Mm… I should probably explain my absence… yes… Well for one thing, I had a new chapter all ready to go… then my computer died… and his memory was wiped… so there went the new chapter… /bites thumb/… yeah… then I rewrote the chapter… but then my internet wouldn't work… so yeah. Enjoy.
The sky overhead was a crisp blue, a sharp contrast to the dark windows of the Good Vibes Record Store. Which was weird in itself, considering that the store should've been open for at least an hour by now. After all, it was ten o'clock.
Now on a normal Sunday morning I'd still be in bed and would remain there for at least another hour. But today was a special day: it was the day I applied for my first job. All morning and most of last night I'd been reassuring myself that the job at the record store was practically made for me, but I felt nervous none the less. I'd woken up early and joined the morning crowd at the bath house to make sure I looked my best. I'd even attempted to fill out a résumé (with Jhim's help of course).
All that for nothing.
The giant sign mocked me openly, reading in bright cheerful letters "Out of Business". I stared stupidly at the sign, trying to place in my mind just when the store showed signs of failing. Finally I shrugged and turned on my heel, a little sad I didn't say good-bye to Sunny, a little angry at putting myself in a situation where I had to go job hunting, but over all very hungry. Who knows, I might find a job opportunity along the way, I thought optimistically.
Famous last words.
Ever get that feeling of impending doom while walking down the street? Like, if your life had background music, the tempo would become faster and the overall mood would be really fidgety and dark. And the people in the movie just go along la-di-da, never suspecting their fate because they can't hear the background music going "DUN DUN DUUUUN!"
My background music was set to something from the 'Lord of the Rings' soundtrack, and not one of the pretty ones either. No way, that'd be too easy. But of course I couldn't hear the music that was warning me of the oncoming danger, so I continued down the street, strolling happily along looking for a decent restaurant.
That was when I smelled it. It was a very rich smell, smooth with small punctures of spices. Mmm… noodles.
Right then and there some major bells should've gone off in my head (sirens actually, but who wants to get picky?) but it was ignored, just as the background music was. I really have to turn that volume up sometime.
I followed the smell, my stomach getting louder as I got closer. Finally I saw where the food smell was coming from. It was a decent sized restaurant, freshly cleaned and painted with a giant "Grand Opening" sign out front.
Now I'm not a stupid person and despite being accused of thinking with my stomach more than my brain on several occasions, the restaurant name stopped me dead in my tracks. In big, neat letters "Neko Hanten" was written across the front of the building.
Ah. Well at least I didn't go in.
At that moment I heard two voices behind me, two hungry voices that indicated they were in the mood for ramen.
"Man I'm hungry," Sayuri whined.
"I hear there's a new ramen shop just up the street," Yuka replied. "You wanna check it out?"
"You bet! I'd love some ramen right now!"
My powers of observation rarely let me down. If the two girls were to spot me, they might force me to come into the restaurant and order lunch with them. This couldn't happen. Right. Time to run away.
"Hey look, it's Rizu! Hey Rizu!" Sayuri yelled at me from behind.
To run away or not to run away, that is the question.
"Rizu! Hey, we're back here!"
Wither tis nobler of the mind to desert my friends or to suffer the consequences of my restaurant choice.
Suddenly I felt a hand on my shoulder. I jumped and looked back to see an irate Sayuri. "Are you okay? You didn't respond when we called you."
"Yeah, you looked totally lost in thought," Yuka added, walking up beside me.
"Well, sorta…" I said. You can still bolt Liz, go, go, go!
"Anyway, we're about to go eat. You wanna come?"
Before I could respond, my stomach gave an obnoxious gurgle. Curse you stomach! You've betrayed me again!
"I'll say that's a yes!" Yuka giggled. "Come on, the restaurant's right there."
As my friends walked ahead of me, I sighed in defeat. Eh, tis the decision of the Powers the Be, I thought morbidly. Maybe they have a special 'Alleged Amazon Relations' discount price. But just in case I reached into my purse and pulled out my old black hat.
The restaurant was crowded with Sunday morning shoppers, ranging from young mothers with their children to young teenagers. I nervously played with my hands while Sayuri and Yuka chatted pleasantly.
"So Rizu, why are you out so early?" Yuka asked me.
"Job hunting," I said shortly, feeling very venerable and fidgety. I don't like this place, I don't like this place, I don't like this place…
"Job hunting? What do you need a job for?" Sayuri said.
"I was running out of money and my parents didn't want to send me any more than necessary," I lied quickly. "Hence the need for a job."
"Welcome to Neko Hanten. Table for three?" a young voice asked pleasantly. I looked up from the ground and quickly looked back down. Shampoo smiled cheerfully at our small party, her demeanor very different from when Sayuri and Yuka had seen her last.
"Sh-shampoo?" Yuka gaped. "What are you doing here?"
Shampoo looked at Yuka quizzically. "Shampoo know?" she said simply (Simple-minded that is).
"We were there when you broke into the locker room," Sayuri supplied. "You were looking for Ranma, remember?"
Shampoo frowned, as if trying to remember an insignificant detail. "Oh yes, Shampoo remember," she said finally with a false smile. It was obvious she didn't remember either one of the bystanders. "Please come this way," she said, leading us to a table near the kitchen. "Shampoo be right with you."
I sat down quickly and opened up my menu, keeping my eyes down.
"Jeez Rizu, what's the matter?" Sayuri asked. "You act like you're a wanted criminal or something."
"Is it because you don't like Shampoo?" Yuka said.
"Not exactly…" I muttered.
"At least take your hat off," Yuka said, making a swipe at my head.
"No!" I exclaimed, clutching my hat protectively.
"It's rude to wear a hat inside!" Yuka fought back, trying to yank my hat (and consequently some of my hair) off my head.
"Never!"
I heard a voice being cleared at the end of our table; both Yuka and I froze. "Excuse me, but could you two please keep it down?" an elderly voice said. "You're frightening some of our costumers."
Suddenly I noticed the many people looking at our table. So much for going un-noticed. Yuka immediately let go of my head and muttered an apology.
"I'm really, really sorry about this ma'am," Sayuri said to the previous speaker. "We were having some disagreements about proper etiquette." I was treated to an extra special 'I'll Kill You Later' Death Glare ™ by my friends.
Riiiight…duck and cover.
The woman at the head of the table laughed quietly. "I see. Would you ladies like to order something?"
I looked up from my lap at the old woman and immediately wished I hadn't. Cologne looked like a cross between a monkey and a beetle with human characteristics thrown in the mix for good measure. What really got me though were her eyes; no, they didn't "see straight through your motives" or anything although she probably could. They were just so damn huge. Like twice the size of my fist! And the pupils were so tiny! How the hell did she see anything!
"Is something wrong miss?" the elder Amazon asked me.
"Huh?" Yuka elbowed me sharply in the gut, bringing me back from my world of anatomy logic. "Oh yeah, just eyes, I mean fines! I mean…" Very smooth. "I'm just fine thank you," I finished with my best 'vapid blonde' smile.
Cologne raised an eyebrow (EYES!). "Very well."
We ordered our lunch quickly, my two friends shooting me irritated glares every few seconds. Finally Cologne hopped away on her knarled cane, leaving me to the mercy of my "comrades."
"What was that?" Yuka hissed. "What are you, three?"
"We just can't take you anywhere anymore, can we?" Sayuri said in a low voice.
"But her eyes," I whispered. "Did you see the size of those things!"
"What are you babbling about?" Yuka said. "They looked perfectly fine to me."
"Fine? They were gigantic! Like the Godzilla of eyes! The eyes that ate the planet! The eyes of eternal DOOM!" I said as quietly as I could.
"God Rizu, stop picking on the poor woman," Sayuri scolded.
I snorted. "Trust me, she is defiantly not a 'poor woman'," I thought aloud.
"What are you talking about?" Yuka asked.
Oh, did I say that out loud? "Do you even know who she is?" I said sarcastically.
"No, not really," Yuka responded. "Why, is she someone important?"
"Well she's only-" Suddenly I spotted Shampoo over at the next table cleaning, listening intently. She wasn't being very stealthy about it though, she was practically climbing onto our table. Jeez, hon. Think you could be anymore obvious? "I forgot."
WHUMP! Shampoo lost her balance and fell between Sayuri and Yuka; the two girls looked like they were ready to leap out of their chairs, eyes huge and surprised. I swear it took all I had not to burst into an uncontrollable fit of giggles.
"Shampoo so sorry!" the flustered Amazon apologized, quickly picking herself up. "Your order almost ready," she said and bolted towards the kitchen.
The three of us looked at each other for a moment before I shrugged. "Well that was anti-climactic."
"COME ON GIRLS! YOU CAN DO BETTER THAN THAT!"
You know those people that say that running is mostly a mental sport rather than a physical sport? Well they're right. And I wasn't in my best mental shape.
"How /gasp/ many more?" I choked out, trying my best to keep up with a small girl from a different homeroom.
"Two laps I think," she replied in an exhausted voice.
Perfect.
"Arumigufuchi! Get moving!" I didn't even bother to respond to my gym teacher, it'd waste my breath and time. The gym teacher was a heavy set woman from a long line of professional wrestlers. Stereotypical I know, but you tend to forget that when she's turning purple in the face from yelling at all the slackers (A.K.A. me).
"Hey Rizu," I heard a voice behind me say. Akane jogged up to me and gave me a big smile. "How're you doing?"
"You know how /gasp/ hard it is to /pant/ work off fifteen years of McDonalds?" I replied. "Damn. Hard."
Akane laughed. "Oh come on, it can't be that hard. If you want I could run with you sometimes after school."
I winced but nodded anyway. "Sure. It couldn't /pant/ hurt."
"TENDO! ARUMIGUFUCHI!" The gym teacher barked at us. "STOP TALKING AND START RUNNING!"
Akane gave me an encouraging smile before running to the front of the line. I sighed and looked out at the field. The boys' gym class was enjoying a nice game of soccer. The guys on Ranma's team weren't stupid and they wanted to win so there was no protest when almost every pass made it to the martial artist. So much for 'no I in TEAM', I thought with an amused smile.
Suddenly I thought I heard the small tinkle of a bike bell, the sound magnified inside my brain. Aw great. She's here.
"Nihao!" Shampoo greeted her 'airen' happily, her bike of DOOM soaring through the air. It's a good thing most of the population of Nerima had some sort of inbred Spider-Sense because quick as a blink Shampoo's landing area was cleared.
"Shampoo!" Ranma exclaimed, still kicking the ball towards the goal. "What're you doing here?"
I stopped running and shot a quick glance at Akane. She didn't look happy, but she seemed more perplexed than anything else. I sprinted to where my friends were standing, and hid from the gym teacher's line of vision. "What's she here for?" I asked.
Kotori watched with a bemused look as Shampoo chased down her fiancée. "If you'd listen you might figure it out," she said to me.
"Ranma!" Shampoo yelled happily. "Hurry and ask me to marry you!"
Good lord, the woman used pronouns! She's smarter than she lets on…
"Tell the old bag this from me," Ranma yelled back. "I've never been in better shape!"
"Oh my god," Sayuri gasped, her eyes on the opposite end of the field. "Is that that old woman from the restaurant?" Sure enough Cologne was headed towards Ranma at a rapid pace, hopping along on her cane.
I couldn't help but laugh out loud at Yuka and Sayuri's shocked faces. "Go Granny go!"
Cologne was in front of Ranma now, cackling like a witch. "But how long will that last, hmmm!" she exclaimed with a certain glee that sent a shiver down my spine.
"Akane, who is that?" Kotori asked the blue haired girl, watching the ancient midget leap away from an angry Ranma.
"She's Shampoo's great-grandmother, Cologne," Akane informed us, still observing what was happening with her fiancé.
Ranma picked up a giant roller thing with his feet and had kicked it at Cologne in frustration, hoping it'd do something.
However, it only provided a nifty entrance prop for the long-haired Amazon boy who'd suddenly appeared. There was a flash of metal as the roller was cut in half length wise, Mousse coming through the space it provided and landed on his feet gracefully.
The crowd watched the sliced roller fall through the air, landing on the new character's head. "Oooh, that looks like that hurt," I said aloud as the crowd surged forward to inspect the injured. I ran up behind Akane who was peering over Ranma's shoulder.
Suddenly Mousse's head popped up. "Shampoo," was the first thing the kid said, foreshadowing the slapstick to come.
"Oh looky, he's alive!" I said cheerfully. Akane looked at me through the corner of her eye when the Amazon boy rose from the ground.
"Shampoo!" he exclaimed, glomping Ranma. Ever see a cat's hair stand straight on end? It's even funnier when it's a pigtail.
"Who are you calling Shampoo!" Ranma spat, his foot planted on Mousse's face.
Quickly Mousse leaned forward and put on his thick glasses. "WHO ARE YOU!" the confused boy yelled as he sent an even more confused Ranma flying.
"What the..." Akane began before Mousse grabbed a hold of her.
"Shampoo," he murmured, although I'm not sure how anybody heard him over my hysterical laughter.
… What? Can't a girl enjoy a little humor? Pfft, stupid dramatic tension people…
Akane attacked Mousse from the front the same way Ranma did, while the pig-tailed teenager landed on his head.
"Who are you calling Shampoo?" Ranma growled.
Akane didn't seem to be in a better mood. "Who are you anyway!"
Mousse quickly regained his composure, taking off his glasses for emphasis. "I am Mousse. "I am the man that is to be Shampoo's groom."
"Mousse?" I asked. "What, no special Chinese way to say your name?"
Mousse looked in my general direction with a serious look on his face. "Do you have a problem with my name sir?"
Sir? "Well Shampoo has a cool way to say her name in Chinese. What about you? Didn't your parents love you or something?"
"Who cares about his name?" Ranma exclaimed, suddenly a lot more friendly with the strange new Amazon that he was three seconds before. "So you say you're Shampoo's groom?"
"Mousse stupid," Shampoo said in a flat tone. "We just childhood friends."
"Mousse!" Cologne accused as she dropped out of the sky from nowhere (Special Chinese Teleportation Technique). "Weren't you once spurned by Shampoo?"
"But… but… but that was when we were only three!" Mousse protested weakly.
"Age makes no difference! It has been decided!" Cologne shot back. "Ranma is to be Shampoo's groom!"
Ranma smirked. "Not if you ask me, I'm not!"
"HAVE YOU NO EARS!" Mr. Tendo screamed into a bullhorn behind Cologne. "RANMA IS ENGAGED TO AKANE!"
"Where the hell do these people come from anyway?" I asked nobody in particular. Apparently there was still much about special Asian Techniques of Annoyance I needed to learn.
Mousse stood by, quietly working out a very complicated problem in his head. "You have a fiancée…" he said quietly to Ranma. "And yet… you have Shampoo."
"Now listen…!" Ranma protested.
"ENEMY OF ALL WOMEN!" Mousse shouted, trying to take off Ranma's head with a round-house kick.
"If you'd just listen for a-" the pigtailed young man began before he was interrupted.
"The Blow of the Swan Fist!" Mousse exclaimed and to everyone's surprise, it actually looked like Ranma had been hit!
"Whoa! He nailed Ranma!" Daisuke shouted in surprise.
"I never even saw his hands!" Hiroshi added.
Suddenly Akane put it all together. "He's carrying a weapon!"
Ranma was pissed off. "Why you… blind…"
"Be careful!" Shampoo said to Ranma. "Mousse is master of hidden weapon."
"I am indeed," Mousse said a suave smirk on his face. "Just as a swan floating quietly conceals thrashing feet beneath the water," he said. The Amazon boy lifted his arms in preparation for another attack. "So it is impossible to see what's in my hands!"
Ranma this time though was prepared for what was coming. "Impossible! HA!" He stopped the attack with his feet, revealing Mousse's secret weapon.
"What is it with this guy and swans?" I said, looking at the toilet training potty which was shaped as a graceful swan. And why did it have handles on the side of the swan's head… never mind, I didn't want to know.
"What an insult!" one of the random bystanders whose name I didn't know announced. "An insult to grievous to bear!"
And apparently Ranma agreed. "That does it!" he roared.
"Then you will fight?" Mousse asked.
Like you even had to say it.
"Fine! These are my terms! If I should win-"
"You can't have Shampoo," Cologne deadpanned.
Mousse hesitated before redirecting his ALMIGHTY POINTING WRATH to Akane. "Then I will take your woman!"
"Now wait just a-" Akane exploded.
"You got it!" Ranma interrupted. "The fight is on!"
"I have your pledge as a man?" Mousse yelled, even though Ranma was a foot away.
"You bet!"
I looked over at Cologne, who was looking too happy to be good. Suddenly she looked straight back at me with an icy stare. I jerked back into position, my shoulders tense. But I could still feel her staring at me.
Everyday after school Jhim and I would either go to the apartment or into town, giving me an opportunity to fill him in on the recent developments and details about how life was in class. Eventually we'd head over to the Tendo's where I'd either go on my way or come in to get some homework help from Akane.
Today we'd decided to walk to Dr. Tofu's office to invite him to the Ranma vs. Mousse match, just in case things got 'messy'.
"While we're there, you might wanna ask Dr. Tofu if he needs an assistant or something," Jhim said. "I'm sure you could get a job there."
"Yeah, probably," I said hands behind my head. "Hey, do you ever wonder how we're gonna get home?"
Jhim looked at me quizzically. "That's a sudden question. What brought that up?"
I shrugged. I wasn't really sure what had brought that question to surface. I'd just always accepted that if we made it out to the end of the story we'd get home. But lately, I'd been feeling like something was out of place. It was like trying to remember something important but when you tried to brush it off the nagging feeling just keep tugging at your sleeve. "I just think it'd be something nice to know is all."
Jhim sighed and adjusted his backpack. "I know how you feel. But we're still pretty early in the series right now, so it'll be a while before we can even start to guess about that."
"Yeah, I guess you're right," I said.
My friend smiled widely and patted me on the head. "Hey, don't sweat it. Just sit back and enjoy the show for now."
I grinned. "You're starting to sound like me," I said. "Maybe you've spent too much time with me and my brain pattern's rubbing off on you."
He shrugged. "I guess I'll have to live with that."
"I'm sorry Rizu, I can't give you a job right now," Dr. Tofu said.
I stared at the handsome doctor, eyes big. "B-but why? You're always hiring extra help and…"
"Well you see, I've already got an assistant," the doctor cut me off. "He's living here by himself and he's such a young kid, I couldn't say no to him."
"Who is the kid anyway?" Jhim asked. "Would we know him?"
Dr. Tofu smiled. "As a matter of fact I'm almost certain you do."
At that moment we heard the screen in the back slide open. "I'm back Dr. Tofu," I heard a young boy's voice call out.
Oh my god, you have got to be joking.
"Riz-chan!" Kurizu announced happily as he came into the office. "What are you doing here? Are you hurt?"
I looked at Jhim and it looked like he was thinking along the same lines as I was.
"No, no, Rizu and Chimofu dropped by to tell me about an important match tomorrow," Dr. Tofu filled in the young boy. "Apparently they thought it would be a good idea for me to be there, just in case."
"Who's fighting?" Kurizu asked.
"Ranma and some weird Amazon named Mousse," I stated plainly.
Kurizu's eyes lit up. "Someone might actually be a match for Ranma Saotome! This I have to see!"
"Yes, it is a bit odd," Dr. Tofu said cheerfully. "What type of fighter is Mousse?"
"Well Shampoo said he's a master of hidden weapons," Jhim said. "And she's usually a good judge of fighting skill."
"Such is the gift of the Amazon race," Dr. Tofu said. "Well if he's that good, the match is guaranteed to get a little rowdy."
"So you'll come tomorrow?" I asked.
The doctor nodded. "Of course I will. Besides, it's been a long time since I've watched a good match."
I smiled. I guess everyone's been kinda bored with Ranma on top all the time. "Thanks a lot Dr. Tofu. We really appreciate this."
"Hey Riz-chan, when is this fight anyway?" Kurizu asked. "I wanna see if I can come."
"I think it's after school," I replied. "Since its Saturday tomorrow, they should have the whole afternoon to beat the crap outta each other."
Whew! It's done! Thanks for bearing with me through this ultra-long drought. I know where the story needs to go, how it's gonna get there and all… it's just kinda a pain to put on paper. Anyway, I appreciate the older readers sticking with me and hope that the newer readers will do the same. Much love!
- The Liz