After the Captain left, EVE knew it was time to resume her quest, and launch the search for WALL•E's missing component in earnest. It just seemed like an overwhelming challenge to her — looking for such a tiny circuit board, lost somewhere across such a vast area where it might have fallen, even perhaps covered up by a sand storm by now.

EVE realized she needed help and encouragement even to begin this task though, and she knew whom she now needed to go and see.

She hovered through the truck towards the ramp where WALL•E still was.

"Join me?" she asked him, gesturing with a fin indicating she was going on a trip towards the Axiom.

WALL•E optics moved up into a fixed gaze on her. He didn't say a thing.

EVE could tell something was wrong. He had been happy, even animated, just moments ago. But now he was silent, unmoving.

"What?" she simply asked him.

WALL•E looked down. His feelings of uncertainty, and even fear, were growing within him as his processors began to comprehend more and more of what he had seen and heard just moments ago. But he didn't have the language to begin describing what he was feeling. All he could think to do was to employ his default error indication of blinking his LED light on and off, to indicate he had a problem. His problem was a new sensation . . . fear. Fear that he was somehow in the way now, and not wanted.

EVE noticed his blinking LED light and became concerned. She gently took his hand in hers. But to her surprise, he withdrew his hand.

Now EVE was worried.

"WALL•E . . ." she said to him with concern in her eye forms, trying to get him to look up at her.

He just continued to look downward, as he proceeded to further withdraw his hands and arms into his cube.

With an increasing sense of anxiousness, EVE really wanted to reach WALL•E now, to understand what was going on within him — to help him.

EVE urgently queried her systems, wondering what she could do.

She began to calculate that it was likely more a software or data problem than a hardware problem. A reference to human psychologists popped into her consciousness. But EVE realized there were no such things for robots, even sentient ones. She reasoned that she was already likely the closest thing to a psychoanalyst he could have, since she knew more about him than anyone else — yet she felt she could understand so little about him right now.

Take him to the Engineering Lab for a full diagnostic, her systems finally counseled.

EVE was glad that among the gifts she and WALL•E had recently been given was a pair of full-time Steward-bots and their own hover transport. She called in Axiom for the Stewards and the transport, who emerged from a hastily-erected protective shelter on one side of the truck — there simply wasn't room for them inside the truck itself! M-O was fortunately still around, and quickly hopped in to drive the hover transport as it passed near him. EVE then gently lifted WALL•E onto the transport once it arrived in front of them. At least he didn't resist. But his Status LED was still blinking, and he was still downcast.

EVE's search would have to wait for now.

Take us to the Axiom's Engineering Lab, she instructed the Steward-bots and M-O, as she took her place behind an unresponsive WALL•E and proceeded to hold him — as much to try and reassure him, as for safe travel. Still, there was no response from him. He had now emotionally withdrawn into himself, and EVE was determined to find out why.

Once underway, EVE initiated a wireless link to the transport's onboard communications transceiver, and sent a message ahead to Typing-bot. I want to talk with you about searching for a component I believe has been missing from WALL•E. But he is having a serious problem right now, and we are en route to the Engineering Lab.

Lab cleared and available. I will talk with you when you are there, the response came back.

Thank you, Typing-bot, EVE concluded, grateful that he was there for her, especially when she needed him to be.

At the same time, M-O was sending messages to their robot friends, alerting them that WALL•E was having a problem, and that they should come to the lab.

EVE and WALL•E entered the Axiom aboard their transport, and soon they arrived at the lab once again. Some of their robot friends were already there to greet them. Once the transport came to a stop, EVE picked up WALL•E, placing him on the scanning table.

Moving down to her now familiar station at the table's side, she beeped, Commence hardware and software diagnostic scans of WALL•E 1. Cross-reference with previous scans, and report anomalies. EVE wasn't going to waste time in getting to the bottom of WALL•E's problem.

Blue rays once again began sweeping across WALL•E, as the table started audibly reporting back via the ship's computer, and a holoscreen emerged at the table's side with visual schematics and scan data.

"Hardware scan, no new anomalies detected," the ship's computer voice reported.

"Software scan . . . subroutine anomalies detected," the voice alerted though a short time later.

Elaborate, EVE beeped, urgently.

"New anomalous subroutines approximating human emotions of worthlessness and depression have now become dominant within WALL•E 1." the computer voice matter-of-factly responded.

How did that happen? EVE wondered to herself.

Recommended treatment? EVE queried.

"Standard treatment calls for system erasure and re-installation," the ship's computer replied.

Unacceptable! Do not initiate! EVE beeped in objection. "No!" she added in English, in an attempt to reassure WALL•E that such a treatment was not going to happen, in case he understood what the computer had said.

Well, she thought as she paused now, at least I know why WALL•E is acting the way he is. The question remains, how did this happen?

A second holoscreen emerged beside the table, this time with Typing-bot's image on it.

I detected your arrival at the lab, he began in his customary glacial way. I also see WALL•E's scan results.

You see everything, EVE beeped almost with amusement.

I do, he simply replied.

How do you think he got this way? she asked Typing-bot.

He likely overheard you, Typing-bot responded.

Overheard me? EVE queried.

Your translated conversation with the Captain. I saw it, WALL•E likely heard it, Typing-bot elaborated, having seen EVE's translations as she had used her computer console, as well as knowing WALL•E was near the truck at the time.

Actually, he is hearing us now, though fortunately he cannot understand Axiom, Typing-bot cautioned, even though WALL•E was giving no indication of being aware of anything at the moment, at least as far as EVE could detect.

She quickly retrieved and re-ran her computer-translated conversation with the Captain in her consciousness. A cold shock of guilt started to run through her as she realized how WALL•E might have perceived what she and the Captain had been discussing in English.

EVE rushed up onto the table to WALL•E's side, passing right through the holoscreen with Typing-bot on it.

"Eee-vaah so sorry," she apologized to WALL•E, placing her fins on his cube.

There was no response from WALL•E. He continued to look downward, unmoving, with only his Status LED continuing to blink on and off.

Typing-bot, how do I reach him? EVE beeped, as she continued to look at WALL•E with very worried eye forms.

Show him he matters to you. That you value him, care about him, as he is, Typing-bot advised her.

Love . . . EVE's commitment chimed in to her consciousness, elegantly translating and summarizing Typing-bot's advice for her.

EVE was grateful for this new insight and awareness. But she hesitated and looked down, as she computed possible implications for what might happen to the new WALL•E if she did indeed find the missing component that might allow the original WALL•E to return. EVE shook her head, chiding herself for not having considered this before. She realized the new WALL•E had already likely been doing just that.

EVE angled herself down, almost horizontally in front of him, as she looked up into his optics, ensuring that he could see her eye forms — calculating that he could not ignore optic-to-eye form contact with her.

"WALL•E . . . Eee-vaah understands . . ." she looked at him as earnestly as she could, "You matter . . . Eee-vaah cares."

WALL•E's optics slowly moved and refocused on her.

EVE looked away briefly. This is so difficult! she beeped in exasperation, as she almost cursed in Axiom at the barrier of language, and seemingly of understanding, between them.

But EVE softened and returned her gaze towards his optics.

"WALL•E?" she said gently, as she resumed her gentle demeanor towards him. He continued to look at her, but offered no other response.

I've hurt you, haven't I? she sadly admitted to herself as she continued to look at him. You weren't ready to hear that we might try to bring your original self back to life, were you?

"You . . . are . . . safe," EVE said to WALL•E slowly and deliberately, trying again to reach and reassure him.

"You . . . are . . . okay," she re-emphasized to him.

"No!" he finally responded. "Not okay!"

EVE was relieved to hear even a negative, rejecting response from him at this point.

She now knew that she and WALL•E needed time, and privacy, to talk this out as best they could, and recover from it all.

"Home . . ." she said, as she arose beside him. Slowly, tentatively, she put her arms around him, and began to pick him up to move him off the table to the hover transport. He did not resist or object, but continued to look downwards though and his Status LED was still blinking.

I will talk with you later about the search, EVE beeped to Typing-bot, as she carried WALL•E to the transport.

I understand, Typing-bot replied, as his holoscreen faded out.

EVE was reminded afresh of the responsibility her commitment carried towards both caring for, and protecting, the new WALL•E, as well as the old. She realized this new WALL•E would now have to become part of her quest in bringing the original WALL•E back, and that any possible future for the original WALL•E would have to accommodate the needs and life of the new WALL•E as well.

EVE didn't know at the moment how she would do that. She felt her loyalties and love start to become divided between them. But do it she would — for both her old and new WALL•Es.