When they first met Benny, all they could see of his face was a pair of bright eyes and a grinning mouth behind a yellow visor. He was always in his blue space suit, but they didn't think it was odd. They didn't think anything about Benny was odd. In the ten years since they'd been activated, all of their real human contact had consisted of Ma, Pa, and Business. Now that they were out in the world actually connecting with other living beings, they didn't know what to expect, and so they expected anything.

Now that the cops were no longer the enemy, Benny seemed intrigued by them. He would follow them around, asking questions about various functions of theirs, particularly fascinated by their dual personalities and how well they worked together. Good Cop loved answering Benny's questions to the best of his ability, and, while Bad Cop was grumpier about it, he humored his counterpart. His better half was thriving off the interactions, and Bad Cop slowly became less and less recalcitrant, and their talks began to morph from lessons in robotics into genuine conversations. The cops' apartment was close to the station, so they would walk to work, and Benny would float along with them. When their shift was over, he would meet them outside the station and accompany them home. It became a routine that both Good Cop and Bad Cop looked forward to every day.

Then one day, as the three of them were walking home, Good Cop suddenly said, "Benny, there's so much you know about us, but we hardly know anything about you."

Benny fell silent for a moment before replying. "What is it you want to know?"

Good Cop shrugged. "Where are you from? Do you have family?"

Benny hesitated. They were on the stoops of the apartment building now. "I… don't really have a family. And I'm from pretty far away." He seemed reluctant to continue, twisting his fingers together.

"It's okay if you don't want to talk about it," Good Cop said. Bad Cop shifted nervously in the backseat.

Benny sighed. "No, it's fine," he said, looking down. "I've been meaning to tell you. I just…" He rubbed the back of his helmet. "These past few weeks have been really great. I don't want to lose that."

Alarm shot through the cops. "What d-do you mean-n?" Good Cop asked, worry distorting his already staticky voice.

Benny raised his hands. "Just… don't freak out, okay?"

They watched anxiously as Benny lifted his helmet off and tucked it under his arm, and they blinked. He looked like he was made of space, a blue-black void filled with stars and swirling galaxies. His outline was human, with the implication of wildly wavy hair, but his only features were the white lights of his lowered eyes and the glowing line of his mouth. When there was no immediate response from the cops, he looked up cautiously. Bad Cop was in control, seemingly confused, but when he spoke, Benny realized it was for a different reason than what he'd expected.

"Why would we freak out?" Bad Cop asked. "Is this not normal?"

Benny's mouth opened and shut a few times before he found his voice again. "No," he replied. "Not really."

"Oh," Bad Cop said, looking completely out of his depth. Their screen flickered to Good Cop's fuzzed blue. "So people usually freak out?" Good Cop asked. "That's why you were worried it would mess things up?"

Benny nodded wordlessly.

"That's a relief," Good Cop said with a simulated sigh. "We thought something terrible was going to happen."

"I'm a cosmic entity," Benny said, feeling like he needed to clarify that.

"Are there many like you?" Good Cop asked curiously.

"I don't think so," Benny replied. "I haven't met any."

Amazingly, Good Cop's face lit up in a huge grin at that. "So you're like us!" he exclaimed. "We're one of a kind, too!"

Benny's jaw went slack. "Y-yeah. I guess you're right."

Good Cop grabbed Benny's hands, the first physical contact they'd ever made. "Then I'm glad we're friends," he said. "People who are one of a kind should stick together."

Benny could feel the electricity that raced through the cops like blood through veins, could feel their wavelength, and he was sure they could feel his, too. His face split into a grin to rival Good Cop's. "Yeah," he said. "I guess you're right."