hunger ; detroit: become human

thirteen

Valeria

Night of November 9th, 2038 - 9:34 PM

Valeria and Connor stepped off of the bus and into the cold November night. Connor had changed out of his CyberLife issued uniform into clothes Valeria had helped him pick out from the clothes Gavin left at her place for when he stayed over, ones that he figured gave him the best chance of disguising himself as a deviant. She'd grabbed him winter boots, denim jeans, a thick jacket, and a sweatshirt. To hide his LED, he'd grabbed a beanie from her closet, and if they weren't in such dire straits, she would have told him how cute she thought he looked. As for her, she was dressed how she normally was, except she'd changed her gloves and had her hair tucked away in a black baseball cap.

"We look like idiots," she whispered, looking around the bus stop.

"I didn't hear any better suggestions from you," he whispered back, raising his palm so he could pull up the identifying symbol as a hologram. It was a section of the mural on the wall, so he took her hand in his and led her forward.

"Also, can we talk about that stunt you pulled back in the evidence room? Lying to that deviant like that?" she whispered, and he squeezed her hand as he analyzed the mural.

"Later. We can talk later," he whispered, nodding his head to the side. They continued down the path, hand in hand, as the snow fell around them. The night was quiet, and it reminded her of their walk at the park just two nights prior. It felt like a lifetime ago, them talking about what was outside of Detroit, the way they just sat in a comfortable silence, enjoying each other's company before sharing their first kiss. And now, none of it felt real. For Connor, this was life or death, and for her, if this plan failed, she had no idea what was next for her. Would she be able to look Gavin in the eye again? Would she have Hank in her corner, or had he been fired for assaulting Perkins? Could she just show up at his house if it all went south?

"Val, look," Connor said, pulling her from her thoughts. He pointed just ahead of them to a rusted freighter where she could make out people roaming around and going inside. She looked along the side of the ship, and in rusted paint, she read JERICHO.

"Super sleuthing, detective," she said, and his eyes flickered a bit.

"You... You've said that to me before. The day the deviant and the child ran out to the highway," he said softly, and she smiled, giving his hand a squeeze.

"Yeah, I did. But this time, it's not as sarcastic," she said, and he smiled faintly. Together, they made their way to the freighter, minding their steps as they entered. There was a small hallway that led them to something of a main area, where they could hear newscasters on TV talking about the rounding up of androids for termination. There was a large crowd of deviants in this space, and there were dozens of others scattered around the freighter. It looked like there were makeshift repair stations, and Valeria could see broken biocomponents and traces of thirium all over the place. She clutched Connor's hand as they made their way through, trying to blend in as well as they could.

"Connor, over there," Valeria whispered, pointing to a set of stairs. He nodded, and he took the lead again, brushing his thumb over the back of her glove as they walked. When they neared the stairs, another android approached them, setting a hand on Connor's shoulder. The back of her head was missing, and her voice was robotic.

"You're lost. You're looking for something. You're looking for yourself..." as all she said before she walked away. Valeria looked up at Connor, her head tilted slightly, but he led her up the stairs without a word. Once they made it to the top, Connor paused, looking around until he spotted a door that would lead them outside. He urged her forward, checking over his shoulder to make sure no one was watching them as he carefully pulled open the rusted door, making sure Valeria got out first before following.