The Zodiac Of Ages
Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma 1/2, it belongs to Rumiko Takahashi. Please don't
sue.
Chinese speech
[] Thoughts
Prologue:
It was my 18th birthday, however, there is no candles, no cake, no party. Ever
since the 'incident' my life is living hell. I have been branded a criminal,
charged with attempted murder. But trust me on this for now, it wasn't I.
Now, I live deep in the forest, avoiding all contacts with cop and people who
want my head for fame and glory.
I live in a wooden hut within the forest, built it myself, just for your
information. It's not perfect, actually far from it, but since the incident, I
don't have much of a choice. I strapped my blade on my back, ever since the
incident, I have to rely on it a lot more. The blade was marvelous, and I am
just beginning to learn of its fascinating properties.
First of all, the sword could cut through practically anything with relative
ease. The words 'Green Dragon Blade' was carefully carved on the blade.
Secondly, blood doesn't 'stick' on the blade; I never had clean the blade ever
since I got it, it never needed to get sharpened either.
I also discovered much more about myself, one of which is I taken up reading. I
never liked book in my past, however, I never got a chance in my old life.
Granted since I'm hiding, there isn't much to read, just some old scrolls and
books that my great grandmother left for me. Most of them are about martial
arts, and ancient magic from my ancestors; however, there are a few history book
and quite a few books on medicine. I chuckled to myself, looks like my
grandmother was worried for my well being after all.
Oh, I suppose I should tell you who I am, well, my name is Shampoo, or at least
I was known as that name. Right now, it matters very little about what my name
is. I make almost no human contact with anyone, ever since that dreaded
incident. Right now, my past life was like a colorful dream that happened about
a month ago. What happened? Well, it's a long story; I guess I should begin at
in the beginning.
**Storytelling.. (Shampoo's POV)
It all happened back at Airen's.. er.. Ranma's (Yes, I suppose I should call him
that now.) 18th birthday. Before that day, everyone I knew was practically going
head over heals to prepare for the upcoming event. Since that males get declared
as 'full grown' at the age 18, it was one of Airen.. I mean Ranma's (Old habits
die hard) most important birthday.
Of course, that included me. I was caught up in all the excitement too. I just
had to get him the best present ever. I made a mad dash to my emergency money,
there was enough money to get him a decent gift, since I'm not that big a money
spender anyways. So, removing some cash, I proceeded to go out for the birthday
gift.
"Great Grandma! I'm going to go shopping for Airen!" I called out happily. "I'll
be back before the dinner rush!"
The elder nodded happily. "Make sure you find something nice for him!" She
called out to the energetic youth that ran out the door before she could say
anything else.
I strolled through the market place searching for a perfect gift for him. I
began to brainstorm for the perfect gift. I skipped along though the roads of
the market place looking for any stores that caught my interest.
"Hey, bimbo!!" I heard someone call out. I felt my blood rush in my head, there
was a handful of people that called me that. Mostly rivals, I quickly turned
over to see that stupid spatula girl calling to me.
"What do YOU want?" I asked. "I'm busy and I don't have time to fight you,
stupid spatula girl!"
"Hey, easy there!" Ukyou responded. "I'm not here to fight you, at least not
today." She said flatly as to expect I didn't understand. Quite the opposite
mind you, I understand perfectly well, it's just that I usually don't show it.
It makes people expect less out of you than usual.
"What do you want then?" I asked again, getting fairly impatient. "I have to
find a gift for Airen, and I will not be held up any longer than I have to!" I
spat back.
"Ahh.. that's why your out here so early." The chief replied. "So, what are you
going to give him this time? An amulet that makes the wearer instantly fall in
love with you?" She taunted.
I gave out a low growl, but since I was pressed for time, I couldn't afford to
argue with her. I told grandmother that I would be back before the dinner rush,
and an Amazon keeps her word. "Is that all?" I asked tossing my hair.
"Actually, no.." Ukyou said raising her spatula to block my passage. "The main
reason I was here was to tell you about the pact that we need you to agree
upon." She answered.
"Pact?" I asked curiously. "What do you mean?" I was tempted to just fight my
way out of this, but for some reason I didn't feel like it today.
"Well, me and the other girls had an agreement, we all agreed and need you to be
in it as well." She explained.
"Hmm." I answered. "What is the pact?" I asked.
"It's like this, since it's Ran-chan's most important birthday, we all though we
will drop our differences and act civil for once." She explained. "That means no
fighting, no arguing, and NO GLOMPING!!"
I let the words swim in my mind for a moment. For once, the stupid cook made
some sense, it would be hard for me not to show some affection for my Airen, but
just this once, it would be logical to let Ranma have a good time.
"Fine." I answered quietly. "I won't argue with you or fight, or glomp on my
Airen on that day."
Ukyou looked in surprise as she was prepared to beat the heck outta me if I
refused, not like she could have, I'm pretty confident that I make more than
take her on any given Sunday.
"Really? You swear now, right?" Ukyou said still not believing what she heard.
"Yes, I swear, as long as all the rest of the people swear also. An Amazon keeps
they're promises." I answered plainly.
Ukyou nodded. "Good then, cause if you don't keep your promise, we will make
sure that every day of your life would not be lived in peace." With that she
walked away.
After she left, I resumed my search. Anyway, how I found the present isn't very
important. What was important I guess; is what happened afterward. I was still
uneasy about the whole deal Ukyou told me about, so I decide to sneak into the
Dojo to see what that violent chick was up to.
I jumped from rooftop to rooftop, cursing myself that I didn't ride my bike
today, it just seemed to be a nice day for just a plain walk, guess not huh. I
finally got to the Tendo dojo that way, I took a peek at my watch, I still had
about an hour or so. So, I jumped to a nearby tree where I can get a clear bird
eyed view of what was going on.
I was lucky, Akane's curtain were not closed, I could see what was going inside,
thanks to the 'nice weather' that she didn't pull the curtains.
I saw her, she looked like she was wrapping a gift. Figures, don't know how
Ranma puts up with that girl, why did Akane even bother to buy Ranma a gift, it
wasn't like there was a chance of it going to be better than what she got for
him.
I jumped on top of the window, tapping it lightly with my hand, which startled
the figure inside. She walked towards me and opened the window. As she opened it
I quickly jumped in.
"What are you doing here, bimbo?" She asked angrily. She quickly made a move to
hide the present from me.
"Not here to fight, just want to make sure about something." I mumbled. "Spatula
girl told me about the deal, are you planning on keeping it?"
"Yes, I do, you stupid hussy!" She spat venomously. "At least you can respect my
privacy and use the door! How about you? Are you going to act at least civil on
that day?"
I shrugged "Yes, I agree on it." I answered. "But, what if that crazy girl or
spatula girl, or even you break that promise?"
"We have our ways of punishment. Believe me, I have no desire in breaking it.
Although I don't know if you can."
If that wasn't a challenge, I wouldn't know what is. "Hmmph!" I snorted. "I can
resist, but I bet you can't go on two minutes without getting into an argument."
Akane gritted her teeth. "WHAT ARE YOU SAYING?? ARE YOU SUGGESTING THAT I HAVE A
BAD TEMPER?"
I shrugged, chucking to myself. "Let me just tell you this, if any of you IF
anyone of you break the promise, then you will hear no end of it from me." I
left immediately after I said that leaving the violent Japanese girl to herself.
* * *
The day finally came. I woke up at my usual time, however, instead of wearing my
'waitress uniform' I went for something fancier, I wanted to look my best after
all, on such an important day.
Swiftly, I changed a fancy Chinese style dress. Yea, I know, I always wear a
Chinese style dress. Well, it's just that well.. call it a habit. I'm just not
used to anything else.
After that, I packed his gift, carefully I wrapped it up as genuine as I could.
Next I put it in a red box, which symbolized luck in Chinese tradition. I also
tied a red ribbon on it, just for good measure.
Then I went over the things I couldn't do, today was the day I have to act.. no
be Mrs. Perfect. Let's see, no glomping, no arguing, stay clear of any
arguments. I must have went over those things over 100 times already, even with
that something still manages to go wrong.
Oh, sure, it BEGAN normal enough.. with Great Grandmother and Mousse closing up
the store for the day, since everyone was invited to the party. It was a great
risk Ranma was taking, but he wanted all his 'friends' to be at the party.
We left the Nekohanten early in the morning, with Grandmother giving a speech to
Mousse that she strictly forbad any assaults this day, or else she would
severely punish Mousse, she wanted her 'son-in-law's' 18th birthday to be
perfect.
I giggled uncontrollably as I saw Mousse give an obedient yet forceful nod.
Hibi-chan also brought a gift for Ranma, she even managed to force Mousse into
buying a gift, the gifts were all wrapped in red paper and ribbons like mine. I
happily skipped down the block, while Mousse showed a lot less enthusiasm.
I let out a slight chuckle at Mousse forced behavior. He looked so funny when he
did that. Mousse will be Mousse I guess. I jumped on the rail and ran toward the
destination, it felt weird running on the rail, Ranma was used to it, however I
was more used to my trusty bike that it felt so foreign to me.
I finally arrived at the Tendo Dojo, I gasped at the colorful display, it was
probably bigger than that time they came for Christmas, looks like the Tendos
and that stupid Panda thought it was an important occasion too. I took a deep
breath and walked in.
"Welcome, Shampoo!" A cheerful voice greeted me. "So glad you can come today!"
There was only one person in this world that could greet me like that. Probably
the only one who doesn't hate my guts now.. Kasumi Tendo.
"Thank you, Kasumi!" I said smiling, silently remembering to be polite today.
"Thanks for inviting me! I'm so happy to be here!"
The older girl nodded. Sometimes, I think she is too polite for her own good, it
worked though, it was almost impossible if not impossible to hate her. What am I
talking about? It's almost impossible to even not like her.
After the 'formal' greetings from Kasumi, I proceeded to where the main party
was. The first reaction I got was that they must have spent a lot of time
planning this. The second was that, who ever designed all this, it was certainly
not Akane Tendo, that girl had no talent in art whatsoever.
I glanced around seeing if I can spot Ranma, however I couldn't. It wasn't that
I wanted to glomp him, well kind of, but I had enough will power to control
myself not to do it, I didn't find him however, spotted almost everyone else,
pig boy in one of the corners trying to get himself alone with Akane, typical.
Mousse and Great Grandmother were in another corner, chatting amongst themselves
that was no great surprise either. Ukyou, the spatula girl was talking with
Kodachi, that's something unusual, those two didn't get along at all either,
what were they talking about?
Suddenly, a strange feeling came over me, that something was VERY wrong, it sent
a chill down my spine. Either it was just the fact that Ukyou and Kodachi were
talking together, or it's a warning for me.
Then the big announcement came, while Ranma and his father Genma and Soun were
all on stage, they proudly told everyone that Ranma has come to age. Akane was
there besides them too, she was smiling hands holding the gift that she
prepared.
I gritted my teeth and reminded myself that I couldn't do anything 'stupid' at
least not today, it was Ranma's day, and only his day. I let out a silent sigh..
I held my gift up so that I can see it once more before I handed it to Ranma,
although I was confident that it would be his best gift ever, the feeling
quickly got drenched in a feeling of doubt.
However, I never got the chance, right when Akane was giving the present to
Ranma, an arrow whistled from my direction. I spun back quickly just to spot a
shadow running away in distance. With all my energy I made a made dash toward
the attacker.
Bad idea, very bad, I did not know what happened during my mad chase, which gave
me no results whatsoever. I lost any trace that was left of him. When I proceed
back the dojo, I saw a bunch of police cars and ambulances.
Something told me that I should stay out of sight until I knew what was going
on. So, using all my skills I hid myself and overheard they're talking.
"So, what happened here?" An officer asked.
"Well.." Nabiki began to explain, while Soun was in tears, mourning over
something. "It's like this, an arrow suddenly shot out, it was intended to hit
my sister, Akane I believe, but this man took it for her."
"Does your sister have any enemies, or any suspects?" The policeman asked
writing in his little notepad.
"Enemies? Well, she has enough to fill this whole block, twice, however, I don't
know if they would go as far as to kill though. However, I do have a good idea
of who did this, for a reasonable price that is."
"Price?" The policeman raised his eyebrows. "If want to help us find this
killer, you might want to reconsider this price."
Nabiki pouted, it's rare that she gets outsmarted, if even that. "You win, the
person you're looking for is.." She took a deep breath. "A young girl named
Shampoo."
My blood instantly froze right there. I gritted my teeth as I continued to
listen to them.
The police wrote that down on his pad. "Can you give us a description of this..
'Shampoo'?"
Nabiki shrugged. "Almost everyone around here knows what she looks like, it's
hard to miss. She has long purple hair, wears Chinese style clothing that are
skin tight.."
Nabiki continued to describe what I look like. I can't believe it! They actually
believe that I am capable of murder! Sure, every once in a while I would
threaten to kill, but the truth is I never slain anyone in my life, if worse
comes to worse I don't even know if I could kill anyone.
I have heard enough from that stupid mercenary, and jumped to another tree
hiding in shadows, there, Ranma was talking to a paramedic; I closed in to hear
what was going on.
"Is he going to be alright doc?" Ranma asked in a very worried tone.
"I won't lie to you.. your father condition isn't good, the arrow punctured his
right lung. He has little chance of surviving, and even if he does there is no
guarantee that he would fully heal, I'm sorry Mr. Saotome but that's all I could
tell you now."
"Thanks, doc." Ranma said sadly.
Genma taking an arrow for Akane? What was going on? The thoughts went though my
head as the facts pieced together in my head. First, an arrow was shot from my
direction aimed at Akane it seems. Then Genma, that guy took the arrow for her
and was in critical situation?
Ranma dragged himself back into the dojo. He looked very depressed, so depressed
that a shi shi hakotan from him would probably beat out Ryouga's any day.
Part of me wanted to run right up to explain to him that it wasn't me, but the
other told me that was a very stupid idea. Thought stormed through my brain as I
tried to think about my next step. The best idea that came up was return to the
Nekohanten to rethink my plans.
Sneaking my way through the streets, I approached my familiar home. I hid behind
a tree again just to make sure if there was any police around. It would be very
bad if I get caught right now.
Great Grandmother was outside the store surprisingly. She was holding an arrow
one of MY arrows. Wondering why she was doing that I went up and got a closer
look. The elder began spinning the arrow, as if she was trying to look for
something. Then without warning she threw it in my direction.
THUMP! It hit the tree I was hiding behind. I jumped in surprise. "When will you
learn Shampoo? You can't hide from me, and believe me young woman you have a bit
of explaining to do.
No use hiding anymore, she already knew where I was. So, I decided to come out.
She made a motion that I should follow her in the Nekohanten.
After we went in, Cologne closed the windows, shut the door, pulled the curtains
over the window, she then looked around making sure no one was listening.
"So, Shampoo, why did you do it?" She asked.
"Do what?" I responded. "What are you talking about?"
"Don't play dumb with me, young woman!" She said harshly. "You know what I'm
talking about! Why did you try to shoot Akane. You know that's not a honorable
way of getting rid of you opponents."
I knelt before her quickly. "I know the situation looks bad, but you have to
believe me I didn't do it!!"
"Hmm?" The elder looked interested like she was expecting that answer.
"Explain then what happened."
So, I told her my story, from beginning to end, once in a while she would nod or
shift positions, but never interrupting me. "That's how I decided I should come
back here and see what I can come up with, the rest you know." I finished.
"I see." She said smiling. "I believe you."
"REALLY?"
"To tell you the absolute truth, I never doubted you. I just had to make sure
from you own words. I knew you would come back here eventually. Just by stealing
a peak at arrow that was fired and your arrow I could tell it wasn't you." She
explained.
Later, that day, we agreed that I shouldn't stay here. It was too dangerous. So,
gathering up my stuff I prepared to hide out until Great Grandmother could find
prove or the one who really tired to assassinate Akane.
"Are you sure your going to be alright, Hibi-chan?" I asked worried. "You
know the first place that they are going to search for me is here and they might
force you to.."
"Don't worry, Granddaughter, I have my ways of avoiding them. Just be sure to
stay out of sight." She responded. "Oh, yes, and another thing.." She shoved
a bunch of scrolls, books and other various object in her bag. "I want you
study and read those, and learn everything in those before the next time we
meet."
"Why?" I asked. "You know I hate reading. I hated ever since that leadership
training you gave me."
"Don't ask Granddaughter, just do it. I expect much from you after this.
Perhaps one day you will understand just not now. Something big is happening,
and it will be necessary for you to learn those, although you thought them as
useless before."
"Okay, but I don't think I'll ever like it, this reading thing." I responded.
"You'll never know if you don't try." was her only response.
** End story.
Well, that brings me here. Grandmother was right about one thing; reading is a
lot more enjoyable than it was before. Then again what else am I going to do?
However I'm still puzzled why she wants me to learn these techniques most of
them will take too much time to learn, and I personally don't see the point.
Although I managed to learn most of them, I still couldn't grasp the finer
points of each technique. Secretly, I wondered what Ranma and the others were
doing. I can't afford the risk to go back though, I have already nearly been
caught a few times, if not for the 'Xi Fang Hang Gao Shiatsu' technique I
managed to pull off, it would be very bad for me.
My Amazon instincts were keeping me alive in this forest. There are times, where
I had to apply a few of the little tricks they taught me in the past. Hunting
was a necessity now, although wild berries and some plants can be eaten, it's
not very filling at all. Sometimes I can manage to sneak back to Nekohanten to
'steal' some food off them, but there was a big risk on doing that so I decided
to keep those trips as rare as possible.
Well, this is my life so far; yea it sucks. I looked up in the sky and sighed
the sun was almost down, it was time to hunt, frustrated I flicked a bolder
nearby. With a loud crack it split neatly in half. Then again, having some peace
in quiet does force you to learn more about yourself.
End of Prologue.
Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma 1/2, it belongs to Rumiko Takahashi. Please don't
sue.
Chinese speech
[] Thoughts
Prologue:
It was my 18th birthday, however, there is no candles, no cake, no party. Ever
since the 'incident' my life is living hell. I have been branded a criminal,
charged with attempted murder. But trust me on this for now, it wasn't I.
Now, I live deep in the forest, avoiding all contacts with cop and people who
want my head for fame and glory.
I live in a wooden hut within the forest, built it myself, just for your
information. It's not perfect, actually far from it, but since the incident, I
don't have much of a choice. I strapped my blade on my back, ever since the
incident, I have to rely on it a lot more. The blade was marvelous, and I am
just beginning to learn of its fascinating properties.
First of all, the sword could cut through practically anything with relative
ease. The words 'Green Dragon Blade' was carefully carved on the blade.
Secondly, blood doesn't 'stick' on the blade; I never had clean the blade ever
since I got it, it never needed to get sharpened either.
I also discovered much more about myself, one of which is I taken up reading. I
never liked book in my past, however, I never got a chance in my old life.
Granted since I'm hiding, there isn't much to read, just some old scrolls and
books that my great grandmother left for me. Most of them are about martial
arts, and ancient magic from my ancestors; however, there are a few history book
and quite a few books on medicine. I chuckled to myself, looks like my
grandmother was worried for my well being after all.
Oh, I suppose I should tell you who I am, well, my name is Shampoo, or at least
I was known as that name. Right now, it matters very little about what my name
is. I make almost no human contact with anyone, ever since that dreaded
incident. Right now, my past life was like a colorful dream that happened about
a month ago. What happened? Well, it's a long story; I guess I should begin at
in the beginning.
**Storytelling.. (Shampoo's POV)
It all happened back at Airen's.. er.. Ranma's (Yes, I suppose I should call him
that now.) 18th birthday. Before that day, everyone I knew was practically going
head over heals to prepare for the upcoming event. Since that males get declared
as 'full grown' at the age 18, it was one of Airen.. I mean Ranma's (Old habits
die hard) most important birthday.
Of course, that included me. I was caught up in all the excitement too. I just
had to get him the best present ever. I made a mad dash to my emergency money,
there was enough money to get him a decent gift, since I'm not that big a money
spender anyways. So, removing some cash, I proceeded to go out for the birthday
gift.
"Great Grandma! I'm going to go shopping for Airen!" I called out happily. "I'll
be back before the dinner rush!"
The elder nodded happily. "Make sure you find something nice for him!" She
called out to the energetic youth that ran out the door before she could say
anything else.
I strolled through the market place searching for a perfect gift for him. I
began to brainstorm for the perfect gift. I skipped along though the roads of
the market place looking for any stores that caught my interest.
"Hey, bimbo!!" I heard someone call out. I felt my blood rush in my head, there
was a handful of people that called me that. Mostly rivals, I quickly turned
over to see that stupid spatula girl calling to me.
"What do YOU want?" I asked. "I'm busy and I don't have time to fight you,
stupid spatula girl!"
"Hey, easy there!" Ukyou responded. "I'm not here to fight you, at least not
today." She said flatly as to expect I didn't understand. Quite the opposite
mind you, I understand perfectly well, it's just that I usually don't show it.
It makes people expect less out of you than usual.
"What do you want then?" I asked again, getting fairly impatient. "I have to
find a gift for Airen, and I will not be held up any longer than I have to!" I
spat back.
"Ahh.. that's why your out here so early." The chief replied. "So, what are you
going to give him this time? An amulet that makes the wearer instantly fall in
love with you?" She taunted.
I gave out a low growl, but since I was pressed for time, I couldn't afford to
argue with her. I told grandmother that I would be back before the dinner rush,
and an Amazon keeps her word. "Is that all?" I asked tossing my hair.
"Actually, no.." Ukyou said raising her spatula to block my passage. "The main
reason I was here was to tell you about the pact that we need you to agree
upon." She answered.
"Pact?" I asked curiously. "What do you mean?" I was tempted to just fight my
way out of this, but for some reason I didn't feel like it today.
"Well, me and the other girls had an agreement, we all agreed and need you to be
in it as well." She explained.
"Hmm." I answered. "What is the pact?" I asked.
"It's like this, since it's Ran-chan's most important birthday, we all though we
will drop our differences and act civil for once." She explained. "That means no
fighting, no arguing, and NO GLOMPING!!"
I let the words swim in my mind for a moment. For once, the stupid cook made
some sense, it would be hard for me not to show some affection for my Airen, but
just this once, it would be logical to let Ranma have a good time.
"Fine." I answered quietly. "I won't argue with you or fight, or glomp on my
Airen on that day."
Ukyou looked in surprise as she was prepared to beat the heck outta me if I
refused, not like she could have, I'm pretty confident that I make more than
take her on any given Sunday.
"Really? You swear now, right?" Ukyou said still not believing what she heard.
"Yes, I swear, as long as all the rest of the people swear also. An Amazon keeps
they're promises." I answered plainly.
Ukyou nodded. "Good then, cause if you don't keep your promise, we will make
sure that every day of your life would not be lived in peace." With that she
walked away.
After she left, I resumed my search. Anyway, how I found the present isn't very
important. What was important I guess; is what happened afterward. I was still
uneasy about the whole deal Ukyou told me about, so I decide to sneak into the
Dojo to see what that violent chick was up to.
I jumped from rooftop to rooftop, cursing myself that I didn't ride my bike
today, it just seemed to be a nice day for just a plain walk, guess not huh. I
finally got to the Tendo dojo that way, I took a peek at my watch, I still had
about an hour or so. So, I jumped to a nearby tree where I can get a clear bird
eyed view of what was going on.
I was lucky, Akane's curtain were not closed, I could see what was going inside,
thanks to the 'nice weather' that she didn't pull the curtains.
I saw her, she looked like she was wrapping a gift. Figures, don't know how
Ranma puts up with that girl, why did Akane even bother to buy Ranma a gift, it
wasn't like there was a chance of it going to be better than what she got for
him.
I jumped on top of the window, tapping it lightly with my hand, which startled
the figure inside. She walked towards me and opened the window. As she opened it
I quickly jumped in.
"What are you doing here, bimbo?" She asked angrily. She quickly made a move to
hide the present from me.
"Not here to fight, just want to make sure about something." I mumbled. "Spatula
girl told me about the deal, are you planning on keeping it?"
"Yes, I do, you stupid hussy!" She spat venomously. "At least you can respect my
privacy and use the door! How about you? Are you going to act at least civil on
that day?"
I shrugged "Yes, I agree on it." I answered. "But, what if that crazy girl or
spatula girl, or even you break that promise?"
"We have our ways of punishment. Believe me, I have no desire in breaking it.
Although I don't know if you can."
If that wasn't a challenge, I wouldn't know what is. "Hmmph!" I snorted. "I can
resist, but I bet you can't go on two minutes without getting into an argument."
Akane gritted her teeth. "WHAT ARE YOU SAYING?? ARE YOU SUGGESTING THAT I HAVE A
BAD TEMPER?"
I shrugged, chucking to myself. "Let me just tell you this, if any of you IF
anyone of you break the promise, then you will hear no end of it from me." I
left immediately after I said that leaving the violent Japanese girl to herself.
* * *
The day finally came. I woke up at my usual time, however, instead of wearing my
'waitress uniform' I went for something fancier, I wanted to look my best after
all, on such an important day.
Swiftly, I changed a fancy Chinese style dress. Yea, I know, I always wear a
Chinese style dress. Well, it's just that well.. call it a habit. I'm just not
used to anything else.
After that, I packed his gift, carefully I wrapped it up as genuine as I could.
Next I put it in a red box, which symbolized luck in Chinese tradition. I also
tied a red ribbon on it, just for good measure.
Then I went over the things I couldn't do, today was the day I have to act.. no
be Mrs. Perfect. Let's see, no glomping, no arguing, stay clear of any
arguments. I must have went over those things over 100 times already, even with
that something still manages to go wrong.
Oh, sure, it BEGAN normal enough.. with Great Grandmother and Mousse closing up
the store for the day, since everyone was invited to the party. It was a great
risk Ranma was taking, but he wanted all his 'friends' to be at the party.
We left the Nekohanten early in the morning, with Grandmother giving a speech to
Mousse that she strictly forbad any assaults this day, or else she would
severely punish Mousse, she wanted her 'son-in-law's' 18th birthday to be
perfect.
I giggled uncontrollably as I saw Mousse give an obedient yet forceful nod.
Hibi-chan also brought a gift for Ranma, she even managed to force Mousse into
buying a gift, the gifts were all wrapped in red paper and ribbons like mine. I
happily skipped down the block, while Mousse showed a lot less enthusiasm.
I let out a slight chuckle at Mousse forced behavior. He looked so funny when he
did that. Mousse will be Mousse I guess. I jumped on the rail and ran toward the
destination, it felt weird running on the rail, Ranma was used to it, however I
was more used to my trusty bike that it felt so foreign to me.
I finally arrived at the Tendo Dojo, I gasped at the colorful display, it was
probably bigger than that time they came for Christmas, looks like the Tendos
and that stupid Panda thought it was an important occasion too. I took a deep
breath and walked in.
"Welcome, Shampoo!" A cheerful voice greeted me. "So glad you can come today!"
There was only one person in this world that could greet me like that. Probably
the only one who doesn't hate my guts now.. Kasumi Tendo.
"Thank you, Kasumi!" I said smiling, silently remembering to be polite today.
"Thanks for inviting me! I'm so happy to be here!"
The older girl nodded. Sometimes, I think she is too polite for her own good, it
worked though, it was almost impossible if not impossible to hate her. What am I
talking about? It's almost impossible to even not like her.
After the 'formal' greetings from Kasumi, I proceeded to where the main party
was. The first reaction I got was that they must have spent a lot of time
planning this. The second was that, who ever designed all this, it was certainly
not Akane Tendo, that girl had no talent in art whatsoever.
I glanced around seeing if I can spot Ranma, however I couldn't. It wasn't that
I wanted to glomp him, well kind of, but I had enough will power to control
myself not to do it, I didn't find him however, spotted almost everyone else,
pig boy in one of the corners trying to get himself alone with Akane, typical.
Mousse and Great Grandmother were in another corner, chatting amongst themselves
that was no great surprise either. Ukyou, the spatula girl was talking with
Kodachi, that's something unusual, those two didn't get along at all either,
what were they talking about?
Suddenly, a strange feeling came over me, that something was VERY wrong, it sent
a chill down my spine. Either it was just the fact that Ukyou and Kodachi were
talking together, or it's a warning for me.
Then the big announcement came, while Ranma and his father Genma and Soun were
all on stage, they proudly told everyone that Ranma has come to age. Akane was
there besides them too, she was smiling hands holding the gift that she
prepared.
I gritted my teeth and reminded myself that I couldn't do anything 'stupid' at
least not today, it was Ranma's day, and only his day. I let out a silent sigh..
I held my gift up so that I can see it once more before I handed it to Ranma,
although I was confident that it would be his best gift ever, the feeling
quickly got drenched in a feeling of doubt.
However, I never got the chance, right when Akane was giving the present to
Ranma, an arrow whistled from my direction. I spun back quickly just to spot a
shadow running away in distance. With all my energy I made a made dash toward
the attacker.
Bad idea, very bad, I did not know what happened during my mad chase, which gave
me no results whatsoever. I lost any trace that was left of him. When I proceed
back the dojo, I saw a bunch of police cars and ambulances.
Something told me that I should stay out of sight until I knew what was going
on. So, using all my skills I hid myself and overheard they're talking.
"So, what happened here?" An officer asked.
"Well.." Nabiki began to explain, while Soun was in tears, mourning over
something. "It's like this, an arrow suddenly shot out, it was intended to hit
my sister, Akane I believe, but this man took it for her."
"Does your sister have any enemies, or any suspects?" The policeman asked
writing in his little notepad.
"Enemies? Well, she has enough to fill this whole block, twice, however, I don't
know if they would go as far as to kill though. However, I do have a good idea
of who did this, for a reasonable price that is."
"Price?" The policeman raised his eyebrows. "If want to help us find this
killer, you might want to reconsider this price."
Nabiki pouted, it's rare that she gets outsmarted, if even that. "You win, the
person you're looking for is.." She took a deep breath. "A young girl named
Shampoo."
My blood instantly froze right there. I gritted my teeth as I continued to
listen to them.
The police wrote that down on his pad. "Can you give us a description of this..
'Shampoo'?"
Nabiki shrugged. "Almost everyone around here knows what she looks like, it's
hard to miss. She has long purple hair, wears Chinese style clothing that are
skin tight.."
Nabiki continued to describe what I look like. I can't believe it! They actually
believe that I am capable of murder! Sure, every once in a while I would
threaten to kill, but the truth is I never slain anyone in my life, if worse
comes to worse I don't even know if I could kill anyone.
I have heard enough from that stupid mercenary, and jumped to another tree
hiding in shadows, there, Ranma was talking to a paramedic; I closed in to hear
what was going on.
"Is he going to be alright doc?" Ranma asked in a very worried tone.
"I won't lie to you.. your father condition isn't good, the arrow punctured his
right lung. He has little chance of surviving, and even if he does there is no
guarantee that he would fully heal, I'm sorry Mr. Saotome but that's all I could
tell you now."
"Thanks, doc." Ranma said sadly.
Genma taking an arrow for Akane? What was going on? The thoughts went though my
head as the facts pieced together in my head. First, an arrow was shot from my
direction aimed at Akane it seems. Then Genma, that guy took the arrow for her
and was in critical situation?
Ranma dragged himself back into the dojo. He looked very depressed, so depressed
that a shi shi hakotan from him would probably beat out Ryouga's any day.
Part of me wanted to run right up to explain to him that it wasn't me, but the
other told me that was a very stupid idea. Thought stormed through my brain as I
tried to think about my next step. The best idea that came up was return to the
Nekohanten to rethink my plans.
Sneaking my way through the streets, I approached my familiar home. I hid behind
a tree again just to make sure if there was any police around. It would be very
bad if I get caught right now.
Great Grandmother was outside the store surprisingly. She was holding an arrow
one of MY arrows. Wondering why she was doing that I went up and got a closer
look. The elder began spinning the arrow, as if she was trying to look for
something. Then without warning she threw it in my direction.
THUMP! It hit the tree I was hiding behind. I jumped in surprise. "When will you
learn Shampoo? You can't hide from me, and believe me young woman you have a bit
of explaining to do.
No use hiding anymore, she already knew where I was. So, I decided to come out.
She made a motion that I should follow her in the Nekohanten.
After we went in, Cologne closed the windows, shut the door, pulled the curtains
over the window, she then looked around making sure no one was listening.
"So, Shampoo, why did you do it?" She asked.
"Do what?" I responded. "What are you talking about?"
"Don't play dumb with me, young woman!" She said harshly. "You know what I'm
talking about! Why did you try to shoot Akane. You know that's not a honorable
way of getting rid of you opponents."
I knelt before her quickly. "I know the situation looks bad, but you have to
believe me I didn't do it!!"
"Hmm?" The elder looked interested like she was expecting that answer.
"Explain then what happened."
So, I told her my story, from beginning to end, once in a while she would nod or
shift positions, but never interrupting me. "That's how I decided I should come
back here and see what I can come up with, the rest you know." I finished.
"I see." She said smiling. "I believe you."
"REALLY?"
"To tell you the absolute truth, I never doubted you. I just had to make sure
from you own words. I knew you would come back here eventually. Just by stealing
a peak at arrow that was fired and your arrow I could tell it wasn't you." She
explained.
Later, that day, we agreed that I shouldn't stay here. It was too dangerous. So,
gathering up my stuff I prepared to hide out until Great Grandmother could find
prove or the one who really tired to assassinate Akane.
"Are you sure your going to be alright, Hibi-chan?" I asked worried. "You
know the first place that they are going to search for me is here and they might
force you to.."
"Don't worry, Granddaughter, I have my ways of avoiding them. Just be sure to
stay out of sight." She responded. "Oh, yes, and another thing.." She shoved
a bunch of scrolls, books and other various object in her bag. "I want you
study and read those, and learn everything in those before the next time we
meet."
"Why?" I asked. "You know I hate reading. I hated ever since that leadership
training you gave me."
"Don't ask Granddaughter, just do it. I expect much from you after this.
Perhaps one day you will understand just not now. Something big is happening,
and it will be necessary for you to learn those, although you thought them as
useless before."
"Okay, but I don't think I'll ever like it, this reading thing." I responded.
"You'll never know if you don't try." was her only response.
** End story.
Well, that brings me here. Grandmother was right about one thing; reading is a
lot more enjoyable than it was before. Then again what else am I going to do?
However I'm still puzzled why she wants me to learn these techniques most of
them will take too much time to learn, and I personally don't see the point.
Although I managed to learn most of them, I still couldn't grasp the finer
points of each technique. Secretly, I wondered what Ranma and the others were
doing. I can't afford the risk to go back though, I have already nearly been
caught a few times, if not for the 'Xi Fang Hang Gao Shiatsu' technique I
managed to pull off, it would be very bad for me.
My Amazon instincts were keeping me alive in this forest. There are times, where
I had to apply a few of the little tricks they taught me in the past. Hunting
was a necessity now, although wild berries and some plants can be eaten, it's
not very filling at all. Sometimes I can manage to sneak back to Nekohanten to
'steal' some food off them, but there was a big risk on doing that so I decided
to keep those trips as rare as possible.
Well, this is my life so far; yea it sucks. I looked up in the sky and sighed
the sun was almost down, it was time to hunt, frustrated I flicked a bolder
nearby. With a loud crack it split neatly in half. Then again, having some peace
in quiet does force you to learn more about yourself.
End of Prologue.