31_days | July 7-Original-"Where The Blame Lies"

Title: Where The Blame Lies
Prompt: July 7th-Unfettered and Alive
Series: Original
Words: 330
Rating: PG
Summary: In which the two A.I. toys talk about the elephant in the room.

Where the Blame Lies

He could not look at her anymore.

“I’m sorry Mew. I failed you.”

Mew stroked the bright red cannon that had taken the place of her left arm. “For what? I never cried for you to come and save me. I’m a girl’s toy; I’m soft and unlike you, I have no weapons… but that doesn’t mean I can’t try to protect myself. I still have some AI, you know! I wanted to keep living. That’s all I was thinking about; not you or anything else. I attached that cannon so I could save myself. So stop acting like you’re a failed hero! You came to get me. That was more than enough! ”

“But that cannon doesn’t match you at all. It’s too big and heavy for you.”

Mew looked down. “I’m not cute anymore. Is that what you’re saying?”

He turned his head. He hadn’t meant it like that. “A girl like you should have never been brought into this.”

“A girl like me? What does that even mean? I survived didn’t I?” Her voice was hot, like the tears that were escaping from her eyes.

The heat was infectious; it crept into his voice.“Barely!”

Mew gripped her sleek new arm. “But I still did it! It was really scary! You jerk! It was so scary but I still-! My arm still hurts and I’m not cute anymore, but I still!”

She began to cry.

Zero thought for a moment. “You still pulled through using strength you didn’t know you had…”

“Yeah, I did!”

“I’m sorry, Mew. I was focusing on my weakness instead of your strength.”

“I’m going to ask Hugo to fix this for me. As it stands, it’s too bulky to use properly.”

“What?”

“I don’t want to get torn apart again, Zero! I don’t want to rely on you to save me. The least I could do is learn to use this myself so I can continue to live freely!”