We Belong...

					Evening

   "Here you are!"  Ryoko declared, drifting down from the sky.  Tenchi was sitting on the 
stones outside of Ryoko's cave.  
   "Oh.  Hi, Ryoko."
   "Tenchi, everyone's out looking for you.  You've been gone for hours!"  She settled onto 
the stones beside him.  She looked worried, though she sounded relieved.  "Is anything wrong?"
   "No, nothing is wrong.  It's just that, whenever I've faced a big decision, or some big 
change in my life, I've always come here to think about it."
   "I know.  I remember some of those times.  Would you rather be alone?"
   "No.  Actually, I'd rather you stayed."
   She snuggled up against him.  "It's a beautiful night."
   "Yes, it is.  It's so quiet up here."
   "It's too quiet.  This place gives me the creeps."
   "Oh, I don't know.  I've always found this place comforting."  He took her hands in his.
   "You weren't locked away here for 700 years."
   "No, but I found you here, didn't I?  I think I've always known you were here, waiting 
for me."
   "It's a prison, Tenchi."
   "No, it's a cocoon.  It's where you changed from an evil demon into a beautiful angel."  
And then he kissed her.  It was clumsy, and hesitant, as all first kisses are.  She would 
remember it for the rest of her life.
   "I'm sorry I don't have an engagement ring for you to wear."
   "Don't be sorry.  You told me today what I wanted to hear more than anything else."  She 
grinned at him.  "And I sure would like to hear it again..."
   Tenchi smiled.  "I love you, Ryoko."  
   She giggled and put her head on his shoulder.   
   "And you said something I wanted to hear."
   "What was that?"
   "You called us your family."
   "I guess change is in the air," she said.  And then he was kissing her again; still shy, 
still nervous, but with a bit more confidence.
   "Gee, that could get habit forming," She said afterwards.
   "Do you want me to stop?"
   "No.  Never."  She reached for him, her passion rising, but her instinct told her to Go 
Slowly - she didn't want to scare him away now, just when he was finally opening up.  "I've 
been dreaming of this night for ages," she said finally.   "Why did you wait so long?"
   "It felt right."  He shrugged.  "If you hadn't been so aggressive chasing me all this 
time, it might have happened earlier."
   That clinches it, she thought, one step at a time.  She forced her breathing to slow down, 
but her heart was singing nonetheless.
   "We should probably be going back," he said.  "The others will be worrying about us."
   "I don't care.  I don't want to go back.  I don't want to share you with anybody."
   "You should be glad you are."
   "Tenchi!  How can you say that?"
   "Because you're a hunter, and a fierce competitor.  You're happiest when you're winning.  
After a few months alone with me, you would soon get bored.  And then we would both be 
unhappy."
   "Tenchi, I waited two thousand years for you.  I don't think I'd tire of you so easily."
   He shrugged.  "We have a saying here on Earth: 'Absence makes the heart grow fonder.'  
Maybe you should think less about our times apart, and make plans for our times together."  
He kissed her again, brushing strands of hair from her face.  "Come on."  He stood and 
helped her to her feet.
   "You want to walk?  Why don't I just fly us?  It's faster."
   "I'm in no hurry."
   "Neither am I," she decided.  She was already walking on air.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Author's Notes

As is usual, I came late to the party.  I watched the 13 "Tenchi Muyo" OAV episodes with my 
youngest daughter (a teenager) and got hooked, and then discovered it is ten years old and 
out of fashion in Japan these days (spring, 2001).  It appears to be going through a twilight 
period of sorts here in the States, but having watched a couple of the movies and some of 
the television episodes, I have to say a good story has been terribly diluted by all the 
mutations to other mediums.  How sad. 

So, call me a purist.  I'll stick with the OAVs, and mourn what might have been. 

This story was conceived as the kind of conclusion I would have liked to see.  Knowing the 
Asian penchant for tragic endings, though, it would probably have never happened this way. 

I've done some writing in the past, but I've never tried my hand at playing with other 
people's characters before.  A bit of a challenge, but I don't think I did any serious 
damage. 

The characters of Tenchi Muyo (with the exception of Baron Kitsune) were created by Hiroki 
Hayashi, and brought to North America by Pioneer LDC.  This story, while incorporating names 
and situations held under copyright by others, is copyright 2001 by Jeffery L. Harris. 

This story comes entirely from my imagination, and is not, nor intended to be, cannon.  
Please do not send the legions of lawyers after me...it's not worth their time, or mine. 

Any questions or comments should be directed to:

Jeffery L Harris
JLHOnami@aol.com
Subject: "We Belong..."