The First Time I Saw . . .
[OOC - This is based on the Knight Rider Trust Doesn’t Rust novel-canon.]
The first time I saw Michael, I’d already formed a first impression. And a second. And a third. It was right after we got back from the Foundation’s first case in Millston, California. I’m not sure it was even officially a case, so much as Michael going after the people responsible for shooting him. Which, at the time, seemed a little inappropriate, but over the years the Foundation has often found itself embroiled in cases because of something that’s happened to one of us.
But getting back to Millston, the thing was, we’d created an ‘indestructible’ vehicle. I suppose, like the builders of the Titanic, we were a little too proud of that fact. Oh, we knew Kitt had limits. We knew there were things that could be done that would cause damage. But we didn’t anticipate the new driver finding so many of the chinks in Kitt’s armor on the very first mission. There was a big difference between our tests and the things he was exposed to in the field. I guess that was my first real taste of that - having to work in the real world.
I’d gone to Millston with the semi to pick up Kitt after the case was finished, and had to spend the trip back running diagnostics and determining exactly what repairs were needed. By the time I got back, my head was spinning from the catalog of problems. I needed some parts from the lab and I knew that the new comlinks, which I was looking forward to seeing, were finished. But my real reason for going to the lab was to clear my head and come up with a plan of attack for fixing the damage. So there I was in the lab, going over everything in my mind, none-to-happy, and in walked Devon and Michael.
My first impression of Michael had already been formed by the fact that he had gone off with Kitt, pretty much without sanction, and had, in my opinion, recklessly gotten him damaged. My impression on actually meeting Michael was that he thought he could get away with it by flashing a winning smile. And I was in no mood for that. There was no way I was going to swoon, bat my eyelashes, and say ‘oh, that’s okay.’
I don’t remember exactly what I said, but I’m sure it wasn’t very nice. Devon and I ended up in the hallway outside the lab. He was giving me his teamwork spiel and hitting me with rational, logical points of view that I really couldn’t argue with. For all his British reserve and decorum, he was pretty skilled at figuring out what arguments worked on different people and using that to his advantage. Although, I’m not sure he ever really figured out what worked on Michael.
Looking back on it now, I think that argument was actually good for Devon. It was no secret that he wasn’t happy with Wilton Knight’s choice for Kitt’s driver. And that probably gave a lot of people, myself included, the feeling that we were free to criticize Michael and second guess him. Having Devon put his foot down and declare that we were all going to work together probably headed off a lot of unpleasantness. Not to mention the fact that being in the position of having to defend someone or something is a good way to start seeing things in a new light - to start focusing on the positives instead of the negatives. So in a way, I think it probably helped Devon change his mind about Michael as well.
It’s interesting in retrospect, how our little family had such inauspicious beginnings. Sometimes I’m amazed that things worked out as well as they did, despite the growing pains. I can’t imagine anyone other than Michael as Kitt’s driver. I can’t imagine anyone else in Michael’s role in all of our lives.
First impressions definitely have their limitations.
Muse: Bonnie Barstow
Fandom: Knight Rider
Word Count: 657