Conversation

                            By:

                         Fox Cutter

9/19/97:

"Fox?" Oria called from around the general area of the front
door. I stuck my head over the railing, looking down at her.

"Welcome back!" I said with a smile, she had been on her
world for close to a month now, with an occasional stop by
to the house to get something.

She smiled back up at me, setting a few bags of food on the
couch. She looked around the main room. "Where is Sora?"

I sipped my tea. "Well, we found Jadith's home world so
she's gone back home for now and she asked Sora to come
along. They'll be back in a few days."

Oria undid the band that was holding her hair back, working
her fingers through it, separating it out. "You except
Jadith will want to come back?"

I chuckled, "She's a natural, unless she has major
commitments, she'll most likely be back."

She laughed softly. "You sound so sure of yourself."

I suddenly felt months of tension epp away. "You haven't
laughed in months," I said in a slightly excited voice,
setting my tea on the railing and started down the stairs.

She watched me as I descended. "I'm felling better about
myself right now."

I stopped a couple feet away from her. "What changed?"

Placing her paws on the side of my head, she pulled it down
and kissed me right below the hair line. Then steeping back
she grabbed one of the bags of food. "I tell you in a few
minutes, come on."

I shrugged as she brushed past. Then grabbing the second bag
I followed her up and into the kitchen, setting it on the
table. I then quickly grabbed my tea from where I had set
it.

She motioned for me to sit a the table as she sorted out the
food in the bags. Most of it was different cans and jars,
they all looked to be labeled in her native language. There
was also a long loaf of bread.

I leaned forward. "What's going on?"

Tucking away the last bit of food, she sat down at the
table. "Making a special dinner."

I smiled. "oh?"

"Yes, last time I tried to make Crex," I winches as the word
was mangled by my translator, "was right before the
Hammerheads did there crap, and afterwards making it didn't
become much of a priority."

I nodded. "What made you decided to do it now? And why are
you in such a good mood?"

She leaned forward. "I spent half of my time back home at
the Temple. I week in Expulsion, and a second in
meditation."

I 'ohhed' "You came to a rationalization."

"Crudely, but yes," she sighed, "not an easy task either.
I've at least accepted that I _am_ an assassin for right
now, and I will have to preform my duty on five people over
the next three years."

I nodded, setting my tea aside.

"One of the things in the Guild's charter, I can pick who I
will be assigned."

I nodded again, "so you will only take the one's you can
rationalize killing."

She nodded slightly. "I will still be going to the
Expulsion. I don't think I could do this with out the sin
and guilt that follows."

I took her paw in my hands. "Don't, if you lose that feeling
you would be someone else."

She smiled, patting my hands with her free paw. "Thank-you
Fox."

I smiled back at her. "I would also be willing to help there
again for you're expulsion like I was the first time."

Her smile broke into a wide grin. "You don't have to...
but... you to more for me then you ever need to."

"I do everything I feel I should do."

The smile on her face stretched from one side of her muzzle
to the other, bigger then anything I had seen on her in
ages.

I was smiling too, it was nice to see her happy again.
Something though was suddenly bothering me. I did mean what
I told her about doing everything for her I felt I should
do.

Now that everything seemed to be more then it ever had been
before.

-----

This story is (c) 1997 by Fox Cutter, hardcopy reprints
limited to one a person, all other rights reserved. This
story may not be distributed for a fee except by permission
of the author, and this copyright notice may not be removed.