"Tenchi, do you know what a dichotomy is?"
"Uhm, er.. well, that is to say..."
"A simple no would suffice."
"Gee, I'm sorry Fuun..."
"Tenchi, don't apologize! *Sigh* A dichotomy is a process of division into
two mutually exclusive groups."
"Say again?"
"It's something of a forced split, like when an amoeba gets too big and
becomes two amoebas."
"Oh. Uh, are you trying to suggest we're like two amoebas?"
"Well, I guess you could say that. The point is, I *HAVE* to get out of
here!"
****
'Let the Fuun Begin!', a prequel to the Fuun Muyo: Ken-Oh-Ki! / Tenchi
Muyo: Ryo-Oh-Ki! dual series, by Kevin Sigmund (bshrimp@together.net)
Disclaimer: Tenchi Muyo and any of the characters associated with that
series aren't mine and are owned AIC and Pioneer LDC. I'm writing this for
sheer pleasure, and I hope that's okay (I mean I'm not the only one doing
it). Anyway, all I ask is that you don't claim credit for this fic or use
it for your own nefarious ends. That's Terikaesu's job...
****
It seems odd that I didn't notice it at the time, but the previous night
had been particularly weird. I mean storms with crackling red energy and
explosions of blue light would at least seem odd to most people, but I
guess things like that just don't even phase me much anymore. But now that
I think about it, I really had wished I talked to Washu about it before we
made that trip. *Sigh*, just another thing to add to my long list of
faultless guilts, or at least that's what Fuun insists on calling them.
Anyway, speaking of Fuun, that's how we first met. It was that very trip I
mentioned, that we would end up making his life almost as bad, if not more
so, than mine. See, my dad had connived me into taking all of the girls
out on a little trip to a family owned women's department store called,
Kikkyou's Clothing, which happened to be owned by Fuun's long absent dad.
As you might be able to guess, the girls certainly made things
interesting...
"Tenchi, do you like this one?", asked Ryoko in the most syrupy sweet tone
she could muster, as she pointed to a very revealing green dress.
"Uhm, well...", blurted Tenchi as he desperately tried to find something
interesting on the floor to look at.
"Ryoko, can't you see that Lord Tenchi is not interested in anything you
have to offer?", cut in Aeka, attempting to maneuver her way between Tenchi
and Ryoko.
Ryoko's eyes glistened, and almost in tears she turned to the nervous and
unobtrusive young man and asked, "That isn't true, is it Tenchi?"
"No, I mean not exactl...", began Tenchi, but instead of completing this
thought, he instead ended with a distinctive and high pitched, "Eep!" as
Ryoko glomped herself onto the timid young man.
"Ryoko, have you no decency? My word, in a public place no less!", fumed
Aeka, turning several shades of slight red.
In response, Ryoko just stuck out her tongue, and in reaction, Ayeka began
to shudder as if trying to contain an unseen powerful energy.
"Excuse me," asked a store clerk, "Is there some sort of problem?"
Tenchi mentally relaxed as Ryoko's tight grip loosened, and her embrace
turned from an overtly amorous one, to one that was more friendly in
nature. "Problem? No problems here." Tenchi, thankful for getting out of
a situation that normally would have ended up in some sort of property
damage, took a quick appraisal of savior. He was slightly older than
Tenchi, but not nearly in as good shape. His brown hair was slightly
scruffy, but it seemed to go well with his sad looking brown eyes. After a
few moments, Tenchi's eyes wandered to the man's name tag, which while
slightly chipped, had 'Fuun Kikkyou: Manager' clearly emblazoned into its
cheap plastic.
"Sir?", asked Fuun, clearly baffled by Tenchi's apparent interest in him.
"Oh, I was just thinking to myself that you look a little young to be a
manager and.. uhm.. well I didn't mean that. Uh.. I'm so sorry.",
concluded Tenchi giving something of a bow in his obvious embarrassment.
"Oh don't worry, I get that all the time, and despite the family relations,
I assure you that I did earn this job.", added Fuun with a grin.
Stupid! Kikkyou's Clothing, remember? Tenchi mentally sighed, this day
certainly wasn't going very well. Still, despite the fact that the man
wasn't much to look at, Tenchi instantly felt some sort of connection with
him. Just like Ryoko. Tenchi blanched as he inadvertently came up with
this disturbing mental thought. He considered arguing with himself that he
wasn't that kind of guy, but these kind of mental discussions always lead
him to the disturbing issue of making some sort of choice concerning the
girls, and that was certainly something he wasn't prepared to do at the
moment.
"Ayeka, Ryoko, Tenchi! Just look at what I got! Aren't they cute!",
bubbled Sasami in her normally energetic and girlish fashion, as she
proffered a rather cute pair of bunny slippers.
Just leave it to Sasami to save me from myself., Tenchi mentally sighed.
He gladly took the occasion to space himself as far as possible from Fuun
and Ryoko, rather than let himself be dragged into a mental discussion in
which he decidedly wanted no part of.
****
The rest of the shopping trip was largely uneventful, and aside from
Mihoshi knocking down three of four mannequin displays, nothing of note
happened in the remaining time that the girls spent at the clothing store.
Except of course what happened just before we left...
"Do you need any help?", offered Fuun to Sasami, who was having some
trouble with all the things she had purchased.
"Oh would you?", responded Sasami, and soon after giving him one of her
bags, the little girl skipped off to the nearby vehicle waiting for her.
"Oh, and could you carry these as well.", said Ayeka as she plopped all of
her various things into Fuun's outstretched arms, and then quickly went off
to join her sister who had already found a seat in the family vehicle.
"Carry her things, will you? Well you can carry mine too!", snapped Ryoko
as she nonchalantly added her luggage to the growing pile which Fuun was
barely able to support. "Ciya!", added Ryoko, as she nearly flew over to
the awaiting transport.
"Uhm.. Er..", protested Fuun, obviously put off by his recent consignment
to the position of pack mule.
"Oh, you're carrying all of our stuff? Goodie! Then you can carry my
things too!", gleefully bubbled Mihoshi as she tossed her things onto the
large pile of things which Fuun was attempting to support. After which,
she quickly scampered off to join her friends for the long trip home.
"Whuff!", exclaimed Fuun as the sheer weight of the items caused him to
collapsed into a tangle of limbs and fabric, shortly followed by a large
resounding *Crack* as Fuun's head hit the very solid pavement.
Last to leave the store, Tenchi and Washu were quick to notice the pile of
things which the girls had purchased, but otherwise failed to notice any
trace of the occupant contained within.
"Oh dear, it looks like the girls left you quite a bit to carry to the
car.", said Washu, with something of a glimmer of humor twinkling in her
eyes.
"Yeah, it looks like it.", sighed Tenchi as he considered how he was going
to move all of these items into the rear of the family transport.
"Don't worry Tenchi, the greatest scientific genius in the universe knows
just what you're thinking, and she's here to help!", and with that
statement, Washu used her holo-computer to transport the pile of things
instantly into the trunk of the vehicle.
"Thanks Washu, but next time I think it would be slightly less conspicuous
if I packed the car the old-fashioned way.", added Tenchi, a bit put off by
Washu's brazen display of her super-advanced technology.
Washu just grinned in response and skipped over the family car taking her
place next to Sasami.
****
And so we headed out on the long trip home, completely unaware of our extra
passenger. Well, I guess maybe the occasional grunts might have been a
dead giveaway, but then after spending nearly a year with the girls, I've
learned that intentionally looking in their direction usually leads to one
form of trouble or another. Still, I guess the motto, 'You're damned if
you do, and damned if you don't', certainly applies here. Oh well, it
wasn't like I could have ever expected what was to happen next...
"Miss Ryoko, I cannot believe how you acted on that trip! If you expect
Lord Tenchi to ever take you out again, you must learn proper manners.",
spat Ayeka as walked with Ryoko towards the house.
"Oh you're just jealous that Tenchi liked it! And with all those witnesses
too!", Ryoko giggled out as she quickly made a dash for the house.
"Why YOU!!!", fumed Ayeka as she dashed to follow the nimble Cyan haired
woman.
Tenchi sighed. Yes, this is going to be one of those days., Tenchi
mentally added. "Uhm, I think that I'm just going to go quickly change
before I tackle getting everything out, if you don't mind that is.", said
Tenchi obviously embarrassed by his overly moist sweat stains located
underneath both of his arms.
"Don't worry Tenchi, I'll just transport everything to my lab and the girls
can get their things later, okay?", said Washu as she performed yet another
display of her scientific prestidigitations.
"That's great Washu!", said Tenchi, only to receive a distinctly unhappy
frown, "Uh, I mean 'Little' Washu!"
"Better.", said Washu, her features turning noticeably lighter.
"Oh good, well I think I'll work on dinner before going through my
things.", said Sasami as she began to head off towards the kitchen.
Upon mention of this, Mihoshi's stomach gave a noticeable growl, and her
eyes began to water in anticipation. "Dinner? Oooh, I just love dinner!
Sasami, what are we having!", bubble Mihoshi, obviously looking forward to
another one of Sasami's delicious meals.
"Oh, I was thinking of making some fish tempura, cucumber rolls, plus a
healthy vegetable assortment for me and Ryo-Oh-Ki to munch on.", said
Sasami, attempting to tantalize her compatriot's taste buds even further.
For a moment Mihoshi just stood there and drooled. "Fish tempura? I
*LOVE* your fish tempura! Ooh, ooh!", gurgled Mihoshi, obviously overtaken
by a mixture of hunger and unadulterated joy.
"Alright Mihoshi, no need to push!", giggled Sasami, "I'll start right
now!" And with that the pair headed off towards the house.
"Well, I think I'll go change.", said Tenchi as he too headed for the
house.
"Well, seeing as everyone else will be occupied, I think I'll go see if I
can check out what's on tv.", said Washu as she quickened her pace to catch
up with Tenchi.
"Well, I think there's a show on channel 3 you might like, some sort of
scientific documentary if I recall, but I'm not entirely sure what time its
on.", said Tenchi trying to be helpful.
"I'll check it out. Thanks.", said Washu, trying not to hurt Tenchi's
feelings. Still, I guess it might be good for a laugh. Earth technology
is so ludicrously behind that anything they state as fact almost always
isn't., thought Washu as she mentally began to mull over her possible
television options.
****
So unbeknownst to all of us, Fuun was put smack dab into the very heart of
Washu's lab. By far one of the most unusual and downright weird places
I've ever been. Still, I have to admit Fuun took it rather well...
"AHHHH!!!!!!!!", screamed Fuun. This did *NOT* look like his department
store, and come to think of it, it didn't look like anywhere he had ever
been. I'm dreaming! Yeah that's it!, mentally choked Fuun, in a
desperate attempt to get a handle on his current situation. Still, Fuun
had to admit that it wasn't that bad, and as far as alien vistas go, it was
rather pleasant looking. As he began to look around a small sign on an
otherwise empty table caught his notice. Looking closer Fuun read,
"Strange Alien Rock from Shadow Dimension: Do Not Touch!!! (Mihoshi, This
means YOU!!!)". Mihoshi, now why did that name seem familiar to him...
"Whoops!", gurgled the bubbly blond as she knocked over yet another one of
Fuun's meticulously set up displays. And had it not been for the fact that
her party was leaving, she probably would have managed to take out the
fourth and final display as well.
Oh yeah, now I remember. So what does this mean, is my subconscious
trying to tell me that Mihoshi is somehow.. Uh.. what?!?, Fuun sighed, he
really wished his subconscious was slightly more clear on the matter.
Well, I guess being that I'm here, I might as find something to do., and
looking around Fuun found a simple looking black ball in a nearby trash
bin. Hmm.. I don't think my subconscious will mind if I play with this,
and if by some chance this isn't my subconscious, well I don't think
anybody will mind me playing with stuff I found in the trash, and with
that Fuun attempted to kick the ball in a hackysack-like fashion, only to
be completely surprised when the ball absorbed and disappeared into his
ankle. Well that was odd.., thought Fuun just before he spasmatically
collapsed to the floor in a twitching mess of arms and limbs.
****
It didn't take long for us to discover him after that. Masculine screams
of tortured pain don't go unanswered for very long in my house. Then
again, Ryoko and Ayeka did seem rather put off when they found that it
wasn't me, and had it not been for Washu's stern look of disapproval, I
think they might have found more interesting things to do then try to
figure out how our guest managed to arrive...
"So let me get this straight, every one of you gave him all of your things
and just walked off?", asked Tenchi, still slightly baffled at the strange
set of occurrences.
"Well yes...", said Ayeka, Mihoshi, and Ryoko meekly in unison.
"But he was going to carry Sasami's things anyway, so I just thought...",
Ayeka tried to continue.
Sasami, still working diligently preparing diner, was unable to add to her
voice to this strange set of events, but Tenchi concluded that her part in
this affair was certainly more innocent than that of Ayeka, Mihoshi, and
Ryoko. "Okay, I think I understand, you all just ended up giving him your
stuff, but think about it, I'd even have trouble carrying all of those
things at once, and I'm in much better shape then him."
"That you are Tenchi..", added Ryoko slyly.
Tenchi blushed, "Ah.. Er.. Well that still doesn't explain what happened
to him down here."
"I think I can answer that Tenchi. See, recently I had acquired a
strange.. well I guess you can call it a rock, from the shadow dimension.
Over in the shadow dimension it radiated with a strange energy, but once I
pulled it into our dimension it instantly turned into plain slate. I tried
every possible test I could, but no matter what I did, I got no energy
readings, as if it just wasn't even there. Anyway, its missing and I
guess, this Fuun somehow managed to activate it or something. Still, I'd
certainly like to know what he did to it, as my security cameras
mysteriously shut themselves down as soon as Fuun entered the room.", and
with that Washu's lengthy exposition came to a close.
"So did the, uh.. rock do anything to him?", asked Tenchi hesitantly, as he
didn't wish to find out that he had somehow inadvertently ruined this man's
otherwise normal life.
"Mmm, Hmm," answered Washu, "There's a little bit of DNA manipulation going
on, but as far as I can tell nothing major, and the process is just about
over. Whatever the rock did to him seems minor, and I'd feel confident to
give him a clean bill of health and send him packing. After a few hours of
examination, of course...", added Washu with a slight grin.
Tenchi grimaced as one particular mental image floated to the surface of
his mind, "Uh, Washu I think he's been through enough don't you? There's
no need to go into any.. Uh.. extensive testing, is there?"
Washu clearly pouted, but was otherwise kept her cute demeanor. "Well, I
guess if that's what you think is best Tenchi. Still, I could use some
samples, and the last time Mihoshi interrupted before you could ah.. donate
any."
Before Tenchi could attempt to haphazardly respond to this suggestion, the
figure on the examination table began to moan and start to come to life.
"Oooh, my head! I haven't hurt this much since the time dad, uh...", Fuun
looked around at his newfound audience and took appraisal of his
surroundings, "Okay, so this isn't a dream. Now could one of you tell me
how I ended up here, and for that matter, could you tell me where here is?"
"Miss Washu, what do you think we should do? Perhaps it would be best if
you erased his most recent memories instead of trying to explain all
this.", said Ayeka in a an old dialect of Jurian which she knew that only
Washu would understand.
"Nobody is messing with *MY* brain!", shouted an enraged Fuun, much to the
surprise of his audience.
"You understood that?", asked Washu as she quizzically looked at the young
man, while slowly maneuvering her way for a closer examination.
"JUST BACK OFF!", shouted Fuun to the approaching Washu, "Just back off, or
I'll uh.. well just back off!"
But Washu, seeing Fuun's demands as empty threats, only smiled as she
closed the distance between them. She however jumped several feet back
when with a distinctive 'znick' noise, a shaft of dark grey energy erupted
itself from Fuun's clenched fist and congealed itself into a wicked looking
shadow saber.
Washu wasn't the only one surprised by this, as Fuun himself started to
waggle his hand as if it were on fire from the appearance of the unusual
weapon. However, upon seeing the energy blade forming in Ryoko's
outstretched hand, he soon thought better of it and inexpertly tried to
assume something of a defensive stance.
"Now no need for that Ryoko.", said Washu as she used her holo-computer to
create a small forcefield to contain Fuun until she could sort this whole
matter out.
Fuun's eyes narrowed as he started to desperately scan the room for some
sort of answer to whatever chaotic mess he had somehow managed to get into.
But once his gaze moved to the floor, his features turned from serious to
confused. He seemed to be watching something crawl slowly across the
floor, and then after just a moment, he tilted his head quizzically off to
the side as he began to scrutinize a distant unseen object. However, it
wasn't until Fuun started to wave that Ayeka, Mihoshi, Ryoko, Tenchi, and
Washu all turned around in unison to look at Fuun's object of interest.
There before them, stood a man-like shape completely composed of jet black,
with only glowing red eyes and a red mouth slit to otherwise mar his
shadowy appearance. Most unusual about this figure was the fact that he
was waving over to Fuun, completely oblivious to the rest of the lab's
occupants.
Tenchi sweated, Ryoko blinked, Ayeka coughed politely, Washu sighed, and
Mihoshi waved like an idiot (because she was).
"Uhm, and you are?", asked Washu, being the first to recover from the
initial shock at seeing this strange guest.
"Hmm..? Oh, my name's Terikaesu.", said the shadowy figure, not even
bothering to turn and face the little scientist. But upon Fuun's cessation
of waving, the figure took the opportunity flash a very playful looking
glare at the slightly nervous little woman, "Well, now that introductions
are concluded, I think it would be best if me and Fuun got out of here. I
mean, no need to overextend our stay is there?"
"First would you please enlighten me as to what you are?", asked Washu,
clearly irked at this creature's bold assumptions that she would let it
leave so easily.
"A little of this, a little of that...", said Terikaesu calling up one of
Washu's various holocomputers, "Basically, I'm whatever remained of the
entity which you so thoughtfully brought into this dimension, plus a
considerable bit of one of Fuun's spare personalities." Said the creature
as he shut down the forcefield which had previously surrounded Fuun.
"Spare personalities?", asked Washu clearly intrigued by the concept.
"Oh yes. See, almost all people create other personas, mostly used in
their fantasy lives. Some even come up with multiple ones just for
kicks!", said Terikaesu making a quick victory sign."
Almost all people?", asked Washu.
"Well there are a few notable exceptions," said Terikaesu as his gaze began
to wander in Mihoshi's direction, "But, the amount of personalities and how
developed they are, depends on the fluidity of a person's conscious."
"Fluidity? Don't you mean how mentally unstable the person is,
Terikaesu?", asked Fuun.
"Oh, no need to broach semantics Fuun, but yes I guess you could substitute
mentally unstable for fluidity. Of course, I prefer fluidity myself, but
then I guess mental instability has a certain flare to it. Still, I'm glad
to see you're paying some attention, I was beginning to think you were
turning into some kind of vegetable. Anyway, I'm ready to go anytime you
are, and as for the rest of you, well you've been wonderful hosts and we
really should do this again sometime. Now don't bother to get up, we'll
show ourselves out.", and with that Terikaesu began to usher Fuun towards
the recently materialized door.
"Now just wait a second...", began Washu as she floundered for what to say.
"You're *NOT* going anywhere!", threatened Ryoko as she ignited her energy
sword.
"Eep!", shouted Fuun as he jumped back several feet.
"Oh come on! What kind of wimp are you? Never mind, that was a rhetorical
question. Listen Fuun, are you going to just sit there and take this sort
of abuse? From a girl no less?", said Terikaesu, flashing a sardonic
smile.
"A GIRL?!?", yelled Ryoko as she lunged at Terikaesu.
"Sticks and stones, will break my bones, but energy swords pass right
through me...", giggled Terikaesu as Ryoko went flailing through him and
straight towards Fuun.
"Aieee!!!", screamed Fuun, just as Ryoko's blade was moving
indiscriminately for the final blow. But then, just before the blade made
contact, Fuun's eyes went completely red, glowing with a sickly blood-like
light. Then like a cat, he leaped away from the blade into a defensive
stance, soon igniting two wicked-looking shadow sabers. "Do you want to
play? We *LOVE* to play!", shouted this oddly different Fuun.
"Gladly.", grinned Ryoko, as she lunged toward Fuun.
"Hey where did Terikaesu go?", asked Mihoshi, oblivious to the fact that a
major battle was taking place.
"Okay, now that's enough of that.", said Washu, as she placed two separate
forcefields around the combatants.
"MOM!", shouted Ryoko in rage.
Fuun, however just grinned and nonchalantly jumped straight through the
darkened ground and reappeared from the shadows, right next to Washu.
"Thanks for the assist, but we can take it from here", and with that the
shadows of Mihoshi, Tenchi, and Washu grabbed and restrained their
respective owners. "We really must do this again sometime. Toodles!",
said Fuun as he confidently strode towards the recently materialized exit.
However, before Fuun could step through the portal, Sasami stepped through
the door and said, "Everyone dinner is read..." But here she stopped
mid-sentence when her fearful eyes wandered to the untamed creature Fuun
had become.
What came next was fairly unusual, as Fuun seemed to be fighting himself
over what to do. The right arm seemed intent on shoving the little girl
out of the way, but the left arm seemed intent on stopping the right arm
from doing this very thing.
"Fine!", shouted Terikaesu as Fuun's form went flailing from his position
near the door, only to have the form of Terikaesu stand there in his place,
"Be that way. Jeez, the guy can't even bring himself to push a little girl
out of the way. Fuun, just how pathetic are you? And yes Fuun, that was
another one of those rhetorical questions."
"Uhm, what happened?", asked Tenchi, who being instantly freed from the
moment where Fuun and Terikaesu separated, was still trying to get a handle
on what just transpired.
"Best guess? Fuun and Terikaesu need to be of one mind when they're
merged, otherwise they can't work together. Still, I would like to know
why they merged in the first place.", and with that comment, Washu's
features twisted into a more serious configuration.
"Because the twit can't fight, that's why.", broke in Terikaesu, "And I'm
not about to allow anyone to hurt or damage my pal Fuun in any way. If
anyone's going to torture and/or torment Fuun, that'll be me."
"Thanks," answered Fuun quizzically, "I think..."
*****
After that, we all broke for dinner. Sasami, was a bit put off by the fact
that Terikaesu didn't want anything, but once he explained that he didn't
even have a stomach Sasmi's attitude was much improved. Fuun was oddly
quite throughout the meal, but I guess I can't blame him for that. Between
Ryoko giving him those glaring looks and Washu looking like she wanted to
dissect him, I'm surprised he even made through the meal without running
away in abject terror. After the meal however, Terikaesu seemed more
willing to answer Washu's questions and Fuun at least seemed content for
the moment...
"Uhm..", said Fuun, attempting to break the eerie silence, "So Sasami, uh
what how did you prepare those cucumber rolls? Whenever I try to make them
mine always come out a bit too dry, although they aren't too bad with soy
sauce."
"Well...", started Sasami, but then her voice caught, as if she wasn't
prepared to share her cooking secrets with this potential cooking rival.
"The thing I can't understand," began Washu, in attempt to restart the
conversation, "Is why the entity picked Fuun instead of me. I mean I was
studying that rock all night before Fuun even touched it."
"Well maybe I didn't pick because you're a dork.", said Terikaesu, flashing
a sardonic grin.
"Wha...", began Washu, obviously taken aback by Terikaesu's comment.
"Or maybe because you're a girl.", Terikaesu confidently stated, "Of
course, it could be both after all. I mean you are a dorky girl, right?"
"WHAT IS WRONG WITH BEING A GIRL?!?", said Ayeka and Ryoko in unison.
"Aside from that time of the month thing?", began Terikaesu, "Nothing, I
guess. The thing is, I'm not a girl, and even as a nebulous entity, I
wasn't a girl. And so, picking up a body type and personality from a girl
would lead to a whole host of issues that I just didn't feel like dealing
with. So, I was quite relieved when Fuun here showed up."
"Washu, you said Terikaesu was a rock when you found him, right?", asked
Fuun, in a polite attempt to distract Washu from her venting anger.
"Uh yes...", said a recently calmed Washu, "Why do you ask?"
"Because I didn't see any rock, I only found a ball in the trash.", said
Fuun, slightly confused over the change in Terikaesu's original form.
"Oh, that. That's an easy one.", laughed Terikaesu, "See, the I assumed
the form of a rock so Washu would leave me alone, I pick a ball because I
sensed that was just the thing to grab your attention at that moment."
"Okay, Terikaesu, now we know more or less who you are, could you please
tell me who you were?", asked Washu, trying to discover the origins of her
newfound object of interest.
"Haven't a clue.", offered Terikaesu, "I mean aside from the ability to
fight, and a bit of knowledge about my time spent in this lab, I can't
really say what exactly I was or what I was doing hanging around the shadow
dimension. Best guess is that I was some sort of kid, who hadn't formed an
actual personality yet. That's why I needed to borrow mine from good old
Fuun here."
"Miss Washu...", began Ayeka, only to receive a slight frown, "I mean
'Little' Washu can't your equipment tell you more about Terikaesu?"
"I wish it could," sighed Washu, "But all my readings are totally messed
up, I mean everything suggests that he isn't even there."
"Hey!", bubbled Mihoshi, "I just noticed something."
"What is it Mihoshi?", asked Tenchi, tentatively, as he tensed expecting
yet another wildly inappropriate observation from the dizzy blond.
"Well, when anyone else doesn't call Washu, 'Little' Washu, she gets mad,"
ignoring the slightly miffed expression on the diminutive scientist's face,
Mihoshi continued, "But Fuun here hasn't called her 'Little' Washu once,
and she seems fine with that."
At which point, everyone turned to stare at Washu, who was blushing
slightly. In reaction, Fuun's gaze wandered down to his feet.
Terikaesu's reaction, was however a bit more animated. "Wow, it looks like
we've got a live one!", he said, while slapping Fuun on the back.
****
And that's more or less how Fuun Kikkyou became part of our family, or at
least temporally part of our family. Then again, I guess you could say
he's part of our family, but just happens to have his own house, which
given that we don't have any room left, works out pretty well. Still, I
miss having him around, and not just because the girls were a bit easier on
me while he was here, but because he felt like an older brother to me. Of
course, this doesn't mean I'll miss Terikaesu, far from it! In fact, I
think I see more of him now that Fuun's gone than when he was here, and
given what I just told you, I think you can understand why...
*******
Well, there you go a fun little(?) fan-fic that paves the way for a number
of other fan-fics. I know that Fuun and Terikaesu aren't all that
developed as of yet, but I plan to flesh them out as the prequels go on.
As for the rest of the cast, I haven't forgotten them, the point of the
prequels is to give Fuun a life of his own, and once I'm done with that
I'll start up a dual series that has two main characters... At once!
What the hel.. hello? Yes, you did hear me right, two main characters and
a dual series. See, when I came up with Fuun, I was thinking along the
lines of another male character who could take some of the load off of
Tenchi's overburdened shoulders. Unfortunately, I came up with the
conclusion that such a character would detract far too much attention away
from the unassuming young man, and would be run up the flagpole by rabid
fans of the series. However, by that time I had also come up with
Terikaesu, and as you know, guys like him don't ever die (no matter how
many times you try to kill them). So in order to satisfy the fans, as well
as keep my unmentionables intact, I came up with this idea of having a dual
fic that covers the lives of both characters at once. Pretty keen, huh?
Well that's about it. All that's left to do is to plead for mercy as the
blade swings ever closer to my... Uh, no wait, that's not until next week.
All I have to do here is beg for your comments and criticisms. So please
send some to (bshrimp@together.net), but please try to keep the death
threats to a minimum, as my doctor thinks I've been getting a few too many
lately.
"Uhm, er.. well, that is to say..."
"A simple no would suffice."
"Gee, I'm sorry Fuun..."
"Tenchi, don't apologize! *Sigh* A dichotomy is a process of division into
two mutually exclusive groups."
"Say again?"
"It's something of a forced split, like when an amoeba gets too big and
becomes two amoebas."
"Oh. Uh, are you trying to suggest we're like two amoebas?"
"Well, I guess you could say that. The point is, I *HAVE* to get out of
here!"
****
'Let the Fuun Begin!', a prequel to the Fuun Muyo: Ken-Oh-Ki! / Tenchi
Muyo: Ryo-Oh-Ki! dual series, by Kevin Sigmund (bshrimp@together.net)
Disclaimer: Tenchi Muyo and any of the characters associated with that
series aren't mine and are owned AIC and Pioneer LDC. I'm writing this for
sheer pleasure, and I hope that's okay (I mean I'm not the only one doing
it). Anyway, all I ask is that you don't claim credit for this fic or use
it for your own nefarious ends. That's Terikaesu's job...
****
It seems odd that I didn't notice it at the time, but the previous night
had been particularly weird. I mean storms with crackling red energy and
explosions of blue light would at least seem odd to most people, but I
guess things like that just don't even phase me much anymore. But now that
I think about it, I really had wished I talked to Washu about it before we
made that trip. *Sigh*, just another thing to add to my long list of
faultless guilts, or at least that's what Fuun insists on calling them.
Anyway, speaking of Fuun, that's how we first met. It was that very trip I
mentioned, that we would end up making his life almost as bad, if not more
so, than mine. See, my dad had connived me into taking all of the girls
out on a little trip to a family owned women's department store called,
Kikkyou's Clothing, which happened to be owned by Fuun's long absent dad.
As you might be able to guess, the girls certainly made things
interesting...
"Tenchi, do you like this one?", asked Ryoko in the most syrupy sweet tone
she could muster, as she pointed to a very revealing green dress.
"Uhm, well...", blurted Tenchi as he desperately tried to find something
interesting on the floor to look at.
"Ryoko, can't you see that Lord Tenchi is not interested in anything you
have to offer?", cut in Aeka, attempting to maneuver her way between Tenchi
and Ryoko.
Ryoko's eyes glistened, and almost in tears she turned to the nervous and
unobtrusive young man and asked, "That isn't true, is it Tenchi?"
"No, I mean not exactl...", began Tenchi, but instead of completing this
thought, he instead ended with a distinctive and high pitched, "Eep!" as
Ryoko glomped herself onto the timid young man.
"Ryoko, have you no decency? My word, in a public place no less!", fumed
Aeka, turning several shades of slight red.
In response, Ryoko just stuck out her tongue, and in reaction, Ayeka began
to shudder as if trying to contain an unseen powerful energy.
"Excuse me," asked a store clerk, "Is there some sort of problem?"
Tenchi mentally relaxed as Ryoko's tight grip loosened, and her embrace
turned from an overtly amorous one, to one that was more friendly in
nature. "Problem? No problems here." Tenchi, thankful for getting out of
a situation that normally would have ended up in some sort of property
damage, took a quick appraisal of savior. He was slightly older than
Tenchi, but not nearly in as good shape. His brown hair was slightly
scruffy, but it seemed to go well with his sad looking brown eyes. After a
few moments, Tenchi's eyes wandered to the man's name tag, which while
slightly chipped, had 'Fuun Kikkyou: Manager' clearly emblazoned into its
cheap plastic.
"Sir?", asked Fuun, clearly baffled by Tenchi's apparent interest in him.
"Oh, I was just thinking to myself that you look a little young to be a
manager and.. uhm.. well I didn't mean that. Uh.. I'm so sorry.",
concluded Tenchi giving something of a bow in his obvious embarrassment.
"Oh don't worry, I get that all the time, and despite the family relations,
I assure you that I did earn this job.", added Fuun with a grin.
Stupid! Kikkyou's Clothing, remember? Tenchi mentally sighed, this day
certainly wasn't going very well. Still, despite the fact that the man
wasn't much to look at, Tenchi instantly felt some sort of connection with
him. Just like Ryoko. Tenchi blanched as he inadvertently came up with
this disturbing mental thought. He considered arguing with himself that he
wasn't that kind of guy, but these kind of mental discussions always lead
him to the disturbing issue of making some sort of choice concerning the
girls, and that was certainly something he wasn't prepared to do at the
moment.
"Ayeka, Ryoko, Tenchi! Just look at what I got! Aren't they cute!",
bubbled Sasami in her normally energetic and girlish fashion, as she
proffered a rather cute pair of bunny slippers.
Just leave it to Sasami to save me from myself., Tenchi mentally sighed.
He gladly took the occasion to space himself as far as possible from Fuun
and Ryoko, rather than let himself be dragged into a mental discussion in
which he decidedly wanted no part of.
****
The rest of the shopping trip was largely uneventful, and aside from
Mihoshi knocking down three of four mannequin displays, nothing of note
happened in the remaining time that the girls spent at the clothing store.
Except of course what happened just before we left...
"Do you need any help?", offered Fuun to Sasami, who was having some
trouble with all the things she had purchased.
"Oh would you?", responded Sasami, and soon after giving him one of her
bags, the little girl skipped off to the nearby vehicle waiting for her.
"Oh, and could you carry these as well.", said Ayeka as she plopped all of
her various things into Fuun's outstretched arms, and then quickly went off
to join her sister who had already found a seat in the family vehicle.
"Carry her things, will you? Well you can carry mine too!", snapped Ryoko
as she nonchalantly added her luggage to the growing pile which Fuun was
barely able to support. "Ciya!", added Ryoko, as she nearly flew over to
the awaiting transport.
"Uhm.. Er..", protested Fuun, obviously put off by his recent consignment
to the position of pack mule.
"Oh, you're carrying all of our stuff? Goodie! Then you can carry my
things too!", gleefully bubbled Mihoshi as she tossed her things onto the
large pile of things which Fuun was attempting to support. After which,
she quickly scampered off to join her friends for the long trip home.
"Whuff!", exclaimed Fuun as the sheer weight of the items caused him to
collapsed into a tangle of limbs and fabric, shortly followed by a large
resounding *Crack* as Fuun's head hit the very solid pavement.
Last to leave the store, Tenchi and Washu were quick to notice the pile of
things which the girls had purchased, but otherwise failed to notice any
trace of the occupant contained within.
"Oh dear, it looks like the girls left you quite a bit to carry to the
car.", said Washu, with something of a glimmer of humor twinkling in her
eyes.
"Yeah, it looks like it.", sighed Tenchi as he considered how he was going
to move all of these items into the rear of the family transport.
"Don't worry Tenchi, the greatest scientific genius in the universe knows
just what you're thinking, and she's here to help!", and with that
statement, Washu used her holo-computer to transport the pile of things
instantly into the trunk of the vehicle.
"Thanks Washu, but next time I think it would be slightly less conspicuous
if I packed the car the old-fashioned way.", added Tenchi, a bit put off by
Washu's brazen display of her super-advanced technology.
Washu just grinned in response and skipped over the family car taking her
place next to Sasami.
****
And so we headed out on the long trip home, completely unaware of our extra
passenger. Well, I guess maybe the occasional grunts might have been a
dead giveaway, but then after spending nearly a year with the girls, I've
learned that intentionally looking in their direction usually leads to one
form of trouble or another. Still, I guess the motto, 'You're damned if
you do, and damned if you don't', certainly applies here. Oh well, it
wasn't like I could have ever expected what was to happen next...
"Miss Ryoko, I cannot believe how you acted on that trip! If you expect
Lord Tenchi to ever take you out again, you must learn proper manners.",
spat Ayeka as walked with Ryoko towards the house.
"Oh you're just jealous that Tenchi liked it! And with all those witnesses
too!", Ryoko giggled out as she quickly made a dash for the house.
"Why YOU!!!", fumed Ayeka as she dashed to follow the nimble Cyan haired
woman.
Tenchi sighed. Yes, this is going to be one of those days., Tenchi
mentally added. "Uhm, I think that I'm just going to go quickly change
before I tackle getting everything out, if you don't mind that is.", said
Tenchi obviously embarrassed by his overly moist sweat stains located
underneath both of his arms.
"Don't worry Tenchi, I'll just transport everything to my lab and the girls
can get their things later, okay?", said Washu as she performed yet another
display of her scientific prestidigitations.
"That's great Washu!", said Tenchi, only to receive a distinctly unhappy
frown, "Uh, I mean 'Little' Washu!"
"Better.", said Washu, her features turning noticeably lighter.
"Oh good, well I think I'll work on dinner before going through my
things.", said Sasami as she began to head off towards the kitchen.
Upon mention of this, Mihoshi's stomach gave a noticeable growl, and her
eyes began to water in anticipation. "Dinner? Oooh, I just love dinner!
Sasami, what are we having!", bubble Mihoshi, obviously looking forward to
another one of Sasami's delicious meals.
"Oh, I was thinking of making some fish tempura, cucumber rolls, plus a
healthy vegetable assortment for me and Ryo-Oh-Ki to munch on.", said
Sasami, attempting to tantalize her compatriot's taste buds even further.
For a moment Mihoshi just stood there and drooled. "Fish tempura? I
*LOVE* your fish tempura! Ooh, ooh!", gurgled Mihoshi, obviously overtaken
by a mixture of hunger and unadulterated joy.
"Alright Mihoshi, no need to push!", giggled Sasami, "I'll start right
now!" And with that the pair headed off towards the house.
"Well, I think I'll go change.", said Tenchi as he too headed for the
house.
"Well, seeing as everyone else will be occupied, I think I'll go see if I
can check out what's on tv.", said Washu as she quickened her pace to catch
up with Tenchi.
"Well, I think there's a show on channel 3 you might like, some sort of
scientific documentary if I recall, but I'm not entirely sure what time its
on.", said Tenchi trying to be helpful.
"I'll check it out. Thanks.", said Washu, trying not to hurt Tenchi's
feelings. Still, I guess it might be good for a laugh. Earth technology
is so ludicrously behind that anything they state as fact almost always
isn't., thought Washu as she mentally began to mull over her possible
television options.
****
So unbeknownst to all of us, Fuun was put smack dab into the very heart of
Washu's lab. By far one of the most unusual and downright weird places
I've ever been. Still, I have to admit Fuun took it rather well...
"AHHHH!!!!!!!!", screamed Fuun. This did *NOT* look like his department
store, and come to think of it, it didn't look like anywhere he had ever
been. I'm dreaming! Yeah that's it!, mentally choked Fuun, in a
desperate attempt to get a handle on his current situation. Still, Fuun
had to admit that it wasn't that bad, and as far as alien vistas go, it was
rather pleasant looking. As he began to look around a small sign on an
otherwise empty table caught his notice. Looking closer Fuun read,
"Strange Alien Rock from Shadow Dimension: Do Not Touch!!! (Mihoshi, This
means YOU!!!)". Mihoshi, now why did that name seem familiar to him...
"Whoops!", gurgled the bubbly blond as she knocked over yet another one of
Fuun's meticulously set up displays. And had it not been for the fact that
her party was leaving, she probably would have managed to take out the
fourth and final display as well.
Oh yeah, now I remember. So what does this mean, is my subconscious
trying to tell me that Mihoshi is somehow.. Uh.. what?!?, Fuun sighed, he
really wished his subconscious was slightly more clear on the matter.
Well, I guess being that I'm here, I might as find something to do., and
looking around Fuun found a simple looking black ball in a nearby trash
bin. Hmm.. I don't think my subconscious will mind if I play with this,
and if by some chance this isn't my subconscious, well I don't think
anybody will mind me playing with stuff I found in the trash, and with
that Fuun attempted to kick the ball in a hackysack-like fashion, only to
be completely surprised when the ball absorbed and disappeared into his
ankle. Well that was odd.., thought Fuun just before he spasmatically
collapsed to the floor in a twitching mess of arms and limbs.
****
It didn't take long for us to discover him after that. Masculine screams
of tortured pain don't go unanswered for very long in my house. Then
again, Ryoko and Ayeka did seem rather put off when they found that it
wasn't me, and had it not been for Washu's stern look of disapproval, I
think they might have found more interesting things to do then try to
figure out how our guest managed to arrive...
"So let me get this straight, every one of you gave him all of your things
and just walked off?", asked Tenchi, still slightly baffled at the strange
set of occurrences.
"Well yes...", said Ayeka, Mihoshi, and Ryoko meekly in unison.
"But he was going to carry Sasami's things anyway, so I just thought...",
Ayeka tried to continue.
Sasami, still working diligently preparing diner, was unable to add to her
voice to this strange set of events, but Tenchi concluded that her part in
this affair was certainly more innocent than that of Ayeka, Mihoshi, and
Ryoko. "Okay, I think I understand, you all just ended up giving him your
stuff, but think about it, I'd even have trouble carrying all of those
things at once, and I'm in much better shape then him."
"That you are Tenchi..", added Ryoko slyly.
Tenchi blushed, "Ah.. Er.. Well that still doesn't explain what happened
to him down here."
"I think I can answer that Tenchi. See, recently I had acquired a
strange.. well I guess you can call it a rock, from the shadow dimension.
Over in the shadow dimension it radiated with a strange energy, but once I
pulled it into our dimension it instantly turned into plain slate. I tried
every possible test I could, but no matter what I did, I got no energy
readings, as if it just wasn't even there. Anyway, its missing and I
guess, this Fuun somehow managed to activate it or something. Still, I'd
certainly like to know what he did to it, as my security cameras
mysteriously shut themselves down as soon as Fuun entered the room.", and
with that Washu's lengthy exposition came to a close.
"So did the, uh.. rock do anything to him?", asked Tenchi hesitantly, as he
didn't wish to find out that he had somehow inadvertently ruined this man's
otherwise normal life.
"Mmm, Hmm," answered Washu, "There's a little bit of DNA manipulation going
on, but as far as I can tell nothing major, and the process is just about
over. Whatever the rock did to him seems minor, and I'd feel confident to
give him a clean bill of health and send him packing. After a few hours of
examination, of course...", added Washu with a slight grin.
Tenchi grimaced as one particular mental image floated to the surface of
his mind, "Uh, Washu I think he's been through enough don't you? There's
no need to go into any.. Uh.. extensive testing, is there?"
Washu clearly pouted, but was otherwise kept her cute demeanor. "Well, I
guess if that's what you think is best Tenchi. Still, I could use some
samples, and the last time Mihoshi interrupted before you could ah.. donate
any."
Before Tenchi could attempt to haphazardly respond to this suggestion, the
figure on the examination table began to moan and start to come to life.
"Oooh, my head! I haven't hurt this much since the time dad, uh...", Fuun
looked around at his newfound audience and took appraisal of his
surroundings, "Okay, so this isn't a dream. Now could one of you tell me
how I ended up here, and for that matter, could you tell me where here is?"
"Miss Washu, what do you think we should do? Perhaps it would be best if
you erased his most recent memories instead of trying to explain all
this.", said Ayeka in a an old dialect of Jurian which she knew that only
Washu would understand.
"Nobody is messing with *MY* brain!", shouted an enraged Fuun, much to the
surprise of his audience.
"You understood that?", asked Washu as she quizzically looked at the young
man, while slowly maneuvering her way for a closer examination.
"JUST BACK OFF!", shouted Fuun to the approaching Washu, "Just back off, or
I'll uh.. well just back off!"
But Washu, seeing Fuun's demands as empty threats, only smiled as she
closed the distance between them. She however jumped several feet back
when with a distinctive 'znick' noise, a shaft of dark grey energy erupted
itself from Fuun's clenched fist and congealed itself into a wicked looking
shadow saber.
Washu wasn't the only one surprised by this, as Fuun himself started to
waggle his hand as if it were on fire from the appearance of the unusual
weapon. However, upon seeing the energy blade forming in Ryoko's
outstretched hand, he soon thought better of it and inexpertly tried to
assume something of a defensive stance.
"Now no need for that Ryoko.", said Washu as she used her holo-computer to
create a small forcefield to contain Fuun until she could sort this whole
matter out.
Fuun's eyes narrowed as he started to desperately scan the room for some
sort of answer to whatever chaotic mess he had somehow managed to get into.
But once his gaze moved to the floor, his features turned from serious to
confused. He seemed to be watching something crawl slowly across the
floor, and then after just a moment, he tilted his head quizzically off to
the side as he began to scrutinize a distant unseen object. However, it
wasn't until Fuun started to wave that Ayeka, Mihoshi, Ryoko, Tenchi, and
Washu all turned around in unison to look at Fuun's object of interest.
There before them, stood a man-like shape completely composed of jet black,
with only glowing red eyes and a red mouth slit to otherwise mar his
shadowy appearance. Most unusual about this figure was the fact that he
was waving over to Fuun, completely oblivious to the rest of the lab's
occupants.
Tenchi sweated, Ryoko blinked, Ayeka coughed politely, Washu sighed, and
Mihoshi waved like an idiot (because she was).
"Uhm, and you are?", asked Washu, being the first to recover from the
initial shock at seeing this strange guest.
"Hmm..? Oh, my name's Terikaesu.", said the shadowy figure, not even
bothering to turn and face the little scientist. But upon Fuun's cessation
of waving, the figure took the opportunity flash a very playful looking
glare at the slightly nervous little woman, "Well, now that introductions
are concluded, I think it would be best if me and Fuun got out of here. I
mean, no need to overextend our stay is there?"
"First would you please enlighten me as to what you are?", asked Washu,
clearly irked at this creature's bold assumptions that she would let it
leave so easily.
"A little of this, a little of that...", said Terikaesu calling up one of
Washu's various holocomputers, "Basically, I'm whatever remained of the
entity which you so thoughtfully brought into this dimension, plus a
considerable bit of one of Fuun's spare personalities." Said the creature
as he shut down the forcefield which had previously surrounded Fuun.
"Spare personalities?", asked Washu clearly intrigued by the concept.
"Oh yes. See, almost all people create other personas, mostly used in
their fantasy lives. Some even come up with multiple ones just for
kicks!", said Terikaesu making a quick victory sign."
Almost all people?", asked Washu.
"Well there are a few notable exceptions," said Terikaesu as his gaze began
to wander in Mihoshi's direction, "But, the amount of personalities and how
developed they are, depends on the fluidity of a person's conscious."
"Fluidity? Don't you mean how mentally unstable the person is,
Terikaesu?", asked Fuun.
"Oh, no need to broach semantics Fuun, but yes I guess you could substitute
mentally unstable for fluidity. Of course, I prefer fluidity myself, but
then I guess mental instability has a certain flare to it. Still, I'm glad
to see you're paying some attention, I was beginning to think you were
turning into some kind of vegetable. Anyway, I'm ready to go anytime you
are, and as for the rest of you, well you've been wonderful hosts and we
really should do this again sometime. Now don't bother to get up, we'll
show ourselves out.", and with that Terikaesu began to usher Fuun towards
the recently materialized door.
"Now just wait a second...", began Washu as she floundered for what to say.
"You're *NOT* going anywhere!", threatened Ryoko as she ignited her energy
sword.
"Eep!", shouted Fuun as he jumped back several feet.
"Oh come on! What kind of wimp are you? Never mind, that was a rhetorical
question. Listen Fuun, are you going to just sit there and take this sort
of abuse? From a girl no less?", said Terikaesu, flashing a sardonic
smile.
"A GIRL?!?", yelled Ryoko as she lunged at Terikaesu.
"Sticks and stones, will break my bones, but energy swords pass right
through me...", giggled Terikaesu as Ryoko went flailing through him and
straight towards Fuun.
"Aieee!!!", screamed Fuun, just as Ryoko's blade was moving
indiscriminately for the final blow. But then, just before the blade made
contact, Fuun's eyes went completely red, glowing with a sickly blood-like
light. Then like a cat, he leaped away from the blade into a defensive
stance, soon igniting two wicked-looking shadow sabers. "Do you want to
play? We *LOVE* to play!", shouted this oddly different Fuun.
"Gladly.", grinned Ryoko, as she lunged toward Fuun.
"Hey where did Terikaesu go?", asked Mihoshi, oblivious to the fact that a
major battle was taking place.
"Okay, now that's enough of that.", said Washu, as she placed two separate
forcefields around the combatants.
"MOM!", shouted Ryoko in rage.
Fuun, however just grinned and nonchalantly jumped straight through the
darkened ground and reappeared from the shadows, right next to Washu.
"Thanks for the assist, but we can take it from here", and with that the
shadows of Mihoshi, Tenchi, and Washu grabbed and restrained their
respective owners. "We really must do this again sometime. Toodles!",
said Fuun as he confidently strode towards the recently materialized exit.
However, before Fuun could step through the portal, Sasami stepped through
the door and said, "Everyone dinner is read..." But here she stopped
mid-sentence when her fearful eyes wandered to the untamed creature Fuun
had become.
What came next was fairly unusual, as Fuun seemed to be fighting himself
over what to do. The right arm seemed intent on shoving the little girl
out of the way, but the left arm seemed intent on stopping the right arm
from doing this very thing.
"Fine!", shouted Terikaesu as Fuun's form went flailing from his position
near the door, only to have the form of Terikaesu stand there in his place,
"Be that way. Jeez, the guy can't even bring himself to push a little girl
out of the way. Fuun, just how pathetic are you? And yes Fuun, that was
another one of those rhetorical questions."
"Uhm, what happened?", asked Tenchi, who being instantly freed from the
moment where Fuun and Terikaesu separated, was still trying to get a handle
on what just transpired.
"Best guess? Fuun and Terikaesu need to be of one mind when they're
merged, otherwise they can't work together. Still, I would like to know
why they merged in the first place.", and with that comment, Washu's
features twisted into a more serious configuration.
"Because the twit can't fight, that's why.", broke in Terikaesu, "And I'm
not about to allow anyone to hurt or damage my pal Fuun in any way. If
anyone's going to torture and/or torment Fuun, that'll be me."
"Thanks," answered Fuun quizzically, "I think..."
*****
After that, we all broke for dinner. Sasami, was a bit put off by the fact
that Terikaesu didn't want anything, but once he explained that he didn't
even have a stomach Sasmi's attitude was much improved. Fuun was oddly
quite throughout the meal, but I guess I can't blame him for that. Between
Ryoko giving him those glaring looks and Washu looking like she wanted to
dissect him, I'm surprised he even made through the meal without running
away in abject terror. After the meal however, Terikaesu seemed more
willing to answer Washu's questions and Fuun at least seemed content for
the moment...
"Uhm..", said Fuun, attempting to break the eerie silence, "So Sasami, uh
what how did you prepare those cucumber rolls? Whenever I try to make them
mine always come out a bit too dry, although they aren't too bad with soy
sauce."
"Well...", started Sasami, but then her voice caught, as if she wasn't
prepared to share her cooking secrets with this potential cooking rival.
"The thing I can't understand," began Washu, in attempt to restart the
conversation, "Is why the entity picked Fuun instead of me. I mean I was
studying that rock all night before Fuun even touched it."
"Well maybe I didn't pick because you're a dork.", said Terikaesu, flashing
a sardonic grin.
"Wha...", began Washu, obviously taken aback by Terikaesu's comment.
"Or maybe because you're a girl.", Terikaesu confidently stated, "Of
course, it could be both after all. I mean you are a dorky girl, right?"
"WHAT IS WRONG WITH BEING A GIRL?!?", said Ayeka and Ryoko in unison.
"Aside from that time of the month thing?", began Terikaesu, "Nothing, I
guess. The thing is, I'm not a girl, and even as a nebulous entity, I
wasn't a girl. And so, picking up a body type and personality from a girl
would lead to a whole host of issues that I just didn't feel like dealing
with. So, I was quite relieved when Fuun here showed up."
"Washu, you said Terikaesu was a rock when you found him, right?", asked
Fuun, in a polite attempt to distract Washu from her venting anger.
"Uh yes...", said a recently calmed Washu, "Why do you ask?"
"Because I didn't see any rock, I only found a ball in the trash.", said
Fuun, slightly confused over the change in Terikaesu's original form.
"Oh, that. That's an easy one.", laughed Terikaesu, "See, the I assumed
the form of a rock so Washu would leave me alone, I pick a ball because I
sensed that was just the thing to grab your attention at that moment."
"Okay, Terikaesu, now we know more or less who you are, could you please
tell me who you were?", asked Washu, trying to discover the origins of her
newfound object of interest.
"Haven't a clue.", offered Terikaesu, "I mean aside from the ability to
fight, and a bit of knowledge about my time spent in this lab, I can't
really say what exactly I was or what I was doing hanging around the shadow
dimension. Best guess is that I was some sort of kid, who hadn't formed an
actual personality yet. That's why I needed to borrow mine from good old
Fuun here."
"Miss Washu...", began Ayeka, only to receive a slight frown, "I mean
'Little' Washu can't your equipment tell you more about Terikaesu?"
"I wish it could," sighed Washu, "But all my readings are totally messed
up, I mean everything suggests that he isn't even there."
"Hey!", bubbled Mihoshi, "I just noticed something."
"What is it Mihoshi?", asked Tenchi, tentatively, as he tensed expecting
yet another wildly inappropriate observation from the dizzy blond.
"Well, when anyone else doesn't call Washu, 'Little' Washu, she gets mad,"
ignoring the slightly miffed expression on the diminutive scientist's face,
Mihoshi continued, "But Fuun here hasn't called her 'Little' Washu once,
and she seems fine with that."
At which point, everyone turned to stare at Washu, who was blushing
slightly. In reaction, Fuun's gaze wandered down to his feet.
Terikaesu's reaction, was however a bit more animated. "Wow, it looks like
we've got a live one!", he said, while slapping Fuun on the back.
****
And that's more or less how Fuun Kikkyou became part of our family, or at
least temporally part of our family. Then again, I guess you could say
he's part of our family, but just happens to have his own house, which
given that we don't have any room left, works out pretty well. Still, I
miss having him around, and not just because the girls were a bit easier on
me while he was here, but because he felt like an older brother to me. Of
course, this doesn't mean I'll miss Terikaesu, far from it! In fact, I
think I see more of him now that Fuun's gone than when he was here, and
given what I just told you, I think you can understand why...
*******
Well, there you go a fun little(?) fan-fic that paves the way for a number
of other fan-fics. I know that Fuun and Terikaesu aren't all that
developed as of yet, but I plan to flesh them out as the prequels go on.
As for the rest of the cast, I haven't forgotten them, the point of the
prequels is to give Fuun a life of his own, and once I'm done with that
I'll start up a dual series that has two main characters... At once!
What the hel.. hello? Yes, you did hear me right, two main characters and
a dual series. See, when I came up with Fuun, I was thinking along the
lines of another male character who could take some of the load off of
Tenchi's overburdened shoulders. Unfortunately, I came up with the
conclusion that such a character would detract far too much attention away
from the unassuming young man, and would be run up the flagpole by rabid
fans of the series. However, by that time I had also come up with
Terikaesu, and as you know, guys like him don't ever die (no matter how
many times you try to kill them). So in order to satisfy the fans, as well
as keep my unmentionables intact, I came up with this idea of having a dual
fic that covers the lives of both characters at once. Pretty keen, huh?
Well that's about it. All that's left to do is to plead for mercy as the
blade swings ever closer to my... Uh, no wait, that's not until next week.
All I have to do here is beg for your comments and criticisms. So please
send some to (bshrimp@together.net), but please try to keep the death
threats to a minimum, as my doctor thinks I've been getting a few too many
lately.