I Just Wanted to Say…
By DrummondType2
A/N: Set between episodes 21-22 of 2199.
Repairs were well under way, and the command crew was in negotiations with the members of the Gamilon resistance movement that had liberated the planet they were now on. They had already survived a good deal, and there was now hope.
Yuria Misaki found that she was getting the occasional strange look from some of the others. She could only recall vague bits and pieces of the time she'd been overtaken by the mind of their alien benefactor, Yurisha of Iscandar.
She was wandering the corridors of the ship aimlessly now that she was off-duty, hoping to run into Toru Hoshina again.
She had rounded a corner at a junction when she felt a pair of arms envelop her from behind. She knew, without looking, who it was who was embracing her, even before the fragrance of an otherworldly perfume tickled at her nostrils or that feathery voice spoke gently in her ear. You don't host someone in your own head without developing a sense of them, Yuria concluded.
"Misaki, hello," Yuria spoke in her usual soft voice, even as she pulled the younger woman to her.
"Y-Yurisha? Um…Princess Yurisha…?" How did one address an alien princess, Yuria Misaki wondered. Yurisha seemed to be holding to the Japanese convention of addressing her by her family name, but was that because she had learned the custom while in Yuria's mind, or was it because Iscandarians shared the custom? But Yurisha seemed to be the only name she offered.
"Just 'Yurisha' is fine," the willowy alien said with a smile, "I am not your princess, after all."
"Did you…need something, Yurisha?" Misaki asked her.
"Forgiveness," Yurisha said gently, "Your forgiveness. I did not ask permission to make use of your body, or to share your mind. For that, I am sorry."
Yuria considered this a moment, then shook her head, "I've got the highest psychic rating on the ship. Is there anyone else you could have used?"
"No," Yurisha admitted.
"You did what you had to do," Yuria said, turning to face the Iscandarian woman, "You needed to communicate, and I was the only choice you had. So...I'm not bitter or angry about it, Yurisha. I mean, you didn't use me to do anything untoward, right? You just needed to talk to people."
"Well," Yurisha twirled her hair absently with one finger, "I may have taken a bit of sensual pleasure in eating and gone a little overboard while inhabiting you. It had been awhile since I'd tasted food or drink."
Yuria managed a small laugh, "I haven't seen any extra kilos on the scale, so that's all good. But I'm being honest, Yurisha, I'm not mad about it. You…I sensed your power, when you were in my mind. You could have just pushed me out and been done, but allowed me to know you were there and didn't do more than you needed to. Though…"
Yuria blushed a bit.
"Though?"
"You told Hoshina how I felt?" Yuria was scarlet now.
"He was very worried for your well-being when I was sharing your body," Yurisha smiled, "I thought you'd want him to know that you were grateful."
"And then there was your feelings for Mori…" Yuria paused. Thinking about Lieutenant Mori, who was now missing, made her worry all the more.
"I love Yuki," Yurisha said with the same ease as she might have been discussing the weather, "She is very precious to me. I hope to see her soon."
"I guess Iscandarians feel love the same way humans do…" Yuria pondered, "Oh, not to say there's anything wrong with that, but…"
"There are as many kinds of love as there are people to feel it," Yurisha smiled brightly.
"But when you say you love her…Do you mean, romantic love? " Because that's probably something she feels for Kodai, Yuria thought to herself, "Or friendship? Or…something else?"
"Yes," Yurisha smiled broadly, offering no actual clarification. Yuria had to wonder if she meant all of the above, or just one of the options listed. Even having touched this woman's mind, she still found her an enigma.
As if to prove the point, she suddenly found Yurisha leaning forward. She touched her lips to Yuria's own, petal soft and light. Yuria felt a strange tingling sensation up and down the whole of her body, and then Yurisha broke contact.
"I am thanking you for the help you provided me," Yurisha beamed at Yuria, then spoke past the younger woman, "You should thank her for her feelings, too."
Yuria turned to see Hoshina, standing behind her, staring with a perplexed, wide-eyed expression. Yurisha giggled and walked past him.
"Be sure to thank Hoshina for his love and concern as well, Misaki," the alien woman giggled as she left them.
Hoshina joined Yuria, still staring after Yurisha as she left.
"Must be an Iscandarian custom," Hoshina mused.
"Y-yeah," Yuria blinked, blushing.
"I was just heading to the Mess Hall," Hoshina said, turning his attention to Yuria, "You want to join me?"
"Um…sure."
"So, what was that all about, anyway?" Hoshina asked.
"Yurisha was asking me to forgive her for borrowing my body for a bit. I told her that I understood her need. I guess Iscandarians are just freer with their feelings."
"Seems like it," Hoshina smiled gently, "But maybe there's something in that."
"Maybe there is?" she returned the smile, "Your wounds healing up?"
"Yeah. Doc says it's going to be a couple more days before I can return to full duty, though. I feel kinda like a third wheel right now, with everyone working to get the ship back to fully operational."
"Well, you can be my guard and watch over me in the meanwhile," Yuria said.
"I'd like that," Hoshina said.
"They say we're supposed to be under way tomorrow," Yuria informed him.
"Then, it won't be much longer before we get to Iscandar," Hoshina looked skyward with hope in his eyes.
"And Gamilas," Yuria cautioned, "We're flying right into the lion's den."
"Well, now that we know that the Gamilans revere Iscandar, maybe we won't have to fight,"Hoshina said, "Maybe Yurisha can simply ask them to let us pass peacefully. Or at the least, maybe they won't fire on us if they know she's aboard."
"You think?"
"I try to stay optimistic," Hoshina shrugged, "It's why I'm on this ship. Well, that and to root out all of Serizawa's moles."
Yuria took his hand, "Well, we all came on this ship, so I think…I think maybe we're all optimists, in our own right. And right now…I have hope for the future."
She squeezed his hand for emphasis.
He looked at her, then smiled more broadly, "Yeah, maybe we are."
"Say, after dinner, would you like to talk in my quarters for a bit? Makoto is out spending time with Kato."
"Sure. I'd like that."
She suddenly felt Yurisha's voice in her head, almost a stray thought left over from when the two had been joined, or perhaps a psychic impression left by Yurisha's kiss, and she now realized that she wanted to express the same sentiment to Hoshina.
"I just wanted to say…thank you for being there when I needed you."