sweethymns | ʜᴜᴍᴀɴ ᴀғᴛᴇʀ ᴀʟʟ

[Ai takes the umbrella, flinching as the rain begins to hit not only her face but the back of her hair as well. She can only hope they make it back mostly unscathed...

...

...

...

Well, mostly. By the time they get back to the apartment, part of her bear is soaked and so was her hair. She had to wipe off the face paint around her eyes with a tissue as she opens the door. ]

At least we got to do some fun things today. The rain didn't really ruin that!

[look how determined she is... ]

Uh, Connor? You're not too wet are you?

[At some point, his umbrella had gone inside-out thanks to the wind, and Connor had to fumble with it for a second to turn it into a vaguely umbrella-shaped object again. In that time, he had been pelted with rain — and though it was just a few seconds at best, it was enough to soak a good portion of his clothes. They stick to his form, darkened in color due to the moisture.

His hair had also gotten wet, undoing its usual neatness. Parts of it stick to his forehead as a result, mussed unlike she’s seen it before.

When they’re finally inside, he closes the umbrella. It looks like a sad, sorry thing.]

A little bit. I’ll be fine. But you should dry off.

[He takes the the bear from her; it’s soaking on one side.]

I can take care of him.

A little bit?? You need a towel! And a change into your other clothes if you plan on going back soon.

[She fusses over him for a second by reaching up to brush his mussed up hair to one side before turning to go to her room. ]

I'll change first and I'll get the heater! Give me a minute please!

[Ah-- he opens his mouth to say something, but there she goes.

Connor is left standing there, dripping wet, oversized bear in one hand. His free hand comes up to brush at where she touched his hair, idly.

He supposes he'll wait then.]

[When she comes back, she's changed out of her other clothes into a pair of shorts and a dark hoodie with pink accents. Ai brushes her hair with one hand and holds a towel and clean comb with the other. The mini-heater floats behind her and the wire unravels and plugs itself into the wall. The light turns on to power on the heat, slowly filling the living room with a soft warmth.

She motions to him to sit giggling a bit at how soaked he turned out.]

Can you even notice if you're wet Connor? Here sit down and I'll fix your hair for you. I got a comb and everything.

[He doesn’t move until she tells him to sit down; Connor places the teddy bear near the couch so that it leans against it, then takes a seat where Ai had indicated. Water trickles down the side of his face, his temples. Stuck to the fake lenses of his glasses. Good thing the makeup covering his LED is waterproof.]

Of course I can notice if I’m wet. It’s simply just not that big of an inconvenience to androids as it can be to humans.

[Ah, comb his hair?]

Do I need to bend down slightly?

[He’s so much taller than her.]

Hm. I guess "notice" isn't quite the word I should have used...

[More like, does he feel it? The moisture soaking into fabric and hair, drops sliding down his skin in a cool trail? Those sort of sensations. But she focuses on putting the towel on his head.]

And maybe you should bend down a little. It's funny, I don't think about how tall you are sometimes.

[He hardly even blinks as the towel is draped over his head. He decides to take his glasses off, folding them and placing them on his lap. He scoots so he's at an angle facing her, then bends down slightly in her direction. This should be easier, even if it's a little comical.

Connor continues the line of conversation as if it's nothing out of the ordinary.]

So you mean does the rain bother me?

Something like that?

[She begins to rub the towel into his hair with some vigor at first, but fades into a more gentle motion (this was a nice moment, says the voice in the back of her head).]

I don't think I really understand the extent of the "touch" sensory of androids like you yet. Like, how I'm drying your hair right now. You'd at least have words to describe what it's like for you right?

[It’s a reasonable question, he thinks. Where the line is drawn between sensations for androids of his world. He waits for her motions to slow and become more rhythmic before he replies.]

I can feel sensations — but none cross into the threshold of pain. For instance, I can feel the pressure of your touch, the fabric of the towel against my hair. The vibrations from the drying motions.

But say you were to punch me. [You know, as an example.] I would feel the force behind it. The way it might fracture my parts, if it were strong enough. But none of it hurts.

[And, well, they’ve had the conversation about temperature before. Can sense it, but not feel it enough to be an inconvenience.]

That can be changed, however.

[She pauses looking at the crown of his head covered by the towel.]

... Wouldn't it be logical to not change it? Although... I suppose pain is necessary. To let you know when you need to retreat.

[The drying resumes before she pushes the towel down to his shoulders.]

And it's also necessary to have so you can tell someone to see if they can help.

Yes. There is an advantage to pain. But given the various tasks of androids — and how they were thought to be... disposable — there was no point in making them more ineffective by being able to feel pain.

[That was simply the truth of it.]

For now, I see no reason to change it yet.

[Ai's comb hovers over his head although she seems to struggle with how to start. Partly because of their conversation, partly because, like with men's clothes, hell if she knows how to brush a man's hair (man android in this case — she feels a little tense for some reason, seeing him with messy hair, but dismisses the notion).]

I'd imagine having all five — sometimes six — senses that a human has would be a sensory overload for an android.

[Going by memory, the comb starts on his right.]

So if you think about it, humans don't give themselves enough credit for feeling those things. We experience it every day... Ah, I'm being vague.

[She pauses to glance at Connor in the eyes.]

What I'm trying to say is, that those senses are important!

[He’s still as she begins to comb his hair. Connor finds it a strange sensation, having someone else do this for him. It’s easier to be more acutely aware of the feeling of the comb’s teeth against his scalp, the sensation of it running through damp hair, when he isn’t the one doing it.

It isn’t bad, per se.

He glances up at her, through wayward strands.]

Of course. There’s an irony in there somewhere. That an android’s mind possesses exponentially more processing power than a human’s, and yet experiencing the full extent of five — or six — senses at once would be debilitating at first.

[A little smile.]

Just another difference between us.

[Perhaps she's too close, but his smile makes her avert her gaze and concentrate on combing the rest of his hair.]

It's not a bad one.

[Ah, she needs to concentrate on something else; he mentioned a friend and...]

Oh, I don't think I ever asked about your friend. What's his name?

[Ah, did he say something wrong? But even though she’s averted her eyes, Connor notes that her tone hasn’t changed; maybe it was nothing.

He answers with a warm sort of fondness, born of friendship.]

Hank. Lieutenant Hank Anderson. I was assigned to be his partner when cases involving deviant androids began cropping up in Detroit. That was how we initially met.

He's the one that you mentioned liked heavy metal music, correct? I remember that.

[She can hear his tone of voice change when he talks about Hank Anderson. The living empathetic side of him can catch her off guard too and it's the combination of both man and machine that makes her days interacting with him something to look forward too.]

Was he easy to get along with?

[oh boy]

[How’s this for a show of something very human? At that question, Connor lets out a noise that sounds like a half-scoff, half laugh. It’s dry.]

No. No, not at all. I’m fairly sure he hated me.

[He taps a finger lightly against his forehead.]

He threatened to shoot me once, too.

[You know, NORMAL FRIENDSHIP THINGS]

[wHAT]

... That sounds like a scary man!!

[He drops his hand back to his lap.]

He wasn’t particularly personable at first. He hated androids. To have been partnered with one was an insult to him at first.

[The wryness of his smile hasn’t quite left yet.]

But I’m glad I eventually changed his mind on the matter.

[Lt. Anderson listens to heavy metal and threatens to shoot a nice android man, Ai has the face of an Unsure Person.]

If you say so... He sounds like he'd be hard to deal with if you didn't choose your words carefully. Then again, police figures tend to be hard for me to deal with in general...

Almost done combing by the way. You can tell me if it looks okay or not.

Edited 2018-06-13 03:55 (UTC)

[He notices that look, and Connor thinks that maybe he should try to make Hank sound a little more flattering. He really isn't a bad man at all.]

I realize my descriptors don't shine him in the best light. But Hank really is a good friend. He's helped me a lot and currently... well, I had no place to go after- [He pauses. After CyberLife.] -after many androids were freed. He let me stay with him.

[He's indebted to Hank in a lot of ways.]

And please take your time with combing. I appreciate the effort.

Hm. You're mostly honest, so I'll take your word for it about him. I'm glad you have someone in your world to be your friend.

[She's done with his hair and takes a step back. Taking out her phone, Ai unlocks it so she can open up the camera function and use it as a makeshift mirror for Connor to look at.]

There! Is that okay?

[He straightens when she's done, looking at his reflection in the phone screen. His hair is still a little damp, but the wetness aids in keeping it neat. She's done a good job, all things considered.]

It looks perfect. You really took note of the style of my hair.

[Somehow that's amusing to him.]

Thank you. Do you need me to do anything for you in return?

I was almost overthinking it, but I think it was easier to style than I thought in the end.

Anything in return... [She's twisting her damp hair over her shoulder and squeezing it both hands, thinking.]

... Could we watch one movie before you have to leave? I mean... You keeping me company is more than enough.

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