CHAPTER 4

Tenchi was the first to awaken. It was just after dawn. He was lying on his side with his right arm under his pillow and his left arm holding a still peacefully sleeping Ryoko. He was holding her close against him, in a 'spooning' position. He could feel her steady breathing against his chest. He could smell the fragrance of her hair. He was holding her around her stomach but he also realized that the top of his arm was snuggled against her chest. The only thing separating direct contact was the tee shirt that she was wearing. This was not the case with their legs. They were a bit intertwined; he felt the soft skin of her legs directly against his. Due to their close proximity his body was beginning to react… his heart began to beat faster, he felt more than a few butterflies flying in his stomach… and something else was reacting as well…

If this somehow had happened a day or two ago he most likely would have immediately separated from Ryoko creating a 'safe' distance. Everything had changed since then. Instead he smiled and snuggled against her just that much more. In response he heard her elicit a quiet "mmmm…"

"You feel so good, Ryoko," he whispered to her. She turned her head towards him, eyes barely opening with a now slightly wicked smile and coyly whispered back, "So I've noticed."

She could now practically feel the heat from his blushing face as he gave a slight laugh and said," um… yeah," and let out a huge breath.

She thought for a moment and then rolled over toward him, gently coaxing him to lie on his back. She then snuggled up against his right side as they returned to same embrace they had shared when they had fallen asleep.

"How are you feeling, Tenchi?" she said as she raised her head and looked at his face, her eyes now fully opened.

"I thought you just told me you could tell?" he said with a shy grin, still blushing a bit.

She giggled slightly and said with a smile, "I meant how is your cold?"

"Oh that," he realized with a bit of an embarrassed smile. "I think I'm feeling a little better. I don't think I have a fever."

She reached up and felt his forehead. "It doesn't feel that you have one, at least not right now. We better be safe though and have you stay in bed today just in case. I want my Tenchi healthy and happy."

He looked into her amber eyes and said, "You don't have to worry about me being happy. This is the happiest I've ever been in my life."

"Me too," she replied as her smile practically lit up the room. She then gave him a long, slow, and gentle kiss."

She laid her head back on his chest and they remained that way quietly together for a few minutes.

"Tenchi?" Ryoko asked softly.

"Yes, Ryoko?"

"I want to talk to you about something but I don't want you to get mad at me," she said. He could hear the worry in her voice.

"You can talk to me about anything, Ryoko." He looked at her as she turned her face to his and saw a hint of trepidation in her eyes. "I promise I'll listen."

"You won't think less of me?"

"I can't imagine ever feeling that way about you." He thought he had a pretty good idea of what she was about to say.

After a long pause she said, "I think you should tell Aeka about us as soon as possible."

He had been right. "Why do you think that, Ryoko?" he asked with a steady voice.

"Because not telling her isn't fair… to anybody." She sat up slowly in bed next to him looking down at her hands. "It isn't fair that you and I should act as if nothing has happened. It has. We've told each other how we really feel. We love each other and acting like we don't… well it would feel wrong." She paused.

"Go on." he said. She noted how quietly he had said it, her eyes glancing briefly toward him, but she continued, "It isn't fair to Aeka most of all. Until she's told she'll still think that you might choose her. But it's now a false hope for her, but she doesn't know it."

"If you had fallen in love with her I would have wanted to have known as soon as possible. It would have crushed me Tenchi, would have broken my heart, like I'm sure that it will with her, but I would no longer be living on false hope. And Tenchi that's the worst thing of all. Continuing to give her false hope is nothing more than a lie."

She turned and looked directly into his eyes, noting his very serious expression. "I don't want our life together to begin with a lie."

He looked back at her, seeing the determination in her gaze, considering everything she had just said, going over every word in his mind. She had said much in those few words and he knew that she meant every one. He thought it through and he knew what he was going to say.

At the same time he had another thought. Ryoko had always shown her physical bravery. Of that Tenchi never had any doubt. But now, with her words, she had risked a great deal emotionally; she risked looking selfish in his eyes, even with his assurances to her, so that she could tell him what he knew she truly felt in her heart.

He didn't think he could have been any prouder of her than at that moment.

"Ryoko."

"Yes, Tenchi?" she replied and held her breath.

He smiled at her and said, "You're absolutely right."

Great relief showed as she quickly exhaled. A gentle smile appeared on her face as well.

"I'm sorry for what I said about it before we went to sleep," he told her. "It would have been a lie and yeah, it would have been wrong. I guess I wanted to avoid hurting her as much as possible. But you're right. It's not fair to anybody, especially to her. She deserves to know the truth as soon as I can tell her." He reached out for her left hand grasping it with his right. "I'm sorry, Ryoko," he said. "Can you forgive me?"

Her smile widened and leaned down, kissing him quickly but firmly.

He beamed back at her, "I guess I'll take that as a yes."

"That's most definitely a yes, my wonderful Tenchi."

His expression became a little more serious but his smile remained. "Thank you, Ryoko, for being honest with me. For showing me that I was wrong. Don't ever be afraid of telling me if you think I'm wrong in the future either." Then with a big grin he added, "I'll certainly tell you when I think you're wrong."

"Oh you will?" she said raising an eyebrow.

He nodded saying "Uh huh."

"Gee thanks" she replied adding a smirk.

"Hey don't mention it." His grin continued.

"Don't worry," she said with a little shake of her head. "I won't."

They looked into each other's eyes for a few seconds, both his grin and her smirk softening. Tenchi then gently placed his left hand on Ryoko's cheek and pulled her down to him. She was again lying against his side, their legs once again intertwined. He began with little brief kisses… a number of them. As their frequency slowed, their duration increased, until they ended in a single deep passionate kiss. Their lips were partly open and once again they're tongues sought each other. His heart raced, his head practically spinning with delight. The butterflies in his stomach now felt like eagles.

He knew where this was headed, knew they were about to cross a line, knew they should be stopping. Human nature was telling him something else, however; he was a teenage boy, making out with his barely dressed, incredibly lovely and sexy girlfriend in his arms. He didn't care about any lines, didn't care that he was nervous, wasn't going to stop. He loved her. He wanted her… wanted her more than anything he'd ever wanted in his life and he had no doubt she felt the same way.

Ryoko broke the kiss but kept contact with his forehead and said almost breathlessly, "Are you sure you're feeling better?"

"Uh huh," he managed to get out.

"Good," she breathed and then bought her leg over him, moving onto him, straddling his lap, breaking her earlier promise not to try anything. Tenchi couldn't have cared less. On the contrary, he leaned forward to kiss her once again and she grabbed for his shirt pulling it up. He leaned back, helping her by raising his arms until he was free of it. Ryoko then in one swift motion removed her own shirt baring herself to him, causing him to gasp. As he looked upon her incredibly lovely form with awe, his heart pounded so hard he thought it would burst from his chest.

"You're so beautiful Ryoko," he said barely able to speak. "... the most beautiful thing I've ever seen." Her smile was instant and her eyes glittered with both love and desire.

"I promised everyone that I'd take care of you, my Tenchi," she said huskily looking into his eyes bringing her languid arms up slowly to rest on his shoulders, her hands caressing the back of his neck. "I keep my word." Her smile took on her familiar mischievous look.

After a quick smile of recognition for 'that' look, he pulled her against him, wrapping his arms around her bare back and began another deep passionate kiss…

Washu, at that point, turned off the monitor to Tenchi's room, and at the same time checked to make sure that their sound buffer was fully functioning. She then continued to fan herself quickly, as she had been doing for the last few minutes. Her blushing face was slowly returning to normal. "Woooff…" she quickly exhaled. She smiled looking back at the blank screen. "That a girl Ryoko."

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It had been... almost unbelievable. Tenchi never imagined anything could… feel like that. So that's what all those poets and storytellers were talking about, he thought. They never even came close...

Tenchi was lying on his back; Ryoko was off to his right side, her head on his chest, her face turned toward him, his arms about her. She had a radiant look of joy, satisfaction and peace along with the sweetest smile her had ever seen her give. Her eyes looked like liquid gold and he swore they had a glow about them. She saw in his face the same signs of contentment and happiness, along with a palpable feeling of wonder.

"I had no idea it could be like that, Ryoko," Tenchi finally said.

She knew he was going to say something like that, because she felt exactly the same. However, being her, she replied with a smile both sweet and tad mischievous, "Which time?"

He smiled in spite of himself and answered with a slight chuckle and a bit of a blush, "All of them."

She responded with a little giggle and blushed herself. She then leaned up and gave him a short but potent kiss. "I didn't know either but I knew it would be wonderful. Because it was going to be with you."

Tenchi rolled toward her, gently turning her until she was partially beneath him, their bodies together, and kissed her, slowly, deeply. When he finished he raised his head, looking into her wondrous eyes and said, "You make me so happy Ryoko… in every way."

The smile she gave him in response almost took his breath away. She's no devil woman, he thought. She's an angel. "My angel," he whispered to her.

"I like that," she said quietly. "I like that very much." Her eyes glistened with love for her Tenchi. She reached up and caressed his cheek.

Washu, after giving them what she deemed as sufficient 'private' time, had turned the monitor back on a few minutes before. She was crying, holding her handkerchief, looking at the two of them. "They're so beautiful together…" she said, a little sob escaping her. As she dabbed her eyes, she noticed movement in another monitor showing the hallway outside Tenchi's room. She watched a familiar figure walk up to the door obviously planning to knock on it. Washu quickly disengaged the bedroom's sound buffer and listened.

Tenchi and Ryoko heard a knock that made them look at the door.

"Good morning!" they both heard a cheerful voice say.

"Good morning, Sasami," they said in unison, looked at each other and quietly snickered.

"Oh brother," said Washu, her snicker not so quiet.

"I wanted to let you both know that breakfast was ready."

Ryoko replied quickly, "Thank you, Sasami. I'll come down to get Tenchi's breakfast, okay?"

"Okay, Ryoko." Then Sasami asked, "Are you feeling any better, Tenchi?" They could hear the genuine concern in her voice.

"Yes I am, Sasami. Thank you for asking."

"I'm glad to hear it," her tone reaffirming her statement. "Okay I'm leaving now. I'll see you downstairs, Ryoko."

"Alright I'll be down in a few minutes," Ryoko said and added, "Thanks. Sasami."

"You're welcome." Then Sasami turned and left.

"Well," said Ryoko, "it's back to the real world… for a while anyway." She sat up and gave him a quick kiss. She pushed back the covers and rose out of bed. Tenchi's eyes were locked onto her as she arose, transfixed by her loveliness. She half-turned toward him and asked, "Are you hungry?"

He merely nodded and simply said "Uh huh," still captivated by the sight before him.

Seeing his expression, Ryoko began to blush. "I meant for food, silly," she began to giggle.

"That too," he said his expression unchanging, his eyes still focused on her.

She tried to stifle her giggling and put her hands on her hips in an effort to look stern, failing miserably, laughing as she disappeared.

Tenchi let out a groan-like "oooohh" replacing his smile with a little frown.

Ryoko reappeared a moment later, full clothed in her yellow and blue house dress to see Tenchi's expression of mild disappointment. She smiled at him, walked up and gave him another kiss. "Time enough later for that, lover," she said after the kiss. "You need to get dressed too."

"I guess you're right," Tenchi said, a smile returning to his face. He then got out of bed.

Now it was Ryoko's turn to gawk and she made the most of it. Her infamous mischievous look was back in full force tinged with a slightly feral hunger. When Tenchi looked back at her he couldn't help but blush either. "Something I can help you with ma'am?" he said with mock solemnity.

"Oh yeah," she replied, her grin reminding him of a hungry lioness.

Then Tenchi got dressed. Ryoko's moan was a little louder than his had been. She bore the look of a baby who's just had her candy stolen.

Tenchi walked up to her, kissed her and said, "I guess we're both a bit perverted when it comes to each other, huh?" He smiled broadly, yet blushed all the same.

"Seems that way," she giggled. "Okay, back in a jiffy." She rose off the floor floating backwards towards the door, winking at him as she teleported out into the hall.

He stood there, for a moment looking at the spot from which she vanished. "I've always thought that her powers were so cool," he said out loud through a huge smile.

Washu, watching him on the monitor, smiled. "You're welcome, Tenchi."