Since it's been a while, a reminder: In this continuum, Jusenkyo is much more benign than folks think. When it "gifts" the victim with the shape change, it also works to improve the shapeshifter's fortunes. Then, after an appropriate amount of time has passed, it will allow the shapeshifter to choose: he/she can give up the "curse", but Jusenkyo will also take back all the good fortune the Springs have gifted to the shapeshifter. It is an all or nothing deal….
Nabiki stood on the balcony and looked out over the main floor of her restaurant with a bemused expression on her face. There were candles on all the tables augmenting the soft lighting drifting down from the wood and brass chandeliers. The waiters and waitresses flowed among the packed tables smoothly, all of them wearing the white shirts and black pants of the restaurant's dress code. The patrons were dressed in suits and formal dresses. The glorious smells floating out of the kitchen under her only added to the high class ambiance of the place. The thirty year old woman smiled and raised a glass of wine to her lips, finishing the last of it.
Once the glass was empty, she turned away from the view below. Nabiki placed the glass on a nearby tray stand and paused as she saw herself in a tall mirror hanging on the wall. She held her arms out and spun around, admiring the way the long blue dress flowed about her. It was a pretty dress made by Mrs. Takeda for women more modest than Nabiki. But, while it had a high neckline, it was still cut in such a way that made it very obvious that the wearer was still a woman. However, it was made of cotton and linen and designed for cold weather. She had "borrowed" the dress from her sister Akane (some habits die hard). Besides, it was not like Akane would notice the dress was missing – not for a while anyway. While this was a winter outfit, it was currently June; and a very rainy and humid June. If not for the excellent air conditioning in the restaurant, the dress would have been very uncomfortable.
Nabiki heard the heavy rain on the roof and her smile grew. *He* was coming back to Nerima tonight. He said he was going on a training trip to sort a few things out, and that he would be gone for three months. He also said that he wasn't sure where he was going. Everyone who wished him "Goodbye" also knew that there was a fair chance he wouldn't be back – at least not for a long time. But they were hopeful otherwise. However, Nabiki knew he was lying. He knew exactly where he was going. He might take a roundabout path to get there, but he knew. He also knew that his path might not lead him back to Nerima. But Nabiki knew otherwise. The smile became a smirk. She knew him intimately. She knew he would see through her lie and return to confront her. He wouldn't be able to leave it alone until he reached the truth. The smirk widened.
Nabiki went down the back stairway into the staff hallway. She took a quick peak in through the door window of the kitchen and saw that everything was as it should be, so she walked down the hallway, past the breakroom, and out the back door. The rain was absolutely pouring down now. The door's overhang looked like a waterfall. Nabiki threw her head backed and stepped into the flow. It splashed on her face and ran down the front of her dress to be absorbed by the cloth. She twirled under the downpour, completely soaking herself. The (fairly) young woman then stepped into the rain and began to dance in it, making sure to take time to splash in whatever puddles had formed in the backyard.
"Nabiki?" a voice called out.
Nabiki turned toward the back gate to see a man standing there in shock. He held a large umbrella in his right hand. On his back was a large backpack. He wore no coat due to the warm weather and was dressed in a red Chinese T-shirt with a black dragon on it. His black pants were a little damp below the knees and his shoes looked a little worse for the wear. His long hair was drawn back in a pony tail (Nabiki was glad he ditched the pigtail). "Nabiki?" he called again. "What are you doing?"
Nabiki smiled and walked toward the man without saying a word. As she drew closer to him, she moved faster and faster. He just stood there befuddled as she broke into a run. When she reached him, she grabbed his face and gave him a fierce kiss on the lips. Then she broke the kiss and hugged the man tightly. Her action compressed the fabric of the dress and squeezed out all the water trapped in the cloth. The water in her dress immediately soaked his clothes – and his skin. The umbrella and backpack fell to the ground as the shape change took hold.
Nabiki grinned down at the white duck now held tightly in her arms. "Welcome home – Airen," she said. The white duck looked at her. If it could, it would have raised an eyebrow. Instead, it reached gracefully up and bit the grinning woman hard on the nose. Nabiki broke out in laughter.
Nabiki lay in Mousse's arms with the sheets covering them both. Her head was on his chest and she sighed contently. "Are all the Amazon men quite so robust?" she teased him quietly.
Mousse snorted and chuckled a little. "We have to keep up with the women. It is good training. It gives me half a chance to keep up with you." Nabiki grinned briefly and settled into his arms a little more. "Quite the 'Welcome Home' celebration," he observed.
"Mmmm," she agreed. He continued to hold her.
"How were your sisters?" she asked him after a bit.
"You knew I went to China?" he quizzed.
She nodded her head. "I also know you went to Jusenkyo," she told him.
He snorted again. "I'm that predictable, am I?" he asked.
"Only to me," she answered.
"And you knew I wouldn't take the cure?"
She nodded her head and stated: "You love me."
Mousse smiled and said: "Yes, I do. And you love me." Nabiki nodded her head again. "How do you know you aren't being compelled by Jusenkyo?" he asked her seriously.
Nabiki sighed again. "That did worry me," she admitted. "I once asked Tofu if Jusenkyo could compel love as a reward for keeping the shape change. He told me that wasn't possible – Love involved free will. But I wasn't sure. Neither were you." She felt Mousse nod his head. "So we kept dancing around the issue, drawing closer and closer anyway."
"What made you change your mind?"
Nabiki pushed herself up a little. Around her neck was the ruby pendant he had given her over two years ago. She took the ruby in her hand and said: "This did."
Mousse shook his head. "I don't understand…"
"Do you remember when we went drinking with Lord Jakaro?" she prompted.
Now Mousse laughed. "Yes, it was quite the night. He drank all of us under the table," he said.
"Well, I was one of the last ones standing, but I was still four sheets to the wind," she started. "You had passed out. He saw me reach over and move some hair out of your face. He commented that I must love you, but I told him I didn't know. Then he asked me why not, so I told him what Ranma told us about Jusenkyo. I told him I was afraid that I was being compelled." Mousse nodded his head, so she continued: "Jakaro looked at me sympathetically, and then reached out to grab the pendant – I've worn it ever since you gave it to me. He held it up before me and said: 'From here on in, as long as you wear this pendant, you cannot be magically compelled."
"Seriously?" Mousse asked.
Nabiki nodded her head. "I had Maomolin help me test it. He was reluctant, but when I told him the reason, he agreed." She smiled briefly. "He's a big softy sometimes."
"Yes, he is," Mousse agreed.
Nabiki let go of the pendant and placed her head on his chest again, adjusting herself so she could see him. "Besides," she continued. "You already knew I wasn't being controlled – you would have never joined me here if you thought I was."
Mousse raised an eyebrow. "So sure of me, are you?" he teased. "I don't know - you're a beautiful woman after all."
"Not. A. Chance," she said while poking him in the side at every word. He chuckled again. "So, how did you figure it out?" she asked him.
Mousse shrugged his shoulders. "I asked the Elders when I went back to Nyucheizu," he admitted. "They asked me how Jusenkyo could possibly have any control of you – it had never met you. It didn't have a piece of your soul." He looked at her eyes. "They said the Water Sprites were not gods. You were just out and out beyond their reach emotionally and spiritually."
Nabiki looked thoughtfully at Mousse. "Good point," she acknowledged. "Wish I had thought of that." The look fell away as she raised an eyebrow. "But, that still left open the other end of the question…"
Mousse nodded and completed: "Was I under a compulsion to love you?"
She nodded back in agreement. "So, what did they say to that?"
He rolled his eyes. "They told me I'd have to figure that out for myself."
She barked out a laugh and grinned. "Poor Mousse – no easy answers. So what did you do then?"
He shrugged his shoulders again. "I hung out in the village for a while. Most of the people there were unfailingly polite to me, much like they were to the Researchers who stopped by from time to time."
"But they didn't accept you as one of their own anymore," she noted.
Mousse shook his head. "No, I was treated like any other Outsider. They were kind enough and respectful, but they always addressed me as 'Mr. Ono'." He sighed. "I think they were even a little surprised that I remembered the Traditions."
"Your family didn't treat you the same way, did they?" she asked concerned.
Now Mousse barked out a laugh. "Not a chance!" he almost shouted. Nabiki relaxed. He continued: "As soon as I walked in the door, my mother grabbed me in a fierce bear hug – I had to fight for breath. My sisters tackled me as well. Then I had my nieces and nephews practically bury me alive. It was a noisy family reunion. Lots of long looks at one another and noting what had changed. They were amazed that I no longer needed glasses. I had to tell them all about the surgeries and the contacts."
"Money well spent," Nabiki stated.
Mousse nodded his head. "I stayed with them a month and then went to Jusenkyo."
"Ah yes, the Crossroads," she said with a smirk.
He tapped her on the nose. "Do you want to tell the story?" he asked pointedly.
"Nope, I want to hear your take," she replied as the smirk became a grin.
Mousse rolled his eyes again, but went on: "The Guide, Xiam, led me to the Nanniichuan, warned me to be careful of the other springs, and then left me. Honestly, I just stood there for the longest time and stared at the pool. This was it – the thing I once fought for so unsuccessfully was now in front of me. I had walked right up to it without any trouble at all. That thought struck me very hard." Nabiki dropped the grin and settled her head back on his chest, listening attentively.
Mousse continued: "Eventually, I noticed the sun was starting to set, so I carefully took note of the area and set up my tent. Then I tried to go to sleep, but I couldn't – my mind just wouldn't stop. Every word I heard about Jusenkyo ran through my head. I remembered Ranma's friend, Augustus – the one who turns into a zebra – telling me that I would have the power of choice. I could accept Jusenkyo's "gifts" or reject them, but it was an all or nothing deal. I remember Ranma telling me that he hit the Crossroads three years after he fell into Jusenkyo; he could either stay the way he was or go back to how he was before Jusenkyo – he chose to stay the way he was. Ryoga hit it just before he and Akari were married and he also kept the deal. I tried to figure out why it took me fourteen years to hit the Crossroads."
He was silent for a few moments, so Nabiki asked: "What did you figure out?"
Mousse sighed. "That I was a bloody mess before Jusenkyo. I was absolutely obsessed with a girl who didn't love me. I was blind in my heart towards anyone else. I had no friends. I was an outcast from my village and had a massive inferiority complex with a hunger to prove myself. It took Jusenkyo over a decade to straighten me out – and it had a lot of help."
"I don't think it took a decade, but it did take a while," Nabiki commented quietly.
Mousse nodded his head and went on: "Now, I had friends, *two* families, an entire ward that I belonged to, and I was fairly well off. One might say 'wealthy', even in spite of the stock market crash."
"One might," Nabiki agreed.
"I was even in love," Mousse added. "Seems like a no-brainer even with the inconvenience of the shape shift. But…" He trailed off.
"But were you really in love, or were you forced down that path," Nabiki finished for him.
"That was the big question," he acknowledged. "With that thought, I had enough. I stopped trying to sleep and got up. I sat down just outside of my tent and stared at the stars. Then I thought about you and me – there was a lot to think about. I compared our relationship to how I felt about my sisters and acknowledged that you and I were a lot closer – closer than siblings could ever be. I thought about how much time we spent together, and how much time we spent with others. You haven't had a date in over two years."
Nabiki turned her head to look at him with mischief in her eyes. "Noticed that, did you?" she said in a teasing voice.
"Apparently – I stopped dating just after you did," Mousse answered. She nodded and turned her head back. He continued: "Now that I knew you weren't being compelled, that put your actions in a whole different light. I thought about how you treated Ranma, Tofu, and Ryoga. You treated them as your brothers. When you called them 'Brother', you meant it. But you were always a little – just a little – mocking with me, even though we were obviously closer. You were lying, at first to yourself and me, and then only to me." Nabiki nodded her head without saying a word. "I meant more to you than just a brother." She nodded her head again. "So, now I knew you loved me, and it was just a matter of me," he stated. "Obviously, I was in love, but was it real? I thought about that for a long time."
"When did it hit you?" Nabiki asked.
"Just before sunrise," he replied. "If everything Augustus said was true – and I believed it was – then I had complete free will right now. I couldn't be under a compulsion, at least at this moment. But nothing had changed, I still loved you. If someone was under a compulsion, and it was suddenly broken, they would feel repulsed by the object of their former affection. But that wasn't the case – not even a little bit. So, Jusenkyo really couldn't compel Love. If it did, the subject would automatically reject the Deal when his or her right mind was restored." He pulled Nabiki to himself so he could look her in the eyes. "I love you, pure and simple."
Nabiki looked at Mousse with a gentle smile on her lips. Her brown eyes were soft and there were even a few unshed tears in them. He treasured the look on her face. With the exception of her sisters, he was probably the only one who saw her with her defenses completely down. She moved closer to him and gently kissed him, holding the kiss for a long time. When she broke the kiss, she said softly, "I love you too." She adjusted herself so her head was just tucked under his chin. Then she prompted: "So, did you figure out the other half too?"
"Yeah, I did," he answered. "If you love someone, you don't want them to be compelled either. If you thought that was the case, you'd set them free and not take the Deal. Maybe Tofu's right, and you can't compel Love, but even if he was wrong, Jusenkyo would not use compulsion; it would be counterproductive. But I already knew you weren't compelled." Nabiki nodded her head. Mousse held her silently for a few minutes and then asked: "When did you figure out that I'd be back?"
"About a month after you left," she started. "I had been moping about. It was bad enough that people noticed. Ranma and Akane took me to the Complex to try and cheer me up. While we were there, we ran into Augustus. He's a pretty sharp cookie for an old guy and knew something was up. Akane gave me away and said what the problem was. He was kind and sympathetic about things and said he was sure things would work out for the best. Then he looked at me directly and said: 'Never underestimate the power of Free Will.' That stayed with me, but I couldn't have said why. It was bad enough that the phrase kept me up at night. Finally, when I had enough of it, I built a fire in the fireplace, grabbed some wine, and tried to figure out what was up with me. That's when I realized that Jusenkyo couldn't compel Love – not in you and not in me. I knew you would figure it out and that you would know I loved you. You'd be back."
Mousse chuckled. "And you were sure I'd keep the shape change?"
Nabiki smirked knowing where this was going, but Mousse couldn't see her face. She ran the odds and plunged ahead anyway. Holding up her hand and tilting it side-to-side, she said: "I was fairly sure – about 90%. We're in a pretty sweet spot right now. The restaurants are doing well, our investments are doing well, and everyone around us is in pretty good health. Like Ranma and Ryoga, your own Powers have increased. I know you're not ecstatic about changing into a duck, but it's proven useful over the years. Besides, you know I don't mind it at all – I love you as you are. So, why risk it?"
"True enough, I suppose," he replied thoughtfully. Nabiki waited for it. After several moments, he rumbled: "Wait a minute…" Nabiki got ready. "How did you know I was coming home today?"
"You mean yesterday. It's well after midnight," she commented innocently.
"Don't try to divert me…How did you know?" he pressed. "You were ready and waiting."
She discretely made sure her side of the sheets was free. "You stopped at the village after Jusenkyo and left contact info," she sing-songed.
"So?" he responded, but his voice dropped off toward the end.
"You told your mother what your plans were when you got back. She held it in as long as she could, but she blew it. She's going to be way too easy to manipulate as a mother-in-law," Nabiki continued.
"WHAT?"
"I talked to her this morning," Nabiki sing-songed again. Then she bolted.
Behind her, she heard: "YOU CHEAT!"
Nabiki ran out of the door of Mousse's bedroom, down the short hallway, and across the main room of their apartment. She had almost made it to her room. But she knew it was hopeless: Mousse was a Martial Artist, and one of the better ones at that. He caught her up, carried her into her bedroom, and tossed her on the bed. He knew all her secrets, including where she was sensitive. He dove onto the bed and began to tickle her sides, just at the top of her hip bone. She tried to fend him off, but he was too fast, so all she could do was roll and laugh. Finally, despite the tickling, she sat up and grabbed him about the neck and gave him a fierce kiss. He stopped and kissed her back. She pulled him down to her bed and they tightened their embrace. After that, things became even more interesting as they decided to break in a second bed…
Mousse sat in his comfortable chair drinking a cup of coffee and looking at the Saturday morning paper. The remains of his breakfast sat on the floor in a tray – he'd take it downstairs to the restaurant when they left. Whenever they could, he and Nabiki took their morning meal in the main room together in front of the fireplace (regardless of if it was lit). Her chair was empty right now since she was in the shower getting ready to go to the dojo. He would get in after her, despite the temptation to join her now (but that would lead to them being late).
The couple had kept to themselves Thursday and most of Friday. Neither of them worked those two days and had quietly celebrated their reunion. They had relented Friday morning long enough to call the dojo and the clinic and tell them that Mousse was back, but they turned down the suggestions of a party Friday night. Kasumi had pushed though, so they agreed to a Saturday gathering during the day instead. Friday night, Mousse took Nabiki out so he could gather some ideas for an engagement ring. Surprisingly enough for anyone who didn't truly know her, she was rather modest in her expectations, rejecting some of his more outlandish suggestions. When he teased her about that, she arched her eyebrows and responded that it was her money too, and she didn't want it tied up in a piece of jewelry. "Besides," she said. "You know better." True enough, he did – she was about "quiet power" these days. She would want a simple piece, but of the highest quality; something that would command attention because it was well-made, not because it was huge or gaudy.
The phone on the table between the chairs rang with a double tone. Mousse picked it up and prompted "Yes, Juro?"
Juro answered: "Mr. Tatewaki Kuno is here to see you and Miss Tendo. Should I send him up?"
Mousse looked at the clock on the wall. "He's early," Mousse noted.
"He says he has some papers he wants Miss Tendo to look at," Juro told him.
Nabiki's voice cut in from the phone in the bathroom: "Send him up," she commanded. Mousse chuckled.
"Yes, Ma'am," Juro replied. Then he hung up.
Shortly thereafter, there was a knock on the apartment door. "Come in, Tate," Mousse called out.
So now you know what happened with Mousse and Nabiki... Watch this space for more short stories...
