The One I Love

by Spider Jerusalem

Tenchi gets with one of the girls. Want to know which one? Read the story.

Before the story a few formalities.

Ahem... I do not own Tenchi Muyo, ACI and Pioneer hold that privilege. The song 'The One I Love' is the property of Scott Litt and R.E.M., as is the song 'Be Mine'. I hereby go on record as saying that I am earning precisely bugger all from writing this fic. I just get the satisfaction that comes with getting something you wrote put on the net. And knowing that I can mess with people's heads.

Anyway, now that that's out of the way, this fic is going to be a kind of dark love story, so for all of you who don't like that sort of thing I suggest you check out the lemon section. For the rest of you, enjoy the story!



The One I Love

This one goes out to the one I love

This one goes out to the one I've left behind

A single prop to occupy my time

This one goes out to the one I love.

Fire (she's common' down on her own now)

This one goes out to the one I love

This one goes out to the one I left behind

Another prop has occupied my time

This one goes out to the one I love.



The happiness that normally filled the Masaki was not there on that dark day. There was none of the usual laughter that filled its halls nor any of the bickering that went on between Ryoko and Ayeka was heard. In fact the house seemed totally quiet, like time itself was holding its breath, anxious to know what was going to happen. In Washu's lab three figures stood tensely, their eyes darting back and forth to each other like they were locked in some kind of weird Mexican stand-off. In fact only one of them was holding a gun. Mihoshi stood with her back to the wall, sweat glistened on her forehead and tears streaked down her tanned face. Her GP issue blaster was trained on the second person in the room. Tenchi stared on in horror.

"Do it." Ryoko rasped from the shadows. Mihoshi let out a small sob.

"Ryoko...don't do this..." Tenchi said, his voice sounding scared and tinny in the monstrous laboratory.

"Shut up." Ryoko hissed. "Mihoshi, shoot."

"No!" Mihoshi cried out. "I can't...I won't do it!"

Mihoshi painfully lowered her weapon. Ryoko sighed.

"Fine." She said, bringing her familiar beam sword into existence. "Fine."

She lunged forward, and Tenchi became more scared than he'd ever been in his life.

36 hours earlier

Light flooded across the lake in great beams that reflected off the shimmering water and landed squarely on the Masaki household. It was nine in the morning, a time at which a certain Tenchi Masaki thought about getting up. His eyes lazily rolled open and his brain struggled to focus them. He sat up, rubbed his ocular sensors awhile and tried to remember the dream he'd been having.

'About the one I love.'

That sobering thought snapped him from his dreams and made him wake up. Just thinking about her made adrenaline flood into his body in waves. He'd feel light-headed, and his stomach would clench itself into a tight ball, and the horrible butterfly feeling would begin. In fact it was happening now. Tenchi stretched, trying to relieve the tight feeling in his abdomen. He longed to tell her how her felt, but the very notion of doing so made him lose the ability to speak, and if his anxiety was particularly high an awful lot of blood would literally fall from his nose. The one upside was that the other girls didn't affect him anymore. Yeah, well, no more. He couldn't afford to keep putting it off. It was like he was caught in the middle of two conflicting emotions. Every day he didn't tell her made his life a little bit more unbearable. He nodded to himself in determination. Today was the day. Today he'd tell her how he felt.

"Rise and shine, lazy!" Cried Kiyone, taking an evil pleasure in destroying her partner's slumber. Much to Kiyone's chagrin Mihoshi took it in good humour, as per usual.

"Mmn? Breakfast?" Mihoshi' half spoke half mumbled. Kiyone once again marvelled at Mihoshi's ability to eat constantly and still keep her perfect figure.

"Yeah Mihoshi, breakfast." Kiyone said sweetly, rolling her eyes. "Get up." She added, dropping her previous demeanour.

"Ohhh, but Kiyone there's no work today!" A sleepy voice drifted up from underneath the blankets. Kiyone frowned.

"Fine." She said sarcastically, before ripping the blankets from the bed to reveal Mihoshi curled up in the traditional foetal position, her arms tucked into her chest and her hands under her head. Her golden hair flowed down her back, clashing violently with her pink pyjamas. Her eyes clamped shut as soon as the light touched her face, and for a moment Kiyone thought that she looked rather sweet. Then she remembered that on more than one occasion people's lived had depended on the vegetable that lay on the bed. Kiyone shuddered slightly.

"What's going on, Kiyone?" Asked Mihoshi, rubbing her eyes.

"We need to go to Tenchi's," Kiyone said wearily, "After our last patrol Yagami was damaged and I need to see Washu about it."

Kiyone couldn't be sure, but when she said these words she could have sworn that Mihoshi's eyebrows arched upwards and some colour flushed into her cheeks. Then again, it could have just been the light. Kiyone frowned. She wasn't sure if she could be bothered waiting for Mihoshi to get ready.

"Listen Mihoshi," Kiyone sighed, "You stay here if you want to. I'm sure I won't take that long, and..."

"No wait," Mihoshi interjected, hauling herself doggedly up from the bed. "I want to come. I want to see Sasami and..."

Her voice trailed off. Kiyone was sure that this time Mihoshi did flush red. Of course, it was harder to tell on someone as well tanned as Mihoshi (a fact that Kiyone often envied, especially when she was out with men). Kiyone shot a suspicious sideways glance at her partner. Mihoshi countered with her typical blank expression. Kiyone shrugged.

"Okay. We'll leave in say," Kiyone checked her watch, "Ten minutes?"

Mihoshi nodded with a grin, and Kiyone gave her a quizzical look, then left the room. Mihoshi watched her leave, then looked worried. Sometimes she wished her partner didn't have the ability to read people so well. She sighed, and headed in the direction of the bathroom.

"Morning Sasami," Tenchi said in a half-interested voice. Somewhere in the back of his mind he supposed he should be more sociable, but his mind was ablaze with other matters. How the hell was he going to tell her? 'I love you' is not the kind of phrase that can be just blurted out, but by God that's what he wanted to do. He like to tell her while they were alone, preferably, but he supposed he wouldn't mind if Washu or Sasami were present, after all if they were to get it together the whole family would find out sooner or later anyway... Ayeka and Ryoko though... Tenchi groaned inwardly. But perhaps he was getting ahead of himself. That was even if she had mutual feelings for him, even if he actually worked up the courage to...

"Here's your breakfast Tenchi!" Sasami beamed across the table at him. Tenchi forced a smile and tried to sound as enthusiastic as possible.

"Thanks Sasami," he said. "It looks delicious."

Sasami's smile somehow widened, and she went to step away, when suddenly her brow furrowed thoughtfully, and she turned to face him.

"Tenchi..." She said slowly. Tenchi raised his gaze from his breakfast plate.

"Yes?" he answered absently.

"Um, is there something on your mind? You've been really quiet lately. Is something wrong?" Sasami asked as tactfully as possible.

Tenchi's stomach seemed to tighten to the size of a golf ball. He looked around the dining room for a means to escape Sasami's awkward question. The light bounced in through the open window and lit-up the whole dining room. Tenchi briefly considered leaping to the sliding door to his right and joining the birdsong he could hear faintly from outside. He uncomfortably shifted his gaze to the left and saw the door that led to Washu's lab. He could probably get a good few days out of that hiding place. He looked back down at his plate. He was being stupid. Much as he hated to do it...

"I'm fine, really. I just didn't get a very good nights sleep last night."

Sasami smiled a small smile and nodded. She then turned, and started in the direction of the kitchen. Tenchi shook his head in self-disgust. Keeping his thoughts to himself was one thing, but lying to Sasami?

"Sasami, wait, there is something." Tenchi said. Sasami turned, her expression neutral.

"I knew it." She said simply. Tenchi smiled a sad smile. Was he really that obvious? Sasami took a seat opposite Tenchi, and propped her head up with her arm. "So what's wrong?"

"Erm, well, the thing is..." Tenchi floundered. Christ, if he couldn't tell Sasami about his feeling what the hell was he going to do when the object of his affections showed up? He stopped. He sighed.

"The thing is I have feelings for one of the girls, and I'm going through hell trying to tell her."

Sasami nodded, taking it all in. She looked neither shocked nor surprised. Despite her young appearance she could handle adult issues as well as if not better than the house's other women.

"I see." Sasami said as carefully as she could. Tenchi marvelled at how understanding the young girl could be.

"So you want to tell her how you feel..." Sasami spoke softly.

"Yes."

"But you're afraid of what her reaction will be."

"Exactly."

"Well, I'll try and help you any way I can." Sasami said kindly. "First of all, who is it that you like?"

"Well that's one of the reasons that makes it so difficult to tell her."

"Why, who is it?" Sasami said, surprised.

"Mihoshi." Tenchi replied with a cough.

Mihoshi pulled a shirt from the bed and threw it over her shoulders. As she was doing up the buttons she stifled a yawn. She finished buttoning up her shirt and stretched. She wouldn't normally rise this early, but as they were going to see Tenchi...

Mihoshi sighed a heavy sigh that spoke of sorrow. Sorrow worse than a love lost, a love that had never been. She had long ago decided that she didn't have a chance with Tenchi, not when there were two other women who practically worshiped him on a daily basis. A princess and an immensely powerful space pirate no less. How could officer Mihoshi of the rather sad galaxy police compete with that? And that wasn't counting all the other girls that she didn't know about who lusted after him. Hell, Kiyone even showed an interest in him once in a while. Still, a girl could dream. And if all that came from it was to be friends with Tenchi and share good times with him, then so be it.

"Mihoshi! Are you ready yet?" Kiyone's voice drifted up the stairs.

"Coming!" Mihoshi called back. She turned and was about to open the bedroom door and leave when she caught sight of herself in the mirror. A single tear had blazed its way down her left cheek. She frowned at her reflection. Quickly she grabbed a tissue from the bedside cabinet and dabbed the streak away. She again looked at her reflection. There was a little redness around her eyes, but it was practically unnoticeable. Mihoshi nodded, and headed for the door. She bounded down the stairs two at a time with practised speed, and was soon greeted by Kiyone at the front door.

"Where've you been?" Kiyone asked with mild irritation.

"Sorry." Mihoshi said. "I've been kinda preoccupied lately."

"Has there ever been a time when you haven't been preoccupied?" Kiyone questioned sarcastically. Mihoshi furrowed her brow and glanced at the ceiling, feigning puzzlement. Kiyone rolled her eyes, and the pair stepped out of the house and headed towards the bus stop.

Sasami's eyebrows raised by a fraction but her expression remained the same and she said nothing.

"What?" Tenchi asked quietly.

"Oh nothing." Sasami answered quickly. "I was just expecting you to say Ayeka or Ryoko, that's all."

"Which is another problem." Tenchi said sadly.

"Yeah, I know," Sasami concurred. "I suppose you can cross that bridge when you get to it."

Tenchi nodded.

"I was hoping to tell her the next time I see her, but... When do you think she'll visit again?"

"She and Kiyone always come over every few days..." Sasami said, maintaining the same soft tone. "We could phone them up if you like."

Tenchi shook his head.

"That would be a bit odd, don't you think? Phoning her up and asking her to come over without giving a reason?"

"It's difficult, isn't it?" Sasami sighed. She shifted her head to her right arm and glanced out of the window.

"But hey," she said, a smile cracking across her face, "maybe you'll get lucky."

Tenchi stared at her blankly at her. Sasami grinned even wider, and motioned towards the door with her head. Tenchi's eyes narrowed and his brow furrowed. He shrugged. Again Sasami nodded in the direction of the door. The penny dropped. Tenchi's eyes widened. He pointed wildly in the direction of the door. Sasami nodded in great amusement. Their silent conversation might have continued had they not been interrupted by a knock at the door.

"Hello!" Kiyone's voice sounded from the other side of the door. "Is anyone home?"

Tenchi stomach knotted and the colour drained from his face. He knew it was Kiyone behind the door, but where there's smoke...

There was a second knock at the door. Sasami gestured towards the door with her arm. Tenchi stared at her blankly.

'Answer the door!' Sasami mouthed silently. Tenchi got the message. He leapt up from his seat and crossed the ten feet between him and the front door in two steps. He grabbed hold of doorknob, and hesitated for a moment. He concentrated on the cold metal beneath his hand. Taking a deep breath, he flung the door open. Kiyone stood in front of him looking slightly bemused and slightly behind her stood Mihoshi, staring at nowhere in particular and idly playing with a strand of her golden hair. Tenchi's eye's flitted to her, but he quickly corrected himself and settled his gaze on Kiyone's face. Realising he'd stayed silent too long, Tenchi stepped to one side.

"Hi! Come in!" Tenchi said with a forced smile.

"Hi." Kiyone said warmly, stepping into the house. "Sorry to stop by unannounced. I need to talk to Washu about my ship."

"Oh right." Tenchi replied. "I think she's down in her lab."

"Do you two want some tea?" Sasami asked politely.

"Yes please." Mihoshi said. She had remained unnaturally quiet since she arrived at the house. Kiyone nodded.

"Please Sasami, but I think I'll just go and see Washu first. I won't be long." She said. Sasami smiled, and Kiyone grinned back. Kiyone strode towards the door under the stairs, opened it and left the normal plain of reality. Sasami shot a sly smile in Tenchi's direction, and left for the kitchen.

'Talk about speak of the devil...or more accurately angel.'

Tenchi returned to his chair and wondered how he was going to word his confession to the blonde beauty. Time to break the rather uncomfortable silence.

"How've you been, Mihoshi?" Tenchi asked.

"Fine thanks." Mihoshi answered, sitting down at the table. "Kiyone had to come down here, so I thought I'd tag along."

Tenchi stared into Mihoshi's sky blue eyes, but he didn't really hear what she was saying. On the word 'fine' Mihoshi's silken voice drifted into Tenchi's ear, his brain turned to liquid. An electric charge churned his stomach, and all the things he had planned to say disappeared. It was like he took one look at Mihoshi and his brain waved a little white flag.

There was a long silence.

Followed by a long silence.

Concluded by a long silence.

Mihoshi kept taking sly glances at Tenchi and then looking away again, but Tenchi was too busy trying to get his head together to notice. Sadly, Mihoshi couldn't help but notice Tenchi's less than subtle handling of his predicament.

"Are you okay, Tenchi?" She asked, worry cracking into her voice. Tenchi was still too wrapped up to notice. In fact he barely heard her. He hardly saw anything. His body was too busy keeping up with his ever-increasing oxygen requirements.

"I- yeah, I'm fine." There was a long pause. Then Tenchi heard someone talking using his voice.

"Well actually I'm not- listen, can I have a word with you?" Tenchi stumbled, at this point avoiding Mihoshi's gaze at all costs.

"Er, yes..." Mihoshi answered uncertainly, beginning to blush slightly. Tenchi had already moved past the 'slightly' phase, and was nearing the point where his face was beginning to resemble a sun-ripened tomato. He rose from the table and lightly paced towards the front door. He placed his hand on the knob, and shot a glance back to Mihoshi that she couldn't read, but knew that he wanted her to follow him. Mihoshi slowly pushed away from the table and cautiously followed Tenchi out of the door.

Sasami entered the room, and despite the fact that there was no one there a large smile spread over her face. She set the tray with the two teas on the table and sat down, resting her head on her arms once again.

"Good luck..." she whispered. As she spoke she heard a familiar sound behind her that told her that Kiyone was back from the lab.

"Hi Sasami." Kiyone greeted.

"Hi." Sasami said, unable to drop the grin that had planted itself firmly on her face. Kiyone walked to the other side of the table, and gave Sasami a funny look when she saw her.

"How come you're so happy?" She asked in amusement.

"Oh, no reason." Sasami said, still smiling.

"You too?" Kiyone asked. "Mihoshi was acting weird this morning as well."

"Really?"

"Yeah. You don't know why, do you?"

"Well, whatever it is I'm sure we'll find out soon." Sasami said happily. Kiyone frowned, then shrugged, reaching for one of the teas.

"Ours not to reason why. Cheers." She said, clinking cups with Sasami.

The cool air that was blowing over Tenchi's face was clearing his head and focusing his thoughts. Mihoshi walked silently beside him, staring at the ground as they walked by. Tenchi lifted his head and looked into the infinity of cyan above him, interspersed with puffs of white. He lowered his gaze to the tree line of the woods and stared at the turquoise merge that it formed with the sky, and wondered what he was doing, what he was going to do. He switched his gaze to Mihoshi. She looked worried, but still as beautiful as ever. Beautiful or not, she was going to want to know why he dragged her out. Stupid! He should have worked out what he was going say first.

"Do you have a problem?" Mihoshi asked tentatively.

"Yes." Tenchi sighed. "Yeah, you could say that."

"Is it with me?" Mihoshi asked, blinking back tears. This finally made Tenchi wake up and take notice.

"Oh, no, no, no," Tenchi said quickly to her. Relief flooded into her sky-blue eyes and a small smile formed on her lips. It was times like this that made Tenchi just want to grab Mihoshi and kiss her. Everything about her face seemed perfect to him, from her ebony skin to her impossibly smooth lips. Tenchi ran his own lower lip over his upper teeth. Cracked, as usual. One more thing he could add to the ever-growing list of reasons why Mihoshi was definitely going to reject him.

'But can you really go this far and just stop without finding out?'

That thought giving him the power to continue, Tenchi tenderly placed a hand on Mihoshi's shoulder. The electrical charge screamed through his system. She glanced down at his hand and blushed.

'At least she didn't flinch when I touched her...'

"It's my problem," Tenchi continued, "but I do need to talk to you about it."

Mihoshi nodded. Tenchi breathed out. He'd made it this far. Tenchi looked around. There was a grassy spot ten meters of so from where they were standing, surrounded by bushes of some kind, just a little way off the path they were on. Tenchi started towards it, and Mihoshi followed behind. He sat down with his knees close to his chest, and he folded his arms on top of them. Mihoshi sat beside him, but she hugged her knees close to her chest. Tenchi waited a few moments, then took a deep breath. He didn't want to get stuck halfway through.

"Well, my problem is, my problem is this. I've-" Tenchi started, but his throat seemed to close up before he could get any further. Mihoshi looked like she could burst at any moment, the tension was so high.

Tenchi remained silent.

'JUST SAY IT!' Tenchi's mind screamed silently. His mouth couldn't seem to produce enough saliva to speak.

Still Tenchi remained silent.

'Now.'

Tenchi coughed, and sighed.

"Mihoshi, the fact is, I've fallen for you in a big way." Tenchi said numbly.

He rolled to one side, facing away from the blonde.

"Really?" Mihoshi asked quietly.

"Yeah." Tenchi answered simply. "I'm sorry M-"

"YES!" Mihoshi screamed.

At Mihoshi's outburst, Tenchi turned towards her, effectively rolling onto his back. Simultaneously, Mihoshi moved towards him, effectively straddling him, one knee on either side of his waist.

"See I feel the same way too, but I had no idea that you liked me, I was sure that you'd go for Ryoko or Ayeka, God, I can't tell you how I feel right now..." Mihoshi machine-gunned in excitement. Tenchi's initial feeling of shock instantly turned to abject terror. Was he hearing her correctly? Was the feeling mutual?

"Y-you feel the same way too?" Tenchi spluttered, the electrical charge running around his body.

"Why of course I do!" Mihoshi practically screamed, pulling Tenchi by the shirt into a sitting position, so that their faces were only centimetres apart. The electrical charge in Tenchi's body did a lap of honour, had a quick rest, and then decided it needed more exercise.

Tenchi's mind froze up at this point. It had given up trying to figure out what was going on and had decided to go with the flow of the veritable emotional roller coaster it was on.

Mihoshi, still not having let go of Tenchi's shirt, slowly pulled him closer, their lips moving together at a snails pace. Tenchi was sure what to do. His ears were ringing from the amount of blood in his head, his heart went into over-drive, and each beat was like a punch in the chest.

Closer.

Should he keep eyes open or closed? He didn't know. Did it matter? Probably not. Mihoshi's were still open. Go with the flow.

Closer still.

Now they were millimetres apart. Oh well. Now or never. He hoped he'd get it right...

'KISS HER YOU FOOL!' A voice in his mind screamed.

They touched. They kissed. Tenchi felt that most rare feeling: euphoria. He closed his eyes. It was the best feeling he'd ever felt. Nothing else in his life mattered at that moment. All rational thought ceased. He was a piece of meat controlled by powerful emotions. Silently and without thinking, Tenchi linked his arms around Mihoshi's back. As he did this, Mihoshi released his twisted shirt, and placed her palms against his chest. From the combination of hugging Mihoshi close and her pressing against him, he could feel himself overbalancing, but he didn't really register it. As if in slow motion, the pair fell backwards, Mihoshi on top of Tenchi. As Tenchi felt the cool ground on his back, he felt something else on his lips.

Something warm.

Something wet.

'No way...'

Tenchi managed to keep his eyes closed, but only just. Tenchi opened his mouth, and the kiss turned decidedly more continental. The two lay there exploring each other's mouths lustfully. Finally they broke apart, and Mihoshi rolled off Tenchi and onto her side. Tenchi then rolled onto his side so that they were both facing each other.

"Wow." Tenchi breathed. Mihoshi blushed, then started giggling. Tenchi got caught up with her, and he too started to chuckle. He hugged her close. They stayed on the grassy patch for some time, wrapped in each other's arms, giggling like idiots.

"That was great thanks, Sasami." Kiyone said absently, setting her mug on the table.

"Are you okay, Kiyone?" Sasami questioned kindly.

"Hmm?" Kiyone blinked. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just tired, I guess."

"Oh." Sasami mumbled not sure what to say. She remained silent and soon her thought turned to how Tenchi and Mihoshi were getting on. Despite her earlier confidence, certain doubts had begun to resurface.

'I hope things work out for the both of you...'

Sasami sat alone with her thoughts for another few moments when the silence was broken by the sound of the door under the stairs opening. Washu stepped into the room, her usual grin painted across her face.

"Hello!" She cried out in her usual demeanour, most unscientifically. "How is everyone?"

Sasami realised that this was the first time she'd seen Washu all day. Obviously she'd been doing an all-nighter again.

"Hey Washu." Kiyone said in a monotone. She'd probably greeted Washu properly earlier. Sasami greeted Washu as cheerfully as possible. Washu seemed to notice that Kiyone was looking pretty glazed.

"What's up with you?" She asked Kiyone.

"Tired." Kiyone answered simply. Washu nodded, understanding. Despite her own god-like ability to burn the candle at both ends, she was pretty tired herself.

"Perhaps it's time we all relaxed." She said thoughtfully. Both Sasami and Kiyone glanced in her direction. Washu suddenly snapped her fingers.

"I think we should visit the Hot Springs tomorrow."

At these words Kiyone's eyes lit up and she grinned widely. The ladies communal bathroom that Washu built was good, but the hot springs were a small slice of heaven.

"I'm game," She said enthusiastically. Sasami smiled and nodded.

Washu somehow managed to widen her already maniacal grin.

"Great!" She cried. "Meet here at about two o'clock."

Washu then promptly spun on her heel, and returned to her lab.

The sun beat down from the impossibly blue sky warming the air around Tenchi and Mihoshi and coating them both in a layer of sweet sweat. Every so often a bird would chirp and the light breeze would disturb the pines behind them, breaking the silence. To Tenchi the air felt thick, but not in a bad way. It was heavy with the scent of the forest, but it was mainly because the heat was causing whatever perfume Mihoshi was wearing to radiate off her body in rich waves. It grasped hold of Tenchi's senses; it swirled around him, it penetrated him, and what's more he welcomed it. He drank it down in gulps of air. He and Mihoshi were lying on the ground, each nestled up against each other as close as possible without actually lying on top of each other. The sky was completely cloudless, and a few times Tenchi questioned the reality of the earth at his back, like he would plummet into the great beyond of sky. Somewhat dreamily, he rolled his head over to look at Mihoshi, and, sensing his movement, she did the same. Their noses were practically touching. Smiling they retracted to a more comfortable position. Ironically, their comfortable position wasn't that far apart.

"Hi." Tenchi said with a grin, wanting to talk to her but not really knowing what to say. At least he wasn't nervous anymore.

"Hi." Mihoshi answered in a voice that spoke of complete contentment. Tenchi somehow managed to smile even more widely. Everything still felt unreal to him.

"I had no idea you felt the same way you know." He said. "I feel so..."

His voice trailed off. There were no words that he knew of to describe what he was feeling.

"I know." Mihoshi answered softly. "I didn't think I had a chance, you know, with Ayeka and Ryoko..."

Now it was Mihoshi's turn to trail off. Her smile faded.

"I thought there was no way you could want me when you had them." She finished. Tenchi sensed where she was going.

"You're the one I love." He said simply. Tears welled up in Mihoshi's sky coloured eyes. Moving as one, they moved together for another passionate kiss. As Tenchi hugged Mihoshi close to him she hooked one of her legs over his and slipped her palms under his shirt and caressed his chest. Simultaneously, Tenchi slipped his hands under Mihoshi's shirt, and his fingertips met a rough cotton strip stretched across her smooth back; what could only be the clip for her bra.

'Not yet...'

That was Tenchi's last thought before he lost himself in a fresh wave of kissing and emotion. Slowly, over the course of the next few hours, the sun dipped ever lower into the horizon, staining the sky a deep crimson. By the time they broke apart it was nearly dark.

"Tenchi, I don't think I want to go back to the house..." Mihoshi whispered. Tenchi smiled.

"Okay," he whispered back, "It's warm. We can stay here for tonight."

Mihoshi grinned back at hi and quivered slightly. Tenchi mistook this for a shiver and hugged her all the more closer.

"Tenchi?" Mihoshi said again.

"Yeah?" Tenchi answered happily.

"What are you going to do about Ayeka and Ryoko?"

That was a question that had been eating at Tenchi for hours now. It was a problem. A problem that, quite frankly, he didn't know the answer to. No point in worrying Mihoshi about it as well though...

"I'll just tell them straight," Tenchi mused. "I'd make it worse to drag it out..."

He stopped. Boy, did he know about dragging things out.

"I'd just hate it if Ayeka and Ryoko...shouted at me...and..." Mihoshi started, emotion cracking into her voice. She only got that far when she broke down in tears. Tenchi could understand her tears. Ayeka and Ryoko crapped on Mihoshi at the best of times. If and when they found out the she had won his heart...

"Hey, hey," Tenchi said soothingly. "Don't worry about those two. I'll talk to them. I'll make them promise that they won't say any thing to you."

Mihoshi sniffled and then stopped crying. Tenchi squeezed her and she giggled slightly. Tenchi sighed. He wished he believed what he was telling Mihoshi. Still, no use in worrying about it right now...

"Where d'you suppose Mihoshi is, Sasami?" Kiyone asked sleepily.

"I don't know..." Sasami answered truthfully. She guessed that there were two possible outcomes that would result in neither Tenchi nor Mihoshi returning to the house after such a long time. One of them was very good; the other was very bad. Frankly she was getting a little worried.

"Would you like to spend the night here? I'm sure Tenchi won't mind." Sasami asked.

"No, I better not." Kiyone sighed. "Thanks anyway though. Listen, if Mihoshi comes in later, tell her I went back to the apartment. She'll have to make her own way back."

Sasami nodded vigorously as Kiyone walked out of the door.

She watched Kiyone for a few moments before yawning and contemplating the kitchen clock. She should probably get to bed. She shook her head sadly, and started for the stairs. She reached her room and opened the door slightly. Good, Ayeka wasn't in bed yet. No doubt she'd find out how things go with Tenchi and Mihoshi later. She entered the room and started to change for bed. Though she was tired, she didn't think she'd be able to sleep.

Elsewhere, there were other people who couldn't sleep. Well, another person who couldn't sleep anyway. He glanced down at Mihoshi's sleeping form, snuggled up to him as close as possible, her arm draped across his chest. Her breath was brushing past his neck.

'Wow...'

Tenchi lost a short battle with a large cheesy grin. Apparently the fact that Mihoshi had indeed NOT turned him down seemed to have finally sunk in. Tenchi turned his attention to the sky and contemplated the moon. Yes, he may have found what could be described as true happiness, and yes, the object of his desires actually felt the same way, and yes, it probably meant that they'd be spending a lot more time together in the near future, BUT (and this was quite a big but,) he would have to tell the universes most infamous criminal and the first princess of Jurai (both of whom were madly in love with him apparently), that his heart belonged to another. Shit. His grin faded, but somehow his sense of well being didn't. Ahh, to hell with it. He'd just tell them his decision, they'd have to understand, it wasn't like he'd been leading them up the garden path as it were; he'd always secretive about his real feelings for the girls, to the point of being a fault. He didn't have anything to feel guilty about.

Tenchi eyeballed the stars. He just wished he believed what he was telling himself. Slowly he drifted into a thankfully dreamless sleep.

Sasami watched silently as her big sister entered the room. Sasami more than loved her sister, she admired her. Ayeka didn't take crap from anyone, much less Ryoko, but by and large she still managed to keep her dignity. Sasami liked that. This was why it was so painful to watch her like this. She had longed to love and be loved by Tenchi for so long, it would be a devastating blow to know that he loved another. Of course she didn't blame Tenchi. How could she? There hadn't been a day that Tenchi hadn't strived to keep everyone happy. Sasami didn't even want to think about Ryoko finding out. She loved Ryoko too, but she had no idea what the ex space pirate would do. Ayeka moved silently to her futon beside Sasami and removed her kimono, preparing for bed. For the sake of habit, Sasami pretended to be asleep. Of course, she could just tell Ayeka herself about Tenchi, but there really was no need to if nothing came of his asking Mihoshi. And besides, Sasami reasoned, Ayeka would feel hurt that Tenchi had not told her himself.

'Nobody got in trouble from keeping their mouth shut...'

Sasami thought before giving up and attempting to sleep. Before she did, though, she glanced across to her sister. Her eyes were closed, but Sasami didn't think she was asleep. Poor Ayeka. Either way, she was going to be hurt. But she'd get through it. She was strong.

* * *

The sun peeked over the horizon at the two lovers under the tree like some giant yellow pervert. Birds came out of their nests in said trees and started tweeting franticly to their friends about the figures under their said trees. The ground and everything on it was coated in a fine layer of dew, and it was the cold feeling of the moisture drying on his naked chest that half dragged Tenchi from his deep sleep.

He blinked, tried to focus his eyes, then realised that he couldn't because he was staring at the sky. His sleep-drugged mind was trying to tell him something, so he clamped his eyes tightly closed and grimaced. In his experience when his brain was urging him to remember something it usually wasn't good news.

'Excuse me...,' His mind started.

'What do you want?' Tenchi replied mentally, somewhat irritably.

'I'd like to have a quick word with you about what happened last night. You do remember don't you?' The voice continued, unabashed.

'Actually I don't, not yet anyway.' Tenchi answered honestly with an inward sigh. 'What happened? Did part of the house get destroyed again?'

'No,' the voice answered cheerily. 'I know when we talk I'm usually the bearer of bad news, but trust me, I have something good to tell you.'

'Really?' Tenchi replied, less than enthusiastically.

'Have I ever lied to you?' His mind asked innocently.

'No.' Tenchi admitted.

'Good. Now anyway, there's a small matter concerning that girl you like, you know, the blond one.'

'Mihoshi?' Tenchi replied quickly. Had Tenchi been fully awake and had his mind had any outwardly physical presence, Tenchi would have been nose to nose with it by now. As it stood, neither of these variables were met, so he was forced to carry on struggling to wake up and listening to the voice of his mind.

'Yes, her.' His mind said. 'Seems something happened between the two of you.'

'What? Really?' Tenchi silently half screamed.

'Oh, don't worry.' The voice said smugly. 'Things will become much clearer when you...'

"Wake up." A sweet voice drifted down to Tenchi. Frowning with puzzlement, he opened his eyes, and found that he had no trouble focusing them, because this time he actually had something to focus on.

"Mihoshi?"

"Hi Tenchi," Mihoshi giggled. Her golden hair was looking a little more dishevelled than the day before, but somehow her smile seemed brighter than ever. Tenchi could only see her head and shoulders, so he sat up. As he did so the memories of the night before flooded back to him.

'Well at least the voice wasn't lying...'

"Hi, Mihoshi." Tenchi replied. Mihoshi promptly giggled again. She was sat in a kind of half crouch, on her knees with her legs splayed. She placed her palms on the ground in front of her. Her grey pants and plain shirt looked a little more creased than the day before, and Tenchi instantly noticed that her shirt was open, but (thankfully for his nasal system) her bra remained intact. Tenchi savoured the sight for approximately three fifths of a second and then redirected his gaze to her face.

"Did you have a good sleep?" Tenchi asked for want of something more interesting to say.

"I love you." She said simply. Tenchi snorted a laugh, not at her, but at her frankness. Mihoshi started to look upset, but neither she nor Tenchi had time to react, because Tenchi had already started talking.

"I love you too, Mihoshi."

Mihoshi's face lit up and she moved towards Tenchi. Tenchi simultaneously moved towards Mihoshi, and the fairly recent couple stole another kiss. It was several moments before they broke apart. When they did, they stayed close together, staring into each other's eyes.

"I s'pose I better get back to the house soon." Tenchi said, after a few blissful minutes of just holding Mihoshi. "People will be wondering where I am."

Mihoshi smiled and closed her eyes for a moment.

"Yeah, me too." Mihoshi concurred. "I'd better get back to Kiyone."

Tenchi nodded, a little sadly. Now that he'd expressed his feelings for Mihoshi he wanted to spend as much time as possible with her. Still, he'd probably see her later on in the day. That thought cheered him up somewhat.

Tenchi stretched his arms a little, and then rocked forwards into a crouch and stood up. He took Mihoshi by the hand and gently lifted her up into a standing position. She stumbled slightly, but then regained her balance, thanks in no small part to Tenchi holding on to her. She hugged on to him and looked into his face. He stood a few inches taller than she did. She still couldn't believe that he'd chosen her out of all the other available girls. She kissed him lightly on the nose. Tenchi grinned broadly. Arm in arm, the pair walked slowly back to the house, taking the scenic route, of course.

Sasami listlessly wandered around the kitchen wondering what to do. Tenchi still hadn't returned to the house and there was no sign of Mihoshi either. Still, when in doubt, make tea. So that's what she was doing. It was getting more and more difficult to pass off Tenchi's absence to the other houseguests. Sasami hated lying, but she had promised that she'd keep quiet for Tenchi. She'd told Ayeka that Tenchi had gone out to work the fields early in the morning. This information had no doubt been leaked to Ryoko by now. As Sasami thought of the cyan haired she felt a stab of fear in the pit of her stomach. It was not unheard of for Ryoko to go out to see Tenchi while he was working. And if that happened... Sasami shook her head, abandoning that particular train of thought. Tenchi hadn't necessarily spent the night with Mihoshi, Sasami pondered. But if he hadn't then where the hell was he?

Sasami took her eyes off the kettle on the stove briefly and glanced out of the window. After performing the classic cartoonesque double take, Sasami refocused on Tenchi and Mihoshi walking up the driveway, arm in arm. If Sasami was completely honest, her initial feeling was fear. What if someone saw them? Sasami looked into the living room. Her sister was upstairs, and she guessed correctly that Ryoko was in the ladies baths. Thank God for that...

Sasami bit her lower lip. She probably shouldn't but...she looked back out of the window again. Tenchi and Mihoshi had stopped walking towards the house, and now appeared to be talking to each other. Tenchi was smiling and Mihoshi seemed to be giggling uncontrollably. Sasami looked on in mounting excitement. Tenchi reached up to Mihoshi's face and brushed a strand of her golden hair aside. Mihoshi performed a small jump of happiness. They slowly moved their faces closer together...

And Sasami looked away. She hadn't been brought up to be a peeping tom. As she did so, a hint of pink flushed into her cheeks. Mihoshi was lucky, no doubt about that. Sasami silently counted ten seconds and then looked back out of the window. The pair had broken apart now, but they were still smiling. Mihoshi was backing slowly away from Tenchi, looking like she didn't want to go. Finally she gave him a little wave and than turned away from him, and walked away from the house. Tenchi watched her go for few seconds, then turned and started towards the house. Then he stopped. He frowned. Slowly, he turned his head and looked straight at Sasami. Sasami let out a small yelp of surprise. Apparently Tenchi's training with Yosho had paid off. Tenchi grinned a wide grin in her direction, and jogged to the front door. Sasami, blushing furiously, stared intently at the almost boiled kettle. Presently, Tenchi entered the kitchen.

"Hi, Sasami!" Tenchi chirped happily. His grin still hadn't faded.

"Tenchi I'm sorry, I couldn't help seeing..." Sasami started to launch into her apology, but Tenchi shook his head and silenced her with a wave of his hand before sinking into one of the kitchen chairs with a contented sigh. Sasami grinned herself. She was so happy for Tenchi! Considering how worried he'd been the day before...

"So..." Sasami asked.

"So?" Tenchi answered feigning innocence. Sasami made a stupid face at him.

"So what happened?"

"Oh that." Tenchi chuckled. "Weeeelll," he stretched, "apparently, and although she hasn't actually said this, I think that from the way she kissed me how we slept side by side, it's safe to assume that she feels the same way."

As Tenchi finished, Sasami and Tenchi erupted into laughter. Tenchi leapt up from the chair, and Sasami ran forward to meet him. The pair jumped up and down for a whole minute in laughter.

"I can't tell you how this feels," Tenchi said, leaning limply against the wall. "It's unbelievable."

"Well, I told you, it was easier than thought it would be."

"Only because she felt the same way as me," Tenchi thought out loud. Sasami shrugged at him.

"At least you did it." Sasami said with a smile.

"Yeah." Tenchi said looking up. "I did, didn't I?"

"Now comes the hard part though." Sasami said, allowing her smile to fade slightly. Tenchi sighed.

"Yeah," He breathed, "now I have to tell Ayeka and Ryoko my decision."

"Just tell them." Sasami urged. "I'm sure they'll understand.

Tenchi lowered his head slightly and stared at Sasami as though he was looking over a pair of imaginary spectacles.

"Well, I think Ayeka will understand." Sasami reasoned. Tenchi nodded. Somehow he didn't feel quite so confident.

"Tenchi shot a glance into the living room. It was still empty.

"I'll wait for the girls in there then." He said. He left Sasami in the kitchen and strode over to the couch. He flopped into it heavily with a sigh. Tenchi was now starting to feel extremely worried, worse than the day before, if that was possible. It was probably because this time he knew whatever response he would get from Ayeka and Ryoko, it wasn't going to be a good one. His stomach was starting to churn. The quiet and still of the room was somehow making the feeling worse. He wanted to get his unhappy task over with; at least then he would be plunged into the comfortable numbness that went with it. He had to do something, he had to relieve the tension. Tenchi turned his head and stared at the radio/karaoke machine in the corner thoughtfully. He rose, and walked over to the machine. It hadn't been used in a while; most of the girls preferred to watch soaps on the TV, and was coated in a thin layer of dust. Tenchi flicked it on, and watched as the red LED's performed a little dance. They'd got the machine for karaoke, but it was actually a complete home entertainment system, a radio, tape deck, CD player and record player. And of course the microphone. Having no tapes or CD's, and not really fancying leaving the room to root through his vinyl collection, Tenchi turned the radio part of the machine on. The speaker hissed static for second, and then a polished radio personality voice that they were currently playing foreign songs for a minority audience. Tenchi shrugged. What the hell. After a pause of about a second, the song began. A soft flowing guitar riff flowed out of the speakers, and then the words began. It was obviously an American song. Tenchi's understanding of English was fairly limited, but he thought he got the gist of what was being said.

"I never thought of this as funny

It speaks another world to me

I want to be your Easter bunny

I want to be your Christmas tree."

Tenchi snorted a laugh at the image that the last two lines conjured up, and then stopped suddenly. It was a love song. How appropriate.

"I'll strip the world that you must live in

Of all its godforsaken greed.

I'll ply the tar out of you feathers,

I'll pluck the thorns out of your feet.

You and me.

You and me."

Tenchi felt himself relax slightly. The music was definitely helping him calm down. Slowly his thoughts drifted back to Mihoshi. The song continued, and to Tenchi it was like it was speaking directly to him.

"And if you choose your sanctuary

I want to wash you with my hair

I want to drink of sacred fountains

And find the riches hidden there.

I'll eat the lotus and the peyote

I want to hear the caged bird sing.

I want the secrets of the temple.

I want the finger with the ring.

You and me.

You and me.

You will see."

Tenchi then heard some light footsteps on the stairs, and in an instant his old fears returned, along with his electric tension. He refocused on the rhythm of the song, and although he didn't really hear the words, the sound soothed his mood slightly. He could do this. He took a deep breath. Go.

Ayeka padded silently into the room, and paused as she saw Tenchi standing rigidly in the middle of the room. She contemplated him for a few seconds before she spoke.

"Are you alright, lord Tenchi?" She asked in her usual refined manner. Tenchi was caught temporarily off guard.

"H-hello, Ayeka." Tenchi stumbled. "I'm fine."

Ayeka cocked her head at him.

"You look tense," Ayeka stated the obvious. "Is there something on your mind?"

Tenchi started to talk but he couldn't really feel the words coming out. He had become engulfed in the warm fuzzy choking that came whenever he was forced to perform an emotionally unpleasant task. Telling Ayeka that he didn't love her was about as unpleasant as it came. Even though Tenchi couldn't hear what he was saying for the blood thundering through his ears, Ayeka heard everything he said perfectly.

"Er, yeah, there is actually." Tenchi blabbered. "Can I talk to you about it?"

Ayeka nodded and her expression remained neutral, but her eyes shone with worry. Tenchi assumed that his expression gave away his exact mood.

Tenchi made for the door, closely followed by Ayeka. Once he'd stepped out of the door his senses were assaulted by the heat of the day. The sun was forcing all the foliage and flowers surrounding the Masaki household, and the air was thick with their sickly sweet scent. Tenchi appreciated it when he was with Mihoshi; now he felt like he was being choked. Ayeka stepped out into the warmth behind him and looked around curiously. Tenchi began to walk towards the lake and Ayeka followed in turn. When he reached the waters edge he stared solemnly over the water, searching for inspiration on what to say to Ayeka. None came. Ayeka stood beside him and followed his gaze across the water. Tenchi sighed heavily.

"I can't go on like this." He said softly, so softly it was like he hadn't meant to say it.

"Like what?" Ayeka said equally softly. Her eyes swam with fear; she knew Tenchi so well that she could guess at what was coming. Tenchi smiled sadly and glanced down at Ayeka.

"How long have you been here with us?" Tenchi asked. "About a year?"

"Yes," Ayeka whispered. Tenchi gave the slightest nod.

"Ever since then I've felt trapped between you and Ryoko. It has too stop. I can't take it anymore."

A tear ran down Ayeka's cheek, but she didn't blink. Seeing her like this was tearing Tenchi up inside, he could feel tears welling up in the back of his own eyes, but he forced himself to continue. He owed Ayeka that much at least.

"I love you both," He said, his voice laden with emotion, "and the last thing I want is for either of you to be hurt. But I've reached an important decision..."

His voice trailed off, just as Ayeka broke down into tears. Tenchi's eyes stung as he felt himself begin to break down himself.

"I'm sorry..." He managed before the tears had rolled down his cheeks. He stood a couple of feet away from Ayeka and he could see that she was devastated. She had her face buried in her hands. As Tenchi saw her like this, his own crying intensified as the first string of sobs racked his body. He longed to touch Ayeka, to hug her, to comfort her, but he wasn't sure she wanted to even look at him at the moment. Then she lowered her hands from her face. Her cheeks were streaked with tears. Then she made to move closer to Tenchi. This surprised Tenchi, but her embraced her all the same.

"I've suspected as much for a while," Ayeka wept into Tenchi's shoulder. Tenchi leant his head against Ayeka's and wept freely.

"I'm sorry," Tenchi whispered. He felt like he could die of sadness.

"Not your fault," Ayeka choked out.

Ayeka was devastated. But she couldn't blame Tenchi. How could she? Ever since she had arrived at the Masaki household there hadn't been a day that went by when Tenchi hadn't treated her like, well, a princess. If truth were told she'd suspected this for some time. If Tenchi had actually wanted to get closer together he would have. She loved him. But it was not to be. Ayeka would later say that she was glad that Tenchi told her when he did, but at that moment she felt agonised. She couldn't speak for a few moments.

She paused for a few seconds. Then slowly, she raised her head from Tenchi's chest and looked into his face. His cheeks were flushed and his eyes were puffy and swollen from the tears. She hugged him close once again. Slowly, she leaned her weight into him and steered him back towards the house.

"It's okay," Ayeka managed to whisper. Tenchi fought with his body not to let out a sob, and only just succeeded. He chewed his top lip until the moment passed. The tears had stopped streaming from his face by now; leaving only damp red patches just beneath his eyes. They were nearing the house once more but neither of the pair really felt like entering and having to communicate with any of the other Masaki residents. Their decision was both unanimous and unspoken; they looked into each other's faces for a brief moment, before moving as one to wards the porch. They sat down beside each other. Tenchi stared sadly at the dusty floor. He felt like he could burst into tears again at any moment. Ayeka stared at the scenery around them. It was still releasing its strong scents, increased in thickness by the heat of the sun.

"I'm sorry," Tenchi muttered, still slightly out of breath from his tears. "I should have given you a definite answer from the start."

"No," Ayeka whispered, "It was wrong of Ryoko and I to have put so much pressure on you like we did."

Tenchi nodded, but didn't really share Ayeka's opinion. He supposed it was all a matter of personality. Had he been bolder he probably would have told Mihoshi his feelings long ago.

"Have you told Ryoko you love her yet?" Ayeka asked sadly. A single tear rolled down her cheek. This was the part that Tenchi had been dreading.

"It's not Ryoko," Tenchi said with a cough. "It's Mihoshi."

Kiyone stood up from the bed and held her hand to her mouth, silently counting the items she'd packed. She stretched slightly and absently flicked some of her teal coloured hair over her shoulder. She'd dressed simply for the trip: she had on a mini skirt under which she wore her bathing suit (it saved time) and on top of that she wore her denim jacket. And of course then there were her ordinary boring trainers. Strangely enough they seemed to go with the whole ensemble. The thought she had everything. Towel, bathing costume, soap, shampoo... alcohol. She'd forgotten the booze. Ryoko normally covered that front more than adequately, but it was only polite to turn up with a bottle of something. Quickly she ran downstairs, and located a bottle of sake. She smiled. Perfect. Running back upstairs, she tossed the bottle in with the rest of her stuff, swung the bag over her shoulder and was just about to leave the house when Mihoshi came through the front door.

She was wearing the same clothes she'd been wearing yesterday only they were more crumpled. What was she up to?

Kiyone stared at her partner. She glanced at her watch.

"Where've you been?" Kiyone asked, sounding a little like a mother. Mihoshi winced inwardly. She had a sudden flashback to her teenage years.

"Oh, I ended up staying at Tenchi's." Mihoshi said casually.

"I gathered that," Kiyone stated. "How come?"

"Tenchi and I went on a long walk," Mihoshi sighed, her eyes glazing over. Suddenly she snapped back. "By the time we got back it was dark."

Kiyone stared at the blonde with narrowed eyes. Something was definitely going on. She wondered... Surely not...

"And?" She asked, probing the subject. Mihoshi began to touch the tips of her fingers together and stare at the floor. Once again, a tint of red flushed into her ebony cheeks.

"Tenchi and I..." Mihoshi began. "Tenchi and I..."

The penny dropped.

"Oh God," Kiyone breathed.

"I didn't mean for this to happen!" Mihoshi cried, flinging her arms around her partner. "I've been infatuated with Tenchi since I met him and yesterday he told me he loved me!"

"Wow," Kiyone said, looking into space and resisting Mihoshi's bear hug. Finally she managed to break free. She sat down on a nearby chair and sat down. She couldn't believe this. Tenchi finally making his decision was enough, but MIHOSHI? It beggared belief.

"Are you okay?" Mihoshi asked, looking slightly worried.

"I'm fine," Kiyone answered, smiling at Mihoshi. She was genuinely happy for her. "It's just that..." Kiyone thought, wondering how best to word this. "...Ayeka and Ryoko..."

"I know," Mihoshi said, her voice beginning to break. "Tenchi said he'd tell them today but..."

The emotion became too much for Mihoshi and she broke into tears. Kiyone quickly rose and took Mihoshi in her arms. Mihoshi cried openly into her shoulder.

"Hey...Hey...Don't worry. I'm sure Tenchi will be able to sort everything out," Kiyone said soothingly, lying to herself.

"You think so?" Mihoshi said from the depths of Kiyone's shoulder.

"Yeah, I mean it's not like Tenchi has ever shown an interest in either Ayeka or Ryoko." Kiyone continued, correctly suspecting that this was entirely irrelevant. Kiyone decided it was time to change the subject before she followed it to its logical conclusion.

"Washu suggested a trip to the springs today," Kiyone said, trying to sound as comforting as possible. "I was just about head over there now, but if you want me to stay..."

"No, no, you go," Mihoshi said, raising her head from her partners shoulder. She had managed to stop crying but as per usual her tears had devastated her ordinarily beautiful face. "I'd come myself, but...I think it would be best if I made myself scarce for a little while."

Kiyone nodded. Mihoshi looked like she might begin crying again at any moment. Kiyone sighed. She supposed she'd better stay.

"I'll be fine." Mihoshi said, managing a small smile. "I'll just wait here until I can see Tenchi again."

Kiyone nodded, satisfied.

"Well," She said, glancing at Mihoshi, "you know where I'll be."

Ayeka and Tenchi walked slowly towards the house, in each other's arms but neither saying anything to the other. Emotionally, they were both exhausted. Tenchi tenderly opened the front door, and guided Ayeka in as much as she walked herself. It was only here, that they broke apart.

"I'll be..." Ayeka started. She turned back to Tenchi. She didn't need to say anything else. Tenchi watched her go, wide eyed. She climbed the stairs and disappeared from sight. As soon as she had left, Tenchi doubled up. He felt like his insides had been ripped out. He made his way to the couch slowly, and promptly collapsed onto in the foetal position. He felt awful, yet somehow freer. He stayed perfectly still, made his breathing as shallow as possible (a calming technique that he'd learnt from his grandfather) and let life wash over him. He hadn't seen Sasami in the kitchen when he'd arrived, but he supposed that she'd gone upstairs. That was probably a good thing He felt so drained, but in the pit of his stomach he could feel that he'd done the right thing. He had. He'd finally wrenched his life back into his own control. Sort of. He suddenly remembered that he still had to tell Ryoko the same thing. He felt an icicle stab of fear in the pit of his stomach. This was going to be murder...

"Tenchi!" A happy carefree voice rang out.

'Oh please. Not now...'

Tenchi heard the familiar shimmer sound that signalled that Ryoko had teleported in somewhere behind him. It wasn't long before he felt her breath on his face.

"Hello!" she said. She was leaning over the back of the couch, right over Tenchi so that her face was only inches from his own.

"We need to talk." was all Tenchi replied with. He was in a dark mood, and had no desire to sugar coat what he was about to say to Ryoko.

"Can we talk outside?" He asked, trying to keep his expression neutral. Ryoko had lost all of her previous cheery demeanour, and silently followed Tenchi out of the house.

Shortly after the pair had left Kiyone bounded up to the house, looking pretty much the same as she had when she had left her and Mihoshi's flat. He looked around for a moment, and finding no one in either the living room or the kitchen, proceeded to the door under the stairs. She supposed absently that Tenchi was attending to his unpleasant task, and that was probably why there was no one around. She sighed inwardly. Things were going to be a lot more awkward around here now...

Snapping herself from her thoughts, Kiyone rapped lightly on the oak door. She waited a full three seconds before she realised that the chances of Washu hearing her knock were remote, at best. Smiling at her own stupidity, she grasped the doorknob and entered the doorway into sub-space. When she entered the mind boggling-but-over-time-business-as-usual plain she saw Washu directly in front of her facing away, typing furiously into her holo-top. Kiyone grinned broadly. She couldn't help it; it was just so amusing that one so small could create something so large. Washu threw her a backward glance as she entered the room.

"Ready?" Kiyone called happily.

"Nearly..." Washu replied in a monotone. Kiyone waited impatiently for a couple of heartbeats.

"C'mon, Washu!" Kiyone shouted across the room "Hot springs await!"

"Okay okay," Washu said hurriedly, flicking off her laptop. "Is everyone else ready?"

"I don't know," Kiyone replied, slightly sheepishly. She supposed she should have checked that before pulling Washu from her work.

"Well, we can easily check," Washu said, hopping from her floating cushion chair. She ran the twenty or so metres between herself and Kiyone and pushed open the door to the usual plain of reality, closely followed by Kiyone. As soon as she was out she called up the stairs with her usual gleeful tone.

"Who's ready for a dip in the springs?" She cried.

There was no answer for a while. Kiyone turned from the stairway and glanced casually out of the window. The once perfect blue skies had become a resounding headache grey. Squinting, Kiyone fancied she could just see a tint of black on the horizon. Behind her, Washu called impatiently up the stairs again.

"Hey, c'mon, is there anyone up there?"

Kiyone pulled her aside and indicated to the skies.

"I don't like the look of that." She confided darkly. "D'you think that we'll still be okay to go to the springs?"

Washu squinted in the direction that Kiyone was indicating.

"Yeah..." She said slowly. "Yeah, we'll be fine. That storm's miles away and even if it does move to us I can easily set up a rain shield and a lightning deflector."

Kiyone nodded her reassurance, trying not to look as baffled as she felt. She turned back to look at the sky as Washu turned back to look at the sky. It was strange, she'd always considered herself a level headed person, not one to see things that weren't there, but she couldn't seem to shake the feeling that the storm held some significant deeper meaning. Shaking her head slightly to clear her thoughts, she went back to looking up the stairs. There was movement up there now.

"Okay...okay we're nearly ready." Sasami's voice called down. A few moments passed and then Sasami appeared at the top of the stairs. She smiled, but she looked a little bit drained, tired. She looked back to someone on the landing. Then Ayeka stepped into view. She smiled weakly in their direction. She had obviously just been freshening up because her face looked unblemished, as it always did. Kiyone couldn't help but notice that although Ayeka looked flawless there was a kind of distant sadness to her eyes that hadn't been there before. Before she could say anything, Washu piped up.

"C'mon, you ready?"

Washu either hadn't noticed Ayeka's melancholy expression or was electing not to pass comment on it. Kiyone decided that she wouldn't either.

"I've got our stuff right here." Sasami said cheerfully. Ayeka nodded in agreement.

"Is there anyone else up there?" Washu asked.

"No," Sasami replied.

"Mihoshi's back at the apartment," Kiyone interjected.

"And I don't know where Tenchi and Ryoko are." Sasami said truthfully. Washu shrugged.

"Ah well, I'll leave them a note." She said. She pulled a pen and some paper from a tear in reality, and scrawled a note on the kitchen table.

"That should do it." She said, dusting her hands together.

"How are we getting down there?" Kiyone asked, thinking practically. Washu held aloft a set of car-keys.

"I asked Nobuyuki," She announced proudly. "He's working, you see."

"I'll drive," Kiyone said, snatching at the keys.

"But..." Washu started.

"Have you got a license?" She asked. This question was met with stony silence. "Well shut up then." Kiyone concluded. This was met with bout of giggles from Sasami and a dry smile from Ayeka.

"Spoilsport." Washu commented.

Tenchi stepped gingerly over a fallen log as he and Ryoko continued their journey towards the edge of the woods, just as he and Ayeka had done before that, just as he and Mihoshi had done before that. All the warmth of that morning had gone, leaving only a crisp chill. The clouds looked like they were getting greyer, reflecting Tenchi's mood perfectly. A wind whipped up around him and Ryoko, but he ignored it as best he could. He looked into Ryoko's face. He never really had before. Not this intensely, anyway. She looked scared, a little like a lost child. Tenchi tried not to focus on the fact that he was about to completely destroy her. A rim of wetness appeared around his eyes. The really sad thing was that he wasn't sure whether it was his emotions or the cold air.

"I need to tell you something," He said softly.

"What is it?" She replied quickly. Concern. Tenchi exhaled.

"Listen Ryoko, I like you a lot..." He began, as Ryoko's face fell, she didn't know what expression to have. "But I can't let this go on. I'm sorry, I love you, but not in the romantic way that you want us to be."

Ryoko didn't move. She practically swayed on the spot from the news. Finally she opened her mouth to speak, but not sound came out, like her entire oesophagus had completely dried up. Tenchi was the first to break the silence.

"I've found someone." Tenchi said, without emotion. It was brutal, but damn it there was no easy way to say what he had to. He was completely numb both inside and out. His brain was on autopilot. Tenchi was somewhere else, watching what was being said. Ryoko slumped to her knees in front of him. She swallowed, hard. She didn't cry, she was at some emotional state beyond tears, like the very life had been sucked out of her.

"Oh God," She said in a horse whisper. Her whole face hurt, like it was on fire.

"I'm sorry," Tenchi hazarded, crouching beside the devastated Ryoko. Ryoko painfully, doggedly lifted her gaze to meet his. "Is it Ayeka?"

In a flash of inspired discretion Tenchi decided that it was probably best not to lay the fact that the object of his affections was Mihoshi on Ryoko at that point in time.

"It doesn't matter. The point is that I don't want to see you hurt..."

"Is it Ayeka?" Ryoko repeated with increased urgency. A monsoon of sweat gathered for a meeting on Tenchi's forehead. Where was she going with this?

After a short, but intense pause, Tenchi admitted defeat. He sighed.

"No, it's not. It's Mihoshi."

Ryoko nodded, digesting this information. Tenchi felt awful, somehow worse than when he'd told Ayeka. There was a bitter, accusing silence. He tried desperately to think of something comforting to say, but nothing came. Then suddenly, Ryoko spoke.

"Why?"

"Why?" Tenchi repeated.

"Why didn't you tell me you weren't interested from the start?" Ryoko cried, her voice becoming a rough shout. "You had to tell me like this?!"

"I...I'm sorry Ryoko," Tenchi mumbled, the sweet sting of tears starting to penetrate his eyes.

"You're Sorry?!" Ryoko screamed, tears running down her face. "Ever since I met you I tried to be liked by you, you barely even noticed me!"

"Ryoko, I..."

"I gave you all my attention and you hardly spoke to me! Now you've chosen Mihoshi, the least intelligent officer to come out of the GP over me?! SCREW YOU!"

Anger flushed into Tenchi's nervous system. He was on the verge of losing control.

"I never asked for your attention!" He shouted. "And I don't want it! Y'know why I didn't pay any attention to you? Because I DON'T LOVE YOU!"

Ryoko very nearly staggered backwards from Tenchi's last comment. She stared at him for a few moments in wide-eyed hysteria. Fresh tears ran down her cheeks. Suddenly she lunged towards Tenchi, covering the five-meter gap between them in a single bound. She grabbed Tenchi by the shoulder with one hand and drove her other fist into his solar plexus. The force of the blow lifted Tenchi clean off his feet, and as the air was forced out of him he hit the forest floor with a sickening crack. Fingers of black began to creep up his vision, and within seconds he gave up to unconsciousnesses warm embrace.

"Well," Ryoko said to him, very nearly choking on her own words, "If I can't have you, no-one can."

She lifted a few feet into the air, a white flame appeared around her and she powered back in the direction of the house.

Mihoshi poked up the drive to the Masaki house, hesitantly. There was a bitter chill in the air that made her pull her yellow shirt around herself all the more tightly. The grey-black storm clouds overhead stained the earth a hue somewhere between grey and pale blue. Mihoshi's ordinarily happy cheerful face reflected the weather. She knew she said to Kiyone that she would stay at the apartment, but somehow she just had to see Tenchi again. Besides, she'd reasoned with herself, it shouldn't matter anyway, because Kiyone had said that everyone would be going to the Hot Springs today. Of course, there was a chance that Tenchi had gone too, but somehow she doubted it. She was nearly at the door now and it didn't look like there was anyone inside, it was dark and grey like its surroundings. Then something made her turn. It was a kind of noise, sort of like a high pitched squeal. It sounded a little bit like the sound Ryoko made when she...Oh no. Even as Mihoshi watched, a black figure against the dull horizon rose from the tree line. The figure was engulfed in a white flame. It could only be Ryoko. In the blink of an eye Ryoko had halved the distance between them. Mihoshi could now see the red of her demon eyes and the yellow orb that she held poised in her hand ready to throw. Every instinct in her body urged Mihoshi to run. She turned and lunged forward into a run. A split second later she heard the sound of a thunder bolt behind her.

Tenchi's eyes flitted open. Sky. Then a bolt of pain lassoed around his midriff. He gasped in a lung full of air at the pain. Bad idea. There was an explosion of pain in Tenchi's chest. It felt like one or two of his lower ribs had been snapped. Somehow, he doggedly managed to roll onto all fours, and from there onto his knees. The screaming in his chest was unbearable, he would have been screaming if he could speak. Tears of agony rolled down his cheeks. He leaned forward and spat a long steady stream of blood onto the forest floor. After the bleeding had subsided to a trickle, Tenchi noticed for the first time that Ryoko was gone. The taste of fear seeped into Tenchi's mouth, mixed with the blood and produced a cold metal taste. He didn't know where she was, but he had a pretty good idea who she was going to go and find. He had to get back to the house. Maybe he could call for help there, Mihoshi should be at her apartment still. Tenchi staggered to his feet and stumbled painfully back towards the house.

A wave of heat and kinetic force propelled Mihoshi forward ten meters. She landed on the ground painfully.

Ryoko hovered for a moment. She thought she'd find the little bitch here. She smiled a smile devoid of any kind of emotion. She was too worked up to care anymore. Then Mihoshi started moving on the ground. It looked like she was going to have to finish her off. She lowered herself to the ground.

Mihoshi picked herself off the floor and bolted towards the house. She didn't even bother to look back, she knew that Ryoko was trying to kill her. Her injuries didn't seem too bad, mainly cuts and bruises to her arms and legs. Her eyes stung as well, but that was because she wanted peace with Ryoko. She reached the house and flung herself inside. She slammed the door behind her and allowed herself a second to think what to do. She needed a weapon, something to defend herself with...she looked around the room. Then she suddenly remembered; her blaster! She kept a spare in Washu's lab! She wiped the tears from her eyes so she could see clearly and pushed off towards the door under the stairs, pumping her arms up and down for extra speed, just as the door behind her exploded into splinters. She reached the lab door and slipped in as quickly as she could. She was temporarily blinded by the darkness of the lab. She tried to remember where she'd left the gun. Then it came to her. She moved over to a dark corner of the pseudo-space room and retrieved the vaguely oval shaped blaster from a metal shelf. Then the door burst open and the silhouette of Ryoko stood in the doorway, looking like a cheap cardboard cut out you'd expect to find on a ghost train with her glowing red eyes. Mihoshi trained her shaky blaster at Ryoko.

"Stop!" She cried, her voice sounding small and tinny in the cavernous lab. Ryoko's eye's narrowed as she stepped slowly into the room.

Tenchi half stepped half fell out of the forest near the edge of the lake. The pain in his chest had receded to a dull throb now, punctuated by the odd sharp shooting pain through his ribs. He could see the drive to the house from where he was standing, and was more than a little disturbed to see a five-foot wide crater in it. Worse still, it looked like the door to the house was hanging on its hinges, the wood splintered and broken. He had to get to the house fast.

"I mean it Ryoko!" Mihoshi wept. "I WILL shoot you!"

"C'mon then," Ryoko rasped. Without warning, she lunged forward whilst simultaneously bringing her beam sword into existence. Mihoshi leapt to one side as Ryoko swept upward with her sword at the point where Mihoshi had stood a second before, gouging up the polished floor. From the ground, Mihoshi managed to squeeze off a shot, but the trajectory was hopelessly wide.

"Nice try," Ryoko dry whispered as she began to advance on the blonde GP. Mihoshi trained her gun at Ryoko, yet still backed off from the stalking Ryoko.

"I'm sorry," Mihoshi cried.

"Shut up!" Ryoko snapped. She brought up an energy ball in her spare hand. Then she made her move. She hit a run, and as she did so she hurled the ball at Mihoshi. It hit her thigh dead centre. Mihoshi screamed in agony, and in a rare display of rage, fired her blaster directly at the space pirate. Ryoko was fast, but not quite fast enough. She tried to teleport aside of the white hat blast, but she slightly misjudged the distance and the shot grazed her arm. She grimaced at the pain, but let it drive her fury than slow her down. She swiped upward but Mihoshi deftly sidestepped and Ryoko slashed only wall. Without changing her direction of movement she moved with Mihoshi and just managed to get the base of her sword under Mihoshi's throat. At the same time Mihoshi managed to hook her firearm under Ryoko's beam sword so that it was pointed directly at Ryoko's gut. Stale mate. The tears were flowed freely from Mihoshi's eyes now; it looked as though she was on the brink of hysterics.

"I...Don't...want...to...hurt you..." She managed to choke out. Ryoko just looked at her, her eyes narrowing still further, but that was the only movement she made. Her stance remained perfectly still, poised and ready to strike. Then Ryoko heard a noise behind her, from the entrance to the lab that she couldn't remember closing. She risked a glance over her shoulder. Tenchi stood framed in the doorway, hunched over slightly and looking like he was in immense pain.

"Ryoko..." He rasped, pausing to catch his breath. "Don't..."

Ryoko's eyes stung like she had held her face over a fire. Slowly she turned back to look at Mihoshi, at her pretty tear streaked face. He must really love her. Slowly, painstakingly, Ryoko retracted from her death pose with Mihoshi. She opened her palm and her beam sword flickered and died. Mihoshi was still in shock, and was still leaning on the wall at an awkward angle with her blaster trained on Ryoko. The space pirate staggered backwards a few paces so that she was standing in the middle of the room, as the wave of emotions hit her. She was gutted, she was angry and there was nothing she could do. Then, a moment of clarity. She still had one option left. One final trump card to lie on the table. Her eyes wide, to wide to be rational or sane, focussed on the blonde who was still pointing a gun at her.

"Go on then!" She cried in a broken voice, one that was too high pitched to be her own. "Shoot! Go on, do it!"

"Ryoko, we can talk about this!" Tenchi shouted as urgently as his ravaged chest would allow.

"Go on," Ryoko urged. "Do it."

"Ryoko...Don't do this..." Tenchi gasped

"Shut up." Ryoko whispered. "Mihoshi, shoot."

"No!" Mihoshi sobbed. "I can't...I won't do it."

She painfully lowered the gun to her side. Ryoko lowered her head in a tied sigh.

"Fine." She commented emotionlessly as she once again conjured her beam sword into existence. "Fine."

She lunged forward, emitting a scream that was on loan from Hades. Tenchi watched, powerless to do anything, as Ryoko brought the sword high above her head in a wide arc, reaching Mihoshi just as she began to swing down...

There was a small muffled explosion, and Ryoko's sword died out instantly. A faint wisp of smoke rose from the barrel of Mihoshi's outstretched blaster. Tenchi looked on in terrible disbelief. The shot had hit Ryoko dead centre and from this range had probably obliterated her heart. She staggered and touched the wound with her fingertips, which came away bloody. She shot a brief, distant smile at Tenchi, before she hit the floor, her back arching as she drew her final breath. Then she was still.

The whole ordeal had only taken a few seconds, but if you had asked Tenchi later, he would have told you that it was a few minutes. He didn't know who to run to first. As it happened he reached Mihoshi first, who had slumped down the wall and was sitting on the floor, her teary glassy eyes staring at Ryoko. Tenchi spent a few second making sure that at least physically she was okay, before he lurched to Ryoko. He checked for a pulse just as Washu had shown him how to, but found none. She was dead. Tenchi let out a sob. Devastated, he crawled back to Mihoshi. He needed her now, and she him. He didn't know what else to do.

It took Tenchi a long time to recover from what happened. Longer than the rest of the family, longer even than Mihoshi. Ryoko's burial was at the lakeside, near the cave. Tenchi thought she might have liked it there. Not that he was ever a good judge of what she liked. They hadn't been blamed by anyone for what happened, but Tenchi shouldered most of the guilt himself. This probably had something to do with the feeling that he felt when Ryoko died. It was a very selfish feeling, and one that he hated himself for feeling, but it was a feeling that couldn't be denied. The feeling was this: When Ryoko hit the floor, he felt relieved. Relief that the one who was dying on the floor in a puddle of her own blood wasn't the one he loved.

THE END

AUTHORS NOTES:

Ohhh, I'm gonna get flamed for this one.