Ok, sorry about how the last chapter was so stressful, but you all probably know by now, if you've read any of my other stories, that I live off of plot twists like this. Well, let's get on with it.
You know the disclaimers by now.
"Until one has loved an animal
A part of one's soul remains unawakened."
~ Anatole France
When Sugi woke up, it was the middle of the night, and Cad was shaking her shoulder.
"What is it?" She muttered, accent so thick it was hard to understand her.
"The hospital just called; Embo's stable, but they're going to keep an eye on him for a few days. They said we can see him in the morning." Sugi was instantly more awake, and sat up a little.
"He's going to be ok?"
"They think so, but that could change at any time. I just thought you'd like to know what they said." With that, he went back to his own room, and Sugi went back to sleep, her dreams more peaceful than before.
When morning came, Sugi stumbled half-asleep into the little kitchen, only to find Cad already there, eating his breakfast and drinking a cup of caf. Sugi quickly located the pot of caf, and poured a mug for herself.
"Not a morning person?" The Duros asked in amusement, chuckling when the Zabrak merely grunted. Sugi downed the entire mug of caf in a few seconds, poured another, then walked over to the table. She looked more awake now, though her eyes were still half-closed.
"What's there to eat?" She asked, and Cad pushed a plate of leftover bantha roast over to her.
"I'm trying to clean out the fridge," he said, but Sugi didn't care. It was warm, and it was food. She ate it quickly, drinking her caf between every other bite, and they were both soon finished.
"What do we do with the dishes?" Sugi asked, and Cad shook his head.
"Usually, we'd wash them and leave them to dry, but we don't have time today," he said, standing up. "I've got a set of clothes ready to bring to the hospital, and I'm going to need to show you around after we visit. I also need to run a few errands… we're running low on a few things."
"I'll go get my shoes," Sugi said, walking out of the room. Soon, she was back, and the two of them left the apartment.
When they arrived at the hospital, Cad went up to the reception desk, and they were guided to Embo's room in the ICU.
The Kyuzo lay on the bed, hooked up to two separate IVs, one giving him medicines and fluids, and the other giving him what was obviously the synthesized blood. A medical mask was fitted over his mouth and nose, and his right leg was encased in a white cast and elevated by a sling. His torso was wrapped in fresh bandages, and a heart monitor beeped slowly and steadily beside him. He was asleep.
For some reason, seeing such a strong person looking so fragile made Sugi feel like her hearts were breaking into a million tiny pieces. It scared her, seeing Embo like this. Like he was made of glass that would shatter at the slightest touch.
"Poor Embo…" She whispered, while Cad was talking to the doctor. Sugi went over to the bed, and sat down in the chair next to it. Then, just as she was about to reach for Embo's hand, another nurse came in.
"Excuse me for interrupting, doctor, but there is a woman here to visit the patients. She says that she wants to see as many of them as possible…"
"Who is this woman?" The doctor asked, and the nurse swallowed.
"Commander Tanoka Anko of the Grand Army of the Republic."
"Mr. Bane, is it all right for the Commander to visit your friend?" The doctor asked, and Cad nodded.
Just as Embo woke up, a Togruta woman with orange skin and form-fitting blue and green clothing walked in. The Kyuzo looked at Sugi, eyes slightly vacant.
"Sugi…" He said softly, and the Zabrak chuckled. 'Sounds like someone's on some powerful pain meds.'
"Good morning, Embo," She said, just as the Commander came over, a clone following her with armfuls of small wrapped packages.
"Hello," She said, attracting Embo's attention. "I'm Tanoka; I just came by to wish you a speedy recovery, and to give you a small gift." She took one of the packages from her subordinate, and placed it within reach on his bedside table.
"Thank you for your concern," he said weakly, and when the Commander looked confused, Sugi translated for her.
"You are welcome, Brave One," Tanoka said, smiling softly. It felt to Embo that she had somehow seen right through him, right into his soul, and it made him feel nervous. However, she didn't seem to be judging him badly… it was more like she respected him.
After a few more minutes, the Commander and the clone moved on to the next room. Cad went to sit next to his friend as well, putting a hand on Embo's good shoulder.
"The doc says you're probably going to be able to come to the apartment in about a a week, if everything goes well." Embo smiled tiredly at the Duros, eyes starting to drift shut again.
"That's good…" he mumbled sleepily, and the doctor came over.
"I think it's time to let him rest," he said, "you can come back later."
"Thanks for taking care of him, doc," Cad said, getting up. Sugi stood as well, gently giving Embo's hand a squeeze.
When they left, the Kyuzo was sound asleep...
"Ok, Sugi, first thing's first; I gotta go to the market to get a few things," Cad said, driving the speeder through Coruscant. "You probably should think about getting a few things yourself, like a change of clothes so you can get the ones you're wearing cleaned."
"But… I have no money," the Zabrak said, looking at him worriedly.
"I'll give you some; Embo and I always share our paychecks, so he won't mind you getting some. Besides, I already sent half of it to Phatrong for him."
"Why Phatrong?"
"He always sends half of his earnings to the village he was raised in, as his way of helping his father keep the village going," Cad explained, as they approached the large market. "He's one of the sons of the village chief."
Before Sugi could ask more, the Duros parked the speeder, pocketed the keys, and hopped out. "Come on, and stay close. Don't want you getting lost in the crowd."
As Cad was showing Sugi around the market, stopping a few times to make purchases, the Zabrak was distracted by a soft whining sound, like some kind of scared animal. Then , there was a loud yelp of pain, and the sound of glass breaking!
"Sugi! Get back here!" Cad shouted, as the Zabrak ran off. She ignored him.
Soon, Sugi found an angry-looking human man, holding an empty glass bottle, glaring at a dirty gray ball of fur cowering in the corner of an alley. The little animal was surrounded by the remains of another glass bottle, and some were stuck in its fur. The man was about to throw the other bottle, but Sugi pulled a knife from her belt, and pinned him to the wall, the blade to his throat.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Sugi snarled in his face. The man's breath reeked of alcohol, and he seemed irrationally furious.
"What do you care about that ruby?" He snapped, baring his teeth. They were crooked and slightly yellow, one of them covered in metal.
"The poor thing did nothing to you," the Zabrak growled, pressing her knife closer to the man's throat. "I may be new to this planet, but I do know that there are laws against how you treated that animal."
"It's a runty stray!" The man snarled, looking a little crazed. He was obviously drunk. "Probably feral and diseased! I'd be doing everyone a favor getting rid of it!"
Sugi couldn't take it anymore. She yanked her knife away from his throat, then swung her other fist at him, punching him in the face and knocking him out cold. As the drunken man slumped to the ground, Sugi went over to the little animal in the corner of the alley.
The poor thing was whining, staring at the Zabrak with big, terrified eyes. As she approached, it curled up in a ball, trying to look smaller and non-threatening, and Sugi felt like her heart broke at the sight.
"It's ok… I'm not going to hurt you," She said softly, kneeling down next to the little animal. Carefully, she slid her hands under the dirty grey fluff ball, and gently lifted it into her arms. "There, see? You're ok…"
Then, just as she walked out of the alley, Cad caught up to her.
"There you are," he said, panting. Then, he saw the little animal in her arms. "What is… That's an anooba!"
"Anooba?" Sugi asked, cradling the little fur ball.
"Yeah… looks to be about two months old…" the Duros said, looking closely at the puppy. "It's a boy… really thin and small, though…"
"A man was attacking him," Sugi said, "Aren't there laws against that?"
"Yeah, there are," Cad said, frowning. "Stay here, I'll get a police droid."
Ten minutes later, the man Sugi had knocked out was taken into custody, Sugi was interviewed, and pictures were taken of both the puppy and the alleyway. When the police droids left, Sugi looked at Cad.
"I really don't want to just leave this little guy at a shelter…" she said, holding the little anooba puppy close to her. Then, she got an idea. "You know… Embo always seems so… distant. Almost to the point that he's completely antisocial."
"Yeah?" Cad said, confused. He's known Embo for a little over a year now, and he hadn't really thought anything was off about him before… but now that he thought about it, he realized that his best friend didn't really have anyone to interact with, other than him, and now Sugi. He must be so lonely…
"Maybe we can give him this little guy as a pet!" Sugi said happily, and Cad smiled. Yes… maybe a pet was just what Embo needed.
After returning to the apartment, anooba puppy in hand, Sugi and Cad went to the 'fresher to clean the little guy up. They had purchased some pet shampoo and some food and such, so they could take care of the puppy while Embo was in the hospital.
"Make sure the water isn't too hot," Sugi told Cad, still holding the little anooba.
"Don't worry, it's not," the Duros said, filling the tub. Then, the Zabrak put the puppy in the water, causing a bit of splashing and momentary panic. Soon, however, he calmed down, and enjoyed the scrubbing from the two humanoids.
"Hey… this little guy isn't grey," Sugi said, as dirt and grime washed away to reveal bright white fur.
"A white anooba…" Cad said, amazed. "They're really rare…"
The next morning, Cad and Sugi went back to the hospital. They had gotten permission to bring the puppy inside to show to Embo, mainly because they had a veterinarian check him out beforehand. The little white fur ball seemed to know that something big was going on, because he was trotting happily beside Sugi, head held high and tail wagging excitedly. The Zabrak was holding his leash, and Cad had a small bag of treats in his jacket pocket.
When they walked into the room, they saw that Embo was already awake, and looked far more alert than the last time they visited.
"Hey, pal," Cad said, going over and sitting down next to the bed. Embo smiled at him tiredly, happy to see his best friend. Then, he noticed Sugi picking up a little, wriggling, white ball of fluff from the floor, and he looked over curiously. Then, his eyes widened in surprise.
"We brought you a little friend," Sugi said, bringing the anooba puppy over to the Kyuzo. Embo stared at it, not able to believe his eyes.
"H-How… where…" he said haltingly, trying to form the words. Sugi smiled sadly.
"When we went to the market yesterday, I found a man beating him in an alley. I rescued him, and Cad and I decided to give him to you as a loyal companion." Then, she sat down in the chair next to the Duros, and held the puppy out to the Kyuzo. "Go on, he's yours."
Shakily, Embo reached over, careful of the IV still in his right wrist (the blood transfusion had been completed, so they took the other IV out earlier), and took the puppy from Sugi. The little thing stopped wriggling, tilting his head at Embo curiously, his tail still wagging. The Kyuzo put the puppy next to him on his bed, and the adorable creature curled up by his right side, laying his head on the section of his chest that had no injuries. When Embo started to stroke the puppy's head, the little ball of fluff licked his hand, causing the Kyuzo to chuckle softly.
"He's so adorable…" he said, unable to help himself. The puppy seemed to know just what to do to make him feel better; staying calm and offering licks and companionship and love. Then, Embo thought of something, and smiled. "I think I'll call him… Marrok."
WHOA! Who saw THAT coming, huh? I decided to run a little longer with this chapter to make up for the shortness of some of the others, so I hope you enjoyed it! I bet you were all wondering why Marrok wasn't involved in the first three chapters… it was because he hadn't met Embo yet!
As usual, please R&R!