The Problems With Prototypes

A half-hour later, Tariko guides the Bisyarinas to one of the beds. Quickly drying off what little water might still be clinging to their skin, the president of Love Destiny Enterprises then guides them into laying down, keeping a big enough space for herself between Tania and Beatrice. Tariko then reaches into her purse to draw out a small jar of pills, then draws out two bottles of spring water from the mini-bar. Sliding in between her customers, Tariko hands a pill to Tania, then one to Beatrice. \"Sleeping pill?\" the American asks.

\"Hai,\" Tariko seals the pill bottle, then gives them the spring water. \"Take it down now. Drink all the water.\"

The Bisyarinas quickly reply. Once that is done, Tariko dumps the empty spring water bottles in a nearby recycle bin, then slips the pill bottle back in her purse. \"Okay, we\'re ready,\" she slides back onto the bed, then reclines herself. \"Last chance, ladies.\"

\"Don\'t bother...! Huh?!\" Beatrice stops, blinking confusedly, then she stares at Tariko. \"Hey, is it me or are your...?\"

\"Breasts swelling?\" Tariko finishes, then chuckles. \"Yeah, you could say that. Before I allow people to drink my milk, I take a drug that stimulates the production of stem cells. It helps things go a lot easier for everyone involved.\"

\"Doesn\'t this bother you?\" Tania wonders, reaching over to cup one of Tariko\'s plump mounds.

\"What?\"

\"Well...\" the Russian pauses as she tries to figure out the right way to say this, then she breathes out, giving Tariko an apologetic stare. \"You let yourself be a living GENE FACTORY just so that people like Trisha and I can have children, Tarisha! I mean...\"

\"Hey, that\'s enough!\" Tariko reaches over to slip an arm around Tania\'s neck, her other arm doing the same with Beatrice. \"Don\'t let it bother you, okay? If this is the only way I can share my gift, that\'s the way it has to be. Will you please relax and enjoy yourself, Nisha? Don\'t think about me, okay? Just think about the future you and Trisha are going to make for yourselves and your children.\"

Gently, the Japanese girl shifts her customers\' heads onto her breasts, allowing their lips to gently slide over her hardening nipples. Automatically, the older women\'s mouths open, taking in those stiff buds as their lips press down on the surrounding flesh. Almost instantly, the tiny canals feeding through the nipples open, allowing Tariko\'s breast milk to flood their mouths. Tania and Beatrice gasp in surprise, they pulling themselves away from Tariko\'s breasts, allowing their fluid to splatter over the younger woman\'s skin. Both cough as they move to wipe their mouths clean, then jolt on hearing their host laugh. \"It\'s alright,\" Tariko assures them as her fingers thread through their hair. \"You both haven\'t done this since your mothers breast-fed you when you were babies. Take your time.\"

Beatrice reaches over to draw out some Kleenex, then she wipes down Tariko\'s breasts. \"Surprised us,\" she admits.

\"I know, Trisha. It surprises everyone.\"

Once the younger woman\'s breasts are relatively clean, the Bisyarinas take in a deep breath, then lean down. Once again, their lips wrap around Tariko\'s nipples. A push in with their heads fills their mouths again with fluid. This time, they gulp it down, remembering to take a breath of air afterwards so they don\'t end up gasping. Another drink, then another breath. Again and again. Soon enough, Beatrice shifts herself so she could use a hand to squeeze the breast she now feeds from. Tania is quick to copy her wife\'s actions, then both fall soon into a gentle rhythm. All along, Tariko\'s fingers slide through their hair, she keeping silent as her customers continue to drink.

Time seems to become meaninless as this continues, then Tariko blinks as a faint shudder trembles through Beatrice\'s body. Quickly sensing a like motion in Tania, the younger woman breathes out. \"Okay, that\'s enough,\" she gives the Bisyarinas a warm squeeze.

The older women seem frozen in place for a moment, then slowly, they pull themselves away from Tariko. \"Sure...?\" Beatrice wonders, her voice a surprised rasp, then she cries out suddenly as a faint flash of pain rips through her. \"H-hey...!\"

\"Wh-what\'s happening...?\" Tania grits her teeth as something rumbles deep in her stomach.

\"It\'s okay,\" Tariko shifts into a sitting position, then she helps Tania lay down. \"The stem cells are starting to interact with your bodies\' immune systems right now. That\'s why I gave you the sleeping pills. It\'s not a fun experience, even for the best of us.\" Standing up, she then shifts Beatrice closer to her wife. A quick positioning of the arms later finds the couple holding each other,` Beatrice\'s head resting on Tania\'s left arm. With a shift of some blankets, the couple find themselves tucked in. \"Now get some sleep, you two.\"

Gentle moans respond; already, the sleeping pills are taking effect. Gazing at them, Tariko smiles as her memory replays the nearly countless number of times she had done this over the last four years. From close friends and acquaintances of the Mendou and Mizunokoji Clans, to Madame Lao and her co-workers at the Jade Dragon, to hundreds of Aboriginal and Amerindian tribeswomen living across Australia and Canada, to mothers who had lost sons to the Virus and desperately wanted the chance to have another child, to the various supporters of the Hydra, to friends like Morisato Ryuunosuke and her alien-born fiancee Lum, not to mention Tanaka Misa and her fiancee Sakuragi Mai, to...

A buzz escapes Tariko\'s purse. Chuckling knowingly, she walks over to draw out her cell-phone. \"Hey, gorgeous,\" she calls into it.

\"Asleep?\" Satomi wonders.

\"Just dozed off. You called it right on the line,\" Tariko chuckles, then perks. \"Oh, did...?\"

\"Our \'presents\' from Genome arrive? Hai,\" the owner of Otimtim\'s replies. \"Arigatou, Tari. They\'re really working out well.\"

\"Yokatta,\" Tariko nods. \"Oh, do Misa and Mai know about this?\"

\"No, they haven\'t been around yet, but it\'ll be soon,\" Satomi replies. \"Ne, Tari?\"

\"Hai, love, what is it?\"

\"Two of the girls mentioned a sister of theirs...\"

\"Shinji?\"

\"Hai.\"

\"Gotcha,\" Tariko nods, then perks on hearing the doorbell. Glancing at the door, she concentrates as her empathic senses reach out to probe who is there, then she relaxes. \"And speaking of which, she just came by to visit.\"

\"Eh?! She\'s in Kitakyuushuu?!\" Satomi gasps. \"What happened?!\"

\"Long story, \'Tomi. I\'ll tell you later, okay?\"

\"Hai!\" A pause, then, \"Love you.\"

\"Always, my love,\" Tariko blows her a kiss over the phone, then cuts the link. Grabbing her housecoat, she slips it on, then walks over to the door, pulling it open before the person standing outside could ring the bell again. Tariko shushes Shinji as she waves in the young Sexaroid and her companions. \"They\'re asleep right now,\" she whispers as they walk into the main room.

\"We didn\'t mean to interrupt, Moroboshi-san,\" Yui gazes briefly on the Bisyarinas, quickly noting the content smiles on the visitors\' faces, then she turns back to their host. \"Did you manage to get a room for us...?\"

\"Hai, you got the suite next door. I\'ll call down to get the key sent up,\" Tariko walks over to the work desk to make a call. Once that is done, she then heads over to her clothes, reaching into her pants pocket to draw out a black skeletal key. \"I believe this belongs to you, Shin-chan,\" she places the key in Shinji\'s hand before gazing on the young woman who had accompanied the Ikaris to Kyuushuu.

\"It\'s a pleasure to meet you, Moroboshi-san,\" Mana keeps her voice low, she giving their host a bow. \"If it wasn\'t for you...\" she straightens herself, her eyes misting over, then she gazes warmly at Shinji. \"Well...\"

Tariko chuckles. \"Well, I haven\'t kept track of all the things Yoshi-chan\'s done with the samples of my DNA I let her keep, Mana-san, but if what Ikari-hakase and Akagi-hakase have created to date is any indication...\" she stares warmly at Shinji.

Before the young android herm could respond, a faint knock is heard at the door. \"Ah, great!\" Tariko walks over to open it, then nods thanks as one of the hotel porters hands her a key. She closes the door, then walks over to Yui. \"Here, why don\'t you make yourselves a little more comfortable?\" she hands the room key to the scientist. \"I need to stay here and watch over them,\" she nods to the Bisyarinas.

\"I can help you watch over them, Ta-chan,\" Shinji automatically volunteers.

\"Well...\" Tariko gazes questioningly at her new friend\'s mother.

\"It\'s alright, Moroboshi-san,\" Yui chuckles, holding up the room key. \"It seems my daughter was quite taken away by you when you came by the Tower this morning. Anyhow, Mana-chan and I\'ll go relax for a bit. If we need any supplies, we can visit the station mall.\"

\"Are you sure, Mom?\" Shinji stares concernedly at her mother.

\"We\'ll be fine,\" Yui nods, she and Mana turning to leave. \"You two have fun.\"

Shinji blinks, then beams. \"Hai!\"

With that, the other women depart. Tariko and Shinji watch them go, then exchange a look before they slide into a warm embrace. \"Are you sure they won\'t mind my being here, Ta-chan?\" the android gazes concernedly at the sleeping organics nearby. \"If they\'re a couple...\"

\"It\'s alright, Shin-chan. If you\'re still around when they wake up, I\'ll explain everything to them,\" Tariko guides Shinji to the other bed. \"But they won\'t be up for a while. The sleeping pill I give my customers after they feed off my breasts puts them out for quite some time. Heck, there was one time in San Francisco when I was helping a couple and this earthquake hit. They...\"

\"Slept through it all, right?\"

\"Hai!\"

Both giggle, then gaze on each other before Shinji leans up. After a long, wet, tongue-filled kiss, the android herm them stands up, positioning herself right before Tariko. \"Ta-chan...\" Shinji whispers. \"My sexual programs are all keyed and ready.\"

Tariko gazes up at the younger woman, then sighs. \"Gomen ne, Shin-chan. Much that I wouldn\'t mind doing it now, I do have them to worry about,\" she nods towards the sleeping Bisyarinas. \"I haven\'t lost anyone yet because I didn\'t pay attention to them and...\"

\"You don\'t want to start now,\" the android finishes.

\"Hai.\"

\"That\'s okay,\" Shinji chuckles. \"Here, Ta-chan, lay down. Let me get undressed, then I\'ll lay in bed beside you. You can get some sleep and I\'ll stay awake to ensure your friends there don\'t get hurt,\" she gently shoves Tariko onto the bed.

\"Oh, okay...!\" Tariko smirks as the younger woman moves to undress herself. Watching her synthetic lover strip down, a content sigh escapes the older woman\'s lips. Damn, to be so close to such a loyal and compliant lover like Ikari Shinji, ready and willing to do it at the drop of the hat -- and even better for the more \"in control\" types of women like Moroboshi Tariko, they were ready and willing to NOT do it on request! When Genome finally got down to producing Shinji\'s model of Sexaroid for general sales, they\'d make a killing...

\"Shin-chan!\"

\"What is it, Ta-chan?\" the nude android gazes concernedly at her friend.

\"Mou! You did it again!\" Tariko slips off the bed, then walks over to her trousers, reaching into the back pocket to draw out a familiar black skeleton key. \"You put your activation key into my pocket, you silly girl! You...\"

She stops on sensing a burst of surprise emit from the younger woman, then she gazes anew at Shinji. A bewildered, confused look is etched into the android\'s tomboyish features, as if she just suddenly woke up from a long bout of sleepwalking, wondering how the heck she got to this particular place and time in her life. Tariko stares intently at her for a moment, then she stands up, placing the key back in Shinji\'s hand. The android blinks as her epidermal sensory net picks up the key\'s presence, then she kneels down. Tariko watches her slip the key once more into the back pocket of Tariko\'s trousers before standing. Gazing nowhere in particular for a moment, Shinji then blinks. \"Ta-chan...\" she stares wide-eyed at the older woman, a faint shudder rocking her body from head to toe. \"Why did I just do that?\"

\"Right,\" Tariko kneels once more to draw the key out, then faces Shinji. \"Let\'s try this.\"

She places her free hand on Shinji\'s shoulder as the other hand slides the key into the android\'s navel. Shinji\'s body automatically locks up as the key clicks into place, her eyes fixed on Tariko\'s. Sensing the growing trepidation in the Sexaroid\'s heart because of this, Tariko takes a deep breath, then twists the key to the right one-half turn. Shinji freezes in place for a second, then her pupils and irises glow a faint golden shade. \"This unit has been released by this unit\'s prior owner, Katsuragi Misato,\" she announces in a flat, though still human-sounding, tone. \"New organic DNA pattern has been recorded into this unit\'s activation key. Please state your name.\"

Tariko jolts, quickly clamming up before she would blurt out some nonsense that would only serve to confuse Shinji. Taking a deep breath, she rests her other hand on the android\'s shoulder. *Misato-chan, what the HELL are you doing?!* she mentally rails.

\"Please state your name,\" Shinji repeats.

Tariko blinks several times, then straightens herself. \"Moroboshi Tariko.\"

\"Identification acknowledged. This unit has been programmed to acknowledge Moroboshi Tariko as this unit\'s new owner by command of this unit\'s prior owner, Katsuragi Misato. Does Moroboshi Tariko desire to become this unit\'s new owner?\"

Tariko\'s jaw hits the floor as Shinji\'s words -- those words being the very same ones used by Ayanami Rei, Asuka Langley, Ibuki Maya and Horaki Hikari when Tariko took official ownership of them that morning -- echo in her mind, then she nods. \"Yes, I do.\"

\"Acknowledged,\" Shinji faintly nods. \"Unit Three-three-Es-Oh-oh-One, Ikari Shinji, is now under the ownership of Moroboshi Tariko.\" Another pause, then she asks, \"Does this unit\'s owner wish to make any programming alterations?\"

Silence falls as Tariko considers that, then she breathes out. \"Yes. You are to keep your key on your person at all times, Shinji. I also release you from any special program commands Misato or anyone else might\'ve given you prior to my becoming your new owner.\"

A pause, then, \"Acknowledged. Remove key to restore this unit to nominal function.\"

Tariko reaches down, twisting the key back to the \"upright\" position before drawing it out. Shinji jolts again as her eyes revert to their normal blue shade, then they widen suddenly as a small tidal wave of information pours into her mind from once-sealed memory banks. Her hands reach up to grip the sides of her head as the android\'s internal processors go to work, filing that new information away where she could better access it, then she squeezes her eyes shut as tears stream down her cheeks. \"Mom...! Mana...! No...\" she mutters under her breath before leaning into Tariko\'s warm embrace, Shinji buring her face into the older woman\'s bust as she starts to cry.

Tariko shushes the weeping android as Shinji nearly squeezes her to death with a hug, then she falls silent as the Sexaroid\'s sobs soon fade into hoarse moans before she sniffles several times. Tariko pulls Shinji away from her, her hands already moving to wipe the younger woman\'s cheeks clean, then she gives Shinji a tender kiss to the forehead. \"What is it, Shin-chan? Tell me.\"

Shinji sniffs as she blinks several times, her mind working hard to find the right words to explain what she just experienced to her new owner, then she takes a deep breath. \"This was deliberate,\" she whispers. \"Misato-san programmed me to act in such a way that I would eventually persuade you to become my new owner, Ta-chan. I guess...\" she grimances. \"She and Ritsuko-san wanted me...\"

\"To get the same chance Rei-chan, Asuka-chan and the others\'re getting now,\" Tariko finishes.

\"Hai,\" Shinji nods, then she wipes her eyes once more of fresh tears. \"Even worse...\"

\"What?\"

Silence falls for a moment, then Shinji stares at Tariko. \"Mom and Mana-chan...\" she gulps. \"They\'re both like me, Ta-chan! They\'re androids, too! I was programmed to never acknowledge either of them as Sexaroids, Ta-chan! Even in private! Never!!\"

Tariko\'s jaw drops...

* * *

Back at a certain coffee shop in Nerima...

\"Satomi-san, you\'re just not being fair!!\"

\"I\'M not being fair?!\" Satomi glares down the woman with the long, wavy brown hair and the bright amethyst eyes from behind the counter. Around her, small crowds of students from a half-dozen local high schools are busy gabbing away, though the owner of Otimtim\'s is quick to notice that their attention is often locked on the three lovely young girls in slacks and shirts currently waiting tables, to saythiything of the two other young women now working for Satomi. \"Karen-san, I think I\'m being more than fair about this!\" she leans closer to Maijima Karen, causing the idol star to balk. \"The answer is \'no!\' What part of that, pray tell, don\'t you understand?!\"

A moment\'s confusion crosses Karen\'s face. Watching the other woman wrestle with the words she just said, Satomi shakes her head. In a world where intimacy is virtually one\'s for the asking, where a show of hestiation can be worn down into a firm \"Yes!\" with just a coy look and some soft words, where it is said that \"No!\" always means \"Persuade me!\", to run into a steadfast refusal with the equivalent strength of a brick wall is downright disorientating for those like Maijima Karen. Of course, it isn\'t that Satomi didn\'t like Karen at all; that was far from the truth. There had been a time early in her ownership of Otimtim\'s when Kurokawa Satomi had spent some quality time with Maijima Karen. But given the unique natures of the Sexaroids working for her, Satomi has no desire whatsoever to start an all-out riot in her late uncle\'s establishment. The problem, as Satomi sees it, with people like Karen is that the unending sexual desire \"normal\" girls experience -- something that has, admittedly, contributed to a more peaceful society -- also made keeping secrets impossible. If the word got out in Nerima that Kurokawa Satomi had four android hermaphrodites, synthetic women purpose-built to give pleasure on request, working for her...!

\"Satomi-san, it\'s not that we want to start an orgy in your shop,\" Karen\'s date-for-a-night, Mizuno Tomomi, reaches over to give her lover\'s shoulder a squeeze. \"We\'re all quite aware of your feelings on that matter. It\'s just that we\'ve very curious about these girls,\" she waves to Rei, who is now taking an order from some Furinkan High girls. \"For a long time, you\'ve worked almost totally alone here at Otimtim\'s, living almost like a nun whenever business takes Tariko-san who-knows-where. Then you suddenly get five very beautiful young ladies to work for you in the last forty-eight hours. You have to admit, that\'s more than enough reason for any of us to be curious.\"

\"Curiosity is one thing, Tomomi-san. Wanting to crawl into these girls\' pants without them having a say in the matter is another!\"

Both Hachijuuhachi High students jolt, then Karen shudders, her eyes flashing with deep hurt. \"How can you SAY that, Satomi...?\" she hisses, her eyes tearing. \"How can you just stand there and accuse me of wanting to RAPE someone?! You know me better than that!!\"

\"Hey!\" Satomi snaps, causing Karen to tense. \"Yes, I do know you better than that, Karen! And don\'t you DARE pull those tears on me! I know you VERY well!! How many of Tomomi-san\'s secrets have you willingly blabbed to all your other lovers across Tokyo?! What about the time you went \'steady\' with Sugimoto Sakurako?! Or the times you dated Minamikawa Yohko?! What about Katou Minori?! Should I mention the time you tried to break up Nagashima Kumiko and Tsuzuki Kozue?! Do I need to list them all, for Heaven\'s sake?!\"

Karen stiffens as Satomi\'s words send painful stabs deep into her heart, then with as much dignity as she can still muster, she spins around and marches out of Otimtim\'s. \"Karen-chan, wait!\" Tomomi calls out as she races off to follow.

\"Sa-chan, was that really necessary?\"

Satomi breathes out, then gazes on Asuka, she having come up from clearing a table after it had been used by a small group from several local high schools. \"Hai, it was,\" the owner of Otimtim\'s nods. \"Don\'t get me wrong, though, Asuka-chan. Karen\'s a good person deep down. But she, not to mention a lot of girls my age, tend not to think about the consequences of their actions. Look there.\"

She nods to another table to the right of the main doors, where a sultry green-eyed brunette in slacks and a button shirt is now chatting with a pair of girls from Hachijuuhachi High School. \"She\'s very beautiful,\" Asuka notes.

\"She\'s also got a very jealous girlfriend who\'d freak out in an instant if she saw her flirting with anyone else other than those she happens to like herself,\" Satomi reports, glancing right to see Rei and Maya work together to get orders filled. \"The lady there\'s Ayakawa Madoka. She, her childhood friend, Hiyama Hikaru and her girlfriend, Kasuga Akane, all now attend the Kimagure Academy in Itabashi.\"

\"The special private school that caters to paranormals?\" Asuka blinks.

\"Whoa!! They sure load a lot of stuff into your heads at the Tower, don\'t they?!\" Satomi chuckles, then nods. \"Hai, that\'s the place. In fact, Akane-san, so I\'ve heard, is rated as one of the top esper talents in all of Japan...\"

\"She\'s nowhere close to Ta-chan!\" the crimson-haired Sexaroid reports.

\"Hai!\" Satomi grins with pride at her girlfriend\'s abilities, then she takes a sobering breath. \"So you can see why I get concerned whenever people like Madoka-san are on the prowl. The girl with the ponytail there is Mai-chan\'s kid siser, Sakuragi Kyooko. The girl beside her is Kyooko-chan\'s steady, Takano Midori. Mai-chan would freak right out if Akane-san ever came along, then used her telekinetic powers to \'punish\' Kyooko-chan and Midori-chan for \'flirting\' with Madoka-san, even IF Madoka-san was the one who started it!\"

\"Soo na...\" Asuka shudders. While she was programmed and built to deal with a lot of potential situations, dealing with a person welding telekinetic powers isn\'t a situation the young woman was clearly keen to experience. \"What should we do, Sa-chan?\"

\"Is there something wrong, Satomi?\"

Both turn as Rei walks up to join them. Asuka quickly gives her blue-haired sister a quick rundown of the situation at hand. Rei glances briefly at Madoka\'s table, then hums as her mind runs through possible responses to this particular matter. A slight smile then crosses her face, a grin that, for all its subtlely, loudly screamed out Rei\'s intentions. \"Allow me to handle this.\"

She heads off. Satomi and Asuka watch her go, blinking...

* * *

Ten minutes later...

\"Your sister\'s engaged?!\"

\"Yeah!\" Kyooko nods, rolling her golden-brown eyes before taking a sip of her expresso. \"Like, she\'s what?! Seventeen?! Here she is, at the very PRIME of her life, with tons of girls just WAITING for her to go screw tr her heart\'s content -- and what does she do?! She get\'s ENGAGED to get MARRIED!! Especially when said fiancee is none other than Tanaka Misa, the supreme jock tomboy of Hachijuuhachi High!\" Another sip of her coffee. \"And you want to hear the real wild part about this whole thing, Madoka-sempai?! She\'s PREGNANT!!\"

Madoka nearly chokes on her green tea. \"\'PREGNANT?!?!\'\" she cries out, though the volume of her voice does nothing to disturb the people at neighbouring tables. \"You\'re kidding me!! Your sister\'s actually pregnant?! That\'s impossible!!\"

\"It\'s true!\" Kyooko asserts.

\"But how?! Most girls don\'t visit fertility clinics until they reach age thirty at the LEAST!!\" Madoka exclaims.

\"It\'s easy, believe it or not,\" Mai\'s younger sister rolls her eyes, then nods towards the counter, where Satomi is now busy preparing some tea for a couple of older women. \"You know Moroboshi Tariko, Satomi-sempai\'s girlfriend?\"

A nod. \"I\'ve heard of her. Never met her, though. Most people in town say she\'s no girl\'s land.\"

\"Oh, tell me about it!\" Kyooko groans. \"Anyhow, supposedly, Tariko-sempai\'s got this special ability she can pass on to other girls! I swear, I don\'t know anything about exactly HOW it works, but it does! Onee-chan and Tanaka go see her, then *WHAMMO!!* They both got buns in the oven! Oh, BOY!! You should\'ve seen Mom when she found out she\'s on her way to becoming a grandmother!!\" she rolls her eyes.

\"Yes, Mother was VERY happy when we delivered the good news,\" a stern voice tickles Kyooko\'s ears from behind her, making the younger Sakuragi tense. \"But she\'ll be very sad to hear that all the trouble I had to endure on your behalf was wasted, little sister!\"

Kyooko gulps, slowly turning right to see Sakuragi Mai gazing at her with a stare that could melt steel. \"O-onee-ch-chan...!\"

Mai sighs. \"Honestly, Kyooko, why on Earth do you DO these things?!\" she leans over, making Kyooko instantly wilt. \"It\'s bad enough that you allow yourself to be taken in by every pretty face that crosses your path! It\'s a wonder to me that you haven\'t been dragged off to some disgusting dive and made the local block slut! But to drag in Midori atop that?! What\'s WRONG with you?!\"

\"Hey, hey, HEY!! Take it easy, Sakuragi-san!\" Madoka moves to Kyooko\'s defence. \"We\'re just...!\"

\"What?!\" a voice growls from behind her, making Madoka spin around to gaze into the sneering face of one Takana Misa. \"Having an \'innocent chat,\' perchance?! Please, Ayakawa, Mai and I are BOTH well aware of your reputation! Not to mention your girlfriend\'s!!\"

\"Though I do confess that Kasuga-san certainly doesn\'t deserve some of the things I\'ve heard said about her, given how much trouble YOU seem ove ove starting when you stray off the range, Ayakawa-san,\" Mai adds, her words making Madoka wince even more, then she focuses her attention on Kyooko and Midori. \"Come along, you two. It\'s time for you to come home!\"

\"Aw, ONEE-CHAN!!!\" Kyooko wails as Mai hooks her arm under her sister\'s, then yanks her out of the booth.

\"Hey!!\" Madoka moves to yank the Sakuragi sisters apart. \"That\'s no way to treat your sister!\"

Mai spins on the other woman. \"Oh, really?! And what happens when Kasuga-san learns about your latest little escapade?! Does my sister end up hospitalized because the woman you call a \'girlfriend\' lost control of her temper in response to something YOU did?!\"

Madoka balks. \"Onee-chan!!\" Kyooko gasps.

\"Never mind, Kyooko! Let\'s go!\"

Kyooko yelps as Mai drags her through the front doors, a meek-faced Midori following the Sakuragi sisters out of Otimtim\'s. Madoka remains rooted in place, stunned by the harshness of Mai\'s words, then she jolts on sensing Misa gazing at her. \"You know, I really don\'t understand what the HELL does a beautiful, decent, LOYAL girl like Kasuga Akane sees in someone like you!\" the track runner growls.

Madoka watches Misa storm out of Otimtim\'s, then looks nowhere in particular before feeling a hand fall on her shoulder. She turns to see Satomi gaze knowingly at her. Taking a deep breath, the raven-haired teen turns to get her purse. \"I know,\" she breathes out.

Leaving some money behind to pay for the drinks, she walks out of Otimtim\'s. Satomi watches her go, then shakes her head...

* * *

\"Having an internalized cell-phone does come in handy, doesn\'t it?\" Rei muses.

\"Got that right,\" Asuka nods as they and Hikari watch events in the main part of the shopm thm the entrance to the kitchen...

* * *

Kitakyuushuu...

\"Fates...!\"

\"It\'s all true.\"

The Bisyarinas are still asleep in the main suite; Shinji currently monitors them. Tariko now sits with Yui and Mana at the dining room table in the neighbouring suite. Room service has been delivered for them. After hearing what happened to the two women before her which saw their living spirits preserved by their transfer into specially-constructed 33-S bodies, Tariko takes a deep breath. \"I knew my stem cells can do quite a bit, but to actually help do something like THAT...!\" she shakes her head. \"Why didn\'t Yoshi-chan tell me?!\"

\"I\'m not sure if Masudamasu-hakase\'s been told about what happened to either Mana-chan or myself,iko-iko-san,\" Yui confesses, reaching over to give Tariko\'s hand a firm squeeze. \"If she hasn\'t, I can understand that. What happened to me was so insane...!\"

\"Both of us,\" Mana confesses.

Tariko takes that in, then sighs. \"And your original bodies were so badly damaged that a full recovery...?\"

\"Was impossible,\" Yui pulls her hand back. \"Death is rare in our society these days, ne? But it happens and it would\'ve happened to me hadn\'t that untemplated 33-S body we were using as a trial unit for Kusanagi-taisa\'s androids been in close range of me...\"

\"Thus allowing this \'mind-transference\' to happen when you touched its skin,\" Tariko slowly nods.

\"Hai,\" the cyborg Sexaroid scientist nods, then gazes on her daughter\'s former beta tester. \"And before you ask, no, not was was \'arranged\' concerning Mana-chan\'s own accident. At least nothing I\'d attribute to either Misato or Ritsuko. As for the others...\"

\"No, not them,\" Tariko shakes her head. \"I\'ve empathically scanned both the Chairwoman and Miss Madigan. They\'ve done odd things in their past; I guess it goes with the territory of being either a SEAL or a member of the Special Boat Squadron. But to actually kill someone to analyze something like THAT?! No! I wouldn\'leralerate it and I know that Yoshi-chan would put a stop to it right away!\"

\"I\'ve never hated anyone at Genome for what happened to me, Moroboshi-san,\" Mana admits, then shrugs. \"Believe me, even with the several disadvantages this body forces on me, it\'s really no different than my old self. I...\" she pauses, then sighs. \"Well, maybe, sometime in the future, I might have something to complain about, but if your stem cells could create something like this...\" she points to her heart, \"...much less something like Shinji-chan, then maybe it can go even further than that.\"

\"A fully-organic Sexaroid, you mean?\" Tariko\'s eyebrows arch.

\"We\'ve looked at that,\" Yui explains. \"It\'s a little too soon to introduce something as radical as THAT, especially given the gender limitations DNA DNA forces on us. If we could make male organic Sexaroids using stem cell DNA similar to your own, the whole question of bringing men back becomes mute. But it\'s theoretically possible and I think it should be explored. Under controlled circumstances.\"

\"I\'d rather let Yoshi-chan worry about things like that,\" Tariko holds up a hand, then she gazes on the ceiling. \"Still...\"

\"What?\" Yui prods.

\"Well...\" Tariko pauses, then sighs. \"I was just wondering about the possibility of others like me being out there somewhere...\"

\"It would be wonderful if we could find others like you,\" Yui notes. \"Maybe, by looking at more of you, comparing your experiences and all that, it would finally give us some clues as to what sort of power transformed you in the first place.\"

A slow nod. \"Your company would be very interested in that, wouldn\'t it?\"

\"Yes, it would,\" Yui bows her eyes, then perks. \"Wait...\"

\"What?\" Tariko gazes at her.

The scientist reaches into her pocket, then draws out a black key. Standing, she hands it to Tariko. \"This is the master key for all the 33-S\'s we\'ve created. It\'s also my personal activation key,\" Yui explains. \"Tariko-san, would you mind...?\"

Tariko blinks, then rises. Taking the key in hand, she waits for Yui to pull her sweater out of her skirt, revealling her navel. Poising the key over that recess in the cyborg/android scientist\'s skin, Tariko pushes in. Automatically, Yui\'s body locks up, then her eyes start to glow as Tariko turns the key halfway around to the right. \"This unit has been released by this unit\'s prior owner, Brienna Mason,\" she flatly announces. \"New organic DNA pattern has been recorded into this unit\'s activation key. Please state your name.\"

Tariko\'s and Mana\'s eyes go wide. \"Wha-...?!\" both exclaim...

* * *