I don't own these characters or profit from them. Happy Halloween By, Clayton Overstreet Tenchi smiled and marked the date on the calendar. "Alright, it's time for Halloween!" Sasami and the others looked up at him. "What's that Tenchi? Is it like Christmas?" Sasami asked. Tenchi grinned and shook his head. "No, Halloween is a holiday we celebrate when scary things happen." Ryoko smiled. "Oh I remember hearing about this. The dead are supposed to walk the planet." Mihoshi's eyes got very big. "But... but I'm afraid of ghosts." Tenchi smiled. "That's just a story Mihoshi. Anyway what really happens is that we get to dress up in costumes. Then the adults have a party." Sasami pouted. "What about me? What do I do Tenchi?" Tenchi smiled and knelt down. "You get to go around with whoever you want to everybody's house and get free candy." Sasami's eyes lit up. "Really? Can Ryo-oki come too?" Tenchi nodded. "Yeah, she can go with you. But you both have to put on costumes." Sasami giggled. "This is going to be fun. What kind of costume should I wear?" Noboyuki came down the stairs carrying a huge box. "Well, here are some of Tenchi's old costumes, but if you want we can go to the store to get you girls some." He said. Ryoko smiled and looked at Tenchi. "No thanks, I know just what I'll wear." Tenchi blushed picturing her in on of her skimpy outfits and Aeka frowned. "It will be highly inappropriate no doubt." Washu looked up at him. "So what is this party going to be like Tenchi?" "Oh usually we play some games and eat a lot of food. Then grandpa tells some scary stories and at the end we vote for whoever has the best costume and they get a prize." Tenchi said. "What is the prize this year?" Ryoko asked. Noboyuki smiled and yelled out, "A kiss from Tenchi!" Tenchi was about to deny it, but saw the looks on the girl's faces and let out a defeated sigh. "Fine." The girls cheered and most of them began asking Noboyuki to take them out to get costumes. Washu seemed to have her own ideas and Ryoko had already said that she had a costume in mind. Tenchi smiled and just picked some old makeup kits out of the box. Noboyuki caught Washu just before she went to her lab. "No fair actually changing your body or using holograms. You have to dress up." She shot him a dirty look. "Alright." Then she went through the door. Ryo-oki tugged on Ryoko's dress. "Meow?" Ryoko nodded. "Yes, you have to wear a costume too. Go with Sasami and the others to pick one out at the store." Ryo-oki meowed happily and ran off after the group. Suddenly Aeka stopped in the door and looked back at Ryoko. "You had better not try anything with lord Tenchi while we're gone Ryoko." Ryoko sighed and rolled her eyes. "I won't do anything Aeka. I have to get my costume ready anyway for when I win that kiss from him tonight." Aeka sniffed. "You would have to win to get a kiss from him. But I'll be the one to get the kiss." "Not if you don't get a costume you won't." Ryoko said. At the same time Noboyuki honked the horn. Aeka shot her a dirty look, and then ran out to the car. Ryoko smiled and floated up the stairs. When she got to the top she went straight to Tenchi's door and knocked. "Tenchi, can I come in?" "No, I'm putting on my costume. Why don't you help grandpa carve the jack-o-lanterns?" He said through the door. "What's that?" She asked. "You'll see." He yelled back. Ryoko sighed and headed downstairs again. Ryoko absently cut into her third pumpkin and looked over at Yosho. "Are you at all upset that Tenchi let me out of the cave?" Yosho smiled and shook his head while he carved his own pumpkin. "No, I'm not Ryoko. You are not the person you were." Ryoko smiled and scooped out the pumpkinseeds. "Thanks." She sighed and looked down. "Is something wrong Ryoko?" He asked. Ryoko looked up. "I was just wondering if the only way Tenchi would kiss me would be if he had to." Yosho smiled at her. "Trust in fate Ryoko. Tonight is a very magical night. You never know what could happen." Ryoko looked at him for a minute, the smiled. For some reason she felt better. Without another word she began carving her pumpkin again. When they got home, the first thing the other girls noticed was the decorations. There were nine pumpkins in all, each with one of their faces carved on it. Skulls and black cats filled every corner while a robotic witch cackled on the table. Black sheets were all over the walls and there was a bucket of water and apples in the middle of the floor. "Wow," Noboyuki said. "Dad really went all out this year." Mihoshi looked around worriedly. "This is scary." Sasami smiled. "Come on Mihoshi, it's all just for fun." She looked down at Ryo-oki. "Come on, let's go get into our costumes." The cabbit-girl meowed and they both ran upstairs. Noboyuki smiled at Aeka and Mihoshi. "Shouldn't you two be getting dressed to?" He handed them each their costumes and they ran up after Sasami and Ryo-oki. Noboyuki smiled and began putting on his own costume. He had volunteered to take Sasami and Ryo-oki out to trick-or-treat. At the top of the stairs Aeka went to Tenchi's room and knocked softly. "Lord Tenchi, Ryoko didn't try anything while I was gone, did she?" "No, she didn't Aeka." He said. What Tenchi didn't point out was that Ryoko only really tried anything anymore when Aeka was around. "I should be done with my costume in a little while." Aeka smiled. "Very well." Then she went to her room to get dressed for the party." At about six o'clock they all began to arrive in the living room. Noboyuki was there first, wearing a hockey mask and held a plastic knife covered in fake blood. Yosho came out of the kitchen carrying some snack trays and dressed as a vampire. Mihoshi was the first girl down the stairs. She had picked out a cat costume. Noboyuki and Yosho applauded. "Very nice Mihoshi." Mihoshi smiled. "Thank you, I just thought this was so cute." Next Sasami and Ryo-oki came down. Ryo-oki was wearing a carrot costume, which had a hole in it about the size of her mouth. Sasami had picked out a Sailor Scout costume. "Ryo-oki looks so adorable. And you look so pretty Sammy." Mihoshi said. Sasami looked up at her. "What did you call me?" "I said Sasami." Mihoshi said. "Oh." Sasami smiled and they both hugged her. "Thank you Mihoshi." Aeka was the next one down. "What do you think?" She was dressed in an angel costume, complete with halo and feathery wings. Yosho clapped. "Very nice Aeka." Aeka blushed. Sasami nodded. "You look terrific Aeka." "So do you Sasami." Aeka said. "Where are Ryoko, Washu, and Tenchi?" Noboyuki asked. "I'm coming." Ryoko's voice came from upstairs. She phased through the floor and landed in front of them. Everyone but Aeka looked at her appreciatively. Ryoko had chosen to wear an old Earth pirate costume, complete with an eye patch that had a skull on it and a sword. Aeka sneered. "Isn't this so appropriate? I thought you were supposed to wear a costume, not your work clothes." Ryoko laughed. "Sorry my costume isn't as good as yours is princess, but I could never find such an ugly mask." "Why you filthy..." Aeka began. Just then the door to Washu's lab opened and she stepped out. Everyone's attention was immediately drawn to her. Washu was in her adult form and dressed as a belly dancer. She had a purple vale over the lower half of her face and a bodysuit that seemed to be made of nothing but a semi-transparent white nylon and gold spider-webbing running through it. She also had a long length of silk wrapped around her. Everyone just stared at her. Washu smiled and walked directly up to Noboyuki and used her finger to close his mouth. "Eat your heart out." From upstairs they heard Tenchi's door open. "Here I come." Aeka smiled and turned towards the stairs. "Oh I'll bet he is so handsome. He probably dressed up as a prince or something." Noboyuki kept looking at Washu said, "I wouldn't bet on it. Tenchi usually gets very scary." Aeka looked at him quizzically. "What do you mean?" "Here I am." Tenchi said from the stairs. They all looked at him in surprise. Even Noboyuki managed to drag his eyes away from Washu. Aeka let out a tiny squeal while Ryoko just stared. Sasami was laughing. Tenchi had undergone a miraculous change. His lips were swollen and chapped. Warts covered his hands and face, while his brow seemed to spill over his eyes. Four grayish teeth jutted from his mouth and a hump stuck up from his back. His clothes were tattered and dirty, while the skin of his face looked like it was cracking. Aeka looked at him in horror. "Tenchi, you look absolutely revolting!" Tenchi smiled up at her from his stooped over position. "Thank you Aeka, it took hours for me too do this." Ryoko smiled and shook her head. "You did an amazing job Tenchi. I hardly recognized you." "Well, you all did good on your costumes too." He smiled at Sasami. "You ready for some trick-or-treating?" She nodded and held up her pillowcase. "Uh huh." She hugged him, and then she and Ryo-oki each took one of Noboyuki's hands and dragged him away from Washu and out the door. Yosho laughed. "Alright then, let's start the party." He hit a button on the stereo and creepy sound effects filled the room. They all cheered and the games began. The first thing they did was bobbing for apples. Five minutes in Ryoko and Aeka both bit into the same apple. They began tugging at it, each trying to get it from the other. Just then Mihoshi tripped and fell in, splashing everyone and causing both of them to fall back with half an apple in their mouths. Washu's costume absorbed the water and Tenchi had to look away from her as he got a nosebleed. Fortunately it was self-drying and was back to normal in a minute. "Oh Tenchi, your costume is washing off." Mihoshi said, dragging herself out of the water. Tenchi smiled as the makeup blurred and dripped down his face. "It's alright Mihoshi." The next game Aeka liked even less. Yosho turned out the lights and began passing different foods around to everyone. "There was once an old witch that lived near here. These are her eyes." He passed two peeled grapes down the line. Mihoshi and Aeka both squealed while Ryoko and Washu laughed. Tenchi also chuckled a bit. The game went on like that for a while. Finally came the part all the girls had been waiting for: voting for the best costume. Tenchi nervously passed a shoebox around the room. Everyone put a slip of paper into it. When it finally got back to him he opened it and started reading them off. "One vote for Mihoshi." He put it aside. "One for Washu, one for Aeka, one for Ryoko." He noticed that the last was in his grandfather's handwriting, so the last slip had to be Ryoko's. He pulled it out, "And one for... Aeka." They all looked at Ryoko only to find she wasn't there. Aeka laughed and jumped up. "I win!" She ran over to Tenchi, closed her eyes, and puckered her lips. Tenchi, still a bit confused, leaned forward and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. Aeka giggled and sat back down. They all started enjoying the food after that. Tenchi worked his way over to Yosho. "Grandpa, can I ask you something?" He nodded. "Why didn't Ryoko vote for herself?" Yosho smiled and looked outside, where Ryoko stood by the lake. "You'll have to ask her." Tenchi nodded, then glanced at Aeka who was talking to Washu about her costume's inappropriateness. Quickly setting his food down he slipped out the door and headed towards Ryoko. As he came up behind her Tenchi said, "You would have won you know." Ryoko nodded, still looking out at the lake. "I know... but I didn't want to." Tenchi was surprised. "You didn't?" She shook her head. "No. I want you to kiss me of course." She turned and smiled at him. "But I don't want you to 'have' to kiss me." Tenchi smiled at her. "You don't? You've tried everything you could since we met to get me to kiss you Ryoko." She nodded. "Exactly. I tried to get you to kiss me, but I never forced you did I?" Tenchi thought about it. She had pushed herself at him, begged, threatened, and seduced him, but she had never forced him. "So why did you pick Aeka of all people? That is not like you at all." Ryoko smiled. "Because it seemed to matter to her. Holidays are times to make other people happy, even weird holidays like this." "You're amazing Ryoko." Tenchi almost whispered. "What makes you say that?" He smiled up at her. "After all you've been through, you are still a terrific person. Even when you don't like someone you are still nice to them. And you look great in that costume." Ryoko blushed almost as red as Tenchi. "You really think so?" Tenchi nodded, despite the pain in his neck from being hunched over all night. "Yeah, I do." Ryoko bent over, bringing her face across from his. "I love you Tenchi." "I love you too Ryoko. More than anyone." He said, reaching out to touch her cheek. "I guess I always have. If you want I'll kiss you now." Ryoko smiled and leaned a little closer. "No, not right now. Aeka is watching us through the window and I don't want to ruin the evening." She smiled and stood up. "Besides, what you just said means more to me than any kiss ever would." Tenchi smiled up at her again. "Let's go back to the party." They both walked back inside. Aeka looked right at him. "Tenchi?" Tenchi bit his lip and looked up at her. "Let's just enjoy the party Aeka." Aeka looked between him and Ryoko for a second, and then nodded. "I see." Forcing a smile she said. "Yosho was about to start the scary story." She looked back down at Tenchi one more time. "Thank you for the kiss. Even if it is the last one." She turned and walked quickly away. "She's smarter than I gave her credit for." Ryoko said. "Ryoko..." She smiled. "Come on, before we miss the story." Noboyuki parked the car a little way down the hill from the house. He smiled at Sasami and Ryo-oki who were looking through their bags of candy. "Are you two up for a little Halloween joke?" Sasami looked at him skeptically. "You mean like when you threw eggs at the people's houses that didn't give out candy?" He shook his head and grinned. "Better. Right now dad is in there, telling them scary stories. We timed it just so that when we get up there he'll be at the end." He reached under the seats and pulled out a bag. "We're going to scare them." Sasami giggled and Ryo-oki meowed. Noboyuki handed them each two rubber gloves that looked like monster hands then put his own on. "Now follow me." He got out of the car and led the way up to the house. Yosho had just gotten to the end of the story as they slipped in. "... 'Who's got my golden arm?' The voice said." Noboyuki snuck up behind Mihoshi and Aeka while Sasami came up behind Washu and Ryoko. Ryo-oki was behind Tenchi when Yosho yelled out, "You do!" They each grabbed their victims' shoulders. All of them let out a terrified scream. Unfortunately Aeka also summoned her logs and zapped Noboyuki in a flash of blue light, sending him flying across the room. Yosho turned on the lights and they all ran over to Noboyuki. "Oh Mr. Masaki, are you all right?" Aeka asked. Noboyuki smiled and got up. "I'm fine... I think." He winced slightly, and then looked at Washu. "And getting better by the minute. You really should wear that more often." Washu grinned. "Maybe I will." Tenchi shook his head. "You'll never learn dad." They all laughed and got back to the party. Sasami and Ryo-oki even shared some candy with them. At midnight Yosho brought out an Ouija board and they tried to contact a ghost. It didn't work, but Washu promised that next year she would build a machine that would. The party was finally over when Sasami fell asleep on the couch with Ryo-oki on her belly. Everyone began heading up to his or her rooms. Aeka picked Sasami up off of the couch and started carrying her up the stairs. When she got up there, Tenchi and Ryoko were standing in the hall. She looked at them, her eyes filled with tears. "You know... I understand." Tenchi smiled at her. "I know Aeka. Just don't be sad." She managed to smile for real, despite the tears, "I'll try Tenchi." She turned to Ryoko. "Just give me some time." Ryoko nodded and pulled off her eye patch. "I will Aeka. I really wish..." Aeka just smiled and shook her head, turning to go to her room. When she was gone Tenchi looked at Ryoko. "Good night Ryoko." He stood up straight and kissed her cheek. Ryoko smiled and said, "Good night Tenchi." She kissed him and then they both went to their rooms. The End Author's note I just came up with this. I don't know why, but I just liked the idea of them dressing up. Hope you liked it. Tell me what you think at clayton_n@hotmail.com