I had carried the unconscious body of Nagato behind a shed for spare equipment on the school's field for sports. I had propped her up against the shed's wall. My heart was racing along with mind.

What should I do? Take her to the nurse? Call an ambulance? But what if they found out that she isn't a human? Could they? What if the government comes and takes her away and starts doing tests on her? What do I do? I have to do something! She might be dying for all I know! No, don't be stupid, she just collapsed? Heatstroke? A nigh omnipotent alien-creature just fainted… Sure, that's just perfectly normal, idiot! What if people see me, carrying a defenceless, unconscious girl around? What if I'm arrested? Damn it! Focus on her, you selfish prick!

Because I had been pacing around nervously and muttering to myself in a state of panic, I hadn't noticed Nagato open her eyes. It was only when she started quietly muttering in a monotone whisper that I noticed her.

I crouched down next to her, grasping her by the shoulders. "Nagato! You're –"

"Rebooting…… resetting protocols…… processing…… new protocols received……. Requesting confirmation……. New Initiative accepted……. Memory transfer to alternate unit commencing to await later access time while new data is processed…… processing….. initiating diagnostic… all systems fully operational… requesting memory recovery…. Request denied…"

Nagato blinked her ebon eyes, before she turned her head around levelly to face me. "Who are you?"

WHAT?!

"It's me, Kyon!"

What the hell, can't she remember who I am?! If she can't remember me then what about Haruhi and everyone else? Has everything she knows been wiped out, or was it just the parts about me?

"…"

"Hey, Nagato! Snap out of it!" I gently shook her.

Empty eyes stared at me for a moment. She gave a quick glance upwards and blinked before her gaze resettled on my face. "Oh, it is you. I have been briefed on your connections to this unit and the target of observation."

Target of observation?

"Suzumiya Haruhi."

"What the hell is going on here exactly? You're – you're different… somehow. Seriously, what's going on?"

"Your assessment of the situation is correct. I am indeed not the same exact unit you have recently been in contact with."

"Huh?"

"I am a backup program that has been installed in the case of a procedural malfunction. I will be inhabiting this organic interface for now."

What the hell? They replaced Nagato?

"Oi! You tell those Integrated Data Sentient Entity bastards to give us back our Nagato, or I'll go 'John Smith' on Haruhi's ass! I already warned them didn't I?"

Nagato took a moment to consider things, staring up at the sky once again, and then snapped back to attention as if she had received silent orders. "The Integrated Data Sentient Entity is well aware of your threats, human. We will comply with your demands, but reinstallation of previous thought patterns and memories cannot occur at this moment."

"Why the hell not?"

"As you may or may not be aware, this unit has had to observe, process and record immense amounts of data concerning Suzumiya Haruhi and her companions, you included."

Me?

"Yes, as stated before, you are a crucial factor in the ongoing analysis of Suzumiya Haruhi."

Ok, I guess I already did know that… So why couldn't Nagato be returned to normal right now?

"The vast amounts of data this unit is required to process within a mere solar cycle of this planet, or using more common terminology, a day, has been taxing. And that is without all the conflicting data she has discovered concerning the myriad of Suzumiya Haruhi's companions being taken into account. Constant recalibration is required. It is one of the main reasons why this unit was deemed not suitable for a more socially acceptable personality program; such a program would have taken away much needed processing power from all the conflicting data she must process as the unit closest to the target of observation capable of warping old data and creating new data."

Ah… I see, I guess that's why Asakura was so happy and cheerful, she was just backup. But still, it's as if they knew Nagato would be the one to study Haruhi at the closest distance. Then again, making her different was what probably attracted Haruhi to her in the first place.

"System anomalies have been amassing for an extended amount of time. It was only a matter of time until all the conflicting data would cause some sort of…" – Nagato made a short uncharacteristic pause whilst spewing jargon at me, before she continued – "malfunction to occur. All of her personal memories and gathered data are being shifted through various different processors in order aide in the unit's return. The conflicting data must either be deleted, or a new framework must be set up so that conflicting data will not cause any further malfunctions."

Okay, I didn't understand most of that jargon, but the impression I got was that Nagato had had what could be called a nervous breakdown. She was now on extended leave, like at some extra-dimensional spa or something, taking a load off. I liked to think of it that way, at least it beat the alternative. It was all fully understandable when Haruhi is concerned. But this was Nagato, she's not supposed to have nervous breakdowns.

This whole situation seemed highly suspect. Wanting to make sure we weren't being shafted (you never know with these weird alien god characters), I had an important question to ask, before I could even begin to consider relaxing.

"After you… uh, reinstall Nagato, nothing had better have changed with her, or else."

"There is no need for further threats or worries on your part, human. The previous personality will be reinstalled with the minimal amount of adjustments as possible, ensuring a fully functional unit capable of performing her duties without raising any suspicions a change in personalities might incur."

I sighed in relieve. Things were going to be okay, I guess, although I'll have to keep a close eye on this 'Nagato' and the results of this rebooting, or whatever. But even then, a stray nagging thought wouldn't leave me alone:

"And what was this conflicting data?"

Nagato stared at me for a long time with her familiar poker face; it seemed like an eternity, as those empty eyes drilled into me. Even though the face looking back at me was Nagato's, it was somehow disturbingly different. A normal person couldn't tell the minute differences in Nagato's face if they hadn't had as long a time as me to study it. The face I saw now, though calm and practically expressionless, was not the Nagato I knew now, but more like the one I had met for the first time. It's hard to explain in words, but it seemed dreadfully cold and calculating compared to her more recent, calming poker face that I had grown so accustomed to.

I guess I'm not being left with a lot of room for interpretation, am I?