Chapter Text

Chapter 5

☆Nori's Return☆

“Uzi!?!” The mutated core exclaimed, “And YOU!?!” She pointed to N.

“Mrs. Doorman! What are you doing here?” N asked

he then realized it “Wait…”

N gasped “YOU CAME BACK TO REUNITE WITH YOUR FAMILY!” He said excitedly pointing at her.

”What I-Wait a second…WHY ARE YOU TWO STANDING SO CLOSE?!” The core pointed to the two.

Uzi looked to N, noticing that they were as matter of fact very close together.

Uzi quickly tore apart from N, and tried to play it as cool as possible.

N chuckled nervously, and placed his hands behind his back.

The situation was bad, but was quick to get worse when Khan had become involved.

”Hey!” A muffled voice was heard through the door.

The door swung open revealing a Khan Doorman, wearing his usual nighttime fit; a blue robe and bunny slippers, plus a cup full of warm oil in his left hand too sooth him to sleep.

”What is with all the screaming out here?!” Khan opened the door his free hand placed onto his hip, he looked down to see the core.

“oh! It’s you again!” his expression changed to shock.

”What are you doing here? And more importantly, how’d you get this address?” He asked her.

Nori completely ignored the question.

”Khan, are you letting our daughter date a murder drone!?” The core exclaimed and placed pointing at him with one of her tendrils “and the dumbest one at that matter?”

“Hey!” N and Uzi exclaimed, N looking more hurt while Uzi looking more angered at the comment

”What? Well I mean, no I’m not letting her, but I’m not stopping her either,” Khan exclaimed “I mean she seems happy, and wait- our daughter!? Excuse me??”

His squinted his eyes in confusion, completely lost of why she had said that, Nori tried to explain.

”Khan it’s me!” The core gestured to herself, “Don’t you recognize my voice?” she walked right in front of his feet..

The father continued examing creature, tapping his chin deep in thought.

N and Uzi watched with anticipation if he would realize it was his wife or not.

”I'm sorry, but no” Khan shook his head, “Doesn’t ring a bell at all.”

The creature though not having a mouth, and only one eye, was clearly saddend by this.

N sighed in disappointment

“Seriously?” The core said, “*sigh* That’s sucks.” She shook her head

”Honestly, I’m not shocked, my dad’s pretty dumb.” Uzi declared

”HEY!” Nori hissed, spinning around to meet her daughter's face “You don't dare call your father dumb, espicially while I'm around!”

”He is dumb! Besides it's payback for you calling him dumb!” Uzi pointed to her boyfriend

”BITE ME!”

”NO YOU BITE ME!”

The two then began to argue, as they had argued, Khan watched them both closely, before it had hit like a bus speeding in oncoming traffic.

No other drone on this entire planet would “exclaim bite me” as often as Uzi, all except for the one she had learned it from…

Khan’s jaw dropped to the floor,

His hand went limp, letting the cup of oil pour down onto the floor.

“Nori?” He sputtered out.

The mother and daughter fell quiet, and both turned to see Khan.

”Is it really you?” He asked.

Nori stared up into his eyes,

“It’s really me.”

”You’re alive..?”

she nodded, her husband gasped.

No, that couldn’t be. His mind went into a spiral She was dead, she has been for 18 years, he saw her die, he was the one who killed her, put her out of her misery, a clean swing right into the screen RIGHT INTO HER PROCESSORS HOW COULD SHE POSSIBLY BE ALIVE!?!

Then all of a sudden, with one singular error doot!

He blacked out,

and fell smack dab face into the floor.

BANG!

The couple and the mother all three shouted for him in alarm, all quickly crowded him.

"MR DOORMAN!?!" N cried

”OH GREAT! I GET MY MOM BACK, AND NOW MY DAD DIES!?” Uzi exclaimed “THIS IS SO NOT CASH MONEY!”

”Khan, sweetie, speak to me! Are you okay!?!” Nori latched her body onto the back of his head “Dangit, I didn’t come back just to lose you again!”

N pulled Nori off of Khan's head and onto the floor, as well as pushing gently Uzi away, he turned Khan onto his back.

*KHAN.EXE HAS STOPPED WORKING* was what his screen had said.

”Is he good?” Uzi looked over her father's unconscious body once more.

N placed a hand on the man's chest, the core was still online so that was a good sign.

”I think he passed out from shock.” N replied.

”Passed out from shock?? that’s stupid, how does someone even do that anyway?” Nori scoffed

”Yo Khan, thanks for letting me come with you and your employees for your spa day,” V walked out, wearing a towel on her head, glowing in dim lights on the ceiling from the polishing she had gotten early. “Now I know why Lizzy is always such a big advocate for self care, this feels great.” She looked down at her nails.

Nori seemed as though she had seen a ghost.

She turned to her daughter, “Why is she in here?” She pointed to V.

”Uh, because I live here?” V shrugged

“You live here?”  Parroted the core, a digital brow raising on her screen

”Yeah, we both do as matter fact!” N chimed in “It’s fun too, like a forever sleepover at Uzi’s house.”

Nori was in complete disbelief.

”Oh!” She began to laugh “The two murder drones, the hitmen sicked on us by Cyn, they-they live here in my house, with my two loved ones who I’m really attached to hahaha that’s a good one!”

”Any other freaks of nature I should know about living with my husband and daughter?”

”Uhh we'll ya see…” N began

”Actually one of them livess inside your daughter!” Cyn finally made her debut, popping out from Uzi’s solver tail and looking directly to Nori.

Uzi grabbed Cyn’s neck and pulled the tail back behind her.

Just like her husband, Nori blacked out as well, falling right by Khan,

THUD!

N and Uzi simply stared in shock

“So what’d I miss?” V asked, as though it was just another day in the bunker.

。。。

A half an hour later…

The three teens brought Uzi’s parents into the living room, letting them both lie on the couch for a moment, until they woke up again.

Once they woke up again, they all decided to sit at the kitchen island where Nori would tell them how she had escaped death and how Khan kept the colony alive for the past two decades.

”So let me get this straight,” Khan began. “You’ve been alive this whole time, living under us, as a…core thingy?”

”Yup.” Nori nodded

”And you modified this building to have these big metal doors in order to keep all the drones inside safe?” Nori asked her husband.

”That’s right.”

”But then you let their killers in when you just decided to change your mind one day?”

”Uhh…” Khan scratched his head “Not exactly.” He corrected her.

”See.” Khan began “I only changed my mind when I’d seen N had changed and truly was: on our side, now”

Nori was not moved, “And what about her?’ She raised a claw to V ”Did she have a change of heart at all?”

“Honestly, I was just doing what N was doing.” V shrugged “Otherwise they would have kicked my butt.”

”That, and she also got attached to one of the drones!” N said

V shoved him, flustered.

”And what do the others think about this?” Nori asked

”They didn’t take it too well at first,” Khan said “Eventually though they got used to the idea, and don’t mind them being here now! Some of them actually like the drones now.”

”Sounds like Stockholm syndrome.” Nori declared without missing a beat, Crossing her tendrils together

”It’s okay, they-they all understand!” Khan insisted

“Oh yeah, sure Khan. You’ve–uh–you’ve forced innocent drones to live together with two oil thirsty serial killers that took out at least one of their loved ones, I’m sure they all understand just fine.” The core waved a claw about in the air.

Uzi looked at her mother as though she had slapped her, and Khan simply stared down at the table, nervously scratching his arm, like a kid who had been scolded.

“Well when you put it that way…” the man sheepishly began

Nori groaned tiredly rubbing the upper part of her screen where her forehead would have been “And did Yeva and Mitch take this? Because I’m sure they wouldn’t be okay with this either.”

Immediantly after the words had left her mouth, everyone at the table went dead silent, eyes as wide as saucers at what she had said.

Nori noticed this and quickly knew something was wrong.

“What?” She asked.

She was met with the uneasy quiet once more.

Khan and Uzi sneakily looked to each other from the corner of their eyes, who was gonna tell her? They silently asked each other.

N looked over to V, is she talking about who I think she’s talking about? Was what his eyes said to her.

V pursed her lips together, and nervously pushed her hair out of her face.

That was who she was talking about.

N and V both learned of Mitch and Yeva through Uzi, when she had explained them both that that was Doll's parents, that was all they knew though, because Uzi as well didn't know about them and their history with her parents either.

”Nori…” Khan slowly placed a hand onto the table, trying his hardest to place down the horrible fact as gently as he could.

“I don’t know how to tell you this…” Khan confessed, “But, Yeva and Mitchel…”

Nori’s panic grew even larger, “No.” he didn’t even finish, and she was already denying what he was saying

That couldn't be it.

They we're always so careful.

It didn't make any sense.

”They’re gone.”

The eye on her screen flickered, and Nori completely froze.

When Khan had this, it felt as though Nori had died for the second time, her best friend, her sister, gone, but how?

”What do you mean she’s gone?” She asked, “What happend to her?!” She roared out.

Again, she was met the quietness of everyone, she noticed the two murder drones in front of her.

She crawled over to them both ”You! One of you did this, didn’t you?!” She pointed one of her tendrils to them both, turning to them both at least once.

They both looked away in shame.

”I’m sorry…” V said voice not even above a whisper.

”Oh?? You’re sorry?!” Nori spat “What do you mean you're sorry?! You killed my best friend, and all you have to do is say you're sorry!?!” She slammed a claw onto the table

N akwardly scratched his arm, unsure how to respond, V simply tried to ignore her.

“Nori please calm down.” Khan said

“Calm down?” His wife turned her attention to him, “Did you seriously just tell me to calm down, meanwhile two ex serial killers are sitting in a house with my family who I love dearly?!”

Khan bit his tongue, knowing their was nothing he could say to make the situation any better.

Finally Nori’s anger subsided, she sighed, looking down at the table for a moment, “What about Doll?”

Khan raised a brow “Pardon?”

”What.About.Doll.” Nori repeated “Is she okay?”

Khan’s eyes turned hollow, and his mind went completely blank.

N placed a hand over his mouth.

Nori learning from last time already knew what that meant, and her heart shattered once again.

The claws that held her up, went numb, she dropped onto the table, like a newborn deer who failing to walk, ”Oh my God.”

Not only was Yeva and Mitchell both gone, but Doll was as well? That hurt even worse, Mitchell and Yeva, they lived their lives, but Doll? Doll was just a baby, she didn't even get to experience the world, fall in love, have a family, all of that was gone for her.

"You killed an entire family!!?" she shouted to V, causing her to flinch.

"No!" Uzi quickly came to V's defense "S-she didn't kill her!"

"Doll had snapped after her parents death and she ran off," frantically explained the purple haired teen "We don't know what happend, but I think Cyn had gotten to her."

"What?!" Nori cried

"If it makes you feel better, she down fighting it looked," N pointed out "She was really brave Mrs. Doorman."

Make her feel better? How would that make her feel better. Nori stayed limp, a whole family gone, what a sick sad world, the only good thing about this was her parents didn’t have to feel the pain of their daughter’s loss.

Coming back, it felt as though Nori had returned from a nightmare only to find reality was even worse.

Her daughter was dating a murder drone, who her husband had wellcomed in their colony with open arms.

Yeva and Mitch both gone, along with their onyl daughter doll? This had to be fake right?

This couldn't have been real, could it?! Please, please God just let her wake up.

She closed her eye tears threating to fall down her screen, hoping that maybe if she opened and closed her eyes it would go away, and she'd instead be woken up by her husband while slept in bed being told it was just a bad dream and that it would be okay.

It didn't happen though.

All she seen when she opened her eyes was her husband in front of her her daughter beside both looking in pained shock, then those...things...filthy things.

Rage began to boil inside her, threatening to erupt, like an unstable volcanoe preparing to spew lava out onto any undeserving indivual and melt their skin off.

Finally Nori found her words. “Get out…” she mumbled so quiet that nobody had heard what she said.

N closer to her. “What did you say Mrs. Doorman?” N asked

Hearing him dare even speak her last name, was the straw that broke the camel's back.

The glyph of the solver appeared on the two white haired drone’s chest, and they were thrown from their seats, Uzi gasped as this happend.

BANG! With a cry they were slammed to the floor, the glyph disapeared off from their bodies.

Nori sprung down the from the table, and ran in front of the two.

”GET THE F### OUT!” She shrieked

They both looked to Nori, then to each other, then to the front door, they got up from where they sat.

Both N and V, stil flat on their books, looked at her like two deer in headlights

N was first to make a move, sitting up, hands far behind him

”And I swear to robo God if I see you guys in this house ever again, I WILL F###ING KILL YOU!” She threatening tendril waving in the air “Do you understand me?!”.

”MOM!” Uzi jumped up and tried to run to her two friends.

The disambley dromes were shocked, never in all their lives had they ever been threatend like this by anyone, espicially someone of her size.

V still gawking at the heart monster, hesitantly nodded her head, N shakily followed behind her.

”Nori calm down!” Khan ran preparing to pick his wife up.

”No, they need to know their place...” Nori stopped Khan placing the solver symbol on his hand freezing it for a moment.

N and V both scrambled to their feet.

“Wait, no!” Uzi jumped up from the chair and tried to head after them, but it was too late.

V was first to make it to the front door, not even bothering to say anything, N was next, but as he had left he did bid farewel

“Goodbye Uzi.” N whispered peaking over the edge of the doorframe and waving as he shut the door.

Uzi felt her heart ache seeing the fear on her boyfriend’s face “N…” Uzi softly whispered back to him, stopping, in her tracks and watching as he had left.

Nori watched the door closely for atleast a minute, making sure they had officially, until finally turned to face her family, her singular eye slanted in anger,

”What are you doing Uzi?!” Nori scolded coldly, scurrying in front of her daughter “Have you seriously gone this whole time being buddy buddy with those things ?!”

Uzi felt anger boil up inside of her, hearing how her mother talked about them both “Those “things” are my friends!” Uzi corrected her, “And you have no right to talk to them like that!”

”I have EVERY right to talk to them like that!” Nori retorted “Those things killed half the people I’ve known and loved, and you’re an idiot for taking up for them after everything they’ve done!”

Her daughter clinched her fists up

”Excuse me?!” She stomped a foot closer to Nori, fists clenched and teeth gritted in rage,

Khan realized that the conversation was going to far, quickly stepped

He ran in between them both ”Now girls—“ he tried to speak, raising his hands up, but was quickly interupted.

”No. Uzi thundered pointing to her dad, “Don’t ” now girls ” me.” She mocked her father’s tone.

Uzi stomped down the hall.

”That woman hasn’t been in my life for eighteen years,” She pointed a finger right at her mother’s screen.

Nori was unphased looking right back at her daughter, with her eyes full of as much hatred and visceral as her daughter’s were to her’s.

”You have no right to judge me for ANY of my decisions,” Uzi said “because if you had even cared, you wouldn’t have left me and dad for dead in the first place!”

Nori flinched hearing this, that managed to strike a nerve inside of her.

”You…” she tried to defend herself, but she just couldn’t.

Nori shook her head “You don’t know what I’ve been through.” She sighed.

Uzi looked it her, without even a lick of sympathy, “And you don’t know what I’ve been through.” she snarked.

And just like that, Uzi marched her way to her room for the night, not to speak another word to either of her parents for the rest of the night.

Thus it was only Khan and Nori left in the room, with V and N escaping the fiasco, and Uzi retiring to her room for the rest of the day, Nori was still not satisified with her scoldings.

“How could you let this happen, Khan?” Nori looked to him “Our daughter? And a murder drone?! Together!?!”

”I didn’t let it happen!” Khan looked to her, raising his hands up in the air “She was just dating him one day, I couldn’t stop her!”

“Couldn’t stop her?!” Nori repeated this line in disbelief “What do you mean you couldn’t stop her?? You’re her father!”

”I’m a very busy man,” Khan shrugged “and Uzi’s a handful! I don’t want to come home from a long day of work and have to battle it with my daughter about whether she gets to date her weird vampire boyfriend or not!”

“How can you be too busy to worry about your daughter’s safety?”

“Well how can you be too busy to even be here and raise the child that YOU specifically wanted to have?!” Khan exclaimed

He pointed a finger to her.

Nori still tried to defend herself

"I-"

"NORI! I had to raise a child alone, for EIGHTEEN YEARS!"

Nori jumped back in shock.

"Eighteen years! Do you understand that?" Khan continued

"I raised her from childhood to adulthood, all alone!"

guilt quickly crossed her face,

No He had a point, him and Uzi had.

Nori had left them both for dead, and she did leave Khan alone to raise their child, when in hindsight he really was a very busy man.

All because she was too ashamed of all the problems in fear of the pain it would cause for people to know she was the reason for half of it all. 

In reality though?

Her running away from her mistakes made it even worse, it was descipably cowardly, so very irresponsible, and only caused her family undeserving turmoil.

A tear began to fall from her eye, her claws wobbled under her, a throbbing pain all across her body from anxiety. She felt disgusted with herself, and honestly she was disgusting.

Realizing the direness of the sitation she realized how low a chance she had of fixing the situation, despite that though, she still pathetically tried.

“Oh Khan, I had no idea how much pain I had put you  both through…” she explained “I’m…I’m so sorry.”

Khan shook his head, still staring down at his wife.

Nori looked away, she wasn’t even able to look him in the eyes, her husband however placed a hand below her eye, and made her look to him.

Nori wrapped a claw around his finger.

”Why did you leave in the first place?” Khan asked, voice cracking, in an attempt to keep from crying, “And why didn’t you tell me about you’re solver powers?”

Nori squeezed his finger

“I was scared of what you’d say.” She confessed “If you’d be afraid of me, and if you’d treat me how they treated me.”

Hearing his wife say that shattered him, was she serious? No matter what had happened, nothing would have been able to change the way he saw his wife.

”Nori…” He cooed softly, “No matter what you are, or what you have, I would still love you all the same.”

”But what about everything else? How I caused those things to come here, how I ruined our daughter’s life? Does that not bother you in any way?

Khan shook his head, pulling his hand off from her “It’s not your fault that they came here, and if anything, you not being there caused Uzi more problems than she already had.”

Nori sighed softly shaking her head “I know that now…”

She let out a shaky sob.

”But it’s okay, because you're here now, and even if she's an adult you can still make a difference, in Uzi’s life.” He picked his wife up and held her close to his chest, in an attempt to hug her.

Nori felt herself choke up, she hiccuped once.

”I hope you're right.” Nori snuggled closer to him

She really really did, because the direction her daughter seemed to be heading into, was not a positive one in Nori’s eyes.

Even now when they were having this moment, she still wanted to ring her husband’s neck thinking about what he had let happen, despite that, she kept the urge down.

”So, are we going to be okay now?” She asked him, “You’re not mad now?”

Khan shook his head with a soft giggle “oh no, I am furious.” he grinned passive-agressively

He then squeezed his wife just a little tighter "It IS a start though."

Just hearing him say that made Nori feel much better, their relationship while it was still gonna be rocky, as long as they stayed honest with each other, it would get better.

Hopefully she’d manage to fix her relationship with Uzi as well.

。。。