(2/4)

She retrieved the two breakfast trays from the oven and placed them on
the counter. The food was still warm. Faint wisps of steam still rose
above the bowls of miso soup, in fact. Ryoko got two cups from the
cupboard and filled them with tea from the thermos sitting on the kitchen
table. One by one she saw to the other small, necessary items --
chopsticks, napkins, shouyu. She carefully looked over the trays to be
sure nothing was missing. Nothing seemed to be, but a nagging voice told
her that something wasn't right.

A memory came back to her, a scene from a soap opera she'd watched a few
weeks before. A young man had gone down on his knee before his girlfriend
and pulled a small black box out of his pocket. Opening it, he'd revealed
a ring, and as he'd presented it to her, he'd asked a question in a
sweet, hesitant voice.

"Will you fix miso soup for me every morning?"

Ryoko heaved a dejected sigh and eyed the trays sadly. Every morsel of
food, miso soup included, had been prepared by Sasami. Ryoko hadn't even
been in the kitchen and watched it being fixed.

Perhaps she should fix something for him herself? Ryoko sighed again and
shook her head. It wouldn't make Tenchi want to stay if she served him
something awful. And yet, she didn't want to merely deliver what Sasami's
hands had made. As she floated in the air, thinking, her eyes happened to
focus on the shopping list taped to the refrigerator. Then they idly
wandered onto one specific word.

Sake.

Ryoko snapped her fingers and smiled. Of course! Sake! Just the thing to
go with breakfast! She snatched two sake cups and put them on the trays,
then grabbed an unopened bottle of sake from Nobuyuki's liquor cabinet.

Now to heat it up, she decided. That way, at least part of the breakfast
would be something *she'd* prepared. It was one of the few things --
possibly the *only* thing -- she could reliably fix in the kitchen. She
got a large saucepan out of one of the cupboards, filled it with water,
set the bottle of sake in it, turned on the stove, and waited. 

Soon it was just the right temperature. Ryoko turned off the stove and
wedged the bottle under her arm, then picked up the trays. Pride swelled
within her again, as well as an incredibly-warm feeling of anticipation.
Unable to contain her joyful excitement any longer, she spun around the
kitchen, almost dropping the trays in the process. 

After nearly a minute, Ryoko slowed to a stop and, with agonizing effort,
managed to calm down. Though he didn't react to her the same way he had
before, her boisterousness still seemed to unnerve Tenchi a little, and
she wasn't going to allow the smallest detail to be anything but
wonderful for him.

Today was going to be *perfect*.

Ryoko composed herself, took a deep breath, and vanished.

An instant later, she appeared in Tenchi's bedroom, directly over the
unoccupied bed. Tenchi was sitting in front of his desk, facing away from
her as he opened a bottle of black paint. Ryoko set the trays and the
sake down near the door, then floated over behind Tenchi and put her arms
around him.

Tenchi chuckled. "I was beginning to worry that you'd decided to eat
breakfast without me. What took you so long?"

"Oh, nothing really," giggled Ryoko. She looked over his shoulder
curiously. "Watcha doing, hmm?"

"Painting in the second eye of this daruma doll," replied Tenchi, picking
up the ornately-decorated ceramic head and turning his head to face her.
Noticing from her expression that she didn't understand, he explained.
"You paint in the first eye when you make a wish. Then, when the wish
comes true, you do the second one."

Ryoko kissed Tenchi's cheek. "So, what did you wish for?"

Tenchi turned back to his work. He dipped a brush in the paint and
started filling in the doll's vacant eye. "For you two to stop fighting,"
he said.

Wordlessly, Ryoko watched Tenchi patiently paint the eye. Thinking back,
she decided that his wish had come true, so far. Nothing she and Aeka had
done since Saturday quite qualified as fighting. She'd known it was
something he wanted, but watching the obvious care he put into each and
every stroke of the brush, she realized that it meant a lot more to him
than she'd ever thought.

Once he'd finished, Tenchi put the doll back down, cleaned his brush, and
capped the bottle of paint. "Is my dad gone?"

Ryoko nodded. "Uh-huh."

"Let's go downstairs, then," Tenchi said as he stood up. "I'm starving."

"We're not going downstairs," said Ryoko, smiling. "We're going back to
bed."

Tenchi grinned. "OK, if you say so. But I really think I'd do a better
job if you let me eat breakfast first."

Ryoko kissed him. "I'll keep that in mind. Now get in bed, sit up, and
close your eyes. I've got a surprise for you."

"Surprise, huh?" asked Tenchi. He sat down on the bed and pulled the
blankets up to his waist, then shut his eyes and waited.

Ryoko picked up the trays and the sake again, and got into bed next to
Tenchi. She placed one tray on her lap, nestled the bottle between the
two of them, and leaned over, holding the second tray.

"You can open your eyes now," she said.

Tenchi did, and saw the tray Ryoko held out in front of him, as well as
the smile on her face, proud and radiant as the sun.

"Wow, breakfast in bed!" He took the tray from her hands, then bent over
and kissed her. "Thanks, Ryoko. This is great!"

Ryoko concentrated on the feel of Tenchi's lips on hers, her fists
clenched tightly from the effort it took not to throw her arms around him
and in so doing spill breakfast all over the bed.

After a few moments, Tenchi straightened back up and picked up his
chopsticks from the tray. Ryoko grasped his wrist and took them away from
him, setting them down next to her own.

"Don't I get to eat?" asked Tenchi.

"First things first," answered Ryoko, hefting the bottle of sake. She
removed the cap and moved to fill Tenchi's cup.

Tenchi shook his head. "No thanks, Ryoko. I think I'll pass on the sake."

"But Tenchiiiiiiii....!"

"I'm really not supposed to, Ryoko."

Ryoko leaned over and lay her head on Tenchi's shoulder. "Nobody's here
but us, Tenchi. And *I* won't tell anyone."

"But if I drink it on an empty stomach like this, it'll *really* affect
me."

"Please?" she asked, kissing him on the cheek. "For me?"

Tenchi kissed her forehead. "Come on, Ryoko. I like how you brought me
breakfast, but I just don't want to have any sake. OK?"

Ryoko sighed and looked down at the blankets.

"What's so important about it, anyway?" he asked, putting an arm around
her. "It's just sake."

"But it's the only part of breakfast that's really from *me*," answered
Ryoko sadly. "*I* fixed it. Just for the two of us, Tenchi." She sighed
again. "That's why."

Tenchi thought about it for a moment, then picked up his cup and held it
out to her. "I'm sorry, Ryoko. I was being rude. Pour some sake for me,
please."

Ryoko's face brightened instantly. She filled his cup, then her own, and
recapped the bottle.

"Just don't take advantage of me if I get drunk," laughed Tenchi, before
raising his cup. "Kanpai!"

Ryoko lifted her own cup. "Kanpai!" She watched Tenchi drink, and the
resulting vivid red flush which quickly blossomed in his face. Ryoko
giggled, drained her cup, then refilled it and waited until Tenchi set
his down. Once he did, she held the cup between them and leaned towards
him.

After a moment, Tenchi took the hint. He leaned over as Ryoko brought the
cup to their lips, and the two of them took a sip together, smiling at
each other over the sake. When the cup was empty, Ryoko set it down,
giggling again. "I like drinking sake that way. It's like..."

Tenchi grinned and nodded. "I know, I know, 'like indirectly kissing.'
But what's the point of doing it *indirectly*?" he asked, giving her a
real kiss.

"I see what you mean," she replied, returning the kiss and holding it for
a while. "Now, time to eat." She picked up a bite-sized piece of fish
with Tenchi's chopsticks and moved it towards him. "Open wide."

Tenchi blinked. "You're going to... feed me?" he asked in an amazed
voice.

"Uh-huh," said Ryoko, nodding. "Come on, open up."

For a moment Tenchi didn't know what to think. Even though he'd learned
to see Ryoko's gentle side, he wouldn't in a million years have imagined
her doing something so... so... 

So...

He couldn't think of the right word. Comforting? Nurturing, maybe? That
wasn't quite right, but it was the closest he could come. Recollections
of his early childhood -- images, sounds, smells, tastes -- came bubbling
up through his memory, and Tenchi lost himself in them, thinking, a
distant look on his face.

Ryoko nudged the fish against his lips. "Are you going to eat, or not?"
she asked. "I *told* you, I didn't fix the food, if that's what you're
worried about."

Tenchi shook his head several times, bringing his mind back to the
present. "Oh, sorry, Ryoko. What were you saying?"

Ryoko waved the food under his nose to remind him.

Tenchi opened his mouth, and Ryoko fed him the piece of fish. Once he
swallowed it, she was ready with another, then another.

"Enjoying this?" Ryoko asked.

"Uh-huh," answered Tenchi. "I haven't been pampered like this since...
well, for a long time, anyway."

Ryoko thought Tenchi's expression looked a little sad, but she decided to
overlook it for the moment. She finished feeding him the fish, then
picked up the bowl of miso soup. She brought it up to his mouth, then
tilted it, letting him take a sip or two. Seeing a trace of soup left
around Tenchi's mouth, Ryoko dabbed it away with a napkin.

Tenchi glanced at Ryoko, then down at the soup, and now Ryoko definitely
noticed sorrow in his face. In fact, it looked as if he might start to
cry.

"Tenchi, what's the matter?" she asked, setting down the soup and putting
a hand on his shoulder. "What's wrong?"

Tenchi quickly turned his face away, blinking back tears and telling
himself that men weren't allowed to weep.

Ryoko put her hand under his chin and tried to gently coax him to face
her. "Come on, Tenchi, what is it?"

Taking a few deep breaths, Tenchi assured himself that he had renewed his
self-control. He looked over at Ryoko. "Well, it's just that, the last
person to feed me in bed like this was my mom, when I had a cold. It was
only a month or so afterwards that she died."

Ryoko's body seemed to wilt as she realized that instead of pleasing
Tenchi she'd torn open deep, painful wounds. It always seemed to happen
this way. Whenever she tried to do something to show Tenchi her feelings,
a lapse in judgement or gap in knowledge would twist her efforts inside-
out and turn it all into a horrible disaster. Ryoko meekly folded her
arms across her knees and lay her chin on them. "I'm sorry, Tenchi," she
said very quietly. "I wasn't trying to hurt you."

Tenchi looked over at Ryoko, then put his arm around her, shaking his
head. "No, no, *no*. I *like* being reminded of mom, even if it makes me
miss her." He squeezed Ryoko gently. "Don't be sorry. Don't be sorry at
*all*. I'd forgotten how good it feels to be taken care of like that."

Ryoko looked up. "Really?"

"Yeah." Tenchi kissed her on the cheek. "Thanks, Ryoko. This is the best
breakfast I've had in a long, long time."

Her face beaming, Ryoko gave Tenchi a long, lingering kiss. "Now, time to
finish your soup," she said, picking up the bowl again.

Tenchi smiled, and let Ryoko continue feeding him. Rice came after the
soup, followed by tea to wash it down. Ryoko set Tenchi's tray on the
floor and picked up her chopsticks to begin eating.

Tenchi lay his hand on hers to stop her. "Hey, what are you doing? It's
my turn to feed you, right?"

Ryoko looked over at Tenchi, her eyes widening at this unexpected
surprise. She hadn't considered the possibility at all. "Sure, if you
want to."

"Of course I want to," he replied. He picked up a clump of rice with her
chopsticks. Ryoko waited with her mouth open. Tenchi brought the rice up
to her, holding one hand cupped underneath to catch any grains that fell,
and placed it in her mouth. Ryoko swallowed it, and Tenchi repeated the
process a few more times, watching her smile and the sparkle in her eyes.
"You sure look happy," he said.

Ryoko nodded. "It's almost like the first time we met," she said in a
soft voice. "You taking care of me, I mean."

Tenchi kissed her. "I'll take care of you, any time you need me to,
Ryoko."

"Thanks, Tenchi," she replied, kissing him back, wondering at the way
such a simple thing as eating breakfast could bring out such strong
emotions in the two of them. Ryoko closed her eyes for a moment, savoring
the warm feeling in her heart of hearts as she thought of Tenchi taking
care of her, comforting her, sustaining her. In the old days -- a dim,
misty time ages and ages ago, before she'd crashed on Earth -- she'd
never needed anything like that. Now she knew there was no way she could
live without it, ever again.

After a while, Ryoko opened her eyes again. Tenchi looked at her, still
holding the rice bowl and chopsticks. "Do you want me to feed you the
rest of this?" he asked. "I'll take it downstairs if you don't. It's
going to get cold soon."

Ryoko shook her head. "No, I'm still hungry." She looked at the rice for
a moment. "Put some shouyu on it, though. It's kind of bland when it's
plain."

"Sure."

Tenchi sprinkled some of the dark sauce on the rice, then lifted a clump
of it to Ryoko's mouth and fed it to her.

Miles away, Aeka, Sasami, and Washuu walked into a shopping mall not too
far from Mihoshi and Kiyone's apartment. Few customers walked about
inside -- it was Tuesday morning, after all. Students were at school,
workers at their jobs.

Sasami breathed a sigh of relief, enjoying the air-conditioned indoor
climate in contrast to the humid and unseasonably-warm weather outside.
"I'm sure glad it's cooler in here." She looked up at Aeka. "Oneesama,
why did they make it so hot outside today? After walking from the
apartment, I'm starting to feel a little icky."

"I don't believe the people of Earth have the ability to control the
weather yet," replied Aeka. "But I agree, it is rather uncomfortable. I'm
already looking forward to a bath when we get back. I certainly hope it
doesn't get much hotter today."

"Unfortunately, it's going to," said Washuu. "In the absence of an
advanced climate-control system, the atmospheric temperature peaks in
mid-afternoon due to the planet absorbing thermal energy from the sun
faster than it can radiate it back into space."

The princesses sighed. All of the scientific explanation wasn't really
necessary. The important part was that the walk back to Mihoshi and
Kiyone's apartment was going to be less than pleasant.

"This *is* an unusually-high temperature for this time of year, though,"
continued Washuu. "That could be due to any number of causes. At the low
end of the probability scale, something could have destabilized the
Earth's orbit and caused it to head towards the Sun. Or this could be the
initial stages of the Sun becoming a nova..."

Aeka looked down at Washuu, a horrified expression on her face.

"...though that's very unlikely given Sol's relatively young age,"
explained Washuu, warming up to her lecture. "And if the Earth's orbit
had changed, we'd have found out very quickly due to the resulting
tectonic upheaval -- Japan is a very seismically-active area. Now, a more
likely explanation is a sudden increase in carbon dioxide levels in
Earth's upper atmosphere, which would..."

The princesses sighed again, continuing to listen politely as Washuu
explained all about greenhouse gases and a half-dozen other possible
reasons why the day's weather was so unpleasantly-warm. In the meantime, 
the three of them went through the eatery that sat just past the entrance
to the mall, then turned down one of the mall's wings, casually window-
shopping for the moment.

Nothing very interesting presented itself for view inside the eyeglass
shop, the shoe store, or the camera shop. The next establishment sold
luggage. A smile formed on Aeka's lips for a moment. Handing Ryoko a
suitcase would send the *perfect* message. But it would definitely make
Tenchi very angry, she knew.

Looking down the length of the mall, Sasami spotted the sign for Animate,
an anime and manga shop. She tugged at her sister's arm and pointed. "I'm
going to go buy the Ribbon Magazine I came for, OK?"

"Alright," replied Aeka, nodding. "We won't be going into any of the
stores for a few minutes. But don't be too long."

"Thanks!" Sasami walked away quickly, as Washuu and Aeka continued on.
After the luggage shop came a men's clothing store. Not much chance of
finding anything suitable in there, Aeka decided.

The next store down was something called Victoria's Secret, apparently
new to the mall -- a sign on a stand out front proclaimed "Grand
Opening." Aeka's eyes widened a little as she stopped and regarded the
diverse array of lingerie displayed in the windows and inside the store
itself.

Washuu moved up to get a closer look at one of the peignoirs -- a lacy
black one cut for a tall woman, with plenty of room in the cups. "Too bad
I'm not in the market for one of these right now. This one's just about
perfect."

"I wonder if they have it in your size," wondered Aeka aloud. She
giggled. "The dimensions aren't quite right, if you noticed."

Washuu smiled. "You should know by now how easily I can manipulate
dimensions."

Aeka blinked, then laughed politely, as if understanding the scientist's
rather odd joke. One thing was certain, she *definitely* wouldn't be
purchasing a gift for Ryoko *here*. Finding some way to make a gesture of
sympathy regarding Tenchi's absence was within her, Aeka decided, but
giving Ryoko a gift to make her more enticing to him went *much* too far.

But other thoughts now entered Aeka's head, on the subject of enticing
Tenchi. Except for staying home to console Ryoko, which Aeka really
couldn't bring herself to think harshly of him for, Tenchi had been
wonderfully dutiful and *delightfully* obedient. It simply wouldn't do to
wear the black leather outfit that her mother had given her. That was the
garb to be donned to warn him that he had aroused her anger rather than
her passion -- a harbinger of punishment. That wasn't what Aeka wanted
him to see in her. Yet, when she chained him to the bed for the first
time, shouldn't she wear something special for such a romantic occasion?

Aeka turned and looked to Washuu. "Could you wait here for Sasami,
please? I want to buy something inside."

Washuu nodded. "I'll be right here." She watched thoughtfully as Aeka
went inside the store to browse, while outside she continued doing the
same through the windows. Out of the corner of her eye she caught sight
of three women coming in her general direction, one of them pushing a
stroller. Washuu glanced inside at the baby for a moment, then returned
her eyes to the skimpy undergarments in the displays. As the women came
closer, their conversation found its way into her ears.

"I'm so glad you *finally* came to visit us, Kimiko."

"That's not fair, Namiko. You know how hard it is for neechan to get time
off. I'm happy she managed to make it down."

"Thanks, Shuuko. It's nice to be out of the office for a day! But
speaking of time off, I'm surprised they gave you enough leave to have
the baby."

"Someone else is teaching my classes for now. But you're right, it wasn't
easy."

Washuu nodded sympathetically without really being conscious of it, and
moved a few feet down to get a closer look at a pink nightie.

The front of the stroller nudged against the glass next to her. As the
three women started discussing the items on display, Washuu looked down
at the infant. The baby cooed at her, smiling and reaching out with
chubby little arms.

Washuu smiled back, a touch sadly.

"Say 'konichi wa' to the nice girl, Mineko," said the woman pushing the
stroller.

"Ga!" said the baby.

Washuu looked up at the woman. "It'll be a little while yet."

"Yeah, I think you're right," agreed the mother. She looked over at one
of the other women. "Want to grab something to eat?"

"Sounds good."

The women and the baby continued on in the opposite direction that
Washuu, Aeka, and Sasami had come. Washuu gazed wistfully as the stroller
receded into the crowd, then sighed and shook her head.

"Babies, babies, babies."

There sure seemed to be a lot of them around lately.

"Hi, I'm back! Where's oneesama?" asked Sasami.

Washuu looked over and realized she hadn't been paying attention. "She's
in the store, Sasami-chan. Actually... there she is, at the cash
register," she said, nodding towards the elder princess. 

A brief flash of white fabric was visible before the clerk placed it a
bag and bowed, presenting the bag to Aeka, who bowed back very slightly
in return. She walked out and over to Washuu and Sasami, a rather
playful-looking smile on her face.

"I'm going to tell mommy you're being ecchi," giggled Sasami.

Aeka frowned ever-so-slightly. "I am *not* being ecchi, Sasami. You'll
understand when you're older."

Sasami pouted. "You're *always* saying that."

"Did they have the manga you wanted?" asked Washuu.

"Uh-huh," said Sasami, pulling two manga an inch or so out of the bag she
carried. "And I got a Wedding Peach while I was there, too."

Aeka started walking down the fronts of the stores again. A sporting
goods shop didn't offer any promise. Neither did the beauty salon, nor
the video store after it.

Then they came to a pet store. "Oh, look at all the Ryo-ohkis!" gasped
Sasami, running up to peer down into one of the pens.

"I think those are rabbits, Sasami," explained Aeka, arriving behind her
with Washuu.

"I know, I know," the young princess replied, "but they really *look*
like Ryo-ohki. It's too bad I forgot to bring her with us. She might have
had a chance to make some new friends."

"I'm not sure that they could communicate, Sasami-chan," explained
Washuu. "Ryo-ohki's a *lot* more intelligent than these bunnies are.
She's about as smart as the average Earthling or Juraian, in fact. She
just can't talk. And that's not even counting the mathematics and physics
that most folks can't grasp but Ryo-ohki knows *instinctively*, the way a
bird understands aerodynamics." Washuu held her chin thoughtfully. "I
wonder if she'd like catnip, though."

Aeka stood for a while as her sister petted the rabbits, then noticed the
jewelry store two shops down and decided it might present some
possibilities. "Will you be here for a while, Sasami?" she asked.

Sasami nodded happily, then headed into the store to get a closer look at
some puppies.

Aeka turned to Washuu. "Washuu-chan, I don't mean to presume to treat you
as a nurse-maid, but do you suppose you could watch Sasami for me? She
has a tendency to wander off and endanger herself, sometimes."

"I'll keep an eye on her," assured Washuu.

"Thank you," said Aeka. "I'll be in the jewelry store if you need me."
She walked down and began examining the rings, bracelets, and other items
in the glass display cases. Then she decided to go inside.

An white-haired, bespectacled gentleman met her at the door and bowed.
Aeka bowed back. "Is there anything you wish me to help you with today?"
asked the man.

Aeka shook her head. "I'm just looking for now." She slowly made her way
around the perimeter of the shop. Although nothing like the priceless
examples of metal and crystalline artistry she was accustomed to being
presented with at her marriage meetings, the jewelry here had a charm of
its own, she decided. Some of it, in fact, could even be described as
beautiful.

And, as far as the rings went, the craftsmanship hardly mattered, so long
as Tenchi was the one to put it on her finger.

She certainly wouldn't be getting Ryoko one of *those*, of course. That
would be even worse than buying her the lingerie.

Aeka was on the verge of deciding to give up attempting to find something
for Ryoko in the jewelry store and try another shop instead when she came
across a display case full of lockets, most of them engraved with kanji
and kana. Some of them said "love" or "devotion" or similar things, but
many bore people's names. Aeka's face brightened and she nodded,
realizing that she'd found what she'd been looking for.

She would give Ryoko a locket with Tenchi's name on it. That way, he
would be with her in a symbolic way, even when he was gone. Very
carefully she picked out the most beautiful of the ones that had no
lettering on them, then turned to the shopkeeper.

"I'll take this one, please," she said, pointing to the one she'd decided
on.

"An excellent choice," the man replied. He handed her a piece of paper
and a pen. "If you'd please write what you'd like engraved on it, I can
start right away."

Aeka accepted the offered pen and paper. With smooth, flowing movements
of her hand, she traced the kanji for Tenchi's name, then handed them
back.

"I'll begin at once. Might I suggest one of our fine necklaces to
accompany your purchase?" the jeweler said, pointing at several display
cases in turn.

"Yes, I think perhaps I shall," agreed Aeka. She looked down at the
necklaces, and almost immediately one of them caught her eye. It was
fashioned to appear as if made of flowers strung together. Just like the
headdress of lovely blooms that Ryoko had stolen from her, many, many
years before.

Or had Ryoko stolen it? Aeka wasn't quite sure. It was so very long ago.

In any case, it would be perfect. It would be a peace offering, a way of
suggesting that she and Ryoko put their past arguments behind them.
Aeka's heart filled with joy. Even if it didn't work, Tenchi would be so
*proud* of her when he found out about the gesture she had made, the care
she had put into giving him what he wanted.

A few minutes later, when the jeweler finished with the engraving and
presented it to her, Aeka pointed out the flower necklace. The man
retrieved it from the case and attached the locket to it. "And might I
say it will look lovely on you."

Aeka blushed slightly. "Thank you, but it's for an... acquaintance of
mine."

"You're getting it as a present?" asked Sasami. "Who for?"

Aeka looked over at her sister, startled. "Where's Washuu-sama?"

"Oh, she's looking at the guinea pigs," replied Sasami. "Who's the
necklace for, oneesama?" The princess smiled. "For me?"

"No, it's for Ryoko," answered Aeka. "You've quite enough of my jewelry
as it is, without me buying you more. Now, don't tell her. I wish to make
it a surprise."

Sasami pressed her nose up close to one of the cases, peering inside with
wide eyes. "You do?"

"Yes. So please don't mention anything about it before I give it to her."

"Gee, that tiara sure is pretty," said the young princess innocently.

Aeka gritted her teeth. "Sasami..." she warned in a low voice.

Sasami continued gazing at the sparkling treasures on the other side of
the glass and said nothing in reply.

"I really wish you wouldn't do this," pleaded Aeka. "It isn't nice of you
at all."

Still, Sasami remained silent, smiling at her reflection.

"If I may say so, you have excellent taste in jewelry, for such a little
girl," said the man, trying to keep himself from drooling. The tiara was
one of the most expensive items in the shop.

Aeka shot an angry glance at the jeweler. "Sasami..."

The young princess stood up. "I was just kidding, oneesama," she giggled.

The man sighed regretfully. "That'll be fifty thousand yen, please."

Back at the Masaki home, Ryoko and Tenchi sipped their tea, having
finished feeding each other a few minutes before. Emptying his cup,
Tenchi took the breakfast trays and the sake bottle, got up, and set them
on the desk. When he turned around, he saw that Ryoko had floated up next
to him. She put her arms around him and kissed him.

"I've got an idea," she said.

"I liked the one about breakfast. What's this about?" asked Tenchi.

"Let's go take a bath."

Tenchi looked at her nervously. "T-t-together?"

"Sure. Why not?"

Tenchi thought about it. Somehow it was something he knew he shouldn't
do, but he couldn't articulate any clear reasons why. "I dunno, Ryoko.
What if... what if... what if Sasami-chan saw us going in there?"

"She won't," said Ryoko, trailing her fingers along the length of
Tenchi's jaw, then down his neck. "I told you, we're alone. Remember?"

"Oh. I thought you meant alone in the room."

Ryoko's hands slipped under Tenchi's kimono and onto his shoulders. "No.
She and Aeka and Washuu went shopping. They won't be back for a while.
And I checked around the house, to be sure." Her hands began to massage.
"It's just us, Tenchi," she said, in a soft, seductive voice, before
kissing him. "Just us."

"Well..."

"Please?"

Tenchi frowned thoughtfully.

"Please?" she asked again.

He nodded and smiled. "Alright."

"YES!" Ryoko hopped up and down excitedly for a moment, then held Tenchi
close and kissed him. 

A fraction of a second later, they were standing outside the door to the
bath. After getting over his brief shock at being suddenly teleported,
Tenchi closed his eyes and exhaled. "Uh, next time, *warn* me before you
do that. OK?"

"Oh, alright," she replied, as she opened the door and led him through,
then shut it once they were inside. Tenchi looked around nervously.

"Ryoko...."

She turned around and leaned against him. "Mmm-hmm?"

"This is the *women's* bath."

"And?" she prompted, pressing her cheek against his chest.

"I'm a guy."

Ryoko grinned and rubbed her foot up and down against the inside of
Tenchi's leg. "So I've noticed, these last few days."

"I'm *serious*. I shouldn't be in here."

"It's nicer than the men's bath, isn't it?"

"That's not the point. Us guys aren't supposed to come in here. That's
why Washuu set up the door the way she did."

"Well, since we're taking a bath *together*, one of us is going to have
to go where we're not allowed. And I like it better in here."

"Maybe, but the other girls will get upset. What if one of them walks
in?"

Ryoko sighed, getting just a little annoyed. "Nobody's here. I *told*
you, Tenchi. I checked the whole house."

"I still don't think it's a good idea."

"Do you have any idea how *long* I've wanted to get you in here with me?"

Tenchi thought about it, remembering. "Yeah, I think so. Since Washuu
built it, right?"

"That's right."

He considered the idea for a few more moments as he looked around. It
*was* much, much nicer than the men's bath. And the exotic decor
certainly made it a more romantic place than the everyday facilities the
males of the household used.

"Everyone's gone? You're *sure*?"

"Uh-huh."

"OK, OK, I give in."

Ryoko hugged Tenchi and gave him a kiss. "Yes! Ooh, this is going to be
*great*!"

Minutes later, their clothes lying discarded on the floor, Tenchi got
into the bath next to Ryoko and sank down in the water until it reached
his armpits. Then he closed his eyes and gave a deep, contented sigh as
the heat began to slowly relax his muscles.

"This sure is nice," Tenchi said.

"Yeah, I love a nice hot bath," Ryoko agreed. She twined her fingers with
his and closed her eyes as well. "Thank you for staying home with me
today, Tenchi. It's really made me feel a lot better."

"You're welcome. Just remember that I can't do this very often."

Ryoko nodded. The two of them sat there for a while, silently holding
hands as they relaxed in the buoyant warmth of the bath. Presently,
Tenchi opened his eyes, looked around, and smirked. "This isn't fair, you
know," he said.

"What's not fair?"

"That the guy's bath isn't like this. I'll bet you'd probably have to go
to one of the most expensive hotels in Tokyo to find a bath this nice.
Dad and jiichan and I have to use the same old one we've always had."

"Well, there *are* six of us and only three of you. Seven, if you count
Ryo-ohki. We need more space."

"This is *much* more than twice as big," Tenchi said. He smiled. "I'm
jealous. I mean it, I'm going to have a word with Washuu about this."

"You'll be sorry," warned Ryoko.

Tenchi frowned. "Hmm. Yeah, maybe you're right."

"You can take a bath in here anytime you like, Tenchi. I'll let you in."

"No way. Sorry, but if you hadn't made sure the house was empty, I
wouldn't be in here *now*." He looked around again, taking in his
surroundings. "It is nice, though. It's not really even a bath -- it's
more like a swimming pool." 

Tenchi thought about his words for a moment. He let go of Ryoko's hand,
got up, and waded a couple of meters towards the center of the bath. Then
he lay down in the water, floating on his back. He sighed and closed his
eyes again.

Suddenly, Tenchi felt something tickling his face. He opened his eyes and
saw Ryoko looking back at him. She was floating, too -- in the air, less
than half a meter above him -- and her bangs dangled down, brushing
against his face. He smiled. "I wish I could do that sometimes. It looks
like fun."

Ryoko's face took on a puzzled expression. "Do what?"

"Float in the air like that."

"I guess so," said Ryoko, shrugging. "I never really thought about it."
Considering an idea revived by Tenchi's words, Ryoko smiled at him. "But
I can make it so you can, if you want."

Tenchi blinked. "Seriously?"

Ryoko nodded. "Yeah. Want to try it, sometime?"

"Sure. But, how?"

"You'll find out when I show you."

"But how, though?"

"I want to surprise you. Don't you trust me?"

Tenchi thought of the times Ryoko had tricked him. But also in his mind
were the times where he'd refused to trust her and found out that he
should have. His mind replayed the battle the first night she'd arrived,
and the damage to the house after she'd lied to him to gain refuge there.
Then it brought back the memory of Ryoko weeping against him, after he'd
accused her of hurting Aeka to be with him and refused to listen to her
protestations of innocence.

Those tears and those sobs outweighed the risks, Tenchi decided. He'd
rather Ryoko smashed his house flat a thousand times over than to hear
and see them again.

"Sure, I trust you, Ryoko. Surprise me anytime you like. About this, or
anything."

Half a second, a yelp, and a loud splash later, Tenchi was up to his neck
in the water with Ryoko's arms around him.

"Thank you, Tenchi," she said softly.

Tenchi returned her embrace and nodded. "You're welcome, Ryoko." 

"You've made today perfect for me, you know that?"

"I'd do it every day, if I could."

Ryoko hugged him even tighter, but didn't say anything. Several minutes
passed before she let go of him and kissed him. Then they moved back to
the side of the bath and sat for a while longer, holding hands under the
water in silence.

"Wanna go wash now?" Ryoko asked presently.

"You go ahead. I want to soak a little more," replied Tenchi.

Ryoko folded her hands and put them on Tenchi's shoulder, then set her
chin on top of them, smiling. "I've got a much better idea," she said.

"Oh?"

"Same deal as before -- you wash my back, I'll wash yours." She moved
closer and whispered in his ear. "Take me up on it, this time?"

Tenchi's eyes widened. "Uh..."

Ryoko giggled. "Why not?"

"We'd probably wind up doing more than just *washing*."

Ryoko leaned forward and kissed him. "So what if we did?"

Tenchi gulped. "I'd rather we went to my room."

"We haven't washed yet, though," Ryoko answered, as she moved in front of
him. "And I want you to scrub my back."

"It's not your back I'm worried about," said Tenchi.

"Afraid to touch me, Tenchi?" she asked, putting her arms around his neck
and passionately kissing him.

"No, don't be silly," he answered. "I just don't think I could... control
myself."

Ryoko kissed him again. "Then don't. I don't want you to."

Tenchi glanced around nervously. Though it was connected to his house, he
really didn't feel welcome in the women's bath -- it was the women's bath
in more than just name. The special nature of the door symbolized the
essence of the place. It was the women's private haven, just for them, a
sanctuary safe from male intrusion. It wasn't a place where he belonged.
Even though Tenchi knew he and Ryoko were alone, the other girls were
there somehow, each one an almost-tangible presence, and out of the warm
steam he could feel unseen female eyes watching the two of them.

Aeka he wouldn't mind. She could watch if she liked, though he knew that
neither she nor Ryoko would want her to. But as for the rest of them...

Sasami walks up, Ryo-ohki perched atop her head, as Ryoko bounces on
Tenchi's lap. "Hi, Tenchi! Hi, Ryoko!" greets the princess, before she
looks down between them, her eyes wide with innocent curiosity. "Um, what
are you doing?"

Before either of them can answer, Washuu is standing next to Sasami. "Let
me know when you're almost there, Tenchi," she says, holding up a test
tube. "I need to collect that sample."

Then Ryoko's lips drove away the image, and Tenchi made up his mind.

*OK. I'll just wash her. No sex, not HERE. Just washing. I won't let
myself go any farther than that. No problem. I can do it. It'll be easy.*

He looked down, his eyes taking in the sight of Ryoko's body. Almost
instantly he felt a stirring in his loins.

Tenchi swallowed, hard. No, it would definitely *NOT* be easy. But he
resolved to try anyway.

"Alright," he said. "Since we're alone, I guess it'll be OK."

Ryoko gleefully squeezed him. An instant later, they materialized above
the floor, and she lowered him gently down. Seeing the surprised
expression on his face, she hung her head apologetically for a moment
before kissing him. "I'm sorry, I forgot. I was supposed to warn you.
It's just... natural for me to get around that way, Tenchi."

Tenchi shook his head. "Don't worry about it, Ryoko. Try to remember to
warn me, but if you forget, don't feel bad. I need to get used to it. And
there's no real *reason* why it should scare me."

"I'll try. I guess it takes some getting used to."

"Yeah. But I'll do my best. You shouldn't have to stop doing things that
are normal for you, just because of me. I'll bet my going to school every
day probably seems pretty weird to you, since *you're* not used to
*that*."

Ryoko's face suddenly became serious and rather sad as she looked him
straight in the face. "Tenchi, if all it would take to make you stay is
for me to stop..."

Tenchi sighed. "Ryoko, you *promised*."

"I know, I know," she said, hugging him. "I'm sorry. I had to try. But if
there's anything I could do that would change your mind, Tenchi --
anything at *all*. Anything. All you have to do is say what it is, and
I'll do it. Won't you tell me?" She kissed Tenchi and looked at him with
sorrowful, pleading eyes. "Please?"

"Ryoko, I wanted to make you feel better. I won't be able to do this
again that often, maybe not until after summer vacation." He kissed her. 
"Please don't waste it by making yourself upset, OK?"

"I *do* feel better. A *lot* better. How should I thank you?"

"You don't have to. This is for what I said. Remember?"

"No. I'd already forgotten that." Ryoko held him close. "Yesterday was 
*awful*, Tenchi. I missed you so much. But you made today wonderful for
me. So I want to do something that says I appreciate it."

"I told you, you don't have to," said Tenchi.

Ryoko kissed him. "I want to. Tell me what you'd like me to do."

Tenchi thought for a moment. An idea formed in his head, and he started
to speak, then hesitated, and stopped.

"What is it, Tenchi?" Ryoko asked.

"I... don't think you want to hear this."

"Yes, I do. What is it?"

"It'll make you upset, Ryoko."

"No, it won't. Speak up, Tenchi."

Tenchi took a deep breath. "Alright. But remember, you asked me."

Ryoko nodded.

"Can you try to be friends with Ae-cha... uh, I mean, with Aeka?" he
asked.

Ryoko closed her eyes and sighed.

Tenchi hung his head. "I'm sorry, Ryoko. But you wanted me tell you."

"She and I go *way* back, Tenchi. We've been fighting almost as long as I
can remember."

"You're not fighting over me anymore. That's a start," he said, kissing
her. "There are times, lately, when you've even been agreeing on things."
He smiled. "Remember Sunday?"

"That was to protect you, Tenchi. From Washuu. From getting in trouble
because of her robots. From the girls in that soapland place."

"No, I remember her offering to go shopping with you," said Tenchi. "Then
yesterday, she said she liked your poetry. And what were you whispering
to her, when I was practicing with jiichan?"

Ryoko smiled slightly. "That's a secret."

Tenchi smiled back. "See? If you two can have secrets from *me*, then
you'll be friends, someday, if you'd just give it a try."

"Alright. For you, I'll try," said Ryoko, kissing him. "I can't promise
anything, but I'll do my best."

Tenchi returned her kiss. "Thanks, Ryoko. It means a lot to me."

"And Tenchi..."

"Yes?"

"You can call her 'Ae-chan' around me, if you want to. I doesn't bother
me as much, now."

"You're sure it won't upset you?" he asked worriedly, remembering her
response the first time he'd called Aeka that.

"I'm getting used to it. Just don't expect *me* to call her that. I won't
go *that* far."

"Thanks. Um, are you really sure you don't me to have a special name for
you, too?"

Ryoko nodded. "Yes, I'm sure. Thank you, Tenchi. But I'm not a little
girl. Not everything about me is kawaii. And I want you to love all of
me."

Tenchi kissed her and smiled. "Everything about you *is* kawaii, Ryoko."

"No, it isn't," she said, her expression serious. "There are times when
I'm not sweet at all."

"If you're talking about that night with Mihoshi, I remember. But now
that I look back on it, you were kawaii, even then. Even when you're
mad."

Ryoko shook her head and kissed him. "Tenchi, Tenchi, Tenchi. I've told
you a hundred times -- I wasn't mad that night. I was only playing," she
said, kissing him again. "Especially with *you*. You've never seen me
mad." Ryoko cupped Tenchi's chin in one hand, stroked his hair for a
moment with the other, and looked deep into his eyes. "I want you to love
the name that's *me*, even if I'm angry."

"Angry, about what, for instance?"

"If someone ever hurt you -- then you'd see me get mad," Ryoko said in a
slightly-shaking voice, holding him close.

Tenchi began to sweat a little. "What exactly would you... do?"

Ryoko closed her eyes and gently pressed her lips against Tenchi's. "I'd
rip them apart from the inside out," she said softly.

Tenchi cringed. Ryoko nodded and looked him in the eyes again.

"'Koneko' wouldn't do something like that, Tenchi. But I would," she
said, kissing him again. "And I want you to love that part of me, too,
even if it scares you. So call me 'Ryoko.' OK?"

"Uh, yeah," said Tenchi, staring at her.

"Afraid of me, Tenchi?" Ryoko asked, sadness entering her voice and face.

Tenchi shook his head. "No. I just hope... I never see you do something
like that."

"I hope so, too," she said, giving him another tender kiss. "I'm sorry if
I upset you."

"I'll get over it," he replied, as he returned the kiss. "But it did kind
of spoil the mood, you know."

"I know just the thing to un-spoil it, then," Ryoko replied, lying on her
stomach and stretching out. She looked back at him over her shoulder and
smiled. "Start washing."

Meanwhile, at the mall, Aeka had finished purchasing the jewelry and had
gone, along with Washuu and Sasami, into a large video and electronics
store, where she was idly browsing through the movie section in a quest
for something romantic to watch with Tenchi. In the video game section,
Sasami was busily racking up points on a Playstation, while across the
store Washuu's voice carried through the speakers of a karaoke machine.

Deciding that the game wasn't challenging enough to bother buying, Sasami
headed over to Washuu and began listening to the scientist's song. "Want
to sing one together?" asked the princess, once Washuu had finished.

Washuu smiled. "Sure." After a quick switching of discs, she and Sasami
picked up microphones and began to sing "Fly Me To the Moon."

"Since it's going to be hot today, maybe we could go swim in the lake
when we get back, to cool off," suggested Sasami, after the song was
over.

Washuu's expression turned thoughtful for a moment. "Hmmm... how'd you
like to play in the snow, instead, Sasami-chan?"

Sasami giggled. "Don't be silly! It's almost summertime." Then she
gasped. "Oh, are you going to change the weather and make it snow?!"

Washuu thought some more. "I suppose I *could*, but I'd rather not upset
the Earthlings too much."

"Then what are you going to do?"

Washuu smiled.

Minutes later, in the women's bath, Tenchi sat next to Ryoko's shoulders
as he shampooed her hair, having decided to try the easiest part first.
Easiest, in terms of the self-control required, that is. But soon he was
finished. He poured hot water over Ryoko's head to rinse her hair, then
soaped up a washcloth and began washing her shoulders, then her arms. 

He breathed a slight sigh of relief. So far, so good.

Tenchi started on Ryoko's back, scrubbing gently around her shoulder
blades. She turned her head on one side and closed her eyes, smiling.
"That's nice, Tenchi. Just a little harder though, OK?"

"Harder?"

"Yeah, use both hands."

Tenchi nodded, re-soaped the cloth, and began washing again, pressing
down firmly with both hands this time. "Better?"

Ryoko shifted her position slightly. "Mmmmmm... perfect." She went on
letting out an occasional contented murmur as Tenchi continued downward,
working on her flanks and the small of her back.

When he arrived at Ryoko's butt, Tenchi stopped for a few seconds, then
proceeded very hesitantly.

Her eyes still closed, Ryoko smiled. "Tenchi?"

"Uh, what?" he asked, tentatively washing towards her thighs.

"Why don't you get rid of the washcloth, and use your hands instead?"

Tenchi momentarily froze. If they were someplace else, anywhere else,
he'd have gone along. As it was... no. Definitely *no*. He shook his
head. "I, uh, think I'll pass."

Ryoko's smile broadened a little. "Suit yourself."

Feeling a little relieved, Tenchi proceeded to wash Ryoko's thighs and
calves, then her feet. Triumphantly he took a bucket of warm water and
splashed it across her, then repeated the act, rinsing away the last of
the soap suds. He put his hands on his knees and exhaled, smiling.

He'd done it! It hadn't exactly been easy, but he'd done it!

Then he saw Ryoko roll over onto her back. "Time to do the other side,"
she said, folding a towel and putting it behind her head.

Tenchi stared at her.

Ryoko smiled at him for a moment, then closed her eyes again.

Tenchi sweated nervously, understanding his grave mistake. He'd been
thinking in just one dimension, the path from Ryoko's head to her feet.
And as his eyes took in its contours lying before him, he realized that
Ryoko's body was utterly three-dimensional. After a brief period of
indecision, he reminded himself where he was and what he mustn't do. He
soaped up the washcloth once more, summoning his discipline.

The front was going to be much more difficult than the back had been.

He began by washing Ryoko's face, rinsing it off once he was done. Then
he washed her neck. He started to head further down, then changed his
mind and moved his attention sideways, washing her arms.

"You already did that, Tenchi," said Ryoko.

Tenchi nodded nervously. "I... I... I just want to make sure I get them
clean, that's all." Once he'd washed Ryoko's arms, he washed her neck
some more, then her shoulders, then her legs -- twice. After that he
stopped again, fighting with himself.

*OK. Here goes...*

Slowly, *very* slowly, Tenchi began to wash Ryoko's breasts. He reached
the apex of one of them, feeling the nipple poking stiffly into his palm
through the soapy washcloth. Ryoko gasped softly and rubbed her thighs
together for a moment. Tenchi moved to the other breast and washed it in
turn, eliciting the same response. Several times he caught himself
kneading instead of washing, but in each instance he regained control.

Proceeding down again, Tenchi washed her stomach, receiving a brief
respite from tension before reaching the most difficult challenge. He
soaped up the washcloth one final time before beginning to wash Ryoko's
crotch. He tried his best to avoid brushing against her clit, but there
was no way he could do so entirely, and each time he did Ryoko's breath
quickened ever-so-slightly. He scrubbed some more. Suddenly he found his
hand moving up and down Ryoko's sex, his fingers seeking to make their
way inside her as if guided by some other will. Ryoko moaned and pressed
her thighs together around his hand. Swallowing hard, Tenchi focused on
overriding his hormones. He stopped and withdrew his hand.

He was done.

Tenchi filled the wooden bath pail with warm water again and doused Ryoko
with it, then did so a second time for good measure. He sat back,
breathing a little easier. Every part of his body felt weak and limp --
except for his very stiff erection. 

Ryoko sat up and kissed him. "Mmm... I really enjoyed that, Tenchi."

Tenchi gasped heavily once or twice and nodded.

"Now, it's your turn," she said. "Lie down."

Tenchi sighed and lay on his stomach, glad that he didn't have to worry
about controlling himself anymore. Sitting astride Tenchi's back, Ryoko
picked up the bottle of shampoo, squirted a large amount into his hair,
and began working it into a lather. As she scrubbed his scalp, she smiled
and moved her head down closer to his.

"Did you like washing me, Tenchi?" she asked.

"Well... yes and no," he replied after a moment. "If it wasn't *here*, I
wouldn't be so nervous about it."

Ryoko poured water over Tenchi's head, then started rubbing his
shoulders. "Stop being so worried, will you?

"I'm doing my best, Ryoko. Really. I've just always been kind of tightly
strung, OK?"

"Is this helping at all?" she asked hopefully, continuing to massage his
shoulders and giving similar attention to his neck.

Tenchi smiled and lay his head down, closing his eyes. "Yeah, that is
kind of nice."

"Really?!" gasped Ryoko. "You like it?"

"Sure. There've been days after school when I really would have enjoyed
this."

"Tenchiiiii, why didn't you *tell* me?" asked Ryoko, pouting. "All you
had to do was *ask*."

Tenchi sighed. "And you and Ae-chan would have wound up *fighting*. You
know how much I *hated* that."

Ryoko nodded and continued kneading Tenchi's shoulder muscles. "You'll
tell me if you want me to *now*, though, ne?"

"I will," Tenchi promised, smiling. "And thanks. That really does feel
good."

"You're welcome," Ryoko said, bending down and kissing him.

"I'm feeling a lot more relaxed now."

Ryoko grinned. "That's good, because it's time for me to start washing
you." She opened up a bottle of liquid bath soap and started pouring it
all over Tenchi's body.

"Isn't that a lot of soap you're using?" Tenchi asked.

"I'm going to do a lot of washing," Ryoko answered.

Tenchi's eyes snapped open as he felt Ryoko's breasts start sliding
around on his back. 

"Uh, Ryoko..."

Ryoko smiled. "Yes?"

"I really wish you wouldn't do it that way," he said nervously.

Ryoko lay down on top of him for a moment. "I don't think you really mean
that, Tenchi," she whispered in his ear.

"But Ryoko..."

"There's nothing to worry about. No one's going to walk in on us. I told
you, everyone's gone." She kissed him on the cheek. "You're spoiling it
for *both* of us, Tenchi. Loosen up a little so we can enjoy ourselves,
OK?" She kissed him again. "I thought that after we'd slept together
you'd stop being so shy around me."

"It's not *you* that's making me nervous, Ryoko. It's *here*. It just
feels so... *weird*."

"Listen to yourself. You're being silly."

Tenchi lay there silently.

"So what if it's the 'women's bath,'" continued Ryoko. "There's only one
woman in it right now: *me*."

"Yeah, I know," admitted Tenchi. "I just can't help thinking about who
*else* is usually here."

Ryoko pressed her cheek against his. "So, you're thinking about other
women when you're with me? Is that it?"

"No! That's not what I meant!"

"That's what you said. We're here together, and all you can think about
is *them*. Even though they're nowhere *near* here." She reached over and
held his hand. "Loosen up. For me. Please?" She squeezed his hand.
"Please? We're all alone, just the two of us. Can't you just think about
us and forget everything else for now?" She kissed his cheek again. "I'm
not thinking about anyone else but you, Tenchi."

Tenchi sighed. The way Ryoko put it, his unease did sound a little
ridiculous. "I'm sorry for being so uptight. Go ahead. I'll try my best
not to be nervous," he said, turning his head and kissing her. "But I
can't promise anything."

Ryoko smiled. "You *won't* be sorry, Tenchi."

Tenchi lay his head back down and, as calmly as he could, let Ryoko wash
his back, legs, and arms with her breasts. After a while, he smiled,
managing to enjoy the stimulation and forget where he was a little.

Warm water splashed over him, rinsing away the suds. Ryoko bent down and
whispered in his ear. "Time to turn over," she said.

Tenchi nodded and rolled onto his back. Ryoko poured more liquid soap on
him, paying special attention to his crotch, then put some on her chest
as she knelt next to Tenchi's side. Fixing his gaze with her own, she
began caressing her breasts, working the soap into a lather in the
process. Squeezing them together with one arm, she grasped Tenchi's wrist
with the other and guided his hand into her cleavage where she proceeded
to wash it. Once it was throughly clean -- especially the palm -- she
took his other hand and gave it the same treatment.

"OK, sit up now," she said, after she was done.

Tenchi pushed himself into a sitting position, feeling a little puzzled. 

Ryoko put soap on her chest again, then moved closer. As before she
started massaging her breasts, squeezing and rubbing them less than a
foot away from Tenchi's face. Her gasps and sensual moans went on for
several minutes until lather covered most of her upper torso. Tenchi
watched, his eyes growing wider and wider while Ryoko kept her own
squinted tightly shut. By now her hands weren't even visible underneath
the white froth that covered her breasts, but he could hear the noises
they made, mingled with the passionate sounds coming from her throat.

Finally deciding she had enough suds for her task, Ryoko opened her eyes
and smiled down at Tenchi, feeling very pleased at the way he now stared
at her body to the exclusion of all else.

"You'd better close your eyes now, or I'll get soap in them," she warned
in a sweet voice.

Tenchi blinked. "Uh... what?"

"I'm going to wash your face."

Tenchi's eyes widened still further, and a drop of blood ran down out of
his nostrils.

Ryoko inched a little closer, until the mass of suds covering her chest
tickled the tip of Tenchi's nose. "Come on, close your eyes."

Tenchi blinked, then shut his eyes, as Ryoko held his head with both
hands and pulled it into her cleavage. For a very long time she slid her
breasts up and down and all around his face, leaving neither cheeks nor
nose nor lips nor chin nor forehead untouched. All the while warm
murmurings of "mmmmmm..." and "oooooh..." and the like sounded in
Tenchi's ears. Finally finishing, she soaked a washcloth in the water,
then wiped the soap away from most of his face. "Lie back down," she
said, putting the cloth on the floor.

Tenchi lay down, and Ryoko proceeded to wash his chest and stomach in the
same fashion as his face. He waited, his anticipation a mixture of dread
and eagerness, having figured out what was coming next.

Ryoko lay down with her chest over Tenchi's crotch, looking up at him and
smiling. Grasping his penis, she placed her breasts around it and
squeezed them tightly together. With a playful giggle Ryoko began sliding
them back and forth, listening intently to the resulting gasps from
Tenchi's now-open mouth. The gasps gradually changed to groans, each one
louder, more urgent, more obviously rooted in a deep need for release.

Ryoko slowed the motion of Tenchi's erection through her cleavage, then
stopped it altogether. She let go of her breasts, letting his penis slip
out from between them, and sat up. She pulled Tenchi up to her, their
faces mere inches apart, their breathing ragged, his erection jutting out
of his groin and straining towards her crotch like a compass needle
indicating true north. She picked up a bath pail full of water, lifted it
above their heads, and let the contents cascade down over both of them.
Then she looked him in the eyes, and waited.

"Everyone's gone, right?" asked Tenchi, very slowly.

Ryoko nodded.

"You're sure? Everyone?"

Ryoko nodded again. "Yes. I checked."

"You're *really* sure?"

"I looked all through the house. No one but us is here."

"We're alone? Just us?"

Ryoko smiled and her eyes widened a little as she nodded once more. "Just
you and me, Tenchi."

He moved closer and pressed his lips to hers, putting his arms around
her. Seeing that she didn't need to hold back any longer, Ryoko pushed
Tenchi firmly onto the floor, then got on top and passionately kissed
him. Straddling his waist, she reached down between their legs and took
hold of his penis, preparing to mount him.

"Don't you want a little... you know, foreplay?" he asked.

Ryoko kissed him. "Baka!" She kissed him again, harder. "What do you
think we've been *doing* for the last hour?" She licked his ear, then
gently nipped at his neck with her fangs. "If you make me wait any
longer, I'll *die*, you big meanie!" She began kissing him again, her
fingers still wrapped around his erection. "Come on, Tenchiiiiiiii!"

"I never said you had to *stop*," he said, kissing her in return.

Ryoko gasped as she slid Tenchi inside her, then placed her hands on his
shoulders and began slowly rocking back and forth. Tenchi's hands roamed
over her, gently caressing. They went down her back, across her rear,
along her flanks, up her stomach, onto her breasts, and in back of her
neck before he pulled her face down closer and kissed her. Ryoko parted
her teeth and slipped her tongue into Tenchi's mouth. She wanted to
whisper in his ear and ask him if he still thought leaving her each day
was the right thing to do, if he really would rather go away to school
when he could hold her in his arms whenever he wanted to, instead. But it
would spoil the mood, she knew, and she'd promised him she wouldn't. She
did her best to drive those thoughts from her mind and concentrate only
on being with him at that moment.

Tenchi kissed up the length of Ryoko's neck, then returned to her mouth.
Suddenly, she felt climax take her, and she pressed down against him,
gasping his name in his ear over and over. Once it had passed she kept
going, her hips rising and falling rhythmically as she rode up and down
on him. 

At the same time, inside the house, a door opened next to the one to the
bath. Out of the pitch blackness beyond stepped Washuu, Sasami, and Aeka.
After closing the door, they set down their shopping bags, and Sasami and
Washuu headed towards the lab.

"Sure you won't join us, Aeka?" asked Washuu, turning around for a
moment.

Aeka smiled. "Perhaps later. I need to talk to Ryoko first."

"Let her know, too!" asked Sasami, as she and Washuu entered the
laboratory and shut the door.

Reaching into one of the shopping bags, Aeka retrieved a small bundle of
white crepe paper and unwrapped it, revealing the necklace she had
purchased earlier. Having noticed that the living room was empty, she
walked into the kitchen, only to find it deserted as well.

Were Tenchi and Ryoko *still* in bed? It was almost noon! Briefly Aeka
grumbled to herself, annoyed once more at Ryoko wearing Tenchi out on
Sunday night, and then claiming the benefits of the night of unbroken
rest Aeka had allowed him. Looking down at the necklace in her hand, the
princess reminded herself to try not to be so petty. Besides, perhaps
they'd gone outside.

Deciding to find out, Aeka headed up the stairs towards Tenchi's room.
She reached the top, then halted, once more dreading the awful sounds she
might hear coming from the other side of the door. She made herself go
on. They probably were just lying in bed, after they'd... after they'd
finished. Even the thought of *that* was unpleasant, though endurable.

"Konichiwa, Aeka-hime," the guardians said, when she stopped in front of
the door.

"Konichiwa. Are Ten-chan and Ryoko inside?"

"So far as we know," replied Azaka.

"We haven't seen either of them leave," agreed Kamidake.

Hesitantly, Aeka knocked at the door, bracing herself for the sound of
Ryoko's answering voice confirming that she was in bed with Tenchi.

Silence.

"Ten-chan?"

More silence.

"Ryoko?"

Still more silence. Aeka knocked and called their names again. No answer
came.

Aeka breathed a sigh that was half disappointment, half relief. If Tenchi
and Ryoko *were* still in the room, they were asleep. She felt a little
irked at the thought of the pirate infecting Tenchi with her laziness,
but it was a minor thing compared to the prospect of hearing what she
might have heard.

Well, if Ryoko was either sleeping or outside, Aeka decided that she
might as well take the opportunity to refresh herself. "If you see Ryoko,
tell her that I'm in the bath, and that I'd like to see her."

"We'll inform her of your summons, Aeka-hime," said Azaka.

"It's not a summons. It's an invitation," corrected Aeka sternly. "You
will use the appropriate measure of politeness. Do I make myself clear?"

"Quite clear, Aeka-hime," said Kamidake.

"Very well," said Aeka, nodding before she walked away. She went back
down the stairs and headed for the bath. She halted next to her shopping
bag and picked it up, about to put the necklace into it, then stopped. If
Ryoko saw the bags while Aeka was still in the bath, she was sure to go
snooping through them. Even if she didn't know who the necklace was for,
it would spoil the surprise a little. Aeka set the bag down, deciding to
take the necklace with her into the bath for safekeeping.

Aeka opened the door to the bath. When the scene beyond presented itself,
the princess stopped as if turned to stone.

Directly in front of her, not ten meters away, lay Tenchi, stretched away
from the door with his head towards it, and, on top of him, Ryoko, slowly
rocking her hips and moaning, her cheek pressed against Tenchi's chest.
Water glistened on their skin and pooled on the floor around them, laced
with soap suds.

Desperately, Aeka tried to make her legs move and carry her away from the
horrible sight, but they refused to bend, and almost gave way beneath
her.

Tenchi's hands, which had been moving up and down Ryoko's back and
thighs, stopped to squeeze her rear, then clasped around her waist.
"Ryoko... I'm... I'm almost... there..." he gasped, hugging her tight as
she continued thrusting.

"Me, too..." panted Ryoko in reply. "Oooooh... Tenchi... mmmmm..."

Aeka's mind shrieked at her to leave, but she still couldn't force her
body into motion. All of her awareness focused on Tenchi making love with
Ryoko, and the impossibility of reconciling his past behavior with where
and when he was doing so. A faint voice of rationality whispered in the
back of her mind, trying to tell her that this was what she had agreed
to, that the price of having Tenchi at all was for Ryoko to have him as
well, and that time and place made no difference in that. But the
deafening screams of tortured emotion drowned out reason, and her only
thoughts were of what he was doing right before her eyes, and a question:
what had happened to the shy, dutiful Tenchi she loved so much?

Suddenly, Tenchi squeezed Ryoko even tighter and thrust his pelvis up
against her, groaning. Moments later, Ryoko's cries quickened and
increased in volume, and she lay still on top of him, uttering rapid
moans of obvious delight.

Aeka watched, still unable to move, her heart wanting to burst at the
agonizing sight of Tenchi giving passionate rapture to someone other than
her and finding ecstasy in another woman's touch. Part of her mind still
continued to warn her that this was necessary, that having all of him was
not her option, that it was this or nothing. The warnings vanished amidst
overwhelming, incoherent pain.

Tenchi's breathing ebbed to shallow gasps and Ryoko's utterances gave way
to soft, pleasurable cooing sounds as their bodies gradually relaxed. 
Ryoko smiled contentedly, her head resting on Tenchi's shoulder and his
arms wrapped around her, holding her wonderfully close.

Today had been perfect. Just as she'd hoped.

"I love you, Tenchi," Ryoko sighed softly, lifting her head to give him a
kiss. As she did, her eyes saw the bottom hem of a kimono a short
distance away. Slowly she brought her eyes up, recognition growing as her
vision traversed up the height of the purple garment. By the time Ryoko's
gaze reached the figure's waist, she knew who it had to be, but she kept
on looking further and further up until her horrified eyes locked with
Aeka's.

Aeka stared back, wanting to scream or run but still too paralyzed with
shock to do either. Her face wet with tears, she finally gathered the
strength to slowly back away. Every line of her expression spoke of the
terrible hurt and betrayal she felt inside her.

Tenchi, unable to see Aeka from where he lay, pulled Ryoko's face to his
and kissed her. "I love you, too, Ryoko," he said. "I really liked that.
All of it. I shouldn't have been so stubborn." He squeezed Ryoko tightly
against him. "Let's do it again sometime, OK?"

Ryoko couldn't bring herself to answer. All she could think about was the
look on Aeka's face, and the memory of sitting outside the closet
listening to Tenchi and the princess inside. Ryoko had only had to *hear*
what was going on, and it had been almost unbearable. Aeka had just
*seen* her and Tenchi. How long had she been watching? Was she *still*
standing there?

Managing a quick glance up, Ryoko saw that she wasn't. That, at least,
was a relief.

For a moment Ryoko tried to make herself enjoy the fact that Aeka had
seen her with Tenchi. Somehow, she couldn't. It was impossible not to
imagine herself in Aeka's place and envisage how terrible the experience
would have been.

Thoughts came back to her of the previous day, when Taro's presence had
reminded Ryoko of what she and Tenchi would never have together, and when
Aeka had come upstairs to find her -- not to gloat over her life-long
enemy, as Ryoko had expected, but to express sympathy. And strangely
enough, her gesture actually had made Ryoko feel a little better.

Ryoko clenched her fists and cursed the conscience she'd never seemed to
have been burdened with until recently.

Tenchi kissed her again. "Now who's being distracted, huh?"

Summoning every ounce of discipline within her, Ryoko decided that she
had to go talk to Aeka. She needed to apologize for not having been more
careful, for not doing something to prevent what had happened -- put a
note on the door, perhaps, or have Ryo-ohki or the guardians stand watch.
Tenchi wanted the girls to get along. If she didn't do something to
smooth things over, she and Aeka would surely wind up openly fighting
again.

She had to go. She had to leave Tenchi's arms to go say she was sorry to
Aeka. And she needed to do it without making Tenchi suspicious, because
she was pretty sure she didn't want him to know about Aeka having seen
them. Not after the way he had worried about someone walking in and Ryoko
had repeatedly assured him they were alone.

She couldn't just leave Tenchi. He'd wonder why. But she couldn't delay
going to talk to Aeka either. The apology wouldn't carry much weight if
she didn't go and offer it immediately. That left only one possible
course of action.

Ryoko pressed her lips onto Tenchi's, giving him a warm, soul-probing,
extremely distracting kiss as a double of herself split from her body and
floated through the air towards the towels.

Tenchi's arms shifted a little around her. "Uh, Ryoko... did you just
feel something a little, well... *weird*, just now?"

"No," she replied.

It wasn't really a lie, Ryoko tried to assure herself. It was perfectly
normal, for *her*.

The duplicate Ryoko wrapped herself in a large towel and headed for the
door, stopping when she realized that opening it might make noise. She
was about to teleport out when she remembered that she couldn't do that,
either. The one time she'd tried, she'd wound up painfully injuring
herself when she struck the boundary between the bath's dimension and the
normal universe. The door was the only way, but Tenchi had to be kept
from hearing it.

Ryoko kissed Tenchi again, her soft moan just loud enough to drown out
the faint hiss of the door against the frame as it opened and closed.

Her doppleganger again prepared to teleport, then hesitated. She knew
full well how much her sudden materialization unnerved Aeka -- partly
because, sometimes, Ryoko popped up next to her for exactly that reason.
Appearing without warning in the same room as the princess would only
make things worse. It would probably be enough to precipitate a fight,
then and there.

The double sighed and floated to the door to the princess' bedroom. She
knocked and waited for a response. None came. Stealthily she slid the
door open a little and peeked in. No one was there. Next she checked
Tenchi's room, in the same fashion. It was empty as well. Growing
frustrated, the duplicate Ryoko began moving from door to door and room
to room, each time coming up empty-handed.

As Ryoko's double searched for her throughout the house, outside Aeka
stormed down the path to Ryuu-oh, crying tears of grief and rage.

She had pried herself from Tenchi's willing arms to keep the peace,
managed to accept him staying home to comfort Ryoko, done her very best
to honor his wishes and make a gesture of friendship to her, only to
see... *THAT*?!?!

Was that how her sacrifices were to be repaid?

Was this the justice she should expect? Ryoko could selfishly plead with
Tenchi for him to ignore his obligations, and she would be rewarded, yet
when Aeka did what was right, putting aside her feelings and standing
behind Tenchi in the fulfillment of his duties, she would be punished
with the sight of the one she loved and her worst enemy with their arms
around each other, locked in the throes of passion? Sow evil and reap
pleasure, plant virtue and harvest pain? That was how things were to be?

She'd known, of course, that Ryoko would be having sex with Tenchi -- but
in his *bedroom*, where Aeka wouldn't be tortured by the horrible sight
and sound of it! And at least the bedroom was a place that held memories
of when *she* was with Tenchi, to offset the knowledge of Ryoko having
him as well. If Aeka was there, Tenchi would be there too, in spirit if
not in body. But the bath afforded no such comfort. From now on, she
knew, she could never open that door without the dread of finding Ryoko
rutting on top of him. What were they going to do *now*, make love in
every room in the house, so that wherever she went, Aeka would be
reminded of it? Do it on top of the kitchen table, as Ryoko had bragged
she gladly would?

But that was the future. The immediate memory was worse, far worse. It
was one thing to reluctantly accept that Ryoko would be with Tenchi as
often as Aeka was. It was quite another thing to *see* it, right there in
front of her. To see him doing it, enjoying it, and then saying he wanted
more.

And on top if that, there was an awful *casualness* about their choice of
location. Somehow, it was as if Tenchi and Ryoko were saying that they
loved one another so much, they didn't care where they might be when they
chose to express it, or who might see. More than that, even. Ryoko now
seemed to hold Tenchi in the palm of her hand, controlling him, twisting
his behavior however she liked, able to convince him to do whatever
pleased her. Anything. Stay home from school, kiss her in front of
Nobuyuki's camera, go into the women's bath, and have sex there. Ryoko
had somehow gotten him to do all those things for her, things which Aeka
proudly knew she would never even *ask* of him.

It hurt. It hurt so *bad*, and it simply wasn't fair!

Reaching the lake, Aeka stopped, breathing heavily her emotions seethed
inside her. Suddenly she noticed that her hand hurt. She looked down and
realized that she still held the necklace. The points of the metal
blossoms had been digging into her palm as she clenched it tightly in her
fist. Tenchi's name flashed up at her, carved on the surface of the
locket, and she remembered why it was there.

To comfort Ryoko at Tenchi's absence.

Aeka's face contorted as if unable to decide to scream, cry, or laugh at
the stupidity of it. Comfort Ryoko at Tenchi's absence? What was the
point? It wasn't even necessary, much less deserved.

With all of her strength, Aeka flung the necklace out over the water and
watched it splash and sink, then continued out to Ryuu-oh. Halfway there,
she ran into Ryo-ohki.

"Miya!" greeted the cabbit happily, setting down a freshly dug-up carrot
for a moment.

"Go away," Aeka snarled, as she continued on without stopping.

Ryo-ohki looked at her sadly for a moment, then picked up the carrot and
continued after her. Lost in her thoughts, Aeka reached Ryuu-oh and sat
down under it without noticing that the cabbit had followed her. Ryo-ohki
set down her carrot again and nudged against Aeka's ankle. The princess
turned her head and glared down at her. "Go away! I don't want to see
anything having to do with *her* right now!"

"Miya?" asked Ryo-ohki, sounding hurt and confused.

"GO *AWAY*!!" shouted Aeka.

Ryo-ohki backed away for a moment. Then, once Aeka looked away, the
cabbit moved up to her again and started rubbing her head against the
princess' leg.

Aeka sighed. "I'm very angry with your mistress right now. I know it's
not your fault, but I cannot guarantee that it won't cause me to do
something unpleasant to you. So for your own good, please go away."

"Miya," replied the cabbit. She jumped up into the princess' lap and
looked up at her.

Clenching her teeth, Aeka grabbed Ryo-ohki, stood up, and prepared to
hurl her away as she had the necklace. Her arms trembled for a moment as
she managed to restrain her temper. She let out a deep breath and set the
cabbit down again. "Will you *please* just *go*?" Aeka asked quietly.

"Miya," refused Ryo-ohki.

Aeka stamped a pace towards the cabbit and screamed. "DON'T YOU
UNDERSTAND THAT I DON'T WANT TO BE REMINDED OF *HER* RIGHT NOW?!?! 
LEAVE
ME *ALONE*, YOU STUPID THING!!!!"

Ryo-ohki scampered frantically behind the nearest bush. Aeka sat down,
quite ashamed at having taken out her anger on the poor creature but very
glad to be alone. After a few moments, Ryo-ohki's head poked into view.
She sat there, watching the princess. Tears began streaming down Aeka's
cheeks, faster and faster, until she gave up trying to wipe them away and
put her face in her hands, quietly sobbing. The cabbit hopped out of
cover and sat next to Aeka, then rubbed her head against her again. Drawn
inside herself and surrounded with her sorrows, the princess didn't
notice.

Back in the baths, Ryoko sat and washed between her legs, part of her
mind elsewhere. Literally. This was the first time she'd had her two
halves in two different dimensions at once, and it made her feel a little
light-headed. But she was still aware of what her double was doing. She'd
searched the entire house, with the sole exception of Washuu's lab. And
Ryoko wasn't sure what would happen if both halves of her wound up in
dimensions that weren't even directly connected to each other.

Out of the corner of her eye, she glanced wistfully at Tenchi, who lay on
the floor, his hands folded behind his head, his eyes closed, and a
slight smile on his face. He seemed to have forgotten all about the fact
that he was lying naked in the women's bath. Temptation nagged at Ryoko.
She couldn't talk to Aeka if she couldn't find her. There wasn't much
point in checking the lab, anyway. The princess wouldn't have gone there
to rage or sob or sulk or whatever she needed to do. And if Aeka was
nowhere to be found, it wouldn't hurt to stay with Tenchi a little while
longer.

No. For whatever weird reason, Aeka *might* have gone into the lab. Or
she might have gone outside. Or she could have been outside, and come
back in, and gone to a room Ryoko had checked earlier.

A profoundly unhappy look on her face, Ryoko got up and fetched a towel,
then began drying off. Once done, she walked over to Tenchi. With great
effort putting on a mask of her usual cheerfulness, she knelt down and
kissed him. He opened his eyes and playfully tried to pull her down to
him, but she managed to resist him and, with much more difficulty, resist
herself.

"I've got to go talk to Aeka," she said.

Tenchi blinked, then started to scramble up, horrified. "I thought you
said everyone was *gone*, Ryoko!! What if she'd walked in here or
something?!" he demanded angrily.

If Ryoko had been unsure at all before, seeing Tenchi's face decided
things in an instant. He could never be allowed to know what had just
happened. She searched for the right lie to tell him, hating herself for
doing what had always come so easily to her in the past. But if he found
out, he'd be upset with her. Very upset. The way he had been so often
before. The way he was starting to be now. Ryoko stifled a shiver at the
sound and sight of his harsh voice and face, remembering the pain of
being yelled at, shoved away, and fled from. She didn't want to
experience even the slightest taste of that again. Not when she might be
able to fix things on her own.

Ryoko somehow managed to smile and laugh. "I told you. There wasn't
anyone in the house. But it's probably almost lunchtime, and she'll be
back soon."

Tenchi breathed a sigh of relief, shaking his head. "You really scared me
there for a moment, Ryoko. I'm sorry I yelled at you," He kissed her.
"What did you need to talk to her about, anyway?"

Ryoko tensed. "I'd rather not say, Tenchi."

"You two aren't back to fighting again, are you?" he asked, concerned.

"No, no, don't worry. We're not," she replied nervously. "It's more a
matter of... well... making sure we *don't* fight."

Tenchi sat up, put an arm around her, and kissed her on the cheek. "I'm
really proud of you, Ryoko. To see you trying so hard to get along with
Ae-chan, I mean. I know it's probably not easy for you."

"It's not so bad," said Ryoko, feeling horribly guilty, and dreading what
Tenchi would say if he ever found out *why* she was going to talk to
Aeka.

"It makes it a lot easier for me, knowing that there's finally some kind
of peace between you two. So I can take a walk with her, and not have to
worry about you chasing after us," Tenchi said, hugging Ryoko a little
more tightly against him. "Or spend some time with you if you're upset,
without it making her jealous."

Ryoko nodded, considering Tenchi's words and trying to do something she
generally did very badly -- think long-term. If leaving Tenchi now in
order to keep things quiet between her and Aeka meant receiving more
affection from him later, it would be worth it. And with each passing
moment, the likelihood of repairing the damage lessened. "Well, she's
waiting for me, so I've got to go, OK?" she said, after a few moments.

"That's fine. If you two are getting along, the last thing I want to do
is mess it up. It seems to be going alright without me meddling, so I
might as well just let you handle it yourselves."

Ryoko stood up and retrieved her clothes. Once she was dressed, she
floated back over to Tenchi, bent down, and gave him a parting kiss. He
reached over, grasped her hand, and looked up at her.

"You're feeling OK now, right?" he asked.

Ryoko tried her best to bring back the moment before she'd noticed Aeka.
"Better than OK. Today's been perfect."

Tenchi nodded and smiled at her. "Yeah, I guess it has been, hasn't it?
It's too bad we can't do this more often."

A mix of joy and disappointment swept through Ryoko. Tenchi had almost
said that he wouldn't leave her anymore. Almost. So close! Yet, in the
end, all of her efforts hadn't been quite enough. He obviously wanted to
stay with her. He'd practically said so! Why didn't he, then? Why did he
insist on hurting her *and* himself, for no reason at all? Try as she
might, Ryoko simply couldn't make sense of it.

"I'll see you after you're done talking to Ae-chan," said Tenchi.

Ryoko nodded and exited the bath, meeting her double just outside the
door. They merged into one self again. Then Ryoko vanished.

Tenchi got up and started to get dressed himself. He halted for a moment,
thinking. Picking up his clothes, he went to the door and opened it just
a little. Through the crack he could see that no one was around. He
opened the door further, went out, closed it, opened it again, and shut
himself in the men's bath to finish dressing.

Materializing next to the door of Washuu's lab, Ryoko ran into her and
Sasami coming down the stairs carrying ice skates. "Have you two seen
Aeka?" Ryoko asked.

"She went to take a bath," replied Sasami. "It was really hot outside
today."

"But I've come up with a much better way to deal with the heat," said
Washuu. "Wanna come skate and throw some snowballs with us, Ryoko?"

"Uh, not right now," said Ryoko, too distracted to notice the apparent
contradiction of it being hot and there being snow.

"We'll be in my lab if you want us," said Washuu, opening the door. A
brief flurry of white flakes blew into the living room as she and Sasami
disappeared into the laboratory. 

Ryoko stood for a minute or so, trying to think of where Aeka might have
gone. Then the lab door opened up again, and Sasami leaned through,
mounding up a snowball in her hands. "Uh, Ryoko, could you call Ryo-ohki
for me?"

"Yeah, sure, Sasami." Ryoko closed her eyes and concentrated, sending a
telepathic message to the cabbit, ordering her back to the house. An
image of Ryo-ohki's field of vision formed in Ryoko's head, unexpectedly
providing the information she sought.

Suddenly she felt something wet and icy-cold slide down her back.
Startled, Ryoko shook her dress until a lump of snow plopped onto the
floor. Hearing Sasami giggle, Ryoko turned, realizing what the princess
had done. She reached over and patted the girl on the head. "I'll play
with you later, Sasami-chan," she said, floating towards the kitchen.

Sasami blinked, staring at Ryoko's receding back. Besides the amusement
of playing a prank, she'd hoped to get Ryoko to chase her into the lab so
they could have a snowball fight, but the pirate had barely acknowledged
the snow put down the neck of her dress.

Once in the kitchen, Ryoko opened the refrigerator and pulled out two
cans of juice. Talk was better accomplished over something to drink, and
sake just wasn't the right thing for the kind of discussion Ryoko
intended. Then, again thinking about how much Aeka disliked having her
appear without warning, Ryoko went out the front door rather than
teleporting out to Ryuu-oh immediately. 

No sooner was she outside than Ryoko saw Ryo-ohki scrambling towards her.
The cabbit sat down at her mistress' feet and looked up. "Miya miya, miya
miya miyaaaaa!" she said urgently.

Ryoko sighed. "Yeah, I figured. Don't worry, I'll take care of it. Now,
go play with Sasami-chan, OK?"

"MIYA!" answered Ryo-ohki enthusiastically. Orders like *that* she had no
problem at all obeying. She leapt for the door, smacked into it, then
leaped again and phased through it.

Having noted from Ryo-ohki's memory where Aeka had been sitting, Ryoko
flew out to Ryuu-oh, then touched down about twenty meters off to the
princess' side and started walking towards her. Hearing the approaching
footsteps, Aeka turned her head. Tears stained her face, and hatred
simmered in her eyes. Hatred, but also pain, sorrow, and just a hint of
fear.

"What do *YOU* want?" she demanded, her voice shaking.

Ryoko hesitated a moment. This wasn't going to be easy. She set down the
cans of juice next to Ryuu-oh's trunk, then bowed slightly. "I wanted to
tell you I was sorry about what happened. I wasn't expecting you to walk
in on us."

Aeka looked away and wiped her tears, trying to summon up a brave,
threatening front. "Yes, I'm sure," she sneered. "I suppose I must have
simply *ruined* your good time."

Ryoko grit her teeth. "That *wasn't* what I meant, Aeka. I know it must
have been awful, seeing him with me. I just wanted to apologize, that's
all. I would have come sooner, but I didn't know where you were. I was
looking all over the house for you."

"I'm surprised you bothered. I expect you'd much prefer to stay and
indulge this taste for wanton debauchery you seem to have cultivated in
him," Aeka replied, sniffling.

Ryoko's fists clenched and trembled as she stifled an urge to toss up her
hands in frustration and leave. *I was stupid for even bothering with
this! I felt sorry for HER? This stuck-up little bitch? I left Tenchi and
came out here to listen to THIS?!* "It wasn't like that at all!" she
said, after a few seconds of calming down.

"No, of *course* not," answered Aeka. "Well, you've said what Ten-chan
sent you to say. Now please leave me in peace."

Ryoko fought off the temptation to comply. Instead, she sat down, staring
out at the water. "Tenchi didn't send me, Aeka," she said. After a
moment, she added, "Well, that's not totally true. I came because I knew
he'd want me to. But he didn't say I had to. He doesn't even know you
were there."

Aeka gave Ryoko a quick, surprised glance, but immediately looked away
again, and said nothing.

"I'm sorry about being careless and not warning you or anything. Maybe I
should have put out a 'do not disturb' sign, or something like that. I
just... I dunno, forgot."

Aeka gave no answer.

"I know how it must have felt. I wouldn't want to walk in when he was
with you."

Still the princess remained silent.

"Look, I didn't have to do this. But Tenchi wants us to get along. He
even said he wants us to be *friends*. It's silly, if you ask me, but he
wants it. And I'm not going to let him down without even trying." Still
receiving no reply, Ryoko frowned, annoyed. "Am I talking to you, or am I
talking to this tree of yours?"

Aeka continued to sit, motionless and mute.

Ryoko shook her head and sighed. "Sorry, Tenchi," she said sadly, as she
turned to leave.

Aeka hung her head and closed her eyes. "Ryoko, wait."

The pirate halted and looked back.

"Thank you for your concern," said Aeka quietly. "I accept your apology.
And please excuse what I said before. I know it was uncalled for, but I
was... very upset. Please forgive my rudeness."

Ryoko nodded. "OK."

"Ten-chan told you he wishes us to become friends?" asked Aeka.

"Yeah," sighed Ryoko.

"He said that to me, as well."

Ryoko nodded again. "I guess that figures."

"I wish he wouldn't ask such an impossible thing of me."

Another nod. "Me, too." 

Aeka turned her head and looked up. "Please, sit back down."

"Thanks." 

Ryoko sat, her back against the tree. She picked up the cans of juice and
held one out, offering it to the princess.

"Thank you," said Aeka, inclining her head slightly as she took the can,
moisture beading on its chill metal surface. "It's a hot day today.
That's... that's why I was going to take a bath."

"Oh."

"I wish they'd learn to control the weather properly."

Ryoko nodded. "I was thinking the same thing, over the winter."

Aeka glanced at the can contemplatively for a moment. "We usually drink
sake, don't we?"

"We usually wind up arguing, too," said Ryoko. "I figured maybe it would
work out better if we were sober."

They opened the cans and started sipping juice, looking out over the
lake. Sunlight coming from almost overhead shimmered on the calm surface
of the water. For several minutes, the two of them sat in silence. Then
Ryoko spoke again.

"Aeka?"

"Yes?"

"What you said before, about me and Tenchi in the bath... don't be mad at
him, OK? It was my fault. Blame it on me." Ryoko sighed. "We've always
hated each other anyway."

"I'm *trying* not to hate you, Ryoko. But things like that don't make it
very easy."

"I said I was sorry."

"I know. I suppose I shouldn't let it upset me so. I'm sure you would
have much rather continued without me intruding."

"Yeah."

"Please be more careful, if you do that again. You're right, it was...
very painful."

"This'll sound strange, coming from me, but I wasn't trying to hurt you."

"I know. I know," sighed Aeka, nodding.

"Are you... going to tell him?" asked Ryoko worriedly.

Aeka shook her head. "There's no point in upsetting him. And he'd feel
guilty, and I don't want him to." She smiled very slightly. "Besides, if
I told him, he'd never want to make love there ever again. And I think I
might like to do that with him, at some point."

Ryoko chuckled. "Washuu needs to put a lock or something on it, then.
Because if Sasami walked in, Tenchi would have a stroke for sure."

"I think I probably would, as well," said Aeka, shuddering but smiling
much more now.

"She has to learn about it sometime," said Ryoko, grinning and shrugging.
"What better way than that?"

"Ryoko, please! That isn't funny at all!" Aeka protested. Then, despite
her words, she started laughing, imagining the look on Tenchi's face. A
moment later, so was Ryoko. Once they stopped, Aeka looked over at her,
then down at the ground again, and sighed. 

"I wish we could be like this more often," she said. "It would make Ten-
chan so much happier."

Ryoko's smile vanished. "I know." She shook her head slowly. "Why does he
have to want something so... *weird*?"

"It's his nature. He's kind, and innocent. Those are the reasons why we
both love him, aren't they, after all?"

"He's not exactly *innocent* anymore," Ryoko said, smirking for a moment.

"You know that's not what I meant."

"Yeah."

"Still, you're right. It's not at all an easy thing to ask. We've always
detested each other. We've fought so long, it seems like forever."

Remembering something that had happened earlier in the day, Ryoko looked
down at the ground. "Have you seen that... doll thing of his?" she asked.

"'Doll thing'?" asked Aeka, turning and giving Ryoko a quizzical look.

"You know, that little ceramic head on his desk."

"Oh. The one with one of it's eyes blacked in, you mean?"

Ryoko's voice became very quiet. "Well, he painted in the other one this
morning."

"I wasn't aware that Ten-chan was trying his hand at the arts."

Ryoko shook her head slowly. "That's not it. He explained it to me. You
paint in one eye when you make a wish, and the other when it comes true."

"I see. Did he say what he wished for?" asked Aeka.

Ryoko nodded, and stared at her.

Aeka's eyes widened. "No, he *didn't*..."

Ryoko sighed and nodded again. Aeka closed her eyes and winced.

"You should have seen him, Aeka," said Ryoko, her face full of bleak
despair. "The way he held it. The way he painted it. So careful. Like
having that wish come true meant more to him than *anything*." She wrung
her hands, almost on the verge of tears. "What are we going to *do*? Tell
him, 'Tenchi, you're nuts, it's never going to happen'?"

"I don't know, Ryoko. I simply don't know," said Aeka. She sat and
thought for several moments. "I wonder, though, if it's truly so
impossible a thing."

"Friends? *Us*?" Ryoko shook her head. "OK, so maybe it's not
*completely* impossible, but it's pretty close."

"Oh, I agree, it's most unlikely, but it *has* been at least three days
since we've fought one another."

"You've got a point," admitted Ryoko. Then she smirked. "Getting bored?"

"No, not really," said Aeka. She smiled slightly. "We both have much more
interesting things to do now, ne?"

Ryoko laughed and grinned for a moment before sighing and shaking her
head. "Yeah, but sometimes that's only going to make things worse. Like
today."

Aeka nodded. "Be that as it may, I think we should try to give him as
much of as we can of what he wants," she said. "We already said on
Saturday that we wouldn't argue in front of him. We should make even more
of an effort now. No insults. No taunting. Nothing he would perceive as
us being hostile towards one another."

"That's gonna be *tough*," said Ryoko, shaking her head. "For both of
us."

"I know. But we must at least try."

"I'll give it my best shot. I don't know how long it can last, though.
There'll be all sorts of things we'll be mad at each other about, and we
won't suddenly stop being mad just 'cause Tenchi shows up. He'll notice."

"Perhaps if we discussed what was bothering us, when Ten-chan wasn't
around, we could find a way to defuse the matter. Or at least we could
get the argument over with, without him seeing."

Ryoko thought about it for a moment. "You know, that's not a bad idea."
She smiled and looked over at Aeka. "So, princess, besides the thing with
the bath, what have I done lately to piss you off?"

Aeka sat in silence for a while. "On second thought, perhaps... perhaps
it wouldn't be so wise after all," she said finally.

"Why not? Look, you had an idea, and I liked it. How often does *that*
happen?"

"Not very often, I must admit."

"So why waste it? Come on. Think of something."