Here's to Lost Loves
Posted on Tue Sep 24th, 2024 @ 9:02am by Rear Admiral Yoshi Minawara
Mission:
Take My Hand
Location: Admiral's Personal Quarters - Esquimalt
1037 words - 2.1 OF Standard Post Measure
The sound of a knife against wood sounded through the room, simple, rhythmic and focused. A pile of carrots were forming. Beside Alice a pan sizzled, garlic and onions in butter and the remaining chicken fat from the diced chicken that sat on a plate. The room was filled with gentle jazz as she added a small splash of white wine to the mix letting it cook down at the same time. Peas and already chopped beans sat in their own bowls, with collections of seasoning scattered about. She hummed alone, her eyes looking up towards the opposite side of the room where Yoshi sat with a book in his hand. He looked up as her pace slowed, and she smiled. "You get her back," she said, returning to her work. Yoshi chuckled. "I'm serious! You have been antsy all around this station all week. Victoria has had to all but lock down every shuttle to keep you off of the Vesta and I am pretty sure poor Kai is going to go mad with you wandering around the observation rooms looking out at the dry dock. I swear you love that ship more than you love me." She laughed as her husband looked across to her with a look of mock annoyance and hurt.
"Well I mean, she doesn't cook as well as you do..." Yoshi returned, a smile on his face. The remark and smile earned him a dishtowel to the face and an angrily pointed knife. "I know I know," he said, standing to cross the room. "And you're right, I have missed being in space. I have missed getting to tinker."
"It'll be different."
"It will be, but I can't imagine a better crew to have it be different with," he finished. He walked up, and wrapped his arms around his wife from behind, giving her a gentle squeeze. "But since I am no longer her Captain, I get to follow in the path of Sepandiyar. I'll give dirty looks and gruff remarks." Yoshi straightened up, steepling his fingers together and tilted his head down. "I want you to know, your actions have consequences. I have the best damn Captain in the fleet as my personal ship captain." He paused, and laughed at his own joke for a second. "Well at least he used to," the Admiral said, stealing a sip of the wine, and shook his head. "Edward starts at Esquimalt next week."
Alice laughed, but it faded as she realized her husband wasn't joking. "Wait, really? You are replacing Kai?" Yoshi shook his head, moving to the fridge and pulling out the cream she'd picked up to hand to her. As she mixed in the flour and some additional butter, adding the cream slowly before also adding some chick broth. "Then what? He's far too experienced as a Commanding Officer and Strategic Operations Officer, you'd be wasting him with some boring position."
"Chief Standards Officers for Task Force Seventy-Two. He'll be making sure the next generation of Commanding Officer are the best, and that all ships are meeting the standards of the fleet," he said, carefully setting a couple glasses on the table and placing a bottle of wine. "Means he'll be here to also spot check the various ships as they come through for resupply. I am sure Commodore Kane and him will get along swimmingly. Mahone maybe less so." A quizzical eyebrow raise had Yoshi adding, "Not that I think Haumea is troublesome, Edward is just particular about dogs." The pair looked towards the sleeping frame of Kevin, who as if on cue sat up to look at them. A quick wiggle of a tail and Alice laughed.
As she poured the combination of chopped vegetables into mixture, carefully stirring them. "I was thinking," she said slowly, "I might stay here. The Vesta is a fine ship, but you don't need me doteing all over you and your crew. Plus, they are converting the forward lounge space into a more proper mess hall structure. I don't really want to putz about in our room all day, and there is space for me to... open a bar here." Yoshi paused mid-grab of a tennis ball on the ground, before straightening to turn to look at his wife. A few silent questions passed between them. "It's not like before," she interjected. "No long range deep space missions, and you'll be back regularly. Full and regular communication without issues. Plus I'll get to get back to what I love more."
The Admiral studied his wife for a good long minute, seeming to consider things carefully, before he offered a smile. "Very well then. It'll keep you safer too, which will make my daring escapades less stressful than I would otherwise." The smile faded slightly. "I'll miss you."
"And I'll miss you. But think, it means when you get back you'll have a warm meal waiting for you, and the next smut book written about you will let your Terran Empire ruling wife make an appearance," she said, a laugh escaping as she did.
"There isn't." Yoshi's face fell as Alice descended fully into laughter, nodding as she tried to regain composure.
"It's so bad, you have no idea." Yoshi ran a hand over his face and groaned as she laughed harder. "Though they were sure right about your rippling Admiral Body," she said, falling into laughter that drew the Aussie Shepherd to come to finally investigate. Yoshi for his part scooped his wife into a hug, himself now broken down into laughter as the pair sat in the kitchen. Kevin, not one to be left out of affection demanded attention, so Yoshi scooped him up - almost dropping the nearly sixty pound dog, and squeezed him between the two. Slowly the laughter died down, and music consumed the space a silence might have left. It was broken once more by protests as Kevin decided some kisses were in fact very much needed. This earned him an express trip to the floor and a gentle shooing as the pair hugged again. "I love you," she said.
"Not as much as I do you," he replied.
