In Heat

Mousse chuckled when he pulled on his white robe and blue pants. The glasses were fake, as even the ones he wore back then didn't allow him to see properly, while his contacts did. He looked in the mirror and examined himself. He cracked up that he used to go around looking so dorky. What had possessed him? Surely he hadn't expected that the beautiful Shampoo would have gone out with the King of the Nerds?

He didn't like to have to look like this again but had decided that if the child truly did look like him, that his eyes would be a dead give away as to who Midori's father was. So he decided that becoming like his old self would allow him to get the answers he needed without causing too much suspicion. He frowned and thought back on his interview with Cologne.

Flashback

"You need to bring her back here with you, if Ranma won't come then bring the baby" she had insisted.

"I won't help separate a mother from a child, even if it is Ranma" he'd protested. "I'm going because I need to know if Midori's mine and that she's being properly cared for. My motivation has little to do with Ranma herself, other then making sure she's okay"

"The child being a girl is a full Amazon by birth, she needs to know of her heritage and be taught how to properly defend herself" Cologne said.

"You yourself have always marveled at Ranma's battle skills, I'm sure he'll teach Midori how to defend herself" Mousse replied.

"You know as well as I what the laws are and what they mean" Cologne said in exasperation.

"I doubt she'd want yet another looney Amazon claiming to be married to her. Our tribal laws don't apply to Ranma, she isn't an Amazon for gods sakes and her daughter might not even be mine" Mousse snarled.

"I saw her eyes, she's yours alright. Would you deprive Midori of her heritage and meeting grandmother and aunts? I thought you always wanted children?" Cologne said knowing how to push Mousse's buttons and watched him flinch.

"I wanted Shampoo's children" he said in a low voice.

"Well life gave you an alternative, you have one, now you just have to go and get her. You did your duty as an Amazon male and have provided a strong daughter for the tribe. You should be honoured that Ranma chose you" Cologne said.

"I feel really honoured" he said sarcastically.

"None of that sass boy. If she's won't come, give her this cheque, its too generous an amount for her to refuse. She'll probably thank you for taking the child off her hands" Cologne said. Mousse examined the cheque, noted all the zeros and wondered if a mother truly would sell her own flesh and blood.

End Flashback

Mousse stood in front of the Kuno mansion. He'd arranged an interview with first Tatewaki and then Kodachi, he hoped that one of the former enemies and fiancées of Ranma would have some clue as to her whereabouts.

Kuno, Mousse noted, had changed little in the year since he'd last seen him, he sat behind a desk. "I need to know if you have any idea of where Ra-The Pigtailed Girl is" Mousse said when he had inquired of the nature of Mousse's business.

Kuno narrowed his eyes in annoyance, "Indeed I do not, it's like the very fairies themselves spirited her and my child away" he growled.

"Why are you so positive that her baby's your daughter?" Mousse asked and spotted a picture of a young baby on his desk that seemed to have been taken through the maternity ward window. Mousse's eyes opened wide in shock to see that the child looked almost exactly like his youngest sister at that age, probably himself at that age too.

"Who else would she have allowed into the fortress of her femininity?" Kuno asked. "Clearly she's my daughter, Midori looks just like me" he said holding up another photo, this one made Mousse feel ill. It was of Ranma asleep with her newborn baby in her arms. From the look of her, she'd just given birth and Mousse was willing to bet that she didn't know about the mystery picture taker.

Mousse studied the picture, Midori seemed to be pale with cubby cheeks, a button nose and large, green emerald Asian eyes "have you ever slept with your pigtailed girl?" he asked.

"Naturally, I can't have started a family with her if I hadn't? We're in love and when she stops playing her charming game of catch-me-if-you-can, we're going to get married" Kuno said with madness shining in his eyes.

"Right" Mousse said, bringing their interview to an end by standing up. He picked up the picture and took off his glasses, he aimed his own baby greens at Kuno. He held the picture close to his face, "it's pretty rare for an Asian person to have eyes this colour" he commented, wondering if Kuno would notice Midori's resemblance to Mousse in his need to believe his own illusions.

"Probably came from a distant relative" he said dismissively.

"Good to know, I have to go see your sister" Mousse said.

"Yes, you must forward me your contact information, I'll send you a wedding invitation" he said.

"I'd like that" Mousse said, vowing to gather the information that he needed and get his butt back to China. People were too weird here.

He went to the palour opposite and knocked on the door, Kodachi answered it. "Yes you wished to see me?" she said.

"I have some questions about the Pigtailed Girl that your brother's so obsessed with. I need to know of her location and was wondered if you had any information for me" Mousse said.

"That vile harlot, the only place I wish to see her is in her grave. My delusional brother seems to think that he's the father of her child, but I know the truth, she seduced my Ranma and gave birth to his child" she snarled. "I shall get my revenge on her as soon as I find her"

Mousse thought about this and knew that he could get at least one Kuno off Ranma's back "actually she has no interest in Ranma other then brotherly affection, for she's his twin sister. The child is mine; she and I made love shortly before I left. I've been in China, so I never knew that she was pregnant until now" he said.

"Really, his twin sister? All this time I thought that she was a rival to Ranma's affections, when she actually could be my sister-in-law. So I still have a chance with Ranma!" Kodachi said triumphantly.

"As much as anyone" Mousse said. "Have you any clue how to get in contact with either of them?" he asked.

"No it's like they dropped off the face of the earth" Kodachi said with a frown "but I'll find Ranma again, we're meant to be. Perhaps you can marry his sister and I can marry him? We could have a double wedding" she said with the same madness as her brother glinting in her eyes.

Mousse struggled not to laugh at how blind both Kunos were to Ranma's shape shifting. "That would be kind of hard to do" he mused and terminated his interview, leaving the mansion he felt like he'd escaped an insane asylum.

Mousse's next stop was Ucchan's restaurant, where Ryoga was now living with Ukyou and acting as waiter to help her out. Mousse was surprised to be greeted like an old friend. Ukyou tensed up when he asked her about Ranma's whereabouts. "I don't know, she fled town soon after her daughter was born" she said in an annoyed tone of voice.

"You seem irritated by this?" Mousse said.

"Ranma's my fiancé, I'm meant to be the mother of her child no matter how she was conceived. What does a man know about taking care of a baby, nothing! I told her that we had to get married right away in her boy form because it wasn't right for a child not to have two parents. How did she thank me for wanting to provide for her bastard child? She ran away, the ungrateful bitch" she snarled.

Mousse frowned, it was exactly as he'd thought; they'd squabbled over her baby like a pack of hungry dogs with a bone. "Perhaps she just got sick of people telling her who she had to marry?" he said coldly.

Ukyou left when he said this. "Don't mind her" Ryoga said "she was devastated when Ranma left her like she did. Ukyou was convinced that she would eventually be his bride. I helped console her, that's how we ended together. She's still a little sensitive about Ranma deserting her" he explained.

"I understand that you were the one who took her to the hospital?" Mousse said to the lost boy.

Ryoga smiled in memory "yes I was trying to fight her and she kept saying she couldn't because she was pregnant. I didn't believe her, I thought she pissed herself when her water broke and I taunted her about it. When her contractions started, I realized something was wrong with her and carried her to Dr. Tofu's clinic. He drove us to the hospital. They thought I was the father, gave me scrubs to wear and shoved me into the delivery room" he said visibly shuddering at the memory. "I didn't believe she was giving birth until Midori was born, I got curious and checked between her legs, I'd never seen a vagina before and there was one stretched around a baby's head, I fainted" he said.

"Why did you stay?" Mousse asked.

"Ranma's a warrior, you don't desert your comrades when they need you" Ryoga said.

"I thought you hated her?" Mousse said.

"She needed someone to be with her through the pain, I couldn't leave her" Ryoga said with a shrug, revealing a nobler side to him that Mousse never knew existed.

"Do you know where I can find them?" Mousse asked.

"I don't have a clue. She wanted to go and she did" he said. "What is this about? You don't still want to get revenge for Shampoo?

"No I have unfinished business with her of a private nature. I don't intend to hurt her" Mousse said.

Ryoga studied him, as if judging him. He relaxed "I would ask Nabiki Tendo. I'm certain she had something to do with Ranma's disappearance" he admitted.

"Huh, I thought she only did things for profit" Mousse said.

"It's just a hunch, she was the one that told us that Ranma had left" Ryoga said.

"Okay I'll ask her" Mousse stood up and prepared to depart.

"Mousse do you think that someone actually managed to rape Ranma?" Ryoga asked. "I mean, I couldn't see her sleeping with a guy of her own free will"

"I can't picture that either" Mousse replied, replaying Midori's conception in his mind.

"Yes it was me who gave her the money" Nabiki said. "After all it was her who helped me earn it"

"But why?" Mousse said.

"It was wrong how people were treating her. She'd just lost her home and identity, she was exhausted and people were still fighting over her. So I gave her a fake id that's in the system, a wad of cash and a train ticket. I told her to choose a station to get off at and to never use the name Ranma Saotome ever again" Nabiki said. Just as in the case of Ryoga, this was a side of Nabiki that Mousse had never seen.

"Really, you didn't try to blackmail her or ask her to repay the money with interest?" Mousse said skeptically.

"No I never expect to see her again" Nabiki said. "She was miserable here, so I gave her a chance to escape. Why do you need to find her?" she asked suspiciously.

"It's private" Mousse replied. "I don't mean either of them harm" he assured her.

She studied him "I guess as Midori's father you're concerned about her" she said.

Mousse flinched "how?...she told you" he said.

"The child's eyes although an unusual colour, are shaped more Chinese then Japanese. It wasn't hard to figure out whom, when there were only three Chinese people we hung out with...and only one was male. I didn't tell anyone my suspicions" she said. "Ranma had enough to deal with as it was. Kasumi showed her how to look after the baby, which Akane wanted nothing to do with"

"Why's that?" Mousse asked.

"My little sister's weird about sex and the idea that someone might enjoy it is repellant to her" She explained. "I suppose you're here to find out where they are?"

"Do you know?" Mousse asked sharply.

"Not really, she's living under the name Kitten Ito if that helps" Nabiki said with a shrug.

"Kitten?" Mousse asked vaguely amused.

"I couldn't resist" Nabiki replied.

"So you have no clue where they might have gone?" Mousse asked.

Reluctantly Nabiki pulled out a postcard that she'd hidden. "This might help you" she said and handed it to him. It had the word Shinjuku embossed on it and showed a picture of the city itself. It had no return address and only had the words 'thank you" written on it. "Search close to the train station itself, I couldn't see her going very far into the city itself. Here's pictures of Ranma and of Midori" she said handing him the prints

"Why are you helping me?" Mousse asked.

"I don't know the circumstances under which you slept together, but a baby needs a father and Ranma needs help" Nabiki said with resolve in her voice.

"You're not the cold bitch everyone says you are" Mousse observed.

"Shhhhhh, don't tell anyone that" she said with a mischievous smile.