CHAPTER X. SPY

She lays her head against his shoulder, sobs gently. "Oh, Riko-chan…" He lays his hands around her slender shoulders.
"Ssh… Calm down, Mizi, there's nothing to cry about…"
"There is," she mutters, "there is! Riko-chan, I… I… I love you! There…" He smiles happily.
"Then why would you cry? Hey, girl, I lo…"
"Do not say it!" she calls. "Don't love me! How many times do I have to yell it before you finally understand it! DON'T LOVE ME!"

"Let us in, robots!" Neko screams, bashing the door the persocoms have locked behind them when they'd run in. Neko and Hideto, though, are still outside.
"We are not robots," Ameiru calls, leaning against the door to keep it closed. "And you are the one who is stupid here! You really think you can stop faith!"
"Faith doesn't exist!" Neko calls. "Y'know what! I've had enough from you, so shut up!" She turns on her button, and Ameiru collapses. Neko and Hideto run in immediately.
"Lead us to Mizumi or the same thing will happen to you," says Hideto threateningly, pointing at Ameiru.

"I don't understand it," Riko says, "the others told me that loving you was the only way to help you out, and you tell me the opposite! Who do I have to believe now? Or…" He bends his head. "Do you prefer a life as a persocom above a human life? Because then, I'll leave you alone…"
"I do not know what I want anymore," she whispers, "I want to be with you, I want to be with my friends… I want an existence without crashing, but I do not know whether or not I want to be a human girl. Once I have changed, I will never be able to turn it back. This decision is for the rest of my life." She sighs deeply. "Do you understand me now, Riko-chan? Do you understand my confusion? If it was not for the fact we are in Nepuchun-sama's force field, I would crash right now, just because of my confusion about all of this…"
"Wait a minute," says Riko suddenly, "this field prevents you from crashing!" She nods gently.
"Yes… what…" He grabs her shoulders, forces her to look in his eyes.
"Then there's nothing to hold me back from saying… that I love you, no matter what."
"Riko-chan…"
"THAT'S ENOUGH!" A voice yells. "GET DOWN, YOU TWO! NOT ANOTHER WORD FROM EITHER OF YOU!" They both look down, see Neko and Hideto standing in the room. Neko's holding her index finger against the button as if it were a gun.
"Neko? Hideto-san!" says Riko astounded. "What… hey, what's happened to your ears, Neko?"
"Over here," Neko grins, waving with her 'ear-band'. "It was the ideal disguise to spy Mizumi, y'know. Now come down!" Mizumi looks gloomily at the floor, closes her eyes; then, she and Riko gently land back on the floor.
"I knew it," she whispers, "I already knew it when I saw you for the very first time…"
"Pity, but it's too late now," Neko grins, waving with her case. "This will shut you off forever, persocom. You will never turn into a human girl, and neither your friends will."
"NO!" Riko calls. Mizumi's hiding behind him scared and he puts his arms protecting in front of her. "Don't you dare to touch her!"
"I won't touch her, I'll just shut her off," says Neko calmly.
"That's what I meant! Don't you dare!"
"You don't understand it, Riko-kun," Hideto says. "When Mizumi turns into a human, the other will have that opportunity as well when they also learn how to love. That's the most irresponsible thing to do."
"You don't understand it!" Riko calls. "I trusted you, Hideto-san! You knew it the moment you bought those series, so why on earth have you bought them then! And why did you fire Mizumi, for heaven's sake?"
"Those were my ways to the plan to stop them all to become what they're made for," says Neko, "now get out of my way."
"NEVER!" Riko suddenly takes Mizumi in his arms. "No matter what, Neko, Hideto-san… no matter if it's her programming that activated these feelings, but I love Mizumi with whole my heart!"
"You don't even know her long enough to love her without that programming," Neko says, "so if you help her to turn her into a human with that fake love, the biggest disaster ever will strike. Now get out of my way!" Hideto suddenly pulls Riko away from Mizumi.
"HIDETO-SAN! I TRUSTED YOU, YOU WERE MY FRIEND!"
"Sorry, buddy," he mutters. "Go ahead, Neko." Neko nods, directs her case into Mizumi's direction. The persocom's standing there beaten, doesn't even avoid the beam coming from Neko's push on the button. Riko glares at her as the beam hits her.
"MIZI! NOT YOU!"