xvi.

Shampoo doesn't have many principles, many morals. Those are for people with something to lose. She's always been in this with all her heart, all or nothing, but she wants it be all. But she does have some: she can't hurt anyone who doesn't deserve it, but most people do. She won't attack someone in their sleep, unless they've really wronged her. And she absolutely won't fall in love, never, unless it somehow benefits her in a way. And oh, she's starting to realize the benefit in this situation. After all, she's hasn't been allowed to kill anyone in years.

(But will she, or won't she?)

xvii.

She swears to the nice man on the road from China to Japan that she isn't lost; she just doesn't know where to find what she's looking for. She swears to her grandmother that her heart isn't lost; it's just out of her reach anymore. She swears to Ranma that she hasn't lost her mind; she just can't stand the fact that he's nice to every single of the girls sometimes, except for her. Or when he is, it's because he needs something from her. So that's not blood he's losing, that's not it at all. That's known as trust.

(He needs to hurt like she does; he needs to lose something so that they can be together. Hopefully, he'll still be together by the time he realizes this.)

xviii.

It's a secret passed down from her people to see people and their intentions, in colour, through eyes that aren't their own. She's only used this power a few times, because it hurts to use and it hurts when you see it. For instance, she is purple, which is anger and smugness and manipulation all mixed together. Mousse is bright pink and very hard to look at, because that's a colour for idiots. Ranma's worst. He's every colour on the spectrum, but every time he knows she's there, he's always blue or white: cool, or timid, or maybe even hopeful.

(Pink is love. She's never seen Ranma have that colour, even during his sappiest moments. What the hell is he?)

xix.

They're all as messed up as she is, she dazedly realizes as she lays, motionless on the ground. So twisted, so horrible, Ranma's killing that guy for hurting her and Ukyou's killing the underlings and even she's trying to help, but what the hell can she do besides getting kidnapped anyways. Why the hell are they all trying to help her, she's been trying to hurt them, to wound them, to kill them, but what's this? They take this as friendship? Those poor, sick, twisted bastards. She pushes herself up, licking the blood off of her lips. Twisted works fine.

(If they're twisted, then they won't mind this, and this, and this.)

xx.

Ranma looks at the girl standing in front of him with fear, and a little bit of fascination. This isn't the Shampoo he thought he know, he thinks, and this is a better development than either of them could've ever imagined. So he steps towards her, as she laughs madly, kneeling in the remains of the monsters she just slew, because they needed to be stopped to save everything worth saving, everything worthwhile. He steps towards her as she is caked in blood and gore and sweat and betrayal and thinks she is the most beautiful person he's ever seen.

(He's always been looking for a warrior, someone who'll stop at nothing to get what they want. This is stopping at nothing, this is true power. This is what he wants.)