Coauthored by Acewing13, Ikate Keda Studios, TheCountryWarrior
???? A.D., After interrogation Edith Dussault
Aboard Daheim One
Joan stood outside Beatrix's room, leaning against the wall, trying to look like she was just waiting to not draw any real attention. Her heart was nearing pretty fast. She sent Bee that text message, thinking she was going to take the girl up on her offer, but she grew ever more concerned. Was it a good idea? Was she making the right choice? She didn't know. She saw Bee round the corner and stood up with a weak smile, but it faded a bit as she saw Juan follow behind her. "Oh… ‘ey Bee, Juan, ah see ya two are tagevah," she said, hugging herself a little. " ‘ow're you guys doing?"
“Doing great,” Beatrix said with a smile. “We were actually talking about our...team dynamic when you sent that message, so I thought we could talk a little about what issues you guys actually have in common.”
Juan looked incredibly uncomfortable, his mouth drying. “Actually I thought we would just chat or something, I wasn’t expecting… you to be a shrink. I shouldn’t have come.”
Joan shared the same look as Juan, frowning a little. “Ah… So you’ve been talkin…” She said, looking at Juan, then back at Beatrix.
“I wouldn’t be playing a shrink if you guys didn’t have more messed up feelings than a pair of high schoolers,” Bee retorted. “You’re both worried about how having a relationship would affect how effective we are in missions, right?”
Joan’s cheeks went red as Beatrix mentioned them both being concerned about having a relationship. She gave Beatrix a look, then looked at Juan. “Ya know what, she’s comple’ely right,” She said, letting out a stiff sigh. “Even if we’re all ovah reac’ing and misundahstanding each ovah comple’ely, is be’ah we talks abou’ it so wes at leas’ know where we all stand, den ‘aving it always be on our minds. We ‘ave an impor’ant mission soon, we needs ta be on da ball,” She said, not averting her gaze. “Ah’m willin ta talk if’n you are.”
Juan sighed, and nodded, licking his lips as they had dried from anxiety, though he returned her gaze. “I agree entirely. Though, perhaps it would be better to do it inside for some privacy?”
“Right this way, lady and gentleman,” Bee said, opening the door to her room and waving them inside. Once they were both in the room, she said, “Now, I’m gonna play some more video games. You don’t leave until you sort this out, one way or another,” and closed the door, leaving the pair alone.
“Bee, ya cu-” Joan started, turning around just as the door shut on them. “Ah swear ta god!” She growled, more irritated at the underhanded tactic than anything. She stopped herself, taking a few deep breaths to try and calm herself down. Then she looked at Juan. “You wanna si’ on da scratcha?” She asked, pointing at the bed, “Or does ya want dere ta be some space be’ween us? Ah kin sit in da chair if’n ya wants,” She said, her face still a little red, her eyes lost in intense thought.
Juan had sighed in intense frustration as the door closed. He had hoped to God that wouldn’t happen, dismissing it as just a paranoid thought, and now it had happened. He looked to Joan, and nodded nervously, his own ears a shade darker. “Uh, yes. One of those. Uh.” He cleared his throat. “Yes, I can use the chair, so we can look at each other or something. Or we can sit on the bed and not look at each other. I am not being very helpful am I?”
Joan sighed and shook her head. “Not par’icularly, but ah get it,” She said, walking and sitting on the bed, one knee up so she was still able to look at Juan if he sat down. “Come on, Ah kin face ya on da bed…” She said, not looking away from him.
Juan scratched his neck, and kept awkwardly staring at her. “Yes, very well.” He walks over and sits on the bed, cross legged and hunched over. He starts with a bit of a sigh. “So. How was your day?”
"Bee in’erroga’ed me shor’ly aftah ah left yer room," Joan said, looking around the room. " ‘ence why we’re ‘ere. Den Ulrike wan’ed ta talk wif me bout da in’erroga’ion yesterday, and den immedia’ely in’erroga’ed me about you," she said, looking at Juan with a frown, reaching out and gently suggesting he look up with a hand. "Stop lookin so sad. Ah'm really not dat bad at dis. Ya look like you fink dis is all going to go ‘orribly.”
Juan looks at her and sighs again, smiling a little. “It’s not you I’m worried about. Both of them wanted an explanation? I never worried about that, all I was worried about was you waking up sober and freaking out. I suppose our lives aren’t that private here.”
“Un’il…” Joan said, her head weaving back in forth a little. “Da obvious, i 'ave 'o admi' probably da nices' mawnin i’ve 'ad in way 'oo long,” She said simply. “I was mawe wawried dat i 'ad jus' 'urned in'ah a whawe las' nigh' an' tha ya would lose respec' faw me. Las' ah checked, people don’' like bein lead by promiscuous girls from my experience. Bee wan'ed 'o knah cause ah assume she’s a glu'on faw dis kind o malarkey,” She complained, crossing her arms.
“Ulrike wan'ed ta knah cause we wawk faw 'er in she wan's ta make sure we aren' goin ta ruin anyfing. She didn’' even knah i slep' in yer room las' nigh' un'il ah s’upidly opened mah mouf, so apparen'ly people 'ad dis impression befawe las' nigh'.” She explained. “So… i 'aven’' qui'e figured ou' ma fough's on dis ye', so ah would like ta 'ear yours. Don’ wawry, Ah’m a big girl. Ah kin 'andle a stiff rejec'ion if das yer plan.”
Juan laughed nervously, and shook his head a bit. “No, no. I don’t have a plan at all. I guess, first, I never thought you were a whore. You asked me about it that night, and I assume you don’t remember. Long story short, you’re not a whore, or a slut, or any of those words I never have much chance to use these days. You just needed someone nearby for a bit. As a moral person, I can’t begrudge you that.” He smiled a small smile, and started waving his hands around as he talked. “Because honestly, my thoughts are immensely jumbled, despite thinking about it for hours. I think to start, I wish you didn’t have to be drunk to say these things. I know it’s hard, but you can’t deprive yourself of these basic needs. Just a fuckin snuggle. But I get it. Next, I think you needed it as much as I did, nothing to be ashamed of. I…” He searched for the right words, his next thoughts, but nothing came. “I don’t know, this day has been weird.”
Joan was beet red once Juan had finished talking, and she took a deep breath. “Okay, bru'al 'onesty 'ime,” She said, nodding her head. “Juan, if there were like… Three or four things different about the situation between me and you right now, at this very second, I’d be all over you,” She said, taking another deep breath, and nodding. “I’m gonna le' ya 'ave a momen' wif da' befawe ah con'inue…” She squeaked, lowering her head.
Juan looked taken aback, but his smile persisted. “Uh… okay. I guess if we’re playing the honesty game, if it weren’t for that handful of things I would be fine with that. I am flattered though.”
Joan nodded stiffly. “Righ', da' did no' make da res' ov wha' ah 'ave ta say easiah, bu' oh well,” She said, looking at him again. “Da problem dat is mos' ac'ive in me loaf, immedia'ely, is da quesshun ov if ma a''rac'ion to ya is because ah just… like… god… Ah need ta ge' laid a'ight?” She finally admitted. “like, ah'm dat phrase in da flesh. Ah'm no' a prude, ah was nevah raised ta 'ate sex, in ah really wan's it,” She said, now frowning. “Which is why ah’m no' jumpin ya. I don’' knah if'n i wan's you, aw i jus' wan' yer gobstoppah,” She explained, rubbing her face for a moment. “Which nah da ah say i', sounds really weird, bu' wha'ever. Tha' fear is just… really strong you know? bein bladdered probably jus' made me ignawe i'.”
Juan gave a nervous chuckle, and looked back down at his lap. “That’s understandable. The drink has a habit of removing inhibitions, that’s what I assumed happened. My dick is flattered, but I’m glad you restrained yourself. Well glad and confused, but only out of concern. There’s a possible fix for that, but you probably have better things to do.”
“ 'ell me,” Joan said. “ 'ell me in ah’ll pu' i' on da lis' ov considera'ions.”
Juan looked back up at her, and shrugged. “We could actually talk like people for a bit. Like this! Then maybe we can decipher if there’s anything deeper than just us both being highly attractive people. Just like people do all the time, civilians and military alike. I’m not suggesting a date per se, just a time to talk.”
Joan let out a sigh of relief. “Faw a second dere i fough' ya were gonna sugges' we jus' 'ave a shag,” She said, starting to laugh. “Righ', bu' da' sounds like a less po'en'ially destruc'ive rou'e. Doesn’ solve de ovah problems dough. So, ah guess ah’ll splain dose,” She said, straightening up a little.
“Dere's no chain ov command 'ere,” Joan started, looking at Juan again. “Bu' ah’m s'ill kinda da sho' callah on mission. You an' Bea'rix rely on meh ta make da righ' decision, because dose decisions could ge' eivah ov ya killed. If… if we do, star' a rela'ionship, It migh' affec' dat. If'n we star' a rela'ionship, in it goes squiggly down da line, it migh' affec' dat. Ah can’ leh' my feelings pu' people in danger. Tha's par'ly wha' makes dis so 'ard, ac'ually," She said, looking uncomfortable.
???? A.D., After interrogation Edith Dussault
Aboard Daheim One
Joan stood outside Beatrix's room, leaning against the wall, trying to look like she was just waiting to not draw any real attention. Her heart was nearing pretty fast. She sent Bee that text message, thinking she was going to take the girl up on her offer, but she grew ever more concerned. Was it a good idea? Was she making the right choice? She didn't know. She saw Bee round the corner and stood up with a weak smile, but it faded a bit as she saw Juan follow behind her. "Oh… ‘ey Bee, Juan, ah see ya two are tagevah," she said, hugging herself a little. " ‘ow're you guys doing?"
“Doing great,” Beatrix said with a smile. “We were actually talking about our...team dynamic when you sent that message, so I thought we could talk a little about what issues you guys actually have in common.”
Juan looked incredibly uncomfortable, his mouth drying. “Actually I thought we would just chat or something, I wasn’t expecting… you to be a shrink. I shouldn’t have come.”
Joan shared the same look as Juan, frowning a little. “Ah… So you’ve been talkin…” She said, looking at Juan, then back at Beatrix.
“I wouldn’t be playing a shrink if you guys didn’t have more messed up feelings than a pair of high schoolers,” Bee retorted. “You’re both worried about how having a relationship would affect how effective we are in missions, right?”
Joan’s cheeks went red as Beatrix mentioned them both being concerned about having a relationship. She gave Beatrix a look, then looked at Juan. “Ya know what, she’s comple’ely right,” She said, letting out a stiff sigh. “Even if we’re all ovah reac’ing and misundahstanding each ovah comple’ely, is be’ah we talks abou’ it so wes at leas’ know where we all stand, den ‘aving it always be on our minds. We ‘ave an impor’ant mission soon, we needs ta be on da ball,” She said, not averting her gaze. “Ah’m willin ta talk if’n you are.”
Juan sighed, and nodded, licking his lips as they had dried from anxiety, though he returned her gaze. “I agree entirely. Though, perhaps it would be better to do it inside for some privacy?”
“Right this way, lady and gentleman,” Bee said, opening the door to her room and waving them inside. Once they were both in the room, she said, “Now, I’m gonna play some more video games. You don’t leave until you sort this out, one way or another,” and closed the door, leaving the pair alone.
“Bee, ya cu-” Joan started, turning around just as the door shut on them. “Ah swear ta god!” She growled, more irritated at the underhanded tactic than anything. She stopped herself, taking a few deep breaths to try and calm herself down. Then she looked at Juan. “You wanna si’ on da scratcha?” She asked, pointing at the bed, “Or does ya want dere ta be some space be’ween us? Ah kin sit in da chair if’n ya wants,” She said, her face still a little red, her eyes lost in intense thought.
Juan had sighed in intense frustration as the door closed. He had hoped to God that wouldn’t happen, dismissing it as just a paranoid thought, and now it had happened. He looked to Joan, and nodded nervously, his own ears a shade darker. “Uh, yes. One of those. Uh.” He cleared his throat. “Yes, I can use the chair, so we can look at each other or something. Or we can sit on the bed and not look at each other. I am not being very helpful am I?”
Joan sighed and shook her head. “Not par’icularly, but ah get it,” She said, walking and sitting on the bed, one knee up so she was still able to look at Juan if he sat down. “Come on, Ah kin face ya on da bed…” She said, not looking away from him.
Juan scratched his neck, and kept awkwardly staring at her. “Yes, very well.” He walks over and sits on the bed, cross legged and hunched over. He starts with a bit of a sigh. “So. How was your day?”
"Bee in’erroga’ed me shor’ly aftah ah left yer room," Joan said, looking around the room. " ‘ence why we’re ‘ere. Den Ulrike wan’ed ta talk wif me bout da in’erroga’ion yesterday, and den immedia’ely in’erroga’ed me about you," she said, looking at Juan with a frown, reaching out and gently suggesting he look up with a hand. "Stop lookin so sad. Ah'm really not dat bad at dis. Ya look like you fink dis is all going to go ‘orribly.”
Juan looks at her and sighs again, smiling a little. “It’s not you I’m worried about. Both of them wanted an explanation? I never worried about that, all I was worried about was you waking up sober and freaking out. I suppose our lives aren’t that private here.”
“Un’il…” Joan said, her head weaving back in forth a little. “Da obvious, i 'ave 'o admi' probably da nices' mawnin i’ve 'ad in way 'oo long,” She said simply. “I was mawe wawried dat i 'ad jus' 'urned in'ah a whawe las' nigh' an' tha ya would lose respec' faw me. Las' ah checked, people don’' like bein lead by promiscuous girls from my experience. Bee wan'ed 'o knah cause ah assume she’s a glu'on faw dis kind o malarkey,” She complained, crossing her arms.
“Ulrike wan'ed ta knah cause we wawk faw 'er in she wan's ta make sure we aren' goin ta ruin anyfing. She didn’' even knah i slep' in yer room las' nigh' un'il ah s’upidly opened mah mouf, so apparen'ly people 'ad dis impression befawe las' nigh'.” She explained. “So… i 'aven’' qui'e figured ou' ma fough's on dis ye', so ah would like ta 'ear yours. Don’ wawry, Ah’m a big girl. Ah kin 'andle a stiff rejec'ion if das yer plan.”
Juan laughed nervously, and shook his head a bit. “No, no. I don’t have a plan at all. I guess, first, I never thought you were a whore. You asked me about it that night, and I assume you don’t remember. Long story short, you’re not a whore, or a slut, or any of those words I never have much chance to use these days. You just needed someone nearby for a bit. As a moral person, I can’t begrudge you that.” He smiled a small smile, and started waving his hands around as he talked. “Because honestly, my thoughts are immensely jumbled, despite thinking about it for hours. I think to start, I wish you didn’t have to be drunk to say these things. I know it’s hard, but you can’t deprive yourself of these basic needs. Just a fuckin snuggle. But I get it. Next, I think you needed it as much as I did, nothing to be ashamed of. I…” He searched for the right words, his next thoughts, but nothing came. “I don’t know, this day has been weird.”
Joan was beet red once Juan had finished talking, and she took a deep breath. “Okay, bru'al 'onesty 'ime,” She said, nodding her head. “Juan, if there were like… Three or four things different about the situation between me and you right now, at this very second, I’d be all over you,” She said, taking another deep breath, and nodding. “I’m gonna le' ya 'ave a momen' wif da' befawe ah con'inue…” She squeaked, lowering her head.
Juan looked taken aback, but his smile persisted. “Uh… okay. I guess if we’re playing the honesty game, if it weren’t for that handful of things I would be fine with that. I am flattered though.”
Joan nodded stiffly. “Righ', da' did no' make da res' ov wha' ah 'ave ta say easiah, bu' oh well,” She said, looking at him again. “Da problem dat is mos' ac'ive in me loaf, immedia'ely, is da quesshun ov if ma a''rac'ion to ya is because ah just… like… god… Ah need ta ge' laid a'ight?” She finally admitted. “like, ah'm dat phrase in da flesh. Ah'm no' a prude, ah was nevah raised ta 'ate sex, in ah really wan's it,” She said, now frowning. “Which is why ah’m no' jumpin ya. I don’' knah if'n i wan's you, aw i jus' wan' yer gobstoppah,” She explained, rubbing her face for a moment. “Which nah da ah say i', sounds really weird, bu' wha'ever. Tha' fear is just… really strong you know? bein bladdered probably jus' made me ignawe i'.”
Juan gave a nervous chuckle, and looked back down at his lap. “That’s understandable. The drink has a habit of removing inhibitions, that’s what I assumed happened. My dick is flattered, but I’m glad you restrained yourself. Well glad and confused, but only out of concern. There’s a possible fix for that, but you probably have better things to do.”
“ 'ell me,” Joan said. “ 'ell me in ah’ll pu' i' on da lis' ov considera'ions.”
Juan looked back up at her, and shrugged. “We could actually talk like people for a bit. Like this! Then maybe we can decipher if there’s anything deeper than just us both being highly attractive people. Just like people do all the time, civilians and military alike. I’m not suggesting a date per se, just a time to talk.”
Joan let out a sigh of relief. “Faw a second dere i fough' ya were gonna sugges' we jus' 'ave a shag,” She said, starting to laugh. “Righ', bu' da' sounds like a less po'en'ially destruc'ive rou'e. Doesn’ solve de ovah problems dough. So, ah guess ah’ll splain dose,” She said, straightening up a little.
“Dere's no chain ov command 'ere,” Joan started, looking at Juan again. “Bu' ah’m s'ill kinda da sho' callah on mission. You an' Bea'rix rely on meh ta make da righ' decision, because dose decisions could ge' eivah ov ya killed. If… if we do, star' a rela'ionship, It migh' affec' dat. If'n we star' a rela'ionship, in it goes squiggly down da line, it migh' affec' dat. Ah can’ leh' my feelings pu' people in danger. Tha's par'ly wha' makes dis so 'ard, ac'ually," She said, looking uncomfortable.