Always
**********
"I'm lost. Can you help me?" A girl with short brown stood before the Desert Bandit, not caring that he had just asked her for all her wordly possesions. He looked at her and blinked. "Aren't you afraid? Don't you understand? I want anything of value that you own."
She shrugged. "I got nothin'. Now, can you help me?" Baffled, he asked her where she was going. "Central Capital." She named the city, "I don't know where I am now. I had no clue this damn desert was here." She frowned, "What direction should I go?"
"I'm not sure...I might have a map somewhere." What puzzled him most was that he wasn't afraid of her. Normally he didn't know what to do around girls, he got all awkward and nervous, and there she was, all of sixteen years old, and he totally at ease.
"You know, you're kind of cute." She commented as he led her back to his home. "If I were pretty, I would hide here too and avoid all those people so hell-bent on pefect looks. I would definatly hide. You've got a good plan."
He stared at her a moment. She had been very honest about herself. She wasn't particularily pretty; she had short, frizzy hair, liquidy brown eyes and she wasn't exactly skinny. But she wasn't ugly either.
His cat met them at the door. "Yamcha? And a girl? And you're not scared?! Pretty girls usually scare you." The little critter looked confused. He blushed, but she just smiled. "You see, my furry friend, I'm not pretty. Not on the outside, at least." Her eyes sparkled, "I pose no threat here. I know I'm not pretty. I can live with that."
He looked at her again. He felt kind of sorry for her. He'd always assumed that every girl thought she was pretty. This girl, however, was not quite what he expected. "You know, it's pretty dangerous out here. You'd better be careful." He commented.
"I'll be okay. I have faith that it'll all work out in the end." She smiled, "I'll find all I'm waiting for."
"Why are you going to Central Capital?"
"Well...you see, my mother and father both died. And my brother disappeared years ago. I'm kind of all alone."
"That's horrible. It sounds like you've got nothing left."
"Oh, I always have hope. Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing can ever die. As long as I live, I can hope." He was silent as he thought about it, so she continued talking. "Why do you steal things? It's very wrong. You're going to change. You've seen the light by not hurting me. Once you've seen the light, you cannot go back into the darkness."
"How...how do you know you're not pretty?" He had to ask, "Do people tell you?"
"Yes."
"And doesn't that bother you?"
"It doesn't matter how beautiful you are on the outside. You can't fake the kind of good person you are, no matter how hard you try. If you have a good, pure heart, you're beautiful."
"What's your name?"
"Aillen."
"That's pretty."
"It's been in my familly for generations. It means 'light.' It was originally the French version of Helen, pronounced 'Ay-len,' but my great grandmother changed it because people kept calling her 'Helen' instead."
"Oh." He pulled out a map and they looked at it together. "Here's where you want to go." He told her, "You weren't that far away."
"I know where to go now. Thanks." She turned to go.
"You're leaving already?" He felt somewhat disappointed.
"Yeah. I gotta go before it gets dark."
"Oh. Bye Aillen." She smiled, "Good bye, Yamcha. Thanks again for all the help." He watched as she walked away, heading out into a brave new world. She was the kind of girl you could see on the top.
"She was nice, Yamcha." Pu'ar the cat said to him later.
"I know. I've never met a girl that nice before." He had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. She was a girl he had been totally comfortable with, a nice girl that didn't terrify him, some one wise beyond her years, and he'd let her get away because she wasn't pretty.
"You shoulda had 'er stay. I thought she was pretty."
"No, she wasn't pretty. She was beautiful. What have I done, Pu'ar? A girl like that...only one comes round every million years. And I just sent her away because I didn't realize how beautiful she really was."
"There'll be other girls."
"But not like Aillen, Pu'ar. She was truly beautiful inside and out. Possibly the most beautiful girl I'll ever know. And I let her go. Because I didn't think she was pretty. Oh God, what have I done?"
"You might see her again."
He looked at the cat. There was a one-in-a-million chance he'd ever see the girl called Aillen again. Those were very slim odds. Very. He felt like crying. Then her voice echoed through her head. "...I always have hope...."
Yes, he decided, there always was hope. There was always hope that he would overcome his fear of women. There was always the hope that he would see her again. And there always was, somewhere deep down in his heart, the hope that, someday, he could be empty and free like she was.
Always.
**********
by XellAn-Chan
**********
"I'm lost. Can you help me?" A girl with short brown stood before the Desert Bandit, not caring that he had just asked her for all her wordly possesions. He looked at her and blinked. "Aren't you afraid? Don't you understand? I want anything of value that you own."
She shrugged. "I got nothin'. Now, can you help me?" Baffled, he asked her where she was going. "Central Capital." She named the city, "I don't know where I am now. I had no clue this damn desert was here." She frowned, "What direction should I go?"
"I'm not sure...I might have a map somewhere." What puzzled him most was that he wasn't afraid of her. Normally he didn't know what to do around girls, he got all awkward and nervous, and there she was, all of sixteen years old, and he totally at ease.
"You know, you're kind of cute." She commented as he led her back to his home. "If I were pretty, I would hide here too and avoid all those people so hell-bent on pefect looks. I would definatly hide. You've got a good plan."
He stared at her a moment. She had been very honest about herself. She wasn't particularily pretty; she had short, frizzy hair, liquidy brown eyes and she wasn't exactly skinny. But she wasn't ugly either.
His cat met them at the door. "Yamcha? And a girl? And you're not scared?! Pretty girls usually scare you." The little critter looked confused. He blushed, but she just smiled. "You see, my furry friend, I'm not pretty. Not on the outside, at least." Her eyes sparkled, "I pose no threat here. I know I'm not pretty. I can live with that."
He looked at her again. He felt kind of sorry for her. He'd always assumed that every girl thought she was pretty. This girl, however, was not quite what he expected. "You know, it's pretty dangerous out here. You'd better be careful." He commented.
"I'll be okay. I have faith that it'll all work out in the end." She smiled, "I'll find all I'm waiting for."
"Why are you going to Central Capital?"
"Well...you see, my mother and father both died. And my brother disappeared years ago. I'm kind of all alone."
"That's horrible. It sounds like you've got nothing left."
"Oh, I always have hope. Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing can ever die. As long as I live, I can hope." He was silent as he thought about it, so she continued talking. "Why do you steal things? It's very wrong. You're going to change. You've seen the light by not hurting me. Once you've seen the light, you cannot go back into the darkness."
"How...how do you know you're not pretty?" He had to ask, "Do people tell you?"
"Yes."
"And doesn't that bother you?"
"It doesn't matter how beautiful you are on the outside. You can't fake the kind of good person you are, no matter how hard you try. If you have a good, pure heart, you're beautiful."
"What's your name?"
"Aillen."
"That's pretty."
"It's been in my familly for generations. It means 'light.' It was originally the French version of Helen, pronounced 'Ay-len,' but my great grandmother changed it because people kept calling her 'Helen' instead."
"Oh." He pulled out a map and they looked at it together. "Here's where you want to go." He told her, "You weren't that far away."
"I know where to go now. Thanks." She turned to go.
"You're leaving already?" He felt somewhat disappointed.
"Yeah. I gotta go before it gets dark."
"Oh. Bye Aillen." She smiled, "Good bye, Yamcha. Thanks again for all the help." He watched as she walked away, heading out into a brave new world. She was the kind of girl you could see on the top.
"She was nice, Yamcha." Pu'ar the cat said to him later.
"I know. I've never met a girl that nice before." He had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. She was a girl he had been totally comfortable with, a nice girl that didn't terrify him, some one wise beyond her years, and he'd let her get away because she wasn't pretty.
"You shoulda had 'er stay. I thought she was pretty."
"No, she wasn't pretty. She was beautiful. What have I done, Pu'ar? A girl like that...only one comes round every million years. And I just sent her away because I didn't realize how beautiful she really was."
"There'll be other girls."
"But not like Aillen, Pu'ar. She was truly beautiful inside and out. Possibly the most beautiful girl I'll ever know. And I let her go. Because I didn't think she was pretty. Oh God, what have I done?"
"You might see her again."
He looked at the cat. There was a one-in-a-million chance he'd ever see the girl called Aillen again. Those were very slim odds. Very. He felt like crying. Then her voice echoed through her head. "...I always have hope...."
Yes, he decided, there always was hope. There was always hope that he would overcome his fear of women. There was always the hope that he would see her again. And there always was, somewhere deep down in his heart, the hope that, someday, he could be empty and free like she was.
Always.
**********
by XellAn-Chan