I don't own these characters or profit from them.



Tenchi's heart (My apology for the Ripping Friends fic)
By, Clayton Overstreet



  "Do you Aeka Jurai swear to live together with Tenchi Masaki from now unto 
eternity?"
  "I do." Aeka said.
  "And do you Tenchi?"
  "Yes, from now to forever." His voice seemed to echo as he spoke. He 
turned and kissed Aeka on the lips.

  Ryoko sat up moaning in sudden pain. She blinked as her eyes adjusted to 
the darkness. She'd been having that dream again and rolled off of her beam 
over the livingroom. Rubbing her head she started to get up.
  Something crashed behind her. Jerking her head around she saw Tenchi had 
fallen over the couch. "Ryoko? Are you okay? I heard you scream."
  Resisting the urge to pinch his butt she helped him stand up. "It's 
nothing Tenchi. I just rolled over in my sleep."
  "If you want you can sleep in my bed." Before she could comment he added. 
"I'll take the floor, I really don't mind."
  She smiled and leaned against him. "You know we could share a bed Tenchi. 
I wouldn't mind at all."
  Tenchi gulped. "But, but Ryoko it wouldn't be..."
  Ryoko put a finger on his lips and put her face next to his. "It only 
isn't proper if you don't want to do it Tenchi. I want to do it. Don't you?"
  He took a slow breath and was about to speak when he noticed Mihoshi 
stirring on the couch. She turned and looked up at them with a dull smile. 
"Hey guys. What are you up to?"
  "I was just making sure Ryoko was alright." He said quickly. "Well 
goodnight." He turned and ran up the stairs.
  Ryoko groaned and shot a look at Mihoshi. She smiled back and said, "Wow 
Ryoko you look like that Shido guy from Nightwalker."
  "Oh shut up. You ruined my chance of getting Tenchi."
  "I'm sorry," She yawned and lay back down. "I didn't mean..." Snores came 
over the couch.
  Ryoko groaned and flew out of the house and to the lake outside. She 
landed in the middle of the lake and sat down as if it were glass. The dream 
shot through her mind again as she lookedup at the moon over the house. For 
a brief moment she thought she saw Tenchi looking at her from his window. He 
smiled and then turned away into the dark of the room.

  "Goodmorning lord Tenchi." Aeka said from the breakfast table as he came 
downstairs.
  "Hi everyone. I can't stay to eat, I have to get to the shrine early 
today."
  Sasami looked up at him. "Tenchi, please let me cook something today."
  "No it's your day off and dad is taking you out for some fun." He said 
sternly. "We won't let you work yourself to death."
  "Okay." She said. Ryo-oki hopped into her lap and meowed.
  "Lord Tenchi?" Aeka said nervously.
  "Yes princess?" Tenchi asked as he walked to the door.
  She blushed. "Would you like to go on a picnic with me later?"
  Ryoko growled but he said, "Sure Aeka that sounds fun." Then he was gone 
before they could talk.
  Ryoko stared in shock and tears formed in her eyes. She made a few 
strangled noises in her throat and everyone turned to look at her. She 
looked back for a minute then disappeared without saying anything.
  Aeka smirked. "Well that'll teach her."
  "Aeka!" Sasami snapped.
  "What?"

  Ryoko screamed and pounded her fist into the rocks again and again. She'd 
been tearing up the cave for over three hours. The mechanisms that moved the 
boulders around, the tiny house the sword had been in, and the pit she'd 
been confined to were crushed to tiny pieces.
  "That bitch! I'll tear her arms off!" She punched another boulder smashing 
it to pieces. "And 'him'! That bastard agreed to go out with her!" She 
kicked a rock, which went up through the roof, into the atmosphere, and 
knocked a CIA spyplane into crashing in China then knocked the satalight for 
'Lifetime'out of orbit.
  Ryoko growled and made her hands into fists. Tears fell from her eyes as 
she looked at her reflections in the gems on her wrists.
  Suddenly she blinked and her eyes opened wide, clearing. "What the..." Her 
hand went to her kneck and she found the third gem. "When did he... does he 
want me to leave? Is that why he gave them back?" She shook her head, 
thinking about what she knew of Tenchi. "No if he wanted me to leave he 
wouldn't have sent Sasami and Ryo-oki away. I need to talk to him."
  She disappeared through the ceiling just before the cave collapsed in on 
itself.

  Tenchi took a bite of the turkey sandwich he was eating and leaned against 
the tree. "Mmm, this isn''t bad Aeka. I'm glad you decided to keep things 
simple."
  "What's that supposed to mean?" Aeka asked.
  He gulped and tried to think up an excuse. "Oh, grapes." He reached out 
and plucked one. Tossing it into the air he caught it and swallowed.
  "Would you like me to feed them to you?"
  He looked at her oddly. "Why would you want to do that?"
  "Well that's what you do on a date right?"
  Tenchi shrugged and took another bite of his sandwich. He swallowed before 
answering. "I suppose so, but like I said, why would you want to do that? 
It's not like this is a date or anything."
  Aeka stuttered for a second. "What? Of course it is a date."
  Tenchi's eyes bulged and he began choking. Beating his chest until the 
food went down he took a gasp of air and stared at her. "Aeka what are you 
talking about? I mean I know you like to tease Ryoko about me being a 
replacement for my grandfather, but..."
  "Tease?" She asked sounding insulted. "I was being completely serious."
  "But Aeka we talked about this. In the cabin, that time you twisted your 
ankle."
  She blinked and looked confused. "I told you that it wasn't unusual for 
Juraians to marry close relatives."
  "You also said you knew that people on Earth don't do that. I thought we 
had an understanding."
  "But you are Juraian... the crown prince" She began.
  He sat back chewing on his lip. "Not really Aeka. I have no intention of 
ever taking control of the universe."
  "But when you marry me I will be queen and you will be king." She said, 
her face blushing red at the thought.
  "Aeka I told you, I'm not going to marry you." He said quickly. "You're my 
aunt for crying out loud. Anyway what about Ryoko?"
  "What about her?" Aeka asked suddenly angry again.
  He blinked. "You mean you don't... I mean Mihoshi and Sasami figured it 
out when I gave her gems back. They've been teasing me about it for months. 
That's why I've been trying to avoid talking about it infrot of..." He 
trailed off when he saw the tears start. "Aeka I'm so sorry. I had no idea 
you were being serious!"
  Suddenly her face became calm as her training took over and she looked at 
the food, avoiding Tenchi's eyes. "I... I am sorry for presuming on you Lord 
Tenchi. I can't say I am not hurt, but I understand." Her mouth twitched 
slightly and she pulled back when he put a hand on her shoulder. "Please 
Lord Tenchi..."
  "Aeka." He said sadly.
  She looked at him and saw the look in his eyes. Without thinking she 
smiled a bit. "Can you just tell me why you would pick that... that monster 
over me? Was it just beause we're related?"
  He sat back and looked up at the sky. "Well... because she' Ryoko. She is 
a little rough around the edges sometimes, but you have to understand that I 
never met the monster you say destroyed your planet unless you count that 
brief time when Kagato was here. Even then she was fighting him every step 
of the way." A calm smile spread over Tenchi's face as he spoke and Aeka was 
transfixed. "Have you ever seen her when she is asleep or when she thinks 
nobody is looking?"
  Aeka shook her head and spoke quietly. "Since I've been here she's been on 
her beam. All I ever saw was... well I suppose, it was really Kagato but..."
  He nodded absently. "I understand, it was a first impression. But I have 
learned not to judge people by how they act when you don't know them. You 
and Ryoko both almost killed me if you remember."
  She blushed again and took a grape to avoid answering.
  "Well the first time I saw Ryoko she was a mummy. I usually thought about 
when we were at the school, but the very first thing she did was try to kiss 
me." The smile vanished. "I didn't know what I was doing, but when she did I 
hurt her with the sword because I was afraid. When I realized that I felt 
like the lowest piece of dirt on the planet."
  Aeka thought about the times Ryoko had saved her life and then the fights 
she'd continued to have with her. "I think I can guess."
  "Well anyway I love all of you girls. You're all great and I couldn't 
imagine life without any of you."
  "But why are you in love with her?" She snapped. "Why not anyone else?"
  He took a deep breath and said something he had never thought he would. "I 
could never love anyone else like that. She's Ryoko... I can't explain it. 
It's not just one thing. Why did you fall in love with grandpa?"
  "He was tall, handsome, caring, and engaged to me when I was born." She 
said flatly.
  "Oh. Well Ryoko is absolutely gorgeous... I still don't know why she'd be 
interested in me."
  "She told me once." Aeka whispered. "She said that she watched you from 
the cave your whole life. She told me that she'd been in love with you since 
you were a baby."
  Tenchi blushed. "Um, did she give any specific examples?"
  "A few. Being carried by your grandmother, camping, chasing dragonflies, 
and such." She noticed his relief and asked, "Why do you ask?"
  His blush deepend to dark red, but he went pale as a voice came from 
behind him. "Because he didn't know I was there those times he borrowed his 
father's comics."
  Tenchi clenched his hand smashing the forgotten sandwich. "Hello Ryoko."
  "Aren't you even wondering how long I have been here?" She asked and sat 
down next to him.
  He smiled, still looking at Aeka. "Oh I think I can guess."
  The princess glared at Ryoko and was about to say something, but stopped. 
For just a brief moment something flickered in her eyes. She imagined how 
she would picture Ryoko if this were the first time ever seeing her.
  "I'm going to go back to the house now." Aeka said standing up. She bowed 
to each of them and disappeared into the bushes.
  "Um, about those comics." Tenchi began.
  "I thought it was kind of cute." Ryoko said. "You know, I didn't even 
notice the gems until today."
  He looked surprised. "Really? You always seemed so interested in them."
  "It was a nice excuse." She said.
  "You didn't need an excuse." He said softly. Tenchi felt Ryoko put her arm 
around his and was momentarily blinded by her hair as she lay her head in 
his shoulder.
  They sat there for a very long time. Tenchi wasn't even sure when the sun 
had set. All he knew was that Ryoko was there with him. That she knew how he 
felt and that he had already said anything he needed to.
  "You know I just realized that Aeka left us with her dirty dishes." Ryoko 
said into his neck. "But for some reason I don't really mind."
  He nodded and absenty ran his hand down her back. "Me either."
  "Washu has been telling me to do something for a while now."
  "I think we have been, don't you?"
  She nodded and turned to look at his face. "Everything I've ever wanted." 
Ryoko kissed him on the lips and almost melted against him when his lips 
pressed back. After a brief moment she pulled back to look at him again. "I 
love you."
  "I love you too Ryoko."
  "You know it would be a shame to let all of this food go to waste." She 
said.
  Reaching down Tenchi picked up a grape and looked at it. "You're right." 
Smiling he held it out to her.
  Ryoko grinned, opened her mouth and wrapped her lips around the grape and 
the tips of his fingers. Slowly she sucked it into her mouth and pulled 
back. With a grin she swallowed the grape and they began getting more food 
and talking long into the night.

The end

Authors note
  Like I was going to have Tenchi marry Aeka. I am so very sorry about the 
Ripping Friends thing I did. I hope you accept this as an apology. Email 
your thoughts to clayton_n@hotmail.com