Work Text:
Sun hums, bouncing around as they neatly tuck away scribbled drawings, stacking cans and keeping an eye out on the playing children, especially the ballpit.
He runs his gaze around the daycare, before his optics snag on a lone child in a corner, shaking her long brown hair out of her face. Sun bounces over, taking in the child’s appearance as she rights her rumpled purple and white striped shirt. Cecil, his memory prompts as he pulls up the girl’s guest profile.
"Hellllllooooooo!” Sun greets cheerfully upon reaching the child, hopping from foot to foot as she looks up. "What are you doing all alone, kiddo?"
“I’m just daydreaming Mr. Robot! It’s really fun.” Cecil shyly tries to maintain eye contact, failing halfway through the sentence. “I like to make up people in my head.”
"Make up people?" Sun tilts his head to the side, curious.
What's going on? Moon grumbles, peeking in.
Just checking in on this kid. Sun replies easily, used to his brother’s grumpiness.
Mmmm. Fifteen minutes till nap time. Moon returns to the backseat.
“Yeah!” Cecil grins, looking happy and blinks.
[We should be cautious about this, what if it’s a trap like before?]
“Like making up somebody to tell you things and talk to. Like an imaginary friend but in my head. I think they all have personalities though! ‘Cuz sometimes we don’t agree even though it’s in my head.” Cecil finishes grumpily, before smiling brightly at Sun.
"That's interesting! What are they like?" Sun inquires, bending down as they briefly checks on the other kids.
“Well there’s Nick, he’s usually angry all the time for no reason and hates when i wear girly stuff cuz he’s a boy, especially when it feels like I’m him sometimes instead of me.” Cecil begins, whispering the last part in a strange tone that Sun doesn’t miss, before continuing on.
“Then there's Indigo! They’re really logical, they help me make good decisions when I argue with Nick about something. My mom says that I’ve been a lot less indecisive, cause Indigo helps a lot. They can be really mean to my friends sometimes though, so i keep Indigo and Nick in my head.”
“Oh!” She exclaims, and Sun automatically does a quick scan to make sure there’s no danger. “I almost forgot! There's Fox and Cyprus too! Cyprus is from a story i made up, he just started sticking around one day and giving opinions, so, i don’t know, he’s comforting when i’m sad, cuz he’s a grown up. And Fox is comforting too! She tells me making mistakes are okay and that everything will work out in the end! I think that’s everyone.” Cecil looks up at Sun cautiously, her breath quickening.
[THIS WAS A MISTAKE WE’RE GONNA BE IN TROUBLE
shhhhh just wait.]
That sounds annoying. Four imaginary friends? Moon comes back, ever the busybody.
No need to be mean. Sun chides mentally, carefully processing. “Nick is a boy?”
...Wasn’t there that one kid who kept crying about people calling them a girl and said they were a boy? What did that security guard say...
That the kid is transgender. Sun remembers searching the term up on the web and observing the children a lot more carefully afterwards, watching for signs.
It’s in their program, after all; Sun is here to make the children happy! And that means he cares for them all, and as long as what they do doesn’t hurt anyone or themselves, then it’s fine for them to do what they want to.
(“Promise you won’t call me a girl?” The kid sniffles, hands curled into their skirt like they despise it with all their being.
“Of course.” Sun assures. “You’re a very brave boy for telling me this.”
The kid smiles, and Sun’s system whirls happily. Mission complete.)
[say something other than yeah, don’t be boring |
ohhhhhh thats not a bad reaction |
don’t take too long to respond!!!]
“Yep! I like being a girl, but he really really doesn’t. I don’t know why, we’re in the same body. Shouldn’t we like the same things?” Cecil questions idly, tilting her head at h
[OOF WAIT A MINUTE-
shoosh indigo stop panicking-
don’t the robots share a body too?
INDIGO HAS A POINT-]
“I mean, its not like he’s real..?” The statement ends up sounding like a question at the end, and Cecil adds hastily. “You can’t actually have people in your head, right?”
Sun mulls this over, fans whirling within them. “Well, I do! I don’t know if that only applies to robots, but I have my brother with me! Moon disagrees with me lots of times, because he’s grumpy like that!”
Cecil appears to consider this. “Moon sounds like someone Nick would get along with. I know Nick is just angry and focused on helping but its hard sometimes…”
[Fuck you i am helping-]
“Or maybe not, he sounded mad, but he’s always mad, so, I don’t know.” Cecil grimaces, and then forces a small smile.
...I’m getting a lot of demonic possession results.
Those are wrong, then. Try a different search-
The lights shut off, and Sun ducks away behind a random block tower automatically as Moon prowls to the front seat, while Sun huddles into the back. Meanwhile, Cecil had looked up at the lights turning off.
“Sun?” The child calls out hesitantly, quietly, and Moon swallows a huff as Sun’s sun points retracted with a soft clicking. He stretches, clothes flicking to blue and tugging on his nightcap, smoothly stepping out from behind the block tower with his eyes glowing a soft dark blue.
(A color change after one too many complaints about bright red)
”I’m Moon.” He states, turning to look at the kids. Time to corral them all.
But we’re not done talking to them! Sun huffs, taking up Moon’s search.
We can talk once I’m done with my job
“Oh, sorry. Hi Moon.” She gives a little wave. “I’m Cecil.”
He inclines his head in acknowledgment. “Stay here.” He instructs, before bounding away to gather up the kids.
Moon starts snagging kids by the back of their collar, herding all to the nap area, into their sleeping bags and blankets. He’s ducking into the play structures, squeezing through tunnels and down slides to catch every last straggler.
Moon glances back at where Cecil still stood, before carefully winding up a music box that he has tucked away near the security desk - which was currently empty - letting the tune lull the children as he strides back to the girl(?)
“Very nice to meet you, Cecil.” Moon says quietly, voice much smoother and calmer than Sun.
Oh! There’s- there’s this thing called DID, Moon! DID systems! Systems, like us! Sun giggles, falling quiet as he begins reading.
Moon observes the child, sees the tense shoulders and their expression being a little too perfect, a little too happy, to be real. The expression seems to drop for a mere moment, before smoothing out. Moon’s optics catch onto it, carefully cataloguing it. Something had changed.
I’m looking through the info- Moon, I don’t think that’s Cecil anymore, they’re one of her not-so-imaginary friends.
“Nice to meet you too.” The words are said stiffly and a bit softer as Cecil(?) looks Moon up and down. “So your job is to put kids in the naptime area?”
“Yes. It is time for bed.” Moon bends, offering his hands.
All this stuff about DID seems to fit, Moon. Sun hums, nudging the info over to him.
He processes it idly in the span of seconds. Interesting.
The kid inches closer to Moon, spreading out her(their?) arms like she wants a hug. Moon takes it in stride, carefully picking the child up.
“Cecil. You said something about your friends in your head?“ Moon begins quietly.
“Yeah…” Cecil murmurs, her words taking on a sour tone. “They aren’t evil or anything. They just help sometimes when i feel bad.”
“That is to be expected. They are here to protect you.“ Moon replies easily, trying to smooth out the edge of bitterness in the child’s voice. Sun makes sure the children are never sad in the first place, but Moon is always here to pick up those that can’t be helped with cheerfulness with gentle comfort.
Cecil twitches in Moon’s hold, but seems to brighten. "Yeah! i think that's part of why i have them, cuz they make me feel-" She yawns. "-better."
"In that case, I believe you have DID." Moon offers, eyes scanning the room in case a kid had snuck away.
It's fine- give the kid your full attention for just a bit, this is important! Moon holds off a sigh but does agree, so he properly looks at the kid,
"What's D,I,D?" Cecil's face twists in confusion. "Am i sick or something? Or is it like one of the things you're not supposed to talk about, like showers?'
"You are not sick. DID stands for dissociative identity disorder, and it is characterized by the presence of two or more dissociated self states, known as alters - though some do not like the term -, that have the ability to take executive control over the body. There is usually a level of amnesia, or memory loss, between these self-states. These alters can have different genders, world views and personalities." Moon recites easily, waiting as Cecil squints at him.
"I thought i just had bad memory or was stupid or something." She dangles her feet idly. "So am i like you and Mr. Sun then?" She looks around the daycare to avoid any judgement she might see in Moon's eyes.
“What we have is rather different from you, since we are animatronics, not humans. But in essence, the concept is the same. Nick, Indigo, Fox and Cyprus are real people, they just happen to share your body.” Moon hums, watching Cecil carefully. He’s not the best at talking to kids; that’s Sun’s job
“Oh.” Cecil frowns, and the next words are whispered softly, but clear in the quieting daycare. “Am i crazy?”
Oh dear, that appears to be a wildly inaccurate movie about this disorder- Sun panicks as Cecil’s grip tightens on Moon‘s outfit.
“You’re not. Everyone just wants to protect and help you, yes?” Moon rubs soothing circles into the child‘s back.
“Yes.” Cecil nods her head and rubs away the tears forming in her eyes.
[Do I really have DID? Are you guys real?
….- ….- …-
Yes, we are.
indigo?
It makes sense. Of course we have something.
Indigo i don’t-]
“I like you, you tell me things. Grownups don’t usually tell me, or, um, us, things. So thanks.” Cecil says, turning away to look at the sleep pile.
“It’s nothing.“ Moon answers, bringing the child to the mostly fast asleep kids. The music box has winded down. “Time to sleep.”
Soft
Shut it
Cecil yawns and rubs her eyes, obviously tired. “Ok.” Cecil answers in a raspy voice.
“Good.” He says quietly, carefully tucking Cecil into a blanket. “Sleep tight.”
Cecil burritos herself in the blanket and shuts her eyes, the emotional exhaustion from the day catching up to her in a matter of seconds.
(She is comfortably asleep among strangers who owe her nothing, yet gave her something monumental regardless.
There is something to be said about the duality of man, here, in this children’s wonderland.)
Moon steps back, quietly moving his gaze around the Daycare as he tucks his hands behind his back, his gaze lingering on Cecil.
I’m worried, Sun admits. How DID forms....
We can’t do anything. Moon cuts his brother off, stiff. He doesn’t want to think about that. They can’t do anything. No one’s going to listen to a robot. All that matters is that we make sure she’s safe here, at least. Maybe help them with some issues.
I know. And we’ll help them with whatever they need.
Moon’s face is always smiling, but this time he somewhat agrees with it, letting a soft pulse of contentment wash over their servers.
Awwww, I love you too, Moonbeam!
Yes, yes. Moon suppresses a sigh, and heads off to start cleaning up.