ON: YSS Miharu
Hinoto tentatively caught Yukari's hand in her own. "I'm sorry."
Yukari looked up and smiled a little. "It is not your fault, Hinoto-san. We were too loud, and the Taii is under much pressure. I should have continued working."
"It'll be a quick bath and then you'll be back to help her." Hinoto smiled. "I'll wash you; we will be done quickly."
"Ah, iiya, it is all right -- I do not need to wash. We can give the Taii time to relax alone. Perhaps we should help the others?" Yukari did not want to bathe while others worked.
"That won't be possible. I am under direct order to escort you to the public baths and then to attend to you." Hinoto had the grace to look contrite. "I would think it would cause less of a fuss if you would cooperate. Otherwise, it would be like disobeying orders, and that would be mutiny of a sort, and the Star Army regulations clearly state that mutiny and desertion are to be harshly dealt with - even on pain of death!"
Obviously, the barely-one-day-old Hinoto was getting a little carried away.
Yukari managed a pained smile. "I see," she said. "Let us go then." Unsure of whether she should walk first or not, Yukari took a hesitant step forward.
Hinoto and Yukari made their way up to the main deck. It was a bit awkward. "Shouldn't you be holding both hands up where I can see them? Should I guide you at gunpoint?" The sprite asked hesitantly.
"Ah, no," Yukari said, coming to the main corridor. "Escort sometimes means following a person to a destination without weapons. But ... my hands are empty." Yukari showed them to prove her point.
As Yukari made her way to the wardroom, she reminded herself that she had to take a right at the end. She did, Hinoto following close behind, a neutral-enough look on her face as the pair crossed into the changing room. Yukari blinked once inside -- she had not expected tatami mats ...
As soon as both were through the door, Hinoto quickly skipped around and took it upon herself to take down the zipper of Yukari's uniform and start to peel the clothes off her. "Ah, you're a neko too," she noted as she got a good look at Yukari's backbone; there wasn't any obvious darker streaking, but the skin was still slightly off-color there.
"Ahhh! Yes, I am!" Yukari was a little surprised as her zipper was undone. She clutched at her front. "I can do the rest, Hinoto-san! ... "
Hinoto undid the fastening on the bra. "But the Taii ordered me to assist you..."
Yukari managed a frantic smile on her face. "The Taii did not give you specific instructions on how to help me, though! Ah, perhaps, you could, anou ... prepare the wash water?"
Hinoto hugged herself against Yukari, pressing herself enough in the Chui's back for the other to feel the smooth surface of her panel against her skin as the sprite's hands rested on Yukari's belly. "You don't want me to take care of you?"
"Ah ... ah ... " Yukari cheeks were red. Her shame was wearing away into uncertainty. "It is alright, Hinoto-san ... I thank you for the offer."
Hinoto released her hold of Yukari and continued undressing her with the sort of care one afforded to a princess. Away went the gunbelt, the hidden pistol and the boots.
Yukari did not watch Hinoto, too shy to attempt it. She slowly removed her belt first, but then the rest came off quickly. The skin of her feet reacted immediately to the rough tatami as she put her things in a small locker. She smiled a little; it had been too long since she had felt anything "real."
Hinoto didn't seem to be intently looking at Yukari once she was in the nude. Instead, she deposited the folded cloth pile inside a locker and then went for the stack of towels and brought one back for Yukari to wear. "Please go on ahead. I will join you shortly."
"Ah, hai." Yukari maintained a proper level of sight as she took a towel and wrapped it around herself. She then went into the public bath.
Before her ... her breath escaped her. The sun, clear and blazing orange and yellow amid scattered clouds. It was bright, even behind the mist of the bath. Just along the edges, grainy blackness, a touch of it -- sand. It was the beach of Ash Bay. She was sure of it; no other planet she had studied had such sand. The mural was huge, spanning the entire wall, colors warm and inviting. They begged her to bask in a glow that was somewhat there, lights shining off the wall to give it a look. She could only stare at it, mouth agape.
It was home. For the briefest of moments she forgot about the cold, hard tile surrounding her and simply thought of home. She did not notice the tear, running down her right cheek.
PAUSE
