Chapter Text
The endless stream of assignments, ranging from protecting small business owners, to solving mysteries, to fighting honest-to-goodness superhumans, kept FLAG very busy as the year rolled onward. KITT and Mike traveled nearly every day, doing their best to help wherever they could. Sometimes one or another of their teammates tagged along, either because their skills were needed, or simply because they wanted to offer their assistance.
When one of their missions brought them only a few miles from the Graiman estate, with Sarah coming along to help with a difficult computer issue, none of the three commented on the significance of their location. But once the case was solved and there was no new work to be done right away, KITT turned his wheels, unprompted, toward home.
The estate was much as it had been, thanks to maintenance by hired gardeners. Flowers bloomed around the house, thriving from their excellent care. The grass of the surrounding hillsides was green, the gift of a more generous than usual rainy season. The sky was a dazzling blue washed clean by the rain.
KITT's thoughts about his father were still conflicted in many ways, but he was glad to be back here. This was home, in a familiar, comfortable way that the SSC wasn't just yet. In time, he thought the SSC would be as well, but that was the future. This was now.
He stayed in the workshop that night, parked among the silent robots and the machinery. The first Kitt's parts were still there, stored away should they ever be needed. Near the back of the workshop sat the old Toyota Corolla, still bristling with cameras and sensor arrays. A little webcam and a speaker sat on one table, the first devices he had used to interact with the world.
In the past, when his fear, guilt, and sense of betrayal had been fresh and sharp, the things in this room had reminded KITT of his failings. That had changed though, somewhere along the way. Now they mostly reminded him of the people who had supported him back when he'd felt so lost.
In the morning, KITT and Sarah went to the duck pond. Sarah was the one who suggested the idea, but only because she said the words first; KITT had been planning to ask her, too. Mike looked amused when they told him where they were going, but simply told them to have a nice time.
So KITT and Sarah set off, KITT winding his way down the highway, both of them watching the clouds that trailed past.
"Is it going to rain?" Sarah asked.
"Yes," KITT replied, after a brief reading of his barometer and a glance at the weather forecasting sites. "In approximately twenty-one minutes."
"Well this will be different," Sarah said.
"A little, yes," KITT agreed.
They navigated the last few miles in silence, watching the changing sky. Down the winding, gravelly road, into the little parking area near the pond. The ducks paddled to the shore like they always had, looking at Sarah with interest as she stepped out of the car. KITT regarded the ducks fondly; their webbed feet and the curiosity in their eyes were incredibly endearing.
Sarah stood next to KITT, a hint of a smile crossing her face at the sight of the ducks. "It's strange to be back here."
KITT moved himself ever so carefully so that his side brushed her hand. "Our father was an important part of all our memories of this place. I never imagined being here without him."
Sarah rested her hand lightly on his hood. "It's not the same, I don't think anything in the world feels quite the same now he's gone. For a while I wasn't sure I could cope with that."
"And now?" KITT asked gently.
Sarah gave him a sad smile. "Things are getting better."
A duck quacked impatiently, staring at the bag in Sarah's other hand.
"They really don't care, do they?" Sarah asked with a laugh.
"I think the ducks have other matters diverting their attention," KITT agreed. "I suppose we cannot blame them for that."
"No, I guess not. I'm sure they have plenty of important matters of their own. And we did come here to feed them." Sarah made her way to the bench by the water, and KITT followed slowly, mindful of the braver ducks who ventured onto shore. He took his place next to the bench, while Sarah tossed oats to the ducks. "And you, are you coping?" she asked.
"It is like you said, things are getting better."
They set for a while, watching the clouds roll in, bathing the landscape in shadow.
"It is going to rain in approximately two minutes," KITT said.
"How much rain are we talking?" Sarah asked, leaning back on the bench to look up at the darkening sky.
"To put it in colloquial terms, a lot," KITT told her.
"Bring it on," Sarah said.
"You are not water resistant, as are the ducks and I," KITT said.
Sarah laughed. "I don't care."
"That is fair." KITT opened his window. "Hand me the oats so they won't get damp, we do not wish them to become moldy."
Sarah reached in the window to set the bag on his seat, and KITT rolled the window back up. The two waited while the clouds grow thicker, and then with a hiss of drops on the pond, and a pattering sound on KITT's roof and hood, the rain began.
At first it was gentle, but soon it rose to a deluge. The ducks paddled away, deciding that although water was nice, this particular type of water was not. Sarah got up from the bench, laughing in the face of the storm. KITT watched her, bemused by her delight for the weather, as in his experience humans had no fondness for getting soaked.
Maybe she was seeing what he saw in nature: the beautiful, infinite complexity of it. He could sense it now in the way every drop of water sent tiny ripples across the pond, the shiver of the leaves and the movements of small creatures taking shelter. A world that could never be fully analyzed, only admired for the sheer majesty of everything it encompassed.
KITT laughed. Like every part of his speech, the sound was chosen and calculated. Like every way he chose to communicate his thoughts, the fact that it was voluntary made the emotion no less real. The joy of the moment was almost as tangible as the rain itself, and laughter was how he chose to share it.
Sarah looked to KITT with a grin, blinking rain out of her eyes. The rain was torrential enough to leave his own cameras almost entirely blurred, but he didn't need them anyway. He had a multitude of sensor arrays that could still see through the storm. She went to lean against his side, and they waited out the storm together.
The rain abated after a few more minutes, slowing and then coming to a complete end. A few rays of sunlight made their way through the clouds.
"Worth it, Sarah?" KITT asked humorously.
"Worth it." Sarah looked at him, amusement flashing in her eyes and added, "Although you're lucky. For you it's like water off a duck's back."
"Our father once told me that I was different from ducks," KITT remarked, "It seems in this regard he was mistaken."
"Why in the world did he feel the need to tell you that?" Sarah asked with a snort of laughter.
"It made more sense in context."
The ducks were reappearing from their hiding places, paddling around the pond again. They didn't come over to the two now, they had other matters on their minds. The rain had changed their world, and now they were investigating it anew.
An incoming message caught KITT's attention. "Zoe says there is a situation in need of our attention, just sixty miles away. She says she will explain more as we drive."
Sarah nodded immediately. "Right, let's go get Mike and see what's up." She made a face, "Sorry in advance for the rainwater."
"It is all right. My upholstery will survive."
Sarah laughed and got in, and KITT turned onto the road, picking his way quickly but carefully on the uneven surface. Water plumed behind his tires as he raced through the puddles the rain had left, droplets flashing rainbow hues in the returning light of the sun. His engine's rumble turned to a roar as they turned off the narrow road and onto the highway, and they raced away.
They had the power to help in ways few people could, and it was once again time to do just that.