Well, I think it's safe to say that everyone liked seeing Perkins get some comeuppance, as well as seeing Connor get the best of Richard. I get the feeling our RK900 is not the most popular of fellows…

I see a few of you picked up on different details of that chapter, and they are all part of a developing storyline. You'll find out more about that later!

Special thanks for reviews: xNarielx, lordvaatithewindmage, AnUnorthodoxDecision, MugetsuPipefox, HK800 and one Guest.

A few of you have suggested this idea, so I hope you like the execution! Time for some payback.

"North, if this some elaborate prank that you're pulling, I'm going to find a way to convince Connor to stick you in a freezer until your joints lock up."

Hank could hear the female android cackling down the phone as he drove to the Jericho apartments, following a request for him to join the others down there. "I swear it's not!" she laughed on the other end. "This is genuinely one of the funniest things I've ever seen, there's no way you can't come down and see it too!"

The continual snickering was slowly convincing Hank that her wild story might actually have some truth to it. "You're telling me that while you guys were doing some maintenance work on the elevator that Markus managed to get stuck and had to detach his arm to break free…and is now stuck in the top of the lift itself after falling six stories and busting half through the roof?"

"I'm not shitting you, Hank! I am dying with laughter. He can't pull himself out with only one arm and his legs are fucking flailing around as he tries to dislodge himself! This is genuinely one of the best things I've seen, even Connor all but fell over laughing when he saw it!"

Still not buying it, Hank eyed his phone suspiciously from where it was clipped into the hands-free in the car. "I'm not believing shit until one of either you or Connor sends me a photo of this. There's no way Markus was a) that clumsy, or b) hasn't managed to convince someone to help him get out."

Hank heard her sigh on the other end and saw the new message on his phone. He clicked over to see the picture attached…and had to pull over the car so that he wouldn't be in danger of crashing into anyone else on the road. Sure enough, there was a photo of what was clearly Markus' legs, only they were coming down from the busted roof of the elevator. Jagged and twisted metal around the android's abdomen confirmed the speed of his crash and Hank could swear that some of it was impaled in him.

Obviously he wasn't in any danger if North was finding this so funny. "Holy shit! That's unreal!" Hank howled, gripping his side as he was short of breath from laughing so much. "How the fuck has no-one pulled the poor bastard out to make sure he's not hurt?"

"Connor scanned him and confirmed that Markus only has some superficial damage to his chassis, none of the shards have gone in deep enough to cause him any real harm. All it means is that he's well and truly stuck."

"Damn, I'm feeling sorry for him. That has to be embarrassing!"

"…Well, he's not embarrassed so much as pissed. I think he might kill Connor when he gets a hold of him."

Hank couldn't decide if he wanted to chuckle or sigh in irritation, so the result was an amused half-snort. "The fuck did he do now?"

"Connor was the one holding on to Markus when he detached his arm and was meant to pull him up…and the one who let him go instead."

The lieutenant could see the apartments come into view as he prepared to park up. "Christ, Connor's merciless when he wants to be. Did he say if he knew what was going to happen?"

"I have the feeling Connor rigged the hatch to slam on Markus' arm in the first place. He's been conspicuously absent recently."

After picking a spot, Hank jumped out of the car and locked it before heading to the apartments. A few of the androids gave him a friendly wave on the way past and Hank gave them an acknowledging nod with a small smile. He was one of the few humans who were readily welcomed by the androids, and the validation was rewarding. "Safe bet that he knew Markus was gonna end up stuck then. I wonder why he's not answering my messages…"

"Maybe he's hooked up with someone? Doubt he'd answer you if he's getting some action."

Hank groaned and pulled the phone away from his ear for a moment. "What is it with that bitch just blurting out the most inappropriate comments?" he muttered quietly before yanking the phone back up. "I thought you said he isn't into relationships?"

"Hank, I didn't say that he's got a partner. I'm saying he might have got too good an offer to pass up."

"I'm gonna fuckin' regret asking this, but is that common for all you lot? You just ask if someone's up for a quick fuck?"

"Meh, it's not common, but it frequent enough to be noticeable. A lot of the androids who aren't in closed relationships mess around with a few people, and even those are few and far between. Androids don't really stick by monogamy so much"

Hank got into the entryway and looked around for any sign of North, Simon, Josh or Connor since Markus was…indisposed. "Sometimes I think I'm learning way too damn much about androids sex lives through no bloody fault of my own. How is this my life again?"

"You were stupid enough to adopt one of us, this is the consequence of it."

"Best stupid idea I've had," he threw back, earning a flustered laugh on the other end.

"Quit getting sappy old man, I much prefer you when you're being an asshole or a snappy grump."

"Just cause you enjoy a fight and no-one else can put up with your bitch ass," he snarked, pulling the phone away and putting it on speaker so that he could type out a message to Connor.

Where you at kiddo? I'm at the apartments to see Markus' mishap.

"Hey, shithead!"

Hank did an about turn and looked down the corridor at North's shout, but couldn't see the female android anywhere. "Don't do that to me, North," he spat, but the reply from his phone almost made him jump out of his skin.

"Why? It's way too much damn fun teasing you."

"Jesus fucking Christ!" Hank exclaimed while trying to calm his racing heart. "Don't fuckin' do that! I keep forgetting that you lot can speak in your heads and verbally at the same time."

"Well, you coming or what? I thought you wanted to see this."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm comin'. Cow, making me damn near shit myself…"

"Now that's something I'd pay to see, old man!" came the call from around the left corner, but when Hank looked around it he couldn't see her.

"Dammit, North, stop making me chase after you! Just tell me which elevator I'm going to."

"The ones on the west side, it's on the fifth floor. You'd better take the second one to get up there."

"Yeah, yeah…" Hank looked at his phone as he heard the phone chime at the new text from Connor.

Apologies, Hank, I was preoccupied. I'll be with you shortly.

"So, about that elevator…" Hank jumped again as he heard North's voice from around the corner, but as before, she wasn't there. "Turns out that Markus' incident might have disrupted the power to it. Unless you feel up to the stairs, I'd take the southern one."

Hank looked on all sides, but he still couldn't find her. "Christ, North, I don't know where you're getting a kick out making me panic, but it's getting real old."

"Suck it up, old man. Hurry up already!"

"I'm moving it, you impatient bitch!" Having had enough of North messing with him, Hank hung up and headed for the southern side of the apartments.

En route there he found Simon speaking with two child models, a boy and girl. Spying the older man, Simon ushered them on with a friendly smile and greeted him warmly. "Hello, Hank. I take it you are here to see Markus' poor fortune?"

Hank clasped Simon's shoulder briefly. "Yep, and I think this is going to be a sight and a half. Your bloody girlfriend is trolling me though, she's somewhere on this floor and I can't fucking see her. She's calling out to me from random corners and she's gone by the time I get there!"

Simon smiled knowingly. "Well, despite her best efforts, North has not learned invisibility. She will be somewhere."

"You got that right."

Hank did jump at the female android's voice, but yet again he couldn't see her. Simon's smile turned smug at seeing Hank get infuriated. "Bitch! Stop trying to take years off my life!" he shouted, looking all around. "Goddammit, how is she doing that?" At seeing Simon's expression, he figured the other android was not going to be of any help. "If I keel over from a heart attack, I'm haunting the pair of you – I'm warning you now. Don't suppose you've seen Connor, have you?"

"Your threat is noted, Hank," Simon chuckled. "I'm sure he's nearby, he won't be wanting to miss seeing Markus' efforts to escape."

That caused the human to laugh. "So Connor did set him up."

"…Yes, but he was only the executor, not the mastermind."

Surprised, Hank pulled back. "Wait, what? Who came up with this then?" Simon smiled sweetly, to which Hank groaned. "Great, the last thing I need is you lot practicing on each other, you're going to give Connor even more bloody ideas!" As the android chuckled, Hank sighed. "Whatever. If you see Connor, can you send him my way?"

"Of course, Hank." The lieutenant left with a passing wave, to which Simon smirked and looked up, locking eyes with the android in the beams above. "I get the feeling I'm not really going to have to do much for you to follow him, am I?"

Connor winked down from where he was crouching in the rafters. "Whatever gave you that impression, Simon? You are very adept at bending your statements so that you don't lie. Hank wasn't the least bit suspicious."

Simon shrugged while smiling. "Why do you think North normally has me mislead Markus into his many misadventures? Dare I ask what you have planned for the lieutenant before I leave?"

"Now that would be telling," the android replied in a perfect replica of North's voice.

Hank made it to the elevator without any further incident, and just as he was entering it, he got a phone call from North again. "Would you cut it out with the weird calling and scaring the crap out of me act, North? This is getting old!" he snapped down the handset.

"Why? It's fun," she replied in a sing-song voice. "And just in case old age has addled your brain, it's the fifth floor you're headed to."

"Pipe down with that," he growled. "Anyone seen Connor yet?"

"I ain't seen him. I told you, he'll be busy."

"North, I do not need that thought about my own damn son! Fuckin' hell," Hank grumbled as the doors shut and the lift started moving upwards. "Tell you what, why don't we just agree that you don't tell me about any android antics from now on, including your own?"

"Nah, that's no fun. Making you squirm is one of my highlights."

"Piss off," Hank grumbled, yelping when the lift suddenly came to a screeching halt. The lights went off briefly, only to come back in a much dimmer, light blue colour. Looking around in confusion, Hank groaned when he realised what had happened. "You've got to be joking me…" Reaching for the phone which had been thrown from his grip when the elevator juddered, Hank saw it was still connected to North. "I'm just gonna ask one question, North. Was that you?"

"Was what me?"

That was way too innocent a tone. "Don't play dumb with me, North! I'm really not in the fuckin' mood after the rest of your antics! Start the lift up again!"

"Hank, since when would I intentionally stick you in a lift? That's not really my idea of fun."

"Then again…hearing your swearing is entertaining."

Jumping at her voice right above him from through the metal, Hank growled as he tried to reach for the emergency exit. "For fuck's sake, North, let me out of here!"

Realising she'd spoken on the phone again rather than from the hatch, Hank was tempted to ignore her but punched the speaker on as he slipped it in his pocket. "I would if I was doing it, asshole."

"North, I can fucking hear you above me! Let. Me. Out!"

Her laughter was annoying him, but the next statement caught him off-guard. "Oh boy, you can be real dim for a detective sometimes. I'm not an android who is built for stealth, genius! Do you really think I could sneak around the whole of the first floor without someone else spying me, saying hello and giving me away?"

Hank paused, thinking over what she'd said. "Then what the fuck has been happening? And who's above me?"

"I warned you that Connor wouldn't reply if he was busy, numbskull."

Stunned, Hank reached up and finally managed to open the emergency hatch, only to come across the smiling face of his son. "Hi, old man," he greeted in a perfect mimicry of North."

Growling, Hank glared at him. "Connor…the fuck are you playing at?!"

Giving a familiar smirk, Connor was unapologetic. "I believe that I owed you payback for your making me lose the race, Hank. You will find a tablet, some water and some snacks in one of the side panels, as well as a cushion. I would get comfy."

Hank's rage melted to shock. "Hold up, you're just leaving me in here?!"

"Correct."

Groaning at the thought, Hank tried to persuade him out of it. "Look, Connor, I didn't think I'd be screwing you over that bad! Besides, this is nowhere near the same level! You've already made me all but jump of my skin I don't know how many times already imitating North. Just…let me out, all right? I can't spend all day in here when I'm meant to be back at the precinct in an hour, you're the only one with a day off!"

It seemed like Connor was contemplating his argument. "Sorry, Hank, but this is out of my hands now."

"Goddammit, Connor! Come on you ass, lemme out!"

"You misunderstand me. I cannot override the door controls due to the security measures in place. After a hacking attempt against any of the electronics in the building, only one of Markus, North, Simon or Josh can override it. Josh is out helping set up a new community centre downtown, and Simon informed me that he will be going to investigate reports of a small android group which are living in slum conditions. That leaves only North and Markus to aid you. I think we can agree that North will happily leave you to suffer for a long time…which leaves you only with Markus."

"Connor, please tell me that Markus isn't actually stuck in the roof of a lift and my only hope is the bitch."

"I can still hear you, you know, old man." Hank looked down at his phone in shock. "And no, we pulled that stunt on him last week. He's actually upstairs in our rooms, trying to figure out which of 2368 keys fit the three locks Simon and I chained to his wrist and ankles. I must admit, I didn't think it would take him more than eleven hours to get out."

"North, he has to figure out how to unlock his other wrist before he can even attempt his ankles," Connor pointed out. "That means he will have to almost certainly go through the full set once before reattempting them all again."

"Shit, yeah, didn't think of that. Hmmm, might go up and distract him-"

Not needing to hear any more, Hank quickly hung up and glared at Connor. "This is hardly fair, Connor. How bloody long am I going to be stuck in here?!"

Connor smiled sympathetically. "Some time I suspect, hence why I made sure to leave you some entertainment, comfort and refreshments. I would suggest informing the Captain that you may be held up for some time."

As the android vanished from view, Hank shouted up to him. "Connor! Hey, Connor! Connor!"

It was no use, the android was gone, having scaled up the side of the shaft to the open doors from the floor above. "Shit!"

Resigning himself to a long wait, Hank looked for the loose panel and found the aforementioned items. He also found his music player and headphones, to which Hank stared in surprise: he'd left them locked in his car. "How in the hell did that kid manage to get into the car and sneak these in here if he was trolling me in the corridor? I know he's fast but, jeez, that's unreal." Sighing, Hank grabbed the cushion and sat down on it. At least Connor had picked one which had a lot of padding. "Great, just great…I hope I don't get stuck in here that long…"

As it so happened, it was almost three hours that Hank was stuck in the lift. Still pissed at Connor for starting the prank in the first place, Hank kept spam messaging him for a while. Connor was receptive for just over an hour, but then went suspiciously silent. It was enough to add a little concern to Hank's mind, but Connor did finally send him a message that he would be unreachable for a time.

Shuddering as he recalled what North said before, Hank decided he really didn't want to know.

He instead groaned at getting a message from Ben – Connor had sent them an image of him stuck in the lift, which was giving everyone at the DPD endless amusement. No doubt they'd worked out the real reason despite Hank's message to Fowler that he's been trapped due to a power outage at the Jericho apartments which had jammed him in.

I'm gonna kill that kid for this.

Finally, Hank could feel the lift get back into motion and glowered at the duo which greeted him at the doors when he reached the fifth floor. North was grinning from ear-to-ear, looking entirely too pleased while Markus was rather flustered. "I apologise for the hold-up, Hank. I have been…indisposed," Markus explained, shooting a glare at his lover. She just smirked and winked.

"Yeah, I learned way more than I cared to about why," Hank grumbled back, ignoring North's pleased grin. "Thanks for letting me out. Do you know where Connor went?"

"He is waiting for you at the car."

"Great, thanks. I'm surprised he stuck around to be honest."

North's tone was far too happy and smug for Hank's liking. "He can find ways to keep himself amused here," was all she said, earning a scowl from the human as he marched on. Neither of them were offended by the lack of farewell.

Hank had gone beyond their hearing by the point that Markus turned to North with an unimpressed look. "Was all this really necessary?" he sighed.

The female android shrugged. "Don't look at me, chaining you up wasn't my idea, it was his. Besides, this whole situation is your fault anyway." She followed Hank's disappearing figure as he headed toward another elevator. "You think Connor's gonna tell him?"

"I doubt it. Connor likes to keep certain things private, and I sincerely doubt Hank would wish to know anyway."

Unaware of the conversation between the two androids, Hank emerged from the apartments to see Connor standing by the car with a paper bag. Now extremely wary, Hank was almost reluctant to open it, but the smell was a welcome and familiar one. "Wow, you must be feeling bad if you bought me something from Chicken Feed," Hank noted, eagerly diving into the offered burger.

Connor smiled apologetically. "I will admit that you were left in there far longer than I anticipated. It turned out that things with Markus went a little wrong."

Hank gave him a look. "Oh?"

"The chains had to be snapped in the end after one of the keys broke in the lock."

Despite his dark mood, that had Hank chuckling. "Hah, there you go. I'll bet North's face was a picture. Speaking of pictures, why did you have to send a photo of me to Ben of all people?"

"It wasn't just Ben I sent it to. Chris and Katie also received copies, and I am sure they were quick enough in spreading them around. It's not as if you won't be seeing it soon anyway."

He sighed at the realisation that his grumpy mug was about to make an appearance on their prank wall. "At least tell me that there's a better photo of Markus trapped in the roof of the lift somewhere? I really wanted to see that."

North had been telling the truth in the end. Markus' face was a picture. Didn't quite make up for his unfortunate afternoon…but Hank would take it.

Having seen what Connor had been up to with the rest of the androids with regards to pranks, Hank knew he could have done a hell of a lot worse.