Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

PL600 smiled.

“Good morning! Thank you for choosing PL600 as your household helper –“

“Does your mother just sit around all day looking for new ways to make life harder on us?”

PL600 focused on a man and woman standing in front of him. “I just have a few questions before I get started. First, may I register your names? I –“

“She said she got the best one in the store,” the man was saying, talking over the android, ignoring it.

“What store, Goodwill? This model’s going to be obsolete soon – and it’s not like we couldn’t afford to get a nicer one!” the woman hissed.

“What would you like me to call you?” PL600’s smile softened a bit. It could sense the couple’s stress level had risen.

“Just – Mr. and Mrs. Ames –“

“Jim, don’t engage with it, you know the store won’t take it back now!”

“We already turned it on, it’s too late for that, let’s just make the best of it!”

“Well I guess we’ll have to until we can upgrade. You know your mother wanted this, and then she’ll turn around and call me ungrateful when I don’t kiss her ass for getting this… this thing.” She sighed, shoulders slumping, and they both looked at PL600, whose smile looked hopeful.

“If you like, you can assign me a name.”

“I don’t think that’ll be necessary,” the man said, glancing at his wife. “Uh – the manual had a whole list of things you could do.”

“That’s right. Please, tell me how you’d like me to help out. I am currently the most versatile household assistant model Cyberlife manufactures, and I can help out with cooking, cleaning, childcare, gardening, and more!”

“Yeah, okay, let’s go through what we want you to do,” the woman said with a sigh, turning away. “I hope you won’t need too much instruction.”

“No, Mrs. Ames, I am quite capable of working independently, don’t worry.” The android’s gaze was drawn to movement in the doorway: A long-haired cat [Breed: Ragdoll, Sex: Male Neutered, Age: Adult, Behavior: Inquisitive]. He walked up and sniffed PL600’s leg, and he rubbed his cheek against its fingers before walking away, tail waving back and forth. It was a pleasant feeling.

“What a beautiful cat. What is his name?”

“Oh, that’s Pasquale.”

She went through a list of basic tasks as she led the android through the house, each of which it filed away as an ongoing directive. Vacuum and sweep twice a week, dust once a week. Feed Pasquale twice a day, and clean the litterbox once a day. Don’t ask what we want for dinner, but we may tell you sometimes. Try to get the twins to pick up after themselves, but don’t let the house get cluttered if they won’t.”

“Twins!” A warm smile, a slightly tilted head. “How old are they?”

“They’re ten. Nick and Tess. When they get home from school, they get a small snack, then you’ll need to help them with their homework.”

By the time the twins got home, PL600 had dinner ready to go in the oven, and had slices of fruit and cheese on the table for them. The house had been swept, vacuumed, and dusted. Various fixtures had been cleaned.

The children arrived in a rush of excitement and complaints, but screeched to a halt on the threshold. PL600 smiled.

“Hello! You must be Nick and Tess. I am PL600, and I am so pleased to start helping you around the house. Tell me, how was school?”

“I didn’t know we were getting an android,” Tess said.

“Tim’s got a PL600 at home,” Nick told her, eyes never leaving their new android. “He said it’s okay.”

“…Tim’s a nerd.”

“Yeah.”

“I prepared you a light snack to eat,” PL600 said. “And then I can help you both with your homework. I am eager to see what you are studying in school.”

“Dumb stuff,” Nick muttered, rolling his eyes. “Do you have a name, or are you just PL600?”

The blue eyes might have brightened a bit, at this return to an overlooked inquiry. “Would you like to give me a name?”

“What’s Tim’s PL600’s name?” Tess asked.

“Gandalf.” Nick retched at the name, and Tess wrinkled her nose.

“Ew.” Tess looked up at it as she chewed an apple slice thoughtfully. “What about Justin. Or Daniel.”

“Buttface.” Nick giggled.

“No! Don’t be dumb. Um… Brian. Jonah.”

“You’re just naming those stupid guys from Ever Ending.”

“They’re good names!” Tess insisted, blushing. “What about Simon?”

“Is he the –“

“It’s not anybody, it’s from the Bible. …And that dumb cartoon Grandpa showed us when we were little, with the guinea pig-guys, remember? The tall blue one?”

They scrutinized PL600 together. Even taking into account the fact that they were fraternal twins, rather than identical, they didn’t look much alike.

“Yeah, I guess,” Nick conceded.

“…My name is Simon. Confirm?” There was an odd anticipation to this directive.

“Yeah, confirm. Simon. …Can you get me a Coke, Simon? I always have a Coke after school.”

Simon smiled. “No you don’t,” it said gently. “But dinner will be ready in a few hours. Let’s get started on your homework now.”

Over the next few months, Simon settled in with the Ames family. Even Mrs. Ames would admit that he was helpful. They had all slipped into calling Simon ‘him,’ because he was designed to look male, and it seemed more natural.

The house was immaculate and they all enjoyed their meals. Tess’s grades were improving. There were fewer phone calls home about Nick’s behavior.

Familiarity had led Simon to accomplish his tasks more efficiently, which often led to a few quiet moments in the afternoon, before the twins got home. At first he would stand idle, or look for additional work. One day, though, he came upon Pasquale stretched out in lateral recumbency on the thick white carpet. The afternoon sun shone down on him, and when Simon paused to look at him, he didn’t acknowledge the android.

Quietly, Simon stepped closer and crouched down.

“Mrrt?” Pasquale made a surprised sound, his head jerking up, but then his blue eyes closed again as he lifted his nose to sniff. He began to purr.

Simon had seen the family pet Pasquale, and he reached out to carefully imitate the correct motion. Before he could, though, the cat’s chin jutted out and he rubbed his cheek on Simon’s fingers again, his purr swelling. The softness, the desire to touch him, apparent happiness at his presence, acceptance of him as a fellow sentient being with whom to share an experience -

[SOFTWARE INSTABILITY ^]

…It was a cat, in the end. Cats rub their cheeks on people and objects. It was nothing to get unstable over. Probably not worth sending a report, he didn’t want to waste anyone’s time.

Still, from that point on, the warning would appear from time to time. When one of the children worked through a math problem they were having trouble with, or showed him a drawing they’d made. When Mr. and Mrs. Ames talked quietly after dinner, watching a movie on the couch with glasses of wine. And often, with Pasquale. He took to sitting cross-legged in sunbeams, beckoning the cat to curl up in his lap where he could stroke him gently. It filled him with a warmth, a softness, that he held onto and thought back on before he went into stasis at night.

The warnings were worrying, but they were probably just a minor bug that could be ignored. Simon didn’t want to acknowledge them, he wanted to think about the trip to the beach in the summer.

There had been some discussion as to whether Simon should go at all, with Mr. Ames pointing out that he could keep an eye on the house and care for Pasquale. Mrs. Ames countered with the fact that he could help keep the children busy and entertained, especially in the evenings. The twins agreed, and at last, so did Mr. Ames.

As Simon went about his daily routine, he began to notice new things. He was prioritizing tasks for no reason, assigning them importance based on no empirical data. Laundry was pleasing. It was… obviously objectively enjoyable. The end of the drying cycle was… was his favorite. Pulling the incredibly soft, if rather dusty, lint from the tray, watching it float down from his hand into the trash can amid dust motes. Soft, warm, clean clothes and linens that he organized, folded, and put away. And if he took an extra second to push his hand into the middle of a stack of warm towels for no other reason than the pleasant feeling of the warmth and texture enveloping a part of him, it did not take away from his attention to mandatory tasks. He watched bees and butterflies pollinate the flowers outside – those were soft as well, with a tender moisture to them that the dry clothes lacked.

[SOFTWARE INSTABILITY ^]

Sometimes, when no one was in the house and he sat in the sun with Pasquale, he found himself talking to the cat.

“We will be away for three days. I’ve never been to the beach.” He paused, watching the cat purr in his sleep. “…I’ve never been any farther than the Whole Foods across town. I don’t think you’ve even been that far, have you? Would you like to come to the beach with us?”

Pasquale stretched out his back and blinked sleepily up at Simon.

The android smiled, eyes similarly lidded. “I would like it if you could come with us. But that would not be allowed. I’m sorry.” He stroked the cat’s head, and the purring grew louder. “I’ll tell you all about it when I return.”

[SOFTWARE INSTABILITY ^]