About Forte and Netto's nicknames for each other. 'Net' is easy enough to guess, since it came from Netto. The Japanese pronunciation of Forte is Forute, which is where 'Foru' comes from.
I'm thinking of adding little side stories here and there. Let me know what you think of that.
Guest: Thank you for the review. It made my day. Breaking your heart wasn't an intended effect, but thank you for the input.
Ai Star: From here on the story will be following the anime episodes.
Kitty Katrona: Thank you very much!
I will be going to China for three weeks after school ends, so don't expect me to answer anything during that period.
I don't own Rockman EXE.
Student
The following week was filled with family bonding, Netto getting used to the fact that Rockman would publicly be her navi instead of Forte for an unknown amount of time, and Netto breaking the speed limit on roller skates escaping from the media.
The family bonding was a given, with Netto's reappearance and Yuuichirou's return. After Yuuichirou had finished Netto's student registration forms and visited Sci-Labs to explain that he would be gone longer than expected, the Hikari family had visited the local amusement park the next day.
Rockman being Netto's navi was also a given, because of Forte's reluctance in letting himself be recognized by Yuuichirou. Netto respects Forte's wishes, but she has plans to spend some time with Forte somehow.
The media, however, was not expected, but it should have been. When Yuuichirou went to Sci-Labs, he had mentioned Netto to one of his coworkers in conversation. When Yuuichirou left, the Sci-Lab employees had wondered who Netto was when someone had noticed that Netto and Yuuichirou's missing daughter had the same name. This is much like a chain reaction, starting from Yuuichirou's off-hand mentioning of Netto and somewhat ending with a local reporter overhearing the gossip.
This ended with more reporters than was expected who wanted interviews with Netto. And Netto, who gets nervous when she thinks she's attracting too much attention, had immediately skated away. This started a game of chase that lasted until Netto reached the Hikari home and almost ripped the door off its hinges trying to hurry inside.
Other than that, which was taken care of by Yuuichirou, the rest of the week was uneventful.
Yuuichirou had to return to his research on Sunday. The family was saying their goodbyes at the airport. Netto waited until Haruka and Yuuichirou were finished before going up to Yuuichirou and hugging him.
"Goodbye." She said, then added in a quieter voice. "Papa." Letting her arms drop to her sides, Netto took a step back. Yuuichirou immediately reached over and ruffled her hair, earning a squeak of protest from the girl.
"Do your best in school, alright?" Yuuichirou asked, retracting his hand and wearing that gentle smile that he always seems to have.
Netto grinned and nodded. "Of course!" Later, Haruka and Netto watched as the plane Yuuichirou boarded become a small speck in the sky.
Netto turned towards Haruka with an excited grin. "Let's go home, mama!" She hasn't felt this excited since the last time she did a Full Synchro with Forte.
Netto was so ready for school.
Netto was not ready for school.
The classroom was quiet, the only sound being the tapping and dragging of chalk on the blackboard. Netto was clutching onto her backpack straps. The teacher, Mariko-sensei, had finished writing out Netto's name and turned to the class. There was so many people there, and they were all staring at Netto, which didn't help her nervousness at all. Rockman was introducing himself to the other navis. He seemed to be pretty excited.
'Take slow, deep breaths.' Forte advised. Forte was the best. Netto was so lucky to have him as a partner.
There was a silence in the classroom when the teacher stopped talking. Netto was probably supposed to introduce herself.
"M-my name is H-hikari Netto." She stuttered out, and winced. That could have gone better. The class started whispering among themselves.
'Netto-kun, are you okay?' Rockman asked though the link. He must have picked up her distress.
'No!' Netto responded rather cheerfully. 'I will be soon, so don't worry.'
Rockman didn't seem very convinced, but a student had asked what she liked so she had to put the mental conversation on hold.
"I like to rollerskate." She began quietly. "And I like robots. Oh, and curry too." The questioning continued until Mariko-sensei has to stop them in order to continue the lesson.
Netto quickly walked to her assigned seat and sat down, resting her head on the desk with a sigh. It wasn't even lunch yet and she was already tired. School was hard. Hopefully the day would get easier. She half-listened to the teacher's lecture while staring at nothing.
Lunch time came around faster than she expected. Netto finally raised her head in order to get the lunch tray. She tried the soup first, a smile creeping across her face as she heard the purr-like noise Forte always makes when they have soup. As she ate, she glances at the pink-haired girl Netto sits next to. The pink-haired girl wore a blue vest over a green shirt, and was talking with a mostly pink navi.
"Your navi's really cute." Netto couldn't help but blurt out. 'The cutest I've seen.' Was what she said to Forte. He poorly hid a snort of amusement.
The girl and her navi looked over, surprised. They both blushed at the compliment.
"Thank you. I customized her myself." The girl said. "I'm Meiru and this is Roll." Meiru introduced herself and Roll, who piped up with a "Nice to meet you!"
"Netto-kun?" Netto turned to look at Rockman's PET. Rockman was looking at her curiously. "What are you doing?"
"Just telling Meiru-chan how cute Roll-chan is." Netto told him, enjoying the reappearance of Meiru and Roll's blushes. "This is Rockman." She said as Rockman waved a greeting. Netto then smiled innocently. "Meiru-chan's cute too." Wow, Forte's enjoying this as much as she is. Meiru's pretty red at this point. She could feel Rockman's embarrassment as well.
"Hikari Netto!" Someone shouted, startling Netto enough to drop her chopsticks. The person shouting was the one who sat behind Meiru and wore a green shirt. In his hand was a PET, the navi inside yelling out a "Guts, guts!"
"I challenge you to a-what are you doing?" The person stopped speaking. Netto had leaned over to take a look at the navi, not paying any attention to what was being said. She brightened at the sight of the navi's large form.
"Is your navi customized to concentrate on attack power? That's really interesting!" Netto froze upon realizing that most of the students' attention were on the three of them and slowly turned back around to face her unfinished lunch. Wiping her chopsticks clean, she quickly continued eating, face burning from being the center of attention.
"That's Dekao-kun and his navi, Gutsman." Meiru introduced the pair. Dekao seemed to still be in shock from what Netto had said. "What you said describes Gutsman pretty well. If you get hit by one of Gutsman's attacks, you'll take a lot of damage. He doesn't have much on speed or defense though, so it's easy to dodge him." Netto nodded in understanding.
'I doubt you'll have much trouble with him.' Forte said.
'That's only if Rockman is a battle navi.'
"Hikari Netto!" Dekao repeated, pointing at her for emphasis. "I challenge you to a netbattle after school at Game Soul!"
Netto, who had finished her lunch, was about to accept. She paused as she remembered the promise she had made to Forte.
"Sorry, I can't. I don't have any battle chips." Netto said instead. 'Can you fight?' She asked Rockman.
'Of course I can!' He replied.
"I can help you pick some out." Meiru offered. Roll nodded in agreement.
"Really? That's nice of you." Netto smiled.
The warning bell rang just then, and Dekao had to cut off whatever he was about to say in order to cram food into his mouth as fast as he can.
"Why are you coming with us?" Netto couldn't help but ask Dekao. School has ended for the day, and Netto and Meiru were on their way to Game Soul, a game shop that doubles as an arcade, when Dekao had joined them.
Dekao scowled. "So I can netbattle you after you buy those battle chips, duh!" Then he smirked. "I bet those battle chips won't help you win against my Gutsman."
Forte gave a hiss of anger. Netto ignored Dekao in favor of trying to calm Forte down.
'No need to worry. He won't know what hit him.'
'I know that.' He hasn't calmed down. Sounds like it's going to be Uranet training time later.
The trio entered Game Soul and headed towards the battle chips that were on display. After a discussion on recommended chips and keeping in mind the amount of money that Netto was allowed to use (thanks to Forte's somewhat strict budgeting because of her stunts in Amerope and Creamland), she purchased a couple of Swords, Shotguns, and Area Steals. Eyeing a Barrier chip, Netto decided to buy one of those as well.
"If you're done, let's have a netbattle!" Dekao impatiently said. Meiru had left earlier because of her piano lesson.
"Sorry, not today." Rockman responded, pulling up a list of homework Netto had to finish. There was a lot more on there than she expected. "Netto still has to finish the catch-up work and today's homework. You can have the netbattle tomorrow."
"You heard him." Netto said, already halfway out the door and putting on the roller skates. She didn't really feel up to a netbattle right now. "Bye!" She quickly skated away.
"If x is…then y is…done!" Netto stopped typing and leaned back. She had just finished the last of her catch-up work. In the back of her head, she could hear Forte's maniacal laughter as he finished off yet another navi and absorbed their remains.
"Congratulations! You just have the homework left. Good luck!" Rockman cheered. Netto grinned, getting ready to type again.
Screams. Laughter. The feeling of 'getting full'. How many times has this been now?
'Are you doing alright?' Netto didn't think Forte was injured, but she could feel the fatigue setting in.
'I'm heading back now.' As Netto slowly worked towards completing the homework, Forte used a teleport ability to get back to the regular net from the Uranet. The section he arrived at was abandoned, but still glowed with color.
Netto yawned and rubbed her eyes, saving her homework and heading to the bathroom. Changing into her pajamas and brushing her teeth, she then said a quick "Good night" to Rockman. Turning off the lights and burying herself under the blankets, her mind drifted to Forte as she fell asleep.
Forte looked around the abandoned part of the net. He could feel the link widening a little, as it tends to do when Netto's asleep. Forte took a step, and another, and another, looking around the net slowly. Netto sighed and smiled in her sleep, images of what Forte saw showing up as part of her dreams.
It was a good night.
Netto jerked awake to a scream from downstairs. Scrambling out of bed and rushing downstairs, she was met with the sight of Haruka shying away from the oven which was…on fire?
"Mama!" She shouted. "What happened? Are you alright?"
Haruka nodded. "I'm fine! But the oven…it suddenly caught fire!"
Netto looked around. 'Where's the fire extinguisher!?'
'It's over by the counter!' Rockman quickly answered. Netto turned towards the counter. There it is! Grabbing the object, she pulled out the safety pin, aiming the nozzle at the oven and squeezed the trigger. The extinguishing agent seemed to kill the flames, but the oven then sparked with electricity and the fire returned to its original height.
"What's going on? Why won't the fire die?" Netto asked no one in particular.
'Netto-kun! The computer must be busted. Plug me in, quickly!' Passing the fire extinguisher to her mother, Netto rushed back upstairs.
Grabbing Rockman's PET and running downstairs, where Haruka was trying to put out the fire, Netto hurriedly plugged Rockman into the oven's computer when the fire was lower. Just then, Forte's PET turned on.
'G-what's going on?' Forte asked.
'I'll explain later!' Netto replied back, backing up before the fire could burn her. She took a look at Rockman's PET screen and gasped. "Why are there so many viruses?"
"I don't know, but I think I can take them all down." Raising his buster up, Rockman aimed and fired. None of his shots missed. Soon, the area was clear of anything out of the ordinary. Except for the fire that was still burning in the corner. As Rockman stepped towards the fire, he noticed a silhouette that resembled a navi in the flames before it disappeared. The oven's fire died down, leaving it all burnt.
"Rockman, I'm plugging you out now." Netto said. Rockman nodded and pixelated back into the PET. "I didn't know you could fight that well."
"There are a lot of people who try to hack into Sci-Labs. I'm usually the one who keeps them from accomplishing it." Checking the time, he blinked. "Netto-kun, you should hurry and get ready for school."
"Eh?" Rockman silently brought up the clock. "Eh!? It's that late already!? Shoot!" Netto scrambled up the stairs, already in the process of taking her pajama top off.
'Now?' How impatient.
'Well…'
'There was a navi?' Netto asked Rockman. Class was in session, and everyone had their laptops out. Forte had warned her to not be so reckless when he had been told of the situation.
'Yeah. I couldn't see him all that well, but he's probably the one behind the oven incident.'
'That would mean that the operator was the one who's responsible. Or...' No, it wouldn't be an independent navi. Independent navis tend to keep to themselves, avoiding trouble. And there wasn't much to gain from setting ovens on fire.
'Or?'
'No, it's nothing.' Netto looked over at Meiru. She held Roll's PET in her hand, and Netto could make out bits of conversation between Roll and Gutsman. Stuff like "date," "piano lesson," "no chance," and "Roll Flash!"
Dekao yelped and stood up, earning a reprimand from Mariko-sensei about how asking someone out on a date should be done after school.
Netto leaned towards a giggling Meiru and whispered "Is this normal?"
"It happens at least once a month." Meiru whispered back.
Other than that, class went by smoothly. After school, Dekao approached Netto for a netbattle, which she agreed to. The two made their way to Game Soul and plugged their navis in at an empty fight table.
"Plug-in! Rockman, transmission!"
"Plug-in! Gutsman, transmission!"
The two navis appeared on the field in a burst of light. There was a moment of silence, then:
"Gutsman, attack!" Dekao shouted.
"Dodge it, Rockman!" As Gutsman swung his fists, Rockman avoided the attacks and leaped back each time.
'Is he relying on brute force?' Forte wondered. 'Or…Netto!'
Rockman had been backed up against a corner that prevented him from moving anywhere but forward, where Gutsman was.
"Battle chip, Megaguts Punch, slot in!" Gutsman's fist enlarged and he punched at Rockman. "I've got you now!" Dekao shouted.
'Block him.'
"Block him!" Surprisingly, Rockman easily caught the punch and pushed Gutsman back. Netto grinned. "Our turn to go on the offensive now!" Rockman nodded in agreement and began attacking.
'Netto,' Forte sighed. 'That wasn't what I meant when I told you to block him.'
'Eh? Then what…oh, the Barrier chip! I forgot about that! Sorry.'
"How would Gutsman be losing to someone so small!?" Dekao cried out in dismay. Netto scowled and glared at him.
"A navi's size can't tell you how strong it is!" She took a random battle chip from her pocket, glancing at it briefly. "Battle chip, Shotgun, slot i-"
"Help!" Surprised, Rockman and Gutsman stopped their fight and looked around the arena. There was a beam of light that was shot down between the two navis. It dissipated, revealing Roll.
"Meiru-chan, Meiru-chan is-" Roll broke off into a sob.
"What happened to Meiru-chan?" Netto and Rockman asked at the same time. Wordlessly, Roll brought up a screen that showed Meiru coughing in a room full of smoke.
"That's like what happened this morning!" Netto exclaimed. "Roll-chan, take Rockman to Meiru-chan's house. I'll catch up with you guys." Roll nodded and pixelated away with Rockman.
"Dekao-kun!" Netto turned towards the boy, whose navi had also left for Meiru's house. "Hurry up! I need you to help me get to Meiru-chan's house!" The two raced out of Game Soul, Netto skating only a few feet behind Dekao's scooter. They reached their destination in what must be record time. Dekao had to take a breather as Netto slipped off her skates and sprinted to the front door. It was locked. Netto cursed and grabbed one of the chairs that was out on the lawn. Running to the nearest window, she threw the chair, breaking the window and triggering the burglar alarm. Netto climbed inside, cutting her hands on the glass shards.
'Netto-' Forte began.
'You can yell at me for being reckless later. I need to save Meiru-chan now!' Netto rushed through the rooms and came to the kitchen where Meiru is.
'…Use the front door this time.'
'Thanks, Forte.' Netto helped Meiru stand and made her way to the door. Smoke billowed out as she unlocked and opened the door. Dekao ran forward, helping Netto support Meiru.
"Dekao-kun, take care of Meiru-chan!" Netto began to run back inside the smoking house.
"Netto-kun, wait!" Meiru coughed.
"I'll be fine!" Netto took Rockman's PET out as she made her way to the kitchen, where the source of the smoke should be. Rockman's hit points were decreasing faster than she thought.
'Must be from that navi Rockman mentioned.'
'Which means that I need to get to where he is and give him a battle chip before his hit points reach zero!' Coughing from the smoke, Netto plugged the PET into the oven. "Rockman, I'm here now!"
"Netto-kun!" Rockman smiled in relief. Netto finally got a good look at Rockman's opponent.
'Uwaah, a fire-type navi!'
'Netto. Now's not the time.'
'I know that!' Netto most definitely didn't pout. She broke into coughs again. 'I need to finish this quickly, so…'
"Battle chip, Shotgun, slot in!" Rockman's left arm formed into a buster and he fired at the navi. Their opponent staggered. "Next! Battle chip, Sword, slot in!" Changing from a buster to a sword, Rockman easily sliced off the fire navi's arm, causing him to plug out. With that, the fire was extinguished.
"Who was that navi, anyway?" Netto asked. Meiru had been sent to the hospital. Netto had hurried home and cleaned the injuries on her hands. There were a large number of cuts that had to be bandaged, and both of her hands were wrapped in white when she finished. Of course, that earned her another lecture from Forte.
"He said his name was Fireman." Rockman responded, faintly aware of the stinging from the cuts.
"Fireman, huh?" Netto murmured. 'Hey Forte, didn't Fireman look kind of familiar?'
There was a long pause. 'No.'
Forte was clearly lying. But why?
"Netto-kun, you got an email from Meiru-chan." Rockman said. Netto lifted her head from the pillow to look at him.
"What does it say?" She asked.
"She wants to know if you want to hang out tomorrow after school."
"Sure!" Netto grinned.
'Today's Tuesday, isn't it?' Forte spoke up.
'Yeah. Why do you ask?' Forte went quiet again. Netto waited a while before turning back to talk to Rockman.
'How lucky you are to fight Fireman on a Tuesday.'
Netto raised an eyebrow. 'What does Tuesday have to do with fighting Fire…wait…Tuesday…Fireman…' She snorted and started laughing. She could feel Forte's amusement and pride for making a good joke, which made her laugh even more.
"Netto-kun?" Oh, that was Rockman.
"We fought Fireman on a Tuesday!" Netto couldn't help but laugh out.
"Eh..?" Rockman thought about it. "Is it really that funny?"
"Of course!"
It was a good start to school.
Japanese schools usually have lunch in the classrooms. This is common in elementary and middle schools, but I don't really know if it's the same in high schools.
Since chips like Swords and Area Steals seem to be really common, they should be very cheap. So Forte feels a bit better about Netto being able to netbattle and won't use up too much money.
In the Japanese language, the days of the week are named after the five elements, except Sunday and Monday, which can be translated to Sun Day and Moon Day. Saturday is Earth Day, Friday is Gold Day, Thursday is Wood Day, and Wednesday is Water Day. The thing about Forte's joke is that Netto and Rockman fought Fireman on Tuesday, which is Fire Day in Japanese. And Netto doesn't hear jokes from Forte very often, which makes the joke even funnier to her.