Biding My Time, Drinking My Wine

Letting out an enormous sigh of exhaustion, Ayeka plopped down on the sand of the beach and refused to get up for any reason. Beaten and battered beyond recognition, the princess just barely had enough energy to wheeze. Every muscle in her body felt like pudding, every square inch of her skin burned with a blazing pain unknown to the lady. The only thing she could do now was catch her breath; she couldn't even move as she was joined by her companion.

"I know what you mean," said Ryoko, also finding herself face-first in the sand. The pirate groaned in misery, not bothering to jerk away from her rival who was only inches away. The two ladies laid there in the sand for an infinitely long time, just barely able to breathe. However, there was something else in that agony and pain and misery and suffering, something deep within their windy breaths that showed something other than hardship.

The faintest of chuckles could be heard from their mouths.

"We… we did it," managed Ayeka, her voice incredibly hoarse. She summoned up all of her energy to smile. "We… did it…"

"Yeah," said Ryoko without the slightest trace of malice or trickery. "Although… took us longer… than I thought…" Ayeka sighed, and managed to toss over so that her face wasn't in the sand. Squinting slightly from the cruel sun above, the princess and the pirate took a well-earned rest from their labors on that very beach.

Faint memories of the past echoed through their minds as they slept. Ayeka cruelly remembered all of the torture and pain she had gone through to complete their house. The shack, it seemed, had been far too small for them to live in, so they had to rethink their strategy. It would still be useful, but as a storage room instead. After placing all necessary tools and items inside their shack, Ayeka and Ryoko set about making a place they could call their own.

Ayeka, growing increasingly tired of having to ride up the tree on piggyback, drew up plans for a stairway to the top. They were promptly shredded by the princess, who conceived an even better idea: a ladder system for going up, and a zip line for going down. The line was easiest to do: Ryoko hurled down a long strand of strong rope she had made, and from the surface, Ayeka would have to find a suitable tree to attach it to. Once she fastened it onto a strong-looking specimen, Ryoko volunteered to test it out first. Using her shirt as the zipper, she held onto the sleeves and sailed downward with a whooping holler.

Ryoko tested the zip line three more times before giving her approval. Her shirt, a surprisingly strong piece of material, would act as permanent zipper from that day forward. The rope seemed tight enough to hold the pirate on each of her journeys, and Ryoko swore on her heart that it would be equally strong for Ayeka. The princess was forced to believe her for the time.

Once a way down was conceived, a way up had to be made. At first, Ayeka conceived that a ladder made out of wood would be best, but then it was dismissed. "Too easy to knock over," Ryoko had said. Ayeka then brought up the use of a knotted rope, but it "Would be too easy to cut" according to the space pirate.

Finally, through a spark of ingenuity, Ayeka suggested making steps out of stone. At first Ryoko was skeptical--after all, where would they get enough rocks to climb the tree? Ayeka assured her that the island had what they needed--in fact, she even proved it.

As soon as Ryoko saw the mountain, she caught onto the princess' idea. With a few good blasts, the pirate had dislodged enough boulders to make a crude stairwell; Ayeka carried as many rocks as she could, but the long trek to and from the mountain nearly wiped her out. Still, Ryoko had to admire her tenacity.

The very first rock was laid down nearly three days after the shack had been built. It was a large one, so a minimal amount of climbing was required. Next to that rock, an even bigger one was placed, and next to that one, an even bigger one was placed. Soon (or to be more specific, a week later), there were enough boulders surrounding the tree to make a decent set of stairs. A space of about three meters still separated the top of the tree from the highest boulder, but even Ayeka could scale that distance.

Now that the girls had a way to get up (and an entertaining way of getting down), they could easily finish their house. Learning from their earlier trials, the girls were able to make a significantly larger (and taller) domain, one that nearly covered the entire tree. Several trees had to be chopped down for this effort, which meant lots of blasting from Ryoko and lots of chopping from Ayeka.

Ayeka was chiefly responsible for making the mixture that sealed the wood together. At first she would cuss and complain about the hard work, but would always be reminded that it was often Ryoko who performed most of the duties. This would usually silence the princess, and she would continue stirring and heating her brew.

The end result was an impressive four-room cabin with an all-purpose shed in the back and a beautiful view from the roof. The mattress had been relocated to the cabin, and a makeshift window was cut into the bedroom. Eventually, a dining room would be added, although bathrooms would be an inconvenience (emergencies were usually handled by the zip line).

Now, after finally finishing their new home, as well as completing the difficult task of making an SOS system, the girls were beaten beyond recognition. Their rest in the sun was short-lived, for evening was approaching fast. With a sigh, the girls welcomed the cool air of the night, and somehow managed to sit up and enjoy the sunset. After Ayeka volunteered to grab a coconut, and after Ryoko managed to break it open, the girls dined and drank to their success… as well as their surprising ability to cooperate.

"What a day," moaned Ayeka, hugging her knees to her body. Still somewhat weak from the taxing work she had subjected herself to, Ayeka could only whisper and just barely sit up. Ryoko opted to lay out on the sand, stretching her legs as far as they could.

"What a month, more like it," she groaned. Ayeka sighed and heartily agreed.

"I cannot believe that we have accomplished so much," she said. Ryoko nodded her head.

"Yeah." The girls stopped talking for awhile, content to just watch the sun sink into the sea. Waves of bubbly water lapped from the ocean to their feet, and braver tides ran up to their heels. Eventually, the flaming star died back down into the horizon, and night once again dominated the island. In the distance, just barely audible through the singing of the waves, crickets began chirping happily. A waning crescent moon smiled down on the girls as they began to relax.

"We should just take it easy for the next day or two," said Ayeka suddenly. Ryoko looked over in her direction and smiled.

"Hm, yeah… nothing but lounging around in the new house, eating and sleeping, and maybe even swimming." Ayeka slowly mirrored the other woman's smile, and snuggled up in the sand.

"That sounds nice." Another peaceful break in conversation wedged between the ladies, and stars began appearing. Ryoko and Ayeka both craned their heads up to the black heavens, and at least one mouth gaped open in wonder.

"There are so many," sighed the princess. "I mean… I know how many stars there are out there, but… I have never taken the time to actually look…" Ryoko, noticing the princess' childlike wonder, merely smiled.

"I have never seen this many stars, not even from Tenchi's house," continued Ayeka. "I know that that area does not get much in the ways of electric light, so there is nothing to obstruct the view. But even then…" She trailed off, and hummed happily. Ryoko sighed with content, her eyes darting between the beautiful canopy above them and the spoiled brat-turned-friend beside her.

Friend… Is she a friend? Ryoko snorted to herself, and shook the idea out of her head. Maybe. I guess. Aw, who cares?

"Hey Ayeka?"

"Yes?" Ryoko paused for just a brief moment.

"I have a question."

"Go ahead."

"What would you, uh…" She paused again, wondering how to ask such a delicate question. "…What would you do if, uh, Tenchi were here?"

"If Tenchi were here?" repeated the princess. She hummed to herself, and thought it over for a brief period. "Why do you ask?"

"Just wondering," came a reply. "I mean, I know that you're devastatingly in love with him."

"What?" squeaked Ayeka. She was far too weak to scream in disbelief.

"Just answer the question." Ayeka began to steam a little, but just a little, since she only had a little energy to spare.

"I'm not sure what I would do," she stated, a trace of superiority in the voice.

"Gee, I'd think that you'd try and make him comfortable or something."

"Well of course I would," she replied, abnormally quiet. "I mean, he is our friend and our lord."

"Would you want him to work as well?" hummed the pirate.

"Well of course. I know that Tenchi's not lazy, not like you."

"Excuse me?!? What did you say?!? You think I'm lazy, after all that I did today?" Ayeka snorted, finding out the dangerous way that Ryoko still had lots of pep left in her.

"Sorry," she spat. "I'm just teasing anyway. What, are you the only one who can tease people?" With a humph, Ryoko began to pout, and somehow distanced herself from the princess a little.

"Guess not," she hissed. Ayeka made a half-smile, and sat up once again.

"I know what you would do," she claimed. "You would pester him all twenty-four hours of the day! That's right, you'd never leave poor Tenchi alone, unless you had to use the bathroom, and I daresay that you'd probably soil yourself if--"

SMACK!!!

Ryoko sighed, her hand stinging from the blow she had just dealt. With a huff and a slight beam of triumph, she crossed her arms and scooted away from the woman. Well, somebody had to do it, she reasoned. Closing her eyes in defiance, the pirate half-expected Ayeka to either A) start blubbering, B) start screaming and yelling, C) slap her back, which would have lead to an all-out war, or D) all the above.

To her great shock, the princess did neither of the four options. She merely emitted silence from her mouth, while carefully touching her face. The blow, she noticed, felt like somebody had just rubbed sandpaper against her cheek. Ayeka took in a deep breath, and gave the pirate nothing but an empty, somewhat haunting silence. Finally, after about ten minutes of this intermission, she spoke--not in a whisper or a groan, but in the firm voice of a princess.

"We're going to have to live together until we find a way off," she stated, sounding as empty as the coconut half she had held. "We'll have to eat together, drink together, sleep together, and we'll have to work together too. I'm not particularly fond of this idea, and I know that you are not either." Ayeka paused, and looked at Ryoko with empty crimson eyes. Ryoko almost felt sorry for hitting her companion during that time.

"But we're going to have to approach this with a degree of maturity and patience," continued the woman. "That means that, despite our wishes, we will have to cooperate together. This thought does not make me too happy, but we will need each other to survive. Ryoko, I need you, and you need me. There is no getting around it. Arguing about it would be a waste of time. Besides, I've tried all that before, and I failed." Ayeka sighed, caught her breath, and let the silence pass through the air. Finally, she stood up despite her weakness, and looked at the other woman with dead eyes.

"We should get to bed," she suggested. "Tomorrow's going to be a holiday, but I'm feeling very tired, so I need my rest. Come whenever you're ready." And with that, Ayeka left Ryoko on the beach, somewhat confused and altogether stunned. Ayeka, it seemed, had grown up a little more since her arrival, and although there was still a brat lurking inside of her, a shining ray of maturity and wisdom was within her, and it glowed on that beach that day.

Ryoko appeared in the cabin about fifteen minutes later, finding Ayeka shedding her royal princess garment. Not a word was exchanged between the two in the brittle silence; only a haunting look, and what might have been a very faint trace of remorse and maybe even respect. Silently, Ryoko took off some of her outer clothes, and grabbed a grape or two before heading off to the bedroom. Ayeka did not eat anything.

When Ayeka entered the bedroom, she found Ryoko staring out the window somberly, a very sad and noble look on her face--that is, if pirates even had sad and noble looks. Sensing the imbalance in the room, Ayeka stepped forward and placed her hand on Ryoko's shoulder.

"I want to say two things to you, Ryoko," she whispered. No reply came from the other. "First of all, I want to…… I want to apologize for what I said about you. I know how much you care for Lord Tenchi, and even though you can annoy him sometimes, you do have a sort of tenacity about you that I am jealous of." Ryoko, shockingly, made no movement, nor did she sing and dance like Ayeka expected. She merely hummed a little, and let a faint smile show on her mouth.

So… Ayeka admits that there's something about me that she's jealous of… Well who would have guessed?

"What's the second thing?" she asked, turning to face Ayeka. The princess allowed a suspenseful pause to hang in the air before expressing her second thought.

SLAP!!!

"HOW DARE YOU HAVE THE NERVE TO SLAP ME!?!?!?! DO YOU KNOW WHO YOU HAVE JUST STRUCK?!? ME, AYEKA, THE ROYAL PRINCESS OF JURAI AND HEIR TO THE THRONE OF THE UNIVERSE!!! WHY OF ALL THE MEAN-SPIRITED, WICKED, MALEVOLENT, VILE THINGS TO DO!!! THAT ALONE IS CAUSE FOR EXECUTION, YOU WORTHLESS BELLIGERENT SPACE MONSTER!!!!!!"

A disturbingly long pause followed.

"Well, so much for handling this with maturity and patience," sighed Ryoko. She scowled darkly, and crossed her arms in offense. Still, perhaps she deserved such a hit. "I guess we're even now, cow face."

"Yes, we are even, lazybones," sang Ayeka gleefully. The girls nodded in bizarre agreement, and climbed into the small bed. Both turned their backs on the other as if they were arguing sisters, which they might have passed as.

"Ow! Stop kicking me!"

"I'm not kicking you!"

"Yes you are!!"

"Ow! Now you're poking me!"

"I'm not poking you!"

"Don't you deny it, you worm!"

"Worm?! How dare you!"

"OW! Stop pulling my hair!"

"I wouldn't touch your hair to save my life!"

"And just what is wrong with my hair?!"

"It's attached to your body, for one thing!"

"Why you… you vermin! You wretch!"

"ACK! Stop slapping me!!"

"I did not touch that ugly face of yours!"

"Ugly?! Take a look at yourself, you hippo!"

"Grrr… why I oughta…"

"What? Oughta what?"

"Will you stop kicking me?!?!?"

"I did not kick you!!"

"And now you're poking me! After accusing me of the same thing!"

"I wouldn't touch you to rip your arm off!"

"I should do exactly that to you!"

"Freak of nature!"

"Rabid queen of harlots!"

"Horse-faced space dog!"

"Sack of elephant excrement!"

"Fat, ugly, sake-swilling pig!"

"I TOLD YOU TO STOP KICKING ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

And so, another peaceful, ordinary day on the island came and went……