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Title: The Countdown to Matrimony (Ch. 4 of Part 4)
Anime: Ranma 1/2
Author: Denise Cameron aka Elena99
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Chapter Four: Wherever I Will Roam

"...Darling, just for me, can't I wait for you?
In your heart, oh, I can make you feel so brand new
this is bigger then the both of us
here's a love that's meant to be.
It's in the stars above,
wanna fall in love!" 
-- "Equal Romance", Ranma 1/2

The air was alive with smells and sensations; the warmth of the grill,
the smell of spices and cooking food, the dampness of steam. The sound
of people talking and eating was also spicing the air; Ukyo had
customers. Three boys sat around one of the tables, eating okonomiyaki
and drinking green tea while talking animatedly. At another table, two
girls sat alone, eating and giggling as they talked. Ucchan's was back
to normal, clientele-wise.

The chef, Ukyo, flipped an okonomiyaki in the air one more time, then
watched it on the grill for a moment. It sizzled, obviously done, and
she picked it up with her spatula, putting it on a plate which she
handed to the black haired boy across from her. Finally, she sat down
to eat her own which she had set aside.

"Thanks," said the boy, Ryoga, taking the plate and breathing in the
smell of the steam before taking a bite. He was sitting on his usual
stool, across the bar. The one she still hadn't told him that Akane
had sat on; it didn't matter so much to her now, though. She didn't
think it would matter to him either; plenty of people had sat there.
Hadn't they? Ranma had probably sat there at one point too.

"No problem, sugar."

Ukyo had just arrived home from school not a half hour ago; most of
the clientele she had in there at the moment had followed, eager for a
snack before heading home. It made her happy, to see customers eating
her food. Paying customers. Her cash register had started to look
anorexic, but she knew she could make it back again. It wasn't the
first time business had slumped.

"So, uh...how was school?"

After the events at the Nekohanten, Ryoga had opted to stay the night
at Ukyo's. Again. But he had not slept in her room this time,
especially not as a human. Instead he had slept in the spare room on
the floor, eager to have a place for the night. She had been surprised
to still see him when she got home; instead of leaving, he had stayed,
helping Konatsu clean. She was surprised Konatsu let him, but then,
maybe Ryoga hadn't given him a choice.

Ukyo flinched at the question, despite that she had expected it. She
had learned a possibly unsettling piece of information at school that
day. Information that her companion probably wouldn't like. She hadn't
liked it, certainly.

"Okay. But...Ranma and Akane weren't there. Gosunkugi was, and Kuno
was, and I was sure Ranma and Akane would be. But I didn't see them
all day," she said, shoving a bite of her cooking into her mouth and
chewing thoughtfully.

"They weren't? I thought you said they go every day?" asked Ryoga,
frowning as he looked up at Ukyo.

"They do. Normally. But today they just weren't there. I asked Daisuke
to ask Gosunkugi if he knew why, but apparently Gosunkugi hadn't
stayed a second longer then he had to. When he left, Akane was still
unconscious." She met Ryoga's eyes, trying to figure out what he was
thinking. The news had left her confused, and uncertain of Akane's
health.

"Who's Daisuke?"

"The guy who gave us Gosunkugi's address."

"Oh. Oh, right."

"So...they were absent. It kinda made me wonder...about Akane."

_Should I really be telling him this, after everything that's happened?
But still...he does care about Akane. And I'd like to know if
something happened to Ranma..._

"I hope she's okay...," he said quietly, and Ukyo noticed that he was
doing less eating and more pushing around food on his plate. Sighing,
she looked down.

"I thought you'd like to know."

"I do. Thanks."

"No problem. Hey, listen..."

Before she could get out the last of her sentence out, the door to her
restaurant opened. Immediately, brown and dark orange eyes alike
turned to face it, and they were silenced. A young girl of medium
height stood there, her long brown hair tied back with a pink ribbon.
She wore a short pink jumper dress with a yellow blouse, and her large
blue eyes fixed themselves on Ryoga within a second.

It was Akari.

The girl walked up to them purposefully, a frown on her face, and sat
at the chair just to Ryoga's left. But once seated, she just looked at
Ukyo. A look of recognition was obvious in her face, but didn't match
her words.

"One chicken okonomiyaki, please," she said quite calmly. It took Ukyo
a minute to nod her head yes.

"Su-sure...," she said, giving Ryoga a meaningful look. He was looking
at the girl out of the corner of his eye, nervously. Ukyo furrowed her
brow, then picked up the bowls of sauce and dough.

_I should probably leave them alone...I'm surprised Akari hasn't come
here sooner, she saw me following Ryoga..._

"I'll just cook...over...here."

She moved over a few paces to her left, enough to give the very
nervous Ryoga a sense of privacy. She hoped.

* * *

"Akari..."

Ryoga silently yelled at Ukyo for moving away and leaving him alone to
his task like that. How could she just tell him that, then leave him
as soon as more complications came in the door?

_I do need to talk to her...but dammit...Akane..._

"Ryoga. You seem to be doing well, here." Ryoga noticed that Akari
wasn't looking at him either; her voice was still calm, though perhaps
timid. And upset.

_Well of course she's upset..._

"Huh? What do you mean by that?"

"Well, obviously. A new girlfriend, who you seem to have an easier
time finding, and she can cook too?" Her voice was tinged with
bitterness. Ryoga immediately flushed, breaking a plate as he gripped
the counter for support.

"Ukyo's not my girlfriend!" he said, more loudly then he intended.
Akari was silent for a moment, then suddenly Ukyo was there again,
handing a full plate to her and trying her best to not look at Ryoga.
He looked at her cheek, blushing furiously.

_She heard that...I hope she's not mad...arg..._

"Ukyo...?"

Instead of answering him, she sniffed, then went out into the
restaurant to attend to the customers. Confused, Ryoga's eyes followed
her, watching her hips sway in annoyance, and her long hair bounce on
her back.

_She IS mad! At what? What I said? Or maybe it's because I broke
another plate..._

"Or maybe things have not yet developed...," said Akari softly as she
began eating her food. Suddenly remembering her, he put all his
attention back to the girl beside him.

"What are you talking about, Akari?"

"Nothing. Everything." She sighed heavily and suddenly put down her
utensils. Turning to Ryoga, she looked up at him, her face full of
anguish. Ryoga winced, knowing all at once that he was the cause of
it, and he wouldn't be able to make it better. Not for a long while,
if ever.

"You don't care for me anymore, do you, Ryoga? You haven't written,
you haven't visited...though I can forgive you for the last one. But
then...you made it here. And this is not the first time you've been
here, either." Ryoga's eyes went wide.

"Whoa, whoa, you've been spying on me?" he asked, feeling less sorry
for the girl at the implication. Akari sighed, then turned back to her
food.

"After a fashion..."

"And that's supposed to mean what?"

"I just...followed. I asked around if anyone knew an Ukyo, and gave
her description. I was worried about you! You just ran out, and you
were so upset. After Akane..." She stopped to clear her throat, then
shook her head. "I ran into someone who said they were sure the girl I
was looking for was the owner of Ucchan's Okonomiyaki. So I came
here...and saw you, twice. Once in the window, I saw you as P-chan
with a woman I didn't know. A waitress? Tall, cute, with long black
hair?"

"That's waiter, actually...," Ryoga corrected. Konatsu was often
mistaken for a female by the uninitiated.

"What? Really?" she asked, surprised. When Ryoga nodded blankly, she
continued.

"Anyway. Another time you were here as a human, and so was Ranma and
Akane. You know...at first, I thought it was some kind of double
date...you four were sitting around a table, eating, and talking. But
then I noticed how depressed you and Ukyo looked. And how tired Ranma
and Akane looked..." Her voice sounded confused near the end.

"That is a long, long story that I do NOT want to get into," said
Ryoga quickly. And firmly, he hoped. Out of the corner of his eye, he
saw Ukyo walk back over to the grill; she looked at him uncertainly
for a moment, but then he moved his eyes back to Akari as she began
speaking again.

"You can keep your secrets, Ryoga. I just wanted to know...if you were
alright," she said, and gasped suddenly as though fighting back a sob.
Guiltily, Ryoga turned to her, and saw a tear fall down her cheek. As
though he were struck, he froze, unable to say any words to help. "So
are you? Alright?"

"Err...umm...well..." He didn't actually know the answer to the
question, and just shook his head, shrugging uselessly.

"That's what he thought." Then suddenly he felt her small, warm hand
reaching for his underneath the table. Surprised, he immediately
pulled away, standing up and moving away from her. Akari's eyes went
wide at the sudden rejection. Another tear fell to join the first, and
then another, falling in small splashes on the bar.

"No, no Akari...please..."

"Please what? I'm not supposed to be upset by your suddenly hurtful
behaviour? Am I that horrid to you that I can't even try to comfort
you by holding your hand?" Suddenly realizing that the conversation
was getting much too loud, and much too personal, he reclaimed his
seat, keeping close enough to the girl so she'd quiet down. At least,
he hoped she would.

"No...of course not. I'm sorry, it's just...," he began, feeling his
face flush at the conflicting emotions. He didn't want Akari as a
girlfriend, he knew that now. But he certainly didn't want to upset
her, or make her cry. He hated making others cry.

"It's just what?" she asked hotly, wiping her tears away with a small,
white silk handkerchief that she had pulled out of her pocket.

"I'm just...I'm just not ready for a relationship right now. I
shouldn't have started anything with you, but...you pushed. And you
pushed, and others pushed. Heck, even I pushed myself. I thought I was
ready. I did...do...like you. But..." He trailed off, trying to figure
out if his words were any good at all.

"Not the way you liked Akane."

"...no. Not the way I...liked...Akane," he said finally, feeling the
familiar sadness come at the sound of the blue-haired girl's name.
Akari nodded, as though expecting this, and began pulling out yen from
her pocket. She counted out the appropriate amount for one
okonomiyaki, plus a small tip, and placed it delicately on the bar
beside her plate.

"I almost wish you had not beaten my sumo pig, that day...maybe
now...," she whispered, not finishing her sentence, then began to
leave. Before she got far, though, Ryoga heard her sob, and she came
back to whisper at his ear.

"Wait...I didn't mean that. I care for you Ryoga, so deeply, more then
you can...*ahem*. Just...don't stop writing me, okay? And maybe next
time I see you...you won't pull away from me."

And then she was gone.

Ryoga sighed heavily, moving the pieces of plate out of the way so he
could lay his head and arms on the safe part of the bar without
cutting himself. He had done it. He had finally done it, but he wasn't
sure if it was the right thing. Akari was still upset with him. He had
never seen her angry like that before. Then again, he hadn't done
anything to anger her until recently; he had always been so careful
with his penpal.

He was so consumed by his own thoughts that he barely even registered
Ukyo approaching him, taking the yen and cleaning up the small mess he
had left for her.

* * *

Still bristling, Ukyo quickly tidied up the plate Ryoga had broken.
That was two since yesterday, now. It wasn't that she was mad about,
though it was annoying. Two things were making her mind prickle at the
moment, and neither were broken plates.

First, it had been Ryoga's loud declaration that she was not his
girlfriend. It was true of course; she wasn't. But did he really have
to say it so loud? She was sure there had been a touch of revulsion in
his voice as he said it too.

_But then...he was blushing..._

And then when Ryoga had said he didn't want a relationship anymore,
with anyone, she had felt her heart sink in sadness. That was just
ridiculous. Why had she been upset at that news? It was obvious that
he wouldn't want a relationship with anyone, anymore then she did with
the obvious exception of Ranma, but...

_I'm just an idiot. C'mon Kuonji, get your head out of the clouds._

"Hey. P-chan," she said jokingly, moving his elbow to get at a piece
of plate that was still under his arm. He let her work passively, like
a model letting himself be pushed into the proper pose.

_Ha. He doesn't retract from MY touch...though I didn't try and grab
his hand._

"Don't call me that," he moaned irritably, though it was obvious his
heart wasn't into it.

"Sorry."

She looked at the restaurant around them. No one was gawking anymore,
though the girls had been paying attention while Akari was there. One
of them had shot Ryoga daggers with her eyes the moment Akari had
started crying. Now she was back to business, looking as though she
were searching her pockets for yen.

"I should go, Ukyo. I'm just being a problem here," he said, sitting
up straight again. Ukyo found that she was shaking, and controlled
herself.

"Go? Go where? Why?"

"Home. Just for a while...I need to get out of this town, and home is
just enough out of town. Maybe I'll go somewhere else, too, after
that...somewhere...South...," he said, his eyes looking faraway.

"Oh...I see..."

"Can you take me to my pack?"

"Uh, sure. ...Konatsu?" For the last part, she walked over to the
other room, feeling her heart start to race. Ryoga was leaving? She
didn't have to guide him anymore?

_Who am I gonna talk to when he goes? I don't have any...arg._

"Yes, Ukyo?" said Konatsu, immediately jumping in front of her and
looking at her anxiously. Ukyo put on a pleasant smile.

"Watch the cash register for a minute, will ya, sugar? I need to take
Ryoga upstairs." She didn't see her waiter's face fall as she walked
back up to the bar, and gave the back of Ryoga's shirt a hearty tug.

"Ukyo, you don't have to tug, you know."

"I know."

She walked up the stairs to the private quarters, Ryoga following
obediently. When they got to the pack, though, Ryoga didn't pick it up
immediately. Instead, he riffled through it, looking for something.
Ukyo put her hands on her hips, wondering what he was looking for.
Finally he pulled out a piece of paper and, smiling, handed it to
Ukyo.

"What's this? Oh, your map...," she said, looking at the ridiculous
thing. It had the Tendo House, the school, the Nekohanten...an amused
smile came over her face when she saw a small, house-shaped box,
beside something that looked like a campfire. Or perhaps a bush, she
couldn't really tell. In the house-shaped box, 'Ucchan's Okonomiyaki'
was carefully written in black ink.

"Well?" Ryoga said expectantly.

"Well what?"

"I added your restaurant. Does it look right? I had, uhh, someone help
me with it, but he didn't seem sure either." Ukyo rolled her eyes,
laughing at the question.

"Of course it isn't right! Ryoga, this map is...is..." She stopped
when she saw the hurt expression start to creep up on his face, and
sighed.

"Look, it's not a bad map. In theory. But it's not going to help you."
His hurt expression shifted to irritation.

"Oh yeah? Well then if you're so smart, why don't YOU make me a map?"
Ukyo blinked, her face hardening at his words.

"Maybe I will," she said, suddenly grinning and running from the room,
"Stay there!"

She ran into her own bedroom, aiming straight for one of her small
tables. In the drawer to one side, she kept odds and ends such as
maps, travel guides, and generally any sort of brochure that she had
picked up from her hometown to Nerima. After digging through for a
minute, she pulled out a few maps, then went to another drawer to pull
out a pen and paper. Gleefully, she went back to Ryoga to find him
standing exactly where she had left him, looking perplexed.

"Ukyo...I didn't mean it, you don't have to..." But she waved him off,
suddenly feeling childish at the prospect of the perhaps geeky
project.

_And one that'll keep me with someone to talk to for at least a little
while longer._

"Oh, shush. Now come on, I want you to watch," she said, tugging him
over to a small table. She sat down near it, putting the paper and pen
down while Ryoga obediently sat beside her, putting his own map down
in the center of the table with a touch of pride. Ukyo clucked her
tongue at it, but declined to comment. Uncapping a pen, she pulled a
fresh, white sheet of paper directly in front of her, and at the top
wrote "Ucchan's Guide To Nerima, for Ryoga Habiki".

"You spelled my name wrong." commented Ryoga, pointing to the name
'Habiki'. Ukyo looked at him out of the corner of her eye.

"I did?"

"It's H I B I K I. No A. I'm not some crazy mad scientist." Quickly,
Ukyo turned the 'A' into the best 'I' that she could, then looked at
Ryoga out of the corner of her eye again.

"Crazy mad scientist?"

"Long story."

_...right. Well he IS the type of guy to have long stories..._

"Okay...there, is that better?" she asked, trying to make the dot on
the 'I' more obvious.

"Yeah, that's great. Much better."

"Easy mistake to make...," she said distractedly, looking at one of
her maps. Carefully, she began to draw roads, but not too many. Only
the main ones, or roads that had a specific landmark; she didn't want
to confuse Ryoga with too much information, after all. She drew in a
few important landmarks, such as which direction Ryoga's house would
be, the Nekohanten, Furinkan High, the Tendo house, her own Ucchan's
Okonomiyaki, labeling each carefully and clearly. Remembering back to
that day she had seen Ryoga just outside the market, she also labeled
places where he could find food, as well as a few of the main parks in
Nerima.

"I'm going to have to do another one for how you get from the top of
this map to your house."

"You don't have to."

"I know that, sugar."

Looking it over carefully, she added a few places, like where water
crossed into Nerima, and where two of the more popular bathhouses
were. Once done, she looked over at Ryoga, then began going over it
with him, using her now capped pen as a pointer.

"Okay. So you live up this way...say you come into town, strolling
down this street. The closest place is the Tendo house. Err, but you
don't want to go there. Uhh..." Quickly, she forced down a flush, then
moved on. "The Nekohanten is here, but we won't be going there for a
while, now will we. Hey, here's the school. See how easy it is to get
there? Barely any turning. And here's my restaurant, kinda in the
middle...these symbols mean houses, these mean parks, and this means
water. That symbol means food..." Uncapping her pen again, she drew a
small box at the bottom of the map, creating a legend. Beside it, she
carefully tried to make a scale, but found it wasn't working.

"Damn, I need a ruler," she said, biting her lip. Ryoga dug into his
pack, producing a small wooden one soon after that said Venice on the
back, and Ukyo stared at it, wide-eyed.

"When were you in Venice?" she asked, the map forgotten for a moment
as she turned the green and gold ruler over in her hands. It was
obviously a souvenir, and had winged lions and angels painted on it.

"Well...that's a long story. I think it was about two years ago...,"
he said, scratching his head. Ukyo shook her head, but smiled,
impressed.

_I wonder where else he's been...the poor guy's probably been all over
the main continent..._

"But how did you get there? It's near halfway around the world."

"Well, uhh...there was a train involved...and then an airplane...and
this guy who kept insisting that he was taking me home. I really
shouldn't have trusted him though, he could barely speak Japanese. I
think he thought I was saying that I wanted to go to Rome...when I
finally got there, I tried to find the plane back, and ended up in
Venice."

Ukyo giggled, starting to use the ruler for her scale. Once that was
done, she carefully set the souvenir aside for Ryoga to put away.

"Okay...and...tada! Map one done. Study it well, Pig Boy," she said
happily, handing him the map.

"Don't call me that."

"Sorry, sorry. You don't let me call you anything," she said in half-
complaint, pulling out another sheet of paper to start on the map that
would have his house.

"You're welcome to call me Ryoga," he said, looking over his paper at
her. Ukyo smiled mischievously, and was about to retort, but then her
eyes met Ryoga's. Despite the fact that she had been joking, his face
looked suddenly so serious. Under his gaze, her own face became more
serious, and she tilted her head.

_Does he really take his name that seriously?..._

"Ryoga..."

"Very good, Ukyo."

Flushing slightly, she went back to her map, focusing on making the
legend and scale first this time. In one corner, she also made a
sunrose to that he could tell where North, East, South and West lay.
Quickly grabbing back the first map, she did it there as well, then
handed it back to Ryoga.

"Almost done here, sugar," she said, drawing in streets, and houses,
his in particular. She hadn't actually been there, yet. But her real
maps helped fill in for that; she had a fairly good idea of where it
should be, and just hoped that it was right.

When she was finally done, at the top she wrote 'Ucchan's Guide to
Ryoga's House, for Ryoga Hibiki', taking care to write an 'I' the
first time, rather then an 'A'. Ryoga looked it over quickly, nodding,
though he still wore a frown on his face.

"Well? What do you think?" she asked, her eyes hopeful as she turned
to look at him.

"I don't know...I mean it's detailed, and I'm grateful...but I've had
maps before. They didn't help."

"Feh. You haven't had Ucchan's custom made maps. Regular street maps
don't give you the landmarks you need, and can be out of date."
Really, it was her first time making maps for someone else, but Ryoga
didn't have to know that.

"Still...," he scratched his head, comparing them to his original map.

"Nervous? We'll just have to test it out then. Come on," she said,
standing up.

"Huh? Test it?" he asked, getting up and gathering the papers. He put
the maps in a specific pouch in his belt, then fixed his pack to put
on his shoulders.

"You heard me. I don't want to send you off with those maps and have
'em not work," she said, watching as he put the pack on.

"So what are we going to do?"

A light gleamed in Ukyo's eyes.

"You're going to get lost - with me, of course, just in case - then
find your way back with the maps. Come on, it'll be great!" she said
excitedly, walking towards the doorway.

"Wha-what? But your restaurant! Ukyo! You can't just-" But Ukyo's mind
was already spinning with the thrill of adventure.

"Oh, hush. Konatsu can watch it for an hour or so. Besides, I'll be
with you. It'll be fun!" she said, then stopped at the door, waiting
for him to follow her. "And hey, Ryoga?"

"Y-yeah?" he asked, looking a tad put out and walking towards her.

"You're welcome to call me Ucchan."

With that, she set out into the hall, waiting for Ryoga to catch up
before heading down the stairs.

_This is just what we need...some real fun. Finally!_

* * *

Konatsu stood at the cash register of the near empty restaurant, eyes
still on the door that Ukyo had walked out of not five minutes ago
with her friend. Her male friend. One of his eyes twitched nervously
under carefully trimmed black bangs.

_It's okay, it's just for an hour, he's not really going to get her
lost..._

Ukyo had looked so happy when she had left. And Ryoga...nervous?
Curious? Something was up with him, but he hadn't looked as depressed
as he had when he had gone upstairs with Ukyo. What had they done
upstairs for so long? Just map making? But surely...

_He'll bring her back in one piece, and unharmed, and in time for
school tomorrow...he's only going to get her lost for a little
while...._

Ukyo's exact words had been 'Ryoga's going to get us lost, and try and
find his way back on his own with my maps. I'm going to make sure he
doesn't really get lost, so we'll be back soon, okay? Thanks sugar!'

Picking up a small notepad and pen, Konatsu looked at the clock and
quickly scribbled down the time. Next to it, he wrote:

Ukyo's Words: An hour

Konatsu's Guess: ...Or two, or three, or four...

Licking his lips, he put the notepad into his pocket, then looked up
at the door again. He had a feeling that it was going to be yet
another long night.

* * *

"Are you sure this is alright Uky...err...Ucchan?" asked Ryoga,
looking over at the slightly shorter figure that jogged quickly beside
him. Her face showed a pleasant expression, and her eyes still had
that excited gleam to them that had appeared when she had first
suggested the idea. They were jogging on a sidewalk, maybe ten minutes
away from her restaurant. This time, though, Ryoga was the guide.

"Oh, don't worry about it, sugar. It's fine, I have an excellent sense
of direction," she boasted, waving him off.

"Okay...but don't yell at me if something goes wrong..." With that, he
turned down another corner, then took the two of them up a scenic side
street.

He couldn't help but absorb some of Ukyo's giddiness, though. He
suspected that after all the stress she had been through lately, this
was just another way for her to let it out. Which, fortunately,
involved less tears and confusing clinging. He had been especially
surprised when she had said he could call her by her nickname; not
many had that privilege, as far as he knew.

_Maybe she...nah, it's Ukyo. She's just a friend...isn't she? She IS
pretty cute though..._

"Do you have any idea where we are?" she asked, and he noted that her
eyes looked a touch worried. They were still in Nerima though, he was
fairly certain. They had never left behind the buildings, and the
houses, and some of it looked...sort of familiar.

"Nope." Ukyo nodded expectantly and kept following him, looking at her
watch.

"Good. We're still in Nerima anyway...I think..." Suddenly, Ryoga's
positive mood fluxuated, and lowered.

"You mean you don't know?"

"No no, I didn't say that sugar...I just don't know this
neighbourhood. But it wouldn't take me long to get back on track.
Really."

"If you say so."

_Still nice of her to make sure I can use the maps...but dammit, mine
wasn't that bad. Was it? It got me where I was going...eventually..._

It was still warm out, and the sun shone brightly through thin, wispy
clouds. On the streets a few people were walking and cycling, enjoying
the early evening weather. It felt familiar, running like that. He had
done it so much, for so many years. With no idea where he was going to
end up, though a goal in mind. It was odd to run around without
panicking. Being the leader, but still not caring where he'd end up.
By contrast, he was trying to get lost. He found it refreshingly easy,
especially with the thought that Ukyo could - hopefully - get them
back if he had trouble.

"Hey, it's time now, stop," said Ukyo, tugging his sleeve as she
stopped herself. Ryoga shot her a look for the tug, but she just
smiled sweetly and released him.

"Look around. Any idea where we are?"

Forgetting his brief annoyance, Ryoga did look around him. Around
them. Below was the sidewalk, beside a street. On the other side of
the sidewalk was a small, white stone wall, with tree branches hanging
over it. Houses lined up beyond the wall, and was mirrored on the
other side of the street.

"Japan still? Right?" he asked, and earned himself a wry look.

"We'd better be. We were only jogging for fifteen minutes. Now c'mon,
take out the maps." Quickly, Ryoga retrieved the maps from his pouch,
looking at them quickly.

_I don't even know where we ARE on this thing..._

"Now, the first step is to figure out where the heck we are. How do
you propose we do that?" she asked, her tone sounding like that of a
teacher.

"Stop the nearest pedestrian?"

"Could work. But there's a quicker way. It's called street signs,
Ryoga. We need to get to an intersection...unless you see a landmark
on there?" she asked, looking around her then at the map again.

"Nah, I doubt it...intersection it is..."

About seven minutes and three intersections later, they had located a
street name that was on the map. He had felt a small relief at their
accomplishment, but then another thought came into his head.

_Where are we on the street?_

"See, this is why maps like this just aren't useful...how are we
supposed to know where we are?" he asked, comparing the map to the
area they were in. Still a residential area. He noted that the
Nekohanten was supposed to be on this street, but that was near the
upper part of the map. He had no idea if they were north, or south.

"That's easy. We just walk either up or down the street until we find
an intersecting street that's on there. How many cross?" Her
confidence was unwavering enough to make him shake out the cobwebs of
worry, and look at the map once more.

"Uhh..."

"You didn't lose where we were, did you?"

"No, no...let's see...five intersect...so..."

"Great, that's enough. Not this one though, right?"

"Huh? No..." Hoping she didn't notice, he did double check and let out
a breath of air when he saw that he was actually right.

"Right, let's go this way," he said, running off. But he didn't get
three paces before Ukyo grabbed him by the back of his shirt.
Immediately, he turned around, giving her a questioning look.

"What?"

"You're turning off the street! We're supposed to go this way," she
said, pointing to the right of where he had been going.

"Uh...of course," he said, scratching his head sheepishly. Then they
were off again.

Ten minutes later, they had finally arrived at the Nekohanten, after
realizing that they had been going the wrong way and doubling back.
Ukyo was beaming now, standing with her hands on her hips and looking
impressed with Ryoga.

_Or maybe she's just trying to be encouraging._

"Okay, I know exactly where we are. From here, at a jog, I could get
back home in less then fifteen minutes. Can you do it?"

"Maybe...I'll try...," he said, his eyes wandering over to the
Nekohanten. Suddenly he remembered the news Ukyo had told him, about
Akane. He wondered if she was alright, if she had been unconscious for
long. As though sensing his thoughts, Ukyo followed his gaze as well,
and frowned.

"It's closed," she said.

"Yeah..." Feelings of worry washed over him.

"Hey, what's wrong? You're not thinking about...?" she let the
question die on her lips.

"I just...want to know if she's alright," he said, still staring at
the restaurant.

"Ranma's with her. I'm sure she's fine. I'll find out all I can from
school, and let you know, okay sugar?" she replied, sounding suddenly
far away. Nodding, Ryoga tore his eyes away from the closed
restaurant, and looked at Ukyo. Really looked at her. Despite the
happiness and excitement she seemed to be showing, he had a feeling
that was all just a cover. That underneath it all, she was still
thinking about Ranma, and worrying about him. Slowly, she noticed his
eyes on her, and lowered her gaze.

"We should...," He began.

"Yeah. Let's go, come on."

"R-right...umm, south at the next intersection?"

"That's east, Ryoga."

"East," he agreed.

Another thirty minutes of jogging, and crossing streets, and an
unexpected jaunt through the park later, he felt Ukyo's urgent tugging
once more. Coming to a complete stop, he turned to look at her,
wondering immediately where he had went wrong.

_I turned properly back there...I know I did, she would have said
something if I didn't..._

"What?" he asked defensively. But Ukyo had an odd grin on her face;
both knowing, and sad. It made him flush, and he felt like he was
suddenly put on the spot.

"U-Ucchan?"

"You have no idea where we are, do you?" she asked, and watched as she
pointed up to a sign. As he turned to look at it, he noticed a
familiar scent in the air.

_Almost like...okonomi...we're here! Ugh, and I was going to just run
right by..._

Embarrassed, he punched a nearby wall, though luckily not one
belonging to Ukyo. The papers crinkled lightly in his other hand, but
he was careful not to ruin them.

"It's okay! We made it. And not too long, either," she said, her eyes
moving from the door and back to him.

"Right, right," he said, fighting the embarrassment.

"So uhh...you're not coming in, are you?" Ryoga saw an oddly hopeful
look in her eye, and found himself wanting to say yes. Confused, he
shook his head, watching as it made Ukyo frown sadly.

"What's wrong? You knew I was going home...that's why you made the
maps for me, right?" he asked, and watched as Ukyo shuffled her feet.

"Well yeah..." Her voice was so soft that Ryoga felt his heart start
to beat faster.

"And you don't want me to?"

_I was sure she'd be sick of leading me around by now...she's always
cranky, and tugging me, and calling me names..._

"I don't know, really," she said, looking away. An odd, tingly feeling
surged up in Ryoga, and he didn't notice that he was now poking holes
in the wall.

"You don't? But I...it'll only be for a little while. I'll come back,"
he said, and she looked back up at him, her eyes sparkling. And
mesmerizing.

"You'd better. And if you don't, write, okay? I uh...don't want to
have to worry about whether or not you can manage to get anywhere on
your own," she covered, looking back at the door quickly. Getting mad,
Ryoga hardened his face, but the tingling feeling remained.

"I can manage just fine!" But Ukyo nodded, not noticing the slightly
harsh tone to his voice.

"I know..." Her voice was so sad again that he tilted his head, trying
to look into her eyes.

"Ucchan..."

Before he could react, she jumped up at him, wrapping her arms around
his neck and holding him in a tight hug. Nervously, he just stood
there, numb from the surprise of it. Her warm body was pressed against
him, and her cheek against his shoulder. She was holding him as though
to keep him in place, shivering as though she were holding back tears.

"What's wrong?" he asked, finally making himself hold her as well.

"I just realized something, Ryoga." He gulped uncertainly, his mind
racing.

"What is it?"

"You're my friend. And I...I don't want you to go away." The words hit
him so hard that at first he didn't even realize what she was saying.
Slowly, they registered, and he felt his hands shake.

"I am?"

"You are. I...I hate to admit it, but I get lonely...and these past
few days, with you...it's been nice. Really nice. I'm just...worried
it's never going to happen again. That you'll go off, to maybe Hong
Kong, or Tibet, or heck, even London, and I'll just be sitting here,
bored and tired and lonely, and..." With a sinking feeling he realized
that she was crying, and panicked.

"No no, I'm not going to leave you behind...don't cry...please,
Ucchan, don't..." he said, holding her tightly, panicking at the
thought of not knowing what to do about her tears. Again.

"Then you'll come back? Go home, because you want to, but...you'll
come back? And take me somewhere far away from here? Promise?" she
asked, her voice sounding oddly hollow and childish.

_She wants me to take her somewhere? I can't believe it! But where
would we...and her restaurant...but she wants it. She wants me to
promise..._

Nervously, Ryoga took hold of Ukyo's shoulders and gently pushed her
away enough so that he could look into her eyes. They shone with
tears, and her face, normally so together, was crinkled into an
expression of uncertainty.

"Ucchan...I..."

"Well?"

"I...I promise. I'll come back. I won't go anywhere far away without
you," he said, finally managing to get it out. A slow smile crept up
Ukyo's face, but not on his. He was too scared and confused to do
anything but look at her blankly, eyes wide.

"Hurry up and get home then, so you can come back," she said, tugging
on his shirt again as though she had to do it just one more time
before he left. The sudden anger that came was so surprising with the
other emotions that Ryoga did finally smile, and nod.

"R-right. I'll be back, I promise."

"Good. Goodnight, sugar," she said, giving him one last look before
heading back to the door. Ryoga gulped, watching her as she opened it
and began to walk in.

"Goodnight...Ucchan," he said, watching her as she waved and closed it
firmly. The wall beside her restaurant received another half dozen
small, finger sized holes before he finally pulled himself away from
the wall, and began to walk away. Unfortunately, he was far from the
restaurant before he remembered to use her maps.


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