AN: Finally got Chapter 3 out now! No slash for this chapter - only some man-to-man bonding between two soldier spirits :D. (And I must again thank the Ubikono for inspiring many awesome ideas for this story!)
Ever since Ma ma taught Baby Moesuke how to execute a forward roll, Baby Moesuke made a special effort to practice it every day. He was determined to show Ma ma that he could be a good soldier. He was becoming better at it, too - he knew it because Ma ma told him so. Baby Moesuke cared a lot about how Ma ma thought about him. When Ma ma praised him (which seemed to involve something about how much energy he had and how that makes a good soldier), he would beam with pride. Ma ma was very soft and pretty. She was also very amazing - she could do so many things, and was very wise. Completely different from the "Ma ma" that left him in that cold dark place before. That one was the "Fake Ma ma." Baby Moesuke knew now that this one was the real one.
When Baby Moesuke wasn't practicing the roll, he would crawl over to Ma ma and start cuddling, in the hopes that Ma ma would pamper him and tell him stories. More often than not, though, Ma ma would look a bit nervous and inspect his bottom. Right now it was bed time, and more than anything else, Baby Moesuke wished that Ma ma would tell him a bedtime story in the pleasant, clear voice she had. Baby Moesuke tried to make the request.
"Ma ma! Ma ma!" He tugged at her clothes.
Unfortunately, it didn't look like Ma ma understood him this time. Ma ma picked him up and brought him over to the bedroom.
"A soldier needs sufficient rest in order to properly perform his duty. It is a lucky, rare time when you can get uninterrupted sleep - most raids happen at night while you're unguarded, so appreciate any rest you can get for tonight. And stay on your guard." At this, Ma ma seemed to shudder, muttering something about being thankful the Captain wasn't here either.
Ma ma turned off the lights and crawled under the bed with Baby Moesuke in tow. Baby Moesuke thought it was fun that Ma ma would bring him under the bed when it was time to sleep. It was a refreshing change from always being in a caged bed.
A loud noise startled Baby Moesuke. Ma ma froze briefly, but relaxed after a moment.
The loud noises persisted, and Baby Moesuke was scared. He tightly gripped his Bonta-kun stuffed animal in one hand, and Ma ma's shirt in the other, whimpering.
"It is not a raid. There is no cause for fear - it's only thunder." Ma ma's words failed to comfort Baby Moesuke, who continued to shiver.
Ma ma hesitated. After a moment, she held Baby Moesuke closer to her.
"Thunder is no reason to lose your composure - especially not when we're in shelter. If we were outside and the circumstances were different, it would be a cause for worry. But like this..."
A long silence followed, and Ma ma seemed to be in deep thought.
"There are many things far scarier than thunder. At least with lightning, you would probably die a quick death. Your enemies can be far less merciful. In Afghanistan, I heard that several of my comrades had less than merciful endings at the hands of the enemy. It was always something that we feared. Dying an unfitting death for a soldier. The sound we feared most was not caused by weather - it was caused by humans. Gunfire, explosives detonating... these were the sounds that would worry us."
Ma ma looked down at Baby Moesuke. If Baby Moesuke wasn't mistaken, Ma ma's expression softened just a little.
"There were some false alarms though. I remember the time that Khalili got wounded by the enemy, and he was on painkillers. The weather was much like today's, and there were thunderstorms. He would keep mistaking the thunder for gunfire, and he would call us idiots for not listening to his warnings. Muhammad eventually had to knock him out because he was too much of a distraction. Khalili wasn't a very forgiving person, so everyone lied to him later and told him he fainted."
The sound of Ma ma's heartbeat was even. Although Baby Moesuke didn't quite understand everything Ma ma was saying, some part of him understood that Ma ma was trying, in her own way, to comfort him. It was her way of letting him know that he was safe, and that the thing causing the scary noise was not something to worry about. Baby Moesuke was grateful that Ma ma was telling him a story - it somehow drowned out the scary noise, and made him feel at peace.
Squeezing his Bonta-kun stuffed animal, Baby Moesuke gradually fell asleep as Ma ma told him pleasant stories.
The end of the week had finally arrived, and Sousuke was feeling very relieved. The supplies that Mao had given him were running dangerously low. If it were any later, he would have had to find some way of restocking the supplies.
Oddly enough, along with the feeling of relief, Sousuke felt a bit empty at the thought that the week was finally over. He would return the subject back to Mao safe and sound, and things would continue much the same way as in the past. The mission would be a success. So why was he feeling so empty?
Sousuke glanced up at Baby Moesuke. The subject had somewhat mastered the forward roll, and was now interspersing it with awkward attempts at CQC. Sousuke did his part in training the subject in survival techniques. In fact, Sousuke had gone beyond his duty and imparted much more wisdom than was to be expected. But from today onward, Baby Moesuke's training would be in the hands of other people. Before they would part, however, there was still one more thing that Sousuke wished to teach the subject.
Sousuke walked over to the subject and crouched down to talk to him. "Baby Moesuke, today is the last day you will be in my care."
"Ma ma?" Baby Moesuke was now all ears. He seemed to be able to tell that what Sousuke was talking to him about was serious.
"Although our time together was somewhat brief, your growth as a soldier has been substantial. From today on, you must listen to your commanding officer and continue on your path. Between now and the time Mao comes to pick you up, there is not much more I can teach you. However -" At this, Sousuke lifted his arm to a salute. "It is my wish that from now on, you will properly salute people - the way a capable soldier would."
The atmosphere was very emotional, and Baby Moesuke seemed to be holding back tears. He slowly raised his small arm up into a salute, while uttering a heartfelt "Ma ma."
And then the phone rang.
Sousuke got up and answered it, and was surprised to hear Mao's voice on the line.
"Sousuke, how are you doing? Is Baby Moesuke alright? Have things been going okay over there?"
Before Sousuke could answer, Mao continued on. "Look, I know that you're probably waiting for me to come by and pick Baby Moesuke up. Sousuke, I'm not sure how to put this, but... things have been a bit rough in Sudan, and I have almost no time right now. I'm afraid I can't come and take Baby Moesuke today. In fact, it'll be another week before I'll be able to. I'm really sorry for doing this to you, but I'm counting on you to take care of the little brat. It'll only be one more week, I promise. Thanks a ton for doing this, Sousuke. I mean it."
The sound of a click was followed by a dial tone.
Sousuke stood holding the phone for a while, mind gone blank. Another week. No, there was no use thinking about it. Sousuke had no choice. What use was there in thinking about it?
Sousuke turned wearily to Baby Moesuke.
Baby Moesuke saluted and happily called out to "Ma ma." It was amazing how aware Baby Moesuke seemed to be of what was going on. He already knew from Ma ma's reaction that Sousuke was not going to be leaving quite yet.
In his moment of happiness, Baby Moesuke also appeared to have lost control of his bodily functions yet again. Sousuke picked Baby Moesuke up and went to change his diaper.
But, at the very least, one thing was for certain: Sousuke was not feeling empty at the moment.
