In Room 82...

[still_michael]

From an AIM log, and after Michael's conversation with Starbuck...



Kitt was laying in bed. She'd not felt like doing much since she'd woke up. Of course, she wasn't about to tell Michael he couldn't go and enjoy the surroundings, and she'd even went and got a small plate (odd how she'd wanted a big hamburger, grease and all) for herself. She'd even taken a long bath. But now, she was just laying down, had been halfway dozing for a while, and still was. There was a pillow supporting her upper body, arms wrapped around it, and she was mostly asleep in her pajamas. It was so odd, feeling this drained. She hadn't for a long time.

Michael slipped in after talking to Kara-- which had been an interesting and enlightening experience, on the whole. He had every intention of telling Kitt about it, but... when he saw Kitt, he worried. "Hey, blackbird. You okay?"

"Mmf." She sighed, had been stretched out, but curled up to try to relieve... something. Some weird ache. "Yeah. I think so," she answered, sighing, pulling herself up and out of the haze of sleep. But she didn't sit up.

He settled next to her, careful not to disturb her too much. "You're not sick, are you?" Michael asked, worried. He was half inclined to feel her forehead.

"I don't think so," she answered softly, looking up at him and... trying to smile, even if she was tired. "I just feel run-down. Tired, but not sleepy."

She tried to smile, and he frowned-- for all it was in a rather obvious mother-hen sort of way. "Achy? Too warm?" Kitt had been exposed to the chicken pox recently...

"Achy. But not warm. Normal, just... tired." She did, however, reach out for his hand. "I'm okay, Michael - just tired."

His fingers laced with hers automatically. "I'm allowed to worry about you," he told her, smiling a bit. "... Your, um, your breasts aren't sore or anything are they?" There'd been a dispatcher in his precinct with something like four kids... and she'd sworn every time she could tell she'd caught pregnant by the next morning because of suddenly-sore breasts.

"Mf. A little," she admitted, frowning a little. "But it's more... all-over than that." What did that have to do with anything? She sighed, squeezing his hand. "And on my back."

"Where on your back?" And there was a warm hand there, idly rubbing up and down. Comforting, and little more.

She was smiling at that, at his comforting, and it really did feel good. "Mmh. Down at my waist," she answered quietly. He was being good to her.

Well, that-- no, that was only later, wasn't it? "Okay..." Michael kicked off his shoes and climbed onto the bed-- then behind Kitt. "Back here?" Hands at the small of her back, fingers kneading a bit. "Tell me if it hurts..." He didn't think she'd fallen. Maybe it was from wearing heels?

The sound "Mmm" didn't really apply as 'hurting.' "That feels good, Michael," she whispered. "Really good."

He chuckled. "Then I must be doing something right." And it wasn't exactly a chore to rub Kitt's back. "You been wearing heels a lot? Maybe it hurt your back..."

She rolled over onto her stomach so he could reach more and closed her eyes to let him, hair pulled over her shoulder. "Not really a lot, but I guess it's a lot compared to 'never.'" And she sighed as she started to relax - at last.

He rubbed a bit along either side of her spine. "Might explain the backache, anyway," he offered.

"If it were just in my back, I could understand," she murmured. "I can't figure it out, though. I've not ached like this before."

"... Huh. What else feels strange?"

"Just this... low-level ache. Kind of... in my intestines, but I don't feel queasy or anything..."

"... Your intestines." Her intestines? Maybe not. Michael was pretty sure he wasn't supposed to comment on it, but he'd been with Stevie for a long time... "Roll over for a second?" he asked, and scooted aside to let her.

She frowned a little, but did, rolling onto her back. "Why?" she asked, though she'd already complied.

"How's it feel just here?" he asked, spreading his hand over her belly, just below her navel-- and pressing a bit. No harder than his massaging, but... still definitely pressing.

She winced a little, but then, when the heat settled in, it felt better. "Mmf. Not so great."

Oh, God, don't be pregnant, let it be something else, neither of us is ready for pregnant. "Okay. And the last time you went to the bathroom?" Stevie used to mention she had cramps, but never when they stated. "Just curious."

"...What does that have to do with anything?" she asked, frowning again That was a little too personal.

"Well, if you're achy all over, I can only think of... three things. You're coming down with the flu, you're pregnant, or... you're a girl and it's a girl time of the month?" he offered. "So I wondered. Any one of 'em is possible." Although Michael was hoping for that last one. "It's been kinda long for it to be the chicken pox, anyway."

"...I'm rather sure it's not the flu, as I don't have a runny nose or coughing. And I can't be pregnant, because we've been practically religious about using protection." But the last, she couldn't guarantee against.

"We have been, but they can break or leak. It's not unheard of. I'd feel safer if you were on the pill, but..." But it was temporary, or should be, and... well, Michael had no idea how female birth control pills would affect a guy. "But if you'd been to the bathroom and it's... well, your time, you'd... know."

"Then we'll have to be patient," murmured Kitt. "We'll find out one way or another soon enough."

Michael nodded. "Yeah. Meantime, we worry a little, I guess." He lowered himself onto the bed, next to Kitt. "... Are you cold?"

"A little," she answered, and nestled close to him. "I feel better with you close and warm." It seemed to relax all those tense muscles.

"Stevie always got really cold," he mused, wrapping his arms around her. "Never before saw anyone wearing a sweater in Vegas in June." But he rubbed at her back-- friction more than massage. Generation of heat.

She cuddled against him. "Thank you," she whispered. "It feels good... Feels better." Even if she felt like she'd feel better if she could implant an analgesic into her gut. But she did want a kiss. Tried to kiss him, though lightly.

He returned it-- the effort and the kiss. It was a careful kiss, though-- no sense even trying for more when Kitt felt off, regardless of what was wrong. "Maybe you just ate something funny," he offered. "Lemme know if you feel sick?"

"I did eat a big hamburger a while ago," she offered with a quiet laugh. "I just... felt like I had to have one."

"... You're cold and you feel crappy and you wanted a burger-- maybe you just needed some iron." It could happen. It'd be kind of a relief. Michael chuckled. "Ahh, whatever it is'll work out."

She tucked her head under his chin and nestled there. "I suppose it could actually be the beginning of my menstrual cycle," she considered. "I do have the aches and sorenesses, a craving for protein, and ... a marked increase in libido the last couple days..." That, she blushed at.

Whereas Michael gave a smug chuckle. "I've noticed that last one."

"...So had I," she admitted in a fit of blushing.

"I swear you're gonna wear me out trying to keep up with you."

"Michael..." she half-whined, half laughed.

"Well, you're energetic." It was hard not to laugh, at least a little.

"Well, you're temptation on two legs," Kitt answered him, smirking just a little.

"Now, how do I manage that, huh? You're the pretty one. And I'm the guy, I'm supposed to be easily tempted." Or something like that.

Kitt's answer was probably simpler than Michael expected. She reached up and touched his cheek. "...You smile."

It was. And it softened his tone considerably. "I've always smiled at you."

"I've always loved it. But it's changed... It's changed since before. It's so beautiful... There's a new light in your eyes, a different kind of warmth, and ... I love seeing it. I want to keep doing whatever I can to make it come back again and again." Her fingers stroked over his cheek in a gentle rhythm, red eyes looking into blue. "I love you. So much. And I love proving it."

He gently moved her hand, kissed her fingertips. "Something's been... easier, lighter, since I hit my head. I think it's... I dunno what it is, but... I think it's because I could choose, you know? I had the choice to make over again, and... I chose this." Without the guilt and the grief. Without the sense of aimlessness. He had chosen this life, being with Kitt... True, there still hadn't been anything to go back to, but it was clear enough to him that he could have gone, anyway. He might never have chosen to be Michael Knight, but... informed, he had chosen Kitt.

Her eyes misted as she listened to him, moved. He had chosen her. He'd chosen her over the life he could have rebuilt. And... Oh God, knowing it... She rested forehead to forehead with him, smiling from her heart. "I love you so much, Michael... You'll never know how... how much it means that you chose to be here with me."

"You're my partner," Michael murmured. "It all comes down to that. I belong with you-- never doubt it for a minute."

"Michael..." She wrapped her arms around him, tight as she could. "You're everything to me."

"And I try to live up to that, Blackbird." And what a damn shame it was that there were humans out there who... thought, would think, of AIs as machines to be used, of things to make life easier or more enjoyable-- but never as people to be loved and taught and cherished. He would definitely do what he could to keep his world from becoming Kara's. "I love you so much."

She curled in, nestled against him, and lightly kissed him one more time. "I love you too, Michael," she whispered, and nuzzled at him, smiling - meaning it. "I always will. I'm sure of it." Because... how could she not? He'd been programmed into her, that was true - but he'd won her love for more than that.
Almighty Hat: "Course you will," he murmured. "I'll always love you, too." He smoothed her hair, rubbed her back. "Get some rest, huh? Maybe you'll feel better..." It was worth a try. The next try-- if Kitt was just proving she was a woman-- would be chocolate. That was pretty much supposed to fix everything, as far as Michael could tell.

"I've been dozing all day, but I keep feeling like I could doze more." She leaned against him, smiling. "I hope I feel better soon. I really, really don't like this."

"Well, we figure out what it is, I'm sure we can find something to help," Michael offered. "I dunno what. Chocolate. Tea?"

Chocolate. "Mm. That... sounds good," murmured Kitt. "I think both are good ideas." Because she was a woman with a weakness. But then, Kitt had always had a weakness for chocolate.

"Shall I fetch and carry for you, or am I still busy being your full-body hot water bottle?" Michael asked, stifling a laugh.

"Hot water bottle," she answered with a soft laugh. "Thank you."

"Just making sure. Lemme know what to get you, when you're ready, and I'll get whatever you want."

"I'm not immobile," she chuckled. "I'm just achey. There's a difference." But he was still wonderful to curl up with. He did soothe her, by presence and warmth both.

"Doesn't mean you should have to take the stairs," he pointed out. "And I don't mind."

"If this is part of my menstrual cycle?" Kitt began, "I don't think I want to keep it."

"There's stuff that can help," Michael said. "Special painkillers, anyway. And I've heard-- but don't hold me to it-- that birth control helps. But I've never had a menstrual anything and I'm not allowed to take birth control pills."

She laughed, whether she wanted to or not. "...No, you wouldn't be. I think I'd be a little frightened if you started having tendencies to estrogen."

"So would I," Michael agreed. "It suits you better than it would me."

"...Well, I do have ovaries just now."

"Yeah, and they suit you." He chuckled. "Or... something like that, anyway."

She couldn't help but laugh at that. "...So... does that mean I should keep it?"

He had to think about that. "I'll admit I wouldn't object. But it's your body-- you have my permission and my blessing to wear whatever shape and hormones you want to, whenever you want to. Always have." But then he grinned a bit. "You might want to see if you can handle the monthlies, though."

"...Well, given how I've felt until now?" she chuckled. It might, she thought - it might just be worth it. Maybe. But... well, there were things to be done.

"You should talk to Bonnie," Michael told her. Female problems? Relegated to Bonnie. Michael only knew so much. "... I should find her, too..."

"Hm?" she asked, looking up at him curiously. "Why?"

"Well, because I've run across Ray, Windows-- or, um, is she Ninety-Five? I can never remember. Karr a coupla times, Eddie..."

"There are more versions of Windows than one, so I think she's Ninety-Five," said Kitt, and then... "So you've not seen Bonnie yet?"

"Nope. Haven't run into her. And I really do need to talk to her-- we've got to set up something to get her trained as a field operative, not just Karr's driver." There was a world of difference, Michael was discovering.

Kitt... had to frown a bit as she considered. But then she remembered the differences between herself and Karr - not to mention the fact that they'd apparently had all sorts of different requirements for a driver. "You may be right."

"Karr played back part of the fight they got in," Michael said. "It... sounded like a normal argument, really, except for how upset Karr was," which was easily explained by the fact that someone was holding a gun on Bonnie, "But it... How do I put this? I know I can be kinda reckless when people are shooting at me. But I don't normally egg 'em on when they're holding a gun on me and we're close enough to have a conversation." Bonnie maybe put a touch too much faith in Milliways.

Kitt sighed. "Then... I really don't think I should know. Because I'd probably just be upset by the whole thing." She did, however, lightly massage the back of his neck.

"What happened? Yeah, it probably would." Michael took a deep breath. "But you should know I went down to the... little jail they've got here... to try to talk to the girl. Her name's Kara Thrace, she's a soldier, she's beyond on edge, and... I think it was kind of an honest mistake that we're all lucky wasn't a tragic mistake." And he'd tell Bonnie that, too. Just as soon as he was sure that Kara and Karr would at least ignore each other when the girl was released.

"Her presence still makes me doubt my safety here," Kitt answered in a whisper. "Now in both forms." She sighed, though, and nestled closer, trying not to think about it. At least, not think about it too much.

"Right now, she's unarmed, locked up, and confused-- if not scared. She's from some universe where AIs, only she calls 'em Cylons, but I'd call a machine that can think an AI, but anyway... they sort of wiped out twelve planets' worth of people. There's fifty thousand of them left, and they're fighting to survive. She thinks it's a losing battle. I'm not saying it was anywhere near okay for her to go waving a gun around in a bar, but... She's just a kid. Grown up too fast and seen too much death and looking for a way to avenge some of it." But that was Michael-- wanting to help, wanting to show her another way, any other way, to think about it. "You're safe. Safe as you ever were, here. I promise."

"I met someone similar," said Kitt, quiet. "Her name is Trinity, and she lives in a very similar future. And yet, when she found out about my origin, she accepted me. I..." It was hard to accept that two futures that seemed so similar could have two very different reactions.

"Yeah," Michael said-- but gently. "And Kara met Karr, not you." And Bonnie, not Michael.

"You're right," admitted Kitt with a sigh. "Karr is protective. But he does have a right to be. It's in his programming and... we're both protective, when it comes to our drivers."

"Karr's also abrasive, and when he's threatened... well, he doesn't make AIs look good. Throw his driver in the mix and... he's protective of her, she's protective of him... I don't even know if Bonnie thought to get inside while the whole thing was going on." He might ask her. Might.

She sighed again and nodded. "With Karr, that's a personality trait. He didn't exactly have the kind of treatment that would foster a pleasant disposition."

"No, he didn't, and... I really hate to say it, but he might have to learn, too. At least how to fake it."

"I don't know if that's possible, Michael," she admitted softly. "With his programming to protect himself?"

"You know, I have to believe it's possible to protect yourself and be... courteous... at the same time. I really do."

What came out was a weak laugh, but she still was managing to smile. "I hope you're right."

He kissed her cheek. "I'll talk to Bonnie," he promised. "I will very carefully and tactfully talk to Bonnie." Bonnie first, then possibly Karr. Maybe Bonnie should talk to Karr.

"Thank you, Michael," she murmured, and nestled against him just a little closer. Mmh, but he was warm and that felt good all over.

"Mmm." Yes, some good feelings there. "Might have to take her on a few cases. Ride-alongs. Like that." But for the most part, now, he was content to lie with Kitt and rub her back.

"That's fine," said Kitt, content. "She'll be back from her sabbatical soon." She could fall asleep there against him. She really, really could. He was warm and... That was all she could think about. How sweet and warm he was.

"Mm-hm. It can wait that long," he agreed. Hopefully Bonnie wouldn't have any more guns pulled on her before then...

Kitt would've agreed with that, had she known. "It can," she agreed. "She learns quickly." Kitt privately doubted Bonnie had thought of this like a mission but a personal threat.

Missions were full of personal threats. Someone pulled a gun on you, the objective suddenly shifted to staying alive. But that was a cop thinking, a soldier. Kara, Michael thought suddenly, might have had more an idea what to do. "She's smart," Michael agreed. "And fearless, in her way. That'll go a long way."

She relaxed there, feeling like she could finally rest and smiled, and sighed. "Hopefully. I think she'll be successful when she tries."

"Mm-hm. She gets to learn from our mistakes."

"She and Karr have already had the time we lacked," Kitt agreed. "The time to get used to each other."

"Time to move from stuck to tolerate to like to love," Michael said. "They'll make it." He smiled, stroking her hair. "We'll teach 'em."

"Mmmm..." She smiled, fingers lightly kneading against his back in time with his fingers in her hair. "We will."

He wanted to tell her to get some rest-- sleep, real rest. But she seemed inclined to talk, a little. "We'll go slow," he murmured. "Train 'em, teach 'em how to deal with being in danger more often than they're used to. Take 'em on a couple of cases, then work a few with them. Then... well, there's no way to know which cases are gonna be easy, but we can try. Light duty."

She nodded and... well, so long as talking was few-syllabled and she was able to answer simply... "Mm. Hope we can get some easy cases to start them on..."

"We'll watch for 'em," Michael promised. "It's hard to know when things start out-- and they can always call us for backup, too." As they could call Bonnie and Karr, if they needed more hands or wheels or MBS.

"It'll be good..." And it would. Because it'd be a chance to kind of rest. Kind of, anyway. Someone to help lighten the load. "There needs to be more."

"... Yeah?" Michael asked, but quietly. Prompting. And considering what Kara had said.

"They've been working us nonstop," murmured Kitt. "Adding Bonnie and Karr would make it easier on us. And adding maybe some east coast partners would make it even lighter."

"Later," Michael said. "S'a good idea, but later-- when we can watch it. Make sure they're careful with the AIs, with the humans." Maybe it wouldn't be so much of a retirement, after all.

Kitt nodded. "Later," she agreed, and lightly kissed at his shoulder. "Mmhm."

"Later," came the repetition. "And carefully." He wouldn't see what had happened to Eddie happen to another AI-- and he wouldn't stand back and let what had happened to Kara's people start with him. (Besides, AIs weren't to be used, tools to make humanity's life easier. They were people, longer-lasting, both infinitely more delicate and a thousand times hardier. As well as trying not to damn humanity, Michael would not see Kitt, Karr, and Eddie as the founders of a slave race.)

Another soft, "Mmhm," and Kitt kissed... his cheek? His jaw? His chin? She wasn't paying attention, but there was still a light, gentle little kiss given to him. Later was a good idea. A few years.

"We'll take it slow." A promise to... everyone. Kitt, Eddie, Karr, Kara, Bonnie, humanity, AIs, God. Slowly and cautiously, and jealously guard the tech if they could.

The tech was dependant on humanity. The tech wanted, needed, humans - Kitt, Karr, and Eddie all. The shame was that humanity couldn't see that so often. "Good idea," she murmured, and came closer and closer to falling asleep.

It took more than humanity to see that. It took more than simply being human to understand how much someone nonhuman could bond, could need humanity-- without seeing it as a weakness, a resource to be exploited. "Plan things out. Something else to take up with Bonnie. Later." His beautiful blackbird. Kitt was his, and Michael knew that it took something to understand that. To know it simply wasn't a deed, an ownership, but an obligation. A responsibility. "I love you."

"I love you, too," she whispered, and lightly threaded her fingers into his hair, just at the very ends, enough to lay the tiniest claim. "My Michael."

"Always yours, Kitt," Michael promised in a whisper. "Ever and always yours."

She sighed happily and nestled close. And she found she felt... assured. Reassured. Certain, at last. Her fingers flexed, and then she was on her way to sleeping again, to dozing off once more, this time more comfortably than she had in hours.

Michael had a thousand things to think about-- but the most important one was resting in his arms. Kitt came first. He was sure, knew it in his heart and his gut, that if he stuck to that, it would all unfold the right way. Kitt came first. Realities and futures could wait.

Kitt slept - deep, dark, happy, and warm. She was where she belonged, and the aching was fading away with the warmth Michael was lending. No dreams - not yet. But Michael. She didn't know what would come except that there was Karr to save. But she would let the future come as it would.