Chapter Twelve

"Well, I think that's everything."

Kiyone glanced down at the scrawled sheet of notes, squinting at the smudged characters that had been squeezed along the edge. "I've done everything Washu said I should do, to get your house back to normal. I'm going to throw the switch and hope the whole thing doesn't blow up - honestly, I wouldn't put it past her, considering it's one of her inventions."

"Me either." Tenchi looked pained, sitting down on a tree stump as he watched the Police Detective at work. "Is there anything I can do to help, Kiyone? Grandpa's gone to the shrine to see if it's all right and Dad's gone with him. Mihoshi's taken control of Yagami for the time being, in case Headquarters contacts you - but what about me? I'm not doing anything useful and I'd really like to be, if you know what I mean."

"I don't think there's anything you can do." Kiyone pursed her lips. "Except take cover if this goes wrong. Tenchi, are you certain you want your house back where it was before? I know you're all somewhat attached to it but, well, Washu's technology..."

"We want it back." Tenchi nodded. "Why the sudden doubts, Kiyone? You seemed pretty sure before we came in to the Earth's atmosphere that it should be a straightforward procedure."

"Well, that was before I heard the latest news across the scanners as I was preparing the final descent process." Kiyone ran her fingers through her hair, casting a glance at the flashing, bleeping box in her other hand. "Washu and the Science Academy have already had a falling out. Apparently she's been working on something that could cause the whole universe to implode, if used in the wrong way. Or even if used in the right way, if I heard the report correctly. Either way, they've turfed her out and noone knows where she is right now. Trusting the technology of someone that nuts kinda rails against all of my training."

"We don't have a lot of choice." Tenchi rolled his eyes. "I suppose we should have seen that coming, shouldn't we? Washu being Washu, and all. I swear being shut in a cave for that long did something to her brain. Sometimes she seems like the most rational being on the planet and others..."

"Yeah, exactly." Kiyone sighed, casting a glance up at the hulking red form of Yagami, hovering through the clouds over the spot where the Masaki home had once stood. "Well, if you're sure. Just don't say I didn't warn you."

"I'm game to take the risk." Tenchi assured her. "Go for it, Kiyone."

Kiyone shrugged her shoulders.

"All right." She said. For a moment she hesitated, then she reached out a finger, pressing down hard on the switch and screwing up her eyes as if she expected the device to explode in her hands. A bright white glow enveloped the whole of the area, and Tenchi shielded his gaze from the glare, momentarily blinded by the huge emission of energy. In an instant, the light was once more gone, and Kiyone opened her eyes, casting a trepidant glance at the spot where the house had once stood.

A gasp escaped her lips.

"Well, what do you know?" She murmured. "Washu was right, after all. A half inch off the original foundations, maybe - but not so much as you'd notice it."

"Thank goodness." Tenchi looked relieved. "Although I suppose we've yet to go inside and see what the damage is there."

"True." Kiyone nodded. "But all of the interdimensional doorways will have been cut off. Washu said that leaving them would have meant your house might have been sucked into subspace, so she decided to shut them down when the transferance took place. I think it's probably all right. I mean, it did transport intact, and I can't see any cracks or damage to the walls."

"Me either." Tenchi owned. Kiyone smiled, a flicker of regret in her blue eyes.

"I think this is where we say our goodbyes, then." She said softly. "I left Mihoshi aboard ship because I knew she'd cry if I let her down here and then we'd both be blubbering before we got to Headquarters. Not the kind of impression I want to give! But it has been fun, and I'm surprised at how much I'm going to miss the solar system. I've learnt a lot from being here, and you know, I'm glad we met. Even if it was thanks to Mihoshi's bad luck that we did."

"Maybe Mihoshi's luck isn't always bad." Tenchi suggested. Kiyone laughed, shrugging her shoulders.

"Perhaps not." She acknowledged. "Don't ever tell her this, but I'm glad not to be going back to Headquarters on my own. Even if she does drive me mad, I guess I'm appreciating the team spirit ethic a whole lot more than I ever did before."

"Me too." Tenchi looked wistful, and Kiyone eyed him thoughtfully, resting a hand on his shoulder.

"Keep faith, if you can." She said softly. "And if I find anything out, I will come to the Earth and tell you, somehow. Whatever that news is, Tenchi - I promise. You have the right to know, after all, the fate of someone who's become a close friend of yours over the past few months."

"Thanks. I appreciate that." Tenchi nodded. "I didn't really think she'd be on the Earth when we got here, but it was a bit of a wrench finding she wasn't anyway. It's the not knowing that's the worst. I'd rather know she'd gone back to her pirate ways than wonder for eternity whether she even survived."

"Yes, I think I agree." Kiyone responded. "But I suppose she's always been a lone wolf. It probably didn't occur to her that any of us would feel that way."

The watch on her wrist flashed at that moment and she glanced down at it, a frown touching her face.

"That's my cue to leave." She said regretfully. "Headquarters have buzzed us - I told Mihoshi to signal me when they did. Of course, she might have just sat on the controls again, but I probably can't take the risk. We're already running behind schedule, taking this detour...I don't want to impose on their goodwill too much longer if I can help it. Our promotions may hang in the balance."

"No, you mustn't miss out on those." Tenchi smiled. "You both deserve it, and much more from them. I hope they realise how good the both of you are, now. Considering everything, they ought to."

Kiyone blushed.

"I hope so too." She agreed. "At last, I feel like my career is getting back on track. And in a sense it's because of you. You and Mihoshi's luck and this crazy planet you call home."

"Life has a funny way of working things out, sometimes." Tenchi reflected. Kiyone spread her hands.

"Guess so." She replied. She hesitated for a moment, then hugged him tightly.

"Take care, Tenchi, and pass on the same message to your father and Grandfather. Thank them both for all their kindness to Mihoshi and I." She said quietly. "We'll be thinking of you whenever we're in these parts and if we can come visit, you know that we will, so don't forget either of us. All right?"

"You have my word." Tenchi returned the hug warmly. "And thanks for the lift home, too. It's going to be strange for a while, but all in all, it is good to be back home. Nothing here seems to have changed in the meantime...as soon as I get back into my normal routine, everything is going to be fine."

Kiyone nodded. Then she raised her hand, sending a signal to the red craft above. A jagged transport beam shot down to the ground below, flickering and faltering slightly at first but then growing stronger and more vivid with every moment. The Detective hesitated for a moment, then stepped into the beam, allowing it's soft rays of light to engulf her, sweeping her up into the belly of the spaceship with one powerful impulse.

"Kiyone?"

Mihoshi's voice came from the drive room as the light faded and Kiyone pushed open the door, stepping into the control centre of her craft and sitting down in her seat. She cast her partner a glance, seeing the unshed tears in the other girl's eyes, and she nodded her head.

"Yes, I'll miss them too." She said softly. "But we have to go now, Mihoshi. Full speed ahead for Headquarters, all right?"

"All right." Mihoshi sighed. "But we will come back and visit them, won't we, Kiyone?"

Kiyone did not answer at first, and Mihoshi frowned.

"Kiyone? We will, won't we?"

Kiyone sighed, glancing out of the thin perspex window at the disappearing landscape below. At length she nodded.

"If we can, Mihoshi." She said softly. "If we can."

--------------------

The sun was beginning to climb in the sky as Ryoko pushed open the door of the small, ramshackle house, standing and staring out across the barren landscape. Above her head, unfamiliar birds wheeled and cried, screeching their calls to one another in hoarse, frantic tones, but the street was once more deserted and although the occasional curtain twitched at a window, nobody seemed keen to venture out or question her presence.

She smiled, stretching and stifling a yawn as she did so. A soft mew from somewhere around her ankles alerted her to Ryo Ohki's presence and she glanced down, meeting her small companion's gaze with a warm one of her own. Without speaking, both knew what today meant.

It was the day to leave.

"Well, you seem up bright and early this morning."

Kazuki's voice came from the open door behind her and the pirate turned, taking in her companion's features with a rueful smile.

"You either have a sixth sense where I'm concerned, or you sleep really lightly." She said frankly, as he came to join her, glancing across at the horizon as he did so. "Which is it, Kazuki? Does Nagi scare you so much that you have to know my every move?"

"I know that last night I told you you were probably fit to fly." Kazuki pursed his lips, eying her keenly. "But that doesn't mean you should rush yourself, do you understand? Your injury was serious and you need to take it slowly. I know where you're going, and I know it's a long way from where you are. If you think you can do it all in one day's travel, then you'll likely do yourself further mischief. I just want to be sure you know that even though you don't need my nannying any more, you're not infallible. You are still convalescent, and you can't push yourself beyond your limits."

"You must have been wonderful, when you worked in a hospital." Ryoko grimaced. "Ultimate power over someone's life really doesn't do much for you, you know. You need to relax more...and I mean that. I know my limits. And even if I didn't, do you think Ryo Ohki is going to let me surpass them? She's been nagging me worse than you have since our adventures abroad the other night. I don't think she'd allow me to do the trip all in one shot even if I tried to bribe her."

"Good girl." Kazuki bent to scratch Ryo Ohki behind the ears, and the cabbit rubbed up against his hand with a purr. "Nagi was right. You are the one with the sense."

"Kazuki." Ryoko glowered. "I can take responsibility for my own life too, you know. I have done for years and will continue to do so long after I leave here. Besides, you don't know for sure where I'm going. You only think you do, from things that Nagi and I have said. You might be guessing. I'm a pirate - I don't often follow other people's plans."

"Well, that's a shame." Kazuki pursed his lips. "Because if you're not going to the Earth, this is going to be of no use to you whatsoever."

He reached into his battered jacket pocket, pulling out a folded sheet of worn parchment. Ryoko's brows drew together in confusion.

"What's that?"

"It's a star-chart." Kazuki replied simply. "It's old, and not entirely up-to-date, but there are few space maps that chart this area of space. As I told you before, most people don't come here. Only those who are desperate and seeking asylum risk the journey, because it's not an easy place to get to. There is only one safe route in and out of the gravitational pull, and if you're not going to find yourself aimlessly zipping between meteor belts and ice streams for the next few years, you'll need to know where it is."

"Give it here!" Ryoko's eyes became big as she digested his words, holding out her hand for it but he lifted it back out of her reach. "Kazuki, stop playing with me! You know I don't have a clue where I am and it's going to waste a lot of my time if I have to try and figure out my bearings when I'm up in space! You were the one who told me that I needed to take the journey easily - well, give me the map already!"

"If you're not going to the Earth, there doesn't seem much point." Kazuki said simply. "Earth is a very old planet, even considering it's backwards development. Not all solar systems show up on this. Earth's does. That's why it would have been of use to you - had that been your destination."

Ryoko drew her brows together in irritation.

"If I tell you where I'm going, you'll tell Nagi." She said quietly. "And then she'll hunt me down and fight me and I don't really care about keeping that engagement right at the moment. Maybe once it was the be all and end all, proving myself in armed combat with someone who's as good a fighter as I am. It was even fun. But when she brought Tenchi into the equation, she crossed the line. I don't intend to be captured or brought in for a reward, so I don't intend on giving her a paper trail. If you won't give me the map, I suppose Ryo Ohki and I will just have to manage. Because I won't be stalked, Kazuki."

"Nagi will find you anyway." Kazuki shrugged his shoulders. "I don't need to tell her where you've gone. In fact, I told you last night that you were well enough to leave because I knew Nagi would be away from here for at least the rest of this week. You were fit two or three days past, but she would have noticed you were gone more easily then, and she would have tracked your route. This way you at least have a chance to get a fair distance before she knows you've left. I'm not planning on giving her any pointers. Much as I keep out of my sister's judicial practices, I don't really want her to undo all the hard work I've put into your recovery just yet. I have professional pride too, you know."

"I see." Ryoko looked pensive. "So in that case, why not give me the map? Why do you need to know where I'm going?"

"I suppose I'm just curious to know." Kazuki admitted. "Because you see, Ryoko, there's nothing I wouldn't do to find Naoko if she was still alive. I mean that. No distance I wouldn't fly and no dangers I wouldn't face. So I guess I want to know you're not going to give up on your man while both of you are still alive. Whatever the issues you have between you - the other woman, the differences you have to face - I suppose I wanted to know you weren't going to run away from it, whatever it proved to be."

"Really?" Surprise and compassion touched Ryoko's expression. "Kazuki, I..."

"Shh." Kazuki smiled, shaking his head. "You love Tenchi and you're going back to the Earth now. Aren't you?"

"Yes." Ryoko nodded her head slowly. "Yes, I am. And I'm going to find out once and for all if he really does want me. I've made decisions based on what I think he feels, but I don't know now if that's the truth. I thought he chose Ayeka and to stay on Jurai, but he left there, so I misjudged his motives and I need to stop doing that. I want to know if there is any hope at all and I suppose I need to be with him, even if that does make me sound weak and foolish. And as for Nagi, I would rather keep her off my tail. Because if I have to fight Ayeka for his affection this time, I will. Once and for all, if that's what it takes. So I don't want her to follow me. Things have changed now - she was right about that. I'm not wholly the pirate she fought in the past and I don't know if I want to be. I've other things more pressing on my mind."

Kazuki's expression broke into a smile and he held out the parchment to her.

"Here." He murmured. "And don't worry about Nagi. As far as she'll know, you left one night while I was sleeping."

Gratitude flickered in Ryoko's amber eyes as she took the chart from him, unfolding it carefully and glancing over it. At length she looked up.

"I can follow this." She said, relief on her face. "Thank you, Kazuki. You're as strange as your sister sometimes, but I have to say it works for you. I appreciate this."

"Well, there is one thing you can do for me in return." Kazuki grinned.

"What's that?" Ryoko looked surprised, re-folding the parchment and sliding it into her belt.

"If you do happen to meet Nagi in combat again, don't kill her." Kazuki looked rueful. "She is my sister, whatever else she might be. And I don't want to see her hurt."

"I don't think I would, now." Ryoko looked thoughtful. "Once, maybe, we'd have fought to the death. But I don't want to kill her now, Kazuki. I let her go the last time we fought...and it felt right, to do that. And you needn't worry. Nagi is strong - sometimes she's stronger than me. I don't think she'd be in a lot of danger."

She grimaced.

"Maybe you should be telling her not to kill me."

"She won't." Kazuki said thoughtfully. "If she really wanted your reward that badly, she'd have slain you and turned your body over by now. She likes the thrill of fighting you, Ryoko - the chase and the challenge. That's all."

"Really?" Ryoko frowned. "Maybe. But I'd rather not meet up with her again any time soon. I don't want to put your theories to the test."

She glanced down at Ryo Ohki.

"We should leave while it's quiet. Since people tend to be abroad on this planet during the night, we should probably make a move now." She decided. "I know there's still a hefty reward on my head, and even if Nagi isn't interested, I don't want to waste energy fighting idiots with money on the brain."

"That's wise." Kazuki nodded. "And I think I know the best place you can take off without being seen. Nagi uses it with Ken Ohki all of the time - if you'll follow me, I'll show you."

"Sure." Ryoko nodded, and Ryo Ohki leapt up onto her mistress's shoulder with a mew. "Let's go."