Conversations II
Chapter 8
At Home
*****
Washu was angry, and an angry Washu was something to see. Her emerald eyes flashed and although she was still in her pre-teen form, she had abandoned all pretext of being a child. "I thought I told you not to open those pods." She slammed the door shut to the isolation unit. "Gods! I knew I couldn't trust you guys. I should've known something like this was gonna happen."
The group had gathered in Washu's lab where the two remaining survival pods had been deposited in a special room Washu had created for them. Washu looked at Ayeka as she cuddled and played with her new friend.
"But Mom…"
She turned on Ryoko. "What could you possibly have to say in defense of this?" She gestured at the princess and the white cabbit.
"We only opened one, and anyway it wasn't like had a choice, it was gonna die if we didn't. And look at them, I've never seen Ayeka like that before. Besides, it was all the cabbit's fault." Ryoko pointed her finger at Ryo-ohki.
"Miya! Meeeyoo meow miyan miya!"
"I don't care if you think he's cabbit of your dreams. You shouldn't have messed with those controls! No carrots for you for a month." Ryoko growled at her partner.
Ryo-ohki hung her head. "Miya."
"You'd better be sorry you little weasel."
Tenchi had had enough bickering. "Stop it you two. What's done is done."
"Yes Tenchi." "Meiyaw."
"Miss Washu?" Ayeka asked, looking up from the small furball she held. "Have you discovered where the other cabbits came from yet?"
"No, I haven't had time to fully analyze all the memory cores you brought back. It's safe to say that they're not from around here though."
"No kidding," Ryoko muttered.
Washu glared at her. "What was that Ryoko? Anyway, a scan of Ayeka's friend there showed me that they're similar enough to my design that I could sue for copyright infringement. If they weren't eighty-five thousand years older than Ryo-ohki, that is. I have this feeling that they're from 'outside'."
"What's 'outside'?" Sasami asked.
"Oh, trees, the lake, mountains, the shrine…" Ryoko said and was immediately hit over the head with a large mallet that Washu had pulled from subspace.
"Not that kind of 'outside' you idiot! Let's see if I can explain this in terms that even Ryoko here can understand."
Washu was suddenly in her Science Academy uniform, standing behind a podium that had popped up. Desks and chairs appeared from nowhere.
"Hey, haven't we been here before?" asked Ryoko.
"Quiet! Please raise your hand before speaking. Now, where was I? Oh yes, 'outside'. For simplicity's sake, let's say that this reality is in the center of all possible realities. Now, I don't know if that's really true or not, but for this let's just say that it is. Existing alongside our reality are others, and in these others are counterparts of ourselves."
Ayeka raised her hand.
"Yes, Ms. Masaki?"
The princess giggled at that, then asked her question. "If I understand you correctly, you are saying that there is more than one of each of us and those exist in separate universes?"
"Well, sort of. That's a rather simplistic view, but it'll do for now. Yes, Ryoko? I see your hand up."
"There's more than one of me?" she asked.
"I believe that's what I just said, yes." Washu told her. "But none are exactly like you. There will be many similarities, but not an exact duplicate. For instance, in one of these alternate realities, Tenchi may actually be a girl, or none of you may ever meet, or you may not have been born yet, or you may have died long ago. In fact, the farther we get from here, the more divergent the timeline and the less likely you are to exist at all. The closer we get, the more similarities there are. What's important to note is that history is slightly different in all these alternates, and time doesn't always run at the same rate. What I'm getting at here is that these cabbits are so similar to Ryo-ohki that I must've created them too. But I know I didn't so…"
Tenchi spoke up. "It must have been one of your alternate selves!"
"Absolutely correct Tenchi! Give the boy an A+" A large rubber stamp appeared and put a big, black "A+" on Tenchi's forehead, knocking him out of his seat. "Next time raise your hand." Washu scolded.
Ryoko's hand slowly crept up.
"So what're we going to do about it then?" she asked.
"Nothing," Washu said.
"What do you mean 'nothing'?"
"What I meant was NOTHING Ryoko. Oh sure, I could build a machine that would allow us to travel between these other realities. In fact there're a couple in the lab right now that would do the job. And as a goddess, I could probably do it even without a machine. But I won't. And before you ask why, I'll tell you. In this reality both you and Ayeka married Tenchi. This is our ideal. How would you like to find a reality where only Ayeka married him, or Sasami, or me? We all have feelings for him you know, even Ryo-ohki, so it's a possibility. Or even better, a reality where you're the princess and Ayeka's the pirate?"
Ryoko turned slightly green.
Washu saw the expression on her daughter's face. "Exactly."
"But shouldn't we help them get home?" Sasami piped in.
"No dear. They'll be perfectly happy right here, just look at Ay-ohki with your sister. We just have to find them good homes." Washu told her.
"Can I have one? Please?" the little princess pleaded.
"We'll see Sasami. But don't you think Ryo-ohki will be a little upset if you find another cabbit friend?"
"Yeah, I guess. But she really belongs to Ryoko." Sasami answered, crestfallen.
Ryoko tried to cheer her up, "But she spends all her time with you, doesn't she? So I guess that makes her both of ours, doesn't it?"
"Miya!" agreed the cabbit.
"You shut up. I'm still mad at you." Ryoko muttered to her partner.
Ryo-ohki's ears drooped.
"Washu?" Sasami waved her hand again. "Is Ay-ohki gonna be a spaceship too someday?"
"Yes, Sasami, he is. And he'll be a little bigger than Ryo-ohki too if my calculations are correct."
The podium suddenly disappeared and Washu was back in her normal clothing. "Now, if you'll all excuse me, I need to talk to Ryoko alone for a minute." Washu said, ending the session.
Everyone but Ryoko stood up.
"Wait. Not you Tenchi, you stay too. And Ayeka, you wait right outside, I want to talk to you and Tenchi together next."
After the two princesses had left the room, Washu turned to her daughter and son-in-law. "We may have another problem. I want to warn you both."
"What's that Little Washu?" Tenchi inquired.
"Ay-ohki is a male cabbit and Ryo-ohki is female. We don't have to worry about any little cabbits scampering around, Ryo-ohki isn't, ah… completely equipped for that. But when Ay-ohki matures in about two months, they're going to want to… you know… do this and that together."
"Yeah, so?" Ryoko asked her.
"Well, cabbits form a strong emotional bond with their partners. Although I don't know for sure, being as I only built the one myself, I think that when they mate… Ryoko and Ayeka… well, let's just say that those fantasies you've been having in your dreams might come true Ryoko."
Ryoko blushed. "You know about those?" She turned to Tenchi. "Tenchi, I…"
He smiled at her. "Don't worry Ryoko," he tapped the side of his head. "Remember our link. I know about them too, but I don't think Ayeka does. Your link with her isn't as strong yet. I do think she knows how you feel though and I know she feels the same."
Tenchi walked over and kissed his wife. "I'm not upset. When I married you both, I hoped that you'd find feelings for each other. And I kinda expected something like this might happen someday too, at least once."
"So you're really not mad?" Ryoko looked into his eyes.
"Well, if you leave me for each other, I might get a little angry," he said with a grin.
A spotlight appeared shining down on them and music began playing as Ryoko jumped up and threw her arms around him. "That'll never happen dear. I'll always love you the most!" She kissed him; it was one of the ten great kisses in history (no, wait, that's in a different story).
Washu waved her hand, banishing the spotlight and music, then cleared her throat. "Ahem. I said it might happen, I'm not positive that it will. And do the lovey-dovey stuff on your own time; we're on my clock here. Tenchi, go get Ayeka, I'll explain it to her now. Ryoko, you can stay or leave, whichever. But since Ayeka wasn't in here when I told you, you probably shouldn't be here when I tell her."
Ryoko grinned at her mother. "In that case, I'll have her come in when I go out. See ya later Tenchi!"
*****
To be continued
*****
Author's Notes
To answer any unasked questions, yes, I see the link between cabbit and owner as very similar to the link between dragon and rider in Anne McAffrey's excellent Pern series. And if you're wondering where Ayeka's demon side went, well, if I get enough encouragement to continue this after the end of part II here, I have some pretty good ideas on how to use that. That's why she got the cabbit. And my daughter Brooke has informed me that we haven't seen the last of Urd yet either. (Urd's one of her favorite characters, right after Krillin in Dragonball Z and Kiyone in Tenchi Universe.) Although why she told me, I don't know. I'm the one writing this stuff after all.
Keep the comments and reviews coming please, I take each one seriously. If you want me to answer them or have any suggestions or ideas, e-mail me at the address in my profile – bobr@buckeye-express.com. Or if you want a quicker answer during the week (M-F 7:30am - 4:30pm EST) try my work address – bobr@edcodie.com. Flames will be ignored and the sender put in my spam file, constructive criticism is always accepted though.
BobR
