Shanghaied

A Tenchi Muyo! fanfic by June "KaraOhki" Geraci

February 16, 2003

Revised April 16, 2012

As you can see, I wrote this a very long time ago, and it's been quietly sitting in my "projects" folder, waiting for me to blow off the dust and get it ready to be read.

Tenchi doesn't belong to me, but to Hiroki Hayashi, Masaki Kajishima, AIC and Pioneer. This story was written for entertainment purposes only, and may not be used commercially.

Sometimes I can't believe so much time has passed. It seems like yesterday that all of these people came to live with me. Then I have to remind myself that I was a high school student then, and I've just completed my first year of college.

I didn't anticipate how much work college would be. It will be good to go home, and rest.

"He's going to sit by me!" Ayeka's already red face got even redder as she stood up to yell at Ryoko.

"Like hell he is!" Tenchi could see tendrils of smoke coming from Ryoko's ears, and flinched. The display, however, didn't seem to affect Ayeka at all, and she pushed the other woman away.

Tenchi kept a neutral expression on his face, wondering to himself why he'd thought home would ever be peaceful. He went around to the far side of the table, and tapped his father on the shoulder. "Dad, would you mind moving over? I've got a lot to tell you and Grandpa, and it would be easier if I sat here."

The girls stopped sniping at each other, and both opened their mouths to object to the new seating arrangements. Before either could make a sound, two voices interrupted.

"I'm sorry I'm late! I had to save my data before I could come upstairs. Welcome home, Tenchi!"

Tenchi smiled. "Thanks, Washu."

"Here's dinner!" preceded Sasami's entrance into the kitchen. She was wearing a large apron with a picture of a carrot on it, and carrying a steaming platter. "I hope everyone's hungry!"

"Miya!" RyoOhki followed behind Sasami, and hopped into Tenchi's lap. "Miya! Miya!"

"Yes, I missed you, too." Tenchi scratched the cabbit behind the ears, and was rewarded with a purr.

Conversation died until everyone had taken the edge off their hunger. Sasami's meals were always wonderful, and her special welcome home dinner for Tenchi was even more so. Then Tenchi's grandfather turned to him.

"What did you wish to talk to me about?"

"I was trying to plan my vacation time."

"What did you have in mind?"

Tenchi glanced at the girls, who were hanging on his every word. "I figured you'd need my help at the shrine, and I'll be working in the fields, too. Will you have time to practice with me?"

"I'll always have time to practice with you. I hope you haven't neglected it while you were away."

"I practiced as much as I could, Grandpa, but I had a pretty heavy schedule."

"What about me?"

Tenchi turned to Ayeka. "Pardon me?"

"What about me? I haven't seen you in months!"

"Neither have I!" stated Ryoko, folding her arms and looking at Tenchi sternly. "You can't neglect me!"

The conversation deteriorated rapidly into a shouting match between the two girls. Tenchi got to his feet, and shouted at both of them.

"Whose fault is it that you haven't seen me? My school banned you from the campus because of the way you behaved when you visited!"

"Now, now, Tenchi. It's not every young man who has such lovely ladies fighting over him. Enjoy yourself!"

Tenchi glared at his father. "I don't enjoy it." Then he left the room without another word.

The woods were dark and sweet-smelling. At this distance from the house, the lighted windows looked warm and welcoming, but Tenchi kept walking in the other direction. He eventually stopped and climbed up into a tree. He sat there, looking at the stars, and wondering if his entire vacation would be this tumultuous.

"Miya!" RyoOhki stood at the foot of the tree, her front legs scrabbling at the bark. "Miya?"

"Did Ryoko send you looking for me?"

"Miya!" The tone of voice was definitely negative.

"Then who?"

"Tenchi? What are you doing up there?" Sasami stood at the foot of the tree. Instead of a kimono, she was wearing a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt. "I saved you some dessert."

"Thanks, Sasami. Maybe later."

"Can I come up? I promise not to be a bother."

Tenchi climbed down and boosted Sasami into the tree. She felt a little heavier than she had a few months earlier, and he realized that she'd grown somewhat taller. Once she was settled on a branch, he climbed back up and sat beside her.

"Why are you hiding here?"

"I'm not-" he paused, and looked away. "Yeah, I guess I am hiding. I wish I could figure out what to do when they fight."

"I don't know, either. Big Sister can be very stubborn, and Ryoko is just as bad. I made them promise to be nice today, but they didn't keep the promise very well."

"You did?"

Sasami nodded. "I tried, Tenchi. I wanted your first day home to be a good one."

"That was very sweet of you. Thank you."

It didn't get any better. In fact, it got worse. Several days later Tenchi got so fed up with the situation that he raided the kitchen, packed some food, and vanished. He didn't return until well after dark, and found everyone waiting for him. Ryoko and Ayeka looked unusually subdued. Both apologized to him, and begged his forgiveness.

"Just let me by. I need some sleep." Tenchi brushed by both girls, and made his way to his room.

The next morning a soft tap on his door at an unusually early hour woke Tenchi. "Who's there?" he asked angrily.

"It's just me. Sasami."

"Oh!" Tenchi got up and opened the door, and Sasami slipped inside. "Did you need something?"

"Shh!" Sasami put her finger to Tenchi's lips. "I want you to get dressed, and meet me in the carrot field."

"But-"

"No questions! Just hurry, before anyone else gets up!"

Tenchi dressed rapidly, as he wondered what could possibly be wrong at the carrot field. Had RyoOhki gone on a rampage during the night? Had they been invaded by alien rabbits? In his experience, anything might have happened.

The sun was coming up as Tenchi approached the field, and its first rays showed him that the carrot field was undamaged. Sasami was standing in the center of the field, wearing a sundress, a hat, and a light sweater. RyoOhki was on her shoulder. As he got nearer, she took the cabbit from her shoulder, and tossed her into the air. RyoOhki transformed into a spaceship.

"Hurry! Let's go!" Before Tenchi could object, Sasami was hustling him on board. "Go, RyoOhki, go!" The ship took off just as Tenchi spotted several figures running toward the carrot field. Sasami grinned. "We did it!"

"We did what? Where are we going?"

"RyoOhki, do you remember where we're going?"

"Miya!"

"Good." Sasami sat down, and gestured Tenchi to a seat. "We are going on vacation."

"Vacation?"

"Yes. Somewhere quiet and peaceful."

"Until they find us, you mean."

Sasami giggled. "How, Tenchi? We've got their transportation."

"Um-"

The beach house was nestled right in the dunes. A wooden walkway led to the shore. Tenchi carried the suitcases and groceries up the walkway, and Sasami let them into the house. RyoOhki transformed back to cabbit form, and hopped behind them.

"You planned all this?"

"Sure." Tenchi looked at Sasami skeptically. "What? Don't you think I could? I'm not a little kid."

"Right."

"Your room's over there. Why don't you go for a swim while I put the groceries away?"

"Don't you want any help?"

Sasami just pushed him into his room.

The sand was soft and warm under Tenchi's feet as he walked to the water. He looked to both sides, but could see no signs of other houses on the beach. No other footprints were on the sand, and the sound of the waves was the only thing Tenchi could hear. He ran the last few steps to the sea, and threw himself in.

Fifteen minutes later, Tenchi left the water and went up onto the porch. He found a couple of folding lounge chairs on the porch, carried them back down to the shore, and stretched out on one. He was half asleep when he heard Sasami's voice.

"Did you enjoy your swim?"

Tenchi opened his eyes, blinked, and rubbed them. Sasami had abandoned her little girl clothes, and was wearing a swimsuit that proved she was no longer a little girl. It wasn't that the suit was daringly cut-it was a simple one piece-but Sasami was usually well covered, and Tenchi hadn't noticed that she had filled out. In fact, she filled the suit quite well. Tenchi also noted that Sasami had abandoned her little-girl pigtails for a long braid.

"Y-yes. It was fun."

"Good! I'm going in."

Tenchi scrambled out of the chair. "You shouldn't swim alone. I'll come with you."

Sasami may have told Tenchi that she was "not a little kid," but she didn't allow that to prevent her from playing like one. After a swim, and a no-holds-barred splashing contest, she pulled him onto the sand at the edge of the water and began constructing a huge sand castle. By the time the sun had reached its highest point in the sky, the castle was finished, complete with a surrounding wall and a moat. Sasami stood, and rinsed her hands and arms in the sea.

"I'm hungry," she announced. "Want some lunch?"

It was much too pretty out to even consider eating inside, so the pair made some sandwiches and lemonade and carried everything out onto the porch. Then it seemed only natural that they should sit in the rocking chairs and relax, while RyoOhki explored the dunes below them. She had become fascinated with crabs, and kept chasing them into their holes, unable to catch one.

"Do you think they're angry at us?" asked Tenchi.

"Probably," replied Sasami. "Does that bother you?"

"A little."

"Don't let it spoil your fun. Maybe they'll learn something from this."

Tenchi raised an eyebrow. "When did you become so grown up?"

Sasami sighed. "Everybody thinks I'm just a little kid. They forget how much time has gone by since we came to live with you, and I let them. I guess it's partly my fault."

"I don't understand."

"It's easier that way. I know where I fit in your house. I'm Sasami, the little girl who cooks dinner, and plays with the cabbit, and is always cheerful and friendly. But I can't be a little girl forever. I've grown up, and I need to act like it. So this vacation is for me, too. I'm going to practice wearing grown up clothes, and acting grown up. What do you think?"

"I'm going to miss little Sasami, but I think I'll like the new you. There's just one thing I want you to do."

"What's that?"

Tenchi grinned. "Don't forget how to play. Just because you're all grown up doesn't mean you can't."

Sasami held out her hand, and Tenchi shook it. "It's a deal," she said.

Tenchi soon fell asleep where he sat, and Sasami went into the house. She put on a hat, found a small bucket, and headed down to the shoreline. By the time Tenchi woke and went looking for her, she had nearly filled it with seashells.

"What do you have there?"

"I found some shells. These are really pretty!" Sasami pulled one out, and handed it to Tenchi.

"That's huge! What's it called?"

"That's a cockle. And this one," Sasami pulled out another shell, and handed it to Tenchi, "is a conch. It's hard to find ones that aren't broken, because the surf usually throws them up on the shore too hard."

"Where'd you find it?"

Sasami pointed down the beach. "I found a tidal pool, and the shells were just sitting there, in shallow clear water. It's like they were waiting for me to pick them up."

"Show me?"

The days blended one into the other. Tenchi discovered a fishing pole in one of the closets, and tried his hand at surfcasting. That night, he and Sasami feasted on fresh fish, cooked outdoors over a wood fire. They played together, sat side-by-side reading on the porch, and just enjoyed the solitude.

RyoOhki was content to run back and forth on the beach. She seemed to consider the incoming tide a threat, running from each wave as it came up, and 'chasing' it as it went back. She also continued her attempts to catch crabs. Her obsession with them had grown to the point where she would stick her paws into the holes they retreated into, trying to grab them.

One afternoon, Tenchi and Sasami watched from the porch as RyoOhki chased a crab down its hole, and tried to dig it up. She had her nose to the hole, sniffing inside, when the crab came out its back door. The pair on the porch held their breaths as the crab came up behind RyoOhki, waving its claws. The cabbit didn't seem to notice, and began digging at the hole again. The crab was having none of that. No one was going to dig up its home! It reached out, and grabbed RyoOhki by the tail with its claw.

"MIYA!" RyoOhki shook the crab loose, howled, and ran straight into the sea, where she sat and soaked her sore bottom. Tenchi and Sasami laughed until they cried, which had the unfortunate consequence of insulting the cabbit, who sulked for the rest of the afternoon.

"It's been two weeks, you know." Tenchi finished drying the last dish and handed it to Sasami, who put it in the cupboard.

"Yes. It went too quickly. I suppose we should go back."

"I'll start cleaning up. If we get everything packed tonight, we can go home in the morning."

"Can we have a last bonfire on the beach tonight?"

Tenchi smiled. Sasami had sounded very much like a little girl when she asked that. "Of course."

Everyone was having breakfast when the travelers returned home. The sound of laughter coming from outside had them out of the house in mere seconds, where they stopped short and stared.

Tenchi was carrying his suitcase and Sasami's. He looked relaxed, and very tanned. However, no one was really looking at him. They were too busy staring at Sasami. What had happened to the little girl who left them two weeks ago? Instead of her, a young lady was walking towards them. She was wearing a pair of jeans, rolled up nearly to her knees, showing shapely, tanned legs, and a bright pink tee. Instead of the usual pigtails, her hair was hanging loose around her shoulders.

"Where have you been! I've been worried sick!" shouted Ayeka, as she grabbed her sister's arm.

Sasami calmly nodded, and loosened Ayeka's grip on her. "Tenchi needed some quiet, and I needed some rest. I have been working very hard, Big Sister."

Ayeka blushed. In the two weeks since her sister had vanished, she and Ryoko found themselves appreciating just how hard Sasami did work. "Yes. Yes, you do work hard. D-did you enjoy your rest?"

"We had a lovely time, thank you." Sasami walked past everyone, and into the house.

Washu stood there, holding her hand to her lips, and trying hard not to laugh as she watched Tenchi follow behind, carrying their things. She noticed Tenchi's grandfather standing off a little to the side, observing the scene before him, and approached him. She gestured to Sasami, who was just vanishing into the house. "What do you think?"

"I don't think the boy stands a chance."

Thank you for reading - comments are always welcome.