After a big fight with Akane a battered and bruised Ranma takes a walk to cool off and think. He doesn't pay any attention to where he is going nor the fact that he has been splashed (more then once!). He stops and looks around, after he runs into a wall. He mutters to himself, confusion evident on his face.

"Man! Now I know how Ryoga feels!"

Ranma looks around, he does not recoginize anything. He is in a lush green rain forest standing in front of an ancient temple. Much of the stone crumbling and is covered with flowering vines, which Ranma could not identify. He decides to sleep in the temple as it is getting dark. He climbs the stairs and knocks. He feels stupid since it is obvious that the old temple is deserted.

He jumps back when the door slowly opens. To reveal and old woman of great age. Ranma figures she is older then Cologne.

"What do you want, girl?"

Ranma starts to snarl back he is not a girl until he casts a quick look down to see he had been changed. She then looks to the old woman sighing she asks if she could spend the night, since she has no pack or tent.

The old woman agrees and allows her to enter. The old woman feeds Ranma-chan a bowl of stew, which she makes short work of. Ranma-chan is then shown to a room where she falls asleep the minute her head hits the dusty pillow. The old woman smiles showing gaping holes where some of her teeth have rotted out.

Ranma-chan begins to glow a soft orange as her memories begin to play across the old witch's mind. The old woman begins to scowl and glow with a magical aura as an emotion she had not felt in eons takes over her...rage.

When Ranma-chan wakes the next morning she is two years old and the temple is brand new. She still has all her memories of what happen and is confused as she looks around and sees her room full of toys for both a boy and girl and new clothes that are unisexed as well. She climbs out of bed and opens her bedroom door to find a beautiful woman with her bright red hair done up in tiny braids on top of her head in an intricate bun, and wearing a long white Grecian dress.
She smiles down a the child and Ranma gasps at how her smiles lights up the room and makes her sapphire eyes sparkle with mischief. A ancient memory tugs at Ranma, telling her that smile is special to her and she has seen it before. The memory is also telling her she missed it terribly and that she wants to do nothing more than stare at it forever.

"Good morning my beloved child welcome _home_, I am your _true_ mother, Cerci!"