Conversations
Chapter 3
On a Deck
*****
Ryoko sat on the deck, her feet dangling into the water. She stared at the little splashes she was creating as she swung her legs back and forth. She reached for another small bottle of sake from the basket she had brought with her and took a swallow.
Things were much better now that she and Ayeka had made peace. Oh sure, there were still fights over Tenchi, but they were small things compared to the battles that used to take place. Little actual damage was done now; except for a few scorch marks on the outside of the house. Tenchi was much calmer and he actually seemed to enjoy being with her and Ayeka, either together or separate.
But she wanted more. For all the tough, street-smart attitude she presented to everyone else, the thought of intimacy sort of scared her. She realized she had been fine as long as Tenchi was pushing her away, but now that they were all growing closer, well it frightened her. This whole "family" thing was a new experience for her. What she really wanted was for Tenchi to see her as more than just a friend, but not necessarily a lover… yet.
Oh God, she thought, I'm finally beginning to understand what Tenchi feels.
She knew that he didn't see in Ayeka anything more than he saw in her, and that offered her some comfort. She had a feeling that Ayeka felt the same way she did, but the princess was still too uncomfortable to talk about it with her. She probably felt that it would open old wounds. Ryoko liked to think that her and Ayeka's relationship had gone beyond that, although she understood Ayeka's reluctance.
As she sat staring into the water and sipping from the bottle, she heard a sound a few feet out on the lake and some mumbled words that sounded like something about a "little twerp" and "water". She looked up, expecting to find that Tsunami had appeared but instead saw woman that she had never seen before, floating above the water. Jeez, she thought, Now what?
The woman was about her size, maybe a little shorter, and certainly didn't look dangerous. In fact she was gorgeous. She had long platinum hair; skin almost as dark as Mihoshi's; brown, almond shaped eyes; and an outfit that looked like real leather and certainly didn't leave much to the imagination. In fact, it would have done Ayeka credit, if some of the things that she had heard about Juraian marriage customs were even half true. All that was missing was the whip. The woman even appeared to be Juraian, with a triangle-shaped caste mark on her forehead and triangle battle-marks on her cheeks.
The woman saw Ryoko evaluating her. "Heh, heh, heh," she chuckled. "Cyan colored hair, in spikes. Golden eyes. You fit the description so you must be Ryoko, the one I've come to see."
Ryoko dropped the bottle and started to levitate, forming her energy sword. "If you want a fight, I'm up for it. I promise not to hurt you, too much."
The woman held both hands toward Ryoko. "No, no. You misunderstand. I just want to have a little chat with you," the woman replied pleasantly. "May I join you on the deck?"
"It's a free country," Ryoko responded, dissipating her sword and settling back onto the deck. But she kept a wary eye on the woman as she floated over and seated herself next to her.
The woman smiled sweetly at her and Ryoko could see more than a hint of mischief in her eyes. "Thank you," she said. "My cousin Tsunami asked me to talk to you. She couldn't do it herself because this directly relates to Jurai's destiny," she made a quoting gesture with her hands and rolled her eyes at Ryoko. "And she has a binding against discussing those matters in front of any Juraian. Say, you wouldn't happen to have more of that sake, would you?"
Ryoko about fell off the deck in surprise. She reached into the basket and pulled out the bottle of Noboyuki's good stuff that she had been saving for later to share with Ayeka in the onsen. Oh well, she could always snitch more. But she was considering what else the woman had just said. "Your cousin Tsunami? I didn't know Tsunami had any relatives except maybe Sasami."
"Oh yes," the woman said after taking a long pull from the bottle. "Ah! That hits the spot! To answer your implied question, she has two sisters, a niece and a great niece. Technically I'm not really her cousin, although that's what we call each other. I'll try to explain. You see Tsunami is a Juraian goddess as are her sisters, although she is presently living here on Earth. I'm an Earth goddess, one of many I might add. We're both higher dimensional beings and so are related, kind of, at least as you might understand it. In fact, like Tsunami, I have two sisters too. And they're both as much a pain to me as hers are to her." The last sentence was muttered under her breath.
"Oh," was all Ryoko could manage as her eyes began to glaze over at the concept of all those goddesses.
"Anyway," the woman went on, "Tsunami wanted me to talk to you about how you could get Tenchi to show you some `real' affection."
"What?" Ryoko exclaimed. "Why would Tsunami want me to have Tenchi? Why not Ayeka? And I'm certainly not Juraian so why couldn't she tell me herself?"
The woman looked at Ryoko as if she were stupid. "I don't have a good answer to the first two, but come on Ryoko. By now you must realize that you're as bound up in the destiny of Jurai as Tenchi is. Tsunami can't reveal anything that might affect that destiny."
"But you can." Ryoko laughed. "She got you to do her dirty work. She can't say anything that might affect that destiny, but she's going to make damn sure that things'll still work out the way she wants them to. Oh, Tsunami. I never expected you were so… devious."
"Uh, yeah, that's pretty much the way things are." The woman said sheepishly.
Ryoko grinned. "So tell me then, how do I get Tenchi to love me?"
"Well, he already does, we just need to get him to realize it," the woman replied taking another large swig from the bottle and handing it to Ryoko.
A feeling of joy surged through Ryoko as she took a sip. She wanted to fly off and find Tenchi right now, but it doesn't pay to be rude to a goddess so she continued to listen.
"Normally," the woman continued, "I would mix a potion to release his feelings and you would sneak it to him in his dinner or something. But because he's part Juraian, I don't know the correct dosages and I might turn him into a water sprite or something."
Ryoko chuckled. "That sounds like something `mom' would do."
The woman gave Ryoko a strange, appraising look. "Ahem. Yes. Well anyway Tsunami asked me to tell you some things. They're kinda cryptic. I don't understand all of them myself although I have an idea what they mean, but Tsunami said that you would figure it out. May I have the bottle?"
Ryoko handed her the bottle and the woman finished it with one swallow. "Damn that was good stuff. I wish I had time for more but I have to get back before my little sister does something really stupid. Anyway, here's what Tsunami told me to say: Think about yours, Tenchi's and Ayeka's strong points. Consider a scale or balance. Tenchi is the middle, the fulcrum; you and Ayeka are at either end, opposites in fact, but you compliment each other. Together you are a perfect, functioning machine, unbreakable, apart you are just pieces of the whole, each easily broken. She also told me to tell you that Tenchi's destiny is bound up with that of Jurai, and to remind you that Tenchi is a member of the Juraian royal family and that the royal family can enjoy certain… privileges."
Ryoko sat for a few minutes, thinking about what the strange goddess had just said. And suddenly she understood. She would definitely have to have another talk with Ayeka, maybe when they were in the onsen later.
The woman watched Ryoko think about Tsunami's words. She saw a sly grin form on Ryoko's face as she realized what they meant. The woman stood up. "I really have to go. I know that little brat is up to something, she's just starting to come into her power and she's no end of trouble. Say Ryoko, do you guys have a TV I might use? It's faster for me to get home that way."
Ryoko floated into the air, her mind still working on what the strange goddess had said. "Sure, it's in the house. I'll show you. And tell Tsunami… thanks. Thanks for everything."
They began to move toward the house.
"So, what do the marks on your face mean?" Ryoko asked.
"Well," the woman answered, "they represent my godhood. Now, if I were to have similar marks except with two widely separated on my forehead above my eyes, that would mean I was a demon."
She saw the look on Ryoko's face at the word `demon'. "What?" she said. "Have you seen a demon around here? I heard a rumor that there's one locked in a cave not far from here, but it's not in any of my records."
Ryoko floated down to stand near the woman.
"Yeah, there was a demon in the cave, up until about a year ago. Then it was accidentally released."
"Do you know where it is now? We may need to do look into this if it causes trouble."
"I know where it is, and to hear some people talk, it causes no end of trouble." Ryoko said with a sad smile.
"Where?" the woman asked. "Is it close by?"
"You're talking to her right now. Does that surprise you?"
The woman looked at Ryoko and laughed. "You're no demon. You don't have the marks or the aura. What makes you think that you are?"
"I've done some horrendous things in my life. I'm responsible for the deaths of countless people. And I almost killed my best friend's sister once, a long time ago. I've been called a demon most of my life. I don't like to be reminded of it by a total stranger, thank you very much."
"Ryoko, I've looked into your soul. Tsunami has looked into your soul. There's no great evil there, believe me. Let me say it again: you're not a demon. I just don't see it in you. But, given your power and your temper, I can understand why others may accuse you of being one." She looked at Ryoko and saw anger starting to smolder in her eyes.
"Don't misunderstand me," she quickly continued. "Not all demons are absolutely evil just as not all gods are absolutely good, although they do tend to drift to those ends of the spectrum. I myself am half demon and I have a very good friend who happens to be a demon. We just chose different career paths that bring us into conflict quite often. And although I haven't seen it personally, I've heard of demons who even do great good. Please Ryoko, understand. I didn't mean to offend you. It seems that my big mouth is faster than my brain sometimes. At least that's what both my sisters tell me."
Ryoko felt her anger subside. She started walking toward the house again. The other woman fell into step beside her.
"I'm sorry for getting angry," Ryoko apologized, "you were right about my temper. I'm learning to control it better, but it's still difficult sometimes… Well, here we are. Come in and I'll show you the TV set."
"Yes," the woman replied so softly that Ryoko couldn't hear her, "we both have a lot to learn it seems." I wonder if that's why Tsunami ask me do this and my sister allowed it. Is it because Ryoko and I are so much alike? she asked herself.
The two entered the home and moved to the living room. The woman went to the TV and to Ryoko's amazement started to climb through the screen.
"Hey!" Ryoko called. "You know who I am but I never heard you mention your name!"
"Urd," the reply came. "My name is Urd, goddess second class. We'll have to talk again sometime, cousin Ryoko. I enjoyed out little chat. `Bye now."
And then she was gone, leaving Ryoko alone in the room.
*****
In the kitchen, Sasami smiled.
*****
To be continued
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