Animal Watching [Open]

[caringcassie.livejournal.com]

Among the things that Cassie had learned about the ship where she now made her home was that there was a section of it that held a large number of alien animal and plant species. Although it had taken her longer then she thought it would to get there, she had finally found her way to Hydroponics, where the animals were supposed to reside. Her eyes twinkled happily and a smile played across her lips as she wandered through the area. The animals that she saw were incredible. Nothing like those that she was familiar with, but that didn't matter. They were all amazing in ways that were unique to them and that was wonderful.

She spotted a strange green creature out of the corner of her eye and spun to get a better look, but, to her disappointment, it vanished before she could see much more. Cassie moved towards the area where she had last seen it, hoping that it might still be lingering nearby or that there might be more like it still within range. She moved slowly and quietly so as not to startle any animals still nearby.

She continued on for a while longer, managing to get at least a glance of a number of other animals and in a few cases she did better then that, although she didn't know enough about them to put a name to any of them. She sighed contently as she walked, feeling more comfortable at that moment then she had since she arrived here. Even the house that she lived in on the ship, the one that resembled her home on Earth, still felt strangely foreign to her for some reason. But here... the animals and physical surroundings might be alien, but this feeling of being surrounded by so many wonderful creatures was not. She felt surprisingly comfortable here.

She might just have to come here more often.

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[vissernone.livejournal.com]

Eva doesn't visit Hydroponics for the animals; she visits for the plants. Currently she's pulling some seeds from a rather beautiful-looking fruit tree (a courageous task, given that some of the plants in Hydroponics bite), with intent to continue decorating Cassie's backyard.

Think of the devil.

"Hello, Cassie!" she gives a friendly wave, then realizing that Cassie seems to be aiming for at least somewhat stealthy - probably birdwatching or something, whatever it is teenage hippies do - lowers her voice. "So I suppose I'm no longer the master of the house."

[caringcassie.livejournal.com]

Cassie jumped a bit at the call, surprised to find that she was no longer alone. It took her a moment to collect herself, having been very caught up in her searching, but when she did, Cassie turned to face the stranger. The not so stranger as it turned out when she saw Eva.

"Ah," Cassie started, hesitating for a moment before continuing. During the war, Eva had insisted on being called by her first name, but... well that was then. She certainly didn't want to offend. "M-Mrs. Salazar! I'm happy to see you. Did you come to see the animals too?"

Cassie then shot her a questioning look, but then she smiled again. "That title is all yours. If... when my parents wake up though you might have to battle them for it. It's their title. Not mine."

A pang ran through her as she thought of her parents. It was they who always made her home feel like home and without them there... well saying that it felt odd was a serious understatement.

She shoved those thought aside, refusing to let her smile falter. Enough doom and gloom. Her parents were fine and they'd wake up soon. For now she lived in the present and at present she was in the most amazing of places, talking to a woman whom she deeply respected. And for all that she was grateful.

[vissernone.livejournal.com]

"It's Eva, still," she says, then motions at the plants. It does occur to her that in a way, she's commandeered Cassie's house. She knows Cassie's too good-natured to ever kick her out, but perhaps she should have made more of an effort to keeping things the way they were. The way that would be familiar to Cassie.

"No, ah, I was just grabbing some seeds to experiment in the garden with. You don't mind that I've made a garden, do you? It keeps me from clawing people's eyes out on this ship."

Maybe if certain people - Iniss - wouldn't be such royal irritations, she wouldn't need something to distract her from fantasies of violence.

"Cassie, no offense, but in a battle between me and either of your parents, I'd win. In a battle between me and both of your parents, I'd win." She, Michelle and Walter may not always see eye to eye, but she respects them well enough. Enough to make jokes at their expense. "Seriously, all I'd have to do is say 'look over there, a rare species of deer' and I could sucker punch either of them."

[caringcassie.livejournal.com]

Cassie nodded, acknowledging Eva's response. "If that's what you wish."

"A garden?" Her eyes lit up for a moment. She didn't know too much about gardening in general- she appreciated plants for there own beauty and the effect they had on the environment, but they had never really been her priority. Her heart had always been and probably would always be devoted to the animals. But... gardening sounded kind of interesting. A way of making the environment around the house a little prettier and maybe a bit more personal. Something that might make it feel more like home to her. Besides, it drove her mad that she seemed to have so little to do. She wasn't used to it and she honestly desperately wanted to be doing something useful.

Her voice was quiet when she spoke again. Tentative. "Would you maybe like some... help? I mean I understand if you prefer to do it alone though, so feel free to tell me no." She shrugged, smiling a bit weakly. "It's just an idea."

"I don't know. My parents are tougher then they look. I wouldn't want to cross them," Cassie laughed, enjoying the bit of banter and trying to play along as best she could. "Of course, the rare species of dear thing might prove a problem, but that assumes that the fight ends there."

[vissernone.livejournal.com]

She grins. "I destroy the garden almost as much as I fix it up. It could probably use a gentler set of hands. When you're done playing Steve Irwin, I can show you what I've done with it."

She might hide what's become of the Japanese maples, though. Despite Zouichi's advice, she's managed to kill yet another set of them. It's not that she isn't a decent gardener, just that Japanese maples require consistency, rather than a tender who only seems to pay attention when she wants to unleash frustration by ripping weeds up, or set aside her feelings of loss by mothering something that can't squirm away under the guise of 'independence'.

"Cassandra, dear, I was forged in the heart of the Yeerk empire. Also at UCLA. Believe me, I can throw a mean right hook of a sucker punch." She ties up her hair and throws a fake punch at the air to demonstrate, winking. "How've you been adjusting to the ship so far?"

[caringcassie.livejournal.com]

"I look forward to it," Cassie grinned, her eyes sparkled happily at the thought of starting upon a new task. And, as an added bonus, this would give her the opportunity to get to know Eva on a more personal level, or at least she hoped that it would. There hadn't been a lot of time during the war for anything that didn't involve finding a way to better aid the resistance. "Maybe later today when we're both at the house? I'd like to get started soon, if that's possible."

"Remind me not to upset you then," Cassie teased gently. "I don't want to end up on the wrong side of any of your punches."

Cassie paused to consider the question. "I suppose that I'm adjusting well. It's not easy, but I'll adapt." True in part, but not completely. She was starting to get used to life on Stacy, but there was still so much that she hadn't been able to come to terms with yet. She felt a wave of guilt for withholding her complete thoughts from Eva and her smile faded for a moment, but Cassie just couldn't bring herself to burden Eva with her own problems. She'd deal with them without troubling the older woman.

She forced the smile back quickly. "How long did it take you to adapt when you first arrived?"

[hadabrother.livejournal.com]

Jake had found hydroponics. He wasn't an animal nut. Not really in the way Cassie was, anyway. He appreciated nature and animals (probably bit more than he had a few years ago), but he wasn't passionate about it. Still, he was sure that if there was any place on the ship Cassie would gravitate towards, this would be it. They needed to catch up - or at least talk and see what she thought about all of this. Really, he needed to talk to all of the Animorphs privately, just in case they had something to say that they didn't want to say in front of everyone else.

Not that he really expected that to happen, but it never hurt to check. Besides, seeing Cassie again would be nice. Even if she was a bit younger and even if they'd dropped out of touch over the years.

Jake pushed through a bush, following a small game-trail.

"Cassie...?"

He thought he'd seen her up here somewhere.

[caringcassie.livejournal.com]

Surprise was Cassie's first reaction to hearing the familiar voice calling her name. Recognition quickly followed and she turned to face Jake immediately, smiling at him. She took a step towards him, but then hesitated, not sure what to do next. That was starting to become normal where Jake was concerned and that worried her. Even in her own time, there had been a growing distance between the two of them that she hadn't known how to fight and now it felt even more pronounced. He had years of living that she knew nothing about and, while a part of her wanted to ask about what had happened during those years, the rest of her didn't truly want to know. That part of her suspected that she wouldn't like the answers.

"Jake!" She called out with a cheery smile, moving quickly towards him until she stood in front of him. She tried to force the worried thoughts from her mind, determined to simply be happy to see him. The happiness was real, but her concerns were not so easily chased away. "What are you doing here?"

[hadabrother.livejournal.com]

"Wondering around, mostly. Exploring," Jake tried to smile - and succeeded. But there was still that weariness and sense of exhaustion in his eyes. There was also a spark of energy, one that might be familiar to Cassie - he was a leader again, he had a purpose. He shifted awkwardly and finally shrugged.

"I also wanted to get your opinion on everything. Find out what your thoughts were on this, just in case there was something you wanted to bring up."

[caringcassie.livejournal.com]

Cassie refused to let her smile fade, even though her concern for him increased as she watched his eyes. She knew Jake too well to trust the mask that he held in place by sheer force of will. For his true feelings, you had to look well past the surface to what lay beneath and it wasn't easy. But, even though what she thought she saw there worried her, she was glad to see that he seemed to be active and focused. For Jake, that generally seemed to be a positive sign. At least she hoped that it was one.

"I don't know that I have much of an opinion on anything yet," Cassie admitted, choosing her words carefully. "I mean, it's all odd obviously, but odd is nothing new for us, is it?" She tried to laugh, but it sounded forced even to her own ears. She'd been transferred from one war to another and it left her feeling so very tired. Tired, frustrated, scared... But she wouldn't say any of that aloud. She wouldn't add to Jake's burdens if she could help it. "We still have a lot to learn. I guess that there's nothing to do for now, but keep trying and hope for the best."

[hadabrother.livejournal.com]

Jake knew Cassie - they'd been friends for years, fought alongside one another. Even had a relationship for a while, but that had all fallen apart after the war. It had just happened. Nothing to be done about it now. But he knew her and he knew that she was probably concerned about. Probably. He liked to think his mask was a bit better than that. Then again, she'd always been able to see past that.

He laughed at her joke, but it was also a bit forced. Odd had been utterly redefined for him over the last few years. Turning into animals wasn't "odd" anymore. Neither was fighting aliens. "Guess so. I don't like the fact that we aren't in control... but when were we ever?"

[kungfu-sexnun.livejournal.com]

A bright spot of orange next to an unexpected outcropping of rocks interrupts the pastoral landscape of Hydroponics. A small group of animals, like very shaggy crosses between mountain goats and sloths, are going about their business on the rocks, except for one, which is being groomed by a woman in a bright orange dress. The creatures' long shaggy fur is lighting up in orange and purple patterns, in some form of bioluminescence, and the woman is heavily tattoed, with light blue arrows running down her arms and legs, and one on her forehead.

Nima looks up when she sees Cassie, and waves.

"Hi! Excuse me! Do you think you could give me a hand?"

[caringcassie.livejournal.com]

The stranger's call caught Cassie's attention and she quickly returned the wave, which gave her a moment to assess the situation. It proved to be an easy decision.

"I'd love to," Cassie smiled, making her way over to the other woman. "What do you need from me?" A moment later, she realized that, in her excitement, she had forgotten to actually greet the woman or even introduce herself. A bit sheepishly, she extended her hand and added, "I'm Cassie, by the way. It's nice to meet you."

[kungfu-sexnun.livejournal.com]

The animal the woman is grooming lifts itself up on long forelegs and sniffs the hand Cassie has extended.

The woman stands up and bows, placing her fists together at her chest so that the arrows on the back of her hands point towards each other as she does so. "Hello Cassie. I'm Sister Nima, of the Eastern Air Temple. It's a pleasure to meet you. This is a long shot, but my glowsloths need to be sheared, and I was wondering if you wanted to help me? I can make sure you get something made out of the wool to wear for your time."

[caringcassie.livejournal.com]

Cassie smiled at the friendly animal. She spoke soothingly, cooing compliments to it as she stepped closer. If this animal was like the others that she'd dealt with in the past, it was not the words that would matter, but the tone. A calm, kind, and gentle tone of voice could go a long way to help get an animal used to a new human presence or soothe an anxious one.

"I'm happy to help, Sister Nima," she responded, turning her attention back to the other woman. "You don't need to worry about a reward though. I like working with animals and I've been missing that experience while here. If anything, you're doing me a favor by letting me help." She faced the animals again and asked, "Can you tell me their names? And... can you show me what to do? I've never sheered a... you called it a glowsloth, right?"

[greennotgold]

Lately, Fletcher had generally been inattentive and unfocused on anything besides his gardening while working up in Hydroponics, too busy worrying about his brother's newfound aloofness toward him. But today, as Cassie walked by, he happened to be taking a break and eating his lunch, and so he noticed her.

Shyly, he waved; even if he didn't know everyone on this ship, he still wanted to be as nice as he could toward them all.

[caringcassie.livejournal.com]

Cassie was surprised when she stumbled across the young boy sitting there with his lunch and even more surprised when he waved at her as she passed. She paused for a moment, looking back at him to try and see if she could place the face, just in case they had actually spoken before, but she came up empty. She returned the wave with a friendly smile.

She waited for another moment to see if he approached her, but when he didn't, she decided to take the initiative and moved back to talk to him. "Hi there."

[greennotgold]

He swallowed the bite of sandwich he had in his mouth and smiled. "Hi! Um-- are you new? I'm here every day and I haven't seen you before."

[caringcassie.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, I am new. This is also actually my first time in this area, which would certainly explain why you haven't seen me before. I wanted to see the animals. This place is pretty amazing." She tilted her head and asked curiously, "What do you do here all day?"

[greennotgold]

"Yeah... all the plants and animals from all these different worlds are really awesome!" He glanced over his shoulder at the vegetable garden behind him.

"I have a bunch of plants I grow. This is my garden for vegetables, and I grow fruit trees and grains too. That way people don't have to just eat the food Stacy makes. I mean--" He hurried to fix his statement, realizing how mean it sounded. "I really appreciate that she does, but..."

[shallturnto.livejournal.com]

In quick succession, a red rubber playground ball rocketed towards Cassie, a green flash dropped down infront of her, and the strange green creature she had seen kicked it away.

"Nice work Sceptile! Sorry about that Cassie. The ball got away from us." Called Ash's voice from a 5 Pokemon + 1 human pileup in the middle of the clearing.

[caringcassie.livejournal.com]

A soft cry of shock escaped Cassie's lips at the actions that played out in front of her. To say that she hadn't been expecting that was an understatement.

"It's okay," Cassie responded, a bit shakily. She was adaptable though and it didn't take her long to collect herself. "It's nice to see you again, Ash."

She smiled at the Pokemon who had kicked the ball away from her. This was one that she didn't recognize. "Thank you for your help... I'm sorry. I missed your name."

[electricratpack.livejournal.com]

"Sceptile," he responded in his raspy voice, holding out one of his leafy arms, something that was actually filled with chlorophyll in addition to being a camouflaging adaptation, to shake.

[caringcassie.livejournal.com]

Cassie smiled warmly as she lightly gripped the Pokemon's hand to shake it. "It's nice to meet you, Sceptile. Thank you for helping me."

"So, what are you all doing here?" she asked Ash and his Pokemon curiously. "I'd imagine that there would be better places to play ball."

[shallturnto.livejournal.com]

"Mostly cause it kinda feels like home." Realizing that probably didn't explain why it was like home, he continued. "Where I'm from, when you turn 10, you're allowed to register for a Trainer's license and enter the Pokemon League. And to qualify for the yearly championship tournament in a region you have to go to eight different Pokemon Gyms in that region and win a badge from each of 'em. So I've traveled though a lot of forests to get to each Gym."