It was a sunny day in early Spring when Kurumi was in the car riding home from Kitten Kindergarten. She was now 5 years old and quick to point out she is almost 6, since her birthday would be in a few months. Kurumi, at only 5, had taken quickly to the computer classes now being taught in kindergarten. So much so that she was part of a secondary class that was offered after lunch and extended to the end of the normal school day. This worked out well since both of her parents worked. This way her mother could pick her up on the way home from work. When they pulled in the driveway she was somewhat surprised to see that her father's car was home already. He was not usually home for another few hours. Kurumi looked at her mom and asked, "Daddy is home already?" Her mother responded, "Yes, I asked him to bring home a project I am working on from work." Both of Kurumi’s parents worked at NEKO Tech., a large advanced technology company. The company was well known for its many breakthrough technologies. In fact, her parents met there in the cybernetic division, immediately connected, and were married 7 years ago.

When Kurumi walked in the house, she put her back pack down on the entry table. Her parents asked her to come to the kitchen to talk. They had a small surprise for her. Excited, she went to the kitchen and sat at the table across from her parents. They let her know she was enrolled into the advanced computer classes for next year at school. This made Kurumi very happy. She was not sure she would get accepted since they only take a handful of students each year. Kurumi’s mother went on to explain, "This will not be as easy as it has been in your current classes. You will need to work hard and you will need the proper tools to do your school work." Kurumi immediately jumped in, "Am I getting a Mouse?" NEKO Tech released a new mouse last year that you can interface with your computer. It was new and all the kids wanted them. There was some controversy on the release of the Mouse and how they should be marketed, since they were mouse people that had been cybernetically modified to interface through a USB port on a computer. Though being cat people, the days of tormenting mice and playing with them was in the past. However, there was still a small shrinking minority that did not respect the mouse people. Kurumi’s mother told her to slow down. "Yes, but we need to talk about this first. Although the Mouse is a tool, they are also a living being so you will need to take care of them like a pet. They require training and discipline to make them the most effective. You have to promise us you are willing to take on this responsibility." Kurumi said, "Yes, I promise I will take good care of it. When can I get one?"

Kurumi’s mother said, "That is why your father is home early. I asked him to bring a new advanced prototype Mouse home from the lab for you. Go check the table in your room." As soon as her mother finished saying this, Kurumi jumped out of her chair and ran to her room. When she got there she saw the cage on her table and ran up to it to look in. She looked back at her parents who were just walking in her room and asked, "Can I open it?" They said, "Sure she is yours now." Kurumi opened the cage and the scared mouse girl looked out and up at Kurumi. Kurumi said, "She is adorable. How old is she? What is her name?" Her mother said, "She actually turned 6 today; her birthday is the first day of Spring March 20th. As for a name she does not have one yet you will need to give her one." Kurumi thought of this and said, "She is so pretty and like a flower and her birthday is in spring so I will call her Primula."

Kurumi asked why she was in a cage. She reached in, took Primula out and held her in front of her face. "I hope you like your name. We are going to be the best of friends." When she said this, Kurumi thought she saw Primula smile. Kurumi turned Primula around, held her against her chest, and said, "I Love her mommy and daddy. This is the best surprise ever. My friend will not be sleeping in a cage. We can get rid of the cage and I will use some of my birthday money to buy her a better place to sleep tomorrow." Kurumi started to show Primula around her room and talked to her about all the fun things she wanted them to do together. You could tell Primula was a bit overwhelmed with everything going on around her. She gradually started to open up and to tell Kurumi what life was like in the lab. It was not a bad thing. Everyone was nice to her, but she had to admit this seemed much better, and that she was glad to have a friend now the same age as herself. Kurumi told her not to worry she will never have to go back to the lab and that she can stay with her forever. They talked and talked. A few hours later, when it was quiet, Kurumi’s parents went in to check on them and found them both asleep in Kurumi’s bed. Kurumi’s mother looked at them and said, "It looks like they are getting along fine." She knew Kurumi would treat her new Mouse like a friend and not a tool. She also remarked, "I do not think there will be any reason to go buy a new bed for Primula, looks like she has one already." They took the cage from the table, turned off the lights and left the room. As time went on, Kurumi and Primula became closer. Before too long, they started to introduce themselves not just as friends but more like sisters. The next year in the advanced computer class, Kurumi was in the top of her class. She was always quick to point out that she could not have done it without Primula’s help. By the time they were 10, they were also helping to tutor some of the other kids in the Advanced computer classes. Kurumi never knew why, but it always seemed that the other students' mice did not seem to interface as fast as Primula could. It was not lost on her that the kids that had closer relationships with their mice did better than the ones that did not. Most everyone treated their mice with the respect they deserved. The exception was one girl Alicia that seemed to treat her mouse more like a tool even though her mouse seemed sweet and was always cordial with Alicia. You could tell she tried her hardest to please Alicia. Kurumi tried to explain to Alicia that if she was to build a stronger relationship with her mouse things would go better for her. Alicia just shrugged it off and went on her way.

When not at school, Kurumi and Primula were always together. They learned that if they were playing computer based games together that Primula would have to limit her interface to controls only or it was just not fair to Kurumi since once she did a full interface with the game she would know how the game worked and how to win. Besides not being fair, it was just not fun. If you won every time there was no challenge to it. Primula also noticed that she could do some manipulation of the program which surprised her and Kurumi; they did not realize that she could write back changes. None of the other Mouse People seemed to be able to do this. When Kurumi mentioned this to her mother, she told her that Primula was special and it might be best not to share this information with her friends. From that time on, Primula would only use the ability to do cosmetic changes to the game such as change a character's appearance or outfit if they did not think it was cute enough. They also kept these modifications to themselves and only played with them when they were alone. Many afternoons Kurumi and Primula would sit in their room playing games. Due to her size, Primula could not hold the controller. Instead, she would sit with the controller in her lap with her USB tail plugged into it so she could operate the buttons she could not reach.

A few more years went by. During that time, they went everywhere together and their bond grew stronger. The summer before they started middle school Kurumi and Primula dressed in their new Kimonos and looked so cute together with Primula sitting on Kurumi's shoulder, hanging onto her collar to make sure she did not fall off. Kurumi took a picture of the two of them before they all left for the festival. There was so much to see and do there, not to mention all the different food vendors. Kurumi and Primula shared a Candy Apple with Kurumi holding it so Primula could have some too. Primula later told Kurumi how much fun she had with the family saying, "We have to do this again. Also maybe next time I will be strong enough to capture my own goldfish at the fish scooping stall." Summer ended and it was time for Kurumi and Primula to go to Middle School. They were excited to get matching uniforms since they liked to dress alike anyway. Primula was still wearing her hair in twin tails like her sister. The work was harder in middle school, though they still had fun and made new friends. Middle school ended with Kurumi graduating at the top of her class. After the break, it was time for Kurumi and Primula to start high school. The girls were older now and the high school was closer, so they rode their bike to school. Primula decided to try a new hairstyle to go with their new uniforms. They left the house on Kurumi’s bike and headed towards the school. They ran across Alicia along the way. Kurumi still was not able to get Alicia to open up to her. Primula wanted to be friends with Alicia’s mouse so Kurumi asked for her name. Alicia responded back that she is a tool and does not need a name. Both Kurumi and Primula felt sorry for the little nameless mouse girl but there was nothing they could do. Classes went on with Kurumi and Primula sitting in the front of the class focusing on what was being taught to them. While Alicia, still a very bright girl, kept to herself in the back row. Alicia’s nameless mouse would occasionally look over at Kurumi and Primula, daydreaming what it would be like to live like them, as friends doing everything together. When Alicia did go out, most of the time it was by herself and the nameless mouse girl would be left home alone in her cage. Though Alicia was never really mean to her, she did feed and take care of her, but it seemed more like maintenance than caring. The week before Kurumi graduated high school, the teacher asked her to come up to the front of the class. Once Kurumi was up there, the teacher announced to the class that Kurumi would be graduating as valedictorian. The class all applauded her, except for Alicia, who murmured to herself, "Yeah big surprise, little miss know-it-all keeps me out of the top spot again." Kurumi thanked everyone and held up Primula, letting everyone know how much help and support Primula had given her over the years. Primula is more than a tool; she is her best friend and sister. After Graduation Kurumi took a trip with her parents and of course Primula was with her. They went to the ocean and spent two weeks in a beach house on the ocean as part of her graduation present. As much as they loved working with computers, it was nice to get away and take a break. When they first got there, the girls figured out a good reason to go shopping. We need new swimsuits. There was a nearby town, so they took a walk there to find new swimsuits and to get lunch. They found some really cute outfits to wear to the beach. As cute as the outfits were, Kurumi's dad wished they covered them up a little more. Kurumi’s mother, who remembered being their age, just said let them have their fun, they earned it. While they were eating lunch, the waitress asked the girls if they were going to join the local talent show they were having over the weekend. It was not a big deal and the prizes were just coupons to local stores but it would be fun. Kurumi said they would think about it since it sounds like fun. When the weekend came, Kurumi and Primula joined the Talent show as idols. They may not have won the contest, however, they had fun and met some really talented people. Some of which came down to the beach house to visit a few times, adding to the fun memories of their trip. Summer ended and it was time to go to college. Kurumi was accepted into one of the best computer science colleges and she was both excited and a little scared to be away from home. She would be staying in the dormitory and would have a roommate chosen at random. When she got to the school, she was surprised to find her roommate would be Alicia. Kurumi, being the optimist she is, thought maybe her and Alicia could finally be friends. Primula saw the nameless mouse girl on the desk and was surprised she was in a cage. Primula did not understand why she had to be kept in a cage like a pet. Kurumi never treated her that way. Classes started and all of them were busy with their studies. Kurumi never gave up on Alicia and would engage her in conversation, even though it was awkward at times. Sometimes Alicia would go out and leave her mouse behind for a few hours at a time. Kurumi and Primula would use these times to let the nameless mouse girl out of her cage. Kurumi and Primula went over some names and none of them seemed right until Primula said Rachel. At that moment, the nameless mouse’s ears twitched and a little smile came on her face. Kurumi said, "That's it, from now on your name will be Rachel. We will have to keep it between us for a little while, until I convince Alicia of the idea." Just then Primula told them, "I think it has been long enough Alicia will be back soon." Kurumi picked up Rachel, who was still smiling, and put her back in her cage. It was only a few minutes later when Alicia walked in. Without too much enthusiasm, she said hi, then checked on her mouse and said to her what makes you so happy today. Then she said nevermind and got ready for bed. This routine went on several times, where they would just miss getting caught. What Rachel did not know was that Primula was tapping into the University Security System and could tell when Alicia scanned her ID at the front door. One day Kurumi said, "Hey Rachel, do you want to go to the lobby with us to get a snack?" Just at that moment Alicia walked in, looked around and said, "Who is Rachel? I heard you talking to Rachel." Kurumi figured the cat was out of the bag so to speak and said, "Here is Rachel." and pointed to Alicia’s mouse. Kurumi expected Alicia to get mad, but she did not. Instead, Alicia asked, "What made you pick that name?" Kurumi said, "It was not me, it was Primula's suggestions and Rachel seemed to like it." Alicia said, "I like that name too. It was my grandmother's name. She passed away when I was very young. I am surprised she remembers that name." Rachel spoke up and said, "You were always your happiest when you saw your grandmother and when you talked about her." Alicia said, "Okay, if you like it so much you can be known as Rachel from now on. As for you two, you should have asked for permission before taking Rachel out, but I will overlook this since you brought some happiness to me on a rough day. Started off with a flat tire on my bike, missed lunch because I had to finish an assignment, and to top it off, I lost my ID while I was out and had to follow someone in the building." From that day on, Alicia was more pleasant to be around and would let Rachel go with them when she wanted. Alicia would even join them sometimes.

They all stayed as roommates for the next four years until they graduated. They went their separate ways, although Primula and Rachel would keep in contact with each other. Kurumi accepted a position in the data analysis division of NEKO Tech. She did not see her parents there too much, since most of the divisions had separate areas in the building and only a handful of people had access to multiple departments. Kurumi excelled at her new position, with Primula’s help of course. Within 2 years they were running their own project in advanced quantum data analysis. The volume and the speed their prototype model could analyze data was unmatched by anything seen before. The only issue they were having was it only worked to its full potential when Primula was part of the interface. Although they worked in separate departments Kurumi was given permission to bring Rachel into the lab to do a test with the data analysis model. When Kurumi asked Alicia, she was good with the idea since she would be out of town for a cloud based solution convention for the week, and it would be great if Kurumi would look after Rachel and take care of her. Plus, Rachel had been asking to go see Primula anyway.

They did the testing all week using Primula and Rachel as the interface with the prototype model. The results were always the same. Rachels results, though still very impressive, would not be even close to Primula’s results. Kurumi tried to ask her mother again about what made Primula different. Her mother would just say she is special and then change the subject.

The work week ended and the three of them went home to Kurumi’s apartment. They were going to go shopping to pick out some new outfits. Since they graduated, they liked picking out cute outfits with lots of ruffles and lace. Kurumi just loved getting Primula dressed up in gothic lolita outfits because she was just too cute in them. Kurumi also loved cosplay and would find some outfits for Primula that she found embarrassing and was sometimes reluctant to put on. On a few occasions, Kurumi took it upon herself to start changing Primula into an outfit and though she would act like she did not like it, she did think it was fun, and would have to admit it was cute but a little embarrassing.

That weekend, the three of them were going to go shopping and pick out outfits for each other. They would have to wear the outfit picked out for them. The idea was to find something cute for the other, but if you choose an embarrassing outfit for the other, they would have a chance to pick one out one for you. The three of them had a fun day shopping and headed home to have their little fashion show.

The weekend came to an end. Alicia showed up to pick up Rachel and thanked Kurumi for watching over her. While Primula and Rachel said their goodbyes, Kurumi told Alicia no thanks were needed, she helped with the testing and they had fun for the weekend .

A few weeks later, Kurumi received notification from Alicia, who was in charge of a project to move the corporation's data from to a cloud based service in the next week. "If you are in the middle of any test, you may want to back up your data." Kurumi discussed it with Primula and said, "Before the data is moved, let's do a full backup of the department data using the new model."

Kurumi helped Primula hook her USB Tail into her workstation and start the backup process. Backup was almost done when there was a low rumble throughout the building. The lights went bright then out. A few seconds later, there was a click and the light came back on. Kurumi saw Primula laying down on the desk. She ran up to her, picked her up calling her name. At first Primula did not respond, then her eyes fluttered and opened. She said, "I am ok, just feeling a little overwhelmed." Kurumi hugged her close, saying, "I was so afraid that something happened to you." The phone rang, security was checking to make sure everyone was okay in the data lab. Kurumi asked what happened, and learned that while getting the servers to move to the cloud a power transformer exploded causing a power spike on the whole network. Kurumi told security they were ok and just shook up so they are going to go home for the rest of the day..

Kurumi and Primula headed home, had an early dinner, then sat in the living room to relax and maybe play a game. Kurumi asked Primula again if everything was okay with her. She said, "I am fine, do not worry." "So why do you look troubled?" Primula said, "During dinner I was verifying the backup and it seems to be complete. As matter of fact it seems I downloaded more than just our research. I think there are multiple projects in what I downloaded." Kurumi said, "We should not even have access to other projects. Let's keep that to ourselves for now." They went on and played some games for a while and forgot all about the backup by time they went to bed.

They woke up the next morning thankful that it was Saturday and they would not have to work until Monday. While eating breakfast, Kurumi got a message from a frantic Rachel, asking her to have Primula join an encrypted call. Kurumi hooked Primula up to the laptop on the table. Primula stood in front of the camera and joined the call. Rachel said, "Glad you joined so soon, you could be in danger and I may not have much time to talk." Primula asked her what was going on. "I know I was shocked yesterday but I am fine." Rachel said, "You do not understand, let me tell you what happened." Rachel went on to say that Alicia got a call last night from her manager and he was furious. Apparently, while Alicia was getting ready for the data move to the cloud, she was working on a script to lower the firewall for the time of transfer. At the time she compiled the script, the power transformer exploded. The company found out that they were unprotected for less than a minute. Just to check, they ran a check to see if anything leaked outside the company. What they found is that it did not leave the internal network, however, there was a large transfer that should not have been possible to Primula’s workstation. "The company is afraid you have been given access to many secret projects at NEKO Tech." Rachel could hear Alicia’s manager tell her “This has to be fixed and I do not care how. If need be, arrange an accident in the office Monday with Kurumi’s Mouse." Alicia was shaken and said, "That sounds too extreme. Let me talk to Kurumi and see what they know. I went to school with her and she will talk to me." Alicia asked if she could get access to Kurumi’s lab and she will go in on Saturday to check Primula’s terminal and if there is anything there destroy it. Her manager said, "I will have it arranged by tomorrow." Rachel said, "Alicia just left to go to the office so I called you right away. I do not trust her manager, he may do something anyway." Primula said, "Thank you for the information. I will talk to Kurumi about it. Thanks again." and hung up.

Kurumi was listening in and saw the nervous look on Primula’s face and that she was starting to shake. Kurumi picked her up and held her close and said, "We will work this out." After a few minutes, Kurumi asked Primula to check the backup from yesterday and what was all there. Primula said, "I can show you, let me interface with your laptop." Kurumi said, "Better not, it is a company laptop, they may be able to monitor what you show me. Better if you just check and tell me." Primula said to give her a few minutes to analyze what data she has. After a minute or so she said, "This is not good. The company has many secret projects and it might be best if I do not share them with you for your protection." Kurumi said, "What about your protection? If this is that bad we need to get help or hide. Let me call my parents." Primula said, "No, do not talk to anyone about this and hiding will not work. They will find us anywhere we go." Kurumi said, "There has to be something we can do." Primula said, "There might be, but you will not like it." Kurumi said, "If it means you are safe I say let's do it." Primula said, "Okay I will tell you, but if you choose not to follow through, do not talk about it for your own safety." Kurumi told Primula, "It is probably too late for that now anyway if they ask around at NEKO Tech anyone that knows us will know how close we are so if you are in danger I will be also." Primula had to agree with this and said, "Let me tell you some of the projects they have and how we may be able use them."

About an hour later, they had a plan and Primula was right. She did not like it. She thought it was hard to leave her parents and go to school, now she had to leave again but not just to another city. This time, their plan was to go to an alternate world that sits along their own world. Kurumi was having a hard time taking this all in, but apparently the company had made a gateway that allows them to travel to alternate worlds. Primula’s plan was to open up the gateway to these worlds, do a quick analysis of the worlds, and find one that looks safe for them. Then she could use the IP address of a specific location to lock in where they want the gate to transfer them. As soon as they were on the other side, before the gate closed, Primula was going to use the same ability she used years ago to modify outfits in games to change the address to where they went before closing the gate..

Kurumi and Primula did not like leaving the parents behind but they knew it had to be done. Primula left a message that would go to Kurmumi’s mother later that day, stating something came up and they had to go. Kurumi took her mother's advice and did not talk about the details..

They went to the office in their lab coats like they would do on any other Saturday when they wanted to work on a project. Once they got to the data lab, they went over the plan again. Primula said, "If you are ready, let me plug into the network and I will put everything in motion." Kurumi said, "No time like the present" and hooked up Primula to her workstation. Primula downloaded her program and said, "It's done, let's go." Kurumi picked up Primula and headed out of the lab. Holding Primula, she went to a staircase they were never in before. As they approached, the red light turned green and they heard the door unlock. They went down the stairs into the hallway and went to the end of the hall to a large door marked Lab 19. Primula told Kurumi, "Your keycard should work here now," and it did.

They entered the lab quickly, not even looking behind them. There was a loud hum. They looked across the room and saw a large circular gate that looked like something they had seen in a science fiction movie. They went to the console. Primula said, "I already sent the instructions. You just need to initiate the sequence." Primula said, "It is going to scan some alternate worlds and I am going to analyze them as fast as I can and pick one." The humming grew louder and there was a purple mist that filled the gate. "That's it. I found a world where they do not have tails and ears like us, but there is a guy there who loves cats and has many images on his computer of cat girls. If I have it right every game he joins, he has a cat girl for his avatar." Kurumi said, "It sounds like a safe choice, lock it in and we will go." Primula set the coordinates and said, "It's ready."

They started to approach the gate when they heard something behind them. "Kurumi, what are you doing in here?" They looked back and saw Alicia walking towards them. She said, "Stop! I need to talk to you about yesterday." Kurumi turned around and said, "It will have to wait a few minutes." At that time, Kurumi saw a security guard running in the room. He was yelling to stop right there or he would shoot. Kurumi and Primula were thinking this is bad. Then, as he was running past Alicia, she put her leg out, tripping the security guard and causing him to drop his gun. Alicia said, "Go, hurry." Kurumi and Primula ran into the mist of the gate and as they entered they thought they heard Alicia say, "Go now, there are other worlds than these."

They felt a little disoriented, everything went blank. A few moments later they woke up from being passed out on the floor. Looking around, they seemed to be in a home computer lab. Primula was right, there were cat girl images hanging up in here and they noticed there was someone sitting in a chair in front of them with his back to them. The chair turned around and the man said, "Hello ladies, I have been waiting for you. I am known as Neko1967 and had a dream you were coming last night. You will be safe here and can stay as long as you want. Kurumi and Primula decided this was a good place and settled in. Though it took some time to adjust, their host was kind and made the process easier than expected .

Hope you enjoyed the story of how Kurumi and Primula came to be in our world. Now that they are here their new adventures can begin.