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No day is more quiet on Rhodes Island than Thursdays. A day in the middle of the week, a day closer to the sacred weekend, a day where everyone is obsessed with work. The walls thinning out every single discussion and loud argument in other rooms, well, as much as you can silence the more feral Operators and workers. You’d always hear something, no matter where, no matter when. But Thursday night was pure and dead silence. No sound, no squeak, even the more energetic Operators would rest in their beds, silently sleeping, awaiting the next day, the start of the weekend.
These nights are perfect for taking a walk without interruption. Rosmontis would always choose to do so. One could say that it’s the night-active nature of cats like her, for her it was the comfort of nothing scaring her, for once. The comfort of knowing that there is nothing that would interrupt her walk.
Stepping out of her room, she didn’t even take out a lamp, she stepped out of the room, wearing a long sleeved night outfit, simple black pants, and a white shirt, her feet protected from the cold, metallic ground by slippers in pink, a cat’s face on each. A gift she received from Amiya, she hated stepping on cold grounds, and Amiya was the only one knowing about the nightly travels through the halls of Rhodes, simply because security cameras never sleep. There was nothing else stopping her, besides holding a bunny plushie with red eyes, wearing a blue jacket. A gift from Ch’en, some say the plushie is supposed to resemble the tough officer, noticeable through the grimace on its face, but Rosmontis simply found it adorable. She found comfort in anything she could hold onto. A person to hug, a jacket to hold, a plushie to carry.
A few steps in, however, there was something out of the ordinary. A noise, a door opening. It wasn’t Amiya’s room, she knew that, but she knew… no other room, besides where the medical staff was. She didn’t even know if it was a door leading into a dorm, a kitchen, anything. But hearing footsteps, Rosmontis shortly picked up her pace, running away, trying to hide behind a corner. From what was she running from exactly? Was it her fear of being seen, the fear of someone seeing her and questioning her? Whatever it was, the anxiety in her body instantly told her to run and hide. It would work with how normally quiet the Sniper Operator would be, yet the loud slaps of her slippers on the metallic ground while running was not really the best tool to help her escape silently. After noticing the slaps on the ground from her trying to escape, she slipped out of her footwear, continuing to run without them, yet yelping a little from feeling the extra cold ground during this winter season. It wasn’t over though, as she heard footsteps approaching her, and only when turning around, she noticed what it was. A shadowy figure, long and ruffled hair, yellow, bright eyes peering almost into Rosmontis’ soul.
“EEK-” Was the only thing the Operator could bring out, the figure looking like a horror monster from one of the movies Beagle and the others tried to introduce her to. Instantly, Rosmontis continued her escape, just to get away from whatever creature this was, and running behind a corner, hiding behind it, sinking down to the ground and holding onto her plush, her back against the wall, her head pushing into the bunny plushie, almost hiding behind it, feeling it will protect her, the comfort she has, hoping it will keep her safe. The noise of someone running, probably the figure, was the only thing she heard, besides her own heavy breathing, fueled by anxiety and fear growing.
“What now?” Was the only thought going through the head of Rosmontis, with her clinging tightly, squeezing onto her stuffed plushie, as the figure finally reached her, the Operator’s eyes not even looking.
“Why are you awake, it’s like… It’s Midnight, yeah. Why are you awake?”
A very familiar voice spoke out finally, directly in front of Rosmontis, her finally peaking up and finally noticing who it was. Blaze, clothed in a cat onesie, her hair in a total mess, looking down and very worried about the smaller cat, tilting her head a bit.
“Wait, are you also getting cereal?”
Rosmontis was confused? Cereal? Right now? What is the meaning of this? She just wanted to take a walk, to finally move her legs without fear, but now Blaze interrupted her.
She got up, dropping her bunny plushie to the ground, and just hugged Blaze tightly, with her head just about reaching the Guard Operator’s chest, and letting out soft whines. “Why do you scare me like this, dummy…?”
Blaze was taken aback, her hands jolting up and to her sides, looking down onto the cat hugging her, yet only for the first few moments, finally moving a hand up to ruffle the white hair of the other, smiling softly at her? “I did? Sorry for that… Thought you were one of the young ones trying to sneak out.”
For Rosmontis, this wasn’t important anymore. The familiar embrace, the caring voice of someone she could see as a big sister. It calmed her down from her fears and anxieties. The familiarity brings her comfort, and makes her happy and relaxed. Finally, just some time to be with Blaze. It doesn’t matter when… it doesn’t matter how, if it’s night or day, Blaze gives her comfort…
She smells like family.
Finally, Blaze spoke up once again, ruffling behind the right ear of Rosmontis: “Well, I do want to get cereal… I think Amiya is there too, do you want to come as well?”
A solemn nod comes from Rosmontis, with Blaze only noticing by feeling the movement against her body. Carefully, pushing the other away, the black-haired woman looked down, placing an arm around her shoulder, and guiding her to the kitchen, but first, picking up the slippers of Rosmontis and placing them in front of her to step in them again, which she does after a soft wince of leaving the cold ground again.
Once they arrived at the kitchen, a pair of brown bunny ears peaked up behind a counter, before finally revealing who it was. Amiya, lifting up a set of cereal boxes, looking at the two, smiling at Rosmontis. “Well, about time you joined the Cinnamon Crunch Night. Or do you like Marshmeows?”
She talks about the brands of cereal with an interest in Rosmontis, wanting to get to know her more, yet almost whispering, knowing full well that if they get spotted by someone like Kal’tsit, they would definitely have to stop this meet-up.
“You… do this every Thursday Night?” Rosmontis asked, first loud, but lowering the volume of her voice after the first word, looking at Blaze first by her side, who walked over to Amiya, past her and to the fridge, it lighting her body up once she opened it, and pulling out a bottle of fresh milk, placing it on the counter.
“Yeah, done this for… two months now, I think? Is it two, Amiya?”
“Should be three, even. It makes me feel a bit more like the person I should be now, instead of the person I am now.” Amiya replied to Blaze's question, justifying her action instantly, as if she gets judged for it. As if the boss of Rhodes Island was a child who just… wants to be a child as well. Blaze moves, after placing the milk on the counter next to the boxes of cereal, to the shelf above a big stove, grabbing three equally sized bowls from them, placing them down separately, followed by her grabbing the box labelled “Marshmeows“ and filling her bowl up, followed by filling it with milk.
Rosmontis spoke up finally again: “Can I… try both cereals? I never had any. I eat bread with honey for breakfast…” Blaze nodded as a response, grabbing her bowl, with a spoon, and placing it in front of Rosmontis, with a big and comforting smile on her lips, before turning to Amiya, who was working on filling her bowl with Cinnamon Crunch Cereal.
The night was no longer young, but it was silent, every Thursday was silent, but not the kitchen right now. Like a group of sisters, the girls bonded, like the world wasn’t around, like there was no infection, there was just them, cereal and laughter.
In another time, these girls would go to the same school, Rosmontis and Amiya in the same class, Blaze being an adoptive sister to Rosmontis, and them just growing old together, as best friends.
But right now, it was a different time, people dying, world ending, yet… there was finally normality. There were no girls fighting in wars. It was… as close as to what they should be as possible. It is as close as to an actual Thursday they could have.
Kal’tsit, in a room far away, watched the trio over CCTV. She knows almost everything, but there is no disappointment in her eyes, there was even a smile on her lips. As if a mother watched over the kids she wants to protect, happy that they are bonding. Even if it is over soggy cereal on Thursdays.