"Konatsu, what is up with you?" Ranma asked exasperatedly as the five humans and one pig trudged back to the farmhouse through the snow. Ranma had changed into her female form due to Ryoga dumping snow down his (now her) back. Enough had melted to trigger the shape change. Fortunately, Ranma had had the foresight to dress her female side appropriately. Ryoga was stuck in his pig-shape as a result of Ranma's revenge on the fanged boy. The pig had taken his chastisement in stride; at least his fiancé, Akari, had wrapped the little animal in a scarf so he would not freeze as she carried him home.

"Huh?" the cross-dressing ninja responded. He was wearing a warm coat styled for a woman with matching hat and groves. His outfit was lightly covered in snow – the after-cleanup residue of a massive snowball fight the six individuals had fought on one of the farm's empty fields. Mousse, Ranma, Akane, and Konatsu had arrived at Akari's farm late Saturday morning. Akari and Ryoga had invited everyone up for some winter fun. The six friends had gone sledding and then cross-country skiing. The fight had broken out as they had been putting the skis away back in the barn and it spilled out into the nearby field. The fight had started because Akane felt that Ranma had been scoring one too many points in the day's bantering and decided to take physical action. Since Akane no longer felt it was appropriate to pummel her husband-to-be (and the teasing had been good-natured), she decided that a well placed snowball would do instead. Ranma had dodged the first dozen or so effortlessly, but Akane had learned to properly channel her frustration these days and caught Ranma off-guard when she launched a "Roasting Chestnuts" volley of snowballs. Ranma retaliated. The other four martial artists had become collateral damage and attacked immediately. Alliances formed, split, and re-formed until a general free-for-all broke out. Akari had remarked that they could skip turning the field over in the spring – the ground was already churned up despite having been frozen solid when they started. The fight had ended when Ranma shifted forms and sought revenge for the snow down her back while the others laughed.

"You've been sighing non-stop since we got here," Akane remarked. She was walking between Konatsu and her currently female fiancé. Akari was on the other side of Ranma and Mousse was walking next to Akari. "You couldn't have gotten bored that fast," Akane added.

"I'm not bored, Lady Akane," Konatsu answered quickly. Akane reached behind Ranma and doped-slap Konatsu without warning - the group as a whole was trying to break Konatsu's habit of using such formal honorifics with them, but they were only partly successful. Konatsu gave no acknowledgement of the slap but continued: "And the company is just fine. I just wish Mistress Ukyo was here, too."

"Mid-winter's a slow time of year for the restaurant business," Mousse noted. "She's afraid of letting any business get away. A Saturday is likely to be her best shot at a semi-busy day. At least she agreed to close the shop and come up tomorrow for the day despite being a Sunday."

"You're not one to talk," Akane laughed. "Cologne had to threaten you so you'd take the weekend off."

"That and she was getting tired of your admirers," Ranma teased. "She wanted a break from all the young women sighing over you." Ryoga made a questioning squeal and Mousse glanced at Ranma. Ranma repeated the words Ryoga thought to his spirit brother/sister: "He wants to know how you and Sayuri are getting along."

Mousse shrugged his shoulders. "Just fine. We are dating casually, not exclusively. Both of us are moving in different directions, so we are keeping things light. To tell the truth, I'm not looking for anything serious."

"That's good considering Akaya has kidnapped you once already this month," Ranma smirked.

Mousse coughed as Akane's eyebrows shot up. Akane started to growl. "Before you say anything," Mousse said hastily. "Don't forget that Sayuri has a date tonight, and it's not with me." Akane's expression changed to one of frustration. "Sayuri is going north for college; she doesn't want a serious relationship. She's not you or Yuka – and she's being very upfront about everything. So am I." Akane huffed at that.

"Ryoga wants to know about Takara too," Ranma prompted.

"It's tough for us to get together with our schedules," Mousse replied. "But we had a date last Monday."

"Ooo," Akari grinned. "You're quiet the playboy, aren't you?" she teased. Mousse just blushed.

Konatsu whistled. "Mistress Ukyo said you came out of your shell. She wasn't kidding," he said as Ranma opened the door to the farmhouse.

"And what about you?" Mousse pushed back at Konatsu, cocking an eyebrow. "I've caught you glancing here and there. I know your taste runs towards women." Konatsu's face almost burst into flames.

"Wait! Everyone inside and change first!" Akane demanded. "I don't want to lose this topic!" Konatsu sighed once again, but this time in exasperation.

"And hot chocolate!" Akari added.

Ryoga squealed again. "And hot water," Ranma added for him. "I should give my male side a chance to get out of the snow clothes too."

Fifteen minutes later, everyone had assembled in the main room. Katsunishiki had joined them. The sumo pig was very clean despite what others might say about the species and was able to come into the main room through the large double doors that opened into the backyard. He planted himself behind Akari as she sat at a large round table with the others. There was a large fire burning in the fireplace and two small children, one girl and her younger brother, sitting in front of it. The two children were drinking hot chocolate that Akari had given them. Their mother was nearby; she was starting to set the main table for the evening meal.

"Ahh," Mousse said with satisfaction as he partook of his drink. "Nothing like a warm beverage after winter games."

"True," Akane agreed and then looked directly at Konatsu. "But there are other games to be played…"

"Such as being a busybody," Ranma shot back. "Leave him alone."

"Spoilsport," Akane pouted at him as she gave him a light kick (more of a tap) from where she sat next to him. "Now we have to find something else to talk about."

"Oh, I'm sure we can come up with…" Akari started.

"Actually," Konatsu cut in. "If you don't mind, I would like some advice."

His companions looked back in surprise; the ninja was rarely so forthright. Akane was the first to speak: "All right, Konatsu. I don't know how much help we'll be, but ask away." The rest of the table nodded in agreement.

"Well," Konatsu began. "You've all known Ukyo for a long time." Akari lifted her hand and tilted it side-to-side with a slight wince on her face. "Yes, La… I mean 'Yes Akari', but you're very good at figuring out what makes people tick."

"These days anyway," Akari agreed.

Konatsu went on. "I love Ukyo," he stated firmly and then hesitated at the somber faces at the table. He summoned his courage and pushed ahead. "And she loves me, but only as a friend or maybe even a brother. Not as I love her. And I don't know what to do."

The table was silent for several moments before everyone turned one-by-one to look at Ranma. "Why do I have to be the bad guy?" he protested.

Akane sighed. "Because you're a blunt speaker when it comes to guys and will say what has to be said."

Mousse added: "And you've also known Ukyo the longest."

"Thanks," Ranma said sourly.

"Please Mas… Please Ranma," Konatsu pled softly. "Tell me what I'm doing wrong."

Ranma took a deep breath and said: "I don't know that you're doing anything wrong. You're you. The trouble is that you're not Ukyo's type. She's into men, not men who look like women."

"She wanted to marry you despite your curse," Konatsu challenged quietly.

"She knew me before Jusenkyo," Ranma shrugged. "So she just saw my female side as a temporary thing. Honestly, I'm not sure she'd marry me now that I've accepted my Yin side. She once said she would, but I was also going out of my way to project my Yang side." Akane rolled her eyes at that. Ranma ignored her.

"But she was struck hard when I hit her with that Kunoichi technique," Konatsu pressed. "She thought I was attractive."

"You are attractive," Akane stated encouragingly, causing Ranma to growl. She mock-slapped his hand and went on: "You have this perfect face that appeals to women and you have an athletic swimmer's body."

"And what do I have that you're into me," Ranma grouched at her.

"You're a charming ogre. Be happy that I'm into ogres and shut up," she shot back. "This is about him, not you," she added. For some reason, a smug satisfied smile appeared on Ranma's face. Mousse was choking back silent laughter at the exchange. "I think Ukyo's into ogres too - although maybe for different reasons. She wants to be protected. She's always wanted someone to take care of her - whether she'll admit that or not."

"But I can protect her," Konatsu protested.

"And you have," Ryoga stated firmly. "You're an absolute terror in a fight and I'm always glad when you have my back."

"The problem is you don't look the part," Akari said. "I love her, but Ukyo is human like the rest of us and she's into appearances."

"But I can mimic any appearance I want - I'm a Kunoichi," Konatsu replied.

"O.K., so why don't you mimic Conan the Barbarian," Ranma pushed.

That brought Konatsu up short. His tablemates waited why he struggled with an answer. "Because it's not who I am," he said finally with some resignation.

"All right, so let's start there. Who are you then?" Mousse asked.

Konatsu didn't even hesitate: "I'm a mix of Yin and Yang. I'm a male spirit born into a female world. I use to fit in, but then my world changed. It grew, and I'm not sure how to grow with it."

"Been doing a little thinking, have you?" Akari noted shrewdly.

Konatsu nodded. "I'm male, but I'm not like everyone else. I can put on a tux - which is just another costume, but I'm not comfortable in generic men's clothes. It ignores the Yin part of myself - the lessons I've learned growing up as a Kunoichi."

Ranma had gone very quiet, so Akane turned to him and said: "You're the expert here. Start talking."

"It's not that…" Ranma started and stopped. He tilted his head back and stared at the ceiling for a minute. "Everyone's a mixture of Yin and Yang," he said finally. "We all have to find our own balance. It's easy for some of us. My problem was I didn't accept my Yin side for the longest time. Once I did, I started to grow very fast." He straightened to look at Konatsu. "Part of the problem is you're stuck."

"Huh?"

"You're not embracing your Yang side," Ranma continued with a shake of his head. "Only your Yin side. That's a bad state for a self-proclaimed male to be in. You'll wear dresses, but not a shirt and pants - even a feminine set. Ever."

"In Japan, you have to be one of the other," Konatsu stated.

"That's not true," Akari challenged. "There are people in Japan who don't play by those rules."

"They are more outcast than I am," Mousse noted.

"In some places, maybe," Akari replied. "But, like you and Nerima, there are places in the cities they can exist - especially Tokyo. Plus, Konatsu is part of Nerima. The people there accept him in his most outrageous clothing. That's not going to change if he picks something less outrageous."

"Like what?" Konatsu quizzed.

"Like what's in here," Kei, the mother of the two children, cut in as she presented a large sketch pad to Akari. Akari blushed prettily.

Ryoga's eyes gleamed as he said proudly: "Now there's a thought. Kei's right. Some of your artwork is definitely appropriate here."

"Artwork?" Akane prompted with interest shining in her eyes. "You're an artist as well as a farmer?"

"Yes, she is," Kei replied firmly for her young employer. "She took it up this past fall by going to the adult classes at the high school." Akari tried to say something but Kei put a finger to the young woman's lips to silence her. "She definitely has talent."

"All right, that's sort of cool," Ranma added. "Very cool." Mousse nodded his head in agreement and Konatsu didn't have to fake an interest either.

"Kei's overstating things," Akari said depreciatingly.

"No she's not," Ryoga said. "You do have talent." He took the pad from Kei and placed it before Akari.

"Please show us," Akane begged. Kei placed a hand on Akari's shoulder encouragingly. The rest of the table nodded in agreement with Akane.

Akari hesitated for a moment and then gave in: "All right." As folks came around the table to see the pad (and Kei dropped back with a smile on her face), Akari said: "This is the latest homework assignment. I'm supposed to take a non-manga comic and put people I know as the main characters."

"Non-manga comics? There's such a thing?" Ranma teased.

"Ignore the faker," Akane insisted. "He knows better."

"I picked one written by a Westerner named Neil Gaiman. It's called 'The Sandman'," Akari explained as she lifted the cover on the sketch pad. There were low whistles and sharp intakes of breath as everyone saw the first sketch.

"That's me!" Mousse burst out. The colored pencil sketch was of a tall man wearing a robe like Mousse often wore, except the robe was black instead of white. The eyes were very dark, but the face definitely belonged to Mousse.

"This is you as Dream of the Endless," Akari explained. "The Endless are a group of beings set above the gods who keep the Universe running. The Dream King is also known as the Sandman and rules over all mortals' dreams. He is also the Keeper of Stories and helps define what is real and unreal. He's the main character of the series. He's quiet and very aloof."

"I'm not that bad," Mousse protested.

"We have to pry conversation out of you sometimes," Akane shot back.

"Hey, I'm Mr. Loquacious compared to your fiancé!" Mousse defended.

"Leave me out of this!" Ranma insisted.

"Actually, I made a sketch with you as Dream, Ranma," Akari told Ranma as she showed him the sketch. "But, Mousse works better because of the attire; Dream is often in robes and long cloaks."

Ranma studied the second sketch with a little bit of pride showing on his face. "Not bad," he said. "Not bad at all." Akane gave a small smile at his tone.

Akari flipped the page and showed a fully robed and hooded figure. "That's Tofu!" Akane exclaimed.

"As Destiny," Akari acknowledged. "I thought about Mousse for Destiny since the character is blind and wears robes…"

"Typecasting…typecasting…" Mousse coughed into his hand, which got a few laughs including from Akari.

"I decide Mousse made a better Dream, and I'm only allowed to use a person once in the character set," Akari went on. "Besides, Destiny is a big 'know-it-all' as you can imagine." More laughter rang out at that. "I cheated a little since Mr. Gaiman's Destiny doesn't show his face as much and I wanted Tofu to be recognizable." She flipped to another page.

Ranma whistled. "I want to see that outfit!" he exclaimed. On the page was Akane wearing black jeans, a sleeve-less black top with spaghetti straps, and a silver ankh on a chain about her neck. There was some type of small swirly mark below the far corner of the Goth figure's right eye.

"This is Death," Akari said in a teasing voice, causing even Konatsu to snicker.

"I'm not that bad!" Akane exclaimed echoing Mousse and blushing.

"Anymore," Akari agreed in the same teasing voice. The men smirked and said nothing, not wanting an elbow in the ribs. They knew Akari was the only one who could get away cleanly with the teasing. Akari's mouth settled into a small smile as she continued: "Actually, Gaiman's Death is not like the traditional Grim Reaper. She's very compassionate and nurturing. She's a very perky character who does her best to ease fears and make things come out right." Akari gave Akane a very direct look. "You're a better match than you know," she stated, causing Akane to blush again. Ranma put his arm around Akane shoulders. Akari finished by saying: "You're a bit more developed than Death, and I had to make your hair longer, but it's a good fit."

She flipped to another page to show a drawing of Ryoga in leather-and-plate armor. "This is Destruction," Akari said proudly. Everyone except Akari and Ryoga almost fell on the floor with laughter. Ryoga was not as insecure as he used to be, so he just settled for rolling his eyes at their reaction. Akari continued unperturbed when they got control of themselves: "Destruction is a powerful warrior, very private and taciturn. He's friendly enough though and works at improving himself." She looked at her fiancé with a sparkle in her eyes. "Definitely a work in progress."

Akari skipped ahead a few pages. The picture she showed them was a riot of color forms with Miss Hinako standing in the middle of the chaos in her child form. Her eyes were different colors. Unlike the teacher in real life, the child on paper was wearing very untidy clothes. "This is Delirium. She's the youngest of the Endless and a bit of a mess. Unlike Miss Hinako who can be hyperactive, she's a very dreamy sort of super-god. Like Hinako though, she can bounce from topic to topic at a ferocious rate. It can be tough to follow her."

"Another good match," Ranma chuckled.

"Don't laugh too hard," Akari warned him. "I considered Ranko, too."

"Oh come on!" he protested.

"You overact sometimes, Akari told him with a sly smile. The rest just nodded their heads. Akari sobered up and said: "Now for the Twins," She flipped back a few sheets and stopped at a drawing of a small wrinkled and sagging old woman huddled sadly on the ground. The view was from the side and the small woman was naked with her legs bent and pulled up against her chest. Her arms held her legs tight, shielding the woman's chest.

Mousse sighed as he took in the drawing of Cologne: "Let me guess - Despair?"

Akari nodded, her lips pressed in a tight frown. "She's better, but Shampoo hurt her very badly. If it wasn't for taking care of you, she would have given up. Don't forget about her."

"Not happening," the Chinese man said firmly.

"The rest of us are keeping an eye on her too," Konatsu stated. "Mistress Ukyo makes a point of stopping by every day."

"We'll keep watching," Akane echoed.

Akari nodded in acknowledgement and said: "Now the other Twin." She flipped one sheet forward and stated: "This is Desire." There was more whistling from the group. Konatsu said nothing though - his mouth worked wordlessly in amazement at his image serving as the final Endless character. Akari turned to him and added: "This is what Kei and Ryoga wanted you to see. Desire is a very different character from the others. Mr. Gaiman uses the English pronoun 'It' for the character, but Desire is male *and* female. It represents everything anyone desires - and I mean *anyone* whether they be gods, spirits, people, animals, or even plants. Given your duality, I thought you were a good model for he/she. The thing is, the duality is all you share; Desire is very self-centered and often serves as the villain in the Dream King's world. You're more selfless than selfish."

Konatsu was still stunned by the image. It was definitely his face, and his body (more or less), but the very fashionable clothes (especially with the high collar jacket) on the image made it impossible to determine if the shape was male or female. There were hints of breasts on the figure, but the shadows made things indistinct. The hips seemed to be female, but it was hard to tell with the pants the figure was wearing, especially since the rest of the musculature was more male than female - but only barely. The hair was short, but the style fit either a man or a woman. The make-up was no help what-so-ever; it hid the contours that could have tipped the scales one way or another. Overall, the impression was of an adult body, but a completely androgynous one. It was a look Konatsu had never contemplated before. "It's…it's beautiful," he stuttered out.

Normally, a Japanese person would have demurred at this point, but Akari knew this wasn't the time. Instead, she answered. "It did come out well, didn't it?" She couldn't stop herself from saying: "I didn't create the clothes by myself though. I got the general idea from some fashion magazines."

Konatsu's head whipped to look at her. "These clothes exist?"

"Well, yes…but they are designer clothes. They are very expensive," Akari told him.

"I don't care," Konatsu answered. "If I can see them from all sides, I can sew them."

"Well, you're in luck then," Kei called out from where she was bringing out dinner. There's one boutique in town that sells clothes like that. I can drive us there after dinner."

Mousse turned to Ranma and Ryoga with a raised eyebrow. "Somehow, I see a lot of Playstation in our immediate future. I think Konatsu and the girls will be busy this evening." His brothers suppressed their merriment.

Ukyo got off the train and walked toward the station's exit early the next morning. She had to remind herself constantly that this was only for a few hours. She could be back mid-afternoon and hit up the dinner crowd full force with Konatsu in tow. The others had had to do a lot of talking to convince her to join them for that long, but she had to admit they were right - she should take a break now and then. Sunday breakfast wasn't her best seller anyway - at least right now. She sighed then. Mid-winter was always a tough season and this year was no different. The weather kept people home and sales always dropped off now.

Oh well, a little fun wouldn't hurt her and the others were good company. She had become closer to Akane again over the last few months since Ranma was no longer an issue. The blue-black hair girl was a loyal friend and endless source of encouragement despite whatever was going on. Akari was a lovely person who understood the business world and could sympathize with that world's problems. Since Ukyo had gotten rid of her obsession with Ranma, she saw the sex-changer for who he was: a good friend who would try and help out - or at least fake an interest in her restaurant problems. Ryoga was lousy at faking an interest; learning how to run a farm well took all his business "slots". Still, he would at least sit quietly and let Akari and Ukyo talk. The pig-boy was good company in all other regards.

It was no surprise that Mousse understood Ukyo's world the most. The two of them shared a lot in common, enough so that Ukyo would sometimes study the Chinese man speculatively. Strictly speaking, he wasn't quite her type; she preferred wrestlers over swimmers. However, he did have a lot to recommend him. He was very handsome, extremely strong, protective, loyal and practical. Unfortunately, there were a few problems: his nationality was not useful for promoting a Japanese restaurant, he was extremely popular with the ladies (so competition was high), and he wasn't interested in dating seriously (having come off the rebound hard). Still, his good points outweighed his bad and Ukyo kept an eye on him - if he started to show signs of wanting to settle down, she would sit down and have a talk with him.

Ukyo loved having Konatsu about, but was a little conflicted about him. When she first took him in so he could flee his abusive family, it had been more like adopting a child. At first, he was simple labor - he did what he was told and he did it well (mostly). However, as time passed, the child had grown up. He learned the basics of the business and more importantly, he learned how Ukyo did things and was able to work with her flow. Also, his childhood had taught him how to manipulate people, and he was a master at it. He could charm a disgruntled person with ease and turn him/her into a satisfied customer. Konatsu was also great for drawing business; his outrageous behavior and outlandish costumes fascinated people (something he knew very well). A meal at Ucchan's often included a floor show.

At the same time, his mature behavior was becoming a problem. Since he was growing up, he was beginning to evaluate his circumstances. Before, he had been a serf. Now, he was more like a junior partner - and a very valuable junior partner. Ukyo worked hard to manipulate him; like giving him a raise before he could ask, allowing her to have the final say in his pay increase.

His child-like worship of her had faded into something else too. She was almost certain that he had feelings for her, something that bothered her. She was admittedly fond of him, but didn't see him as husband material. Or at least that was how she use to feel. Now, she wasn't sure. She thought men should be protective and didn't see Konatsu in that role - until Shampoo blew Konatsu out an upstairs window and the ninja had stood half-naked in the street protecting Ukyo and a downed police officer. She couldn't see Konatsu as desirable in his cross-dressing clothes; that is until he hit her with a certain Kunoichi technique throwing Ukyo into heat (despite what was only a glancing blow).

"NO," she thought angrily to herself. "I'm tired of the conflicts. No more men changing into women - literally or figuratively. I want someone who knows who they are and someone who I find attractive. They can be interesting, but I want dependable and someone who fits into my world. Right now, the closest match is Mousse. Either him once he settles down and heals, or someone like him. If Konatsu is truly interested in me, I'll just give him the 'I see you as my brother' speech and leave it at that - but not until I'm sure. There's no sense causing a problem if there is none." She blew out her frustration with a long sigh and found the stairs down to the street.

When Ukyo got to the street level, she immediately saw Akari and Ryoga waiting for her with two other people. One of them was a woman in her late twenties who Ukyo recognized as one of Akari's employees that lived on the farm. The second was familiar, but Ukyo couldn't quite place him…or was it her?…no, him, no…

"Konatsu?" Ukyo burst out. "Is that you?"

"Not bad, is it Ukyo?" Konatsu said. Ukyo was equally surprised that her ninja didn't use the term 'Mistress'. "I was looking through some fashion magazines and saw this." He looked at her proudly. "For some reason, it caught fire inside of me, and I worked through the night to make it with some fabric Kei had around. Hopefully, I didn't keep anyone up."

"No," Kei chimed in. "You didn't. This is a farm. The day starts early. Seiji is normally up at 5AM when he bought you that cup of coffee.

"You didn't sleep last night?" Ukyo asked severely. "How are you going to be able to help out this evening?"

"Somehow, I think I'll manage," Konatsu said with a small smile. "Some things are worth a little sacrifice - just like working for you."

Akari watched Ukyo react to Konatsu's new clothing with a hidden smile. "Typical Ukyo. She tries to go on the attack when off balance - and Konatsu knows her too well to let it bother him. He just threw her when he didn't act hurt," she thought. She watched Konatsu snatch Ukyo's bag and place it in Kei's car trunk. The former cross-dresser absolutely flowed through the motions. The unisex fashion idea had set his soul on fire. "He's found a path for his Yin and Yang," Akari noted. "This could get interesting."

As they got in the car, Ukyo and Konatsu took the back seat with Ryoga. Konatsu was telling Ukyo all about yesterday – starting from the group's arrival at the farm. The normally forthright chef was subdued by the overnight change in her assistant. Akari had never seen the woman at such a loss. Inside, the farm mistress smirked as she thought: "Akane prefers charming ogres. I prefer charming ogres. I know you like ogres too, Ukyo – I've caught you looking at our intendeds. But there's another type you like – the exotics. You've been looking at Mousse, but you're not what he needs. Now you have your own exotic. I don't know if anything will come of it, but dealing with Konatsu will keep you out of trouble until after the dust settles and the weddings are done. At least, Konatsu has his path forward now – whether it's with you or not."

Kei looked in the rear view mirror and then threw her own smirk at Akari. Akari choked down her laughter and then nodded. Kei winked at her friend and employer and put the car into gear. Akari leaned forward to glance in the door mirror at the back seat. Ukyo was still at a loss for words. "Oh yes," Akari thought as she settled back. "Things will definitely be interesting to watch."

A/N: A word of caution: While it's one of my favorites, Neil Gaiman's "The Sandman" is a comic for mature readers only. Mr. Gaiman has also written a number of novels including American Gods and even a number of books for Young Adults including The Graveyard Book.