Disclaimer: I do not own Tenchi Muyo or any of
its characters, these are owned by Pioneer and/or
AIC.

		Impassioned  Silence
		by Dade Gifford




	Aeka sighed, staring at the ceiling of
the room she and Sasami shared.  It seemed that
the more the days dragged on, the more she was
losing a battle.  Aeka turned over in her futon,
and looked at Sasami.  Sasami smiled in her dream,
and then turned her back on Aeka, mumbling something
incoherent.  It always seemed to Aeka that Ryoko
had the upper hand with Tenchi.  Of course, the 
only things Aeka could think of that Tenchi saw in
Ryoko were her lusty curves.  Aeka had so much more
to offer.  Why then, did it seem to her that Tenchi
tried to ignore her?
	The moonlight struck through her window, 
creating an odd pattern of light on the floor, which
in turn went over her futon, the heightened elevation
of the futon from the floor distorting the image cast
on the floor.  Aeka stared at Earth's moon, which 
hung low in the sky, a dead ball of dust.  Sasami 
flipped over again, the action of the covers rubbing
against her pajamas making a muted hissing noise.  
It was in certain nights that Aeka found sleep a rather
taxing exercise.  It seemed that even through all the
energy she devoted simply to the task of keeping that
demon away from her Tenchi wasn't enough to cause
her eyelids to droop.
	Why, just this day, Ryoko had tried over twenty-
three different *methods* of fawning over her Tenchi, 
all of which, of course, failed.  But Aeka couldn't 
help but see that Tenchi showed interest in Ryoko.  It
wasn't plainly obvious, but she thought it was there.
Simply in the way he looked at her.  Aeka thought of
the way Tenchi looked at Ryoko.  Soon enough, however,
her thoughts drifted to how Tenchi looked at herself,
and she smiled at the thought that Tenchi secretly
adored her, couldn't live without her...  These thoughts
soon led her to sleep, as she gently placed her head
back onto the soft, warm pillow.
	Tenchi lay back in his bed, totally unaware of
the thoughts and reasonings going on across the hall.
He was distracted with thoughts of his own.  Namely, the
very large bump on his head.  Ryoko had been trying to
woo her Tenchi, which had led in turn to her trying to
pull him through the wall.  Normally, this would have 
worked just fine, except for the fact that she was 
distracted by something Aeka did on the other side, 
making her lose concentration, and hence, Tenchi was no
longer phased as she kept pulling on him.  The worst 
thing about it was how she tried several times to get him
through, each time with similar success. 
	Tenchi sighed.  He was supposed to have an icepack
here with him, but it had long since melted.  And the
distension of his forehead still raged.  Tenchi didn't 
see the reasoning in it.  If she loved him, why didn't
she act *normal*?  He wouldn't mind her bringing him on
a date, and acting..well, human.  Of course, this would
spark conflicts with Aeka..but it would still be a change
of pace.  Mainly, it would prevent further wounds and pain
on Tenchi's part.  Tenchi turned on his left side, and
stared blankly at the red numbers on his alarm clock.
It read 11:45, but he didn't notice.  Since he wasn't on
the right side of the house, the moonlight wouldn't be
shining in his window for a while, and by then he hoped
to be asleep.  
	The only merits gained by staring at the alarm
clock was the numbers temporarily etched into his view,
a glaring testament to his temporary insomnia.  Tenchi
sighed, and rolled over onto his right side and faced 
the wall.  For a little while longer, the numbers still
dominated his view, until they slowly faded away as his
retinal cells repaired themselves from this intrusion.
Tenchi flipped over onto his stomach, then over onto his
back a short while later, each to no avail.  Resigned,
Tenchi decided to get a glass of water, and then see if
it helped any.  He sat up off of his bed, and instantly
noticed the chill that dominated the night air.  He 
shivered for a moment, and then advanced upon his door.
	Tenchi slid the door open quietly, and padded
down the hall, not making a sound.  He arrived in the
kitchen, and flicked on the lights.  They buzzed for
a few moments, and Tenchi glared at them.  A moment
later, he regretted this as the lights seemed to 
penetrate into the back of his skull, giving him a headache.
Tenchi stood there until the momentary attack of dizziness
wore off.  He still heard the buzzing noise, even as he
flicked the light switch off.  For a moment, he was vexed,
until he noticed the noise was coming from Ryoko's beam.
Well, at least Aeka didn't snore...or injure him trying
to impress him, for that matter.  Tenchi couldn't decided
which was better.  Being openly fawned over but sometimes
embarrassed, or being quietly admired, but never really
feeling loved.
	Tenchi fished a glass out of the nearby cupboard,
and filled it up from the tap.  He took a couple of ice
cubes from the freezer and put them in.  Now that he
was thinking about it, he grabbed another ice pack out
of the freezer, and held it to his forehead, wincing
at the sharp pain the cold envoked in him for a moment.
He pulled it away, then gently tapped it to his forehead,
trying not to let the cold get to him.  Tenchi leaned on
the tabletop next to the sink, drinking his water and lost
in thought.  He thought of Ryoko, and Aeka.  Then he 
wondered what could truly have come between them so that
they would show such utter hatred towards one another.
But that wasn't fair of him, Tenchi told himself.  He
had recalled seeing the teamwork they were able to pull
off, wether or not they remembered it afterwards.  Enemies
or not, they were an inseparable team.  
	After he finished his glass of water, Tenchi 
decided that it was time to go back to his room, but before
he left, he decided to ask himself the fateful question.
	Which one?
	Unfortunately, this wasn't an easy one for Tenchi.
All of the women had their own charms that appealed to 
Tenchi in one way or another.  Ryoko, well, she was very
openly affectionate.  It would be so easy to love her.
Aeka...her humble aura and demure mannerisms appealed to
Tenchi very much.  And for some reason, so did her hair
color.  He couldn't explain it, but he found her purple
hair attractive.  Sasami...she was young, but had a heart
of gold.  With all of her talents, she would prove a very
devoted lifelong companion, and a good housewife to boot.
Washu...her kinkiness was a bit forthcoming, but it affected
Tenchi in much the same way that Ryoko's did.  Of course,
the brains added up to living a very interesting, if random
lifestyle.  Mihoshi...bumbling, but kind at heart.  Sure,
she wasn't the most graceful woman he'd ever seen, but 
her bubbly personality and overall beauty were certainly
great assets.  She had the capacity to prove a very loving
wife.  Kiyone...Tenchi wasn't too sure how Kiyone felt 
about him, but either way, she was very mature.  Kiyone was
the kind of person you'd like to have around in an emergency.
She always knew what to do.  Her perfessional attitude meant
that all jobs needed to be done would get done, and quickly
at that.  But about her romantic side, well, Tenchi couldn't
accurately predict that.  But she was very attractive, even
if she didn't share any interest in him.
	All this added up to a very confused Tenchi.  He
felt that it wouldn't be right to choose one, and again, not
right to choose all, either.  He continued to ponder this
as he marched back up the stairs and towards his bedroom.
Thankfully, Ryoko hadn't woke up, and Tenchi didn't find
himself crushed in her grasp.  Now that he thought about
it, he didn't really hate that.  In some way, he did enjoy
Ryoko's hugs and kisses.  But when she started to fondle
him..well, that went a little too far.  
	But not to say that he didn't enjoy *that*, either.
	Aeka never was that frisky, but she had her own
ways of letting Tenchi know that she was interested, most
definately.  That whole thing in the cabin back when he
had first met her...well, if that wasn't a dead giveaway,
then what could be considered one?  But she was almost as
shy as he was.  This wasn't disappointing, but not very
fulfilling, either.  Tenchi sat on his bed for a minute,
regarding the alarm clock which now read 12:10.  He 
reached over and pressed the alarm switch to check the 
alarm time, to see if it was set properly.  After the 
numbers flashed 6:00, he was sure, and laid back.  But he
still was plagued by the question.  Tenchi wondered if he'd
ever find the answer.  Jiichan had said that the answer
would come to him, eventually...but he couldn't shake the
feeling that he didn't have the time to waste.  
	After about another hour of laying on his bed, sleep
finally took Tenchi.  He snored peaceably, the moonlight
now having shifted almost completely into view through his
window, the light casting warped shadows over him.  Through
the whole house, not much noise was to be heard.  Ryoko's
light snoring was perhaps the loudest; Aeka's the softest.
Night passed uneventfully.  At 5:12 AM, the sun rose and
shone into Aeka and Sasami's room.  Sasami got a faceful 
of the sunbeams, and promptly awoke.  She stretched and
yawned, then dressed.  
	Sasami tromped down the stairs and into the kitchen
to make breakfast.  Unfortunately, she hadn't really given
much thought to what she'd be cooking today.  More profound
thoughts had hit her, and they concerned Tenchi.  Sasami
wasn't very old...she was just seven hundred and eight, not
really that mature yet.  But she wished that just for a 
moment, she could catch Tenchi's attention.  Sasami wasn't
sure if it was a crush, or actual love, but she would like
to be vying for Tenchi's love with the other women.  Of 
course, if any of the others did get him, she wouldn't be
*that* sad.  It would be a joyous event, and she would be
happy for them, whoever it may be.
	Sasami couldn't think of anything particularly
delicious that they had the ingredients for, so she prepared
a normal breakfast, with eggs and bacon, and the like.  But
she did write up a shopping list, for the supplies she'd
need for lunch and dinner.  It wasn't long before Nobuyuki
and Lord Katsuhito were in and ready for breakfast.  Sasami
presented Nobuyuki with the shopping list, and he took it,
and said he'd be able to get to the store, later.  
	At approximately 6:00 AM, the alarm in Tenchi's 
room sounded, and he woke up reluctantly.  Since he hadn't
really gotten that much sleep, Tenchi considered hitting 
the snooze button.  But he had chores to do, and time would
not allow for that.  So he simply stood up.  Until he realized
just how wasted he was, and staggered.  Tenchi put up a valiant
effort to stand, and in the end, lost.  He stumbled to the
floor, and for a moment, wondered if it would be worth it to
stand up.  Tenchi thought, and decided that the floor wasn't
really *that* comfortable.  Again, he fought to stand.  After
another battle, Tenchi won and was granted access to his own
legs.  He staggered out the door...or would have, except for
the fact that he forgot to slide it open.  A muffled thump
resounded through the thin door, followed by a rapid series of
thumps as Tenchi hit the floor.  
	Tenchi groaned for a moment, and stood up rather 
quickly.  An attack of dizziness congratulated him on this rather
difficult matter.  Tenchi held his head in hand as he slid the
door open and stepped out...and into direct body contact with
lady Aeka.  Aeka stumbled..and so did Tenchi, directly on top
of her.  
	"Oomph!" 
	"Uphh!"
	"Oh, um...ohayo, Aeka."
	Aeka blushed at the position they had landed in.  She
mentally smacked herself for thinking that way, but the circumstance
commanded it.  Aeka was flat on her back on the ground, with
Tenchi laying flat on top of her.  He quickly lept into a crouch,
and stood up, offering his hand to the fallen princess.  She took
the offered appendage, and stood up, blushing.  Tenchi, too was
blushing, and a faint trace of red could just barely be seen coming
from his nose.  Aeka spied this, and blushed ever the more, seeing
that he was excited by that.  <Maybe I have a chance, after all,>
she thought.  
	"Ohayo, Lord Tenchi.  Shall we go to breakfast?"
	"Um, sure, lady Aeka."
	Aeka nodded slightly, and they went down to breakfast.
Ryoko materialized next to Tenchi as he arrived at the table, and
she glomped him.  A number of sensations ran through Tenchi.  
Should he respond?  He didn't know.  But he had to get her off of
him before she encited his...exitement any further.
	"Ohayo, Tenchi," she cooed.
	"Ryoko, please..." 
	She released him and sat to one side of where he would be
sitting.  Aeka took her place at the other side, but not before
shooting a venomous glance at Ryoko.  Ryoko just smiled.  Tenchi
sighed and took his place between them.  He would've sat across 
the table from them, but the spot was already taken by Nobuyuki.
	Tenchi picked at his food, bags under his eyes.  The 
little debate he'd had last night with himself hadn't helped
too much.  But at least he knew where he stood.  As it was,
Tenchi wasn't too sure of the side effects choosing one would
have on those that weren't chosen.  He was sure Ryoko and Aeka,
if not chosen, would be crushed.  The rest, he wasn't too sure.
Kiyone probably wouldn't have minded too much.  Mihoshi, well,
she probably would be happy for the person that would have been
chosen, but Tenchi couldn't predict the emotions that would be
battling inside of her.  Sasami...Tenchi wasn't sure if Sasami
would mind.  She would doubtless be happy, but again, there was
no way of knowing her inner emotions.
	Tenchi sighed, and tried to concentrate more, but it
seemed that exhaustion was wearing on him.  
	"Tenchi?" questioned Katsuhito.  "You look tired."
	As if in response to this, Tenchi finally lost the duel,
again, and his face fell into his plate.  
	"Oh my!" said Sasami.
	"Lord Tenchi!" exclaimed Aeka.
	"Pff...Bwahahaha!!" gushed Ryoko.
	Katsuhito nodded knowingly.
	"Hey..you ladies haven't been exhausting him, have you?"
said Nobuyuki, throwing Aeka and Ryoko and wink.  
	Ryoko was going to nod yes, but Aeka backhanded her.  
In response, Ryoko slapped Aeka.  They slapped each other for
a time, as Tenchi snored into his eggs.  Sasami walked over to
Tenchi's side and pried him out of his food.  She propped him
up, and began to wipe his face of the eggs with a towel.  
	"I suppose this means no practice for him today," said
Katsuhito.
	After Aeka and Ryoko were done slapping each other, 
Ryoko carried Tenchi back to his bed (under close supervision
by Aeka).  Ryoko wanted to give Tenchi a good-night kiss, but
again, Aeka hindered this.  After she banished Ryoko from his
room, Aeka stepped out into the hall herself.  Once she was 
sure that Ryoko was gone temporarily, she stepped back in stealthily
and kissed Tenchi on the lips.  He smiled in his slumber, causing
Aeka to giggle in a demure manner.
	Tenchi reached for Aeka in his sleep, but her back was
already turned, her attention diverted to other means.  He moaned,
and his arms fell onto the bed, his smile dissolving.  In his dream,
Tenchi had just been kissed by the most beautiful and compelling
woman he had ever seen.  She had purple hair, but this didn't
register in his dreamworld.  Tenchi didn't even think 'Aeka,' in
response to this stimulus.  But, she turned about and marched away
in a most deliberate manner.  This became the source of his sorrow,
and the rest of the dream was full of thunderclouds and broken 
promises.  It hurt so to see her go, that Tenchi shivered.  He wasn't
really cold, it just hurt so deeply that it touched his motor nerves
and triggered this response.
	Aeka thought nothing of it, as she skipped giddily down the
hall, towards the living room.  She would help Sasami with every chore
she had today.  She would listen to Wasyuu-chan during her next lecture
and actually mean it.  Hell, she'd even try and not fight with Ryoko
today, if that were possible.  Tenchi's inadverdent goodnight kiss
filled Aeka with giddy resolve.  As Aeka stepped into the living room,
she could hear Sasami going about her morning chores with her usual
cheer.  So Aeka stopped in and began to help Sasami clear the table.
	"Oh!  Aeka, domo arigatto!"
	"Think nothing of it, Sasami-chan."
	Sasami studied her sister for a few minutes before continuing
to clear the table.  Shortly, they took the dishes and began to work
at cleaning them, Sasami washing, Aeka drying.  While they worked, Aeka
hummed a cheery tune,seemingly caught up in some dream world.  Sasami
couldn't resist any longer.
	"Aeka, what's going on?" she questioned.
	"Whatever do you mean, Sasami?" came the expected answer.
	"Well..you seem happier, even though you just got finished
fighting Ryoko-san."
	"Oh.  Well, I guess I could be to blame for that.  I shouldn't
have laid my hands on her like that."
	This truly puzzled Sasami.  "So, does that mean that you and
Ryoko are going to be friends, now?" she said unsteadily.
	"Now now, I wouldn't go quite that far.  Let's just call it a
momentary truce."
	Sasami seemed somewhat crestfallen at that, but let the matter
go.  It had been one of her dreams to be able to resolve the rivalry
between her sister and her friend.  Sasami liked Ryoko, and sometimes
thought of her as another sister.  To see them fight tore her inside,
sometimes.  She just wished they could make up, and be friends.  It
didn't seem to her that anything was worth that much of a conflict over
it.  
	Aside from Tenchi, of course.
	
	Since Sasami couldn't be in the fight for Tenchi along with
Ryoko and Aeka, she simply tried to play mediator.  But all of her 
current efforts did not become fruitful.  Aeka and Ryoko still fought
over Tenchi, and it seemed to her that Tenchi bottled himself up ever
the more each time they fought, bringing him farther away from making
his decision.  Sasami of course had heard almost all of her sister's
confessions of love towards Tenchi, since she shared room and board,
and was also her sister.  She knew that Aeka would be torn if ever it
became evident that Tenchi did not share her interests.  Sasami knew
how Aeka just longed to hold Tenchi, and for him to call her his.  But
that didn't mean she wouldn't feel bad for Ryoko if ever Tenchi chose
Aeka.
	In some ways, Sasami was torn, also.  Of course, nowhere near
as much as Tenchi, but she felt as if it were sometimes too much to
bear.  Maybe she could call it a hunch, but Sasami felt that if Ryoko
and Aeka continued their fighting like this, then something bad was
sure to happen.  So she stepped in every chance she got.  Once, she
even tried to explain this to Aeka, but Aeka dismissed it nonchalantly.
Sasami had tried to press her point with examples of times that Aeka
herself had nearly been seriously hurt, but again, to no avail.  <For
now,> she thought.  <For now, I'll wash these dishes.>
	Wasyuu-chan, the greatest scientific genius in the universe,
stepped through the portal that marked the end of one dimension and the
beginning of another.  She stretched her diminuitive child arms and
yawned loudly.  
	"Ah!  Wasyuu!" called Sasami.
	"What can I do for you, Sasami?" she stifled a yawn down as she
spoke.
	"Well, you *could* eat this delicious breakfast I worked hard
to prepare for you..."
	"Of course!  Sorry I couldn't make it earlier...  But I was up
all last night working on my newest invention.."
	"Oh?  And what could that be, Wasyuu?"
	"Wellllll...  Since you asked so nicely, I'll tell you.  I was
working on reconstructing the entire Masaki house inside a separate 
dimension!  With a few add-ons, of course, and much extended size... 
But I suppose I should thank Ryoko and Aeka for this, because they were
my inspiration."
	"Really?"
	"Yes, you see, their constant fighting has led me to make this
reconstruction just in case they happen to destroy the entire house.  
Or, as the case may be, some people on a long space trip could use this
house via an interdimensional doorway.  It sure would help them if they
got homesick."
	"Thank you, Wasyuu!  It sure will make everyone else happy to
hear that you made this just for all of us!"  Sasami hugged Wasyuu
very easily, because she could look her in the eye as it was.
	Wasyuu seemed somewhat surprised at this, but she hugged Sasami
and said, "You are very welcome, Sasami.  I just wish everyone else
were as optimistic as you are when it comes to my inventions."
	"Oh, well I am sure they mean well, Wasyuu."
	"I think so too, Sasami."
	As Wasyuu took her breakfast from Sasami, she decided to catch
up on some long-missed soap operas.  Wasyuu liked Sasami's view on all
of the subjects that came to mind.  Of course, it was just the child's
innocence that caused that, but in Wasyuu's eyes, Tenchi and the rest
were still children.  Wasyuu laughed with them as they made discoveries
that were altogether rather old to her, and looked upon them with 
apprehension as they made dumb mistakes.  But she had to remind herself
that she *was* technically much, much older than they.  Of course, the
body that she chose was enough for them to shirk any words of wisdom
she might have given them.  But Wasyuu would rather remain in that body
and have them not listen to her, than be adult again, with all of her
past mistakes and shortcomings weighing down upon her.
	Wasyuu sighed at these thoughts, and resumed eating, the
chopsticks making loud *tings* as they hit the bottom of the bowl that
she was currently working on.  She stopped momentarily to pick up the
remote and switch to another channel that had another drama.
	"Oh Hitoshi..."
	"Oh Maria..."
	"My name's not Maria.."
	"Really?  What is it then?"
	"You're supposed to know!"
	"I'm sorry, I don't!"
	"Well, it's..."
	The narrator took over promptly.  "Unbeknownst to the couple
in the hospital, a giant monster was wreaking havoc nearby..."
	The screen displayed the hospital, followed by a very fake
looking foot coming down from the sky and crushing it.  A place card
with the words 'The End' came up promptly.  Wasyuu's face pulled into
a disgusted frown, and picked up the remote.
	"It's *always* a monster!" she groaned.
	Ryoko lazed on the roof of the Masaki home, trying to catch a
morning nap.  Things seemed to go by so slowly...she was just so bored!
There had to be SOMETHING to do around here...
	But Ryoko was too comfortable there, with the sun beaming down
from the sky, warming her to just the right temperature.  Her eyelids
drooped, and she laid down for a nap.  Ryoko's mind wandered for a few
minutes before she went to sleep.  Mainly, she thought of the next 
thing she should do to seduce Tenchi.  Secondly, she thought of what
she could do next to make Aeka really mad.  But so far, the results
hadn't come up as high as she had hoped.  There wasn't anything really
insulting she could think of at the moment to do to Aeka, and nothing
that she hadn't already tried on Tenchi.  Or it could just have been
the lazy air she was getting from the sun.  She was sure that was it.
Ryoko had never been bested yet, and she would stay that way.
	But now, she needed a nap, desperately.  
	Still, her thoughts dwelled on Tenchi, and on how she would
make him hers.  Ryoko pictured the wedding, and Tenchi in a tuxedo.
That would be something to see, or so she thought.  Ryoko was just
getting to the wedding night when she fell asleep. She dreamed of
Tenchi, and dreamt of the wedding night.  Ryoko squirmed and rolled
over, trying to get comfortable on the stiff roof.  Some time later,
her sleep became much less fitful.  
	In the living, room, Wasyuu gave up on trying to find something
interesting to watch on the TV, and she focused on finishing her 
breakfast.  As Wasyuu munched hungrily, Tenchi walked down the stairs,
looking much more awake.  
	Wasyuu struggled to swallow quickly, and said, "Ohayo, Tenchi!"
	Tenchi looked at her for a moment, then replied, "Ohayo,
Wasyuu!"
	Wasyuu remained silent.
	Tenchi sighed.  "Er-hem.  Ohayo, Wasyuu-chan the greatest and
cutest and smartest scientific genius in the universe!"
	Wasyuu beamed at him.  "Why thank you, Tenchi!  That's just 
what I needed."
	"I thought so," he said.
	Tenchi was in a better mood this morning.  The dream had begun
rather well, but of course it ended sadly.  However, Tenchi was filled
with renewed hope for the future.  He still wasn't sure who he was 
going to choose, but he felt as if it would be slightly easier than he
thought it to be.  As Tenchi pondered over his dream, Wasyuu studied
him, as if looking at one of her many diagrams.  After a while, she
noticed that he wasn't responding, just staring into space.  
	Aeka stepped into the room and was about to say ohayo, but 
seeing him staring into space, she too stared, only at Tenchi instead
of wherever out there he was.  Wasyuu looked up from her food to see
Aeka staring, transfixed, at Tenchi.  She looked back and forth between
them, but saw nothing in particular that should have been standing out.
But Wasyuu looked into Aeka's eyes, and she grew more dim to outside
stimulus as she stared into her eyes...
	Sasami stepped in from the kitchen, having finished washing the
dishes.  It wasn't long before she noticed Tenchi staring at nothing,
Aeka staring at Tenchi, and Wasyuu staring at Aeka.  Sasami looked at
each in turn, until she got to Wasyuu.  Sasami couldn't figure it out.
But looking into Wasyuu's emerald eyes, she found herself unable to 
tear them away...
	Mihoshi came down from upstairs, scratching the back of her
head.  She yawned loudly, and looked at the scene unfolding before her.
	"Ano, Tenchi-sama..."
	Mihoshi kept going, until she got to Sasami.
	"Ano, Sasami-chan.  Where is breakfast?"
	Sasami didn't answer.  She was busy staring at Wasyuu.  Mihoshi
looked between the two, unable to figure it out.  
	"Oh!  This is some kind of game, right?  I wanna play!" she
bubbled.  Mihoshi then began to stare into Sasami's eyes.  She remained
perfectly still.  
	Tenchi finally finished thinking about the future, and about
the relevance of his dream to things around him.  He honestly didn't
remember seeing purple hair on the woman in his dream.  Tenchi shook
his head suddenly, and stood up.  Then, like electricity down a string
of lights, everyone else snapped out of it, nearly simultaneously.  
Except for Mihoshi, who was still staring out into nowhere, because 
Wasyuu had moved away from her view.  
	"Ohayo, Mihoshi.." said Tenchi, staring at her in a peculiar
fashion.
	Mihoshi continued to stare.  "Sssh...I'm trying to win the try-
and-stay-still-the-longest contest."
	Tenchi shook his head, and shrugged.  "Sasami-chan, I don't
believe I ever got to finish my breakfast..."
	"Oh!  Here Tenchi, let me get it for you, I put another plate
of it in the stove so it'd stay warm."
	"Arigatto, Sasami."
	Sasami smiled sweetly and went to the TV to see if anything was
on.  Tenchi, meanwhile, went to get some tea.  After all that thinking,
he still wasn't sure on who he would choose, or the matter of choosing
in itself.  It seemed to Tenchi that just saying, 'I choose you,' was
too...too...  forthcoming.  There had to be another method for choosing
and hopefully, he would be able to pull it off without hurting any one
of them.  
	But it hadn't come to him yet... he just couldn't think of a
way to choose one of the many women, and not hurt them.  It seemed he
had to talk with jiichan...he had to practice, anyway.
	Tenchi opened the door and walked down the path, until he got
to the stairs.  He climbed them, and took a breath of the fresh spring
air that was around him.  The air was perfect; not too humid, not too
dry, not too cold, and not too hot.  It made him energetic to be in
such a comfortable atmosphere.  The sun shone through the leaves and
found it's way into Tenchi's eyes time and time again.  He didn't
really mind that much.  
	*Nok Nok*
	"Grandpa?  It's me, Tenchi."
	"Ah, Tenchi, come in."
	Tenchi crossed the threshold and stepped into the shrine 
office.  He didn't see Katsuhito anywhere, and this caused sweat to 
form on his brow.  He knew what happened when Katsuhito hid like this..
and Tenchi didn't feel like being scared out of his wits right now.
Adrenaline surged through his veins as he cautiously looked from side
to side to see if he could spot Katsuhito.  
	Katsuhito stepped into the room, toting a pot of tea and two
cups.  Tenchi cried, "Ayah?!" and nearly jumped out of his skin.  So
did Katsuhito.  "Tenchi!  What is the meaning of this?!" he demanded.
	"Geez, grandpa!  You usually are waiting for me, so you can pop
out of nowhere and scare *me*!"
	"Well, I was just getting some tea.  So there must be a reason
you came out here to see me."
	"Yeah, I thought we should get to that practice."
	"Hmmh...that's not all that's on your mind.  If it were, I may
have had to diagnose you with a fever.."
	"Well..."
	"Ah.  Well, come, let us talk of it over tea."
	Tenchi followed Katsuhito into another room where a low table
was in the middle of the floor.  Tenchi and Katsuhito took their seats
at either side of the table.  
	"Partake of my wisdom, child.  What is your question?"
	Tenchi blinked.  "Well, um, I was wondering...  Do you have any
idea as to how I could choose one of the ladies without hurting the
others?"
	Katsuhito wasted no time in responding, saying simply, "You 
cannot."
	Tenchi seemed defeated.  His shoulders slumped as he heard the
bad news.  
	"Tenchi, this is part of being a man.  You must accept what is
and what can never be."
	The comment didn't raise Tenchi up any, but it was doubtful 
that this was the intention of wise Katsuhito's words.  Tenchi and
he drank their tea for a while in silence.  Every now and then, Tenchi
would pause and sigh, or fidget under Katsuhito's unaverting gaze.
	"You can stop fidgeting, Tenchi.  It's time to practice."
	"Okay." he said, his voice firm and resolute.
	Katsuhito took a bokken from a stand nearby, and tossed it
lightly to Tenchi.  He took one himself, and they went outside to go
practice.  Tenchi took a stance at one end of a small clearing that
they used often.  Katsuhito seemed to meditate for a moment, and then
he held his bokken in a ready stance.  "Tenchi, are you ready?" he
asked.
	"Hai!" replied Tenchi, who promptly rushed Katsuhito.  
Tenchi swung the bokken in a diagonal fashion, intending to try and
slash Katsuhito.  Unfortunately, Katsuhito blocked easily.  He then
grabbed Tenchi by the forearm, and pulled him past himself.  Tenchi
flew forward with the momentum, crying out as he lost his footing.
Katsuhito turned swiftly as Tenchi passed him, and struck Tenchi with
the side of the bokken in the back of his head.  Tenchi staggered, then
fell forward.
	Katsuhito sat down cross-legged, and waited calmly for Tenchi
to regain consciousness.  After about twenty minutes, Tenchi stood up
from where he fell, and turned to face Katsuhito.  
	"Hmm.  Maybe in your next life, you will be more careful, eh,
Tenchi?" said Katsuhito.
	Tenchi nodded groggily.  He resumed the fighting stance.  But
Katsuhito waved him off.  "You need to sit down for a moment.  In
your current condition, you would be no challenge."
	"Since when am I a challenge?" he questioned snidely.
	Katsuhito promptly rapped him on the skull with the bokken
again.  "Don't speak lowly of yourself, boy!  If a man cannot maintain
his dignity, then he is no man at all!"
	Tenchi rubbed his head and said nothing.  After a little while,
Tenchi stood up and prepared to fight again.  Katsuhito stood up, 
and again they went to fight.  Again, Katsuhito fettered him to the
ground with no trouble at all.  Tenchi sat up, and then tried again
to rush Katsuhito, and once more, in an almost carbon-copy image of
what had happened before, Tenchi bounced against the ground like a
rag doll.  Katsuhito allowed Tenchi to go on like this for a while
longer, until he saw that Tenchi just wasn't thinking anymore, and
was just flinging himself at Katsuhito.  
	"All right, Tenchi, enough.  You may go."
	Tenchi bowed respectfully, and went back into the shrine 
office.  He placed the bokken back where it belonged, and went to
the house.  Wearily, and sorely, he flopped down on the couch.
Wasyuu and Sasami were still watching TV.  They had happened upon
one of the talk shows.
	"Oh, hi Tenchi...did jiichan overwork you again?"
	Tenchi nodded.
	"You know, Tenchi, I could always give you something to boost
your stamina..."
	"Uh, no thanks, Wasyuu-chan."
	"Are you sure?  It won't taste bad, I promise!"
	"Yeah, I'm sure..."
	Wasyuu shrugged.  "Your loss."
	Tenchi decided he was going to take another nap, to make up
for all the injuries he had sustained in violent combat with his
own grandfather.
	Tenchi marched up the stairs and collapsed into his bed.
Downstairs, Aeka came out of the kitchen.  "Where is Lord Tenchi?"
she questioned.  
	"Oh, he went to take a nap, Aeka," said Sasami.
	Aeka looked downcast, but promptly took a seat next to 
Wasyuu and watched the talk show.  
	Tenchi had just gotten to sleep upstairs, when there came
the most racket he thought he'd ever heard.  Moreso even than
the noise of a battle between Aeka and Ryoko.  This startled
him for a moment, and he got up quickly and ran downstairs.
	As soon as he opened his bedroom door, a gout of smoke
poured through and into his face.  
	"Gah!" he cried out, putting his shirt over his face.
	The living room was nowhere to be seen through the thick
smoke that covered it.  As he reached the bottom step, he saw
Wasyuu, her face covered in smudges, lying on her stomach.
Quickly, he bent down to see what was amiss.
	Wasyuu's eyes opened to see Tenchi, who promptly asked,
"What's going on?"
	Wasyuu shook her head in confusion.  "I..don't know.."
she croaked.
	"One minute we were sitting there, then the door opened,
and then boom.."
	Tenchi fanned the smoke away as best he could to see if
everyone there was okay.  He rushed into it a second later, 
full of worry for Aeka and Sasami.  Sasami wasn't there.  Aeka
was, but she looked really wasted.  
	Tenchi gasped at what he saw.  Aeka had apparently gotten
a forcefield up reflexively, but it wasn't soon enough to stop
the explosion very well.  Her right leg was twisted at an 
unnatural angle.  If she hadn't been knocked unconscious by it, 
she surely would have been screaming in anguish.  Tenchi rushed 
back to Wasyuu to see if she could do anything.  Once he emerged 
from the smoke, she was perfectly fine.  
	"Huh?" he said.
	"Oh, just another of my inventions..." 
	Tenchi shook his head.  "Aeka's really hurt!  Come on, we
need to get her somewhere so you can help her!"
	Wasyuu rushed into the smoke with Tenchi, and she saw 
Aeka.  Instead of stopping to contemplate the scene as someone
else would have, she simply summoned her holo-top and started
typing.  A dimensional hole opened, and she turned to Tenchi.
	"Come on, we need to get her into here!  And be careful!
If she wakes up now, she'll die from shock!"
	Tenchi gingerly hoisted Aeka, her leg bleeding, towards
the hole.  Tenchi saw bone protruding from Aeka's leg, looking
splintered.  As soon as he set her in the hole, he turned and
vomited on the spot.  Wasyuu rushed off for her lab, and there
she opened up the hole.  Two drones came and placed Aeka on
an operating table, and she quickly went to work.
	Tenchi put his head between his knees.  The smoke had
cleared now, and he could see that there wasn't a single
point of damage to anything else in the room.  Apparently,
Aeka's forcefield had absorbed the brunt of the blow.  But
now, he had to find Sasami!  
	Tenchi frantically ran outside, mentally cursing himself
for not going sooner.  A trail of some sort of phosphorescence
was on the ground, and Tenchi followed it.  It led to a small
clearing, not far from where he and Katsuhito had practiced.
Speaking of which, Katsuhito came running up the path to meet
Tenchi.  Tenchi, however, was busy staring at something. 
Katsuhito's eyes followed Tenchi's, and he saw a ship.  It was
a strange one, too small by most standards.  It had a geocentric
design, spokes poking out at odd angles, making no sense 
whatsoever.  
	It didn't even look spaceworthy, much less able to fly.
	Tenchi didn't hesitate.  He ran for the ship, certain 
that it was the cause of this.  When he couldn't find a hatch
or opening anywhere, he stopped and thought for a moment.  Then
he realized he was carrying Tenchi-ken, and pulled it out of
his belt.  He then summoned the energy, and used the blade to
cut the hull slowly.  After a hole large enough was made, he
stepped into it.  But as he was going in, it sealed up around
him!  He just barely made it away before it closed on him.
	Katsuhito stepped up.  He put his hand on the gun metal
grey hull of the ship, and concentrated.  His palm seemed to
vibrate, and then the hull disintegrated from that area. 
	"Hurry!  Go in!" Katsuhito was sweating from some unseen
effort.
	Tenchi rushed in, with a glance behind him as the hull
closed up again.  Tenchi took in his new surroundings.  Gleaming
deckplates greeted him, as well as smooth, but drab wall paneling.
Surprisingly, this hall alone was much larger than the entire 
ship had appeared to be outside.  Doors lined the hall for what
seemed like miles.  Tenchi looked around, sweating in desperation.
He ran down the hall as fast as he could, seeking an end to it,
and possibly, finding Sasami.  
	It took what seemed like hours, but what was probably only
minutes, for him to find a door that looked important.  Opening
it, he found a large viewport, which showed Katsuhito outside
fighting some kind of robots!  But as Tenchi watched, he saw 
that Katsuhito was having no trouble whatsoever.  He paused to
look around the rest of the room, and saw a humanoid, their
back to him.  Sasami was tied to a wall nearby, unconscious.
	"Hey!  Let Sasami go!" he yelled.
	The person turned around.  Tenchi was stuck by the look
of what appeared to be a her.  She had catlike ears poking out
of a mane of red hair that reached almost to her heels.  Tiger
stripes marked her skin, and her eyes were reminiscent of Ryoko's.
	She seemed to regard Tenchi for a moment, before saying,
calmly, "No."
	Tenchi charged the Tenchi-ken again, and rushed at this
new person with anger.  But before he got even close, he stopped,
floated up in midair a few feet, and was thrown, hard, against
the far wall.
	A small trickle of blood came out of the corner of his 
mouth, and he looked up.  "Who..what are you?" he said in a
mystified tone.  
	"I..." said a voice that was so low, it was almost a purr.
	"I am Kitsune.  And I am a feline-person from planet
Felix Grandaria Prime."
	"Wha-what are you doing here?"
	"Simple.  I am going to take Tsunami."
	"Huh?"
	"It appears that Tsunami has joined with this girl.  I
am going to remove the bond between them."
	"But you can't do that!  It'd kill Sasami!"
	"She is expendable."
	"I won't allow that!!"
	Tenchi pried himself out of the wall, and rushed her
again.  And once more, he was thrown.  
	"You cannot defeat me.  My telekinesis cannot be
penetrated by any physical attack."
	Kitsune returned to her machine, and probes began
to surround Sasami.  Tiny sparks ran between them as they
prepared to do their job.
	Just then, Ryoko phased through the wall.  "Tenchi!"
she gasped.  Ryoko rushed to his side, but then looked and
saw Kitsune.  She paled at the sight of her.  But that 
didn't last long, for there are few things that can truly
scare Ryoko.  She created a blade and teleported right
next to Kitsune.  She brought the blade down quickly.
Kitsune's hand shot out and stopped the blade.  She was
actually touching the blade. Upon closer inspection,
one might have seen the electricity separating the blade
from Kitsune's hand by a mere millimeter.  
	With a flick of her wrist, Kitsune tossed Ryoko
to the wall, directly next to Tenchi.  Ryoko pulled 
herself away from it, and rushed Kitsune again, firing
all she had.  But the blasts struck an unseen forcefield.
She created another sword and threw herself into the
work, putting all her effort into it.  Kitsune turned 
back blow after blow, with no trouble.  
	"Sigh..I tire of this.." said Kitsune, and blasted
Ryoko with a beam of blue light that struck her in the
midsection.  	
	"NOOO!!" screamed Tenchi.  Bright blue light flared
up in front of him, blindingly bright.  Three Light Hawk
Wings now drifted, rotating slowly, in front of him.  A
symbol glowed brightly upon his forehead.  Tenchi put his
arms forward, and accepted two of them upon himself.  
Kitsune turned around, her eyes wide.  
	"What is this?!" she cried.
	The two wings formed themselves upon Tenchi, and he
reached forward to take the last one by the end.  It formed
into a mighty sword, with a golden hilt and a silver blade.
The blood that was on Tenchi's lip was reabsorbed into his
skin, and all bruises disappeared.  Kitsune looked on in
amazement.  
	Tenchi let out a battle cry, and ran towards her, a
new fury glowing in his eyes.  Kitsune took her attention
totally off the machine, turned towards Tenchi, and then
concentrated.  Tenchi's rush was slowed, then became a 
mere walk.  Tenchi looked surprised, but grew even more
infuriated by this, and the aura of blue around him flared
up anew.  Sweat broke out upon Kitsune's brow.  
	Tenchi's speed grew as he charged, Kitsune's influence
over him getting weaker and weaker.  Finally, she was no
longer able to keep him at bay.  He rushed forward and
impaled her with the sword.  Kitsune's eyes opened very
wide for a moment.  She looked down at herself to see the
blade sticking all the way through herself, and also through
her machine.  She looked at Tenchi with pleading eyes, eyes
that wanted to say that she really wasn't a bad person, that
she didn't mean for it to happen this way...  But all for naught.
She disintegrated from around the blade.
	The sword faded from Tenchi's hand, and so did the armor
from his body.  He ran to Ryoko, who had a hole in her stomach
that you could push a watermelon through.  Even as he watched,
the hole was healing over.  But Ryoko was still very wasted.
Tenchi stepped over to Sasami, and freed her.  Just then,
Katsuhito stepped in, his hair slightly out of place. 
	"Tenchi, what happened?"
	Tenchi proceeded to fill him in on the battle that took
place between him and Kitsune, after she had told Tenchi of
her plans.  
	Katsuhito said nothing, simply pondering the possibility
of Kitsune actually separating Sasami and Tsunami.  Tenchi 
went over to Sasami and released her from the bindings.
	He carried Sasami, and Katsuhito carried Ryoko out of
the ship.  There was now a hatch plainly visible.  "That 
Kitsune had been telekinetically keeping the hull impenetrable
by normal means.  I had to use some ki, balanced with minor
telekinetics to keep it open for you earlier." explained
Katsuhito.
	Wasyuu was just racing outside as they arrived.  "What!
What did I miss?!"
	Tenchi sighed.  "Everything."
	He explained...again... all of the details to Wasyuu.  Upon
hearing of this, Wasyuu ran off to see the ship, but not before
saying that Aeka was just fine, she was waiting in the lab, still
asleep.  Tenchi and Katsuhito stepped inside, and put Ryoko down
on the couch.  
	Mihoshi, who had been napping upstairs, came down finally.
	"Ano, Tenchi...what happened?"
	Tenchi sighed.  But he wasn't going to explain it again.
	Katsuhito sat down and talked with Tenchi.
	"Tenchi, Kitsune is one of the most powerful psychics in
the galaxy.  And from what I can gather, I'd say she's not going
to be the last one."
	"WHAAAAT?!"
	"Yes.  You see, she is from a whole race of her kind, and 
apparently, they hate Tsunami."
	"Wh-why?"
	"Their goddess, Felinadia, is a mortal enemy of Tsunami,
and it could only be guessed at that since they got word that
Sasami was part of Tsunami, they found an easy way to strike
at her."
	"What can we do?"
	"All we can do is protect her, until they realize that
we won't give up."
	Tenchi gulped.  "You mean that I'll have to do that every
time?!"
	"Oh no, Tenchi, there are bound to be more powerful ones
that may trouble you even more."
	"No...."
	"But if we're really lucky, Kitsune was just one rebel
amongst the group of them.  But somehow, I doubt it."
	"Gee thanks, you really brought my spirits up, grandpa."
	"I do what I can, Tenchi." 
	Katsuhito left Tenchi to go back to the shrine.  So 
Tenchi was left alone with his thoughts.  He could only 
wonder on how all this had happened with absolutely no
warning whatsoever.  There was something about this occurrence
that troubled him.  It was too random.  He had known nothing
about Kitsune or the other cat-people.  However, something
about Kitsune's eyes had reminded him of Ryoko.  He would
have to ask Wasyuu about that.  But right now, he desperately
wanted to sleep... and dream the same dreams that he had not
so long ago.  He wasn't sure who it meant for him, but he
was sure that when he found out who it was, he would pursure
her until he got her for his own.  Tenchi was sure that 
the dream had this subliminal meaning.
	Tenchi looked at Ryoko lying there on the couch, still
unconscious.  Hesitantly, he went to her side and kissed 
her on the forehead.  He blushed as he walked away, wondering
if Ryoko was the one in his dream.  
	Tenchi laid in his bed, trying to sleep.  After a short
time, he was halfway-asleep.  Still aware of the outside world,
but very hazy about it.  Tenchi heard footsteps coming up the
stairs.  He dismissed it as part of a waking dream.  His door
slid open, and in walked Aeka.  She looked perfectly fine,
save for a tired look in her eyes.  She also looked as if 
she had been crying for some time.	
	Aeka walked over to the side of his bed, and sat upon
it.  She gazed at Tenchi for a while, before slowly kissing
him on the lips.  Tenchi blushed, then realized this wasn't
a dream.  He then remembered the purple hair of the beautiful
maiden of his dream.  Tenchi stealthily edged his arms around
Aeka, and she pulled back, startled.  But Tenchi held her 
close, and they kissed.  After a time, they separated.  Aeka
gazed into Tenchi's eyes lovingly, and he looked into hers
with the same love.
	"Oh, Tenchi, I.." Aeka was silenced by a finger to 
her lips.  Tenchi pulled his hand away from her mouth for
a moment, and said, "Don't talk...just breathe."  Aeka was
somewhat puzzled by this, but was especially surprised
when Tenchi made room for her in his bed.  Aeka blushed
severely, nearly glowing.  
	Slowly, she climbed into the bed.  Tenchi and Aeka
kissed for a while longer, till they grew tired.  They
fell asleep kissing each other, holding each other.  Once
again, the moonlight spread itself upon them, but not in
separate rooms.  The patterns were the same, and yet they
appeared to reflect the emotions in the room.  The light
shone and made a still pattern, just simple white light.
	Tenchi sighed, dreaming of kissing the beautiful
maiden.  In his sleep, he pulled Aeka closer, and smiled.
For the longest time, this story had no title, because it
was just a project of mine to make a story with more detail,
and more action.  Well, it's 12:30 AM, I think I should be
getting to sleep now...my back hurts...
E-mail:cubone41@yahoo.com
URL:www.geocities.com/cubone41