Oscillations of Life

I don't own, nor claim to own, any of the intellectual properties used in this article of fan fiction. Said properties are owned by AIC Animation and I think Pioneer.

Fool's Notes: I know I said that this one would be about the involvement of Kagato and Washu, but to do that I decided that I would first have to explain a few other aspects of Washu's life. The names in this are names I got from an OVA family tree that uses information from the OVA3/GXP continuity. I changed a small detail (Washu's husband's last name) to work with a concept I wanted to use.

Fantasies of Family and Happiness

Washu was sitting in her lab at the academy, working with one of many aspects of her life that still baffles her. She was analyzing one of the gems that she has had since she wound up at the orphanage.

She has changed from the young girl that found her self at the steps of the orphanage so many years prior. It didn't take much time for her to earn a reputation at the academy. After baffling half the professors in her first year, she quickly rose to a rather high position. All to have it smashed by her life being torn away by the stigmas of status and so called tradition.

Washu was at the pinnacle of her career. She headed the Royal Science Academy, was respected by almost all of her peers, and even had a blossoming family. The good was in her favor. Like all good things, the pendulum that is life swung from its time in the light to deep into the dark.

Washu was tossing in her sleep, it has been almost thirty years since it happened. The day still haunted her, it turned out nothing like it should have. She was visiting her husband Mikamo's family for the first time since they had wed. She expected her and her son to be openly welcomed, instead she had her life stripped of her like someone takes something from a child.

"Excuse me ma'am, where is it you think you are going?" questioned a guard stationed outside the entrance to the rather lavish compound that was the Hakubi estate.

"What do you mean? I am visiting with my husband and son. Why wouldn't I be allowed in?" a perplexed Washu responded with an edge of worry showing in her response.

"I haven't been informed of a person such as your self. I will quickly run it by my superiors," the guard turned to some form of intercom and mumbled some words into it. "I'm afraid that I am under order not to allow you in. I am also told that if you become a problem, to escort you in to the village to be handled by the local authorities."

"What don't you understand? My husband is in there, along with my son! Ask you superior again, I…" she was cut off by the guard yelling back at her.

"Listen, I asked if you were to be admitted, and I was told quite clearly to keep you out. I personally don't care who is in there just that they are supposed to be in there. You aren't supposed to be in there. Now if don't mind, could you please leave the premises."

By now Washu was rather shaken up. She was just told that she wasn't allowed to be with what was now her family. Something that had been denied her all her life. With nowhere else to go, Washu simply turned around and started walking down the road that led to the small village that the Hakubi's lived outside of.

"What is going on, why can I not even see my own family? This just has to be some mix up, someone is bound to come get me and explain that it is all a mistake," Washu thought to herself as she walked slowly down the road that cut through a large meadow.

"Washu! Washu!" yelled a man running up behind her, child in hand.

"Mikamo! I knew you wouldn't just leave me out here. Why wouldn't they let me in?" Washu asked starting to feel relieved.

"I was hoping this would never happen, even when I asked you to marry me I knew this could happen. I'm so sorry, I never meant to hurt you Washu," the blonde haired man was saying to her, obviously skipping a few key points along the way.

"What are you talking about, what happened? I don't understand. This was a misunderstanding right, I thought it was just that the guards didn't know who I was, right? You explained to them who I was, that is it isn't it?" Washu was starting to panic again, her stomach was falling fast.

"They knew who you were Washu. My parents ordered that you be kept out. In their eyes, we were never married. I'm so sorry, but I have to leave you. They said that it was for the family, that it is my duty. I should have known this would happen." Washu dropped down to her knees, devastated as a few rich people up the road from her just decided that she wasn't good enough to experience the love of a family, something that life was already good at doing for her.

"What about Mikumo, I will still get to see him right? He is my son too! Please say he doesn't have to grow up without a mother, like me! Why does this have to happen Mikamo?"

"I am afraid it is my parent's wishes that Mikumo grow up here, they will take care of her. I wish you could still see her, but they decided that it would be best if you stayed away. Goodbye Washu, please remember that I will take care of Mikumo for you and that I will always love you. Sadly, duty must come first. It is for duty only that I do this. I hope you understand." On that note Mikamo turned around with his son in hand. Washu watched while on her knees, reaching out for them as they walked away from her life. All because of a duty towards some family. The irony was not lost on her, the irony that it was for one family that another was torn apart.

Washu locked her self up in her lab after that day. At first she just sat in a corner of it, and looked over the many machines that where in the lab. All her life, the only thing that she knew was her experiments. They were what no one could take from her. She just wished she could be the child back at the orphanage who would constantly start small fires while playing around with what ever she could get her hands on. She wanted to forget about being Professor Washu Hakubi, she wanted to forget about social status and duty, and she just wanted to be able to be happy with her experiments like before. She wished desperately to be little Washu again.

It was nearly a month before anyone saw a sign of the professor. When she finally turned up again, people were shocked with who they saw. Instead of the beautiful women with the ambitious can-do-anything attitude, a cheery girl came out. The first people who saw her didn't know what to make of it.

"Who are… Is that… Washu?" asked a perplexed colleague of hers.

"Don't call me Washu anymore, please call me Little Washu!" pronounced the exuberated little scientist.

"Little…Washu? I don't understand. What happened to you?"

"What do you mean 'what happened'? It's me, little Washu! The number one scientist in the universe!"

The man inwardly thought to himself "Well it's about time, she has finally lost it. I don't know what happened, but the cheese has finally slipped off her cracker."

Washu's performance started sliding downhill since. More and more of her work was being laughed at, less people paid attention to her. Washu didn't notice, she was too lost in her lab, her world, to notice. She researched anything that caught her fancy, spending weeks at a time on the most trivial items. It wasn't till two events occurred that she started to return to her old self.

First was one of the most pointless experiments she had ever done. At least that is what some people would have thought. For kicks and giggles, she decided to figure out what the gems in her necklace where made out of. Most people wouldn't have give it any thought. Washu wasn't like most people, she wanted to know where every atom was in each gem. This is when she discovered the great power stored in the three scarlet gems that she had worn around her neck her whole life. When people started hearing about this, some proclaimed that it was the return of Washu. Others said it was her final move into complete insanity.

There was one who was most intrigued by her recent discoveries. He was excited by the amount of power Washu claimed these gems had. This young man was a scientist in the true sense of the term. He yearned to understand what couldn't be explained. If a question came to the front of his consciousness, he yearned to answer it. At first he seemed like the perfect match to Washu, someone who could help turn her life around and push her to do big things.

"Professor, I trust that you reviewed my application to become your assistant and apprentice?" asked a tall man with silver hair.

"Yes Kagato, I have reviewed your application and I am still thinking about it. All though there is one thing that you could do that would really make me think faster," Washu said to him with that little girl voice towards the end.

"What is that professor?"

"Please call me Little Washu!"

Kagato started to regret his request to work with the petite professor, but reminded him self about what he could gain from the experience. Something compelled him to the gems that Washu was studying, and he need to know more about them. All ready his heart was starting to turn black as the bad started to reach him.

Another segment killed. Now the next one will be Kagato getting involved in Washu's attempts at rebuilding her life.