Karr was listening to the night.
Hearing the whistle of engines going expectantly by while he clenched his aching program under the dark shadows of the trees leaning and swaying over him. Waiting for that sweet whine attributed to a select few of vehicles that he so happened to know all personally —
Kipp was listening to his silent murmurs, to his worry while he went around in circles over his decision in his head. Some of it seeped into the private connection between them unintentionally.
He'd let Kitt go on his own.
At first, there hadn't been much of a problem with the logic. Kitt needed to figure out a solution to his grief over losing Michael and a quiet and solitary cruise along the desert highway seemed rather harmless in reaching that goal until spurts of inaudible static had assaulted the channel out of nowhere and Kitt had simply gone inexplicably quiet.
It was wracking his mind — Honestly, he'd figured Doctor Barstow had a good reason to be disappointed and hate him now. Kipp and Karr had heard the gurgled nonsense most clearly and had made a point to meet him halfway on the highway in the next hours. The humans were at unease however even with this "fix" and while Karr urged to go solo and get a head start, Kipp had simply tossed that possibility aside. Kitt needed some space right now to process the loss and if they forced it too soon there was a possibility they'd push Kitt away from them. Karr questioned Kipp's reasoning behind grief management and she proudly explained in neat organized and agonizing "paragraphs" that she'd read said information in a book! At least they had the comfort that he was alive as a weak and faint echo of his telemetry could still be heard bouncing off the hills and canyon walls. Not to mention Karr's readings of the other Trans-Am revealed he was coming closer rather than going further out which was also a relief to the entire team. What didn't make sense was why the automobile was hesitant to reply to any attempt at communication. Perhaps he'd finally accepted that Michael was actually deceased and the burden and all the pressure of the man's death were afflicting him so that he needed time alone. Karr really didn't know but what he did know was Bonnie had not accepted Karr's apology for letting Kitt go on his own and could hardly even look at Karr when she and Reginald had decided to book a night at the nearby hotel a walking distance from the gas station. They didn't wish to pick up too much attention after all and had opted for leaving Kipp and Karr hidden amongst the dumpsters behind the gas station much to Karr's grief. Devon had arranged transport for Kipp and was sending another vehicle to help gather Kitt, be it he was unstable over his own wheels from his newfound and probably crumbled feelings or just to give the Trans-Am much-needed rest and care.
"He isn't a child." Kipp offered gingerly with a quick whip of her lime scanner after watching his own whistling and whirring under the stressful pulses of an overly exhausting day.
"No, but he's my brother," Karr grumbled letting the vibration travel through him. Letting the silence blanket them while he longed for "home". "Michael Knight is dead." He murmured into the air with a hint of dread. Feeling fear encased him while he tried to find closure over that fact himself. Hadn't he always believed that Michael Knight was dead though? Then why need closure? He supposed perhaps — though he'd never admit it — a slight sliver of him had hoped Kitt would have found what he was looking for. He knew he'd liked that thought had he been in the other computer's treads — though — he didn't need a driver!
He grimaced.
What in the world was he gloomy about then!? He barked at himself inaudibly. Kitt didn't need one either for all he knew — Kitt would get over this and they'd be on their merry way soon — he bit his nonexistent tongue wondering why he was being so insensitive all of a sudden. So upset and so overly wired. He glanced over his diagnostics systems, they were always a healthy option when he felt out of whack and needed to set his mind straight but he felt a little intimidated about running them. Perhaps now wasn't the time to wallow in self-pity and fretful decisions of the past that hardly mattered now.
Kipp quietly rummaged through her memory banks for anything clever or soothing for the other computer while continuing to pin him under her attentive smile. Aware Karr was mildly angered and possibly vexed with how things had unfolded on this rather peculiar and exciting day.
"Karr and if you sleep on it?" Kipp asked sheepishly.
Karr gazed over the private channel with bewilderment.
"Sleep on my problems? However, could I do that?" He asked, almost annoyed, biting back on his tension. Weary about upright yelling at her. She was only trying to help —
"Liam does it excessively sometimes but I do believe it works. He stays in bed until 10:00 pm and eats breakfast at 12:00 pm. Very unhealthy when he does it days at a time but I've noticed that it sometimes helps when he's simply cornered. It gives you time to clear your mind, and settle things."
"I'm NOT cornered." Karr blared his amber scanner, playful shuffles of light passing over the Corvette's dark hood.
Kipp went silent, letting a little awkward 'ahem' escape her voice while she shuffled a little closer to the wall seeking protection from the frigid breeze entering the exposed circuitry on her back panel.
Karr internally sighed, what was he doing? Kipp was offering him comfort and he was simply pushing her away. She was after all the only other close company he had after Kitt.
He was out there somewhere probably trying to make the best of things and Karr was losing his mind over a foolish and irrational decision he'd made. He'd panicked the moment Kitt's presence from the connection had vanished and he'd stopped receiving any readings of any sort for a short while. Even out of scanner range he could pick up signals from the other car via the communications channel even if faintly but now Kitt had gone completely mute except for the light tether of his telemetry gaining ground.
"Karr?"
"What?!" He unintentionally snapped. He tried to cover his mistake with a static sneeze but Kipp gazed over him thoughtfully with the full pulse of her scanner.
"I forgive you." She smiled across the link. "Premium or plus?"
"What?" Karr asked, completely frustrated out of his mind all so suddenly. What could she possibly mean now?!
"I'm offering you a drink." She giggled at the sound perching itself over the silence and making Karr pin her under his lost stare.
"A drink —?" He mused over her curious way of encoding things rather than saying it upfront like he preferred to express himself — usually. "I'm —" he looked over his gauges. It wasn't too bad he still had a little over half but maybe she was right. Maybe he needed to clear his electronic mind of the problems afflicting him now and concentrate on something else. "I wouldn't mind a short visit to the pump." Karr offered, a little curious as to how they'd pay for all this later.
"I have access to an isolated bank account. It isn't traceable to me — actually, it isn't really mine but I doubt they'd mind…" She mischievously grinned across the link aware of what was troubling his mind now. He heard her fire up her engine, the misfire completely audible as she pulled out of her spot and into the light of the gas station. Her form still terribly sagging while she pulled forward.
Karr followed after, a little slower and more nervous than her, however. Still a little bothersome over the snipers who'd almost been successful at ending his life at a pulse of a bulb.
They both approached a vacant spot and parked beside one another with the pumps between them.
Karr gazed over the partially obscured night sky. The clouds tainted the stars and the light from above the gas station mercilessly covered them over in a white haze.
"I don't think Michael is dead." Kipp quietly interrupted, her scanner caught under the weather completely unprovoked. Karr looked her over, the other AI suddenly sounding feeble — sick. "By all accounts, he's documented deceased but — I have a hunch." She sheepishly interjected.
Karr rolled his nonexistent eyes. Not believing her right now. First Kitt and now her.
"What you know can't possibly make a difference if he really is —"
"I don't know Karr, I have the strangest feeling I've heard his name circulate around the labs at NAG before, not that it makes any sense. Or —"
Karr hummed his scanner in mild mischief of his own.
"Maybe you should sleep on it too." He grinned truly brilliantly when the attendant quickly placed the fuel nozzle into his fuel receptacle and hers.
She smiled and he fondly heard her shyly laugh. He couldn't help but grin across the link. Wanted to join her but was afraid his static, humorless laugh would simply ruin hers.
"Karr, you have impeccable humor."
He smiled. He wished Kitt could have joined them by now — he'd been sure to make his brother jealous. Tease him and play at the possibility of having a rather beautiful Corvette by their side. Another playmate in the endless mischief Karr intended to nurture on their journey across the country looking for trouble and adventure until his lug nuts fell off! He felt rather comfortable in Kipp's presence too, admirably a good companion for the long treks into unknown lands — forests, plains…Mountains. He found himself suddenly staring over her gently osculating lime scanner. He had to admit — she looked impeccable under the bright fluorescent heavenly lights raining over her panels. He only wished he could tell her someday. Perhaps Kitt could help him with that later.
Author's Note: I still remember.