"Ryoko! Ryoko, dang it, get up!"
The space pirate opened one eye, finding herself- not unlike Kojiro had been only a week ago- being shaken awake by Musashi. She shoved Musashi away, practically knocking her into the wall.
"What do you want?" she growled, rolling over. "I make it a point never to wake up before 10 o'clock, got it?"
"This is important!" Musashi snapped right back. "Since you're making no progress on finding out about Kojiro, I've taken the liberty of giving you a little help in the meantime."
"Help? With Tenchi?" Ryoko was up in a second, slipping on her favorite casual dress. "Tell me the whole thing."
Musashi, dressing while she spoke, explained her plan to her roommate. "Tenchi likes hard-workers, correct? People who earn their keep, instead of mooching off of others. Am I right, or am I right?"
Ryoko nodded. "Funny. You've only known him a week and it's like you've known him for years."
"I told you, I have a thing with guys..." a pause as the Rocket dug out a couple of clips to stick her hair up in a simple pony. "At any rate, if he likes working women, we'll give him a working woman. Today, we're going in to town and getting jobs- you, me, and Kojiro."
"Jobs?" Ryoko made a face. "Why do we all have to get one?"
"Because I can't stand another day stuck around this house with Miss Priss." Musashi pinched her nose and did a remarkably good impression of Aeka. "Oh dear, Musashi, don't you remember that today YOU were supposed to dust? Really, but what should I expect of a common crook?" She resumed her own personality. "I can't fly off like you. Besides, I want to make sure you don't screw up at the job."
"And Kojiro's coming why...?"
"Because if anyone knows how to screw up, it's him, and you can take pointers on what NOT to do from him," Musashi sighed. "That's what I'll tell Kojiro if he asks, anyway. The real reason being of course that I like having him around. We work better as a team."
"It's so romantic I can hardly stand it," Ryoko said sarcastically. She turned around to find a pair of slippers.
Musashi made as if to smack her over the head, but stopped short. "Aheh. Just don't forget that you still have a job to do for me- you said you had a way to find out, so use your way and hurry up!"

"Oh hi Musashi, Ryoko, Kojiro! You're up early!"
"Up with the sun, Sasami, that's always been my rule," Ryoko said groggily. "Got anything out to eat yet?"
The eleven year-old shook her head. "No one else but me and Takeshi are up yet. The miso soup is ready, though, and if you wait about ten minutes the steamed rice'll be all prepared too."
Musashi checked her watch. "Yeah, I guess we can wait. So no one else is up yet?"
"Only us," Takeshi replied, stirring the soup a few times. He took a taste. "Mm, I gotta give the Japanese credit on some great recipes."
"Well, Nomékop has a great selection too," Sasami told him, smiling.
"Flirting with kids, eh Takeshi?" Kojiro taunted as the younger girl walked across the kitchen. "A little screwy, but she's cute in a little-kid way..."
"Shut up," Takeshi snapped. "Can't I have a soul mate and not want her as a girlfriend?"
"Right, that's Mihoshi's position."
"Exactly."
Kojiro looked around to share a dirty little joke with Musashi, but found both she and Ryoko had disappeared.
"They went into the living room," Sasami said as if reading his thoughts. "I'll bring the food out when I'm done."
Kojiro slid open the kitchen door and found Musashi, Ryoko and Tenchi sitting around the table, the television playing a morning show.
"...Ryoko? A job? That's a first," Tenchi was saying. "I'm proud of you. But what brought about the change?"
Ryoko had planned this out already. "I just realized that I don't have any money of my own! And since Sasami keeps what we have under lock and key, I thought it'd be nice to have a little for myself. Besides, I've been slacking off for too long. I need to pay my stay, if you know what I mean."
"That's great," Tenchi agreed. "I didn't know you were the working type!"
"First time for everything!"
"Interesting type of flirting, but it works," Kojiro commented, taking a seat at the far end of the table, next to Musashi. He stretched lazily, hitting Musashi in the head in the process. "I still don't see why I have to come on this working adventure, if all I'm supposed to do is screw up."
"Quit whining!" Musashi said sharply. "And watch where your stetching next time!"
"Give me a good answer and I will!" Kojiro shot back.
"You're too stupid to understand a good answer anyway!" Musashi countered.
Tenchi sweat-dropped. "They aren't morning people, I guess."
"They do this a lot," Ryoko explained. "Just when you aren't here." She started to slide her arm slowly around Tenchi's shoulder. He stiffened. "Tenchi..."
WACK! Kojiro was hit hard with a paper fan. He yelped, falling backwards and putting a hand to his red cheek. "Ow! That hurt!"
"You should have shut up while you had the chance!"
Tenchi chuckled. "They say you only hurt the one you love."
Ryoko's arm slid all the way around until it was on Tenchi's other shoulder. "Tenchi..."
"LOVE?!" both Musashi and Kojiro spat. They looked at each other, than away.
"Why would I ever want to love that TYRANT/WUSS!?" they said in unison.
Ryoko sighed. Not only were they ruining a moment with Tenchi, but she was starting to understand what Musashi meant by "two of her."
Just then, Sasami walked into the living room with a tray filled with soup, rice and drinks. "Breakfast is served!"
'Thank God,' Tenchi thought to himself, scooting away from Ryoko and grabbing a bowl and chopsticks.
"Hurry up and eat, LADIES," Musashi said, shooting Kojiro a look. "We have to get to town before rush hour and get to work."
Ryoko looked up. "You mean you've already got us a job?"
"Sure do," Musashi tossed her hair. "Like always, I'm the one thinking ahead."
The other four (including Sasami) rolled their eyes, digging in to their meal.
"Good morning Tenchi! As usual, I am the first up and ready to wish you a-" Aeka stopped short, looking at the other early risers. "Oh, my. Ryoko, you're up rather early. I suppose your hangover wasn't as bad as usual."
Ryoko bared her teeth. "All I've got now is a headache from seeing YOU!"
"It just so happens," Musashi jumped in airily, "that Ryoko, Kojiro and I are going in to town to work. You know what work is, don't you Princess? That thing where you do something challenging to earn money?"
Anger veins were popping out all over Aeka's face. She opened her mouth to yell something, but stopped. The princess put a hand to the side of her mouth and laughed obnoxiously. "Ahahahahahaha! Oh, really, you are quite funny, you know that? Of course I know what work is! It's something I am very used to doing, and something that makes YOU vomit!"
Kojiro stuck his fingers in his ears. "Could you laugh any louder? I don't think Nibi City can hear you."
"It's true, though," Tenchi told her. "They're going into town in a few minutes."
Musashi once again glanced at her watch. "Ach! We're gonna be late! Aeka, darling, do you think you could wash off the working one's dishes? Ryoko, we'll need you to teleport us there."
"Where we going?" Ryoko asked, standing up and popping her knuckles.
"Oh, one of those foreign fast food joints... Pizza Hut, or something," Musashi remembered. "You know where it is?"
"Sure do." Ryoko grabbed Musashi and Kojiro's hands. "I'll teleport us to a back alley. No one ought to see us, then. Hang on."
A shimmer, and they were gone.
"Nice to see Ryoko working," Tenchi said, smiling in a way that seemed a little more than a friendly.
"For once!" Aeka sniffed, taking the dishes of the three workers. "But I see her manners around the house haven't changed. Oh dear. Now I'll have double duty during chores..."

"So, you're my new employees," the manager of the restaurant looked the trio up and down. "All right, you're young and energetic, just what I need."
"Yes sir!" Musashi and Kojiro said, deciding to treat their new boss like they would Sakaki.
He raised an eyebrow. "Right... okay, you"(pointed to Kojiro) "and you"(Musashi)"serve the tables. I'll need you up and about, and always cheerful. Can you do that?"
"Yes sir!" Musashi exclaimed.
"Cheerfulness is my middle name!" Kojiro added. "Well, actually it's Otsuri..."
"At any rate," their manager cut in. He jerked a thumb at Ryoko. "You'll be on delivery. Do you have your own car?"
"Um... you could say that," Ryoko said carefully. She smiled and gave him the classic "victory" sign. "Just leave it to us! Whne it comes to getting the job done, I won't quit 'til it's finished!"
"Good to know. Now get to work." He started to walk off. "Musashi and I have already discussed hours. Everyday but weekends and holidays, from 11-5 . Is that right?"
Musashi nodded. "Yes, sir!"
"Can you say anything else?"
"Yes, sir!"
"Ooookay. Good luck. I'll be around if you need help... or reprimanding." The older man walked off, leaving the trio of criminals by themselves.
Musashi sighed, smoothing down her new uniform. Red shirt, blue jean skirt... plain, but it worked. "All right. We know what to do, so let's do this and get ourselves some money. And remember-tips and sucking up mean everything. Oh, and Ryoko? Try not to materialize right in front of someone. It's not usually a good thing."
"Who died and made you Empress?" Ryoko grumbled, but took her position in the back to wait for a call-in. "And can I ask you a question, Musa?"
Musashi grimaced. She HATED that nickname. "What is it?"
"Why did you make me get up at 7 o'clock when our stupid shift didn't even start until 11? We spent over three hours wandering through town waiting for something to open up!"
"It looked better for a certain someone who shall not be discussed while in male company," Musashi said, glancing at Kojiro, who seemed to be spacing off. "Though, I don't know if he counts."
Ryoko nodded understandingly, jumping when the phone began to ring. It was obvious that that 'certain someone' was Tenchi.

Ryoko stretched, staring out the window of her room onto the sunlit lake in front of the Masaki house. It had been nearly a month since Rocket Dan and Takeshi had arrived to their home, and she had gotten nowhere with Tenchi. The space pirate sighed. Musashi wasn't going to help her until she found out about Kojiro... Ryoko's head hit the glass. She couldn't seem to get a moment alone with him anymore- either they were working or around other people.
"Uh..." she clenched her fists and cried to the sky. "At this rate Musashi'll be gone before I even get a date with Tenchi!" She sighed, head once again tapping the glass. "At least there's one good thing about today. It's a weekend, and that means no work." Ryoko closed her eyes, letting the sun seep in through the glass and on to her face. She peeked through one, just to see Kojiro walking out by the lake BY HIMSELF.
"Bingo," she chuckled, teleporting out of the room and down to where he had just disappeared in to the woods.

"Hi Kojiro-chan," Ryoko said, floating next to him. "Whatcha doin'?"
"Trying to escape the Wrath of Musashi," he grumbled. "You?"
"Oh, poor little Kojiro-chan," Ryoko said sweetly. "It must be terrible, having to live with that one everyday. I mean, she's my friend and all, but day in and day out... and being in love with her to boot... tch, well, I feel your pain."
"Can't people stop saying that about us?" Kojiro snapped. "Isn't it possible to have a female best friend and not have something going on?"
"Of course it is, sweetheart," Ryoko told him. Her feet now touching the ground, Ryoko stepped in front of him and put her hands around his shoulders. "And since you aren't interested in that one, maybe you'd like to try your luck with me, hm?"
Kojiro blushed and took a step back. "Now, hold on Ryoko-"
"Don't worry, Kojiro, I know you're tender, so I'll be extra gentle," she cooed, arms now around his neck and lips only inches from his.
"Hey! We barely know each other! Are you saying-"
"No! Of course not!" she grinned. "But what's a little kiss or two between friends? Especially if there's no one else?"
"Tenchi?"
"Oh! Him! As the saying goes, what he doesn't know won't hurt him." She winked.
Kojiro was about to turn tail and run, but realized suddenly that Ryoko was kind of cute. He knew he'd never love her like he loved Musashi, but THAT love seemed hopeless.
'What the heck,' he thought. 'A little romantic fling never hurt anyone. And it won't get far, anyway.'
"All right, Ryoko-chan," Kojiro shrugged. "If you want..."
Ryoko smiled inside. Kojiro swung her way; he'd swing Musashi's. "Haha! Late April fools! I really got you, didn't I?"
He blinked a few times. "You-you WHAT?"
"It was fun. I oughta tease you like that more often," she flew up above his head. "Bye now!" And the pirate was gone.
Kojiro kicked a rock angrily. "I will never understand women!"

"Okay Sasami, what's on the menu for lunch?" Takeshi asked, tying his pink apron on.
"Nothing special today. Just some rice balls," she explained, sticking a recipe paper in his face.
Takeshi looked it over. His eyes widened (as much as they could). "Hey! These are just like the donuts back home!"
Sasami raised an eyebrow. "Donuts?"
He nodded. "They're one of my specialties! You just take the afternoon off, Sasami! Leave this meal to me!"
Sasami took his advice, glad to have a little time away for once. She giggled as she went out. Donuts??

"Bon appetite!" Takeshi said regally, displaying the tray of rice balls to the rest of the family. "My own special recipe!"
Mihoshi took one and bit into it. She smiled wide. "Wow! Takeshi, these are great! I've never had rice balls this good!!"
Musashi and Kojiro exchanged looks. "Don't you mean donuts?"
"Pardon?" Aeka looked at them strangely. "Donuts?"
Katsuhito, who had joined them today, chuckled. "You have a very strange planet. Here, we call these rice balls."
"Yeah, donuts are those circle thingies with holes in the middle... um, it's kinda hard to explain, but they're really pretty good and they come in a whole bunch of flavors," Mihoshi told Takeshi. "We should go in to town and I could show you some and we could buy a few."
"Sounds good," Takeshi said, blushing. "When do you want to do it?"
"Um... I'm free Monday afternoon, aren't I Kiyone?"
Kiyone nodded. "You're free almost everyday, Mihoshi. Since we got those promotions, we hardly have to work odd jobs anymore."
"Right. Then, Monday?" Takeshi concluded.
"It's a date!" Mihoshi agreed. She looked at her watch. "Kiyone! What time were we supposed to check in at headquarters?"
Kiyone glanced at her own watch. "Oh my God! Mihoshi, we're gonna be late!" She grabbed her partner's hand and dragged her out of the house. "See you all later!"
"Bye Takeshi-chan!"
The door closed behind them.
"They come and go a lot, huh?" Ryoko commented, biting a chunk out of the rice delicacy and spraying crumbs on Kojiro and Sasami. Kojiro, who was still peeved about that afternoon, shot her a look and scooted away.
"W-wow..." All eyes turned to the speaker.
Takeshi had turned a brilliant bright red. His hands were clasped tightly in front of him, and he shook all over.
"Takeshi? Are you sick or something?" Sasami asked.
He made an odd sound in his throat, then shouted to the sky: "I JUST GOT ASKED OUT ON A DATE!!!"

"Little Washu? Are you in here?"
Washu looked up from where she was sitting, working on a machine. "What's up, Tenchi?"
"I brought you some lunch. You haven't come out in a while and I thought you might be hungry," he held out the rice ball and cup of tea for her.
"Thanks, Tenchi! You're a sweetie!"
He blushed. "So, how's the D-Space reversal machine coming?"
She crunched down her food in two bites, then gulped the cup of tea. "Not too good, I gotta say."
"What's wrong with it?"
She laughed nervously. "Well, the first machine took a lot of expensive parts- some of them are nearly impossible to find. And what's worse, I can't make a back machine without those parts. Now, if I was still the leader of the Science Academy, I wouldn't have any problem," she blushed slighty, "buuut I'm not anymore, so I've only got one of each of the parts!"
Tenchi could see where this was going. "Which means?"
"To put it simply: I have to unassemble the first machine, THEN build a totally new one that goes to their planet instead of ours! Plus, I have to get it so that they land within moderate distance of where they were when we picked them up- it would seem kinda strange to drop 'em on the other side of the planet- which means I have to pinpoint an exact location. That could take weeks!"
"Sounds tough," Tenchi sympathized, only half understanding. "How far are you now?"
"I've almost got the first machine all taken apart. All I have to do are find the correct parts, hook 'em up, pinpoint a location, and find a way to get those three to want to go back. No problem, right?" she said sarcastically.
"Get them to want to go back home? What do you mean?"
"Isn't obvious?" Washu asked rhetorically. "They're having a good time here. Takeshi and Mihoshi are absolutely smitten with each other, Ryoko and Musashi are thick as thieves- no pun intended- and Kojiro is getting along with most everyone! You've heard the Rockets complain about how bad their job was at home, and Takeshi talks about how the girls never treated him this nicely. Wouldn't YOU prefer to stay on a planet where no one cares about your pasts, where pirates and police are friends, and you've got freedom to pretty much do whatever you want?"
Tenchi nodded. "I see what you mean. But how did you know all of this? You're down here most of the time."
"I'm pretty observant, ya know," Washu replied easily, "it's what makes me such a genius."
"So, how ARE we going to get them to want to go back home?"
Washu slid back underneath the pile of wires and equipment. "We'll worry about THAT when the time comes. You better go back upstairs- Ryoko and Aeka'll start missing you."

"Tell me something, Musashi," Ryoko said, sinking down under the spa water. They were the only two there at the moment, and enjoying the bit of peace they had. "Do you think we're going to be able to pull this off by ourselves? I mean, getting me some private time with Tenchi won't be easy, what with Aeka always hanging around."
"You've got a point," Musashi remarked. "I have a great plan, but I don't think I can do it alone." She put a finger to her cheek in thought. "Who can we trust...? You know them better than I do- what's what around here?"
"NOT Mihoshi," Ryoko said immediately. "She'd blab to everyone. And Aeka, for obvious reasons."
"Well, doi."
Another thoughtful pause. "Kiyone can keep a secret, and I bet she'd help out. Sasami would, too, even if she is Aeka's sister."
"Uh-huh," Musashi nodded. "How 'bout Washu? We could use some of her scientific know-how."
"I think she'd be okay, if we can pull her away from her work for a while." Ryoko glanced at Musashi. "What sort of plan to you have up your sleeve, anyway?"
Musashi leaned over to whisper something to Ryoko, when the door to the hot tub came open.
"Hi! Hope you don't mind us!" It was Mihoshi.
Kiyone stepped in behind her. "We just got back from headquarters, and Tenchi offered to let us eat here. We're totally wiped out. Is it all right if we take a bath?"
Ryoko waved a hand. "Be my guest. I was just about done, anyway."
The pirate elbowed Musashi. "Ah, me too! Sorry to bathe and run, but you know how it is."
They grabbed their towels and robes and headed back to their own room. Once the door was safely closed behind them, Musashi snickered.
"Let operation: Date, begin."

To Be Continued...

Ryoko: Tenchi, isn't this wonderful? I wish we could stay like this forever. Just you, me, and the stars above us.
Tenchi: It's great, Ryoko. I've enjoyed every second of our time together.
Aeka: Oh my goodness! Can this be true?
Washu: Hearts will be broken and bonds will be made! It's a regular daytime soap!
Sasami: Next up in the PokéMuyo Series: No Need for Love!
Kiyone: It's unquestionably romantic!