Strange Things~
[Chapter 3]

Aeka walked silently through the woods. Her destination was unknown,
even to her. She just needed time to think about the feelings she had been
having lately. Her feelings towards Ryoko. She never really hated her. She
just was jealous of the space pirate. Her confidence, her beauty, even her
personality made the princess a bit envious.

She finally emerged in a small quiet clearing. Her thoughts were souly
focused on the space pirate. She remembered the fight they had the day before
last. She was still unsure of why they had been fighting. She just remembered
that she wanted to be near the space pirate, no matter what the circumstance
was.

A finger tapped her on the shoulder. She spun around to see the woman who
had stirred up all those feelings within her. She blushed at the sight of the other
woman who stood behind her in a white summer dress. It's straps were
spagetti-thin and one strap hung loosely on her arm. The top of her cleavage
peeked out from the top of the dress, almost inviting her to touch.

"Ryoko?...," Aeka said still blushing as her eyes wandered over the woman.
"I think we need to talk," Ryoko said as she floated into the air in a sitting position.

The two said nothing as they listened to the birds chirping in the trees. Finally
Ryoko cleared her throat.

"Aeka, let me ask you something."
"What?"
"Do you have any kind of feelings towards me?"

Aeka didn't say anything. Instead she looked away from the woman who was
only inches away from her. In her mind she pictured herself grabbing the woman
and kissing those full lips. She tried to shake the image from her mind but it didn't
go away.

"I..I'm not sure what I feel anymore. These feelings I've had lately just seem so
odd. I know they're wrong but I can't stop them," Aeka finally said.

Ryoko kissed the princess' cheek. Aeka froze and a deep brush crossed her cheeks.

"I think I'm beginning to understand the same kind of feelings. I've tried to surpress
them for a long time, but someone helped me realize that maybe they are worth
expressing," Ryoko said as she thought of the previous night in the bathpool.

Ryoko's hands cupped Aeka's face and she brought her lips to the princess'. Their
lips met and a warm feeling swam through their bodies. Aeka hands wrapped over
the pirate's neck. Her body pressed against the other woman. Ryoko moaned softly
as the soft material of her dress rubbed against her naked breasts underneath.

Aeka pulled back and looked away again. She didn't know what she was doing. Her
mind raced as a bunch of new feelings for the other woman went through her body.

"Ryoko... I don't think I can," she said as tears welled up in her eyes.
"I understand, princess. I won't force you to do anything that you don't want to do."
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be. Maybe in time you and I will be able to fully except these feelings. And
maybe then we will be ready. For now we can take it slowly," Ryoko said as she
wiped a tear from Aeka's cheek.

Aeka sniffled and nodded her head in agreement. Inside she felt so horrible for not
being able to go all the way. But she felt it would go against everything she was raised
to know. Ryoko gave her a reassuring smile and disappeared, leaving her by herself
as she had been only minutes before.

*****
Batch knocked on the door to Washu's lab. She heard the scientist yell come in and
she quickly entered. She didn't want anyone to know what she was up to. Inside,
there was a thick darkness everywhere she looked. Closing her eyes she concentrated
and her mind's eye saw which direction to head. Opening her eyes she walked to the
left and went around a blind corner. At the end she saw a bright light. Walking to it,
she finally found the pink-haired scientist standing over a table filled with mechincal
parts.

"What do you want?," Washu asked not looking away from the device she was
working on.
"To talk to you," Batch said.

Washu looked up and was surprised to see the young woman there. She hadn't
thought that she'd go into her lab. But since she was there, Washu hoped she could
ask her a few questions.

"About what?," Washu asked putting the device down.
"I think you know."

Washu eyed the girl suspiciously. The only thing she could think of was a sneaking
feeling that Batch wasn't exactly normal.

"Know what?," Washu asked trying to play dumb.
"Don't try that. I already know you suspect something about me."
"Really? Like what?," she asked not dropping her act.

Batch's dark eyes moved up and down the scientist. A smile crossed her lips and
she closed her eyes. A moment later, Washu saw a bubble float out of nowhere
and it engulfed the device she had been working on. Washu reached out to grab
it but her hand passed through it, as the bubble floated to Batch's outstretched
hand. She opened her eyes and the smile never left her face, an almost taunting smile.

"Like that," she said holding up the device.

Washu was left speechless. She knew there was something strange about Batch, but
something like this never had crossed her mind.

"What a strange power. I've never seen anyone who could do that. But I get the
feeling that's not the only thing you can do."
"You are correct but we'll save that for another time."
"Why? What do you want to talk to me about?"

Batch's smile never left her face as she moved close to the woman before her. She
bent over slightly so she was eye level with Washu. Her lips were only millimeters
away from the woman's lips.

"Did anyone every tell you how pretty you are?," Batch asked.
""Not in a long time," Washu replied with a slight blush.
"Really? That's sad because you're very pretty. Maybe it's because you spend all
your time in this lab."

Batch's dark brown eyes stared into green ones that were filled with a hidden pain.
She placed her hand on the older woman's cheek. The light blush on Washu's cheeks,
darkened at the soft touch.

"You've been alone for so long, haven't you?"
"How did you know?"
"I can see it clearly in your eyes. I can also see that you don't want to be lonely
anymore. You and I both know that you have a very long life ahead of you and I
personally know what that means," Batch whispered.
"How do you know? Your human and humans don't live very long."

Batch smiled and kissed Washu gently on the lips. She stood up all the way and
shook her head.

"I know humans don't live long. But I'm not exactly human myself. About two years
ago, I was traveling in a space ship for the very first time. It was traveling through an
asteroid belt when it was accidently hit. I was the youngest aboard the ship, so the
crew put me into a special capsule in case something would happen to the ship. Just as
I was drifting off to sleep, I heard a loud explosion and that was all I remembered
before I woke up."

"But that doesn't explain how you aren't exactly human," Washu said.

Batch sighed and she continued her story.

"When I awoke, there was a bright light around me. I was floating in an invisible field
that held me down so I couldn't move. I was scared. I thought I was dead and I
started thinking I would never see my family again. But then a voice spoke to me, it
told me not to worry. It told me that it could help me but in the process it would extend
my life far beyond that of any human."

"How much longer?," Washu interuppeted.
"About 100,000 years longer than the average human."
"So that basicly means you're going to be around for a long time. Is that why you came
here? So like that you can spend as much time with everyone in your family before
they're all gone?"
"Exactly. But Kiyone's my favorite cousin so I want to spend extra time with her."

Washu was able to sympathize with Batch. She had no one family of her own except
for the girls and Tenchi.

"But I don't fully understand your abilities."

"I was getting to that. See the voice told me if I choose not to be helped, than I would
die. So I choose to be healed and in addition any hidden abilities I had were brought out
and enhanced slightly so I could learn how to control them. Plus it gave me an extra
ability that would come in handy for the long years ahead."

"Which was?"

"The power to see into the future. However the power is limited. I can only see what's
going to happen within the first 12 hours of the next day. But sometimes it's not always
clear."

Batch took a deep breath and looked at Washu. She smiled slightly at the scientist as
she made eye contact with the woman again. Washu wanted to hold the girl and kiss
her until she had covered ever inch of her body. But the scientist shook her head and
got rid of the idea.

"Washu, I have to tell my cousin but until I tell her don't hint her in about me."
"Ok. But I hope you tell her soon. This is too irresistible to keep to myself for to long."
"I know. Don't worry I will."

With a blink of an eye she disappeared.

*Interesting...* Washu thought to herself.

***To Be Continued***