Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Doll sat with Uzi on the couch in their room, sipping on a can of oil. She was a bit annoyed, but understood the situation. Uzi wanted to look over her system to get a better grasp on Doll’s… they’re simply calling it her ‘situation’ until they can think of a more accurate, but not scary/depressing description. So, Doll had to sit and watch as Uzi went through different files and dissected pieces of her code. It wasn’t the first time they’ve done something like this. Uzi and Doll do share the same base code, being twins. And, Uzi was normally good at bribing Doll to the point it was just expected now. This time, however, was simply out of necessity.

“Yikes,” Uzi cringed as she watched one of Doll’s memory files. “I see what you mean by ‘eyes’. If it wasn’t for the already insane things that have been happening, I’d say it was just a visual glitch.”

“[That’s what I thought at first, too,]” Doll solemnly told her. “[But, well…]” Doll flicked three fingers, prompting the red Absolute Solver symbol to hover in her hand.

“Speaking of,” Uzi closed the files. “Try levitating something.” Doll nodded and lifted the can she’d been holding, using the Solver. “Thought so,” Uzi grumbled. “Mom was right about it being malware. The program is running on your system, but there is some kind of outgoing and incoming signal.”

“[Can you delete it, or at least quarantine it?]” Doll asked. She may not be as techy as Uzi, but she absorbed enough second hand knowledge from her sister to at least have an idea what was going on.

“It’s locked behind a new root user,” Uzi explained. “Whoever put it there has kernel level access, and was smart enough to block anyone else out. In other words, they have complete control of your system, down to the code.” Doll’s eyes went hollow, and Uzi quickly added, “But, I can at least prevent any incoming signals!”

“[Really?]” Doll visibly relaxed a bit. The can she was levitating came back to her hands. 

“Yeah,” Uzi nodded. “It won’t completely stop whatever is going on, but you won’t have to worry about any spooky eyes or voices.” Uzi went ahead and injected some code, then disconnected from Doll. “That should do it.”

Doll wrapped her arms around Uzi. “[Thanks, Doctor Frankenstein,]” she chuckled, holding back tears.

“Of course,” Uzi smiled, hugging her back. “Can’t let my favorite experiment get out of control, can I?”

When the two separated, Doll looked down at her hands, flexing them, as if testing if they were real.

“Doll! Uzi!” their mom called. “Can you two come here for a minute?”

Doll quickly chugged down the rest of the oil. They weren’t sure how much their moms knew about Doll’s situation, but Doll at least wanted to keep the oil drinking hidden. She didn’t want them to think of her as some mini Murder Drone. Uzi put a hand on Doll’s shoulder, giving her a reassuring smile, which did help calm Doll’s nerves. With a sigh, the two went to the living room.

Speaking of drinking oil, they were surprised to see an actual Murder Drone standing there.

“Hi Uzi! Hi Doll!” N waved.

“[The Murder Pup here wanted to ask you two something,]” Yeva said with a scowl.

“[Ask us what?]” Doll put a hand on her hip, while Uzi simply raised an eyebrow.

N giggled, “I had the best idea! So, you know how everything’s been super serious and spooky and life-threatening?” The twins nodded. “I thought it would be a great idea to have a day where no one had to worry about that kind of stuff.”

“Like?” Uzi prompted him to continue.

“Like~,” N bounced a bit on his feet, pausing for dramatic effect. “A sleepover!”

“... Huh?” The twins said together.

“Yeah!” N grinned. “You two, and me, and V, and Lizzy, and Thad! We can watch movies, eat snacks, and just hangout.”

Doll and Uzi looked at each other, unsure of how to even respond.

“We already told him it was okay,” Nori sighed. “As annoying as it will be to have everyone here, you kids deserve a real break.”

“But, what about the whole ‘Solver’ thing?” Uzi asked. Doll just nodded in agreement.

“We have a theory,” Nori rubbed the back of her head and looked away. “But…”

Yeva sighed. “[We need to talk to Khan about it,]” she finished.

“[You’re willing to talk to Khan?]” Doll gave a sympathetic look. N looked over at Uzi, giving her a confused look.

“Mama hates Khan, even before the… incident,” she rubbed her shoulder. “If she wants to talk with him, then it must be serious.”

“Hence, the sleepover,” Nori added. “You girls deserve a night to just be teenagers.”

“[Just, try not to destroy the house,]” Yeva warned.

Uzi looked at Doll. “What do you think?”

Doll hummed to herself. “[Lizzy has been ignoring my texts. And I’m sure you want to talk to V.]”

“Bite me!” Uzi snapped, the corners of her screen displaying a blush.

“[I say we do it,]” Doll concluded, purposefully ignoring Uzi.

“Yay!” N cheered. “Sleepover time!”

A few hours later, everything was prepared. N had helped the girls gather snacks and pick out a few movies (apparently horror was off the table, much to the twins’ annoyance). They moved the couch and coffee table to the side to make more room, and got changed into their pajamas. Uzi’s was an oversized, black, short-sleeved hoodie with a skull on the front. Doll’s was an equally oversized, dark-red T-shirt. And N didn’t have any. Luckily, they were able to get him an old shirt and gym shorts. The shirt looked more like a crop-top on his taller frame, but it was comfortable enough.

They got similar clothes for V and gave them to N. With a salute, he left to go get the others. The girls lounged around for a bit, just talking about nothing as they waited. It wasn’t until they heard a knock on the door did the reality set in a bit: Doll has to talk to Lizzy about the ‘I love you’ thing, and Uzi has to talk to V about whatever it is they actually are now.

“We did not think this through.”

“[Not at all.]”

The two gulped, only getting up when, presumably N, knocked again. They gave each other reassuring nods, and answered the door together. N was standing there, excited, as usual. V was standing a bit behind him, already blushing and refusing to look anywhere but the ground with crossed arms and a pout. Lizzy was still partly down the hall, cursing at Thad who was trying to drag her to the apartment. After a bit, Lizzy gave up and finally stomped in, muttering under her breath. Thad followed behind, smiling like he hadn’t just been cursed out.

V wore the same outfit they gave N. Though on her, the shirt looked even more like a crop top. She didn't seem thrilled. Lizzy was dressed in some frilly, pink, silk pajama dress that no one could even guess where she got it from. Thad was just in a loose version of his jersey and some polka-dotted boxers.

“Uh,” Uzi held up a hand to wave to V, only to drop it, not sure what to even do with her hands. “H-hi there… V…” she gave an awkward chuckle.

“... Hi,” V grumbled, still not looking at Uzi. “You… doing good?”

“Yeah,” Uzi nodded. “Pretty good. But, you probably know that.”

“Huh?” V looked at her, a bit confused. Then, her screen brightened a bit as she realized. “Oh! No!” She held up her hands in a placating manner. “I disabled my Emotional Analyzer. N said it would probably be a bit invasive for a sleepover.”

“That’s not true, she asked him if she should on the way here,” Lizzy rolled her eyes. 

V glared at the pink drone. “You do remember I can pop your head off your shoulders like a pimple?”

“Hey!” Thad got between them. “Chillax. We’re here to have a good time. Right Doll, Zii?”

“[Right,]” Doll answered. She looked over at Lizzy. “[For now, let’s just relax. Anything important can be saved for later.]” Lizzy blushed a bit and smiled at Doll.

“Yeah,” Uzi agreed. “For the rest of the night, we’re just unsupervised teenagers doing what we want.”

“I wouldn’t say ‘unsupervised’,” N tapped his fingers together, nervously. “I mean, we got to be at least a little responsible. Right?”

V scoffed, “Don’t be such a killjoy.”

“The only thing killing the joy, is the atmosphere," Lizzy snarked. “Let’s turn on some tunes, already.” She pulled out her phone and turned the volume up to max. Some energetic pop music began to blast on the little speaker.

“Ugh,” Uzi groaned. “Gimme that,” she snatched Lizzy’s phone out of her hand.

“Hey!” Lizzy hissed. She lunged at Uzi, trying to get her phone back, only for Doll to grab her.

“[Give her a minute,]” Doll told her girlfriend, running her hand through her hair. Lizzy kept glaring daggers at Uzi, but relaxed into Doll’s arms.

Uzi rolled her eyes and walked back towards the bedroom without a word. She sat the phone down on her workbench and grabbed a couple of her tools.

“What exactly are you doing?” V asked, coming up behind her.

“What I do best,” Uzi smirked, spinning a screwdriver in her fingers. “Hey, you mind grabbing that box over there?” Uzi gestured to the top of a shelf with several boxes. “The one labeled ‘Speakers’.”

“Why can’t you grab it?” V sassed, but walked over to the shelf anyway.

“‘Cause you’re taller, duh,” Uzi said, prying off the back of Lizzy’s phone. She turned and saw V standing next to her with the box. “Thank you,” Uzi said, fishing through the box. “This should be good.” She pulled out a small speaker, then tossed the phone’s speaker into the box. “Can you put it back, please?” She turned her attention back to the phone.

“Really minding your P’s and Q’s today,” V joked. 

“Yeah,” Uzi chuckled. “If I don’t, Doll will give me wrong parts on purpose.”

V looked around the room a bit. “Speaking of, what happened to your rail gun?”

Uzi shrugged, “It’s around. But, I don’t have what I need to repair it.”

“What do you need?” V asked, mentally kicking herself with how quick that was.

“Eh, a few things,” Uzi answered, not picking up on V’s eagerness. “Nothing I can get around the bunker. I’ll need to go out and explore a bit.”

“... I can take you, you know?” V casually suggested, kicking around a couple of bolts on the ground. “You’ll get a lot further with me flying you around than you would on your stumpy legs.”

Uzi looked up from her workbench. “Wait, really?” She smiled. “That’d be sick! I bet I could find tons of different materials that way!” Uzi cackled a bit to herself, already putting together different projects.

V couldn’t help but laugh a bit. “For a toaster, you’re pretty cute.”

Uzi stopped her cackling and blushed. “B-bite me!” She quickly turned back to the phone, putting it back together. “There,” she proudly said. She jumped out of her chair and rushed back into the living room. Lizzy and Doll were sitting on the ground, with Lizzy in Doll’s lap, staring at the bedroom door like an angry chihuahua. Her eyes naturally locked onto Uzi when she came out. “Here,” she tossed the phone. Lizzy lunged for it, catching it midair.

She turned it on and checked a few settings, sighing when she saw everything was still there. She then glared at Uzi with the fury of a thousand suns. “Okay, what did you do?” she asked, half-mad, half-intrigued.

“Just play your stupid music,” Uzi told her, walking away. “I’m grabbing some snacks.”

“Hey, let me help,” Thad offered, following the purple eyed drone.

Lizzy looked down at her phone, a bit skeptical. With nothing else to do, she resumed the pop music she was playing earlier. Surprisingly, it was much clearer and louder than before.

“[I thought she might do something like this,]” Doll told her, walking up and wrapping her arms around her from behind.

“She could have asked,” Lizzy grumbled.

“[Uzi’s not good with words,]” Doll told her. “[She prefers to do things. This is her way of saying thank you, probably for helping me.]”

Lizzy’s gaze softened as she looked at her phone. “Huh,” was all she could really say. She leaned back a bit more against Doll. “You scared me, you know. When you went full murdery at the prom.”

“[... I scared myself,]” Doll admitted. She looked over to see Uzi fighting with Thad over snacks. V was watching them, laughing and instigating it. N just looked panicked, unsure if he should jump in. “[I was so convinced I had to protect Uzi… I didn’t even stop to ask if she wanted that.]”

Lizzy tilted her head back, catching Doll’s eyes. “You can protect me too, you know.” She put her hands over Doll’s, encouraging her to hold her tighter. “Just… like this.” Doll didn’t say anything. She just closed her eyes and focused on this moment. They stayed like that for a few minutes, perfectly content to spend eternity there.

“Aw,” N cooed from the kitchen. “They’re so cute.”

“Be a shame if someone interrupted their moment,” V chuckled as she began to move their way.

“No you don’t,” Uzi grabbed the collar of V’s shirt and yanked her back.

“Hey!” the Murder Drone hissed, her screen turning to that deadly X.

“Let them have this,” Uzi said, barely reacting to the predatory glare.

“Yeah,” Thad agreed. “Lizzy kinda needs this. She’s been worried sick over Doll for… obvious reasons.”

“Well, we can only pretend to fight over snacks for so long,” Uzi commented, popping a few batteries into her mouth.

“I know!” N gasped. “We can get ready to watch a movie!”

“Good thinkin’ N-and-M,” Thad shot him finger guns. “Let’s go pick some out.”

Uzi groaned as she watched the boys search through the movies they got out earlier. She was not looking forward to the selection, and knew Doll wasn’t either. There had to be a way to spice things up. A little light bulb icon appeared in the corner of her screen as she smirked. Uzi walked over to Doll, tapping her on the shoulder. “Hey, I need to talk to you in private for a sec.”

Doll looked at her sister. “[Can’t it wait?]” she asked, clearly annoyed.

“Nope,” Uzi said, walking away. “Come on. You’ll enjoy this.” Doll groaned, but reluctantly let go of Lizzy. She gave the pink drone a kiss on the cheek, turning her screen brightness up, and followed Uzi.

“This movie looks lame,” Lizzy complained as N put in some cheesy B-movie that no one bothered to pay attention to the title of.

“Could be fun,” Thad shrugged.

V looked over at the bedroom door. “Are they coming back any time today?” she asked. “Because if not, I might just kill one of you out of boredom.” Right when N was going to scold her, the bedroom door finally opened, and the twins walked out, smiling a bit.

“Finally,” Lizzy groaned. “Get over here, babe. I’m not suffering alone.”

Uzi and Doll shared an amused look before splitting. “[Oh? And what is it that’s making you suffer?]” Doll asked, taking a seat beside Lizzy.

“Knowing her, it’s something that’s not pink,” Uzi teased, sitting down next to V.

“Coming from the queen of black and purple,” Lizzy shot back.

“Bite me!” Uzi snapped, chuckling a bit.

Lizzy gasped. “Hey! Doll said you can’t say that to me!”

“[It’s fine,]” Doll gave a small giggle. “[Let her have a bit of fun.]”

“Ugh,” Lizzy crossed her arms and leaned into Doll. “Can’t believe you’re taking her side.”

As the movie began to play, everyone cozied up in a loose pile of limbs and pillows. Doll blinked when Lizzy casually laid her head in her lap again. She glanced at Uzi across the room, unsure, but got a shrug in return. She hesitantly began running her fingers through Lizzy’s hair. The motion felt natural… but not her natural. Lizzy relaxed into it, content.

On the opposite side of the room, Uzi smirked and leaned against V. “By the way,” she said, tone oddly airy, “those pajamas look great on you, V.”

V blinked. “What?” she scoffed, but her screen was already blooming with blush. “I mean, obviously. I make anything look good.”

Uzi leaned harder into her. “You sure do.”

V narrowed her eyes. “Okay, no. Nope. What’s wrong with you?”

“Huh?” Uzi sat upright, just a little too fast. “Why would something be wrong?”

V raised an eyebrow. “You could barely make eye contact when you wanted me to dance with you, and now you’re all…” She gestured vaguely at Uzi’s entire existence. “...This. Are you overheating or something?”

“[Or something,]” Doll snickered.

Thad looked between the two. “Wait… Did you guys-” He was immediately silenced by a pair of pillows smacking into his face from both sides.

“[Quiet!]” Doll snapped, causing Lizzy to giggle.

“Alright, alright!” Thad held his hands up in defeat. “No need for violence.”

“[That’s what I thought,]” Doll said with a prim nod, but she held her body weirdly stiff. Like she didn’t quite know where her arms were supposed to go.

Lizzy whistled, “Wow. Look at you, babe. Acting all bossy tonight.” She sat up a bit to look Doll in the eyes. “Makes me think I should be a bit bold myself,” she slowly leaned in, intent obvious.

Doll’s eyes went hollow. She leaned away, trying to buy time as she thought.

Thankfully, Uzi lobbed a battery across the room. “Hey!” she barked. “No one wants to see you two make out!”

Lizzy yelped as the battery bounced off her head. “Ow! What the hell?!”

“[Calm down, Uzi,]” Doll muttered through gritted teeth. “[You shouldn’t be getting so upset about my girlfriend wanting to kiss me.]”

“Ah. R-right. I mean, bite me!” Uzi blurted out, then crossed her arms.

V stared at her for a long moment. “Okay, seriously. You’ve been acting so weird since the movie started. You’re making me nervous. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Uzi insisted. Then, she smirked, giving her sister a glare before turning to V. “Actually, you’re right,” she sighed. “There is something wrong.” Everyone sat up a little straighter.

V’s posture changed immediately, protective and alert. “Talk to me. What’s going on?”

Uzi folded her arms and stared at the TV like it owed her money. “I’m just… processing things. A lot happened. And, well…” She turned toward V, cheeks tinged purple. “V… Am I your girlfriend now?”

“WHAT?!” V screeched, practically launching herself to the other side of the room.

“I mean,” Uzi continued calmly, “you gave me a corsage, you liked dancing with me, you’re ridiculously hot-”

“[Uzi,]” Doll cut in, half-panicked. “[We agreed no relationship bombs during the movie!]”

“Did we?” Uzi blinked. “I thought we only agreed to no horror movies.”

Thad squinted again. “Okay, seriously, how are you two not caught yet?”

Everyone turned to look at him again.

“Caught doing what?” V asked slowly.

Lizzy narrowed her eyes, glancing between Doll and Uzi.

“…Nothing,” the twins said in perfect sync.

N just giggled, “This night is so fun.”

Thad crossed his arms and looked at Uzi. “Alright. Then, Uzi, what’s that janky antenna thing you made for the colony’s router backup?”

Uzi rolled her eyes. “It’s a custom amplifier I built from some scrap and a spare blender blade. Doll helped me get it set up.” She gave him a toothy grin, like she had just won some contest and was rubbing it in.

Thad narrowed his eyes. “Touché.”

“[Enough talk,]” Doll groaned. “[Let’s just get back to the movie.]”

As they turned their attention to the TV, Lizzy whispered into Doll’s ear, “You know, you never did reward me for going along with your crazy plan.”

Doll looked over at Uzi. Uzi just stared, then her eyes went hollow. She kept mouthing “No no no.” But, Doll just smirked.

“[Speaking of,]” Doll turned back to Lizzy. “[We never talked about-]”

“Hey! Lizzy!” Uzi shot up. “I got something super important I need to show you and get you away from my sister!” Uzi grabbed her by the arms and dragged the pink drone kicking and yelling into the bedroom.

“What was that about?” V asked.

“[Who knows,]” Doll shrugged, but had a smug smile on her face.

V hummed. “Hey, speaking of. You doing okay since the whole… thing?”

“[Oh, yeah,]” Doll nodded. “[Uzi helped me through a lot of it. She’s the best.]”

V blushed a bit, then grumbled, “Not wrong.” She made sure the boys had their attention back on the screen, then scooted closer to Doll. “Speaking of, can I ask you something?” she said quietly. “You can’t tell your sister, though.”

“[Oh, uh, sure?]” Doll shrunk in on herself a bit. “[It’s nothing too bad, is it?]”

“No… maybe… I don’t know,” V admitted, bringing her knees up to her chest. “Just… Do you know if she was teasing earlier? Like, has she mentioned anything about me in that way before?”

“[Oh,]” Doll blushed a bit. “[Uh…]” She looked at V, and the way she was curling in on herself, arms hugging her knees. It wasn’t the confident, smirking V she was used to. It was the soft one. The one she’d caught a glimpse of when V tried dancing at prom. The one who didn’t know how to say what she felt without sounding like she wanted to fight someone about it. “[She hasn’t said much,]” Doll finally replied, choosing her words carefully. “[But, when she talks about you, it’s always with this… look in her eyes. Like she’s trying really hard not to smile.]”

More blush brightened V’s screen. “That… sounds like her,” she mumbled.

“[If it helps,]” Doll added, “[she gets super defensive any time someone says anything even slightly mean about you. Like, scary fast.]”

V chuckled. “Why is she like this?”

“[Who knows,]” Doll smiled. “[You like it though.]”

“Whatever,” V rolled her eyes and relaxed. She frowned a bit, looking at the ground. “... Do you think I could be good for her? Or is this just me being broken and liking the first girl who didn’t treat me like a monster?” To emphasize her point, V switched out one of her hands for her claws.

Doll froze a bit, unsure what to say. “[I think… That she thinks the same thing. And that you’re already good for her. Just, don’t take it personally if she doesn’t say it.]”

“Good thing I got that analyzer,” V half joked. “But, yeah, I can live with that.”

Meanwhile, in the bedroom.

“What the hell, Uzi?!” Lizzy snapped as Uzi shut the bedroom door. “You can’t just drag me around like some hot, plush toy!”

“I’m sorry!” Uzi blurted out, pacing in a panic. “It’s just… You were going to kiss her!”

Lizzy blinked. “...And?”

“It’s just,” Uzi groaned and grabbed her hair. “Why did you have to choose tonight to be all flirty!”

Lizzy just stared at Uzi in confusion, then, something finally clicked. The body language, the hair grabbing, the jealousy. Lizzy grabbed her by the shoulders. “Calm down. You’re spiraling.”

“I live in a spiral,” Uzi lamented.

Lizzy sighed and shook her. “Listen, nerd. This is not the first time Doll’s acted a little different. She’s always been different. Not as much as you, but still different. But you know what? I love her anyway. Because even when she’s awkward, or cold, or quiet, she’s trying . And that means more than anything.”

Uzi blinked at her. “That was… actually really sweet.”

Lizzy placed a hand on her hip and smiled. “I can bring the sass and be romantic,” Lizzy smiled, then tapped Uzi’s forehead with a finger. “And you. You’re cute when you panic.”

Uzi blushed. “Shut up.”

Lizzy rubbed a hand over Uzi’s cheek. “Come on. Say it right,” she said in a teasing tone.

Uzi groaned. She took a breath and, as best as she could, said, “Bite me!” Their lips interlocked, and the two girls melted into one another.

After a few minutes, they pulled back, panting a bit. “As fun as this is,” Lizzy giggled. “We should probably go back before V falls in love with you.”

“If she does, I’ll make sure neither of them ever forgets it,” Uzi chuckled.

They exited the bedroom and saw V and Doll whisper to each other. Uzi walked up and crouched down between the two. She gave a toothy grin to her sister. “[You win. I got found out. But, I got a kiss out of it.]”

Doll narrowed her eyes at her sister. “I’m not sure if I should be happy, or annoyed.”

“What?” V looked between the two. “What do you…” V gasped, then growled at ‘Doll’. “Oh, you edgy little toaster!”

Uzi in Doll’s clothes just laughed. “I’m sorry, but we couldn’t help it! We thought it would be funny!”

“[And it was,]” Doll in Uzi’s nodded, switching her lights back to red. “Until Lizzy got too flirty.”

“What can I say? You’re irresistible,” Lizzy shrugged.

“You almost made out with me!” Uzi complained, switching her lights back to purple. “If anything, I’m the irresistible one.”

“Oh, you’re irresistible all right,” V growled, looking like she was about to pounce on Uzi. “An irresistible snack!” Uzi blushed hard and gulped, not daring to move. “What? Aren't you going to say it?” V dared.

“[Allow me,]” Doll jumped in. She cleared her throat, crouched down next to Uzi, and said in her voice, “Bite me!”

“With pleasure,” V tackled the real Uzi, tumbling across the floor.

“V!” N scolded. “We said no murder!”

“I knew this wouldn’t end well,” Thad sighed. 

“Uh,” Lizzy cringed a bit as she watched the two. “I don’t think she’s murdering her.” The group watched as V clamped her fangs down on Uzi’s shoulder. Uzi, instead of pushing the Murder Drone off, buried her face in her hair.

“[Hey!]” Doll grabbed a handful of batteries and threw them at the two. “[If that turns into anything more, I’m ripping you in half!]”

“Who are you talking to?” Lizzy asked.

“[Does it matter?]” Doll replied. She grabbed Lizzy’s hand and turned to her. “[And, thank you, for always being there for me.]” Lizzy blushed and pushed some hair behind her head. “[I… I love you too.]” Doll said as her screen brightness turned to its maximum.

Lizzy stammered, making what was closer to dial-up noises rather than words. When nothing understandable came out, she just groaned and pulled Doll into a passionate kiss.

V smacked her lips as she finally let go of Uzi, licking some oil that drooled down her chin. “Mmm. Out of all the Workers I’ve eaten, you’re definitely the sweetest, U.”

“S-shut it,” Uzi weakly complained, eyes shaking as if she were holding back tears.

V suddenly looked sick. “Uzi, I-I’m sorry,” she stammered, getting off of the smaller drone. “I thought you’d be okay with it.”

“Ugh,” Uzi’s mood suddenly flipped. “I am! Just…” Uzi got up, rubbing her shoulder. “I was just surprised. I totally could have stopped you if I wanted.”

“Uzi,” V said softly.

“What?” Uzi scoffed. “Not gonna say something like, ‘Sure you can, tin can’?”

“...” V looked away, not sure how to respond.

“... You didn’t take that much,” Uzi almost sounded like she was complaining. “My oil reserves only dropped by 2%. I swear, you just wanted to bite me to piss me off.” V finally looked Uzi in the eye again. “... If you’re hungry… You can take a bit more.” Her hand fell away from her shoulder, still blushing.

“Uzi I-” V stopped herself, remembering what they talked about earlier. She smiled, and grabbed Uzi, pulling the smaller drone into her lap. “How about we relax and finish the movie. I don’t want to get stuffed and get all sleepy, ya know?”

Uzi gave a small smile and nodded.

Thad sighed and turned to N. “Still think this was a ‘fun’ night?”

“Of course!” N smiled wide. “Doll and Lizzy seemed to be doing better. Uzi and V are more open. And, me and you got to hang without any interruption! A little violence, a little romance, a lot of snacks, and friends! What more could you ask for?”

“Huh,” Thad scratched his head. “Yeah,” he smiled. “I guess you’re right. This was a fun night.”

The group decided to start a different movie. They dragged the couch back into the center and crowded onto it. The movie sucked, as expected, but they all had a good time making fun of it. At some point, V leaned into Uzi’s bitten shoulder, as if protecting it from being bumped and hurt more. Doll began to teach Lizzy how to say ‘I love you’ in Russian, which Lizzy was very obviously playing dumb about just to hear it again. Thad and N devoured half the snacks, somehow finding parts of the movie to actually praise. After everything they’ve been through, they all needed this. Just a moment to be themselves; just a group of teenage drones, piled on a couch, laughing like the world wasn’t ending. Nothing more than that. Everything else can wait for another day.

Chapter Text

Doll wasn’t saying anything. She didn’t need to. The shit-eating-grin that had welded itself to her face said it all.

“Bite me!” Uzi snapped.

Doll hummed, tilting her head like she was seriously considering it. “[I believe that’s V’s job.]”

Uzi sputtered, words tripping over themselves. “Bite— I mean, shut up!” She groaned and collapsed face-first onto her bed. The springs squealed under her, the pillow dragged over her head like it could smother the memory of what Yeva had walked in on. “God. I can’t believe that happened. I’m never leaving this room again. Just—just let the world end, or whatever.”

The mattress dipped some more as Doll sat beside her, patting her back with infuriating gentleness. “[Just be happy mama had other things to focus on.]”

Uzi peeked out from under the pillow. Her expression shifted, the blush she’ll deny having fading into something heavier. “... You think mom’s going to be okay?”

“[I…,]” Doll’s smirk faltered, her lips pressed thin. Her eyes flicked toward the door, then away, as if hoping Nori would walk through as her normal self. “[I don’t know,]” she admitted softly. “[According to mama, this isn’t anything new.]”

The weight in her voice only deepened Uzi’s frown. She sat up halfway, fiddling with the zipper on her hoodie to give her hands something to do. “When she’s better, I’ll… I’ll offer to look at her systems. Maybe an extra set of eyes will help figure it out.”

Doll gave a quiet nod. “[Mama’s got her hands full, looking after us and mom.]

The silence that followed pressed in on them, thicker than before. The twins knew Yeva was right: Nori needed time. But, waiting was the hardest thing. Worry had claws, and it dug in while they sat there pretending everything was fine. So, looking for distractions, they did what siblings do best:

“[Speaking of having their hands full—]”

“Oh my robo-God!” Uzi flopped back with a groan, throwing the pillow over her face again. Her voice came out muffled. “You’re letting Lizzy rub off on you.”

Doll just smirked, smugness happily finding its way back onto her face. “[Consider it payback for all the teasing I got about her.]”

Their banter was interrupted by a knock on the door.

“Входите,” both of them called.

The door opened, revealing Yeva, whose screen was somehow simultaneously dim and bright. She wore a serious expression that made the twins instinctively go through their memory files for anything they might’ve done to earn said look. Of course, they knew what was going on.

“[Your turn,]” Yeva stated, tone as serious as her face. She gestured with her head, “[Come on,]”

Doll and Uzi shared a look, took a grounding breath, and followed their mother to the living room.

There, Lizzy and V sat on the couch. Lizzy’s eyes were hollow and her body stiff, while V seemed simply annoyed. Uzi couldn’t help but feel a bit smug, silently shooting her sister a smirk that said, “Ha! My girlfriend took the talk better than yours.”

Doll responded by rolling her eyes, deciding to let her sister feel superior before the inevitable question is raised.

The twins sat in the middle of the couch, next to each other and their respective girlfriend. N smiled and waved at them from his place on an old chair Nori pulled out a few days ago, seeing as they were beginning to have more frequent guests.

Yeva took her place in her own seat and folded her arms, optics narrowing on the four younger drones lined up in front of her. In particular, Uzi and V. “[So,]” she said, her voice sharp despite the weariness in it, “[which one of you is going to explain why I walked in on… that?]”

Uzi’s lights went white for a second, the color glitching from mortification. “W-We weren’t doing anything!” she blurted out.

Lizzy opened her mouth to comment, but was silenced by the glare Yeva gave her.

V sighed, shifting a bit in her seat, and draping an arm around Uzi’s shoulders. “Look. Whatever did or didn’t happen is passed,” she said matter-of-factly. “I get you want to protect her, but trust me,” V’s other hand swapped out for her claws, “I won’t let anything happen to her.”

Yeva narrowed her eyes. “[My girls can protect themselves just fine.] She gestured to V’s clawed hand. “[I’m more worried about what’ll happen if you break her heart.]”

“Robo-Jesus,” Uzi groaned, running her hands down her face. “[Mama, it’s fine.]” Uzi switched to Russian, her voice softening. She reached over and grabbed V’s hand, earning gasps from all the other drones.

“Uh, U,” V tried to carefully remove her clawed hand from Uzi’s normal, fragile, easily slice-able hand. But she seemed to only tighten her grip, interlocking their fingers as if V still had her standard hands out.

“[V’s not gonna do anything,]” Uzi continued. “[She’s literally put her life on the line for me multiple times.]”

“[... I know,] Yeva sighed. “[But, it’s my job as your mother to make sure you never forget your worth. Both of you.]” Her gaze shifted from Uzi to Doll, softer but still sharp. “[You’re my girls. You’re not weapons or pawns to some eldritch program. You’re not just someone’s partner. You’re people. And if anyone—]” her optics flicked hard at V and Lizzy “[—forgets that, they answer to me.]”

Lizzy, unable to keep her thoughts to herself any longer, muttered, “Why is everyone in this family so hot when they get angry?”

“Lizzy!” Doll hissed, smacking her shoulder. The pink drone wisely chose not to respond.

V, on the other hand, simply rolled her shoulders and turned her body more towards Uzi, to make holding hands a bit easier. The entire time, she held Yeva’s gaze, claws still entwined with Uzi’s hand. “For the record, I already know she’s worth everything.” She used her other hand to adjust her glasses proudly.

N, who was sitting crisscross-applesauce, blurted out: “So… that’s like… approval, right? Because I think that was approval! Yay for emotional communication!”

“Shut up, N,” Uzi, Doll, and Yeva said simultaneously.

“Why are you even here?” Lizzy asked.

N chuckled and scratched the back of his neck. “The bus driver didn’t feel like bringing us back to our spire of corpses, even with the sun up.”

Yeva sighed, rubbing the middle of her display. “[Robo-God give me strength. Fine. I’ll allow this. But,]” her voice sharpened again, “[break their hearts, and I’ll break you.]”

Lizzy scoffed and rolled her eyes. “Please. Like I’d ever downgrade.” When Yeva shot her a look, silently scolding her attitude, Lizzy gulped, but managed to force a nervous grin. “I mean, uh, totally fair. Not planning on it anyway.”

V chuckled, leaning back and pulling Uzi closer, making the shorter drone blush harder. “If I do, assume I'm either defective or messing with someone.”

Yeva groaned, waving her hand like she still wasn’t convinced. “I need a drink.” She pushed herself up and shuffled toward the kitchen. Even with her back turned, everyone could feel her optics still on them.

“Wow,” N beamed, breaking the silence that followed. “It sure is nice when we get to sit and talk instead of, you know, running for our lives.”

“You run, I fight,” V proudly corrected.

Lizzy leaned forward with a smirk. “You do more than that, apparently.”

V’s optics narrowed. “When did you get so cocky?”

“She’s always been this cocky,” Uzi groaned. “It’s annoying.”

Lizzy scoffed. “You’re just jealous that I’m popular and not dating you.”

“Bite me!” Uzi snapped.

“[Hey,]” Doll cut in, crossed her arms. “[We agreed you can’t say that to Lizzy anymore.]”

“Then tell her to stop making me want to say it!” Uzi fired back.

The three Worker Drones devolved into petty bickering, their voices climbing over each other until V sighed and tuned them out. She slouched deeper into the couch and glanced at N. “How long until the sun goes down?”

“Uh,” N squinted at his internal clock. “... Yes.”

“Great,” V groaned. She nudged Uzi, earning a glare. “Hey. It looks like N and I are spending the night— er, I mean day.” She picked at her teeth, pretending she hadn’t just slipped.

N’s face lit up. “Sleepover part two!” he cheered, arms raised.

“Нет,” The twins deadpanned together, making N frown.

“I’m sleeping in my own bed, not the couch,” Uzi added firmly.

“[Comfort wins over friendship,]” Doll agreed with a sage nod.

Lizzy, half-distracted by her phone as usual, suddenly groaned. “Ugh. My parents texted. They want me to come home.”

Doll arched a digital eyebrow. “[What did you do?]”

“Nothing!” Lizzy protested. “They’re probably just mad at Thad’s grades. Again.” She tucked her phone away, leaned over, and pressed a quick kiss to Doll’s cheek. “I’ll swing by again later. Я люблю тебя.” With a swish of her skirt, she hurried out.

Uzi snorted. “She did that just to look cool.”

Doll, blushing and grinning without a care, replied, “[Well, it worked.]”

Uzi rolled her eyes. “You are so frickin’ sappy.”

V, never one to miss an opportunity, hugged Uzi closer, wrapping her tail around her waist. She leaned in until her voice was a whisper in Uzi’s receiver, and whispered, “Я люблю тебя.” 

Uzi snorted so hard she almost choked, then playfully shoved V back with both hands, making the Murder Drone blush and sputter a bit.

“Nice try,” Uzi teasingly said. “I’m not as easy as Doll. Also, your pronunciation is garbage.”

V, cheeks heating, still sputtering, managed to respond, “It’s—! I was trying to—!”

N, watching the exchange, pouted a bit. “Come on, Uzi. Be nice. V’s put a lot of work into her Russian.”

“N!” V yelped, tugging her hand like she was about to cut his head off. The only thing stopping her was Uzi’s hand still holding it.

“Wait,” Uzi grinned. “Have you been trying to learn Russian?”

“I-I,” V stuttered. She cleared her throat, trying to melt back into her usual cockiness. “Disassembly Drones don’t come with language options. So, I thought that, uh, it…”

“Can’t think of an excuse, can you?” Uzi’s grin only grew.

“[How sweet,]” Doll added, grin matching Uzi’s exactly. “[Turns out she’s the sap.]”

“Hey!” V bristled, tail trying to lash but couldn’t due to being wrapped around Uzi. “I’m not—”

“—a sap?” Uzi interrupted, still smirking ear to ear. “Yeah, keep telling yourself that.” She tugged on V’s glasses just enough to make them crooked, laughing when V scrambled to fix them.

“Wow,” N chimed in, leaning forward with way too much enthusiasm. “So you’ve been learning Russian for Uzi? That’s adorable! Teach me something too, please!” He began to bob up and down a bit in his excitement.

V groaned. “No.”

“Please?!” N pressed. When V didn’t respond, he turned to Doll with big, hopeful optics. “Can you just say something in Russian?! I’ll try to repeat it!”

Doll raised an unimpressed brow. “[... Пельмени.]”

“Pel…mini?” N butchered the word instantly.

Uzi started laughing so hard she fell sideways into V. Doll actually began wheezing.

From the kitchen, Yeva’s voice floated out like she’d been listening the whole time: “[If you try to make any, you better clean up after.]”

Everyone was quiet for a beat. Then, they all began laughing together. Uzi fully let her weight rest against V, prompting the taller drone to wrap an arm around her once more. Doll stretched out on the couch like she owned it, already planning on how else to tease her sister. And N beamed like he was taking mental snapshots of the moment.

For once it was just… comfortable.

The house had gone quiet by the time Yeva returned from the kitchen. Doll was helping N wrestle the couch into its lumpy sofa-bed shape, arguing over where the sheets went. Uzi had stormed into her room, muttering under her breath as she fiddled with something mechanical, V trailing behind with her usual smirk. And Lizzy, predictably, hadn’t come back yet.

Yeva sighed. It was good that the kids fell back into routine so easily. That meant she could focus on the one person who couldn’t. The adult Russian drone lingered outside her bedroom door, her hand hovering over the knob. Through the metal and wood, she could sense the uneven hum of Nori’s core, the occasional glitching static of her screen. She knew what she’d see inside, and still her chest tightened as she turned the handle.

Nori sat slumped against the wall, knees pulled tight to her chest, arms looped around them. Yeva had worked to clean her up earlier, wiping away the oil and damage, but Nori still held herself like the stains were there. Like she could still feel them soaking her hands, dripping from her claws. Her hands kept brushing each other, checking they were clean. Her screen cycled dim symbols, half-formed fragments of thought, blinking out before they made sense. Those bright purple eyes Yeva loved were dulled into hollow ovals, fixed not on her, but on the golden Keybug perched on her knee.

The little roach wasn’t doing anything. It only twitched an antenna and polished its casing absently. But that seemed to be enough for her.

Yeva crossed the room, lowering herself beside her wife. Her arm twitched with the instinct to embrace her, to bring her close, to hold until the trembling stopped. But, she paused when Nori flinched away ever so slightly. Instead, she let her voice bridge the distance. “[You’re still here,]” Yeva reassured her, quiet and steady, lowering her hand. “[And that’s all that matters.]”

Nori’s mouth twitched into something caught between a laugh and a sob. “It shouldn’t matter. I almost… I could’ve—” She bit down on the words, as if saying it out loud would curse them, but her trembling gave them away.

“[Idiot,]” Yeva said softly, no venom in her words. Her servos creaked a bit as she struggled not to at least brush Nori’s hair out of her face. “[Cyn could never make you hurt me, no matter how hard she tried. There’s no way you could have hurt the girls.]”

For a long beat, there was only the faint whir of cooling fans. Then, Nori leaned sideways, her frame tipping into Yeva’s shoulder. Yeva hesitated only a second before wrapping her arm around her, careful, giving her room to pull away. When she didn’t, Yeva pulled her close, tracing slow, deliberate circles against her back. Not forcing, not rushing. But steady, grounding. Nori’s trembling gradually quieted, allowing herself to feel safe.

The Keybug had finished its grooming, twitching as it decided where to move. It crawled down Nori’s leg and up onto Yeva’s shoulder, where it rested.

In the girls’ bedroom, another pair wrestled with their own silence in their own way. Uzi sat cross-legged in her chair at her workbench, finally working on the repairs to her rail gun. The parts were scattered like puzzle pieces. Uzi knew the answer, of course. Yet, here she was, hunched over tiny screws like they had stumped her. She focused hard, too hard, knowing that looking away from them would mean discussing what had happened.

“You know,” V leaned over her shoulder, arms looped neatly around the chair back, “I’ve seen you work enough to know when you’re pretending. I don’t need my analyzer to tell you’re thinking about something else.”

“Bite me,” Uzi muttered, screwdriver twisting too tight. There was no real venom in her tone though, and she couldn’t muster any. “I need to find a screw that’s long enough. Durable, too.”

“You’re such a little nerd,” V teased, tail flicking lazily.

“Bite me!” Uzi snapped again. Despite sounding annoyed, she didn’t pull away when V’s tail looped lazily around her ankle.

“Later.” V hummed a bit as she stared at the pieces of the weapon. Part of her couldn’t help but smile a bit, happy for its existence, as it is what allowed them to meet. “Y’know… I used to crank my laser all the way up. Vaporized Workers in one go.” Her tone dipped into that sadistic amusement that Uzi now found adorable. “But it left me wide open.” She rested her chin on the top of Uzi’s head as if it was natural. “A tighter beam still dropped them in one shot, and I could drag it around to carve through more of ‘em.”

“Huh,” Uzi blinked. “... Yeah, that makes sense.” She began to actually adjust the screw now. “I made this thing to vaporize you guys, since you’re stupidly hard to kill.” Her voice faltered, softening to a barely audible, “Thankfully.” She cleared her throat. “But if I want to actually help in a fight, yeah… pulling it back might be smarter.”

V’s arms hugged Uzi a bit tighter, possessiveness proudly displayed. “You’re plenty useful, U.” V assured her girlfriend, voice soft. She was still getting use to being soft so she wasn’t sure if it came out the way she wanted. Of course, Uzi always paid enough attention to understand. “You managed to off J. And track down that… thing.” She shivered at the memory, “Plus, if you hadn’t managed to talk Doll down, I definitely would have killed her.” She nuzzled against Uzi’s head without really thinking. “No reason to downplay yourself.”

Uzi’s hands froze mid-turn. She sighed. V knew. Of course, she knew. V paid just as much attention to her.

“... Hey,” she said finally, not looking up. “About… y’know…” 

Uzi could feel V’s chin nudge her head in a nod. 

“... I, uh… didn’t hate it…” Uzi’s screen displayed a full blush.

“... Same,” V whispered, her own blush obvious even in her voice. “And… I wouldn’t mind… doing it again… I guess…”

Uzi doesn’t have a cooling problem like the Murder Drones or Doll. Yet, V’s words managed to make the temperature warning blare on her screen. She slammed it off, fumbling for anything else to focus on. But all her processors decided to focus on was the sharp press of long, razor sharp claws. V’s hands. The tips brushed against Uzi arms. Whether she was testing her or simply forgot to retract them, Uzi didn’t care. She leaned back and placed her hands over V’s, giving them a squeeze before interlocking their fingers.

Silence stretched again, this time comfortable. The railgun lay half-finished on the desk, forgotten for now. The thumping of V’s heart and the whirring of Uzi’s core seemed to sync up, filling the silence with something that was purely them. Neither of them wanted to move. Neither wanted it to end.

Some else did. So, without warning—

V’s body spasmed. A harsh burst of static cut across her display before it completely turned off. She slumped sideways, her tail slipping loose from Uzi’s ankle like dead weight. 

“V!” Uzi bolted from her chair, catching her before she hit the ground. “V! What’s wrong?!” Her voice cracked, rising sharp and jagged as she shook her girlfriend’s limp frame. “Come on, don’t- don’t you dare—.

V didn’t respond. No quip, no hum, nothing. Her glasses had fallen askew, and with trembling hands, Uzi set them back on her face. It made her look less… more… it made her look right.

Uzi began to shake, hands fumbling uselessly across V’s frame. She pressed her ear to V’s chestplate, desperate to hear the familiar hum of her core… It was there. Faint, but there. Alive. But unreachable.

“Please,” Uzi whispered, her grip so tight on V’s claws that the sharp edges cut her palm. She didn’t even care. “Please, come back.”

The door to the bedroom shot open. “Uzi!” Doll’s voice snapped through the haze. “[I was showing N where the oil was when he collapsed and—]” Her words died at the sight of Uzi hunched over V, sobbing. “Shit.” She rushed forward, crouching low. “[Uzi! Look at me!]”

Uzi’s optics jerked toward her sister, but kept flicking back to V. She was shaking, tears so detailed on her screen they might as well have been from a human.

“[Listen,]” Doll pressed, her voice sharp but not unkind. “[You’re freaking out. What do we do when one of us freaks out?]”

Uzi gulped, trying to catch her words, but mind fogged by reality. “[L-listen… to the other,]” she managed to stammer, albeit in Russian.

“[Right,]” Doll nodded. She took a breath, and began to direct her twin. “[N collapsed. I’m guessing it was at the same time as V. What does that mean?]”

“… Something did it.” Uzi blinked hard, brain stuttering back online. She laid V carefully against her lap, brushing a thumb across her silent screen. “Her systems look like… safe mode? Not dead. Just locked out. Their cores are too different from a Worker’s to be certain. I could jack straight into her system and look at her code, but if it’s a virus…” She bit her lip. “Then I go down with her.”

“[Then we don’t screw up,]” Doll said firmly.

Uzi gave a nervous nod. “R-Right… Let’s… let’s move her over to my PC.”

Doll nodded and slid under V’s legs, helping Uzi rest V against the wall. Uzi couldn’t stop herself from staring at V’s limp form. Taking a breath, she got up to at least get her girlfriend a pillow or something. Doll read her mind, using her Solver to toss one from across the room. Uzi grabbed it and propped it under V. It wasn’t much, but it was something.

Uzi booted the computer, cursing at how slow it was. The whine of old fans filled the silence as she snapped a cable into the port on V’s neck. 

“Can you drag N in here?” Uzi asked Doll. “I need to make sure what I’m looking at isn’t just on V’s system.”

“[Understood,]” Doll nodded. She got up, and stumbled. Clenching her teeth, Doll forced herself to keep going. Yes, she may not care for V as deeply as Uzi does, but V was good for Uzi. And N didn’t deserve whatever was happening. She just had to have faith they could figure this out, together.

In the meantime, Uzi was looking over V’s code, trying to figure out what was happening. She found a few things forcibly shut off, which she turned back on with some injected code of her own. By the time Doll had managed to drag N in and prop him next to V, Uzi had gotten her screen to turn back on. It only displayed that murderous X, but it was something.

Uzi continued to type furiously, code flooding her monitor. At first it was clean lines, then… something twisted. Functions overwritten with symbols that didn’t belong, like faces flickering in the static, grinning. “...It’s worse than a virus,” she muttered. “It’s… a postback. Something’s phoning home, checking if they’ve shut down.”

“[Someone’s hacked into them?]” Doll asked, breathless.

“Not just anyone,” Uzi said, darkly. She turned to her sister. “It’s the same person that was messing with your systems.”

Doll’s eyes went hollow. “[W-what? How?]”

“They’ve apparently always been connected,” Uzi turned back to the computer, grabbing another cable. “Can you plug this into N?” When Doll took it, she continued. “It’s some kind of host server. And it looks like it’s either trying to wipe them or initiate a factory reset.”

“[Trying?]” Doll, questioned as she plugged N into the computer. “[What’s stopping it?]”

“Still checking that,” Uzi muttered, concentrating harder on her screen. Her fingers flew across the keyboard as fast as they could. “... I think I got it,” she muttered, typing in a few more things. She spun her chair around to face her sister. “Back when we first met, J injected a virus into V to delete her. But, I got it out,” she explained. “The only bad thing is that a good chunk of her memory files got corrupted. And that so happens to be the first thing this thing is trying to get rid of.”

“[The corruption is slowing it down,]” Doll realized.

“Yep,” Uzi nodded. “And it looks like N has some corrupted memory files too. He just never noticed.” She turned back to the computer. “I can get rid of the program responsible by deleting the files, but…”

“[But…?]”

“...” Uzi clicked on a file. It began to play. It wasn’t anything special, just a first person shot of walking down some kind of hallway. “The program needs to fix the files before it can delete them.”

“[Good for them,]” Doll deadpanned. “[But, I think they’d rather live than keep some old memories.]”

“Doll,” Uzi stared at the screen, not really knowing how to say what she needed to. Instead, she just pointed. Doll got closer, looking, and gasped. Most of the files weren’t labeled with anything more than timestamps. But, some of them were named something like: “DON’T FORGET”, “YOUR FAULT”, and “REMEMBER”. That wasn’t the shocking part. Uzi had the file’s properties opened. Under ‘last modified’ were three simple letters: C. Y. N.

“[That’s the thing that turned mom,]” Doll’s lights went pale. “[They have memories of it?]”

“Or at least modified by it,” Uzi nodded. “If I delete them—”

“[—We might lose some valuable information.]” Doll finished. The two sat quiet for a bit, contemplating what to do. But, the clock was ticking. “[Is there any way to get rid of this thing but keep their memories.]”

“... Maybe…” Uzi pushed her chair over to her workbench, ripping open a drawer and tossing things out as she searched for something. “Aha!” She pulled out three white disks with red antennas.

“[I remember those,]” Doll smiled, fondly. “[You tried to jailbreak our systems when we were, what, eight?]”

“And I’m going to do it again!” Uzi cackled, hopping off her chair and slapped a disk each to V and N’s head. “This’ll dump their memories while shoving in dummy files to distract Cyn’s Host. But it’s gonna notice eventually.” She walked back to the computer and brought up a few programs. “When the code hiccups, you’ll have to dive in manually. Switch files, reroute pathways, whatever it takes to buy me time.”

“[You’re serious?]” Doll hissed. “[You’re going in there alone with that… thing?! What if it fries you too?]”

Uzi paused. Her smirk faltered. She walked over to the Murder Drones, sitting down and taking V’s hand again, intertwining her fingers with sharp claws. “If Cyn’s behind this, I’m the only one with a patch to block her control. It has to be me.”

“[Dammit,]” Doll cursed softly. She touched her sister’s shoulder. “[I’m pulling you out if it goes to shit.]”

“Frickin’ better,” Uzi whispered. She pressed a kiss to the edge of V’s claw and cuddled closer. Then, softly, “I’m coming V. But, just in case… Я люблю тебя.” She snapped the third disk onto her own head. Code flared as she ran an internal program. And the world went white.

Chapter Text

“You guys. Cyn’s… Cyn and the Solver… aren’t the same person.”

Even the faint, glitching hum of Uzi’s PC seemed to pause, the entire bunker hanging in a fragile, brittle silence. V’s words hovered in the air like frost —sharp and delicate— as if saying them louder might make the world split in half.

“Uh,” Lizzy piped up after what felt like a full system reboot, her tone rougher than usual. “Cyn? Like… the Cyn? The creep who convinced Doll to go all murder-mode at prom? And made your mom into some weird gargoyle-drone?”

Doll nodded, her optics flickering red to a dull, pale ember. “[Yep. That’s… Oh…]” Her voice caught, flickering out like a dying radio. “[You don’t think that it was…]” She trailed off, throat tightening around the thought.

“Trying to assimilate you too?” Uzi finished softly, her own lights dimming. “It would track, unfortunately.”

Doll finally focused, red eyes narrowing towards V, forcing herself back to the present. “[How do you know it wasn’t lying just to hurt you?]”

V shifted her weight, sitting cross-legged on the floor now that the numb shock had settled into her joints. “My Emotional Analyzer kept pinging her— I mean, it, as guilty.”

Silence returned. Not sharp this time, but heavy, dragging like wet snow. It wasn’t just about Cyn. It was the sudden understanding that they weren’t just fighting the ghost of one girl, they were fighting something far bigger, and more complicated than they ever could have thought. Uzi’s hands clenched and unclenched at her sides. Doll’s optics wouldn’t stop flickering. V’s tail curled tight around her ankle. Even Lizzy, normally full of snark, stared at the floor with her lips pressed in a hard line. What were they even supposed to do now?

…

A soft knock against the door frame broke through the quiet. “[Hey, why are yours and the front doors open?] Yeva’s voice was calm and grounding. She leaned on the frame, scanning their faces, the exhaustion settling over the room like smoke. N’s absence told her a lot. Her optics softened. “[Okay. It was obviously something serious. Do you want to talk about it now, or should I give you more time?]”

None of them answered. They just sat there, caught in the slow free fall of realization. Eventually, V exhaled. The sound was sharp, cutting through the static as she pushed herself upright. “Might as well rip the band-aid off. Seeing as this is now everyone’s problem.”

Yeva frowned gently but didn’t push. Yet. V brushed her hand across Uzi’s cheek as she passed, a tiny, soft gesture. Uzi didn’t realize how badly she needed it until her core stuttered around a breath she hadn’t known she was holding.

The twins rose to follow, still quiet. Both trying to figure out what they could even say at this moment.

“Hey,” Lizzy’s voice came out, small. Small in a way no one had ever heard from her before. She reached out, fingers tightening around Uzi’s sleeve like she was holding onto the edge of something about to give way. “Mind hanging back for a sec?”

Everyone froze mid-step. 

Doll and Uzi shared a confused look, voices colliding in unison: “[You want to talk to her]/me?”

“Ugh,” Lizzy scoffed automatically, rolling her optics. Only Doll seemed to notice how forced it was. “Yeah, I know. Me talking with the freak is freaky. But, it’s…” Her grip on Uzi’s sleeve tightened. Uzi looked over at her sister, confused.

Doll frowned, stepping slightly closer. “[Lizzy? Whatever it is, you know you can talk to me.]”

Lizzy’s optics flickered. For a split second, they weren’t the sharp pink most were used to. They dulled, as if losing power. She turned her face away fast, like if anyone saw it, something inside her might crack. The silence stretched, hot and uncomfortable.

Uzi shifted awkwardly. “You guys think you’ll be good on your own for a bit?”

V stared at Lizzy for a beat, most likely reading her Analyzer. Her expression softened with quiet understanding. “Uh, yeah,” the Murder Drone nodded. “This seems important.”

Doll’s frown deepened, the weight of it sitting just beneath her usual composure. She kept staring at her girlfriend, waiting for those pink lights to glance her way. Waiting for her to say something to her. To not leave her standing in the doorway. But Lizzy didn’t look back. Not once.

“...Okay,” Doll whispered, switching to English. The word trembled just enough to show how much she didn’t like this. “I’ll be on the couch with mom and V, if you need anything.”

Lizzy just nodded. No sarcasm. No biting tone.

The others exchanged uncertain looks but didn’t push. V slipped out with Yeva, Doll trailing behind them with one last lingering look at Lizzy that she didn’t get returned.

The bedroom door clicked shut.

Lizzy’s fingers uncurled like she’d been gripping onto a cliff for too long. Her shoulders slumped. Whatever wall she’d been holding up cracked just enough for Uzi to see it. She shuffled toward Doll’s bed without her usual bright, confident strut.

Uzi looked around, as if the walls might whisper the answer she didn’t have. Lizzy just sat there on Doll’s bed, staring at the floor. Her usual bright pink lights remained dull, half-flickering, like a neon sign on its last bit of power. 

Awkwardly, Uzi shuffled over and sat beside her. The silence stretched, thick and painful. “... So…” She coughed, just to fill it. Lizzy wasn’t giving her anything to work with. “What, uh… what did you want to talk about?”

Lizzy didn’t answer. Her optics twitched slightly, her hands wrapping around her own arms. Uzi noticed the faint tremor in her shoulders. Lizzy opened her mouth a few times, each attempt dying in her throat.

That was enough for Uzi to know this wasn’t just some BS drama. She hesitated, then, with a sigh to remind herself this was for Doll, she went for the nuclear option: physical affection. She reached out, wrapping an arm around Lizzy’s shoulders. The contact made her systems prickle with static. She wasn’t built for comforting, not like this. If asked, the purple drone would say it burnt. But, she held on anyway. Her voice dropped to a whisper. “Hey. Whatever it is, you can tell me. I guess.”

That was all it took to break the dam.

Lizzy’s breath hitched once, then again, before she finally gave in and started sobbing. It was ugly, messy, and loud. The sound startled her as much as it did Uzi

“My… my…” she choked between gasps, trying to stop crying long enough to explain. “My parents.” Uzi froze. “They found out,” Lizzy forced out, shaking her head like she could undo the memory. “About me… and Doll.”

Uzi’s eyes went wide. “Shit,” she cursed, arm instinctively tightening around Lizzy. “Okay,” she breathed. “Okay. This is fine.”

“No it’s not!” Lizzy snapped through the tears.

“Right! Sorry! Sorry!” Uzi blurted, voice cracking under the panic. She rubbed slow, unsure circles on Lizzy’s back, trying to calm her down the way she remembered Nori doing for her. “I mean, it’s not fine, obviously. But, we’ve already talked about this. You can stay here while we figure everything out.” Lizzy’s crying slowed, just a bit. She nodded against Uzi’s shoulder. After a moment, Uzi took a cautious breath. “Did they… kick you out? Or did you run away?”

“...” Lizzy looked like she might start crying again if she answered. So, she just lifted one shaky finger.

“Okay.” Uzi tried not to react and just moved on to her next question. “What about Thad?”

That actually made Lizzy huff out a weak laugh. “He’s… he’s fighting with our parents. Said he’d make them apologize, one way or another.”

“Wow,” Uzi smirked. “He sounds like Doll when she’s mad.”

The mention of her girlfriend made Lizzy straighten a little, though her lights remained dimmed. “That’s the other thing.” She sniffled and rubbed her face with both hands. “I know Doll is going to go full scorched earth when she finds out. That’s why I wanted to talk to you first.” 

“Good call,” Uzi said, and for once, meant it without sarcasm. “Solver or not, I don’t think your parents would survive her wrath. Hell, they might actually be safer with it.”

Lizzy let out a wet laugh, then immediately winced. “I just… don’t want to deal with…” she vaguely gestured. “I just… Like, need to…” She let her head drop into her hands, irritated the word wasn’t coming to her.

“Process things?” Uzi offered. Lizzy nodded. “I get that.” She looked around the room. The one where her girlfriend and best friend were just dying in a few minutes ago. “I doubt all this Solver crap is helping.” Uzi sighed, not seeing a better time for this. “Truth be told, it’s pretty overwhelming.” Lizzy looked back up at her. “Doll’s got witch powers, N and V were literally killing machines, our moms are badasses who keep surviving cosmic horror, and I’m just…” she made a small gesture with her free hand, “the hacker with a rail gun I keep procrastinating on fixing.”

Lizzy snorted between sniffles. “Who would’ve thought you would end up being the normal one, freak?”

“Hey,” Uzi said with mock offense, smiling just a little. “Don’t call me a freak. We’re on the same level now.”

“Oh robo-jesus,” Lizzy muttered before cracking up, laughing through her tears.

The sound wasn’t pretty, but it was real. It filled the small room like air finally coming back after being held too long. For a while, they just sat there. Two exhausted girls in the aftermath of everything, sharing the quiet.

“I’ll keep Doll from going murder-mode,” Uzi promised. “She’ll listen to me… probably. Either way, hope you don’t mind dealing with my family’s weirdness on a daily basis.”

Lizzy sniffled one last time and brushed her arm across her screen. “Please. I’m fabulous enough to outshine whatever you weirdos throw at me.”

“Sure you are,” Uzi said, giving her back one last pat before standing. “Come on, drama queen. Let’s go add our trauma to the pile.”

V had just finished her recap to Yeva when Uzi and Lizzy finally slipped into the room. The cheerleader looked exhausted, as if she was the one who had a brush with death. No dramatic or smug attitude, no snippy remarks. Just, empty. Uzi hovered at her side, strangely gentle, guiding her over to the couch and easing her down next to Doll. V expected Uzi to slide in beside her afterward, but instead the purple drone plopped directly onto Doll’s lap.

“[Hey!]” Doll protested, trying to shove her sister off. “[Uzi!]”

“Nuh-uh,” Uzi said, gripping the couch like she’d welded her hands to it. “Solver doesn’t work on me, so I’m staying put, and you have to deal with it.”

Doll groaned under her breath. “[Uzi, be serious.]”

“I am,” Uzi insisted, annoyingly stubborn. She looked over at Yeva. “Mama, Lizzy has something to say.”

Yeva blinked, still trying to process everything V had just dumped on her, but she nodded silently, her maternal programming telling her this required immediate attention.

Lizzy swallowed. Her hands twisted into the fabric of her skirt until it nearly ripped as she stared blankly at the floor. When she finally spoke, it was barely above a whisper. “... My parents kicked me out.” She had to pause to take a breath. “Because they found out about me and Doll.”

The silence that followed hit hard. V felt it like static across her wings. Yeva’s expression fell into shadow. And Uzi, still planted firmly on Doll, gave a tiny nod, confirming it wasn’t a misunderstanding.

Doll, meanwhile, had gone far too still. 

“[Что они натворили?]” One of her eyes sharpened into the Solver symbol. Red static crackled and glitched around her. 

V didn’t even get a full second to blink before Uzi, predicting Doll’s next move, threw herself backward off the couch in a messy flip just as Doll teleported, tackling her when she reappeared, sending the both of them to the floor.

“No you don’t!” Uzi snarled, wrestling her sister down as she tried to launch herself forward again.

“[Let me go!]” Doll snapped, her voice glitching. “[They hurt Lizzy! I’m not just going to sit here and]—”

“[Exactly! Lizzy’s hurt!]” Uzi snapped back in Russian. The sharp tone hit Doll harder than the tackle. Just like that, mid-struggle, mid-glitch. She froze. Guilt flickered across her face, mixing with fury and protectiveness and heartbreak all at once. Uzi’s voice softened, but her grip didn’t. “[Do you really think she’s going to feel better if you hand her their heads?]”

Everything inside Doll trembled. Her lights glitched one more time as she gritted her teeth… and the Solver symbol blinked back into her normal red eye. Uzi let out a long exhale and helped her up. The moment they were standing, Doll immediately crossed the room, her anger folding in on itself as she saw Lizzy hugging her own arms, eyes still fixed on the floor. Doll sat beside her and wrapped her in a firm, unwavering embrace, one hand rubbing slow circles on her back. Lizzy broke instantly, crying into her chest.

Next to them, V felt her own chest ache in sympathy. Until Uzi flopped dramatically into her lap with a groan

“Jeez. When did I become the responsible one?” she complained

V rolled her eyes and stroked that purple hair. “Hey, it just means you’re more important than anyone else.”

Uzi perked up, smirking. “Yeah! I’m the leader of this team!”

“[Cool],” Doll said over Lizzy’s shoulder, not missing a beat. “[In that case, you can tell the teacher whatever excuse you can come up with as to why we didn’t turn in our essays.]”

“Bite me!” Uzi shot back. Lizzy gave a hiccup-laugh into Doll’s chest.

V was about to tune out the sibling chaos again, trying to figure out how to help N, when she finally registered something. “Hey,” she glanced around the room, “where’d your mom go?”

Everyone’s head turned.

Yeva’s seat was empty.

The front door was open.

Doll and Uzi locked eyes. A heartbeat of pure terror passed between them before they both said, in perfect unison:

“Говно.”