Mousse's Change of Heart

Original fan fiction by Michael Shearon

Chapter Two: Confrontations

Ryouga Hibiki wandered around Nerima, as usual. He knew he was lost, but just kept on walking. He was feeling particularly starved. "But where can I eat?" he asked himself as he spun a slow circle, hoping to spot a restaurant of some sort. Apparently Luck was on his side. For he was standing right in front of the Nekohanten, shortly before the lunchtime rush. He walked inside, knowing that if he didn't eat now, it would be hours before he found a place to eat again. He walked in, brushing a lock of dark hair from his eyes as he spotted a table near the kitchen. Just as he was about to sit down, he noticed the pile of broken dishes in front of the kitchen door. He heard Shampoo yelling at Mousse.

"Where you think you going? Is no even lunch-time rush yet!" This was odd. Mousse going somewhere? That blind duck always wanted to be by Shampoo's side. Why would he be going anywhere?

(WHAP!!!!)(Thud!)

Ryouga jumped up at the sound of the punch. He ran in its direction, and saw Shampoo lying on the ground, with Mousse's hand moving slowly down to his side. Mousse's body was letting off a bright battle aura as he stared down at Shampoo. "And to think I believed that somewhere, under all the insults and abuse, you cared for me. Apparently, I rank below total strangers in your book. I can't believe I actually LOVED you!" Loved? Mousse didn't love Shampoo anymore? There was only one reason.

{Mousse is Possessed!!!} It was the only answer. He remembered when the ogre had gotten hold of Kasumi and himself. If it could make Mousse hit Shampoo, and stop loving her, What would it have him do to the people he didn't even like to begin with? Ryoga shuddered at the thought. Ranma had to know about this. Mousse hated Ranma more than anyone and he would most likely be the target of some underhanded, sneaky attack. Like a large bomb in the Tendo Dojo late at night. That might get Akane hurt. {Damn you, Mousse, I won't let you hurt Akane!} With that thought Ryouga ran out the door into the street, his only thought, finding the Dojo. Unfortunately, he went the exact opposite direction he should have.

Later that day…

Shampoo walked slowly up the stairs, her eyes narrowed to angry slits. {How dare that stupid Mousse! He hit me, without even a challenge! And here Shampoo was, trying to help him go back to normal.} She could feel the heat rising off of her body, as she walked up into Mousse's room. She saw it was mostly as it had been yesterday. Hardly anything was gone. Nothing except Mousse, some clothes, and his travelling bag. With a scream, she grabbed the calendar off of his wall. "Aiiiiiiiiyah! Stupid Mousse! Shampoo hope you never come back!" Any decoration he had up was quickly and mercilessly torn down and shredded. Her bonbori smashed his favorite decoration, a small statue of a Dragon he had had since childhood. She kicked over the dressing screen and tore it apart with her bare hands. All the while, screaming like a wild woman. "Shampoo HATE you! Hate you! Shampoo wish you never come from China, you blind, stupid WEAKLING!" She kept on destroying his possessions, using whatever she could put her hands on. She stumbled over to Mousse's table, where he usually brought his food when he was feeling sorry for himself, and kicked it over. The momentum of the kick spun her around, and she collapsed to the floor, exhausted. She looked around at the destruction, seeing nothing intact. Nothing except a small picture frame laying face down on the floor next to what was left of his bedside table. She crawled over to it, not wanting anything that had belonged to Mousse to survive the day intact. She reached down and picked up the frame and turned over. It was the picture Ranma had agreed to take of the Nekohanten staff. Mousse was standing off to the side, wearing a very strained smile on his face. Shampoo and cologne were standing together, with Shampoo looking as cute as she could for Ranma. The picture was undamaged except for one thing. The crack in the glass ran from top to bottom, right between Mousse and Shampoo. She felt the tears burning in her eyes. She closed her eyes as she pressed the picture up to her chest. "Stupid Mousse," she said as the tear slid down her face.

Mousse wandered around Nerima, unsure of what to do next. He wasn't sure, but he thought he had seen Ryouga Hibiki a few times, running at full speed. He kept thinking about what he could do now. {I have no place to stay, no job, no money. Where can I go?} Suddenly, Mousse remembered something that his teacher had told him the day before he left to find Shampoo.

"Boy, if you ever give up on that damned fool infatuation with Shampoo, open this box. It will have some instructions on what you should do then. I know I can't stop you, boy, but you really should give up on her. She doesn't want you."

Mousse reached into his sleeve and pulled out a fairly large box. He removed the top and peered inside. The first thing he noticed was the small glass box, containing about twenty or more slim, black darts. He picked it up and opened it, examining one of the darts. It was long and sleek, perfectly balanced, and almost invisible in the dimming light. Mousse aimed at a nearby tree and threw it. If it made any noise whatsoever, Mousse's sharp ears never heard it. He looked at a long note, written in his master's fast scrawl:

[It's about time you opened this box. You are now ready to make the next step to truly becoming the master of hidden weapons. In the large box, you will find some things that might come in handy. First, you will find a Master's robe, fully stocked. It is sized very large, so no matter how big you are when you open the box, you will be able to wear the marks of the master. Also you will find some scrolls, detailing what you need to know to do the ultimate attack of the master of hidden weapons: The Total Arsenal Wave. Since I won't be there to teach it to you, I wrote them so you could learn it by only reading. Another thing you will find is a practice dummy, with a scroll detailing the pressure points useful in battle. These are the 'whisper darts'. You would do well to keep them ready at all times. They are constructed to fly swift and silent. If you can't put two and two together here, I chose the wrong student. Use them well. They might make the difference between victory and Death. Also remember, The true warrior does not merely hold the weapon. The weapon is an extension of his body, another arm, another leg. You are the weapon. This is the heart of the hidden weapon technique. Make me proud, son.]

Mousse found the large mannequin, the size of a normal human male. In seemingly random places on its body, arms, and legs, it had a mark. Then Mousse noticed the placement of some of these marks. "Those are the places where the bird-man threw those feather darts. Those must be the points of paralysis." Mousse reached into the box and pulled out the scrolls and the robe. The latter, he inspected very closely. It was pure black silk, finely woven, and embroidered in the middle of the chest with the diamond design that graced his white robe. The sleeves ended in yellow cuffs. Also with the Robe was a pair of blood red pants. They were also made of the same fine silk as the robe. Mousse looked around the park, before walking into a small thicket of trees. A few minutes later, Mousse walked out, his old robe draped over his arm, the new one looking like it had just been made for him. His new robes fit him perfectly. He sat down where he had set the scrolls and began with the first of the five, smiling as he looked at the familiar writing of his master. It would not take him long to master this new technique. The smile of recognition quickly turned grim as he saw what the technique actually was. He started reading the text quickly, absorbing every detail. A low chuckle escaped Mousse's throat as the lamppost over his head flickered to life.

The next morning…

Ukyou Kuonji stood outside of her restaurant. She smiled as she read the name, "Ucchan's Okonomiyaki" on the sign near the door. She held the curtain in her hand, leaning on the pole as she got ready to open for business. {Not like I need to open today. I saw so much business yesterday, I made enough for the next couple of days. From what I heard from my customers, the Nekohanten was closed before the lunchtime rush. Something about a fight between the employees, or something like that. That Mousse. When is he going to learn?} She thought with a grin. She was just about to hang the curtain up, when she heard something strange.

"UKYOUOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Ryouga shouted as he ran up to her, skidding to a stop right in front of her. He sagged to his knees, panting and coughing for breath. Ukyou had never seen him looking so exhausted. He looked up at her, still panting, "Ukyou… I * cough, pant * need your * wheeze * help… Mousse… uuhnn…" as he started to collapse and sag to the ground. He was unconscious. Ukyou sighed as she propped him up against her body.

"Ryouga, you can be such a pain in the fanny sometimes. I have a business to run, and I'm going to have to watch you while I handle the morning rush. I'll just put you somewhere I can keep an eye on you while I handle my customers." she carried him into the restaurant and laid him back in the pantry area, looking at him laying there, {I wonder what he wanted to tell me about Mousse that was so important. Oh well, At least he's not going on about how he wants to kill Ranma-honey. You have to admit, Ukyou, the guy may be a pain, but he is kinda cute. But he sure isn't any Ranma.} She turned to the counter to wait for her customers to start filing in.

Meanwhile, at the Nekohanten…

Cologne sat staring angrily at her great granddaughter. She had destroyed Mousse's room yesterday, but after she had found that picture, she just sat there, looking like she actually missed him. Cologne was glad to get Mousse out from under her roof. The boy kept trying to foil her plans to get Son-in-law and Shampoo together. The boy had no respect for their ancient laws and customs. It was good that he was gone. But why was it that he was able to catch her off guard a second time? He had only done so once before, when he had snatched the Contrary Jewel from her fingers, ruining a perfect plan to get Son-in-law to marry Shampoo. And where did that battle aura come from? Mousse had never had an aura worth a second glance. It was a mystery, and Cologne had never much liked mysteries. "Great-granddaughter, you have been sitting there all night. Do you not want any breakfast? We may have quite a bit of business, since we were hardly open at all yesterday."

"Shampoo no is hungry, Great-grandmother," the girl said sadly. She was still staring at the picture and it's cracked glass.

"What is wrong, child? You should be glad that that annoying Mousse has finally realized that the two of you are not meant to be together. There will be no more trouble from him."

"Great-grandmother, Mousse was Shampoo friend. I no care what he do to try to get between Ranma and Shampoo. He never beat Ranma, no matter how hard he try. But Shampoo no have one friend in Nerima. Ranma no really like Shampoo, because Shampoo turn into kitty. Everyone else hate Shampoo, except for Kasumi, and she think everyone nice. Mousse only one who really care about Shampoo. He only one who want Shampoo be happy. Shampoo no love him, but Shampoo going to miss him."

Cologne was a bit surprised at her great-granddaughter's words, but did not say anything as she hopped back down to the kitchen to prepare for whatever customers may come in. {Apparently Mousse is not the only one capable of foolishness.}

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A few hours later, near lunchtime, a groan came from the pantry of Ucchan's Okonomiyaki. Ukyou walked back, and knelt down next to Ryouga, who was rubbing his head, and leaning back against the wall. "You feeling better, sugar? You looked like you'd been running for a long time."

Ryouga looked around, blinking in that usual confused expression of his, "Uh, Hi, Ukyou. Where am I?" His voice was a little hoarse.

"Come on up front, I'll get you some tea. On the house." She led him into the front of the building, and sat him down in front of the counter. Ryouga's expression never really changed from confused. After a few minutes, he asked, "How did I get in that room?"

"I put you there after you fainted out front this morning," she said with a wry looking smile. She set the cup down in front of him. "So what were you going to tell me about Mousse?" Ryouga's eyes went wide and he jumped up, grabbing Ukyou's arm. He ran out of the restaurant, dragging her along as if she were nothing more than a toy to him. "C'mon, Ukyou! We've gotta find Ranma! There might be trouble!"

Ukyou sighed as she saw the direction they were running. {I wonder if he would listen to me if I told him he is heading the wrong way. Too bad I never got a chance to grab my spatula…}

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Meanwhile, elsewhere in Nerima…

Mousse stood up and stretched. It had been a long time since he had spent the night outside. His muscles and joints were stiff, but it was nothing a few katas couldn't fix. He practiced his routines, kicking and punching at imaginary targets. Every time his hands and feet darted out, there appeared a weapon, sometimes short, sometimes long, sometimes small, and sometimes large. Soon, he felt all the kinks worked out. He sighed as he adjusted his robe. "I do not see any point in staying around this town any longer. I might as well leave." He picked up his travelling bag, tossed it over his shoulder, and headed out of the park.

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Ranma Saotome lay back on the small porch and looked up at the sky. {Ah, Finally, a nice, quiet weekend, with no chance Shampoo will drop in. Everyone thinks me and Pop are gone on some kinda training trip. This weekend couldn't be any better.} he smiled to himself as he felt the sun shining down on his face.

"RANMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Ranma groaned as he sat up. {I knew it wouldn't last.} Ranma walked over to the wall, jumped up on top, and watched as Ryouga ran down the street, hauling Ukyou by the wrist. Ranma jumped out and landed right on top of Ryouga's head, smashing his face into the pavement. "You want somethin'?"

A muffled voice came out from under Ranma's feet, and it didn't sound at all happy. Ranma moved just as Ryouga jerked his head up, "Damn you, Ranma, I was coming to give you a warning!" Ryouga narrowed his eyes and stood up. "I should just let Mousse blow your stupid hide to the moon."

"Ummm, Ryouga, what are you talking about?" Ranma's face looked very confused.

Ryouga related his tale of how Mousse hit Shampoo, including the detail of how Mousse -must- be possessed. He also told them that he'd seen Mousse a few times while he was trying to find Ranma. Ranma had his arms folded as he looked at Ryouga like the idiot he usually is. Ryouga finished his story with, "Ranma, we need to find him before anyone gets hurt. If he would hit -Shampoo-, someone he loves more than anyone else on this planet, including himself, what would he do to someone he already hates?"

For once the idiot made a little bit of sense. Ranma wasn't worried, of course, but he somehow had the same picture that Ryouga had. Late at night, Mousse sneaks into the living room, and leaves another one of those huge bombs like the one he chained to Ranma's ankle. Without anyone knowing about it, the Dojo explodes. What would happen to Akane?

"Alright, you may have a point Ryouga. That blind idiot might hurt somebody." Ranma said, not letting on any of his concerns for Akane.

"Maybe we should find him, and see what his side of the story is." suggested Ukyou, looking from Ranma, to Ryouga. They all nodded, and decided to go by the Nekohanten and talk to Shampoo and Cologne and see if there was somewhere Mousse liked to go. They all set off immediately for the Nekohanten. Ranma rolled his eyes and said, "So much for my quiet weekend."

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Shampoo sat a table and idly stirred her ramen with her chopsticks. Her face was still sore, and badly bruised from where Mousse had hit her. What did she do? Didn't Mousse have enough sense to know when she was being serious, and when she was just playing? Didn't he have ANY sense of humor? Shampoo would never go out with any man other than Ranma. And Mousse couldn't realize it. The worst part was, the jerk had come back a little while ago, asking when they could go out on their date. Shampoo turned around, narrowed her eyes, and shouted out, "Shampoo never date stupid, ugly, moron like you!" and proceeded to introduce his face and other choice locations on his body to her bonbori. Beating up the little jerk that got her into this mess didn't make her feel any better. Then she heard a voice that made her day.

"Yo, Shampoo."

"Aiya! Ranma! You home early from training trip!" as she jumped up and into Ranma's arms, hugging him fiercely.

"Uh, yeah, um, that's it, I came home early. heh-heh." Ranma was glad Shampoo was to busy hugging him to see how obvious his lie was. He then started trying to push her away, "Will you leggo of me! I wanted to ask you somethin' about Mousse. We heard he left, and we wanna know if there's some place he'd go."

Shampoo got up, turned around and crossed her arms, "Shampoo no want to talk about Mousse. Stupid leave, and Shampoo could no be happier." What she didn't realize, was that the way she had turned made the bruise on her cheek very obvious.

"Whoa, Where'd ya get that bruise?" came Ranma's Shocked voice. Shampoo raised a hand to her cheek, feeling the exact spot where Mousse had punched her. She hadn't looked in a mirror since yesterday. Now that she felt it, that place definitely felt sore. She picked up a small napkin dispenser, and looked at her reflection. She almost gasped when she saw how big of a bruise Mousse had given her.

"Shampoo no know that Mousse able to hit so hard…" as she ran her fingers over the dark purple place on her cheek.

"So Mousse was the one who hit you? Why did he do that?" asked Ukyou, still not quite able to understand what had happened. "Shampoo no know…" she said in her most innocent voice, "All Shampoo know is that one minute, Shampoo helping customer, then Mousse throw down tray, and storm upstairs. Shampoo go to stop him, and he hit Shampoo. Shampoo Glad he gone." "What did Mousse mean when he said, 'Apparently I rank below total strangers in your book?'" asked Ryouga, crossing his arms, and suspecting that Shampoo was not telling them everything. He got even more evidence of that when he saw her visibly wince at his words.

"Ryouga heard that?" she asked nervously. "Yes I did. I happened to drop by here around lunchtime yesterday. Care to tell us the whole story now?" he said, tapping a finger on his arm. Shampoo lowered her head a little, and nodded.

"It start yesterday morning. Shampoo go with Great-Grandmother to wake Mousse up. He sleep late. Great-grandmother splash Mousse to wake him up. Shampoo think it funny, so she laugh a little…"

"Doesn't sound funny to me," said Ranma as he sat down in a nearby chair. Shampoo blushed a bit, getting embarrassed. "Well, Shampoo no mean to, it just happen… anyway, When Shampoo check on Mousse later, he get angry, and stomp down to restaurant like spoiled little child."

"I don't blame him for getting mad. I mean, Jeez, couldn't ya have tried saying, 'wake up, Mousse,' first?" Ranma asked impatiently. He had been awakened by an unwanted cold shower too many times not to sympathize with Mousse just a little.

"Erk… um… can Shampoo finish?" She said looking at the trio of serious faces looking at her. She didn't think things would be going so bad for her when she told everyone what Mousse had done. "Later, Shampoo try to snap Mousse back to normal by making him jealous. It always work before… so Shampoo flirt with someone she never met before. Mousse get mad, and go to leave. Shampoo try to stop him, and he hit her…"

"I would have done the same thing. Shampoo, that is probably the meanest thing I have ever heard of anyone ever doing to someone who loves them. How could you possibly think that this would make Mousse go back to normal? If anything, it would push him farther away from you!" Everyone blinked at Ryouga's words. Everyone except Shampoo. She was trying to meet Ryouga's hard glare, but couldn't through her tear filled eyes. "I am surprised it took Mousse this long to leave in the first place!"

"You think Shampoo no know that now? Shampoo no want to push Mousse away. You no need to tell me that. Please… If you find Mousse, tell him Shampoo is sorry…" With that, she turned around, and ran back up the stairs, sobbing loudly.

"Man, I didn't think she'd act like that…" said Ukyou as they all watched the Chinese girl disappear up the stairs. "I knew she was mean to Mousse, but I didn't think even she would go that far… Think we should keep looking for him?"

"I dunno." Ranma said as they turned around and walked out of the restaurant. "I mean, If Mousse wants to leave, who are we to stop him?"

"You have a point, Ranchan, but still, shouldn't we hear what he has to say about it? Maybe Shampoo was just playing with us, to get us on her side." said Ukyou, looking suspiciously back into the Nekohanten.

"Let's Find Mousse. I want hear his side of the story. Plus I have to make sure that he isn't possessed."

Ranma and Ukyou rolled their eyes at Ryouga as they set off in search of Mousse.

========================================================== Somehow, Ryouga got separated from Ranma and Ukyou. He wandered around what he hoped was Nerima for more than an Hour, before finding himself outside the Tendo Dojo. Ryouga didn't notice as he wandered around the house, calling out occasionally, "Mousse!" Akane saw him, and wondered what he was doing, and decided to follow him. Later, outside the dojo, Kunou saw them, and wondered what they were up to, and decided to follow them. In a matter of thirty minutes, Ryouga was walking around, calling out for Mousse, followed by half of Nerima's martial arts population, including Shampoo and Cologne.

{Now why lost boy want find Mousse? Shampoo have to see. Maybe Ryouga get lucky for once and actually find what he looking for...}

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Later, that evening, Mousse had just now reached the edge of town. He looked up at the sun setting right before his eyes. He sighed. "I might as well start thinking of how I will get back to China. I have nowhere else to go…" He looked sadly at the sign that said, [You have now left Nerima.] "It is time I left this place. Although I will have some good memories. Like the way Shampoo smiled at me when she asked me to perform a magic show at the Christmas party. -sigh-" he looked off into space for a minute, and then his face hardened, "But there is nothing here for me now. I have to leave." As soon as he said these words to himself, the streetlight over his head suddenly winked to life. Mousse smirked as he looked up at it.

"Perhaps this is an omen. Maybe now my life can have some light in it, instead of all the darkness I have put up with up until now." Mousse didn't notice the figure standing on top of that light pole.

"Geez, Mousse, are you tuning into Kuno?"

"Ranma Saotome. Somehow I knew I couldn't leave this town without running into you one last time."

"So what's the deal? Why did you hit Shampoo?"

"Call it revenge." Mousse said with a shrug.

"For what?" Ranma asked, a little surprised at how calm Mousse was being around him. Usually, Mousse was wanting Ranma's head mounted on a spear by now.

"For sixteen years of pure torture, for no other reason than I would not give up. Now I have. Shampoo does not love me, and I, frankly, could not care less. I was going to leave anyway, but she tried to stop me. I just… snapped." Ranma didn't like how calm and level Mousse's voice was.

"So what are you gonna do now?" Ranma asked, trying to change the subject.

"Go home to China. Improve on my tactics, and then perhaps return here, to see just who the better Martial artist truly is…" Mousse said, his eyes hidden as they usually were behind his unnaturally thick glasses. His face was as unreadable as the mask he had worn when he thought he had kidnapped Akane.

"Hey, whaddaya mean by that?"

"I mean, I wonder which of us is truly better? You, or me, now that I no longer fight blindly, hoping to win Shampoo's affections." he said calmly.

"So why wait? Let's go, right now!" Ranma shouted angrily. He wanted to make Mousse pay for thinking he could ever be better than he was.

"Why?"

Ranma blinked confusedly. "Huh?"

"I have no reason to fight you now. And if I did happen to actually get lucky and beat you," he paused to let Ranma stop laughing. " Then Shampoo would have to be engaged to me. Believe me, now that I've seen what she's really like, That's something I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy." Mousse said with a scowl.

"Mousse, What's got into you?" Ranma was staring at him, wide eyed.

"The truth, for once. I saw how manipulative and fickle Shampoo truly is. Whatever feelings I had for her are long gone. Now, will you kindly move out of my way, so I can leave this town once and for all?" Mousse said, trying to push past Ranma.

"Whoa… You still didn't tell me why you hit her." he said grabbing onto mousse's Sleeve, but strangely, only feeling Mousse's arm, not the massive arsenal of chains and various other items hidden there, just beyond sight.

"Because she deserved it!" Mousse shouted as he uppercutted Ranma up into the streetlight.

Ranma dropped to the ground, shook his head, and then assumed a battle stance, "Alright Mousse. You made the first move. Now we don't have to wait for you to get back from China to see how much better than you I am."

"I told you before I do not want to fight you. "

"Well that's too bad, because I want to fight YOU!" Ranma said as he leaped at Mousse. Mousse jumped to the side, avoiding Ranma's attack. Mousse folded his hands into his sleeves, crossing them in front of his chest.

"Saotome, Remember. You were the one who issued this challenge." as he continually dodged Ranma's rage filled attacks. What Ranma didn't know, was who Mousse had seen running up from behind.

"RANMAAAAAA!!!!!"

"Huh? Akan-ARGH!!!!" His question was cut off as more then half a dozen slim black darts seemed to appear in his paralysis points.

"Now, Saotome, You will know what it feels like to LOSE!" as he jumped towards Ranma, kicking and punching him in seemingly Random places. Mousse smirked to himself as he saw Ranma's muscles bunching. "Oh, No, Saotome. This attack was used on me once… and even I could counter it. Therefore, I know what to look for." as he proceeded to jab at Ranma's pain points with various small blunt objects. Every time Mousse's hands darted out at Ranma, a different weapon was attached. Suddenly, when Ranma was on the verge of collapse, Mousse was suddenly gone. Ranma managed to roll his eyes until he found Mousse standing on top of the same light pole he had uppercutted Ranma into. "Saotome, Now this fight ends." Mousse's body started to take on a blue glow, that slowly got brighter. Ranma recognized it. {Oh, no. I gotta move , I gotta move, I gotta move, I gotta move, I…}

"RAKING HAWK'S TALONS!!!" Came Mousse's yell, as his body came streaking down at Ranma. There, on the tip of Mousse's Shoes, were thos dark metal claws, glinting darkly as Mousse descended. Ranma managed to bunch his muscles enough to force the darts out, but it was simply too late. Mousse's feet buried themselves in Ranma's chest, knocking both Ranma's breath, and the last of his strength from his body. Ranma flew backwards, and landed right in front of the large crowd that had gathered and saw the entire fight, and Ranma lose to Mousse. Mousse stood there, adjusted his robe, and calmly said, "Thank you, Akane Tendo. You have helped me defeat Ranma. If you had not yelled when you did, I could never have taken advantage of his distraction."

"Why… you…" Akane started as she moved towards Mousse, in a rage even blinder than Ranma's. Mousse casually caught her fist in a claw grab, and said, "Akane, I do not hold any grudges against you. Ranma issued the challenge, lost his focus on the fight, and lost the fight. It was as simple as that." Mousse said evenly. He quickly jumped back to avoid the left hook that she had just thrown at his face. He said, "Now, will you people let me leave in peace?"

A mass of angry voices came from the crowd, "You knocked out my son… my future son-in-law… No one but the Great Blue Thunder is worthy to fight the wicked Saotome… You cheated!… Let's get him… How dare you hit my Ranchan?!"

One voice in particular caught Mousse's ears. "Ayiah! Ranma! What Happen to him? why he have… Mousse's… shoes… Oh no…"

"Yes, Shampoo. I did Beat him, but don't worry. I wouldn't marry you if you begged me. I do not love you. You are the most manipulative…" Shampoo started flinching as Mousse drew closer to her, pointing at her, and raising his voice, "Sadistic, empty headed, empty-hearted, moronic Bimbo I have ever had the misfortune to MEET! You should have fallen into the Jusenkyo Spring of drowned DOG, because it would have FIT your PERSONALITY, SO much better. I never want to see you again Shampoo. EVER!" By now, Mousse was screaming at her, and Shampoo was on the verge of tears. He turned around, picked up his travelling bag, and went to leave. What he had forgotten about, was the mob of people that wanted to hurt him for hurting Ranma. His memory was refreshed, however, when he heard, "GET HIM!!!" Mousse turned around, narrowed his eyes at them and said, "You all hate me so much, then let me leave!"

"Not until you pay, villian!" came Kuno's Voice above the crowd.

"Then feel the foolishness of your attack. Hidden Weapons Technique, Ultimate Finishing Move: Total Arsenal WAAAAAAAAAVE!!!" Mousse cast his arms forward, and the crowd ground to a sudden halt. To say that the wall of metal careening towards them was huge would have been the understatement of the year. Every chain, every blade, every blunt weapon, every spear, everything in Mousse's Robes came flying out at them, some turned and ran, some stayed and attempted to fight it off, while others were stunned into a sort of paralysis by the sheer magnitude of weapons that seemed to just come out of thin air. Shortly, everyone who had moved to attack Mousse, who had not retreated immediately, was wrapped, almost head to toe, in chains of varying lengths and weights. Not a single person could stand. The only people still standing on that small road were Akane, who was too stunned to speak, or even move, Shampoo, on her knees, and crying, and Cologne, who was eyeing Mousse in a strange, calculating manner.

Mousse made his way through the groaning crowd, gathering up his weapons, and hiding them up his sleeves again. After about half an hour, he had gathered up just about everything, when he encountered Cologne.

"You know what you must do, Son-in-law, You know the law. You beat Ranma, so now you must marry my Shampoo."

"Cologne, I want that as much as Shampoo does. She hates me, and I frankly don't like her. She has hurt me too many times for me to forget it and go on in blissful ignorance. Maybe once, I would have given my very soul to hear those words, but now, I dread them as Much as Ranma does. There is no way I will marry her now."

"Are you saying that you are blatantly disregarding the law of the Amazons?" Cologne's diminutive form flared with her battle aura, and Mousse quickly stepped back.

"All I am saying is, I need time. Just give me a little while to sort out my feelings, and then I will return with my answer. But do not try to look for me, for not even I know where I will be. Goodbye Cologne, and thank you for putting up with me as long as you have." Mousse threw his hand down. in a small flash of light, smoke and sound, Mousse was gone. Cologne looked up at the sky, and screamed. "HE DID IT AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

In the next Chapter, I'll be giving my version of Mousse and Shampoo's Childhood in their villiage. Including an Original character or two, if I decide to write that much ^_^. I apologize for the time you had to wait to read this, but Real life sometimes gets in the way. On another note, I'm still looking for things to post on my completely random page, dealing with anything Ranma/Anime related. If you want something up there, Show me what you want me to put up, and we'll talk. I welcome Fan fictions, fan art, links, images, etc. Just let me see it first, though. And, BTW, I hope I don't have to say this, but NO HENTAI STUFF! Thanks!

Muu Tsu.