THE JOB, Chapter 13: Lost and Found.

DISCLAIMER: Tenchi Muyou! is copyright AIC/Pioneer, LDC. I claim no rights to it. However, all events in this story are entirely of my own imagination. Please don't change or copy them. Feel free to distribute this story as widely as desired.

FOREWORD: This chapter was actually one of the more difficult ones to write. Initially, I had very little concept of how the Arch-Bishop fit in to the story, other than the fact that he had committed a crime against Ryoko in the past. You may notice that I chose a religious figure for the offender. This is completely intentional on my part. The events in this chapter reflect my feelings on how members of religious institutions should be dealt with when they mistreat children.

The Church of Tsunami is something I made up. Tsunami has no bearing on this story, what-so-ever.

One reviewer wrote that Ryoko was about 2,000 years old, not 19 or so. This story is based on TU, not OAV. There is no indication in TU that Ryoko has an extended life-span. Either way, I'm going on the assumption that Ryoko was about nineteen when she crashed on Earth. At any rate, she acts like she's 19.

AUTHOR: Dreamr

LAST REVISION: 01 April 2003

EMAIL: TrueDreamr@Hotmail.com

BEGIN.

Princess Aeka was sitting within a hover-car with the Minister of Justice, awaiting the result of her sending Azaka and Kamidake into the Holy Sanctuary of Tsunami to arrest one of it's highest priests. At least she and Minister Sakahara had the benefit of a comfortable place to sit while waiting. The plush interior was well-cared-for, and in excellent shape. The smell of natural materials and preservatives gave the vehicle that new car smell. The wait was not long. The minister's holo-phone soon went off with a shrill cry. Sakahara quickly flipped open the lid, activating the device. As expected, an image of Azaka's head appeared above the exposed emitter.

"Minister Sakahara, it is as we expected. The Royal Pontiff has requested a verbal decree."

Sakahara looked to the princess.

"Highness?"

"Inform His Holiness that I will be there momentarily."

The minister returned his gaze the image before him.

"We'll be right there."

"Very good."

The image disappeared as the device was closed. Before Sakahara could even get the phone back into his pocket, Princess Aeka was already pounding on the window. The door popped open, revealing the two mechanical guardians who had been Aeka's servants from childhood. The princess stepped out, her head held high. It had been quite some time since she had felt an honest thrill at being able to perform her duties as a servant of the people. The time she had spent on Earth had truly refreshed her spirit. And now, she was actually making a difference by enforcing the laws of Jurai. This was what it meant to be First Princess.

It had been many years since she had strode the halls of Tsunami's Sanctuary. The place was quite opulent, with glittering columns and many fabulous lamps and chandeliers. As Tsunami was a goddess of light and purity, it was understandable that there was so much lighting. Anything less would have been inappropriate.

And, oh, so many stairs.

"I don't remember they're being this many stairs." Aeka grumbled as she reached the fifth floor, where the Royal Pontiff resided.

Royal guards lined the hallway as Aeka slowed to catch her breath, as well as let Sakahara catch up to her. His considerable size made it more of a task for him.

"Perhaps you should consider an exercise regimen, Minister Sakahara." Aeka suggested as the minister reached her side, puffing and blowing from the exertion.

"That... is an excellent... suggestion... Highness."

After a couple more deep breaths, Sakahara stood up straight and proclaimed himself recovered.

"All right. I'm ready."

Taking the lead, he took the last few steps to the closed doors at the end of the hall, and pulled. Within the room were the original Azaka and Kamidake, along with a handful of royal guards, Arch-Bishop Ramazon, whom they wished to arrest, and the Royal Pontiff, Arumisan Yamisaki, an elderly man of many uncounted years. He sat in a magnificent high-backed chair on a slightly raised dais, awaiting the princess. His rich white robes hung about his thin frame.

Arch-Bishop Ramazon was also older, but not as old as Yamisaki. His hair was still grey, though lighter streaks were beginning to show. On Earth, the man might have passed for fifty or sixty. His priestly robes were mostly red with a few bits and pieces of white.

Turning sideways, Sakahara announced the princess.

"Her Royal Highness, First Princess Aeka Masaki Jurai."

Aeka entered the room with confidence and grace, as was appropriate for a princess. She had only one task here, and that was to read an official proclamation. Once she was fully in the room, Aeka stopped and waited. Minister Sakahara closed the doors, leaving Aeka's newer guardians on the outside of the door to stand guard. He then joined Aeka in the middle of the room. With a flourish, he pulled from his coat a device consisting of two cylinders held together lengthwise, giving it the appearance of a scroll. This he held out to Aeka, who took it from him. Pulling the cylinders apart, a message was displayed on holographic paper. Aeka read from the display.

"To all who shall hear this decree, I, Aeka Masaki Jurai, do swear and affirm that, given sufficient cause and evidence, Arch-Bishop Ramazon Kaneda is to be removed from his appointed offices and placed into the custody of the Order of Holy Knights, until such time as he can be brought to trial for crimes against the people and government of the Holy Empire of Jurai. Signed this day, by my hand, et cetera, et cetera."

Aeka slapped the two halves of the holo-scroll together with ultimate finality.

"Take him away."

The pontiff raised his hand to shoulder level, indicating he wished to speak, first.

"Just a moment, My Lady. If I may..."

Aeka nodded. There was nothing that the man could do to change her mind in this. She had seen the evidence, and it was overwhelmingly in the prosecution's favor.

"Bishop Ramazon, how do you explain this?"

"I cannot, Your Grace. This is... incomprehensible to me. I have never done anything deserving of such heavy-handed treatment."

A spark of indignance flared within Aeka. She held the scroll up and pointed it directly in the Arch-Bishop's face.

"You, sir, are a liar! Consider yourself lucky I have not had you charged with all of the crimes you are guilty of! If it were up to me, you would be cast into the deep sea!"

There was a collective gasp throughout the room. The penalty Aeka spoke of was an ancient punishment reserved exclusively for those whose crimes were directed against the Royal Family, itself. Arch-Bishop Ramazon stared at the princess for a moment before sighing with apparent regret.

"Your Grace, this is ludicrous. I have never done anything deserving of such cruel punishment."

The pontiff seemed to consider this for a moment. If he so desired, he could claim that Ramazon was claiming the right of sanctuary. He would then be forced to remain within the walls of the Sanctuary for the remainder of his days.

"Princess, does not the accused have the right to face his accusers?"

"Indeed he does."

When the princess only answered the question brought before her, the Royal Pontiff smiled.

"Would you be so kind?"

With an annoyed sigh, Aeka pulled the two halves of the scroll apart again and read the list of accusers from the Writ of Arrest. Somewhere in the list, Ryoko's name was written. As soon as her name was heard, eyebrows went up and eyes went wide. Yamisaki actually interrupted the reading to ask for a repeat.

"Pardon my rudeness, Highness. But did you say Ryoko Harada?"

"That is correct."

Aeka fought to contain her smile. She had thought about this part in her mind, wondering how to play it out so as to get what she wanted. Putting Ryoko's name on the list was risky. Either way, her name would draw attention from people such as these. Either they would think the entire thing was a sham perpetrated by Ryoko, or they would see a long list of names, and take it for real. Hopefully, it would be the former. Ramazon smiled. Apparently he had come to a decision.

"Your Grace, I think I understand what this is about. When I was younger, I was placed in charge of a large orphanage on Mekina. If I remember correctly, there was a young girl there by the name of Ryoko who, if memory serves, matches the description of the aforementioned space pirate. I believe she may hold a grudge against me, and is simply trying some sort of poor revenge plot to discredit my name."

As Aeka digested those words, she came to agree that Ryoko most certainly did hold a grudge against this person, and rightly so. There were thirty seven names on the list of accusers, all willing to testify in one form or another against Ramazon. Yamisaki also seemed to be considering this.

"What do you make of this, Princess Aeka?"

"Your Grace, the Royal Family is interested only in justice. If I am mistaken in this, you have my word I will publicly apologize to Arch-Bishop Ramazon for the affront."

The Royal Pontiff nodded slowly in agreement.

"Very well. Let no one say that the church is not also interested in justice, although we prefer forgiveness to punishment."

Ramazon nodded, as well.

"I accept your judgement in this, Your Grace."

Azaka and Kamidake moved to the red man's side and took him by the arms. As they directed him to the door with all due courtesy, Minister Sakahara opened the doors again to allow them an exit. Relieved that things had gone according to plan, Aeka actually bowed to the Royal Pontiff, even though it was not required of her.

"I thank you for your wisdom and courage to see that justice is served, Your Grace."

"I trust Arch-Bishop Ramazon will be given a fair and public trial, Princess Aeka."

"Indeed he will."

Tenchi sighed as he lay in bed, unable to sleep. He had hoped to find Ryoko at their room when he returned. But that hope had died as soon as he opened the door. The trip back to the hotel had felt unusually lonely, even though he was surrounded by people. He had reluctantly gone home after waiting almost an hour for Ryoko to return. The goodbye with Futsuki and Kagusa had been strained. The large man was visibly angry over what had happened. He had felt almost relieved to be away from his icy glare. Kagusa's stare reminded Tenchi too much of the look his grandfather used when he was being scolded.

Tenchi though long and hard about what had happened. He had only wanted to know more about Ryoko. They had known each other long enough that he felt comfortable asking her age. It was a simple enough question. But, given the answer, it was not surprising. Ryoko's words still echoed in his mind as he tried to find a comfortable position on the bed that he had slept so well in until tonight.

"I don't know. Nobody knows. There's no birth records, no parents, nothing! I don't know how old I am. Now do you understand?!"

It did explain why Ryoko had repeatedly refused to tell him when her birthday was, despite the promise of a birthday party. It seemed cosmically unjust to Tenchi that anyone should go their whole life without having a birthday party, or even knowing how old they were. But if there was one thing he knew Ryoko did not want from him, it was sympathy.

A slight shift in the air and the sound of feet on the carpet alerted Tenchi to someone's presence in the room. The lack of an entrance told him it was probably Ryoko, finally home from where ever she had gone to cool off. He ached to talk to her. But there was nothing he could think of to say except "Welcome home", which sounded really stupid to him right now. Until something a little more appropriate could come to mind, he followed the sound of Ryoko's feet and the rustling of her dress. As she moved from the glass door to the side of her bed nearest his own bed, the sound of rustling cloths became more pronounced. It took Tenchi a moment to realize Ryoko was undressing. A faint blush covered his face as he reminded himself that he was doing nothing wrong. His back was to her, so it was not like he was watching or anything. Something soft flopped to the floor. A moment later it was followed by the sound of covers being thrown back. Then all was silent for several seconds.

"I know you're awake."

Unsure of how to respond, Tenchi remained silent.

"Fine. You don't have to talk to me if you don't want to."

Now he had something to say.

"It's not that. I just don't know what to say."

"How about 'Gee, Ryoko. Where were you? I was worried.' "

With a grin, Tenchi asked exactly that.

"Gee, Ryoko. Where were you? I was worried."

Unseen by Tenchi, Ryoko shook her head in mirth.

"Goof-ball."

"Well, you know me."

Standing unclothed between the two beds, Ryoko felt truly naked. Even when she had her cloths on, she sometimes felt as if her very soul was laid bare to Tenchi. With other people, it was like she had a hard shell around her that deflected their looks or stares. But this young man could penetrate that shell without even trying.

"Could we just forget about today? Things were going good until then."

"Actually, I thought today was the best day yet."

"You did?"

"Kagusa and Futsuki are wonderful people. And I really feel like I learned a lot about you, today."

"Tenchi..."

"I learned that you have a family that cares about you very much. You went to school and played sports. Those are all things that I'm really glad to know."

Ryoko's heart pounded in her chest when she heard the words Tenchi was saying to her. He rarely spoke in such personal terms. That he was sharing these feelings with her meant even more. A glance over her shoulder confirmed that Tenchi was still facing away. Slowly, almost as if she were embarrassed, Ryoko turned around as Tenchi continued to speak.

"We haven't really known each other all that long. So, I guess there are still some things you don't feel comfortable talking to me about, yet. And we all have things we'd rather keep to ourselves. If you would tell me what those questions are that you don't want me asking, I'll remember. That way I don't embarrass you again."

Tenchi's bed was only a step away from Ryoko. She wanted so much to take that step and show Tenchi exactly how she was feeling. This was not the first time she had wanted to be with him this way. The time when she had dragged Tenchi into Washu's cave had only been a flight of fancy for a guy she liked. Since then, she had totally fallen for him. Tenchi Masaki was the man she loved with all her heart, and she wanted to show it in no uncertain terms. The only thing keeping Ryoko from climbing into his bed right now was the fear of rejection. She was still a little uncertain of his feelings. But the only way to find out for sure was to make a move and see what happens. Slowly, Ryoko shifted her weight to her right foot. Her opposite foot became lighter, until she was nearly standing on one foot. Only her toes still touched the ground. Still, she was afraid.

"Ryoko, I'm really glad I went on this trip with you."

Ryoko's resolve strengthened. She put her foot out and took the step to Tenchi's bedside. Before any other fears or excuses could intrude in her mind, she turned and sat on the edge of his bed.

Tenchi's face turned beet-red when he felt Ryoko sit on his bed. He only wanted to assure her that he cared about her and was sensitive to her feelings. Getting her into his bed was the farthest thing from his mind. Well, maybe not the farthest. But it was not his intention.

"Um, Ryoko, this is my bed."

"I know."

At the moment, Ryoko was glad her back was to Tenchi again. This way he could not see the redness spreading across her face. Never in her entire life had she felt so nervous. It was not like she had never done it before. But this time she wanted to do it for love, rather than lust. As Tenchi inhaled to speak again, a sense of dread suddenly overcame her. She felt certain that he would tell her to go back to her own bed and let him sleep in peace.

"When I went to get you and your foster-mother for dinner, I, ah... overheard the two of you talking. I didn't mean to listen in, but I didn't want to be rude and interrupt, either. So, I ended up overhearing something that I had suspected for a while, now."

"You heard what I said to Futsuki?"

Tenchi suddenly sat up, prompting Ryoko to wrap her arms about her chest. Although this did not change Ryoko's state of undress, he found he could still tolerate her nakedness this way. If she was facing him, he probably could not do this.

"Yes. That's why I'm not just telling you to go back to your bed. I believe what you said. If that's true, then I'm not going to make any excuses or tell you to go away. That wouldn't be right." After a short pause, Tenchi spoke again. "I'm pretty sure I know what you're thinking about right now."

Ryoko suddenly thought of something very important she wanted to tell Tenchi before he said anything else.

"Tenchi..."

"Please, let me finish."

"That's fine. But I need to tell you that I'm not messing around, here. I... I really mean this. I'm not just looking for a good time or playing games with your head. This is how I feel, even if I am too much of a wimp to say it to your face."

Tenchi grinned at that last part.

"You just did."

"Not really."

"Maybe. But what matters is that I know you're serious. That's why you invited me on this trip, right?"

"Yes."

Tenchi felt surprised at how much this was affecting him. A quick look out of the corner of his eye showed him what he already knew. Ryoko was sitting on the edge of his bed with her bare back to him, waiting for him to say whether or not he was willing to accept her in an intimate relationship. But the more he tried to give his answer, the more uncertain he became.

"Tenchi?"

"What?"

"Didn't your Dad ever tell you not to keep a lady waiting?"

Tenchi blushed again.

"Yeah, he did. It's just that you really caught me off guard. I didn't expect you to do something like this."

"That's because you don't know me very... well." Ryoko's voice slowly trailed off as she realized the implications of what she was saying.

"I guess that's the problem, isn't it?"

"I understand." With a dejected sigh, Ryoko stood up.

Tenchi's face went bright red when he was suddenly confronted by the sight of Ryoko's well-shaped posterior. Fortunately, he was already facing half-away. So he was spared the indignity of a nose-bleed by looking the other way whilst Ryoko was going back to her own bed. He did not look again until he heard her get in and pull the covers up.

"Ryoko?"

"You should get some sleep. We have to be up earlier than normal if we want to be on time for the fishing boat tomorrow morning."

Tenchi stared at his hands for almost a minute before he laid down again. One question burned in his mind. As long as it remained unanswered, he knew he would not get any sleep.

"Are you mad?"

Ryoko was silent for several seconds before she answered.

"No. Any other questions?"

Tenchi felt momentarily taken aback at the finality of Ryoko's answer.

"I guess not."

With a sigh, Ryoko suddenly spit out a bunch of answers without being asked any questions.

"No, I'm not. Yes, I have. I wasn't counting. No, I don't, thank God. Now go back to sleep and don't ever ask me those questions again."

Tenchi stared at the ceiling in utter confusion. But this time he had the good sense not to bother Ryoko any further.

END.

AFTERWORD: I'm sure there are a few of you wondering what the questions are to the answers Ryoko gave to Tenchi. Being a couple of years older than him, it's also understandable why he wouldn't know what those questions are, yet. My apologies. But I can't reveal those questions. Knowing for certain would really lessen the dramatic impact of later chapters. Although, some people are starting to get the idea.