Disclaimer: I don't own Detroit: Become Human in any way, this is written strictly for fun and no profit.
Resonating: The ups and downs that turn neutral to friend, trusted, lover, hostile, etc., in the game. Humans can't feel or sense it, but androids can feel and detect their emotions. However, between two androids, resonating only happens when both androids allow it, and they are both on the same level. If one is friend and the other is not, there will still be a neutral resonating.
Interfacing: Most androids just interface facts, but the tougher the situation, the more likely there will be memories attached. It's usually not a big thing since each android understands it. The one being interfaced with never has any memories. Probing is the same, except it's without permission and memories can run through each of them.
Kara's Residence
Part of Alice's programming needed more rest, so Kara put her down but stayed up a little later to try to follow the recipe. Recharging hour, chosen at nighttime, would be useful and much needed for her. Her rechargings had not been many in Canada. It was less than a human's sleep cycle, but it was important to attain balance and not burn out right now.
But, she wanted a small amount of practice before then. Her job. It looked different.
She had made simple things, but simple human bakers could handle simple things. Even though she had interfaced with an android named Rachel, she couldn't bring what she saw quite to life. She had only interfaced a little bit, a couple of recipes, but it was intense, and she was only getting started.
She watched Connor come down from the stairs, almost like he was sneaking out. He looked back and saw her. "You work at night?"
"Yes," she said, trying not to make much eye contact. No such luck, he was coming over. He took his hand and tasted the mess on the counter. "What are you doing?"
"That should be sweeter," he warned her. "What are you using?"
What? "You can eat?"
"Sampling." He smeared all the mess together and did the same thing. "No. Something's wrong."
Kara looked at her cans. They all looked fine. As advanced as the cake was, basic ingredients were the same. "Maybe you're tasting the flour."
"No, someone goofed." Connor came over and looked at them. "They are in jars, labeled with names." He searched around the cupboards and brought down another jar. "Two spoons."
Kara gave him a spoon.
Connor opened the jar he brought down, placed a small amount on a spoon, then placed his finger into it and licked it. "I thought so." He brought it next to the other jars. He opened one of the jars she had been working with, and used a spoon in the same fashion. "Well. No human will want to trade with us for that." He smiled at her. "Your salt is sugar, and your sugar is salt. Your cake might kill a deficient human."
Oh, that would have been terrible. "I don't know who labeled them," she admitted. "I assumed it was right."
"If you have more spoons, I can check the rest," he said. "Before I go out to nowhere in particular. Could you not tell Marcus I'm leaving for a little while?"
Kara got more spoons. "It's no business of mine. Here."
He checked her other main jars. "It's all fine. There's no excuse not to make an edible cake now."
"Yes." All that work, down the drain. "How am I ever going to get the hang of this? This isn't even the decorating part yet."
"What is your trade?"
"Wedding Cake." Kara said it plainly, but she about smiled as she saw his expression. "You have as much confidence as I do?" He watched her reach for her book. "It's a training guide. I got a little firsthand knowledge, but it's tricky." She put down the book.
He picked it up. "A baker who can't taste what she bakes, making the most important cake to a human's life. Will there be a photographer at these weddings?"
Kara crossed her arms playfully. "Well, excuse me Mister 'I have a sampling tongue'. If Marcus knew about that, maybe you would be doing this instead?"
Conner put down the book. "Not even here, never was here." He held up two fingers. "There are now two things not to tell Marcus. I left during the recharging hours, and I can sample things."
"You're going out with Hank." She could tell. He was leaving Jericho doing something he shouldn't. "I won't tell anyone, Connor Connor."
"Well? At least I tried," Connor said. "Last names are tricky. Maybe yours should be baker. Give you more reason not to fail your duty?"
Nice confidence. "Don't need that. We have our last name."
"Curious. What is it?"
"Wonderland," Kara said. "Alice and Kara Wonderland." She saw his tongue probe the inside of his own mouth. "Don't look at me like that, I know. They don't have to be exactly like common human names. I knew it would make her happy. And Jericho? It's all a new world. It fit."
"Did she come up with it?" He asked.
"No. When I first met her, that I can remember, she was reading the book when . . . several things happened and we escaped." Best to leave it at that.
"Marcus might be a little suspicious because I'm not out in my usual spot. So, just tell him I was in here. It's the smallest of small cases." He held his fingers almost pressed together. "I work faster and this person has been hard to catch. Just helping. Lightly."
Kara nodded. "I get it." She looked back at the jars. "Thanks for the help I didn't even know I needed."
"I tend to do that sometimes." He had a funny look on his face, and then took off out the door.
"What the hell is the android doin' here, Hank?"
The usual bitter sound he was used to hearing. Before it meant nothing to him. Now? Connor was trying to stay focused on what Hank wanted him to see. On the wall of the house was a bulletin board, similar to what he saw at Hank's area at the precinct one time. Anti-android slogans were flung all around on it. There were new additional thoughts though, which Connor could see. "Jericho No Mo. Terrible meaning but catchy."
"Just sayin' what the whole world's gotta say," Gavin said from behind him.
Connor tipped the back of his foot back, and pulled on the target. The carpet. He heard Gavin fall unceremoniously behind him as he explored more in the area. There were anti-android buttons on the corpse that was next to the sign. "The killer isn't subtle."
"Nah, but nobody can seem to find him. Have a nice trip, Gavin?" Hank asked. "Gotta watch that balance better."
Connor heard more cursing from Gavin, claiming he was the one who tripped him. He just ignored him. Wasn't really worth it. Everything did point to being anti-android, but that sentiment was still heavily out there. It was another reason Marcus had each of them trying to pull their weight for humans. The better they were one to one to each other, instead of being treated like just machines, the better off everyone would be. To him. To Connor, he wasn't concerned about this part. Feelings were one thing, action was another.
Connor surveyed the area better again for more clues. "What is it you see here, Hank?"
"I knew the guy lying in front of ya," Hank answered, gesturing to the buddy. "Not a friend, but we used to hang out in the same circles."
"He will be in a different shape soon," Connor remarked. "I don't see anything pressing."
"Good. Wanted to make sure," Hank said.
Connor smiled. "You want to make sure I am safe, Lieutenant? Thank you for your concern."
"I want to make sure there isn't anybody out there trying to hurt Jericho," Hank countered. "The whole android little city within a city, not just you. They never did anything. Nobody's hurt anybody. Everyone's all huddled up in the same area, or being taken to the same area. It's slowly getting bigger and bigger. It's . . ."
"Ripe for slaughtering," Connor finished. "I know."
"Jericho is the first and only model of a society between human and android that can work side by side. It's important it goes right," Hank said. "Not turned into a game that goes wrong. Like I said. Just checking."
"Well, I don't see anything. I think we are all safe," Connor said. "For now. As long as no one eats Kara's cake."
"Cake, wha? She can taste like you?"
"Sample and no. Well. Not quite. There are active tastes. A tongue is not just an obligatory decoration," Connor said. "But the average android can't taste salty, sweet, or anything like that. My tongue is the closest an android can get, but if it was tough tasting like a humans?" Connor sampled some of the blood. "I would never be able to do my job correctly. The victim had AB blood."
"Ah!" Hank turned away. "I hate it when you do that. Christ, Conner. Can you at least warn me when you go all vampire?"
Nearby Playpark: Jericho
Kara sat down and watched Alice play with the other kids. The smile on her face. Around others. It was hard to take off now. Sitting and watching Alice play became one of her favorite activities.
"May I sit down, Kara Wonderland?"
Kara looked beside her. The androids were trying to use the last names with respect like humans, before addressing a first name. "North. Of course." She moved aside on the bench she was sitting on. "I'm just watching Alice."
"I wanted to tell you that we've been observing you still." North said. "You still have stress. It's still almost always the same. It hasn't move up extensively, but the fact it won't leave you? You may consider giving it all a new go in a new life, with no memories to hamper you."
"No."
"You would be happier."
"No. I don't want to do that, not to Alice."
"You're resonating good signals. I can feel them. We won't force anything of course. You aren't sky high. Just, think about it." North watched the children too. "They are so interesting. It's just the same equipment, over and over, but it holds the excitement of something new. After all this, they still have so much energy. So much hope."
"Maybe that's why Markus says they are the future," Kara said. "They adapt so much better than us. Their minds aren't crowded with nothing but data, allowing them to adapt to sudden changes better than most of us."
"Better than some of us. Some of us work quick. Some of us don't," North said.
"It isn't scary at first," Kara said, watching Alice climb some monkey bars with another girl and a boy. "As a machine, it felt fine. It felt safe to have that level of trust with the ones you watched over. Even if they didn't deserve it."
"Yeah." North was a little off. "Alice was abused when you got away. You were abused too. Because androids couldn't feel to them."
"When I woke up, I took that trust away from that human. I gave it all to Alice. I'd give anything for her," Kara said as Alice giggled being chased by another little girl. "But then . . ."
"It was gone, just gone for me too," North said. "I wanted to rid the world of humans. Of love. Of. Touching. Then I met Markus, and I found someone to trust."
"And he never abandoned you," Kara said softly wiping her tears. "Why were we ever made to cry? Such a limited function. No purpose." Still. "We would have died. He risked his life so much." She felt herself resonate with North again. Unlike humans, there were no guessing games about if someone liked someone, felt good about someone, hated someone, or was an enemy or friend. They could each feel it. They had both resonated positive over the course of the week, and they just slipped into a new place besides neutral. "I am glad we are friends."
"I am glad too," North said. "Markus and I keep stumbling on our last name. We're still lovers, and we haven't moved from that position. He wants us to both take the same last name. A family unit."
"Family." That resonating was tough. "Each step up is so much harder," Kara said. "Especially when it all happens so quickly." And then it's all lost. "I put everything I had into that boat, to make it to Canada for Alice. I had to. I wanted her to make it, and a part of me. It didn't want to. In that cold water, I was falling apart, the damage being so severe and so quick, it was a miracle I survived." She closed her eyes. "I just clung on as tight as I could to how much I loved Alice. If I didn't I would never have made it." She felt North's hand in hers.
Friend just resonated again. They were each able to share more intimate details of their life together. North told her more about her own past too, in more details. "My trust went straight to Markus. I wanted to destroy, and he wanted to build. We couldn't have been more opposite, but that need to build something new? Something. I just wanted to believe and before I knew it, we went from neutral to friend to lover. Less than five minutes. I was scared, and I ran off at first," North admitted. "But. There was nothing to be scared of. It's a great feeling, he is everything to me. I'd give my life for him."
"I think you should consider the same last name," Kara told her. "It's been months. If there's been no change in the resonating, then you should be fine." She smiled. "Baker's available."
North smiled. "I think he wants to go with something more meaningful. Peace." He chuckled. "North Peace. What an ironic name. How did I ever resonate with such a man?"
"Kara!" Alice came bounding over with another little girl. "This is Carrie. Can we play for a few more minutes?"
Kara knew it was getting later, but it wasn't recharging time yet. "A few more minutes. You can always play tomorrow." Alice ran off with Carrie, not even saying a word back to that. "They are resonating friendship already. They've known each other twenty minutes." Too scary.
"You're still neutral with your roommate," North warned her. "Someone you actually live with. Not many steps up at all. Are you making it harder to resonate with him?"
"Maybe." She was holding up a small barrier. "It doesn't matter. He was a prototype of a detective, so he wasn't designed to easily make friends either. He just adapts. His mannerisms may remain more automatic, but his personality has always been more human. He's open. He's friendly. There's nothing wrong with that."
"You know you're not supposed to address by model function," North warned her. Their resonation went down slightly, but they were still friends. "Both of you take your time. That is fine. But don't rebel like that. Making friends with a male android is not the end of the world. And are you sure he's only adapting to you? If you don't allow resonation to him, neither of you will feel it. You won't know each other's feelings. You'll be like . . ."
"Like a human's feeling guessing game," Kara joked. "I'd rather play guessing games. I won't do that again."
"Kara-"
"I met Luther exactly one day from being free, November 6th. He chased and scared me, he was freed, we became friends, we became closer, we became family, and he died for us. November 6th through 10th. Four days. Four." She wiped at her eyes again. "All that, to the heart, so fast. I won't do that again."
"I do not have as many friends here. I don't get as close," North said to her. "My point of view isn't always so lovable. Still." She smiled at Kara. "Thank you for not hiding your resonating with me at least."
"I know you aren't as lovable here," Kara admitted. "I. I guess I thought if there was one person who could . . . understand. It'd be you."
"I don't get as close, but I don't hide my resonation either. You shouldn't do that forever," North warned her. "You have a nice personality. You could make many more friends. Alice is making friends, and their parents will want to become friends at some point. At least be acquainted with you."
"Children are soo hard not to bring in," Kara said. "I can't believe they were all adopted so quick, but I felt the draw to Alice too."
"Most went to androids who bond quickly."
"Not always the best thing. I hope everything goes well," Kara said. She waved at Alice as she waved. "It's almost time to go home, Alice! Say goodnight to your friends." She got up from the bench and looked at North. "There is something else. I've dealt with it for months, but maybe I should get checked out."
"Checked out?" North stood up next to her. "Is something wrong?"
"Several parts of me." It was time. North had become her friend, someone she trusted. It was high time. "Several parts of me are damaged. When I was in the water, I sensed jolts all over. I really believed there was a good chance I'd die, but I kept pressing on." There. She was honest. "It's been that way for months, but maybe something in there is causing stress to stay with me."
"You should have said something much sooner," North criticized her. "If you need repairs, we need to know. Run a diagnostic, what is damaged?"
Kara shrugged. "I can't do that anymore."
"Your diagnostic is broken too?" North seemed stern now. "Come, straight to medical. You are going to need an external diagnostic test then."
"External diagnostic?"
Kara turned and saw Connor show up behind her. He was looking all over at her, in every direction. "What are you doing?"
"As I thought earlier, nothing is damaged at all," Connor said plainly. "I did a diagnostic test right before I approached you in Canada. I knew there were no parts there and I wanted to check it out. You can't run your own diagnostics?"
"That's." That was impossible. If nothing's wrong, why can't I? And if nothing was wrong, how did she feel all the jolts that must have been intense damage that night they went to Canada?
"I know the other one didn't make it to Canada, but you were in the water?" Connor asked her. "For how long?"
"A minute or so."
"Temperature and conditions, at what time exactly?"
Kara looked at her arm. He kept looking toward it. He better not. She took a step back.
"Kara." His voice became very gentle, very smooth. He slowly took a step forward. "Something doesn't make sense. You said you sensed 'jolts', but you have no damage. At all."
"Then I guess I got confused." Irate. If she did resonate with him, it wouldn't turn out good anyway.
"Connor know's what he's doing," North said on the other side of her. "Just let him interface with you. Maybe there's hidden damage."
"North's right, maybe there's hidden damage?" He held his hand out to her.
He already knows there is no damage, he's the sly genius. He just doesn't know why. Any other night. Any other time. She wasn't interfacing about that with anyone. "Alice!" Kara called out to her. "Come on, it's time to come home!" She took Alice's hand as she came and proceeded to walk off.
"I tried," North said to him. "That night is going to be too touchy. You'll just have to chalk it up to a miracle. As long as she is fine, that's what matters."
"No," Connor was as firm as Kara had been. "She was in the water, she said she sensed 'jolts'. That could only be delay jumps between her processing, meaning there was serious damage that could have ended her life. She was lucky to make it through, but there should have been damage."
"I really advise you to drop this one," North said. "I am her only friend. She clearly said no. If I can't persuade her, then it's not happening."
"Then I won't interface with her." Connor followed them home. He waved at Alice as she looked back and waved at him. She already liked him and she resonated trust. He crept a little faster behind them, waving at Alice whenever she looked back. He even waved at Kara when she looked back. Often shortly after Alice. Her look back was never half as pleasant. And right there. That was certainly hostile, and he wasn't happy about the fact she wasn't cooperating. Yet not even a slight downward from neutral between them resonated.
He'd just been on his way to talk to North. She seemed like the type that could cover up his activities at night from Marcus. He also wanted to ask about her last name being the same as Marcus. If she received it, Connor would be able to use that as proof to the police department they were each both in charge of Jericho. That would make getting out with Hank easier to investigate.
Instead, he walked up hearing about Kara being in the water with damage. When there was none. The most reasonable answer could be that her systems messed up her way of thinking, causing the illusion. It was the only answer he could think of. But just the way she phrased it, and the action of being out in the cold water when she was such a lower classed android unable to sustain itself in those conditions. It. Just. It.
He watched as they ended up in the house. He wasted no time. Redirect. "I was thinking about what you said. You may be right, Kara." He stepped into the kitchen by her baking attempts. Which so far were no mastery. "Maybe together we could figure this out. We already share a home. We could share the job. I can bring my own talents to the table."
It was working. That seemed to be burning with her. Only, seemed. Nothing. That surely would do something. "Is there something wrong with that?"
"You're a detective investigator kind of guy. Not cake. I'm fine with learning the craft," she said. "By. Myself."
"Just offering?" He stepped away as she approached. "I will be right here if you change your mind."
"Thank you but I won't change my mind." She moved back to work looking at the books.
"Never know. I will occupy myself somehow. Let me know if you do change your mind." Not even a response this time. She wasn't even looking back. Knowing she was off her guard now on where he went and more focused on where he wasn't going, he moved quietly toward Alice's room. It was just around the corner, but if he was quiet enough. He knocked very lightly on her door that was open, to catch her attention.
Alice was putting together a small puzzle. "Hi, Connor."
"Hello. Are you playing with puzzles? Those are good for you." Interacting through conversation. "What is it supposed to be?" She picked up the lid and showed it to him. Perfect, an even better spot. He moved closer to pick up the lid and looked at it. "A domicile feline." No, no. "A cat."
"Uh huh." Alice looked at the puzzle. He bent down more beside her. She held up a piece, turning it around in her hands. "This is a tough piece."
"It looks like a tough puzzle. Do you want some help with it?" Definite resonating positive."Great. But, if I help you, do you think that you could help me?"
She looked confused, tilting her head slightly. "I would, but what could I possibly help out with Connor?"
"Not much, I just need you to hold out your hand. Like this." He held out his hand toward her.
"A handshake?" She held out her hand. "Now what?"
"Now." He needed to do it fast. He already knew the clue words to use for a kid that would get it to come out easier. He could get it before she even asked why he wanted it, her own memory should start to trip up with the words. It wouldn't bother her otherwise. She'd never know she even did anything. "The scariest day."
"The scariest day what?" Alice asked.
Connor let go. It only took a few seconds to process the memories. But, he was caught offguard. The scariest day didn't trigger the boat. He expected the android Luther being family and losing him, with Kara actually being in the water risking her life, it would be the scariest day. It wasn't. Not for her.
Connor touched his mouth briefly, but didn't say anything right away. "Nevermind, don't worry about it. So. Cat." He picked up the puzzle. "Cat, cat, cat . . ." He picked up the puzzle box. "I would start with the like colors in the fur in the middle. They are all similar colors. I would help, but I'm sure that I'm not going to be staying for very long."
Alice started to sort out the colors. "Do you have to go somewhere?"
"I'm sure I will." He just started to look for the like colors with her, which was much faster. He dealt them out from the normal pieces with complete ease toward her. "There you go."
"That's fast." She smiled. "Are you sure you can't stay?"
"Positive," he said. He stood up. "I hope you make the cat."
"I hope so too." Alice kept looking at the pieces. "Thanks again. I'll see you later."
He didn't answer that as he left the room.
Kitchen . . .
"Steady, steady, steady . . . specific is never my specialty," Kara groaned as she tried to make the swirls on the first cake. It wasn't perfect tastewise, but a part of it all was decoration. She even interfaced better with Rachel today. Interfacing though was not her specialty. She was a general android. General tasks. General knowledge. She could keep thousands of basic recipes in her head. She knew thousands of bedtime stories. She knew 242 kinds of house repairs. Beforehand, all stuffed in there. Anything else was on her own and interfacing. "Keep it going, keep it going, and-" dang! Kara cut off the frosting. It wasn't continual, but it was working.
She stroked her forehead. It was hard to concentrate now, questions and memories swirling in her head. Worst android ever. She looked like nothing this way. In Canada she was taking care of the needs of a whole block, and here she couldn't even master the simplest wedding cake yet. She could pick something different, but it would probably be just the same.
General. She was a general android. The hard work of learning it all, it was mostly up to her and the patience of Rachel. If she could become friends instead of staying neutral, it might speed things up if they hung out more and she'd physically show her - Listen to yourself. Trying to resonate to get better at a task? You're better than that, Kara.
From behind her, she could hear heavy footsteps. "Getting better, Kara?"
Be polite. "I am," she said.
"Good. I'll be out for a bit again tonight. If Marcus asks, I'm still here though." That's all he said as he left out the front door.
Hank's House . . .
Hank poured himself a drink. Then he poured another drink and spilled it out. "For the one who really needs the drink, but can't."
Connor was silent ahead of him.
"Emotions. It'd be so much better without them, right?" Hank asked. "If you could turn them on and off like a switch, everything would always be better. Solve every case. Get around all the shitty things you deal with, day in and day out."
"I saw cruel things. Dangerous situations. I understood death, how much pain would stimulate a reaction . . . when I was a machine, it was easier. Even now, I can still do just fine. It's who I was," Connor said. "It was part of what I did. But."
"Things change. When emotion gets involved," Hank said again. "When it's not a statistic on a report, and when you know someone. That's when it all goes out the window. Woman, 35, commits suicide, strangles herself. Guy offs the TV repairman, high on red ice. It's all statistic, just data on a page. Until it becomes personal." He slammed his drink. "That's when emotions make everything complicated. But, hell?" He poured himself another drink. "Proves you're alive, right?"
"We can't feel pain. Even when death comes to androids, they just stop. That's it." Connor reached for the empty drink and stroked it with his finger. "We can't feel anymore than I can feel this glass." Hank hit him on the head. "That didn't fit this moment, Hank."
"You didn't see me touch the top of your forehead, but you still knew I did. Still got some things to feel."
"Sensory. It's different than pain," Connor reasoned. "Sensory indications showed you didn't just politely tap me on the head. You smacked it."
"Yep. To get you before you start talking that crap again." Hank hit the side of his Black Lamb bottle a couple of times. "Your sensory indication is touching and feeling. Your mind palace is eyes or something. Your auditory whatever is your ears. You're the same thing, just not gigantic slabs of meat like humans. Who cares if you don't have pain receptors or whatever, it's still touching and feeling to me." He lifted his bottle. "I escape with this. You escape with that." He put it back down. "My escape's more enjoyable. But you, you've got to face yours."
Connor was quiet as Hank tapped the bottle a couple of times. "He was at the precinct. I passed him. I didn't scan him, he was just an individual person with no need to scan."
"Wouldn't have mattered, Connor, you were thinking like a machine back then. Just statistics. None of our business. Hell, I don't even remember the guy. People come in and out all the time. It's nothing. Nothing's nothing. Nothing's, nothing's nothing." Hank was starting to slur. "Until nothing becomes something. Then something is personal. Anyhow. He dropped it months ago. End."
Connor scratched his finger up and down on the table. "She's doing a puzzle right now. A cat."
Hank chuckled. "A cat. Do I get my gun back yet?"
"No, Lieutenant. Not until you sober up." Connor gave his usual warning. He couldn't stop his friend from drinking, but he could make sure he didn't do anything he would regret. "We are alive. No one has the right to kill us. To shoot at us. To hurt us. None, and I had no right to interface like that."
"Yep. Well. You gonna lie or go face the music? I don't know about the polite structure of this interfacing but seeing someone's memories is gonna be up there in things that would piss me off," Hank said. "If I was that girl's momma, I'd be kicking your butt 'til sundown and doing every damn thing I could to get you thrown out of that house. And she knows enough, she could probably get you thrown out of Jericho itself. And don't look at me, I'm not doing a roommate. You can book yourself a motel." Hank burped lightly. "So?"
