Thunk!
With a huff of annoyance, Tia slammed a car trunk shut, causing a resounding echo to ring throughout the scrapyard.
Her grip on her pry bar slackened as she used her free hand to wipe away the sweat that was forming across her brow. The heat from the midday sun bore into her as she stooped down and snagged a water bottle from her wagon.
“It’s been two days, and I haven’t anything worth bringing home, what a waste of time,” Tia muttered, taking the time to unscrew the cap on the bottle, drinking what was left.
Letting out a satisfied sigh, she crushed the bottle and tossed it to the ground. Leaning against the car she’d pried open, she stared up at the sky. It was likely that her mother would be home from work soon, and Tia didn’t want her finding out that she had been out in the scrapyard again without her permission.
That didn’t stop Tia from admiring the weather. An amalgamation of white cumulus painted the horizon as a gentle breeze blew through the scrapyard, rustling through her chocolate-brown hair as she closed her eyes and soaked it all in.
Not a minute had passed before Tia was up and at it again, dragging her feet along with her wagon in tow as she clumsily chucked the pry bar inside. It clanged against the edge of the wagon while she traversed the rough terrain.
As she approached the chain-link fence that led to the entrance of the scrapyard, she noticed a small alabaster figure in her field of view.
Slowly, Tia craned her head, peering into the distance.
Not too far from her, was a small mechanical pony made of a material that Tia didn’t recognize.
She felt her heart flutter and dropped the handle of her wagon in excitement. She ran over to the object of her sudden obsession in haste, kicking up dust in the process.
The robot had certainly seen better days, a layer of rust coating a portion of its exterior. Pieces of it were missing, and frayed wires haphazardly dangled every which way. The most amazing thing about it were its eyes, an enchanting shade of emerald green.
Tia couldn’t have been a happier girl.
She crouched low and inspected the body of the robot further. It had a serial code engraved on the side of it’s body:
CMC4EVR: Sweet—
Tia clicked her tongue in frustration. It was clear that everything after the word ‘Sweet’ had been scratched off, which meant she wasn’t exactly sure what to call it.
“Well, considering how cute you are. I’ll just have to call you ‘Sweetheart.’ How does that sound?”
The robot didn’t reply, though that didn’t stop Tia from perking up and giggling to herself.
“I’m glad you like it, my little pony.”
While it would take some tender loving care, it was something she was sure she’d be able to fix with enough time. All she had to do was pick it up and haul it back to —
Tia felt herself begin to wheeze as she dropped her hold on the robot. Whatever it was made of, it was frickin’ heavy!
She cringed as she stretched her strained muscles. She was strong for a little girl, but that pony weighed a literal ton!
Tia sighed as she quickly hiked over to her wagon, pulling it over to the robot and taking in a deep breath. She huffed and grunted as she just barely managed to get it inside the wagon, slumping over and panting heavily.
“It’s alright, you’re worth it, Sweetheart,” Tia said between pants.
Tia’s smile of contentment vanished as she gave the handle of her wagon an experimental tug and found that it barely budged.
“Ugh!” Tia groaned as she feebly gave the wagon another tug. She was going to be at this all day at this rate, but she couldn’t afford to leave the robot for the rest of the day. What if someone else found it?
She bit her lip. Hopefully, her mother wouldn’t punish her too badly for being out so late.
Tia grinned as she spotted her house, barely visible in the distance. Its cozy cottage appearance was unmistakable, though the sight still caused a pang of dread to run through her.
As she predicted, it had taken her a long time to drag Sweetheart all the way back home. Even though the wagon was mobile, it wasn’t in the best condition, and bearing such a heavy load wasn’t making it any easier.
The color of the sky had transitioned from a deep blue to a golden yellow, and the temperature had grown to be a lot more tolerable since she first left the house; which meant her mother was most certainly home.
Tia gulped as she approached the cottage. While she couldn’t see her mother from the outside, she was definitely waiting for Tia, waiting to chew her out for going to the scrapyard without telling her beforehand.
She felt her hand begin to shake as she pulled down on the brass door handle and stepped inside.
Tia let out a gasp as she dropped the handle to her wagon. Her mother was standing in the foyer, leaning against the wall with a smug smirk plastered on her face.
“Hello, my little sunflower. I see you went out again without asking me.”
The words died in Tia’s mouth before she had a chance to say them, the only thing that came out was unintelligible blubbering.
“M-Mother! I-I c-can explain!”
Tia’s mother walked up to her and embraced her before she had the chance to say anything else, gently cooing to her as Tia’s breathing slowed.
“I understand, Tia. It’s only natural for you to want to explore. I wouldn’t want you to stay cooped up in this house all the time.”
She paused, looking deep into Tia’s hazel eyes.
“You also know that I can’t have you ignoring everything I tell you, right?”
Tia nodded as her mother stooped down, evening their heights.
“I’ll let you work in your workshop.”
Tia’s eyes widened as a big smile formed on her face. “Yes! Thank you so much, M—”
“But... you’re also grounded for the rest of the week,” Tia’s mother finished saying, the smirk never leaving her face.
Tia groaned as she thumped her head against the wall, eliciting a chuckle from her mother as she walked back to the kitchen.
“Don’t let me catch you going back to that scrapyard again without telling me, young lady! You could have at least brought your sister along!”
Tia simply rolled her eyes.
The night quickly fell upon Tia as she worked, the darkness filtering through the workshop’s windows as she glanced over briefly. She hadn’t even realized how late it had become!
She held a screwdriver in her mouth while she used both hands to re-align the glossy misshapen metal into something more reasonable.
It was a miracle that it was in good-enough condition for her to be able to fully restore it on her own. While she wasn’t going to be able to finish fixing it all in the same night, she’d made significant progress.
Sweetheart’s exterior now gave off a brilliant shine under the lamplight, no longer falling victim to the rust that had corroded her outer layer. The frayed wires had been neatly tucked away inside her interior, and all four of her limbs were almost fully functional again.
The only thing left that Tia had to check was her internal circuitry —
“Holy crap!” Tia shouted, causing the screwdriver in her mouth to clang to the ground.
Everything inside was perfect. Not only was there no sign of corrosion, but nothing was missing, either! It was as if someone had just replaced all the internal parts before she even got there!
Tia bit her lip as the implications of the situation flooded her mind. What if she had accidentally stolen this robot? What if they had just fixed the interior and left right after she got there?! Her mother would kill her!
A voice interrupted her panic.
“Tia, why are you shouting? Are you alright?”
Tia gasped, expecting to see the face of her mother in the door-frame, but sighed in relief as she saw her baby sister instead.
“Thank God, it’s just you, Lulu.”
She scoffed as she walked inside Tia’s workshop. “Can’t you just call me ‘Luna’? You know I hate that nickname.”
Tia gave her a smirk as she stood up from her chair. “But you’re my baby sister! You’ll always be ‘Lulu’ to me.”
Luna grumbled something under her breath, causing Tia to giggle.
“Are you still fixing that robot?” Luna asked, looking over Tia’s shoulder. “She looks really cute. Is she a unicorn or something?”
“I think that's an aesthetic thing, the horn doesn't actually do anything from what I know. I’ve decided to name her ‘Sweetheart.’ I think it suits her quite well.” Tia said with a proud expression.
Luna approached the robot with caution, gently caressing its exterior with a look of wonder on her face.
“Can you turn it on?”
Tia sat back down, slumping in her chair. “From what I can tell, she still needs to be charged. I can’t see a power switch on her or anything like that, though.”
Tia pulled out a cable that led to the generator outside and placed it on the workshop table. Locating the Sweetheart's battery, Tia slowly but carefully plugged her in.
Nothing happened, much to their chagrin.
Luna released a breath that she didn’t know she was holding in. “Well, that was disappointing.”
Tia shrugged, “I guess I’ll just let her charge. I’ll check up on her in the morning.”
“It’s not like you have anything better to do. Mom grounded you, remember?”
Tia stuck her tongue out, “Shaddup.”
They giggled among one another as Tia turned off the lights and shut the door behind them, the two of them ready to turn it in for the night.
A second later, two emerald-green eyes opened, shining in the darkness.