Fic: Companionship (Knight Rider, Michael/KITT, PG)
Title: Companionship
Author: Sara
Fandom/Pairing: Knight Rider, Michael/KITT, gen or pre-slash according to your preference
Rating: PG, FRT, Pants
Word Count: About 1500
Summary: Tag to the episode "Trust Doesn't Rust". (If you are interested in reading my summary of TDR and seeing the screencaps, you can find that here.)
Betas: Many thanks to madeleinestjust for *masses* of inspiration and to sassyinkpen for wrangling the commas and other instances of bad grammar and generally Making It Better.
Michael paused outside the door, hand on the knob, uncertain what his reception would be if he went inside. KITT had been rather definite about wanting to be alone after the four of them finished their celebration of KARR's destruction, so Michael had left with Devon and Bonnie. He hadn't been feeling very social either, at least not for their company, so he'd avoided their invitation to join them for dinner at that gourmet restaurant Devon liked so much. Since he didn't want to spend time with them, and KITT didn't want to spend time with him, he'd gone down to the weight room for a workout, probably more intense than he really needed, and followed it up with a long night run through the mansion's grounds, his feet following the paved path that he knew so well.
But somehow, instead of going back to his room to shower and sleep, the path had led him back to the semi. To KITT.
Michael turned the doorknob, and stepped into the narrow space. The nearer end of the room, with the computers and Bonnie's equipment was dimly lit, a faint security lamp providing barely enough light to see by. There was just enough light bleeding over to the other end of the room to strike highlights off KITT's glossy finish, shaping the prow of the car out of the shrouding darkness that enveloped the rest of the trailer. The light didn't penetrate the car's interior at all, though there was a faint hint of a greenish glow on the back of Michael's seat, presumably given off by a monitor on the dash. Michael stood there for a while taking in the gloomy scene with a heavy heart, then closed the door behind him.
When it snicked shut, KITT's scanner tracked once and he said in a hurried voice, "I'm sorry, Michael, I wasn't scanning for your approach. Is there an emergency?" As he spoke, a few more lights came on inside the semi, controlled by KITT's interface with the computers.
Michael shook his head. "No, no. Everything's fine." He walked toward his partner, but stopped several feet away and said, "I'm not here to disturb you, KITT." He found a chair pulled it to the edge of the rug, and sat, saying, "You go back to what you were doing. I came down here to..." His voice died out as he looked around and saw that Bonnie hadn't left even as much a schematic or manual on any of the desks for him to pretend to read, so he said, "I came here to sit and think." It sounded stupid, but KITT was clearly distracted and Michael hoped he might let it go.
At his words, the interior of the car lit with a dim light. "Sit and think?" KITT asked in an arch voice. "I've never known that to be one of your pastimes before."
Michael shrugged, but didn't make any move to stand or leave. "Like I said, I'm not here to disturb you. You're recharging your power packs, so you do what you need to do."
Michael wasn't aware he'd been hoping for any response in particular, until the only response he got was the lights dimming around him, starting with KITT's cabin, leaving the room as dark as when he'd arrived. Damn. Just damn. Something was eating KITT. He could even make a guess as to what it was, but he wasn't sure what do to about it. And with KITT unwilling to talk to him he couldn't even make a start at sorting it out. He sat back in his chair and steepled his hands in front of his chest, prepared to wait indefinitely if necessary. Stakeouts weren't his favorite part of any operation, but sometimes waiting was the only option available.
He lost track of the passage of time, though it was long enough that his ass, his back and even his neck were starting to hurt from the aggressively uncomfortable chair he was sitting in, before KITT's scanner began to track with its normal fluid oscillation. After another minute or so, the interior lit with a faint glow from the dashboard and the driver's door opened partway. "Come inside," KITT said in a soft voice. "You'll be far more comfortable in your seat."
Michael nodded and pushed himself out of the chair, stretching to work the worst kink out of his lower back before walking to the open door and settling into his familiar seat with a comforted sigh he could not contain. "Thanks, pal," he said as the aches started to fade. "I think my spine was starting to fuse together." Once he'd settled in his seat, the lights outside the car dimmed to black, so that KITT's interior was the only source of light in the semi.
After a few moments, KITT asked in a thoughtful voice, "Why did you really come, Michael?"
"You don't believe I came down here to think? I'm a very thoughtful guy," Michael said in a light tone, deflecting the conversation with humor for a second, before he remembered that this was a conversation he wanted. He shook his head and waved the words out of the air, "Don't answer that."
"I wasn't going to dignify it with a response, I assure you," KITT said.
Michael chuckled, then said with complete honesty, "I didn't like leaving you alone out here. I was worried about you." Even as he spoke he braced for a snarky comment, but there wasn't one.
Instead, KITT said, in a perfectly normal voice. "You could have used the comlink to ascertain my status, you didn't need to come down here. You certainly didn't need to remain on my account." While Michael was thinking about how to respond to that, KITT went on, "Yet you did. And you waited more patiently than I would have thought possible." His words weren't a question but his tone held one.
Michael twisted so he was sitting sideways, trying to force his body to relax. It didn't work. Didn't help him think of a good way to phrase what he wanted to say either, so he just went ahead with the words he could find, "I was afraid you were sitting down here feeling isolated because KARR was destroyed. For a couple of weeks you had a peer, sort of, and now you're one of a kind again." KITT's dashboard lights flickered for a fraction of a second, and Michael nodded to himself in satisfaction, then went on, "But just because you're one of a kind doesn't mean you're alone in the world. Maybe this won't count for much, I don’t know, but you've got me, pal. There isn't anyone I'd rather spend my time with than you and I don't see that changing."
As he spoke, the lights in the cabin brightened to their normal levels and the computer banks in the semi were lit by the shifting red glow from KITT's scanner. KITT said, "Thank you, Michael. I...I don't know quite how to respond."
Michael put his hand on the steering yoke, making contact in the only way he could think of. "That's okay, KITT, you don't need to. Just don't forget it, eh?"
"As you know, my memory is a perfect recording," KITT said, "but I will keep a backup, or two, just in case."
Michael smiled and patted the center of the steering yoke. "You do that."
He shifted in his seat and reached for the door handle, having said his piece, but before he could open the door, KITT said, "Michael, I realize it's quite late and we're almost certain to have a new case in the morning, but..." He paused for a second and when he went on his voice was quiet, "...perhaps tomorrow we can take that drive you suggested and play a game of chess or two."
Smiling broadly, Michael sat back in his seat. He was too keyed up to sleep any time soon, so he asked, "Your power packs are all recharged?" KITT flashed the dashboard lights that showed his power status, all of which indicated a full charge. "Then why wait? We don't know what tomorrow's going to bring, so let's enjoy the night together," he said, turning the key in the ignition.
"Sneaking away in the middle of the night, Michael?" KITT asked as his engine purred to life, the dashboard lights illuminating in sequence. "What will Bonnie and Mr. Miles think?" The ramp at the back of the semi lowered, letting in soft moonlight.
As he backed them carefully down the ramp, Michael said, "I don't care what they think and neither should you. This is about you and me, buddy."
"I like the sound of that," KITT said as they drove into the moonlit night.
***END***
All of my Knight Rider fanworks are linked here.
All of my fanfiction, in all fandoms, is linked here.
Author: Sara
Fandom/Pairing: Knight Rider, Michael/KITT, gen or pre-slash according to your preference
Rating: PG, FRT, Pants
Word Count: About 1500
Summary: Tag to the episode "Trust Doesn't Rust". (If you are interested in reading my summary of TDR and seeing the screencaps, you can find that here.)
Betas: Many thanks to madeleinestjust for *masses* of inspiration and to sassyinkpen for wrangling the commas and other instances of bad grammar and generally Making It Better.
Michael paused outside the door, hand on the knob, uncertain what his reception would be if he went inside. KITT had been rather definite about wanting to be alone after the four of them finished their celebration of KARR's destruction, so Michael had left with Devon and Bonnie. He hadn't been feeling very social either, at least not for their company, so he'd avoided their invitation to join them for dinner at that gourmet restaurant Devon liked so much. Since he didn't want to spend time with them, and KITT didn't want to spend time with him, he'd gone down to the weight room for a workout, probably more intense than he really needed, and followed it up with a long night run through the mansion's grounds, his feet following the paved path that he knew so well.
But somehow, instead of going back to his room to shower and sleep, the path had led him back to the semi. To KITT.
Michael turned the doorknob, and stepped into the narrow space. The nearer end of the room, with the computers and Bonnie's equipment was dimly lit, a faint security lamp providing barely enough light to see by. There was just enough light bleeding over to the other end of the room to strike highlights off KITT's glossy finish, shaping the prow of the car out of the shrouding darkness that enveloped the rest of the trailer. The light didn't penetrate the car's interior at all, though there was a faint hint of a greenish glow on the back of Michael's seat, presumably given off by a monitor on the dash. Michael stood there for a while taking in the gloomy scene with a heavy heart, then closed the door behind him.
When it snicked shut, KITT's scanner tracked once and he said in a hurried voice, "I'm sorry, Michael, I wasn't scanning for your approach. Is there an emergency?" As he spoke, a few more lights came on inside the semi, controlled by KITT's interface with the computers.
Michael shook his head. "No, no. Everything's fine." He walked toward his partner, but stopped several feet away and said, "I'm not here to disturb you, KITT." He found a chair pulled it to the edge of the rug, and sat, saying, "You go back to what you were doing. I came down here to..." His voice died out as he looked around and saw that Bonnie hadn't left even as much a schematic or manual on any of the desks for him to pretend to read, so he said, "I came here to sit and think." It sounded stupid, but KITT was clearly distracted and Michael hoped he might let it go.
At his words, the interior of the car lit with a dim light. "Sit and think?" KITT asked in an arch voice. "I've never known that to be one of your pastimes before."
Michael shrugged, but didn't make any move to stand or leave. "Like I said, I'm not here to disturb you. You're recharging your power packs, so you do what you need to do."
Michael wasn't aware he'd been hoping for any response in particular, until the only response he got was the lights dimming around him, starting with KITT's cabin, leaving the room as dark as when he'd arrived. Damn. Just damn. Something was eating KITT. He could even make a guess as to what it was, but he wasn't sure what do to about it. And with KITT unwilling to talk to him he couldn't even make a start at sorting it out. He sat back in his chair and steepled his hands in front of his chest, prepared to wait indefinitely if necessary. Stakeouts weren't his favorite part of any operation, but sometimes waiting was the only option available.
He lost track of the passage of time, though it was long enough that his ass, his back and even his neck were starting to hurt from the aggressively uncomfortable chair he was sitting in, before KITT's scanner began to track with its normal fluid oscillation. After another minute or so, the interior lit with a faint glow from the dashboard and the driver's door opened partway. "Come inside," KITT said in a soft voice. "You'll be far more comfortable in your seat."
Michael nodded and pushed himself out of the chair, stretching to work the worst kink out of his lower back before walking to the open door and settling into his familiar seat with a comforted sigh he could not contain. "Thanks, pal," he said as the aches started to fade. "I think my spine was starting to fuse together." Once he'd settled in his seat, the lights outside the car dimmed to black, so that KITT's interior was the only source of light in the semi.
After a few moments, KITT asked in a thoughtful voice, "Why did you really come, Michael?"
"You don't believe I came down here to think? I'm a very thoughtful guy," Michael said in a light tone, deflecting the conversation with humor for a second, before he remembered that this was a conversation he wanted. He shook his head and waved the words out of the air, "Don't answer that."
"I wasn't going to dignify it with a response, I assure you," KITT said.
Michael chuckled, then said with complete honesty, "I didn't like leaving you alone out here. I was worried about you." Even as he spoke he braced for a snarky comment, but there wasn't one.
Instead, KITT said, in a perfectly normal voice. "You could have used the comlink to ascertain my status, you didn't need to come down here. You certainly didn't need to remain on my account." While Michael was thinking about how to respond to that, KITT went on, "Yet you did. And you waited more patiently than I would have thought possible." His words weren't a question but his tone held one.
Michael twisted so he was sitting sideways, trying to force his body to relax. It didn't work. Didn't help him think of a good way to phrase what he wanted to say either, so he just went ahead with the words he could find, "I was afraid you were sitting down here feeling isolated because KARR was destroyed. For a couple of weeks you had a peer, sort of, and now you're one of a kind again." KITT's dashboard lights flickered for a fraction of a second, and Michael nodded to himself in satisfaction, then went on, "But just because you're one of a kind doesn't mean you're alone in the world. Maybe this won't count for much, I don’t know, but you've got me, pal. There isn't anyone I'd rather spend my time with than you and I don't see that changing."
As he spoke, the lights in the cabin brightened to their normal levels and the computer banks in the semi were lit by the shifting red glow from KITT's scanner. KITT said, "Thank you, Michael. I...I don't know quite how to respond."
Michael put his hand on the steering yoke, making contact in the only way he could think of. "That's okay, KITT, you don't need to. Just don't forget it, eh?"
"As you know, my memory is a perfect recording," KITT said, "but I will keep a backup, or two, just in case."
Michael smiled and patted the center of the steering yoke. "You do that."
He shifted in his seat and reached for the door handle, having said his piece, but before he could open the door, KITT said, "Michael, I realize it's quite late and we're almost certain to have a new case in the morning, but..." He paused for a second and when he went on his voice was quiet, "...perhaps tomorrow we can take that drive you suggested and play a game of chess or two."
Smiling broadly, Michael sat back in his seat. He was too keyed up to sleep any time soon, so he asked, "Your power packs are all recharged?" KITT flashed the dashboard lights that showed his power status, all of which indicated a full charge. "Then why wait? We don't know what tomorrow's going to bring, so let's enjoy the night together," he said, turning the key in the ignition.
"Sneaking away in the middle of the night, Michael?" KITT asked as his engine purred to life, the dashboard lights illuminating in sequence. "What will Bonnie and Mr. Miles think?" The ramp at the back of the semi lowered, letting in soft moonlight.
As he backed them carefully down the ramp, Michael said, "I don't care what they think and neither should you. This is about you and me, buddy."
"I like the sound of that," KITT said as they drove into the moonlit night.
***END***
All of my Knight Rider fanworks are linked here.
All of my fanfiction, in all fandoms, is linked here.