The Tale of the Duck
A/N- Hey all! Long time no see huh?
Sorry about the really long wait on this, I was in a sort of bind when working on it and that made it harder to finish.
But anyway, I don't own Ranma 1/2. If I did then Akane would be dead, as would a lot of the other character's.
I hope you guys like this chapt...
'Thoughts'
Chapter 2: Welcome Home?
Seeing the shocked and confused looks in all their eyes, Mousse schooled his face into a pleasant expression as he gave a slight nod of his head, "hello Akane, Nabiki..." Locking his eyes with the wide blue one's of Ranma, Mousse let a smirk curl his lips, "Ranma."
Ranma visibly shivered at the way Mousse's voice washed over her form and suddenly she felt very hot, a blush rose upon her cheeks and Ranma turned away from the look that Mousse was giving her. "What are you doing here...I...I thought that you had left and were never coming back..."
Putting down the dish in his hands, Mousse turned to face them all completely while leaning back against the countertop, "I have some unfinished business with you Ranma and I intend to settle it before I go anywhere, but before that, go take a bath and then hurry down. Dinner's almost ready."
Having said his piece, Mousse turned back to the dishes and began to dry them again. Kasumi blinked a couple times before she smiled and joined him.
Akane and Nabiki could only stare in confusion as they were practically ignored. Ranma on the other hand, felt his body shake as she studied Mousse's form closely, all the while wondering silently to herself, 'what is this? Why do I feel this way?...what could he possibly wish to settle with me?...oh...it must be Shampoo...'
Feeling incredibly foolish, Ranma turned and made her way past Akane and Nabiki, she soon found herself in the bathroom and with a splash of hot water he returned to his normal male form. Dressing, he made his way back downstairs, just wanting to get this all over with already.
Upon entering the kitchen, he found that everyone was gone, so he made his way into the living room and found that everyone was already seated. They each had a full plate of food and seemed to be enjoying it immensely.
As Ranma let his eyes scan the area for an open seat, he was surprised when his eyes once again met the knowing one's of Mousse. The Amazonian had apparently thought ahead already because right next to him was the only other open seat in the whole room.
Gulping, Ranma steeled himself as he stomped over and plopped down as far from Mousse as he could, in which he ended up with his leg sandwiched against Mousse's underneath the table. He was about to reach for the nearest dish when a full plate of food was set down right in front of him.
His brows knitting in confusion, Ranma turned to find the person who did this and found that it was once again Mousse. It seemed that the man was extremely determined to remain close to him, at least until they had settled whatever it was that Mousse wished to settle.
Shaking that thought off, Ranma dug into his food, he might be suspicious of Mousse's strange behavior but he wasn't suspicious enough to not eat.
He had only taken but a few bites and couldn't help but stare in awe at Mousse, this meal was the best thing he had ever tasted in his whole life, 'I never knew that he could cook...but even then, how is he able to make such a delicious meal?'
Apparently the others were thinking along the same lines as him because within seconds of each other, all of the eyes in the room were focused upon their guest. Mousse simply ignored them as he took another sip of his tea, he spared a glance at the shocked look that Ranma was currently showing him and couldn't help the smile that curled his lips.
'Just as I thought, he still thinks with his stomach. Heh, I'm glad that I took the time to learn how to cook, this just might make this a little bit easier to pull off...' "If you're all wondering why the food tastes so good, it took two years for me to get this good and experience was all it really took."
Setting down his cup, Mousse leaned onto the table with his arms as he looked over the other's, taking in what had changed about their appearances and what had also stayed the same.
He started with Nabiki. The girl had grown at least an inch and she had filled out more, but as he watched her glancing at the magazine on her leg and back to her food, he knew that those were the only changes.
Next was Akane. She was a surprise in and of itself. Just as her sister had, she had grown in height and had finally started to look more womanly than she used to. But it was her hair and clothes that had Mousse making mental notes for later use.
Her hair was no longer just short but it was spiked out, it almost seemed like she had just woken up and let her hair be, not bothering with brushing it or anything. Her clothes were tight and Mousse could swear that her pants had been painted on, it left nothing to the imagination at all.
Feeling disgusted at that very thought, Mousse moved past Kasumi and let his eyes finally come to a rest upon Ranma.
The Ranma he had known had changed greatly in that time.
He still had his hair in a long braid but it had grown longer and Mousse could practically swear that there were a few red tints here and there. That and the fact that there were what Mousse could only think were charms of some sort at the end of Ranma's pigtail, they were silver and glittered in the light everytime Ranma so much as shifted in place.
Then there was the fact that he had grown taller as well, his head came to about Mousse's forehead. That fact only made Mousse smirk to himself, 'So I am taller than him after all and even taller then his female form, that's one thing that I'm better at now I suppose...'
His body structure hadn't changed very much, except for the fact that he looked more athletic and had a much more lithe form now than he did before. It seemed that old habits would die hard with Ranma, because if how he was holding himself was any clue, Ranma was a much better and more skilled martial artist now as well.
His clothes were another thing that had changed. Instead of the normal kung-fu pants and shirts that the boy had been known to wear, he was now clothed in an outfit almost akin to those of a ninja.
He was wearing a fishnet shirt and a pair of baggy black pants, because he was inside he had forgone shoes and socks, leaving him barefoot as he sat cross-legged at Mousse's side.
Mousse was about to examine Ranma's appearance some more when the sound of the shoji door being opened broke him out of it. Jerking, Mousse felt an embarrassed blush burn his cheeks when Ranma's eyes briefly met his own.
Turning his head towards the doors, Mousse took several deep breaths and thanked every Kami listening out there for the interruption.
Kasumi had gotten up and was about to open the door when it was practically ripped off its hinges as none other than Shampoo came barreling through, an angry look plastered to her face.
Mousse's eyes narrowed as he slowly got to his feet, walking over and touching Kasumi's shoulder, "I need to go, thank you for letting me help with dinner. I'll see you later Kasumi." Seeing Kasumi nod her head, Mousse smiled, grateful to know that she understood.
He then brushed right past Shampoo and grabbed his jacket. After pulling it on, Mousse turned and bowed low, "it was good to see you all again, but regretfully it is time for me to leave. Good-bye."
And with that, Mousse made his way out of the house, not even sparing a glance at the incensed Shampoo as he passed by. Once he was outside, Mousse let out a depressed sigh, 'that didn't go how I thought it would...oh well...there's always tomorrow.'
Shrugging his shoulders, Mousse walked through the yard and stepped out onto the sidewalk. Sparing a glance up at the darkened sky, Mousse smiled. He loved the rain, after all, storms were unpredictable and were untamable.
Shaking his head at where his own thoughts were going, Mousse started walking down the street, his hands in his pockets as he kicked at a stray rock in his path. The sound of thunder crashed through the air, making Mousse shake lightly as he was caught in a cold gust of air.
He had reached the corner and was about to turn down it when he heard something coming from behind him, it sounded like someone was yelling. His brows knitting in confusion, Mousse stopped walking and turned.
His eyes blew wide at what greeted him.
Ranma was currently running towards him, still barefoot and yelling his name to high heaven.
As he came to a panting stop before him, Mousse felt his heart flutter in hope and surprise. "Ranma...what are you," Mousse paused when Ranma straightened himself. His eyes were dark and filled with something that took Mousse's breath away.
"Why..." Taking a deep breath, Ranma closed his eyes before locking them with Mousse's again. "Why did you leave like that...what...what were you going to talk to me about?"
Hearing another boom of lightning, Mousse glanced about once before grabbing Ranma's hand and walking quickly down around the corner and down the next street. Too confused to struggle, Ranma let Mousse drag him along, "where are we going?"
Smirking, Mousse winked at Ranma and chuckled at the blush that flooded Ranma's face. "To my apartment to talk, after all we have a lot to talk about and I need to keep you out of the rain, alright?"
Ranma could only nod and let Mousse lead the way, all the while wondering, 'just what are we going to talk about if it doesn't have to deal with Shampoo?'
A/N- And there we have it. Another chapter done and another on the way. Please review if you have any idea's of where Mousse will be staying and what his job is, I haven't quite figured that out yet...
Till next time...
Ja Ne!