Special thanks go out to Timmy22222001 and his fanfic story, Nine is the Loneliest Number, as it gave me the basic idea/inspiration for Tucker and Brad's parents.

In-Laws

Chapter 1: Robot Daughter-In-Law

It felt like forever since Tyler and his wife, Carina Carbunkle, had been home. Okay, they returned home now and then, but that only lasted a couple of hours before they had to return to work. Ever since their oldest son, Brad, was old enough to begin looking after their youngest son, Tucker, during the day, the two had been off on one trip after the other. Carina was a biologist who studied the many species and plants inhabiting the world. At the same time, Tyler was a lawyer who represented a massive trading company with a market in almost every field of business you could name across the globe.

Yet after ten years of travel, the Carbunkles were a bit worn out and eager to spend time with their kids. After making arrangements, the two took their latest flight to Tremorton, followed by a cab ride to their home, intending to stay full-time.

Strangely, the driver winked at them when they left the cab, congratulating them on their "wonderful new addition" to the family.

Both looked at the female driver with confusion, as they didn't understand what she meant. Before they could ask, the cab drove off.

"What did she mean by "wonderful new addition" dear?" Carina asked her husband, who shrugged in response.

Figuring the driver was either joking or had mistaken the couple for others, both husband and wife decided to simply forget it and focused on entering the house.

They noticed a keypad above the lock hole when they reached the door. Neither recalled having that installed.

They tried turning the knob, only for it to not respond. Luckily, the home key that Carina always carried worked, and the two walked into their home.

In the hallway, they saw pictures of their sons from different stages of their lives hanging on the walls.

Both smiled at the joy of seeing their children growing up. But that was quickly replaced with regret as they realized how much of their children's lives they'd missed out on. After Tucker's potty training and beginning days of preschool, the two had been off focusing on their respective careers. They met up on their birthdays and anniversaries to spend some romantic time together, but just with each other and not their kids. They'd missed so many birthdays and, most likely, their graduations. By now, Brad had probably graduated from college and was either getting ready to join the workforce or perhaps work towards a master's degree or PhD; neither was aware of their oldest son's chosen career. Yes, they paid for his enrollment into Tremorton College but have yet to see what courses he'd taken.

"They grow up so fast," Carina commented, rubbing her eyes to prevent tears.

Tyler placed a comforting hand on his wife's shoulder and spoke. "We're here now. And Tucker's still in his early teens. We still have time to catch up with them."

Carina opened his eyes and smiled, looking at what was probably Brad's high school graduation. There, he looked spiffy in his hat and gown and appeared almost identical to his old man but with red hair instead of black and no beard.

He appeared so happy, with Tucker by his side, equally happy. As she looked at the picture, she noticed a girl standing right by Brad's side. She also wore a cap and gown, had an arm wrapped around Brad, and looked like she was made of metal. She looked familiar. Then Carina realized who she was seeing with her sons.

"Honey, isn't that the superhero robot who has been saving the world for years?"

Having also noticed the robot in the picture, Tyler leaned in to examine it more closely. "I think it is. XJ-9, I believe."

He then noticed another picture of the boys with the famous robot; they appeared to be standing in front of fireworks, with Brad wrapped an arm around the robot's waist and vice versa. The couple found it strange, even more so, as they found more pictures of the robot with their boys, some even with just Brad and XJ-9, and one with Tucker riding a bike that resembled the robot.

"Dear, what have our kids been up to?" Tyler asked.

"Mom… Dad…"

Hearing a voice coming from behind them near the front door, the couple turned around to see a much older version of Tucker, whom they'd barely seen since he was four years old when they started travelling. Now, he is taller, tripled in size, and no longer wearing the blue choo-choo train t-shirt he used to love so much. Instead, he wore an unbuttoned red shirt, revealing a silver shirt with XJ-9 underneath. His hair was short, similar to when he was little, but the bangs on the left side of his face were pushed down, covering a part of his left eye.

"There's my special little man," Carina said as she ran towards her youngest son and wrapped him up in a hug, which the teen attempted to break out of.

"Mom, I'm not a baby anymore," Tucker complained.

"But you're my baby. Always have been. Always will be."

Tucker just became more annoyed by his mother than he had been before. "Yet this is the first conversation we've had since I was little," he whispered.

This didn't go unheard by his parents. "Young man, you will not talk to your mother like that!" his father scolded.

"Or what, you'll ground me? Not like you'd be around long enough to make I don't leave the house."

Carina let go of her son as she looked at him with an upset expression. "Tucker, that is very rude," she scolded.

"Well, what do you expect? Tucker replied. "I was raised by a brother who's eight years older than me and has only been an adult for four years."

The couple knew their younger son was referring to his older brother, whom Tyler and Carina had not seen since returning home. "Wait... where is your brother, by the way?" Carina asked.

"On his honeymoon with Jenny. Duh!" Tucker replied as if the answer was evident to them.

However, instead, the two parents had dumbfounded expressions plastered on their faces.

"Tucker did… did you just say that your brother is marri-"

Suddenly, the door slammed wide open. Brad came in. He had the same hairstyle since high school, believing it to be the master of hairstyles. Now, he had an upside-down triangle goatee to go with it. He wore a black jacket with a white shirt underneath and blue jeans below them.

In his arms, he carried XJ-9, in bridal style, without showing any issues holding the robot girl the years since her high school, XJ-9, Jenny has undergone multiple upgrades in equipment and appearance. Her metal pigtails had been replaced with metal shielding around the back of her head that went down just above her shoulders and a small antenna that resembled a bun on the top of her head. She wore a metal, sleeveless blue shirt and a skirt of the same colour, though longer than the one she'd worn as a teenager, going down just below her knees. She had a pair of round sensors on opposite sides of her head where ears would usually be, with bolt-shaped earrings attached. She also had blue eyeliner and lipstick on.

The older couple was shocked to see their son holding the robot as if she were his bride. But what surprised them to their core was when Brad spoke up.

"Ladies and gentlemen, say hello to the new Mr. and Mrs. Carbunkle!"

This… caused the older Carbunkle's mouths to drop wide open.

There was a long pause of silence that followed before Tyler spoke up. "I'm… I'm sorry… your wife!"

To their surprise, Brad hadn't noticed his parents when he and Jenny first came home. His eyes focused on his wife and carrying her to his place. But when he heard his father's gasp, he looked across the hall, seeing two people he'd barely seen. "M…m… mom… Dad!"