Xian Pu looked around through the smoke filled room. Barely clad to even less dressed women gyrated all around her. The smell of alcohol, tobacco products, and some controlled substances assaulted her olfactory senses. She herself was trying to keep the hands of all the hentai around her off of her. She kicked another one off the stage, only to have him coming back, thanking her for her favor. She rolled her eyes and made her way to the other side of the stage. “Why am I here again?” She thought as another song started.
She started to dance and take off more of her attire. She didn’t really know how to dance that well. She had spent most of her life learning to fight, not much of anything else. Luckily, some of the Amazons katas are very similar to popular dance, so she could fake it really well. Of course the ‘training’ that Ranma gave her helped. She still blushed at the thought of it.
She looked around to try and find her redheaded partner. Ranma-Chan was slinking over to a bunch of seedy looking characters in the corner. Some of them were fairly rough and tumble twenty-somethings, while in the middle of them sat one wearing several pieces of gold jewelry, obviously the leader. Ranma-Chan was wearing a neon green string bikini that glowed in the black light of the club. Her hair was hanging loose and draped to the middle of her back. She sashayed over to the leader of the group of thugs in a degree of erotic grace that Xian Pu was a little jealous that she couldn’t move that well. Maybe if she knew how she could have won Ranma a long time ago…
Ranma-Chan turned and saw Xian Pu looking at her and winked and turned back to her objective. She got in front of the thugs leader and sat across his lap and pulled her mouth to his ear. “You have the next job?”
The thugs just smiled wide. “Maybe. Y’know, I could make it worth your while if you’d stop hangin’ with that Ikari guy. They don’t call me Hung Lo for nothing.”
Ranma-Chan smiled and hit along his jaw line, shooting pain through the thug’s teeth. “No, thank you. Shinji keeps me quite happy. So what’s the job?” She started to dance in his lap.
“The boss needs the security at the customs port taken out. Think your boy can take care of that?” He put his hand on her derriere and squeezed.
Ranma-Chan smiled and hit another pressure point on that arm. The arm fell lifelessly to his side. “Shinji can handle hit.” She leaned in closer and breathed into his ear, “So when do I get to meet your ‘boss’?”
The thugs chuckled as he tried to bring the feeling back into his arm. “You have to be real nice to me sweet cheeks.” His other arm started to move.
“Move it anywhere near my ass and I break it.” She hissed in his ear. That got his attention. “Now, Shinji and I are getting real tired of dealing with second stringers like you to relay messages. We want to meet the big cheese himself.” She continued the charade of a lap dance.
“The big man is real suspicious. He don’t want anyone around him he don’t trust.”
Ranma-Chan pouted. “Why can’t he trust me? Shinji and I have done everything he asked.”
The thug’s lips curled in a lecherous smile. “I trust you, baby. I’m sure I could convince the big man to trust you too. It’ll just take a small little favor on your part to get the process started, so to speak.”
Ranma-Chan grimaced. It wasn’t like she didn’t know what he was talking about, but she had to stay ‘in character’. “What favor?”
“You come back to my place for the night and be a nice little girl, and maybe after the first romp, you might consider dropping that mercenary you work for and come with me.”
Ranma-Chan bowed her head on his chest. The motion while looking suggestive was actually a ploy to hide her rolling eyes. “Damn one track minds!” She yelled in her mind. “I need to find out who is running the show, and this scumbag can’t think above the waist.” She brought her head back up and met his gaze. “When do you need customs closed?”
The man pulled out a sheet of paper wrapped in a thousand yen note and tucked it into Ranma-Chan’s bikini bottoms. “The info’s all right there. Don’t be late. Now, about that romp around the bedroom…”
“AIYAA!”
Ranma-Chan turned to see an old man hanging off of Xian Pu. He was trying to cop a feel while simultaneous stuff her panties full of yen. Ranma-Chan turned back to the triad thug. “Just a second and we’ll finish this conversation.” She got up and walked toward the stage.
The thug grabbed onto her arm. “What’s with her?”
Ranma-Chan smiled. “New girl. She keeps on thinking we have the same rules about touching the dancers that Americans do. I just need to remind her of a few things and I’ll be right back.” She shrugged off his hold and made her way over to Xian Pu. She put her mouth to the man’s ear. “You look a little tired, sir.”
The man turned and looked at the redhead. “I feel fine actually.”
Ranma-Chan hit a pressure point. “Are you sure?”
The man slumped down into his seat and off of Xian Pu. “Shampoo, you can’t keep shouting out every time someone cops a feel. That’s why they’re here.”
Xian Pu straightened out what little of an outfit she was wearing. “Sorry, but it’s just so…” She shivered. “Creepy.”
Ranma-Chan patted her on the shoulder. “Think how I feel. Now, I’m trying to get us a lead, so try to stay out of trouble. Go entertain that Gaijin over there. He’s American, he probably won’t grope so much.”
Xian Pu nodded and walked over the blonde man wearing black sunglasses and a red shirt. She started dancing in front of him. He just tossed some dollar bills at her feet and said, “Shake it, baby.”
Ranma-Chan went back to the thug. “Now where were we?” She smiled at him. “The bedroom romp.” She sat across his lap and started to bite his ear. “We have rooms in the back for ‘special’ dances. How about we do that instead? Hmm?”
The man’s eyes lit up. He tried to play it off cool. “I think that would do. Shall we go?”
Ranma-Chan got up and took his hand and led him away. “Follow me.”
Xian Pu watched Ranma-Chan go in the direction of the private rooms. “He wouldn’t”, she thought. “Would he?”
Ranma-Chan led him to a dark room and leaned back on the door to close it behind him. “Is this what you were wanting?” She took off her top and threw it aside.
He smiled a hungry grin. “That and so much more, baby.”
She walked behind him and rubbed his chest from behind with one hand. “You’re sooo strong. Set up a meeting with me and the big boss and I’ll make it worth your while.”
He shook his head. “Nope, your goods first, toots.”
She smiled a sly grin. “You won’t forget tonight.” She knocked him out with a blow to the back of his neck. “Pervert! Ugh! Sometimes I wonder about my gender.” She went back to the futon that lay across the back of the room and pulled a small box out from under it. She started mixing the substances inside. Being a club on the less reputable section of the district there were several substances available to her. Mostly all of them were meant to induce high feelings of pleasure. Every one of the ‘special rooms’ had a box like this in case the client wanted a fix of something before having sex. With the proper mixture, the drugs could produce a state of high euphoria, but render the user highly open to suggestion and very willing to tell anything asked, much like sodium pentathol.
Ranma-Chan finished her mixture and injected it into the unconscious triad. She let him sit for about half an hour and then slapped him a couple of times. “Wake-e, Wake-e.”
The man’s eye’s opened at uneven levels. A looked of vacancy was spattered all over his face. “Wow”, was all he could get out.
“Now you’re going to tell me everything you know about your boss. First of all, who is he?”
The thug looked up at her. “El Toro.”
Ranma-Chan shook her head. “What? A Spaniard?”
“He’sh been to Spain, but he ish Chinesh.” His speech was slurring.
“Does he have any other aliases?” He looked at her funny. She rolled her eyes. “Names? Does he have any other names?”
The man shook his head. “No. Just El Toro.”
Ranma-Chan’s brow furrowed. “Okay, where is he?”
“He’sh coming in tomorrow night, Wish a fresh shipment. That’s why we need to get past cushtoms.”
Ranma-Chan took his head in her hands. “You’re so much more cooperative like this.” She narrowed her eyes. “Now listen to me. You came in here and had the most kinky and energetic sex of your life. The whole experience was mind blowing, but you don’t think you could survive another round. Understand me?” The man just nodded his head. Ranma-Chan smiled. “Now go back and tell your friends that you’re too tired to stay any longer.” He got up, stumbled around a bit, and then finally made his way out the door. Ranma-Chan put the box of narcotics back in there hiding place. “Better living through drugs. Good thing I got into chemistry. Of course the need to counteract Kodachi’s poisons was a strong factor in that.”
Ranma-Chan stepped out to see Xian Pu still entertaining the same Gaijin. Ranma-Chan motioned and the Xian Pu thanked the customer and came over and joined the redhead. “You ready to go?”
Xian Pu nodded her head several times in rapid succession. “Yes! Get me out of here! That guy keeps talking about all the aliens he’s killed and he’s the most decent person in here!” Ranma-Chan raised an eyebrow. “Except for you and me of course!”
They left the club and took a round-a-bout trip back to Ranma’s apartment. It was a Spartan affair, very few pieces of furniture and even less decoration. The furniture consisted of mismatched couch, loveseat, and recliner that all looked like they were all rescued from the trash heap. To the left of the entryway was a small kitchenette with a small stove and large refrigerator. The main room had two adjacent rooms that Xian Pu guessed were the bathroom and bedroom.
Ranma-Chan came in and tossed her duffle bag on the couch and stretched. “Kami, I hate doing that! I’ll be in the shower for the next hour or so. There’s food and some bottled water in the fridge, and you can crash on the couch for a while until I get done.”
Xian Pu kicked off the high heels from the club, put her own bag down besides Ranma’s, and sat in the loveseat. “Why didn’t we just go to my place? It’s a lot nicer.”
Ranma-Chan had gone into the bedroom to grab a change of clothes. “We have to keep up the appearance of low class strippers. We can’t have a lot of nice stuff around. Besides, there’s always the possibility we were followed despite the route we took. You wouldn’t want all your nice stuff ruined the first time a gang banger decided to drop by, would you?”
Xian Pu stretched out on the loveseat and rested her head on one of the armrests. “I guess your right.”
Ranma-Chan came out with a change of clothes tucked under her arm. “Did you bring something to change into?”
Xian Pu looked up at her, put a hand over her face and shook her head. “I forgot.”
Ranma-Chan smiled at her. “You can borrow some of my clothes then. You’re about the same size as my girl form. I’m sure you could find something that fits. Unless you want to wear that slinky outfit all day.”
Xian Pu opened her coat to show the skin tight, semi-transparent dress she had worn to and from the club. An evil grin played across her lips as she pulled the coat off seductively. “Only if you want me to.” She winked at him.
Ranma-Chan groaned and rolled her eyes. “I lay something out for you after you’re in the bath.” She went into the bathroom and shut the door. “If anyone calls or knocks, don’t answer.”
“Okay.” Xian Pu leaned back down on the loveseat and gazed at the ceiling. She heard the light footsteps make their way around in the bathroom and the water being turned on. She started to think. “Here I am, in my husband’s apartment and I’m going to be borrowing a dress off of him.” She chuckled. “Life is kind of funny.” She rubbed her shoulders. They were a little stiff from all the acrobatics she had done for the customers at the club. “A bath would feel really good about now.” She heard the distinct sound of a body settling into a body of water. Another evil grin played on her face. She stood up from the loveseat and shrugged off her coat. As she walked toward the restroom, she stepped out of her dress and took off her bra and panties. “Haven’t done this with him in a while…” She quietly opened the bathroom door and stepped inside.
Ranma was back in male form and lying with his head resting against the back of the tub. His arms rested on the sides with his muscles of his arms relaxed. His eyes were closed giving him an overall look of peace and relaxation. Xian Pu stopped a moment to admire him above and below the water of the bath. She sighed inwardly as she gazed at the man who had ruined her life twice over, loving him no less than she did so many years ago. How many times had she seen him in the bath? How many times had she tried to join him before? She smiled as she realized that this time there was nobody else to interfere. No other fiancés, wives, rivals, or anything else, just her and her beloved husband.
She quietly crept around to where Ranma’s head was resting. She softly and tenderly put her hands on his shoulders and started to message the worn out muscles.
“GAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!!” Ranma’s eyes shot open and he shot up out of the tub and latched onto the ceiling. “WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU’RE DOING?!?!?!”
Xian Pu took an involuntary step back as Ranma dropped from the ceiling. “I just…”
“GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!!!” He pointed at the door. “I TOLD YOU THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO BE STRICTLY PROFESSIONAL! NO AMAZON MARRIAGE OR NOTHING! THAT INCLUDES INVADING MY BATH!!!”
She took another two steps back. “S-Sor…”
He pointed again. “GET THE HELL OUT!!!”
She staggered as if struck and turned and ran from the bathroom, tears streaming from her eyes. She grabbed her coat and pulled it tight about herself. She would have ran out of the apartment, if she hadn’t tripped over the shoes she had kicked off when she first entered the apartment. She was so upset and blinded by her tears that she didn’t have the presence of mind to roll properly. She skidded and struck her head on the floor.
Ranma heard the thump from the restroom and quickly grabbed a towel and ran to check on Xian Pu. “Damn it.” He thought. “I didn’t mean to get her hurt.” He ran in and saw the blood trail leading to Xian Pu’s head. His eyes went wide with fear as he ran to her side. “You all right?” He asked with a heavy load of concern in his voice. He turned her over and saw a light gash on her forehead that was bleeding like any minor head wound would. He also saw the tears streaming from her eyes. “Uh, Shampoo…I didn’t want you to hurt yourself.”
Xian Pu turned her head from him. “Shampoo no hurt. Shampoo go now. Never bother Ranma again.” She tried to get up.
Ranma restrained her. He could tell she was very upset, he could tell by the fact that her Japanese was regressing to her teenage understanding. “Come on. I don’t want you to leave. Come sit on the couch and I’ll get something for your head.” He helped her up and over to the couch. He noticed her state of undress under the coat and moved the garment to cover as much as possible. “Stay here. I’ll get something to treat your cut.” He walked into the kitchen and searched around for a dishrag and his first aid kit.
Xian Pu just turned her head in shame and stared out the window. “Now he pities me.” She thought aloud. “He doesn’t want me here and he’s just keeping me here because he feels sorry for me.” She bowed her head and started to cry again.
Ranma came back in with a basin of hot water, the dishrag, and his first aid kit. The kit was the size of a small suitcase; after all there was no such thing as minor injuries with him. He came in and set the items down and dipped the dishrag in the water and turned to Xian Pu. “Turn your head over her so I can fix you up.” She shook her head. “Come on, Shampoo. Don’t be like that. You’ve hurt yourself and I need to make sure you didn’t damage anything important.”
Xian Pu wouldn’t relent. “I already hurt something important before I fell.” She cried in her mind.
Ranma shook his head and grabbed her chin with his free hand. He turned her head and saw the tears streaming from her closed eyes. He cleaned the wound and knew very well that a wound like that didn’t hurt that much. “What’s wrong, Shampoo?” He asked as he finished cleaning the blood from the cut on her head. The wound was actually more like a scrape that broke the skin in some small places.
Xian Pu just shook her head and cried a little more. She was too ashamed of her own foolishness.
Ranma put a bandage over the scrape and cleaned the area. “There. All better now.” He smiled to try and make her feel better. He was far short of succeeding, especially since she hadn’t opened her eyes. He sighed and sat down on the couch beside her. “Come on, Shampoo, tell me what’s wrong. If it’s about yelling at you in the bathroom, I’m sorry.” She still hadn’t stopped the flow of tears. “Ah, man! Shampoo, will you shut off the water works? You know how much I can’t stand to see a woman crying.”
Xian Pu cried a little harder. “Now he thinks I’m weak!”
Ranma shakily gathered Xian Pu into his arms and pulled her head into his chest. “Look Shampoo. I just yelled at you because I was surprised. When I was living with Akane I got used to being able to let my defenses down in the bath. It was a chance for me to unwind, and it helped me get by a lot better. I didn’t know how much I needed that time until Miko came along with me on my missions. She started coming after me a cat in heat. She never left me alone, never gave me any privacy. That’s why I didn’t want her as my partner anymore. I need time to myself, Shampoo. Again, I’m sorry I yelled at you, I just thought that I could relax my guard again.”
The stream of tears backed off, and Xian Pu realized that Ranma was actually embracing her. She was also quite aware that she had here face against his bare chest, but she was still sad. “You no want Shampoo here.”
Ranma squeezed her in the embrace. “That’s not it. I do want you here.”
She started to cry again.
Ranma shook his head. He pulled away from the embrace and lifted her chin to look into her eyes. “Xian Pu?” That got her attention. She looked up into his blue eyes. “Xian Pu, I do want you here.” He spoke in her native tongue. “I want to make up to you for every time I screwed up your life. I also want to think you for all the times you saved me from Akane’s cooking before she learned how to settle down. You’re right, Xian Pu, I owe you a lot, but I don’t want you acting like you did when we were kids. Give me some privacy from time to time, and we’ll get along great.” He smiled at her.
Xian Pu choked back her tears and took a couple deep breaths. She managed to calm down. “Thank you, Ranma.” She spoke in the Mandarin Chinese as well. “How long have you known how to pronounce my name correctly?”
“Since I learned how to speak Chinese. I thought it was rather silly that your name was Shampoo, so I looked up the correct pronunciation.”
“Why haven’t you said it before?”
“Habit, I guess. You’ll still always be Shampoo to me.” He gave her another smile.
Xian Pu returned the smile and enjoyed the embrace they were in. She realized that she was only a foot away from tasting his lips for the first time in years, but if tonight had taught her something. She would have to take it slow. Give him his space, and he would respect her. Respect can easily change to love. She returned the embrace and squeezed him about the chest. “I’m sorry, I barged in on you.”
Ranma smiled a tender smile down at her. “Time for your bath.” He had switched back to Japanese. He lifted her up and led her to the bathroom. “I’ll get some clothes for you.” He left and shut the door behind him.
Xian Pu shrugged out of the coat and was naked for the second time that night. She walked over to the stool and began to wash herself. “Just take it slow.” She thought. An old fable suddenly came to mind. “Slow and steady always wins the race.”
She finished her bath and was amazingly refreshed. She saw that Ranma had left a towel and a set of clothes out for her. A pair of shorts, a nice blue shirt, and shockingly, clean underwear, feminine underwear. She picked up the simple bra and looked at it. “Looks like he has got used to the idea of being a girl part time.” She dried herself off and donned the clothes. She admired herself in the bathroom mirror. “Just because I’m not glomping him anymore doesn’t mean I can’t still stun him.” She thought. She brushed out here hair and checked herself again. “Looks great! If only someone hadn’t been foolish enough to hurt themselves falling down.” She poked at the bandage on her head. She turned and left the bathroom.
Ranma was in the kitchenette cooking some stir-fry for their dinner/breakfast. The early morning sun was already peaking out over the horizon. Xian Pu smiled at Ranma and sat down on the couch. He was wearing one of his trademarked outfits, the red Chinese shirt with black pants. He finished up and put the dinner out on two plates and brought them out to Xian Pu with some chopsticks. “Eat up, and get some sleep. We’ve got a long night tomorrow night.”
Xian Pu took a bite and chewed it, savoring the surprisingly excellent flavor. She swallowed the bite and looked Ranma in the eye. “Why? What are we doing tomorrow night, Ranma?”
“Trying to stop people from conquering the world, Shampoo.” He laughed at the American joke. “Seriously, we’re going to hit the customs tomorrow night and see if we find out a little more about El Toro. You’ll need all your strength.”
“Why?”
“The serum should have worn off by then. I’m going to leave you behind bugged and in cat form. You’re going to be my eyes tomorrow.” He started eating his own meal.
Xian Pu ate and thought. “I’m going to be a real spy. I’m finally going to be in Ranma’s new world.” Another thought occurred to her. “He managed to say cat without stuttering. Does that mean he’s cured of the Neko-Ken?”