Hey everyone, I'm back!
Wow, it feels weird coming back after not writing for a little while, but I'm now officially a married woman! Though my new husband keep saying he's my second spouse after my writing (he isn't exactly wrong…).
We hit a massive milestone that I didn't realise just as the last chapter went up, and it has blown me away. Thank you all so much for over 300 reviews now!
I'm glad you all liked Katie's reveal, it was a chapter I was really nervous about. This chapter is a little different as it is very much a part 2 to the previous chapter, but there was always going to be an aftermath to the shooting. So, here you all go!
Special thanks for reviews: ByteOfBacon, AnUnorthodoxDecision, DyeTheSheep, Mayday Maria, FandomsMJ, MugetsuPipefox, xNarielx, Minecraft Guardiansaiyan, lordvaatithewindmage, Surfwriter, Darnea, sarahlucylu and one Guest.
PS. For anyone who hasn't checked out my profile, Under My Skin, the sister fic to this adventure, which is Gavin and Katie's story, will be going live with chapter 23 of Mischief And Me!
"Wow, you really stuck your foot in it there, didn't you?"
"Shut the fuck up, North. I thought it was bloody obvious, all right? I'm still half-wondering if Connor was winding me up."
"Nope. Trust me, Hank, it's true. There isn't anything going on between Connor and Katie."
"Damn, fooled me good. I think the whole damn precinct thinks they're an item."
"Ha, that's a laugh considering Connor isn't interested in anyone like that."
Hank glowered at his phone briefly where it was lying on the arm of the sofa, North's voice blaring through the speaker, before he continued to try and solve the sudoku that Connor had made him the day before. He was wondering why he'd opened his big mouth about them being too easy after being given this monster by Connor. Only six numbers in and he was stuck. Then again, it had distracted Connor for a little while in making a few of these damn-near impossible puzzles for Hank to solve.
It had been three days since the shooting which Gavin had barely survived and Katie, in fact, hadn't. Gavin had been left in a medically induced coma for two days after his life-saving surgery, and even though his medication had eased so that he could rouse naturally, he had yet to do so. Connor had spent most of his time at the Jericho apartments, helping Katie through the trauma of her re-activation, until Richard managed to make it back from his FBI assignment. The RK900 had since taken Katie home, and she was now under his watchful eye. During the small time that Connor was out walking Sumo, Hank had decided to ask North about her condition, knowing the subject was still very sensitive with his son.
"So he isn't now, doesn't mean he won't be later."
"Are all humans as dense as you are? Connor isn't interested in anyone. Period."
That had Hank pausing and staring at the phone. "Wait, are you saying that Connor is asexual?"
"Hah! Nah, Connor's just as horny a fuck as the rest of us. He's not into romantic shit or attachment."
Hank thought on this for a few seconds. So Connor is aromantic, huh? That explains-Wait a damn minute! "Hold the fuck up, how do you know about this, North?"
He could practically hear the slight embarrassment in her voice. "Well…I might have made the same mistake you did. Connor just gave me a look and when I asked if he was bullshitting me…well, yeah, he went on to tell us just how wrong we all were."
"And you were calling me out on it! Bitch."
"Boo fuckin' hoo, Hank. Grow a pair."
"Ah, whatever. So, what's the story with Katie? How's she holding up?"
"When she came in for a check-up with Simon earlier, she was pretty quiet. First time I've seen her brother looking anything other than asshole-ish, he's obviously worried. Is Connor going around to see her?"
"Yeah, he'll be swinging around after he gets back from walking Sumo."
"Well, if anyone's going to cheer her up, it's him. He's the only one who's managed to get her to open up since her re-activation."
"That's not a surprise." He heard the door opening behind him, Sumo's huffing leading Connor's steps back inside. "All right, thanks for all that, and maybe tone down the bitchiness?"
Connor raised an eyebrow as he heard the voice on the other end of the phone. "That just makes life boring, Hank. Enjoy getting your ass handed to you by a number puzzle!"
She hung up before Hank got the chance to reply. "Fucking cow…" He then spun around to smile at Connor. "Hey, kiddo. Good walk?"
The android looked at him suspiciously. "It was, actually. Dare I inquire as to what you were asking of North?"
"Honest answer is that I was checking up on Katie. Didn't want to upset you," he answered softly.
Connor's face changed to something mildly sad, and Hank hated it. "She is improving, but I honestly don't think she'll be herself until Gavin wakes up."
"Don't know why she cares about that asshole."
"They are partners, Hank. Partners care about each other if they are a good team; and despite all the potential issues, they are," he chided. Connor wasn't comfortable mentioning the small snippets of the truth that Katie had told him, that was for the female android to share if she chose to. Besides, many of the details would come out when the pair eventually got around to submitting a witness report.
Hank sighed in relent. "All right, guess that was pretty mean. From what you worked out at the crime scene, it seemed like Gavin tried to get Katie out of harm's way even after learning about her, so he definitely doesn't hate her out of principle. Can't help but wonder what's going to happen after he wakes up though." Connor stared at the floor in thought, and Hank realised he wasn't going to be any more forthcoming. "You heading over there to see her now? North said she was pretty withdrawn earlier. Even her dickhead brother wasn't hiding his worry, apparently."
Connor nodded. "Yes, I am. In fact, Richard and I are all set with something which will hopefully make her smile."
The human chuckled knowingly. "This one is going to be amusing, I'm looking forward to hearing about it later." A ghost of a smile crept on to Connor's face, to which Hank waved him off with a warm one of his own. Go on, go make the girl's day."
Connor turned up at Katie's apartment half an hour later, and he sent a quick message to Richard as he approached the door. The other RK model regarded Connor with a short nod as he opened it, stepping aside to let the new arrival in. Katie was sat on the window ledge directly opposite the front door, staring out over the scenery as Dust sat whimpering at her feet. Even from that distance, Connor could see the sadness and doubt rolling off her in waves.
I must report in to my task force for a short time. Connor was unsurprised when Richard's voice came through in his head. I will not be long.
Understood. Is everything set?
It is. I managed to install the software while checking over Katie's biocomponents earlier today. The program for managing it is on standby.
The two RK models interfaced for a moment, at which Connor received the small command package for their plot from the RK900.
Thank you for arranging all this and developing the program.
Of course. Though I may not be as obvious with my emotions as you are, I do care deeply for my sister. I hope your plan comes together well.
Do you think this will help cheer her up?
I wouldn't have given it to you now if I did not believe in it. Connor smiled openly at Richard's abrupt, but encouraging reply. I will return shortly.
Connor watched Richard leave and shut the door gently behind him, turning as he departed to stare at the sombre android on the other side of the room. He approached slowly, knowing that Katie would be aware it was him. She may not be as advanced as either of them, but she was perceptive. It was part of what made her so suited to detective work. "Hi, Connor," she greeted quietly, not turning from whatever she was staring at outside.
With a soft smile, Connor ran a hand down her ice-blue hair, the colour mirroring the intense sadness she felt inside. Katie turned at the gentle touch, her hair shifting to a mellow blonde as she stared up at him with an empty gaze. He sat down next to her, watching as she gazed away again. Dust whined from the floor and Connor smiled down at her briefly. "Even Dust knows you are struggling today," he started, waiting to see if Katie would open up.
Tears rapidly appeared in her eyes but Katie brushed them away harshly. "I'm no different from yesterday, Connor. I am…coping," she muttered back.
Connor sighed lightly and ran a hand down her forearm, catching Katie's attention again. "I could tell that is a lie even without all of my detection software," he countered, earning a scowl back. "You can tell me, Katie. That's what I'm here for."
More moisture welled up, and she swallowed hard to try and keep the tears back, but Connor brushed them without any hesitation. Katie gave him a shy smile before inhaling shakily. "Why isn't he awake?"
He wasn't surprised: Gavin was all Katie had been thinking about since the shooting. "It will take time for his body to recover from the shock, Katie. Humans aren't as resilient as we are, sadly."
"He shouldn't have been shot in the first place, Connor," she bit back. "Gavin was covering me when he was hit. Why didn't he just leave me?"
"Because he cares about you, as much as that might surprise both of you." Connor rubbed her arm soothingly as he continued. "And that was after you took two shots to your thirium pump and temperature regulator shielding Gavin. He would never leave you behind after that, not that I think he would, regardless of that."
"Except he should have, Connor! He's human, he's fragile!"
"Katie…had you taken any more damage, you almost certainly couldn't have been re-activated. Gavin saved your life as much as you saved his," Connor told her firmly, seeing the fear in her eyes. "He will live, he is no longer in any danger. The gunshot wounds will take some time to heal, possibly months, but he will recover."
As much as Katie knew Connor was right, that wasn't the only thing on her mind. "I wish I had just told him the truth, Connor. Maybe I wouldn't feel as terrible as I do now."
"Which truth? That you are an android, or that you have feelings for him?"
She glared hotly for a second before sighing angrily. "Both, I guess. I was referencing my identity, however."
"It was simply poor timing, Katie. We had the plan and were just looking for a time to enact it, life just happened to get in the way." Smiling slightly, Connor stood and pulled on her hands, dragging Katie to her feet as he booted up the command sequence which Richard had passed on to him. Keeping it on standby, Connor smirked at her. "Speaking of which, shouldn't we get some more practice in? You do want to at least make me try when you show off for Gavin, don't you? I still fully intend on fighting you."
That brought a small sparkle of defiance to her eyes and she snorted as Connor shifted the coffee table out of range. "You shit, I can give you a decent fight now," she hissed back, a tiny growl in her voice. "You're just giving me a vent opportunity."
Connor's smile turned mischievous. "And are you going to decline?"
Of course she didn't: Connor knew just how much Katie loved a challenge, even if she was in way over her head. It was the perfect lead into the prank.
The pair took up fighting stances on opposite sides of the small space, and Connor booted up the program, having the sequence ready at the first thought. Katie sighed as she readied herself, eyes steeling at the task ahead of her before leading with a side kick. Connor flickered the program just as Katie's foot left the ground.
Her internal gyroscope went crazy for split second, causing Katie to completely overbalance and almost fall over. Connor caught her leg and threw her back, causing Katie to land with a thump on her backside. She hissed briefly and leapt back to her feet, racing towards Connor in preparation for a punch, but Connor sent her gyroscope into overload again. Her legs turned to jelly and Katie wobbled madly, just managing to stop herself from tipping over into Connor outstretched arms.
"Shit!" she exclaimed as she tried to stand up straight, only to find she couldn't even balance stationary. The penny finally dropped as she waved her arms frantically to try and get even a fraction of her stability back, but Connor was there with a hand to keep her up. "You fucker! You've messed with my gyroscope!"
Connor smirked lightly. "It was just too irresistible, Katie. I cannot help but compare you now to how Hank stumbles around when he is drunk. Given it is impossible for us to recreate the effect through alcohol, the parallel is highly amusing to see."
He then let go and watched as Katie tumbled to the ground. She shot him a glare as Connor laughed, stepping back to watch her struggle up. "Come on, Connor! This is hardly fair, I can't even stand!"
His cheeky grin grew even more. "Pranks never are fair, Katie. Tell you what…" He wandered through to the open plan kitchen, eyes sparkling at the aggravation hers held in reply. The female android's hair morphed to a deep red at the determination and irritation coursing through her. "I'll switch it off when you can reach me – on your feet – and I promise not to move from this spot."
Katie huffed at him and hauled herself along the floor on her arms to the sofa, using her strength to force herself back to a standing position. She couldn't balance without the support, and she scanned the room to look for other items to keep herself up. Connor was happy with that first little haul as Katie had fallen completely in the open, and he knew she wouldn't be able to even get to a crouch without the aid.
His smile grew with every little step she made, seeing the life and fire burst back into her body and eyes for the first time since she had come back from shutdown. For a while he was worried some of it had died with her deactivation, but it was just as fierce as ever: it was just buried beneath the myriad of emotions which were swallowing her.
Katie tried to wander two steps, but crashed back to the floor on her side angrily. Dust, sensing her mistress' determination, came scampering over and nudged her with her head. The female android smiled proudly at her and used Dust's momentum to launch herself to another table, leaning on it fully as she stood before attempting another couple of steps. She wobbled dangerously and just managed to throw herself towards a nearby bar stool.
Connor's smile grew from smug to joyful as he saw her stumbling closer, and Katie's own expression mirrored it. She was grinning lightly as she pushed herself along the kitchen island, legs crumbling under her a couple of times as her gyroscope did a few more frantic loops and shot a brief glare at Connor for messing with it again. Using most of the strength in her arms, she shuffled along the edge of the island to hold herself upright until she was opposite Connor.
With a triumphant shout, she let herself fall forward, straight into his waiting arms and the pair laughed loudly as they collapsed to their knees.
Breathing heavily through her laughter, she swatted Connor harshly as he snickered. "Bastard! How long have you had that in the works?" she snarked.
"Since you and Gavin decided to statically charge me in the precinct."
Katie gaped at him. "Connor, that was almost two months ago!"
He smiled at her broadly. "Maybe, but after your brother decided to enact his own prank against me, I was reluctant to ask for his help until last week. The program was his design, even if the idea was mine." His expression softened slightly at seeing her hair shimmer to a light brown, knowing by now this was much closer to her default colour – closer to happiness.
"Should have known Rich had a hand in this…"
Connor chuckled at the message which appeared in his HUD, having sent the video of the incident to Hank. "Hank says that he is going to nickname you 'Bambi' from now on, after seeing you so unsteady on your feet."
"Oh haha, very funny, both of you. Could be worse I suppose…" Katie's smile became a lot more gentle and she leant up to press a brief kiss to Connor's cheek while wrapping him in a bone-crushing hug. "Thanks, Connor. I didn't realise just how much I needed to laugh until now."
His arms snaked around her and gripped back just as tight, his own worry subsiding slightly at seeing the drastic change in her demeanour. "Of course, Katie. What else are friends for?"
Connor's LED quickly flashed yellow at the message he received from the precinct, and the pair of them stiffened instantly. Katie frantically pulled back from the embrace and stared at Connor with wide eyes. "Gavin. He's awake," she whispered.
Not hesitating, Connor recalibrated her gyroscope and offered her a hand up as he stood with a knowing expression. "Come on. You need to see him."
As the pair arrived at the hospital, Connor could tell Katie was a bag of nerves. She was fidgeting constantly, and he ended up giving her his coin to try and distract her momentarily. It helped a little, but Katie still barely knew what to do with herself when they were directed to Gavin's room. Visiting hours were over, but Fowler had managed to secure permission for Katie to see him under Connor's watch.
Coming to a stop outside and watching through the glass of the window to his room, Katie stared at Gavin for a full minute before turning to Connor, lost. "Connor, what do I say to him? Where do I even start?" she muttered.
Connor gave her a comforting smile while running a hand over her shoulder. "Tell him the truth: that hiding your identity was never your idea, it was done as a social experiment. Stress that you wanted to tell him long before and that we even had a plan to do so, I can even send you a still of the booking form for that hall if you wish me to, to show Gavin. Just be honest with him, Katie. Right now, that is the best you can do. What happens beyond that is up to Gavin."
Sighing shakily, Katie gave him the flash of a nervous smile before entering the room. Connor stayed on the outside and watched through the window. He was at a right angle to Gavin's bed, and could only see the detective's right-hand side. From the distance he was at, he scanned Gavin's vitals and medical chart lying on the table to see his prognosis.
A partially severed artery, punctured lung and three broken ribs, not to mention all the muscular and tissue damage, as well as the blood loss. Estimated time of recovery: five to six weeks. Advances in medicine meant that Gavin would be back in the field before two months had elapsed, and would probably be back on desk duty within three weeks.
He'd been incredibly lucky, another few minutes and he'd have been beyond saving. Katie had used the last of her strength to try and stem the bleeding before she had shut down. It was no exaggeration in saying that the pair had saved each others' lives.
Katie came to a stop on the right-hand side of the bed and perched upon the edge of it, just next to Gavin's hip. Connor could see the human's eyes open and watched the slow conversation which developed on the other side. He didn't read their lips, it wasn't any of his business what was said, but he hoped for Katie's sake that Gavin wouldn't reject her outright because of her real identity.
His curiosity spiked when Katie's eyes widened dramatically, but the temporary concern melted away after a minute when Katie looked down and tentatively took a hold of Gavin's hand. He gripped back, even running his thumb over the back of hers.
The android watched as Katie spluttered briefly and moved gracefully to embrace Gavin in a shuddering hug, finally letting loose on the emotions she'd been holding back. Gavin stretched as best he could to hold her in reply, and the pair seemed to settle in a comfortable position, evidently still whispering to each other.
Connor smiled and walked away, his last tension over the incident melting away as he left them in peace.
Everything was going to be different now, but it was okay. They were okay – and he embraced the relief willingly.