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Aigis surveyed the dormitory as she tuned out the various chatter, much of which ‘went over her head,’ as Junpei would say. Aigis closed her eyes as she finished processing the information that she had taken in. As she did so, she felt a slight nudge on her shoulder, prompting her to tune back into the conversation continuing around her.
“Hey, Aigis-san. You okay there? You’re kinda spacing out over there.” Kotone asked from her seat beside the android on the brown leathery couch, a slight sense of worry glinting in her eyes.
“I am alright, Koto-san. There is no need to worry about me. I am a machine, after all.” As Aigis finished, she could see the tension in Kotone rise as the brunette sighed, seemingly letting it go if Aigis’s reading of her body language was correct. Somehow, Aigis doubted her conclusion as she often did these days, with each passing one bringing new knowledge of emotions to her along with new insecurities and doubts.
“Aw, c’mon, Kotone. You worry too much sometimes, y’know?” Junpei chimed in, his voice slightly muffled by the bowl of instant noodles he was actively shoving into his mouth.
“Junpei-san is correct.” Aigis nodded towards Junpei before continuing, “Pardon me for not engaging with the conversation at hand. Did you need my input?”
Junpei finished slurping the last of his ramen, choking a bit as he tried to hurriedly gulp the rest of it down before responding, “Aw, it wasn’t nothing to get all serious about. We were just wondering if you had a favorite color, y’know, considering you’re a robot. Mine, of course, being blue, like my baseball cap-” In the middle of his question, Yukari had elbowed him sharply in the ribs, “Ow, what was that for Yukkatan? What’d I do this time?” Junpei raised his voice comedically, rubbing the spot where he’d been hit.
“You can’t just say that she’s a robot, Stupei. Aigis isn’t just some machine she’s part of S.E.E.S just like the rest of us.”
“Hey, you know I didn’t mean it like that.”
Aigis spoke before her teammates could continue their back-and-forth tangent, “Yukari-san, it is alright. Junpei-san did not mean any harm in his statement. As for the answer to your question, I do not have a ‘favorite’ color. All of the visual data I process is the same.” Aigis responded semi-truthfully. ‘Although I do not have a favorite, it seems like my sensors have been acting strange lately when they process certain shades of red.,’ finishing the rest of her thoughts internally.
“Aw, that’s a shame. I was hoping you’d say something cooler than that.” Kotone said, feigning upset as she dramatically crossed her arms upon hearing Aigis’s answer.
“May I ask why humans have favorite colors? Forgive me, but the concept seems illogical to me.” Aigis gazed around the room for a second time before it matched ketones, their eyes briefly meeting, causing Aigis to freeze momentarily.
~~
[Mar 12, 2010]
S.E.E.S. had completed its mission of eliminating the dark hour after several months of hardship and sacrifice. The most important was the death of their leader, Kotone Shiomi. The death caused immense grief amongst each now former member, most of all Aigis. The funeral cession had finished hours ago; most people had left after the first hour except for two. The slight trickle of rain pelted them, neither caring nor knowing when it had happened in their current state.
Junpei stood beside Aigis as the duo stared solemnly, as neither had any tears left to shed at the tombstone with freshly packed dirt in front of them. Quietly, Aigis murmured something unintelligible, snapping Junpei out of the pregnant silence around them.
“...Sorry, I didn’t quiet catch that,” Junpei spoke, his eyes slowly breaking away from the cold slab of stone before them towards Aigis.
“My favorite color,” Aigis repeated, barely a whisper yet volumes louder than before. I believe I found it. It’s red.” Aigis closed her eyes as the stunning image of their now-deceased leader's eyes flashed across her mind.
Junpei hummed to himself, a similar image also coming to his mind. Except instead of Kotone, Chidori’s vibrant hair filled his mind instead. “Mine too…”