doggone

[repeatedprayer]

[In the time following his departure from Tabito and Manabu's company, the alias "Grey" has wound up sticking.

Not that everyone calls him that, he's used a few other aliases since then, but it's what he's wound up thinking of himself as. If Grey had taken the time to think about it a bit more he might have picked something with a little less connection to Rezo's name, but it's still leagues better than thinking of himself as "Rez- wait, no, just a copy." And maybe that's why he's felt significantly calmer since he left Sairaag.

By his own standards, Grey has been laudably well-behaved; sure, he's been mostly doing under-the-table psychic work, often on behalf of criminals, but! He's been trying to keep a low profile so it's usually things like clairvoyant spying rather than anything violent, and he's been making a point of not doing anything that directly impacts the galaxy railways.

It would be extremely awkward if Manabu Yuuki had to try and arrest him, after all.

He's found himself frequently thinking about Manabu, much to his annoyance. He has no serious expectations of ever seeing Manabu again, so it's simply a waste of mental bandwidth to find himself wondering what Manabu is doing right now or where he is, or to reminisince over their incredibly brief acquaintanceship. Grey can only suppose that because Manabu was the first reasonably normal person he got to know after leaving Sairaag that Manabu is going to stick out in his mind for a while.

And it's probably because of the real estate that Manabu is hogging in Grey's mind that he's been very aware of every mention of the SDF that crosses his path. He hasn't exactly been tracking the SDF's activities deliberately, but he does pay attention to the news and the SDF frequently winds up in there, even if Manabu's name in particular isn't normally dropped.

Until the day it does.

SDF Officer Taken Hostage By Pirates]

* * *

[It's taken several weeks of investigating, but Grey has been able to track down The Huntress's client, a Dr. Parish and associates. It must be a small galaxy, because Dr. Parish is someone Grey knows. Sort of.

Rather, Dr. Parish was a colleague of Rezo's who collaborated with the man on chimera research (and other unsavory things) in the past. Not only that, the man was an ardent admirer of Rezo's superior psychic prowess, and desperate to improve his own meager abilities.

He'd had quite a shock when Grey approached him in town, but after the initial surprise it had been sickeningly easy to convince Dr. Parish that he was the real Rezo. Grey can only surmise that the man wants to believe too badly to let himself be properly suspicious. It had only taken a day for Grey to be invited to tour Parish's laboratory.

The lab's located on the grounds of a former Marquess's estate, a ways out of town and secluded by trees, a high wall, and a long drive. Grey's done a little recon before, but actually being here is different, especially since he has to navigate by cane at the moment. Grey is doing his best to politely nod and smile as Parish guides him from room to room, explaining their work and occasionally handing him things to examine himself.

But evidently Parish realizes that "Rezo" isn't entirely interested, because he stops partway through an explanation of some stem cell experiments he and a few others have been working on to say "Of course, the really interesting specimens are kept in the basement floor."

Grey already knows this. He hopes his expression seems the right sort of eager.]

Interesting?

["Something along the lines of what we did in the past. Would you like to see them?"]

Nothing would please me more.

[Grey can practically hear Parish's delighted grin. To soothe the surge of irritation, Grey reminds himself that he's going to kill this man before the end of the day and allows Parish to guide him out into the hall and to the basement entrance at the back of the building.]

Comments

[repeatedprayer]

[Grey doesn't know what inner turmoil Manabu is experiencing right now, only that whatever thoughts he is having are plainly eating him up inside. Is it the knowledge of how much time has been stolen from him, those weeks lost to drugs and imprisonment? Some might say four months isn't that long in the grand scheme of things, but a lot can change in that time- and surely Manabu will also need more time to recover physically and emotionally, to adjust to his new circumstances.

And what the hell can Grey do about it? He's gotten Manabu out of there, but he hadn't thought much about the state he'd be in afterwards. Admittedly, he hadn't had much way of knowing what state Manabu would be in, but he still should have put some thought into this...

Would Rezo, if he'd been the one to rescue Manabu, have been able to handle this better? Probably. The man was renowned for being a soothing presence. But Grey is... Well, he's not Rezo.

Grey slides a little closer to Manabu, adjusting his position so that he's sitting next to Manabu instead of across from him. He still doesn't say anything at first, instead just looking down at Manabu with a grave expression as he wonders what the hell to say.]

...You know, it's almost been a year since we first met.

[Look. He's tired, and it seems better than telling Manabu ~It Could Be Worse~]

[siriusly]

What-?

[Manabu lifts his head, needing to do a little double-take to notice the shrinking of space and change of position. he blinks up at Grey, eyes wet and brow knit with the effort it's taking to keep it together, and his lip quivers a little despite it.

oh...meeting...]

I was...a mess then, too. [his mouth twitches, and he looks down, his stomach feeling strange.] You probably have the worst impression of me, heh... And you're always...dragging me out of a fire.

[repeatedprayer]

I didn't know what to make of you. [Even now, Grey's expression grows thoughtful, as he tries to figure out where to even begin explaining his impressions.]

You seemed... Concerned about me. About my attitude, perhaps. But you didn't seem afraid of me either. [Grey wonders if Manabu might be afraid of him now, now that he knows what kind of power Grey has. But if he is, it's at least not bad enough that Manabu's fleeing for the hills immediately?]

I'd never met anyone like you before. I'd never been given flowers before, either.

[siriusly]

[his mouth twitches again, ducking his head.] Y-you asked for them, so...what was I going to do? Not...do that?

[repeatedprayer]

Oh, I don't know. I... just hadn't expected you to care about what I wanted, that's all.

[Grey turns a little red at the admission.]

[siriusly]

[there's a weird interaction with how blood rushes to his face: it'd go to his ears, too, but...well...

man. that's strange.

he swallows, a little stuck on how he's supposed to feel or act. he shifts off his legs, feeling the tingle of them going numb, looking down at the dried blood stains on the ugly gown he's still in.]

Now you know better, I guess. And so do I. So much for your...'don't get to know me' schtick...

[repeatedprayer]

[Grey's expression turns wary. What does Manabu think of him, now that he knows what Grey can do? The answer shouldn't matter at all, but it itches in the back of Grey's mind.]

I won't hurt you. I know what you've learned about me may be alarming, but you're... [What is he?]

[siriusly]

...not going to screw things up for you? [he looks back up at him.]

[repeatedprayer]

[Manabu doesn't even say it with a particularly malicious tone, and it's really not that far off from the sort of things that Grey has been telling himself, but damned if it doesn't feel like Manabu just socked him in the stomach.]

...Right. Of course not.

[Grey looks away. Shit. This isn't the time or place- he can't even think too hard about why he's upset right now.

He slides off the bed and goes to a low cabinet nearby, out of which he takes a pair of pajamas, sized a bit too big for Manabu and too small for Grey. He sets them on the end of the bed.]

Here. I can't imagine you'll want to stay in that gown. I'll give you some privacy.

[And Grey beats a strategic retreat to the washroom.]

[siriusly]

[the atmosphere is strange and hard to parse, and honestly? even if Manabu wasn't so worn down, he'd struggle to understand it. he decides to just focus on what's in front of him, getting the gown off and trying to avoid getting overtaken by quaking at the feeling of himself overly exposed again.

what...did they do to him... he's not an imaginative sort, but even what little he can assume makes him feel nauseous and small and weak.

this wouldn't be so much of an issue were there no tail to negotiate: even getting boxers on is...a situation. what does he do? slip the tail out one leg? it feels uncomfortable. let it stick out the waistband? that's uncomfortable and weird in a different way... Grey can enjoy the auditory frustration as he pleases while Manabu's trying to figure it out before giving up and calling:]

Do you have...scissors? A knife? Something?

[repeatedprayer]

[Grey doesn't catch all that much of Manabu's frustration, really. He closes the door to the washroom behind himself when he enters, and then when he catches a glimpse of himself in the mirror...

There's blood spattered on his face. There's still some on his hands, too. No wonder Manabu is suspicious of him.

After noticing that, Grey sets to work scrubbing himself clean over the sink, so the sound of the water running drowns out the quieter frustrated noises from the main room. It's not so loud that he isn't able to hear Manabu calling, though.

Grey is puzzled by the request- he's pretty sure he removed the tags from the pajamas already. So what else might Manabu need scissors for- wait.

Grey opens the washroom door a crack and calls out in return:]

Why?

[Unfortunately, Grey's first mental image for why Manabu might want something sharp is that Manabu might try cutting the dog parts off himself, and Grey is not going to let Manabu do something like that!!! So poor Manabu gets suspicion instead.]

[siriusly]

[embarrassed:] Because this tail...I can't wear anything with a waistband like this, okay?

[repeatedprayer]

[...Nope, that is not specific enough to dispel Grey's horrible mental image. Grey opens the door a little more so he can peer suspiciously out at Manabu, in case he's already hideously mangled himself.]

What exactly are you planning?

[siriusly]

[Manabu, sitting on the edge of the bed with a shirt on and pants/boxers in his lap for the sake of his dignity, frowns despondently toward the door.

he holds up the underwear.]

I, I gotta cut holes in these, okay?!

[repeatedprayer]

Oh. I thought- never mind.

[Grey steps out into the kitchenette and grabs a pair of scissors from a drawer. Then he walks over and hands it to Manabu.]

Here.

[siriusly]

Thought what? [he squints, taking the scissors and then...staring at the boxers.

how is he going to do this.]

[repeatedprayer]

It's not important. [i.e. Grey's still worried enough about Manabu's mental state that he doesn't want to risk giving him Ideas.

Hey how about those boxers huh. Whereabouts on the ass does the tail go]

Do you have any idea how you're going to do this?

[siriusly]

N-no... [he's about as far from confident as he can be while still being stubborn about it.] But what can I do? It's not like I have any point of reference for things like this...I never heard of a person with a tail before...

[or even an alien! the Torkargans, the Illumidas...no tails there!]

[repeatedprayer]

[It's a shame neither of them know about furries, or else they would realize that this is a problem that lots of people have worked on over the centuries.]

Hm.

[Grey eyes the boxers and tries to muster up all the knowledge he has about tailoring, which isn't a lot. It's not like he has any sewing supplies either- those scissors are more the type used for cutting open packages than for cutting fabric.]

Well, you simply need to cut a hole somewhere below the waistband, right...? I got these from a discount shop, so it isn't important if you ruin a pair or two.

[siriusly]

[ruin he shall: cutting under the waistband, nicking a bit of seam, just showing of exceptionally poor tailoring capabilities...but cut him some slack (pun intended), he's barely a couple hours out from real heinous shit! even with dexterity back in his fingers, he's still sluggish and feeling out-of-place, more than once wondering if this was really real - sitting in a gloomy, unfamiliar room with Grey, cutting holes to fit a tail...

this is insane, truly.]

Y-you're probably going to have to help me figure this out, okay? Just...don't-- [his eyes wince.] Don't give me crap about it, okay? I'm...[doing his best!!! this is embarrassing! even ASKING is awful!]

[repeatedprayer]

[Grey is, as it happens, having similar feelings. While Manabu mangles his underpants, Grey stares at a random point on the ceiling, mentally replaying the events of the last few hours, pondering what might happen over the course of the next few hours, and wondering if at any point things might finally feel less... Just, less.

He is also trying not to feel too weird about Manabu being pantsless right now. Men hang around underdressed with each other a lot right? In locker rooms and such. As an SDF officer, this is probably normal for Manabu...

Grey blinks, looking back down at Manabu.]

...I'll try to hold my tongue. [Already off to a great start, good job Grey. Doing his best to sound gentle:] What do you need?

[siriusly]

[even if locker rooms and public bathhouses are a thing, this is still weird. something something nickel something naked in front of this guy in particular... it's always after something weird!

and. and he did remember more of that evening, so that's more to worry on if he lets himself, so he just decides...not to. by way of getting up and getting these doctored boxers pulled up best he can on his own, tail propped up because of it. he finds that he can't really see what he's doing even looking over his shoulder and has to blindly feel around.]

I gotta get this...stupid thing looped through...

[repeatedprayer]

[Though he is trying to convince himself that this is somewhere in the vicinity of normal, Grey can't help but avert his eyes once Manabu stands up. But it isn't as if it would be appropriate to stare either! Much more polite to try and ignore the tail in his peripheral vision, until Manabu brings it up.

Grey casts a discreet glance at Manabu's backside. The tail certainly doesn't look like it's at the most comfortable angle with the waistband pushing it up like that. It's hard for him to tell the exact shape of it, given the long, fluffy fur (hair?) that covers it, but at least it's probably fairly thin under there... Grey finds himself thinking that everyone is going to want to touch it when they see it, and it gives him a stabbing mix of pity and indignation on Manabu's behalf.]

Alright. Come over here, I'll try moving it for you.

[And presuming Manabu doesn't protest, Grey will reach over and carefully take hold of Manabu's tail.]

[siriusly]

A--!

[Manabu bristles, feeling an electric jolt of sensory information all the way up his spine to the tips of his ears. it's not the discomfort of accidentally sitting on the thing, it's--

um.

well, tingly.

reflexively, he claps a hand over his mouth as his face gets red, muffling it's okay just as quickly to get ahead of questions.

oh, man...]

[repeatedprayer]

Manabu?

[Grey shoots a concerned look at Manabu's shoulder, even after Manabu gives him a muffled reassurance. He hopes he isn't accidentally injuring the man, his body's doubtless been through enough abuse recently. Or basically since Manabu was born.

Best to get this over with, then. Grey glances down at what he's doing, adjusting his grip on Manabu's tail. The thick fur is soft and pleasant beneath his hand as he slides his hand down closer to the end of the tail.

With his other hand, Grey hooks two fingers under the waistband of Manabu's boxers. It's intended as a practical action, but between that and the tail in his hands he's acutely conscious of how intimate the moment is, and Grey feels himself heating up in response.

He feels he should be berating himself, if only in his head, but no actual words come to mind, only an acute sense of guilt as he tugs the waistband away enough that he can tuck Manabu's tail inside and slip his hand into Manabu's boxers- just briefly enough to poke Manabu's tail through the hole before withdrawing, leaving him with a brief impression of warm flesh.

In a more brisk motion he grabs the end of Manabu's tail again and tugs it the rest of the way through the hole, ruffling the hell out of the fur in the process. He reflexively sets a hand on it to smooth the fur down, then realizes what he's doing and drops his hands to his sides.]

...Is that. Any better?