August 1st, 2040:

Pacing about the kitchen Hank confirmed his final appointment with Dr. Corliss at the facility on the phone and picked at a piece of toast he made for his breakfast as he spoke. Confirming that Connor was showing signs of fatigue and had practically lost the ability to remain awake and was seemingly ready to sleep for a thousand years, Hank was reassured that the behavior was perfectly normal and expected at the final stages of the current model's function. The confirmation was a grounding feeling, but Hank couldn't help but worry for his son's health.

"How long is he going to be asleep?" Hank asked in a whisper as he circled around the table for the umpteenth time and eyed the envelope just waiting for Connor to open up.

'If his processors are working on backing up his memories and emotional experiences he's going to be asleep for hours on end.'

"And how will I know when his system is done doing it's thing?"

'The process might be done at this moment.' Dr. Corliss confirmed in a confident but somewhat dreary tone. 'You'll know that his processor has completed the extensive task if he won't wake up.'

Hank suddenly stopped and he felt himself pale. "...Won't wake up?"

'It isn't a serious problem, Hank. It just means he'll need his consciousness transferred back into his adult body before he'll wake up again.'

"Damn it."

There was a pause before Dr. Corliss spoke again. 'What's wrong?'

"...I have something I want to give him. I wanted him to have it before he returned to his RK-800 model body."

'Oh, I see. Is there a reason you can't give it to him after he wakes up as an adult again?'

"...It's the symbolism."

'I'm sure it'll be fine all the same.'

"I sure hope so." Tilting his head back Hank looked to the ceiling and put his free hand to his hip as he contemplated the idea. "Uh, when do you want to see us, doc?"

'As soon as you can.'

"Right. I'll be there within the hour."

'See you soon, Hank. And remember,' her voice remained level and kind as she spoke to Hank over the line. 'your therapy is coming to an end and it's a good thing. You're both going to benefit.'

"Yeah, I know. Thanks for the pep talk, doc." Ending the call Hank sighed again as he gave the phone a casual toss and let it land on the envelope on the kitchen table as he stepped out of the room and into the hallway. Standing outside Connor's bedroom door he knocked twice and called out to the deviant on the other side and waited for an answer. "Connor?"

Silence.

"Damn." Knocking twice more Hank tried again as he placed his hand on the doorknob. "Connor? Son, are you awake?"

When the silence continued Hank turned the knob and pushed the door open as quietly as he could. Sumo was still laying on Connor's legs and the massive dog seemed to sense that Connor wasn't just sleeping anymore. Whimpering a little Sumo jumped down from the bed and sat at Hank's feet as if pleading for his human master to help the deviant who wasn't waking up.

"It's okay, Sumo." Rubbing the dog's ears softly Hank approached the bed and put his hand down on Connor's back between his shoulder blades as the deviant remained unresponsive, and laid on his chest in the bed. "Connor?"

From beneath his palm Hank could feel that Connor was breathing steadily and that his Thirium pump was beating nice and strong under his touch. By all account Connor was in fact asleep and just didn't want to wake up.

"Son..." Kneeling down beside the bed Hank sighed and moved his hand up to Connor's hair where he began to lightly ruffle it. "I wish I could've given you that envelope last night, but you were just so tired."

Remaining silent Connor didn't react to Hank as his father moved back the quilt from the deviant's person, and then lightly put a firm hand on his motionless shoulder.

"I need to do this, son." Rolling Connor onto his side, then onto his back Hank slipped his arms under Connor's shoulders and knees to scoop the deviant up and into his grip to be carried out to the car. Connor's head rested against Hank's right shoulder as he was carried out of his bedroom, down the hallway and toward the livingroom. "Wait here for a moment."

Hank lightly placed Connor down on the couch as he grabbed his car keys from the nearby bookshelf, and returned to the kitchen to pocket his phone and pick up the envelope. Putting the envelope down on Connor's chest Hank scooped him back up and then carried him toward the backdoor to carry Connor outside, and to the driveway beside the house. Fumbling with the door handle on the passenger side door Hank managed to pull it open and gently place Connor down in the passenger seat.

"Man, I carried you to the car when this therapy started." Hank reminisced as he fastened Connor's seatbelt for him and gave his son a emotional stare. "Now I'm carrying you to the car the day our therapy ends. The past eighteen months were a blur, but I remember every second of those months at the same time."

Closing the door Hank walked around the front of the car to get to the driver's side door as he wiped away a tear of pride as he sat down behind the steering wheel. Putting the key in the ignition Hank turned over the engine and fastened his own seatbelt.

"This is... a good day, son." Putting his hand over the envelope still pressed against Connor's chest Hank gave his sleeping son a warm smile and then backed the car down the driveway. "I wish I could've told you everything that's happening now before you fell asleep, but I guess I didn't want to admit that this was all coming to an end. I'm sorry about that."

As the car reached the street Hank turned the vehicle and shifted it into drive to head out to the facility where the final transfer would take place.

"When you're back to your adult body I swear I won't hesitate to tell you everything you'll ever need to know ever again."

The exam room of the facility felt more like a morgue as Hank stood beside the table and watched as Dr. Corliss and Dr. Blaise gave Connor a routine physical despite the deviant being unconscious. As Dr. Blaise lifted Connor's eyelids to check his pupils with his penlight Dr. Corliss attached a long black cable to Connor's right temple where the L.E.D. is normally installed in routine models of androids.

"This won't take too long, Hank." Dr. Corliss stated in her ever kind voice. "Once his mind is transferred back into his RK-800 model of a body Dr. Blaise will run another exam, I'll give him a quick talk and see how well he's adapted and then if necessary I'll talk with you, too."

"Yeah... Sure. I'll, uh..." Not wanting to leave Connor alone as he knew it'd be the last time he'd ever see Connor as his oblivious son Hank was evidently too hesitant to leave on his own. "...Can't I stay?"

"It's a delicate technical process. It's easier to handle with a nearly empty room as opposed to a crowd."

"...Sure. Okay."

"I know this is a very difficult moment to endure." Lightly Dr. Corliss put her hand on Hank's wrist to give him some support without crossing the line in the process. Very subtly she coaxed him toward the doorway to take his leave of the room so Connor could be tended to. "But it'll be over soon, and Connor will return to you as soon as possible."

"I know he's in good hands," the fatherly detective replied as he kept his eyes on Connor's peaceful, sleeping face. "and I know this is going to be for the best for the both of us in the end... I just can't bring myself to walk away right now."

"Take my word for it, if you stay and see what's about to happen it'll leave you with a memory you wish you could forget." Encouraging the detective to leave the room under his own power Dr. Corliss explained things in a logical and empathetic manner. "Let Connor as you see him now be the memory you focus on. He's sleeping peacefully and perpetually dreaming. When he does awaken he'll be the same Connor you grew to love as your son, but now he'll be emotionally stronger and far more confident thanks to you."

"...Yeah, right." Stopping short just before the doorway Hank sighed and returned to the exam table where he planted his hand on Connor's shoulder and looked down at his sleeping son's face with a paternal worry. Keeping his hand in place Hank lowered his voice to speak with Connor in such a way that the two doctors wouldn't quite be able to hear him. "You'll be just fine, son. I'll see you soon."

Reluctantly taking his hand from Connor's shoulder Hank backed away and slowly turned to finally take his leave of the exam room, and clutched the envelope to his chest as if it were a lifeline. Listening to the door slid shut behind him with a soft hiss Hank's head bowed down and his shoulders slumped as he trudged down the corridor to return to the waiting room to sit and wait in silence, with only the envelope and hopes that he'd be able to talk to Connor about everything that was happening to them as his only company.

The hours ticked by at a tauntingly cruel pace as Hank sat alone in the waiting room. The quiet ambience was almost deafening to his impatient ears, the gently 'thrum' of the television screen mounted on the far wall detailing a news report revolving around android rights was distracting, the strange aroma of new plastic mixed with disinfectant and metal was nauseating, and the lack of people coming in and out of the facility beyond technicians made Hank feel entirely out of place.

Just as Hank was about to lose his mind and begin pacing about the waiting room Hank noticed the receptionist walking his way with a kind smile on her face, and gleam of optimism in her eyes. "Lieutenant Anderson? Dr. Corliss wanted me to inform you that Connor is on his way."

Letting out an audible sigh of relief Hank slumped back in his seat as the tension left his shoulders. "...It's about time. How long have I been waiting?"

"Five hours, sixteen minutes and forty-four seconds."

"That explains why I'm on the verge of losing my cool." Rubbing his hand over the back of his tense neck Hank tried to get the knot to loosen up as he spoke to the receptionist in a fairly relaxed and surprisingly warm manner. "Can I ask what took so long?"

"There weren't any complications if that's what you're worried about." She replied as if she had dealt with that very worry countless times before. "It's protocol for Dr. Corliss to speak to her patients whenever they've finished this type of therapy and have undergone transference to ensure that the process itself wasn't too traumatic or confusing. Five hours is the approximate time frame for such an appointment."

"That's good to know."

"It'll only be a few minutes longer, then you both are free to leave the facility."

"Yeah, thanks."

Feeling slightly more at ease Hank clutched the envelope in both of his hands as he stared at the surface of the parcel with a stern focus. The sound of shoes approaching him at an oddly familiar gait along with the rhythm 'clicking' of heels caught Hank's attention. Turning to look down the corridor over his shoulder Hank saw Connor walking alongside Dr. Corliss, and the familiar yellow glow of an L.E.D. in Connor's right temple confirmed that the deviant was in fact back to his original RK-800 model of body.

"Connor." Standing up to greet his partner, his best friend and his son as the deviant reached the waiting room Hank gave the deviant a once over. He was dressed in the same clothes that he had been wearing when their therapy session began eighteen months prior but his face... something was different. There was either something there had never been there before, or something was missing. "How, uh... How do you feel?"

"...I am..." Connor seemed at a strange loss of words and his soulful brown eyes had a faint blue tint as if bloodshot. "I am... functioning."

The lack of a definitive response was somewhat jarring. "...Are you okay?"

"I'm... I'm fine."

Hank looked to Dr. Corliss who gave him a subtle nod that spoke volumes. They needed to talk but it was a talk that needed to happen in the privacy of their own home and just between father and son. "Do you want to go home?"

"...I want to leave, yes."

"Okay. Let's get you back home so Sumo can climb all over you and give the furniture a break." Hank wanted to put his hand to Connor's shoulder but the yellow tinted L.E.D. told him that right now Connor was too tense to respond to even the briefest of physical contact. "We, uh, we'll talk when you're ready to talk. Okay, son?"

Connor's brow furrowed slightly upon hearing the term 'son' as if it was the first time he had ever been addressed as such. "Yes. Okay." Despite the curious reaction the deviant agreed to leave the facility and return to the house. "Dr. Corliss," turning to face his therapist before he took his leave to return back to the house Connor extended his hand to the doctor to give her a grateful handshake. "thank you for your help."

"You're most welcome. Take care of yourself, and take care of each other."

"...Of course." Letting his hand drop from her grip Connor took a single step forward to walk at Hank's side, only to trail back by a single pace. Walking as if he was unsure about his own body or balance Connor was moving slower than usual and seemed on edge. "...I'm ready to return to the house. I... I need to think."

"Take all the time you need." Hank confirmed as he held the envelope in a tight grip at his side. "I'll be ready when you are."

The drive back to the house felt somehow tense and uncomfortable. While Hank had made sure to address Connor in the exact same way he had done before and during the therapy session, but even so Connor remained unusually quiet. During the drive Connor stared blankly through the windshield at the street before him as he dragged his fingertips over his right temple and across the smooth surface of the yellow L.E.D. pulsing in tandem with his heartbeat. The only words spoken came from Hank, and those words were full of confusion and near-dread.

"Well, we're home." Hank announced as he pulled the car into the driveway beside the house and turned off the engine. Looking over at Connor beside him Hank was tempted to give him the envelope right then and there, but he wanted to speak to Connor properly before he gave him the good news. "You need to go give Sumo some attention. The big lug was disappointed you didn't take him for a walk this morning."

"...I'll be sure to walk him."

"If you're still feeling drained you can go back to sleep, Connor. Your health is more important than a walk around the block."

"I don't want to sleep anymore."

"Hey." Keeping his voice level and understanding Hank turned to look at Connor and waited for him to turn to face him as well. "It's okay. You're okay."

"...No, it's not."

"What do you-" Before he could finish the question Connor opened up his door and stepped out of the vehicle. Throwing open his own door and keeping his hand gripped on the envelope he met Connor at the edge of the drive and tried to stop him from walking away as he tried to head back down the driveway toward the sidewalk. "Hey! Where are you going?"

"...Away."

"Why? What's wrong, son?"

"Nothing."

"If nothing's wrong then why are you trying to leave?"

"It's complicated."

"Then explain it to me!"

"...I can't."

"Try. Please."

"...Hank, I..." Calling him by his name as opposed to the more paternal term he had become accustomed to was almost unnerving, but the deviant maintained his composure even when his yellow L.E.D. flashed to red. "...I don't know what to say."

"Then just listen to me until you do know what to say. Come inside." Putting his hand on Connor's shoulder and holding it in place even when Connor tried to shrug his palm away Hank pulled the deviant away from the driveway and toward the backdoor. "We've been through a lot over the past year and half, but you endured more than I have. It's going to take a while to readjust."

"Readjust..." Parroting the term Connor sounded so full of doubt and loss that it was painful to listen to. "...That's an interesting way to interpret it."

"Are you feeling okay? You know, physically?" Opening the backdoor Hank watched Connor's every movement carefully as the deviant stepped into the kitchen and promptly stopped as Sumo rushed up to him with his tail wagging happily. "You're moving like you're in pain."

"...I'm not in pain." Kneeling down on the floor Connor rubbed Sumo's ears and gave the massive, loyal dog some attention. "I'm reacclimating to this taller, slightly broader model of body."

"Need any Thirium?"

"No. My reserves are at one-hundred percent capacity."

"Then... What can I do to help you feel better?"

"To what are you referring?"

"You're clearly upset about something."

"I... I am upset, but it isn't anything that you can do to remedy."

"Son." Returning his hand to Connor's shoulder Hank watched as the deviant seemed to freeze and saw the red L.E.D. cycle through its trifecta of colors before returning to red. "I want to help you. Please talk to me, tell me what's on your mind."

Connor's eyes filled with tears and his head bowed down as he refused to answer the question. Rubbing Sumo's ears lightly Connor stared at the massive dog as if the Saint Bernard could somehow offer him some form of advice. Completely lost and unsure of what he was feeling or why he was feeling it at all Connor closed his eyes and tried to silently restrain his tears as frustration set in.

"Connor." Slowly Hank knelt down beside the deviant put his hand, still awkwardly clutching the envelope, under Connor's chin to turn the deviant's head and make Connor look him in the eyes. "Talk to me. Why are you so upset?"

"...Because... Because my memories... They aren't real!"

"What're you talking about? Of course they're real!"

"No!" Finally allowing his tears to fall Connor fell forward onto his hands as Sumo backed away with a slight whimper and gave his masters some space. "I was a different person! It was that person, THAT Connor who grew up as your son! I'm... I'm just... I'm no one!"

"NOT true." Pushing the envelope up against Connor's chest Hank moved his hand from Connor's shoulder to the middle of his back between his shoulder blades and held his palm down in a comforting manner. "You're Connor now, then and from this day on."

"The Connor I was is gone, and the Connor that I am now is a traitor to his own people." Speaking with a shaking voice as the heartbreaking words passed his lips Connor's heart began to pound in his chest, his breathing hastened and his entire body started to tremble. "I was a fool who got hundreds of innocent deviants killed aboard Jericho, and thousands more executed at the recycling camps because of my failures! I'm no one but a failure! I deserve to be alone, I deserve to die..."

"No! You don't deserve to die!" Wrapping his arms around Connor's chest Hank pulled him in for a hug and just held the weeping deviant in his arms as any father would do for their pained child. The envelope had fallen to the floor and now rested between the two detectives just waiting to be opened. "What happened that night was NOT your fault, it never was. The F.B.I. opened fire on Jericho, the F.B.I. sanctioned those damn death camps, the F.B.I. tried to trick Markus into surrendering just so he could be executed and analyzed... You didn't do ANY of those things, all you did was your mission; your job that was assigned to you at the precinct and by CyberLife. You never chose to do anything that harmed anyone."

"They still suffered! They still died!"

"Not by your hands!" Holding tighter onto Connor as the deviant wept for his past indiscretion Hank was desperate to ease his son's pain. Connor's deviancy and emotions were now fully developed and connected to one another made his heart ache with a real pain that he just wanted to stop. "Your first mission was that hostage negotiation on the roof. You saved the little girl and talked the hostage taker down. It was the S.W.A.T. team who shot him, NOT you."

Connor continued to weep as the horrid memories set in with a new emotional perspective that caused him to cry even more.

"When you and me started working together I wanted nothing to do with you and thought you were just some glorified plastic babysitter designed to make human detectives look bad, and to keep CyberLife on the city's good graces. But you found that suspect hiding in the attic of the murder victim's house and you got him to talk when no one else could. Then you were willing to risk your life to chase a deviant onto the highway, but didn't when I ordered you to stay back." Rubbing his hand through Connor's hair Hank spoke to him in a soothing, and understanding tone. "If you chased her onto the highway one or both of you could've been killed."

"I made her run!"

"No, the fear of being destroyed by the police or CyberLife made her run. She just saw your uniform and ran."

"...It's my fault she nearly died."

"But she didn't." Hank reminded him a firm voice. "She escaped and as far as we know she made it over the border to Canada. Then when we chased that other deviant across the rooftops you chose to let him go and saved my life by pulling me back up over the edge after I was knocked off, and saved my life."

Connor's breathing began to quicken even further as the memories came flood back with a painfully vivid nature. "...I couldn't just let you fall."

"Well, technically you could've. But you didn't. You CHOSE to save my life instead of obeying your orders and destroying that deviant you were chasing. The same with the Tracis at the 'Eden Club'. You CHOSE to let them go and let them live."

"...I...I couldn't... They weren't..."

"I know, son. I was there. I know you saw them as the victims that they were, and I know you were frightened that your decision to let two known deviants flee could've risked your own life. But you didn't care about that. All you cared about was making sure that innocent deviant lives weren't taken on that night."

"...I disobeyed."

"You made a choice. The right choice." Hank emphasized as he continued to be Connor's literal shoulder to cry on as he just held the emotionally fragile deviant in a supportive hug. "Same when you refused to pull the trigger at Kamski's place. You did the right thing. The only people who are at fault are the people who chose to do the wrong things on that night."

"Then why do I feel like I've messed up everything I've ever been through?" Wiping his hand over his eyes Connor bowed his forehead down against Hank's shoulder and wrapped his arm around Hank to reciprocate the hug. "I... I feel like I'm a failure. The Revolution succeeded and New Jericho Tower is thriving, but I feel like my actions... It feels like everything I did manage to achieve was nothing more than luck."

"You feel that way because you can now feel with your heart, son. You know that hurting innocent people is wrong, you know that blindly following orders is dangerous and you know that your actions have consequences. Some day you'll be able to forgive yourself and you'll be able to find a way to free yourself from your guilt."

"My guilt?"

"Well, you feel guilty. You know that everything you do can have a drastic impact on the world around you."

"What are the consequences of my actions?" Breathing slower Connor's voice began to steady slightly. "I've affected so many lives in so many different ways. I affected people I had no business associating with or even approaching. How has my presence, my consequences, affected you?"

"In the best way possible."

Feeling his breath suddenly hitch Connor blinked a few times to rid himself of unshed tears and dared to ask the question burning on his lips. "...H-How?"

"You're my partner at the D.P.D. who keeps my ass in line and sobered up," Hank replied without the slightest hesitation or doubt behind his words. "you're my best friend who keeps me from giving up on myself and gives me a reason to keep living, and you're my son who gave me back a family and a reason to keep protecting this city."

Rocking back a little on his knees Connor withdrew his arm and just stared at Hank as the senior detective kept his hand on the back of Connor's hair. "...You still see me as your son?"

"Of course I do." Pointing to the envelope that had been slightly wrinkled from all the handling and aggressive gestures from Hank's own hand Hank urged the deviant to pick it up from the floor and finally open it. "I wanted you to see that last night when it finally arrived, but you were so damn tired and I didn't have it in me to wake you back up."

Unsure at first whether or not he wanted to look inside the envelope Connor's hand hovered nervously over the dropped parcel as the nerve to finally pick it up began to set in. Using his index finger and thumb Connor pinched the corner of the envelope and picked up up from the floor and popped open the end flap to peer inside.

Hank watched as Connor tilted the opened envelope to the side and let the contents inside slip out and into his opposite palm, and held his breath nervously. It didn't take long for Connor to scan over the documents and for the red L.E.D. to shift to yellow then back to red with intrigue.

"...This is..." Connor paused for a moment as he read and reread the documents as if he needed to make sure his processors weren't glitching on him. "This is an authorized and officiated certificate of adoption." Glancing up at Hank's eyes with an emotional plea Connor nearly whispered his next statement. "You... You want to adopt me?"

"I want to adopt you and I already have, son." Giving Connor a gentle smile Hank confirmed that what he was seeing and holding in his hands were real and not a misunderstanding. "You're officially my son. Connor Henry Anderson."

"...I'm your son?"

"Yes. In every possible way."

"And..." Reading over his name, his full name, Connor felt his heart skip a beat. "Henry... You gave me your name?"

"Yes. I hope you don't mind me giving you my first name as your middle name. I wasn't quite sure what else to name you since, you know, I never even picked your first name."

Connor was fighting back against his tears as he held the certificate in his shaking hands.

"Are you going to be okay? I mean, I hope this is okay to do."

"Yes! It's okay, I... I want to be your son." Letting out a shaking breath Connor rubbed his hand over his eyes to remove his tears again. He felt Sumo sit down beside him and lean up against his side, and with that warmth Connor truly felt like he belonged with Hank. "And I want you to be my father. I want to be here, this place feels like my home."

"That's good. So why are you still so upset?"

"...Because I... I don't know if it's okay to call you..." Holding his breath for a moment Connor forced himself to finally ask the question. "...Can I still call you 'dad'?"

It was Hank's turn to let tears run down his face as he pulled Connor up against his chest and shoulder again to give him another hug. "Of course, son. You can call me 'dad' because that's who I am. Your dad. I'll always be there to be the father you need, and I'll be there because I want to be there."

Connor's arms lifted up and wrapped around Hank to give him a tight hug as his L.E.D. finally cycled back to blue. As soon as the light returned to its normal, healthy color Connor lifted up his fingertips to the light and began to pull on the light. As his fingernails dug into his artificial skin Connor pried his Thirium coated L.E.D. from his temple and held it in his tight fist.

"Connor?" Hank looked at the bleeding wound in Connor's temple and quickly put his hand over the injury. "What did you do?"

"...I freed myself." Opening his hand up so Hank could see the dead, blank L.E.D. in his grip Connor sighed again and closed his fingers back around the light to crush it into a small, metal ball, then tossed it aside to be forgotten. "I don't need this anymore. I'm... I'm not the 'Deviant Hunter', and I'm not even a deviant anymore. I'm an Anderson. My name is Connor Henry Anderson."

Entirely proud of his son's response in spite of all the blue blood Hank tightened his hug and just held on for as long as he could. "That's right. You're my son. You'll always be my son, and I will always be your father."

"You're not my father," Connor whispered the correction as Hank hugged him in a warm embrace. "you're my dad."

-End of Story-