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

Chapter 3: Iron Chef

"Yeah, Konatsu, she just wants to sleep, don't bug her. Just keep an
eye on the restaurant, maybe check on her later," said Ranma, as he
and Akane stood in the doorway, ready to leave. Konatsu was such an
easy-going person, lately. All Ranma had to do was give a command, and
he did it without a second thought. His lack of arguments was so
refreshing, Akane almost felt sorry for him. That, paired with the
astronomically low salary she knew Ukyo was giving him, made her
wonder how he even managed to exist with an ounce of self-respect. But
that wasn't her business, and her and Ranma had to be off. She looked
at her fiance, anxious to know what had been said up there, but held
her tongue. For now.

"Don't worry about your boss, she'll be happiest if her restaurant is
taken care of. Thank you for having us," Akane said sweetly.

"I understand. G-goodnight," said Konatsu. Then Ranma and Akane walked
out the doorway, Ranma's hands shoved into his pockets, and Akane
holding onto her bag with both hands.

_I couldn't hear anything from downstairs...whatever Ranma said, he was
pretty quiet about it. It didn't take long, either_, thought Akane,
turning her head to look at Ranma. His face was fairly blank, and she
wanted to hit him for it. She had been visibly devastated after
telling Ryoga, and he didn't look upset after telling his childhood
friend? She soon realized that she was being stupid, and again held
her tongue. In reality, she was just concerned, and wanted Ranma to
tell her how it had went.

"It went just fine, if you're wonderin'," said Ranma, after a moment.

"Fine? That...that's good," said Akane, encouragingly.

"She said she'd come to our wedding, too. With good intentions, this
time," he finished, a small smile on his face.

"That'll be a switch. See, I told you it'd be alright...maybe I
shouldn't have pushed you so hard, though...," she began, feeling the
guilt starting to build up. Really, she hadn't meant to be so
persistent earlier. Something about Ranma, and his fool stubbornness,
just brought it out in her.

Ranma shook his head, dispelling her guilt.

"Nah, it's okay. I hate to admit it, but you were right. This needed
to be done, and it was done. Ucchan'll have a good cry about it, but
she's accepted it. I hope," he said. _He hopes? Oh dear...what DID go
on up there? I know it was just talking, but..._

"She doesn't really have a choice but to accept it. If you believe in
her loyalty to you as a friend...then well, she isn't much of a friend
if she leads you to believe one thing, then does another, right?"

"Yeah...right. So, we'll just see how it goes. For now...home is
looking pretty good."

"Right. Home," she said, as they started off in that direction.
Suddenly remembering a promise to Kasumi earlier, she felt her skin
jump, and looked at her watch. Now was definitely not early anymore.
She hoped Nabiki had made it home in time to help.

Ucchan's wasn't far from the Tendo household, and unlike earlier, this
time the house was much more full. Akane's and Ranma's fathers were
noisily playing Go on the porch, while Kasumi cleaned the kitchen, and
Nabiki was watching television. She thought she had seen Happosai
walking down the hallway with something on his back as they came in,
but wasn't sure. _Probably was another panty raid._ Akane bristled at
the thought.

"Oh! We were wondering about the both of you," said Kasumi as they
walked into the main living room.

"And just where were you two lovebirds?" called Mr. Saotome from the
porch. She noticed Ranma tense, and glare in his direction.

"We weren't doing nothing!" he replied loudly. Akane rolled her eyes,
then faced Kasumi.

"We were visiting Ukyo, so we've already eaten. I'm so sorry we
weren't home earlier, but something came up, and I...I just couldn't
make it. Did Nabiki help?" she asked worriedly. Kasumi nodded, that
oddly pleasant expression not leaving her face for a moment.

"If you say it couldn't be helped, then it couldn't be helped. Nabiki
was home early, and so was Mrs. Saotome. She is such a sweet woman,
she had finished her errands early, came here to visit, and offered to
help," she said, making the weight of shirked responsibility leave
Akane's shoulders easily. Without another word, Kasumi walked back to
the kitchen, returning happily to her duties.

"Hey, what time is it anyway?" asked Ranma, walking into the kitchen
to look at the clock. _Shoot, we completely lost track of time. Should
we still bother to study tonight? But Auntie Saotome made us promise
not to study..._ Earlier that morning, before school, she had told both
of them (mostly Akane, really) that they needed to relax rather then
study.

"Eight? It's barely even dark outside," he said, sounding disappointed
that he had lost the whole day already. Grabbing a couple of glasses,
Akane filled them with juice and started to head towards the stairs.

"Well, I'm going upstairs to finish homework. Umm, you can join me,
if you want?" she asked, looking at Ranma over her shoulder warily.
_Already I'm just assuming he'll say yes._ From the corner of her eye,
she caught her father and Mr. Saotome grinning ridiculously at them.
Quickly turning her head, she headed for the stairs without another
word. _If he says yes, I want it to be out of THEIR earshot,_ she
thought hotly, heading upstairs.

"Eh, sure. Hey, one of those is for me, right?" he asked, catching up
with her. She handed him one of the glasses, and he took a long sip as
he finished climbing the stairs behind her. They entered her room
quickly, Ranma barely a step behind her, and took out their books.
Ranma dragged the other chair over to her desk, then sat in it,
twirling a pencil in his hand.

"Don't they ever stop?" asked Akane, irritably.

"Of course they don't. Come on, stop worrying about that. Who cares
what they think, anyway?" he asked, shrugging. She did try to stop,
but it was hard to just stop an emotion like that. Before she had been
tempted to explain that to him, but it was pointless. He had to know
that an emotion couldn't just be stopped, on command. Didn't he?

"True. It just...bothers me sometimes. But we have more important
things to do."

"Right. Like finishing this homework, then do something else. Mom
didn't want us to study, and I think you know how much I agree with
her, for once," he said, abruptly ending the conversation.

True to his word, he did go through the homework, like a man
possessed. He even managed to finish before her, which was a rarity.
Normally he let the task drag on, his wandering eyes looking outside,
or doodling, or on some occasions he'd just get up and start doing
pushups and exercises right in her room.

Ignoring him, Akane poured over her own homework. She prided herself
on the fact that she wasn't quite done yet, thinking that she was
being more careful, and probably doing it better too. She looked over
at Ranma from time to time, seeing him doodle on some papers idly,
obviously waiting for her. Finally, when Akane was just at the last
question, Ranma leaned back with a small groan, closing his eyes.

"Something wrong?" asked Akane, eyes still on her notes.

"I'm just worn out."

"Doesn't surprise me. We were doing a lot of running around, today,"
she said, not really paying attention to him still. _Just one more
question to answer..._ Frowning, Akane finished it hurriedly then
turned to look at him.

"There, I'm done." Immediately he opened his eyes and sat back up in
his chair, no longer looking worn out at all. Akane wanted to giggle,
but kept it in check.

"Great. I mean, I know I could just walk out any minute and not wait
for you. But I..."

"You don't want to be alone on our free night, even though it's almost
over?"

"I can be alone! It's just...not much fun, I guess," he answered,
playing with his pigtail idly. Akane nodded, resting the pencil she
had been holding on the desk. Today had seemed important to him, for
some reason. She was just starting to realize that now. This morning
his anticipation of having no responsibilities after classes had
seemed childish, even for him. It hadn't occurred to her how stressed
he was lately; he just didn't let it show.

"Soon we won't even have to be doing this, anyway. School's over in a
matter of weeks," said Akane, leaning her elbow on her desk. It was a
pretty big thing, too. School had been such a ruling force in her life
for a long time; to be without it suddenly would be odd.

"Yeah. It'll be nice to not have to go anymore. Who knows, I might
miss some parts of it, though."

"The parts that don't happen in the classroom?" asked Akane.

"More or less."

She allowed him an amused smile for that one, and felt herself relax
again. She was starting to feel chatty now, with the day behind them
and done with.

"What do you want to do when school's done?" she asked.

"Same thing as I've always done. Be a martial artist. It's my life, no
reason for that to change now," he replied. Akane had expected
something along those lines. Martial arts had been even more of a
force for him then school; his life had been one long training
session, thus far. He was born and raised to fight, and defend.

"What about you?" he asked.

"Oh, I don't know. Probably continue martial arts. But I'd like to get
into other things, too. I was actually thinking about being a doctor,"
she confessed.

"A doctor? Following in Dr. Tofu's footsteps?" he teased. Akane threw
an eraser at him, which he dodged.

"Not that kind of doctor, I don't think I could be a chiropractor. I
would like to be a medical doctor though...I practically am here,
taking care of _your_ wounds," she joked. He really didn't get hurt
that much, but she was typically the one to bandage him up when he
was. She could practically hear Nabiki, or her father, or Kasumi even,
saying 'well, he's YOUR fiance, Akane. Take care of him!' It had taken
her a long time to get used to her role without pouting about it.

"I don't get hurt THAT badly. And you cause it half the time."

"Well this way I'd be able to hit you, then dress your wounds properly
without sending you to a hospital," she countered. An awkward silence
fell as she realized she had stepped into a slightly different
territory. Affirmation that they would still be together, long after
they finished school.

"You'll teach in the dojo, right? Not that I need your help,
but...it's the Tendo dojo. There should be a Tendo there," he said,
uncomfortably.

"There will be a Tendo there. Teaching," she replied, her voice quiet.
It was a pleasant thought, but an odd one at the moment. Hadn't they
been declaring their hatred for each other, a few months ago? Or had
they really been declaring it? Reaching out, Akane grabbed for Ranma's
hand, and was surprised when he let her hold it. Things were still
going slowly, between them. Two long years of denial, and only now,
acceptance of their fate. Silent acceptance, anyway. Slowly, she
looked up at him, a passive look in her eyes. He looked back at her,
his expression unreadable.

"Hey, don't look at me like that," Ranma said suddenly. Akane frowned,
and tilted her head.

"Like what?"

"All passive, and girly. It doesn't suit you," he replied. She felt
her battle aura flicker, but still wasn't sure if he had really meant
for his words to come out like that.

"What are you trying to say?" she asked, hitting his forehead with
another eraser before he could block. He twisted her arm in
retaliation, turning the simple act of holding hands against her.

"Hey, no fair!" she said, grabbing for his shirt sleeve and trying to
get him to a half standing position so she could flip him over. She
managed to free her arm at least, after a minute, and slap him on the
back of his head. Ranma responded by picking her up, much more swiftly
then she remembered him being able to, and holding her under an arm,
mussing up her hair.

"Arg, when I get out of this, you are in SO much trouble, Ranma!" she
yelled, kicking. He never did hit her, though. She could slap, kick
and punch all she wanted, and not once would Ranma intentionally hit
her. Just find every possible other way to annoy her.

Finally, she squirmed out, punching his chest in the process. A swift
kick to his shins had him to the floor in moments, but he got up
quickly, shoving her back into her chair as he sat down. Akane shot
him an annoyed look.

"See? That's more like you there, Akane," he said, clearly satisfied
with himself. Akane sniffed, no longer feeling sentimental enough to
be nice to him, let alone hold his hand. Of all the nerve!

"Oh, like you never get all mushy. I've seen the way you look at me
sometimes, when you think I can't see you," she countered.

"No way, it's all you, tomboy," he said, receiving another punch to
the shoulder.

"Tomboy, is it now? I'll show you-" Then something occurred to her.
She stopped her sentence, and her anger stopped. She had just noticed
something. Something she had never quite seen before. It was
interesting, and surprising enough to calm her aura down to a light,
blue hum.

"I get it now," she said mysteriously, her lips curling in a smile.
Ranma looked frightened, and confused, which only amused her further.

"Get what?"

"Why you always do that. Find some way to touch me. Sure, you can use
the excuse of saving me from falling, or protecting me, or even
retaliating from an attack...but you never hit me. You just want to be
close to me. That's it, isn't it?" she asked, her eyes sparkling.
Ranma leaned back as far as he could in the chair, looking like he had
been cornered. Again. Revenge was so, so sweet.

"Now, wait a minute here..."

"No, I'm right, aren't I?" she pressed.

"It's not always about-"

"So it's sometimes about it? Pervert," she accused.

"Pervert? You do the exact same thing!"

"I do not!"

"Do to!" he said, but Akane didn't reply. Another realization suddenly
came to her, and this one wasn't quite as amusing as the first. Did
she do it too? Was she just like him, so obvious? They stopped
yelling, and instead stared at each other intently. _Oh god, is he
saying that I always fight him just to get his attention? No, that
can't be...no, no, no, he's a jerk, and an idiot, and..._

"You're looking at me like that again," he said.

"So are you," she replied. Akane noticed that he was now holding both
of her hands between his, and that hers were shaking. But his hands
were so warm, and strong...why was she shaking? She wanted to pull her
hands away from his, to turn her head and deny her feelings, but it
was so...comfortable. To just leave them there. Her hands wouldn't
listen to her revolted mind, and her emotions were a jumble, madly off
in all directions.

"Akane..."

"What?" she asked, gulping in a breath of air. He looked like he was
about to say something, then looked over to Akane's door. Immediately,
Akane tuned in to the subtle sounds of breathing that Ranma had
obviously heard, and felt her emotions calm slightly.

_Someone's out there? Now? But who is it?_ She couldn't decide if she
was overjoyed or deeply peeved.

Looking back to her quickly, Ranma put a finger to his lips as though
to tell her to be silent. Shooting him a questioning look, she watched
silently as he got up, and shuffled over towards the door. Putting his
hand on the knob, he turned it slowly, quietly, then more quickly,
pulling the door open in a flash. Akane stood up as the open doorway
revealed her older sister, Nabiki, standing there with a cup in her
hand.

"Nabiki!" she fumed, walking over to her sister. Ranma looked more
amused then annoyed, but he certainly didn't block Akane's path. He
wasn't stupid, after all, and he could plainly see Akane's expression
change and darken.

"Are you two ever going to grow up?" asked Nabiki, shaking her head.
Ranma looked from one sister to the other, seeming to weigh in his
mind whether or not he should stick around.

"Uhh...I'm going to grab a snack," he said, before dashing out the
door. Akane ignored him, her entire focus on Nabiki now. Angrily, she
pulled her sister into the room, slamming the door behind them.

"What do you think you were doing? Spying on us!" demanded Akane,
crossing her arms as she glared at Nabiki.

"Calm down, sis. I was just checking on progress," she said casually,
leaning against Akane's desk.

"Progress? In what? We were doing our homework," said Akane, gesturing
to the papers on her desk.

"And that involves name calling and roughhousing? Though anything
involving you two seems to reduce itself to that, eventually. I just
thought, maybe, it'd go a little...further," she said suggestively.
Akane's face blushed, taking the hint.

"With that idiot? You've got to be joking!" she said.

"You mean the one you're marrying?" asked Nabiki. Caught off guard,
Akane leaned back to rest her weight on her dresser. Her anger fizzled
slowly, but some still remained.

"Yeah...that one." She didn't need Nabiki there to let her know just
how messed up that was. She knew. Absolutely knew. But old habits were
hard to kill. Ranma still was far from perfect, and so was she. Just
because they were official didn't make their relationship
automatically easy and smooth. Why did no one else understand that?

"That's what I thought. You two are just swimming in issues, has
anyone ever told you that?" asked Nabiki. _So she's just going to
insult me now? I should just kick her out. But then she'd probably
find some way to get back at me._

"Despite what you're thinking, I'm actually here to help. Me and
Kasumi have been...talking. Before when Daddy and Mr. Saotome had just
set you two up, it was acceptable for you and Ranma to hate each
other. It's not like you were in love, right? Two innocent teenagers,
thrust together by fate and circumstance."

"I seem to remember two meddling sisters volunteering me for the
role," said Akane flatly. Nabiki coughed.

"Feh, well Kasumi couldn't go for him. Sixteen and nineteen? And you
know how I feel about boys... he's your age Akane, and like it or not,
he's your perfect match. Always has been." Akane found herself nodding
at this, thinking back to that day. They were different people then,
weren't they? In some ways, at least.

"Are you done yet, Nabiki?"

"Not quite. Question, first. Do you love Ranma?" Nabiki asked
suddenly.

"I don't think that's any of your business." Of course she loved
Ranma. Had Nabiki forgotten that? Was she blind? She had even been
telling Akane how obvious it was that she loved him, long before the
thought had occurred to her.

"Not even for your sister? I see." said Nabiki, walking right up to
Akane and putting a hand on her shoulder. "But you do care about him?"


"...Yes," said Akane, after a pause. Pleased, Nabiki took her hand
away.

"Look, I'm not trying to manipulate you here. I'm just tired of seeing
you and Ranma go from pushing each other away, to pulling each other
closer, to pushing, to pulling, endlessly. It's tiring, and not just
for the both of you. It's tiring for everyone in this house who have
been watching patiently for two years, waiting for you both to grow
up."

"So we're too slow for you? Well I'm so sorry for the inconvenience."

"Slow isn't the word for it. Can you at least work on respecting each
other, and not confusing everyone further by calling each other names?
It's childish," said Nabiki.

"So if he's being a jerk, you want me to just passively accept it?
That's hardly a way to run a relationship. Besides, he starts it
usually," grumbled Akane. _And he does too..._

"Who do you think you are anyway, to be giving me relationship advice?
You come in here, assuming everything, insulting my relationship and
my maturity level. You think you know everything about us, but you
don't," said Akane. Nabiki chuckled, then shook her head.

"You still don't get it. I'm here because, believe it or not, I care."


"You? You care? Oh, please, like I'd beleive that," said Akane, an
eyebrow raised. This was new. Nabiki meddled, manipulated, snuck
around, spied on her, but cared? Did she really, or was she trying to
trick her?

"Of course I do, you're my little sister. I just want to start seeing
some real progress. I worry about you. I don't want to see you mess
up, and get hurt. Before you get mad at me again, just think about
what I've said, okay? Goodnight." Without another word, Nabiki opened
the door and waltzed out, leaving Akane staring at the door.

"Nabiki...," she said quietly, tightening a fist. She wasn't really
sure if she was mad or not, but some of what Nabiki had said rang
true. Her and Ranma did have a confusing relationship, and they did
have issues. _But they're our issues, for us to solve. I don't need
Nabiki butting in and telling me what to do._ Feeling warm from the
conversation and being angry, Akane headed towards her window and
pulled back the curtains. Her eyes went wide at what she saw there,
and her scream was barely blocked by a pair of strong hands to her
mouth.

* * *

Ranma Saotome, hanging upside down outside his fiancee's window, held
his hands tightly over her mouth as he waited for her to realize it
was him and stop screaming.

"Shh...." he said, giving her an annoyed look. Upside down, though, he
wasn't sure if she could read it properly.

"Calm down, it's just me," he said. Finally getting the idea, Akane
nodded, and her eyes stopped looking so wild. When Ranma released her,
she slumped back down on her chair as Ranma scrambled to perch upright
on the windowsill.

"Sorry. You try getting kidnaped as many times as I have; you learn to
scream as soon and loudly as possible. What are you doing at my
window, anyway?" asked Akane, looking tired. Ranma balanced himself
calmly, looking at her and around the room. It was different, from the
position he was in now. From outside looking in. It wasn't the first
time he had found reason to spy on her, though. He had been protecting
her again, as he had a few times before. After a fashion, at least.

"Doesn't look like anybody heard you," he replied. Akane nodded, but
didn't invite him in. She looked tired and confused, which didn't
surprise him much. He had been able to hear most of the conversation
with Nabiki, and was about to run off when Akane had headed to the
window.

"I thought you were getting a snack."

"I did. Then I thought I'd see what Nabiki wanted, since it seemed to
be about me too. You don't mind, right?" he asked. Akane thought about
it a moment, then shook her head.

"No, it's okay. Just don't make a habit of it, I can handle Nabiki
myself."

"I know you can. But as I said, I had a feeling this wasn't just about
you."

"It wasn't. How much did you hear, anyway?"

"I think I came in at the part where you were calling me an idiot," he
said. _As always._ It didn't bother him like it used to, though. At
least, it didn't bother him if she said it to his face. Saying it to
someone else, when she thought he wasn't there, was different.

"I didn't really mean it, Nabiki just upset me."

"I know. Just...don't call me names when I'm not around, okay?
It's...weird."

"Same for you."

He bounced a couple of times on the sill restlessly, thinking over the
parts of the conversation that he had heard. Part of it had been too
low to be audible, but most of it had been loud enough. When Akane
said that they were their issues, for them to work out. When she said
she cared about him. He was more annoyed at Nabiki then anything, for
barging in on them like that. _I'm glad I've never had any siblings._

Akane stood up, leaning closer to him.

"Hey, isn't the window thing a little cliched? They do it a lot on tv,
you know," she teased. Feeling more at ease, Ranma changed his
position so he could rest his head in his hands.

"Do they? But hey, I bet not many of them can do it without a ladder.
That takes real talent," he boasted.

"I could do it."

"But my room's on the first floor. There's no challenge there." Akane
made a disgusted face.

"I wouldn't want to peek into your room. Girls aren't perverted like
that. Besides, your dad sleeps in there too," she said, sticking out
her tongue.

"I bet you can't climb up here as fast as I can, though," he said.
Akane looked out the window, appearing to consider this.

"Maybe. I haven't tried since I was a kid, to be honest," she said,
looking tired again. Figuring she was still upset over the encounter
with Nabiki, Ranma reached out to pick out a blossom from the cherry
tree behind him. Passing it to her, he watched as her eyes lit up, and
a slow smile appeared on her face.

"Thanks," she said.

"See? I can be nice," he said confidently, "I'm gonna go now, though,
Mom saw me before I left and said she wanted to talk to me about
somethin'. See ya in the morning."

"If I don't, I'll personally wake your lazy butt up. Goodnight," she
replied.

_That's more like it. It doesn't suit Akane at all to be sulking._

"Goodnight," he echoed, before flipping over backwards, catching the
tree on the way down. He heard Akane close the window, and watched her
close the curtains when he hit the ground.

Running further up the house, Ranma found the right window and crawled
back in to his room, closing it behind him silently. Jumping over his
father, who was cleaning something on one side of the room, he quickly
ran to the door leading to the hallway, then exited before his father
could say a word.

* * *

Ukyo was sitting in her room still, looking at the tray with the cup
of cold tea beside her. There was also a bowl of cold rice on it, now
sticky from sitting there all night. Konatsu, she had reasoned, had
brought that up sometime in the night after she had fallen asleep.
Instead of waking her up, he had just let her rest, leaving the food
there in case she woke up in time to enjoy it.

_That's not like him to waste food...well the tea would still be good,
if I heat it up._ When she had woken up, P-chan had been gone, and she
noticed that his pack had been ruffled through. After knocking on the
door to the upstairs bathroom, she heard Ryoga's voice say that he
wouldn't be much longer. Ukyo had wanted to die when she realized what
it meant. _I slept with Ryoga on my lap, all night! He was P-chan...but
still! What if Ranma finds out about this? What will he think?_

She had changed her clothes too, and tidied the room up. One good
thing had come out of Ryoga staying all night, at least; she felt less
hopeless today. Despite her telling Konatsu and Ranma to leave her
alone, she didn't think she really wanted to be. For most of her life,
Ukyo had been alone. Certainly, she was used to it, but that didn't
mean she always had to be. Or that everyone had to listen to her,
without arguing, when she said she wanted to be. Was subtlety lost on
everyone, these days?

"I should tell him to meet me downstairs, it'd be awkward to talk to
him as Ryoga, up here," she mumbled quietly, opening the door to leave
the room. On the other side of it, though, stood a tall, dark haired
boy, wearing yellow and black clothing with a bandanna on his head. As
the door opened, he took a step back, then bowed his head nervously.

"Ukyo. Umm...hi."

"Ryoga," was all she could say, as she barely remembered to close the
door behind her. Her heart was beating faster, and she found herself
suddenly nervous. What if he made fun of her for being such a wimp,
when he was the pig? What if he had lost whatever respect he had for
her, at seeing her with her defenses down? She didn't need anymore
taunting, now. She was at her wit's end as it was.

"Well umm, hey. Sugar. Why don't we go downstairs? I'm starving," she
offered, grinning like an idiot and trying her hardest to wipe it off
her face.

"Sure. Sorry if I overstepped by staying here last night. I didn't
even realize it was your restaurant when I came here, I just
recognized the smell, and followed it," he confessed, as they made
their way downstairs. She noticed the hallway was steamy, and smelled
of soap from his long bath. _He must have had a weary time, these past
few days. But he doesn't look quite so upset, now. Maybe he's feeling
better._

"Don't worry about it. As I said last night, I was hoping you'd come
back. Your entire life is in that pack, right?" she said, as they
stepped on the main floor. She felt more self-confidence in the
familiar, usually public area.

It was still quite early morning. No doubt Konatsu was already up,
cleaning in the kitchen and preparing for Ukyo to open the restaurant
in the next couple of hours. As they stepped around the bar to the
kitchen, though, they didn't see him anywhere.

"Konatsu?" she asked quietly, not hearing Ryoga's reply behind her.

"Huh?" he asked. Ukyo turned around, leaning against the counter.

"Oh, nothing. Sorry, I didn't hear what you said."

"It was nothing."

"Okay. If you...want to wait out in the main room for a minute, I'm
going to get the ingredients together, then make us some breakfast.
Then we can talk," she said cheerfully, hearing Ryoga exit to the main
room. Sighing, she gathered together a few bowls, mixing ingredients
together in the kitchen.

_Talk about what, how much we both wish things were different? But I
can't just throw him back out on the streets...he has nowhere to go.
Oh, damn you Ryoga, why did you have to choose my restaurant to follow
the scent of?_ It was a good distraction, though, to have Ryoga there.
He was in the same boat she was in, after all. So what if he was
dumped by Akane? He was still young, and talented, and attractive. So
what if his talent happened to be super strength and breaking boulders
with a finger? He did have his good points. He could move on, just
like her. If she really could move on, anyway.

She brought out the ingredients soon after, and heated up the grill
for the breakfast.

"You don't mind omelettes for breakfast do you? It's what I normally
have," she said, cracking some eggs on the grill. Ryoga was already
sitting at the bar, at the same seat that Akane had been in last
night. She wondered if he realized, though perhaps at the moment he
didn't want to see Akane. _Maybe that's why he didn't come downstairs,
when Ranma and Akane showed up. Unless he just didn't hear them. 
Hmm._

"Anything you make sounds good, Ukyo. I'm not picky," he replied.

"Now that's what I like to hear," she replied casually, adding some
slices of meat and chunks of vegetables to the egg on the grill.
Already the air around them smelled wonderfully of food; her stomach
gurgled, reminding her that she hadn't eaten since mid-day yesterday.

"Hey, Ukyo?" he asked, leaning forward with his elbows on the table.

"Yeah?"

"Akane was here too last night, wasn't she? I think her and Ranma were
looking for me yesterday."

"Oh? Well actually, she was here. They didn't stay long, just had some
food, then Ranma wanted to talk," she said, feeling less cheerful now
that Ranma had been brought up, "Why would the be looking for you?"

"They saw me yesterday, on the street. Akane called to...to P-chan.
Ranma was right behind her. He couldn't touch me, with Akane there,
but I didn't want to go to her. So I ran. It's not often that I run
away from Akane, when I'm the pig. I...hurt her," he finished, as Ukyo
scooped up the omelettes and divided them up between them.

"You might have. But isn't that part of the deal? Though I guess it'd
be different if she knew P-chan's true identity," she said, eating her
food slowly. Ryoga barely touched his for the moment, as he appeared
to be lost in thought, thinking about Akane.

"She can never know," he said, his voice sounding like it was coming
from the bottom of a well.

"Akari knows. She still likes you," Ukyo pointed out, using a
chopstick to mark the point. Ryoga blushed, then started concentrating
on his food.

"Akari's never had me sleep in her room, thinking I was just a pig,"
Ukyo's eyes widened as she raised her head to look at Ryoga. _What is
Akane doing with a pig? But it can't be like...no, Akane's such a
prude, it must be just like a pet. But that makes Ryoga a
pervert...sort of._

"Get your mind out of the gutter. I spent the night in a room with
you, and nothing happened, right?" he asked. Pushing down a fierce
blush, Ukyo nervously dropped a chopstick, then bent down to pick it
up. She was glad Ryoga didn't have to see her face right then. Why was
he so casual about that? It had been far from casual. Or had it?

_Maybe he understood...because he was the pig...but still..._

"Feh. But I knew you were Ryoga." She was proud at how even her voice
sounded as she sat up again, though didn't look in his eyes.

"Wouldn't that make it worse, if something had happened?" he
questioned.

"Are you implying that I would have let something happen?" she yelled,
much louder then she intended. She thought she heard a chair drop,
from somewhere to their left, but ignored it. Ryoga flinched, shaking
his head.

"Of course not...but I was just saying..." Seeing his nervous stutter,
she calmed herself, forcing herself to answer.

"It may have made it worse. I don't know. But I bet Akari would let
you sleep in her room, as a pig," she offered. Ryoga seemed to think
about this, then shook his head.

"I'm getting sick of everyone talking about Akari the second I bring
up Akane."

"Sorry, sorry. I'll try to take Akari out of my vocabulary," she said,
picking up their now empty plates and walking over to the sink with
them. When she came back, Ryoga was sitting with one leg perched on a
nearby stool, examining the wood on the bar. It was rarely hard to
tell how Ryoga felt; despite his strength, and his tough outer shell,
he really wore his heart on his sleeve. He did seem upset now, of
course, and nervous. About being around her, or just in general? He
had never seemed nervous about her specifically; sometimes Ukyo had to
wonder if he actually noticed she was female. Ryoga was the type to
keep his distance from everyone, be they male or female, while at the
same time desiring the affection and attention that could only come
from being around others.

_So really, he's just like half the population of the world?_ Ukyo
smiled bitterly, then sat back down. It wasn't like her to be bitter,
but the taste was just in the air.

"What are you going to do now, then, Ryoga? You're welcome to stay
here another day or two if you need it, but from what I've seen,
you're not the type to stay in one spot long enough to cast a shadow,"
she joked, leaning on the bar and fixing her long hair into a
ponytail.

"I hadn't thought of it, really. I've been just running, and running,
and running, ever since that night. I think last night was only the
third time I had really stopped for longer then an hour or two," he
replied. Ukyo felt both impressed and sorry for him all in one. No
wonder he had slept so soundly, and easily.

"Well, you have a house, don't you sugar? You could go there for a
while. Relax, see your family," she offered. Ryoga chuckled softly,
and shook his head.

"My parents are just as bad as I am with directions. The chance of
either of them being home while I am is one in a million," he said,
not seeming very thrilled with the idea of going home.

"Is it as hard for you to get home as any other place?" asked Ukyo. _He
should at least be able to find his own way home properly...he was
able to get here, wasn't he? And I know he's been to the Tendo's
several times._

"About the same, actually. Well, it's not so bad if I have my maps,"
he said, then sighed. "I...I just want to thank you again, Ukyo.
You've been really nice."

"That's what friends are for, right?" she asked. Although Ryoga ducked
his head, she saw his eyes widen when she said 'friends'.

A soft clang was heard from the room adjacent to the restaurant.
Within seconds, Konatsu was at the doorway, peering in at both Ryoga
and Ukyo. His eyes were tired, but seemed pleased to see Ukyo at the
grill.

"Konatsu. Have you been in there all morning?" asked Ukyo. _And here I
even made breakfast without him! Well, maybe he already ate_, she
thought, taking a step towards him.

"I was cleaning out the room. It's been needing it for a while, and I
thought now would be the best time to do it. Un...unless you're
planning on closing the shop?" he asked.

"I'm not going to close my shop. What gave you that idea?" Asked Ukyo,
tilting her head.

"Well lately, you haven't cared so much about the lack of customers,
and then I thought with your friend here...," said Konatsu, trailing
off.

"No, no, of course I'm not closing my shop. I still need to make
money, don't I? Okonomiyaki is my life," she said convincingly. To her
relief, Konatsu's face brightened, and he drummed his fingers against
the door frame lightly.

"I'll get back to work then," he said, turning around to go back into
the room.

"Hey, you want some breakfast? I still have everything out," called
Ukyo.

"No, thanks. I already ate." He said before disappearing from her
sight.

"Huh. Silly Konatsu, jumping to conclusions like that," muttered Ukyo,
turning back to Ryoga. He was still sitting in the same position,
managing to look lost inside of the confines of her restaurant.
Sitting back in her chair, Ukyo propped her elbows on the table and
rested her face in her hands.

"What do you want to do then?" she asked. Ryoga stood up, stretched,
then looked over towards the stairway.

"As much as I'd like to stay...I really should go. I don't think
Konatsu really wants me here anyway," he said in a lower voice.
Nothing could be heard from the other room for a moment, then the
sound of someone sweeping again was clearly audible. Walking around
the bar, Ukyo moved towards the stairway, pulling Ryoga's sleeve to
get him to follow her up the stairs so she could question him.

"What makes you think that?" she asked. They stopped near the top of
the stairway, out of earshot of her waiter.

"He doesn't talk directly to me, for one," he said, leaning against
the rail, "Plus, three's a crowd."

"There's nothing going on between me and Konatsu," she replied
quickly.

"Are you sure? With the way he looks at you, I think he wants
otherwise," he said. It was darker up there, and smelled less of food,
and more of soap, still. Pensively, Ukyo tapped her foot, and looked
down the stairway in the general direction her waiter was in.

"To be honest...I have no clue what goes on in his head. At first...I
thought he was like that because I was nice to him. You know, how he's
so quick to obey, and happy to do anything. So selfless. No one had
been nice to him in so long, and here I was giving him a job, food,
pay, and a roof over his head. But..." When she trailed off, Ryoga's
eyes widened, and he took a step towards her.

"But what? Did he do something?" he asked. Ukyo rolled her eyes.

"Don't jump to conclusions. He hasn't said, or done, anything
ungentlemanly. But...I just don't know. I wouldn't say that he doesn't
like you, though. Really, I'd be impressed if he _could_ show dislike
for someone. It's just not in his character," she said, stepping away
from the railing and going towards the room where Ryoga's pack was. He
followed her, though still seemed to want to go down to the bottom
floor and question Konatsu.

* * *

_I shouldn't worry, Ukyo's a strong girl. She doesn't need me worrying
after her...but still..._ Ryoga quickly stepped away from the stairway,
not wanting to lose sight of Ukyo's back as she opened a door and
entered one of the rooms upstairs. The room they walked in looked
vaguely familiar, but was so much smaller then the last time he had
been in it. In it was a small futon, rolled up on one side of the
room, two small tables, a desk, and a wardrobe. In one corner his pack
leaned against the wall, looking out of place. Ukyo stepped to one
side and let him walk in, her arm pointing towards his pack.

"Well there you are. Are you sure you want to go though, Ryoga? You're
welcome to stay here," she offered again.

"I'm not good at staying in places for very long," he replied
truthfully. _I'm probably not worthy of having her cooking every day,
either. She hasn't had any customers except Akane and Ranma since I
got here last night...how much money can she be making?_ he thought,
grabbing his pack and fastening it on his shoulders.

"I'll walk you home then, at least. I usually have my morning jog
around this time. Is it far from here?" asked Ukyo. Sheepishly, Ryoga
took off his pack again, then began looking for his address folder.

"I don't...think it is. Hold on," he said, looking for it. When he
found it, and the correct sheet, he held the page up for Ukyo's
scrutiny. It was a simple map, with a picture of his house and some
other landmarks near it. The actual road name and number was written
in the upper, right hand corner, as well as the city and country. When
Ukyo saw it, she quirked an eyebrow, and gave him an odd look.

"This is your map?" she asked, incredulously, "No wonder you always
get lost! That's it, I'm taking you home Ryoga. I don't know how you
even manage to get around in Nerima at all," She said, shaking her
head. _What? My map isn't that bad..._ He pulled back the paper, 
looking at his map for a moment before putting it away. It may not have 
been as detailed as most maps, but it helped him find where he was going.
Most of the time.

"I'm going to have to teach you how to make maps. Anyway, come on, we
should get going. It'll take a little while to get there from here,
and I'd like to be able to open before noon," she said, walking out
the door again. Ryoga followed her passively, deciding that there was
no point in trying to say no to her. Even he could admit now that he
got lost often. If Ukyo wanted to take time out of her day to make
sure he got home, that was her decision.

When they were downstairs again, Ukyo lead him to the kitchen, where
Ryoga retrieved his umbrella from the floor. Fastening it in place on
the top of his pack, he noticed the look of wonder on Ukyo's face at
his ability to pick it up so effortlessly. She actually looked
impressed. Unused to such attention, Ryoga smiled, scratching the back
of his head, and then they headed for the door.

"Oh, wait here a minute Ryoga, I'm going to tell Konatsu, okay? I'll
be right back," she said, before dashing off to the side room.

"Sure," he replied, leaning against the door frame and looking around
the restaurant again. It looked very clean now, most likely thanks to
Konatsu. Looking at the grill, he noted that Konatsu had even cleaned
it while they were upstairs; he had probably cleaned in the kitchen
too. The seats were all empty, though; the restaurant was just
lifeless. _It'll be better later on in the day,_ he thought, watching as
Ukyo walked back up to him. Her expression had soured, and she looked
annoyed with herself.

"Why didn't you tell me today was Friday, not Saturday?" she asked
angrily, then proceeded to run upstairs. Confused, Ryoga followed to
the staircase, watching her as she disappeared down the hall. A door
was slid open, and he could hear the sounds of water rushing, then
items being rustled around.

"Huh? What's so special about Friday?" he questioned, watching as she
ran back towards the stairs, then past him into the lower bathroom.
Not fifteen seconds later she emerged, changed into her school
uniform, and ran past him back upstairs.

"I'm a student, ya know. I'm supposed to be in school in...twenty
minutes! If I hurry, I can make it," she yelled back. Seconds later
she ran down again, her hair in a bow and a small book bag on her
back.

"Shoot, shoot, shoot, I need to make my lunch too," she said, running
over to the kitchen. Ryoga quickly followed, watching her go through
cupboards searching for different items.

"Geez, calm down Ukyo. They aren't going to kill you for being five
minutes late...are they?" asked Ryoga, uncertainly. It had been a long
time since he had been in school himself, though he was still the same
age as Ukyo. After he had left that last time to follow Ranma, he
hadn't seen the point in going back. He had even tried for a week, but
it hadn't worked out. School was just not important to him. It did
seem to be quite important to Ukyo, as she scrambled about the
kitchen.

"You don't know our principal," she said, shaking her head. In the
process, she dropped a chopstick on the ground, and it rolled under
the table.

"Let me get that for you," he said, bending down to pick it up.
Letting him handle it, Ukyo opened the fridge. _Almost got it...just a
little further._ It had rolled down to almost the other end of the
table. Quickly crab-walking around the table to retreive it, he forgot
how close the table was to the fridge, and his ankle collided with
Ukyo's shoe, causing him to trip.

"Hey, watch out!" she cried, stumbling away from the fridge. Ryoga
watched as though in slow motion as her arm caught on a jug of cold
water, sending it flying. Springing to get out of the way, he was just
seconds too late as ice cold water poured over his back and head.
Shivering, he found himself flying into the air, leaving his clothing
and pack behind on the floor. His body shrank, and a familiar feeling
of morphing came over him. Still wet and shaking from the cold, Ryoga
stood in the middle of the floor as P-chan, glaring at Ukyo and making
pig noises. The latter put her hands on her hips, then laughed,
obviously forgetting about school.

The sound of rushing footsteps could be heard, and soon Konatsu
appeared in the doorway. He looked from Ukyo, to P-chan, and back to
Ukyo, then seemed to notice Ryoga's clothing and pack on the floor. As
well as the water, and plastic jug that was now on the ground.

"Bweeee!" said Ryoga, forgetting for a moment that trying to say
anything would not be helpful. The two others towered over him now,
and so he sat down on his rump quietly, waiting.

"What's going on in here? Are you okay?" asked Konatsu, walking up to
Ukyo. He gave P-chan another curious glance, then picked up the fallen
jug.

"I'm fine, we just had an accident. Ugh, I need to hurry! I can't
believe I forgot it was Friday," she said, as Konatsu picked up
Ryoga's wet clothing and placed it on his pack. In an effort to make
sure they didn't forget he was there, Ryoga jumped up to his pack,
then to the table, and sat down on a small dish towel. It would have
been more helpful for drying off if he had hands, but it was still
better then nothing. _I don't know what's worse, freezing cold water
turning me into the pig, or boiling hot water turning me human again._
Unconciously making pig noises, he rubbed his little head against the
towel.

"I'm sorry, Miss Ukyo!" said Konatsu, bowing and looking upset with
himself, "But where did Ryoga go? And why is his stuff still here?" He
asked, poking at the pack with his toe.

"That's a long story, Konatsu, and I don't even have time for a
summary now. But umm...," Ukyo stopped for a moment, looking at P-
chan. In response, Ryoga tilted his head, then grunted quietly. What
was Ukyo going to tell him? She had to know he was sensitive about his
changing, and that he liked to keep it a secret. But her eyes had a
mischievous light to them...what was she going to say? He hoped she
would opt to take him with her, so he could change back at her school,
but he had a feeling it wouldn't be that easy.

"Isn't that Akane's pet pig? I saw him in your room last night, when I
brought in your tea. Why didn't Akane take him back?" he asked. Ukyo
finished putting together her lunch, then shoved it in her book bag.

"It is, and it isn't. His name is P-chan, okay? Take care of him for
me. He can eat people food, so just give him something if he looks
hungry. Oh, and don't let him leave the restaurant, he'll get lost and
probably get hit by a car or something. Bye!" called Ukyo, running out
of the kitchen.

"But..."

"Hey, if you want answers, leave P-chan in the bathroom with Ryoga's
clothes for a few minutes. But only if you can't wait for me to get
back!" yelled Ukyo.

Ryoga jumped over to the other side of the table, panic rising in his
little body, but was quickly caught by Konatsu. By the bandana, to his
humiliation. He kicked his feet uselessly as he heard Ukyo slam the
restaurant door behind her.

Slowly, Konatsu pulled his arm closer, examining him. P-chan merely
put his head down, still kicking.

"Squeee...," he said uselessly.

"P-chan, is it? Though she didn't say what happened to Ryoga. I don't
suppose you know, do you?" he asked, squinting. Although P-chan nodded
his head, Konatsu just put him back down on the table, still pinning
him in place with a casualness that only a ninja could pull off.

"You seem like a smart pig. And Ukyo cares about you...funny, I didn't
think she'd care about something that belongs to Akane. Well, I'd
better take you with me to the other room, then. Ukyo wouldn't be too
happy if I lost you," he said. With that, he picked up P-chan again,
and carried him out of the kitchen. P-chan's kicks and noises were
promptly ignored by the ninja turned waiter; he had a feeling they
would be ignored for quite some time.


             .---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 -----'