Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Ranma Universe: Alpha and Omega ❯ Chapter 12: The Amazons ( Chapter 13 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

By: ST Pika

Chapter 12: The Amazons

Part A

Sunday morning

After a dream-filled night, Ukyo wakes up… and nearly gasps. `What am I doing in the middle of the floor? Ryoga's right in front of me… and we're holding each other! How'd this happen?'

Ryoga's eyes slowly open and he has a similar reaction. `What happened? I'm holding her… and she's staring at me, blushing…'

“G-good morning, Ryoga…” Ukyo says nervously.

“Ummm… morning…” Ryoga says while trying not to blush himself.

Both teens want to say something more… and pull away… but something inside keeps them together and exchanging silent glances.

“Soo… did you sleep well?” Ukyo says, trying to make some small talk.

“Y-yeah… I was umm… having a nightmare… and then it went away… I woke up and here we are…”

“Same here. Ryoga, umm…” At a loss for words, Ukyo can say no more.

Gulping, Ryoga decides to say something both want to say… but are hesitant to do.

“Ukyo… I think umm… we n-need each other… I've never done this before… or had these um… feelings like this…”

Looking into her heart… and what she's been feeling lately, the young chef agrees with a nod. `He's right… let's see if we can make this work. I've never experienced this feeling before… it's more then infatuation… this could actually be fun to try and figure out…'

“I think you're right, sugar… this sure is a lot different then the beginning, isn't it?”

Ryoga's confused. “Huh? The beginning?”

“You know, when we first met. You fought against me… and then Ran-chan had to use MY chest to stun you…”

“Umm… yeah… your figure um… yeah… kinda stopped me in my tracks.” Ryoga admits, knowing that the young woman in front of him has grown even more beautiful with the passage of time.

Ukyo continues reminiscing. “And then you ended up being taken care of in the nurses' office by Akane… and me by Ranma… what a turn around, huh?”

“Yeah, we've both done a 180 from that point… we've worked together a lot… to try and break those other two up… I guess we're two of a kind…” Ryoga admits with a grin.

“Yeah… and we ended up as a couple in that cave… and got harassed by those ghosts…”

“Or on Toma's Island… you had that dress… wow…” A trickle of blood from Ryoga's nose is quickly wiped away as the lost boy tries to think of something else besides Ukyo's curves.

Ukyo grins. “You saved me… but all you remember is that pink dress. I don't believe I was wearing something like that… it was so… revealing…”

“You umm… were… but anyways… what do we do from here? Your mom thinks we're boyfriend and girlfriend… are we?”

Pausing for a moment, Ukyo prepares to utter words. “Hmm. I guess so… we haven't gone on any dates yet… but we have been spending a lot of time together…”

For the first time in a while, Ryoga feels happiness and contentment inside. “I guess it was a good thing I got beat up… or else we wouldn't be talking like this.”

Ukyo's mood turns after hearing this. “Speaking of that… I can understand why'd she be angry at you… but she didn't have to go for your life. I think you deserve an apology…”

“Umm… sure… but I don't want to go over there again. Whatever technique she was using… it was damn good…” Ryoga admits with some fear.

Hearing that, the brunette tries to reassure her friend. “I'll go and see if Ran-chan got everything calmed down… and then we'll take it from there. I won't put you in danger again…”

“Okay… for you… and only if it's safe. Who knew she could be that powerful?”

“Yeah…” Ukyo thinks about that for a moment. `I don't know if she knew techniques like that when we fought… but if she did, I don't know if I would've won, even if I wanted to…'

Slowly, Ukyo releases her arms and sits up. Ryoga watches as she gets on her feet and heads over towards the bathroom…

“Why don't you wait here… I'll take a quick shower and then see what's going on. I know that Akane always goes jogging on Sunday mornings… so I'll talk to her and get everything straightened out, okay?”

“Sure… and ummm… thanks a lot…”

“No problem…” Ukyo says before opening the bathroom door.

While Ukyo gets ready to meet with Akane, over at the Tendo house, Akane is already awake and doing her morning stretches. Dressed in her jogging outfit, she prepares to head out on her run when a familiar voice calls to her…

“Hey… wait up!”

Akane turns around and finds Ranma standing right behind her. “You want to come with me?”

“Of course… you don't mind, do yah?”

A smile forms on the youngest Tendo's face. “Ranma… that'd be nice…”

“I wanted to um…” Ranma pauses to remember some advice his mother gave him this morning. `Spend time together in activities that you like to do together… talk to her, especially after what happened yesterday, and make sure that she's okay.'

“Ahem…” Clearing his throat, Ranma continues. “Spend time with you… and maybe later, you can help me out…”

“Oh yeah… your test. I promised I would…” A sly grin forms on Akane's face. “You and I are going to have a marathon study session… so you better be ready. You told me that you wanted a partner that was good in the art, right?”

“Yeah…” A nodding Ranma agrees.

Akane says nothing but walks closer and gets into Ranma's face. “And I want a partner that's good in school…”

The two exchange glances and blush.

“You do? I didn't know that…” Ranma admits.

“Martial arts isn't everything, you know… there's ummm… other important things…” Akane says while trying to not turn away from embarrassment. `I'm telling him… my most intimate secrets… and so is he… I want him to trust me, like I trust him.'

The young woman closes her eyes… and then feels Ranma's body pressing against her… his hands gently running across her back.

“I know…” The Saotome Heir says in a whisper. “Let's go…”

Full of new energy, Akane follows Ranma's lead as he starts jogging away, The two jog through the streets of Nerima, getting a good workout in the cool morning air. After entering a nearby park, Akane tugs on Ranma's shirt.

“Let's take a break…”

“Sure thing… you kept up with me the whole time…” He says while sitting down on a bench.

“Ranma, that was more running then jogging…” Akane says while trying to catch her breath.

“Hey, I'm just trying to build up some endurance with yah…” Ranma replies back while stretching out. “Sit down and catch your breath…”

Part of her is angry at the fact that she's being pushed to her limit… and is being taunted by her fiancée… but she takes a glance at him and can see no malice on his face. `Old habits die hard I guess…'

While Akane's glancing at Ranma, he cannot help but notice the deep breaths that she's taking… and how her chest is contracting and expanding. `God, she looks good…'

“Ranma… Ranma…” Akane says to the spaced-out Ranma, whose eyes are focused on her chest. After getting no response, she snaps her fingers in front of the martial artist. She lies back on the bench and smiles. `Maybe I should keep doing this on purpose… he's almost… entranced by the way I look. I can be feminine, flirty, sexy… and I guess this proves it. He was definitely worth fighting for… he appreciates me… and I appreciate him.'

“Tomboy to Ranma…” Akane says with a smirk on her face.

“Huh? Oh, what is it?” Ranma asks while snapping out of his “fog”.

“I'm ready to head back… we can eat breakfast and then talk. Then it's time to study, study…”

“Yeah, yeah…” Ranma says, not really thrilled about that… but he knows she's right. `I wanna do good for her… and for me. I gotta stick this school thing out…'

“I'll take the lead this time…” Akane says while getting on her feet. “Let's go!”

Ranma blinks… and Akane's out of sight. `Damn, she's fast… was she just pretending to be tired? To tease me? I wonder…'

Sprinting off after his fiancée, Ranma soon catches up to the young woman and they two race back towards the Tendo house, passing down the familiar streets of Nerima, taking turn after turn without stopping. When they pass in front of one of the café's, however, a voice calls out to them.

“Hey, hold on a second you two!”

Akane and Ranma stop and look up… and realize where they're at. “Uc-chan's Café” Ranma says softly to himself.

“That's right… good morning Ran-chan, Akane…” Ukyo steps out onto the street. “I knew you'd both be heading by here at some point this morning.”

“But how did you know my jogging route?” A curious Akane asks.

“You go the same way every time… I've known that for a long time… back from the old days when I was fighting you for Ranma. You're a creature of habit when it comes to your route…”

Akane shrugs her shoulders. “I guess so…”

“So how yah doing this morning, Uc-chan?”

Ukyo smiles. “Pretty good… I had some umm… interesting stuff happen earlier… but I need to take care of something else before I open for business later…”

“Oh…” Is about all Ranma can say back, not having a clue what she's taking about.

Turning her attention to the other part of the pair, Ukyo decides to find out what kind of mindset Akane's in this morning. “You seem to be back to normal, Akane…”

After taking a quick glance at Ranma, Akane looks at Ukyo. “Yeah… Ranma helped me out last night… I know I did some horrible things… but it was that damn suit… it had control…” She says the last part while lowering her head in shame.

Wanting more information, Ukyo presses on with her questions. “The suit? Did it possess you or something?”

“I guess you could say that… it ummm… took all my negative emotions and amplified them… I even hurt… Kasumi…” Akane says softly while trying to hold back tears.

Ranma places his hands on Akane's shoulders and gently massages them. “But I helped her out… and everyone's okay… I'm glad my tomboy is back…”

Akane tries her best to smile. “Ranma… thank you…”

`I'm glad to hear that she's okay… what happened could've split them up… and then my part of the fight would've been wasted. He's really getting friendly with her, even in public. That's a good sign…' Ukyo lets the two enjoy the moment before speaking again. “If you don't mind, Ranma… your sister needs to borrow your tomboy for some girl talk…”

Seeing no problem with that, Ranma says: “Sure…”

Akane protests. “Ranma's the only one that gets to call me that, Ukyo.”

“Sorry… I was just kidding. I have something important to ask you, Akane.”

“Go ahead… I'll meet you back at da house…” Ranma says with a nod.

“Okay, tell Kasumi to hold breakfast until I get back then.” Akane says before waving at Ranma. “I'll be back as soon as I can… and then it's study time!” She says that last part with a grin, causing Ranma to sigh aloud.

“That's right… you have a test, right? Better hit the books, brother…” Ukyo says with a wink, adding to the teasing Akane just did.

“I'll talk to you later, Ukyo…” Ranma says with a sigh before heading out. Akane walks inside the café and takes a seat at the main seating area in front of grill.

“Sooo… what did you want to talk about?”

“Well… you have to promise not to yell first.” Ukyo says cautiously.

That gets Akane's attention right away. “Yell? Why would I do that?”

Standing firm on that point, Ukyo again makes her request. “Promise me…”

A soft sigh escapes Akane's lips. “Fine… I promise not to yell. You better tell me what's going on here…”

“For starters, I'm… I'm dating Ryoga…” Ukyo says nervously before blushing.

“WHAT?” Is the unrestrained response back from Akane. “You and Ryoga?”

“Shhh! I told you not to yell!”

“When did this happen? I can't believe that you're going out with that… that… pervert!” Akane says while still trying to make sense of it all.

Baring the truth seems to be the best way to answer that question… and Ukyo does so a moment later. “Actually… you're responsible.”

“Me?”

“Yes, you… you tried to beat him up the first time…”

Akane nods her head and a grin forms on her face. “And he got away… and I didn't see him again until yesterday morning…”

Ukyo comes to the point. “Exactly! I had to take care of him and clean up after your mess… both times…”

Akane tries to hold her emotions in check. “Hold on a second… he deserved that. Do you know what he was doing to me? What he saw… I haven't even let Ranma…” Akane stops speaking and begins to blush. “Ahem. Ranma hasn't seen me like that… and Ryoga even made him promise not to tell me…”

The brunette chef sighs aloud. “Yes… I know all about that. Your sister filled me in on all the details. He told me about it, too… but I've forgiven him. He's helped me out here… and umm… he's changed…”

Akane's face now sports a look of disbelief. “You don't say? Piggy had a change of heart?”

“Akane… you were right about before. He did deserve a good thrashing… but the last time, you nearly killed him. That's a little too far, even for the perverted stuff he did. He wasn't imitating the old man or anything like that…”

A smile forms on Akane's face after hearing that. “Good point…”

Seeing her chance, Ukyo brings up the main reason why she brought the youngest Tendo into her café. “I'm not asking you to forgive him for what he did… but I do think he deserves an apology for that near death experience. I know you weren't yourself… but that wouldn't have brought him back if he got crippled or died.”

A silent Akane thinks about what Ukyo just said… and remembers how she hurt people yesterday. `Ranma… Kasumi… and Ryoga… I hurt them all. The other two forgave me… but I didn't try and kill them… that damn suit! I nearly lost Ranma because of that!'

Taking a look at Ukyo's face, Akane can clearly see how serious she is about the request. `She must really be into him for some reason… but whatever the case… she's my friend and Ranma's sister. I want to keep on good terms with her… and maybe I can give this a shot. Think calm thoughts, Akane…'

Making her decision, Akane nods her head. “Ahem. Okay… I'll do it. But only because you asked…”

Ukyo's mood instantly becomes upbeat and happy. “Great! Thank you so much!”

Shrugging her shoulders, Akane can only sigh. `I guess there's someone for everyone… but maybe, just maybe he'll be good for her. She won't stand for it if he acts up…'

“I'll be right back…” With that, Ukyo backs away from the grill and heads upstairs. She finds Ryoga cowering under the blanket…

“I heard voices downstairs... is Akane here?” The Lost boy asks fearfully.

“Yes, sugar, she's here… and no, she's not going to pummel you. We had a little talk… and she's going to apologize.”

Ryoga is surprised by that “Really?”

Ukyo takes his hand. “Come downstairs and let's get this over with, okay?”

“I guess umm… you're right. Now is a good a time as any…” Is the nervous reply back, despite the reassurance of her warm hand holding his.

The pair slowly head downstairs… with Ryoga fighting the urge to run nearly every step of the way. When the door slides open and Ukyo and Ryoga step forward, Akane immediately notices that the two are holding hands.

`I guess she does really like him… I know Ukyo wouldn't be doing that just for appearances… she's not that kind of girl…'

Upon seeing Akane, Ryoga's grip on Ukyo's hand tightens. He gulps and continues stepping forward until he's right in front of the grill, standing next to Ukyo.

“Okay… he's here, Akane…” Ukyo says while looking across the grill.

Akane tries not to get angry or yell… and takes a few deep breaths before speaking.

“I know you took advantage of me… but you… you didn't deserve what I did to you yesterday…”

“Really?”

Akane rolls her eyes. “Yes, really… you're very lucky that your girlfriend, Ukyo, is on your side. I'm her friend… so I agreed to this.”

“Oh… okay.” Is the soft reply from Ryoga.

“I'm sorry for nearly killing you yesterday. There's a line between a thrashing and life and death… and I went a little too far…” Akane says with a nod. “I wasn't myself…”

“Ummm… it's okay… I'm fine now. I've had a wonderful nurse for a while now…” Is the reply back before a red blush covers the lost boys' face.

Akane has an idea. “That's good… you do know who you're going out with, right?”

“Ukyo of course…”

Ukyo blushes and then Akane continues. “Ukyo SAOTOME… Ranma's sister. You better treat her right… you don't want Ranma on your back… or me…”

Ryoga shakes his head. “Umm… no… definitely not.”

“Good.”

“Thanks Akane… for that last part, too.” Ukyo says before taking a bow.

“Anytime…” She says before standing up. Akane turns for the door. “See you later, Ukyo… I have to help Ranma study for that test…”

“Good luck with that… don't let him slack off…” Ukyo says jokingly.

Stopping at the doorway, Akane cannot help but smile. “Don't worry… he won't. I told him that I want someone that's good at school… he'll be up the challenge…”

“I'm sure he will be…” Ukyo says with a happy nod.

Ryoga says nothing as Akane opens the door and heads outside. He looks at Ukyo… and blushes. `She's so strong… and beautiful. Ukyo set this up… for me… despite what I did to Akane…'

“Ryoga… you did good.” Looking down, Ukyo notices that he's still holding her hand… and it doesn't seem like he wants to let go. “Let's get ready for business… are you up to helping me out?”

“Sure… of course… let's get ready for our late morning customers…” Ryoga says, getting into the spirit of things.

The chef and her assistant get the café ready for business while across town, Akane arrives home and finds Kasumi in the kitchen.

“Are you hungry?” The oldest Tendo asks as her younger sister heads towards the refrigerator.

“I'm starving!” Akane says as she opens the door to the fridgerator.

“I saved you some miso soup and rice, it's in the front…”

“Thanks… I'll heat this up and then it's study time…” Is the happy reply back.

“I've never heard you sounding so happy about studying before… are you helping Ranma out today?” Kasumi asks, trying to figure out why Ranma was in Akane's room a few minutes ago.

“Yeah…” Akane says while setting up her breakfast and then putting it in the microwave. “He has to take the entrance exam… I guess he never took it when he enrolled…”

“That's unusual… I wonder how that happened?”

“I don't know, sis… but anyways, I have until Friday to help him pass this test or he could be held back or worse…”

“Oh… that's not good. I'm sure he's up to the challenge… and I bet he's ready to get started…” Kasumi says with a slight giggle.

“Why do you say that?” Akane says before pausing to take her food out of the microwave.

“He's waiting in your room… he had his books with him…”

The “old” Akane would be pissed off that he'd enter her room without asking… the young woman takes a deep breath and does her best to ignore the urge to yell or scream. “He's ready to study, huh? Hmm… he didn't seem that eager this morning…”

“Well… maybe he thought about it and decided to give it a shot. I know he wants to stay in school… despite his comments to the contrary sometimes.”

Akane nods. “Oh, I wouldn't worry too much about that. He'll be seeing this challenge through… guaranteed.” A slight grin forms on Akane's face. “Let's just say that we have an agreement…”

“That's nice…” Kasumi says with a sincere smile, glad that her sister is being a positive influence on Ranma… and knowing that the opposite is true as well.

“Thanks for breakfast… I'm going to eat in my room and see what he's up to.” Akane says while grabbing her tray of food.

“No problem. I'll let you know when lunch is ready…”

Akane nods and then takes her tray of food up to her room. When she opens the door, she finds Ranma sitting on the end of her bed reading a book…

“I was waitin' for yah…” Ranma says while putting the book down. “Nabiki was nice enough to give me a list of what subjects are covered on the exam… so I guess we use that as a guide, right?”

“Of course…” Akane says while putting her tray down on her desk. “Let me eat and then we'll get started…”

The young woman sits down and begins eating her breakfast. She's so hungry that she nearly misses the fact that Ranma is taking occasional glances at her while reading. `He's staring at me again… hmm… I have to ask him a question then… but not until I'm done eating…'

“That smells good… Kasumi makes a good breakfast, don't she?” Ranma says, trying to make some small talk with Akane.

“Yeah… it's great…” Akane says happily. “It's perfect after this morning's run…”

That reminds Ranma of something that he's been meaning to ask. “Speaking of that, what did Ukyo want with yah? You were gone for a while…”

“I just had to help tie up some loose ends there, that's all… and help your sister out a little bit…”

“With Ryoga, right? My mom mentioned that Ukyo apparently is going out with him or somethin'… I talked to her before you came in. She sounded so happy about it…”

“Ranma… as long as she's happy… then I'm not going to saying anything…” Akane says, still feeling a little uncomfortable talking about Ryoga.

“Who would've ever thought… those two…”

“Ranma… I think people could've said the same thing about us…”

“Heh. True… but you and I came around.” Ranma grins. “I've been in your room for how long now… and you still haven't thrown me out…”

Akane rolls her eyes. “Not funny, Ranma. I…” A red blush forms on Akane's face. “I don't mind… as long as you umm… never mind. Let me finish eating…”

`I wonder what she was gonna say next? I better let her eat… and then it's study time. With someone as smart as Akane, I should have no problem.' Ranma thinks while wisely staying silent.

Relieved by the break in conversation, Akane finishes her breakfast and slouches back into her chair. “That was good…”

“I'm sure it was… by the way you were chowing that down… and you talk about me eating fast…” is the reply back from Ranma with a sly chuckle.

“I was hungry!” Akane protests. “Anyways… I'll be right back. I'm going to bring the tray back downstairs…”

“Okay… I'll be waitin' for yah…”

Akane stands up and takes her tray into her hands. She walks towards the door to her room and then turns around just before reaching it.

“Ranma, I want you to think about something and answer me when I come back.”

A curious Ranma asks: “What's that?”

“I want you to answer this- am I a distraction for you? I saw you watching me while I was eating…” With that being said, Akane leaves the room. Ranma thinks about his answer.

`She's good… she caught me looking at her. I don't know what it is lately… whatever she's wearing, I can't help but staring at her… her legs, her hips, her breasts…'

Akane returns shortly and finds a red-faced Ranma staring off into space. She doesn't even see him react to her sitting down on the bed next to him.

“Ranma…” Akane snaps her fingers in front of the young martial artist. “Hey, no sleeping!”

“Huh? Oh… I wasn't sleeping…” Ranma turns and looks at Akane. “I got an answer for yah… but then I got one question for you…”

After thinking about that for a moment, Akane says: “Fair enough. Tell me your answer, Ranma.”

“Ever since you and I umm… got closer… I can't umm… stop looking at yah. It don't matter what you're wearing… I think you look nice…”

Akane blushes and takes Ranma's hand. “Thanks, Ranma… I know it took a lot for you to say that. I ummm… don't mind being a distraction for you. You're a lot more open with me… even if you're a little nervous…”

Noticing that Akane is now blushing as well, Ranma cannot help but say: “Like you are now…”

“Yeah…”

“That's what I was gonna ask… I distract you a lot, right? You're blushing right now… and those kisses in the alley on the way to school…”

Akane is silent but leans her head against his arm. “You do…” she says softly. “I like it when you umm… show off your muscles… like in that shirt you're wearing now…”

“Oh…”

“Yeah… maybe I'm just a little better at not showing how distracted I am…”

Ranma grins. “Maybe… but then the question is, what do we do now?”

“I don't know… it gets worse everyday… and I even distract you on purpose…” Akane says, admitting one of her secrets aloud.

A small smile forms on Ranma's face. “I figured that… you used ta be so conservative about showing your body off… and now you're teasing me sometimes. Not like that's a bad thing…”

“It's not?”

“Naw…” Ranma takes a glance at Akane and then pulls the young woman into a hug. “I guess we'll have ta adapt to all these distractions from each other…”

Akane wraps her arms around Ranma and rests her body against his. “Yeah… but it'll be fun…”

“Yeah… that's why I like coming to visit yah here. You seem more open wit' me in your room then anywhere else…”

`I didn't realize that… but Ranma's right. I guess I feel really comfortable in this room… and being in private with him…'

“That's a good point Ranma… but…” Pulling away, Akane nods at the stack of textbooks. “We've got something else to work on. Let's get started… I want you to be ready…”

Sighing aloud, Ranma cannot help but consign himself to his fate. “Okay… but after each subject, I wanna take a break…”

Akane agrees with that idea. “That's fine…”

“And one more thing… I wanna hear somethin' about you… like how you got so good at all those sports. It certainly ummm… keeps you in shape…”

“Deal. A story for a story- we'll take turns.” Akane says before standing up. “Let me get my book and we'll get started…”

After getting all of their “issues” resolved for the moment, Akane and Ranma hit the books and begin studying. Both teens learning is two-fold from this study session… they not only learn the school material but about each other more and more…

Three subjects later, there's a knock on the door. A curious Akane walks over to the door and is surprised at who she finds standing there…

“Sorry to bother you…” The young man says with a bow.

“Mousse? This is a surprise…” Akane says while wondering inside why he was there.

“Hey, come on in here…” Ranma says after hearing that familiar voice.

Akane steps aside and let's Mousse inside. He walks over to Ranma and starts talking with him…

“I guess it's time… I just hope that my training with you will be enough…”

“Remember what I told yah earlier in the week and you'll be fine. Good luck to yah…” Ranma says before extending his hand out.

Mousse shakes Ranma's hand and then turns around and heads for the door. “Sorry to both you, Akane…”

“Don't worry about it… Ranma and I were taking a break anyway. It's time for your fight, right?”

“Yes…”

“Good luck… and let us know how it turns out.” The young Amazon nods politely before saying “Thank you”.

A few moments later, Mousse leaves the room and heads out of the Tendo home. Stealthily, he makes his way back to the Cat Café and grabs a few articles of clothing before making his way to the battle sight, a park in outskirts of Nerima.

Shampoo watches the masked figure come into sight and prepares herself for the fight. Cologne cannot help but chuckle at her great-granddaughter's nervousness.

“Something wrong, child? You're always so confident…”

The young Amazon woman blushes. “Stranger is very distracting… be hard to fight…”

Cologne gently taps her great-granddaughter on the head with her staff. “Now, now… you can't lose on purpose- this is a real fight you know…”

“Yes, Shampoo know that…” is the reply before the approach stranger comes within audio range. Taking a few deep breathes, Shampoo tries to calm herself down. Unwittingly, though… she ends up causing her opponent to be somewhat distracted, though with the mask on, she cannot see the blush on his face.

`Shampoo looks so good… but why is she breathing heavily like that? Her chest is… distracting me…' is the thought in Mousse's mind before clearing his throat. “I'm here, as promised… shall we begin?”

Shampoo bows and then the masked Mousse follows suit.

“Shampoo ready…”

Cologne cackles aloud, knowing that Shampoo still has no idea who's she fighting… or why this fight is happening in the first place. “Begin!”

Part B

Taking a battle stance, Mousse points at Shampoo. “I will win… and I'll do it without hurting you…”

“You no hurt Shampoo… and win?” a puzzled Shampoo utters while taking a glance at Cologne. “Is this true, great-grandmother?”

The Amazon leader nods her head. “Yes… you can hurt him all you like… but he has to get you to surrender without hurting you… otherwise, he loses…”

Shampoo grins. “Stranger have big challenge ahead…”

“I know… but I know how to win…”

“Hmmph. We'll see…” Shampoo says defiantly.

In what would be a blur to most observes, Shampoo and Mousse go at it. Shampoo tries kicking and punching her challenger… who ends up dodging her attacks…

“You very fast… but no one dodge Shampoo forever…”

The young woman resumes her attack and Mousse prepares to strike. He pulls out a yo-yo and shoots out after dodging a kick, tying her legs together and causing her to fall to the ground face first.

“Hey! You use trick of Mousse's….”

“Whatever it takes to win…” is the reply back from the masked stranger, who reaches into his cloak. Before he can pull out what he needs, however, Shampoo breaks the string and gets back on her feet.

`Damn… I wasn't fast enough…' Mousse thinks as he backs off and plans his next strategy. `Maybe if I lure in closer… and let her hit me a little, I can try and catch her off guard…'

On purpose, Mousse slows his responses as Shampoo goes back on the attack, being sure to give her best and not disappoint her great-grandmother. She lands several blows and Mousse feels some of his strength leave him as she lands several punches and kicks…

`Oww… I hope this is worth it…' Mousse thinks before preparing to make his move. He pretends to be wounded and limps back under the flurry of attacks until he's right in front of a nearby tree. Shampoo pulls back for another punch… and then the masked man quickly pulls away, making her hit the tree…

“OWWW!”

Pulling out some more rope, Mousse mutters under his breath: “There's no rule saying that you can't hurt yourself…”

The young Amazon strains to free her hand while Mousse takes this opportunity to ties her to the tree, bounding her legs, torso, and loose hand to the tree…

“Hi-yah! Shampoo all tied up…” the purple haired woman mutters to herself as she tries to free her stuck hand- that being her only chance of escape.

“You're mine, Shampoo…” The masked man says before moving in for the “Kill”…

A sudden movement causes Mousse to go on guard… Shampoo has freed her hand and is trying to punch him. He barely dodges the punch… but his mask is hit and falls to the ground. Shampoo's eyes become the size of saucers upon realizing who she's fighting…

“Mousse? Is that you?”

A small grin forms on the Amazon males' face. “You bet…”

Not believing her eyes, Shampoo protests. “You not blind? Impossible… Mousse no see without glasses!”

Taking out another rope, Mousse quickly ties Shampoo's free hand to the tree. “You're mine now… and I yes, I see you just fine…”

Wriggling as best she can, Shampoo desperately tries to escape. “This some kind of dream… Shampoo can't lose! Not to blind duck boy!”

“Time to pay for that… and for all the comments you've made about me over the years…” Mousse says as ominously as possible, in order to scare Shampoo even more.

Genuinely frightened, her desperate struggles increase as Mousse creeps closer. “What you do to me?”

“You'll see… it's payback time…”

Cologne wonders what the young Amazon male is up to here… `He's not going to break the rules and hurt her, is he? She has insulted him a lot in the past… but I thought he was going to try and win her fair and square…'

Sweat forms on Shampoo's face as Mousse moves to stand in front of her. She cringes and closes her eyes, preparing to get assaulted by the young man, who appears to be bent on revenge.

“Here it comes!” is the battle cry before the attack is made. Cologne closes her eyes as well, not wanting to see the results of the attack.

A most unusual and unexpected sound fills the air a moment later. Cologne opens one eye… and then the other… and is shocked. `Is he doing… what I think he's doing?'

“Attack of 1000 feathers…”

“No, no… stop!” the young Amazon woman cries out, her gut beginning to hurt from all the laughing she's doing as a result of the attack.

The attack is not lessened, not even for a moment. Mousse continues his attack, careful not to hurt her in any way. He tickles her everywhere- under her arms, her feet, her face, beneath her ears… anywhere a person could be tickled. She screams and laughs… and after another twenty seconds of “Torture”, she finally calls out for him to stop.

`She gave up… I won the challenge. Not because I was stronger or faster… but because I outsmarted her…' a very satisfied Mousse thinks as he slows his attack and eventually stops.

“You surrender?”

“Yes… Shampoo can take no more of this tickling… stomach hurt too too much…”

Curious about what she just saw, Cologne cannot help but ask: “Most clever young man… how did you come up with that attack?”

“Shampoo want to know, too…” the young woman chimes in. “How you come up with tickle attack?”

“You wouldn't believe it… but your OLD fiancée is to blame…” is the response back.

“RANMA?” Shampoo cannot believe her ears. “Ranma help Mousse?”

“He wasn't the only one… let me tell you both what happened…” Mousse says before telling the story…

(Flashback to several days ago, at the Tendo house)

“I'm… sorry. Your mother… gave me a gift…” The young Amazon man says while taking a bow.

“Ranma… what does he mean?” Akane asks, wondering what Nodoka could've given the young man.

Taking a closer look, Ranma notices something out of the ordinary. “I dunno… but wait… where's your glasses?”

“I don't need them… your mother referred me to some kind of specialist in Tokyo… and I had surgery. Now I can see!” is the happy response back. “I'm sorry for trying to beat you up before…”

“Oh, it's no problem…” Ranma says with a grin. “I guess mom's really good at patchin' things together…”

Surprised, Mousse cannot help but ask: “Really? You forgive me?”

Shrugging his shoulders, Ranma says: “It's water under the bridge…”

“Great!” Mousse says happily.

Akane looks at Ranma and cannot help but smile. `He's acting really mature here… and I guess I shouldn't judge his mom too much for helping us… she's got a real big heart…'

“Now that we're friends… I umm… have a favor to ask…”

“What's that?” a curious Ranma asks.

“I need help… beating Shampoo. We've got a fight on Sunday… and I need to beat her without hurting her…”

“That's an interestin' challenge… hmm.” Ranma takes a few moments to think about it… and soon has an answer back.

"Look Mousse... the best thing I can teach ya is to just try something- if it works great. If not, then try something else. Ya know all those times you and Ryoga have jumped me an' stuff."

"Um... yea... though..." Mousse was rather unnerved about Ranma just casually mentioning the way he'd tried to kill him in the past.

"Well, when somethin' happens I just try something else. Pops has never stuck to one trainin' technique at a time. Anything goes is all 'bout things changin', ya know."

"I think so..."

"Good, so ya see, against different people ya gotta use different stuff. Like you wouldn't fight Shampoo the same way ya fight me."

Mousse could not help but blink at that.

"So you've got to come up with somethin' new. Keep `em guessin' and the more you surprise `em, the easier it is to win."

"So you mean all this time... you've just been trying to keep everyone guessing and trying as many things as you could to win?!"

"Yea, and so far its been workin'."

Mousse felt like throwing himself against a wall several times, but instead of doing that he only smiled. "Well, then lets see how this works then!"

Quickly the two started sparing, but unlike before where Ranma had been able to predict Mousse's attacks, the not-so-blind Amazon began to randomly change tactics- sometimes in the middle of an attack. A little while later, Ranma finds himself lying on the ground for the fourth time, smiling like a kid with a new toy…

"THAT PERFECT! Now, lets see how you like this!"

Off to the side Nabiki, who had walked outside to check on the noise, and Akane watched with bemused expressions on their faces. "Boys..." Akane said with a wry grin forming.

"Will be boys," Nabiki added with a grin of her own. The pair continue to watch the two martial artists practice…

It isn't long before Ranma decides to point out some other things that he'd been meaning to show the Amazon, should they ever become friends.

"I thought you said you didn't know how to use a sword!" Mousse shouted from where he had landed on his back, a Chinese broadsword at his neck.

"Naw, I said I don't rely on them, not that I can't use 'em. Ya see, if ya get too reliant on them, then they can hurt ya just as much as they can help ya."

Mousse looked up at Ranma in amazement. "You now, strangely enough that makes sense..."

“Yeah… but that's enough playing around. Let's figure out somethin' for yah to use against Shampoo… and then maybe we can practice some more.”

“Sounds good…”

(End flashback)

“So that's what happened… very clever, Mousse. I was hoping that you'd have a creative solution to this…” is the exclamation from the elder Amazon.

“I owe Ranma's mother a debt as well… for allowing me to get this surgery. I feel like a new man!” Mousse exclaims happily.

“Mousse look different now…” Shampoo says, agreeing with that observation. “Not bad at all…”

Hearing Shampoo admit that out loud gives the young man hope. `She does think I'm attractive… just like I thought she did.'

Before he lets her go, he looks her in the eyes and says: “I give up the fight if you can honestly say that you don't like me… the choice is YOURS. I don't want to force you into something that you don't want to do… and I'm sorry about what I did before. Shampoo, I never wanted you to hate me. What do you want to do?”

She can tell that his eyes are a lot clearer then they have been before. His sincere words touch her heart and despite some initial reservations, she makes a decision.

“Shampoo… will… give Mousse a chance. Shampoo beaten fair and square…” she says, with a tinge of disappointment in that last part.

Satisfied with the answer given, Mousse quickly unties Shampoo and gently pulls her stuck hand out of the tree. He notices how red her hand is and sighs aloud.

“I'm sorry about your hand…”

“Is okay… Shampoo's fault for missing you…”

“I'm glad you two got this resolved… I have something to tell you both on the way home…” Cologne says while motioning towards the street.

Both Amazons are curious about that and follows the matriarch back to the Cat Café. What they hear on the way is shocking, to say the least…

“No… you can't be serious…” Mousse says to Cologne after they enter the café.

“Yes… I didn't want to say anything until the fight was finished. I'd rather you two try and get along without me having to force it… given that decree from the tribal council.”

“We never go back now…” Shampoo says softly while taking a seat at one of the tables. “No wonder you joke about Japanese men with Shampoo…”

“Yes… I was trying to get you to think about someone else… besides Ranma…” Cologne acknowledges. “I think I've succeeded…”

Mousse, who's on his way to the kitchen, blushes after hearing that. He takes a cloth and then heads into the freezer to grab some ice cubes. After making a quick ice pack, he returns to the dining room and places the makeshift ice pack on Shampoo's injured hand.

Liking what she's seeing in Mousse since the end of the fight, Shampoo cannot help but give him a “Thank you…” while adjusting the ice pack.

“Normally I'd be ready to perform a marriage ceremony right now… since Mousse won this battle. I'll be waiting for both of you to tell me when… I don't want to rush young love…”

Both of the young Amazons blush while Cologne uses her staff like a pogo stick and hops into the kitchen. “I'll take care of preparing the café for business and running it… for today. You two head upstairs and talk things out…”

Shampoo and Mousse exchange glances and then head upstairs. The two pair ways momentarily as Mousse changes out of the outfit he had been wearing and puts on a T-shirt and shorts, wanting to show off his body a little. He knocks on Shampoo's door and hears a call of “come in”…

“Okay…” he says while opening the door. He steps into the room and closes the door behind him. Shampoo, who's sitting on her bed, beckons him closer.

“Sit down next to Shampoo…”

Nervously, the young Amazon complies. “Sure…”

Shampoo watches as he walks over to her and sits down. She cannot help but be affected by the sight of his muscles once again… and how good he looks without his glasses.

Trying to break the ice and noticing Shampoo's silence, Mousse gently touches her uninjured hand. “You're blushing…”

“Yes… Shampoo look at Mousse in new way today.”

“Same here… I get to see you with my own two eyes. I had to keep the glasses on when I was around you until today… to keep my secret safe.”

Looking into his eyes, Shampoo asks: “You like how Shampoo look?”

Instead of answering that right away, Mousse takes a moment to look at her from her feet on up. `Hmm… she's got really nice long legs… she looks great in this traditional Chinese outfit. Red is such a good color for her…'

Noticing that his eyes have stopped at her waist, the young woman cannot help but tease him a little. “Shampoo have nice hips, no?”

Wanting to be open as possible, Mousse gulps and then answers the question. “Yeah, umm… and your umm… behind is nice, too…”

The young woman, wanting to hear more, moves over a little and then looks up at her Amazon counterpart. “What about the rest of Shampoo's body? Is sexy, no?”

Slowly, the young man's eyes look down… and come across Shampoo's very curvy upper body. Being able to see her in all of her glory is a mixed blessing for Mousse… he weakly nods his head and then passes out- all of this stimulation being too much for him to handle at once.

Shampoo gently lowers the young man onto her bed. “Oh no… Mousse pass out. Maybe he still not used to seeing Shampoo with his own eyes yet…”

Disappointed that she didn't get to talk with him more and resolve certain issues that were on her mind, Shampoo starts thinking about a new plan of action…

About an hour later, Mousse slowly regains consciousness. His eyes open and he moves his head, looking to the left first. `I'm still in Shampoo's room…' When he turns his head to the right, however, he sees Shampoo staring at him with a large smile on her face.

“About time Mousse wake up…”

“Yeah, umm…” A blush forms on the young man's face. “Sorry…”

“Is okay… it give Shampoo time to think about situation.” Pausing for a moment to collect her thoughts, the purple-haired woman decides to ask some important questions before fully committing herself to this relationship.

“You promise to treat Shampoo good… like when you take care of hand?”

“Of course…”

“Amazon law says wife not supposed to fall in love… and other things… but that no matter now…”

Mousse nervously chuckles. “True, true… but I wonder what's going to happen to us now? Do we start a new tribe?”

“Not a half bad idea…” a giggling Shampoo says back. “Shampoo no want to be alone… in foreign country…”

“Same here… but I have something to ask you. If you agree to this… will you stop calling me names? I never did like `duck boy'…”

A soft sigh escapes Shampoo's lips. “Shampoo sorry for insulting Mousse before… will do that no more…”

Seeing the sincerity in her expression and in her words, Mousse lets the past be the past and tries to focus on the here and now.

“Okay…” he says, accepting the apology. “What do you want to do, Shampoo?”

Saying nothing, the young woman decides to answer his question by action instead. She gets on all fours and stands over Mousse… which causes the blanket to slip off of both of them, exposing what she's wearing… or lack thereof.

Trying not to freak out at the sight of the beautiful woman on top of him, he exclaims “Shampoo!” before closing his eyes. `She's only wearing pink panties… and a pink lace bra… I guess that's a yes…'

“Shampoo say `yes' to Mousse…”

“Umm… yeah…” the now red-faced Mousse says while trying to keep his eyes on her face.

Noticing that he's not looking at her chest or lower, Shampoo cannot help but say: “Is okay to look… Shampoo wearing sexy clothes just for Mousse…”

“I umm… noticed…” he says, slowly tilting his head down. Shampoo grins as he takes in the sight of her beautiful body… while not fainting. “You're… gorgeous!”

Flattered, Shampoo happily nods her head. “Thank you…”

Another observation comes to mind, and despite it being a somewhat perverted one, he says it anyways: “I didn't realize… that you got so… big…”

“Shampoo body mature a lot since arriving in Japan. Have woman's figure now…” she says proudly. “Am waiting for Mousse to do final move to make Shampoo his wife…”

“Now?” is the reply from Mousse, wondering why she's rushing him. `She's not trying to seduce me, is she?'

“Shampoo want to snuggle with new airen and get used to this…” she says, revealing why she wants him to make a move now.

Several seconds pass before Mousse submits himself to his fate. His hands slowly move up onto his new wife's arms… and up to her shoulders. Shampoo closes her eyes as his hands gently move down onto her chest, where a slight squeeze confirms the marriage. The last step is done… and now the two are husband and wife, in Amazon law.

“Airen!”

Mousse feels the urge to cry, having dreamed of hearing her say those words to him so long. `It's not a dream… this woman is my wife- willingly.'

The woman above him is also very happy… even though the reality is different from the dreams that she's had since arriving in Japan- the end result is the same. `Shampoo married to husband who care for her… best Shampoo can do in circumstances…'

Mousse moves his hands to her side and pulls her down onto his chest, allowing her to relax and snuggle against him. He reaches for the blanket and pulls it over both of them…

“Shampoo tired from fight…”

“Me too… you really wore me out. I had to really work to beat you…” Mousse admits. “But I'd expect no less from you…”

In response to that, his new wife cannot help blush. She sighs softly and then falls asleep, feeling comfortable in her new position. Mousse gently rubs her back and tries to relax, despite the distraction of the body warmth of his new wife. When he does fall asleep, his mind is only one thing… her.

Downstairs, Cologne waits on tables and in between making orders and serving customers, works on a letter which is later copied four more times. `I think that these should go out to these five… especially to her, for her help with Mousse…'

The five invites are dropped off by Cologne personally to the five female recipients… each of whom has a different reaction. In all five cases, however, curiosity compels them to make plans to stop by the Cat Café tomorrow night…

To be continued in Chapter 13: Nerima in Transition

Thanks for reading… this chapter was done without any prereading, so forgive me if there's any errors that I may have missed. Feedback and comments are always appreciated, as well as favs on the DA site. My next project is Sailor Moon chapter 3 and NGE chapter 40, so it may be a while before I write more on this.