The early snowfall and unseasonably cold weather had brought with it layers of thick ice that sheathed everything it touched under a crystalline shell that glistened in the waning daylight. As the clouds built-up with additional snow and threatened to dump every little snowflake down over the city in a massive snowfall, many people prepared for the impending snowstorm by gathering additional supplies and food at their local stores. Fortunately, Hank had already stocked up for the winter and didn't need to join the growing crowds of people in hopes of scraping up one or two useful items before the storm struck. In fact, Hank was so sure that he was prepared for anything that he took advantage of the crowds in the stores to check out a few places that were normally busy during that time of year.

With himself and Cole bundled up from head to toe to protect their bodies from the building cold in the air, and Connor accompanying them with just the wool beanie to cover up the android's glowing L.E.D., Hank took the autonomous van out to a pond that was a popular spot for playing ice hockey, ice skating and even ice fishing. The pond was fairly large in size and not too far away from the city, making it the ideal spot to get away and have some fun out on the ice and away from massive groups of other people.

After parking the van a safe distance from the pond's icy surface Hank proceeded to help Cole lace up his ice skates and walk out onto the ice to learn how to skate and then play ice hockey for the first time. As the two set out onto the ice-covered pond to warm up by skating in small circles, Connor remained beside the van and cybernetically monitored the area for any sign of intrusion or shifts in the weather forecast.

"That's it, find your balance." Hank encouraged Cole to stand up on the skates without needing to hang on to his hand the whole time. The protective father wasn't going to let Cole hands go until his son was ready. "Stand up straight and keep your shoulders back so that you can keep your weight evenly distributed."

"L-Like this?" Cole asked worriedly as he slowly let go of his dad's hands and managed to find his balance after slipping only one time. "I... I think I got it!"

"Good job! Now, try use just one foot to push yourself forward. Kind of like when you're about to ride your bike and you need to get it going to stay balanced."

Cole timidly tried to take a step forward, but he slipped again and would've fallen had Hank not caught his arm and pulled him back upright.

"That's all right, try again."

"I don't want to fall..."

"It's all right to fall. You can get back up and try as many times as it takes to learn." Hank reassured his young son as he helped him balance again. "It took me quite a few tries before I figured it out for myself. I fell too many times to count, but I don't regret learning how to ice skate. You won't either!"

Curiously Connor watched as Hank taught Cole how to skate and found it fascinating to see actual parental guidance and tutelage in process. As an android he never had to learn how to do anything, he either already just know how to do something or he could easily download any information and software necessary to do something new. Too see the actual process of teaching and learning in action was as fascinating as it was engaging to witness.

"That's it, you got it." Hank encouraged his son proudly as he helped Cole to find his confidence and his balance while learning to ice skate. Soon Cole was able to stay upright without needing any of Hank's help and he was even able to skate in a relatively straight line. "That's it! Great job!"

"Am I doing it?"

"You're doing it!" Quickly Hank took off on his own skates and managed to catch up with Cole and join him for a quick lap around the pond. "Let's loop the pond a couple of times, then we'll set up the goals and play some one-on-one."

A small 'crack' echoed from the icy surface of the pond as Hank and Cole skated about the slick surface. Despite the sound being loud enough to resonate through the surrounding trees, it seemed that only Connor had heard the noise. Scanning the surface of the pond from where he stood Connor noticed that there was now an imperfection in the ice near the center of the pond.

"Lieutenant?" Connor addressed Hank as the man skated over to the edge of the pond where he was standing to begin gathering the hockey equipment from the back of the van. "I suspect that the ice isn't nearly as thick or as solid near the center of the pond."

"Seemed fine to me."

"But I've detected a newly developed crack in the surface of the ice."

"Connor, I've skated on this pond for years. I know when the ice is going to hold or not."

Rather than argue with the man Connor proceeded to carefully venture out onto the icy surface of the pond himself to examine the integrity of the slick ice underfoot. It didn't take long for the deviant's thorough scanner to pick up on the source of the sound and the fracture in the ice that was beginning to widen, stretch and spread from where it had originated in the center of the pond. Slowly but steadily Connor watched as the crack grew and began to destabilize the ice with no means of stopping the damage from spreading any further.

"Cole?" Standing perfectly still Connor addressed the little boy as he skated about while completely unaware of the danger that he was currently in. "You should return to the van for a moment."

"Why?" Cole asked innocently as he practiced his newly discovered skill. He was only a few feet away from where Connor was standing and was unknowingly getting closer to the crack. "We haven't played hockey yet!"

"I'm aware, but I fear the ice is going to-" Another loud 'crack', one loud enough to catch Hank's ear and turn his face white with fear, shattered the peace of the area and made Connor react as quickly as possible. "Get back!"

The ice between Connor and Cole suddenly split into wide cracks that caused the duo to slip through the ice and into the freezing water. Connor's preconstruction software kicked in automatically and the deviant knew that if Cole's head went under the water there was a strong chance that he'd inhale the icy cold water and become incredibly ill very fast. Reaching out his arm as fast as possible Connor managed to grab Cole's coat just under the boy's chin, and lift Cole up high as his own body went down beneath the surface of the broken, splitting ice. Connor willing allowed his body to sink down while he fought against gravity and force to keep Cole's head above the water as he regained some sense of control over the situation that'd allow him and Cole to escape the icy water together.

"Cole?!" Hank made a move to run out onto the ice but knew better than to panic or make the ice any more unstable. Thinking quickly Hank pulled off his ice skates and put on his shoes, then proceeded to slowly walk out toward the hole in the ice without causing the cracks to widen or lose his footing. "Hold on, son! Dad's coming!"

Cole was scared, crying and shouting for help even as he reached out his hands and tried to grab hold of the uneven, slippery ice bobbing all around him. With the ice skates tied to his feet Cole was unable to swim properly or even try to gain some form of traction as he scrambled to get out of the water and into the ice. The lack of stability was only causing Cole to panic even more.

Ignoring the burning, stinging pain of the ice water stabbing countless needles into his artificial skin, Connor used his free hand to reach down into the water to untie Cole's skates one at a time, then remove them from the scared boy's feet. As he struggled to protect Cole from the harm of the icy water Connor's vision was being bombarded by dozens of red warnings regarding his dropping core temperature and his Thirium beginning to slow its flow through his lines.

The longer Connor remained physically submerged in the freezing water, the more damage his biocomponents would suffer. His thermal regulator was quickly becoming stressed as it tried to warm his Thirium to keep it flowing as his Thirium itself was beginning to turn to slush and would eventually freeze over entirely. If he suffered internal damage that his own system couldn't heal, then he'd need to see a technician and his very existence would draw unwanted attention toward him and his mission.

"Cole, I'm right here!" Hank managed to kneel on the ice right beside where Cole and Connor had fallen into the water. Stretching out his hands he reached for Cole's arms and tried to pull his son out of the water and into his own arms. "It'll be okay! Don't panic, you're going to be okay."

"I-It's so c-c-cold!" The little boy was turning blue from the cold and his teeth were chattering between his sobs. "C-Can't move!"

"Yes you can!" Refusing to give up or show any fear Hank encouraged his son to keep trying to get out of the water. "Give me your hands!"

Pushing through his own physical discomfort and the brief flashes of the memories from when he had been nearly frozen to death in his own Zen Garden by Amanda herself, Connor managed to push Cole up and higher out of the water into Hank's awaiting hands. The second Connor felt Cole's weight lifting up and away from his grip the deviant grabbed the side of the icy surface opposite of Hank to ensure his added weight didn't cause the ice to break any further, then pulled himself up and over the edge to lay on the broken ice on his back as he caught his breath and processed what had just happened.

"It'll be okay." Hank whispered to Cole as his son shivered in his arms. Moving smoothly and calmly Hank shrugged off his thick, heavy dark coat and laid over the ice, then removed Cole's soaked clothing. After wrapping Cole up in the coat Hank scooped his freezing son up into his arms and then carried him slowly across the frozen pond and toward the van. "Dad'll get ya' warmed up..."

Connor ignored the warnings inside his own mind and vision as he rolled onto his side, then rested on his hands and knees. He could see his artificial skin becoming translucent due to the extreme cold eating through the projected layer, and he knew that he needed to get warmed up just as quickly as Cole. Pushing himself up to his feet, forcing himself to take one shaking step forward, Connor slowly trudge around the opened hole in the pond and managed to get to the edge of the pond just as Hank managed to open the sliding side door of the van.

"It's going to be okay, Cole." Hank promised as he climbed into the back and continued to hold his trembling son in his arms. Reaching up the driver's console Hank put in the coordinates to the nearest hospital and allowed the van to drive itself so he could keep Cole warm in a protective hug against his broad chest. "The doctors will get you warmed up and then you can go home and hide under a quilt with Sumo. I'll make all the hot cocoa you can drink, too!"

Pulling himself into the van as well Connor slid the door shut behind himself and collapsed to the floor of the van as Hank sat in the front passenger seat to ensure that Cole could feel the full blast of the heaters up front. Too tired and too weak to say or do anything, Connor just curled up into a ball on the floor and forced himself to cybernetically connect to the hospital's android receptionist to inform them of Cole's imminent arrival and reason for his impending admission.

As his own system went into overdrive to try to warm up his Thirium from the inside out, Connor looked up at Hank as he held Cole in his arms and hoped that the man would be able to get Cole to the hospital before illness set in. Losing out to low power mode and emergency stasis taking over, Connor closed his eyes slowly and became lost in a world of dark iciness that enveloped him within seconds and seemed to last for all eternity.

What felt like days had passed when it reality it was only nine hours when Connor was awoken by the van door sliding open beside him again. It took his system several seconds as opposed to milliseconds to run a self-diagnostic and allow Connor to fully awaken from his emergency stasis mode and regain some form of ambulatory and conscious function.

...SELF-DIAGNOSTIC ENGAGED:

...LOADING INFORMATION:

REGISTERED NAME: "Connor"

MODEL: RK-800

SERIAL NUMBER: 313 248 317 - 01

ACTIVATION DATE: October 10th, 2035

HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 6' 00.24"; 162.2 lbs

COMPLEXION: Caucasian

AESTHETIC GENDER: Male

HAIR/EYES: Brunette; Brown

ASSIGNMENT: PROTECT HANK ANDERSON; PROTECT COLE ANDERSON

ASSOCIATION(S): NONE

BOOTING PROCESSORS...

LOADING OS...

SYSTEM INITIALIZATION...

-CHECKING BIOCOMPONENTS... ERROR]

-CHECKING BIOSENSORS... ERROR]

-CHECKING AI ENGINE... OK]

-MEMORY STATUS... OK]

READY...

[...Thirium Volume - 74%]

[...Thirium Pressure - 110/80]

[...Thirium Pump Rate - 32 B.P.M.]

[...Ventilation Rate - 04 V.P.M.]

[...Core Temperature - 94.3 Degrees Fahrenheit]

WARNING:

-STRESS TO THERMAL REGULATOR - t8001: 79.4% Functionality]

-LOW POWER MODE ACTIVATED:

[...Visual Processors - Active 50%]

[...Auditory Processors - Active 50%]

[...Physical Perception Sensors - Active 50%]

[...Seek Immediate Technical Assistance]

-SYSTEM READY... OK]

As he opened his eyes Connor felt small ice crystals crumbling on his eyelashes as he moved his eyelids until they were fully open. His visual processors, while functional, were depicting the world in black and white due to having half of their usual full power being supplied due to still being in low power mode. As he lifted his head Connor heard more ice crystals crumbling and falling from his beanie and his clothing, then heard two muffled voices speaking from the front seats. Blinking twice the ice cold deviant saw that it was Hank speaking to Cole, and he could see just enough to confirm that Cole was faring better than he feared after the little boy fell into the freezing pond.

Laying his head back down Connor remained motionless, save for his body shivering to stimulate his Thirium to keep it from freezing in his lines, and tried to rest as the van drove itself back to the house. There was nothing more to be done and Hank was entirely in control over the bizarre situation at hand.

Hank had no idea that Connor was semi-conscious or had even been affected the extreme cold. He was entirely focused on Cole and didn't even think to check on the very android who had undoubtedly saved Cole's life yet again that fateful day. For the third time in Cole's young life, he had been spared death by the actions of one android who just happened to be in the right place at the right time.

"The doctors said you're going to be fine, son." Hank promised as he kept his large, dark coat wrapped all around his son's small body. "You're going to be on a simple antibiotic for a week to make sure you don't develop pneumonia just in case you got some water in your body. You're also staying home from school for the next two days so I can keep an eye on ya'."

Cole nodded a few times and wiped his cold nose against the warm sleeve of his dad's coat. "Are you mad?"

"Mad? Why in the world would I be mad?"

"...'Cuz I fell in the pond."

"That was an accident."

Shaking his head a little Cole told his dad something he thought was surely going to get him in trouble. "Connor told me to get away but I didn't do it. He fell in the pond too because I didn't listen."

"Oh, that's why. Actually, son, if anyone should be mad it should be you." Glancing over his shoulder Hank looked at Connor laying on the floor of the van and didn't even bother to check to see if the android was even active. "Connor told me that it found a crack in the ice, but I didn't listen. I thought the ice was safe to walk on, and clearly I was wrong. I was wrong in the worst way possible."

"Is Connor mad?"

"No, son. Connor isn't mad. At least, it's not mad at you."

"He... isn't saying anything."

"Connor's just sleeping." Hank lied quickly since he really had no idea as to why Connor was so quiet and motionless. He didn't even care that the android had been submerged in the freezing water and then left to lay alone in the van in the freezing weather for over nine hours while Cole was checked out at the hospital. "After we're settled in at the house it'll wake up."

"...I lost my skates."

"Your skates can be replaced with a quick trip to the store." The compassionate father explained as he adjusted the heat in the van to help his son feel warmer. "But you can never be replaced by anything or anyone. Besides, you were going to outgrow those skates in a few months anyway."

"Can we play hockey in the backyard instead?"

"Sure we can. We'll wait until you're off the antibiotics and then play hockey for as long as you like."

The van reached the house and pulled into the driveway beside the Oldsmobile with a smooth motion. After turning off the vehicle's engine Hank picked up Cole again to carry his son inside the house and right into the little boy's bedroom to bundle him up under his quilt and extra blankets to ensure that Cole kept warm throughout the night. The last thing Hank wanted was to see Cole suffering from any illness after such an upsetting experience that was supposed to be a fun day.

While in the hospital Cole was checked over by the doctors and given a warm bath to stave off hypothermia. The little boy was also given some warm soup and hot chocolate to ensure he was plenty warm inside and out, then given another exam before being prescribed the antibiotics and checked out of the hospital for the night. With only some hospital scrubs, slippers and Hank's coat to keep him warm during the drive back to the house, Cole was eager to get into his warmest pajamas and hide under a quilt with Sumo laying over his legs in a protective and comforting manner.

"Feel better?" Hank asked as he made sure Cole was tucked in nice and snug. "Want more blankets?"

"No, I'm okay."

"Okay."

"Is Connor okay?"

"I'll go and find out." Patting the foot of Cole's bed Hank called out to Sumo and invited the large dog into the bedroom to keep Cole some company. "Come on, boy! We need you and your fur!"

Sumo happily plodded into the bedroom and hopped up onto the bed as requested. The lovable dog was a breed that specialized in aiding in extreme cold situations, and he seemed to instantly pick up on Cole needing to be kept warm and watched over for the next few days.

"Good boy. I'll go check on Connor really quick, stay here." Hank ruffled Cole's hair for a moment then stepped out of the room. "I'll be right back!"

Moving quickly Hank made his way back through the house and out the front door to the van in the driveway. Peering at Connor in the back of the van Hank saw that the android had ice all over him and that he was barely moving. If he had found Connor laying on the street in such a condition the detective would've sworn that he had stumbled across a college student who had frozen to death.

"Shit, I didn't think the cold would... All right, fuck it. I'll get you warmed up too."

Hank grabbed Connor's arm and tried to sit the shivering android upright, but he couldn't get the arm to move. It was like the joint was frozen and holding Connor's arm firmly in place.

"Damn it. I didn't think androids would literally lock up from the cold."

Altering his plans for a moment Hank slipped his arms beneath Connor's knees and around his middle back to lift the android up and out of the van. Sliding the van door shut casually Hank carried Connor inside the house and stared at the couch while he closed the door behind himself with his foot. He didn't want to just put Connor out in the cold garage and just assume he'd recover on his own, but Hank just didn't know what else to do since he had no idea how to treat a thermally compromised android.

"Shit! It's like I'm carrying a block of ice!" Hank swore as he tried to think on his feet. "Okay, let's get you some warm clothes too."

Gently Hank laid Connor down on the couch then made his way down the hallway. After rummaging through his closet for a moment Hank found some old sweatpants and a thick hoodie that would be much more effective than the icy clothes that Connor had been wearing for hours after the incident. Just as he passed by Cole's bedroom door Hank heard Cole sneeze and stopped mid stride. As a parent he immediately knew the difference between his son having a small tickle causing a sneeze and a building cold causing a sneeze, and he knew that Cole was suffering from the latter.

"All right, new plan." Entering his son's bedroom Hank pressed his palm to Cole's forehead for a quick fever check. There was only the faintest hint of a fever beginning to build on the little boy's brow. "I'm going to get the bed in the couch made-up so you can sleep in the livingroom right by the warm fireplace. I'm also going to get the heating pad so you can stay extra warm all night."

Cole sneezed again and wiped his nose on his sleeve before sniffling. "Is Connor okay?"

"You're sitting in bed all sick and tired, but you're still worried about Connor?" Proud of his son's empathetic behavior Hank smirked and decided to humor his ill boy by letting him see Connor in a few minutes. "Well, I'll let you see how it's doing for yourself after I get the bed made-up. Be patient with me, you'll be feeling better in no time."

Returning to the livingroom Hank peered over the couch to check on Connor again, only to discover that the frozen android wasn't on the couch anymore. The deviant detective was laying on the floor and trembling violently as he tried to silence a few deep coughs of his own.

"What the hell is this?" The senior detective dropped the clothing down onto the back of the couch then knelt in front of Connor. Putting his hands on Connor's shoulders Hank pushed Connor upright to sit on the floor so he could get a good look at Connor's face. "How'd you get on the damn floor?"

Connor opened his eyes, his vision still in grayscale, and gave Hank a timid glance. "...T-Tried to g-get to the garage."

"Why?"

"It's wh-where I... belong."

Hank wanted to call the android an idiot for trying to force himself to get up and move around while clearly suffering from extreme damage to the cold, but instead he chose to help the android since he didn't want Cole to keep worrying about Connor while he was sick. Hefting Connor back up to his feet Hank had to practically drag Connor at his side to get down the hallway and into the bathroom. The android couldn't fully straighten his legs because his joints were still frozen, and as a result he could barely take any steps forward on his own.

"Wh-What... are you d-doing?" Connor asked as he was essentially muscled into the bathroom and placed down inside the bathtub. "I-I'm okay."

"No you're not, shut up." Hank practically barked as he turned on the tub's faucet and pulled up the stopper in the drain. Stepping back out of the bathroom Hank raised his voice to keep speaking with Connor even while in another room. "You're freezing. Stay there and let the water warm you up."

Even if he had the strength to get up and move around on his own Connor had to admit that he wouldn't have done it. As the warm water filled the tub Connor felt the joints in his legs begin to loosen. The slushy Thirium in his lines was beginning to thaw flow more freely throughout his entire body. Connor managed to stretch out his legs to their fullest length in the tub and he leaned back to pressed against the back of the tub to support his weakened body.

"You can wear these for now." Hank stated as he returned to the bathroom and placed down the clothes he had initially picked out for Connor onto the sink. Reaching toward Connor's head Hank snatched the icy beanie from Connor's hair and tossed it aside, revealing the slow pulsing yellow L.E.D. beneath. "Make sure you get all the pond water off so you don't stink."

Lifting up his hand from the now hip-deep water Connor placed his warming palm down on his icy hair and felt the remaining ice crystals melting away. As his body warmed up more of his senses regained power and came back online. It felt good to actually feel something again, but with that returned flow of Thirium and motion came an aggravating cough that rattled through his dual ventilation biocomponents - his lungs.

As he coughed Connor broke up additional slushy Thirium in his lungs and found it slightly easier to breathe, albeit with a mild wheeze and painful motion.

"Sounds bad." The senior detective observed as he watched Connor using his hands to now cup the water and rinse it through his hair to rid himself of lingering pond stench and ice crystals. "Why do androids need to cough?"

"S-Same as humans." Connor replied sharply as he watched Hank turn off the faucet and let the warm water surround his body. "We n-need to rid d-debris and congestion f-from our l-lungs. That's our v-ventilation system."

"Does it need to sound so gross?"

"...Yes?"

"Well, try to keep it down. I'm going to take care of Cole, you stay in there until you thaw out."

Silently Connor nodded and resumed rinsing off and letting his body slowly warm up. Once he was able to fully move his arms Connor proceeded to remove his gray blazer and unbutton his white dress shirt to rid himself of the dirty clothing. With the layer of clothing removed Connor's paled and still slightly translucent artificial skin was all the more prominent and painful just to look at.

Hank returned to the bathroom again and gave Connor a stern order. "When you're dried off and in those new clothes, go to the livingroom. You're not going to stay in the garage tonight."

"...I'm not?"

"No. It's too cold for you. I'll have to insulate the garage next week so you don't turn into a weird mecha-popsicle overnight."

Connor wasn't sure if he should've thanked Hank or not for letting Connor remain in the house to warm up and recover. It seemed like such a basic and normal thing to let someone sleep on a couch rather than be crammed in the garage like storage, but Connor was still seen as a machine and not a living being despite all of his strange emotional responses and ability to think and act on his own being noticed on a regular basis.

After awkwardly removing his pond soaked, then frozen and now thawed boots, socks and jeans, Connor let himself soak in the warm water for a few more precious minutes before reaching for a towel hanging from the towel rack right beside the tub. Standing up slowly Connor used the towel to cover himself from the waist down then sat on the floor beside the tub. His body was much warmer, but he was still too weak to move around much on his own.

"This f-feels very undignified." Connor lamented as he looked at himself and felt a strange sense of embarrassment. He had done everything correctly to save Cole's life, but he was still left suffering from potent ill effects courtesy of the extreme environment, and he was mostly nude and shivering from the cold. "H-How c-could I allow myself to f-fall through the ice when I already kn-knew of the danger?"

"You were focused on Cole." Hank responded as he appeared in the opened bathroom doorway with Cole wrapped up in a blanket in his arms. Cole was peering over the blanket at Connor and giving the android a sheepish smile. "That's how it should've been."

Connor grabbed additional towel to wrap around his outstretched legs and drape around his shoulders to warm up a little faster without using the bath water. "I suppose that's true enough." Coughing again Connor pressed the towel over his mouth and took in a deep breath. "I-I'm just relieved that Cole is okay."

"Get dressed. We'll be in the livingroom."

"R-Right behind you."

It took Connor only a few minutes to finish drying off, but it took a while longer for him to get dressed in the dry and warm clothes. He couldn't bear to ask for Hank's help with the simple matter and he pushed himself to finish with the simple task despite his limbs not being fully cooperative with his attempts to get dressed. After he finally managed to slip on the thick sweatshirt and sweatpants Connor was able to get up to his feet and lean against the sink to regain his balance before trudging out to the livingroom.

Hank had pulled the bed out of the couch and laid down the large heating pad over the surface. After he placed Cole down atop the heating pad and wrapped him up in a thick quilt, Hank had gone into the kitchen to make Cole some fresh hot chocolate to sip on during the night. Only when he returned to the livingroom with the mug of hot chocolate did Hank notice that Connor had finally made it to the livingroom as instructed.

"Took you long enough." The stubborn man huffed as he passed Cole his mug of hot chocolate. "Clothes seem to fit you all right. Lay down on the couch alongside Cole. There's a heating pad on the bed that'll keep you both warm."

The deviant android dragged his feet as he made his way around the couch and pulled his heavy body onto the pulled out mattress. The warmth of the heating pad seeped through all of Connor's body and helped the lingering weight and pain of his joints fade away. It felt much better to lay on the bed and get off the cold, damp bathroom floor.

"There. You two will sleep here tonight so I don't have to worry about Cole getting cold in the night and an android freezing up in the garage." Throwing another quilt over both Cole and Connor as they laid over the couch Hank sighed then patted the foot of the bed. "Come on, Sumo! In here!"

The large dog grumbled as he plodded into the livingroom and hopped up onto the bed. The loyal Saint Bernard remained closer to Cole than Connor since he knew that the little boy needed more support than Connor did in that moment.

"Good boy." Hank rubbed Sumo's ears for a moment then pressed his palm to Cole's forehead once more. He detected the faint fever developing and knew that Cole was going to be dealing with a nasty cold for the next few days. "Cole, does your head hurt?"

"No." The little boy replied in a low voice as he tentatively sipped at his hot drink. "I'm just tired."

"Yeah, you had a very eventful day today." Sympathizing with his son's current complaint Hank sat down beside Cole on the bed and adjusted the temperature of the heating pad to make sure Cole would be kept warm but not too hot while running a fever. "Did that soup at the hospital work for dinner? I could make you something real quick if you're still hungry."

"I'm not hungry."

"Stomach upset?"

Cole just shrugged since he couldn't' really explain why he was feeling bad in a way that made sense to a first grader. Coughing into his hands Cole and let out a small moan as if the very motion of breathing and coughing made him feel even worse.

"Try to get some sleep for now." With a gentle motion Hank took the mostly empty mug from Cole's hands and then guided his son back until Cole was laying flat on his back with his head resting against a thick pillow. "I'm going to be sleeping in the recliner right beside you, so if you need anything just let me know."

Connor looked over at Cole beside him and attempted to run a biometric scan but failed to use the advanced and complicated software due to his active low power mode. He'd be unable to deduce exactly why Cole was feeling so ill and weak in that moment until his software returned to full functionality. Laying down as well Connor chose to enter a light rest mode to ensure that he too could monitor Cole's condition as the little boy slept. He didn't want anything bad to happen to Cole and he didn't want to see Hank struggle with heartbreak for the remainder of his life if Cole's condition suddenly turned to an absolute worst.

"You know something? When I was a little boy and I was sick, my mom and my dad would read to me so I could fall asleep and feel better at the same time. How about it?" Speaking softly Hank tried to get Cole to humor him by saying yes to a good book. "Think you could put up with me reading out loud for a few minutes?"

Cole just nodded as he curled up on his side into a ball and snuggled down under his quilt and up against his pillow.

"Okay. Just lay back and I'll go find a good book from the shelf and help you fall asleep."

Still feeling slightly chilled Connor also curled up on his side, his back facing Cole's back, and stared at the armrest of the couch beside him. He was feeling exhausted as his system tempted him with rest mode, but he refused to fall asleep until Cole had fallen asleep first. As he listened to Hank rummaging through his bookcase and humming softly to himself a few feet away, Connor felt Cole shifting his weight and knew that the little boy was struggling to get comfortable.

"...Connor?"

Turning his head slightly Connor looked at Cole over his shoulder and saw that the first grader had done the same so they could look each other in the eyes. "Yes, Cole?"

"...Are you mad?"

"No, I'm not mad. Why do you ask?"

"Your light is red."

"Only because I'm also feeling cold and as if I'm... becoming ill." Rolling onto his opposite side Connor faced Cole directly and hid his right temple against the mattress beneath him. He didn't have his own pillow to rest against, but he didn't mind. "I'm not angry in any way."

"I'm sorry I didn't listen to you."

"It's not your fault." While he tried to help Cole feel better about what had happened earlier that day Connor didn't notice Hank turning to his own head to listen in more directly to the discussion being had. "I knew of the danger but I failed to get away from the crack in the ice before it-" Coughing suddenly Connor covered his nose and mouth with the bend of his arm out of sheer politeness then continued with his statement. "...I failed to get away before the crack caused the ice to give way."

"You got me out of the water." Cole continued as he mentally recounted the day's risky events. "How come?"

Such an innocent question caused Connor's brows to knit with confusion. "Do you mean why did I help you get out of the water before I got myself out of the water?"

Cole just nodded as he curled up even tighter around himself and soon had Sumo crawling up to lay over his legs protectively.

"I knew that I could get myself out of the water whenever I wanted to do so." It was a lie, but it was believable since he was a strong and agile android. Connor knew that he could easily sink, drown or succumb to hypothermia just like any other human had he panicked while trapped in the water. "But you were unable to gain your footing because you were wearing your ice skates. It made more sense to help you get out of the water first, then get myself out of the water second."

Hank could tell that Connor was lying about the situation since he knew from experience that when your life is in peril the 'fight or flight' instinct kicks in, and a person will fight for their life first and foremost every time. For someone to make a conscious decision to help someone else during a life or death situation before helping themself means that the person either has a very strong sense of will or cares very much for the other person in immediate danger.

At that moment Hank couldn't decide if Connor chose to help Cole out of a sense of freewill or because he cared about Cole. He also didn't care since in the end Cole survived and Connor was seemingly recovering from the incident as well.

"Okay, I got the perfect book." Hank decided as he pulled the old, paperback book from the top of the bookcase and carried it with him as he returned to Cole's side of the bed and sat down beside his son. The protective father put his hand on Cole's shoulder to encourage him to roll back over to face him while he read. "This is something I read when I was in the third grade and loved it from page one. 'James and the Giant Peach'."

Connor remained where he laid and decided to close his eyes to get some rest while listening to the story alongside Cole. He didn't really have any interest in the aged, dog-eared book, he just wanted to focus on something beyond the error reports in his eyes reminding him of his current condition and the recovery period that was going to follow after his self-healing program prioritized his damaged biocomponents accordingly.

Hearing Hank's voice speaking in a low but audible tone as he read out loud was oddly comforting and allowed Connor to enter his rest mode without needing to worry about anything else happening around him. He'd be able to rest, keep tabs on Cole and know that if something happened and his system failed to awaken him that Hank would be right there to save the day.

"...Goodnight, Cole." Connor whispered as he let his body relax and begin a proper healing process. "I'm glad you're okay."

The peaceful night didn't last beyond dawn the following morning. Not only had Cole spiked a notable fever and developed a nasty headache and cough, but he ended up with a very upset stomach and had spent most of the morning throwing up in the bathroom with Hank hovering over him and rubbing his back gently. As expected, Hank had immediately called off from work to take care of Cole and proceeded to do everything in his power to help Cole feel even the slightest bit better after throwing up and enduring one monster of a headache. The only thing that Hank could do was give Cole some children's medication and encourage him to drink water to remain hydrated while hoping the medicine kicked-in as soon as possible to ease his symptoms.

To make things all the more complicated, Connor hadn't fared much better during the night and had developed a chronic cough that made it difficult for him to ventilate his system properly. The deviant elected to turn off his ventilation program to stop the coughing fits for Cole's peace and quiet while his head was throbbing from a tremendous headache. In return, Connor's core temperature began to steadily rise and the deviant detective was suffering from his own type of fever.

"You're both not having much fun this winter, huh?" Hank teased playfully as he carried Cole back into the livingroom and laid his son down on the pulled out bed to get some more rest. After doing a fever check with Cole the man instinctively did the same for Connor but didn't expect to actually find two fevers under his palms. "Wait, how come you're BOTH running hot right now?"

Connor opened his glassy eyes and hoped the red glare of his L.E.D. didn't disturb anyone as it flickered in a rhythmic beat synchronized with his own heartbeat. "...I am overheating. I do not actually have a fever."

"Well, fix it." The man ignorantly ordered as he combed his fingers through Cole's sweaty hair. He didn't want to worry about a glitching android while he was trying to take care of his sick son. "I don't have time to call in a technician."

"Don't do that." Connor worriedly requested as he sat upright on the bed and then froze as the motion caused his head to momentarily swim. As he pressed his palm to the side of his head in an effort to keep the room still, Connor tried to explain his reasoning to Hank. "P-Please. A technician isn't necessary, I'll be able to recover on my own."

"You better be right about that." Focusing on Cole again Hank decided to make his son some hot soup. "All right, bud. I'm going to make you some of your mom's world famous chicken soup, then I'm going to keep reading to you. That peach has to be half to New York by now, and I know you want to know how it ends."

Cole just nodded as Hank walked into the kitchen to make him some lunch. The little boy really didn't feel good and didn't want to eat anything since his stomach was bothering him so much.

"You should keep drinking water." Connor encouraged in a whisper as he saw how miserable the little boy looked and was behaving. "It'll make your stomach feel better."

Too tired to respond verbally Cole just shook his head and buried his face against his pillow.

Wanting to give Cole a good example Connor forced himself to get up from the bed and walk into the kitchen in search of Thirium for himself. If he drank some Thirium and made it appear as if he was feeling better, then perhaps Cole would emulate the behavior and drink some water. As the sick android reached for one of his bottles of Thirium in the cupboard above the sink Connor felt his head swim again as the simple motion struck him with raw dizziness.

Hank had been preparing ingredients for the soup on the countertop beside the stovetop and noticed Connor seemingly freeze in place. If he couldn't see the red flicker of the android's L.E.D. Hank would've sworn that Connor had fully broken down.

"Now what's wrong with you?"

"...S-Syncope." Connor replied honestly as he closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. The single breath caused him to cough again and double-over quickly. "I-It's fine. I'm okay."

Just as Hank was about to reprimand Connor for making a loud noise and being fairly gross by coughing without covering his mouth, the man spotted small droplets of blue blood on Connor's lips and he too froze. He hadn't expected to see the android coughing up blood.

"Are you sure about that?" Lowering his voice Hank knelt beside Connor and grabbed the android's bicep to pull him back up to his feet. "Sit at the table for a minute."

The way Hank was suddenly being compassionate toward him and even showing genuine concern made Connor double-check his current core temperature to ensure that he wasn't hallucinating or experiencing a glitch due to extreme overheating. That thought and reaction made Connor quite sad to contemplate since he knew that it wasn't anything personal, just Hank reacting to android as he normally did.

"How come you're coughing up, uh, stuff." Hank wanted to censor himself just in case Cole could hear them speaking. "I thought you said you guys only coughed to get rid of junk in your system, not... that."

"M-My smaller Thirium lines... h-have ruptured." Connor explained as Hank retrieved the bottle of Thirium for him and placed it down on the table. "The ex-extreme cold caused my Thirium to fr-freeze in my body, and that c-caused small crystals to form."

"The crystals cut through your lines when you warmed up and your Thirium started to flow again. Right?"

"That's right." The fact that Hank fully understood what was happening was a little surprising. The man seemed to know more about androids than he was willing to let on. "The internal leaks are m-minor. They'll heal on their own."

"How much more are you going to cough up?"

"Unknown."

"Well, try to not do that in front of Cole. I mean, I can't blame you for having a cough and all that jazz, but since you are coughing up, you know, it might scare him."

"I will refrain from ventilating in Cole's presence."

Whether or not Connor meant the honest comment to sting didn't matter. Hank did feel guilty for telling the android to not breathe because it was an inconvenience.

Connor opened the bottle of Thirium and slowly sipped at the vital elixir to replace the blue blood that he had lost. "...Do you require assistance with cooking?"

"No, I got this. Just, uh, take these over to Cole to drink." Opening the refrigerator Hank pulled out a small box of apple juice and then a bottle of water. "He might be more receptive to the juice than the water. As long as drinks something I'll be happy."

Returning to his feet Connor picked up the two drinks and carried his Thirium with him as he trudged into the livingroom. He could see that Cole was still awake and looked pale, sweaty and utterly miserable where he was laying. It was enough to make Connor's heart ache with sympathy for how fatigued and helpless Cole looked.

"Your dad asked me to bring you some juice and some water." Connor explained as he placed the two drinks down next to Cole to see for himself. The two drinks were self-contained and wouldn't need to worry about spilling. "I'm going to continue to drink my Thirium. It's easing my own stomach discomfort."

From the kitchen Hank discreetly peered over his shoulder and watched as Connor managed to coax Cole into at least drinking the juice and keeping somewhat hydrated while ill. He hoped that Cole would go for the water, but he was confident that Cole would notice his stomach felt better and would choose to drink the water next.

"Good work. I wonder how Connor knew to do that?"

Sumo, who had been napping on his pillow in the corner of the livingroom, caught the scent of the chicken now simmering in the frying pan and needed to investigate the enticing aroma. As he plodded into the kitchen and sat beside Hank's leg, the large dog wagged his tail and hoped to charm some scraps from his master.

"Then again, I wonder how an android can look and act sick after falling in a freezing pond."

Hank continued to think out loud and as he cooked the chicken and cut up a few vegetables to simmer in the pot of warm broth. Dropping Sumo a small piece of chicken since the large dog stayed with Cole all night long, and then continued to focus on his cooking while contemplating Connor's unique behavior and interactions.

"I think Connor is a far stranger android than I could've ever imagined. That better be a feature and not a bug!"

It had taken the entire afternoon for Cole to finish a single small bowl of soup and keep it down long enough to soothe his stomach. In between bouts of vomiting he'd cough hard enough to gasp and nearly choke on his own breath, and Hank kept a brave face as he held Cole in his arms and against his chest to keep him warm and feeling supported. Ignoring his own symptoms and discomfort in the form of his ongoing overheating due to his thermal regulator still being stressed from struggling against the extreme cold water and cold air that had engulfed him for over nine hours just the day before, Connor watched as Hank doted on Cole and did everything in his power to make his son feel better.

The little boy was drifting in and out of sleep as his coughing caused him to wake up and lose what little rest he had gained. Just as Cole seemed to be on the verge of losing what breath he had left in his little lungs, Connor's biometric scanner kicked-on and picked up on something worryingly important. Unknown to both Hank and Cole, Cole was having an asthma attack and needed some albuterol to recover.

Connor had reacted to the information quickly and cybernetically tapped into Cole's medical records as an infant and toddler. There was a single confirmed asthma attack on Cole's record, and a confirmed diagnosis of having mild asthma that wouldn't require a traditional inhaler to control unless Cole's breathing was under extreme stress. To the deviant's eyes, what he was witnessing was indeed extreme stress.

"It's okay, Cole." Hank held his son on his lap and gave Cole a strong, supportive hug while Cole leaned against his shoulder and continued to cough. There was a noted wheezing sound between Cole's breaths that sent chills up Hank's spine. "Take in deep, slow breaths. In and out..."

Discreetly Connor rose to his feet and staggered to the front door of the house. Pressing his palm against the wall beside the door Connor braced his shaking body up and against the surface as he waited for something to arrive at the door. After just a few more minutes a delivery drone appeared and dropped off a package while cybernetically informing Connor of the successful delivery.

Connor had to force himself to focus long enough to open the door and retrieve the package, then return to the bed where Hank was sitting with Cole in his arms. Opening the package Connor revealed a freshly and legally prescribed inhaler in Cole's name in his hand.

"U-Use this." Connor encouraged as he passed the medication over to Hank to take. "I... t-took the liberty of renewing a prescription for Cole. My scans confirmed his condition with his p-pediatrician, and she supplied the prescription for immediate f-fill and pick-up."

Hank quickly took the inhaler and gave it a few good shakes before removing the cap over the end of the nozzle. "Cole? This will help you to breathe."

"H-He'll... feel better soon." Falling to his side over the bed Connor felt his entire body become overwhelmed by his own condition and struggled just to remain conscious. "It'll... It'll ease h-his breathing."

The determined father ignored Connor and readjusted Cole so that his son was sitting on his lap and facing the open livingroom. "I'm going to put this in your mouth. When I tell you to breathe out, let out all your breath and then breathe in the medicine once I push down on the pump. It won't hurt you at all. Ready?"

Cole barely nodded as he groggily cooperated with his dad's request.

"All right, here we go." Hank placed the nozzle in Cole's mouth and prepared to administer the medicine. "Breathe out."

Despite being very tired Cole managed to do as his dad said and let out his breath and was able to breathe in a dose of the inhaler. After a few more coughs Cole was able to take in a deeper breath and breathe notably easier.

"There we go, much better." Hank hoped Cole hadn't noticed his hands shaking as he capped the inhaler and put it down on the coffee table. "Lean against me and just catch your breath. You'll be asleep in a few minutes."

Cole didn't even try to fight off sleep as he leaned against Hank's shoulder again and felt his airways opening. Closing his eyes Cole took in deeper breaths and stopped coughing at long last after his asthma attack had passed.

"Connor?" Whispering at the deviant android beside him Hank saw Connor fighting to keep his own eyes open as Cole fell asleep and finally got some rest. "Thanks. I mean it. I didn't even think to ask the doctor about his past asthma problems. He was supposed to outgrow it before he started kindergarten."

The deviant looked up at Hank and gave him a small nod before laying his head down and closing his eyes at last. Connor felt too rundown to stay awake and he was convinced that Cole was going to be just fine after having his unexpected asthma attack properly treated. The last thing Connor registered before losing out to sleep was the red warning in his visual processors confirming his weakened condition.

WARNING:

-STRESS TO THERMAL REGULATOR - t8001: ^89.7% Functionality]

-LOW POWER MODE ACTIVATED:

[...Visual Processors - Active ^85%]

[...Auditory Processors - Active ^85%]

[...Physical Perception Sensors - Active ^85%]

WARNING:

-CORE TEMPERATURE ELEVATED: ^103.4 Degrees Fahrenheit]

[...Take Immediate Cooling Measures]

[...Seek Immediate Technical Assistance]

-EMERGENCY REST MODE ACTIVATED: 00:00:02

-SYSTEM READY... STANDBY]

Unsure of how much time had passed Connor suddenly found himself feeling far better than he had before losing consciousness. As his eyes cracked open Connor noticed that he was now laying on his back with a pillow under his head and had a cool washcloth over his forehead. Glancing about the livingroom Connor then noticed Cole laying right next to him with Sumo curled up against his legs. Cole was buried under a thick quilt and seemed to be sleeping well with no breathing distress whatsoever as he remained curled up on his side.

A strong hand suddenly pressed against the washcloth against Connor's forehead and drew his gaze upward. Seeing Hank looking down at him with genuine worry in his blue eyes was strange yet familiar to the ill and confused deviant.

"You okay?" Hank asked in a whisper as he watched Cole to make sure his son wasn't disturbed. "You sort of passed out a while ago and just... didn't move."

"My system overheated." Connor replied honestly as he tried to figure out what he had missed while he was unconscious. His core temperature had decreased to one-hundred and one degrees after he had entered emergency rest mode and had the cool washcloth placed on his brow. "H-How long was I in rest mode?"

"Six hours. I decided to take Cole back to the doctor to make sure he didn't need a new medication after his asthma attack, and I gave you a cold washcloth before we left." As he spoke Hank pulled back his hand from Connor's forehead and proceeded to rub his palm along Cole's back. "He doesn't have pneumonia, but he does have a nasty flu. The docs said that the infection is aggravating his asthma and that getting him a new inhaler was the right course of action. How'd you know he even had asthma?"

"I... used my skills and advanced software to access Cole's medical records." Connor hated how intrusive and immoral he sounded as he told Hank the truth. "I have access to the city's personal databases and records through the precinct."

"So you used my file to cross reference anything to do with my family, namely Cole, and checked through his medical history." The man wanted to be livid with the invasion of privacy, but he couldn't do it. He couldn't be upset with Connor for finding a way to help Cole when he was barely able to breathe. "Do not EVER do that again. Not to Cole, not to me, not to ANYONE who's connected to me. Do you understand?"

"...Yes, Lieutenant." The authority in Hank's voice was enough to intimidate even the most hardened of criminals. "I understand."

"Good." Quiet for a moment Hank looked down at Cole with exhausted eyes and tried to think of what else he could do to help his son feel better. The only thing that came to mind was spending time with Cole, reading to him and letting his son sleep as much as possible. "How's your own fever... thing? Are you still overheating?"

"Yes, but my temperature has dropped from a critical range to merely elevated." Sitting upright on the bed Connor managed to move without disturbing Cole in the process. Lowering the cool cloth from his forehead Connor decided it'd be best to stay out of Hank's sight for the remainder of the night. "I'll go and lay down on my cot now. The coolness within the garage will allow me to return to my normal temperature while in rest mode without any further assistance."

"Yeah, sure. Do what you gotta' do."

Trying his best to hold his head high, Connor passed by the couch and managed to reach the kitchen before he stopped to tell Hank one last thing. "Please let Cole know that I'm feeling better, and that I want him to feel better too."

Hank just turned to look at Connor and gave him a silent nod of affirmation. Knowing that Connor did indeed care about Cole - actually cared as opposed to just obeying an order to watch over the boy - was enough to quell Hank's previous anger and let it go. While Hank was still wary of the android and its quirky behavior, he knew that deep down inside that Connor would never hurt Cole and that it was safe to let his son spend time with the android.

"Feel better soon, son."

Whispering to Cole as he continued to rub the sleeping boy's back, Hank just sighed and hoped that he'd see Cole's smiling face by morning. He loathed seeing anyone in pain or ill, but when it was his own child it was utterly heartbreaking.

"I'll stay up with you and make sure you're okay. I'd hate for you to get sick again without someone here to help you."

Connor had practically dragged his feet as he retreated to the garage for the remainder of his own perceived illness. He was content that Cole would be all right now that he had a brand new inhaler and had Hank undoubtedly hovering even closer to him while he endured his flu. Knowing that his presence would just cause Hank stress, especially if he started coughing again, Connor decided it'd be best to keep his distance and suffer in silence in the seclusion of the garage.

From within the kitchen Sumo looked up from his bowl of food and wagged his tail as Connor passed him by. The large dog seemed to know what was happening in the house and knew that Connor wasn't feeling well simply because the android hadn't taken him out on his morning walk. Sympathetically Sumo pressed his nose into Connor's hand for a moment then resumed eating his dinner.

"Good boy. Keep an eye on Cole and Hank for me while I'm resting."

Walking slowly but with purpose, Connor made it into the garage and pulled himself onto his cot to get some rest. The chill in the air actually felt good on his too warm artificial skin, and it eased the lingering strain being put on his thermal regulator as it struggled to regulate his core temperature.

Laying down with his arm tucked beneath his head, Connor stared up at the little glow-in-the-dark stars dotting the ceiling of the garage and hoped to see the actual stars in the sky again without having to stare through the thick snow clouds hanging overhead. He enjoyed seeing the stars and felt like he had something truly in common with Cole through a mutual interest in the cosmos.

"When it's warm again I'll request permission to take Cole somewhere remote so he can view the stars as I see them. There's too much light pollution obscuring the stars' visibility here in the city."

Taking in a deep breath as he reengaged his ventilation system Connor coughed only a few times before settling into a steady ventilation rhythm to keep his system's core temperature under control while in rest mode. Connor was able to breathe again without coughing. His chest didn't feel heavy or tight, and he wasn't losing any Thirium with the few coughs he had let escape.

Using his free hand to anxiously fuss with the gifted stuffed dog's ear, Connor laid the toy down on his chest and closed his eyes and let himself drift off to rest mode. He discovered his new nightly ritual that helped him to fall asleep.

"It seems that regardless of which timeline I venture I will always dislike the cold and wintertime in general. I wonder if Hank feels the same?"

-next chapter-