Kindergarten was louder than home.
Dave noticed that immediately.
Not chaotic.
Just crowded.
+First Day+
Aiko knelt in front of him, adjusting his jacket.
"Be good, okay?" she said softly.
Dave nodded.
"Can you do that?" she teased.
"Yes," he replied.
Aiko paused, then smiled."You always answer so clearly."
Dave didn't respond.
Hive quietly recorded emotional patterns, tone shifts, routine separation.
When Aiko walked away, Dave did not cry.
He watched.
+The Noise+
The classroom buzzed with sound.
Voices overlapped.Footsteps echoed.Toys collided.
Someone laughed.Someone cried.Someone shouted for no reason at all.
Dave stayed still.
Not because he was afraid.
But because stillness helped him understand scale.
Hive filtered input.
Loud did not mean dangerous.
+Other Children+
Children moved differently.
Some ran without looking.Some clung to teachers.Some stared at their hands like they were new inventions.
Quirks flickered at the edges.
A spark of light.A floating curl of hair.Hardened fingers tapping the floor.
None of it felt special.
None of it felt strange.
This world had normalized the impossible.
Dave accepted that.
+Participation+
"Let's draw!" the teacher said.
Crayons rolled across tables.
Dave picked one up and drew carefully.
Three figures.Holding hands.Smiling.
No exaggeration.No symbols.
Just… accurate.
The teacher leaned over.
"That's very neat, Dave."
He looked up."Is neat good?"
She laughed softly."Neat is very good."
Dave nodded.
He stored that.
+Small Conflicts+
Two hands reached for the same toy.
A brief pull.
Dave released it immediately.
The other child blinked, surprised, then ran off.
Dave did not feel loss.
Hive evaluated outcomes and chose efficiency.
Peace required less energy.
+A Question+
A boy sat beside him during free time.
"You don't get mad," the boy said.
Dave considered the statement.
"I don't need to," he replied.
The boy frowned.Then shrugged.
"Okay."
Dave liked answers that didn't demand explanation.
+Going Home+
Aiko waited at the gate.
Her smile was familiar.
"How was today?" she asked.
Dave thought carefully.
"Loud," he said.
She laughed."That sounds right."
They walked home together.
The street was busy.Ordinary.Alive.
Dave matched her pace.
+A Small Insight+
That night, Dave lay in bed.
Hive had learned many things.
Not facts.
Patterns.
Children reacted before thinking.Heroes probably did too.
If he wanted to live here—
Not survive.Live—
He would need to understand people as systems.
Not power.
Dave closed his eyes.
Tomorrow would be loud again.
That was acceptable.
End of Chapter 3