6y 9m 3w 1d BV
Vanima Dukkoti
Vanima awoke in her bed. She stretched out on the large bed then got up. Gingerly rubbing the sleep out of her amethyst eyes, she looked around her room and smiled. I did it. I left Sefsek. I left that horrible planet and I’m exploring the galaxy, she thought dreamily as she got up. Her ears twitched as they heard something in the depths of the ship but no soft snoring from the boys’ room. They must be awake. She took out her make up kit and slowly shuffled through the living quarters to the lavatories. She walked into the pristine bathroom. A sink with a cabinet by its side on the floor that Regalo’s various grooming combs and brushes. On the other side of the sink was a rack with a plain white towel and a cerulean one with Vanima’s initials embroidered on it on it. Vanima locked the door behind her and undressed. She got into the multispecies shower and stood underneath the warm water considering her first week with the odd pair of men that had taken her in. They are quite the odd couple. They both bonded over the fact that they happened to have been abducted together but I suppose it’s more than that. They’re practically inseparable. I don’t think I’ve seen one without the other close by, she mused as she washed herself. She turned off the shower and exited it. She wrapped herself in her towel but made sure to dry off her face and hair. She opened her make up bag and began to apply her usual amount of cosmetics. She walked back to her room with her towel wrapped around her. What should I wear today… I feel like a yellow dress would be a good one, she thought as she selected a simple yellow sundress. It was a conservative choice but she remembered what John had said about her species’ sense of modesty. I wouldn’t want to trigger some kind of primal male dominance dance in him after all, she giggled to herself as she dressed herself. She left her room and followed the sound that was reverberating through the ship. She recognized John’s playing but something didn’t seem quite right. The melody was coarse and uncertain, unlike the smooth mellifluous tunes that he usually produced. He must be practicing. She walked to the theater so see Regalo sitting at one of the seats enjoying a small snack as he watched John practice. The Gaoian saw Vanima and gestured for her to sit next to him. She sat beside him and watched John practice; the human’s deranged obsession with playing the same passage over and over.
“I can watch John practice for hours. His persistence amazes me. He’ll keep at it until he’s too tired to go on. I need to shake him to get his attention otherwise he’ll just ignore me,” Regalo whispered. Vanima looked at the human with confusion.
“Why would he just keep playing?”
Regalo cocked his head at the question.
“My theory is that this is how he copes with the strangeness. He’s a stranger in a strange place. His iolin and the music he plays are the last things he has of his home. Since our livelihood depends on him playing beautifully, it might have pushed him to dedicate his whole self to it. Although I can’t claim to know how that deathworld brain works. What I can tell you is that John is more intense that anyone else I’ve met. It’s like his emotions are deeper than we can hope to fathom. It might be why his music feels so emotive. He simply feels emotions on a deeper level than we do,” Regalo answered.
Vanima had whipped out her notebook and pen and written a rough summary of what the Gaoian had revealed about John. It could be related to his denser brain. It’s like someone tinkered around with a computer and added more and more complex bits as time went on. I can’t even begin to sort through it from the original scans I took. Could be huge parts of that brain are dedicated to emotions. She listened to the human make a mistake in the piece and restart from the beginning without hesitation. She watched him play and start over hundreds of times but somehow she never grew bored of it. She was bewitched by the human’s perseverance. This level of dexterity is unheard of, she thought as she watched John’s fingers dance on the instrument. We cannot hope to match such beauty and mastery with those pitiful replicas, not now not ever, she thought, remembering the imitation violins the Morus family had started producing for the Qinis elite. She watched those intense, deep set eyes read over some weird markings on paper. Regalo slowly rose from his seat. Vanima looked to the Gaoian then to her coms unit. Her eyes widened at the time that had passed. I’ve been sitting here for 7 hours! When! How! What was I doing!?
Regalo walked down to the stage to shake John’s shoulder, interrupting the human from his obsession. John looked like he was shaken from a different world to rejoin them. Gone was the deranged obsessive human and back was the friend they knew. He and Regalo talked, occasionally laughing (or chittering in Regalo’s case). Amazing, Regalo is completely fearless about John’s strength. He doesn’t worry about whether his friend would lash out unexpectedly. The trio went and had lunch. The human and his Gaoian companion had simply fallen into rhythm as John sat on the couch and watched a prerecorded documentary on deathworlds and Regalo cooked their meal. Vanima couldn’t shake off the feeling that she was out of place, that she was somehow intruding on an ancient ritual she had no part in. She took a seat next to John and watched the droll documentary with him, but the human offered no conversation as he simply watched. They ate lunch and the human and Gaoian once more chatted away and made a point to include her in conversation but she felt it forced. Well in fairness you’ve only known them for a week. They have known each other for months, faced Hunters together and who knows what else. It’s only natural for them to be closer to one another, the rational part of her brain explained but it was ignored by her emotions. When the meal was over the human retreated back to the theater to practice as Regalo washed the dishes. Vanima walked up and helped Regalo clean the dishes. The Gaoian nodded and smiled at the Qinis. For a moment Vanima’s heart swelled with happiness. After they were done, Regalo moved to sit on the couch and watch the same deathworld documentary John was watching. Vanima sat beside him and took out her small data pad to read more of the information from John’s preliminary scans. After a while Regalo leaned against the Qinis. Oh dear he’s leaned against me! What do I do? Do I hold him? Do I leave him like this? Am I bonding with him? What would John do? She recalled how the human would drape his arm around Regalo whenever he leaned on him in the hover cart. Vanima tentatively placed her arm around the Gaoian. Regalo chittered, causing her to sharply withdraw.
“Oh no no put it back it was nice. It’s just you reminded me of John when you did that. Although his arm feels like a lead pipe, yours feels like a pillow,” Regalo explained. Vanima slowly replaced her arm on the Gaoian and sat as still as possible.
Do not foul this up! You are bonding! This is what friends do! They bond! Look at you! You’re bonding with a friend! Regalo watched the entire 3-part documentary as Vanima learned about John’s gut flora. Soon the lights began to dim, signaling nighttime. Regalo slowly rose from underneath Vanima’s arm. Oh no! You fouled it up! Come back Regalo I promise to do better this time! Regalo yawned and told Vanima,
“I’ll go bring John to bed. Deathworlder or not he needs his sleep.” Vanima nodded rapturously at the statement.
Yes! You didn’t foul it up! Good Job! Regalo left her alone in the common room. She continued to pour over the preliminary scans, marking out areas for further investigation. That unidentified gland above his kidneys, the foreign object in his neck, immunology, and his neural pathways were flagged with an unknown material on them. She yawned and decided to call it a night. She sleepily sauntered over to the crew quarters. She stopped at the door of the boys’ room and peered inside, wanting to check up on the two men. She saw Regalo curled into a ball snoozing away. John was slightly wrapped around his furry companion, his arm entangled slightly in the Gaoian’s sleeping position. She smiled at them and returned to her room. When she tried to fall asleep she was oddly aware of how alone she was in the room.
6y 9m 3w 1d BV
John Orion Ash
John slowly woke up. He quietly groaned as he stretched on the bed. His arm brushed past Regalo. He looked to the sleeping Gaoian and smiled. He’s so freaking adorable when he’s asleep, he thought as he scratched the outside of the furry ball. This elicited a low purr from the slumbering Gaoian and John quietly giggled to himself. He rose from his bed and left his room to check on Vanima. He silently opened the door and saw the Qinis buried under her pillows and blankets. John nodded to himself. Alright all crew safe and happy and chill n’ shit.
He tiptoed down the hallway to the bathroom and entered it. He looked at his reflection in the mirror. The man that greeted him had a frizzy jet-black beard sprouting on his face and shaggy curly hair to match. Dude I look like a freaking Neanderthal. John tossed off his concert dress and left them in a messy pile in the corner of the bathroom. He got in the shower and accidentally chose Gaoian instead of Locayl in the shower options. John was promptly doused in white powder. Well fuck you too God, I didn’t want a nice day either. John tapped the Locayl option and washed the powder off himself. John mechanically cleaned himself as his mind slowly cleared itself. He turned off the shower and toweled himself off. He neatly folded the towel and replaced it on the rack out of habit. He picked up his clothes and tiptoed naked out of the bath. Do not come out of your room do not come out of your room. He mentally ordered Vanima as he edged closer to his room. He entered and sighed in relief. John had been skittish around the Gaoian at first but soon grew accustomed to his furry friend. Hell he’s naked most of the time on ship, so why can’t I be too! Had been the original argument used to defeat his modesty. It also helped that Regalo was a male but Vanima was not only a female but also from a race that regularly wore clothing. He got dressed in whatever he could get his hands on after neatly folding his concert clothes and stowing them away in the closet. He picked up his violin case and walked over to the concert hall in the ship.
He walked down the steps of the by the seats and climbed onto the stage. He set up a music stand for his practice he got from Unto Dawn. He opened his case and began preparing to play. He tightened his bow and began applying rosin to the hair. I’ll need to find a way to make more rosin because I know this will end up breaking eventually. God I hope I don’t run out before I can get more. John placed the bow back in the case and sat there before it. He closed his eyes and controlled his breathing.
“What are you doing?”
John looked behind him to find the Gaoian scratching his chin as he took his usual seat in the audience.
“You’re up early,” John teased and Regalo growled slightly.
“It’s hard to sleep when you have a deathworlder blunder into your room nude and dress itself,” Regalo retorted as he slouched on the chair. John snorted at the comment.
“I’m meditating,” he replied, answering Regalo’s first question.
Regalo paused.
“You’re what?”
“Meditating. It’s where you sit with good posture, breathe, and clear your mind of thoughts… I think.” Regalo’s ears perked up in confusion as the human resumed his meditation. Breath in… and out… in… out…. Clear your mind of useless thoughts… There is only you… and the music…. He repeated the mantra as he slowly phased out the entire world around him. He selected the piece he was practicing and began to practice. His fingers fumbled on a particularly difficult shift. “Wrong! Do it again!” He heard Madame Yuki, his violin teacher, scold him. God this piece is pointless I may as well give up. “Give up! No student of Madame Yuki is allowed to give up! You learn piece! Practice piece! Do not stop until fingers bleed!” His violin teacher would screech at him and so John started over from the beginning. He started over and over at every mistake, Madame Yuki’s ghostly presence haunting his practice. “This piece like mount Everest! You conquer this and everything else look small! You can do it John-kun!” His ethereal mentor cheered him on as John finally managed the complicated shift and carried on. Soon he hit the next obstacle and repeated the piece until he overcame that one too. John had no idea how much time had past as he simply kept playing the piece with maddening persistence. God you fucking piece of shit Caprice 24 I will fucking master you.
John felt a hand gently shake his shoulder and was snapped out of his reverie. He turned to see Regalo.
“Oh hey buddy time for lunch already?”
“Indeed. I swear if you learned how to operate this ship with the same persistence you practiced you’d be the finest engineer to ever live,” Regalo joked as John replaced the violin in the case. John chuckled at the comment and walked with Regalo to the mess hall, leaving the violin in the concert hall.
“Yeah, put you out of a job.”
Regalo chittered at John’s amicable retort.
“Oh please, you wouldn’t know what to do without me. I’m almost tempted to let you waste your money on frivolities.”
“Well joke’s on you because I’d do that anyway.” They had finally arrived in the mess hall and it was only then that John realised Vanima had been following them. John went and sat on the couch as Regalo began cooking. He scrolled through the list of documentaries he’d prerecorded on Sefsek and chose to learn more about deathworlds. He noticed Vanima sitting by him and his mind raced. Ok she’s sitting right there next to me. Do I say anything? Should I say hello? I mean we could watch the documentary together. God please let her initiate conversation. What would we talk about? Should I share some hobbies? No that’d just be weird. “Hello I like playing card games would you like to play one with me?” That just sounds too forced. Plus where would I get cards? I could make them. John’s mind toiled away at how to make a new deck of playing cards.
“Lunch is ready!”
Vanima and John rose from their seats. John paused the documentary and set the table with Vanima. He and Regalo chatted as they usually did during their meals. John tried to involve Vanima in the discussion but the Qinis seemed hesitant and unsure. Well I guess being shunned all your life doesn’t leave you with a lot of social skills. She can talk smooth and fancy alright but looks like she doesn’t know how to deal with having friends. Poor gal I hope she feels at home here soon enough. I’d hate to make her feel like the outsider. They soon finished their meal. John looked to Regalo and the Gaoian nodded at him. John rose from his seat and went back to the concert hall to practice. He reclaimed his violin and began playing once more. “You doing well. Keep doing it.” He could imagine Madam Yuki praise as he managed his first play through of the piece without error. John nodded and paused in his playing as his mind cycled through how he played. Hmm… it could use more vibrato. It’s still clunky at D and E so I’ll need to smooth that over. It needs more… zaz, more feeling. If anything those aliens love it when they can interpret their own emotions from the music. John had experimented with singing but Regalo always told him he preferred the tune and the melody rather than the actual lyrics. AC/DC and Green Day probably don’t really translate that well. He resumed playing, slowly refining his playing and adding a few personal touches to the piece. John didn’t need to focus as intensely as he had when he was trying to get his first play through right. His mind wandered off as his fingers slowly learned the pattern of the piece. He felt the warm glow of satisfaction at his accomplishment. He’d been practicing this piece since they’d left Unto Dawn and finally he managed it. John day dreamed of Regalo’s home as he refined the piece. I wonder what it’s like on Gorai? I mean he said it was a new colony, so there probably aren’t a lot of people there. Slowly a cozy hillside, untouched by cities, with a river going through was conjured up in John’s mind. Well he looks like a raccoon so maybe Gaoians used to live in burrows? Do raccoons live in burrows? Idyllic little communities sprouted up on the hills- or rather, in the hills. Small hobbit homes appeared in the hillside with paved roads. Giant raccoon children played in the river or whatever it was they did for fun. Giant raccoon moms would be sitting in sun chairs as they watched the little tykes splash about. The giant Papa raccoons would be doing their jobs. Even though John knew Gaoians didn’t rear their young in families he imagined Regalo sitting in an armchair in one of the hobbit homes with a giant raccoon toddler on his lap.
“Papa Regalo tell me the story of John Ash,” the little toddler would ask.
Regalo would do that chittering Gaoian laugh before recounting what would be his child’s favorite story.
“John Ash… He was quite the person. He’s big and strong, stronger than anything!”
“Even stronger than you papa!” The child would incredulously ask. Regalo would do that head bobble nod before replying.
“Yes little one even stronger than me. He was the finest iolin player the galaxy ever knew! People would clamor to go see him play. He was kinder than anyone, always assuming the best of people. He was also like a brother to me. I like to think that I was like a brother to him.” The toddler raccoon would be amazed as papa Regalo looked off into the distance wistfully. “I like to think he’s still out there somewhere, playing that iolin.”
John was interrupted from his daydream by none other than Regalo.
“What are you smiling about?” The Gaoian asked as he stood by his friend. John shook his head.
“Nah nothing important. Just letting my mind wander y’know.”
Regalo shook his head. Oh my God he’s picking up my human habit that is cute as hell. John packed up his violin and walked with Regalo to their room. It wasn’t until they left the concert hall did John notice just how tired he was. They entered their room and John gently lay on the bed. Regalo joined him and curled up into a ball right next to him. John wrapped an arm around the Gaoian and drifted off to sleep.
6y 9m 3w 1d BV
Regalo of Ash Clan
Regalo blearily woke up as he heard John’s dense body thud down the hallway. The Gaoian growled slightly as he unfurled from his position and got up from bed. He scratched his chin as he hopped off the stupidly large bed. He trudged to the bathroom. He could still feel the humidity when he entered the room. John must have showered already. He took off last night’s overalls and entered the shower with his many grooming brushes. He tapped for recently picked options and perked his ears up as he read the history. Why was there a Gaoian shower just before a Locayl? Regalo chittered heartily as the answer dawned on him. Ah well. That probably woke him up. Regalo tapped the Gaoian option and felt the soft thwump of the powder dropping on him. He meticulously brushed his fur, switching between different brushes to reach different areas. I wonder when John will start practicing another piece. He’s gotten quite far with this one since he started, he thought as he idly brushed his back. When most of the dust had been brushed off he shook himself, ridding himself of final bits of powder.
Regalo strolled through the ship to the concert hall. As he neared he slowly came to a stop as he realised John wasn’t playing. He quickly scampered off down the hallway. He was at the door panting slightly and looked to the stage. John was sitting on the stage calmly breathing. Regalo took his usual seat and kept observing the human’s strange behaviour. He watched for a good while before asking.
“What are you doing?” John seemed startled as he turned around to face him.
“You’re up early.”
Still doesn’t answer my question
“It’s hard to sleep when you have a deathworlder blunder into your room nude and dress itself,” he retorted as he settled himself in his seat. John made an odd exhalation from his nose Regalo hadn’t encountered before. What would that signify? Maybe it’s just another form of his laughing bark.
“I’m [untranslatable],” John answered. Regalo paused for a moment as he contemplated the English word.
“You’re what?”
“Meditating. It’s where you sit with good posture, breath, and clear your mind of thoughts… I think.” He hesitantly replied. Regalo pondered the concept as John resumed his ‘meditating’. So you just sit there with good posture, breath and clear your mind of thoughts. Does he do this before every practice session? Well he could have since I’ve never woken up this early. He shook himself from his thoughts as John rose up with his violin and began practicing. It could be the secret to how he plays. If he clears his mind of other things and sets himself wholly to one objective then no wonder he’s so good. If every human is like John then I fear the ones who dedicate themselves to fighting. He watched as John’s long slender fingers danced on the instrument. He saw the concert door open from the corner of his eyes and looked over. He saw Vanima and gestured for her to sit by him. It would be nice to have some company. Regalo observed the Qinis as she stared at John with analytical and bewildered eyes.
“I can watch John practice for hours. His persistence amazes me. He’ll keep at it until he’s too tired to go on. I need to shake him to get his attention otherwise he’ll just ignore me,” Regalo whispered to her in hopes of starting a conversation.
“Why would he just keep playing?” she asked, just as puzzled as the Gaoian had been when he first saw John’s dangerously obsessive passion for practicing. Regalo cocked his head as he thought of an answer. He had often asked himself this question and could only come up with one answer for it.
“My theory is that this is how he copes with the strangeness. He’s a stranger in a strange place,” he began. Not only that but he can’t even go home… “His iolin and the music he plays are the last things he has of his home. Since our livelihood depends on him playing beautifully, it might have pushed him to dedicate his whole self to it.” He’s just a lost cub in a galaxy that doesn’t care but he never lets that bring him down. If anything John strives to bring joy to the galaxy. He’s so adamant about that that I fear he’ll neglect to bring himself joy.
“Although I can’t claim to know how that deathworld brain works. What I can tell you is that John is more intense that anyone else I’ve met.” Regalo thought back to those smoldering brown eyes he’d seen at Unto Dawn and Sefsek. “It’s like his emotions are deeper than we can hope to fathom. It might be why his music feels so emotive. He simply feels emotions on a deeper level than we do,” he finished. He’s a being driven by emotions and purpose. I doubted he would have been happy simply living at Unto Dawn. He needs adversity. He needs a goal. At that the Gaoian’s thoughts turned to home. I wonder what I’ll do when I get to Gorai. When I start a new clan who will join me? What would our clan words be? We are of the Ash? Rise from ashes. Oh that was a good one. I just hope people will join my clan. Regalo sighed quietly and shook his head. I’ll figure out what I’ll do when I get there. He contented himself to simply watch John practice.
His coms vibrated as the alarm he had set was met. He rose from his seat and walked down the audience chamber and clambered onto the stage. He shook John as hard as he could but only managed to gently rock the human. John seemed to snap out of his focused mindset and look to Regalo.
“Oh hey buddy time for lunch already?”
“Indeed. I swear if you learned how to operate this ship with the same persistence you practiced you’d be the finest engineer to ever live,” Regalo joked as John replaced the violin in the case. John chuckled at the comment and walked with Regalo to the mess hall, leaving the violin in the concert hall.
“Yeah put you out of a job.”
Regalo chittered at John’s amicable retort. Like you would fire me.
“Oh please you wouldn’t know what to do without me. I’m almost tempted to let you waste your money on frivolities.”
“Well joke’s on you because I’d do that anyway.”
Regalo rolled his eyes at his friend’s antics.
They walked towards the common room and set about doing what they usually did. John watched documentaries in attempts to learn about the galaxy and Regalo cooked. Hmm… I’ll need to buy more ingredients for the sweet dough. I suppose this time it can be goro stew with a side of grilled lina beans. Regalo began preparing the meal and observed Vanima and John sitting side by side silently. They’ll get used to each other eventually.
The two began to set the table as he finished cooking. They sat together and ate their lunch. John and Regalo conversed as they usually did about the greater galaxy and tried to include Vanima in an attempt to set her at ease. She’s so used to dealing with people who pity her she doesn’t know how to react to people who care about her. Regalo thought as the usually eloquent Qinis mumbled and made comments half-heartedly.
When their meal ended John looked to Regalo and the Gaoian nodded. Yes go practice I will handle this. John left the table, leaving Regalo alone with Vanima. He simply started doing the dishes and was pleasantly surprised when Vanima helped him. He smiled at her and felt a swell of pride as Vanima smiled to herself. When they were done Regalo used his coms to restart the documentary John had been watching and sat on the couch. Vanima joined him but the same gap that existed between her and John showed itself now. He watched the documentary as he contemplated how to bridge the gap. What do John and I do? Oh well that’s easy. He leaned against the Qinis and snuggled slightly to adjust his position. He could almost feel her exhilaration as she very faintly shook. He felt her soft light arm wrap around his shoulders and he chittered. He felt the arm sharply retreat and berated himself for the chitter.
“Oh no no put it back it was nice. It’s just you reminded me of John when you did that. Although his arm feels like a lead pipe, yours feels like a pillow,” he assured her. A nice soft pillow. John I love you dearly but I prefer this over that tree branch you call an arm any day. Regalo contented himself to watching the documentary as Vanima read from her data pad. He watched the entire three-part documentary before his coms vibrated again. He nestled out of Vanima’s arm. He saw the panic and anguish on her face and was quick to reassure her it wasn’t her fault.
“I’ll go bring John to bed. Deathworlder or not he needs his sleep.”
When he arrived at the concert hall he paused for a moment as he listened to John refine the piece. Ah he finally got it, he thought as he approached the stage. He saw John smiling dreamily as he got to the stage and climbed up.
“What are you smiling about?” The Gaoian asked as he stood by his friend. John shook his head.
“Nah nothing important. Just letting my mind wander y’know.”
One of these days I’ll find out just what you daydream about, Regalo thought as he shook his head the same way John would. Regalo caught himself at the end of the gesture. Oh dear I’m turning into a human! He mentally chittered as they walked back to their room. When they arrived John flopped down on the bed. Regalo joined him and curled up right next to him. He felt John’s heavy arm encircle him. Regalo soon drifted off to sleep.