Eva heads home.

The kids go off to school.

Someone's been putting small bits of code into Rose's file drops to me.

"Hey, Holly?"

"Here."

"Do you… still have those emergency codes?"

She pauses, graphical representation off as she dedicates all her processing power toward searching. "No emergency codes found. I believe you ordered me to delete them all four years ago."

"...Right, I was probably pretty drunk when I said that." I sit down on the side of my bed and stare at the pile of stuff I've dredged up. "Okay. Aside from the obviously compromised dead drop, here's the list of methods I have to talk to my dolls." I raise my hand up. "Emergency codes."

"Deleted."

"Radio frequency."

"They've been out of range every time you've tried it."

"Sat phone number."

"Currently points to a phone sex service. A doll is the one responding."

"...That makes me think Hannah did that on purpose." I grumble. "Social media?"

"You're so funny, Hadwin." Holly's voice is, as ever, monotone.

I scoop up the six cores I had saved when their users had died for real, holding them up to the sunlight filtering through the window.

The first one belongs to P90, who gave her life for me when I was brand new to this business.

The second belongs to the dancer, Tokarev.

The third, NTW-20.

The fourth, Ithaca.

The fifth, Aleah.

The sixth…

I turn the latest one around in my hands. It came labeled as AK-12… but, from what I can recall of that entire disaster of a campaign to Paradeus' fortress in the sky…

Oh well. I set the cores back on the highest shelf, each with their own little pedestal so they don't look like random junk. Then, I turn back and observe the full extent of my ransacked room.

Unit patches given to me by dolls, PMCs and even real military units I had worked with over the years. Data storage devices containing digital memories like photos and entire sections of the old Griffin Level 2 I had liked to hang out with my girls in. Gifts from my many wives, from small metal trinkets hammered out of discarded casings to a full Tuxedo in the most gaudy wine red I've ever seen. A book of mathematical formulae that I never managed to read. A music player.

And, a lot of ammo and guns to fire it through. A NTW-20, with "Kaya se wrak" carved into the side. A Negev that I can barely stand to hold even now. A few sidearms…

I sit back down on the bed and sartre up at the ceiling.

"Problems?"

"I miss them." My right hand comes into view, each finger with three rings aside from the thumb with only one. "I really… really miss them all."

"RO635, ST AR-15, UMP 45, UMP 9, HK 416, AN-94, and S.A.T.8 have all been confirmed active in recent months as gathered from OSINT from combat zones." Holly loads pictures and reports into my field of view as she talks. "Furthermore, M4 SOPMOD II has been seen with SV-98, though the source is unverified."

"...Yeah, I'm glad they're alive." I stand up again and start tidying up. "But I wish I could talk with them. I haven't talked with SV-98 for almost an entire decade. She may not even like me anymore."

"Judging by others who hit their affection limit with you, I do not think she will have stopped her affection routines."

"You always know what to say, Holly."

"I do not."

I shake my head and continue the cleanup. The weapons especially need to be locked up. I'm one hundred percent sure my kids know not to play with the guns, but…

Everything aside from my personal sidearm goes into the safe aside from the NTW-20, which goes into a corner of the closet, though I stuff the trigger assembly into the safe so even if you can lift it, it's useless.

The patches I put back into a drawer and I tell myself that one day I will finish sewing velcro on the back of all of them and get one of those patch panels I've heard about.

"So, what's your next move?" Holly asks.

"I need to find out who's messing with the dead drops." I tuck the tuxedo into the closet. "It's a bit hard, since they're… dead drops."

"Yes."

"What I really need to do is get someone working on predicting the next location for a drop, or a way to figure out who is dropping the data drives for me to collect." I finish tidying up the room, looking around for anything I missed. "Which is, again, hard because the point of a dead drop is to not reveal that shit."

"Yes."

I frown. "I could… encrypt a message back out to Rose on my next drop out, make sure she's the only one who can decode it."

"Have you been practicing code writing in secret?" Holly's projection tilts her head. "I have not observed a capability for high level codes with you before."

"How about you then?"

"I have a fully functional military level encryption module loaded." She blinks at me, slowly. "Rose would not be able to crack through the default encryption."

"Then that's pointless." I blow out my lips.

"While I understand the need for communicating that someone is tampering with the drops, shouldn't you be attempting to remove the currently installed code?"

"Oh, right, you were shut down when we were running the diagnostic." I step out into the kitchen and check the clock. It's almost noon. "It keeps restoring itself. There's some program running somewhere on my neural cloud that restores the files after they're deleted. Normally, you could just start killing processes you don't recognize, but since some of those regulate my heartbeat, and I don't have Sop here to reprogram my heart if something goes wrong…"

"Understood. It's not viable to reset either, since it will likely result in the death of the user."

"Exactly. Until I can find a way to isolate those programs safely, I'm going to just live with them." I hesitate before turning to the AI's representation on the other side of the room. "Thank you for making sure you don't overload my head when I have the nightmare. Eva told me you need to shut off or else my brain would have cooked."

"It is obvious. Temporary shutdown is preferable to complete host loss."

That's about the best I can get out of her.

"What is the next action, then?"

"I think I'll go take a walk." I stretch my arms over my head. "Maybe clearing my head will let me think of something I can actually do."

"Possibly."

I walk out the door into the sunshine and general bustle of an urban area. I get a few looks as I step out, but nothing beyond the idle curiosity of hearing a door open or close.

My legs start to carry me, but my mind is completely elsewhere as I consider my options.

It's not until I find myself in front of the previous drop that I wake up enough to think about where I am. Actually, that reminds me, I need to format the drive and stick some more pics of the kids on it and return it to the underside of the bench-

Whoever does the drop is likely the person who brings it in, right?

If I drop it off and stake out the location…

An idea forms in my head.

A wry smirk crosses my face as I think of what any number of dolls would think about my plan, from Rose trying to poke holes in it, Hannah completely dismantling the plan, Sop or AK-12 just going along with it…

I get a hold of myself before I start crying in public again.

Okay. Now I have a plan.

"Good." Holly shows back up inside my head. "I am already sorting through records of your kids to load into the drop."

"Thanks, Holly."

"It is my duty."

The day of the dead drop arrives, and I put the payload into the drop. Report cards, pictures of the three, and one of myself with a personal note to Rose and a request for her to pass on my love to the others.

It's nothing life or death, as normal. My initial instinct was to load in some sort of tracker, but that would only risk cluing everyone to what's going on. For now I need everything to continue as normal so that whoever I'm up against doesn't realize what I'm doing.

Instead, I'm waiting on a bench not too far from the location of the drop, watching my kids play around in the park. While that may not seem to track, I have Holly working overtime to scan the local environment for anyone approaching the drop. Her activity is so intense that the back of my neck starts to heat up dramatically and I have to fetch a bag of frozen vegetables from the local market to keep myself from getting permanently burned.

"Daddy!" Farah waves to me as she kicks a football around the pitch. "Watch!"

She winds up and sends the ball soaring right past her brother, who dives for it way too late, and Gertrude who decidedly does not attempt to intercept the ball.

"Nice shot, Farah." I clap politely. "Close miss, Olly."

"Ii was not." Oliver complains. "I missed it by a mile. Farah, can't you hold back just a bit when playing?"

"It's already two on one." Farah rolls her eyes. "How much more do you want me to hold back?"

"Enough that Gerty doesn't fear the ball?"

Gerty stares at the ball sitting inside the goal. "It's trying to hit me, I know it."

I wince as another heat warning sounds. If this goes on too much longer, I'm going to have to go buy another bag of peas-

"Doll approaching drop." Holly announces, though only I can hear.

I try not to let it show on my face, instead cheering to my kids once more. "C'mon Ollie! Kick it hard!"

Oliver tries to faint between Farah's legs, but she's got the better coordination and manages to kick it out from under him and collect it on the other side before sipping past him and scoring another goal straight past Gerty.

"Doll has grabbed the device. Analyzing frame ID-"

Don't look around. If I look around, I might spook the contact.

But, I really, really just want to know…

"Narrowing down the list of known possible dolls."

"Are those your kids?" My attention is snapped to a person standing in front of me. A young lady, her pale hair straight and cut stylishly, sat down on the bench next to me.

"Hmm? Oh yes."

"They're all adorable, aren't they?" She smiles. "Why, I remember when my sister and I used to play with each other just like that."

"Oh?"

"Yes, though she was murdered a while ago." The lady's smile falters. "I've been looking for her killer for a while now."

I purse my lips. "That's… a shame. I do have to say though, maybe don't lean too hard onto putting revenge as the primary reason for living. It might drive you forward, but it also blinds you to a lot of contexts you might lose."

"Oh, I know. Revenge is a mutually destructive practice, wouldn't you say?"

I agree wholeheartedly.

"Well, I must be going now." She stands up. "Sorry to bother you."

"No problem." I shake my head. "Have a nice evening."

I wait for her to be out of audible range before once more trying to focus on the drop behind me.

"Signature lost." Holly announces.

"Wait, what?"

"We were being blocked for a part of that drop. I suspect someone noticed my EW surveillance and decided to jam it until they can make a clean escape."

"Dammit." I can feel my hand gripping my thigh painfully. "What did we get?"

"One: Drop recipient is a female doll. Two: ID code suggests a common model with combat enhancements. Three: the knowledge that we are likely up against an enemy with solid EW capabilities."

"...I suppose." I stand up, throwing the melted bag of peas into a public trash can. "Okay kids, lets see if we can't even the odds with me around-"

After a crushing defeat at the hands of a nine year old, we all head home. You'd think adding an adult to the losing team would help, but…

I let the kids run around as they want while I cook dinner, all while Holly feeds me information she gathered.

"The frame ID of the doll belongs to a line of customizable kemonomimi dolls." Holly reports. "As they are customized by the end user, it's hard to discern the actual appearance of the fame without access to either the record of the order form, access to the company's database, or a visual confirmation."

"Thanks, Holly. Do I know any dolls that use that frame?"

"Yes. Several dolls that worked with you in Griffin were designed on this platform. IDW, M500, G41, ART-556, P7-"

"Weird that all of those have animal ears."

"That's what Kemonomimi means, Hadwin."

"Oh." I blink. "So, I'm looking for a girl with animal ears?"

"That is correct."

"That should stand out." I drum my fingers on my leg. "You know, none of those dolls are particularly stealthy."

"No, they are not. I estimate that everyone within a one kilometer radius knows where M500 is at any particular moment."

A grin crosses my face involuntarily. "Yeah, yeah. Abby's a nice girl."

"Nice does not preclude being loud."

"No, it certainly doesn't." I taste the soup I'd been making, and… it's alright. "Is that model of doll common?"

"Very. There's an estimated one hundred inside the city right now, making up seven percent of all dolls currently registered in Sector 3. However, very few of them are optioned similarly, so it's highly likely you would be able to locate the doll with even a partial description."

"Okay, good to know." I stir the pot some more while I think. "So, let's first narrow down the dolls I already know with animal ears."

"Of course." Holly brings up several profiles.

"First of all, let's assume it's a Griffin doll."

A bunch of the profiles wink out.

"Next, we can assume whoever it is has social skills."

"I believe all dolls have social skills, Hadwin."

"...Please strike G41 and P7 from that list."

"Understood."

Hmm. A bunch of dolls with ears hover in space in front of me, and I contemplate them all. "IDW and ART are both serious, but also quick to freak out. QJY's too terrified of things she doesn't already know how to do…"

"So, you believe it is M500 then?"

I imagine M500 walking through the streets of Sector 3, waving to everyone and barking at every dog she sees to say hi. "No…"

"Then it's likely a doll not on the current roster."

"You're right." I dump some salt into the soup and taste it again. It… it tastes better, just not good. "How come you were only able to get that much info, by the way? Too far?"

"No. There was a signal jam that happened as soon as the doll reached the bench, an EM burst that completely knocked out your scanning capabilities. Your regular senses were tied up with a passing woman."

"...Sorry about that."

"It is of no consequence."

I decide the soup's done and call up to the kids to bring them down. Once we're all seated, Ollie looks up at me with his perpetually dour expression. "Dad, what's bothering you this time?"

"Hm?" I give him a blank look. "Nothing in particular."

"I bet it's the computer program we found a few days ago." Gerty drinks some of the soup and her face twists. "Why is it so salty?"

"Dad's always adding too much salt." Farah sighs. "Dad, tell us what's bothering you."

"Well…" I hesitate. "I sensed a doll following me recently, and I was trying to figure out if it's anyone I know. I managed to get a scan of her model code-"

"Isn't that an invasion of privacy?" Ollie asks.

"You told me not to access other people's files without permission, daddy!" Gerty pouts.

"W-well, you're both right, it's not something you're supposed to do."

"Daddy…" Farah puts her hand on my arm. "Paranoia is the first step to becoming a wreck."

I'm being reprimanded by my own children. "Yes. In any case, I know that she's got animal ears, but if I think of the dolls I know with ears… Most of them are pretty loud. Whoever this was, she was very quiet."

"Auntie Noelle has ears." Farah points out.

"No she doesn't." Ollie rolls his eyes. "She just styles her hair to look like she has ears."

"She does have a tail though." Gerty sets her spoon aside. "At least, it always looks like it in the photos."

"That's just decoration." Ollie turns to my youngest.

"No…" I get a flashback to when I met Noelle. "That tail's part of her. She can control it."

"Seriously?" Ollie looks at me. "Why?"

"Doll designers are crazy." I swallow a mouthful of soup. "Recall when Gerty accidentally rang Persica?"

"The crazy cat lady?"

"That's the one."

Farah tilts her head. "I always thought that 'crazy cat lady' meant someone with a lot of cats."

"It does, unless it's Persica." I nod. "In any case, Pesica's the woman who created dolls as we know them. Other designers are weirder."

Ollie grimaces.

"In any case, Auntie Noelle used to wrap her tail around my leg whenever she stood next to me-"

Holly appears in front of me, cutting me off. "Mk23, civilian name 'Noelle', is also a candidate. She was based on the same frame as the others."

I give the construct a look. "Then why…?"

"You asked for dolls with animal ears. Mk23 does not have animal ears."

"...Dammit."

"Daddy's talking to the voice in his head again." Gerty remarks.

"Her name's Holly, and you've met her." I respond out loud. "So, it actually might be Noelle. She's pretty quiet when she wants to be."

"Isn't she always wearing bells?" Farah asks.

"Yeah, she's just insanely good at sneaking around and not jingling the bells." I frown. "She really should have been my first pick."

"Do you think we'll get to meet her, dad?" Ollie asks. "I've only ever seen pictures."

"We get to meet one of our Aunties?!" Gerty stands up out of her chair and slaps her hands on the table, whacking her spoon and sending it flying. "When?!"

"Do you think she'll teach me to sneak around like she does?" Farah is also almost vibrating out of her seat. "That's so cool!"

"If… If it's really her, I'll ask her if she can come over." I nod. "First I have to verify that it's actually her and not some random doll I've not met."

Gerty leaps out of her seat and runs up the stairs.

"What's got into her?" I ask Farah, as Ollie also slips from his seat.

"She's getting the laptop you got her for Hanukkah." Farah nods. "She's gonna see if she can find out who it is."

Ollie comes back, Gerty's spoon in hand, and tosses it into the dishwasher. "You know dad, sometimes I think she's your favorite kid."

"That's ridiculous." I shake my head. "I love you all in different ways. None of you are my favorite."

"Then how come she gets a laptop and I get acting lessons?" Ollie squints at me.

"Last year, you said you wanted acting lessons. It's not my fault your method-acting scared them."

He snorts. "It was funny though."

"They called an ambulance."

"I should have gotten an award for how well I pretended to be dead!"

Gerty comes thundering down the stairs, laptop decorated with stickers of cute spiders and witches adorning the back, only to drop the laptop on a clear space at the table and start to smack her small fingers into the keys.

"Hey Gerty?" I ask.

"When did you see her, daddy?" Gerty looks up at me with bright eyes.

"...I think I felt her while we were out playing football." I smile at her. "What are you doing?"

"I'm accessing the security cameras in the area."

I blink. I know Hannah used to say that Sector 3's security is full of holes, but so easy a nine year old could do it? Nah, even I tried a few times, and it's not that easy-"

"Wow, you're already in?" Ollie looks over Gerty's shoulder. "Which camera is it?"

"Umm…" Gerty licks her lips. "It's probably… this one!"

I get up and walk around to see the screen of the laptop is indeed showing some graining security footage. In fact, it's showing the park and the bench that the dead drop is attached to.

The footage rewinds until the four of us appear in frame and then slows down as we play our game of football in reverse, the ball bouncing around in unnatural ways as it speeds toward our feet.

"There!" Gerty points at the smudged screen. "That's Auntie Noelle!"

I look away from the screen to see a girl of about sixteen, a black tail disappearing up into her skirt and swaying slightly as she leans on a stone balustrade much closer to the camera than I had expected her. As the footage continues to reverse, she walks backwards down the stairs and walks up next to the bench, fiddling around with it and chatting with a random stranger before once more backing out of frame.

"She's the one doing the dead drops?" Ollie asks.

"I think- wait, how do you know about that?"

Ollie furrows his brow. "Well, how else do we get photos from mom? We always get them after you go somewhere weird for an hour or two, and then you want us to take more pictures and you always take us somewhere outside soon after that."

"...Right." I look back at the footage. "Well, that confirms it's No-"

Gerty has put the footage back into forward at normal speed, and the woman that had crossed my path catches my eye. She walks up to me right as Noelle swaps the drive, and then she walks past, looking right at the camera for a frame.

Her eyes glow in the way only a doll's do when recorded, the Infrared light they use to see at night showing up as two small, demonic pinpricks on the footage.

"She's creepy." Farah shudders.

A doll was that close to me, and I didn't feel it? My lips suddenly feel dry. "Yes Farah, she is."