“Would you really?” Laura asked softly, getting up and following after him. She was smiling a little as she cake up to his side.
“I would like that, if you could… but I don’t want to bug you.” Laura mumbled a bit, rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet.
"I would." Ash looked down at Laura, smiling softly at her. He finished with the plates, kneeling down to be at her height.
"And it wouldn't but me at all. You'll be able to stay here as long as you want, and it would be good for you to know your way around."
“That’s true… I just really don’t want to bug you. Don’t you have better things to do?” Laura asked softly, hugging herself as she looked at him.
“Or, at least something you want to be doing?” She continued to insist, still rocking back and forth a little.
"The thing I want to be doing it to help you, Laura," Ash said, voice gentle. He gave Laura a faint smile again.
"I don't think there's anything better I could do then help you."
"You're really sure? I don't want to inconvenience you…" Laura replied softly, knowing he would insist she was fine.
She gave him a soft look, tucking her hair back out of her face. She just wanted to be sure not to bother him.
"I'm really sure. You aren't inconveniencing me, at all." He stood, standing next to Laura. He smiled a little again.
"I want to help you."
Laura gave him a little smile in return, nodding just a bit.
"Alright, sir. Do we want to tour the house, first?" She asked him softly, wanting to take his hand. But she kept to herself while she looked up at him.
"You can decide if you want to get ready for the day or take the tour. We can do it either way." Ash looked at Laura a moment, then carefully offered his hand for her to take. He didn't want to pressure her into doing anything she didn't want to do, not something like this.
Laura glanced between his face, and hand, before reaching out and gently taking it. Her cheeks were a soft pink as she tipped her head down away from him. "Um… could you show me around, first? If you're alright with that."
"I'm alright with that!" Ash smiled. He began leading her to the other side of the kitchen. He opened the window that could be found on the counter, revealing the diner on the other side.
"This is where I work," Ash said. "It's the front of the building, and the diner."
Laura stood on her toes, trying to see what he was showing her.
"So I shouldn't go out there?" She asked softly, standing tall before dropping back down flat on her feet. Her gaze fell back on his face and she gave him a little smile.
Ash looked down when he saw Laura struggling to see.
"You're more than welcome to," Ash cleared up, "but you'll have to deal with other children wanting to play with you when the diner is open… Is it alright if a pick you up for a moment to help you see?"
"Alright," She nodded a little, shifting her gaze back out the window. "I might stay back in here, unless you need me to go out."
Her face remained relaxed as she spoke, her eyes flicking back over to him when he asked to pick her up.
"Oh- um… yes sir." Laura replied softly, her face flushing a little more.
Ash watched Laura a moment ago he had confirmation it was okay. Then, he reached down, carefully picking her up. He set her on the counter, letting her look out over the diner. It was similar to what you might expect a children's arcade and diner to look like, with an empty stage to one side for the band.
"That's alright."
Laura studied the place, before glancing back to him. Her cheeks were still rosy, but she had a smile up.
"Thank you, sir." She hummed a little as she sat down on the counter top. Gently she began swinging her legs back and forth. She looked around the room they were still in, before focusing fully on him.
"What's next?"
"Well," Ash said, thinking, "there's the the halls for bedrooms, then the maintenance/medical room, the living room, and… The bathroom." Ash smiled.
"Ready to get down?"
"Yes sir," Laura hummed, scooting closer to the edge. She returned the smile as she waited for assistance to get down.
"We won't bother anyone else, will we? I don't want to be in anyone's way." She asked softly, having worries starting to come to mind. She hadn't even thought about anyone but him until now.
Ash picked Laura up, setting her down carefully.
"No, we won't. You'll find that everyone here is very considerate when it comes to giving space to people who need it." He offered his hand to her again, that smile still on his face.
"Next up on the tour is going to be the maintenance room. It's where me and the others go for repairs when we need them."
Laura gave him a little smile in return, as she took his hand.
“Alright sir, if you’re sure.” She hummed lightly, letting him lead her along through the building. She was very quickly warm omg up to him- feeling safe while he was around.
“But- repairs?” She asked softly. “What kind of repairs would you need? Is it like a doctor?” Her questions continued to come, with the little bit of confusion written all over her face.
"It is like a doctor, yes," Ash started. "But for robots. Like me." He spoke gently, leading her out of the kitchen. He was glad Laura was warming up to him- it was good to have someone you could go to when you needed someone.
"Robots?" Laura asked even more confused, looking up to him. "You're… you're a robot?" In all honesty, she hadn't noticed. Even if she had figured it out, she wouldn't ever assume without getting more information.
Ash nodded.
"Yes, I'm a robot. I look pretty human, don't I?" He smiled gently. That would explain why his foot steps were so heavy. He lead her to a door clearly marked "Maintenance." He opened it, revealing to be what resembled a machine shop. Of course, it was much cleaner. There was no one else inside.
Laura looked up at him, studying his figure as they walked. He really did look human.
"You do sir. I- I didn't even know." She whispered, flicking her gaze from him to the room he had shown her. Her face was awed as she looked around, and hesitantly took a few steps into the room.
"This… this is really cool…" She whispered, making sure not to touch anything.
Ash's tail flicked a little, and he nodded.
"This was were I was made. I was born in here." Ash smiled a little, looking around. He moved over to what seemed to be a 3D printer, pointing to it.
"We use this to make our skin," he explained. "And over there, at that computer, that's were we get our code."
"Code?" Laura asked interested, following up behind him.
"Is that like… a human brain, in a way? That's what makes you function?" She continued to ask, giving him a little smile as she glanced around the room. She was really fascinated by this- it was kind of funny.