hey everyone, merry chriffmiff
its been more than "almost two months" since last time, huh? thats pretty crazy
...
pls no bully ; ;
i ended up writing too much for a chapter again, so i split it in half like last time; im not even gonna say that its going to be out soon
"...And that's what happened so far."
"What's happened so far?" Nepgear, along with everyone else, is confused with Blanc's statement.
She doesn't understand their reaction. "What I just said. That's what happened today."
"You didn't say anything, though," points out C-sha.
"Yes, I did. I just spent two chapters explaining..." She quiets down when their stares don't change.
"You're starting to sound like Neptune," says Rom.
"Don't say that. Just...never mind."
"How'd you know what Rom and Ram were doing when you weren't around?" wonders Blanc, or rather, Blanny.
"So you do-!" Her other self loudly growns in annoyance. "I told you never mind!" She quickly moves on from that disagreement. "Anyways, I came here because I simply thought that my 'first' meeting with my other self was much worse than it could've been. I'd like a do-over, if you will."
The other party is caught off-guard by this proposal. "Really? Nothing else?" asks Nepgear, suspicious of how Rom and Ram look like they didn't expect Blanc to say that.
"Depending on where the conversation goes." She steps forward towards her counterpart.
Blanny steps backwards, instinctively distancing herself from her.
She can't help but frown at her reaction, but she wisely keeps her own under control. She slightly smiles and instead holds her hand out for a handshake. "I'm Blanc, CPU of Lowee. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"...What?" She's put off by the suddenness of her greeting, simply standing there in confusion.
"We already know that," Ram points out.
Blanc's formal greeting facade breaks at her obviousness. "Weren't you listening when I said this is a do-over?"
"What I think Ram's saying is that it's too awkward to do a do-over because of how you two already know each other," clarifies Nepgear.
"Yeah, well…" Blanc sighs. "Can't you just forget what you know about me?" she asks her other self, still holding out her hand.
"I…" A handshake can't hurt anyone, right? Very apprehensively, Blanny raises her own hand to complete the handshake.
Blanc cracks a smile at her success. "See? That wasn't hard." Though usually a firm handshaker, Blanc makes an effort to match her other's strength.
Ram seems to be slightly annoyed at how long it took for Blanny to take a handshake.
"We're glad that you want to make amends with Blanny," compliments Nepgear.
"Yeah." C-sha thinks something over. "Blanny was kinda the type to not be bothered if someone didn't like her. So, if you're like her back then…"
"I like to think that we're a little different. Or, at the least, I feel that we should at least keep in touch more often than before."
After both Blancs let go, Nepgear brings up, "Is there anything else you want to talk about?"
Not noticing the twins' anxious looks, Blanc thinks it over and frowns at a particular thought. "Yeah. I really need to know what could've possibly happened for there to be two Neptunes."
"Hey, wait a minute!" interjects Ram. "Aren't you forgetting to say something else?!"
"Here it comes…" murmurs C-sha.
"Not really; I told you that I only came here to re-introduce yourself. If you want to say something, spit it out yourself."
"...Huh?" Her nonchalant response throws off the other five.
"Y-you…" Both of them can't help but feel betrayed by her negligence. "You're lying! You wouldn't have come here if you didn't have something else to say!" accuses Ram.
"You said that looking at her is harrowing; I don't know what that means but it sounds bad," says Rom. "Don't you want to change that?"
"Harrowing…" echoes Blanny, saddened at hearing how she truly feels about her.
Blanc looks back at them with annoyed looks. She figures that she was obvious enough for anyone to find that out, but she nevertheless dislikes that they blurted it out like that. With a refreshed calmness, Blanc turns to face her other self. "Fine. Because those two insist on it, they want me specifically to tell you to be more like me."
"I…" Having been thinking about this for a while, Blanny is unusually firm in her assertion. "No. I'd rather be like Nepgear. Or Vert. Or Neptune."
"W-what? Like me?" Nepgear isn't sure if she's supposed to be flattered at a time like this.
"Like Vert? Why would you want to do that?" Blanc understands what she meant in a general sense, but she can't help but grimace imagining seeing herself...her other self acting like Vert. "Never mind. But even if you want to be like...her, that still means you need to stop being a little bi..." She manages to catch herself in front of the children and looks at everyone to gauge their reaction. She's expectantly surprised that Rom and Ram are the most comfortable while her other self is the least.
"Gotta stay family-friendly now," C-sha jokes with a shrug.
She knows she can't keep that promise, but she has to try for now. "Fine. What I meant to say is that you need more self-confidence; you need to be less scared to act on things by yourself," she asserts with a firm look.
Blanny couldn't argue with that. "I...I know. I got into a lot of trouble because I got too scared."
Despite already knowing that, her comment is the one that jogs Blanc's stubbornly cluttered memories, getting her to remember her reason to care about Blanny. It seemed so obvious from the beginning, too. She suddenly puts her hand on her counterpart's shoulder.
Her other self jumps at her contact and tries to back away, but she stops herself when she notices her stern but well-meaning frown that implores her to listen to a sudden epiphany she had. "W-what are you...?"
Blanc breathes in and straightens her back, trying to make herself appear more wise and powerful. "I just remembered one more thing to tell you; something that has done me well, so listen closely. The more you keep shying away from everything, letting everyone else do your work, the more opportunities you're going to miss and the more influence over yourself you will lose until, eventually, you become nothing, unable to affect anything around you."
"Jeez, that was dramatic," Ram quietly comments, earning a soft but firm shove from Blanc to quiet her down.
Blanc's advice has stunned her, surpassing her grudges and bringing her into self-doubt. "That...That can't be right! You all won't let that happen, right?" she asks Nepgear and C-sha.
"Of course not! Neptune and I wouldn't want to try taking Lowee right under your nose like that!" Nepgear wholeheartedly assures.
"I already was Lowee's leader for a bit and didn't like it," recounts C-sha. "In fact, I don't think any of the CPUs want to rule over Lowee. Except maybe Rom or Ram, since, y'know." Hopefully that doesn't happen very soon because of this resetting incident. "Anyways, Blanny has a good circle of friends. We'll make sure that she'll be just as great as she was, if not better."
"Friends…" That word has Blanc thinking longer than it should, as if it's incongruous with her advice and past experiences. She snaps herself out of it and returns, "Well, eventually, as a CPU, you're going to have to talk and do business with strangers. That's what I meant."
"Then, we'll make sure she keeps out of trouble!" Nepgear answers, optimistically determined. "She always did the same for us CPU Candidates, so it's only fair if we return the favor."
"...Hm." Being one to regard her experiences as undefiable, she takes a minute to scrutinize their responses. She couldn't bring herself to easily admit that they might be in the right.
"Blanc?" Rom is concerned, for perhaps more selfish reasons, as she stands there silently with a deepening brow.
"If you don't trust us, that's fine; you don't have to get involved since it's none of your business, as you've said before," reminds C-sha. "But from the looks of it, you do want to help out Blanny, and you're always welcome to chip in."
After a pensive minute, she accepts that she has no counterargument. "F...Fine. You're right; you should rely on your friends to help you."
"I'm...I'm right?" Blanny wasn't expecting her to concede that easily.
Her sisters weren't anticipating that either; they're starting to feel let down once more.
"Yes. You're right." She takes her hand off Blanny and glares at Nepgear and C-sha. "And I will be taking you up on that offer. I can't be too sure that nothing will go wrong around her."
"Hey, the more, the merrier," remarks C-sha teasingly. She might be a different Blanc, but she still has the same tsundere aspect to her.
She can't help but feel like she has fallen victim to some form of reverse psychology, but she eases up and sighs. "It wouldn't hurt you to keep what I said in mind, even with people helping you. For now, though, I would still like for us to be friends," she diplomatically reminds.
Even with her timidness trying to hold her back, seeing a smile with a hint of embarrassment within an otherwise cold individual makes her just trusting enough. "I...Yes. Let's be friends." Moving her attention to her younger sisters, though, their unusual silence does not put her at ease. "But…"
Blanc follows her line of sight and sees their displeasure. "What now?"
"'What now?!' What happened to trying to get her memories back? Why did you just give up like that?!" Ram snaps.
"Why would you be friends with her if you didn't like her?" Rom almost seems as bitter as Ram.
Blanc almost breaks her vow to not swear right there. "Will you shut up and stop blurting out garbage like that? You're only making this harder for everyone! And I already told you why I can't make her regain her memories; did that fall out of your small heads or something?!"
"And I already told you to stop lying about that!" Ram shouts back, still deeply convinced on her assertion that she wouldn't have otherwise come here. "Blanc would never fly a bunch of miles just so she could have 'a do-over!'"
At the verge of lashing out at them, Blanc sharply breathes in, pulls both of them in, and whispers, "Listen here, you ungrateful shits. You come crying to my Basilicom, pleading and whining for me to talk to her, and now you're being little bitches about it? What utter bullshit. Since you're all too stupid to realize it, I'll tell you: staying around here means that I'm going to make sure she'll become more like me without anyone realizing it. Now, unless you want me to Break your spines Hard, you're going to shut the hell up."
"E-eep!" That's enough to scare Rom. "S-sorry…"
It's going to take a lot to alleviate her stress. "Honestly, the fact that you turned on your sister like that is already a problem in itself," she growls.
Ram, however, is not intimidated at all. "We already told you! We're mad that no one wants to restore her memories! You're the one who's not listening!" She shouts back. "What I don't get is why everyone is sucking up to this crappy version of big sis!"
"Crappy…" Blanny's already heard their ranting of her once, but it still hurts her no less.
"Please don't be mean to her," Nepgear asks of them. "She really wants to show that she's capable of being your older sister; she just needs time!"
"Or, we could restore her memories right now and not waste time!" She repeats even louder. "There is literally no reason to not dump this loser Blanc!"
Blanny continues to not take the insults very well. "I'm...I'm not…"
"Don't you think you can use this opportunity to make her even better than before? Because even if you don't like her, that's a good reason why you should keep her as-is," sternly suggests C-sha. "I would think even old Blanny would want to use this opportunity."
Rom almost seems offended by that idea. With her sister's defiance riling her up, she speaks up. "No, she wouldn't. She was perfectly fine back then, so just bring her back!"
Everyone seems to have run out of things to say. "If you haven't noticed, no one's agreeing with you, so just give up already," Blanc brusquely points out, still trying to calm down.
"Shut up! You're the one who let us down! We could've had old big sis back, but you're too much of a wimp to do anything about it!" Out of pure frustration, she goes for a punch.
Blanc effortlessly catches her fist with one palm.
She tries to pull out of her grip with little success. "Let go, you…" Only now has she noticed her signature red-eyed glare.
She clenches her fist harder. "You know what? Screw you two to hell. I'm all in for supporting my other self. Now, I'm going to beat the shit out of you for pissing me off so much!"
"Hey, calm down, Blanc!" C-sha runs over to Ram. "We don't need to escalate to violence. We can keep talking it out like adults."
She slaps her away. "No we can't! I hate it when people tell me to act like an adult! It's always them wanting me to do something and not something I do! And I'm sick and tired of how stupid and stubborn you all are!" Using her free hand, she summons her staff. "You know what? We're getting her back ourselves!"
"That's how old big sis would've dealt with this." Rom takes the initiative and transforms, equipped with the resolve to take on the entire world if necessary.
Blanc doesn't interject to that and follows suit after letting go of Ram. "Then let's go!" Without warning, White Heart effortlessly grabs both CPU Candidates. In the same motion, she launches them backwards into the hallway. The immediate impact sound is startling and bone-shaking compared to their argument.
"Blanc!" In a split second, Nepgear transforms and worryingly flies after the two, trying to put herself in the middle of the fight.
"What the- what was that?" Everyone hears various murmurs from the living room.
Despite the damage, Rom shakes it off and tells Ram, "Let's get out of her range!"
"No!" Still on a vigilante-like high, she's restless to take as many shots at White Heart, already firing numerous ice balls at her.
"Whoa!" Nepgear barely dodges her projectiles. "Ram, please stop!"
After a few attacks, Rom grabs Ram and starts flying towards the window, hoping it'd be easier to keep their distance outside. "Don't worry, she'll chase after us," she whispers.
Ram's attacks handily impede White Heart, with one of them directly hitting her. "Get back here, you vermin!" she shouts before pursuing them. Her strength allows her to shove Nepgear out of the way.
It doesn't take very long for those curious murmurs to turn into confused and shocked yelling combined with the sound of collateral damage. "W-waugh!"
"What's going on, Blanc- whoa!"
With the combatants out of the room, Blanny and C-sha run over to Nepgear. "A-are you okay?" the former asks.
"This is going to be really hard...how can I stop someone like her…?" worries Nepgear. She pushes that thought away for now, still determined to break up the fight, and flies after the three.
C-sha is about to run after them, but stops to ask, "You okay, Blanny?"
She is still conflicted and unsure of the conversation that had just occurred. Not a specific part of it, but the entire thing felt like an angry smear of words. She knows it was about her, which makes it more worrying that she doesn't completely understand it all. Sitting rather motionless, she tries to verbalize one bit of her confusion. "I...did I cause that?"
"Well, um…" C-sha wonders what's the right thing to say. "When I think about it, those three were bound to fight sooner or later."
That answer doesn't quite sate her emotional fatigue. After a bit, she asks, "When will this end?"
"Hm?" It takes a bit for C-sha to realize what she meant by "this." "Well, usually, when Rom and Ram get excited or passionate about something, they get bored of it rather quickly and move on, but…"
"But?"
She also knows that that only really applies to more trivial things like games or toys. When it's something serious, she's seen them stay determined for months, even years on end. Hearing of how they rescued Blanny from ASIC certainly confirmed that. Now, however, she isn't sure if she should tell her that. "...Well, I'm still pretty sure everything will work out if they spend some time away from you."
"I know. But, how long will that take?"
No clue on that one. "...I don't know. Trust me, I'd like for this to be over as soon as possible, too."
They continue to hear more fighting from outside. Sounds like more people had joined in the skirmish, too. "Should we…?"
"No need to. Might be best to keep our distance in case they hit us by accident."
"But Nepgear and…" Not knowing what's going on is preoccupying Blanny.
"I know, but those two look like they're gonna do something...feisty if they see you again."
"Oh…" She concedes that she feels the same way.
The noises momentarily stop, followed by a collective "Hey!" There's a moment of silence before Rom and Ram fly in. They've certainly taken a beating while looking tired from all of the self-healing, but they look no less obstinate in their objective.
Blanny locks up as they frown at her. "U-um…"
"Get her!" The two make a beeline for her, ready to grab her.
"Hey!" C-sha gets in the way and grapples Ram. She also tries to keep Rom off of Blanny, but it proves to be difficult without her arms and hands available.
Rom backs up a bit and raises her staff. "Ice Coffin!"
Much to her and Blanny's dismay, C-sha is unable to avoid the spell circle from below while struggling with Ram and promptly finds herself shocked from the sudden freezing. Despite her body's need to react to the pain, she's completely unable to move as the ice shards imprison her. "D-don't do this! Drop this already!"
Completely ignoring her, the now unoccupied Ram forcefully grabs on Blanny's arm. "Let's go!"
"Right!" Rom takes her other arm, and the two fly out.
"W-wait! What are you doing?!" In her panic, Blanny tries squirming out, but the sudden acceleration of them blasting off stuns her. "W-woah!"
Her attack is only able to freeze C-sha for a handful of seconds, but it's enough for her to lose any chance of catching them after breaking out. "Damn it!" Nevertheless, she runs after them, running towards the balcony.
writing arguments like this is getting pretty difficult, and its only going to get harder as i have to keep track of more of what each character said what; i had to scrap a lot of other possible outcomes this time
in truth, i was tempted to delay this confrontation later into the story, but that was bleh, and the fact this is only day three and theres already 75k+ words is getting slightly worrying
i also may or may not have taken a sloppier look over it because the two months were getting to me, so sry about any dumb grammar mistakes (hopefully its only syntax stuff and not glaring mood whiplashes / inconsistencies but do tell me anyways if u see them)
fortunately, now that i finished my last writing-heavy class, ill find more motivation to write here, instead (seriously, that class got obnoxious with essays)
C-sha takes it for herself to manage the clearing of the mine, debriefing the situation to all of the workers and letting all of the workers know about what happened. As they work on fixing the infrastructure and further assessing if it's viable continuing to use this quarry, C-sha starts examining Copypaste. "There must have been some foul play here; I know so."
Opening a panel on the back of his head with some tools, the cause of the whole problem is immediately apparent. "So simple; not even bothering to hide it!" Right under the cover is a black out-of-place module connected to what is presumably his brain. She immediately snaps it out and starts turning it around. The box is rather nondescript on the outside, so she starts opening this one, too.
Through the mess of wires and motherboards, she looks for any names or telling serial numbers. Although she doesn't recognize any of them, she is nevertheless glad that there are some; she'll just simply ask around what these mean. At the very back of it all, however, she finds some scratched letters: "For Bom-." Ripping out the rest of the components barely reveals anything, as the only thing after "Bom" is that someone was starting to write another "b." "For Bomb" probably referred to Copypaste's change in personality, but...
"...There has to be something else to this message, and I will find out what it means."