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RP: YSS Kaiyō Post Mission Thirteen: Cats in the Cradle

Jack Pine

Well-Known Member
Kaiyo/ galley/ noon....

Mark sat by himself at the usual table he sat at for lunch, having one hand on his temple, the other holding chopsticks picking at his bowl of udon. He had a huge migraine, most likely do to recent developments, and it didn't help his mood. His expression was downcast as he thought.

"Some soldier I am.......," he whispered to himself.

Shasse noticed the man sitting alone in the wardroom as she passed by heading for the VR room to mess with her little game she'd recently let Alastair play. The blue neko paused for a moment and watched him, he didn't seem too happy and that was something she couldn't ignore, besides he might give her some food.

"Heya there Mark, what's happening over here?" She asked plopping into a seat beside him and putting one elbow on the table to rest her head in while staring at his food and him.

"Think about how to fix a mess I got myself into," He said looking over to her idly then noticing her focus before sliding his still hot bowl over, "You can have this, I don't feel like eating."

"What sort of mess? Do you need a bath or something?" Shasse said as though it was the most obvious solution in the world as she retrieved the bowl with hungry eyes and began to nibble on the contents contendidly. "I'm sure someone could wash your back for you if that's where the mess is, ask Alastair he'd probably do it for you."

"What, no. Not that kind of mess....shasse...I'm very I'll. And it's not something I can take a med for and feel better. It's complicated," Mark clarified shaking his head at the bath notion. How could this neko seem so innocent, and thought of Alistair washing his back sent a chill down his back. Knowing his habits, Mark would probably be electrocuted to death ahead of time as one of Alistair's collars fell in.

"Why not just get a new body? We can call do that right, so then you can make a new body which is healthy, simple fix." Shasse continued as she nibbled happily on the food, seeming to barely make a dent in the leftovers with her tiny portion size. "You sure you don't want any of this? It's really yummy!"

"I'm not hungry. That solution would work if the problem was with my body. No, the illness is in my mind, meaning if I St. It just transfers over," Mark couldn't fault her for trying. To be honest he was a little surprised she was still sitting with him. "My clock is running out and I need solutions desperately."

"Y'ever thought of just dying then? If it can't be fixed then it seems like the only real way to get rid of it, either that or you live on unhappy like you are now." Shasse said calmly, as though accepting death was a perfectly normal thing to do. Finishing her spoonful the crimson eyed neko gazed up at the man beside her with childlike innocence, despite her comment. "It was something I got told when I first woke up, I didn't really understand it until recently."

"Then what is it to live if we just lay down and die, seems like quite a waste if you ask me. Life is boundless opportunities and a time well valued, Dont you have dreams?", Mark asked utterly perplexed at her notions.

"Well sure, there's things I'd like to do, things I want to know. But I was born to fight and nothing more and my wishes and hopes seem as close as an endless tunnel." The neko didn't seem sad or unhappy despite her sombre words, still eating as energetically as always. "It's just the way life turned out for me, one long contract where they point and I shoot."

"Sounds like my life in a nutshell, 7 years of war, so much killing. You know, I had a family once, a wife, children. It's strange how one day everything can change in a moment," Mark said, her words making him think.

"Oh yeah? What were they like? What was a family like? I only have Miles as my bestest friend but he keeps telling me that one day we will have to get our own families, where do I find one?" Shasse asked, looking up from her snack with hopeful eyes, slowly moving another bite towards her lips without breaking eye contact.

"Well there was Amit my first child who I adopted after finding in war zone, then there was Adria and adilis two butterfly hybrids. Their previous parents used them as trophy children and like slave, so I took them after giving the parents what for. Then there was my daughter Neera, she's a wolf anthro, and finally there are the Plebian twins I had with my wife Isabelle, she's a Caelisolan. The twins were named Jack and Rose. You start a family with someone you love, and eventually the family will grow as you have children."

"It's a wonderful thing, and they have been a joy in my life. But it seems ST likes to play the cruel joke. When I first joined the kaiyo as a civilian with no memory, my people thought me dead. So while I developed as a new person without a past to remember, a backup picked up my life. But now I have my daughter chlorate, and my girlfriend Nerai, hopefully some day me and her can have children of our own. Having a best friend is good too, and sometimes they are that love in your life you never knew."

"I had a friend I grew up with named Zeke, he was like a brother to me. I'm sorry, here I am prattling on," Mark told her a few tears as he refelt the join he had once felt, but wiped his face afterwards.

"That kinda sounds like an animal reserve, butterflys and wolves and birds and now a snake. I don't really get the whole love thing either, it just seems like a lot of effort when I can just ask people for food." Shasse said thoughtfully, always thinking of food and in turn derailing the conversation as usual. The neko noticed the man was crying and her ears and tail drooped a little as she shuffled closer. "What's wrong? Are you in pain, do you need blood like me?"

"No, not a physical pain. Love is when you really like someone, when you share your feelings with them, and trust that person fully. If you love someone, you want to be with them all the time. Being away from someone you love, in a way hurts, but it's and emotional pain. I miss my family even though I no longer can be, which hurts emotionally. Which is why I spend as much time with my family I have now as much as possible. To you kinda see what I mean Shasse," Mark tried to explain, the idea that someone could not know love baffled him.

"I really like Miles, and Miko, and Alastair and Wyatt and Sacre and the whole crew. Is that what it is?" The neko asked, having finished her snack she rocked around on her stool beside Mark giggling slightly. "I'm best friends with everyone I can be!" She still didn't really get what Mark was talking about but he sounded kinda serious so she thought it must be important to him. "Hey can we go somewhere warmer, it's kinda cold here and my hair is getting stiff."

"Sure. And actually that is a form of love. You love the crew. You see them as a kind of family right?," Mark asked with a warm smile as they got up. Despite being made for war, she somehow still had a wealth of innocence.

"A kind of family... I guess so?" The neko hummed, eager to find somewhere she could curl up and bask in warmth, where to go though. "Hey are you any good at washing hair?" She asked, looking back at Mark, her head cocked to the side as her ears twitch before flopping down, comfortable for now. "I haven't had anyone to help me wash all of it for a while and I really want to, but it takes me ages by myself."

"I did for my wife, or whenever the kids got something stuck in their hair," he replied finding the request odd.

Shasse's eyes sparkled at him, "Could you wash mine?"

"Um sure."

The little neko rushed to grab his hand, yanking him towards the bath. "Then lets go! The water will be so warm and nice right now." The blue neko spoke excitedly as she tugged Mark down the halls towards her goal, and the idea of finally having someone else to help her was too good to pass up since her other friends were always busy.

Mark could do nothing but keep up, or get dragged. Though he had a mental freak out as he realized where they were headed.

Shasse hummed to herself as she dragged the poor man along to the bath. "This is gonna be great fun! And I'll make it up to you I promise, it would be rude if I didn't repay you for helping me out right?" She asked as the strolled into the empty onsen and she let go of his hand to change down.

Mark averted his eyes and turned around to do the same. He was still unused to the practice of coed shared bath. Bathing with the opposite gender at the same made him nervous. His body was covered in various scars, a large tattoo of a crimson sword pointed down with a pair great black wings dominated his back. His chitin covered right arm with its clawed digits were fully bare as well as his left eye, the schelera pitch black with a crimson reptilian slit style pupil.

Shasse tossed her uniform to the side, not really caring if it got crumpled and leapt straight into the pool, using her floating ability to help her along. The little neko made a cute little sigh as she sunk slowly below the water untill just her crimson eyes and small nose sat above the water, slowly swimming around. "The water is really warm you should come in!" She said breathily, her eyes looking over is interesting features. "Hey how did you get that arm? I've seen a couple cybernetics but that one is different."

"Um....Its actually not cybernetic. Its organic, flesh and bone, though I guess more bone," Mark said as he eased down into the water covering himself, and using the conversation as a distraction.

"Woah, that's so cool! Can I feel it?" She asked shyly, not wanting to make anything too uncomfortable for him while staring at his arm intently. "It looks so weird hahah!"

"Eh sure. I got from being a demon for a while, same as the eye," he said. Well this took an odd turn.

"Woah, is that when we went to that other weird universe? I don't really understand it that well but I got cursed by a, err, vapire? I think it was." Shasse said, struggling to pronounce the word as she looked at the arm up close and ran a hand over its surface. "Wow it feels so weird!."

"Its not human for sure, and is just another symptom of my current problems. Just be careful of the claw, I don't want you to accidentally cut yourself on it," Mark said warning her of hazardous limb.

"Oh ok!" The bouncy neko exclaimed hopping around to sit down infront of Mark facing him, with a little effort she brought the whole mountain of hair around to the front between them and began to half wash half brush it. As she got into her rythm she began to hum a little tune and sway her head from side to side as she went, focusing intently on her work.

Mark used the not sharp hand to help, working in the soap, his fingers making sure the cleaning substance was actually reaching the scalp. He made sure to work where she wasn't, helping while staying out of her way.

Although it was a simple interaction the little neko purred a little and closed her eyes as he rubbed her head, she still didn't fully know why she did it but had seen animals do it and thought it seemed right. "Do you want me to wash your back for you? It must be hard with that arm." She said looking up into his eyes, hers shining brightly.

"Why don't we get you clean first then you can worry about me," he said with a chuckle as he continued scrubbing.

"Mmmm, ok then it does feel nice too..." Shasse purred again, she really wanted to try and curl up on Marks lap so he could just pat her but she also really REALLY wanted to clean all her ice white hair. She continued straightening and scrubbing through her hair while Mark worked on her head and ears area. "But that's still a yes right?"

Mark gave a warm smile, "Yes it is. Just want to make sure you're taken care of first. I prefer to help others before myself." He said as he was getting the last of her hair.

"Aww you're so kind, I think that should just about do it." Shasse spoke happily before submerging herself in the water, coming up a moment later with her haid covering her whole body as she floated around on the waters surface.

"Anything else need washing, or help with?", Mark asked kindly.

"Could you do my front while I just float around? I kinda like being lazy and you're really good." Shasse asked innocently, moving her arms though the water slowly and going in circles.

Nervousness crept in again, "front what?"

"The front of my body? Duh, I thought you were smart Mark what's going on?" Shasse inquired moving towards him rising out of the water slightly with a concerned look on her face.

"Just double checking.", he said nervously before getting started, trying not to think about it.

Near I'm sorry, spare my soul your wrath.

Shasse hummed happily and moved on to her legs and arms, washing happily as Mark slowly washed her front, she didn't really know why he was hesitating so much but maybe it was to do with the family thing? "Do want me to wash you after Mark? You haven't even done your self yet and I feel bad to keep asking you to help me but... I just really liked having someone else to bath with."

"Uh, sure."

I'm a dead man.

"Do, do you not want me to?" Shasse asked slightly defeated as her eyes drooped a little. "Well that's ok, I can just do something else for you!" She perked up again and leapt into the air, and out of the water.

He looked utterly miffed on what she could offer him, "Like what."

Second trip to Hell avoided.

"Oh uh, I'm not really sure... Miko and Alastair said that I'm fun to cuddle with and adorable to pat? Something like that so I guess there's that. Or I could hug you and keep you warm which is something else they said I am good at." Shasse said throughtfully, floating around in the air on her front, a thoughtful expression on her face as she tried to think of what she could offer.

Oh well that was innocent enough, "Oh I used to do thatwith kind of thing with my daughters. We enjoyed just spending time together."

"Oh really? So could I pay you back like that then?" The neko spoke excitedly as she floated over and was face to face with Mark, eyes sparkling with anticipation. "Cause I can totally do that, I think, I'm not really sure what I need to do for that actually."

"Well it's no different then normal cuddles." Mark said hoping to clarify, "But where is it you want to snuggle?"

"Dunno, most of the other times I was half asleep or fully asleep apparently, I do remember Miko letting me sleep on his lap in the wardroom once, and Alastair let me sleep in his bed too." Shasse said thoughtfully, as she slowly floated down into the water almost right on top of Mark without realising.

"Oh....That sounds nice. Miko always seemed like a kind man, and alastair...in sharing his bed," He said as a few thoughts passed through his mind on that.

I swear to the goddess if he tried anything, I will show him how well my claw works at neutering. Use one of those shock collars on him afterwards.

"Well cuddling is usually where you just each other close. Though the bath might not be the best place, spending too long will make you pruney.", he chuckled.

Shasse promptly plopped down in his lap as he finished and smiled up at him. "Well then, you are the expert on this stuff so lead the way!"

"How about we towel off and get dressed, then head to the observation deck. A nice relaxing view of the stars is a perfect place to cuddle.", Mark suggested having spent most of his time their just watch the cosmos pass by in thought, or with a good novel on his Geist.

"Towels take too long I don't wanna." Shasse said somewhat defiently and crossing her arms glaring at the towels outside the bath. "It's too hard to figure out how to use it and I just get tangled up and angry, then I get hungry and I go eat in the kitchen while I dry off." The neko said, still glaring at the towels, ears flattened along with her tail.

"Dont worry I'll do it for you. I'll take care of you shas. Walking around with wet hair isn't fun," Mark said chuckling slightly at her behaviour.

"No, it's not fun at all, it drags on the floor and it gets dirty all over again. So I have to float and then I bump my head or something else goes wrong, that's why I don't like bathing alone anymore." Shasse spoke, quickly and without pauses making her sound like a child complaining about the snow being cold.

"Alright, hop out and I'll towel you off.", Mark said patting her on the head, man she reminded him of Adria.

Without a word Shasse zoomed out of the bath and plopped herself down on a small stool. She didn't say anything and just faced him, her hair shimmering like snow as the water ran down it and pooled below her.

Mark climbed out the claw clicking on the tile as he pulled himself up. He walked over and grabbed a towel. He keeled behind Shasse and began towelling her down starting with her hair, clearly experienced from helping his younger children. "You know I used to have white hair and red eyes like you, my daughter Neera does too, though she has much more hair.", Mark spoke making idle conversation as he dried her off.

The little neko shivered a little as her hair was dried off, making soft purring sounds showing she was enjoying herself. "Wow you used to be like me? What happened?"

"I decided I wanted to look how my mother would have of wanted. How I should have looked the day I was born. The captain paid for the gene corrections and a couple extra things. Almost done.", Mark said now drying off what little was left to dry.

Shasse sighed happily at being towelled off and shook her head a little, she didn't know too much about the whole gene therapy stuff but assumed it was how he changed colours. "Thanks so much for helping me! It would have taken ages by myself nyeheh." The blue neko giggled as she stood up and twirled around, moving to go and dress herself.

Mark grabbed a fresh towel and quickly dried himself off before also getting dressed, end the process as he put the eyepatch on. He turned to Shasse, "Ready to go?"

Shasse eyed him quizzically, "Why did you put an eyepatch on? You can see out of it right?" She asked, going straight to the point as usual.

"Not everyone is comfortable seeing it, or my arm, It tends scare them. I cover both out of consideration for them.", He replied after a brief pause as if confused.

"But they're cool! Why would people not like them? That's like if I didn't like you because you aren't the same as me I don't get it." Shasse said slightly confused as to the situation he was describing, despite being naive she often just pointed out the obvious flaws in things with no idea why people ignored them.

"Not everyone thinks they are sadly. These changes are the price I paid for trying to fight an evil alone. I was turned into a demon, and when we returned home...instead of being turned back I was left with these.", Mark explained.

"Well, that's kinda dumb then." Shasse said plainly before hopping up and walking towards the door before looking back at Mark with her innocent smile. "Let's go!"

Mark followed after as they headed to the observation deck, the infinite stars spread across the cosmos before them through the window. It was a rather welcoming sight, and one that brought Mark comfort.

The little neko sprung onto a couch and promptly stretched out groaning before relaxing into a curled position. "Do you know how many stars there is out there?" She asked, looking up at Mark as he followed her into the room.

"That is a number that can never actually be counted. The stars are infinite. Some die, but vast more are made as the universe continues to expand. There will always be places to explore, and new forms of life to spring up from them.", Mark said taking a seat next to her.

"Woah that's a lot of stars." Shasse exclaimed, lying on her back now with her legs in the air and head hanging off the front. "These chairs are pretty comfy."

"Aye they are. The view is amazing, it's quiet, and few visit here. It's one of the few places I truly can relax, and be at piece. I tend to read here a lot. Come to think of it, the next time me and Nerai have time, I should bring her here.", Mark mused aloud after commenting on the space itself and why he enjoyed it.

"You sound kinda like you're in a romance movie, you're funny." Shasse commented swinging her legs in the air for a while longer. "I'm kinda tired and I don't really want to go back to my room so I'm gonna sleep here." She followed on with, survaying the deck and deciding the couch would suffice.

"Hm, romance is funny thing. If you love someone, you tend to act a little weird, or corny.", he said with a chuckle from his place on the couch, "This is kinda a odd place to sleep, but it's peaceful enough."

"Peaceful or not, I'm too lazy to walk back to my room so i'm just gonna sleep here." Shasse said as she was already getting undressed again.

Mark stiffened, "why are you taking your clothes off?"

"To sleep? Duh, and I always got told I was the naive one, whatever that means." The neko said throwing the clothing in a bundle and curling up on the couch, her hair almost covering her small body.

"Most people don't sleep nude."

"Sure they do, my whole training group slept in big shared bed pits like this and it was warm and cozy. Clothing gets in the way and gets all messy from being shuffled around when you toss in the night." Shasse explained as though she was explaining why there is a difference between garbage and recycling.

"That was there, this is here. None of the others aboard do that.........never mind doesn't matter. I can leave if you want?", Mark asked.

"Are you sure none of them do it? I haven't slept with all of them so I don't know." Shasse replied softly, she felt like she'd done something wrong when Mark stated plainly that they were two different places. "You can stay if you wan't, I'm just gonna go to sleep I think."

Mark ignored how that was phrased, "Do I need to get off the couch then so you can lay down then? It's just not a shared preference of how to sleep is all."

"You can do what you like, I'll just curl up here." Shasse said, a little sad she hadn't been able to give him anything in return for helping her, maybe tomorrow.

"I guess I'll sit right here and watch the stars as you sleep.", He said.

"Night Mark." The neko said, sitting up to give him a quick hug, she had promised him after all and she'd feel bad if she didn't do something at least. "Sorry I couldn't help you with anything."

"You already have, more then you know.", Mark whispered after the little neko dosed off.
 
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