Yienta.  This is my first attempt at a longer fanfic.  Since this
is somewhat longer then anything I've posted so far, bear with me.  As
usual, C&C appreciated.  Anything to improve my writing.
	Does it seem as if I only to R1/2?  Huh.

	Standard disclaimer?  What for?
	This is a product of the mind of Myrriden, taken with profuse
humble thanks to Rumiko Takahasha, the creator of the Ranma 1/2 series, of
which this is based off of.  
	Bashtuu.
 -------------------------------
	Hearts and Clover part 1
	*For my sister's birthday*
	By Myrriden
-------------------------------

	Ryouga stared in dim frustration at the smooth gray street before
him.  He had long passed depression.  He had long passed the familiar
anger which demanded release through the form of anger, denial, hatred,
and the like.  The familiar depression which caused him to strike out
blindly and irrationally.
	Ryouga had long been afraid of his anger.  Afraid that his
depression and anger would someday be taken out on some innocent
bystander, or even possibly someone he cared about.
	It had started a long time ago.  Too long to remember.  His
parents had raised him well enough, even though they were gone frequently
on business trips.  Unfortunately, when they were home he was usually
lost. When he had seen his father, he was given an infrequent lesson in
martial arts, some lessons about life for a vagrant like a Habiki, and
usually some cash.  Ryouga put the cash in his checking account.  He
accepted the lesson dutifully, and the life lessons somewhat less then
appropriate.
	Sighing again, he reached over to pick up his umbrella, but
instead grasped something quite different.  Following his arm with his
eyes, he saw a very attractive, very feminine leg, which he was grasping
by the thigh.  Letting go with a jerk, he looked up to see a bemused
expression on none other then Ukyo's face.
	"Hey, sweetie.  If you wanted to grab me like that, than you
should have asked,"  she said with a merry twinkle in her eye.  "But I'll
let it slide this time since you were distracted."
	"Uh...Hi Ukyo,"  Ryouga stuttered, "What are you doing here?"
	"I live here, silly.  You're in front of my place."
	"I thought you lived in Nerima..."  a look of puzzlement crossed
his features.  "Am I back home?"
	"Sorry, sweetie, but no.  I moved out about a month ago.  You're
in Chiba.  Tokyo is to the west."  She pulled him up. "Hungry?  I can
always spare a meal for friends."
	"Yeah, I'd appreciate that, but I can pay."
	"Oh, that's alright,"  Ukyo grinned, "Without Ranchan around,
there's no one to cook for free anymore."
	"Okay, then,"  Ryouga grinned his toothy grin, "I am pretty
hungry."  He followed Ukyo inside, sitting at the counter before her
grill.  Within seconds of what appeared to be furious hand-flapping, a
Japanese Pizza, an okonomiyaka, landed neatly before Ryouga.  
	Before eating it, he noticed it had words written on it.  "Hope
you like..."
	Oh, and he did.  "That was excellent, Ukyo.  Thank you."
	"No prob,"  she grinned, leaning over the counter.  "I've missed
being around the gang."
	"That reminds me,"  Ryouga said, "Why did you leave?"
	"Oh.  Well...after that wedding thing, well, Akane and I started
talking.  She forgave me and everything, but things just weren't the same
between us.  I decided it was best to just leave and let them sort things
out between themselves."  Her eyes began to mist slightly.  "I love
Ranchan, and it was hard on me seeing him with her like that.  But when I
did what I wanted, I just caused the two of them more pain.  It was hard."
	"It was hard for me too."  Ryouga smiled sourly, "I thought I was
in love with Akane.  But then I realized that my interference was just
causing unnecessary trouble.  So I took to the road as well."
	Ukyo came around to sit by him, nearly plopping herself into the
stool.  "It seemed so easy,"  she whispered, "Come to Nerima, kill Ranma
and get revenge, go back home.  I never considered I'd fall in love with
him.  I never considered I'd try killing my best friend...so that I could
have somebody who didn't love me."
	"I had a good long talk with a friend the other day,"  Ryouga
replied.  "Her name was Rumiko.  Anyway, she and I started discussing all
my problems.  She broke them down for me, and they really don't seem like
much.  It's my depression that gets to me.  I tend to blow things out of
proportion."
	"Yeah.  I do too, sometimes.  Maybe all of the gang tends to go
out of proportion sometimes."
	"Mallet-sama,"  Ryouga grinned.  
	Ukyo laughed. "Hey, show respect!  You never know when that thing'll 
show up."
	For a while they sat there, each chewing on their own thoughts.
After a bit, Ukyo whispered, "Ryouga...are we friends?"
	He blinked a bit.  "I like to think so,"  was his answer.
	"Then why don't we really act like it?"
	"I dunno."  Ryouga mulled over that one for a second.  "We do act
like it.  Like right now, right?  We're using each other for comfort."
	She smiled.  "Unusually astute of you, Ryouga."
	"I guess my head's a bit more clear than it usually is.  How 'bout
you?"
	The clock's chime caught them both off-guard.  "Closing time!"
Ukyo announced, almost happy sounding.  As she stood, she looked over at
Ryouga with a frown.  "Do you have a place to stay?"
	"No,"  he murmured, "I don't.  Why?"
	"Well,"  she hesitated while closing and locking the door, "You
can sleep on my couch till morning."
	He thought for a second.  "I'd like that.  I haven't been on a
real bed for a long time."
	"It's not a bed,"  Ukyo grinned, leading him to the stairs.
	"Close enough,"  he retorted, beginning the ascent.
	After a second, she replied, referring to his earlier statement,
"How long?"
	"How long what?"  
	"Since you slept on an actual bed?"  she grinned.
	"Not since I was a kid." He replied, a slight frown tugging at the
corners of his mouth.
	"Didn't you sleep at the Tendo's?"  Ukyo asked quietly, the grin
gone.
	He grimaced unhappily.  "Yeah, but not comfortably.  I had to do
without a futon."  
	"Well...then I'll take the couch."  She replied firmly.
	Ryouga blinked, confused, "Nani?"
	"I'll take the couch.  You can sleep on the main bed.  One night
treat, Rychan."
	"I...I...I dunno, Ukyo..."
	"...Ucchan,"  she interrupted.  "You might as well call me that.
I'll miss not having anybody call me it."
	"Ucchan,"  Ryouga replied, "But, I'm more used to floors and
stuff."
	"So?  Tonight you can have comfort."  She ascended the rest of the
stairs with one final step.  Ryouga mounted them a second later, still
puzzled.  
	Her small apartment, located directly above the restaraunt had
small kitchen, a bathroom, and another room which was obviously a personal
space.  It was a furnished wood, dimly lit by one lamp in the far right
hand corner of the room, near the back.  In the middle of the room was a
somewhat large, overstuffed, blue couch.  Nearby were two smaller easy
chairs.  Next to the door  to the right was a somewhat small seeming
nineteen inch t.v. with a Playstation attached.  Since the Playstation was
already collecting a lot of dust, Ryouga guessed it didn't get much use.
	To the left of the doorway was a small kitchen connected almost
directly to the main room.  Over to the right again were two doors; one
leading to the bathroom, the other leading to Ukyo's room.
	Upon entering the apartment, Ukyo promptly plopped unto the couch,
pulled the blanket over herself, and said, "Well?  What do you think?"
	"Pretty cool, Ucchan.  I like it.  I like that picture too."  It
was large framed picture of the entire gang, all posed together for one
second.  It had been a miracle produced by Nabiki to keep them all from
bickering for more then a minute while she took the picture.
	In the front, sitting cross-legged were Akane with P-chan in her
lap, Kasumi, Nabiki, and Ranko.  (Nabiki had taken a special picture of
Ranma-chan, then added it in with her computer before sending the prints
out.)  Above the four girls, kneeling, were Shampoo, Ukyo, Kodachi (very
difficult to get her in), and Akari.  Above them, standing, were
Tatewatki, Mousse, Ryouga, then Ranma.
	Before the girls sat the cursed forms of Shampoo and Mousse, added
in by a picture taken later, as with the picture of Ranma-chan.  P-chan
(whom they thought merely lost) had appeared later that day, and had been
rephotographed in Akane's lap.  Akane was readded in by computer as well.
	They all wore the same sailor-type outfit, though no proper sailor
would be caught dead in the outfit.  The backdrop was a sunny day at the
beach, with waves crashing in the background.
	"Yeah,"  Ukyo smiled, "Remember how much trouble it caused?
Nabiki wanted that picture so bad.  Unfortunately, Kunou took it as proof
that Ranma and...uh, Ranko were too seperate forms."
	"Yeah.  Well, I'm tired.  How 'bout you?"
	Ukyo smiled again, and rose to show him the bed.  With a firm
warning not to touch any of her stuff, she left the room.

	The next morning dawned bright and cheerful...for most people.
Ryouga awoke with a stiff back from the over-comfortable bed, stumbled out
into the hall, looked about, spotted the bathroom, and walked in.  He had
performed about half of his normal morning routines, such as shaving,
washing his hair, and brushing his teeth (he was always prepared), when he
noticed somebody watching him.  He looked over to see Ukyo standing there
with a very amused expression on her face.  It took Ryouga about a second
to realize that she was wearing only a bra, and panties.  It took him
another second to realize she was holding the bra on, and she had a towel
in one hand.
	After that, his brain made the logical conclusion she was about to
take a shower, and he had walked in...
	then his brain did the normal Ryouga thing, and shut down.
	Ukyo sighed in half amusment, half disgust.  Ryouga would never
find a love-mate if he kept passing out at the sight of a naked or
near-naked girl.  And all that blood!  She grabbed a roll of toilet paper,
and mopped the blood up.  After that was done, she grabbed Ryouga and
pushed him into the tub, wiping up any blood that dribbled down.
	She turned on the shower full blast with cold water to wake Ryouga
up.  Only...when she looked down, she didn't see him.  So she looked
down...and down...and down...until she saw a miserable, wet, black pig
staring back up at her through the cascading water.
	"P-chan?"  she asked in shock, eyes widened to the fullest.
"Ryouga is P-chan?  What the hell!"  
	P-chan bweed petulantly at her for a second, and she, realizing
what it most likely meant, turned the temp knob to more warm water.
Instants later, a naked Ryouga sat before her in the tub, miserable.  Ukyo
threw a towel at him, with which he belatedly covered himself with.
	"So,"  he sighed, "Now you know my secret."
	"I guess so."  Ukyo blinked.  "Why is it so bad though?  I
really..."
	His growl interupted her rudely, "Do you know what it's like being
chased halfway across the world by guys with huge cleavers?  As a pig, I'm
not all that strong."
	"So?  Akane loves your pig form...but if she ever found out..."
	"Yup,"  Ryouga frowned.  "You, Ranma, and Akari are the only
people who know."  His eyes cast a deep, pleading look at her,  "Please
don't tell anyone?"
	"Of course not,"  Ukyo retorted, feeling indignant.  "I'm not
stupid, Ryouga."
	"I know.  You're really smart.  Smarter than I am."
	"You got that right,"  she replied with a grin.  

	More than a few days later:
	Ryouga awoke to the gentle prodding of Ukyo's finger in his
stomache.  "Snerk?  Nani?"  Eyes focused blearily on her grinning face.
"Good morning Ucchan.  Watcha want?"
	"Are you going to take a shower this morning Sire Stinky?"
	His grimace was answer enough.  "Yeah, yeah."
	"If you're going to live with me, putz, then you better be clean."
	"It's not my fault!  I just always end up back here again."
	"Sure,"  Ukyo grinned, her brown eyes twinkling merrily, "Or you
just love my company too much to stay gone for long."
	"Yeah, that might be it,"  Ryouga returned, struggling to a
sitting position on the couch.	"I've not gotten really lost for the past
few days.  Maybe you're a determining factor or something like that."
	"Not gotten lost?"  She repeated with disbelief, "You can't find
your way to the bathroom!"  
	"Yeah, yeah,"  Ryouga said again, rising from the couch and
plodding towards the kitchen.  "We'll talk more after I take my shower."
	Ukyo grabbed his arm and pulled him into the bathroom.  "This way,
sweetie.  Unless you perfer toast over water."
	"Not really,"  Ryouga smiled, shutting the door.  As he showered,
he reflected over the past few days.  Ever since he had shown up on her
doorstep a few days ago, he hadn't been able to leave.  His bad sense of
direction seemed to always take him to Ukyo again.  She had put up with it
by giving him food and shelter in return for him doing various services.
Mostly it was because he was a friend.
	He and Ukyo had come to know each other rather well.  She was a
sweet, sensitive girl with a big heart and warm affections.  But a wry
wit, and snappy comebacks firmed her into an independant, yet somehow very
caring young woman.
	She still tended to dress like a male, but less so than we he had
first met her.  Back then she had been 'all male'.  Over the past week she
had even gone out of her way to dress nicely, for _him_ of all people.  
	With a sigh, Ryouga shut off the water, and began to towel
himself.  Ukyo was perhaps the first person ever to pry past his pure
egotistical stubborness.  She had persuaded him to do things he never
would have considered before.
	He toweled off the rest of the dampness with smooth precise
strokes, still thinking about Ukyo.  He was surprised when his thoughts
held something a bit more then mere kindness.  
	It was no question he wa attracted to Ukyo, though just what he
was attracted to he wasn't sure.  She was pretty and everything, but he'd
grown long past falling for a girl because of her looks.  Hadn't he?  
	No, it was much more than her beauty.  It was...difficult to
understand.
	Sighing deeply, he dressed, and left the bathroom, and stopped as 
the sight before him brought him up short.  Ukyo was sitting on the couch,
crouched over, hands over he head, sobbing.  Ryouga resisted the urge to
immediatly go and comfort, instead he walked quietly over to sit beside
her.  Once seated, his arm encirled her in a loving, brotherly expression.
She leaned into him in much needed comfort.  "Hi,"  Ukyo whispered after a
while as the tears slackened.  "I'm sorry about that.  It's just some of
the stuff I've been going through lately."
	"There's a phrase I heard once,"  Ryouga said, pausing for a
second to swipe at his damp hair with his towel, then continuing with,
"'When life hands you a lemon...'"
	"I know, I know,"  Ukyo interupted, exasperated, her tears fading,
pushing away from him, "'Make lemonaid.'  I've heard it."
	Ryouga blinked for a few seconds, trying to reestablish his
equilibrium.  "Uh...no.  'When life hands you a lemon..."
	"'...hand it back and ask for an apple.'"  He finished with a
grin.
	Ukyo blinked.  Then she grinned.  Then she laughed.  It wasn't
really a funny joke, it was just at the right time.  With Ryouga joining
her, the two laughed gailly for another few minutes, before finally
sobering enough to lean against each other.
	"You're wet,"  Ukyo smiled.
	"I just got out of the shower,"  he replied.
	"Thanks,"  she whispered, snuggling closer.
	He hugged her briefly before letting go, just letting his arm lay
across her shoulders.  "Anything for you, Ucchan.  You name it."
	"Then let me up,"  came a mock muffled reply, "I can't breathe
under here."
	Ryouga laughed, bringing his arm back to his side. 
	"God, you need some deoderant!  I have and extra bar of degree in
my room.  Use it."  It wasn't a question.  It was a demand.
	"Alright.  Do you need help setting up today?"
	"No,"   she replied, stretching.  
	"Okay.  I'll be down in a few."
	She nodded her agreement, before walking out of the apartment.  

-------------------------------------
        Ryouga watched in dreadful anticipation as the giant safe glided
down towards his head at terminal velocity.  Though fascinated, he tried
to move out of the safe's path, but he was too late in the manuever.  It
slammed down on his head, showering various bits of guts and blood over
the sidewalk.
        Above, Bugs Bunny chewed thoughtfully on a carrot.  "I coulda
sworn dat guy was a toon,"  he thought to himself.  Sighing, he turned and
walked away from the pitiful, messy sight.
                                           
Myrriden out

Isn't it odd how I have a txt file about Ryouga finding happiness, then a
sig about killing him off?