reveilation | IC INBOX

Huh- What?

[ There's a sense of déjà vu that sends her reeling— along with the overwhelming urge to punch the dummy (or RO, whoever's closest within arm's reach) because seeing two of the same person has to be an illusion and that's how she gets rid of Kano's. ]

Is that your, uh.

[ Friend? Dummy? Evil twin? ]

Yes, she's the dummy. I am usually allowed for a max number of four dummies in order to increase my combat efficiency. However, they also require rations to function, which was why I asked earlier... I had her scout nearby if there were any dangerous animals on our way to the castle.

[ They're even wearing the same clothes, so it's difficult to differentiate them... ]

[ Uh. All of this raises more questions than it answers, and Kido finds herself looking between RO and her dummy before finally settling on the dummy. ]

You can't just call her "the dummy" though...

[ She wants to ask what the dummy's name is, but she supposes RO isn't really a name, either, just a series of letters and numbers. But said enough times and it sounds like a name, just like anybody else's and this... dummy or copy or clone or whatever you want to call it, should have a name too. ]

[ ...

Oh. Right. The word sometimes has a derogatory meaning behind it. RO is so used to copies being referred to as dummies, because that's how they were always called. The dummy blankly looks at Kido back, staring without a word. ]

She's called a dummy because she is part of the dummy link system, in which a T-Doll like myself controls four other copies. I only have one with me at the moment.

[ Her dummy is essentially useless without her combat core and gun anyway. ]

... Did you want to name her?

[ Is this what human sentimentality is--wanting to name a dummy. ]

[ Yeah, it's human sentimentality, wanting to name a dummy because looking human means Kido would see her as human. The same reason why she still believes that Mae is a normal person who can make themselves look like a cat-thing, or and why she forgets Terry is a demi-god and won't die falling twenty feet. ]

Oh. Um, shouldn't you be the one to name her? It would mean more, coming from you.

[ Being put on the spot like this, all Kido would be able to come up with is something following the standard Ichiro, Jiro, etc. by number order, but that's somehow worse than leaving it as "dummy" ]

... I'm sorry, but I don't really understand why it would.

[ RO looks genuinely confused at the question. ]

She only listens to commands given to her and is mainly suited for assistance that requires another body. I can issue commands internally, so I would not necessarily need a name for the dummy...

[ She really is trying her best to justify the dummy having the name, but she doesn't see it. :( Sorry, Kido. ]

[ Gestures at the dummy, she looks like a person and therefore Kido will treat her like one ]

What about for others to refer to her? I can't go around calling her your dummy.

[ She could, and it's the technical term, but she would feel bad and that's justification enough for RO to make something up. Two random letters. It can be easy. ]

[ She still can't think of a reason why they would want to refer to her dummy instead of RO herself, but RO can at least understand that Kido feels bad about it, even if she can't understand why. ]

Dummy... 1...

[ ...

God, that sounds so stupid, even to her. But she doesn't know how to think of names? It's weird for her, but even so, that's the best she can do. ]

My apologies, but my creative process is lacking.

[ This is embarrassing... ]

[ It really is a sorry attempt, and if Kido were a meaner person, she'd laugh instead of trying to hold it in like she does now. But it's not like Kido had anything better than Ichiro to begin with, so that sobers her up quickly. ]

We can work with that. Let's see...

[ However you pronounce dummy in Japanese. Dami? dami... ichi... damichi... also sounds stupid, but if they drop the first syllable... ]

How about Michi?

[ Depending on how it's written, it doesn't mean one anymore but whatever, idk, I'm bad at names and people keep talking to Kido about making up names and I'm ??? ]

[ Maybe Kido looks super creative with names... somehow... Maybe she can be the Name Rater of Hirajiro.

RO looks at the dummy, who still has a blank look on her face like she always does. ]

Michi.

[ The dummy responds by shifting her gaze over to RO, then to Kido, then back at RO before nodding. ]

The identity is accepted, so she will respond to that name from now on. Hm, this wasn't a situation that I expected. I thought she would have remained completely unresponsive to the name because of how she's programmed.

[ No... Kido came up with one name in canon that she tried to explain and Shintaro had to tell her to shut up. ]

Michi, then.

[ Kido nods, looking rather pleased that the name was accepted too. ]

Why do you think she wouldn't want a name?

Dummies don't have emotion modules nor any programming concerning a name... nor any desires.

[ RO looks perplexed by the entire situation, but. Well, she learned something new today. ]

I wonder if this place had any effect on her... I'll be looking into this too.

[ Oh, right. The entire reason why she called her over. ]

Unfortunately... Michi [ It's going to take some time to get used to calling her dummy that. ] is not satisfied until she meets her ration quota, which is rather high. Too much food will hamper her performance, so I wanted to see if there was a type of food that would be small in size, but packed with enough carbohydrates or calories that would meet the quota easily.

[ ...Sure. The whole thing about dummies is like talking to Wyatt all over again, but what's more important than figuring out emotion modules is the whole food thing. ]

What sort of nutrients does Michi need? Otherwise, if it's just empty calories, there's always butter. Oil would be more portable, but that's...

[ Going back to the whole robot thing, even if it's salad dressing and not motor oil ]

[ ... ]

Despite popular fiction, we cannot ingest oil.

[ RO looks over at Michi and she shakes her head. Looks like she likes some degree of standards in food. ]

[ Guzzling vegetable oil would be so efficient, though. ]

What if the oil or fat were cooked into something? The more butter you put into cookies or a cake, the richer it is, and that can be packaged easily.

[ Kido immediately grabs Michi's attention as soon as she says the word "cake". RO notices this and she wonders... ]

That sounds reasonable. Thank you, Kido. That was very helpful information. I'll look into cookies that contains them in large portions, and if that fails, I suppose I'll get a cake...

[ Hm.

Michi looks like she really wants cake despite the poker face she has, but RO can tell. ]

Would you like some as well, Kido? We should return to the town soon.

[ Kido can't help but laugh, stepping out of the castle back towards town, because she gets it. Cookies are good but cake is where real indulgence lies. ]

If cost is an issue, it would be cheaper to bake it yourself. I don't mind baking if you provide the ingredients, and I would be able to adjust the recipe for higher calories too.

Yes, I wouldn't mind providing the ingredients. I'll be able to get them if you give me a list. Thank you very much for your consideration.

[ Michi mumbles a dazed "cake" and follows them quietly otherwise. RO is pretty content with this outcome too. She also likes cakes, but not as much as... her dummies.

/cake end ]

Sure thing. I'll write you a shopping list so you can have it on hand, and substitute some of the ingredients for whatever's on sale that week if you need to.

[ ~*~*cake*~*~

It's going to be one of these roll cakes that Kido can plastic wrap and hope Michi's not running around enough to get it squashed. ]

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