K: I figured it was high time I fricking updated this. --; I mean, 6 months is a little much, ne? Besides, I'm trying to place all my chaptered fics (that I need to complete) at the head of my list of works so I don't forget about them… ; *shrugs* Anyhoo, let's see if I still remember how to write this. *cracks her knuckles*

Disclaimer: Dun own Lain, dun own Yuugi-tachi. Hell, I still don't understand Lain, even though I watched it all. --;

Dedications:

- PanDora (I know she isn't good or bad- you'll just have to see what happens. *sinister grin*)

- Mirai-chan (It's been 6 months… Have you gotten around to seeing it yet?)

- Aya (Haven't heard from you in a LONG while- what's up? ^^; And don't worry- I'll stick to the formatting.)

- Sakyu-chan (^_^; I know, I know… Update Machigai, right? Well, like I said in the AN, I want to tidy up my listed works first, k? I have ½ the chapter done, I just haven't had time to finish it… ;)

- Da-chan (I had no idea you liked Serial Experiments Lain! ^_^ Totemo kakkoii desho! [so cool!] Maybe we can write a joint-Lain fic or something some time, ne? ^_~ Na~ when are you going to update To Whom it Wishes? I wanna read more! It sounds so interesting so far!! Oh yeah- I still need to give you the Genj' plushie, too. *giggles and holds it up to the screen* He wants to see his Da-koi!! ^_~)

The Wired: Boy Talk "Present day…"             "Present time… Ha ha ha ha ha…!"

_______________________________________

\She's been inside your head, hasn't she?\

            /I…. I don't know what you're talking about…./

            \Don't lie to me. I know for a fact she was talking to you during your 5th period class today…\

            /Then that was you I saw!/

            \I haven't the faintest idea of what you're talking about…\

            /Now who's the one lying?/

            \Urusei.\ (shut up)

___________________________________________________

            "Boy"

            "Boys" *giggle*

            "Layer 0-3: Boy Talk"

____________________________________________________

            Fine, if he doesn't want to talk about that, I'll change the subject. Raising the volume of my MP3 player, I let my fingers dance across the keyboard in time to the steady beat of the rock music. I'm not sure when I started listening to the stuff, but now, it's pretty much all I ever listen to.

            /So tell me, Gemu-kun, how exactly can she pry into the minds of others, anyway?/

            There's a lengthy pause, and I'm not sure what to think. Would he answer? Is he debating on whether to tell me, or is his reply just really long or something? Mulling over my options for a bit, I decide to go ahead and ask him.

            /Well…?/

            His reply is almost instantaneous.

            \Chotto, chotto! Ra~ who knew you could be so damn impatient? You're the one who asked me, remember?\ (hold on/wait)

            I felt a small smirk tug at my lips- so he was going to tell me…

            /Hn… Just because you type so slowly doesn't mean you have to go and blame me… XP/

            \Do you want me to tell you or not? Now shut up and stop bothering me so I can finish, dammit!\

            I chuckle a little- it's not like him to be flustered. Hell, this is probably the most open I've seen him in all this time… I wonder why? Should I even comment on it? He might clam up again if I do…

            /Hai, hai…/ (yeah, yeah…)

            As long as he's being so light-hearted, I might as well take advantage of it. Besides, I'm feeling mischievous at the moment…

            /….Slowpoke. XP/

            \Yare, yare… --;\ (Jeez)

            /^_^/

            \Okei- here's how it goes. In this day and age, pretty much everyone uses the WIRED, right? Since everyone has logged on at least once, that means Lain has the ability to seek them out.

When in the WIRED, people use special gear to create a user file that replicates a chosen part of their body to be viewed by others when logged in. That means that each user file is unique, since no 2 people are the same. All this is common knowledge so far, but there's one thing people always overlook- the fact that the connection goes both ways. A part of themselves is always in the WIRED, as the user file, and a part of the WIRED is always in them, on whichever body part they chose to replicate.

            Lain knows this, and that's how she's able to speak directly into your mind, even when offline. I've tried to do the same, to test my theory, but I can never fully achieve the same results. My guess is because she can harness her own raw power to make it work.\

            Her own raw power? What on Earth did he mean by that? I guess I can understand the whole user file thing, but why would Lain be the only one able to do it?

            /What- is she a God or something?/

            \First of all, it's Goddess… and really, she just might be… She certainly acts like it, and there's plenty of proof of what she can do…\

            /A Goddess of the WIRED?/

            \Exactly.\

            /So Lain is some kind of super genius who's figured out how to literally bypass every form of security within the WIRED and has somehow managed to weave it together with the real world? How could someone who looks that fragile do all that?/

            \People are a lot different in the WIRED than in real life, and looks can be deceiving…. Just look at you- I doubt you'd ever think of teasing and being a smartass if we were face-to-face…\

            /Point taken. I just hope you've changed your opinion of me now that you know I'm not so innocent, Gemu-kun. XP/

            \Hn. Damn straight… You can be downright infuriating when you want to be.\

            /BTW, you realize I have blackmail on you now… Mr. Never-speaks-or-opens-up-to-anyone-and-just-sits-in-a-corner-looking-sexy… XP Unbeknown to you, you've taught me quite a bit about yourself during this conversation…/

            I lean back in my chair, a full-blown smirk adorning my face. Let's see how he reacts to that… I guess I don't really have much on him, other than the fact I know who he is and that he's completely paranoid about Lain of the WIRED. Oh- there's also the fact he's a perfectionist, which I've deducted by the 'goddess' comment, and that I know just how to get under his skin…

            Strange- I have the sudden urge to cackle insanely. I guess I should cut back on the downloadable anime for a while… I think Daidouji Tomoyo is rubbing off on me… Accursed maho-shojo series… If Li Syaoran wasn't so kakkoii, I'd stop watching it altogether… (1: Magical girl, 2: cool)

            A little chime startles me from my inner ramblings, and I blink as my mind registers the fact that sound meant Gemu-kun had answered. Shaking my head, I leaned forward to read his reply.

            \Sexy? If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were hitting on me, Yu-kun… XP\

            Needless to say, I wasn't expecting THAT. In fact, I was so surprised I literally fell out of my chair.

            "Aa~ shimatta!" I cursed, rubbing my now-sore ass. (Ah- shit!)

            "Eh? Something wrong?"

            "What the hell?! Who's there?!"

            "You turned your intercom back on, baka."

            I did? I heave myself back up and into my chair, then stare at the small icon sitting in the bottom right corner of my screen. Sure enough, it's the one for the microphone connected to my Navi. I guess I must've hit it accidentally when I fell down…

            "Oh…" Well don't I feel stupid…. Dammit- I swear, I can almost see him smirking right now… His eyes give it away.

            Sure enough, I hear him snort. "Hn. So, are you going to tell me what happened?"

            And admit that I fell on my ass? Hell no.

            "You fell flat on your ass, didn't you?"

            Dammit. How did he know?! Great- now he's starting to laugh…

            "Urusai." (Shut up)

            I send him my best glare, thankful that I chose my eyes as my replicated ID.

            "Is that supposed to be a scowl? All it does is make you look ridiculously cute…"

            Shit- now I'm blushing… Why oh WHY did I add that part about him acting like a typical, 'I'm too sexy for you' punk?! I don't really mind him hitting on me, though… NANI?! WHERE THE HELL DID THAT COME FROM?!

            "Did you fall again and render yourself unconscious?"

            I turn my eyes away from his digitized ones, unable to withstand the evil, unsettling mirth held in them. He'd won this round, and he knew it. Demonic little bastard…

            "Ya- yakomashi…" (Be quiet)

            Gathering myself, I turn to meet his gaze once more with as much of a poker face as I can muster. "I've gotta go… I need to start dinner…"

            The ruby eyes closed as if he were shrugging. "Suit yourself. There's always tomorrow…"

            "Yeah, sure… donna ni demo da na…" (whatever) I move to turn off the microphone, but a strangled yelp stops me.

            "Aack! Chotto! I forgot to give you the standard Lain warning thing!!"

            I stare at his eyes blankly. "You're the strangest person I've ever met…"

            "Apparently, that's not saying much…"

            "You don't know my Ji-chan, then…" A spark of curiosity twinkles in his crimson orbs, and I choose to leave him hanging before he starts asking- I really do need to start making dinner… "Ja na." (bye)

            With that, I shut off the intercom, ignoring his cries of protest. His eyes narrow at me in mock-fury, and I wink at them before logging out. Turning off my RealonePlayer, I swivel around in my chair and exit the room, heading downstairs to the kitchen. Halfway there, I realize something.

            "Shit- he knows I listen to Imai Eriko…"

END CHAPTER III

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

K: ^_^ Aww… Yuugi's flirting! Sorry that Gemu-kun's so OOC from how I made him previously… I just couldn't resist! Besides, that's how Yuugi wanted to play, ne? ^_~

As for Yuugi listening to Imai Eriko, I just randomly put that since I was listening to "Dawn" when I was finishing this up. ^_^; It's actually a really good song, but I get the feeling it's directed more toward female listeners, not guys. ^_~ Hence the fact Gemu-kun now has blackmail on Yuugi, since he would've heard the music playing in the background because of the microphone. XP

Anyhoo, I hope you enjoyed the chapter! I tried to make it a bit longer, since I haven't written for this in a LONG while… ; Saa~ I gotta go! I'm heading off to see Lara Croft 2! ^_________^ Ja ne!