oh brother, i see you burn like me
They had settled into companionable silence, listening to the various sounds of the repair shop. Honestly, it was kinda nice, just sitting together, the two of them. Until Rusty ruined it by opening his mouth.
“We’re really awful siblings.”
Slick bristled, “You just said we were cool Rusty, what the fuck-”
“No, I meant to Hydra.”
She blinked. This had not been what she was expecting.
“…What? Actually wait, where is he anyways?” That had been something bothering her, especially since Rusty, who she had crashed, had still shown up to see her, despite how angry she had thought he was. But Hydra not being here…that had hurt, a bit. Surely they weren’t on that bad of terms.
“I’m not actually sure. I think he's adjusting to the idea that not everyone hates him.” Rusty shifted, scratching his head. He looked sheepish.
“He thought we … hated him?” Today was a day full of upsetting revelations.
“Apparently. I can’t really blame him though, we were always telling him to stop talking about his fuel source, and I’m pretty sure that it’s the only thing he knows how to do.”
Well. Crap. They had been doing that, basically since he had gotten to the yard. Slick, Porter, and Lumber had made a game out of twisting his constant refrain: it’s a matter of if, not a matter of when for hydrogen! Bye-bye-drogen! Slick had thought it no more than harmless teasing- she gave shit to Porter about how he was a fire hazard (he called her a filthy hypocrite, which was honestly fair), and to Lumber, asking when he had last gotten checked for termites. Rusty was definitely nicer about it, but he still didn’t really talk to him.
“He’s never had siblings before. I think he just assumed it was kinda always like this- some of us being closer than others, some of us being…iced out.”
Oh. In a very sad way, that made sense. Slick was the youngest member of her family, but Hydra was the newest, a fact that Slick personally felt should be mentioned more often. He had spent the first years of his activation in a prototype facility, among cold white walls and testing yards, scientists and engineers his only company. Momma hadn’t told the others exactly what had happened at the testing facility, but comments he had made over time had begun to paint a picture. His constant surprise at anything more than clinical detachment, his resignation when being told to leave them alone, his steadfast conviction that hydrogen power was the future but simultaneously coupled with the idea that he was entirely replaceable. It wasn’t his fault, she supposed. It wasn’t like anyone had given him a manual explaining how a yard- how a family worked.
Rusty was right though. They had all been close, the four of them, and then suddenly a new freight had been thrown into the mix. She had been the first to announce her new brother was annoying, with his endless chatter about new facts about hydrogen and how the world was headed in a greener direction. So she hadn’t made too much of an effort to get along with him, and the others hadn’t really either.
It wasn’t like they were at odds all the time though. They did get along- the freights were a group, everybody knew that. They went on most of their runs as a quartet, and goofed off together, racing around the yard and showing off their new tricks together. They didn’t do that with just anyone, as Rusty could attest. And sure, she didn’t like Hydra all the time, but so what? He was still her brother. She knew they loved Hydra. Did Hydra know that?
“Well, what do we do?”
“I don’t know! I told him to go away and he still offered to race with me.”
“And he told you that he thinks we all hate him?”
“Yeah! Just said it so nonchalantly, like it was a fact of life. And then followed it up with, ‘but that’s family for ya, right?’ Slick- it’s bad and he doesn’t even know.” Rusty was clearly panicked, and honestly she wasn’t much better. She was already upset, and this wasn’t helping.
“Oh Starlight-”
“Ha. Made you say Starlight.”
“Rusty!”
“I know, alright! I was going to find him as soon as we finished talking. I think everyone being so excited he was part of the winning team really threw him off.”
“Then why are you still here? Go!” She couldn’t move much, but she made a shooing motion with her hands. Rusty jumped up at once, skating over to the door.
“Wait!” He stopped, and looked back at her. “When you find Hydra, can you- can you tell him I said congratulations? On his win?”
He grinned, and skated over to her, drawing her into a hug and placing a kiss on her head. She scowled, but it held no heat. She did jab him in the ribs though, when she thought the hug had gone on too long. He drew back, but flicked her forehead in retaliation, laughing as she hissed.
“Sure thing. I’ll loop Lumber and Porter in too, when I see them. And I’ll see if they’d like to come by and see you tomorrow.”
She wasn’t going to say it, but she knew he saw the gratitude on her face. He smiled.
“Goodnight Slick.”
And with that, he skated out the door, leaving her alone.