This is a fanfic I started ages ago, forgot about, and then decided to come
back to. ^__^ Okay, you know the drill; these characters ARE NOT mine.
Anyways, I hope you enjoy it, at least a little! Reviews would be
appreciated too...
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Tenchi pulled the bed covers further over his head. Although he knew that it was late, he just couldn't seem to summon up the energy to get out of bed. Besides, all the girls would be up, and the last thing he wanted to do was face them. They'd be up soon anyway, to check on him, and probably either to drive or to drag him out of bed. He knew that they all meant well, but.
Well, I'll have to get up some time. May as well now, and get it all over and done with, he thought. He attempted to move his arm, to flick off the covers, but he just couldn't bring himself to end what might be the only bit of privacy he would have for the rest of the day. But just as his eyelids drooped again, the house gave a shudder. It wasn't very big, but it was enough to knock Tenchi out of bed and onto the floor. He mumbled slightly as he got up. "Washu's at it a bit earlier than usual, isn't she?"
He pulled on some clothes, and went out of his room to lean on the banister and see if everyone else was okay. Surprisingly, he couldn't see any one of them in the lounge. So, Tenchi stumbled down the stairs and into the kitchen.
"Good morn-" Tenchi started, but stopped to save his breath when he saw that no one was around to hear him. "That's weird. Usually they're swarming all over me by now."
Only then did it occur to him that he was looking for the thing that was causing him so much grief only one minute ago. He wondered whether he should go back to bed, and enjoy the peace while it lasted. Tenchi sighed, shook his head, and went to check Washu's lab.
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"Little Washu?" Tenchi pushed the door open, and instantly heard familiar, indignant cries drift up to him. "I guess they're down here."
Indeed they were. As the door closed behind him, the forms of Ayeka and Ryoko strapped to large boards came into sight. To Ayeka and Ryoko's right, Washu was standing over a frazzled control panel, glaring at an equally frazzled Mihoshi. Actually, everyone had a certain burnt aura around them. Kiyone and Sasami were sitting on chairs right next to the panel. They had obviously been closer to the blast, as they were looking rather startled, and they didn't seem to be moving, except to cough every now and again. It didn't take long for Tenchi to assess the situation.
"Washu, is everyone all right?"
Everyone fell silent, and all the girls' heads (except for Kiyone's and Sasami's) swung round in unison to face him.
"Oh, morning Tenchi!" Washu started forward. "I was just experimenting when a certain AIRHEAD-" She glared at Mihoshi, who waved sheepishly at Tenchi, "somehow managed to wriggle out of her restraints and push the terminate button!"
"Well, I didn't mean to!" Mihoshi frantically pleaded her case. "How was I to know that it would do that?"
Washu stiffened, and pointed at the console, presumably at the 'terminating' button. "By the big red sticker above it saying, "WARNING, DO NOT PRESS, TERMINATE BUTTON"?"
"Well-" Mihoshi started. But she was cut off by Washu, who had only just begun.
"Or how about these two stickers either side of the button? What do they say, hmm? "WARNING, DO NOT PRESS, TERMINATE BUTTON"!"
"Ah, but-"
"And then, of course, the sticker below it; "WARNING, DO NOT PRESS, TERMINATE BUTTON"!!!"
"Ah, well-"
"And then there's the button itself, with the big red sticker on it with big bold writing. "WARNING, DO NOT PRESS, TERMINATE BUTTON"! I believe that's what it says!"
"Okay! Okay, I'm sorry Washu! Please forgive me, I hate it when you're mad at me."
"Well if you hate being yelled at, then stop touching.well, everything!" Seething, she turned back to Tenchi, who was already regretting finding them. "Anyway, it doesn't matter. I finished ages ago."
"What?" It was Ryoko's turn to start yelling. "If you finished ages ago, then why are we still strapped up to these things?"
Washu grinned. "So Tenchi could get some sleep for once."
This, as anyone would expect, caused the noise to return, only this time, directed at Washu. Only Tenchi smiled weakly at her.
"Gee, thanks, little Washu.I think. Err.so, what are you working on, then?"
Washu grinned. "I'm so glad you asked, Tenchi!" She spread her hands out in front of herself, and her computer appeared. "I'll just be one moment."
While she typed, Tenchi walked over to where the dazed Kiyone and Sasami were sitting. As far as Tenchi could tell, they still hadn't blinked.
"Err.Sasami? Kiyone?" He waved a hand in front of their eyes. They both snapped out of their trance.
"Oh." Sasami began to blink rapidly. "Morning Tenchi."
"Yeah, morning." Kiyone held up her hands, and groaned when she saw all of the burn marks. "You'd think I'd be used to this by now wouldn't you?"
"If Ryoko, Ayeka and Mihoshi are.well, in Mihoshi's case, were up there," he pointed at the boards, "Why are you sitting here?"
Sasami stopped blinking and looked at Tenchi. Her eyes were red and puffy from the smoke. "Well, Washu did explain to us that this was just to get them off your back. So, in case we woke you up, we were dragged down here too. But we were allowed to sit down, because we wouldn't.wouldn't.do whatever Washu thinks we would.or something."
"Oh." Tenchi wasn't sure he understood, but decided to leave it alone. So he wandered over to the boards, where Ryoko and Ayeka had started to throw insults at Mihoshi, who had walked over trying to apologise.
"Good morning, Ryoko. Good morning, Ayeka. Good morning, Mihoshi."
"'Morning Tenchi!" they replied together.
"I take it you slept well, then." Ayeka said, rather sharply.
"Um, yeah, I guess I did." Tenchi was starting to wish he were back with Kiyone and Sasami. "Uh, so what did Washu tell you to get you up there?"
Surprisingly, Ayeka blushed slightly, and opened her mouth to speak. But Ryoko jumped in before her. "She told me to come up here for one of those scans she does. Actually, does anyone know what exactly she scans about us?"
"Ryoko! I was about to say something!" Ayeka was obviously grouchy. "Why do you always inter-"
"Well, she never tells me anything!" Ryoko carried on. Tenchi realised that she was trying to suppress a smile. It dawned on him that she was doing it on purpose.
"What about you, Tenchi darling? What does Washu do to YOU when you're down here.with her.by yourselves." Ryoko frowned. But then she shook her head. "No, she wouldn't do...that." Still, she was staring pretty hard at Tenchi now, still frowning.
"Uh, same as you, I guess." Tenchi had a feeling he should try to avoid touching on the subject of whatever her mind had suggested to her.
Ryoko still wasn't convinced, but the frown disappeared.
"Ryoko, would you PLEASE be quiet!" Ayeka, who had been yelling throughout Ryoko's talk, was going red in the face, so Tenchi decided to stop the whole scene ahead.
"Ayeka, what did Washu tell you?"
"Humph. Same thing she told HER." she said, nodding sharply at Ryoko.
"And you, Mihoshi?" Tenchi turned to the blackened blonde.
"What?" she jumped. She'd been daydreaming.
"What did she tell you?"
"Who? When?"
"What did Washu say to get you to come here?" Tenchi repeated himself calmly.
Mihoshi frowned as she tried to remember. Behind them both, Ryoko was passing her hands through the restraints.
"Oh, she said that she was doing a very important experiment, and that I wasn't to follow her, wasn't to touch anything, and especially not to let her tie me up onto the boards."
"Figures."
Washu looked up from her computer as the small portal she had created dropped a little packet into her waiting hand. "Okay, come on over!"
Tenchi watched Mihoshi skip over to Washu, followed by a drifting Ryoko. While Kiyone helped Sasami off the bench, Tenchi untied Ayeka. As he was about to undo the last strap on her left arm, she said, "Tenchi, you will catch me, won't you? I mean, I wouldn't want to fall on top of you."
"Uh, okay." As the buckle fell through it's loop, Ryoko appeared suddenly beside Tenchi and leapt at him, pushing him out of the way. Ayeka landed on the floor awkwardly, with her dress riding up around her waist. As she scrambled to pull her skirts back down, Tenchi tried to free himself from Ryoko, who was lying on top of him.
"Would you lot break it up! Come on! This is paying-attention-to-Washu time!" yelled an impatient Washu.
"Ryoko, get off! What's the big idea?" cried Tenchi.
Ryoko giggled. "I didn't want you getting squashed under that lump of a princess. Besides, I wanted to be the first to give you a morning hu-u-ug!" she said, squeezing him tighter, then letting go. She turned to face Ayeka. "Oh dear, Ayeka! What happened to you? Can't you fall a few inches without falling over and making a scene?" Laughing wickedly, she floated back over to Washu.
Tenchi picked himself up, shaking his head, and helped Ayeka up. "Are you okay?"
"Yes. But did you see what she did to me? And I think I sprained my ankle.would you help me over to the computer? Please?"
Tenchi hesitated before complying. Ryoko turned round, rolled her eyes, and turned back. Deliberately, Tenchi took Ayeka over to the other side of Washu to Ryoko.
"About time!" Washu exclaimed. "Okay, here they are!" She flourished the small bag. Now Tenchi could see that it held a few smallish, white tablets.
"Are you sure you didn't buy those at the store, MOM?" Ryoko asked sceptically. Washu ignored her.
"Who wants to guess what they do?"
"Cure headaches, sore throats and achy limbs. See side of packet for dosage details and side affects." Ryoko tried again at a joke. This time, she was rewarded with an angry glare from Washu.
"I'll take that as a no." She broke off her glower to smile at Tenchi. "I bet you could guess, Tenchi." This earned her glares from Ayeka and Ryoko.
Tenchi tried anyway. "Uh.a cure for-"
"Nope. Not a cure." Washu giggled. "You'll never get it, you know."
"Well, tell me then. Tell us."
"They are moleculartransmodifying capsules which will rearrange DNA when pressured by the medulla oblongata, and will also distort the Broca's Area to liken the chosen form's, if it's extant."
This was met with several blank stares. "It will change your body's structure, your physical power, abilities and your voice to almost whatever you want, so long as it exists." she explained, rather down hearted. "Only humanoid forms, though. At the moment, at least."
"Wow!" Mihoshi made a grab for the packet, but Washu pulled it back.
"One each, and that's all. Take them with a little water, and then wait a minute or so. They'll last 24 hours, no more, no less. Oh, and they'll have expired by next year." She began to give them out. "Remember! Once you've used them, that's it. No more. Until I make another batch - but even then, I've still got to do some more research."
She gave one to Tenchi first, then Ayeka, Ryoko, Sasami, Kiyone, Mihoshi (very reluctantly), put one in her pocket, and was left holding one.
"I'll give this to you, Tenchi."
"Uh, okay, thanks."
Washu turned back to the computer, but stopped short. "Where is it?"
"Where's what?" everyone asked simultaneously.
"The disk. It had all the data on it." She spun around, and pointed a finger at Mihoshi. "What have you done with it?!"
"Huh? Meeeee? I haven't touched anything! Not this time, honest!"
"So who took it, then?" Washu glanced suspiciously at everyone. No one spoke. In the silence, a small meow was heard. Washu's eyes widened.
"Ryo-oki."
Everyone looked down. Ryo-oki had come in, and was chewing on.yep, you guessed it.
"MY DISK!!!" Washu moved in a blur, snatching Ryo-oki from the floor, and the disk from Ryo-oki. Holding the disk up to inspect it, she gave the verdict."Nope. It's useless.which means it's all gone."
"What was on there anyway?" Tenchi asked, still supporting Ayeka. His shoulder was starting to hurt. Her ankle didn't seem to be hurting anymore, though.
"All the data for those tablets." she said miserably. "That means that those tablets are the first and only made. Make good use of them, then!"
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Tenchi pulled the bed covers further over his head. Although he knew that it was late, he just couldn't seem to summon up the energy to get out of bed. Besides, all the girls would be up, and the last thing he wanted to do was face them. They'd be up soon anyway, to check on him, and probably either to drive or to drag him out of bed. He knew that they all meant well, but.
Well, I'll have to get up some time. May as well now, and get it all over and done with, he thought. He attempted to move his arm, to flick off the covers, but he just couldn't bring himself to end what might be the only bit of privacy he would have for the rest of the day. But just as his eyelids drooped again, the house gave a shudder. It wasn't very big, but it was enough to knock Tenchi out of bed and onto the floor. He mumbled slightly as he got up. "Washu's at it a bit earlier than usual, isn't she?"
He pulled on some clothes, and went out of his room to lean on the banister and see if everyone else was okay. Surprisingly, he couldn't see any one of them in the lounge. So, Tenchi stumbled down the stairs and into the kitchen.
"Good morn-" Tenchi started, but stopped to save his breath when he saw that no one was around to hear him. "That's weird. Usually they're swarming all over me by now."
Only then did it occur to him that he was looking for the thing that was causing him so much grief only one minute ago. He wondered whether he should go back to bed, and enjoy the peace while it lasted. Tenchi sighed, shook his head, and went to check Washu's lab.
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"Little Washu?" Tenchi pushed the door open, and instantly heard familiar, indignant cries drift up to him. "I guess they're down here."
Indeed they were. As the door closed behind him, the forms of Ayeka and Ryoko strapped to large boards came into sight. To Ayeka and Ryoko's right, Washu was standing over a frazzled control panel, glaring at an equally frazzled Mihoshi. Actually, everyone had a certain burnt aura around them. Kiyone and Sasami were sitting on chairs right next to the panel. They had obviously been closer to the blast, as they were looking rather startled, and they didn't seem to be moving, except to cough every now and again. It didn't take long for Tenchi to assess the situation.
"Washu, is everyone all right?"
Everyone fell silent, and all the girls' heads (except for Kiyone's and Sasami's) swung round in unison to face him.
"Oh, morning Tenchi!" Washu started forward. "I was just experimenting when a certain AIRHEAD-" She glared at Mihoshi, who waved sheepishly at Tenchi, "somehow managed to wriggle out of her restraints and push the terminate button!"
"Well, I didn't mean to!" Mihoshi frantically pleaded her case. "How was I to know that it would do that?"
Washu stiffened, and pointed at the console, presumably at the 'terminating' button. "By the big red sticker above it saying, "WARNING, DO NOT PRESS, TERMINATE BUTTON"?"
"Well-" Mihoshi started. But she was cut off by Washu, who had only just begun.
"Or how about these two stickers either side of the button? What do they say, hmm? "WARNING, DO NOT PRESS, TERMINATE BUTTON"!"
"Ah, but-"
"And then, of course, the sticker below it; "WARNING, DO NOT PRESS, TERMINATE BUTTON"!!!"
"Ah, well-"
"And then there's the button itself, with the big red sticker on it with big bold writing. "WARNING, DO NOT PRESS, TERMINATE BUTTON"! I believe that's what it says!"
"Okay! Okay, I'm sorry Washu! Please forgive me, I hate it when you're mad at me."
"Well if you hate being yelled at, then stop touching.well, everything!" Seething, she turned back to Tenchi, who was already regretting finding them. "Anyway, it doesn't matter. I finished ages ago."
"What?" It was Ryoko's turn to start yelling. "If you finished ages ago, then why are we still strapped up to these things?"
Washu grinned. "So Tenchi could get some sleep for once."
This, as anyone would expect, caused the noise to return, only this time, directed at Washu. Only Tenchi smiled weakly at her.
"Gee, thanks, little Washu.I think. Err.so, what are you working on, then?"
Washu grinned. "I'm so glad you asked, Tenchi!" She spread her hands out in front of herself, and her computer appeared. "I'll just be one moment."
While she typed, Tenchi walked over to where the dazed Kiyone and Sasami were sitting. As far as Tenchi could tell, they still hadn't blinked.
"Err.Sasami? Kiyone?" He waved a hand in front of their eyes. They both snapped out of their trance.
"Oh." Sasami began to blink rapidly. "Morning Tenchi."
"Yeah, morning." Kiyone held up her hands, and groaned when she saw all of the burn marks. "You'd think I'd be used to this by now wouldn't you?"
"If Ryoko, Ayeka and Mihoshi are.well, in Mihoshi's case, were up there," he pointed at the boards, "Why are you sitting here?"
Sasami stopped blinking and looked at Tenchi. Her eyes were red and puffy from the smoke. "Well, Washu did explain to us that this was just to get them off your back. So, in case we woke you up, we were dragged down here too. But we were allowed to sit down, because we wouldn't.wouldn't.do whatever Washu thinks we would.or something."
"Oh." Tenchi wasn't sure he understood, but decided to leave it alone. So he wandered over to the boards, where Ryoko and Ayeka had started to throw insults at Mihoshi, who had walked over trying to apologise.
"Good morning, Ryoko. Good morning, Ayeka. Good morning, Mihoshi."
"'Morning Tenchi!" they replied together.
"I take it you slept well, then." Ayeka said, rather sharply.
"Um, yeah, I guess I did." Tenchi was starting to wish he were back with Kiyone and Sasami. "Uh, so what did Washu tell you to get you up there?"
Surprisingly, Ayeka blushed slightly, and opened her mouth to speak. But Ryoko jumped in before her. "She told me to come up here for one of those scans she does. Actually, does anyone know what exactly she scans about us?"
"Ryoko! I was about to say something!" Ayeka was obviously grouchy. "Why do you always inter-"
"Well, she never tells me anything!" Ryoko carried on. Tenchi realised that she was trying to suppress a smile. It dawned on him that she was doing it on purpose.
"What about you, Tenchi darling? What does Washu do to YOU when you're down here.with her.by yourselves." Ryoko frowned. But then she shook her head. "No, she wouldn't do...that." Still, she was staring pretty hard at Tenchi now, still frowning.
"Uh, same as you, I guess." Tenchi had a feeling he should try to avoid touching on the subject of whatever her mind had suggested to her.
Ryoko still wasn't convinced, but the frown disappeared.
"Ryoko, would you PLEASE be quiet!" Ayeka, who had been yelling throughout Ryoko's talk, was going red in the face, so Tenchi decided to stop the whole scene ahead.
"Ayeka, what did Washu tell you?"
"Humph. Same thing she told HER." she said, nodding sharply at Ryoko.
"And you, Mihoshi?" Tenchi turned to the blackened blonde.
"What?" she jumped. She'd been daydreaming.
"What did she tell you?"
"Who? When?"
"What did Washu say to get you to come here?" Tenchi repeated himself calmly.
Mihoshi frowned as she tried to remember. Behind them both, Ryoko was passing her hands through the restraints.
"Oh, she said that she was doing a very important experiment, and that I wasn't to follow her, wasn't to touch anything, and especially not to let her tie me up onto the boards."
"Figures."
Washu looked up from her computer as the small portal she had created dropped a little packet into her waiting hand. "Okay, come on over!"
Tenchi watched Mihoshi skip over to Washu, followed by a drifting Ryoko. While Kiyone helped Sasami off the bench, Tenchi untied Ayeka. As he was about to undo the last strap on her left arm, she said, "Tenchi, you will catch me, won't you? I mean, I wouldn't want to fall on top of you."
"Uh, okay." As the buckle fell through it's loop, Ryoko appeared suddenly beside Tenchi and leapt at him, pushing him out of the way. Ayeka landed on the floor awkwardly, with her dress riding up around her waist. As she scrambled to pull her skirts back down, Tenchi tried to free himself from Ryoko, who was lying on top of him.
"Would you lot break it up! Come on! This is paying-attention-to-Washu time!" yelled an impatient Washu.
"Ryoko, get off! What's the big idea?" cried Tenchi.
Ryoko giggled. "I didn't want you getting squashed under that lump of a princess. Besides, I wanted to be the first to give you a morning hu-u-ug!" she said, squeezing him tighter, then letting go. She turned to face Ayeka. "Oh dear, Ayeka! What happened to you? Can't you fall a few inches without falling over and making a scene?" Laughing wickedly, she floated back over to Washu.
Tenchi picked himself up, shaking his head, and helped Ayeka up. "Are you okay?"
"Yes. But did you see what she did to me? And I think I sprained my ankle.would you help me over to the computer? Please?"
Tenchi hesitated before complying. Ryoko turned round, rolled her eyes, and turned back. Deliberately, Tenchi took Ayeka over to the other side of Washu to Ryoko.
"About time!" Washu exclaimed. "Okay, here they are!" She flourished the small bag. Now Tenchi could see that it held a few smallish, white tablets.
"Are you sure you didn't buy those at the store, MOM?" Ryoko asked sceptically. Washu ignored her.
"Who wants to guess what they do?"
"Cure headaches, sore throats and achy limbs. See side of packet for dosage details and side affects." Ryoko tried again at a joke. This time, she was rewarded with an angry glare from Washu.
"I'll take that as a no." She broke off her glower to smile at Tenchi. "I bet you could guess, Tenchi." This earned her glares from Ayeka and Ryoko.
Tenchi tried anyway. "Uh.a cure for-"
"Nope. Not a cure." Washu giggled. "You'll never get it, you know."
"Well, tell me then. Tell us."
"They are moleculartransmodifying capsules which will rearrange DNA when pressured by the medulla oblongata, and will also distort the Broca's Area to liken the chosen form's, if it's extant."
This was met with several blank stares. "It will change your body's structure, your physical power, abilities and your voice to almost whatever you want, so long as it exists." she explained, rather down hearted. "Only humanoid forms, though. At the moment, at least."
"Wow!" Mihoshi made a grab for the packet, but Washu pulled it back.
"One each, and that's all. Take them with a little water, and then wait a minute or so. They'll last 24 hours, no more, no less. Oh, and they'll have expired by next year." She began to give them out. "Remember! Once you've used them, that's it. No more. Until I make another batch - but even then, I've still got to do some more research."
She gave one to Tenchi first, then Ayeka, Ryoko, Sasami, Kiyone, Mihoshi (very reluctantly), put one in her pocket, and was left holding one.
"I'll give this to you, Tenchi."
"Uh, okay, thanks."
Washu turned back to the computer, but stopped short. "Where is it?"
"Where's what?" everyone asked simultaneously.
"The disk. It had all the data on it." She spun around, and pointed a finger at Mihoshi. "What have you done with it?!"
"Huh? Meeeee? I haven't touched anything! Not this time, honest!"
"So who took it, then?" Washu glanced suspiciously at everyone. No one spoke. In the silence, a small meow was heard. Washu's eyes widened.
"Ryo-oki."
Everyone looked down. Ryo-oki had come in, and was chewing on.yep, you guessed it.
"MY DISK!!!" Washu moved in a blur, snatching Ryo-oki from the floor, and the disk from Ryo-oki. Holding the disk up to inspect it, she gave the verdict."Nope. It's useless.which means it's all gone."
"What was on there anyway?" Tenchi asked, still supporting Ayeka. His shoulder was starting to hurt. Her ankle didn't seem to be hurting anymore, though.
"All the data for those tablets." she said miserably. "That means that those tablets are the first and only made. Make good use of them, then!"