[Spamfic] [UY] "Duel Distress"
By Henry J. Cobb
$Id: uyduel.txt,v 1.2 1997/08/10 05:23:53 hcobb Exp $
The Urusei Yatsura characters and situations are the creation of Rumiko
Takahashi. No infringement of her copyrights is intended.
Go watch episode #21...
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"Next time Shinobu, could you bring the homework? I feel bad just lying
around in here."
"Yes Ataru. I'll bring in your books tomorrow."
He looks so pale. I hold his hand for a moment then hurry out of the room.
I hold back my tears until I'm outside the hospital. Why, why now that
Ataru has finally gotten his act together? Why is he wasting away like
this?
"Shinobu..."
I look up. She's perched on a street light, just like a vulture.
"Have you come back to gloat Lum?"
"Shinobu!" She flies down and grabs me. "My Darling is dying, t'cha!"
I just stand there. "I'm sorry, I can't help you. Mine is too."
"I know. The two Darlings must be recombined. It's their only hope,
t'cha."
"I think they'd rather die."
"Darling can't die, t'cha!"
I don't know why, but I hold her then. Maybe it's that her pain is so much
like mine. "OK, I agree, but how do we do it? Cherry says that the potion
he whipped up would only have worked within a few hours of the split."
"I have a machine that can combine objects. The effect on living beings is
unpredictable, but Darling has no choice, t'cha."
The next day, I open Ataru's window and wave.
"What's up Shinobu?"
"You just need some fresh air. Staying cooped up in here all the time isn't
good for you."
"Can't hurt I guess. Did you bring my books?"
"No."
"What? Hey, that's Lum's UFO! What she's doing back here?"
"I'm sorry Ataru."
"What?"
I grab him and jump to the UFO. His struggles are so feeble that it breaks
my heart.
Another Ataru is sitting inside the craft. "Absolutely not. I will be be
part of that idiot again!"
My Ataru takes a moment to look at his not-quite twin. "Quite a collection
of medals you've got there. Which five and dime did you get them at?"
"Darling earned every one in combat Darling, t'cha!"
"I'd rather die than be part of that fake!" The two Atarus shout in unison.
"Shinobu, undress your Ataru please, t'cha."
"What?"
"We wouldn't want Darling to get mixed up with his clothes, t'cha?"
Again he resists. He's never been as strong as me, but now he's so very
weak.
We put the two Atarus in the chamber, leaning against each other for support
and then Lum brings down the glass dome.
"Let's see how does this work, t'cha? Oh, I remember!" Lum pushes several
buttons and the two Atarus disappear in a flash of light.
When I can see again, there is only one Ataru lying there, so very still.
"Ataru!"
"Darling!"
We rush to him and he's breathing, maybe stronger than a few minutes ago.
"Shinobu, take him back to the hospital." Lum holds up his hospital
gown. "Then come back here, we have something to talk about, t'cha?"
The next day I go to his house. The Doctors are as mystified about his
recovery as they were about his aliment.
His mother welcomes me warmly at the door. We've gotten along so well in
these last few months, now that she's had a son to be proud of.
I take another look in the hall mirror. I look the same as always, the
feeling is both completely familiar and totally weird. Then I hurry up the
steps to Ataru's room.
He's lying on his futon.
"Ataru, are you OK?"
"Relax Shinobu, I'm just resting. I should be strong enough to get back to
school tomorrow. Where's Lum?"
"She --- She's gone."
"Oh. I don't know whether to thank or curse you two. It's still so raw
between my two sides. All these conflicting impulses bouncing around inside
my head. I guess I'll take up girl chasing again to take my mind off of
it."
"Darling!" I feel the strange/familiar electric sensation as lighting
crackles around me.
"Lum!" His eyes open wide in shock, then he leaps out of bed and pushes me
back against the wall. "What have you done with Shinobu? And where are
your horns?" He searches over my head with his hands.
"I am Shinobu Darling, and Lum too, t'cha!"
"How?"
"We used the machine Ataru Darling. We don't know how we kept the Oni
powers without the horns. Maybe we're just drawing on the same power source
as Shinobu's strength, t'cha?"
"Oh, there you go again."
"What's wrong?"
"It's another choice you've taken away from me. Thanks, I guess." He
kisses me then.
Henry J. Cobb hcobb@slip.net http://www.io.com/~hcobb