Three of Five, Chapter 47

[melo_annechen]

Chapter Forty-seven

Charlotte entered the bar, scanning for the contact from the union. Her argument with 10221 had made her later than she had planned, but the representative had not stated a precise time, so she hoped they would still be there. Upon spotting the frumpy pile of black overcoat sitting at the far end of the bar, she winced. This isn't going to be easy, she thought. She took the seat beside the overcoat, noting that the head of ebony hair atop the coat had been inlaid with more silver since the last time she had seen him. Catching the bartender’s attention, she ordered a scotch and soda.

The overcoat spoke: “Shove off, kid; I’m here on business.”

She accepted her drink and took a judicious sip, giving the bartender enough time to get out of earshot. Not exactly the correct ratio, but then 2875 had spoiled her for all other bartenders. “Perhaps I should explain - I am the intern at Madblood Robotics Unlimited, I believe you wanted to speak with me.”

The man at the bar raised his head and looked directly at Charlotte, his face a mask of shock - “Oh. Crap.”

“Sorry I didn‘t warn you, but I didn’t know you were still on the recruitment and retention committee.”

“I’m not - but if an application from a lab run by a long-standing loner comes in, the least fragile rep that’s available gets sent.” He put his head in his hands. “How’m I gonna explain this to your parents?”

“Technically speaking, having reached majority over a decade ago, I don’t see a reason to involve them.”

“You know good and well what I mean. The rumors flying about the symposium are going to get back to them, and I don’t think I’m the only one that would recognize you. I mean, for the love of Frankenstein, girl - Madblood?”

Charlotte’s gaze unfocused for a moment and her expression took on a dreamy smile. “Yeah, Madblood - go figure,” she sighed. Her expression clouded briefly, and then she smiled again. “My candle is burning at both ends - I sincerely doubt it will last the year - and I would not trade the experience for anything.”

“Oh, thank you for that lovely sentiment, now I’m gonna need a brain-bleaching when I get home.”

She touched him on the sleeve, and looked him in the eye. “I will tell you truthfully, I applied for the internship without this design. I walked into it with my eyes wide open, and of my own free will. This - just, just happened, and I want to hold on to it as long as I may. Please, don’t contact them just yet. I’ll tell them when I get home.”

“Arrgh, not even going to think about it - Look, you of all people should know the problems with this arrangement. It will end badly, the statistics don’t lie.”

“You’ve given this lecture before, you know. You do realize the effect is diminished when you are the one to deliver it, right?" ”

“It’s not going to work this time, either - is it?”

"How are the Tadpoles, Uncle Titus?"

He hunched his shoulders and mumbled "That's different."

"Sure it is." Charlotte gave him a pat on the shoulder, saying "Give my best to the Doctor and your brood."

>>>>

As Charlotte left the bar, a petite brown-haired woman in dark glasses linked arms with her, murmuring, “Family conference time, Three.”

“Erm, I suppose I am allowed to know you this month?”

“I'm not the one undercover this year. Why should you care, as long as your boyfriend isn’t around? Mom is gonna love this one,” the shorter woman chuckled.

Arsène had approached outside her line of vision and commented, “What about her son, Aunt?”

“KAEUQS!” she swore, startled by Arsène, spinning in the midst of her jump to face him. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said and started to walk away when Charlotte grasped her sleeve.

“It’s gotten deep, Zero.” Charlotte linked arms with her and headed for a small meeting room, motioning for Arsène to follow. Shutting the doors, she said, “Arsène, let Sela know where we are but ask her to not tell him who else is here, please?”

His reply of “Yes, Mother” startled Zero into speaking. “Excuse me, but WHAT?”

Charlotte scratched her temple as she said, “yeah, about it getting deep? We are cruising the Marianas trench about now.”

“Please don’t be upset with her, Aunt Z,” Arsène requested. “She hasn’t had much control over the situation recently.”

“Recently? She hasn’t been in control in years,” Zero scoffed.

Charlotte sighed, “I suppose I lost my self-deluding pretence of control in February, though.”

“What happened?”

“I nearly lost him,” Charlotte leaned against the table, “I wasn’t watching closely enough and he nearly slipped through…” she covered her eyes.

Zero watched in fascination as the professor’s doppelganger put his arm around Charlotte, as he said, “You didn’t know, Mother. You did a wonderful job with Father considering the information you had, it turned out all right.”

“Right - now, explain why the professor, who is currently participating in a panel, is also here, calling you Mom.” Zero cocked an eyebrow, and frowned.

The logic chain startled a laugh from Charlotte. “Arsène is a bodyguard doppelganger unit when he is on duty. I participated in his design and assembly.” She rumpled his hair, “He extrapolated from there, and I saw no reason to contradict him.”

Zero shook her head, “Gives new meaning to ‘nuclear family’, doesn’t it? I hope we-” She was interrupted by the Latino speed metal version of My Favorite Things. She fumbled through her pockets searching for her cell phone, and had found it before just the chorus, when the door opened.

“Are you here? I think-” the tall chocolate demigod stopped, pole-axed on the threshold. He put away his phone, and finally said, “I think I may have to admit I have gone mad.”

“Shut the door, One - you’re letting the revelations out,” Zero said. “Three here was just confessing to robotically procreating with the professor.” She then looked at her watch, saying, “I gotta motor, another interview for the book. Call me when you get home,” she said as she breezed out the door.

Charlotte regarded her older brother a moment before turning to her companion, “Arsène, I dislike asking…”

“It’s all right, I will head up to the suite now, and Sela can escort him to the next meeting. Call me if you need me.” He gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze and followed Zero’s path out.

“So, your path crosses mine again. I hope this was accidental.” Charlotte crossed her arms and waited for One to speak. The silence stretched out, but she was not going to let him off the hook.

“I was unaware of your… situation. Ele- erm, Two - asked me to keep an eye out for you at the symposium, but she did not mention your choice of traveling companions.”

“Ah, yes - my choice - an interesting word to use, considering the actions of the previous generation. Their choices led me here. I started this path to make reparation, and have found… something else.” Charlotte’s calm began to wear away.

“How are the panic attacks?”

Charlotte took a deep breath, and answered, “I - haven’t had one since the day of my intake interview.”

“Oh, Prime - you haven‘t given him your access codes as well?”

“I haven’t renewed them, so any access I have is by the grace of Two. I am not a security risk.”

“No more than usual, I suppose. I suppose there’s nothing left to do other than to drug you into submission, and get you home for deprogramming, and reduce Madblood to ashes.”

Charlotte's anger flared, “NO! One, this is serious. I will not permit anyone to interfere with the professor, including family - ESPECIALLY family.”

“Do you have an actual plan, perhaps a glimmer of an idea, or have you decided to follow the voices in your head?”

“That is MY problem. You. Will. Not. Touch. HIM.” Charlotte glared at the man in front of her. “Have I made my wishes clear?”

One took an involuntary step back from the shock wave, and responded quietly, “Clear as lab-grade borosilicate. I only hope you know what you’re doing.”

“Don’t worry, the notes will survive me. There’s no way in hell I can publish now, but at least there is groundwork for the next to attempt it.” Charlotte rubbed her temples. “Just spread the word that he will not be punished for my actions.”

“Three…” the older man creased his forehead in thought, then chuckled. “I once thought you were ignoring my lectures in the ethics and philosophy class. It seems you were paying closer attention than anyone knew, especially if you are following Goethe‘s advice.”

“Qué was?” Charlotte’s confusion was evident.

"If I accept you as you are, I will make you worse; however if I treat you as though you are what you are capable of becoming, I help you become that," One quoted and said “I’ll pass the word, but if you get hurt, all bets are off.” He kissed her on the forehead, saying “Be careful, little sister,” and left. As One walked down the hall away from the conference room, he didn’t notice Madblood and Sela entering the door he had just left.

>>>>

Lupin had noted the man leaving the meeting room Sela had indicated, but had not thought anything of the other’s presence until he opened the door. Madblood stopped at the threshold, his questions silenced by the sight of Charlotte with her face in her hands. He immediately turned on his heel and chased after the man who had left the meeting room moments before. He was familiar, but it was an old memory, and wouldn’t settle into a category. Safe to say if the memory’s that old, he is likely to have been an antagonist, Madblood thought, and reached inside his jacket.

Sela hurried after him when she realized what was toward, and shouted “μην αλλάξτε, ο θείος μου!” mere seconds before Madblood slammed him into the wall.

There was a Dangerous Whine as Madblood powered up the hand laser and growled, “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t vaporize you from the neck up!”

Sela answered for them both, “Because he is Charlotte’s brother, now put that away before security gets here!” she hissed.

Lupin holstered the laser, but did not let go. “You’re joking.”

“Sir, their parents were mad,” Sela said.

The man against the wall muttered, “Still are.” He focused on Sela and said, “I don’t believe we’ve met, though.”

“Ah, well, hrm -” she switched languages “[I‘m technically your niece.] My name is Sela.”

One’s face dropped. “You are joking. [Why are we speaking Greek?]”

“Well, the genealogy is still to be catalogued.” Sela shrugged with a sideways glance at Madblood.

One shook his head, “And I probably lost another chance to officiate.”

“We’re still working on that, as well.” Sela said.

One glared at Madblood a moment, and commented “He hasn’t asked?”

"To be fair, neither has she." Sela replied.

“What? She hasn’t….” The younger man looked quizzically at the android, and said, “That doesn’t make sense. What is the problem?”

Sela bit her lip and cast a sideways glance at the professor, murmuring, “I don’t know, but it could be the mask is in the way.”

Madblood again found himself the focus of One’s glare. “Normally, I abhor violence as a means to resolution. However, if you distress… ‘Charlotte’ further, I will make an exception in your case. Just remember, if you hurt her, I am the least of your worries.” He then nodded to Sela and stalked off.

Sela was worried when she noticed the professor smiling. “Sir, are you all right?”

The memory had finally clicked into place as Madblood chuckled, “Couldn’t be better, Sela, couldn’t be better.”

“Ah, well then - I’ll just be going back to the room with Arsène, if you still wish to continue with the day’s schedule?”

“Go on, just don’t break the furniture and keep it down to a dull roar,” the professor chuckled at Sela’s blush. She gave him a peck on the forehead and headed for the stairs. Madblood met Charlotte at the door of the meeting room and put his arm around her waist - “Should I be jealous?” he said in a joking tone.

Charlotte shook her head sadly, “Na, he’s just worried about the company I keep these days.” She draped her arm around the professor's shoulders and led him to the elevators. “Did you still want to tour the exhibit hall this afternoon?”

“I had no interest in any of the other panels today, unless you wanted to review any of them.” When Charlotte shook her head, he chuckled, “I had not thought about the aftereffects of this plan - what am I going to have shoved up my nose when your family hears about this week, a shotgun or a death ray?” Madblood didn't seem particularly worried about either prospect.

“I'll take care of it, sir.” She rested her cheek on the top of his head as they waited for an elevator. “Don’t worry; I won't let them touch you.” With her eyes closed, she didn’t catch the professor’s blush in the reflection of the elevator doors.

>>>>

“I do not believe this,” Madblood muttered as they completed their circuit of the exhibit hall.

Charlotte asked, “What is it?”

Madblood’s quiet, evil chuckle disturbed her, “They’ve set up the exhibits perfectly for a Goldberg chain reaction. Did none of these children study the previous symposium documents?”

“Careful, sir - you almost mentioned your lawn,” Charlotte giggled.

“Nevertheless, it seems there has been a dearth of - incidents - at this year’s gathering.”

“I suppose it’s just because we have been sufficiently entertaining; most of the incidents this year seem to have been related to Ines,” Charlotte said.

“It would be a shame to not share the attentions, wouldn’t it?”

“Erm…” Charlotte’s expression reflected her conflict. “I should probably try to discourage you, but…”

Lupin’s eyes glittered, “What would be the fun in that? All I need now is two rubber bands, a paperclip and a secure place to stand…”

>>>>

Before the dust had settled, Charlotte had managed to get the professor into an elevator. Someone must have hotwired the system, because the fire alarms had not gone off with the sprinkler system and the elevators were still operating. As soon as the doors closed, Charlotte gripped him by the shoulders. “DO YOU HAVE EVEN A FRACTION OF AN IOTA OF SELF-PRESERVATION?”

Other than the incident where she soldered her finger in the repair bay, this was the only time Lupin could remember where she raised her voice. It was certainly the first time she had shouted at him. Looking into her arc-welder-bright glare, he was stunned. She was actually worried? “I’m fine, Charlotte. It was a minor explosion – I was behind the pillar when the-”

“That’s not the point! What would happen to Sela and Arsène, not to mention Lovelace, if you were KILLED?”

He put his hands on her elbows, and smiled. “They are all autonomous and would have no problems, and if they did have difficulties, they would have you for back-up.”

Something in her expression changed; a mix of emotional cues he had no idea how to decipher. When the elevator doors opened, Charlotte jumped as if tasered. She let go of his shoulders and quickly exited, stalking down the hall to the room. He was only halfway to the main door of the suite when she slammed through her door, and roughly engaged the locks. Lupin continued on to the suite door, and entered. Arsène was looking toward Charlotte's room, and said without turning to the professor “Sela is with the security team to find out what went wrong, Father. I believe Charlotte is… upset.”

“Thank you, Arsène, I got that part already. What I don’t get is what set her off this time.” Lupin began to pace the living area, muttering “I wasn’t in the least bit of danger, the vectors involved were covered.”

“For the explosion, yes, but what if the explosion had been a cover for another, more subtle attack?” Arsène stopped the professor and pointed to his shoulder.

Madblood took off his lab coat and saw what he had not noticed before. There was a slice, not a tear, in the shoulder.

Oh.

“With all the shrapnel in the room, it would have been assumed to be an accident,” Lupin managed to keep his voice under control. “Can we get video of the exhibit hall to see if we can find the attacker?”

“Already in the works, sir. Sela should have a report for us within the hour.” Arsène said.

>>>>

Lupin rolled over and squinted at the clock. Eleven fifty-nine, after being up since dawn this morning, and I still can’t sleep, he thought. He sat up and put on his glasses, noticing light coming from the living room of the suite. Arsène and Sela had IR vision, and did not need the lights on. He retrieved the hand laser from the bedside table, and quietly opened the door a sliver to see.

The quiet tapping of nails on the table in the cadence of someone typing came through, and he saw Charlotte at the desk, her fingers flashing over her virtual keyboard while she gazed out the window. He pocketed the laser before crossing the room to the desk, and placed his hand on her shoulder, saying “Char-” before she slammed him into the wall. He had a brief sensation of her forearm pressing his hyoid before she recognized him.

“Oh! Professor, I’m – I” she stammered, setting him back on his feet, before he chuckled.

“I had no idea you were into BDSM, Charlotte.”

She shook her head and began gently inching her fingers across his scalp. “Sorry, I’ve been on alert for the last seventy-two hours, and was trying to stand down.” There was a small intake of breath when he placed his hands on her hips. “I - I don’t think I managed to f-fracture your skull.”

He chuckled again and leaned in, putting his forehead on her shoulder. “I’ve seen George’s records, and I should have known better than to startle you; quite stupid of me in retrospect, if rather exciting.”

“Sir?” she tilted his head back, and looked into his eyes, noting the dilation of his pupils. “Oh dear Prime, I’ve given you a concussion,” and she shined a penlight in his eyes, checking his pupillary reaction. “Your reaction rate hasn’t changed, but still, if we were back h-”, she cleared her throat, “back at the lab, I’d still want Galen to have a look at you. Are you feeling all right?”

Lupin noticed she was blinking rapidly, and he stepped back, releasing his hold on her. “I’m fine, Charlotte. You should - get some rest. Good night.” He headed for his room, wondering if he had passed up a singular opportunity.

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Comments

[ailsaek.livejournal.com]

I am sitting here jaw-dropped. I can't believe I guessed right.

Fun chapter. I can't wait to see what happens next.