K Yee wrote:

On Tue, 12 May 1998 10:05:27 -0600 David Johnston
<rgorman@telusplanet.net> writes:

Nabiki/Emry wrote:

Was this thread about a specific FanFic??  If it
is I can't seem to find it  :(  any suggestions
where to look??

Yes it was.  A rather amateurish effort of mine I
lost a while back.  It's archived out
there...somewhere.  Benares has a copy, though.
Unfortunately he rarely answers his email.

Okay, which leads to my next question.  Does anyone out there have the
fic titled "Bie Liao" by David Johnston?  Benares, if you do get this,
could you help us out by sending David a copy, or, if it's alright with
you, David, post it on the list?  I've also been searching for it, but
with no results.  Thanks.

doKuSHInsHA
Member of the #AAS#: Achika Appreciation Society

_____________________________________________________________________
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...And thank you Gary Kleppe.  Bie Liao's just a squib of a thing, 
intended to provide a closure to "Both Sides of the Coin" by Benares who 
kindly permitted me the liberty. 

Bie Liao

The characters in this story were of course created by Rumiko Takahashi. 
No offense intended.

________________________________________________________________________Ukyo brought her battle spatula to the ready and called out
"OK, who's out there!".

"It's just me, Ukyo.  The Curse."  The speaker, perched
catlike on a tree limb, was a shorter busty girl who wore
her hair in a braid,

Guilt washed over Ukyo.  Earlier, Ranma had been apparently
split into his male and female selves.  Everyone, including
Ukyou, was naturally inclined to treat the male Ranma as the
real Ranma, and Ukyou had gone so far as to equate the female
Ranma with the curse that had created her.  "I'm sorry, uh
R-ranma.  I shouldn't have called you that.  Why aren't you
at the Tendos?"

"They're all celebrating _his_ cure with my m-mother.  I don't
have anything to celebrate, so I left.  Give 'em a few days
and I think they'll have totally convinced theirselves that
I really was Ranko Tendo, Akane's cousin."

"I'm... sorry."

"You are such a liar, Ukyo." Ranma-chan hopped down and
jerked her head in the general direction of the Tendo Dojo
as she continued, "You know that fool back there still
thinks that you're his friend.  He wants friends so badly
that he ignores all the indications that you aren't one,
just like Akane wants a cute little pet so badly she
ignores everything about P-Chan."

"Don't you DARE say I'm not his friend!"  Ukyo tensed,
bringing her weapon back up.

"Why?  Afraid someone will overhear?  Because you aren't
his friend.  You're just another fiancee.  You pretend
to be his friend so you can get close to him, but if you
were really my friend, you would have been there for the
one who needed you, instead of the one you wanted to marry!"
Ranma gasped a little for breath as he stood ready for her
attack.

Ukyo was weeping, "I'm sorry, I really am.  It was just so
hard to suddenly have two Ranmas to deal with, to realise
that you were a real person with Ranma's mind and thoughts,
and not just someone new who looked like Ranma's other face.
I am Ranma's friend, and that includes you.  It just took me
a while to realise it."

Ranma softened, "No, I'm sorry, for taking it out on you.
This's just been a really bad day for me, and nobody
seemed to care, but I don't really want to make you cry.
I guess I was just trying to pick a fight to make
myself feel better.  But I hate it when girls cry."

Ukyo wiped at her eyes, "That's all right, Ranma. I guess
I deserved it."

"I dunno about that.  Everyone pretty much locked me out
except, well, Akane.  You know, she first met me this way.
I was so miserable and she wanted to be my friend.  Then she
found out I was really a guy and she hated me.  Now, it's like
the clock's been turned back for her.  I'm miserable and she
wants to be my friend.  Problem is, I don't want her for a
friend, I want..."

"A wife?"  Ukyo was surprisingly restrained.  "Tell me
something.  What is it about Akane?  She treats you so badly,
she hits you, blames you for everything that happens whether
or not it's your fault.  Maybe she loves you, but she'll never
admit it, and I don't think she likes you.  Is it just your
father?"

"I was brought up as a martial artist, to believe that if
someone hit you, it was your own fault for not getting out
of the way.  Maybe that's weird, but it's the way I am.  And
we're all weird some ways.  Yeah, it bugs me that she isn't
fair and won't hear me out, and ends up blaming for stuff that
isn't my fault.  But she's kinda got under my skin, and there's
somethings I gotta say.  Sure, you're a better cook, a better
fighter, better looking, and probably smarter than Akane.
But at least with Akane she never hides what she's thinking.
She's honest, or when she tries to trick me, it's always so
obvious even I can spot it.  And one thing you don't have is a
lotta forgiveness.  You spent ten years waiting to get revenge
on a six-year-old.  You still got a grudge against some little
girls who made fun of you.  But a lotta stuff happens with me.
After you'd been married a while, I figure you'd figure out that
it isn't always other people's fault.  Sometimes, a lotta the
time, it's my fault, for being dumb, or unlucky, or just going
too far.  Akane blames me, but she also keeps forgiving me.
I dunno whether you would when things looked really bad for me,
and there wasn't anyone else to blame."

"Ranma...I'd always find someone or something else to blame."

The girl with Ranma's mind shrugged.  "Whatever.  It's not my
problem now.  I won't even be watching to see what happens.
I'm leaving."

"But why?" Ukyou asked, stunned, "I was just getting used to the
idea of you being here."

"I don't have a home, friends or family anymore.  Well...except
you now, and I had to make friends with you all over for the third
time.  I don't even have school records.  If I'm going to have to
start from scratch, why not someplace new, as far away from Him as
I can manage?  Right now, nobody much cares about me, not with Him
around.  Yeah, that'd change if I hung around, but that's why I
should leave now before people do start to care and seriously start
trying to change me into "Ranko Tendo".  Right now, it'll
probably be days before anyone even notices I'm gone."

"Isn't that running away?"

"It ain't the first time I've run from something I couldn't
fight.  And I can't fight myself.  Or live with myself either.
Thank Akane for me, will you?  I'll write you once I've found
a place for myself.  Bie Liao."

____________________________________________________________________

I'm not really happy with it, except that I like the last paragraph.
Oh...you may recall a rather similar fic in which Ranma writes a letter 
to Kasumi appearing on the RAAC.  Mine was first.