Hidden Weapons United CH 10

[tyrsol]

^^^=Flashback / "Japanese" / ' Thought ' / :Chinese: / {English} / [written]

Destine picked up P-chan and set him on the counter. She turned to Gel and raised her eyebrows. "What are you doing?"

"GET THAT DEMON AWAY FROM ME!!!!" Gel backed as far as she could into the corner. "HE’S TRYING TO KILL ME!"

"Who is? P-chan..." Destine turned around and looked at P-chan. "What did you do to her?" She picked him up and dunked him in the tub that was full of hot water. She turned around and grabbed a towel. Throwing it to him she turned to Gel. "Would you calm down?!"

"I won’t! Your brother tried to kill me." Gel pointed her finger at Ryoga.

"He did? What did he do?" Destine knelt beside Mousse and placed a towel over him. "Well?" She stood up and grabbed a glass from the counter and filled it with water.

"I came in here looking for my brother and he stopped me. I told him to move out of the way and he just stood there. Finally I pointed behind him and shouted, ‘What’s that?’ He turned around and I ran past him. I was about to knock on the bathroom door when he collided with me. We went sailing into the bathroom and right into Mousse who was apparently about to take a bath. Mousse’s head hit the tile and he was knocked out. I was about to get back up when a small black piglet attacked me. And that’s how you found us." Gel sighed and shook her head.

"Oh." Destine walked back over to Mousse and poured the water on him. Instantly there was a duck standing in his place ruffling his feathers. Destine looked down and smiled. "You’ve had quite a bit of excitement today haven’t you Mumu-chan?"

Gel’s eyes lit up. "Mumu-chan? So, your ‘pet’ duck was really Mousse!" She stood up and made a grab for Mousse. "You’re coming back to the village!"

Mousse flew out of her grasp and landed in Destine’s arms. "Mousse will go, but not right now." She looked over at Ryoga. "The appointment was at ten right?" Ryoga looked up and nodded.

Destine turned back to see Gel pull a dagger from her sleeve. "He must come back!" She lunged at Destine and slashed her across the arm.

Destine staggered back and fell into the bathtub. She surfaced and glared at Gel. "Can’t you wait!? I called Cologne and she will be here within the hour. Then we can leave." She climbed out and wrung out her robe. "Honestly, you’re worse than Shampoo."

Gel turned bright red and glared at Destine. "I AM NOT!"

Mousse poked his head above the water. "Umm, towel please?"

Destine grabbed a towel and tossed it behind her into the tub. "You want to fight this out Gel?"

Mousse wrapped the towel around his waist and jumped out of the tub. "GEL! Des-chan, please don’t fight. Not right now." He rested his hands on Destine’s shoulders. "There has been more than enough fighting for today." He turned Destine around. "Will you stop? For me?"

Destine smiled. "For you." She looked over at Ryoga and then to Mousse. "You guys should get dressed."

Ryoga put a hand behind his head and smiled. "Yeah." He climbed out of the tub and walked out of the room.

"Mind you don’t drip on the floor!" Destine smiled as she shouted to Ryoga.

Mousse looked at Destine and smiled. "Good thing you were just wearing one of your old robes." He pushed a wet strand of hair from Destine’s face. "I’m going to go get dressed. Try not to kill each other while I’m gone."

Gel waited until Mousse was gone before she grabbed Destine by the front of her robe. "Why’s he so friendly to you?! You’d better not have stolen his heart."

Destine smiled and raised her hand to her face to push her bangs out of her eyes. "And what if I have?"

"Then I must kill you. You are an outsider and therefore have no right to marry him." Letting go of Destine she adjusted the dagger in her hand and assumed a fighting position.

"Just try me." She smiled and hundreds of different weapons appeared from her sleeves.

"You don’t scare me. I can beat my brother, I can beat you!"

"But if you care to remember, I’ve already beaten you Gel." Destine selected one of her discs and started twirling it on her finger. "Besides, I promised Mousse I wouldn’t fight you." She grabbed a towel and dried her hair.

"You listen to a man?!" Gel stared in disbelief.

"Point being?" Destine removed her clothes and wrapped a towel around herself. She walked out into the bedroom and grabbed her master robe. ‘I’ve passed the test and I know the technique. I deserve to wear this.’ She went to the closet and grabbed some undergarments. She put them on and walked back into the bathroom. "Do you want to wash up before we go?" Destine picked up her brush and braided her hair.

Gel looked at Destine. "Why you being so nice all of the sudden?"

Destine turned and smiled. "I figure that we will probably be traveling together for a bit so I don’t want too much friction between us." Returning to the bedroom she slipped on her pants and robe. "Besides, you don’t want your brother upset do you?" Tying her sash around her waist she looked up and groaned. "The rice!" She opened the door and ran to the kitchen. Taking the lid off the pot she sighed with relief. "OK heart you can go back to normal." She turned around and walked back to her room.

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"Shampoo going back to China for a vacation! She get to see old friends." Shampoo sat down on the train and grinned. "Destine be there too."

Cologne nodded. "Now try to be nice to Mousse. He isn’t going to bug you anymore."

"He give up?"

"Yes."

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Destine slipped the last of her discs into her sleeve and sat down. ‘OK, I have all my stuff packed.’ She looked up at the clock. ‘I should go eat." She walked out of her room and into the kitchen. Mousse was standing over the stove humming to himself. Destine snuck up behind him and put her hands over his eyes. "Guess who?"

Mousse turned around and smiled. "Could it be, Des-chan?" He slipped his glasses over his eyes and hugged Destine. "Finally decide to join us?"

"Unlike you and Ryoga, I don’t keep my stuff packed." Destine kissed Mousse on the cheek and dished up some rice. "I thought I told you not to do anything and to take it easy."

Gel looked up. "My fault there. I reminded him about Amazon law and now he’s doing his best to get back into the swing of things."

Destine sat on one of the stools and ate her rice. "So you’re telling me that even if the guy is hurt he still takes care of the cooking and cleaning?"

"Yep. We do the hard work and they take care of the house." Gel smiled and stood up. "Great breakfast brother."

"Whatever." Mousse washed the dishes and put them away. Turning to Destine he smiled. "Ready to go?"

Destine nodded and washed her dish. She grabbed the keys and walked out the door. "Be back in an hour."

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Shampoo stepped off the train and looked around. "Same as before. They no change much." She picked up her bag and walked into the station. "Great-grandmother, when Destine say she pick us up?"

"In a little bit. She has to take Mousse to the doctor first." Cologne sat down on one of the chairs.

"Doctor? He get hurt?"

"From what Destine told me, Mousse walked into the bathroom at the same moment as she stepped out of the shower. She screamed at the top of her lungs and Ryoga heard it. Mousse and Destine straightened the problem out but when Mousse went out to fix breakfast Ryoga beat the living daylights out of him, something about dishonoring his sister. What does he mean by that Shampoo?"

"Destine Ryoga sister. Mousse see Destine naked, brother get upset." Shampoo laughed and sat down.

"Destine, Ryoga’s sister? So she’s a Hibiki?" Cologne scratched her head. "Makes sense."

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"Little Mekana! It’s so good to see you again." Dr. Li stood up and hugged Destine. "What’s the problem?"

"Ryoga gave Mousse a pretty good beating."

"Well let’s see what we can do for you today Mousse." Dr. Li smiled and pointed to the table.

Destine looked up. "Umm, uncle, I need to go pick some people up. Mind if I go do that and then come back and get Mousse?"

"Sure. This shouldn’t take too long."

"Thank you uncle." Destine turned and walked out the door and to the front of the office. She pulled out her keys and headed for the truck. ‘Now to the station.’ She climbed in the truck and turned the ignition.

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Shampoo looked up at the clock and sighed. "Where Destine? She late."

"I’m right here Shampoo." Destine walked through the door and headed over to Cologne and Shampoo. "Ready?"

Shampoo stood up and smiled. "Destine one up Mousse. She master now." She pointed to Destine’s robe.

"What do you mean by one up? Mousse is a master as well. We both passed our testing with flying colors." She pushed her glasses up a bit. "Shampoo, would you mind being a cat for a bit? I only have three seats in the truck and I still need to pick up Mousse."

"I no mind." Shampoo walked over to a drinking fountain and splashed the water on herself. Transforming into a cat, she shook herself off and used her teeth to drag her clothes over to Destine.

"Thanks." Destine grabbed Shampoo’s clothes and bag. "Come on, the truck is right outside." Destine stepped outside and looked up into the sky. "Going to rain. Mousse isn’t going to be too pleased." She unlocked the doors and hopped inside. "It’s not too far to the doctor’s and then we’ll head home. Have you guys eaten yet?"

"We’ve had breakfast." Cologne climbed in and buckled up.

"OK. Well after we get back Mousse and I’ll start lunch. And if Gel tries to tell me otherwise." Destine’s voice trailed off as she started the truck. "I don’t care if she is his sister. She has no right to treat him that way."

Cologne looked over at Destine. "What happened?"

"She made him fix breakfast even though he was pretty banged up. Said something about how she was going to get him back into the swing of things. But I swear, she tries to marry him off she’ll have to go through me." Destine pulled out of the parking space and onto the road.

"Are you sure he is going to leave Shampoo alone?"

"Yep. He promised me." Destine looked into the mirror and flipped on her turn signal. "We’re here." She pulled into a parking space and shut off the engine. "I’ll be back in a second." She opened the door and got out.

Mousse was standing under the overhang. He looked up to see Destine walking towards him. "Des-chan!" He ran forward and hugged her.

"Nice to see you Mousse. Ready to head home?"

Mousse put on his glasses and smiled. "Yep." He looked at the truck and groaned. "Couldn’t you have waited to get them?"

Destine patted his cheek. "Now Mousse, I told them I would pick them up from the station around eleven. You wouldn’t want me to break my word?"

Mousse slipped his arm around her waist and smiled. "Of course not." He and Destine walked over to the truck. "Hey Cologne. Hey Shampoo."

Destine walked over to her side of the truck and climbed in. "Shampoo, you’re in his seat." She smiled and picked up Shampoo and set her next to Cologne. Mousse climbed in and shut the door. "So what’s the verdict Mousse?"

"Just a few bruises and a cut lip. Much better than I thought it would be."

Cologne looked from Destine to Mousse. "What’s going on? Are you two dating or something like that?"

Destine nodded and put the truck into drive. She pulled out of the parking lot and back onto the street. "Damn traffic." She hit the breaks and put on her turn signal. "We’re going to take a bit of a detour." She turned the corner and went into an alley. "This is the short cut I usually use when traffic gets bad." Destine smiled and adjusted her glasses.

Shampoo looked up at Mousse and started to meow. Mousse looked down and smiled. "What?" Shampoo looked at Destine and pointed to Mousse. Mousse laughed and picked up Shampoo. "Yeah I’m in love with her. Is that a problem?" Shampoo shook her head, curled up in Mousse’s lap and fell asleep.

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"We’re home!" Destine opened the door and walked into the kitchen.

Gel looked up from a game of cards she was playing with Ryoga. "So what’s the verdict?"

"He’s just a bit banged up. Nothing too serious." Destine smiled and hung up the keys. "What you playing?"

"Old Maid. I’m winning."

Destine looked at the cards on the table and then at Gel’s hand. "That’s because you’re using one of my decks! Those are for magic tricks, not playing!" She picked up one of her cards and held it to the light. "Hmm, the see through deck. May I have them back?"

Ryoga handed his cards to Destine and helped clean up the pile. "Do you have any normal cards?"

"Sure." Destine reached into her sleeve and pulled out an unopened box of cards. "Here."

"Well, if it isn’t little Gel." Cologne came into the room and sat down.

"El-el-elder Cologne." Gel stood up and bowed. "What an honor to see you again."

Cologne knocked her on the head with her staff. "Knock it off Gel. No one likes a person who is a kiss up."

Destine walked over to the stove and turned around. "So what do you guys want for lunch?"

Gel looked up. "You won’t cook it Mousse will. He has to learn his place."

Mousse walked into the room carrying Cologne and Shampoo’s stuff. "WHAT!?"

"Your place. What else?"

Destine smirked and a few knives appeared from her sleeves. "His place?"

Gel glared at Destine. "Yes. There are about a hundred girls in the village who want to marry him but they know he needs to learn his place. This way he will have an easier time getting used to married life."

"Wait a second Gel, I love Destine. I’m not going to go through with your stupid plans anymore." Mousse walked over to Destine and put his arms around her waist. "I’ve agreed to go back to the village for a while but I’m not getting married to any of those girls. Destine is at least twice as smart and beautiful as they are, besides, she can fight a man and not think if he would be a good husband." He tapped Destine’s forearms and the daggers withdrew back into her sleeves. "Put those away Des-chan." He smiled and kissed Destine on the cheek.

Destine looked at her arms and then at Mousse. "How’d you do that?"

Mousse rolled up his sleeves and pointed to a contraption on his arms. "I noticed that you have the same arm pieces as I do. To send the daggers out, all one has to do is flick their wrist. The harder one does that, the farther the dagger come out. A tap on the mechanism will send the daggers back the same as manually placing them back." He smiled and put his sleeves back down. He turned to Gel. "Don’t try any of your tricks either Gel. For example, your little acupressure trick."

"Wouldn’t even think of doing something like that brother dear." Gel shuffled the cards and dealt some to Ryoga. "So what are you going to fix us for lunch Mousse?"

"WE are going to fix lunch." Destine looked over at Gel and stuck out her tongue. She turned to the stove and pulled out a large pot from the cupboard. "Mousse, could you get the vegetables and noodles from the fridge?" She set the pot on the stove and filled it with some chicken broth.

Mousse took out the vegetables and set them on the counter. He took a knife from the drawer and cut the vegetables. Placing them in the pot he turned and grabbed the noodles. He put them in a strainer and ran them under some warm water.

Gel looked over at Destine and narrowed her eyes. ‘If the rumors are true she’s cursed as well. Well I know one way to keep her from helping Mousse.’ She picked up her glass and threw the contents towards Destine and Mousse.

Mousse turned around just as Gel was throwing the water. "Gel what do you think you’re....QUACK!" Mousse transformed into a duck as the water hit him and Destine.

Destine shook her head and wiped her glasses on a towel. "What the HECK was that for?" She bent down and picked up Mousse.

Gel looked at Destine with a dumbfounded look on her face. "You-you didn’t change." She ran to the sink and was about to fill the glass back up when Destine grabbed her by the wrist.

"Now listen and listen well. True I WAS cursed but I traveled to Jusenkyo and found the spring to negate my curse." She picked up Mousse’s clothes and walked out of the kitchen. "Cologne, when the broth comes to a boil, could you add the noodles please?"

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Destine opened the door to her room and stepped inside. She looked down at Mousse and smiled. "You just can’t get a break can you?" She set Mousse down and walked into the bathroom. Turning on the hot water in the sink she grabbed a towel and beckoned to Mousse. Mousse came waddling up to her and quacked. Destine picked him up and wrapped him in the towel. "Hold still for a second and I’ll be able to understand you." She set Mousse on the ground and filled a pitcher with the hot water. She took the pitcher and dumped the contents onto the towel.

"Let me at her! I don’t care if she is my sister. Let me show her who’s boss around here!" Mousse was about to stand up when Destine cleared her throat. He looked down and saw that the towel was just barely covering him. He blushed and wrapped the towel around his waist. "Sorry about that." He stood up and walked over to the pile of clothes Destine had set on the counter. "Could you turn around for a bit?"

Destine smiled and turned around. "Mousse, don’t get angry at Gel. She’s just upset because she’s not getting her way." She stepped out of the bathroom and took off her robe. Arranging her shirt she looked down at her arms and smiled. She flicked her wrists and the daggers shot out to where she could easily grab them. She tapped the mechanism and the daggers retreated back into their places. She turned and walked back into the bathroom.

Mousse was standing in his boxers adjusting a contraption on his leg. Destine walked up behind him and knelt down. "Here let me help." She adjusted the fastener and moved it so the contraption would not slip.

Mousse turned around and held out his hands to her. She took his hands and he pulled her up. "Where’s your robe Des-chan?"

"It’s on the bed. I don’t like having to wear wet clothing so I’m letting it dry." She laughed. "I guess I should cover my arms though."

Mousse smiled and unbuckled the contraptions on her arms. "No, you don’t need to." He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her. "So you’re really going to go with Gel to China?"

Destine nodded and leaned against Mousse’s chest. "I feel I owe it to her after how I treated her last time she was here." She looked into Mousse’s eyes. "You’re coming too right?"

Mousse nodded and slipped on his glasses. He let Destine go and slipped on his pants. "When are we leaving?"

"The train leaves tomorrow at 9:00 to go to the harbor. Then we catch the boat to China. You have your stuff all packed?"

Mousse nodded and looked in the mirror. He picked up a brush and undid some of the knots in his hair. Destine took the brush and started brushing his hair. "Is there something wrong?"

"It’s nothing." Mousse gripped the counter top and closed his eyes. "I’m just fine."

Destine bopped him lightly with the brush. "Don’t lie. Something’s wrong. Your knuckles are turning white." She set the brush down and set her hands on his. "Is it about Gel?"

Mousse nodded. "Gel isn’t my true sister. When my mother saw that her only child was a boy, she became extremely upset. For three years she searched for a girl to adopt, but in our village, the only ones up for adoption were boys. Girls go first. She had almost given up when there was a great flood. Three families were killed. While she was helping with the bodies she heard the sound of a baby crying. She dug through the rubble and found a little baby girl. Her parents had been killed. My mother took her in as her own and named her Gel. Since then. I..." Mousse stopped in mid sentence and started to cry. "Don’t even matter to her. I’m just her stupid son." He walked out of the bathroom and lay down on Destine’s bed. "You’re the first female to love me. Not even my own mother cared about me. One time I was out playing when a bull got loose. I couldn’t see it because Gel had taken my glasses. My mother ran out into the street and grabbed Gel but left me there. My sensei was the one who saved me."

Destine curled up next to him. "You were just born in the wrong place at the wrong time Mumu-chan." She leaned forward and kissed him on the back of the neck. "Just forget about it. If she didn’t love you then why should you care?"

Mousse rolled over to face Destine. "But she is my mother. I can’t help but care about her." He wrapped his arms around Destine and sighed.

"Just try not to think about it." Destine pressed a spot in the middle of his forehead. "I love you Mousse." She whispered. Mousse’s eyes closed and he fell asleep. Destine held onto him for a little while and finally rolled him over and got up. She pulled the blankets over him and smiled. "Get some sleep." She took his glasses and set them on the nightstand.

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"Where’s Mousse?" Gel looked up as Destine entered the kitchen.

"Sleeping. And that means don’t go and bug him." Destine walked over to the stove and looked in the pot. "Did you add the noodles Cologne?"

"Yes about three minutes ago. What happened to your robe Destine?"

"I took it off." Destine smiled and sat down. "So who’s watching over the cafe while you’re gone?"

"Son-in-law will watch after it." Cologne hopped over to where Destine was sitting. "Why is your shirt damp?"

"Don’t ask." Destine stood up and walked opened the back door. Outside it was just beginning to rain. "Hope it doesn’t rain tomorrow." She slipped on her shoes and stepped outside.

Tide was sitting in her chair on the porch. She turned as Destine stepped outside. "Destine what wrong?" (USING MODIFIED ASL/ESL/JSL)

Destine sat down on the porch and sighed. "Mousse just remember bad part of childhood. He tell me Gel not true sister. He tell me how his mother not care for him. Mother save Gel but not Mousse from charging bull." She put her hand on her shoulder and sighed again.

"Where he now?"

"I make him fall asleep." Destine pointed to a spot in the middle of her forehead and smiled. "Shampoo teach me acupressure tricks."

Tide smiled and made the sign for laughter. "You are ready for trip?"

Destine nodded and looked out on the forest. "I will miss this place."

"You are leaving forever?"

"I not sure. I hope come back but where Mousse go, I go." Destine smiled and stood up. "I go out to shop. Lunch at two." She picked up Ryoga’s umbrella and practically dropped it on her feet. ‘Man that’s heavy.’ She propped it back up against the wall and grabbed one of the other umbrellas leaning against the wall. Opening it she stepped off the porch and headed for the shop.