September 23, 4021 06:30 [Matriarch 04- Hyena Living Quarters]

Indra’s alarm rang, signaling the start of a new day. He rubbed his eyes, blinking until the spots in his vision cleared up. He lifted his head, only to find himself held down by something. Or someone in this case. Prasanna nuzzled his chest, pulling the comforter over her head as Indra drew the blinds by the bedside.

“Mmm, five more minutes,” she mumbled.

“C’mon, we have to get up,” Indra whispered, nudging her gently.

Prasanna pulled back the comforter, pouting indignantly. “Do we have to?”

Indra chuckled. “It’s not like we can call in sick. We’ve got two weeks. It’s going to be a lot of work crunching this much training in. Look on the bright side: it’ll be over pretty quickly and then we can spend more time together after the expedition.”

Indra caught himself, surprised by his own words. He was not used to being so optimistic.

“Fine,” Prasanna replied with a resigned sigh, giving him a peck on the cheek before rolling out of bed. She slipped into an oversized t-shirt and her undergarments, standing in the doorway of her bathroom. “Hey, you should get ready too. I’ll meet you downstairs for breakfast.”

Indra nodded, putting on his clothes and leaving her room, socks and shoes in hand. He closed the door softly on his way out, turning around to find Kaluza staring at him, frozen. Indra gave him a short wave awkwardly, the latter simply giving him a thumbs up before hurrying to the stairwell.

Indra shook his head, feeling the heat rise in his cheeks. He had nothing to be ashamed of. It was a perfectly normal thing to do, he reassured himself. He was simply overthinking matters. He freshened up, jumping into the shower after taking care of the rest of his morning routine. The hot water felt wonderful on his skin, and the quiet of the morning juxtaposed the incessant banging on the shower room doors in the Housing Units as other Homunculi impatiently awaited their turn.

Toweling off, Indra slipped into a fresh pair of clothes and headed downstairs. When he arrived, the rest of the Hyenas had already started on breakfast. He poured himself a cup of coffee and sat down next to Prasanna, digging into his own plate. Tengri and Jin paid them no attention, though Kaluza and Grisha watched them with an uncomfortable interest. Prasanna’s eye twitched, a vein bulging from her forehead as they continued to watch them eat.

She scarfed down the remaining food on her plate, grabbing Indra by the wrist, and ran out the door with him.

“A-are you serious?” Indra asked as they exited the elevator. “It’s not that big of a deal.”

“I know, but I don’t need Grisha butting in my business every two seconds. Plus, who knows who else she’s going to tell?”

Indra had no response to that. Grisha did love to gossip. Still, Prasanna’s reaction seemed out of the ordinary. Something else was bothering her.

“What’s wrong?”

Prasanna pursed her lips. “Today we’re practicing formations with multiple groups.”

“We’re working in pairs today though, not the entire battalion just yet. So?”

“So, what if I mess up? What if I’m the one that drags everyone down with me? My division is the lowest for a reason—I wasn’t strong enough. This only works if we work together in harmony, right?”

Indra shook his head. “What you’re saying is correct, but how you’re interpreting it is wrong. This only works if we’re working together harmoniously, not perfectly—that’s the key distinction.”

Prasanna blinked. “How are you so calm about this?”

“Like I’ve been saying. I have you.”

“You’re laying it on thick, you know,” she replied, her face softening.

“I’m just saying what I feel like saying, while I have the time,” Indra shrugged.

They exchanged smiles, lacing their fingers together.

Indra motioned his head to the side. “C’mon, let’s just walk a while. We can forget our obligations for a few minutes, can’t we?”

Prasanna nodded, following as he led. They strolled through the city together, laughing, and talking, enjoying the little moments of clarity and normalcy in their lives as they watched the sunrise. With his power continuing to grow, and Prasanna already quite capable in her own right, Indra was confident they would be able to see the expedition through.

“Come hell or high water, as long as we have each other, we’ll be fine. I promise.”