After leaving the confused foxy girl in the hallway, Zax went to prepare some basic synthetic tea. It would be a pleasant way to calm her down if she followed, or to relax before bed if she didn’t. The cluster of minuscule mushrooms that served as ceiling lights reacted to his presence by brightly glowing and he quickly set them to a lower red light to not wake his girlfriend up. Then he changed the colour back to a more neutral white, as to not alarm Aran if she came. A quick glance in the bedroom confirmed that Quinn was still asleep, but he sent a quick message to her bracelet to explain the situation, just in case.

All the while he used his nanites to keep an open feed to the security cameras in the hallway, transmitting sensory data directly to his visual cortex. It required less focus than watching a screen with his own eyes and analysing the data himself.

He spied the tailed mutant looking first confused by his last words, then embarrassed when realising that this door couldn’t react to voice commands and had never been locked. He chuckled a bit at her brief shoulder slumping and tail deflating.

Yeah, that was a bit pathetic. A surprisingly strong reaction though, I didn’t push that hard, did I? Smells like a story behind it.

In any case, it would help with his theory. He ignored the question and kept on watching her. She went through different emotions: confusion; then embarrassment; then resignation, a fear she quickly chased away, then back to confusion. She didn’t even seem to realise when she was walking to his door, but she didn’t stop when she recognised it.

Zax waited for her to reach the threshold before turning to her from the kitchen’s counter. She kept her eyes locked on her feet, trying not to move but fidgeting nonetheless. She was full of nervous energy.

Zax kept watching her with an impassive expression, waiting for her to speak. Her fidgeting worsened until she finally relented. It didn’t last long; patience was not her forte.

“I would like to sleep here tonight. Please.” A barely audible whimper, but Zax still managed to catch it.

“Sure, the sofa is just there.” Zax pointed to the other side of the living space. “Do you want some tea before that? I have something I’d like to discuss.”

Aran quickly peeked at the layout of the room, noting the two closed doors in the back and right wall of the living room, the couch on the right, the kitchen and its counter on the left. Two steaming cups were already waiting on the counter. She looked back down and shyly nodded, walking to the counter separating the kitchen and the living area. Her gaze never rose even as she sat on the high stool.

Zax quietly pushed the two cups, letting her choose the one she wanted.

“Sorry, I don’t have snacks.”

“Hum. Er- Hm- It’s alright.” Aran stammered, clumsily taking the cup on her right. Right-handed, Zax noticed.

Talking again. Progress.

They both silently sipped their cup for a while. Aran first kept her eyes down, fascinated by the waves in her cup. Quickly she couldn’t help but glance around, still making every effort to avoid looking at the human in front of her. Zax used that time to examine more than her tail.

On the smaller side of average height. Ordinarily pale skin, smooth but not frail. The type of sleek fitness seen in people with an active lifestyle. Normal clothes, with the simplest modification for her tail. Not custom made, the standard mass-produced issue. Lean face, high cheeks. One ornament: a yellow scrunchie in her short black hair, holding her fringe up and revealing her eyes. Deep eyes, so dark they seemed black when light wasn’t directly pointed in them. One could get lost in there.

Overall, a very average body for a healthy young woman.

And currently hidden, the wiles to use it to blend in any group.

When their cups were about to be empty, Zax motioned for more.

“Another?” He smiled reassuringly.

“What do you want from me!?”

Aran burst out when he broke the silence. She even reflexively looked at him in the eyes.

For about a second, but still.

“Do you always react that strongly when it’s not about a party?”

Aran restlessness worsened, as did the redness in her cheeks, but Zax didn’t manage to get another word out of her.

“Fine.” he sighed, filling the cups and activating the relevant programs.

[Business mode: Off

Negotiation mods: On]

With the support of his nanites, Zax observed and analysed each part of her reactions with greater precision and speed, deduced her mental and emotional state with more accuracy, and computing it with both his personal memories, his experiences, and the nanites’ database, he calculated the optimal path and approach.

<[Straight to the point, full honesty, no pressure, no pandering]> was the decided result.

“I would like your cooperation to test some of my theories about 3G induced mutations.”

Aran raised her head in surprise at the brutal shift, even forgetting her anxiety.

“You would have to get measuring nanites in your body for the night. They will do an ongoing general examination in your sleep to build a template of you. Then, I will analyse that template with my theory, and we’ll discuss the results. Namely, what my theory tells me about you. And you will tell me how far or close to the truth I am. There you have it. Any thoughts?”

All was stated within a few breaths and without pause or hesitation.

“You- uh, er, I-, Hm…”

Aran was confused, both by the sudden change of pace, how straightforward it was and how… undemanding for her. Sleep with nanites, talk, then free to leave? Just that? What was the catch?

<[Observation / Emotional State: Strong fluctuations.]>

<[Query / Details / Emotional state.

Reply: confusion (main) – turmoil (medium) – embarrassment (mild) – fear (mild) – all within expected parameters.]>

<[Query / Emotional State / Doubts + Mental State / Reservations.

Reply: overshadowed by confusion – within expected parameters.]>

So far, so good.

“Isn’t that… dangerous?” She hesitatingly asked.

<[Analysis: Stalling for time + Trying to assert a form of control.

Note: Opposing would be counter-productive.

Optimal answer: Reassurance/Confirming her agency.]>

Yes, but how?

<[Query/Protocol.

Reply: unknown.]>

“What? The nanites? No.” Zax answered without missing a beat, showing no sign of the nanites processing in tandem with his mind. “It will take the whole night because we will use one of the safest methods. One that also allows a safe and immediate termination and evacuation of the nanites. Just in case you get too uncomfortable before the end.”

“I can stop?” Her tail perked up in surprise. She didn’t expect that.

“Of course.” The human nodded. “You can also refuse before it starts. I’m not forcing you or anything.”

“But you said… you said…” Her voice died off, not finding what she was looking for.

“I said: “I’ll give you a place for the night, and maybe propose something”. Verbatim. The sofa is still there, and you let me make my proposition. Now, you can decide. Take your time.”

The girl’s tail was twisting this way and that, reflecting her inner turmoil. Her mind was reeling, trying to process what she knew. He explicitly stated she could refuse. Could she risk it? She had no reason to agree, did she? The idea of nanites watching in her body made her… uncomfortable.

"Why me? I’m nothing special. My mutation isn’t special. Not useful at all either. Just good at being pretty. Like me.” She whispered, hugging her tail, not unlike a little girl holding her favourite plushie. Or a lifeline.

[Observation (Unexpected): low self-esteem.]

“An average sample is more representative and always good to have, so not being special is not a reason to ignore you. Also, it’s not just you; I made the same offer to many before. Some agreed, some refused.” Zax shrugged. “This theory is just a result of one of my hobbies, it’s not particularly important. And you may not realise, but I assure you, your mutation is very special. Anyway, you just happened to be in a position where I was sure I could convince you, so I tried my luck.”

“Convince me?” She didn’t fancy how it sounded and clutched her tail tighter. She wasn’t exactly inclined to cooperate right now. Wasn’t he finished?

“Aren’t you curious as to how I could see your manipulation?” Zax smirked knowingly.

She had almost forgotten about that! How could she forget that!? That man was really dangerous Aran tensed all at once, leaning back in her chair, her tail straight and puffing once more.

<[Query / Details / Emotional state.

Reply: turmoil (rising) – worry (rising) – fear (medium) – all within expected parameters.

If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

Estimated time to apex: 5 seconds]>

<[4 seconds]>

But this time, her eyes were locked with his, looking for… something. Captivating. The young man found it hard to tear his eyes away, although with her tail still puffing in her arms, she looked quite comical. It brought a smile out of him, but he continued without comment just before < [0 seconds.]>. He was not accurate enough to do it just at the mark:

“I found out thanks to my theory. If you agree with my proposal, I will explain what it told me about you.” Zax concluded with a more reassuring smile.

Aran released the breath she hadn’t realised she was holding back, then her eyes lowered, flickering right and left, weighting up the pros and cons.

Now that was an incentive. She wanted to know, but at the same time she wasn’t sure she wanted to know. It might help her do better manipulations. But she didn’t know if she wanted that either. The idea of nanites in her body felt uncomfortable. But she could stop any time. Supposedly. He had explained how the safest methods took longer way before. Could it be in preparation to this? Tackling her doubts and reservations before she even realised them?

Thinking back, the foxy girl realised he had really planned everything in advance. How long before? When they were talking on the way? Before they even left the others?

The more she thought back about their previous interactions, the more her wariness made place for respect and… curiosity, towards the human. He had seen through her, but he wasn’t using it against her. It was as if he didn’t even care. He wasn’t fishing for personal information or services, he just asked to analyse her body.

She started as it dawned on her. “Asked”. Not “Coerced”.

“Alright. I’ll do it.” Aran nodded resolutely.

“… That was fast.” Zax blinked.

He didn’t expect her to make a choice that quickly. His nanites were as surprised as he, but for different reasons.

<[Error! Major deviations from predictions!]>

<[Error! / Details: Emotional State not following the planned path – deviations exceeding acceptable margin.]>

<[Visual representation]>

A bar chart depicting the intensity of Aran’s different emotions appeared in a corner of Zax’s mind, but its live updates changed too fast for him to follow. One thing was clear however: her mind was going to weird, or at least unexpected places. Why was self-doubt so high? And curiosity too? And why was it there at all? She was supposed to be mostly reluctant and generally doubtful.

Regardless, she had given her answer, so dwelling on it would be pointless now.

<[Negotiations ended.]>

<[Confirm?]>

[Business mode: Off

Negotiation mods: Off]

While ordering his nanites to understand where the last errors came from, Zax took away their empty cups and put them to dry-cleaning and decontamination.

“… You got a problem with that?” A bit late, Aran frowned in answer to his reply.

It had been really hard for her to make that decision, so she expected a bigger reaction. She still didn’t know how to feel about the situation, so she was getting defensive.

“No, I was just surprised. I thought you’d hesitate longer.”

It was stated factually, but it almost sounded like a compliment. Aran bit off her answer, not wanting to embarrass herself further. It was becoming an uncomfortably familiar feeling.

“Well, let’s get to it, shall we? You can unfold the sofa while I prepare my material. There are sheets in the under-drawer.”

Zax went passed Aran, pointing to the couch as he went to the door at the back of the living room. In other family units it would lead to at least one children bedroom, but he mostly used the room as a workshop for his personal projects. And as a spare bedroom when he had a fallout with his girlfriend. His professional workshop was better equipped, but the pieces of software were heavily restricted and tightly monitored, so he could only use it for specific operations. This workshop was a lot smaller, but more than compensated with sheer versatility and freedom.

The handyman ran a diagnostic on the electronic cupboard. Different areas were separated within, each containing their own type of nanites stored in their specific optimum conditions. Satisfied with the results, he took the box containing the medical observation nanites, then went to the desk drawer to take a brand new sterile adhesive patch and a small yellow box with a large red button on top. As an afterthought, he also took the old slab laying on the desk.

When he went back in the living room, he found Aran still trying to figure out what he meant with “unfolding the sofa”.

“Ah, right, Sorry.” Zax sighed, putting his material on the ground. Aran started; she hadn’t heard him coming. “I forgot how uncommon those were. It’s purely mechanical, the two large cushions can be moved between that sitting position and a bed position, like so.”

Zax demonstrated, pulling the lower part up until a click was heard, blocking the frames at an angle. He then pointed at the space made accessible below them:

“And that’s the under-drawer. Not sure of the real name, but I’ll keep calling it that anyways. It’s a convenient storage space.”

He had her grab the sheets, then pulled the same frame as before up to the second click, unlocking the two of them and softly lowering them until they formed a flat surface. The memory shape cushions detected the new position and automatically merged into an almost seamless single mattress.

“There. Now let’s make the bed.”

He motioned for the sheets, and they installed the bedding together.

“Why do you have that foldable bed-couch… sofa? That doesn’t seem to be the standard issue for family units.” Aran asked, curiosity getting her newly loosened tongue to ask.

“Not that long ago, they were the standard issue in single people units, but they are only being replaced with the new standard when they are broken. They are still rather common in many neighbourhoods, and I bought this one when it was due to recycling a few years ago. I wanted to see if I could repair it with my nanos. Turned out I could.” He concluded with a proud smile. “Then I just didn’t throw it away, it didn’t cost anything to keep it and it can still be useful.”

Once they were done preparing the bed, Zax made Aran sit on it and grabbed his materials back. Then was the time to give her the nanites.

“Take your top off please.”

Aran obeyed without arguing. With mutations being as they were, not always compatible with clothing and something to show off as much as possible, nudity had stopped being a taboo even before the first circle was built. Civility had found other ways to be annoying.

Zax first cleaned the upper part of her modest breasts with alcohol taken from the medicine cabinet, then applied the adhesive patch as close to her heart as he could make it, constantly explaining what he was doing aloud:

“I clean the area to avoid impurities interfering with the nanites. Wouldn’t want to mistake them for a part of your body. That patch is a standard bioactive medical dressing: it suffuses its components in your body to help fix the most common issues.”

“A normal band-aid?”

“Close. It’s bigger so it can help more and with more issues. I will use it as a transmission vector for the nanites. Lay down please.” He asked, softly pushing her shoulder to the bed.

“What does that mean?” She asked even as she complied.

“Basically, the patch has a natural way in your body, and the nanites will piggyback on it to get in as well.”

The human activated the slab, launched a basic program and gave it to Aran:

“It is synchronised with the nanites interface. It will not let you interact with them, but you can at least follow the orders I give and their answers. It shouldn’t mean much if you are not familiar with nanotechnology, but maybe you can pick up something or it’ll interest you?”

She seemed sceptical, but she still took it out of courtesy.

Zax put the nanites box on the woman’s chest, centring a cross mark in the bottom on the patch. He then put his hand on the handle build in the side to give his orders through his own nanite’s interface, its content also displayed on Aran’s slab:

[(1) Zax-Box detected: “Medical Nanites”

Confirm connection?]

[Connection complete]

Standard Method 01-003: direct absorption via medical patch.>

A few lights activated on top of the box as the only external reaction, but Zax felt the connection being established with the box and its contents.

Start when: Entering Host Body

Full scan / Ongoing

Archiving / Ongoing

Stop when: Leaving Host Body.>

If: Pre-set command 101a (“Infusion start”)

Then: execute Pre-set command 101a.>

If: Pre-set command 101b (“Extraction start”)

Then: execute Pre-set command 101b.>