---    
Disclaimer:  I claim no rights, express or implied, over any of    
the characters, names, places, events or descriptions contained
in the Tenchi Muyo series.  My use of the aforementioned
items is for strictly non-profit and personally recreational
purposes.    
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     *Oh yeah.  I’m gonna have me a GOOD night.*
     He hadn’t seen a mark like this in ages, and NEVER in this bar.
Long, shapely legs, gracefully curved hips, a tiny waist, not    
overly-large but very attractive… tracts of land… and an exotic,
alluring face set about a stunning pair of eyes.  He checked himself
in the mirror behind the bar.  *Hair’s good, clothes’r good, and I    
look great… as always!*  He gave his reflection a wink and a used-car
salesman smile.  *Time to do my thing.*  He squared his shoulders
and sauntered confidently down the bar until he stood directly
behind her.
     He tapped her on the shoulder.  “Excuse me, but might I buy you
a drink?”
     She  turned.  Blue hair swung about her shoulders, settling
to frame a heart-shaped face.  “You most certainly may.”  She smiled,
revealing a perfect  set of small, white teeth.  She glanced down at
her half-empty glass, then back  to him.  Her smile broadened.
“The fun’s gone out of this one anyway.”
     *Score!*  He’d expected an easy mark.  He was, after all, as    
smooth as H’lar silk- but this was just looking too, too easy.     
“Excellent.”  He flashed her his best non-threatening grin.  “And    
what will the lady have?”
     “Oh, I’ll order myself, thank you.”  She turned and looked  down
the bar toward the barkeep.  “Hey Charlie!  Corfiat rum with six    
inches of whipped cream!”
     The  barkeep’s head came around.  “You at it AGAIN?”
     She  pouted.  “Charlie… would I?”
     He laughed.  “Yes, as a matter of fact you would.”  The bald,
burly man  reached under the counter and brought out a bottle of    
Corfiat.  He tossed two fingers down into a glass, then produced
a can of whipped cream.  He shot the cream directly down into the    
glass, then kept shooting… and shooting… and shooting… until a column
of tightly-packed cream rose about half a foot above the glass.
     “Here you go!  That’ll be fourteen.”
     “I’ll get that.”  He reached into his wallet and handed the    
barkeep a twenty.  “Keep the change.”  *Gotta look like a big tipper,
ne?*
     “Why thank you sir.”  The barkeep pocketed the bill, then    
hurried off down the bar to service another patron- but not before
winking at the blue-haired girl.
     *I wonder what that was all about?*
     “So, do you know how to drink these?”  She drew a fingertip
across the top of the cream, coming away with a small dollop.
     “Oh, is there a special way to do it?”
     “Oh, but yes there is.  Watch and learn, sir.”  She pointed
her finger straight up into the air, then traced her tongue up the    
underside of it, systematically removing the cream.
     He felt his mouth go dry.
     She  finished with the finger, then stared at him for a moment.
Her large eyes seemed to begin to bore through him.  A slight smile
drew her lips apart.
     Then, slowly, without taking her eyes from his, she lowered
her head to the drink in front of her.  Her lips parted wider,    
wrapping around top of the cream.  She closed them, just a few    
millimeters, so that white, sticky liquid wet her lips.
     He felt a faint trickle of blood begin to come from his nose.
     She  parted her lips wide again, just brushing them over the    
edge of the column, and  slowly took the length of it into her mouth.
Her lips skimmed a thin veneer of  surface coating as they lowered,
producing a rivulet of froth that had just enough adhesiveness
to trickle down her chin before dripping onto the bar.
     Her  eyes still held his.  She groaned softly through the cream
filling her mouth, then swallowed convulsively.
     There was a solid thump as his body hit the floor.
     She  straightened up, using the back of her sleeve to wipe her
chin.  “Hey Charlie!”
     “Yes’m?”  The barkeep hurried over.
     “You might want to call the guard.  You’ve got a guy passed
out on your floor.  Looks like blood loss.”
     “Oh, for the love of Tsunami, AGAIN?”
      She laughed and tossed a fifty down on the bar.  “For your    
trouble.  I’ve had enough fun for one night.”
     He palmed the bill and shook his head.  “You’re something
else.”
     “And don’t you forget it.  ‘Night Charlie!”  She levered herself
off her barstool, threw Charlie a friendly wave, then headed for the
door.  Halfway there, her companion for the evening fell in behind
her.  They both exited the front door into the chill night air    
without speaking.
     As soon as the door swung closed, they both burst into    
uncontrollable laughter.
     “Holy SHIT,” hooted Ryouko.  “I think you killed that one!”
     “Yeah, and did you see poor Charlie?”
     “You have GOT to quit leaving guys passed out on his floor!”
Ryouko’s laughter wound down.  “Kid, I have to tell you, you’re far,
FAR more dangerous than I was at your age.”
     Ryouko’s friend smiled.  “I had the greatest space pirate in the
galaxy as my teacher.”  She threw her arm around the Vice-Admiral.
“Come on, enough slumming.  Let’s get back.”
     “Yeah, his Lordship the Emperor will wonder where I’ve been.
And I  have class tomorrow.”  Ryouko smiled.  “I heard you changed
your schedule and enrolled?”
     “Of course I did.  I want to see this as much as anybody.
I know it’s supposed to be a first-year class, but I’ve got enough
credits I can  take a freebie.  And anyhow, big sister doesn’t think
you can really teach.”  She winked.
     Ryouko rolled her eyes.  “You know, I’m so glad you didn’t  turn
out like her.”
     Midshipman First Class Sasami Jurai grinned.  “You know, Ryouko,
so am I.”

----

     Sasami flashed her ID at the Academy gate guard and then flashed
him a warm, friendly  grin to go with it.  The man saluted smartly
and waved her through.  *Kinda cute,* she thought, *but enlisted.
Definite drawback.*  She sighed.  *There’s drawbacks to ALL the cute
ones.  They’re all either off-limits or gay.*  She made a moue.  *Oh
well, time to get back to the hall.*  The princess shoved her ID back
into her coat pocket and bent her body into the wind.  *DAMN, it’s
cold…*
     In front of her towered the monolithic expanse of Satsuma Hall,
the single building which housed the living facilities for the entire
Brigade of Midshipmen of the Juraian Fleet Academy.  Most of the    
building’s windows were dark.  At this hour, all fourth, third, and
second class midshipmen were required by regulation to  be in their
beds.  Only first class students like herself were still allowed
liberty.  *Not that I ever really observed that rule.*  Sasami    
grinned mischievously.   Having a Vice Admiral as your    
partner-in-crime certainly made breaking the regs  easier…
     “Oy, Sesame!”
     Sasami turned to see a young man jogging toward her.  “Hey,    
Vance.  What’s up?”
     Vance Ghorad was a fellow first class and one of Sasami‘s
best friends.  He  was something of a rarity at the Academy, having
been born of common parents- something Sasami found quite refreshing.
Talking to Vance reminded her of the years she‘d spent on earth.
He was unpretentious, relaxed, and took life as it came.      
Unfortunately, he was also madly in love with his girlfriend
back home, so he‘d remained just a friend.  Sasami thought she could
probably change that- she knew the effect she had on men, and used
it frequently for amusement- but she refused to put him in that kind
of spot.
     “Not a thing.  Just coming back in from liberty.  Did you go to
The Tree tonight?”
     “Nah, went downtown to the Ryuten Parrot.”  She smiled.  “Had
a little fun.”  The princess started walking.  Vance fell in with    
her.
     “Oh Lord.”  Vance put on a mock display of horror.  “You’ve
been consorting with the barflies again, haven’t you?  You’d better
stop that, or I’ll tell your sister!”
     “Vance Ghorad, don’t you dare!”  Sasami let some of her    
exasperation creep into her face.  “She still thinks I’m a good girl.
She’d go nuts.”
     “Feh.  You know I wouldn’t tell.  Besides, I’ll never even  meet
your sister.  She lives in the palace.  Us unter-volk ain’t invited
to such places.”
     “Yeah, yeah.  Rub it in.”  Sasami punched him lightly in the    
shoulder.  “The palace is the most goddess-awful BORING place on the
planet.  It could use some visitors.”  She looked up into the sky,
she thought she’d seen snowflake… yes, there.  It really was snowing.
“Wow.  Never thought I’d see the day it snowed on Jurai.”
     Vance looked up also.  “Holy hells.  You’re right.”  He shook
his head.  “Your brother in law’s a strange one.  An emperor  who    
doesn’t like climate control… um… what are you doing?”
     Sasami was darting this way and that with her tongue out and her
eyes fixed skyward.   “I’m trying to catch a snowflake!”
     Ghorad blinked.  “What?”
     “I’m trying to- mmp!”  Sasami sucked her tongue back into her    
mouth.  “Got one!”
     “Sesame, you’re a strange one.”
     “I learned it on earth, a long, long time ago.  Try it.”
     “Nah, that’s all you.  I’d probably trip and hurt myself,    
running around looking up like that.  Speaking of running around,
we’re here.”  Vance bounded up the quarter-flight of steps, then    
opened the door for Sasami.  He bowed low as she went through.
“Milady.”
     Sasami grabbed him by the ear and dragged him into the building.
“I’ll give you ‘milady,’ you twerp!”
     “Owowowowowowow!  Okay, okay!  Leggo!”
     Sasami released his ear and grinned wolfishly.  “That’ll teach
you.”  Ghorad, for his part, massaged his now-red earlobe.
     “Geeze, Ses, that hurts when it’s this cold!  I’m of a mind not
to tell you the good news.”
     “Good news?  Oh, tell!”
     “Well…”
     “Pleeease, Vance?”  Sasami lowered her head and looked up at him
through her eyelashes.  “For little old me?  You know I didn’t mean
to hurt you.”
     “Okay, okay.  Sheesh.  I can’t stand to see a woman beg.”
     Sasami’s head came back up.  “So tell!”
     “Remember I told you I’d talk to Kenje for you?”
     Sasami’s eyes shot wide open.  She stepped forward and grabbed
Vance by his shoulders and shook him.  “Did he say yes?  Did he?     
Tell!  Now!”
     “ACK!  Yes, he said yes!  For the love of Tsunami, lemme go!”
     Just then the watch, a third class midshipman, walked by.  He    
glared at them, then shook his head.  Damn first class, acting crazy
after taps.
     Sasami and Vance burst into laughter.  They both remembered
standing the watch, and the way they’d resented the first class and
their privileges.  It only made it all the more funny now.  The watch
looked even more disgusted, if that was possible.  He turned a corner
to get away from the undue merriment.  He’d patrol THIS part of the
deck later.
     Sasami giggled, then quickly re-focused on Vance.  She was    
grinning uncontrollably.  “So is he interested?  Is he?”
     “He seemed downright flattered.  He was also kinda worried,
though.”
     “Worried?”  Her grin rapidly inverted itself into a frown.  “Oh
God, he’s not afraid of the whole princess thing, is he?  We’re all
the same rank with our clothes off…”
     Vance blushed beet red and studied the floor tiling.  Sasami
realized what she’d said and barely suppressed a guffaw.  “Oh, Vance,
you know I’m not like that.  C’mere.”  She swept him into a hug that
was  supposed to be stabilizing, but just made him blush all the    
more.
     “Um, Ses… um…”
     Sasami released him.  “Don’t worry, Vance.  I’ll let your poor
innocent mind recover for a bit.”  *Goddess,* she thought, *he’d just
DIE around Ryouko.”  “So what was he worried about?  Was it the rank
thing?”
     “Sorta.”  Vance fidgeted.  “I mean, you know who his uncle  is.”
     Sasami put her hands on her hips.  “Yeah, I do.  So?”
     “He’s afraid of that.  That someone with his… family    
connections… shouldn’t be going out with the someone with your family
connections.”
     Sasami almost growled.  “Damnit, everybody on this planet’s
so concerned with family and background.  It’s all about who you are,
instead of what you do!  I swear, I-” She stopped in mid-rant.
“Waitaminute.   He DID say ‘yes,’ right?”
     “Yep.  With reservations, but yes.  Frankly, I think he thinks
you’re cute.”
     “SUGOI!”  Sasami re-hugged Vance, who consequently re-blushed.
“So when?  Where?  How?”
     “He liked the ‘dinner at Rockhopper’s’ idea for this weekend.
He said the JFMITC closed at 2100 anyway, so he couldn’t stay at    
school after that even if he had to.”
     “Great!  I’ll go sign up for overnight liberty this weekend!”
     Vance’s eyebrows shot up.  Now it was Sasami’s turn to blush.
     “It’s not like I’m going to sleep with him, Vance.  I just     
don’t want a curfew.”
     “Then why are you blushing?”
     “You calling me easy, Vance Ghorad?”
     “Hell no!”
     “Good.”  *But just because I’m not easy doesn’t mean I won’t
be wearing some damned sexy lingerie,* she thought.  She suddenly
thought to look at her watch.  “Oh hell.  I gotta get to bed, morning
formation’s going early.”  She made a face.  “Mandatory PT.  The    
company commander says our scores were too low on the last Physical
Readiness Test.”
     Vance smirked.  “If you’d go jogging with me in the mornings,
you wouldn’t have to worry about it.”
     “If I went jogging with you in the mornings, I’d have to get    
even less sleep than I do.  And that is NOT going to happen.  Good
night, Vance.  And thanks for talking to Kenje.  I really appreciate
it.”
     “Hey, no prob.  Just don’t track me down and hurt me if things
don’t go well.”
     Sasami made a ‘phhht’ noise.  “Vance, I’ve been on busted dates
before.  What’s the worst that could happen?”
     “I dunno, Ses.  Just be nice to the poor guy, okay?  He’s my    
friend,  you know.  If you chew him up and spit him out, he’s not    
going to like  me very much.”
     “Now Vance Ghorad,” she lilted.  “What ever makes you think I’m
hard on men?”
     In reply, Vance only quirked his eyebrow.  Sasami turned on her
heel and headed for her  room, laughing as she went.