Here is number two, again, a repost......

Howdy all!!!! This is a follow up to Hidden Talents, part one. I decided to
just finish this one up, cuz I had the idea for it running through my head
for the past couple of days. This will make my second FINISHED fanfic and
C&C would be much appreciated. This story is very much on the romantic side.
I guess you can peg that down to me being a softie and also a member of The
Defenders of Ryoga and Ukyou. Uhhh... I don t have much more to say other
than yes, Ukyou and Ryoga are both a tad OOC and I have no real defense for
that. About all I can say toward that is ask weather or not you personally
have ever been with someone late, late, late into the night or morning and
just felt yourself let go. Oh yeah, and actually pay note to the disclaimer,
it might enlighten a few things.



Disclaimer : All characters noted herein are property of Rumiko Takahashi
and Viz Video. The situation of Ryoga and Ukyou's living arrangements (and
Ranma's job) are a set up from Marisa Price's  "A Lesson In Love"

Note: These events do NOT happen in A Lesson In Love. Consider it a type of
alternate borrowing. Also, just because events to Hidden Talents One are
referred to, does not mean that all Hidden Talents stories are interconnected.  



Hidden Talents

part, the second

 



	    Ukyou Kounji quietly walked through the halls of her home and
livelihood.It was about one a.m. on an early Saturday morning. Ucchans had
been closed for about two hours and Ranma and Ryoga had finally finished
cleaning up less than an hour ago. Ukyou paused in the darkness, clasping
her arms about her as she felt a slight chill. "Lord, its cold," she thought
to herself. A small voice in the back of her mind whispered about the
niceties of a warm bedroom and snuggling with Ryoga. She felt a blush pass
over her face. Even now, thinking about "their" bed still made her
feel self conscious.
      She walked through the main dining room in comfortable silence.
Without any light or sound, she slowly passed the grill, absently running a
hand over the cool metal surface of one of her passions. Continuing through
the room, she passed a glance over one of the newest attachments
to her restaurant. She smiled fondly as she gently breezed by the dark grand
piano that her uncle had sent her. Ever since setting it up in the dining
hall and making  "Friday Formal" , she had enjoyed a nice upswing in
business on Friday nights. She grinned again at how Ranma and Ryoga
still chapped at each other. She recalled Ranma's complaints on having to do
all the tables while Ryoga simply had to play the piano, and Ryoga's stout,
slightly snooty reply, on how it was a lot harder then it looked. She was
glad that her uncle had thought of her when he had stumbled onto the
instrument, and even gladder that she now had a perfect excuse to make Ryoga
play the keys. As she exited the dining room, she noted with satisfaction
that both of the guys had done a very good job cleaning up, and business
would be ready to go in the morning.
	She gracefully walked up the stairs and passed the room she now shared with
Ryoga. Again, a ghost of a smile whisked over her face as she recalled how
long it had taken to convince Ryoga to just move his small amount of gear
and clothing into her room with her. She almost laughed as
she recalled the exact words she had used to describe the scene to Akane,
later. "After three hours of patient, logical reasoning, it took about five
minutes of kissing, and I had him ready to agree to move to Hawaii!!"
She ignored the small voice inside that told her to just go to bed and get
some rest. Her purpose was almost at hand, and she was not about to lose the
private time that she had. She headed towards the attic and the small
storage room that had once been Konatsu's, and later, Ryoga's. Now, she had
converted it into her own private room. A room that no one entered but her.
Opening the door, she entered. She looked around and settled herself onto a
stool and proceeded to work......

       Ryoga Hibiki lay asleep, dead to the world. He slowly reached his
arms out and wrapped them about Ukyou. A part of his mind reported, however,
that Ukyou seemed a lot..... cooler, then usual. Also... smaller. And,
well.... fluffier. And, hey, this is a pillow!! Ryoga woke with a start and
lifted his head. Bleary eyes scanned the bed and the room. No Ukyou. He
slowly sat up and tried to brush the sleep out of his mind, so he could
think."Let s see," he mumbled to himself, "I played three sets, helped Ranma
clean up, came up here, told Ukyou good night and just crashed. She
said.....",  his brow furrowed in concentration. "She said she was going to
lock up and take care of a few things and then come join me....."  He
glanced at the clock. 3:30 a.m. He shook his head and checked again. 3:31
a.m. Wide awake now, Ryoga hopped out of bed, wondering where Ukyou was and
slightly worried. He stepped into the hallway, with the smooth grace and
silence of a master martial artist and scanned up and down the hall. No
sound, no light, no sign of Ukyou. Ryoga waited for a moment and opened all
his senses. He heard a faint shuffle from..... the attic? Ryoga wondered for
a moment and realized he hadn't even been up to the attic since Ukyou had
"persuaded" him to just move his stuff into her room. He slowly headed up
the stairs and quietly opened the door. Ukyou was sitting on a stool in
front of him, her back to the door. He couldn't quite tell what she was up too.
	He softly cleared his throat and saw her freeze.......

	Ukyou suddenly sat perfectly rigid. She heard Ryoga clear his throat again
and felt a quiet despair run through her, "Damn," she thought, "why couldn't
he have stayed asleep? I didn't want anyone to know....." She slowly turned
on her stool, her pallet and brush lying in her lap. "Hi," she whispered.
	 "Hi," Ryoga replied, just as soft. He advanced towards her and lowered
himself next to her stool. His eyes scanned the room and took in the many
easels and pieces of art hanging on the walls and stacked on boxes.
	"Uhhhh..... couldn't sleep?"  she asked casually, praying against hope that
Ryoga wouldn't look to hard at the paintings.
	"Yeah....," he gently ran a finger over her cheek, "I missed you. Do you
know it s almost 4?" 
	She started in genuine surprise, "No, no I didn't. I'm sorry you woke up
Ryo-chan. I know how hard you worked tonight..." 
	Ryoga just shrugged. "I'm ok." He turned his head and gestured toward the
walls with his hand. "I never knew you painted." He looked at Ukyou with
slightly confused eyes.
	"Well,"  she laughed nervously, "I guess you could just call it a hidden
talent of mine."  
	Ryoga looked around the room again and suddenly, his eyes narrowed.  "Oh
no,"  Ukyou thought, despairingly, "He sees..."
        He stood and began to nonchalantly walk around. "Wow," he said, as
he took in all the pieces on the wall and began to shuffle through the stack
on the boxes, eyes hoping to see a certain image. "These are all pretty
good. How come you never told anyone you painted." He pointed at the canvas
on the eisl, "I'm sure Ranma and Akane would like that one." The half
completed painting was of Ranma and Akane standing side by side. On the wall
behind him, were paintings of Shampoo, Kuno, Mousse, Kasumi, Nabikki, self
portraits of Ukyou, Akane, and Ranma. Lot's
of Ranma's. A small, tired, and sad voice popped up in his mind. And no Ryoga's.
	"Well," she said, hesitantly. "I found out that I loved to paint a little
after I got to Tokyo. I guess I never told anyone about it because I've just
been to busy. And..... well," she looked around helplessly, "I never thought
I was any good at it, really." 
	"No",  Ryoga said, a little sadly, "these are all really good. Really. You
should be proud of these." He looked around again, hoping to see a picture
he hadn't seen before, but to no avail. For some reason he couldn't fathom,
there was not a single picture of him. His eyes took in the room and saw
paintings of literally everyone that they knew yet not a single painting of
him. He felt an old pain and resentment that he had thought he would never
feel again as he saw the numerous
portraits of Ranma. He turned and slowly began to walk out of the room.
"Goodnight, Ukyou." He waved his hand slightly and headed out of the room.
	Ukyou saw the slump in Ryoga's shoulders and knew exactly what he was
thinking. She saw the old pain on his face and felt her heart almost break.
"Ryoga, wait," she called, pleadingly. 
   	Ryoga slowly turned his head. She jumped up and went to him and took his
hand. "I've got a painting I'd like you to see." She tugged him toward the
far end of the attic, he followed, half-heartedly. She stopped in front of a
large footlocker and slowly popped the latches. Opening the
top, she reached in and took out a large canvas. "Ryo-chan," she whispered
as she held the canvas to her chest and slowly turned around, "I know this
painting isn't that good, but what do you think of it?" 
	Ryoga gasped as he gazed at a painting of himself. At least, he thought it
was of him. It was a masterpiece of a painting, bold colors, with beautiful
details. Ryoga didn't know art very well, but even he could tell that
someone had poured their soul into this. It showed a young, strong man with
dark hair and a yellow bandanna. It showed his face, it showed his fangs.
What confused Ryoga were the wings. Beautiful feathered wings were on him.
Angelic wings that allowed him to soar through a sky of breathtaking beauty.
"Why do I... why did you... this is.... "
	"Do you like it Ryo-chan?" Ukyou's voice trembled and Ryoga was startled to
notice that her eyes were tightly shut while she waited his judgment. He
reached out and took the painting in his left hand and enfolded Ukyou into
an embrace with his right. "The painting is beautiful, Ukyou. But I don't
look that good. Why did you paint it like this?"  	
	"You silly," she whispered. "Don't you get it? That's how I see you." 
	Ryoga paused for a moment, stunned, as he gazed at the painting. "Then why
isn't this one out?" he asked, trying to collect his thoughts.
	"Cuz it's not good enough." Ukyou's eyes were now open and staring straight
into his own. "That's why none of them are out, none of them do you justice." 
	Ryoga looked into the footlocker and say that there were at least a
half-dozen more paintings inside it. He shook his head in amazement. He had
had no idea that she had seen him this way.
	"Ryoga,"  she began.
	Ryoga's lips met hers and cut her words off. He set the painting down and
encircled his arms around her. After an eternity of seconds, he pulled back
and stared at her. "Thank you," he whispered, "This is much more than I
deserve. You are much more than I deserve." He whispered the last with
emphasis. Ukyou stared into his eyes and saw the sincerity and love there
and leaned forward and kissed him again. She looked around the room and back
at Ryoga. "Ryo-chan, I'm tired. Let's go to bed."  Ryoga nodded and the two
turned to leave the room.


	Saturday night at the Ucchan. 2 am. Any late passerby would have seen that
the lights were on and that soft piano flowed out the door. Anyone going by
the windows who peered in would see two young people. One playing a piano,
and one painting, both creating beauty.



So? Any good? E-mail C&C to raymond.haney@mohican.mwsu.edu

Sweet water and light laughter
Ray "The Texas Ryoga"