Suffering Musician in Sharo

“Perhaps.” Laika said, keeping his attention towards the wall. “But that would only be one of the reasons.”

His words were strangely revealing. After saying them, Laika started to feel strange. That first step towards opening up to someone always felt mildly scary to him. Like skipping the last step on a staircase. No wonder he hated doing it. 

Which was odd. How had he come to say so much? He’d only just realized how much he’d actually said, which was worrisome to say the least. He knew he could trust Laika, but he hadn’t meant to pour his past out like that.

He looked up from his slice, having finished listening. He was rewarded with a question. One that required thought. Laika sat back in his chair and crossed his arms.

“That sounds like you. Ever the seeker of information, provided it doesn’t really hurt people. You really do have a drive to succeed and gain knowledge, don’t you? Must be why Matvei likes you so much~.”

Laika took the break in conversation as a chance to continue work on his cake. It was still strange to listen to Frederic’s navi ‘speak.’ A language all their own was the most impenetrable code. It was annoying. 

“...I think when i began, i was looking for revenge. ‘How dare this man hurt my mother, how dare he cause her so much pain’, etc, etc. Now...i guess i just want some closure. To see if he ever cared possibly...but mostly just to see the face of the man that left us. To know that he does exist. I dunno.”

The cake suddenly seemed alot less appealing than before, and he simply stared at it for a bit. Was it even worth it? Trying to find his birth father? He had a more stable father figure, albeit troublesome and occasionally annoying, in Charlie, and he was already starting to feel the same connection with Baryl.

But as Frederic continued, the questions answered themselves. Laika wasn’t expecting the kid’s life story, but he knew he should’ve judging by the fact that Frederic seemed ever-ready to run his mouth. Progress on his slice of cake came to a halt as the story went on. 

“Quite a series of events.” Laika commented, trying to stay neutral in his reactions. “I never realized Charlie could be so… supportive.” 

It wasn’t often that he came across someone who was here just because. Almost everyone had a reason or plan, even Laika did. Maybe that was the real reason Frederic made him so annoyed. 

No, he knew the real reason, he just refused to admit it right now. 

Frederic shook his head as Cestus appeared on his shoulder giving a small trill of greeting to the captain before reporting to his NetOP. Freddie nodded as he took another bite, listening intently to the series of melodic notes from his Navi. “Alright, thanks. Go ahead and get it filed. He’ll want it for later.” 

“That’s understandable.” Laika mumbled, his fork still halfway in his mouth. “None of us could focus on hobbies then.” 

Getting annoyed by the fact that Freddie also cared didn’t seem to pass through Laika’s head. The cake was at least helping with that aspect. The captain looked to avoid the topic of the castle. Another bite maybe, or… 

  “Charlie met mom because she was getting harassed in a shop. Something about her being some sort of...sinful woman, letting some man take advantage of her, how she should be ashamed. I was...eight, i think? Charlie stepped in and stood up for her. Took a punch to the face for it too. She brought him back home, and we met. He found out about our situation and...helped us out every month. brought extra food, taught me a lot about the world...took me on a few years ago as a live-in employee.”

“It’s rude to assume.” Laika noted. “Though I’ll take the compliments. It seems like there have been a lot of fencing enthusiasts on base as of late.” 

One too many, in Laika’s humble opinion, but he would keep that to himself. It was obvious that Frederic was trying to build a bridge here. Why else would he offer such a blatant peace offering? Speaking of, it was probably time for another bite of cake.

“Morosov has been my companion since before I entered the service. Saying he is just ‘good company’ is a vast understatement.” Laika paused as he pinched off another bite of cake with the side of his fork. “As for the rifles, being knowledgeable of firearms is part of my duties. While I greatly enjoy it, it is more of my job than my hobby.” 

As he ate his next bite, he pondered. How much of a nuisance would it be if he took the bait? Time to find out. 

Freddie was taken aback at the return question. Most people didn’t bother asking, or even showed any interest in him. though to be fair, that was usually because they were too focused on Charlie, or as of late Baryl. “My hobbies? You probably wouldn’t...no, you asked. It’s only fair to answer you. Ah, i do enjoy baking, or playing violin and piano, and reading. But I guess my favourite is...composition. Musical composition.” Frederic took another bite of his cake, savouring it as he thought. “My mother is a musician, so i learned at an early age. Most of the town was into fencing though, so i do enjoy watching fencing matches, though i’m really no good with a sword...” He looked down, humming a small tune.

Laika kept his eyes on Frederic’s back, staring it down as he worked at the counter. Was that cake he just pulled out of the fridge? How suspicious, yet at the same time, interesting. 

“I suppose it has.” Laika mumbled as he looked down from where his head rested in his hand. It certainly looked good, and it definitely smelled good. Someone had to have told him that mint was Laika’s favorite flavor. 

Danger that, apparently, didn’t seem to exist.

Matvei’s frantic gaze fell on Frederic and for a long, terrifying moment, he didn’t move. Several seconds passed before the familiar face settled in his mind and his fight-or-flight reflex eased. With a small sigh, his features softened and a tiny smile took place of the once thin frown as a thin hand raised in greeting. “You… you’re Frederic, right? We had dinner together back on base once.” He paused, and then added with a faint, weary tone. “What… are you doing here?”

He crossed over, gently but quickly, and took the upraised hand in his own, looking it over and examining the other’s gaunt frame. “You look like death, Matvei...” he murmured quietly, all pretenses forgotten as worry took over once more. The gift in his hand was set down as he worried and fussed over Matvei’s appearance. “You know, being a model is all well and good, not a bad career and all, but you shouldn’t starve yourself to be one. You were quite fine before~” Freddie joked lightly, trying to lessen the growing pain he was feeling. What the hell had happened to him? Why did Matvei look so...tired? And he’d just about leapt out of his skin when Freddie spoke up...