'Some people are born into the world to lead others, the rest are meant to be leaded around. But it's not that certain as many would believe it is; a slave could rise up and lead his people into freedom, and a master of a nation can fall into servitude and stay there for the rest of the existence…'

Brit Crust bit the nub of eraser. She hit an impasse on her grand speech. The last year of high school required every senior to do something significant to be remembered as long as the building stood. Trying to outdo everyone else as always, Brit decided to perform two acts. A great rousing speech to her classmates during graduation and some sort of a large-scale senior prank. She didn't plan out her prank out yet, but wanted to get the speech done before work bogged her down. The first week of actual school had passed, and Brit was spending a Saturday in the park writing alone under the old ash tree on the hill.

But then the rushing sound of a jet engine came by her. She muffled out her annoyance as she held onto her notes as Jenny flew by. Brit stuffed her papers into her backpack as she looked up to see a giant New Cluster ship coming down into Earth's orbit. Jenny rushed right up to it and engaged the invaders. The sky lit up with violent bursts of blinding light as Jenny exchanged fire with the Cluster. Business as usual. Machines/aliens/mad scientists/monsters/whatever would attack and Jenny would fight them off. Same old, same old.

Brit sat down again, having got used to this a long time ago. As the battle continued to wage on to prevent the conquering of Earth umpteenth time, Brit couldn't get back to work on her speech and decided instead to get a small pocillo down at the traditional Peru café. After finishing that, she would return to the park to find the wrecked remains of the Cluster ship, surrounded by the cleanup crews and the press as Jenny would entertain both. Everything would then go back to normal until the next big disaster. Hopefully a disaster caused by Jenny…

But Brit knew better. She sighed as she dismissed the thought away and thought about what she would order to go with her coffee. Perhaps an empanada? Being meaning to try one of those for a long time. She would call Tiff, but Tiff had made plans with other friends this weekend to visit some-sort of a monster truck rally down south. Tiff had become a bit more accustomed to being dirtier, but she still had a 'passion for fashion.'

Brit…ultimately felt alone. Don Prima went off to study in Europe, and Pteresa had graduated early to work in her father's fashion business. Most of the popular kids two years ago were no longer popular or not popular enough for Brit's plate. Same matter applied to the freshmen and the sophomores. During the greyer days, Brit felt like she lived in a world that barely survived apocalypse. She wandered down a torn-up sidewalk, walking around the debris of a skyscraper and climbing over stripped cars.

She hadn't changed much, really. And that was a problem she faced everyday. While her cousin found delight in entertainment meant for the lower classes, Brit continued to enjoy the same material she did two years ago. Her attempts to keep up with the world of fashion were one she often trailed behind in. The only thing that improved was her attitude; she performed less pranks and broke less rules as her future was falling into the red zone.

But Jenny? Savior of the world, and now going to graduate with at least the minimal honor of cum laude, but if its grades continued to soar (Which it would.) Jenny would earn summa cum laude. It had become 'popular' to everyone, despite its lack of proper class needed for such a role. Its appearance had become more defined, and Brit felt truly jealous. Brit lived eighteen years and barely filled C and Jenny could easily get D cups if she so wanted. But being the modest machine it was, she kept to her usual size and just made her form more svelte. Its painted-on hair had become actual hair (Well, metal plates, but acted like actual hair) and it had gained a more human-like design.

But it still acted the same, and it was popular.

Sitting down in her usual spot near the big window, Brit ordered and waited as she watched Jenny normally walked down the street, adoring fans following behind in her steps. As soon as she witnessed the event, Jenny flew off, presumably to go and fight some more bad guys elsewhere. Brit's food and drink came and went as well. Money on the table, she left without a word to the staff and went back to the park to continue writing her report.

But even though the park had returned to its quiet state (Although with a huge crater from the ship's impact) Brit couldn't focus and work on her speech paper. She tried to write down anything, be it a structured sentence or notes to be deciphered later, but her thoughts drifted back to Jenny.

Jenny.

How dare it.

Brit held back tears. She didn't want tears to come falling down, she wanted to scream out loud. She wanted to be angry, not depressed. All her emotions were out of control.

So she decided to do what most teenagers (Then again, she was turning 18 near the end of the year.) do when they want to nonverbally get their emotions out. Doodle out her frustrations. Brit took delight in making caricatures of Jenny for the rest of the afternoon, often breaking out into evil laughter as made Jenny the stupidest and disgusting thing on the planet. However, Brit wasn't really paying attention to what she drew, and just assumed she drew out the exact images in her mind down on paper. After spending at least a good thirty minutes on it, she decided to look at her drawings and see her accomplishments.

Then she ripped out the paper and crumbled it up.

How and why would she draw that?

Brit felt confused and even more furious at this. All she wanted was to draw Jenny as unflattering as possible. This…came as far away from that goal as possible. It actually painted Jenny in a positive light. Brit couldn't stand to look at it! Like, what the hell! She felt so disgusted with it; she tried to crumple it up even more and even stomped on it for good measure. But she stopped when she heard someone talking with a friend over a phone walking nearby and getting closer. Not wanting to throw away the incriminating evidence and let it be found, she stowed the ball into her purse and walk away. Might as well head home and get started on those handouts she need to fill-out for next week.

"Brit!"

Oh no.

Jenny had come back to the park to inspect the damages done.

"I've been looking for you." Jenny approached with its usual smile and wave. "I saw you before right here during the attack." Jenny's eyes got brighter and turned light blue. "I'm going to check for any damages done or any sort of infection. Vexus has developed a virus…"

"I'm fine." Brit coldly dictated as she simply stood away from the eyebeams.

"Oh." Jenny eyes went back to the normal. "Okay." Brit went to walk off, but Jenny quickly caught up and then asked, "Hey, how's school?"

"Fine." Brit replied. Didn't Jenny ever pick up the idea that Brit didn't like talking with her? Or the only times Brit ever talked to it was to use it? Brit continued to walk away, with Jenny following regardless.

"Ah." Jenny nervously whispered. "So, what's your plans for the year, and after?"

"None of your business."

"I was just trying to start a conservation…"

"Not in the mood, not caring." Brit shrugged it off and hurried her pace, before turning back and saying, "Shouldn't you be checking others for this virus?" Jenny did catch up on this and fly off to check the people of the town for infection, or find any Clusters soldiers who landed. Brit went along her own way home.

Jenny had already checked the area for any activity, but she left to keep Brit some breathing room. While Jenny didn't get a full scan of Brit, she did see a crumpled ball of paper in her purse. Jenny's high-powered computer mind took the paper and made a digital image to unravel it and see why Brit just didn't throw it away. Jenny figured it wasn't too important; but Brit had worked with Vexus before so such caution was needed.

At first, Jenny shook her head at the terrible drawings of her. Terrible as in drawing ability, not in design. Pushing past that were the notes for a speech about leadership. Fairly decent in Jenny's opinion. But even the optimistic Jenny knew that Brit wouldn't make valedictorian unless she pulled a 180 in her grades and her general attitude.

But at the bottom of the paper was the most damnable item on the paper, the reason as to why Brit just didn't throw it away. Jenny had to stop in midflight and examine it closer.

The biggest drawing had the most talent behind it, almost as if Brit made the caricatures around the sides intentionally bad to make room for this one. The Jenny in this picture looked way prettier than the real one; Brit had even given Jenny a nice dress and pimped out the details on both the outfit and on Jenny. It looked professional.

And surrounding the whole picture was a heart.

Jenny too went home to ponder this. She had met several same-sex couples in her travels around the world, but those people were happy in their lives, and Jenny had been noticing how sullen Brit usually acted. While on campus she acted the same way she usually had been, outside she acted quiet and reserved; Jenny had seen Brit on last Thursday leave Tiff at school without a single word to her.

"Jenny!"

Out from her chest came the monitor. The static buzzed and then came in the clear picture of her mother. Jenny immediately stored the digital paper into her private databank before answering with "Yes, mom?"

"I need you back at the lab." Nora coughed out. "I'm going to need your help developing a vaccine for the New Cluster Disease."

"Please tell me you actually bought lab rats this time."

"Of course I did!"

"Mom."

"What, you assumed I used my famous fan dance to distract the pet shop owner while Tuck snatched the rats?"

"Didn't even have to try that time." Jenny muttered under her breath. "All right, I'm heading home now." The monitor then retracted back to Jenny's chest. However, instead of taking the normal and short route home, Jenny opted to take the long route. Give her time to think before she would have to fight off mutated lab rats.

Brit had a crush on her? Since when? And why her? Robosexuality was an ongoing issue, not a fashion trend.

Speaking of issues, this wasn't that important in the scheme of things. Attacks by the New Cluster were becoming more and more frequent, super villains were taking full advantage of this by attacking when Jenny was off saving their world elsewhere, and…

Doctor Wakeman was reaching the end of her lifespan. No denying such a fact. Nora had been coughing a lot recently, she hadn't been moving a lot as she used to, a lot of color had been drained from her face…the obvious material. Nora had prevented her daughter from scanning her old body, so Nora's internal organs could be melting into goop as far as Jenny knew. Her pride just wouldn't allow that.

Jenny had a lot to mull about when she got home. Things would really change this year. Be it for better or for worse, things would change.