Blargh. Here, just like I promised.
I do not own Outlaw Star or any of it's characters. Outlaw Star owns me.
But Anoki is mine.
So back off.
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It was a peaceful morning at Starwind and Hawkins Enterprises. The sky was blue, and the air crisp as the bright autumn sun shone through it. Inside, things were tidy and neat, no doubt Melfina's doing, and the smells of bacon frying and sweet maple syrup filled the room as the very same busy bodied Melfina prepared breakfast. At the counter, a young blonde boy tinkered with a decrepit laptop, his cobalt eyes stealing an admiring peek at his android friend from time to time. Through the clatter of pans and the noises of a busy kitchen, there was silence, setting the mood for a lazy weekend morning that not even an obnoxious C'tarl could ruin.
Or that's what you might have assumed, if you didn't know a certain Miss Aisha Clan Clan.
"GENE!" Aisha's abrasive voice replaced those happy morning noises throughout the house, "The bastard can't even do his own damn laundry around here." Scooping up the pile of clothes she was fretting over, Aisha tucked it under an arm and made her way to Gene's bunk, convinced to pick a bone with him. With her devious C'tarl smile she made her way up the stairs, missing the tell-tale squeaky one with those catlike reflexes, and found herself by his bedside looking down at the sleeping redhead. True to form, Gene lay there with his head half under pillow, many irritated Gilliam robots bouncing on his unconscious body in an attempt to follow through with his wakeup call.
-Thunk- Quick as lightning, Aisha picked up one of those talking blue pop-cans and whipped it at Gene's foolishly still partially visible head. Not many people would enjoy this, and neither did Gene, groaning his tired unappreciative-ness up at her. The pillow would lift a bit to reveal one eye glaring sleepily up at Aisha, only to see a pile of laundry instead as it came crashing down onto his face. "You terrans are so damn lazy. That'll teach you", Aisha did a trademark flex and strutted triumphantly back down the stairs. "You were a load that should have been swallowed!" Gene called loudly down at her, pushing the pile of clothes onto the floor and tripping out of bed for breakfast.
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"Breakfast is ready now," Melfina spoke softly in her sing-song voice, her delicate fingers setting the plates around the table. In response, Jim finished whatever he was doing with that poor old pc, putting his screwdriver down and sliding down off his seat to wash his hands before eating. Mel would be disappointed if they were dirty. Hands cleaned thoroughly enough for inspection, Jim kissed his thumb and pressed it to the blank monitor and headed for the table.
"So have you found any job offers yet?" The boy sat down and questioned his currently dressing friend.
"Only chump change" Gene's replied, his voice muffled as he pulled his shirt over his head. "Mel that smells great! You just keep getting better and better! … Where's Sazuka?" Gene carried on while taking a seat. Melfina blushed her thanks and began to pass serving bowls full of eggs, bacon and pancakes around the table.
"Sazuka? She's around, I think she left around seven this morning" Jim said between chews, wolfing down his breakfast and seconds like growing boys do.
"And you would know that too, If you'd actually wake up in THE MORNING!" Aisha criticized, obviously still holding a grudge.
"Oh, like a flake like you can really harp at someone else" Gene shot back.
"As a matter of fact, I CAN! You mister, can't even get dressed in his room, comes out pulling on a shirt and brushing his hair. A true C'tarl C'tarl has dignity in his race and self. A true C'tarl C'tarl would never…" Aisha stopped to gather the right words, "Advertise himself! You terrans really are pathetic!" and with that she stuffed her face, conversation over. But unfortunately, Gene was not so quick on such subtle clues, and in his mind there was still time to win the argument.
"How many times do I have to tell you? I'm not one of your damn C'tarl! And it's not like I would complain if you came out to breakfast dressing yourself." -ktunk- And of course, all his effort got him was a Tupperware cup to the head. But would that fly with Gene Starwind? Oh no it would not. He flopped out of his chair less than gracefully to fumble for the cup, preparing to retaliate as soon as his hand was around it.
"Gene, quit messing around! We really have a dilemma here! If we don't get a job soon, we'll fall so behind on payments, we'll never get out of this hole you dug for us both!" Jim was always the level-headed one, ending the small war with his irritated words. But his irritation wasn't unreasonable, he still needed to check their books to see if they could even afford to eat this morning.
"I gotta wait to make it big! You understand, don't you Jim?" Gene said, ambling back over to the table to lean back in his chair. An over all good-natured smile was flashed towards Jim to calm his nerves, but occasionally Gene would eye Aisha, fingering the cup in his hand patiently as he awaited the perfect time to strike back.
"No Gene, you don't understand! We need a job NOW! If you wont work for chump change than I will, and you can just sit on your ass and 'make it big'" Jim put his words inside finger quotations to emphasize his point, standing up to his full height of short to take his plate and go sit in front of his computer on the opposite side of the room. "Sorry to leave so rudely, but I have to see if the hole Gene is digging will be big enough to accommodate all of us" Jim called out across the room, to, of course, no one in particular.
"If it's that bad, I think I'll call you-know-who. He's always got a job or two for me to make up the debt," Gene thoughtfully ran his hands through his hair, "Have we talked to him lately? Geeze, it's been like a month! I was expecting Fred to call any day now, especially after I asked for those new missals awhile ago…"
"Not that I know of, but then, I'm usually preoccupied enough to not notice things like that" Jim momentarily pulled himself away from the screen to snap at Gene, only to zone back in again.
"I'll see you guys a little later then, ok? I need to go shopping for groceries, how much money can I spend Jim?" Melfina stood anxiously at the door with her cloth shopping bag in hand, hoping to get away from the argument and perhaps calm it a bit at the same time.
"Oh about a grand total of… 105 Wong…" Jim sighed, "Gene, I hate to say it, but you're right. It might be time to call Fred…"
"Well, bye then…" Mel trailed off and shut the door behind her. Gene turned his head to watch her go, and he felt himself begin to become more uneasy as well. If they were really that low on funds...
"While you two call Fred and work out your differences, I think I'll go get changed" Aisha shivered in her pajamas and put her plate in the sink.
"Yeah, you wouldn't want to advertise yourself or anything," The redhead poked fun at her attire, licking his lips playfully as he gave her an exaggerated look down. Her voluptuous body was not particularly well hidden under the loose fitting pants and the two-sizes-too-small tank top. This gesture of course got him the satisfaction of Aisha blushing furiously... -THWAP- but this small victory was canceled out by him nearly being knocked unconscious as Aisha's hand came in contact with his head.
"Damnit Gene! That's not funny!" She growled before storming out of the room.
"Score... 4/1, Aisha" Gene grumbled, getting up from the floor.
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AN:
There, chapter 2 re-written, so I don't start getting death threats.
w/3 the author