Summary: Astro has been visiting Dr. Tenma's old house after that walk in the rain, but Doctor Ochanomizu advises that he doesn't go back there for a while. Meanwhile Uran eavesdrops and wants to know what's so special about this house. Rated K.

(2003 based (set shortly after Astro vs. Atlas))

Optional ambiance: For an enhanced reading experience, pull up the song The Night Loop by The Birthday Massacre (if you can't find that their Nowhere (Instrumental) also works)

2017 Edit: Don't worry it's not a full rewrite. I fixed some spelling, punctuation, formatting, and exposition that I missed. This had to go from forum post, to mobile, to desktop screen, so the layout got a little weird. I think it's good now. And I gave the chapters names.

Astro Boy (c) Osamu Tezuka

Chapter 1: Step Inside

Dr. Ochanomizu took the boy's shoulders in his hands. "Astro, it would probably be best to stay away from that place for a while."

"But Doctor I-"

"Astro, listen to me. Tensions are still high right now. The last thing we need, is someone getting the wrong idea of you being out after dark."

"I'm sorry, I just lost track of time. I didn't mean to."

Of course he didn't. They knew that in the long run that things wouldn't always be this way. That one day people would be more accepting of robots. What they didn't know was that right now, Uran was sitting at the top of the stairs, listening to the two of them.

Wrong idea?

They had been talking an awful lot about that house lately. It must have been the one Astro had pointed out to her once, maybe figuring she wouldn't remember where it was. When she tried to ask him more about it, he only gave her a few vague answers until she stopped. Uran frowned at the unfairness of it all.

What's so special about that house anyway? How come Astro won't talk about it? At this rate she'd fry a circuit. Her mind wouldn't rest with all these questions. If he's not gonna tell me, I'll have to find out for myself!

That night Uran sat up in her bed. Those few hours of waiting had paid off. There was no more noise coming up from the living room. No more light falling under the cracks of her door. Everyone was asleep.

Uran quietly got out of bed and got dressed. She put her small flashlight and a map in her coat pockets, and tiptoed down the stairs until she got to the front door. She paused for a moment to make sure it had clicked shut behind her. Only when she had made it out to the street did she think about what she was doing. Out on the sidewalk she was alone; there were no cars, no people, no robots…nothing. The air was crisp and cold, and it was quiet, save for the occasional autumn leaf that fluttered down from the trees.

Walking alongside the road, she noticed that even the houses looked like they were asleep. She wondered if the one she was looking for would look any different this time of night. But after three blocks, nothing looked familiar. She stood under a nearby streetlight to check the map she brought with her. According to it, if she turned onto the next street and kept following it east, up into the hills, she would come across it.

Uran made it up to the first hill without any problems until she got to the intersection. Even though there was no traffic, the light was on red. She briefly wondered if she should wait for the little green man, or if she should take a chance. She looked both ways, no one was coming. But she figured she was already taking a pretty big chance tonight, and that she probably shouldn't risk it.

The rest of the walk felt like it had taken hours, even though Uran's internal clock said it had only been about twenty minutes, -twenty minutes and thirteen seconds to be exact.

I've got to be close by now!

Off of the main road she spotted the side street that looked kind of familiar. Out where she was, the streetlights gave the night a faint yellow glow. But where she was going there were no streetlights. For the first time that night, she realized how dark it really was. That didn't scare her though, her curiosity was much stronger.

Finally she found the house. If Astro knew she had come here, he would have freaked out and come after her. Likely with the Doctor in tow, who would be demanding an explanation of what she was doing here of all places. At this time of night! She shone her flashlight up to walkway to see the paint chipped walls and the empty doorway.

This has to be it.

She was surprised to find the door unlocked, and opened it with a big shove. It must have been able to move faster at some point, but the years of neglect had made the door wet and heavy. The house had been long abandoned and something felt…off. The first room in front of her after the foyer was the living room. A set of stairs lead to the second floor on one side, and a hallway was on the other. Most of the surfaces were covered in a thin layer of dust. The tables, the chairs, even the picture frames. That is, the ones that weren't broken.

Uran frowned. What does he see in this place?

She headed towards the hallway, her small footsteps echoing off the empty walls. In the hall she found a large picture frame face down on the floor. Uran was about to lift it up to look at it when suddenly she heard something, something faint. It was coming from the living room. It sounded like a heavy door opening and closing.

Astro? She froze. He must have followed her here! Now she was in a world of trouble. Uran ducked behind the wall and held her breath, quieting her vents. She leaned around the edge of the wall just enough to see the front door. Astro would surely find her in a nanosecond, if he hadn't already. There was another footstep, and then another. Yet, the moment she focused her ears to find out where they were coming from, they stopped. Uran figured that Astro must be in the middle of the room by now, so she stayed still. In the dark it was difficult to make out what she was seeing. When she finally worked up the nerve and left her hiding place, she saw…

Nothing.

Uran cautiously took a few steps into the living room. "Astro?" She clicked her flashlight on and shone it around. A small movement from the far end of the room caught the corner of her eye. "Astro, this isn't funny!" She turned and took a step backward.

Just then, her foot hit something that made her jump and drop the flashlight. It rolled along the floor and then came to a stop, its light shining on the face of a robot. Uran crouched down for a better look at it. Her eyes went wide; it looked just like Nora, no, it was Nora! How could that be? Nora was still at home, powered down for the night. But this Nora was covered in a layer of dust and spider webs.

"Astro?!" She couldn't stay here any longer. "Okay! You found me!" She picked up the flashlight and clicked it off. "You found me! I'm not playing this game!" She held it to her chest and for a moment, she thought she might cry. Uran swore she would never eavesdrop again; all she wanted to do was get out of this place, run home, sneak in, and pretend this never happened.

"Astro…just say something." she whispered.

The door was in front of her, in a few seconds this place would be a memory.

"Wait."

Uran froze. That voice!

"Don't go..."

That voice, it sounded so much like Astro's, but something about it sounded sadder, emptier, more fragile. Slowly she turned around.

"Who are you?"

"I…I'm Uran, what's your name?"

"Tobio."