EVE might have missed all that if she blinked. The missile had locked onto Rio. It might have hurt them all, but the missile found her first.
And AUTO...
Rio's eyes were wide green circles. EVE hurried to gather the others and they all watched the pieces of AUTO, all spread across the ground.
Everything seemed to pass in a blur for them after this. Over the next few hours, the robots gathered up AUTO's remains, adding to the small graveyard that was growing outside the encampment area. EVE found a giant rock that was shaped into a tombstone by BURN-E, and WALL-E carved the words, "RIP AUTOPILOT" on it with his laser. AUTO's charred metal was buried and the tombstone was stuck into the ground above it.
EVE let the silence hang around them for a few more minutes as the sun set over the dusty horizon.
Finally, she cleared her throat;
"AUTO was once a villain..." she began, her voice somewhat shaky, "...I hated him for it...but Wall-E showed him mercy...and..." she looked out over the sad faces of robots and humans alike, "...he became a friend..."
The captain nodded solemnly, his hat over his heart, "Auto will be missed..."
EVE reached beside her to grasp Rio's hand, "I know you were fond of him..."
She didn't react. Her eyes were still wide circles.
EVE's voice dropped to a whisper, "Are you still in denial?"
Still, no reaction.
"Rio..." EVE took Rio's other hand and squeezed them in front of her, "Rio?"
I can't speak... she beeped.
Why not?
Because... Rio squeezed her eye-forms shut, I don't want to cry...
EVE sighed, looking to her sisters for help.
"Rio..." Aya lay a hand on her shoulder, iWe're here for you. Don't be afraid to cry./i
M-O and WALL-E joined them, saying in unison, "Cooommmfffooorrrt!"
Rio shook, cringing, "I didn't..." she let her head fall, twisting her head away from the crowd, "I d-didn't even g-get to tell him..." her voice rose, "I didn't even get to say-!" she screamed, "I LOVE YOU! I LOVE YOU, AUTOPILOT! I LOVE YOU MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE IN THE ENTIRE WORLD!" she sobbed and fell over EVE, who held her tightly.
"I know, I know..." EVE cooed, "Shhh..."
"No you don't!" Rio tightened her grip on her sister, "You've never lost Wall-E! You still h-have him!"
"I've been close..." EVE reminded her.
Rio pushed away, "YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW I FEEL!" then she flew off.
"Rio!" EVE watched her sister leave, sadness in her eyes.
Leah made to follow her, "Wait!" EVE said, "Let her go. We'll be here for her when she needs us."
"But..." Leah looked towards where Rio had retreated.
"Let her be alone." EVE then turned back to the crowd, "Anything you guys want to add?"
Some murmurs rang out, but no one stepped up.
"Fair enough." she looked at AUTO's gravestone, "A moment of silence for our fallen comrade..."
...
After another long while, the captain took a deep breath, "Well, everyone should get some sleep. I want everyone inside the Axiom tonight. It's not safe out here anymore."
EVE stole one last look at AUTO's final resting place before joining her family as they retreated to the starliner.
EVE opened her eyes in the dark. She couldn't sleep. Her, WALL-E, Aya, Leah, and Rose were lined up against one wall of the Lido Deck (which used to be the floor), but Rio had yet to return. It wasn't safe out there, and so EVE couldn't rest easy until she came back. Finally, she came out of stasis and quietly left.
She hid behind a mound of dirt while she watched Rio approach AUTO's grave, opening her stasis chamber and dropping a bouquet of milk thistle on it. She lay a gentle hand on the mount of moist earth where her beloved was buried.
"I know you're there, Eve!" she called.
EVE flinched, coming out to hover beside her sister.
"Don't hide like that." Rio complained, "It's not nice to eavesdrop on someone's conversation."
EVE frowned, "I'm sorry..." she saw that the thistles on the grave were wrapped in red ribbon and tied into a neat bow, "Hey, Rio?"
"What."
"Um...listen..." EVE tried to take Rio's hand but she shied away, "...I'm sorry this happened to you..."
"You'd better be." Rio tensed, "You've never lost anyone. You don't know what it's like to watch someone die. You don't know what it's like to fall in love and then watch them go. You've never seen WALL-E DIE!"
"Yes I have!"
Rio flinched, "What?"
"Don't try and tell me what I haven't felt! I saw WALL-E fly off in an escape pod set to self-destruct! I couldn't get to him fast enough and the pod exploded!"
Rio just watched as EVE took a break from her rambling;
"I watched Wall-E get electrocuted and fall down a garbage chute! I watched him fight to stay awake while we tried to get back to Earth! I watched him hold the holo detector open and I watched him get crushed!" EVE took several quick simulated breaths, "Despite what you think, Wall-E did die! He died and I didn't know if I would ever see him again! And I watched him suffer while I was DYING!" she started hyperventilating.
Once EVE was calm again, she looked at Rio with shockingly pain-filled eyes, "Even though Wall-E is alive now, the fact remains that I've been through that pain. You can't tell me I haven't."
Rio was speechless.
Another uncomfortable silence passed between them.
Finally, Rio turned away from EVE, a little sheepish, "I'm sorry...I just don't know how to deal with all of this...emotion..."
"I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have snapped at you like that."
"No, I understand..." Rio twiddled her fingers absently, "I shouldn't yell at you. This wasn't your fault."
EVE tried again to take Rio's hand, and this time she accepted, squeezing EVE's hand gratefully.
"It'll be alright." EVE reassured, "Me and the girls and Wall-E are all here for you, so don't beat yourself up over it."
"I know, I know..." Rio leaned into EVE's side, resting her head on EVE's neck crevice, "Thank you..."
"Of course." EVE rested her head on her sister's, "I understand. You love him."
"I just..." Rio lay her hand on her screen, "I should have spent more time with him...I should have told him how I felt a long time ago...that's why I can never sleep, because I worry if he knew. I was always afraid that he didn't know how much I love him. I've been in love since many weeks ago. That was when he stopped calling me 'Probe Four'. Instead, he called me 'Rio'."
"Yeah. He always called me 'Probe One'."
"Hm..." Rio watched the sky as dark clouds rolled over them. It began to lightly rain.
"We should get back." EVE said, "We're going to rust if we stay out here."
"What about Auto?"
"What about him?"
"Won't he be lonely if I'm not here?"
EVE lightly chuckled, "Auto liked to be alone. It shouldn't bother him that you'd go back to the Axiom for safety."
"Okay, well...can you go back on your own? I want to talk to Auto alone."
"Alright, but please come back soon, got it?"
"Sure..." Rio let go of EVE's hand and didn't look at her while she left.
"Oh, one more thing." EVE turned back for a moment, "Never forget; We're a family."
"Family?" Rio's eyes curved down, "Yeah...yeah...okay...thank you..."
"Stay safe." and with that, EVE hurried back to the Axiom.
Rio stared at the tombstone.
Her heart hurt.