The World is Young, The Mountains Green - Part One

Posted on Wed Mar 18th, 2020 @ 3:11pm by Commander Ennis Cullen & Lieutenant JG Rachael "Ripcord" Yamaguchi-Cullen & Saki Yamaguchi-Cullen

Mission: Mission 98: Building Our New Home
Location: Various Locations - Starbase Vanguard
Timeline: 0930Hrs - June 25th, 2393

Rachael Yamaguchi-Cullen smiled as she regarded her daughters on the display before her, one of them was not related to her in any way other than marriage while the other was her first child that she had had over ten years ago. "So, you behaving girls?" Yamaguchi-Cullen asked the two children, no preteens before her. "Well we're managing," Sarah answered as Saki smiled. "We're not fighting.."

"Well that doesn't count the incident two weeks ago, you recall?" Sarah answered before she realized she had opened a can of worms in front of Rachael that she really did not need to be talking about. Rachael noticed. "What happened girls?"

"Well. mom, you see." Saki paused. "It goes like this?" the child then paused, as if trying to recall what happened but she couldn't.

"With your fist breaking someone's face?" Rachael inquired with a worried and weary look. "I can see why your father didn't tell me about this, he didn't want me to worry about you Saki." the sighed. "So what happened?." Rachael rotated her hand as if to say. please speak and be quick about it.

"Well no, I didn't hit him, he instead hit me. It was Ryuujin Duval who did the beating but not against me... I... I think..." Saki sighed but she also sounded very unsure exactly of what happened. "I came in to help him but the other guy was fourteen and Ryuujin and I were both ten. Needless to say, the whole thing kicked off a major shitstorm." Saki explained. "Even the...I'd best let dad explain mom. I'll only screw it up and make you angry with me." Saki sounded defeated which was alarming in of itself to Rachael's ears, she was used to sass and saucy from Skai but not defeat and resignation.

Rachael listened in silence. "Okay, why don't you guys go find your dad for me, I do want to ask him about this matter and, why I was not told about this event?."

"Dad was up to his eyeballs in it, as the ships Chief medical Officer mom, he was the one treating the wounded," Saki explained with a long sigh, the kind that someone knew that she was in trouble no matter what. "Thanks, Sarah, you had to open your mouth... Go find dad." Saki snapped at her sister in an angry tone. Sarah turned and walked off, she was not happy and her body language said as much. Rachael noticed but said nothing on it. "Saki, maybe I'd better have this story from the beginning. What happened?" Rachael asked quietly.

"James Vronn was a bruiser, he was the one who did the beating. He slapped Daisy Young. One of my other classmates was about a year older than Sarah. But he was still much larger then she was. That was when Ryuujin punched him one. I went to his aid as Jimmy Vronn is almost fifteen mom, he's a bully and needed to learn some manners." the small child explained. "so I started laughing, saying he likes to hit girls, he came over and punched me one, I heard ringing from it. Dad was really angry, I mean REALLY angry over it mom. The teacher did nothing to intervene until Ryuujin separated us both as Vronn picked me up. I think he was going to try and throw me or something... It gets a little weird at that point." Saki paused as Ennis appeared. "Hey ladies," he commented. "Ahh, Rachie. I heard you were looking for me?."

"I was. What happened with that fight and Saki?". Rachael inquired, this was all a surprise to her and she never liked surprises.

Ennis turned to Saki. "Why don't you run along now?." he commented quietly. "You and Sarah should go sort things out."

"Yeah. I'll do that." Saki turned back to her mother. "Bye, mom. I'll finish my letter to you tonight okay?" and with that, she was gone as Rachael got to face the full attention of her husband as he settled in. Rachael held her silence as she knew that pestering and prodding wouldn't work on her husband, besides he would tell her when he was ready to do so. "Well, Rachael. Saki was rushed into the trauma center as news of a fight in the school got out. I asked what happened and within minutes, the entire senior staff of the ship had been dragged into it. Lieutenant Chung is still looking at events and Commander Bishop has closed the school, he's decided to have the children learn on a converted holodeck. Using several holograms designed for the purpose." Cullen regarded his spouse. "Anyway... Saki was punched in the face with such force that Mister Vroon gave her a concussion. The teacher is in the brig and so is Mister Vroon."

"Hows Saki?" Rachael paused, this was making a lot more sense, now she knew why her daughter sounded unsure of herself. It wasn't because she was deliberately trying to avoid her, it was that she couldn't remember what happened.

"She's gonna be tender for a while. I mean she took one bad blow to the head. But she's still just as Saki as ever." he paused. "Even if she can't recall everything. No, she doesn't have memory loss like that time with the tank on Niven. She chooses not to think about it." Cullen explained.

Rachael nodded her head, processing everything she was hearing. "How are the twins doing?"

"They are being as demanding as ever," Cullen answered with a smile. "Other than that, its been rather normal around here." Cullen regarded his wife. "How about you?."

"It's quiet," Rachael answered quietly. "I'm in the middle of my third year of studies.. and I should be getting a commission at about this time next year, with the rank of Ensign. So I'll soon be on my way, onwards and upwards right?"

"That's wonderful news, soon we'll be back together," Cullen answered with a smile.

"I can hope," Rachael answered with a gentle smile. "Keep me informed at to this business with mister.. whatshisface who likes to pick on my children," she added a moment later. "Because I'm going to hit his parents with a lawsuit with such force, they will wish the skipper of your ship dropped them off on a rock with no name."

"Willdo," Cullen answered his spouse's request with a nod of his head. "I know the skipper is seriously fucking pissed off with this." he paused. "Also apparently the Heart of the Tiger is getting a reputation as the love boat of the fleet."

"Oh?" she inquired. "How's that?"

"Everyone is either dating or married to someone else on the crew," Cullen answered with a soft sigh. "Anyway. I'd better get going. I miss you and stay safe okay?" he sighed a second time.

Rachael hated these goodbyes. But she was nothing if not pragmatic as she likewise needed to get back to her own work. "Yeah. I love you," she answered with a smile.

"I love you too." and with that, he hung up on her. Rachael turned and went back to her classwork without comment or question. She hated these goodbyes as they only reminded her of what she had and what she had lost.