Irys let out a shiver as they stepped out into the cool, crisp night air. "Whoa, got a bit more brisky, didn't it?" she rubbed her hands together before pushing them into her coat pockets.

"Yeah, it did." Markus said with a small smile but it was half-hearted as being an android, the elements didn't affect him to the extent that it would humans.

When they began to walk, Markus had made his mind up that sometime during their conversation he was going to bring up what Irys did for the android back in the diner, hoping to ease into telling her that he is one himself. While walking, Markus again noticed that Irys tried to keep their space with each other close. As they walked, he felt their arms brush against each other in an almost rhythmic way, not unpleasantly. Quite the opposite actually. Trying to take his mind of the weird anxious and light feeling he felt any time she kept their quarters close, he finally found the right way to ask the question that was plaguing him.

"Why did you help that android back in the diner?" her asked, trying to find the right tone and phrasing for the question.

Irys looked a bit surprised by his question before answering, "I never liked seeing mistreatment. No matter who or what it is. I mean don't get me wrong, I know the androids aren't really people. They just look like us but they're not...alive, I guess."

This was the first time since he had been around Irys that he felt disappointment at something she said. He let her continue though as he really was curious as to the full extent of her feelings towards androids.

"I mean, I personally find them kind of creepy, for lack of a better word. It's just they are specifically designed to be humans without actually being a human. It's weird. And then all these places would rather hire them to work then actual people because it seems more convenient to have the labor without having to worry about taking care of the laborer. So I get where the resentment comes from. I mean I'm one of the lucky ones these days. It's hard to find a job that hasn't totally phased out human employment. But still, even if they aren't actually alive, I don't think it's right that people use that as an excuse to treat them poorly."

"So you don't like seeing them being abused, but you don't think they're alive?" he asked.

"I know it sounds a bit contradictory. How can I care about the treatment of something if I don't think it's a living thing? Maybe it's just that they're still so humanlike. Even if they're not, it's hard to think of them as something else when they can almost copy everything about the human likeness."

"What if they don't just copy it? What if they could actually feel? Like have emotions and exhibit awareness, like sentience? Could you think they're not alive then?"

"My answer to that would be how can you tell the difference between true sentience and just a very advanced computer that can mimic it absolutely perfectly? An imitation of humanity isn't real humanity."

Markus then found himself stuck. He believed wholeheartedly that he and the other deviants were alive, they were sentient, they were living, feeling beings. He was certain that if any of the others had heard what Irys said, they would adamantly say that nothing about their deviancy felt as though it was merely just an advancement of their AI. It was deeper than codes and algorithms. They were real.

"What if you met an android that believed that it was alive?" he asked her, finding himself coming to a halt.

Irys stopped as well, "Huh?"

"What if you met an android and they told you that they were alive? Would you tell them that what they were feeling wasn't real?"

Irys mouth open and shut a few times, while her face twisted up in confusion, "I don't know. I don't really talk to them. I mean if one just told me I don't think I would believe it just because they told me."

"So how would you be convinced?" Markus tried to keep the eagerness of out his voice, but he really wanted to be right about Irys.

He went into this wanting her to be different from the other humans. He was right to an extent. She wasn't hateful towards them and she stood up for them when they are mistreated, but she didn't think they were like her and other humans. She just thought of them as really good imitations, and that was only enough to get sympathy from her. Not enough for her to see them as equals.

"I guess...I mean it's one thing if one just told me like, 'Hey, I'm alive.' But I guess for me, it would have to be a bit more than that. I guess I would have to see them act in a way that I know a computer can't fake it. AI's are pretty advanced but I know they can't fake love, they can't fake true happiness, they can't fake true heartache. Yeah, they can smile, they can laugh, maybe they can even cry, but...it's take more then mimicking a facial movement or repeating a phrase. It's just something you can recognize when it's genuine. It's hard to describe."

Markus then mulled over everything that she had said. He had to admit that it was an interesting approach that he had never really considered when it came to what it would take for him and the other deviants to convince humans to view them as something more than imitating machines. It would take more than just saying it. He knew of the civil rights movements way before theirs and this was other humans trying to convince those in power and privilege to view other humans as equals. He suddenly started to think that perhaps he and the other deviants shouldn't have expected humans to come around so easily to their sudden sentience. As he just heard from Irys's perspective, there was an element here that he admittedly didn't really consider when it came to how he thought about delivering freedom to the deviant androids and that was having an honest human point of view to refer to. He had been disappointed that Irys didn't view androids as living beings or equals, but then again, he did understand her stance, and there was one thing out of all the things that she said that gave him hope. She was willing to view them as something more if she was convinced of there being something more to them. Maybe the other humans just saw what was happening with the androids as just a computer malfunction, not real sentience.

"Why do you ask anyway?" Irys asked, knocking him out of his musings.

"I'm sorry?" Markus quickly replied, although he heard her question clearly. He was just at a loss on how he was going to answer it. He had brought up the topic so he could try to tell Irys who he really was, but after hearing her stance and thinking it over, he started to wonder if maybe a different approach to things with Irys may work a better. What if revealing that he wasn't human later than now gave her the convincing that she needed to see androids as having developed real humanity?

"I said why did you ask about what I did for the android anyway? Are you one those anti-android people? Because if so, I'm not gonna apologize for helping him if what I did offended you or something." she said defensively.

Markus couldn't help but let out a snort of laughter at her accusation. If only she could understand the irony of the moment then, "Oh no, nothing like that. Let's just say I'm just not used to seeing a person that actually tried to be nice to androids that's all. I was just wondering what made you want to help is all."

"Well what about you? How do you feel about them?" she asked, staring into his eyes hard.

'This is it.' Markus thought to himself, 'You can tell her now. Just tell her.'

However, Markus had already began calculating another plan in his mind after Irys expressed her thoughts on androids. Unknowing to her, she had given him very good insight on how he was going to tackle the fight for freedom for his people, something that he felt he would never have gotten had Irys known he wasn't a human. What if this friendship he was developing with her could be used for the betterment of his people as he would be getting an idea of how humans really felt about them and this would allow him to know how to approach everything they did with both a human and a deviant perspective.

"I honestly think that there is something more to them and they're trying to show us that." he swallowed as he spoke, finding it hard to refer to himself as if he didn't already know, "Maybe people just don't understand it yet. One day, perhaps an understanding can be reached and things can grow from there."

Irys narrowed her eyes at him, but then nodded her head in agreement, "That's a very hopeful way to look at it. Between you and me though, I can't ever remember a time in history where something such as understanding between two completely different groups came so easily."

Markus had to nod his head in agreement at that. The two of them began walking again with Irys keeping her close space as before, their arms brushing every other step between them.

"How far to your place?" Markus asked after a few moments of silence, trying to find a way to make small talk.

"It's only a few blocks, don't worry." Irys said in a sing-song tone. "Where do you stay, if you don't mind my asking?"

"I...stay with friends. Not too far from around here. I used to live with my father before that."

"You must have taken great care of him. What's he like?"

It was then that Markus felt himself starting to feel overwhelmed. He hadn't taken the time recall his life with Carl or even revisit any memories from before everything happened to him, before he became deviant. Everything just jumped at him in flashes of reveries and emotions. His paced slowed until he came to another halt, closing his eyes for moment to collect himself. Quickly everything subsided, and when he opened them, he was looking into the worried face of Irys. Her hand was stretched out to him, seeming as though she was going to go for his hand but stopped just short, her fingers were only lightly grazing his.

"I'm sorry if…" she started but he swiftly held up his hand to stop her apology.

"You didn't do anything wrong." he assured, "It's just...I never really took the time to really think back on my father and everything that happened between us. I guess, I got a bit overwhelmed. It all kind of hit me at once."

He felt Irys start to move her fingers against his slowly and softly, "If you don't want to talk about it…"

"No, Irys, no." he slightly groaned, "I think talking about it may help me really."

"You sure?" her eyes searched his face.

They came to stop within the beaming of a streetlight. Everything outside of the light's ray was dull and dark, seeming to only magnify Irys. Markus felt his gaze shift from her big, dark eyes to her full, pouty, beautiful lips. Though the timing seemed a bit random and non-ideal, the fleeting impulse of wanting to kiss her was just as strong of a feeling as what he just became overwhelmed with beforehand from her asking about Carl. However, strong that feeling was, he was able to shake it off fast.

"Yes, I'm sure." he nodded.

"Okay." Irys returned his nod.

Markus was the one to start walking again this time with Irys following, only this time she kept her hand out of her pocket, continuing to lightly graze her fingers against his as they walked and he found the gesture unbelievably comforting.

"My father is an artist. He's also paraplegic." he started, pacing himself as he went, "He lost the use of his legs in an accident and as a result he became a shut in. Refused to go out or do anything social. He rather stay in and paint but he was even starting to lose his enthusiasm for that. He didn't like having me around at first but eventually he warmed up to me and we mostly became each other's only real companions for a time. Soon, our home felt more like a haven from the world outside. Our arrangement you could say was almost perfect."

"Almost?"

"My father has another son. I guess that would make him my half-brother in a way. He's a heavy user and he had a habit of guilt tripping our father into giving him money, often bringing up the fact that he wasn't around for him much growing up. He seemed to really hate me, accused me of being the favorite. Every time he came around, he would always berate me, abuse me but I never fought back at the urging of our dad."

"That hardly seems fair." Irys scoffed.

"Believe me it wasn't." he agreed, "One night, my brother broke in and was stealing stuff that he was going to try to sell for drug money, I tried to make him leave and the cycle started over again. Him yelling at dad, him pushing me, begging me to fight him, and dad screaming at both him and me. I just had enough and I…"

"Snapped?" Irys finished for him.

"Yeah," he sighed deeply, "I snapped. I fought back and I hurt him really, really bad."

"What happened then?"

"My father told me to leave. He told me to run away, get out." his voice betrayed him at that moment, cracking ever so slightly, "I'm sorry, but I'm not up for elaborating on what happened next. Just know that, I haven't spoken to them or been back since that night."

Irys nodded slowly as he finished. He then felt fingers lace themselves through his. "That's okay, I understand." she told him softly. "Thanks for sharing that with me. I hoped it helped."

"It actually did." he admitted. Due the fact that all he had been doing is lying to her since they first met, and him choosing to continue the lie for now, it felt good to tell her something that was damn near the truth, even if it wasn't the absolute entirety of it.

"We're here." Irys said stopping in front of an apartment complex.

Markus looked around, studying the neighborhood. It wasn't one of the more posh, well off parts of Detroit, but it was definitely nicer than the other places he'd seen.

"So, you still want to take me up on my invite inside my humble abode?" Irys asked, quirking up an eyebrow, her mischievous smile and tone were not lost on him.

Markus felt warmth again at this, but this was a different kind of warmth. The other times the warmth was muted, soft, glowing feeling. This time it was more profound, a heavy and intoxicating heat.

"Well, Mr. Markus?"