***************************************************************** A Lost and Found cat Part 4 : Ucchan encounter A Ranma1/2 Fanfiction Written by Jenny 'Android18' Chan android18@hotmail.com www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Pagoda/index.html ***************************************************************** Shampoo looked around her surroundings. There were a few tables and chairs and some booth seats around the restaurant. A cash register was close to the door, and there was a curtain separating the eating area from the kitchen. There were a set of stairs close to the wall that led upstairs to the living area. Shampoo turned and saw Mousse staring at her intently. "Does any of this seem familiar to you?" Mousse asked, an interesting mix of hope and horror on his face. Shampoo shook her head and again, Mousse didn't know whither to be upset or happy about it. He wanted Shampoo to regain her memory, but if she did that, then she would probably pound him into a jelly-like substance for lying to her. The whole concept of 'lying' made Mousse's head hurt when he tried to think about what he was going to do, now that the lie had been told. ~Cologne will be back in another two weeks,~ Mousse thought. ~Shampoo will regain her memory, one way or another by that time. At that time, my plan will go up in smoke, but NOT before two weeks of sheer bliss. Hmm... if I somehow get Shampoo to sign a marriage certificate, then we'd be married! Cologne will probably rip my head off for that, but she won't be able to undo it, since divorce is not in an amazon's vocabulary. Shampoo might be ticked off... but she'll see how I love her, and then, she'll love me too! And we'll live happily ever after...~ Mousse slapped himself, and looked at the floor, feeling disgusted with himself.. ~No! I will NOT abuse Shampoo's trust with this vile plan!~ Then, Mousse tapped his lip. ~But it's such a GOOD plan.... Oh, I'm so confused!!!~ "What's the matter, Mousse?" Shampoo asked. Mousse looked up. "Oh, nothing Shampoo, nothing at all," he answered to a porcelain statue of a cat. Shampoo giggled. "I'm over here," she said. She gently flicked Mousse's glasses over his eyes. The boy turned and looked at Shampoo, who was smiling. ~Look! Shampoo's smiling at you,~ the evil part of his conscience said, ~and it's not because she's thinking of all the ways she can torture you! Do you want her to go back to her old ways? Take advantage of the situations, man!!~ Another part of Mousse's brain screamed, ~No! You can't do this Mousse! It's wrong! If you make Shampoo marry you while she isn't in her right mind, your relationship will be built on a lie! Help her regain her memory, she'll thank you for it by loving you!~ Mousse gave a sigh, and told the voices in his brain to shut up for a moment to he could think clearly. "Mousse, do we live her by ourselves?" Shampoo asked as she walked around the Nekohanten, looking at this and that. Mousse looked up. "Huh? Uh, no, we live here with your great-grandmother, Cologne. But Cologne will be in China for the next two weeks." "Great-grandmother?" Shampoo asked. "What about my parents, and my grandparents? What about your family?" "They are in China." "Oh." Shampoo thought about these new facts for a moment. "Then, why are we here in Japan?" "We are here, because of this man named Ran-" Mousse held his tongue for a moment. ~Ranma! He'll be here any moment to help out! Great! If he finds out Shampoo is here he'll try to take her from me!~ Shampoo looked at Mousse expectedly. "Well?" "Ah... that's a long story, and we don't have time for it now. Look at the time! The dinner rush will come on any minute now!" "Okay," Shampoo looked around her. "What should I do? Am I the cook?" "Actually, you're the waitress," Mousse said. He looked over his shoulder, and out a window, and noticed that a couple that looked a lot like Ranma and Akane were coming to the restaurant. At least, he thought they looked a lot like Ranma and Akane. ~I can't let Ranma take Shampoo from me!~ Mousse through to himself. He looked at Shampoo. "Shampoo, you are also the take out delivery girl! So... here," Mousse reached into one of his sleeves and brought out a map. "Here's a map of Nerima! Your bike is in the kitchen! Why don't you get yourself acquainted with the layout of the city first, and you can waitress later!" Shampoo thought about Mousse's words for a moment. "Okay... can you handle restaurant all by yourself?" She asked. "I have help." Mousse replied, grabbing Shampoo by the shoulders, and pushing her into the kitchen. Soon, Shampoo found herself outside, on top of a bicycle, with a map in her hands. Shampoo blinked a few times, looked at the restaurant, looked at the map, shrugged, and rode off, riding about. ***************************************************************** Mousse was very glad that, for the first time, this eye sight did not fail him. It really WAS Ranma and Akane coming up to the Nekohanten. "Hi Mousse!" Akane said, "was it really Shampoo?" Ranma, also looked hopeful. "Yeah, was it Shampoo? Things have been really dull around the dojo without her crashing in all the time." "What do you care?!" Mousse shouted at Ranma. "Why do you care about Shampoo? Huh?! Do you think you can take her from me again, Saotome?! Huh?! Do you even love her like I love her?!" Ranma blinked. "Hey, what are you talking about?!" Mousse swallowed. "I-I'm sorry. I just... I'm really tense, and as for your question Akane... no.. No, it wasn't Shampoo. It turns out that there ARE other purple haired Chinese beauties running around Japan." Mousse gave a nervous laugh, putting his hand behind his head. Akane looked crestfallen for a moment. "Oh. Okay then." Akane went to put on an apron, while Ranma gave Mousse a challenging glare. ***************************************************************** Shampoo bicycled around town for a while, alternating between looking at the map, and look at the houses. She stopped by a restaurant when she felt hungry. ~Ucchan's...~ Shampoo thought to herself as she parked her bicycle somewhere. ~I'm hungry! Oh, did I bring money?~ Shampoo fished into somewhere, brought out her bonbori, fished around some more, before she found her wallet. She let out a happy cry as she put her bonbori away, and walked into the restaurant. "Hello!" Shampoo heard someone call as she walked through the door. "Welcome to Ucch- hey, what are you doing here?!" Shampoo blinked in surprise when a girl about her age appeared before her, wearing a purple okonomiyaki seller's outfit and carrying a large spatula. She girl appeared very angry. "Uh... hi. Can I eat here?" Shampoo asked nervously. "EAT HERE?!" Bellowed the girl, "okay, what tricks are you up to THIS time, Shampoo? Huh? It was so peaceful the past few days, I was hoping you wouldn't show up again!" "How did you know my name?" Shampoo asked. "Stop with the acting already! Just tell me what you want!!" "I-I just wanted to eat here!" Shampoo shouted, feeling her anger rise. She didn't like being yelled at for no particular reason. "Why you being so hostile?!" Shampoo backed up a few steps, and got into a ready position. "I no want to fight, but if you want to, I will give you fight!" The girl relaxed her grip on her spatula. "Whatever you're trying, Shampoo, it's new, I'll give you THAT much." "What are you talking about?!" Shampoo cried, "I no know what you talking about! I do not even KNOW you!" The girl studied Shampoo intently. "I'm Ukyou Kuonji, duh!" Shampoo blinked. "Name does not ring bell." "Hello, I'm your arch RIVAL!" "Rival for what?" Shampoo asked. "Rival for RANCHAN! Who else? Mousse?!" "You know Mousse?" Shampoo asked. Ukyou stopped ranting and stared at Shampoo. Lines of genuine worry came to her face. "Shampoo, are you feeling okay?" "I feel hungry," Shampoo replied. "That is why I come into Ucchans! But if Ukyou Kuonji no want me here, then I leave, simple like that! Go home." Shampoo eyed Ukyou warily, who only blinked in shock, before turning to stomp out the restaurant. Ukyou caught Shampoo's arm. "Wait." She urged. Shampoo turned. "What?" Ukyou took a deep breathe and tried to calm down. "You.. you're not feeling okay, are you? I mean, you haven't talked in third person term since you go in here! What's wrong?" "I already told you what wrong!" Shampoo cried. "I was HUNGRY! Came in here for food!" "You're hungry?" Ukyou asked, confused. Shampoo rolled her eyes before nodding. "This isn't some stupid plan to make my give up on Ranchan?" Shampoo gave Ukyou a weird look before shaking her head. "Who is Ranchan? I no know anyone name Ranchan." Ukyou stared at Shampoo, before leading her to a table, and sitting the Chinese girl down. "Sit down Shampoo. You're obviously not feeling okay. I'll get you some food okay?" Shampoo straightened up. "Food?" ***************************************************************** "Akane," Ranma said as they walked home after a rather slow day at the restaurant, "did you notice something strange about Mousse?" Akane thought about it for a moment. "A little. He seemed a lot more nervous and moody today. Like that day when he thought he found Shampoo, only a hundred times worse." Ranma rolled his eyes. "You'd think he FOUND Shampoo and was trying to keep it a secret from us." "I hope he is," Akane said. "I still feel so guilty for booting her into next week..." Suddenly a familiar bell rang, and Ranma and Akane both froze. "D-did you hear that?" Ranma asked. Akane nodded. "It sounded like Shampoo's bicycle bell." Ranma and Akane both looked around, but the Amazon was not seen. ***************************************************************** Mousse waited in the restaurant for 15 minutes, after Ranma and Akane had left, waiting for Shampoo to return. Finally, he saw a figure walk up to the front door, and open it. "Shampoo!!!" Mousse shouted, flying over to the door, and flinging it open. He double checked, and was sure that it WAS Shampoo, before he hugged her tightly. Shampoo gave a giggle. "Do you always hug me every time you see me?" She asked, after peeling Mousse off of her. "Well... you uh... LIKE affection." Mousse said. ~That wasn't exactly a lie... You DO like affection... from Ranma, at least...~ "I do?" Shampoo asked. "Oh." Shampoo was quiet for a few moments. She seemed uncomfortable with something. She tapped Mousse on the shoulder. "Mousse? I run into someone I think you should talk to." Mousse frowned. "Who?" The front door opened, and Ukyou stepped in. She had a stern look on her face, and one of her arms were behind her head, gripping her giant spatula. "Me," Ukyou said flatly. Mousse swallowed. "Yes, can I help you Ukyou?" Ukyou looked from Shampoo to Mousse, then back to Shampoo. "Shampoo, could you excuse us for a minute please?" "Okay. I go put bike away," Shampoo said, taking the bike back into the kitchen. As soon as she was out of earshot, Ukyou grabbed the front of Mousse's shirt and got right into his face. "Okay listen up, Mousse," Ukyou hissed. "I want to know what's going on, NOW." Mousse swallowed. Suddenly, he got an idea. "Ukyou, promise you WON'T tell this to anyone. Not Ranma, not Akane, not Shampoo, not ANYONE." Ukyou glared at Mousse suspiciously, before releasing the duck boy. "Go on." Mousse swallowed. "You know Shampoo's been missing the past two weeks, right?" "Yeah, I noticed the unusual calm around Nerima." Ukyou replied. "Shampoo got really messed up somehow and ended up in the hospital." Mousse said softly, "she lost her memory. I just found her today, and she doesn't remember ANYTHING! She didn't even know her name!" "For real?!" Ukyou whispered. Mousse nodded. "Ukyou, I have a deal for you." "Go on." "I... told Shampoo that we were fiancees. Help me get her to fall in love with me! Then, I'll have her, and you'll have Ranma! We'd both get what we'd want! Deal?" Ukyou thought about it for a moment, before nodded. "Okay, deal." "Don't tell Ranma about this," Mousse said. "If he finds out, he'll come and try to get Shampoo to fall in love with him again, for sure! Do you understand?" Ukyou nodded. "Okay. I won't tell Ranchan, Shampoo's back. I'll get him to forget all about her! Great! That's one less fiancee to worry about!" "Can I come back now?" Shampoo asked from the kitchen. "Uh, yeah Shampoo! Come back!" Mousse said. Shampoo bounced back into the serving area, and placed some coins and bills into Ukyou's hand. "Thank you for the okonomiyaki, Ukyou." "Oh, hey, thank YOU!" Ukyou replied, shoving the money back into Shampoo's hands. "That was on the house okay? Right, uh, I'd better get back now and properly close up the restaurant. See ya, Mousse, Shampoo." Ukyou headed for the door. Then, she turned, and looked at Shampoo. "So, ah... when are you and MOUSSE gonna get married? Soon?" Mousse flushed at the question while Shampoo blushed. "Uh... hopefully after I get memory back," Shampoo replied. "Hopefully soon." Ukyou smiled weakly. "Great..." Then, she left. Mousse and Shampoo stood there awkwardly for a few minutes before Mousse looked at a clock. "Okay, it's late! We should get to sleep!" Mousse cried. "Okay. Where's my room?" ***************************************************************** Shampoo opened her eyes, unable to sleep. She kept getting the idea that someone was watching her. Finally she turned her head and saw Mousse, sitting on the floor near the door, gazing lovingly at her. ~He really loves me.~ Shampoo decided as she looked at Mousse's eyes, who couldn't tell if Shampoo was awake or not, but was enjoying being in the same room as her without getting beaten on. ~I can see his love in his eyes...~ "Mousse?" Shampoo asked, in Chinese. Mousse jerked up. "Shampoo! You're awake! Get to sleep, you need your rest." "You're not asleep either," Shampoo countered. "You're not even in bed!" "I don't sleep in my bed," Mousse replied smoothly. "I guard outside your door usually, but since you were asleep, I didn't see the harm of just sitting here. Do you want me to leave?" Shampoo shook her head. "Don't go. Why do you guard my room?" Mousse smiled softly. "To make sure you're safe. I can't sleep knowing you're in danger." Shampoo smiled grandly. "You're sweet." She scooted over so that she was only taking up half of the bed, and patted the space beside her. Mousse looked at her questioningly. Shampoo laughed. "Well I don't want you to catch a cold, on the floor there, so why don't you sleep here? There's plenty of room for two people." Mousse swallowed, his mouth dry. "Well... uh... I really shouldn't." Now it was time for Shampoo to look at Mousse questioningly. "Why?" "Well..." But he couldn't come up with any reasons. "Come on Mousse, you'll catch a cold on the floor." Mousse gulped, and got shakily to his feet. ~What are you DOING?!~ His mind screamed at him. ~Hey, SHE invited YOU!~ Another part of his brain rebuffed. Before the first part of his brain could think of anything else to say, Mousse found himself lying in bed beside Shampoo, who giggled. "See? You're shaking, Mousse! I told you you'd catch a cold on the floor!" Shampoo snuggled up next to Mousse, who tensed up some more. "Don't worry Mousse. I'll warm you up!" "Uh... ah... Goodnight, Shampoo." "Goodnight Mousse." Mousse swallowed. He didn't think he'd be sleeping very soon at all. He was too busy trying to figure out if he should be scared or happy. *****************************************************************