//------------------------------// // A weird new addition. // Story: Taking Care of Robot Ponies is a Disaster! // by Researcher_Harold //------------------------------// "So, this is my spare bedroom," I say, letting Sweetie Bot walk into the dusty, mostly empty bedroom. The mattress on the bed frame lay bare with no bedsheets in sight. There was a carpet on the otherwise hardwood floor next to the bed. There was also a small wooden desk that had nothing on it. "I don't use it, as you can tell." "Do you at least have spare linens for the mattress, Thomas?" Sweetie Bot asked, looking back at me from next to the bed. I rubbed my chin and shook my head. "Nope. I've been using the same bedsheets for a while now, just washing them every so often." "I would prefer to have bedsheets on the bed." Sweetie Bot frowned and sat next to the bed. I crossed my arms. "Why does it matter to you? You shouldn't even be able to feel comfort." I point out, narrowing my eyes. "I can too. Pressure sensors beneath my skin allow me to feel a limited sense of touch like you humans can, and when pressed in an awkward or painful manner, I can feel uncomfortable." Sweetie Bot explains. "Adding bedsheets doesn't even make that much of a difference." I groan, shaking my head. Sweetie Bot jumps onto the bed, making a loud whirring sound. "Maybe not, but it'd make the room look more-" "Inviting? Warm? Yeah, I get it. I don't have the best idea of fashion and decoration, but that doesn't mean that you have to change everything on day one." I say with a frustrated tone. "Be happy that I even let you in. I don't even like robots." Sweetie Bot sits on the bed, her green eyes focusing on me. "I see. I am sorry for all the trouble I have caused you, Thomas. I will go to extreme lengths to make sure I do not upset you anymore." "Wait, that's not-" I am cut off. "I do not wish to be thrown out onto the streets again, forced to lie and wait for my inevitable fate of being deconstructed and used in a future robotics project. So, I will be on my bestest behavior for the remainder of my stay." Sweetie Bot finally finished, her ear flicking as she stared at me. I stared back, unimpressed. "It's not like I was going to kick you out or anything," I say, making Sweetie Bot grin nervously. "The point still applies. I do not want to make you hate me, so I will make you love me so that you never want me to leave." Sweetie Bot curls up on the bed and lies down, closing her eyes. "I will initiate sleep mode. Good night, Thomas." "It's only 6, but whatever. Good night." I stand there for a second longer before I turn out of the room and shut the door with a soft click. I trudge back into my living room where I flop down onto the couch. There, I let out a long, heavy sigh. "How much does a robot charger cost...?" I mutter to myself, running my hands through my hair. "I've got to go to work tomorrow, I've got to buy more food, I've got to pay the bills, and now I've got to worry about the well-being of a robot. How could this day get any worse...?" I sit in the living room for an unknown amount of time, but when I eventually look back up, it's dark outside and the clock now reads 7:35 PM. "I'm thinking too hard on this. Maybe this won't be so bad after all." I try cheering myself up as I stand. "It looks like she can take care of herself. Maybe she even has a built-in charger. God, I hope so." I walk out of the living room and into the kitchen where I invade my fridge for the third time today. I kneel down and open one of the drawers, revealing my collection of soda. I grab a Coke and shut the drawer and fridge. I stand back up and crack open the can, going to take a sip and... I freeze when I see a glowing pair of eyes staring into my kitchen from outside. I scream (in a very manly way) and reflexively throw something at the window, that something being my freshly opened can of Coke. The eyes disappear as soon as the can collides with my window, bouncing off it with a heavy thud. The can spins around on my counter, pouring out all of its contents onto it. I scurry over to the can and stand it up so it no longer spills and I take a shaky deep breath. "Who... the hell... was that?" I ask myself, looking back outside the window at the darkness outside. It wasn't all dark as I could see that one of my motion-activated security lights had turned on. Thankfully, I saw nobody snooping around outside, so I turned away and grabbed a towel, pressing it onto the counter. I wipe down the counter, my hands trembling violently as I try and calm down from the sight. Glowing eyes aren't natural, I realize. Am I being stalked by a demon!? "No, that's crazy talk..." I assure myself. "Demons don't stalk poor, innocent men like me... well, I'm not innocent..." I look back up at the window, noticing that the security light had turned off. I quickly look back down, knowing that I'd feel better not looking outside. I quickly scrubbed the remaining soda off the counter, tossed the towel into the sink subconsciously, and ran out of the kitchen, finally entering the safety of my well-lit bedroom. I closed the door and walked forward, collapsing onto my bed with a sigh. "I hope it's not a demon..." I say to myself, my voice muffled by my bed. I roll over, staring at the ceiling with a contemplative gaze. I look over at my window, which is covered by curtains and blinds. I take a deep breath and steel my nerves. "If it's a demon, then I have to not be scared. Being scared only serves to strengthen the demon. Don't be afraid... don't be afraid..." I hyped myself up and stood up off my bed, walking over to my window. I stand in front of it, many thoughts running through my head all at once. But, I grab the curtains, pulled them apart, and peered through the blinds... ...meeting the glowing magenta eyes right on the other side of the window. Now, I had hyped myself up so I wouldn't be afraid. However, this moment will do down in my own personal history book as one of the scariest moments in my life. I stare into the eyes, my entire body stiff from fear and shock. The eyes stare back, unblinking. Yeah, I've seen enough for today. The last thing I remember is collapsing to the ground, now taking a nice nap on my freshly cleaned carpeted floor. "Hey, are you alright, sir?" The unfamiliar voice slowly brought me out of my accidental slumber. I groan and roll over, now lying on my stomach on the floor. The voice was feminine but still unfamiliar. It wasn't Sweetie Bot. I'll remember that grating voice for as long as I live. "Urgh... five more minutes," I reply to the voice, pressing my face into the carpet. "Do I need to take you to the hospital?" The voice asked again and I heard footsteps approaching. That's an odd amount of footsteps for a person... unless... It really was a demon. Instantly, I bolted to my feet, my eyes snapping open. "You won't take me alive!" I waved a hand around, yelling as loud as I could. I heard a clatter and a crash from behind me, so I turned to look. Lying on the floor upside down next to a fallen metal trash can was a... another mutated dog? This one was a bit bigger. No, it was a lot bigger. No, that's right, not a mutated dog. Pony? This one also had a toothpick, horn, I corrected, on its head. A really long one. It seemed quite sharp. Its coat was a brilliant white that seemed to shimmer in the white light of my room. It had long, straight pink hair that was splayed out on the floor since it was lying upside down. Its tail was also pretty long, the same long pink straight hair being seen there as well. However, a strange addition to this pony's body was its wings. Yep, definitely its wings. They were large and unfurled, taking up a large portion of the floor as it lay there. It stared up at me with its magenta eyes. I stared down at it. "Um..." It spoke, trailing off immediately. It was the source of the feminine voice. "You a robot too?" I asked, my fear ebbing, replaced by annoyance as I crossed my arms. The pony smiled nervously. "Please don't tell R&S?" She asked quietly. That answers that. I groan and shake my head. "I got scared for nothing. This isn't a demon, just another robot pony..." I watch as the pony stands up, realizing that she's a lot taller than I first thought. She stood nearly an inch taller than me and her horn gave her extra height! "An oversized one... Yeah, whatever, I won't tell R&S." "Oh, thank you kindly, sir! But, now I have something else more, uh... important to ask." The pony averted her gaze, shuffling her hooves. "Lemme guess. You want to stay?" I crossed my arms again, giving her a knowing stare. She blinked and sheepishly nodded. "I've already got one nuisance in the house, I don't need a second one." "Oh, but please! R&S is out for me and I have no clue what they'll do to me once they get their hands on me!" The pony started begging, looking very nervous. The extent of their nervousness, paired with Sweetie Belle's similar anxiety, makes me wonder what kind of people work at R&S. "Please, please please please!" "Can you handle cooking?" I asked, making the pony tilt her head. I didn't say anything else, so she quickly nodded. "Yes, I can cook. I'm not the best, but I know a lot of recipes." She explained. "Can you do chores?" I asked again, to which she nodded. "Do you make messes?" She shook her head. "Alright, last question. Do you and the other robot ponies have your own chargers?" "Yes, we do. We can open a panel on our sides when needed." The pony nodded and a panel swung open on her side, revealing a coiled-up wire alongside a pulsing plastic tube. I stared for longer than I should have before the panel closed. "Does that mean I can stay?" "Yeah, I guess so... but, you'll have to promise me something." I raised a finger, making the pony stand straight up. "Whatever it is, I'll do it." She said in a straight, ready voice. "When I go to work... please make sure that Sweetie Bot doesn't snoop around." I sigh. The pony seemed stunned at the supposedly simple task. "No worries, you can rely on me!" The pony beamed and nodded her head. But as soon as she said that, the door to the bedroom opened, revealing Sweetie Bot standing at the door, her face the same as ever. "Thomas, people from R&S wish to speak to you." Sweetie Bot said before walking away from the bedroom. Me and the pony both felt our jaw drop as we exchanged a glance. This day, that had already been bad enough since 2 robot ponies dumped themselves onto me, just got even worse.