Ant and Four Tangent 1 - Supply Run
by Winter
"I'm still not sure this is a good idea."
"It'll be fine." Niklas turned to the viewscreen, and smiled in what he hoped was a reassuring way. "We're doing what they asked, right?"
"Yes, but..." On the screen, Petey worried his lower lip. "In a kind of roundabout way. I think they just wanted us to run down to the corner shop in Harie Village. Like, run with our feet and not take the ship at all."
"They didn't say that."
"No..."
"What did Ant say?"
"To get a tin of tomatoes for dinner."
"What did Four say?"
"To take a couple of coins from the money bowl."
"Which we did. And we're on our way to get the tomatoes."
"But it's an awful long way. I never flew this far on my own."
"You're not on your own." Niklas stood up and walked over to the side of the screen, where he patted the heart-shaped sticker on one of the ship's access panels. "I'm with you."
"But you're a kid, too!" Petey's on-screen face made a distressed grimace, and sweat drops fell from his face in a cartoonish way. "I'm scared."
"It's just shopping, Petey. We land in the parking lot, go inside and get our things, then we go back. Easy!"
"What things? We were s'posed to get tomatoes only."
"Yeah, but I really wanna make a strawberry pie for dessert. They don't have the right stuff in Harie."
"You know how to do that?" Petey's eyes widened. "I'm impressed."
"Well..." Niklas shrugged, squirmed a little, then chuckled. He sat down on the couch again. "Mrs B showed me how to make a beet pie. How different could it be?"
"Last time we cooked..."
"It cleaned off, didn't it? Anyway, we pretty much know what went wrong."
"I still smell bad."
"No, you don't." Niklas turned to the still, silent figure sitting next to him, a three-dimensional version of the boy on the screen, and gave him a sniff. "Clean. Soap and shampoo, and that smell-good stuff you like to use."
"Orchard Flair."
"It smells like caramel apples. I really like it."
"But I meant me, like in the ferry me. Not my body."
"It's almost all gone." Niklas glanced at the small cooking area. To be honest, there were still grease stains on the wall, and the ceiling above looked a bit smoked. "Mostly almost."
"Hang on," Petey said. "We're coming in."
"Last chance to head back, mission unaccomplished."
"I don't wanna do that!" Petey's face scrunched up into a determined half-pout. "I'm not a coward."
"There you go!" Niklas grinned. "I know you're not, you'd better know it, too."
The face on the screen disappeared, and was replaced by an aerial view of a city. The camera zoomed in on a large white building, surrounded by a flat surface filled with all sorts of vehicles. A free space lit up with a red crosshair, and the Fourtitude sank down towards it.
* * * * * *
"I think this might be it."
"You said that about the last two doors," Petey complained. "An' they didn't open at all."
"The last one did, after a while."
"Yeah, but then a huge truck came out of it. If I wasn't a robot, I would've wet myself."
"I almost did," Niklas giggled. "When it honked like that. But look, there's people going in and out all the time."
"I can't really see."
The shopping cart's wheels rattled against the uneven tarmac when Niklas started pushing it. He could barely see over the handle, and poor Petey was even smaller. For someone who was very close to eight years old, Niklas knew he was still short enough that people mistook him for seven. Gritting his teeth, he tried his best to keep the cart from veering as they headed for the sliding doors.
"Just hold on to the side, and I'll get you there."
He saw a mop of dark brown hair give a nod, and he couldn't help but smile, warmly. Petey trusted him fully, and it was a nice feeling. Thinking back to only a few minutes ago, after they had landed, Niklas saw before his mind's eye how the ship's viewscreen turned dark. Then a second or two later, Petey's proxy body stirred and woke up. Golden eyes sparkled, and a grin greeted him, before he was wrapped in a hug. Petey liked hugging, and once he had learned to transfer his computer mind from the Fourtitude's databanks to his robot body, the first thing he did was give Niklas a hug.
Niklas didn't mind. In his past life, he probably would have. Then, any touch was most likely meant to hold him back, or even hurt. But after Ant took him in, became his papa, he had learned that it was okay to let people into his heart. Love didn't always hurt. Sometimes it felt wonderful. Like when he got hugged. He loved Four's hugs, because they were gentle and caring. He loved Petey's hugs, because Petey had become his little brother and his best ever friend. And he loved Ant's hugs, even though he ofted squirmed and hemmed and hawed whenever he was wrapped up in those strong, furry arms. After all, he had to keep up the pretense that he was a big boy and didn't need anybody. Although to be honest, in his papa Ant's arms was where he felt safest.
Once inside the doors, the wheels behaved better, and the cart became less noisy. Niklas looked around for some kind of map, but all he could see was a post office, a flower shop, and a place that was selling candy. He licked his lips. Maybe they could stop there on their way out. In front of them was an opening into the rest of the building, blocked by what looked like bars. Niklas frowned, but the bars had a green sign on them, with an arrow pointing ahead. So he steered that way, and when they got close enough, the bars opened automatically. Just like the doors.
They were inside the superstore.
* * * * * *
"How do you find anything in in here?" Niklas pulled out a book from the shelf next to him. Steam Engines Through the Ages. He grinned. Ant would have loved it, but the price tag went above and beyond anything he could afford. "Why's there books? Where's the food?"
"Dunno." Petey reached up and twirled his purple lock, which was there to show others that he was a proxy body. It was something he usually did when he was nervous, Niklas knew, and he felt sorry for his little friend. Maybe this hadn't been such a good idea, after all. "We haven't been everywhere, maybe we just have to keep looking."
"Yeah, but back to the left was nothin' but clothes. And at the door there was just drinks."
"But that's kinda almost like food," Petey said. "Maybe we should start over, but in another direction."
"Can you find the way?"
"Maybe. Too bad my navigation programs are back in the Fourtitude."
They left the book aisle, cart still empty, and turned in a direction Niklas hoped would lead to the entrance. Why were the shelves so tall? Surely not everyone was as tall as his papa? When he stood next to Ant, his head barely reached to the wolf man's chest. It made for great hugs, but out in the big world, Niklas was too small. What if the tomatoes were on the top shelf? He felt sure they weren't allowed to climb.
After a couple of missed turns, Petey bounced and pointed ahead. There were row upon row of all kinds of bottles. Lemonade, cordial, soda, fruit juice, beer, wine and other kinds of adult beverages Niklas didn't recognise. He had tasted beer once before, back in his old, bad life. His mama had thrown him out, for one reason or other, and one of the older kids had handed him a bottle. Told him to cheer up and stop moping. It tasted so bad, he never ever wanted to see beer again. And here he was, surrounded by it.
"Which one of these is baking soda?" Petey asked, standing on tip-toes as he poked a bottle with a cartoon character on the label. "There's so many."
"I don't know." Niklas ran his eyes along the shelves, until he picked out a plastic bottle. "This one's strawberry, that should be close enough."
Feeling insecure, he grabbed a pack of apple juice boxes off another shelf and tossed both his finds into the cart. Might as well stock up, he thought. Petey eyed him curiously. Of course he did. Living with a wolf, they had soon learned to read even the most subtle of facial expressions. He tried a grin, but that made his friend even more anxious.
"I wanna go home. Back to the camp site, I mean."
"Me, too." Niklas checked that Petey was holding on to the cart, then chose a new aisle. Bread. Maybe they were getting somewhere! "But we gotta get out of here first."
"How?"
"Cash registers. The place where you pay."
"I knew that."
"Look, there's flour and stuff. We're here!"
Only... did there have to be so many different kinds of everything? Niklas knew that when baking you needed flour, but there was a whole shelf filled with it. At random, he picked a bag that had a loaf of bread on it. The text on the package told him nothing, except that it was apparently first class premium rye. Hopefully, it would do.
"Be careful," Petey squeaked before Niklas could toss the flour into the cart. "If it breaks there'll be a mess."
"True." He leaned as far into the cart as he could, then gently placed the flour next to the apple juice and the strawberry soda. Lucky those didn't break, he mused. "Thanks, buddy."
Petey giggled and squirmed, when Niklas patted his head. Praise and kind words, Niklas had learned, made the little ferry boy more happy than anything else. Except for, maybe, one thing. Like their other papa, Four, Petey loved deep-fried onion rings. Niklas didn't really understand how it worked, but their robot bodies had the ability to eat and drink, pretty much like everyone else. They needed, he decided, to find onions as well. Baking flour could be used to make batter, couldn't it? An extra treat for his friend.
They spun around the bread and flour section for a while. When they passed the baking supplies for the third time, Niklas wistfully grabbed a packet of dry yeast. He sighed. How did anyone ever find anything in this place? Of course, people who had been there before knew their way around. But even they must have been there for the first time, once. Maybe he should ask someone. But they were all so big, and they all looked so rushed. The last thing he wanted was to be yelled at. His mama had yelled at him a lot. He reached up to touch his cheek. When he had been really bad, she even...
"There!" A tug on the cart. "I see milk and cream and eggs and... and... even more milk."
"Great!" Hauling with all his strength, Niklas managed to turn the cart around. "You're the best!"
Was it milk or cream you used in a pie? In the crust or in the filling? Eggs for sure. The two of them carefully manoeuvred a carton into the cart. To be on the safe side, Niklas decided to add two bottles of dairy. Almond milk sounded like it was for baking. And double cream ought to be better than regular. He wasn't entirely sure what the differences were between different kinds of milk and cream, but he was sure they could figure it out. After all, they were making progress here! If they got out of this store, they could do anything.
The fruit and vegetable section made the two boys do a little happy dance. Some people smiled at them, while others frowned. Apparently, they were both cute and annoying at the same time. Petey found strawberries, and they decided on two cartons, to be on the safe side. Any leftovers would surely not go to waste. And onions. Petey squealed happily when Niklas told him of his plans to make onion rings.
"We can all eat them! I love them and Four loves them, and you love them and Ant loves them. It'll be great!"
"Wait!" Niklas all but shrieked. "Butter!"
"Huh?"
"We forgot butter. Mrs B puts butter in everything, we gotta have it for the pie."
"They've got tomatoes here, shouldn't we get some before we go back? In case this place is gone next time."
"Ant wanted tinned tomatoes, not fresh ones. And the places don't move around, Petey," Niklas stated as he dragged the cart back to the dairy section. "It's just us, gettin' lost."
"Are you sure 'bout that?"
* * * * * *
The produce section had gone away when they returned to it. Niklas frowned. The only other explanation was that he had taken a wrong turn, and that was out of the question. He had counted his lefts and rights, and when they failed to find tins and cans and decided to start over, he had counted them again. Backwards. So why were there biscuits and crackers and cookies and other kinds of sweet snacks here? The only answer was, the shelves really did move.
Niklas turned the cart around, and counted carefully, extra carefully, this time. Toys. They were in the toy section. He growled and gritted his teeth. This was worse than the hedge maze they had visited, at that place with the huge castle. Try as he might, he couldn't remember the name of it. But it had been fun, finding their way through. This, he decided, wasn't fun.
He was about to set off again, when there was a tug on the cart. Glancing to the side, he saw that Petey was staring at one of the shelves.
"What's the matter?"
"Look..."
Niklas followed his friend's gaze, and saw a small teddy bear leaning against the leftmost edge of one shelf. Almost hidden from view. He picked it up and turned it over, then he huffed.
"We can make better stuff in our workshop."
"Yeah, but..." Petey met Niklas's eyes, with a slight pout. "He looks so lonely. See? There's only one of him."
That was true. There were row after row of stuffed toys, but not one the same size or shape. Niklas found a price tag. No wonder it had sold out; Ant's tin cars cost more. Was it on sale? Another pout was aimed his way, and Niklas sighed in defeat. The teddy bear joined the rest of their goods.
The happy squeal and the kiss on his cheek, were well worth the cost.
* * * * * *
They did find the dairy section again. Then, bread and flour. And finally, they were back at the snacks. A packet of hazelnut cookies fell, somehow, mysteriously, into the cart. Niklas tried his best to look innocent, when Petey eyed him quizzically.
Snacks gave way to magazines and comic books and newspapers. Niklas leafed through a copy of Masked Hero, only to discover that he had already read that issue, from Ant's collection. Suddenly, the cart jolted as Petey started bouncing.
"There's the way out, I can see it!"
"You're right."
They refrained from another dance, and made do with a high-five. Niklas put the comic book back, and steered them towards the nearest cash register. Like everything else in there, it was bigger than anything he had ever seen. Even standing on his toes, he could barely get his nose level with the conveyor belt. There were a couple of people ahead of them in line, all of whom glanced back, frowning. Niklas was feeling ever more out of place.
When it was almost their turn, he nearly panicked. He tried reaching into the cart, but could barely even touch the bag of flour. Why was the thing so tall and so deep? For lack of better ideas, he tapped Petey's shoulder and pointed at the cart. At first, the robot boy looked puzzled, but when he caught on his eyes widened and he shook his head.
"You can't be serious!"
"It's the only way to get our things checked out. Here, let me help you."
"We're gonna get yelled at."
"If so, then they can yell at me. It's all my fault anyway."
He cusped his hands to form a step, and hoisted his friend up. It took a bit of help, but by the time they reached the conveyor belt, Petey was sitting in the cart. One by one, he lifted their purchases onto the belt, which took them through a scanning station. Once the last item, the strawberry soda bottle, zoomed away, Niklas pushed the cart through the checkout.
There was a screen at the end, where their stuff reappeared, and again he had to lean up as best he could, to read it. All the things they had bought were listed there, followed by a sum total. Niklas gulped. He and Petey had spent more money than they had meant to. Much more. Still, even though they didn't have enough coins, their money card would cover it. Ant wouldn't be pleased, he thought, that they had spent a fair part of what they had made by working in the workshop.
The screen beeped, asking for payment. Niklas reached into the hidden pocket in his shorts, and held up the card. At first, nothing happened, but then he found a reader over to the side. The card lit up, and he pressed the green button to accept payment. To his horror, the screen flashed red. He tried again, and again, but with the same result. Then, the entire cash register shut down, and a red light atop the screen began to spin. Niklas's insides turned cold, as he helped Petey out of the cart.
After a couple of agonising minutes, a burly man approached them. When he spotted the two of them he frowned, and Niklas felt his cheeks flush. Glancing around, the man eventually glared down at the two boys.
"Where are your parents?"
"B-back home, sir." Niklas felt a tiny hand grab ahold of his own, and squeezed it back. "I mean, back at the camp site. They sent us to get some stuff."
"Here? Without money to pay for it?"
"No sir," Niklas said meekly. In his past life, angry people meant there would be pain, and he hoped that by being polite he could avoid getting slapped around. He held up his and Petey's money card, which Ant had given them. "We can pay, honestly! We've got more than enough."
"Hmph." The man huffed, took the card and waved it in front of the reader. Again, it beeped red. "Not according to this."
"But I know we do!" Niklas started raising his voice, but he reined in his temper when he felt a tug on his hand. "Maybe your reader is wrong."
"Maybe you two are pulling a prank on me." The man jabbed a finger at Niklas. "Maybe I should call the police."
"I'm gonna call my papa." Niklas pulled his datapad out of his pocket and turned it on. "He'll come and set things right."
"Dear gods!" the man exclaimed. "Wh-what is that?"
"Huh? It's a datapad."
"No, that!"
"I don't understand," Niklas said as he and Petey looked at the datapad's screen, where the man was pointing. "That's us. Us and our papas."
"That... that... that thing is your papa?"
"You mean Ant?" Niklas's eyes shifted to the left side of the screen, at the smiling face of a wolf. A wolf who walked on two legs, who could talk and build toys and who was the first person to ever treat Niklas like a human being. "Yeah, he's our papa. He and Four are both our papas."
"And you w-want him to c-come here?"
"Yeah, why?" It was puzzling. A minute ago, the man had frowned and huffed at the two boys, now he seemed to be sweating, leaning away from them. "We gotta settle this. I'm calling!"
A stylised telephone appeared on the screen, and a beep-beep signal began sounding. After about ten seconds, it was replaced by a deep, slightly growly voice.
"Hey guys, what's taking you so long?"
"Ant..." Niklas's voice failed him, and he had to start over. "Ant, papa, we kinda need help."
"With?"
"We went shoppin', but this guy says we don't have any money on our card. Say hi, Petey!"
"Hello, papa Ant!"
"Let me talk to him," Ant said, his voice deepening slightly. Niklas gulped. Maybe, for the first time since they met, he was in real trouble with Ant. "Not Petey, the other guy."
"Here." Niklas held the datapad toward the men, who recoiled. "Talk to my papa."
"H-hello?"
"Who is this?"
"M-my name i-is Torrence, sir. I'm a... a junior manager at the One-Three Megastore..."
"Megastore? Guys, where exactly are you?"
"Sorry, Ant, we kinda wanted to make a... you know... like a strawberry pie? They don't have that kinda stuff in Harie. Please don't blame Petey, it was all my idea."
"Please don't blame Niklas either, mister papa, sir," Petey filled in meekly. "It was his idea, but I agreed to it."
"What's this about money, though? How much did you buy?"
"Uhm..." Niklas glanced at the cash register's screen, which still flashed red. "About... about eight-and-a-half unids. I know we got more, though, after all the work we've done."
"Did you forget the four unid restriction we put on the card?" Ant asked, and the two boys winced. Niklas opened his mouth, but couldn't form any words. "You forgot. That card was supposed to be for little things, like snacks and fair rides and such. Guys, you know me and Four keep you with food and clothes."
"We forgot..."
"Put that man back on."
"Mr Torrence?" Niklas spotted him, sitting on a bench right near the exit doors. For some reason, he looked as if he were about to pass out. "Sir, Ant wants to talk to you again. We did have money, it was just restirk... retrisk... We could only use a little bit at a time."
"Mr Torrence," Ant said from the datapad. "Can we solve this over the phone, or do I need to come to you? It might take a while to hitch a ride, since the kids took the ferry."
"Took the what?" The man stood up on unsteady legs. "And no! No, please, you don't need to come. We'll... I'll make sure they don't have to pay. Everything's a-ok!"
"Surely not, sir." Ant huffed. "Trust me, they did want to pay for themselves, it was just a tiny mistake. We all want to set things right. Hold me up to the reader, and I'll send the money."
Niklas did as asked, and reached up with the datapad. After a few seconds, the screen went green with a happy beep. Petey cheered, and Niklas grinned at the junior manager. Looking relieved, he hurried to help them pack, then called over a boy in his mid-teens.
"Ray here will help you get your purchases to... wherever you need to go. Please accept my apologies for the little misunderstanding. I do hope your... papa... won't take too much offence."
"Nuh-uh!" Petey shook his head. "Our papas are the best, they're so kind and so nice to us."
They followed the teenager, Ray, as he jostled their three bags out the doors. To Niklas, fresh air rarely tasted so good! He never, ever wanted to set foot in a place like this again. The shop in Harie Village, sure, but there, the shelves were smaller and stayed where you left them. They went the wrong way, at first, on the parking lot, but soon Niklas caught sight of the cube-shaped Fourtitude. With a squeal of joy, he steered his companions over to it. Once there, he opened a panel and pressed the buttons that opened the door and lowered the ramp which led up to it.
"You've got a spaceship?" Ray made wide eyes. "That's so cool."
"It used to be my papa," Petey said, "but now it's me."
"Long story," Niklas said with a grin, at the teenager's confused look. He hurried up the ramp. "Come on!"
Ray took in all the various decorations on the walls, the large viewscreen up front, and the cluttered workshop where Niklas and Petey spent much of their time making toys. With a bit of help from Ant and Four. They put away the stuff that needed to go into the fridge, then Ray turned to Niklas, looking worried.
"Who's... who's driving?"
"Petey is. He's ace!" The boy in question beamed at them, and went to sit on the couch. A couple of seconds later, the viewscreen turned on, and Petey's face smiled down from it. Niklas grabbed a couple of coins from the money bowl that stood on a table just inside the door, and handed them to Ray. "For your trouble. But you better go, we're gonna take off now."
The teenager beat a hasty retreat, and as soon as the ramp was up and the door closed, the Fourtitude took to the skies.
* * * * * *
The riverside camp site had never looked so beautiful to Niklas, as when it appeared on the screen. The Fourtitude set down, and he let out a sigh. Next time the two of them went out on their own, they would have to come up with a much better plan.
The engine shut off, and robot Petey woke up. Niklas accepted another hug, before his friend started rummaging through their bags. With a happy smile, Petey held up the teddy bear.
"I just had to check that we didn't forget Nalle."
"Nalle?"
"Mhm. That's his new name. I gave it to him. It kinda means teddy bear, but in another language." Petey's face suddenly fell. "Do... do you think it's too silly? I can change it if you think it doesn't become him."
"No, of course not!" Niklas protested. "It's a great name."
"Nalle."
"Right." Niklas patted his friend on top of his head, and Petey leaned into the touch. "Remember what Four keeps saying, you gotta believe in yourself."
"But I want him to be a sophisticated teddy bear and it might sound silly."
"It doesn't. Come on, lets get our stuff back to the tent."
"Okay!"
* * * * * *
Both boys strained under the weight of their bags, as they walked the uneven forest path leading to the clearing that had been home for the last couple of weeks. Niklas carried most of their shopping, because Petey's proxy body didn't have all that much strength. Plus, the smaller boy was also clutching his teddy bear underneath one arm. Nalle, Niklas corrected himself. He smiled. It was a cute name. Most things Petey did, in his opinion, were cute.
They had just rounded a corner, and the tent would soon be in sight, when large, rough hands landed on their shoulders. Petey let out a tiny squeak, but Niklas immediately recognised the touch. And the smell, one that had come to mean comfort and safety. And home.
"Hello, Ant."
"Hey, boys."
"Are you mad at us, papa?" Petey asked in a near-whisper. "You are, aren't you?"
"I'm not mad." The near-growly voice had a hint of amusement to it, and Niklas knew they were out of trouble. More or less. "Just a bit... concerned."
"It wasn't dangerous or nothing..."
"I know that, Nik, but still. I wish you would've taken Four or me with you."
"I thought we could do it. But it was so difficult." Niklas's head hung a little. "Everything was too big."
"And hard to find," Petey piped in. "We got lost several times, but luckily we did find Nalle."
"Nalle?"
"This is him." Petey put down his bag and held up the teddy bear. "I named him."
"You should have told us you wanted a toy, Petey. We could've helped you make one."
"I didn't know 'til I saw him. He looked so lonely there on the shelf. There was plenty of all the others, but just one of him."
"I told him it was okay, Ant." Niklas moved a little closer to his friend. "It's all on me."
"Maybe it should be on me." Ant stepped in front of the two boys, and crouched down. His hands returned to their shoulders. "We've been travelling to new places, and we've been making toys and we've been doing school stuff, but we never really taught you guys how to make do on your own."
"I should be able to handle myself. And take care of Petey."
"Yeah, but it didn't work out so well, did it?" Niklas's shoulders sagged. The last thing he ever wanted to do, was to disappoint his papa. Which he now had. "Don't worry, you hear. It was just a tiny mistake."
"We forgot that we could only buy a little at a time," Petey said. "Will you forgive us, papa?"
"Already done."
Ant opened his arms, and Petey stepped into the hug with a happy giggle. Hesitating for a second, Niklas put his bags down and joined him. It felt so nice, to have Ant's strong arm enclose him, as if nothing could ever be wrong. However, no hug lasted forever, and soon the three of them reached the tent. Four greeted them with a smile, which the boys returned.
When they first met, Niklas had been unsure of the robot man. But, as time passed, Four had become as much of a papa as Ant. Petey adored him, and rushed over to receive another hug. They packed away their things in the portable fridge, and Petey once more proudly displayed his new teddy bear. However, as the boys made to go inside the tent, Four cleared his throat. Niklas looked back, and saw that both his papas were trying to hide smiles. Ant handed him a couple of coins.
"What are these for?"
"Walk this time. And only down to the village."
"Huh?" Niklas glanced at Petey, who shrugged, then his eyes widened. "Oh no."
"What is it?"
"We forgot the tomatoes!"
