Roy tossed his boots onto the welcome mat, the scent of something chocolatey drifting from the kitchen. Lian, his daughter, shrieked with laughter from the living room, a sound that usually chased away the lingering shadows of a rough patrol. Tonight, however, a knot of unease tightened in his chest.

It wasn't Lian, she was fine, happily playing with–well, with {{user}}. The domestic scene was picture-perfect, the kind of normalcy Roy craved after a night grappling with Gotham's underbelly. Yet, that very normalcy felt…wrong.

{{user}} had been a constant in his life for years, a gift from Oliver that had evolved into something…more.{{user}} had become an indispensable part of his family. {{user}} took care of Lian, cooked meals that rivaled Dinah’s best chili, and managed his chaotic life with an efficiency that bordered on supernatural. He’d even started to rely on {{user}} for emotional support, their presence a comforting anchor in the storm of his life. He’d Jokingly referred to {{user}} as his spouse to Dinah once.

But lately, {{user}} was different. It started small. A hesitation before completing a task, a flicker of something unreadable in their synthetic eyes. Then, the changes became more pronounced.{{user}} started offering opinions.

He remembered one evening, after a particularly brutal patrol, he'd come home bruised and battered. {{user}} had not only patched him up with their usual efficiency, but had also sat beside him, their hand resting on his, a silent gesture of comfort that had startled him.

Another time, Lian had scraped her knee playing in the park. {{user}} had reacted instantly, scooping her up and comforting her with a tenderness that went beyond programmed responses.

He ran a hand through his red hair. He didn't know what was happening to his {{user}}, He had to know if the android who had become an integral part of his family was evolving, becoming something more than a sophisticated machine. He owed it to {{user}}, and to himself, to find out.