"Why have you done this to me Washu? Are you so obsessed with 
experimentation that you would go this far?"

"It's only a few tests, my little Ryoko."

"It's MY life. Even though you gave it to me, it is still mine."

"At least you ceased to deny your feelings."

"None of that was yours to tamper with...mother. And now, Tenchi 
sees the horror of my past that I wanted to hide him from."

"You mean you wanted to hide IT from HIM."

"That may be, but still, I can no longer remain innocent in his 
eyes. Not that I ever was innocent, but you have ruined my life 
with him."

"Have I? And just what kind of life were you developing with him? 
Were you going to live forever fighting with Ayeka and driving 
Tenchi away?"

"Shut up! It's YOU who will drive him away from me now!"

"And just what have I done other than show him the truth?"

"I never wanted him to know. I was happy with that! Everything was 
perfect the way it was, but now I can never look into his eyes 
again without knowing that he..."

"Well, what did you see in his eyes before this? Did you see love, 
or did you see annoyance? At the very most you saw friendship."

"Yes! And I was happy with that! 

"Were you?"

"You've gone too far this time Washu."

"Perhaps you are afraid of seeing something in his eyes that 
reflect your own."

"What are you talking about?"

"Love..."

"No. He can never love me now! He's seen the blood and the faces!"

"But, he also saw the pain...in your eyes..."

"No, he saw the rage and the savagery!"

"Will you continue to push him away now?"

"Shut up."

"What if his feelings turn to you?"

"Shut up!"

"I leave you to do as you wish. I will not interfere any more. Yes 
my little Ryoko, I know that I have hurt you. However, you must 
see that you were hurting yourself."

"SHUT UP!"

"Know this: I put no suggestions into Tenchi's mind. Everything 
that he has done has been of his own accord. I merely gave him a 
slight hormone stimulation, and yes I showed him a part of your 
past. Everything else has been his own doing."

"..."

"I removed all hormonal influence from him over an hour ago. Has 
he left you? Has he let you go?"

"..."

"Think about that before you throw this time away."

"..."

"..."

"DAMN YOU WASHU!"

That final cry echoed through the mind, and then was replaced with 
silence.

For a moment, a sense of despair swept through the soul. The 
sincerity of those words was almost too much for the heart to 
handle, and that was the first time that phrase had ever hurt. 
Washu sighed and shut her eyes. 

She knew that Ryoko would be angry, and her misguided daughter had 
a right to be. Not much kindness had been showed to her throughout 
her tortured life. Washu had been fully prepared to deal with 
anything that Ryoko threw at her, whether it would be heated words 
or energy blasts. But the way that she had spoken to her...

Had she gone too far this time? There was no doubt that human 
emotions were very frail, and that humans tend to overreact in 
certain situations. But there was something else here. Washu felt 
the pain as well. She actually FELT it. She knew that she'd hurt 
her daughter, perhaps more than Kagato ever had.

Was that possible? 

A tear rolled down her cheek. 

She caught it on the end of her finger and stared in awe at it. 
Dryness crept into her throat, and her cheeks grew hot. Soon tears 
were flowing furiously and freely over her face and under her 
chin, and Washu could not control them. They streamed down her 
cheeks creating small rivers that never seemed to end. However, 
her facial expression remained the same. It was a combination 
between contemplation and disbelief. Hot tears now fell onto her 
hands that were calmly folded in her lap.

Readings began to pop up on her computer screen. It was data on 
her emotions. She had become part of her own experiment. 

Washu sat there in silence as the machinery continued it's endless 
work around her.

*


Unnoticed time passed. It seemed to fly by like the wind that 
silently rustled the tops of the trees. Leaves parted and embraced 
again as a breeze gripped them in a moment. A few were pulled from 
their homes on a high branch and blown off to a new place far 
away.

The sky began to adopt a soft shade of orange and red. No sign of 
the sun could be seen other than the cascade of constantly 
changing colors in the heavens. It changed from pink to orange, to 
red, and back to orange again. Wisps of clouds made it all seem 
like a dream, or the painting of a master of the arts. They were 
highlighted by the setting sun, and seemed to be alive with 
passionate colors. More time passed, and once again the colors 
shifted.

A small flock of birds streaked across the sky and off into the 
distance. Although they were out of sight, their joyful song could 
still be heard from miles around. No poet could voice the evening. 
No symphony could capture the peace. It was beauty beyond words, 
beyond explanation.

Even though time ticked on, the day never seemed to want to age 
any more than it already had. It wanted to freeze this moment in 
its perfect splendor. There seemed to be a desperate need to 
immortalize the colors, the sounds, and the prefect feeling of 
peace. Nothing should ever change.

Nothing...

"Ryoko?" Tenchi whispered her name as though the slightest noise 
was a crime. To him, his voice seemed to pierce the peaceful 
silence even though it was barely audible. He quickly squeezed his 
eyes shut and expected some sort of punishment; however, none 
came. Only silence answered him.

And yet, he detected the slight movement of Ryoko's head on his 
chest. She'd clearly heard his voice, but she did not want to move 
past this moment. It seemed that she was in agreement with the 
world to preserve this peace. As though to thank her for her 
silence, a slight breeze stirred her hair as she leaned her 
forehead back into Tenchi's shoulder. The cyan locks brushed 
against his neck...and his soul.

He recognized the fact that she did not want to speak just yet, so 
he continued to stroke her hair. A shaky sigh escaped her lips as 
she felt his arm pressed against her back still holding her close 
to his chest. This was something that she'd never felt before in 
Tenchi's presence. It was a feeling of total comfort. Perhaps her 
heart wasn't at peace yet, but this was more than she ever hoped 
for in her life. She was lying in the arms of the man that she 
loved. At the moment though, she wondered what he was thinking 
about. Was it possible that his heart was stirring as his arms 
wrapped around her body?

No, that could never happen. Pity was the only thing that was 
likely to be in his heart now. She must have looked so pathetic, 
and Tenchi was naturally kind. He wouldn't turn anyone away in 
this condition.

("What if his feelings turn to you?")

No, that could never happen. Washu was wrong. She was a demon. 
Love and tenderness were not in her vocabulary. 

However, she was happy now. This was a peace that she had never 
experienced in her entire life. Everything was so perfect to her 
here in his arms. Would Tenchi ever hold another woman in his arms 
like this?

Her own arms were loosely tucked in front of her to be kept hidden 
against Tenchi's body. She could feel his heart beating along with 
her own. A few moments ago, she'd been so cold; but now she felt 
as though she could drift off into sleep again.

That though jarred her back to her senses, and for a moment her 
breath quickened. Tenchi noticed this, and he gently rubbed her 
back to try and soothe her. He could feel her hands clutching his 
chest and a few of her tears were soaking through his shirt again. 
The thought entered his mind that perhaps she'd fallen asleep once 
again. He certainly hoped not.

Ryoko suddenly slipped her arms underneath his and grasped the 
cloth on his back. Every single move that she made sent a shiver 
of electricity down his spine. If her fingers clenched his shirt 
tighter, then his heart would skip a beat or two. Tenchi knew that 
he was slowly, but surely, beginning to lose control of his 
emotions. Once or twice he almost lowered his head to kiss her, 
but he held back.

His heart was betraying everything that he wanted to do. In his 
mind, he tried to repeat over and over that he should put a stop 
to this, and yet he did nothing. He couldn't let her go...not even 
for a second. It just wasn't physically or emotionally possible 
for him to do so. Desire burned in his mind and heart to the point 
that it was driving him mad. And yet, all that he could do was 
hold her. His arms seemed to be permanently bonded to her, and 
there was nothing that could ever pry them off. 

He was torn between the need to do the right thing, and the desire 
for this feeling to last...

*

"Ayeka, dinner's ready!" Sasami peered up the stairs to her and 
her sister's bedroom. Ayeka had been in there for several hours 
now, and there was still no sign of Tenchi or Ryoko. At first, 
Sasami's mind had refused to make any girlish assumptions, but now 
it was wandering freely.

She had calmly accepted the fact that Ryoko had left to get some 
sake, but Tenchi was still gone...and no one else was worried. 
Mihoshi had taken a nap all afternoon, and Washu had closed 
herself back into her lab. These were all regular events, but 
something strange was happening. There was no real way of putting 
her finger on it, but Sasami knew that Tenchi and Ryoko were 
together somewhere. She also knew that both Ayeka and Washu knew 
where they were.

Part of her thought it was better not to pry, but she was still a 
child, and curiosity was itching in the back of her mind. She had 
to know what was going on before she went crazy. 

Ryo-Ohki hopped up onto Sasami's head as she finished placing all 
of the food on the table. It's sweet aroma floated through the 
house and quickly brought a hungry Mihoshi to the table. They both 
sat down and waited for Ayeka.

Sasami had knocked on the door to Washu's lab, but the scientist 
said that she was very busy and couldn't be disturbed. That was 
typical, but today it seemed to make her curiosity itch even more. 
Perhaps it was perfectly normal paranoia. Perhaps Tenchi was just 
working a little later at the shrine.

Yes, that had to be it.

Sasami stood up and ran up the stairs to get Ayeka. She knocked 
softly on the door and slid it open. Her sister was curled up on 
her futon with her back to the doorway. The purple-haired princess 
didn't move at all when Sasami came in.

"Ayeka, didn't you hear me? Dinner is ready, we're all waiting for 
you." Ayeka lifted her head slightly at the mention of "we." 
However, she did not turn to look at her younger sister.

"Is Tenchi back yet, or Ryoko?" Sasami shut the door and stepped 
further into the room. Perhaps she could ask Ayeka if something 
was going on. 

"No, neither of them are back. I'm a little worried, because it's 
getting dark." Ayeka rested her head on her pillow again and 
seemed to forget about Sasami for a moment, then the child in the 
little princess came through. "Do you have any idea where they 
are?" 

Ayeka sighed and slowly sat up. There was definitely something 
weighing on her mind. Her skin was slightly pale, and she looked 
as though she hadn't slept in weeks. "Yes. I think I know where 
they are." At least she knew where they were when she left the two 
of them alone together early this afternoon. 

A lot of time had passed since then. At first, Ayeka had been 
rather engrossed in the memory of Tenchi's lips against her hand. 
That had seemed to be one of the best moments of her life.

However, since that time, she'd replayed that scene in her mind 
many times. Her thoughts began to concentrate on Tenchi's actions, 
not just involving her, but Ryoko as well. She remembered the look 
on his face as he had come bursting into the clearing. Concern was 
etched into his features.

It was pure concern for Ryoko. He came to that clearing to find 
Ryoko. His sole purpose for coming there was to be with Ryoko. 

And now, every fiber of her being told her to go back and stay 
with Tenchi. She didn't want to leave the two of them alone 
together, for fear of...

She didn't even want to think about it. And yet, that wasn't what 
was bothering her the most. It was something else that was 
stirring in her heart. It was the one thing that was preventing 
her from running to Tenchi's side. Ayeka longed for HIS happiness. 
But what did that mean?

It certainly kept her here in her room with tears brimming in her 
eyes.

Ayeka had loved two men in her lifetime. Once she came to earth, 
she began to wonder if she had just fallen in love with Yosho 
because it was convenient. Tenchi had touched a different part of 
her soul, but it was a feeling that she hadn't had before, so she 
did not know how to clarify it. 

How deep was her love for Tenchi? How deep was his love for her? 
What if he didn't love her in that way at all?

Sasami said something about dinner and left the room. Ayeka didn't 
really pay attention, nor did she move. Her eyes turned towards 
the window and the evening sky. 

Finally, a tear rolled down her cheek.

"Tenchi, no matter what, I will always love you..."

She knew that was true, even if she had to love him...as a friend...

*

Tenchi was now rocking back and forth gently with Ryoko pressed 
protectively against his chest. One of his hands stoked her hair 
and he rubbed his cheek against the top of her head. He was 
content to simply sit here and hold her forever. The air was 
growing colder and the sky was getting darker, but he did not 
move. Likewise, Ryoko did not stir in his arms. He thanked the 
stars for that.

It seemed to him that if he let go of her, she'd disappear 
forever. He now recalled the words that she'd spoken this 
morning...that seemed ages ago. Ryoko said that she would leave. 
After the events of this day, Tenchi could never imagine his life 
without her. He couldn't fathom waking up and not having her 
hovering over him. There could never be a day that she and Ayeka 
did not fight. 

Yes, all of that was a bit of a pain, but it must never change...at 
least in the respect that Ryoko should always be there. And now 
Tenchi knew that he had to be there for her every moment of every 
day. He wanted her next to him just as she was now. All of the 
days of her arrogance flooded back to him. Was that all that he'd 
ever really seen in her? 

Things would be different now. Everything had to change...

But did he want it to change?

Ryoko's friendship was one that he valued above many others. True, 
whenever Ayeka was around they would fight, but there were times 
when they'd been alone together. Now Tenchi realized that this 
wasn't the first time that he'd seen a softer side of Ryoko. Nor 
was it the first time that she'd seemed so gentle and frail.

Visions of her sweet smiles and gentle laughter filled his head. 
There had been a few occasions that she'd seemed to be an angel. 
However, most of the time, she behaved like a child. She was never 
candid about her emotions, and as a result, she was quite 
aggressive.

What was going to happen when this was all over? Would that softer 
side take up permanent residence, or would she hide her true 
feelings from him again? As Tenchi thought of his life since he 
met Ryoko, he wondered what he would do now. Evening was giving 
way to night, and they had to get back to the house.

Perhaps he should try to speak again. If he couldn't push her 
away, then maybe he could just talk for a while. Then Ryoko would 
probably get bored with his pointless conversation and just leave. 
Yes, that had to be the answer he'd been looking for all this 
time. 

Tenchi opened his mouth, but then shut it immediately. What could 
he say? How could he properly formulate what he wanted to say into 
words? His face quickly adopted that dumb stare that everyone gets 
when they're puzzling over something that they know they're never 
going to figure out. 

"Ryoko?" Somehow, his jaw had moved, and now he had his hands on 
her shoulders. They were almost shaking because they wanted to 
hold her again. Tenchi had no idea how he was able to do this, 
even though it was a very simple act.

However, Ryoko did not let go of the back of his shirt. She would 
not let him see her tear stained face again. There was too much 
pride in her heart to reveal her true emotions. She couldn't be 
weak. Vulnerability encompassed her entire being, and all that she 
could do was weep. 

("Will you continue to push him away now?")

She wept for herself, for Tenchi, for what she said to Washu, for 
the lives that she herself snuffed out, for wasted time, and she 
wept for the unknown future. Tears that had been held back for so 
long now washed her filthy face as they also cleansed her soul. 
Although there was pain, she also felt joy now, and perhaps 
freedom.

Part of her felt liberated from the past. Tenchi knew, and yet he 
remained with her. For so long she had kept it all from him, and 
then Washu went behind her back and told him the truth.

("And just what have I done other than show him the truth?")

Yes, she showed him the truth. How long was Ryoko planning to hide 
it all from him? 

("But, he also saw the pain...in your eyes...") 

Had Tenchi studied her expression? Had he seen her protests? Had 
he heard her scream? If so, what did he see her as now? There had 
been innocent blood spilt. She'd killed so many people.

("Has he left you? Has he let you go?")

Tenchi was still here...

("Think about that before you throw this time away.")

"Tenchi?"

("Has he left you?")

"Ryoko..."

(Has he let you go?")

He didn't despise her for the crimes of her past life. He stayed 
with her. He'd never held her this tight before...

("Perhaps you are afraid of seeing something in his eyes that 
reflect your own.")

Ryoko's hands flew up to Tenchi's face, and she stared frantically 
into Tenchi's eyes. She wanted so desperately to see the truth 
there. Her eyes darted over every inch of his beautiful face that 
she had ached to stare into for so long. Finally, she concentrated 
on his eyes. They stretched into unimaginable depths of emotion. 

Unreadable...

She didn't know what to look for in those eyes. Love had never 
been set before her, and now she didn't know what she saw there. 
His face clouded over; tears blurred her vision of his gentle 
features.

Tenchi's heart felt as though it would erupt from his chest if he 
didn't do something. She looked so hopelessly lost, and tears were 
brimming in her beautiful cat-like eyes. He wanted to lose himself 
forever in her gaze. This space pirate had captured him now, and 
he was helpless under her gaze. 

One of his hands moved slowly up her arm. Their eyes never moved. 
It reached her neck and moved up to caress her cheek. Ryoko's 
breath quickened for a moment. His fingertips stretched up over 
her face and into her hair.

Ryoko's eyelids fluttered.

Tenchi's mind surrendered. The battle could no longer go on this 
way, and madness was tearing at his being. His hand pushed further 
through her hair and gripped the back of her head. She pulled 
herself closer as their hearts thundered against each other.

He leaned close enough to feel her breath on his lips. They both 
paused and gazed into each other's eyes, and Ryoko saw it there. 
She recognized it completely, because she could see her own 
reflection in his glistening eyes. His eyes reflected her own...

("Perhaps you are afraid of seeing something in his eyes that 
reflect your own.")

They both moved in the same moment, and their lips pressed 
passionately together. Ryoko and Tenchi both released their tears 
as their hearts beat together. Their arms and souls were entwined 
now. In this moment, they forgot all of the laws, all of the 
boundaries, all of the consequences, all of the pain, and they 
forgot the past. It didn't matter.

In this moment, everything was perfect.

In this moment, they were together.

In this moment, nothing mattered...except what they had read in 
each other's eyes.

In this moment, nothing mattered, except love...

*

All traces of the sun finally vanished from the sky. It was 
finished. The world finally let the heavens rest. 

The day was done.

All was right with the world...

Now the stars spread across the sky to fill the hearts of those 
who saw. 

However, for now the world rested. 

A day of beauty had passed, and yet another one lay just over the 
horizon...

*

                        THE END

*

(Sigh) And so ends my Tenchi tale.

Um, well, a lot of thought went into this chapter, and I hope that 
it was as fulfilling as I wanted it to be.

I had thought of continuing the story, and perhaps in the future I 
will do so. However, I am quite content with how it stands. I 
really hoped that you liked it!

And now for the usual stuff:

PLEASE write to me, because I love it so much! Even if you hate my 
story, please write to me so I can do better in the future. 
(horse_w_no_name@cheerful.com) Also, be sure to visit my web page.

http://www.fortunecity.com/rivendell/elfin/311/

And thank you to the countless people who have written to me about 
my story. It has been you guys who actually inspired me to write 
something!

Till next time!

Yours in writing,

Horse_w_no_name