Mementos: Chapter Two

Ryoko brought her bowl into the kitchen and placed it in the dishwasher.

"Thanks Ryoko!" Sasami chirruped, impressed at this show of responsibility and interest in domesticity from the former pirate.

Ryoko smiled at the response. She was finding that if she pitched in with the little things, more people would notice. That made her life easier. And it made Tenchi proud of her. "That was a great dinner, Kiddo."

Sasami blushed and nodded her head in thanks as she neatly folded the dishtowel over the drying rack. "I'm glad you liked it."

Ryoko floated over to the little girl and fondly tucked a blue strand of hair behind the little girl's ear. Sasami was like a sister to her. "Are you finished? I'm going to be showing some of my memories in the living room tonight. Want to watch?"

"Oh boy!" The little girl shouted. "Yes!"

Ryoko laughed and slid her arm around Sasami's shoulders. "It's all set up. Let's go." She steered the young girl into the living room where the rest of the family waited. "That's the last of 'em," she announced settling next to Tenchi on the couch. She leaned forward and pressed a flashing button on her electronic scrapbook. "Here we go!"

***

Illuminated by a pale blue fluorescent light, a seven-year-old Ryoko bit her lip as she carefully painted a small Styrofoam ball a bright yellow. She was hunched over her desk with her acrylic paint set and assorted sizes of balls waiting to be painted. A small radio played the latest top galactic hits and the little girl hummed along. Her hair was caught up in two spiky ponytails and she wore black tights with a loose blue tunic. She had to be very careful, or she would accidentally crush the foam ball or snap her paintbrush. She hadn't had any 'accidents' in a while and wanted to keep it that way.

Ryo-Ohki was crouched on her shoulder and extended a small paw towards the still wet yellow sphere. "Miya?"

Ryoko slid it out of her pet's reach. "No, no. You'll get paint all over your fur. I'll let you smell it if you are very careful," she promised, moving the ball towards the cabbit's nose.

The small animal sniffed and immediately sneezed. She turned her nose up at the sphere with a little "hmpf".

Ryoko laughed. " I knew you wouldn't like it." She carefully placed the sphere on a rack to dry. She was about to speak again when she heard the doors to the main room slide open. "Washu's back!" she shouted at the familiar tickle in the back of her mind.

"Little Ryoko, "I'm home!" caroled her mother's voice from the living room.

"Mommy!" Ryoko called, pushing her chair back and running out of the room. "You're home!" she cried happily tackling her mother with a hug around her waist. Ryo-Ohki jumped onto Washu's head and meowed her own welcome.

Washu chuckled and threw her coat onto the couch behind her. "Honestly, you think I'd been gone for weeks instead of days!" She joined in the hug. "It's good to see you too, sweetie."

"Miya!"

"I'm glad to see you too," Washu said reaching one hand up to pet the cabbit.

Ryoko bounced back and rocked upon to her toes. "How was Todain? Did you bring me back anything?"

Washu pretended to think. "Todain was wet, slimy, and humid - just what you might expect from a jungle planet. And how about you? Were you good for the 'mommy-bots'?"

Ryoko refused to be distracted. "Did you bring me a present? Did you?"

Washu laughed and spread her fingers into he air before her. "What a greedy child you are! We'll see." As her laptop computer materialized under her fingers, she typed in a key sequence and summoned Ryoko's watchers.

Two robotic miniature versions of Washu appeared on her shoulders. One had a big 'A' on its chest and the other had a big 'B'. "So how was she girls?" Washu asked dryly.

Bot A threw up its arms and proclaimed, "Washu is the greatest! Washu is a genius!"

Washu shook her head with an annoyed smile. " I know that. Was Little Ryoko a good girl?"

Bot A made a quacking sound and lowered its head.

Washu cleared her throat and raised an eyebrow at her daughter. "Let's try a different approach. Did Ryoko follow instructions?"

"Little Ryoko would not eat her dinner on two occasions," the little robot reported.

Washu raised the other eyebrow. "This doesn't sound good, Ryoko."

"You know I'm a vegetarian mom! The stupid replicator kept making meatloaf!" Ryoko said in her own defense.

"That's fair," Washu agreed.

"Ryoko took three out of four required baths," Bot A continued.

"Well, that's a big improvement," Washu said with a smile. "I thought you smelled better than usual." Washu waved a hand to stall any further reporting. "Sounds like she was pretty good. Did she do anything bad while I was gone?"

Bot A quivered, almost looking scared. "Little Ryoko altered the programming parameters of Bot B."

Washu looked intrigued, as Ryoko paled and swallowed with difficulty. "I thought you were being awfully quiet over there. Speak to me Bot B!"

"Ryoko is the greatest! Ryoko is a genius!" it shouted hopping up and down.

Washu's eyes bulged and her tongue shot out from between her lips. She stayed like that for a moment then toppled backwards, catching herself on the back of the couch. "What was that?"

Bot B hopped onto Ryoko's shoulder and started chanting her name. "You can get out of this one!" it cheered. "You are a genius!"

Hands grasping her abdomen, Washu burst into laughter. "This is great!" She loomed over Ryoko and drew her into her arms. "What a smart idea!" she said, hugging her offspring. "Was it that easy to bypass my security codes?" Washu settled into an easy chair, carrying Ryoko along with her so that she ended up snuggled in her lap.

Ryoko giggled. "No, momma. It was really hard!" The little girl wrapped her arms around Washu's neck and burrowed her face into her shoulder.

Washu sighed contentedly and stroked Ryoko's hair. "Are you gonna tell me how you did it?"

"It's a secret, " Ryoko said firmly.

"Is that so?"

"Yes, because if I tell you, then you'll make it so I can't do it anymore," Ryoko reasoned.

Washu chuckled. "Well, that is sound thinking and I respect that. It's never too early to think about copyright infringements after all!"

Ryoko tightened her grip on Washu's neck. "I'm glad you are home. I missed you."

Washu tightened her grasp and held Ryoko in silence for a few moments, clearly enjoying their bond and closeness. "So how is school?" she asked after a time.

"Its okay," Ryoko answered shortly.

"Just okay?" Washu asked skeptically. "Do they teach you anything at the Academy Elementary Unit?"

Ryoko shrugged. "Well... I'm making a model of our galaxy for my Science Fair project. Want to see it?"

"You bet!" Washu said with excitement, getting up and setting Ryoko on her feet.

Ryoko took Washu's hand and lead her into her bedroom. The pastel colors of violet and powder blue gave the room a feeling of innocence, but the floor covered with crumpled bed linens, toys, books, and juice boxes spoke of strong forces of entropy at play.

"See?" Ryoko said pointing to the mess of spilled acrylic paints on her desk and the assortment of Styrofoam balls both painted and plain. "I'm making it this way."

Washu bit her lip, trying not to scold Ryoko for the state of her room. She would save that for later, as she hated to scold first thing when she returned from business trips. She looked closely at the makings of the model. "Well, honey, this is nice if you like antiques." She summoned her laptop and began typing. "But why stick to Styrofoam when I can get you self contained plasma balls that are correctly scaled to represent the important suns, planets and moons?" In the space between her and Ryoko plasma balls rotated and danced at Washu's command.

"But mom!" Ryoko protested.

"And then, " Washu cackled, "we can put little flashing lights on it to show…."

"NO!" Ryoko shouted and stamped her foot. "No! No! No! I want to do it myself!"

Washu's finger's paused. "Little Ryoko?"

Ryoko put her hands on her hips and looked her mother squarely in the eye. "You always do my projects for me. I want to do this one myself!"

"Oh." Washu's voice faltered and her laptop faded from view. "Can I help you then?"

"No, I want to do this." Ryoko took Washu's hand and tugged her out of the room. "I want to show you I can."

Washu's expressions warred between sadness and pride. Pride won out. "All right then Little Ryoko. Can I give you your present first?"

Ryoko cast her a wary look. "Does this mean I have to let you help me?"

"Of course not! Why would you ask that?"

Ryoko's eyes were guarded for a moment before they cleared into a childish look of greed. "What is it?"

Washu watched her daughter closely for a moment, then shook her head as if to dismiss some suspicion. She then reached into a subspace pocket from her back and pulled out a small basket with a flourish. "Guess what was ripe enough to pick in our garden on Todain?"

"Our strawberries?!" Ryoko squealed.

"You got it! The plants finally reached maturity this year!"

Ryoko grabbed the basket out of her mother's hands and selected large, ripe berry. She bit into it and closed her eyes in pleasure. "Sweet!" she chirped.

"Just like you sweetie, just like you," Washu said fondly. "Now, about that room…."

***

As the memory ended, Ryoko sat up and stretched. "Mmmm. Strawberries! That sounds really good right now."

"How can you be hungry you bottomless pit? We just ate dinner?" Ayeka teased from an over-stuffed chair.

The entire family laughed as Ryoko blushed at the truth. They were all lounging in the living room, watching Ryoko's memories on the large flat paneled TV.

Katshuhito coughed gently. "Dinner was good, but we did not have dessert. I think Ryoko is on to something."

Tenchi draped an arm around Ryoko's shoulders. "But it's the wrong season for strawberries."

"There might be some strawberry ice-cream in the freezer," Noboyuki mentioned.

Washu snorted. "That old, freezer burned stuff? " She dipped a hand into a dimensional pocket and fished around.

"Washu, wait!" Sasami giggled and bounded over to the scientist. She whispered in her ear and nodded emphatically.

"What a great idea Sasami!" Washu said. "I think I can manage that!" Matching action to words, she drew out a silver platter heaped with large, chocolate dipped strawberries. "Will this do?"

Everyone ooohed and ahhhed their appreciation and helped them selves to the tasty treats.

"So, little Ryoko," Washu said smacking her lips. "Why'd you stop there? I know how this memory ends."

Ryoko closed her eyes and chewed slowly. She opened her eyes and swallowed deliberately. "Because there is a part in the middle you don't know about. And I know it will make you sad."

Washu nodded, listening carefully. "Do you want to show me?"

"I think so. I'd like you to know about some of the… things… that happened."

"All of us?" Washu clarified.

"Yes. It's important," Ryoko whispered.

"Then show us, " Washu encouraged.

Ryoko nodded again and activated her scrapbook device.

***

The young Ryoko sat at her desk threading the brightly painted Styrofoam balls on to wires, a half empty basket of strawberries at her elbow. The green stems were strewn about the floor under her feet, only half of them had found their way into the garbage can.

"He's coming! You better watch out, Ryoko!" Bot B cried running into Ryoko's room waving its arms.

Ryoko's head snapped up and her gentle eyes narrowed just before Kagato swept into her room. He was wearing that cape-thing again. It made him look creepy.

"Would you please knock?" she asked in irritation.

"Oh, I am sorry Little Ryoko," he purred, coming to stand by her shoulder. "I forgot you are beginning to expect courtesy from your elders. How rude of me."

She cringed. "Please Uncle Kagato, do you have to call me that? It's bad enough that mom does it."

His shoulders shook in a silent laugh that didn't animate his face. "Again, I apologize. I know how you dislike that title. But my dear, you are little."

"Mom says I'll grow when I'm ready," Ryoko said earnestly.

"Indeed you will." He laid a hand on her shoulder, seemingly oblivious to the slight shudder that ran through her small frame as he did so. "So! When you are finished with this – er – charming little project, can you come down to my lab and do me a favor?"

"What kind of favor?" she asked worrying her bottom lip with her teeth.

He smiled indulgently and pulled a bar of chocolate from the inside pocket of his jacket. "All I need for you to do is go to sleep for a while. And in return, you get to eat this."

Ryoko rubbed the base of her head unconsciously. "But I don't like to come down to your lab."

"Oh, now you hurt my feelings, my dear. Why don't you like my lab? It is a very pleasant place."

"It's scary," she said in a thin voice. "And dark."

"I just want to run a few tests. To make sure you are fully operational."

"Test hurt. I – I really don't want to uncle." She turned around and looked up at him. "Please."

"Little Ryoko," Kagato said, leaning closer. "Do it for your mother. You know how it would break her heart if you malfunctioned and she had to turn you off."

"T-turn me off? Mommy wouldn't do that."

"Unless you make her. Do you want to make her turn you off? Are you a bad girl?" he asked with a stern tone.

"No! I'm a good girl!"

"Well then, I will see you downstairs in an hour," he concluded placing the chocolate bar in the basket along with the strawberries.

"Uncle Kagato?" she asked running a hand over the candy bar.

"Yes, Ryoko?"

"Please don't tell mom. She might think I'm broken."

"Don't worry, it's our little secret," he said with a small smile and left the room, the tail of his cape flaring out behind him.

***

The memory ended, playing its last few moments into a sea of silence as those in the Masaki living room watched with distaste.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Washu croaked. "He was starting all the way back then? You were seven." She turned hurt eyes to Ryoko. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Ryoko sighed and leaned into to Tenchi's shoulder. She didn't have the heart to tell Washu that Kagato's tampering had begun much earlier than that. "You know why, Washu."

"You were always so afraid of being turned off. As if you were an overgrown doll with a mechanical turn key," Washu sighed pulling at a twist of her hair.

"And it seems to me that Kagato is the one who put that idea in her head," Tenchi stated in a hushed murmur, rubbing Ryoko's arm.

Ryoko nodded. "Mom, after replaying these memories I think Kagato turned on us way earlier than we thought he did. He was deliberate and planful, making sure he could win."

"Which he did," Washu stated, guilt staining her words. "I was so blind."

"Washu," Tenchi spoke kindly. "That's not fair. When I watch these memories, I see a different story. You are being too hard on yourself."

"That's easy for you to say," Washu stated flatly.

"Yes it is. Because I wasn't in the middle of it all," Tenchi asserted firmly.

"Tenchi is right," Katshuhito agreed. "What teacher expects their student – who is very much like a child and friend them- to turn on them in such a vile way?"

"It's happened before," Washu said.

"Yes, throughout history," Katshuhito agreed. "However, it still is not the normal course of things."

"And mom, Kagato was brilliant, charismatic and insane," Ryoko clarified.

"A perfect sociopath," Katshuhito summed up. "He was too clever to get caught, and that is not your fault."

"Or mine," Ryoko asserted in a timid voice.

Washu was on her feet and hugging Ryoko before she even intended to move. The traces of guilt in her daughter's voice had attracted her like ferrous metal to a magnet. "Of course not!"

Ryoko hugged back. "Now we have got that cleared up, how about a happy memory?" she asked bravely.

Washu chuckled and wiped a tear from the corner of her eye. "Right. That sounds good," she said settling next to Ryoko on the couch so that her daughter was comfortably sandwiched between the two that loved her the most.

***

The small exhibition hall was bursting with noise and confusion as the Ryoko's entire grade level displayed their science projects to their families and the attending faculty and judges. The room was filled to bursting, and people laughingly worked their way through the crowd to better see the competition or to nab free refreshments.

Ryoko stood by her booth, which displayed a model of the galaxy and a write up of her position on the theories of galaxy formulation. The model was simple and sparkled with glitter, which caught the light as it slowly spun on its central axis from a twist of dental floss tied to the top hook of a coat tree. It didn't look like much when compared to some of the other projects, but she had done it all herself. And really, just because the presentation wasn't as glamorous, it didn't mean the scholarly work was any less superior. The meat of her project was in her written report. The model was merely a visual aide.

Still, it was daunting to look at the flashing lights and almost magical presentations going on around her. The other students didn't seem to have the same issues she did about asking their parents for help. Ryoko stuck her jaw at a stubborn angle. So what? She was the one on high ground here, win or lose. She wrinkled her nose at the thought of losing though. Mom would be very disappointed if she lost, and mom didn't seem to care too much about the means if the end was okay. Ryoko crossed her fingers and hoped she would win. She didn't want to let her mom down. Where was Washu anyway? The judges were half way done with the booth inspection; she might miss the end.

"Here I am!" Washu huffed as she pushed through the crowd and stepped behind the counter of Ryoko's booth. She laid two takeout containers on the counter and wiggled out of her coat. "Sorry I'm late, but I got caught in a crush at the cafeteria."

"Cafeteria?" Ryoko asked with a hint of distaste.

"Don't worry you picky little girl," Washu laughed. "Its 100% vegetarian." She opened her own container and took a big bite of some sort of sandwich.

"But Mo-ohm, they cook with animal fat in the cafeteria."

Washu rolled her eyes and opened Ryoko's container, revealing a pristine salad of dark greens and raisins. "It's a salad, Ryoko. No part of an animal has touched it. Eat."

Still worried about the cafeteria's reputation for dubious food preparation practices, Ryoko stirred the salad with her fork.

"Eat," Washu reminded.

"But what if they cut some meat with the knife they used to chop the lettuce?" Ryoko whined.

Washu licked her fingers and gave her daughter a serious look. "You have two choices. One, you will eat that salad, or two, you will go hungry."

Ryoko sighed in defeat and took a small bite of the salad. "Three bites?" she asked through a mouthful.

Washu sized up the salad. "Seven normal sized bites."

Frowning, Ryoko set to it.

Now that her child was ingesting nourishment, Washu took a good look at Ryoko's booth. "This is well put together, Little Ryoko. I like the posters and the hand-outs are a nice touch."

"Thanks, mom." Ryoko said through another mouthful.

"Don't talk with food in your mouth," Washu reminded gently, prompting Ryoko to open her mouth all the way and treat her mother to sight of mashed up greens.

Washu chuckled and shook her head. "You keep that up and you will never get a boyfriend."

"Boys are gross!" Ryoko proclaimed after a hearty swallow.

"You say that now, but one day you'll be all lovey-dovey over a boy!" Washu teased drawing her clasped hands under her chin and pretending to be in love herself.

"Gross! Stop it mom!" Ryoko shouted. "I hate boys! I never want to fall in love!"

Washu was about to continue teasing her daughter when a cleared throat caught her attention. She turned around to see the judges inspecting Ryoko's booth. "Well, good evening!" she said warmly.

"Good evening Dr. Hakubi, Good evening Student Hakubi," murmured the delegation of teachers.

"Good evening, " Ryoko responded with a full bow. "Thank you for visiting my booth."

Washu faded to the side to give Ryoko the full spotlight.

"Tell us a little about your project," requested an elderly man.

Ryoko grinned with confidence in her eyes and gave each of the judges a handout. "As you can read in further detail, I argue for the theory of cosmic expansion and contraction in regards to how our galaxy, and the larger galactic cluster it is a part of, was formed." She gestured to her hanging mobile. "My model merely is a reminder of the natural shapes of ellipses and spheres that are the basic forms of our galaxy," she recited clearly.

The judge nodded. "Nicely said, Miss. Hakubi. However, can you explain the extreme simplicity of your galactic model?"

Washu frowned at that, but kept silent.

Ryoko gulped, not having expected the complexity of her model to matter. "Um… well… my mother has always taught me that the mode of presentation should not get in the way of the material being presented. Uh… that is, the simpler and more clear the better."

Washu caught Ryoko's eye and nodded. ::So you do listen to me on rare occasion,:: she sent to her daughter sounding both proud and amused.

Ryoko responded with a mental equivalent of a raspberry but kept her attention on the judges. "Thank you for your attention honored ladies and gentleman," she said bowing again.

The judged nodded and headed for the next booth.

Ryoko flopped down on a stool and heaved out a dramatic sigh. "They hated it." Her shoulders drooped. "I should have let you help."

Washu slipped an arm around her daughter's shoulders. "Yeah, they weren't too impressed."

Ryoko sniffed, on the edge of tears. Even her mother hated her project.

"Those stupid pig heads wouldn't understand an original effort if it bit them in the ass. They are too used all of the cheating to notice an honest entry," Washu continued, giving Ryoko's shoulders a warm squeeze.

Ryoko blinked back her tears and leaned into Washu and smiled a little sadly. "I'm still sorry I didn't win for you."

Washu squeezed Ryoko's shoulders again. "This contest is about you not me."

"Yeah. I just wanted to make you proud of me."

Washu removed her arm and dropped to one knee so she could look up into Ryoko's eyes. "Oh but you have. Let's see… One, you were self-reliant. Two, you were honest. Three, your arguments for your selected theory were watertight. Four, you showed me that you know how to present data." She fished around in a subspace pocket that had formed behind Ryoko's head and pulled out a blue ribbon with the words "First Place" painted in gold down the center. She pinned it on Ryoko's shirt, and kissed her on the cheek. "Well done."

Ryoko stroked the ribbon with a finger and smiled down at her mother. Her mom was the best.

Dr. Clay walked up to the counter of Ryoko's booth and immediately noticed Ryoko's ribbon. "What's this? I know the judges haven't announced the placing yet. Are you rigging the contest Dr. Washu?" he sputtered.

Washu groaned. "Buzz off ya big geek. This isn't any of your concern," she said making shooing motions with her fingers.

Ryoko jumped off her stool and put her hands on her hips. "Yeah! And don't say mean things to my mommy ya big… ya big… Octopus Head!"

Washu couldn't help herself. She just couldn't. Peals of laughter escaped her lips and she clutched her stomach as the laughter burst free. "That's… HA … so perfect!"

***

"I came up with that?" Ryoko asked with amusement as the others laughed softly.

"Yep! You always had a talent for fitting nicknames," Washu stated, casting a quick look towards Ayeka.

"And what did you mean by that look Ms. Washu?" demanded the purple-tressed young woman.

"Ah, calm down, Princess Pea Brain," Ryoko teased with a wink.

Washu nodded to herself. Ryoko certainly did have a talent for that.

"Fine, Space Pirate," Ayeka returned in a chummy tone. "Are there anymore memories tonight?"

"No, I don' think I can take anymore. "I'm getting a headache," Ryoko said rubbing her head.

Washu leaned over and peered into her daughter's eyes. "That shouldn't be happening. I placed an energy-buffer on the scrapbook. It shouldn't hurt you." She squinted as if he could read diagnostic information in Ryoko's eyes.

Ryoko turned her head away. Who knew what Washu could see in there, and there were some things Washu shouldn't know about, for her own protection. "Well, maybe I'm just tired. It's been a long day."

Washu touched Ryoko's shoulder softly. "I could run a few tests just to be safe. If you want me to do it."

Ryoko turned back to her mother, her eyelids half closed. "Nah, that's okay. I think I'll just got to bed." She turned to her lover. "You coming, Tenchi?"

"Actually, I thought I would surf the net a little," he said absently, looking towards the family PC.

Ryoko nudged his leg and looked at him meaningfully.

Tenchi caught the melancholy that fleeted across her features. "On second thought, I think I'm ready for bed too." He got up and extended his hand to Ryoko.

She took it and he pulled her to her feet. She gathered up the scrapbook and bade everyone goodnight.

Tenchi echoed the sentiment and slid an arm around Ryoko's waist as the both ascended the stairs.

"Those two could be a little more discrete," Ayeka murmured under her breath.

Washu shook her head. She had seen the whole exchange. What was Ryoko hiding from her?

Upstairs in their room, Ryoko buried her face in Tenchi's chest and held him close.

Tenchi's arms went around her immediately. "What is it?" he asked.

Ryoko squeezed him once then looked up at him with sad eyes. "The next set of memories… they show a big turning point in my relationship with Kagato."

"And the ones you have shown already haven't?"

"Heh. Trust me, it gets worse. Kagato stopped pretending to be nice and started to go after me for real," she said toying with a button.

"Oh," Tenchi whispered into her hair.

"More importantly my Tenchi, when I stopped trusting him and went to mom… she didn't believe me."

"You've mentioned that before," he agreed.

She nodded. "And I guess I didn't want her to have to watch it, particularly in front of all of you."

Tenchi rubbed her back. "That was kind of you, honey."

"I must be getting soft," she half growled, half sniffed. "Tenchi?" she asked looking up at him.

"Hmmmm?"

"It hurts to remember that she wasn't there for me," Ryoko whispered in a small voice. "I don't really want to remember it either."

Tenchi looked down and saw a single tear pooling at the corner of her left eye. With a tender smile, he brushed it away with his thumb. "It's all in the past, 'Yoko. All done and gone."

She hid her face in his chest again. "Not for me. It's still heavy in my heart."

"Will you share it with me then?"

She nodded.

"Good." He pulled her out of his arms and led her to the bed. "Let's sleep now and we can face this in the morning."

She phased out of her clothes and crawled under the covers. Tenchi undressed more slowly and turned off the light before sliding in as a warm presence beside her. He spooned against her cool skin and wrapped his arms around her torso.

"I love you Ryoko. No matter what happened in your past."

She murmured softly and snuggled into his chest taking great comfort from his physical presence. She would show him some of her uglier memories tomorrow. He was the only one she would ever show.