This is not a songfic. It is a poem about Ryoga. Read on and enjoy.
A Gift for Akane - WebDragon
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The snow falls and piles on the ground
Upon which I tread, my umbrella over my head
Keeping the icy whiteness from touching me
The backpack weighs heavily on my shoulders
It feels like a ton of lead! How I wish for a bed
Upon which to fall and rest a bit.
My ice-cold hand clutches a bag full of gifts
That had put my checkbook in the red, and bled
Me dry of nearly all my money.
I turn a corner, and another, and yet another
I consider backtracking a bit, then I grit
My teeth and again wander the streets of Nerima.
Finally, after many hours, a familiar sign appears
And I step through the gate. It is already late
But it didn't stop me from going up to the door.
I knock once, and wait a bit. The door
slid open and Kasumi greets me, and I see
That they were about to have dinner.
My face red, my ears aflame, I ask for Akane.
Kasumi goes inside, while bidding me to abide
A little while in the living room.
What a peaceful sight I see in the living room.
Ranma stretched out like the dead, but with a bandage on his head.
He must have opened his mouth too many times again.
This gave me hope to see Ranma treated as such
I hope against all, that their engagement would stall
And Akane would then be mine.
The door slides open and Akane steps in.
Such a sight! It makes my mood all a-bright
And fills me with unending joy.
She's wearing a different outfit, I see.
A knee-length sweater, it clings to her better
Than anything else I've ever seen her wear.
"Oh, Ryoga! Hello!", she says
And my heart leaps, and my hand creeps
To the back of my head, and I laugh.
With a smattering of stammered words
I give her the bag of gifts, but she shifts
>From foot to foot, as if uncomfortable.
"Ryoga, didn't this cost you a lot of money?", she asks
And I furiously deny it, "It cost me a little bit"
I say with little hesitation.
She smiles then and takes the bag
And exclaims in wonder, the sound like thunder
In my eagerly listening ears.
"A....backscratcher! How nice!"
"And this...picture of a poodle, and this soba noodle
packet! How thoughtful, Ryoga!"
To the right of us, Ranma begins to stir.
On a whim, I tip the tub of water on him,
And he turns into a she.
She wakes up and proceeds to berate me
But I laugh at her, and she feels herself over
And moves to grab me by the shirt front.
A mallet materializes in Akane's hand
and Ranma-chan backs off. She begins to doff
Her shirt, to wring it dry.
"Thank you, as always, Ryoga."
Said Akane as she stood up, and asked me to sup
With them awhile.
What an opportunity! What a chance!
I agree! Wholeheartedly!
My heart pounding as I shot to my feet.
Ranma-chan looks at me with hooded eyes
And she puts her shirt back on, then gets up anon
And goes to the dining room.
I take my place next to Akane, but Ranma-chan
Squeezes in between us. Furious,
I reminded myself that I was a dinner guest.
We eat and talk of matters trivial.
About their school, and how the weather was cool,
And all the little things meant as filler.
All the while Ranma-chan did her best to separate
me and Akane apart. My heart
beat furiously and I ached to send her into orbit.
Then dinner ended and the three of us go to the living room.
Ranma-chan flicks on the TV set, and Akane goes to get
her present for me.
A present for me! From Akane to me!
With a motion, I clutch my head in celebration
and it set Ranma-chan to fuming.
She pouted and turned back to the TV set.
Watching a wrestling show, her motions slow
and deliberate - as if biding her time.
Akane returns and gives me my gift.
It is a scarf, getting a laugh
out of Ranma-chan.
For it was pockmarked with holes
And haphazardly knitted, and it fitted
none too nicely around my neck, like a noose.
"That's not a scarf, it's a net!", Ranma-chan
says while laughing hard. She must be a dullard
indeed to invoke Akane's wrath twice in a day.
The mallet squashes her to the floor with a sound like thunder.
Akane turns to me and grins. Clearly she wins
every altercation with Ranma.
She apologizes but I wave it away,
if only glad for her company, of which she gave freely
and burns away the loneliness in my heart.
At length I get up and say my goodbyes
Seeing that it was night. I hope that Akane might
ask me to come over again.
Instead she asks if I could stay, for it was late.
Ranma-chan pops up awake. Akane's words make
my heart go wild with happiness.
She is asking me to stay! At her house!
Oh joy indeed! There is no need
to ask me twice!
A change from the wandering life,
a warm bed for once. I would be a dunce
not to accept this offer.
This is different than being P-Chan.
She is asking ME, see?
Not the pig.
My heart full of hope, my head in the stars
I join Akane and Ranma in a game, the same
as always we play - poker.
Midway through the game, however,
Ranma suddenly collapsed, perhaps
due to his injuries from the mallet.
Akane lets out a cry of horror,
and flies to his side. I abide
for a while, then I move to leave.
"Where are you going, Ryoga?", Akane asks.
"To get a doctor, I will be back later."
With those words I make for Doctor Tofu's clinic.
In minutes I reach the good doctor's clinic
And I send him on his way, offering to pay
him in advance.
He refused, with a twinkle in his eye,
then he bid me good night, and he turned out the light.
I said the same and he was gone.
With a heavy heart, and a heavier hand,
I raise the umbrella over my head. Then I tread
down the streets and away from the Dojo.
Not now, Akane. Not yet.
Perhaps one day, if the gods may
and are willing to grant me that wish.
With those thoughts in my head,
my feet crunch the icy snow, and I pass under the glow
of streetside lamps - to wander again until I return.
When next I come back,
perhaps one day, Akane,
I will bring you the only gift worth giving.
The gift of my love.
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-WebDragon. Tell me what ya think.