damned_institute | Day 30: Cafeteria, Dinner

Ah, trouble with women. Vlad found himself feeling genuinely sympathetic despite himself; it was too familiar a story. Although, of course, in his case, he was obviously the superior specimen and the barrier between their love was a bit more complicated...

Shampoo and Mousse? That was a bit much, stretching coincidence. That there were apparently two sadistic or hair-obsessed parents in Mousse's home was vaguely amusing, but he wouldn't bring it up. "Now, you mustn't think like that. If you're sincere about this Shampoo, you shouldn't let temporary setbacks get in your way. You have to be ready to be hurt, and you have to be ready to crush your rivals, in order to get the woman of your dreams!"

Vlad's encouragement was music to Mousse's ears. He felt very much the same way about love himself, though usually he was mocked and ridiculed for his views. How wonderful it was to meet another who saw it the same way!

His hand shot across the table and he gripped Vlad's strongly, eyes welling up with tears. "I am so happy to hear you say so, Mr. Masters! I have always said the same thing, but it's so discouraging when the world is against you!"

He let Vlad go and shrunk back. It was nice that they were in agreement, but that still brought him no closer to defeating Ranma Saotome and winning Shampoo. And it only served to depress him over his failures more. He voiced this. "...but it doesn't matter what I think. Unless I can get back to Shampoo and defeat that accursed Ranma Saotome, all my love is in vain."

Vlad was a bit startled as the young man grabbed at his hands, clearly overwhelmed with emotion at Vlad's words. True, it had been meant as a little encouragement, but this seemed excessive.

On the other hand... Vlad patted the hand before Mousse let go, and listened to the rest of Mousse's story. "I see. A rival. How terrible for you." He nodded sympathetically. "And while you're trapped here, he is there, with her."

Vlad's own situation was a bit different, considering that Maddie would be with that idiot Jack no matter what dimension Vlad himself had been sent to until Vlad himself returned to correct that little problem, but it reminded him of the past. A time when he'd been trapped in a hospital while his rival made off with their mutual interest. "Then I can certainly understand why you feel as though your brief time here has been an eternity. I apologize for the bluntness of my question, but is this Ranma Saotome much stronger than you are?" At least he wasn't named after a hair product.

"And while you're trapped here, he is there, with her."

Mousse's clenched his good hand into a tight fist. Yes, that was exactly how it was. Every moment his spent here, Shampoo and Ranma had that extra time to spend together alone. And with Shampoo being the most wonderful woman in the world, it was only a matter of time before Ranma...before Ranma...

"Then I can certainly understand why you feel as though your brief time here has been an eternity. I apologize for the bluntness of my question, but is this Ranma Saotome much stronger than you are?"

He slammed his fist hard into the table with a loud "wham!" that resounded through the cafeteria (though it was unlikely anyone noticed, wrapped in their own conversations as they were). He would never allow Ranma to take Shampoo away from him! If Ranma DID sweep Shampoo off and marry her in his absence, he would kill the man! He already had a fiancee, why did he continue to steal Mousse's bride?! RANMA SAOTOME DESERVED NOTHING BUT A PAINFUL DEMISE, THE FIEND.

Still, Vlad's question stung him right through. He had sworn so many times before to end Ranma's life, to defeat him, or to do anything possible to win Shampoo's affections. It had taken Ranma only a month or two of knowing her to accomplish what Mousse had been trying his whole life. Shampoo loved him and thought of Mousse as the weak, blind suitor from her childhood. It was too much to dwell on. "Ranma Saotome is not stronger than me," He insisted. "I just have not defeated him yet. He has stolen my bride from me and I will win her back."

Vlad didn't jump as the fist hit the table, nor as Mousse's expression twisted from grief to rage. Instead, as Mousse made his declaration, Vlad smirked widely and leaned a little closer.

"Wonderful! That's the attitude to have. It's only a matter of time before you will be reunited with Shampoo, so long as you keep focused on your goal and let nothing stand in your way." One of Vlad's own fists clenched on the table as well, although he didn't notice it. "You know, my boy, I used to be in a situation much like yours. I can't help but feel moved by the power of your emotions. I may be only an old man, but nonetheless, I'd be happy to work with you on helping return home to save the woman you love from making a terrible mistake." He leaned back a bit. "I'm not much of a fighter, but I tend to be relatively clever, if I may praise myself. You, on the other hand, despite your wounds, seem to be a warrior."

He'd be willing to help Mousse get back to Shampoo?! This was the best news Mousse had heard all day. Even Sousuke had his own priorities that came before catering to Mousse's interests! Mr. Masters hadn't even know him that long and he was willing to do this much for him? His eyes welled up with tears once more and he made another grab for Vlad's hand.

"You're so kind!" He was overjoyed to hear that Mr. Masters knew where he was coming from and understood how he felt. "I mean, that you would help me reunite with my darling Shampoo! I would do anything for that! If I can help you in any way, please let me know!"

The final comment, about Mousse as a warrior made the Amazon lower his head again. "I don't appear to be much of warrior lately. I am supposed to be a fighter of some skill and a master of hidden weapons, but so far all I've managed to do since coming here is screw up."

"Not at all, not at all. After all, we all want to leave here, don't we? But I'm sure working together we'd make much better progress than working apart." Vlad continued to smile warmly at Mousse.

"And in my experience... strength is useful, but without direction, it is all too easy to be lost or to simply strike out blindly and waste energy." He had no idea how close he was to the truth on that point. "Strength and knowledge working together, on the other hand, can be quite unstoppable." Vlad shook Mousse's hand firmly. "A master of hidden weapons, you say? How impressive. Out of curiosity, my boy, is there anything on you at the moment?"

Mousse nodded. "I never go without weapons if I can help it." That didn't mean he would show all the aces up his sleeve; how would they be considered hidden if he revealed them? "Of course, it seems a bit harder to hide things here. They keep catching me if I attempt to add to my arsenal and sometimes my weapons don't stay hidden like they're supposed to."

"But you think if we work together we can get out? Really?" Mousse went back to the notion that Vlad could bring him back to Shampoo. "Oh, tell me what I need to do and I will!"

"Excellent. It's always best to be prepared, that's my philosophy." Vlad noticed that Mousse did not bring anything out. In this situation, it was a sign of intelligence if anything, considering how the cafeteria was positively swarming with orderlies on the lookout. His description of having things confiscated might have been proof that it was a lesson learned from experience, on the other hand.

"I think we can get out," Vlad confirmed. "It may take some time, of course, and we must secure more resources, but we will leave this place behind." Of course, he had absolutely no idea how at the moment, but that hardly mattered so long as Mousse followed along.

That sounded nice and Mousse was willing to believe Vlad. After all, he had already decided he trusted him and he knew they had similiar lines of thought on love. If Vlad had a great plan of escape, then undoubtably it would match Mousse's own goals. It was considerate of Vlad to invite him to take part in it as well as acknowledge his skill as a warrior. Perhaps this meant that Mr. Masters would let him engage his enemies, should they encounter any. Unlike Sousuke, Mousse had a good feeling about Mr. Masters letting him keep his pride as a man ~~and take the damage in his stead~~.

"Tell me what I can do to help!" His face lit up. He was going to see Shampoo again soon!

Goodness, the young man seemed ready to run out and go throw himself into the face of danger on Vlad's word right at the spur of the moment. Vlad liked that, but the problem was of course he had nothing to point Mousse at. Even recruiting the young man like this was bargaining on his future use, not yet part of any extended plan. Vlad liked to take advantage of opportunities when they presented themselves, and Mousse was an opportunity that Vlad felt he already had a good grasp on.

Which made it more important to not let Mousse get distracted or discouraged from his current enthusiasm, but Vlad didn't have anything substantial to use him for at the moment. "I still need to learn some more things about this facility," Vlad explained sincerely, nodding at Mousse as though surely Mousse understood that these things took time. "Let's meet again tomorrow, and we can begin discussing our first moves."

Mousse pursed his lips. He had been hoping to get out of this place as soon as possible. However, what Vlad said made sense, especially if he was new and unfamliar with things. The Amazon had had his heart set on seeing Shampoo soon, though.

"Ok," he said, less enthusiastic. "You think we'll be able to leave tomorrow?"

Oh, for... "I don't know." Vlad sighed his best tragic sigh and looked around at all the guards. "We may. It depends on what I learn tonight. But I assure you, I'll do my best to find the way out of this place and back to our proper homes as quickly as possible."

He paused, then smiled. "In the meantime, think of this as a new challenge to overcome. After all, with all the fighting that happens every night, you're bound to become stronger. When you next meet this Ranma Saotome, how could he stand a chance compared to the things here?"

Well, the things Vlad had read about. He hadn't actually seen any of that.

Mousse's face lit up at the thought. "That is true!" Ranma couldn't train like he did with these monsters. Then again, he might not need to with the techniques Cologne could teach him. Mousse would have to make an effort to keep training AND fighting at night. He'd gotten lazy in his routine. Thank heavens Mr. Masters was here to set him back on track!

"When I return home, I will defeat Ranma Saotome in combat and Shampoo will become my bride!" Never mind that he still wouldn't have technically defeated her, but by proxy counted. "She'll know how strong I am and no longer spurn me!"

There. Much better. Vlad raised both his hands in a gesture of open agreement. "Of course! When she sees how superior you are, how could she make any other choice?"

How could she make any other choice? Much less choose an idiot like... Well, however close to home Mousse's problems might hit, Vlad wasn't so sympathetic that he didn't plan on using his understanding of those feelings to play Mousse like a violin. Thus far, it sounded lovely.

"So we have two goals. Your training here and my efforts to find a way to free us both, so you may use that training against Ranma Saotome." He had absolutely no idea who Ranma Saotome was, and could only hope he was a bit smarter than Mousse for Shampoo's sake. Then again, once they parted ways or Mousse lost his usefulness, it wouldn't be Vlad's concern anymore.

The smile he gave Mousse was downright fatherly.

Day 30: Cafeteria, Dinner

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