The Ties That Bind
by
Spookygirl
CHAPTER TWO
Bob was on his way to find Matrix. He made his way down the halls of the P. O. toward the guest rooms. He sighed as he walked. This wasn't going to be easy. Matrix never shared his emotions with anyone except AndrAIa.
It was hard to believe that the big, trigger-happy renegade had been a little boy who loved to tackle him just a few months ago. Now both the man and the boy were there. Bob still couldn't get over it even after all the time that had passed.
The guardian stopped when he came to Matrix and AndrAIa's room. He took a deep breath to prepare himself and knocked on the door. After a second or two, the door opened, revealing AndrAIa.
"Hi, Bob. What's processing?" she asked.
"Nothing much, Andri. I was just wondering if I could speak to Matrix about something very important," he replied, stressing the words 'very important.'
The game sprite caught on quickly. She remembered the conversation she had with Dot the other day in the diner. Bob must have come to try and settle things between Matrix and Dot. She winked at him. "Ok, no problem. Come in."
"You don't mind do you?" Bob asked as he stepped inside the room.
"No, not at all," she replied with a smile.
Frisket was sitting on the floor by the bed. He growled at Bob when the guardian came into the room. Bob sighed internally. That dog would never give him a break.
Matrix, who was sitting in a chair trying to get a small television set to show something more than snow, looked up when Bob politely cleared his throat. "Oh hey, Bob. Sorry, I didn't notice you, I just can't get this basic t. v. to work," he emphasized by banging the top of the television with his huge fist. The picture flickered for a split second, then resumed it's never-ending broadcast of snow. Matrix sighed ruefully, "I guess I should be grateful he's not Mike."
Bob chuckled. "That's okay. I was just wondering if I could talk to you for a minute."
"Alright," the renegade replied, turning the t. v. off.
"I'll leave you boys alone." AndrAIa said. She walked over to her lover and kissed him quickly. She went to the door. "Frisket, come on, boy," she called over her shoulder as she walked out the door.
The feral dog rose from his spot on the floor obviously not pleased that he had to leave and with a final growl to Bob, followed AndrAIa out into the hallway. She gave Bob another wink and closed the door, leaving the two male sprites alone.
After a short pause, Matrix cleared his throat and asked, "So, what did you want to talk to me about, Bob?"
"Dot," the blue-skinned guardian answered bluntly.
"What about her?" Matrix asked, clearly caught off guard.
"I want to know why you're avoiding her, Enzo." Bob replied.
The renegade flinched slightly at the use of his name. "Bob...I...look, you wouldn't understand okay?" Matrix answered, staring at the floor.
"What wouldn't I understand, Matrix? You know you can tell me anything. Despite everything that's happened, this will never change."
"Bob, I can't talk to her. There's no way in the Web that I could." Matrix said mournfully.
"Why not? She's your sister. She thinks that you believe she doesn't love you anymore and it's killing her." Bob explained.
"Why would she need me when she's got the younger version? He's her chance to start over. I'm going to try and be friends with Little Enzo, but I don't think I have a place in Dot's life anymore," was the sad reply. The hulking sprite stood and walked over to the bed. He sat down and sighed, his shoulders slumping a bit.
"Do you really think that?" Bob asked as he moved to sit on the bed next to him. "If you do, I can't even begin to tell you how wrong you are. You know Dot will love you until her deletion day and beyond. How could you think that?"
"I just thought she wouldn't accept what I've become. I've done some terrible things, Bob. I told you before that I did what I had to so we could survive. I didn't want to expose her to all that. She's already lost enough of her innocence because of me." Matrix said.
"What do you mean?" Bob asked with a curious frown.
"She never told you about the viral binome, did she?" Matrix asked, sighing quietly.
"No, she hasn't. What happened?" the guardian replied, even more curious than before.
Matrix took a deep breath and looked down at the floor, resting his arms on his knees. There was a slight pause and Bob could see the wave of emotions that passed over his friend's emerald green face. Before Bob could encourage him to continue, the renegade began his story.
"It happened after a game Dot and I played in Baudway. I was so excited about the stupid game I forgot to tell Glitch to scan for Virals. I went on and on about how alphanumeric the game was and I didn't see the binome in the alley across the street.
"He took a shot at me, but he missed. The next thing I knew, Dot had pushed me to the ground and fired a shot at the viral. I heard a scream and something hit the ground. Then Dot told me to stay put and ran into the alley to see if there were any more virals. After a few minutes, she didn't come back and I got worried. I went into the alley to look for her..." he stopped suddenly and Bob was surprised to see Matrix's shoulders shaking slightly as if he was trying not to cry.
Bob put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "It's ok, Matrix," he said gently. He knew that whatever Matrix was about to say wasn't going to be easy to tell.
Matrix took a deep, shuddering breath and continued after giving Bob a small smile of thanks. "I went into the alley and I found Dot. She was just standing there looking at the ground. I couldn't see what she was looking at and I didn't see any other virals. I walked up next to her and...she was crying, Bob. There were tears running down her face and I didn't know why. I was so scared. I didn't know what was wrong. You know Dot never cries in front of people like that. Not even me. I asked her what was wrong over and over, but she didn't answer. She just kept staring at the ground.
"Finally I looked down and I knew what happened. She was staring a green and black icon on the ground. I felt sick, like the world had tilted to one side real fast. She killed him, Bob. She killed him to save me. I tried to get her to talk to me, to say anything, but she didn't answer and she was still crying. Then Mouse showed up with a handful of CPUs. We must've been there longer than I thought. I told her what happened and she said she'd handle it.
"She went up to Dot and said something quietly to her, I couldn't hear what. I still don't know how she did it to this day, but Mouse managed to snap her out of it. She looked at Mouse for a second and then she looked at me. There was so much...confusion and fear and...pain in that one look. I wanted to cry too. We went back to the P. O. and Dot acted like nothing happened. She threw herself into her work again. I couldn't think of anything else for the longest time.
"It was all my fault, Bob. I made Dot a murderer when all I wanted was to make her proud and show her I could be a great guardian like you. She sacrificed what was left of her innocence for me. I've never forgiven myself for making her lose it." By the end of his story, Matrix's good eye had filled with tears, but he wouldn't let them fall.
"Oh, Matrix, it wasn't your fault. Dot was just protecting you, that's all. You know she'd do anything to keep you safe." Bob said, trying to reassure him. He had listened in shocked silence as Matrix told the story. It was no wonder he was afraid to tell Dot. He had become something that Dot was afraid of becoming herself. "Matrix, why don't you talk to her? She's been wanting to talk to you for so long."
"I don't think I can face her, Bob." Matrix replied, looking even more dejected than before he had started telling Bob about the incident. "I'm afraid of what she'll think when I tell her everything that happened to us."
"She'll listen and she'll be there for you just like she always has been. You and I both know that." Bob said truthfully.
"You think so?" Matrix asked him with a hint of hope in his voice.
"Trust me, Matrix, I'd never lie to you. Now go talk to her." Bob prompted him, smiling encouragingly.
Matrix stood and looked at Bob. "Where is she now?" he asked.
"She should be in her room just down the hall." Bob answered.
The guardian and the renegade both exited the room. "Thanks for everything, Bob." Matrix said.
"No problem. Glad to be of help." Bob replied with a smile.
Matrix returned the smile and walked down the hall to his sister's room.
'Well, that was easier than I thought.' Bob thought, smiling to himself. The guardian was still smiling as he walked to his own room to access some downtime.
~(V)~ ~(V)~ ~(V)~ ~(V)~ ~(V)~
Dot wasn't in her room. The Command.com had decided to check on the alarm systems to keep her mind off the multitude of problems she had to face. She was in the War Room looking over the reports the CPUs had compiled last month when the new alarms had been installed. So far, everything was working like clockwork. If only she could say the same about her life.
She was still a young sprite, but she had been through many hardships much like her brother and her guardian. She couldn't help but be proud of her strength and determination, traits given to her by her father
Dot shook her head. It was useless to think about him now. He was gone and that was the past. It was time to face the future. She continued reviewing the reports.
Suddenly she heard the door to the War Room chime and open. Then there was the sound of footsteps walking toward her. It was probably Bob coming to see her like she'd asked earlier. "Hold on, Bob, I'll be with you in a second. I just need to finish reading this report on the new alarm systems."
"Sorry, Dot, I'm not Bob," replied a deep voice that was definitely not Bob's.
Dot turned around and came face to face with Matrix.
"Oh! Enz...uh, Matrix...what are you doing here? I thought you were with AndrAIa." Dot said a bit awkwardly.
"Um...yeah, I was, but I decided to take a walk." Matrix replied just as awkwardly. Why was it so difficult to talk to his own sister? She had practically raised him and he couldn't even say a single sentence without stuttering.
"Ok, well, I can leave if you want to be alone," she said trying to keep her emotions in check. Inside, she was having a hard time trying not to let herself fall to her knees and beg him to talk to her. She couldn't force him. It wouldn't get her anywhere.
"No...you can stay...if you want to," her brother replied slowly, looking at the floor.
"I think the question is...do you want me to stay?" she asked looking up at him.
He looked down at her and saw the plea in her eyes, begging him to say that he did want her to stay. He couldn't say no to a look like that to save his life. Time to scrounge up some of that good ol' courage and face the music. "Yeah, I do," he said quietly, giving her a small smile.
"Really?" she asked hopefully.
"Yeah, really." Matrix said with a chuckle.
Dot couldn't hold herself back anymore. She flung herself into her brother's arms and held on for dear code. "User, I missed you so much," she said with a relieved smile.
Matrix held his sister tightly, afraid to let go, afraid that this was all a dream and he would wake up in some distant system with AndrAIa trying desperately to get home. "I missed you too, sis," he replied happily with a smile of his own, "I'm sorry for being such a virus lately."
"No, don't apologize. I understand. Just don't think I'd ever be scared of what you are. I know that you had to do what you could to come home. I would have done the same thing if I had been in your place. I would never hate or hear you."
Matrix smiled down at her. "I have a lot more to tell you...that is, if you want to hear it."
"Of course I do! I want to hear everything! Don't be afraid of my reaction. I will always be proud of you. You have a good heart, Matrix." Dot answered, pilling away from him.
Matrix grinned proudly at his sister's praise. "Well, it's a long story. Why don't we go back to your room and I'll tell you."
"Absolutely," she agreed and the left the War Room. "I do have one question though," she added as they walked down the hallway.
"Shoot." Matrix replied.
"What's with the tattoo?" Dot asked with an amused grin.
"Matrix chuckled. "That's another long story, but let's just say I know a certain straight-laced workaholic who gave me the idea for it."
"How did you know I had one? I tried to hide it from you." Dot inquired curiously.
"I found some old high school pictures of you and your friends in your diary a while back," he answered with a smirk, then he started running down the hallway as his sister threatened to beat him to deletion.
Dot chased after her brother shouting threats at him. "Enzo Matrix, I told you to stay out of my diary! Get back here so I can kick your ASCII!!!"
The only response she got was his laughter echoing down the hall as he ran.
~(V)~ ~(V)~ ~(V)~ ~(V)~ ~(V)~
by
Spookygirl
CHAPTER TWO
Bob was on his way to find Matrix. He made his way down the halls of the P. O. toward the guest rooms. He sighed as he walked. This wasn't going to be easy. Matrix never shared his emotions with anyone except AndrAIa.
It was hard to believe that the big, trigger-happy renegade had been a little boy who loved to tackle him just a few months ago. Now both the man and the boy were there. Bob still couldn't get over it even after all the time that had passed.
The guardian stopped when he came to Matrix and AndrAIa's room. He took a deep breath to prepare himself and knocked on the door. After a second or two, the door opened, revealing AndrAIa.
"Hi, Bob. What's processing?" she asked.
"Nothing much, Andri. I was just wondering if I could speak to Matrix about something very important," he replied, stressing the words 'very important.'
The game sprite caught on quickly. She remembered the conversation she had with Dot the other day in the diner. Bob must have come to try and settle things between Matrix and Dot. She winked at him. "Ok, no problem. Come in."
"You don't mind do you?" Bob asked as he stepped inside the room.
"No, not at all," she replied with a smile.
Frisket was sitting on the floor by the bed. He growled at Bob when the guardian came into the room. Bob sighed internally. That dog would never give him a break.
Matrix, who was sitting in a chair trying to get a small television set to show something more than snow, looked up when Bob politely cleared his throat. "Oh hey, Bob. Sorry, I didn't notice you, I just can't get this basic t. v. to work," he emphasized by banging the top of the television with his huge fist. The picture flickered for a split second, then resumed it's never-ending broadcast of snow. Matrix sighed ruefully, "I guess I should be grateful he's not Mike."
Bob chuckled. "That's okay. I was just wondering if I could talk to you for a minute."
"Alright," the renegade replied, turning the t. v. off.
"I'll leave you boys alone." AndrAIa said. She walked over to her lover and kissed him quickly. She went to the door. "Frisket, come on, boy," she called over her shoulder as she walked out the door.
The feral dog rose from his spot on the floor obviously not pleased that he had to leave and with a final growl to Bob, followed AndrAIa out into the hallway. She gave Bob another wink and closed the door, leaving the two male sprites alone.
After a short pause, Matrix cleared his throat and asked, "So, what did you want to talk to me about, Bob?"
"Dot," the blue-skinned guardian answered bluntly.
"What about her?" Matrix asked, clearly caught off guard.
"I want to know why you're avoiding her, Enzo." Bob replied.
The renegade flinched slightly at the use of his name. "Bob...I...look, you wouldn't understand okay?" Matrix answered, staring at the floor.
"What wouldn't I understand, Matrix? You know you can tell me anything. Despite everything that's happened, this will never change."
"Bob, I can't talk to her. There's no way in the Web that I could." Matrix said mournfully.
"Why not? She's your sister. She thinks that you believe she doesn't love you anymore and it's killing her." Bob explained.
"Why would she need me when she's got the younger version? He's her chance to start over. I'm going to try and be friends with Little Enzo, but I don't think I have a place in Dot's life anymore," was the sad reply. The hulking sprite stood and walked over to the bed. He sat down and sighed, his shoulders slumping a bit.
"Do you really think that?" Bob asked as he moved to sit on the bed next to him. "If you do, I can't even begin to tell you how wrong you are. You know Dot will love you until her deletion day and beyond. How could you think that?"
"I just thought she wouldn't accept what I've become. I've done some terrible things, Bob. I told you before that I did what I had to so we could survive. I didn't want to expose her to all that. She's already lost enough of her innocence because of me." Matrix said.
"What do you mean?" Bob asked with a curious frown.
"She never told you about the viral binome, did she?" Matrix asked, sighing quietly.
"No, she hasn't. What happened?" the guardian replied, even more curious than before.
Matrix took a deep breath and looked down at the floor, resting his arms on his knees. There was a slight pause and Bob could see the wave of emotions that passed over his friend's emerald green face. Before Bob could encourage him to continue, the renegade began his story.
"It happened after a game Dot and I played in Baudway. I was so excited about the stupid game I forgot to tell Glitch to scan for Virals. I went on and on about how alphanumeric the game was and I didn't see the binome in the alley across the street.
"He took a shot at me, but he missed. The next thing I knew, Dot had pushed me to the ground and fired a shot at the viral. I heard a scream and something hit the ground. Then Dot told me to stay put and ran into the alley to see if there were any more virals. After a few minutes, she didn't come back and I got worried. I went into the alley to look for her..." he stopped suddenly and Bob was surprised to see Matrix's shoulders shaking slightly as if he was trying not to cry.
Bob put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "It's ok, Matrix," he said gently. He knew that whatever Matrix was about to say wasn't going to be easy to tell.
Matrix took a deep, shuddering breath and continued after giving Bob a small smile of thanks. "I went into the alley and I found Dot. She was just standing there looking at the ground. I couldn't see what she was looking at and I didn't see any other virals. I walked up next to her and...she was crying, Bob. There were tears running down her face and I didn't know why. I was so scared. I didn't know what was wrong. You know Dot never cries in front of people like that. Not even me. I asked her what was wrong over and over, but she didn't answer. She just kept staring at the ground.
"Finally I looked down and I knew what happened. She was staring a green and black icon on the ground. I felt sick, like the world had tilted to one side real fast. She killed him, Bob. She killed him to save me. I tried to get her to talk to me, to say anything, but she didn't answer and she was still crying. Then Mouse showed up with a handful of CPUs. We must've been there longer than I thought. I told her what happened and she said she'd handle it.
"She went up to Dot and said something quietly to her, I couldn't hear what. I still don't know how she did it to this day, but Mouse managed to snap her out of it. She looked at Mouse for a second and then she looked at me. There was so much...confusion and fear and...pain in that one look. I wanted to cry too. We went back to the P. O. and Dot acted like nothing happened. She threw herself into her work again. I couldn't think of anything else for the longest time.
"It was all my fault, Bob. I made Dot a murderer when all I wanted was to make her proud and show her I could be a great guardian like you. She sacrificed what was left of her innocence for me. I've never forgiven myself for making her lose it." By the end of his story, Matrix's good eye had filled with tears, but he wouldn't let them fall.
"Oh, Matrix, it wasn't your fault. Dot was just protecting you, that's all. You know she'd do anything to keep you safe." Bob said, trying to reassure him. He had listened in shocked silence as Matrix told the story. It was no wonder he was afraid to tell Dot. He had become something that Dot was afraid of becoming herself. "Matrix, why don't you talk to her? She's been wanting to talk to you for so long."
"I don't think I can face her, Bob." Matrix replied, looking even more dejected than before he had started telling Bob about the incident. "I'm afraid of what she'll think when I tell her everything that happened to us."
"She'll listen and she'll be there for you just like she always has been. You and I both know that." Bob said truthfully.
"You think so?" Matrix asked him with a hint of hope in his voice.
"Trust me, Matrix, I'd never lie to you. Now go talk to her." Bob prompted him, smiling encouragingly.
Matrix stood and looked at Bob. "Where is she now?" he asked.
"She should be in her room just down the hall." Bob answered.
The guardian and the renegade both exited the room. "Thanks for everything, Bob." Matrix said.
"No problem. Glad to be of help." Bob replied with a smile.
Matrix returned the smile and walked down the hall to his sister's room.
'Well, that was easier than I thought.' Bob thought, smiling to himself. The guardian was still smiling as he walked to his own room to access some downtime.
~(V)~ ~(V)~ ~(V)~ ~(V)~ ~(V)~
Dot wasn't in her room. The Command.com had decided to check on the alarm systems to keep her mind off the multitude of problems she had to face. She was in the War Room looking over the reports the CPUs had compiled last month when the new alarms had been installed. So far, everything was working like clockwork. If only she could say the same about her life.
She was still a young sprite, but she had been through many hardships much like her brother and her guardian. She couldn't help but be proud of her strength and determination, traits given to her by her father
Dot shook her head. It was useless to think about him now. He was gone and that was the past. It was time to face the future. She continued reviewing the reports.
Suddenly she heard the door to the War Room chime and open. Then there was the sound of footsteps walking toward her. It was probably Bob coming to see her like she'd asked earlier. "Hold on, Bob, I'll be with you in a second. I just need to finish reading this report on the new alarm systems."
"Sorry, Dot, I'm not Bob," replied a deep voice that was definitely not Bob's.
Dot turned around and came face to face with Matrix.
"Oh! Enz...uh, Matrix...what are you doing here? I thought you were with AndrAIa." Dot said a bit awkwardly.
"Um...yeah, I was, but I decided to take a walk." Matrix replied just as awkwardly. Why was it so difficult to talk to his own sister? She had practically raised him and he couldn't even say a single sentence without stuttering.
"Ok, well, I can leave if you want to be alone," she said trying to keep her emotions in check. Inside, she was having a hard time trying not to let herself fall to her knees and beg him to talk to her. She couldn't force him. It wouldn't get her anywhere.
"No...you can stay...if you want to," her brother replied slowly, looking at the floor.
"I think the question is...do you want me to stay?" she asked looking up at him.
He looked down at her and saw the plea in her eyes, begging him to say that he did want her to stay. He couldn't say no to a look like that to save his life. Time to scrounge up some of that good ol' courage and face the music. "Yeah, I do," he said quietly, giving her a small smile.
"Really?" she asked hopefully.
"Yeah, really." Matrix said with a chuckle.
Dot couldn't hold herself back anymore. She flung herself into her brother's arms and held on for dear code. "User, I missed you so much," she said with a relieved smile.
Matrix held his sister tightly, afraid to let go, afraid that this was all a dream and he would wake up in some distant system with AndrAIa trying desperately to get home. "I missed you too, sis," he replied happily with a smile of his own, "I'm sorry for being such a virus lately."
"No, don't apologize. I understand. Just don't think I'd ever be scared of what you are. I know that you had to do what you could to come home. I would have done the same thing if I had been in your place. I would never hate or hear you."
Matrix smiled down at her. "I have a lot more to tell you...that is, if you want to hear it."
"Of course I do! I want to hear everything! Don't be afraid of my reaction. I will always be proud of you. You have a good heart, Matrix." Dot answered, pilling away from him.
Matrix grinned proudly at his sister's praise. "Well, it's a long story. Why don't we go back to your room and I'll tell you."
"Absolutely," she agreed and the left the War Room. "I do have one question though," she added as they walked down the hallway.
"Shoot." Matrix replied.
"What's with the tattoo?" Dot asked with an amused grin.
"Matrix chuckled. "That's another long story, but let's just say I know a certain straight-laced workaholic who gave me the idea for it."
"How did you know I had one? I tried to hide it from you." Dot inquired curiously.
"I found some old high school pictures of you and your friends in your diary a while back," he answered with a smirk, then he started running down the hallway as his sister threatened to beat him to deletion.
Dot chased after her brother shouting threats at him. "Enzo Matrix, I told you to stay out of my diary! Get back here so I can kick your ASCII!!!"
The only response she got was his laughter echoing down the hall as he ran.
~(V)~ ~(V)~ ~(V)~ ~(V)~ ~(V)~