DISCLAIMER: All characters except for Nayami, who is introduced in later chapters, do not belong to me. *ponders Ryoga's fangs wistfully* Unfortunately. C&C always welcome, feel free to email me at saezuru@hotmail.com if you've got any comments. Thanks for reading!
The Eye of the Beholder
Chapter 2
"Nani?! He's gone? That jackass! Where'd he go? When did he leave? Why didn't he take me
with him?" Ukyo was livid. Akane didn't really like the way she was fingering that spatula
strapped to her back, so Akane began to edge back towards the door.
"Well . . . I just came to ask if you knew where he was, and you don't, so I'll go." She turned to
leave, but was stopped by a hand on her shoulder. She turned, to see Ukyo's narrowed eyes
inches away from hers. She gulped. "Look, I told you, I dunno where he went. The note he left
just said he was going on a training trip. The only reason I wanted to know where he'd gone was
because he was acting kind of funny the day before."
Ukyo forced herself to relax her grip on Akane's shoulder, and swallowed audibly. "Sorry,
Akane," she said, breathing out slowly. "Ranchan's just always pulling things like this. I get kind
of worked up." She smiled cheerfully, though it looked kind of forced. "What a jackass he is,
hmm?"
Akane blinked, and then smiled tentatively back. "Well, yeah. But anyway, I'm going to go to the
Nekohanten now, to see if Shampoo had anything to do with this. Ranma mentioned something
about her on the way to school yesterday."
Ukyo tensed up again in a flash. "The Chinese bimbo? I certainly hope she didn't feed him one of
her concoctions again." Ukyo shuddered. "She scares me sometimes, y'know."
Akane nodded vehemently. "Me too. And you'd think that after all this time in Japan that she'd
learn to talk, right?"
Ukyo nodded as well, dropping her hand from Akane's shoulder. "Definitely. I think she does it
'cause guys supposedly go head over heels for a girl with an accent." Ukyo snorted. "I haven't
noticed any head over heels guys wandering around. Well, there is Mousse, but . . . well, anyway,
can I come with you to the Nekohanten? Maybe I'll see something there that you might miss, a
clue or something to where Ranchan went."
Akane's fists began to clench. "Are you saying I'm stupid, or unobservant, or something?"
Ukyo blinked and raised her hands defensively, to try and calm Akane down. "No, no, of course
not! It's just, uh, that two heads are better than one! Especially dealing with Shampoo. Right?"
Akane took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. "Sorry, Ukyo. I'm just used to Ranma. You're right,
it'll be better if both of us go. And if Shampoo has something to do with him running off . . ." She
pressed her fist into the palm of the other hand grimly. He's gonna get it if he listened to that
bimbo!
Ukyo nodded, a malicious smile tracing her lips. "Exactly." That Chinese bimbo's gonna get it if
she made Ranchan leave!
"Curse you, Saotome! WHERE THE HELL AM I NOW?!" Ryoga was lost. It wasn't unusual.
He just went on being lost, as the rest of the world went on with their lives.
"Nani?! Ranma gone? Where he go? Why he not take Shampoo?"
As one, Ukyo and Akane groaned. "We don't know, Shampoo," Ukyo said testily. "Why else
would we be asking you?"
Shampoo whirled around, ending with a bonbori wavering a fraction of an inch in front of
Ukyo's nose. "Tell where Ranma go, or dumb spatula girl die!"
"I told you, I don't know. We were sure you had something to do with it, you purple-haired
Chinese bimbo!" Ukyo was not impressed by the display of bonbori skills. She'd had a bonbori
wavering within a fraction of an inch in front of her face a lot when squabbling over Ranma with
Shampoo.
"Shampoo not make Ranma go anywhere! Ranma Shampoo husband. If he go anywhere, he go
Amazon village!"
Akane scowled. "You've done things to him before! What if you're blackmailing him again? Or
made him eat something that makes him your puppet, like you've done in the past? You're
infamous in THAT area, you know."
Ukyo nodded emphatically. "So why shouldn't we suspect you this time?"
"Because . . . Because Shampoo no want Ranma to go anywhere without Shampoo!" Shampoo
shouted earnestly, shaking a bonbori first at Ukyo, and then at Akane.
Akane drew Ukyo aside to regroup and decide what to do. "She's right, you know." Akane
whispered. "She'd never make him go anywhere without taking her along. We should have
thought of that sooner."
Ukyo sighed, looking glum. "And I'd been so sure that she'd done something to him! It's always
her fault!"
Akane gave Ukyo a comradely pat on the shoulder. "I was pretty sure myself, so don't worry
about it. He'll be back; he always comes back, doesn't he?"
Ukyo nodded, gnawing on a fingernail worriedly. "Yeah, I know. But I've just got a bad feeling
in the pit of my stomach. I had it when I woke up this morning, even before you told me about his
disappearance. That's why I overreacted when you told me."
Akane grinned, shrugging her shoulders. "Don't be silly, Ukyo! He's done this before, and he's
always come back safe and unharmed, just as obsessively egotistical as always." But inside, under
the cheerful smile, the same feeling Ukyo had complained of was nagging at Akane, causing her
to fret and worry. Baka! she told herself. You have no reason to worry over him! He'd never
worry about you, so why are you gonna worry about him?
"Ahem!" Ukyo and Akane turned around, shooting Shampoo a pair of almost identically
menacing looks. Shampoo ignored them and said firmly, "Shampoo want find Ranma, not sit here
whispering like goose!"
"I find that offensive, thank you." Mousse stood in the doorway, hands folded into his sleeves
and glasses on the top of his head, unused. "What's this about wanting to find Ranma?"
Shampoo whirled. "Stupid Mousse! Mousse not stick beak into women business!"
"If it involves Saotome, it's my business. Let us track down that imbecile together, my beloved!" Glasses
perched on his head and his eyes adoring, he spoke to the doorframe with a loving note in his
voice. Shampoo stood to one side, tapping her foot in annoyance.
"Stupid Mousse," she muttered, and turned back on him to face Ukyo and Akane again. "We three find Ranma, is
okay?"
Ukyo and Akane exchanged glances, sighed, and nodded. Akane tried to put on a smile, though
the idea of going anywhere for a long period of time with Shampoo was distasteful. "Sure, sure,
is okay."
"If we can just get to a secluded spot before she does something to us, then we can . . . I don't
know . . . put something in her food to make her sleep and then sneak away. Right?" Akane
looked hopeful.
"Right!" Ukyo grinned. "Then it'll just be us two gals." Her eyes narrowed. "I should tell you,
however; although we are in a truce of sorts right now, when we find Ranma it'll be an all-out
battle for his attention. I want to be the one to find him!"
Akane snorted. "Yeah, as if I care? But you're right, this is only a temporary affair. Our first
order of business is getting rid of Shampoo. I think we should let her come along with no
hindrances for a while; you know, let her get her guard down."
Ukyo nodded eagerly. "Yeah!" She smiled at Akane, a friendly smile that didn't say anything
about what she was really thinking. Just you wait, Akane. I'll be the one to catch up to Ranma
and help him on whatever training trip he's on, and I won't let anyone get in my way. Not even
you.
Akane grinned back, and headed for the door of Ucchan's, where they had been discussing their
plans out of Shampoo's earshot. "Meet you here tomorrow morning to try and figure out where
he went, like we planned, okay?" Ukyo's being really nice. Of course, she was never as cold-seeming as Shampoo, but something isn't ringing true about all this. I hope she's not planning to
stash me away, too . . .
When Ukyo nodded her agreement, Akane slipped out through the door, shutting it carefully
behind her. Once outside, she began to slowly walk back towards the dojo, watching people and
cars go by on the street. Several times, she turned to instinctively glare at the air next to her, and
then turned a little pink and hoped people didn't notice. It was so natural to turn to glare at
Ranma when he was walking next to her all the time that she did it without thinking now. Akane
scowled darkly, and began to mutter under her breath. "Honestly, you'd think he'd leave me
alone once he left. But . . . but he's ruined my life enough that I can't not think about him. Why
can't he just go away forever? I wish he would. I hope he doesn't come back this time. I hope he
just finds some other town to pester, and then all his dumb fiances and all the people trying to kill
him would follow him, and life would go back to normal. I hate him! I HATE him!"
*crunch*
The people walking down the street beside her stopped to stare curiously and slightly
apprehensively at the girl who had just shouted something nearly unintelligible and punched a
hole through the wooden fence. Then they decided that staying near such an angry-looking person
was probably not a good idea, and hurried on their separate ways.
Akane blinked at the hole in the fence, and then glanced around her at the people who were trying
to avert their eyes; the people of Nerima knew better than to pay attention to people punching
holes in things. They'd had experience. She sighed, and forced herself to relax. It was no use
getting mad at someone who wasn't around to get malleted, she reasoned as she continued her
trip home. Why waste thought on him? But despite her excellent logic, she found herself
wondering what kind of trouble Ranma would get himself into this time.
"Kasumi, we're home!" Akane paused, realized what she'd said, and corrected herself. "Er, I'm
home, I mean. Ranma's still missing. Well, he's still gone; not really missing. He knows where he
is, right? Hopefully, anyway. He's not like Ryoga; he can follow a map. Can't he? I've never seen
him read a map, but he is able to find his way around just fine, even if he is too dumb to ever ask
directions. Maybe he's too egotistical to rely on a map. Maybe he is lost." Akane snickered at
that thought, completely aware that she was babbling and just as completely unable to stop.
She was saved by Kasumi, who came into the foyer wearing her usual maternal smile. "Where did
you go?" she asked, choosing to diplomatically ignore Akane's chatter.
Akane took a deep breath, and let it out. "Nowhere much. I went and talked to Ukyo, and then
Shampoo, to see if they knew anything about where Ranma went."
"And did they?"
"Nope. Neither one of them. And they both looked about to kill me, for some reason."
"Oh my . . . they must have thought you had something to do with Ranma's disappearance,"
Kasumi pointed out, drifting back into the kitchen, where she was washing and drying dishes.
"Why would I come to them if I had, hmm? And why would I want to get rid of him?" Akane
trailed after her older sister, scowling.
Kasumi glanced back at the younger girl and smiled softly. "You're always talking about how
you wished he had never come in the first place, and how you wish he'd just go away and leave
us all alone, aren't you? And you always talk about how you couldn't care less about 'that jerk',
and how Shampoo and Ukyo can divvy him up between them however they like. If that's not a
reason to suspect you, then I don't know what is." Kasumi's cheerful smile widened. "Though
perhaps they knew you never really meant it."
Akane was turning an interesting shade of red, a shade which continued to darken all throughout
Kasumi's little speech. "But . . . but I . . ." she spluttered. "Look, I wish he would leave, but I
wouldn't do something to make him go. I'm not that cold-hearted."
Kasumi had turned back to the dishes. "I know you're not, Akane. It was just a suggestion as to
why they might be angry."
Akane sighed, turned around, and left the kitchen, calling out, "Call me down when dinner's
ready. I'm going to go do my homework."
"Alright, Akane. Dinner'll be ready in just a little while."
When she reached her room, Akane flopped down onto her bed and crossed her arms behind her
head, staring up at the ceiling. "Dummy," she said belligerently to the air. "Why'd you have to go
and disappear without telling anyone? Now I've got to deal with Ukyo and Shampoo, both
suspicious that I made you leave, somehow." She sat up. "I wish I had made you leave. Then I
could be sure where you are right now, and that you wouldn't be coming back. At least not for a
while." She swung her legs over the side of the bed, stood up, and crossed to her desk, picking up
a picture frame on it. In it was a picture of her mother holding the bundle of cloth and pink skin
that was Akane at the time, one arm around an impishly grinning Kasumi, with Nabiki holding
onto her skirt and sticking her tongue out at the camera. She smiled faintly at the picture, but that
wasn't what she had picked it up for. She turned it around and undid the little clasps at the back
and slide the black, felt-covered backing from the frame.
Out fell several smaller pieces of paper, as well as a few more solid items: a ticket stub from a
movie her friends had taken her to for her birthday; the button from her yellow sun dress that
she'd never gotten around to sewing back on; a tiny lock of her mother's hair, tied with a small
piece of blue ribbon; a picture-- ah, there it was. It was a picture of Ranma that Nabiki had
taken, and Akane had later yelled at her about. She'd found the picture lying on the edge of
Nabiki's desk in her room, and confiscated it before her sister would be able to sell it to someone
like Kodachi. The picture showed Ranma asleep, sprawled out as usual, but his mouth wasn't
open so he must not have been snoring. Instead, he was smiling, looking very peaceful and almost
childlike. Akane carefully placed everything else back inside the picture frame, sliding the backing
shut again. She examined the photo for a few moments before she glared at it and stalked back to
her bed, dropping it into the trash can as she went. She sat down at her desk to do her homework,
and began to hum.
Business was slow today. For some reason, not too many people were eating out. It was the
busiest time of night, and yet there were only two or three customers sitting at the bar. Ukyo
sighed, and would have leaned her head on her hands if she weren't flipping an okonomiyaki at
the moment. Ranchan, you jackass. Now I have to deal with Shampoo and Akane. I don't dislike
Akane . . . I don't want to just stash her away sometime on the trip in order to get to you first.
And that's assuming we can even figure out where you've gone.
Ukyo slid the okonomiyaki into a carry-out and set it down in front of the last customer, who laid
the coins on the counter in exchange. "Thank you, have a nice day, and please come again!" she
said brightly, grimacing inwardly at the cheery smile she put on. The other customers, who were
eating in, finished up, paid, and left. Soon Ukyo was the only one left in the restaurant. She
decided to close early, and clean up the place before she turned in for the nice. She went outside
into the dusk, carrying her broom and dustpan.
As she bent over and began to sweep up the various bits of paper and wrappers left on the
sidewalk, Ukyo became aware of a presence walking up to her. She straightened up, wisps of hair
falling out of her ribbon. She saw the outline of a man, taller than her, wearing something on his
back.
"Excuse me, miss. Could you tell me where I am?"
Ukyo frowned, peering through the bad lighting. The guy looked vaguely familiar, but she
couldn't place where she had seen him before. "Near the city hall. It's just down that way. There
you can find maps and stuff of the city, if you want."
The man seemed slightly embarrassed, even through the gloom. "Actually . . . I meant what city
this was. Country would help, too. I'm never quite sure of that sometimes."
Ukyo snapped her fingers, beaming at her sudden insight. "Hey, I do know you from somewhere-- it's the Shi-Shi-guy with the speaking disorder." She grinned warmly at him. "Hey, Ryoga."
He took a step backwards. "That's not me! I do not have a speaking disorder!"
Ukyo's grin widened. "No, of course you don't. It was the whole 'please tell me where I am' thing that
gave you away, you know. No guy would have the guts to ask directions if he wasn't truly
clueless, and used to being so."
"Er, thanks, I think?"
"I take it you meant to end up in Nerima, right? I haven't shut down the whole restaurant for the
night yet, if you want to come in for some okonomiyaki before you wander off again."
"Is Saotome around somewhere?" Ryoga seemed to get angry just saying the guy's name.
Ukyo's temporary cheer deflated a little bit. "No, sorry. He's wandered off somewhere without
telling anyone where he went. Said something in a note about a training trip."
Ryoga clenched his fist. "He'd better train. He'll need it when I catch up to him!"
Ukyo raised an eyebrow, leaning against the broom handle. "Should I even ask what he's done
this time?"
Ryoga looked up at the sky for a moment before answering. "He-- well, I don't think a lady's
ears should have to hear what his crimes are." He suddenly must have realized that he really was
speaking to 'a lady' and turned a slight shade of pink, his ears burning.
Ukyo folded her arms across her chest. "Yeah, well, whatever. Do you want some food or not? If
not, I need to finish closing up the restaurant."
Ryoga rubbed one hand on the back of his head. "Uh, well, sure." He glanced upwards again,
nervously this time. "I hope it doesn't rain. Those clouds look kind of ominous."
Ukyo shrugged as she went back through the door. "Well, it doesn't matter anyway. A little rain
never hurt anyone."
After dinner, Akane finished her homework and then went into the dojo to train. She was kicking
the gi-clad sparring doll across the room when a clap of thunder shook the house, startling her out
of the limited concentration she had achieved. Looking out the window, she saw another flash of
lightning before the raindrops suddenly came pouring down, tracing down the windows in little
rivulets. Akane had just briefly attempted to concentrate again when the thunder began to get
more frequent, and it just wasn't worth it anymore. So, she headed upstairs to bathe. When she
finished her bath, a nice, long, hot one with no rude interruptions, she picked up the remote
control and flicked on the T.V. After a long period of surfing through the channels and finding
absolutely nothing on, and Akane ran out of things to do and decided just to go to sleep.
After saying goodnight to the various people in the household, she changed into her yellow
pajamas and slid between the covers. She stared at the wall for a while, for what felt like an
eternity, and then gave up on that. She rolled over. She stared at her desk for a while, for what
felt like an eternity. Finally, she sat up quickly, giving herself a headache from the blood rushing
out of her head. She sat up in bed for a good few minutes, watching the far wall with a blank
expression on her face. Then, as quietly as she could, she got out of bed and stumbled over to the
waste basket. She peered into it, reached in a hand, and pulled out a small, slightly worn piece of
paper. She looked at it for a few seconds, glared, and muttered, "Jerk," under her breath, before
tiptoeing over to her desk, sliding out the backing to a picture frame, and slipping the photograph
inside.
Once she got back to bed, she rolled over once and fell fast asleep.
Ryoga stared at the window with a growing sense of horror. It must have been mirrored in his
expression, because Ukyo gave him a funny look. "Hey, Shi-Shi guy. For the last time, do you
want this okonomiyaki or not?"
Ryoga was startled out of his growing sense of impending doom, and blinked owlishly at her.
"Huh?" he said, sounding very intelligent indeed.
Ukyo's eyes narrowed as she leaned forward over the counter. "Look, I'm being nice by making
you some damn dinner. Now do you want it or not?" She waved a hand at the plate in front of
Ryoga, on which was a steaming hot okonomiyaki.
"Uh, y-yes'm," Ryoga stammered, glancing nervously at Ukyo. A small part of him was screaming at
him to notice that there was a very . . . uh, womanish girl just inches from his face, and that she
was leaning towards him. The rest of him however, snickered at that thought. Oh, get off it,
Ryoga. It's Ukyo. She's just like one of the guys. And anyway, she's in love with Ranma. That
tiny part of him spoke up once more: Yes, but so is Akane, right? Ryoga's sensible half argued
right back. B-but . . . but that's Akane! And this is Ukyo! There's a difference. The little smidgen
of thought sneered back. Yeah? What difference?
Ryoga was again startled out of his contemplations and soul-searching by an overpowering sense
of anger coming from somewhere in front of him. He focused his eyes to see Ukyo, eyes closed
and fists balled at her side, whispering something methodically under her breath. "Er . . . what's
that?" Ryoga asked, cautiously.
"I am counting to ten, jackass. If you don't get out of my restaurant right now, I am going to hit
something, preferably the bandana-wearing little boy sitting in front of me."
Ryoga slid off his chair and backed up a nervous step. "Uh . . . uh, Ukyo? G-gomen . . . I'll eat
the okonomiyaki. I've just had a long day and I'm not focusing to well . . ."
"Focusing? Focusing? You need to focus to eat a dinner that was charitably made for you? You .
. . you . . . you JACKASS!" *Whaaaaaannnng*
Ryoga, spatula plastered against his face, hadn't moved an inch. Ukyo blinked in surprise to see
him still standing; she'd whacked him pretty hard. Hey, maybe he was really slow, and hadn't
realized he'd been hit yet. Ukyo, just moving her arm, tried whacking him again. Still no
response. "Hello?" She tried bonging him on the top of his head. "Hello hello?" *whaang*
"Helloooo?" *whaaaang whaaang whonnng*
Ryoga stood up without saying anything, turned on his heel and started for the door.
"Wait!" Ukyo replaced her spatula on her back and gave Ryoga a quizzical look as he paused
obediently. "What, did you not even feel that or something? You can drop the tough-guy act;
Ranma acts like a baby when I hit him, and I don't think of him as any less of a man."
Ryoga closed his eyes, a smirk tracing his lips. "Hey, what happened to 'get out of my restaurant,
or else'?"
Ukyo's jaw wobbled downwards a little. "You're talking? I could have sworn I'd hit you in the
face a bunch of times. Didn't I?"
Ryoga nodded, grinning. "Yeah. We Hibikis have a sort of natural strength. It takes a lot to phase
us."
"It's genetic?" Ukyo snorted. "You gotta be kidding me." Unstrapping her spatula, she struck
Ryoga Hibiki as hard as she could, the impact causing her to fly into the air a tad and her hands to
throb from the vibration of the spatula. "There . . . that's got to . . . have phased him . . . a little . .
." she panted, leaning on the handle of her combat spatula.
Ryoga laughed. "Oh, come on. Give it up already. Anyway, the okonomiyaki's getting cold.
Can't I eat it now?"
Ukyo stared at the young man for a moment before she shook her head, shrugged her shoulders,
and walked back behind the counter to turn off the stove. "Yeah, whatever. Be my guest."
Ryoga sat back down at his stool, gratefully slicing a piece of the okonomiyaki and popping it
into his mouth. "Ohhh, this is good." He cut another piece. "You're a really good cook, you
know that?"
Ukyo nodded, leaning on her elbows to watch him eat. "Yeah, I know that. Thanks."
Ryoga paused in mid-slice. "Oh, wait. What about payment? I don't have money with me. I don't
take it with me when I travel-- I'd probably lose it, or leave it somewhere. How am I supposed to pay you for
all this?"
For a while, there was no sound but that of the rain pounding against the windows. Then Ukyo
said cheerfully, "Oh, don't worry about it. We'll find a way for you to pay me back."
Ryoga stood by the doorway, looking uncomfortable. "Uh . . . well, thanks for the
okonomiyaki!" he called, in the direction of the stairway. Ukyo had gone upstairs to 'check on
something,' she said.
"Yeah, yeah, you're welcome and all that," came Ukyo's faint and distracted call.
Ryoga peered curiously back up the stairs, shrugged, and opened the door. He slid the red
umbrella off his back and opened it, starting to step outside. "Oooh, Ryoga, wait!" Ukyo nearly
slid downstairs. "C'mere for a second."
Ryoga looked at her suspiciously, but Ukyo was wearing the most innocent expression she ever
had been in her life. " . . . Okay. Why, what is it?"
Ukyo grinned as she turned to go back up the stairs. "Oh, I've just figured out a way for you to
pay me back for the okonomiyaki."
Ryoga started to follow, when what Ukyo had said sank into his mind. She was taking him
upstairs. To repay her for the okonomiyaki. Upstairs, where she lived. As in, her room. Ryoga
began to sweat.
Ukyo led him into a room, with a bed in one corner, a window facing the door, and a desk and
dresser on either sides of the room. Ryoga decided that yes, this is what Ukyo's room should
look like. "Here we are," Ukyo said cheerfully. "Now, about that repayment . . . ?"
Ryoga's ears turned a little pink in embarrassment. "I . . . er . . . I th-th-think y-you sh-should . .
. um . . . I m-mean, wh-why w-would . . . uh . . ."
Ukyo snickered softly. "Hey, you do have a speaking disorder! Akane was right."
Ryoga was dismayed. "Akane thinks I have a speaking disorder?" And Ryoga's world started to
crash down around his ears.
"No, you jackass, that was my conclusion. She just said that you're awfully quiet around her, and
when you do talk, you stammer as if you're the shyest guy in the world. Anyway, I would like to
get this payment over with sometime this century, you know."
"Uh, y-yeah." Ryoga struggled inwardly, a battle against his morality. Finally he jumped to his feet,
placed a hand on Ukyo's shoulder, and bowed his head towards the floor. "Look, I know it's
hard for you being without Ranma, but I won't replace him! I'll find some other way to pay you
back, next time I come here. Believe me, you'll be glad that I stopped you, later. You'd regret it
for a long time if I hadn't."
Ukyo was peering at Ryoga with a puzzled expression on her face. Then, a look of realization
spread across her features, and she backed away from the boy, looking rather horrified. "What?! You jackass, what were you thinking? Get your mind out of the gutter and your strong-as-steel
butt up on the roof. I need you to fix a leak in my ceiling." And she pointed an imperious finger at the trash
can carefully placed off to one side of the room, where it was quietly collecting the slow drips
from a damp place up above.
Ryoga blinked once, straightened, and had the decency to look embarrassed. "Oh. Well, that's
okay then." Suddenly, the dim light in the room was amplified for a brief moment as a lightning
flash illuminated the place, followed shortly by a loud clap of thunder. The blood suddenly
drained from Ryoga's previously flushed face. "Uh, on second though, why don't I fix that roof
tomorrow? When it's not raining?"
Ukyo rolled her eyes, pulling her spatula off her back and swinging it in an arc towards Ryoga,
who didn't move as usual. "Idiot! That defeats the purpose; the purpose being to stop the leak
before it floods my room." She grinned cheerfully. "Hey, this is great. I can hit you as much as I
want and you don't go unconscious!"
Ryoga was not amused. He crossed his arms stubbornly, ignoring the stinging blow of the spatula.
"Look, I just don't want to go traipsing about in the rain."
Ukyo raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And who got out all her okonomiyaki stuff after she'd put it away
for the night to make a some guy she hasn't seen in months some dinner, hmm?"
Ryoga glared at Ukyo -- and Ukyo glared right back.
Ranma looked around, and then back at the folded piece of paper pressed between the pages of
his textbook. He couldn't believe it; was he lost? He'd been wandering around in the same forest
for what seemed like days. Ranma chuckled softly, at the irony. Now he was the one, not Ryoga,
lost and alone in the woods. He didn't see the clearing as light at first; it was more of a darkness
that was less dark than the surrounding woods. He made his way towards it, hopefully. Maybe
there was something there that would tell him the way to the damned mountain.
When he got there, he sighed in disappointment. Nothing; just grass, dirt, and bushes. And those
weren't very helpful. By chance, he looked up towards the canopy. And grinned. Looming up
ahead, shrouded in mist, was a smallish mountain. Ah . . . Hontou no Shiryoku no Yama. It's
about time!
Ryoga muttered sourly under his breath as he sorted through the various tools Ukyo had shoved
at him. It was obvious she never did anything with them; half of them were creaky with age.
Ryoga examined a tray of nails and tried to cheer himself up. It wasn't so bad, after all. He did
have his umbrella, and if he could manage the miracle of holding it and repairing a roof at the
same time, he should be safe. He sighed, recounting the latest moments of the evening. It had
been easy to withstand her when she was pissed off at him. He was used to that. But she'd then
switched gears entirely on him; her eyes began to wobble ominously, and she covered her mouth
with her hands.
"Please, Shi-shi-guy?" she'd said, looking at him from across the okonomiyaki counter. "I don't
want to sleep in a soggy room tonight; all I want is a dry bed." Her expression was pleading,
wistful.
Ryoga had backed up a step, glancing at her out of the corner of his eyes. No . . . no, must resist
. . . the eyes . . . "Oh, alright. I'll do it."
"Yatta! Thanks, Ryo-chan!"
Ryoga had raised one eyebrow. "Ryo-chan?"
"Sure." Ukyo grinned. "All my friends get nicknames." She paused, and her grin broadened.
After all, I can't go on calling you Shi-shi guy if you fix my roof, now can I?"
Ryoga found that the cook's smile was contagious, and had grinned back at her. "Oh, okay."
Ryoga sighed. Would he ever be able to withstand a girl's teary eyes? He felt like punching
something. This was a fatal weakness indeed; what if someone used it to his disadvantage in the
future? Of course, being sent out in the rain in the middle of the night to fix a roof was a
disadvantage, but it wasn't too serious. Ryoga picked out the tools he would need, found the box
of extra shingles, and headed out the door with the supplies in one hand and his umbrella in the
other. Kami-sama . . . if you ever loved me, please let this work! I can't turn into P-chan now;
where would I get hot water?
Laying on her back on her bed, Ukyo heard a vague thudding noise from above her and smiled
faintly. That'd be Ryoga, fixing the roof. Such a nice boy, Ukyo thought. He had sure
overreacted when she mentioned Akane earlier; didn't he have a thing for the macho jock chick?
Ukyo stared at the ceiling, mulling the thought over in her mind. Hmm . . . that could be useful, in
the future. Maybe he would work with her to break up Ranma and Akane, so he could have
Akane and Ukyo could have Ranma. Ukyo decided the ceiling was boring and rolled over on her
side in order to stare at the wall for a bit. She stayed that way for a while and then got up and
crossed to the window. She hadn't gotten ready for bed yet, so she was still wearing all her
clothes. She looked upwards as much as she could, but couldn't see the roof. Ukyo frowned,
vaguely aware that she hadn't been entirely fair, sending the guy up in the rain like that, but she
really didn't want a soggy room, and he did owe her for the okonomiyaki.
She stared out the window, thinking wishful thoughts about Ranma, and looking altogether
miserable to any onlookers. After a few minutes, she saw something fly downwards past the
window, a flash of red. She craned her neck to look at the ground. That guy hadn't fallen off, had
he? No-- that was just his umbrella. He must have dropped it. Ukyo sighed, and decided that
she'd been stubborn enough for one night, and went down the stairs to fetch the umbrella.
She ran around the side of the restaurant, and picked up the umbrella. Or tried to, anyway. "Aiee!
This thing weighs a ton! And Ryo-chan swings this thing around as if it weighed no more than a
feather?" Ukyo settled for half carrying, half dragging the leaden thing back across the side walk.
She looked at the ladder that Ryoga had used to climb up, then at the umbrella, and then back at
the ladder. There was absolutely no way she'd be able to get the wretched thing up the ladder.
She sighed, took a deep breath, and shouted, "Ryoo-chaaan! I've got your umbrella! I can't bring
it up the ladder-- come down and get it, okay?"
Ukyo waited a few moments, but got no reply. Puzzled, she abandoned the umbrella and climbed
the ladder. When she reached the roof, she looked around, but saw no sign of the Hibiki boy. She
scowled. "Oh, sure. So he eats my food, takes my shelter, tramps around my house, and then
skips out on the bill. I hate it when people do that!" She clenched her fists, and might have hit
something then in anger, when she noticed that neatly nailed shingles in place where the old, leaky
ones had been. "Ohh . . . so he did fix the roof! But why'd he leave so suddenly, without so much
as a good-bye? And without his umbrella, too."
Ukyo climbed back down the ladder, and dragged the umbrella back to the doorstep of the
restaurant. Panting from the exertion, she propped it up against the doorframe. "No one's gonna
steal something that heavy, so I'll just leave it out for him to pick up later." She turned around,
shaking out her wrists, cramped from dragging the heavy umbrella, and stopped short in surprise.
"P-chan? What are you doing here?" The little black pig sat forlornly on the doorstep, shivering
and wet, with his yellow bandana askew. Yellow bandana . . . looks familiar, for some reason.
Poor thing, he's soaked and freezing cold, too. "Akane must be worried sick about you, you
poor thing. Here, come inside and warm up. We can give you a bath, and a nice hot meal, and
have you feeling better in no time."
The piglet's eyes filled up with tears, especially at the mention of the word 'bath,' and he looked
for a moment as if he were going to follow Ukyo into the restaurant. Then, at the last minute, he
ran off down the street, bweeing loudly. Ukyo's eyebrows furrowed. "What a strange pet," she
murmured, and went back into the restaurant. Some time later, when all the passers-by had long
dispersed and the rain became just another background noise, like the ever-present chirping of
crickets, the light in the top floor of Ucchan's flickered out.
Tap. Tap tap. Tap TAP.
Akane's eyes slid open, as she was pulled from the depths of her somewhat disturbing dream (it
involved Shampoo and staple-guns. *shudder*) by the noise coming from downstairs. After
realizing that she was no longer held at staple-gun-point by the purple-haired girl, she became
instantly alert. What's that noise? A burglar? Akane wondered, as she silently slipped out of bed
and picked up a baseball bat. She quietly opened the door to her room and stepped into the
hallway, pausing to listen for the noise to begin again. Ah, there it was. Definitely coming from
downstairs. She came down the stairs slowly, skipping the third step from the bottom since it had
been known to squeak loudly at some times. Again she stopped to listen, and decided that it was
coming from the front door. Akane tightened the grip on the bat, took a deep breath, and quickly
threw open the door. She brandished the bat, trying to look as threatening as possible, brandished
it at . . . nothing? There was no one outside. Akane blinked, lowering the bat slightly. She'd been
so sure that the noise, whatever it was, had been coming from the door. She sighed and started to
shut the door again, when a faint sneeze attracted her attention.
"P-chan! Where have you been? Oh, you poor baby, you're all wet! Come inside and let me dry
you off and warm you right up!"
P-chan sniffled pitifully and allowed himself to be scooped up into Akane's arms and carried up
the stairs. Akane brought out a thick, white towel and quickly dried off the little piglet, chattering
aimlessly to him all the while. The black pig just sat there dreamily taking in Akane's affections,
hardly even noticing it when she dropped off into a restless sleep. When he did notice it, however,
he nudged the light switch near her bed with his nose, turning off the light, and snuggled down on
Akane's pillow.
Just before he fell asleep himself, he heard Akane whisper sleepily, "Jerk. Why'd he have to leave
like that, anyway?"
P-chan very carefully jumped off the bed and went into the bath house; good, the water was still
warm. P-chan took one last look towards the hallway to make sure no one was watching, and
then plopped ungracefully into the tepid water. Ryoga stood up with a rush of water, with an
unusually impassive face. A took a towel from the rack and wrapped it around his waist, and then
went into Ranma's room. He was about Ranma's size; he'd be able to borrow some of his clothes
to wear until he got his own out of the pack he left at Ucchan's. After he dressed himself, he
carefully replaced the towel on the wrack and started to leave the darkened and silent house. He
stopped on his way past Akane's room, however, and looked in on her. She had a stubborn frown
on her face, and her left hand twitched once, slightly, as if she wanted to hit something. Ryoga
smiled faintly, despondently. She must be having a dream about Ranma, he thought to himself as
he went down the stairs and left himself out of the Tendos' house, shutting the door noiselessly
behind him.
Nabiki watched him go, waving the Polaroid picture in the air to develop it, a thoughtful
expression on her face. "I would never have guessed," she murmured, before flashing an almost
wicked smile to the darkness around her and slipping back into her room.
The Eye of the Beholder, by Tori-chan: email me at saezuru@hotmail.com
