Later that night, Ukyou lay in the futon next to Akane's bed. Though Akane
was fast asleep, the uncute tomboy was unaware of her guest staring holes
at her in the dark.
'How did Akane get to be so lucky?' Ukyou questioned to herself. 'She has Ranma's heart and his ring.' The image of Akane's ring branded on her finger, leapt into her mind.
"Akane, I love..."
"I've always wanted it."
The words from a week ago repeated itself in her head, causing Ukyou to roll over away from Akane.
She thought of Ryouga who was in the guest room with Ranma and Mr. Saotome, with strict instructions that he could not beat Ranma up during the night.
'I see her and it makes my heart pound.'
Ryouga loved Akane too. He proved it several times over, even going along with Ukyou's schemes to break Ranma and Akane up. He brought the youngest Tendou daughter gifts from all over the world. Wrote several letters, unfinished ones at that, all for the girl he loved.
Always Akane.
'What's my purpose here then?' Ukyou's hair fanned out beneath her as she rolled over once again in the darkness, staring at the ceiling with one forearm resting on her head. 'Born..never born. It seems to make no difference. Both ways, I'm alone.'
Sadness wrenched at her heart. It was tempting those dangerous emotions she nearly succumbed to earlier in the evening.
She forced herself to think of other things. Opening a new restaurant, advertising, customers, new recipes...anything else. It worked. Sleepiness began to set in and so Ukyou finally drifted off into her dreams.
"Hey Uuchan!" Little Ranma shouted as he ran up to her. She prepared herself to battle him but as always, he jumped high over her, landing on her head and defeating her. Reaching up, he got his free okinomiyaki for his win. As usual, her father scolded her for creating such a dumb game.
"Take me with you!" A tear stained little girl watched as her friend, her only friend and best friend, ran off and deserted her. The betrayal she felt was too adult, too real for such a little girl to have to deal with.
An older Ranma, when he first saw her as an adult woman told her, "You're real cute!" The day she fought him for real.
"I can see why he's kept you a secret," Ryouga said to her as she sat on that postal box talking to him.
"Jackass!"
Ranma spoke to her next, the dream changing as he sat at her okinomiyaki counter. "Yeah I must have pissed Ryouga off in junior high. The dumb guy followed me all the ay to China to get his revenge."
"Who does that kind of thing?" Akane appeared next to him, asking the question.
'I do!' Ukyou wanted to shout at them, but her dream voice wouldn't cooperate. Hadn't she followed Ranma all the way to Nerima, tracking him down just so she could have her revenge?
Ranma turned to Akane and asked, "Yeah but he got his fight right? So you think he'd go away wouldn't you?"
Akane was still standing and she rocked back on the balls of her feet, rolling her eyes at Ranma. "No, because he fell in love with me remember?"
'Keep reminding me!' Ukyou wanted to snarl at her.
"Yeah so he kept coming back to Nerima," Ranma snapped his fingers together as if he'd just figured it out, instead of Akane telling him.
'So what! Big deal! He was sneaking into Akane's bed!' Ukyou still couldn't get them to hear her no matter what she did.
"Well then Uuchan came to town." Ranma looked at her as if he saw her, grinning a little.
Once more, Ukyou relived that first meeting; their fierce battle on the grill ring. Ranma's discovery of her true sex, the aftermath in which she found out she was the 'cute' fiancée.
"And a week later, remember that Ryouga came rolling back in town from another of his adventures?" Akane piped up. "Carrying that ridiculous giant stuffed toy!"
Ukyou's first meeting with the lost boy also replayed. Fighting over Ranma for different reasons. Ukyou didn't like him picking on Ranma and Ryouga thought Ranma was cheating on Akane.
"Man," Ranma let out a whistle. "Just think Akane. If Ryouga hadn't come back for you, Ukyou might never have met him."
'------' Ukyou had nothing to say to that. The information was still processing in her dream mind.
Ranma was being far too cheerful about it. "Look at how much they have in common!"
She was having childhood flashbacks – Ranma beating her up over food. Ranma beating Ryouga up over sandwiches.
'These aren't my memories.' Ukyou thought in the back of her mind, watching her dream.
Ukyou training day in and out, by the raging sea so that she could defeat the man and boy who had ruined her life. Traveling to Nerima where her revenge would be complete.
Ryouga training day in and out to defeat Ranma, only to get lost on the way to the battle. Undaunted, he followed to China and Jusenkyo, where he was transformed into a little black pig by the pig-tailed girl. And following to Nerima where his revenge would be complete.
"And boy did they lose the message at the Tunnel of Lost Love!" Akane commented.
'Shut up!'
Ryouga was holding her hand, asking for forgiveness, just as he did earlier. Following Ranma and Akane out, Ukyou had grabbed his hands, the two of them together watching excitedly as the ghosts attempted to break the two up. Seeing it from a distance, like an out-of-body experience, Ukyou could see why they had been teased about being a couple.
Akane added a thought in, "You know they do make a cute couple."
--GAG!—
"And what if Uuchan had gotten her revenge and didn't stay?" Ranma asked Akane in countering banter. "Or what if I hadn't said she was cute?" He crossed his arms looking remarkably smug. "She would have left town. And then she wouldn't have met Ryouga.."
"Probably not," Akane agreed.
'So what's your point?' Ukyou thought sarcastically. They couldn't have been more obvious if they hit her over the head with her own giant spatula.
"So it's a good thing Ryouga fell for you Akane, and Uuchan stuck around for me," Ranma nodded his head. "Cause if they hadn't, who knows...?"
"Yeah, they made the right choice," Akane nodded her head too. "Almost. Except now they have to make another choice."
"Yes," Ranma agreed. His dark blue eyes turned and stared at her as if seeing her. "So what's it going to be Uuchan? Me? Or Ryouga?"
'You? Or Ryouga?'
She felt lost...everything was hazy and drifting away. Ranma and Akane became distant blurs. Ranma? Or Ryouga? Ryouga? Ranma?
As Ukyou slept, two ghostlike figures hovered above her. Amnar drew his hand away first, Enaka following him a moment later.
"This is a ridiculous," Enaka stated, shooting a glare at Amnar. "And," she drew out the sound deliberately, "Against the rules! You can't mess with-"
"I know. I know," Amnar rolled his eyes and quoted, "You can't mess with destiny." A sigh escaped him. "Sometimes it needs a hand don't you know? Aren't you tired of waiting for Ryouga to stop pining after Akane so he can realize his own destiny?"
Enaka considered her fellow guardian angel carefully. Guardian angel. Amnar was a joke in the craft. They were even using him as examples to the new angels of what 'not to do'. She thought over his words and selected her own carefully. Big G was listening to everyone, everywhere, all the time. "Perhaps," she said slowly. "But I believe he is coming to the conclusion faster than you think and definitely faster than she is." She pointed to the sleeping chef.
'How did Akane get to be so lucky?' Ukyou questioned to herself. 'She has Ranma's heart and his ring.' The image of Akane's ring branded on her finger, leapt into her mind.
"Akane, I love..."
"I've always wanted it."
The words from a week ago repeated itself in her head, causing Ukyou to roll over away from Akane.
She thought of Ryouga who was in the guest room with Ranma and Mr. Saotome, with strict instructions that he could not beat Ranma up during the night.
'I see her and it makes my heart pound.'
Ryouga loved Akane too. He proved it several times over, even going along with Ukyou's schemes to break Ranma and Akane up. He brought the youngest Tendou daughter gifts from all over the world. Wrote several letters, unfinished ones at that, all for the girl he loved.
Always Akane.
'What's my purpose here then?' Ukyou's hair fanned out beneath her as she rolled over once again in the darkness, staring at the ceiling with one forearm resting on her head. 'Born..never born. It seems to make no difference. Both ways, I'm alone.'
Sadness wrenched at her heart. It was tempting those dangerous emotions she nearly succumbed to earlier in the evening.
She forced herself to think of other things. Opening a new restaurant, advertising, customers, new recipes...anything else. It worked. Sleepiness began to set in and so Ukyou finally drifted off into her dreams.
"Hey Uuchan!" Little Ranma shouted as he ran up to her. She prepared herself to battle him but as always, he jumped high over her, landing on her head and defeating her. Reaching up, he got his free okinomiyaki for his win. As usual, her father scolded her for creating such a dumb game.
"Take me with you!" A tear stained little girl watched as her friend, her only friend and best friend, ran off and deserted her. The betrayal she felt was too adult, too real for such a little girl to have to deal with.
An older Ranma, when he first saw her as an adult woman told her, "You're real cute!" The day she fought him for real.
"I can see why he's kept you a secret," Ryouga said to her as she sat on that postal box talking to him.
"Jackass!"
Ranma spoke to her next, the dream changing as he sat at her okinomiyaki counter. "Yeah I must have pissed Ryouga off in junior high. The dumb guy followed me all the ay to China to get his revenge."
"Who does that kind of thing?" Akane appeared next to him, asking the question.
'I do!' Ukyou wanted to shout at them, but her dream voice wouldn't cooperate. Hadn't she followed Ranma all the way to Nerima, tracking him down just so she could have her revenge?
Ranma turned to Akane and asked, "Yeah but he got his fight right? So you think he'd go away wouldn't you?"
Akane was still standing and she rocked back on the balls of her feet, rolling her eyes at Ranma. "No, because he fell in love with me remember?"
'Keep reminding me!' Ukyou wanted to snarl at her.
"Yeah so he kept coming back to Nerima," Ranma snapped his fingers together as if he'd just figured it out, instead of Akane telling him.
'So what! Big deal! He was sneaking into Akane's bed!' Ukyou still couldn't get them to hear her no matter what she did.
"Well then Uuchan came to town." Ranma looked at her as if he saw her, grinning a little.
Once more, Ukyou relived that first meeting; their fierce battle on the grill ring. Ranma's discovery of her true sex, the aftermath in which she found out she was the 'cute' fiancée.
"And a week later, remember that Ryouga came rolling back in town from another of his adventures?" Akane piped up. "Carrying that ridiculous giant stuffed toy!"
Ukyou's first meeting with the lost boy also replayed. Fighting over Ranma for different reasons. Ukyou didn't like him picking on Ranma and Ryouga thought Ranma was cheating on Akane.
"Man," Ranma let out a whistle. "Just think Akane. If Ryouga hadn't come back for you, Ukyou might never have met him."
'------' Ukyou had nothing to say to that. The information was still processing in her dream mind.
Ranma was being far too cheerful about it. "Look at how much they have in common!"
She was having childhood flashbacks – Ranma beating her up over food. Ranma beating Ryouga up over sandwiches.
'These aren't my memories.' Ukyou thought in the back of her mind, watching her dream.
Ukyou training day in and out, by the raging sea so that she could defeat the man and boy who had ruined her life. Traveling to Nerima where her revenge would be complete.
Ryouga training day in and out to defeat Ranma, only to get lost on the way to the battle. Undaunted, he followed to China and Jusenkyo, where he was transformed into a little black pig by the pig-tailed girl. And following to Nerima where his revenge would be complete.
"And boy did they lose the message at the Tunnel of Lost Love!" Akane commented.
'Shut up!'
Ryouga was holding her hand, asking for forgiveness, just as he did earlier. Following Ranma and Akane out, Ukyou had grabbed his hands, the two of them together watching excitedly as the ghosts attempted to break the two up. Seeing it from a distance, like an out-of-body experience, Ukyou could see why they had been teased about being a couple.
Akane added a thought in, "You know they do make a cute couple."
--GAG!—
"And what if Uuchan had gotten her revenge and didn't stay?" Ranma asked Akane in countering banter. "Or what if I hadn't said she was cute?" He crossed his arms looking remarkably smug. "She would have left town. And then she wouldn't have met Ryouga.."
"Probably not," Akane agreed.
'So what's your point?' Ukyou thought sarcastically. They couldn't have been more obvious if they hit her over the head with her own giant spatula.
"So it's a good thing Ryouga fell for you Akane, and Uuchan stuck around for me," Ranma nodded his head. "Cause if they hadn't, who knows...?"
"Yeah, they made the right choice," Akane nodded her head too. "Almost. Except now they have to make another choice."
"Yes," Ranma agreed. His dark blue eyes turned and stared at her as if seeing her. "So what's it going to be Uuchan? Me? Or Ryouga?"
'You? Or Ryouga?'
She felt lost...everything was hazy and drifting away. Ranma and Akane became distant blurs. Ranma? Or Ryouga? Ryouga? Ranma?
As Ukyou slept, two ghostlike figures hovered above her. Amnar drew his hand away first, Enaka following him a moment later.
"This is a ridiculous," Enaka stated, shooting a glare at Amnar. "And," she drew out the sound deliberately, "Against the rules! You can't mess with-"
"I know. I know," Amnar rolled his eyes and quoted, "You can't mess with destiny." A sigh escaped him. "Sometimes it needs a hand don't you know? Aren't you tired of waiting for Ryouga to stop pining after Akane so he can realize his own destiny?"
Enaka considered her fellow guardian angel carefully. Guardian angel. Amnar was a joke in the craft. They were even using him as examples to the new angels of what 'not to do'. She thought over his words and selected her own carefully. Big G was listening to everyone, everywhere, all the time. "Perhaps," she said slowly. "But I believe he is coming to the conclusion faster than you think and definitely faster than she is." She pointed to the sleeping chef.