Mrs. Hibiya places the Chobit on a table and starts to connect the
machinery to her. She has long light blond hair and fair skin. Her features
are carved like an angel, beauty and precision. And then it hits me.
"Wait a moment, this is a girl. My brother's not going to like this. Couldn't you have made a male model?"
"I'm sorry but this is the best I can do. I'm not as skilled as my husband was. I'm sure you are aware of the legendary persocoms, Chobits. My husband was behind the project. He and I built two models both the same but one broke down and my husband didn't get a chance to fix her before he died. The other is still working perfectly but she has a home and I would never take her away. This is Freya, the one who broke. I had enough talent to fix her but her memories and personality are lost forever. She is female still because I just can't bear to alter her appearance. She's like a daughter to me, the only family I have left." Mrs. Hibiya strokes the cold surface of the lifeless persocom. Her eyes look so sad. I return to my Serious Business Man attitude.
"You won't have to do that. Since I'm going to purchase this model, I can have the hardware changed after you leave." What started out as a statement of comfort ended up making things worse. I mentally slap myself for my horrendous choice of words. Hibiya looks at me affronted and I stutter an apology. She rolls her eyes and continues to work. I resolve to keep my mouth shut until the procedure is finished.
After my brother's funeral, Matthew Waters had informed me that Seto had uploaded his mind into a computer much like my step brother Noah. It was easy to find a persocom powerful enough to hold Noah's mind but Seto's was much more complicated. While searching for a better model, I came across a custom persocom chat board. This was where I found my first lead and my greatest hope. Minoru Kokubunji, a persocom specialist, told me about the legendary Chobits, persocoms much more powerful than normal. He said that only a Chobit could have the capability to run the intricate program that was my brother's mind. The only problem was how to get a Chobit.
I lie on the floor playing with the multicolored cords dangling off the table. This is soooooo boring. I feel like I'm going to die from this mind- numbing dreariness. The sound of Hibiya tik-taking on the keyboard seems never ending.
"Are you almost done?"
"Maybe, maybe not." She answers playfully. "Then again maybe I'm already finished." She taps me on the head and I look up at her smiling face, "Would you like to push the proverbial "big red button" to start your brother's recovery?"
I stand up and I look over at the persocom on the table. Surrounded by cords and machines, she brings back memories of Seto in the hospital bed.
"The power button is between your brother's legs." Mrs. Hibiya says. It takes a few seconds for me to fully understand what she implied.
"Wait a second, you don't mean..." I trail off and Mrs. Hibiya nods her head. I can't believe this. "But, shouldn't you do it. I mean, it's your persocom."
"It's your brother. Do you think he would be happy if a complete stranger touched him there?" She replies and I'm struck by her reasoning skills.
"But, but... Freya's a girl!"
"But, Seto is a boy." Hibiya's words close the argument. She may be soft hearted but her mind is sharp as a tack. "Once you press the button, I will immediately start the download."
I try not to think as I approach the table, but Freya's female body stops my hand as it hovers above her legs. I force myself to think of the alternatives. If Mrs. Hibiya did it she would be the first woman to touch him there since the time he wore diapers.
Man, I have to.
I swallow my pride, take a deep breath, and press the button. The machines and computes around me come to life with a symphony of beeps, whirs, and buzzes. I lean over the Chobit's face. I want my brother to see me first when he wakes up. The body seems to glow with power.
All of a sudden, the sound stops and the radiance fades. The florescent lighting above us blinks out and the whole room goes dark. If there was ever a time to shout out a dirty swear word, this would be it, but Seto always told me never to do that.
"Damn." Mrs. Hibiya's voice comes from behind me. "Well, that went swell." She says sarcastically.
I turn in the direction of her voice. "Don't worry, the back up generators will be up in a moment." In the darkness, I hear a strange voice.
"ka, ka, inu, so, su, su, su..."
"What's that?" I ask.
"That's what happens when a persocom's data is fragmented or major files are missing." Mrs. Hibiya says from a slightly different portion of the black. "I only managed to download a third of the program."
"Gonno, fonna, lee, le, el..."
"Oh, as long as it's not permanent." I say.
"Mookle, ook, wass, wasso, ik, ik..."
"Why would it be permanent?" Hibiya asks with a curious tone of voice.
"Chizz, meaniii, chilt, mek, pooo..."
"Noah does that sometimes. His personality files were damaged when I found them and it's had a lasting effect on him. I wouldn't want two brothers like that. Especially not Seto. He wouldn't want me to se him like that."
The lights flicker back to life and Hibiya's computers start to reboot. She is positioned close by to start the download again as soon as the computer finishes its start up.
"Wait a moment, this is a girl. My brother's not going to like this. Couldn't you have made a male model?"
"I'm sorry but this is the best I can do. I'm not as skilled as my husband was. I'm sure you are aware of the legendary persocoms, Chobits. My husband was behind the project. He and I built two models both the same but one broke down and my husband didn't get a chance to fix her before he died. The other is still working perfectly but she has a home and I would never take her away. This is Freya, the one who broke. I had enough talent to fix her but her memories and personality are lost forever. She is female still because I just can't bear to alter her appearance. She's like a daughter to me, the only family I have left." Mrs. Hibiya strokes the cold surface of the lifeless persocom. Her eyes look so sad. I return to my Serious Business Man attitude.
"You won't have to do that. Since I'm going to purchase this model, I can have the hardware changed after you leave." What started out as a statement of comfort ended up making things worse. I mentally slap myself for my horrendous choice of words. Hibiya looks at me affronted and I stutter an apology. She rolls her eyes and continues to work. I resolve to keep my mouth shut until the procedure is finished.
After my brother's funeral, Matthew Waters had informed me that Seto had uploaded his mind into a computer much like my step brother Noah. It was easy to find a persocom powerful enough to hold Noah's mind but Seto's was much more complicated. While searching for a better model, I came across a custom persocom chat board. This was where I found my first lead and my greatest hope. Minoru Kokubunji, a persocom specialist, told me about the legendary Chobits, persocoms much more powerful than normal. He said that only a Chobit could have the capability to run the intricate program that was my brother's mind. The only problem was how to get a Chobit.
I lie on the floor playing with the multicolored cords dangling off the table. This is soooooo boring. I feel like I'm going to die from this mind- numbing dreariness. The sound of Hibiya tik-taking on the keyboard seems never ending.
"Are you almost done?"
"Maybe, maybe not." She answers playfully. "Then again maybe I'm already finished." She taps me on the head and I look up at her smiling face, "Would you like to push the proverbial "big red button" to start your brother's recovery?"
I stand up and I look over at the persocom on the table. Surrounded by cords and machines, she brings back memories of Seto in the hospital bed.
"The power button is between your brother's legs." Mrs. Hibiya says. It takes a few seconds for me to fully understand what she implied.
"Wait a second, you don't mean..." I trail off and Mrs. Hibiya nods her head. I can't believe this. "But, shouldn't you do it. I mean, it's your persocom."
"It's your brother. Do you think he would be happy if a complete stranger touched him there?" She replies and I'm struck by her reasoning skills.
"But, but... Freya's a girl!"
"But, Seto is a boy." Hibiya's words close the argument. She may be soft hearted but her mind is sharp as a tack. "Once you press the button, I will immediately start the download."
I try not to think as I approach the table, but Freya's female body stops my hand as it hovers above her legs. I force myself to think of the alternatives. If Mrs. Hibiya did it she would be the first woman to touch him there since the time he wore diapers.
Man, I have to.
I swallow my pride, take a deep breath, and press the button. The machines and computes around me come to life with a symphony of beeps, whirs, and buzzes. I lean over the Chobit's face. I want my brother to see me first when he wakes up. The body seems to glow with power.
All of a sudden, the sound stops and the radiance fades. The florescent lighting above us blinks out and the whole room goes dark. If there was ever a time to shout out a dirty swear word, this would be it, but Seto always told me never to do that.
"Damn." Mrs. Hibiya's voice comes from behind me. "Well, that went swell." She says sarcastically.
I turn in the direction of her voice. "Don't worry, the back up generators will be up in a moment." In the darkness, I hear a strange voice.
"ka, ka, inu, so, su, su, su..."
"What's that?" I ask.
"That's what happens when a persocom's data is fragmented or major files are missing." Mrs. Hibiya says from a slightly different portion of the black. "I only managed to download a third of the program."
"Gonno, fonna, lee, le, el..."
"Oh, as long as it's not permanent." I say.
"Mookle, ook, wass, wasso, ik, ik..."
"Why would it be permanent?" Hibiya asks with a curious tone of voice.
"Chizz, meaniii, chilt, mek, pooo..."
"Noah does that sometimes. His personality files were damaged when I found them and it's had a lasting effect on him. I wouldn't want two brothers like that. Especially not Seto. He wouldn't want me to se him like that."
The lights flicker back to life and Hibiya's computers start to reboot. She is positioned close by to start the download again as soon as the computer finishes its start up.