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hattie_notqueen
:Hattie was waiting outside of O'Malley's, unsure of how one waited for a new friend like hers, exactly. She figured outside would be best, since, well... table? Playing pool? Not normally how one would converse with a car, right?
So, outside she waited after making sure that he'd be in Colorado Springs. She had driven her mother's car into town and was now standing on the sidewalk in a pair of jeans and a sweater, her coat buttoned up as tight as it could be. Snow was falling lightly and she shivered just a little.
:He had the location, O'Malley's, in Colorado Springs. He was becoming an expert with making excuses for getting away unchaperoned. He had a general description of what Hattie looked like.
Piece of cake.
When he spotted the young woman shivering on the sidewalk, he upped the heat in the cabin a notch before pulling up to the curb and easing open the driver's side door.
"I hope you weren't waiting long."
:Talk about your curbside service. Hattie looked around once before stepping toward the car as she unbuttoned her coat and sliding inside.
A smile as she heard the voice. "No, not at all. Maybe five or ten minutes, max. I'm good."
Was 'beautiful' an insulting word for a car like him? this? She wasn't sure if she should reach for the door handle or not.
:"Oh good. I've never been partial to cold weather, all that snow and ice. I can't imagine what it must be like to have to endure feeling the temperatures, as well."
The door swung open wider in invitation. Not that he was supposed to notice these things, but Hattie was rather pleasant on the scanners. "Did you have anywhere in mind?"
:"I like the cold in small bits. The rest of it? Not so much."
As she adjusted in the seat, she unwrapped her scarf from her neck and looked around before folding it carefully and setting it on the seat next to her.
Reaching out, she pulled the door shut and looked around the interior. Again, the words 'beautiful' and 'amazing' went through her head and she grinned. "Not really, no. I was just thinking-"
She had no idea. "Around?"
:"The salt the put down on the roads doesn't go well with my finish. And the cold cracks some of the insulation around my wiring. In this one instance however, I find braving the weather to be well worth it." He waited for her to settle in, the engine humming nearly silently.
"I can do 'around'." Pulling away from the curb, he called up a map of the area on his monitors, looking for points of interest. There were a lot of questions swirling through his CPU, but he didn't want to pepper her with them all at once. For now he was content to let things simply unfold as they would.
:"Oh, God, I'm sorry!" Another apology and she stopped before she went any further. "I mean, I'm glad you came. Thank you."
She rested her arm on the console and resisted the urge to try and steer or shift. It was odd, being in a car and not actually driving it.
"So," she hedged, not sure how to start the conversation up again. Leaning forward, she peered out the window. "I was reading up on your systems and I have to say that you're incredible, really. I wish I had more to contribute."
There was laughter in her voice as she was teasing just a little.
:"No, no, I apologize. I didn't mean to make it sound so harsh. I tend to grumble, but I really don't mean anything by it. I'm used to bickering with my driver. I should be thanking you for inviting me. That doesn't happen often, so thank you." Oops. He really hadn't intended that the way it sounded.
"And thank you again." He was preening, and he'd probably be told about his ego later by that self-same driver, but he didn't mind. That sheet on humans would come in handy right about now, though.
"Was this where you were born?" He wondered if she had actually grown up; if she could remember having a childhood.
:"Yeah, yes. I was. Born right up there-" She motioned back toward the mountain. "Air Force base. My dad does some work there. My mom met him there and then, later, my dad and I ended up stuck on a ship where some stuff happened and after years passed, well-"
She gave a small shrug. "I know it's not really that helpful. It's weird knowing what happened over the last twenty-one years and only knowing one other person does. Another man who was there, a good friend of the family. My dad doesn't remember, my mom wasn't even there."
A sigh and she brightened back up. "I can't say I'm sorry about being an adult though. I enjoyed my childhood, for the most part. I wish my mom had seen it. But, overall..."
:It took him a few moments to wrap his CPU around what he was being told. Even then he wasn't sure he grasped it all.
"And you've been saying I'm incredible. I think I have nothing on you. Your dad doesn't remember - did he age physically, as you did? Neither of your parents were able to see you grow up, then? May I ask why you are able to remember, and your father isn't?" He knew he was treading close to territory that she probably couldn't talk about, but overwhelming curiosity compelled him to ask anyway.
"Overall?" He was hoping she would elaborate.
:"Overall, I'm happy with where I am. I've seen some really incredible stuff." She eased back into the seat and got comfortable.
Thinking on how to word what she could, she took a deep breath. "He did, but circumstances allowed time outside a very localized field to reverse. I wanted to remain an adult and that was a fight that I was willing to take on." A pause. "Boy, was it a fight."
:"I can well imagine. Well, no. I can't. Not really. But it sounds incredible, anyway."
He paused, digesting this new information. "I have often heard that aspects of childhood, such as adolescence, are difficult. I can understand why experiencing it twice would be less than desirable. Obviously you won the fight, but I suppose I could understand your parents' point of view as well, particularly your mother, if she wished to see you grow up."
:Quietly, "It was just my dad. My mom didn't get to see me grow up the first time, much less forget. She wasn't happy. My dad had to not only explain that she didn't get to see her miracle daughter grow up, but that he didn't remember it, either."
Her fingers danced along the lining near the door handle in distraction. "I don't blame them, but the knowledge and things I'd learned and experienced? I could never have learned here." She stopped before she added 'on Earth'.
:"I'm sorry. That must have been a painful time for all of you." He wondered if they had worked through it or simply come to an arrangement.
"Ah, yes. If you had become a child again, you would have forgotten everything too. That made the trade-off worth it." It wasn't quite a question, but almost.
:"Oh, well," Hattie murmured, brushing it off. "Only one of us really remembers it, and I'm not talking. Well," she amended, not to them."
"It was."
Unable to resist any longer, she reached out and placed both hands on the steering wheel, running them from a 10/2 position to a 7/5 position.
"So, these seats eject?"
:"Oh." What could he say to that? "Then you made the right choice for yourself." It was just too bad that things had worked out that way for her.
If the change in subject threw him, he gave no indication of it. "Not the seats so much as I'm able to eject the occupants, if need be." That ability had come in useful a time or two.
:"It's okay. We've had a few years to deal with the consequences, so, it's fine. I mean, my dad is this amazing genius when it comes to Egyptian archeology so we do these great trips. I've learned a lot being here, too."
Almost another slip and she removed her hands somewhat quickly with a small laugh. "Wow. Law enforcement, that's right."
Her finger traced along the wheel again, "Do you do a lot of traveling?"
:"Is your father in the Air Force?" He was confused now, and his voice reflected that. He hadn't heard of Egyptologists being attached to the military, but then again he didn't go out of his way to keep up with those sorts of things. So long as he stayed under their radar, he was perfectly content to live and let live where the military was concerned. "Here, in Colorado Springs, as opposed to Egypt?" Thoroughly confused.
"Mmmhmmm." He was still trying to sort things out, and coming up blank. "I'm sorry? Oh. Yes, quite a bit. I've driven to most every state, but I'm always happy to come home again."
:Hattie was fairly certain that her conversation wasn't being recorded or tapped in any way. So? She got really comfortable and started talking.
About the Air Force. About Giza. About the Stargate and about her father, who'd decoded the Stargate. About her mother, the CIA agent who'd worked within the Stargate program. The shortish version. And twenty or so minutes later, she was done. Kinda.
"- and so, when time reversed itself, I was left an adult, trying to explain to my father why. He, in turn, was left to explain to my mother why."
:"Good heavens." If he'd been capable of whistling, he would have done so now. "I don't even want to think how many conspiracy theories this might have given rise to." He was sure that there would be at least a few on the internet. Everything seemed to be on the internet.
"And that didn't go very well, I gather?" Truth be told, he was feeling a little shell-shocked, wondering when the world had turned so upside down that he felt absolutely mundane in comparison.
:"She was a little disappointed." A lot. "It all worked out in the end." More or less. "We live on base now and I work with my father on his work, hence the trip to Giza. I enjoy it. Love the travel, love the open road-"
She smiled into the interior of the car. "I'm sure you can appreciate that."
:"I see." He didn't, not really. Or he did, just enough. He wasn't sure. "I have to ask... will you be flying to Giza, or can you use the... the Stargate?" He wanted to see it. It wasn't that he didn't believe her story, because he did, for reasons he couldn't put his proverbial finger on. But hearing about it and seeing it were two very different things. He wasn't going to ask, and knew that he probably would never have the opportunity, but that didn't mean he couldn't indulge his curiosity. Did it?
This time his voice was full of feeling. "I can most certainly appreciate that."
:"I'm sorry. I know it's confusing. But it's tell everything and be confusing or tell nothing and be confusing and..." She gave a small shrug. "I'd rather tell. You, anyway. I'd rather tell you."
She didn't know why, but she had a feeling Kitt wasn't going to go tell a bunch of people. "We'll fly." A space ship. And another smile. "Is it dangerous for you to do your top speeds just down the road all by yourself or do you enjoy just opening up and letting loose?"
For someone who so rarely got to let loose, it was an important question.
:"I'm glad - no, honored - that you feel you can trust me. I will do my best to make sure it's not misplaced." He could live with the confusion; her trust was important.
Flying. No thank you. He preferred all four tires solidly on the ground, unless he was the one deciding otherwise.
"It's the only way I know how to let loose. It's best to find a quiet stretch of hard-baked desert, rather than a road. The police tend to get picky about speeding on paved roads." He hadn't completely answered her question, but it was close enough, perhaps.
:Hattie was smiling by the time he finished talking about driving, and she was even nodding along. "I can just imagine. The desert is one of my favorite places to be. I love it. All that empty space just waiting to be explored-"
Leaning forward, she peered at his console. "You're really beautiful." A pause. "Is that the wrong word?"
:He managed to NOT slam on the brakes. Barely. She probably wouldn't even notice that the car hiccuped in its forward motion.
He had been just about to comment on his own love of the desert, but now he found himself trying to remember how to speak. He'd been called beautiful before. Elegant, sleek, all those things. He'd even had models pose on him, draping themselves across his hood. It had been the centerfold of a magazine, that spread. He'd complained about the staples marring his photo.
But while those things had been said about him, he was hard-pressed to remember if they'd ever been said to him. And that was a strange feeling, indeed.
"Ah, thank you?" It would do.
:"Was that wrong?"
He sounded... upset? Unsure. Upset. He was upset. She had a car upset with her. Hattie wanted to melt into the seat with embarassment. It had to be very wrong to call a car that was obviously male in it's design 'beautiful'. What was she THINKING?
Having grown up around the same six people and then burying herself in work, she wasn't entirely sure how to talk to people. Or cars. But Kitt? Was beautiful. Incredibly so, and she thought he needed to know it, especially from her.
"I'm sorry."
:"No! No. Why are you sorry? I'm... well, I'm flattered. It wasn't wrong. I don't think it was wrong. Thank you. That sort of thing is nice to hear. I think that you're quite an attractive young woman. It's not wrong." He was babbling. Was it possible for an AI to babble? Apparently so.
"Oh dear." Well this was awkward.
:"Oh, God."
So awkward. She closed her eyes and opened them her hands going to her lap as she looked out the window. "I just, I wasn't sure if that was right to say and I didn't mean to offend you if I DID offend you and then you said it was okay and I'm so glad that I didn't offend you and-"
She took a breath. And blinked. "Oh, well. Thank you." A small smile. "I mean-" Unconsciously, she pushed her hair back. "It's not wrong."
Hattie lowered her hand to the console and took another deep breath. "Thank you for this, Kitt. Really."
:"You didn't offend me." He was calmer now, which was a good thing. He realized that he really was exactly the opposite of offended. "It's not wrong." Something he was learning, too.
Although now he was confused again. "Why the thank you?"
:"Because I'm really enjoying this."
Without really thinking about it, she ran her hand along the console, her head resting along the headrest so she could look out at the night sky. "Even with my little fumble. Which I'll never mention again," she glossed over, feeling her cheeks heat again. "I AM having a good time."
:"As am I." And he was. It wasn't often that he wished for more freedom in his personal life. It wasn't often that he would even acknowledge that he had a personal life, as when he wasn't working he was still surrounded by his colleagues. Perhaps it was time to speak to someone about that.
"I don't mind, Hattie. You shouldn't worry about it. Stop worrying about it. If we're both having a good time, then that's all that matters."
:"Right, not worrying about it."
And she wasn't. Much. She really had to work on that brain/mouth filter thing. As if she had one. Either she said nothing at all or she said everything that was in her head. Gee, one would think she had an abnormal childhood or something.
"Where do YOU want to go, Kitt. If you could go anywhere, where would it be? Right now."
:"Good." Subject closed. Until it came up again.
Where would he go? That took him aback. No one had ever asked him such a thing before. He was silent for several long moments, contemplating the question. It would have to be somewhere he could drive himself to. He wouldn't even allow himself to think beyond those parameters. His CPU brought up files, flitted through possibilities.
"I don't... some sort of scenic drive, perhaps? The Blue Ridge Parkway, or along the Pacific Coast Highway?"
:"At three hundred miles an hour, that'd put us along the Pacific Coast Highway around sunrise," Hattie remarked. Completely inviting herself along for a ride that she had not been invited on, she added, "I'd love to see Virginia, though. I've never been there or California."
She had no bag, but she'd go just about anywhere. Anytime. At the drop of a hat, especially with Kitt. No reason why, but she trusted him. A car that could eject people (Oh my, that means me, too!), turbo rockets, and the like? Yeah, she figured she was pretty safe.
"I mean, I don't know if you have plans or whatever, but um..." She left it open.
:"So it would." Interesting. "I've not seen much of Virginia myself. California has some breathtaking wild places still, if you can believe it, particularly in the northern parts of the state." As he was talking, his speed had increased, but he wasn't heading out of town. He was heading for the mountain.
Probably a bad move, but that was where she lived, and if she was serious, she'd need some things. It would also probably be a good idea if her disappearance didn't look like some sort of foul play was involved.
"I have no plans at the moment." True enough. For one thing, he'd be heading back to California, which was where he lived. For another, there were no cases pending this close to the holidays. It seemed even criminals took a break sometimes.
:Hattie felt the speed increase and closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them as she felt the incline. Ah, yes, she thought. A bag would be nice. Toothbrush, jeans- And she mentally began to pack.
"I left my car at the pub," she told Kitt. "From there, if you follow me to the parking lot outside the base, I can just grab a few things?"
Her hand rested on the steering wheel again, just out of habit. "Shouldn't take long at all."
