Requested by: ifangirltoomuch, TheArtSmartQueen

Request: Zane/PIXAL

Warnings: None

It had been a few days since the Ninja had destroyed the Overlord virus from within the Digiverse, and they had now focused their efforts on finding Pythor. Lloyd had been brought back from the remote village he ended up in when he escaped the Overlord's clutches, and was now out in the field searching for any clues on the whereabouts of their enemies. Meanwhile, Sensei Wu, Garmadon, Zane, and PIXAL stayed at the Borg Industries tower, both tracking the Ninja and Nya, and searching for Cyrus.

Zane couldn't help but notice how despondent PIXAL looked ever since the inventor had been taken away. He thought about what had happened while he and the others were in the Digiverse, how he was kidnapped while PIXAL was trying to prevent the Nindroids, as well as Pythor, from getting to the Ninja, and how she was still worried for Cyrus' well-being when they returned from the Digiverse. Cyrus created her after all, so she probably viewed him as a father just as Zane had with his. It was no wonder she looked so distraught.

But there was something different about the look in her eyes, as though there was more on her mind than just worry for her creator. He wanted to approach her and ask what was troubling her, but not knowing how exactly to go about doing so made him freeze where he was. He knew he loved her dearly, and wanted to do anything he could to make her happy, but he wondered if she would be willing to open up to him about it.

He eventually gave in to his need to speak to her, and stood up from the swivel chair behind one of the computer monitors. He stood next to her, in front of the large window looking down at the busy city streets below. PIXAL looked up, giving a half-hearted smile before looking away again. Even if she was an android, the look in her bright green eyes still created a human-like image of sadness.

"It is a lovely morning today, isn't it?" asked Zane casually, not wanting to rush into his question too quickly.

"Indeed," PIXAL said with a nod. "It is mostly aesthetically pleasing. My probability scans indicate that it will be a good day to continue our searches."

From the tone of her voice, Zane guessed she was not in the mood for talking, but he did not want to leave her until he figured out what was wrong. It was a while before he spoke again, still hoping to lead into his question slowly.

"What do your probability scans say about our chances of finding who we are looking for?"

PIXAL lifted her gaze again, meeting Zane's eyes at last. "Sadly, they are incapable of calculating that at the moment," she replied. "As well, with every lead we find, and lose, the probability fluctuates too much to keep track of." Her lips curved into a frown. "I hope I can keep better track of them soon."

Zane lifted an eyebrow, knowing this would be the perfect time to ask. "Is there something on your mind?" he asked, trying to seem as though he wasn't thinking about that question beforehand. "Is something wrong?"

She turned her head away again, and Zane could still see the sad look in her eyes. "I...failed at protecting Mr. Borg," she said at last. "I am aware that I am built to assist, rather than for combat, but not allowing him to be captured would be an example of assisting, correct? By that logic, I should have been able to protect both you and Mr. Borg, but I was unable to do so."

Zane was now frowning as well, reaching out a hand to rest it on her shoulder. "You are correct that you were unable to protect him," he began. "But you did protect us, and that is more than enough good you did. We will find Cyrus, don't worry."

"That is not what I mean, Zane," she said, her voice somewhat stern now. "I protected you, but I was unable to protect him. Rather than pursuing only Pythor, we are now going after both him and Cyrus, which only makes our mission more difficult." She lifted her hand to pry Zane's off her shoulder, only to hold it at her side. "I was not strong enough, I was not built for fighting, and now our mission of stopping Pythor is more difficult...all thanks to me."

He stared at her incredulously, understanding completely what she was telling him now. She was not entirely worried about finding Cyrus, he thought. She was also worried about being unable to protect us from threats. At this point, Zane was more unsure than ever about what he was going to say to her next, especially now that she seemed so tense.

"PIXAL, I..." he trailed off, pressing his lips together firmly into a tight line.

"You do not have to say anything, Zane," she sighed. "I take full blame for what happened. I am sorry I made your mission more difficult than it needs to be."

He looked away briefly, before he locked eyes with her again, his gaze more serious this time. "No. There is no one at fault," he insisted. "You did the best that you could, and like I said, that was more than enough."

"But I still won't be strong enough to protect you from our enemies in the future," she protested.

"You may be built to assist, PIXAL, but you said that my power source inside you strengthened your fighting ability. Even with only half of it, you are strong." He took her other hand that wasn't already being held in his own. "And if we fight together, we will be at full strength. Even if we do not fully succeed, we will make our greatest effort in trying, and that is what counts."

PIXAL stared wordlessly at him, her eyes no longer holding their sad glow. Her hands slipped from his grip, as she lifted her arms to wrap them around Zane in a hug. "Yes. I agree. When we have a chance, we will fight together, and I will try my hardest to protect everyone." She rested her chin on his shoulder. "Especially you."

He smiled and wrapped his arms around her waist. "You may not be built for stealth or fighting, but you are strong. I know you are."

Pixane can be pretty difficult to write for sometimes. But it's all worth it in the end because it's just so cute :D

Thank you to ifangirltoomuch and TheArtSmartQueen for requesting this pairing! Stay tuned!