FRAMED! The Tail of Two Shampoos!

two powersuited officers from the Nerima Police Department, Mizue (in sailor fuku costume), Aiko Mochida (AKA Magical Girl Cream Lemon), Steve, Huntress, Link, and Pink.

Aiko: That's a magical girl team?

Mizue: Well, they've got the pose and speech down pat....

Aiko: Down pat? Look at those angles! It looks like those fans are about to fall out of the hands of that one girl... and the costume looks really old on that girl in the red mask.

Mizue: Pink.

Aiko: You think so? It looks more like red to me. And that *name*. Avenger of Justice.

Mizue: You've got to start somewhere.

Aiko: Shampoo's going to attack a magical girl. We can't allow that! *Makes like a Frisbee thrower as a star-shaped hoop materializes in her hands* Star... TRA....

Mizue: No! Shampoo's really strong. You could get hurt!

She shakes Aiko.

Aiko: Mizue... you...

Mizue blinks, hoping Aiko isn't mad at her. 'Aiko, look, I had to do that, but I didn't mean to...'

Aiko: Mizue, I hope you're not mad at me for asking, but... you stopped me in the middle of an attack. How in the world did you do that?

Mizue considers explaining how martial arts attack speed and reflexes work. Or maybe it's just that she's the wrong genre to be frozen in place by the awesomeness of a magical girl attack. 'I'll explain later' she says. 'Maybe I could demonstrate at the meeting. But this is as much a martial arts fight as it is a magical girl fight. We've got to watch it.

Aiko: You're going to come to another Local 151 meeting? Great!

Aiko: It's not just for males any more! Right, Mizue?

Aiko: Officer, I've got to convince Mizue that Shampoo's evil. In the interests of justice and the naked truth... She really robbed a bank? What's the evidence?

ZA1: No, no, she didn't do it in the interests of justice.

ZA2: But she... they... did look pretty naked before.

Aiko: I'm magical girl Cream Lemon! I fight for justice myself and in its interest I need to know the evidence.

ZA2: Magical girl Cream Lemon? My daughter's become a big fan of yours now that you started going into action. It's a pain finding merchandise, though.

ZA1: Anyway, Cream Lemon, the story is this....

(To be filled in by someone. Not me.

two powersuited officers from the Nerima Police Department, Mizue (in sailor fuku costume), Aiko Mochida (AKA Magical Girl Cream Lemon), Steve, Huntress, Link, and Pink, Ben.

As fate would have it

Jo: *chasing a now pizza sauce covered Ryuji-ohki* Come back her so i can clean you off at least, runnign around blind isn't going to help you!

Ryu-ohki: Agh get it off get it off

Ben looks up seeing this rather cute scene of a sauce covered cabbit being chased by a towel brandishing Jo who lunges for said cabbit, both of them ending up in a tangles heap at Ben's feet. Somewhere in all this Ryuji returns to normal, sitting on top of a sighing Jo.

Jo: How does Tegan keep up with you? *sighs as she rests her head in her hands*

Ryuji: *blinking and looking down at Jo, smiling* I dunno *suddenly punces Jo smiling even more* I like you, you're fun *shakes his head spraying sauce everywhere, his horns showing ....in front of Ben

Ben: What ho? Is this....demon asaulting a fair citizen of this city? I shall teach him a MIGHTY lesson of Justice.

Jo & Ryuji: Wha? *both turn to look up at Ben who's hand is going to his sword*

Ryuji: What is he talking about? I don't see any demo....uh oh.

Jo: Really its okay, its a slight misunderstanding really.

Ben: You poor thing, this creature has evidentally scared you into submission, I shall teach him a lesson he shal not forget

Ryuji: Oh

Jo: *explicative deleted*

Both take off down the hall

Terrbily sorry i had to rip tha tout of me

(Desparing sigh)

*How* is Ben going to get to the wacky just-outside-the-Nekohanten antics *now*?

David, Ben had *left* Zuni's.

...hey, hang about, I just had an idea...

(See, this is *why* a Participants, Location, and Timeframe are given for threads...)

Participants: Shampoo-M, Shampoo-R, Mousse, Lingling, RanRan, Nobuko, two powersuited officers from the Nerima Police Department, Mizue (in sailor fuku costume), Aiko Mochida (AKA Magical Girl Cream Lemon), Steve, Huntress, Link, Pink, Ben, Jo, and Ryuji

Location: Nearby the Nekohanten. NOT AT ZUNI'S, people.

Timeframe: Roughly concurrent with what's going on at Zuni's.

In a scene vaguely reminiscent of the very first episode/chapter of Ranma 1/2, where Ranma is being chased through Nerima by a pandafied Genma, along comes a cabbit, almost *drenched* in pizza sauce. Almost completely blinded, Ryu-ohki hasn't been able to see where he's going and is now racing through the streets, reciting a litany of 'Get it off get if OFFA me!' as he goes. Following him is a quite irritated Jo.

Ben: You poor thing... This foul creature has evidently scared you into submission! I shall teach him a lesson he shall not forget! SMITE!

Ben smites with a mighty smite of his mightily huge sword, Ryuugen-

Ryuji dodges, turns, and takes off down the street, now screaming something along the lines of 'help me help me!'

Jo: Come back here! (Gives chase. Again)

Ben: Come back here! (Gives chase)

Teribbly sorry Steve, I saw the locaTION saying Zuni's and well...err *Cries Holding him* DON't KILL ME!

Nah, I'm not going to kill you. See? (Points at rest of post, well, what would be the rest of the post it wasn't snipped) I even found a way to keep what you wrote *and* tie it in with the Shampoo antics, so it all worked out!

- Steve ...beaming

one powersuited officer and one FORMERLY powersuited officer from the Nerima Police Department, Mizue (in sailor fuku costume), Aiko Mochida (AKA Magical Girl Cream Lemon), Steve, Huntress, Link, Pink, Ben, Jo, and Ryuji

Location: Nearby the Nekohanten. NOT AT ZUNI'S, people.

Timeframe: Roughly concurrent with what's going on at Zuni's.

<snippet>

Mizue: O_o

Aiko: <Fidgets nervously> Ettoo...

ZA1: Er...Takeshi, your daughter is a fan of -Lemon Angel-.

Takeshi: (the mostly naked one, BTW) Oh? Then which one is she?

ZA1: <coughs nervously.> Anyway, Cream Lemon, the story is this....

Steve: <interjecting> Fascinating as all this is, didn't you say that you wanted to lock Shampoo away for her crimes?

ZA1: Er...Takeshi...

Takeshi: Call for backup?

ZA1: <nods>

Takeshi: <dashes for the nearest phone>

ZA1: Yes, the metahuman known as Shampoo is wanted for the armed robbery of the first national bank of Tokyo on the 13th of this month!

ZA1: (To Jo) Are you going to impede or aid us?

Jo: As a civilian, I hardly think it's my place to interfere with police affairs.

ZA1: <sags visibly with relief>

Steve: Look, Jo, I know you're not crazy about Shampoo, but don't you think-

Jo: But as a community leader, and a friend of the family, I'm afraid I'll have to insist you show me exactly what you've got for evidence before I let you take anybody into custody.

ZA2: <walking back> Hah! Who are you to threaten us?

Jo: Jo Heavensrun.

ZA1&2: ...Yes Ma'am. <ZA1 punches a few buttons on his forearm and a small plasma screen flips up, displaying security footage from inside the bank. All combat and activity slows down and stops as everyone moves to watch the screen. There's a long moment of silence, then the far wall in the image caves in, revealing a silhouette in chinese clothing, long purple locks and a pair of bonbori. However, as she moves further into the camera's view, the skin tone seems a bit dark, tho that could be the image, and the bank-robber Shampoo's hair seems almost wig-like, long strands of black peeking out from underneath, here and there. As the chaos int he bank reaches a head, 'Shampoo' jumps up onto the teller's counter, her back quite deliberatly to the camera, and her voice rings through the bank>

'Shampoo': I STUPID BIMBO SHAMPOO FROM NEKOHANTEN! ALL MORTAL FLESHSACKS LIE ON GROUND NOW, OR I SMASH! <points at one of the tellers> YOU, GET MONEY FROM VAULT AND BRING TO STUPID BIMBO SHAMPOO FROM NEKOHANTEN, AND BIMBO SHAMPOO FROM NEKOHANTEN NO HURT ANYONE, BECAUSE I STUPID ENOUGH TO LEAVE WITNESSES! <There's a flurry of activity among the tellers as they struggle to stuff cash from the vault into bags, which 'Shampoo' throws over her shoulder.> And fleshbags should go drink and eat at Ken ni Kaze when it reopen, because food at Nekohanten is stale and crappy, and Shampoo is psycho bimbo bank robber who

made hole in the wall, and disappears, several seconds before a siren can be heard approaching in the background. The screen snaps down into the policeman's armor again, and the various people at the scene react.>

Jo: (facepalm) [Trina...]

Shampoo-M: -_-

Shampoo-R: -_-

Pink: Ah-HA! Incontrovertible proof of her perfidy, over!

<facefaults all around>

Jo: Alright, I've got to deal with this. Listen everybody, this isn't what you think, I know who did it, so just calm down and relax until I get back, all right? (runs off)

Everyone: ... (look at each other) (begin fighting again)

Er, if it wasn't quite communicated properly in that sentence, Ben has now roamed off, /away/ from Zuni's. ^^; He's, like, heading for the zone of the Shampoo-related mayhem, rather than staying with the Zuni's-related mayhem.

It has been brought to my attention that Jason Heavensrun

Participants: Shampoo-M, Shampoo-R, Nobuko, one powersuited officer and one FORMERLY powersuited officer from the Nerima Police Department, Mizue (in sailor fuku costume), Aiko Mochida (AKA Magical Girl Cream Lemon), Steve, Huntress, Link, Pink, Ben, and Ryuji.

Location: Nearby the Nekohanten. NOT AT ZUNI'S, people.

Timeframe: Roughly concurrent with what's going on at Zuni's.

<HACK>

Ben: ... 'perfidy'?

The boy turns from his SMITE-swinging efforts just long enough to give a certain cabbit-boy time to hide, a confused look on his face. With the barest moment granted him by Ben's confusion, Ryuji bounds towards the nearest solid-looking object - Link's Sentai Helmet, just as she removes it. The boy bundles up and dives into the helmet head-first, jamming it on his head as he makes a quick getaway, content his disguise will foil his pursuer.

Ben: (turns to Link, who is beginning to sit up) ... what's perf-

Shampoo-R: Incoming!

Shampoo-R ducks under a heavy flailing SUPER PINK CRUSH TOUCH!!! just in time for Shampoo-M to catch the blow in her metal-armoured midsection. The purple-haired woman goes flying backwards, her makeshift steel outfit split clean down the middle, falling to the side as she spins in midair from the impact...

Shampoo-R: Shampoo! Shampoo save Shampoo by Shampoo's own sacrifice! Shampoo not forget Shampoo's noble effort!

Steve turns back from watching Ben lose Ryuji, only to catch an eyeful of cleavage as a tumbling, semiconscious woman lands on top of him, breasts-first, knocking him off his feat and onto his back. At first, his eyes open wide, then, once the gravity (and curvature) of the situation has set in, they open _extremely_ wide, a redness creeping over what is visible of the martial artists' face. As he very, very slowly begins to breathe again, Shampoo has to go and make the situation worse. The woman pulls herself on her hands and shakes her head, her entire upper body swaying with the motions.

Shampoo-M: ... Aiya... (rubs her head, her eyes closed)

Shampoo-R: Shampoo! Is Shampoo alright? (runs over, her hands immediately moving to Shampoo-M's shoulder and waist, gently pulling the other girl to her feet, the hand at the waist almost unncessarily sliding upward to cup a breast)

Steve: (spray of blood) ... (thonk)

Shampoo-M: ...what wrong with him?

Shampoo-R: Probably gay.

Shampoo-M: ...

Pink: There is no escape for you, over! KAERU-HA!

The Shampooim leap away from the small green ki blast, which strikes Steve's unconscious form with a comical 'ribbit' noise and sends him tumbling away. Shampoo-R hefts her giant sword and charges at the psychotic Chinese herbalist in retaliation.

Shampoo-R: You pay for sneaky attack on Shampoo, stupid herb-girl!

She swings at waist-level, the giant blade cleaving the air...which suddenly meets another giant, if rather less stylish blade, and stops dead...then continues on, the top and bottom halves of Shampoo-R's blade having been neatly separated.

Ben: (holding the undamaged Ryuugen) Whoever you are, I won't allow you to harm a servant of justice!

Shampoo-R: O_O Hey, how little kid do tha...

She is cut off as Pink slams a fist into her face, sending her staggering backwards. Oddly, however, Pink looks a little worried at the near-hit to the yin-yang symbol on the dougi's belt, and moves back a bit, assuming a defensive stance. However, Shampoo-R no longer seems to be paying attention to her.

Shampoo-R: (holding a palm to her blackened eye) Stupid kid broke Shampoo's sword, AND got Shampoo hit by plant-girl. Shampoo make you pay for that.

Ben: You started this fight, I only interfered in the cause of justice!

Aiko: Wait, who started this fight again?

Mizue: I think he's guessing.

Shampoo-R: Boy pay Shampoo back with sword, now!

She lunges at Ben; he backs up a step and swings at her, but she effortlessly avoids the blow, grabs his wrist with one hand, and then yanks the sword from his grasp with the other.

Ben: B-but...

Shampoo-R: Now you...huh?

She stares at the sword, or at least what -used- to be the sword. Everyone else stares as well, for now Ryugen has suddenly changed. Instead of a blocky and somewhat plain hunk of cutting metal, it is now a long chain made of black steel, dotted with jagged spikes and flangs and overall appears far more menacing than before.

Mizue: Wow, when Shampoo-sensei holds it, it looks really evil. I wonder why that is?

Shampoo-M: (runs up) Hey, why sword do that?

Shampoo-R: Shampoo...doesn't know. (looks at Shampoo-M, who is now clothed) Hey, where Shampoo get dressed... (looks at the unconscious Steve, who has been stripped to his boxers) ...never mind. Maybe sword change when different people hold it? Here, Shampoo try!

She hands Ryuugen to Shampoo-M; as the other woman takes hold of it, it suddenly changes to a large bonbori with a very solid-looking head.

Shampoo-M: Shampoo think Shampoo could get used to this.

She grins and flings the weapon straight at Pink's head. Normally, Pink couldn't duck a barn door, but in her defensive stance, the crushing blow is turned into a glancing strike which ricochets off her shoulder, spinning her slightly around, keeping her from catching the weapon, but bouncing it neatly through a nearby street sign and, bereft of some of its former momentum, skidding along the street to lie at Aiko's feet.

Aiko: I wonder what it'll turn into for me? (takes Ryuugen)

A long moment passes in which nothing happens. And then, something does.

Aiko: O_O

Mizue: O_O;

Shampoo-M: ...

Shampoo-R: Wow, that...really big.

Link: Ecchi, over! (hides her eyes)

Ben: ... that's Perfidy, right?

Shampoo-R: Close.

Pink: Give me that, over! (snatches the... weapon from Aiko's hands, and grins as it reshapes into a savage spiked whip with a greenish tinge to it) Now, Shampoo, you will pay the price of flouting justice, over! You too, Shampoo, over!

Huntress: (still sitting and observing the whole thing) That's neat! I wonder what it'd turn into for me... (looks at the sword welded to her hand) ...or not. Drat.

Link: You can do it, Pink, over! (clasps hands unconsciously)

Pink: But of course, over! (lashes out with the whip to catch Shampoo-M around the arm, and misses, only to wrap it around the lower leg of a certain police officer behind her, who was frantically trying to crawl away from the fracas)

Takeshi: Oh, spit.

Shampoo-M is suddenly given an immediate schooling in Exotic Weaponry: Concussive Police Officer, as Takeshi is dragged back towards Pink at shocking speed, pulling him as a form of boxer-short-clad coathanger through Shampoo-M. Shampoo-M's arm lashes out to catch on something for support, and luckily, she catches something. Unluckily, it's Shampoo-R's arm, and the two of them fall prone in a small but curvy heap. The police officer, on the other hand, goes flying off behind Pink as the whip releases him, his hands in the classic Takahashi position.

Pink stalks forward, a haughty smile on her lips as she stands over the prone forms of the Shampooim, and not far away, slumped against a wall, Ben shakes his head as the rattling noises die down...

Pink: Justice sometimes strikes from behind, over!

Ben: ...

Link: (a slightly uncertain look on her face as she returns to her feet) Er... You can do it! Uh...still! You can still do it, over!

Shampoo-R: (from the ground, glares up at Pink, then shoots a venomous glare over at Link) Watch out, stupid plant-girl, your shadow might actually do something. (she smirks proudly at Pink, the difficult syllables navigated)

Link: (looks over at Shampoo-R) Hey, what do you mean by that, over?

Shampoo-R: (standing up and dusting herself off) What you think? You lie there on ground and do nothing. Your sister stupid cheater, but she at least fight. What you do? Be a cheerleader. You useless nobody.

Aiko: Not...

Mizue: A -cheerleader-?

Aiko: Foulest of insults!

Link: (turns white, clenching her fists) Why you...

Shampoo-R: (smirks as she sees the barbs hit home) What you do without sister? Nothing. You nothing without her.

Link: (turns red, then white again, this time with rage) You...that's it. (she stalks forwards, stopping by her sister) Give it to me, over.

Pink: Link, what's the matter, over? She's so stupid she got it right. You ARE nothing without me, over. And me nothing without you. We're two halves of the same...

Link: GIVE IT TO ME! (she snatches the whip away, which promptly becomes a metal-shod staff) I'll show you what I can do by myself, over!

Shampoo-R: (smiles) You can -try-, 'over'.

Link charges forward with a cry of rage, striking once, twice, three times with the staff. Unfortunately, while magical, Ryuugen does not increase innate skill, and Shampoo-R easily dodges the first two, spins under the third, and kicks Link back, yanking the staff from her grasp as she does so. The herbalist falls back heavily as Shampoo-R leaps into the air, even as Ryuugen turns back into the vicious black chain.

Ben: (pulls himself into a position akin to an athlete about to spring from the blocks, but with much less intent, watching the tableau of combat play out)

Shampoo-R: (snaps the chain taut in front of her face, her gaze steely) Now. (Spins out both ends of the savage weapon towards the barely-aware Link)

Link looks up just in time to see a rapidly approaching maelstrom of twisted metal, which is suddenly and spectacularly blotted out by a

Shampoo-R, Shampoo-M, one powersuited officer of the police, one definitely-not-powersuited-policeman, Nobuko, Mizue (in sailor fuku costume), Aiko Mochida (AKA Magical Girl Cream Lemon), Huntress, Ryuji (last seen exiting at speed), Ben

Location: This post has moved things back in the direction of Zuni's, and is now set in the yard adjacent to said residence.

Timeframe: Roughly concurrent with what's going on at Zuni's.

<These scissors of mine glow with an awesome power! It's sharp edges tell me to reduce the size of the post! Hisatsu! SHIIIIIIIIIINING...SNIP!>

<Steve leads the group inside, before heading upstairs.>

Steve: Wait here. I'll be right back.

<Steve heads upstairs, where Stark is still working on the walls.>

Stark: So, Steve, how exactly did you lose your clothes?

Steve: Ah, well, Shampoo seems to have stolen them.

Stark: You're awfully popular with the ladies lately, huh?

<Steve rubs the back of his head.>

Stark: I'm just messing with you. Listen, I really wanted to talk a little more about what happened this morning. I came off a little weird; I want to appologize.

Steve: It's no problem. It's nice to know you're concerned, anyhow.

Stark: The thing is, I don't think I was really clear with what I was saying. I've paid enough attention to all your exposition to figure out that the big problem with Ganryu's Fire is that it's full of Ganryu's anger. He was dying, so he was pretty pissed. I suppose I'd be, too. Anyhow, all that anger can get to a guy, and drive him nuts. Lots of people've had real big blow ups, or so I gather.

Steve: Well, basically, that's right. Like I said, though, I have it under control.

Stark: I believe you when you say that. You don't understand, though. That wasn't what I was trying to warn you about. Being half dragon doesn't just mean having a lot of Fire. Humans and dragons think differently, in fundamental ways. Now, I'm not sure exactly what's changed about you. Maybe, it didn't do anything to you mentally at all. But if it did, it's not just being angry you'd have to worry about. I'm not saying you're all the sudden going to become a monster or something, or that you have to worry about 'evil impulses' and stuff like that. Just that dragons think differently. It could be confusing sometimes, and you ought to keep it in mind.

Steve: Is there...anything you want to talk about, Jared?

Stark: No, no. That's all. Hey, I've kept you too long. You ought to get dressed before one of your girlfriends see you.

Shampoo-R, Shampoo-M, one powersuited officer of the police, one definitely-not-powersuited-policeman, Nobuko, Mizue (in sailor fuku costume), Aiko Mochida (AKA Magical Girl Cream Lemon), Huntress, Ryuji (last seen exiting at speed), Ben

Location: In and around Zuni's.

Timeframe: Late afternoon. It is roughly concurrent with what is currently happening in the Shopping thread.

Steve: (rubs the back of his head.) E-heh... Don't ask me *how*...

Steve: I see... I think. (Pause) Is there...anything you want to talk about, Jared?

Steve: (Reminded of his almost naked state) ^^; Yes. Yes, that would be a very good idea.