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                       By Sian Chivers


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             The whole wonderful Ranmaverse is _ to Rumiko Takahasi,
Patron Saint of Anime.
	ok- I usally flip for sweet romantic stories,
but I got a challange from a friend to write a story all about
Ukyo, and I figured, Why not?  So here it is, my humble
offering to the fanfic gods. Please send feedback! SianiBaby@aol.com
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	Ukyo was tired.  It had been a long, busy day, and it was far
from over.  She had spent the whole day cooking in the restaurant and
was only just starting dinner for the family. She hoped the baby would
say asleep until she finished. She pulled a notebook down off the shelf
and flipped it open to a page that said "Stew" in Japanese.
	Ukyo had often wondered about the cookbook.  She had gotten it
as a present at her wedding.  The funny thing was, it was addressed only
to her, not her husband.  The card wasn't signed, and it looked as if it
was in Kasumi's handwriting.  That didn't make any sense, though, because
Kasumi was a great cook, and the cookbook started out with the most
elementary cooking techniques. At First she had been a bit insulted by the
gift.  Who needed directions to boil water?!  After all, she ran a
restaurant, what did she need a cookbook for?  Then she had discovered
that not everyone was equipped to eat oykanomiaki every day.  When it
suddenly became necessary for her to widen her range she started to
appreciate the book a great deal.
	"Mommy!" the front door slammed and Ukyo smiled.
That must be Kita.  She glanced at her watch and smiled, yes; the bus must
have just dropped her off.
	"Mommy!" Kita yelled again and Ukyo wiped her hands and left the
kitchen to greet her daughter.  She was six years old, and in the first
grade.  Ukyo had been married for two years before she was born, and had
never intended to have children at all.  Kita's birth had been a mistake,
but it was the most wonderful mistake that had ever happened.  She was
bright and sunny, and a carbon copy of her father.   Nanami, who at three
years was the baby of the house, looked more like her mother.
	"Can I cook too?" Kita squealed happily.
	"Sure, hon." Ukyo sat Kita down at the Kitchen table and gave her
a plastic knife to cut vegetables with.  As she cooked Ukyo thought about
her life.  It was nothing like what she had thought it would be, but then,
she had lived a hard life and had never really known it was possible to be
so happy.  Of course happiness hadn't come without a price.  She had given
two years of her life for this happiness, although at the time she hadn't
known that she would get anything back for those years.  Before, she would
have recognized it as her big chance, but after The Accident she had just
been too distraught to see it as such.  She winced.  It made her feel
guilty thinking of it like that.  She had just been helping a friend in
need.  She really hadn't had any ulterior motives. Even if it had
benefited her, she took no pleasure from those memories.  Ten years ago
it had taught her a hard lesson in being careful what you wish for.  Not
that The Accident had been her fault.  The Accident hadn't really been
anyone's fault.   Ukyo still felt guilty though.  She had lain awake so
many nights praying for something like The Accident to happen.  She never
realized how awful it would be.
	The doorbell rang.
	"Can you get that hon?" she asked, glancing over her shoulder at
Kita.
	" 'K mommy"
	Ukyo leaned back a little so she could see out into the hall.
Kita got up on tiptoe and resolutely pulled the door, slowly sliding it
open. Ukyo dropped the pot and stifled a scream.  On the doorstep was her
worst nightmare.  The one thing, the one person that could destroy the
happiness she had worked so hard to build.   Kita just stood there smiling.
She had no idea that the person in front of her had the capability to
destroy her safe world.
	After The Accident, Ukyo's life had cracked and the pieces had
scattered to the winds.  Everything had changed with just one insult,
a little shove, and one drunk driver. Ukyo hadn't even been there.  After
that, well, the little world that had revolved around Ranma and Akane had
dissolved.  Everyone got married. Things just stopped happening. To be
truthful, Ukyo would have loved the peace if it had been for any other
reason.  During the three years following The Accident there had been four
marriages.  Her own, Shampoo and Mousse, Nabiki and Kuno (what did she see
in him!?), And Kasumi and Dr Tofu.  It had was quite a while until Ukyo
decided Dr Tofu had really learned to control himself enough to be safe,
so for nearly a year she had stayed away.  Oddly enough, Ryoga had never
married.  After The Accident he had told Akiri that he really didn't ever
want to think about pigs again.  That had been that.  He had wandered
through town less and less often. In fact neither Ukyo nor her husband had
seen him since he had come to see Kasumi's twins' born three years ago
(they had been almost 5 months old by the time he gotten there).
	Ukyo had lived in relative peace for those eight years.  She was
happy and best of all secure.  She had kept only one fear in her head
since her wedding.  Of course, Logic had always told her it was impossible.
It was unrealistic she told her self, stop worrying.  But it had always been
there.  The one threat to her security, her happiness, and her marriage. 
And there it was standing on her doorstep, staring open-mouthed at her
daughter.
	"Hi ya!" Kita chirped at the Stranger.   The Stranger pushed her
now long black hair behind her ears. * A child* she thought, *they have a
child.*   she held down her anger. * They couldn't have known what happened.
They had no idea that the me that died wasn't the real me.  You can't expect
time to stop for someone who's supposed to be dead.  He had every right to
move on, to marry. After all, I was gone. *   It wasn't very convincing. 
She didn't know whether the pain inside her would come out as tears or a ki
blast that would rip the house to bits but she wasn't about to find out. 
	"I-is M-Mrs. Saotome here?" she asked, battling the anger welling
up inside her.
	"Yep!" Kita replied " Mommy! For you!"
	"Go to your room please hon. I'll call you for dinner"  *this can't
be happening* Ukyo screamed internally. Her head spun with the memory of
those first two years after The Accident.  She had closed down the
restaurant and spent every waking moment with Ranma.  She had given her
life to comforting him and coaxing him back from the brink of insanity.
She had forgotten that she was in love with him. The Accident had changed
all that.  Instead she had been his friend.  She had never thought of
trying to make him love her. It hadn't seemed important whether he loved
her.  She had done the right thing.  When his mental wounds were healed,
he had proposed to her,  and she got her first glimpse of love.    She had
always wondered if it was fair, though.  She wondered if their marriage
was standing on Akane's grave stone.
	It looked like she was going to find out.  Ukyo Saotome  had a dead
girl standing on her doorstep.








       Author's note

Well peoples, here it is.  My very first Ranma Fanfic.  I have written one
other fanfic, about Sailor Moon, but it's not finished. Visit it at
http://www.dragonfire.net/~JupiterKnight/fanfics1.htm
Anyway, that one started short and got really long, so I told myself
I'd keep this one short for real and I did!  PLEASE write with C&C.
Please.  I mean it.  I'm begging here.
SianiBaby@aol.com