01
Tsugumi stared at the pile of peeled potatoes in front of her. Each neatly pared of its inedible skin, they almost stacked up to be taller than her. She had been sitting the entire morning, trying to peel enough potatoes to feed the entire school. The only break from the monotony had been a brief appearance from Ayase, who just as quickly disappeared to perform some task.
The door cracked open, revealing Shu. Tsugumi lept up, relieved to finally see someone she could talk to.
"Shu! How's it going?" she asked excitedly.
"Tsugumi. How are the food supplies? Do we need anything?" Although Shu spoke softly, Tsugumi could hear the uncertainty in his voice. Having only been elected as president a short while ago, he had been working very hard to restore some sense of normalcy to the formerly revolting students.
"Everything's fine! I just finished peeling potatoes for dinner, and lunch is just about ready to be served. We've been working since this morning, and we've been moving at a very steady pace. I think this kitchen system will work out really well!"
Shu smiled at her enthusiasm. "Thanks for all your hard work, Tsugumi. Have you really been peeling potatoes all morning? You must be pretty bored. Do you want to take a short break and walk with me?"
"Aye!" She straightened out her things and hung up her apron, and they both headed outside.
They walked silently side by side. It was not until they reached the middle of the field when Shu spoke.
"Tsugumi, are you happy here?"
She was taken aback by his abrupt question. Worried that she would offend him or cause more problems for him to worry about, she chose her next words carefully. "It's alright! I'm really glad to be helping out all the other students, especially since Funeral Parlor is gone now. It's good to still be able to provide help to those in need."
"But what about you? I've seen you at work in the past, and you were really the most in your element when in front of your interface. I feel like you shouldn't be stuck doing something as mundane as peeling potatoes every day," Shu said sheepishly.
Tsugumi stopped walking, sensing the reassurance that Shu needed. She turned to face him, and took his hands in hers. "Shu. Don't worry so much about us. Ayase and I, we have seen much worse during our years. In fact, I'd say that this is more like a vacation! A bit of time away from hacking isn't going to harm me at all. It might be a bit boring, but I'm glad to be here helping you and Inoreen."
"I'm really glad for your help too, Tsugumi. If it hadn't been for your Void, the other students probably would have been successful in overthrowing Arisa."
"Yeah, it's pretty cool, right?" She took her hands from Shu's and twirled around, flashing a victory sign at him with two fingers before continuing to walk ahead. "They didn't do much before getting shot by the Endlaves, but I bet with some technology and a bit more time, I could get the Dolls to be a lot more useful. Maybe they could be used like Endlaves, or they could send information back, or we could switch places with the Dolls … I dunno! But there are lots of possibilities for sure."
"Wow, it sounds like you've been brainstorming about these ideas for a while now," Shu said, walking to catch up with her.
"Aye! You don't really need to focus when peeling potatoes, so I try to invent stuff or solve problems in my head. It makes the time pass quicker."
"Do you think that you would like to, maybe, have some time every day to work with your Void?" Shu asked shyly, wringing his hands together. "It's actually an idea I've been considering for all students. It would give them something useful to do as well as a chance to practice their skills."
"That would be great! I think it's a good idea. It would be awesome to work with our Voids. It makes us more confident when we really have to use them in battle, you know? And you have to admit, Voids are a pretty good morale booster. They're really impressive, and to think that they're reflections of our hearts is super cool."
"Yeah," Shu said, flexing is right hand. "It feels weird being the only one to draw them out, but if you all can use you own Voids, I can just draw them out for you and stay with Inori."
"Aww, Shu is so dedicated to Inoreen," Tsugumi sang, reaching over and pinching his cheeks teasingly. "They're meant to be!"
"Shush," he said, batting her hands away and blushing. "She has a good weapon, you know."
"Ohoho. Ever since you showed up at Funeral Parlor, you two have been joined at the hip. It's okay to tell her you like her, you know! Better to do it earlier, before someone else at this school does. She's pretty and a famous singer, after all," she teased.
"Do you really think that? Inori wouldn't go for someone else, would she?" he asked worriedly.
"You'd never know, would you?" Tsugumi mockingly laughed in a falsely evil voice. "That's why you have to take the chance! Otherwise someone like Souta might take your place!"
Shu huffed, annoyed but still blushing. "Don't you think that your break is over now? It's time to peel potatoes again," he mocked back.
Tsugumi merely laughed at his statement, turning back towards the kitchens. "Don't forget my advice," she called as she walked away. "And arrange some time for Void training!"
"I will!" Shu shouted back to her retreating figure. "I look forward to seeing you work with your Void! Hacker's Interface, is that what it's called?"
"Aye! I'll work hard once we start, I promise!" She waved a goodbye to him, and he merely waved back before setting out.
-GC-
Tsugumi ran into the student council room, trying to find someone who she could share her latest discovery with. The room was empty save for Shu and Inori, who sat at the head table, engrossed in the computer screen. They seemed to be making plans for something, shifting the icons back and forth in an attempt to organize all of them effectively.
"Shu! Inoreen!" The two looked up, surprised by the sudden interruption. "I have to show you guys something!"
"Tsugumi," Inori said quietly.
"Hey, Tsugumi. What did you want to show us?" Shu asked.
"You have to see it to believe it!" She took both their hands and began to pull them out of the room. As she walked, she spoke quickly, trying to explain her revelation. "I've been working with my Void like you said, and I think I'm making some real progress here."
"That's great! What did you do?" Shu asked.
"You have to come see it in person. Come on, let's go!" She pulled harder on them, and they followed her, Shu chuckling at her excitement.
As they walked, Shu spoke. "You're always so upbeat, Tsugumi. How do you do it?"
Tsugumi merely laughed at this. "It's who I am!"
Finally, they reached the dorms. Before the siege, the dorms had been separated by gender, but after the chaos that had occurred, many students wanted to stay with friends or people they were familiar with. They had reorganized the dorms the best they could, putting Tsugumi, Ayase, Shu, Inori, Arisa, and _ on the same floor in an attempt to keep the student council together.
Tsugumi stopped in front of her own room, drawing out a key to unlock the door. Building suspense, she turned to Shu and Inori, slowly pulling the door open. The two walked in as Tsugumi closed the door behind them.
There, on the single bed in the room, lay … Tsugumi?
Shu turned around, shocked. In that moment, the Tsugumi that led them to the room disappeared in a silver light similar to the light of Voids. Turning back around to the bed, the two guests saw Tsugumi open her eyes and blink a few times before raising herself into a sitting position.
"Ohoho! By the looks on your faces, I'd say my creation is a success!"
"Yes," Inori replied.
"What … What's going on?" asked Shu.
Trying to rearrange herself into a comfortable position, she raised her hand to fix her iconic cat headband. As she did so, Shu finally noticed the wires connected to her body. Thin and white, they all stretched from her arms, her legs, her head, and her chest to a silver contraption.
"Hacker's Interface!" she exclaimed cheerfully. "Since we don't have Endlave technology here, I managed to shape my Void into a more portable version of the _. I just connected it with all the vital points that Endlaves use." She gestured along her body, showing off the many wires. She reached over to the silver object and lifted it up, showing Shu and Inori that it was her Void.
"That's amazing!" Shu traced the wires to her Void and moved aside for Inori to take a look.
"Thanks!" Tsugumi beamed at his compliment. "The good thing about making it from scratch is that I can add lots of programs and functions that Endlaves don't have or would've taken me extra time to create. For example, the pain sensors on the Dolls are a set to a lot lower than the ones on Endlaves, so in battle, you can last longer without having to eject."
"Dolls are weaker than Endlaves," Inori noted.
"Yeah, but I figured that the Dolls can be used for finer tasks, like infiltration or something. Either way, they'll have to last us until we get out of this siege and into the real world, where there are Endlaves for Aya-nee to use."
"You've done a really good job, Tsugumi," Shu said as he inspected the fine wires. "Have there been any problems during the creation process?"
Tsugumi absently fingered the wires in her hands. "It was a bit scary to connect myself to the Doll for the first time, but once I got started, it was exactly like controlling my own body. Not to mention I've been making adjustments so that the Dolls are easier for me to use. I'm sure if I worked with Aya-nee, I could make adjustments for her so it's more similar to Endlave technology."
"That's great. It seems like you've been working in your room for a while now; do you want to go outside for lunch?"
"Sure! We should get Aya-nee too, and we can have a little party going on," Tsugumi giggled a she detached the wires from herself one by one. She stood up and took Inori by the hand, but not before shooting a pointed look at Shu.
"I haven't seen Ayase for a while," remarked Inori.
"All the more reason to go find her," Tsugumi called, already heading out the door. "I've been sitting in the dorm for so long, it's time to go out!"
Shu simply laughed and followed the two girls out.