One Headlight
By: Azurite
azurite_moon@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/azurite_moon
http://www.geocities.com/sailor_andromida
A Ranma ½
Fanfiction
Lyrics by the Wallflowers
Oh my
goodness-gracious! Azurite not doing a Ranma+Akane fic!? **SHOCK!!**
I love this song,
and after looking it over, I figured it would make a great #$%% fic.
Oops, looks like
you'll have to read this to find out what it's about. ^.~
I don't own Ranma or
any of the characters. I also don't own the Wallflower's song
"One Headlight".
Created and
heretofore © 09142001, Azurite.
KEY:
"spoken"
thought
It was so long ago, Ranma could barely
remember when. He had a hard enough time remembering that night's homework.
That was probably why he never did it. But then again, there was also fiancées
and rival martial artists to contend with every half-hour. It was a decent
enough excuse, considering this *was* Nerima.
So long ago, I don't remember when
That's when they say I lost my only friend
She was here now, so
it wasn't as if Ranma had any difficulty imagining her face. But the fact that
she was a… a *she* still hung heavily over Ranma Saotome. Not to mention his
honor, his future—his very life.
Well they said she died easy of a broken heart disease
As I listened through the cemetery trees
When she'd first
arrived in Nerima, she'd been intent on killing him. Exacting her revenge for a
childhood of misery, torment, and pain. She'd become an honorless, sexless
child, wandering about with only one purpose—to find and destroy the Saotome
honor.
Then, all it had
taken was a half-hearted fight, and he'd discovered that his 'old friend' Ukyou
Kuonji was really a girl. Not a boy who he'd played with, teased, fought with,
and bugged for okinomiyaki for a whole year out of his life—but a *girl*. Not
just any girl, either. A girl who was, officially, his fiancée.
Ranma hadn't been
deaf to her story about giving up her youth to train against the final match
against him when she found him. She gave up her girlhood to be the best
okinomiyaki chef she could, with or without her precious yattai cart. Gone to a
boy's school, and ended up having the affections of a cross dressing… guy.
Ukyou was still a
girl at heart, despite her outward appearance. His official 'cute fiancée'.
But she'd still lost
so much… because of him.
I seen the sun comin' up at the funeral at dawn
The long broken arm of human law
That had been his
mistake, after all. He was never sure if he could stand having her as a
permanent enemy, much like Ryoga seemed to treat him. After all, he and Ukyou
shared some fond childhood memories—of the times BEFORE Genma Saotome, Ranma's
cowardly father, had made the fatal mistake of taking the Kuonji yattai, and
leaving Ukyou behind. But she *still* called herself—on a regular basis—his
'cute fiancée'. It only served to anger Shampoo and Kodachi more, and upset
Akane in one way or another. Ranma hated, above all, seeing girls cry. It made
him look cruel, mean, and honorless. Though sensitivity wasn't exactly prized
in 'manly martial artists,' neither was inhumanity and cruelty.
How could you tell
your best friend from so long ago that you didn't love her the way she did for
you? That you wanted to stay *friends* and nothing else? Why couldn't things go
back to the ease of their childhood days—before the blunders of his father
ruined his life?
Now it always seemed such a waste
She always had a pretty face
It had been such a
waste, he always reminded himself, that she had spent her youth as a boy, in
order to regain some honor, and to train for the day she would meet Ranma
again. She'd lost most of her girlhood, and those chances for things that,
while Ranma didn't fully understand them, were important. There were things that he knew bothered her,
but she could never say to him… not even as a friend. That was just the way
things were between them.
Yes, she was cute.
But that was all. She wasn't beautiful, and, while a good cook, and a great
listener to Ranma's problems, was only a friend. Ranma didn't feel any of those
stereotypical "signs of love" around his best friend. And as each day passed,
that fact weighed more heavily on him, and his so-called future.
So I wondered how she hung around this place
She wasn't blind,
was she? Though Ranma himself had trouble admitting and showing his true
feelings for people—especially girls—he thought that Ukyou, as his best friend,
was at the very least, aware. If he couldn't be, then she had to. Had to know
that he… that he…
What did it matter,
anyway? She was here. Nothing short of destroying her livelihood of okinomiyaki
cookery could make her leave, and Ranma wasn't entirely sure he wanted her to.
Hey, come on try a little
Nothing is forever
There's got to be something better than
In the middle
Ukyou, for her part,
was aware. Aware that Ranma needed a little push sometimes in order to admit
how he felt about someone, or take action on that feeling. Though she felt
guilty about it afterwards, often, those pushes only led Ranma closer to her
rival and semi-friend, Akane.
But me & Cinderella
We put it all together
We can drive it home
With one headlight
Ranma and Ukyou were a
great team. People admitted that. Nabiki knew that Ukyou was a good source of
income when it came to Ranma. Akane knew that even though Ukyou was a potential
rival in the fiancée game, she was also Ranma's friend, and to fight her would
be to fight him—something that, while she did frequently on her own time, she
had no mind to do when he was teamed up against her with Ukyou as well.
She said it's cold
It feels like Independence Day
And I can't break away from this parade
There had been that
one period of time when Ukyou had been a very withdrawn and forlorn person.
Desperate for his attentions, and at that time, Ranma was sure he was in for
it. With his father, and Mr. Saotome, with Team China, and with Akane. How
could he ignore his best friend when she needed him… but likewise, how could he
deal with Ukyou's persistent need for him and a love he couldn't give?
But there's got
to be an opening
Somewhere here in front of me
Through this maze of ugliness and greed
When she had a
chance, she exploited it. Even if it damaged his fragile relationship with
Akane, incurred damages (and fines) with Nabiki, and caused lectures over
'honor' with his hypocrite father. The wedding was the prime example. How could
he just 'forgive' her for that? And… on the flip side, how could she ever
forgive him for years of lost youth? Were they even on the same scale?
In a battle for HIM,
how could anyone really win? The fights were ugly, and everyone was greedy for
one reason or another. Ranma had a shadow of a doubt within him asking how
Ukyou could possibly *love* him… after barely knowing him, the current him,
from the six-year old who had so foolishly chosen okinomiyaki over his
then-best friend.
And I seen the sun up ahead
At the county line bridge
Sayin' all there's good and nothingness is dead
Was there a future
ahead where everyone could be happy? Really, truly happy? Where Akane could be
safe, and have her dreams fulfilled; where Shampoo could have her honor; where
Mousse could have his love and his sight; where Kodachi could… could be sane,
and where Ranma could be cured, peaceful, and happy with his mother, with… with
who?
We'll run until she's out of breath
She ran until there's nothin' left
She hit the end-it's just her window ledge
What Ranma was most
afraid of was not knowing what was ahead at all. That the unknown would slap
him silly, and he wouldn't get any part of what he hoped for. That everyone who
mattered to him would have their lives ruined—and all because of him. That
Ukyou would disappear, or worse, kill herself; all because of a rejection he
knew he had to give. How could he lead her on otherwise, and make them both
unhappy?
Hey, come on try a little
Nothing is forever
He could tell her the
honest-to-god truth. That nothing was forever—not friendship, not shallow
feelings of love. Make her think that was what he believed. Make her hate him
again, if just so he could merely *repay* her honor, get another yattai—instead
of marrying her. Or tell her that the friendship they had had died a long time
ago, and while he was partially at fault, so was she. She'd kept the truth from
him for so long about her gender. Did she expect him to know? Maybe innocent
youth had dictated things that way.
There was also the method
of saying that she had to get over him—that was the way things worked nowadays.
He wasn't that boy she'd known so long ago.
There's got to be something better than
In the middle
There had to be something
better than all that. Couldn't there be a way to keep her friendship? That
feeling he treasured of having someone to turn to, to talk to, in those hard
times that Ranma experienced all-too-often? Could she be that person, or did he
have to rely on himself and his half-assed common sense?
But me & Cinderella
We put it all together
We can drive it home
With one headlight
They could try, together.
If it wasn't one-sided, and it was a mutual feeling, it could work. If only he
could make her see things his way…
Well this place is old
It feels just like a beat up truck
This feeling was old
and rotten. He'd turned it over many times in his head, contemplating. Many
people thought it wasn't possibly for Ranma Saotome to *think* at all,
considering how little common sense he really had. But he was observant, to a
point. These thoughts about the future and what to do with Ukyou were old, and
depressing. Nerima was old. It was only a place of pain, and hurt. Past,
present and future, as far as Ranma could see. But… there was reason to stay.
I turn the engine, but the engine doesn't turn
Well it smells of cheap wine & cigarettes
This place is always such a mess
Sometimes I think I'd like to watch it burn
For those very
reasons, Ranma knew he would be happy if he never saw Nerima again. There were
always the bad things that seemed to horribly outweigh the good. What kind of
future could he live, if Nerima *attracted* all number of strange occurrences
like a ant to sugar?
I'm so alone, and I feel just like somebody else
Man, I ain't changed, but I know I ain't the same
What irked Ranma was
that Ukyou held things over him, in much the same way Nabiki blackmailed him
for time, money, or various acts. The past, she insisted. She never mentioned
the yattai incident, but the times when they were little. Those 'fond memories'
when really looked at, weren't so fond. Had Ranma known she was a girl back
then, things today would have been drastically different. He didn't exactly
know how, but they would be. He wasn't the same gullible boy of his youth, so
why Ukyou kept on mentioning that dead soul was beyond him.
But somewhere here in between the city walls of dyin'
dreams
I think her death it must be killin' me
It was the death of
that person —boy or girl—that Ukyou
*had* been that saddened Ranma. The loss of his friend, and the gaining of
another fiancée for his hand in marriage. It was flattering to be wanted by so
many girls—or in the case of Akane, not wanted (though he knew she liked him at
least a *little*). But what good would it do him? People said his ego was too
big, but having these girls fawn over –or fight over, as the case often was– him wasn't doing him any better in that
area.
He was too afraid to
talk about how he felt to her anymore, because he knew it would upset her, and
he wanted to avoid that. There was no third-party person that had no interest
whatsoever in his love life. The Tendos wanted him to marry Akane and get it
over with; Shampoo and Cologne wanted Shampoo to marry Ranma, even though he
hadn't really 'defeated' her in male form; Ryoga, unsure and lost as ever, was
constantly torn between Akane and Akari; Mousse didn't care for Ranma at all,
as long as in the end, the blind boy got Shampoo; Ukyou and her honor demanded
Ranma marry –or repay– her for the loss of her youth.
He had too many
problems, and at least half of them stemmed back to the fiancées somehow. How
could he tell her how he planned to fix it all without tempting her anger, or
worse, driving her to depression?
Hey, come on try
a little
Nothing is forever
These thoughts were
old. Better left alone. But they would always be there, until he figured out
how to work through them. Nothing was forever… there was no time. It was one of
those now-or-never instances. By putting it off, it would only increase the
heartache. For everyone.
There's got to be something better than
In the middle
He didn't want to
hurt anyone –physically or emotionally– but there had to be consequences. Even
after all he'd been through, there was no end to the small depressions, to the
fiery rages, or to the broken hearts. They came hand in hand with the happy
times, with the lightheadedness, and the rush.
But me &
Cinderella
We put it all together
We can drive it home
With one headlight
Me and Cinderella… If he was Prince Charming, or Romeo… or
even just another guy-next-door jerk, then someone was meant for him. He knew
who he felt that was… who he *hoped* that was. But until he fixed things with
Ukyou, his best friend… there could be no happiness for him. He had to wait
things out. And one day, they would all be happy.
Ranma—Ukyou, his
best friend—and his Cinderella.
Maybe I could have
done better, but oh well. 7 pages… not bad for a one-shot. Why is it I can
never do one-shot SM fics, but one-shot Ranma and Inu Yasha fics are so easy???
O.o . What did you think? Email me @ sailor_andromida@yahoo.com
Be sure to visit
Animanga Collision @ http://www.geocities.com/azurite_moon
Or, if you like Sailormoon,
then go to http://www.geocities.com/sailor_andromida
Thanks for your
time! ^^
All smiles and many
mysteries, Azurite
