Chapter Text
Stone- ever-attentive, never faltering, always reliable. He had been Robotnik's assigned agent for three years, and neither would change it for the world. The two worked together perfectly, like they were destined to be together. Robotnik was intelligent, though short tempered- and Stone was cool, collected, a balance for Robotnik. There was no denying the chemistry they had, the deep connection that had formed over years of near-constant close proximity and shared cups of coffee.
Robotnik had memorised every little detail of his agent. He took 5 minute breaks three times a day, what Stone did during those breaks was none of his business. Never had the agent been a minute early or a minute late. Always, always on time, work hours, lattes, emails, cleaning. Robotnik had not only memorised his habits, but also every contour and scar on the agent's face and body. He'd examined every available sliver of skin he could, he could draw Stone in complete accuracy from memory over and over.
Stone was also incredibly attentive to the Doctor. He committed Robotnik's schedule to heart, along with many many blueprints and, most importantly, the way he preferred his coffee to be made. Perfection, every single time without fail. It was mutual obsession, a clear, whole, unique connection that drew them together.
Which was why Robotnik noticed instantly when something was off.
"This latte is a percentile too sweet. What happened, Stone? Somebody sneak some extra sugar in while you were distracted?" Robotnik muttered, spitting his coffee back into the cup and gesturing for Stone to take it back.
"My sincerest apologies, Doctor. This mistake will not happen again." He said in a level, sincere tone, retrieving the cup, almost immediately strolling out of the lab to remake the coffee.
Stone had seemed off that morning. Robotnik noticed immediately that the agent's demeanour was… different. He was a little too cheery, a little too eager, and a whole two minutes late. The doctor was incredibly tempted to reprimand the agent, tell him off for the unacceptable behaviour, but for whatever reason, he decided otherwise. Something buried deep in his instincts urged him to refrain from commenting.
Four minutes later, Stone returned. Concerningly, a minute earlier than what would have usually taken the agent to prepare Robotnik's coffee. Without even looking back at Stone, he knew either the brew would be of lower quality, or the temperature would be too low. Rushing the preparation of a latte was, again, unacceptable. Three unacceptable behaviours displayed in the time frame of two hours.
Robotnik took the coffee from Stone's outstretched hand, the agent oddly quiet. The doctor cleared his throat.
"I have a suspicion you rushed this coffee, Agent. While I will not request for you to go and make me another, I do hope that this unsatisfactory behaviour will not persist." There was a clear threat in the Doctor's tone, though alongside it was a twinge of concern. Was Stone sick? The agent would have alerted him if that was the case, he knew that Robotnik did not tolerate contaminants in his lab. Maybe he just hadn't gotten enough sleep.
Robotnik figured that the problem would most likely resolve itself within the next day or two. Stone was resilient, always looking to please Robotnik, so he would most likely want to get back to his typical attentiveness.
Except it didn't.
Small slip-ups and lateness came up almost daily for the next week and a half. Robotnik was getting tired of how sloppy Stone had become. More recently, however, the agent had been becoming increasingly touchy and overly curious about everything. He would stand several inches too close to Robotnik, he would touch every piece of technology the doctor was working on, asking questions and prying information.
Robotnik would have deduced that the man was a spy if it weren't for it being… Stone. He knew Stone. The agent would never press his boundaries, would never go digging for information on whatever random thing Robotnik was working on. Stone would never ask random questions out of nowhere about what hair product the doctor used, how often he washed himself, if he had ever worn makeup or had any piercings. The questions were sprinkled throughout casual, usual conversation, and the doctor would more often than not avoid the question altogether.
He would find Stone staring intently at the badniks, or running his hands along every piece of furniture in the lab. The agent's eyes would be wide with curiosity, but immediately snap to stoicism when he noticed he was being watched. Neutral expression, chin slightly tilted up, the practiced stance of an agent ready to take orders. It was often what Stone had done when he had first been assigned, and he would fall back into that habit if he was embarrassed or if he felt it necessary for whatever reason.
All these little changes and unusual occurrences had led Robotnik to the conclusion that either Stone was suffering from brain damage, which was incredibly unlikely, or somehow, Stone had been replaced. Yes, logically, Robotnik knew it wasn't incredibly realistic. Little behavioural changes didn't mean that someone had been replaced with someone else. But every time he looked at his agent, something felt so horribly off.
Robotnik's mind screamed at him to not point out the flaws in his agent, to figure out what was truly occurring, find his real agent without alerting this fake copy that he knew something was wrong. He had to stay quiet, pretend nothing was wrong, pretend that everything was okay and that he was completely oblivious to whatever was happening. (It almost made the Doctor laugh at how stupid this copy had assumed him to be. He was the most intelligent man on the planet, for crying out loud-!! Of course he would have noticed, sooner or later.)
Robotnik would have used his tracking device to find Stone, if it weren't for the fact that said tracking device was connected to the agent's watch. Which this impostor seemed to have obtained. It was the same watch gifted to him on his 6 month anniversary of working with the Doctor, fitted with tracking, a direct text line to Robotnik, and a sturdy yet sleek design that matched Stone perfectly. If this fake had obtained that watch, that meant that it had most likely come into contact with Stone. The true Stone.
"Stone, organise a private meeting with the higher ups. Just me, Commander Walters, and those two Generals that I love toying around with." Robotnik ordered his agent with a dismissive wave of his hand. Stone nodded with a hum, already heading to his personal laptop to edit Robotnik's schedule and send out an email.
"Understood, Sir. Will I be in attendance, too?" Stone asked, not sounding the slightest bit hurt, simply asking a question.
"Apologies, dear sycophant, but this is between me and those idiots." Robotnik sighed, hoping that Stone wouldn't catch on, or be suspicious, or insist he came as well.
"Alright. Email sent, schedule changed. I will alert you when Commander Walters replies to confirm a time." Stone replies, quietly shutting his laptop. Robotnik could feel the agent's gaze on his back. He pretended not to notice or care.
Robotnik needed to bring up his concerns with GUN. As much as he hated admitting that, he needed to alert another party to what was happening, and perhaps launch some kind of undercover investigation. He had no doubts that Walters and those other generals would believe him, though they were stupid, they still acknowledged that Robotnik was far superior in intellect to them and knew things that they couldn't even begin to wrap their tiny little heads around.
Luckily for Robotnik, Walters seemed to be on top of his emails today of all days, having responded within the hour.
"Walters has informed me that he is available tomorrow at 2pm. Is that acceptable for you, Doctor?" Stone chirped, already beginning to type up a response email.
"Yes. Tomorrow is excellent. Ah, and Stone, try to… avoid passive aggressiveness in the email just this once. This is… somewhat serious." Robotnik noted, and Stone let out a little "hm." sound. "You may insult the Commander in the follow-up email. Actually, be twice as passive aggressive in every other email for today."
That drew a soft, familiar laugh from Stone. It almost made Robotnik's nerves ease, before remembering that he couldn't just let his guard down now. He had no idea what he was dealing with, so he said nothing in reply.
"Ah- It's 4pm. Would you like another latte, Doctor?" Stone asked, seemingly teleporting right behind Robotnik. The Doctor jumped in surprise, not expecting the proximity. Stone- the real Stone- would never have dared stand this close without express permission. Robotnik cleared his throat, turning around in his chair to face the agent.
Stone stared down at him with wide, expectant eyes, his usual look when waiting for an answer to a question. But the corner of his mouth was ever so slightly crooked, a tiny smile that any other person wouldn't be able to pick up. It was unnerving, that combined with the fact that the agent was standing a smidgen too close made Robotnik's skin crawl uncomfortably.
"Yes. I want my coffee on my desk within the next five minutes. No later." Robotnik replied, turning back to his work. Stone lingered for another couple seconds, seemingly leaning over the Doctor's shoulder. His hand lingered just short of Robotnik's neck, before he turned and headed out of the lab.
The Doctor let out a breath he didn't realise he was holding. His heart was pounding. He couldn't see Stone while the agent was standing behind him, but he swore he could feel the presence of his skin right near the column of his throat. Maybe it was nerves. Maybe he was just overthinking everything, as he often did, going over every detail trying to make it make sense, all while making it make less sense in the meantime. He wasn't supposed to be scared. He was supposed to be the one in charge, instilling fear in measly peasants beneath him.
But it was the knowledge that something was going on that he couldn't understand, something so familiar being ever so slightly off, that made his skin crawl. He was supposed to know everything. Doctor Robotnik, the smartest man in the world, uneasy over some slightly shifted behaviours in his most trusted agent.