Handicapped!
Chapter 8: the reunion
A/N: Well, this is the last chapter! I'm so sorry it took sooo long! I would keep trying to write it, and it wouldn't turn out right. Plus I went to camp for a week ^^' Hey, I'm only 13! Thank you so much for your reviews, and I look forward to seeing what you have to say about this one! This is the first fic I have ever finished. (I usually quit at chapter one) You guys were the fuel of this fic. I thank you. Now, enjoy!
Ryoko sat alone, on the roof. She stared blankly in to the woods, and then at the lake. She had refused to talk and made Tenchi promise to never tell what had happened. She pulled out her large bag of rocks she had collected over the months. Several rocks clattered on to the roof, and she grabbed them before they fell off. Just as many acorns fell out of the bag as well. Her eyes lit up as she looked at the acorns and rocks. They were all different. She began to sort them out by color and texture.
Tenchi sat alone, in his room. His eyes were closed, although he was not sleeping. He wiped his hands down his face and sighed. When he got home, he had cried. He had only cried once before, when his mother died, and now he had cried again. When Ryoko died. He knew that Ryoko was up on his roof, but that was a different Ryoko. As guilty as it made him feel, he missed the Old Ryoko, and he sensed the others did as well. There was nothing he could do about it either. She turned to his side and opened his eyes. He remembered playing a game with Ryoko at night. He would turn this way and that, and she'd try to follow him, not knowing he was awake. He wanted so badly to play that game right now. As more tears began to fill his eyes, he buried his face in to his pillow, and listened to the sound of silence.
Washu was alone in her lab, as she usually was. She knew what had happened, but she had silently promised herself that she would keep it a secret. She knew how embarrassed Ryoko was, and how helpless she felt now, through the link. Washu sighed and tried to concentrate on her computer, and her experiments.
Ryoko watched Ayeka walk out of the house. She knew that Ayeka was looking for her, but she made no move to reveal her position on the roof. Slowly, but surely, she had another flashback. They had been coming to her for some time..
*flashback*
A women who looked exactly like Ryoko, sat where Ryoko was sitting now. She had her hands in her face, and was sobbing.
"I. I've been trying so hard to get Tenchi. I can't stand not being around him. But. but I know that I can't hog him, whether he likes it or not. Oh. how silly it is, to cry over a boy. A boy. that has changed my life forever. Oh Tenchi.. I love you," she said to herself.
"RYOKO!!! C'mon, Ryoko! Get down from there, it's time for dinner!" Sasami yelled up to her.
"A-alright, Sasami! I'll be right there!" Ryoko called down. She wiped her tears and put on a happy face. Fazing down, she left her gloomy attitude behind.
*end flashback*
Ryoko stared. She knew she liked Tenchi. but now she knew why. The Old Ryoko had loved him, and it wasn't right to take him away.
'Besides' Ryoko thought to herself, 'I'm just a useless mess-up anyway.'
~ You are not! ~ Zero yelled, startling Ryoko.
'Zero.. You know I'm different. I'm not like everybody else! I'm. stupid! I'm just stupid Ryoko!' With that thought in mind, Ryoko broke in to tears.
~Listen. You are not stupid. You are just like everybody else. Everybody loves you, Ryoko! So don't put yourself down~ Zero said, trying to comfort her.
'Zero. you know what I have to do. And you know that I'm not letting anything get in my way' Ryoko thought to her. She stood up, and wiped her tears in the same manner the Old Ryoko had. Zero nodded in her mind. Ryoko fazed to the living room and stood in front of Washu's door, leaving her depressed attitude on the roof, with her rocks and acorns.
~~
Tenchi got out of his bed, trying to act happy. Everybody knew something was wrong, but he had always insisted that everything was fine when they asked. He wanted to talk to somebody. Not his grandpa, because that would only resort in a long lesson. His father wasn't due back from his business trip until tomorrow. Ayeka was busy helping Sasami, and Sasami was busy cooking. He dared not speak to Mihoshi, which could only result in tears, several things broken, and the whole family knowing. And her certainly couldn't talk to Ryo-okki. because he just couldn't! So that left Washu.
'Washu is old. She's a mom. She must have dealt with this kind of thing before' Tenchi thought to himself. He headed off to Washu's lab.
~~
"So.. you see. I want to go back to being the Old Ryoko. I won't be gone. I'll be smarter! Like you! I know you can do it, Washu," Ryoko said, trying to convince Washu to turn her back in to the Old Ryoko.
". I'll do it. But under one condition," Washu said, her face stern.
"What's that?" Ryoko asked, getting a bit nervous.
Washu's face softened, and tears came to her eyes. "Give me a hug, first."
Ryoko laughed, and squeezed Washu.
"And you're sure you don't want to tell anyone? Not even Tenchi?" Washu asked, letting go.
"Yeah. They'll only try to stop me," Ryoko told her. Washu nodded her head. Just before Washu turned on a monitor, Ryoko put a hand on her shoulder, to stop her. "Wait. Washu? Do you have any paper?"
~~
Tenchi was almost to Washu's lab, when Ayeka stopped him.
"Tenchi? Can you please come in here and help us for a moment?" Ayeka called from the kitchen. Tenchi sighed.
"Sure, Ayeka," He yelled, walking to the kitchen.
"Thank you! It won't take long!" Sasami shouted.
~~
Ryoko set the pen down, and folded up the paper unevenly, in to a square. "Okay, Washu. I'm ready."
"Okay, Ryoko. And remember. We'll always love you," Washu said softly, as Ryoko laid herself down on the cold operating table. "This won't take long," Washu said, her voice crackling. Ryoko nodded. "You're a big girl, Ryoko. And a brave one." And with that, Washu turned on her computer, and let it keep track and record of what she was doing. She hooked up some cords to Ryoko's head and various parts of her body. She sat down at a different computer and got to work.
-fifteen minutes later-
Tenchi sighed and wiped his forehead. He had finally finished in the kitchen. Just as he was about to turn the knob on Washu's door, he winced. Sasami had called him again.
"Tenchi? Just one more thing I forgot!" Sasami said, trying to sound sorry.
"Okay, Sasami, I'll be right there!" Tenchi answered, turning back.
~~
Ryoko sat up. Her head felt like it'd split in two.
"Did you get the license plate of the truck that hit me?" She asked, sitting up. "Wait. where am I? Why am I in your lab, Washu?!" Ryoko said, getting on her feet. Washu laughed and ran up to her, hugging her. Ryoko paused. She didn't know why, but a small voice inside her was telling her to hug Washu back. Ryoko couldn't fight the urge, and gave Washu a big hug. She giggled. "I'm back!"
"Yes you are. And I missed you!" Washu said, through tears. Ryoko felt something sweaty in her hand. It was a piece of paper, all bent up now. She opened it and read it:
Dear Ryoko, I'm glad ur bak! -luv, Ryoko.
Ryoko suddenly got dizzy. A flood of memories came back. There she was with the butterfly, and her rocks, and with Tenchi and Ayeka.. And then she saw the memory of when she was in town with Tenchi. She shivered. That wasn't her. She would have kicked that guy's arse. Then, her most recent memory came back. Of her sitting on the roof. Now she knew. She began to cry.
"Ryoko. that really was you. It was just what'd you be like as an innocent child, growing up. You are who you are. and be happy," Washu said, comforting her. Ryoko nodded.
"Washu. don't tell anybody about this. I don't want them to see her in me. It'll cause too much pain. I'm just going to go back to the way things were. Okay?" she asked.
"Okay. I see what you're trying to do. Now go say hello to everybody. It's been months since they've seen you," Washu said, wiping a tear off of Ryoko's face. Ryoko smiled. She walked to the door.
~~
"Are you sure I'm done?" Tenchi asked, smiling. Sasami laughed and shooed him out of the kitchen. He walked to the door, and just as he was about to open it, it opened before him, and a grinning Ryoko greeted him.
"Well hello, Tenchi! Long time no-see!" And with that, she glomped him. A sudden look of surprise, sorrow, and great happiness spread across Tenchi's face.
"R-Ryoko?" he asked, pulling her back to look at her eyes.
"Yes, my Tenchi?" Ryoko responded in a sing-song voice. Tenchi yelled with happiness. Mihoshi, Ayeka, and Sasami came in to see what all the commotion was about.
"Everybody. Ryoko's back!" Tenchi told them all. Everybody looked very surprised and happy. They all hugged her, and the stories began.
-that night-
Tenchi retired to his room. He was about to fall asleep, but something on his comforter caught his eye. There was a rock. Shaped like a heart. Along with an acorn. Under it, were some flowers, and a note. The note read:
Dear Tenchi, Have a nice day! -Ryoko
FIN
A/N: Well, this is the last chapter! I'm so sorry it took sooo long! I would keep trying to write it, and it wouldn't turn out right. Plus I went to camp for a week ^^' Hey, I'm only 13! Thank you so much for your reviews, and I look forward to seeing what you have to say about this one! This is the first fic I have ever finished. (I usually quit at chapter one) You guys were the fuel of this fic. I thank you. Now, enjoy!
Ryoko sat alone, on the roof. She stared blankly in to the woods, and then at the lake. She had refused to talk and made Tenchi promise to never tell what had happened. She pulled out her large bag of rocks she had collected over the months. Several rocks clattered on to the roof, and she grabbed them before they fell off. Just as many acorns fell out of the bag as well. Her eyes lit up as she looked at the acorns and rocks. They were all different. She began to sort them out by color and texture.
Tenchi sat alone, in his room. His eyes were closed, although he was not sleeping. He wiped his hands down his face and sighed. When he got home, he had cried. He had only cried once before, when his mother died, and now he had cried again. When Ryoko died. He knew that Ryoko was up on his roof, but that was a different Ryoko. As guilty as it made him feel, he missed the Old Ryoko, and he sensed the others did as well. There was nothing he could do about it either. She turned to his side and opened his eyes. He remembered playing a game with Ryoko at night. He would turn this way and that, and she'd try to follow him, not knowing he was awake. He wanted so badly to play that game right now. As more tears began to fill his eyes, he buried his face in to his pillow, and listened to the sound of silence.
Washu was alone in her lab, as she usually was. She knew what had happened, but she had silently promised herself that she would keep it a secret. She knew how embarrassed Ryoko was, and how helpless she felt now, through the link. Washu sighed and tried to concentrate on her computer, and her experiments.
Ryoko watched Ayeka walk out of the house. She knew that Ayeka was looking for her, but she made no move to reveal her position on the roof. Slowly, but surely, she had another flashback. They had been coming to her for some time..
*flashback*
A women who looked exactly like Ryoko, sat where Ryoko was sitting now. She had her hands in her face, and was sobbing.
"I. I've been trying so hard to get Tenchi. I can't stand not being around him. But. but I know that I can't hog him, whether he likes it or not. Oh. how silly it is, to cry over a boy. A boy. that has changed my life forever. Oh Tenchi.. I love you," she said to herself.
"RYOKO!!! C'mon, Ryoko! Get down from there, it's time for dinner!" Sasami yelled up to her.
"A-alright, Sasami! I'll be right there!" Ryoko called down. She wiped her tears and put on a happy face. Fazing down, she left her gloomy attitude behind.
*end flashback*
Ryoko stared. She knew she liked Tenchi. but now she knew why. The Old Ryoko had loved him, and it wasn't right to take him away.
'Besides' Ryoko thought to herself, 'I'm just a useless mess-up anyway.'
~ You are not! ~ Zero yelled, startling Ryoko.
'Zero.. You know I'm different. I'm not like everybody else! I'm. stupid! I'm just stupid Ryoko!' With that thought in mind, Ryoko broke in to tears.
~Listen. You are not stupid. You are just like everybody else. Everybody loves you, Ryoko! So don't put yourself down~ Zero said, trying to comfort her.
'Zero. you know what I have to do. And you know that I'm not letting anything get in my way' Ryoko thought to her. She stood up, and wiped her tears in the same manner the Old Ryoko had. Zero nodded in her mind. Ryoko fazed to the living room and stood in front of Washu's door, leaving her depressed attitude on the roof, with her rocks and acorns.
~~
Tenchi got out of his bed, trying to act happy. Everybody knew something was wrong, but he had always insisted that everything was fine when they asked. He wanted to talk to somebody. Not his grandpa, because that would only resort in a long lesson. His father wasn't due back from his business trip until tomorrow. Ayeka was busy helping Sasami, and Sasami was busy cooking. He dared not speak to Mihoshi, which could only result in tears, several things broken, and the whole family knowing. And her certainly couldn't talk to Ryo-okki. because he just couldn't! So that left Washu.
'Washu is old. She's a mom. She must have dealt with this kind of thing before' Tenchi thought to himself. He headed off to Washu's lab.
~~
"So.. you see. I want to go back to being the Old Ryoko. I won't be gone. I'll be smarter! Like you! I know you can do it, Washu," Ryoko said, trying to convince Washu to turn her back in to the Old Ryoko.
". I'll do it. But under one condition," Washu said, her face stern.
"What's that?" Ryoko asked, getting a bit nervous.
Washu's face softened, and tears came to her eyes. "Give me a hug, first."
Ryoko laughed, and squeezed Washu.
"And you're sure you don't want to tell anyone? Not even Tenchi?" Washu asked, letting go.
"Yeah. They'll only try to stop me," Ryoko told her. Washu nodded her head. Just before Washu turned on a monitor, Ryoko put a hand on her shoulder, to stop her. "Wait. Washu? Do you have any paper?"
~~
Tenchi was almost to Washu's lab, when Ayeka stopped him.
"Tenchi? Can you please come in here and help us for a moment?" Ayeka called from the kitchen. Tenchi sighed.
"Sure, Ayeka," He yelled, walking to the kitchen.
"Thank you! It won't take long!" Sasami shouted.
~~
Ryoko set the pen down, and folded up the paper unevenly, in to a square. "Okay, Washu. I'm ready."
"Okay, Ryoko. And remember. We'll always love you," Washu said softly, as Ryoko laid herself down on the cold operating table. "This won't take long," Washu said, her voice crackling. Ryoko nodded. "You're a big girl, Ryoko. And a brave one." And with that, Washu turned on her computer, and let it keep track and record of what she was doing. She hooked up some cords to Ryoko's head and various parts of her body. She sat down at a different computer and got to work.
-fifteen minutes later-
Tenchi sighed and wiped his forehead. He had finally finished in the kitchen. Just as he was about to turn the knob on Washu's door, he winced. Sasami had called him again.
"Tenchi? Just one more thing I forgot!" Sasami said, trying to sound sorry.
"Okay, Sasami, I'll be right there!" Tenchi answered, turning back.
~~
Ryoko sat up. Her head felt like it'd split in two.
"Did you get the license plate of the truck that hit me?" She asked, sitting up. "Wait. where am I? Why am I in your lab, Washu?!" Ryoko said, getting on her feet. Washu laughed and ran up to her, hugging her. Ryoko paused. She didn't know why, but a small voice inside her was telling her to hug Washu back. Ryoko couldn't fight the urge, and gave Washu a big hug. She giggled. "I'm back!"
"Yes you are. And I missed you!" Washu said, through tears. Ryoko felt something sweaty in her hand. It was a piece of paper, all bent up now. She opened it and read it:
Dear Ryoko, I'm glad ur bak! -luv, Ryoko.
Ryoko suddenly got dizzy. A flood of memories came back. There she was with the butterfly, and her rocks, and with Tenchi and Ayeka.. And then she saw the memory of when she was in town with Tenchi. She shivered. That wasn't her. She would have kicked that guy's arse. Then, her most recent memory came back. Of her sitting on the roof. Now she knew. She began to cry.
"Ryoko. that really was you. It was just what'd you be like as an innocent child, growing up. You are who you are. and be happy," Washu said, comforting her. Ryoko nodded.
"Washu. don't tell anybody about this. I don't want them to see her in me. It'll cause too much pain. I'm just going to go back to the way things were. Okay?" she asked.
"Okay. I see what you're trying to do. Now go say hello to everybody. It's been months since they've seen you," Washu said, wiping a tear off of Ryoko's face. Ryoko smiled. She walked to the door.
~~
"Are you sure I'm done?" Tenchi asked, smiling. Sasami laughed and shooed him out of the kitchen. He walked to the door, and just as he was about to open it, it opened before him, and a grinning Ryoko greeted him.
"Well hello, Tenchi! Long time no-see!" And with that, she glomped him. A sudden look of surprise, sorrow, and great happiness spread across Tenchi's face.
"R-Ryoko?" he asked, pulling her back to look at her eyes.
"Yes, my Tenchi?" Ryoko responded in a sing-song voice. Tenchi yelled with happiness. Mihoshi, Ayeka, and Sasami came in to see what all the commotion was about.
"Everybody. Ryoko's back!" Tenchi told them all. Everybody looked very surprised and happy. They all hugged her, and the stories began.
-that night-
Tenchi retired to his room. He was about to fall asleep, but something on his comforter caught his eye. There was a rock. Shaped like a heart. Along with an acorn. Under it, were some flowers, and a note. The note read:
Dear Tenchi, Have a nice day! -Ryoko
FIN