Disclaimer: Tenchi Muyo and all of its symbols,
characters, sets, and terms are copyright Pioneer. Of course, if that isn't enough disclaiming, you could always sue
me, and see if I care.
Darkness.
How she
hated that word – what it meant. It meant
feeling alone. Being afraid.
: I
shouldn't be afraid of the dark! : She told herself. : A princess doesn't have to be afraid. Everything is perfect for a princess. :
It wasn't
the darkness itself, she told herself.
It was the thoughts that came with it.
When you were laying, all alone, in bed at night, everything seemed so
much more possible – nightmares became real.
Horrible
events would replay in her head, news stories of gruesome murders, tales of
past royalty and their fates, stories from those horror movies that Ryoko
loved.
: Like that
one, where the guy poured steaming wax over alive people to fill his wax
museum… : She shuddered, and pulled her
blanket up. : Think of something else,
something pleasant… : She cast her eyes
around the dark room, but found nothing comforting in its order, its
perfection. : Perfect. Like I'm supposed to be. :
Trying to
sleep, she turned onto her side, but the image of the wax people remained in
her mind, and she could not close her eyes.
She knew she was safe here, but the could not rid herself of the nagging
thought that something was not right.
But nothing
was ever right when the darkness came.
: If I was
killed, I wonder if Tenchi would hear me scream? : She mused. : Would he
care? :
She knew the
answer to that. Yes, Tenchi, the
innocent boy who had even saved a pirate, would care.
: Not that
I want to be killed. Protect me,
Tsunami. : She prayed silently. Talking
to the goddess made her feel a little better.
She would have rather talked to Ryuu-oh, but the tree was far away, and
still growing.
: I would
have like to talk to Tenchi even more, but that will never happen. : She sighed.
Any fool could see that he like Ryoko better, strong, fearless Ryoko.
: Damn you,
Ryoko. : If she had been smart, she
would have left long ago, instead of staying, letting her heart break slowly
into a million pieces. If she had been
smart, she would have forgotten him long ago.
Instead, she stayed, holding onto the last shreds of hope that Tenchi
might change.
Footsteps
caught her attention and the door started to slide open. She caught her breath, but it was just
Sasami coming to bed.
"'Night,
Ayeka."
"Goodnight,
Sasami." Sasami smiled and turned until
she was more comfortable.
: If only I
was that cheerful. Mihoshi and Sasami
must have the best lives in the universe.
Nothing bothers them. :
: Not like
me. Prissy princess me. : Ryoko's favorite insult. Did Ryoko think she liked being a princess?
Well, she
had, for a while. Once she saw how good
she had it, she enjoyed herself. Now,
after meeting Tenchi…she wasn't so sure.
Everyone here seemed so happy with their common lives.
No
acting. Everything she had done was
acting. Acting happy, acting
perfect…everything had ben acted until she met Tenchi. Now that she had this freedom, she had found
that she could not use it. She could
not help still acting perfect. Acting
not scared…A princess should not be afraid of the darkness. She hid everything so well that even Sasami
didn't really know her.
Remembering
the news cast she had heard the other night, she smiled. "Today, the annual Fair was held at the Riikyu
Shrine. Everyone seemed to enjoy
themselves, especially the Lady Marittchu.
She spent the day playing with the children, as shown here."
Nobility on
Jurai did not have that luxury of enjoying themselves. Perfectly happy Juraians, with their
pasted-on smiles.
Perfectly
happy Juraians, murdering each other for power. Using made-up excuses to justify themselves.
: When I'm
Queen, that will all stop. : She
thought. : If I'm not killed first.
: It wasn't out of the boundaries of
reason. Queen Sennita the fourth had
been killed over a game of cards, her body skewered upon a pole, then roasted
while she was still alive.
And that
wasn't even the worst murder committed on Jurai.
: That
would be horrible, being run through your stomach, then burned to death. I can't even imagine what that would be
like! Or, maybe I can. : She shuddered. : Think of something nice.
Nice…socks. : Inwardly, she
laughed at herself.
: You can
think of anything in the world, and you choose socks? How sad is that! :
She tried
to think of Tenchi, because thinking about socks was pretty stupid. She imagined Tenchi leaning in for a kiss
with her, when there was suddenly a turn of events. Ryoko's voice called out for Tenchi, and he ran for her, covering
her in kisses.
And all she
could say was, "Nice socks."
Suddenly
she woke up. She had never even noticed
when she had fallen asleep. According
to the digital clock Tenchi had given Sasami, it was '4:30 A.M.'. Several hours since she had last looked.
: Ryoko,
why do you always have to take Tenchi away from me? Will you ever leave me alone? :
She began to silently cry, ignoring the inner image of the pirate
telling her she was a wuss…her mother telling her that princess should never
cry. Princesses were perfect.
Sniffing
daintily, she tiptoed down stairs so that she would not wake anyone. She thought herself through everything,
still acting perfect, unable to stop. :
Pour the milk, heat it, stir in the cocoa.
Walk quietly, hold up your skirt with your free hand. Sit down, smooth out skirt. Sip cocoa quietly. : She could almost hear Misaki next to her,
giving out commands, although they would have never heard of cocoa on Jurai.
: Where is Ryoko? : She thought
suddenly. : If she has heard me… : But Ryoko wasn't up on her usual rafter, and
she heaved a sigh of relief. : I hope
she isn't with Tenchi, though. :
When she was finished, she sat the
cocoa on the table and lay down on the bench, her back against the wall – the window
above her that led to the kitchen was still open from dinner and plate
washing. Ayeka thought of her dream, of
Tenchi and Ryoko. She sobbed once, then
quietly cried herself to sleep, ignoring the damp sleeve of her robe, where she
lay her head.
"Ayeka?" Tenchi asked, starting as he noticed her. She didn't answer, just lay there quietly –
an empty cup of cocoa rested on the table near her. Her sleeve was damp, like something had splashed there – she must
have been crying, that wasn't cocoa.
"Ayeka, what's wrong? Why were you crying?" He had once heard that people will answer
you in their sleep. He didn't really
expect it to work, but Ayeka shifted slightly.
"Lord Tenchi?"
Tenchi smiled at her from across
the field. "Ayeka, why were you crying?"
"I wasn't crying, what are you
talking about?"
"Your robe is damp…" He sounded
confused.
She looked down at her white summer
robe, that was soaked with tears. She realized
how thin it was and tried to cover herself, lest she be indecent.
"Ayeka, why were you crying?"
"Tenchi, why do you always choose
her?"
"Choose who?"
"Why is it always Ryoko? Why can't it be me? Even once?"
"Ayeka, what are you talking about?"
"I love you, Tenchi, and even that
isn't enough! Mother was right, love
never gets anything. Maybe I should go
back to being the prissy princess from Jurai.
It would make you happier."
"Ayeka, that wouldn't make me
happy."
"It wouldn't? Not even when you can be alone all of that
time? Alone with her?"
"Ayeka, what makes you think I love
Ryoko more than you?"
"Ryoko's beautiful, brave, she
never cries, never has obligations…Oh, I don't know, why would you like her
better?" She added sarcastically.
"Ayeka, you're beautiful too. You're sensitive, you realize that there are
other things in life, and you, too, are brave."
"Tenchi, you don't always have to
be so caring about my feelings. Why don't
you just admit that you like Ryoko better?
Then we can all get on with our happy, happy lives. Yay."
She was crying again, ignoring the fact that you could now see
completely through her robe.
"But I don't like Ryoko better."
"Right."
"Ayeka, I love you."
"Tenchi, just say that you love
Ryoko so we can get it over it."
"But, Ayeka, I love you, not Ryoko."
"Tenchi, I know that you love
Ryoko, stop fooling around!" Tenchi
sighed and walked over to her, the wind stirring the grass beneath his feet
softly. He leaned forward and she
gasped. Just before her lips met his,
she turned away.
"What is it?"
"This is the part of the dream
where Ryoko always comes in and takes you away."
He smiled. "Ryoko isn't coming." Quickly, before she could say anything, he
kissed her.
Ayeka's eyelids fluttered open and
he kissed her. Realizing that her dream
hadn't been a dream, she closed her eyes again, savoring the moment. The broke apart and Tenchi grinned.
"See? No demoness here to steal me away. I'm all yours."
"Well, then." Ayeka smiled, and kissed him again,
unbuttoning his shirt. As he slowly
realized what was happening, Tenchi untied her robe, letting it fall softly to
the floor.
Carrying a sleeping Ayeka in his
arms, Tenchi smiled as he walked up the stairs and into his room. He lay her down on his bed, then closed his
door and turned off the light. Lying
next to her, he pulled the sheets over them, while she cuddled closer. It wasn't long until he joined her in her
dreams.
