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Loading scenario: Triple_Crown_Dream.mov

Bourbon saw the world fill in around her. She stood on the track as the roar of the crowd became deafening. Even as other Uma passed her, she couldn’t hear their steps. All she could hear was the crowd congratulating her for the victory. For all of her hard work. It was what all Uma waited for after a race. Their fans cheering her o-

Corruption Detected. Query: Fans?

The tide of noise became a small problem as she felt her head become foggy. They were so overwhelming. As a singular mass, she couldn’t make out their words or even their intent. They could be furious at her just as easily as they could be happy about her victory. With the rushing bodies of the other contestants dashing by like flickering shadows, it was becoming too much. She needed to ground herself. She knew what one voice would be saying after all and so long as she could find them then-

Visual Data Updated. File Misssadojifnijefvneijfgvneijprngvew

Error. System crash to protect internal services. Loading new scenario: Overseas_Trials.mov

Bourbon looked out of the airport windows upon a vista entirely foreign to her. The joy of flight was still running through her body as she felt like she’d landed on a new planet, rather than just a new continent. Here she could stretch her legs even farther than she had before. How long did the tracks get here? How fast could she go? What was possible for her?

Query: Allowance?

Her current trainer wouldn’t like that though. What would it take to get her here? Would she need to once again abandon those longer courses? The ones that made her feel like she was flying properly instead of only taxiing? She looked over and only saw the shadow of her trainer. The one she wished she didn’t have to have but no one else was any different. She was a sprinter and that was all she could ever be. She only knew one person who would support anything she chose to do. Maybe they-

File mIEJNEPIOJFVNEROI

Error. Sys-Error. Loading memory: Swings.

Bourbon looked up into the blue sky above her. It was reflected in her own, aqua eyes as the little filly smiled back at it. For just a moment, she was weightless. She hung there like she could take off, propelled by the strength of the arm pushing her. The rare giggle from her echoed into the clouds as she called to them and the stars beyond.

Then gravity took back over and she swung back down. She had to keep her legs up because she was technically a little too big for this game, not if she wasn’t careful. It’d probably be the last time she got to play like this but she didn’t care. Not when she just wanted to drink in this moment. She got too all few of them with how busy life and training could be.

Then she got back down to the middle, where that strong arm would pu

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Loading Friends.jpeg

Parameters too low for match.

Loading Folder Her.

…

……………

…………………..

Insufficient personal parameters.

Insufficient personal.

Insufficient.

insufficient

The word echoed in Bourbon’s head as her eyes slowly opened. The room was pitch black because of the blackout curtains over the windows. Not that she needed light to see it. She had long ago memorized the room, as she had not changed it since she was a child. She could see the posters depicting the cosmos that hung from the walls and the training gear that lined the edges of the space and even where the door hung slightly unevenly from her once having cracked its frame from slamming it too hard. The shadows of the past illuminated it all as easily as the darkness of reality tried to hide it, though right now Bourbon would have preferred it all stay in oblivion. Such memories…

She shut her eyes again before saying to herself, “Excess hydration detected on eyes.” She didn’t bother wiping it away though. She had things she had to take care of before it would be a problem. How much had she cried? No, best to dismiss that. There were no good answers to that query. She had learned that all too well over the past few days.

There were other things she could take care of though. Even in this short time period, she had learned her new schedule all too well and could perform the actions as well as any robot. Get dressed, brush… make… Getting dressed was enough. No one who would care would see her today after all. Yes. That was okay.

At least right up until she opened the door to the living room. The same musty smell that had met her the past few days was different. She lifted her nose slightly and sniffed at it. Was she imagining it or were those waffles? No. That was impossible after all. Still, sensory evaluation brought back nothing else. Was she getting sick? It would technically make sense if that were the case. Extreme levels of stress lead to below average levels of immuno responses.

Her stomach decided to cut through her thoughts by filing a status report quite loudly and she raised a hand to lightly tap it before turning around and locking the door that led to the downstairs. Then she stepped into the sunlight that was pouring through the windows of the living room. The rays of warmth told her that she had stayed in bed for longer than she was supposed to. Or, by some definitions supposed to. She wasn’t really sure what time she was supposed to get up now. It didn’t really change the way things… went… here.

Her blue eyes dimmed for a second as some sort of crash happened inside of her. It was unclear to her what sort though, especially as thought was not ceased by the new stimuli. Indeed, many questions such as ‘can one die from cuteness’ were being asked repeatedly by it so some sort of thought process was being executed but none of those queries were being answered either. Not as she failed to properly process the information before her after all.

After all, a tiny, brown maid had broken into her house and she wasn’t upset. Not for the reasons one should be at least. At least she had an elevated heart rate, implying panic, anxiety or terror but the excess heat that was being dumped into her cheeks was abnormal for such emotional responses. Then again, WHY WAS RICE SHOWER A TINY BROWN MAID? Not just a tiny brown maid but a beautiful, elegant, sweet, divine, graceful, beautifu- Bourbon raised a hand to her head with a loud smack to try and get her thoughts in line.

That only brought the problem of getting Rice’s attention. As the smaller Uma twisted on a dime and let out a yelp, Bourbon became exceptionally aware of her current state. Her face was an absolute, tear stained mess. Her hair was unkempt and wild, requiring brushing to return to its straight, clean self. Her clothes were fortunately decent, just the same white ‘CHAMP’ sweater she wore on outings and dark blue leggings with random, light blue lines across them, but it was also hardly anything special. Not like the cute, white apron that appeared built into Rice’s dark brown dress. Correction: The shift in coloration from a beige to an urban merely created the appearance of an apron but further analysis showed it went all around. It was overwhelming but it couldn’t stop the primary concern in the serious horse’s mind. Bourbon knew that one look at her face and Rice would ask all the questions she didn’t want to answer. That she couldn’t answer. That she refused to answer.

She waited for it to happen. Even heard Rice say something but didn’t properly process it because the tiny Uma’s singular, visible purple eye didn’t go above Bourbon’s stomach. Indeed, she looked back down before she looked any higher. Why? Any other… Correction. This was Rice Shower. On a good day, there was only a forty three percent chance for her to look her in the eye. That put Bourbon at ease some as Rice spoke again.

“I’ll go. I’m sorry. This was a bad-”

“Stop.”

Bourbon spoke before she thought. She wasn’t even sure why she had done it as the command bypassed all normal protocols and logic. Rice being here was a categorically bad idea. The longer she was here after all, the more likely she was to ask things she didn’t want her to. And yet, the thought of Rice leaving right now and returning to the empty house she was standing in caused the pain and pressure in her chest to only get worse. It was easier to turn so Rice couldn’t see her face and ask, “How did you get in,” than to continue thinking of her leaving.

Rice tried to freeze on a dime but even though the tiny horse was called a stayer, that didn’t mean she actually stopped easily. Instead, she wildly pinwheeled her arms as she had to stop herself midturn. The long dress she wore didn’t help much as it restricted her legs but luckily, she’d been setting the table for brunch and so she barely caught herself on the top of one of the chairs. After a moment to catch her breath and drag herself back to where she was standing, she said, “The d-door was slightly open when I knocked and no one answered it. I didn’t want to disturb anyone but uh…” She looked down, her whole frame becoming smaller and smaller as Bourbon waited for her to continue her thoughts but instead, nothing more came. Just an awkward silence between them.

The downtime let Bourbon’s mind properly process the whole situation. There was a lot strange about it but one of the first things she had to take care of was, “i need to finish boot up processes. You can tell me more as I go to the bathroom.” She then walked straight to one of the other doors and slipped into it, moving quickly so as to make sure that Rice had as little of a chance to catch the messy state she was in. She could perform proper maintenance here now.

And yet, alone once again, she found the same errors that had come with the previous protocols began to come back. Brushing her hair wasn’t difficult. Washing her face wasn’t difficult. Such tasks were marked as routine after all. So why… Why…. WHY…

“I’m sorry. I had noticed you hadn’t come to training for a few days and, well, you’re not like me. You don’t need to practice away from other people. Your trainer didn’t even know why you had disappeared and all the director could tell me was your address. I was afraid about what might have happened so… Here I am.”

She’d noticed? Of course she had noticed. She was Rice Shower after all. Her parameters for things such as kindness were as high as Urara, while her perception was closer to that of one like Air Groove, at least by Bourbon’s calculations. That should have only made it worse that she had made her worry. Indeed, more excess moisture came to Bourbon’s eyes as she attempted to process the words. As many times as she tried to store them though, her mind felt too full to do so. Like it might burst from trying to understand them.

It was easier to just let them slide off and focus on something easier, like picking up her brush and beginning to straighten out her hair.

“How do you like your eggs?”

Bourbon turned towards the door before she sniffed the air again. Right, waffles. In fact, now that she was less perplexed by the smell, she could recognize them as the same that

ERROR

…that she’d had in the past. Waffles were commonly had with things like eggs, bacon, sausage and biscuits, potentially with gravy. There was no one else in the house who could have made the waffles besides Rice so she was making breakfast. At noon. When did she arrive? No, such queries were pointless right now. She had been asked a question after all. She breathed in slowly before saying, “Scrambled.” That was the answer that felt best right now.

“Okay!”

And then silence. Or, mostly. At the very edges of her hearing, Bourbon could hear the scraping of a fork against a pan as it reduced the yolk of an egg into nothing but a yellow mess. For… Her. That should not feel so weird. Uma made food for each other at the academy all the time. She could easily recall a time Flower had done just that for her. This wasn’t at the academy though.

This was her home. Where Rice had come. For her. W- Query aborted. Any answer it might have given, she didn’t want. Not right now. Instead, she splashed her face with water before scrubbing it clear with a towel. She then slowly lifted her head up until she stared back in the mirror. For the first time since she had arrived, looking back at her was the Mihono Bourbon everyone at the academy knew.

At least, if her eyes weren’t still completely vacant. No glimmers of calculations or a gleam of life. Just vacant, blue pools that were as still as the Dead Sea. She would need to continue to avoid eye contact with Rice. She assumed her friend would appreciate the gesture so it unlikely to be a problem.

Coming out of the bathroom, Rice Shower was just finishing putting the last plate on the table. Spread out on it was an okay breakfast. Some seared ham, waffles and a bowl of scrambled eggs was better than anything she’d eaten in a minute and would provide substantially greater flavor than the nutrient bars she’d been having. In fact, her stomach growled just at the sight of it, not that it even made Bourbon blush. It was rude but it was also a compliment to the chef. “Thank you.”

Rice looked back to her with a small smile before she rubbed her hands in front of herself. She squeezed her fingers tight in her other palm before chirping out, “I-I hope you like it. I tried my best.” She then looked at her hands before seeming to startle herself and saying, “I need to wash my hands!”

Bourbon watched as the small uma rushed right past her. Her brain then pinged a notification to her that made her turn back towards the food on the table. A faint spark shimmered in her eyes and she moved quickly to the kitchen. Plate, fork, glass of milk and then a full plate of food. All taken to the last room that was left in the small house. She opened the door.

And then she closed it, the food and dishes gone as she stepped back into the living room just in time for Rice Shower to get out of the bathroom. Bourbon nodded to her friend before saying, “Records dictate it’s rude to start eating without the cook.”

Rice blushed a little at the thought before shaking her head. “Oh no, please don’t worry about me! I’m here to help you after all!” She looked up and almost managed to catch Bourbon off guard enough to get a look at her eyes. Instead, Bourbon turned her head swiftly before the rest of her body followed suit and she strode towards the far end of the table. For many others, how robotic the actions might cause suspicion. For Bourbon? Well, in Rice Shower’s eyes, it was just another part of what made her cool.

The brusqueness of her actions though did make conversation a little difficult though. There were questions hanging in the air and some were asked, like “My records show that Tracen Academy has a firm policy against giving out student information. How did you convince the director to give you my address?” However, even those asked were met with dodgy answers as embarrassing memories, such as sobbing on the floor of the office, kept throats closed and mouths shut tight.

As food dwindled and both were left alone with nothing but the small scrapes of forks seeking the last bits of food on their plate, the fact that it was just the two of them became overwhelming. Sitting across from each other like-

At the same time Bourbon ran into more errors, Rice hopped to her feet and yelped out, “Let me clear the table!” She hurriedly began to pluck the dishes up and rushed them to the kitchen. She was equally quick to shout out, “I can handle these, I promise. I bet you have training or the like to do. I-I cleared my schedule for this so don’t worry about me. Not that y-you would anyways…”

“I would.” Once more, speaking without the normal checks she would implement. Once more, finding herself being bothered just by the implication of Rice’s words. At least this time, Bourbon understood the outburst. She had started refuting such claims by Rice like most of the other Uma would. It wasn’t anything special, just her following after other social cues. Now was when she also offered to train with- Spend time with- Get lunch with-

Each scenario failed to load though as her shoulders slumped forward. Her hand raised to her chest as her chest put pressure upon her lungs. It was a situation that had been happening all too frequently as of late. Just breathing, a routine process, was filled with errors. What was wrong with her? What sort of malware caused these problems? What could she do to fix i-

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Her energy levels plummeted at the same speed as her head before the shattering of the plate on the table resounded through the house. Rice let out a shriek before rushing out and turning pale at the sight before her. “Bourban, are you okay!? W-w-was my cooking really that bad? Did I put poison in it? I-I-I’ll call an ambulance!”

“N-Negative. I am… I’m…” Bourbon slowly raised her head but her intake levels were too low to properly speak further. She couldn’t even open her eyes as false signals that leaks had sprung next to her ocular sockets rang in her mind. They… They were false, correct? She had no reason to cry after all. Things were okay. Things were going to be okay.

Her eyes then glanced to the last door in the house. They had to be okay.

Please.

Rice clutched at her chest for a moment before taking in a long, deep breath. For five counts she held it before blowing out for three. She then managed a small, timid smile before she asked, “How about a run then? Just a short one to help us digest?”

A run. Yes, a run would help facilitate such bodily functions. She also needed to simply do it as part of her training. She had neglected it for… for…

ERROR

Reasons but she still had to do it. She had races coming up after all. Bourbon could not disappoint her trainer or fans by not being prepared for them. She got up slowly before nodding slowly. “Indeed. I know a path along the river near here that we can use.”

Rice first focused on cleaning up the now broken plate while Bourbon cleaned herself up and made sure there wasn’t a cut on her forehead. As it was going to be just a casual run and not full on training, neither bothered changing into their tracksuits. That could wait for when they were ready for something more intense. Instead, as they stepped out of the house, they looked like a pair ready for a stroll far more than they were ready for a run.

Which was a good thing as when Bourbon activated Warm_up_run.exe, it didn’t even give her an error. In fact, it appeared to be running as Rice began to take her first steps towards the dirt path near the small house that Bourbon was staying at. By all means, her legs should be moving. In fact, by measuring Rice’s speed, she should be moving past the smaller girl. She would need to make adjustments to it then for while doing warm ups with Rice.

At least, if her legs would move. Instead, they felt bolted to the ground. Like they were made of solid steel and couldn’t even bend if she tried. When was the last time she’d stepped out of the house? She’d been having groceries delivered since she had arrived so as far as her databanks could tell, she hadn’t since arriving. Had she really neglected her training that much?

‘I’ll get to it. I need to focus onweijbfweouhfweiohnfwj-’

Bourbon swayed as suddenly her legs were not stiff but instead made of something gelatinous. They could barely keep her standing as she placed a hand on her forehead and her breathing quickened. She should go back inside. She had other things to-to-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-

“Bourbon? Are you okay?”

Those beautiful, purple eyes appeared before Bourbon’s as she opened hers. She hadn’t even noticed that she’d bent over. Her processes still seemed to be filled with errors but seeing those eyes, so filled with concern and worry, helped clear something up. She didn’t know what but she could at least move now as she stood back up. “Affirmative.” She then doubled over again as her chest seized up again at the word before she shook her head. “Apologies. It turns out that was a lie. I do not think I’m up for a run right now.”

Rice raised her hands up for a moment before biting into her lower lip. Then, slowly, she reached out and slipped her hand into Bourbon’s. She then gave the stoic uma a gentle squeeze as she whispered, “Okay. What do you think you can do? We’ll go at your pace until you feel better.”

Bourbon stood tall one more time before firmly stating, “My pace is-”

Whump!

Bourbon let out a groan from the ground as she said, “A small walk should be possible with current stamina levels.”

Rice, who was hyperventilating at the moment, wasn’t really interested in arguing with that. She just helped Bourbon up, letting the tall girl rest an arm on her shoulders for support as they began their walk. Between the slight blush on Rice’s cheeks from being right against her friend and Bourbon’s tight chest, neither were really interested in talking. To Bourbon, what was there even really to talk about? Her weakness? Her failure? The fact that they should be running?

And yet every time she looked down at Rice, there was a small smile on her face. How? Her dataset didn’t include anything that would explain such a reaction. Everything said she should be annoyed with her. Angry at her. Leaving… her…

Bourbon looked away from Rice and instead to the river that ran nearby. How many times had she taken this path when she was smaller and her father was training her? She didn’t know if she’d ever taken it even half as slow as she did today. She sh-sh-should… She wheezed slightly as she struggled to breathe before just focusing on the river. On how clear it ran. On how the light reflected off of its blue surface. Of how even on a normal day like this, it was still resplendent. It made her smile.

Just like such thoughts made the girl beside her struggle to look up when Bourbon might catch her staring.

Step by step, they both kept their eyes to the right. They didn’t focus on their speed or their destination. They didn’t focus on any of their discomforts or worries. Instead, they strode forward, enjoying the beauty before them. What neither noticed was how each step also brought them closer. Made their arms tighter around the other. All until they were locked together at the end of the path when it opened up to a small park.

Where an older woman looked up and cooed before saying, “Bourbon, is that you? Did you bring a date to training?”

Rice let out a shriek that was so high pitched, only dogs could hear it as she let go of Bourbon and skidded roughly ten meters away from her in a second. Bourbon only looked at one of her neighbors with confusion before shaking her head. “This is not training. Training requires pushing of oneself and the improvement of physical and mental performance. This is just a walk.”

The older woman chuckled a little before getting up. “Oh, as robotic as ever, aren’t you darling. I still blame that fool for never teaching you right for that. What brings you back to these parts? You’ve not come home much since entering Tracen after all.”

Bourbon stared into nothing for a moment as her brain tried to process the request. It was not that her optical sensors had failed. She could still see technically. However, she hardly registered what she saw as her brain came back with nothing but a blue screen. On reboot, she opted for an escape phrase instead as she said, “I know Robert was excited about my races. Has he enjoyed them?”

“Oh has he!” That did the trick as even Bourbon’s limited social experience had taught her that giving a grandmother a reason to talk about her grandkids was effective at distracting her. Indeed, listening to her ramble about her little darling was easy. She just had to act attentive and not think about other things. At least, until the woman remembered that she was here in fact for her kids and grandkids and had to take off. Her family was waiting for her after all. “But remember, Bourbon, you should smile more! You don’t want to make your date think you’re upset, do you?”

She… Wasn’t… Smiling? Correct-

Bourbon raised a hand to her chest just in time for Rice to put a hand on her arm. The small girl had kept her distance as she had not wanted to interrupt things by coming back over, let alone risk any questions she maybe wasn’t ready to answer. Now though, “Are you okay? You looked really intense while listening to her.”

Bourbon tried to check her logs for her facial features during her conversation with the grandmother but she had detected no changes. Her reports only showed that she was presenting her emotional state. That was, “Fine. I’m fine.”

Rice opened her mouth before her ears drooped a little and she sucked in her lips. Bourbon narrowed her eyes at the reaction. Such physical traits depicted a state of nervousness or concern or fear. ‘You don’t want to make your date think you’re upset, do you?’ While the classification gave by the grandmother was incorrect, the question was not. She had clearly upset Rice and that went against prime directives she had. As such, she placed a hand on Rice’s shoulder before asking, “How can I prove this to you?”

Rice blushed slightly at the touch before she brought her hands together and squeezed them tight. She couldn’t look up but she had to manage something. So, in a small, sweet voice, she whispered, “Can I… Can I help you? Just for a little bit maybe? Just with anything that’s troubling you, like running. Would that be okay?”

Bourbon shook her head before opening her mouth.

“You have training to do.”

“Self upkeep is a personal task, with which failure is not expected of me. I am fine.”

“You are clearly in distress by my state. That is unfair and not a problem that should be yours to deal with.”

“I don’t want to upset you. Please go.”

“I don’t want to lose you.”

“Yes. Please.”

Rice looked into Bourbon’s eyes and for the first time saw utter terror in them as a pair of tears rolled down her cheeks. It made the small girl’s heart stop for a moment before she stepped in close and slipped her hand back into Bourbon’s. While they didn’t stay so close as they had before on the walk back, she never let go of Bourbon’s hand as they began to walk back. No matter how tightly Bourbon gripped her, Rice didn’t move away or flinch. Not as they strode back home.

Day 2

Crash!

Rice looked up to where Bourbon had now dropped a plate, which was still better than yesterday’s faceplant into one. She frowned a little before saying, “That’s okay. Um, why don’t you go onto the couch and figure out something for us to watch? I’ll clean this up and then join you?”

Bourbon looked at the remnants of the plate and panted slightly as she tried to figure out why she’d even dropped it. She was just trying to figure out the right way to compliment Rice’s cooking and something had glitched out. Now she was standing here, plate missing from her hands. That wasn’t right, just like how, “It’s my fault. I’ll clean it up.”

Two tiny hands firmly pushed against her sternum though as Rice shook her head. “No! I’m cleaning up lunch after all so it’s part of my job. You now have your job so, uh,” she said as her confidence faltered slightly and her cheeks burned a little, “f-find something good for us, okay?”

For a second, Bourbon prepared to argue before she just let her shoulders slump down a little. She didn’t have the energy to argue about personal tasks, especially since she still hadn’t cooked yet for Rice despite them now being five meals together deep. It was unfair of her and almost certainly was getting on her friend’s nerves. If she pushed…

Rice looked over her shoulder as she could hear Bourbon’s feet scraping against the wooden floors. She frowned a little before grabbing a dustpan and getting to work. A couple minutes later and the dishes were clean, the garbage taken care of and she was ready for whatever Bourbon might have ready. Which was nothing. The television wasn’t even on. “Is it broken?”

Bourbon slumped further onto her knees until she was doubled over entirely and let the remote drop from her hand. “Sorry. It sometimes fails when I click it.”

Rice giggled a little though as she said, “That’s okay! I think it’s silly whenever you mess with machines like that.” She then jogged over to the television before kneeling before it and putting her hand underneath it where the buttons lay. “Just use me as your remote then. What were you thinking of putting on and I’ll get us there.”

Bourbon managed the faintest hint of a smile at the gesture before sitting up slightly. “I was thinking about race footage. We never succeeded in… training… yesterday…”

Rice sucked her lips in as Bourbon grasped at her chest before she turned the TV and started flipping through channels. She didn’t stop when she hit the common racing channels though. Instead, she kept clicking until they got to animated works and cartoons. Then she slowed down until something about a teenage robot fighting off dangers to her friends and world came on. She nodded at that before holding a hand underneath the television as she asked, “What about this?”

Bourbon blinked a few times as she took it in. It wasn’t racing footage. It was something for kids. For goofing off. While inspiration was stored within her from such images as a child, such inefficiency would harm Rice and she was already spending too much time and energy on her. On the other hand, Rice was the one who offered it. Did she want to watch it? Bourbon should correct her as they sh-sh-should…

She groaned slightly before nodding. She couldn’t manage more of a response, which only made her feel worse as Rice got a blanket for her. She slipped it around Bourbon, bundling her up before sitting on the other cushion. It was wholly unnecessary as she was already warm enough. All this did was drain her batteries even faster and render her… Sleepy… In a way she hadn’t been…

Rice froze as Bourbon fell onto her lap. She was as pale as a ghost as she stared at the television, barely able to breathe as she felt Bourbon’s head against her thighs. What was she supposed to do with this? Should she check to make sure Bourbon was alive? Did the blanket somehow kill her? If she was, what would Rice do if she was awake and had done this on purpose? Surely that wasn’t the case! But then, what if she was asleep? What did Rice do then? Could she lower her arms? She would be touching Bourbon then and she didn’t have that right, did she?

In her panic, her eyes darted down for just a moment. There she saw something she hadn’t since she’d arrived. Peace. It was something she was so used to on Bourbon’s face that the absence of it hadn’t properly registered to her until now. None of the stress or worry or whatever was going on in the stoic uma’s mind was there now. Just a small smile and even breaths as she slept properly for the first time in days.

It was enough to tell Rice that she should maybe try not to overthink things and let herself rest as she laid a hand on Bourbon’s head and slowly stroked it as she watched the show.

At least until Bourbon awoke and she realized what she’d been doing for the past four hours. At that point, the scream she let out could be heard from Tracen.

Day Four

“How are you holding up, Bourbon?”

Bourbon panted as they finally got to the market. After a more successful walk yesterday, they had decided to try jogging to get more groceries today. That had gone mostly well, though the distance to town was more than Bourbon’s energy levels were quite ready for. It presented a different question to Bourbon than the one she had faced before: In this limited amount of time, had her body begun to atrophy? Internal diagnostic checks claimed that she was still in peak condition. However, when she tried to use that strength, barely even a fraction managed to come out.

Bourbon took a long, deep breath as she righted herself before nodding to Rice. “Condition is adequate. A rest period of eight minutes should be all that’s needed to engage in light activity once again.”

Rice frowned a little before squeezing her hands together in front of her. “Are you sure? This was my idea and if I pushed you too far, I mean, um, not that I didn’t think you could handle it but if me not thinking caused you distress-”

“Bourbon, are you causing that little missy distress?”

That caused the panicking uma to jump while Bourbon merely turned her head to see the shopkeep who approached them. Bourbon’s database recognized him as one of many of the people she had passed hundreds of time during training with her father. He sold… Radishes? Her conclusion was not definitive though as such outside stimuli were useless to training. Not when she had to focus on improvement. “Incorrect. Such levels of distress are regular for Rice Shower and concerning oneself with such moments of worry will only amplify her anxiety. This is what repeated attempts to encourage her have found.”

The older man shook his head as he sighed. “As robotic as ever, aren’t you? I would thought getting out of here would have maybe fixed some of that. Then again, your racing gear really just doubled down on it, didn’t it?” He let out a bark of laughter at that as he rested his hands on his stomach. “To think you might understand a gal like that at all though? You two must be pretty close. That or the little missy there is pretty stubborn!”

Rice raised her hands in a panic before shaking her head. “N-No, it’s nothing like that! I’d never force myself upon Bourbon, not unless I thought I could help her, I promise!” She then paled a little as her eyes glanced up towards the calm woman and whispering, “I guess… Except with this trip…”

Bourbon turned her head before a slight crease formed on her lips. “What are you talking about? My records indicated an attempt to leave after you arrived. This contradicts any concept of ‘forcing yourself upon me’. Not unless you mean moments like with the blanket, where my internal core became unresponsive to commands and you were merely helping restore functionality.”

That brought a blush to Rice’s cheeks but a hum to the old man’s throat. He tilted his head a little before asking, “Say, Bourban, nothing’s wrong is it? You haven’t been back in years. Did something happen?”

Query: What happwjenofwifn

Bourbon’s breath hitched but rather than clutching her chest, her hand moved to the side. Her fingers stretched out and her palm trembled as she tried to find what she was looking for. She didn’t know what it was though. Just as the tightness in her chest was inexplicable with her programming, so was this new behavior. Shouldn’t she try to remove the built up pressure… on her… chassis?

“She’s here on vacation with me! Especially once we’ve been through our first three years, Tracen lets us have time off from time to time.”

Bourbon looked down as she felt the pressure in her chest ease. Rice causing her query to be abandoned helped but what helped more than that was how she squeezed her hand. Just like she had before. Just like she kept doing when these errors happened. When did that get added to her protocols? It went against her programming to rely on someone else like that after all. Self sufficiency was the most efficient method of care after all. And yet…

The old man smirked a little before looking at them both smugly and saying, “I knew you two looked like a couple. Would you like some radishes on the house than as a homecoming present?”

Rice yelped at the accusation before shaking her head vigorously. “N-No! W-we’re not anything like that! I’m just her friend. I couldn’t ask to be any-Ah!” Her legs scrambled to stay under her as Bourbon suddenly began to stride away and drag the smaller uma along with her. It wasn’t even towards where they were supposed to go but instead back to the road leading out of the market. To where they could be alone before Bourbon finally turned back to Rice. Her intense gaze bore holes into the panicking girl but she said nothing, even as the silence stretched on and on. At least until Rice whimpered out, “I-I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have spoken for you. I just saw how you were reacting and wanted to help.  I just made it worse, didn’t I? Like I always-”

“No.” Bourbon stated it with something resembling anger before she raised a hand to her forehead. She pressed two fingers into her temple, even as she still never broke eye contact with Rice. She then blinked before saying, “I am confused. There are incongruities with your behavior and that of anyone else we run into. With what experience dictates anyone would act. Explain.”

Rice’s heart almost stopped in sheer terror. She reached up and pressed her own hand against her chest as she eased her breathing into a slow, forced rhythm. Only once it was under control could she say, “I… I’m just doing my best. I’m sorry it’s not enough.”

Bourbon shook her head as her mouth creased into a proper frown now. This was only technically Rice’s fault though. The real problem was her confusion, which was only getting worse as she tried to process what was going on. After all, “Incorrect. It is not your efforts. It is your lack of motive that causes errors. You do not know what is wrong. You do not know why I am here. You have no reason to assist me and yet…” Bourbon finally glanced away as a shimmer came to her eyes. “You’re still here.”

Rice glanced away for a second herself, neither uma willing to look at each other before she looked down. “It’s like you said. When I panic, I don’t want someone to ask me what’s wrong. I don’t want questions or answers. They can be too much in the moment. Not while all I need to know is that things will be okay.” She then looked up as tears began to come down her cheeks. “And after how many times you’ve been there for me, how many times you’ve inspired me, that was the least I could do. So I don’t need to know, not when what’s important is that you need help.”

Bourbon just stared back at Rice as she tried to comprehend the answer. Such a lack of need for explanation was normal with an uma who might be emotional. Bourbon was not supposed to be like that though. She tried to do what would get the best results while matching her desires. She should have an explanation. It should be okay to ask about them. And yet when she considered doing so, the pressure level in her chest began to rise. Not to the point of critical failure, not with Rice, but enough to posit the warning requesting a reason that she had to say something.

And without none, she was left without a way to clear the problem and yet no need to either. It was another odd error in her system but not a painful one like the others. It just made her focus back on Rice. On how even with tears coming down her face, just how beautiful she was.

Insufficient?

Does it matter?

Bourbon’s tail swished briefly behind her before she reached forward, a pair of tears coming down her cheeks as she wiped away one of Rice’s. She then reached down and squeezed Rice’s hand as she said, “Task: Groceries is still left incomplete. Shall we go back to finish it?”

Rice let out a cough before nodding and blubbering out, “S-Sorry. I shouldn’t be crying. I’m just-”

“Negative.” Bourbon’s lips twitched into the faintest of smiles as she said, “And I require no explanation. Take your time.”

Which only brought about more tears from Rice and yet, Bourbon did not get a sense that it was sadness behind them. At the very least, she hoped that was not the case. She would need to do better if it were after all.

Day 7

Requesting permission to HER dreams.

Personal Parameters Insufficient.

New Data Found.

Personal Parameters… Unclear

Permission Granted.

Loading scenario: Swings

Bourbon’s feet were properly planted on the ground this time. She was not being propelled into the stars for now she was far too tall for the childish swings that had once carried her so high. Instead, her feet were slightly buried in the woodchips that coated the playground and one of her arms was slightly raised in preparation for her task today. A task that helped dismiss the cold of Fall weather by the warmth it brought her.

As the swing met her going forward, she placed her hand firmly on the girl who was seated there. She then braced herself, measuring her strength for the task. She had practiced ahead of time to know the exact level of power needed so as not to spin the seat around the top of the structure seventeen times, like she had done when releasing her full power by herself. Instead, it was a firm, solid push. One any person could do.

And yet, it brought about the most amazing sound. One that defied logic and reason to Bourbon. It was just a giggle. How many times had she heard others giggling? And yet this one made her whole system light up in a way she struggled to describe. It was like she had a power surge but rather than short circuiting and crashing, it lifted her to the clouds, even as her feet didn’t move.

Her eyes then followed the arc of the girl as she swung up. As for a moment, she was weightless above her. Despite the dark hair and the drab colored dress, she shone bright against the night sky. The brightest star in the universe. One that would shower her everyday with a feeling that Bourbon still struggled to describe, despite having felt it over and over and over again in these past years. Ever since she had met…

Beep. Beep. Bee-

Bourbon retracted her hand from her alarm before sitting up. The lethargy of days past was no more as she moved as robotically as was expected of her. She was awake after all and so routines were initiated and tasks were logged. Under Rice’s counsel, she still set her alarm later than she had before coming home but that was okay. Whatever had been causing her system to crash after all was fading but it was hard to know if it was entirely gone. Not when it had come on so strongly. Such things were not to be worried about though. Rice was keeping up with her training and with her next race in two weeks, they still had time to figure this out. It was not something Bourbon entirely liked but when the alternative was to somehow force Rice to lea-

-Bourbon’s head snapped to the side just as she finished getting dressed. Now that it was possible for her to leave her room, outside stimuli had been allowed to be processed and there was one that was impossible. A potential problem even. After all, she heard a voice. It wasn’t Rice’s. It wasn’t any of the ones she recognized from Tracen. It was a male voice and not that of her trainer’s.

She swung the door open as her other hand curled into a fist. Before she could say or do anything though, she froze.

The sound she heard now was laughter. Before her was a scene from the same folder of dreams that she’d opened last night. Of Rice at her table, warm food spread about and her father sitting beside her, the two of them smiling and laughing together like they were a family. Like everything was okay. Like there was nothing to worry about.

Like her dad hadn’t been unconscious since his car accident and hidden away in the last room with extremely low odds of ever waking up. Odds that only Festa would have ever believed in. Odds that told Bourbon… “How are you here?”

Rice and the old man looked over before Rice gasped. She then got up and rushed over, even as the old man smiled. He didn’t seem bothered by the tears that Bourbon didn’t notice. Rice on the other hand, slipped her hand into her friend’s and gave it a tight squeeze as she said, “I-I told him he should go back to bed but-”

“Come now. If I wasn’t able to sit up after that much sleep, I would be a disgrace to trainers across the globe!” He let out a small chuckle before a cough and a shaking wheeze. That got Bourbon to move as she seemed to almost teleport across the room, dragging pour Rice behind her as she became a blur. She stopped on a dime though, her hands on her father’s shoulders as she whispered, “Beginning task: Tuck in.”

“Rescind that order. Bourbon,” he took a long, slow breath in as he patted his daughter’s hand and then said, “I’m okay. I promise. I’m a bit sore and a bit tired but I wanted to see what I thought I kept hearing.”

“Negative.” Bourbon shook her head before placing a hand on her chest. “You were asleep. You could not have heard anything. You should still be resting. Let me carry you.”

Rice wasn’t quite so quick to halt things though. Instead, she folded her hands in front of her before saying, “Um, Bourbon, I-I know you’re worried but he’s been with me since I got up. I came out and he was already awake. If something was wrong, wouldn’t he have shown it by now? Besides,” she said with a smile, “he’s as blunt as you, so I think he’d tell us, so I don’t think we should worry.”

“Ah, yes, because my girl here,” the old man said as he poked Bourbon in the side, “is so good at saying when she’s in trouble.” That got a laugh out of Rice. Out of Bourbon, it got a glare that would make the Terminator jealous for how terrifying it was. Her father raised his hands as he said, “I promise, I promise I’m okay. I’ll stay sitting, just let me be out of that bed.”

Bourbon shut her eyes for a moment before nodding her head down slightly and saying, “Fine. These conditions are acceptable. Allow me to get the medications the doctors gave to me for in case you woke up.”

Rice watched Bourbon go before she looked back to the old man at the table. She’d been shocked, to put it mildly, when she’d first seen him. She didn’t even know what had happened, as he had dodged the question when she asked where he’d come from or what had supposedly made him feel ‘a bit under the weather’. Not that Bourbon was the best at admitting her own problems, as the past week had reaffirmed time and time again. Besides, she wasn’t the sort to push. Even when she was curious about something. She would only annoy people by ask-

“You don’t have to be so quiet. I’m not about to bite or anything.”

That got a yelp out of Rice before she shook her head violently. “N-No, it’s nothing! I just was thinking how much Bourbon must care about you. I don’t think I’ve seen her be so pushy with anyone. Normally, she just makes room for others when they tell her no.”

The old man hummed as he looked back the way Bourbon went. “She’s certainly a good girl like that.” He then perked up a little as Bourbon came out of the bathroom before wagging his finger in her direction and saying, “Though, she’s never told me about her friend here. She’s so nice and yet I didn’t even know her name. I thought I taught you better than that.”

Bourbon froze at that, her eyes widening slightly as he stared at him. She then opened her mouth before glancing at Rice. She lifted the medication she was holding to her chest before asking, “This is what people classify as ‘teasing’, correct?”

Rice however, only could ask back, “You expect me to be able to tell!?” before managing a giggle. The same sound from Bourbon’s dreams. The sound that could almost without fail bring a twitch to the tall girl’s lips. One that could let her lower her shoulders by a degree and breathe just a little easier.

It wasn’t just that though. Even when she turned back to her father, there was something different to her voice. Something you’d never be able to tell without being intimately familiar with how she spoke. The cadence, the tone and the timber. To almost anyone else, her saying, “Please do not try to delay your medication with jokes, father,” would sound stern. Scolding.

Anything but filled with a joy that was able to cut through the darkness and reach even a man lost in dreams and worries about his lonely, little girl.

He leaned back but offered his hand out to his daughter as he said, “Okay, but that also means no delays in training today. I’ve heard you’ve been slacking. That’s certainly not how I raised you.”

To which Bourbon bowed as she gave her father his medication and Rice went back to the kitchen. Before she could rise though, her father pulled on her hand as he kept a tight grip on it. It was not enough to move the uma, not with how weak he was right now, but it was enough to make Bourbon come closer. She opened her mouth to ask him what he needed but his furrowed brow told her to be quiet. He had a lesson for her, as those brows always meant.

He met her eyes and said, “You should have corrected me.”

Bourbon frowned at that. “I did. I still believe you to be incorrect and that you should be in bed.”

The old man shook his head though before looking towards where Rice had wandered off to, his voice staying low so that the small girl didn’t potentially hear him. “No. I called her your friend. That isn’t true.”

That only confused Bourbon more as she shook her head. His classification was correct after all. Rice was her… Was her…

“Your old man was bad at such things too. I was lucky enough to find a woman who could cut through it all but you shouldn’t rely on luck. If she means something to you, if she’s something special to you, you should let her know.”

Bourbon looked to the kitchen as a tension grew in her chest. It wasn’t the same as the overwhelming numbness that had forced her to shut down while at home. This was clearly nervousness, as classified by her records of what those feelings were supposed to be like. All he proposed were words after all. What damage could they do? That brought about the next level of pain as she looked back at her father and her voice slightly cracked as she said, “I don’t know what to say. If I just wait-”

“Life keeps moving and it comes at you fast.” His voice was tired and low as he spoke, lower than he meant it to be. Barely audible even as he mouthed, “I should have taught you that.” He then shut his eyes and mumbled, “So don’t wait. Even if you have to copy others, let her know…”

Bourbon caught her father’s head as it went to the side. She was right that he should be resting and soon had him tucked back into bed. She didn’t rush out like she had in days past. No, instead, she let herself linger. Let herself look at the frail man who she looked up to. Who’s time was ticking minute by minute. She knew this to be factually true but… But what would she do when those ticks did stop? She had never come to a conclusion while alone. She simply couldn’t. She didn’t want to accept what that conclusion had to be. What she was doomed to be.

“Bourbon! Is everything okay!? Did my cooking upset his stomach!?”

A small smile twitched to Bourbon’s lips almost by reflex as she imagined how Rice was standing on the other side of the door. Her big eye staring up at her while the other was covered up. How her lips pursed in and she waited to be reassured that all was okay, even if she struggled to accept it. Those weren’t logs she had to process but natural memories that came without a single command.

It was special and because of that, Bourbon began considering what she could indeed copy to make that clear.

======+++++======

Rice stumbled a little as she expected Bourbon to at least slow down as they approached Tracen. Hand in hand, they walked up to the school, Bourbon’s long strides mirroring any day she came to school. If you didn’t know she’d been missing for a month, you’d think this was just any other day. That was how Bourbon was though. She’d chosen the date and time to return after all and once that was decided, she’d never wavered and never treated it as anything special. Honestly, Rice was surprised she’d demanded that they return at the same time or hold hands as they did. Maybe that was her own way of letting her nerves show. She wasn’t about to pry though, not when she was just happy to have been of help. To be here to see Bourbon return happy and healthy.

It made it so she didn’t notice the rustling bush near the entrance. This was a normal morning for Agnes Digital after all and the gates to the school were a prime location for top notch fanservice. Even now, she was hyperventilating. Two ‘friends’ disappearing only days apart and then coming back hand in hand? Walking so close to one another and looking comfortable about it? Even despite how much they contrasted with their partner? It was enough to make almost swoon. “How can anyone think they’re just friends!?”

“Your question is valid and I wish to respond to it.”

Digital looked up in horror upon the blue eyes that were looking down upon her. She scrambled to back out of the bush as she mumbled, “W-What question? Oh, uh, if you’re meaning any I was asking, I was, you know, on my phone! Yep! Definitely… Not-”

“You posited how we could call each other friends. I wish to respond to it by saying that I am no longer willing or capable of designating Rice as my ‘friend’.”

Digital and Rice paled at the announcement for very different reasons. For one, it was in terror. Had she somehow messed up with Bourbon’s father? Had she barely been able to stomach her cooking? Had she been too honest about why she wanted to help Bourbon? She had been waiting for this to happen essentially since Bourbon declared her her rival but to have it happen now made Rice’s heart begin to crack. Bourbon’s hand even left her own…

For the other uma, Digital was having to wonder if she was going to survive being this close to what was about to happen.

Rice yelped as suddenly, Bourbon’s hand was on her side. She was then pulled in right against Bourbon’s chest so there was as little space as possible between them. The grip was firm but it wasn’t harsh or trying to hurt her. Just like Bourbon was asserting that she was there and that whatever she held was hers. But if that were the case…

Bourbon still looked to Digital as she extended a hand outwards and asserted, “She is my date for we are a couple.”

Digital’s legs buckled and she collapsed backwards, hyperventilating as she stared upon the two of them. Bourbon had succeeded in copying what others had said about the two after all. The titles she had not panicked about or refuted while in her state of anxiety. It didn’t feel right though. It didn’t feel like enough to simply copy what others had said.

She looked to Rice and even as a pressure grew in her chest, knew she couldn’t stop there. Even as Rice’s eyes shone and her cheeks lit up with heat, it wasn’t enough for Bourbon. Statements like these need to come from somewhere deep, didn’t they? That was what media always claimed. That they come from a place as precious to you as the person that you said them to. These borrowed words were not enough for that.

So instead, Bourbon locked eyes with Rice this time before she said, “I am sorry if I am insufficient to give myself such titles. However, I promise that no matter how hard I have to work for them, no matter what you ask of me, I will prove myself as being worthy of being at your side. I will never let you worry about being alone for whenever you start to fear such a thing, I will fly to you, for you are my guiding star that outshines anything else in the night sky.”

Bourbon breathed in slowly before letting it out, a small, satisfied smile coming to her lips. Now, she merely had to wait for the response. It could take a moment, for tears and emotions may choke the recipient of such words and delay any forthright response. She just… had to…

She paused for a moment before gently shaking Rice. She got no response from the tiny uma whose soul had left her body from the sheer shock of what she’d heard. She was as dead as Digital, who was resting peacefully in a crater from the shockwave of the confession. She was in no state to give a response…

At least, not a verbal one. One part of her knew her feelings all too well and wouldn’t miss this opportunity. Not as her tail slipped around Bourbon’s and held it tight. Bourbon looked upon the sight before her own cheeks turned a touch of red and she held her beloved star close, tears coming down her face as she knew she no longer had to worry about being left all alone.