And for those of you that might wonder later, here's a direct definition of swan song, so you might know why I chose it.
Swan song: The last act or manifestation of someone or something; farewell appearance.
---Chapter 1-
The Woe of Memory
Washu had managed to escape the embarrassing situation at which she had let her guard slip, spilling the truth of her past to the entire group when Taro left. Flirting with Tenchi had created the perfect diversion; Aeka and Ryoko were at it in less than a few minutes. Before long Tenchi attempted to intervene at which point she casually flickered away, appearing again in her lab.
She was in her usual seat, staring out at the green haze that created the boundaries of what she considered her home. She closed her eyes, attempting to take comfort in the familiar surroundings, taking in the smells of the trees mixed with metal, kicking off her shoes to let hose-covered feet run across the cool, wooden balcony floor. She needed to know that she hadn't ended up in some alternate reality. She needed to know that things around her were still solid and firm, much like her equations and hard, cold numbers. They were unchanging and emotionless, something that she longed to be.
But no matter how much she would like to deny it, there was no way for her to be like those heartless objects. She was what she was even if she did fight it. Slender fingers rose, thinking of bringing up her keyboard to disappear again in her world of science, but the idea was soon swept away.
Instead she slumped forward, elbows on knees with gaze fixed on her large hands. It was an odd sight due to just how long it had been since she had seen herself in adult form. She didn't have time to change back when slipping away from the others.
And at the moment she felt no need. Instead she sat, calmly and quietly, for what seemed like ages. Then, very slowly, she began to cry. Only a few tears landing on her palms, then a whole wave.
She cried for hours, but it felt like days, even weeks. Her hands covered her face, she laid on her side as she wept, she changed from child to adult, even every now and then to a teenage age in between the two as she thought on her past and all that had happened to this point.
The loss of her son, the loss of Ryoko when she was captured, even the loss of adorable Ryo-ohki. And her husband...A man she still loved even despite herself. It was almost too much to bear.
It was only when she was lying on her back that she noticed just what time it was. The time simulation in her lab continued on its usual course, the green haze fading to that of a sunset before she was enveloped in darkness, manufactured stars lighting the balcony.
Washu felt as if she was slowly awakening from a very long sleep. Child hands wiped at her eyes which had swollen from all of the crying. Along with that, she felt unusually weak, like someone had sucked every ounce of energy from her.
She mustered up enough, however, to raise herself to a sitting position. She finally pulled up her keyboard with a sigh, typing in a few generic codes to make a black hole appear in the air. She pulled out a familiar object; a small tube, one end metal with small holes. A green liquid was cased within.
Washu pressed it to her shoulder, wincing slightly as the liquid took on a life of its own, shooting through the holes and through her skin to fill her system, relieving most of her tiredness in an instant along with the puffy eyes. Her unkempt hair even returned back to normal and any moisture on her skin from the tears quickly evaporated.
She tossed the tube back into the hole, a light smile crossing her face as she prepared for work once more.
"No more silly thoughts for you," she mumbled to herself, fingers typing away with new vigor at the keys. The liquid worked its magic, letting half her brain shut down and daydream as her fingers kept working on one experiment or another. She didn't really pay attention; she was too busy trying to wipe her mind of unwanted thoughts.
It wasn't until she awoke after a small three hour nap the next day that she realized just what she had been working on; something that made her want to scream in frustration and anger.
Her last choice was to destroy the plans, but would she be able to bring herself to do it? Even she, Washu, the greatest genius in the universe, was unsure of how she would handle it.