"All dreams have the ability to become real."
--Nico King, 2009
"Oh, Akane…"
Ryouga sat on a rock somewhere he thought was the middle east. Standing up, he shrugged the heavy snow off his jacket and went to his tent, collecting his gas stove and a small tin of food. Setting the equipment up, the martial artist sighed again.
"When will I see you again?" he asked himself.
It had been three months since he had seen his beloved Akane. Three, long, lonely months that had been taking Ryouga all across the world, alone with only his thoughts in his head. The only face other than his a small picture of the blue haired girl in his wallet, tear stained and wrinkled.
As the lost boy sat down to eat, he thought about his life. How he'd always been lost, in all respects. He was lost in this world, without a home, without a friend, without a family and most of all, without himself.
Of course, Ryouga didn't know this.
The fighter had lost himself in his anger at a certain pigtailed, red shirted martial artist. Ever since their 'bread feud', Ryouga had lost contact with his rationality. He kept pushing himself harder, finding new schools and techniques to learn, destroying dojos throughout the world for money to simply live. Prime examples were the Bakusai Tenketsu and Shishi Hokoudan. They had torn his body and mind to shreds, pummelling him with rock and soul. The emotional turmoil he suffered every waking hour ripped him to shreds, and the fact that his enemy was engaged to the one he loved, the one he had the right, the responsibility to be with, destroyed him.
In recent months, the Shishi Hokoudan had become no more than a tool to vent his frustration, his anger. He'd find an empty place, deserted for miles, and rage. He'd pour every single emotion he had into the blast, creating devastation and despair wherever he went.
The Houkodan had a side effect that Ryouga was aware of. The more he used it, the more depressed he'd get. It was a vicious cycle – vent anger, get angry again due to anger vent. Vent anger, get angry again due to anger vent, but worse.
Phsychologists would have fainted if they saw the young man's personality.
Put simply, Ryouga Hibiki was the most depressed person on the planet. Hell, perhaps even the universe.
---
On a spaceship somewhere many light years away, a small robot gave a robotic sneeze. "Oh, great. Now someone else is more depressed than me. Great. Just great." (1)
---
After his meal, Ryouga went into his tent. Settling into his sleeping bag, he ignored the raging snow pounding the flimsy walls of the shelter. As Ryouga's body heat warmed up the bag, making him all snug and warm, he fished out his wallet from his pocket, taking out a small passport-sized photograph. On it was a picture of Akane Tendo before he'd accidentally chopped off her hair. She was smiling, looking at something to the left of the camera, the happiest expression on her features. Pulling out another picture, Ryouga gazed at a shorter-haired version of Akane. The lost boy smiled, small tears welling up in his eyes at the memory of her love.
"Tendo Akane," Ryouga whispered, "I love you like no other."
With that thought, Ryouga's eyes closed and he drifted off into sleep.
Ryouga dreamed.
Akane was there, kissing Ryouga on the snout of his cursed form, showing him love and affection like no other. Ranma was there, in her female body sitting outside the tub as he retold his story of Jusenkyo, complaining about his curse. Ranma, telling him that at least he didn't become a girl. Ryouga shooting back that at least Ranma kept his humanity.
Suddenly, Ranma turned into Akane. The red hair shifted to dark blue and Ranma's features were replaced by an angry scowl. Clothes appeared out of nowhere on Akane's form, and suddenly Akane was screaming, raging, punching Ryouga repeatedly whilst he was still in the bath. "You never thought to tell me!?" Akane screamed. "You never thought to tell me you were P-Chan!? You lied to me, Ryouga! You said you didn't have a curse! Now I know why Ranma kept calling you P-Chan and Bacon Breath, Pork Chop, why he kept calling you a pig! You sicken me, Ryouga! You slept in my bed, you watched me change, you LIED TO ME, MY GOD, RYOUGA, YOU LIED TO ME!"
Ryouga withered under assault. How had she found out? He was going to kill Ranma, wether it was the last thing he ever did!
"Stay away from Ranma, Ryouga!" Akane screamed. "Stay away from us! You have no right to live here! Go! Leave! I never want to see you again! RYOUGA, GET LOST!"
And Ryouga was lost. He wandered through the bleak desert, with only his pack on his shoulders, his water flask empty. He summoned all of his depression and created a Shishi Hokoudan large enough to be seen from Space.
"DAMN YOU RANMA! DAMN YOU TO HELL!"
Suddenly, Akane and Ranma were in front of him. Ranma had his arms around Akane protectively, glaring at Ryouga. "I thought you were never to come back, Bacon Butt." Ranma said, his voice full of untamed malice. "Akane doesn't want to see you. She's with me."
"Go away, Ryouga." Akane said. "I love Ranma, not you."
"No." Ryouga said. "No!"
"I love Ranma, not you."
"It's not possible!" Ryouga screamed. "How can you love a half man!?"
"I love Ranma, not you." Akane said again.
"Akane doesn't want to see you. She's with me." Ranma repeated.
"I love Ranma, not you." "Akane doesn't want to see you. She's with me."
"NO!" Ryouga screamed. He threw a punch at Ranma, but his fist passed right through the pigtailed fighter. Ryouga overbalanced, falling to the floor. The figures of Ranma and Akane appeared above him, all around him. There were three, no four, no… there was an infinite amount of Ranmas and Akanes, all around him, glaring down at him.
"akanedoesntwantyousheswithmeiloveranmanotyougoawaybaconbuttyouliedtomeiloveranmanotyousheswithmeihateyouiloveranmaakaneswithmepigpigpigpigpigpigPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIG"
The chanting got louder. They all kept shouting. "PIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIG"
"NO!" Ryouga shouted, tears running down his face. He fell to his knees, clamping his hands over his ears, pleading, begging them to stop.
"PIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIG"
"SHUT UP!" Ryouga screamed. He fell forward, landing awkwardly on his front. The chanting continued, taunting Ryouga.
"iloveranmanotyouicouldneverloveapigakaneswithmePERVERTyouliedtomeyousleptinmybedPIGgoawayryougaineverwanttoseeyouagainiloveranmagoawaybaconbuttporkchopbaconbreathhamheadiloveranmailoveranmailoveranmailoveranmaPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIGPIG"
"NO!!"
Ryouga sat bolt upright in his sleeping bag. The dream had steadily turned into a nightmare.
Ryouga collapsed back to his pillow. "Just a nightmare…a nightmare…" he mumbled to himself.
"Just a nightmare."
AUTHORS NOTES:
I got bored, felt an urge to write, and...this popped out. I love Ryouga, especially his personality. He reminds me a lot of myself. I suppose that's why I'm told I can write his scenes well.
If you think this can be fixed in any way, please tell me. I'll see what I can do.
Please note that this is a oneshot. I don't plan on writing extra to this. If demand is strong though, I'll consider it.
The quote at the top is by me. I did a google search, and nothing came up for that phrase, so I'm taking it as mine. =p
(1) = This is a reference to The Hitchhikers Guide To the Galaxy. The character is Marvin, a robot who is constantly depressed. True story.
Until next time...
Much Love, SOTG