"Penguin Logistics is going on vacation!"
Texas let Exusiai handle most of the good byes to the Doctor and Amiya before they headed out the door. They would be leaving only for a day, but she had to admit it was still better than nothing. Croissant had their bags packed for their trip when they arrived back at the dorms. Her own bag —an army styled marsh green— was slung over her shoulder. Texas's blue backpack and Exusiai's small suitcase with the locks on the top were sitting at her feet.
"Ready to go boss? I've got us all packed up," Croissant said.
"Yes. Unless either of you need to grab something we should be ready."
Exusiai was grinning the way she normally did, hair falling over one eye in floppy strands. "Did you pack any apple pie?"
Croissant grinned in return. The red headed operator pulled out something behind her back. It was a circular container with two latches on either side. "Hehe, of course I grabbed some."
"Yay! Then we're ready." Exusiai swiped the pie with glee before walking off. Croissant ran after her, complaining about getting a slice. Texas rolled her eyes at the pair. She slung her own bag over her shoulders, her left hand reaching out to grab Exusiai's. Carrying the two sets of luggage was a norm for them.
"Hmm. Now it's off to the beach. Sora should be waiting for us there."
****
"Guys! There you are!"
Texas, Croissant and Exusiai had only just arrived at the beach when Sora came running over towards them. The sun was a high beacon in the sky, casting a halo of light down on the famous pop star singer. Sora has her illusion wolf ears in place with a long gold tail streaking behind her like the tail of a kite. She crossed the hot sand in three long bounds and then was wrapping her arms around them in a hug. Texas wriggled in the embrace, but ultimately accepted the tight squeezing around her midsection.
"Ouch! You're squishing me." Croissant complained.
"Sora, how was your concert?" She asked when the singer reluctantly let go. Like them, she was dressed in a bikini, the hot pink color matched the dress Sora often wore during missions.
Sora was beaming. "It was amazing! I did this one slow song and everyone put their phones in the air and sang along. Oh, you would've loved to be there."
Texas pictured herself in a packed in stadium, people pushing into her on all sides. Sometimes I think she forgets I hate crowds. There was a reason why she enjoyed using crowd control. "I don't know about that. I'll have to take your word for it I suppose."
"Fair enough."
"I don't know about you guys but I'm gonna get in the water. Those waves are looking wicked!" Croissant nudged Exusiai in the ribs with her surfboard. "Last one there is a rotten egg!" She ran off, kicking up sand in her wake.
Exusiai sputtered before chasing after her. "I'll make you eat those words!"
Texas watched the pair fondly. She had a feeling Croissant would get to the water first. But Exia will tackle her in, so I suppose that makes the difference. She was brought out of her thoughts by a tugging on her arm. Sora was smiling at her with an even wider grin, like she was beyond pleased they were left alone. Texas could still remember the first day they had met, back when she saved Sora from a vicious band of kidnappers. Ever since then, the other woman seemed to hold a special reverence just for her. Texas didn't think she deserved it. There was a lot of things she had that should not belong to her, in her humble opinion.
"Come on Texas, lets go over to tent. I got everything set up."
"Okay." She spared Exusiai and Croissant a glance. Just as she envisioned, the angel had tackled the other woman to the ground. They were splashing around in the shallows, water dripping from locks of strawberry blonde hair. "Lead the way."
As it would turn out, set up basically meant laid down but not nailed in. They arrived just in time for the beach tent to come flapping at them. The green plastic covering was flapping like an angry ghost. It was flying in Sora's direction, small curved hooks flailing and all.
"Ahh!" Sora yelled as she turned tail and ran. In moments of utter panic, her disguise would slip to reveal long, curved ears and a lack of a fluffy pointed tail.
"Hmm."
Texas did not flee from the plastic tarp. Dropping the beach bag, she sprinted after Sora's fleeing form, the tarp concealing her mostly from view. The Lupus Operator bridged the gap between herself and the tent in a strong leap. Her feet planted in the middle of it, effectively pinning the uncooperative thing to the ground.
Sora whirled around at the sudden noise, eyes still wide as she regarded her defeated adversary. "Oh! Thank goodness you stopped it. I could've been strangled by that awful thing."
Texas snorted, lifting a foot off the tent experimentally. It kept frisking with the wind but otherwise did nothing. She doubted it could've done much damage if it had caught up to Sora, other than wrap around her like a straight jacket. "You should be more careful then. Next time don't leave it unattended if you haven't set up properly."
"I didn't realize it wasn't pegged properly. Sorry about that."
Her ears twitched as breeze ruffled her hair. "Don't worry about it. Let's get back to the rest of our stuff."
****
They returned with the bag to see Exusiai and Croissant already waiting for them. Both operators were surveying the scene with dismay. Their towels were covered in sand, as was the cooler Sora brought with her. The flip flops were blown underneath the four set up chairs. The third one was knocked onto its back, legs sticking up in the air.
"What happened here?" Croissant asked.
"I'm guessing it has something to do with a runaway tent." Exusiai mused. Her wings were shimmering white-gold like her halo, the bright sun barely outdid their light.
"It did. Would you mind holding it down? Need to make sure it's hammered in properly this time." The last thing she wanted was to we whacked in the face by an unruly tarp.
"Sure thing boss. Now where do you want it?" Croissant was eager to help.
Texas directed the Defender operator to place the tent where it should've remained earlier. Exusiai went and retrieved the hammer from the stuffed bag of sunscreen and snacks, tossing it to Texas. She caught it with ease. The peg-shaped nails were easily knocked into the sand. Soon the group was chilling out in their beach chairs, listening to the relaxing sound of the tide.
Texas had a pocky stick between her lips. She was leaned back in her chair, idly listening to her friends talking about relatively meaningless things. It was always nice to have a day off with the three of them, and such a rarity considering how often Sora did live performances. Somewhere in the sky a seagull cawed. A few of the ravenous birds were pecking at the bread Croissant tossed over earlier. The sand dunes swayed with the light breeze.
"So how's things back at Rhodes Island?" Sora asked. She had not been at the Pharmaceutical Company in the past month.
"Eh. Nothing out of the ordinary," Texas said with a shrug.
Exusiai shook her head. "I'm pretty sure a Reunion Squad leader trying to kill us with their grenade launcher/shotgun combo isn't ordinary."
"Wow! Are you guys okay?" Sora was frowning worriedly.
"We're fine Sora. Skull Shatterer wasn't that big of a deal compared to what I've dealt with before." Texas continued to chew on her chocolate stick. The box was open in her right hand. There were five pocky sticks remaining in this one. She would have a replacement soon.
"Uh huh. And what exactly have you dealt with before Texas?" Exusiai asked.
Her eyes, which had been lidded closed, opened marginally to stare in the angel's direction. The Sniper continued to be pestering about her history ever since Lappland arrived. Texas supposed she couldn't blame her for being worried. The white wolf had put both of them on edge.
"Nothing you need to worry about, I promise." There are some people in my life you'll never get to meet anyways. Lappland, for all the history they shared, was one of the last surviving people who knew Texas from before. Back when she was so different. "Now let me take my nap in peace. I'll need it for the drive home."
No one objected and soon enough she found herself dissolving into the world of dreams. Instead of an abysmal nothingness, she was met with remnants of the past. They called out to her through broken mirrors. Each reflected the pieces of herself she tried so hard to forget.
*
"Put your faith in me Lappland, I won't let you down."
"I'll trust you Texas."
*
"An alpha walks a lonely path, unless they have a mate by their side."
*
"I believe in you Texas, don't ever forget it."
*
"Don't leave me Texas. Please don't leave me."
****
Conversation resumed once the rest of Penguin Logistics was sure their friend was asleep. The sun was setting, an orange half circle in the distance with lapping waves. Croissant was munching away on some cheese puffs, the opened bag perched on her lap. Sora was twirling a microphone in her hand. It was turned off and lacked the chord to hook it up to a speaker, making it battery operated only. Exusiai kept careful watch of the sleeping Lupus, noting the occasional twitching her friend made.
"Texas seemed on edge today, did something else happen while I was gone?" Sora asked. The blonde was carefully running a hand through Texas's hair. Normally the Lupus was a bit wary of petting, flinching for no real reason. In her slumber, Texas pressed closer to her hand with a needy purr. Sora found the reaction adorable, continuing to pet Texas further.
Exusiai and Croissant's expressions darkened. "You could say that. One of Texas's . . . past acquaintances has joined Rhodes Island."
Sora frowned. "Something tells me Texas wasn't happy to see them."
"Understatement of the year," Croissant said. "She was practically freaking out."
"Really? I don't think I've ever seen Texas freak out." Whenever Sora thought of the smart Lupus, she imagined a brave fighter with golden blades, slashing through all the enemies in her path. She was a hero, her hero.
Exusiai shook her head. "Texas clearly has a history with Lappland, and not a good one." There was a hint of something in those amber eyes hinting the angel knew more, but she said nothing else. Sora tried not to feel offended;Texas and Exusiai had known each other the longest. They are partners after all. The dynamic duo if I ever saw one.
"Do you think they had a fight?" Croissant asked.
Amber eyes darkened further. "I'm not sure if it's my place to tell. Texas was drunk the one time she mentioned Lappland to me."
That increased the worry hammering away in her chest. Texas never got drunk, not even on holidays. Like a leading wolf she was always poised, armor intact. Whatever this Lappland person had done it clearly had to be awful.
"Then why is she at Rhodes Island then? What was the Doctor thinking?" Sora asked.
"Don't know, don't care. The point is Lappland is here to stay. We just have to make sure she doesn't bother Texas and everything should be fine. Right?" Croissant sounded self-assured, but a little uncertainty slipped in at the end.
Exusiai gave a small nod. "Let's hope so. Because if you're wrong, I'm not sure what we'll do."
Her words were ominous, but honest. Sora looked back at Texas. The Lupus was peaceful in her sleep. Her ears were no longer erect; her tail lying limply on her lap. There was a certain innocence in her sleeping form that would not last. Texas would not think so, but she was precious. It was hard to imagine the tragic events that had occurred to cause Texas to become closed up and tense, as if waiting for something to attack. I will not let anyone hurt you Texas, I promise. I'll do whatever it takes.
*****
A/N: So for those who may or may not have realized it yet, I tried to set the timeline for the present story right after chapter 3. Hope y'all are enjoying the plot so far! Be sure to come to me with any suggestions you might have.