Chapter Four



Ryoko shifted, and looked down at the land stretching out beneath the outcropping of her cave. The dimness of evening was shadowing across the hillside, and the last traces of pink sunset were slowly shading to a deep purple. The white paper of her notepad took on a strange luminescence in the blue half-light, making the writing seem like magical runes.

The many balls of crumpled paper scattered around her testified to a long afternoon's efforts. In fact, the darkness surprised her. She had no idea that she had been working on her haiku for so long… gauging from the position of the moon just over the rim of the horizon, she must have been working for over four hours.

She finally had one that didn't rhyme. Maybe that dratted old geezer would go easy on her this time. It bothered her when he laughed at her, not that she'd ever show it. If he laughed at her when she showed him this one, he was going to eat it. Literally, she had a small bottle of hot sauce in her left pocket.

Carefully incinerating her crumpled rejects one by one, she considered what to do for the rest of the evening. That hollow feeling inside was still there. Washu had called it loneliness. It was nice to have a name for an emotion she had felt in some form for all of her remembered existence. But tonight it felt like a hunger, it chewed at her and made her feel torn up inside.

And she didn't like it.

::Uh….. Washu?:: she asked, sending out a tendril of thought.

::Yes?:: Washu answered promptly.

::This…um…. 'lonely' business…:: she started then stopped, her awkwardness flavoring the thoughts she sent to her mother.

::Mmmm?::

Ryoko did an equivalent of a mental throat clearing. ::Do you have a shot for it?::

Washu's amusement filtered softly over the link. ::I wish. Nope, you need to come hang out with us, I fear.::

::Damn it,:: Ryoko muttered. ::I figured.::

::Oh, it's not so bad, Little Ryoko. We are all in the living room watching a movie. You could slip right in.::

Ryoko considered. She was so lonely that it felt like a physical pain.

::It might help the hurt:: Washu coaxed.

::Oh fine then,:: Ryoko thought, giving in. ::If you say so.::

::See you, then,:: Washu sent, gently closing her end of the link.

Ryoko firmed her resolve and took off, flying towards the house. She could do this. She missed them, and she had every right to spend time with them like she used to do. And they wanted her right? They all said so. Still, her nerves jangled anyway. There was no way it could be like it used to be. What if it was weird?

Well, she could always blow up the house and leave. It as a s simple as that. Well, that would suck actually. Maybe she should just play it cool instead. If they were weird she would ignore it. Maybe it would be okay.

::Show them how by being normal yourself,:: Washu suggested in a whisper.

::Hmmprh. ::

***

After stashing her notebook behind the refrigerator, Ryoko walked softly into the darkened living room. The TV cast a soft blue glow about the room as the entire household lounged on the couches, caught up in a movie. Ryoko stepped around a chair and looked at Sasami and Ayeka curiously. "Can I sit here?"

Their faces brightened and they scooted apart to make room for their troubled friend. Ayeka patted the now empty spot with an eager hand. "Please, have a seat."

"We even warmed it up for you!" Sasami giggled.

"Mmmm, nice," Ryoko sighed as she sat with an exaggerated wiggle of her rear. "What are we watching?"

Ayeka beamed at her seatmate. "Oh you know, the usual love drama," she said carelessly as she offered up a bowl of rice crackers.

Ryoko arched an eyebrow. "Don't we have enough of that going on around here as it is?" she asked dryly, taking a cracker.

Ayeka's smile turned upside down. "Oh dear, I didn't think… I'm sorry." She absently sat the bowl on the table.

Regretting her comment, Ryoko patted the princess on the shoulder, like they were old cronies rather than one-time rivals. "Don't sweat it," she comforted casually, thinking that the TV show couldn't be any worse than her life these days. She inhaled the cracker without really chewing it up and reached around Ayeka for another.

"No, this isn't right," Ayeka muttered fretfully. "Sasami, we need to watch something else!" she announced, drawing the attention of everyone in the room.

Sasami bounded off the couch and picked up the TV guide form the windowsill and started flipping through the pages in a frantic search. The rest of the family wisely kept silent as tensions in the room rose.

Ryoko eased back into her seat without a cracker. "Please, don't… you were already watching this," she almost pleaded.

Ayeka pressed her lips together determinedly. "Miss Ryoko, we are all a family here, and families respect the feelings of each other." She looked over to her sister. "Sasami! Haven't you found anything else yet?" she snapped.

"I'm sorry it's too dark to read," the young girl whimpered, holding the pages close to her nose and straining to make out the characters.

"Really, don't make such a big deal out of this," Ryoko complained with a deep frown, the tail of her dress twitching in agitation. "Just drop it, Ok?"

Ayeka ignored her. "A comedy? A music video? The news?" she demanded in her most imperious voice.

"I'm sorry sister," Sasami whined.

"Stop!" Ryoko shouted, jumping out of her seat. "Don't yell at her!" Ryoko hovered above the couch with clenched fists.

Ayeka blinked, stunned for a moment. "You are not up to this type of programming!" she protested weakly.

Ryoko grabbed her own forelocks with both hands and pulled hard. "Arg! I'm not going to break!"

Washu knowingly buried her head in her hand with a low groan, while the others looked on in shock.

"Ryoko," Tenchi began.

"Just shut up Tenchi," she cut him off before he could begin his usual wimpy attempt at calming her down. "This – this – THIS is why I don't spend time with you guys anymore! I'm a SPACE PIRATE! I don't need or want your pity! I just want…" she faltered here. "I just things to go back to normal."

"But…" Noboyuki interjected, his heart clearly breaking for her. "We don't want to hurt you."

Ryoko snarled. "Do I have to blow the roof off of your house before you believe that I'm fine?"

Noboyuki yelped and upended a bowl of popcorn over his head, cowering underneath.

"Are you fine?" Katsuhito asked conversationally,

Ryoko shot him a look of annoyance. "Can it."

"Ryoko, my friend," Ayeka tried again. "We just worry so."

Still fuming, Ryoko nodded. "Well, cut it out. It's not helping me." She cast a look at the Sasami and spotted a tear running down her cheek. She floated over to the youngster and patted her on the back. "I'm sorry kiddo." With that she teleported to the top of the Torii framing the shrine steps.

A cool wind blew some darker clouds over the waning moon and made the blue tressed pirate shiver. She had tried to be with them tonight. To be normal. Didn't they get it? If she couldn't have Tenchi, she would accept just having all of them as her friends. Or maybe even, as Ayeka had put it, as her family.

But if they kept treating her this way, how could she find herself again? She hadn't meant to disrupt the evening. She had only wanted to be with them. She had barely sat down before it became a three-ring circus with her as the main attraction. Maybe she should just leave. The current situation wasn't making anyone very happy.

"That went well," said a nasal voice below her.

Ryoko looked down to see her mother and Katsuhito peering up at her.

"Don't start," Ryoko said tiredly, looking away. "It was your dumb idea anyway."

"No I mean it Little Ryoko," Washu said sincerely. "I think they really needed to hear that from you."

"Indeed," Katsuhito added. "That was nicely done."

"Huh?" Ryoko asked stupidly.

In a blink the two had joined her atop the Torii, Katsuhito by means of a tremendous leap, and Washu by means only known to her.

Washu, unused to showing Ryoko outward affection, patted her daughter's leg awkwardly. "The trouble has been that no one has known how to treat you."

"And now that you have shared your wishes things should be easier," the priest said from Ryoko's other side.

Ryoko shrugged and looked across the landscape for a long, silent moment. "It's hard," she said simply.

Katsuhito and Washu shared a glance. It was unusual for Ryoko to show her feelings without prompting.

As Ryoko twiddled her thumbs and stared off into the distance Washu nodded in answer to some internal question. She turned to Ryoko and said quietly. "It must be difficult to live in the house these days."

Ryoko nodded.

"Would you like to live somewhere else?" Washu asked.

"No."

"No?" the red head parroted.

"No, I do not want to live in the lab," Ryoko clarified.

Washu laughed. "Silly Ryoko! I don't want you in my lab, messing up my experiments and research! No, that wasn't where I meant."

"Where then? In the shrine with this old coot?" she asked gesturing towards Katsuhito with her head.

"I hold the same objections to that as Washu," was his even answer.

Ryoko felt a chill steal over her. "You're… you're kicking me out?" she asked in a frightened whisper.

"No!" Washu snapped and a flowerpot landed on Ryoko's head.

"Ouch," Ryoko said as she rubbed her forehead, the pain distracting her from her earlier worries.

"Look there," Katsuhito encouraged, pointing to the side of the lake opposite to the Masaki household.

Where there had only been grasses and darkness before, stood the shadowed outline of a small A-frame house with yellow light spilling cheerfully from the windows. A fence outlined a small front yard, whose lush landscaping softly reflected the moonlight.

"What's that?" Ryoko asked.

"You're new house," Washu said proudly. "Designed and made by me."

"My house?" Ryoko asked absently, peering at the structure.

Katsuhito made an affirming noise in the back of his throat. "Professor Washu and I have been thinking along the lines you spoke of tonight. We also think you need to get back to a normal life."

"But," Washu added, "We realized that you didn't have much 'normal' to get back to, so we thought we would help create some normal things for you."

The seemingly old man nodded. "And for anyone, living under the same roof as an unrequited love and his new bride is not at all normal."

Ryoko nodded grimly. "I can see that."

The priest pushed his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. "And you have too much time to ruminate."

Ryoko raised an eyebrow, she didn't know what that last word meant. "Say what?"

Washu swished her hands through the air dismissively. "Go get a dictionary if you want to know what it means. Practically speaking, you need meaningful tasks and a set schedule to stick to, otherwise you'll just mope around all day."

"Meaningful tasks?" Ryoko grouched, not liking the sound of that at all.

"Yes, laying about won't do you any good," Katsuhito affirmed sternly. "It never has."

"What kind of tasks are we talking about here?" Ryoko asked with a note of distrust. "I like not doing 'tasks'."

"Just like Tenchi trains with me, so shall you. I meant it when I said your form was suffering. We start tomorrow at dawn," he said.

"Dawn?!?" Ryoko screeched. "You can forget that!" She might be feeling a little submissive after all of her current emotional wear and tear, but she wasn't a pushover either.

"Dawn, dusk, or share my time with Tenchi and train with him also," he offered.

"Dusk," Ryoko agreed reluctantly. She wasn't against training. She knew she need to do more than she had been, but dawn was totally out of the question.

"Good! Then after that we can work on your poetry.

"Poetry?" Washu asked with surprised interest.

"Oh geeze," Ryoko groaned. "Did you have to tell?"

"Poetry is to be shared, it gains life in the spoken word. Otherwise, the words are dead and hidden," Katsuhito pronounced.

"She writes poetry?" Washu repeated.

Katsuhito looked at Washu firmly, his expression telling her to be quiet. "Yes, she composes. Then that shall be what she does in the afternoons. Meditation and poetry."

Washu took the hint. "Then that leaves the mornings to me. Ryoko dear, in the mornings you will fly into town and purchase the two of us lattes at that new Starbucks-Thingie. You will bring them back to me in the lab and we shall talk for an hour or so as we feed my fauna… and some of the flora too."

"Cool," Ryoko commented casually, happy about seeing the animals again. Then the rest of Washu's comment filtered into her brain. "Talk?" Ryoko asked.

"Talk," Washu answered.

"Talk about what?" Ryoko asked dubiously.

"Everything," Washu said with an expansive wave of her hand.

"Great," Ryoko muttered.

Washu considered. "Do you want a latte too, Katsuhito?"

"No thank you. Tea will do for me. Besides, I would rather support small businesses instead."

Washu cackled. "I guess you don't need the caffeine that a genius like me needs!"

Ryoko groaned.

Katsuhito stood up, extending his arms for balance. "Well I think that's more than enough for a normal day, don't you Ryoko?"

"Yeah, I guess," she answered reluctantly. "Sounds like too much."

"Then we will take our leave," he said, leaping back towards the ground, ignoring her complaint.

Washu placed a hand on her daughter's shoulder. "Don't whine. Your bedroom is on the second floor. I even turned the bed down for you." The small woman smiled and winked out of existence before Ryoko could reply.

***

::Wake up. Wake up. Wake up. Wake up….:: droned Washu's mental voice over and over like a skipping record.

Ryoko's sleeping mind grumbled and pulled itself away from a tantalizing dream. ::Whazzat?::

::Wake up. Wake up. Wake up. Wake up….:: the drone continued.

::Washu!:: Ryoko grumbled. ::Stop it.::

::Wak - Oh sorry, that was a recording. Where's my latte?::

::???:: Ryoko's mind slipped back under the waves of unconsciousness.

Washu chuckled warmly. ::I see how it is. I forgot to include an alarm clock.::

::ZzZzZzZzZzZz::

:Be that way. You leave me no choice my sleepy little Ryoko.:: The mental voice paused. :: TEN-HUT!:: she shouted.

"Ahhhh!" Ryoko screamed, her eyes opening to the unadulterated brightness of the morning. ::MOM!:: she groaned, only to be answered by laughter and the feeling of the link shutting on her mother's end.

Squinting Ryoko rolled out of the beam of bright sunshine. Not opening her eyes, she rubbed a hand over her face and smacked her lips, hoping to fall back asleep. It was too late, the sun shining in her face, not to mention Washu's shouting, had woken her up.

She took in the feeling of the soft feather bed beneath her body, the down pillows supporting her head and the crisp cotton sheets twined about her legs. It was very comfortable, but it wasn't the rafter. A moment of disorientation addled her as she fought to remember where she was. She opened her eyes cautiously and took in the small room with sky blue walls and sheer white drapery over the windows, which allowed the light to stream in unabated.

Ah. She was in her room. In her new house. She had expected to feel isolated and lonely upon waking here, but instead she felt a comforting sense of home. This was her place. She hadn't really owned much in the past and this was really her's. She could set the rules here. No one could kick her out. She scooted up to a sitting position and leaned against the headboard of her western style bed, her arms crossed behind her head, smiling in satisfaction. No, this arrangement wasn't bad at all.

She glanced around the room and saw that Washu had included many thoughtful touches. There was a nicely framed photograph of the crab nebula on the wall facing her bed, hung next to several framed wanted posters of Ryoko each showing a different picture and profile of the ex- pirate. Ryoko smirked a tiny bit, only Washu could understand that while Ryoko was hideously ashamed of her past, there were some small parts of it she treasured anyway. Being such a bad ass that the cops couldn't catch her was a source of great pride.

On the bed stand next to a Tiffany water lily lamp, done in blue and green glass tesserae, was a photo in a silver art frame. It was a picture of an adolescent Ryoko with an adult Washu standing behind her. Washu had her arms around Ryoko and was resting her chin on her shoulder. They both were beaming at the camera as a spring garden bloomed in a profusion of colors around them.

Ryoko looked at the picture not sure if she felt touched or annoyed that Washu had included that photo. Unable, as always, to sort out her complex feelings on the matter, Ryoko turned the frame face down, pushing her confusion out of her mind with practiced ease. Early morning lattes her ass. Washu could just forget it.

::That was our deal!:: Washu pointed out.

::I don't remember any deals,:: Ryoko grunted, scratching her rear.

::Now that's just lovely,:: Washu commented dryly. :About that coffee. When are you going into town?::

::Never.::

::But Ryoko, I need to figure out their secret mix of habit forming toxins so I can replicate it!::

::It'ss way too early for your babble. Later.:: Ryoko pushed her mother out of her mind and yawned again.

Ryoko got out of bed and stretched, the curves of her naked body elongating. Another perk: she could be naked without people freaking out. Even so, it was a little chilly this morning. Seeing a blue striped yukata on the back of the door she took it and pulling it on, tying the belt loosely and wandered down stairs. Her bedroom was the only room on the second floor, nestled under the pointed eaves of the A-frame.

::You are coming to feed the animals right?:: Washu sweet talked, popping back into Ryoko's mind.

::If I say yes will you go away?:: Ryoko asked with another yawn.

::Yes I will!:: Was squealed in her little girl voice.

::Yes. See you after I eat.:: Ryoko frowned and focused on seriously terminating her mental connection to Washu. There. That would guarantee some silence

Downstairs she found her living room, kitchen and bathroom, where the wider base of the house offered more room. She walked through the living room, decorated in reds and blacks, noting the comfortable leather couch and deluxe entertainment center with satisfaction.

She went on in to the kitchen and smiled at its simplicity. Done up in eggshell white and bright yellows, this was a room someone could wake up in. And it was simple too, obviously appointed for someone who didn't cook much. There was an electric hot water kettle by the sink, and the glass cabinets showed a wide array of instant noodles and soups. There was also a simple stove and refrigerator just to round the place out.

Washu was all right, even if she was a morning person.

Ryoko opened the fridge and happily removed a tall can of Asahi beer and cracked the tab. She took a long pull enjoying the cool fizz of the beverage.

"Beer for breakfast?" asked Sasami's disbelieving voice. "It's a good thing I came to check on you!"

Ryoko looked over at the sliding glass door that lead to a small deck and found Sasami smiling at her. Shifting her brown basket the young girls giggled as the wind made a small iron chime sing out a clear peal.

Ryoko grinned back and opened the door, letting Sasami enter. "What are you doing here? Aren't the others demanding their breakfast?" she half- joked.

Sasami set her basket on the counter and shrugged dismissively. "They know how to open a box of cereal."

Ryoko sputtered, choking on her drink. This was a first! Sasami sounded pissed.

Sasami scrunched up her face as if gathering courage and looked Ryoko in the eye. "Did they make you leave? Who did it, Ryoko? I'll never cook for them again!"

Ryoko wiped her lips and set her can down, smiling thankfully at the girl. "No one made me leave."

"Promise?" Sasami asked earnestly.

"Pinkie promise," Ryoko returned offering her pinkie.

Sasami wrapped her pinkie around the pirate's and nodded. "Then why did you leave? Is it something I did?" she asked with an uncertain quaver in her voice.

Ryoko dropped to one knee and wrapped her arms around the little princess. "Don't be silly. You were the reason I stayed as long as I did."

Sasami returned the hug. "Then why?"

Ryoko pulled back a little and leveled a mock exasperated look at Sasami. "Come on. You know why."

"But Tenchi and Ayeka still love you," Sasami protested.

"Yes, but they love each other more. That's what married people do. So I'm letting them do that," she said, not adding that it was too hard to watch them do that anyway.

Sasami nodded. "But you will still come over to visit, right?"

"Yep."

"Good," Sasami sighed. She pulled a carton of eggs out of the basket and stood on tiptoe to retrieve a skillet from its rack over the kitchen island. "I'm going to teach you how to make scrambled eggs! That way you don't have to come over for breakfast, and you don't have to have beer."

Ryoko chuckled at that.

Sasami quickly found a clear glass mixing bowl and a whisk. "But you can come to breakfast at our house whenever you want, OK?"

"You bet," Ryoko said. "You sure brought a lot of eggs."

"Well, this is a lesson so we need enough for trail and error," Sasami said sweetly.

Ryoko chuckled. "You are going to make a great diplomat one day kid."

Sasami blushed and cracked two eggs into the bowl. "The secret is to use a little water instead of milk."

***

Ryoko focused as Katsuhito lead her through a complicated sword kata, one that she was completely unfamiliar with. The wooden bokken she was using weighed much more than her energy sword so her muscles, while almost immeasurably strong, ached form being used in such novel ways.

"No… again you have too much of an angle when you bring the sword behind your head."

Ryoko hissed in frustration, licking a bead of sweat away as it ran into the corner of her mouth.

Katsuhito placed his own bokken in the starting position of the kata. "Once more."

Ryoko matched his posture and stance and followed him through the form as he began. They had been at this for at least an hour. When was she going to get to hit something? This sword dance was getting on her nerves.

As he neared the point where she had been stopped before, Katsuhito shuffled forward quickly and brought his sword straight down upon her's as she brought it over her head. Her shock, and the fact that she still had too much of the sword angled down behind her, caused her to lose her balance and she tumbled backwards, creating a deadly opening for her opponent's sword. With a second thrust Katsuhito smacked Ryoko's ribcage with the side of his bokken.

"Ow!" she yelped, half laying down, half sitting, and rubbing what was sure to become an ugly bruise on her chest.

"Try harder," he said calmly, waiting for her to rise.

"When are we going to fight?" she growled in frustration, ready for revenge.

"When you show me you can concentrate."

She frowned and got up. "I was concentrating the day I almost put YOU in the cave old man."

He looked thoughtful at tapped the 'dull' side of his bokken on his shoulder. "True, but who lost that battle, mmm?"

Ryoko had the grace to remain silent.

"More importantly, you are not that driven creature anymore, most of the skill that fear and pain have given you has faded away."

She snorted, too embarrassed to agree.

"Which is as it should be." He scratched his chin and looked at the line of mountains rising up to meet the setting sun at the horizon. "You need to forget everything associated with that to be free."

Uncomfortable with how close his words were getting to the torn places in her psyche, she looked at the ground in an uncharacteristically meek manner.

Noticing this, Katsuhito decided she had had enough training for one day. He tossed her a towel. "That's enough. Get a drink of water and join me in my office with your notebook. Be there in ten minutes."

Anxious to show him she was still strong she draped the towel around her neck casually and walked towards him instead of the mountain well. "I' don't need water, and I left the book in your office. I'm ready if you are."

"Take a drink, Ryoko," he commanded softly, wanting her to embrace her human traits not hide them.

"I don't want any water."

"Please take a drink," he said more firmly.

"No thank you."

He walked over to the little well and drew the dipper through a basin that a small trickle kept clear and cold. He carefully returned to Ryoko, walking smoothly to avoid spilling the water. He held it out to her. "Water is life."

"And I am death," she answered seriously. Two could play the philosophy game. But still, that answer revealed a little more than she had intended.

"Water restores life," he said taking the dipper to his lips and drinking half of the water. "You share our lives, share our water." He held the dipper back to her.

Tiring of the conversation, and on some level touched by his words, she accepted the water and drank the other half. It was so cold it made her teeth hurt and felt so good rushing down her throat. She hadn't realized how thirsty she had been! Without a word she walked briskly back to the well and drank three full dippers of water before she was satisfied.

As she returned to Katsuhito, he said, "Sometimes we get so used to thirst we forget what it is we that we need to cure it." He smiled and turned, making his way back to the shrine, leaving a confused Ryoko to puzzle out the meaning of his words.

Soon they were settled on the tatami notebooks and pens in hand, and a warm bottle of sake on a low table. This time Ryoko sat firmly on the floor instead her usual causal floating seat.

"Let's see your sake haiku, please," he said holding out his hand.

Ryoko handed him the notebook and he read:

"Three sake saucers

Two full, one empty. But no-

One sees the crack in the third."

He paused and looked up at Ryoko, somewhat stunned. "This a huge improvement. Very nice."

She shrugged. "Tenchi gave me the idea." She sounded nonchalant, but her checks took on a pinkish tinge.

Katsuhito nodded. "Given what you wrote here, I can see that this is all about Tenchi."

"No, its about three sake cups we had in the cupboard," she protested looking at him as if he might be losing it.

"But the third cup is empty and broken," he protested, wisely refraining from saying 'Just like you'. "While the other two are full," 'just like Tenchi and Ayeka', he also didn't say.

"Well, yeah, the third cup had a big crack in it. It's hard to see it, but if you use it your sake leaks out," she explained patiently. "What does that have to do with Tenchi?"

"Never mind," he said, wondering if she was blind to her own symbolism on purpose, or if her subconscious was speaking for her heart.

***

Phasing in through her front door, Ryoko flipped the lights on and deposited her notebook on the credenza, just inside the door. She cracked her neck, moving it from side to side for the best effect. So now what to do? Her annoyingly normal day had left her rather tired. Not to mention the itchy bites her mother's creatures had gifted her with that morning.

She flopped down on the couch and reached for the complicated remote. Maybe some TV or a movie. Her eyes widened happily when she saw a Playstation II nestled amongst the other components of her entertainment center. Yes, alright. Now that was the way to spend an evening, she thought reading the spines of the video game covers neatly stacked on a self. Grand Theft Auto or Tekken 4?

Before she could move to bring her plan to action there was a soft knock on her front door.

"It's open," she called, crawling on the floor to check out her Playstation.

The door opened and Tenchi and Ayeka entered, looking around with interest. Tenchi had on his usual jacket and loose pants and Ayeka wore a simple mauve sundress and a straw hat.

"Congratulations on your new home!" Tenchi said, resting two flat, square boxes on the back of the couch. He was hiding his nervousness rather well, but the sweat in his brow gave him away.

"Yes," Ayeka added, doing the same with a beautifully wrapped present. "This is lovely, Ryoko," she said in her sweet yet diplomatic voice.

Somewhat surprised to see them so soon after her blow up, Ryoko rose to her feet, a game jacket in her hand. "Hey, thanks. It was a present from Washu," she said in her friendliest voice, to show them there were no hard feelings.

Ayeka smiled at how perfectly placed Ryoko looked in the red and black room. "It suits you."

Ryoko looked at the boxes Tenchi was holding and sniffed.

Tenchi laughed. "Yes, this is pizza. I hope you haven't already had dinner."

Dropping the game box, Ryoko walked over and took the boxes from him and padded into the kitchen. "Nope. And after your grand-dad whooped my but today I need some food!"

Tenchi and Ayeka followed Ryoko. "I know what you mean," Tenchi said with a shake of his head. "He can be ruthless. Let me guess, he started you with Katas?"

Ryoko rolled her eyes and nodded. "Yup." She reached into the fridge and grabbed a beer and a CC lemon soda then waved them at Ayeka questioningly.

"Oh. I think I will have a beer please," the violet haired woman answered.

Ryoko nodded and removed three beers.

"Are your arms sore?" Tenchi asked.

"Very," Ryoko answered ruefully.

"Don't worry it goes away."

"I hope so! So anyway, do you want to eat in here or out on the deck?" Ryoko asked opening her beer.

"In here will do, " Ayeka answered as she and Tenchi sat down.

Ryoko opened the first pizza box and they all dug in.

"So what brings you here?" Ryoko asked between bites.

Tenchi scratched his head. "Well, about last night…."

"As a house warming visit, of course!" exclaimed Ayeka, cutting him off, with an elegant frown.

Ryoko took a bite of pizza, letting the cheese stretch dramatically long before it snapped and draped down her chin, making her friends chuckle. "Thanks," she said through a full mouth. She swallowed then added, "On both counts Ayeka."

Tenchi flushed and toyed with his pizza crust. It was becoming more clear that he was horribly uncomfortable and unsure how to behave.

Her serene smile a counterpoint to Tenchi's unhappy expression, Ayeka got up and went into the living room for a moment, then returned with the wrapped present. "And any good house warming needs a gift, so here you are." She set the present by Ryoko, who wiped her greasy hands on her jeans before reaching for it.

" A present!" she exclaimed greedily, before shredding the paper off in less than two seconds. She took the top off of the cardboard box and removed five small foam wrapped containers. Carefully un-wrapping one, she revealed a delicate pottery sake saucer. It was a natural brown and had been carved into the shape of a lotus flower.

"These are beautiful!" she exclaimed, unwrapping each cup and enjoying the similarity of form and uniqueness of natural coloration.

"We went took the train to Imbe this afternoon and picked them out for you," Tenchi explained, losing some of his awkwardness.

"Oh Imbe! These are Bizenware then?"

Tenchi nodded, clearly pleased she recognized the genre.

"That's right, and expensive, so be careful with them pirate!" Ayeka said playfully.

Ryoko grinned, the first hearty grin anyone had seen in weeks. "Or what?" she drawled.

"Or you will break them all and I for one won't get you any more!" Ayeka returned carefully, still learning the new rules in their games.

Ryoko chuckled. "Well, I could always steal more!"

"Now girls," Tenchi said sincerely, rather than playfully, killing the mood.

Both Ayeka and Ryoko turned sour looks on him and he scratched the back of his neck. "What?"

Ayeka sighed. "Tenchi…I thought we had already discussed this…." she trailed off looking apologetically at her once-time rival. "Miss Ryoko can we have an honest talk?"

"Now?" Ryoko said uncomfortably. Getting along was one thing… why did everyone want to talk these days?

"Now. I too would like to drop it, but we should let Tenchi know where we stand so we don't have anymore er… disruptions to our debates. And not just for Tenchi's sake. I think we need all parties to know the rules. Don't you agree?"

"Ayeka," Tenchi began, discomfort clear in his voice. "Come one now, it's too soon for that kind of thing. I just wanted to apologize, not hash it all out."

Ryoko absently rubbed the edge of a new saucer. "She's right. We need to do this." She angled her head and meet Ayeka's gaze. "So talk."

Ayeka closed her eyes for a moment and drew in a deep breath. On the exhale, she opened her eyes and steeled her self for some difficult words. "You and I are were enemies first. Terrible enemies."

Ryoko nodded somberly, thinking back to the day she met Ayeka and blew up her garden, a moment later. And that was just for starters.

"Then we ended up here on Earth, with Tenchi."

Tenchi gulped nervously, wondering if Ayeka knew what she was doing. "Can you keep my name out of this?"

Ryoko barked out a rude laugh and Ayeka ignored him. "Hate turned into rivalry. That turned into friendly rivalry over time," Ayeka said giving Ryoko a fond smile and a pat on her hand. "And dare I say, in the end it became just friendship?"

Ryoko nodded. "I have to tell you that I liked you from the moment I blew up your garden," she said with a tight, nervous laugh. "Here I was the ruthless Ryoko and instead of fleeing from my fire and wrath you told me off!"

"I did?"

"Oh yes. That made me laugh. The first time I had ever laughed that I could remember." Ryoko hunched her shoulders and looked away. "In a way, that makes you the first friend that I can ever remember," she said staring at her reflection on the sliding door.

Ayeka's eyes grew misty. "Oh, Ryoko," she sniffed. "I had no idea!" She wiped at her eyes daintily, though no tears had fallen. " While I am pleased, you mustn't change the subject!"

Ryoko chuckled. "Sorry, Princess."

"As I was saying, we are no longer rivals because one of us won…." she trailed off.

"And one of us lost," Ryoko finished more bitterly than she intended.

"Unless you intend on becoming Tenchi's second wife?" Ayeka questioned.

Ryoko bristled, sitting up straight and slamming her beer can down on the table. "There is no way!"

"It's within the realm of possibility you know," Ayeka pushed, ignoring how pale Tenchi had become.

"Legally maybe. But I will never accept second place in any man's heart. Even Tenchi's. Especially Tenchi's," Ryoko said with rising feeling.

"Now, try not to get upset. We need to get this out in the open so we all understand what to expect from each other," Ayeka soothed.

Ryoko nodded and visually made an effort to calm herself. She released her tight hold on the beer can, revealing four dents in the soft metal. "Sorry Tenchi, but not even for you. Ever."

Tenchi nodded numbly, beads of sweat clinging to his brow.

Ayeka nodded as well. "Then it could be seen as a win lose situation. Are you angry with us?"

Ryoko bit her lip and crossed her arms. "Do we have to talk about that?"

"Then you are," Ayeka said sadly.

Ryoko sighed. "Don't sweat it your royal highnesses. Angry is too strong a word."

"Is hurt a better word?" Tenchi asked carefully, finding his voice again.

"Maybe," Ryoko answered reluctantly. "Let's skip how I feel. Yes, you are still my friends. Yes, I will still hang around you two. No, I won't run away." She pushed the chair back and stood up. "And now it's bed time for little space pirates."

Ayeka nodded and rose to her feet also, pulling Tenchi with her. "One more thing. You said you want to be treated normally. Can you tell us what you want?"

Ryoko padded back out to the living room and opened the front door. "Sure that's easy. Don't change what you are doing for my sake. If I don't like it I'll leave the room."

Ayeka stepped out and turned to face her friend. "Is that all?"

Ryoko nodded. "Just remember that I'm not made of glass."

Tenchi followed Ayeka out the door. "Good night Ryoko. Are you sure you will be alright all by yourself?"

Ryoko rolled her eyes. " If I have a nightmare, I'll just crawl in between you and Ayeka," she said drawled as she shut the door in his face.

***