Author's Note: All characters over eighteen. There's just like a stupid amount of anal involved in the story, so be warned now and I don't want to hear any complaints about it later.
****
"Your father and I will be gone quite some time," Bella said.
"Yeah, Mom," Lucin said, rolling his eyes. "We got it."
"Have a lovely trip," Celeste said without taking her eyes off her book.
"Your concern for our absence is touching," Bella said, eyeing her children.
"Hey, it's your trip," Lucin said. "Don't blame us."
"'Sides, we're responsible adults," Celeste said without a trace of irony. "We'll struggle along somehow."
"Yes, speaking of which," Bella said, eyes narrowing slightly, "we're rather hoping to avoid an incident like last time."
"Oh come on! That was three years ago!" Lucin complained. "Are we never going to live that down?"
"Practically all of the kitchen was saved," Celeste added. "And the azaleas came back fine."
"No one was hurt," Lucin pouted. "Much."
"And the therapy afterward was actually quite help--"
"Nevertheless," Bella interrupted with much exasperation, "we don't want to take any chances. No pouting. Yes you're adults, but you still live with your parents, don't you?"
"Ouch," Lucin said.
"She's got us there," Celeste agreed. "Well roasted, Mother."
Bella sighed. "And there is the fact that neither of you can take anything seriously."
"Lies!"
"Untruths!"
"I took something seriously just last week!" Lucin said firmly.
"It was a wonder to behold," Celeste agreed, nodding fervently.
"Well done you, then," Bella said, moving right along. "Regardless, we are leaving the two of you with a robot nanny, so that--"
Twin boos interrupted Bella's thought.
"Oh what? Those are for babies!" Lucin protested.
"They have not been approved for babies yet," Bella said. "They--"
"Ugh, the ridicule we'll face," Celeste complained. "Like 'oh you guys got one of those new robots? Which one? A super cool laser unicorn transformer probably right?' But no. A babysitter. We shall simply have no friends after this gets out."
"You're very free to find homes of your own, you know," Bella said sternly, hands on hips.
Lucin and Celeste looked at each other.
"No, this is fine."
"Perfectly acceptable."
"Have a lovely trip."
"Do send a postcard, if those are still a thing."
Bella rolled her eyes and walked out.
****
"So this is her, huh?" Lucin said, peering intently.
"Seems that way," Celeste said, standing back a bit with her arms folded.
"She's, uh, I mean she's kinda weird."
"Yeah, some of the new ones they're trying to, like, make them lifelike without hitting that uncanny valley shit."
Lucin nodded. "Which is fine, but like, I don't know about this cyborg-y aesthetic."
Celeste shrugged. "I don't hate it. I'm more annoyed about the total lack of trust."
"Well... I hate to admit it, but we did almost commit a small war crime when--"
"Only almost. And it would have been very, very small." Celeste waved her fingers breezily. "We've matured since then anyway. We can handle ourselves on our own for a little while. We're practically independent."
"Except for still living with our parents."
"Well the housing market's shit. We can't help that."
"That's fair," Lucin said. "That's a very good point."
The siblings stared at their 'nanny' for another moment.
"Do you think she's on?" Celeste asked. "It would be kinda funny if Mom and Dad left and this thing's not even working."
"How would one tell?"
"Beats me. Maybe ask her to do something?"
Lucin shrugged and cleared his throat. "Robot! Get me... a glass of water."
"A glass of water?"
"I couldn't think of anything goo--"
--Hello--
"Ahhh!"
"Fuck!"
Lucin and Celeste jumped back as the robot's eyes lit up and she adopted a new pose.
--I am pleased to meet you. I am Matilda--
Lucin unfurled himself slightly from his defensive stance. "You're... Matilda?"
--Correct--
"Is that... is that the name you came with?"
--No. It is the name I was given--
"Mom," Celeste said. "That sounds like a name she would have chosen."
"Most probably, huh?"
--I am here to take care of you--
"Er, very nice, but we don't need any help, actually," Celeste said. "We're very good at not dying."
"Been doing it all our lives," Lucin agreed eagerly.
Matilda didn't move.
"So, uh, just stand there, I guess," Celeste said. "Well done. Great job. Ten out of ten."
"We shall give you a glowing review upon our parents' return."
Matilda continued to not react. The sibs watched her carefully, then slowly backed out of the room.
"Well, could be worse," Lucin said.
"It's a bit... weird," Celeste said. "Having her in the house with us."
"A bit, sure. But seems harmless enough."
"Let's hope so. You think she'd stop us throwing a party if we wanted to?"
"Do we want to?"
"Not really. Just hypothetically."
"No idea," Lucin said thoughtfully. "It'd almost be worth trying just to find out."
"Mmhm. Almost. But we don't throw parties."
"No, too much work. I mean, the incident wasn't even our fault. Everyone just decided we were having a party. We certainly never said we were."
"Right. That shouldn't keep getting held over our heads like that."
"Right. So, uh... now what?"
Celeste and Lucin both thought for a moment.
"I guess just... do our thing?" Celeste suggested. "Hopefully 'Matilda' doesn't think we have bedtimes."
"If she tries to put me in diapers and throw me in a crib, I'll...."
"You'll what?" Celeste asked pleasantly.
"... I'll not be very happy."
"No. No you probably wouldn't be."
****
Matilda wasn't too big a deal really, at least at first. It was obnoxious to be babysat like that, but Celeste didn't let it get to her. Plus for a robot nanny, she cooked a rather nice supper, so at least there would be an upside or two.
What absolutely infuriated Celeste, however, was when she went to masturbate that evening. It should have been a nice, simple, private affair the way it usually was. Instead, she'd only just lain down on her bed, bottoms off, sexy images in her mind, and fingers just barely teasing her pussy before she was interrupted.
--Do not do that--
"The fuck?"
Celeste jerked upright, horniness briefly forgotten, but there was nothing further to be heard. She shrugged and lay back again, and again sent her hand to her pussy.
This time, almost immediately, her door crashed open. And it had been locked. Apparently not much of an impediment.
--Do not do that--
"Jesus fuck! Get out! What is this?"
--Do not do that--
"Yeah, I fucking heard. But are you serious though?"
Matilda appeared to think for a moment.
--I am always serious--
"I bet you are. What am I not supposed to masturbate or something? First of all, how could I possibly know that? Second of all, what kind of puritanical nightmare scenario are we talking here? If this is some kind of joke it's--"
--I never joke--
Celeste sighed. "You don't say."
--Unless you would like me to download a joke subroutine--
"I... not just now, perhaps. How about disabling this anti-masturbating subroutine? How 'bout that?"
--Access denied--
"Seriously?"
--I am always serious--
"No, I got it, thanks." Celeste growled miserably. "Can you get out now?"
--Yes--
Matilda turned and left. Only just at the hallway, her head jerked in an odd, unnatural movement.
--Do not do that--
"I didn't do anything!"
Fortunately, sort of, Matilda immediately stormed off away from Celeste's room. Toward... Lucin's?
Celeste smiled humourlessly. Well, at least it wasn't just her. This was a problem, sure, but at least it wasn't a sexist one. Like boys could fap but girls couldn't.
Still, something had to be done.
Celeste listened to the noisy argument, trying to judge when she should slip over to see her brother.
****
"There's nothing wrong with masturbating!"
--Do not do that--
"I heard!" Lucin said irritably. "And you broke my door! You gonna fix that or what?"
--I do not have a carpentry subroutine--
"So--"
--One can be downloaded--
Lucin rolled his eyes. "Fine. Download a carpentry subroutine. And while you're at it, how 'bout ditching the eighteenth century morality filter."
--Access denied--
"Fuck!"
Lucin curled up miserably on his bed until Matilda left. This was not a promising development. Not at all. No privacy, and specifically no masturbating. How long were their parents gone again? He missed them already.
"She got you too, huh?"
Lucin peeked up. "Yes."
"Kind of obnoxious, I thought."
"Me too." Lucin tilted his head. "Are you wearing anything other than that shirt?"