We Are Similar

Uneventful Day

Mizel thought he could understand Eva pretty easily. She was, no offense sis, simple minded and predictable. He'd always know how she'd act or react before she even thinks about it. She would always be optimistic no matter the situation and would never, ever let herself be overcome by the negatives. Which was why it shocked him greatly to find a small piece of herself crying at the back of her head.

He had only been exploring her mind a little, avoiding the locked doors of her personal memories and feelings. So when he rounded a corner and found the crying piece, he didn't really know what else to do but to rush out of her head and got into his humanoid form.

He had just saw something he probably wasn't supposed to. After all, it wouldn't be at the back of her head if she didn't want to hide it.

He watched the blonde's sleeping face as she hugged her new cat plush. Not even a trace of sadness could be seen. She had been suffering for such a long time... He felt a glitch within his chest.

His eyes narrowed as he felt a part of his program changing itself.

New Objective Set: Protect Eva's Happiness.

~~~~~

The next morning was uneventful. It was the usual thing they've always done before the whole Mizel issue. They wake up, greet each other, take baths, make breakfast, eat breakfast, and so on. Gouda and Sendou fought over the meat. Niara and Kirito were fighting about every little thing they could find. Eva, Jin and Yuuya were on their own table, eating peacefully. Mizel took the form of a small doll and sat on his sister's head.

"Is Hugo-san still staying at the fortress?" Jin asked.

"Well, it does have all the equipment he needs." Eva muttered.  "He's been staying there since we got back, I wonder how much progress he's made on that prototype."

"If all the equipment is there, then why was he still at Tiny Orbit during the party?" Yuuya pondered. "I mean... If it was to work on it again, then shouldn't he had left?"

Eva hummed. "When I gave him the food, Yuki-san was also there, so maybe they're gathering some kind of data needed for it?"

"It could be the Eternal Cycler blueprints." Mizel interjected. "An entire virtual world would need a large power source."

Wait, then what about that place you made?

It is not the same. That place is kept within a part of the Infinity Net, and the both of us are linked through it too. Which is why I said only the two of us could enter it.

What about that thing Otacross has? The one that lets the LBXs travel around in data form?

No. They would still need to be able to access our link. Think of it as a wormhole. One end has me and the other has you. In the middle of that is the floating island.

So they'll need to be able to hack you to get there?

Exactly. Though of course, that'll never happen. I am at my strongest point when I'm in there. No one can break into our link, unless I allow them to.

"I wonder how it'll be used." Yuuya spoke up, snapping the two out of their private conversation. "The VR Mind is a program that replays your memories as a simulation."

"Except that in simulations, you can decide what's going to happen next." Jin cuts in. "In this, we'll just be re-living it in a third person's point of view."

"He also said that the ones who worked on it before were also planning to create their own world." Eva said. "But I think Hugo's going to drop that part of the project. Either that, or he'll work on that after the memory bit is finished."

"I can always get in and see how he's doing." Mizel pipped up.

"Okay, no." His sister shook her head. "We've been over this already. No hacking unless there's a crisis."

"What counts as a crisis though?"

"... Really?" She sighed. "For example, when there's a bomb. Or is that a bit much? Or when we're fighting enemy LBXs, like in Niara's house. Just when someone's getting hurt or about to get hurt."

The boy inwardly smiled. "Understood."

~~~~~

That afternoon, Gouda and Sendou went out while Izayoi and Olivia came over. Izayoi came to get Eva for Prof. Oozora, Jin coming along for obvious reasons. Yuuya went with them to see Hiro. Olivia stuck around the dorms with Niara and Kirito and, to Niara's joy, she brought her baseball bat with her.

"Levanov, if you even try-"

The blonde male was cut off by the punching bag that hit his face.

"HAHAHAHAHA!! Hysterical! L. M. A. O." The Russian continued to laugh like a maniac.

"You okay?" Olivia's face hardly ever expressed any emotions, but there was the slightest hint of worry in her eyes.

"... Yeah, I'm fi- fuck-!!"

He got hit again.

Niara was having the time of her life, hitting her punching bag Kirito's way with Olivia's baseball bat.

"You kno- ow. This is called- oof- abu- OW! Okay, stop! Seriously!" The blonde finally got up and shoved the punching bag at the Russian's face, making her topple over.

On the floor, Niara was in a laughing fit. She doesn't know why, but it seemed like a long time since she'd laugh this much. "Oh hell... Haha! You just... ha! And It was- bwahahahaha!" She continued to roll around the floor, laughing her lungs out.

He threw his hands up with a frustrated sigh. "Alright. The Russian lost her sanity." He was not going to put up with this.

"Bold of you to assume she had any in the first place." Olivia bluntly stated. It was meant to be a joke, but with her poker face, it was difficult for even him to tell.

Once her laughing spree was over, Niara sat up and wiped a tear from her eye. "Oh heck... You know, the funniest thing about that was you were just sitting there and letting me hit you. Like, were you that brain-dead?! Haha!"

He deadpanned. Why did he just sit there? He shook his head, knowing full well what the answer to that question was. She's going to be all kinds of hell to me. But that was how their friendship worked out, and he wouldn't have it any other way.