Once the Lastation-Planeptune-lazing-about duo got back their grand racing adventure, little of comparable interest seemed like it was going to happen. After a while, Noire had almost completely forgotten that strange conversation she had had with Neptune earlier. They had eventually opted to ditch games when a computer player had gotten a lead on Neptune and she had decided to be spiteful about it. Standard Neptune behavior. Nothing unusual about that, really.
Now, as peaceful as they could be, the pair found themselves lazing about watching TV and munching on snacks.
"Bwahahaha...! That actress looks like she got plastic surgery, doesn't she? Look at her nose, Noire, look at it!"
"Hey, Neptune, we're 2D... We don't need plastic surgery. Stop that, would you?"
"Uwaaaah, Noire, that's scary... Even I don't get that real about it..."
"W-Well you were being mean!"
Well... As close to peaceful as they could be, anyway.
Noire sighed. This was what she got for trying to keep up with Neptune's pace. Honestly, what she saw in this CPU, she hadn't the slightest idea. Maybe she'd be better off just going home and getting some work done.
... is what she said to herself, but she reached for some more popcorn and made no moves to move all the same. I-It was just because it was too hot to make the trip back though, that was all it was. She'd go when it cooled down in a little while. Maybe after dinner. Maybe they could go out.
Because a restaurant would have air conditioning, after all. That's what it was. Really.
"It was Plutie."
"Eh?"
"Plutie." When had this happened? Neptune was looking at her more seriously now.
The lights weren't turning on. It was all dark in Noire's Lastation Home apartment.
Caught up in her daydreaming about Neptune and her going out for a meal by themselves — now that really would have been a legendary event! — Noire didn't register that Neptune had said a name at first. It was a name she had heard so rarely that even after Neptune repeated herself, Noire still didn't register what was going on.
"The conversation from before? Keep up, Noire..." Neptune sighed. She had an odd expression on her face. It wasn't exactly serious, because she was still kind of smiling, but she was looking annoyed too... It was definitely a Neptune expression, but... What was Neptune talking about anyway? The only conversation from before that Noire could think of didn't make sense here, did it? "So anyway... Like I was saaaayiiiing... I tried to tell Plutie I wanted us to... uh... Ehehehe, this is actually more embarrassing telling you than it was her..."
What was going on here?
"I mean I mean I mean I meeeeaaan, we were already basically married anyway, you know? So I was like... 'Pluuuuutiiiiie, you're the pudding to my spoon! Let's tie the knot already!' ... Ah! I said it! I'm gonna die! Ahahahaha! I can't believe I finally told somebody!"
The black haired goddess felt the blood leaving her cheeks — coincidentally while she watched blood rush to Neptune's — as it dawned on her that Neptune was recalling a story to her. A story from her past. A story of an event from her past that must have happened to Neptune, in case it wasn't clear!
After all, there was no way, no way no way no way noooo waaaaaaaaaay, that Neptune could be saying that she hadn't just wanted to... But that she actually had gone and...
"She turned me down though... Okay, duh, you'd know if she didn't, right?" The stick of candy in Neptune's mouth shifted from one side to the other. What in the world had brought this conversation on? Whatever had done it, Noire was hanging onto every word. It was rare for Neptune to be so thoughtful — then again, it was probably rare for things like getting rejected by someone she cared about to happen in the first place. "She said I was just trying to replace something. Oooooh, soooo deeeeeep, am I right?" Neptune scowled, making herself look extra angry for effect. Noire wasn't sure if it succeeded or not. "We had a big fight about it, 'cause I was like 'Plutie, just reject me the normal way! Don't try to sound smart! At least whip me a little so I can have something to remember you by before I go back to being scared by it!'"
Noire gaped. What kind of reaction was that?! What kind of relationship had the two of them had before this confession of Neptune's, for that matter...?!
Actually... A pretty Neptune-sounding one, if she was completely honest with herself, but she really, really didn't want to be right now.
"For once, she didn't. The nerve of her! Instead she just said she thought she wasn't smart and she went around bragging to everybody she met that day that I told her that I thought she was smart. Totally missed the point!" Neptune puffed out her cheeks in frustration, clearly caught up in the memory of Plutia's way of turning her down. "And she had to be so... so... so..."
The black haired girl beside her wasn't sure if she wanted to know the end of that sentence. So... what?
"So cute about doing it! No wonder the Noire over there was all over her! It gets me so mad!"
Despite how she was feeling at this revelation, Noire nearly fell over hearing that declaration of Neptune's. Wasn't this that crazy CPU that beat people up with toys and whipped them...? How could Neptune be talking about her like that?
Then again, they did live together for all those years... If that as the case, then... Noire felt some of the warmth start to return as she continued down this train of thought. After all, if she and Neptune had spent all of that time together, they would have known each other really well, wouldn't they? So this Plutia... Maybe she...
... No no no, don't do that, Noire told herself. She was just going to get her hopes up again. If anything, judging by this new information, didn't this mean Neptune's tastes were more like... like... like Vert's? Briefly shuddering, Noire shook away the thought — and then realized that Neptune had stopped speaking. Seeing an opening, she decided to chance it and see if her earlier thought had a little merit to it.
"She thought you were making her into a replacement for something?" After a few moments more of consideration, Noire found herself asking the question. After all, now that she was sure it hadn't worked out, the shock and worry about it... didn't have much reason to be there, did it? Even so, that this whole "Neptune really had thought she was in love with someone and had gone as far as to try to confess it to them"... She had to admit, she was actually really, really curious about it. "That's a little deep for you, don't you think?"
"Right?!" Swiveling around to look at Noire, glad to see someone understood that her head was full of nothing but cotton candy and pudding, Neptune nodded vehemently. "See!? You get me, Noire! Ohhhhh, if only you had been there instead of that other one — she was just glad I was out of the running, that skank!"
Neptune's fellow CPU was torn. She almost laughed, hearing Neptune — Neptune of all people! — just yell "skank!" out like that, and maybe, just maybe, actually mean it the way it was intended to be used... but then, that would be laughing at "her" own expense, and that wasn't even taking into account the matter of her pride. And her pride was already making it pretty difficult to not openly enjoy being praised just a moment prior as it was.
"So yeah!" Neptune nodded to Noire, crossing her arms over her chest. "She musta thought I was replacing her for something 'cause I wasn't really from there. Isn't that just the lamest cliche you ever heard? Like I couldn't go over there whenever I wanted now. Nope, still nothing. She's sticking to that homesickness mumbo jumbo."
Noire blinked. So... Just a replacement for a homey sort of feeling? That was all?
"Oh... That's what you meant..."
She sighed. Should have known better, really, but that was what she got.
She also should have known that now that Neptune was done with her story, the only thing left was-
"How about you, Lonely Heart?" Neptune asked, teasingly elbowing Noire in the side before the black haired CPU could comprehend just what it was that Neptune was asking for from her. "Got any stories or what?"
Narrowing her eyes at Neptune, which earned her a pair of arms put up defensively, Noire considered her options. After Neptune had confided in her like this... She could take the big risk here, but maybe... Maybe sharing a similar story of her own was the better thing to do. Besides, didn't it mean that Neptune didn't feel the same way about her if she hadn't confessed herself? It had to, right?
"I... If I tell you this... You have to swear not to tell anyone..." Noire felt the blood rushing to her cheeks at just the thought of telling Neptune what she was going to tell her. She could still back out — or better yet, she could lie — but... No, she had to do it! There was no two ways about it! Swallowing audibly, Noire glared at Neptune — a meaningless look thanks to how hard she was blushing at this point. "D-Do you swear?!"
"Seriously? For realsies, Noire?" Neptune seemed to be completely enthralled with Noire now — if it had been over any other topic (well, maybe not any other topic...), Noire almost might have been enjoying the attention. As this was not the case, however... She might have rather seen Neptune just leave, or reject her outright. "Oh come on, now you just gotta tell me now! I swear, I swear!"
Damn. Out of luck then.
Was she going to do this?
Was she going to do this?
Was she reeeeeaaaally going to do this?
Noire took a deep breath in.
"N... Now listen, b-before you get the wrong idea, this was a long time ago, alright? Before things calmed down between all of us and... And, well..." It looked like Neptune either understood or just didn't particularly care — she just wanted the name. Taking a deep breath in, Noire readied herself. It wasn't like this mattered anymore... so long as it never got back to the person in question, anyway, but... What were the chances of that happening...? "I... It was Kei."
As soon as the words left her lips and she saw the expression on Neptune's face, Noire wondered if she should have just lied. Who said there was anything wrong with lying? No one she knew, that was for sure!
"Don't stop there!" Clenching her fists together into tight balls, Neptune was giving Noire her full attention. "I want deets, girl! Gimme the goods, even if they're all nasty and expired! Mine were years old and moldy, so don't hold anything back on me!"
A beat.
This was the girl that got Noire so flustered?
Someone that referred to issues of love and the heart with words like "old and moldy"? Her own issues at that?
Well... That was Neptune for you, Noire supposed.
"I-It's not much of a story..." Noire shook her head. She couldn't very well come out and tell Neptune what was on her mind in that moment — that how the attention she was getting now, in this moment, and how it made her feel compared to how she would feel back then was the perfect example of why it just couldn't have... "I just... I really admired her work ethic."
The excitement in Neptune's gaze began to slip away. She didn't have to say it. Noire knew she was thinking "that's it?" right then. She would have thought that herself, had she been an observer and not known there was more to the story.
"Don't give me that look!" Noire hurriedly added, her cheeks flushing crimson. All the same, she really wished Neptune had just let the two of them play games in peace! "That was just how it started... I didn't just like that about her, okay?"
Sure enough, Neptune's attention was coming back.
"So what else did you like about her?" The purple haired goddess inquired. She was practically bouncing now, either from amusement or surprise, Noire didn't know. "I mean, it's that stuff Kei, isn't it? I would have thought you were going to say something like you had an affair with some random secretary or something after how pent up you get-"
"A-As if something as ridiculous as that would ever happen!" Noire had a mind to leave after an insult like that! Just what kind of person did Neptune take her for anyway?! "I-I just- I started noticing things about her, that's all it was, okay?! That happens once you start... Well..." Noire found the burst of energy she'd received from wanting to smack that insult out of Neptune fading away. "You... You know what I mean! Idiot..."
Neptune paused. She seemed to be considering Noire's words. Perhaps reflecting on her own experiences?
"Yeah, that's true." Wow. Noire was actually surprised. Neptune relating to her about something? Was it a blue moon last night? "'Kay, I'll let you have that one..."
Noire held her breath. She knew it was coming — the question. She'd have to talk about the things she liked about Kei next, didn't she? What had got her interested in her own Oracle... That was a can of worms that was inevitable now, wasn't it? It had to be. Judging by Neptune's train of questioning so far...
"..."
"..."
...?
... Judging by Neptune's train of questioning so far...!
"..."
The black haired goddess blinked. Neptune wasn't saying it. She wasn't actually saying anything.
"Um... Not that I'm saying I'm willing to answer you or anything here, but..." Averting her eyes shyly, Noire began poking her index fingers together. "Aren't you going to ask me what else I liked about her?"
"If I did that, I'd have to talk about Plutie again, right?" Neptune sounded nostalgic. Surprisingly so. It made Noire almost... jealous. No, not almost. It didn't help at all that she had a weird smile on her face too. "I'm totes over it and all, but as far as that goes, how's about we say we're even stevens on that one? 'Cause I'd be here for a while if you got me started, ya know what I mean?"
Not sure if she was glad for an out or disappointed that she and Neptune wouldn't continue this... strange... whatever it was even further, Noire nodded. At least she didn't have to share the details, so that was a plus, right?
"Then what happened?" Neptune's eyes were on her again — it seemed Noire's question had brought her out of that brief trance she'd been in a moment ago, so at least Noire could say she'd accomplished that much. "You're not still pining for her, are you? You made it sound like you weren't, but..." A beat. "Okay, okay, don't gimme that look! Sheesh... So?"
Noire was silent for a moment.
Neptune tilted her head.
The real answer to the question was easy enough.
It was one word easy. Four at most if she needed to be especially wordy about it.
She opted for a different method.
"At first... I really liked how organized she was. She was so motivated, and always on point — no one else was like that around me." Noire started off hesitant, but sure enough, as she continued, she began to find her voice. "She was punctual, she was precise... She was so good, Neptune. She didn't mess around, and when everyone else was, and I was so bent on competing with-"
"Hey, I said you didn't have to-"
Holding up a hand at the other CPU, Noire shook her head, frowning at Neptune in the patented "s-shut up, dummy, and listen to what I have to say!" tsundere way she was so good at doing.
"You don't have to say anything, but I want to." Noire explained quietly. Taking a moment to collect herself again, the goddess nodded, finding her memories again, and proceeded to continue her trip down memory lane once more. "She stole me and didn't even know it... A-At first."
"At first?" Neptune gave Noire a quizzical look. "You guys get into a fight?"
"No, no, it wasn't like that, stupid. It was just... Um... at some point, before I knew it... I realized I... I realized that I wanted something more sporadic from the person I wanted that kind of thing from. Someone who would sit around fun with me instead of just work... Someone messy, sporadic..." Noire swallowed. Dare she say so much? "R... Random, even."
She dared!
Lastation's goddess smiled, despite her the furious, furious heat she felt all over. She felt really accomplished in that moment. After all, she had just done something amazing. She had just... She... had... just... indirectly confessed! Sort of. Kind of. Maybe. Just a little? Could she have an A for effort at least?
"A-Anyway, that's it as far as Kei goes." She added with a tone of finality sneaking into her voice. "I just stopped liking her one day is all. I never even confessed. I-I hate to say it, but... You actually won, if everything you said is true... But you said you wouldn't tell anyone, so you'd better not!"
For a second, Neptune didn't say or do anything — but then, as if tasered or slapped, she shook her head furiously.
"W-Wait a sec, I started this, so that goes for you too, Humble Heart! D-Don't try to start this off on me and then turn around and talk about my amazing love life to people behind my back, or I'm gonna declare war on you!" Tripping over her words, Neptune still managed to do her best impression of Phoenix Down as she pointed at Noire with all the enthusiasm of Lowee's famous attorney. "You take that knowledge to your grave!"
"Ohhhhh? And what if I don't...?"
"Then I'll send you there myself!"
"Hah! Like you could!"
"You wanna bet on that?"
"Maybe I do!""
"Now she's done it! Little Miss Tsundere and her bad taste in girls is gonna be sooooorryyyy!"
"W-What was that?! I'll make you eat those words, Neptune!"
Somehow, the familiarity of the scene was lost on the CPUs as they hurriedly made the preparations to resume their gaming. Typical of them.