A Small Favour
Niki (NeeP) Paradis
Ryouga was depressed. It was later in the evening, the day of the Martial arts tournament. It was a tie between Ranma and himself, which was one of the first times that ever happened. It was also the day that Akane learned about his dreaded secret. He sat with his arms wrapped around his knees on his futon in the darkened room as he recalled the events of the day.
"You're P-chan? You?!? And I let
You sleep with me?!?"
"Akane-san, wait ... I can explain..."
"No. I don't want to talk to you...
I don't even want to see you ... Never ever again."
"Akane-san..."
Akane slapped him then. The handprint
lasted for three hours afterwards.
Ryouga just couldn't stand it anymore.
He betrayed someone he cared about and she doesn't want to forgive him.
His aura started to build as his depression started to consume him, and
his head sank onto his knees.
Jiro was watching her brother from the crack in the
doorway into the room. She knew that she had to find something to
distract him before he allowed his depression to overwhelm him. She
thought seriously about it for a moment then went to find Ukyou.
Ukyou was sitting at the counter of her restaurant
when Jiro Hibiki descended from the stairway.
"How is he doing?" Ukyou asked.
"Not too good." Jiro tugged at the short
hair at the back of her neck. "Actually, I'm worried, Ukyou-san.
He's got to be distracted, or shown that there are other people out there
who could care deeply for him, besides Akane-san." She looked towards
Ukyou and shrugged, as if she had decided about something awkward and wanted
to get it over with. "Actually, Ukyou-san, I have a personal and
important favour to ask you." Jiro was actually blushing.
"So... Ask away."
Jiro whispered into Ukyou's ear, mindful that
her brother might be angry if he knew what she was asking.
Ukyou gasped. "You want me to WHAT!?!"
Ryouga was still sitting in the dark when he
heard a knock on the door.
"I want to be alone for a while, please leave."
Ukyou turned on the light and came in.
"I said that I want to be alone! Please
leave."
"Uh uh, I'm not leaving so you could feel
sorry for yourself, Sugar."
Ryouga glared at her.
"So Akane hates your guts. So what?
You know that she was never yours."
Ryouga grunted.
"And what am I? Chopped Liver?"
Ryouga's eyes opened wide at her last statement.
"So you lost Akane and I lost Ranchan.
We both know that life goes on, right?"
"I dunno..."
"Well, let me tell you that there are other
people who care for you and are concerned."
"Like who?"
"Your sister for one. Jiro. Remember
her?"
"Oh..."
"And me too, you pig-headed fool."
"Sorry..."
"Sorry doesn't cut it. You know something,
there are people who could love you for who you are, besides Akane."
"Yeah, but Akari and I parted ways a couple months
ago. She knew that she was just infatuated with me, that it wasn't
love."
"I meant besides her."
"Oh? And who would love a guy like me?
With my curse, with my sense of direction, with ears like mine..."
Ukyou leaned over to him, and whispered into his
ear.
"I would, you idiot."
With that she kissed him.
Ryouga was startled. "Do you really mean it?"
he asked.
"Let me show you..." she whispered. Slowly,
hesitantly, she removed her lavender wrap and let it drop to the floor.
She smiled shyly.
"I'll help you forget Akane."
She kissed him again, while pulling at the collar
of his new tunic. She managed to pull it over his head and then she
kissed him again. Ryouga sat there stunned.
"You're supposed to help me, jackass," she said
softly as she reached down to unbutton his trousers.
Ryouga and Ukyou lay together under the covers. The sheets were wet where the blood from his nose spurted. But Ryouga was asleep, his features serene and no longer in torment. Ukyou was lying against him, her eyes taking in and memorising everything that she could see in the dim light. She allowed her fingers to trace the outline of him once again, feeling every detail. She ran her hand over his shoulders, strong and hard muscle, solid like the rock that he was learning to manipulate. She combed her fingers through his thick hair, now long enough to reach the bottoms of his shoulder blades, often kept in a ponytail, it now was loose and it hung like a curtain across the back of his neck, accented by his yellow and black bandanna which seemed to glow in the dim light. She traced the edge of his ear, stopping at the pointed tip. She smiled to herself. She couldn't believe that Ryouga thought that his newly pointed ears made him look freakish. She personally thought that they added a certain charm, like the fangs that he was named after ? and all of the other girls at the tournament apparently thought so too, with their trying to hang around him, trying to get his attention. The idiot didn't even noticed, she chuckled softly to herself. She sighed contentedly. She finally won that contest. None of the other girls were able to catch his attention. Ryouga--no, Ryo-chan was hers.
Ryouga woke a few hours before dawn, a little lost and confused. For a moment, he couldn't remember where he was. He looked down and saw Ukyou sleeping beside him. He went light-headed as he remembered what happened the night before. He rubbed his hand across his face and wasn't surprised that it came away sticky with blood. He watched her sleep, and listened to her slow and even breathing. Her bare shoulders glowed in the pre-dawn light, her thick brown hair falling down her back, and her breasts, covering her like a veil. He picked up a lock of her hair and held it to his face, breathing the scent of her. He couldn't believe that she gave herself to him, he couldn't believe that he actually thought that he could only be happy with Akane. I've been a fool, he thought as he realised that his true path to happiness lay right beside him. He kissed the back of her head and settled back down to sleep.
Jiro woke up when she heard the birds scratching
outside for crumbs. She yawned and stretched, thinking that she had
had better nights of sleep. She should have thought about the fact
that the storeroom and her futon were located directly under Ryouga's tiny
room. At least, she thought, I should be thankful that
Oniichan sleeps on a futon as I do and not a box spring and mattress.
She smiled to herself as she got up.
Jiro had simply asked Ukyou to admit her love for
Ryouga. She didn't expect Ukyou to prove her love the way that she
did, but it worked. She figured that Ryouga would no longer be obsessed
with Akane.
She quickly got dressed and exited the room.
She put a pot of water on the stove of the restaurant for her morning tea.
She looked at the clock over the door and realised that there was only
an hour before Ucchan's was supposed to open. She thought about it
for a moment then she walked over to a drawer, open it, and pull out a
sheet of paper and a pen. Quickly, she made a sign just as the water
was beginning to boil. She made a mug of tea, then grabbed the still
drying sign and her text on learning German and went outside to enjoy the
morning.
Akane was feeling a bit guilty. She had the
whole night to think and to argue with Ranma. She realised that,
perhaps, Ryouga just might have a reason not to tell her that he was posing
as her pet pig for the last two years. She also realised that even
as P-chan, he was always a gentleman. He never looked at her while
she was changing; he never took advantage of her while she was sleeping,
not even to cop a cheap feel. She was still angry with him, but now,
she could probably discuss it calmly with him.
She and Ranma were on their way to Ucchan's so they
resolve the situation. It was just after 10 am and they figured that
by this time the breakfast crowd would just be starting to leave.
But when they arrived, they were surprised to find the restaurant still
closed. They pushed their way through the muttering crowd that was
gathered around the door to the store and stared at the sign that was posted.
It read as followed:
"Unforeseen situation?" asked Ranma. He and
Akane looked around to see if they could find someone who knew what was
going on. Akane found Jiro sitting on the wall that was on the other
side of the street.
"Hey! Jiro-chan, what's going on? Where's
Ucchan?"
"Where's Ryouga-kun?" asked Akane.
Jiro looked at them both.
"Good morning Ranma-san," she greeted him cheerfully.
"Good morning Akane-san," she said in a more frigid tone.
"So where are they?" asked Ranma again.
"Are they all right?" asked Akane. "Is Ryouga-kun
okay?"
Jiro blinked at the concern in Akane's voice.
"Oh, they're both okay. They just haven't
got out of bed yet."
Both Ranma and Akane blinked.
"Were they up all night?" asked Akane.
"Something like that." Jiro shrugged. She
looked over their heads at the restaurant. Akane and Ranma turned
and saw Ukyou opening the door.
"Hey! Ukyou! Good morning!" Jiro
leaped off the wall and bounced up to her.
"G'morning Jiro-chan. 'Morning Ranchan.
Akane, you better not be here to upset poor Ryo-chan any more." Ukyou
glared at Akane.
Sweat-drops formed on both Ranma's and Akane's heads.
Ryo-chan?!? They both thought.
Akane shook her head.
"No, just to talk, I guess I should apologise to
him."
"Well, sugar, I think he owes you an apology as
well, especially for keeping something like that from you."
Ukyou pushed open the door and allowed everyone
in. Once inside, Jiro grinned as she turned to the restaurant owner.
"So Ukyou, how was it?"
Ukyou was too accustomed to Jiro's directness to
be bothered by her question, but she blushed as she realised that Ranma
and Akane would also hear her answer besides Jiro. She shrugged and
voice dropped to a near whisper.
"You could have told me that he was that shy.
It took about ten minutes to stop his nose from bleeding before we could
even do anything." Her blush deepened.
"But I didn't expect you to do what you did last
night. And you should know that he's that shy-- although, I guess
that might have been fixed a little bit." Jiro grinned and winked
back at Ukyou, and Ukyou then realised that Jiro was not whispering.
She looked back at the now crowded restaurant. The whole crowd was
hushed and their eyes were wide.
Both Ranma and Akane were straining to catch every
word, but they heard it all. Ranma's eyes were starting to bug out
when he realised what Ukyou and Jiro were talking about. Ryouga
and Ucchan? You mean they did that?
Akane's jaw dropped. Ryouga-kun and Ukyou?
Who would have thought?
Ukyou's face went bright red.
"Why'd you have to let everyone know?" she hissed
at Jiro.
"What is there to be embarrassed about?" asked Jiro,
truly confused. Then her eyes went wide. "Unless you two did
something..."
"No! We didn't do anything kinky-- get your
mind outta the gutter, girl!" Ukyou was speaking in a loud whisper.
"Now hush up before Ryouga hears you..."
There was a crash from the back room, as if someone
was startled into knocking over some dishes.
"He's heard the whole thing," said Jiro, then she
dropped to a soft whisper. "Didn't you, Oniichan?"
The sound of another plate crashing to the floor
could be heard. Ryouga stepped out of the back room, wearing his
uniform wrap and holding some of the pieces of the broken dishes.
His face was even redder than Ukyou's was and the blush reached the tips
of his ears.
"Good hearing," was all that he said as he pointed
to one of his ears.
"Good morning, Oniichan," chirped Jiro. Ryouga
glared at her.
"Hey, Ryouga," called Ranma. "I didn't think
you had it in ya. Good for you, man."
"Uh, right." Ryouga looked towards Ukyou.
"Shouldn't we get started?" he asked, gesturing towards all of the customers
in the restaurant.
Ukyou started, then nodded.
"You're right. Sorry, Ranchan, Akane, I better
get started."
"It's all right, Ukyou," replied Akane. She
looked towards Ryouga. "Ryouga-kun, I want to talk with you later."
"Uh, okay."
Akane and Ranma left.
It was later in the day, and Ryouga was outside sweeping.
He remembered Ukyou's off hand question in regards to Jiro.
"What kind of bizarre upbringing did that girl have, anyway?"
Ryouga had no answer. All he knew was that
Jiro was raised in a very small village where the only bathhouse was communal.
Or so she has said to him.
He bent down with the dustpan, swept up the debris
and started looking for a trashcan (which was right behind him).
"Ryouga-kun?"
Ryouga dropped the dustpan at the sound of Akane's
voice.
"A-aa-Akane-san..." Ryouga stumbled over the name.
"We have to talk." She didn't give him the
option.
"R-right."
She led him inside the restaurant, past Ukyou and
Jiro, and the customers and into the back room. The door shut behind
them.
"Now, Ryouga, can you tell me why you haven't told
me that you were P-chan?"
Ryouga blushed furiously and fidgeted.
"Um... It's like this... One dark night, all those
years ago, I came to the dojo to fight with Ranma. It was raining
and I got wet. I changed into my cursed form and got lost when I
wound up in your bedroom. I, uh, fell in, uh, love with the girl
who found me there..."
Ukyou and Jiro were starting to close up when Akane
and Ryouga both left the back room. Ukyou saw that both Akane and
Ryouga had been crying. Akane gave Ryouga a brief hug and squeezed
his hand.
"You take care, Ryouga-kun," she said. "I'll
probably see you tomorrow."
"Yeah, see you later, Akane-san."
As she walked past Ukyou and Jiro on her way to
the door, she stopped and turned to face Ukyou.
"You take good care of him, Ukyou, as a favour to
me," she said. "Ryouga-kun's a very special person."
"I will," replied Ukyou. "Don't you worry
about it, Sugar." She looked meaningfully at Ryouga. "I will
take very good care of this Lost Boy."
Akane nodded and then left.
Ukyou looked towards Ryouga, who was wiping at his
face with his fist.
"Are you okay, Ryo-chan" she asked him.
"I dunno..."
Jiro interrupted him.
"Why don't you take him upstairs and see if you
can cheer him up, Ukyou? I can finish up down here."
"Thanks, Jiro-chan."
"I'll even bring up something warm for you two to
drink."
"Thank-you again, Jiro-chan," replied Ukyou as she
took Ryouga upstairs.
Ukyou shut the door to Ryouga's room and sat him
down on his futon. Ryouga was still wiping tears from his eyes.
"So... what did you two talk about?" she asked.
"I told her that I was in love with her, and didn't
want her to think of me as less of a man because I kept turning into a
pig." He sighed. "She told me that she had always considered
me to be a very good friend, but there was no way that there could have
been anything between us. She loves Ranma, she always had, but she
didn't realise it at first. I had no chance."
"Anything else?"
"One more thing. She told me that Ranma considers
you to be a very special friend and that I would be doing him a favour
if I would take care of you."
Ukyou sighed. "That Ran-chan." She shook
her head and then brightened. "Y'know, Jiro wanted me to cheer you
up, and I can think of one way to do it." She grinned wickedly.
Ryouga gulped, and grinned back weakly as a trickle of blood came out of
his nose.
"Are you sure?" he asked.
"Well, I am suppose to take good care
of you..."
Jiro watched as her brother was led away by Ukyou.
Y'know, she thought, I think something good has come from all
this. She then went about the rest of the chores. She locked
the doors, finished sweeping and put the kettle on for the hot drinks that
she promised. When the drinks were done, she placed them on a tray
and carried them upstairs. When she reached the small room where
her brother slept, she stopped and listened to the sounds from inside.
Blushing, Jiro set the drinks on the floor and knocked loudly at the door.
"Ukyou? Oniichan?" She called out. "I'm
gonna leave the drinks out here. You can get them when you're done."
She retreated back down stairs, figuring that Ukyou have succeeded in cheering
up Ryouga. She chuckled to herself remembering that this all started
the night before by asking Ukyou for a favour.
Yep, something good has definitely started,
she thought. I gotta ask for favours more often-- there's no telling
what they will lead to. Maybe something will come MY way.