Inbox: Mask or Menace

[megabytes]

"You've reached the comms device of Megaman.EXE. I'm not available at the moment, so please leave a message and I will respond as soon as I am able! Thank you!"

Comments

[megabytes]

That makes it even worse, Hiro! This isn't just about backfeed, it's actual, direct injuries. You could be deleted in there!

[And humans don't get to restore from backup. Megaman knows that pretty intimately.]

[microbrobotics]

I'll be careful, okay? And it won't happen. B-because I have you.

[megabytes]

[Megaman just puts his chin on his knees. He wishes he could be that confident. He had been when Lan had had to use Pulse Transmission, and he'd been so, so wrong. And it'd been his mistake - he'd gotten cocky, he hadn't paid attention, Lan had almost died and it would've been his fault--

He whimpers. What if he messes up again? What if, next time, he can't get his operator out?]

[microbrobotics]

[ Oh man, that was not the intended effect. He'd wanted to soothe Megaman by letting him be able to help Hior ... but wow that backfired. Tentatively, he reaches out to hug the Navi. ]

I'll be really careful. We can make backup programs to eject me if an emergency comes up.

[megabytes]

[He uncurls himself just enough to hug back.]

Promise?

[microbrobotics]

Yeah, absolutely. I promise I won't get hurt in there.

[megabytes]

Okay. Good. You better not.

[.........]

...if you do, I'm changing all your passwords.

[microbrobotics]

-- Hey!

[megabytes]

Well if you're gonna just get yourself hurt--!

[microbrobotics]

Fine, fine, I'll deserve it. But it's not gonna happen.

[megabytes]

Good!

[Apparently all he needed to distract himself was to treat Hiro just like





and now he feels like a terrible person.]

[microbrobotics]

[ Good job there Megaman. He pauses again, looking at him. ]

You okay?

[megabytes]

...yeah, I'm fine. Just...just thinking.

[microbrobotics]

About what?

[megabytes]

It's nothing. Really.

[This blanket is very interesting, clearly he should stare at it intently.]

...you know, we never actually did the other thing you asked for.

[microbrobotics]

Huh? What was that?

[ He's forgotten already. ]

[megabytes]

You wanted me to tell you more about Lan. Remember?

[microbrobotics]

-- oh yeah, I did. So tell me about him already.

[megabytes]

[Geez, Hiro, impatient much?]

Well...what do you want to know?

[microbrobotics]

What do you like most about him?

[megabytes]

I...I don't know. Everything?

[microbrobotics]

Except the stuff you complained about earlier?

[megabytes]

That's stuff he does, that's different.

[microbrobotics]

So what's something he does that you like?

[megabytes]

...he likes to help people. I don't think I've ever seen him brush something off as "not his problem," not when someone really needed help. [He laughs.] We once spent hours hunting viruses online and trying to collect data just to help out at the lab.