~**~

And so that is how Mousse, blind though he was, got the privilege of witnessing Ranma Soatome carrying a backpack filled with some kind of stone on his back and Akane Tendo over his shoulder. His left arm was wrapped around her waist, keeping her in place. Mousse opened his mouth to question, but Ranma cut him off, shrugging.
“It was a bet. Kind of. Akane bet I couldn’t carry this bag and her to the library without breaking a sweat. I bet I could. Do you know where the library is?”
“Akane Tendo wanted you to carry her to the library?”
“Yes. Well, kinda. Maybe not. But it escalated to that, so here I am. I really don’t want to loose my bet, Mousse, so do you know where the library is or not? Akane, quit squirming!” The girl in question squirmed a little more and then realized that Ranma’s arm was tighter around her waist than before she started squirming. She moved around a little more to test her theory. As predicted, the more she attempted to free herself, the tighter Ranma’s grip became. He was determined to prove his point. Sighing, Akane stopped her struggle and propped her chin on her hand, which was propped on Ranma’s back. Fine, she thought, be that way. After Akane stilled, Ranma turned his attention back to Mousse.
“So? Do you know where it is?” Mutely, Mousse pointed to a large white building behind Ranma that sported a large sign. The sign read, “Library.” Ranma scowled and addressed Akane.
“You knew it was there all the time, didn’t you?” She gave him a small, smug smile. Sighing, he turned back to Mousse. “Thanks, Mousse. Gotta go. Bye.” He turned and stared walking toward the library. He spoke to Akane. “And you. You knew it was right there. What’s the idea?” She just continued smiling; her chin still propped on his back. “Well here’s what I think of that.” He uncurled his fingers and poked her in the side. She started laughing and he continued poking her mercilessly. When she started squirming again, he shifted his hold on her, taking her from his shoulder and holding her in his arms. He took the last steps of the library as she composed herself. Then, once at the door, he set her down and smiled proudly.
“See? We made it and I’m not sweating.” She ‘Hmm’-ed and inspected his face. Satisfied, she nodded.
“You’re right. You are very strong. Now! Let’s go in and look that stupid character up.” He nodded and followed her into the library.

~**~

“I’m telling you, he was carrying her! He had her over his shoulder like a sack of wheat. And once they got closer her moved her into his arms.” Mousse was sweeping the floor of the Cat Café and relating his experience with Ranma to Cologne. He didn’t know where Shampoo was, but it was probably good she wasn’t there. She would not appreciate news of this kind. Cologne sighed.
“You are almost blind. You don’t know what you’re seeing or who your talking to most of the time. How do I know he really wasn’t holding a sack of wheat?”
“I might be blind, but that only makes my hearing better, and he called her Akane! Several times! I know that he was carrying Akane Tendo over his shoulder. He said so himself when he explained.”
“Well, that is true…but such unusual behavior. The young Miss Tendo rarely ever lets son-in-law come near her, much less carry her. Was there anything else unusual about him?” Mousse thought about the question before answering.
“I think, I can’t be sure but I think, that his clothing was different. I think there was an animal of some sort, a snake or a dragon or something, wrapped around the entire outfit, pants and shirt.”
“What’s so strange about clothing? You’re over sensitive today, Mousse. You need to work harder. Ordinary clothing means nothing. Now get back to work.” Cologne hit Mousse over the head with her staff once and then left the boy to his chores. As he rubbed his head, he couldn’t help but think of Cologne’s words and the fact that something was…different about Ranma. Something that had to do with his new clothing. Cologne’s voice shattered Mousse’s train of thought.
“Mousse! Gather the trash and take it outside!” Turning to obey his elder, something caught Mousse’s eyes and he paused to look at it. On the counter, a single candle burned. Something about the tiny flame made Mousse stop and stare. There was something…something just on the edge of his memory so important, so special… Just as Mousse was about to remember, Cologne hit him with a sack of garbage with the command,
“Take it out, Mousse!” The boy obeyed.

~**~

Akane left the library some hours later, her nose buried in a book, hardly aware of where she was going or that Ranma was behind her. The boy himself, however, was painfully aware of Akane’s distraction. It was he who kept her from walking into walls, carts, and people. Ranma sported the heavy backpack and three other books Akane had insisted they check out. They had such idiotic titles as “The ABC’s of Ancient Languages,” “One Stroke, Two Stroke; I Stroke, You Stroke,” and Ranma’s personal favorite, “The Idiot’s Guide to Reading and Writing Ancient Languages.” Ranma’s dislike of the titles of the books served as a mask to hide his admiration of Akane’s skill. While she could open a book and immediately know if it was going to be useful, he spent his time at the library floundering in words and characters he never knew existed. Sighing, Ranma pulled himself from his thoughts just in time to redirect Akane away from the side of a shop. She mumbled something that might have been ‘thank you’, but it just as well might have been an ancient word. Ranma would never know. Suddenly Akane stopped and Ranma crashed into her.
“Hey!” He began. “What didn’t you…” Akane was intently reading a passage from her book, “Ancient Languages and You”, over and over again. She squealed and turned on Ranma. “Give me the Tablet!” She demanded. Ranma was flabbergasted.
“Give you the what? Here?” Akane nodded vehemently.
“Yes, yes! Here! Now! I think I figured it out! Oh, gimme, gimme!” Ranma looked at her, shocked.
“Not here, Akane. I’ve been waiting all day to figure this out; you can wait till we get safely home.” Akane nodded wisely and grabbed Ranma’s hand. Just as he was about to protest, she took off, dragging him behind her through the streets of Nermia. Thirty seconds later, Ranma found himself seated next to Akane, who had taken the Tablet out of the backpack and was comparing the troublesome character to a book. She was grinning madly.
“A-ha!” She cried. “I knew this was it! I knew it!” Ranma blinked and the scooted closer to look over her shoulder.
“What did you know?”
“I knew this line took the character out of the ‘training’ tense and into the ‘master’s’ tense. The Second isn’t a guy who lives in Nermia who’s been training a long time.”
“No?”
“No.”
“Then what is he?” Akane grinned again and pointed to a line.
“This means he completed training and is a Master of what ever he does. So the Fire Second is a guy who lives in Nermia and is the Master of his art. And who do we know in Nermia is the Master of his art, strange though it may be?” Ranma sat, shocked. Then he grinned.
“I think I’ll go pay Duck-boy a visit.” Akane watched Ranma pick up the Tablet and prepare to leave. She called to him,
“Remember! He’s got to trace the character for ‘Fire’! And he’s got to want to! Be nice to him! Be patience! It might help! Oh! And make sure there’s a fire near him! And water to put it out! And make sure that Cologne and Shampoo aren’t around! They might not like Mousse suddenly being more powerful than Shampoo! Oh, Ranma! I forgot to tell you…” Akane trailed off as she realized that Ranma was already gone. She sighed and sat back. “Good luck, Ranma.”

~**~

When Ranma found Mousse, the blind boy had just finished sorting the trash. As Ranma approached him, the boy struck a match to burn the burn-ables and sighed as it refused to light. He struck another as Ranma watched. He grinned as the tiny flame caught, then sighed again as a gentle breeze took the heat away. As he pulled another out, Ranma cleared his throat. Mousse looked up and growled,
“What are you doing here, Soatome? Have you come to try and take my darling Shampoo from me?” Ranma sighed and held up his free hand in a peaceful gesture.
“No, man. I didn’t came here to do anything to Shampoo. I came here to talk to you.” Mousse looked at him suspiciously as he fumbled with another match.
“Why would you be here to talk to me? I haven’t done anything to you. Go away.” Ranma covered a smile as another match refused to light. Mousse was down to about five out of a pack of one hundred. Adopting a serious demeanor, he replied,
“I have to talk to you about something I just found out about myself. What were you doing five years ago?”
“Oh, nothing.” Mousse replied offhandedly, too distracted by the matches to waist time being mad at Ranma. “Five years ago I was…twelve. That was the year Shampoo almost lost the village Championship. She ended up beating the last girl so badly that the feast held was the biggest ever.” He raised an eyebrow and regarded Ranma. “You know about the feast’s, don’t you?” Ranma blushed. Yes, he knew. Mousse shrugged and continued. “Anyway, Shampoo and her family and friends, close friends, shared in the meal and I got to ‘watch the celebration flame.’” When Mousse paused to struggle with another match, Ranma asked a question.
“What’s the ‘celebration flame’?” Mousse sighed in frustration as the tiny wooden match broke. He glared at it and then pulled out another.
“It’s this stupid bon fire they set up so they can keep me away from Shampoo’s feast. There wasn’t one before my time and after I either give up or win Shampoo there won’t be another. They used to tell me this long story about the fire, ‘it’s a special flame that signifies the Warrior’s heart,’ and stuff like that. A few years ago they stopped telling me. They knew that I knew that it was just an excuse to make sure I stayed busy all night.” Ranma was puzzled.
“If they knew that you knew that they knew that you knew, why did they make you keep watching the fire?” Mousse picked his head up, blinked, and tried to make sense of what Ranma said. Then he went back to fumbling with one of the last matches.
“I can’t believe I followed that, but it was to keep me from training. If I was, how did they put it?, ‘concentrating on nothing but the flame’, I couldn’t practice. And if I was tired the next day, I couldn’t take advantage of Shampoo’s weariness. It just worked too well that way to stop.” His last match snapped and he stared at it. Then he glared at Ranma. “Why am I telling you this? What do you want? Go away.” Ranma shifted the Tablet to his other arm and sighed, frustrated.
“Are you sure that’s all that happened?” Mousse bent down and picked up the half of the match that he could strike. He stared at the tiny thing a second, then went about trying to get it to light.
“Yes. I’m sure. That’s all that happened. Shampoo fought. She won. She had fun. I watched the flame. The only different thing about that night is that I fell asleep and let the fire burn out. Happy? Now go away.” Ranma blinked. It couldn’t have been that ordinary. The night Ranma’s Dragon left for the final Test, there was a large production. Ranma had been at a lake, filling canteens, when suddenly Draco appeared. At first Ranma had been happy. Then the Dragon had explained that he would be locking the boy’s memories and his tie with water deep within him, to be hidden for five years. If he was strong enough by then, he would find the Tablet and his memories and Tie would be unlocked. After he locked the Tie, the Dragon had disappeared. Taking the entire lake with him. Ranma’s father had found him the next day, asleep by the dried out lake, and insisted that the boy wasn’t manly enough. Thus began the Cat Fist training. So Mousse’s night couldn’t have been that tame…unless. Ranma hit himself on the head.
“Duh!” He said out loud. “He won’t remember until he’s unlocked.” He smiled sheepishly at Mousse. “Sorry. My fault. I forgot you wouldn’t remember.” Mousse was looking at the black haired martial artist as if he spontaneously combusted.
“Are you sick or something? Is that what’s wrong with you? Or are you just totally insane?” Ranma ignored the comment and showed the Tablet to Mousse.
“This is the Tablet.” Mousse made another comment, which Ranma ignored. “I found the Tablet in a few weeks ago in a cave. I don’t know where the cave is, so don’t ask.” Mousse closed his mouth. “Anyway, it turns out Akane can read this stuff and the Tablet is covered with stuff about the end of the world. Or, at least, some bad things that are coming to end the world. There are only four people who can stop these bad things, and they are the Chosen. The four Chosen are represented by elements. The First is Water. The Second is Fire. The Third is Lightning. The Fourth is Wind. I’ve got to find the people the Tablet says are the Second, Third, and Forth.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m the First.”
“Ah. Well. That’s just great, Soatome, but what has it got to do with me?” Ranma fidgeted.
“Well, I can’t read this and Akane can.”
“I believe you’ve covered that already.”
“Yea, well…the point is…Akane says, and I believe her, that…um…you’re the…Second. Fire. What ever you want to call yourself.” Mousse just stared at him a few minutes before bursting into uncontrollable laughter. Several minutes later he wiped his eyes and said,
“You are the most confused person I ever met. If these people, these…Chosen, are going to defend the world, then they’ve got to be pretty good martial artists. If you’re looking for a Chinese Amazon who’s a good fighter, you’ve come to the wrong Amazon. Shampoo isn’t here, so you’d better come back later. On second thought.” He eyed Ranma. “Don’t come back.” Ranma was getting frustrated.
“I’m not looking for a Chinese Amazon.”
“Oh, really? Then who are you looking for? The old mummy? She won’t be of much use to you.”
“No! I’m looking for a guy who lives in Nermia and-“
“A guy? There are a lot of those in this town. You’d better get looking.”
“He has to be a Master of an art!” Ranma yelled, mad at Mousse’s refusal to believe himself to be the Second. Mousse blinked.
“The Master of…”
“An art.” Ranma finished, glad that Mousse was catching on. “There is only one person I know in Nermia who’s a Master.”
“Happosai?” Ranma shuttered.
“Not that little pervert. I’m talking about the Master of Hidden Weapons.” Mousse froze instantly. He had been pulling a new box of matches out of his endless sleeve. He spoke in a hesitant, halting way.
“In light of this new information…I’m willing to…listen…to your…idea. Talk.” Ranma nodded.
“Akane told me that the Second would be a guy who lived in Nermia and was a Master. Because the Second is also Fire, and you were near a fire the night you were locked, I think it’s you.” Mousse nodded even though he had no idea what Ranma was talking about. Ranma knew that Mousse was confused. “When I was unlocked, when I remembered my Dragon’s name, I realized that I had forgotten all about him. I forgot when we met by a river when I was six almost seven; I forgot all the training I did with him until I was twelve; and I forgot when he came and locked all my memories. Then, when I unlocked myself, I remembered. When he came and locked all memories of him away, there was a lot of light and then I was unconscious. I woke up the next morning and an entire lake was gone. Because the experience knocked me out and drained a lake of its water, I think you’re it. I also don’t think that you fell asleep or let the flame die. I think your Fire Creature locked you’re memories, knocked you out, and left in the fire. It would make sense that you’re Fire because the same thing happened to me and I’m Water.” Mousse nodded. What he said made sense. It would also explicate Mousse’s strange obsession with fire.
“All right.” He began. “Let’s assume that I’m the…Second. What would I have to do to…unlock my memories?” Ranma looked intensely relieved.
“I thought you’d never ask.” He walked over to a closed trashcan and set the Tablet on that. He beckoned Mousse over. When he was standing next to the Tablet, Ranma said,
“When I did it, I had Akane and she told me what to do because she could read this. Unfortunately, I can’t. However, she did tell me which one of these marks meant ‘Fire.’ Akane told me all you have to do is close you’re eyes and trace this character over and over and over again. It worked for me. Now, I’m going to warn you, it might sting a little when you remember the Fire Creature, whatever that ends up being. Just stick to it. My Dragon told me that mine was the worst, and I’m still alive. So don’t worry. Ready?” Mousse didn’t think he’d ever be ready, or if he was even the Second, but he wanted so desperately to know, he nodded. After closing his eyes, he began to trace. Over and over he traced, until the character was a bright red mark on the inside of his eyelids. Still he traced, until finally the sign grew too bright, and it exploded from its confinement like an untamed wildfire. It grew up until it was almost as tall as the boy himself, and then it took shape. It formed a head, two semi-pointed ears, a fine nose and delicate whiskers; it stood on four dainty paws and a long tail erupted from its back. Mousse breathed a gasp; it was a huge cat. A huge…familiar cat.
“I know you…” he whispered. The cat’s tail flicked in amusement.
“Of course you know me. You’ve always known me. One such as I is unforgettable.” Mousse tilted his head slightly.
“But you know me, too.” The cat rewarded him with a feline’s grin.
“Yes. I know you, as well. We were meant for each other, boy. You know that, too.” Mousse nodded.
“Yes.” The cat tilted its head.
“Mousse. Such a pity. You’re name does not fit you. You should have been named after a great cat. Neko. That would have been a good name for you.” Mousse shook his head.
“No. Cat’s are royal animals; great, noble animals. I am just a male. Cats are greater than I am. The princess of my village, Shampoo, she is a cat. I am merely a duck.” The cat flattened its ears in anger.
“That, too, is a pity. The girl child Shampoo has not earned the right to be called a cat in any form. I must rectify that. It is also a pity that you have become prey. It does not fit you, Mousse. You are the hunter, not the hunted.” Mousse sighed.
“It was not my choice to become a duck. Fate is strange that way.” The cat shrunk low to the ground and growled low in its throat.
“It was not Fate that dealt you that humiliation, boy. It was that which comes to destroy this world.” Mousse’s eyes widened.
“My curse…wasn’t fated to me? It is not my destiny?” The cat stood and looked the boy in the eyes.
“You were meant to shape your own destiny, boy. Fire is controlled by no one.”
“But…Shampoo…”
“What has the girl child to do with this? We speak of Fire. Fire exists on its own, helped but not dependent upon love. If the girl left you today, truly left you, you would not grieve long, as Fire. Right now you are incomplete. Only one half of the warrior you could be.”
“What can make me that warrior?”
“Need you ask?”
“Fire.” He murmured.
“Yes. Fire. If you accept the fact that you are meant for better things that servitude in an Amazon village, you will become that which you love most.” Mousse blinked.
“I love Shampoo most.” The cat grinned savagely.
“You don’t believe that. What do you truly desire? What do you truly love?”
“Fire.”
“And what name holds Fire?”
“Fire…is held in your name. You are my Fire.”
“And what is my name?”
“I…I don’t know.”
“Do you deny you’re Fire? Do you deny it?”
“I could never.”
“Then tell me my name!”
“If only I could! If only I could…”
“The power is there, if you dare to look for it.”
“I’ve never had any power. I’ve always been at the mercy of the Amazon leaders. How do I have power?”
“Why do you ask me? You can feel it even now. It courses through your veins. It is hot as lava and as deadly as the desert sun. It is Fire, and you know it. Stop cowering behind Amazon customs and fight for a change! Grab at the happiness you could have! Stop playing the trodden slave and fight for that which you love! Call my name!”
“Can I do it?” Mousse questioned himself.
“Give me my name!”
“Am I strong enough?”
“Now, boy! Tell my that which I must hear!”
“I’m tired of waiting for happiness to come to me!”
“Call me by name!”
“Give me what is mine! Answer me! HELLFIRE!” In a sudden rush of movement, the Fire Cat named Hellfire bounded forward and through her master. She pushed her way through each of his cells, gathering and removing both of his curses. After an intense wave of hellish pain, Mousse sunk to the ground. A few moments later, Hellfire came back. She rubbed against him and butted him with her head, purring madly.
“Fire.” She purred. “Little Fire. I’ve waited for this since the time of the First Fire. Forgive the pain, but look at the good it’s done!” Mousse turned his head at Hellfire’s insistence and saw a duck sporting thick glasses standing a few feet away. He blinked and noticed suddenly that not only were his glasses gone, but he didn’t need them. He could see perfectly, and somehow, he knew that the duck was no longer part of him. There was no need for wings when you were Fire. Mousse smiled and turned to stroke Hellfire’s fiery coat. When she started purring he began scratching her lightly under her chin. Her purr was like the soft roar of a warm fire on a cold winters night. How could he ever have thought Shampoo would be enough to satisfy this need? Mousse jerked at the emotions Hellfire was projecting. The though of Shampoo made Hellfire think of Amazons; and with the thought of Amazons came the thought of Cologne. Hate. Hellfire hated Cologne with all the seven fires of hell. She wanted to kill the Amazon for some unknown reason. Oh, wait. There it was. Mousse realized that he was reliving one of Hellfire’s memories. She was watching over the small Mousse as he slept. She was sorry that she had to lock the boy’s memories, but in five years he would remember and they would grow strong together. Suddenly, the door flew open and that horrible old woman who treated the young Fire so poorly hopped in. Hellfire watched from the fireplace, helpless, as the old goat touched the boy, pressing pressure points. Didn’t the old bag know that the Fire in his veins would heal the boy? The idiot continued poking and then drew back in surprise as a cat, the adult form of the kitten Mousse had saved years earlier, jumped from a window, landed softly on the boy’s back, and hissed at the woman. Glaring at the small feline, Cologne left the hut. The cat purred and curled into a ball on the boy’s back. The Amazon monarch would not touch the boy as long as she was around. Hellfire smiled and silently thanked the lovely cat. The cat nodded her head slightly, acknowledging the Fire Cat’s thanks. She knew as well as Hellfire how important the boy was. He was important and easy for a cat to love. He moved with even more grace than the princess when he was alone and sure of his surroundings. The old woman knew this, too, and soon took steps to destroy the boy’s talent. Hellfire watched in silent fury as the boy was ‘allowed’ to train under the animal guardian hawk. Like hell. The boy was being demoted even as that selfish princess was over glorified by being given the animal guardian cat. This infuriated every cat in the village and they all hated the princess and even more so the old woman who sealed the lithe boys future to lugging around tons of weapons, ruining his natural grace. However, Hellfire was patient. She knew that one day the boy would remember, and then she could take a physical form once more, and then…the old woman would pay dearly. Mousse gasped and drew away from Hellfire. She mewed softly and licked his hand.
“Don’t be angry, sweet Fire. I do not mean to upset you with my anger. I am Fire, and such temperaments come easily. Forgive me.” Mousse smiled at Hellfire and stroked her again.
“I’m not angry at you, Hellfire. I could never be mad at you. Not for long, anyway. I’m furious at the old mummy. All those years, she told me to be grateful, when all she ever did for me was out of spite. That evil old troll. How dare she?” Hellfire licked him again.
“Enough anger now, Mousse. It is time you and I returned to the real world. But first.” Hellfire turned to look at the forgotten duck that still stood some feet away. She crouched low to the ground, her tail lashing about madly. Suddenly, she leapt! She soared across the distance between herself and the duck, landing soundly on the curse. As she landed, the duck disappeared and she peeked under her paw to make sure it was gone.
“Drat.” She complained. “They always disappear right before the fun begins.” Mousse laughed and suddenly found himself staring at Ranma Soatome. Water smiled.
“Nice clothes” Mousse looked down at his clothes. They weighed almost nothing and Mousse wondered what had happened to all his weapons. They were raven black, and a beautiful cat, exactly like Hellfire, encircled his torso, rubbing against him, either enjoying the feel of him or protecting him. Maybe a little of both. Her tail was frozen mid-lash and wound about his left sleeve.
“It’s silk.” He said to Ranma. “And it’s fire proof.”
“It only makes sense. What’s her name?” Ranma was, or course, speaking of Hellfire. Mousse paused. Did he really want to tell Ranma Soatome, arch-rival, the name of his beloved cat? Ranma pointed at the dragon that possessed his clothing.
“His name’s Draco. I figure if we’re gonna be working together, you might as well know the name of my Elemental Creature.” Mousse blinked. Suddenly, in the span of moments, Ranma looked completely different. He no longer held the rank of rival, but of comrade, friend, First.
“Draco. Like the constellation.” Ranma grinned.
“Yea. Like the constellation. Only more powerful. So who’s she?” Mousse was surprised.
“How did you know she was female?” Ranma shrugged.
“She just looks like a female. I can’t explain it. There was just no way she was a guy.” Mousse nodded. It would make sense that Ranma would recognize that she was a girl. He was, after all, the First.
“Her name is Hellfire.” Ranma grinned again.
“That rules out the idea of them all being name after constellations. I wouldn’t want to get her mad. I feel sorry for the old goul. Almost.” Mousse was confused.
“Why do you feel sorry for her?” Ranma shrugged.
“I just figured that, since she was the one who made you a bird warrior, Hellfire’s gotta be pretty P.O.ed at her. Man, I wouldn’t want to be her for the world.” Mousse was taken aback. Maybe Ranma Soatome wasn’t as stupid as he seemed. In that case, he was letting Mousse see something he didn’t let many people see. He trusts me Mousse thought. He want’s to be my friend. I can’t believe this. I guess he’s not so bad, after all. He smiled.
“I misjudged you, Soato-, I mean, Ranma. You’re not as thick as you pretend to be.” Ranma laughed and smacked Mousse on the back.
“You don’t know the half of it, Fire.” Cologne’s voice shattered the friendly atmosphere.
“Mousse! Have you burned that paper yet?” Mousse sighed. Then he grinned.
“It’ll be done in a second! I’m having a bit of trouble with the matches!” The boy turned to look at the paper in the barrel. He pictured it bursting into glorious flame, then he held out his hand to the barrel. In my veins…a tongue of fire flickered into existence on Mousse’s out stretched palm. In my veins…Fire…The tiny flame flared and caught onto the barrel. It began consuming anything it could. It was hungry and alive. First and Second watched it grow. Ranma spoke softly,
“It's good to be back, isn't it, Fire?” Mousse only smiled.