When All Q Breaks Loose

Chapter Fifteen: Find Hiro

All things considered, things had gone well so far, Hiro decided as he led Baymax and Deanna Troi towards the theater room. It was his favorite room in the entire house, minus command central. He'd spent countless hours there over the last year, mostly trying to unwind. But now he went there with a different purpose.

The oversized recliners were a welcoming sight but Hiro bypassed them for the giant bean bag at the back of the room. It was large enough to accommodate all of his friends, minus Baymax. The robot had a hard time with the ever-changing surface.

Hiro threw himself back against the soft leather of the over-sized bag, letting out a sound of contentment. He could easily fall asleep at that moment but knew there was work to be done. "Have a seat," he offered the counselor.

Deanna was more reserved in her choice of seating, preferring to sit near the edge of the bean bag. She smiled a bit seeing this more child-like side of Hiro. Without the pressures of two competing parties to deal with, the boy had decidedly relaxed. It was the first time he'd allowed himself to do so in her presence.

"Looks like you've had a full day already," she commented with a hint of amusement as she settled her sling to set more comfortably. It was one of the many things they'd picked up while out and about. She'd already returned the bandana she'd been using earlier.

Hiro indulged in a brief moment of silence. "I've had worse," he replied. "Not that we're here to talk about that," he added quickly as he sat up. "But it's already been, as you say, a full day. I've actually been up since about seven this morning."

Deanna frowned at that. "I thought Wasabi said you were still asleep when we went out." She gave him a slightly questioning look.

The teen seemed to close up inside, making it hard for her to read him. "I didn't ask him to cover for me," he defended. "He was still asleep when I left."

Baymax shuffled as close to the bean bag as he could. "Perhaps you should explain to the counselor what we learned this morning," he suggested. "It may be related to recent events."

Hiro nodded, realizing his companion was right. "Maybe." He slid closer to the edge of the leather seat, moving towards Deanna. "My aunt called early this morning wondering if I'd been working on anything new. The answer, of course, is no, I haven't. I've been too busy playing catch-up to start any new projects. Anyway, I had to investigate what was going, if for no other reason than to clear my name. I admit I've pulled a few stunts in my life that I'm not exactly proud of."

Troi shifted to face him more fully, smiling a bit in amusement at this admission. "So you left the rest of your team behind while you went out to check into this matter on your own."

Looking more chagrined, Hiro nodded. "Yeah. I mean I didn't go alone. I had Baymax with me. Right, buddy?"

Baymax nodded. "I did not leave his side the entire time."

"Honestly, I'd be hard pressed to go anywhere without him," Hiro confessed. "Which fine by me. He even follows me to school."

The counselor felt a bit better about the situation with that announcement. Even on the Enterprise, children under the age of sixteen were not left unsupervised. And even if an adult wasn't immediately present, the computer always knew where to find them.

"I know what you're thinking," Hiro spoke up, breaking into her thoughts.

A bit confused, Deanna couldn't help but look up sharply. "You do?" She didn't think he had any telepathic abilities, though it was always a possibility.

"You're thinking I'm too young to be off on my own. Most people do," Hiro announced. "But I've been doing stuff on my own for years now. You see, both of my parents died when I was three. Up until about a year and a half ago, it was just me, my brother, and Aunt Cass, though she's usually busy with the café."