Hi, everyone!! Well, this is my first fanfiction, and I hope everyone likes
it. Please, just constructive comments, no flames!!  
Thanks to everyone who gave me tips on how to make it better!! 
 
Disclaimer: All of the usual disclaimers. All of these characters are not
mine etc. 
Also, this is a very dark take on a what-if in the Ranma-universe, and it
really doesn't        
have any big explosions or huge amounts of action. So if you don't really
like this sort  
of thing, don't read it! 
 
 
Lost Dreams (Revised) 
 
	"Bartender!! Another shot!" he said blearily.  
	"That's your 5th in a row! I think that maybe you should slow down a
little!" 
	Ryouga looked at the bartender with bloodshot eyes, and said, "What do you
know! I have a reason for trying to forget! If you knew what I've gone
through in my life, you would be giving that stuff to me by the gallon!" 
	The bartender looked at him for a minute, then gave him another whiskey. 
	Ryouga just stared at it, and downed it in a single gulp. " Why can't I
forget?" he whispered. Then suddenly he started talking softly and slowly,
to no one in general. 
	"My name is Ryouga Hibiki. I am 23?, no 24 years old, and I am ready to
die. My life has always been one of depression, and grief, but the last few
years have been hell. My family is cursed. All of us can never find our way
anywhere <<flashback to various scenes of Ryouga lost, all over the world>>
but I seem to carry this to the extreme. I haven't seen my family in 10
years. I am a very good martial artist, but I am not the best. Always there
is someone better that me, usually a man named Ranma Saotome. 
	Ranma and I have been enemies since he ran out on a duel with me in junior
high. I vowed vengeance on him, and started to follow him as he and his
father Genma, went all over China, training, as they too are martial
artists. One day, I had finally managed to find them at a place called
Jusenkyo, where they managed to get cursed. Oh? You don't believe in
curses? Well, they managed to get me cursed too. Let me show you." 
	Ryouga gets out a thermos and opens it, then tells the bartender " Get me
some cold water, and splash it on me." He then demonstrates his curse by
turning into a pig, then doused himself with the hot water from the
thermos, by knocking it over, to turn back.  
 
 
Bartender: .......!!! 
 
Barfly #1: No way. I've got to be even more drunk than I thought!! 
 
As Ryouga gets dressed, he starts to talk again. "Yes, that is my curse. I
turn into a pig whenever I'm touched by cold water, and hot water returns
me to human. Genma was turned into a panda, and Ranma, into a girl. How did
this happen? Well, as the girl-Ranma was chasing after panda-Genma, she
managed to push me into the pool of the drowned pig, where I received my
curse. Now, I was even more furious at Ranma, and finally tracked him down
to Nerima, in Japan, where he was staying with the Tendo dojo. When I
finally confronted him  
    
   <<Ryouga: Ranma Saotome, prepare to die!! 
       
         Ranma: Huh? Who are you?>> 
 
he had forgotten who I was, and when he did remember, he had no idea why I
was so angry.  
	While I was in Nerima,  I met Akane. She was Ranma's fiancee, and she and
he seemed to really dislike the idea of their marriage. They always
insulted each other, and yelled and fought every day. 
 
<<Ranma: Uncute girl!! 
        
Akane: Pervert!! 
        
Ranma: Tomboy!! And you can't cook!! 
        
-Thwomp!! Thwap!! Another run in between a mallet and Ranma>> 
 
	She was beautiful, and kind, and she treated me as a friend. While I was
in pig form one day, she picked me up, named me P-chan, and took me into
her bed to cuddle with. She had no idea that I had been cursed as a pig,
and so to her, I became two people. One was a friend, and the other a
favorite pet. However, Ranma found out that I was P-chan, and we constantly
fought over that. However, he never revealed my secret. So life went on,
with the usual fights whenever I could find my way back to the dojo. I fell
more and more in love with Akane, but I could never tell her. Then one day,
she found out.  
	The day started out rather normally, with me happening upon the dojo while
I was lost, as usual... 
 
<<Ryouga: Ranma!! Prepare to die!! 
 
Ranma: Hey P-chan, how are you doing? 
 
Ryouga: How dare you bring that up! Ranma, stop dodging so much!! 
 
( Various shots of Ranma and Ryouga fighting, finally ending with both
falling into the pond ) 
 
Ranma: Great! Now I've got to take another bath!! Thanks, Ryouga. 
 
Ryouga: Bwee!! Bwee!!  
 
Ranma: Find some hot water yourself, P-chan!! 
 
Ryouga: Bwee!! (bites Ranma) 
 
Ranma: Agghh!!  
 
Ranma angrily drops P-chan back into the pond, and then goes in to take a
quick bath. 
  	 
	Akane comes in, and sees a muddy and slightly bedraggled P-chan. 
 
Akane: Oh! Poor P-chan. That Ranma probably bothered you again, huh? 
 
Ryouga: Bwee!! Bwee!! (nods vigorously) 
 
Akane: Well, you need a bath. Come on, I'll give you one right now. 
 
	Akane picks up Ryouga, who is struggling frantically. She manages to keep
her iron grip around Ryouga, and takes him into the bathroom, which still
has some warm water left from Ranma's quick bath. She drops him in, and
turns her back to get some soap. She looks back, and sees Ryouga, naked in
the tub. She screams and starts shouting. 
 
Akane: Ryouga?!!!!" You're P-chan!! You hentai! You pervert! I thought that
 
you were a friend, but you're even worse than... Ranma!! Worse than
Happiosai!! How could you!! 
 
Ranma: Akane! What's wrong?" Ranma comes running in and sees. "Oh...!" 
 
Akane: Ryouga's P-chan!! Ryouga's P-chan!! Ryouga, I never want to see you
again!! Never!          
 
Get away from me! Leave!!!"  
 
 
Akane runs out, crying, and Ranma runs out after her...>> 
 
	 
	From that day forward, she's never spoken to me, or seen me again. After I
wandered for a few months, I chanced upon the dojo again. I sneaked in, to
apologize, to do something, but what I saw just left me devastated. Ranma
and Akane, in the same bed.  
 
<<Ranma: I love you, my uncute tomboy. Did you know that? 
 
Akane: Baka!! I love you, too.  
 
Ranma: He loved you, you know. Ryouga... 
 
Akane: I know...., but I just can't believe that Ryouga could do that, and
never tell me... And I can't believe you never told me! 
 
Ranma: Well, my honor.. and it was my fault...? 
 
Akane: I suppose..., but I can't think of anything but P-chan, and how he
betrayed me. I just can't see him, not anymore. This is something that I
can't overcome.  
 
Ranma: But.... 
 
Akane: Shh.., don't say anything more. Anything I may have felt for him,
died at that instant. Not because he's cursed, but because I trusted him,
and he never tried to say anything. Now, no more talking about anything so
depressing. That's ancient history to me now. Let's do something more
fun...>> 
	 
	I found out later that they had decided to finally get married, especially
after she found out about me. I hid myself in pig form, and I saw how she
looked at him, and how he looked at her. That was when I really knew that
love was over for me. I stumbled out of the dojo, and went out looking for
something, anything to help me forget. Now, I'm just another drunk, nothing
special. In fact, I don't even get lost anymore. Once you know there's
nothing left for you, direction really doesn't matter. There's nothing more
for me, nothing to go back to. Ranma and Akane had their first child last
month, while I was passed out in an alley."  
	Ryouga looked out, at the crowd of barflies who had gathered to hear his
story. Wordlessly, he held out his glass, and the bartender refilled it. He
drank it, and then staggered out.  
 
Author's Note 
 
	Well, that's it! If you have a comment, drop a line at monica@pipeline
com, and tell me how I did!! 
 
 Monica Shin