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In a semi-private communications booth on the Oracle
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Jo had been able to get into a booth quicker than even she expected. The ensign was a bit worried about it, but it seemed that most who had already escaped the destruction was able to make what calls were needed. Now it was her turn. She had the earpiece in one ear, waiting for her call to be picked up. There would be no video feed, for her parents couldn't afford that much. But at least she'd get to hear their voices. Or so she hoped. When the call went to voicemail, though, she sighed to herself, her shoulders slumped. At the beep, she tried her best to keep her voice calm when she spoke.
"Hello, Ma and Pa. It's your little sparrow. I'm doin' alright. I'm sure you'll have heard of the attack on the base sometime soon, but don't worry. I'm fine and I can say that...well...I've graduated! Not in a way I'd expect, but it'll do. I love you and miss you. I'll try to call again in a few hours. I don't have a number for y'all to call me back. Until then, know I am safe."
She set the earpiece in its place and then got out of the booth for anyone else needing to use it. Now that she had done that much, she was starting to feel the effects of all that had happened and was in need of some much deserved rest. But she didn't know which room was assigned to her...or with whom. So, for now, she went to an observation area and looked out at the stars, leaning against the railing.
Elsewhere on the ship, Milo was really wishing he'd brought a bottle of Jägermeister with him as he stumbled through the corridors of the NSS Oracle. What, thought the Lieutenant as he traversed yet identical set of corridors, I would give for a goddamn map right about now. All he'd wanted to do was to get back to his quarters and ingest ridiculous amounts of alcohol - A simple request, dammit! - yet he was now frak knows where, completely lost. Again. On his first day onboard this blasted ship.
Sighing to himself as he leaned up against the nearest bulkhead, Milo was preparing to condemn himself to a long, sleepless, boring-as-fuck night when, courtesy of his amped-up hearing, he heard a faint whine of protest from an under-lubed door's servos as it opened itself for someone. Sweet...perhaps they know how to get around this fricking labyrinth. Jogging, the Nepleslian soon rewarded with the sight of a hatchway - complaining once again at the injustice of actually having to do something - grind its way shut. They probably ought to fix that. As he reached for the indolent hatch's controls, Milo was rather pissed to notice the words 'OBSERVATION AREA' printed on the aforementioned hatch. Biting back a few harshly-worded comments about the shipbuilder's paternal lineage, the Nepleslian activated the hatch's controls - and was greeted by the breathtaking sight of a figure silhouetted against the vastness of the cosmos. Ignoring the vista (which he'd seen countless times before anyways), the fighter pilot approached the figure. "Spotted any space whales?"
Jo had heard the door protest once more, but didn't bother to turn around at first. She was lost in her own thoughts, so when she heard the voice behind her, she jumped a bit, not expecting anyone to address her here. She turned and noted the rank of the other, giving him a very brief, yet proper, salute. She cleared her throat. "Space whales? Err...what are those?" Turning once more to look out into the vastness beyond, she was rather curious now, in spite of being so tired. She had heard of them, but only as a myth. Not something that was real.
Milo smiled as he noticed the gallery's other occupant jump slightly - then nearly swore as the occupant turned out to be female - and a pleasantly-curved one at that. Normally, the cyborg would've been pleased with this - the odds of running into two beautiful women on the same ship (hell, on the same day) were...slim, to put it mildly - but, after what had happened with Reina, women were last thing Milo wanted to deal with. Then, as if that weren't bad enough, she saluted him. Mentally, Milo let out a long sigh of frustration. All I want is a glass of Jäeger, for fuck's sake. What is this, some kind of goddamned RPG? Outwardly, he saluted back, and smiled - years of experience making it relatively easy for the Nepleslian to keep his thoughts and facial expressions separate - as he leaned up against the railing as well. "Space whales? Oh, they're something pilots like myself swear by for those times when we're not blessed by Lady Luck."
A small frown appeared on Jo's features as she heard about this. She sighed softly and shook her head, "Guess I have a lot ta learn still." She rubbed at her tired eyes and leaned even more heavily against the railing as she yawned. "Sorry. I've had a really...tirin' day. I'm just waitin' fer it ta be over." Her nose wrinkled as she realized she had yet to learn of her room assignment. "Damn...I need ta find out where I'm bein' bunked. And I need a shower." With how tired she is, her accent is more of the country hick sounding than normal. Though she knew that the one next to her didn't need to hear of her dilemma, she was too tired to keep her mouth shut. And, to top it off, she admitted the need of a shower to an unknown male. Smooth, Jo. Real smooth. She sighed and turned away from the view, thinking of trying to find that assigned room. "I think I'll just leave ya be, fer now." She gave him a small, fleeting smile and then headed towards the door.
Finally, alone at last thought Milo. Now, about that Jäeg-shit, I forgot to ask her for directions! Turning around, the Lieutenant was relieved to see that he'd realized his error before the strangely-accented crewperson had left the room. "Speaking of bunks, could you help me find mine?" He held his hands up in a placating gesture and added "Before you say it, no, that was not a pick-up line," - I'm not that unoriginal - "as I actually do need help finding my quarters in this gorram labyrinth that's called a ship."
Pausing in her footsteps, Jo looked back and tilted her head, "Wot makes ya think I know more'n you 'bout this ship?" She was mildly curious as to why the Lieutenant was more lost than she was.
Damn... mused Milo as he pondered this revelation. Figures that the person I ask for directions doesn't know anything either - and what is with that accent? "Well," said Milo with a chuckle, "you've probably been here longer then me - I only got here a few hours ago."
Shaking her head a bit, Jo sighed, "Not by much. Just 'nuff ta know whar th' infirm'ry is. Oh. And the ship bay fer th' fighters. Perhaps could ask Jethro fer a map...he might have a clue." Tilting her head, she looked off in thought for a moment and then shrugged, "Yeah. Maybe he'd know whar I'm assigned."
"Fine by me...though we have to find him first," replied Milo, yawning. "Heh...been a long day for me as well."
Jo chuckled a bit and opened the hatch, walking down the path she knew of how she got here and back to the bay where Aquila Flight's squadron was being housed and repaired. "Jethro. Did anyone tell ya whar I'm bunkin'?" She spoke directly to the aircraft that housed the AI assigned to her. "Yes, Jo. And by the sound of your voice, you need to get some rack time. Your data jockey has the map." Jo looked down at the jockey after pulling it out of her pocket on the side of her flight suit. "Thanks. Ah..here it is. And it's not too far...thank goodness."
Following the redhead down increasingly familiar-looking corridors with a look of dawning comprehension on his face, Milo was ready to facepalm by the time they'd reached the hangar bay. Of course, you fucking idiot. Of course you'd run into the one person who knows the ship's layout as well as you do. Fucking genius.
Then, as he listened to the conversation between 'Jethro' - An AI of some sort...but why bother going up to some random fighter? - and...."You've got to be shitting me" muttered Milo under his breath as he recalled the name of his roommate - one Johanna Cigaro. Whipping out his DataJockey and giving it a withering glare, the LT pulled up the message containing the squadron's room assignments - and, sure enough, next to his name on the roster was Johanna. Well, this'll be an interesting night thought Milo...who, upon scrolling down to the bottom of the page, noticed the embedded map, causing the fighter pilot - literally too tired at this point to give a fuck - burst into a fit of laughter.
Looking up when she heard the laughter, Jo frowned some as she tilted her head, studying the man and then glanced up at the Quattro, even though she knows the AI wouldn't be able to look back. She then looked back at the laughing one and asks, "Care ta share?" She did like a good joke once in awhile. Even if it happens to be at her expense.
Once he'd regained his composure, Milo replied "Just laughing at the fact that it took me this long to realize that we're squadmates."
Jo frowned even more, rubbing her fingers against her temple. "Wait...what? Watcha mean we're squadmates? And why should you have realized it 'fore now?"
Please don't fall asleep before we reach our quarters... thought Milo yawned again and leaned up against the nearest hard surface (in this case, conveniently-placed Quattro's landing gear). "I'm Aquila 10.....and I should've realized this sooner because of what you said earlier about not knowing this ship that well."
A snort of laughter escaped her as she leaned against the same landing gear, but on the other side. "Oh, please. All ya could've figgered out was that I was just as new as ya. Fer all ya know, I could've been a greenhorn of 'nother sort." She looked at her datapad, but didn't pay much attention to whom she was bunked with. Though Jethro would have known, Jo was just too tired to try to figure it out. She shrugged a bit and said, "Well. Now that we have directions, we could get to our respective bunks."
Resisting the urge to chuckle, Milo pulled himself up using the surprisingly handy landing gear, then ducked under the starfighter's fuselage, offered a hand to Jo, and, in his best imitation of an aristocrat, said "Shall we, milady?" Man, I must be more wasted then I thought if I'm coming up with something this bad....
Eyeing him for a moment, Jo put her hand in his and allowed him to help her up. She sighed, "Well, at least we're goin' in the same direction...Just don't call me 'lady'. I ain't one of those."
"Sorry" replied Milo as he lead the way towards one of the hangar's hatchways and proceeded to open it . "I'm one of those people that get a bit...loopy when they get tired." Or when they haven't ingested alcohol!
Jo laughed a bit, "I get loopy when I drink...so I guess to each their own." She led the way to the next hatchway where they'd need to go to get to Aquila Flight's quarters.
That's a relief. "True that" quipped the LT s he turned a corner and spotted spotted their quarters. Hallelujah. Wonder where the rest of Aquila is....fuck it, can think about that after I get a drink. Or five. Now, how should I do this.....again, fuck it, let's get this over with. Turning to face the other Aquila, Milo said "I believe this is our room?"
Jo blinked when they stood in front of the same door and looked down, now to see whom she was bunked with. She wasn't surprised she'd been bunked with a male. But she had kind of expected it to be the other Ensign...not a LT. She opened the door, she groaned when she saw her gear on the bottom bunk and his on the top one. "Well...could be worse, I guess. Mind if I hit the shower first?"
"No problem" was Milo's response as he made a beeline for his gear. Let's see...where did I....BOOYAH! Smiling triumphantly, the LT wasted no time in unwrapping - more accurately uncapping - his favorite present: a chilled bottle of the pure epicness known as Jäegermeister. Taking a long, deep swig, Milo sat down on his bunk with a sigh of contentment, as the painful memories of what'd happened a couple hours prior were swept away as the alcohol swept through his blood.
Jo went to her gear and got out what she needed for the shower and then went in, not really paying much more attention to what the LT was doing. She emerged within a few minutes, though, her hair combed through and falling around her shoulders. She wore just the shorts and shirt for workouts as pajamas. After setting her gear down on the floor, for now, she sat on her bunk and yawned. "That was refreshing."
As he turned to glance at the Ensign, Milo was momentarily speechless. "I-I...can imagine," he said....though his thoughts were along an entirely different path. Gorram she's hot. Hastily gathering his pajamas, Milo practically ran into the bathroom - for his uncharacteristical stutter hadn't been his body's only reaction upon seeing Jo. Closing the door behind him, the LT took a deep breath as he tried - and failed - to get the image out of his head. Shit, man...get a hold of yourself for fuck's sake! It's not like you haven't seen attractive women before...fuck, you saw one naked earlier today.....so snap out of it! A short while later, Milo, now shirtless and clad in his standard-issue blue pajamas, exited the bathroom.
When the LT had jetted to the bathroom, Jo frowned a bit wondering at his reaction. She shrugged, not thinking that he found her attractive. She's a farmgirl. Though there was a time when she even thought of that for herself, she had given up those dreams. Laying on her bunk, she waited for him to emerge. "I guess proper introductions are not needed now, huh?" She was trying joke about the fact that they knew each other's names, but hadn't really given them up. She was already under the covers, so only her head was propped up by an arm when she spoke. Of course, before she did speak, her gaze was on his bare chest and it took her a bit to focus.
Milo - who'd completely missed Jo's gaze at him - strode over to his bunk, sat down, and reached for the open bottle of booze, replying "No time like the present, right?" as he did so. After he'd chugged the last of the Jäeger down, the Nepleslian added "Milo Frost, El-Tee Jay-Gee, Aquila 10. Callsign's *hic* Jaeger" - he gestured with his free hand to the now-empty bottle "for obvious rea*hic*sons."
Jo watched as he drank what seemed to just be one drink..but for all she knew he could have had more. Great...another one that can't seem to hold their liquor. Story of my life. She only nodded, though, not showing what she was thinking in her features. "Johanna Cigaro. Most call me Jo. Ensign. Aquila 9. Callsign's Smokey. I'll let you get to drinking then..." She laid her head back down and closed her eyes, after shutting off her lights.
Well, that ended abruptly. Eh. As he reached into his gear and withdrew a second bottle, Milo - perfectly capable of seeing in the dark - shut down the lights on his sides as well. Leaned back against the bulkhead, the LT silently watched the rise and fall of the bedcovers on Jo's bunk as he nursed his beer, seemingly content - though the tears running down Milo's cheek from his one good eye proved otherwise...........
6.5 hours later...........
She was running...no she was flying. Wait...how did she get here? Where was here? All these thoughts and more Jo had, but couldn't say out loud just why. And then, like they always do, the images cleared and she was once more on her family's farm. She was in the top part of the barn, hiding behind the haybales. Jethro, the young man she had fallen for, was down below facing off with a couple of the others from school. She had hidden up there earlier when they knew the group was coming. Jethro was a farmhand on her Pa's farm. She knew her Pa and uncles were soon to be back. But not soon enough. Once more, she was frozen in terror as she watched Bastian and his two goons confront Jethro. And then, as usual, she heard the shot that ended his life...
"No!!" Jo thrashed in her bed, but didn't quite awaken from the nightmare yet. She was sitting on the edge, though, like she had been in her nightmare, looking over the edge of the hayloft. "Jethro!!"
Milo leapt up, combat training kicked in as his roommate's screams jolted him from his alcohol-induced slumber. Unfortunately for the poor Lieutenant - who'd passed out on top of his bed rather than in it - the aforementioned maneuver led to his skull encountering the room's (low) ceiling at a rather high velocity. To add insult to (a literal) injury, Milo - only semi-conscious, and drunk at that - was dazed by the impact, causing him to fall out of his upper bunk and encounter the floor with a *THUMP*
Jo - still caught in her nightmare - took the sounds as part of it and she scooted back in her bunk, trying to get away from the edge now...for in her nightmares Bastian not only taunted her, but actually came up after her. In reality, he didn't...but this was a nightmare.
As he swore (something along the lines of "what the fuck is that hedgehog's problem?!?"), Milo, picking himself up and fumbling around as he tried to figure out just what the fuck was going on, tripped on some random piece of gear, making him faceplant (in typical spectacular anime fashion) into a rather.....intimate area of Jo's, specifically the one between her legs.
Jo screamed and struck out at Milo, not realizing it was him and not Bastian. "Get off me! No! Let me go! I will never be yours!!" She even kicked out, still not realizing she was hitting flesh.
Milo's slowly-awakening brain was at first freaking the frak out as the Nepleslian experienced the sensation of falling - only to feel relief as his journey downwards was suddenly interrupted (for his head, at least) by something warm and soft. Such relief was short-lived however, as the LT was suddenly struck by something then hit again - this time from a completely different direction - disorienting him even more as he lashed out with his hands at that goddamned hedgehog. Clasping something round and squishy (which to his addled mind was somehow the hedgehog's frelled-up excuse of a face), Milo squeezed with all his might, yelling "DIE YOU GORRAM REAVER" as he did so - not knowing that he'd in reality grabbed Jo's chest.
Jo continued to push with all her might, but even in her nightmare she was never strong enough to get Bastian off of her. She cried out again when he squeezed her breast and then remembered what her Ma said in this situation. Play possum. So she whimpered as she relaxed her body, hoping that he'd give her an advantage so she could get away from him.
Feeling the spined fiend's struggles come to a halt, Milo squeezed the bastard's face one last time for good measure as he raised his other hand in victory. "RESISTANCE....IS.....FUTILE!"
Jo felt him squeeze her once more and remained still as she felt the shame well up again...for the scenes were merging between the hayloft and the space behind the gym where Bastian had defiled her...soon after he killed Jethro. She whispered brokenly, "Please...let me go..."
It's....still....alive? FUCK ME WHAT? "Over my dead assimilated body, you spined fucker!" retorted Milo as the gorram thing simply refused to die. Drawing his foot back, Milo kicked the hedgehog with all his might - only to smash said foot into the bottom of Jo's bunk. "What the holy frakberries!?!"
Jo, shaking now, jumped at the sound. It wasn't part of the nightmare...what? She blinked her eyes open and found not Bastian over her, but Milo. Now she was even more frightened...for she didn't think he would be the same kind of person. But then, she was known to be wrong before. "M-Milo..?"
The pain in his foot finally clearing the last of the cobwebs out of his mind, Milo was rather confused. What kind of bed am I on? It's warm, soft, and comfy...wait... The pieces were just starting to fall into place when the bed jumped beneath him...and spoke in Jo's voice. It was then that Milo realized what he was grasping in his hand and, with a growing horror, where his head was positioned. Withdrawing his hand and jumping upwards - wincing as a nasty headache assaulted him - Milo backed away from his squadmate's bunk, disbelief plastered on his features. "W...what....the....bloody......hell?" Can't have been the cybernetics, and it most certainly wasn't me....so what the fuck just happened? A second later, he also wondered And why do I recall something about a hedgehog?
Jo remained where she was as she watched Milo, wary now. She was still frightened, from both the nightmare and what she woke up to. Slowly, she inches back, trying to sit up. She can't see that well in the dark, so can't see his expression. But his voice still scared her right now, even though it shouldn't. She took the pillow and put it to her stomach as she sat there, rocking back and forth, tears flowing down her cheeks as she whimpers.
Finally hitting the switch for his side's lights after several tries, Milo was utterly shocked to see the tears rolling down Jo's cute-looking face - Dammit, not now you fucking pervert! - and then he heard her whimper, turning his blood to ice. What the hell did I do....?thought the cyborg as he made his way to the bathroom and vomited into the toilet.
Jo hid her eyes when his lights came on, still feeling the shame from her nightmare. She heard him go into the bathroom, but that's all. She just sat there and waited...not sure if she could make it out of their room...or if she really should right now. It'd look even worse if she did. So stay, she did. She dreaded what he would try to say to her.
After washing his mouth out, Milo emerged from the bathroom. Alright, let's see what Doctor Frost can do.... He sat down on his bed, facing her. "Jo....what happened exactly? All I remember is something about a hedgehog.....then waking up on top of you." He sighed. You're gonna have to do better then that if you ever want to have any chance of getting into her pan-no. You owe her more then that....and you owe Jo more than that as well. "Look, I know that sounded completely false, but......" - he drifted off, clearly having a vicious internal debate about something, then with an evident amount of discomfort, continued - "I swe....I swear on my....on my....I swear on my....mother's grave that I honestly have no idea how I ended up in that position."
Jo looked up at him, and at first she was disbelieving of what he said. She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came at first. Then she swallowed and shook her head. "I...I'm not sure. I was...having a nightmare...and then found you on top of me." She didn't say anything about what her nightmare was. She was too ashamed to tell him. But his words did sink in, and she was at least believing that he didn't intend what had happened. She wiped at her eyes and said softly, "Perhaps...we just...reacted to each other's dreams?"
"Perhaps.....though" Milo paused as he rubbed the top of his (mysteriously sore) head "I'm afraid I don't recall much of what I'd been dreaming of...if you don't mind me asking, what was yours about?"
Jo turned her head away and said softly, "I'd rather not say." She hugged the pillow closer to herself, swallowing. She really would rather just change the topic. But to what, she had no idea about.
Something personal. Shit. After a minute or so of silence, Dr. Frost was about to concede defeat when he noticed something about Jo - namely the pillow. Thinking back to his first few seconds of consciousness, Milo nearly facepalmed as he realized the answer to his question. The whimpering, the tears, the rocking back-and-forth...it all makes sense when you consider the position I was in when I came to!
"Jo....did someone.....do something to you when you were younger?" Despite his calm outer appearance, Milo was on the inside quite nervous - for if the gamble he was taking failed, he was royally and truly frakked.
Jo winced when he asked her what she did not want to be asked. She nodded, though, keeping her gaze away from him. She didn't ask him not to continue on, for she was told to keep telling her story, even though it was hard. She couldn't stand the looks of pity most women would give her...or anger from the men. That hurt almost as much.
Oh boy thought Milo, yawning. Why couldn't this have happened at some other time of day.....blast, this is gonna be a bitch. Fuck, I'm not even trained for this shit - I'm a fighter pilot, not a shrink! - and surely there's someone more qua-but, no. I'm the one here, so I'm the lucky son-of-a-bitch that gets to do this, because I'd bet that no one else knows about this - and no one else will ever know about it should I fail. So, Milo, ready your sorry excuse of an ass up, because this lady's spirit doesn't deserve this kind of torture. His brief internal pep talk over, Milo braced himself for the toughest challenge he'd ever faced outside of the cockpit.
Where to start... "How...far in the past are we talking about here?"
Jo frowned a bit, now looking at him. He didn't react how most did. She is a bit surprised, so blurts out, "8 years." Odd, but just saying that did put it in perspective. She uncurled a bit, but still had the pillow in her arms. "8 years, 5 months and...2 weeks." Yes, she counted. Why? She did, at least, stop counting the hours and minutes. But she still counted the days. Sort of.
8 years? Wow...she's...older then me. Didn't see that coming . More importantly, though, she keeps track of how long it's been. Balls. Let's mix things up a bit. "I know it seems a bit off-topic, but what was your homeworld like? Industrial, rural, high- or low-tech, things like that."
Once more, Jo is confused by this. It's a bit of a change of topic, but at least it's not focused on her nightmare. "Rural. Fairly low-tech. Had some high-tech to make things easier. Only thing we had on the farm that was high-tech was the planes for dustin' crops."
Planes for dusting crops? Heh...that explains quite a bit. Hopefully this next part won't explode in my face... "I was wondering about that accent...." - Milo smiled for a moment then continued on - "What happened to him afterwards? I know it must be the absolute last thing you wanna think about right now, so I'm not gonna ask you what he was like or what his name was - all I'd like to know is what his plans for the future were, like if he was gonna attend school, work somewhere, et cetera." A few heartbeats later, the LT added "And I promise I won't bring him up again - I've got plenty of painful memories of my own, so I understand how much it hurts to think about those things that you just wanna forget."
Jo looked up at Milo, rather confused. Wait...is he talking about Bastian...or no, not Jethro. He'd have asked about that. She frowns and shrugs, "Why would I care what his plans were? As for what happened...well...we'll just say he won't be producin' nuttin' anytime...ever." Though she was calm in her statement, she wasn't really thrilled about it either. Mostly because it wasn't due to her own family getting retribution against Bastian.
Frak...and that is why I'm not a blasted psychotherapist thought Milo as he cursed his sleep-deprived mind - then the Ensign's words sank in. Wait....what? "He's.....dead?"
Jo nodded and looked down at her pillow with a small sigh as tears welled and spilled out. "Yes. Both of them. The man I loved...and the man who...who took what he wanted." She burrowed her face in the pillow and let the tears flow for a moment before taking in a shaky breath and wiping them away. Looking up at the LTJG, she could see he was really tired, so she tried to be as reassuring as possible. "Look...you don't have to hear it all right now. Go on back to sleep. You need it."
For what felt like the first time in ages, Milo chuckled. "What, your instructor never taught you to sleep during mission briefings and then during the missions themselves? What has this Navy come to?" He shook his head. "I'm used to pulling all-nighters...I can just grab some caf in the morning." Now, let's speed this up a little...or I'll be off in the Land of Nod again. "I know I just made a promise to not bring it up, but....what happened, exactly? Lady Luck, please lend me your guiding grace in this gamble of mine...amen. Placing his hands over Jo's smaller, feminine ones, Milo added "I know it hurts more then anything else....but once you get it off of your chest, once you stop bottling it up inside, things get better. Trust me." Having said this, the Nepleslian had to resist the impulse to laugh - to laugh at the sheer irony of him, of all people, saying that. You fucking hypocritical bastard....ever try following your own advice?
Jo chewed on her inner cheek as she listened and just stared at his larger hands covering her own when he touched her. It wasn't like anything special happened in that moment, but it just struck her as odd that she didn't pull away. The only males she allowed to touch her like that were family. Taking a few breaths to keep herself calm as she thought back to both incidents, she starts off softly, but not meekly. More like she is just reading a story to someone else, though the story is her own life. She tells him about her young love with Jethro. How they had been considered the perfect couple. She even went into some details about how they got close, but never went all the way. Both had wanted to wait until they were able to be together for good before that happened. She even told about Bastian and how he had always been jealous. So much so that he killed Jethro in her barn and she was the only witness to it, hidden up in the hayloft. And, finally, how Bastian had finally cornered her and defiled her, taking what should have been a gift.
As she talked, she got up, needing to pace. But also, needing to not look directly at Milo. When she had finished, she was leaning against the wall near the bathroom, wishing there was a porthole for her to look out at the stars. Or some sort of decoration to occupy her focus as she waited for his response. Her shoulders were tense, for she didn't know what to expect.
Milo for the most part remained silent while Jo recounted the time she'd spent with this "Jethro," the pilot struggling to maintain his composure as his roommate's trip down memory lane dredged up painful, bittersweet memories from when he'd flown with the Talons - especially those of one Talon in particular. Why did they have to assign her of all people as my bunkmate? Of all the ones they could've of chosen from, why did those fuckers have to select the one person guaran-fucking-teed to make me think about the past? Gorram retards. Gorram motherfucking sons of bi- The Nepleslian's thoughts were suddenly cut off as an alarm wailed in his ears. Motor overstressed? Wha... He looked down at his right hand - now clenched solidly into a fist. Oh.....shit, I need to focus.
The LT tuned back in just in time for the room's junior occupant to mention Bastian - Great...just what my fucked-up hand needs right now - and how he'd proceeded to completely upend Jo's life both physically and emotionally. That fucking bastard thought Milo, wincing as Jo described what the creep had done to her. You don't fucking do that to people...for frak's sake, not even the Chains or the Blacks were that barbaric!
It was that Milo noticed that, aside for the faint thrum of the ship's generators and the not-as-faint whoosh of air coming from the cabin's vent, the room was silent. Way to leave Jo hanging, you dumbass. Zoning back into reality, the fighter jock looked at the aforementioned female - now noticeably tense (Fuck!) - and, in a (prior until recently) rare moment of seriousness said, "Well, damn. You got my respect...it takes some serious ba-I mean, guts to fight on after that" - a pause - "More than I have, come to think of it."
Jo had gotten many different reactions to her story, when she'd share it. Though, even that wasn't often enough. She had been complimented on her 'bravery' of moving forward. She had been chastised of her 'cowardice' for letting Bastian kill the man she loved as she hid. What she didn't expect was the one in front of her not only complimenting on her guts, but saying she had more than him?! Looking up, she is puzzled more than anything. "Wh-What do you mean 'more than you have'?"
Frak.....oh, to hell with it. She's told her life story, I might as well fill her in on a bit of mine. "I also......lost someone who was close to me, and didn't- no, I haven't taken it well. But if I'd been violated soon afterwards I..." - he shuddered - "I would've put myself out of my misery then and there. That's what I mean."
Jo studied Milo for a few moments, her thoughts changing track as she wonders just how it is that someone would even consider taking their own life for any reason. The distraction, though, did relax her shoulders a bit as she chewed on her lip and then replied softly, "Perhaps what helped me was having a family that cared enough to help me heal from both tragedies."
Don't lose it in front of her. Don't you dare lose it. "I...used to have one." Probably a good time to change the subject, before she learns too much. "Gotta say, that was one of the things I always wished I had, growing up on the streets of good old Funky City."
Used to, he says. Interesting. "Family is what you make of it. It's not always those who are related to you by blood, but also by life's choices. I miss my Ma and Pa, but I'm sure I'll gain the brothers and sisters I always wish I had." Jo smiles softly and relaxes even more as she sits on the edge of her bed, looking up at him. Tilting her head, she said, "Maybe...one day...you'll tell me more about your loss." She made it a statement, and not a question.
"One day" replied Milo with a smile, glad that Jo hadn't inquired further. That was too damn close, man. Too damn close. At least she's feeling better, though...not bad, all things considered. Yawning again, the LT added "Think I'm gonna hit the sack before I pass out on the floor again. See you in a few." With that, the jock climbed up to his bunk and opened a third Jäger, saying "g'night" before downing the bottle's contents in a single motion. Minutes later, Milo, once again in the embrace of alcoholic bliss, was out for the count - his slumber fortunately undisturbed by dreams this time around.
Jo simply nodded as he went back to sleep. She sat in her bunk for awhile, not quite sure if she'd fall asleep or not. Soon enough, though, she would succumb to slumber herself. Her sleep just as dreamless as his.
In a semi-private communications booth on the Oracle
========================
Jo had been able to get into a booth quicker than even she expected. The ensign was a bit worried about it, but it seemed that most who had already escaped the destruction was able to make what calls were needed. Now it was her turn. She had the earpiece in one ear, waiting for her call to be picked up. There would be no video feed, for her parents couldn't afford that much. But at least she'd get to hear their voices. Or so she hoped. When the call went to voicemail, though, she sighed to herself, her shoulders slumped. At the beep, she tried her best to keep her voice calm when she spoke.
"Hello, Ma and Pa. It's your little sparrow. I'm doin' alright. I'm sure you'll have heard of the attack on the base sometime soon, but don't worry. I'm fine and I can say that...well...I've graduated! Not in a way I'd expect, but it'll do. I love you and miss you. I'll try to call again in a few hours. I don't have a number for y'all to call me back. Until then, know I am safe."
She set the earpiece in its place and then got out of the booth for anyone else needing to use it. Now that she had done that much, she was starting to feel the effects of all that had happened and was in need of some much deserved rest. But she didn't know which room was assigned to her...or with whom. So, for now, she went to an observation area and looked out at the stars, leaning against the railing.
Elsewhere on the ship, Milo was really wishing he'd brought a bottle of Jägermeister with him as he stumbled through the corridors of the NSS Oracle. What, thought the Lieutenant as he traversed yet identical set of corridors, I would give for a goddamn map right about now. All he'd wanted to do was to get back to his quarters and ingest ridiculous amounts of alcohol - A simple request, dammit! - yet he was now frak knows where, completely lost. Again. On his first day onboard this blasted ship.
Sighing to himself as he leaned up against the nearest bulkhead, Milo was preparing to condemn himself to a long, sleepless, boring-as-fuck night when, courtesy of his amped-up hearing, he heard a faint whine of protest from an under-lubed door's servos as it opened itself for someone. Sweet...perhaps they know how to get around this fricking labyrinth. Jogging, the Nepleslian soon rewarded with the sight of a hatchway - complaining once again at the injustice of actually having to do something - grind its way shut. They probably ought to fix that. As he reached for the indolent hatch's controls, Milo was rather pissed to notice the words 'OBSERVATION AREA' printed on the aforementioned hatch. Biting back a few harshly-worded comments about the shipbuilder's paternal lineage, the Nepleslian activated the hatch's controls - and was greeted by the breathtaking sight of a figure silhouetted against the vastness of the cosmos. Ignoring the vista (which he'd seen countless times before anyways), the fighter pilot approached the figure. "Spotted any space whales?"
Jo had heard the door protest once more, but didn't bother to turn around at first. She was lost in her own thoughts, so when she heard the voice behind her, she jumped a bit, not expecting anyone to address her here. She turned and noted the rank of the other, giving him a very brief, yet proper, salute. She cleared her throat. "Space whales? Err...what are those?" Turning once more to look out into the vastness beyond, she was rather curious now, in spite of being so tired. She had heard of them, but only as a myth. Not something that was real.
Milo smiled as he noticed the gallery's other occupant jump slightly - then nearly swore as the occupant turned out to be female - and a pleasantly-curved one at that. Normally, the cyborg would've been pleased with this - the odds of running into two beautiful women on the same ship (hell, on the same day) were...slim, to put it mildly - but, after what had happened with Reina, women were last thing Milo wanted to deal with. Then, as if that weren't bad enough, she saluted him. Mentally, Milo let out a long sigh of frustration. All I want is a glass of Jäeger, for fuck's sake. What is this, some kind of goddamned RPG? Outwardly, he saluted back, and smiled - years of experience making it relatively easy for the Nepleslian to keep his thoughts and facial expressions separate - as he leaned up against the railing as well. "Space whales? Oh, they're something pilots like myself swear by for those times when we're not blessed by Lady Luck."
A small frown appeared on Jo's features as she heard about this. She sighed softly and shook her head, "Guess I have a lot ta learn still." She rubbed at her tired eyes and leaned even more heavily against the railing as she yawned. "Sorry. I've had a really...tirin' day. I'm just waitin' fer it ta be over." Her nose wrinkled as she realized she had yet to learn of her room assignment. "Damn...I need ta find out where I'm bein' bunked. And I need a shower." With how tired she is, her accent is more of the country hick sounding than normal. Though she knew that the one next to her didn't need to hear of her dilemma, she was too tired to keep her mouth shut. And, to top it off, she admitted the need of a shower to an unknown male. Smooth, Jo. Real smooth. She sighed and turned away from the view, thinking of trying to find that assigned room. "I think I'll just leave ya be, fer now." She gave him a small, fleeting smile and then headed towards the door.
Finally, alone at last thought Milo. Now, about that Jäeg-shit, I forgot to ask her for directions! Turning around, the Lieutenant was relieved to see that he'd realized his error before the strangely-accented crewperson had left the room. "Speaking of bunks, could you help me find mine?" He held his hands up in a placating gesture and added "Before you say it, no, that was not a pick-up line," - I'm not that unoriginal - "as I actually do need help finding my quarters in this gorram labyrinth that's called a ship."
Pausing in her footsteps, Jo looked back and tilted her head, "Wot makes ya think I know more'n you 'bout this ship?" She was mildly curious as to why the Lieutenant was more lost than she was.
Damn... mused Milo as he pondered this revelation. Figures that the person I ask for directions doesn't know anything either - and what is with that accent? "Well," said Milo with a chuckle, "you've probably been here longer then me - I only got here a few hours ago."
Shaking her head a bit, Jo sighed, "Not by much. Just 'nuff ta know whar th' infirm'ry is. Oh. And the ship bay fer th' fighters. Perhaps could ask Jethro fer a map...he might have a clue." Tilting her head, she looked off in thought for a moment and then shrugged, "Yeah. Maybe he'd know whar I'm assigned."
"Fine by me...though we have to find him first," replied Milo, yawning. "Heh...been a long day for me as well."
Jo chuckled a bit and opened the hatch, walking down the path she knew of how she got here and back to the bay where Aquila Flight's squadron was being housed and repaired. "Jethro. Did anyone tell ya whar I'm bunkin'?" She spoke directly to the aircraft that housed the AI assigned to her. "Yes, Jo. And by the sound of your voice, you need to get some rack time. Your data jockey has the map." Jo looked down at the jockey after pulling it out of her pocket on the side of her flight suit. "Thanks. Ah..here it is. And it's not too far...thank goodness."
Following the redhead down increasingly familiar-looking corridors with a look of dawning comprehension on his face, Milo was ready to facepalm by the time they'd reached the hangar bay. Of course, you fucking idiot. Of course you'd run into the one person who knows the ship's layout as well as you do. Fucking genius.
Then, as he listened to the conversation between 'Jethro' - An AI of some sort...but why bother going up to some random fighter? - and...."You've got to be shitting me" muttered Milo under his breath as he recalled the name of his roommate - one Johanna Cigaro. Whipping out his DataJockey and giving it a withering glare, the LT pulled up the message containing the squadron's room assignments - and, sure enough, next to his name on the roster was Johanna. Well, this'll be an interesting night thought Milo...who, upon scrolling down to the bottom of the page, noticed the embedded map, causing the fighter pilot - literally too tired at this point to give a fuck - burst into a fit of laughter.
Looking up when she heard the laughter, Jo frowned some as she tilted her head, studying the man and then glanced up at the Quattro, even though she knows the AI wouldn't be able to look back. She then looked back at the laughing one and asks, "Care ta share?" She did like a good joke once in awhile. Even if it happens to be at her expense.
Once he'd regained his composure, Milo replied "Just laughing at the fact that it took me this long to realize that we're squadmates."
Jo frowned even more, rubbing her fingers against her temple. "Wait...what? Watcha mean we're squadmates? And why should you have realized it 'fore now?"
Please don't fall asleep before we reach our quarters... thought Milo yawned again and leaned up against the nearest hard surface (in this case, conveniently-placed Quattro's landing gear). "I'm Aquila 10.....and I should've realized this sooner because of what you said earlier about not knowing this ship that well."
A snort of laughter escaped her as she leaned against the same landing gear, but on the other side. "Oh, please. All ya could've figgered out was that I was just as new as ya. Fer all ya know, I could've been a greenhorn of 'nother sort." She looked at her datapad, but didn't pay much attention to whom she was bunked with. Though Jethro would have known, Jo was just too tired to try to figure it out. She shrugged a bit and said, "Well. Now that we have directions, we could get to our respective bunks."
Resisting the urge to chuckle, Milo pulled himself up using the surprisingly handy landing gear, then ducked under the starfighter's fuselage, offered a hand to Jo, and, in his best imitation of an aristocrat, said "Shall we, milady?" Man, I must be more wasted then I thought if I'm coming up with something this bad....
Eyeing him for a moment, Jo put her hand in his and allowed him to help her up. She sighed, "Well, at least we're goin' in the same direction...Just don't call me 'lady'. I ain't one of those."
"Sorry" replied Milo as he lead the way towards one of the hangar's hatchways and proceeded to open it . "I'm one of those people that get a bit...loopy when they get tired." Or when they haven't ingested alcohol!
Jo laughed a bit, "I get loopy when I drink...so I guess to each their own." She led the way to the next hatchway where they'd need to go to get to Aquila Flight's quarters.
That's a relief. "True that" quipped the LT s he turned a corner and spotted spotted their quarters. Hallelujah. Wonder where the rest of Aquila is....fuck it, can think about that after I get a drink. Or five. Now, how should I do this.....again, fuck it, let's get this over with. Turning to face the other Aquila, Milo said "I believe this is our room?"
Jo blinked when they stood in front of the same door and looked down, now to see whom she was bunked with. She wasn't surprised she'd been bunked with a male. But she had kind of expected it to be the other Ensign...not a LT. She opened the door, she groaned when she saw her gear on the bottom bunk and his on the top one. "Well...could be worse, I guess. Mind if I hit the shower first?"
"No problem" was Milo's response as he made a beeline for his gear. Let's see...where did I....BOOYAH! Smiling triumphantly, the LT wasted no time in unwrapping - more accurately uncapping - his favorite present: a chilled bottle of the pure epicness known as Jäegermeister. Taking a long, deep swig, Milo sat down on his bunk with a sigh of contentment, as the painful memories of what'd happened a couple hours prior were swept away as the alcohol swept through his blood.
Jo went to her gear and got out what she needed for the shower and then went in, not really paying much more attention to what the LT was doing. She emerged within a few minutes, though, her hair combed through and falling around her shoulders. She wore just the shorts and shirt for workouts as pajamas. After setting her gear down on the floor, for now, she sat on her bunk and yawned. "That was refreshing."
As he turned to glance at the Ensign, Milo was momentarily speechless. "I-I...can imagine," he said....though his thoughts were along an entirely different path. Gorram she's hot. Hastily gathering his pajamas, Milo practically ran into the bathroom - for his uncharacteristical stutter hadn't been his body's only reaction upon seeing Jo. Closing the door behind him, the LT took a deep breath as he tried - and failed - to get the image out of his head. Shit, man...get a hold of yourself for fuck's sake! It's not like you haven't seen attractive women before...fuck, you saw one naked earlier today.....so snap out of it! A short while later, Milo, now shirtless and clad in his standard-issue blue pajamas, exited the bathroom.
When the LT had jetted to the bathroom, Jo frowned a bit wondering at his reaction. She shrugged, not thinking that he found her attractive. She's a farmgirl. Though there was a time when she even thought of that for herself, she had given up those dreams. Laying on her bunk, she waited for him to emerge. "I guess proper introductions are not needed now, huh?" She was trying joke about the fact that they knew each other's names, but hadn't really given them up. She was already under the covers, so only her head was propped up by an arm when she spoke. Of course, before she did speak, her gaze was on his bare chest and it took her a bit to focus.
Milo - who'd completely missed Jo's gaze at him - strode over to his bunk, sat down, and reached for the open bottle of booze, replying "No time like the present, right?" as he did so. After he'd chugged the last of the Jäeger down, the Nepleslian added "Milo Frost, El-Tee Jay-Gee, Aquila 10. Callsign's *hic* Jaeger" - he gestured with his free hand to the now-empty bottle "for obvious rea*hic*sons."
Jo watched as he drank what seemed to just be one drink..but for all she knew he could have had more. Great...another one that can't seem to hold their liquor. Story of my life. She only nodded, though, not showing what she was thinking in her features. "Johanna Cigaro. Most call me Jo. Ensign. Aquila 9. Callsign's Smokey. I'll let you get to drinking then..." She laid her head back down and closed her eyes, after shutting off her lights.
Well, that ended abruptly. Eh. As he reached into his gear and withdrew a second bottle, Milo - perfectly capable of seeing in the dark - shut down the lights on his sides as well. Leaned back against the bulkhead, the LT silently watched the rise and fall of the bedcovers on Jo's bunk as he nursed his beer, seemingly content - though the tears running down Milo's cheek from his one good eye proved otherwise...........
6.5 hours later...........
She was running...no she was flying. Wait...how did she get here? Where was here? All these thoughts and more Jo had, but couldn't say out loud just why. And then, like they always do, the images cleared and she was once more on her family's farm. She was in the top part of the barn, hiding behind the haybales. Jethro, the young man she had fallen for, was down below facing off with a couple of the others from school. She had hidden up there earlier when they knew the group was coming. Jethro was a farmhand on her Pa's farm. She knew her Pa and uncles were soon to be back. But not soon enough. Once more, she was frozen in terror as she watched Bastian and his two goons confront Jethro. And then, as usual, she heard the shot that ended his life...
"No!!" Jo thrashed in her bed, but didn't quite awaken from the nightmare yet. She was sitting on the edge, though, like she had been in her nightmare, looking over the edge of the hayloft. "Jethro!!"
Milo leapt up, combat training kicked in as his roommate's screams jolted him from his alcohol-induced slumber. Unfortunately for the poor Lieutenant - who'd passed out on top of his bed rather than in it - the aforementioned maneuver led to his skull encountering the room's (low) ceiling at a rather high velocity. To add insult to (a literal) injury, Milo - only semi-conscious, and drunk at that - was dazed by the impact, causing him to fall out of his upper bunk and encounter the floor with a *THUMP*
Jo - still caught in her nightmare - took the sounds as part of it and she scooted back in her bunk, trying to get away from the edge now...for in her nightmares Bastian not only taunted her, but actually came up after her. In reality, he didn't...but this was a nightmare.
As he swore (something along the lines of "what the fuck is that hedgehog's problem?!?"), Milo, picking himself up and fumbling around as he tried to figure out just what the fuck was going on, tripped on some random piece of gear, making him faceplant (in typical spectacular anime fashion) into a rather.....intimate area of Jo's, specifically the one between her legs.
Jo screamed and struck out at Milo, not realizing it was him and not Bastian. "Get off me! No! Let me go! I will never be yours!!" She even kicked out, still not realizing she was hitting flesh.
Milo's slowly-awakening brain was at first freaking the frak out as the Nepleslian experienced the sensation of falling - only to feel relief as his journey downwards was suddenly interrupted (for his head, at least) by something warm and soft. Such relief was short-lived however, as the LT was suddenly struck by something then hit again - this time from a completely different direction - disorienting him even more as he lashed out with his hands at that goddamned hedgehog. Clasping something round and squishy (which to his addled mind was somehow the hedgehog's frelled-up excuse of a face), Milo squeezed with all his might, yelling "DIE YOU GORRAM REAVER" as he did so - not knowing that he'd in reality grabbed Jo's chest.
Jo continued to push with all her might, but even in her nightmare she was never strong enough to get Bastian off of her. She cried out again when he squeezed her breast and then remembered what her Ma said in this situation. Play possum. So she whimpered as she relaxed her body, hoping that he'd give her an advantage so she could get away from him.
Feeling the spined fiend's struggles come to a halt, Milo squeezed the bastard's face one last time for good measure as he raised his other hand in victory. "RESISTANCE....IS.....FUTILE!"
Jo felt him squeeze her once more and remained still as she felt the shame well up again...for the scenes were merging between the hayloft and the space behind the gym where Bastian had defiled her...soon after he killed Jethro. She whispered brokenly, "Please...let me go..."
It's....still....alive? FUCK ME WHAT? "Over my dead assimilated body, you spined fucker!" retorted Milo as the gorram thing simply refused to die. Drawing his foot back, Milo kicked the hedgehog with all his might - only to smash said foot into the bottom of Jo's bunk. "What the holy frakberries!?!"
Jo, shaking now, jumped at the sound. It wasn't part of the nightmare...what? She blinked her eyes open and found not Bastian over her, but Milo. Now she was even more frightened...for she didn't think he would be the same kind of person. But then, she was known to be wrong before. "M-Milo..?"
The pain in his foot finally clearing the last of the cobwebs out of his mind, Milo was rather confused. What kind of bed am I on? It's warm, soft, and comfy...wait... The pieces were just starting to fall into place when the bed jumped beneath him...and spoke in Jo's voice. It was then that Milo realized what he was grasping in his hand and, with a growing horror, where his head was positioned. Withdrawing his hand and jumping upwards - wincing as a nasty headache assaulted him - Milo backed away from his squadmate's bunk, disbelief plastered on his features. "W...what....the....bloody......hell?" Can't have been the cybernetics, and it most certainly wasn't me....so what the fuck just happened? A second later, he also wondered And why do I recall something about a hedgehog?
Jo remained where she was as she watched Milo, wary now. She was still frightened, from both the nightmare and what she woke up to. Slowly, she inches back, trying to sit up. She can't see that well in the dark, so can't see his expression. But his voice still scared her right now, even though it shouldn't. She took the pillow and put it to her stomach as she sat there, rocking back and forth, tears flowing down her cheeks as she whimpers.
Finally hitting the switch for his side's lights after several tries, Milo was utterly shocked to see the tears rolling down Jo's cute-looking face - Dammit, not now you fucking pervert! - and then he heard her whimper, turning his blood to ice. What the hell did I do....?thought the cyborg as he made his way to the bathroom and vomited into the toilet.
Jo hid her eyes when his lights came on, still feeling the shame from her nightmare. She heard him go into the bathroom, but that's all. She just sat there and waited...not sure if she could make it out of their room...or if she really should right now. It'd look even worse if she did. So stay, she did. She dreaded what he would try to say to her.
After washing his mouth out, Milo emerged from the bathroom. Alright, let's see what Doctor Frost can do.... He sat down on his bed, facing her. "Jo....what happened exactly? All I remember is something about a hedgehog.....then waking up on top of you." He sighed. You're gonna have to do better then that if you ever want to have any chance of getting into her pan-no. You owe her more then that....and you owe Jo more than that as well. "Look, I know that sounded completely false, but......" - he drifted off, clearly having a vicious internal debate about something, then with an evident amount of discomfort, continued - "I swe....I swear on my....on my....I swear on my....mother's grave that I honestly have no idea how I ended up in that position."
Jo looked up at him, and at first she was disbelieving of what he said. She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came at first. Then she swallowed and shook her head. "I...I'm not sure. I was...having a nightmare...and then found you on top of me." She didn't say anything about what her nightmare was. She was too ashamed to tell him. But his words did sink in, and she was at least believing that he didn't intend what had happened. She wiped at her eyes and said softly, "Perhaps...we just...reacted to each other's dreams?"
"Perhaps.....though" Milo paused as he rubbed the top of his (mysteriously sore) head "I'm afraid I don't recall much of what I'd been dreaming of...if you don't mind me asking, what was yours about?"
Jo turned her head away and said softly, "I'd rather not say." She hugged the pillow closer to herself, swallowing. She really would rather just change the topic. But to what, she had no idea about.
Something personal. Shit. After a minute or so of silence, Dr. Frost was about to concede defeat when he noticed something about Jo - namely the pillow. Thinking back to his first few seconds of consciousness, Milo nearly facepalmed as he realized the answer to his question. The whimpering, the tears, the rocking back-and-forth...it all makes sense when you consider the position I was in when I came to!
"Jo....did someone.....do something to you when you were younger?" Despite his calm outer appearance, Milo was on the inside quite nervous - for if the gamble he was taking failed, he was royally and truly frakked.
Jo winced when he asked her what she did not want to be asked. She nodded, though, keeping her gaze away from him. She didn't ask him not to continue on, for she was told to keep telling her story, even though it was hard. She couldn't stand the looks of pity most women would give her...or anger from the men. That hurt almost as much.
Oh boy thought Milo, yawning. Why couldn't this have happened at some other time of day.....blast, this is gonna be a bitch. Fuck, I'm not even trained for this shit - I'm a fighter pilot, not a shrink! - and surely there's someone more qua-but, no. I'm the one here, so I'm the lucky son-of-a-bitch that gets to do this, because I'd bet that no one else knows about this - and no one else will ever know about it should I fail. So, Milo, ready your sorry excuse of an ass up, because this lady's spirit doesn't deserve this kind of torture. His brief internal pep talk over, Milo braced himself for the toughest challenge he'd ever faced outside of the cockpit.
Where to start... "How...far in the past are we talking about here?"
Jo frowned a bit, now looking at him. He didn't react how most did. She is a bit surprised, so blurts out, "8 years." Odd, but just saying that did put it in perspective. She uncurled a bit, but still had the pillow in her arms. "8 years, 5 months and...2 weeks." Yes, she counted. Why? She did, at least, stop counting the hours and minutes. But she still counted the days. Sort of.
8 years? Wow...she's...older then me. Didn't see that coming . More importantly, though, she keeps track of how long it's been. Balls. Let's mix things up a bit. "I know it seems a bit off-topic, but what was your homeworld like? Industrial, rural, high- or low-tech, things like that."
Once more, Jo is confused by this. It's a bit of a change of topic, but at least it's not focused on her nightmare. "Rural. Fairly low-tech. Had some high-tech to make things easier. Only thing we had on the farm that was high-tech was the planes for dustin' crops."
Planes for dusting crops? Heh...that explains quite a bit. Hopefully this next part won't explode in my face... "I was wondering about that accent...." - Milo smiled for a moment then continued on - "What happened to him afterwards? I know it must be the absolute last thing you wanna think about right now, so I'm not gonna ask you what he was like or what his name was - all I'd like to know is what his plans for the future were, like if he was gonna attend school, work somewhere, et cetera." A few heartbeats later, the LT added "And I promise I won't bring him up again - I've got plenty of painful memories of my own, so I understand how much it hurts to think about those things that you just wanna forget."
Jo looked up at Milo, rather confused. Wait...is he talking about Bastian...or no, not Jethro. He'd have asked about that. She frowns and shrugs, "Why would I care what his plans were? As for what happened...well...we'll just say he won't be producin' nuttin' anytime...ever." Though she was calm in her statement, she wasn't really thrilled about it either. Mostly because it wasn't due to her own family getting retribution against Bastian.
Frak...and that is why I'm not a blasted psychotherapist thought Milo as he cursed his sleep-deprived mind - then the Ensign's words sank in. Wait....what? "He's.....dead?"
Jo nodded and looked down at her pillow with a small sigh as tears welled and spilled out. "Yes. Both of them. The man I loved...and the man who...who took what he wanted." She burrowed her face in the pillow and let the tears flow for a moment before taking in a shaky breath and wiping them away. Looking up at the LTJG, she could see he was really tired, so she tried to be as reassuring as possible. "Look...you don't have to hear it all right now. Go on back to sleep. You need it."
For what felt like the first time in ages, Milo chuckled. "What, your instructor never taught you to sleep during mission briefings and then during the missions themselves? What has this Navy come to?" He shook his head. "I'm used to pulling all-nighters...I can just grab some caf in the morning." Now, let's speed this up a little...or I'll be off in the Land of Nod again. "I know I just made a promise to not bring it up, but....what happened, exactly? Lady Luck, please lend me your guiding grace in this gamble of mine...amen. Placing his hands over Jo's smaller, feminine ones, Milo added "I know it hurts more then anything else....but once you get it off of your chest, once you stop bottling it up inside, things get better. Trust me." Having said this, the Nepleslian had to resist the impulse to laugh - to laugh at the sheer irony of him, of all people, saying that. You fucking hypocritical bastard....ever try following your own advice?
Jo chewed on her inner cheek as she listened and just stared at his larger hands covering her own when he touched her. It wasn't like anything special happened in that moment, but it just struck her as odd that she didn't pull away. The only males she allowed to touch her like that were family. Taking a few breaths to keep herself calm as she thought back to both incidents, she starts off softly, but not meekly. More like she is just reading a story to someone else, though the story is her own life. She tells him about her young love with Jethro. How they had been considered the perfect couple. She even went into some details about how they got close, but never went all the way. Both had wanted to wait until they were able to be together for good before that happened. She even told about Bastian and how he had always been jealous. So much so that he killed Jethro in her barn and she was the only witness to it, hidden up in the hayloft. And, finally, how Bastian had finally cornered her and defiled her, taking what should have been a gift.
As she talked, she got up, needing to pace. But also, needing to not look directly at Milo. When she had finished, she was leaning against the wall near the bathroom, wishing there was a porthole for her to look out at the stars. Or some sort of decoration to occupy her focus as she waited for his response. Her shoulders were tense, for she didn't know what to expect.
Milo for the most part remained silent while Jo recounted the time she'd spent with this "Jethro," the pilot struggling to maintain his composure as his roommate's trip down memory lane dredged up painful, bittersweet memories from when he'd flown with the Talons - especially those of one Talon in particular. Why did they have to assign her of all people as my bunkmate? Of all the ones they could've of chosen from, why did those fuckers have to select the one person guaran-fucking-teed to make me think about the past? Gorram retards. Gorram motherfucking sons of bi- The Nepleslian's thoughts were suddenly cut off as an alarm wailed in his ears. Motor overstressed? Wha... He looked down at his right hand - now clenched solidly into a fist. Oh.....shit, I need to focus.
The LT tuned back in just in time for the room's junior occupant to mention Bastian - Great...just what my fucked-up hand needs right now - and how he'd proceeded to completely upend Jo's life both physically and emotionally. That fucking bastard thought Milo, wincing as Jo described what the creep had done to her. You don't fucking do that to people...for frak's sake, not even the Chains or the Blacks were that barbaric!
It was that Milo noticed that, aside for the faint thrum of the ship's generators and the not-as-faint whoosh of air coming from the cabin's vent, the room was silent. Way to leave Jo hanging, you dumbass. Zoning back into reality, the fighter jock looked at the aforementioned female - now noticeably tense (Fuck!) - and, in a (prior until recently) rare moment of seriousness said, "Well, damn. You got my respect...it takes some serious ba-I mean, guts to fight on after that" - a pause - "More than I have, come to think of it."
Jo had gotten many different reactions to her story, when she'd share it. Though, even that wasn't often enough. She had been complimented on her 'bravery' of moving forward. She had been chastised of her 'cowardice' for letting Bastian kill the man she loved as she hid. What she didn't expect was the one in front of her not only complimenting on her guts, but saying she had more than him?! Looking up, she is puzzled more than anything. "Wh-What do you mean 'more than you have'?"
Frak.....oh, to hell with it. She's told her life story, I might as well fill her in on a bit of mine. "I also......lost someone who was close to me, and didn't- no, I haven't taken it well. But if I'd been violated soon afterwards I..." - he shuddered - "I would've put myself out of my misery then and there. That's what I mean."
Jo studied Milo for a few moments, her thoughts changing track as she wonders just how it is that someone would even consider taking their own life for any reason. The distraction, though, did relax her shoulders a bit as she chewed on her lip and then replied softly, "Perhaps what helped me was having a family that cared enough to help me heal from both tragedies."
Don't lose it in front of her. Don't you dare lose it. "I...used to have one." Probably a good time to change the subject, before she learns too much. "Gotta say, that was one of the things I always wished I had, growing up on the streets of good old Funky City."
Used to, he says. Interesting. "Family is what you make of it. It's not always those who are related to you by blood, but also by life's choices. I miss my Ma and Pa, but I'm sure I'll gain the brothers and sisters I always wish I had." Jo smiles softly and relaxes even more as she sits on the edge of her bed, looking up at him. Tilting her head, she said, "Maybe...one day...you'll tell me more about your loss." She made it a statement, and not a question.
"One day" replied Milo with a smile, glad that Jo hadn't inquired further. That was too damn close, man. Too damn close. At least she's feeling better, though...not bad, all things considered. Yawning again, the LT added "Think I'm gonna hit the sack before I pass out on the floor again. See you in a few." With that, the jock climbed up to his bunk and opened a third Jäger, saying "g'night" before downing the bottle's contents in a single motion. Minutes later, Milo, once again in the embrace of alcoholic bliss, was out for the count - his slumber fortunately undisturbed by dreams this time around.
Jo simply nodded as he went back to sleep. She sat in her bunk for awhile, not quite sure if she'd fall asleep or not. Soon enough, though, she would succumb to slumber herself. Her sleep just as dreamless as his.
