A piercing scream penetrated the Masaki household. It came out of total silence. Young Sasami was the first to wake up.
"What? What's that? Aeka!! Aeka, wake up!" she yelled at her sister. The little princess got up out of bed and ran to the door as quick as she could.
"Hmm? What...Sasami, what are...where's that scream...Sasami!!" Aeka had woken up, and was having a hard time stringing two words together. She, too, got out of bed and followed her sister out into the hallway. When she got out there, she saw three other faces peeking out of rooms along the hall. Mihoshi and Kiyone stepped out onto the dimly lit floor, and so did Tenchi.
The scream stopped, but it echoed throughout the house, sending chills down the spines of those who heard it.
"Miss Ryoko! It was Ryoko! I hope she's okay!" Sasami ran along the hall to the very last door, her light blue hair falling out of the buns she had put them in, closely followed by Ryo-ohki. She opened the door to see the space pirate sitting up in bed, holding her side and breathing heavily.
"Ryoko-san! What happened? Are you okay?" she asked as she walked over to the bed and sat down on it. Ryoko couldn't answer; she continued to breathe heavily, unable to control herself.
"Another dream?" Sasami knew the answer, even before Ryoko nodded. Tenchi walked into the room, followed by Mihoshi and Kiyone. Aeka had gone down to the lab to wake Washuu. Ryo-ohki hopped onto Ryoko's bed and sat down on her owner's lap.
"It was no dream, Sasami. It was a nightmare. Oh God, I hate this." Ryoko looked at the little girl sitting next to her and saw her eyes were full of fear. Sasami placed her hands on Ryoko's leg and stared into her eyes, hoping to see anything about her nightmare. But nothing showed but pain and sorrow.
"That's the fifth time in the past two weeks, Ryoko," Kiyone said, walking over to the bed.
"Was it the same kind? I mean, did..." Tenchi began, but Ryoko interrupted.
"Yes, Tenchi, the same thing happened. Only, this time, I heard someone. And I could feel the pain."
Washuu walked into the room, her long magenta hair swaying behind her. She stopped by Mihoshi, who was asleep on her feet.
"Bakayarou," she said under her breath as she stared and the blonde ditz. She closed her green eyes, shook her head, and continued over to her daughter's bedside.
Aeka, who had followed Washuu upstairs, hung back in the doorway.
"Kiyone...uh..." Washuu gestured to Kiyone's sleeping partner.
"Unbelievable. What an airhead," Kiyone replied, as she walked over to Mihoshi and began to drag her out of the room.
"Sasami-chan, please?" Washuu said. Sasami got up off the bed and backed up beside Tenchi, who had remained standing, unsure of what to do.
Washuu knelt beside her daughter and began examining. She put her hand to her forehead, took her pulse, and questioned her about her dream, recording everything on her transparent-like computer.
"Washuu, what's the point? You've done this to me each time I've had a dream like this," Ryoko said disgusted. "What exactly are you looking for?"
Washuu stopped and stared at Ryoko, pondering her answer. Finally, she replied, "I don't really know."
"Wonderful. Just perfect," the pirate said, unable to hold it in.
Five minutes later, the genius had finished her questioning, got up, bid everyone goodnight, and went back to the lab to try and put together the information she had managed to get.
"Are you going to be okay, Ryoko-san?" Sasami asked, barely awake, now that the shock of waking up to her friend's scream had worn off.
"Hai, Sasami. I am," she said. Then, as an afterthought, she added, "Arigatou."
Sasami smiled and turned towards her sister. They both left the room.
"Ryoko...uh...hm..." Tenchi was at a loss for words. He looked down, his brown eyes staring at the floor. He wished he could say something that sounded more educated than "Uh...", but nothing would come out. He raked his fingers through his black hair nervously before looking back up at the only other person in the room. He was amazed to see her smiling. Not her usual, devilish, "I'm up to something and you don't know what" grin. No, her smile was soft, almost angelic.
"I'll be fine," was all she said.
"Okay...uh..." Dangit! I said it again!
Tenchi turned to leave, but was stopped by Ryoko saying his name. He looked back.
"Do you think you could stay in here until I fall asleep?"
The prince blushed. Heavily. "Ryoko...I don't know..."
She did something next that he just couldn't say no to. She unleashed her secret weapon.
"Please?" She gave him the biggest puppy dog eyes he had ever seen. He hated it when anyone gave him puppy dog eyes. He had to obey them, because...well...he didn't know why. Why do other people fall to puppy dog eyes? They just can't help but feel bad.
"Why did you, of all people, have to find my weakness?" he asked, defeated.
"I didn't. You told me," she giggled, flung herself so she was lying down on her side facing him, and threw the covers on top of her body. She wanted to hide the fact that she was still shaking a little.
He walked over and sat beside her bed. The demon summoner leaned over and gave him a light kiss on the cheek before he had the chance to stop her.
"Ryoko!" Tenchi's hand shot up to where her lips had touched his skin and he glared at her. In response, she smiled at him with her "I'm up to something and you don't know what" grin. He closed his eyes and shook his head, his hand still on his face.
"Goodnight," Ryoko whispered before she closed her eyes and attempted to fall back asleep. And, amazingly, it didn't take her that long. Within ten minutes, she was sleeping soundly.
Tenchi looked at the sleeping space pirate, and couldn't help but think she looked nothing like the woman he knew. Instead of tough and unbeatable, she looked innocent and vulnerable, like a little girl. She was breathing peacefully, and her hair hung limp around her face.
It was strange, but he had never had a good look at the cyan spikes, but now that he was truly alone with her, nothing to bother him, he seemed to pay more attention to the details, and he found it amazing, what he saw. Before, it looked pointy and hard, but now, for some reason, it looked soft and sleek. He wanted so badly to run his fingers through it to find out which one it was. He held himself back, though, in fear she'd wake up.
The young successor got up to leave the room, but he caught sight of a photograph on her dresser that had always held a lot of his interest.
It was of Ryoko, only she was younger. In the picture, she looked twelve or thirteen, but she was really just over a thousand years old. Her hair was longer and a slightly darker, and her skin was paler than it was today. It was from her first years as a space pirate. She was in her red and black battle suit, standing sideways, looking at the camera. Her right foot was in a dig, her left arm held straight out in front of her, palm facing the camera, hand angled downward. In her right hand was her ever so popular red energy sword. But the major thing that held his attention was that Ryoko wasn't the only person in the picture. There was another girl.
The other girl was a little shorter than Ryoko, with blood red hair and jet black tips. It was up in a high ponytail. Her eyes were deep violet, almost black. She had an outfit like Ryoko's, but without the puffy shoulders. It was black with a fluorescent blue star in the center. Silver lightning-like shapes came from around it. A black skirt that split at the hips came from the catsuit, and the cloth covering her hands was silver. In her hands she held a loaded silver bow and arrow. She stood back to back with Ryoko.
Tenchi had asked Ryoko about that picture many times. Each time she answered in the same way. He remembered the last time they discussed it.
Tenchi came up behind Ryoko, who was sitting on a rock by the lake, staring at the crystal blue water. He intended on scaring her, but once again she gave him the impression that she didn't have to see things to know they were going on.
"Hey, Tenchi. What's up?" she asked, not taking her golden eyes off the water. There was a soft wind that day, and it blew her dress around her ankles.
"How did you know it was me?" he asked, amazed.
"I have Extra Sensory Perception," she joked, finally tearing her eyes from the lake to look at him as he sat down beside her rock.
"Extra Sensory what?" He had no idea what she was talking about.
"ESP."
"Oh. I see." He looked at her to see she had turned her eyes back to the lake. The sun was now setting on it, and the light reflected on her skin and hair, giving them both an orangy tint. In her eyes, there was painted a perfect mirror image of the sunset.
"So, what's up?" Ryoko broke his concentration when she looked at him. She noticed he was staring at her, and she gave him a confused look. "What?"
He laughed at the look on her face. This annoyed her.
"What? What is so funny? Tenchi, tell me!"
"Nothing, Ryoko-san. Nothing."
He called me Ryoko-san. This had gotten her attention. He barely ever calls me Ryoko-san!
He noticed she was looking at him strangely, and this sent him into another fit of laughter.
"Ah, shut up!" she looked at him disgusted. She hated being laughed at.
He noticed she was getting mad, and he quickly stopped laughing.
"Gomen, Ryoko. I didn't mean to make you mad," Tenchi said, apologetically.
She looked at him angrily for a moment, then her face broke into a soft smile.
"I know." She looked back to the lake, and his eyes followed hers.
They sat looking out at the scenery for what seemed like an eternity, but what turned out to only be five minutes.
"So, what's on your mind, Tenchi?" Ryoko asked for a third time.
"Actually, I have a question for you," he answered.
"Knock yourself out."
"It's about that picture on your dresser."
She looked down and didn't answer right away. Finally, she said, "We've talked about that many times. I've told you there's nothing to tell you about that thing. That was taken a long time ago. Before Kagato."
"I know, but you're wrong when you say we've talked about it. You haven't told me anything. Not even the girl's name. I've asked Washuu, but she doesn't even know. Why can't you talk about it?" His voice was harsher than he wanted it to be, but before he had the chance to apologize, Ryoko had stood up, her white dress and green and orange tailcoat blew around her body.
"I don't remember her name." Tenchi could tell she was lying, but he didn't push her. There were tears in her eyes, and they had begun to fall down her cheeks.
"Why can't you talk about it? Did something..." he began, but stopped when she turned to face him.
"Yes, Tenchi. Something happened. Can't you just drop it?" She began to shake slightly from crying. "It's cold out. I'm going back." Her voice trembled as she spoke. Ryoko teleported out of sight, and Tenchi was left alone to deal with his thoughts.
Cold nothing. It's the middle of May. He knew he had unintentionally hurt her. Badly.
That happened around two weeks ago, about when her dreams first began. After that, he decided not to consult her about it again. He came to the conclusion that the picture obviously caused Ryoko pain.
But why does she keep it up if it hurts so much?
Obviously the girl had meant something to Ryoko, whoever she was...
The prince took his eyes of the photograph and walked silently out of the room, not looking back.
~*~
The morning dawned dark and stormy. Forecast? Rain. The 2074-year-old space pirate opened her eyes to find she was alone, for the most part. She had slept rather soundly after she had fallen back asleep. Slowly, she sat up in bed, and realized Ryo-ohki was lying beside her.
"Ryo-ohki? You slept in here?" She scratched behind the cabbit's brown and white ears.
"Miya?" Ryo-ohki woke up and stared up at her owner. Ryoko laughed a little before getting up out of bed.
"Hmmm...what should I wear today?" She phased into the first outfit that came to mind: her Zero outfit.
"Miya!" Ryo-ohki said in approval.
"You like this thing don't you?" Ryoko looked down at the black, yellow, red, and pink getup. She hated it. At least, part of her did. The other half loved it.
Shut up, Zero, she told her other half. The two personalities had become one before, but they still disagreed on a few things, this outfit being one of them. But Ryoko had long before gotten used to the idea of someone else sharing her body, therefore gotten used to telling it to shut up so she could do her own thing.
Why did I let Washuu talk me into assimilating with you, Zero?!
*I don't know, why did you?* Washuu broke into Ryoko's thoughts.
*Damnit, Washuu! How many times have I told you to stay out of my mind?* Washuu had startled the yellow-eyed summoner.
*And how many times have I told you that's no way to talk to your mother?* Washuu retaliated.
*What do you want?* Ryoko knew she had lost that one, so she changed the subject.
*Breakfast is ready.*
*Breakfast?!* This cheered Ryoko up a great deal. *Hot damn! Be down in a minute!* And she closed the link.
"Ryo-ohki, come on! Breakfast!" The pirate held her arms open to her ship, and Ryo-ohki jumped into them. Ryoko pulled the cabbit over and held her below her diaphragm.
"Miya! Miya Miya! Mi-ya!!" the rabbit-like creature looked into the face of her holder.
"I agree. Let's go." And with that, the two teleported downstairs.
"Geeze, Ryoko, you slept like a rock after you fell asleep last night!" Tenchi said as soon as he saw the young woman. Before she had time to think of something to say, Sasami walked into the room, carrying the final dish of the morning meal.
"Ah, Ryoko! Ohayo Gozaimasu!" she said.
"Ohayo gozaimasu to you, too, Sasami-chan," Ryoko said with a nod as she took her usual spot by Tenchi at the table.
"Oh great, the whole morning's ruined now. I do hope you slept all right last night, Ryoko, because after you woke us all up, I couldn't get back to sleep," Aeka said as she came to sit at the table with the rest of the family.
"Shut up, Aeka! I know you stood in the doorway, I'm no idiot!" Ryoko shot back.
"Well, you know, if..." Aeka began, but she was stopped by Tenchi holding up his hand.
"Both of you! Can't you just get along for once?"
"NO!" the pirate and the first crown princess shouted. They stared at each other, and sparks seemed to fly between them. Then, they both looked the other way, noses in the air.
"They're hopeless," Kiyone said, shaking her head at the two quarreling females.
"Well, if Miss Space Pirate would just go back to the dark star where she belongs, then things would be much better and quieter around here," Aeka said, looking sideways at Ryoko, eyebrow twitching.
"Ha, you know, you're so obsessed with the "dark star", Aeka, so why don't you go and see what it's like?" said Ryoko. She stood up and faced her enemy, but they didn't face each other for long.
"C'mon, both of you! Aeka, Miss Ryoko, please!" Sasami begged. "Can't we just have a peaceful breakfast for once?"
The two continued to stare at each other for a few seconds (in which everyone feared one of them would explode), but they eventually sat down, Ryoko where she was and Aeka across from her, next to her little sister.
After a long breakfast (during which all at the table were positive Aeka would claw Ryoko's eyes out or Ryoko would blast Aeka into smithereens), Kiyone and Mihoshi left the house to head for their part time job, Washuu went into her lab and once again wrapped herself up in her research, and Tenchi left for his usual chores in the fields. Noboyuki was out for a few days on a business trip in Kyoto, and Katsuhito was at the shrine (as usual). Now, the three remaining women were left in the house to do the housework.
"All right, so it's Aeka's turn to do laundry, and my turn to sweep, and Ryoko's turn to...hey...where is Ryoko?" Sasami, in the middle of reciting the chores for the day, realized the pirate was no where in sight.
"She's probably off with Tenchi in the fields! Ohh, I can't stand that woman!" Aeka fumed.
MEANWHILE in the fields
"You know, Ryoko, I'm sure the other girls would appreciate it greatly if you helped out around the house," Tenchi said, eyebrow raised, to the one floating in midair and hanging off his shoulders.
"Mm-mm!! No way! I'd rather be out here with you, Tenchi!" Ryoko shook her head vigorously, causing the long cyan hair at the sides of her face to fly this way and that.
The rain had temporarily stopped a little earlier. Tenchi was supposed to be tending to the carrot fields, but instead he was in the carrot fields trying to convince a certain space pirate to go back to the house and help out. It wasn't working.
"Ryoko! C'mon!" he pleaded.
"No! I'm staying out here! And there's nothing you can do about it!" she responded.
"Then could you please get off me?" He figured out that as long as she's being this stubborn, he was fighting a losing battle.
She buried her head into her arms, her hair caressing his cheek. He felt her sigh deeply, and she finally released him. But instead of going to the house, she floated in midair right behind him.
Tenchi worked silently, while Ryoko sat cross-legged in midair, staring at the dark gray sky. Ten minutes passed in silence. Then, Tenchi suddenly straightened up, and he, too looked to the sky. Off in the distance, a flash of reddish white light lit up the sky, followed by a loud rumble that shook the clouds. Little drops of rain fell to the ground and splashed up. Another white bolt of lightning split the sky. This time, the thunder that followed was not a loud rumble, but a sharp, splitting crack.
Ryoko looked down at Tenchi, who looked at her. She wanted to throw her arms around him and pull her "Oh I'm so scared!" stunt, but thought better of it. Instead, she stepped on the ground, just as another bolt of lightning streaked across the sky. Its light flashed in her eyes, making her raise her hand to shield them.
"Ryoko, let's go back. There's no way I'm working in this." Ryoko blinked and saw Tenchi gesturing in the direction of the house and holding out his hand towards her. She looked at him questioningly. The rain went from sprinkling to pouring.
"Ryoko, come on!" She nodded and placed her hand in his. His fingers closed around her black cloth-covered ones, and they began to run, using their other hands to cover their heads.
"Tenchi, wait!" the pirate stopped in her tracks. This sudden action caused Tenchi to trip, but Ryoko pulled him back up before he hit the ground.
"I have an idea!" She faced him, took his other hand, and closed her eyes, picturing the inside of the Masaki household. Soon, they found themselves in the front hallway. Instead of enduring the storm raging outside, they were soon to endure a particular purple-hair princess who looked like she was practically foaming at the mouth.
"Oh no. Here we go again," Ryoko said under her breath, rolling her golden eyes in disgust.
Eyebrow twitching, heat rising in her face, Aeka stopped in front of the two in the hall.
Ryoko realized she was still holding Tenchi's hands. She let go, and instead of backing off, she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Now, Tenchi, we can go to my room and play," she said in a seductive voice.
"What?!" Tenchi tried to pull away, but she kept her grip. This act was having the effect intended.
Aeka walked over to Ryoko and pried her from Tenchi.
"You stay away from him, you demon woman!"
"What? Everyone knows how intimate Tenchi and I are!" Ryoko was laughing inside, and trying as hard as she could to keep her voice from cracking with laughter.
Aeka looked as though you could have fried an egg on her face. She was about to say something, but stopped.
"Well, this seems entertaining enough, but I think I'm going to go to bed," he said as he began to walk quickly up the stairs.
"Wait, Tenchi!" Ryoko began to fly over to him, but Aeka grabbed her hand and pulled her back.
"Oh no you don't!" she said.
The two feuding women stared each other down. Then, Ryoko broke it off and transported herself to her bedroom. She was soaked, but for some odd reason, too tired to really care. She went over to her bed and sat down, bringing her legs up to her chest and resting her head on her knees.
Ever since her dreams had begun, she had begun feeling overly tired at times. And this was one of those times. Before she even knew what was happening, she fell over on her bed, dead asleep.
~*~
Ryoko was awakened by a sharp tapping on her door.
"Miss Ryoko! Wake up! It's time for dinner!" Sasami's voice floated through the cracks to Ryoko's ears.
"Hmm...what...oh. Al-all right, Sasami. Coming," she replied, sleepily. She teleported herself so she was right outside her door, facing the light blue-haired little girl.
"C'mon! It's getting cold!" Sasami gave Ryoko a disappointed look before she started downstairs, closely followed by the floating pirate.
When the two got to the table, they found Kiyone (who was yelling at Mihoshi), Mihoshi (who was crying, "What did I do? What did I do?"), Tenchi (who was shaking his head), Washuu (who was either ignoring the two yelling women or was totally oblivious to the whole situation), and Aeka (who looked very annoyed).
The two blue-haired girls looked at each other, began to snicker, then looked away before they burst out laughing. Then, they took their spots. It was then that Washuu showed some signs of life.
She cleared her throat. Kiyone and Mihoshi didn't stop. Washuu cleared her throat again, this time louder. The two still didn't stop.
"Hey you two! Are you ready to eat?!" she screamed, aggravated. The two froze, Mihoshi with her arms in the air, Kiyone with her hands around Mihoshi's throat. "There we go!" Washuu smiled with satisfaction.
When everyone was settled in and ready to stuff his or her faces, they all said, "Well, bon a petite (sp?)" and began. Ryoko, who was done in a matter of five minutes, looked at Aeka, who was barely through her first dish.
"Damn, Aeka. You are way to slow. I mean, I'm done!"
"Yes, well, I particularly like to eat my food, instead of wear it!" Aeka eyed a spot on Ryoko's shoulder where she had dropped a piece of food. Ryoko looked at it and picked it up, popping it in her mouth.
The rest of the meal was relatively quiet (unless you count Mihoshi accidentally flinging a piece of fish into Kiyone's hair and Kiyone practically blowing up). When everyone was finished, Sasami was the first to speak.
"Tenchi, Ryoko, you're on dish duty."
"But, wait, isn't it only my turn?" Tenchi asked.
"Yeah! Since when is it mine?" Ryoko asked, giving Sasami a half-questioning look half-accusing stare.
"Well, you were supposed to do them this afternoon, but since you weren't here, you can do it tonight," the little princess explained.
Damn. I got stuck this time, Ryoko thought to herself.
"Okay, Ryoko?"
Ryoko was pulled from her thoughts by Tenchi's voice.
"What?" she asked him, totally oblivious to the fact he had just been talking to her.
The rest of the gang laughed at her, making her mad.
"I said, how about I was them, and you dry them?"
She looked at his smiling face, and realized he was on the verge of laughing at her too. Glaring at him, she replied, "All right, fine." And the two began to clear off the table.
Tenchi and Ryoko were almost done with the dishes. Tenchi was washing a bowl and Ryoko had just finished a plate. She put it up and picked up a large cutting knife that Sasami had used to cut the vegetables with.
Tenchi stopped what he was doing and looked at Ryoko. She had stopped drying the knife and was absentmindedly staring at her reflection in the blade.
God only knows what she's thinking about. Man, I wish I did. He wanted to ask her again about the picture, but he didn't want to hurt her again. He stood there battling with himself whether he should ask her again.
It wouldn't hurt...I hope. So, he gathered up as much courage as he could.
"Uh, Ryoko?"
"Mm-hm?" He hadn't phased her one bit. She continued to stare at the blade as though it were some kind of treasure.
"Uh...how to say..." Tenchi couldn't find the words.
"You know, you don't have to hold back. Just say it," she pulled her eyes from the blade, and let it drop by her side, letting the rest of the soapy water drip off of it.
"Uh...okay...uh..." He tried to form it into words, and finally came out with it, "Who's the girl in the picture on your dresser?"
Ryoko, once again, didn't answer right away. She looked from the floor, to the blade in her hand, back to the floor. When she spoke, her voice was cold as ice.
"How many times are you going to ask me about her? I have told you many times that she is no one of importance. That was many years ago, and I don't remember her."
He hated to hear her like this, especially when it was because of him. But he wanted answers. He didn't want to be lied to anymore.
"I know you're lying to me. Please tell me. You're going to be no better off with it kept inside you," the prince told her.
"There is nothing to talk about, for the last time. What is it that holds your interest?" The pirate's voice was ice. She looked at Tenchi, and he backed up out of fear. He had pushed her to the limit.
"Tell me. You can trust me." He was being an idiot. He kept going; he wanted answers.
"Apparently I can't. I thought you got the message last time, but no." She was screaming at him, her right fist balling up tighter and tighter around the knife's blade. Blood dripped from her clenched hand.
"Uh, Ryoko..." Tenchi tried to tell her about the knife, but she wasn't listening.
"All right, fine! You want to know who she is?! Huh?! Her name was Kyoko! She was my partner, my best friend! "Was" because she's dead! Yeah! Dead!" Ryoko ranted. He had definitely made a big mistake. Tears streamed down her face, but her eyes were full of merciless hatred. Her fist continued to tighten around the blade. And still she continued. "Do you want to know why she's dead, huh? Because of me! I caused the explosion that killed her! It was my goddamn fault!" She noticed she was still holding the knife. "Shit!"
A puddle of blood had formed by her feet. She raised her hand in front of her body and pulled the blade out, which had sunk a centimeter and a half into her palm. She threw it on the floor and it skidded through the puddle, making a trail of blood. Tenchi picked it up and looked at the blade. A drop of blood fell from the stainless silver to his skin to the ground. He looked at Ryoko, who was looking out the window. It looked like she was trying to shatter it under her stare.
"Ry-Ryoko?" Tenchi asked, uncertainly.
"No! Leave me alone, Tenchi! Just leave me alone!" And with that, Ryoko disappeared. To where, no one knew.
"Tenchi?"
Tenchi turned around to the doorway and saw Sasami, Ryo-ohki, Washuu, Aeka, Kiyone, and Mihoshi standing there, looking at him, totally shocked. They had seen the whole thing.
"What? What's that? Aeka!! Aeka, wake up!" she yelled at her sister. The little princess got up out of bed and ran to the door as quick as she could.
"Hmm? What...Sasami, what are...where's that scream...Sasami!!" Aeka had woken up, and was having a hard time stringing two words together. She, too, got out of bed and followed her sister out into the hallway. When she got out there, she saw three other faces peeking out of rooms along the hall. Mihoshi and Kiyone stepped out onto the dimly lit floor, and so did Tenchi.
The scream stopped, but it echoed throughout the house, sending chills down the spines of those who heard it.
"Miss Ryoko! It was Ryoko! I hope she's okay!" Sasami ran along the hall to the very last door, her light blue hair falling out of the buns she had put them in, closely followed by Ryo-ohki. She opened the door to see the space pirate sitting up in bed, holding her side and breathing heavily.
"Ryoko-san! What happened? Are you okay?" she asked as she walked over to the bed and sat down on it. Ryoko couldn't answer; she continued to breathe heavily, unable to control herself.
"Another dream?" Sasami knew the answer, even before Ryoko nodded. Tenchi walked into the room, followed by Mihoshi and Kiyone. Aeka had gone down to the lab to wake Washuu. Ryo-ohki hopped onto Ryoko's bed and sat down on her owner's lap.
"It was no dream, Sasami. It was a nightmare. Oh God, I hate this." Ryoko looked at the little girl sitting next to her and saw her eyes were full of fear. Sasami placed her hands on Ryoko's leg and stared into her eyes, hoping to see anything about her nightmare. But nothing showed but pain and sorrow.
"That's the fifth time in the past two weeks, Ryoko," Kiyone said, walking over to the bed.
"Was it the same kind? I mean, did..." Tenchi began, but Ryoko interrupted.
"Yes, Tenchi, the same thing happened. Only, this time, I heard someone. And I could feel the pain."
Washuu walked into the room, her long magenta hair swaying behind her. She stopped by Mihoshi, who was asleep on her feet.
"Bakayarou," she said under her breath as she stared and the blonde ditz. She closed her green eyes, shook her head, and continued over to her daughter's bedside.
Aeka, who had followed Washuu upstairs, hung back in the doorway.
"Kiyone...uh..." Washuu gestured to Kiyone's sleeping partner.
"Unbelievable. What an airhead," Kiyone replied, as she walked over to Mihoshi and began to drag her out of the room.
"Sasami-chan, please?" Washuu said. Sasami got up off the bed and backed up beside Tenchi, who had remained standing, unsure of what to do.
Washuu knelt beside her daughter and began examining. She put her hand to her forehead, took her pulse, and questioned her about her dream, recording everything on her transparent-like computer.
"Washuu, what's the point? You've done this to me each time I've had a dream like this," Ryoko said disgusted. "What exactly are you looking for?"
Washuu stopped and stared at Ryoko, pondering her answer. Finally, she replied, "I don't really know."
"Wonderful. Just perfect," the pirate said, unable to hold it in.
Five minutes later, the genius had finished her questioning, got up, bid everyone goodnight, and went back to the lab to try and put together the information she had managed to get.
"Are you going to be okay, Ryoko-san?" Sasami asked, barely awake, now that the shock of waking up to her friend's scream had worn off.
"Hai, Sasami. I am," she said. Then, as an afterthought, she added, "Arigatou."
Sasami smiled and turned towards her sister. They both left the room.
"Ryoko...uh...hm..." Tenchi was at a loss for words. He looked down, his brown eyes staring at the floor. He wished he could say something that sounded more educated than "Uh...", but nothing would come out. He raked his fingers through his black hair nervously before looking back up at the only other person in the room. He was amazed to see her smiling. Not her usual, devilish, "I'm up to something and you don't know what" grin. No, her smile was soft, almost angelic.
"I'll be fine," was all she said.
"Okay...uh..." Dangit! I said it again!
Tenchi turned to leave, but was stopped by Ryoko saying his name. He looked back.
"Do you think you could stay in here until I fall asleep?"
The prince blushed. Heavily. "Ryoko...I don't know..."
She did something next that he just couldn't say no to. She unleashed her secret weapon.
"Please?" She gave him the biggest puppy dog eyes he had ever seen. He hated it when anyone gave him puppy dog eyes. He had to obey them, because...well...he didn't know why. Why do other people fall to puppy dog eyes? They just can't help but feel bad.
"Why did you, of all people, have to find my weakness?" he asked, defeated.
"I didn't. You told me," she giggled, flung herself so she was lying down on her side facing him, and threw the covers on top of her body. She wanted to hide the fact that she was still shaking a little.
He walked over and sat beside her bed. The demon summoner leaned over and gave him a light kiss on the cheek before he had the chance to stop her.
"Ryoko!" Tenchi's hand shot up to where her lips had touched his skin and he glared at her. In response, she smiled at him with her "I'm up to something and you don't know what" grin. He closed his eyes and shook his head, his hand still on his face.
"Goodnight," Ryoko whispered before she closed her eyes and attempted to fall back asleep. And, amazingly, it didn't take her that long. Within ten minutes, she was sleeping soundly.
Tenchi looked at the sleeping space pirate, and couldn't help but think she looked nothing like the woman he knew. Instead of tough and unbeatable, she looked innocent and vulnerable, like a little girl. She was breathing peacefully, and her hair hung limp around her face.
It was strange, but he had never had a good look at the cyan spikes, but now that he was truly alone with her, nothing to bother him, he seemed to pay more attention to the details, and he found it amazing, what he saw. Before, it looked pointy and hard, but now, for some reason, it looked soft and sleek. He wanted so badly to run his fingers through it to find out which one it was. He held himself back, though, in fear she'd wake up.
The young successor got up to leave the room, but he caught sight of a photograph on her dresser that had always held a lot of his interest.
It was of Ryoko, only she was younger. In the picture, she looked twelve or thirteen, but she was really just over a thousand years old. Her hair was longer and a slightly darker, and her skin was paler than it was today. It was from her first years as a space pirate. She was in her red and black battle suit, standing sideways, looking at the camera. Her right foot was in a dig, her left arm held straight out in front of her, palm facing the camera, hand angled downward. In her right hand was her ever so popular red energy sword. But the major thing that held his attention was that Ryoko wasn't the only person in the picture. There was another girl.
The other girl was a little shorter than Ryoko, with blood red hair and jet black tips. It was up in a high ponytail. Her eyes were deep violet, almost black. She had an outfit like Ryoko's, but without the puffy shoulders. It was black with a fluorescent blue star in the center. Silver lightning-like shapes came from around it. A black skirt that split at the hips came from the catsuit, and the cloth covering her hands was silver. In her hands she held a loaded silver bow and arrow. She stood back to back with Ryoko.
Tenchi had asked Ryoko about that picture many times. Each time she answered in the same way. He remembered the last time they discussed it.
Tenchi came up behind Ryoko, who was sitting on a rock by the lake, staring at the crystal blue water. He intended on scaring her, but once again she gave him the impression that she didn't have to see things to know they were going on.
"Hey, Tenchi. What's up?" she asked, not taking her golden eyes off the water. There was a soft wind that day, and it blew her dress around her ankles.
"How did you know it was me?" he asked, amazed.
"I have Extra Sensory Perception," she joked, finally tearing her eyes from the lake to look at him as he sat down beside her rock.
"Extra Sensory what?" He had no idea what she was talking about.
"ESP."
"Oh. I see." He looked at her to see she had turned her eyes back to the lake. The sun was now setting on it, and the light reflected on her skin and hair, giving them both an orangy tint. In her eyes, there was painted a perfect mirror image of the sunset.
"So, what's up?" Ryoko broke his concentration when she looked at him. She noticed he was staring at her, and she gave him a confused look. "What?"
He laughed at the look on her face. This annoyed her.
"What? What is so funny? Tenchi, tell me!"
"Nothing, Ryoko-san. Nothing."
He called me Ryoko-san. This had gotten her attention. He barely ever calls me Ryoko-san!
He noticed she was looking at him strangely, and this sent him into another fit of laughter.
"Ah, shut up!" she looked at him disgusted. She hated being laughed at.
He noticed she was getting mad, and he quickly stopped laughing.
"Gomen, Ryoko. I didn't mean to make you mad," Tenchi said, apologetically.
She looked at him angrily for a moment, then her face broke into a soft smile.
"I know." She looked back to the lake, and his eyes followed hers.
They sat looking out at the scenery for what seemed like an eternity, but what turned out to only be five minutes.
"So, what's on your mind, Tenchi?" Ryoko asked for a third time.
"Actually, I have a question for you," he answered.
"Knock yourself out."
"It's about that picture on your dresser."
She looked down and didn't answer right away. Finally, she said, "We've talked about that many times. I've told you there's nothing to tell you about that thing. That was taken a long time ago. Before Kagato."
"I know, but you're wrong when you say we've talked about it. You haven't told me anything. Not even the girl's name. I've asked Washuu, but she doesn't even know. Why can't you talk about it?" His voice was harsher than he wanted it to be, but before he had the chance to apologize, Ryoko had stood up, her white dress and green and orange tailcoat blew around her body.
"I don't remember her name." Tenchi could tell she was lying, but he didn't push her. There were tears in her eyes, and they had begun to fall down her cheeks.
"Why can't you talk about it? Did something..." he began, but stopped when she turned to face him.
"Yes, Tenchi. Something happened. Can't you just drop it?" She began to shake slightly from crying. "It's cold out. I'm going back." Her voice trembled as she spoke. Ryoko teleported out of sight, and Tenchi was left alone to deal with his thoughts.
Cold nothing. It's the middle of May. He knew he had unintentionally hurt her. Badly.
That happened around two weeks ago, about when her dreams first began. After that, he decided not to consult her about it again. He came to the conclusion that the picture obviously caused Ryoko pain.
But why does she keep it up if it hurts so much?
Obviously the girl had meant something to Ryoko, whoever she was...
The prince took his eyes of the photograph and walked silently out of the room, not looking back.
~*~
The morning dawned dark and stormy. Forecast? Rain. The 2074-year-old space pirate opened her eyes to find she was alone, for the most part. She had slept rather soundly after she had fallen back asleep. Slowly, she sat up in bed, and realized Ryo-ohki was lying beside her.
"Ryo-ohki? You slept in here?" She scratched behind the cabbit's brown and white ears.
"Miya?" Ryo-ohki woke up and stared up at her owner. Ryoko laughed a little before getting up out of bed.
"Hmmm...what should I wear today?" She phased into the first outfit that came to mind: her Zero outfit.
"Miya!" Ryo-ohki said in approval.
"You like this thing don't you?" Ryoko looked down at the black, yellow, red, and pink getup. She hated it. At least, part of her did. The other half loved it.
Shut up, Zero, she told her other half. The two personalities had become one before, but they still disagreed on a few things, this outfit being one of them. But Ryoko had long before gotten used to the idea of someone else sharing her body, therefore gotten used to telling it to shut up so she could do her own thing.
Why did I let Washuu talk me into assimilating with you, Zero?!
*I don't know, why did you?* Washuu broke into Ryoko's thoughts.
*Damnit, Washuu! How many times have I told you to stay out of my mind?* Washuu had startled the yellow-eyed summoner.
*And how many times have I told you that's no way to talk to your mother?* Washuu retaliated.
*What do you want?* Ryoko knew she had lost that one, so she changed the subject.
*Breakfast is ready.*
*Breakfast?!* This cheered Ryoko up a great deal. *Hot damn! Be down in a minute!* And she closed the link.
"Ryo-ohki, come on! Breakfast!" The pirate held her arms open to her ship, and Ryo-ohki jumped into them. Ryoko pulled the cabbit over and held her below her diaphragm.
"Miya! Miya Miya! Mi-ya!!" the rabbit-like creature looked into the face of her holder.
"I agree. Let's go." And with that, the two teleported downstairs.
"Geeze, Ryoko, you slept like a rock after you fell asleep last night!" Tenchi said as soon as he saw the young woman. Before she had time to think of something to say, Sasami walked into the room, carrying the final dish of the morning meal.
"Ah, Ryoko! Ohayo Gozaimasu!" she said.
"Ohayo gozaimasu to you, too, Sasami-chan," Ryoko said with a nod as she took her usual spot by Tenchi at the table.
"Oh great, the whole morning's ruined now. I do hope you slept all right last night, Ryoko, because after you woke us all up, I couldn't get back to sleep," Aeka said as she came to sit at the table with the rest of the family.
"Shut up, Aeka! I know you stood in the doorway, I'm no idiot!" Ryoko shot back.
"Well, you know, if..." Aeka began, but she was stopped by Tenchi holding up his hand.
"Both of you! Can't you just get along for once?"
"NO!" the pirate and the first crown princess shouted. They stared at each other, and sparks seemed to fly between them. Then, they both looked the other way, noses in the air.
"They're hopeless," Kiyone said, shaking her head at the two quarreling females.
"Well, if Miss Space Pirate would just go back to the dark star where she belongs, then things would be much better and quieter around here," Aeka said, looking sideways at Ryoko, eyebrow twitching.
"Ha, you know, you're so obsessed with the "dark star", Aeka, so why don't you go and see what it's like?" said Ryoko. She stood up and faced her enemy, but they didn't face each other for long.
"C'mon, both of you! Aeka, Miss Ryoko, please!" Sasami begged. "Can't we just have a peaceful breakfast for once?"
The two continued to stare at each other for a few seconds (in which everyone feared one of them would explode), but they eventually sat down, Ryoko where she was and Aeka across from her, next to her little sister.
After a long breakfast (during which all at the table were positive Aeka would claw Ryoko's eyes out or Ryoko would blast Aeka into smithereens), Kiyone and Mihoshi left the house to head for their part time job, Washuu went into her lab and once again wrapped herself up in her research, and Tenchi left for his usual chores in the fields. Noboyuki was out for a few days on a business trip in Kyoto, and Katsuhito was at the shrine (as usual). Now, the three remaining women were left in the house to do the housework.
"All right, so it's Aeka's turn to do laundry, and my turn to sweep, and Ryoko's turn to...hey...where is Ryoko?" Sasami, in the middle of reciting the chores for the day, realized the pirate was no where in sight.
"She's probably off with Tenchi in the fields! Ohh, I can't stand that woman!" Aeka fumed.
MEANWHILE in the fields
"You know, Ryoko, I'm sure the other girls would appreciate it greatly if you helped out around the house," Tenchi said, eyebrow raised, to the one floating in midair and hanging off his shoulders.
"Mm-mm!! No way! I'd rather be out here with you, Tenchi!" Ryoko shook her head vigorously, causing the long cyan hair at the sides of her face to fly this way and that.
The rain had temporarily stopped a little earlier. Tenchi was supposed to be tending to the carrot fields, but instead he was in the carrot fields trying to convince a certain space pirate to go back to the house and help out. It wasn't working.
"Ryoko! C'mon!" he pleaded.
"No! I'm staying out here! And there's nothing you can do about it!" she responded.
"Then could you please get off me?" He figured out that as long as she's being this stubborn, he was fighting a losing battle.
She buried her head into her arms, her hair caressing his cheek. He felt her sigh deeply, and she finally released him. But instead of going to the house, she floated in midair right behind him.
Tenchi worked silently, while Ryoko sat cross-legged in midair, staring at the dark gray sky. Ten minutes passed in silence. Then, Tenchi suddenly straightened up, and he, too looked to the sky. Off in the distance, a flash of reddish white light lit up the sky, followed by a loud rumble that shook the clouds. Little drops of rain fell to the ground and splashed up. Another white bolt of lightning split the sky. This time, the thunder that followed was not a loud rumble, but a sharp, splitting crack.
Ryoko looked down at Tenchi, who looked at her. She wanted to throw her arms around him and pull her "Oh I'm so scared!" stunt, but thought better of it. Instead, she stepped on the ground, just as another bolt of lightning streaked across the sky. Its light flashed in her eyes, making her raise her hand to shield them.
"Ryoko, let's go back. There's no way I'm working in this." Ryoko blinked and saw Tenchi gesturing in the direction of the house and holding out his hand towards her. She looked at him questioningly. The rain went from sprinkling to pouring.
"Ryoko, come on!" She nodded and placed her hand in his. His fingers closed around her black cloth-covered ones, and they began to run, using their other hands to cover their heads.
"Tenchi, wait!" the pirate stopped in her tracks. This sudden action caused Tenchi to trip, but Ryoko pulled him back up before he hit the ground.
"I have an idea!" She faced him, took his other hand, and closed her eyes, picturing the inside of the Masaki household. Soon, they found themselves in the front hallway. Instead of enduring the storm raging outside, they were soon to endure a particular purple-hair princess who looked like she was practically foaming at the mouth.
"Oh no. Here we go again," Ryoko said under her breath, rolling her golden eyes in disgust.
Eyebrow twitching, heat rising in her face, Aeka stopped in front of the two in the hall.
Ryoko realized she was still holding Tenchi's hands. She let go, and instead of backing off, she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Now, Tenchi, we can go to my room and play," she said in a seductive voice.
"What?!" Tenchi tried to pull away, but she kept her grip. This act was having the effect intended.
Aeka walked over to Ryoko and pried her from Tenchi.
"You stay away from him, you demon woman!"
"What? Everyone knows how intimate Tenchi and I are!" Ryoko was laughing inside, and trying as hard as she could to keep her voice from cracking with laughter.
Aeka looked as though you could have fried an egg on her face. She was about to say something, but stopped.
"Well, this seems entertaining enough, but I think I'm going to go to bed," he said as he began to walk quickly up the stairs.
"Wait, Tenchi!" Ryoko began to fly over to him, but Aeka grabbed her hand and pulled her back.
"Oh no you don't!" she said.
The two feuding women stared each other down. Then, Ryoko broke it off and transported herself to her bedroom. She was soaked, but for some odd reason, too tired to really care. She went over to her bed and sat down, bringing her legs up to her chest and resting her head on her knees.
Ever since her dreams had begun, she had begun feeling overly tired at times. And this was one of those times. Before she even knew what was happening, she fell over on her bed, dead asleep.
~*~
Ryoko was awakened by a sharp tapping on her door.
"Miss Ryoko! Wake up! It's time for dinner!" Sasami's voice floated through the cracks to Ryoko's ears.
"Hmm...what...oh. Al-all right, Sasami. Coming," she replied, sleepily. She teleported herself so she was right outside her door, facing the light blue-haired little girl.
"C'mon! It's getting cold!" Sasami gave Ryoko a disappointed look before she started downstairs, closely followed by the floating pirate.
When the two got to the table, they found Kiyone (who was yelling at Mihoshi), Mihoshi (who was crying, "What did I do? What did I do?"), Tenchi (who was shaking his head), Washuu (who was either ignoring the two yelling women or was totally oblivious to the whole situation), and Aeka (who looked very annoyed).
The two blue-haired girls looked at each other, began to snicker, then looked away before they burst out laughing. Then, they took their spots. It was then that Washuu showed some signs of life.
She cleared her throat. Kiyone and Mihoshi didn't stop. Washuu cleared her throat again, this time louder. The two still didn't stop.
"Hey you two! Are you ready to eat?!" she screamed, aggravated. The two froze, Mihoshi with her arms in the air, Kiyone with her hands around Mihoshi's throat. "There we go!" Washuu smiled with satisfaction.
When everyone was settled in and ready to stuff his or her faces, they all said, "Well, bon a petite (sp?)" and began. Ryoko, who was done in a matter of five minutes, looked at Aeka, who was barely through her first dish.
"Damn, Aeka. You are way to slow. I mean, I'm done!"
"Yes, well, I particularly like to eat my food, instead of wear it!" Aeka eyed a spot on Ryoko's shoulder where she had dropped a piece of food. Ryoko looked at it and picked it up, popping it in her mouth.
The rest of the meal was relatively quiet (unless you count Mihoshi accidentally flinging a piece of fish into Kiyone's hair and Kiyone practically blowing up). When everyone was finished, Sasami was the first to speak.
"Tenchi, Ryoko, you're on dish duty."
"But, wait, isn't it only my turn?" Tenchi asked.
"Yeah! Since when is it mine?" Ryoko asked, giving Sasami a half-questioning look half-accusing stare.
"Well, you were supposed to do them this afternoon, but since you weren't here, you can do it tonight," the little princess explained.
Damn. I got stuck this time, Ryoko thought to herself.
"Okay, Ryoko?"
Ryoko was pulled from her thoughts by Tenchi's voice.
"What?" she asked him, totally oblivious to the fact he had just been talking to her.
The rest of the gang laughed at her, making her mad.
"I said, how about I was them, and you dry them?"
She looked at his smiling face, and realized he was on the verge of laughing at her too. Glaring at him, she replied, "All right, fine." And the two began to clear off the table.
Tenchi and Ryoko were almost done with the dishes. Tenchi was washing a bowl and Ryoko had just finished a plate. She put it up and picked up a large cutting knife that Sasami had used to cut the vegetables with.
Tenchi stopped what he was doing and looked at Ryoko. She had stopped drying the knife and was absentmindedly staring at her reflection in the blade.
God only knows what she's thinking about. Man, I wish I did. He wanted to ask her again about the picture, but he didn't want to hurt her again. He stood there battling with himself whether he should ask her again.
It wouldn't hurt...I hope. So, he gathered up as much courage as he could.
"Uh, Ryoko?"
"Mm-hm?" He hadn't phased her one bit. She continued to stare at the blade as though it were some kind of treasure.
"Uh...how to say..." Tenchi couldn't find the words.
"You know, you don't have to hold back. Just say it," she pulled her eyes from the blade, and let it drop by her side, letting the rest of the soapy water drip off of it.
"Uh...okay...uh..." He tried to form it into words, and finally came out with it, "Who's the girl in the picture on your dresser?"
Ryoko, once again, didn't answer right away. She looked from the floor, to the blade in her hand, back to the floor. When she spoke, her voice was cold as ice.
"How many times are you going to ask me about her? I have told you many times that she is no one of importance. That was many years ago, and I don't remember her."
He hated to hear her like this, especially when it was because of him. But he wanted answers. He didn't want to be lied to anymore.
"I know you're lying to me. Please tell me. You're going to be no better off with it kept inside you," the prince told her.
"There is nothing to talk about, for the last time. What is it that holds your interest?" The pirate's voice was ice. She looked at Tenchi, and he backed up out of fear. He had pushed her to the limit.
"Tell me. You can trust me." He was being an idiot. He kept going; he wanted answers.
"Apparently I can't. I thought you got the message last time, but no." She was screaming at him, her right fist balling up tighter and tighter around the knife's blade. Blood dripped from her clenched hand.
"Uh, Ryoko..." Tenchi tried to tell her about the knife, but she wasn't listening.
"All right, fine! You want to know who she is?! Huh?! Her name was Kyoko! She was my partner, my best friend! "Was" because she's dead! Yeah! Dead!" Ryoko ranted. He had definitely made a big mistake. Tears streamed down her face, but her eyes were full of merciless hatred. Her fist continued to tighten around the blade. And still she continued. "Do you want to know why she's dead, huh? Because of me! I caused the explosion that killed her! It was my goddamn fault!" She noticed she was still holding the knife. "Shit!"
A puddle of blood had formed by her feet. She raised her hand in front of her body and pulled the blade out, which had sunk a centimeter and a half into her palm. She threw it on the floor and it skidded through the puddle, making a trail of blood. Tenchi picked it up and looked at the blade. A drop of blood fell from the stainless silver to his skin to the ground. He looked at Ryoko, who was looking out the window. It looked like she was trying to shatter it under her stare.
"Ry-Ryoko?" Tenchi asked, uncertainly.
"No! Leave me alone, Tenchi! Just leave me alone!" And with that, Ryoko disappeared. To where, no one knew.
"Tenchi?"
Tenchi turned around to the doorway and saw Sasami, Ryo-ohki, Washuu, Aeka, Kiyone, and Mihoshi standing there, looking at him, totally shocked. They had seen the whole thing.