Heya again all!

It came to my attention that I probably made a mistake. I mentioned stuff 
about Kodachi in ND, but I think I may have been confusing this fic with 
another. I read this fic yesterday, enjoyed it, then deleted it (my hotmail 
account is small, and I have to clean it out regularly). Then the debate 
started and my foggy memory tried to dredge up details. I thought I 
remembered something about Kodachi, but again, I was probably wrong. If 
someone could send me the fic, or point out where it's located online, maybe 
I can see where I went wrong.

Sorry about the mix-up! ^_^

Heya Nick!

Great story, stirred some good emotions, though left me a little sad. As
opposed to most people, I tend to like happy endings to my stories, but
that's just me. ^_^

*cough*The Better End*cough*

'Course, the whole thing was written as a parody to get a rise out of 
people. Good to see it's still workin'! Also as a learning experience for 
me, and to this day, it's still quite enlightening. :)

Now if only some readers were true to their word and reacted as such if a
fic involved Akane....

Yep, long time ago (A year ago?). I used to be pretty horribly biased, but 
debates like this one and others, have helped to enlighten me. I'd like to 
think I've changed and become better as my understanding has grown, but some 
people may still think otherwise.

So the next time you come across something that at first seems

unbelievable,

trying expanding your imagination a bit; you'll be surprised! ^_^

BWAHAHAHAHA!

Mommy, I'm being laughed at! *sniff* Dang, I suddenly feel all depressed and 
sad. I no longer feel like writing, and in fact, I should destroy all my 
fics. "The world is a dark and lonely place..."

So says the guy who wrote 'The Better End' because he couldn't handle how
Zen's fic treated Akane (even if it painfully and rather unbiasedly showed
her descent to madness).

In fact, here's the link: http://fanfic.tass-anime.com/ranma.the-better-end

Yeah, and I'm still tweaking and working on it. Was never quite happy with 
the original and plenty of people have offered interesting viewpoints. 
Although, the version on the RAAC is the oldest, and the current version has 
changed quite a bit. I stopped posting the RAAC over a year ago, when I was 
having some problems doing so (technical problems).

But i have a question then. What should be my next action? Should I simply 
just delete this piece entirely? Should I continue to work on it? Should I 
just leave it alone?

Should I just give up fanfiction entirely because I can't write? I'm 
actually genuinely interested in what people have to say.

So forgive me for thinking that your 'expanding one's imagination' point
comes with a few restrictions as to in what directions one's imagination 
can
be expanded.

Yeah, I can admit I was a different person then; much more disturbed and 
rabid. *shudders* I was, and am still learnin', and I'd like to think I'm a 
bit more mellow now. Maybe there are possibly a few people out there who can 
identify with me? Then again, maybe not.

We all have our biases because we're human. The more we try to deny it 

and

say otherwise, the more they come out subconsciously. I like all the
characters and try to portray them all in a good light (my failing as an
optimist, I know), but sometimes I say or write something that comes

across

as bashing or horribly biased, and I'll need a good kick in the pants to

get

back on track. And I also know, I can find plenty of volunteers on the

FFML

to do that for me!

A minor jab at those who replied angrily to you for 'The Better End'?

Except for the fact that I honestly meant it. I learned a lot in writing and 
posting that fic, and in the responses I got to it. Some may not believe me, 
but I honestly want to better my understanding, and a posting of this fic 
helped me learn a lot about the attitudes and views of several people on 
this list. It was quite an experience! ^_^

You brought that onto yourself with your comments on Zen in the original
version, the title you gave, and the _insistence_ that it was a _parody_.

It's my own damn fault, I know. People are never gonna let me live that 
down, eh? ^_^ I guess I'm doomed to forever be branded a certain way, and 
henceforth all my comments and thoughts will always seem skewed. Oh well, I 
guess it's too much to hope for some to not hold past actions of a year ago 
against me. After all, there's absolutely no way I could have changed, 
right?

So, smile and be happy!

Was it because you truly felt that others shouldn't react to 'canon' (damn
that word) so strictly and have more of an open mind with regard to these
things (which means that you're now more accepting of Zen's fics and those
that are similar -- and you've got a lot of convincing to do for me to
believe that)?

Believe it or not, I have changed, and am still changing. There was a minor 
debate on the #fanfic channel awhile ago, where DB convinved me of what 
canon really was, and I appreciate that(thanks DB!). I learned something 
new, and my attitudes shifted as result. And that, I believe, is a good 
thing! :)

If you want an idea of my current attitudes, why not look at what I've done 
lately? "Drunken Panda" emphasizes my latest views, as I explore a character 
that frequently gets ignored or bashed. Not too many Genma fans out there, I 
take it, as I rarely see fics that feature him prominently.

Hopefully, I'll get around to doing introspective pieces for most of the 
Ranma cast in an attempt to understand them. Just one of my hopeful goals...

Or was it because you didn't like the fact that someone was *gasp* 
defending
Shampoo?

Ya know, I'll admit that at first, I didn't really like Shampoo, when I 
first got into Ranma 1/2. But as I listened to people, and read fics like 
Nicks "Borrowed Time", I came to possibly see different sides in her, her 
inner struggles and motivations, and now I like her quite a bit. And my 
understanding of her character is still growing and changing. I personally 
think that if I reach the point where I believe I know all there is to know 
about any of the characters, then something is wrong with me!

Again, whether or not you believe me is up to you! :-)

Though I think I remember asking you on the fanfic channel on what Shampoo's 
good points were since you liked her (as I was trying to understand her and 
why people like her), and I believe you replied that you mainly liked her 
because not many fics dealt with her very well. And also that she was no 
worse than anybody else.

Anybody else wanna offer up suggestions and ideas? Still learnin' people! 
^_^

And again I'll say that I don't believe you would have ever sent such an
e-mail for a fic that involves Akane in such a way.

Maybe I wouldn't have then, but this is now. We shall have to see, won't we? 
^_^

Ginrai

- Who in a short while will probably regret ever sending this

Heh, I've had plenty of things I've regretted doing as well. In fact, that 
major screw-up I mentioned at the begginning with Kodachi. So, I make an ass 
out of myself, get laughed at, pick myself up and continue on, hopefully 
having learned something. Such is life, ne?

And a minor quibble: I don't know how others think of this, but I frequently 
get mail that's addressed both to me and the list. The result: 2 copies of 
the same thing in my inbox. And since I'm working off good ol' free hotmail, 
I got space concerns. Just something to keep in mind in the future.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

Brad aka Kaiphantom
www.geocities.com/kaiphantom2000

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