Control Alt Delete (A BH6 crossover)

Chapter Four: A Kaleidoscope of Images

Hiro ran out of the doors of the shared lab and into the hall. Things were suddenly just too-- he didn't even know if he had the words to describe it. Everything was in turmoil. He knew these people but he knew he didn't know these people and that made it even more unnerving. He headed for the first place his mind grabbed onto, somehow managing to bypass the security lock on the door before slipping into the familiar yet not familiar lab.

Once inside, he came to an abrupt halt. Two images overlapped each other, one with high shelves and other equipment in one place, the other with lower shelves and similar equipment arranged in other areas. And somewhere near the window sat a red case that shared space in both images.

Sucking in heaving breaths, Hiro placed hands on knees as he stared at that familiar red shape. It acted as an anchor, somehow calming him. This was something consistent. He knew it existed in both realities running in his head. And he knew what was inside.

The sound of the door opening behind him served as a reminder that he'd acted like a complete mental case out there. Tadashi had just, in essence, introduced his best friends to his little brother and Hiro had to go and ruin it by having a near panic attack. Shame filled his mind as he willed his heart to stop pounding.

"Hiro, what has gotten into you?" Tadashi asked as he cautiously entered the room. Forget the fact that his brother had somehow managed to get into his private lab space, knowing which one, without having been "shown" this time around.

Breathing a bit more under control, Hiro felt his legs wobble a bit, possibly from the unaccustomed exertion after not being active for several days. Or maybe it was just the overall shock of everything. Somehow he knew he'd lived through these events before, or at least something similar, though he wasn't sure how or why. Everything was still a big jumbled-up mess in his brain and he really just wished he could piece it back together. But how did someone reset something that had clearly turned into unset jelly?

Hiro's legs finally gave out from under him, more than ready to turn into the same jelly his brain had become. "Ow," he uttered as his knees hit the hard floor with a resounding thud on the tiles.

The red case near the window seemed to come to life, with the telltale sound of beeping. Then the red top folded over out of the way and the white vinyl inside became visible. With a soft whoosh of air, the vinyl inflated, revealing a giant marshmallow that was all too familiar.

"Hello. I am Baymax, your personal healthcare companion. I was alerted to the need for medical attention when you said 'ow'."

Hiro looked up at that announcement, his hair partially hiding his eyes. His mouth hung open slightly as he stared, not sure if he was seeing things or not. He blinked a few times, feeling like his brain had somehow tried to reboot and failed.

"You have fallen," the robot observed as he shuffled closer, bypassing the swivel stool that should have deterred him long enough to try and set it aside. In fact, the robot should have started forward, moved the stool, and then introduced himself. But, for whatever reason, he hadn't.

Tadashi moved around Hiro, circling the room to stand behind Baymax. "This is what I wanted to show you," he said, holding his hands out to indicate the walking balloon. He gave a half smile to his brother, possibly hoping to get some kind of reaction, but it didn't happen.

Hiro was too busy nursing his re-bruised knees to worry about what Tadashi was or was not doing. It hurt. Maybe not as much as when he'd managed to get hit by a rock thrown from a bullet's ricochet, but it still hurt. And thinking about that, he wondered where that image had come from. He resisted the urge to clutch his head between his hands as his brain threatened to leak out his ears.