Cuddles' Journey!

Chapter 1: Guardian

Cuddles was a suitable partner; he was efficient and effective, developed his own schedules, and was very quiet—despite his tall and relatively dense frame. Every morning, he'd wake up at 0500 sharp, search the room for threats and greepads, and after he was satisfied, he'd prepare breakfast for the chancellor. Cuddles suspected that Bodi was one of the only Omeocoon on the ship who consumed any form of solid sustenance: two protein cubes and a glass of protein powder, courtesy of the synthesizers. There still wasn't a chef, but Bodi had no taste buds, so...it didn't exactly matter what he ate; Cuddles could feed him a rotten apple, and he wouldn't be able to tell it was putrid—but he could never do such a thing...but then again...protein cubes weren't too dissimilar from the taste of rotten apples to be quite honest, but it was the best they could manage until the garden started producing adequate food. He didn't even need to eat, but when asked, all he said was. 'I like the texture.' From there, Cuddles made it a priority to ensure he had breakfast every day.

A few months had passed since Bodi officially took over as Chancellor, and things ran surprisingly smoothly. Since Cuddles was in more of a position of power, he turned the spare bedroom of the chancellor's chambers into his nest, encapsulating it in his webbing. He claimed whatever the previous crew left behind, along with various trinkets he'd found forging around the ship. It was his room now.

 Cuddles successfully prepared breakfast. He carried the silver tray from the galley into Bodi's room. As he entered the space, he struck the control panel near the door with his tail, which triggered the lights.

 Bodi was sprawled out on the bed like a rag doll. Half of his body was draped over the edge of the mattress. He groaned as the door opened and flooded the space with light from the living room, and then groaned even more when the lights inside the room itself were brought up to full capacity. Instead of doing his job, he played hookie for a few days, leaving the population and his friends wondering where he was. 

Unfortunately, for Cuddles, that meant that as the Official Panthorian, he was to stand in Bodi's place, deliver the public address, and act as Viceroy. "Feeling any better?" Cuddles inquired with genuine concern for Bodi's health—despite their relationship getting off to a rough start, Bodi was actually starting to grow on him. But it was more of an arm's length relationship for now. "Chancellor." Cuddles stepped over one of Bodi's boots on his way to the bed. This room was a mess...and guess whose job it would be to clean it later. Yep. Cuddles set the silver tray on the nightstand before turning to Bodi and looking at him, hoping to see signs of life. But he looked like a dead body. "Chancellor," Cuddles said again, poking Bodi in the cheek, his eyebrows knitted into an unruly unibrow as his frustration grew. "Bodi," Cuddles shouted. He kicked the corner of the bed.

 "Ah!" Bodi huffed as he sat up. "Ugh...Go way–you!" He snarled tiredly. He tried to shoo Cuddles away by smacking him with his pillow smeared with pink bonding fluid.

Cuddles caught it mid-swing, pulled it out of Bodi's hands, and dropped it on the floor. His face was twisted with disgust; he'd definitely need a new pillow. "It's time for breakfast." Cuddles insisted as he grabbed Bodi by his ankle and yanked him off the bed.

 Bodi yelped as his body quickly became intimate with the floor, thudding against the ground like a sack of potatoes. "No, I'm sick..!" Bodi quickly scrambled to recapture the bed; in a split second, he was under the covers again.

Rude. Cuddles worked hard on that breakfast; at least a nibble would've been nice. Cuddles just carried on with the rest of the schedule, "Tommy called. He left four messages asking to confirm your attendance for the Slugaxian delegation this afternoon." Cuddles briefed as Bodi remained silent under the blankets. Cuddles sighed and then continued, "You have the usual fan mail. I've already answered."

"Did...Kai call?" Bodi asked, finally poking his head from under the blankets.

 "No, Chancellor. I can call him if you'd like?" Cuddles proposed. 

"No. It's fine; leave it," Bodi responded quickly, pulling his head under the covers again. He's busy with captain stuff, and I don't want to bother him," Bodi shivered. 

"You know. You eventually have to tell him about your mucusus. It's your first one. Maybe he can help?" Cuddles proposed. He was more than aware of the Omeocoon reproductive cycle—it happened once every three years and lasted for only three hours; Omeocoon are only the most fertile in this state—yada-yada. The problem with the first cycle is that it did not last a mere three hours. It lasted three full days—it was like teething; it seemed excruciating. Bodi's usual chipper self had been reduced to a sweaty, nearly liquid puddle. It was only a matter of time until that neural chemical imbalance kicked in, and the drive to be with another mate would be uncontrollable. Cuddles was instructed to observe Bodi continuously for any changes, but other than that, he wanted this to stay private.

"No—he'll worry!" Bodi writhed in agony again as a sharp pain surged through him. He groaned and began sobbing quietly. This was a preview of the rest of his life...at least the next time wouldn't be so intense. 

"Maybe he should worry." Cuddles shrugged and then went to another area of the room to forge for a bit, wanting to find any excuse to exit. He enjoyed finding things in the Chancellor's chambers, every room waiting to be explored, items to be found, and something new popped up every day. Today, he tracked down an old 21st-century quarter from Earth, a shoelace, and a cracked photo frame with a picture of Bodi and Kai's parents. After about five minutes, Cuddles returned to the door and put the picture on Bodi's nightstand, figuring it'd be nice for him to have it. He planned to contact the ship's stores later to see if he could source a new picture frame. He figured Bode would like that—especially during this difficult time; the room was silent as Cuddles moved about the space, carefully maneuvering along the room's outer edges to avoid obstacles—he was very surefooted. "I found this picture of your parents." Cuddles stopped and waited for a response; he was like a cat bugging its owner. He stared at the lump of blankets that sealed Bodi from the world, "Chancellor?" He repeated. 

No response. 

Asleep. Good...he needed his rest—but at the same time, that meant that Cuddles would be delivering the public address. Again. At this point, he might as well have been Chancellor.