Disclaimer: This fanfic is a crossover featuring Ranma ½ (Property of Rumiko Takahashi) and The Never-ending story (Property of Michael Ende), none of the characters here (unless stated) are of my own creation.
This story takes place in an alternative universe
I have changed around stories and some other things as well, as curses.
I am using both the Never-ending story and the characters from the series Ranma ½ without permission from their respective authors.
This is my first attempt of doing a fanfic, so please forgive me if you don't like it.
C & C are welcome, please don't sue me, I'm just a student with a little too much imagination in my hands.
Words inside * * are thoughts, words inside are signs, words inside # # are animal speech and words inside { } are foreign language. Any writing inside / / are comments, actions and thoughts from the person reading the book.
Please read and review
LadyCrow
Chapter 3: Alone.
The shop was empty, as was her heart.
Ukyou Kounji had just closed her restaurant and was now scrubbing the grill and pondering about her life, wondering why it had to be so lonely, why she couldn't retain anyone at her side.
It was 3 years since her father had died away from her and the boy that she thought to love her turned out to be a pervert just wanting to go to bed with her. Her mother had been dead for many years now, Ukyou couldn't even remember her face.
Scrubbing furiously she felt the turmoil of thoughts in her head *Is there something wrong with me?* her knuckles red and sore from scraping against the metal grill.
She lifted her hand to wipe away a lone tear that rolled down her cheek. *If I only had someone, anyone.*
Sighing heavily she finished cleaning up her restaurant, leaving everything ready for the early costumers that ate their breakfast at her okonomiyaki shop.
Locking the door she saw there was light in the windows of the bookstore on the other side of the street, wondering if something had happened to the old shopkeeper she curiously looked in the window.
The shop looked deserted. She tried to open the door and found it to be unlocked, the key still in the lock. *What a forgetful man, if hadn't noted the lights his shop would most surely be empty in the morning.* She shaked her head and called out. – Hello? Happosai-san, your door is open.- Receiving no answer she started to worry, maybe he lied behind the counter, unable to get up.
She approached the counter and looked behind it, there were no one there. Sighing she decides to lock the door herself and leave a note in the window to Happosai-san telling him she had the key.
Leaning over the counter in search for a pen and some paper her gaze fell upon a image in a book, her heart almost stopped as she saw the handsome features of the boy looking at her from a print in the book. His eyes looked so much like her own, tender but with a note of sadness in them.
Carefully stretching out a finger she caressed the print of the boy. *I wish I knew you. I wish I could caress your cheek and feel it's warmth under my fingers.*
Now Ukyou was proud of being a woman of honour, never in her life she had stolen or lied. But for the first time she felt she had to have something, no matter the cost.
Looking around she made sure there were no-one in the store before she closed the book and hid it under her apron. Writing a quick note to Happosai-san she left it in the window closing and locking the door behind her.
Her heart was pounding in a wild rhythm against her rib case as she ran down the street with the book hugged close to her. Never had she felt such a mixture of shame and excitement. The book was hers.
Inside the shop the man we now know as Happosai came out from behind one of the bookshelves and smiled quietly to himself.
Walking over to the counter he confirmed what he had been suspecting, the book and the key to his shop was gone.
Making his way to the backroom he lighted a pipe and started smoking slowly, the puffs of smoke he released was no ordinary colour, they were neon green, sky blue and scarlet red. Reaching the camp bed he had prepared earlier he smiled at the puffs of smoke. *I hope you find what you are looking for Ukyou-san*
Ukyou didn't reached the apartment building as it started to rain, cold drops hit her long brown hair and her chef outfit. In panic she felt her cloths grow wetter and wetter *The book!* She thought. Running as fast as she could she bolted for the door of the building escaping the cold and unwanted shower.
Apartment 28 was a rather cosy apartment, large landscape paintings and tasteful furniture showed that the person living in this particular apartment had very good taste, had enough money to afford a little luxury and was a woman. This was easy to understand from the pastel colours on the walls and of the carpet.
The door was violently opened making the silver bells attached to the frame ring furiously.
Ukyou panted heavily as she closed the door behind her, franticly she took the book out from under the apron expecting to find it wet and with it's print destroyed.
Imagine her surprise when she sees that not a drop of water had touched the book, she looked at the cover and saw a ying-yang symbol and the title " The Never-ending Dream."
Looking out the window, listening to the thunders as they rolled over the skies she smiled lightly to herself.
*Well there is no better time than now for a little dreaming.*
Slowly removing her clothes to put on a dry yukata and wrapping a towel around her long brow hair she started feeling a bit warmer.
Walking over to the futon with the book under her arm she prepared for the night, but strange as it may seem she didn't feel alone at all. The eyes of the young boy still filled her memory as she lay down and opened the book once more on the print.
This time she looked with more attention at the print, the long hair looked like it was ready to cover his eyes if it wasn't for the bandanna holding it back. The pointy fang gave his smile a touch of savageness perfectly balanced with the tender expression in his eyes.
Frowning Ukyou saw the faint drawing of the wolf behind him, she could make out that it was a timber wolf from the size, and there, around the neck, it had a yellow and black bandanna just like the one the boy used to hold back his hair.
Slowly stroking the page she wondered what his name was. *I'll just have to read the book to know.*
Flipping the pages to the first one she finds another print of a boy, but he had something about him that she didn't like. Behind him there was this drawing of a red-haired girl that looked a lot like him. Ukyou studied the print just as she had done with the later one. The face of the boy had such a strange expression, almost as if he was taunting you to a fight. The word " arrogant" ran through her brain.
Shrugging she passed to the print of her *Lover? Sweetheart?* favourite boy. Smiling to herself she once again caressed the page.
Passing to the next page she also saw the three girls. Examining them closely she noted they had a familiar air over them. *Perhaps they are sisters.* After looking closely at each of them and being puzzled by the girl with her face divided in two halves, she passed to the next page.
Lighting crossed the heavens as something very similar to a whirlwind approaches the department building; it has a steady course for the second floor, where apartment 28 was.
The page was empty.
Ukyou looked puzzled as she found a completely white page, not a single character of writing, nor an inkblot was there to stain the immaculate white of the page.
Wondering why anyone would leave a white page in a book she returned to the page of the bandannaed boy.
*If only….if only I could meet you, know you….lo….love you.*
The whirlwind crashed through the window blowing out a few candles that Ukyo had lit and flipping the pages of the book so Ukyou could read only the large character that started every chapter.
"AS YOU WISH."
This was all she managed to read before something seemed to push her against the book, she let loose a scream of horror as her feet disappeared into the empty page.
The wind increased its force as her whole body was sucked into the page.
As soon as the last strand of her hair entered the page the book was slammed shut by the howling wind. The ying-yang symbol glowing for a second before the wind and the glow faded into nothing.
Left was a empty and dark room.