Android Kikaider 02: The Fanfiction
Disclaimer: Yeah. You know the drill.
Gold Wolf made his way into the lab during the night. As he turned the lights on, he began to make his way to the observation table. On his way there, he heard human grunts and groans of pain. He slowly made his way to the source of the sounds. The painful sounds kept getting louder and louder. These sounds almost began to sound like screaming. "Who's there?" asked the human Gold Wolf loudly.
His only reply was another scream of pain. Then he heard the sound of the person collapse onto the floor. However, it didn't simply sound like a normal human falling to the ground. Instead, it sounded more like metal hitting the floor. Gold Wolf then went running to the source of all this sound. He looked in horror as he saw a heavily damaged Kikaider 02. "Niro!!" he screamed.
Gold Wolf picked up the battle android and made a damage assessment. "What kind of monster could have done this to you?!"
---Cold Tenderness---
Kuro turned to face the young boy with black clothes and sunglasses. "What do you mean 'spared him'?"
Sano replied, "As in didn't finish him off, let him live to see another day, not put him out of his misery, and all that stuff."
Kuro angrily answered back, "I told you that you were to destroy him!"
Sano replied, "No, you said that I could destroy him however I wanted. Only an idiot would attack the body or mind of a strong warrior. The best thing to do is to attack his little artificial heart."
"So what are you planning?" Kuro asked.
Sano just gave an evil smirk and replied, "I just want to have a little fun with him first. I want to watch him squirm as I make his life a living nightmare. By the time I'm done with him, he'll be asking for destruction, and that's when I'll be a nice brother for a change and give him what he wants."
Kuro just smiled and said, "This strategy sound diabolical even for me. I love it!"
Niro's eyes slowly began to open, and he looked to see where he was. "I'm in the lab? But I don't remember making it this far."
"That's why I had to carry you in the rest of the way," the android Gold Wolf replied.
Niro then saw that his shirt and jacket had been removed, revealing his peach robotic arms and a metallic chest of the same collar. "I take it you repaired me too?"
Gold Wolf nodded and Niro asked, "What are you doing in here in your android form anyway?"
Gold Wolf then reverted back into his human form and said, "When your mother repaired my Gemini circuit, I lost a little bit of my memory of my past days with Night. Not much, but enough for me to forget where the main base is. I've been coming in here night after night to try and get the laboratory's computer to access my memory and maybe find some trace remnants of my memory. From there, we might be able to find Night's base of operations."
Niro then responded, "Okay, but why in your android form? Can't you just plug yourself in as you are now?"
Gold Wolf then said, "Unfortunately, I can't. When your mother completed my conscience circuit, it made a change in my body."
"A change?" Niro repeated.
Gold Wolf nodded and pulled the glove off one of his hands. Niro couldn't believe that what he was staring at was actually Gold Wolf's hand, but it had flesh on it. It wasn't metallic like his. "Human flesh? But how?"
Gold Wolf then put the glove back on and said, "I don't know, but I think it was because of the Gemini. Somehow it has created an artificial flesh that's warm and soft yet quite possibly as durable as your frame."
Niro responded, "But I've been active with a completed Gemini for two years, and mine hasn't been able to do something like that."
Gold Wolf then said, "I think it's because I know what it means to sin. Although I never wanted to do it, my hands have been stained with innocent blood. I've known both positive and negative emotions, and I've done both positive and negative actions. You, on the other hand, have yet to sin, and you have yet to lose that innocence. Because of these differences, it's quite possible that the Gemini responded to these differences differently. I have sinned, and therefore, I am becoming as close as I can get to being human."
Niro just looked at his ungloved android hand and contemplated on this. "Are they all right? Do I really have to do something wrong in order to become human?" he thought to himself.
He then thought back to a long time ago with the Pinocchio discussion. He then thought to himself once more, "Not even a human child's fairy tale character could escape it. But I don't want to do anything wrong. I don't want to sin. So do I have to stay a machine forever?"
The week seemed to pass by quickly. After Niro came home from school he went straight to his room to do his homework. Masaru and Jiro sat with Mitsuko who was going over some of the blueprints for Kikaider 03. "Whatcha up to, sis?" Masaru asked.
Mitsuko looked up at her little brother and said, "Oh. Hey. I'm just going over some of Sano's blueprints. I'm trying to think of some way that Niro might be able to beat him. I know they were meant to be equally strong, but..."
Masaru then snatched the blueprints, wadded them up, and threw them into the wastebasket. "What has gotten into you, Masaru?!" she nearly yelled.
"You're thinking way too much on this. It's not good for you. The Sano you wanted died before he could be born. Looking at blueprints won't change the past," Masaru replied.
Jiro then said, "On top of that, Night might not have completed him the same way you would have. They might have changed some things somehow."
Mitsuko sighed and said, "I know. I lost my second son two years ago. I don't want to lose my first one as well. I don't know what I can do, but I want to do something!"
Jiro saw the pain in her eyes, and he put an arm around the woman he loved. "Mitsuko, you are a good mother. Losing Sano wasn't your fault, and neither is Niro having to fight for his life constantly. But even through all that, you still taught Niro how to live life and interact with others. He's doing better than I could have ever done. He goes to a public school, he has friends, and he's going to school dances. That says a lot."
Mitsuko looked up at Jiro, smiled, and nodded. Masaru then smiled and said, "Yeah! All he's missing now is a girlfriend!"
Right after he said that, the phone rang. Masaru answered it and said, "Hello...He can't come to the phone right now...Sure. I'll give him a message...Huh? ...Tonight? ...Okay. I'm sure he'll be there."
Masaru hung up the phone and then said, "Scratch what I just said."
He then shouted, "Niro?! Could you come down here for a minute?!"
Niro quickly came down the stairs and met up with the others. "Is something wrong?" he asked.
Masaru cleared his throat and said, "That was Suzume who just called. What's this about going on a date?"
Niro replied, "I thought I told you that I was going to go to the dance tonight."
His uncle then said, "Yeah, but you didn't tell us you were actually going with someone. That's pretty important stuff!"
"It is?" Niro asked in wonder.
All three of them just sighed. Mitsuko then approached her son and said, "Niro, this isn't going to be just your run-of-the-mill get together. You're going to have to look nicer and everything."
"But Suzume said..." he began to say as Mitsuko began to take him out of the room.
Masaru just turned to Jiro and asked, "Do you think he has any idea what he's getting into?"
Jiro replied, "I don't think he even knows how he got into it in the first place."
Mitsuko took Niro into Masaru's room and began going through his closet. Niro just looked confused as his mother kept sifting through clothes. "What are you looking for, Mom?"
She just kept going through clothes as she said, "I'm trying to find something nice for you to wear."
"But what's wrong with the way I look now?" he asked.
"Nothing, but you always have to dress a bit more formally when going on your first date. It leaves a good impression. On top of that, it makes her feel more like all the time she spent preparing wasn't wasted because I guarantee you that she's spent a lot more time preparing than we are."
"Oh. So it's like a courtesy thing?" Niro responded.
"Exactly," she replied as she pulled out one of Masaru's suits.
Niro studied it and replied, "I don't think that will fit me."
Mitsuko then said, "Look it over and tap the 2 on your belt."
Niro examined it some more, tapped the 2 on his belt, and he soon generated an exact identical suit on his body except for the gloves, belt, and gold collar he still kept. Niro looked at himself and asked, "Does it look okay?"
Mitsuko smiled and said, "It's perfect."
Niro then looked at the clock and saw what time it was. "I should probably be going."
She just said, "Okay. Just remember to be on your best behavior. You know, open the door for her, escort her, all that stuff. Oh, one more thing. Be sure to be nice to her father."
"Huh?" Niro replied.
Mitsuko just said, "You'll find out. Now go and have a good time."
Niro replied, "Okay, Mom. I will."
Niro said bye to his mom as he drove off on his Rocket Machine. He arrived at Suzume's house at about 6:20 and rang the doorbell. A man answered and looked at him. "You must be Suzume's date."
Niro nodded his head and replied, "Yes sir. I'm Niro Komyoji. It's nice to meet you."
Niro extended his hand, and Suzume's father shook it and received a cold sensation from it. "His hand feels like a Popsicle!" he thought.
The father then said, "Uh, why don't you come inside?"
Niro accepted the invitation, and both of them sat down to wait for Suzume. The father then asked, "You said that you last name was Komyoji, right? Like the robotics scientist?"
Niro replied, "Yes sir. My grandfather specialized in robotic engineering and research. My mother later took on an interest in the field as well, and my uncle is studying mechanics."
"I see. So what made you take such an interest in my daughter?"
"Well, Suzume and I met two years ago when I first enrolled into school, and we've been good friends since then. Then a week ago, she asked me if I had anyone going to the dance with me, and I told her that I didn't and that I didn't even know what a dance was. She was very understanding about it. Then she suggested that the two of us go together, and that pretty much sums it up."
Suzume's father just seemed surprised as he thought to himself, "I don't believe it! She wasn't kidding about him at all!"
He then cleared his throat and asked, "So what time will you have Suzume home?"
Niro replied, "I'll have her home right after the dance is over."
The father then looked at the young android's face. "He may be naïve, but at least I can tell he's honest."
Suzume came down to meet Niro. "Sorry to keep you waiting," she said.
Niro was stunned. She looked gorgeous in her dress and hair-do. This was a side of her he had never seen before, and it was driving him wild inside. "Wow!" was Niro's only reply. She just smiled at him and asked, "Shall we go?"
Niro quickly regained his composure and replied, "Sure!"
He then gave her an escorting arm, and the two of them walked out of the house, got on the Rocket Machine, and took off for the school.
Once they got in, Niro couldn't help but notice how just about everyone in the room was dancing to fast-paced music. Suzume pulled him over to where everyone was dancing, and the lessons soon began. Although he didn't understand what everyone was doing or moving as they were, he quickly picked up on it and began to dance as well. Needless to say, his dancing partner was very amazed at how he's learned so quickly. "Are you sure you haven't done this before?" Suzume asked.
"I promise this is my first time," the disguised android replied.
The song ended and changed into a much slower song. Niro now noticed that everyone was dancing differently. "Huh? What's going on?" he asked.
Suzume said, "Oh. This is a slow dance song. Here, everyone dances in a more relaxed way with their partners. This is usually why you bring someone of the opposite gender with you."
Niro replied, "But...the change in their movement was so sudden. I don't know what to do."
Suzume then grabbed his icy, rock-hard hands and placed them on the sides of her waist. She smiled, looked at him, and said, "Just keep those there and follow my lead."
She then put her hands on Niro's shoulders, and the two began to dance to the rhythm of the song. Niro then saw another couple dancing somewhat differently. "Suzume, are you sure I'm doing this right?"
She nodded and replied, "I'm positive. Why do you ask?"
He replied, "Well, the guy dancing over there has his hands a bit lower."
She looked at the pair he was talking about and saw that the guy had her hands on the girl's butt. "Oh. Well, some girls prefer it that way."
Niro then asked, "Would you prefer that I place my hands there instead?"
Suzume almost felt the urge to slap him for that comment. However, she quickly remembered that Niro wasn't like most guys. He was actually asking her before taking the action. She then replied, "No, that's okay. You're doing it perfectly."
He smiled at her and thanked her. But then Suzume said, "Although...I do have one request."
She looked into his brown eyes and said, "Would you mind holding me closer?"
Niro then held her closer to his body. She put her arms completely around him and rested her head on his shoulder. Everything she touched felt just like his hands. His shoulder, back, and chest all felt so cold. It was almost like he wasn't really alive. However, she still felt a gentle comfort in his arms. Then a question came to mind. "Niro, why do you always wear gloves?"
Niro's eyes drew to the ground as he replied, "They're to cover my hands."
"Could you take them off? I'd like to see them."
"Huh? Why?" he questioned.
"I'd just like to see your hands. That's all."
Niro solemnly replied, "I can't. You might not like what you see."
She looked at him and said, "Shouldn't I be the judge of that?"
"But...I'm not like you at all."
"But you are still you. That's what matters," she replied.
Niro then thought to himself, "I wish I knew who I was anymore."
The two of them just looked at each other until one of the walls exploded. After some of the commotion had settled down, everyone turned their attention to the hole in the wall. Niro didn't understand why or how he managed to find him, but Sano drove through the wall on his Crimson Angel motorcycle. "Great party! Sorry about the entrance!"
Once everyone saw the strange-looking gun in his hand they took off for the door. Niro put himself in front of Suzume and said, "Go ahead and get out of here. It's not safe."
"Niro, what's going on?" Suzume asked frantically.
"There's no time to explain! Just go!" he shouted.
Sano gave his evil smile to the two and said, "I didn't think you knew how to get a girlfriend, Big Bro."
The headlight on his motorcycle gave a brilliant flare that blinded the android. But the sounds that followed shortly after that were the sounds of an incoming bike and Suzume's screams. When his sight cleared up, he saw that Sano was carrying Suzume over his shoulder. "Too bad no one taught you how to keep one!"
"Niro! Help!" she pleaded.
"Let her go, Sano! She has nothing to do with this!" he yelled.
"Nothing to do with this, huh? So I guess that means she doesn't know about us," he returned mockingly.
Sano then drove off with her, and Niro followed. Once he was outside, he whistled for the Rocket Machine, and he followed in hot pursuit once he got on. Both motorcycles then took to the air, and Suzume just stared in wonder. "What the heck is going on?!"
The chase went on until Sano jumped off of his motorcycle with Suzume and landed on the roof of a tall building. Niro followed suit, and Sano then placed Niro's best friend over the edge. "So tell me, Big Bro. Just how much is she worth to you? Is her life expendable just to protect your identity, or is she worth risking your own life and secrecy just as long as she's safe?"
"Don't even think about it, Brother!" he pleaded.
"I just might consider not dropping her...if I had a Gemini of any kind. But I don't, so sayonara!" he replied as he dropped Suzume.
Her screams terrified Niro's ears. "NO! SUZUME!" he yelled as he jumped after her.
As the two of them fell, Niro extended a hand for her to grab. She looked into Niro's brown eyes in fear of the inevitable. But her expression changed when his eyes turned completely orange and all of his human features disappeared. Kikaider 02 then grabbed Suzume, ignited his rocket feet to slow their descent, and blasted right back to the top of the building. Suzume couldn't take her eyes off of the battle android. "So this is what he's been hiding all along!" she thought to herself.
Once they got back to the roof, 02 set her down, faced Sano, and got into a fighting stance. "You're going to pay for this!"
Sano just smirked and said, "It's good to see that you still have your fighting spirit!"
Sano immediately changed into Kikaider 03, and the brothers went into battle once more. Suzume kept watching as blows were traded between the Kikaiders. Once 02 got a few punches in, he placed his arms into an X formation, and blue energy began to surround them. 03 mimicked his moves as both prepared for the final attack. They both ran at each other screaming, "ELECTRO END!!!"
However, 02 ducked at the last minute getting under his younger brother's attack. He then put just a small nick on each arm and one on his side. The blows he landed then made small explosions, and 03 groaned in pain. 02 faced 03 and said, "You held back. Why?"
The evil Kikaider began to laugh maniacally. "You missed the whole point! The point was to show your little girlfriend your secret!"
02 turned to face his best friend who just couldn't take the look of shock off her face. A white light surrounded him as he transformed back to Niro. Now knowing that the truth was revealed to her, he couldn't take the look of horror off his face. She now knew everything about him. Niro quickly ran to catch her as she passed out from shock. Niro then held her close as tears ran down his face. Whatever relationship they had would be lost. "Why? Why did you do this, Brother?!"
03 turned back into Sano, smirked, and replied, "Hey, I wasn't the one being delusional. You two had no chance whether you liked it or not. No human girl in their right mind could ever love a machine. You only brought it upon yourself."
Sano summoned his Crimson Angel and took off. Niro held on to Suzume some more. "If that's true...then why do I care for her so much?"
Niro picked up the unconscious Suzume and carried her to the Rocket Machine and he drove off back to her house to take her home.
A/N: Hey. Sorry for the long update. I hope you like this chapter, and I apologize for any redundancy or lack of energy in this one. However, I promise that things will continue to get interesting as the story moves along. Please review! I appreciate all of the reviews you've been sending me so far!
Disclaimer: Yeah. You know the drill.
Gold Wolf made his way into the lab during the night. As he turned the lights on, he began to make his way to the observation table. On his way there, he heard human grunts and groans of pain. He slowly made his way to the source of the sounds. The painful sounds kept getting louder and louder. These sounds almost began to sound like screaming. "Who's there?" asked the human Gold Wolf loudly.
His only reply was another scream of pain. Then he heard the sound of the person collapse onto the floor. However, it didn't simply sound like a normal human falling to the ground. Instead, it sounded more like metal hitting the floor. Gold Wolf then went running to the source of all this sound. He looked in horror as he saw a heavily damaged Kikaider 02. "Niro!!" he screamed.
Gold Wolf picked up the battle android and made a damage assessment. "What kind of monster could have done this to you?!"
---Cold Tenderness---
Kuro turned to face the young boy with black clothes and sunglasses. "What do you mean 'spared him'?"
Sano replied, "As in didn't finish him off, let him live to see another day, not put him out of his misery, and all that stuff."
Kuro angrily answered back, "I told you that you were to destroy him!"
Sano replied, "No, you said that I could destroy him however I wanted. Only an idiot would attack the body or mind of a strong warrior. The best thing to do is to attack his little artificial heart."
"So what are you planning?" Kuro asked.
Sano just gave an evil smirk and replied, "I just want to have a little fun with him first. I want to watch him squirm as I make his life a living nightmare. By the time I'm done with him, he'll be asking for destruction, and that's when I'll be a nice brother for a change and give him what he wants."
Kuro just smiled and said, "This strategy sound diabolical even for me. I love it!"
Niro's eyes slowly began to open, and he looked to see where he was. "I'm in the lab? But I don't remember making it this far."
"That's why I had to carry you in the rest of the way," the android Gold Wolf replied.
Niro then saw that his shirt and jacket had been removed, revealing his peach robotic arms and a metallic chest of the same collar. "I take it you repaired me too?"
Gold Wolf nodded and Niro asked, "What are you doing in here in your android form anyway?"
Gold Wolf then reverted back into his human form and said, "When your mother repaired my Gemini circuit, I lost a little bit of my memory of my past days with Night. Not much, but enough for me to forget where the main base is. I've been coming in here night after night to try and get the laboratory's computer to access my memory and maybe find some trace remnants of my memory. From there, we might be able to find Night's base of operations."
Niro then responded, "Okay, but why in your android form? Can't you just plug yourself in as you are now?"
Gold Wolf then said, "Unfortunately, I can't. When your mother completed my conscience circuit, it made a change in my body."
"A change?" Niro repeated.
Gold Wolf nodded and pulled the glove off one of his hands. Niro couldn't believe that what he was staring at was actually Gold Wolf's hand, but it had flesh on it. It wasn't metallic like his. "Human flesh? But how?"
Gold Wolf then put the glove back on and said, "I don't know, but I think it was because of the Gemini. Somehow it has created an artificial flesh that's warm and soft yet quite possibly as durable as your frame."
Niro responded, "But I've been active with a completed Gemini for two years, and mine hasn't been able to do something like that."
Gold Wolf then said, "I think it's because I know what it means to sin. Although I never wanted to do it, my hands have been stained with innocent blood. I've known both positive and negative emotions, and I've done both positive and negative actions. You, on the other hand, have yet to sin, and you have yet to lose that innocence. Because of these differences, it's quite possible that the Gemini responded to these differences differently. I have sinned, and therefore, I am becoming as close as I can get to being human."
Niro just looked at his ungloved android hand and contemplated on this. "Are they all right? Do I really have to do something wrong in order to become human?" he thought to himself.
He then thought back to a long time ago with the Pinocchio discussion. He then thought to himself once more, "Not even a human child's fairy tale character could escape it. But I don't want to do anything wrong. I don't want to sin. So do I have to stay a machine forever?"
The week seemed to pass by quickly. After Niro came home from school he went straight to his room to do his homework. Masaru and Jiro sat with Mitsuko who was going over some of the blueprints for Kikaider 03. "Whatcha up to, sis?" Masaru asked.
Mitsuko looked up at her little brother and said, "Oh. Hey. I'm just going over some of Sano's blueprints. I'm trying to think of some way that Niro might be able to beat him. I know they were meant to be equally strong, but..."
Masaru then snatched the blueprints, wadded them up, and threw them into the wastebasket. "What has gotten into you, Masaru?!" she nearly yelled.
"You're thinking way too much on this. It's not good for you. The Sano you wanted died before he could be born. Looking at blueprints won't change the past," Masaru replied.
Jiro then said, "On top of that, Night might not have completed him the same way you would have. They might have changed some things somehow."
Mitsuko sighed and said, "I know. I lost my second son two years ago. I don't want to lose my first one as well. I don't know what I can do, but I want to do something!"
Jiro saw the pain in her eyes, and he put an arm around the woman he loved. "Mitsuko, you are a good mother. Losing Sano wasn't your fault, and neither is Niro having to fight for his life constantly. But even through all that, you still taught Niro how to live life and interact with others. He's doing better than I could have ever done. He goes to a public school, he has friends, and he's going to school dances. That says a lot."
Mitsuko looked up at Jiro, smiled, and nodded. Masaru then smiled and said, "Yeah! All he's missing now is a girlfriend!"
Right after he said that, the phone rang. Masaru answered it and said, "Hello...He can't come to the phone right now...Sure. I'll give him a message...Huh? ...Tonight? ...Okay. I'm sure he'll be there."
Masaru hung up the phone and then said, "Scratch what I just said."
He then shouted, "Niro?! Could you come down here for a minute?!"
Niro quickly came down the stairs and met up with the others. "Is something wrong?" he asked.
Masaru cleared his throat and said, "That was Suzume who just called. What's this about going on a date?"
Niro replied, "I thought I told you that I was going to go to the dance tonight."
His uncle then said, "Yeah, but you didn't tell us you were actually going with someone. That's pretty important stuff!"
"It is?" Niro asked in wonder.
All three of them just sighed. Mitsuko then approached her son and said, "Niro, this isn't going to be just your run-of-the-mill get together. You're going to have to look nicer and everything."
"But Suzume said..." he began to say as Mitsuko began to take him out of the room.
Masaru just turned to Jiro and asked, "Do you think he has any idea what he's getting into?"
Jiro replied, "I don't think he even knows how he got into it in the first place."
Mitsuko took Niro into Masaru's room and began going through his closet. Niro just looked confused as his mother kept sifting through clothes. "What are you looking for, Mom?"
She just kept going through clothes as she said, "I'm trying to find something nice for you to wear."
"But what's wrong with the way I look now?" he asked.
"Nothing, but you always have to dress a bit more formally when going on your first date. It leaves a good impression. On top of that, it makes her feel more like all the time she spent preparing wasn't wasted because I guarantee you that she's spent a lot more time preparing than we are."
"Oh. So it's like a courtesy thing?" Niro responded.
"Exactly," she replied as she pulled out one of Masaru's suits.
Niro studied it and replied, "I don't think that will fit me."
Mitsuko then said, "Look it over and tap the 2 on your belt."
Niro examined it some more, tapped the 2 on his belt, and he soon generated an exact identical suit on his body except for the gloves, belt, and gold collar he still kept. Niro looked at himself and asked, "Does it look okay?"
Mitsuko smiled and said, "It's perfect."
Niro then looked at the clock and saw what time it was. "I should probably be going."
She just said, "Okay. Just remember to be on your best behavior. You know, open the door for her, escort her, all that stuff. Oh, one more thing. Be sure to be nice to her father."
"Huh?" Niro replied.
Mitsuko just said, "You'll find out. Now go and have a good time."
Niro replied, "Okay, Mom. I will."
Niro said bye to his mom as he drove off on his Rocket Machine. He arrived at Suzume's house at about 6:20 and rang the doorbell. A man answered and looked at him. "You must be Suzume's date."
Niro nodded his head and replied, "Yes sir. I'm Niro Komyoji. It's nice to meet you."
Niro extended his hand, and Suzume's father shook it and received a cold sensation from it. "His hand feels like a Popsicle!" he thought.
The father then said, "Uh, why don't you come inside?"
Niro accepted the invitation, and both of them sat down to wait for Suzume. The father then asked, "You said that you last name was Komyoji, right? Like the robotics scientist?"
Niro replied, "Yes sir. My grandfather specialized in robotic engineering and research. My mother later took on an interest in the field as well, and my uncle is studying mechanics."
"I see. So what made you take such an interest in my daughter?"
"Well, Suzume and I met two years ago when I first enrolled into school, and we've been good friends since then. Then a week ago, she asked me if I had anyone going to the dance with me, and I told her that I didn't and that I didn't even know what a dance was. She was very understanding about it. Then she suggested that the two of us go together, and that pretty much sums it up."
Suzume's father just seemed surprised as he thought to himself, "I don't believe it! She wasn't kidding about him at all!"
He then cleared his throat and asked, "So what time will you have Suzume home?"
Niro replied, "I'll have her home right after the dance is over."
The father then looked at the young android's face. "He may be naïve, but at least I can tell he's honest."
Suzume came down to meet Niro. "Sorry to keep you waiting," she said.
Niro was stunned. She looked gorgeous in her dress and hair-do. This was a side of her he had never seen before, and it was driving him wild inside. "Wow!" was Niro's only reply. She just smiled at him and asked, "Shall we go?"
Niro quickly regained his composure and replied, "Sure!"
He then gave her an escorting arm, and the two of them walked out of the house, got on the Rocket Machine, and took off for the school.
Once they got in, Niro couldn't help but notice how just about everyone in the room was dancing to fast-paced music. Suzume pulled him over to where everyone was dancing, and the lessons soon began. Although he didn't understand what everyone was doing or moving as they were, he quickly picked up on it and began to dance as well. Needless to say, his dancing partner was very amazed at how he's learned so quickly. "Are you sure you haven't done this before?" Suzume asked.
"I promise this is my first time," the disguised android replied.
The song ended and changed into a much slower song. Niro now noticed that everyone was dancing differently. "Huh? What's going on?" he asked.
Suzume said, "Oh. This is a slow dance song. Here, everyone dances in a more relaxed way with their partners. This is usually why you bring someone of the opposite gender with you."
Niro replied, "But...the change in their movement was so sudden. I don't know what to do."
Suzume then grabbed his icy, rock-hard hands and placed them on the sides of her waist. She smiled, looked at him, and said, "Just keep those there and follow my lead."
She then put her hands on Niro's shoulders, and the two began to dance to the rhythm of the song. Niro then saw another couple dancing somewhat differently. "Suzume, are you sure I'm doing this right?"
She nodded and replied, "I'm positive. Why do you ask?"
He replied, "Well, the guy dancing over there has his hands a bit lower."
She looked at the pair he was talking about and saw that the guy had her hands on the girl's butt. "Oh. Well, some girls prefer it that way."
Niro then asked, "Would you prefer that I place my hands there instead?"
Suzume almost felt the urge to slap him for that comment. However, she quickly remembered that Niro wasn't like most guys. He was actually asking her before taking the action. She then replied, "No, that's okay. You're doing it perfectly."
He smiled at her and thanked her. But then Suzume said, "Although...I do have one request."
She looked into his brown eyes and said, "Would you mind holding me closer?"
Niro then held her closer to his body. She put her arms completely around him and rested her head on his shoulder. Everything she touched felt just like his hands. His shoulder, back, and chest all felt so cold. It was almost like he wasn't really alive. However, she still felt a gentle comfort in his arms. Then a question came to mind. "Niro, why do you always wear gloves?"
Niro's eyes drew to the ground as he replied, "They're to cover my hands."
"Could you take them off? I'd like to see them."
"Huh? Why?" he questioned.
"I'd just like to see your hands. That's all."
Niro solemnly replied, "I can't. You might not like what you see."
She looked at him and said, "Shouldn't I be the judge of that?"
"But...I'm not like you at all."
"But you are still you. That's what matters," she replied.
Niro then thought to himself, "I wish I knew who I was anymore."
The two of them just looked at each other until one of the walls exploded. After some of the commotion had settled down, everyone turned their attention to the hole in the wall. Niro didn't understand why or how he managed to find him, but Sano drove through the wall on his Crimson Angel motorcycle. "Great party! Sorry about the entrance!"
Once everyone saw the strange-looking gun in his hand they took off for the door. Niro put himself in front of Suzume and said, "Go ahead and get out of here. It's not safe."
"Niro, what's going on?" Suzume asked frantically.
"There's no time to explain! Just go!" he shouted.
Sano gave his evil smile to the two and said, "I didn't think you knew how to get a girlfriend, Big Bro."
The headlight on his motorcycle gave a brilliant flare that blinded the android. But the sounds that followed shortly after that were the sounds of an incoming bike and Suzume's screams. When his sight cleared up, he saw that Sano was carrying Suzume over his shoulder. "Too bad no one taught you how to keep one!"
"Niro! Help!" she pleaded.
"Let her go, Sano! She has nothing to do with this!" he yelled.
"Nothing to do with this, huh? So I guess that means she doesn't know about us," he returned mockingly.
Sano then drove off with her, and Niro followed. Once he was outside, he whistled for the Rocket Machine, and he followed in hot pursuit once he got on. Both motorcycles then took to the air, and Suzume just stared in wonder. "What the heck is going on?!"
The chase went on until Sano jumped off of his motorcycle with Suzume and landed on the roof of a tall building. Niro followed suit, and Sano then placed Niro's best friend over the edge. "So tell me, Big Bro. Just how much is she worth to you? Is her life expendable just to protect your identity, or is she worth risking your own life and secrecy just as long as she's safe?"
"Don't even think about it, Brother!" he pleaded.
"I just might consider not dropping her...if I had a Gemini of any kind. But I don't, so sayonara!" he replied as he dropped Suzume.
Her screams terrified Niro's ears. "NO! SUZUME!" he yelled as he jumped after her.
As the two of them fell, Niro extended a hand for her to grab. She looked into Niro's brown eyes in fear of the inevitable. But her expression changed when his eyes turned completely orange and all of his human features disappeared. Kikaider 02 then grabbed Suzume, ignited his rocket feet to slow their descent, and blasted right back to the top of the building. Suzume couldn't take her eyes off of the battle android. "So this is what he's been hiding all along!" she thought to herself.
Once they got back to the roof, 02 set her down, faced Sano, and got into a fighting stance. "You're going to pay for this!"
Sano just smirked and said, "It's good to see that you still have your fighting spirit!"
Sano immediately changed into Kikaider 03, and the brothers went into battle once more. Suzume kept watching as blows were traded between the Kikaiders. Once 02 got a few punches in, he placed his arms into an X formation, and blue energy began to surround them. 03 mimicked his moves as both prepared for the final attack. They both ran at each other screaming, "ELECTRO END!!!"
However, 02 ducked at the last minute getting under his younger brother's attack. He then put just a small nick on each arm and one on his side. The blows he landed then made small explosions, and 03 groaned in pain. 02 faced 03 and said, "You held back. Why?"
The evil Kikaider began to laugh maniacally. "You missed the whole point! The point was to show your little girlfriend your secret!"
02 turned to face his best friend who just couldn't take the look of shock off her face. A white light surrounded him as he transformed back to Niro. Now knowing that the truth was revealed to her, he couldn't take the look of horror off his face. She now knew everything about him. Niro quickly ran to catch her as she passed out from shock. Niro then held her close as tears ran down his face. Whatever relationship they had would be lost. "Why? Why did you do this, Brother?!"
03 turned back into Sano, smirked, and replied, "Hey, I wasn't the one being delusional. You two had no chance whether you liked it or not. No human girl in their right mind could ever love a machine. You only brought it upon yourself."
Sano summoned his Crimson Angel and took off. Niro held on to Suzume some more. "If that's true...then why do I care for her so much?"
Niro picked up the unconscious Suzume and carried her to the Rocket Machine and he drove off back to her house to take her home.
A/N: Hey. Sorry for the long update. I hope you like this chapter, and I apologize for any redundancy or lack of energy in this one. However, I promise that things will continue to get interesting as the story moves along. Please review! I appreciate all of the reviews you've been sending me so far!