Months passed since the last surgery and incident between Sire and I. Both P13 and I's wounds had healed. Physically, at least. It took a while for the little raccoon to warm up to me again. He was scared. The first time he was fully conscious he cowered in the corner away from and growled every time I got close. I had expected as much but it still hurt worse than my actual wounds. Then every time it was time for him to come out of the cage, he was so scared and began fighting me on it. I tried being gentle but then I had to be firm otherwise we'd both get into trouble.
So I took a step back and asked for Q12's help which she agreed too. And man, did she step up to the plate. If it hadn't been for her, we may have never gotten back the relationship that we'd had before. Q12 had a way of communicating that was gentle, firm, and encouraging. She was a natural leader and good friend to myself and the other experiments. She was patient with A95 and L06 and had a way of winning over P13. Though I hated him and I were distant, I loved watching their bond from a distance when they thought I wasn't there or looking. Still though, I missed him.
Slowly but surely, we began working on our bond again. One day when I was making my rounds, I came to their cages and was greeted by all but P13. "Hello, there." I say to him with a little wave.
He looked away with flattened ears, not responding to me.
I decide to ignore it and give my attention L06 who was bobbing up and down for me. "214 have treats?" she asks hopefully.
"Mmmm let me see what I got in here." I say as I open up my satchel.
I take out a container that had raspberries, blueberries, and carrots. Then another with fish. I laid out a towel for me to sit on the ground next to them. "I thought we could have ourselves a little picnic." I say to the expectant faces looking at me.
"Wow, where did you get all of this?" Q12 asks.
"It was…donated." I smirk.
"Aw, how nice." A95 says cluelessly as I divvy out the food.
"Donated, huh?" Q12 says with a funny disapproving look as she taps her foot.
"What?" I laugh. "It was!"
"Uh huh, by who?" she tries not to laugh.
"By the guard who was not looking." I say casually with a wink, earning laughs and chuckles from everyone. Even P13 offered a little smile.
As I gave the others their food, I look over to P13 who was looking with hungry eyes. "There's plenty here for you too, P13." I offer softly as I nibble on a berry.
"Yeah, have some P13. It's delicious!" A95 says cheerfully.
P13 looks at Q12 nervously who smiles. "It's okay. She doesn't bite." She giggles.
He looks at me unsurely but carefully approaches me. "Hello, friend." I say with a friendly smile as I lay out the assortment before him.
He accepts it and as I turn, I hear, "thank you."
Surprised, I turn and P13 is looking at me shyly. So I offer a smile. "You're welcome." I reply warmly.
I chat contently with the other three experiments while we're eating. Though P13 kept to himself, he still seemed interested in our conversation. It was lighthearted and fun. But I noticed L06 walking a little funny so I asked her about it. "L06, what's wrong with your leg there?"
"It loose." She replies demonstrating her wiggly leg. Sure enough, it was loose very close to her skin and more towards the middle. "214 fix?"
"Let me see." I reply as I open the cage. She comes to me and I gently examine closer where the problem.
Just as I was about to say something, P13 speaks up. "There." he says pointing to a very detail. "It broke." He looks further and finds another place that needs repair. "This too."
Amazed at his eye for detail, I nod and say, "You're right. Very good, P13." He responds with a small smile. I look back at L06. "Don't worry, pretty girl. We're gonna get you fixed up. I'll be right back."
I get my tool bag and some random parts that I took guess why work the best. Sire didn't really have a specific design when creating L06 so we had to work with what we had best. Bringing the bag over to their cage, I sat cross legged and sprawled out the random pieces in front of me. L06 and P13 both intrigued.
"Ohhh, shiny." L06 says in awe, earning a chuckle from me.
As I was thinking ideas of my own, I glanced up at P13 and could see the wheels turning in his head. "What do you think, P13?" his ears go back as though he's embarrassed to say something. "It's ok." I slide the pieces and nod to them. "Which pieces do you think?"
Relaxing a bit, he starts pointing to few different pieces which ended up being exactly what I was considering as well as a bit more. "Very good. I think you're right. Let's give it a go, shall we?" I begin with the loose parts near the base of her skin and see P13 watching intently. I lean back a bit and offer him the tools. "Want to try?"
Smiling timidly, he begins working on quietly and quickly with the tools and pieces. I sat and watched amazed. It was as if he'd been doing this for years. There was only little piece that was out of place that I pointed too that needed to be shifted. "Move this over slightly. There ya go." I instructed. After doing that, it clicked perfectly into place. "Ok girly, try that leg out." I say to L06.
She gets up then wiggles it freely then starts jumping and running. "Yay! Fixed, fixed, fixed!" she exclaims happily.
The rest of us laugh happily and congratulate P13 on his success. "Good job, friend. I could use an extra hand around here." I wink, earning a smile from him.
I watch him as he runs off to Lylla who jumps and laughs with him. "You did it!" she exclaims. The scene makes me smile. I'm almost 100% sure that beneath all that fur he was blushing.
As I packed up all of my stuff, the timer on my watch went off reminding of my appointments today. It wasn't going to be very busy today so I was hoping to catch a moment with Sire to put in a request. A risky task if you didn't go about it right but after everything I'd just witnessed with P13, I decided that it was worth it. The worst he could say was 'no'.
I put on my white coat and slicked my hair back into a bun. I tried my best hide the scars on my chest. If I did it right, you couldn't really tell that there was metal beneath the surface of my collar bone. The only visible scars were on my hands. It was my reminder that I'm not too different from the experiments that I take care of. I just have a bigger cage.
Shaking my head out of the clouds, I attend to my business. Sire has been working on batch 90 and I absolutely hate it. None of the animals have been coming out alive and I have to numb myself every time I bring them in. I dreaded seeing what he wanted to use today. We didn't have much choices left honestly as we were low on stock so I wondered how today was going to go.
I got my answer when I arrived at my station and checked the agenda for the day. All of it was cleared out. Why? I cringed, thinking that maybe I had a procedure for myself that I had forgotten about. What was going on?
I looked around and spotted Vim. "Excuse me, Recorder Vim." I called after her.
She looked up curtly and nodded in my direction. "Yes, 214?"
"My schedule has been cleared for the day. I was wondering if there was a glitch or if something else?" I ask.
"It was intentional. I have been meaning to speak with you. Sire cleared it himself. He's requested your presence immediately." She informs me.
Fear strikes me but I push it down. "Of course." I force down the lump in my throat and follow her to his station.
"214, Sire." She announces my presence.
"Ah yes, come in, 214." He says without looking up.
Wordlessly, I stand before him already thinking the worst. Is it a procedure? Have I been caught doing something wrong?
"As you can see, I have cleared the schedule for today." He begins looking up at me.
I nod. "Yes, Sire." I reply.
"It will be cleared for the next week. I am taking some time off to do extensive research. I need to clear my mind and try to find out why in hell's name we are not having any breakthrough with batch 90." He informs me. Immediately I relax but still wonder what it has to do with me. "Which is why I called you in here. I will need you to take over P13 sessions for this week. I will hand over what we have been working on and expect you to pick up where we left off. Document everything and have it ready to report next week."
I nod, feeling a bit excited but try not to show it. "Yes, Sire." I answer simply.
He gives me a look. "You spend more time in those quarters. How is its' progress since the last procedure, in your opinion?"
Did hell freeze over or did he actually ask my opinion? "I…uh-"
"Speak clearly, 214." He demands and I force myself to straighten up.
"I think he is progressing quite nicely. He is very intelligent and is exceedingly well book wise. However-"
"However, what?" he asks impatiently.
"However, I think it would beneficial to give him something hands on. I was going to maybe suggest maybe giving him small projects to put together. Then perhaps if he exceeds that, working up to bigger projects. Maybe even give him a small air craft to fix." I suggest.
"How lovely. Can't create the perfect species but we can create the perfect mechanics." He says sarcastically, rubbing the bridge of his nose.
"Why not? Perfect size for small spaces." It was an attempt at a joke, which I immediately regretted, forgetting whom I was speaking too. But to my utter surprise, he smirks.
"Perhaps." He agrees curtly. "Proceed with my permission. I expect a full report and will observe for myself. If there is no progress, there will be consequences. Understood?"
"Yes, sir." I agree quietly.
"Good. That is all." He says with a wave of his hand.
I start to walk out but then stop and work up the courage to ask what I was going to say. "Sire?"
He huffs, looking up annoyed. "What, 214?"
"I'm sorry, just one more thing. Would you consider allowing access to the simulation room?" He looks at me in disbelief. "I know, it's asking a lot. But I was hoping to see how P13 would do."
"You expect that monstrosity to be able navigate a highly advanced piece of equipment?" he asks incredulously.
"Why not? Is that not what you programmed him to be able to do?" I fire back, cringing at my own audacity.
"Tread lightly." He warns. He thinks for a few moments before shaking his head. "You may have access. Document everything. It will be expected in your report."
"Of course. Thank you, Sire." I reply in disbelief that he actually said yes. Again. So before he has a chance to change his mind, I nod with a slight smile then turn towards the exit.
"And 214," he calls after me. I turn around. His eyes have that evil black glint that always makes me cower. "Do not betray my trust." It was an eerie warning that I knew better than to not heed.
I nod, swallowing the lump in my throat. "Yes, sir." I whisper.
And just as fast as it came, it was over. He sat back down and began scribbling in his notebook. "You may go. Complete the rest of your normal duties. Theel will give you everything that you need for your sessions later."
"Yes, Sire. Thank you." I reply. He nods without looking up and I take that as my que to leave.
As I work on my normal duties feeding the animals and cleaning cages, I can't help but wonder what Sire he is up too and why he is the way he is. Why in the universe was nothing ever good enough for him? Why couldn't he see the beauty in what already is? How couldn't he see why his quest was worthless? These are all questions I've asked over and over but here lately, they've been boiling at the surface of my mind and demand to be answered. Yet as I clean up the last empty cage where there was once three beautiful kangaroos, I had to once settle again that I would not get these answers any time soon.
By the time I finish my chores, I'm absolutely beat. I didn't realize how late it actually was. I make my way towards my bed, I notice P13 sitting up shaking. All of the other experiments were asleep. "P13?" I say his name quietly, causing him to whip around. "Hey, it's okay. It's just me." I approach slowly. He relaxed a bit but was still shaking. "What's the matter, huh?"
He looks at me unsurely. "Scared." He confesses.
"Scared?" I ask concerned as I sit down cross legged in front of him. "What happened?"
"Scary pictures." He says quietly.
"Scary pictures?" I repeat confused.
"Yeah…when I close my eyes. Scary pictures. Don't knows why." He whimpers.
I try to figure out what he's talking about when it hits me. "It's when you sleep?"
"Yeah." He confirms, ears perking up a little bit when he realizes that I'm listening.
"What do you see?" I ask curiously.
He hesitates but then answers. "Lights. Bright lights. Sire…214." He pauses and gives me a nervous look. "Sire have big shiny knife. Sire angry. 214 angry…scared. P13 can'ts move. Hurts. Sire and 214 fight." He looks at me sadly. "Sire hurt 214. It scary."
My heart constricts and I sigh heavily. "Ohh, I see. That does sound scary." I agree with a nod.
"What was?" he asks.
"It's called a nightmare. It's like a dream but can be scary. And when we go through something scary, sometimes it comes out again in our dreams." I explain. "It sounds like you were having a nightmare about your surgery."
He winces. "Nightmare…don't like it." He whispers.
I place my hand on the cage. "I don't like nightmares either." I agree sympathetically. "Sometimes when I have nightmares, it's hard for me to see right after. So instead of thinking about the scary things, I think about things that make me happy. What makes you happy?"
P13 thinks for a moment then looks at the others and points. "Friends."
I smile and nod. "Yes, that's good." I encourage him. "Our friends make me happy too. What else?"
Thinking, he smiles. "Fish."
I giggle while shaking my head. "You're on your own with that one." I wrinkle my nose making him laugh. "What else?"
P13 thinks for a few moments before looking at me shyly. "You." He replies softly.
"Me?" I stutter slightly in surprise.
"Yeah." He replies happily.
My eyes water. "Why me?" I ask thickly.
"214 nice. Yous help P13. Make feel better." He replies with a soft smile. His ears flatten a bit. "I's scared of 214 after big big surgery. Thinks I's in trouble. But don't like it. 214 nice."
A stray tear falls down my cheek as I unlock the cage and gently grab P13's paws. "That surgery was not your punishment, understand? Not at all. I hated having to put you through that." I sigh shakily as I rub his paws. "Especially after promising that it was going to be simple. I'm sorry."
P13 puts his paws on top of my hands, causing me to look at him. "You stayed. No break promise." He offers a soft smile. "214, friend."
I sniffle as I wipe my eyes and smile back. "Yes, that's right. For what it's worth, you make me happy, too. And you are my friend. Along with L06, Q12, and A95." I lean down and plant a soft kiss on his forehead. "It's good to have friends."
He smiles brightly with a soft giggle then hops into my lap and snuggles into my side. I let a few tears loose as I hug him back and stroke his fur until he falls asleep again.