By Laura . Visit her webpage: Equal Romance and don't forget to tell her what you thought of her story.
The Nekohanten was quiet, all of the customers gone, all the cleaning done for the night. Shampoo sighed as she looked out of her bedroom window. The night was alive with stars, the lights of the city dimmed by their brilliance.
She thought briefly about China. Out there, in their village, there were no city lights. There was no booming metropolis off in the distance to fill the sky with residual light. There was only the stars and the moon.
She missed that sometimes. As much as she enjoyed Nerima and the friends - well, rivals - that she had here, there was something special about the Amazon village. Although she was smart enough to realize that a lot of the longing she was feeling was directly related to the fact that she couldn't go home again.
Not unless she married Ranma.
And, she admitted to herself, that wasn't likely to happen. Not only had he finally admitted his feelings to Akane, but she was beginning to see the merits of a relationship with Mousse. After all, wasn't the Amazon code that the male be subservient to the female?
She sighed again. Life in the village had been easy. No one was as good a fighter as she was. No one could challenge her. Maybe it had been too easy. Here, she was constantly challenged by martial artists who were just as good as her, and those who did things differently and surprised her. Here, they fought with passion and anger. They didn't just fight because they had been raised that way. They fought because they were martial artists.
She moved away from the window, pushing one of her violet ponytails over her shoulder. She heard a noise at the door and turned to face her great grandmother.
"Hello, great-grandmother."
"I understand things did not go as you hoped at the party?" Cologne looked at the girl with a mixture of pride, affection and disappointment. If Shampoo was determined to follow where her heart was leading her, then she, by association, would never be allowed to return to the Amazon village. And, while she had lived a fulfilling life and had no intentions of dying any time soon, the thought of going home was a treasured one.
"If you mean Ranma, then no." She played with the bottom of her shirt. "I don't love him, great-grandmother and he does not love me. I don't think I can keep up the charade of chasing after him when my heart does not belong to him."
"Who does your heart belong to?"
Violet eyes met her dark ones, "You know. You've known longer than I." Tears stained her cheeks. "I'm sorry. I know that this is a punishment for you, a failure."
"How can my great-granddaughter's happiness be a failure?" She hopped her stick over to the bed and sat down next to the young girl. "I know that it is not our way to change our minds. But…" She took a deep breath, "I also know how difficult it can be to live with a mistake. I want you to have happiness, Shampoo. If that means that I stay away from ho…the village, then so be it. Business is good here. It is not a bad life."
"But…"
"It is not a decision we have to make tonight. Sleep on your thoughts." Cologne left the room, her stick making no noise at all. Shampoo lay back on her bed and closed her eyes. She would think more about it tomorrow. Tomorrow was soon enough.
*****
Silently, like the trained warriors they were, the eight women slipped into the house. One entered Mousse's room and doused him with cold water, placing him in a cage as soon as the transformation was complete.
Two others did the same to Shampoo, silencing her cries with a blanket.
Four more entered Cologne's room cautiously. She was a tribal elder and not to be taken lightly. She opened one eye as they approached. "What are you doing here?"
The last member of the group entered her room and snapped on the light. A wizened older woman, the same size and shape as herself stood there. "Hello, Cologne."
She nodded to the other councilwoman. "I would welcome you to my home, but I see we are past that."
"You're great-granddaughter has failed in her duty. She has failed to show honor to our rules, our laws. You know what this means?"
Cologne sighed as her greatest fears were realized. "We return home."
"To stand trial."
*****
Shampoo and Mousse, both in their cursed forms, rode in cages carried by members of their tribe. Cologne walked along with them, her mind struggling to come up with some way they could avert what was bound to happen. Shampoo would stand trial, accused of letting Ranma get away with defying their laws. Her arguments would determine whether they were banished forever, reprimanded or welcomed back into the fold.
Casting a quick glance at Shampoo, she sighed. The girl had already received a reprimand when Cologne had traveled to Japan with her. The outlook was not in their favor.
*****
They arrived at dawn several days later. The village was just waking; the morning sounds musical to all of them who had been away so long.
Handing Mousse's cage to one of the tribe's men, his carrier parted from the group to go to her home. Cologne was led to the elder's hut and Shampoo carried to another. The warriors left her alone and caged, until the sounds of her little "sisters" filled the air.
"Big sister Shampoo!" Lin-lin and Ran-ran opened the cage and carried the small cat to a tub of warm water.
Shampoo felt the change overtake her as she sank into the warm, fragrant water.
"You is okay, big sister Shampoo?"
She nodded.
"You bathe. We get you clothes."
The twins ran out and Shampoo lay back. She knew she was home for a very specific reason, but she couldn't help but enjoy this moment. Being a cat for almost a week was not a pleasant experience.
The twins returned, laying out a set of traditional warrior's garments. The same outfit she'd worn when Ranma - in girl form - had defeated her.
Apparently, the trial was to begin immediately. Very well. She climbed from the water and dried herself off. Putting on the chosen attire, she held out her hands to the two admiring girls.
"Let's go. Let the trial begin."
*****
"You understand your role in this, Cologne?"
"I do."
"And you - male? What is your name?"
"Mousse." His eyes cast downward, he quickly returned to the long ago habits.
"You will play your part as instructed?"
He wanted to shout no and run. Find Shampoo and leave with her, never to return. But he knew she would not forgive him. And he knew that, as traumatizing as it might be, this trial was quite possibly the only way he'd ever know how the woman he loved truly felt about him. "I will."
"The trial begins in a few moments. Take your positions." The elder looked down at both of them, her eyes tired from fighting too many battles. Hers was a position of honor and duty. And it was one she often dreaded with her very soul.
*****
Shampoo stood on the long log staring out at her many tribal sisters. The males of the tribe were at the back, heads bent. They were not to see the shame of the sister, but since Mousse was, in effect, on trial as well, they were allowed to stand in support.
"Shampoo of the Amazon tribe. You stand accused. You have betrayed our village. You suffered a loss to an outside female and have yet to bring about her death. You suffered a loss at the hands of an outside male and have yet to marry him and bring him to the tribe and have many strong children. Due to the extenuating circumstances derived from Ranma Saotome's fall into the Jusenkyo Springs, we have given you leniency in the first account. However, it has come to the attention of the tribal elders that you have given up your claim to Ranma Saotome and have chosen another man for your mate."
A thousand whispers swept through the crowd, and all eyes turned to Mousse. He stood tall next to Cologne; his eyes focused on Shampoo. She faced her accusers, the entire group of tribal elders, minus her great-grandmother.
The eldest walked up to the girl. "Shampoo, how do you plead?"
She smiled. "I plead guilty."
The whispers started again, only to be silenced by the elder's raised hand. "Do you wish to defend your position? Or do you simply wish to accept judgement?"
"Will my defense change the council's judgement?"
"It is doubtful, but hope springs eternal."
"Then I shall say my piece."
*****
"When I fought Ranma Saotome for the first time, I had no idea of the impact of the Jusenkyo Springs on his life. He is torn between his dominant male side and his unwanted female side. That he…she won in our battle outraged me, as it would any true Amazon. But as I chased him or her, whatever, to the ends of China and beyond, I realized something that I had never thought to take into account."
She enjoyed the hushed stillness; glad she had the entire travel time to prepare. "Ranma Saotome is the world's finest martial artist. He is skilled yet emotional. He is honest yet ambitious. He is determined yet easily misled. He is a wonder fighter. A true warrior who would indeed benefit our tribe."
She thought silently for a moment, thinking to many of the battles she, Ranma and all the others had fought side by side. "He would go to the ends of the earth for the woman he loved or for honor. He has, several times for both. But for anyone else, while he would show amazing fortitude and friendship, he would not waver. His loves are pure, even though he doesn't realize them."
She looked over at her great-grandmother, hoping that even if her words could not save her, they would allow the old woman to die among her beloved sisters.
"I could kidnap him, drug him, chain him, curse him…again. But every spell I've tried, every potion I've made, every attempt to bring him to me against his will has resulted in disaster. Perhaps the universe was trying to tell me something." She allowed her gaze to travel out over the crowd, knowing that they hung on every word. "I could not win his love. Yet he willingly gave his friendship."
"I have learned that friendship serves a higher purpose than a subservient male. A friend, male or female, will stand beside you during the battle. A friend will give you their strength and support. A friend, while not willing to sire your children, will be everything to you whenever you need them to be." She smiled through her tears. "Ranma Saotome is my friend."
Mousse felt his heart swell. His pride in his beloved had never been stronger, his love never brighter. He never realized how much Shampoo saw. He had fallen into the same trap all the others had; assuming her outward persona was her true one.
"I could not kill girl-type Ranma. I admit that. I cannot marry boy-type Ranma. I admit that as well. He has a woman that he loves with all his heart. She too is my friend. If the marriage of Ranma Saotome and myself was solely to strengthen the tribe through warriors, then I have achieved that even without the ceremony. I not only have Ranma and Akane to fight by my side, but a legion of other warriors who would come if they ever suspected I was in true danger. I achieved the goal you set for me. Perhaps not through your methods, but through good ones, right ones. "
Cologne hid her smile of satisfaction. Her great-granddaughter was acquitting herself quite well. She would not succeed, but she would not be a failure. She was indeed a daughter of the Amazons.
"Our ways are not the ways of others. I have to learn that. I have also come to learn that if we are to survive and grow, we cannot simply abide by our rules. The rules of the outsiders, when adapted correctly, can and do work to our advantage. Ranma and Ryouga, for example, have adapted our techniques and improved them. To sit here, in this valley, pretending the world hasn't gone on, is foolhardy."
She licked her lips, moistening them. The crowd was still quiet and at this point, she wasn't sure how to read the silence.
"I am not here a judge. Yet you ask to judge me by our laws in a situation where our laws do not apply. The laws of Japan do not regard us as legitimate. The laws of the martial artists dictate that the winner set the rules. I was never the winner in situation with Ranma. The laws of the heart tell us we cannot decide who we love. Grandmother fell for a perverted thief, yet we forgive her transgressions. I have fallen for an Amazon male. One who has proven himself worthy. One who has saved my life and treasured it. One who has stood up for me and to me. One who nearly died at my own hands to show me the error of my ways. I cannot say it is right. It simply is."
She bowed her head, indicating to the council that she was finished. The elder woman came forward, signaling to Cologne. The old woman came forward. "Do you have anything to add, Cologne?"
"I have served this tribe all my life. And I love everyone here as family. This is my true great-granddaughter. And I shall stand by her proudly. Her punishment, I shall take as mine."
"Very well. Mousse?"
Mousse stepped to join them; his head held high, glasses firmly on his nose. "I love her with all that I am. Her punishment, I shall take as mine."
"Shampoo."
"My punishment, I shall take."
"Very well. Return to your quarters. You will summoned when the council has decided your fate."
"Wait!"
Everyone turned at the sound. Standing at the back of the crowd was a young man in a tuxedo and a young woman in a filthy evening dress. Both looked decidedly worse for wear. Cologne allowed herself to smile. "Hello son-in-law," she whispered.
"Who are you?"
"I am Ranma Saotome, heir to the school of Anything-Goes martial arts. You stand here, accusing Shampoo of crimes she committed because of me. Well, I say you let me add my two cents worth."
The elders conferred. "Fine. You may speak."
"I never claimed to be smart. But I know loyalty. And you all seem to hold that in pretty high regard. Well, Shampoo is loyal. She fought a long time to try and get me to bend to your rules. She tried every trick in the book and I imagine she added a few new ones of her own. Instead of punishing her, you should be rewarding her for what she's tried to do. I mean, hell, I don't want to marry her, but when Akane and I saw you carrying them off, we followed you across China to stop whatever it was you were trying to do. Not only is she loyal to you, but she inspires that loyalty in others. That's what you look for in a leader." Ranma took a deep breath and squeezed Akane's hand. "I gave up a seriously promising evening to tell all of you that, so you'd better appreciate it."
Mousse smirked. He had apparently been both wrong and right about Saotome. It was nice to know that.
Cologne gave herself a mental pat on the back. Things, indeed, had a habit of working out the way she planned.
Shampoo stood even taller. Ranma had proven her speech truthful, even though he had, no doubt, not understood a single word of the Chinese. She was proud. She had done the right thing for the first time in a long time.
"We will deliberate. Perhaps you and your…"
"Fiancée."
"Fiancée would like to clean up?"
Akane's sigh was heard throughout the camp. "That would be wonderful."
Even the council could not help but laugh.
*****
Hours later, the twin girls came for Akane, Shampoo and Cologne. The three women cast furtive glances at one another. The twins were subdued, not a good sign.
Halfway to the judging, Ranma and Mousse joined them. The group walked silently, feeling as though they were headed into battle. As they reached the gathered crowd, a pathway opened up for them and they all moved toward the log. When they reached the council gathered there, Shampoo left the group. "Are you ready for your judgement, Shampoo."
"I am."
"Cologne?"
"I am."
"Mousse?"
"I am."
"Ranma?"
"I am."
"Akane?"
"I am."
"We have deliberated. You have flagrantly flaunted our laws. You have disobeyed the basest of our tenants. You have disgraced us. You have chosen what you wanted above what is best for the tribe." Anger seemed to radiate off the elder woman as she spoke, then suddenly it was gone. "You have shown us new ways. You have brought us new allies. You have given us new strength."
Cologne squeezed her staff, hope still flickering in her heart.
"You shall return to Japan. You shall live there now, as our extended family. All of you. By this, and in bringing Akane, Ranma has become a husband of the tribe. Your mission has been accomplished. You are welcome here. Although…" She smiled as she paused. "I would, perhaps, give us time."
Shampoo bowed her respect and the others followed suit. When the elder woman tapped her on the shoulder she rose. "I accept my punishment. I thank you."
"We thank you Shampoo. And you should thank your friends."
*****
The lights of Nerima shone in the distance as the small party neared home. Cologne sighed in relief. "I'm glad to be home."
"Home great-grandmother?"
"Yes, Shampoo. I think I like this as home now." She hopped ahead of them, enjoying the privacy of her own thoughts.
Shampoo leaned on Mousse's shoulder. "Thank you."
"For what?"
"Showing me where honor lies."
He looked at her, his confusion plain. "I don't understand."
"Honor is where home is. And home is where your heart is." She leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on his lips. "It's nice to find them all at last."
*****
Ranma supported Akane as he pushed open the door of the Tendo home. It was late and dark and they were both exhausted. He locked the door behind them and shook her shoulders to bring her fully awake. "Hey, Akane?"
"Mmmm, hi Ranma."
"I'm going to put you to bed."
"I'm too tired for that right now."
"Akane."
She shook her head, her blush already forming. "Sorry. Half asleep."
He wrapped his arm around her waist and headed up the stairs. Reaching her door, he opened it and led her inside. He lay her back on her covers, covering her with a spare blanket. He kissed her forehead, his heart shining in his eyes. "Soon, though. I promise."