A/N: Sorry that I haven't posted this earlier, but the log in button on the top of the page isn't working for me, and I had to use a workaround with some email alerts. Hopefully they'll fix this soon. Since I haven't had any complaints on characterization yet, I'm going to assume that I'm doing okay so far, and continue as I have been. I have to warn you that from here on out, the cast is going to grow by quite a bit. I'll try not to displace the canon cast, but they will necessarily take a backseat to the new ones, at least initially. Things will eventually return to a semblance of normality, though.

The usual disclaimers here. AIC/Pioneer/Geneon own Tenchi Muyo and the characters therein. Shion and Marta Nys, Li LingLing, and Sylvie belong to Mark Surbrook (whose stuff is on display at h t t p colon /surbrook dot devermore dot net/index/ Take out the spaces, and replace colon with : and dot with . To see the characters I'm talking about check out the Kazei 5 section). Samantha Nys, Yohko, and Azusa are all mine.


Chapter 7: Phone It In


Needless to say, the table was crowded. Or at least it would have been, had Washu not enlarged it and the room temporarily at Tenchi's request. Samantha walked down the stairs and sat down in the available seat between Washu and Seto. The last person thus seated, everyone dug in. Samantha couldn't help but glance every now and then at Azusa and marvel at his resemblance to poor Yoshi, her lost first love. If Yoshi-niichan had lived long enough, he might have looked just like him… Luckily, he seemed oblivious to her glances, but a movement to the side of him caught her attention. She turned her head slightly only to see Seto watching her with a knowing smirk. Samantha blushed furiously and kept her eyes on her food for the rest of the meal.

After the meal, Samantha volunteered to help Sasami in the kitchen with the clean up, and started clearing the table. While they were busy with that, Noike served tea to the royals in the living room. While Samantha was in the middle of washing a dish, she felt a strong presence behind her and turned to see Seto standing there. They were mysteriously alone in the room, and Samantha swallowed hard as the imposing woman came closer.

"So. Care to tell me what you found so interesting about the emperor during dinner?" Seto's tone was calm, but the hard glint in her eyes informed Samantha that she would brook nothing less than the truth from her.

As much as she wanted to look away and escape those hard eyes, Samantha couldn't tear her gaze from them. "I… I guess you should know." She told her an abridged version of her life story, focusing on Yoshi and his relevance in it. She finished by saying, "I just want you to know that it's not going to be a problem. I know he's married, and I've made it a rule to never go after married men. Too much trouble and drama involved in it. Besides, he's what, my brother-in-law now?" She gave a wry smile.

Seto appeared to consider this for a moment. "I suppose this means I'll have to find you a proper suitor sooner rather than later. Just to keep you out of trouble."

Samantha's eyes widened. "No, no, no, no!" She paused when she saw Seto's eyes widen. "What I mean is, you don't have to bother! Really! Like I said, this won't be a problem at all. I was just surprised by the resemblance is all." She could feel the tears start forming at the corners of her eyes unbidden.

Seto walked closer and put her hands on Samantha's shoulders. "You've waited a long time to tell that story, haven't you?"

As she nodded, Samantha replied, "It was almost two years ago, but it feels like yesterday." She shook her head as if to clear it. "I'm sorry. I'm not usually this weepy. There's just something about this place that… well, I feel safe enough to let down my defenses."

Seto enveloped her in a hug. Guess I get to have a few more years of mothering. Seto wasn't displeased by the prospect.


"Are you ready Samantha?" Washu sat on her floating cushion with her ethereal laptop standing by.

"Ready to get my friends out of a hellhole I wouldn't send my worst enemy to? Oh yeah. I'm ready." They had spent the last few days setting up the complicated arrays needed to reach her home dimension.

The first they got a hold of would be her "mother" Shion Nys. Samantha couldn't believe how good it was to hear her husky purr again. Upon picking up the receiver, that sultry voice sent chills down Samantha's spine, just as it always did. "Hello?" Even that simple greeting had sounded like an invitation to so much more.

"Shion? It's Samantha." She hadn't felt this nervous since first meeting her years ago.

"Samantha? Where have you been? I… that is, everybody has been worried sick about you! Sylvie has been calling Ling Ling so much that she's put on her long distance phone plan. And Yohko and Azusa have been a wreck. They won't eat, won't sleep. Sylvie had to take them to a doctor in the zone to put them on supplements." The concern was evident in her voice.

"Shee, listen. It would take too long to go into where I've been, but suffice it to say that you were right. That group I had joined was much too idealistic for our own good. I'm calling because I've found a place away from the horrors of my former life. Shee, I want you to come with me. I'm going to invite the others, and in Yohko and Azusa's case, they're coming regardless. I wanted you to be the first I called because living here means that you can't go back, and I knew that you would need the most time to consider. This is a one-way trip, so no changing your mind once you're here. I've got a friend here who can help you with the money transfer and everything. I'm going to call Marta next, so I'll need you to stay off her line for a few minutes, but if you could do me a big favor and tell Sylvie, I'd be grateful. She's the only one I want to bring but can't reach. I know it sounds crazy, and I know that I'm asking a lot for you all to uproot your lives for me, but trust me. If you saw where I'm at now, you wouldn't hesitate." Samantha listened for any response. When she didn't get any, she began to worry. "Shee? Are you there?"

"Hai… err yeah, I'm here. This is all just a bit much to take in all at once." Shion sounded very confused, but regained some of her fire. "I told you those idiots would do nothing but get you into trouble, didn't I? When you disappeared along with them I… I thought the worst." She sighed. "Well I guess I'll go talk to her. Just… just be careful, huh?" She sighed and they said their goodbyes.

Hanging up, Samantha took a deep breath to clear her mind. She counted to ten several times to calm her jangled nerves, and then picked up the receiver to dial the next number. It was picked up on the second ring. "Hello?" Samantha recognized Ling Ling's dulcet tones right away.

"Ling Ling, it's Samantha." She waited for the expected yell and was not disappointed.

"Samantha! Omigod, where have you been? We've all been sick with worry. When you disappeared and didn't show up for several weeks, Sylvie started with the calls and hasn't stopped since. Where are you?" Ling Ling started out angry, but quickly moved to concern.

"Is Marta there? I really don't want to have to explain myself too many more times." Samantha's joy at hearing her friends' voices again was diminished by exasperation at having to tell her story so many times.

Ling Ling looked over to the front door as it opened, admitting Marta. Her weariness was evident in the much-abused appearance of her armorcloth bodysuit. "She just walked in, did you want to talk to her?"

Samantha smiled. "Just put me on the speakerphone so I can talk to you both at the same time."

"Alright." Ling Ling removed the receiver from her ear, and Marta gave a weary "I'm not here" gesture. Ling Ling cupped the mouthpiece, and looked at her with a smirk. "Trust me, you'll want to take this call." Marta threw up her arms in defeat and walked over to take the receiver. She was surprised when her lover instead pushed the speaker button and placed it on the cradle. "Go ahead, you're on."

"Hello Marta? Are you there?" Samantha's distorted voice came from the small device.

Marta rushed over and grabbed the edge of the table with both hands. "Sam? Where the hell have you been? Do you have any idea what you put us through?"

"Gomen, gomen. I'm truly sorry about that, but circumstances beyond my control conspired against me to prevent me from contacting you all." Even through the distortion of the speakerphone they could hear the contriteness in her voice.

Marta started to look angry. "You had better have one hell of a good explanation young lady." She couldn't believe she had just said that and wondered when she had turned into her mother. Ling Ling looked at her in surprise, wondering the same thing.

Samantha took a deep breath to begin her spiel when Ling Ling's doorbell rang. "What was that?"

Marta looked darkly at the entrance way. "Just the door, ignore it. You were explaining yourself."

Ling Ling laid a hand on Marta's shoulder. "I'd better go check. Just hold on Samantha. I'll be right back."

"Alright." The tinny voice sounded exasperated.

Marta fumed at the interruption. "This had better be good."

"Trust me Marta, when you hear this, you're going to have kittens." Samantha, not knowing that it was directed to the door answered her comment.

"I wasn't talking to you, but it applies all the same." Crossing her arms over her chest, Marta couldn't keep the hurt in her from turning into anger. She was surprised when two extremely thin girls joined her at the table.

"Onee-sama!" The way they shouted in unison as well as their close appearance made them look like twins, but Yohko and Azusa shared no blood between them.

Samantha sounded surprised, but the joy overrode any other emotion she may have felt. "Yohko! Azusa! How did you get there?"

Shion walked over to the phone. "I brought them. When they heard that you had called, they were so excited that it was all I could do to keep them from having a conniption fit right there."

Samantha pondered for a second. "If you brought them, then did you…" She sounded hesitant, as if afraid to ask.

Sylvie came over with Ling Ling. "I'm here too Sam." A tearful smile graced her face.

Marta kept the conversation moving with her usual tact. "Roll out the barrel, the gang's all here. Now can we get this conversation back on track, please?"

Samantha laughed at her impatience. "Alright, but you all better find something to sit on. My tale is rather long, and even just recounting the highlights is going to take a while. Let me know when you're ready, guys."

Marta lost her patience and hit the table, causing the two small girls to jump. "Dammit! Just get on with it already! I'd like to hear it sometime this year."

Trusting them to find their seats during the story, Samantha began her tale. They listened raptly as she recounted the events that led to her current situation. Marta had the hardest time believing everything, and let her disbelief be known. "C'mon Samantha. You expect us to believe that you're in some alternate reality where everything is all gumdrops and lollypops? If you don't want to come home, just say so. Lord knows nobody'd blame you."

Ling Ling appeared more receptive. "You know Marta, some of the scientists that have been hiring us have been asking some really weird questions lately. And that last mission we were hired for last week was a prime example. What did they say they were looking for in the Neo York Zero Zone? 'Gravitational distortion residue' or some such nonsense? As a matter of fact, they started around the time Samantha disappeared." She looked to the ceiling as if to find the answers written there, as she put her finger to her chin in thought.

Marta looked at her busty lover in disbelief. "Are you telling me that you're buying into this? Shee, talk some sense into them. I mean, this is just insane!"

Shion looked to her sister with a deadpan face. "Marta, I have noticed that there is something… wrong with this world. And I just don't mean Samantha's absence either. There's something… off. Not quite right… As a matter of fact, I'm not the only esper to have noticed this… shift?" She chewed on her thumbnail thoughtfully.

"You have to admit, it sounds farfetched Samantha." Sylvie looked at the phone, conflicted.

Marta waved her hand at the gold-eyed beauty. "Thank you! At least someone else here still has her head on straight." Marta was going to say something to Yohko and Azusa, but seeing the emaciated girls holding each other in confusion, softened her heart. Nodding at her kitchen, she said, "Go get something to eat before you pass out on our carpet."

Samantha's voice came from the phone again. "Yohko, Azusa, go eat something from the kitchen. I don't want you two getting sick on me. The trip is going to be rough enough as it is. If you're not strong enough, we're going to have to postpone it until you are, understand?" Her stern, but caring voice nearly had them crying with shame, but they kept it in as they headed for the kitchen. "Alright, we figured that you guys wouldn't believe me so we set up a little demonstration. Does anyone have a small object that you wouldn't mind losing?"

Shion answered. "I do. Here, it's my gun. I can always get another." She set her Hoshoku Zeta on the table.

They could hear Samantha talking to someone in the background. "Washu, you got a fix on it? Alright." Her voice once again addressed them. "You all may want to shield your eyes. Washu says there will be a bright flash. Here we go." There was a sudden build up of energy in the room. Shion brought up a force bubble around them, the side effects causing even more damage than the effects of the dimensional rip. A sphere of electricity formed around the gun and, with a whoosh, shrunk down to nothing, leaving a hole in the table and no gun. There was a momentary pause before Samantha spoke again. "Ling Ling, I'm really sorry about your table. We had no idea it would do that. I was always flying when I activated the device in case I came into hostile territory. Shion your gun is here and is just fine. Pretty nice too. Is it the new Zeta model?" They could almost hear the smirk in her voice. "In any case, you can have it back when you get here."

"Just make sure that I do get it back." Shion's smirk seemed a match for the one in Samantha's voice.

Samantha sounded excited. "So you are coming?"

Shion pondered this for a moment. "Well, I think that I've had my fill of corporate politics here. There doesn't seem to be any retirement policy in my line of work. And every day, it seems that the work-related danger become worse and worse, while the pleasure that used to come with the job has really diminished. Not a word from you, Marta." She had added the last when she saw her sister open her mouth, and knowing her dirty mind, wouldn't have liked the innuendo that surely would have followed. "I think I'm ready for new challenges. I just hope this new world of yours isn't too peaceful. The only thing is, I would need to transfer all my wealth over. I'm not leaving without that."

"Washu can do that for you. She's already transferred my stash over here and even converted it into the local standard." Samantha was getting more excited, trying to sweeten the pot for her. "She really can't help with your stocks and bonds, so you'll want to cash them out."

Sylvie looked conflicted. "Sam, as much as I want to see you again, there's too much going on here for me to just pick up and leave like that. I have a lot of responsibilities."

Samantha sounded extremely sad. "Well, I can't force you to come. If you really want to stay, I'll respect that, but I'll miss you. You were my first friend after my escape from Jinsei and you'll always mean so much to me for that. I just wish that there was something I could say to you to convince you to come." She heaved a heavy sigh.

Sylvie smiled as she shook her head. "Now I didn't say anything about not coming, did I? It's just going to take me a while before I can join you. I need to notify Gordon, find a replacement for me at 93U and the Vat. You probably didn't realize it, but I'm juggling a lot here. It'll just take time."

Samantha's tone changed to ecstatic. "That's great Sylvie! What about you Marta, Ling Ling? Are you coming?"

Ling Ling looked nonplussed, while Marta appeared thoughtful. They glanced at each other for a moment before Ling Ling nodded. Marta answered for them. "I suppose since everyone's coming, we might as well." She grinned at Ling Ling. "Besides, Ling Ling has been wanting me to slow down lately. This dimension of yours sounds like a good place to do that while staying in the game."

"Great! All that leaves now is for when you all are coming. How soon can you all wrap up your businesses there and liquidate your assets?" Samantha obviously wanted this to happen today, but was restraining herself since they were all definitely coming over.

Shion answered first. "I can be ready within the month. A move this complete will take a while." She was already making plans in her head.

Ling Ling piped up. "It will take a while longer for Marta and myself. We'll need at least two months. My assets are scattered pretty far."

Marta grinned at her. "I don't know, I think your 'assets' are looking just fine to me." The leer in her face as she looked at Ling Ling spoke volumes. The hand she rested on her butt spoke even more.

Ling Ling turned red as Shion sighed disgustedly and threw up her hands, wondering not for the first time, how they came from the same parentage. Sylvie cut in. "I can be ready by the time Ms. Nys is."

Samantha replied "It would be better if you all came at once, so I guess we'll see each other in two months. I'll try to call again in a few weeks to see how you're coming along. I'm really glad you all decided to join me here. I've missed you all so much. Right now, we've got a lot of work to do, so I'll talk to you all in a few." They all said their goodbyes and the line went dead.

Ling Ling pushed the disconnect button and sighed. "Well it looks as though we have a lot to do." She looked at Marta, who nodded silently. "Sylvie, if you want, you can leave Yohko and Azusa here. We'll make sure that they get their strength back while you're busy."

"Oh, I can't do that. You've got so much to do yourselves." Sylvie's voice dropped to a whisper. "And they're really a handful. They don't really act like brats or anything, but ever since I've known them, they couldn't do much for themselves. I think that experience on the ship really hurt more than just their bodies."

Marta cut in. "Aaaahhh… don't worry about it. I'll be here to help out with them. Two months shouldn't be too much trouble."

Sylvie considered this for a moment before calling them in the room. "Yohko, Azusa, come in here for a minute."

They came into the room, each were munching on a piece of fruit. As usual, Azusa was the one that spoke for them both. "Yes Miss Sylvie?"

"I told you not to call me that." Sylvie groused. "I want you to stay here until we leave to meet Samantha. I have too much to do and won't be able to make sure that you two eat the way you're supposed to." They appeared about to protest, but she cut them off. "Miss Nys and Miss Li here" she indicated to Marta "are going to see to your needs until then. I want you to obey them as if she were Samantha or myself, understand?"

They looked shamefully at the floor. "Hai Mi- Sylvie." Azusa sounded contrite, and very sad.

Shion broke the moment of silence that had descended on them. "Now that that's settled, I suggest we get going. Two months will pass quicker than any of us realize."


Samantha hung up the receiver with excitement. She walked over to Washu, who was still sitting on her omnipresent floating cushion, and picked her up in a giant hug. "I can't thank you enough Washu-san. This means more to me than you know."

Suddenly, Washu was in her adult form, and mysteriously taller than the snow-haired woman in her arms. She wrapped her arms around her and slowly stroked her hair. She felt Samantha settle into the embrace and sigh contentedly. They stood there like that, Washu holding her like she would a daughter, making her feel secure and wanted.

After a few moments, they separated and Samantha looked over at Seto sitting on another floating cushion. "Well, there it is. I guess I'll have to wait to see you in two months. I doubt we could make the trip and return in that time, let alone hold the official adoption ceremony besides."

Seto rose and walked over to her newest daughter. "Actually, the ceremony isn't for the adoption. We can settle that right now by signing some paperwork. Though we'll need a few witnesses, I'm sure there'll be no shortage of those here."

The white haired woman looked up at her in confusion. "Then what's the ceremony for? Isn't it to welcome me to the family?"

Seto gently brushed a stray hair from Samantha's face. "Of course you're welcome in my family, Samantha-chan. But that ceremony is for your tree selection."

The confusion on Samantha's face grew. "Tree selection? Why do I have to pick a tree?"

Seto sat down again with a fond smile as her cushion floated over to her. "Ah, it's so refreshing to be working with a clean slate, neh Washu-dono?"

Washu, in her usual form now, nodded with that same smile. "Yes. I remember when Zero first merged with Ryoko. Oh, such fun she was!"

Samantha sat down again in utter confusion. "You two aren't making sense. What's this about trees and clean slates?"

Seto turned back to Samantha. "What I mean dear, is that you're joining a royal family. No Bi. Li. Ty." She sounded out each syllable. "And all Juraian nobles are paired with a tree. But these trees are special, you see. These trees are sentient and the direct descendants of Tsunami, the first royal tree."

Samantha looked thoughtful for a moment. "Tsunami… why does that name sound so familiar?"

Washu grinned at the woman. "Perhaps because you've already met?"

In a flash, it came back to her. The test. The robots. The dinosaur-like creatures. Losing control and letting the Killer take over her body. But most of all, the overwhelming presence of an entity that she could only describe as love. And that entity, that beauteous, wonderful entity had accepted her and all her faults. She couldn't help it. Tears of joy and awe began to roll freely down her cheeks.

Samantha looked around only to find herself on a plane of stars. She looked down to see her body was naked, but composed entirely of a bright, golden light. She looked up to see the towering figure of Tsunami. She must have stood kilometers high by her estimation, as Samantha floated near her stomach. Tsunami reached out to caress her cheek. And even though their size difference was vast, she seemed to fit perfectly. With that one gentle touch, Samantha knew what it meant to love unconditionally. Perfectly. Without reservation. With that one touch, Samantha knew and understood so much.

Samantha felt a touch at her shoulder and turned to it. She saw Washu and suddenly realized that she no longer stood in the field of stars, but in her sub-space lab. The tears slowed to a trickle until Samantha wiped at her eyes and they stopped completely. Concern was etched on Washu's face. "Are you alright, Samantha-san?"

Samantha looked down at her hands to see them shaking. She clenched them into fists as she fought to regain control. A noise that had been at the back of her attention was brought into focus as she looked over at the tray of tea and noticed the crockery rattling around. It took her several minutes of calming breathing to fully reign herself in. By then she knew that she had just had an epiphany of some kind, but was unsure what it was anymore. "I… I… yes, I'm fine. I just had… I feel like I had something special… no, profound just now. But it's gone now. I wish I could find it again. It… it made me feel so special… so loved… It was like… touching the face of God…"

Washu gently patted her on the shoulder. "You sound exhausted. Why don't you go take a nap? I'll wake you for dinner."

Samantha nodded in a daze. "Yes, that sounds like a good idea. See you at dinner." She stumbled out the door without even acknowledging anyone.

Seto said nothing, but raised an eyebrow at Washu. Washu motioned for her to follow. "It's better I just show you the video. I think I know what she was remembering." The two women walked off into the deeper recesses of the laboratory.


On that same plane of stars Samantha had just visited, Tsunami awaited Washu's arrival, and wasn't disappointed. "I suppose you'll want an explanation of what just happened onee-sama?"

Washu crossed her arms and nodded.

"I was simply acting on that possible tangent you brought to my attention earlier. She is a good person and deserves to know that about herself. Besides, if she bonded with a tree as she was, it would have driven her insane eventually."

Tsunami's gentle heart never ceased to amaze Washu. "Alright, alright, point taken. I just wish you had informed me beforehand."

The blue haired Goddess smiled. "I honestly didn't expect her to reach that point for some time yet. But when I saw the pieces falling into place so soon, I knew I had to take the chance. In any case, she'll be a wonderful addition to the family. Especially for Ryoko. They really have a lot in common, don't they?"

Washu smiled wistfully. "Yes. It's good for her to finally have a peer. Someone who's been where she has, and had similar experiences. I can see those two forming a strong bond based on that alone. Ayeka's fine for a rival, but she really needs someone more like herself."

Tsunami knew what was unsaid, and offered comfort by taking Washu's hand. "Like you said, she needs a peer. You're too much like a mother to her for that." Washu's expression turned hurtful and she looked away. "That's why you have us onee-sama, remember?"

Tokimi appeared next to them and took Washu's other hand. "You'll always have us, onee-sama,"