Hidden Weapons United CH 8
^^^=Flashback / "Japanese" / ' Thought ' / :Chinese: / {English} / [written]
Destine looked up at Mousse and rubbed her head. "I guess I should have given you some warning." She stood up and dusted herself off. "Well, I’m back. Surprised to see me?"
Mousse rushed forward and hugged her. "I thought you had disappeared off the face of the earth. Where did you go?"
"China. I traveled to Jusenkyo. I’m cured! I found the pool of the drowned girl. I stepped into it and it negated the previous curse." She reached up and pushed her hair back behind her shoulders. "Can we go sit down?"
"Sure." Mousse lead her to the living room and sat down on the couch. Destine sat down next to him and smiled. Mousse looked her over, she had hardly aged since he had last seen her. The only real differences were that she had a deep tan and her hair was now down to the middle of her back. "So you’re cured? You no longer turn into a mongoose?"
"Yep. And I went and talked with Cologne. She’s changed quite a bit now. I talked to her and she said that she was sorry for what she had done. In fact she has convinced the elders to undo that engagement. She and I traveled back on the same boat. She’s in Nerima again. Everyone there is wondering about us. I explained everything to them and told them that you guys might be heading back." Destine yawned and stretched. "It’s going to feel good to sleep in a nice warm bed again."
Taelesin bounded into the room and jumped up into Destine’s lap. "Well how are you doing friend? You're just a bit too big to be doing this you know." Destine scratched his ears and smiled. "I need to get some sleep."
"Your bed’s still made so you can just go and slip into it if you want. I’ll see you in the morning then?" Mousse leaned forward and kissed Destine on the cheek. "I’m so glad you’re back Des-chan."
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"Morning Mousse you look happy." Shampoo walked into the kitchen and sat down at the table. "What happen?"
Mousse turned around and grinned. "Oh you’ll find out in a bit." He turned back to the stove and lifted the lid off one of the pots. "Breakfast should be ready in a bit. Could you go wake up Ryoga and Tide?"
"Sure." Shampoo stood up and walked down the hall she opened the door to Tide’s room and walked over to the bed. She shook Tide and pointed to the door.
Tide nodded and got up. "Breakfast ready?" She signed and looked at Shampoo.
Shampoo nodded. "Almost."
Tide walked over to the closet and pulled out one of her robes. She took off her nightgown and pulled on the robe.
Shampoo smiled and headed for Mousse and Ryoga’s room. "Ryoga, breakfast." She walked over to the bed and shook him.
"Go away Shampoo let me sleep for a bit." Ryoga rolled over and pulled the blankets over his head.
"But Mousse say he have surprise for us."
"Let me sleep."
Shampoo sighed and walked into the bathroom. She filled a pitcher with cold water, walked back over to Ryoga and emptied the contents of the pitcher on his head. "You get up now."
A little black pig poked its head out of the sheets and glared at her.
"Go get ready. Hot water in bucket by bath." Shampoo smiled and walked out the room and back into the kitchen. "So what the surprise Mousse?"
"Just wait until everyone’s here." Mousse grabbed five bowls from under the counter and filled them with some rice. He placed a bowl filled with a mixture of butter and brown sugar on the table.
Slowly Tide and Ryoga wandered into the kitchen. "What’s with the extra bowl Mousse? You really hungry?" Tide pointed to the bowl set next to Mousse.
"Nope. It’s for her." He pointed to the back door. It opened and Destine stepped into the kitchen.
"Morning. I’m sorry I didn’t let you guys know I was here earlier but I got home around midnight."
Shampoo jumped up and rushed over to Destine and hugged her. "Destine’s back!"
Mousse smiled and looked over to Tide. "Surprise."
"Mousse, you trickster. Why didn’t you tell us?" Tide smiled and motioned Destine to sit down.
"I asked him not to." Destine smiled and pried Shampoo off herself and sat down. "I’m glad to be back. I’ve got so much to tell you guys." She turned to Mousse and grinned. "I didn’t know you knew sign."
"I picked it up really fast. Tide has been training me for the last year. I had to learn so I could understand her. Shampoo and Ryoga know some basics."
Tide put some of the butter mixture onto her rice and stirred it in. "Let’s eat and then you can tell us about your trip."
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Destine sat down on the couch and looked around the room. Mousse was sitting next to her, Shampoo and Ryoga were sitting in some armchairs, and Tide was sitting in her large armchair. "I guess I’ll start from the beginning. After I got home I went into my room and lay down on my bed. I couldn’t understand how I couldn’t have figured out that Yoshi was spying on me. Suddenly the phone next to my bed rang. I answered it and almost ran from the room. Yosho was on the other side of the line and told me that he planned on coming to get me at midnight. He said he had over 100 men who were going to help out. I hung up the phone and grabbed my backpack. I packed everything away and quickly scrawled out a note to you guys. I left through the window.
After that I went to the train station and bought a ticket for the 4:00 am westbound train. I sat down in the station and leaned back in the seat. Suddenly a group of men surrounded me and moved in to attack. I didn’t feel like fighting at the moment so I threw down one of my flash bombs and, grabbing my pack, ran down the tracks. I didn’t stop running until I reached the next station. I looked at my watch and saw that it was about 3:50 am. I stepped into the station and boarded the westbound train. I took it until it reached the Sea of Japan. I got off and stowed away on an ocean liner bound for china.
I arrived at China feeling rather queasy, but still in one piece. I caught a bus and traveled to Jusenkyo. Once there it didn’t take long for me to find that stupid guide. After a bit of ‘convincing’ he led me to the spring of the drowned girl. I turned myself into a mongoose and stepped into the spring. The water was absolutely freezing but I emerged as a human girl. I grabbed my clothes and put them back on. So now I am no longer cursed." Destine smiled.
"What type of convincing Destine?"
"Just a simple pounding. Nothing more. That guide has absolutely no pain tolerance.
After I left the springs I decided to wander for a while. I let my mind wander and before I knew it, I was standing at the edge of your village Shampoo. I can’t say I liked the greeting that much but the trip there did prove to be beneficial. I met with Cologne and the elders and apologized for my actions."
Shampoo gave Destine a questioning look. "Why you need to apologize?"
"I um sort of turned their table over and threw one of them out of the window back at the Cat Cafe. They had me defeat their best fighter to prove I was worthy of their forgiveness. In fact their best fighter is your sister Mousse. She was extremely hard to beat. Afterwards she came up to me and asked how you were doing. I told her that you were fine and in good health.
I went back to the elders and they forgave me. They even decided to negate my betrothal to Mousse. I stayed with Cologne there for a few months and then traveled back to Nerima with her. I went to work in the cafe and got to spend three days explaining to everyone where you guys were. Akane is extremely upset because her ‘pig’ P-chan has disappeared. I told her I’d go find him for her. About a week ago some men came into the cafe and demanded to talk to me. At their head was, of course, Yosho. They demanded I go with them or I would suffer the consequences. I refused and they attacked. I managed to fend off most of them but they finally wore me down. They grabbed me and bound me to a chair. They were about to leave when Ranma stepped in to the cafe. He beat the crap out of those guys and helped me out of my bindings. I ran to the phone and called the police, so now the entire dojo is behind bars. They won’t be out for at least ten years.
Yesterday Cologne walked up to me and asked me to go find her granddaughter. I grabbed my pack and headed here." Destine smiled and leaned back. "And that’s my story."
"Great grandma looking for me?" Shampoo leaned forward in her chair and smiled. "I go back today." She got up and went her room.
Mousse looked over at Destine. "Do I have to head back anytime soon?"
"No, I was actually hoping you’d stay for a bit, you too Ryoga. I need a bit of practice and then I need to take my test." Destine looked over at Tide and grinned. "I think I’m ready for the final test."
"Des-chan," Mousse grabbed her hands and smiled. "I’ll be willing you to help with anything you want."
"Then promise me that you will fight your hardest against me and not hold back." Destine stood up and stretched. "I’ll be in my room if anyone needs me."
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"Shampoo going home. See Ranma again!" Shampoo opened up her pack and placed her clothes inside. She walked into the bathroom and brushed her hair. "Ranma be happy to see me. He no longer have to worry."
"Still in here Shampoo? I thought you’d be gone by now." Destine walked into the bathroom and smiled. "Cologne’s going to be so happy to see you."
"So be Ranma. We get married someday."
"Why? He doesn’t love you."
"It law. He beat me I marry him." Shampoo walked back into the bedroom and shut her bag.
"But what about Mousse? Haven’t you come to like him even a little bit?" Destine walked over to her closet and pulled out a large box. Setting it down on her bed she turned to Shampoo. "Well?"
"I like Mousse as childhood friend no more. He love you though. He stayed up late every night looking out his window waiting for you to come home. Ryoga hear him say he love you in his sleep too." She picked up her bag and looked around the room. "I get everything?"
"If you forgot something I’ll bring it back with me. You want me to bring back some of my clothes for you? I don’t fit in them anymore remember?" Destine sat down on her bed and took off her glasses. ‘He loves me? Does this mean he’s given up Shampoo and learned the final technique? If so I’m going to have to train extra hard to beat him.’ Putting her glasses back on she looked up to see that Shampoo had left the room. ‘Oh well, I guess I’ll just ask Ryoga about this.’ She stood up, walked over to her backpack and grabbed her swimsuit. ‘I think I’ll take a dip in the spring first.’ She took off her clothes and pulled on the swimsuit. Walking into the bathroom she opened the drawer and pulled out her brush and a hair tie. She brushed out her hair and put it in a bun. ‘There, that’s better.’ Destine grabbed her towel and headed to the kitchen.
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"You’re not serious are you?" Ryoga stood up and grabbed Mousse by the collar. "If you are serious then let me give you this warning. You harm her in any way and you will suffer my wrath."
"All right I get your point! Geeze talk about over protective. Besides, I don’t think I’d have to be too worried about you. I don’t think there’d be anything left after she finished with me." Mousse grabbed Ryoga’s arms and tried to pull himself away. "Look, I need to get back to the cooking. You don’t want an unseasoned lunch now do you?" Ryoga set Mousse down and sat back down by the table. "Thank you." He turned back to the stove and added the herbs into the pot. "Lunch should be done cooking about noon. Has Shampoo left yet?"
"She left a few minutes ago." Destine walked into the room and headed for the door. "Smells good. What are you cooking?"
"Soup and rice. Where are you off to sis’?" Ryoga turned around and gawked.
"The spring. Shut your mouth Ryoga, you’re catching flies." Destine smiled and slipped on her shoes and walked out the door. "I’ll be back in a bit."
Ryoga turned to Mousse. "You’re not following her."
"Oh sure, I’ll follow her and let lunch overcook. Besides I wasn’t the one who was catching flies." Mousse laughed and sat down.
"Well excuse me. I’ve never seen her wear anything but her robes." Ryoga stood up and walked over to the refrigerator. "Want a soda?"
"Sure. Could you also grab the soy sauce while you’re over there?"
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Destine set her towel on a tree branch and dived into the spring. ‘Why wouldn’t he told me?’ She came up for and started treading water. ‘Could Shampoo just be playing a joke on me?’
Suddenly she heard a loud commotion coming from the house. Startled, she sunk under the water. She came back up gasping for air. "Trouble!" She swam back to the side and jumped out. "Don’t have time to bother with the shoes and towel." She ran back to the house and stopped dead in her tracks. In front of her were Mousse and Ryoga in their cursed forms rolling around on the ground fighting. She ran up to them and pulled them apart, Tide opened the door and stared.
"What’s going on? Taelesin is going crazy in here."
Destine set Ryoga and Mousse down and rested her feet on top of them to keep them from moving. "I’m not sure. I was in the spring, which explains why I’m soaking wet and barefoot. I heard the commotion and rushed up here thinking there was something wrong, but when I got here all I found were these two fighting." She reached down and picked them up. "Something you want to tell me?" Ryoga’s eyes widened and he shook his head. "Well then, I’ll just turn you back into your normal forms and ask you again." She wiped her feet, walked past Tide and headed for Mousse and Ryoga’s room. Inside she grabbed two large towels from the bathroom and wrapped them around Mousse and Ryoga. She turned on the hot water in the bathtub and pulled the stopper. As soon as the water was a couple feet deep she tossed the bundles in.
Mousse’s head shot up from under the water and glared at Destine. He grabbed the towel before it could float away from him and wrapped it around his waist. Ryoga came up and did the same. Mousse slipped his glasses on. "Why’d you go and do that for?!"
Destine turned around and stood up. "I’m going to go check on lunch. Why don’t you guys dry off and get dressed? Then you can explain yourselves." She grabbed a towel and wrapped it around her waist. "Don’t stay in too long."
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Mousse slipped on a robe and wrapped a towel around his hair. "Why did you attack me Ryoga? I was merely going to the back door to tell Destine to start heading back. I wasn’t going down to the spring." He grabbed a pair of pants and pulled them on.
"You mean the spring is in earshot?" Ryoga pulled on his pants and a sleeveless shirt and sat on his bed. "Why didn’t you tell me?"
"I tried to but you threw that water on me." Mousse sighed. "I don’t think I’ve ever been so embarrassed." He removed the towel and started drying his hair. "Weren’t you embarrassed Ryoga?"
"About what?"
"When Destine dunked us in the tub." Mousse set the towel down and grabbed a brush.
"She knew what she was doing. Didn’t you notice that she wrapped us in towels before she threw us in?"
"You guys gonna come eat lunch?" Destine poked her head in through the door. "I’ve been calling you guys for about two minutes, your soup is getting cold."
"Wait, Destine, can I talk to you for a moment?" Mousse ran over and grabbed her sleeve.
Ryoga stood up and gave Mousse a look that said ‘You hurt her I’ll kill you.’ He smiled and patted Destine’s shoulder. "I’ll just go and get a bite to eat. See you guys later."
Destine moved out of the way to let Ryoga step past. She turned back to Mousse. "So what do you need to tell me? Are you going to explain why the two of you were fighting?"
"Oh that’s easy, Ryoga thought that I was going to go down to the spring and take a peek at you. He didn’t know that the spring is within earshot of the house. To stop me he threw a glass of water on me. Then he proceeded to attack me. I made a run for the hose and turned it on him. He turned into ‘P-chan’ as he calls himself in that form and we proceeded to fight until you pried us apart." Mousse sat down on his bed and looked up at Destine.
"So what was the look that Ryoga gave you about? Does it have something to do with what Shampoo told me?" Destine smiled and sat down next to Mousse. "Well?"
Mousse turned bright red and turned away. "W-what did she tell you? She didn’t tell you that I love you did she?" Mousse whirled around to see Destine staring at him with a shocked look on her face. "I just blew it didn’t I?"
Destine removed her glasses and rubbed her eyes. "Yes she did. I didn’t believe her because I thought she was playing a joke on me. I was going to ask Ryoga about it but, well you just told me..." She put on her glasses and smiled. "So I take it the look was the ‘You hurt her I kill you’ look. He’s given it to Ranma before too."
Mousse turned away and sighed. "I guess you hate me now don’t you? It’s going to happen just like it happened with Shampoo. As soon as I told her that I loved her she started to hate me."
Destine rested a hand on his shoulder and turned him to face her. "No I don’t hate you. I never have. But is it true that you waited up at night waiting for me to return?"
"Yes, you see you’re the only one who has ever liked me. Usually the word stupid or dumb comes before my name. People don’t take me seriously. But you, you trusted me and stood up for me. You were actually willing to stand beside me instead of standing behind me and snickering. No one’s ever been that nice to me before." He reached over and took Destine’s hands in his.
"I know how you feel. But you need to put that behind you. Come on, you’re better than sitting and stewing about past hurts. You’re a great guy who cares about other people. You were even willing to put your health on hold to help me. I’m..."
Her words were cut short as Mousse leaned forward and kissed her softly on the lips. He sat back up and smiled slightly. "Thank you Destine."
Destine smiled and stood up. "Thanks for what?"
"Well first of all for not beating the crap out of me when I kissed you." Mousse stood up and walked over to Destine.
"And what’s the second?" Destine walked over to the door and opened it.
"For returning the kiss."
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Ryoga looked up as Destine and Mousse walked into the kitchen. "What took you two so long?"
Destine smiled and sat down next to him. "We were just talking Ryoga. Nothing more." She pulled a pair of chopsticks from the drawer and started to eat her rice. She got up and grabbed a soda out of the fridge. "You mind sparring with me after lunch brother? I need a bit of practice."
"Using your weapons?"
"Actually no. I’m also trained in unarmed fighting to the surprise of most of the dojos. I thought that it might prove helpful incase I didn’t have my weapons on me."
Ryoga set his soup down and smiled. "Sure I’ll spar with you sis’."
Destine smiled and pointed her chopsticks at him. "And don’t hold back just because I’m a girl."
"I promise I won’t. If it means helping you become a better fighter, I won’t hold back."