A First Time For Everything
A MLAATR-Inspired Fanfic
By Shvique

Chapter 6— Renewed Purpose

The final bell rang for the day, and Jenny leapt from her seat and shot out the door of the classroom like a bullet fired from a gun. Nearly flying down the hall, she made a brief, final stop at her locker to toss some unneeded textbooks inside and grab her backpack, before slamming the locker shut, turning and sailing back down the hallway. She was through the main exit and outside in seconds, long before most students had even fully emerged from their classrooms. Once outdoors, she broke into sprint toward home at top speed, without even bothering to wait for Brad, the way she normally did. She would even have flown, but since she knew she would need to conserve energy for her drills later on, she chose to run home instead as the better, more energy-efficient option.

It was, of course, a regular after-school practice day for her, something she was quite used to by now. But with the drills becoming more intensive lately, there were to be no after-school detours on the way home. No side-trips to Mezmer's, or to the mall, or to any of other places Jenny liked to hang out with her friends. No; until the predicted mega-improbability struck—whatever it was—the rule was to come home directly, and that was it, no arguments about it.

The truth was, Jenny didn't particularly mind coming home extra-early these days. It had been a fiendishly difficult week for her at school, with one miserable, humiliating experience after another, topped off by one especially nightmarish incident in particular: a momentary, in-class mental slip-up and subsequent meltdown she experienced, which in turn resulted in inevitable and endless teasing and taunting from the other kids for days afterward. And as the week progressed, the remarks grew more obnoxious and irritating in nature.

"Hey, Botgirl, heard you blew a fuse in class the other day!" was one such typical remark. Or "Hey Rust-bucket! What's the matter? Fry one too many circuits over the years?" Or "Hey, Aluminum-Butt! Guess you got a short-circuit in the old brainbox the other day or something, huh? Maybe you oughta get an upgrade to a newer model!", along with other, similar comments, whose crudity was matched only by their lack of wit or cleverness.

Mocking taunts, insults and put-downs were, of course, nothing new for Jenny; she'd had to endure them ever since her first day of school. But this latest round seemed especially hurtful, for some reason. And by now, it was also becoming really tiresome. The insults and comments not only stung, but they were essentially little more than endless repetitions of the same stupid idea with only slight variation between them. After a certain point, Jenny had become more or less inured to them, and her usual response was to simply roll her eyes and mutter a tepid response, such as, "Hey moron, the 20th Century called, and they want one of their antique put-downs back!" Which usually sailed right over the empty head of the intended recipient, but that didn't matter. Jenny felt slightly better for at least coming up with some kind of a response, rather than simply suffering in silence.

But now that another school day was over, and with the weekend fast approaching, Jenny simply wanted out. Out and away from school for at least a few hours in the afternoon, back to the relative tranquility of her home. Away from all the heartache and humiliation of the past week. Away from all the snide, mocking remarks and put-downs. Away from the fruitless, frustrating near-miss brief encounters with Sheldon. Away from everything. Her sole priority at the moment was to simply get out, as quickly and painlessly as possible.

Jenny was also eager to get back to the new practice holochamber her creator had constructed for her. Jenny was quite pleasantly surprised to discover that she liked it. Practicing with it was even kind of fun in a way, rather like playing a life-sized, full sensory experience video-game, with plenty of new, exciting and challenging programs that changed frequently; often enough to keep her from becoming bored. And it had another advantage as well, as Jenny discovered: it was a great way to let off steam at the end of the day and work out her pent-up frustrations, by pounding away at huge, computer-generated holo-monsters of every size, manner and variety for a few hours.

On this particular day however, Jenny had other reasons for wanting to be home early; reasons which had nothing to do with school, taunting remarks from other students, or even extra practice-sessions in the holochamber. On this day, she had a more personal priority in mind, which she wanted to attend to first.

So the moment she set foot inside the front door, she immediately dashed upstairs to her bedroom, threw her backpack into a corner and switched on her computer. Once it was fully booted up, she logged into her personal email account and anxiously scanned the inbox in a quick nanosecond.

Still nothing! She thought with a frustrated sigh. No reply, not even a simple acknowledgment, nothing! And I sent him a whole bunch of emails by now! Why won't he answer them?

She released another, even more exasperated sigh, then clicked on the icon for 'New Message' and began typing:

Hi Sheldon! She began, striving to maintain an upbeat tone.

Like I said in my earlier emails, I'm real, real sorry about that business over the phone the other night when I tried calling you. I really, really, really didn't mean to get you into more trouble with your mom. I hope she wasn't too angry at me!

She paused, momentarily at a blank, as she tried to think of what to say next.

Um… she continued tentatively, then hit the backspace-key several times to delete the useless word. Also, I hope you being grounded doesn't include using the internet, otherwise, I guess you won't even be able to read this message, will you? LOL! She inserted a goofy, 'smiley-face' emoji at that point.

But just in case you can read this, I hope your week's going okay otherwise, and that all that extra schoolwork you gotta do isn't too much of a pain. I know it's no fun being grounded, believe me! I've been there a whole lot of times myself, so I know it's no picnic. But hang in there and you'll be through it before you know it, and then we can get back to hanging out together like we used to!

She paused in her typing for a moment, wondering if she should have included that last bit in her message. Am I being too pushy? She wondered. With a brief shake of her head, she dismissed the thought and continued her message:

Also, I hope you liked the articles I've been sending you, about hyper conductive alloys fabrication, some new discoveries in astronomy and nanotechnology, and the new Summer movies coming out and other stuff. They all sounded like the kinds of things you like, so I hope you enjoyed reading them & that they helped pass the time while you're stuck at home. I know you're pretty busy with schoolwork and everything these days, but if you get a chance, I sure would like to spend at least a little time with you at school or wherever!

See you soon! And email when you can!

Lo—

She stopped herself from typing further at the very last nanosecond, then hit the backspace key a couple of times to delete the letters. She resumed typing again, substituting a different closing:

Your Friend,

Jenny

She inserted her own personal symbol/avatar underneath her name, the familiar, easily-recognizable stylized graphic of her own smiling face. She read over the brief message, made a couple of minor corrections of punctuation and spelling, then, satisfied that it would generate the response she wanted, she smiled and nodded in approval.

There! She thought. That oughta do it!

"XJ-9!" Dr. Wakeman called from downstairs.

"Yeah, Mom?" Jenny replied.

"Time for your practice session!"

"Be right down."

After a final moment's hesitation, Jenny hit the 'send' button, and with that, the message vanished from her computer-screen and out into etherspace. She then logged off her email and shut down the computer.

Ohhhhh, I sure hope this one does the trick! She thought as she rose to her feet. The first dozen or so didn't work, maybe this one will… Was it a dozen? Or was it more…? I lost count… She took a final wistful look at the now-darkened computer, then turned and headed downstairs.


The practice-drills which Dr. Wakeman had devised for Jenny had become quite sophisticated and complex over the years. In the beginning, they mostly used specially constructed robotic adversaries for Jenny to 'fight' in mock-battles, under real-world conditions. But with the creation of the holochamber, these practice-adversaries were now purely virtual in nature, computer-generated creations which existed only within the simulated realm of the holochamber programs. Even though they were only illusory, these simulations were amazingly lifelike and realistic; they looked, sounded, and even felt so much like the real thing, that Jenny could almost feel the blows she sustained during the drill.

But whether real-world or virtual, the practice-drills still served the same purpose: To increase Jenny's reactions and responses, to further hone her fighting skills, and to enhance her transformational capabilities. They were also occasionally used to test new weapons-systems and other new equipment, devices and attachments that Dr. Wakeman had invented. And finally, the drills also helped Jenny to develop and enhance her problem-solving skills, forcing her to think quickly in unexpected and rapidly-changing situations, and extricate herself from all manner and variety of dire situations and predicaments.

The drills did have some drawbacks, however. For one thing, Jenny's weapons had to be disarmed for them first, or else she'd soon blow the holochamber apart. Instead, her weapons were modified to flash bright LED-generated beams of light of specific frequencies, to simulate laser shots or rocket-fire or other types of weaponry. Her strength was also greatly scaled-back, to prevent her from knocking down the entire house. Similarly, the adversaries she faced also used only simulated weapons-fire, with LED flashes of various colors to indicate the type of weapon used. Jenny was therefore never in any actual physical danger during the drills, which sometimes made it difficult for her to get into the proper frame of mind for them. She sometimes found it hard to think and act quickly enough when she knew her life and safety weren't in any real danger.

Another drawback lay in the fact that Jenny tended to master the drills very quickly; so quickly, in fact, that she easily became bored with them. Dr. Wakeman solved this problem by means of a randomizing matrix she invented, which took various dissimilar program elements, combined them in random order, and generated the most unlikely, unpredictable and improbable of results. These were then fed directly into the holochamber's imaging circuits, which in turn generated unique and constantly-changing drill scenarios, each with entirely new and unexpected sets of problems for Jenny to solve, and new adversaries for her to face and overcome.

The results generated by the randomizing matrix were far more unusual—and even sometimes downright absurd—than anything Dr. Wakeman could have ever dreamt up unaided, and the matrix rarely generated the exact same results twice; every single drill was either slightly or radically different from all others which preceded it. Often, neither Jenny nor Dr. Wakeman herself ever knew precisely what might be coming next.

Thus, the matrix solved two problems at once. One, by creating new and constantly changing programs that were unique and varied, it enough prevented Jenny from becoming bored. And Two, it prepared her for the highly-unpredictable nature of the upcoming Mega-Improbable Event.

Some of the drills were based in an earth environment, in the air, underwater and on dry land; some were set outer space, and some were set in alien worlds, both real and imagined, under a variety of atmospheric and lighting conditions. Jenny had by now become quite adept at performing well in any environment, and she felt confident that she could handle anything the randomizing matrix could come up with.

The four drills planned for the day's practice were all earth-based, and involved fighting more or less conventional opponents. They were of increasing complexity and difficulty, the first of which was relatively easy: Breaking up a fight between two ten-foot-tall Titanium Megadroid Robots at a robot-carnival. Jenny finished the drill quickly and easily, breaking up the fight without any difficulty or mishap whatsoever (other than an occasional bash in the face from one of the Megadroids.) She didn't even have to use any of her weapons or her transformational abilities. Instead, she simply gave the two Megadroids a good royal smackdown, easily subduing them both in quick succession, and hurling them off in opposite directions with swift kicks to their respective bottoms, and that was that. The drill was so easy in fact, that it was even kind of fun in a way; almost like a larger-sized version of the Rockem Sockem Robots game she sometimes played with Tuck.

At least it's not another 'destroy-a-planet-sized-asteroid' drill or something! she thought. I'm so tired of those… They're so easy now, they're not even fun anymore…

The next drill proved to be much more challenging, however. It involved a back-alley brawl between two rival gangs of six-foot-tall, 300-pound, 4-armed Sumo Wrestler Hamsters. Jenny had an extremely difficult time with these, as they turned out to be tough, aggressive, surprisingly lithe and limber, and very hard to grab a hold of (and all their extra arms didn't exactly make things any easier, either.) And, as she quickly discovered, they could really take a punch, too—easily bearing nearly the full brunt of a punch with her greatly-scaled-down strength without even blinking. And as if all that weren't enough, they were also incredibly stubborn and tenacious! Every time Jenny knocked or threw one to the ground, it immediately bobbed right back up again like a round-bottomed doll, almost as though it was doing it on purpose, just to annoy her. Many times, after knocking or throwing one down, Jenny found herself yelling at it in frustration: "You stay down this time!"

The Sumo Hamsters also worked as tag-teams, too. The first time Jenny grappled with a pair of them, all the others from both gangs immediately charged in from all sides, surrounding her, grabbing hold and trying to pull her down to the ground and piling on. She had to pry them off, one by one, throwing and flinging them to her left and right, only to have them all bob right up again and charge right back at her with a vengeance, again and again, without letup.

Cripes! Jenny thought. What's with these guys? Don't they ever give up?

Eventually however, Jenny finally managed beat them all back, although it took quite some time. Through not-inconsiderable tenacity of her own, coupled with sheer dogged determination, she out-wrestled, threw down and body-slammed each and every Sumo Hamster, one at a time, piling them all on top of one another against a nearby brick wall. Finally, she was left with only two left: the leaders of each gang. With a final, irritated sigh, she grabbed both by the scruffs of their necks and banged their heads together, knocking them both out cold.

Finally! She thought as the drill ended. That took longer than it was supposed to! **Whew!** What a work-out!

But the Sumo Wrestler Hamster drill was a mere warm-up to the one that followed however, which was not only much more difficult, it was even downright intimidating. For this one, she faced a giant, multi-headed steel-and-titanium Cybernetic Hydra, over two stories tall. Each of its many heads could move and strike with lightning-swiftness, their jaws armed with row upon row of razor-sharp chromium teeth, and were capable of spewing both acetylene flame and hydrofluoric acid.

Ohhhhhhh, cripes…! Jenny thought as she gazed up at the immense, frightening creature, her pupils shrinking to tiny pinholes. This isn't gonna be so easy…!

The Hydra took a step closer to her, then another, and another, all of its long-necked heads bobbing, weaving and lashing at her like gigantic, deadly serpents.

Crikey, how many heads does that thing have?! She wondered. I can't even tell! If only those stupid heads would just hold still for a moment and quit moving around, I could get an exact count!

This opponent, she realized, was definitely not to be trifled with. Vicious, aggressive, and with its immense size, swiftness, and formidable weaponry, it would take only one lucky shot to mean instant 'game over' for her—whether in a simulated drill or, she thought grimly, a real-life situation.

That thing's gotta be put down and put down fast! She decided as she fired up her rockets and took to the air, lunging straight for the monster like a guided missile, fists clenched and ready for action.

The trouble was, subduing the Hydra turned out to be no easy task. Striking a direct hit of any kind turned out to be almost impossible in fact, as the Hydra ducked and dodged virtually every punch or kick Jenny threw at it, or blocked or countered it with a stream of acid or a long tongue of acetylene flame. And each time the Hydra struck, it came alarmingly closer and closer to reaching its mark. So far, Jenny managed to avoid sustaining any direct hits, but she'd had several close-calls—too many, in fact. She only hoped her creator hadn't noticed just how close she'd come…

Nevertheless, she charged the Hydra again and again, attacking from all angles and directions, both from the air and the ground, throwing punch after punch and kick after kick. But none of them connected; the Hydra still continued to dodge and duck every single one.

"Hold still!" Jenny cried in frustration. "Hold still, you stupid thing!"

She then tried firing her rockets, missiles, laser guns, plasma-cannons and just about every other weapon she had in her personal arsenal. But the Hydra's multiple, constantly-moving heads made it extremely difficult for her to track and target her weapons, and when she did fire a shot, the Hydra simply ducked or dodged out of its path. Consequently, Jenny only managed to score one or two direct hits out of dozens and dozens of misses.

Finally, she managed to slip in close at one point and land a lucky punch to one of the Hydra's heads, a good, solid, crunching blow to its jaw, knocking it out. But the moment she did, two more heads immediately popped up out of nowhere to take its place.

"Oh, come on!" she cried, dismayed. "You gotta be kidding me!"

One of the newly-sprouted heads struck at her, and she countered with a swift right cross to its jaw, knocking it out as well.

This time, three new heads popped up to take its place!

"Oh, come on!" Jenny cried again. "This is ridiculous! I feel like I'm playing 'Whack-A-Mole, only it's not fun!'"

All four of the newly-sprouted heads immediately lunged at her, their jaws snapping and spewing acid and acetylene flame, all the other Hydra-heads soon joining in.

Jenny managed to just narrowly avoid at the last second a stream of acid shooting straight toward her left ankle, high-kicking up and out of its path in a desperate, mid-air back flip. She then banked out and away from the Hydra in a long, curving arc, to a position where she could observe it from a safe distance, and evaluate its many strengths and few apparent weaknesses.

Okay…okay…she thought as she hovered in mid-air, plotting her next move. A direct assault is definitely not gonna work… What now…?

She thought hard, applying the full power of her Positronic brain to the task. In a flash, an idea came to her.

I got it! She thought. Number 726! The ol' Confoozle Bamboozle Play!

With that, she fired up her rockets and charged the Hydra directly once again. But at the last split-second before striking, she swerved off to one side and began circling the Hydra, its many heads instinctively trying to follow and track her. She fired up her afterburners, increasing her velocity to near-supersonic speed, orbiting the Hydra even faster with every revolution, again and again, constantly changing the angle and trajectory of her flight-path as she flew.

The Hydra soon became dizzy from trying to follow Jenny's erratic and confusing flying pattern, and it lashed out blindly at her, its jaws snapping and spewing flame and acid, but missing strike after strike. In moments, the monster was reduced to a state of dizzy, disoriented confusion, its acid and acetylene weapons depleted, their reserves wasted on the countless, futile missed shots at the maddening blue-and-white figure flying taunting rings around it.

Jenny glanced down to note the results of her strategy. It's working! She thought with a smile. Now to pick up the pace!

With that, she increased her speed even more, to a now-earsplitting level, moving in closer and closer to the Hydra with every orbit. Occasionally, when she managed to get in close enough, she delivered a quick poke here or a swift kick there, not enough to inflict any significant damage, but rather to further annoy and infuriate her opponent.

The strategy worked. They Hydra, now even more enraged and thrown off-balance by its anger, lashed and snapped furiously but blindly at her, its many elongated necks soon becoming hopelessly tangled with one another, like one gigantic, massively snarled fishing-line.

With the Hydra thus reduced to a state of hopelessly tangled, snarling, frustrated fury and confusion, Jenny followed up with a soaring arc directly over its top, looping around behind it, then shooting up from below and between its legs to deliver a sharp, driving blow deep into its soft underbelly. The Hydra immediately stiffened as it experienced the cybernetic equivalent of having the wind knocked out of it, wobbled unsteadily on its heels for a moment or two, then toppled over like a ten-pin with a thundering crash, out cold and down for the count.

Her opponent defeated at last, Jenny gently settled back down onto the ground again, where she took a moment to rest, re-gather her wits and regain her strength.

That… she thought in weary triumph, was not fun…! Cripes, if this is only a drill, what will the real thing be like when the Mega Improbability finally does hit…?

But as challenging and intimidating as the Cyber Hydra drill was, it paled in comparison to the one which followed, which turned out to be an absolute nightmare: the Octo-Robo-Ninja program. For this drill, Jenny had to face a dozen 12-foot-long robotic Ninja squids, each of which came equipped with eight coiled-steel tentacles, and each tentacle armed with a set of saw-toothed-edged chromium/titanium pincers at the tip.

Terrific…! She thought with a sinking feeling in the pit of her cold-fusion reactor-core, as she eyed the fearsome creatures surrounding her in a semicircle.

This drill was, by far, the toughest drill Jenny had faced the entire week. Try as she might, she just couldn't seem to make any headway against the Octo-Ninjas at all. They were not only swift, strong and vicious, they were also nearly silent as well, making little more than a whisper-soft metallic whooshing sound as they moved, audible only if she happened to be standing right next to one in near-total silence. And their tentacles proved to be formidable weapons, too. Like dozens of coiled-steel snakes whipping and lashing at her from all directions, the tentacles seemed to be everywhere, surrounding and striking blows at her from every angle and direction, and threatening to ensnare her in their grasp any second. Like the Cyber Hydra's heads, the Squids seemed to be in constant motion, their tentacles lashing around continuously, making them nearly impossible to track, block or deflect. Time and again, Jenny was caught off-guard by them, taking countless, near-disabling strikes without managing to block them or deliver any counter-strikes of her own.

One particularly sharp, slicing blow lashed her hard across the temple, momentarily stunning her and sending her reeling to the ground. Before she even had a chance to recover, the Octo-Ninja lunged at her, followed by another and another. In seconds, the entire pack surrounded her, completely ensnaring her from her neck to her ankles in the crushing grip of their tentacles, the saw-toothed pincers snapping terrifyingly close to her face. Only through the application of sheer, brute force and bulldog determination was she able to pry off the tentacles with her bare hands, one by one, until at last she had broken free of all of them.

Once free, Jenny immediately went right back on the attack, lunging at the Ninja Squids, trying again and again to fight them off, in groups and one at a time. She threw countless punches and kicks, and fired her lasers and rockets, but none of the punches or kicks connected, and nearly all of her shots wildly missed their targets. The Ninja Squids were simply too swift, too unpredictable in their movements, easily dodging out the path of every punch or kick thrown, every shot fired, causing her to waste increasing amounts of both energy and ammunition.

Nothing seemed to be working. Jenny was clearly losing this match, a sensation she wasn't used to, and which she didn't like in the slightest. She became increasingly frustrated and aggravated as she continued to lose ground, taking blow after blow and strike after strike, getting thoroughly battered from all sides, and losing more and more points as the drill went on.

Even though she was never in any actual physical danger during the drill, her dismal score indicated an outcome that, if it were a real-life situation, would be fatal for her, a fact of which she was all too well aware. And, of course, not only was Jenny aware of it, her creator was, too.

And not only was Jenny losing points, she also began to lose her self-confidence as well. I don't get it, I don't get it! She thought in growing, frustrated dismay. Normally I'd be able to wipe the street with these bozos, no problem! Now I'm getting my butt kicked! What the heck is going on here? Have I lost my punch or something?

At the conclusion of the drill (which ended in a humiliating defeat for Jenny), Dr. Wakeman drew a deep breath, sighed and said, "All right… Let's try that again… Computer, stop program. Save data and reset." She paused a moment with another deep breath, then said, "Commence drill."

As directed, the holochamber reset itself to the beginning of the drill, and restarted. But Jenny didn't do any better the second time than she had on the first. She continued to sustain heavy blows from the Ninja Squids as they surrounded and pummeled her from all sides, without managing to return a single counter punch or kick or on-target shot of her own. She was losing points at an alarming rate, and in only a few short minutes, the drill was over, ending in another ego-crushing loss.

Dr. Wakeman regarded the result in grim silence for a moment, then reran the drill twice more. But Jenny's performance still didn't improve. In fact, after the third run-through, she began to get progressively worse.

After the fifth run-through (which ended with Jenny taking a sharp, debilitating jab to her belly-button bolt, which doubled her over and sent her sprawling across the floor on her bottom) Dr. Wakeman sighed and gave the verbal command, "Computer, stop program. Save data and reset."

The walls of the holochamber momentarily flashed to an ashen grey, then returned to the darkened city-streets of the program's background.

With as much dignity as she could muster, Jenny rose unsteadily from her awkward, seated position on the floor and regained her feet. She felt like such a rank amateur. She hadn't done well, she knew, and it frustrated her, but what could she do? Those stupid Octo-Ninjas were tough!

She watched her creator scratching away with a pencil and some papers on a clipboard, recording her performance results and making addition notes. Dr. Wakeman remained absolutely silent the entire time, but it was obvious from her grim expression that she wasn't pleased.

When the silence became unbearable, Jenny finally spoke up. "Well?" she said. "Say it! I mean, I assume were going to run through it again, right? But just how bad is it?"

Dr. Wakeman remained silent for another long moment before she replied, "Well…" She used her unmistakable 'patient' tone that invariably signaled the worst. "It's not good. As a matter of fact, it's not good at all." She shook her head. "I know this last program is a bit more difficult than the others, and you're not used to it, but even so… I had hoped that, now that you've gone through it a few times, your performance would start to improve, but…so far, it hasn't. There's been no improvement in your performance at all. It's still below par." She paused. "Considerably below, in fact. And your performance on the Hydra drill…" she paused with a discouraging shake of her head. "Could have been better as well."

For once, Jenny accepted the bad news with neither argument nor protest. Instead, she merely nodded and said, "Well…okay. We have time. We'll just…" she shrugged. "We'll just…do it again, that's all. And again and again. And again, if necessary, until I get it right."

She assumed her fighting stance, head thrust forward, legs apart, clenched fists raised in a defensive pose. "Okay, I'm ready. Let's go. Run the program."

"No, no, wait a moment…" Dr. Wakeman said, still scanning the notes on her clipboard, her brows furrowed.

"What for?" Jenny said, lowering her fists to her sides and standing straight up again. "Come on, come on, come on! Let's go!" She clapped her hands, as if preparing to catch a football, then re-clenched her fists. "Let's get back to the drill."

"No, no, wait," Dr. Wakeman said. "Computer, stop program. Close." The simulated cityscape vanished, changing back to the ashen-grey, grid-lined walls of the holochamber. "XJ-9, sit down." She said, motioning with her hand. "Please."

Jenny looked around. "Where?" she said. "There's no place for me to sit."

"Over there. In the corner." She pointed. "The reinforced-steel chair. Pull it over here and sit down. Please."

Jenny hesitated for a moment, then with an exaggerated sigh and a dramatic roll of her eyes, she obeyed, walking over to the steel-and-titanium stool in the corner and dragging it back to her creator, where she sat down to face her.

Dr. Wakeman resumed her study of the notes for another few moments, then lowered the clipboard and looked at her robotic daughter directly. "XJ-9," she began softly; then, switching to her daughter's preferred chosen name, she said, "Jenny…is there something on your mind these days?"

Jenny started to open her mouth, then closed it again and shook her head. "No…no…" she said, a little too hastily. "Everything's fine. I'm fine, everything's fine. So, come on. Let's go." She started to get up.

"No…no…everything is not fine. When there's this much of a drop-off in your performance-levels, there must be a reason for it. Now, we just ran a quick diagnostic on you this morning, and everything checked out. Including the conscience program…" In spite of herself, she couldn't help emphasizing the term. "So we know that nothing technical can be the reason." She paused and silently scrutinized her daughter. "Which leaves a myriad of other, non-technical possibilities. Including emotional stress-factors."

She paused again, allowing the words to sink in. Creator and robot regarded each other in silence for several moments longer, Dr. Wakeman's eyes seeming to penetrate to Jenny's very thoughts. Jenny finally looked away, unable to bear the piercing gaze for a moment longer.

"So...to save us both a lot of time…" Dr. Wakeman went on gently. "Why don't you just tell me? And be honest. Is there something on your mind?"

"No, no, everything's fine, I told you," Jenny shook her head, still unable to meet her creator's eyes.

"Jenny, I thought that, after our…recent experience with the conscience-program, we had a new understanding between us; that if you had something on your mind, something that was troubling you, that you would come to me immediately, at any time, and we would discuss it. That we would talk it over, and try to solve it, together…" She paused. "Isn't that what we agreed?"

"Well…yeah…" Jenny said, evasively. "But…but really, mom, it's…it's nothing… Nothing's bothering me…" she utterly failed to sound convincing.

"Isn't there…?"

At last, Jenny raised her eyes and looked at her creator directly. "Well…" She said, then paused. "I mean…nothing besides the usual high school stress, that is..." She hesitated, wincing at the memory of the events of the past several days. "I've just…been having a rough week, that's all."

"Is there anything in particular that you'd care to talk about?" Dr. Wakeman asked gently.

The soft tone of her voice caught Jenny a bit off-guard, and after only a moment's hesitation, she saw no point in concealing the truth any longer.

She sighed and lowered her eyes again. "Well…it's just…" she began, haltingly. "It's…it's Sheldon…" her voice sounded pitifully small and vulnerable as she spoke the name.

"I suspected as much," Dr. Wakeman said softly. "All right, then. So what's the trouble now? What has he done this time? Hmm?"

"Well…it's not what he's done, it's what he's not doing."

Dr. Wakeman blinked and shook her head in puzzlement. "I'm afraid I don't understand."

"Well, you remember how I said that, from now on, I was going to try to make it all up to him, and be a friend to him? A real friend? And not make him feel left out or feel like I take him for granted? And let him know that I appreciate him and all he does for me, and everything? Well, I've been doing that! Or at least I've been trying to. All week long, I've been trying to be extra-friendly to him, but…but he doesn't even… I mean, he's just…he's like…" Her voice trailed off as words suddenly failed her, and she found herself unable to quite describe the subtle difference she'd detected in Sheldon's behavior over the past week. "I don't know, I can't put my finger on it exactly, but there's just something…different about him these days. It's like he's so…so cold and distant, like he doesn't…want to see me or talk to me anymore or anything."

"You mean you think he's still upset with you?" Dr. Wakeman asked.

"No…no, not exactly." Jenny replied. "He's not exactly angry… And he doesn't seem to be scared of me anymore, either. He's not exactly avoiding me, but…he's not really friendly to me anymore, either. Not like he used to be. Instead, he's like…" She shook her head. "He's almost…indifferent to me now, almost like we're total strangers; like we were never even friends in the first place. He doesn't—" She hesitated, then dropped her voice so low that Dr. Wakeman could barely hear it. "I…I just don't think he likes me anymore…"

There it was, out in the open, expressed out loud for the first time.

Dr. Wakeman took in the words in silence for a moment, mulling them over before she replied, gently, "Well…you remember I said that it might take awhile yet before you and he could be…" She paused, searching for just the right words. "Back on fully friendly terms again? And remember I advised you to try to be patient with him in the meantime?"

"Well, yeah, Mom, I know, but I've been patient!" Jenny said with increasing agitation. "I've been patient with him all week long now, and it's not getting me anywhere! I keep trying and trying and trying to be nice and friendly to him, but he just won't respond! Instead, he keeps giving me the cold shoulder or the silent treatment, or finding excuses to dodge me in the hallways!" She paused, folding her arms and lowering her eyes in a frown. "He won't even answer my emails!" she added in a low, grumbling tone.

"Well, perhaps—"

"I don't get it! I just don't get it!" Jenny fumed with an exasperated sigh. "Doesn't he know he's supposed to like me?"

"Well, have you spoken to him about any of this?" Dr. Wakeman asked. "Perhaps he has things on his mind, too. You know, some personal issues that don't involve you. After all, that is a possibility too. Other people do have personal issues of their own, you know; problems and concerns that have nothing whatsoever to do with you." Her words, while somewhat blunt, were truthful, and her point was valid.

"I did talk to him!" Jenny countered. "I asked him flat out a couple of times if anything was bothering him, and he just keeps saying 'No, no, everything's fine,' and that's about all I can get out of him. That and the fact that he's grounded. That's about it; then he clams right up."

"Wait a minute, wait a minute. Did you say he's been grounded?" Dr. Wakeman asked, her eyebrows raised.

"Yeah…didn't I tell you 'bout that?"

Dr. Wakeman shook her head.

"Oh…well…he is. 'Cuz he cut school last week."

"Oh… Well, that's probably it, then!" Dr. Wakeman exclaimed, amazed that the obvious explanation had somehow eluded her daughter. "If his manner is different lately, then that is most likely the reason for it."

"Yeah, well, I notice he seems to be friendly to just about everybody else!" Jenny shot back sharply. "Just not to me! I'm the only one he gives the cold shoulder to! And I still think it's 'cuz he's either still mad at me, or 'cuz he blames me for cutting school that day, or…something!"

"Oh, XJ-9, that's absurd!"

"No, it's not! I even asked him about it, and he denied it, of course, but deep down inside, I think he blames me for cutting school that day! And maybe he's right! The whole thing was my fault, after all."

Dr. Wakeman sighed; she really didn't want to have to go down this same type of road again with her robotic daughter. "XJ-9… Jenny…" she said, trying to remain patient. "Let's be reasonable about this. Activate your logic-circuits, and please look at things rationally. Now, looking at it logically, there is simply no conceivable way that Sheldon could possibly blame you for his being grounded. That simply doesn't make sense."

"But it does make sense!" Jenny exclaimed. "It's because he was so scared of me and upset with me that day that he bailed out of school early, just to get away from me! That's why I think he's still mad at me, that's why his mom is mad at me, and—"

"His mom?" Dr. Wakeman interrupted, momentarily lost. "Wait a minute, I'm confused. What does his mother have to do with any of this?"

Jenny's head snapped up. Oops! She thought, as she involuntarily raised her hand to her mouth, as if to belatedly retract the words. She hadn't intended to mention any of the conversation she'd had with Sheldon's mother, but somehow, it had just slipped out.

"Um…nothing…nothing…" she struggled to dissemble.

"XJ-9…!" Dr. Wakeman's tone sharpened, the way it always did when she suspected Jenny was trying to conceal something. "You said something about Sheldon's mother. And I asked you a question. What does she have to do with any of this?"

Jenny stared blankly at her creator, trying desperately—and failing utterly—to adopt an 'innocent' look. "Did…did I say that?" she said, feebly.

"Yes, you did."

"I…I didn't mean anything by it."

"XJ-9…for the last time…" Dr. Wakeman's voice tightened, a clear sign of her diminishing patience. "What does Sheldon's mother have to do with this? Did she speak to you?" She paused, waiting for an answer that was clearly not forthcoming. "Well…? Did she…? And if so…when? And what was said? Be specific."

Jenny hesitated and stalled for about as long as she felt she could safely get away with, until she realized she had no choice but to tell the whole truth—however painful and embarrassing it might be. "I…I didn't want you to know about it," she said in a pitifully-tiny voice.

"Know about what, exactly?" Dr. Wakeman asked in a tone of cold steel, her gaze narrowing.

Jenny sighed. "Mom, I really wish you wouldn't make a big thing out of it—"

"Make a big thing out of what?" Dr. Wakeman demanded, her volume rising. "All right, now I really want you to tell me!"

"All right, all right! But please don't make a big Federal case out of it, okay? Mom? Please? Cripes, I've already caused enough grief in his life as it is! I don't want to cause another big blow-up, with you and his mom getting mixed up in it, too!"

Dr. Wakeman sighed, trying to remain patient. "All right," she conceded in a quieter, more restrained tone. "I won't—as you put it—'make a big thing out of it.' But I would still like you to tell me. Now, for the last time: Did you speak with Sheldon's mother? And if so, when? And what exactly was said?"

"Well…it was a few days ago," Jenny began. "Sunday; the day after you told me about the…big mega-improbable thingy that your computer program predicted. Anyway, I didn't see Sheldon anywhere all weekend long, so on the way home from the park, I stopped by his house to see if he was okay, in case he might be sick or something. And when I rang the bell, his mom answered, and…"

From there, Jenny recounted, in detail, every word that was exchanged between her and Sheldon's mother, including the not-so-veiled threat that had been made, Jenny's total recall having recorded every word, phrase and nuance of the entire conversation with 100% accuracy.

"She actually said that?" Dr. Wakeman said, aghast, when Jenny had concluded her narrative. "That she'd 'take you apart?'"

Jenny nodded. "Those were her exact words."

"Are you sure you're not exaggerating, XJ-9?" she asked.

"No, I'm not exaggerating, Mom!" Jenny replied, slightly annoyed. "That's what she said!"

Dr. Wakeman exhaled with a heavy sigh, leaning back in her chair. "Well, well, well…" she said quietly. "This does complicate matters…"

"I'll say it does!" Jenny agreed.

"I think I'd better give her a call then, and see if I can't get this matter straightened out somehow," Dr. Wakeman said. "This evening, or tomorrow, perhaps—"

"No, no, Mom, please!" Jenny cried. "I wish you wouldn't!"

"But Sweetie, if she's making threats against you, then I really think—"

"Mom, I really wish you wouldn't interfere!" Jenny pleaded. "See, this is why I didn't want to say anything! 'Cuz I just knew that if I did, you'd go and make a big thing out of it, and—"

"XJ-9, if Sheldon's mother is threatening to take you apart, then it is 'a big thing!' As should be obvious to you!"

Jenny was struck silent by the simple truth of her creator's words; then sighed resignedly. "I…I suppose," she finally conceded. "But…on the other hand, I can't really blame her, either! I mean, if I had a son and I thought somebody was picking on him, I'd probably want to tear them limb from limb, too!" She paused. "But…you're right, it does complicate things. Because not only do I have to somehow get back on Sheldon's good side, I also want to somehow get his mom to like me too, and that's going to be a whole lot tougher!"

"Yes, yes, that's no doubt true…" Dr. Wakeman nodded in agreement. "Well, perhaps a good place to start might be to simply apologize to her, just as you did to Sheldon. Simply tell her that you're very sorry for what you did to Sheldon, admit that you were wrong, and promise that you'll never do it again."

"Do you really think that'll work?"

"Well, it might. It's a good place to start, at any rate. And it's certainly worth a try…isn't it?"

"Yeah…I guess…" She shrugged. "Somehow, though, I get the feeling she's not going to believe me…or be any more forgiving than…than…" She didn't go on, but her meaning was obvious.

"Well, she might," Dr. Wakeman replied. "In time, she just might. You ought to give her a chance, at least."

"I know…I know…" Jenny said. "I will…" She nodded, then fell silent.

Dr. Wakeman studied her robotic creation closely. By now, she had developed certain instincts about Jenny's behavior, which often revealed certain clues about what she might be thinking or feeling at a given moment. And Dr. Wakeman now had the uncanny feeling that there was still something more on Jenny's mind, something that was left unsaid. "Is there…something else…?" she asked.

"Well, it's just…" Jenny hesitated, then pressed on, her voice tight. "This whole thing with Sheldon's got me so confused... What I'm thinking…what I'm feeling… I'm just trying to make sense of it all. I mean, I never really used to like being around him that much before—especially since he always seemed to be hanging around me all the time, always getting in the way! And when he wasn't around, I never really thought about him much at all. But now…" She shrugged. "Now…I can't seem to stop thinking about him!"

"Well, they do say that 'absence makes the heart grow fonder.'" Dr. Wakeman pointed out. "Perhaps that is the dynamic at work here."

"I guess…maybe… I suppose it's possible…" Jenny replied with a shrug. "But I'm also wondering if…maybe there's more to it than that."

"How so?"

Jenny hesitated again, and looked at her creator. Her thoughts and feelings on the subject were so private, so personal, that she'd never before shared them with anyone. And yet…something told her that if there was one person in all the world in whom she could confide anything, it was her own creator. And so, with some hesitancy and lingering reservation, she proceeded to share some of her inmost thoughts and feelings of recent days.

"Well…the thing is" she began. "I'm…beginning to feel…differently lately…about a lot of things…for a lot of different reasons… See, at one time, I used to think… That is, I used to sometimes wonder if…maybe…Brad and I might…someday…" She tailed off. "But now…I don't know. Now…I just…don't think that's going to happen. I mean, I still like Brad a lot, I still think of him as my best friend and everything, but…well…it's…different now. Now I kind of think of him more as…well, almost more like a brother than…" She hesitated. "Anyway…the way I feel now…I'm now beginning to wonder if maybe in some nutty, screwball way…maybe Sheldon might really be the one for me instead…"

She caught the gentle, subdued smile on her creator's face at her words, and immediately covered her face with her hands, as though embarrassed at having expressed the thought out loud for the first time. When she pulled her hands away, the LEDs beneath her cheeks glowed the bright, vibrant blue of an embarrassed blush.

"I know, right?" she said with a nervous smile, and striving for a 'light' tone, as though she were making a casual, joking remark, even though they both knew she was in dead earnest. "If anyone had told me two years ago—or even two months ago!—that one day I'd feel like this about Sheldon, I'd have said they were crazy! I mean, just look at—" she broke off abruptly, clearly embarrassed by the words she was about to speak. "I mean…okay, I admit it, at one time, I was…well, kind of put off by his looks." She paused and shrugged. "Stupid, huh? I mean, imagine: me, judging somebody because of the way they look! But…it's true. I admit it… I judged him the same way I always judged other guys: by the way he looks." She recalled her past infatuation with such boys as Don Prima, Sebastian, Shane, Kenny the boy-robot, or Silver Shell; infatuations based solely upon their respective physical appearance and superficial attractiveness to her, but with not much of substance beneath the surface, as things turned out.

"But now…" she went on. "Now, for some reason, looks just…don't seem to matter that much to me anymore. Instead, what really matters to me now is…what a person's got on the inside…you know what I mean?"

"Yes…I think I do," Dr. Wakeman replied.

"And with Sheldon, I can now see a whole lot of qualities in him that I never really noticed or thought about much before," Jenny went on. "Important qualities, valuable qualities…things that really matter."

"Yes, yes…" Dr. Wakeman nodded. "Could you elaborate more on what these qualities are?"

"Well, you know, like…like stuff we talked about before," Jenny replied. "Things like…" she paused, searching for just the right words. "Loyalty… Faithfulness… Devotion… Smarts… Courage… Bravery!" She and her creator exchanged a quick, meaningful glance that indicated they were both thinking of the same thing: Sheldon's role in her rescue from Cluster Prime. "But even besides that, there's something else about him, too," she added quietly. "Something even more important."

"Which is…?"

"Well…" Jenny paused. "He's…kind. I mean, he's never called me names, or said any of the mean things that other kids say to me all the time. Never! Even when he was really, really angry at me! No matter how angry he ever got, he never called me names!" She paused thoughtfully, then went on. "I mean, I know it's not a big thing, not for someone who's battled giant monsters and gone up against Cluster armadas and stuff, but still, it means a lot to me! And he never did anything really mean to me, either. Even with all the really dumb things he's done, he never did any of them just to be mean, like…like some of the other kids do." She shuddered, recalling the nonstop series of cruel pranks she'd endured from other students at Tremorton High over the years.

Dr. Wakeman listened patiently, paying attention not only to her robotic daughter's words, but also to the nonverbal signs of communication she displayed as well. Dr. Wakeman couldn't help but marvel at just how much her robotic daughter had grown and developed emotionally in only a few short years, now displaying a range, depth and complexity that was truly remarkable. She only hoped that she was up to the task of providing the kind of support and guidance that she knew Jenny would need through difficult times such as this, both now and in the future.

Jenny, for her part, was grateful that she was able to talk freely and openly to her creator this way, and share the things on her mind that had been troubling her in recent days. Though it wasn't always easy for her to do so, she had to admit that she almost always felt better afterward, and she appreciated her creator's efforts to be patient, sympathetic and understanding.

And yet…there was still something else that Jenny didn't mention to her creator, something about Sheldon that she also found appealing, in addition to his other good qualities, something new and different: his recent change in attitude. No longer the annoyingly-clingy and needy nerd that he'd been in the past, Sheldon now seemed to possess a level of self-confidence, self-assuredness and a kind of inner strength which Jenny had never seen in him before. Whether it was a result of some of his recent experiences with her, or was the natural result of the normal maturation process, Jenny didn't know. All she did know was that she liked it.

And the more she thought about it, the more she found herself missing him; wanting to be near him. Wanting…him.

It was so ironic, she thought, and so frustrating, the way things seemed to be turning out: right when she found herself wanting to be near him, he now seemed to be pulling away from her, and seemed to be growing increasingly cold and distant in the process as well.

The dilemma frustrated her even as it confused and saddened her.

"Anyway…" she shrugged and went on. "Now that I know what's really important to me, the more I want to—" She stopped short, as though afraid of going further. She continued, but in a slightly altered tone. "I…mean, I want to…spend more time with him now, doing the kinds of fun things he always wanted to do with me, but that I never…wanted to bother with before." She paused, and lowered her voice. "Things that…I now wish we had done together, when I had the chance." She paused with a wistful sigh. "But…now that I really messed things up with him good this time, the question is, what can I do about it now?"

"Well," Dr. Wakeman said, trying to adopt an 'encouraging' tone. "There's no reason to lose hope. After all, things could always change for the better, perhaps even when you least expect them to. Look at the situation in our own family, for instance. I certainly never would have believed in a thousand years that I would ever reconcile with my sister, Wisteria. And yet I did! Thanks to you, of course, and your cousin Glen," she smiled. "Thanks to your efforts, Wisteria and I now get along better than we have in years! We haven't gotten along this well since we were children! We even write to each other regularly now—not that it's all that easy to stay in touch with her, since she's always on the move, but still! And whenever she's in town, she's always welcome to stay with us for as long as she likes, at any time. We're real sisters again, and I have you to thank for it!" Dr. Wakeman's smile widened, and Jenny blushed.

"Aw gee, Mom!" she said with a broad grin. "You're embarrassing me!"

"All right, all right," Dr. Wakeman chuckled, with an amused wave of her hand. "What I'm trying to say is this: if you could even manage to win over your Aunt Wisteria—who, you may recall, wasn't exactly thrilled to have a robot for a niece!—then you certainly have a good chance of winning back Sheldon, who was, after all, quite fond of you, once upon a time!" She smiled warmly, and Jenny smiled demurely in response, her blush deepening.

"So just give him a little more time," Dr. Wakeman went on. "Continue to be patient with him, friendly and understanding, and I'm sure that, in time, he'll be friendly to you in return, just as he always has in the past."

Jenny's smile lasted only a fleeting moment longer, before it gradually dissolved once again into a look of wistful sadness.

"I'll try," she said. "But sometimes… Oh, I don't know, sometimes, I get the feeling that it's already too late. That no matter what I do, I'm never going to get him to…like me again…the way he used to…" she hesitated. "Sometimes…when he…looks at me now, I almost feel like…" she abruptly broke off with a shudder.

"Like what?"

"Forget it, it's…" she shook her head, with a dismissive wave of her hand. "It's nothing, it's…stupid."

"What's 'stupid?' Tell me."

"No, no, it's dumb and silly and stupid! And you're gonna think I'm dumb for even thinking of it!"

"Now, now, Jenny, don't be absurd. I'm not going to think that you're…'dumb.'" Dr. Wakeman winced at the word she never used. "So…what is it that you almost feel like sometimes?' Hmm…? Jenny…? Tell me what you're thinking… Tell me what you're feeling… Talk to me…" Dr. Wakeman prompted, gently coaxing her creation to openly communicate with her.

"Well…it's just…" Jenny began, then paused with a deep sigh. "It's…something that Brad once told me about that happened a long time ago; a few years before he and I ever even met. It was when Tuck was real little, like maybe four years old or so, and he had this one special favorite toy that he really, really liked, a Ranger Ralph action-figure. From what Brad told me, Tuck was really attached to that toy. Everywhere Tuck went, Ranger Ralph had to go with him. The two were inseparable. Whenever the family went out anywhere, whether it was dinner at a nice restaurant, or on a vacation-trip, or a weekend drive up to the lake, or to the mountains or something, Tuck had to bring his Ranger Ralph action-figure with him or else he'd cry and put up a real fuss. And if he ever lost it, misplaced it or otherwise couldn't find it, he'd throwing a real crying tantrum that would sometimes last for hours, until somebody finally found it for him."

She paused, and Dr. Wakeman waited for a beat, then gently coaxed her to continue. "All right," she said. "Go on…"

"Well, one day, with no warning, and for no apparent reason, Tuck suddenly picked up his Ranger Ralph toy, frowned at it real hard, like he was angry at it or something, and he said, 'I don't wanna play with you anymore!' And he just threw it aside! Just like that! And he never played with it again after that. Ever!"

"Huh! How odd," Dr. Wakeman said. "Did he say why?"

"Nope; he never did. Brad and their parents asked him several times, but all he ever said was, 'I don't wanna play with him anymore! I don't like him anymore!' And that was it! He never went near it again, never even touched it! Brad and his parents tried everything to change his mind, but nothing did. Finally, I think they ended up giving the toy away to a charity-bin or selling it off at a garage-sale or something."

Dr. Wakeman blinked and sat in silence for another moment, before she replied, "Okay…but…I'm afraid I don't quite see what that has to do with—"

"Well…I know it sounds crazy and weird and stupid," Jenny explained. "But lately, I can't stop thinking about that story. In a nutty kind of way, I…kinda feel like that stupid toy that Tuck got tired of playing with! And I feel like maybe…maybe Sheldon kind of feels that way about me, too!" In spite of herself, Jenny's vocoder caught at the end, betraying the emotions underneath her words. "You know, like maybe he doesn't think of me as a person anymore; maybe he only thinks of me as just a big stupid toy that he lost interest in, that he doesn't want to play with anymore! Maybe…" She hesitated with a sob, and turned from her creator, so that she wouldn't see the tears filling her eyes. "Maybe…he never thought of me as a person…! Maybe he always thought of me as just a…a big stupid toy that he wanted to play with…! And that's all!" She choked back a sob at the very last.

"Oh Jenny, now that's just absurd! Preposterous! Nobody thinks of you as 'just a big toy!' Least of all Sheldon, of all people, and you know it!"

"All right, so I'm being absurd!" Jenny cried. "But I can't help it! If you saw the way he's been looking at me lately—or not looking at me!—you'd understand! Sometimes," she hesitated, then pressed ahead. "Sometimes…the way he looks at me now…I half-expect him to say: 'Go away, Jenny! I don't wanna play with you anymore!'" She closed her eyes and tears streamed down her cheeks, as she uttered the painful, imagined words.

Dr. Wakeman studied her robotic daughter closely, privately wondering—not for the first time, nor would it be the last—if equipping a robot with a set of emotions was such a good idea after all. For she realized—also not for the first time—that doing so meant that, sooner or later, those feelings were bound to be hurt. And now, apparently, was just such a time

"Jenny… Jenny" Dr. Wakeman said softly, soothingly. "Listen to yourself. Please. I mean, really listen to yourself. Listen to what you're saying. Now, regardless of how Sheldon may have been acting around you lately, do you really believe that he could ever think of you as, in your words, 'just a big stupid toy'? Now, be honest."

Jenny looked deeply into her creator's eyes for a long time, then wiped her eyes and lowered her head. "No…no, I suppose not…" She replied with a sigh. "I know I'm probably just being stupid and ridiculous, but…I can't help it! That's what I feel! And lately, I just can't put it out of my mind."

"Well…I think your worries in this regard are entirely unfounded, Sweetie. Trust me: Nobody, but nobody who really knows you could ever think of you as…" she hesitated, as the words were just as painful for her to speak as they were for Jenny. "As 'just a big toy.' Least of all, Sheldon." She paused. "Now…if you think about it—and I mean really think about it carefully—you'll come to see this for yourself, and you'll know that it's true."

Jenny looked up to meet her creator's eyes and Dr. Wakeman smiled comfortingly to her. Creator and robot regarded each other in silence for several long moments, with Jenny taking comfort in her creator's nurturing smile, words and manner. Eventually, and in spite of herself, Jenny returned a smile of her own, though it required some effort.

"You have friends!" Dr. Wakeman went on. "Real friends, who think of you and care about you as a person! And Sheldon would almost certainly have to be near the top of that list! He just…" she hesitated, searching for just the right words. "He just…may have temporarily forgotten it, that's all."

"I sure hope you're right Mom," Jenny replied with a wistful sigh as she lowered her head. "Because right now, the way I feel…I think I would do just about anything to win back his friendship. Anything!" She paused, then continued in a soft voice. "All I want is a second chance… That's all... Just a second chance... To go back…and do things differently…and do them right this time!"

Suddenly, Jenny lifted her head and looked at her creator. She had a curious look to her face, which Dr. Wakeman found vaguely troubling, as she'd come to know that look all too well over the years. "Mom…?" Jenny asked. "Are you sure I can't borrow that time-machine you've got stashed away in the basement?"

Dr. Wakeman sighed in exasperation. "No, XJ-9!"

"But Mom—!"

"We've been over this before, XJ-9, and the answer is still no! Adamantly, emphatically, inflexibly, no!"

"But I promise I'll be real careful with it!" Jenny pleaded. "And I promise I'll give it right back once I'm finished with it!"

"XJ-9, you can't! You just can't! That time machine is not a toy! And time-travel is not something to be trifled with by amateurs in any case! For one thing, you could create a Time Paradox."

"A what?" Jenny asked in bewilderment, as she was sure she'd never heard her creator use the term before.

"A Time Paradox. If you were to go back in time and meet the past version of yourself, for example, it would create a conflict within the existing timeline, which would violate the laws of Time. Doing so would be disastrous!"

"But—"

"And even if you didn't create a Time Paradox by meeting your past self," Dr. Wakeman went on, ignoring the brief interruption. "There are still other things to consider, other inherent risks involved in time travel. If you were to change one small element of the past—even just one!—and it could even be the smallest, most minute detail you possibly imagine, and it could even be for what you believe is the best of all possible reasons, it would still have a negative impact on the existing timeline. For a whole number of reasons I won't go into; reasons involving Quantum Physics, the Uncertainty Principle, Time-Stream fluctuations, Alternate Timelines, Altered Futures, The Law of Unintended Consequences…I could go on and on. The point is that any small change you make in the past could create terrible consequences in the future. Possibly even more disastrous than the Mega Improbability Event itself! Do you understand?"

"No."

Dr. Wakeman sighed. For a brief moment, she almost considered going into a lengthy and detailed explanation of the principle behind "The Butterfly Effect," but being fully acquainted with her robotic daughter's notoriously-short attention-span, she decided against it.

Instead, she decided upon a more direct, even blunt approach. "Well then," she said. "Perhaps you'll understand this. You can't use the Time Machine because I don't want you to! It is locked away in the vault, safely secured by a complex array of highly sophisticated, top-security anti-theft and anti-tampering devices, and there it shall remain! And that's final!"

Jenny mulled over her creator's words in silence for a moment, then lowered her head. "Yes, Mother," she said, accepting the final verdict on the matter, but with her arms folded and a disgruntled frown etched upon her face.

"Besides," Dr. Wakeman went on. "It doesn't even belong to me. As I've already told you, several times before, I'm merely…" she hesitated. "Taking care of it, for a friend of mine, until he…" she paused again. "Returns to reclaim it."

"Oh…yeah…" Jenny said. "That friend of yours, what's his name? That Doctor…"

"No, no, no, not him," Dr. Wakeman corrected, shaking her head. "The other one, the one I knew even before that: Professor Wells."

"Oh…him…" Jenny replied. "I know who you mean now."

"Yes, him," Dr. Wakeman said sharply. "At any rate, he should return any day now to collect his time-machine, and be on his way with it, and that will be the end of the matter."

Jenny continued to sulk in silence, so Dr. Wakeman tried a different tack. "Now, I know you're disappointed," She spoke gently now, in marked contrast to her earlier, severe, 'scolding' tone. "And I know it must be tempting to try and use an artificial means such as a time machine to solve your personal problems. But really, Sweetie, do you really believe it's necessary to resort to such drastic measures? And do you really think it would be advisable to do so? Think about it. Speaking hypothetically, let us suppose that you did use the time-machine to go back in time, to…well, re-do certain things. And, just for the sake of argument, let us also suppose that you could do so without disrupting the existing natural time-line. What would you learn from the experience? Would you learn anything? Would you learn the same lessons that you've learned from having experienced those events as they actually occurred? Would you have had cause to think about the same things and re-evaluate your personal priorities? Would you have gained the same insights, and arrived at the same conclusions as you have now?"

She paused, allowing Jenny to think about her words and consider their full implications. She went on:

"After all, it is possible—even likely—that you only have these thoughts and feelings about Sheldon now because of the self-examination you've undergone as a result of your—" She hesitated as she struggled to find suitable terms to address the still-sensitive topic. "Recent conflict with him. If that…unfortunate incident had never occurred, if it had been somehow blotted out from history, as you now apparently propose to do, then you likely wouldn't have gone through that same subsequent period of introspection, self-examination, and re-evaluation of priorities, so it's therefore highly unlikely that you would have arrived at the same conclusions that you have. And it's therefore unlikely that you would feel quite the same way about Sheldon that you do now. In fact, you'd probably still think of him more or less as you always have in the past: as simply a nuisance and a pest, nothing more."

Jenny's mouth dropped open, and she stared, stunned, at her creator. The words she'd been told were blunt, and they struck her at her very core, but the truth they contained could not be denied.

"But I just…" she struggled feebly to respond. "I just…want to go back and fix things, that's all. I just want to make Sheldon happy! And…and make him like me again, like he used to! Is that really so terrible?"

"There's nothing terrible about your intentions, Sweetie," Dr. Wakeman replied. "Your intentions are certainly good, that isn't the question. But the fact is, as I told you once before when we discussed this subject, life simply doesn't come equipped with an 'Undo Key.' When we make mistakes in our personal lives, we can try our best to make up for them, try to make amends for them to the extent that we can, learn what life lessons we can from them, and try to apply those lessons in the future. That is the point. We learn. But if we were to fall into the habit of using a convenient artificial means—such as a time machine!—to undo or correct our mistakes, in order to avoid the sometimes-painful lessons learned from them, then we'd likely never learn anything. We'd continue to make the same foolish mistakes over and over and over again, never learn anything, and likely never get anywhere in life." She paused, allowing her words to fully register. "Do you see what I'm getting at…Jenny?"

Jenny pondered her creator's explanation, and after a moment, she shrugged. "I…I guess so," she said with a sigh. "Basically, you want me to just forget about the time machine, right?"

"Well, yes, but more to the point—"

"And you think I should keep trying with Sheldon, right?"

"Well…" Dr. Wakeman drew a deep breath. "I just think that…you should continue trying the most basic things first—at least, for a while longer anyway—rather than resort to such drastic measures as using a…" she hesitated, then grinned a crooked smile as she finished. "A time machine!" Both robot and creator laughed; it did seem a pretty ridiculous idea, when viewed in this light.

"So yes, I would advise you to continue to be patient and friendly to him," Dr. Wakeman continued. "And I'm sure that, sooner or later, he'll get the idea and respond in kind, just as he always has before."

Jenny pondered her creator's words, trying to force herself to believe them. "But Mom…" she said, her all-too-brief smile now vanished. "What if you're wrong? What if Sheldon really doesn't like me anymore? At all? No matter what I do? No matter how patient or friendly I am to him? What if our friendship really is over, for good? And there's nothing I can do to fix it? What then?"

Dr. Wakeman fell silent and remained so for a very long time, as she considered her next words very carefully. This matter required delicate handling, she knew, and although she didn't want to have to mention certain things, she also knew that they must be brought up, at least as possibilities. "Well…Sweetie…" she began gently. "I hate to say this…but the unfortunate fact is that there are always going to be certain things in life that one simply cannot change or control. Regardless of what we might want. And it is possible that your friendship with Sheldon might be one of them."

"But Mom!" Jenny protested with just a hint of a whining tone.

"Now, I'm not saying that your friendship with him is necessarily over," Dr. Wakeman hastened to clarify. "In my opinion, it's much too soon to arrive at that conclusion. But we have to at least consider certain possibilities, one of which is that your friendship with him may not ever be exactly as it was before. It may have…changed somewhat, as a result of recent events, in which case, things might never be quite the same between you as they once were."

"But it's different now!" Jenny exclaimed insistently. "Because I feel different about him now! I want to be friends with him this time! I really, really do!" Her pitch rose in intensity, heightening her desperation.

"Yes, yes, I understand that," Dr. Wakeman said softly. "I understand what you're saying, Sweetie, and I understand how you feel. Truly, I do. But the truth is that there are certain possibilities in life which you cannot ignore, and for which you must prepare. And one such possibility is that Sheldon's feelings toward you may have…" she paused, searching for just the right words. "Evolved somewhat. And if that is so, then his behavior toward you will have likely changed as well. And it could even be for reasons that have nothing whatsoever to do with you. His life may simply…be on an entirely different trajectory now, and if that is so, then it might not ultimately matter what you might want, or what your intentions and motives are now."

"But—but he's just got to give me another chance!" Jenny cried, her pitch rising. "He's just got to! Why can't he understand that? Why's he being so stubborn? Can't he see what it means to me? Doesn't he care how I feel?"

Dr. Wakeman paused thoughtfully for a long time before she replied, gently . "Sweetie, perhaps the question you ought to be asking is, whether you truly care about how he feels."

Jenny gave a brief shake of her head. "I—I don't understand."

"Well, let me put it to you this way. Do you want Sheldon to be happy? I mean, truly happy?"

"Well, of course, Mom! That's what I'm saying! All I want is a second chance, so that I can—"

"Jenny, just listen to me. Please. What I'm saying is this: If you really truly care about Sheldon, if you really truly want him to be happy, then perhaps you ought to be prepared to simply…let him go. If that really, truly is what he wants…then be prepared…to simply let him go."

"But…but how do I know if that's what he really wants?"

"I'm saying, if it is, Sweetie," Dr. Wakeman said gently. "If it is."

Jenny opened her mouth, as if to respond, then slowly closed it again. A long, heavy silence followed, as Jenny mulled over the full implications of her creator's words. Eventually however, she slowly lowered her head, and released a tiny resigned sob of acceptance.

Seeing this, Dr. Wakeman continued, in a more encouraging tone. "Now…again, I'm not saying your friendship with Sheldon is necessarily over," she said. "But if it is, then at least you'll be able to say that you tried…right? You tried…and you've done everything you possibly could." She paused. "Isn't that true?"

Jenny sighed. "I…I know…it's just that…I hate to think that I…failed, somehow... Failed him!"

Another long silence followed, finally broken by Dr. Wakeman, speaking very softly. "Well then Jenny, perhaps this might help," she said. "Have you ever heard of 'The Serenity Prayer?'"

Jenny shook her head.

"Well, it goes like this: Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things that I can, and the wisdom always to know the difference.'" She recited the prayer slowly, carefully, allowing Jenny to fully absorb its meaning. "Now…please think about those words. Think about them very carefully." She advised. "Now…do you think you can see how their meaning applies here?"

"Yeah…yeah, I see what you mean!" Little by little, Jenny's mood gradually brightened, and a smile grew upon her features, as the meaning of the prayer became clear to her. "It means I should stop sitting around, moping and sulking and feeling sorry for myself, and instead, have the guts and the courage to take charge of the situation with Sheldon, and just do whatever I need to do to change it for the better! Just face it, deal with it and overcome it! Just like I would with any other challenge! And not let anything stop me!"

Dr. Wakeman blinked. "Um, well, XJ-9, that wasn't really—"

"And that's exactly what I'm going to do, too!" Jenny said, patting a balled-up metallic fist decisively against her palm. "Up to now, I just haven't been assertive enough, that's all! That's been my whole problem, right from the beginning! I need to be more assertive! So from now on, I'm through being such a wuss and a wimp! Instead, I'm gonna work even harder to make Sheldon like me again! No matter what it takes, by Jobs, I'm going to make Sheldon like me again if it's the last thing I ever do! And that's that!"

With a beaming smile, she concluded her vow with a tiny little nod to herself, as though firmly locking her new goal in place within her mind.

"But Sweetie, that really wasn't the point I was trying to—"

"Oh, but you're right, Mom! Don't you see? You're right! You are so right!" Jenny's mood was now positively incandescent, and she leapt from her chair and bounced over to her creator, embracing her with a big hug. "Thanks, Mom! Oh, I am so glad we had this talk! I feel way better now! 'Cuz now I know just what I have to do!"

"But XJ-9, I don't think you quite understood the point of the—"

"Come on, Mom!" Jenny said, returning the steel chair to its place in the corner, before trotting back to the center of the holochamber. "Let's get back to the drill! Right now, I feel like a zillion dollars! Like I'm ready to take on anything! So come on! We've still got a lot of practice to get in, if I'm gonna be ready to tackle that big doozy mega-improbability thing, right?" She grinned, hoping to re-engage her creator's enthusiasm for the task at hand, then resumed her combat-stance. "Come on, big doozy mega-improbability thing!" she exclaimed, now fully prepared for anything her creator could dish out. "Come on, ya big ugly! Jenny's ready for ya!"

Dr. Wakeman sighed and shrugged. Oh, very well! She thought. I can always clarify the true meaning of the Serenity Prayer some other time. Later on this evening, perhaps…

She gave the verbal commands for the practice-drill simulation to resume, and the ashen-grey walls vanished, replaced by the virtual cityscape of the program. Another verbal command, and the Octo-Robo-Ninjas also re-appeared, their coiled steel tentacles raised menacingly as they faced off against Jenny.

"Commence drill," Dr. Wakeman commanded, and the program began its run. This time however, Jenny's performance was immediately and markedly improved. The speed of her reflexes and evasive moves had increased dramatically, so much so that she now easily dodged and maneuvered around the Ninja Squids, nimbly evading every blow and strike from their lashing tentacles, while simultaneously delivering a high number of counter-punches, pre-emptive blows and good, solid, on-target strikes of her own. She delivered her punches and kicks so swiftly in fact, that her opponents never seemed to see them coming. Her accuracy in weapons-fire had also vastly improved, to the point where her scores now averaged 95 direct on-target hits out of every hundred shots fired.

Good, good, very good…! Dr. Wakeman thought with an approving smile and a nod as she noted and recorded the results. Now, let's try making things a little bit more challenging for her…

With that, she made a small adjustment to the holochamber's controls to randomize the fighting-styles and tactics of the Ninja Squids, mixing them up in order to keep Jenny guessing. She also activated a sub-routine that allowed them to learn from Jenny's own fighting style, adapt to them and even be able to anticipate some of her moves. But Jenny didn't seem too troubled by it; she noticed something was different, but regarded it as nothing more than a minor inconvenience, quickly adapting to it without a moment's hesitation. Without even thinking about it, she simply randomized her own fighting-techniques and tactics, mixing up her moves and styles, and switching from one to another even faster than the Ninjas could keep up with, let alone adjust to.

At one point in the drill, the "Alpha," or lead Ninja Squid caught Jenny unprepared with a lucky shot: a swift and unexpected swipe of its tentacle, which caught her just under the chin in a sharp uppercut. Her only response was to regard the Squid with a withering frown, and sneer, "Oh, you wanna get cute, huh? Well, let's see how you like this, wiseguy!" With that, she immediately transformed into her multi-armed "Shiva" configuration, and coupled it with her multi-legged "Spider" configuration, after which she scrambled in low, fast and close to the Ninja, then leapt up and delivered a stunning, driving punch right between the eyes. She then followed up with a thundering torrent of lightning-quick punches and kicks all over the entire length of its body, effectively knocking the fight out of it within seconds and sending it to the ground with a resounding crash. She then turned to face the other Squids, now encircling her from all sides.

"You wanna dance too, pretty-boys?" she called out as she patted a balled-up metallic fist against a palm. "Well, bring it on! I'm ready for ya!"

The Ninja Squids hesitated for only a moment, then lunged at her, one by one, their tentacles all reaching out as if to grab and ensnare her, only to receive the exact same treatment and meet the exact same fate as their leader had only moments earlier. In seconds, each of the Ninja Squids received a good, sound pummeling from Jenny before being cast limply aside like so many scraps of garbage.

With the last Ninja Squid now safely out of the way, she re-configured back into her usual configuration of two arms and two legs, fired up her ponytail-jets and soared high into the air, her fists raised aloft in a victory pose.

"And the Blue Plate Special for tonight," she cried triumphantly with a beaming smile. "Battered Calamari à la Jenny!"

Dr. Wakeman smiled at Jenny's little joke, as well as at the restored excellence of her fighting skills. Impressive! She thought with a tiny, approving nod. Very impressive! Now let's try pulling out all the stops, and see how she handles it…!

She then adjusted the controls for the holochamber once more, to combine all the elements from the previous drills into one: the Ninja Squids, the Megadroids, the 4-armed Sumo Hamsters, and the Cyber Hydra, all now surrounded Jenny at once.

Huh! Piece of cake! She thought with a crooked smile, as she eyed her many opponents, flexing her metallic fists.

In a flash, all the opponents charged Jenny at once from all directions. But they barely even fazed her. Instead, she proceeded to systematically punch, kick and pummel the daylights out of each and every one of them, one right after the other, just as quickly as they came within her field of view. Her reaction-speed had by now reached such an enhanced degree that she almost seemed to anticipate the moves of her opponents before they'd happened, easily ducking any offensive blows, while delivering good, solid, punches and crushing roundhouse kicks. Her accuracy with her weapons had also increased, to the point where she now almost never missed, every rocket blast or laser strike unerringly reaching its mark.

She also continued to transform into various configurations, mixing and matching from shape to shape at such a dizzying rate that her opponents couldn't keep up, let alone mount an effective defense against her. In minutes, they were all left dazed and reeling like punch-drunk boxers in a ring.

She was just about to begin finishing them off one by one when she was suddenly seized from behind by something grabbing her by the wrists and ankles and pulling them taught, spread-eagle fashion, immobilizing her.

She swiveled her head around to face her attacker. It was none other than the lead Ninja Squid. "Oh, you again, huh?!" she grumbled. "Well, I've just about had it with you, pal!"

With that, she fired up her ponytail-jets and shot straight up into the air like a rocket, where she hovered for a moment, then doubled over in one quick motion to bring her wrists and ankles close together. She then began to spin like a top, whipping the squid around her in circles like a sling. Faster and faster she spun in a mid-air pirouette, gradually increasing her speed to 100 RPM, then 200, then 300.

When the speed reached 360 RPM, the Squid blacked out and lost consciousness, and slackened its grip on her wrists and ankles. The moment it did, Jenny swiveled her hands around in a quick snap of her wrists to grab all eight of the Squid's now-limp tentacles. Then with one swift motion, she heaved it over her head and began using it as a club to beat down the few remaining opponents still left standing. One after the other, they were knocked down and swept aside. It was a crude method, but an effective one, which allowed her to conclude the drill in a clear, decisive victory.

Settling down gently on the floor again, Jenny casually tossed the Ninja-Squid-turned-club over her shoulder and looked hopefully over to her creator.

Dr. Wakeman regarded Jenny with a reserved but pleased smile and nodded. "That's enough for today." She said. "Computer, stop program. Save results and close."

The simulated cityscape vanished, immediately returning to the grid-lined ashen-grey holochamber interior. Jenny eased out of her combat-mode, and trotted excitedly over to her creator's side. Even before she spoke, her elation was evident.

"Well Mom, how did I do?" she asked jubilantly. "Did I do okay? It felt like I did better this time!"

"Yes, yes," Dr. Wakeman murmured, as she jotted down notes of Jenny's performance-statistics, copying them from a nearby computer-display. "Your performance was much improved this time… Far above the normal curve, in fact."

She tried to sound coldly clinical and objective, but she couldn't ignore the significance of what she'd just witnessed. Clearly, Jenny's performance was greatly affected by her moods: she had performed much better when she was happy, or at least hopeful about something.

Fascinating…! Dr. Wakeman thought as she scanned the drill results. XJ-9's combat-performance greatly enhanced by improved morale! Just as with any living organism! I must analyze and detail these results more fully when I type up my notes later on this evening!

She looked up at her creation, and regarded her in awed silence for a long moment. Even now, she thought, there's still something new to discover about XJ-9 all the time…!

Jenny noticed her creator's sudden silent stare. "Is something wrong, Mom?" she asked.

Dr. Wakeman smiled and shook her head. "No, no," she said. "Everything is satisfactory. You've performed very well today."

"Oh, okay. Um…since we're through for the day, can I go next door and hang out with Brad and Tuck for awhile?"

Dr. Wakeman nodded. "Very well," she said. "You've worked very hard this afternoon, so you deserve a few hours' recreation, I think."

"Okay, thanks, Mom!" Jenny gave her creator a quick hug, then turned and trotted out of the holochamber and upstairs.

"But don't stay too late," Dr. Wakeman added. "This is still a school night, remember."

"I know, I won't," Jenny replied as the front door closed behind her.

A quizzical smile appeared over Dr. Wakeman's features. I wonder, she thought. Is it right for a scientist to feel pride in the performance of her creation? Like a parent taking pride in the achievements of her child?

She pondered the question for another few moments, then dismissed it, choosing instead to focus on the task of organizing her notes into various folders.


Sheldon sat at his desk, studiously jotting down notes on sheets of lined binder-paper, periodically checking specific passages in the open textbook before him.

Man, this stuff's getting easier all the time! He thought, grinning. I thought it'd be getting tougher toward the end of the term, but instead, it's getting easier! I'm getting it done in just a fraction of the time now! Which means I'll have even more free time later on! And all weekend long, just ahead of me!

But then he remembered. A whole weekend…to do what, exactly? He asked himself.

He was still grounded, of course, so there would be no leaving the house, no workshop-privileges, no visits to Legendary Warriors to buy comic-books or for gaming-sessions with his friends, nothing. House-arrest, basically. Terrific! He thought grimly, his ever-so-brief smile now replaced by a gloomy frown.

He still had his books of course, his magazines, his graphic-novels and mangas, and the few comic-books he hadn't already read several times, and—fortunately—internet-access, one of the few privileges his mother still permitted him. (Though it took a great deal of persuasion on his part to get her to agree to it; he finally convinced her by pointing out that he still occasionally needed it for school work.)

But in spite of these diversions, Sheldon was still bored. If only he could get into his workshop again, he thought, and get his hands on something physical, something tangible, something real to work on, that would be something, at least. He could get started on some new projects, finish up some old ones, basically work on something, anything, just to work off steam and pent-up nervous energy, but…no, it was out of the question.

A few more days of this, he thought with an exasperated sigh, and I'm gonna start climbing the walls!

He took a deep breath and re-focused his attention back onto his nearly-completed homework. He jotted down the last few lines of the assignment, then tossed the pen aside with a triumphant flourish. Finished! He thought with a relieved smile, as he leaned back in his chair, yawned widely and stretched. He closed the textbook, slipped the pages of the completed assignment into the appropriate section of his binder, then slipped the textbook and binder into his backpack and set it down beside the desk, ready for the morning.

He rose from his chair, still stretching, and walked over to his bed, picking up a fifth-read comic book from the nightstand, left there from the night before. Flopping onto his bed, he opened the comic and began flipping through the pages.

Man, I'm running out of stuff to read! He thought, barely skimming the pages. Only a couple more after this one and then what…? Well…I still have some science-fiction novels I haven't gotten around to yet … Maybe I can get started on one of those… I've been meaning to read The Star Yeast for some time now… Maybe I'll start reading that next…

He flipped through a few more pages when the phone on the nightstand rang. He reached over and picked it up.

"Hello?" he said, then paused. "Oh hi, Mom." Another pause. "Yeah, I just finished it, just now. A couple of minutes ago."

He paused again, listening. "Oh…I don't know…" he said. "I thought I'd just read. Or maybe fool around on the Internet for awhile." He paused and rolled his eyes, then replied with an exasperated, "No, Mom! No, I'm not gonna do that! I never look at those websites, you know that!" He began to blush. "'Cuz I just don't, that's all! Jeez, you oughta know me better than that by now." His blush deepened, and he wished his mother would change the subject.

He took a deep breath and listened for another minute, then replied, "No…no, I haven't eaten yet." He paused. "Oh, you did? Well, thanks, Mom. No…no, I'll probably just nuke it in the microwave or something. Or maybe eat it cold. No, no, it's okay; no big."

Another long pause followed, before he replied with a disappointed. "Oh, you do, huh? Oh… Okay… No…no, I understand… I know… Work comes first, I totally get that. Well, um…what time do you think you'll be home, then?" He paused. "Oh, that late, huh? No, no, it's okay… It's totally not a problem… I just wondered, that's all. Yeah, I'll probably be asleep by then. Okay... Talk to you later. 'Bye, Mom." He hung up the phone, stretched again as he rose from his bed, then walked back to his desk and switched on his computer.

I wonder if Gordo or Phred heard anything more about the Captain Crush movie… he wondered. I know Gerard doesn't think it's gonna happen, but he's such a pessimist and so negative about everything all the time, you can't really go by much of anything he says…

The computer finished booting up and Sheldon immediately logged into his email account. He'd been so preoccupied with his extra homework over the past week that he'd pretty much ignored his email. Not that he ever received that many messages from anyone anyway; mostly all he ever got was spam. He was therefore quite surprised to discover that he now had quite a few messages queued up in his inbox.

Wow, look at them all! He thought. They sure piled up fast!

He scrolled through the long list of messages, looking for the one from Gordo that he'd been hoping for and spotted it, with the headline, 'Crush Flick to Click.'

There it is! he thought. That's gotta be it! The article he was talking about during lunch today!

He was just about to click on it when he noticed that it was preceded by at least a dozen emails from Jenny.

Jenny? He thought with a puzzled frown. That can't be right... Why in the world would she suddenly start emailing me? And why so many? It's gotta be a mistake…or something…

He was just about to click on one to examine when he hesitated at the last moment. Oh wait, I know what it is! He thought. I bet it's a spammer or something! That's what it's got to be! Just another dumb spammer. Somebody must've somehow hacked into Jenny's email account, and now they're using it to send junk emails to everyone on her mailing-list. Sure, that's gotta be it… It's probably somebody trying to sell me a luxury timeshare in Alviso, or somebody claiming to be a long-lost prince of Wakanda, needing help to claim their inheritance or something… Sure, that's all it is... Ah well... Next time I see her in school tomorrow, I'll let her know her email's been hacked into… If I think of it…

With that, Sheldon passed over Jenny's emails without another thought, opening up Gordo's email instead. He then clicked on the attached link in the message to bring up the article they'd discussed earlier in the day. He read the article thoroughly, then left some comments and opinions of his own in the 'comments' field below, which soon prompted a series of responses from other readers. He then responded with further comments of his own, and before long, he found himself embroiled in the middle of an increasingly heated and contentious online debate with four other readers. The debate so absorbed his full energy and attention for the remainder of the evening (interrupted only by short breaks for a bite to eat and a quick trip to the bathroom) that every other matter had been completely banished from his mind.

At last, after hours of blistering online debate, and with his energy waning and his bedtime rapidly approaching, Sheldon finally decided to call a night and logged off. He rose wearily from his desk, now thoroughly exhausted, and shuffled groggily into the bathroom where he took a shower. After emerging a short while later, he flopped straight into bed, and almost immediately dropped off to sleep, without even bothering to read first, the way he normally did.

Jenny's long series of emails remained unread, and were now completely forgotten.


End Chapter 6