Friends
"That..." Michelle smiled as she toweled herself off. "...felt good."
The drill had been exhilarating. Her body remembered all of the moves. Well, most of them. The tentacle was throwing things off. Jac was a master as well, so both of them had worked themselves hard, but not too hard. They had done all the exercises and were not cooling off. Tenno bodysuits were for designed to facilitate connection to warframe interfaces, they had few built in systems.
"I have to ask..." Jac said as she did the same. "Don't answer if it bothers you." Michelle raised an eyebrow and Jac flushed. "Never mind."
Michelle raised what had been her right arm. "This?" She asked quietly. Jac nodded. "What about it?"
"It didn't feel like Infested flesh when you... Well." Jac flushed brighter in embarrassment.
"When she kept you from falling on your ass." Cecelia said snidely from her position by the door. Instead of answering, Jac threw her towel at the MOA. "Hey!" The MOA protested as the towel covered her ocular sensors. A mechanical appendage came up and grabbed the towel before Jac could retrieve it. "Mine!" The MOA declared, pulling it away from Jac's fingers.
"What are you going to do with a towel?" Jac asked with a wide grin. "You naughty robot!"
"That is for me to know..." Cecelia said in a prim voice. "...and you to guess!" Both female chuckled at the MOA's antics.
"Don't hit her with it, Cecelia." Michelle said quietly. "Even if she does deserve it. There are... other...better methods of revenge that will not actually do damage." Jac suddenly looked wary as Michelle smiled evilly. "I had four sisters." She paused and gulped. "I mean..."
"Hey." Jac said softly and pulled Michelle close. "It's okay. You are grieving. We all know grief." Cecelia made the bobbing motion that Michelle took as a nod from a form with no head. She hugged Michelle tight and then let the other Tenno go. "You are not alone."
"I know." Michelle said, taking a deep breath. "Here." She unrolled her tentacle from where it hung by her side out of the way and held it out to Jac who stared at it. "Go on. The docs say I can't infect by touch."
"You..." Jac shook her head and then reached out a slow hand to stroke the glistening appendage. "It doesn't feel like Infested flesh. I don't know what it feels like. I..." She shook her head again. "Thank you. That had to be hard." She gave a start as the tentacle wrapped gently around her hand. "What?"
"I can't shake your hand." Michelle said softly. "But I can do this." She stiffened as Jac pulled the tentacle close and held it to her chest. "Jac?"
"You are not a bad person and you are not alone." Jac said stoutly. "You are my friend. I am not going to treat you any other way." Jac's eyes were glistening as Michelle's started to burn. "You won't hurt me." Jac said as Michelle tried to pull away without causing harm.
"You don't know that, Jac!" Michelle snapped. "Please let go!" Jac did and Michelle retracted her tentacle with snap, curling it close.
"Michelle, you can't hide what you are." Jac said softly, stepping close, but pausing as Michelle retreated a step. "You are a good person who has been through anyone's definition of hell." Cecelia wasn't moving, but the MOA was blocking the door, Michelle noticed. "What you just did was braver than anything..." Jac started to cry. "That alien part of you terrifies you and you just... You indulged my selfish curiosity without even thinking about it." She stepped close as Michelle stood frozen, throwing her arms around Michelle. "I know you are scared. But you are not alone!" She said firmly, hugging Michelle tight.
"Jac... I..." Michelle stammered, unsure of what to do, what to say. "I don't... I can't..."
"Just give us a chance." Jac pleaded. "We can be a bit much." Cecelia made a strangled noise and Jac chuckled wetly. "Cecelia..."
"We are a bit much." Cecelia said softly as she stepped close, her metal beak coming close enough to touch Michelle on the arm. It was a gentle touch. "We are all we have, Michelle. And you... We have you now too. Maybe we can help you, maybe we can't. But give us a chance. Please?" The MOA begged.
"Jac... Cecelia..." Michelle protested. "When this infection reaches my brain... I will cease to be. I will turn into a mindless monster. Don't..." She broke off as Cecelia nudged her.
"It hasn't yet." Cecelia said with a sigh. "The docs are working overtime, I am running every search routine I have, looking for data. Don't give up. We won't give up on you. My friend." Michelle felt her lips start to quiver and then she was crying, holding both Cecelia and Jac.
A timeless moment later, all three jumped as throat cleared nearby. They broke apart and spun to see Karl in his warframe looking at them. He seemed...unconcerned at finding them hugging and crying.
"You three all right?" Karl asked quietly.
"We...needed to get something settled." Jac said with a nod. "We are good." Cecelia bobbed but remained silent.
"Michelle?" Karl asked quietly. "You okay?"
"As well as I can be." Michelle said with a slightly sick grin. "I seem to have been told that I have friends whether I want them or not. Whether it is safe for them or not." She said sourly.
"Jac and Cecelia are bit stubborn." Karl said calmly. Jac tried to look innocent but he just shook his head. "Nice try, Jac." He said dryly. "Jac? You and Michelle have appointments in Medical. Cecelia? Did the call get answered?"
"It did." Cecelia said in a concerned voice. "But it was...odd."
"Well..." Karl actually laughed. "He is a bit odd. What did he say?"
"He said he would be in touch, Karl Sensei. Today." Cecelia said with a odd shake. "Um..."
"You have an appointment with Ric, Cecelia." Karl said sternly. "You want that glitch fixed, right?"
"Glitch?" Jac and Michelle both chorused. They stared at each other and then at Cecelia who sighed.
"Nothing major, just an odd power spike." Cecelia said with sigh. "It's a short I can't fix myself. Okay. I'll go." She nuzzled Michelle and Jac one more time and then dashed out the door, her metal feet clanging.
"She makes me feel...old." Jac said with a grin. Karl chucked at her tone and then nodded.
"Can I trust you two not to get up to deviltry between here and Medical?" Karl asked with a grin in his voice.
"Yes, sir." The two women chorused. Then Michelle paused.
"Yes?" Karl asked kindly.
"I...um..." Michelle shook her head. "Thank you, Karl Sensei." She said formally. "Even if this doesn't work out in the end. Thank you for being who and what you are. Thank you for your support, your protection and your care. Is there anything I can help with?"
"Actually, yes." Karl said with a nod. "The call is to a consultant of sorts. An older Tenno with a heck of a reputation. He will want to talk to you about what your father did." Michelle stiffened. "He is a good man, Michelle. I will be there." Karl promised.
"So will I!" Jac stated, only to pause as Karl looked at her. "If... If the medics and Karl Sensei allow it."
"Don't forget your husband." Karl said with a laugh. "Aeron is better, but...still... Let's not push it."
"Ah..." Jac squirmed a bit and then nodded. "Yes, Karl Sensei." She said meekly.
"Go on." Karl said, making a 'shooing' gesture. "Don't keep the docs waiting. Michelle? I will let you know when my consultant arrives. I will also want to talk to you about incorporating tentacle type attacks in our training regime if you can." Michelle stared at him and then nodded, thinking hard.
"That would help." Michelle said softly. "But it is flimsy..." She uncoiled it a bit to look at the tip. "It's not as tough as Ancient skin. We can try."
"Would you mind having the docs do some tests on it?" Karl asked with a nod. "It could help. I have seen so many Tenno getting blindsided by tentacle attacks they didn't think could hit them." He shook his head. "And not all rookies either. I have been hit by a few myself that seemed to come out of nowhere."
"We will see." Michelle said quietly. "I will ask the docs to check it thoroughly."
"Only if you are comfortable with it." Karl said with a nod. "Go on." Both women nodded and moved away quickly.
"Is he out of his mind?" Jac asked when they were out of earshot. "You hate that thing!" Outrage poured from her.
"He is doing what a leader does." Michelle replied evenly. "Contemplating possibilities. Note he didn't order me to do anything. He asked." Jac grimaced and then subsided a bit.
"You took it as an order." Jac said as they made their way into the elevator.
"I..."Michelle thought about that and then slumped a bit. "Yeah. I guess I did." Jac made a face as she hit the up button and Michelle nodded. "It is hard you know? On one level, I am a battle sister. On another, a guest. On yet another, a patient. Somewhere in there, a prisoner."
"I know." Jac agreed. "The docs are going to yell at me. The look Alicia gave me when you saved me from falling promised me that she would...um...speak to me." Jac gulped. "I would almost prefer fighting."
"If you were fighting you could it people." Michelle waited for a moment as the elevator rose and then spoke. "Jac?"
"Hmmm?" Her friend replied.
"What does it feel like?" Michelle asked, her eyes far away. "I..." Jac looked at her and Michelle flushed. "I am female. I...never thought about kids but..." She froze as Jac took her human hand and placed it against the other woman's belly. "Wha-?"
"Sometimes it doesn't feel any different." Jac said quietly. "Sometimes I feel heavy or bloated. Sometimes I just feel fat. I know it is going to get worse, but you know what? I feel... whole for the first time since I assumed my first warframe." Michelle stroked Jac's belly and then withdrew her hand. Jac smiled. "Did you ever want kids?"
"Not that I can remember." Michelle admitted. "Mom had a lot of trouble with five of us at once."
"I can't imagine five at once." Jac said with a frown. "And that scumsucker just left her to it..." Now the frown turned furious.
"She had a little help from other kin, and then when we got old enough to take care of ourselves, we did." Michelle said, eyes starting to burn again. "I..."
"Hey, come here." Jac said, pulling Michelle into another hug. "I am sorry. I didn't mean to remind you of bad things."
"She was so stern." Michelle said as she left the embrace. The door chimed and opened, they left the elevator and started on the short walk to Medical. "She never laughed. Ever. She never wanted to see us laugh. So... We learned not to in her presence."
"What?" Jac demanded, but then they were at Medical. They walked in to see Amelia standing there, tapping her foot in impatience.
"Jac." Amelia said flatly. Jac winced and Amelia nodded. "Room Three. Alicia is expecting you. Go. Now." The doctor snapped. She thawed a little as Jac hugged Michelle again, then darted off. A raised voice sounded from a door that opened in front of her.
"Jac, you idiot!" The other female voice was cut off when the door closed behind Jac.
Michelle stared at the now closed door and then at Amelia who smiled a bit more openly.
"She scared us." Amelia said with a wince. "Falls at this stage are the single most common cause for miscarriage." Michelle's eyes went wide at that and Amelia nodded. "Good save. Thank you." She said kindly. "You ready?"
"As ready as I am going to be." Michelle admitted. Amelia smiled, stepped close and laid a hand on her human arm.
"I don't know if we can help." Amelia admitted. "But we are going to do everything we can. Come on."
A twitch of the hand on her arm had Michelle starting off with Amelia. They walked to another room where an exam table was laid out with scanners all around it. Without being prompted, Michelle laid down on it and Amelia started connecting systems and powering up the scanners.
"Amelia?" Michelle asked after she was as comfortable as she could get. Exam tables were built to be durable, not comfortable.
"Yes?" Amelia asked absently.
"Scan... my right... um..." Michelle stammered as Amelia paused and turned to look at her. "I need to know what the flesh is capable of."
"Why?" Amelia asked, suspicion mounting.
"I want to see about incorporating tentacle strikes into my techniques." Michelle said quietly. Amelia actually growled and Michelle stiffened. "What?"
"What did he say to you?" Amelia snapped, irate.
"Ah..." Michelle stammered. "What?"
"What did Karl say to you?" Amelia said, her tone savage. "He asked me about that and I told to quote' back off' end quote. He ambushed you, didn't he?"
"Amelia, it is not like that." Michelle said with a wince. This was not going well. "This is part of me now." She raised the tentacle a bit and studied it in the strong light of the scanner room. "I can ignore it and hope it goes away or I can try to work with it." She sighed. "Ignoring things rarely helps." Then she chuckled. "I bet that is why he asked me, to get me thinking."
"You are not ready!" Amelia said with a scowl worthy of a Grineer. "I told him that!"
"Amelia." Michelle said calmly. "I was there to help Jac today. If I can...help...repay..." She felt wetness on her cheeks again and shook her head savagely. "I..." She started as a hand found hers. She looked up to see Iriana had come in. The other healer's face was sad.
"Ah, Michelle." Iriana said sadly. "Don't push it. We will scan." This was a command to Amelia, who scowled but nodded. "But you need to relax. You did good in the drill, but we have to start with small steps, okay?"
"Okay." Michelle said quietly as Amelia started the machinery. "Iriana?" She asked as the healer did not step back.
"I know my bio-signature inside and out." The healer replied as scanner energy played over Michelle. "We can filter it. You need me. I am here. You are not alone." She gave Michelle's hand a squeeze.
"You are all so good to me." Michelle said softly. "I don't feel worthy of this."
"You are." Iriana said kindly. "I am going to have to go back soon." The healer said with a sad frown. "The others want me back. Sara and Mishka are running roughshod over everyone. Serene is trying, but she is stuck in a wheel chair and pregnant!" Michelle surprised herself with a chuckle and Iriana growled humorously. "Go ahead, laugh. You will see. Someday. I am betting that Jac will ask you to help babysit." Michelle chuckled again and smiled at Iriana.
"I wouldn't mind." Michelle said quietly. "And I do hope to meet your kids and sister someday. Count me a friend, Iriana. If you need me, call."
"I might." Iriana said with a smile. "The scan cycle will take an hour or so. Think you can sleep? I am here." She said gently. "You are not alone." The constant repetition helped a little.
"Intellectually, I know that." Michelle said with a gulp. "But... Emotionally?" She closed her eyes as beams of energy played over her body.
"I know." Iriana said as Amelia pulled a chair close. She smiled at Amelia and sat, still holding Michelle's hand. "Sleep if you can."
"I don't think I can." Michelle said after a moment. "Still too keyed up. Jac and Cecelia demanded to be friends with me." Iriana chucked and Michelle grimaced. "Yeah."
"Better give in gracefully." Amelia said form where she was working. "Those two have the subtlety of a Grineer Galleon's cannon. And they can be nearly as loud by all accounts."
"I got that feeling." Michelle said with another chuckle. "Ah well..."She sighed and relaxed, settling herself for a long day.