More Than Human

Chapter 63: Family Breakfast

After a little more cuddle time, Soap changed back. He and Simon followed the scents of their other teammates until they found the kitchen. Alejandro was standing at the stove cooking something. Rudy was sitting beside König on a bar stool, and the two were making excited noises at each other. Apparently talking, but not in a way the rest of them could understand. Apparently the two had struck up a friendship since they had both seen them last night.

Strange, but hey, good for them.

Roach, currently shirtless, was hunched over a plate of food. Or they thought it was food at first, but when he sat up to look at them, they noticed he was stuffing little balls of fluff into his mouth. Apparently it was a four arm kind of day, as the top two continued to shove the stuff into his mouth, his lower two signed a good morning at them.

At their questioning stares he swallowed a large chunk of fluff without chewing and held some of the stuff up for them.

"Fresh cotton!"

His voice sounded clearer today. Probably having slept and rested his voice without fully changing into the moth.

"So many plants here!" He continued, grinning.

Ghost walked over and reached into the fruit basket in the center of the kitchen island and rolled a couple of peaches toward Gary.

"Eat those too, Bug. Don't overdo it on the fluff."

Roach rolled his eyes and stuffed a couple more clumps of cotton in his mouth before Ghost yanked the plate away to cut him off. Roach huffed and wiggled his antenna before accepting the peaches.

Alejandro ladeled something into a bowl and set it in front of Soap when he sat down. Soap sniffed the soup warily.

"What is it?"

"Just chicken broth, potatoes, carrots, celery, and some fresh fish." Alejandro listed, "Doctors want you to start adding in gentle solids. Rudy caught the fish this morning. Price grew all the plants."

Soap relaxed a bit now that he knew where the food had all come from. Ghost slid him a spoon and gave him a gentle nudge to start eating. He took a slow mouthful before relaxing the rest of the way once it settled in his stomach without any pain. Ghost rubbed his back up and down encouragingly as he continued at a more confident pace.

"Where's Price this morning, anyway?" Alejandro asked.

"Greenhouse with Gaz." Ghost replied, moving to make himself some tea.

Soap swallowed quickly and waved his spoon around, "Have you guys seen the cat?"

Roach let out a warbly gasp, "There's a kitty?"

He sounded excited.

Soap furrowed his brow, "Dunno if I'd call it that. It's fuckin' weird."

"Weird how?" Rudy asked.

Soap opened his mouth to explain when, speak of the devil, Precious burst out from a cabinet.

"What the fuck is that?" Alejandro jumped slightly as Precious flapped up onto the counter.

"Precious." Ghost said, leaning back against the counter and sipping his tea.

She scurried across toward a cutting board that still had fish on it and snagged a couple of pieces.

"Maybe we shouldn't let her do that." König murmured.

"Feel free to stop her." Alejandro told him, "I'm not interested in losing a finger."

Soap snorted, Alejandro's reaction was similar to his own. König took his comment seriously however and gently reached a tentacle around the cat's middle and hoisted her off the counter.

The cat chirped but let herself be lifted and brought closer to König.

"I don't think you're supposed to be up there, little friend." He told her.

She wiggled around a bit, reaching her front legs out toward him, so he brought her a little closer to his face. She sniffed the fabric of his mask before bumping her head into his. He giggled and her leathery tail rocked back and forth gently.

"Why does she look like that?" Rudy asked, reaching up to give her a scratch with one of his fingers.

"She's, like, a soul dragon." Soap explained vaguely, "Apparently."

Roach hopped up and scrambled over. He had to stand on his toes to get up to where Konig was holding her.

"I want to pet her!"

König moved her closer to him and she reached out to be closer. König let her crawl into Roach's arms and she instantly stretched up to examine the antenna in his hair. He leaned his head down and wiggled them, laughing when she gently batted at them.

"Oh good. You're all here."

They turned to find Price entering the kitchen and heading for where Simon stood against the tea drawer. He gently nudged him aside.

"We'll have a guest in about..." He checked his watch, "Now actually."

"It's true." Another familiar voice called out, stepping into the room.

"Figured I'd just see myself in." Laswell told them.