Chapter Fourteen
"Do you think we'll ever get to come to Jurai and just have a nice, peaceful visit?"
Ryoko leant up against her companion, raising big golden eyes to his gentle brown ones as a gentle breeze fluttered around them, dancing and teasing at her wild, wavy hair. "Tenchi, I don't know why you insist on coming back here so often. If one of us doesn't get almost killed either during our stay or on our journey home, then it's almost like something is missing in our visit. Don't you think so?"
Tenchi cast his fiancee a crooked smile, affection in his expression as she wrapped his arm more securely around her, shrugging his shoulders. It was the following evening and, after the chaos had died down, Jurai was finally beginning to return to some semblance of normality. Taking advantage of the bright night, Ryoko had lured her companion up into the branches of one of the biggest, sturdiest palace trees, and together they had watched the sun set over the distant hills.
"You might have a point." He owned now, pursing his lips as he reflected on her words. "But despite that, Ryoko, I don't want us to stop coming here from time to time. Aside from our political obligations on the Earth as liasons, we have family here. And even when we're married and settled, I'd like to think that that family won't be written out of our lives altogether."
"I don't think we could, even if we wanted to." Ryoko said thoughtfully. "You know, when Haru told Ayeka and I what he and Misaki had done to me and to her memories, all those years ago, I was really angry at him. But not because of the things he said regarding me and my isolation from the Jurai royal palace. I was angry because of what they'd done to hurt Ayeka. She was so upset...so unlike herself. And I felt furious with him that he'd do something like that to his own daughter. I guess I realised that these days Ayeka and I are a lot closer than I ever really thought possible."
"Yeah, I've noticed that too." Tenchi nodded his head. "And I'm glad it's the case, to be honest. Poor Ayeka has had a lot to deal with. That she has both of us supporting her might help, at least a little bit."
"Mmm." Ryoko agreed. "Perhaps I realised that the only thing between us when we were children was the suspicion and paranoia of Lord Haru himself. He put ideas into Ayeka's head, and put pressure on people where I was concerned. They didn't understand my magic and once I realised I wasn't going to be accepted, I did go to lengths to annoy and frighten people. But even so..."
"You might have grown up like family." Tenchi looked pensive. "Did you think of that, Ryoko? Almost like sisters, even - would you have liked that?"
Ryoko glanced at her hands for a moment, thinking this over. Then,
"If I had never left Jurai with Haki, I would never have been a pirate." She said slowly. "If I'd never run away from the palace when I was twelve or thirteen, I wouldn't have met or rescued Ryo Ohki. And if those things hadn't happened, I might not have met you. I don't regret the way my life turned out. I got to do what I wanted for a lot of the time, and even if times were sometimes tricky, it was always fun to play chase with the Galaxy Police. I don't think I would have fitted into that Juraian high society any more than I actually did. I was different, even if I was descended from Aiko and Kagato's line. Maybe I was just too Kii to fit in on Jurai. Either way, it's academic and I don't really dwell on things that can't be changed. It's just interesting to consider, that's all. I wouldn't change anything that's happened."
"We might still have met." Tenchi shrugged. "I have Jurai blood, and that might have come out sooner or later. I might have met you here, on Jurai, at some point in my life."
"And then you might not have liked the girl I was." Ryoko's eyes twinkled with mischief. "I'm a pirate and a villain. I cause trouble and I tease and play games and do all the things that drive you mad. But those are the reasons you love me, too. I know that, even if you don't always admit it. You've got used to me as me, and that's who you love. If I'd been some snooty Princess, like Ayeka, you might have just passed me by. Princesses aren't your type. So I'm fine with being the Ryoko I am. In truth, I'm more worried about Ayeka. I've never regretted who I became...but she's doubting everything at the moment. It's hard when you have a whole bunch of memories dumped on you, and you realise things weren't quite how you remembered they were."
"Yes, I suppose that's true." Tenchi sighed. "I feel bad for her too. She does love Sasami, but she must wonder if that was put on her by Haru, rather than it being genuine. You and me, we were only children. I suppose neither of us can really understand what it's like to suddenly have a new baby thrust into the equation. She must wonder how much of her animosity towards baby Sasami was Yugi and how much was her own."
"I don't think it matters very much." Ryoko said frankly. "It's more important that she loves Sasami now, whatever happened in the past. That's the thing with memories. They don't actually change what's happening now. They might freak you out or make you doubt things you didn't doubt before. But at the end of the day, they're things that are done with. Our adventures with Hotsuma should've told you that!"
"When Ayeka was in your room the other day, was that because of her attack on you, or something else?" Tenchi asked. "I got the impression that, well, you'd been talking about something...serious."
"Maybe we had." Ryoko shrugged. "But I promised her that I wouldn't speak about it, and I'll keep my word. It's not any of your business anyway, Tenchi-kun. I told you. It was girl stuff."
"Girl stuff, huh?" Tenchi eyed her keenly. "Forgive me for finding that a touch surreal - you and Ayeka huddled away somewhere whispering secrets to one another."
"Well, things change." Ryoko pursed her lips. "And in some respects, it wasn't so strange. I think that we've both moved a long way past the rivalry. Like I said, I'm worried about her. This is a lot to deal with."
"And yet you still think we should leave Jurai?" Tenchi asked. Ryoko hesitated, then she nodded her head.
"The poor girl has a lot to deal with without us imposing on her." She agreed. "So yes, I think we should. Even if Washu chooses to stay behind for a while to help Tokimi further, I think you and I should go...go home. And let Ayeka and her family recover themselves without our interference. After all, Lord Haru has a lot of grovelling to do, and it might be a while before Ayeka forgives him fully."
She laughed ruefully, shrugging her shoulders.
"If it was me, I probably never would." She added. "But that's just me. Ayeka obviously knows a better side of him than I ever have."
"At least he did acknowledge to you his part in your isolation." Tenchi pointed out. "You might yet manage to make amends with him, you know."
"I don't want anything to do with Haru, now or ever." Ryoko said simply. "Another thing that happens when we come here is that I find out nasty, icky things about people I didn't have much time for anyway. The last thing I want to do is spend time with Prince Haru and discover even more."
She paused, and a faint smile touched her lips.
"But it was a little bit nice that he told me that Azusa did want to keep me." She admitted. "It's strange, but I do appreciate that."
"I find it hard to imagine you as a child here." Tenchi owned. "It doesn't seem at all like your world. Even though I know your roots and your history now - it still doesn't seem like somewhere you'd ever call home."
"Until I was eight, I was Azusa's ward and he was good to me." Ryoko shrugged. "I almost became fond of him, in the absence of my mother. I guess I never had a father, so I looked up to him as that kind of person in my life. I never called him Papa, and he never called me daughter...but he did always seem happy to see me, and I looked forward to spending odd occasions with him, when I was able. He took the time to play with me from time to time - I guess that with his own son abandoning Jurai, he was a bit at a loss himself. He was the one person in Jurai's court who had time for me, and I locked onto that, in the absence of anyone else. But we were the same, in a sense. I lost Kichi, and he lost Yosho. It brought us together in a strange kind of way."
She laughed, looking embarrassed.
"Pathetic, isn't it? But it hurt me when I was suddenly cast away like I was. Made to live with the servants, and suddenly not able to see him any more. At least knowing that it wasn't his choice to send me away makes me a little better disposed towards him. Especially now I'm marrying into his direct family line. You know, you can't be too careful about things like that. Bloodlines are important when you're a pirate of my standing...it's not good form to marry just any old Prince you happen to crash into."
Tenchi chuckled.
"And I'll do?"
"I suppose so." Ryoko nodded, an impish look crossing her amber eyes. "I might even drop my grudge against the house of Jurai, when we're married. Haru excepted - it might not be so bad to acknowledge them as my family too."
"Well, they already are." Tenchi reflected. "In one way or another, this world is a part of both of us."
"But home to neither one." Ryoko murmured pensively. "The Earth is that...and I'm glad, Tenchi-kun. Jurai is too full of problems and social rules for either of us to be happy here. It will be nice to get back to the mountains and start plotting things like your graduation and what we're going to do when you're all qualified. Things like whether we're still going to visit Osaka, and see friends there. Things beyond university...beyond space piracy. Things in our future. You know?"
"Yeah, I do know." Tenchi agreed. "It will be nice, but strange when college finishes. But I know that Ikeda-kun is planning on moving to Osaka permanently, and Sakura's family are in Okayama anyway - I think she'll be staying, too. As for Kamikura and the rest, I don't know - but honestly, they've barely spoken to me much since the whole alien thing became national news. Kyoda and I have almost come to blows on one or two occasions over the fact I'm seeing you, in fact...it might be better if they're not still hanging around after it's all done."
"Fighting over me? Can I come watch next time?" Ryoko teased. "Although it would hardly be a fair fight. You've taken down some of the Universe's most dangerous - a college kid with a chip on his shoulder would be no challenge."
"Not Yugi Kuroda, though." Tenchi looked sheepish. "I still can't believe I let you all battle that out and didn't even try and help."
"Azusa had you locked away." Ryoko pointed out. "And we managed. You can't always be the hero, Tenchi-kun. No matter how much you might want to be."
"Well, I did at least finally tell him about our engagement." Tenchi laughed. "And he didn't seem to mind the idea too badly. He even accepted that I wanted to marry you on the Earth, not here on Jurai. He said that we'd always be welcome at his court, and that my help was often invaluable to the people and court of Jurai. So there you have it. Imperial blessing achieved."
"Not that we ever really needed it, but I guess he is an old softie, deep down." Ryoko mused. "I'm glad. He's unlikely to send a party of military ships to the Earth to split us up, if that's the case."
"Well, you said he was fond of you, when you were small. Maybe he's doing penance." Tenchi bantered. Ryoko grinned.
"That suits me fine." She said warmly. "Though I'm really not that mad at him. I'll always hate Lord Haru, but like I said, it's all in the past. I'm not the one with the issues this time."
"Have you spoken to Ayeka, since everything happened?" Tenchi asked her, and Ryoko nodded.
"I did sneak into the Infirmary, late last night, when Haru's bodyguards were looking the other way. We spoke for a while." She agreed gravely. "She's a tough person, Tenchi. She'll be fine...but she has to work it out for herself, what it all means. Still, if nothing else, this whole experience did forge a bond between us that wasn't really there in the same way before. We were almost friends, we had a truce...but now I think we really did cross that line."
"It's about time you did." Tenchi said firmly. "All that fighting was silly and unecessary. Ayeka is married, and you and I will be, when we've sat down and thought about setting a date. So all of that's in the past too. No more fighting. Right?"
"I guess not. Not with Ayeka, anyhow." Ryoko eyed her hands thoughtfully, gentle flickers of amber light dancing across her tips. "But Lord Haru had better watch his step. He'd better make it up to her - to both Ayeka and Sasami - by the time I next visit Jurai...else he might find he regrets it even more."
Tenchi laughed.
"No more fighting." He repeated, putting a hand on her arm. "We don't need it. We'll go back to the Earth, and let Ayeka do as you said - work out her life and the problems she has to face. So long as she knows we're always there for her, as friends and as family, that's what's important. So long as she knows that, we'll go. And if she needs us, she knows where she can find us."
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"And then you have to thread it this way, like this, so that the stem goes all the way through the loop. Here, Tokimi, give it a try."
Gently Suki held out the flowers to her companion, who took them carefully in her hands, eying them for a moment and then beginning to gingerly weave them together.
"Like this?"
"Yes, just like that." Suki nodded. "You're picking it up quickly, Tokimi...you're a fast learner, you know."
Tokimi beamed, casting her gaze across the grass to where Seiryo and Washu were sitting watching them, Washu curled up against the lee of a large hunk of stone and Seiryo settled beneath the shade of an overhanging Camelia tree. She held up her prize, and Washu chuckled, giving her sister the thumbs up sign as she did so.
"You know, I hadn't imagined that floral weaving lessons were on the agenda of a Peer of Jurai." She remarked as Tokimi returned to her endeavour, sending Seiryo a playful glance. "Of all things to spend your afternoon doing, Seiryo-sama, I never thought you'd be watching Sasami and Suki teach Tokimi how to thread flowers."
"Well, everyone has to kick back and relax once in a while. "Seiryo looked rueful, glancing at his hands. "And Tokimi was determined - she never got to drag me out to the flower fields at the palace, so it seemed fair to give her her way here. Besides, with how busy both Suki and I have been, coming into the grounds of our own Estate doesn't seem to happen very often. It's nice to just sit and enjoy Jurai's sunshine - and know that nobody is about to jump up and kill anyone else."
Washu let out an appreciative laugh, nodding her head at his wry remarks.
"I suppose you have a point." She acknowledged. "I want to thank you, by the way, for keeping your word about Tokimi. I realise that you put your neck on the line a couple of times for her, and she seems quite at home here, with you and with Suki. If you don't mind, I'd like her to stay here, even when I've gone. I don't think she could be as happy and settled on the Earth and besides, she really seems to look up to you."
"I can't imagine why, but she's more than welcome." Seiryo shrugged his shoulders. "Suki sees her as a younger sister, even though Tokimi is quite evidently much much older. And I suppose I'm fond of her, too. It's strange, but I suppose bonds do surpass the magic that instills them. Either way, she can stay."
"I heard that you'd had your ship returned to you. Congratulations, Lord Tennan." Washu's eyes sparkled with amusement. "It seems you're back in Azusa's good books, after your recent exploits."
"I think so." Seiryo nodded. "For the first time I think I saw him as a man as well as a King. I realised he cares for his family - for Lady Ayeka and Lady Sasami - as much as I care for mine. I'm quite content with how everything has resolved itself, in truth. While there will always be idiots at court who have things to say, my King has faith in me, and that's more important when it comes to political survival. As for anything else, well, I have my family and Tokimi and I don't care for the good opinion of most of the Council. So yes. You might say that this is something of a happy ending for everyone."
"Perhaps not Yugi." Washu's expression became thoughtful. "What Lord Haru will decide, I don't know - but imprisoning her once didn't work. I really don't think he'll have much choice but to destroy her the way they destroyed her mother. I don't hold with the superstition that demons are sub-human entities, but I do believe humanoids can become demonic if allowed to grow in the wrong direction. Yugi's black nature is too far absorbed into her soul for her to be pacified...I'm afraid that there may yet be more bloodshed in the name of Jurai's peace."
"I'm thankful that such a decision is out of my hands." Seiryo agreed. "Strange as it might be, I really don't like the idea of being branded a killer."
"In that regard, I think you've more than done penance." Washu crossed her legs, settling herself more comfortably on the grass. "Dare I say that you and Kiyone have even found common ground now, between you?"
"I don't know, but at least she doesn't bother me the way she did, before." Seiryo looked rueful. "I suppose in helping to get her out of that laboratory, I repaid the debt I owed her in my own mind."
He pursed his lips, sending his companion a sidelong glance.
"Washu-sama, Tokimi's treatment - do you think that she will ever be fully cured of the effects of Kihaku's magic?"
"Hard to say." Washu frowned. "Sometimes she seems more lucid than others, and clearly there is a language barrier still. It's hard to improve her grasp of Galactic Tongue when sometimes her mind seems to wander. But on balance, she seems to have improved some even since she woke up. She might be childlike, but she understands certain concepts and if she continues to do so, maybe I can continue to heal her. I don't know...my limits are undefined, even now."
She looked sheepish.
"I'm a trainee doctor working from the manuals and hoping something works." She admitted. "But I'll keep trying, at least so long as she tolerates me doing so."
"Then I want to ask a favour of you also, if you don't mind." Seiryo pursed his lips, hesitating for a moment as a shriek of laughter came from his sister across the grass. The sound was echoed by Sasami a moment later and, as Tokimi stared at her companions in bewilderment, a smile began to touch her lips too. As Sasami hugged her companion tightly, Seiryo saw genuine joy in Tokimi's expression, and his own eyes became clouded. He shook his head.
"Ignorance can be bliss, huh?" He murmured. "What she doesn't remember can't hurt her. She's compromised and yet, she doesn't seem to suffer. Even if her mind is simplistic, she still seems strong and well - able to face the world and live her life, however different that might be now. Is that something unique to the Kii, Washu-sama? Or is it something open to all?"
"You've lost me." Washu frowned. "You said you wanted a favour...but Seiryo, I don't think I understand completely what you mean."
Seiryo sighed.
"I told my Emperor that I had made my mistakes and I would not run from the consequences." He said quietly. "But I have much responsibility, and much more to do now than I ever did before. My spirit is willing - it has healed and it no longer feels so strongly the guilt of those actions long since past. But..."
"But the physical effects still linger." Understanding flickered in Washu's green eyes. "I see. You hope I might do for you what I've begun to do for Tokimi?"
"Somehow, even though she was so infested for so long, she seems to suffer no pain." Seiryo's eyes darted back to where the former priestess was busily gathering flowers from one of the big, blooming bushes that stood along the edge of the lawn. "And I suppose I wondered if that was down to your interference. If there was something you could do for me, too...well, I have always been active, fit and strong, and to do my duties properly I must be so again. But I can't fight any harder than I already have done. So I wondered...if you would help me."
"I have no idea whether my magic would work the same way on you as it did on Tokimi." Washu warned. "And there is really no guarantee that my inexperience didn't damage her mind at the same time as trying to heal it. It would be risky, Seiryo-san...I can't know for sure the outcome."
"I have faith in you." Seiryo told her, sending her a slight smile. "You've more or less stood by me and my family in one way or another since events occured, even though in many ways you should probably have come to hate me. I tried to kill your daughter, your friend, your friend's husband - not to mention that I sought to hurt the world you now call home. That you have been a friend to Suki and I has been much appreciated, and I know I am asking even more of you. But I am willing to take a small risk. I know all about the after-effects of Kii magic, but even though you obviously have a lot of strength, you didn't use that magic to kill Yugi. We both know you probably could have done, but you didn't. So I'm fairly confident you won't kill me, either. Will you consider it, Washu-sama? I'd be grateful to you, if you did."
Washu pursed her lips for a moment, then an impish look crossed her expression.
"All right. So long as you do one thing for me in return." She said mischievously. Seiryo looked startled.
"What kind of a thing?"
"You could stop calling me Washu-sama." Washu said carelessly. "You can just call me Washu, since you call my sister Tokimi, after all. And if you feel you simply can't live without tagging my name somehow, you can always call me Washu-chan. I always liked that."
"Washu...chan?" Seiryo stared at her, non-plussed. "You're quite possibly a hundred times older than I am. Why would I ever call you Washu-chan?"
Washu chuckled.
"Oh, well, it's a long story. Old habits die hard, I guess." She said, amused. "But really, Washu is fine. After all, I'm rude enough not to stand on ceremony all the time - more often as not I forget that you and Suki are Lord and Lady. Humour me, huh? And I'll see what I can do, regarding your request."
"Well, I suppose that's a deal." Seiryo still looked confused, but he offered her a smile anyway. "Thank you, Washu. I appreciate it."
"I think I might stay on Jurai a while." Washu sat back against her boulder, gazing up at the sky. "Now it's peaceful. Help you, spend some time with Tokimi - before I return home to the Earth."
"I thought Lord Tenchi and Lady Ryoko planned to leave in the next day or two." Seiryo was surprised. "That's what Sasami-sama said...was she mistaken?"
"No - I suspect they'll go, but I'm not going with them." Washu shook her head. She smiled. "These newly engaged couples don't need parents playing gooseberry and home isn't exactly a peaceful, romantic retreat for them at the best of times. No, I'll wait here and spend some time with my other family, if you have no objections to my company from time to time. I can always charter a ship or beg a favour from someone to get home, so I'm not overly troubled by being stranded here."
"Then when you're ready to leave, I'll take you myself, in the Unko." Seiryo offered. "It will give me a good excuse to travel, and I'm itching to do so now I have my papers returned."
"Thank you, that would be nice." Washu dimpled. "The Unko is a fine ship - I'd very much like to take a closer look at it."
"So long as you promise not to dismantle or hack into it while we're in flight, then you're more than welcome." Seiryo said drolly, and Washu laughed.
"I give you my word." She said solemnly. "But it will be nice to fly in it, all the same."
"If you are going to stay on Jurai a while, would you like to stay here, with us?" Seiryo suggested. "You'd be closer to Tokimi, and I know Suki wouldn't mind in the least."
"What about your poor mother?" Washu looked startled. "If you're thinking I might be able to help her also - I'm sorry, Seiryo, but the risk to her life would be too great. I don't know enough to guarantee the safety of my dabbling."
"No...no. I know that Mother is beyond all help." Seiryo's eyes clouded and he shook his head. "But she won't object, either. Suki and I have both mentioned to her how much we respect you, and how you have become a friend to us both in recent months. She'd be glad to extend hospitality here - so you mustn't concern yourself with that."
"Well, if that's the case, it would be easier than staying at the Palace." Washu grinned. "All right. I accept your offer, Lord Tennan - and with thanks!"
"This is a merry gathering."
At the sound of a new voice, Seiryo glanced up, surprise touching his features as he recognised the Galaxy Police Detective, neat and smart in her official uniform and an amused smile on her face as she took in the scene before her. Her thick dark hair was wound back from her face in a careful, precise braid and there was a sparkle in her blue eyes which Seiryo had not seen there before. Inwardly he wondered at it. Had she finally thrown off the shackles of their past encounter? Or was she simply putting on a brave face - had Yugi's distortions made it so that she would never be able to speak to him again?
"No wonder it took so long to get an answer - I was almost wondering if I needed to hit more people over the head with pokers to get in. I suppose it's a good thing for everyone that I heard laughter from the gardens and managed to find my way around the back."
"What are you doing here, Kiyone?" Washu looked amused at her words, gesturing for her to join them. "Weren't you contacting your Commander?"
"I was, but Ayeka told me that you and Sasami were here." Kiyone responded with a shrug. She paused, meeting Seiryo's gaze for a moment, then spreading her hands.
"And I wanted to thank you for your help in solving this case, Agent Tennan." She added. Seiryo looked sheepish at the use of his former title. He shook his head.
"Not Agent." He responded. "And you owe me nothing. I enjoyed using those skills again."
"Washu! Washu-oneechan, come see Tokimi's flowers!"
A yell from across the grass prevented Kiyone from responding, and Washu got to her feet, casting her companions a playful smile.
"I guess it's my turn to go play with the flowers, now." She said off-handedly. "The things we do for our families, huh?"
She offered Seiryo a wink, then was gone across the grass, leaving the two - Lord and Detective - alone together beneath the tree. For a moment there was an awkward silence, then Seiryo offered a faint smile.
"So, you'll be off now, back to join the Galaxy's finest, I suppose."
Kiyone hesitated, then shook her head, dropping down in Washu's vacated spot and absently picking a flower, toying with it in her hands as she made herself more comfortable.
"No. Not yet." She said evenly. Seiryo looked startled.
"I thought you'd more than cleared your name." He said frankly. "And you don't seem to be suffering any ill effects now from...from you know what. Why won't they let you go back?"
"Oh, they will." A slight smile touched Kiyone's lips, and she tucked the flower carefully into the clasp that held her hair back from her face. "But I decided that they were right about one thing. A holiday isn't a bad idea and now I know I can take it with my reputation intact, I think I deserve it. I've given the Chief my report and he can take his time chewing over it all now I've done the Elite division's work for them and solved their mystery. Headquarters gave me a month, after all, and I guess it wouldn't hurt me to take another week or two here. After everything that's happened, why not?"
Seiryo stared at her for a moment, then he let out a low chuckle.
"At playing the system, Detective, you are definitely one of the Universe's best." He said appreciatively. "How did your Commander react, when you told him your decision?"
"I think he would have fallen over himself to grant me anything at the time." Kiyone pursed her lips. "He was a bit sheepish. Apologetic. It might have been bad to take advantage, but well, I haven't had a proper holiday in ages. And though I do miss Mihoshi and everything back at Headquarters, I haven't really had a chance to relax since I came here."
"I realise that's partly my fault. I'm sorry for that." Seiryo pursed his lips. Kiyone shrugged.
"No...don't be." She said thoughtfully. "In all truth, being forced into your company was probably what I needed. I never choose the easy path at doing anything - well, you only have to look at my partnership with Mihoshi to see that that's true. And I don't like being made to take a back seat. But having to work with you made me see things in a different way. Put them into perspective, if you like. And after Ayeka went through all of the things she did, it also told me something else. Something I hadn't really grasped hold of before - at least, not properly."
"Which was?" Seiryo looked quizzical, and Kiyone sent him a sheepish smile.
"I know Ayeka. I trust her with my life, because there have been times it has been in her hands and vice versa. We've been through a lot of things together, all things considered." She said slowly. "So even though Yugi was controlling her, and even though Yugi made her do terrible things, I wasn't scared of her afterwards. Even though she did turn on me, I knew it wasn't really Ayeka who did that. And that's because I know the real Ayeka would never act like that."
"I'm not sure I follow."
"Well, in all honesty, before our little encounter aboard my spaceship, I didn't know you at all." Kiyone stretched out on the grass, idly kicking her legs against the ground as she rested her chin in her hands. She gazed across at him, shrugging her shoulders. "You were a colleague, but only a distant face. I knew you by reputation, and not in any other way. And your reputation was intimidating enough in it's own right. So all I had to associate with you in my mind, after the assault, was the attack itself. I suppose I obsessed over it because of that...somehow it and you became synonymous in my mind."
"I see." Seiryo pursed his lips thoughtfully. "And now?"
"I still think you're one of the most arrogant men I've ever met, but I don't find it as offensive as I did before." Kiyone said wryly. "I suppose it's just that inbred Juraian charm you nobles have - considering some of your fellow peers, I think I'd rather take your company over theirs. Court swagger, if you like - you definitely have an air of it about you, even now. But, in terms of everything else..."
She shrugged again.
"I think I've seen other parts of you that most people don't get to see." She said slowly. "I've seen how much you care about Suki-sama and Tokimi, and your mother as well. I guess it's easy to see how you were lured into Tokimi's snare so easily - that Suki-sama and Lady Kaede mean the world to you and you really would do anything to protect them. I respect that."
She smiled, taking in his expression with an amused look of her own.
"I've also seen your vulnerability, though." She added thoughtfully. "When you've snapped back at me over things I've said. Washu told me that I only had to recover from being attacked and at the time I was mad at her for saying it, but now I see what she means more clearly. I was just the victim. You were victim and villain, and that's much more to deal with for anyone who has a sense of conscience. I suppose that's what I didn't know about you before. Even if you are arrogant, and ambitious, and full of Juraian noble blood - you do have honour and you do have limits. And Tokimi's magic just broke those down. That's all. It wasn't you who attacked me that day...because that's something that the real Seiryo Tennan wouldn't do. And now I know that as much as I know the real Ayeka wouldn't try and hurt Sasami. It's just circumstances. When Yugi tried to distort my perceptions and torture me with my memories, I realised they'd become just that - memories. I'd come to know other sides of you - so they didn't hold as much fear for me then as they did before. It kind of broke the spell, if you like."
Seiryo eyed her keenly for a moment, digesting everything that she said. Then he sat back on his elbows, gazing up at the cloudless blue sky.
"When I was a boy, the only thing that mattered to me was being the best." He said quietly. "My father demanded no less of me, and I was determined to follow in his footsteps - be the Tennan that Senichi was, follow in the proud family tradition. But as I got older, I learnt more and more that the Tennan name was founded on rocky shores. My father may have been honoured by Emperors and trusted of the Council, but he had no respect for my Mother. He gambled away our money, he drank and invested badly in business ventures that went wrong. He pawned Mother's stuff, and attempted to sell Suki to the highest bidder as a rich and influential bride. He even sought to marry me to Princess Ayeka - probably because then he would have had direct access to royal patronage and everything that came with it. He was a bad man, my father. A very bad man, in truth. And when he sent me away, I was angry. But now, having time to reflect on it, I realised that I'm glad he did it. If I'd stayed here, I would have become him. I very nearly did, when I took up with Tokimi and started breaking rules and cutting corners to get what I wanted. And the attack on you - I still wonder how much of it was my desire to win, and how much was Tokimi's dark influence over me. That's the truth of it...I still don't really know. On my own - how far would I have gone? I don't think that I would have sought to kill you if Tokimi hadn't pushed it on me - but then again, I had truly considered taking my father's life, before fate intervened and struck him down. Would that have made me any better a man? I think not."
"I see." Kiyone's expression softened. "Somehow that should bother me, but it really doesn't. I actually appreciate your honesty. You didn't have to tell me that - you could have let me leave all of the blame on Tokimi's head."
"No, I couldn't." Seiryo sent her a wry smile. "I've tried to be honest and to live up to the honour my family name should uphold since my hearing. Besides, if anyone deserves truth about this matter, I think that it's you. And in some respects, Tokimi is less to blame than me. She was fully under Kii control. I confess that my own ambition drove me equally as much as her dark arts, so I'm more culpable for the things that happened."
"Perhaps you're right." Kiyone acknowledged. "But since it's past, you probably shouldn't keep thinking about it so critically. I think I've put closure to it. Have you?"
"I'd like to think so." Seiryo nodded. "If nothing else, I do believe that whatever I might have done then, of my own free will, it wouldn't be the case now. In many ways I am very different from the man who first came back from the Galaxy Police to show off his medals and see his poor mother. And in some respects, I am thankful for it, too. If nothing else, it taught me that Suki wasn't just there to be protected. She's there to depend upon, also - and I've done so, more than once since my hearing concluded."
He frowned, shaking his head slowly.
"And it taught me what kind of a creature I was on the verge of becoming." He admitted darkly. "I wouldn't call it divine epiphany - I don't believe in such things, as I think you probably have gleaned. But it was a wake-up call I badly needed. I'm just sorry that you came into the crossfire, that's all."
"Well, you needn't bother about it any more." Kiyone shrugged, offering him a smile. "I'm strong and stubborn myself, you know, and it takes a lot more than one brief encounter to knock me for six for long. I'm over it. It's past. And I have a job to get on with, so I will. You're not actually so scary - not close up."
She looked amused.
"Considering the way you court types dress, and the trinkets you use to tie back your hair, I think it would be impossible to stay scared of you now."
Seiryo laughed good-naturedly, reaching up absently to loose his curly hair from his warrior's queue, and allowing it to fall loose around his shoulders. He glanced at the clasp that had held it there, turning it over in his hands as he registered the expensive gold finish and the delicately carved family crest that adorned the middle, and he nodded, setting it down on the grass beside him.
"Perhaps you have a point." He agreed sheepishly. "Since I've been back here, there have been many things for me to find fault with in Jurai's court lifestyle. I really don't know why I wanted it so badly to begin with. Maybe because I'd never been allowed it when I came of age - who really knows? But either way, I agree with you. There is a lot to be said for the simplicity of the Galaxy Police."
Kiyone pursed her lips.
"Will you tell me what the truth is, surrounding Seiji-dono's death?" She asked softly. "Off the record...just between the two of us?"
"It's not my tale to tell you." Seiryo shook his head. "His death was an accident and that's all I'll ever say about it...please, Detective. Don't ask me again."
"All right." Kiyone frowned, tilting her head on one side as she regarded him carefully. "I never imagined that, if I came to Jurai, I'd wind up talking to you like this. But somehow it doesn't feel wrong that we are. Maybe it's that thing Washu said about connections - Yugi and Ayeka, You and Tokimi...perhaps you and I have a connection now, too. Maybe at the end of the day, we're destined to be friends now the magic has gone and the danger with it. We've both been through so much - do you feel that, too?"
Seiryo smiled.
"Yes, now you mention it. I think I do." He agreed. "Perhaps that's why the whole thing bothered me as much as it did. If you form a bond with someone, you're then linked to that person irrevocably in some way. Even through a magic that's long dead - perhaps what bothered me was the fact you suffered because of this and I suffered with you. And both of us have been fixating on the same event for far too long. It should be consigned to history now...locked away and forgotten. Don't you think so?"
"Yes, I do." Kiyone agreed. "I don't want to think about it any more. When I do go back to work, I want it to be back to business as usual. No problems, no panics, no bad dreams. I've slept better here than I have done at Headquarters or on Yagami in months. That has to be a good sign. I'm finally moving past the mental block...and I'm glad."
"I think I am too." Seiryo reflected. "And I don't seem to be in the Emperor's bad books any longer...quite the opposite. Maybe the day will yet come when a Tennan can hold his head up proudly at court again."
"Or her head." Kiyone reminded him. "Your sister is a lady in her own right, after all, and girls are just as capable as guys of carrying responsibility and dignity."
"Detective, I have never doubted it in Suki." Seiryo said ruefully. "Only in myself. Suki has always been a lady, and she has proven these past months how strong a lady she can be. I would be lost without her - sometimes it seems like I hold the reins of the family estate, but she's the one really driving it on."
Kiyone glanced across the grass to where Suki was patiently showing Tokimi how to braid white blossoms into Sasami's thick, wavy hair. She smiled.
"She seems in her element, with Tokimi." She observed, and Seiryo nodded.
"She's always been lonely, really." He agreed. "But not these days. With Lady Sasami and Tokimi, not to mention keeping me in line - she has plenty to occupy her."
"She has a lot to do, then." Kiyone remarked astutely, and Seiryo laughed.
"Indeed." He agreed good-naturedly. "But there you are. Such is the life of a noblewoman of Jurai."
"Do you really wish you could come back to Headquarters?" Kiyone asked curiously. "I mean really, if there wasn't anything to tie you down here - would you go and try and get your position back?"
"I'm too proud to go back, even if I didn't have shackles here." Seiryo shook his head. "But I do regret losing it, yes."
He sighed.
"Still, now I have the Unko back, I can at least travel. And I will...being tied to one planet is not fun when you've been so used to freely roaming the galaxy."
He sent her a sidelong glance.
"I still think you would make a fine Elite agent. You really won't reconsider your decision not to apply?"
"What would Mihoshi do without me?" Kiyone shrugged. "Nice as it would be, I'd also be lonely. She and I have been close for a long time - it wouldn't be the same. Bonds forged in crisis are often the strongest bonds, you know - and Mihoshi's middle name might as well be crisis. She needs me too much - and there are more important things than high ranking position."
"Yes, perhaps that's so." Seiryo acknowledged. "You are lucky, to have such a partner."
"You never had a partner?"
"No...I always worked alone." Seiryo said ruefully. "I'm arrogant, as you so kindly pointed out. I'm not a team player...it doesn't suit my style of operation."
"I disagree." Kiyone's expression became playful. "This time you were a team player, after all."
"Under duress, perhaps I was." Seiryo rubbed his chin absently. "But still - I did get yelled at rather a lot during the course of that particular assignment."
Kiyone's eyes twinkled with humour at this and she nodded.
"True." She acknowledged. "I suppose you have a point. You did try and keep your secrets, to begin with, too. But then again, if it means anything, seeing you working this like a proper Elite case proved one thing to me. Your reputation at Headquarters was not exaggerated. Whatever your reasons for becoming an Elite, you really were a natural at it. Jurai should be harnessing that, if they have any sense. They need you more than they know."
"Well, it's pleasant to know you think so, Detective."
"My name is Kiyone. You know that, so you might as well stop being so formal." Kiyone sighed. "I know finesse is a Juraian court protocol, but I'm no high born lady and really, I'd rather you didn't. It feels stand-offish and austere, outside of Headquarters, and you're not my superior officer any longer. Plus, I flat out refuse to call you Lord Tennan and that being the case, it makes me seem rude if you're constantly fishing around for titles to give me."
"Washu and I have already had a similar conversation this afternoon, and I must confess it confuses me." Seiryo looked doubtful. "Is that really what you want?"
Kiyone nodded her head.
"Yes." She said firmly. "My name is Kiyone, and I'm not going to answer to anything else."
"Very well." Seiryo smiled, holding out his hand in a mocking gesture towards her. "Then my name is Seiryo. I'm pleased to make your acquaintance, Kiyone."
Kiyone stared at him for a moment, then she snorted, taking his hand in hers and shaking it hard.
"There." She replied. "Are you happy?"
"Happier than I've been in a while, to be truthful." Seiryo reflected. "Putting this behind me is important, after all. Washu thinks she might be able to help get rid of my headaches and the tiredness Kii magic still causes in me - but the hang-ups over your situation I had to tackle on my own. I'm satisfied to say that I've succeeded. I suppose it's true that there is very little the mind cannot overcome. Not if it is really determined to win."
"There you go, being pompous and arrogant and Juraian again." Kiyone sighed, shaking her head reproachfully, and Seiryo laughed.
"You are remarkably rude to me, you know." He observed drolly. "In fact, you have been remarkably rude to me almost since the day we first met."
"Well, you haven't exactly been polite to me always, so I think we're even." Kiyone said comfortably. "I don't stand on ceremony with anyone, you know. Mihoshi is of Seniwan Daimyo stock and I yell at her on average five or six times every day. Don't think that I'm going to be any different with you, now we've called a truce. If you don't like it, you don't have to speak to me. But we've gone too far for pretentious niceties. Don't you think so?"
"I think you've spent far too much time in the company of people like Ryoko and Washu." Seiryo said acidly. "But on balance, it's refreshing to talk with someone who speaks plainly."
Kiyone laughed, nodding her head.
"I've always done that. That's not Washu or Ryoko or anyone else's influence on me - I've never had time for nonsense." She said with a grin. "My work has been my life, and in my line of work, there's no room for fussing around."
"Perhaps you're also a natural."
"Maybe." Kiyone shrugged. "I'll be glad to be back, honestly. A holiday is nice, and I mean to take advantage of my free time, but in the final analysis Headquarters is my home and being a Detective is my raison d'etre. I can't imagine ever doing - or being - anything else."
"But you have wide horizons, considering your close friendships with Princesses of my planet." Seiryo pointed out. "You shouldn't ignore other opportunities, just because you haven't gone looking for them yet."
"Meaning what, exactly?" Kiyone looked confused. Seiryo shrugged.
"Meaning that it's too easy to become shackled and trapped in one world, that's all." He said thoughtfully. "Being restricted to Jurai made me see that clearly, and your loyalty to your career and your partner might easily shackle you, also. I appreciate that friendship ranks above ambition in your life - in truth, it's a concept I admire and one I am doing my best to adopt. But don't let it restrict you from reaching out and experiencing other things, too. You never know what might be out there, and that's part of the fun of it."
"Now who's been spending too much time with Washu?" Kiyone arched an eyebrow, and Seiryo offered her a wry smile.
"Perhaps." He acknowledged. "But you have a lot to give the universe, Kiyone. Even before Tokimi sent me to kill you, I knew of your reputation and I knew that you were more than just an average officer. Don't let that ability be wasted. That's all."
"I don't think that I could waste anything, now." Kiyone admitted. "I've been in dangerous situations many times, but in the last six months two attempts have been made on my life directly. The first one only told me to be afraid, but the second...the second told me that I'm good enough at what I do to be a threat to the people I'm out there to stop. And that's a good thing, even if it does mean I get targeted from time to time. It's a part of doing my job - to hit so close to the truth and to bring someone to justice."
She sighed, shrugging her shoulders.
"I won't be an Elite, because I won't leave Mihoshi to flounder on her own." She continued. "Mitsuki and some of the others can be a lot meaner to her than I am, and she does rely on me an awful lot. But I would like to make a difference where I can - that's why I signed up in the first place, after all."
Seiryo nodded his head slowly, leaning back against the tree as he sent her a crooked smile.
"Then maybe I should take advantage of this new-found truce of ours, and teach you some of the tricks of the trade." He said softly. Kiyone looked startled, then she returned his smile, nodding her head.
"I think I'd like that." She said sincerely. Seiryo shrugged.
"Then I will." He said simply. "After all, perhaps I can no longer do my job as an Elite...but that doesn't mean I can't help you to improve your arsenal against the dangers out there. And if you are going to continue putting your life in danger, you should at least know some techniques that might one day save you from another mad Juraian nobleman with a sword and too much power on his mind."
Kiyone laughed, nodding her head appreciatively.
"It might just." She agreed, holding out her hand and after a moment of hesitation, Seiryo took it, shaking it firmly. Kiyone grinned.
"Very well, Lord Tennan." She said playfully. "It's a deal."