Tenchi Muyo Fan Fiction ❯ Okayama Summer ❯ Chapter 10

*^^; Yeah, I know... I took a short hiatus after the ninth chapter, but I'm back again. ^_^ ::is listening to 'Atarashii Taiyou':: Whee... I love this song... ::coughs:: ANYWAY!! This chapter is mostly Gohan's screwed up dreams... ^^; But I'm planning an all-DBZ chapter soon. We need to get back to Kururin. ^^ Soooo... enjoy!*

Chapter Ten

Washuu sighed, and leaned back in her lab chair. "I have absolutely NOTHING to do," she said out loud, glaring at the ceiling. It didn't respond.

She rolled her eyes, and laced her fingers behind her head. "Too bad everyone's asleep..."

"Washuu?"

Washuu blinked. "Okay, maybe I was wrong." She whirled around in her chair. "Hey, Sasami. What are you doing up so late?"

Sasami walked over to the genius scientist and sighed. "Well... he won't be too happy that I told you, but..."

Washuu nodded, understanding. "Gohan?"

Sasami was startled. "How did you...?"

"Kiyone," Washuu said simply. "She told me he was acting strange after dinner, but I didn't think much of it then... I thought he would come to me if it was anything serious." She frowned. "I guess I was wrong. Do you know what's wrong with him?"

Sasami shrugged, feeling generally helpless. "I'm not sure... I tried to ask him, but he didn't seem to want to talk to me." She bit her lip. "He wouldn't even look at me."

"It might be he just isn't feeling well," Washuu mused, stroking her chin thoughtfully. "But I doubt he'd lock himself up just because of that... Gohan's a strong one." She paused, then smiled at Sasami. "Do you want me to take a look at him?"

"Oh would you?" Sasami exclaimed.

Washuu grinned. "Of course. I'm the one who found him, after all." She stood up, and took Sasami's hand. "Come on. We have to make sure no one wakes up."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Gohan was dreaming.

He wasn't quite sure how he KNEW he was -- usually, when dreaming (and he didn't dream all that often, considering all that he'd been through) he would be thrown into a memory -- or, in some cases, a new, unsettling time or place that he had yet to visit. But, this time was different -- he knew, somehow, that whatever he was experiencing was but a dream.

This didn't necessarily make him feel any better.

He was in the living room of the Masaki home, just standing in the middle of the floor. He blinked a few times, as if dazed, then seemed to realize where he was. There was no one else there. Sunlight streamed in through the open windows, brightening the strangely quiet room. It was a nice summer day out; he should be out playing with Ryo-oh-ki and Sasami... not just standing here...

He took a step forward, and was thrown into blackness.

Falling.

He hit something hard, though he couldn't see it, and felt it shatter underneath him. There was no real pain; it felt distant and unreal, as if he were only imagining what it would feel like. He reached up to touch his face. Wet.

Tears?

No. Blood.

He landed again, and a million knives were shoved into his back. This time the pain was there, and all too real; he screamed in a voice devoid of anything remotely human, and struggled to move, to escape to reality, but the pain only got worse. His mind began to dim, accepting defeat... the blackness got even darker, and a single sound -- laughter -- rang throughout his mind. It wasn't the low, sinister laughter that had haunted previous dreams, but a quiet chuckling -- the sound one makes when they are in the presence of something childishly amusing.

Gohan shut his eyes tight -- not that it made any difference, and felt

Nothing.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"TENCHI!!" Sasami burst into Tenchi's room, almost in tears. The seventeen-year-old boy, who had been merely dozing, was wide awake almost immediately. "Sasami... what's the matter?"

"Oh..." Sasami scrubbed her face with her sleeve. "Oh, Tenchi, it's terrible... it's Gohan; something's wrong with him..."

Tenchi stared at her, and sat up, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. "... Sasami, what do you mean, 'something's wrong with him?'"

Sasami grabbed his wrist and yanked him to his feet. "He's tossing and turning and he looks really sick... Hurry, Tenchi, PLEASE!!"

"All right, all right, I'm coming," Tenchi said, letting her drag him out the door. He had never seen Sasami this frantic before; something really must have been terribly wrong with Gohan...

They entered the young boy's room. Washuu was perched on the side of the bed, taking Gohan's pulse. Sasami collapsed on the floor beside her, watching Gohan with large eyes, and Tenchi stood at her shoulder. "Washuu... what's going on?"

"He's having a nightmare," Washuu said grimly. "And a really bad one, too. His pulse is going a million miles an hour."

Gohan was curled up in a ball, doubled up in what looked like a mix of pain and intense terror. His was sweating profusely, and looked as if he were mumbling something under his breath, though too low for those assembled to hear.

"My God..." Tenchi leaned over to get a better look at the boy's face, eyebrows raised. "What the hell could he be dreaming about?"

"I don't know..." Washuu murmured.

"Gohan, please wake up!" Sasami cried suddenly, grabbing Gohan's hand.

Gohan stopped shaking abruptly, then twitched and lay still.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Hello, Gohan.

Gohan's eyes opened. He was in some sort of enormous room, sitting on some sort of path... though it wasn't made of anything he had ever felt before. Water ran in little streams underneath the path and in criss-cross patterns across the room, and trees were everywhere. Smaller ones closer to the center, with large, hundred-foot ones nearer the walls. The path he was sitting on led to a higher place in the very center of the room, where a pillar of light seemed to rise out of the very ground.

As he stared at it, a woman suddenly appeared, maybe five feet away from him. He jerked in surprise, and began to scramble backwards --

Do not be afraid, Gohan, The woman said, smiling at him. He couldn't see her face clearly; the air seemed to shift around her every time his eyes tried to focus on it. I'm not going to hurt you.

For some reason, Gohan trusted her. He wasn't sure why, but she seemed to... radiate something that was far from antagonism. Why are you? He asked slowly. His words, as hers had, seemed to rebound upon the walls and echo in his ears. And how do you know my name?

She shook her head slowly. My time with you is limited. It took me quite a bit of effort to get you here at all. I have time only to ask you a question.

A question? Gohan wondered out loud. I... I probably won't be able to help. I mean, I lost my memory, and...

Do you want it back? The words were gently spoken, but Gohan stared at her as if she had shouted. What... what do you mean?

Do you want your memory back?

He stared at her. Do I... do I just get it, just like that? No catch?

She sighed heavily. Regretfully. There is always a catch, Gohan. On this troubled planet, nothing comes without a price. She took a few steps towards him. You can remain ignorant of your past, and stay here with Tenchi and the others... or you can reclaim your memories, and once again wear the burden of what you and only you can hope to achieve. She held a hand out to him. What is your choice?

Gohan stared at her. Tell me... who exactly was I?

She opened her mouth to reply, but was interrupted by a faint voice, calling out to Gohan...

Gohan's eyes widened. Sasami...?

You must leave me now. He could suddenly see her with shocking clarity. You have more time to choose... but remember this meeting, Gohan. And know that, no matter what your choice, you can not run from yourself forever.

Myself...? He stared at her, and gasped. You... you're...

She smiled. Sasami's voice began to grow louder, while the woman and the entire room seemed to begin to fade and grow blurry around the edges. Good luck, Gohan... She turned, then looked back, and said, with conviction, We will meet again.

Then she was gone.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

*::dances around:: WHEE!!! ::sweatdrops:: Ahh... Gomen nasai for the psychological crap in this chapter. I honestly CAN'T write anything without it. -____- Bad habit of mine. ^^ Oh, and if you didn't guess who that lady was... you're probably not a very big Tenchi fan. ::sweatdrops heavily:: WELL...! ^^ As I said, expect a Kururin chapter next time. ::waves:: Ja ne.*