Sketches of Tenchi 2: Proposing to the Girls
A Tenchi Muyo! OAV fanfic
by HKMiller
1 December 1999
Featuring characters created by Hiroki Hayashi and Masaki
Kajishima, also copyright AiC and Pioneer.
- - - - - - - - - -
The dawn sun shone in through the window in Tenchi's bedroom,
waking him. Birds twittered. Tenchi slowly sat up, blinking.
"Oh, no. Today's the day. I've actually got to go through
with it: ask all five of them. Well, how bad can it be?"
- - - - - - - - - -
As the sun rose over the lake, Tenchi walked slowly through the
woods with Ryouko on one side and Aeka on the other. Tenchi
was sweating and twitching with nervousness. "Remember," Tenchi
told himself, "I went over and over this. Aeka and Ryouko have
to be first. And they have to be simultaneous. No choice."
Aeka walked sedately with her hands clasped together in front of
her; Ryouko alternately hugged Tenchi's arm and put her hands
on the back of her neck as she strode, or floated, along.
The two girls exchanged occasional knowing, amused looks.
In Washuu's lab, Washuu, Sasami, and Kiyone watched the threesome
eagerly. Sasami giggled; Washuu and Kiyone smiled.
"Errr... I have something to ask the two of you." Tenchi
finally started.
"What is it, Tenchi-sama? Please, say what it is you want."
"Yeah, Tenchi. Go ahead; spit it out."
Tenchi took a deep breath, then straightened his spine. He
turned, facing both girls, then took a hand in each of his.
"I'm sorry I'm not saying this to you individually. I hope
you understand that I don't mean any disrespect to either of
you. I just can't say this to either of you before the other."
Below, Washuu remarked, "I was wondering how Tenchi-dono would
handle this. So far, he's doing all right."
Sasami nodded in delight, Kiyone thoughtfully gave a slight nod.
"Both of you," Tenchi said carefully, as he got down on one knee...
- - - - - - - - - -
"Oops! Should have been both knees!" commented Washuu.
"Tenchi-niichan's doing it that Earth way," pouted Sasami. "I
hope he does it the Jurai way for me."
"We'd better make sure Tenchi-dono knows about the custom, then."
- - - - - - - - - -
Tenchi looked back and forth between the two girls, carefully
looking each directly in the eyes for the same number of seconds.
"...will you marry me?" Tenchi asked, as he quickly produced
two Jurai engagement earrings from behind his back.
"Oh, Tenchi!" "Oh, Tenchi-sama!" said two voices simultaneously.
Tenchi smiled and extended his arms to hug both girls as they
threw themselves at him.
"Tenchi-sama... I can't believe we'll finally be married. How
I have waited for this day."
"Tenchi... I love you so very much. Just let me be yours forever."
Tenchi smiled in relief.
Peering over one of Tenchi's shoulders, Aeka gave Ryouko a superior
smile and whispered, "Tenchi kneeled to me and not to you."
Ryouko smirked back. "And that's _just_ how you royal types like
it, don't you, Aeka-hime?"
Between them, hearing every word, Tenchi bowed his head and
sweatdropped.
- - - - - - - - - -
Tenchi walked in to the television room of the house. So far
so good.
"Mihoshi-san, would you like to take a walk with me through the
woods? It's such a nice day," Tenchi asked, wearing his best
smile.
"Oh, golly, Tenchi-san, I'd love to, but maybe in a little while?
My favorite show is on right now. And can Kiyone come too?"
"Dolt!" Kiyone muttered between her teeth as she elbowed Mihoshi.
"He's asking you, not me."
"Okay, Mihoshi-san. I'll check back with you later." Tenchi
walked away, wondering where Washuu and Sasami were.
In her lab, Washuu turned to the other three girls. "Sasami,
you're up. Better get out there. It won't do for Tenchi-dono
to walk in here and find us all watching him."
"Oh, boy, it's my turn!" Sasami gleefully skipped out of the
lab.
"I sure hope Tenchi-dono found that reading material I left
lying around."
- - - - - - - - - -
Outside, by the edge of the lake, Tenchi turned and faced
Sasami. He put his right hand on his tummy and his left on
his head, then glanced down at himself and quickly switched
his hands. Sasami stifled a giggle.
"Sasami-chan," Tenchi started, as he hopped once, tentatively,
up and down on his right foot, "I know you're a little young
to be thinking about things like this, but I have a very
important question to ask you."
"No, no, Tenchi-niichan. You're doing it all wrong! You're
supposed to start with your left foot. And you have to start
rubbing your tummy and patting your head at the same time.
Here, watch me; it works like this." Sasami proceeded to
demonstrate the Jurai proposal rite. Tenchi tried to imitate
it.
"Uh, Sasami; how did you know that I was trying to propose
to you?"
"Oops. I wasn't supposed to know, was I?"
"Sasami, I'm really not sure about this, you know. I know you
like me, and I like you, but you may be too young to make such
a major decision about your life."
"Tenchi..." Sasami stopped hopping and gave Tenchi a big hug.
"I know you think of me as your little sister," she whispered.
"But I love you soooo much. I do want to marry you. Please,
please let me. If you think I'm too young, please, won't you
talk to Tsunami about it?" Sasami started to cry.
Tenchi hugged Sasami, then picked her up and carried her
towards the holy tree Funaho. "Sasami, I believe you, but
I think maybe I'd better speak with Tsunami as well."
Sasami nodded, then lay down beneath the tree and promptly
went to sleep. Tsunami promptly appeared before Tenchi,
smiling at him gently. She approached Tenchi and kissed him
gently on the forehead.
In Washuu's lab, Aeka and Ryouko were glaring daggers at the
screen when a burst of static obscured the happenings outside.
Washuu smiled, then recited, "Oh dear. What could have
happened?"
"Tenchi, Sasami truly desires to marry you. And I promise
you that she... and I... will never regret it."
Tenchi smiled back at Tsunami in relief. "Okay." Tenchi
kneeled next to Sasami and carefully put an engagement
earring in Sasami's left ear.
- - - - - - - - - -
"Mihoshi-san, is your show over yet? I'd really like to take
a walk with you, just the two of us..." Entering the television
room, Tenchi drawled to a halt as he stared at the sight of
Mihoshi, still lying on the sofa, but now wearing her G-P hat
and trousers with a polka-dotted bikini bra. An even coating
of chocolate syrup, honey, and popcorn covered the snoozing
Galaxy Police officer. A slightly burnt Kiyone, working
away at the back of the interstellar television with a
screwdriver, glared at Mihoshi.
"Sorry, Tenchi-san, but I think Mihoshi's going to be just
a little busy for the next few hours.... CLEANING UP!" This
last phrase was screamed into Mihoshi's ear.
- - - - - - - - - -
Steeling himself, Tenchi knocked on the door to Washuu's lab.
"Oh, Tenchi-dono. Just the person I wanted to see. Let's
go out to the woods for a little experiment, shall we?" As
she spoke, Washuu exited her lab, grabbed Tenchi's hand, and
hauled him out of the house.
As they reached the woods, Tenchi pulled his hand from
Washuu's grip, stopped, and looked at her. "Washuu-chan, you
already know what I'm going to ask, don't you?"
"Well, there _IS_ a 1.57 percent probability that it's
something other than a proposal."
By main force, Tenchi ignored that comment. "Washuu-chan,
will you marry me?" He inclined his head and produced an
earring.
Washuu blinked, then raised her right hand and looked at the
stopwatch it held. She raised both hands into typing position
and her hologramic laptop appeared. She started typing.
"Seventeen seconds from the moment we left the house; my
projection was way off. Oh, by the way, Tenchi, my answer
is 'yes'. Now, what changes to my simulation could produce
a proposal in that short a time?" Washuu continued to mutter,
staring into her screen, as Tenchi, sighing, put the earring
into her ear, then turned her around and started to push her
back to the house.
Abruptly he found himself pushing a much taller Washuu, who
stopped and turned to face him. "I'm sorry, Tenchi, that
wasn't..." The now-adult Washuu paused. "Tenchi-dono, the
last person I felt this way about has been dead for tens
of thousands of your years. The walls I've erected sometimes
take some effort to pierce. I assure you, despite occasional
appearences, I do view you as much more than an experiment."
"That's okay, Washuu-ch... Washuu. I care for you too, even
if I'll never completely understand."
Washuu allowed herself a faint, amused smile as she leaned
forward for a kiss.
- - - - - - - - - -
"Mihoshi-san, are you finished cleaning yet? I'd really like
to take a walk. We can enjoy the sunset..." Tenchi stopped,
bowing his head and covering his eyes with one hand. Mihoshi,
now wearing a towel and nothing else, hopped around the room
from one foot to another, babbling. Kiyone just stared, then
covered her eyes in unconscious imitation of Tenchi.
"Oh, my, Tenchi asked me out for a walk! He really did! This
is just SO great; I can't BELIEVE it. I'm so... so... EXCITED!
Yes, that's it, I always thought that Tenchi just might be my
destiny, yes I did..."
Fifteen minutes later, Tenchi just grabbed Mihoshi's hand and
pulled her outside, still hopping and babbling. Regretfully,
Kiyone followed, trailing. "Tenchi-san, I think you're going
to have to knock her down and sit on her."
"I can't do that to Mihoshi-san, not today!"
"Mihoshi," Kiyone said as she gritted her teeth, "someday
you'll thank me for this." Kiyone extended one leg and tripped
Mihoshi, who promptly fell down, but not without pulling Kiyone
down with her. As Kiyone slowly sat back up, spitting the
dirt out of her mouth and glaring at Mihoshi, the latter
blinked and looked around her.
"Oh. Oh my. Tenchi-san?"
"Mihoshi, just sit there and hold still. Let me put this
earring on you first, and THEN we'll take a walk together.
Okay?"
"Whatever you say, Tenchi-san!"
As Tenchi walked and Mihoshi skipped into the sunset, holding
hands, Kiyone sat in the dirt, looking after them. "I just
hope Tenchi-san knows what he's getting himself into."
- - - - - - - - - -
That night, at dinner, five newly-earringed women chatted merrily
away, comparing notes between themselves and with Kiyone. Tenchi
alternately looked appalled and slightly pleased with himself.
As Tenchi reviewed his day, something else occured to him.
"Washuu-chan, may I ask you a question?"
"Sure, Tenchi, anything for my new fiance!"
"This Tokimi woman... entity... whatever... Any idea who she
is? What she is? How I can get in contact with her?"
"Nope! No idea at all!" Washuu cheerily replied.
"Are you SURE about that, _mom_?" Ryouko snarled. "She's
the same person who hired that octopus-head from your old
university, and HE thought you might know something!"
"Yes, Washuu-sama, please stretch your brain a little. Who
knows what 20,000-year-old item of knowledge might spring
out?" Aeka and Ryoukou glanced at each other, then away,
then nodded in perfect synchronization as they glared at
Washuu.
Just then, Ryou-ou-ki bounded in, heading for Sasami's lap.
"Tenchi-niichan! What about Ryou-chan? She's left out!
She wants to marry you too!"
"Miya!"
With an audible "pop", Ryou-ou-ki resumed her humanoid shape.
"Maaa-riii...." she successfully got out, smiling hopefully.
Tenchi stared, then , thinking furiously, replied, "I'm
sorry, Ryou-ou-ki. It's not that I don't care for you; I
do. I just don't think the two of us can have children
together."
Sasami pouted. Washuu started to cackle nastily. Ryouko
and Aeka glared at Washuu. "Don't even think about it,
_Mom_!"
Into the frozen tableau, Tenchi said weakly, "Well, let's
just think about that sometime in the future, okay?"
THE END (for now).
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