I was so upset to learn that Karakuri Odette didn't have its own category on this site...but here's the fic anyways...
Disclaimer: Karakuri Odette doesn't belong to me
When they graduate, Odette is given tearful farewells and promises to meet again, and as she saw her friends off she felt an odd pain in her chest, and found her battery decreased quite a bit. She wonders if this is another malfunction, but something tells her it isn't.
They've all gone on different paths, and she finds herself disappointed that the promised meetings decreased year by year, and that pain in her chest thumped once more, and she could only stare at it wonderingly, since her battery was full that day, why it was drained just like that day.
One day she's come to the shocking realization that her friends were aging; aging without her, and moving on without her. As she looks at Shirayuki, she sees a young woman, and wonders when she grew up. Shirayuki looks to her, and smiles wistfully. It's been a long time, Odette. How have you been? And Odette wonders, was it really such a long time? She could still remember their days together in school, fresh in her mind, as though not a day has gone by. But it's been five years now, and Odette finds that five years is a long time for a human. Again, another painful thump is felt, but she knows by now it's not a problem with her battery.
This is Kazuo and Niina, Youko tells her when they meet again. It has been many years, and in front of her are two little children that look a lot like Youko and Okada, and Odette is never ceased to be amazed by humans. The children look up at her with wonder glistening in their eyes, and Odette picks one of them up, lifting her high into the air. Humans are so full of life, is what she thinks, when Niina, only a year old, giggle in her arms. She looks back at Youko, who's grown beautiful with age, though still a bit clumsy, and looks back at herself, who's not aged a day since. That annoying pain is felt once again, but she ignores it this time.
It is when the professor is in bed, weary and old, that Odette feels that painful thump again, this time much more painful than before. And she can't understand why the professor can't fix himself, because he was the smartest professor in the world, the genius who created her, and fixed her all the time, so why couldn't he do the same for himself? It frustrates her, but she knows it's because he's a human, and for the first time Odette realizes just how fragile humans are. When he leaves her with a smile, she can't help but remember those short days they had together, and wishes humans had more time. Or that she had less. That day passed by in a blur, and all she can remember is the pain in her chest and the wetness of her cheeks.
It seemed, afterall, that humans had a very short life. Odette realized this fully when her friends reached a certain age and began to become like her dear professor. She is with Asao now, who has on a grumpy face, just like when they were in school. Her smooth, pale hands hold his wrinkly, thin ones, and her cheeks are wet just like that time. Asao flicks her forehead with his other hand, and tells her to stop bothering him, he feels just fine. But as coughs wrack his thin body, she knows he's not, and that haunting pain plagues her once again, as always. After a while, long after he leaves, Odette realizes that the pain is still there. After a few days, she still feels that pain, and after a few weeks, she knows that this time, the pain is there to stay. She finds that she doesn't mind as much anymore, even if she had to carry around that ugly battery.
I know what it is, she tells Chris softly, as they sit, hand in hand on a beautiful day. What, he asks, looking at her in curiosity. The pain in my chest, I think I know what it is, Odette says as she lifts her face up to the breeze that gently touches her skin. Her voice is getting softer, but Chris hears her just fine. I think this is what they call love. She's happy with the answer she found, after all those years. Chris frowns a bit, confusion in his eyes. Is love suppose to hurt? He asks. Odette smiles. Love...love hurts, I suppose. But it is also happy. It is a wonderful thing, and I finally understand. She lays her head on his shoulder, and enjoys the spring weather. After a few hours, Niina finds them underneath a beautiful Sakura tree, and she and her brother picks them up gently. It was a quite funeral, but a peaceful one. They were laid beside their professor, along with their friends that had already passed on. Odette watched on with a smile, then turned around to join her loved ones.
So for my explanation...well firstly, I did this in one sitting, so it's quite messy and stuff...
Chris and Odette "died" because they were old robots, their batteries dying to a point it wasn't rechargeable any longer. They refused to have newer batteries installed into them because they wanted to stay as their professor's children through and through. And just assume that all their friends knew that Odette was a robot after some time, or something.
Sorry this came out to be a little more cliche than I intended it to be, but yea...