Familiarities,
by Guardian Collective
---------------------
A/N: The time conversion chart I use goes as follows: second/nano, minute/milli, hour/cycle, day/second, month/minute, and year/hour. Also, this story takes place after the Restart and before Daemon Rising, and breaks S4 continuity.
---------------------
CHAPTER ONE
Matrix mumbled a couple expletives as AndrAIa, who was lying in bed beside him, tried pulling the few inches of the blanket that he had left. She had been tugging on them the entire night, as she often did, which he thought may have been one of the reasons why he was always grumpy in the morning, though he also thought it was because he was an all around grumpy guy, a result of his, Frisket, and AndrAIa's hours of Game-hopping.
The renegade struggled to keep some blanket for himself, but after a while, decided to give up his lost cause and got out of bed, rubbing his head through his black, rugged hair. He looked down at his girlfriend, who lay asleep, and smiled, something he rarely did, even in the vixen's presence.
Matrix then shivered because he was wearing nothing but gotchies, so he put on a loose pair of jeans and a shirt. After getting dressed, he made his way out of the bedroom and down the hall to the staircase, which he went down, and found himself in the kitchen.
"Guess it won't hurt to get something light to eat," he mused, opening the fridge and taking out a half-eaten chipburger, as well as an energy shake he had brought home from Dot's Diner. Matrix sat down at the table and noticed that Frisket had followed him from the bedroom, so he greeted the dog, and breaking off a piece of the chipburger, dropped some on the floor.
Frisket gobbled the food up, and lied down under the table, being tired, yet not wanting to leave Matrix.
"It's alright, boy; AndrAIa's upstairs still, so you can go sleep with her," the part-Guardian told the dog, understanding its present circumstance.
The dog looked up, and after a few nanos, got up and promptly left, leaving Matrix alone in the kitchen to think, which he did, about his and AndrAIa's time in the Games, something that had haunted him ever since they had gotten back to Mainframe, though for some reason it had never really affected him while they were Game-hopping.
He quickly finished his chipburger and energy shake, but remained in the kitchen for the remainder of the night, not being able to sleep with such disturbing memories circulating his processing unit.
--**--**--
AndrAIa woke up to her alarm clock, and found Frisket sleeping on the edge of the bed, while Matrix's side was empty and coverless, meaning one thing -- she had hogged the covers again and he had awoken because of it.
She remained lying for another half-cycle, soaking in the light coming into the room through the window, wondering where her lover was. She also gave Frisket a slight nudge with her feet, and watched as he subconsciously scratched his ear.
"He-he-he," she giggled as she watched the dog attempt to roll over and end up falling off the bed. She decided then to get up and check on Frisket, who wasn't injured, as everyone in Mainframe and even various systems of the Web knew that it would take more than falling off a bed to do any harm to the tough dog that had adopted Matrix and Dot as his family hours ago, way back before she even met Matrix, or Enzo as he was known back in the second, in the Undersea Adventure Game. She thought about it for a nano, and remembered one of her and Enzo's first conversations, which was about Frisket, and how Enzo had said that Frisket had become part of the family when Welman was still a Sprite, back when Enzo himself was just 00-old and Dot was a flamboyant Sprite herself. Back before AndrAIa herself had been programmed into the Undersea Adventure Game.
After checking on Frisket, she decided to put some clothes on, because no matter how soothing the light coming through the window was, a bra and thong weren't very warm to wear, especially after one woke up. So, she put on a large, baggy shirt of Matrix's and went downstairs to find him sitting at the table, looking as though he hadn't had any sleep that night, which after she asked him about it, found out that he indeed hadn't got any sleep because of her hogging the sheets.
"I'm sorry, lover, but you know how delicate I am because I'm a female," she joked, giving him a big hug from behind. "I need all the blankets to protect me from the night's coldness."
"Don't worry about it," he said. The current situation immediately brought back memories of their first few system landings after losing the fighting Game. "I'm used to going nights without sleep... weeks even." He turned his head to look back at her, and kissed her. "How about we scrounge up some food from the fridge for breakfast? Or are we going to the Diner?"
"Whichever you prefer," the former Game Sprite told him, withdrawing her arms from him and crouching down to scratch behind Frisket's ears, the dog having followed her down to the kitchen after he had done his morning duties. "But either way, I could really go for a cup of Java right now, and by the looks of it, I'd say you could too."
"Yeah probably. So you want to just Zip over to the Diner and get some of Cecil's specially brewed?"
"Sure, why not? Just let me get changed first." She left the kitchen and went back upstairs, but Matrix, also needing to change, followed her up to the bedroom.
When they got there, she turned back and looked at him, a bit confused, as she hadn't yet fully waken up and couldn't fully comprehend that he wasn't wearing his usual get up of his leg tight blue jeans and black, leather vest.
"What, you think I'm going out in public in this garb? You have to be kidding me." He pulled his shirt up over his head, and began pulling his pants down, when he looked up to see AndrAIa staring at him with a sly grin on her face. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"
"You bet I am, sparky," she said as she pulled off the shirt she was wearing and moved closer to Matrix. She wrapped her arms around his neck and they began kissing, soon after finding themselves on the bed, exhausted from what had just transpired.
"Well, now that we're awake," Matrix started, looking over to AndrAIa, who was wrapped in one of his arms, "I think we can go to the Diner."
She laughed, and they both got up and dressed, and left for Dot's Diner on their Zipboards, Frisket following as fast he could below them on land.
--**--**--
Matrix and AndrAIa touched down in front of Dot's Diner and minimized their Zipboards so they could store them in an out-of-the-way place, and then waited for Frisket to catch up to them, in which it took him less than a milli.
"Good boy," Matrix embraced the red dog, leaning over to pat his head. "You kept up with us the entire way; you're keeping in fit shape for Daemon, huh?"
Frisket barked and nodded his head, working his way onto all fours so his forepaws rested around Matrix's hips.
"Down boy," he instructed, wanting his Java as soon as he could before the routine secondly Game dropped so he wouldn't have to go into it bogged down by sleep. Frisket obeyed his order, so Matrix pulled a couple treats out of his pocket and tossed them on the ground for the dog to eat. He looked at AndrAIa and said, "Let's go."
So they went in, and finding it to be quiet, which was odd for Dot's Diner no matter the second.
"Where is everyone?" the former Game Sprite asked, looking around but not seeing anyone, save for Cecil. "Cecil?"
"Yes, ma'am?" the waiter asked, turning around to face AndrAIa and Matrix.
"Where is everyone?"
"I do not know, ma'am; I'm sorry." Cecil then turned back around and continued cleaning out cups.
"Well *he* wasn't any help," Matrix scolded the waiter, never really liking him. "But we don't really need anyone to be with to have some Java, do we? We do it alone at home all the time."
"Yeah, but still, Enzo, err, Matrix," she quickly corrected herself, as she knew hearing his first name brought back all the horrid memories of their Game-hopping hours, especially the first half of them before he got Gun and his artificial eye, "it's kind of weird not to see anyone here. I mean, there aren't even any Binomes, who usually make up most of Dot's customer base every second."
"True, but don't you think maybe we could do that *after* our Java?"
"I guess you're right. Cecil, can we get a couple Javas?"
Without turning around, the waiter called back, "In a milli, please ma'am."
While waiting for their Javas, Matrix and AndrAIa sat down at their usual table and sat in silence, both of them really too tired to hold much of a conversation that didn't revolve around Java or any other substance that could wake one up.
Cecil eventually made the Javas and delivered them to the table, not taking any credits because of their 'tab', though no one in Dot's inner-circle had ever paid at the Diner.
"And she wonders why it always blows up," the French-model waiter mumbled on his way back to where the dirty dishes were.
"What a character," Matrix grumbled, grabbing his Java and taking a drink from it.
AndrAIa laughed, and took a drink of her own Java, and new voice said, "Alphanumeric!"
Matrix and AndrAIa looked at the Diner entrance to find little Enzo standing there, arms flailing in the air as if he was striving for the attentio of the people who weren't there.
"Look sparky -- it's little sparky," AndrAIa pointed out, always finding it funny how the two, being the exact same person, contrasted, even though she knew it was because Enzo didn't have the experience from the hours of Game-hopping she, Matrix, and Frisket had. Another thing that she thought about when Enzo was around was how much she missed being her little self, and how lonely he must be without anyone else in Mainframe being his age. "Let's call him over."
"Not *him*," Matrix growled. He didn't usually enjoy his younger self's company during the second, but then in the mornings, the renegade always tried to steer clear from the little Sprite, for several reasons that need not be told.
"Hey guys!" Enzo cheerfully said, making his way to the table before they could call him over. "Where is everyone?"
Shrugging her shoulders, AndrAIa answered, "Not sure, little sparky."
Matrix curled his upper lip, memories of his childhood flooding back to him, especially those of his time Game-hopping. "Why don't you go find them and bring them back? Maybe then you'll be seen as useful."
A look of shock spread over Enzo's face, and AndrAIa elbowed the renegade in the ribs.
Matrix looked at her, and reading her face like a text file, squeaked out an apology to the little Sprite.
"No problem," he replied, waving it off with his right hand. "I understand it's the morning and you old people haven't had your Java yet."
"What?" Matrix let out, while AndrAIa laughed at Enzo's comment. "I should be no older than you...if it wasn't for that blasted Game."
The three sat in silence at Matrix's words until Cecil slowly made his way over and announced, "I have received a message from Ms. Matrix, and she says that her, Phong, and the incompetent bots are in the Principle Office busy dealing with important matters, the Hacker and Surfer are away on business, and the Guardian's whereabouts," he scoffed at mentioning Bob, "are unknown." He then promptly turned and left.
"So, looks like we're all alone babysitting little green today," AndrAIa stated, looking at Matrix, knowing what his response would be beforehand.
"Great, just great."
TO BE CONTINUED
by Guardian Collective
---------------------
A/N: The time conversion chart I use goes as follows: second/nano, minute/milli, hour/cycle, day/second, month/minute, and year/hour. Also, this story takes place after the Restart and before Daemon Rising, and breaks S4 continuity.
---------------------
CHAPTER ONE
Matrix mumbled a couple expletives as AndrAIa, who was lying in bed beside him, tried pulling the few inches of the blanket that he had left. She had been tugging on them the entire night, as she often did, which he thought may have been one of the reasons why he was always grumpy in the morning, though he also thought it was because he was an all around grumpy guy, a result of his, Frisket, and AndrAIa's hours of Game-hopping.
The renegade struggled to keep some blanket for himself, but after a while, decided to give up his lost cause and got out of bed, rubbing his head through his black, rugged hair. He looked down at his girlfriend, who lay asleep, and smiled, something he rarely did, even in the vixen's presence.
Matrix then shivered because he was wearing nothing but gotchies, so he put on a loose pair of jeans and a shirt. After getting dressed, he made his way out of the bedroom and down the hall to the staircase, which he went down, and found himself in the kitchen.
"Guess it won't hurt to get something light to eat," he mused, opening the fridge and taking out a half-eaten chipburger, as well as an energy shake he had brought home from Dot's Diner. Matrix sat down at the table and noticed that Frisket had followed him from the bedroom, so he greeted the dog, and breaking off a piece of the chipburger, dropped some on the floor.
Frisket gobbled the food up, and lied down under the table, being tired, yet not wanting to leave Matrix.
"It's alright, boy; AndrAIa's upstairs still, so you can go sleep with her," the part-Guardian told the dog, understanding its present circumstance.
The dog looked up, and after a few nanos, got up and promptly left, leaving Matrix alone in the kitchen to think, which he did, about his and AndrAIa's time in the Games, something that had haunted him ever since they had gotten back to Mainframe, though for some reason it had never really affected him while they were Game-hopping.
He quickly finished his chipburger and energy shake, but remained in the kitchen for the remainder of the night, not being able to sleep with such disturbing memories circulating his processing unit.
--**--**--
AndrAIa woke up to her alarm clock, and found Frisket sleeping on the edge of the bed, while Matrix's side was empty and coverless, meaning one thing -- she had hogged the covers again and he had awoken because of it.
She remained lying for another half-cycle, soaking in the light coming into the room through the window, wondering where her lover was. She also gave Frisket a slight nudge with her feet, and watched as he subconsciously scratched his ear.
"He-he-he," she giggled as she watched the dog attempt to roll over and end up falling off the bed. She decided then to get up and check on Frisket, who wasn't injured, as everyone in Mainframe and even various systems of the Web knew that it would take more than falling off a bed to do any harm to the tough dog that had adopted Matrix and Dot as his family hours ago, way back before she even met Matrix, or Enzo as he was known back in the second, in the Undersea Adventure Game. She thought about it for a nano, and remembered one of her and Enzo's first conversations, which was about Frisket, and how Enzo had said that Frisket had become part of the family when Welman was still a Sprite, back when Enzo himself was just 00-old and Dot was a flamboyant Sprite herself. Back before AndrAIa herself had been programmed into the Undersea Adventure Game.
After checking on Frisket, she decided to put some clothes on, because no matter how soothing the light coming through the window was, a bra and thong weren't very warm to wear, especially after one woke up. So, she put on a large, baggy shirt of Matrix's and went downstairs to find him sitting at the table, looking as though he hadn't had any sleep that night, which after she asked him about it, found out that he indeed hadn't got any sleep because of her hogging the sheets.
"I'm sorry, lover, but you know how delicate I am because I'm a female," she joked, giving him a big hug from behind. "I need all the blankets to protect me from the night's coldness."
"Don't worry about it," he said. The current situation immediately brought back memories of their first few system landings after losing the fighting Game. "I'm used to going nights without sleep... weeks even." He turned his head to look back at her, and kissed her. "How about we scrounge up some food from the fridge for breakfast? Or are we going to the Diner?"
"Whichever you prefer," the former Game Sprite told him, withdrawing her arms from him and crouching down to scratch behind Frisket's ears, the dog having followed her down to the kitchen after he had done his morning duties. "But either way, I could really go for a cup of Java right now, and by the looks of it, I'd say you could too."
"Yeah probably. So you want to just Zip over to the Diner and get some of Cecil's specially brewed?"
"Sure, why not? Just let me get changed first." She left the kitchen and went back upstairs, but Matrix, also needing to change, followed her up to the bedroom.
When they got there, she turned back and looked at him, a bit confused, as she hadn't yet fully waken up and couldn't fully comprehend that he wasn't wearing his usual get up of his leg tight blue jeans and black, leather vest.
"What, you think I'm going out in public in this garb? You have to be kidding me." He pulled his shirt up over his head, and began pulling his pants down, when he looked up to see AndrAIa staring at him with a sly grin on her face. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"
"You bet I am, sparky," she said as she pulled off the shirt she was wearing and moved closer to Matrix. She wrapped her arms around his neck and they began kissing, soon after finding themselves on the bed, exhausted from what had just transpired.
"Well, now that we're awake," Matrix started, looking over to AndrAIa, who was wrapped in one of his arms, "I think we can go to the Diner."
She laughed, and they both got up and dressed, and left for Dot's Diner on their Zipboards, Frisket following as fast he could below them on land.
--**--**--
Matrix and AndrAIa touched down in front of Dot's Diner and minimized their Zipboards so they could store them in an out-of-the-way place, and then waited for Frisket to catch up to them, in which it took him less than a milli.
"Good boy," Matrix embraced the red dog, leaning over to pat his head. "You kept up with us the entire way; you're keeping in fit shape for Daemon, huh?"
Frisket barked and nodded his head, working his way onto all fours so his forepaws rested around Matrix's hips.
"Down boy," he instructed, wanting his Java as soon as he could before the routine secondly Game dropped so he wouldn't have to go into it bogged down by sleep. Frisket obeyed his order, so Matrix pulled a couple treats out of his pocket and tossed them on the ground for the dog to eat. He looked at AndrAIa and said, "Let's go."
So they went in, and finding it to be quiet, which was odd for Dot's Diner no matter the second.
"Where is everyone?" the former Game Sprite asked, looking around but not seeing anyone, save for Cecil. "Cecil?"
"Yes, ma'am?" the waiter asked, turning around to face AndrAIa and Matrix.
"Where is everyone?"
"I do not know, ma'am; I'm sorry." Cecil then turned back around and continued cleaning out cups.
"Well *he* wasn't any help," Matrix scolded the waiter, never really liking him. "But we don't really need anyone to be with to have some Java, do we? We do it alone at home all the time."
"Yeah, but still, Enzo, err, Matrix," she quickly corrected herself, as she knew hearing his first name brought back all the horrid memories of their Game-hopping hours, especially the first half of them before he got Gun and his artificial eye, "it's kind of weird not to see anyone here. I mean, there aren't even any Binomes, who usually make up most of Dot's customer base every second."
"True, but don't you think maybe we could do that *after* our Java?"
"I guess you're right. Cecil, can we get a couple Javas?"
Without turning around, the waiter called back, "In a milli, please ma'am."
While waiting for their Javas, Matrix and AndrAIa sat down at their usual table and sat in silence, both of them really too tired to hold much of a conversation that didn't revolve around Java or any other substance that could wake one up.
Cecil eventually made the Javas and delivered them to the table, not taking any credits because of their 'tab', though no one in Dot's inner-circle had ever paid at the Diner.
"And she wonders why it always blows up," the French-model waiter mumbled on his way back to where the dirty dishes were.
"What a character," Matrix grumbled, grabbing his Java and taking a drink from it.
AndrAIa laughed, and took a drink of her own Java, and new voice said, "Alphanumeric!"
Matrix and AndrAIa looked at the Diner entrance to find little Enzo standing there, arms flailing in the air as if he was striving for the attentio of the people who weren't there.
"Look sparky -- it's little sparky," AndrAIa pointed out, always finding it funny how the two, being the exact same person, contrasted, even though she knew it was because Enzo didn't have the experience from the hours of Game-hopping she, Matrix, and Frisket had. Another thing that she thought about when Enzo was around was how much she missed being her little self, and how lonely he must be without anyone else in Mainframe being his age. "Let's call him over."
"Not *him*," Matrix growled. He didn't usually enjoy his younger self's company during the second, but then in the mornings, the renegade always tried to steer clear from the little Sprite, for several reasons that need not be told.
"Hey guys!" Enzo cheerfully said, making his way to the table before they could call him over. "Where is everyone?"
Shrugging her shoulders, AndrAIa answered, "Not sure, little sparky."
Matrix curled his upper lip, memories of his childhood flooding back to him, especially those of his time Game-hopping. "Why don't you go find them and bring them back? Maybe then you'll be seen as useful."
A look of shock spread over Enzo's face, and AndrAIa elbowed the renegade in the ribs.
Matrix looked at her, and reading her face like a text file, squeaked out an apology to the little Sprite.
"No problem," he replied, waving it off with his right hand. "I understand it's the morning and you old people haven't had your Java yet."
"What?" Matrix let out, while AndrAIa laughed at Enzo's comment. "I should be no older than you...if it wasn't for that blasted Game."
The three sat in silence at Matrix's words until Cecil slowly made his way over and announced, "I have received a message from Ms. Matrix, and she says that her, Phong, and the incompetent bots are in the Principle Office busy dealing with important matters, the Hacker and Surfer are away on business, and the Guardian's whereabouts," he scoffed at mentioning Bob, "are unknown." He then promptly turned and left.
"So, looks like we're all alone babysitting little green today," AndrAIa stated, looking at Matrix, knowing what his response would be beforehand.
"Great, just great."
TO BE CONTINUED
