U is for Unwind
Maru had learned long ago that aircraft both shied away and craved touch. Both planes and helicopters were such delicate creatures by nature, so it made sense that they were so careful not to bump into things and were extremely uncomfortable with unexpected pushes. That said, aircraft were also completely depending on others to help them complete some basic daily functions. While they may appear to outsiders to be aloof, they often built deep, sometimes lifelong symbolic relationships with others.
At Piston Peak, they were short of the normal ratio of tugs to aircraft, so most of the aircraft simply learned how to scratch their own itches. Some did it elegantly by arching their backs and rubbing them against one of the hangers, others found a low-hanging branch of a tree and brushed up against that, still, others just did their best to ignore the discomfort and move forward. But on days when one or more or the aircraft just couldn't unwind and drift into badly needed sleep, Maru knew just the right place to scratch to help the tension melt away from their frames.
He had known Blade's sweet spot for decades. Maru couldn't say the exact moment when he had discovered it, but now when the helicopter was hurting or plagued by nightmares the mechanic would make long soothing strokes up Blade's nose to just below his windshield. Blade would often protest when Maru would start running his tines up his black-painted skin, but those protests would often cease the moment that the first stroke ended. The helicopter would shutter for just a moment as the tension started to leach out of his frame and Maru would soon be able to lull him to sleep.
Windlifter's sweet spot had been one of the easiest to find. When the Skycrane was stressed, he had a bad habit of clenching his teeth so hard that Maru was sometimes worried he would crack one. When this happened, Maru had found that running his tine along the big helicopter's jawline often forced Windlifter to open his mouth. Once that was done, all the mechanic had to do was keep massaging the point until the rest of the stress in his frame began to dissolve.
Maru wasn't sure if he would have been able to locate Cabbie's sweet spot if it hadn't already been in his medical file. It was located upon the center of his back, where the joint between his wing spars used to be. Now it was an area thick with solder. Over the years, Maru could tell when that mound of solder started to develop an itch that would probably drive a lesser aircraft mad…but Cabbie, old Cabbie would never mutter a peep about it. That said, if Maru offered to scratch it for him, Cabbie never said no. And even though it was a lot of work to climb up on Cabbie's back, Maru was more than willing to do it because the old plane was always so grateful to be granted relief from the itch that was tormenting him.
All of the smaller planes that came under Maru's care tended to have the very same sweet spot. Which Maru found fairly amusing. They all like their bellies rubbed. For Dipper, she particularly liked being stroked on either side of her scoop and would sometimes find shallow rocks on anchor lake to rub up against. The SEATs tended to particularly enjoy when Maru was able to scrub down their bellies with some water and a scrub brush, with each of them practically melting like butter under the attention.
Yes, every single one of the aircraft under Maru's care craved touch in one way or another. But what most of the aircraft didn't realize was that the need went both ways. When things went wrong or nightmares reared their ugly heads, Maru needed the aircraft around him to help keep him grounded. He needed to press against Blade's skin and hear the whir of his pumps. He needed to shelter under Cabbie's broad wings and know that he wasn't alone in the world. He needed to tinker, to work, to be relayed upon. Maru knew that the aircraft he worked with sometimes felt guilty about relying on the mechanic for their survival…but what the aircraft never knew was Maru desperately needed to be needed by them.
Term – Unwind – To unwind means to release tension or stress. It is particularly important to find ways and time to unwind when performing dangerous or complex types of work such as firefighting.