Ret had just finished his shift as a guard. Normally, Ret was stationed in the purification rooms, assisting in removing Corruption or Kenic Spores on larger patients. Despite being (somehow) one of the taller members of the Thantir, Ret’s presence was considered somewhat calming, as he was a big, strong armoured guy with a more caring personality, even when things got somewhat dicey.
Today though, because the really big guys were all busy, Ret was just doing perimeter guard duties, pacing back and forth with both his gun-staff and a summoned dagger of light, making sure that no one got too aggressive. Now that Galyn, this shift’s main guard, had returned, Ret could take a break and relax a little. The only problem was that Kuta hadn’t finished their work yet, and it would be at least several hours before Kuta was done.
As Ret waved to Galyn and made his way over to the canteen, Ret noticed that Tanos was sitting on his own, rather than with his two Vohra friends and one Lanex friend, who were currently on break and on the beach, making a new boat. Ret immediately decided to go over and see if Tanos was alright.
“Oh, hi, Retvik…” Tanos muttered as Ret approached.
“Hello!” Ret smiled. “Is something wrong? You do not seem particularly happy today.”
Tanos sighed to himself. “I kinda… want to do stuff, but… I don’t know. I just feel down and a bit lonely.”
“Aw, why?” Ret asked. “Do you want me to sit with you? And do you want any food?”
“No, I’m… I think I’m good, thanks.”
“Are you sure?”
Tanos nodded. Ret shrugged and decided to go and get Tanos a drink anyway, since Ret wanted a drink as well. He grabbed an energy drink for Tanos and a diet cola for Ret himself. Ret never had sugary drinks, not only were they less healthy, but Ret always thought that non-diet drinks tasted metallic.
As Ret handed Tanos his drink, he decided to ask again if Tanos was alright.
“You seem unhappy today. Are you sure you are fine? We can talk if you have a problem or something.”
Tanos hesitated, then took his drink and sipped some of it. After a little more thought, he decided to talk. Talking to Ret was always helpful.
“I… I kinda have a problem.”
Ret put an arm around Tanos. “Do you want to talk about it? And do you want to be a fluffy kitty so I can pet you?”
Tanos shook his head. “That’s not… not quite what I want. I feel bad for asking though, because, well, it’s silly. And Akah is busy playing with Talok and Tahvra so I don’t want to bother him…” Tanos paused. “I just realised, I have no idea where Nyssi and Kayel are.”
Ret grunted, then pointed behind him, at one of the patients’ rooms. “Nyssi is helping Kuta and Litvir with a telepathy thingy. Kayel is still in the old class room with all the other Skyavok, and Arkay.”
Tanos glanced behind himself, then at the nearby separate room. There was a Do Not Disturb sign still stuck to the door.
“Do you know what they’re doing in there?” Tanos asked.
“No, I have no clue. Kayel called it a sleep-over with alcohol and waffles.”
“Oh.”
Tanos fell silent, constantly sighing to himself. Ret shifted closer and put an arm around Tanos.
“Something is troubling you.”
“Kinda. It’s embarrassing.”
“I will not tell anyone, if you wish.”
Tanos frowned. “It’s stupid.”
“I would wager that it is not stupid, you just feel it is.”
“Eh… It’s complicated…”
Tanos fell silent yet again, now sipping his drink. Ret thought for a moment, trying to work out what to do. They both remained silent for a bit, but Ret eventually decided to ask something.
“Do you want me to pet you, but not as a fluffy kitty?” Ret asked.
“Kinda… I want to have my fur brushed.”
Ret looked Tanos up and down. “Is that all?”
“… Yeah… I was going to ask Akah but he’s busy right now. It turns out, I really like having my mane and tail brushed, but I’ve been a little embarrassed about asking anyone else.”
“Do you have a fur brush?”
“I have some in my room.”
Ret inspected Tanos some more, then smiled. He swiftly picked Tanos up, then carried him up towards the sleeping quarters, while bringing their drinks with them via Ret’s gravity powers. Ret then opened Tanos’s door and sat Tanos on his bed.
“Where is your brush?”
“Um…” Tanos hesitated, not expecting to have been carried like that. “It’s in the drawer in my desk.”
Ret immediately found the brush, then sat next to Tanos. However, Ret did hesitate for a moment.
“I apologise, I am not sure how to brush fur. Do I just pull the brush through your fur in the direction it flows? Or do I go in all directions?”
“You got it right the first time, you follow the flow of my fur.”
“Ah, I see…”
Ret twisted Tanos to one side, then very gently started brushing his fur. Ret started on Tanos’s head, then worked his way down to Tanos’s fur collar, but stopped for a moment.
“Um, Tenuk?”
“Yeah?”
“Is there anywhere you do not want me to brush you?”
Tanos shrugged. “I guess you can brush wherever you want, that isn’t underneath my clothes.”
“Alright, understood.”
Both Ret and Tanos fell silent. Ret mostly focused on brushing Tanos’s super furry mane. But he noticed that Tanos really liked having his back and the top of his tail brushed as well. Admittedly, Ret didn’t brush much of Tanos’s tail, mostly because Ret had found two small knives hidden among his thick tail hair.
“Are you enjoying this?” Ret asked, after a rather long bout of silence.
“Yeah, I am, actually.”
Ret smiled. “Would you like to do this more often?”
Tanos thought for a moment, then smiled too. “Yeah, I would, actually.”
Ret patted Tanos on the head. “Well, let me know when you want more brushing, and I will brush you.”
Tanos’s smile got bigger. He turned around and hugged Ret.
“Thank you, best friend.”
“Thank you too, this has been fun.”
“Yeah…”