--Disclaimer: All characters depicted in this story are over 18 years of age.--

The cafeteria doors were, of course, locked at this early hour – they weren't going to be open for another hour – so Kate walked around to the staff entrance and knocked on the door. Or rather, her robotic body double did – the real Kate was a mile away at her apartment, still relaxing in bed, just awake enough to control her other body as she stayed snug and warm under the covers. The metallic form of the Mobian wolf was not far off from the real thing: fuschia paint to match her fur, lilac hair, with light blue shoes and a dress to cover her body. While her white fur was instead mimicked by gray metal plating, the tail was the biggest difference between the two, segmented into several fuschia-colored plates around the flexible material that allowed it to bend and act like a normal tail.

The door opened to reveal the proprietor of the cafeteria, a female, twin-tailed fox with bright orange-yellow fur and a white underbelly. Tails was dressed in her signature boots and gloves, but was also wearing a bright red apron. She gave the robotic Kate a smile and waved for her to come inside.

"Glad you could make it!" Tails said enthusiastically. Kate stepped in and closed the door behind her, looking around. She was in a storage area behind the serving counter, where several racks of boxes sat on their shelves.

"Feeling nervous?" Tails asked as she picked up her toolbox.

"Only a little." Kate answered, her synthesized voice sounding only slightly robotic. "I've been preparing for this for a while, after all."

"Same here! I'm sure it'll be fine though, I bet after this first day you'll get a lot of repeat customers. Here, follow me, I'll get you all set up."

Kate followed Tails out to the front half of the cafeteria. It was deserted, since they still weren't open yet, with all the tables and chairs neatly arranged from the previous night's cleaning. The floors were polished white tile and the wallpaper was green, and a big part of the room was taken up by the serving area where several display cases and the registers were located.

But Kate wasn't going to be behind them.

Instead, Tails led her to the wall off to the side, next to a vending machine full of snacks. There, between the vending machine and a cabinet that dispensed paper cups and plates, was a metal box frame, fixed to the wall. It was solid on the top and bottom, and the top had a circular hole cut in it close to the wall, while the bottom featured a small drain located directly underneath the hole in the top. Located next to the box frame was a large red button, and in addition to that, above the box frame was a pair of open arm restraints that had been fixed to the wall.

"First thing's first," Tails said as she stopped and put down her toolbox, turning to face Kate. "Get out of your clothes, I'll take them into the back and store them in my office until you need them back."

With a nod, Kate began to strip. The dress she wore wasn't really fabric, but rather just more pieces of metal fastened to her body, shaped and painted to look like a dress. So, with a few careful twists and tugs with her hands, Kate separated the dress from the rest of her chassis, leaving just the collar and shoulders behind as she handed the dress to Tails. The fox gave her an appreciative look; Kate had nothing on underneath the dress, but her robotic form was not only anatomically accurate, but also true to the original. Much like the real Kate, robo-Kate was a dickgirl; she had a pair of breasts on her chest, and between her legs was a knotted cock and a pair of balls. Unlike Kate herself, however, the robot's nipples and shaft were turquoise in color.

But, not one to be distracted for long, Tails patted the top of the box with one hand, motioning with the other for Kate to get on top of it. "It's sturdier than it looks, I made sure it would be rated for twice your body's weight just to be safe."

Kate nodded in response and began climbing up on top of the box frame. It probably would have been uncomfortable for the real Kate, as the box wasn't cushioned or padded at all, but it didn't bother the robotic form in the slightest. Instead, she faced the wall and straddled the box, letting her legs dangle to either side of it, while she placed her arms against the wall to support herself with her wrists resting on the arm restraints. With a bit of wiggling of her hips, she was able to get her cock and balls in through the hole in the top of the box frame, letting them hang down into the box itself. With her tail held up high behind her, her ass was also on full display to anyone standing behind her.

Tails reached up and snapped the restraints closed around Kate's wrists, securing the robot in place by screwing the restraints shut with a large screwdriver. "Perfect." she declared, stepping back to admire both her work and the view. Even if someone bumped into Kate, she wouldn't fall off, so she was all set for the day now.

A few moments later, Kate could hear Tails taking the cap off a marker and scribbling something down. Looking to her side, she saw the fox sticking a sign to the wall just above the button: "Order Here" it declared, with an arrow pointing down towards the button itself. After another brief pause, Tails was on Kate's other side, sticking a different sign to the wall: "Gotta go? Fast food!" it said, with some colorful stars and other shapes drawn around the words to draw attention to it.

"That'll do until I get some proper signs made." Tails said, putting the cap back on the marker and tossing it into her toolbox. Casually, she reached over to the cabinet and pulled a paper cup free from the dispenser, revealing another one just behind it as she did. "You should be all set. How about I give you a test run?"

Before Kate could respond, Tails reached over and pushed the button in with her index finger. Kate's robotic form felt a tingle, making her snap to attention. "I want a medium black coffee." Tails stated as she slid the cup into the box, underneath Kate's dangling cock, and then let go of the button.

The effect was immediate. The robotic Kate's belly gurgled as the machinery inside began creating the requested drink, heating it – and her – up rapidly. The real Kate, still wrapped up in her blankets, felt herself growing hot and warm as this happened, while the robotic body continued to prepare the drink. It took only a few seconds for it to be ready, and the hot coffee started to flow out of robo-Kate's inner processing chamber - located where the real Kate's bladder would be – down and out of her cock. A hard stream of steaming hot coffee shot from the tip of the synthetic, teal shaft and into the paper cup, rapidly filling it, initially pattering against the cup but quickly making a splashing noise as the fluid level rose quickly.

The robotic Kate's cock was perfectly capable of handling extremes of temperatures in what it could dispense, of course, but the feeling of the hot fluid exiting her urethra still managed to cross back over to the real Kate. Thankfully, it didn't hurt, but it still felt intensely warm, and she squeezed her legs together under the bedcovers; the tingling inside of her shaft, or rather, her robot form's shaft made her want to relieve herself as well.

Fortunately, the cup was filled before Kate had any accidents, and the stream ended as quickly as it had begun, with a few final drops landing in the paper cup a moment later and sending ripples across the surface. Tails grabbed a napkin to wipe the tip of Kate's cock clean, and then carefully took the cup and inspected the contents, giving it a close look and then a sniff. "Seems to be working!" she declared, satisfied, holding Kate's clothes under her other arm. "All right, I'll leave you to it. Here's to your first day!"

The robotic Kate didn't respond as Tails went back behind the counter, as the real Kate was preoccupied by the sensations that had crossed back over to her. She uncrossed her legs and slipped out from the bed, hoping that she could find a solution to the problem before it caused any more issues for her...

--------------------

Since the store still wasn't open, Kate's robot body was left alone for a while, and she almost completely forgot about its first day as the cafeteria's new vending machine as she went about her morning routine, making herself breakfast and taking a shower.

Eventually, though, once 8 AM rolled around, Tails went to the front door and unlocked it, flipping the sign from "Closed" to "Open". It was quiet initially, but customers soon began to trickle in on their way to work or to school to get themselves some breakfast.

The real Kate had just settled down on her sofa with a plate of food on the coffee table in front of her when she felt a tingle run through her – or through her robotic shell, at least. Her awareness shifted to her robotic form suddenly as she heard the order coming in:

"Let's see if this thing works..." came a gentle voice from behind her, "I'd like a medium hot chocolate, with marshmallows! And some waffles... with strawberry jam, please."

The customer behind robo-Kate released the button, and immediately, her body got to work. This time, both the food and drink processing chambers within her started up, making the real Kate squirm in her seat on the sofa. Heat grew within the robot's belly as she heated the hot chocolate that was being mixed up, and a loud whirring sound emanated from her stomach as the waffles were assembled. The robotic Kate remained stoically fixed in place as this went on, but the real Kate squirmed around in her seat on the sofa, groaning from the feelings crossing over to her of warmth in her belly and a rumbling in her gut.

The hot chocolate was ready first, and started to spray into the waiting cup below it, filling it halfway. But the marshmallows were part of the mix too, and the flow suddenly stopped as a series of small bulges travelled up the synthetic Kate's cock, moving from the base to the tip as the pressure behind them forced them along. One by one, mini marshmallows popped from the tip of the robotic dick and splashed into the half-full cup of hot chocolate, until the last of the marshmallows shot out amidst a spray of hot chocolate, the flow picking back up to full strength afterwards. A heavy spray of hot chocolate continued to fill the cup, and then ended suddenly, the marshmallows bobbing at the top of the cup.

The real Kate was left groaning after that sensation, lifting up her dress and peering down at her loins to make sure that nothing she had just felt had actually happened to her body. But her inspection of herself was interrupted as the robotic shell began to serve up the waffles, its silence contrasting to the real Kate's moans far away in her home.

Bundled up nicely in a waxed paper wrapping, a pair of waffles and the packet of jam bundled with them began stretching out the synthetic sphincter of the robot-turned-vending-machine. Their disc-like shape stretched her out wide, the robot easily handling a girth broader than what her real body would have been able to handle. Wider and wider it stretched her, making Kate herself squirm and moan on her sofa as the sensations reached her – until the waffles finally reached their widest point, and the packaged waffles slipped onto the top of the box and rested there. Robo-Kate's hole quickly closed back up, ready for more, but the real Kate was left panting as she grabbed the edge of the sofa to hold herself steady.

Meanwhile, the customer reached out and picked up the waffles and the hot chocolate, and Kate was barely able to recognize a tall rabbit woman in a dress walking away from the corner of her eye. "Very unusual," the robot shell was able to pick up, "But so fast! I'll have to try it again..."

Kate managed to regain her senses a little now that she had a moment of rest, and focused on her robotic form. Hot chocolate was still dripping, albeit slowly, from the robot's cocktip, but fortunately she had planned ahead for this. It lasted only a second, but a jet of clear water flowed through the robot's urethra and out its cock, washing away the remaining hot chocolate and sending it all splashing into the drain at the bottom of the box. Though brief, the sensation still made Kate shiver as it crossed over to her, and she shook her head.

"I'm gonna have to fix that tonight." she promised herself aloud between breaths.

--------------------

The rest of the morning was relatively uneventful – for the cafeteria itself, at least. As was normal, there was a rush just before 9:00 of customers coming to get themselves coffees of various types. Black coffee, coffee with milk, and coffee with cream all were obligingly provided by robo-Kate one after another, much to the unease of the real Kate who had decided to simply stay on her sofa and watch TV on account of how difficult it was to control two bodies even at the best of times.

After the rush ended, things got much quieter, with only an order for large pancakes catching Kate by surprise just as she had started to relax. Not only was getting them out a challenge, but she could tell that her robot form was starting to run empty on material after handling so many orders in such a short time.

Fortunately, Tails had thought ahead, and she noticed the blinking light on the wall in the back room of the cafeteria while fetching more cups. Kate became aware of Tails's presence when the fox patted her robotic shell on the back and set down a large plastic jug on the floor.

"Busy morning, huh?" Tails remarked conversationally as she connected a tube to the top of the jug. The end of the tube being hooked to the jug had a small pump attached to it, but the other end was bare. "Open up your mouth, you'll need to be ready for the lunch rush next."

Kate obediently opened her robotic form's mouth wide, and Tails put the end of the tube into it. She closed her lips around the tube and waited there, still fixed to the wall and otherwise unable to move much.

"Good thing you're just a robot." Tails remarked as she reached down and pushed a button on the pump, "I can't imagine how this stuff tastes."

"Mmm-hmm." Robo-Kate responded idly, but the real Kate took on his meaning a moment too late. A thick sludge began to flow from the pipe into the robot's mouth, pouring down her throat and into the storage tanks in her upper chest. Kate herself quickly disabled the robotic body's sense of taste, but a moment too late; she got a brief and highly unpleasant taste of a metallic and silty substance from the momentary crossover of sensations. Thankfully, since it was only in the robot's mouth and not her own, there was no lingering taste to deal with, so she just shook her head and made a "Bleugh" noise before trying to return her attention to the TV.

"This should keep you going for a while." Tails explained as the pump refilled the robotic Kate. "It's very dense, so your reconstructors will have plenty of material to work with." Leaning in and whispering, Tails added, "Just don't tell anyone about the secret ingredient, yeah?" She chuckled as she leaned back, letting the pump do its job.

Even with her sense of taste disabled, however, Kate could still feel her robotic form getting filled up with the warm sludge. It was getting to be like having a full belly, except higher up in her body, and she could feel it filling her further and further...

When she was almost full, the robotic Kate gave an "Mmmph!" around the tube and squirmed a little against the restraints. Taking the hint, Tails switched off the pump, and pulled the tube out of her mouth. "Great!" she said, "Let's just make sure that's still working."

With another push of the button, Tails spoke up once more. "A blueberry muffin, please." she said as clearly as she could before releasing the button and folding her arms.

The robotic Kate's innards sprung to life once more, rumbling as they assembled the requested item, and making the real Kate shift and squirm in her seat. A single muffin didn't take long to assemble, though, and soon, robo-Kate's anus began spreading out around the requested muffin, its surface golden brown with a few blueberries visible, with a paper wrapping snugly fit around the bottom half of it.

Tails nodded in approval and took the muffin, taking a bite out of the top. "Fresh and soft!" she said appreciatively, picking up the hose and jug of sludge in her other hand. "Okay, back to work for both of us."

--------------------

Things were quiet for a while after that, allowing Kate to relax at home for a while, having forgotten about Tails's warning. She had started to get complacent when she went 15 minutes without any orders – only for the lunch rush to begin with order after order coming in quick succession. Coffees, teas and sodas were ordered one after another, with burgers and fries apparently being the popular menu item of the day.

Kate squirmed and groaned on her sofa as she felt all the sensations from her robotic body crossing back over to her own. She kept checking the time on her phone repeatedly, willing the lunch rush to go faster. How many people could possibly hit up one small cafeteria in such a short time? And how long was the line for her? With her robotic body shackled to the wall and her real body miles away, she had no idea how many people were waiting for their turn, only aware of each one pushing the wall button and placing an order for her robot shell to handle.

It had almost been half an hour, and she was starting to reach her limit. She did have a safety measure if necessary – she could shut her robot form down entirely if need be. Of course, that would mean it would 'break down' to the appearance of the customers, and with it being the first day featuring her robotic form's services as a vending machine, she wanted to leave a positive impression. But she had limits...

A gloved fist pushed against the button to the side of Robo-Kate's body, and Kate managed to turn its head just enough to see the spikes on the knuckles of whoever it was. "Hey, so how's this work?" he asked, pushing the button repeatedly.

"Just tell it what you want to order." Tails told the customer behind Kate. "And put a cup under it for your drink."

"Oh, okay." The spike-knuckled hand pushed the button once again and held it this time. "I want a footlong meatball sub, and some chips, uh... just the regular kind. And a diet coke. A big one!"

Kate could already feel her robotic body's insides churning away to prepare the order; fortunately, her robotic body's processors could handle the imprecision on this particular order. Whether or not she would handle the sensation of making it, though, was another matter...

When the sub started to emerge from Robo-Kate's posterior, it came already wrapped, the greaseproof paper crinkling loudly as it got squeezed through the synthetic sphincter. That feeling was quite overwhelming for the real Kate, who squirmed and groaned on her sofa as her shell transmitted the feeling of the thick sub being pushed out – not to mention the warmth of the hot meatballs and the sauce covering them, heat radiating through the paper wrapping.

"Of course it was a footlong...!" Kate groaned in frustration as her hands clenched the cushion she was sitting on, her legs pressing together. Inch after inch of the sandwich got forced out through her robotic shell's ass and onto the box frame; the impassive reaction of the robot shackled to the wall was in stark contrast to the gritted teeth of the real Kate across town.

She let out a gasp as she felt the other end of the sub slip out from Robo-Kate's rump, and she took a panting breath. Compared to that, the bag of chips that came next was nothing – it had a good amount of air in the bag so that the contents wouldn't get crushed on the way out, making the bag distort as it was dispensed, with the robot's anus squeezing the bag tightest until enough of it left her that it simply fell beside the sub.

Kate got a moment of respite until she tensed up, feeling the diet coke traveling through her robotic shell's cock just as if it were her own. The fluid was cold, but not unpleasantly so, since it was passing through machinery that could handle it. And not only that, but the carbonation sent a tingling sensation through her that she just couldn't get used to, no matter how many of these her robot body served up. And it just kept going, splashing into the paper cup that her robot form's cock was hanging down over, the transmitted feelings to her original body making it feel like she was the one pissing out a massive cupful of diet coke.

Kate squeezed her legs together as she shivered on her sofa. It felt for all the world like she was peeing, which didn't help the fact that she actually did need a release of her own. "Should've... gone before... the lunch rush..." she muttered under her breath through gritted teeth, trying desperately not to wet herself. Yet with the crossed wires from her robot body, it was hard to believe she wasn't already urinating, and soon she wouldn't be able to hold it back.

"I can't..." she groaned, squirming, and made up her mind. With some mental effort, she sent a shutdown command to her robotic body, keeping her legs tightly shut and even pressing her hands against her cock through her clothing to avoid having an accident.

Just like that, the sensations stopped, and Kate groaned as she flopped against the backrest of the sofa. She'd come up with an excuse to tell Tails later, but for now, her first and foremost priority was to take advantage of the downtime to get a better filter between her bodies.

Meanwhile over at the restaurant, Robo-Kate's body went still, her eyes closing as the lit-up parts of her body dimmed. The stream of diet coke that had been gushing from the bright blue cock came to a stop, but for a few extra drips falling from the tip. "Hey, what gives?" the customer said as he took his cup. "Ah, whatever, it's nearly full. I think your machine's busted, Tails."

"I'll take a look soon." Tails responded. She came out from behind the counter a moment later to hang an 'out of order' sign on Robo-Kate's tail. "But we'll take your orders here at the counter, everyone, and I'll make sure to get everything working again as soon as I can."

--------------------

As soon as she regained her bearings, Kate got right to work improving the filter between herself and her robot body. As a bonus, by the time she was done, the lunch rush had ended, and things had quietened down quite a lot at the cafeteria.

After a brief wait as the connection to her robot body was reestablished, Kate regained her passing awareness of the cafeteria interior. While she could turn her attention to the robot's surroundings, and she still felt what her shell felt, it was no longer quite the full experience – rather, she felt much milder, toned-down sensations. She was aware of someone grasping her robotic body's tail, and was initially quite irritated that someone was manhandling her body while it was deactivated, until she realized it was Tails when she heard her speak.

"...probably just need a good cleaning-out, and that'll get you back into shape. I should've done this after the breakfast rush, so I don't blame you for shutting down for a bit." Tails said absently, talking to herself.

At first, Kate thought Tails was simply polishing the exterior of her robot body – but she realized that wasn't the case when Tails's hand on her tail pulled it upward higher than it already was. Though Kate could feel the tip of the plastic tube that Tails was pressing against her robotic body's sphincter, it was a dulled sensation, a sign that her new filter was working as intended. But, subdued as it was, she could still feel it as Tails used one hand to try and spread Robo-Kate's rear hole, easing the tip of the tube inside. And as soon as it had passed into her, Tails began feeding the tube into her body quite a bit more deeply, several inches disappearing into her and making the real Kate shiver a bit even through the filter that dulled the sensation.

"There, that's in nice and secure." Tails said aloud, and Kate wasn't sure if she had noticed that the robot was online again or not. Unbeknownst to Kate, the other end of the tube was hooked up to another large jug of fluid, not unlike the one that had held the material sludge earlier. This one, however, was full of a thick white cleaning fluid, designed for this exact purpose.

This tube, just like the other one, had a pump on it near the base, and with a flick of the switch Tails started it up. The cleaning liquid was sucked up the clear tube, surging through it all the way up into Robo-Kate's body through her rear hole, shocking the real Kate as she felt it even through the new filter. "It's so hot...!" she moaned out as she squirmed, grateful that she had decided to upgrade the filter – she couldn't begin to imagine how intense it would have felt otherwise.

Not helping matters was the fact that Tails let the pump keep running, steadily sucking more and more of the fluid up from the jug and into the robot it was connected to. The tube was secure enough that none of it flowed back out, and instead the fluid filled up the interior of Robo-Kate's reconstruction chambers. To Kate herself, it felt like her belly was getting filled up from the other end, the filter reducing the feeling down to a manageable warm tingle, albeit one that ran through her entire lower body. The robot could certainly handle it as the jug got close to being empty, but it left Kate with a feeling of fullness, as if she had eaten way too much food...

Then, it stopped, as Tails hit the switch on the pump. "One, two, three..." the fox counted aloud, letting the cleanser do its work. "And... ten!" she declared after enough time, activating the pump again – but this time in reverse.

Kate squirmed on the sofa once again as the simulated pressure inside her was released by the pump sucking the fluid back out from her robotic body and into the jug that had, however briefly, been empty. She did her best to concentrate on the TV, and ignore the warm feeling being transmitted to her as it slowly diminished as if draining out from her lower body. When the last of the cleaner had been sucked out, Kate briefly felt a strange tension inside of her as the pump sucked at empty air, but Tails was quick to turn it off within a couple of seconds.

"Great! That's the first part done." Tails said happily, as she disconnected the tube from the jug, leaving the other end still inside of Robo-Kate's anal opening. Kate barely registered Tails's words as she kept her focus on the TV, but a moment later caught on to them and the meaning behind them.

"Wait, what? First p-?" she began.

Her question was answered before she could finish asking it as she suddenly felt a rush of cool water now flooding into her robotic form's body. "Just gotta clean all that stuff out and you'll be good to go!" Tails told the robot, "I think two or three rinses should do..."

--------------------

Kate finally was able to catch a break for a little while as the afternoon wore on and the amount of foot traffic went down greatly. Occasional orders still came in, but at a far more manageable pace. And since the cafeteria wasn't open late, she wouldn't have to worry about a dinner rush, so she was essentially in the home stretch.

"How're you feeling, Kate?" Tails asked as she came around from behind the counter and started to head for the door. "I think your first day went pretty well, didn't you?"

"Oh, yes." Kate agreed, "It seemed like everyone was happy, though there were a few problems."

"Don't worry about those," Tails remarked with a dismissive wave of her hand as she stopped behind the robot. "I knew we'd have some teething problems, and besides, the iced drink machine I was using before would break down multiple times every day. I think once we get past the first few days and iron out any other issues, you'll be doing perfectly."

Tails turned and headed for the door, intending to flip the sign to "Closed", only for the doors to burst open suddenly as a blue blur shot through them and skidded to a stop. Tails reflexively raised both hands and held them in front of her face, as several napkins from the nearby tables that had been tossed into the air fluttered to the ground.

"Hey, just in time!" the new arrival announced from behind Kate, "I knew I could still make it." A white-gloved hand pushed on the button next to the robot, and she heard the order; "One chili dog, with fries; one large slushie, blue raspberry."

"You need a cup-" Tails began, but in a blur of motion, a cup was ready and in position inside the box frame underneath her.

The customer started making small talk with Tails, but Kate didn't pay any attention to it as the food assemblers inside her robot shell kicked into gear to make one last order for the day. As the chili dog was prepared, she felt an incredible chill – only partially dulled by the sensation filter – travelling through her lower regions as the slushie was dispensed. The wolf herself trembled and squirmed on her sofa, her legs pressed together as she shivered – on top of the cold feeling, the slushie was thick and the tiny bits of ice in it gave it an uneven, slightly gritty texture. The inside of Robo-Kate's cock were rubbed and buffeted by the slushie passing through it, and though it did no harm to the robot, it made for quite the overwhelming sensation for Kate herself.

The thickness of the slushie also meant that it was taking a long time to dispense, slowly pouring out in a steady flow like it would from a regular slushie machine, gradually filling the cup as the thick slush coiled up in the cup briefly before spreading out to touch the cardboard walls. When it was about half full, the chili dog was ready, and even while the slushie was still pouring, Kate felt the robot's rear hole stretching out around it. It was foil-wrapped to keep it warm, and the foil crinkled and crackled loudly as it passed through Robo-Kate's sphincter, easing out and falling into the waiting hand of the customer.

Kate got only a few moments of partial respite – since the slushie was still dispensing – before she could feel the fries following suit. They were packaged into a cardboard box with flat ends but an oval shape for easier serving, but like all the other food, it still stretched her robotic body on the way out. Inch by inch, the red-and-white striped cardboard slid out from her as the machinery within pushed it out. At this point, however, Kate had gotten quite used to the sensation of her body serving up food – it was the cold and slushy drink that was causing her trouble now.

She gritted her teeth and held onto the sofa, once again grateful that there was at least SOME filter against her feeling the full experience that her robot body was going through right now. Fortunately it didn't take much longer after the food was ready for the slushie to finish, and she flopped back against the sofa as the last bit of slushie fell into the cup.

"Pretty good!" the customer declared as he shoved a straw into the slushie and picked it up, holding his food in his other hand. "You get my approval on this one, Tails – this slushie is as cool and as blue as me."

"You're welcome." Tails replied with a slight hint of irritation. "Come on over here and I'll ring you up."

The intense chill that Kate had felt persisted, however, so as soon as she was sure the customer had turned his back, she made her robot body flush out its system with warm water to balance things out. The water splashed against the drain at the bottom of the box for a few seconds as the real Kate let out a sigh, glad that that particular experience was over. She was going to have to make an even better filter before tomorrow, when she wasn't so rushed.

In a blur, the customer left after paying, the doors slamming shut behind him. "Sorry about that, Kate." Tails said apologetically as she came out from behind the counter again. "There's always someone who shows up right at closing..."

The twin-tailed fox locked the door and flipped the sign on it around to "Closed", dusting off her hands. "As I was saying before I got rudely interrupted," Tails continued as she shot a glance out the glass on the door at the long-gone customer, "You did a great job. I'm gonna get the cleaning robots going on the floors, I'll see you tomorrow morning."

Tails began walking off, and Kate struggled against her restraints. "W-Wait a minute, Tails!" she called out.

The fox stopped and looked back over her shoulder. "Huh? What's wrong?"

"Aren't you going to let me down?"

"Why?" Tails asked with a shrug. "Nobody'll steal you – you designed this building's security yourself! Plus, you know, you're just a robot body – you're always watching, right? You'll be fine. Like I said, I'll see you tomorrow."

Before Kate could protest further, Tails turned and went into the back of the cafeteria. A moment later, the overhead lights turned out, plunging the room into darkness, and she heard the lock in the back of the cafeteria turning as Tails left. Kate was worried at first, but after a moment, she realized that Tails was right - she didn't have anything to fear. And there was certainly some appeal to being restrained like this, Kate had to admit. Maybe after a few days of this, she could ask Tails about meeting her 'in person' to-...

"Wait a minute." Kate said aloud to her living room as something Tails had just said clicked. "What did she mean by 'robot body'? She doesn't know that's just a shell! ...does she?"
