Christmas Promises A Ranma 1/2 Fic by marymqc Disclaimer- Characters contained in this story unfortuantely aren't mine. I'm just "borrowing" them. ~~~~****~~~~****~~~~****~~~~ Ranma looked at the clock. One hour and twenty-three minutes until midnight. One hour and twenty-three minutes left of Christmas Day. Ranma sighed heavily. "I'm goin' on the roof," he announced. No one bothered to stop him, desipte the harsh weather outside. The black sky was clear that night. The stars shone brightly, coldly, as the moon illuminated the ground below. A cold December wind blew through the already freezing air. Ranma glared up at the heartless night sky, beginning to understand Ryouga's view on life. The world *is* a cold and lonely place. Even though he had Ryouga, the world cursed his love with a bad sense of direction that kept him away from Ranma, even on Christmas. Ranma's thoughts drifted over to Ryouga, remembering the last night they spent together, about a week ago. "So, what do you want for Christmas, Ryouga?" Ryouga shrugged with a dry half-smile. "What does it matter?" Ranma finally gave up, exasperated. Ryouga had been acting gloomy and detached all day. "Geez, Ryouga, what's with this Mr. Bah-humbug act, huh? It's the season for holly, jolly fun, you know, deck the halls and all that. What's wrong?" The night wasn't too black for Ranma to miss the dark look that passed Ryouga's face. Ryouga turned to meet his gaze. "I hate Christmas, Ranma. I just hate it." Ranma looked confused. "Why's that?" Ryouga didn't answer for a second. Then he sighed, rolling onto his back to look up at the starry sky. "You know what I want for Christmas?" he said after a pause. "I want to celebrate the holidays with someone. I don't want to be stuck in the middle of a forest or desert or whatever, sitting in front of the fire, wondering how everyone else is celebrating Christmas. I don't want to be lost on Christmas. I don't want to be alone, like I am almost every year. I want to be with my love. I want to be with you. That's what I want, Ranma." Ranma was silent for a moment, cursing his thoughtlessness. Of course Ryouga's memories of Christmas wouldn't be fond ones. How could they be when Ryouga comes from a family where every member lacks any sense of direction? He wondered when the last time Ryouga had a merry Christmas was. "I'm sorry, Ryouga..." Ryouga shrugged half-heartedly. "Oh, there's nothing you can do. Nothing I or anyone else can do. Don't worry about it, I shouldn't have brought you down in the first place," Ryouga replied. "I'm sorry about that." Ranma rubbed between his eyes, trying to think. Surely he could come up with a way to keep Ryouga around. Unfortunately, he didn't think Ryouga would much like the idea of wearing a leash. "Well, Christmas is still one week away. That's plenty of time for you to get lost and find your way back again, right? And even if it isn't, we can always celebrate Christmas another day, too." Ryouga shrugged. "Yeah," he said, although by his tone, Ranma knew he didn't quite agree. Ranma gave him a sympathetic smile. Then he got a playful twinkle in his eye as his smile grew into a grin. Ryouga gulped, recognizing that look. He didn't have time to prepare himself before Ranma jumped on top of him. "Well, whatever happens, I'll make it up to you with this Christmas," Ranma told the boy below him. Then he bent down and placed a kiss on Ryouga's lips. Ranma sighed. Now Christmas was almost over, and Ryouga wasn't here. Ranma felt depression well up inside him. Shame settled like a rock on the bottom of his stomach. He had made a promise, and he couldn't keep it. He had let Ryouga down. Ranma also felt a deep concern for Ryouga grip his chest. If he was feeling this bad, he could have no idea how Ryouga, who always felt so strongly and passionately, was surviving. Ranma blinked rapidly. The strong sensation of loneliness entwining itself inside his soul was almost too much to bear. - If Ranma would have pictured the worst scenario he could think of for Ryouga without anything involving death or injury, he would have pictured the exact situation Ryouga was in right then. A small fire and the boy huddled in front of it were the only splashes of color in a field of complete white. Not only was he lost, lonely, and freezing, but he had a terrible cold as well. For the countless time, he blew his nose, only to immediately sneeze again as soon as he stuffed his handkerchief away. Ryouga shivered, wrapping his arms around himself and scooting as close as possible to the campfire. He tried to snuggle into his sleeping bag, which offered very little warmth after being worn thin after years of use. Even though Ryouga had slightly warmer clothes packed away in his knapsack, he refused to don them. Earlier in the week, he had stumbled upon a tuxedo shop and figured it would be nice if he were wearing a suit when he finds Ranma again. After all, Christmas this year was supposed to be a special occasion. Now, as Ryouga huddled in front of the fire, he refused to change in fear he would find Ranma before changing back. Near his feet lay a long, twisted stick. Ryouga took it wearily and turned to the nearest patch of snow that hadn't melted from the fire's heat. Idly, he began etching words into the white, previously undisturbed snow. A few moments later, he eyed his work with a sad smile. The cold snow now mournfully displayed the solemn message he had written - "Merry Christmas, Ranma". Ryouga turned back to the fire, staring pensively into the blaze. He curled into a small ball, sniffing and coughing and feeling just plain miserable. He focused his thoughts on that night on the roof. Instead of comforting him, thoughts of Ranma only made Ryouga feel worse. "Man, the weather sure is nice tonight, especially this late into the season," Ranma remarked, gazing up at the night sky. "What is today, anyway?" "The seventeenth," Ryouga replied. "Really? Oh, geez...that's like, only a week 'til Christmas." Ranma thought for a moment and then rolled over on the rooftop to look at his companion. "Isn't this time of year wonderful?" "I suppose," Ryouga replied dully, not meeting Ranma's gaze. "If you like that sort of thing." "I do. Well, aside from all the stress and commercialism, anyway. I mean, it's such a beautiful time, don't you think? Spending the holidays with your loved ones...Well, when you have loved ones." Ranma flashed him a bright smile. "Which we do." Ryouga had remained quiet after that, prompting Ranma to try to draw his problems out. Ryouga, who could never refuse Ranma, spilled his heart and soul to the other boy. He explained why he hated Christmas, why Christmas was cruel and heartless towards the Lost Boy. Ranma, instantly ashamed of his own Christmastime cheer, immediately set his heart out on compensating for Ryouga's past Christmases. Ryouga lowered his head, letting guilt settle heavily upon him. Ranma had been so happy, and Ryouga had managed to ruin his joyful mood. And because of his stupid sense of direction, he even accomplished ruining Christmas for himself once again, and worse, for Ranma also. His thoughts drifted to the rooftop again, this time focusing on later that night. Ranma snored softly in his sleep, with his arm flung over Ryouga's chest and his head buried in Ryouga's side. Ryouga, however, remained awake, looking at Ranma's peaceful face. He ran his fingers gently through Ranma's soft, dark bangs and idly played with his pigtail, enjoying the feeling of Ranma's warm body against his own. "I'm sorry, Ranma, for giving you this much trouble," Ryouga whispered. He continued softly. "I want something else, too, Ranma. I want your Christmas to be happy for you. I don't want you to have to worry about me, like I know you will." Ryouga looked up at a particularly bright star in the night sky. For all he knew, it could have been a planet, but he hoped it was a star. His eyes closed, he made a wish. Then he turned to Ranma, keeping his eyes shut. He snuggled closer to the other boy. "I'll be home for Christmas, Ranma. I promise." Ryouga rubbed his eyes angrily. Once again, fate had decided to play a cruel trick on him. "I'm sorry, Ranma..." Ryouga spoke out loud, even though Ranma wouldn't hear him. "I tried to keep my promise. I really did. I'm sorry." The fact that Ranma never heard his promise in the first place held no consequence. Ryouga looked up at the nighttime sky, locking his gaze on a bright star, the same star he had made a wish with that night. Ryouga glared at it for not coming through for him. Ryouga had been happy with Ranma for the past few months. Even when he was lost, just the thought of Ranma waiting for him warmed him with love. And depression had disappeared from Ryouga's heart. But now, Ryouga felt that long lost depression stir within him. - Ranma jumped from the Tendo's roof to the ground of their backyard. The feelings inside him had almost reached their breaking limit. Although he refused to acknowledge them, he felt tears run down his cheeks. He tried to scold himself for being too emotional. After all, it was only another day, and Ryouga will turn up sooner or later. Just because it was Christmas... Just because he had failed to keep his promise... Ranma choked back a sob. He tried to blame it on being tired. Emotions were always stronger when one's sleepy. But no matter what the cause, Ranma felt horrible. He missed Ryouga terribly. The feelings inside of him rose strongly. Ranma looked up at the night sky, concentrating on a certain bright star above him. He raised his arms straight up over his head and concentrated. Around him, debris rose and danced furiously in the charged air. With desperation lining his voice, Ranma screamed, "Shi Shi Houkoudan!" A magnificent column of light erupted from him, shooting up into the cold, dark sky. - The emotions raging inside of Ryouga drove him up onto his feet. He concentrated on the dark feelings, preparing himself for a Shi Shi Houkoudan blast. It had been a long time since he had to perform the attack, but now his emotions demanded to be released. Ryouga chose his target appropriately: the star he had relied on for his wish. Of course, it was a silly superstition, wishing upon a star, but Ryouga had no other enemies to aim at. So, raising his hands above him, he let his despair glow around him. "Shi Shi Houkoudan!" Ryouga cried, and a large pillar of power blasted up into the air. As soon as the blast left him, his energy followed closely behind. Even though his eyes saw something else in the sky that should have sent an alarm off in his mind, his mind refused to function. His weakened state left little room for questions, and he accepted the strange sight without thinking. Ryouga then was suddenly attacked with a violent coughing fit, which left him shaking. The sudden loss of energy combined with the coughing fit was too much for the normally strong boy. Ryouga wavered a bit, swaying on his feet before collapsing onto the frozen, snow covered ground. But just before he passed out, the strange sight slowly registered in his mind. Ryouga briefly wondered whether a large mirror had been built because when he had let out the blast, he had seen an identical blast erupt at the same time in the distance. However, he did not have time to reflect on this, for darkness quickly overtook him. - Ranma was just about to let himself fall to the ground underneath him when he suddenly froze. Did he just see *another* Shi Shi Houkoudan in the sky over there? "Ryouga?" Ranma gasped. His eyes widened, and without any more hesitation, he raced towards the site of the other explosion. - Ryouga slowly opened his eyes. By the position of the moon, he determined that he had been out for about half an hour. His body shivered in the cold air, and his throat forced him to cough a few times before he managed to push him up into a sitting position. He looked down at his tuxedo, which now was barely anything more than tatters that hung from his body. He briefly wondered if that was a sign for him to change into warmer clothes. he told himself firmly. It was the least he could do for ruining Christmas. Of course, that didn't mean that he couldn't throw on a cloak over his suit. Ryouga was reaching for his pack when the message he had written earlier caught his eye. The wind had disrupted some of the letters, making the writing less sharp and clear. But the message was still there. "Merry Christmas, Ranma." And below that, another message, this one untouched. "Merry Christmas, Ryouga." Ryouga recognized Ranma's handwriting. Ryouga smiled sadly. he added wistfully. Then Ryouga blinked. And then blinked again. His eyes widened considerably as realization dawned on him. He whipped his head around. "Ranma?" he called out uncertainly. Then he saw the boy, sitting on the opposite side of the fire from him, a large grin plastered on his face. "Ranma!" "Hello, Ryouga," he greeted simply. "But...but...but...!" Ryouga was flabbergasted. "...How?" "I saw your Shi Shi Houkoudan," Ranma explained. "Whatcha doing way out here, anyway?" Ryouga just stood there, a goofy smile on his face. "You're here!" he cried, joyful disbelief in his voice. Ranma nodded happily as he came towards him. Ryouga jumped to his feet to grab him into a strong embrace. "You're here!" Ranma giggled as he hugged the other boy. "Yes, I am. You don't need to keep repeating it." "But you're *here*!" Laughing softly, Ranma leaned his head on Ryouga shoulders. "Well, I have to keep my Christmas promise, don't I?" Ryouga smiled ruefully. "Except it's not Christmas, anymore." He ducked his head. "I'm sorry, Ranma. It's my fault." "No, it's still Christmas," mumbled Ranma. "We still have five minutes left." Surprised, Ryouga pushed Ranma slightly away from him to look at his face. "We do?" Ranma nodded and winked mischievously. "Now how do you suggest we spend those five minutes to make this the best Christmas yet?" Ryouga grinned. "You little-" "You know I'm not *that* little," Ranma interrupted slyly. Ryouga blushed in response. Quickly, he pulled Ranma toward him. He wasted no time before passionately pressing his lips against Ranma's. He let himself fall into the warm sensation, relishing in the taste of the love of his life against his mouth. It had been a long time since he had enjoyed the feel of leaning into Ranma. "I love you," he said, breaking away from the kiss for a very brief moment. Ranma playfully grabbed Ryouga's bottom lip between his teeth, quickly giving it a little nibble before releasing it. "I love you, too, you know." Ryouga hugged Ranma tightly. "Well, you certainly are great at keeping your promises, Ranma." Ranma grinned impishly. "Oh, but I'm not done yet." He then let himself fall back onto the ground, pulling Ryouga down with him. "Merry Christmas, Ryouga." Suddenly, it didn't seem so cold anymore. ~~~END~~~ Author's Notes: Ha, like I'd leave any fic without saying something at the end. But I'll sum it all up into two word: Comments! Please? marymqc