* * * * * * * * * * * * * * S U N D A Y M O R N I N G * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Sasami found the note first. Like she usually did on Sunday Mornings, she slept a bit later, then meandered down to the kitchen to start on breakfast. That's when she found Tenchi's note. It was short: Gone hiking, back by supper. Tenchi It was apparent that he had packed a lunch. He must have risen r-e-a-l-l-y early to complete his preparations and leave undetected. He even got past Ryoko, who was still snoring loudly from her rafter. This was so unlike him, she thought. She was still pondering it when Yosho wandered in. "Good morning, Sasami." "Good morning, Yosho. Did you see this?" She passed him the note. "No, but I heard him leave." "This isn't like Tenchi. Is something bothering him?" "Is there something wrong with Tenchi?" Ayeka asked from the doorway. Yosho passed her the note. "I think he has much on his mind after yesterday's experiment," Yosho replied. "Where's Tenchi?" Ryoko asked, yawning loudly. "He's not in his room." Ayeka passed her the note. Mihoshi wandered in, taking her usual seat at the table. "What's up?" "Which direction did he go?" Ryoko asked. She handed the note to Mihoshi. Yosho shrugged. Noriyuki entered the kitchen, whistling loudly. "Looking for Tenchi?" "Yes," four female voices answered. "He took off for the south hills about an hour ago. He was stuffing a lunch into his backpack when I saw him." "Think I should go look for him?" Ryoko asked. "No, leave him be. He has some issues on his mind, or he wouldn't be seeking the solitude," Yosho replied. "Which gives us Ladies a chance to talk," announced Washuu from the doorway. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * The water in the onsen rippled as five nearly-naked females settled into it. It didn't take long to adjust towels, open the sake bottles, and get comfortable. "Very well, Washuu, we are all here," Ayeka said. "What is it you wished to discuss?" "Before we get started..." Washuu opened a sub-space pocket and extracted a small device that she set next to the tub. She flipped a switch, igniting a red indicator and small humming sound. "What is that thing?" Ryoko asked. "An energy damper. Now, if your tempers flare, there will be no energy bolts or blades in here. You will have nothing sharper than your tongues." "What did you want to talk to us about?" Mihoshi asked. "Actually, I only have one thing to say, but I'm willing to bet each of you will have something to add to it." "So spit it out," Ryoko said, reaching for a sake refill. "Very well. Each of you heard what Tenchi had to say about us yesterday. He's scared to open up to any of us. Frankly, this competition for him is getting destructive. I think it ought to stop." "That's all very good for you to say," Ryoko replied, "but you don't love him --" "Don't I? Certainly not the way you think of love." "Nobody thinks of love the way she does: pure animal instinct to rut," Ayeka smiled cattily. "Of course, your interests are so much more noble and spiritual..." Ryoko countered. "As a matter of fact, they are." "Oh, get real. You want to roll in the sack with him just like the rest of us. That sounds pretty carnal to me." "You're an expert on carnal knowledge, aren't you? How many thousands of years did you spend on the Souja with Kagato? All those nights with just the two of you. Very educational. And how many times did you service that monster? After so many centuries of dallying about, I'll bet you got the process of regenerating your hymen down to a fine art -- like raising and lowering a window shade. The Eternal Virgin. How do you think Tenchi would feel, knowing that you've been used so often that you're little better than a scabrous, worn-out sewage drain?" "For your information, Little Princess, the proper term is not 'dalliance' but 'rape.' Yes, it happened many times, but I wasn't the only object of his attention. He entertained many guests -- men and women -- before tossing them out the airlock. Of course, that was during the early years, while he was still human, before the Power consumed him. And I was always the tool of last resort. And there was never any pleasure in it." "You don't even know if you're capable of pleasure." "No, but I know who I'm willing to experiment with." "Like he'd have you." "At least he'd know what passion is. You're so uptight and inhibited that you'd squeak like a rusty gate. So cold and calculating, so manipulative." "Is that why you're called The Ice Princess?" Mihoshi interrupted. "Silence, cretin," Ayeka said. "No, I won't. We're talking about Tenchi, not politics, and my opinion is just as valid as yours." "Maybe Tenchi just smells the cloud of pheromones around your empty head. And how many men have you bounced since puberty? No doubt the list is a long one." "It isn't as long as you'd like to think," Mihoshi replied. "At least there was real sentiment involved with each of them, not some political consideration." "Then go ahead and ask Tenchi if he'd settle for being another notch on your lipstick case." "You sure are hung-up on this virginity thing, aren't you?" Ryoko taunted. "But I suppose that's only natural, since the imperial line of succession depends upon who tears that sheet of skin...." Sasami leaned over to whisper to Washuu, "This is getting ugly. Don't you think we ought to stop it?" "No. Sometimes you have to drain the poison out of a wound before it can heal," Washuu whispered back. "I was raised to believe that sex was reserved strictly between husband and wife," Ayeka continued. "Otherwise, there is no significance to the act. Consider this: it drives you to crazy just thinking about Tenchi being with me; how would you feel if he had slept with a whole string of other women? My, where's the significance then, eh? Do his kisses and embraces still sound so inviting if you're just one more bed partner?" Ayeka's taunts had hurt -- Ryoko blanched. "What could you possibly give him that is intimate, and precious, and completely unique between the two of you?" "My love," Ryoko answered softly. Ayeka pondered Ryoko's reply, then said as softly, "Ok, I will give you that point." Turning to Mihoshi, voice hardening, she said, "But not you. You say that you've been 'in love' before. No doubt that justified spreading your legs each time. So, are you going to compare him against the others, and then rate him? Maybe offer him some advice to improve his performance? I'm sure he'll appreciate that." "No," Mihoshi answered. "To be fair, you should give him a few years to play 'catch up,' and a chance to sample the local wildlife. No? I thought not. Tell me, what can you possibly give him that doesn't have other men's fingerprints all over it?" "Children." "Bah! With your promiscuous life-style, children are an accident of timing. It would just be Tenchi's misfortune to be last in line when the birth-control failed." "There wouldn't have been any others if I had met Tenchi first." "That's a worthless argument. You could have stood by your principles and waited for your wedding night, rather than yielding to the heat of the moment. Maybe you haven't noticed, but Tenchi is doing his utmost to stand by his principles." "And I suppose you never had any boyfriends? You never tried to sneak off in the moonlight with one of your suitors?" "Absolutely correct. I stayed true to Yosho. Beside, most of those false-faced fawning fools had no redeeming qualities whatsoever. You may call me pampered, but I was still confined to a prison." "Well, your guards and cell were a lot more pleasant than mine were," Ryoko mumbled absently, pouring herself another sake. "Don't even go there. I'm no murderer, and I left no trail of destruction behind me." "I didn't do those things by choice!" Ryoko exclaimed. "As Tenchi said, 'you have blood on your hands and burns on your soul.'" "He also said they would heal," Mihoshi countered. Ryoko smiled gratefully at her. "Don't you ever get tired of ordering everyone about? It must be terribly difficult here without your household staff tending to your every whim. What have you ever accomplished on your own merits?" "I don't see --" "No, you don't see. You push Tenchi around like just another courtier, and he complies only because he is no nice. Where is there any honest affection in that?" "Humph! This is a fruitless discussion." Washuu whispered to Sasami, who opened another bottle of sake and started refilling cups. "Ryoko, can I ask you a question?" "Of course, Sasami. What is it?" "Why do you drink so much?" "Do you want the daytime answer, or the nighttime answer?" "Both." "Ok," Ryoko replied, sipping her sake. "First the daytime answer. I get a little bored, and baiting your sister is a good way to relieve the tedium until Tenchi gets home from school. Unfortunately, the house usually gets damaged, and we tend to chase Tenchi away...which defeats the whole purpose, I guess." "Then why don't you just leave?" Ayeka asked her. "Ryo-ohki can take you anywhere you want to go." "I'm waiting for Tenchi to make up his mind. And down deep in my soul, I'm just enjoying my freedom. There is no one chasing me, or shooting at me, or trying to control me. If I want to just sit on the roof and watch the clouds, or feel the wind in my hair, then I can do it. It's a wonderful feeling." "What about the nighttime answer?" Sasami prompted. "I drink to stifle the demons that haunt my dreams. Some nights are worse than others, and the alcohol doesn't keep them at bay. Then I'm compelled to wander around --" "-- Up to Tenchi's room." "Yes, Ayeka, up to Tenchi's room. I want to make sure he's still safe. Oh, in my head I know that nothing will happen to him, but my heart is so afraid that something might -- that the one light in my long, miserable life will be taken away or extinguished, and leave me alone and desolate again. So I hover above his bed, and smell him, and listen to his breathing, and watch his face in the moonlight, and wonder what he's dreaming about, and ache to hold him. And then I can relax enough to doze a little...and in my dreams he's there to banish the nightmares and silence the screams and to protect me, if only for a little while. He's my knight in shining armor." "What about you, Ayeka?" Sasami asked. "What about me?" "Why do you drink so much?" Ayeka stirred her sake with her finger. "From the day of my birth, I was baptized in politics and statecraft. The trouble with living at the top of the pyramid is that everyone wants to replace you. Alliances and loyalties can change at the slightest provocation. You can never trust anyone. Those who don't openly covet your position will mask their eyes, and thus their hearts, and thus their agenda. And they all have an agenda. Every opportunity to curry favor is taken, every chance to advance one's position is exploited. Gods, the scheming never stops. You simply cannot imagine the long line of fops and snakes that I have had to associate with. And the few honorable men that I chanced to meet were always in transit, or overawed by the proximity to the throne, or just thoroughly disgusted with the whole bureaucracy. I had no confidants." "What about your father?" Ryoko asked. "My father is generally very stern, very authoritative, very..." "He's a bully." "Thank you, Sasami. Yes, he's a bully. Very charming when that works, very brutish when it doesn't. He's managed to stay on the throne so long because he is a stronger Power adept than anyone else." She smiled. "Except Tenchi; even Father can't summon the Lighthawk Wings. I can just imagine the jealous glint in his eyes when he read Mihoshi's report. I suspect that is why he tried to marry me off to that pink-haired buffoon, Lord Seriyu -- he's afraid of what Tenchi might do if he got really angry...or perhaps what kind of offspring we might produce. Of course, since Yosho's 'disappearance' seven centuries ago, I am first in line for the throne. At least, in theory I'm first in line. In reality, I'm still little more than a commodity to be auctioned off to the most suitable candidate." "And what about Sasami?" Ryoko asked. "A fate destined for Sasami, too, I'm afraid. Her marriage into a noble family will cement yet another political alliance. At least for a while. And as for me, a strong husband will assume the throne in all but name, and I will find myself cast into yet another pampered prison. Not a very encouraging prospect, considering some of the other 'duties' I will be forced to endure. And knowing my father, any suitor he chooses will be a loyal little clone: strong, ambitious, and obsessed." "I'm surprised he allowed you to go chasing off after Yosho." "Well, consider the advantages. I was out of his hair --" "-- We were out of his hair." "Oh, sorry, Sasami. We were out of his hair, and safely asleep aboard one of the empire's toughest tree-ships. There were very few serious threats to us while we searched, and anything Ryu-ho couldn't out-fight she could out-run. And I suspect Father's consorts helped 'persuade' him to leave well enough alone. He knew where we were, so he could worry about other things. (And there is always something to worry about.) Besides, we might have even located Yosho, his preferred successor." She sipped her sake. "So off we went on a desperate search for our half-brother. I had pinned all of my hopes on Yosho, you see, because he was my only friend and my only escape from a life filled with cynicism and deceit and loneliness. I was completely devastated when I thought he was dead. My future looked very bleak." She slammed back the rest of her sake and reached for the bottle. "And then I met my knight in shining armor. His heart was filled with courage, compassion, and kindness, and his eyes brimmed with honesty and honor and humor. And to top it off, not only is he a nobleman, but a kinsman -- Yosho's grandson! He's the answer to every prayer I ever made. I fell in love with him. How could I not? I have been given a second chance at happiness. Some days I simply cannot take my eyes off of him, and I hang on every word he speaks." She raised her drink to her lips, paused, and said, "And if I lose him like Yosho, I fear I will be sucked back into the abyss forever." "What about you, Mihoshi? Why do you drink so much?" "Well, I like the taste, and the buzz is nice." "Is that so different from your normal state of mind?" Ayeka asked dryly. "I'm no idiot, you know. I just get distracted easily, and I have trouble with technical details. It's like a blockage in my brain, the complicated stuff just gets filtered out. My parents put me in therapy for a while, not that I really objected -- that's when they discovered that I was an empath, which explained a lot of the undeveloped higher brain functions. In school I was terrible in the hard sciences, but I excelled in the humanities and literary arts. I won poetry and creative writing contests. Since I am an empath I can analyze people extremely well (I can feel their bottled-up emotions), so I can help them more often than not." "An empath, eh?" Ayeka said. "So why didn't you become a therapist yourself?" "I actually started down that path. That was my major in college, although my science classes were simply horrible," Mihoshi sighed. "Thank the gods for tutors and hypno-cramming." She reached for the sake bottle. "But after a while it got boring. It seemed like such a limited future. I wanted something more, something with a little excitement to it, with travel possibilities, but still with a way to help people. My grandfather suggested the Galaxy Police, so I looked into it and liked what I saw. I added a minor in law enforcement to my studies, graduated, and then went to the GP academy." "So you're an empath. I always wondered why the Galaxy Police accepted you," Ryoko said. "Well, it didn't hurt that my grandfather is the Marshall...." "It still seems like such an odd choice, since you dislike violence so much." "That's the bad side of the job, and fortunately there isn't that much of it." "What about Tenchi?" "He's the only guy I've ever met that really didn't want something from me. Most guys were just trying to get me between the sheets, or used me as the patsy for their jokes and pranks. If I had a credit for every guy that hurt my feelings I'd be richer than a baron. But it's more than gratitude, I think -- I look into his eyes and feel a connection, a linkage, that I've never felt with anyone else. I see you cringe when I say he's my destiny, but I feel intuitively that our futures are bound together. I can't explain it. But it's real. And he's so-o-o nice, and so-o-o cute..." "We noticed," Ryoko and Ayeka drawled. "And I've noticed how much pain you two endure. You have so much in common, despite the outward differences, that you could be close friends. What is so heartbreaking is that because you are rivals for Tenchi, and you are so busy competing with each other, that you don't see the anguish you are causing him. He's not blind or stupid. But why should he show anyone any kind of affection when the price is so high? It's no wonder he runs away -- from his feelings, from That Decision, and sometimes from all of us when the stress level rises." She sipped her sake. "I think we all carry burdens from our past. And maybe we're scared that Tenchi will reject us because of that past." "He really doesn't ask us much about our pasts, does he?" Ryoko said. "No," Ayeka answered. "And that's why he's so special: he just accepts us as we are. Such a rare person..." "Gee, 'Mom,' you sure have been quiet over there. Too much sake?" Ryoko asked, noticing Washuu stirring her sake. "No, I've just been listening." "We've shared our thoughts and concerns, perhaps you should, too." Ayeka suggested. "Yeah, 'Mom.' Let's hear your confession." "I'm afraid you might be rather disappointed." "Let us be the judge of that," Ryoko replied. "Just think of it like taking a turn on a karaoke machine," Mihoshi offered. "I'm not sure that's such a useful analogy," Ayeka hiccuped. "Oh, I don't know. I rather like it. You ladies have been singing for quite a while. Almost in harmony, really." "I don't understand that," Sasami said. "I don't think they do, either, Sasami. Just look for common themes in what they said, almost like a chorus --" "Come on, Washuu, let's hear the Good Stuff," Ryoko splashed a bit of water at her mother. "Ok, what do you want to hear about." Ryoko, Ayeka, Mihoshi: "Tenchi." "He is without a doubt the most interesting, fascinating, loveable person I've met in 20,000 years. And I'm drawn to him, too, although belly-bumping him isn't necessarily the first thing I think of." "But what about that sample you tried to take from him?" Mihoshi asked. "What sample?" Ryoko and Ayeka chorused. "See what I mean about 'harmonizing?' Washuu said to Sasami. Sasami giggled. "Oh, I was just running some medical tests on him after his fight with Kagato. I've never met a Power adept with such capabilities before." "So why did you have him stripped to his underwear?" Mihoshi persisted. "His underwear?!?!" Ryoko and Ayeka chorused. Sasami giggled again. "Relax, ladies. There hasn't been a man in my life in centuries. And the ones that followed my husband were so disappointing I swore off of them." "Not forever, I think," Ryoko said skeptically. "No, not forever. And if Tenchi asked, I would accept. But it seems unlikely. One minute he treats me like a little sister, and the next minute he treats me like a sorceress. He's probably more scared of me than he is of you three combined. It's a stable arrangement for the time being." "How did you fall into Kagato's clutches?" Ayeka asked. "He was a graduate assistant of mine at the time I created Ryoko and Ryo-ohki, and he did some of the detail work on the design of the Souja. I discovered too late that he had several illegal enterprises running on the side. He kidnapped me and Ryoko and Ryo-ohki, and put us in stasis until long after he had built his ship. Ryoko, you may not remember, but I was with you for a little while, back in the very beginning. I raised you until you were a toddler and scampering around the Souja's nursery, because Kagato was too busy and uninterested. But he eventually decided that it was time to take over your training, and when he realized that I wasn't going to help him create others like you, he put me back in that box and threw away the key. I was only dimly aware of what you were doing, what you were feeling, but I was never really cut off from you. I had my own taste of Hell." "I do remember someone singing me to sleep, and cradling me during the dark times. I suppose it was you I cried out for when he beat me and starved me, and later, when he... " Ryoko sobbed. Washuu slid over to comfort her daughter. "It's alright now, Ryoko. Tenchi made sure he will never hurt us again." "Tenchi..." "That's so sad!" Mihoshi wailed. Sasami noticed that Ayeka was sniffling, too. "Are you going to cry like Mihoshi?" "How ridiculous. It must be the sake." "Well, you four are getting awfully flushed, and your speech is starting to slur a little." "There you go. Speaking of sake, this bottle is empty. Can you fetch another from that bucket over there?" "Sure." She climbed out of the pool. "We still haven't resolved the major issue here," Washuu finally said. "You ladies must back off long enough for him to make up his mind." "If he will make up his mind. I just can't bear the thought of being spurned," Ayeka replied. "Neither can I," Ryoko sniffed. "Nor me," Mihoshi said through her sake cup. "No one is asking you to leave him alone. I'm just suggesting that you give him a little more room. Maybe you should look for other distractions. Go into town once in a while. This planet is full of humans, I seem to recall. Some of them might be interesting to talk to. " "None like Tenchi," Ryoko whispered. "Are you looking for his replacement?" "No!" "Then what do you have to lose?" "If he thinks we're losing interest, won't he look elsewhere, too?" Mihoshi asked. "There is that risk. But great risks often bring great rewards," Washuu answered. "This advice sounds peculiar coming from you," Ayeka said. "I've spent some time thinking about what Tenchi said, too. Maybe I do need to see daylight once in a while." She sipped her sake, studying her companions. "What I think is called for here is a non-aggression pact." "A what?" asked Ryoko. "A non-aggression pact. That's where you characters agree to stop fighting in the house, and to settle your little disagreements when Tenchi is not around." "I dunno..." Ryoko hesitated. "You don't have to be Best Buddies, just postpone your arguments 'till he leaves. Besides, the fights are usually over something immediate, and by the time you cool off you can't remember what started them in the first place. Rather juvenile behavior, isn't it?" "I am willing to give it a try," said Ayeka, extending her hand towards Ryoko. "Ok, I guess it can't do any harm." Ryoko shook Ayeka's hand. Washuu noticed Sasami standing by the transparent wall, watching something intently. "What are you looking at, Sasami?" "Tenchi's back." "He is?" Ryoko, Ayeka, and Mihoshi chorused. "He's practicing with Yosho." The others left the pool and stood beside her. On the lawn beside the Masaki house they could see Yosho and Tenchi performing a very slow, synchronized exercise. It was obvious that they were both concentrating very hard. "What are they doing?" Mihoshi asked. "It looks like Tai chi, or a Juraian equivalent," Ayeka answered. "Is it just me, or are Tenchi's hands glowing?" "I believe you're right. Very impressive..." It was then that Tenchi happened to glance upward and see the five nearly-naked half-drunken females watching him. He got flustered and out of step, and Yosho berated him. The Ladies all giggled. "Looks like he's having trouble keeping his focus," Ayeka offered. "So are we," Mihoshi replied solemnly. Ayeka, Ryoko, and Sasami glanced curiously at Mihoshi, but Washuu silently nodded in agreement.