I don't own Haseo, thank the gods.
But…I don't own Zelkova either, which is sad.
Written under the assumptions that Zelkova is an AI. If you don't believe so, don't review telling me what you think he is, because I really could NOT care less.

Curtain!

The artificial sun shined even more gloriously that day than usual. Haseo walked the streets with no additional members. Their struggle against Cubia was over, and They had even ventured to the bottom of the Forest of Pain together. But They were no longer around. Haseo leaned up against the bike shop and sighed.

"Tch, what am I supposed to do now?" he wondered as he watched the old and new players travel the city of Mac Anu.

He peered into the sunset on the ocean, his eyes not focusing on anything near or far. While thinking, his eyes were caught by a blue head of hair complimented by two very tiny horns. Pulling himself off of the wall, Haseo walked onto the pier to the end of a dock, where his friend sat.

"Zelkova?" Haseo said waiting for the boy to turn around.

The young boy tipped his head back with a very broad smile and tears streaming down his face.

"Well hi Haseo! What're you up to today?" Zelkova asked in his voice that was always rock solid and sure of itself.

Haseo looked down at the cheerful boy with confusion. He had never seen Zelkova cry. Many people had cried in The World, but never Zelkova. Haseo sat next to the boy and hung his legs off of the dock. The two sat together for awhile before Haseo looked to the young boy.

"Why were you crying, Zelkova?" Haseo asked in an odd way, being compassionate was not his forte.

"Oh, hehe, you saw?" Zelkova said staring into the sunset, "I was just practicing, that's all."

"Practicing? For what?" Haseo inquired as his mind tried to put possibilities together.

"Oh you know, it's nothing." Zelkova said shortly while standing up, "Hey Haseo! Let's go on an adventure! We haven't done that for so long!"

Haseo thought about it. It barely seemed like a bad idea. He hadn't been to an Area for quite some time and he had little to worry about; Zelkova was useful in battle.

"Alright, I'll meet you at the Chaos Gate once I'm ready." Haseo told the young boy.

"Alright! An adventure with Haseo~" Zelkova half sang and half shouted as he ran off the dock towards the center of town.

Haseo couldn't help but stare. The child's joy and energy was very peaceful and calming to Haseo. Zelkova barely had a care in The World. This concerned Haseo deeply, Zelkova played a vital role in saving The World. But none of that mattered now. Haseo hadn't adventured with a friend for too long. He stopped at the shops in Mac Anu to pick up a few healing items for the journey. Zelkova was always excited to fight strong monsters, unlike Haseo's usual companions of Atoli, Gaspard, or Silabus so Haseo needed to be prepared.

As Haseo stepped out of the transport and made his way to the Dome he noticed something peculiar. A vivid flash of green, followed by a blur of pink; Silabus and Gaspard. Behind them ran Atoli and Shino. None of them said anything to Haseo. He shrugged, guessing that they were all busy. Stepping into the Dome he saw the young light of energy, Zelkova waiting.

"Oh boy, Haseo I hope we get to have a lot of fun today!" Zelkova piped.

"Yeah, me too." Haseo said with no emotion as usual as he handed Zelkova 20 Healing Storms as a gift.

"For me? Wow! Thanks, Haseo! I love you! :)" Zelkova shouted, his eyes wide.

Zelkova commonly expressed his love for people and most just viewed it as a cute thing that he did. His appearance was very young, so his boyish actions matched quite well. He grabbed Haseo's hand and ran towards the Chaos Gate.

"Theta Hapless Boyish Grin!" Zelkova recited and the two were pulled in and warped away. They arrived in a level 165 field.

"Level 165?" Haseo mumbled turning to Zelkova, "Hey, where did you get those area words from? And how come they broke the level cap?"

Zelkova just flashed his charming smile and kicked the ground playfully.
"Oh, you know, Haseo. I heard you liked strong areas, so I made one."

"Made one? Well, whatever, as long as the enemies are strong." Haseo muttered.

And they were. In fact most of the monsters were bosses from the story-line. Haseo was worried that he wouldn't make it away from this area with his PC in one piece. In a fight against a level 170 Carrie the monster suddenly self-destructed, throwing Haseo against a tree.

"Chim chims!" Zelkova cried as he chased the small posse that had fallen from the tree. Haseo smiled inwardly at the boy's innocence.

The rest of the adventure went according to plan until the traveling boys approached the final battle with a Trainee Owl. It was supposed to be an easy win, until something unexpected happened.

As Zelkova rushed to deliver the finishing blow to the creature he was suddenly swept off of his feet. Haseo quickly rushed to aid him as both boys turned around spotting The One Sin, a gruesome beast. Both Zelkova and Haseo knew they were no match for such a terrible monster. Haseo ran expecting Zelkova to follow, but the boy did not. Zelkova simply sat where he had landed with a pained expression on his face. The One Sin approached the boy with much speed and began to attack him. Panicking, Haseo moved closer and closer to the monster, not knowing how to react to the situation. He used his Divine Awakening, not to injure the beast, but to knock it off balance. And it worked. Haseo ran to Zelkova's side.

"Hey, come on get up!" Haseo whispered tugging at the boys arm.

"Haseo…I'm not gonna make it, I can't run." Zelkova lamented. A frown covered his face.

Haseo had never seen Zelkova sad or scared. Thinking quickly, Haseo picked up the young boy and began to run. But The One Sin was close behind. The two sought refuge in the Beast Temple and the monster prowled around trying to find its prey. Zelkova was in very bad shape. His clothing had been torn; his skin was even more pale than usual.

"Why didn't you run?" Haseo asked the weakened boy.

"I told you…I can't. I can't run with my leg like this, I think I broke it." Zelkova replied, his smile returning, but still very faint.

"That's just your PC, Zelkova, you can still move it. It's just damaged data." Haseo reminded the boy while helping him stand. Zelkova limped around the temple a bit.

"Haha, what are you talking about? My PC?" Zelkova said with wonder.

"You know," Haseo started, "Your PC, Playable Character?"

"Oh," Zelkova said thoughtfully, "Well, I am my PC. And my PC is me."

Haseo was shocked. That meant that Zelkova was an Artificial Intelligence. He felt betrayed, Zelkova had never told anyone. Anger swelled within Haseo, he turned to the injured boy.

"What the hell?! And you couldn't tell anyone?!" Haseo screamed.

Zelkova was shocked. "Is this…anger? Why are you angry?" He asked Haseo.

"W-why?!" Haseo said astonished, "I thought we were friends! But...but you're just, you're just trash data!"

Though Zelkova knew very little about human emotions he realized that Haseo was very upset, mainly with him.

"Trash data?" Zelkova inquired. "I think…I should leave."
The boy limped out of the temple and disappeared through to warp point.

Haseo sat on the temple floor with his head in his hands. He had messed up again.

"Why…" has asked himself, "Why do I always push them away?"

He rose and moved towards the warp point. "I have to find him."

Meanwhile Zelkova had made his way far from anyone's sight. He had injured himself before and knew how to repair his own data. With his leg fully repaired, the boy had time to think. Think about what Haseo had said to him.

"Am I…Am I really…trash data?" He asked the emptiness around him.

Wandering around he found himself at the bridge in Mac Anu. Mellow Grunty was there as well.

"Why hello there, Master *mellow*" the young grunty greeted the saddened boy.

Zelkova did not answer. Mellow Grunty stared at the boy with his sad eyes.

"Master, what's wrong? There is data leaking from your eyes." The grunty touched Zelkova's eye.

"That's…a tear." Zelkova replied. He was both surprised and scared; he hadn't even told himself to cry…He just…did.

"A tear? What's that? Are they fun? Do they taste good?" The grunty had several questions for the young boy.

"I don't know…" Zelkova whispered.

"Well master, I'm going back to our Home I will see you later.*mellow*" The grunty said hopping off of the bridge and waddling away.

Zelkova sat on the bridge dangling his legs over the water. Why had he cried? Was he…sad? But sadness was a human emotion. There was no way he could feel that. Feeling very confused Zelkova gazed at his reflection in the water.

"Who…or…What am I?" Has asked his reflection. "Am I really…Trash data?"

The words still stung. He used to know everything there was to know, but not about humans. And with humans being very close to him he was going to have a hard time learning. Maybe he didn't want to know. Maybe he was trash data. The boy stood on the bridge, staring at the river, and fell off into the dark waters. He sank deeper and deeper. And for some reason, he felt a pressure in his chest.