Chapter 2
Here's the rest of Illusions.
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Saturday
"Nihao! Welcome to Nekohanten! Shampoo help you find seat?" she said, putting up a cheerful air over the deep, churning fear in her stomach.
Mousse was laughing as he talked to a few of the young men who were stopping for lunch on their way home from a soccer game. The fear ran deep and cold in her, because she knew, could somehow sense that this was the day. The day he would find out about it, about her horrible lies to him and this lightness and casualness would disappear from him, possibly forever.
He would change again, back to the way he was - unhappy, unfulfilled, uncared-for. He would stop looking after himself, stop conversing freely with people on a whim, stop caring about himself enough to leave his glasses on.
"What you care for?" she asked politely, pen hovering over her ordering-pad.
As the customers ordered their dinners, Shampoo wrote the order absently on her pad, watching Mousse laugh with the other boys. It was so unlike him to be this happy and she loved it. He was nicer to work with, nicer to be with...if only he were this way all the time.
"Thank you for visit Cat Café. Food be by in minute!" she said.
She walked back to the kitchen and as
she passed the group of boys, Mousse disengaged and followed her into the back, smiling absently, staring at nothing through his glasses.
"Hey, Shampoo, I bet none of them have as beautiful a girlfriend as I do." he said.
She stopped, stiffened and handed the order to her grandmother, who barely looked up. The old woman had been informed of the bet, and that if Shampoo won, she could gain great favor with Ranma. So she allowed it, and Shampoo was happy she hadn't told the old woman the number of days. She would probably be in trouble if her great-grandmother found out she was already through half of an extra day because she found herself unable to shatter Mousse's dream.
"Girlfriend?" Shampoo said suddenly, smiling up at him, "Mousse, have much to talk to you about....'girlfriend'...thing...later, we talk, yes?" she said.
"Yeah!" he said, and her heart sank.
Now he would be thinking she wanted to marry him. He fairly bounced out of the room in glee, heading off to serve some customers their food. Shampoo growled to herself, and her great-grandmother tossed the order she'd just brought in onto a plate, smiling.
"I know it must be hard for you to pretend, granddaughter." Cologne rasped, "I am proud of your endurance."
Shampoo stifled a groan, took the plates and headed out again into the restaurant. Mousse caught her up by the door and tucked a daisy behind her ear. That morning when he'd awakened, he hadn't seemed concerned anymore that she didn't love him. He'd become sure of the fact, he 'knew' it. Shampoo groaned, but quietly so no one could hear. Ranma walked into the door, followed by Akane, peering around nervously. He walked to an empty booth and sat down, Akane across from him, and glanced over at Shampoo. Shampoo set the bowls down quickly, spilling a little on the customer's table in her haste to get to Ranma and let him know she hadn't told Mousse yet.
Dancing in front of her eyes was a horrible picture of Ranma saying something stupid to Mousse before he knew better. What would that do to Mousse's already fragile emotional balance?
"Hey! That waitress spilled..." said one of the customers to the other as she turned and ran off.
"It's okay, doesn't happen often." the other assured his friend. Shampoo practically ran to Ranma's table, but Mousse got there first. Shampoo watched in an anxious horror, head pounding, as Ranma looked up at Mousse over the menu. Ranma looked nervous.
"Hello, Mousse." he said, searching the tall boy's face for any sign of hatred and lust for revenge.
"Good afternoon, Ranma. What did you and your lady want?" Mousse said cheerfully.
"His lady?!" Akane said, voice raising, face getting red with anger.
"I'm sorry, Tendo Akane." Mousse said politely, "I didn't mean to offend." Akane settled down, "Ranma, you should take some lessons from Mousse." she muttered. Ranma rolled his eyes and ordered in a muffled voice from behind his menu, watching Mousse turn and start walking back towards the kitchen with the order. He called out after him,
"Mousse, man, no hard feelings?" Mousse turned to look back, a puzzled expression on his face,
"Hard feelings? Oh...I see, about Shampoo...No, I understand completely, but only the one with true love could win the prize."
Ranma looked puzzled and relieved and Shampoo went back to her waitressing with a deep sigh of relief as Ranma and Akane fell into a conversation. Shampoo fully intended to intercept their order and do the serving until she'd explained to Mousse what had gone on in the most...gentle way possible. It would be terrible for him to hear it from Ranma or Akane, or to hear it in the gossip mill, now that Ranma felt the subject to be free for discussion. She shuddered even to think of it. When Shampoo went to the kitchen to drop off another order, her great-grandmother asked her if she would stay to cook for a while, as her elder had 'something to do'. Shampoo agreed, and lost herself in the cooking, following the orders Mousse brought with happiness.
Shampoo enjoyed cooking a great deal, it settled her mind and gave her peace in a world that was all too often overly hectic and intensely confusing, especially with her limited understanding of the language used by the general populace. Mousse was fully capable of waiting tables for the moment, Shampoo needed to cook more than she had in a while. It calmed her nerves. She flipped orders into bowls and onto plates with the greatest of ease, lying them on the counter for Mousse to take out. In the bustle and serenity of being a short-order cook, she forgot about Ranma and Akane.
"You're joking." Akane said deadpan.
"I'm completely serious." Ranma said,
"I can't believe he's taking it so well."
The two were completely caught up in their conversation, the rest of the restaurant seeming to disappear as they spoke...or was it being with Akane that made that happen? Ranma couldn't be sure.
"Run it by me again..." Akane said, her brows knitting together delicately as her face changed into a sort of cute confused expression. He smiled at her.
"I bet Shampoo that she couldn't lead Mousse on for three days." he said, "I can't believe he took it so well...I mean, come on, she kissed him and everything..."
"SHE kissed HIM?"
"Yeah...and it was only a game. Only a bet. Only..."
"What?!" came a voice from above them.
Two plates set harshly down on the table, as if their bearer had lost control of his arms,
"Only a...what?!" Ranma looked up into the dead-white-pale face of Mousse above him, and chuckled sheepishly,
"Mousse...old buddy...what do you mean?" he stuttered, now more than a little nervous.
"You said..." Mousse gasped between harsh breaths, "...that it...was only...a bet, with Shampoo...Shampoo..." As he said her name the second time, it was like a child's whimper, and he looked back towards the kitchen.
"YOU IDIOT!" Akane hissed at Ranma, driving her fist into his forearm across the table,
"She didn't tell him yet!"
"Uh...yeah...uh..."
But Mousse had turned and started walking numbly towards the kitchen, feet lifting and falling heavily, as if there were weights tied to them. Ranma shrugged and started inhaling his dinner.
"Ranma! How can you eat at a time like this?!" Akane shrieked, pounding him over the head with her mallet, "You're such an insensitive jerk!" She grabbed his arm and stalked out the door.
"My dinner..." Ranma moaned, only semiconscious.
Mousse stormed into the kitchen behind her, and before she turned, she knew. The joy of her second-favorite hobby died as the hair on the back of her neck stood on end and she could feel the pain in him across from the room. The image of Ranma and Akane at that table came back to her and she knew. She knew what had happened...
"Shampoo..." he whimpered, "Is it true? Did you bet Ranma that..."
"He bet me." she interrupted, her back still turned to him. She knew he would take it as coldness, but she just couldn't face him and look into his eyes to see the hurt, couldn't let him go on and tell her how much she'd hurt him because she KNEW.
She could feel it, she could sense it...but he couldn't leave her in peace, he had to tell her.
"Shampoo...why..." he moaned, and she felt the concussion as he fell to his knees on the floor behind her. She spun to see him sitting on his heels on the floor, face buried in hands, deciding that her punishment was the guilt she felt at his pain. Then his shoulders straightened,
"Shampoo...I know what happened. He couldn't admit it! He couldn't admit you'd choose me over him and he convinced you...he convinced you it was an act, right? Right......?" he pleaded.
"No, Mousse. Shampoo been fooling. Was pretend but now Shampoo no want to h-"
"No!" he wailed, "It has to be real, has to be...It can't be an act...It's so real, Shampoo!"
"Mousse, Shampoo is so-"
"I can't believe this..." he mumbled, muttering incoherently to himself as he twined his hands in his bangs and pulled, "I can't...It's not true...I..." Suddenly he tore off his glasses and threw them hard against the wall, "I can't be seeing this! I can't be hearing this! It has to be a lie!" he sobbed as he stared at her pale face with his poor dysfunctional eyes.
She turned to look at the broken glasses, stared at the tiles on the floor, anything not to look at his face, anything to avoid him, the eyes red and swollen already, the skin so pale he looked dead...
"Shampoo am sorry." she whispered, "Is true." He turned abruptly and ran away, fled like a child. She followed him out of the kitchen,
"Muu Tsu, no stop!" she called in Chinese after him, running up the stairs behind him. But she had no hope of catching him. He was running in the flight of an injured animal, escaping to lick its wounds. She came to the door to his room just in time to have it slammed in her face,
"Muu Tsu! I can explain!"
"GO AWAY!" she heard, muffled through the door.
She ran a hand over her face, trying to hold back the tears that burned in her eyes like acid and walked downstairs. His dignity wouldn't allow him to emerge right then, she knew that much from her years of association with him, both wanted and unwanted. Cologne had left. Shampoo gathered all her dignity and faced the customers, eyes as clear as possible. They were all staring at her.
"Restaurant is closed. Shampoo will give all containers for taking food home. Is sorry, but help is temporarily gone." In a daze she led the customers out and closed the door behind them, then went back upstairs to knock politely on Mousse's door. It was locked.
"Mousse! Is Shampoo." she said in Japanese, then decided this was better handled in their own native tongue, "Muu Tsu, it's me, Xian Pu, please, let me in! I can explain what happened, maybe make it better for you...please?" There was no response that night.
Sunday
"Great-grandmother." Shampoo said, deadpan, at breakfast that morning. She had explained what had happened with Mousse, and Cologne had decreed it a no-work-because-we-don't-have-enough-help day.
"What is it, child?" Cologne asked.
"I not know what to do with Mousse. Tried all afternoon yesterday and not able to get him open door. He lock himself in and Shampoo not able to get him out. Was stupid bet, cost more than worth. How I make him talk?"
"Child, it is a problem you caused yourself, and if you are to be a capable Amazon woman, you shall have to learn to handle men's mood swings. I'm sure you're able to get him out yourself." she said cryptically, and left the table. Shampoo sighed and played with her breakfast. Finding the meal very unappetizing, she let it sit, and walked back up the stairs to Mousse's door. She put her ear to it and heard sobbing, then a violent crash as something hit something else, then a whimper of pain and silence again. This was even worse than she'd expected. Sure, she'd been preparing herself for tears and anger and possibly even him leaving for the three days since she'd realized what she'd gotten herself into, but she'd never expected, never assumed that he'd freeze her and everyone out. Could he just be gaining his dignity? Could he be trying to decide what to do now? Was he losing his grip and going insane? Had she driven him finally to suicide? The silence was deafening, and all she could hear was the pounding of her heart. Perhaps she'd lost her hearing? Perhaps sound had ceased to exist? The silence was so surreal she felt like anything was possible. Then she heard a soft sob again. So he was still alive and still in pain.
"Muu Tsu?" she asked hesitatingly in Chinese.
"What is it?" came a tired voice.
"Please let me in so I can talk to you." she asked.
"No, Xian Pu. I couldn't bear to see you right now, I-" he started, then his voice broke and he choked on his words, "Why..." he moaned, "Why did you do this to me, Xian Pu...why.......?"
"Let me in! I'll tell you!" she said, exasperated. But he had his pride, and there was no way he would let her in.
That afternoon. That evening. That night...
But she tried.
Monday
She knocked on the door and straightened her hair again, wanting to at least give him the dignity that she needed to look beautiful for him. He hadn't shown himself for a day and a half.
"Mousse, please let Shampoo in?" she whispered.
The door unlocked and, by the time she stepped inside, Mousse was across the room and sitting cross-legged on his bed, head bowed, bare upper body slumped. The sight of him touched her deeply, more deeply than anything had touched her in a while...since the kiss... He'd abandoned his robe, and several weapons lay around the room as if thrown. His hair was tangled like he'd been pulling on it and there was a patch of dried blood on his temple, as if he'd hit his head on something.
"What do you want?" he asked in a dead monotone, seeming to be addressing his knees. He wouldn't look at her. She bit her lip lightly,
"Shampoo sorry." she said softly, "So sorry for bet. Shampoo not think about what happen to you until kiss...then not have heart to say what she had done. Now is hurt Mousse and Shampoo feel very bad." Curse her Japanese! The more horrible she felt, the worse her Japanese was.
"Why...why can't it all be real?" he whispered, tears spilling over and falling onto his crossed legs, "Why does it have to be this way? Why can't you just love me, Shampoo?" His voice was more strained than it usually was with the tightness of tears in it. When he said her name, his voice broke.
"Shampoo tried." she said, "On day was supposed to tell, tried hard to love Mousse. Not work."
The fact sounded hard and cold coming from her lips, even to herself. His shoulders hunched harshly and then heaved with sobs. Shampoo stared in fascination for a moment, watching the muscles in his strong shoulders and chest contract even harder than they did while he was working out. Her eyes searched his face, his eyes...his hair. Shampoo delicately pulled out her small bone comb and walked over to his bed. Silently, she sat cross-legged behind him. With her small fingers, she gathered all his long, tangled hair behind his shoulders and started gently combing it into its usual liquid silk as Mousse sobbed uncontrollably. When she was finished, she carefully put the comb away, then put her hands on his shoulders and lay her head against his back, her cheek on his cool hair. She could feel his body moving under her, shoulders still heaving. "
Shampoo care." she said softly, so quietly that at first she didn't think he'd heard her, "Care. Is no love, but Shampoo care great deal for Mousse. Is enough for now. Wait, Mousse. Wait and see what happen." Slowly his sobs calmed as he let her dress his wounds and calm his fears, covering the gaping hole in his heart with soft gauze, even if she didn't heal it. When she was done, she stood and left the room with a final, quiet apology. And he forgave her.
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There it is, hope you liked it. - Malthazar LOS
Review please cause as a Mousse/Shampoo fan I'd be more then happy to find some more.