as the current one his eyes refused to focus on, seemed utterly pointless to him.

He hadn't been this frustrated at the pointlessness of studying a boring subject while simultaneously being distracted by other much more important things at hand since the time he had been drilled in the history of the Moon Kingdom over and over while, a kingdom away, Endymion was meeting Serenity for the first time. It had been love at first sight, which was both romantic and exceeding distracting through their empathic bond. He still didn't remember anything about those lessons, and he cared even less about telomeres and their apparent connection to cellular replication limits than he had about the Moon Kingdom's history back at that time.

Ranma shook his head, trying to shake out that memory. Ever since Akana had disappeared, Ranma's access to the memories of his past life as Akana had become much easier to access. They had gotten far too easy to access, in his opinion. The flood of memories was indistinguishable to him when compared to his real memories of his actual life. In his mind's eye everything he remembered were just things he remembered because they had happened to him. The only way he could distinguish between them was by superficial differences. Wearing an ornate dress for a formal reception in honor of the visiting king and queen of Mercury must have been Akana because Mercury didn't have a king or queen in modern times. Taking the train to Juuban must have been his own memory because trains didn't exist during the Silver Millennium.

It was exceedingly annoying. He didn't want to remember playing hide and seek with Endymion and the Guardians in the palace garden, nor did he want to remember the countless diplomatic missions taken to the other kingdoms in the solar system. Ranma wanted nothing more than to get rid of those memories and to be back to normal. He wanted to be rid of them even more than he wanted a cure for Jusenkyo, although he certainly would have taken that too if it were offered as well.

The only silver lining Ranma could think of was that he didn't actually feel any different than he had from before Akana had disappeared and her soul had presumably re-merged with him. He had half-feared that Akana's influences would turn him into some silly little girl, but, as far as he could tell, nothing had substantially changed since then besides having the mass of memories which he now had access to shoved into his head.

It was a shame that none of those memories helped him at all with any of his school work. Even if they did he still wouldn't have wanted them, but at least then they'd have had some use. However, during the Silver Millennium he had never learned anything about any subjects even vaguely similar to things like biology, physiology, or physics, so he didn't have a shortcut of any sort in regard to his current studies. Then again he hadn't been much of a studious student back then either. It had always been so much more fun running around the countryside as Sailor Terra or playing with Endymion or the Guardians rather than being stuck in a dreary room with a tutor.

The Guardians. The mere thought of them still made Ranma angry at their betrayal. He could almost still feel the blade of Zoisite piercing him, even thought it had been another body at another time.

Blinking, Ranma realized that he was at the bottom of the page. The section header suggested that he now knew something about cellular replication, but he couldn't remember a single thing he had read on the subject, despite the fact that he swore he had read every single word on the page. With a mental sigh he once again dragged his eyes to the top of the page and started all over again, trying to concentrate this time. Fourth time's the charm, right?

He knew he could get it eventually. It wasn't like he hadn't studied boring pointless subjects while being distracted before, after all.

In many ways Mizuharo University was like Furinkan High. It had lots of boring subjects which Ranma didn't care about but was forced to study anyway. Unlike his time at Furinkan High, though, most of the distractions which made it almost impossible for him to study were gone. The number of random martial arts challengers and random fiancees appearing had dropped to zero. Then again, he also lacked many of the benefits which helped him to concentrate and learn enough such that he was able to get into Mizuharo University in the first place. In particular, Kasumi was no longer there to help take care of meals and the house, and Akane was no longer there to teasingly prod him to work and to help him when he hit a roadblock.

Akane, there was another thing. Even if she was in different classes, he had assumed that they would still be studying together. They had been doing that when classes had first started, back before all of this mess with the Sailor Senshi had really started. Her presence had always been that little extra nudge he needed to keep himself on track and focused on the task at hand no matter how dull it seemed. That was then. Now when she was in the same room as him she served more as a distraction than anything, more likely to make him angry at her betrayal than to provide any sort of moral or scholastic support.

He had thought he understood Akane, and he had thought that she understood him. That was before everything: before that fight in the temple, before he had transformed into Sailor Terra, before they had come to Juuban.

Now, for some reason Akane wanted Ranma to become Sailor Terra despite the fact he hated the idea of it. Her constant asking, prodding, and suggestions even when Ranma had made it obvious that he didn't want to talk about it and just wanted to be left alone had made Akane's wishes loud and clear. She wanted him to be Sailor Terra as much as he had ever seen her want anything: more than the time with the super soba, more than the time with the battle dogi, more than getting into Mizuharo University.

In that light, the timeline was all too clear to Ranma. Akane had met up with one or more of the Sailor Senshi in the past. Given how much time she seemed to spend with Hotaru, she was likely the first point of contact. He wasn't sure when they had first met, but Akane hadn't seriously started talking about any post-graduation plans until after the first wedding attempt, so it was probably sometime around then. Next she needed a reason to get Ranma to Juuban. That's how Mizuharo University came about. It was conveniently close and wasn't too hard a sell to the rest of her family or himself. Akane's seemingly helpful assistance at the time with his studies fit in with this as well. Once they had gotten accepted to the school she just had to call ahead to arrange the other meetings with the Sailor Senshi in what at the time had seemed like coincidental circumstances.

Not just the Sailor Senshi either. There was Mamoru too.

Mamoru. That was yet another thing. Just by thinking about him Ranma could vaguely tell he was a fair distance away and was with somebody who made him feel all warm and fuzzy inside, probably Usagi.

It was seriously creepy.

It was none of his business what Mamoru was up to, just like it was none of Mamoru's business what he was up to.

Ranma tried his best to suppress that feeling and ignore it, with only modest success. When he concentrated he was able to push out most of the bond that he unwillingly shared with his empathic sibling, but invariably he would forget at some point and it would creep back in. The most insidious thing about the link was that it didn't feel that bad. Sure it made him a bit more sympathetic towards Mamoru, but there was nothing wrong with that. After all, Mamoru hadn't actually meant to cause Ranma any distress and honestly was trying his best to respect Ranma now.

He almost could have believed the feelings he was getting too except he knew better. He had seen, and felt, Mamoru's lack of surprise about Akane being Saturn Knight back at the temple. That was all the proof that Ranma needed. He was sure that Mamoru was in this as deeply into this as any of the others, and probably even more deeply in it given how Ranma was the reincarnation of his dear, precious, long-lost sister. It was enough to make Ranma sick.

Akana had told Ranma to give Mamoru a chance and Ranma had been inclined to do it. It had been her last wish, after all. That was before he had discovered the truth about Mamoru. Given what he knew now, how could he give him a chance anymore? Besides he was sure that if Akana had known what he now knew that she would never have made that request of him. At least he told himself that.

The worst part was that the bond addressed a need which he felt unfulfilled within him. This applied to some extent all of the time, although it was especially true when he forgot to try to intentionally ignore the connection between himself and Mamoru.

Ever since this whole thing had started Ranma had felt alone, like there was nobody on his side. There were Hotaru and the Sailor Senshi, all on Akane's side for obvious reasons. There were the rest of the Tendo family, who were on Akane's side. There was Ryouga, who even if Ranma could find would undoubtedly take Akane's side over his as he always had in the past. There was his father, who given past experience would take Akane's side over Ranma's. The Kunos were all insane, and the Amazons were thankfully long gone. Ukyo was long gone as well. His mother might take his side, but she might also consider even the possibility of his being a Sailor Senshi an affront to his manliness and demand seppuku right on the spot despite having found him adequately manly in the past before circumstances had changed.

Ranma felt like he needed somebody to support him, to be on his side. There just wasn't anybody he could count on. The bond with Mamoru suggested that he might be such a support for him. Even now it was telling him that if he were to just go to Mamoru, talk to him for a bit, things would work themselves out. Things would be okay between them.

That was the realization and reminder that Ranma needed to start actively ignoring the link between them again. With the link muted as best he could, Ranma quashed that impulse to talk to Mamoru again. Mamoru was part of the problem. How would it make any sense to go talk to him?

At least Akane wasn't around to distract him right now. Ranma wasn't sure whether it was worse for Akane to be around or worse for her to be absent. It many ways it didn't matter. He still got angry whenever he thought about her, regardless of her presence or absence.

Whenever she was around she always pestered him about getting involved with the Sailor Senshi. Even if she were silent, Ranma could feel the tension in the room. Whenever Akane was absent, Ranma was convinced that she was meeting with the Sailor Senshi. He could feel the tension of her absence as she plotted and conspired with Hotaru and the other Sailor Senshi against him.

Hotaru was sitting on a park bench and happily swinging her legs. She had picked this bench because it allowed an easy view in all directions so she could see any potential eavesdroppers, no matter which direction they came from. More importantly, she could see Akane's approach no matter which direction she came from as well. In her eagerness she didn't even mind frequently turning her head around to check behind her, just in case Akane happened to approach from there. This was their first one-on-one meeting, and Hotaru was very excited.

Bright sunlight streamed down from the clear sky, but those who knew the signs could make out hints of storm clouds ominously gathering in the distance.

Hotaru spotted Akane waving from a distance away as she rapidly approached the giddy young girl. When she got within talking distance, Akane said with a slight frown, "Hello Hotaru-chan. Where are Michiru-san and Haruka-san? I thought they'd be here with you too."

"Michiru-mama and Haruka-papa said they thought we might want to spend some time alone," Hotaru said. In actuality Hotaru had insisted on it. The park was in a safe part of town, and from the meetings her adopted parents had had with Akane they liked her well enough so neither had put up too much of an argument. She then added as potential further explanation, "I think Michiru-mama didn't want to be near that fountain."

Hotaru pointed to the picturesque fountain which dominated the center of the park. It periodically sprayed water upward, inviting to people to come frolic around in it. A few ambitious children had taken it up on the challenge, running around while squealing and splashing each other.

"I can understand that. Water did always have a way of seeking Ranma out too. He'd probably last two minutes here before a freak gust of wind or a rambunctious kid managed to get him wet," Akane said, her eyes smiling in reminiscence as she spoke.

"So how is your husband doing? Is he feeling better? Have you made up with him yet?" Hotaru asked. It had been several days since she had watched Ranma run off at the shrine, followed by a much more somber and melancholy Akane.

"I don't know," she said, clenching her hands for a second before slowly loosening them. "He's been keeping things in. Not sharing them. I think he's still upset. It's like the bad old days after we first met, only this time it's Ranma who keeps blaming me and doesn't trust anything I say. We're drifting apart. I'm scared."

Hotaru didn't know what bad old days Akane was referring to, but given the name she was sure they were not good. She reached over, took her reincarnated sister's hand, and said, "Don't worry. I'm sure it will work itself out in the end. It's like Michiru-mama and Haruka-papa. They fight sometimes too, but they always get back together in the end. You're both from the Silver Millennium too, like they are, so it must be destiny. I hope I have somebody like that too."

"Destiny, huh," Akane said, shaking her head. "I hope not. That would probably just make things worse."

"What do you mean?" Hotaru asked. "If it's destiny then it's destiny. There isn't anything to be scared of. You two will always be together."

"Ranma never did like being told what to do. Me either," Akane said, giving a small laugh at this. "It took us two years to get over that stupid arranged marriage our parents put together. It was only after our parents stopped pressuring us that we actually started to get along. Knowing him, if our being together was destiny, Ranma would probably leave me just to spite it."

"Just like Akana in the past," Hotaru said with a shake of her head. It was terrible to think that, in a bitter twist of irony, the very thing which brought Ranma and Akane together would now be acting to drive them apart.

"I doubt Ranma would like to hear that," Akane said.

"It can't really be that bad, right? He has to love you. He did just marry you after all," Hotaru tried to reassure her.

"I just don't know. You saw him at that last meeting. He really hates the past for some reason. It's more than just the curse. That hasn't bothered him for a while now. Not really bothered him. It's something else," Akane said. She thought in silence for a second, and then added, "Actually I don't even think he likes me meeting with you and Haruka-san and Michiru-san. He hasn't said anything, but he scowls every time it comes up."

"Really? Maybe we shouldn't meet then. I don't want to cause you any problems," Hotaru said with a heavy heart. Her face turned crestfallen at the loss of somebody she could finally talk to, confide in, and just generally be friends with.

"No, I like being with you," Akane said, mussing Hotaru's hair. "Ranma can just learn to deal with it. Besides, he hasn't actually said anything, so I might be jumping to conclusions. But let's talk about something else. How are you? How are classes?"

"Classes are a lot better now," Hotaru answered, trying to comb her hair straight again using her fingers. "I don't think I scare my classmates as much anymore. Last Yuki-chan even invited me to join her for lunch."

That had been a major achievement and she had spent the entire rest of the day with a big grin on her face afterward.

"You don't scare them? What's that supposed to mean? What did you do to them? Is this about that healing thing again?" Akane asked.

"Kind of. It's complicated. The first time I was awakened my memories were a lot fuzzier than now. I had some dreams and visions, but didn't really know what was going on. Then I was also possessed by Mistress 9, which made me really sick all the time and messed up my memories even more. I didn't have very much control over my powers, and I was always sick, so everybody around was always scared of me. I got picked on a lot. I just wanted to be normal," Hotaru said, her breathing turning ragged. The memories were still painful for her and she got scared just thinking about them. She forced herself to take a deep breath to calm down.

Once she had managed to compose herself enough to continue, she said, "But things are a lot better now. I remember a lot more about the past and I'm a lot stronger now. I haven't missed any class at all this year, and I don't have blackouts or anything anymore, so things are a lot better. Like I said, Yuki-chan even invited me to eat lunch with her."

Hotaru was tempted to break out in a big grin again at the memory of that invitation.

"That's great news, Hotaru-chan. I'm sure you'll make lots of new friends," Akane said, reflecting the smile which Hotaru now wore. "It sounds like being a Sailor Senshi is hard."

"It can be hard at times," Hotaru admitted, the grin disappearing from her face again, "but we're fighting for the Princess and for Crystal Tokyo, so it's worth it."

"Crystal Tokyo? What's that?" Akane asked.

"Crystal Tokyo is the vision the Sailor Senshi are all fighting for. It's kind of a perfect future, but it's a lot more than that. The Princess reforms the Moon Kingdom, and there's peace and happiness all over the world," Hotaru explained.

"That sounds kind of strange. Everybody just accepts her rule? That sounds impossible. Not unless somebody were to do something drastic like killing almost everybody in the world or something," Akane declared.

That thought scandalized Hotaru. True she had the power to Silence a planet, but that was an emergency power reserved only for the most dire of dire emergencies, and even then the idea of actually doing it still made her feel a bit queasy. The idea of casually killing people was so alien to her that she wasn't even sure how Akane had made the connection between Crystal Tokyo and the idea of mass genocide in the first place.

She quickly corrected Akane, "No, nothing like that. We'd never let that happen. We'd all die before that, especially the Princess. But you're right. Nobody said it would be easy. It'll be really hard, but we fight for love and justice, and one day I'm sure Usagi will convince everybody and Crystal Tokyo will happen. In the meantime, we help everybody we can to try and make the world a better place."

"By doing things like fighting demons," Akane suggested.

"By doing things like fighting demons, like those attacking your husband," Hotaru agreed. "Why won't he let us help him?"

"I don't know. I've asked him to let you, but he said he wouldn't. I did everything short of begging him, and he still refused. He won't even tell me why. It's probably some stupid macho male thing. It's like the time he went looking for that Japanese Nannichuan."

"Can he really handle it all by himself?" Hotaru asked.

"If anybody can, he can. That idiot's beaten more crazy martial artists, monsters, ghosts, and even gods than anybody has a right to," Akane said. "I just hope he knows his limits."

"Gods?" Hotaru asked. She would have doubted even the existence of some of the things that Akane was telling her except that she had personally experienced some of them herself. After being possessed by an evil spirit which almost destroyed the world, the idea of gods existing and subsequently being defeated wasn't too unbelievable.

"I probably shouldn't say anything about that. Ranma doesn't like to talk about it and I don't want the story getting out without his say so. He had nightmares for weeks after his fight with Saff... with some of his opponents, and it's really not my place to tell," Akane said.

Hotaru was careful to not react to Akane's slip-up. Instead she put her hand on top of Akane's and said, "I see. It sounds like you and Ranma have had a hard time too."

"Yeah. It's been difficult at times." Akane clenched her free hand. "It was supposed to be better by now, but now Ranma doesn't trust me and we're barely speaking to each other. It's like the bad old days all over again."

"You said that before. What do you mean 'bad old days?'" Hotaru asked.

"When we first met, he walked in on me when I was taking a bath," Akane said, eliciting a gasp from Hotaru. "Then our parents kept going on about how we were engaged and how we had to get married. We didn't exactly get off on the best foot with each other. That was before all of the other fiancees showed up. So many silly fights, and all those accusations," Akane said more to herself than Hotaru.

Hotaru blinked at Akane's explanation, trying to process what she was saying. At the same time Akane seemed to realize where she was and shook her head quickly before saying to Hotaru, "Strange things have always happened around Ranma. He'd get poisoned, or paralyzed, or bribed with some cure, or something else stupid and disappear for a while. I always used to think he was on a date with one of the other girls. Even if he said that wasn't the case I'd never believe him, and then I'd get jealous and yell at him."

"That sounds terrible," Hotaru said. She wasn't sure which was the more terrible, that Ranma constantly got poisoned or paralyzed or what have you, or that Akane would get into fights with him due to those misunderstandings.

"Yes, it was pretty bad at times. I guess what comes around and all of that. Now Ranma doesn't believe me no matter what I say. He isn't yelling at me or hitting me, but..." Akane shook her head again. "I had no idea how hard it was to be telling the truth and not be believed."

Hitting her? Hotaru wasn't sure why Akane not being hit would be worth emphasizing, but didn't pay it too much mind. She just comforted Akane by saying, "Don't worry. You learned the truth eventually right? I'm sure he'll learn eventually too."

"I hope so," Akane said.

"Well if you can't tell me about fighting gods, can you tell me any of the other stuff? I'll bet you didn't tell me the whole story before. You said you fought a bunch of monsters?" Hotaru asked.

"It was more Ranma than me, but I guess I can tell you a bit more," Akane admitted. "But before that, what about Michiru-san and Haruka-san? Are we supposed to meet up with them somewhere? These stories can go on for quite a bit of time."

"Don't worry about Michiru-mama and Haruka-papa. They said they'd come and get me here when they were done," Hotaru said.

"I wonder what they're doing," Akane absently mused.

Hotaru's face briefly took on a slightly concerned look as the thoughts of the problems Michiru was certainly having flashed through her mind. She quickly pushed them to the side as best she could. Michiru was with Haruka, and if anybody could keep Michiru safe it was Haruka.

"I think they're out shopping for clothes for Michiru-mama," Hotaru answered Akane, "but you're avoiding the question. I want to hear some of these stories."

"Okay, okay," Akane said before launching into one of the more fantastical tales Hotaru had ever heard.

This was a fairly usual position for Michiru and Haruka, them walking in the mall with Haruka helping Michiru carry around several bags of clothing. Michiru occasionally liked to go on major shopping trips and Haruka's presence for them was always appreciated, for her company and opinion, and more importantly for her load-bearing capacity. The only semi-willing blonde pack animal's presence would be especially necessary for trips like this one, where Michiru had bought so much stuff that it literally couldn't be carried by one person alone.

What made this trip unusual was that Michiru was in male form. He was also trailing slightly behind Haruka, almost appearing like he was trying to hide behind the slightly shorter woman.

Michiru was having a terrible time on this trip.

Normally Michiru greatly enjoyed shopping. Normally Michiru was also female. This trip was not normal based on either of those contexts. He didn't even know which stores to go to or what to look for and was forced to rely heavily on Haruka's expert knowledge instead.

The pair had decided that, in light of recent developments, Michiru was going to need an entirely new wardrobe. While in a pinch Michiru in male form could manage to barely force himself into Haruka's clothing, it was far from comfortable. It wasn't very comfortable for his female form either. There was also the sheer practicality of the amount of clothing available too. If Michiru did end up using Haruka's wardrobe on any regular basis there simply wouldn't be enough clothes to go around.

No, the best solution was to simply go on a major shopping spree and get some new clothes. The tricky part would be getting things which would fit a male as well as a female Michiru, both in size as well as in style. That made things much more difficult. Both Michiru and Haruka were starting to understand some of the basic difficulties that Ranma had to deal with on a daily basis. As ashamed as they were to admit it, they had greatly underestimated the amount of trouble in ordinary life that the curse brought about.

They had decided that as they both knew the basic measurements of the female Michiru that he should go out in male form. This presented a whole new set of problems to Michiru, the most significant being sheer embarrassment. He had picked the largest, baggiest shirt and pants he could from Haruka's wardrobe in an attempt to hide how he looked. He'd taken to slouching as well, both to hide his figure as well as to present less of a profile.

All of these efforts to hide himself, some intentional and many unconscious, were more than likely a fool's errand, seeing how he was a little taller than Haruka, who herself was rather tall. He was sure he stood out like a nail which hadn't been hammered quite flush on a piece of wood, and everywhere he went he could feel eyes staring at him. He just knew that everybody knew the truth about him and were whispering behind his back. Twice he had heard somebody laughing from across the store, and both times Michiru swore they were laughing at him.

He had taken to acting as unapproachable as possible. He reasoned that if nobody talked to him then nobody could force him into any embarrassing positions. This was especially important for children. He had a new found fear of children.

An adult would most likely be polite and keep any awkward questions to himself or herself, but who knew what a child would do? It galled him to act this way because Michiru had always enjoyed being around children, but now he lived in perpetual fear that one would point at him and say loudly, "hey mister, why are you acting so funny? Why are you dressed so funny? What's wrong with you?"

Above even that dread was a much worse one: that he'd see somebody he knew. Sure most of the important people already knew about the curse, and sure the chances of somebody who didn't already know seeing him and making the connection to his female form was effectively zero. It didn't matter. Those intellectual arguments did nothing to comfort his primal fear and desire to run away, lock himself in a room, and never come out.

He might have done that too if not for Haruka's presence next to him. She had always had the ability to comfort Michiru and provide a feeling of safety and security. This ability did not diminish in the least when he was in male form. If anything her ability was stronger than ever, although this could have been due to his increased jitters and self-admitted borderline paranoia.

Every time Michiru felt especially bad Haruka would reach over and squeeze his hand, and he would feel just a little bit better. Haruka had even dressed in obviously female, albeit tomboy-ish, clothing just to reduce the chances for awkward situations for the pair. While Haruka didn't despise dressing in female clothing it was definitely not her first choice, and Michiru appreciated the gesture.

They had gone to several stores and bought several sets of fairly androgynous clothing. It was a lucky thing neither of them was short on money, as the total bill for Michiru's new wardrobe was getting to be quite expensive. The outfits they purchased revealed Michiru's male body much more than he would have liked, especially his flat chest and straight waist, but Haruka had insisted that they looked fine, and Michiru had never had a reason to doubt his lover in the past. He wasn't about to start now, even if the mirror insisted that he looked atrocious.

If he did turn into a woman with this clothing on they'd fit, although of course they would be far from flattering. The shirt was too big and bulky, the pants wouldn't be quite right especially around the waist and thighs, and he would need to tuck up all of his cuffs considerably. However at least they would fit both of his forms, in a fashion. The only thing that would be out of place if he did transform would be that the buttons on his shirt and pants would be the wrong style and on the wrong side, but that was so minor that even his hyper-sensitivity didn't worry about that.

What worried him more was the image he would present when he was female. The baggy, misfit, rather masculine clothing would probably make his female form look like some teenager trying to make a fashion statement. True it was better than appearing as a man in a shredded dress in the middle of a crowded shopping mall, but that wasn't a very high benchmark to aim for. Michiru had always preferred the classic elegant look, and the thought of appearing as some rebellious teenager truly galled him.

Still, mission accomplished. Michiru now had an entire wardrobe which, while looking unflattering, would prevent him from being arrested for indecent exposure no matter what form he was in.

He could tell that his lover was exhausted after the entire morning spent shopping. Truth to be told he was quite exhausted as well, more from the constant twitching and emotional distress he felt than from the energy spent walking from store to store. So when Haruka, who'd never been a real big shopper herself, suggested they stop for lunch he reluctantly agreed.

Michiru hated the idea of spending any more time in public then he absolutely had to, especially somewhere like a restaurant where for an extended period of time he would be unable to escape from curious eyes if something happened, and where at least the server would genuinely notice him and try to talk to him as well. However he reasoned he had to get used to it eventually, and it was better to do it now with Haruka at his side than from an accidental splash on his own later. He was rather hungry, too.

When the pair entered the sushi restaurant Haruka led Michiru to, the hostess first addressed the male Michiru, asking him what their preferences for seating was. This caused him to shrink behind Haruka, who saved the day by taking charge and asking for a private booth in a secluded area. That the woman of the pair had taken charge seemed to surprise the hostess, but she kept a straight face as she showed the pair to the requested seating. To his relief, Michiru saw there was plenty of empty space around the booth, preventing any accidental hearing or seeing of himself.

In short order a waitress came by and asked Michiru what the pair would like to eat today, once again causing Michiru to shrink back in self-consciousness. Haruka once again saved the day by calmly saying she was treating her boyfriend, earning a wince from Michiru, and then ordering for the pair.

With the waitress safely away, Michiru leaned in to Haruka, lowered his voice, and asked, "How does Saotome-san stand this?"

Haruka just reached over and held Michiru's hand.

"It's horrible. I feel like... like... everything's just wrong. Like they're all staring at me. And nothing, nothing's right anymore. It's terrible," Michiru stammered out, trying to put his feeling into words.

"Don't worry. I'll always be here for you," Haruka reassured him.

Michiru reached his other hand over and put it on top of Haruka's.

"It's just so scary. Never knowing what's going to happen. I went to a restroom yesterday and forgot. When I tried to wash my hands, I changed," Michiru said. He didn't add how she had been standing besides somebody, who screamed. And kept screaming. And how a crowd appeared and had assumed the worst at a strangely dressed man in the woman's restroom. And how he had had to run for several blocks before finally getting away. And how shaken he had been from the whole experience.

"I can't even go to the restroom in peace. I need to check myself before going in. It's just terrible," Michiru continued. He didn't even feel the tears which had formed and were dripping down his face.

"I'm sorry. If I could take this curse from you I would," Haruka said, squeezing Michiru's hand.

"I know you would. Thank you," Michiru said. "At least I know why Saotome-san acts like he does now. It really is unbearable. I don't blame him at all for wanting to walk away. If I could give up being a Sailor Senshi and get rid of this curse I would too."

"Michiru," Haruka whispered as loudly as she could without drawing attention to their discussion. "You don't really mean that, do you?"

Michiru sighed, and was silent for a moment as he thought about it. Thought about it for longer than he should have, he was sure. He then said, "No, you're right. I don't. It's tempting to think about, but I couldn't be so selfish as to let the world be destroyed just because it's uncomfortable for me. Besides, I have you and you're a Sailor Senshi too. If I stopped being one, we'd have nothing in common anymore and you'd probably leave me." He now had a wry smile, contrasting with the tear streaks on his face.

"Leave you? Never. I'm still wondering why you stay with me," Haruka returned with a genuine smile. She reached up with a napkin and wiped away Michiru's tears.

Michiru smiled wistfully back to Haruka. "But it's not like Saotome-san's in the same place as me. He'll probably leave. He hasn't been around Usagi-chan long enough to see what she does for everyone, and he doesn't have somebody like you around."

"Saotome-san has Akane-san, and she's involved in this. You've seen her around Hotaru-chan. I think she'd like nothing more than to help the Sailor Senshi, and get her husband to help too," Haruka disagreed.

Michiru shook his head. He loved Haruka, but she wasn't the most perceptive person on the team. "You never were that good at reading people were you? You saw Saotome-san at the shrine. He won't even let us help him, despite Akane's asking. Do you really think he'd be willing to join us after all of that?"

"Why not?" Haruka asked. "She knows him a lot better than we do and she says the curse isn't a problem. So why wouldn't he join us?"

"Judging from that meeting, I'd guess it would be more likely that Saotome-san would leave Akane-san than Akane-san convincing him to join the Sailor Senshi. Honestly I'm not sure she really understands. The way she goes on, she makes it sound like the curse is just a fact of life that Saotome-san just accepts. I don't think she really knows how awful it is. I doubt I'll ever accept it. I don't see how anybody could," Michiru said.

Haruka thought for a second then suggested, "Maybe it isn't as bad for him. He's been cursed for a while, too, so maybe it gets easier as time goes by. I don't know. All I know is that whenever I see him in female form he seems pretty accepting of it."

"Do you really think so?" Michiru asked, with a hint of incredulity in his voice. "You call denying any possibility of being Mamoru-san's sister and absolutely refusing to be a Sailor Senshi unless he's about to be killed accepting his curse? I think more likely Akane-san's wrong. I haven't thought about anything besides the curse since I received it, and I'd guess that the same is true for Saotome-san. You do remember the fight they had, right?"

"I'm serious," Haruka protested "The other day at the mall he seemed much more relaxed about his curse than you do right now. Maybe a bit annoyed and frustrated, but it's not like he absolutely hated it. For that matter, back at that cafe when we first met, he didn't seem that strange despite the fact he was a woman then. I mean besides that martial arts stuff. Akane-san's also known him a lot longer than we have so she's got to know him better than we do, and she says the curse hasn't been a problem for him for quite a while."

Michiru thought about that for bit. He wanted to correct Haruka's callous emotional blindness of other people's feelings given his own experience with his curse. However, the more he thought about it, the more Michiru realized that Haruka actually had a point. In fact the only times Michiru actually remembered a female Ranma being really upset were times when she had also been Sailor Terra. Michiru was willing to admit that he was a bit emotionally compromised right now and was probably neither seeing nor thinking things as clearly as he usually did. Finally he conceded, "You might have a point, Haruka."

Any further discussion about Sailor Terra or other Sailor Senshi business was cut short when Haruka gave quick glance to Michiru in warning of the approaching waitress. Michiru understood and quickly put a temporary stop to their discussion of supernatural phenomena.

As the waitress placed the dishes in front of the pair, Haruka asked Michiru, "So what do you think of Akane-san?"

Michiru first said a quick "Itadakimasu", along with Haruka, and both started eating the served fish. First piece consumed, Michiru answered Haruka, "She seems like a nice woman, but I was actually surprised that you let her be alone with Hotaru."

"Like you said, she seemed like a good enough woman when we met before," Haruka said between bites. "Besides Hotaru-chan likes her and she's always had good judgment. Why were you surprised? Do you think that it was a mistake?"

"No. Not at all. I thought it was a great idea. Hotaru-chan needs a friend. Somebody she can tell things to. You know how much trouble she's had at school. It's a lot better than having just us to rely on," Michiru said, also between small bites of fish.

Haruka put her chopsticks down and looked at Michiru in concern. "What do you mean? She knows she can tell me anything. You too. She looks up to you as a mother, after all," Anybody eavesdropping would have noticed the strangeness of the female Haruka telling the male Michiru this.

"Of course she does, but you remember when you were that age, right? It's not the same. There are some things you just can't tell your parents, even a father as handsome as you," Michiru explained, ignoring the fact that with her tasteful blouse there was no chance of anybody mistaking Haruka for being male.

"Well, then she can talk to the Inner Senshi then," Haruka persisted.

"It's not that easy. Hotaru-chan's might be closer to them than we are, but she was always closest to Chibi-Usa-chan and she's gone now. It might be a bit awkward," Michiru paused, chewing another piece of fish, before continuing. "She might also be worried that anything she tells them they'll turn around and tell us."

Haruka put her chopsticks down again and gave another concerned look to Michiru. Her voice had a slight touch of anger as she asked, "What? Do you think Akane-san wouldn't tell us then? Maybe I shouldn't have left the two of them alone after all."

"Calm down Haruka, I didn't mean anything like that. I'm sure Akane-san would tell us anything if it was important. It's just Hotaru-chan might need somebody else she can talk to. A friend, especially a reincarnated older sister, might just be perfect for her," Michiru said.

"I hope Akane-san isn't just toying with her," Haruka said before drinking a sip of tea.

"She doesn't strike me as the type of woman who would do that. She seems very nice," Michiru asserted.

"You remember her fight with Saotome-san, though, back at the shrine. That argument seemed really bad to me. She better not try anything like that to Hotaru-chan or I'll make her pay," Haruka said scowling.

"That was bad, but do you really think she was wrong? If anything I thought she was right and that Saotome-san was being unreasonable. I might not have put it the same way she did, but I don't think she really did anything wrong there," Michiru said, taking another bite of sushi.

"I guess not. Wait, weren't you just attacking Akane-san and saying how wrong she was? Why are you defending her now?" Haruka asked.

"I wasn't attacking her. I was just wondering how much she really knew about living with a Jusenkyo curse. I could ask the same of you too. Weren't you just defending her before? Why are you questioning her now?" Michiru asked in return.

"Just like you. I wasn't attacking her. I was just wondering about her," Haruka answered. Michiru gave Haruka a suspicious look, but didn't say anything. The rest of the meal passed quickly, the pair primarily talking about what shopping remained.

By the end of the meal Michiru was feeling much better. He felt much less twitchy, and didn't feel the compulsive need to look all around him. The calm, rational part of him which he found exceedingly difficult to listen to recently thought that there might actually be something to what Haruka was hypothesizing earlier about it getting easier to deal with a curse as time went by. Even with all of the paranoia, twitching, and general discomfort, he was pretty sure that even a few days ago he wouldn't have been able to act this close to a semblance of normality in a public venue.

"So what's the event? Your boyfriend's birthday or something? Good idea. If I had someone as cute as him, I'd treat him well too," the waitress said as she presented the check to Haruka. She then gave a wink to Michiru as well.

Her flirting reminded Michiru of his situation, and that quiet, hard to listen to bit of rationality within him was instantly drowned out, obliterated in a wave of self-consciousness, shame, humiliation, and fear. He instantly shrank in on himself.

"Thank you, that will be enough," Haruka curtly dismissed the waitress, placing several bills on the table. She then moved over to give Michiru a hug.

The waitress could tell she had made some mistake, but couldn't figure out what it was. "Thank you," she stammered out and reached for the money. In her haste she knocked over a teacup, which fell towards Michiru.

There was a brief moment of panic within Michiru at the imminent exposure of his curse. Luckily the tea had long since gone cold so nothing happened to him except for him getting a lap full of cold tea. Even so, it was too much for the emotionally fragile Michiru and he started to cry.

Haruka gave the waitress a withering glare, then hugged Michiru tighter.

"I'm so sorry. Let me get you some napkins," the waitress quickly apologized, and then fled the table, leaving the Haruka to comfort Michiru.

Haruka sat there hugging Michiru for a few seconds, murmuring sweet nothings. Then a scream caught the pair's attention. A loud crash and two more screams confirmed something was wrong. Michiru looked up at Haruka through tear blurred eyes, who nodded back.

The prospect of a monster attack was almost a relief to Michiru. Monsters were something he was used to and knew very well how to handle: find monster, beat monster, disappear back into the rumors of urban legend. It was much easier to deal with than becoming male, being flirted with, and subsequently being splashed with cold tea.

The prospect of a monster attack would have been a definite relief rather than only being almost a relief to Michiru if it hadn't been for the prospect of innocent people getting hurt. That was even taking into account that there was a not-inconsequential chance of him and his lover being permanently maimed or killed in the fight.

The pair stood up, leaving the multiple bags of clothing and supplies on the floor, and looked for a quiet hall or door in which to transform. In short order they discovered the emergency exit out the back of the restaurant.

As they headed down the hallway towards it, which was conveniently empty and out of sight, Michiru silently hoped to himself that the possible monster they were heading towards wasn't as bad as Mordecai had been.

Last Updated: December 11, 2012