A few days after her first full-blown sexual encounter, Shampoo leapt from tree to tree in an wholly different forest, rushing toward the spot where she planned to meet her new lover. Her heart swelled when a patch of red caught her eye through the trees; she subconsciously quickened her pace.

"Ranma!" Shampoo shouted, leaping toward her love with arms outstretched. Beaming, Ranma threw her arms out too, letting Shampoo crash into her. The two girls gripped one another as though they'd been apart for years, though in fact it had been less than a day.

Pulling apart slightly, the two gazed fondly at each other, then needily crushed their lips together. Hands wandered down sides, up shirts, and into hair as the two proceeded to roughly make out, until they reluctantly pulled apart several minutes later.

Breathing heavily, Ranma said, "We, uh, should prolly do a quick lesson first, or else we'll spend all our time doin'… that…"

"There worse ways spend time," Shampoo replied with a cheeky grin, similar to the one that Ranma often flashed at her.

Today's meeting spot was some short rocky cliffs near a waterfall - probably the prettiest spot they'd found so far, Shampoo had to admit. The two girls took a seat on the rocks, facing one another.

"Okay, so I was thinkin' today we'd focus on 'I'. 'Cause you repeat your name a lot more'n you've gotta, so I figured that'd be pretty useful. Unless you want a hyper cutsey kinda image or somethin,' 'cause that's what it'd seem like in Japan."

Every day since the day they'd first had sex, Ranma and Shampoo had been meeting up for an hour or two (however long Ranma felt sure they could get away with without that 'Pops' jerk interrupting them). Though they'd had sex pretty much all of those days, a second activity had quickly become a staple once Ranma noticed how irritated Shampoo got about the language barrier. Since Shampoo already knew some Japanese, and Ranma knew nothing about Tuhua — she'd always assumed it was Mandarin, but Shampoo had swiftly corrected her once she'd mentioned it — they decided to focus on learning the former for now. Shampoo did make Ranma promise to eventually learn her language, though.

"So, like, ya use 'I' ta refer ta yourself. So instead'a sayin' 'Ranma have a pain-in-the-butt Pops,' I'd say 'I have a pain-in-the-butt Pops.'"

"Ranma have pain-in-butt panda, too," Shampoo noted with a scowl.

"Ha-ha, yeah…" Ranma said, her eyes going distant and unfocused for a second. Shampoo hadn't yet managed to figure out why, but the other girl frequently became awkward whenever that stupid panda was mentioned.

Leaning forward to place a hand on Ranma's shoulder, Shampoo said, "And I have super-cute girlfriend!"

The way Ranma blushed and scrambled backwards got a giggle out of Shampoo. "G—girlfriend!? Me?"

"Is wrong word for relationship?" Shampoo said, raising an eyebrow. She'd been pretty sure about that one.

"I—I mean, well… but I…"

"Is wrong say I Ranma's girlfriend?"

The dumb smile that overtook Ranma's face was answer enough. Unable to wait any longer, Shampoo flung herself forward, knocking Ranma on her back and immediately making out with her again. Snaking her fingers through Ranma's hair, Shampoo pulled, receiving that moaning sound she loved so much. Smooshing her lips into Ranma's, Shampoo roughly pushed her tongue inside Ranma's mouth, receiving even more precious moaning as a reward.

They went at it a while longer, until Ranma moved a second hand up Shampoo's shirt. Sighing, Shampoo sat back up, softly pulling Ranma's hand off of her.

"Ranma… is good, but…" After a few more breaths, she continued, "Need talk."

After quickly shuffling apart and tidying their disheveled clothes, the two girls sat and faced each other again, one visibly confused and the other visibly anxious.

Looking Ranma directly in the eyes, Shampoo said, "Shamp — I need kill Ranma." The panicked look on her girlfriend's face made Shampoo spit out her next words as fast as she could. "I need kill Ranma if Sham — I want go back home. But, I no can kill Ranma."

Letting out a forced chuckle, a still palpably nervous Ranma said, "Yeah, well, I am pretty hard ta kill. Hard ta find someone tougher than me."

Waving a hand and rolling her eyes, Shampoo said, "No, not reason!" For a moment, she looked away. But it was important to look Ranma in the face when she said this, so she forced her eyes back. "Is because… Shampoo heart no allow."

"O-oh…" Ranma said, clearly surprised. After a second she looked away, seemingly deep in thought. As the silent seconds turned to minutes, doubt crept into Shampoo's mind. Had she articulated her thoughts well enough? She was still a ways off from mastering Japanese, afterall. But surely Ranma understood? If she wanted to return home, Shampoo had to kill Ranma, but her heart wouldn't let her kill the girl she'd fallen in love with. She had no idea how to deal with the situation, but she needed Ranma to know about her inner conflict, at the very least.

Finally, Ranma looked at her again. But the red-head's expression was unexpectedly grim; Shampoo felt her chest constrict involuntarily. "I need ta tell ya somethin' too. But… I need ta go get somethin' first. Will ya wait for me?"

The pressure on Shampoo's chest faded the slightest bit. She nodded. "I wait."

With that, Ranma took off, disappearing into the trees. Shampoo stared after her, mind casting about for explanations. But try as she might, Shampoo could come up with no solid ideas for what Ranma needed to tell her, especially not any that required more than words. As the minutes slowly trickled by, her mind wandered to even darker places, wondering if her own confession had scared Ranma off, and the red-head had concocted some phony reason for running away, with no intention to return.

Fortunately for Shampoo's nerves, shortly after those particular thoughts arose, she heard a rustling in the trees that signified Ranma's arrival. Leaping down beside the still-sitting Shampoo, Ranma held out a kettle of hot water, her face scrunched up in determination.

"Shampoo, I…" She looked miserable. "I'm not who ya think I am."

Eyes flicking between Ranma's face and the kettle, Shampoo tried over and over to fit the puzzle pieces together, but kept coming up empty. "…What Ranma saying?"

"Just… look," Ranma said with a sigh, raising the kettle above her head. To Shampoo's complete and utter shock, once the normally red-headed girl started pouring hot water on herself, she transformed, growing taller, with black hair and a physique Shampoo thought to be a bit more masculine.

The cursed springs! Ranma must have fallen in one! Having grown up relatively close to those very springs, Shampoo was, of course, familiar with them… though she wasn't exactly an expert. Her people were generally smart enough to stay away from the springs, so she didn't personally know anyone with a curse until now. She knew the transformation had to do with hot and cold water, but despite racking her brains she wasn't sure which one signified the cursed form.

"This body… curse?" Shampoo said, looking up at her girlfriend seemingly-turned boyfriend.

Ranma, who'd been managing to maintain eye contact, looked away. "No… it's not. This is the real me. The girl you, um… ya know, did stuff with, and spent time around… she's the curse."

Slowly getting to her feet, Shampoo took a small step forward and reached out her hand, then dropped it. Her eyes bored holes into the ground for a moment or two before her gaze returned to Ranma, expression serious.

"Why Ranma lie?"

Grimacing, Ranma took a step forward. "I—I didn't… I didn't mean ta, exactly… At first I was just usin' the cursed form's sexy bod ta escape from you, since it worked so well an' all! I—I mean, you were tryin' ta kill me…" He paused a moment, as though inviting Shampoo to comment. Shampoo crossed her arms and continued to silently stare. "…B—but then we, ya know, made out… an' stuff kinda escalated, an' changed, an'… I didn't know how ta bring it up."

"Hm… make sense, Shampoo suppose," she said, nodding lightly. It certainly explained the whole 'Pops/panda' situation. And it didn't seem like Ranma had been purposefully deceiving her… Giving the boy a quick look-over, she had to concede that he was still pretty cute in this form. Less cute than before, admittedly, but Shampoo could still imagine kissing those lips. Part of her felt a little disappointed by this turn of events, but it didn't have to ruin things, necessarily…

Rubbing the back of his head, undoubtedly uncomfortable in the silence, Ranma said, "I, uh… hope this doesn't make ya wanna go back on the whole 'not killing me' thing…"

Shampoo's eyes went wide. If Ranma was actually a boy, then that could solve all of their problems!

Taking a few excited steps forward, Shampoo said, "Ranma! Ranma pretty, smart boy!" Color rose in Ranma's cheeks, and confusion took over his face. "Ranma be boy mean no more 'Kiss of Death'!"

"Wh—what? How!?"

"In Shampoo tribe, 'Kiss of Death' used when defeat by same gender. When different gender, is different kiss! New kiss is Ranma and Shampoo get married!"

"WHAT!?" Ranma said, reeling backward. "Y—you mean we're engaged now!?"

Shaking her head up and down in excitement, Shampoo said, "Yes! Ranma Shampoo's wèihūn…fū… er…" She realized with frustration that she had no idea what the Japanese word for "fiancé" was.

At least somewhat recovered, Ranma said, "But… but are you okay with me bein' a guy? Seems like you're one'a those, uh… lesbians, right?"

Waving a hand, Shampoo said, "No, no, I is… what word like more than one gender?"

"Uh… bi? Bisexual, I think?"

"Yes, that!" Shampoo said, pointing and smiling. "I not even know I like girls 'til Ranma."

"…Oh." At a loss for words, a wide-eyed Ranma sank back to the ground, his wet clothes squishing softly against the now damp rock. "I, uh… I'm not sure I'm ready ta marry, though." Looking back up at her frantically, he waved his arms about and said, "I—I mean not like, you specifically, just, like, marriage in general, ya know?"

Smiling softly, Shampoo took a seat next to him, paying no mind to the damp ground. "Shampoo and Ranma no marry now. Stay engaged, marry when Ranma ready! But now, I no have try kill Ranma, and I go back home!"

Panic clearly gripping him, Ranma said, "W—wait, do I hafta go too? And do we gotta go right away? You know me an' Pops were plannin' ta go to Japan."

Touching a hand to Ranma's slightly less soft face, Shampoo said, "No, no. I go only. I need tell great-grandmother of engagement. But I meet Ranma in Japan, if Ranma say what city Ranma go."

"Tokyo, I think… It's really big, but, well…" He smiled half-heartedly, his eyes falling to the ground. "You've proved you're good at findin' me."

Giving her best comforting smile, Shampoo said, "I very good at finding Ranma!" Her smile faded. "To answer other question… While I and Ranma engaged, can go wherever! But… when married, tribe expect Shampoo and husband to stay with tribe."

"Sh-Shampoo, I… I dunno if I can — if I want ta do that."

Brows knit in concern, Shampoo softly squished Ranma's cheeks between her hands and turned his face to look at her. "I understand. But Ranma no need think that now! I and Ranma can be engaged long, long time! Can figure out solution!"

"I… I guess," Ranma said, frowning.

With a different smile this time, Shampoo said, "Ranma want have sex before I go? Maybe cheer Ranma up? This time Ranma use real body!"

Surprise flashed across Ranma's face, as though he hadn't believed her when she'd said she was bi. "Um… sure."

Shampoo had actually been thinking about her sexuality a lot the past few days, and she had come to the conclusion that she was bi, but also that she probably had a preference for girls. A preference that she'd long been in denial about. Still, she couldn't expect Ranma to always want to be in his cursed state, so she was fully prepared to have fun playing with this body of his too.

Leaning into him, Shampoo pressed their lips together, immediately noticing that Ranma's were softer than she'd expected. His lips, at least, didn't seem to be much different in either form. After a few flicks of her tongue and a small bite of his lower lip, she had his mouth open again, and their tongues met, the whole experience still feeling markedly pleasant and familiar.

The first notable difference came when Shampoo's hand began to wander. She grazed her arm over Ranma's chest, feeling through his clothes how different this part of him now was. Eager to feel more of it, she started undoing the buttons of his shirt, pressing a hand against his flat chest the moment she could reach it.

Pulling away from their kiss, Shampoo watched as Ranma's eyes moved down to his chest and Shampoo's hand atop it. His expression was… less excited than she'd expected.

"Ranma okay?" she said, slowly pulling her hand away.

Seemingly surprised, Ranma plastered a smile on his face. "Me? Yeah! I'm just, ya know… still sad about you leavin', is all…"

Oh, was that all? She's just have to work even harder to take his mind off of it, then! Leaning into another kiss that Ranma eagerly raised his head to meet, Shampoo continued making out with him and feeling him up, unbuttoning the rest of his shirt and running a hand up and down his different, but still pleasant chest. Pulling away from his mouth, she moved her own to his neck — licking, sucking and biting in the ways she'd previously found he liked. The slightly deeper moans she received for her efforts invigorated her, even if they were a little more subdued than usual.

Her wandering hand moved lower, softly moving over Ranma's pants. Pressing harder, she quickly found that the pressure of her hand was the only hard thing to be found in the vicinity.

Taking her mouth off his neck, she looked down at him, worry on her face. "Ranma really okay? Ranma want do this?"

Meeting her eyes for only a moment before looking away, Ranma said, "Yes, I do! It just… it feels different. But… I'm sure I'll get used to it."

"Ranma want lead instead?"

He immediately shook his head, eyes wide. "No! I like when you lead! I—I like it a lot…" A blush spread across his face. "It's… it's probably just 'cause I haven't done it with this body before."

Giving him a small pout, Shampoo said, "If Ranma sure…" Shifting her mouth back to his neck, she moved her wandering hand much higher than it had previously been, right into Ranma's now black hair. Moving away from his neck to better gauge his reaction, she pulled his hair, receiving the sharp intake of breath and fluttering eyes she'd been looking for. Ready to play her trump card, she smiled and softly said, "Good boy."

To her dismay, Ranma's reaction was far less enthusiastic than she'd anticipated. In fact, for a moment, she could swear she'd seen a frown, before it was replaced by a thoroughly unconvincing smile. Something was very wrong here… and she had a hunch about what it was.

Still gripping Ranma's hair, Shampoo moved him toward her, until his ear was mere centimeters away from her mouth. In as sensual a whisper as she could muster, she said, "Ranma good girl."

A telltale shudder coursed through Ranma's body, even as her face went beet red in embarrassment. Smiling softly, Shampoo released Ranma from her grip and sat up, looking her lover in the face even though the girl refused to meet Shampoo's eyes.

"Ranma want change body before sex?"

Still blushing and averting her eyes, Ranma said, "I… I wouldn't hate it or nothin'…" She flicked a pebble away with her finger, eyes darting to Shampoo for a quick second before they shot away again. "You know, if that's what you want…"

Doing her best to avoid a smirk, Shampoo got to her feet and offered a hand. Reluctantly, Ranma took it, and the two of them walked over behind the waterfall, dunking Ranma's head into the cold water once they drew near enough.

Practically tearing Ranma's soggy clothes off, Shampoo pushed the wet red-head to the ground, intent on making her even wetter. Pouncing on her lover, Shampoo's mouth immediately went to one of Ranma's nipples, sucking and biting at it and making Ranma squirm. Her hand traveled lower, dipping into Ranma's lower lips and softly flicking her clit. Ranma's back arched as a low, rough sound escaped her mouth.

Over the past few days, Ranma had learned to do more than just sit there and be spoiled by Shampoo. Her hands wandered, one scraping nails only a little roughly across Shampoo's back, the other drifting lower, not quite able to reach its obvious destination. Shifting her body a little, Shampoo felt Ranma's fingers reach their mark, sending electricity up Shampoo's spine. Ranma's fingers couldn't reach far enough to get inside Shampoo at the moment, but they could definitely tease her clit, which they did mercilessly. It quickly became too much, so she grabbed Ranma's wrist and brought the fingers up to her face, slowly licking them and taking them into her mouth.

Like she'd expected after trying that move yesterday, Ranma's breathing got heavier and her eyelids fluttered. If she liked it when Shampoo did it…

Moving her hand up in front of Ranma's face, Shampoo held a finger out, questioningly. Apparently too horny for shyness, Ranma almost immediately darted her tongue out, which Shampoo took as permission to slide the finger into Ranma's mouth. The red-head's eyes closed as she pushed her head forward, taking Shampoo's finger as deep as she could. Slowly, Shampoo pulled it back out, then added another finger, which Ranma seemed even more eager for. This continued until Shampoo had four fingers shoved into her lover's mouth.

"Greedy girl, aren't you?" Shampoo said with a smirk. Ranma's immediate shudder was answer enough.

Moving her head back to Ranma's chest, Shampoo continued fingering Ranma's mouth, as two fingers from her other hand slipped into and started fingering Ranma's pussy. Pressing against the top of Ranma's inner walls in a 'come hither' motion, Shampoo quickly got Ranma's back arching again. She made sure to give Ranma a few seconds to breathe every now and then as she continued to finger the girl's mouth, though she noticed that the longer she pushed the wait between breath respites, the more aroused Ranma seemed to get. That was… definitely something to explore more later.

After another minute or two, Ranma's hand balled into a fist in Shampoo's hair, and her body began to jerk. Shampoo hurriedly pulled her fingers from Ranma's mouth to make sure they didn't hurt the girl as her body spasmed. A loud, rough scream tore through the air as Ranma reached the peak of her climax. Shampoo coaxed her through it the whole way with her fingers, despite how little they could move with Ranma's walls constricting them so tight. As Ranma's orgasm began to fade, Shampoo continued moving her fingers, and soon enough she got even more shudders and a smaller scream, as another orgasm tore through her body. But Shampoo wouldn't stop; she kept going and going, pushing Ranma through a third and even a fourth orgasm, before the redhead finally squeezed her arm and gasped "I can't take anymore."

Laying her head softly on Ranma's breast, Shampoo pulled her fingers out of her girlfriend and let the girl bask. Ranma also just clearly needed time to collect herself — when Shampoo tried to ask her how Ranma was doing the replies she received weren't terribly coherent.

Finally, after several minutes, Ranma started kissing the top of Shampoo's head. Shampoo looked up, and the two kissed softly a few times, before Ranma weakly pushed Shampoo over onto her back.

"Now it's your turn," Ranma said with a cheeky grin, before moving her face down, down, until it was hovering right over Shampoo's already dripping wet pussy. Shampoo grinned. Oh good, Ranma had already gotten great at that…

-b-

Basking, Shampoo stared up at the top of the cave behind the waterfall, her girlfriend snuggled up against her. After a few minutes, she smiled softly and sighed. "I no go home after all. Not now, at least."

Propping herself up on one arm, Ranma looked over at Shampoo with confusion. "W-what? Why not?" She did little to disguise the hopeful note in her voice.

Taking ahold of Ranma's hand, Shampoo said, "I no think tribe kiss rules going work the way I thought."

Ranma cocked her head. "What, did you remember something else about them? Like a time limit on the engagement or something?"

Shaking her head, the soft smile still on her face, Shampoo said, "No, no, not quite… Marriage kiss rules only work with boy and girl. Not girl and girl."

Eyes darting around, Ranma said, "I—I mean, I'm a guy even if I turn inta a girl sometimes… r—right? So…"

"I not sure about that. But I no want push issue 'til Ranma comfortable."

Blushing heavily, Ranma looked away. "I—issue? I don't—"

Shampoo gently pressed a finger against Ranma's soft lips. "Is fine, Ranma. No need talk about now. But I here when ready."

Pulling away, Ranma buried her head in her hands for a few moments. Then she gasped and turned back, suddenly very worried. "But this whole kiss deal — it seemed like a big deal! Are ya… are ya gonna be okay if ya don't kill me or marry me?"

Sadness grew in Shampoo's eyes, but she smiled softly anyway. "Tribe… not happy if I no carry out promise of kiss. I not completely sure what tribe do… but it might be very very bad."

"Like… they might banish you?"

"Banish? Maybe… Kill maybe, too."

Ranma had no immediate follow-up to that. After a few moments, she balled her fists and scrunched her face up. "Well… let 'em try. The two of us can take on anyone. I won't let 'em hurt you."

Moving swiftly forward, Shampoo kissed Ranma's cheek once… then a few more times, for good measure. "Ranma is too too good girlfriend. I lucky!"

The blush was back in full force on Ranma's face. "Heh, I mean… I'm pretty lucky too."

"I travel with Ranma and Pops now, I think," Shampoo said, slowly getting to her feet. "So Ranma should introduce Shampoo and Pops, yes? Is only right introduce new girlfriend."

Rubbing the back of her head, Ranma grinned and stood as well. "Heh, y—yeah, I guess I should introduce ya, huh?"

"But need get dressed first!"

"Right!"

The two of them set to work pulling their soggy clothes back on, and not long after they took off, running through the forest together. Worry flitted through Shampoo's mind. She knew her great-grandmother loved her, but would that be enough to prevent the consequences that her decision would undoubtedly bring? Probably not, but… she was sure that it would all be worth the struggle anyway, as long as she and Ranma were together. The two of them were sprinting headfirst toward a future chock full of trials and tribulations, yet Shampoo's heart felt light. She knew their future was bright, no matter what tried to darken it. As long as they were together, nothing could bring them down.

-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-

This is theoretically now a complete fic. If y'all show enough interest, I might end up continuing it, though I'd probably skip ahead in time a bit. If it were to continue, what sorts of things would y'all be interested in me exploring? Comment and let me know!