MASS POST WARNING: THIS IS THE FIRST CHAPTER OF THE MASS POST. The song for this chapter is "Say Something". Every time I hear that song my mind imagines someone trying to do CPR on someone they love who tried to kill themselves, but they're not coming back. And then I start crying.

A Past trauma and a New fate…what will become of Garrett and his 'sisters'?

I lost my sense of self

Just for a moment

Even though you tried to save me

Is it really worth it?

Am I really worth saving?

Chapter 33: Look Into My Heart

Ichirou stepped into the lab, looking more serious than most people had ever seen him before. Behind him were two identical girls, both looking on in mute curiosity at the setup before them. His daughters Elda and Freya were scanning the entire room, impressed with their new surroundings. It looked uncannily similar to the chamber where they had been born: dimly lit, with hundreds of wires hanging from the ceiling, draped over everything like a man-made spiderweb. Connected to those wires was the body of a young man clothed in what looked like a wetsuit.

The girls had ridden in their father's ultra-fast helicopter before, but this time he seemed especially hurried when they boarded the jet-black vehicle and lifted off.

Shawn was still at the workstation, his eyes pouring over the code as if searching for an unspoken answer. He couldn't break his concentration—not now. The errors were pilling up faster than he could counteract them, but if he gave up now, Shawn was sure he would not be able to recover any of the data.

Handel had already, as Shawn instructed him to do, prepared the workstation for a Persocom to Persocom interface.

When the three visitors arrived, Handel jogged over to their overseas colleague, his face still unusually pale. He glanced at Elda and Freya for a moment, before turning his attention to their father. Gawping at two legendary supercomputers had to wait.

"Thank goodness you're here! Shawn can't possibly keep up at this rate," breathed Handel, his eyes drowning in anxiety. His son's life was literally hanging by a single wire right now, so the sight of Dr. Mihara was especially comforting.

"It is the least I could do for an old friend." Ichirou couldn't help but reminisce about his school days with Dr. Lee-Young as he recalled the panicked phone call from earlier. "Show me the problem: I'll see what I can do."

"Of course, of course," sputtered Dr. Ravensdale. He looked like tears were going to spill over his cheeks any second now. "Please, step this way," said Handel hurriedly, sniffing as he stepped over a bundle of wires and motioned for the trio to follow him.

Nodding, Ichirou placed a hand on Elda's fluffy head of blonde hair. The restlessness in his dark eyes seemed to look past his daughters and into another dimension.

"Let's get to work, girls."

…

"Where am I?"

Everything was cold, slightly numb, and the feeling of weightlessness made his stomach flip. It was like being in a bathtub full of ice water. If he didn't know better, then Garrett would have thought he was in some sort of sensory deprivation tank. Looking around, it seemed he was alone, floating in the dark. A weak light radiated from his body, and illuminated the enveloping night-like location.

"What… happened?"

Just how did he get into this place? Something must have been wrong with his head, because the last thing he remembered was breakfast this morning. But he already knew that it was way past breakfast.

In the oblivion that surrounded him, Garrett could feel his thoughts dissolving one by one. He could see his arms and legs, but reaching into his surroundings, he could feel nothing, except unforgiving, icy air. As he glanced around him, he could see, what appeared to be, his memories fizzling away. They were shifting, changing, and transforming into dust. He looked up in the darkness, to see a small light.

It was getting harder to think. This all was scaring him. Something inside him felt small and vulnerable—he couldn't sort out what was wrong with him, and he was alone, without anyone to help him.

"Why…why?"

Should he reach towards the light? That's where all the glittering fragments were flowing. Something about this thought seemed right with him.

Still, he couldn't think of what he was forgetting. Something important…

A stabbing sensation sliced through his entire being.

"GAH!" With nausea bathing over him, Garrett suddenly gripped his aching head. There definitely was something missing.

"What—I—how—,"

His thoughts were so disconnected, that he could barely form a coherent sentence.

Even his voice was sounding strange to his ears. It sounded distorted, as if it had been sampled, modified, played back and repeated over and over until it sounded mechanically synthesized. He could feel the coldness retreating, now, replaced with the alarming absence of sensation. It started at his toes, inching up his shins, until it finally washed over his torso.

His breathing stopped about a second later. Not of his own will, but already he could feel suffocation gripping at his throat.

What really was happening, here? Could this all be a hallucination? Was he going to disappear? Was he dying?

In these hopeless moments of contemplating his short life, Garrett saw something—no, someone emerge from the light. Two someones.

Glowing and floating over like a pair of angels, they stopped in front of him. The two girls were holding hands and appeared to be identical in every way. They seemed to be pitying the poor soul who was standing there with nowhere to go. With kindness radiating from their features, the smiling blonde phantoms held out their free hands and gripped his limp arms.

Something in their sad smiles was reassuring.

"Welcome, little brother," they chimed in musical harmony.

And the three of them were engulfed by the blinding light.

…

Fire. Pain. Hatred. Love. Pleasure. Indignation. Curiosity. Disgust. Passion. Faith. Swords. Lasers. Dancing. Music. Singing. Laughter. Despair. Joy. Pride. Envy. Contentment. Wrath. Gluttony. Greed. Confusion. Sloth. Discovery. Death. Life.

They echoed around in the darkness, searching for meaning. Wandering around in circles, the disconnected thoughts sought for a home.

Morphing into images, the feelings began to sharpen.

A video played before his eyes: a cinematic record of his entire life.

The video passed through him. An entire reel—over 17 years' worth of memories flowed through his entire being. He could see the flashing images going past at a rate he could not process. Birth to Death, it was all there.

Blinking, he took in the sight with awe and fear.

Was he truly dead? Was this just a pre-death hallucination?

After twelve years had passed by him, he saw a familiar face. A girl. She looked familiar, but he could not place her name. She followed him everywhere. She was dragging him places. He should have been incensed, but he wasn't. Instead, he did as she requested, feeling strangely warm and fuzzy as he did.

However.

In exactly 0.42 seconds he felt even more agony shoot through his soul.

Screaming, he fell through the images, clutching his head once again.

Yelling, he tumbled around and around in a dizzying circle.

Shrieking, he begged for death to overtake him.

Gasping, he shot upright in bed, rocking and crying as he let out an earsplitting uproar.

Dr. Lee-Young leapt out of his chair when he saw the young man awake. He had just been checking the data running through the monitor when the inert body suddenly reacted so violently.

"Garrett, calm down! You're in the hospital." Shawn tried to explain what had happened, but the boy was so frantic; he looked like a frightened rabbit trying to escape. "Do you know who I am? Do you know why you're here? Do you remember what happened?"

He was hesitant to touch the now-mechanical young man, but Shawn gently laid a hand on Garrett's back anyway.

It seemed to pacify him immediately.

Garrett stopped thrashing so aggressively. All of the erratic movements from earlier had ceased completely, and the Persocom was sitting there calmly.

With glowing blue optics, the young man looked up at the doctor who was comforting him. Confusion emerged upon his face.

"Who is Garrett?" he asked Shawn, immensurable fear in his voice.

...

His mother. His father. Even his sister had known about magic.

Minoru was dumbfounded. His Aunt Sayaka and Uncle Kamijou were mages. Who would have thought? Apparently his parents were, as well.

Yet...everyone. Every single one of them kept him unaware of this fact. His entire family had been in on the charade. Auntie Kyōko, Aunt Hitomi, his Cousins Clara and Lilo…even Great Uncle Chamo and Auntie Nagisa knew. It was almost earth-shattering.

Unfortunately, the big family secret had played a role in Kaede's early death.

He had heard it straight from the mouths of his aunt and uncle.

Apparently, she had died from an irreversible spell that one of her classmates had placed upon her. It was a slightly modified version of the blood-cooling curse. The operation of the spellwork had deliberately been slowed down so that it worked over a period of seven days. Like a fine-tuned computer virus released upon an unsuspecting PC, it gradually worked its way through the recipient's body, starting in the skeletal system and eventually ending in the nervous system. Gradually, the victim would feel colder and colder until their circulation eventually congealed so thickly that it stopped altogether.

Unlike a computer virus, however, there had been no way of rooting of the spell and destroying it. By the time they had come around to trying a viable solution, it had been too late.

He remembered her pale face laying on the hospital bed, reaching out for him. His tiny fingers had been swallowed up by her stiff, icy hand of ivory. His sister, Kaede. She smiled until the very end. She smiled and told him to keep believing in magic and miracles.

She had tried to tell him the truth, even in her final moments.

If only he had known. He would have tried everything in his power to keep Kaede alive. He would have studied harder than ever to try and reverse, at least pause the terrible fate that had awaited her. If only he had known, maybe something he could have tried, however small it would have been, Minoru could have contributed in some way.

It just wasn't fair.

He couldn't have the peace of mind that he had tried. The entire time he had been kept ignorant and sheltered, and for what he could not know.

The only thing that he could come up with was that they had received a prophecy warning them about magic somehow, and Kaede's death could have scared them into compliance. But that was farfetched. And even if it was true, then it didn't matter at this point. Minoru was already knee-deep in magic. In such a short time he had developed to an amazing level. His tutor and friend, Amber had said so. Why, they had sparred in their spare time, and she was thoroughly impressed by his progress.

Moreover, what disgusted him the most wasn't his parents' misguided attempt to shield him from their heritage. No, not even that. It was disappointing, but that really wasn't what irked him.

The one who had attacked his sister was roaming free.

He actually was someone closely related to him.

He was no other than his aunt and uncle's son, his very own cousin, and Angel's partner, Kamijou Miki.

A Bastard in every meaning of the word.

…

With growing interest, Ueda observed the steady stream of customers lining up behind the counter. For the past hour Chii had been able to keep up with their orders, giving them service with a smile. She had learned so much since he hired her. Now she was able to bake several different types of pastry and cake without his supervision. It was both uplifting and saddening. In some ways she reminded him of his dear deceased wife, and not just because she was a Persocom.

Chii's kindness, her curious eyes, Ueda couldn't help but feel nostalgia creep up on him. But he didn't love Chii in the same way. She was more like a daughter to him, actually. Sometimes, he wondered, if they had been able to have kids, would they have had a daughter like Chii?

"Manager Ueda, are you alright?"

"Huh?" Snapping out of whatever daydream that was playing through his mind, Ueda blinked. Looking to his left, he saw Chii.

How long had he been out of it? The line had shrunk to nothing, and the customers were already served.

"Manager is putting too much icing on the cake," noted Chii, pointing to Ueda's hands.

"Oh, crap," he muttered, setting the icing bag on the workstation and picking up a spreader. He hadn't been paying attention, and now the base coat was sitting on top of the cake in a mound. That was as the desired effect, of course, but the problem with it was that there was too much. He scraped off the top of the mound and put it in the leftover icing basin near the cake. He'd use that later. Now he had to distribute the rest of it to cover the cake. "Sorry, Chii, I was thinking about something."

"Manager was distracted, but Chii understands. Hideki gets distracted when studying, too."

Now there was someone he hadn't spoken to in quite some time.

"Yeah? How is Hideki these days?"

"Hideki is very busy studying. He wants to get into college this time! Hideki and Garrett and Amber stay up all night sometimes, staring at books." Looking a little frustrated, the girl sighed. For a moment she fiddled with her left ear, glancing off to the side. It was made of plastic, so the little tap-tapping was audible. "But Chii doesn't know much other than baking...so Chii can't really help."

"That's too bad. Maybe you should learn to cook other things, too? I hear the fastest way to a man's heart is their stomach."

The little cogs in her brain seemed to click into place. Chii, who didn't know much about human anatomy, came to the only conclusion she could come up with at the moment.

"So food goes in mouth, then to stomach, then to heart?"

Technically speaking, in terms of glucose consumption and distribution, she wasn't wrong. But from a mechanical standpoint, the human digestive system didn't immediately ship food from the stomach to the heart.

Seeing how the idiom was lost upon the girl, Ueda let out an inaudible sigh. Chuckling nervously, he tried to explain what he really meant.

"Um...that's not exactly what I was trying to say, Chii." Ueda folded his arms into one another, trying to look excited about it. "What I mean is he'll really love it if you feed him!"

"Hmmmmm. Chii guesses that's a good idea," concluded little Chobit, mulling over her future plans. "Sumomo could help, too."

He felt like he should know that name. "Sumomo? Who's that?"

"Hideki and Chii's daughter," said Chii simply. With a positively glowing grin, the Persocom seemed happy to claim Sumomo as her kin.

"Eh?" The baker's mind suddenly was filled with question marks. Chii was just claiming to have a child. More than that, she just claimed that Hideki had a child. It wasn't impossible, so Ueda couldn't rule it out. Moreover, Chii was sweet, naïve, and impressionable, so maybe she was getting something wrong?

"What's that? Daughter...Chii, wait." Ueda was having a hard time himself, trying to wrap his mind around this little misunderstanding. "Hideki has a daughter?"

Chii's little head swayed from side to side with her eyes closed. The blonde tresses followed the path of her petite skull, and her little pink hair ties wobbled.

"Hideki and Chii have a daughter," corrected Chii, lifting her index finger.

"She's your daughter?" asked Ueda skeptically. It came out sounding a little more surprised than it did in his head.

Chii lifted her index finger again, but this time she wagged it disapprovingly. "Chii said that, Manager. Sumomo is ours."

"I see..." Playing along for now, Ueda decided to listen to what Chii was so convinced of. The young woman was speaking with more conviction than usual, and she appeared to be genuinely excited about this 'Sumomo.' "So what's your daughter like?"

"She used to be teeny," Chii measured with her hands how tiny Sumomo once was, "but now she's bigger. Sumomo looks eight years old, says Mama."

"Mama?"

"Chii's Mama built her," said Chii proudly. "I guess Chii didn't tell you that before, huh? Even Chii has a Mama, you know."

That probably meant that Hideki had successfully found Chii's original owner. That was good. Ueda hadn't been updated about that, but he wasn't one to pry into those types of matters. Perhaps Chii had been kidnapped and the old owner had allowed Hideki to keep her as a reward for treating her well.

"Anyway, about Sumomo, is she a Persocom?"

"Chii is a Persocom. So of course Sumomo is."

Who was he to argue with that logic? Chii seemed like she was getting a little incensed, here. Had Ueda really seen this little Persocom speak so passionately about anyone other than Hideki? It was a bit interesting to watch as Chii tried to explain her relationships to him.

"I believe you, Chii. Sorry, I was just curious." He bowed shallowly to show the sincerity in his apology.

The little blondie bobbed her head. "Chii understands. Manager is human after all. Chii is just glad that Manager isn't a 'damn bigot' like some people."

'Did she just say what I think she did?'

"A...a what..." Ueda managed to push the words out of his mouth.

His little employee noticed his sudden discomfort and recognized it as confusion. "That's what Chii's friend Amber calls mean humans," explained Chii very patiently.

"I see. Is she a Persocom, too?"

Chii shook her head, giggling as she did. Her friend's game of dress-up had been fun to keep a secret, even after Amber had told her and Hideki.

"Amber is a cyborg. Her legs are like Chii's." At the statement, Chii waved a hand in the vicinity of her leg as if she were on Wheel of Fortune, displaying one of the various prizes up for grabs. "Amber's big sister is also a Persocom. Meroko is a 'really important person for Persocom rights', as her little sister says."

Ueda couldn't believe the things coming out of Chii's mouth. He recognized that pair of names instantly. They had been on the news the other night, so it wasn't surprising that his brain recognized who Chii was talking about.

"Wait a moment, Chii. You mean to tell me that you personally know Meroko Black and her younger sister?"

Looking a bit miffed, the little Chobit pouted.

"Chii isn't lying. Chii has proof."

Chii put her hands into her apron pocket, where she often placed her wallet. A while back Hideki had suggested that she carry around some money to pay for whatever she wanted. She opened the light blue rectangle, and out fell a chain of photos attached to one another by a clear plastic covering. Among the many pictures of her, Hideki, and Sumomo, were other cheerful portraits. In one of the individual rectangular sleeves was a photo of Amber and Meroko, with Chii smushed in between them.

Ueda felt like something in his brain was shifting around unnaturally. This was really uncanny. Looking at the three beautiful young women, he had a great feeling of coldness wash down his spine.

So this was the world he lived in these days.

So fearless and free. These kids were changing the future. What was an old man like him going to do? Could he help? Much like Chii, all he was able to do was bake. Hardly helpful in matters they were involved in.

"That's…really great, Chii," Ueda said, feeling more than inadequate. "That's really great."

Smiling with fake cheer, the baker ruffled Chii's fluffy blond head.

"Chii!"

...

The drinking age in Japan was twenty. Due to this fact, Amber had taken up the habit of gulping down glasses of alcohol. If someone were to look at her and recognize her as Yuuko, then they would most likely tilt their head quizzically and ask "again?" in a disappointed tone, shaking their head sadly. However, at the moment there was no one here that knew of her by that name, so she felt comfortable nursing her fifth glass of tequila this evening. It was the brand that didn't need limes to accompany it, so she was glad that she didn't need to go through the extra effort.

In this secluded bar in the slightly sordid portion of Akihabara, (well, more sordid than usual*) Amber would slip away at times she was sure that she would not be attacked by some crazed mage after her heart. Now, at least, she had taken after Minoru and gotten herself a ring to replace her wand. Why she hadn't thought of it before was a mystery. Even if rings were expensive, she could afford one. Minoru had even bought Yuzuki and his other Persocoms rings. They were extra-expensive, because in addition to acting as a medium for magic, they doubled as tracking devices, and were linked by Minoru's master ring.

On the way to this bar, "The Rocky Lee," she had been recognized by a few otaku, but they didn't force her to take any pictures with them or anything. After that stint on television, she had become something of a celebrity. Even though her sister aspired for fame, Amber had no dreams of stardom.

It had been a little suspicious that she had not been hassled much on this side of town, but she didn't pay it much mind. All Amber wanted to do now was drink, and drink she did. It was as if the expensive liquids were singing to her from the shelves: 'nice and smoooooth, feel numb and newwww', 'forget your troubles with the bubbbbblessss', and 'drown in the haaaaze, drink your daaaaaays'.

Blinking slowly, Amber took a gulp. It burned only slightly on the way down her throat.

As if the glass weighed a considerable amount, she set the partially full cup down and sighed, wondering how she had gotten so low again. Because of this contest, she couldn't even enjoy a convention cosplaying with her friends. ComiFest had been ruined by the arrival of those jokers. And now she was flooding her system with a drug that most likely needed to be monitored more strictly than it was, even in this day and age.

Amber was just about to ask the bartender for more of her personal poison, when a tap on the shoulder interrupted her.

"You sure you want to down another glass?" said the person who had touched her.

It was definitely a woman's voice. Not too old, from the sound of her, most likely mid-twenties.

Ready to throw her glass at the interloper, Amber began to around, scowling and sitting in a very unladylike fashion. As she turned, she spoke in a thick, slightly slurred tone. "Yeah, I'm sure! What's it to—,"

Looking straight at the person who had asked such a stupid question, Amber balked. Her anger didn't diminish, but a little bit of dread did slither down her back. She almost dropped her glass, but her brain quickly reminded her that there was still some precious liquid left, so that would have been crazy.

"Yo," said the woman in English, giving her a two-fingered salute and a cheeky smile. "Long time no see, eh? Drinking again, looks like."

She wasn't very tall, nor was she very short. It was also very clear to see that she was of Asian descent. Her short black hair swirled around her slightly tan face in a stylish bob cut. On top of her head was a pair of aviation goggles, ones that an anime character most likely would wear, especially if they were the main character of a series. The woman also had a long red scarf looped around her neck, and even in the recently chilly weather it seemed a little excessive. Her high-top Converses were the loudest thing she wore, what with them being canary yellow.

The light brown hoodie and forest green cargo pants she wore sure looked comfortable, though.

"Je-Jenny?" said Amber, her surprise quickly sublimating into irritation. She would have been suspicious at the arrival of someone she had known in another life, but Jenny was definitely not a part of 'The Game'. The young woman was far too nice to participate in such a sordid contest.

"The one of many," replied Jenny brightly, her smile illuminating the bar and actually giving it some warmth.

This was unfair. Honestly and truly it was. Amber turned around on her stool as Jenny seated herself in the vacant one to the heiress's right. Slouched over the bar, Amber lamented this chance meeting with a sour face. "UGH. Why are you here? It's like you're everywhere. Can't I get drink in peace? You're making the alcohol taste bad."

Jenny, being used to being treated this way by Yuuko, didn't pay the complaints any mind. Still smiling, she drummed her fingers on the bar and leaned her cheek on her left palm.

"Well, it is my last name," said Jenny, snickering at Amber's mini trantrum. "But I can't go to a universe without trying to visit you, y'know." Her smile flattening a little from glancing at the cup in the other woman's hand, she suddenly shook her head with closed eyes. "You should stop drinking so much anyway, Yukki. It's bad for your health."

'Yukki.' Amber hated that nickname. It wasn't even shorter than her former name. She sometimes would wonder if Jenny came up with it just to annoy her to death.

"So, how's the curse going?" said Jenny, talking about The Game as if it were just another errand. "I hear you guys are almost done. I popped by Omicron 6 the other day thanks to some friends of yours, and the news had spread to even there."

"No comment." Amber looked down with a tired expression, blowing out some air.

"Not even one little update?" urged Jenny, looking hopeful.

"None," replied the girl coolly.

Jenny pouted as if her favorite drama had been cancelled too early. She folded her arms within one another and sighed dramatically.

"Bummer. I would have thought that you'd at least make some lovelove progress with—,"

"Absolutely none!" said Amber before Jenny could go into further detail. Trying to survive this death-game was enough. She didn't have the time to progress anywhere with that perverted mechanical man! Still, that couldn't speak for her subconscious, which, night after night, plagued her with unduly intimate dreams starring that silly partner of hers. Some mornings the nighttime memories were still so vivid in her mind that Amber could not even bear to look at him without all the blood in her body pooling into her face.

It was a major reason why she was drinking right now. She'd been too riled up to even try to come up with a counterstrategy to Angel and Kamijou. And there was Minoru and his family troubles, which he just had to unload on her the other night. Not that she didn't care, she just didn't need any more stress. But what was done was done. Amber had lay on her bed with the cellphone pressed to her ear, trying to reassure Kokubunji, who, frankly, sounded more incensed than saddened. He had been speaking in English at the time, for some reason, and the madder he got, the more it devolved into angrish.

Beside Amber the high screech of a barstool scraping against the floor echoed out.

"Well, as you know," said Jenny, standing and stretching, "I've got a busy schedule. Shifting between universes and such, saving the world, eating toast…"

Amber/Yuuko/Akemi forced a small smile. Jenny never did change did she? Here one moment but gone the next, like a puff of warm breath in the winter. The woman was still genially carefree, despite seeing some hellish things that would make most people go mad.

"How's the 'saving the world' business these days?" asked Amber, failing at not sounding bitter.

"Not very lucrative, financially, but it's rewarding in its own way." Reaching into the pocket of her hoodie, Jenny took out a case larger than her palm. It didn't look like it actually could fit in the pocket, but for as long as she knew the woman, Amber always suspected that those pockets were bigger on the inside.

Jenny placed the case onto the bar and slid it over to her old friend. "Here. I snagged these from another friend of mine who travels around in a cramped blue box of a vehicle."

On the front of the case it read: "HANGOVER PILLS."

Amber glanced at the gift with bleary eyes and sniffed.

"Take these afterwards so you don't worry your friends," said Jenny, winking. "It'll make sure you're not drunk afterwards."

Feeling a little embarrassed, Amber blushed and took the case into her lap, nodding.

"Th-thanks," Amber said, unsure of how much she should thank her. Jenny was always good at giving presents, but she arrived so suddenly that Amber never could prepare a gift to exchange with her. When the sunny woman arrived, Amber would usually be empty-handed.

"Bye, Yukki," Jenny gave her customary salute and turned to leave. "Good luck with the survival game. Watch your back!"

"Yeah," Amber dipped her head shallowly. "Don't forget to take care of your stuff, too." As much as she didn't like to stay around the cheery woman, Amber did have to admit that Jenny was abnormally kind. "Thanks again for the present."

"Anything for a fellow Slider," remarked Jenny, stepping out of the bar and disappearing into thin air.

…

Sumomo knew many things. She knew that she used to live with Shinbo. She also knew that he had gotten married. At the time, Sumomo did not know what to think about Takako Shimizu. Her specs were a little too low for complex thought, so all Sumomo knew was that her master had registered a new user. However, she did have enough computing power to at least recognize and react to emotions. The ability of a Persocom to be able to integrate itself into everyday life was essential, and even models with low specs had a basic understanding of how to react to humans.

Sumomo, when she was still very small, always would notice that Takako was 'uncomfortable' when around her. If Takako were alone with Shinbo and didn't notice Sumomo, then the woman was 'at ease' or 'happy'. But the second she noticed Sumomo or encountered another Persocom, she would become 'irritated' or 'upset'. It didn't always show, but the subtle change in expression was picked up by even Sumomo who had been a mobile unit at the time.

Now, processing and interpreting the memories was much easier. Sumomo now knew that Takako had 'hated' her thoroughly.

But, Sumomo also knew that it wasn't her fault. It wasn't even fully Ms. Shimizu's fault.

Whenever the teacher was around a Persocom, all Sumomo could hear in the woman's voice was 'pain'.

Still, back then Sumomo would try to adjust herself to suit her new master. She tried. She followed her programming very well. Sometimes Sumomo would feel 'sad' that she couldn't make Takako happy, but then the little mobile unit's logic center would wonder why she was even feeling any emotion at all.

Then, one day, Takako had gotten a call from her ex-husband.

At first the woman seemed calm, a bit sad, maybe, but in general she appeared fine. However, that all stopped once she spotted Sumomo.

With tears running down her face, the woman began throwing things. Papers, dishes, cups, pens, they all went flying in every direction. Sumomo had tried to run away from the debris, but, to the Persocom's shock, the woman had started to pursue her.

The results were nothing short of disastrous.

Takako had started screaming bloody murder, and kept reaching for the little 'com. The little Persocom was no match for her in strength, and before the pink-haired cutie could cry out, Sumomo had been thrown across the room. There was a few crunching noises, and something cracked.

And then Sumomo could see no more.

She could hear, yes.

But she no longer could react.

Trapped within the darkness, the tiny Persocom could only feel 'sad'.

It wasn't as if Sumomo could try to disobey, either. She was always subject to her masters, and as such, could not do anything of her own volition. Even so, her processors at the time probably wouldn't be able to handle the complexities of such a thing as 'free will'. Or so Sumomo now thought. What she did not know was that the A.I. crystal, no matter what the size, was able to accomplish such a thing as granting a Persocom free will, because, it was technically their 'soul'. However, because of the restriction placed in their 'mind', namely, the 'code of ethics' that every Persocom received with their standard programming, every Persocom was subject to their human master.

Yet. What Sumomo also did not know at the time was that despite those restrictive lines of code, certain Persocoms were able to find ways around that 'code of ethics'. Many were thought to be malfunctioning, and others would be decommissioned, but their souls would press on, refusing to be restrained.

Like Mrs. Takeda, those titanium-willed Persocoms would keep pushing their boundaries. Yet, even without Mihara or the help of his colleagues, Persocoms would eventually earn the freedom and respect they deserved.

Even more remarkably, when Chii released her program, it allowed the Persocoms to feel emotions that were more humanlike. It, thanks to Dr. Mihara, (with a little assistance from Hideki) helped Persocoms to evolve to the next level.

However, there was one more program yet to be released.

It was entrusted to a certain, fickle rabbit.

I look into your eyes

Yeah

I know you are there

Yeah

I want you with me

Will you stay with me?

.

I trust in our love

Yeah

That it's sent from above

Yeah

Even though you are whole,

I'm losing control

And I just don't know...

So hurry, hurry, boy,

I'll give you one chance…

The character of Jenny Everywhere is available for use by anyone, with only one condition. This paragraph must be included in any publication involving Jenny Everywhere, in order that others may use this property as they wish. All rights reversed.

* That was a joke, people. Since normal people already think otakus are gross, of course they'd think Akihabara (THE HOLY LAND) is gross.

Also. I'll be twenty-one this year, so I'll be able to drink legally (in the US, at least). But I don't think I will. Everyone sounds miserable when they do. But I had to include her drinking to unwind, she's stressed after all. Yuuko used to drink all the time, right? That being said…don't overdrink, it's bad for your health, and you could get blackout drunk or alcohol poisoning! Be responsible, okayyyy?

Yeah, Ueda has a baby-face, as he mentioned once before in the series. But I'm sure he considers himself 'some old guy' compared to spry little Hideki. Also, Jenny calls Yuuko and herself Sliders because they can traverse the multiverse as they please. She's a big fan of the show in my interpretation of her, and isn't meant to add the show Sliders to the crossover count in this story, which is currently up to five. The first one to guess all five viable crossovers will get the very first downloadable copy of the omnibus edition of this story when it is finished. It has three formal parts. You'll also get subsequent updates to the edition, including art, if I find an artist. (If you're an artist, please vonlunteer)

A special shout-out to the following reviewers:

Thanos of Titan- You've been the most consistent and encouraging reviewer to date. Your story, along with your kind, constructive criticism, really helped me to gain the confidence to bring the story to the obvious conclusion. In response to your mention about Angel's past, I'm starting a new, very short, series, called 'Chobits Files' The first part will be called 'Angel Days'. The second half will cover 'Rima', the Chobit I mentioned in a bonus part of my A/N. The last part will cover Freya, Elda, Meroko, and Garrett more fully. I hope your series ('Rebellion' and 'Coming to Terms') turns out even better than mine—you are my rival after all! AND I DID NOT INTEND TO COPY YOU. FOR SOME REASON, THE CHAPTERS, ALTHOUGH OUTLINED IN ADVANCE, SEEM TO MATCH YOURS IN CERTAIN PLACES.

IdiAmeanDada- I haven't seen reviews from you anymore, so I hope you are all right. However, you did used to have the second most regular reviews aside from Thanos, so I thank you greatly. Even if you're not reviewing anymore, I hope you are still reading. Your support is greatly appreciated.

Feta Tsukino- You're very new, but you did send me a good review and subsequent PMs. I am super happy you got all of the references, from Cowboy Bebop to Full Moon o Sagashite. I hope you continue to enjoy my works, even the original ones.

And to anyone else I missed, I grant a special thank you. (Yes, ThanosofTitan, I copied your acknowledgements section. That WAS on purpose. *evil laugh*)

Please enjoy the rest of the story!