Disclaimer: 
Tenchi Muyo!/No Need For Tenchi is a product of 
Pioneer/AIC. 
Tenchi Muyo and the characters within were created by 
Kajashime Masaki.

Note: An uchikake is the over-kimono worn by a 
Japanese bride.Usually a number of other kimonos <at 
least 3 according to a Japanese couple who posted a 
web-page about their wedding in detail> are worn 
beneath it.

Note 2: A haori-hakama is the wedding outfit worn by a 
Japanese groom.

WARNING!!: Spoilers for OAV 13 "Here Comes Jurai" 
occur in
this fanfic!

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

	Naoki Kokomori rose from slumber, yawning and 
stretching. He took a deep breath and turned to the
door of his bedroom where the haori-hakama hung. He 
stripped off his night clothes and slipped into his
wedding clothes. As he dressed, he thought of his 
bride, Makiya Tanaka. He wondered what her uchikake 
would look like. She'd be pretty in anything, he told 
himself. He had just finished dressing when there was 
a knock on the door. "Yes?" He asked.
	"My I come in?" Tenchi's voice asked from the
hall.
	"Sure." Naoki smiled as he replied.
	Tenchi walked in. "Wow!" he said. "You look great."
	"I'll let you borrow it when you marry Ryoko." 
Naoki joked.
	"But, I'm not..."	
	"Why not. You two *are* in love, after all."
	"Excuse me." Tenchi wandered out of the room.
	In the hallway, he ran into Yosho. 
	"Tenchi, what is the matter?" Yosho asked. 
	"Naoki thinks I should ask Ryoko to make it a 
double wedding." Tenchi sighed.
	"I see. And what do you think...?"
	"Well.. um... I..."
	"I see. "Yosho said, resignedly. "Very well. 
We'll wait for fifteen minutes to give you and Ryoko 
time to get ready."
	"I'm *NOT* getting married!" Tenchi told nobody
as Yosho made his way to Naoki's room.	
	

	"Naoki," Yosho asked from the doorway. "You almost
ready?"
	Naoki gulped in cold fear, but replied. "Yes."


	In another bedroom, Makiya Tanaka was getting 
dressed. She had five kimonos on, and now Ayeka was 
helping her into her uchikake. It was a good thing, 
too, since Makiya could hardly move her arms. She 
smiled to herself, then sighed as the traditional wig 
and bridal headdress were set in place. They were 
heavy, but Naoki was worth the discomfort. "I hope 
Naoki's okay." She said, as Washu walked in, wearing a 
very nice outfit she'd selected for the wedding. "What
do you think he's doing right now?"
	"Probably breathing into a paper bag." Washu 
shrugged.

	Naoki was breathing into a paper bag. This didn't 
come as a surprise to anyone else, but it sure as heck 
was a surprise to him. 
	"I was once," he said, between bouts of anxiety 
attacks, "The bravest operative the Galaxy Police ever 
knew. I faced..." another pause, "...some of most 
dangerous criminals in the Galaxy without flinching." 
Another pause.  "Now, I'm getting married," A very 
long pause, this one with a lot of rapid breathing 
into the paper bag. "...and I'm scared to death." he 
concluded	There was a knock on the door, and the 
former Galaxy Police Operative nearly jumped a foot 
straight up.	"It's just me." Tenchi told him. "Grandpa 
sent me make sure you made it to the shrine."
	"Thank you." Naoki nodded as he stood up and brushed 
out any wrinkles his clothes may have obtained by 
sitting down. He left the room and Tenchi followed, 
ready to offer support should he decide that fainting 
would be a good idea at some point during the walk to 
the shrine.
	Naoki and Tenchi made it to the shrine and Naoki took 
his place at the ceremonial setting.

	A moment later, Makiya Tanaka appeared in the temple 
doorway. She looked quite breathtaking in her 
uchikake. All eyes turned toward her as she made her 
entrance. Naoki gazed at her from his place at the 
temple altar and swallowed the lump that formed in his 
throat. Naoki was trembling as she approached him. 
None of his experiences working for the Galaxy Police 
had prepared him for this moment. He could hear his 
heart pounding as it raced in his chest, feel the 
adrenaline as his bride drew nearer to him.
	Ayeka and Ryoko, watching from nearby, were 
whispering to each other, wagering on if and when 
Naoki would pass out.	

	Makiya knelt before Naoki and bowed to him in 
respect. Her own heart was racing just as quickly as 
she felt his eyes upon her and knew that for that 
moment she alone commanded the attention of a being 
who had seen countless things she could only dream of, 
and even some things she couldn't imagine.

	He looked down at her, tenderly. Love permeated every
part of him, filling his very soul to overflowing.  
Naoki, who until he'd met Makiya knew close to nothing 
about even the simplest happiness, was overwhelmed by 
it and could not hold back the tears of joy that 
trickled down his face.

	Sasami was dressed in the robes of a Shinto serving
girl. Without a word, she stepped foward with three 
cups of sake stacked one atop the other and placed 
them on the altar. She bowed for a moment, in silent 
prayer, then backed quickly away.
	Naoki and Tanaka knelt side by side at the altar and 
Yosho stood over them.

	Yosho waited a moment, then began the ceremony.
	"May She Who is the Spirit of the First Tree grant 
you a lifetime of love in your marriage." He made the 
first prayer.
	In reply, as was the custom, Naoki and Makiya took 
turns drinking a sip from the topmost cup. Because 
Makiya could barely move her arms, Naoki held the cup 
for her. After Naoki set the cup down, Yosho made the 
second prayer:
	"May She Who is the Spirit of the First Tree grant 
you  prosperity in your marriage."
	Naoki and Makiya each took a second sip from the 
topmost cup.
	Naoki set the cup down and Yosho made the third 
prayer, the last one for the topmost cup.	 
	"May She Who is the Spirit of the First Tree grant 
you joy in your marriage." 
	Naoki and Makiya each took their final sip from the 
topmost cup, which Sasami then took away and set upon 
a nearby tray.
	Yosho made the fourth prayer.
	"May She Who is the Spirit of the First Tree keep 
watch upon your new home." He said, home referring to 
the home they would be building as husband and wife as 
well as to any simple structure which might also be 
called a house. Naoki and Makiya took the first sips 
from the middle cup.
	Naoki put the cup back down and Yosho made the fifth
prayer.
	"May She Who is the Spirit of the First Tree grant
you safety in your new home."
	Naoki and Makiya took the second sips from the middle 
cup.
	"May She Who is the Spirit of the First Tree grant 
you the gift of peace in your new home." Yosho made 
the sixth prayer
	Naoki and Makiya took the final sips from the middle 
cup, which Sasami took away and set alongside the 
first.	Yosho began the seventh prayer.
	"May She Who is the Spirit of the First Tree grant 
all offspring who issue from this union the gift of 
good health."
	Naoki and Makiya took the first sips from the last 
cup.
	Then Yosho made the eighth prayer.
	"May She Who is the Spirit of the First Tree grant 
all offspring who issue from this union the gift of 
prosperity." He prayed.
	Naoki and Makiya took the second sips from the third 
cup.
	Then Yosho made the ninth and final prayer.
	"May She Who is the Spirit of the First Tree grant 
all offspring who issure from this union the gift of 
happiness." He concluded.
	Naoki and Makiya took the final sips from the last 
cup.
	Then Naoki handed the cup to Sasami who took it away
and placed it alongside the other two. Having handed 
away the last cup, he rose and turned to Makiya and 
spoke as she again bowed before him.
	"As your husband," he recited, as he'd been 
instructed, "I shall always keep you in my heart and 
home. I shall keep safe you and all offspring which 
you bear unto me. I shall be faithful unto you always 
and shall expect the same from you toward me." And 
then he bowed before her, sealing the promise he'd 
made her.
	
	Now the ceremony was over and it was time for the 
reception. Of course there was the traditional cake to 
be cut, but in order to do that, Makiya had to first 
change into a western-style dress, which was less 
restrictive. Once she was in her reception gown, 
the newlyweds cut the cake, which elicited a cheer 
from the others 
present.
	
	"Isn't this romantic?" Ryoko asked, leaning on 
Tenchi.
	Tenchi gulped.
	"Um. Ryoko?"
	"Ryoko! How dare you!" Ayeka challenged.
	Having gotten past the hurdle of actually getting 
married, Naoki was no longer in danger of fainting and 
had pretty much relaxed. He was enjoying the reception 
with Makiya Tana... he stopped himself. Makiya 
Kokomori, he made a mental note of her new name. He 
was about to thank Yosho again for performing the 
ceremony when he heard Ryoko and Ayeka. He calmly 
strolled over to them and
looked them square in the eye..
	"Galaxy Police Law twenty-five, subsection D, 
Paragraph one of the Intergalactic Arrest Accord 
states that you have the right to remain silent." he 
told them. "Please take advantage of it." Without 
waiting for them to reply, he turned and went back to 
his place at Makiya's side.
	Makiya was laughing, pleasantly.

	Ryoko and Ayeka exchanged looks. 
	"Did he just tell *me* to shut up." Ayeka. "How 
*dare* he."
	"It *is* his wedding." Tenchi pointed out.
	"You keep out of this." Ayeka retorted.
	"Why don't *you* keep out of it?" Naoki suggested.
	Ayeka turned a very unflattering shade of purple as
she turned toward him. "And just what is *that* 
supposed to mean?"	
"Well," Naoki shrugged, as he picked a piece of 
tempura up from his plate with his chopsticks and took 
a bite. "from what I've gathered, Ryoko was already 
here when you arrived and you've been doing everything 
you could, including baiting her and trying to make 
her get mad in front of Tenchi, to prevent them from
having a relationship."
	"That isn't true!" Ayeka gasped.
	"You claim you love Tenchi." Naoki began
	"I do love him."
	"But you've never actually got to know him." Naoki 
pointed out as he continued speaking. "All you've done 
since you arrived is plot how you're going to get him 
away from Ryoko."	
	"I..." Ayeka began. But then she realized he was 
right. She had been so busy working on getting Tenchi, 
that she had't actually taken time to know him. She 
fell silent as she contemplated what to do to remedy 
that.	Yosho watched and listened from his place near 
the buffe tthat Sasami had laid out. He knew that if 
they ever found out about the fact that he hadn't 
really aged, they'd probably lynch him for putting 
Tenchi through all the trouble he'd gone through. 
After all, if Ayeka knew he was still young, she'd 
return her affections to him,
wouldn't she. He was, after all, the reason she had 
come to Earth in 
the first place.
	Washu noticed his contemplativeness and joined him. 
"You know there are a couple of things you could do 
that would solve that problem. One, you could tell 
them the truth and take your chances."
	"And two?" Yosho asked.
	"I could marry Tenchi!" Washu perked up cheerfully.
	Everyone in earshot facefaulted.

	The reception continued on until late at night. No 
one really noticed the time. They were all enjoying 
themselves quite thoroughly. While the others were 
busy enjoying the reception, Makiya and Naoki 
slipped quietly out of the room and went upstairs to 
where the bedrooms were. They hadn't decide which of 
the two rooms they had previously occupied separately 
would be the best to sleep in. At the moment, however, 
her room was closer so they slipped into the room,
quietly, and carefully closed the door.
	
	For a long while, they simply stood there and stared 
at each other. Then, Makiya undid her dress and let it 
fall from her body. It pooled at her feet so that she 
looked almost like a semi-clad angel standing in a 
cloud of white silk.	
	As it turned out, Tenchi wasn't the only male in the 
house who got nosebleeds when he saw a woman in the 
nude.

	Makiya shook her head, smiling in amusement, as she 
got a tissue and wiped the blood off Naoki's face. 
"You poor thing."  she said, gently. 

	She felt his head lean against her hand as she 
reached over to throw the tissue away. When she looked 
in his direction, she saw that he had fainted. At 
least, she thought, he was nice enough to faint onto 
her futon so she didn't have to drag him over there. 
She drew the blanket up over him and snuggled up to 
him under it after going over to the wall and turning 
off the light. In the darkness, she felt him kiss 
her...

	Tenchi and the others retired to their rooms for the 
evening, one after the other, leaving Washu to tidy up 
after the party.
Of curse, Washu planned to get even as she swept up 
after the party.

	"But Naoki and Makiya are making love!" Ryoko 
protested as she followed Tenchi. "Why can't we?"
	"Because we're not married." Replied Tenchi who was 
rather old fashioned about such matters.
	"Then let's get married and then we can make love." 
Ryoko pleaded, melodramatically.
	"Um, I can't tonight." 
	"Why not?" Ryoko whined.
	"Headache." Tenchi pleaded.
	"Oh, my poor Tenchi!" Ryoko wailed. She began to drag 
him in the direction of Washu's lab.
	Tenchi began to think he'd picked the wrong excuse. 
"Um... Ryoko?" He began. What could he do. If he 
admitted he'd lied to her, she might get angry and she 
would certainly be hurt. 
	Ryoko looked at him hopefully.	
	"Yes, Tenchi?" She flirted.	
	"Never mind." Tenchi gulped.	
	Ryoko continued to drag him toward her mother's lab.	
	"Don't trouble Washu." Tenchi told her. "it's just a 
headache."	
	"Are you sure?" Ryoko asked, her voice filled with 
genuine concern.	
	"I'll just sleep it off." Tenchi assured her. "It'll 
be okay by morning."
	"Maybe I should sleep with you just in case." Ryoko 
offered.
	"Um, no thanks!" Tenchi replied, too quickly. He 
corrected himself. "I mean, I don't want you to lose 
any sleep."	
	"You're just the *SWEETEST* thing!" Ryoko 
hugged Tenchi. "Sweet dreams, Tenchi." She said as she 
finally headed off to her own bed.
	Tenchi walked into his bedroom and sat on the futon, 
letting out a sigh of relief. "I'm glad that's over." 
He told himself as he laid back with his hands behind 
his head. From the adjacent room he heard Naoki's and 
Makiya's voices, sometimes moaning, sometimes 
speaking, always very soft. Of course, there was no 
way to know exactly what they were doing, but one 
obvious idea came to Tenchi's mind... the kind of idea 
that usually gave him nosebleeds.	He began to think 
that Washu's lab might not have been such a bad idea 
after all.	

Lt. Trakal
Operative of the Galaxy Police SIU