When All Hope Is Gone
By Cherry Jean
Chapter One
"Ranma no hentai!" A feisty raven haired girl threw a piece of old wood plank at a pigtailed boy. Luckily, he managed to dodge it. The boy laughed, "Hahaha! Stupid tomboy! You can't catch me!" He sang and fell when a brick hit him in the head. The girl laughed and twirled around, fuming, storming away from the boy.
"Stupid Ranma, always acting like a stupid cow..." She mumbled to herself with a frown.
It wasn't a rare thing for Nerima Ward to expect this blow from those two, Akane Tendo, the prettiest girl in Furinkan High, Ranma Saotome, the strongest man in the whole universe. Yes, the whole universe. From his perspective of course. After he got back from Jusenkyo, China, he had been engaged to three girls, Shampoo, Ukyo Kounji and Akane Tendo. Though, he wasn't excited about it at all. Did I mention when he was splashed with cold water he turns to a girl? No worries, pouring hot water on him will turn him to a male again.
Akane walked around the park to herself and saw a bench next to a shady tree. She heard a girl crying to herself coming from behind the tree. Akane hesitantly walked towards the tree, and saw a black haired girl with short hair covering her face with her hands. She was a small young girl who was wearing a red shirt with a black plain skirt. Though, it looks dirty like she had gone somewhere muddy.
"Are you okay?" Akane held her shoulder. The girl pulled away sharply, now sobbing. "Do you think I'm okay?"Akane frowned, what a rude girl.
Akane shrugged it off, her expression changed from unpleasant to concerned, "I don't think so. Are you lost?" Akane squatted down beside the girl, tilting her head to the right.
The girl looked at Akane with dried tears, her eyes and nose red, frowning deeply, "No, I'm not. I'm looking for someone my mom told to."
"Well, I guess you're lost then little girl." Akane gave her a pink handkerchief. "Here, wipe your drool." The girl glared at Akane and snatched it. She blew her nose loudly three times. Akane gave her a ridiculous face. The little girl handed out the handkerchief. "Umm, just keep it."
She grinned and put it into her pocket. "I think you need to go with me. It's late now. You'll sleep at my house." Akane stood up, brushing her usual red skirt.
"But I need to find this person!" She cried. "I'll help you find this person tomorrow, come on. You could be sleeping at the roadside if you don't." Akane extended her hand. The girl looked at Akane hesitantly and stood up, taking her backpack with her, leaving Akane behind. Akane scoffed as the girl stubbornly walked ahead. "That girl's really is...Wait! We need to carry Ranma!"
"So you found her at the park and took her with you? Why didn't you send her home?" Nabiki didn't even bother to look at Akane, eating her rice with shrimps.
Akane was about to say but the girl answered herself, "Well, it's definitely far away from Japan. We don't even live at Japan! Well, technically yes but..." The girl shrugged and continued to eat like a pig. Genma gleefully charged his chopsticks at the last shrimp but the girl saw it first and quickly pulled the plate to her. Genma blinked rapidly, a sweat-drop appeared, dropping his chopsticks. "M-My shrimp..."
"Wow, she has a big appetite for a girl." Ranma said, his seat next to his was empty and they heard a splash coming from the pond outside. "Yeah, I got it from my dad." She proudly exclaimed.
What's so good about that? , Ranma thought and placed the last rice in his mouth.
"What's your name?" Kasumi smiled, sitting next to the rice cooker. "Oh, my name's Yukiko." Yukiko walked to the rice cooker and opened it, "Aish, there's no leftovers!"
"Yukiko? Doesn't that means 'rare child'?" Soun smiled and patted her head. "You really are rare."
Yukiko looked displeased, "Are you calling me weird?" A purple aura forming around her body.
"Umm, no, child. What I meant was your really special to me. It's like I know you, from somewhere." Soun protested, he inched a few inches away and continued to eat.
"Oh." The aura disappeared and Yukiko smiled brightly, a golden aura forming. "Arigato!"
Akane sighed, "Yukiko, right? You can go and take a bath. Kasumi will give you one of my old clothes."
"Nani? Akane, are you a tomboy when you're little?" Yukiko stared at the mirror in front of her, examining the pajama she wears. It was a set of blue pajama with a baseball pattern.
Akane stopped brushing her hair, "I guess you can call that." She wasn't happy admitting it but it was true. She continued to brush her hair, sitting on her chair.
"I like it." Yukiko smiled. Akane stared at Yukiko, raising her eyebrow. "You're a tomboy, ain't cha?" Yukiko gasped sarcastically, "Nu-uh! Just because I like wearing this and stuff boys like doesn't mean I'm a tomboy."
"Yeah..." Akane grinned and threw herself on her bed, wearing her usual yellow pajamas. Yukiko walked in front of Akane, "Can I sleep in the bed?"
"I don't think it's for two people. You can sleep at the bed I made for you." Akane provoked her. Yukiko shrugged, "What a rude way to treat a guest."
Akane ignored her response and decided to question some things, "Who's the person you've been searching for?" Akane shifted to her right to look at Yukiko next to her, her head resting on her right hand palm. "Umm, I'm searching for my mom's friend. She said her friend is going to take care of me for a few days."
"Why? Is your mom going overseas or something?" Akane questioned, she was curious about it. Although, she doesn't want to make her think she's a nosey person.
"No, at my village they were having war with the other village. My mom and dad need to go somewhere...So, now I have no idea where her friend is since I lost her address. Plus, I don't know where to live now." Yukiko fumbled with the blue sheets, pulling it closer to her. Akane could see a hint of sadness in her eyes. To be honest, she felt sorry for the girl...
"I guess I have to go and find my family." Yukiko smiled weakly at Akane, it wasn't a sincere smile. It's more of a forceful smile.
Akane sighed; she knew what she got to do. "How about you stay at my house for a while? After all, you seemed to be homeless. Your parents are away, you don't know where your mom's friend's house is and you have nowhere to sleep. You're a girl who is destitute of mercy. "
Yukiko quickly got up from the futon, "Really!? You mean it!? Whatever the destitute word is?!" She beamed excitedly. Akane nodded, sitting Indian style. "Yeah, we've got hooligans in our house; a little girl can't be a burden to us."
"I may look little but I'm not those regular and stupid kids who don't know the difference between B and D. I'm Yukiko, the "rare child"." Yukiko bragged, her nose high in the air with a proud smile. A golden aura appeared around her.
"Yeah, sure. And I'm Akane, the "dark red"." Akane sarcastically waggled her fingers, rolling her eyes. Yukiko rolled her eyes, way slower. They both leaned on their own bed, shifting on their usual, comfy position.
"What's with the aura thing? I've seen it numerous times today..." Akane said, looking at the wall. Yukiko turned to her right, looking under Akane's bed frame.
"Oh that? My mom told me it's a gift from god. Not many can see it. I guess you're one of the lucky ones." Yukiko reached out and got hold of a red ball. She started to squeeze it.
"Is this a stress ball?"
Ranma yawned loudly, stretching his arms and legs, walking to the bathroom. He rubbed his eyes and scratched his chest at the same time. When he reached to the bathroom's door, a small girl blocked his way. Ranma blinked, "What kid? I want to take a shower."
"I got here first, besides, don't you ever heard of the phrase called "ladies first"?" Yukiko extended her arm, glaring at him from below. Ranma irritatingly frowned.
"Sorry kid but I don't do "ladies first"." Ranma even showed each two fingers on both hands, going up and down, signaling it was sarcasm. Yukiko rolled her eyes.
"Look, punk. I know you're rude and like Akane said, a hooligan but that doesn't mean you have to be first in the line. Ok? Good." Yukiko turned around to turn the door knob to open but Ranma pulled her by the collar. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! She said what?"
"A hooligan. She said you're a hoo-li-gan." Yukiko clearly said it as if she was talking to a five year old. Ranma furrowed his eyebrows. A hooligan? Is that it? That tomboy...
Ranma scowled, his knuckles turned white. Yukiko take this opportunity to get in the tub. She opened the door and Ranma came in. "What the? Hey!" Yukiko yelled at Ranma who was getting in the shower, splashing cold water on him...or her.
"Now I'm a girl, much cuter and sexier." Ranma smirked, throwing her soaked pigtail behind her. Yukiko growled, a red aura forming. Ranma jerked his head back a little, surprised by her reaction. "But I want to be first!" Yukiko cried and ran out of the bathroom. "Akane!"
"Uh-oh." Ranma sweat-dropped. She quickly locked the door, pushing the washing machine in front of it. "I don't think that should hold-"
BANG! BANG! BANG!
"Ranma, open the door right now or I will strangle you till you're dead!"
"Ouch!" Ranma winched, Kasumi placing a plaster on the tip of his nose. She (Ranma) rubbed her nose and glared at Akane, "It's all your fault, stupid tomboy." Akane huffed, turning on the opposite way. "If so then why did you pull Yukiko so hard? She's our guest."
"I'm telling you, it wasn't too hard at all!" Ranma slammed her hand on the table, the teapot jumped a little. Soun moved his newspaper under his eyes to look at Ranma. "Careful, that's my wife's." He warned, his demon eyes forming.
Ranma cracked an awkward smile and sighed. It was a long day for him. Then, he heard the wall behind him crush.
"Nihao!!!" A Chinese girl cheerfully greeted, riding on her bicycle.
TBC
Hello, I just got this idea and was bored. Anyway, I hope you liked it and maybe leave a review. I hardly wrote any story this year. O.O I hope I can stop with my writers block issue. ^^