Nene's Origins// Final part
Nene ran in the empty streets, going as fast as her mechanics can. Seconds felt like hours...hours felt like days...days felt like years. But she really just ran for 15 minutes. She stopped in the middle of a crossing.
Ah...what is this place...
She asked herself, before someone bumps into her.
Gah-!
Ah-...
Sorry! I didn't look where I was going...
Nene stayed quiet, not knowing what to really do. The guy had short, purple hair with teal streaks. Their eyes, a golden yellow. To the point it looks like the eyes of a snake. This was the first person she met that wasn't Kanade, Saki or even the janitor.
What is this place...?
Nene asks in a quiet tone, almost like a icy whisper.
Hm? It's the Scarmble Crossing. You've never been here before?
Should I...?
Are you not from here?
Uhm...yeah I'm not...I'm from..! Uhm...the city next door....
Nene, trying her best to look human, tried making small talk with the guy.
Would you like me to show you around?
Huh? Oh-Ahem! Yeah, sure.
Nene felt uneasy for a minute. Was this right? Should she ditch the guy and make a run for it back to Tsukasa? Should she continue this? Is this even right? Why is she blindly trusting a stranger? Stranger...no one can be a stranger when you know their name!
Hey uh, before we go...what's your name?
The guy looked back at her with slight surprise and replied:
Kamishiro Rui...
Nene.
Nene extended her hand for a shake, but the guy didn't shake it.
It will rain soon, we should head to the bookstore before we get wet...
They guy...Rui said before walking. Nene felt unease again before following him.
They enter a bookstore that was semi-empty. Nene looked at the lights above her without needing to blink in pain.
Do you like books?
Nene asked, as she looked at the books on the crimson wooded shelves.
Yeah, I read them when I'm bored. Or when I run out of ideas for shows...
Shows?
Nene's curiosity peeked.
Uh....nevermind.
Rui replied with a sad tone. Nene thought it was a personal issue maybe, so she continued eyeing the books. She saw a book titled: "I have no mouth, and I must scream". She said the title out loud to herself, which Rui overheard.
Oh that book...it's pretty dark.
What is it about?
It's about a war computer trapping the last remaining humans in the world and torturing them. The computer also changes the humans entirely to drive them crazy. The main character kills the remaining humans and he gets trapped in the hell the computer created. It turns the main character into a formless slug that doesn't have a mouth...hence the title: "I have no mouth, and I must scream".
Woah...what a weird concept. A computer...turning evil.
Nene grabbed the book and flipped it's pages. She stopped at a page where a weird sentence was written. She repeated the words out loud.
Cogito erco so...I think, therefore I am...? What does that mean....?
That's a quote from philosophy.
A quote? What does it mean when it says "I think, therefore I am"...?
Well...think of it like this.
Hm...
....there you go!
Huh.
Nene felt confused. He just told her to think, what message is it sending?!
I don't get it.
You thought just now right?
Yeah?
This quote revolves around the question: "How do I know I'm real?" To know you're real, you have to think. Am I thinking? Then I'm real. If I'm given the ability to think, that means I'm not in a weird dream. That just means...I'm real. That's what it implies by saying: "I think, therefore I am", a short version for: "I am thinking, therefore I am real"...
Ah...!
All this time, Nene believed that her "fake" emotions were what made her real...when they were never fake to begin with. Emotions and feelings manifest from thinking. She thinks, therefore she is...
Thank you...
Nene said, unable to hold herself.
...You're welcome?
Rui said and smiled at Nene. He looked out the window.
Hey, the rain stopped. Would you like to sit at a càfe with me...?
Hm...
Nene thought, again. She thought, if she stayed near a normal human close, she would be safe from that place.
Sure...
Nene held Rui's hand. This felt wrong to Nene, playing with someone's emotions like that. But she wanted to be close to Rui. It was an attempt of protection and happiness. Rui helped Nene learn the meaning of "being real". And she wanted to help Rui too. Even if it meant...something had to be fake.
Let's go!
Tags: @aspenii @bobcross1010 @mizuribbons @kiwi-does-stuff @scodscod @dazeddoofus @kusanagi-nene-official-mod @kitchenaidmixer02
