I finally broke out of my writer's block for this one shot.
	Maybe it would be better if I hadn't...?

alhuang@hcs.harvard.edu
http://www.hcs.harvard.edu/~alhuang/

  I'm feeling a little depressed right now.
  Characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi and all them.

And now, Oddzilla Productions presents....

"All Alone, in the Night"

<...>: thoughts

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  It was cold.

  <Good thing I managed to snatch the blanket first.> Ranma sat huddled
beneath the comforter on the roof of the Dojo.

  Despite appearances, it was _not_ one of Ranma's worse days; at least,
it sure didn't seem so. Sure, he and Akane had gotten into more of their
arguments, he had to fend off Shampoo's advances once more, Kunou had
challenged him as usual....

  But the violence was relatively low. Akane had only punched him once,
Shampoo actually misgauged the jump and landed the bike half a meter
from Ranma, and the fight with Kunou was over within twelve and a half
seconds. (Two of them were wasted on Kunou having trouble pulling his
bokken out from his pants--he had stuck it into the waistband, not just
his belt. How he walked...Ranma just didn't want to know.) Peaceful.
Akane hadn't tried to cook, Ukyou didn't show up with okonomiyaki,
Ryouga was still lost....

  So why was he here?

  On top of the roof on a cold winter's night?

  "Why indeed." Ranma was in one of his rare introspective moods.

  He wondered what Hiroshi and Daisuke were up to. Oh, right, that
movie. Those two, always inseperable. They were always talking about
girls with each other (and including Ranma in the discussion, either as
participant or subject of said conversation), or watching the
everpresent spectacles that popped up in Nerima together...heck, they
even got _injured_ in pairs. The two of them got their ki simultaneously
sucked by Hinako-sensei that one time....

  He wondered what Nabiki was up to. She had left on one of her business
meetings with her associates. She had always implied that the two girls
she would always be seen with were merely lackeys...yet Ranma could
always see some of Nabiki's rare _genuine_ smiles directed to
those "mere lackeys", the warm laughter that occasionally floated from
where the three of them had lunch.

  Ukyou was probably cleaning up the shop with Konatsu. Ranma shook his
head and smiled. As annoying as Konatsu could be, somehow, Ukyou got
along with the bishounen kunoichi. Sure, the "Ukyou-sama" seemed to get
grating at times to Ucchan, but she was one for high levels of patience.

  "Ha, ha! Saotome-kun! How's that?" There was a "growf" heard in
response, no doubt accompanied by some sign asking for a do-over.

  <They're still up? Yeesh.> Those two. Always just schmoozing, nearly
carefree.... Except, of course, when Okaasan came around. But
otherwise...what _did_ the two of them do all day? The endless games of
shougi (with the rare round of go tossed in), talking about old times,
occasionally plotting to set their children up.

  His train of thought was interrupted by some giggling heard from the
direction of Akane's room. <Right. That's one of the reason's I'm up
here.> A slumber party. It had been a while since Akane had hosted one.
No doubt, they'd be reading their shoujo mangas and gossiping about boys
all night, some of which was destined to be about himself. Ranma
shuddered at that thought.

  "Where'd Ryouga run off to this time, anyways?" Perhaps he had found
Akari again. Or maybe not.... He was just not around, that was the only
certain thing.

  Ranma wondered about Ryouga. How did someone like that, someone so
depressed, grow to be such a strong, healthy guy? It went against the
laws of psychology. Once cursed with the sense of direction, twice
cursed with Jusenkyou. Such a lonely life.

  Lonely. Lonely?

  "Alone...."

  Was that the gnawing feeling in the pit of his stomach? The one he had
just started to feel a few minutes ago?

  ...a few months ago...

  ...years.

  He scoffed. "Heh! That's ridiculous. I'm in Nerima, surrounded by
people wanting to marry me or kill me. How could I be lonely?!"

  <Why am I on this rooftop again?>

  He brushed that thought aside again. <No, I just want to think by....
Myself...?> He shook his head angrily. It wouldn't leave, though. It
even gained a voice....

  "Why are you up here, Ranma? Didn't Hiroshi and Daisuke tell you about
that Jackie Chan movie? Oh, that's right, you caught it on opening
night. Kinda crowded in there, wasn't it? Except for the fact that no
one you knew was there...or was there, but you didn't know it. Say,
Ranma, there's that dance tomorrow--whoops, forgot, you're too afraid to
ask any girl to go, and it's a couples-only thing. You know, Ranma--"

  He smacked himself upside the head, silently screaming at the voice to
shut up. It went silent, but he could have sworn that there was a low,
mocking laughter that trailed off as it did. He sighed. Yes, ladies and
gentlemen, Ranma was depressed.

  <Usually...usually, a guy like me, feeling like me, would be talking
about stuff with his friends.> Yeah, friends. Talking, chatting.... But
who could he talk to? Oyaji? Tendou-ojisan? They'd steer the topic
straight to the marriage. Nabiki...even if she were home...he could just
imagine the rates she would charge for a simple friendly chat, not like
they'd have anything to chat about anyways. Kasumi...wasn't quite in
touch with things. And Akane--well, no go there.

  Shampoo? Mousse? Cologne? Not a chance. The first would just glomp
him, the second try to kill him, the third...would encourage the first.
He didn't remember the time he had a calm conversation at the
Nekohanten. Toufuu-sensei...well, he was a nice guy, pretty intelligent,
but Ranma always had the feeling that Toufuu-sensei was over his
(Ranma's) head. There was also always the danger of Kasumi showing up in
some way. The Kunous? Ranma shuddered again.

  Ukyou was always there. She was, after all, his best, oldest, closest
friend. But she was still a fiancee, and that made a difference. That
would always be hanging in the air.

  Misery loves company. <Well, at least Ryouga's always been worse off
than me.> He frowned. No, that wasn't true. Perhaps, for some time, it
was....

  But then he became P-chan. He had a special place with Akane. She
would hold him close, tell him secrets that she wouldn't even tell her
closest girlfriends, let him snuggle with her at nights...the damned
pig...and now he had Akari, too.

  <I'm pathetic. I'm worse off than Ryouga. Ryouga, for crying out
loud!! The Lost Boy! Here I am, in the middle of Nerima, lonely. I'm
looking all around me, and everyone's got something else. Oyaji and
Tendou-ojisan are always playing their board games, Mousse lives
absolutely for Shampoo, Shampoo has her great-grandmother to plot with,
Ukyou and Konatsu are winding down with the cleanup, Nabiki has her
friends and Kasumi is always happy anyways plus she can go to Toufuu
even if he does go a little nuts when she's around and then there's
Kunou who's so occupied with me and Akane that it doesn't matter and
even if then he can actually talk civilly with his sister I mean they
seem to get along and stuff of course Kodachi's crazy to begin with
she's fine isn't she don't forget Ryouga dammit Ryouga's got Akane in
his own way and Akari too I bet Hiroshi and Daisuke are having a blast
at the movie no doubt how come I don't have a close friend to talk to
I'd like a shoulder to cry on sometimes it's not fair not fair not fair
not fair stop it stop dammit stop it's not fair not fair not-->

  A loud, _loud_ cracking noise interrupted his train of thought.
Startled, Ranma looked around, finally setting his gaze on his hands.
There were pieces of roofing clenched in his fingers, cutting slightly
into his hands. Some blood dripped down on the tile.

  "That didn't hurt...." He sighed, and dropped the chunks. Fortunately,
it was minor damage; no harm would come of it, either to himself or the 
house. He sighed, moving the comforter away so it wouldn't get
bloodstains, and looked out into the night.

  "All alone."

  A few tears mixed in with the small puddles of blood, unnoticed.

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  The title came from Babylon 5. A rather famous quote from the show,
isn't it? The quote that also goes along with it...well, I recall
Sheridan saying, "There's nothing worse than being all alone, in the
night." Delenn responded with something like, "No, there is something
worse. Being alone, in a crowd." I know the feeling, and some things
happened this night...no, make that this morning that recalled those
feelings. It struck me so powerfully that I had to write it, and write
it now....

>From Andrew Huang, Taiwanese-American-German-Scot Harvard Student :P
Brought to you by his computer, Oddzilla
Oddzilla says, "Ryouga and Ukyou! Ukyou and Ryouga!"
http://www.hcs.harvard.edu/~alhuang/
Kurimoto Shiro's manager, DBTFH; Harvard Anime Society, Secretary