Year: 772

4 years after the Cell Game

The way it used to be

After hours of deep sleep, Ruri was finally awakened by the light of the sun's rays that managed to make their way to her despite the still closed curtains.

Slowly, she opened her eyes and looked around. The room was only dimly lit, but enough for her to deduce that it was probably late in the morning. After a few more seconds in this semi-torpid state, the haze that still surrounded her mind dissipated, and she sat down on the bed.

She noticed that she was alone in the room. The television was off, and there was no sound in the room, only the birds singing outside. This was not the first time she had woken up like this. Most of the time, 17 only stayed with her until she fell asleep. She had finally gotten used to falling asleep in his arms and being alone the next morning. Without being surprised, a part of her nevertheless felt for a moment the regret to note that, again, he had not remained.

"He must have gone out for a walk again," she thought with a sigh.

Ruri decided to get up, but her wobbly legs were still so numb that she almost tripped trying. She had clearly not yet recovered well from the previous day's "efforts", and she laughed at finding herself totally naked on the bed, unable to make a single movement.

"Girl, you're still going to have to get dressed!"

Ruri looked around and saw 17's clothes lying on the back of a chair. The way they were arranged, impeccably folded, was characteristic of his habit of always wanting his things to be tidy. His mania often extended to Ruri's stuff that he always undertook to rearrange, especially when she was sleeping. Amused, she decided to seize his black t-shirt, the one which still had the logo of the Red Ribbon Army.

"Too bad for you cyborg, I don't have the strength to go to the bathroom" she said to herself as she put it on, before an idea crossed her mind: if 17's clothes were there, then that meant he hadn't left as she thought.

Besides, she had hardly had time to think about it that the door of the room opened very gently, and that he appeared in front of her. He stopped a second by seeing her, before smiling to her then to enter and to come to join her. Ruri immediately noticed that he was wearing the black tracksuit she had bought for him, which he never wore outside.

- How long have you been awake? asked 17 as he came to sit beside her.

- Just for a few minutes. Did you go out in that outfit?

- No, I stayed here last night. But since it was getting late I thought you'd be up soon and hungry, so I went to see the guy downstairs...

- The receptionist.

- Yeah. He showed me that there was a little store on the first floor of the hotel and so I went by and bought some stuff.

- You mean you talked to another human being than me by yourself?

- Yes, why?

- Nothing, Ruri answered laughing, it's just that you're not usually very good at making conversation.

- I have conversations with you.

- Yes, and you have made progress since we met but with other humans ... Anyway, thank you and bravo!

- However, there is one thing I didn't understand.

- Which one?

- At the time of payment, the guy ...

- The receptionist.

- Whatever. He asked me the room number, and when I gave it to him he laughed.

- Really? Why ?

- No idea. But then he winked at me.

- Seriously?

- Yes, I found that strange too.

- Did he say anything else?

- Yes, he did. He told me to buy this fluorescent bottle, he said it was an energy drink and that I will need it.

- A WHAT ?

- Energy drink. It means it's to get your strength back.

- I KNOW WHAT IT IS FINALLY! And what did you do next?

- I agreed to buy the bottle, and before leaving I also winked at him.

- NOOOO 17 TELL ME YOU ARE KIDDING!

- Not at all.

- BUT ... WHY?

- You've often told me that when I don't understand a human's behavior, I should just do what they do so I'm not rude. So that's what I did. It's nice to be concerned that we might be tired, right?

- ... And why do you think he thought we might be tired?

- Because we travel.

Ruri hesitated between the desire to burst out laughing at his total naivety, and that of going to dig a hole in the ground to hide there so much she had shame. But after a few minutes of reflection, she finally found the situation very funny, the completely shifted attitude of 17 who was unpacking with carelessness the contents of his bag on the bed being properly hilarious: he was really light years away from understanding what had happened and his face was of a disarming serenity.

So, after a few seconds of consternation, Ruri finally replied, amused:

- Okay. So now here's the plan: we'll wait until it's dark to leave, and we'll get out of this place as fast as we can, without talking with anyone, okay?

- Okay. But did I react badly?

- Yes and no. I promise I'll explain, but later. Ok?

- Ok.

Ruri felt that she had literally saved the life of this poor receptionist by not revealing anything to 17. She was still wondering how she was going to explain the extent of this misunderstanding to him, when she suddenly thought about what had happened the night before. Although her initial goal of getting 17 to calm down had been achieved, she had not been able to get him to put into words what had caused him to be so angry.

So, as she accepted the packet of chips he handed her, Ruri decided to resume the conversation she had not been able to complete the day before.

- So ... you're not angry anymore?

- No. Not at all. In fact, you're really good at helping me manage my anger.

- If I can make myself useful, don't hesitate...

Ruri had resumed this mischievous and teasing tone which resounded in 17 like a real call to which he reacted immediately, turning around and approaching her to caress her long and disheveled hair, before finally giving her for only answer a long and deep kiss.

- I promise, he replied with a smile.

Both of them were now almost lying on the bed, and they were so close that their noses were almost touching, each of them could feel on their skin the breath of the other one. So close to Ruri, 17's eyes could not lie to her, and the young woman felt that she could risk asking him more questions.

- Why were you angry yesterday? she asked him, not sure if he would answer.

- For so many things that I can't really explain it.

- Just tell me what you think, and I'll try to decipher.

Then 17 told him everything he had felt once in the laboratory. The discovery of the anteriority of Cell's creation and all the questions that followed. His doubts about why Gero had decided to turn him into a cyborg, if he had planned to create this monster for so long.

His memories of 18's absorption and 16's death. These images that replayed endlessly in his head, as if he was trapped in a time loop, a movie that was unfolding before his eyes without him ever being able to do anything to prevent anything from happening. This terrifying impression of having been only a powerless spectator.

His regrets. His remorse. And his guilt.

That of not having seen anything coming, and not being able to prevent anything that had happened to them.

Ruri listened to him, carefully, analyzing his every word.

Everything became much clearer to her when she heard this story. 17 was in desperate need of answers, and Ruri could understand that. She too had been searching for months for a meaning to her parents' death. She had wondered how they had come to this and what she could have done to prevent them from leaving. She too had felt the need to follow in their footsteps in order to come to terms with their deaths.

But it wasn't that simple.

- You know, she began then shyly once he had finished his story, I think that now that Gero is dead and that his laboratory is definitively destroyed, you will probably never have access to all the truth.

- Yes, I know. This old fart really succeeded in everything.

- You are free, and he is dead. Sounds like a victory, doesn't it?

- Yes, yes. But I wish I had known.

- Is it really that important to you?

- Yes.

- Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm

- Don't tell me you're seriously thinking about this?

- It has nothing to do with you. But ... how can I put it ... this whole story raises real questions for me from a purely scientific point of view. It's true that my knowledge of robotics is close to zero, but on the other hand I'm a zoologist and in fact, the more I think about it, the more I say to myself ...

Ruri stopped, seeming to hesitate for a moment.

- What ? asked 17, intrigued.

The young woman then straightened up abruptly, leaning on her right elbow and fixing on him a glance in which began to shine the flame of the curiosity.

- Okay, this is just a hypothesis, right? Let's just say that when you tell me what it was like when Cell absorbed you, it makes me think of symbiosis.

- A what?

- It is a particular form of parasitosis. When an organism manages to live by using another. What is special about symbiosis is that the two living beings are very closely related, they sometimes share some of their organs or functions. The fact that you were unconscious but at the same time able to see and hear what Cell saw and heard suggests that you shared nerve endings with him.

- Yes, and?

- Maybe from a mechanical point of view the fusion of two entities is easy, but you are not a machine, and neither were Cell. You are biological creatures. And such a cooperation between the organisms of two, well three different living beings is truly hallucinating. It is miraculous. It is a scientific prodigy.

- I really don't see what you're getting at.

- Achieving such a feat presupposes several things. First, if Cell was conceived as a biological being, Gero must have started from an existing DNA. Like that of an animal.

- Yes, this monster had a giant cockroach head in its first form.

- The description you gave me sounds more like a cicada, but whatever. Anyway, it makes sense. Biological creatures are by nature less resistant than robots, there are limits to what a body made of flesh can endure. So if we assume that Cell couldn't have his full power from birth because, I don't know, he would have been too strong and that would have been harmful to his body, so he needed to go through evolutionary stages.

- ... okay, 17 answered, still wary but eager to know where Ruri's reasoning would lead her.

- Think back to my book, I know you have read it. Remember, butterflies, caterpillars ... insects are specialists in metamorphosis. It's an innate ability in them. Logically, that's why Gero started with insect DNA. You tell me that he then collected DNA from Goku's friends and that Cell could use some of their abilities. So he reworked this initial DNA to integrate parts of the others. It's really fascinating.

- Let's say so. What does this have to do with 18 and me?

- For you and your sister, it's different. Gero has made sure that your absorption triggers the evolutionary process. I have no idea how he did it, but it implies...

Ruri had just stopped again. With her index finger resting on her chin, she seemed to be deep in thought, and 17 did not dare to disturb her.

He was now hanging on her lips, and he flinched with anticipation when he saw Ruri take a deep breath. She had that famous look, serious, calm, the one she had when she was preparing an expedition or approaching a dangerous animal.

- This implies that Gero did not capture you randomly, she finally said, gravely.

- What makes you say that?

- Because he has somehow "set up" Cell so that the symbiosis between your organisms works. He must have done this at the time of his conception, or at least at the very beginning of the process. That means knowing in advance who the individuals that Cell was going to integrate were going to be.

A shiver ran down 17's spine.

Gero's premeditation was no longer in doubt for him, but even if Ruri only confirmed this certainty, her conclusion led him to ask himself a new question, more terrible than the others.

- Why the two of us?

- That, unfortunately, I think you will never know. Only Gero could tell you.

17 had expected this answer. Ruri had given him new insights that he had never thought of, but he could see the impenetrable wall of mysteries in Dr. Gero's twisted brain standing in front of him. The young woman was right, he was going to have to learn to live in spite of the absence of answers to all the questions he was asking himself.

But as he let out a long sigh, Ruri resumed:

- But one thing seems certain to me.

- Which one?

- Reprogramming a DNA to allow it to merge with another living being must be absolutely complex. To do it once is in itself a feat, but to do it with the DNA of 2 totally different beings is a miracle. So Gero has necessarily targeted genetically close beings. As close as possible. Like ...

- Twins, 17 continued.

- Yes, and probably without, well, without a large family looking for them.

This last statement did not surprise him. 17 had long since deduced that no family or acquaintances were waiting for him outside the laboratory. It was therefore quite natural that he completed Ruri's reasoning.

- Orphaned twins, then. The ideal target.

- Yes. And what that means, if I'm right, is that Gero had probably been on to you for a long time. Your kidnapping was not a coincidence. 17, you and your sister were just kids, how could you have prevented anything? Gero's plan was too elaborate, too perfect, prepared for too long. You couldn't have protected yourself from a danger you didn't know existed. None of this is your fault.

- Are you trying to reassure me?

- No, I don't. I mean it.

He stood up, leaning on his elbow, and stared at Ruri with his piercing eyes.

No, she wasn't lying. The sincerity was in her eyes.

- Okay, he continued. But it was my stupidity that caused the rest. If I hadn't provoked Cell, if I had joined forces with 16 and Piccolo, we could have defeated him. And...

- And nothing at all. You have no way of knowing what would have happened. Maybe you could have beaten him, but then what? Who's to say the Trunks of the future wouldn't have killed you? You were the ultimate evil to him. And who could have stopped him? He had become much stronger than you, right?

17 was silent, unable to answer. In fact, he had never asked himself this simple question: what would have happened if he had not been absorbed?

Vegeta and Trunks had arrived soon after, and they had indeed become superpowered. Unstoppable.

Yes... What would have happened?

- The past is the past, Ruri continued. You can't change it, that's a fact, but what matters is the present. 18 is alive, flourishing. And maybe it's selfish, but I think that if this hadn't happened, we would never have met. Without you, my life would be... empty. It makes me happy to be here with you. Don't you feel the same ?

17 then looked her straight in the eye.

- I don't know, he finally replied, a big smile on his face.

- Damn tin can with your ridiculous pride! she screamed. 17, one day I'll make you spill the beans, whether you like it or not!

- I am trembling with fear.

- You should indeed.

17 did not answer, preferring to revel in the sight of Ruri's falsely annoyed face.

But there was still one last concern in him, which he suddenly felt like expressing to Ruri.

- Do you think it's because 18 were mad at me that she wanted to leave?

- The real question is: why would she be mad at you?

- Even if she was spit out, and everything is fine and she lives with her ... husband, if she was absorbed, it is still because of me.

- You, or Vegeta? And anyway, you are taking the problem the wrong way.

- Why do you say that?

- Because I don't have the answer, and neither do you. All you do is imagine explanations. Me, when I want to know something, I don't know a billion ways to do it. I'm a scientist, I don't speculate.

- Speculate ?

- I don't waste hours imagining lots of hypotheses.

Thoughtful, 17 remained silent.

This conversation had just turned a lot of things inside him upside down and he was hesitating on what to do to put his thoughts back in order.

"Do not speculate..." he thought, stirring this word in his head to try to understand its meaning. In fact, Ruri had enlightened him on things he thought he would never be able to understand, but at the same time she had just shaken the few certainties he thought he had.

"Do not speculate ..."

When he looked again at the young woman, he saw that she was smiling at him with a big smile full of malice. As if what had to be done was obvious.

It was then that he understood.

He had to do something. Something he had put aside for too long.

- What are you planning to do today? he asked her

- Nothing at all. I am exhausted and need to rest. So my schedule is: sleep, eat, and watch TV.

- So if I understand correctly, my presence is ...

- Completely useless, Ruri interrupted him with a laugh.

There was no need to say more.

17 stayed with Ruri for a while to help her get ready, collect her things and make sure she had everything she needed. Only then did he leave the hotel and the northern region and fly to Kame House.

Where 18 lived.

To reach this small isolated island in the middle of the ocean, 17 relied on his memories from his previous visit but also on the fact that he had come very close to it during the underwater expedition. From the air, it was a very small piece of land and very difficult to spot, but when he saw it, he recognized it immediately.

At first glance, no one was outside, but 17 knew his sister was there.

Although distended, this indescribable bond that united them had never been broken. So it was with the certainty of finding her that he landed, as he had done years before, on a stretch of white sand just inches from the ocean.

He then had to wait a few minutes before the door to the house opened and 18 appeared.

- Hi, he said with a smile.

18 did not move and stared at him for a long time, before answering, impassively:

- You didn't come to our last appointment.

- Yes.

- And can I ask why?

- I had something important to do.

- And so now that you're available, you come in here unannounced and all you have to say is "hi"?

- Yes.

Only 17 knew her well enough to perceive the tiny movement of her right eyebrow and to read in her eyes the real extent of her thought, beyond her apparent coldness. He knew she wasn't angry, just a little annoyed.

- Can I know what brings you here? she asked after a new silence.

- I need a reason to come and see you?

But before 18 had time to say anything, a familiar voice echoed from inside the house:

- 18, who are you... talking to?

It was Krillin, 17 had recognized his voice in an instant.

Coming to the island, he expected his sister's husband to be there. However, although he had no particular animosity towards him, he simply gave him a brief glance to let him know that he had seen him.

Krillin, on the other hand, was completely surprised. He was staring at 17, his mouth wide open, his gaze alternately going back and forth on each of the twins. 18 had spoken to him briefly about their various encounters but she had kept most of the information about him to herself, so Krillin had no idea what his brother-in-law had been doing since the end of the Cell Game.

Nevertheless, he also knew that he was no longer a threat at all, and once the effect of flabbergasting had worn off, he began to greet him warmly:

- Oh! 17, it's been a long time! How are you doing? We weren't expecting you but your visit is a great surprise! Would you like to come in for a drink?

- No, it's okay.

17 didn't really want to start a discussion with him. Besides his general lack of interest in talking to humans, he still had a hard time understanding what 18 could possibly see in him, and his presence with her made him a little uncomfortable. On the other hand, his sister's heavy gaze had not escaped him, and although he had always been more powerful than her and annoying 18 had long been one of his favorite distractions, he knew her well enough to know that provoking her anger was never a good idea.

So he had done his best not to be rude and to use as "neutral" a tone as possible. However, this clear but abrupt refusal had left Krillin totally baffled.

- Uh ... you want me to bring you a drink outside? he then stammered with hesitation.

- No.

- To eat?

- No.

Suddenly, as 18 looked up to the sky, a sound similar to a bird chirping was heard, attracting 17's attention who then began to search for its source. Then, in Krillin's arms, he saw a moving form that he identified in an instant.

It was a human baby.

- Her name is Marron. She is my daughter, said 18, who had remained silent until then, but who had noticed her brother's reaction.

- I had guessed.

17 was perplexed.

Although he was 18's husband, Krillin was quite indifferent to him. However, from the moment his gaze fell on the baby, he had felt very strange emotions. He didn't need his sister's confirmation to be sure of their parentage, because as soon as he saw the blonde curls on the little girl's head, he recognized the golden hair of his twin.

He knew nothing about this child, but he was filled with great affection when he saw her. Marron, for her part, was very intrigued by the presence of this stranger and without waiting she began to extend a hand in his direction.

Immediately, 17 saw his sister's sharp eyes again.

"Rule number one: never look like a threat to the mother," he said to himself, thinking back with amusement to this advice Ruri had given him when he had to approach the giant turtles.

But he didn't want to stay like that, so he slowly moved his hand towards the baby, and delicately touched her right cheek with his fingertips. This small ticklish caress made immediately its effect, triggering the hilarity of the little girl who started to wriggle while laughing out loud.

- Hello, Marron, 17 murmured before withdrawing his hand.

The sweetness of this gesture did not escape 18 who was very surprised, although she did not let it show. She then turned to Krillin, who had not dared to intervene, but who she knew was protective of her daughter. He had been worried to death every time she sneezed, so seeing 17 approaching must have been a source of great concern for him.

- Go back with the baby, she said to him then in a much more soothing voice.

- But you ...

- Don't worry, everything is fine. Isn't it 17?

- Yes.

Reassured, Krillin nodded before executing.

Only when he was out of their sight did the brother and sister start walking in perfect sync. They strolled silently along the beach until they reached the back of the house where there were plastic chairs. With one look, they coordinated their actions, each taking one and placing them both in front of the ocean and sitting down.

Then they stayed like that for a long time, staring at the horizon, until 17 decided to start a conversation.

- Your... your daughter is really cute.

- Thank you, said 18.

- She looks healthy.

- Yes.

- You have the same hair.

- It's true. Krillin says she looks a lot more like me than she does like him.

- Good for her, right?

- HEY! Disrespect my husband again and I'll rip your head off! 18 shouted, throwing a furious punch towards 17 who dodged laughing.

- Hahaha! Wow, what a fury ! Relax, I was just kidding ! The years haven't made you any less sensitive I see !

- As much as they didn't make your jokes any less silly! I was thinking that you had changed but no, you are still a kid!

- Really?

- I forbid you to make fun of Krillin, you hear me! He is a good person. A nice person. He takes care of me, and of the baby too. He looks after us.

- I know, said 17, suddenly very serious again.

Intrigued by this sudden change in tone, 18 turned to her brother to see that he was looking straight ahead, a strange smile on his face.

- I saw him, he said after a brief silence. After Cell absorbed me, I saw him defend you, even interfere. I also saw him destroy the remote. And when you were spit out, I saw him take care of you. It's funny, I never really thought about that before. It's just coming back to me now...

18 did not answer, turning her gaze to the horizon as well.

Simultaneously, without saying anything to each other, they experienced the same phenomenon. In front of them, the film of their past lives, of the common trials they had gone through and of the long and incredible journey that had brought them to this very place, was unfolding.

Neither 17 nor 18 had ever imagined that once free, they would live the lives they were living. Lives that were different, but that had brought their tormented souls the rest and meaning they had never really known to seek.

- When you were spit out, I was happy, 17 continued. I was glad that at least you could have a chance.

- When I heard that you had been resurrected, I was happy too, said 18.

- Haha, yes, especially since it wasn't really planned, was it?

- Because you think that when Cell absorbed me I thought he might spit me out? Do you think it was predictable?

- No, I didn't. I didn't plan this. I didn't plan much...

17's smile had suddenly faded, and after saying his words he fell silent.

18 felt her heart clench in her chest. Their emotions were intrinsically linked and the pain he was feeling had hit her with such power that she could not ignore it. 17's visit was not trivial, she had only just realized that.

In fact, only she really knew what he could feel.

She, too, had had to learn to get over the anguish of seeing Cell's face every day, every night, and his vile smile. When they had met again right after the end of the tournament, both of them had tried to resume their lives as they were, but it hadn't worked. 17 was different. He had become silent, distant. As for her, she could no longer look at him without seeing the faces of Cell and 16 appear before her, those terrifying images that she could not get out of her mind. At that time, everything had seemed heavy, painful, suffocating. Until that morning when she had felt an imperious need to flee, to get as far away as possible. She hadn't found the words to express to her brother what she had felt, and he probably wouldn't have been able to understand her at that moment.

So she was gone.

Not to flee from him, but to flee from this past that she rejected with force.

Not knowing where to go, she had thought of Krillin, his kindness and courage, and had decided to join him, without knowing why.

Little by little, by his gentleness and patience, he had helped her to recover. 18 had recovered, but if the years had gradually softened her pain, she had always kept a thought for 17 in her heart and the worry of knowing he was alone in this vast world of which he knew nothing had never really left her.

- One day you promised me that you would kill Gero and we would be free, that everything would be okay. That you had a plan. Wasn't that the case? she said after a few seconds, making 17 jump, not expecting this strange question.

- A plan? Uh ... actually I did but let's just say ... I clearly didn't ... anticipate everything.

- As usual.

- But ... wait ... how I could have imagined all that had emerged in the brain of that old fool ? It doesn't make sense!

- None of this makes sense anyway. I stopped trying to figure it out a long time ago. You should just do the same. Nothing went as planned, but who cares? That's all behind me. What matters is... well... I have things that matter to me. I like my life here.

- You get sentimental as you get older. You almost become human, it's touching.

- Tchhhh. Think whatever you want. I don't care.

Seeing his sister silent again, 17 was surprised to see how everything had finally returned to "the way it used to be", when he liked nothing more than to tease her to get her to react, when they talked together with a naturalness and ease that he had with no one else.

Just like before.

Without that heavy feeling of embarrassment and restraint that guilt had imposed on him.

And even though she wasn't going to let it show at all, 18 had also noticed.

That smile in the corner of the lips. Those laughing eyes. That annoying nonchalance. That sense of sarcasm.

She was facing her brother again.

This brother with whom she had gone through so much hardship and fought so many times. This brother whose immaturity annoyed her deeply, but who had never flinched during the long months of their captivity, and whose unshakeable certainty that he would succeed in regaining his freedom had been like a raft of hope on which she herself had clung.

They had parted on a silence, a mountain of unspoken words and misunderstanding. But now, they had just met again, and it was as if everything that had happened between them, all that negativity, had just vanished in an instant.

Something arose in 18's heart. A strange feeling that she had felt many times in their lives and that only occurred in front of him. A feeling that sprang from the depths of her past memory.

A kind of tenderness.

No matter what he said, no matter what he did, as annoying as her brother was, she had always forgiven him everything. It was an indescribable and inexplicable bond, resisting distance and their differences.

She knew it, and so did he.

Without realizing it, 18 started to smile too. A very slight smile.

- In any case you are fine, and that's good, said 17.

- It looks like you too.

- Yes.

A simple look was enough for them to say without a word all they wanted to say. To express their mutual relief at seeing each other in their place, happy, safe. They no longer needed to watch over each other, to exist only for each other. They each had a life to live, a life to build. Paths to be traced, of which they did not know that they would be the stages, but of which they both knew that they would nevertheless end up joining, sooner or later.

After a few more seconds, 17 finally got up. The sun was beginning to sink towards the surface of the ocean. The day was coming to an end, and it was probably time for him to go back to Ruri. The vision of the young woman suddenly gave him a shock and he exclaimed, handing his sister a piece of paper:

- Ah, here, while I think of it! Here is my phone number.

- Do you have a phone now?

- Yes.

- Since when?

- Not long.

- And what for?

- Is this an interrogation sis? Am I suspected of something?

- No, I don't care. You can do whatever you want.

- Your coldness hurts me deep inside, you know?

18 didn't answer, but she did take the trouble to glance at him very quickly. He was beaming, his eyes once again shining with that teasing glint she had seen so many times in him.

- More seriously, he continued, it looks like you and I are going to have to live in the human world for a little while. So we might as well get used to it, right? That's what I'm trying to do.

- Yes, you are probably right.

- I also think that our little annual meeting is not really necessary anymore. No ?

- Especially if you don't deign to go there, 18 replied, grabbing the paper and quickly put it in her pocket.

- Hahaha! Well, I'm not unhappy to have left my place of sufferer to someone else finally. What a cruelty !

- You will never grow up 17.

- I know. And I think it's time to leave a busy woman like you alone. The sun's going down, I gotta get home. I have...

- Things to do?

- That's it.

- People to reach?

17 did not answer immediately, but he gave his sister a knowing look that was better than any speech.

- Who knows? he replied with a wink.

- I don't care either way.

- Yes, that's probably why you're asking me.

But before 18 could respond, he had already begun to rise into the air.

When they had separated, 18 had turned her back to him. That day she had not had the courage to look at her brother for fear of not having the strength to keep her resolution. But this time, 17 wanted to take leave by looking her in the eyes. So, once he had risen a few meters above the ground, he turned around to face her.

- Will you say goodbye to Marron for me? he then asked.

- And to Krillin.

- Yeah. If you want.

- You can do it yourself you know.

- I'm not very good at it. It's not my thing.

- Okay. I'll take care of it.

- Thank you. See ya!

- See you.

After one last look, 17 rose even higher into the sky, determined to head back north. As he flew away from the island, he suddenly heard the voice of 18 shouting:

- You didn't write down my number, you idiot! I'll call you!

Amused, 17 raised his right hand to let her know that he had heard her, before accelerating and quickly disappearing into the distance.

18 watched him walk away.

She had not expected this visit, and yet now that it had taken place, it seemed as if she had been waiting for it for ages. They had hardly spoken, hardly exchanged any words. And yet, they had told each other everything.

Clutching the piece of paper that contained 17's phone number tightly in her pocket, she smiled, staying on the beach until her brother's silhouette had evaporated into the clouds above the island.

Then, still without a word, she returned to join Krillin and Marron.

After a return trip that he made even faster than the first one, 17 arrived at the doors of the hotel while it was still dark.

As usual, he didn't think of going down the hall of the building but flew over it until he reached the window of their room that Ruri had left ajar. From the outside, 17 saw her with amusement, lying on the bed greedily devouring a packet of sweets while typing on her laptop.

When he saw her, he realized that he had missed her and was glad to see her again. He had the feeling he was back where he belonged, at home. He tapped on the window to signal his arrival before leaping inside.

- Hi cyborg, Ruri muttered when she saw him.

- Hi, human. Did you get some rest?

- Yes, it wa'ch great. How wa'ch your day?

- Good.

- Cool. Here, have a caramel candy, they are really good!

- Thank you.

17 accepted her offer and came to sit beside her.

Ruri acted with him as if nothing special had happened, turning on the television and watching together.

She didn't ask him any questions, although he was sure she knew what he had done.

So many things that had seemed insurmountable had become so easy since he had met her. In fact, Ruri's presence had become familiar, reassuring, comforting. He began to think about the whole situation, and how much his life had changed in just a few months.

None of it made sense, 18 said. And on second thought, it was true. His resurrection was pure chance, as was his meeting with Ruri.

He then thought about 18. When he thought about it, she was living a very "human" life and so commonplace that he had remained for a very long time in total incomprehension of her decisions. Why Krillin? Why this guy, older, short, bald, so far from her and her character? Why this life? What did it bring her? In fact, he only realized at that moment that he had probably rejected 18's choice of life out of pride, that of a cyborg, that of a being different from humans and who did not want to "lower" himself to their level.

But by doing so, he had probably deprived himself of many things, and he only really understood that now. This quietude, this feeling of appeasement, wasn't that what being happy was all about? Besides, what would have been worth for them the freedom they had so much wished to find without everything else? But in the end ...

- It doesn't matter... he murmured then.

- Mmm? Did you say something 17?

- Nothing, I was just thinking about something 18 told me that I only understand now.

- Oh that's normal.

- Really?

- Yes. She's clearly the smarter of the two of you, I've said that from the beginning.

- Hahaha! I really don't know what's stopping me from teaching you manners, human!

- The good sense without doubt, answered Ruri with a smile. Oh, I have to tell you something important.

- What is it?

- While you were away I did the accounting. I inform you that we are almost out of money.

- Is that a problem?

- Since I have to buy food to survive, personally yes.

- Ah.

- So we'll have to go back to work. I have to take on assignments while I get my budget back together. I made some calls and one of my teachers has an idea. She advises the rangers of the Royal Natural Park. Do you know it?

- No.

- It's the biggest park in the world and it's under the supervision of the Earth King employees. They are having trouble with a giant eagle species...

- Oh, a monster, what a surprise...

- ... which is threatened with extinction, continued Ruri, without picking up on 17's mocking tone. They have a few specimens that they're trying to reproduce but it's not really working. So I could work there for a while to earn some money, keep writing and it would also be a good subject for my studies ... and also ...

- Also what?

- Who says rare and endangered species necessarily says ?

- Poachers.

- That's it. And that's where you come in handy. So are you interested in coming along with me for a little while longer, cyborg?

- Absolutely, 17 answered with enthusiasm.

Now he knew what he wanted to do with this new life he had been given, and he intended to make the most of every second.