Reaching an Understanding

Ayeka sank into the warm water with a grateful sigh. The additional dimensions that Washu had installed in the Masaki house's small and dingy bathroom had been a blessing from the stars, even if the diminutive scientist's presence was more than a little abrasive at times. Ayeka wasn't sure just how big the new space was, as she hadn't mustered the courage to push beyond the fringe of ferns and palms that edged the wood-panelled floor, and a polite inquiry to Washu one day had elicited a scoff, the response that it was as big as it needed to be, of course, you expect me to design something imperfect? And a trademark cackle.

"Some days, I do wonder just how long one can stay here without losing one's mind..." Ayeka murmured to herself. She opened her eyes and looked around, enjoying the greenery. Juraians always felt more at home among things that lived and grew, and the occasional warm breeze blew across the baths to make the foliage rustle just at the edge of hearing. So long as she kept her eyes on that and didn't pay attention to the shifting blue haze that lay just behind the trees, marking the edge of the dimension's usable space, the illusion was perfect and she could almost believe that she was at home again.

She closed her eyes and thought of Jurai, as she usually did when she needed a comforting thought to hold onto amidst that changes that her life had recently undergone. Ah, Jurai. The ancient and the all-powerful. She remembered silver, gold and ivory trees that stretched beyond sight, sparkling waters flowing through sculpted channels, graceful towers of living stone and timber. Days that were peaceful and dignified, orderly and proper...and yet, she had to admit now, also somewhat boring. As the First Princess, she had been born and raised for a life of duty and formality. Freedom as she had tasted it in the past few months had not been a feature of her life up until now, and she had to acknowledge that she was developing a taste for it, even if it meant a good deal more chaos from day to day than she had been accustomed to...not to mention socialising with characters who wouldn't have been allowed within sixty feet of her back in the palace and with whom she would certainly never have thought of sharing a house or a table.

The click of the door latch made her open her eyes in time to see the primary exhibit. Ryoko, a towel draped casually over one shoulder and a drink flask in her other hand, was padding in her cat-like way around the edge of a tub that Ayeka could have sworn hadn't been there a moment before – presumably this was what Washu had meant – and humming in an ineffably irritating manner. Gritting her teeth, Ayeka swam across to the corner of her tub, into the lee of a moss-covered rock, and tried to stay silent. She could hear Ryoko's humming continuing even over the rustling sounds of cloth as she undressed for her bath. So far that day, avoiding Ryoko had been the only thing that had gone right and the pirate's open-mindedness about nudity was one of many of her habits which grated on Ayeka's refined sensibilities. It didn't matter whether or not the sight was welcome or appealing. Even if it was, surely there was a time and place for such things...

Ayeka caught herself at "even if it was" and scolded herself for even thinking of that. She hitched her own pink towel closer around herself and tried to sink a bit lower into the water, telling herself to stay calm and not to spoil her bath by allowing herself to be irritated by the fact that Ryoko – who was still humming – was disrobing a few yards away. After a moment, however, the humming stopped and Ayeka heard soft footsteps on timber followed by the swish of water. She sighed with relief before realising her mistake and clapping a hand over her mouth. For a few seconds she thought she might have got away with it, but then she heard a whisper of displaced air and a shadow fell across her and she looked up into a pair of golden yellow eyes that were regarding her with amusement.
"Well, hello there, princess." Ryoko grinned. "I wasn't expecting you to be here."
"Oh, well, I..." Ayeka blinked and shook her head. Ryoko had teleported herself atop the rock that Ayeka had been trying to hide behind, and looking up at the naked pirate from below gave her a view that she was in no way prepared for. "I...I was just in here by myself. I must say, I wasn't expecting you to be here, either."
"Why not?" Ryoko shrugged and sat down on the rock. "There's nothing else to do. Sasami and Tenchi have gone into town to fetch the groceries. Ryo-Okhi's gone with them. And Washu has that 'Do Not Disturb' sign of hers on the door to her lab."
"Oh, the one with the automated point-defence laser system?" Ayeka nodded. "Yes, I see. What about everyone else?"
"Granddad's at the shrine. Tenchi's father is working late, as usual. And Kiyone and that airhead of hers got a call-out so they're in space by now. I'd go with them, only Kiyone says that having a notorious and most-wanted space pirate riding shotgun with them diminishes her authority as a Galaxy Police officer."
"I'm not at all surprised," said Ayeka. "And what do you mean 'that airhead of hers'? Are you referring to Mihoshi?"
"Of course I am, you idiot." Ryoko said casually. "Who else?"
"Well, I must say it's in terribly bad taste for you to talk about her like that behind her back," Ayeka folded her arms and turned away, secretly grateful to have found some infraction that justified her getting Ryoko's body out of her sight.
"Why? You've called her worse." Ryoko sounded amused.
"Yes, but at least I had the decency to say it to her face!" Ayeka objected.
"Oh, I see. It's all right to say it to someone and insult them, but it's not all right to say it where they'll never even hear it?" Ryoko frowned.
Ayeka opened her mouth to argue with that, found that she couldn't, and contented herself with raising her nose haughtily. Behind her, Ryoko sighed.
"Ah, what does it matter. So anyway, like I said, nobody else is around so I figured I'd come and relax in here. I didn't realise I'd run into you."
"Where else would I be?" Ayeka said. "Unlike you, Ryoko, I've finished all my tasks for the day. Have you even started yours?"
"Easy, princess. The leaves have barely started changing colour. The courtyard won't need sweeping for a few days yet."
"I swept the courtyard today!" Ayeka rounded on her angrily. "You were supposed to clean the windows!"
"Oh, was I?" Ryoko shrugged carelessly. "Well, I'm sure it'll rain again soon..."
"That's not the point! Just like how I had to sweep the courtyard! I did it because it was my job! I was supposed to do it, and I did it! I didn't just try to find an excuse to get myself out of it!"
"Oh, really?" Ryoko's eyes narrowed. "And if someone told you that your job was to jump off a cliff...I suppose you'd do that, too?"
Ayeka laughed scornfully. "I should have known you wouldn't understand it, Ryoko. I'm talking about a little thing called duty. I was obviously expecting too much to think that I could explain it to someone like you."
"Yes, you did overestimate yourself there." Ryoko shot back.
Ayeka's crimson eyes flashed for a moment before she closed them and took a deep breath to smother her anger. "No," she said quietly. "No, I won't let you do this to me, Ryoko. I came here to relax, and I'm not going to let you mess that up as well."
"That's the spirit!" Ryoko beamed, her antagonism vanishing instantly. She slid down the mossy face of the rock into the tub with a splash, and waved her flask. "Come on then, princess. Join me for a drink."
Ayeka hesitated briefly, cursing her breeding and good manners that made it so hard to bluntly refuse an invitation. "Er...do you even have any glasses for that?"
"Nope." Ryoko grinned. "I was just going to drink from the bottle. It doesn't make a difference."
"Maybe not to you," Ayeka said primly. "But to those of us who prefer to be a bit more civilised, it...no, no, I said I wasn't going to let you spoil this and I meant it."
"Well, then I guess it's all settled!" Ryoko took a generous pull on the flask and waved it at her again. "Come on, Ayeka. Even you have to let your pretty purple hair down occasionally."
Ayeka gave up. Giving a small huff, but not saying a word, she sat down, making sure not to be too close to Ryoko, who tossed her the flask.
"Catch, princess!"
Ayeka plucked it out of the air and sniffed at it, a look of genuine surprise on her face.
"Is this sake, Ryoko?"
Ryoko shook her head. "Nah, we ran out."
"I wonder why," Akeya sniffed it again. Ryoko ignored her.
"So it's just green tea instead. Flavoured with jasmine, by the way. No need to look like that, princess, I'm not totally class-less."
Ayeka sniffed the bottle again and discreetly wiped the top with the edge of her towel. It was clear that Ryoko wasn't going anywhere, and Ayeka was damned if she'd give her the satisfaction of having driven her from her bath. She, Ayeka, had got their first, after all. She took a small sip and handed the bottle back, looking for some suitably understated words of thanks.
"It's...ahem, rather nice."
"It is, isn't it?" Ryoko took another mouthful. "I'm rather proud of it."
"Hmm." Ayeka raised an eyebrow. "So this is what you were doing today instead of cleaning the windows?"
"Oh, for some of it." Ryoko smiled. "It's really not that hard when you know how."
"Well, I suppose even you have to be good for something." Ayeka sat back.
"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Ryoko glared.
Ayeka chuckled. "Try to take it as a compliment, Ryoko. I'm merely saying that you're not quite as bone-idle as you appear."
Ryoko laughed. "You know, I actually will take that as a compliment, princess. In my line of work, effective disguise is very important. You never want your enemy to know what you can really do...until you do it to them."
"So much for the concept of 'honour among thieves', then," Ayeka remarked. "But...I suppose I see your point."
Ryoko nodded. "I guess it's not so different from your life, in some ways."
"What? My life is nothing like yours!" Ayeka protested. "I am the First Princess of the planet Jurai! Mine is a life of...of honour and dignity and service!"
"No, your life has to look like one of honour and dignity and service," Ryoko looked at her, unmoved by her outburst. "You've got a public face you have to put on. You have to be the Crown Princess, unapproachable and oh-so prim and proper. You have to uphold the pride of your family and of Jurai. I get all of that. But you can't tell me that it's all you've ever wanted. That you've never thought of doing or being something else. I mean...sometimes it's got to get to you, right?"
"I..." Ayeka was rendered temporarily speechless. Ryoko, for all her apparent selfishness and insensitivity, could be frustratingly acute at times.
"So it is true?" Ryoko gave her a look that wasn't entirely unsympathetic. "I can't imagine that's easy for you, even if you were born to it. A life where you can't really be yourself...what kind of a life is that? I've only ever been myself. Only ever done what I want, the way I want."
"I can certainly see that about you." It was meant to be a stinging remark, but Ayeka was still recovering from the shock of Ryoko's unexpected insight. The pirate leaned back in the tub and nodded.
"Yeah, well, my independence matters to me. You've got your heritage. I've got that. Those are the things that matter most to us.. The things we shape our lives around. The only difference as I see it is that my thing lets me be me whereas yours makes you be someone you aren't."
"Nonsense! As First Princess-"
"Yeah, yeah." Ryoko waved a hand. "But think about it, Ayeka. You don't have any of your royal duties to do around here. You're sweeping courtyards now. You share a small room with your sister instead of a palace. And are you really telling me that you'd be unhappy if it stayed like that forever?"
"I...since you put it that way..." Ayeka's voice was quiet and she looked away. She had always told herself that her stay on Earth was only temporary, a simple holiday in between her busy schedule of royal duties. But she had never been able to bring herself to set an end date to it, or to seriously contemplate the thought of leaving since her near-departure with Sasami.
"See what I mean, princess? We've both had to wear disguises in our time," said Ryoko. "We've had to do it for different reasons, but we both know what it's like. But you've never figured out how to let your disguise go properly. You left your royal duties behind when you came here but you just found a whole new set of things to get hung up on. Sweeping courtyards, cleaning windows, the roster of chores..."
"Well, somebody has to care about them," said Ayeka. "Otherwise nothing would be done. We are guests in this house, after all, and we have to earn our keep."
Ryoko shifted closer to her. "Do you ever let it go? Just let yourself take it easy for once?"
Ayeka sighed. "It's not that I don't want to, but it's...not that simple. Not even here. I mean, I've got Sasami here...and she wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for me...she came all this way to find me."
"You might feel like you owe her," said Ryoko. "But why should you? She's a big girl now. She could have left and gone home if she wanted to. And she's got Tenchi and my Ryo-Ohki around. And Washu. And Kiyone, who must be almost as uptight as you are."
Ayeka smiled. There had been a gently mocking tone in Ryoko's voice that took the edge off what she would otherwise have taken as an insult. "Yes, yes. They've all been very kind. And I know Sasami enjoys it here."
"See? So don't worry about her so much. Take some time for yourself." Ryoko smiled encouragingly. "You know, Ayeka, somewhere deep inside you, I've always thought, there's a really nice person struggling to get out."
The light-hearted tone was still there and Ayeka looked up to meet Ryoko's golden eyes. "Well...I could say the same about you, Ryoko."
Ryoko laughed. "Don't tell anybody, will you. I've got a reputation to maintain, after all."
"I'll hold you to that as well," Ayeka said. As she joined Ryoko in laughter, she felt as if a weight was being withdrawn from her shoulders. She looked up and blinked in surprise to see that Ryoko had moved closer still. "Ryoko?"
"Hmm?" The pirate was looking at her with an uncomfortably appraising attitude. "Oh, nothing..."
Ayeka stared for a moment longer before she looked away. "Anyway. Thank you for the tea."
"It's no problem," Ryoko shrugged and grinned. "It was worth it just to hear the words 'thank you' from you."
Ayeka sighed. "Why did I think I could ever put up with you..."
She stood up and turned to get out of the bath, but felt a pair of hands close on her shoulders. She flinched, instinctively raising an arm to block and preparing to summon a forcefield, but then felt Ryoko's fingers moving in small, firm circles, pressing into her tired muscles.
"Oh...just what in all the worlds do you think you're doing?"
"I thought it was pretty obvious," said Ryoko. "Now, come on. You came here to relax, didn't you?"
Ayeka's instinct was to protest, but the sensations from the massage were already too good to ignore. "Well...maybe for a minute or two..."
"See? It's not so tough to let go." Ryoko guided her back into a sitting position and slipped around behind her. "Just trust me for once. This'll make you a much nicer princess to be around."
It said something for the effect of Ryoko's touch that Ayeka didn't even look up at that jibe. "Well...if you say so..."
Ryoko frowned as she moved up to Ayeka's neck. "And no wonder you're such a pain in the neck if yours has been feeling like this the whole time. Could you be any more tense?"
Ayeka sighed. "I suppose it's been one of those days..."
"All work and no play for the princess, huh?" Ryoko smiled sadly and her voice had lost its usual undertones of mockery.
Ayeka smiled. "That would be a good summation of things, yes. Where did you learn to do this, Ryoko?"
"You don't knock about the galaxy for a few centuries without picking up a few things," Ryoko shrugged casually. "Damn, Ayeka, you've got a knot here that Washu would stick a probe into..."
Ayeka couldn't hold back a slight moan as Ryoko massaged it away. "Oh, my...that must have been where I was carrying those buckets over my shoulder..."
"What buckets?"
"To clean the windows, of course." Ayeka glanced around at her. "Once I saw that you hadn't done them, I-"
"Did them yourself?" Ryoko rolled her eyes. "Why doesn't that surprise me..."
Ayeka sniffed. "I suppose it was too much to expect any gratitude from you."
She turned her head away again and Ryoko sighed.
"Look, I'm...I'm sorry, all right?" she said.
"I beg your pardon?" Ayeka looked around again. "I don't believe I heard you correctly."
"I said I'm sorry!" Ryoko couldn't hold her gaze. "You ...really didn't have to do that. For me."
"I didn't do it for you," said Ayeka. "But...thank you. I appreciate your contrition even if I don't have your thanks."
Ryoko saw a hint of a smile at the corner of her mouth and a slight softening of those crimson eyes. She smiled back.
"Well, then...thank you, Ayeka."
"I'm sorry? I don't think I heard you then, either."
"I said – oh, very funny, princess, very funny." Ryoko grinned. Ayeka was smiling playfully now and she gave a small laugh.
"Well, you can't blame me for trying. I don't expect I'll hear those words from you again for a while."
"Not if you carry on like that, you won't," Ryoko grinned back.
As she worked her hands back across Ayeka's shoulders, Ryoko acknowledged that, when she removed the metaphorical large pole from herself, the First Princess was actually very good company. Ryoko had lost count of the number of times she had found herself sharing the couch with Ayeka to watch the same show or film. She had a taste and capacity for sake that was extremely impressive for someone who couldn't instantly metabolise alcohol. And even when Ayeka was at her most stuck-up, Ryoko had to admit that she actually enjoyed being around her, even if it was mainly for the satisfaction of taking the imperious Juraian down a peg or two. Space piracy was not a life that lent itself to making friends, and, Ryoko realised with a shock, aside from Tenchi there was nobody whose company she enjoyed more than Ayeka's. And even then, Tenchi's passivity could be tiresome whereas it was never too difficult to provoke some kind of response out of Ayeka...
"Hmm..." Pondering that thought curiously, she allowed her hands to go a bit lower. Ayeka's back stiffened.
"Now, wait just one moment!"
"What's the matter, princess?" Ryoko smiled. "It's not too much for you, is it?"
Phrasing it as a challenge has the desired effect, as Ayeka promptly shook her head.
"No, not at all. Of course not. I was just...surprised, that's all."
"Well, now that you're over it, do you think you could give me a hand here? This towel of yours is getting in the damn way."
Ayeka's hand flew to the corner of her towel where it was tucked in under her arm. "You want me to take this off?"
"It's not like I've not seen you before, you know," said Ryoko. "And if you're going to do this then you should do it right."
Ayeka hesitated. Nudity was vulnerability, but since Ryoko was already naked she supposed that they would still be on equal terms. And the pirate's ministrations to her neck and shoulders had been quite heavenly...
"I suppose it couldn't hurt too much..." she murmured, untying the towel.
"Oh, it won't hurt at all," Ryoko's mouth was suddenly whispering into her ear. "I promise."
Before Ayeka had the chance to think that through, she had already let the towel go. It slipped open and fell away, baring her breasts and back. Ryoko's hands were soon back to work, rubbing tight, diminishing circles down her body. Ayeka sighed and arched her back concave.
"Oh, dear me...I won't ask where or how you learned to do this."
"Hey, a pirate's got to have some time off as well, you know," Ryoko joked. "Just like a princess, really."
"Hmm." Ayeka looked thoughtfully around at her again. "I suppose we're not all that different. In some ways, at least."
"I guess not." Ryoko paused for a moment and pulled a face. "What a horrifying realisation."
Ayeka laughed. "Oh, Ryoko, you're really quite incorrigible."
She turned away again and relaxed, bowing her head down as Ryoko's hands worked their way back up to her neck. Ayeka closed her eyes and her mind drifted happily, lost on the currents of pleasure that she was experiencing. It was only when Ryoko's patient motions stopped and she felt the lightest feather of a kiss on the back of her neck that her eyes snapped open again.
"What the...Ryoko?"
"Hmm?" The pirate's arms slipped around to her sides.
"That was rather...unexpected..." Ayeka felt a blush rising to her cheeks. Ryoko's breasts were pressed firm on her back as she rested against her.
"It was just the start." Ryoko murmured. "You're learning to let go, aren't you?"
"I...well, yes, but..."
"Well, then." Ryoko dropped her embrace for only the moment it took her to slide around to Ayeka's front and re-establish it. "What's the matter?"
"I..." Ayeka met Ryoko's golden eyes for a moment before the intensity of their gaze made her look down. But the sight there, of Ryoko's glistening breasts and nipples, was no less distracting, and she made herself look up again. Ryoko was giving her a wry smile as she advanced towards her again.
"You're supposed to be letting it go," Ryoko murmured. "So let it go."
She brushed her lips against Ayeka's for a half second before pressing them together lightly. She sat back, congratulating herself for the shocked look on Ayeka's face.
"You're not afraid of me, are you, princess?"
"Afraid?" Ayeka's eyes narrowed.
"Well, you seem it to me..."
Their lips met again, but more firmly this time, and this time it was Ayeka taking the lead though Ryoko only welcomed her. Their arms held each other tight and when Ayeka finally pulled back her eyes were flashing with red flame.
"Gods, but you're impossible, Ryoko," she breathed.
"Well, you'd better get used to me, princess," Ryoko seized the initiative and swung herself around to straddle Ayeka's lap. "'Cause I'm not going anywhere."
Ryoko had the advantage of height and used it mercilessly, both hands against Ayeka's breasts to press her against the side of the tub. Ayeka gave a momentary whimper, which Ryoko soon smothered with her mouth. Ayeka's breasts were soft under her touch and she parted her fingers in order to pinch her nipples between them. Ayeka gasped and arched reflexively. Ryoko grinned like a predator and kissed her again, making her way along her finely-sculpted jaw and down her neck.
"Now you're getting the hang of it," she purred.
Ayeka cried out at the feeling of Ryoko's teeth against her skin and raised her hands. They found Ryoko's breasts, hanging from her chest as she bent over her. A scattering of water droplets still adhered to the tanned globes and, though it was warm even out of the water, the dark nipples stood erect in Ayeka's palms.
"Ryoko, really!"
"You're not backing out of me now, are you?" Ryoko raised an eyebrow.
"N...no..."
"Good." Ryoko smiled. "So just lie back and enjoy it..."
Ayeka's eyes went wide as she felt Ryoko's hand on her inner thigh, unable to close her legs due to the position of Ryoko between them. Before she could object, Ryoko has closed her mouth over hers again, stifling any protests she might have been inclined to make as the hand crept its way up slowly, inch by tantalising inch. By the time Ryoko broke the deep kiss, Ayeka was almost breathless with anticipation.
"Ryoko, I..."
"You trust me, don't you?" Ryoko cocked her head.
Ayeka met her golden eyes and, for once, saw nothing but honesty in them. But her voice deserted her in the moment. "I..."
"On second thoughts, you don't have to answer that." Ryoko kissed her again. Ayeka gave a muffled yelp as Ryoko's hand cupped her sex. She writhed and managed to break away long enough to cry Ryoko's name.
"Ryoko!"
"Hush, now." Ryoko touched a hand to her cheek and turned her face back towards herself. "There's a good princess."
"Oh, Ryoko..." Ayeka felt helpless in Ryoko's arms, her own hands draped around Ryoko's shoulders. The touch between her legs was every bit as skilful as the ones the cyan-haired woman had lavished on her neck and shoulders, forceful and yet strangely gentle and intimate. Ryoko's fingers brushed the lips of her sex, learning the shape before they began probing further.
"Now, what have we here..." Ryoko kept her eyes on Ayeka's face as she slipped a fingertip inside her, enjoying how her eyes widened and her breath caught, taking in every detail of her blushing cheeks and the way her lips trembled as the finger began pushing deeper. "I guess even Juraian royalty are made just like the rest of us..."
Ayeka's head fell back against the edge of the tub and Ryoko took the opportunity to scatter kisses down her exposed neck. She was helpless to resist and could only cry aloud again. Ryoko broke off and looked down at her, thrilling at the sight and enjoying the feeling of power. She increased the pressure, pressing the palm of her hand over Ayeka's sex, her finger now fully inside her. Ayeka's hands fell limply from Ryoko's shoulders, splashing into the water as she shifted backwards, spreading her legs to accommodate her.
"Ryoko...please..."
"Ah, I think she likes it," Ryoko's teeth flashed as she grinned. "Well, well..."
She slipped an arm around Ayeka's neck, coaxing her first into a sitting position and then bringing her to her feet, the hand between her legs providing the push. Her slender alabaster body glistened as it left the water and she fell forward against Ryoko in a heartfelt kiss as the sensations inside her mounted. Ryoko accepted the kiss gratefully and smiled.
"We're only just beginning, princess."
"We are?"
Ryoko nodded. "Oh, yes...because you're mine now, Ayeka."
Ayeka moaned as Ryoko's finger slipped a bit deeper. "Yours, Ryoko..."
"That's right," Ryoko kissed her again. "All mine..."
Ayeka barely saw her move. The nimble pirate withdrew her hand from between Ayeka's legs and span her around, taking up a position behind her. Ayeka felt her hands on her shoulders again, but they weren't massaging her now.
"Ryoko! What are you-"
"Don't argue with me," Ryoko whispered in her ear. She increased the pressure, gradually forcing Ayeka down onto all fours, half in and half out of the bath. Taking a moment to enjoy the sight of Ayeka's rump which was now presented to her, she leaned over the Juraian's back and pressed her down with her own body. Her hand resumed its place and Ayeka yelped as she felt Ryoko inside her again.
"This is really not-" she began.
"Not what?" Ryoko's mouth was at her ear. "Not enjoyable? Not pleasurable? Not what you want? Because I know you want it, Ayeka. I know. I can feel it. And I know you're liking it, too..."
Ayeka cried out in ecstasy as Ryoko's tongue traced the rim of her ear. Ryoko's lips kissed her neck and Ryoko's teeth grazed her skin. Ryoko seemed to be the whole world, encompassing her and filling her with sensation. Her fingernails dug into the timber decking as she writhed.
"R...Ryoko!"
"That's right, princess," Ryoko encouraged her. "Let yourself go. Give yourself this. This one thing. Take it. Take it all and enjoy it."
"I will...oh, gods, but I will..." Ayeka's breath was becoming shallow. "Just...please....please, Ryoko...don't stop."
Ryoko laughed. "Oh, as if I would...I'm enjoying this far too much myself..."
Ayeka whimpered. Ryoko's breasts were pressed firmly against her back and there was no question of escape even if she'd been inclined to attempt it. She had no choice but to surrender herself to the mounting wave inside her, letting it break over her and carry her with it. She screamed aloud, Ryoko's name echoing across the bathhouse.
"Ryoko! Gods, Ryoko!"
Ryoko laughed triumphantly as she forced Ayeka to ride the wave of pleasure right to the end, feeling her muscles tensing with every electric pulse, and only withdrawing from her when she finally relaxed and lay still beneath her, her panting breath the only clue that she was alive. Ryoko sat back on the edge of the bath and discreetly licked her finger, as much out of curiosity at what the princess tasted like as to savour a job well done.
"You all right there, princess?"
Ayeka rolled over onto her back, her eyes still closed and her face flushed. Her chest was heaving as she regained her breath and Ryoko enjoyed watching the gentle motions of her breasts. Smiling to herself, she stroked Ayeka's leg softly.
"I said, are you all right there, Ayeka?"
"Yes...yes, of course...I'm fine..."
Ryoko chuckled. "I'm glad to hear it. For a moment there I was afraid it might have been too much."
"Oh, it certainly wasn't that..."
Ryoko leaned over her and nuzzled her lovingly, bestowing a light kiss on her lips. "Good."
Ayeka kissed her back and smiled peacefully. "I suppose I should thank you for that."
"Well, if you think it proper," Ryoko grinned. "It was one of my best efforts, after all."
Ayeka looked up at her with a contented sigh. "Yes, I suppose it was an...adequate performance from someone who never had the benefit of an education in such matters."
Ryoko's eyes flashed. "Hey, what are you saying?"
Ayeka sat up into a kneeling position, putting her arms around Ryoko's waist and drawing her close. The kiss was soft but passionate, and Ryoko couldn't help stepping backwards as Ayeka deepened it and stepped gracefully into the water. She drove Ryoko back further until they collided with the rock at the edge of the tub, the thick layer of green moss cushioning the impact.
"I mean that...harmonious relationships are very important to us on Jurai," Ayeka whispered. "Especially among the royal branches. And so we are prepared for this aspect of our lives, just as we are prepared for all the others."
"Are you saying you have...teachers for this?" Ryoko's eyes widened.
"Of course," Ayeka smiled and slipped a hand between Ryoko's legs. "I'm fully versed in the theoretical concepts."
Ryoko shuddered as Ayeka's touch grew deeper and more intimate. "Only the theoretical concepts, princess?"
Ayeka's smile widened. "Well, I must admit that my handmaiden tutor was a great believer in the practical application of theory...and she certainly encouraged individual private study."
"Handmaiden tutor? Private study?" Ryoko's mind explored the images that those statements conjured up and she shuddered again delightedly at the thought of them.
"You must have been a very conscientious student, then," she managed.
"Oh, I was." Ayeka drew closer and lowered her voice. "It was my duty to learn it. And to be good at it. I am, after all, the First Princess..."
Ryoko grinned. Part of her was mildly disappointed that Ayeka wasn't totally inexperienced in this field, as it robbed her of an advantage she thought she held, but on the other hand the knowledge opened up a vista of opportunities and promises. Ayeka seemed intent on fulfilling one of them straight away and she pressed Ryoko back against the rock as she kissed her deeply, sensually, her hands exploring the pirate's body with a tender and affectionate touch. They roamed over Ryoko's breasts, brushing the hard nipples and traced down her smoothly-curved flanks.
"My, my, princess," Ryoko smiled. "You do seem to know a thing or two."
"As you said, Ryoko," Ayeka smiled back. "We're only just beginning..."
She kissed Ryoko's lips one more time and then began moving down her body. Ryoko felt her hot mouth on her neck, her shoulders, her collarbone, and couldn't hold back a sigh of pleasure as Ayeka found her breasts. Long fingers teased her nipples which were then soothed with kisses so tantalisingly light that they made Ryoko's hair stand on end. Then Ayeka was gone, sinking to her knees before her, trailing kisses over her taut stomach. Ryoko looked down at her in surprise.
"Ayeka?"
Ayeka looked up at her with a knowing smile. "Don't tell me that you are having second thoughts now?"
"Well, no..." Ryoko was momentarily confused by Ayeka suddenly adopting her own tactic of phrasing question as challenges.
"Good." Ayeka stroked her inner thigh. "In that case..."
Ryoko's golden eyes flew wide open as Ayeka placed the first kiss on her sex. Her tongue followed her lips in a soft, exploratory lick that almost made Ryoko melt on the spot.
"Oh, Ayeka...so is this how they do it on Jurai?"
"Sometimes," Ayeka smiled up at her. "I do hope you approve."
Ryoko smiled back and ran a hand through her purple hair. "Very much so."
"Well, then." Ayeka guided Ryoko to open her legs for her. She leaned forward again and kissed her, closing her eyes and letting herself get accustomed to the unfamiliar, but by no means unpleasant, taste in her mouth. For her own part, Ryoko was content to lean back and sink into the feelings being lavished upon her. Among the things that a pirate's life was not well-suited to cultivating was intimacy, and never before in even Ryoko's long and adventurous life had anyone paid this much, or this kind of, attention to her.
"Gods damn, Ayeka...they taught you too well."
"Well enough to know that there's no such thing," Ayeka murmured. "Now do be quiet, dear Ryoko."
Ryoko felt her racing heart skip a beat at the sweet admonition and she wondered at the fact as she closed her eyes and lay back again. Ayeka resumed her work patiently. She had started by telling herself that she was proving a point – namely that anything Ryoko could do to her, she could do to Ryoko even better – but even that motivation was no longer uppermost in her mind. She exulted in every sound Ryoko made, spurring herself on to find new ways to heighten the pleasure. Her questing tongue found Ryoko's bud at her apex and she sealed her lips around it, coaxing it into her mouth where she flickered her tongue over it in a way that made Ryoko go weak at the knees, sagging down the rock and crying aloud. Ayeka revelled in it, congratulating herself as she realised how much she was enjoying this. Invincible, indomitable Ryoko was exposed and, it seemed, completely under her power. She experimented with quickening her pace and slowing it down, increasing the pressure in a way that left Ryoko gasping for breath and then lightening the touch of her mouth and lips to the merest graze, scattering soft kisses around her sex to heighten her anticipation. Ryoko groaned and raised a hand to her breast, her own fingers finding her nipple to increase the stimulation. Ayeka saw the movement and looked up. Ryoko caught her gaze and blushed uncharacteristically until she saw the approving smile in Ayeka's eyes. She smiled back, reaching down with her other hand to stroke Ayeka's hair back. Ayeka nuzzled her hand for a moment before kissing her and plunging her back in the world of sensation. Ryoko moaned as she felt a shudder run through her body, followed by another.
"Ayeka..."
The princess seemed to know Ryoko's body better than Ryoko herself. She brought her to the very precipice of bliss, let her coast along the edge without ever pushing her over, and then letting her recover. Ayeka worked slowly, drawing it out as long as she could. She enjoyed Ryoko's sensitivity, returning to her with small touches and licks that made the pirate jump involuntarily before finally taking her leave with a soft and lingering kiss. As she moved to sit back, Ryoko reached down and cupped her chin in her hands.
"Get your damned self up here, Ayeka," Ryoko panted. "Right now."
"Hmm?" Ayeka looked up and stood. "I hope I wasn't hurting you..."
"Too far from it," Ryoko's eyes were incandescent with yellow fire. "You Juraians may have the techniques, but I don't have the patience."
She seized Ayeka's wrist and pressed her hand between her legs as she kissed her fiercely. Ayeka rallied quickly and did as she was bid. Ryoko's sex was slick with her own arousal as well as Ayeka's ministrations and it took little effort to press inside her. Ryoko gave a growl of pleasure at the penetration, a wild, animal sound that made Ayeka's breath catch. The princess leaned in and placed a fiery kiss on the pirate's lips, her soft breasts pressing against Ryoko's as their chests met. Their eyes, only inches apart, blazed with passion. Ryoko's teeth were gritted and Ayeka could see every muscle in her taut body tensing. Ryoko's leg came up, bringing her thigh between Ayeka's legs, whether deliberately or not, and as Ayeka drew closer for another kiss she felt Ryoko's warm, smooth skin against her. She allowed herself to sink down, her hips moving rhythmically as she pressed herself against her lover. Her senses were still heightened, and were sharpened still further by Ryoko's reactions.
"Show me what else you can do, princess," Ryoko snarled. "All of it."
"That would take more time than you've got, Ryoko," Ayeka kissed her firmly.
Ryoko raised her leg further and was rewarded by a groan of delight from Ayeka. "I've got all the time in the worlds."
Ayeka pressed deeper inside her. "Then let's make a start, shall we?"
"Gods, yes." Ryoko's head rolled back. Ayeka kissed her neck, cupped her breasts and redoubled the motion of her hips. Ryoko clutched at her, holding her close as they exchanged kiss after kiss, their shared pleasures driving them almost to desperation.
"You...really are...impossible, Ryoko," Ayeka whispered, feeling it building up inside her again.
Ryoko gasped and clasped her arm suddenly, looking up at her with wide golden eyes that held a pleading look that Ayeka couldn't refuse. She leaned down and pressed herself against Ryoko, increasing the pressure with her hips as well.
"Yes, that's right," she whispered, imagining what she knew Ryoko to be feeling. "Come on, Ryoko."
It was as if Ayeka's gentle voice was another kind of touch, the final one Ryoko needed. Her pleasure came all at once, washing through every cell in her body like a supernova. She gave a wordless cry of ecstasy as the peak hit her. The look on her face as she lost control was more beautiful than Ayeka could bear, and she found herself raising her voice along with Ryoko as if she too was sharing the climax. She clung to the pirate like she was drowning, and could feel that Ryoko was holding her just as tightly. The first peak had passed her, but as the secondary waves hit her she was panting Ayeka's name as if it were some kind of mantra.
"Ayeka...Ayeka...Ayeka..."
Ryoko breathed deeply and let it out in a final sigh. Ayeka, her own breath still trembling as she recollected it, stroked her cyan hair tenderly and withdrew her hand, which she realised was dripping slightly with the evidence of Ryoko's pleasure.
"I'm here, dear Ryoko," she said soothingly. "I'm right here."
Ryoko drew her head down for a kiss, something akin to admiration in her eyes.
"So I see, princess."
For the first time Ayeka could recall, Ryoko used her title without the slightest hint of irony or mockery in her tone. It made her smile as she took a breath to recompose herself.
"I certainly hope that was...educational for you, Ryoko."
Ryoko grinned. "You could call it that, I suppose. Among other things."
Ayeka couldn't suppress a delighted giggle. "I'm so glad to hear it."
"It was really quite something," Ryoko smiled. "Oh, and by the way...'dear Ryoko'?"
Ayeka blushed. "Er...perhaps in the heat of moment I got a little...carried away..."
"No, no." Ryoko took her hand. "I liked it."
Ayeka looked up. "You did?"
Ryoko kissed her again. "Would I lie to you?"
"Well, there was that time when -"
"Fine, fine," Ryoko grinned. "If you're going to take me literally..."
"How else would you like me to take you?" Ayeka smiled coyly.
Ryoko laughed, unaccustomed to such a riposte from the demure princess. Ayeka joined her in her laughter and kissed her once more.
"Well...you just think about that, Ryoko."
"Maybe I will." Ryoko smirked.
"I'm counting on it." Ayeka stepped out of the tub, recovering her long-discarded towel and wrapping it around herself. She turned to go and hesitated. "And...Ryoko?"
"Hmm?" Ryoko turned those golden eyes up to her. Ayeka felt their warmth and couldn't stop a small smile coming to her lips.
"I'm...grateful for your assistance. With relaxing, that is."
"Oh, it was my pleasure," Ryoko waved a hand and then grinned wickedly. "Eventually."
Ayeka blushed and giggled again. "Well, I won't tell anyone if you won't."
"It'll be our little secret, princess. I promise."
Ayeka smiled again. "Well, then...I suppose I'll see you at dinner, Ryoko."
"Damn right. Hard work makes a person hungry, you know."
Ayeka chuckled. "Oh, Ryoko..."
Ryoko watched her go and sat back with a contented sigh.
"Being home alone isn't so boring after all..."