12 Unwinding
"Cute filly you two got there. Sure looks alot like her mother," a woman said, sitting down across from Scott and next to Larry. The liger looked over to where Juno was chatting excitedly with a young kangaroo mouse, waving and pointing at the way the tropical sunset cast a pink hue across the island. The two were taking pictures of everything, more than once snapping a photo of each other taking photos.Scott blushed at this honest mistake, but Janine was used to this sort of confusion and took it in stride. "Thank you, but no, she's my little sister. We're not parents... at least, not yet." She flashed her boyfriend a playful, promising grin. "But she's a good kid, so much like our father was. That girl loves her photography.""I can see that, she is getting along so well with my Sisy over there. Just a couple of shutterbugs," the liger said with a broad smile."Sisy? You mean that little mouse?" Janine asked, incredulously. "How does a liger end up with a mouse for a kid? If you don't mind me asking, Miss -?"Reaching across the table, extending a paw she introduced herself, "Lilliana Fargo, but you can call me Lilly. You know a lot of people have asked me that since we got on the ship. You want the short or long version?""Hello, Lilly. I'm Janine, this is my boyfriend, Scott, and sitting next to you is Larry," the mare said politely. Scott gave a slight nod and a smile in greeting, and Larry offered a friendly paw."Hi, Lilly," Mr. O'Donnell said, giving her a firm pawshake. "Larry O'Donnell. A pleasure.""Nice to mean you, Larry, Jenny and Scott," she said as she leaned back in her chair, "hope I got those right. I'm terrible with names.""Well, I guess it's up to you and whatever you feel like sharing, really," Janine said. "I don't mean to come across as being nosy and pry into your personal matters. I'll try and think of a good story to share back.""Hell, if you want to know something, ask. It irks the shit out of me when people don't have the balls to ask simple questions." The liger looked over at Janine with a smile as she continued, "I'll go with the condensed version, still kind of wild, though. I found her with some coyotes in D.C. after a debriefing. You know, out on the town, trying to start vacation. After a short talk they decided to leave her alone, and I took her back to my place only to find out she was a runaway. Long story short, it fucked my vacation plans all the hell. We spent the time working on adopting her instead of hitting up the hot spots for summer." She looked over at the small mouse with a smile. "She's the best stupid choice I've made in a long time.""Debriefing? You're military?" Larry asked."Was, but that one was a DoD contract ending. I got out after my last deployment to Iraq. Things went south on our last mission." The liger replied as she stared into the distance for a moment."I see. It's not as heroic, but before I met my wife, I was in Civil Air Patrol. I entertained the thought of entering the Air Force, but life happened, and now I have my son and daughter to look after," he thoughtfully shook the glass of rum, making the contents swirl, as he took a moment of quiet nostalgia. "Well, I had them to look after. Vincent's graduated, and Wendy's a pretty capable young lady now.""Another damned fly boy," the liger muttered to herself."That's so sweet," the equine woman replied, nodding seriously. She paused for a moment, collecting her thoughts. She had told this story to Scott already, but he was young and single, without any children to care for. Somehow, she thought Lilliana would appreciate her tale differently than Scott had. Not that Scott didn't appreciate the trials she had endured, but he couldn't understand. "Taking in an orphan off the street like that."She let out a deep sigh. "My story's a bit more regretful, I'm afraid. It was eight years ago. I was just about to graduate high school, and I was desperate to get out of the house and away from my parents and siblings. I needed my own space and some privacy. I wanted to get far away, and I intentionally avoided applying to
anything local. So we're in Colorado, checking out UC Boulder. While we were there, our parents decided to have a night out. There was a landslide... They... they..."She felt a pair of arms wrap around her shoulders, holding her close. Scott, she realized, smelling his cologne, and another paw placed on top of hers. Looking up, she saw Lilliana staring back at her, a serious expression on her face."Shit! That's gotta hurt. My buddy, Susan, kinda went through the same thing about six years back. Lost her whole family in under a year. Tragic. At least you still got the little one with you.""I know. Thank you," she sniffled. "Anyway, it was just us. Juno, our brother, Joel, and me, just seventeen at the time. Left to care for a ten-year-old boy and a three-year-old girl. College plans got shelved, at least for a little bit. I relied on the kindness of friends, family, and even strangers to get by. But all things considered, I think they turned out pretty good. I think if Mom and Dad could talk to us now, they would tell us just how proud they are.""Just the fact that you stuck it out with those kids, keeping them out of the system, your parents should be proud of you. The government can't take care of itself, let alone the needs of kids," Lilly leaned forward, looking at the mare as she continued, "Look, girl, you had your priorities in the right place. You had to take care of your brother and sister. Any asshat that looks down on you for that, ever, deserves a good swift kick in the junk. And if you ask me, that one there looks like she's doing good. How old is she, eleven or twelve if my math is right?" She looked over at the filly and mouse as they compared photos on their cameras. "My girl spent fifteen years in that system, almost her entire life." She clenched her fist as anger shot across face. Speaking through clenched teeth, she said, "I'm going to shut up before I do something I'll regret.""I see," Janine said, nodding in understanding. "Look, I won't pry, but I'm a high school guidance counselor. If you or - what was her name, Sisy? - ever feel like talking, give me a call," She fished around in her purse for a moment before producing a business card and passing it over to the liger.Lilly pulled out her cell phone as she accepted the card and said, "You know, any
help is good help." She snapped a picture of the card before handing it back. "I'll keep that in mind. I really have no idea what I am in for taking in a troubled teen. But there is no way I was going to leave her the way I found her." She turned to watch the small mouse as she continued. "We hit a little bump in the road last night, but I think we're getting past it ok now. She had a long talk with a new friend earlier, and seems to be doing better over all.""Hey, Dad."The adults turned their heads as a teenaged mouse approached the table. Larry looked up at his daughter and smiled broadly. "Hi, Honey. Are you excited for your big date tomorrow?" He held out his arm and pulled her in close for a hug. The young girl's eyes lit up with excitement."Oh my God, yes!" She exclaimed. "Violet and I are going to go check out Keck1! I've always wanted to visit. There's no way I'm leaving Hawaii without seeing it!""I'm glad you found someone to share these memories with, Sweetie. This is the happiest I've seen you in a long time," the older mouse said. "I'd like to meet Violet before the cruise is over.""I'd like that, too, Dad," she said. "But I don't want to think about when the cruise is over just yet. Being away from Violet is going to kill me.""Where is she?" Larry asked."Something came up with her family," Wendy said. "She hasn't been able to get away all day." Suddenly remembering her manners, she blushed and looked at the other adults. "Uhm, sorry. Hi, Miss Hutcheson. Hello, everyone.""Hello, Wendy," the mare replied back politely. "Scott, this is Larry's daughter, Wendy. Wendy, this is my new boyfriend, Scott Ferris. And she," Janine indicated with a nod across the table, "is our new friend, Lilly.""Hi," she said. "It's nice to meet you." She held out her paw respectfully.The liger grabbed the teen mouse's paw firmly.
"Nice the meat you, Cheese cake. So many cute mice around here, I might have to keep better track of my own." She winked at the older mouse as she gave the girl's paw a quick pump."So no plans for tonight, then?" Larry asked."Nope. Shy's busy hiding. She won't tell me what's wrong, but until she opens up, there's not much I can do for her," Wendy shrugged. "So I figured I'd find you and see what you're up to.""How would you like to make a little money, then?" Janine asked. "Scott and I are thinking of turning in early tonight." She blushed as she said this; Wendy wasn't an idiot, and could no doubt tell what she meant by 'turn in,' but talking to one of her students about her sex life just seemed weird. "I'll pay you twenty bucks to look after Juno and get her back to her room safely tonight.""You don't have to pay me, Miss Hutcheson," the teen girl said, flashing a bright smile."You know, Sweetie, Juno and her friend are into photography. I bet they'd like to hear about some of the local flora and fauna," Larry said, indicating with a jerk of his head to where the young filly was eagerly snapping pictures with her new playmate."Sure thing, Dad," she said, before adding, "Good night, Miss Hutcheson. Good night, Scott. It was nice meeting you." She turned her back and walked towards the girls.Lilly looked over at the two equines with a half grin as she said, "You go have a good evening." Then she looked back at the two mice beside her, "Plants and animals, I have no idea how many disposables that girl has gone through snapping away at everything she sees. First day we were together she spent nearly eight hours taking pictures around Busch Gardens. I never even got to get on a ride.""That sounds like my Wendy. She'd spend the entire trip lecturing about how the propulsion system works on the newest ride, or how centrifugal force exerts pressure on the body to keep you pressed up against the side walls of the ride while it spins," Larry chuckled as he took a sip of his rum, his eyes full of pride as he watched his daughter join the two
girls."She seems like a sweet kid." Lilly glanced over at Larry and asked, "So, Wheres Mrs. O'Donnell?" Realizing just how blunt and rude the question might be she added, "If you don't mind me asking.""No, it's fine," Larry said with a sad smile. "Her mom's passed on. Died giving birth to my angel. It's just been the two of us and her brother her whole life.""Do I attracted sob stories or what? First day on the ship I met a guy who lost his girlfriend in a car accident. I personally lost seven soldiers in Iraq, my closest friend lost almost her entire family in one year. And my poor Squeaker just lived through the worst case scenario of the foster system." She turned slightly to face him. "I think I need another drink.""Allow me. What's your pleasure?" Larry asked, rising up from his chair.She looked out over the water for a moment, apparently lost in her thoughts before she turned back and said, "Larry, this feels like a whiskey week to me. In fact, the past two day feel like a Jack straight."
"So yeah, Ethan gave her the courage to stop hiding who she was. He took her out and paid for a complete makeover, and helped to transform her into the beautiful young lady you see today," Larry explained, kicking back another swig of Southern Comfort. "But that was just the start of the problems. All the kids that had been bullying her when she was 'Wendell' just got meaner. One girl - Josie, I think that was her name - started calling her names like 'mousetrap.' The jocks went and rigged the voting for Homecoming so that Wendy and Wendell O'Donnell won King and Queen.""Now that is just ignorant bullshit. But if she wasn't so shy she might have turned the Homecoming prank on them." Lilly looked at the mouse for a moment before she went on, "Fucken kids need and ass kicken. At least she had Ethan for support.""Yeah, while that lasted," he said dryly. "Part of me was happy for her, finding what she did with him. Part of me was also just as naive as those kids,
wanting to believe for just a minute that a four-way relationship could work itself out in the end. Part of me was just as crushed and angry as she was when it all fell apart."The golden color of Honey Jack Daniel's sprayed across the table as the liger coughed for a moment. "Four-what? Never mind, I know someone that might try that. Go on.""Yeah. Crazy, I know. Anyway, when Shyara - Wendy's best friend - got pregnant, she wanted things to be normal, for the sake of the baby. She demanded that he pick one of them... And it wasn't Wendy. She was devastated. She'd put on a brave face, try to hide behind reason and logic, but that didn't keep her from coming home and crying in her room." A tear formed in the corner of Larry's eye as he recounted his daughter's pain and suffering, and he killed the rest of his drink in a single go. "I wasn't sure what was worse for her, at the time. Even when she wasn't hiding who she was, she was still getting picked on, but at least when she was Wendell, she wasn't getting her heart trampled on. I was furious with Ethan, with Shyara, and with Claire, for what they did to her emotionally. Still, she's happier and more confident now than she ever was before, especially now that she's got this new girlfriend, Violet." He turned his head to look at the bartender, and held up his glass, indicating he'd like a refill."I am glad to hear things are looking up, but I hope the little shit picked the baby." As the waiter came by to replace Larry's drink the liger said, "Just bring the damned bottle, we're gonna need it."The small kangaroo mouse trotted up to the table, but suddenly stopped as she glanced over at the older mouse before looking at liger and asked, "Um, Lilly, can... Can we walk around and take pictures around the ship?" Her tail swung up into her paws as she shyly looked down and waited for the answer."So you want to pull your new little pony friend around the ship, and see how much trouble you can get into?" Lilly asked the mouse with a smile. "Did you even check to see if she could go?""No,"She admitted shyly."I think Wendy over there is the one in charge of her tonight, so you'll have to ask her. But you know the drill,
Squeaky; make with the gear check." Without hesitation, the mouse flung the denim backpack off and emptied the contents onto the deck in front of her. "Now, you have a bit more in there than before so let's start with the least important stuff. Sketchbook and pencils, roll of quarters," as the liger named off the items the mouse flashed them high over her head then placed them in the backpack one by one, "and cell phone."The mouse looked at the screen and meekly said, "Sixty percent and one extra battery." The little routine seem well practiced for the two."Okay, you're set. Go see if your friends want to tag along." Lilly pulled out her cell phone and placed it on the table as the mouse smiled and joyfully bounced back to the other girls.Wendy gave the pair a smile and wave, and turned away leading them off to tour the ship on their photography adventure. "She's precious," Larry said, looking back at Lilliana. "It's a good thing, what you did for her. I've seen some of the kids that go through the system. It's nice to see one that has the spark of life in her. I bet you had something to do with that.""Yea, she has opened up a lot since I got a hold of her. But that twinkle in her eye today I can't take credit for." She finished off the whisky in her paw. "She met a moose girl that put that spark there after a phone call today. That there is the most energetic and excited she had been the entire cruise. Well, maybe the second most excited, but that's a long fucked up story I can't talk about." The corners of the liger's mouth turned down as she finished. She looked over at the mouse and smiled. "Seeing her that open with someone she just met is just awesome. Makes me feel all warm inside.""Yeah? What about after this cruise? Where do you ladies call home?" Larry asked as he poured them another round."You're looking too far in the future on that question, Flyboy. We are kind of between things right now." She took a sip off the freshly poured glass, "I have decided to get out of the IT contracting business and do something stupid." With a slight giggle she added, "I got the do something stupid part done; now to find a new job and settle our motley band down somewhere. For now, I guess home is a remote cabin in the mountains of Oregon so far disconnected from the
real world we have to drive miles before we can even make a phone call." She laughed a little at the thought, as she asked, "What about you and your brood, where do you call home?""You're a military gal, so I assume you know where Marblecliff, NH is?" He asked, waiting for the liger to nod. When she did, he continued, "We live about twenty minutes from McKendry."She shook her head as she responded, "A flyboy living with squids. Well, you go where the work takes you, I guess; a two-year contract in Oregon was the longest I've been in one spot since I left the service." She thought for a moment. "Is it nice out there? I was thinking about settling down in one place and really have no idea where to start. That girl needs something more stable than this crazy girl is used to.""It's a little on the conservative side, if you consider where they are on herm rights. I thought about leaving a thousand times, for Wendy's sake, only to be met with less-than-stellar job opportunities. A fresh start at a new company usually means a pay cut, unless the brass comes knocking on your door. Me? I just fabricate components for whatever contraptions our clients decide to build," he took a slow sip and he took a moment to ponder what could have been, before continuing, "But don't get me wrong. Things are getting better. Wendy's inspired coming-out has since motivated a handful of others to do the same. They're pushing for the same rights as males and females, and slowly, but surely, people are starting to listen."He paused to make sure he wasn't boring Lilly to death, and locked eyes with her, seeing she was indeed paying full attention to his words. "Other than that, it's a pretty good place to live. The naval base does a lot for the local economy, and with so many residents depending on our service men and women, crime is staggeringly low. There are a few choice private schools, but even the public schools are pretty nice - just don't use my son as your example." He laughed and shook his head. "I love that boy to death, but he needs someone strong in his life to give him a kick in the ass. I'm afraid I spent too long as the provider and nurturer to be the disciplinarian.""It's hard to wear both hats when it's just you." She smiled for a moment, then went on, "I am a little surprised that I have help for the shit I manage to get myself into. I've spent too many years on my career, never really
thought about life after work. I think the biological clock is screaming at me now. I wanted to stop running around the world, walked away from successful career, and then made a split second decision to adopt that girl." She sighed as she took another long sip of her drink, "I must be losing my mind for real now."Lifting his glass, the mouse held it out in an impromptu toast and said, "Life's crazy."Lilliana tapped her glass to his with a hearty 'Hooah' and threw the contents down her muzzle. Her eyes twinkled as her mind ran through her options for the night. "How would you like to one more crazy item to our lists, Flyboy?""One of those 'what was I thinking' moments of wild abandon that we can both look back on some day and smile about? Miss Fargo, I believe you're becoming a bad influence on me," he said, a wide grin forming on his muzzle. "Sounds wonderful. My room's out of the question - I'm bunking up with my son and I have no idea when, or even if, he'll come back tonight. Would it be okay if I transferred some funds to Wendy's pre-paid card to help her keep Juno and Sisy busy for awhile?"Looking at the mouse with a mix of surprise and shock on her face, she said,. "Mr. O'Donnell, what kind of woman do you think I am? We met only a little while ago, and you think you can just bed me on a whim? I was thinking skydiving or a nude beach. My God, man."Larry turned stark white, the color fading from the exposed bits of fur-less skin. "I, I'm sorry, Lilly, I...I just, well, the way we were talking, and you're just so pretty, I... I'm sorry, I'm not usually so direct... It-it must be the alcohol..." He fidgeted awkwardly, but didn't shy away or try to excuse himself from the situation, as uncomfortable as he felt."Oh, so you thought you could just liquor me up first and have your way with me?" She watched as the mouse squirmed in his seat. "And on top of that, why not use my room, you have a handy way to get my kid out of the way while leaving yours to do as they please." She smiled as she let him simmer in the awkward moment."Lilly, I- I'm sorry," he sighed. "I don't normally drink this much, and it's been awhile since I've even tried talking to a woman... I...
I guess I'll go take a walk and try to sober up." He stood up from their table and looked her in the eyes. "It was a pleasure talking with you, ma'am. I'm sorry if I spoiled your evening."She grabbed his paw and pulled him back down into his seat. "You really do suck at this, don't you?" She asked as she laughed at him. "I am actually having a good time here; first one without my mouse at my side. And to be honest, I like my own bed better anyway, we got a queen we've been sharing." She looked him in the eye, "I am a little surprised to find an honest working man in a place like this and it's kind of hot. Look there's no need for you to pay your girl to watch mine, I can do that." A smirk crossed her face for a moment, "Or I could pay mine to watch yours. Their about the same age I think." A giggle escaped the liger at her suggestion."Lilliana Fargo, you evil minx!" Larry laughed, calming down. "What do you say, then? I pay for the girls' entertainment, and you cover the bar tab? I can have the money to Wendy in a matter of minutes.""I think you have a deal, Flyboy." She snapped her fingers to get the attention of the waitstaff. "I need another bottle of this fine spirit water and the check if you don't mind." She grabbed her phone from the table and tapped at the screen for a few moments. "I got my mouse covered on the plans; she has everything she needs for a night out."Larry finished typing out a message to his daughter and hit send.[8:42 PM - Me: I just added money to your card. You, Sisy, and Juno have fun.]Standing up, he offered his left elbow to his female companion and politely said, "Well, Miss Fargo, please, lead the way."She smiled at him as she took his arm in hers. "Such a refined gentleman. Are you going to try and carry me to the bed once we get there?" She jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow as she giggled.Laughing at her playfulness, he countered, "Something tells me we might not make it that far. I hope your room has plush carpet and cozy furniture."She bent over and lifted the mouse in both arms like a child. "If your that damned confident, Flyboy, you better prove it." She smiled widely as she carried the helpless mouse across the deck toward the elevators.Putting on the most serious expression he could muster, Larry gave her a firm salute and said, "Yes, ma'am."