[Ranma] - [Different][Alternate][Language]
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losers.com
Chapter II
FFML Draft (public) v0.1
A Ranma 1/2 Fan-Fiction
-= By Gendou Knepper =-
Ranma 1/2 characters & situations created and copyright by:
Rumiko Takahashi/Shogakukan/Kitty/Fuji/Viz/etc.
Other copyrights are owned by the respective copyright owners.
All copywritten material is used without permission.
All other material is (c)2000 Gendou Knepper
***********************************************************************
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Monday Night
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[DONALD_DUCK HAS JOINED LOVE_JAPAN(private)]
DONALD_DUCK: Greetings again, my friends.
DOCWHO: Konban wa, Duck-san!
BIGPIG34: Hi Donald_Duck!
HANDSOME: yo don
THIEF: hey man.
QUEEN: hiya!
MAGE21: Hey bro!
DONALD_DUCK: Doctor Who - Long time no see, my friend!
DOCWHO: I was away on a research trip to China for two weeks.
DONALD_DUCK: Really? I'm from China! What part did you visit?
DOCWHO: It's a small province to the north called Quanzhai.
HANDSOME: why would you visit that kamiforsaken part of china
DOCWHO: There's a location there shrouded in legend. I was doing research on it
to see if anything there could provide a cure for a friend's illness.
BIGPIG34: You're a holistic-care doctor, correct?
DOCWHO: Yes.
DONALD_DUCK: What sort of cure are you looking for, Doc?
DOCWHO: Well, I'm afraid it falls under doctor-patient confidentiality, but,
needless to say, it is a rather unique ailment.
DONALD_DUCK: I understand.
THIEF: wow. china, huh? I've never visited china.
HANDSOME: i used to live in quanzhai province its a backwater
DOCWHO: Well, be that as it may, there are many ancient peoples still living
there and practicing their native customs, and I was hoping one of them might
have the cure I was looking for.
BIGPIG34: Well, don't drink the water. g
HANDSOME: and definitely dont fall into the water heh heh heh heh
DOCWHO: What? Why would you say that?
BIGPIG34: Um, it was just something I'd heard. My boyfriend travels a lot and
he always says never drink water in a strange place.
DOCWHO: No, I meant Handsome. What do you know about falling into the water in
Quanzhai?
HANDSOME: why do ya wanna know
DONALD_DUCK: Ok, this is wierd. I used to live in Quanzhai, and I'm also
curious as to your comment about the water.
HANDSOME: lets just say you fall in and youll be a new man or something
DOCWHO: Does the name 'Jhusenkyou' mean anything to you?
DONALD_DUCK: Sweet mother of Gandhi. What do you want with Jhusenkyou?
HANDSOME: yeh doc whats up with jusenkyo
DOCWHO: So you recognize the name?
HANDSOME: maybe
DONALD_DUCK: You would do well, Doctor, to stay as far away from that cursed
place as you possibly can.
QUEEN: whats jusenkyo?
DONALD_DUCK: A myth, nothing more.
MAGE21: I don't mean to contradict you, my friend, but I've researched
Jhusenkyou somewhat and I believe it might exist.
DOCWHO: I know for a fact it exists.
DONALD_DUCK: You're looking for a Jhusenkyou cure, aren't you?
DOCWHO: Who are you?
DONALD_DUCK: I'm asking the same question of you.
HANDSOME: i wanna know who both of you are and how you know so much about the
cursed springs
MAGE21: Do any of you know someone cursed by Jhusenkyou?
HANDSOME: yeh
BIGPIG34: I think so.
MAGE21: Bigpig? You know someone with a curse?
BIGPIG34: My boyfriend.
DONALD_DUCK: Your boyfriend is Jhusenkyou-cursed???
DOCWHO: Who is your boyfriend?
BIGPIG34: Uhm, I'd better not say.
THIEF: ok this is getting spooky
[THORNS03 HAS JOINED LOVE_JAPAN(private)]
THORNS03: Hi everyone!
DOCWHO: Look, I'm trying to find a cure, and if anyone has information, I need
it.
QUEEN: hi thorns.
DONALD_DUCK: I don't know you, Doc. You could be trying to track down
Jhusenkyou for any one of a number of reasons. I'm not giving you any
information.
HANDSOME: me either this smells rotten
MAGE21: This is so fascinating. You guys actually know people with Jhusenkyou-
curses?
THORNS03: What's a Jhusenkyou-curse?
MAGE21: Well, according to legend, it's a curse that causes the cursed to
change forms when immersed in cold water, and to change back to normal when
immersed in hot water.
THIEF: what happens in lukewarm water?
HANDSOME: nothing
THORNS03: I know several people like that.
MAGE21: No WAY! Am I the only person on this channel who doesn't know a cursed
person?
QUEEN: i don't.
THIEF: me either.
DOCWHO: Thorns - What can you tell me about your cursed friends?
THORNS03: Why?
DONALD_DUCK: I'm curious to know why as well, Doc. Why so interested?
DOCWHO: I told you, I'm searching for a cure. A friend of mine is cursed and I
want to find a cure for him, okay? I've told you too much already.
DONALD_DUCK: But you want us to spill all?
HANDSOME: sounds fishy fishy fishy to me
BIGPIG34: Oh dear.
MAGE21: Ok, this is nuts. Are you people pulling my leg here?
HANDSOME: shut up nerd boy stay out of this
DONALD_DUCK: Let me ask you this, Doc - how close did you come to finding a
cure?
DOCWHO: Not very.
HANDSOME: no surprise there
THORNS03: Maybe we should just change the name of this channel to
JHUSENKYO_CURSES and be done with it.
DOCWHO: Look, I'm not looking to fight you guys. I just wanted some answers.
For all I know, you could be hoaxing me. But somehow, I doubt it.
DONALD_DUCK: There are too many military uses for Jhusenkyou, as my people have
learned to their detriment, for me to go and tell you what I know. Our tribe
has a mortal enemy that uses the cursed water to strengthen themselves.
HANDSOME: if you know the right place you can really buff yourself
QUEEN: is anyone else lost?
THIEF: i am. i'm out of here. night guys.
[THIEF HAS LEFT LOVE_JAPAN(private)]
QUEEN: uhm. ok. bye.
DOCWHO: I know where Jhusenkyou is. I was just there. I was hopping that the
naniichiuan would have a cure for my friend.
DONALD_DUCK: So you have a male patient who is cursed?
HANDSOME: best be careful too little water and youll end up halfsies hehehehehe
DOCWHO: What do you mean?
HANDSOME: if you only use a little water you end up mixing curses
DOCWHO: There are some pools like that.
MAGE21: Like what?
DOCWHO: Mixed curses. Like the "Spring of Drowned Yeti Riding on Bull Carrying
Crane and Eel." There's a martial artist who passes through occasionally who is
cursed with that one.
BIGPIG34: That sounds terrible!
MAGE21: Sounds like a monster.
DONALD_DUCK: He is, if we are discussing the same man.
HANDSOME: who you calling a monster duckboy
QUEEN: uh oh.
MAGE21: Uhm . . .
DONALD_DUCK: TAROU?????
HANDSOME: oops
BIGPIG34: You mean Pansuto Tarou?
HANDSOME: WHO YOU CALLING PANTYHOSE SISTER
DOCWHO: You're Tarou?
HANDSOME: no never heard of him whos this tarou of whom you speak
DONALD_DUCK: Nice try. No dice.
HANDSOME: oh well no fooling you eh
MAGE21: Ok, YOU turn into a monster?
HANDSOME: call me that again and im hunting you down nerdboy
DOCWHO: Handsome - You're Tarou? The guy who's hunting down Happosai?
HANDSOME: yeah im gonna make the shriveled little raisin change my name
THORNS03: Happosai? The little panty-stealing pervert???
MAGE21: Hey, I've seen him around Furinkan High!
QUEEN: he tried to grope me once. never again. heh heh heh.
THORNS03: You go to Furinkan? My brother goes there.
HANDSOME: aw geez well this is just old home week isnt it
BIGPIG34: I know several people from there.
DOCWHO: Several of my students go to Furinkan.
DONALD_DUCK: I know many people there. The resturant where I work is nearby as
well.
QUEEN: my love goes to furinkan. our resturant is close to there too.
HANDSOME: femboy goes to furinkan
DONALD_DUCK: Femboy? You mean Saotome Ranma?
DOCWHO: You know Ranma?
MAGE21: Oh no. You guys know Ranma?
QUEEN: i know ranma-san.
THORNS03: Me too.
BIGPIG34: He's my boyfriend's best friend!
HANDSOME: great so we all know the faggot
DONALD_DUCK: Doctor Who - You were in China looking for a cure for Ranma and
his father, weren't you?
DOCWHO: Among others. I know other people who are cursed as well.
DONALD_DUCK: Maybe you know me.
DOCWHO: Odds are we already know each other if we all know Ranma.
DONALD_DUCK: I agree. Seems that our limited anonymity just went out the
window.
THORNS03: Well, we knew that this morning.
QUEEN: huh?
DONALD_DUCK: Thorns - Do you want to tell them?
THORNS03: Donald and I met for lunch today and it turns out that we knew each
other already.
BIGPIG34: Oh wow! That's so romantic!
HANDSOME: woo hoo donald you go stud
DONALD_DUCK: Shut up, Tarou.
HANDSOME: hey its not fair you guys know my name and i dont know yours
MAGE21: Tough.
HANDSOME: youre awfully brave in cyberspace flameboy
DOCWHO: Well, I agree that our anonymity is pretty much gone. I'll go ahead
and tell you who I am. Maybe then you'll trust me enough to help me find a
cure.
DONALD_DUCK: Ok, so who are you?
DOCWHO: Tofu Ono
MAGE21: Doctor Tofu???
DONALD_DUCK: Heh. Seems we do know one another, Doctor. My beloved worked for
several weeks at your clinic when she first came to Japan.
DOCWHO: Shampoo. So you must be Mousse.
DONALD_DUCK: Your skills as a detective match your skills as a doctor.
HANDSOME: hey duckboy heh heh heh hows it going
BIGPIG34: Doctor Tofu and Mousse??? Oh wow! Maybe you know where my boyfriend
is!
QUEEN: mousse-san! but you were in the shop today with kunou kodachi!
THORNS03: Queen - Are you Ukyou?
QUEEN: no
DONALD_DUCK: No, he's Konatsu. Am I right?
HANDSOME: no way queen yer that crossdressing putz ha ha ha ha ha
MAGE21: Shut up Tarou! That's cruel!
[QUEEN HAS LEFT LOVE_JAPAN(private)]
DONALD_DUCK: You're a jerk, Pantyhose. I shouldn't have said anything.
HANDSOME: shut up duckboy i just cant believe it thats all ha ha ha
MAGE21: Mousse, if you were in Ucchan's today, and Thorns was with you, and you
were with ... Thorns is Kunou Kodachi then, right?
THORNS03: I am she.
HANDSOME: the infamous black rose of st hebrekes
MAGE21: Wow. I know all of you guys.
HANDSOME: so who are you
DONALD_DUCK: I must admit to feeling a little apprehensive about someone
knowing who I am and my not knowing who they are in return.
BIGPIG34: Mousse, have you seen my Ryouga-sama?
DONALD_DUCK: Hibiki? Hibiki Ryouga?
HANDSOME: wait you mean pigboy is yer boyfriend
DOCWHO: I saw Ryouga in China just last week. He was trying to find the dojo.
BIGPIG34: Probably going to see Akane. I know how he feels about her.
DONALD_DUCK: Akari?
BIGPIG34: Hi Mousse!
HANDSOME: this is too wierd arent there any strangers in this channel
THORNS03: Mage - you go to Furinkan, right?
MAGE21: Yeah. And yes, I know your brother. I know you too, for that matter.
I'm a patient of Doctor Tofu's and I eat at both Ucchan's and the Nekohanten
fairly often. I've met Akari once. I don't believe I know Tarou though.
Enough clues?
BIGPIG34: Are you friends with my Ryouga-sama?
MAGE21: Not really. Kunou-senpai and I used to talk sometimes, but not anymore.
I don't have too many friends outside of this chatroom.
HANDSOME: oooooh big sad surprise there heh heh heh heh heh
DONALD_DUCK: Shut up, Tarou.
THORNS03: Are you in my brother's kendo club at school?
MAGE21: I wish. No. I'm in the photography club.
DOCWHO: You're a patient of mine?
MAGE21: Asthma. Allergies. Insomnia.
DOCWHO: Gosunkugi.
MAGE21: Got it in one, Doc.
THORNS03: Hikaru-kun?
MAGE21: It's me, Kunou-sama.
HANDSOME: gos the skinny little stalker huh
DONALD_DUCK: Gosunkugi Hikaru. I never would have known. You're so different
in here.
MAGE21: Heh. Who isn't?
HANDSOME: hey man im always this cool and in control
DONALD_DUCK: Yep. Always this much of a jerk too.
HANDSOME: watch yerself man
BIGPIG34: So no-one knows where Ryouga-sama is?
[ICHIBAN_1 HAS JOINED LOVE_JAPAN(private)]
MAGE21: No, sorry. I haven't seen Ryouga since his last fight with Saotome.
ICHIBAN_1: You guys talking about that awesome martial-artist, Saotome Ranma???
HANDSOME: is there anyone who doesnt know femboy
DONALD_DUCK: I've fought him. He's good, but not great.
ICHIBAN_1: Hey! What do you mean he's not great?
MAGE21: What do you know about Saotome?
ICHIBAN_1: He's the greatest living martial-artist in the world! He's devoted
his life to martial-arts and to protecting the weak!
MAGE21: Where have I heard this before?
BIGPIG34: Ryouga-sama says that Ranma-san isn't that great of a fighter. He
just gets lucky sometimes.
DOCWHO: No one is that lucky that often. The boy is skilled.
DONALD_DUCK: He's still a playboy.
THORNS03: I think he's just a victim of circumstance.
ICHIBAN_1: Bigpig - Ryouga said that? Man, P-Chan couldn't fight his way out
of wet paper bag. If he could find the paper bag in the first place!
MAGE21: P-Chan? What does Akane's pet...oh man.
DONALD_DUCK: You just now figured that one out? I figured Akane was the last
to know.
MAGE21: Hibiki Ryouga sleeps with Akane????
THORNS03: How did you know she sleeps with her pet pig?
HANDSOME: stalkerboy knows all about akane dontcha nerdly
ICHIBAN_1: Who's stalking Akane??
MAGE21: I'm not stalking anyone!!!
HANDSOME: gos here likes to take pictures dontcha
ICHIBAN_1: Gosunkugi Hikaru? I should pound you for that!
THORNS03: Why on earth would you want to hurt Hikaru-kun?
DONALD_DUCK: Because Ichiban here is Saotome.
BIGPIG34: Oh dear.
DOCWHO: Of course.
HANDSOME: hah hah hah hah hah praising himself in a channel how low can you go
femboy
THORNS03: Ranma-sama?
MAGE21: I'm dead.
ICHIBAN_1: Who's Saotome? Not me! No, I'm just an anonymous fan! Yeah! Bye!
[ICHIBAN_1 HAS LEFT LOVE_JAPAN(private)]
MAGE21: Great. Now Saotome's gonna pound me at school tomorrow.
HANDSOME: you deserve it stalkerboy
DONALD_DUCK: Saotome won't hurt you. Much.
BIGPIG34: Oh dear. I hope I didn't insult him with what Ryouga-sama said.
HANDSOME: nah femboy has a thin skin
DONALD_DUCK: And you don't, huh, "Pantyhose"??
HANDSOME: i know where you live duckboy so shut up
MAGE21: I'm going to Ucchan's tomorrow to see how Konatsu's doing. Anyone want
to come with me?
HANDSOME: count me out
THORNS03: I'll go if Mousse will go.
DONALD_DUCK: Yeah, I'll go.
BIGPIG34: What time?
MAGE21: After school, say 3:30 or so?
DONALD_DUCK: I don't get a break until four.
BIGPIG34: I live outside of town. I couldn't be there until six or so anyway.
THORNS03: Me either. I have gymnastics practice after school tomorrow.
MAGE21: Ok. Can we meet at the Nekohanten at 6pm and then walk over?
DONALD_DUCK: No problem by me.
THORNS03: Sounds good.
BIGPIG34: Okay!
DOCWHO: I'm glad you guys are going to see him.
HANDSOME: yeah its so touching you all care so much for a fag hah hah hah hah
hah
DONALD_DUCK: He doesn't swing like that. He loves Ukyou, you jerk.
HANDSOME: yeh but the butch dresses like a guy the fag dresses like a girl they
were made for each other hah hah hah hah hah
[MAGE21 HAS KICKED HANDSOME FROM LOVE_JAPAN(private)]
MAGE21: Sorry. Couldn't take much more of that.
DONALD_DUCK: I've got to be going. I'll have an early morning tomorrow if I'm
going to take the evening off again.
BIGPIG34: See you tomorrow!
MAGE21: Yeah, see you tomorrow, man.
THORNS03: Good night, Mousse.
DOCWHO: Night!
[DONALD-DUCK HAS LEFT LOVE_JAPAN(private)]
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Tuesday Evening
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The boy walked slowly toward the resturant, shuffling his feet as he went.
He carefully kept his eyes on the pavement in front of him, never looking up at
the people he avoided instinctively. No one seemed to notice him at all. He
was a black hole, an area to be skirted, but not seen. He walked on this way
until he reached his destination. Carefully, he pushed the door open. A soft
bell chimed as he did.
"Welcome to Nekohanten!" rang out a cheery voice. Looking up, the boy saw
a perky Chinese girl catching orders that were flung from the the counter and
running them to the tables. Another girl, a cute redhead, was also catching and
delivering orders.
"Hello, Gosunkugi Hikaru."
Looking around, Gos spotted Mousse. The taller boy had just finished
cleaning a table in the front corner, furthest from the action at the counter.
Gosunkugi walked over and sat down at the table as Mousse dried it off.
"H'lo, Mousse. How's work?" Gos shrugged his bookbag from his shoulder
and set it on the booth bench next to him.
"Busy. If Saotome weren't here, I wouldn't be able to go with you.
Fortunately, things usually calm down after six or so, plus I skipped my break
at four so I could take it now." He carefully finished drying the table, then
flipped the rag into the cart next to the table. Gos nodded slowly, thinking
over what Mousse had said.
"Saotome's working here?" he asked in a quizzical tone. Mousse nodded,
pointing at the redhead Gos had seen earlier. She was currently balancing a
plate on her head, with two more in her hands. She was grinning proudly.
Gosunkugi's jaw dropped. "That's Saotome's cursed form?"
"Some curse, huh?" Mousse grinned. Gos nodded slowly. He pushed his jaw
back up, then gulped softly.
"I'd seen her around school, obviously. I'd been told it was Saotome's
sister. The stuff about them being one and the same were feeble jokes. At
least that's what Kunou-senpai told me."
"Don't believe everything my brother tells you, Hikaru-kun." Kodachi
smiled ironically as she sat down. She was wearing a pair of sunglasses, and
her hair was up in a bandanna.
She sat forward, looking at Gosunkugi from behind her glasses. "Even if he
believes it himself, don't believe him." She turned and looked up at their
blind waiter. "Good evening, Mousse-san."
Mousse bowed low. "Good evening, Kunou-san," he intoned gravely. She
giggled behind her raised hand. Mousse stood up and smiled crookedly. He
started to say something when a loud crash interrupted him.
"Aiyah! What pig doing in here? Shoo! Shoo!" Shampoo stood shaking a
broom at he front half of an extremely large pig. The pig was half-in, half-out
of the front doors of the Nekohanten.
"Oh dear! Katsunishiki! Stop that at once!" The pretty girl standing
beside the pig looked distraught. Mousse groaned as he looked at the damage.
"I'll be cleaning up that mess tonight. No rest for the weary, I guess,"
he muttered. Gosunkugi stared at the giant pig, muttering soft wards against
evil as he did so. Kodachi just watched the goings-on with a bemused
detachment.
"Shampoo no like pigs!" the Amazon warrior growled. With a grunt, she
swung the broom down hard on the sumo pig's sensitive nose. Katsunishiki
squealed in pain and backed out the door. Fast.
"There!" Shampoo huffed, brushing her hands as she backed away from the
wreckage. The few remaining customer scattered rapidly and left. Soon the
resturant was empty except for the kids.
"Oh man, what a mess," Ranma muttered, looking at what had been the front
doors. Shampoo ignored her airen for the moment. Turning to Mousse, she threw
the broom at him. He grasped for it, but missed. It clattered onto the floor
next to him.
"Clean up mess, now!" she snapped.
"But Darling Shampoo," Mousse's voice had taken on a slightly wheedling
tone. It grated on Gosunkugi's ears. "I was going out tonight!"
"Not anymore you not." Shampoo said. "No argue, stupid boy. You want
Shampoo tell Hiba-chan you no obey?" She smiled gloatingly. Mousse shook his
head rapidly.
"No, no, that won't be necessary, Shampoo! I'll get right on it!" He
stooped and picked up the broom.
"That's really sad, Mousse," whispered Kodachi, keeping her tone low.
Mousse looked over at her, his eyes narrowed.
"I serve and I obey," he muttered flatly. He began to sweep up the
pieces. Not seeing any reason not to, Gosunkugi joined him, picking up the
larger pieces of debris and piling them neatly in the corner.
"Beyond sad. Pathetic, even." Kodachi smirked as Mousse continued to
clean up the mess on the floor. Mousse stopped sweeping and turned around to
look at Kodachi.
"Kunou-san, are you trying to anger me?"
"Yes." Kodachi's smirk widened slightly. "I'm hoping you'll tell that
purple-haired bimbo where she can stick that broom. Hopefully we won't be too
late if you do it now." She raised an eyebrow. Mousse shook his head and began
sweeping again.
"Go on without me. I have to do this." He turned and watched as Shampoo
chased Ranma out of the room, begging him for a date. Mousse watched them
depart, a look of deepest longing etched in bitter lines on his sharp features.
So engrossed in his own thoughts was he, that he didn't notice a similar look of
longing cross Kodachi's face. Nor did he see where it was directed.
Sighing, Mousse returned to his work. He didn't pause when Akari stepped
into the resturant through the hole where the doors had been.
"I'm so, so sorry, Mouse," she whispered tremulously. Mousse waved his
hand in a gesture of dismissal.
"Don't worry about it. You'd better get going if you're going to see
Konatsu." He continued clearing wreckage as he spoke.
"I'm not going," Gos muttered, shifting a piece of the front door so that
he could get to the fragments underneath, "not until we're done here." He
looked up at Mousse, a faint smile on his face. Mousse nodded slightly, not
returning the smile.
"Well Akari, looks like it's just us," Kodachi said, standing. She looked
over at Mousse. Disappointment warred with disapproval on her pretty face. The
Chinese boy ignored her. Turning back to the smaller girl with a sigh, Kodachi
gestured toward the door.
Akari looked like she was going to cry, looking back and forth between
Kodachi and Mousse. Her sumo pig was sitting across the street, a rather
forlorn look on its face, if a pig could be said to have a forlorn expression.
"I...I...I'm not going, Kunou-san," Akari finally gasped out. She glanced
up at the taller girl, then back down at her feet. "I'm going to stay here and
help clean up the mess I made." She nodded quickly, as much to herself as to
Kodachi, then bent down and began to pick up one of the sweepings piles Mousse
had made. Mousse continued to sweep silently.
"Fine!" Kodachi huffed, obviously put out, "I'll go by myself to see how
_my_ friend is doing. Because obviously no one here cares about her," she
hissed.
"Him," Gos muttered, not looking up from his task.
"Him, her, whatever! _He_ is my friend!" She stormed toward the doorway.
Hopping one of the larger fragments, she disappeared out the door without
another word.
Mousse, Hikaru and Akari continued to work in silence. Only the sound of
shifting rubble and the scrape of the broom broke the stillness of the humid
evening.
"You make me so mad!" Kodachi hissed, storming back into the destroyed
Nekohanten. Angrily, she scooped up a pile of debris and dumped it into a
garbage can.
Mousse smiled fractionally.
"I'm glad you stayed, Kunou-san," whispered Akari shyly. Kodachi
continued to slam bits of wreckage into the can.
"Well, none of us would have to if a certain _someone_ would tell another
certain someone else that they were busy tonight." She dropped the pile she had
into the can and marched over to Mousse.
The Chinese boy didn't look up.
"Well?" Kodachi fumed.
"Well." Mousse replied. He was sweeping more slowly now. Kodachi's hard
features softened slightly.
"Why?" she whispered.
"I love her," came the reply.
"Why?" Kodachi hated the note of pleading in her voice. Mousse stopped
sweeping altogether and looked her in the eyes. Their violet depths glistened
with unshed tears.
"I just do. I can't explain it and I can't help it." His tone held no
apology, no shame for what he was admitting. His black eyes were cold and hard.
"So. That's that, huh?" Kodachi whispered in disbelief. "That's your
choice?" She sniffled, wiping the tears from her eyes with the back of her
sleeve.
"There was never a choice, Kunou-san." Mousse dropped his gaze and went
back to sweeping, going over the areas he had done before. He didn't look up
when Kodachi left the Nekohanten in tears.
He just kept sweeping.
================================================================================
================================================================================
=====================================================
Authors Notes:
Well, yet another chapter. You'll notice that I've pretty much given away
who's who in this chapter. Sure, there are a couple of 'mysteries' (yeah,
right) but they're incidental.
I'll be switching to a mostly-prose format from here on in. The chat-room
format works for what it does, but I'm wrapping the story up, probably in the
next chapter or so, so I need to move to the real-world to finish it out. :-)
Well? Comments, criticisms? Let me know, okay? Arigato!
=======================================================================
***********************************************************************
losers.com
Chapter II
FFML Draft (public) v0.1
A Ranma 1/2 Fan-Fiction
-= By Gendou Knepper =-
Ranma 1/2 characters & situations created and copyright by:
Rumiko Takahashi/Shogakukan/Kitty/Fuji/Viz/etc.
Other copyrights are owned by the respective copyright owners.
All copywritten material is used without permission.
All other material is (c)2000 Gendou Knepper
***********************************************************************
=======================================================================
Monday Night
=======================================================================
[DONALD_DUCK HAS JOINED LOVE_JAPAN(private)]
DONALD_DUCK: Greetings again, my friends.
DOCWHO: Konban wa, Duck-san!
BIGPIG34: Hi Donald_Duck!
HANDSOME: yo don
THIEF: hey man.
QUEEN: hiya!
MAGE21: Hey bro!
DONALD_DUCK: Doctor Who - Long time no see, my friend!
DOCWHO: I was away on a research trip to China for two weeks.
DONALD_DUCK: Really? I'm from China! What part did you visit?
DOCWHO: It's a small province to the north called Quanzhai.
HANDSOME: why would you visit that kamiforsaken part of china
DOCWHO: There's a location there shrouded in legend. I was doing research on it
to see if anything there could provide a cure for a friend's illness.
BIGPIG34: You're a holistic-care doctor, correct?
DOCWHO: Yes.
DONALD_DUCK: What sort of cure are you looking for, Doc?
DOCWHO: Well, I'm afraid it falls under doctor-patient confidentiality, but,
needless to say, it is a rather unique ailment.
DONALD_DUCK: I understand.
THIEF: wow. china, huh? I've never visited china.
HANDSOME: i used to live in quanzhai province its a backwater
DOCWHO: Well, be that as it may, there are many ancient peoples still living
there and practicing their native customs, and I was hoping one of them might
have the cure I was looking for.
BIGPIG34: Well, don't drink the water. g
HANDSOME: and definitely dont fall into the water heh heh heh heh
DOCWHO: What? Why would you say that?
BIGPIG34: Um, it was just something I'd heard. My boyfriend travels a lot and
he always says never drink water in a strange place.
DOCWHO: No, I meant Handsome. What do you know about falling into the water in
Quanzhai?
HANDSOME: why do ya wanna know
DONALD_DUCK: Ok, this is wierd. I used to live in Quanzhai, and I'm also
curious as to your comment about the water.
HANDSOME: lets just say you fall in and youll be a new man or something
DOCWHO: Does the name 'Jhusenkyou' mean anything to you?
DONALD_DUCK: Sweet mother of Gandhi. What do you want with Jhusenkyou?
HANDSOME: yeh doc whats up with jusenkyo
DOCWHO: So you recognize the name?
HANDSOME: maybe
DONALD_DUCK: You would do well, Doctor, to stay as far away from that cursed
place as you possibly can.
QUEEN: whats jusenkyo?
DONALD_DUCK: A myth, nothing more.
MAGE21: I don't mean to contradict you, my friend, but I've researched
Jhusenkyou somewhat and I believe it might exist.
DOCWHO: I know for a fact it exists.
DONALD_DUCK: You're looking for a Jhusenkyou cure, aren't you?
DOCWHO: Who are you?
DONALD_DUCK: I'm asking the same question of you.
HANDSOME: i wanna know who both of you are and how you know so much about the
cursed springs
MAGE21: Do any of you know someone cursed by Jhusenkyou?
HANDSOME: yeh
BIGPIG34: I think so.
MAGE21: Bigpig? You know someone with a curse?
BIGPIG34: My boyfriend.
DONALD_DUCK: Your boyfriend is Jhusenkyou-cursed???
DOCWHO: Who is your boyfriend?
BIGPIG34: Uhm, I'd better not say.
THIEF: ok this is getting spooky
[THORNS03 HAS JOINED LOVE_JAPAN(private)]
THORNS03: Hi everyone!
DOCWHO: Look, I'm trying to find a cure, and if anyone has information, I need
it.
QUEEN: hi thorns.
DONALD_DUCK: I don't know you, Doc. You could be trying to track down
Jhusenkyou for any one of a number of reasons. I'm not giving you any
information.
HANDSOME: me either this smells rotten
MAGE21: This is so fascinating. You guys actually know people with Jhusenkyou-
curses?
THORNS03: What's a Jhusenkyou-curse?
MAGE21: Well, according to legend, it's a curse that causes the cursed to
change forms when immersed in cold water, and to change back to normal when
immersed in hot water.
THIEF: what happens in lukewarm water?
HANDSOME: nothing
THORNS03: I know several people like that.
MAGE21: No WAY! Am I the only person on this channel who doesn't know a cursed
person?
QUEEN: i don't.
THIEF: me either.
DOCWHO: Thorns - What can you tell me about your cursed friends?
THORNS03: Why?
DONALD_DUCK: I'm curious to know why as well, Doc. Why so interested?
DOCWHO: I told you, I'm searching for a cure. A friend of mine is cursed and I
want to find a cure for him, okay? I've told you too much already.
DONALD_DUCK: But you want us to spill all?
HANDSOME: sounds fishy fishy fishy to me
BIGPIG34: Oh dear.
MAGE21: Ok, this is nuts. Are you people pulling my leg here?
HANDSOME: shut up nerd boy stay out of this
DONALD_DUCK: Let me ask you this, Doc - how close did you come to finding a
cure?
DOCWHO: Not very.
HANDSOME: no surprise there
THORNS03: Maybe we should just change the name of this channel to
JHUSENKYO_CURSES and be done with it.
DOCWHO: Look, I'm not looking to fight you guys. I just wanted some answers.
For all I know, you could be hoaxing me. But somehow, I doubt it.
DONALD_DUCK: There are too many military uses for Jhusenkyou, as my people have
learned to their detriment, for me to go and tell you what I know. Our tribe
has a mortal enemy that uses the cursed water to strengthen themselves.
HANDSOME: if you know the right place you can really buff yourself
QUEEN: is anyone else lost?
THIEF: i am. i'm out of here. night guys.
[THIEF HAS LEFT LOVE_JAPAN(private)]
QUEEN: uhm. ok. bye.
DOCWHO: I know where Jhusenkyou is. I was just there. I was hopping that the
naniichiuan would have a cure for my friend.
DONALD_DUCK: So you have a male patient who is cursed?
HANDSOME: best be careful too little water and youll end up halfsies hehehehehe
DOCWHO: What do you mean?
HANDSOME: if you only use a little water you end up mixing curses
DOCWHO: There are some pools like that.
MAGE21: Like what?
DOCWHO: Mixed curses. Like the "Spring of Drowned Yeti Riding on Bull Carrying
Crane and Eel." There's a martial artist who passes through occasionally who is
cursed with that one.
BIGPIG34: That sounds terrible!
MAGE21: Sounds like a monster.
DONALD_DUCK: He is, if we are discussing the same man.
HANDSOME: who you calling a monster duckboy
QUEEN: uh oh.
MAGE21: Uhm . . .
DONALD_DUCK: TAROU?????
HANDSOME: oops
BIGPIG34: You mean Pansuto Tarou?
HANDSOME: WHO YOU CALLING PANTYHOSE SISTER
DOCWHO: You're Tarou?
HANDSOME: no never heard of him whos this tarou of whom you speak
DONALD_DUCK: Nice try. No dice.
HANDSOME: oh well no fooling you eh
MAGE21: Ok, YOU turn into a monster?
HANDSOME: call me that again and im hunting you down nerdboy
DOCWHO: Handsome - You're Tarou? The guy who's hunting down Happosai?
HANDSOME: yeah im gonna make the shriveled little raisin change my name
THORNS03: Happosai? The little panty-stealing pervert???
MAGE21: Hey, I've seen him around Furinkan High!
QUEEN: he tried to grope me once. never again. heh heh heh.
THORNS03: You go to Furinkan? My brother goes there.
HANDSOME: aw geez well this is just old home week isnt it
BIGPIG34: I know several people from there.
DOCWHO: Several of my students go to Furinkan.
DONALD_DUCK: I know many people there. The resturant where I work is nearby as
well.
QUEEN: my love goes to furinkan. our resturant is close to there too.
HANDSOME: femboy goes to furinkan
DONALD_DUCK: Femboy? You mean Saotome Ranma?
DOCWHO: You know Ranma?
MAGE21: Oh no. You guys know Ranma?
QUEEN: i know ranma-san.
THORNS03: Me too.
BIGPIG34: He's my boyfriend's best friend!
HANDSOME: great so we all know the faggot
DONALD_DUCK: Doctor Who - You were in China looking for a cure for Ranma and
his father, weren't you?
DOCWHO: Among others. I know other people who are cursed as well.
DONALD_DUCK: Maybe you know me.
DOCWHO: Odds are we already know each other if we all know Ranma.
DONALD_DUCK: I agree. Seems that our limited anonymity just went out the
window.
THORNS03: Well, we knew that this morning.
QUEEN: huh?
DONALD_DUCK: Thorns - Do you want to tell them?
THORNS03: Donald and I met for lunch today and it turns out that we knew each
other already.
BIGPIG34: Oh wow! That's so romantic!
HANDSOME: woo hoo donald you go stud
DONALD_DUCK: Shut up, Tarou.
HANDSOME: hey its not fair you guys know my name and i dont know yours
MAGE21: Tough.
HANDSOME: youre awfully brave in cyberspace flameboy
DOCWHO: Well, I agree that our anonymity is pretty much gone. I'll go ahead
and tell you who I am. Maybe then you'll trust me enough to help me find a
cure.
DONALD_DUCK: Ok, so who are you?
DOCWHO: Tofu Ono
MAGE21: Doctor Tofu???
DONALD_DUCK: Heh. Seems we do know one another, Doctor. My beloved worked for
several weeks at your clinic when she first came to Japan.
DOCWHO: Shampoo. So you must be Mousse.
DONALD_DUCK: Your skills as a detective match your skills as a doctor.
HANDSOME: hey duckboy heh heh heh hows it going
BIGPIG34: Doctor Tofu and Mousse??? Oh wow! Maybe you know where my boyfriend
is!
QUEEN: mousse-san! but you were in the shop today with kunou kodachi!
THORNS03: Queen - Are you Ukyou?
QUEEN: no
DONALD_DUCK: No, he's Konatsu. Am I right?
HANDSOME: no way queen yer that crossdressing putz ha ha ha ha ha
MAGE21: Shut up Tarou! That's cruel!
[QUEEN HAS LEFT LOVE_JAPAN(private)]
DONALD_DUCK: You're a jerk, Pantyhose. I shouldn't have said anything.
HANDSOME: shut up duckboy i just cant believe it thats all ha ha ha
MAGE21: Mousse, if you were in Ucchan's today, and Thorns was with you, and you
were with ... Thorns is Kunou Kodachi then, right?
THORNS03: I am she.
HANDSOME: the infamous black rose of st hebrekes
MAGE21: Wow. I know all of you guys.
HANDSOME: so who are you
DONALD_DUCK: I must admit to feeling a little apprehensive about someone
knowing who I am and my not knowing who they are in return.
BIGPIG34: Mousse, have you seen my Ryouga-sama?
DONALD_DUCK: Hibiki? Hibiki Ryouga?
HANDSOME: wait you mean pigboy is yer boyfriend
DOCWHO: I saw Ryouga in China just last week. He was trying to find the dojo.
BIGPIG34: Probably going to see Akane. I know how he feels about her.
DONALD_DUCK: Akari?
BIGPIG34: Hi Mousse!
HANDSOME: this is too wierd arent there any strangers in this channel
THORNS03: Mage - you go to Furinkan, right?
MAGE21: Yeah. And yes, I know your brother. I know you too, for that matter.
I'm a patient of Doctor Tofu's and I eat at both Ucchan's and the Nekohanten
fairly often. I've met Akari once. I don't believe I know Tarou though.
Enough clues?
BIGPIG34: Are you friends with my Ryouga-sama?
MAGE21: Not really. Kunou-senpai and I used to talk sometimes, but not anymore.
I don't have too many friends outside of this chatroom.
HANDSOME: oooooh big sad surprise there heh heh heh heh heh
DONALD_DUCK: Shut up, Tarou.
THORNS03: Are you in my brother's kendo club at school?
MAGE21: I wish. No. I'm in the photography club.
DOCWHO: You're a patient of mine?
MAGE21: Asthma. Allergies. Insomnia.
DOCWHO: Gosunkugi.
MAGE21: Got it in one, Doc.
THORNS03: Hikaru-kun?
MAGE21: It's me, Kunou-sama.
HANDSOME: gos the skinny little stalker huh
DONALD_DUCK: Gosunkugi Hikaru. I never would have known. You're so different
in here.
MAGE21: Heh. Who isn't?
HANDSOME: hey man im always this cool and in control
DONALD_DUCK: Yep. Always this much of a jerk too.
HANDSOME: watch yerself man
BIGPIG34: So no-one knows where Ryouga-sama is?
[ICHIBAN_1 HAS JOINED LOVE_JAPAN(private)]
MAGE21: No, sorry. I haven't seen Ryouga since his last fight with Saotome.
ICHIBAN_1: You guys talking about that awesome martial-artist, Saotome Ranma???
HANDSOME: is there anyone who doesnt know femboy
DONALD_DUCK: I've fought him. He's good, but not great.
ICHIBAN_1: Hey! What do you mean he's not great?
MAGE21: What do you know about Saotome?
ICHIBAN_1: He's the greatest living martial-artist in the world! He's devoted
his life to martial-arts and to protecting the weak!
MAGE21: Where have I heard this before?
BIGPIG34: Ryouga-sama says that Ranma-san isn't that great of a fighter. He
just gets lucky sometimes.
DOCWHO: No one is that lucky that often. The boy is skilled.
DONALD_DUCK: He's still a playboy.
THORNS03: I think he's just a victim of circumstance.
ICHIBAN_1: Bigpig - Ryouga said that? Man, P-Chan couldn't fight his way out
of wet paper bag. If he could find the paper bag in the first place!
MAGE21: P-Chan? What does Akane's pet...oh man.
DONALD_DUCK: You just now figured that one out? I figured Akane was the last
to know.
MAGE21: Hibiki Ryouga sleeps with Akane????
THORNS03: How did you know she sleeps with her pet pig?
HANDSOME: stalkerboy knows all about akane dontcha nerdly
ICHIBAN_1: Who's stalking Akane??
MAGE21: I'm not stalking anyone!!!
HANDSOME: gos here likes to take pictures dontcha
ICHIBAN_1: Gosunkugi Hikaru? I should pound you for that!
THORNS03: Why on earth would you want to hurt Hikaru-kun?
DONALD_DUCK: Because Ichiban here is Saotome.
BIGPIG34: Oh dear.
DOCWHO: Of course.
HANDSOME: hah hah hah hah hah praising himself in a channel how low can you go
femboy
THORNS03: Ranma-sama?
MAGE21: I'm dead.
ICHIBAN_1: Who's Saotome? Not me! No, I'm just an anonymous fan! Yeah! Bye!
[ICHIBAN_1 HAS LEFT LOVE_JAPAN(private)]
MAGE21: Great. Now Saotome's gonna pound me at school tomorrow.
HANDSOME: you deserve it stalkerboy
DONALD_DUCK: Saotome won't hurt you. Much.
BIGPIG34: Oh dear. I hope I didn't insult him with what Ryouga-sama said.
HANDSOME: nah femboy has a thin skin
DONALD_DUCK: And you don't, huh, "Pantyhose"??
HANDSOME: i know where you live duckboy so shut up
MAGE21: I'm going to Ucchan's tomorrow to see how Konatsu's doing. Anyone want
to come with me?
HANDSOME: count me out
THORNS03: I'll go if Mousse will go.
DONALD_DUCK: Yeah, I'll go.
BIGPIG34: What time?
MAGE21: After school, say 3:30 or so?
DONALD_DUCK: I don't get a break until four.
BIGPIG34: I live outside of town. I couldn't be there until six or so anyway.
THORNS03: Me either. I have gymnastics practice after school tomorrow.
MAGE21: Ok. Can we meet at the Nekohanten at 6pm and then walk over?
DONALD_DUCK: No problem by me.
THORNS03: Sounds good.
BIGPIG34: Okay!
DOCWHO: I'm glad you guys are going to see him.
HANDSOME: yeah its so touching you all care so much for a fag hah hah hah hah
hah
DONALD_DUCK: He doesn't swing like that. He loves Ukyou, you jerk.
HANDSOME: yeh but the butch dresses like a guy the fag dresses like a girl they
were made for each other hah hah hah hah hah
[MAGE21 HAS KICKED HANDSOME FROM LOVE_JAPAN(private)]
MAGE21: Sorry. Couldn't take much more of that.
DONALD_DUCK: I've got to be going. I'll have an early morning tomorrow if I'm
going to take the evening off again.
BIGPIG34: See you tomorrow!
MAGE21: Yeah, see you tomorrow, man.
THORNS03: Good night, Mousse.
DOCWHO: Night!
[DONALD-DUCK HAS LEFT LOVE_JAPAN(private)]
=======================================================================
Tuesday Evening
=======================================================================
The boy walked slowly toward the resturant, shuffling his feet as he went.
He carefully kept his eyes on the pavement in front of him, never looking up at
the people he avoided instinctively. No one seemed to notice him at all. He
was a black hole, an area to be skirted, but not seen. He walked on this way
until he reached his destination. Carefully, he pushed the door open. A soft
bell chimed as he did.
"Welcome to Nekohanten!" rang out a cheery voice. Looking up, the boy saw
a perky Chinese girl catching orders that were flung from the the counter and
running them to the tables. Another girl, a cute redhead, was also catching and
delivering orders.
"Hello, Gosunkugi Hikaru."
Looking around, Gos spotted Mousse. The taller boy had just finished
cleaning a table in the front corner, furthest from the action at the counter.
Gosunkugi walked over and sat down at the table as Mousse dried it off.
"H'lo, Mousse. How's work?" Gos shrugged his bookbag from his shoulder
and set it on the booth bench next to him.
"Busy. If Saotome weren't here, I wouldn't be able to go with you.
Fortunately, things usually calm down after six or so, plus I skipped my break
at four so I could take it now." He carefully finished drying the table, then
flipped the rag into the cart next to the table. Gos nodded slowly, thinking
over what Mousse had said.
"Saotome's working here?" he asked in a quizzical tone. Mousse nodded,
pointing at the redhead Gos had seen earlier. She was currently balancing a
plate on her head, with two more in her hands. She was grinning proudly.
Gosunkugi's jaw dropped. "That's Saotome's cursed form?"
"Some curse, huh?" Mousse grinned. Gos nodded slowly. He pushed his jaw
back up, then gulped softly.
"I'd seen her around school, obviously. I'd been told it was Saotome's
sister. The stuff about them being one and the same were feeble jokes. At
least that's what Kunou-senpai told me."
"Don't believe everything my brother tells you, Hikaru-kun." Kodachi
smiled ironically as she sat down. She was wearing a pair of sunglasses, and
her hair was up in a bandanna.
She sat forward, looking at Gosunkugi from behind her glasses. "Even if he
believes it himself, don't believe him." She turned and looked up at their
blind waiter. "Good evening, Mousse-san."
Mousse bowed low. "Good evening, Kunou-san," he intoned gravely. She
giggled behind her raised hand. Mousse stood up and smiled crookedly. He
started to say something when a loud crash interrupted him.
"Aiyah! What pig doing in here? Shoo! Shoo!" Shampoo stood shaking a
broom at he front half of an extremely large pig. The pig was half-in, half-out
of the front doors of the Nekohanten.
"Oh dear! Katsunishiki! Stop that at once!" The pretty girl standing
beside the pig looked distraught. Mousse groaned as he looked at the damage.
"I'll be cleaning up that mess tonight. No rest for the weary, I guess,"
he muttered. Gosunkugi stared at the giant pig, muttering soft wards against
evil as he did so. Kodachi just watched the goings-on with a bemused
detachment.
"Shampoo no like pigs!" the Amazon warrior growled. With a grunt, she
swung the broom down hard on the sumo pig's sensitive nose. Katsunishiki
squealed in pain and backed out the door. Fast.
"There!" Shampoo huffed, brushing her hands as she backed away from the
wreckage. The few remaining customer scattered rapidly and left. Soon the
resturant was empty except for the kids.
"Oh man, what a mess," Ranma muttered, looking at what had been the front
doors. Shampoo ignored her airen for the moment. Turning to Mousse, she threw
the broom at him. He grasped for it, but missed. It clattered onto the floor
next to him.
"Clean up mess, now!" she snapped.
"But Darling Shampoo," Mousse's voice had taken on a slightly wheedling
tone. It grated on Gosunkugi's ears. "I was going out tonight!"
"Not anymore you not." Shampoo said. "No argue, stupid boy. You want
Shampoo tell Hiba-chan you no obey?" She smiled gloatingly. Mousse shook his
head rapidly.
"No, no, that won't be necessary, Shampoo! I'll get right on it!" He
stooped and picked up the broom.
"That's really sad, Mousse," whispered Kodachi, keeping her tone low.
Mousse looked over at her, his eyes narrowed.
"I serve and I obey," he muttered flatly. He began to sweep up the
pieces. Not seeing any reason not to, Gosunkugi joined him, picking up the
larger pieces of debris and piling them neatly in the corner.
"Beyond sad. Pathetic, even." Kodachi smirked as Mousse continued to
clean up the mess on the floor. Mousse stopped sweeping and turned around to
look at Kodachi.
"Kunou-san, are you trying to anger me?"
"Yes." Kodachi's smirk widened slightly. "I'm hoping you'll tell that
purple-haired bimbo where she can stick that broom. Hopefully we won't be too
late if you do it now." She raised an eyebrow. Mousse shook his head and began
sweeping again.
"Go on without me. I have to do this." He turned and watched as Shampoo
chased Ranma out of the room, begging him for a date. Mousse watched them
depart, a look of deepest longing etched in bitter lines on his sharp features.
So engrossed in his own thoughts was he, that he didn't notice a similar look of
longing cross Kodachi's face. Nor did he see where it was directed.
Sighing, Mousse returned to his work. He didn't pause when Akari stepped
into the resturant through the hole where the doors had been.
"I'm so, so sorry, Mouse," she whispered tremulously. Mousse waved his
hand in a gesture of dismissal.
"Don't worry about it. You'd better get going if you're going to see
Konatsu." He continued clearing wreckage as he spoke.
"I'm not going," Gos muttered, shifting a piece of the front door so that
he could get to the fragments underneath, "not until we're done here." He
looked up at Mousse, a faint smile on his face. Mousse nodded slightly, not
returning the smile.
"Well Akari, looks like it's just us," Kodachi said, standing. She looked
over at Mousse. Disappointment warred with disapproval on her pretty face. The
Chinese boy ignored her. Turning back to the smaller girl with a sigh, Kodachi
gestured toward the door.
Akari looked like she was going to cry, looking back and forth between
Kodachi and Mousse. Her sumo pig was sitting across the street, a rather
forlorn look on its face, if a pig could be said to have a forlorn expression.
"I...I...I'm not going, Kunou-san," Akari finally gasped out. She glanced
up at the taller girl, then back down at her feet. "I'm going to stay here and
help clean up the mess I made." She nodded quickly, as much to herself as to
Kodachi, then bent down and began to pick up one of the sweepings piles Mousse
had made. Mousse continued to sweep silently.
"Fine!" Kodachi huffed, obviously put out, "I'll go by myself to see how
_my_ friend is doing. Because obviously no one here cares about her," she
hissed.
"Him," Gos muttered, not looking up from his task.
"Him, her, whatever! _He_ is my friend!" She stormed toward the doorway.
Hopping one of the larger fragments, she disappeared out the door without
another word.
Mousse, Hikaru and Akari continued to work in silence. Only the sound of
shifting rubble and the scrape of the broom broke the stillness of the humid
evening.
"You make me so mad!" Kodachi hissed, storming back into the destroyed
Nekohanten. Angrily, she scooped up a pile of debris and dumped it into a
garbage can.
Mousse smiled fractionally.
"I'm glad you stayed, Kunou-san," whispered Akari shyly. Kodachi
continued to slam bits of wreckage into the can.
"Well, none of us would have to if a certain _someone_ would tell another
certain someone else that they were busy tonight." She dropped the pile she had
into the can and marched over to Mousse.
The Chinese boy didn't look up.
"Well?" Kodachi fumed.
"Well." Mousse replied. He was sweeping more slowly now. Kodachi's hard
features softened slightly.
"Why?" she whispered.
"I love her," came the reply.
"Why?" Kodachi hated the note of pleading in her voice. Mousse stopped
sweeping altogether and looked her in the eyes. Their violet depths glistened
with unshed tears.
"I just do. I can't explain it and I can't help it." His tone held no
apology, no shame for what he was admitting. His black eyes were cold and hard.
"So. That's that, huh?" Kodachi whispered in disbelief. "That's your
choice?" She sniffled, wiping the tears from her eyes with the back of her
sleeve.
"There was never a choice, Kunou-san." Mousse dropped his gaze and went
back to sweeping, going over the areas he had done before. He didn't look up
when Kodachi left the Nekohanten in tears.
He just kept sweeping.
================================================================================
================================================================================
=====================================================
Authors Notes:
Well, yet another chapter. You'll notice that I've pretty much given away
who's who in this chapter. Sure, there are a couple of 'mysteries' (yeah,
right) but they're incidental.
I'll be switching to a mostly-prose format from here on in. The chat-room
format works for what it does, but I'm wrapping the story up, probably in the
next chapter or so, so I need to move to the real-world to finish it out. :-)
Well? Comments, criticisms? Let me know, okay? Arigato!
=======================================================================