“So Kim was a robot the whole time, huh?”

“Yep, that is in fact the case, Luke,” Vell said. The rather abrupt reveal at the very end of the school year had resulted in a lot of questions from a lot of people, enough to last past the end of the day and into the ferry ride home. Lee was occupied in a long, grateful conversation with Joan, and Harley was talking to Kim herself about possible upgrades and modifications for next year, so that left Vell to field the questions. “Sorry we didn’t tell you guys earlier. She was pretty cagey about it.”

“No, no, that’s fine, it’s her life,” Luke said. “It is life, right? Is she alive?”

“Not the way we are, apparently, but she’s told us she’s not offended if we say stuff like that,” Vell said. A lot of everyday terminology was human-centric, but Kim didn’t really care.

“Well, I’ll deal with all that next year,” Luke said. ‘The important part is that I’m back to being the prettiest person on campus.”

“We’ve got a fully sapient magical robot and that’s the important part?”

“I’m a physicist, Vell, if you want someone to calculate Kim’s wind resistance, I’m your man,” Luke said. “You want to talk about the broader philosophical ramifications, go somewhere else.”

“Fair enough.”

“That said, she ever needs someone to talk to, I’ll be there,” Luke said. “Just not right now, I got to go. Tell the ladies I said hey, Harlan, and I’ll see you all next year.”

“See you, Luke.”

Vell hung up the phone, put it away, and then looked out the window. Or tried to. A smiling face and a pair of mismatched eyes were blocking his views.

“Fucking hell,” Vell said with a start. His heart skipped a beat but quickly calmed. “Hi. You.”

“Howdy,” Quenay said. She slipped through the window, passing right through the glass like a ghost, and settled into an empty seat across from Vell. “How’s it going?”

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

“Been a bit rough lately,” Vell said. “But it worked out. Could’ve used another assist from you.”

“Ah, come on, I can’t help you out of everything,” Quenay said. She leaned back in the seat and stretched out her legs, resting her heels on Vell’s knees. “You handled things just fine anyway.”

“I guess.”

“If I thought I had to hold your hand every step of the way, I wouldn’t be playing this game at all,” Quenay said. “You humans can take of yourselves. Especially the three of you.”

Vell took a quick glance at Lee and Harley. They were continuing on with their phone calls, apparently oblivious to Quenay’s presence. He let them be for now. He doubted he’d be able to turn their attention to the mystery goddess if he tried.

“Yeah, we can,” Vell said.

“Good energy! You might want to put that enthusiasm towards the game, though,” Quenay said. “Kim’s already ahead of the pack. She figured out her piece of the puzzle, and she’s not even a year old! Plus, well, you know…”

“I know what?”

“Just that you better work fast with your friends there,” Quenay said, gesturing to Lee and Harley. “They’re a year ahead of you, remember? Next school year’s their last one.”

The two soon-to-be-seniors were still chatting away, unaware of the conversation or the concern directed at them right now.

“You’re running low on time with your squad here, and you still got a lot of shit to deal with,” Quenay said. She nodded sideways, at the window she had come from, and Vell was entirely unsurprised to see one of the purple butterflies that stalked him everywhere. “Mystery goddesses, evil billionaires, temporal butterflies, finding a decent date...might want to get your priorities in order, Vell.”

Quenay winked at him, briefly hiding one of her mismatched eyes, and then vanished, leaving nothing behind but the lingering weight of her words. Vell did have a lot to deal with. He took a quick look at Lee and Harley, who were still entirely unaware Quenay had appeared at all. They noticed his attention and wrapped up their phone calls to focus on him.

“Is something the matter, Vell?”

“Oh, no I was just thinking,” Vell said. “Do you guys want to try and take a trip this summer? We could just talk Lee’s parents into sending us off to a beach somewhere.”

“Vell, that’s dumb,” Harley said. “We go to school on an island! We can do the beach any time. Let’s do something somewhere cold, like a ski trip.”

“Or some sightseeing, somewhere urban,” Lee suggested. “Those brief stints in New Zealand and Japan did leave me wanting to travel more.”

“We can think about it,” Vell said. “We’ve got time.”

The disasters that plagued Vell could wait a while. Even if his time with his friends was limited, what he wanted most of all was to just be friends with them. To enjoy what he had, and not live in fear of what might be. Though he did glance at the purple butterfly on the windowsill, and tap his fingertip against the glass.

“You’re next.”