Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. Well, maybe the charaters I just made up, but most of the Tenchi regulars are not mine. Do I look like have lots of cash from Tenchi mangas and OAV sales? Nope. I'm poor. Poor me...
Chapter 1
Ayeka
When I first fell in love with Tenchi, I didn't think I'd be on Earth that long. I suppose I was being pretty arrogant, but I never doubted in the end, Tenchi would realize that Ryoko had nothing to offer but a good body and easy sex. I had a kingdom, riches, power to inherit, a great body, at least in my not so humble opinion, and if I were unwilling to share my bed now, certainly nothing was stopping us from going at it like weasels once we were married. I never would have admitted it then, but I was almost looking forward to rubbing it in Ryoko's face. My success, not my... nevermind. Tenchi couldn't possibly choose Ryoko.
Ryoko thought the same thing, of course, and neither of us were extremely patient people. We would threaten, plead, bribe, and trick both Tenchi and each other, but we never got anything firm from Tenchi. Several times we even told him we would leave him forever, threaten to find someone else. We would leave for a while, disappearing to someplace out of the way until we were convinced he would be so broken up without us that he would confess his eternal love to us the moment we returned. He would always welcome us back with a knowing smile, but never an agreement. Tenchi was far more patient then either of us.
Eventually, we just gave up, setting into a dull routine, awaiting his decision, and trying to bribe him whenever possible to make him happy, so he would remember us fondly when he choose.
And then Tenchi did choose.
I was working at the shrine one day. Ever since I arrived at Tenchi's house, I had done things to help out around the house. I ate their food, destroyed their house occasionally with Ryoko, so it only seemed appropriate that I should do some work. I swept the shrine, did the washing, just little things like that. Little things they may have been, but Ryoko didn't do most of them. She just sat around, drinking herself stupid. Not that I'm bitter or anything. I just want to establish why I didn't see it coming.
As I was saying, at the time I was sweeping the shrine, probably thinking about Tenchi. Tenchi this, Tenchi that. When who should appear coming up the shrine, but Tenchi Masaki. I stopped sweeping then, clutching the broom to my chest. I probably stopped breathing for a few seconds too, thinking about how much I LOVED Tenchi.
" Oh Tenchi!" I said, besotted with love as I was. He smiled at me, a smile that made my heart skip, although at the time the smile seemed to me to have a shadow in it. I know why now, of course.
" Ayeka." He said, in the shy quiet way he had. He smiled back, and walked over to me. He looked at me, eyes down cast. Looking back, Tenchi had some real confidence issues. " May I talk to you? Inside?" He asked. Yosho was away that time, so we could go inside the shrine office and talk there. Looking back, Tenchi had probably planned that.
" Of course Lord Tenchi." I replied. Tenchi took my hand, and led me towards the shrine. I should have seen it coming, with Tenchi acting so strangely, becoming so physical like that. He took me inside, and sat me down. He sat down cross-legged, and he looked at me, his eyes showing a depth of hurt I'd never seen. "What can I help you with?"
" Ayeka." Was all he said for a few moments. Right about that time I realized something... different was going on. He squirmed uncomfortably. " I... can still remember when we first met. Sasami wanted me to steal that hair ornament of yours. You woke up about halfway through, and ordered Azaka and Kamidake to kill me." He chuckled a bit, and I smiled politely, not quite sure where this was going. " That seems like a such a long time ago. A lot has changed since then."
" I wouldn't say that much has changed." I said plainly. Too be truthful not much had. Sasami still did the housework. Mihoshi still crashed into the lake nearly every day. Washu still invented ludicrous contraptions and Ryoko still worked hard to piss me off everyday. But still I felt nervous, and I started wringing my hands.
" I guess a lot hasn't too." Tenchi admitted. Then he looked at me, and stared deep into my eyes. " Ayeka, I wanted to talk to you about... I came to a conclusion recently. I've known you since my life got weird, and we had some fun times. But I've been doing some thinking recently, about my feelings. I wanted to tell you that I've decided... my heart is made up." There, right there I saw it coming. Like falling from a cliff, seeing the ground rush up to meet you, or watching a bomb tick down to zero.
" And... it's not you. I love Ryoko. I want to spend the rest of my life with her." He said it as if he were confessing some great sin.
" Oh." Was all I said, as my heart froze inside my chest. It was all I could say, my throat had closed up, and I fought back tears. I wouldn't let him win. I couldn't have told you then how crying would have let him win, or win what, but that's what I thought at the time. A part of me wanted to scream out "WHY? WHY? Why that woman!" in his ear, to make sure he heard, but the quiet princess was too much ingrained within me. He reached out and took my hand, cupping it in his, gently stroking it. I think he was holding back tears of his own.
" That doesn't mean I feel any different about you. You're still welcome here for as long as you like, and you're still a good friend." He gave my hand a gentle squeeze. " I'm sorry." He looked at me, I looked at him. I tried to talk but I couldn't say anything. My throat was swollen, but even if I could have spoken then, I wouldn't have known what to say. I still can't think of anything. This was not a moment of my life I like reflecting on now.
He saw it in me, and he gave me a gentle smile, stood up, and walked out. He knew what was coming, and knew I didn't want him to see my crying. After he left, I sat there for a few long moments, still in shock. This was the second time I'd been someone I loved had abandoned me. The first had been finding out Tenchi's grandfather was my lost love Yosho, had been near me for months, and I knew didn't want me anymore. I would cried then too, but we had to go rescue Ryoko. Before long my sleeves were soaking wet.
I don't know how long I was there, but sometime during my fit Yosho arrived. He spoke to me in the way only he could, but to this day I still don't remember what he said to me. A little later Sasami arrived too, but I remember telling Yosho to keep her outside. I couldn't let her to see me like that. He left me alone, after that.
I would have stayed there the whole evening, if not for Sasami. Sometime during the night, I finally pulled myself together. Sasami was still waiting for me outside, lying down peacefully by the door. She ignored my puffy cheeks, and only smiled at me. She took me back to our room, and I made my way back with her help. Thankfully by then it was dark, and everyone had gone to bed.
To be honest it, hurt more then I had ever thought possible. That's not to say I never considered what would happen if Tenchi choose Ryoko. I had, although I never dwelled much on it, but even if I had I don't think I would have guessed why it would have hurt so much. You see, I knew Tenchi well. I had to, I had spent a great deal of time with him. There are two things about Tenchi, that I had known perfectly well then, but had never thought about what they might mean.
First, Tenchi does not like hurting people. Especially if he is close to that person. He worries constantly about the feelings of others, and will do anything to make people feel better.
Second, Tenchi is a coward, at least on the surface. Threaten someone he cares about, and he will go to the ends of the universe, take on a thousand armies, to help them. But if no ones in trouble, Tenchi can be counted to fall to pieces with the slightest pressure every single time or bow to the slightest whim.
Both of these things pointed to one inarguable, inevitable conclusion.
Tenchi had decided long ago. Days, weeks, maybe even months before, he knew
he loved Ryoko, but he couldn't tell me. He had spent the time since thinking of what to tell me to make me feel better, to make it go easier, and to gather the courage needed to tell me at all. And all that time I had poured my heart out to him, whispered sweet words to him, giving him little gifts, treating him as a prince (which he might have been. Technically.) and all I had been doing was making an idiot out of myself.
I wondered how long Ryoko had known.
I didn't sleep that night, and neither did Sasami. She stayed up all night with me. I didn't say anything, I couldn't. My voice seemed to have been frozen in my throat. But Sasami laid with me the entire night, whispering to me that things would get better. Poor Sasami. Nothing hurt her more then when I hurt. This same thing had happened when Yosho had left, chasing after Ryoko. Of course, Ryoko again. I had fallen into a depression, and Sasami had nearly broken herself trying to make me feel better.
I didn't leave that room for three days. Sasami made sure I was well fed, though I didn't eat that much. All I could do was sit there, staring out the window, and pout. Outside, by now, everyone had heard, gossip would have spread, and no doubt everyone felt so much pity for me. Sasami told me what was going on outside, she said they were all worried about me. The last thing I wanted, as both a princess and rejected lover, was pity. I probably would have stayed in that room for months if it had been up to me.
In the end, it was Yosho who came to my rescue, again. I needed time away from everyone, he knew that. He sent a message to Jurai, explaining what had happened to our mothers. Within a day a Jurain vessel arrived to take me home. I couldn't say I was sorry either. Everything I saw reminded me of Tenchi, and every time I was reminded of Tenchi I couldn't help but be stabbed with the pieces of my broken heart.
The day I was was leaving, I packed my things with the help of Sasami. It felt strange, packing up all those memories, the dress I had worn when I did this with Tenchi, a gift Tenchi had given me, a photo of all of us together at Christmas. I put them away, some I wasn't certain why I was taking. It hurt so much to look at them, but I just couldn't part with them. I had the space though, since most of my baggage had survived my unplanned re-entry in Ryu-oh, when I first met Tenchi, though a good deal of my clothing had not survived an extended soak in the lake.
As Sasami closed the seal on the last bag, she quietly asked what I knew she had been thinking about for days.
" Do you want me to go with you?" She said. I had known it was coming.
Sasami was my sister, she would do anything for me, including leaving Earth, and all her friends behind to be there for me if I needed her. And I did want her too. I had lost Tenchi, I could barely stand to let my sister stay with the man who had crushed my heart, especially when I truly needed her.
But she didn't want to go. She had made friends here, found a place for herself. She had loved me so much, once, she had dropped everything to come with me looking for Yosho. I couldn't make her leave everything she cared about.
" No Sasami." I said, pretending to look over a bag so she wouldn't see moisture in my eye. " I'll be fine." I said, with a weak smile. After a moment, she hugged me tenderly, and I kissed her on the forehead. " I'll be fine." Moments of sisterly love like that had been too few and far between, here on Earth. I regretted that so much now, especially now that all the time I had spent trying to make Tenchi love me had been wasted. She ran off downstairs, with the bag, to put it with the rest. The packing finished, I sat down, to take one last look at the room I had spent so long in.
" I will miss you, Princess. But I guess you gotta do..." Ryoko said, not insincerely. I had heard her teleport in behind me, but I pretended not to notice her. I had expected her visit, but I had no idea what I would say to her. I had no idea what she was going to say to me. She might have gloated, might have been apologetic. Ryoko was still a mystery to me, after all the time we'd known each other. " Believe it or not, I always considered a friend. Even if we never got a long like friends should." She was behind me but I didn't turn to look at her. She sounded sincere enough though.
" I always saw you as a rival." I said to her. I don't think I kept the bitterness entirely out of voice, although I tried. I didn't want to sound like a poor loser. I glanced at her, not looking at her too long to keep her from seeing my tears. She was sitting cross-legged in front of the door, in her simple blue dress. Her hands were clasped in front of her, and she looked at me unusually seriously. " I hope... I hope you have a happy life. With Tenchi." I choked out. " I'll certainly try. I have a lot to live up too." She shrugged. " Got to make him glad he choose me over a princess." She stood up, walked over to me and to my surprise, patted me on the back.
" Get better soon. And send us a postcard, we might just drop by to visit." Then whispered to me " You might be missing a few towels after we leave though." I almost laughed, and that seemed to be what she wanted. She smiled at me, and then teleported away. I would never have said it to her face, but I might have missed her too. She certainly kept things interesting, at least. Just then the door opened, and Sasami came back in.
" It's all ready." Her voice quivered, and her eyes began to water. I hated to leave her then, but I knew she was in good company. One thing I could say for Tenchi, is that no harm would come to Sasami while she was here. I had no one at home, save Misaki and Funaho. And Misaki was going to be little help.
I stood up, not letting my body, weakened by inactivity and malnutrition, show
it's strain. Sasami would worry. I gently hugged her again, not wanting to let her go.
We walked downstairs, I wouldn't let Sasami help me with my bags. I got to say my good byes to Washu, Noboyuki, and Mihoshi, who were waiting for me in the living room. I couldn't say much, but I felt I let them know everythin I wanted to say. Outside on the dock, four officers and the captain from the ship were waiting for me, as well as a serious looking Yosho. All but my brother took a knee when I came outside. I stood there, stunned. As a princess of Jurai, this was just a minor courtesy, but it felt alien to me, to be treated like a... well a princess. No one had done anything like that in a very long time. Yosho seemed to understand what I felt, having never been comfortable with this sort of thing anyway. He smiled at me gently, and simply began to leave. He never had much time for good byes. Something suddenly, an unplanned question jumped from my throat.
" Yosho. Will you please..." come with me, I was going to say, but Yosho knew that too. I hadn't thought about asking him to come with me, but it made sense, with Sasami staying. Sasami seemed to think it was a good idea too, because she seemed to look expectantly at Yosho. He just shook his head.
" I don't think I would still fit in, anymore. I would only cause problems." He shook his head again. My heart sank, and I sighed lonesomely. Then he added " but if you ever need me, just call, Ayeka." Sigh, always playing the knight errant. He turned and smiled like I had seen so rarely here, and walked off.
The captain greeted me and took my hand, leading me to the ship. As I prepared to transport, I saw Tenchi standing in the road up to the shrine. I remember thinking I would have liked to hear his voice one more time. But I couldn't say anything to Tenchi. I could only stare longingly at the man who would never love me like I wanted him too, as he waved me goodbye with a sad smile. The last I saw, was Ryoko sitting on the roof. She made a motion, almost a greeting, but really more of a salute, almost between two hard fought warriors.
It was the last thing I saw of Earth for a long time. A moment later I was on board the ship, directly on the bridge. The crew made the expected compliments and ceremonies. I went through the proper motions, paying little attention. I probably should have sensed something was wrong then. I had never put that much importance on such things, but I had always payed strict attention. I was, after all, a princess of Jurai, and such things were a part of that, responsibilities that I was supposed to follow. Now they just seemed like a nuisances.
I was in my room a few minutes later, a lavishly decorated suite reserved for special guests only. It's lush, soft carpet and four post bed everything I had ever yearned for when I first arrived on Earth, so much better then the hardwood floor and mat I was leaving behind.
I couldn't answer why, then, I could only watch Earth shrink and disappear out my window.
Chapter 1
Ayeka
When I first fell in love with Tenchi, I didn't think I'd be on Earth that long. I suppose I was being pretty arrogant, but I never doubted in the end, Tenchi would realize that Ryoko had nothing to offer but a good body and easy sex. I had a kingdom, riches, power to inherit, a great body, at least in my not so humble opinion, and if I were unwilling to share my bed now, certainly nothing was stopping us from going at it like weasels once we were married. I never would have admitted it then, but I was almost looking forward to rubbing it in Ryoko's face. My success, not my... nevermind. Tenchi couldn't possibly choose Ryoko.
Ryoko thought the same thing, of course, and neither of us were extremely patient people. We would threaten, plead, bribe, and trick both Tenchi and each other, but we never got anything firm from Tenchi. Several times we even told him we would leave him forever, threaten to find someone else. We would leave for a while, disappearing to someplace out of the way until we were convinced he would be so broken up without us that he would confess his eternal love to us the moment we returned. He would always welcome us back with a knowing smile, but never an agreement. Tenchi was far more patient then either of us.
Eventually, we just gave up, setting into a dull routine, awaiting his decision, and trying to bribe him whenever possible to make him happy, so he would remember us fondly when he choose.
And then Tenchi did choose.
I was working at the shrine one day. Ever since I arrived at Tenchi's house, I had done things to help out around the house. I ate their food, destroyed their house occasionally with Ryoko, so it only seemed appropriate that I should do some work. I swept the shrine, did the washing, just little things like that. Little things they may have been, but Ryoko didn't do most of them. She just sat around, drinking herself stupid. Not that I'm bitter or anything. I just want to establish why I didn't see it coming.
As I was saying, at the time I was sweeping the shrine, probably thinking about Tenchi. Tenchi this, Tenchi that. When who should appear coming up the shrine, but Tenchi Masaki. I stopped sweeping then, clutching the broom to my chest. I probably stopped breathing for a few seconds too, thinking about how much I LOVED Tenchi.
" Oh Tenchi!" I said, besotted with love as I was. He smiled at me, a smile that made my heart skip, although at the time the smile seemed to me to have a shadow in it. I know why now, of course.
" Ayeka." He said, in the shy quiet way he had. He smiled back, and walked over to me. He looked at me, eyes down cast. Looking back, Tenchi had some real confidence issues. " May I talk to you? Inside?" He asked. Yosho was away that time, so we could go inside the shrine office and talk there. Looking back, Tenchi had probably planned that.
" Of course Lord Tenchi." I replied. Tenchi took my hand, and led me towards the shrine. I should have seen it coming, with Tenchi acting so strangely, becoming so physical like that. He took me inside, and sat me down. He sat down cross-legged, and he looked at me, his eyes showing a depth of hurt I'd never seen. "What can I help you with?"
" Ayeka." Was all he said for a few moments. Right about that time I realized something... different was going on. He squirmed uncomfortably. " I... can still remember when we first met. Sasami wanted me to steal that hair ornament of yours. You woke up about halfway through, and ordered Azaka and Kamidake to kill me." He chuckled a bit, and I smiled politely, not quite sure where this was going. " That seems like a such a long time ago. A lot has changed since then."
" I wouldn't say that much has changed." I said plainly. Too be truthful not much had. Sasami still did the housework. Mihoshi still crashed into the lake nearly every day. Washu still invented ludicrous contraptions and Ryoko still worked hard to piss me off everyday. But still I felt nervous, and I started wringing my hands.
" I guess a lot hasn't too." Tenchi admitted. Then he looked at me, and stared deep into my eyes. " Ayeka, I wanted to talk to you about... I came to a conclusion recently. I've known you since my life got weird, and we had some fun times. But I've been doing some thinking recently, about my feelings. I wanted to tell you that I've decided... my heart is made up." There, right there I saw it coming. Like falling from a cliff, seeing the ground rush up to meet you, or watching a bomb tick down to zero.
" And... it's not you. I love Ryoko. I want to spend the rest of my life with her." He said it as if he were confessing some great sin.
" Oh." Was all I said, as my heart froze inside my chest. It was all I could say, my throat had closed up, and I fought back tears. I wouldn't let him win. I couldn't have told you then how crying would have let him win, or win what, but that's what I thought at the time. A part of me wanted to scream out "WHY? WHY? Why that woman!" in his ear, to make sure he heard, but the quiet princess was too much ingrained within me. He reached out and took my hand, cupping it in his, gently stroking it. I think he was holding back tears of his own.
" That doesn't mean I feel any different about you. You're still welcome here for as long as you like, and you're still a good friend." He gave my hand a gentle squeeze. " I'm sorry." He looked at me, I looked at him. I tried to talk but I couldn't say anything. My throat was swollen, but even if I could have spoken then, I wouldn't have known what to say. I still can't think of anything. This was not a moment of my life I like reflecting on now.
He saw it in me, and he gave me a gentle smile, stood up, and walked out. He knew what was coming, and knew I didn't want him to see my crying. After he left, I sat there for a few long moments, still in shock. This was the second time I'd been someone I loved had abandoned me. The first had been finding out Tenchi's grandfather was my lost love Yosho, had been near me for months, and I knew didn't want me anymore. I would cried then too, but we had to go rescue Ryoko. Before long my sleeves were soaking wet.
I don't know how long I was there, but sometime during my fit Yosho arrived. He spoke to me in the way only he could, but to this day I still don't remember what he said to me. A little later Sasami arrived too, but I remember telling Yosho to keep her outside. I couldn't let her to see me like that. He left me alone, after that.
I would have stayed there the whole evening, if not for Sasami. Sometime during the night, I finally pulled myself together. Sasami was still waiting for me outside, lying down peacefully by the door. She ignored my puffy cheeks, and only smiled at me. She took me back to our room, and I made my way back with her help. Thankfully by then it was dark, and everyone had gone to bed.
To be honest it, hurt more then I had ever thought possible. That's not to say I never considered what would happen if Tenchi choose Ryoko. I had, although I never dwelled much on it, but even if I had I don't think I would have guessed why it would have hurt so much. You see, I knew Tenchi well. I had to, I had spent a great deal of time with him. There are two things about Tenchi, that I had known perfectly well then, but had never thought about what they might mean.
First, Tenchi does not like hurting people. Especially if he is close to that person. He worries constantly about the feelings of others, and will do anything to make people feel better.
Second, Tenchi is a coward, at least on the surface. Threaten someone he cares about, and he will go to the ends of the universe, take on a thousand armies, to help them. But if no ones in trouble, Tenchi can be counted to fall to pieces with the slightest pressure every single time or bow to the slightest whim.
Both of these things pointed to one inarguable, inevitable conclusion.
Tenchi had decided long ago. Days, weeks, maybe even months before, he knew
he loved Ryoko, but he couldn't tell me. He had spent the time since thinking of what to tell me to make me feel better, to make it go easier, and to gather the courage needed to tell me at all. And all that time I had poured my heart out to him, whispered sweet words to him, giving him little gifts, treating him as a prince (which he might have been. Technically.) and all I had been doing was making an idiot out of myself.
I wondered how long Ryoko had known.
I didn't sleep that night, and neither did Sasami. She stayed up all night with me. I didn't say anything, I couldn't. My voice seemed to have been frozen in my throat. But Sasami laid with me the entire night, whispering to me that things would get better. Poor Sasami. Nothing hurt her more then when I hurt. This same thing had happened when Yosho had left, chasing after Ryoko. Of course, Ryoko again. I had fallen into a depression, and Sasami had nearly broken herself trying to make me feel better.
I didn't leave that room for three days. Sasami made sure I was well fed, though I didn't eat that much. All I could do was sit there, staring out the window, and pout. Outside, by now, everyone had heard, gossip would have spread, and no doubt everyone felt so much pity for me. Sasami told me what was going on outside, she said they were all worried about me. The last thing I wanted, as both a princess and rejected lover, was pity. I probably would have stayed in that room for months if it had been up to me.
In the end, it was Yosho who came to my rescue, again. I needed time away from everyone, he knew that. He sent a message to Jurai, explaining what had happened to our mothers. Within a day a Jurain vessel arrived to take me home. I couldn't say I was sorry either. Everything I saw reminded me of Tenchi, and every time I was reminded of Tenchi I couldn't help but be stabbed with the pieces of my broken heart.
The day I was was leaving, I packed my things with the help of Sasami. It felt strange, packing up all those memories, the dress I had worn when I did this with Tenchi, a gift Tenchi had given me, a photo of all of us together at Christmas. I put them away, some I wasn't certain why I was taking. It hurt so much to look at them, but I just couldn't part with them. I had the space though, since most of my baggage had survived my unplanned re-entry in Ryu-oh, when I first met Tenchi, though a good deal of my clothing had not survived an extended soak in the lake.
As Sasami closed the seal on the last bag, she quietly asked what I knew she had been thinking about for days.
" Do you want me to go with you?" She said. I had known it was coming.
Sasami was my sister, she would do anything for me, including leaving Earth, and all her friends behind to be there for me if I needed her. And I did want her too. I had lost Tenchi, I could barely stand to let my sister stay with the man who had crushed my heart, especially when I truly needed her.
But she didn't want to go. She had made friends here, found a place for herself. She had loved me so much, once, she had dropped everything to come with me looking for Yosho. I couldn't make her leave everything she cared about.
" No Sasami." I said, pretending to look over a bag so she wouldn't see moisture in my eye. " I'll be fine." I said, with a weak smile. After a moment, she hugged me tenderly, and I kissed her on the forehead. " I'll be fine." Moments of sisterly love like that had been too few and far between, here on Earth. I regretted that so much now, especially now that all the time I had spent trying to make Tenchi love me had been wasted. She ran off downstairs, with the bag, to put it with the rest. The packing finished, I sat down, to take one last look at the room I had spent so long in.
" I will miss you, Princess. But I guess you gotta do..." Ryoko said, not insincerely. I had heard her teleport in behind me, but I pretended not to notice her. I had expected her visit, but I had no idea what I would say to her. I had no idea what she was going to say to me. She might have gloated, might have been apologetic. Ryoko was still a mystery to me, after all the time we'd known each other. " Believe it or not, I always considered a friend. Even if we never got a long like friends should." She was behind me but I didn't turn to look at her. She sounded sincere enough though.
" I always saw you as a rival." I said to her. I don't think I kept the bitterness entirely out of voice, although I tried. I didn't want to sound like a poor loser. I glanced at her, not looking at her too long to keep her from seeing my tears. She was sitting cross-legged in front of the door, in her simple blue dress. Her hands were clasped in front of her, and she looked at me unusually seriously. " I hope... I hope you have a happy life. With Tenchi." I choked out. " I'll certainly try. I have a lot to live up too." She shrugged. " Got to make him glad he choose me over a princess." She stood up, walked over to me and to my surprise, patted me on the back.
" Get better soon. And send us a postcard, we might just drop by to visit." Then whispered to me " You might be missing a few towels after we leave though." I almost laughed, and that seemed to be what she wanted. She smiled at me, and then teleported away. I would never have said it to her face, but I might have missed her too. She certainly kept things interesting, at least. Just then the door opened, and Sasami came back in.
" It's all ready." Her voice quivered, and her eyes began to water. I hated to leave her then, but I knew she was in good company. One thing I could say for Tenchi, is that no harm would come to Sasami while she was here. I had no one at home, save Misaki and Funaho. And Misaki was going to be little help.
I stood up, not letting my body, weakened by inactivity and malnutrition, show
it's strain. Sasami would worry. I gently hugged her again, not wanting to let her go.
We walked downstairs, I wouldn't let Sasami help me with my bags. I got to say my good byes to Washu, Noboyuki, and Mihoshi, who were waiting for me in the living room. I couldn't say much, but I felt I let them know everythin I wanted to say. Outside on the dock, four officers and the captain from the ship were waiting for me, as well as a serious looking Yosho. All but my brother took a knee when I came outside. I stood there, stunned. As a princess of Jurai, this was just a minor courtesy, but it felt alien to me, to be treated like a... well a princess. No one had done anything like that in a very long time. Yosho seemed to understand what I felt, having never been comfortable with this sort of thing anyway. He smiled at me gently, and simply began to leave. He never had much time for good byes. Something suddenly, an unplanned question jumped from my throat.
" Yosho. Will you please..." come with me, I was going to say, but Yosho knew that too. I hadn't thought about asking him to come with me, but it made sense, with Sasami staying. Sasami seemed to think it was a good idea too, because she seemed to look expectantly at Yosho. He just shook his head.
" I don't think I would still fit in, anymore. I would only cause problems." He shook his head again. My heart sank, and I sighed lonesomely. Then he added " but if you ever need me, just call, Ayeka." Sigh, always playing the knight errant. He turned and smiled like I had seen so rarely here, and walked off.
The captain greeted me and took my hand, leading me to the ship. As I prepared to transport, I saw Tenchi standing in the road up to the shrine. I remember thinking I would have liked to hear his voice one more time. But I couldn't say anything to Tenchi. I could only stare longingly at the man who would never love me like I wanted him too, as he waved me goodbye with a sad smile. The last I saw, was Ryoko sitting on the roof. She made a motion, almost a greeting, but really more of a salute, almost between two hard fought warriors.
It was the last thing I saw of Earth for a long time. A moment later I was on board the ship, directly on the bridge. The crew made the expected compliments and ceremonies. I went through the proper motions, paying little attention. I probably should have sensed something was wrong then. I had never put that much importance on such things, but I had always payed strict attention. I was, after all, a princess of Jurai, and such things were a part of that, responsibilities that I was supposed to follow. Now they just seemed like a nuisances.
I was in my room a few minutes later, a lavishly decorated suite reserved for special guests only. It's lush, soft carpet and four post bed everything I had ever yearned for when I first arrived on Earth, so much better then the hardwood floor and mat I was leaving behind.
I couldn't answer why, then, I could only watch Earth shrink and disappear out my window.