------------------------------------------------------
Title: The Countdown to Matrimony (Ch. 3 of Part 1)
Anime: Ranma 1/2
Author: Denise Cameron aka Elena99
------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 3: The Pig in Me

The skirt of the red and white dress lay around her like a flower in
bloom; a flower with dirt on it's hem, at least. On her lap sat a
small piglet, sleeping as the girl delicately rubbed it's head,
occasionally scratching behind it's ear.

"So peaceful...you'll make a great fighter, someday, but right now
you're about as aggressive as a blade of grass." she said, petting
it's back in slow, distracted strokes. Really, she wasn't thinking
about her pet pig. She wasn't even thinking of training, or anything
that had to do with the room. The girl, Akari, had an odd, sad look to
her eyes that didn't suit the peaceful surroundings she was in.

"Right now, I'm about as aggressive as you are too, though. Why am I
like that? Why can't I be more like...like a pig. A strong, noble,
pig." she sighed, and as though the creature noticed her added
tension, woke up and blinked. Feeling guilty, Akari pet it's head
gently, trying to soothe it back to sleep.

"No, no. Rest. That's a good pig...good pig..." Within moments, the
pig did close it's eyes again, and allowed it's breathing to slow.
Satisfied, Akari nodded, then continued her thoughts.

An odd girl had visited her today. No, she corrected herself, the girl
wasn't really that odd. It was the visit that was odd. It was a girl
named Nabiki Tendo; she had briefly recognized the name, then
recognized it further when the girl had mentioned Akane.

It was about her Ryoga, that she visited her. No, she corrected again,
not her Ryoga. Not the same Ryoga who wrote her letters, who visited
her, whose picture she had tucked away in her diary. It couldn't be.
Ryoga loved this Akane? She had seen Akane before...a pleasant woman,
but not worthy of her Ryoga. Not worthy of someone of such qualities.
Of such strength, and compassion, and kindness.

Apparently, though, he was fond of her. He was supposed to confess
this to her soon, at a restaurant, with Akari as a witness. Nabiki had
said that Akane would reject Ryoga; Akane was to marry Ranma, which
Akari had remembered. The original wedding had been widely talked
about, even up to where she lived.

After Ryoga was rejected, Akari was to be there to lick his wounds, so
to speak. To comfort him, and give her love, so that he may accept it
and reciprocate. She was under the impression that she had already had
his love, though. Why did Akane have to be involved in this? She felt
a tear start to creep out from under her eye, and felt it grow until
it's weight forced it to journey down her cheek. With a shudder, she
found herself waking the confused piglet again, and holding her
tightly to her chest.

"He's as strong as a pig...but I'm just nothing to him. Why am I
nothing? Why?"

Her piglet voiced concern, but not in words Akari could understand.
All the same, she nodded, and pet her pig's head soothingly. She could
be strong, and get through this. She would truly have Ryoga, this
time.

* * *

Nabiki slowly walked along the sidewalk, a large, black umbrella over
her head. It was raining lightly now; a pleasant, cool rain, that
smelled fresh and clean. She felt accomplished, though kept her face
schooled to it's usual blank expression. She didn't want to be
confused for some sort of giddy schoolgirl, young as she still looked
though she was out of high school. A smile on her face would only add
to the appearance of being younger then her age.

Her hand gripped her change purse tightly, and she allowed it to clink
softly in tune to her steps. That was the reason for her happiness;
the recently aquired money, not just in coin but paper as well. Almost
as much to equal any bribe money she could get out of Kuno.

Although confident in her skills, she hadn't been sure at first that
this would work. She hadn't been around Akari enough to properly
evaluate her, and peg her weaknesses. But the girl was so easily
molded, like warm clay begging for strong, firm hands to manipulate
it. Especially whenever she mentioned what pain Ryoga was in, over
Akane.

"What is it with girls...tug their heart strings, and they're willing
to do anything for emotional gratification. Hmm." she wondered at it,
but didn't voice any more of her thoughts. It had been a successful
day, and as far as she was concerned, every member of the female
population of Nerima could just continue on thinking with their
hearts, so long as she didn't have to conform.

* * *

[The day of the date...]

Ryoga Hibiki rose, and stretched his muscular arms. His nose felt
cold, though the rest of him was warm; he had slept with only his head
poking out from under the covers. Despite what this day would bring
him, or maybe because of it, he didn't want to get out of his bed;
sleep was such a comfort. It kept him warm, took him away from the
reality of the cold world. It made him happy to be asleep, most of the
time. Yet the sun was glaring through the material of the tent in a
way that threatened his ability to sleep any further; he gave in, and
proceeded to change into clothing to wear for the day.

He hadn't seen Ranma since that day, which could mean one of two
things. One, Nabiki had given Akane the note without Ranma seeing, and
he had just assumed that Ryoga had gotten lost again. Ranma wouldn't
bother to look for Ryoga when he thought he was lost; he never had
before unless he needed Ryoga. At least, not since back when they were
younger, when Ranma would help him to and from school.

The other option was that Ranma had become so angry that he had
decided to elope with Akane, just to spite him. The thought made him
wince, and made him get dressed all the more quickly. When he was
done, he stepped outside and looked up to the sky. It was a cloudy
day, and the grass was damp; it had probably been raining most of the
night, as it had been the past couple of days. Careful not to get any
of the moisture on his skin, he set up his kettle at a picnic table,
and proceeded to make coffee. While it was boiling, he sat down on the
bench leisurely, looking up at the sky again.

"Akane...I'll give you my heart today, but you're just gonna give it
right back, aren't you?" he said, wistfully. He closed his eyes, where
he could see a picture of her face. Her smile, so beautiful, so
loving. How could anyone not want such a girl? He definitely did not
get the same feeling around Akari, that he did with her.

"Love doesn't happen on command, though." he said in a low voice,
barely noticing that his coffee was done. He downed it in a few sips,
unsuccessfully trying to fill an emptiness in the pit of his stomach.
What he had said rang true in both situations; he knew he couldn't
make Akane love him, and nothing could make him love Akari, just like
that. Even if she did accept him for who he was. Automatically, as
though through routine, he hovered back over to his pack to search for
food. After a few moments of routing through pockets, he noticed that
there didn't seem to be anything edible anywhere in the pack.

_What the..? I just bought some food yesterday...or was it yesterday?_
The contents of his pack were now on the ground of the tent, but no
food in sight. With a sigh, he put everything back in the pack, and
proceeded to prepare his tent and other objects for packing as well.

"I'll just go to the market and get more." he said quietly. He was so
used to being alone, he had started talking to himself a while ago. It
seemed easier that way, really; plus, there was no one around to talk
back. That could be both a good thing and a bad thing.

Once he had himself ready to go, he made his way towards the gate of
the park, looking towards his left, then towards his right. One way
lead to some houses, the other to larger buildings. Scratching his
head, he looked one way then the other a few more times, trying to
puzzle out which one the proper way was. Which way had he come from,
anyway? He must have been to the market before camping out there.
Shrugging his shoulders, he took a step forward, and headed left.

"Wherever I go, I'll find food eventually." he reasoned, setting off
at a light jog. It was good to have exercise in the morning; despite
his heavy pack and umbrella, he felt easy on his feet. There was a
cool, light breeze in the air, and soon he found himself almost
smiling as he jogged down the various streets. Turning left here,
right there, going straight after that turn. A few times, he decided
that he didn't feel right about the path he was taking and doubled
back. About the fourth time he did this, he began to panic.

Nothing around him looked familiar anymore. He was sure he was in the
same city still; he hadn't been traveling long enough for him to be
somewhere else. Had he? The buildings around him were large and
looming. A few cars were visible in the streets, though there were
mostly people on bikes and on foot. There were shops on either side of
the road, but none of them were food shops. Mostly, they were clothing
or music stores, and even one pet store. He half contemplated buying
pig food, then turning into P-chan to eat it, and discarded that idea;
even when he was a pig, he still liked human food best. No, he had to
press on.

Seeing a man walking towards him, he held up his hand, and took a step
to the side to block the way.

"Excuse me! Sorry, but where is the market?" he asked.

"The market? You just came from that direction. Head back and turn
right." said the man, before sidestepping out of his way.

"Thank you." said Ryoga gratefully, jogging back from where he came
from. _Okay, he must have meant my right when I was facing him, so
that's a left now,_ thought Ryoga, patting himself on the back as he
took a left turn. More of the same buildings were around here, but
there were less people. Although he jogged to almost the end of the
street, he didn't see any food shops, and soon his stomach cried for
him to stop. Taking out his umbrella, he stuck the end of it into the
ground and used it to hold himself up. How long had it been since he
set out? He walked forward a few more paces, looking on both sides of
him.

"Hey! Hey, Ryoga?" called a voice from behind him. A female voice, but
one he couldn't place. Turning around, he saw a tall girl with long,
brown hair, running towards him. She wore a blue schoolboy's uniform,
with a huge spatula in a holster on her back, and smaller ones in
pockets on her shirt. Upon recognizing her, Ryoga relaxed, though his
stomach still gurgled.

"It IS you! What's up?" she asked, slowing down as she approached him.
Ryoga tried for a smile, and straightened himself.

"Just out for some food. You?"

"Food's the other way, sugar. I just came back from the market." she
said, pointing behind her. Ryoga's eyes widened, and he smacked
himself on the forehead hard. _Idiot! It was his right, not mine._ The
girl, Ukyo, turned back towards him. He noticed now that she was
holding a few bags in her arms; of course, the food she had just
bought.

"Well, I should get going..." she began, walking away. As she was
about to pass by Ryoga, she stopped, and looked back at him. Ryoga
felt his face redden, unconsciously reminded that Ukyo was a girl. It
was easy to forget, with that uniform of hers, but when she paid
attention to him...it was very obvious, in her face, her posture, and
of course, in her long, long dark hair. Flinching bashfully, Ryoga
averted his eyes.

"Actually...you gotta few, Ryoga? I'm testing out a new recipe. I was
going to get Ranma-honey to try it, but ever since the...incident at
the wedding, I, uh...don't want to bug him. And Konatsu is out for the
day. How 'bout it?" she asked. Ryoga tilted his head, forgetting her
gender at the mention of food. There was no point in running around
aimlessly anymore. And why would he ever want to turn down free food?
His stomach gurgled, as though trying to respond for him.

"Sure, Ukyo. Sounds good."

They began walking again in the direction he had been headed, though
now Ryoga followed her. He was used to Ukyo, somehow. More then other
girls at least. She didn't make him nervous like Nabiki did, or Akari.
In a way, she was like one of the guys; or maybe that was just because
she wore a guys uniform all the time. He always did wonder about that.
Hadn't she given up being a guy? But he wasn't about to come out and
ask. She was a girl after all, and it was her business, not his.
Besides, it wasn't a good idea to annoy someone who was about to
provide homemade cooking.

"It's just up around the corner here. You've been to my restaurant
before, haven't you? I can't remember."

"I have a couple of times. There was that one time, with Akane..." he
said. _Does she really not remember that? She had all but forced Akane
on that date._ Depression and anxiety welled up at the memory.

"Right, right. Sorry, I guess I wasn't thinking." she said. Her voice
sounded sad, despite the cheerful overtone to it. She must be hurting
bad over Ranma, poor girl. Damn that Ranma, how many hearts are you
going to play with? His black hair and bandana bounced lightly as he
shook his head. Really, he did know it wasn't Ranma's fault. Not
completely anyway.

Ukyo stopped suddenly, surprising him, and opened a door that Ryoga
had been ready to walk right past.

"Here we are. Help me put away the groceries?" she asked, or rather,
stated, as she entered. Ryoga bobbed his head, stepping in through the
doorway that she opened up. The entranceway hadn't been familiar,
though now that he looked out at the sign, he read 'Ucchan's
Okonomiyaki' clearly above the door.

"Sure, no problem." he said, looking around the small restaurant.
There was a bar with a grill built into it, meant for Ukyo to display
her Okonomiyaki skills to the waiting customers. A few tables were off
to one side, with chairs around them. The walls were, for the most
part, bare wood. A large calendar scroll with a beautiful peacock was
on one side of the room, with a matching picture of a peacock on the
other side. He looked at the peacock in admiration a moment before
following Ukyo into the kitchen.

She had already started opening up cupboards, taking out food,
measuring cups, and dishes. The bags, she had left on the table,
probably waiting for him to tackle. Without having to be asked, he
took the food carefully out of them, tossing the empty bags in a
garbage can on one side of the room. Ukyo was humming a tune that he
couldn't quite catch, but it didn't bother him; he began to put the
items that he thought belonged in the fridge inside of it, and left
the other items on the table for Ukyo to decide on.

"Hand me the oregano, would ya?" asked Ukyo over her shoulder.
Oregano...oregano...ah, here it is. He picked up a bag with the
appropriate label, and put it over by Ukyo. She was sharpening a knife
now; at some point she had put on an apron which looked oddly feminine
against her stark blue pants, and she had filled a few bowls with
spices and sauces. Ingredients for the dough were sitting on the
corner of the table, and she picked up the oregano, sprinkling some of
it into one of the bowls.

"The flour too, and the jar with the blue lid?" she asked, and Ryoga
responded in the same manner as before. Quickly, she used parts of
what he gave her, then beamed as she balanced the bowls she had been
using on her arms and hands.

"Thanks sugar, now I just need to get to the grill." she said, leaving
the kitchen to go to the main room. Ryoga looked at the food that
remained hungrily, but resisted, closing the containers as he saw
them. His restraint was challenged by an open bag of shelled peanuts,
however. After a quick look at the doorway and seeing Ukyo not there,
he reached slowly towards the bag.

_Just a couple, to tide me over.._ he thought, suddenly feeling scared
that he'd be caught. Before he actually picked up any though, he
changed his mind, and started to close the bag instead. _Idiot, you're
getting free food. Don't take advantage of Ukyo._ Cringing, he did take
three peanuts and ate them quickly before joining Ukyo at the bar.

"This recipe has squid and shrimp, with my new secret sauce..." Ukyo
was saying, as though he had been out there the whole time. Ryoga sat
down on a stool, watching her pour sauce and meat onto a round shape
of dough. She worked the spatula and dough like a blacksmith working
on a horseshoe; quickly, but still careful, and sure. She soon had
another one frying as well, and then her hands and spatula literally
seemed to fly, she was going so fast. Within minutes, he had a plate
in front of him, with two helpings of Okonomiyaki waiting for him.
_She's so generous...better dig in,_ he thought, picking one up and
biting into it. Tears formed in his eyes.

"It's so good." he tried to say, though realized he had forgotten to
swallow. Ukyo laughed at him, and began preparing another for herself.

"Glad you like it. Go on, eat up. I can tell you're starving." she
said. The first one was already half done, and he shoved the rest of
it into his mouth like a wolf who hadn't eaten in days. It was better
then usual, at least as far as he could remember. His stomach stopped
gurgling in appreciation, and he wolfed down the second one as well.

"That was great! Ukyo, you're an amazing cook." he said, looking up at
her. She smiled, but kept on cooking her own.

"Want some more?" she asked, not taking her eyes off her work.

"Of course."

"I'll have to cut you off after these two, so eat'em slow." she said,
serving up two more that were finished.

"I'm just grateful to have food." he said, taking a bite of one. He
looked up to see Ukyo looking at him sadly, and this time swallowed
before speaking. Something was obviously bothering her. Since she had
helped satiate his stomach, the least he could do was try to help.

"What's wrong?" he asked. She took a pensive bite of her food, though
it didn't appear as though it was the food that bothered her.

"Nothing." she said. Ryoga sighed, and had another bite of his
Okonomiyaki. He didn't know much about women, but he knew that saying
'Nothing' like that was a bad sign. Akane had said words like that
before to Ranma, moments before being hit with whatever was handy. You
just did not ignore words in that tone of voice.

"You're thinking about Ranma, aren't you?" he asked. Ukyo looked away,
then nodded.

"You guessed it. I just can't believe he'd do this to me! What does
that Akane have that I don't have?" she asked, looking as though she
were about to pout. Ryoga scowled, not liking the way she had said her
name.

"Don't pull Akane into this, it's not her fault Ranma's a jerk." he
said. Ukyo looked as though she were about to argue, but stopped.

"Ranma's not a jerk. He's just...misunderstood." she said,
thoughtfully.

"Well, he'll be Akane's misunderstood husband, soon." said Ryoga,
depressed now as he thought about what he had just said. Ukyo finished
her Okonomiyaki in one bite, stuffing it in her mouth as shamelessly
as a guy. Blinking, Ryoga stared a moment before looking back to his
food.

"He will, won't he," she said, then seemed to remember who she was
with, "Hey, I'm sorry. I know how you feel about Akane." His heart
felt heavy again as he ate more of the food, slowly. _And I have to see
her tonight and deal with it..._

"They're each going around and telling their suitors to basically give
up, and let them marry. Tonight is my night, apparently." he
confessed. It pained him to think of it, but talking helped. After a
fashion. As much as re-breaking a broken leg that had set wrong
helped.

"I thought Akane didn't know how you felt?" she asked, surprised.

"She doesn't. I'm...I'm supposed to confess tonight. It was Ranma's
idea."

"I see. It makes sense, in a way...how can you get over her if she
doesn't know you're into her in the first place? It'll be good for
you." she said, an odd sound of confidence in her voice that caused
him to smirk ironically.

"Let's see you be so confident when it's your night to be told by
Ranma." he said sullenly. Meeting his eyes, Ukyo frowned, her brown
eyes as downtrodden as his. Ryoga felt as though he would cry if he
had to look into those eyes much longer. It just wasn't fair, all the
sadness both of them had to go through. Ukyo seemed to feel the same
way, as she looked away.

"It's not going to be just any date though...Nabiki had an idea." he
continued on, trying to sound casual. His voice still carried that
heavy note that he had so much trouble getting rid of.

"Oh?"

"Halfway through the date, Akari is supposed to show up. After I tell
Akane how I feel, I'm supposed to go to Akari, and try to use her to
lift my spirits. Everyone seems to think I'm in love with Akari, but I
just...I just don't know what I feel for her." he said, images of
Akane and Akari chasing each other in his mind. It was confusing,
trying to sort out what he felt for each, and what others expected him
to feel. Ukyo nodded, finishing the rest of her food and leaning her
elbows on the table.

"So after Akane tells you that her precious little heart belongs to
Ranma, you're to run to Akari so she can bandage your wounded soul?"
Ukyo could have used her sarcasm for sauce, she laid it on that thick.

"Basically. Will you lighten up on the cracks with Akane, though?" he
asked. Ukyo waved a hand.

"Sorry, sorry."

_What a bitter woman._ Ryoga snorted, his mood back down to what it had
been before eating.

"Hey, what time are you supposed to be there?" she asked.

"Oh, at about..hey, in two hours. I'd better get going, actually."
said Ryoga as he looked at his watch, then stood up. Ukyo got up too
though, and pushed him back down.

"Hold it, pig boy. I'll walk you there, okay? Just let me clean up the
place a little." she commanded. _Pig boy? How dare she...! Oh, cut it
out Ryoga, she's just trying to help._ Still, he frowned at her, unsure
of her motives. She probably just felt bad for him, and wanted to make
sure he didn't have any other problems tonight. Or she didn't want to
be alone with her thoughts. Wasn't that the real reason she had
dragged him over there? She had said her waiter was out...he had never
thought of Ukyo as the lonely type though. _Maybe she's just bored..._

"Fine, fine. You don't have to walk me there, though." he said,
looking away, but still handing her his plate and cup when she reached
for them.

"Yes I do, or you'll be wandering Nerima all night. Just give me a
few, okay? And feel free to use the bathroom. If you can find it."
This time she winked at him before ducking into the kitchen. _Heh, of
course I can find the bathroom. Just need to try going into the
kitchen._ It was precisely that logic that got him into the bathroom
two minutes later, so he could get ready for his "date".





             .---Anime/Manga Fanfiction Mailing List----.
             | Administrators - ffml-admins@anifics.com |
             | Unsubscribing - ffml-request@anifics.com |
             |     Put 'unsubscribe' in the subject     |
             `---- http://ffml.anifics.com/faq.txt -----'