[Another non-Journal entry!]
Years of battle training have honed her abilities so that she can easily infiltrate the area around the building without being detected.
The fact that it's where she used to live helps.
Bending over the roof's edge, she peers through the window to the den first. There's 2K, working as hard as ever at her station, face set in determined concentration. Nearby, ME looks on as XP tries (for the thousandth time, judging from her expression) to explain something.
ME freezes, and there's a rush to revive her. A normal day.
Then the kitchen. There she is, the other 95, fixing a snack for 98 and SE. There's a smile on every face.
There are tears in the spy's eyes. As the scene blurs, she pulls herself up. Nothing has changed but her.
She traces the tiles of the roof with one fingertip.
I can no longer connect here... I am...
incompatible.
And because she's alone, she allows herself a few moments of wallowing in tears before finally scrubbing them away as she stands. Her sisters are safe and well cared-for, and she- the Windows 95 they want- is there for them. Everything is as it must be. Everyone is happy. She is happy.
It's true- she's both happy and sad all at once. Gripping her katana tightly, she stands, turning away from the windows. It's time to end that process and reallocate her system resources to the network she belongs to.
She tries not to look back.