Suicide is Painless

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

And just like that, everything changed. The Admiral calmly took the case from her daughter's hands, closed it gently, and sat it on the arm rest of the sofa.

"Saa'ri, jyou've onljy jusst gotten jyourr ssurrgeon commjisssjion. What jin the Goddesss's name arre jyou thjinking?"

[Samus Dage]

His lips had formed a straight, thin line as his fingers slowly closed back around the offered ring. He wasn't really disappointed at the interruption itself, though he couldn't help but inwardly grouse over the timing of this little nugget of information.

"Not the best timing, Sprite."

His voice came out on the tail of a sigh as he moved back to reclaim his place on the sofa. He fell heavily onto it, his lanky frame finding comfort in the deeply-padded cushions.

[Saa'riaana Dage]

"jI'm not gojing to stop bejing a surrgeon, jI'm just gojing somewherre else to do jit. And jI know jit's bad tjimjing, but jI don't have much tjime... "

Her ears seemed to droop lower still, and her next words came out in a barely audible mumble.

"jI'm... jI'm jojinjing the Rresjistance... "

[Samus Dage]

With an audible groan, Samus let his head fall face-first into his waiting palm.

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

T'yeellaa's surprise turned aghast, her mouth gaping as her ears turned back a degree.

"The Rressjisstance?!"

Not just the Resistance. Mother. Was this Taataani's doing. All the Admiral could do was stand in one place to keep from shaking. Her eyes moved from Saa'ri to Samus.

"Djid jyou know about thjiss?"

[Samus Dage]

Samus gave one last final sigh, his head lifting back up as her turned his eyes to T'yeellaa.

"I did not."

Which was the honest truth. But it would do nothing to calm to storm he could see building in her face.

He lifted his hands in that universal sign of surrender.

"I swear."

[Saa'riaana Dage]

"Oh of courrse he djidn't know, Motherr."

The words were snapped out like a whipcrack, impatient even at the notion that father and daughter had colluded behind T'yeellaa's back. Saa'ri's Meorrrei temper was rising.

"jI'm old enough that jI can make decjisjions wjithout you orr Dad lookjing overr my shoulderr."

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

"Arre jyou trrjyjing to prrove ssomethjing to ssomeone? Saa'ri, jyou don't have to prrove a thjing. jYou'rre gjifted. jYou've alwajyss been. Don't take jyourr talentss and thrrow them awajy out on the frrontjierr. Thjink of jyourr carreerr, thjink of what jyou can be..."

Stammering, the Admiral again turned to Samus.

"...talk to her, would jyou??!"

[Samus Dage]

Whatever T'yeellaa was hoping he would fix was beyond his powers. Instead, he determined to follow the letters of her words rather than the spirit. One arm lifted to rest along the top of the sofa as he twisted about to look at Saa'ri.

"What brought this about, then."

[Saa'riaana Dage]

She looked to her father, her tail slowly unwinding from her leg to twitch nervously from side to side.

"jI don't know... jit just makes sense?"

Which was a non-answer, and the look on his face spurred her on to a deeper meaning.

"jI want to help people out therre. jI can help the people out therre, and jI beljieve jin thejirr cause. jIt just feels rrjight."

[Samus Dage]

Which was about as much good as he could do. She was as stubborn as both him and T'yeellaa, and he knew that to try and dissuade her would be next to impossible. The only other thing he could do was try to understand her reasons. Which, he had to admit weren't really all that different from his when he joined up with the Rebellion.

Samus looked back to T'yeellaa and gave a small shrug.

"She seems set on it, Kitten."

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

She never wanted to be the imperious, domineering figure that her mother had been. She'd thought she'd gained enough mileage away from that to be different. Now? She was faced with her own daughter, who had her own rebellion, and it was increasingly obvious there were few things she could do to make her change her mind.

Save for one.

"jI could orrderr jyou to rremajin at jyourr posstjing."

The words came softly, and T'yeellaa looked away from Saa'ri to the viewport. Her daughter's resignation would have to be accepted to be valid. If she quit her post without it, she would be a deserter.

[Saa'riaana Dage]

Saa'ri made a face at that.

"Sjince when djid you starrt gettjing authorrjity to gjive orrderrs jin the Federral Arrmy? Last jI checked, you'rre Navy."

She crossed her arms, her ears switching back. She knew that this wouldn't be easy.

"Even jif jI have to deserrt, jI'm gojing."

[Samus Dage]

That got him up, and heaving forward to rise, Samus came around the sofa with a quickness to place himself between the two. His hands came up, index fingers angled to both T'yeellaa and Saa'riaana.

"Now just hold on," it was like diffusing a thermal detonator.

"Let's not be careless with our words, ok?"

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

"Carrelesss?!"

T'yeellaa turned back to face her gai'tou and her daughter, unable to cover up her wounded expression.

"What sshould jI ssajy? jI've gone frrom the happjiesst jI've everr been to the mosst djissapojinted jin the matterr of mjinutess! Sshould jI be happjy that ourr daughterr jiss gojing to the farrthesst rreachess of the galaxjy to fjight a cult of fanatjicss? No ssupporrt, no backup. Bad enough that mjy own motherr decjided on that lunacjy! Bad enough that jI have to worrrjy overr herr everrjy dajy."

The Admiral looked at her daughter, and swallowed deeply.

"Therre'ss nothjing jI can ssajy to jyou, jiss therre?"

[Saa'riaana Dage]

There was a hope for understanding that glinted in her eyes.

"jI want to go, Motherr. jI can help people jin a betterr capacjity out therre than jI can herre, and... "

Saa'ri looked past her mother to the view of the stars. This concern about there being no safety net, no backup...

"And out therre, jI am the backup."

[Samus Dage]

He felt like a rancor in a crystal shop. In true fashion he'd managed to cut the wrong wire, and the detonator and gone off right in his face.

Any apologies would have to be made later however, as T'yeellaa had moved on from him to Saa'ri.

He could at least still try to salvage something, and he laid a hand on her arm, shifting his stance so that they stood closer together.

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

She'd lost. That realization was bitter. And within that loss came the terror. The thought that this loss was only the beginning. That she could lose Saa'ri for real. Forever.

"When do jyou leave?" came her hoarse whisper.

[Saa'riaana Dage]

Her own voice was just as low.

"Tomorrrow evenjing."

She bit her lip, eyes going to the floor momentarily before slowly rising back up.

"jI have to go out therre, please underrstand. They need me."

[Samus Dage]

Staring at his daughter, his little Saa'riaana, Samus seemed to watch a reel play of her life. From when she was born and the tiny hurricane of trouble that she had been, to the demanding toddler, to the wide-eyed pre-teen. And then she had begun to truly grow and mature, to become her own. Oh, she was always her own person, but it only really began to show itself when she'd turned fifteen. And it only went uphill from there. She had a passion for medicine, for understanding all things in the body that made a being tick. In a way it was confounding, as she'd certainly not gotten such desires from him.

She had become a woman, but she would always be his baby girl.

"You sure you can't just go back to 'operating' on your stuffed animals?" He quietly rumbled.