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             LEMON MASTER -- PURE HENTAI REFRESHMENT, GUARENTIEED

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            Lemon Fanfiction - Contains Adult situations        
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"..." - Talking                        "(...)" - Whispering/Thinking
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Note: All characters and names here, except those I create, are 
      property of their respective owners, If there is a problem, 
      it's Bill Gates' fault, so sue him instead.

 
 RANMA 1/2 __________________________________________________________
                                         The Power of Dreams - Part 3


To understand this lemon, read previous parts of "The Power of Dreams"
Original Concept: Ryan L. Spradling
Special Thanks: Koala Killer, for some quality text submittions and 
advice.

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                   THE POWER OF DREAMS - PART 3


It was morning in the town of Nerima. Every household and building
there, was still held by the grip of slumber. All that is, except
for the Cat Cafe. Shampoo had been up since dawn, sweeping the floor like
there was no tomorrow, merrily humming a tune to herself as she worked.
Cologne arrived just in time to see her granddaughter dancing around the
room with the broom, like it was a dance partner in her own little world.
Cologne couldn't help but smile at this scene of pure happiness, and
felt a little guilty as she interrupted her.

"Good morning Shampoo." Shampoo's dance ended softly, as she turned to 
greet her grandmother with a warm smile and very soft tone of voice.
"Nihao grandmother....it beautiful morning, yes?" Cologne was a little
amused by Shampoo's unusually sedated mood, and knew the reason for it
as she quizzed her with a slightly playful tone of voice.
"Well Shampoo, your very....happy this morning." With a long, reflective
sigh, the young Amazon hugged her wooden dance partner as she explained
herself. "Shampoo feel.....so at peace, never been happier."

As a broad smile enveloped her face, she watched her grandmother take a 
seat at one of the tables. Cologne centred herself on the chair before 
she continued to quiz her young legacy and with a knowing voice, she asked:
"So Shampoo....are you going to tell me what happened over at Ukyo's
place?" The purpled haired girl excitedly hopped up and down as she
prepared to answer. She had looked forward to telling her so much.
Unfortunately, she was too excited to speak. Only giggling noises managed
to escape her mouth whenever she opened it. Bemused by this, Cologne
decided to speak for her.

"Let me guess...you actually managed to win the girls over?"
Shampoo's tongue became untied as she blurted out a response.
"Shampoo declare love! Shampoo give Kiss of Death and now...."
She could barely continue as the giggles returned to her voice.
".....Hee! Hee! Girls love Shampoo! Shampoo even make love to them!"
Not surprised by her response, Cologne looked upon Shampoo with some
pride. "Oh, well done Shampoo. I knew you could do it. So...now you
know the joy of having a lover?" 

Again, her granddaughter was nearly giggling too much to answer, but
she somehow managed to blurt out a response. "Hee! Hee! Hee! Shampoo
knows the joy! Shampoo has two beautiful airens, and.....and...."
She started to get choked up with tears of joy as thoughts of her 
girlfriends filled her mind. "...and....they love Shampoo....
Shampoo never.....never so happy." Cologne was a bit moved by
Shampoo's tears, her granddaughter's happiness was the most important 
thing on her mind. 

The matriarch felt guilty about braking another scene of pure joy,
but what she was about to say, had to be said.
"Well....now that the easy part is out of the way. We should start the
next step Shampoo..." Her tone of voice suggesting that the worst was
yet to come. The young Amazon's grandmother had surprised her, and those
tears of joy ceased. Suspicious about what had been said to her, Shampoo
asked Cologne to explain herself.

"You haven't finished with the girls yet..." She said with her all-knowing
tone of voice. "...there's something all three of you must learn before
you continue." With a confused and almost upset voice, Shampoo responded.
"But....but....what? Shampoo love girls. Shampoo.....ohh.....do 
everything right, yes? What left to learn?" "It's better that you all 
learn at once. So...I'd like you to get them over here, so I can tell you
how you should continue........"

--------------------------

A few phone calls later... 
Akane and Ukyo walked towards the Cat Cafe, confused by what Shampoo
had told them. "What the hell was she going on about Ukyo?" Spouted
Akane with a touch of frustration. "I don't know sugar, it's hard
to understand her Japanese when she's giggling so much!" Said the
cook, a little amused by her telephone conversation with her almost
bi-lingual Chinese girlfriend.

"Maybe we should teach her how to speak properly?" Ukyo stopped Akane
in her tracks, surprised by what she had suggested. "Ohh...no Akane!
We can't do that! The way she talks is so cute! We can't change it."
Akane decided to take a softer position, and tone of voice.
"Well...we could teach her a few new words. We don't have to play with
her grammar." Happy with this response Ukyo continued towards the cafe.
"Yea...that would be alright. She could use some new words."

They entered the cafe cautiously, it was always bad news for them when
they came here before, but now...they were sort of Shampoo's 
girlfriends, and really didn't know what to expect. Shampoo was cleaning
one of the tables when she noticed the girls enter. Her eyes lit up like
beckons when she jumped away from the table and darted towards the girls
in the blink of an eye, hugging them tightly when she reached them.
"Yay! Nihao Ukyo! Nihao Akane! Airens come to cafe! Shampoo so happy to 
see!" Said the bubbly young Amazon seconds before kissing both of them 
on the cheek.

They were a little phased by the speed of what Shampoo did to them,
and remained that way as she pulled them both into the cafe, gently
grasping a hand each. She sat them down at a table while they snapped out 
of it. "Looks like Shampoo's welcome beats yours Ukyo." Remarked the 
Tendo girl jokingly. "Well...at least my heart was in the right place 
for your welcome sugar." Replied Ukyo, still kind of phased by Shampoo's 
hug. The girls weren't used to her affections yet, years of suspicion
and hatred for the Amazon girl had only just been replaced with love
for her. Needless to say, the girls were confused by their feelings
right now.

"What will girls have? Shampoo got raman noodles on. They special new
recipe, Shampoo call them Ranma Noodles! Hee! Hee! Hee!" For the
sake of kindness, and the fact that they loved her, the girls chuckled 
at the Chinese girl's, mediocre play on words. They knew she must have
put a lot of effort into it, given her poor grasp of the language.
"Emm...sure, sounds good sugar." Said Ukyo nervously, trying her best
not to offend Shampoo. 

As sure as the tide of time itself, Akane's patience wore very quickly, 
as she really wanted to ask Shampoo a very obvious question. 
"Shampoo, why did you bring us here? You said it was important!" 
"It is. Shampoo grandmother has something to say
about.....Shampoo and Airens." Said the Chinese cook as she prepared
two portions of raman noodles. "About us? About our....relationship?"
Asked Ukyo as she carefully read the meaning of Shampoo's words.
"Very good Ukyo, I see you can read my granddaughter well now."
Said the old woman's voice from a backroom. Soon the Matriarch emerged
to greet her new granddaughters.

"Shampoo, go sit with your airens, you need to hear this with them."
Looking at her grandmother curiously, Shampoo sat down beside her 
girlfriends, before giving them their food. "Ok girls. Now...Am I
right in assuming that all three of you have engaged yourselves to
each other?" Asked Cologne, as if she knew the answer already.
"Well....yea, we are. We're in love now, and why would that be any of 
your business?" Stated the Tendo girl, with a taste of hostility in her
voice. "Well, Shampoo is my great granddaughter after all, and so are you 
two now!" Both Ukyo and Akane looked at the matriarch with eyes of
terror when it sank in. According to Amazon law, the girls were now
Cologne's great granddaughters too!

Cologne continued. "Shampoo's happiness is very important to me, so I've
been coaching her in the lesbian ways of our people, in order to win your
love." This confused Ukyo. "Wait, wait, wait. You HELPED Shampoo win
us over? I thought you were here to get her a husband. Namely, Ranchan!"
With a cunning smile on her face Cologne replied. "Shampoo is a very
passionate young Amazon. Because of that, I knew she may love girls
as well as boys..." Shampoo blushed when she was mentioned. "...so when
I found out about Ranma, and where he was, I brought some instructional
scrolls in the ways of our lesbian tribe members, for Shampoo. This
way, if she fell for any girls here, she could marry them, and then...
Ranma will want to be with Shampoo even more."

Akane began to scratch her head with confusion. "Emm....I don't get it."
"You don't?" Asked Cologne, with equal confusion. Fortunately, Ukyo 
understood. "Wait sugar. I get it. What she's saying is, Ranchan would
go to Shampoo because she would have a few girls more with her, and 
then he would have them too. The more the merrier. That's the idea."
"Ohh...I get it now." "Shampoo don't! Now Shampoo confused!"
Cologne sank her head into her hands in disbelief. "Ohh Shampoo. Listen,
my reasons aren't that important now. I still have something more 
important to say."

The trio listen to Cologne with curious interest. "Ok.....You girls
have just entered into a wonderful union we Amazon call, a Trinity of Love.
You will never know greater love, than what you will share with each other.
It should be an experience like no other...." The girls were beginning to
like what they were hearing. "....But.....A Trinity is very different to 
a couple. There will be problems, and you will need to learn how to deal 
with them." They weren't impressed by this. Ukyo spoke up.
"Problems? But we're not just lovers, we're also great friends now. I'm 
sure we can sort out any problems we have." 

"Don't be so sure of that Ukyo. Sharing each other can be very difficult,
you need to get used to your new relationship, before you go any further.
That's why I propose we go on a training trip, into the mountains. There
you will train together, and learn to live with each other."
Shampoo was very pleased by this, and was rubbing her hands with glee 
with the prospect of being alone with the girls in the mountains.
"Hee! Hee! Hee! Shampoo learn new things on trip?" 

Cologne smiled at her granddaughter, she knew all too well what she was
thinking. "We'll see Shampoo. But that isn't the point of this trip.
It's just a chance for you to be alone together. Of coarse I'll be there
to help you along." Akane and Ukyo looked at each other nervously,
they weren't sure what to make of this. Shampoo on the other hand,
couldn't be happier. The matriarch continued. "Now, I propose that we
go on this trip...on...Monday, and spend five or six days there. Would
you girls be happy with that?" Shampoo leapt from the table.
"YES! YES! YES! That perfect! Shampoo love that!!!"

Cologne looked at Ukyo for a response. "Emm...sure, it should be fun.
I can always get Konatsu to look after Ucchan's for the week."
Then she looked at Akane who wasn't as quick to reply for some reason.
"Well....emm....I.....Ohh, OK. I'll go. Spending a week alone with my
girlfriends does sound good." "Some training wouldn't do you any harm
either, sugar." Said Ukyo cheerfully as she nudged the Tendo girl.

"Then it's agreed. I'll see you girls here, first thing Monday morning."

----------

Needless to say, Akane wasn't pleased to have her weaknesses pointed out
by anyone. Not even her girlfriend. But she got over it. The idea of
being alone with her lovers in the forest, appealed to her.
It was one her favourite fantasies, since she started to think this way,
to be alone, with a pair beautiful girls, deep in the mountains.
She spent the rest of the weekend preparing for it. 

--------------
Monday Morning.
--------------

Akane was frantically running around the dojo, getting the last pieces
of her gear together. Foolishly, she had left everything important until
the last second, and had only a few minutes to get to the Cat Cafe.
She was running towards her room with a pile of stuff in her arms when 
she came across Kasumi, heading towards Ranma's room with some medicine. 
"Kasumi! Have you seen my sleeping bag?!" Asked Akane frantically. Kasumi 
was amused by this. "Hee! Hee! Akane. Calm down, you'll give yourself a 
heart attack. Your sleeping bag is where you left it, in your room!" 
"Thank you Kasumi!!" Yelled Akane as she continued running towards her room.

Kasumi softly entered Ranma's room, trying her best not to make a noise.
It was dark inside, Kasumi didn't open the blinds, not wanting Ranma to
wake. But it was all for nothing. Ranma's eyes began to ease open as
Kasumi knelt down beside him, to give him his medicine. She didn't
know he was awake until he spoke. "(Kasumi?)" She was surprised to hear
Ranma's voice. "Huh? Oh my! Ranma...Your finally awake." "H..how long 
have I been here?" "Oh, about a week. You had some serious injuries."
Ranma wasn't impressed by this revelation. "A WEEK?! I've got to get up."
Ranma attempts to sit himself up. "Oh no you don't." Kasumi easily pushed
him back down with her hand.

"You still need bedrest." Ranma was disturbed by how easily Kasumi could
hold him down. "Wh...what's wrong with me? Why am I so weak?"
"Well...while you were recovering you caught a cold, the flu, and a few
other things. And right now...." Kasumi puts her hand on Ranma's brow.
"...you've got a fever. You are in no state to do anything, for at least
another week." Ranma laid back, and looked at Kasumi's smiling face with
disbelief. Another week, awake, stuck in bed, and weaker that a little
girl. This was hell for Ranma. All he could do was lament as he let out 
a beleaguered sigh. "All because I didn't kiss her..."

Apart from her reading, Kasumi was never well versed in the ways of
romance, she was always too busy to look after her own love life.
But now, she decided to have a go in helping out with love lives
of others instead. "You know Ranma..." Muttered the eldest Tendo daughter.
"Akane....really does care about you." Ranma looked at her, surprised
at what she was saying. "She feels really bad about what she did to you...
she regrets it so much." "Really? Akane regrets beating me up?" 
"I really shouldn't be saying this...but....oh my....don't say this to
her, but I've heard her crying over it." If he wasn't surprised before,
he sure was now. "That doesn't sound like Akane. She would throw a
tantrum, damage something, but...crying over me?" "Well...what you 
don't know is..."

She was cut short by the youngest Tendo passing by Ranma's open bedroom
door. In the split second to took for Akane to look at Ranma, she suddenly
realised that he was finally awake. Her eyes lit up with joy. "RANMA!!"
She dropped all the gear she was carrying, darted into the room and 
with one powerful act of emotion, she pushed her way past Kasumi and brought
her head as close to Ranma's as she could get it. She was beginning to cry
tears of joy onto Ranma's face as she spoke. "Ranma, I'm so sorry, I didn't
mean to do this to you." "Akane..." Ranma couldn't believe the way his
fiancee was behaving, but now he knew, Akane really did feel sorry for
what she had done to him. "...it's ok Akane, I....I forgive you."

It was beyond Akane's wildest dreams, Ranma had forgiven her, and she 
couldn't have been happier. It was at that moment, when she lost control
and her instincts kicked in. Without any warning or sign of what she
was about to do, Akane lowered her head towards Ranma, and after closing
her eyes, she planted her lips onto his, to give him an innocent, if
long lasting kiss. Surprised, is not good enough a word to describe how
Ranma was feeling right now. Kasumi was an amused spectator to all this.
She had always wanted to see them settle their differences and make up
and this was a heart-warming view for her.

Akane let go of his face, only to realise what she had just done to him.
Her face went bright red when she noticed her older sister looking at her
with her usual cheerful expression. "Oh....Kasumi, I....."
Too embarrassed to speak anymore, Akane promptly stood up, left the room 
and after a taking a final smiling glance at her beloved fiancee, gathered 
her gear together, and left. Kasumi returned her gaze to Ranma, trying
her best to contain her joy of seeing the pair finally kiss.
Ranma, however, was stuck in some kind of trance, induced by Akane's kiss, 
and couldn't say much as Kasumi talked to him.

"Wow....why did she do that?" Thought Ranma out-load as he tried to piece
this together in his mind. "Oh Ranma! And I thought *I* knew nothing about 
romance! Ranma....she loves you!"

-------------------------

With her heavy load of camping stuff, Akane somehow managed to get to 
the Cat Cafe and the rest of her party on time. They had hired a minibus 
to take them into the heart of mountains, and away from civilisation. 
Akane spent most of the journey looking out the window, seeing the 
beautiful sights of the mountains, oblivious to what was happening in the
minibus. Ukyo was sitting next to Akane, and assuming that her beloved cook 
was still sitting close to her, she whispered as she gazed at the sights.
"(Oh Ukyo, it's so beautiful out here, not as beautiful as you though.)"

She got no response. Disturbed by the silent treatment she was receiving, 
the Tendo girl looked over her shoulder to see what her brunette
girlfriend was up to. What she saw, upset her. Ukyo was sitting far
closer to the purple-haired Chinese girl, than to her. So close in fact,
that daylight couldn't pass between then. The okonomiyaki chef had cuddled
up with the Amazon on one end of the minibus, whispering sweet nothings
into her ear, while Akane sat alone on the other end. This was very hard for 
her, she had felt like she was being ignored entirely, and then, Shampoo burst
out laughing at something Ukyo had whispered to her. That laugh was an arrow
through Akane's heart. It was only a few days ago when Ukyo would whisper
those same sweet nothings into her ear. They were usually cute little things
designed to seduce her. 

Her granddaughter's laughter didn't impress Cologne, either. "Quiet 
down back there Shampoo!" She tried her best to obey her matriarch,
and in the end had gag herself with her hand to stop the giggling.
Akane was distraught; Ukyo must of said something real good to get Shampoo
to behave that way. She felt abandoned; she wanted to burst into tears.
But it didn't come to that. Thankfully there was enough Ukyo to go around.
As soon as Cologne ordered Shampoo's silence, Ukyo moved back over to 
Akane, and rested her head on the Tendo girl's soft shoulder, before
planting a quick kiss on her cheek. It was like giving Akane a dose of
morphine, she felt so much better now. 

"What were you trying to whisper to me sugar?" Asked the chef with genuine 
interest. "Ohh, it's nothing." Replied her girlfriend, trying her best not 
to let her know how she really felt. Akane was glad that Ukyo had come back
to her, but was disturbed by how she felt towards her girlfriends only 
seconds ago. It was a burning jealousy, almost hatred for them. How could she 
feel this way? It was almost like a dark force had invaded her soul of a 
second, then left. But then she realised, that she loved those girls, and 
that was all that really mattered, so she forgot about it.

The minibus dropped them off near the neck of a valley. They had to walk
the rest of the way. It was when they reached the brow of a hill, 
overlooking the valley, that Cologne suddenly stopped walking. 
She looked troubled when saw the forest nestled in the valley,
as if something dangerous was there. Shampoo saw this, and was concerned.
"Grandmother? What wrong? Is training place ok?" It took her a while to
reply. "No...it's...ok. I just had strange feeling of...something I 
haven't felt in a long time." "Ohhhhh...Shampoo get that all the time.
Shampoo just blame that on crazy voices in Shampoo's head. No big deal."

The young Amazon walked on to catch up with her fiancees, proud of 
herself for giving her great grandmother advice for once. Unfortunately,
that wasn't enough for Cologne. Something was wrong with this place,
and the matriarch didn't know what it was.

----------------------

The Amazon duo and their newest family members, eventually reached their 
destination. It was a level clearing in the valley, beside a lake
and in the middle of a dense wood. A little stream ran through the middle
of the clearing, and on a small hill near the edge of it, there was a hut.
A stone cooking pit rested at the foot of the hill between the hut and the 
stream.

It looked like this place had been used for martial arts training, with 
training poles all over the place. But it looked abandoned, no-one had been 
here for many years. This didn't seem to bother them at all as they settled 
in. Due to start their training tomorrow, the girls decided to relax
today, and enjoy each other's company. Akane seemed to have forgotten the
unpleasant feelings of this morning. She couldn't understand why she would
feel that way, so she forgot about it, and tried to enjoy her time with her 
beloved girlfriends. 

Evening. The sun had disappeared behind the mountains, and the valley had
descended into darkness. The only real light came from a large campfire in 
the middle of the clearing. Around it sat the three girls, sitting close 
to each other. They were very relaxed right now, but were reluctant to be
very intimate with each other, considering Cologne was only a short distance
away in the hut. They were even reluctant to kiss, and had to settle with 
being 'just friends' while the matriarch was around. Needless to say, this 
frustrated the hell out of them. To relieve this frustration, Akane and Ukyo
decided to give Shampoo a much needed Japanese lesson. If anything, it 
would give them a laugh.

The two Japanese girls had planned this well in advance, and had brought
their old pre-school readers to help them teach Shampoo the basics.
As the night dragged on, the ground around them became a blanket of colourful
anime-style pre-school books, language primers and kana alphabet tables.
It was a long night's lesson, and the girls tried their best to teach
the Chinese girl their mother language. They weren't getting very far...

Akane, grasping a reader with some frustration, had decided at this 
stage that she would never become a Japanese language teacher, but tried 
her best to encourage her Amazon girlfriend. "C'mon Shampoo! You can do 
this! It's not THAT hard, just say. 'My name is Shampoo'." Shampoo was 
fairly exhausted herself after a night of being bombarded by kanji and 
grammar, but she still had some of that Amazon stamina of her's and continued 
to try her best.  "M.....m.....mmmmm..." Akane and Ukyo leaned forward 
with increasing optimism, expecting their purple-haired girlfriend to 
finish a 'My' in Japanese. "Mmmmm...mmmmm Shampoo's name is Shampoo!"

Both girls leaned too far and fell to the ground in disbelief and
frustration. It was Akane's job to teach Shampoo her pronouns, and she 
felt like she had failed. "Oh, Shampoo. Why can't you remember a simple 
word like 'Watashi'? I've failed, I'm no good at this." Ukyo couldn't 
stand seeing Akane put herself down, and placed a supportive hand on her
shoulder. "Don't be so hard on yourself sugar! It's not your fault. 
Shampoo is just used to referring to herself in the third person. 
Hmm...but maybe we're going about this the wrong way?"

"Huh? How do you mean?" Asked the Tendo girl while Shampoo looked at them,
delighted that she was getting so much attention. "Just follow my lead
sugar." Said the cook with a wink to her Japanese girlfriend.
"Akane...I love you. How do you feel about me?" Said Ukyo slowly
so that Shampoo could hear each word as she said them. Akane saw what
Ukyo was trying to do. "Ohhhh! I see! Ukyo...I love you."
"Hee! Hee! That's good! Now..." Ukyo then turned to the Chinese girl, 
who was looking back at her, confused with what was happening.
"Shampoo...I love you. How do you feel about me?"

Again, the girls leaned forward, watching their Amazon girlfriend, 
hoping to hear those magic words. Shampoo cleared her throat and prepared
to try and put an 'I' noise a the beginning of her sentence.
"I........i.....i......" It was painstaking for the Chinese girl, but
she tried her best. She wanted to succeed for her airens, who had worked
so hard to teach her. "...i.....i..........'i'......" Shampoo was 
struggling, it looked like she wasn't going to make it, but then she 
looked at the okonomiyaki chef who was looking right back at her with
the supportive eyes of a lover. She got lost in those eyes, and gained
strength from them. She could almost do it now, but she needed an extra
push, which was provided by a soft whisper from Ukyo's lips.
"(Please Shampoo, tell me how you feel...)"

It was enough. With a single burst of tears and emotion, Shampoo managed
to say what they had wanted to hear. "I.....I.....I....I LOVE YOU!!!"
They looked at her in disbelief of a second, before a massive smile
engulfed both of their faces. The Japanese girls jumped to their feet and
hugged each other in celebration. "She did it!!" Yelled out Akane with joy
as she jumped up and down with Ukyo, "She finally spoke properly!"
Ukyo was equally pleased as she faced their student. "Oh, well done
sugar! I knew you could do it! Go on! Say it again!"
"Hee! Hee! Ok! Shampoo love you!" The smile was wiped from both girl's
faces upon hearing this. 

"No sugar..." Said Ukyo, hoping Shampoo had just misunderstood her.
"...say what you said before. You know...'I love you.'"
"Shampoo love you!" Yelled out the Amazon, delighted with herself, 
thinking what she had just said was perfect Japanese. In total
disbelief both Japanese girls slumped into each other for support. Hours 
of hard work and effort had just gone down the preverbal drain. 
"I can't believe it!" Said Akane almost crying with disappointment.
"...I though she had it back there! What did we do wrong?!"

"Don't feel too bad about it..." Said the voice the old woman as she
approached the campfire with what looked like a very large carpet rug
slung over her shoulder. "...I've already tried that myself. She just
forgets what you thought her a few seconds later." Ukyo was incredibly
disappointed with herself, she thought her plan would work.
"Ohhh, but....I though maybe if I tugged on her heart strings, I could
get it to stick with her." "A good idea Ukyo..." Said the matriarch,
chuckling to herself. "...it's because she loves Ranma that Shampoo knows 
Japanese at all. You were going in the right direction, but as you
probably already know, it's never that simple with my granddaughter."

Ukyo breathed a short little sigh, content at what Cologne had told her.
"Well...I suppose that's true..." All this time, Shampoo had remained
silent. She had fixed her gaze on what her grandmother was carrying, 
and had been examining it while Ukyo talked. It was then that the young
Amazon recognised what it was. "Grandmother?!" Asked the Chinese girl
excitedly. "Is that a...a....Is that a Coomicoomi?!" "What's a 
Coomicoomi?" Asked Akane, dumbfounded about what her girlfriend talking
about. "This....is a Coomicoomi!" Announced Cologne proudly as she 
unravelled the rug on her shoulder and spread it over the ground.
The Coomicoomi was a massive sleeping bag large enough to hold at least
five people. It was decorated with Amazon artwork, depicting female
lovers together.

The matriarch continued. "A Coomicoomi is like a normal sleeping bag.
Except this one is designed for an Amazon and her lovers to sleep 
together inside of it. This is Shampoo's Coomicoomi, I've been saving
it until she managed to win her airen's heart. I was waiting for her
to start courting Ranma, but instead she's been courting you girls
so...now is the best time for her to have this." Shampoo was overjoyed
to hear this, and so she jumped over to her grandmother, and began to 
hug her. "Oh thank you Grandmother!! Shampoo always wanted Coomicoomi!!"
It was when the young Amazon's hug was cutting off her matriarch's 
circulation, that she had to put an end to it.

"Your welcome Shampoo!" Said Cologne trying catch her breath. "...but
please don't hug me so hard. Your strong enough to crush me!" Shampoo
promptly let go of her grandmother. "Opps! Hee! Hee! Hee! Sorry!
Shampoo not know own strength sometimes!" Cologne got her bearings back
and looked like she was preparing to leave. "Well, good night girls,
I'll leave you to it." This took Shampoo by surprise. "Wait, isn't
Grandmother going to sleep by campfire with Shampoo and Airens?"
"I don't think so Shampoo. I know how much you girls want to be intimate
with each other right now. I'd best leave you alone. I'll be fine in the
hut. I need to spend some time alone meditating anyway."

"Ok Grandmother..." Shampoo knelt down and kissed her grandmother on 
the forehead. "...I'll see you in morning." After exchanging their
'good nights' Cologne left for the hut, leaving the girls alone.
Akane stretched a bit, yawned and then fished a flask out of her 
bag. "I'm going to get a drink from the stream. Do you girls want any
water?" "No sugar we're fine, thanks anyway." Said the chef as herself
and Shampoo sat on the Coomicoomi. "Ok, I'll be back soon."
Akane disappeared into the darkness.

Ukyo sat back on the Coomicoomi and felt it's fabric. It was soft to
the touch, and the cook liked the feel of it. But somehow she couldn't
relax. Her back felt sore, and she began to shrug her shoulders in a 
vain attempt to relieve herself from the pain. Shampoo saw this and
became concerned. "Is Ukyo ok?" "Huh? Oh I've just got a stiff back,
must be the way I sat that caused it." Shampoo slowly crawls over to
Ukyo and sits behind her. "Ukyo want Shampoo to give massage?"
"Huh? A massage? I don't know." Replied the chef nervously.
"(Shampoo is very good at massage. Will make your back feel nice!)"
Whispered the Amazon, suggestively.

"Ohhh...Ok then sugar." No sooner had Ukyo finished that sentence,
a pair of arms had wrapped themselves around her torso, and were
beginning to unbutton her shirt. "Hey Shampoo wait!" "(Shh...Relax
Ukyo. Shampoo needs to feel skin. No need to be shy, just Shampoo,
Akane and Ukyo here.)" Whispered Shampoo softly as she opened
the last shirt button and gently slid it off her. "I...I suppose
your right. There's nothing wrong with baring all out here."
"That good to hear! Now Ukyo, relax and let Shampoo do her
thing."

The Chinese girl took both her hands and grasped the chef's shoulder
blades firmly as she began to work on them like a pro. The rhythm
of Shampoo's hands at work put Ukyo into a trance of pleasure.
Shampoo was also loving this. Giving her Airen pleasures like this
was almost like giving them to herself. She felt as if the little 
moans of pleasure that came from Ukyo were little gifts for her
benefit. "Hmm...Spatula girl's back is very tense. This needs all of
Shampoo's skill." 

"Mmmmmmmm......Spatula girl?! I thought you weren't gonna call me
that anymore." "Well...Shampoo mean it in good way. Ukyo is very
good with spatulas! Shampoo admire that." Ukyo was clearly touched by
this. "Aww, thank you Shampoo." "Hee! Hee! That ok. Now hold still
Spatula Girl, need to work on back now!" The young Amazon worked
the back with as much passion as before. Except this time she hummed
a soft and gentle tune as she worked. It was the same tune she hummed
in the Cat Cafe earlier that day. Uyko was enjoying this song and 
had to ask... "Shampoo? What song is that?" "Huh? This song? It
just Amazon lullaby. Grandmother sing it to Shampoo when very little.
It about what happens when we die. Shampoo would sing words for you,
but, song words are in Chinese, Ukyo wouldn't understand."

"The song's about death? Isn't that a little horrific to be a lullaby?"
"No, song is very beautiful. Amazon don't believe that death is the 
end Ukyo. We don't fear it, that is why we make good warriors."
"Did your mother sing you this song too?" Shampoo suddenly stopped 
massaging her airen, Ukyo's question had upset her somehow.
"Ohh. I'm so sorry Shampoo. I hit a sore spot there didn't I?"
What the chef didn't see, was a small tear fall from the girl's eye.

"Shampoo? You ok?" Asked Ukyo with genuine concern. "Yea, Shampoo
ok. Everything ok." Said the Amazon as she returned to massaging
Ukyo. Her mood had improved a little, but Ukyo wasn't convinced,
and decided to do something to cheer her up. 
"Shampoo?" Asked Ukyo softly. "Yes Ukyo?" "(Could you sing it for me?)"
Ukyo was down to a whisper as she continued, and so was Shampoo.
"(But Ukyo won't understand the words.)" "(I don't mind sugar. I
just want to hear you sing...)" Shampoo was surprised and overjoyed, 
no one had asked her to sing before, and she was more than happy to 
oblige her airen.

As she sang the song in her native Chinese, Ukyo was slowly been
lulled to sleep by the melody of Shampoo's surprisingly beautiful 
singing voice and as the song came to it's conclusion, the chef had nearly
lost conscience. Shampoo's mood had improved so much. Singing her song
was just the release she needed. "(Shampoo....that was beautiful.)"
"Hee! Hee! Hee! Thank you Ukyo!" Shampoo was feeling a bit cheeky 
right now and decided to thank Ukyo for helping her out.
While she was massage her, Shampoo moved her hands down Ukyo's back,
and while her beloved airen was dozing off to sleep from the combined
effect of her massage and the lullaby, Shampoo opened the hooks on 
the chef's bra.

Ukyo suddenly came back to life when she felt her bra come loose.
"Emm...Shampoo? Your not massaging my breasts, are you?"
"Well....maybe later." Said Shampoo with a cheeky tone of voice as
succeeded in removing Ukyo's bra altogether. "Then...why?"
"Because....." Continued the Amazon as she softly cupped her
partner's breasts. ".....Ukyo has big juicy breasts and should let 
them go free as often as possible to keep them healthy."
The okonomiyaki chef smirked at this. "Well...who am I to argue with
centuries of Amazon medicine?"

"(Ukyo's opinion matters to Shampoo.)" Whispered the Amazon as she
continued to massaged Ukyo's lower back. "(...Shampoo try and help
Ukyo relax...help Ukyo....feel loved....by me.....)"

---------

Akane knelt by the stream, and dipped her flask into it's cold, 
gently flowing water. This was a scene of pure tranquillity for
her as she watched what little light there was reflected through the
darkness, like glistening strands of silk. After she filled her flask
she decided to sit by the stream and stay there for a while.
Akane took a mouthful of the refreshing mountain water before 
lying down on the bank, listening to the soothing noise of the 
running stream.

This was probably the first time Akane had really a chance to think 
about her life. In the past few years the youngest Tendo daughter
had gone through countless good and bad times as well as bearing 
witness to things far beyond most people's beliefs and understanding.
Indeed, her life after Ranma arrived, was like nothing else,
and now...her lesbian urges had finally been satisfied, now she has
a pair of beautiful girlfriends, and a realistic chance of marrying
the man of her life, Ranma Saotome.

She had even managed to kiss him. Even if that was sort of a spur
of the moment accident. She chuckled to herself on remembering this.
"(I love you Ranma.)" She whispered this to herself, reflecting on
it's meaning. 'I love you' Three simple words, but easily the most
powerful in any language. They can cause hurt, end friendships,
but at the same time, they can bring incredible joy and hope.
No wonder Shampoo learned to speak that phrase properly first.

And then it hit her. Shampoo put all of her heart and soul into 
saying 'I love you' to Ukyo... Yet she didn't respond to Akane.
Why? Those three words resurfaced again. Could it be? Could
Shampoo love Ukyo more than her? That demon of dread had invaded
her soul again, and she began to feel terrible, almost physically
sick because of it.

It started it piece together for her, like a jigsaw puzzle.
The minibus, Ukyo's love of Shampoo's way of talking, 'I love you',
and what Ukyo said to Shampoo to get her going. It all fit together.
Shampoo and Ukyo were a very close item. Possibly closer than they
were to her. The Tendo girl sat up, her eyes filling with bitter
tears with this revelation. She would have broken down, if she hadn't
stopped herself. "Stop it! Whatever is doing this to me STOP!
I love them. I love them so much! I can't hate them. I know they
love me too, and I can't blame them for loving each other...
(They're both so cute.)"

Akane promptly got to her feet, she had spent enough time alone.
She dried her eyes, and began her short journey to the campfire.
Maybe being with her girlfriends would make her feel better.
Being with Ukyo has cheered her up since they became a couple.
Being with both of them, must be better. All these thoughts
floated around her head as she continued her journey.
She was getting close, and could see her girlfriends clearly
now. What she saw caught her off guard.

The Tendo girl saw a topless Ukyo sitting between Shampoo's legs, 
who was sitting behind her. The Amazon had gone one step further with
her lover and had managed to pull down the cook's trousers and 
underwear, just enough to gain access to her most private regions. 
Not long before Akane had arrived, Shampoo was still massaging her 
beloved Ukyo, but that massage soon became more. The Chinese girl was 
working on Ukyo's upper back and torso when she decided to fulfil 
her marital duties. So she slowly and gently moved her right hand 
down onto Ukyo's lap, and then, as delicately as possible, she eased her 
fingers inside of her. At the same time, her left hand had begun to 
slowly groap and massage Ukyo's soft breasts. It looked like this was 
all just part of Shampoo's massage, and as a result, Ukyo barely noticed 
what her lover was doing to her. She was enjoying herself too much to 
care.

Akane was a silent witness to the result of all this. Hidden in the
darkness, she watched her Chinese girlfriend make love to her first
girlfriend and for a while she just staired at them, astonished by
the loving attention Shampoo was giving to Ukyo, and by the passionate
way the Amazon moved her hands around her lover, in the worthy
quest to make her climax. Shampoo watched Ukyo's face closely, to
view her reactions to her love making. The cook was too exhausted to
make any noise of pleasure, but as the Chinese girl began to really
get into what she was doing holding her even more firmly now, she
could see on Ukyo's face how much she was enjoying this.

The end was near. Ukyo began to breath heavily, and her skin was 
glistening with a coat of sweat. She was near orgasm, and Shampoo
could easily sense it. She held her airen so tightly and close to her 
now, that they were almost one. Shampoo wanted to be in total contact
with her, and so she gently gripped Ukyo's neck with her lips, and 
kissed it passionately as she made love to her. It was enough.
The waves of pleasure built up inside of Ukyo and were finally released
when Shampoo kissed her. The only sound she made was a quiet, almost
silent sigh, when she climaxed. She was too exhausted to do much more
than that, and as the last ounces of her strength ebbed away and her
eyelids became too heavy to keep open, Shampoo lowered her
to the soft fabric of coomicoomi with the care a mother would give
to her newborn baby. 

She eased her hand out of Ukyo, taking special care not injure her, 
and after removing what was left of her girlfriend's clothing, Shampoo 
got to her feet, and stared longingly into the darkness, content that she 
had pleased her beloved airen. But then something caught her eye. 
She squinted her eyes looking into the endless sea of night, convinced 
she could see someone out there. Her heart jumped when she recognised who
it was. "Akane! Nihao Akane! Come closer! Shampoo can barely see!" The 
Tendo girl emerged from her darkened hiding place, a little embarrassed
that the Amazon had spotted her. She looked a little flushed too. Seeing 
Ukyo climax moved the Tendo girl, it was almost as if the Amazon had 
made love to her too.

The Chinese girl leapt over to her shorter haired Airen, and held her by 
the shoulders as she spoke. By now Shampoo had realised the Akane had been
watching them all this time, and was little amused by this.
"Oh I see! Akane like to watch! Akane is naughty girl!" This just 
increased Akane's embarrassment. "Well...I do like seeing Ukyo enjoying
herself." Without thinking Shampoo was quick to reply. "Hee! Hee! Hee!
So does Shampoo! Sugar." It took a few seconds sink in. Akane was first
to notice. "Wait a minute! Did you just call me SUGAR?"  The Amazon
was very embarrassed by this and tried to shrug it off. "Sh..Shampoo not
call Akane sugar. Shampoo NOT call Akane sugar!"

Akane wasn't that easily fooled. "You did call me sugar. Are you turning
into Ukyo or something?" Akane was disturbed by this, it was more proof
of the tighter bond between her girlfriends. Shampoo could see that this
was bothering her. "Emm..Shampoo has idea! Shampoo kiss Akane, and all
will be OK!" Akane wasn't impressed. "A kiss? But Shampoo, that's your answer 
to every....." It was too late for her to finish her sentence, Shampoo had
already latched onto her and had locked their lips together. There was
little point in Akane struggling, she would never be able to escape
Shampoo's grip, no matter how gentle that grip may have been.

Of coarse, Akane didn't want to escape. She loved Shampoo, and hadn't
kissed her since their night together at Ucchan's. The memory of Shampoo's
surprisingly soft touch was still alive in her mind, and she enjoyed every
moment of this as Shampoo embraced her. As the Tendo girl relaxed and
began to enjoy herself, Shampoo let out some soft moans when she felt 
Akane's muscles begin to relax. The Amazon appeared to enjoy the fact that
Akane was getting used to her. Akane herself could read this and the 
doubts she had before, began to dissolve, and left her mind. Kissing the
cute purple-haired bombshell, made her feel better about herself.
She must be doing something right to earn Shampoo as a girlfriend.

They both wished this kiss could last forever, but of coarse it couldn't.
The Chinese girl was now very low on energy, a night of intense study
and making love to Ukyo had drained her. She let go of her airen's lips,
and slumped onto her shoulders for support. "Ohh...Shampoo tired..."
Moaned the young Amazon like a young child who didn't want to go to bed.
Then a realisation popped into Shampoo's head, giving her a short
lease of life, and enough energy to do a little more.
"Oh well..." Said Shampoo with a cheeky smirk on her face. "...time
to get ready for bed."

Seconds later, with one lightning swipe of her hand, Shampoo managed to 
slip all of her clothes off, leaving them in a pile at her bare feet.
As soon as the sight of her naked girlfriend sank in, Akane's face began
to blush. She hadn't seen Shampoo this way for a while, and it was a 
welcome sight to her, even if it was a total surprise. "Now.....Akane's
turn!" Announced the Amazon, expecting the same actions from her airen.
Although the Tendo girl wasn't as hung up about nudity as Ukyo, she still
wasn't too sure about this. "You...you want me naked?" 

Shampoo had a hard time containing her giggles as she replied.
"Hee! Hee! Hee! If it possible Shampoo would have Akane naked all the
time!....But now...Akane needs to be naked to sleep in coomicoomi."
Akane took a long hard look at Shampoo's newest possession. "Why?"
"Well.....Because with airens in coomicoomi, it get too too hot and
sticky! Besides...." Said the Amazon lustfully with a wink. 
"....Coomicoomi is not just for sleeping. Hee! Hee!"

It didn't take long for Akane to understand what she was implying,
and to be excited by it. And so, much to Shampoo's own delight,
her Japanese girlfriend stripped naked in front of her.
"How do I look?" Asked Akane softly when she had finished.
"Hee! Hee! Hee! Perfect! Now time for sleeping together!"
Seconds later, the Amazon snatched Akane's hand and promptly led her
over to the massive sleeping bag and together they gently took hold
of an unconscious Ukyo, and inserted her into the coomicoomi.

The Amazon slid into the sleeping bag, beside her sleeping airen, 
then beckoned Akane to join them. She soon did this, slowly easing
her body in-between the coomicoomi's soft covers, on the other side of
Ukyo. The Tendo girl was surprised by the softness of it's covers,
the inside of this Amazon creation was lined with the softest silk which
felt great on every inch of the her naked skin. Shampoo could see that
her younger airen was enjoying this. "Akane like coomicoomi?"
"Oh yea..." Said Akane as she felt the fabric with her hands.
"..It's so soft. It kinda feels sensual on my skin." "Hee! Hee! That
one reason to sleep naked in this. Coomicoomi gives good feeling to
skin, relaxing airens and encouraging sexy times!"

"Somehow, I knew you'd say that..." Shampoo stretched her arms out and
yawned a bit before snuggling into her bed's covers. "Mmmm...Shampoo
feel tired, Shampoo....try to sleep now." As the Chinese girl began
to drift to sleep, Ukyo's eyes slowly eased open. The girl's talking on
each side of her had woken the chef, but the grip of sleep still held
her, and she could do and think, very little. Only one thing was on her
mind and lips as she turned her head to the left and towards Shampoo.

"(Shampoo...)" The purple-haired girl came back to life on hearing this
soft whisper from Ukyo. "(...kiss me..)" Nothing could have pleased her
more. The Chinese girl used the last ounces of her strength to move over
to Ukyo and wrap her arms around her. Then without even thinking about
it they just kissed, and because of their combined fatigue this kiss wasn't
to the same standard as what they were used to. Their lips lightly pressed
each other, as they fell asleep in each other's arms. All the time Akane
had been watching them, touch by way they used the very last residue of 
their strength in an act of love, and for a while just staired at them,
happy to have seen this, and to be a part of it, but then she suddenly
realised something, which disturbed her.

Yet again, a foreboding sense of loneliness and envy entered her soul like
unwelcome intruder, as she watched here girlfriends sleeping in an embrace,
and realising, that she was not with them. Right now, she felt unloved,
and unwanted. She would have burst into tears again, if her own optimism
and self-esteem hadn't stopped this dreadful feeling in it's tracks. She 
was happy for them after all, and she reminded herself that they did love her.
Maybe they just needed to notice her, she thought to herself. Maybe if she
performed some gesture of love for them, they would shower her with affection.
But what could she do for them? Her eyes lit up with joy when she thought of 
something.

Content that she had thought of a way to express her love, Akane snuggled
up behind Ukyo, and slowly fell to sleep as the campfire burned itself out.

--------------
Tuesday Morning.
--------------

Dawn, and as the warm Japanese sun shone on the valley, Ukyo began to wake.
The chef expected to be wake to the fresh morning air, only to be greeted
by thick choking smoke instead. Shampoo was woken by this also, and began 
to panic when all she could see was the thick smoke. "AIYA! Forest Fire!!!"
They both quickly got to their feet and couldn't see beyond the campsite,
the smoke was that thick. Someone was missing, and Shampoo was first to
notice. "Huh? Akane? Where is Akane?! AKANE! AKANE!!" Shampoo began to run
around the campsite erratically, in a desperate attempt to find her girlfriend.
"AKANE!!! Huh?" The Amazon stopped running just in front of Ukyo, and was 
confused by her calm disposition. Ukyo just stood there, smelling the air.

"Ukyo! What you doing?! Need to find Akane and escape from forest!!"
"Calm down sugar..." Said the chef calmly as she sniffed the air. "...this
doesn't smell like a forest fire, and look...there are no flames anywhere."
Shampoo took a moment to look at the forest, and then made the same conclusion
as Ukyo. "Oh...not forest fire...but not fog? Shampoo not know what cause
smoke." "Neither do I. But I think we're safe." Shampoo was more worried
about the missing girl than herself. "But...Akane not here! Shampoo is too
too worried!" Said Shampoo almost in tears. "Don't cry Shampoo. I'm worried
too, but I'm sure she's ok." Said Ukyo softly as she embraced her Chinese
girlfriend in an attempt to calm her down. She had limited succcess, 
Shampoo was still in tears as she continued. "Shampoo can't help worrying!
If Akane ever died....Shampoo would......Shampoo would....(Shampoo's heart
would be broken forever)"

"Shh....don't say that sugar. Besides, I think a know where she is." Ukyo
gently took her arm as she said this, and began to walk towards the stream.
"You do? Wh..where is Akane?" "You'll see." The smoke appeared to come
from the cooking pit, and that's where they were going. They blindly
worked their way through the thickest of the smoke before they could
see a shadowy figure at the cooking pit. Shampoo recognised who it was
immediately, and promptly let go of Ukyo's arm to run to her.
"AKANE!" The Tendo girl, who was wearing nothing but an apron, turned to face 
whoever had called her name, only to find herself being tightly embraced by 
the young Amazon, seconds later. Shampoo said nothing as she held her, she 
just cried tears of relief onto that apron.

Ukyo contained her emotions a little better, but was still relieved that
her girlfriend was ok. It was then that she understood why Shampoo was 
crying now. Akane had become a part of her, and even the thought that she
may be in danger was enough to send a chill to her soul. Akane was a little
confused by her girlfriend's reaction, and stood there dumbfounded as 
Shampoo held onto her. The cook walked up to them and examined what Akane 
appeared to be working on. It looked like Akane was trying to cook 
something on the stove, and had managed to cremate it. "So...that is
what caused the smoke....Oh Akane, don't worry us like that again."
Said Ukyo with an upset voice as she put her hand on her girlfriend's
shoulder.

Akane felt a little ashamed of herself right now, and meekly let go
of a now calm Shampoo before returning to the stove, and the remains
of the food she was cooking. "I just....I just wanted to make breakfast
for you." "What were you trying to make?" Asked the chef, trying her
best to keep an open mind. "I...don't...remember..." Said Akane as
she started to get upset. Her dish was so burned, that she couldn't
recognise it anymore. "Oh Akane, sugar, you know well that you can't
cook. Why did you do this?" Asked Ukyo softly. "I just wanted to do
something for you two...and now it's ruined, and I frighted you,
(I'm so sorry)."

"Aww, that's sweet of you sugar, but you'd better leave breakfast to 
me and Shampoo." "I just thought if I put enough effort into it,
and cooked it with love, that...it would turn out ok." Lamented
the Tendo girl as the smoke began to clear. "Aww. Akane try her
best but Akane doesn't have knack for cooking. It not something
Akane can get overnight. But don't worry, Shampoo will always be
near to cook for you." Stated the Amazon cheerfully as her mood
began to clear.

This brightened the Akane's mood a little, only to be interrupted
by the sound of the old woman's voice as she approached the 
cooking pit from the hill. "Well well, isn't this a heart-warming
scene of love?" "Nihao grandmother!" Said the Amazon excitedly when
she could see her grandmother through the clearing smoke.
It was then that the matriarch noticed that her granddaughters were
naked, except for Akane who was covered by the apron.

"Well...it's good to see that you girls are in tune with nature."
It took a second for Ukyo to understand what Cologne had meant by
that and that the matriarch could also see her naked.
Her face was burning bright red when she used her arms to cover
her pride and breasts, only to discover to her horror that she could 
only successfully cover one of her beloved assets at once.
The Tendo girl was also bashful and used her hands to cup her 
exposed behind. Both the Amazons looked at them, surprised by 
their behaviour.

The younger Amazon was first to speak. "Akane? Ukyo? Why do girls
hide beauty from grandmother?" Still embarrassed by the situation
she was in, Ukyo spoke up in a nervous tone of voice.
"Emm...Shampoo, WE'RE NAKED!! And you know how shy I am!"
Shampoo still couldn't understand. "But....Ukyo is more beautiful
naked. Akane too. Why do Japanese girls hide beauty? Girls should
be proud of it like Shampoo is. That why Shampoo show beauty to
grandmother. It no big deal." Ukyo still wasn't too sure.
Cologne spoke up seeing that her new granddaughters were still
uncomfortable with her seeing them nude.

"You should relax girls. You have nothing to be ashamed of.
Your bodies are perfect, just like Shampoo's, there's no point
in hiding them." Ukyo plucked up enough courage to give her
reason for covering up. "Well..you see....It's just..you seeing
us naked is just...not right, it's...dirty." Cologne suddenly
realised the girls reason for being shy. "Oh...I see now, you
girls think of nudity as sexual, and nothing else. I forgot how
differently the Japanese and Amazon think. You see we Amazon
don't equate nudity and sex. Sure, we like to be naked for sex,
but still, we just see it as a normal part of nature. It's
our tie to nature, that we're no different to the animals that
surround us. We Amazon are very proud of our bodies, and don't
hide them, just look at Shampoo, she's living proof..."

The girls look at Shampoo standing proudly in front of them,
and then suddenly saw her in a different light. Now she was
more than their beloved, sexy, girlfriend. She was now also
an Amazon, proud of herself and her body, and this turned them
both on. The chef suddenly forgot to cover herself and let
her arms fall to her sides, as she looked at Shampoo in awe.
Seconds later she realised that the matriarch was watching her,
and was about to cover herself again, when she stopped. What 
Cologne had said had sinked in. She was proud of her body, she had 
put a lot of work into it. The matriarch could sense this from Ukyo
and was pleased, so her attention then turned to the Tendo
daughter, who was still wearing her apron. 

"Don't you want to be one with nature Akane?" Asked the matriarch
from her perch on the hillside. "If you mean being naked, I already
am. All I'm wearing is this apron." "Are you proud of your body
Akane?" Asked the matriarch cryptically. "Well...yea." "Then prove
it, take off the apron." Akane hesitated, she needed a little 
encouragement, which came as always, in the form of Ukyo.
"Go on sugar, take it off. If I can do this...so can you."
The chef's kind words were enough for her, so she untied the back
of the apron and flung it off with what little inhibitions she had
left. She was free now, just like her girlfriends. They would never
be shy about anything again. Or so she would hope, as she stood there
naked, in full view of the matriarch.

With that out of the way, the matriarch continued with what she really 
meant to say to them. "Now girls...today you should start some training.
I don't mind what kind it is, as long as you do it together."
"We have idea!" Spurted Shampoo excitedly. "We are going to train
Akane!" This was the first Akane had heard of this, and she wasn't
impressed. "That's a great idea Shampoo, but first maybe you girls
should eat some breakfast, and get some clothes on. Being one with
nature too long can give you a cold!"

-----------------------------

Midday, and the girls were in the centre of a field of training poles.
Circling the girl, Shampoo with careful eyes looked over Akane's stance. 
She noted the problems with her balance, her hands and feet position,
and basically she was leaving herself way open. Stopping behind her, Shampoo 
looked over at Ukyo. "Shampoo think we have much work to do, to fix errors,
yes?" the chef nodded as she too, saw the many faults in Akane's defensive 
stance and wondered if Mr. Tendo had done anything at all with his daughter's
training in the last few years.

Hearing this, Akane of course protested, "Hey! I'm not that bad, I can
defend my-" She was cut off as Ukyo was suddenly in her face with her battle
spatula drawn and the metal plate inches from her face. Moments passed
before Akane sighed as she realised how easily her girlfriend could slip
past her defences, though having a long weapon did help Ukyo.

"Akane was saying?" the Amazon's voice came from behind still, as Ukyo
backed off. "Fine, OK, I admit I need more teaching, so?' 
"So?" Shampoo and Ukyo repeated, hints of teasing in their voices. Sighing
out, she muttered. "Could you please help me out, please," she hated asking
for help like this, but thinking in the long run, she knew one day that someone 
will not be around to rescue her and if her okonomiyaki chef and Amazon
girlfriends could improve her training then she could regain some of that
confidence that she was a real martial artist and not some female bulldozer.

"Now that wasn't so hard to ask for help, huh sugar?" Ukyo leaned against a
tree, as she noted a playful look cross Shampoo's face. "Then lets start now,
Akane." said the Amazon, moving up to Akane and pressing her body up against 
Akane's back. "Uh, OK, Shampoo." she nervously replied. Feeling the Amazon
hands slide down her arms to her wrists, Shampoo moved them to a different 
position, no doubt to a better one that Akane was seconds ago using.

Next Akane felt Shampoo strong hands slip to her thighs, and shivered
as she felt her fingers massage her muscles.  Soon though, the Amazon had
moved her feet more apart and made her position her feet differently.
It seemed Shampoo had gotten a bit too playful, as her hands moved up the
front of her and she soon blushed as Shampoo hands cupped her breasts.
"(Now Shampoo think need to position these important parts a bit too.)" 
She whispered into Akane's ear.

"Now, now, sugar, none of that till later, no doubt your granny is around
here somewhere and we don't want to give her a showing, hmm?" Shampoo
released her hold, though she did take her time as she gave Akane one
more good squeeze. "Shampoo play nice now," the girl beamed, as she moved to
Akane's front and nodded at her new stance. Seeing that it looked solid and 
that using the basic Kihon kata of Shotokan Karate as a base, seemed to work 
OK for now and she hoped that they could later on get on to her girlfriend's 
Father to show them some of the more advance stances and kata of the art, 
so she could imprint them properly into Akane along with maybe some of her 
own style.

For now though, time to improve her kata using this stance. It was a good 
thing that the Tendo daughter knew at least something about martial arts,
or her head would have been blown by all this. They trained together for
the best part of the day, and sun had already begun it's decent as they
finished. 

By now, Akane had a lot of time to think by herself. Her failure this 
morning still haunted her. Although her girlfriends meant well, their
discounting of her cooking had hurt her deeply. "Oh Akane, sugar, 
you know well that you can't cook..." Echoed Ukyo's voice in her head
again and again, only to be interrupted by "Shampoo think we have much work 
to do, to fix errors, yes?" So Akane was faulty? She thought as she began to
put herself down now. The damage to her self-esteem was too much for her to
bear. Now, she began to think of herself as the Useless Pretender. 
A person who pretends that she can cook, a person who pretends to be a martial
artist, and worst of all, a person who pretends to be the lover of two
beautiful young women. But she dared not show how she felt to anyone,
she was too proud to show them how broken she was.

Even Ukyo didn't see this, she was just too exhausted from an intense day of
training to notice. The same applied to Shampoo. As soon as the sun went
down, the pair stripped, and hit the coomicoomi in no time flat.
Akane slowly followed them. After exchanging their good night kisses
the girl's settled down into their bed. It looked like it was going to be a 
quiet night, and so the Tendo girl just lay there, silently, contemplating 
her future. But her quiet-time was soon ended by movement beside her. Ukyo
had decided to return a favour to Shampoo for making love to her the previous 
night, and had dived below the covers of the coomicoomi, making her way 
towards a semi-conscious young Amazon.

Shampoo wasn't aware of her Airen's amorous advances until she felt Ukyo's 
soft tongue invade the depths of her Amazon vulva. The Chinese girl suddenly
came back to life seconds later. She knew well that it was her chef airen
licking her right now, and this surprised and delighted her.
"Ohhhh, ohhhh Ukyo.....Thank you. Ohhhh, that feels so so good." 
As Shampoo sang the cook's praises for what she was doing to her, Akane
watched them silently. She could tell by the expressions on Shampoo's face
that the Amazon was truly enjoying this, and normally, Akane may of enjoyed
being witness this, but something was different now.....her.

Akane's precious self-esteem had ebbed away to nothing, and as Shampoo
climaxed, and the pair curled up together to go to sleep, Akane had 
reached rock bottom. Now she didn't see them as her girlfriends anymore,
not because she didn't love them, but because she felt that she didn't
deserve them. When she was sure that they were asleep, Akane pulled herself 
out of the sleeping bag, and made her way towards the forest. 
It wasn't a good night to be out naked on a mountain, but she
couldn't stay in that sleeping bag with them. Seeing them together, just
tore her up inside.

-------------

She strolled through the dark forest, for what seemed to be an eternity,
but was really just a few minutes. As she walked between the trees, she
was lost in her own thoughts. She had been here for two solid days.
Her 'romantic' week in the mountains with her girlfriends. What a joke.
She had only kissed them a handful of times so far, and she hadn't even
had sex with them yet. They were too interested in each other to
notice her, she thought this herself as a tear ran down her cheek.

It was then that she made a realisation. She had drifted apart from her
girlfriends, and might never get back with them, they seemed to be 
happier with each other, than with her. She had to lean against a tree
for support as she broke down into tears. Although she loved the girls
like no one else, she knew that she had to leave them, and this ripped her
to pieces. "No...." She exclaimed, her voice choked with tears. "No....
Ukyo....Shampoo....I love you, but....I can't stay....w...why does it
have to be this way?!!!" She hung on to the tree, crying bitter tears,
almost too upset to stay on her feet.

All that could be heard in the forest, was her weeping, until...
"(Akane.....)" Uttered a whisper from the darkness. Akane stopped sobbing
for a second, surprised by what she heard. It was a woman's voice that 
she didn't recognise. "Who....who is it? Who called my name?" There was 
silence, no one was around. "Don't let my looks fool you! I can seriously
hurt you, however you are." Announced the martial artist defiantly
as she took the defensive pose she learned earlier. "(Akane....)" 
The whisper came from behind her. She swung around, but still she
could see nothing. Every muscle in her body tensed up as she became 
anxious. What came next was unexpected. She heard that same voice giggling
in the opposite direction. She swung around again to face her, only to
receive a playful little pinch on her ass. 

"Oww!!! Cut it out! Face me damn it!" Said Akane frustrated as she rubbed
her sore behind. Still, there was no one there. Akane was alone in the
forest. Akane tensed up even more, expecting a battle any second now.
But none came, and all she could hear now was someone approaching her
from the campsite. She turned to see who it was, and was greeted with the
sight of Shampoo approaching. The Amazon was too tired at first to notice
her airen, she was more concerned with stretching and yawning, it looked
like she had just woken up. It didn't take long for her to notice her
younger Airen. "Huh?....AKANE! Nihao Akane!" Shampoo excitedly skipped
over to a surprised Akane. "Shampoo? Was that you who pinched me a minute
ago?" "Huh? Shampoo just came here now." Said Shampoo honestly. Akane was
satisfied that Shampoo hadn't a clue of what she was talking about, so 
she moved on. "Ohh....So....What are you doing out here?"

"Ohh, Shampoo needed to pee, and it got too too hot in coomicoomi.
Even a nudie Shampoo needs to cool down!" Replied Shampoo playfully
with a wink. "...why is Akane out in forest?" Akane hesitated with her
response. "Emm...just needed.....some air." Shampoo wasn't convinced.
She looked at her airen's eyes, saw that they were moist and bloodshot,
and could tell that Akane had been crying. "Akane? Are you ok?"
Asked Shampoo as softly as she possibly could. "What? I'm fine."
The Amazon could easily read the insincerity of Akane's voice. "Don't lie 
to Shampoo. Akane has been crying. Please...tell Shampoo what's wrong."

She had been found out. It would have been hard for Akane to lie to her
now and so, painfully, she decided to tell her the truth.
"Shampoo....your pretty close to Ukyo, aren't you?" Asked the Tendo girl
solemnly. Shampoo was a little confused by the tone of her question, but
was still happy to reply. "Well...Hee! Hee! Yea! Shampoo close to Ukyo.
Shampoo really like her. Spatula Girl is soft and sexy!" Akane couldn't
look at her any more, so turned away from her. Shampoo just looked at the
back of her airen, dumbfounded by her behaviour.

"You...you really love her don't you?" Asked Akane with bitter sadness,
as she clenched her hands, trying her best to keep the tears in.
"Well.....yes. Shampoo really loves Ukyo. Ukyo is....Shampoo's soul mate.
Shampoo is sure of that!" Shampoo took a long hard look at Akane.
"Why does Akane ask?" Asked the Amazon, almost afraid of the answer.
"The way you look at each other, that was how Ukyo used to look at me....
You're so close to each other, like you've been together for years.
You...you two were meant for each other. I'm....I'm just in the way...."
Shampoo couldn't believe what Akane was saying, and was worried about
her youngest airen. 

"Akane....please don't say that, Shampoo always...." "NO!" Burst Akane,
as the tears finally came. "(This is it....I'm leaving....and I'll always 
love you and Ukyo, but........but I can't stay anymore. Goodbye...Shampoo.)"
As Akane finished her solemn tearful whisper to her beloved Shampoo, she
began to walk away. Shampoo herself, was shocked and deeply saddened by this.
She couldn't just let her airen walk off. "Akane! Come back!"
Akane continued to walk, trying her best to ignore the Chinese girl, only
adding to both their pain. "AKANE! PLEASE! COME BACK!!" Echoed Shampoo's 
as she began to fill with tears herself. The thought of losing Akane
was too much for her and as the Tendo girl continued to walk away, Shampoo
couldn't hold it in any longer. "AKANE!.....AKANE!! I LOVE YOU!!!"

Akane stopped in her tracks on hearing Shampoo's tear filled cry, and looked
back at her. Shampoo had fallen to her knees with tears, and sobbed bitterly
for the return of her airen. "(Akane.....Please don't leave me......)"
Shampoo had spoken perfect Japanese, just to get her back, and Akane was 
deeply touched by this. She could see now, how much the Chinese girl loved her,
and the reason why she loved that purple-haired girl herself. She couldn't 
leave her now, and as the tears fell onto Shampoo's lap, 
Akane stood her ground, and extended her arms in the direction of her 
girlfriend. "(Shampoo...)"

Shampoo raised her head to look at Akane, and saw her girlfriend, with her
arms stretched out to hold her. "(Akane...)" The Amazon's tears were now 
joined by a smile as she got to her feet and sprinted towards her beloved 
Airen. She ran straight into Akane's and embraced her tightly as Akane 
herself, returned that embrace. "(Akane....please don't leave me....)" 
Whispered the Amazon as she rested her head on the Tendo girl's soft shoulder.
"(Don't worry Shampoo...)" Replied Akane softly as she stroked Shampoo's
head. "(...I won't leave you...)" It was then that Shampoo held onto
her even tighter. Shampoo had never held her that tightly before and her 
embrace was now so strong, that it would probably never break, and perhaps...
that was the idea.

She was content in just letting Shampoo stay that way on her, but soon she
became too tierd to support the Amazon, so she pulled her over to the nearest 
tree and sat down, gently bringing Shampoo to the ground with her. The Chinese
girl rested her head on Akane's chest, content that the Tendo girl wasn't
going to leave her. "Akane? Why would you want to leave Shampoo? You love 
Shampoo, and Shampoo loves you...why?" Akane took a deep breath before trying 
to explain herself. "Well....You and Ukyo have been spending most of your time
together, and...well...I started to feel like a third wheel, like I didn't
belong with you....and let's face it, I'm nowhere near as good as either of
you. I can't fight, I can't cook...and I can't be as good a lover as you.
I'm useless...." 

Shampoo couldn't believe what Akane was saying about herself, so she brought
her head up to her's to reassure a now depressed Japanese girl. She looked
at her softly in the eyes, as if to transmit her love to the Tendo girl. 
But Akane couldn't look at her. "No Shampoo...don't look at me that way...
I don't deserve it...I just, I just don't deserve..." Shampoo promptly gagged 
Akane with her hand before she could finish that sentence. "Don't say that 
Akane, you do deserve it...more than anyone, even Ukyo...you are sad now...
you need Shampoo's love...as much as Shampoo needs you." This lifted some of
her depression, but she still felt a little down. "But Shampoo..I'm not as
close to you as Ukyo is....you even started to call her Spatula Girl as a
pet name....who am I? Just Akane...."

"No! Shampoo has special name for you too. You're my Cute Girl." Akane began
to smile and blush at this. "C..Cute Girl? Emm. Hee! Hee! I'm not cute!
Why would you call me cute?" Asked Akane with a much brighter tone of voice.
"Well, you are cute. Akane is my cutest Airen. Your short hair is cute, your
smile is cute, your body is so cute, and voice is soft and so so cute as 
well. Shampoo is so much in love with you, for that reason, and much more,
please don't put yourself down. I love you." Yet again, Shampoo had gone
out of her way to display her love for Akane. It was enough, the Tendo Girl
felt much better now. The Chinese Girl had lifted a massive weight from her
soul, and she couldn't help but love having her lay on her like this.

"Shampoo...thank you..." The young Amazon could tell now that her airen
was back to normal, and decided to get more adventurous with her.
"How can I thank you Shampoo?" "Shampoo has idea...." Replied the
Chinese girl lustfully, seconds before latching her lips onto Akane's.
She held the Tendo girl firmly, as she lowered her to the ground and lay
over her, all the time kissing her. This was a pleasant surprise for Akane,
she had never been alone with Shampoo like this before, she wanted this to
last forever. The sensations she felt here were so different to what she
was used to with Ukyo. The feel of Shampoo's body pressing against her own,
was like nothing else, she could feel the Amazon's smooth legs rubbing her
own, she could feel their bushes tangled together, and the heat of Shampoo's
groin as she became aroused. But what affected her the most was the sensation
Shampoo's Amazon heart pounding against her own chest at an incredible rate.

Akane was loving all of this as well as Shampoo's soft lips kissing her with
as much passion as their first night together. It had to come to an end 
eventually, and so Shampoo let go. Besides, she had something to ask Akane.
She got off Akane and lay beside her, and then began to play with her airen's
hair while she talked to her. "Cute Girl feel better now?" Akane let out a
quiet sigh, and smiled before answering. "Yea...I'm ok now...thanks to you
and that kiss you gave me. I suppose I just felt lonely....I hate to feel 
lonely." Suddenly Shampoo realised something and moved her hand down to 
in-between her airen's breasts, to feel her heartbeat which quickened when
she felt what the Amazon was doing. "What are you doing Shampoo?" "Checking
Airen's heart. Hmm...Shampoo thinks she knows why Akane tried to run away."

Akane was perplexed by her revelation. "Emm...why then?" "Akane is afraid
of feeling lonely. Shampoo not know why, but that feeling is buried in
Akane's heart." Akane now knew exactly what she was talking about, and
didn't like to think about it. "Well...that's probably because....
the last time I felt that lonely....was when my mother died."
Shampoo's heart stopped for a second, she felt like comforting her airen,
and tone of voice reflected that. "Ohh....Shampoo's sorry. Shampoo doesn't
know much about that........maybe.....maybe if Akane tells Shampoo about it, 
Shampoo can make things better." Akane smiled a little. "I don't know about 
that Shampoo. But....I've told this story to everyone else that I know....
so...it's only fair that I tell you....about how my mother died."

Shampoo listen to her spill her heart with great interest. "Well....I was
about six when it happened. My sisters were just kids themselves, so it
hit them hard too. You see...my mother was born with a heart defect, and
she managed to live with it easily enough for most of her life, but there
were times when it would get weak, and she'd need to go to the hospital. 
Hospital visits took up much of my early years...my first memories were
in that place.....Fortunately, she was at home most of the time....we 
always had fun with her, she'd give us so much attention, especially me,
because I was the baby. She'd teach me things too. She especially liked
to teach me how to garden...." Akane paused for a second, this was hard.
"...one day....we were out in the garden...she was teaching me how to
plant flowers....I was having so much fun......but...there was no warning
.....they say the strain of giving birth to three girls, had finally taken 
it's toll on her heart....she keeled over....onto my lap.....
and died in my arms."

Shampoo was moved by this solemn story of the death of Akane's mother.
"Aww....Poor little Akane....you must have been so frightened."
"I was.....It took a long time for me to recover. I...I cried for
weeks on end, never stopping for anything, I almost starved to death,
I was too upset to eat. It was the loneliest time of my life." 
"Oh Akane...." Shampoo hugged her airen tightly.
"Poor Akane." "Don't worry Shampoo I got over it eventually. But some
of it still stuck with me. We all found our own ways to get over losing
her. Kasumi started to fill the gap she left. Nabiki started to get
obsessed with money, just to stop thinking about her. My father never 
really got over it, he just held onto us tighter, and became 
overprotective. We were all he had left of her. And...myself. I suppose
I didn't want to lose anyone else the same way as I lost her. I thought 
that, if I let anyone teach me, I...I would lose them too. So I ignored 
my fathers training, and decided to fight my own way. That's when I 
found my mallet. I would use that instead, so he wouldn't have to teach
me, so...he wouldn't have to die."

Shampoo was in tears now. "Aww...Shampoo don't cry. I got over it. 
I'm ok now." Shampoo continued to cry anyway, something else was up.
"What's wrong Shampoo?" "(sniff) Shampoo is so ashamed." Akane was
confused. "Emm...why?" "Sh....Shampoo lose mommy too!" It was Akane's
turn to comfort her. "Ohh....Shampoo...I never knew. There's no reason
to be ashamed of that. Oh...Poor Shampoo...come here." Akane held her
as tightly as Shampoo did before. "Sh...Shampoo did....Shampoo didn't"
"Shh....It's ok. Want to get it off your chest? Trust me...it feels 
good." Shampoo managed to pull herself together for a while, she wanted
to tell her this. "Shampoo hasn't told anyone this Akane....only
grandmother and tribe knows this. Shampoo's mommy died in childbirth."
"Aww, I'm sorry. It must have been heartbreaking for you. But you 
don't have to be ashamed of losing her." "NO! Akane not understand....
..Shampoo's mommy died......giving birth to Shampoo."

She now understood why the young Amazon was upset. Shampoo
continued her tearful lament. "Sh..Shampoo killed mommy, she never
even got to see Shampoo. Listening to you talk about how your mommy
loved you, reminded Shampoo how she missed out on all that.
Ohh...Shampoo is a murderer....(Shampoo is so so ashamed)."
Akane gently cradled her girlfriend's head as she began to cry even
more. "Oh Shampoo...it's not your fault." "It is! Shampoo shouldn't
have been born. If Shampoo wasn't born....mommy would be alive now...
Shampoo doesn't deserve life." Akane decided to speak even softer now.
"(Shampoo....she gave birth to you because she loved you...even before
you were born. She would have died for you anyway. She would have wanted
you to live your life...and find happiness.)"

Shampoo wasn't used to having the Tendo girl comfort her, but it was
more than welcome. It softened her pain so much, that she couldn't help 
but feel better now. As her sadness lifted while she looked into Akane's
kind eyes, a smile grew on her face again, and her last tear of sadness,
ran down her cheek as a tear of joy. As her heart quickened, there was
only one thing on Shampoo's mind now. No matter what, she was going to
make love to Akane right now, where they lay. Akane knew something was
going through the Amazon's, she could tell by the cheeky expression
that had suddenly emerged on her face. "Ohh... Akane... My Cute Girl...
Hee! Hee! My teddy bear..." Akane was amused by Shampoo's new tone of
voice and by what she just called her. "What the? Teddy Bear?"
"Yep..." Replied the Amazon cheerfully as she began to play with her
Airen's hair again. "When Shampoo was little, she had a cute little
teddy bear that always made Shampoo better when she cuddled it. It was
same colour as Akane's hair and as soft as Akane too..."

It was then that the Chinese Girl mounted her Airen and lay on top
of her, holding her as tightly as she once held her teddy bear, increasing
the pleasure of this moment for both of them. Akane shivered with
anticipation as Shampoo slowly and gently moved herself closer to
her. The Tendo Girl was expecting yet another sensual kiss,
but it didn't come, not yet, Shampoo had more to say. "Akane...Akane 
is Shampoo's new teddy. Shampoo wants to keep you in her bed and 
cuddle you every night, holding you while Shampoo sleeps." Akane
loved all that Shampoo was saying about her right now, it all helped
to reinforce her recovering self-esteem. "Hee! Hee! Thank you Shampoo
your being too kind to say those...." While Akane was talking to her,
Shampoo had closed in on her airen, and had began to firmly kiss and
embrace her.

It was a strong and passionate show of love from the Amazon, who just
couldn't hold it in anymore. She let go of a surprised Akane's mouth
so that she could talk, but only for a short while, Shampoo had plans
for her airen. "Shampoo? Is it time?" Shampoo knew exactly what this
question meant. "Yes Akane. It is time for us to finally make love
alone. Shampoo has looked forward to this all week. Spatula Girl
had her turn, now Cute Girl must be with Shampoo. This way...our
marriage is consummated, and official in Amazon law. Akane can never
leave Shampoo once we make love....one on one." Akane blushed upon
hearing this. Akane was never told about this Amazon law, and was
excited at the prospect of it. As far as the Amazon were concerned,
she was about to marry Shampoo for real. Her first marriage, this was
a moment to savour. "Emm...Shampoo? Does Ukyo know that she's married 
to you now?" "Opps....Shampoo forgot to tell her. Oh well, Shampoo
tell her in the morning. Is....is Akane ready to marry Shampoo?
Are you ready to make Shampoo the happiest girl in the whole world?"

She looked at Shampoo's eyes for a second before responding. "I wish
I could have you by my side the rest of my life Shampoo. It's like
you a part of me now, just like Ranma. I've never been more ready. 
Lets do it!" Shampoo's lit up with excitement. "That's all Shampoo 
needed to hear!" She took Akane's hand and cupped it around 
her groin and led her fingers along the lips of her vulva and to her
clit. Sure that Akane's hand was in place, Shampoo placed her own hand
in the same why onto Akane's vulva. She then wrapped her free arm
around Akane's torso and encouraged Akane to do the same to her.
They held each other tightly. "Ok Akane...This is an Amazon Joy Lock.
It is one of the traditional marriage lovelocks invented by Ryu.
Tradition says that if we feel climax at the same time, our marriage
is blessed. We must also kiss for the entire time, if we let go of
our kiss, we will suffer bad luck." "Ohh...I don't like the sound of
that." Shampoo didn't take it that seriously. "Hee! Hee! Hee! It only
a little fun Akane! Superstitions to make marriage love making more
interesting! Don't worry. If we enjoy ourselves, everything will be
ok, no matter what happens! Are you ready?" 

"Of coarse I am. Let's go!" "OK! Remember, don't let go of the kiss!
Hee! Hee! Hee!" After they both took a deep breath, they slowly and
carefully inched their may towards each other. It took longer than
usual for their lips to touch, but as they lightly pressed them
together, the girls suddenly realised something, this kiss meant
more than any kiss they had shared before, this kiss would bind them
together, forever. They locked those lips firmly and softly, sitting
into a rhythm where they would take turns in invading each other's
mouth with their tongues. They then began to groap blindly at one
another, keeping their eyes tightly shut, wanting to depend on touch
and feel alone, to tell if her lover was enjoying this.

The only thing that they were free to feel with their hand, was the 
vulva. Perhaps this was intended by Ryu's design of the lovelock.
The rest of their touch came from their own bodies, their legs and
hips brushing off each other, their breasts squeezed together, 
and of coarse, their lips touching as they kissed. As a result of 
all that had happened to them during the night, both girls were now
covered in a coat of sweat, their skin was now moist and slippery.
When their legs caressed, the sweat made them slip and slide off of
each other. Shampoo even had a hard time staying on Akane, but neither
girl seemed to mind, they were enjoying these sensations, as well as 
the feel of their hands, working on one another. 

As far as they were concerned, penetration was only a small bonus to
this experience. Just being together like this was enough to arouse
and excite them. They spent along time there, alone in the forest,
well over an hour they spent, caressing one another with their 
bodies and they both wished that this could last forever. Soon,
the whole world seemed to disappear around them, into the darkness
of the forest. Nothing else existed, just Shampoo and Akane.
Little did they know that they were being watched. A presence had
descended onto the forest, perhaps the same one that pinched Akane
earlier. It enjoyed watching them make love to each other, and
smiled in the darkness when it saw them enjoying their love. There 
was something sinister about it, and unfortunately, the girls never
knew that it was watching.

For the most part, the girls were silent. All this time, all you could
hear was their heavy breathing and perhaps the splashing of their
hands as they explored the inside of one another. But this quiet
had come to an end. Soft, almost gagged moans were starting to echo
around the forest. Shampoo was beginning to climax. They could both
feel their hearts pounding even faster. All this time, they could
feel their lover's heart beating, but now that the beats were strong
enough, they noticed something amazing. Their hearts were beating at
exactly the same rate, it was as if they shared the one heart.
They both realised this at the same time, and both opened their eyes
for that one second, to smile at each other with those eyes, to
let one another know that they had noticed it too.

For Shampoo, the joy of this passed quickly. She felt herself beginning
to climax, and knew that Akane wasn't there yet. She had to work
faster if she wanted them to come at the same time. The Amazon worked
on Akane's clit with more passion than ever before, this was important
to her, because she knew how tired she was now, and if she were to climax
first, she may fall asleep before she could finish with Akane. Akane
knew Shampoo hadn't much time left, she could tell by the feel of
her vagina, that it wouldn't be much longer now. But Shampoo was never
one to give up, she had to bring Akane to climax, now. Thinking back
to some of what she had learned with her scrolls, Shampoo knew of
a pressure point inside the vagina, far more sensitive than the G-spot.

If the Chinese girl could find and touch that point just right, Akane
would come in the few moments she had left before it happened to 
herself. It was a race against time, Shampoo's vagina was already
beginning to contract around her airen's fingers. As she felt around
the inside, Shampoo's memory worked overtime, she knew where it was,
she just had to remember. Unfortunately her fingers were lost inside
of her, all the walls of it felt the same, there seemed to be little
hope, it was almost time for Shampoo to come.

As the time ran out, Shampoo's hope was almost gone. All she could do now
was to prepare experience the orgasm which would wed her to Akane.
Shampoo would have enjoyed it anyway, but this was a matter of honour
for her, she had to do this right, and as the time finally ran out,
she suddenly found what she was looking for. A single touch of this
elusive point was enough to bring Akane all the way up to Shampoo's
level of excitement. They climaxed at the same time, and both screamed out
through their kiss when they came, all at once. They were both totally
spent, and were so tired, that they were reduced to a pile of exhausted
flesh. They were still stuck in the lovelock, and were about to fall
asleep that way. 

Shampoo knew it was safe to let go of their kiss now, they had avoided
bad luck and had managed to bless their marriage with good luck instead.
"(Akane...)" Whispered the Amazon, too tired to speak any loader. 
"(...we are married Akane. You are my wife, and Shampoo is yours. And
Akane...our marriage is blessed....blessed by our ghosts and we get good
luck because we kissed all the time! Ohh.....Shampoo is so so happy
now....)" Akane had to catch her breath for a second before she could
speak. "(....Ohhhhhh....that was amazing....how did you do that Shampoo?
It lasted forever, and then I just......exploded near the end....now
I'm so.........now I'm so.......I'm so.................sleepy.......)"
Akane fell asleep, too tired to keep herself speaking, while Shampoo
watched her with half open eyes. Shampoo was about to drift off
herself, but had one last thing to say. 

"(Akane......my cute little bride.......sleep well....I will meet you
in......your..........dreams......)" Her last waking breath was used
to kiss her airen good night, before falling asleep right there on top
of her, content that she had done that right thing that night.
They slept there in the forest all night long. Little did they know
that it was watching them, like it had all night long. They were
vulnerable now, fortunately it did nothing but watch them sleep.
Something was wrong here.....and the girls were blissfully unaware
of it. If only they knew.....

-----------------
Wednesday Morning.
-----------------

It was a beautiful sun filled morning. The birds were out early, their
song echoing throughout the valley, had woken Ukyo. As her eyes began
to ease open, after a restful night's sleep, she was greeted with a
welcome sight. On the other side of the coomicoomi, were both her
girlfriends, cuddled up together, and fast asleep. "It's about time..."
Remarked the cook in a tone of doting relief, glad that the girls had 
finally gotten together. 

Softly and as quietly as she possibly could, Ukyo pulled herself out of
the covers, and slowly crawled over to Akane. "(Psst, Akane....)"
Whispered Ukyo softly Akane's ear, hoping to wake her, and not Shampoo.
Ukyo wanted to spend some alone time with her first girlfriend.
It looked like whispering wasn't going to work, and she didn't want
to push Akane, she might wake the Amazon by accident. She had only
one option left to her. The cook gently moved her lover's head, 
so that it faced the sky, and with as much care as she could humanly
muster, she pressed her lips against those of her lover, and began to 
firmly kiss her.

It took about a minute or so, but the feel of Ukyo's lips began to
cause some movement from the Tendo girl, followed by some soft moans.
As far as the half-awake Akane was concerned, she was still dreaming,
probably dreaming about kissing her Ukyo. She was a little surprised 
when dreams suddenly became reality as she woke. When Ukyo saw that
she was awake, she let go of her mouth and smiled at her.
"(Ukyo?) Good morn....." Ukyo quickly gagged her with her hand.
"(Shhh....Don't wake Shampoo. I want to spend some time alone with
you.)" Excited at the prospect of this, Akane nodded her head, giving 
Ukyo the go ahead to pull her away from Shampoo, which wasn't an easy 
task, Shampoo was holding on to her very tightly. It took some effort,
but Ukyo found a way to slip Akane away from the Amazon's strong
embrace.

They remained silent as they sprinted away from the campsite, leaving
to Shampoo to rest alone. Ukyo led her into the forest before slowing
to a relaxed walking pace. "It's ok to talk now Akane, we won't wake
Shampoo here." Akane blushed a little before responding, something
had suddenly creped into her mind. "Emm....Ukyo? You wanted to be
alone with me? Does that mean you want to make love?" Ukyo was
amused by this and couldn't help giggling. "Hee! Hee! Hee! Maybe a 
little later sugar...I think that my naked body is starting to go to
your head! Although I do admit, I'm enjoying walking among this 
beautiful nature nude, it makes me feel like I'm part of it. I like 
seeing you this way too, but what I'd really like to do is spend some 
time with you...to talk." "Ohh...Ok. Let's talk. I haven't had much 
of a chance to do that with you this week."

"Hee! Hee! Have you noticed how Shampoo has changed? She's gotten
really soft ever since we became her girlfriends." "She's gotten..
..soft?" "Yes...she's softer now, tickle her and she'll be giggling
for hours, if you say something even the slightest bit romantic,
and she'll be all over like you're made of chocolate or something.
Ohh....and if she gets even a little upset, she bursts into tears.
I love what she's become! She's so emotional now!"
Akane smiled at Ukyo's enthusiastic audit of Shampoo's new attitude
towards them. "Yea...I guess you're right, she is more emotional
now...it must be because she finally has lovers, and the love she
has for us has melted her into a sweet little Shampoo...."
Akane let out a reflective sigh before continuing. "...I love
what she's become too."

"I've noticed that you and Shampoo have finally hooked up.." Said
Ukyo playfully. "..Did you have fun last night?" Akane blushed some
more when she remembered her night of passion with Shampoo. 
"Ohhh....Ukyo, It was amazing. She put me into an Amazon 'lovelock',
where we had to hold on to each other until we both orgasmed.
It was the most amazing sex I had ever had...." She stopped herself,
believing that what she had just said may have upset her girlfriend.
"...Ohh, I'm sorry Ukyo, I didn't mean that she was better than you,
your both the same, I mean you're better, I mean...."
Ukyo was more amused by this, she wasn't upset at all by Akane's praise
of Shampoo's love making. "Hee! Hee! Hee! Cut it out sugar! You'll get
your tongue tied! Don't worry Akane! That doesn't upset me. You're right,
she does give amazing sex! I've had her myself already....mmmm...I can
still feel her hand inside me. It was all so sensual. Of course, what
you and I share when we make love, is really special to me."

Akane, satisfied that Ukyo wasn't upset about this, was ready offload
some news on her. "Ukyo...I've something important to tell you."
Akane's serious tone of voice, peaked Ukyo's interest. "Oh? Go on."
Akane began to blush yet again, this time for a new reason.
"Last night....was very, very special. Shampoo made love to me in an
Amazon marriage lock. I'm married to her. I'm....I'm her wife now."
The cook's eyes lit up with excitement when this sank in. "Akane! I don't
believe it!" She wrapped her arms tightly around her beloved girlfriend
to hug her. "This is so great! I knew you could pull it off sugar!
Oh, I'm so proud of you! Was it hard?" Asked Ukyo with doting
affection. "Well...no. It was fun and....ahem, your married to her
too." Ukyo was a little confused. "Huh? I am?" "Yes, you are. Turns
out that the first time you make love, one on one, counts as the
marriage. You married her two nights ago." 

Ukyo began to scratch her head, she was happy to learn this, but
something still didn't fit right. "Hmm. But I thought the Kiss of Death
counts as the marriage." Akane stopped to think. "Oh yea....Hmmm.....
Maybe they both count. You have to do them both before your married to
an Amazon." Ukyo was satisfied with this. "Yea that must be it. Anyway,
I'm glad that the marriage has really cheered you up. I was starting to
get worried about you." This surprised the Tendo girl. "W...worried? Why?"
"Ohh Akane. Don't play dumb with me. I know you've been feeling really
sad and depressed since we came here. Was it because you were lonely?
Was it because I spent my time with Shampoo instead of you?"
Akane shyly nodded her head to both these questions. "Ohh Akane, I'm
so sorry..." Ukyo plants a soft kiss on Akane's lips. "...I know how
that feels. It's so hart breaking, being the outsider, I should
have known better, I should have put some time aside for you. It's
unforgivable! I love you, yet I treated you like you didn't matter.
I'm so sorry sugar." Said Ukyo with a tear in her eye, knowing
all too well, what it was like to be alone.

Akane held onto her even tighter. "Ohh Ukyo. It's ok. I feel much
better now. I realise that your only one girl, and you can only
be with one of us at any one time. If it means anything, I do
forgive you. But realise that I never stopped loving you. I just
put myself down, real down. Luckily, Shampoo was there to catch me,
when I was about to leave the both of you...I thought I was worthless
to you." "You were going to leave?!" This upset Ukyo, and the tear had 
grown into a flow of tears, while she grasped Akane even harder. 
"(sniff) Don't EVER leave me Akane! (sniff) You ARE worth something to
me.....You're priceless." Akane was clearly touched by this tearful 
plea.

"Aww....Ukyo. Don't cry. I'm not going to leave. I feel happy now,
I feel loved. Hee! Hee! Especially right now!!" Ukyo dried her eyes 
before continuing. "Oh, that's good....But I still want to make it
up to you." "You don't have to do anything for me Ukyo...."
Ukyo cut her short. "Oh, but I do sugar. I have something special
planned, a surprise!" Akane liked the sound of this.
"A surprise? Hee! Hee! What is it? I love surprises!" Ukyo had
cheered up after hearing the child-like excitement Akane's voice,
and had returned to speaking in her normal voice. "All I'm saying
sugar, is that it will be very useful to you....follow me."

Ukyo took Akane's hand and led her up a small hill, which then led to
a small clearing on a ledge overlooking the lake. Akane loved this
scene of the morning sun reflecting off the lake waters, and believed
that this was her surprise. "Ohh it's so beautiful. This is great 
Ukyo. It's just what I need to relax, thank you." "This isn't your
surprise Akane." Commented Ukyo playfully. Anything extra would have
been a bonus for the Tendo girl now, she had all she would ever want,
the only thing missing here was Ranma. "Ohh...then....where is this
surprise?" "You'll see in a minute, I want to ask you something first."
She took both of Akane's hands into her own and looked straight into
her girlfriend's eyes. 

"Akane....sugar....do you trust me?" An unusual question, thought the
Tendo girl, but she was still happy to reply. "Ukyo...I love you. That's
even better than trust. I trust you not to break my heart, or ever hurt
me. I even trusted you to take my virginity, because I knew you wouldn't
injure me. I trust you that much." A broad smile enveloped both their
faces. "But Akane...would you trust me with your life?" A serious
question, but the answer was no harder to find.

"Ukyo...I'd die without you. Of course I would trust you with my life."
A sly grin full of intent comes over Ukyo's face. "That's all I wanted
to hear." Without any kind of warning, Ukyo took hold of Akane and 
picked her up, holding her by her back and legs. This was very new
to Akane, Ukyo had never carried her like this before. She liked it,
but it was a surprise. "Wow! Hee! Hee! Ukyo! What are you up to?"
"You'll see! Now, take a deep breath and hold it in." "What the?....
WOA!! UKYO STOP!!" Ukyo had begun to run towards the ledge.
"Take a deep breath Akane! This is your last chance!" By the time 
Akane could think of a response, they were airborne.

Ukyo had jumped off the ledge, only the lake water was beneath them now.
Akane could only scream out in the few seconds it took them hit the
water. The water here was deep enough to dive in, and so after they
crashed into the water with a massive splash, they went straight down.
Akane was terrified, she expected to die here. Things couldn't of
gotten worse for her, or so she thought. Ukyo suddenly let go of Akane,
pushed away, and headed for the surface.

Ukyo's head broke the surface and she gasped for air before shaking her
hair like a soaked dog. She floated at the spot where she surfaced, 
and carefully watched a pool of bubbles some distance from her. She 
knew that they were coming from Akane. "Come on Akane! You
can do it. I know you can." Nothing happened. "It's not that hard
Akane. Fall back on your instincts." Still nothing. Ukyo was starting
to get a little worried, at least until she saw a distorted 
skin-coloured shape, beginning to ascend to the surface. Akane
surfaced which a huge splash of water and panic. She gasped for air,
screaming before she went under again, only to resurface seconds
later. "KICK AKANE! YOU CAN DO IT!" Akane was too interested in 
trying to save herself, than to listen to Ukyo's instruction.

"HEEEEEELLLPPPP!!!!" "DON'T PANIC AKANE! RELAX! JUST SPREAD YOUR ARMS
AND KICK YOU LEGS!!!" "AHHHHHHHHH!!!! HELP!! HELP UKYO!!" When Akane
sank yet another time, Ukyo decided that Akane had drowned quiet
enough for now, and went over to help her. Akane resurfaced again,
except that this time, she surfaced into Ukyo's waiting arms.
Ukyo held her tightly as they faced each other, and kept both of them 
afloat, by leaning Akane onto her chest as she swam there. Akane spent 
most of next few moments coughing up water, and trying to catch her 
breath, before breaking down into tears. "(sniff) Ukyo! How could you
do that to me! You nearly killed me!" Ukyo tried to use her softest
voice to explain her actions. "I wouldn't let you die Akane...."
"(sniff) Then WHAT THE HELL are you trying to do to me?!!"

Ukyo waited for Akane to stop crying before she answered. "Akane...
sugar...I'm trying to teach you to swim. You need to learn sooner
or later. I knew you wouldn't agree to going into the water 
voluntarily, so...I threw you in here, so that your own will to 
survive would teach you....and now that you've got a taster of what 
it's like, it's time I taught you some of the moves." Akane was 
terrified by this.  "NO! You can't! I..I can't do that....I can't 
swim!!! Please Ukyo! Bring me back to the shore. I'm so scared!!!" 
Ukyo only replied with a smile, before she began to swim backwards 
on her back, pulling Akane with her by the hands. The Tendo girl began 
to panic when she could feel herself levelling off, and her head 
beginning to sink. "AHHHH! UKYO! Stop! Help me!" "Hee! Hee! Hee! 
Better start kicking those legs again sugar! Otherwise, 
you'll just sink again!."

Akane had little choice, so she swallowed what little pride she had, 
and began to kick her legs furiously. It wasn't helping.
"Ok Akane, you've got the idea....now.....keep your legs straight, don't
bend them, use them like two large paddles." She tried her best to do 
this, it was helping a little, but she wasn't there yet. "Very good 
Akane! But you don't have to kick so hard! You'll tire yourself out,
it's all down to the rhythm of you legs. Just paddle them like your doing
now..." Feeling that Akane was nearly there with this stroke, Ukyo
swam further ahead, stretching Akane's arms out straight.
"Ok Akane, you're nearly there. Just hold your arms out like this..."
Akane was starting to get it together, she was nearly floating
on her own power now, her body was nearly horizontal with the surface.

Ukyo had only one thing left to teach her. "Ok Akane....this is it.
Take a deep breath, and put your head underwater, You need to make
your body entirely level, kinda like a plank of wood." Akane was still
a little upset. "But Ukyo, I can't, I'm too scared!" "Akane...sugar...
swimming is just like life, you just have to go in head first, and 
learn as you go, hoping for the best...just take a deep breath,
if the water frightens you, just close your eyes, you don't need to be
able to see to do this.....then, just plunge you head in....I believe
in you Akane....I know you can do this." It was almost enough, Ukyo's
kind and supportive eyes gave Akane the rest of the courage she needed
to do this. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and put her head
under the water.

As soon as she did that, some parts of her body began to surface, she
had levelled off....she was swimming. She didn't realise that Ukyo
was just pulling her along now. Ukyo could feel this, and knew that it
was time. As gently as she could, the cook let go of her girlfriend,
leaving her to swim unaided, before swimming off herself, a few meters
ahead to wait for Akane to reach her. It wasn't until Akane closed her
hands, when she noticed Ukyo wasn't there anymore. She stuck her head 
out of the water, to see where Ukyo was, and noticed that she was 
floating far ahead of her. The Tendo girl began to sink as she was 
beginning to panic.

"AHHHH! Ukyo! Why'd you let go?!! Help!!!" "Don't panic Akane! Just
take another breath and keep doing what you were doing. Remember...
arms stretched out, legs straight and kicking!" Again she had little
choice, except this time had a chance to contemplate the ridiculousness
of the situation she was stuck in. "(I can't believe this is happening! 
Why is she forcing me like this? Oh I wish I was home right now! 
I'm so scared! I want my Ranma!!)" As she felt herself sinking again,
Akane had no choice but try to get herself the rest of the way to
Ukyo, the only person who could get her back to the lakeshore,
and so she spread herself out and began to kick again, putting her
head underwater, after taking what she hoped, wouldn't be her last
breath.

She kicked, for all that she was worth, she just kicked, and though of
nothing else. The rest of the world didn't exist. It was just her, and
the water. The only thing she could hear right now, was that water,
and whenever she opened her eyes, all she saw was that water too.
If this didn't terrify her so much, Akane may have enjoyed this, the
sensation of the cutting thought the water, massaged her naked skin
and felt areas of herself she thought only the hand of lover could
make feel good. Unfortunately, the only other thing concerning her now,
was her survival. She thought that she wouldn't make it, that she'd
drown before she would get to Ukyo. Then terrible thoughts went through
her mind. What if she died? Ukyo and Shampoo would be grief-stricken,
they'd be so upset. 

Ukyo would cut out the outside world, too upset to talk to anyone,
even Konatsu. Shampoo would probably cry for years before she even
started to deal with this, and probably never get another Airen,
since she was honour-bound not to. Her father.....her father would
probably be hit the worst, losing yet another loved one. And Ranma...
well....she just imagined Ranma making some stupid comment at her
funeral, that ended up bringing the wrath of the entire Tendo
family upon him, as well as the murderous rage of her girlfriends,
especially Shampoo. Ok...maybe not, she thought to herself. Ranma
would be upset too.....she recons that he would all solemn, maybe
he'd be crying (she hoped).....maybe he'd be wearing traditional
robes, the one's she liked to see him in, except black.....or
maybe he could be a girl (Akane was beginning to enjoy this now)
.....then Ranma could wear a cute little black kimono......
or a.....

Her train of though was suddenly stopped, her hands had come in
contact with Ukyo's well toned hips. Sooner than she could realise
what she had come in contact with, Ukyo had picked her up out of
the water, and into her arms. Ukyo was overjoyed as she spoke to
her drenched girlfriend. "Oh well done Akane! I'm so proud of you!"
Akane was confused. "Huh? Why?" Asked Akane once she got her breath
back. "Look...." Ukyo turned Akane around so that she could see for
herself...how far she had swam. They were floating some distance
away from where they started, and Akane was speechless. "You swam
all that distance....." Ukyo turned Akane back around to face her,
and then looked proudly into her eyes. "...you did it Akane.
You can swim, sugar." When it finally sank in, Akane's eyes lit up
with excitement, the impossible had happened, she had swam. She
was so overjoyed with this, that she couldn't help but smile, 
and giggle. 

"Hee! Hee! Hee! I can't believe it! I swam!...Aww...and I was 
looking forward to my funeral. Oh well. Hee! Hee!" "Funeral?"
Ukyo was confused by Akane's cheerful reference to her own
death. "Huh? Oh....Well, back there I thought I'd drown and die,
so I started imagining my ideal funeral...." "Oh...Nothing wrong
with an ego trip I suppose. Hee! Hee! Did you imagine Ranma as
a boy or as a girl?" Akane was surprised that Ukyo had imagined
the same funeral as her. "Well...I hadn't decided. I was basing
my decision in which funeral clothing looked better." "Yea....
I think Ranma would look cuter in that black kimono..." Akane 
was now truly surprised. "Wow! Ukyo! That's the exactly the
same funeral I imagined!" "Well...great minds do think alike!
Hee! Hee! Except my funeral was better. It had a very cute little
shorthaired brunette, in a her own cute little funeral dress, 
with waterlogged eyes because she's been crying for days...."

"Aww...Ukyo that's sweet....and kind of disturbing...." Akane
took a deep breath and hugged Ukyo tightly before she continued.
"...Thank you so much Ukyo....I can finally swim, thanks to you."
Ukyo smiled a warm smile before replying. "Thank you Akane, but it
was mostly you. You just needed a (ahem) push. You've learned more 
in a few minutes, than most people do in their first few lessons.
I'm so very proud of you." They both looked each other in the
eyes for a second. Ukyo was incredibly proud of her girlfriend
right now, she was proud of her bravery and proud of they way 
she learned so quickly. Akane was filled with gratitude, she
was glad that Ukyo was her girlfriend, and loved the way she 
showered her with attention. A second later, they had already 
begun to kiss each other passionately....at least until they began 
to sink and Ukyo had to put energies back into concentrating on 
her swimming.

"Looks like we'll have to wait for our kiss." Joked Ukyo as she
tried to stabilise herself and her girlfriend. "Aww...Now I wish
I knew more about swimming." "Don't worry Akane, I can teach you
the other swimming strokes in time. Right now, you need to practice
that stroke you just learned.......hmm...." Ukyo began to scan the
lake shore with her eyes, and spotted a large rock which stuck out
from the surface and was not far from the bank. "(Perfect!) Emm....
sugar? How do you feel about some more swimming?" The Tendo girl
was a little confused by Ukyo's clearly loaded question.

"Emm...I don't know...why?" "Well...see that rock?" Ukyo points
to the rock she spotted. "Yes." "If you can swim to it, you've
got the a hang of it, and are ready to learn more." Akane
was hesitant, she still wasn't too confident of her skills.
"I...I don't know...I'm not even sure how to start off."
"Don't worry, I'll start you off, besides....."
Ukyo moved her lips closer to Akane's ear and whispered.
"(If you do it...I'll make love to you, right here and now.)"
That was all she needed to get her going. "Alright! Let's
get started!" Yelled Akane, excited at the prospect having
sex with Ukyo again.

Ukyo firmly but carefully took hold of her girlfriend's torso
and lowered her so that she would be parallel with the water.
Her touch excited Akane, because she knew that her girlfriend
would be touching her like this again, to make love to her.
"Ok sugar....get into the position I taught you, start kicking,
and I'll let go the second you put your head underwater."
"What if something goes wrong? What if I mess it up and sink?"
"Don't worry Akane. It's only a couple of metres deep, and if
something does go wrong, I'm a good swimmer, I can rescue you
in seconds." Her reassurance was always enough for Akane
and so she straightened her arms and legs, and began to kick.
"Ready?" Akane nodded her head to Ukyo's question before taking 
a deep breath and plunging her head underwater.

Ukyo let go, leaving Akane to cruise slowly towards her goal,
and when she was confident that her short-haired girlfriend
was far enough away, she dived underwater, to watch her and
her body swimming from there. All Akane could think about right 
now was her reward for getting to the rock. Ukyo hadn't made love
to her for some time now, they hadn't even done it alone together
since the very first time they made love. This kept her going
as she tried her best to swim, and she was doing well for a
complete beginner, even the fear that she felt only moments
ago, had vanished. She even felt confident enough to open
her eyes, and what she saw seconds later was a pleasant
surprise. 

Ukyo suddenly appeared beneath her, and was swimming only
inches away from her, facing the surface. The cook swam a
little further up so that their faces would be level, and
so she smiled at her, with her lips and her eyes, they didn't
need to be able to talk, they could tell what their lover thinking,
just by the look on their face. But still....Akane was in for a
wonderful surprise. As they swam together and parallel, Ukyo
slyly smiled at her lover after lustfully scanning her body with 
her eyes. Akane was always pleased when Ukyo paid this kind of
attention to her, but she didn't expect Ukyo to do what she
did next.

Ukyo allowed herself to float further to the surface so that their
bodies were mere centimetres from each other. They were so close 
that now their breasts brushed off each other with each stroke.
It was then that Ukyo made her move. With no warning, she
suddenly wrapped her arms around her lover and pulled her down.
Before Akane had a chance to panic, Ukyo locked her lips with
her lover, sharing their air in one kiss. Akane hadn't a clue what
was going on, but she trusted in Ukyo, and so she didn't panic
when they sank even further underwater. Akane kept her eyes open
all the time, she needed to know what was going on. Ukyo on the
other hand, kept her eyes closed as she enjoyed the kiss that
she was sharing with her lover. A kiss was always important to
her, especially with Akane, and she didn't want to ruin this
moment for herself by opening her eyes, but as she felt Akane's
body tense up, she could tell that her girlfriend was nervous,
and so she opened her eyes.

Neither girl could speak to each other underwater, but thankfully
they didn't need words. Ukyo gave Akane a reassuring look, which
also seemed to ask the girl to hold her while they kissed. Akane
received the message and smiled at Ukyo with her eyes, before closing
them gently. And as she relaxed her body, she moved her arms out to
embrace Ukyo, who was already holding her as tightly as she could 
underwater. With their eyes closed, the girls' other senses came into
play. The mere touch of their bodies, the feel an temperature of their
skin, all the usual things that they would feel when they were 
intimate, except this time there was a bonus. The feel of the lake 
water gently flowing around them massaged their skin and added to 
their pleasure. They could even feel themselves becoming horizontal,
standing in mid water as they sank. The feeling of total immersion
made them feel totally free as they floated, almost weightless, but
this freedom only encouraged them to hold on even tighter to each 
other. 

Ukyo knew that they hadn't much time left underwater, and so she
did something she had wanted to do since she fell in love with Akane.
She took one of her hands and began to cup Akane's groin gently,
massaging her vulva, much to Akane's surprise and joy. The Tendo girl
was loving this and had could only react in one way, she wrapped
her legs around Ukyo's torso forcing her older girlfriend to hold
her vulva even tighter. But Akane didn't feel that this was fair.
Ukyo was making love to her, but she was doing nothing for her, this
had to change, and so she began to massage Ukyo's ass with her smooth 
legs, knowing how much the chef loved to feel them against her skin.
Akane could tell that Ukyo was enjoying this. She could almost
feel Ukyo's smile on her lips.

Unfortunately, before Akane could even begin to climax, Ukyo stopped
everything she was doing and let go of Akane. Their time was up,
they had used up all their air, and Ukyo had taken hold of Akane
and began to swim her to the surface. It didn't take long for them
to break the surface, and fortunately they surfaced right beside
the rock that Akane was swimming for moments ago. Akane was too
exhausted to swim anymore, so Ukyo helped her to lean up against
the rock before leaning against it herself. It took them a few
few minutes for them to catch their breath before they could talk.
Ukyo was first to speak. "Phew! That was great! I've wanted to do
that since our first night together. (I just needed to get you to
swim!) Hee! Hee! Hee!"

"Oh! So THAT'S the reason you thought me how to swim. Hee! Hee!" 
Replied Akane playfully. "Ohh, you know that isn't true. I did
want to teach you how to swim, just because I think you need 
you need to know it. Everyone needs to know how to swim. I make
it my mission to teach anyone I'm close to. Hmm...I wonder if
can Ranma swim?" Asked the cook with a sly smile on her face.
"Hee! Hee! You know he can!..." Akane stopped herself, she had to
say something to Ukyo and so she 'jumped' over to her lover to
hug her before she spoke. "What you did just a minute ago was amazing!
I didn't know you could have sex underwater! Thank you so much!"
Akane's gratitude was heart warming for Ukyo. "Aww...sugar, it was
nothing really. Besides, I didn't really have sex with you, I
only just fondled you. Hadn't a chance to do more."

"Oh...Can't have sex underwater for too long without scuba gear, huh?
How about swimming?" Ukyo was confused by her question. "What do you
mean sugar?" "Well....can you have sex swimming?" Asked the Tendo girl
shyly, with intent. "OH!....Yes, yes defiantly...but it's tricky. 
Both lovers would need to know a few things about swimming though..." 
Akane's hope of doing this suddenly evaporated. "Oh...then that means
I can't do it..." She said with a face of sadness, but Ukyo was quick
to reassure her. "Oh no! Akane...sugar! You can do it! You just need to
learn a little more." "Like what?" "Oh, I don't know....maybe we should 
go to that shallow water, and we'll see what I can teach you. And 
don't worry if you can't get it. We can always have..hee! hee!...sex 
on the beach!" Akane looked around dumbfounded. "But there's no
beach here..." Ukyo playfully squeezed Akane's nose in response to her
cute ignorance. "Hee! Hee! Sugar...you know what I mean! We'll do it
on the shore! Now...can you swim with me over to that shore?"

Akane tensed her muscles a little to get a feel of them, they seemed
tired and sore. "I don't think I can Ukyo. I'm too tired." "That's
ok sugar, just hold onto my back, and I'll doggy paddle over there."
Unbelievably, that's exactly what she did, swimming not unlike a dog,
with Akane holding onto her neck for dear life. They were only seconds
away from the shore, both girls could now stand in the water, and
so Ukyo positioned them to stand. The water here was still deep 
enough to cover most of their bodies. Akane stood in the deeper water,
with everything but her head underwater. Ukyo stood slightly higher,
her shoulders broke the surface. "Ok sugar...anything in particular
you want to learn?" Akane had to think about this. "Well...you know
the way you can float in one spot?" "Yea..." "Can you teach me that?"
"Emm...It's tricky, but I'll try! Ok Akane, the first thing you need
to do is...."

--

Back at the campsite Shampoo was beginning to stir. Her body had begun
to miss the warmth of Akane and so she reached out blindly for her
beloved airen. "(mmmm......Akane?)" She couldn't feel Akane, so then
she began to pat the coomicoomi around her with the hope of touching
flesh with her hand. Again, nothing. "Akane?" Shampoo's eyes began to
ease open as soon as she realised that her younger lover was not lying
beside her. She could see that the coomicoomi was now empty. "Akane?
Ukyo?!" Shampoo was starting to get worried, and then frantic.
"Aiya!!! Where are Shampoo's airens?!" She jumped out of the covers
and onto her feet before using her well honed Amazon tracking skills
to find them. She didn't have to look far, she could hear Akane's 
splashing from the lake. 

She darted across the training field, dodging the training poles as
she moved at lightning speed into the forest, and up to the lakeshore. 
It was then that she caught sight of her airens. She could see them
giggling and playing. Akane was trying her best to swim, while
Ukyo playfully tickled her torso, putting Akane off and causing her 
to fail, again and again. Both girls seemed to be enjoying this.
"Hee! Hee! Hee! Stop tickling me Ukyo! I can't concentrate! Hee! Hee!
Hee! Stop! Hee! Hee!" "Come on sugar, Hee! Hee!, if you can swim
while I tickle you, you'll be a pro in no time! Hee! Hee!"
Shampoo breathed a sigh of relief. She was glad to see they both
alright, and she liked what she was seeing. "No Ukyo! Hee! Hee!
Hee! Hee! Don't tickle me DOWN THERE!! Hee! Hee! Ohh! I can't stand it!"
"UKYO!! AKANE!! NIHAO!!!!!" 

Both of the girls attention was directed to the newcomer, whom they were
both pleased to see. "Oh! Good morning sugar! I was just here with
Akane teaching her to..." "I CAN SWIM SHAMPOO!!!" Butted in Akane
excitedly, hopping up and down causing ripples in the water.
"Really? Aww! Shampoo so so happy for Akane! Swimming is the best
fun!....Ukyo and Akane have been playing in lake?" "That's right!"
Announced Ukyo, proudly holding her student. "Hee! Hee! Shampoo
want to play too!" Shampoo made a dash for the water, it looked like
she was about to dive in. However Ukyo didn't think it was such a 
good idea... "No wait Shampoo! The water is..." Too late, Shampoo
dived in. "...cold." Finished Ukyo, surprised. 

Sure enough, it wasn't a girl who surfaced, but a screaming cat instead.
"Oh Shampoo...come on sugar....let's get her to dry land...."

-----------------

Cologne sat by the water's edge, motionless like a human statue as she 
meditated. Nothing could have disturbed her from her forced slumber, 
not even her hyperactive granddaughter. It was a scene of serenity, 
which didn't last. Off in the distance, on the canopy of the forest, 
a flock of blackbirds suddenly took flight, upset about something.

In the blink of an eye, Cologne had opened her own and as she watched 
the birds disappear from sight, she began to feel an unnatural presence 
nearby. To her own horror, she recognised what it was. 
"(No...it can't be, she's been dead for so many years...)" 
As this sunk into her soul, something else did.

"(Cologne.......Cologne, you know who I am.)" Disturbed by what she was 
hearing she replied to this voice in her head. 
"(I haven't heard you in years. But why do I hear you now? I don't need you 
anymore!)" "(Oh really Cologne.)" It replied, almost taunting her with 
it's  voice. "(Do you forget my little Cologne? How I helped you get your 
Airen by playing with his dreams?)" 

Cologne didn't reply, furious, and a little afraid of the voice, so 
familiar to her. "(Cologne......COLOGNE!! Answer me Cologne.)"
Cologne collected all of her bravery, and set up a strong front against this 
thing. "What do you want Ryu?" Then Ryu replied with her evil, whispering 
voice. "You still own me, my little Cologne. I need something you have.
Something you would never give up. I'm taking her from you Cologne. 
I'm taking all three of them." 

Cologne got to her feet furious at Ryu. "You leave Shampoo alone....
Your fight is with me!"  Ryu's tone of voice became softer, but no less 
sarcastic. "Aww....a grandmother's love. I don't blame you for wanting to 
protecting her, she really is.....very......very......beautiful."
"RYU!!!!" "Enjoy your time with her, while it lasts...."

----------------

Ukyo and Akane had managed to get Shampoo back to the campsite. They had
put some clothes on and were trying to boil a kettle of water over a small
campfire. They were going to use the hot water to change Shampoo back to 
her human form. The chill of the morning still hung over the valley, and
so both girls huddled together for warmth. Ukyo had managed to calm down
the feline Amazon, and now she lay asleep, curled up on Ukyo's lap, 
purring while Akane rubbed her.

It was taking a while for the water to boil, so the girls decided to
occupy themselves with something they had put off for a while...
"How about.......Kasumi?" Suggested Ukyo as she racked her brain.
"Hmm......Naa.....I know what your thinking Ukyo, she is very nice to
everyone she knows....but.....I don't think it could ever work out between
her and Konatsu." Ukyo was a little disappointed by this, since she 
believed that Kasumi would make a perfect girlfriend for her Konatsu. 

While they were thinking some more, a cheeky grin grew on Akane's face.
"I know!..." She announced excitedly. "...how about.....Hinako!!"
Ukyo was disgusted with the idea. "That's sick Akane! She's our teacher!!
And she must younger than ten years old! There is no way......"
She stopped when she noticed Akane's giggling. "...oh, 'Ha' 'Ha'. I should
have known that you weren't serious!" Akane continued to laugh.
"Hee! Hee! Hee! You should of seen the look on your face when I suggested
it! Ha! Ha! Ha!" The Tendo girl's laughter brought a grudging smile to 
Ukyo's face, she didn't want to laugh at this, but Akane's feelings
seemed to rub off on the chef herself, and she couldn't help but smile.

"S..stop it Akane!  You're making me laugh! It's (Hee!) (Hee!) not THAT 
funny!" "Oh really?..." Remarked Akane trying to keep in her laughter.
She then stood up and walked a few steps away. "I think it's hilarious!
Imagine it...Konatsu with Hinako! Hee! Hee! Hee!" Ukyo was starting to 
lose some her self control, and gagged herself with both her hands to
stop herself from giggling. "It's not funny Akane! (Hee!) (Hee!) You
shouldn't say things like (Hee!) (Hee!) that!"

Akane wasn't about to give up on this. "Not that funny eh?...."
It was then that Akane fixed her hair to look kind of like Hinako's.
She then staired at Ukyo with the eyes of a lover, before seductively
advancing towards her, and with her best Hinako impression she said:
"Konatsu...." Akane was pretending that her girlfriend was Konatsu,
as she spoke seductively to her. "Konatsu....you've been skipping classes..
time to teach you a lesson...." Ukyo was nearly in hysterics with her
gagged giggling. Akane's act was convincing.

"Ohh....Konatsu....I need you Konatsu.....I need you to.....to...."
Then without warning Akane fell to her knees, and with the wide eyes
and voice of a little girl she said: "....to get me some ICECREAM!!"
Ukyo just couldn't hold it in anymore, and burst out laughing.
She had managed to wake Shampoo before she had stopped her laughter.
"Ok! Ok! I give in! It is funny! Hee! Hee! Hee! But I still need to
get Konatsu a girl!" "Yea....I know....." Just then they were interrupted
by some meowing beside them. Shampoo was trying her best to get their
attention, and succeeded. "Aww...sugar, you're awake...." Said Ukyo with
soft, doting tone of voice. Shampoo continued to meow at them, trying
her best to communicate, and started to sound frustrated when neither
girl understood her.

"Are you trying to say something Shampoo? What's wrong?" Akane's ignorance
seemed to upset the unusual cat, causing her to stop meowing and start 
crying as bitterly as a cat could. "Aww...She's crying....don't worry
sugar, I think the water is nearly hot enough now." Reassured Ukyo
while she moved to kettle, and after discovering that the temperature was
right, she poured the water onto Shampoo, drenching her with it, and
forcing a transformation. The girls were surprised by what appeared.
Indeed, a nude Shampoo did appear as expected, but she was crying.
She cried bitter tears as she lay on her front, grasping onto some
nearby grass while she sobbed.

The girls were naturally concerned. "Shampoo....sugar what's wrong."
Asked the chef softly. The Amazon managed the stop her crying long enough
to speak. "Sh..sh...Shampoo wanted to play with Airen's too! Sh...sh...
Shampoo wanted to swim in the lake!" She continued crying while the girls
tried to take this in. Finally, they realised that the only way to 
comfort her, was to hold her. They both took an arm each, sat Shampoo up,
and embraced her tightly while they sat on each side of her. As soon as
the Chinese girl realised what was happening, she cried on Akane's 
shoulder, holding onto her for support. Akane, trying her best to cheer
Shampoo up, wrapped an arm around her while she spoke.

"Aww....Shampoo, you really wanted to play with us in the water? You
know....we could always go to a hot spring. It'll be just the three of
us.....we'll have fun!" Akane's soft words had calmed her down a little,
but she still upset about this. "(sniff) A...Akane not understand.....
S...Shampoo loved to swim on cold water. Every morning, back home, 
Shampoo used to get up first thing to swim in the cold lake.....
Shampoo loved the feeling of cold water on her skin....Shampoo
loved everything about it........but now (sniff).......Shampoo will
NEVER feel that again. Because of the curse, Shampoo will always turn
into a cat.......Ohhhh.....SHAMPOO IS SO STUPID!!!!!"

She broke down into tears again, holding onto a concerned Akane even 
tighter. "(Ohh...Shampoo....)" Whispered Ukyo under her breath, now 
feeling pity for her girlfriend, and sadness for the fact that she 
couldn't do anything about it. While they worried about Shampoo, the 
matriarch slowly approached the campsite. Cologne was deeply troubled by 
what she had heard from that evil spirit, but she couldn't tell the girls 
about it. This information would only serve to frighten them, possibly 
ruining the bonding that they had come here for. Fortunately, other 
things  occupied her mind. She knew why Shampoo was crying. 

"Well....I recognise those tears..." Announced the matriarch, taking
Shampoo's girlfriend's by surprise. "...she's upset about her curse
again, isn't she?" Ukyo was astonished by this. "But...How did you 
know that?" She asked while the matriarch sat in front of Shampoo.
"The curse affects her more than you know...the truth is that she's
always been upset about it, she's just hidden it very well. Instead
of bringing her closer to Ranma, it's only served as a disability
for her, and it's broken her up inside. I suppose that's why I
wanted her to get an Airen as soon as possible. You girls have really
helped her rebuild herself. She needs you more than you can imagine."

By the way she held onto Akane, the girls could easily see this, and
almost felt like crying themselves when they saw the tears run down
her cheeks. "I...I can't stand to see her like this...Cologne....
Is there any way I can cheer her up?" Asked Akane desperately. 
Surprisingly, the matriarch replied with a chuckle, before saying:
"Oh Akane, surely you know by now what makes her feel happy..."
Akane looked down at the younger Amazon for a second.
"Well...I suppose there is one thing....hope it works...."
It was then that Akane gently took hold of Shampoo's head, and
brought it up to her own. 

Shampoo was too caught up in her own tears to notice any of this,
but her ignorance soon ended, when Akane pressed her lips against
her own. She kissed her a lightly as possible, but it wasn't enough,
Shampoo still cried. So she kissed even firmer, and sure enough,
the crying began to die away, eventually replaced by quite moans,
then nothing....Shampoo had fallen asleep, and had slumped onto
Akane's body. Ukyo watched all this with fascination. She couldn't
believe that a mere kiss could do this. "Wow! Sugar...you put her
to sleep!" Cologne wasn't surprised at all. "Yes, that's quite
normal...." "But....Cologne, Akane stopped her crying and put her
to sleep with a single kiss..." "Hee! Hee! Yes I know! That's the
power an Airen has on her lover. She can do the same to you two,
you know. So watch out when she kisses you, or she could have you
under her control!"

Only some of what the matriarch said passed by Akane, she was too
interested in mothering Shampoo, stroking her head, and cradling
her in her arms. "Cologne....is it because I'm her wife now?"
Asked Akane softly, still looking at Shampoo. This question
confused the matriarch. "Wife? What makes you think you're her
wife?" "Well...last night, she made love to me in a 'lovelock'.
She told me that it counted as the wedding...the same happened
the Ukyo the night before. We're married now."

This seemed to amuse the matriarch, who then began to laugh at it.
"No Akane, you're not married to her, not yet. Oh..Shampoo,
jumping ahead as usual! An Amazon marriage is a lot more complex
than your Japanese weddings....it's done in three different
stages. First there is the Kiss of Death, a marriage of heart.
Then the Lovelock, a marriage of body. Then finally, the 
Bonding Ceremony, a marriage of soul. After all these, you will
be married to her." "What is this Bonding Ceremony?" Asked
Ukyo with genuine curiosity. "Well...it can take any form you like. 
A normal Japanese wedding would be an acceptable bonding ceremony."

Satisfied with what they had heard, the girls settled down with
Shampoo by the campfire, drying her off, keeping her warm. 
Eventually she woke up, in a far brighter mood than she had gone
to sleep with, and so after a good breakfast...the girls began
to train. Ukyo and Akane decided to work together. Akane would
practice her new defensive stance, while Ukyo would attack her
from many angles with her large spatula. While they were doing
this, a fully awake Shampoo sat by the hill with Cologne.

"Oh..Shampoo made a fool of herself again. Crying like baby
over something so so stupid." Lamented the young Amazon. "It's 
not that stupid..." Reassured Cologne while she looked at the 
girls train. "...the curse has changed you. It's made things 
harder for you. You may be a strong warrior, but your feelings
are governed by your heart. No matter how strong you are, you
cannot ignore what it tells you. You will sometimes cry over 
things you think of as stupid, and will want to cry on your 
Airen's shoulders. But that is what they are there for."

Shampoo stayed silent for a while, trying to soak all this in.
"Ohhh....Shampoo did all this to get an Airen. Shampoo did all
this to get Ranma. But Shampoo can't cry on his shoulder.
Ranma is afraid of cats! Ranma is afraid of Shampoo!!!"
She was about to burst back into tears when Cologne stopped
her with a single touch. It seemed that the matriarch knew
how to stop Shampoo from crying. She talked to her in their
native language. "Don't say that Xian. He does like you, I'm
sure of it. There is a link between you two. Ohh...Xian. Don't
ever put yourself down. You are my greatest accomplishment,
and one day, you will become a great leader to our tribe."

Shampoo was surprised and touched by this. She replied in Chinese.
"I'm your...greatest accomplishment? Oh Grandmother, thank you,
that means so much to me! Ohh....If only I could get Ranma to feel 
that way about me. If only I could master Japanese, then I could speak 
normally to him, and describe my unending love for him...." Shampoo 
looked down disheartened. "Xian..." Said Cologne with a reassuring 
tone of voice. "...if you are so bad with Japanese, how do you 
explain your two Japanese Airens?" Shampoo shrugged at this question, 
believing it's answer to be obvious. "That's different Grandmother!
It's like we don't need words. I just look into their eyes, at their 
smiles, listen to kindness of their voices, and I can tell how much 
they love me. It's like...." She stopped herself when she saw the sly
look on her matriarch's face. "....Oh, I see. You don't have to say
it! Your right, I'm wrong! It doesn't matter how I speak to Ranma,
he will love me for who I am. Is that what you were going to say?"

The matriarch just smiled some more, forcing a smaller smile to grow
on her granddaughter. "I.....suppose you're right. It doesn't matter,
I'll just do what I've always been doing. Hee! Hee! With my new Airens!"
Cologne was glad to see that Shampoo's mood was now back to normal.
"Well Xian. Now that you're feeling better, do you want to start 
speaking Japanese again?" "Aww...Do I have to? It's so liberating
to speak normally again..." "Xian...You know that have to practice..."
It was then that Shampoo centred herself, and began to speak Japanese
again. "Shampoo knows....Shampoo needs to speak as much as possible
to master language." "Good..." Replied the matriarch in Japanese.
"...then now you'll be ready to learn a new move."

Shampoo's eyes lit up upon hearing this. "New Move?!! Hee! Hee! Really?"
Cologne nodded her head, triggering Shampoo to jump to her feet, before
bouncing around the place excitedly. "Hee! Hee! Hee! Yay! What move will
Shampoo learn?" Cologne stood up and began to walk towards one of the
old training poles. "This is something I have been trying to master
for years....and I think you're ready to try it too. Maybe you'll even
have better luck." "Hmm...Shampoo don't think so, if grandmother can't
do it, Shampoo hasn't much of a chance...." "Don't be so sure..."
Said Cologne while she put an empty can on top of the training pole,
and began to walk away. "...you have the ability to do more than me..."
The matriarch sat back down beside her granddaughter, and began to
concentrate. "Now listen Shampoo. First you must concentrate...."

Shampoo scratched her head in confusion. "Emm...this doesn't look like
a fighting move...." "You'll see Shampoo. Now, watch the can. First you
need to concentrate. Then you need to link with your ghost, just look
deep enough. Then...you....visualise your target. I'm....visualising...
the...can...on the pole...." Shampoo watched her grandmother, quietly
surprised by how deep her concentration went. Her attention soon 
returned to the can....it was now moving on it's own. It seemed to move
a short distance left or right on the surface of the pole top, before
returning to an idle state. Cologne had done all she could with this,
and struggled to catch her breath while she rested, prompting Shampoo's
concern for her. "Oh no! Is grandmother ok?"

"I'm...I'm ok Shampoo...It just takes a lot of effort. As you can see,
that is all I can do with that technique." "But...how does Shampoo
use this for fighting?" Replied her granddaughter, still confused.
"Well...you see, those who can master this, can use their own ghost
as a weapon in battle. It is a powerful weapon too Shampoo, no 
technique in Martial arts can beat it." Shampoo was on edge with
excitement upon hearing this. "That..that...that would make Shampoo...
INVINCIBLE!!! Hee! Hee! Hee! Yay! Shampoo would be unbeatable!"
"Calm down Shampoo! You've got to master it first! Now sit down and 
concentrate." Shampoo did this, trying her best to contain herself.
"Ok...as soon as you calm down, close your eyes and try to empty 
your mind." "Ok...mind empty" "Shampoo, you can't talk if your mind
is empty!" "Opps! Sorry..." "Now concentrate.....try and reach your
ghost. It's not too hard, just reach the part of yourself which loves
your Airens. Once you reach it, visualise the can, and throw the power
of ghost towards it."

Shampoo just sat there with closed eyes, concentrating so hard, that
she almost looked like human statue. Cologne could feel that Shampoo
had reached her ghost, and so she watched the can, expecting at least
a little movement. Seconds, then minutes passed. Nothing happened.
The matriarch was beginning to believe that nothing would happen.
"Aww..oh well Shampoo. Don't worry, it took me years to learn what
little I can do with it....don't feel dis.." While she was talking,
something completely unexpected happened. The can suddenly shot off
the pole, and flew like a bullet into the trunk of a tree some
distance away.

Cologne just looked at this dumbfounded. It so spectacular that it
caught the attention of Akane of Ukyo who looked at the now impaled
tree, and at a still meditating Shampoo, with disbelief.
"Shampoo? Did....did you do that?" Asked Ukyo still startled by what
she had seen. Shampoo's eyes slowly eased open upon hearing her
airen's call for her. "(Shampoo....touched ghost. Ghost used energy
on....can.....)" Whispered Shampoo to herself while her grandmother
looked at her, with a new revelation in her mind.
"(So that is it. It must be her curse...)" Thought the matriarch to
herself. "(...it gives her the power. Ranma must be able to do it too.
No wonder Ryu wants her. If she were ever to absorb Shampoo......she 
would be unstoppable.......for centuries....)"

-----------

After all the excitement of Shampoo's success, the girls got back to
their usual training. Cologne had told Shampoo to practice this new
ability of her's, making sure that she could control it. It would
take time, more time than usual, but Shampoo would eventually be
able to use this as a functional battle move. 

Night fell. The girls had earned their rest and so headed straight
for Shampoo's oversized sleeping bag, stripped off, and snuggled in 
together. This time Akane was in-between her lovers with Uyko on her
left and Shampoo on her right. Although they were tired, they didn't 
feel like sleeping yet, and so they talked. "A ghost weapon?" Asked
Ukyo, confused. "Yes. Shampoo learn Ghost Weapon. It is ancient
Amazon fighting technique. It makes fighter almost totally
invincible. Shampoo will be one of the most powerful Amazon ever!"
Announced the Amazon with some pride, while Akane lay there with
a please smile on her face, listening to them.

"Hmm..." Mused Ukyo. "...I bet the Amazon will give you some special
name for learning that. Something like 'Shampoo the All Powerful' or
'Shampoo the Purple-Haired'! Hee! Hee!" Shampoo was pleased with her
airen's attention, but had to correct her. "No...Shampoo wouldn't
be given a title like that." This confused the chef. "Well...why?"
Shampoo was shy about this, but she had to tell them sooner or
later. "Shampoo's real name isn't 'Shampoo'....That is Shampoo's
name in Japanese. Shampoo's real Chinese Amazon name is...Xain Pu."
Both of her girlfriends eyes lit up upon hearing that. 
"Your real name's Xian?" Asked Ukyo with a doting tone of voice.
"Aww...That is such a cute name." Shampoo blushed at this, she didn't 
expect them to like it. "(Th..thank you Ukyo. That means a lot to 
Shampoo.)"

"Emm...Shampoo?" Asked Akane after clearing her thought. "Would you
like us to call you Xian from now on? It is a cute name." Shampoo
couldn't take this she just blushed even more. "Well...if Airen's
want to call Shampoo by her name, that is ok, but Shampoo like her
given Japanese name. It is what Ranma calls Shampoo by, and it is what
Shampoo's beloved airens call her. The name 'Shampoo' means more to 
Shampoo now, it is how Shampoo thinks of herself." "Well that's good..."
Commented the Chef. "...because you'll always be our little Shampoo."
The Amazon just smiled at them warmly, she hadn't the words in Japanese
to thank them properly.

"Now...as for Akane..." Announced Ukyo suggestfully so that the Amazon
girl would understand what she was about to do to Akane. "Akane sugar,
you gave us a little scare today." "(I'm...I'm sorry...I didn't mean it.)"
Replied the Tendo girl meekly. "Oh no, sorry isn't good enough!" Scolded
Ukyo playfully, kindly telling off her girlfriend, but not in a bad way,
it was just another way of telling her that she loved her. 
"You must *never* think of leaving us Akane! Never!" "(But..what if I do.)"
Replied Akane shyly, loving the way that Ukyo was speaking to her. It was 
then that the Chef rolled over to lay over half of Akane, prompting Shampoo
to cover the over half, immobilising Akane, holding her down in a
loving embrace. Akane was loving this kind of attention. It got better
as both Ukyo and Shampoo gently stroked Akane's cheeks.

Ukyo continued to lovingly scold Akane. "If you *ever* try to leave us
Akane...(We will tie you up, hold you down, and keep you in our arms...
forever)." Upon the completion of Ukyo's whispered and very cheerful
warning, both Ukyo and Shampoo's heads were very close to each other,
their breaths tickling each other's skin. "(If Akane ever thinks of
leaving Shampoo, she will use dreaded Amazon Love Knot to tie Akane,
there is no way to escape from that knot. Shampoo refuses to lose
her favourite teddy bear! Shampoo needs you to fall asleep)." Akane's
smile grew even more upon hearing this from the Chinese girl.
"(I....I promise. I'll never leave you girls, I love you too much!)"

They were satisfied with this, they already knew that Akane wouldn't
leave them, and it was time to reward her for that. Both Ukyo and
Shampoo smiled at each other, as if to tell one another what to do next.
They faced Akane, smiled at her, then moved their heads closer. 
Seeing her lovers with eyes full of intent, she closed her own in 
anticipation. They both took a cheek each, and gently kissed her
there. The soft touch of their lips was enough to sedate Akane,
and so...her head slumped as she fell asleep with a smile on her face.
This took Shampoo by surprise. "(Oh no! Is Akane ok?)" "(Don't
worry sugar, she's just asleep...)" Ukyo them began to lovingly stroke
Akane's hair. "(...poor Akane, she's had a hard few days. So lonely,
so much sadness at the prospect of leaving us. The little sugar really
does need us)." "(Shampoo knows...)" Replied Shampoo while she looked
at Akane's sleeping face. "(Shampoo had to mend her heart last night.
But Akane helped Shampoo too. Shampoo needs her...like Shampoo needs 
you too Ukyo)." "(Aww...Thanks sugar. You mean that much to me. 
Anyway, how was the sex last night? I'm sure I heard you moaning in 
one stage)."

Shampoo was fairly pleased that Ukyo had asked this question.
"(Well....Akane was very good. Shampoo was about to climax before her,
she was that good!)" "(*You* were about to orgasm first?! Even with
all those Amazon love making techniques. Hmm...I suppose she is very
good!....I don't suppose you could teach me those techniques! Imagine
the fun we'd have!)" "(Emm....Maybe, it will take time, but....ok!)"
"(Hee! Hee! It looks like your grandmother was right! We are bonding.
I can't imagine ever leaving you two. I think we're nearly ready
to tell Ranma about our plan!)" Shampoo's eyes lit up with excitement.

"(Really?! Hee! Hee! Yay! Shampoo finally gets Ranma! Hee! Hee!
Shampoo also has learned something which may help us win him.)"
"(Really? What is that?)" Shampoo whispers something into Ukyo's ear
causing a smile to grow on her face. "(No way! I didn't know *that*
could happen to him. Are you sure about that?)" "(Shampoo is sure, she
learned it from grandmother earlier today! He'll have to marry us now!
Ukyo! Why don't we make love to celebrate? Hee! Hee! Teach you some
love making techniques maybe?)" Ukyo thought about it for a while
but in the end she had to her turn her down.

"(Ohh, I'd love to Shampoo. But we'd better not, we'll end up waking
Akane, and she looks so peaceful lying there)." Shampoo looked down
at Akane's face. "(Yes, Ukyo is right. Shampoo would hate to ruin 
this moment. Aww, Akane sleeping like little baby!)" "(Let's get
some sleep ourselves, we've got a big day ahead.)" Shampoo nodded in 
agreement. They kissed each other good night, before snuggling into
Akane, and falling asleep.

--------------------------
They dreamt....

Akane was already dreaming, and woke in a forest which was identical to
the one they were sleeping near. But something was wrong, she couldn't
move. As her awareness of this dreamworld increased she realised that
she was lying down. She lying on a felled tree trunk. But then to her
horror, she discovered that she tightly tied to this trunk with many
thick ropes. She struggled with her binds, but she couldn't free
herself. She was unusually calm about this, probably thinking that this 
might just be some form of foreplay that her girlfriends were playing
on her. But that calm soon ended, she could see left and right now.
To her left was Ukyo, out-cold and tied to a felled trunk, just like
Akane and to her right, was Shampoo, also out-cold and tied to a felled
trunk.

She called out to her girlfriends, but as hard as she tried, no sound
escaped her, it was as if the rules of sound didn't apply to her.
Things soon got worse. A shadowy female figure approached them, at her
earlobes where earrings would be shone two dark purple stars, which
almost acted like a pair of menacing eyes, watching them always.
Akane couldn't see her face, it was shrouded in shadow like the rest
of her body. The woman walked over to Ukyo, looked at her for a second
and then reached for her groin. To Akane's total horror, the woman had
begun to gently finger the unconscious chef, causing her to softly moan 
in her sleep. Akane called out again in an attempt to wake Ukyo, but
it was in vain, her voice had been muted.

The woman finished with Ukyo a few seconds later, and began to walk 
over to Shampoo, looking directly into Akane's eyes all the time,
freezing the Tendo girl with fear. She reached for Shampoo, and did
the same thing to her as she did to Ukyo. Shampoo reacted in the
same way to her touch. Akane knew that it was her turn next, and
so she froze with terror. The mysterious woman stood over her, and
looked her in the face, before whispering: "(Akane.....)"
It was the same whisper she heard in the forest last night. Akane
could feel something from her too. It was that same prescience she
felt in the forest that night, the one who pinched her, and 
watched her make love to Shampoo. All this went through her head
in the seconds before the woman reached her hand down towards her.
She watched in terror as the shadowy woman's hand disappeared between 
her legs. She screamed out one last time at the top of her lungs,
but her voice was muted. Seconds later, she felt fingers enter her. 
"(Akane.....)" She whispered again.

--------------------

Akane suddenly woke, and quickly sat up, it was early morning. Sweat 
was running down her brow. She wasn't sure what was happening, her 
mind was still stuck in the dream. She looked left and right. She was 
in the coomicoomi with Ukyo and Shampoo, who were sleeping on each side 
of her. Suddenly, both those girls woke up too. "AIYA!" Screamed out 
Shampoo in terror, while Ukyo also got her bearings together. 
"What...what the?! Was that a dream?" Both the girl's attention was 
directed towards Akane who was now crying into her hands, the nightmare
had frightened her that much. "Akane, sugar? What's wrong?" Asked Ukyo 
while she promptly sat up to hold her upset girlfriend. "The...the....
shadow woman....she...she raped.....she raped you and Shampoo....and.....
and......" She was too upset to continue. "Shh....don't worry sugar, 
it was just a nightmare, I think I had the same one too. It had a weird 
woman, and we were all tied to logs, you two were asleep, and she came and...
well, you know." This kind of made Akane feel better. "Y..you did have
the same dream as me..." "That's right sugar, it was all just a terrible
nightmare."

As soon as Ukyo finished that sentence, Shampoo jumped to her feet in 
terror. "AIYA! Something inside Shampoo!!!" Both girls looked at their
Amazon girlfriend curiously. "Emm....what was that sugar?"
"Something inside Shampoo's vagina! Ohh...Shampoo can feel it."
Shampoo reached down to her groin and tried her best to fish out what
ever was in there, she wasn't having much luck. "Ohh...it's too deep
inside. Shampoo can't get it out!" "Stand still sugar...I'll pull it out
for you." Ukyo got to her feet, and could then feel something inside herself.
"Oh no! There's something in me too!" She looked at Shampoo with terrified
eyes while she grasped her own groin. "I bet I've got the same thing as 
you do." Shampoo nodded. "Let's get yours out first sugar...." Ukyo moves
over to the Amazon and kneels in front of her before gently inserting her
hand inside of her to fish out what ever was there. After a few seconds
of rooting around, Ukyo managed to find something and pulled it out.
It was a large, brightly coloured, flower petal. 

This understandably confused all three girls. The petal was handed to 
Shampoo, who examined it closely and seemed to recognise it.
"But....but.....this is the petal of the Kinako flower....it only
grows around the Jusenkyo springs back home...." Shampoo looked
back at Ukyo, and saw another Kinako petal in her hand, she had fished
it out herself. "Ukyo has one.....too?" This terrified both girls who
then looked over at Akane. "Akane...sugar....." Akane got the meaning
of what Ukyo was asking her, and so she felt down below for whatever she
could find. Sure enough, she found a Kinako petal. Akane's welled
up with tears while she slowly became upset again. "U...Ukyo? Are you
sure it was just a dream?" 

This realisation frightened the chef, and upset her. Tears came to her
eyes as well. "Oh my.....oh no.....someone was inside us.....some one did...
It's....it's the only explanation." This set Shampoo off as well.
"So....someone raped Shampoo? But.....but....but....Ukyo why?" Ukyo
was too upset reply. The three girls came together and supported each other
with an embrace, it appeared to calm them down a little. "Ohh...Shampoo is 
so frightened! Shampoo not want weirdo women feeling her!" Upon hearing this,
Ukyo broke the embrace and stood back from her girlfriends. "That is IT! 
No more waiting. I want Ranchan NOW!" Shampoo agreed with this. "Yes! Shampoo 
want to join with Ranma. He will protect us from weirdo women!" Both girls 
looked at Akane for her response. The Tendo girl blushed bright red at the 
prospect of finally being with Ranma.

"Well....yea, I'd love that. I'm just a little.....shy." Ukyo put a hand on
her shoulder. "Don't worry sugar, we'll be there with you. We have a way to
keep him with us. Shampoo has told me something new about his curse, that
demands him to obey his wedding vows." "W...what is it?" Asked Akane shyly.
"I'll tell you later....your going to love this!" Said Ukyo suggestfully
with a wink. "Shampoo thinks we should go tell Ranma, TONIGHT!"
Both girls agree, then Ukyo announced. "Then it's settled, we go back to 
Nerima tonight, and finally tell him......how we feel."

While their collective support seemed to give them a new confidence which
overpowered the fear their nightmare had given them, something was still
watching them, it's plans....already in motion.

--------------
Thursday Night.
--------------

Nerima. The Tendo Dojo. The three girls stood outside the house, each wearing
a long flowing cape, and were barefoot. They all looked up towards Ranma's 
room, they could see that the light was still on. 

"Well girls..." Said Ukyo with a level of pride. "...the time has finally come."
Shampoo hopped up and down, unable to contain herself. "Hee! Hee! Shampoo can't
believe this! Shampoo gets to live out her dream!!" "Shh! Keep it down Shampoo!"
Scolded Ukyo. Right beside them was Akane, she had said nothing, she just wore
a blush on her face, she was so shy about this. Ukyo had to check on her.
"Akane? Sugar? Are you ready?" She nodded meekly with an embarrassed smile on
her face. It was enough for Ukyo. "....Right then.....let's do it...."

Outside the dojo's walls sat Cologne. She had heard from the girls that they 
were ready to wed him, and that they had wanted to come back to Nerima early.
She had heard about their living nightmare too. But unlike the girls, she
knew who had done this to them. It had to have been Ryu. That was the reason
she helped the girls arrange tonight's events. She knew that only Ranma could
protect them now.....

Inside Ranma's room was a very different scene. Ranma was still bedridden,
although it was mostly due to Kasumi being overprotective of him. Kasumi was
with him in the room, kneeling beside him, taking his temperature, and making 
sure he stayed in bed. Even though Kasumi was being very kind to him, he didn't 
particularly like being her prisoner, subject to her tender mercies. Thoughts 
of escape went through his head while the thermometer was in his mouth. 
"Ok. That should be long enough." Announced Kasumi cheerfully while she removed 
it from his mouth before examining the reading carefully. "Hmm....looks like 
your temperature is returning to normal. I think you're almost well enough to
be out and about." "That's what I've been saying FOR THE PAST THREE DAYS!!"
Announced an impatient Ranma. "Well...to be on the safe side, I think you should 
stay in bed for one more day." Replied Kasumi softly. "I'm fine! Hell, I could 
even get into a battle right now and WIN!" Kasumi was taken back by this. 
"Oh my......well then....if you're that well, you must be well enough to go to 
school tomorrow morning." She was about to get up when Ranma suddenly stopped her.
"NO WAIT emm....." Any excuse to miss school was good enough for Ranma,
even if it meant begin held up in his room for most of the day.

"....maybe.....maybe you're right, maybe I should stay here another day."
"Thank you Ranma..." She said while chuckling. "..you've put my mind at rest."
She got to her feet, stretched, then yawned. "I think we both need to get some
sleep..." She walks over to the light switch and descends the room into partial
darkness with a single push of it. "....good night Ranma. Sleep well."
She said softly, almost like a lullaby. "You too Kasumi, and thanks for letting
me skip school!" Kasumi replied with a warm smile, before she began to make her
way out of the room. She stopped herself just short of the door.
"Oh and Ranma...." She added. "....Akane's coming back tomorrow." She left the
room giggling softly at what she had just said, and then slid his door shut, 
descending the room into total darkness.

Ranma just lay there thinking about what Kasumi had just said, and had suggested.
Akane was due to back home tomorrow morning, and the very last thing he 
remembered her doing, was kissing him before she left. That was no innocent peck
on the cheek either, it was a real kiss, full of emotion. He knew there was 
something between them, but she had never really acted on it. What could this
mean? Could she really love him? What will she do to him...when she comes back 
home? He shrugged all this off. It was late, and he was tired. He just wanted
to get some sleep, and he drifted off....

A noise....he woke again. It came from inside the room. He looked around.....
but there was nothing. "(Huh....just my imagination.)" He whispered to himself
before drifting off again. Another series of light noises, this time they sounded
like bare-foot steps. Ranma woke again, this time he knew that something was up.
He opened his eyes and was greeted by the sight of three shadowy figures standing
over him. Without thinking about it he quickly swiped his arm down to his bedside
lamp, bringing enough light to the room for him to recognise who the trio were.
They were his fiancees, each of their bodies shrouded with capes, looking directly
into his eyes, lovingly. He was understandably surprised. "WHAT THE?! Girls, what
are you doing here.......in my room.....dressed like that?" While Ranma was still
trying to fathom why the girls were in his room in the middle of the night a 
day before they were due home, Ukyo nodded to her girlfriends, giving them an 
instruction which they understood.

With one single choreographed motion they simultaneously dropped their capes
to the floor, revealing that they were naked underneath. Ranma's train of thought
suddenly came to a screeching a halt upon seeing this. All three of his fiancees,
were standing naked, side by side, in a row by his bed, all looking at him with
eyes of intent. "What...are...you...going...to...do?" Asked Ranma cautiously,
almost knowing the answer already. They just slimed at him....seconds before
Shampoo swooped down and gave him the Kiss of Death. While he was turned on by 
this, Ukyo then also gave him the same kiss, followed by a very shy Akane who 
did the same. They stood back into their original stance. "What the? What.....?"
A confused Ranma hadn't a clue what to think. 

Just then, much to Ranma's displeasure, Ukyo swiped the blanked off his bed. 
The girls could now see that all he was wearing were his boxer shorts. 
All three smiled even more at this sight. "Akane.....the water." Said Ukyo 
softly while she looked upon Ranma. "Water?!" Ranma didn't see it coming, 
Akane had a basin of cold water with her which she promptly threw over his body. 
Soon Ranma was a girl, with only her boxer shorts to protect her pride. Her 
breasts were exposed, and were the focus of her fiancee's attention. She tried 
her best to cover herself up, but it was no use. "What the hell is going on girls?! 
Why are you doing these things to me?!"

The reply she got was the girls swooping down onto her. Ukyo and Shampoo lay
on both sides of Ranma, pinning her arms to her sides, and Akane was gently
encouraged by Ukyo, to lay over Ranma, much to the Tendo girl's increasing 
embarrassment. Both Ukyo and Shampoo took each of Akane's arms and helped her 
down to Ranma's body, all the time her blush was growing, and her embarrassment
reached it's peak when she reached the end of her journey down, when her
breasts were pressed together with Ranma's ample bust. She looked straight
into Ranma's eyes, causing the part-time girl to blush herself. Although
Ranma was very confused right now, she couldn't help but be aroused by the
fact that three girls, that he had always liked, and had crushes on, were
lying on her naked right now, looking upon her with eyes of love and lust.

"Please....tell me what's going on...." They were to announce their news
to Ranma together, but only Ukyo was able to say anything right now.
Akane was too embarrassed and shy right now, and Shampoo was too excited,
waterlogged with tears of incredible joy. "(Ranchan.....)" Whispered
Ukyo, her heart pounding like a jackhammer. "(...Ranchan.....we're in love.)"
"(In love?)" She replied, clearly confused. "(Yes sugar. We finally resolved 
our differences, and then found that all our fights and then tension between
us....was all because we love each other. We're lovers now Ranchan, we're 
going to be together....forever.)" It took a few second for all this to sink
in. "So....your all lesbians?" The trio nodded at this. "So you don't love
me anymore?" This shocked the girls, and they had to correct her. 

"NOOO!" Yelled out the Amazon, with a face full of tears. "Shampoo loves
Ranma, that never changed. Shampoo now has three Airens, and Shampoo wants
to be with them all....forever, even after death." Ranma was taken back
by this while she looked at the Amazon who was now blushing as well. 
Her attention was then attracted to Ukyo. "Ranchan, sugar, your the only
1/2 guy/girl for me! Your a part of me and I'm not letting you go. 
Ranma.....I may not have any family left but....." Ukyo's eyes began to
well up with tears. "....I always thought of you as my family. Now
I have a really big family. I want you as part of it. Ranchan...I need 
you. You always made me feel wanted." While Ukyo began to cry happy
tears, Ranma turned her attention to the girl who had said the least,
Akane. "Go on Cute Girl! You wanted to tell him for so long...."
Egged on Shampoo, really wanting to hear what the Tendo girl had to say.

Both Akane and Ranma stared at each other, lost in their eyes for
and eternity of seconds. Akane was trying to sum up her feelings
into a few sentences, and so she cleared her thought, and had a go.
"(Ranma.....ever since we were engaged....I hated you. It was like
my father was trying to control my destiny, and you know me, I hate being
controlled. I lashed out at you, I never made you feel welcome here,
I hated everything about you. But Ranma....these past years were just-
I can't explain it, because it doesn't make any sense to me. I....I
fell in love with you. You were always so brave in your own way.
You always came out to rescue me, fighting off all my suitors....
and even though I've got to fight my way to school everyday because of
you, I can't help but love you, you've become a part of me. Just like
these two girls here. I love you so much. I want to hold, kiss you,
make love to you, and....I want to breath my last dying breath,
in your arms.....just like my mother did with me."

Both Akane's girlfriends were moved by this. Ranma-chan was almost brought
to tears herself, but she stopped herself, she still had things to say.
"(You girls still love me then? But I never knew you felt *that* much 
about me.)" "(Well we do Ranchan..)" Said Ukyo while she dried her eyes.
"(...and we all want to MARRY you as soon a possible!)" Ranma was confused.
"Marry me? I know that you girls are engaged to me and all....but you can't
all marry me together, it's not legal!" "(Oh but it is...)" Corrected Ukyo,
while playfuly squeezing Ranma-chan's nose. "(....I checked the law myself.
We can legally marry together. Oh and Ranchan....you'd better marry us, or
there will be 'serious consequences' if you don't! Hee! Hee!"

Ukyo's less then serious warning perplexed Ranma. "What do you mean? What
if I don't marry you? What'll happen?" Ukyo smiled and looked over to
Shampoo. "Wanna field this one sugar?" "Hee! Hee! With pleasure Spatula
girl! Ranma.....we three Airens are now a Trinity of Love. We are a
union of heart and destiny, and our goal is to love you. A minute ago
we all gave you a Kiss of Death, the Marriage Kiss. We have begun the
marriage rite which Shampoo began years ago with the first Kiss of Death
I gave you. Now Ranma must marry us, otherwise....your curse....will
get worse!" "W...worse?" Ranma-chan didn't like the sound of this.
"...yes Ranma. Worse. Ranma's curse will cause Ranma to bleed like a 
girl!" Shampoo's broken Japanese managed to confuse Ranma yet again.
"..bleed like a girl?" Ukyo butted in with a translation. "What she's
trying to say Ranchan, is that if you betray our marriage proposal
you will start to have periods, just like us!" Ranma was horrified.
"I'll....I'll.....huh! No big deal! I'm only a girl some of the time!"

"No....Ranma doesn't understand!" Corrected Shampoo. "Ranma will bleed
like a girl, even when Ranma is a boy! Hee! Hee!" Ranma was truly 
horrified now. "You mean....I'll start peeing blood every month?!!!"
"Not just that...." Butted in Akane. "...you'll also have period pains too!"
Ranma suddenly turned pale, the prospect of this was nearly too much.
"Ranchan....There is a way to avoid that happening. We love you, we want to
be with you....Ranma.....marry us...."

Ranma looked at each girl still in shock...
"We need you Ranchan....please marry us......"
"Shampoo needs Ranma to live! Shampoo wants to marry and make love!"
"Ranma....you know how we feel....all we need is an answer.....
what do say, will you marry us?"

Ranma lay back, trying to get all of this to sink in, looking into their
waterlogged eyes. How could she say no to that? How could she say yes?
But eventually she came a decision, probably the hardest snap decision
she ever had to make. 

And so, she opened her mouth, to give them.....her answer.....


                      TO BE CONTINUED...


I hate cliff-hangers, don't you? Ha ha! Now you'll have to wait until the
next part to find out the answer!

Will Ranma say yes? Rushing head on into marriage.
Or will Ranma say no? Breaking their fragile hearts.
And who is this Ryu character, what is she up to?

All this and more in the next part.

Email: markegan@campus.ie

Web: www.geocities.com/the_lemon_master/

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