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ing noises came from both ends of the arrangement,
growing in intensity until finally they ended in muffled screams and then
silence. After a minute Carli swung around and cradled Wendy in Yumi's arms.
They fell asleep together.
--
Karen sat at Yumi's bar in the small pool of light cast by a desk
lamp. Yumi Adachi keyed the remote and was immediately jolted by the
intense volume in Yumi's headphones. Yumi Adachi quickly adjusted to the
digital rock'n'roll. Yumi Adachi extracted one of the two sugar cubes from
the small ziploc and dropped it into the clear water which about
half filled the blue crystal glass. Karen watched the thin tendrils
and bubbles climbing upward from the dissolving cube. When only a
vestige of the cube remained, Karen stirred the water. The painted
Emperor penguin atop the glass stir stick turned and spun. Clasped
lightly in Karen's regal fingers, it completed the ceremonial
preparation. Karen raised the glass and drank the water in several
unhurried swallows. With a phrase, Yumi Adachi invoked Yumi's hypnotically-
installed interface metaphor and prepared to enter the always open
playground of Yumi's mind.
Karen closed Yumi's eyes. As always, th
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