Akane the Suicidal
Chapter 18
We all have our little quirks, and dear Shampoo was far from an exeption. With her training under her great-grandmother, and all the legends and Amazon treasures that were kept in the Matriarch's custody, it would be understandable of how Shampoo came across hers. You see, the teenage Amazon had, at one time, came to a conclusion that has stuck with her ever since her tender adolecent days.
Her Great-Grandmother Cologne overlooked it, citing that Shampoo's litte quirk would serve her a good deal. Perhaps an oversight on the old lady's behalf, but what's done, was done.
It started simple, small things like always making sure her shoes were on the correct feet, the insistance on wearing her favorite color often, red, whenever numbers came up, she would pick the number 'eight'. Nothing extravagant and all.
Later on, Shampoo's little nuance started to grow a bit. Cologne would humor her heir by choosing not to sweep New Year's day, but the house would get rather dusty, when Shampoo demanded that they wait for a month or so. At poor Lau Xian's funeral, Shampoo stumbled about all day, what with the blindfold over her eyes, ensuring she never saw a mirror near the body before it was creamated. a bit irritating, but some one tolerable.
Of course, as the future leader of her village, Shampoo began to study other cultures. After studying African traditions, one night, Shampoo dreamed of being bit by a snake. Cologne tenderly explained to the 'expecting' Shampoo that she had to meet certain... criteria... before she had concieved. After European history, Shampoo nearly set the house on fire when she set fire to the hairs on her brush and comb that had been shedded during her care.
It probably didn't help that Shampoo was a bit of the gullible sort, too. The reason Cologne decided she *needed* to convince Shampoo that she wasn't pregnant? Well, the imported cans of Seven-Up that Shampoo had learned from a fellow young warrior should be consumed while hanging upside down to rid a pregnancy were becoming somewhat expensive...
Why is it that Shampoo's little superstitious problem is being mentioned...?
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Shampoo stared at the sleeping redhead that lay in the room of 'her', the girl with the death wish. It galled Shampoo that she had to switch to such lowly tactics in order to claim her revenge on the impudent outsider that flippantly defeated her, but she feared more the risk that the 'cursed one' would once again get in the way.
Shampoo had no curiosity of what it would be like to catch Akane's problem; for once the cursed one was claimed for the next life, the curse would then claim its next victim, namely the one that freed it in the first place.
Now, that shouldn't have proven so much a problem, since the black-haired girl wasn't Shampoo's target. Unfortunately, she happened to be a slight obstacle that could prove a bit complicated if the Amazon attempted to kill the 'obstacle'.
The lavender-haired girl quietly snuck into the room, relieved to find Akane sleeping in a western style bed, while Ranma slept on a bedroll on the floor; for a bit, from the way the acted, Shampoo had to wonder if the two girls were... like that.
With a quick glance to Akane, who had been sleeping fitfully, finally rid of the chains Ranma used to bind her in when she slept, Shampoo grew a satisfied smirk. It was doubtful the cursed one would prove a hinderance tonight.
With stealth bred from a short lifetime of zealous training, Shampoo stalked over to the sleeping redhead. It was just too easy this way, she thought to herself, as she raised her sword into the air, ready to stab down into the sleeping girl's chest. With a slight pause to savor her upcoming victory, the sharp blade descended, stabbing into the bedding.
Shampoo blinked, before pulling the sword from where Ranma had been. She brought it up, ready to stab down to where Ranma had rolled over to in her only slightly less fitful sleep as her roommate. Just as Shampoo was about to stab down again, an audible 'thunk' sounded behind her.
With a quick turn into a defensive stance with her sword held horizontal over her head, she found Akane now on the floor, having rolled off her bed, still fast asleep. Shampoo winced in sympathy, before turning back to Ranma.
This time, she opted to attempt to separate Ranma's head from her neck, and chopped downwards. Shampoo then pulled her sword back up, after coughing a bit from the flurry of feathers from the pillow she just heartlessly butchered. she held her breath, as Ranma was now sitting up, scratching slightly under her breasts. once the apparent itch was gone, she laid back down.
Shampoo growled, finding her focus only on the redhead on the ground. She reversed the grip on her sword, and went to pierce her enemie's heart.
She was forced to stop just about a little more than a foot from Ranma-chan's chest; the approximate width of Akane's torso.
Shampoo's eye twitched, finding the raven-haired girl now sprawled over the sleeping redhead from rolling over to them from her own position on the floor, both in blissful slumber. With a sigh, wishing she could get her own shuteye right now, Shampoo delicately rolled Akane from on top of Ranma. and readied herself for the kill.
Once again, the blade stabbed into the bedding, as Ranma shifted a bit to get more comfortable, causing her body to contort where the sword descended.
Shampoo swore profusely under her breath, before quickly raising the blade back up, and attempting to quickly stab down before the girl swirmed any more. Just as she rose the blade up, Akane rolled back over onto Ranma, and then flopped herself face up, arms spread wide, exposing her open, undefended chest.
With a squawk of fright, Shampoo just *barely* managed to redirect the descent of her blade to the other side of Ranma. With a low growl, she pulled her weapon out from where it deeply pierced the ground, and then roughly dragged Akane from off of Ranma by her arm. Once the youngest Tendou daughter was removed from on top of Ranma, Shampoo attempted to stab Ranma again.
The redhead rolled over onto her side away from Akane, causing the blade to just barely slice through part of her tanktop. Not to be deterred from what was supposed to be an *easy* kill, the Amazon quickly made another attempt.
Akane once again, rolled over, but this time, Shampoo anticipated it just in case, and paused abruptly, shifted the descent of her sword, and went after the open part of Ranma's chest. Ranma rolled back towards Akane, and her subconcious was irritated at finding another body invading her personal space.
Shampoo's blow went just behind Ranma's back, stabbing into the bedding, and in an intense fit of fustration, pulled the blade back up and plundged it down towards Ranma again. Akane forced herself tighter against Ranma, snuggling into the redhead, and even moving her back a few inches. Ranma didn't seem comfortable with another body in close proximity, particularly with the heat in the room, and pushed away from Akane, moving the both of them away from Shampoo's strike, and then rolled back onto her side, facing away from Akane.
Shampoo was panting from the near-strike into Akane, found herself profusely thanking her ancestors for the divine intervention. This time, Shampoo took careful aim at Ranma-chan, and with a do or die ready strike, she raised the blade into the air...
Only to have Akane roll back over, and drape her arm and whole side over the redhead, unconciously burying her head into the lush crimson locks, and taking a slight wiff of Ranma's scent.
Shampoo faught the fitful scream, as she was put completely off-balance, and was about to fall atop of the two slumbering girls. She managed to arrest her fall just short of landing on the two girls, finding her face atop the two girls snuggling against each other.
With careful practice, the young Amazon used her hands and tips of her feet to walk down the length of the two girl's bodies', making sure not to stumble. Once she had cleared their feet, Shampoo rolled into sitting position against the wall, pulled her knees against her chest, and cried.
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Ranma-chan woke up, finding a not too unpleasant sensation of someone snuggling against her back. For a few moments, she savored the warm body that wasn't her own, before her sleep-fogged mind cleared a bit more. First thought that came to mind, was that if it was her panda-brained father against her again, mumbling about some woman named Nodoka, she was going to have to beat him so hard, his dreams would be wet with his blood.
Slowly turning over, Ranma brought her fist back, finding Akane's peaceful and content and sleeping expression. Still somewhat confused, Ranma opted to awaken the girl, instead of decking her. "Akane? What are you doing in my bed?"
Akane easily woke, blinking the sleep from her eyes. With a puzzled expression, she looked back at Ranma with bleary eyes, before cracking a tired smile, "Morning, Ranma."
"Why are you in my bed?" the redhead again asked, growing a bit flushed from Akane's closeness. It was then that Akane realized she was on the floor, and then looked around. Only a few moments came before her eyes locked onto Shampoo, who was sleeping against the wall, with her knees tucked in.
"Oh, Shampoo!" Akane exclaimed, sitting up, "I wonder what' she's doing here?"
Ranma noticed the Amazon, and frowned, "Well, let's find out."
Ranma-chan reached out to shake the sleeping girl awake, before she was stopped by Akane. "let her be, Ranma," Akane pleaded. Ranma was about to argue, before Akane continued, "Look at her, she's completely haggared. Let her sleep."
Begrudgingly, Ranma pulled her hand back, "Alright, I guess. let's go get ready for school." With that, both girls gathered a change of clothes, and headed for the downstairs bathroom, leaving shampoo sleeping with a blanket Akane tucked around her.
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The miserably-looking Amazon staggered down the stairs, finding the Tendous and the Saotomes sitting at the table for breakfast. "Oh, good morning, Shampoo!" Kasumi greeted, "Akane had me set a place just for you. I hope you enjoyed your sleep-over!"
Shampoo stumbled over to the spot that Kasumi gestured her to sit, between her father at the head of the table, and Nabiki at the side. The lavender-haired girl nodded in appreciation, as Kasumi served her, and then began to eat.
After a mouthful, Nabiki set her chopsticks down, before smirking at her younger sister and her bodyguard, "So, what were you two up to, last night?"
"Huh?" Akane started to enquire, "What are you talking about?"
"Well..." Nabiki started buffering her nails against her jumper, "It's just that you two were making an awful lot of racket last night, and did I hear something this morning about waking up in the same bed?"
Akane and Ranma blinked in unison, before turning to look at each other in confusion. After a moment, realization dawned upon them, before they began to make their avid denials.
"Ah! It was nothing like that!" Akane avowed.
"Oh my, that really isn't proper," Kasumi chided.
"What? We didn't do anything!" Ranma bellowed.
"Son, I really wish you two would wait until you're married," Soun replied with a frown, before perking up, "We'll have the wedding when you get back from school!"
"DADDY!" Akane shouted, scandalized.
"You do, and I'll turn it into your funeral," Ranma snarled, baring his teeth almost as if he had fangs.
Shampoo, for the most part, remained somewhat oblivious to it all. She curtly finished her serving, before turning to Kasumi, "Is good." With that, she got up, and staggered to the exit of the tea room, throwing one, narrow-eyed, baleful glare towards Akane, and went in search of the red-headed bane of her existance.
"I wonder what's her problem?" Nabiki enquired out loud, earning nods from everyone at the table.
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Shampoo had searched the area thoroughly, and not found a trace of the redhead. She decided that, unfortunately, if she wanted to keep tabs on her prey, she would have to tail the suicidal one.
Tracing the route from the Tendou home that the nice girl Kasumi pointed out for her, she found Akane, and sure enough the redhead. From her perch, Shampoo awaited her opportunity...
"I said I was sorry!" Akane apologised, once more.
"Now I'm gonna have to maim your father when I get home from school today," the redhead replied, shaking the water from her hair; she was *really* beginning to despise that old lady, "You know I kinda like to relax a bit when I get home!"
"i'll talk to Daddy, okay?" Akane replied, turning to face the redhead walking directly behind her like a prison guard, "I'm sure he won't do anything rash, though."
"Whatever," Ranma replied, walking around Akane, and continuing onto school, "Let's get going, I hate standing in the hall when we're late."
Akane stood there, with her head down, before she brought her wrist up to her eye level, checking her wrist watch, "OH NO! I didn't realize we were running this late!" Akane started, before Ranma grabbed her shoulder.
"Oh no," the redhead proclaimed, "We're not taking any of *your* shortcuts, this time, we'll go mine!" With that, the both leapt onto a nearby rooftop, as the arrow passed through the spot Akane, and prior to that, Ranma, had been standing.
Shampoo walked out into the open with listless strides, staring off to where the two had vanished from. The bow that hung slack in her hand fell to the ground with a light clatter of wood against concrete, followed shortly by Shampoo collapsing to her knees, unable to still her fiercely pounding heart.
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Throughout school, Akane couldn't shake the blush she wore, from the thought of how she had actually slept with Ranma. Granted, they were both girls, and nothing perverted happened (thankfully), but the feeling of holding Ranma's body against hers like a large teddy-bear warmed her to no end.
She looked up at the redhead, who was growling and muttering obsceneties about girls who randomly dump buckets of cold water out of three story windows. The raven-haired girl was finding it difficult to guage Ranma's feelings for her; she didn't seem adverse to them all that much, but she wasn't exactly coaxing Akane, either.
"RANMA! YOU IS DYING NOW!!!"
Shampoo's desperate, finalized proclimation snapped Akane from her reverie, as she turned to find the Amazon descending upon a severely annoyed Ranma with a large and sharp spear. Without hesitation, Akane stepped between the murderous Amazon and her fiance with a determined fighting stance. "If you're gonna try to hurt Ranma, you have to get through ME first!"
You could almost hear the airbreaks work, as Shampoo tried to stop her fall, before opting to twist in the air from harming the suicidal girl.
Shampoo landed in a crumpled heap, before slowly picking herself off the ground. Akane was shocked from the girl's landing, and rushed over to make sure she was alright, "Shampoo, are you okay?"
At the sound of Akane's concerned voice, something in Shampoo broke. Akane staggered back and onto her feet, when Shampoo shot to hers, and started shouting vehemantly at the other girl in her native Chinese. Akane placed her hands up in a placating gesture, when Shampoo began to shout louder, bringing her right hand up horizontal to chest level, and then jabbing her index finger repeatedly into Akane's sternum.
The youngest Tendou looked pleadingly at Ranma, who could only shrug and shake her head in a confused response. By that point, Shampoo was nearly to tears, putting her face right in front of Akane's, shouting in a nearly shrill voice that drew the attention of other students returning home, and neighborhood residents, stamping her foot, and bawling her fists so tight that her nails bit into her palms.
"Hey, HEY! Shampoo!" Ranma grabbed the Chinese girl's shoulder, attempting to quell her ire, "It's okay, alright? Don't let it upset you!"
At the sound of Ranma's voice, Shampoo began to openly sob, before turning into Ranma, burying her lavender head into Ranma's bosom, and crying hysterically.
"Whoa," Akane replied, trying to get over what just happened, "I think she having a nervous breakdown, or something."
Ranma tried her best to shrug, while circling her arms around the taller girl to console her, "I wonder what got her so mad at you?"
Akane came up behind Shampoo, and rubbed her hand in the small of the weeping girl's back, "It's okay, Shampoo, just let it all out..."
After a few moments, Shampoo's cries turned back into sobs, before they too quieted. Shampoo then looked up in gratitude to the girl holding her, and allowing her to vent the intense fustration she was feeling. As she looked into Ranma-chan's concerned face, gratitude was replaced by confusion, which was then replaced by anger, finally giving in to full rage.
"DIE, RANMA!"
Akane blinked, staring after the racing girls, one pursuing the other with a large viking battle-ax, before her own expression grew into an irritated frown, "HEY, YOU TWO, WAIT UP!!!"
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Shampoo took a sip from the tea Kasumi provided for her, before turning to look balefully at the girl sitting at the other end of the table, cheerfully and obliviously doing homework on her Apple titanium notebook. Superstition be damned, Shampoo finally decided. If she wanted to rid herself of Ranma, and restore her honor, she would HAVE to remove the crazy-girl first.
With grim determination, Shampoo brought to bear the battle-ax she was chasing Ranma with, stood in front of Akane, and raised it above her head.
Akane paused, and looked up from her work, "Something wrong, Shampoo?"
"You is obstacle..." Shampoo stated in a mechanical, emotionless voice, "obstacles is for killing."
Akane blinked, before giving an apologetic pout, "Um, I'm sorry if I've been an inconvenience to you. What did I do?"
Shampoo chose not to answer, instead tightening her grip on the handle of her weapon. femenine muscles clenched, ready to drop the ax, splitting the girl in two horizontally, the kill would not go anywhere, and the death would be quick.
Unfortunately, Shampoo's flat, lusterless eyes found Akane's oblivious, concerned ones. Shampoo imagined herself, after doing away with this girl, and then Ranma, wearing that same expression, the next time a rival in her village challenged her. he could easily picture herself, seemingly blissfully unaware of the danger she was in, when an overzealous male, such as one particular blind fool, readied the finishing blow, breaking her into forced matrimony...
Shampoo's expression didn't change, as the ax tumbled backwards from her nervless fingers. Akane blinked a couple of times, before a hint of irritation crossed her face, and she turned back to her homework, "Tease..."
"We shall never meet again" Shampoo replied in her native language, before walking from the tearoom, just as Ranma was entering.
"Seen Kasumi?" The redhead replied, toweling her face off, with one hand, while holding a glass of water in the other, "I need to tell her that the faucet broke again... where's Shampoo going?"
"Shampoo no hunt Ranma anymore," the Amazon said factually, heading for the front door, and then putting on her slippers.
Both Akane and Ranma followed her to the door, just as she was letting herself out, "Huh? What gives?"
Shampoo gave the redhead an expressionless glare, before replying to her inquery, "Shampoo fed up, decide tell Great-Grandmother you is actually sterile male. Is no good for kiss of Death or Marriage."
"HEY!" Ranma shouted back, adimantly, before a hand resting on her shoulder cut her off. She turned to find Akane shaking her head, quelling any further outburst.
Both of them walked out with Shampoo onto the front porch, and watched the Amazon stride out of the front gates. "Man, just like that," Ranma-chan replied, still confused at what happened.
Akane turned to Ranma with a peculiar, nervous expression, "You sound like you miss her already!"
"Na," the redhead replied, "I mean, it's just that first Ryoga, then her... it's just the way with you how easy some of my problems just seem to go away."
"Oh?" Akane answered, shyly, "Maybe I'm just your goodluck charm?"
"Heh," the young Saotome heir replied, "Whatever..."
They both continued to watch Shampoo walk into the rising evening.
Chapter 18
We all have our little quirks, and dear Shampoo was far from an exeption. With her training under her great-grandmother, and all the legends and Amazon treasures that were kept in the Matriarch's custody, it would be understandable of how Shampoo came across hers. You see, the teenage Amazon had, at one time, came to a conclusion that has stuck with her ever since her tender adolecent days.
Her Great-Grandmother Cologne overlooked it, citing that Shampoo's litte quirk would serve her a good deal. Perhaps an oversight on the old lady's behalf, but what's done, was done.
It started simple, small things like always making sure her shoes were on the correct feet, the insistance on wearing her favorite color often, red, whenever numbers came up, she would pick the number 'eight'. Nothing extravagant and all.
Later on, Shampoo's little nuance started to grow a bit. Cologne would humor her heir by choosing not to sweep New Year's day, but the house would get rather dusty, when Shampoo demanded that they wait for a month or so. At poor Lau Xian's funeral, Shampoo stumbled about all day, what with the blindfold over her eyes, ensuring she never saw a mirror near the body before it was creamated. a bit irritating, but some one tolerable.
Of course, as the future leader of her village, Shampoo began to study other cultures. After studying African traditions, one night, Shampoo dreamed of being bit by a snake. Cologne tenderly explained to the 'expecting' Shampoo that she had to meet certain... criteria... before she had concieved. After European history, Shampoo nearly set the house on fire when she set fire to the hairs on her brush and comb that had been shedded during her care.
It probably didn't help that Shampoo was a bit of the gullible sort, too. The reason Cologne decided she *needed* to convince Shampoo that she wasn't pregnant? Well, the imported cans of Seven-Up that Shampoo had learned from a fellow young warrior should be consumed while hanging upside down to rid a pregnancy were becoming somewhat expensive...
Why is it that Shampoo's little superstitious problem is being mentioned...?
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Shampoo stared at the sleeping redhead that lay in the room of 'her', the girl with the death wish. It galled Shampoo that she had to switch to such lowly tactics in order to claim her revenge on the impudent outsider that flippantly defeated her, but she feared more the risk that the 'cursed one' would once again get in the way.
Shampoo had no curiosity of what it would be like to catch Akane's problem; for once the cursed one was claimed for the next life, the curse would then claim its next victim, namely the one that freed it in the first place.
Now, that shouldn't have proven so much a problem, since the black-haired girl wasn't Shampoo's target. Unfortunately, she happened to be a slight obstacle that could prove a bit complicated if the Amazon attempted to kill the 'obstacle'.
The lavender-haired girl quietly snuck into the room, relieved to find Akane sleeping in a western style bed, while Ranma slept on a bedroll on the floor; for a bit, from the way the acted, Shampoo had to wonder if the two girls were... like that.
With a quick glance to Akane, who had been sleeping fitfully, finally rid of the chains Ranma used to bind her in when she slept, Shampoo grew a satisfied smirk. It was doubtful the cursed one would prove a hinderance tonight.
With stealth bred from a short lifetime of zealous training, Shampoo stalked over to the sleeping redhead. It was just too easy this way, she thought to herself, as she raised her sword into the air, ready to stab down into the sleeping girl's chest. With a slight pause to savor her upcoming victory, the sharp blade descended, stabbing into the bedding.
Shampoo blinked, before pulling the sword from where Ranma had been. She brought it up, ready to stab down to where Ranma had rolled over to in her only slightly less fitful sleep as her roommate. Just as Shampoo was about to stab down again, an audible 'thunk' sounded behind her.
With a quick turn into a defensive stance with her sword held horizontal over her head, she found Akane now on the floor, having rolled off her bed, still fast asleep. Shampoo winced in sympathy, before turning back to Ranma.
This time, she opted to attempt to separate Ranma's head from her neck, and chopped downwards. Shampoo then pulled her sword back up, after coughing a bit from the flurry of feathers from the pillow she just heartlessly butchered. she held her breath, as Ranma was now sitting up, scratching slightly under her breasts. once the apparent itch was gone, she laid back down.
Shampoo growled, finding her focus only on the redhead on the ground. She reversed the grip on her sword, and went to pierce her enemie's heart.
She was forced to stop just about a little more than a foot from Ranma-chan's chest; the approximate width of Akane's torso.
Shampoo's eye twitched, finding the raven-haired girl now sprawled over the sleeping redhead from rolling over to them from her own position on the floor, both in blissful slumber. With a sigh, wishing she could get her own shuteye right now, Shampoo delicately rolled Akane from on top of Ranma. and readied herself for the kill.
Once again, the blade stabbed into the bedding, as Ranma shifted a bit to get more comfortable, causing her body to contort where the sword descended.
Shampoo swore profusely under her breath, before quickly raising the blade back up, and attempting to quickly stab down before the girl swirmed any more. Just as she rose the blade up, Akane rolled back over onto Ranma, and then flopped herself face up, arms spread wide, exposing her open, undefended chest.
With a squawk of fright, Shampoo just *barely* managed to redirect the descent of her blade to the other side of Ranma. With a low growl, she pulled her weapon out from where it deeply pierced the ground, and then roughly dragged Akane from off of Ranma by her arm. Once the youngest Tendou daughter was removed from on top of Ranma, Shampoo attempted to stab Ranma again.
The redhead rolled over onto her side away from Akane, causing the blade to just barely slice through part of her tanktop. Not to be deterred from what was supposed to be an *easy* kill, the Amazon quickly made another attempt.
Akane once again, rolled over, but this time, Shampoo anticipated it just in case, and paused abruptly, shifted the descent of her sword, and went after the open part of Ranma's chest. Ranma rolled back towards Akane, and her subconcious was irritated at finding another body invading her personal space.
Shampoo's blow went just behind Ranma's back, stabbing into the bedding, and in an intense fit of fustration, pulled the blade back up and plundged it down towards Ranma again. Akane forced herself tighter against Ranma, snuggling into the redhead, and even moving her back a few inches. Ranma didn't seem comfortable with another body in close proximity, particularly with the heat in the room, and pushed away from Akane, moving the both of them away from Shampoo's strike, and then rolled back onto her side, facing away from Akane.
Shampoo was panting from the near-strike into Akane, found herself profusely thanking her ancestors for the divine intervention. This time, Shampoo took careful aim at Ranma-chan, and with a do or die ready strike, she raised the blade into the air...
Only to have Akane roll back over, and drape her arm and whole side over the redhead, unconciously burying her head into the lush crimson locks, and taking a slight wiff of Ranma's scent.
Shampoo faught the fitful scream, as she was put completely off-balance, and was about to fall atop of the two slumbering girls. She managed to arrest her fall just short of landing on the two girls, finding her face atop the two girls snuggling against each other.
With careful practice, the young Amazon used her hands and tips of her feet to walk down the length of the two girl's bodies', making sure not to stumble. Once she had cleared their feet, Shampoo rolled into sitting position against the wall, pulled her knees against her chest, and cried.
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Ranma-chan woke up, finding a not too unpleasant sensation of someone snuggling against her back. For a few moments, she savored the warm body that wasn't her own, before her sleep-fogged mind cleared a bit more. First thought that came to mind, was that if it was her panda-brained father against her again, mumbling about some woman named Nodoka, she was going to have to beat him so hard, his dreams would be wet with his blood.
Slowly turning over, Ranma brought her fist back, finding Akane's peaceful and content and sleeping expression. Still somewhat confused, Ranma opted to awaken the girl, instead of decking her. "Akane? What are you doing in my bed?"
Akane easily woke, blinking the sleep from her eyes. With a puzzled expression, she looked back at Ranma with bleary eyes, before cracking a tired smile, "Morning, Ranma."
"Why are you in my bed?" the redhead again asked, growing a bit flushed from Akane's closeness. It was then that Akane realized she was on the floor, and then looked around. Only a few moments came before her eyes locked onto Shampoo, who was sleeping against the wall, with her knees tucked in.
"Oh, Shampoo!" Akane exclaimed, sitting up, "I wonder what' she's doing here?"
Ranma noticed the Amazon, and frowned, "Well, let's find out."
Ranma-chan reached out to shake the sleeping girl awake, before she was stopped by Akane. "let her be, Ranma," Akane pleaded. Ranma was about to argue, before Akane continued, "Look at her, she's completely haggared. Let her sleep."
Begrudgingly, Ranma pulled her hand back, "Alright, I guess. let's go get ready for school." With that, both girls gathered a change of clothes, and headed for the downstairs bathroom, leaving shampoo sleeping with a blanket Akane tucked around her.
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The miserably-looking Amazon staggered down the stairs, finding the Tendous and the Saotomes sitting at the table for breakfast. "Oh, good morning, Shampoo!" Kasumi greeted, "Akane had me set a place just for you. I hope you enjoyed your sleep-over!"
Shampoo stumbled over to the spot that Kasumi gestured her to sit, between her father at the head of the table, and Nabiki at the side. The lavender-haired girl nodded in appreciation, as Kasumi served her, and then began to eat.
After a mouthful, Nabiki set her chopsticks down, before smirking at her younger sister and her bodyguard, "So, what were you two up to, last night?"
"Huh?" Akane started to enquire, "What are you talking about?"
"Well..." Nabiki started buffering her nails against her jumper, "It's just that you two were making an awful lot of racket last night, and did I hear something this morning about waking up in the same bed?"
Akane and Ranma blinked in unison, before turning to look at each other in confusion. After a moment, realization dawned upon them, before they began to make their avid denials.
"Ah! It was nothing like that!" Akane avowed.
"Oh my, that really isn't proper," Kasumi chided.
"What? We didn't do anything!" Ranma bellowed.
"Son, I really wish you two would wait until you're married," Soun replied with a frown, before perking up, "We'll have the wedding when you get back from school!"
"DADDY!" Akane shouted, scandalized.
"You do, and I'll turn it into your funeral," Ranma snarled, baring his teeth almost as if he had fangs.
Shampoo, for the most part, remained somewhat oblivious to it all. She curtly finished her serving, before turning to Kasumi, "Is good." With that, she got up, and staggered to the exit of the tea room, throwing one, narrow-eyed, baleful glare towards Akane, and went in search of the red-headed bane of her existance.
"I wonder what's her problem?" Nabiki enquired out loud, earning nods from everyone at the table.
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Shampoo had searched the area thoroughly, and not found a trace of the redhead. She decided that, unfortunately, if she wanted to keep tabs on her prey, she would have to tail the suicidal one.
Tracing the route from the Tendou home that the nice girl Kasumi pointed out for her, she found Akane, and sure enough the redhead. From her perch, Shampoo awaited her opportunity...
"I said I was sorry!" Akane apologised, once more.
"Now I'm gonna have to maim your father when I get home from school today," the redhead replied, shaking the water from her hair; she was *really* beginning to despise that old lady, "You know I kinda like to relax a bit when I get home!"
"i'll talk to Daddy, okay?" Akane replied, turning to face the redhead walking directly behind her like a prison guard, "I'm sure he won't do anything rash, though."
"Whatever," Ranma replied, walking around Akane, and continuing onto school, "Let's get going, I hate standing in the hall when we're late."
Akane stood there, with her head down, before she brought her wrist up to her eye level, checking her wrist watch, "OH NO! I didn't realize we were running this late!" Akane started, before Ranma grabbed her shoulder.
"Oh no," the redhead proclaimed, "We're not taking any of *your* shortcuts, this time, we'll go mine!" With that, the both leapt onto a nearby rooftop, as the arrow passed through the spot Akane, and prior to that, Ranma, had been standing.
Shampoo walked out into the open with listless strides, staring off to where the two had vanished from. The bow that hung slack in her hand fell to the ground with a light clatter of wood against concrete, followed shortly by Shampoo collapsing to her knees, unable to still her fiercely pounding heart.
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Throughout school, Akane couldn't shake the blush she wore, from the thought of how she had actually slept with Ranma. Granted, they were both girls, and nothing perverted happened (thankfully), but the feeling of holding Ranma's body against hers like a large teddy-bear warmed her to no end.
She looked up at the redhead, who was growling and muttering obsceneties about girls who randomly dump buckets of cold water out of three story windows. The raven-haired girl was finding it difficult to guage Ranma's feelings for her; she didn't seem adverse to them all that much, but she wasn't exactly coaxing Akane, either.
"RANMA! YOU IS DYING NOW!!!"
Shampoo's desperate, finalized proclimation snapped Akane from her reverie, as she turned to find the Amazon descending upon a severely annoyed Ranma with a large and sharp spear. Without hesitation, Akane stepped between the murderous Amazon and her fiance with a determined fighting stance. "If you're gonna try to hurt Ranma, you have to get through ME first!"
You could almost hear the airbreaks work, as Shampoo tried to stop her fall, before opting to twist in the air from harming the suicidal girl.
Shampoo landed in a crumpled heap, before slowly picking herself off the ground. Akane was shocked from the girl's landing, and rushed over to make sure she was alright, "Shampoo, are you okay?"
At the sound of Akane's concerned voice, something in Shampoo broke. Akane staggered back and onto her feet, when Shampoo shot to hers, and started shouting vehemantly at the other girl in her native Chinese. Akane placed her hands up in a placating gesture, when Shampoo began to shout louder, bringing her right hand up horizontal to chest level, and then jabbing her index finger repeatedly into Akane's sternum.
The youngest Tendou looked pleadingly at Ranma, who could only shrug and shake her head in a confused response. By that point, Shampoo was nearly to tears, putting her face right in front of Akane's, shouting in a nearly shrill voice that drew the attention of other students returning home, and neighborhood residents, stamping her foot, and bawling her fists so tight that her nails bit into her palms.
"Hey, HEY! Shampoo!" Ranma grabbed the Chinese girl's shoulder, attempting to quell her ire, "It's okay, alright? Don't let it upset you!"
At the sound of Ranma's voice, Shampoo began to openly sob, before turning into Ranma, burying her lavender head into Ranma's bosom, and crying hysterically.
"Whoa," Akane replied, trying to get over what just happened, "I think she having a nervous breakdown, or something."
Ranma tried her best to shrug, while circling her arms around the taller girl to console her, "I wonder what got her so mad at you?"
Akane came up behind Shampoo, and rubbed her hand in the small of the weeping girl's back, "It's okay, Shampoo, just let it all out..."
After a few moments, Shampoo's cries turned back into sobs, before they too quieted. Shampoo then looked up in gratitude to the girl holding her, and allowing her to vent the intense fustration she was feeling. As she looked into Ranma-chan's concerned face, gratitude was replaced by confusion, which was then replaced by anger, finally giving in to full rage.
"DIE, RANMA!"
Akane blinked, staring after the racing girls, one pursuing the other with a large viking battle-ax, before her own expression grew into an irritated frown, "HEY, YOU TWO, WAIT UP!!!"
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Shampoo took a sip from the tea Kasumi provided for her, before turning to look balefully at the girl sitting at the other end of the table, cheerfully and obliviously doing homework on her Apple titanium notebook. Superstition be damned, Shampoo finally decided. If she wanted to rid herself of Ranma, and restore her honor, she would HAVE to remove the crazy-girl first.
With grim determination, Shampoo brought to bear the battle-ax she was chasing Ranma with, stood in front of Akane, and raised it above her head.
Akane paused, and looked up from her work, "Something wrong, Shampoo?"
"You is obstacle..." Shampoo stated in a mechanical, emotionless voice, "obstacles is for killing."
Akane blinked, before giving an apologetic pout, "Um, I'm sorry if I've been an inconvenience to you. What did I do?"
Shampoo chose not to answer, instead tightening her grip on the handle of her weapon. femenine muscles clenched, ready to drop the ax, splitting the girl in two horizontally, the kill would not go anywhere, and the death would be quick.
Unfortunately, Shampoo's flat, lusterless eyes found Akane's oblivious, concerned ones. Shampoo imagined herself, after doing away with this girl, and then Ranma, wearing that same expression, the next time a rival in her village challenged her. he could easily picture herself, seemingly blissfully unaware of the danger she was in, when an overzealous male, such as one particular blind fool, readied the finishing blow, breaking her into forced matrimony...
Shampoo's expression didn't change, as the ax tumbled backwards from her nervless fingers. Akane blinked a couple of times, before a hint of irritation crossed her face, and she turned back to her homework, "Tease..."
"We shall never meet again" Shampoo replied in her native language, before walking from the tearoom, just as Ranma was entering.
"Seen Kasumi?" The redhead replied, toweling her face off, with one hand, while holding a glass of water in the other, "I need to tell her that the faucet broke again... where's Shampoo going?"
"Shampoo no hunt Ranma anymore," the Amazon said factually, heading for the front door, and then putting on her slippers.
Both Akane and Ranma followed her to the door, just as she was letting herself out, "Huh? What gives?"
Shampoo gave the redhead an expressionless glare, before replying to her inquery, "Shampoo fed up, decide tell Great-Grandmother you is actually sterile male. Is no good for kiss of Death or Marriage."
"HEY!" Ranma shouted back, adimantly, before a hand resting on her shoulder cut her off. She turned to find Akane shaking her head, quelling any further outburst.
Both of them walked out with Shampoo onto the front porch, and watched the Amazon stride out of the front gates. "Man, just like that," Ranma-chan replied, still confused at what happened.
Akane turned to Ranma with a peculiar, nervous expression, "You sound like you miss her already!"
"Na," the redhead replied, "I mean, it's just that first Ryoga, then her... it's just the way with you how easy some of my problems just seem to go away."
"Oh?" Akane answered, shyly, "Maybe I'm just your goodluck charm?"
"Heh," the young Saotome heir replied, "Whatever..."
They both continued to watch Shampoo walk into the rising evening.