(4/4)

Downstairs, Ryoko sat on the couch next to Washuu, flipping through the
Masaki family's photo albums. There were plenty of pictures of Tenchi. In
the most recent one, there were pictures of her as well. And there were
some group portrait shots. But there were no pictures of just her and
Tenchi. She shut the album, then frowned in thought for a moment. Setting
it down on the coffee table, she turned to Washuu. "Um, Washuu-chan,
greatest scientific genius in the universe..."

"Yes?" sighed Washuu.

"Well, if you had pictures of two people, you could combine them and make
it look like a picture taken of both of them at the same time, right?"

"Of course! The Earthlings can do that *now*!" replied Washuu, sounding
rather insulted.

"Um, then, could you do that with pictures of me and Tenchi?" asked
Ryoko.

Washuu nodded. "Sure. But I already *have* pictures of you and Tenchi."

Ryoko blinked. "What?! Where?"

"In my lab monitor archive. I can print out a frame of it, if you want."

"Can I pick which one?"

Washuu nodded again. A few keystrokes on her translucent keyboard brought
up a display of a gleeful Ryoko and a nervous Tenchi cleaning out a bank
vault.

"You mean you were watching me and Tenchi all that time we were traveling
through dimensions?" demanded Ryoko.

"No, I was tracking each person in their respective worlds," said Washuu.
"This one's yours, so we're seeing you. In Mihoshi's world, we'd see what
she was doing. And so forth. I *always* record the progress of my
experiments. It comes in handy later."

"Oh."

"Found what you're looking for, yet?"

Ryoko stared at the screen. Then an idea came to her in a flash. "Can you
go to the end?" she asked.

"OK." The footage sped at blinding speed through several days of bank
heists, car chases, and shootouts, until it stopped on Ryoko and Tenchi
sitting on their car in San Francisco.

"Here?" asked Washuu.

"After this. Just before we came back," said Ryoko.

Washuu pressed a key, and everything was in motion again. Ryoko watched
herself flying around alone, sitting alone atop a Ferris wheel, then
finally materializing on the car roof and jumping down next to Tenchi.
They conversed with Washuu, then walked up to her equipment, standing
side by side.

Ryoko looked over at Tenchi and grasped his hand. He stared at her. Her
eyes widened, revealing a little of the vulnerable side she kept so
carefully hidden. Seeing it, Tenchi smiled slightly, and squeezed her
hand.

"That," said Ryoko quietly. "That, right there."

Washuu nodded and froze the image. Ryoko continued gazing at the screen,
her expression almost like the one she wore in the picture, but with more
of a smile. "What am I going to owe you for this?" she asked, her eyes
starting to moisten.

Washuu looked up at Ryoko's face, then smiled and shook her head. "Don't
worry about it," she said. She entered a command, and her subspace hole
appeared in front of her. Reaching inside, she retrieved a half-life-size
version of the image on the screen, and handed it to Ryoko.

Ryoko took it, then got up and bowed to Washuu. "Thanks, Washuu-chan."

"You're welcome," replied Washuu.

Holding the picture carefully, Ryoko vanished. She was barely gone when
Aeka came into the living room and sat down on the couch.

"They're perfect, Washuu-chan," said the princess, smiling. "I truly do
appreciate it."

"You're welcome. But I'm going to have to start wearing a Santa Claus
outfit pretty soon," said Washuu, going back to reading the data
scrolling on her computer's display.

A few minutes later, Ryoko reappeared and floated down onto the couch.
Aeka poured her a cup of tea and passed it over, and Ryoko smiled and
thanked her. Washuu's eyes darted back and forth for a moment, observing
this minor bit of politeness with interest, and wondering how long it was
going to last.

"Have you thought about what you're going to put in the room?" asked
Aeka.

"Already decided -- a picture," replied Ryoko. "I'm going to let Tenchi
decide where to put it."

Aeka's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "It's *tasteful*, I trust?"

Ryoko rolled her eyes. "*Yes*, don't worry. It's not me in the nude, or
anything like that. Ask Washuu if you don't believe me."

Aeka turned to the scientist.

Washuu nodded. "Not even any cleavage."

"Alright, then."

Finishing her tea, Aeka got up and proceeded to vacuum the carpets. When
she had finished hers, Ryoko grabbed one of the cushions from the couch
and went to nap on top of one of the wooden support beams. After the
princess had finished her task, she walked over to Ryoko and looked up.

"By the way, it's your turn to dust today," said Aeka in a polite tone of
voice.

Ryoko yawned. "Yeah, yeah. I'll do it after lunch," she mumbled.

"Alright. I simply wished to remind you."

Lunch came and went. Once it was over, and the dishes washed and put
away, the two girls sat down in front of the TV, waiting for their
favorite soap opera to come on.

"Regarding the dusting, Ryoko..." said Aeka.

"Will you quit nagging me?" asked Ryoko, annoyed. "I thought we agreed to
try to be nice to each other."

Aeka frowned. "I would hardly call it 'nice' to saddle the rest of us
with what are supposed to be *your* chores."

Ryoko pretended not to hear.

"My, I'm sure Ten-chan will be most pleased at how you honor his request
to be more helpful around the house," said Aeka, demurely sipping her
tea.

"That's between me and Tenchi. Don't start trying to hold that over my
head," said Ryoko. "And anyway, I'll do them after the show is over."

"Whatever you say."

They watched the rest of the soap opera in relative silence. When it
ended, Ryoko got up, stretched, and yawned. "I think I'll go take another
nap."

"Right now? You're not going to do something *else* first?" prompted
Aeka.

Ryoko sighed. "I'll do it this afternoon. It'll only take a few minutes
anyway."

Aeka shook her head. "That's what you always say."

Wordlessly, Ryoko teleported up into Tenchi's bedroom and sat down on his
bed. She sniffed. Aeka's scent was there, fresh but not intolerably
strong. And it was just the overall smell of the princess' body, not the
odor of recent sex. Ryoko got under the covers and closed her eyes, doing
her best to imagine Tenchi was lying next to her as she dozed off.

Two or three hours later, Ryoko turned in her sleep. She smiled and tried
to embrace someone who wasn't there. Feeling her arms clasp nothing, she
frowned, and tried again. "Tenchiiiii..." she whined softly, grabbing
frantically at him in her dream. Then she blinked, suddenly awake.

Ryoko sighed and rolled over on her back. For a while she looked up
through the skylight, her hair splayed over Tenchi's pillow, while she
tried to think of something, *anything* she could do about his absence
during the day. Even being able to talk to him, just *talk*, would make
things better.

Talk to him...

She considered an idea briefly. Yes, it would work. And she wouldn't be
showing up at his school, where he was so afraid of someone seeing her
use her powers, it wouldn't make him mad at her.

Ryoko phased into existence in front of the telephone. She picked up the
receiver -- the Masaki's had recently upgraded to a cordless -- and the
phonebook, just as Aeka entered the room.

The princess silently gave her an expectant look.

"Yeah, yeah," answered Ryoko, before vanishing again.

Aeka shook her head and walked off.

Upstairs, Ryoko floated down onto Tenchi's bed and started thumbing
through the phone book. Eventually she found the number she wanted, and
dialed it.

"Anime International Company," answered a polite female voice. "How may I
direct your call?"

"Uh, sorry, wrong number," said Ryoko, hanging up. She checked the number
carefully and decided that she must have dialed incorrectly. So she tried
again...

Tenchi sat at his desk, his attention evenly split between his math
teacher's lecture and the numerous Ryo-ohki pictures he was scrawling on
his notepad. He finished one, and started another, when one of the office
staff walked into the classroom and started talking to the instructor.

"Masaki!" said the teacher, after a while.

"Yes, sensei?"

"Phone call. Go down to the office with Akamori-san here."

Tenchi got up and followed the man out of the classroom and down the
hall. "Did they say what they're calling about?" he asked.

"I didn't take the call," answered Akamori. "But it's some kind of
emergency, I'm told."

Tenchi became very worried, wondering if perhaps Sasami-chan had been
hurt. Or one of Washuu's experiments had gotten out of hand and blown up
the house. Or maybe Nagi had come back. Or any number of terrible things.

They walked into the office and went to Akamori's desk. He handed the
phone receiver to Tenchi and pressed a flashing button for one of the
lines, then walked off to take care of other business. Tenchi nervously
put the phone to his ear, hoping whatever it was wasn't that serious.

"Hello?" he said, waiting for the awful news.

"Hi, Tenchi!" greeted Ryoko cheerfully, a comforting warmth filling her
at the sound of his voice.

"Uh, hi, Ryoko. What is it?"

"I need to talk to you," she answered.

"What happened? Is somebody hurt?"

"No, nothing like that."

"But they said it was an emergency!"

"It *is*, Tenchi. I miss you."

"Ryoko! That's *not* an emergency!" he said angrily.

"It isn't?" she asked, sounding puzzled and sad.

Hearing her tone of voice, Tenchi sighed. "Sorry. I didn't mean it like
that. But you shouldn't say it's an emergency unless someone's gotten
hurt, or something."

"But *I'm* hurt, Tenchi," she answered, and he could almost hear her
pouting over the phone. "I love you, and there's a ache in my heart
whenever you go away."

"I'm sorry, Ryoko. I love you, too. But you can't get me called out of
class like this. If it's not a real emergency, I've got to go."

"Can't you talk just a little bit more?" she asked. "Just a *little*.
Please?"

"Well..."

"Pretty please?"

"Alright," he said, sitting down on the desk. "Just don't make a habit of
this, OK?"

Ryoko closed her eyes. "Thank you, Tenchi," she said softly.

"You're welcome," said Tenchi, smiling. 

"I'm sorry for being a pain. I just miss you, that's all."

"You're not being a pain, Ryoko," he replied. "Well, not *that* much. So,
what do you want to talk about?"

"I don't know. Anything. I just want to hear your voice."

"Well, what have you been doing all day?" he asked. "It's your turn to
dust the furniture, right? Did you do that yet?"

Ryoko frowned for just a moment. "Not yet. But I'll do it. I promise. I
was just finishing my nap."

Tenchi smiled. "Nap, huh?"

"Yeah. I was lying in your bed, thinking of you. That's what made me
decide to call."

"Thinking what, exactly?"

"Just thinking," she answered. "Sleeping in your bed always gives me nice
dreams. It smells like you."

Tenchi chuckled. "When you said you were in my bed, I thought you might
have called me up to talk dirty."

For a moment, Ryoko was completely speechless. Tenchi had brought up the
subject of sex *first*? He hadn't had to be forced, or cajoled, or even
enticed? He'd thought of it entirely on his own?

Ryoko quickly switched gears, so to speak. "Oooh, that sounds like a
*great* idea, Tenchi," she purred seductively. "Hold on just a second
while I take my clothes off..."

Tenchi's eyes widened. *Oh, no! Me and my big mouth!*

"I'm ready, Tenchi," came Ryoko's sensuous voice, after a few moments.

Tenchi gulped.

"Are you there, Tenchi? Are you listening?" she asked in a breathy
whisper.

"Y-yes," he replied.

"I'm lying on your bed, and all my clothes are off. Close your eyes. Can
you see me?"

Tenchi's cheeks flushed. He couldn't help but see her, *without* closing
his eyes.

"Now I'm putting my hand down between my legs..." continued Ryoko.

A few beads of sweat started to form on Tenchi's brow.

Ryoko began moaning softly over the phone.

The drops of perspiration on Tenchi's forehead grew larger and more
numerous.

"Talk to me, Tenchi," husked Ryoko's voice, after her moaning subsided.
"Tell me what to do with my hands."

"I... uh, can't, Ryoko," he said, glancing around. "There's lots of
people here."

"Don't back out *now*, Tenchi," she cooed.  

"But, Ryoko..."

Tenchi heard her licking her fingers. "Mmmm... Talking to you's making me
hot. How about you?"

Tenchi gulped again, and wiped his hand across his brow to keep the sweat
from running into his eyes.

"Am I making your cock nice and hard, Tenchi? Hmm?"

Tenchi shifted his legs slightly. "A... a little."

"Just a little?" asked Ryoko, sounding disappointed.

"OK, a lot," Tenchi admitted, "but I don't want that to happen at
school!"

"Aww, did I make it get all excited?" cooed Ryoko.

Tenchi's eyes darted around nervously as he moved his legs again. "Yes.
Very."

"Oooh! Yes yes yes!" said Ryoko proudly, before resuming her seductive
tone. "Now, Tenchi, tell me what you'd do with it, if you were here."

"I *can't*!" he hissed. "Everyone would hear me!"

"Come on, Tenchiiiiii," begged Ryoko, the lust leaving her voice,
replaced by frustration. "It was your idea."

"No, it *wasn't* my idea."

"But it *was*. You said you were thinking about talking dirty, and I
hadn't said anything about that at all."

Tenchi sighed. "You misunderstood me, Ryoko."

"I did?"

"Yes, you did."

"I'm sorry, Tenchi. I was just so excited that you started things, this
time."

"But I *told* you, I wasn't *trying* to start things. I'm at *school*."

"Oh," sighed Ryoko dejectedly.

"I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings, Ryoko. It's just that I can't talk
freely here. There are all sorts of people listening."

"Would you have liked it, if you were alone?" she asked hopefully.

"I think so," said Tenchi, smiling again. "Now, I'm sorry, but I have to
go now. Otherwise I'm going to get in big trouble."

"But Tenchiiiiii...!"

"*Now*, Ryoko. Be reasonable, OK? It's only going to be a little while
until I'm home anyway."

"Yeah, I know," said Ryoko.

"I'll see you then. I love you."

"I love you, too, Tenchi," she replied, kissing the mouthpiece. "One more
thing, though."

"What?"

"You've still got classes to go to, right?"

"Yeah. My last one's going to start in a few minutes."

Once more, Ryoko's voice became sensuous and seductive. "While you're
sitting at your desk, I want you to think about what I'm going to be
doing in your bed," she whispered. "'Bye."

Tenchi's eyes widened and he swallowed. "Uh, 'bye," he said hoarsely. He
hung up the phone, then started back to class, hoping no one noticed what
felt like a third leg sprouting in his pants.

Downstairs at the Masaki home, Aeka sat on the couch, wondering if it was
better just to do the dusting herself, so that it *would* be done, or
remind Ryoko about it again. Eventually, she decided on the latter.
Standing up, she started trying to formulate a way to say what she needed
to say without it turning into a fight. She glanced at the support beam
and didn't see Ryoko there, so that meant the most likely place was
Tenchi's room.

She walked up the stairs and through the hall, getting more annoyed with
each step. Lost in thought and paying little heed to her surroundings,
she didn't acknowledge Azaka or Kamidake's greeting, nor hear the sounds
coming from behind the door as she slid it open.

Ryoko lay on the bed, one hand stroking between her legs and the other
squeezing one of her breasts. Her eyes were closed, and soft cooing
sounds accompanied the darting of her fingers. "Tenchiiii... Tenchiiii...
Tenchiiii..."

Aeka put her face in her hands and groaned disgustedly.

Ryoko opened her eyes for a moment, then closed them again, grinned, and
continued masturbating.

Aeka cleared her throat.

"Hold your horses, Aeka, I'm... unhh!!!... I'm almost there," said Ryoko,
not missing a beat.

"Surely you don't intend to keep on..." began Aeka.

Throwing back her head, Ryoko started moaning loudly. Aeka looked back at
the open door and realized that everyone in the house would be able to
hear, including her sister. Frantically she shut the door, just as Ryoko
let out a series of exaggerated pleasurable gasps, then slowly wound
down. Giving a very gratified sigh, Ryoko opened her eyes and looked up.
Seeing the expression on Aeka's face, she began to laugh. "Like the show,
princess?" she asked, looking very amused.

"Really, I find it hard to believe even *you* would do this!" Aeka said
through clenched teeth.

Ryoko smiled. "I'm a big girl. I can play with myself if I want."

"That's not the point! Shirking your chores and foisting them off on the
rest of us so that you can go off and pleasure yourself! The very idea!"

"I was going to do the dusting when I was done," said Ryoko, starting to
get annoyed.

"I see. After *how* many orgasms, pray tell?" asked Aeka testily.

Ryoko thought for a moment. "I dunno. Five or six, I guess."

Aeka shook her head. "Will you at *least* put some clothes on?"

"Sure. In fact, I'll put on something appropriate," said Ryoko. She
phased into a mid-air standing position, no longer nude. Instead, she was
dressed in a rather provocative French maid outfit. Floating down in
front of Aeka, she bowed with exaggerated humility for a moment, then
straightened up and smiled. "Bring back any happy vacation memories, your
highness?"

"Yes. At least *that* time when I found you on the bed, you were merely
drunk and unconscious," replied Aeka. "And isn't that a bit more risque
than what you were wearing then?"

"I was too young and innocent for something like this, back then. And I
had to wear what the hotel gave me, anyway," answered Ryoko.

"What you wear while you do the housework is your business, so long as
you do it," said Aeka, opening the door.

Ryoko floated out into the hall. "I'm going, I'm going, already. So stop
bitching at me," she grumbled.

Aeka clenched her fists, counted to ten, then followed after her. "I am
*not* 'bitching,' Ryoko. I am simply insisting you do your fair share.
Otherwise the rest of us must make up the difference."

"Maybe I'd do more if you didn't act like you were at the royal palace,
bossing the servants around," said Ryoko.

"Excuse me? If that were true, I wouldn't be *doing* any work," replied
Aeka indignantly. "If you're going to malign me, at least make it
believable."

Ryoko retrieved the feather duster from the broom closet and started
dusting, unable to come up with a suitable retort.

Seeing that she'd apparently won a round, Aeka decided to back off a
little. "I'm sorry if I've seemed harsh. I don't expect you to care
whether *I* have to do more work or not, or if Washuu does, but I would
hope at least that you're above passing your chores on to Sasami."

"OK, OK, you've made your point," sighed Ryoko.

Aeka paused and thought for a moment. "Thank you," she said finally,
walking off.

Muttering to herself, Ryoko went about her work.

Meanwhile, Tenchi sat on the schoolbus as it drove over the bumpy roads
towards home. As he had done all through class, he was trying his best
not to do as Ryoko had asked and think of her lying naked in his bed, her
hands between her legs as she writhed sinuously on the mattress and
uttered rapid cries of pleasure, lovingly purring his name again and
again and again...

It wasn't working at all. Luckily, he had his briefcase placed
strategically on his lap, hiding the result of Ryoko's soft, seductive
words echoing in his head.

But there were other words she'd said. Sad, disappointed words, and they
rang in his mind as well.

"I'm sorry, Tenchi. I was just so excited that you started things, this
time."

*Of course she was excited. She's right -- I never DO start things. With
either of them. Most of the guys at school would be hard-pressed to
control themselves just sitting next to them, but even after I've been
sleeping with them for a week now, they still have to practically drag me
into bed.*

Tenchi sank down in his seat a little, thinking about what had happened
with Aeka that morning, and with Ryoko the previous day.

*Why did I have to be so damn stubborn about it? Why? It was great, both
times, except for us getting interrupted today, and that wasn't Ae-chan's
fault. Once they convinced me, I enjoyed it. A lot. But before that, I
argued with them, hurt their feelings, and almost spoiled everything.*

The bus lurched to a stop and let someone else off, then started up
again.

*Then there was Ryoko, today. Sure, she picked the worst possible place
and time to do that, but I didn't have to act so scared. No one could
hear her. I could have been a lot calmer about it. I could have made sure
she knew it wasn't what she was doing, but where, and when. I could have
even promised that we could continue later. But I didn't. I acted like
her talking that way to me was something horrible.*

Tenchi hung his head shamefully as the bus continued to roll.

*And she sounded so happy when she thought it was all my idea. She must
have been hoping for me to do something like that all along. Ae-chan was.
She said so. And Ryoko probably was, too. She's just not shy like Ae-chan
is, so she wasn't going to wait for me to do something. She did it
herself.*

He thought back again to that morning, and Aeka's uncharacteristic
boldness and seductiveness.

*She's always so shy. She cares so much about being proper. But she was
acting almost as aggressive as Ryoko, grabbing me out in the open like
that, wanting to go into the bushes and have sex. She NEVER acts that
way, unless we're alone. But I forced her to, because I was being such a
chicken.*

The bus stopped again. Another student got off, and it pulled back onto
the road.

*I can't keep doing that. It's not right. I practically made Ae-chan
crawl on her hands and knees and BEG this morning. She's going to be a
queen someday, and THAT'S how I treat her? And this afternoon, even
before the phone sex thing started, all Ryoko wanted to do was talk to
me, and I made HER beg, too! She's got her pride, just like Ae-chan does.
Even Nagi showed more respect for her than I do.*

Noticing that the bus had almost reached the spot to drop him off, Tenchi
put aside his thoughts and waited.

Back at the house, Ryoko glanced at the clock, then dropped the feather
duster, flew over to Aeka, and landed clad in her blue and green striped
dress. "Come on, let's go wait for Tenchi," she said cheerfully.

"You finished *that* quickly?" asked Aeka very skeptically.

"I'll finish it later," answered Ryoko. "Hurry up, he'll be here any
minute."

"I see. I must say I'm impressed at the effort you put into doing what he
asked of you," said Aeka.

Ryoko glared at her. "I *knew* I should have never told you that. And if
you think I'm going to stay here and clean while you walk back to the
house with him, you're crazy."

Aeka frowned. "And why not? Perhaps tomorrow you'll be more diligent
about it, if you see that there are consequences for your sloth."

"Ha! What are you going to do, princess, not leave a tip? Like last
time?"

"This isn't about then! It's about *now*!"

"You're just using this as an excuse so I can't walk with him, too! And I
was nice enough to remind you, remember?!"

"I've been reminding *you* all day! If you'd finished earlier, this
wouldn't be an issue!!"

"You've been *nagging* me all day, you mean!!!"

"I haven't been nagging, I've been quite polite about it!!!!"

The girls clenched their fists and faced off. A spark of energy arced
between them as their anger banked higher and higher...

The sound of Sasami clearing her throat interrupted the buildup to the
impending clash. Aeka and Ryoko glanced down and saw the young princess
looking up at them.

"You two promised Tenchi you weren't going to fight anymore," said
Sasami. "Remember?"

Ryoko and Aeka backed off and looked away from each other, guilt
spreading across their faces.

Sasami nodded, satisfied for the moment. "That's better. Now, can one of
you help me in the kitchen?"

Aeka thought for a second before replying. "I'll be there in just a
moment, Sasami. I need to talk to Ryoko a little more."

"Alright," said Sasami, folding her arms across her chest and frowning.
"But if you start fighting again, I'll tell Tenchi, and he'll be really
mad at *both* of you." With that, she walked back into the kitchen, Aeka
and Ryoko staring nervously at her.

"I hadn't considered how Sasami would figure into this new situation,"
said Aeka contemplatively. "We'll have to treat her as if she were Ten-
chan, so far as what we can do and say in front of her."

"If this happens again, it might be good to go off into the woods and
beating the crap out of each other, to let off steam," said Ryoko. "Now,
about what we were talking about..."

Aeka sighed. "I suppose that was a rather trivial thing to argue over,
wasn't it?"

"Probably."

"It's not the thing itself. It's the principle."

Ryoko put a hand on her forehead and groaned. "Please, don't start *that*
again, OK?"

"In any case, if you'll finish the dusting, I'll go help Sasami. That way
neither of us goes to meet him, and you'll see that you were wrong about
my motives being malicious. Fair enough?"

"I guess so. We should probably cool off a little before he sees us,
anyway."

"Very well," said Aeka, turning to leave.

A thought suddenly occurred to Ryoko. "Hold on a sec'," she said.

Aeka looked back at her. "Yes?"

Ryoko spent a few seconds searching for the right words and filtering out
the sarcasm and insults that kept trying to sneak in. "Don't take this
the wrong way, but next time, have Sasami tell me. I won't get pissed off
at her like I do at you."

"No offense taken," replied Aeka. "I think I understand your reasons."

As the princess left the living room, Ryoko flew over to the feather
duster. She picked it up and, dressed in her maid outfit again, resumed
dusting the furniture, fighting the urge that came every few seconds to
fly off and go to meet Tenchi.

At the same time, Tenchi stepped off the bus and started walking up the
path towards his house. Reaching the spot where the girls usually waited
for him, he found it deserted. At first he was disappointed. Then the
thoughts he'd had on the bus flooded back into his mind, and he was
angry. At himself.

*It's the same as everything else. I'm expecting them to come to me,
instead of me going to them.*

Silently promising the girls that he'd stop being so passive and start
learning to truly appreciate them, Tenchi headed up the hill at a brisk
pace. The very first thing, he decided, he was going to go straight up to
each of them and give them a hug and a kiss, without waiting for them to
do so for him first.

He reached the front door, opened it, and went inside.

Then he blinked, his eyes widening as they traversed the sleek curves of
Ryoko's legs from her ankle up to where her thighs disappeared into a
short black skirt trimmed with white lace. She was hovering next to the
staircase, her feet just at the level of his head. As she leaned forward
to brush the feather duster she was holding against the railing of the
stairs, Tenchi's mind finally processed the image and recognized what
Ryoko was wearing: some kind of maid's uniform. Her breasts threatened to
spill out of a top cut as low as the skirt was cut high. He stared as she
floated lower, finishing the rail, and turned towards him as her toes
almost touched the floor.

Surprised and startled for just a moment, Ryoko recovered and smiled,
hoping that some praise might be in the offing. Tenchi hadn't paid much
notice to her helping wash the dishes the two previous nights, but this
was something he'd asked her to do specifically, so maybe, just maybe,
he'd compliment her about it.

Tenchi continued to stare, speechless. While his eyes drank in the sight
of her, the memories of their conversation on the phone came back to him
in a hot rush, her teasing voice whispering erotically in his mind again.

Ryoko raised her eyebrows a little. She looked at the duster in her hand,
then at Tenchi, then back to the duster as she began playfully flicking
the feathered end against the stair rail.

Tenchi simply kept on staring, intensely aware of what seemed like every
last drop of blood in his body surging to fill a single piece of his
anatomy.

Ryoko's gaze alternated between Tenchi and the duster several times, an
unspoken "Hmmmm?" written on her face. She continued brushing it back and
forth on the rail, waiting patiently for him to notice the way she was
doing the housework, just like he'd asked her to.

Tenchi swallowed the saliva pooling rapidly in his mouth.

*What am I waiting for?! Am I just going to stand here and make her come
to me? Am I going to force her to crawl and beg AGAIN? Is she going to
have to drag me kicking and screaming into the bedroom, AGAIN?!?!*

Tenchi started to tremble as he looked deep into Ryoko's eyes.

*NO!!!*

Moving so fast that he caught her off guard, Tenchi strode towards Ryoko
and scooped her up, cradling her in his arms. She stared up at him, her
gold eyes wide in astonishment as he carried her up the stairs, while
behind them, unnoticed, Aeka walked out of the kitchen just in time to
see the last few steps Tenchi took before the ceiling blocked her view.

"Okaeri nasai, Ten-chan!" she called, as she started towards the stairs.

No answer came.

"Ten-chan?"

Picking up her pace, Aeka quickly reached the foot of the stairs as, at
the top, Tenchi turned to head down the hall. The princess' eyes widened
as she saw Tenchi gazing lovingly down at Ryoko lying in his arms just as
the wall obscured him again. Aeka shook her head as unease rose steadily
within her and she followed up the stairs. At the top of the stairs
looked down the hall.

Aeka's jaw dropped as she watched in utter disbelief, her face white as a
ghost's, as Tenchi walked past Azaka and Kamidake, ignoring their
greetings as if they didn't even exist, then opened his bedroom door with
his foot and carried Ryoko inside. The door closed, and it was all Aeka
could do to keep herself from either screaming or fainting dead away.

It was her day, and Tenchi had gone into his bedroom with Ryoko, instead.

No, he hadn't *gone* with Ryoko. He had *taken* her. Tenchi *never* acted
that boldly. Never. At least, not with Aeka. Every single time she'd had
to move him along in some way, however gently. Yet to all appearances,
he'd come home and taken Ryoko upstairs straightaway. What had happened
between them to cause him to do that?

Aeka's blood ran cold as a horrible thought occurred to her.

Had Tenchi chosen?

When the girls had come to their agreement about sharing him, they'd also
agreed that it wouldn't last forever, the unstated assumption being that
one day, he'd make up his mind about which of them he loved more.

Had Tenchi decided to give his heart solely to Ryoko?

The princess' chest constricted as she slowly walked down the stairs, all
of her thoughts of what Tenchi and Ryoko were doing in the bedroom
dwindling past triviality down to nothingness and vanishing, utterly
eclipsed by this new dire possibility. Feeling short of breath, she
leaned against the wall to steady herself, desperately trying to draw
some other conclusion from Tenchi's action. There had to be some other
reason for what he'd done. There simply *had* to be. There *HAD* to!

If Tenchi had made such a decision, he would have told her, Aeka
reassured herself. He wouldn't leave her dangling, not letting her know
how he felt.

Wouldn't he? He'd done just that, until only a week before. 

It felt as if Aeka's entire world was crumbling before her eyes and about
to come crashing down around her. She tried and failed to still the
violent trembling of her hands. The thoughts she had shoved aside before
reasserted themselves, thoughts of Tenchi seizing Ryoko and taking her
upstairs to make love to her on the day when he rightly belonged to Aeka.

This was twice now that Tenchi's apparent newfound boldness had sliced
into her heart like a knife. Aeka tried her best to believe that it
wasn't deliberate, that he simply didn't realize the awful pain he'd
caused her, but this was twice now. Twice in as many days.

Aeka closed her eyes and attempted to calm herself. She'd managed to
overcome the anguish of seeing them together in the bath. It had been
like crawling slowly out of a lightless abyss, but she'd been able to get
over it. She'd be able to recover from this as well. It was only sex. She
and Tenchi shared a deeper bond than that. Aeka kept on silently
repeating that to herself like a mantra. It was only sex. It was only
sex. It was only sex.

It was only... making love.

It was only the first time that Tenchi had decided on his own to make
love to one of the girls. Merely that. No, nothing special at all. She
didn't feel like storming up to the bedroom and tearing Ryoko apart in a
fit of jealous rage. She didn't feel like demanding that Tenchi explain
where he'd been keeping all this courage, during those long months when
she'd waited in desperate uncertainty for him to reveal his feelings. She
didn't feel like clinging to him and begging to know what she had done to
make him decide against her.

Aeka opened her eyes and shook her head. She didn't know that he *had*
decided against her. Perhaps it only seemed that way. She wouldn't permit
herself jump to conclusions. Moving over to the couch, Aeka sat down,
slowly gathering the will to confront Tenchi and ask him to tell her the
truth.

Upstairs, after shutting the door, Tenchi carried Ryoko to the bed and
set her down at its foot. She stared at him, still too stunned to say or
do anything, as he stood in front of her and began undressing.

Looking down, Tenchi briefly frowned, puzzled. He hadn't changed into his
slippers. He was still wearing his outdoor shoes, in the house. Somehow,
he'd forgotten to change them at the front door.

Now that he thought about it, the front door was probably still open. He
couldn't remember closing it.

Deciding to ignore those details, he pulled off his shoes and shed his
school uniform one piece at a time. Then he moved up to Ryoko and started
kissing her, caressing her, and removing her clothes. A pile of black
cloth and white lace quickly formed next to the bed. Feeling Tenchi's
hands all over her now-bare skin and his lips working their way up her
neck, Ryoko fought the urge to seize the initiative, to get on top of him
and let him feel her love expressed as pleasure. Instead she forced
herself to wait, to let every last thing be Tenchi's doing, and to
restrict her actions to responses to his.

Tenchi put his hands on Ryoko's shoulders and pushed her down onto the
bed, kissing her as he did. He spread her legs and got between them,
positioning himself to enter her, and continued kissing. With each touch
of Tenchi's lips Ryoko let out a soft, encouraging moan. She wanted this
to be something he did to her, but she also wanted him to know she
enjoyed it.

Ryoko gazed up at him, waiting breathlessly, as Tenchi placed his palms
against the mattress on either side of her head. Even now, she could
scarcely believe what was about to happen really *was* going to happen.
It was simply too good to be true. Her eyes never leaving his face for an
instant, she continued to wait as he remained poised above her.

Tenchi looked down at her, a thought occurring to him just as the tip of
his penis nudged against the entrance to Ryoko's sex. He hadn't actually
*asked* her. He was almost sure her answer would be "yes," but the very
thought of wronging her, however unlikely, stopped him.

"Uh, Ryoko, are you... sure you want to?" he asked hesitantly, a measure
of his usual timidity manifesting itself in his voice.

Ryoko smiled, trying not to laugh at such a ridiculous question. Slowly,
gently, she reached up and wrapped her arms around him, kissed him, then
put her lips next to his ear.

"Gimme your sword, Tenchi," she whispered.

And he did. Ryoko locked eyes with him and gasped as she felt Tenchi
thrust into her, then partly withdraw, then slide all the way in again,
the sensation repeating in a gentle, steady, rhythmic cycle.

As he slowly drove in and out of Ryoko, Tenchi decided that, since this
was the first time he had initiated sex, he would make sure Ryoko enjoyed
it. He also decided to try a few things on her that she usually did to
him. Briefly he wracked his brain for something lustful to whisper to
her. A few ideas surfaced. All of them were rather tame, really, but
they'd have to do.

Tenchi pressed his lips against the bottom of Ryoko's larynx, then
started licking. He slowly worked his up her neck, under her jaw, and
around her ear. For a few moments he listened to the cries of "Tenchi!"
or "Yes!" or "Oh!" that each of his thrusts induced. Then he smiled.

"Didn't you tell me you didn't *like* the missionary position?" he asked.

Ryoko's only answer was a throaty moan almost, but not quite, like a
kitten's purr.

Retracing his path, Tenchi ran his tongue back down Ryoko's neck and onto
her chest. She gave a giggle and pressed his face between her breasts.
Tenchi started licking her cleavage, and was rewarded with a series of
soft, delighted squeals. Putting one hand on the back of Tenchi's head
and cupping one of her breasts with the other, Ryoko guided his mouth
onto her nipple. He began gently sucking. Ryoko let go of her breast and
started brushing her hand against Tenchi's cheek, uttering wordless
murmurs of encouragement between gasps of pleasure as she squirmed
underneath him.

After a few minutes of attention to Ryoko's bosom, Tenchi moved his head
up and kissed her on the lips again. He began increasing the speed and
force of his thrusts, and in response her cries rose in pitch and volume.
Crossing her legs behind Tenchi like scissors, Ryoko held on to him and
waited for the climax she could feel getting closer and closer. Finally
the surge of pleasure crashed over her senses and she hugged him tight,
her voice dissolving into rapid whimpers of "Tenchiiii... Tenchiiii...
Tenchiiii...!"

The sensation of his penis being tightly and repeatedly squeezed set
Tenchi off as well. He slid his arms underneath Ryoko's back, hugging her
as he gave one final thrust, as deep and hard as he could manage, then
closed his eyes and groaned loudly. Ryoko showered kisses all over
Tenchi's face, cooing sweetly to him as he spilled himself into her. 

Once he was spent, Tenchi relaxed, lay his head on Ryoko's shoulder, and
sighed contentedly. She held him loosely but close, occasionally brushing
her hands along his back. Several minutes passed before either of them
spoke. Finally, Ryoko ran her fingers through Tenchi's hair and kissed
him on the forehead.

"If *that's* what I'm going to get for doing housework, I'll do it a lot
more often," she giggled, grinning.

Tenchi raised his head and gave her a confused look. "Housework?"

Ryoko pouted. "You mean you didn't notice?" she asked, her voice full of
feigned hurt.

Tenchi tried to think back to what he'd seen just as he'd come in the
door, but it all seemed to have happened so fast, and so much of his mind
had been occupied in overriding his inhibitions, that he couldn't recall
most of the details. "Well, thank you, then," he said. Then he smiled.
"So, was it good?"

"Mmmmmmmmmmm..." purred Ryoko, planting a kiss on his lips. "You were
*wonderful*, Tenchi."

"I was?" he asked, looking both proud and self-conscious.

Ryoko nodded and smiled. "Uh-huh."

Tenchi lay his head down on Ryoko's chest and closed his eyes. "Thanks.
Man, did *that* take a lot out of me," he sighed, and both of them knew
he wasn't talking about physical exertion.

Ryoko stroked his cheek with her fingertips. "I'd really like it if you
did that again," she said, gently but seriously. "It felt really good.
And I don't just mean the sex. I know I don't usually act like the 'come
sweep me off my feet' type, but when you picked me up and carried me
upstairs..." Ryoko closed her eyes and was silent for a moment before
continuing in a very quiet voice, "... that was the best part of all,
Tenchi."

Tenchi looked up at her, wondering if it would be easier for him now to
do something like that again.

Opening her eyes, Ryoko took his face in her hands, drawing him closer
and kissing him. "I'm not saying the stuff after that was bad, though,"
she whispered. "That would have been good even if *I* had to carry *you*
up here."

Tenchi laughed and shook his head, not liking the image at all but
managing to find it funny. "Does this mean you're not going to pounce on
me anymore?" he asked.

"No, it doesn't," said Ryoko, smiling slyly. "I'm still going to grab
you, anytime I feel like it." Then, as if to prove her point, she seized
his waist and lifted him up, then set him down with his knees on either
side of her head.

"Uh, Ryoko..." began Tenchi.

"Hi, Tenchi-ken!" giggled Ryoko, cradling Tenchi's "sword" in her hand.
"Did you have a good time, hmm?"

Tenchi put a hand over his face and groaned. "I *really* wish you
wouldn't call it that."

Ryoko ignored him. "Time to take a bath," she cooed, as she began licking
all over his penis. Tenchi groaned again, but for entirely different
reasons. He put his hands against the wall to steady himself as Ryoko
took his limp member into her mouth and started cleaning off their
mingled juices with her lips and tongue. Tenchi winced slightly. It was
still rather sensitive, after having been put to use so recently. Unsure
if Ryoko was just cleaning it off, or if she was trying to make it hard
again, he looked down to watch.

It was then that he noticed the chains attached to the walls above the
pillows.

"Uh, Ryo...? Unhhh! Ryoko?" he said.

"Mfffff?" she said, before sliding his penis out of her mouth and holding
it in her fingers. "Yes?"

"Do you know how these chains got here?" he asked.

Ryoko winced as she remember who the chains belonged to, and, much more
significantly, whose day it was, and what that person's reaction was
likely to be. Even if she hadn't noticed that Tenchi hadn't announced his
return home yet -- and that was *impossible* -- Azaka and Kamidake
definitely wouldn't lie to their mistress about who they'd seen carrying
whom into the bedroom.

*Uh-oh. Damn, but is her exalted and mighty royal highness ever going to
be PISSED.*

"Aeka put those there," Ryoko said, after a few seconds. She looked at
Tenchi's penis and quickly decided that continuing to try to get him
ready for a second go would be a *really* bad idea. She phased behind him
and put her chin on his shoulder, her body pressed against his back. "We
sort of decided to make some changes to your room. You don't mind, do
you?"

Tenchi smiled as he thought about it. Both of the girls seemed to regard
their presence on Earth as somehow transitory. He remembered the fears
Aeka had expressed, about how Jurai's royal family might decide at any
moment to come take her away, as he picked up the chains and ran them
through his hands. Somehow, it was almost as if by making a tangible
alteration to his room, Aeka was saying that she belonged there, and that
she intended to stay. "No, actually, I like it," he said. Growing
curious, he hefted the chains in his hands, feeling their weight. "Wow,
these are *heavy*. What do you think they're made of?"

Again, Ryoko winced.

*I'm pretty sure she wants to surprise him. This isn't going to be
pretty. Not one bit.*

Ryoko kissed Tenchi's neck. "Um, Tenchi?"

Tenchi set down the chains. "Yes?"

"I don't think you're supposed to know about those yet," she said.

"Oh," said Tenchi. He didn't need to know any of the specific details of
Juraian tradition to know who was going to wind up chained to the bed,
and the kinds of things that would happen after that. "OK, I won't let
on." He smiled. "So, what have *you* done to my room, huh?"

Ryoko smiled and flew into the closet like a shot, emerging with a large
picture that she held in front of Tenchi. "Like it?" she asked.

Tenchi's eyes widened as he slowly nodded. "Where'd you get that?"

"Washuu," answered Ryoko.

Tenchi continued to stare at the sight of himself holding hands with
Ryoko, and at the expression on their faces. "Why haven't you hung it up
yet?" he asked.

"I want you to decide where to put it."

"Over there," said Tenchi, standing up and nodding towards the wall
opposite the foot of the bed.

Ryoko quickly hung the picture, then floated back next to Tenchi look at
it. Glancing to his side, Tenchi reached over and grasped Ryoko's hand.
She squeezed his hand in return, then leaned over to put her head on his
shoulder. "We've come a long way, haven't we, Tenchi?" she sighed.

"Yeah," said Tenchi, nodding. He let go of her hand and put his arm
around her. "We sure have."

Silently, Ryoko relived the moment in the picture, the first affection
Tenchi had shown her after he'd come to know her. That, and the look on
his face as he'd walked up to her and tossed her an apple, as she'd lain
on top of the torii over the path leading to Katsuhito's shrine.

Ryoko's eyes went wide. Katsuhito. The shrine. She was supposed to spar
with him today. She'd completely forgotten about it. And if her
inattentiveness offended him and made him decide not to help her keep in
form...

Slowly, Ryoko pried herself away from Tenchi. "There's some stuff I've
got to go take care of," she said. "I'll be back in a little while."

Tenchi nodded, then smiled. "Oh. Uh, tadaima," he chuckled.

Ryoko kissed him. "Okaeri," she replied, before dematerializing.

A fraction of a second later, she appeared in the kitchen, no longer nude
but clad in her black-and-red fighting outfit instead. Reached from
behind Sasami, she snatched one of the rice balls the princess was
preparing.

"But those are for dinner!" protested Sasami, turning around with her
hands on her hips.

"Sorry, Sasami-chan, but I'm hungry now," answered Ryoko, starting to
wolf down the food. "Give me one less tonight." Still munching the rice
ball, she floated out of the kitchen and into the living room, where she
came face to face with Aeka.

Finally finding someone she could focus her anger on, and a way to forget
her fear and pain for a moment, Aeka glared furiously at Ryoko. Ryoko
quickly looked away, a guilty expression on her face.

*Well, here it comes...*

"This was *my* day!" growled Aeka in a low voice.

"I know," sighed Ryoko. "Sorry."

"Is *this* how you intend to keep our agreement?" demanded the princess.

"It was Tenchi's idea," said Ryoko defensively. "He just came in the door
and picked me up, OK?"

Aeka felt her heart lurch inside her chest as she remembered watching
Tenchi carry Ryoko into the bedroom. "Then you should have *stopped*
him!"

Ryoko snapped her gaze to Aeka as her eyes narrowed dangerously and her
lips pulled back to expose her teeth. "What was I supposed to *do*, kick
and scream and yell 'No!'? After all the times he ran away from me?" She
poked her finger at Aeka's chest. "After all the times *YOU* *STOPPED*
me?!" she snarled, before managing to calm down a little as she
remembered the need to be quiet around Sasami. "We agreed about what
*we'd* do. We never said anything about what Tenchi could do. And if you
think I'm *ever* going to say 'no' to him when he wants me, you can go to
hell!"

Leaving behind a shocked and infuriated Aeka, Ryoko whisked through the
wall and out towards the shrine. Once more guilt rose within her at
having failed Tenchi yet again. She put it down. Some things were too
much to ask. *Far* too much.

She quickly polished off the rice ball and touched down in front of
Katsuhito, who was sitting on the veranda watching the cherry blossoms
float by.

"Konichiwa, ojiisama," she said, kneeling and bowing.

Katsuhito stood up, and motioned for her to rise as well. "Here for
practice, I take it?"

Ryoko nodded. "Hai."

Producing two bokken seemingly from out of nowhere, Katsuhito tossed one
to Ryoko and walked towards her. Catching it, she tested the balance,
frowning just a little. "I've never fought with one of these before," she
said.

"Using a bokken allows one to concentrate on skill and technique, rather
than relying on the power of a live blade," said Katsuhito.

"Well, I'll try not to hurt you too much," said Ryoko, grinning. "I don't
think Tenchi would like it."

Katsuhito's eyebrows arched ever-so-slightly. "I'll warn you only once,
Ryoko-san. Don't underestimate me. I won't hold back as I do with
Tenchi."

Ryoko made a few casual strokes through the air, still getting used to
her new weapon. "Fine with me. That's the way I like it, anyway."

"I think it would be best if I saw the measure of your abilities, before
I begin training you," said Katsuhito, raising the bokken horizontally
above his head and planting his feet apart. "We'll have a few test
matches. First body strike wins each match."

"I suppose I'm not supposed to fly or anything like that, right?" asked
Ryoko, mimicking Katsuhito's posture for a moment to see if it suited
her.

"Do whatever you wish," replied the old man. "The only rule is that you
may not strike with anything but the bokken."

Ryoko leaned to one side and held the wooden sword near vertically, then
flexed her knees. "Ready when you are, ojiisama."

Katsuhito nodded silently and maintained his pose.

Ryoko waited. She'd seen enough of Tenchi's practice sessions to know
that this was the contest before the contest, to see who's will would
break, causing them to flinch or strike a hasty first blow. She kept her
eyes resolutely on Katsuhito, who stood about ten paces away.

Sweat started to bead on Ryoko's brow. She wasn't used to this. She
always preferred to strike first and knock her enemy out of the fight at
once. The tension grew as the seconds slowly crawled by and the two held
each other's unblinking stares.

Suddenly, Katsuhito's gaze shifted a little as he focused on something
behind Ryoko to her right. "So, you've decided to join us, eh, Tenchi?"
he said.

"Ten...?" began Ryoko, as she started to turn around and caught herself,
realizing the trick just in time. In her moment of inattentiveness,
Katsuhito closed the distance and attacked, directing his bokken at her
midsection in a mighty horizontal sweep.

Taken almost completely off-guard, Ryoko backed up and avoided the
strike, retreated some more before the subsequent vertical follow-
through, gave yet more ground to dodge another sideways slash, and
finally brought up her weapon to stop Katsuhito's second downward blow.
Their bokken locked for a moment, and Ryoko bared her fangs, irked by the
obvious mirth on the old man's face.

"That was fighting dirty!" she snarled, slipping out from under his
weapon and taking a swipe at his side.

Katsuhito spun sideways and blocked. "Fooled you, didn't it?" he said.
"You're as bad as Tenchi is."

Anger flared up inside Ryoko and she struck fiercely, almost leaving
herself defenseless for Katsuhito's counterattack. She struck, then
parried. "Don't make fun of Tenchi!"

"I'm merely pointing out that he's naive and foolish," said Katsuhito,
smiling as he took another swipe at her.

Ryoko extended her stance and made several rapid, anger-fueled attacks,
each one of which the old man parried deftly. "I... SAID... DON'T...
MAKE... FUN... OF.... TENCHI!!!"

Katsuhito's bokken streaked down at Ryoko's exposed back. She ducked down
through the ground as the weapon bit into the stone, then came back up at
a safer distance and launched herself at him again.

"You mean, you don't think it's foolish of him to expect you and Aeka-
hime to get along?" he asked, knocking aside her attack and missing with
his counterstrike as she danced out of range.

Ryoko's eyes burned as she remembered her confrontation with the
princess, minutes before. Her knuckles whitened and the wooden sword
cracked slightly in her grip before she charged, her expression furious,
and unleashed a frenzied series of blows. Katsuhito repeatedly blocked
and dodged, giving ground and no longer sparing any of his attention for
words. Frustrated, she growled and lunged, heedless of defense.

Somehow, Katsuhito leapt over her strike and landed balanced cat-like on
the edge of her blade. Quickly recovering, Ryoko yanked it out from under
him and stepped sideways, half-evading, half-parrying his attack. Her
counterstrike nearly hit home before Katsuhito jumped backwards and
landed toes first.

For a moment, Ryoko backed away and held her bokken in front of her,
eying Katsuhito warily. He was *good*, she decided. Very good. She never
would have expected to find such skill on an obscure, backward planet in
the middle of nowhere, but she was beginning to realize that the old man
just might be the best she'd ever fought. In fact, something about his
fighting style was vaguely... *familiar*.

What was more, he'd managed to make her mad. Against most opponents,
anger helped her, lending her that much more striking power. But now it
was hurting her, throwing off her timing and preventing her from landing
a blow in the first place.

"So, you're giving in, is that it?" asked Katsuhito.

Ryoko smiled. "Ha! I'm just warming up!"

Before even finishing her words, Ryoko charged again and loosed a storm
of blindingly-fast strikes, but despite the speed of her attacks
Katsuhito skillfully avoided or blocked each one. He wasn't toying with
her anymore, though, she noted with some satisfaction.

Not *yet*, anyway.

"I understand Tenchi's finally acting a *little* like a man," said
Katsuhito, sweeping his bokken in at Ryoko from her left.

Ryoko parried it rather easily, then lunged and missed. "You're *not*
going to distract me again."

Katsuhito struck several rapid blows in quick succession, and Ryoko
ducked and weaved, avoiding them. "I see. You're learning already."

Smiling, Ryoko slashed at him, forcing him to back up, then blocked his
counterattack.

Katsuhito smiled. "Where is Tenchi, though?" he asked, as he struck
again.

"Back at the house," replied Ryoko uneasily, parrying.

"I see. With Aeka-hime, I presume? They must be enjoying themselves," he
said.

Ryoko growled and took a rage-powered, fury-blinded swipe at Katsuhito,
barely recovering in time when he brought his bokken around under her
swing. Restraining her anger once more, she floated rapidly away,
shifting back and forth a meter off the ground as she searched for an
opening in the old man's guard.

Deciding that she'd found one, Ryoko hurled herself at him with a fangs-
bared snarl, the bokken whistling as it sliced through the air in front
of her.

Back at the house, Aeka sat in front of the living room window, looking
out forlornly over the lake. After Ryoko's departure, the princess had
cooled down as she considered the pirate's words. Much though Aeka wished
it otherwise, Tenchi's actions were his own doing, not Ryoko's. And she
knew that if he'd come to *her*, picked *her* up, and carried *her* to
his bed, there was no way she could possibly have made herself do what
she'd demanded of Ryoko. She had barely been able to slip out of his arms
the previous morning, herself, and that had been under the looming glare
of dawn to remind her of Ryoko's impending arrival. But if he had come to
Aeka, wanting her, and if no reminders of her oath were close at hand,
she would have broken that promise in a heartbeat. There was no denying
it. And it was unreasonable to expect Ryoko to keep her word when in her
place Aeka would have not done so, either.

The princess scowled and banged her fist down on the tatami. *Oblivion
take all reason!*

Try as she might, she couldn't escape the conclusion that the one to
blame for her current pain was Tenchi. And that thought hurt every bit as
much as watching him carry Ryoko into his bedroom. She wiped away a tear,
then straightened the already-straight folds of her kimono and lay her
hands in her lap. Once he came downstairs, Aeka decided again, she would
ask him why. But she wasn't going to sob and beg. Even if Tenchi no
longer loved her, she still wanted him to look on her with respect.

Doing her best to compose and prepare herself, Aeka watched the sunlight
glimmering on the rippled water of the lake.

Upstairs, Tenchi finished changing the sheets and remaking the bed after
getting dressed. He sat down and looked at the picture again for a few
moments, then at the chains. He smiled. From now on, his room would
always contain a reminder of Ryoko and Aeka, even when one or both was
absent. He got up and left the room, shutting the door behind him.

"Konichiwa, Tenchi-dono," chorused the guardians.

"Konichiwa, Azaka, Kamidake," replied Tenchi cheerfully.

"Did we offend you earlier?" asked Azaka.

Tenchi frowned. "Huh? Offend me?" He shook his head, looking rather
puzzled. "No, not at all. Whatever gave you that idea?"

"You didn't answer us when you came in with Ryoko," said Kamidake.

Tenchi thought about it and realized that he could barely remember *any*
of the details of his trip upstairs, other than Ryoko lying in his arms.
He didn't recall the guardians even *being* there, much less speaking to
him.

"Sorry, you two," he said, bowing slightly. "I didn't mean to be rude. I
guess I was sort of... preoccupied."

"No apologies are necessary," assured Kamidake.

Descending the stairs, Tenchi caught sight of Aeka sitting in front of
the window. He smiled.

*One down, one to go.*

He'd already given the planned hug and kiss -- and a whole lot more
besides -- to Ryoko. And the chains promised more of the same with Aeka,
later that night. But if she was going to be in her oujo-sama mood, that
meant that he would be in the passive role, as usual. And he'd promised
himself that he'd take the initiative a little more, with *both* girls.

Walking up to the princess, Tenchi knelt down behind her, wrapped his
arms around her, and spoke in a low voice next to her ear. "Tadaima," he
said.

Aeka nearly jumped out of her skin. Realizing that he must have startled
her, Tenchi cupped her chin in his hand and gently turned her head
towards him before kissing her on the cheek. "Tadaima," he repeated.

"O-okaeri nasai," stammered Aeka in reply. She'd thought she had prepared
herself, but now she realized that there was no way *to* prepare herself.

Tenchi kissed her cheek again. Then he glanced over her shoulder and saw
the view of the lake she'd been taking in before he'd arrived. "The water
sure looks pretty with the sunlight on it like that," he said.

Aeka nodded, slowly summoning up the will to pose the questions she knew
she had to ask him but wanting to put them off for as long as possible.
"Hai," she said quietly.

Tenchi eased Aeka back until she lay against him in his arms. He looked
down and smiled at her. "You know, it's funny. Sometimes we don't
appreciate beauty, even when it's right there in front of us," he said in
deliberate mimicry of his words to her that previous autumn, before he
lowered his lips to hers and kissed her.

For a brief instant Aeka tensed, taken off-guard by words and actions
that were the complete opposite of those she had been steeling herself to
endure. It hardly seemed possible that the wonderful feeling of Tenchi's
arms around her and the agonizing sight of him carrying Ryoko to his
bedroom were both the results of the same person's actions. Putting her
thoughts aside she surrendered herself to the moment, closing her eyes
and wishing that he'd hold her like that forever.

Finally Tenchi broke the kiss. Aeka opened her eyes and stared up at him,
wondering what to make of it all. Her thoughts were cut short as Tenchi
gave her something else to ponder by whispering in her ear.

"Want to go to bed a little early tonight?" he asked, before kissing her
again.

Aeka's eyes widened before she closed them again, her mind racing in a
vain attempt to reconcile Tenchi's contradictory words and deeds since
coming home.

Tenchi held the kiss as he slid one arm under her knees and another under
her back, remembering how much Ryoko had said she'd enjoyed being
carried. He knew he hadn't recovered enough to have sex quite so soon,
but they might at least be able to kiss in private, without worrying
about someone interrupting. He could hear the sounds of Sasami preparing
dinner in the kitchen, and his dad would be home soon. He stood up,
lifting Aeka as he did.

Feeling herself cradled in Tenchi's arms and his lips pressed against
hers, Aeka continued to try to make sense of things. It was enough to
make her head spin. For a moment she considered letting him carry her
upstairs, but decided against it. It was impossible for her to switch
from despair to passion in so short a span of time, and she didn't want
to make love with him while still doubting his heart. They would talk,
and if what Tenchi said reassured her, then they would go to his bed.

Aeka broke the kiss. "Later, Ten-chan. There is something I would speak
with you about."

For a moment, Tenchi was rather taken aback. This wasn't the response
he'd expected at all. Then something he'd heard recently popped into his
head. He smiled. "But your lips didn't say 'no,'" he said. "Which one
should I trust, your lips or your words?" As if to prove is point, he
kissed her again.

Now Aeka's heart was truly torn. For a moment she put her arms around
Tenchi's neck as he started to carry her towards the stairs. Then she
pulled back a little, and their lips parted. She had to be sure, she
decided. Though Tenchi's embrace had blunted much of the pain of what
he'd done earlier, Aeka could still feel the dull ache in her heart of
the wound that had only just closed. If, as it was starting to seem, he
hadn't inflicted that injury on her intentionally, she still wanted
certainty. Then their lovemaking would be untainted by any trace of
doubt.

"Ten-chan, please put me down," she said gently.

Tenchi looked at her quizzically. "You don't want to?"

Aeka gave him a brief kiss. "After we talk."

Nodding, Tenchi set Aeka on her feet. "I suppose that must have been kind
of shocking," he said sheepishly.

Aeka blinked. "Shocking?"

"Me being the one to try starting things, I mean," Tenchi explained.

"It *was* a little... unusual," admitted Aeka.

Tenchi rubbed the back of his neck for a moment, then hung his head a
little. "I'm just trying to make up for being so... so passive all the
time," he said. "I was thinking about it a lot this afternoon, how it
must seem like I don't appreciate you or anything, because things are
never my idea, always yours." He looked her in the eyes. "Like this
morning. Remember?"

Aeka nodded slowly, mulling this new piece of information and its
implications for earlier events. Was this why Tenchi had taken Ryoko to
his room? Could it have been that he'd just happened upon Ryoko first,
and that if he'd seen Aeka instead, *she'd* have been the one carried
upstairs and made love to? Was it just blind, random chance?

Or was she simply deluding herself?

"Anyway, I just figured that maybe you might like it if I was a little
more... forceful, I guess," continued Tenchi. "I'm sorry if I was too
pushy. I don't want to you to think I expect you to jump into bed with me
whenever I feel like it, either."

Managing a slight smile, Aeka kissed him. "You needn't worry. That's the
last thing in the world I would think of you."

Remembering their discussion in Washuu's lab the previous evening, Tenchi
offered her his arm. "If you don't want to go upstairs, how about we go
for that walk I promised you?" he suggested. "It's a really nice day
today, and you said you wanted to talk to me about something."

Aeka smiled much more warmly, and took Tenchi's arm. Things were looking
much less grim than they had been mere minutes before. Now she could ask
him calmly, without so much fear clouding her thoughts. In particular,
she decided that she would need to work up to the subject slowly. If, as
it now seemed, he hadn't meant to cause her pain, she didn't want to
sound as if she was accusing him of wronging her. Perhaps it would even
be possible to bring up the matter without him realizing why she was
asking, and he'd never know that she had doubted him.

As they headed towards the front door, Aeka caught sight of two objects
lying on the floor, side by side.

A briefcase, and a feather duster.

The princess' body stiffened and she closed her eyes as pain lanced into
her heart again for an instant.

Tenchi looked over at her. "Ae-chan... is something wrong?" he asked,
concerned.

Aeka opened her eyes again and shook her head. "It's... it's nothing
important, Ten-chan," she replied. "You needn't concern yourself. Let us
take our walk." She opened the front door, taking in the view of bright
late-spring greenery amidst the sunlight. "You're right. It's a very
beautiful day today."

Tenchi leaned over and kissed her. "Not half as beautiful as you."

His words giving her the strength to smile again, Aeka squeezed Tenchi's
hand. "Thank you, Ten-chan."

Wood clacked on wood as Tenchi closed the door. He shook his head. "Don't
thank me, Ae-chan. It's true." He twined his fingers with hers. "So, what
did you want to talk about?"

"Well, first, how was your day?" she asked. "Tell me everything."

Tenchi laughed. "Everything? Won't you get bored?"

Aeka shook her head and smiled. "No, certainly not. Please tell me, Ten-
chan. I'm interested."

As Tenchi started an overview of his day at school, the two of them set
off down the path away from the house.

Meanwhile, Ryoko and Katsuhito's match in front of the shrine went on,
still undecided. Though she hadn't yet managed to hit him, he hadn't been
able to hit her either, and she was beginning more and more to suspect
that she recognized his style.

Katsuhito yelled a battle cry and came at her in a rush, his bokken held
vertically in both hands. Ryoko darted out of the way just in time. In a
single fluid motion, the old man spread his arms out to his sides as if
parting the air, then came around facing her with his weapon raised over
his head.

Now Ryoko was sure. She'd fought a few Juraians in the course of her
infamous career, and their's was the only style that used the move
Katsuhito had just performed. Maintaining her guard, Ryoko pondered this
revelation. Tenchi's grandfather certainly didn't *act* Juraian, and for
that matter, what would someone from Jurai be doing living on Earth?

While it didn't make any sense, it *did* give her an idea. Besides her
skill, speed, and power, Ryoko prided herself on her chaotic nature in
combat. But a fighting style, even one as peerless as Jurai's, meant a
pattern of moves, a pattern that could be predicted -- thus a weakness to
exploit. And there was one weakness that she'd exploited successfully
before.

Eyes blazing, Ryoko charged directly at Katsuhito, bokken held low and
sideways in both hands. He waited, ready to parry or dodge. As she got
within reach, she shouted and began her swing.

A fraction of a second into her attack, Ryoko vanished and split herself.
Her two halves appeared on either side of Katsuhito, each bokken a
barely-visible blur as it sliced horizontally through the air faster than
human sight could follow, one Ryoko striking at knee level, the other at
chest height. It would be impossible to parry or dodge two such attacks
coming simultaneously from different directions.

Except that Katsuhito wasn't there. Acting on reflex the Ryokos
teleported back to her original position and into one body again. As she
did she saw him standing two paces back from where he'd been, his bokken
just leaving the space one of her selves had occupied an instant before.

Ryoko paused, breathing heavily for a moment and discarding her previous
assessment. Either the resemblance to the Juraian style was mere
coincidence, or a Juraian swordsman skilled enough to be written into
legend was living on a planet that was the galactic equivalent of a
desert island. And *that* was completely ridiculous.

Katsuhito held his weapon out in front of him again. "Interesting move,"
he said.

Ryoko nodded. "Thanks." She wiped her forehead, annoyed that Tenchi's
grandfather of all people had caused her to work up a sweat. Then she
noticed that Katsuhito's brow wasn't entirely free of perspiration
either. He just acted as if it was.

"Where'd you learn to fight like that?" she asked.

"I told you the other night, it's been the family style for many
generations," he replied. "So, had enough for today?"

Ryoko shook her head. She was running out of surprises to spring on him.
Time to try a strike from above. Maybe *that* would work.

Once again, she charged.

At the same time, Aeka and Tenchi climbed the steps to the shrine,
stopping once in a while to admire the view or the plants as he told her
about his day. At the moment he was relating the phone call from Ryoko --
carefully leaving out all of the sexual parts, as he knew how much it
hurt the girls when one of them was forced to think about him being with
the other in any way.

"I see. I was wondering who she was calling," said Aeka, hiding her
feelings for the moment.

Tenchi sighed and nodded. "Yeah, well, I'm *really* glad no one found out
that it wasn't an emergency call. I could have gotten in *big* trouble
for that."

"She won't do that tomorrow, will she?" the princess asked.

"I don't think so," said Tenchi, as he halted and bent down to pick a
purple flower from out of the grass. He smiled as he straightened up
reached to insert it into Aeka's headress. Her eyes widened when she
caught sight of it, and she grasped his wrist to stop him.

"May I see that, Ten-chan?" she asked.

"Sure," replied Tenchi, placing it in her palm.

"This is a Jurai Royal Teardrop," she said incredulously. "But how could
it possibly have gotten here?"

"It's from *Jurai*?"

Aeka nodded, then shuddered and put the blossom back down on the ground.

"Don't you want to wear it?" asked Tenchi, puzzled. "It's the same color
as your hair. I think it would look pretty on you."

"Thank you for the gift, Ten-chan, but it's not a flower we Juraians
associate with pleasant things. It's displayed during mourning after the
deaths of members of the royal family, and placed on their graves on the
anniversary of their passing."

"Oh," said Tenchi, looking nervously at her. "I guess I picked a really
bad flower, huh?"

"It's not that it lacks beauty, but as I said, it makes me think of
sorrowful things. I do appreciate the thought, however."

"I guess it's sort of like how we think about cherry blossoms," said
Tenchi, looking around on the ground again. He plucked a pink hydrangea
flower -- an ajisai that had bloomed a little early -- and offered it to
her. "Is this one happier?"

Aeka smiled and nodded. Tenchi slid the stem of the flower into her head
ornament, then kissed her. Holding hands again, they continued up the
stairs.

"No, where were we?" asked Aeka, just before they reached the top.

Tenchi thought for a moment. "Ummm... ah! Ryoko's phone call this
afternoon. Like I said, I don't think she'll do it again." He put his arm
around the princess and pulled her close. "And I'm really glad you're
taking it so much easier than she is."

Aeka hesitated for a moment, then lowered her gaze a little. "I miss you,
too, Ten-chan," she said quietly. "I hope... I hope my restraint doesn't
make it seem otherwise."

Tenchi stopped and stared at her for a few seconds, stunned. "Ae-chan, I
*know* that," he said, sounding hurt. "And I miss you, too. Do you really
think I run off each morning without caring how you feel?"

Aeka shook her head. "No, no. Of course not. I merely don't wish it to
appear as if I desire your absence."

Tenchi held Aeka's chin in his hand and looked into her eyes, utter
sincerity in his face. "I told you, Ae-chan, I know that. And if it's
something important, I *won't* leave you. I'll stay, as long as you
really need me to." He bent down to kiss her, and Aeka waited.

Then the loud "clack!" of two bokken impacting on one another resounded
in the air. Tenchi's head turned reflexively towards the noise. "What
the...?"

Katsuhito backed up from behind the shrine office, Ryoko whirling around
him just at the edge of his reach and dodging his strikes. Then she shot
up a meter or so and sliced down with her bokken. Katsuhito blocked it
and Ryoko danced away from his counterblow, still floating. Gathering
herself up for a moment, she launched another series of attacks. The
sounds of the weapons connecting started coming so fast that they seemed
to merge into one another. Katsuhito kept retreating as Ryoko drove him
further and further towards the crest of the hill, his face serene
despite his concentration and her expression a fierce, determined grin.

Suddenly, Ryoko vanished from in front of Katsuhito and appeared behind
him, bringing her bokken down towards his back.

Katsuhito whirled around -- it almost seemed as if he'd started the move
*before* Ryoko had teleported -- and as her weapon missed his side by a
distance narrower than its own width, his struck her just under the ribs
and knocked her to her knees.

Tenchi frantically ripped himself from Aeka's grasp and ran as the pirate
clutched her stomach, wincing. "RYOKO!!!" he shouted, his voice full of
distress.

Both girls stared at him, their eyes wide in shock. Covering the distance
as fast as he could, Tenchi got to Ryoko and knelt down in front of her.
"Are you alright?"

Ryoko sighed. *So much for keeping this a secret from him.* Deciding that
the best way to handle the situation was to make light of it, she quickly
got up, dusted herself off, and smirked. "Of *course* I'm alright,
Tenchi."

Tenchi rose as well, turning to glare at Katsuhito as he deliberately
stood between his grandfather and Ryoko. "You *HIT* her, jiichan!" he
said accusingly.

"It's *nothing*, Tenchi. You've gotten whacked worse than this, during
practice," said Ryoko.

Katsuhito looked at Ryoko and bowed his head very slightly. "I warned you
not to underestimate me, Ryoko-san. I would have checked my strike more
completely, but you were pressing me rather hard. That's the longest
fight I've had in some time."

Ryoko bowed back. "No problem." She smiled. "Two out of three?"

"No," said Tenchi.

"I was talking to your ojiisama," said Ryoko.

Tenchi shook his head. "No. I don't want you to."

"Tenchi, I need to do this. Please don't make a fuss about it. OK?"

"I'm not going to let you," Tenchi said firmly. "Sorry."

Ryoko gaped at him for a moment. "I'm not asking your *permission*," she
said finally. She picked up the bokken from the ground and faced
Katsuhito. "Let's go."

"Jiichan...!" growled Tenchi in warning.

"We'll discuss the matter later," said Katsuhito, deliberately not
stating whom he would be discussing it with. He turned and started to
walk off.

"Hey, wait a minute!" protested Ryoko. "Ojiisama, tell Tenchi he's being
silly."

Katsuhito shook his head, not stopping. "You don't get to be my age by
being foolish enough to get in the middle of lovers' quarrels."

Ryoko started floating after him, but Tenchi grabbed her elbow and
stopped her. "I said, I'm not letting you." 

"Nobody orders me around, Tenchi. *Nobody*. Not even you," warned Ryoko,
pulling her arm free.

Tenchi clenched his fists for a moment. "I just don't want you getting
hurt!"

"And what about when *you* get hurt, huh?" she snapped. "He knocked you
out cold the other day. Do you think I liked seeing *that*?!"

"That's different! I've been practicing with jiichan since I was little."

"*I've* been fighting *real* battles with *real* weapons with people
trying to *kill* me for years!" She held up the bokken. "And you think
I'm going to get upset over being hit with a *stick*?!"

"What about what jiichan did to Mihoshi's armor with that 'stick'?! What
about *that*?!?!"

"That wasn't practice! This *is*!! I can't *believe* how stupid you're
being!!!" yelled Ryoko.

"'Stupid'?!" shouted Tenchi. "Can't you get it through your head that I
don't want you to get hurt, because I *care* about you?! Because I *LOVE*
you?!?! What am I going to do if something *happens* to you, Ryoko?!?!?!"

"TENCHIIIIIIII!!!"

"NO!!!"

Ryoko quickly turned her face away and vanished into thin air.

Aeka continued to look on, having observed the whole spectacle from the
head of the stairs. *Not again!* her thoughts echoed desperately in her
mind. *Not again! Not AGAIN!! NOT AGAIN!!!*

Many times before she'd taken delight in Tenchi becoming angry and
shouting at Ryoko over something or other that the pirate had done. But
this time was completely different. This time, he wasn't upset over
damage Ryoko had done to the house or its contents or surroundings. He
was furious with her about what she might do to *herself*. Despite the
harsh words and raised voices, it was a display of love.

Aeka trembled. How many times was this going to happen to her? How long
would this go on? When would it stop feeling like Tenchi was torturing
her whenever he expressed his love for Ryoko?

She tried her best to rationalize it, to tell herself that she couldn't
very well expect Tenchi to worry about her if she never placed herself in
any kind of danger. She summoned up what pride she could in the knowledge
that she wouldn't cause him such terrible distress, as Ryoko had. 

Her attempts didn't work very well at all. She couldn't blot out the pain
of Tenchi tearing himself away from her and running off to Ryoko. Yes, it
was the way he was; the sight of someone being harmed or threatened
always moved Tenchi to action. Yes, he wouldn't have given thought right
away to how silly it was to think of Ryoko being seriously hurt by a
wooden sword. Yes, there was no question of him having done it to hurt
Aeka. And yes, he would have done exactly the same thing if it were Aeka
who had been struck. Those were facts, beyond doubt or question.

None of them made it hurt her any less.

Aeka waited as Tenchi walked back to her, his face a mixture of anger and
worry. He put his arm around the princess and squeezed her for a moment.
"I guess this didn't turn out to be such a great walk."

Aeka nodded weakly.

The two of them started slowly back down the steps. "I'm sorry, Ae-chan.
Really. I just can't help it."

"T-that's alright," replied Aeka quietly.

"What were we talking about before?" asked Tenchi, trying his best to
keep his mind off Ryoko and give his full attention to Aeka.

Aeka lowered her eyes to the stone steps as they continued their descent.
"It wasn't a matter of speech, if I recall."

Tenchi thought back, and remembered what he had been in the process of
doing when he'd first heard the sounds of the duel. He stopped. Putting
his arms around Aeka, he kissed her. "There. Better?"

Aeka nodded again.

"Ae-chan, do you think we could just sit down for a while?" asked Tenchi.
"I know I shouldn't get distracted because of Ryoko when I'm with you,
but I *am* right now. I don't really feel like talking. Do you mind?"

"No, it's alright, Ten-chan," she said. "I can understand that you're
troubled."

Sitting down on the steps, Tenchi put an arm around Aeka and pulled her
over to rest her head on his shoulder. "Thanks. We can talk about
whatever it is, once we go to bed tonight. Can't we?"

Aeka considered this. On the one hand, she still hadn't discussed what
she'd wanted to with Tenchi. And he had caused her pain again, though
inadvertently.

Tenchi looked over at Aeka and kissed her. "If it's *really* important, I
guess we can still talk about it," he said, holding her close.

On the other hand, perhaps he deserved the benefit of the doubt.

"Pay it no mind, Ten-chan," she said. "It's not an urgent matter. We'll
speak of it another time."

Tenchi closed his eyes. "Thanks again."

After fifteen minutes of sitting quietly, enjoying each other's company
and the occasional kiss, the two of them walked back to the house and
went inside.

When dinner came, Tenchi sat flanked by Ryoko and Aeka, as had become
usual since Monday. Ryoko ate in deliberate silence, glancing to her side
at Tenchi every so often, her dark mood hanging over the gathering like a
storm cloud. Soon it infected Tenchi, and, after her overtures at
conversation failed to elicit much response from him, Aeka fell silent as
well. Eventually Nobuyuki, Washuu, and even Sasami stopped saying
anything, and each tiny sound of chopstick striking bowl or noodles being
slurped grated on everyone's nerves amidst the tense silence.

Once the meal was over, Sasami began removing the dishes. She looked at
Ryoko. "Are you going to help me clear the table again?" she asked.

Ryoko turned and looked at Tenchi.

Tenchi sighed, then frowned and stared down at his tea.

Ryoko dematerialized without a word.

"What's wrong with her, Tenchi?" asked Nobuyuki. "You two have a fight or
something?"

Tenchi nodded.

Nobuyuki smiled. "Don't worry about it. Your mom and I had our little
disagreements, too." He picked up some of the bowls, then stood up and
patted Tenchi on the back. "It's all worth it when you make up
afterwards. Just go tell her that you were wrong, and everything will be
fine."

"Tell her I'm *wrong*? You don't even know what it's about!" replied
Tenchi angrily.

"Son, the man's *always* wrong. Even when he's right," said Nobuyuki.
"You *really* don't understand women."

"But I'm *not* wrong, dad!"

Shaking his head, Nobuyuki headed towards the kitchen with an armful of
dirty dishes. "I guess you'll have to learn the hard way. I don't think I
*ever* won an argument with your mother."

A very annoyed expression on his face, Tenchi sipped his tea while Aeka
sat next to him in silence. After a few minutes, once everyone else had
left, he set down his cup. "Ae-chan?"

"Yes?"

Tenchi sighed. "Do you think I'm wrong about it?"

"I'm not sure I'm the one you should ask," replied Aeka quietly.

"You don't have to tell me," he said. "But you probably know better than
me if I'm being reasonable."

Aeka closed her eyes for a moment. Besides the hurt of him being
distracted once more by thoughts of Ryoko, the princess was not feeling
at all comfortable with the pressure Tenchi was putting on her. It was
either lie to him, or encourage them to make up, for his worries *were*
foolish. And she didn't need Nobuyuki to tell her the way Ryoko was most
likely to express her happiness when Tenchi ceased being angry with her.

"Do you really think that I'm capable of giving a truthful answer about
that?" asked Aeka.

Tenchi looked over at her. "Of *course* you are. You're not that petty,
Ae-chan." He kissed her on the cheek. "I trust you. And what you think's
important to me."

Hearing it put that way, Aeka smiled very slightly. "Very well. Since you
value my opinion, I shall give it." She paused briefly, finding the right
words. "You *were* being rather misguided, even though I know you had the
best of intentions. One doesn't achieve most-wanted status without
becoming accustomed to danger. And your methods weren't the most well-
considered, either."

"Oh?"

"She doesn't react well to being given commands. One of the things I
think she dislikes about me is that she believes I'm 'bossing her
around,' even if that's not my intent."

"Thanks for telling me that." Tenchi shifted his legs, and for a moment
Aeka feared he was going to get up and go look for Ryoko in order to
apologize. Instead he scooted a little closer to Aeka and put his arm
around her. Kissing her on the cheek again, he smiled. "I guess I'd
better not try that on any princesses I know, either."

Aeka smiled for a moment as well. "A very wise observation." Then she
forced herself to ask the question that nagged at her. "Are you... going
to go apologize to her, Ten-chan?" she asked, looking down at the table.

Briefly, Tenchi considered it, but hearing Aeka's tone he shook his head.
"No. I can talk to her about it tomorrow."

"Thank you, Ten-chan," said Aeka, kissing him. "It means very much to me
to have you all to myself, if just for a while."

Tenchi returned her kiss. "I'm all yours right now, Ae-chan."

"Oujo-sama to oyobi," she chided, kissing him again.

"Hai, oujo-sama."

"I believe you were saying something earlier, about retiring to bed
early?"

Tenchi nodded.

"Would you care to have some sake with me, before we make love?" the
princess asked, looking him in the eyes. "I know you usually don't, but
it would please me if you made an exception. I have something rather
special planned for us tonight."

Tenchi barely caught himself before he blurted out that he'd already
shared sake with Ryoko. He knew Aeka definitely wouldn't want to hear
about that. "Hai. I'll heat it up for us."

Aeka smiled. "An interesting choice of words."

Tenchi chuckled, then rose and helped Aeka up. "It'll take me a few
minutes."

"I'll be upstairs. Don't hurry. There are some preparations I need to
make," Aeka said. Then she drew close to Tenchi and whispered in his ear.
"I will await you in your bed, Ten-chan. Come prepared to show me your
utmost obedience."

Tenchi nodded again and kissed her before heading off to the kitchen.
Ascending the stairs, Aeka went to her room and retrieved the shopping
bag she'd brought back from her trip the previous day, then proceeded to
Tenchi's bedroom.

"Konbawa, Aeka-hime," said the guardians, once they saw her.

Aeka smiled at them. "Konbawa, Azaka, Kamidake," she replied cheerfully,
as she opened the door and shut herself inside.

First, Aeka pulled incense and a holder out of the bag, placed them on
the nightstand, and lit the stick. Soon the scent of jasmine wafted
through the air. Then she retrieved a disc of samisen music which she put
on the stereo, turning down the volume until it could barely be heard.
Finally, she pulled out a white satin nightgown that shimmered slightly
in the faint light. Taking off her clothes, she put the nightgown on,
then smiled and sat down on the bed to await Tenchi's arrival.

>From the wall opposite the bed, Ryoko stared at her.

Aeka blinked, startled. There was a picture of Ryoko hanging on the wall.
But not just a picture of Ryoko. A picture of Tenchi and Ryoko. Holding
hands. Looking at one another. Looking at each other with unmistakable
love in their eyes.

Aeka stared at it. From the strange clothes, she knew that it must have
been taken during their adventure in Ryoko's fantasy world. It must be
the item Ryoko had decided to add to the room. For just an instant Aeka
managed to replace her unease at the picture's content with anger at
Ryoko for having placed it in a position where Tenchi could not help but
see it from the bed, even when he was with Aeka.

Then she remembered that Tenchi had been in the room earlier, when he'd
come home, when he'd demonstrated some new-found streak of boldness and
carried Ryoko up to this very bed, where he'd...

Aeka shivered.

Ryoko had said that she was going to ask Tenchi where he wanted the
picture to go, and that must have been when she'd asked him. He'd chosen
to place it where he'd always be able to see her. When Tenchi and Aeka
were together in the bed, Ryoko's eyes would be there, looking down on
them, watching. And when he lay beneath the princess as they made love,
his own eyes would be looking back, over Aeka's shoulder, to meet those
of the pirate who held his heart in her unyielding grasp.

Aeka looked at the picture, trying not to consider the meaning of what it
depicted, but doing so anyway. There was no way to mistake the love in
both Ryoko and Tenchi's eyes, the hopeful look in Ryoko's expression, the
kindness in Tenchi's face, his hand squeezed around hers in reassurance.
He had loved Ryoko, even then. It wasn't something that had flared last
week, kindled by sex. He'd loved her, without even knowing it, for a long
time, and in consummating that love his eyes had been opened to what was
already in his heart.

All of the terrible events of the last week came crashing down on Aeka
like an avalanche of despair.

Tenchi, lying in his bed as Ryoko pleasured him, not uttering a word of
protest.

Tenchi, making love to Aeka -- but only because Ryoko had decided that it
must happen, not because he had chosen to court Aeka himself.

Tenchi, his voice gasping in ecstasy after she had allowed Ryoko to tempt
him, trusting in vain that he would resist.

Tenchi, choosing the pain of the whip rather than give Ryoko up.

Tenchi, demanding that Aeka bow in humiliation before Ryoko and beg her
forgiveness.

Tenchi, kissing Ryoko in front of Nobuyuki's camera without hesitation.

Tenchi, staying home with Ryoko to comfort her.

Tenchi, making love to Ryoko on the floor of the women's bath, when he
had never ventured do something so daring before.

Tenchi, protesting endlessly when Aeka asked that they go off to be alone
with each other.

Tenchi, deciding without prompting to take Ryoko to his bed and make love
to her on his own initiative, not even seeming to hear Aeka's voice as he
walked up the stairs with the pirate lying in his arms.

Tenchi, tearing himself away from Aeka and leaving her behind moments
after promising that he'd never do such a thing, then running to protect
Ryoko from the ridiculous threat of his grandfather's wooden sword.

Tenchi, arguing with Ryoko and screaming at her that he loved her.

Tenchi, unable to even speak with Aeka due to the distraction Ryoko had
caused him.

And now, this.

It wasn't as Aeka had feared. It was worse. Tenchi hadn't chosen during
the last few days. He'd chosen before. He'd chosen then. He'd chosen
Ryoko. And now he'd chosen again, to proudly display the moment Ryoko had
plundered his heart, to place the image of that instant where he could
look on it and be reassured whenever a brief moment of pleasure shared
with Aeka threatened to distract him from the demoness who held his soul
in thrall.

Ryoko's eyes stared down at Aeka from the picture, golden, feline,
unblinking. Aeka trembled, and tears began to flow as she stared back,
her own eyes wide.

"Why, Ryoko?" she asked in a quavering voice. "Why? Do you truly hate me
so much that you would do this to me? If you were here, could you
honestly say that you think I deserve this? You wouldn't have had to
share him with me forever. And though we've fought, and we've often
wished each other dead, you're not a heartless person. Why do you deny me
the one thing that gives me any joy at all, the only love I will ever
know, before my family comes and takes me away from him? Is it so much to
ask that we be equal in his heart, for a little while? Would it be so
terrible for you to let him love me until I must leave him, and then have
him to yourself when I am gone?"

The tears streamed faster down Aeka's cheeks. She didn't bother wiping
them away at all.

"Didn't I humiliate myself enough for you? Is it that I didn't bow low
enough, didn't speak humbly enough, didn't beg and plead and crawl in
front of you enough? You promised me afterwards that we would not take
him from one another. Did you make that promise because you knew he was
already yours? Is that why you agreed, because you knew it didn't matter?
Because you knew there was no way I could ever hope to take him from you?
Or do you even see it yourself?"

Still the tears flowed, blurring Aeka's vision as they welled in her
eyes.

"I don't know if I should blame you, or him, or myself, but I have done
everything that either of you has asked of me. You asked for your chance
at him. I gave it to you. He asked that I beg your forgiveness. I did.
You demanded that I never try to force him to decide against you. I
haven't. He asked that I try to become your friend. I'd rather walk on
broken glass, but I've tried, I've *tried*, I've tried so *hard*! For a
few moments yesterday, I thought it might even be possible. And when you
said you feared that I was going to end myself, I was touched. I couldn't
bring myself to say it, but I was. Don't you know that without him, my
heart is dead anyway?"

Aeka sniffled and continued crying.

"All he seems to care about or talk about or think about is you, even
when he's with me. You're a thief, but must you steal the one thing that
I value in all the universe, and leave me with nothing? He's all that I
have and care about, and he's so sweet and naive that he doesn't even
realize yet how completely yours he is. But he'll learn. Slowly. And each
day he'll love me less and less, until I'm merely a friend he hasn't the
courage to hurt by telling the truth to, until all my dignity is gone and
he takes me to his bed out of kindness and pity and pretends to make love
to me while he closes his eyes and thinks of you."

Aeka shook her head.

"Why?" she asked bleakly, staring at Ryoko in the picture.

No answer came. 

Aeka put her face in her hands. Presently, the door slid open and shut.
She felt an arm placed gently around her.

"Ae-chan, is something wrong?" asked Tenchi.

Aeka raised her head and looked at him, her whole body shaking.

Tenchi stared at her, he mouth hanging open in shock and bewilderment. He
set down the bottle of sake and the cups, and wiped tears away from her
face. "Please, tell me. What's wrong?" He kissed her. "Why are you
crying?"

Aeka grabbed him and held him tight, sobbing uncontrollably. Giving up
trying to figure out what on Earth was going on, Tenchi put his arms
around her and did his best to soothe her, speaking calm words and
stroking her hair with one of his hands. Finally her grief ebbed
somewhat. Tenchi brought his face in front of hers, his expression one of
compassion mixed with complete befuddlement. He tried wiping away her
tears again, but they were still flowing, small trickles of sorrow
instead of cascading rivers. "Ae-chan, *please*, what's the matter?"

Aeka choked back a sob and sniffled as she looked at him for a few
moments, quaking. Finally she spoke in a quiet, hopeless, fearful voice.

"Ten-chan, I'm leaving."