It's Only Just the Beginning
"Ryoko!"
Tenchi sighed loudly as she didn't turn back to him, "Come back inside Ryoko..." he stopped at the edge of the doorway of the Masaki House.
Floating through the air in a heated rage, Ryoko went to the roof of the house and stomped on it until she sat on the end of the red roof shingles. She was angry, but then again-she was always angry about something. This time it was for a different reason, or so she thought. "Tenchi can't leave us..." Ryoko was on the verge of tears, but she held them back as much as possible.
Her mind raced as she thought of ways to make Tenchi stay and not leave for Tokyo in five days. First thought that came to her mind was kidnapping him and taking him off into the deepest part of the galaxy with her. The second thought wasn't as good as the first one so she gave up and pouted on the edge of the roof. Ryoko closed her yellow eyes in sadness; tears fell and rolled down her cheeks.
Ryoko sat there in complete silence, then when she thought she had cried enough-she wiped the tears from her cat-like eyes and floated down from the roof. The door was left open for her; silently she walked inside without saying a word to anyone-not even glancing up to see Tenchi's concerned look.
Grinding her teeth, Ryoko took a seat at the dinning table next to Ayeka; the purple-haired Princess of Jurai. Immediately, she grabbed her bowl and fixed herself a bowl of rice and noodles without making a noise.
"Ryoko...?" Tenchi asked from across the table from her and Ayeka.
The ex-space pirate ignored him, she continued to eat her noodles and rice with her black chop sticks.
Ayeka grew red, "Honestly Lord Tenchi...I don't know how you can stand putting up with Ryoko's horrible table manners all the time like that..." she pointed at the spills Ryoko was making on the table and on herself.
The bowl clanked against the table and Ryoko was standing up with her yellow eyes glaring at Ayeka. "Do you want to really want to fight me today Ayeka?!" Ryoko snapped bitterly at the Princess. Her fist was raised and her body was positioned to attack Ayeka at any moment, "And why would Tenchi stand you huh? You're a snobby, big-nosed Princess!!"
This time it was Ayeka's bowl that clanked against the dinning table, "Excuse me?" her voice went high-pitched like it always does. "I do not have a big nose! You're the one with a big nose-and feet too I might add!"
Ryoko growled and the both of them went into their usual cat-fight staring contest, "You take that back Princess if you know what's good for you..." the blue-haired demon threatened.
"Is that a threat?!" Ayeka yelled loudly which made the rest of the members of the household just roll their eyes at the both of them.
Ryoko gasped, "Wow-you just finally caught on Princess?" she said in her usual cynical voice.
The fight was on, the two threw back more insults at one another until they were both blue in the face-but that didn't stop them still. "No wonder Tenchi is leaving this place-he wants to get away from a messy slob like you!" Ayeka finally yelled at the top of her lungs.
That hit Ryoko's vulnerable spot; she released the collar of Ayeka's dress and looked away. Keeping her head lowered as she walked away from the dinning table Ryoko thought to herself, That can't be true...can it? She felt the tears coming on again and she bolted back out of the house to hide for a little while.
"Ryoko!!" Tenchi jumped up from his cushion next to the dinning table and chased after her, "Come back Ryoko-she didn't mean it like that! I'm not leaving because of you!" He ran out of the house and stopped; she was already gone; desperately he glanced up and around to see if he could find her. "Ryoko!" he sighed desperately again and rubbed the back of his head as he thought of where she could have gone to. Once more he glanced around and called out her name, when he did not see any trace of her he solemnly went back inside the house.
The blue-haired demon cried in front of an empty cave; the spot where she would watch Tenchi when he was a child before he had released her from the cave. She remembered when he had tried to catch dragonflies in front of her cave and tip on a rock just before he was about to catch one. A broken smile appeared on her lips, she had loved Tenchi for such a long time... The tip of her index finger traced the outline of a rock that she had picked up in front of the cave a few moments before. Ryoko would always love Tenchi, no matter what would happen to him.
A surge of energy flowed through her body, she would stand up to Tenchi and force him to stay-or follow him into Tokyo like she had the last time he had went there for school. I can't let him leave...Ryoko was bound and determined to find a way to stay with Tenchi and protect him like she always had. She grew strong-minded as she slowly walked back to the Masaki House; Ryoko desperately thought of what to say to Tenchi to convince him to stay with her.
"Don't worry Tenchi...Ryoko will come back once she has calmed down about you leaving here for Tokyo..." Washu assured Tenchi as she helped Sasami pick up the dirty rice bowls from the dinning table. Washu spotted her daughter Ryoko standing at the doorway behind Tenchi, "In fact here she is now..." her voice was a little bit perkier now.
Tenchi turned his head back to see Ryoko blushing slightly, "Um...Tenchi...?" she asked shyly; which was very uncharacteristic of her to act like that.
His worried expression softened, "Are you alright Ryoko?" he asked loudly, causing the rest of the girls in the house to watch the scene.
"Can I talk to you alone Tenchi...?" he could barely hear her voice as she glanced back outside of the doorway. Ryoko felt vulnerable in front of everyone, especially in front of Tenchi; her emotions were controlling her-which she rarely let them do. Her yellow eyes grew large as she gave Tenchi the sad eyes, "Please Tenchi?"
Nodding silently, Tenchi knew what Ryoko was up to, "Sure Ryoko..." The earth boy followed the space pirate outside of the Masaki house; they walked side by side as Ryoko led him to a familiar spot. He glanced behind Ryoko to see a dark gloomy cave; he remembered this place very well.
This was the cave where Tenchi had accidentally freed Ryoko from her captivity on Earth; he was only a high school student when he had accomplished this feat. Soon enough, Ryoko's friends and enemies started to show up on Earth, turning Tenchi's life completely upside down. Being the only young boy in his household, he has been surrounded by beautiful, feuding alien women for a very long time now. Sometimes Tenchi wonders what his life would have been like if he had never released Ryoko from the cave, Probably normal Tenchi...
Tears were in the corners of Ryoko's eyes, "Remember this place?" she took a deep breath, "I use to watch you roast yams on an open fire when you were younger...chase dragonflies...and when you cried in front of the cave when your mother died." She couldn't control herself anymore, "Don't leave me Tenchi!!" Ryoko wrapped her arms around his chest and clung to him desperately.
"Ryoko-" Tenchi could feel Ryoko crying on his chest now; he had run out of words to say. Lifting his hands carefully he pulled her away from him, "I'm come visit you guys during the holidays...you know that Ryoko," he said in his normally cheerful voice.
Sniffling, Ryoko shook her head at him, "Tenchi... I know you won't come back...you didn't come back last time because-because..." her heart was being torn into pieces as she remembered what he had done the last time he was in Tokyo. "I won't let you fall in love with someone else Tenchi!!" she yelled with her yellow eyes turning a slight hint of red.
Tenchi went red in the face in embarrassment, "Ryoko I can't help it if I fall in love with someone that's not you!" Immediately after he had said those words, he bit his lip and watched Ryoko disappear in front of his eyes. Good going Tenchi, you hurt Ryoko's feelings again...You should have kept you fat mouth shut. He lifted his eyes to see the empty dark cave in front of him, he could remember how afraid he was of Ryoko when had first released her. There was a sharp pain in his heart, like he should have told Ryoko the truth...and the rest of the Masaki household about him permanently staying in Tokyo. Tenchi had no plans of returning home to deal with all of the feuding alien women in his house, he felt horrible for feeling this way about them.