Requiem [Sirius the Jaeger]

Chapter 3 - Let's begin anew

"Fantasy, abandoned by reason, produces impossible monsters; united with it, she is the mother of the arts and the origin of the marvels"
~Francisco Goya

Water splashed onto the ship while the sea breeze picked up my hair, moving it along with it's puppet strings. My hair always amazed people simply by its color. The dark brown roots grew lighter the longer they were until they ended in a pure and mesmerizing white. Even though I usually had my hair in some kind of braid or ponytail, I decided to leave it open for the wind to play with. I watched a pair of seagulls play with each other, gliding on the wind. They rolled around each other, switched places, soared high into the sky only to drop back down.

I always envied birds, being gifted with wings that could carry them everywhere they wanted. I got pretty lucky with the fact that my job carried me around the world, yet the thought of complete freedom always got the better of me. Sometimes I wondered what freedom even was. Was it the freedom to say your thoughts aloud? To make your own choices? To go wherever you want? There is one thing I know certainly though.

What some humans did to this word was simply horrible. To them war is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength. To close your eyes from reality was their solution to everything. What did freedom even mean if people don't want to embrace reality? Maybe freedom is the right to tell people what they don't want to hear. After all, humans liked to build their lives on lies. Who can still know what is right and what is not? Who decides whether a statement is true or false? It seems like the very concept of objective truth is fading out of the world.

I was so deep in thought that I didn't even notice Yuliy joining me at the railing. He followed my gaze as I was still contemplating about the world. When he realized I wouldn't notice him on my own any time soon, the Sirius decided to speak up. "You seem to think about something." I was abruptly called back into reality, snapping my head towards the smiling male with an expression that would have reminded me of a scared cat. "Sorry, did I startle you?" Concern washed over his aquamarine eyes as they looked into a pair of my own. However, it quickly vanished again when I answered, relaxing the very instant after comprehending the situation.

"Don't worry. I was just lost in thought that is all." He tilted his head to the side, looking like a lost puppy that didn't understand the world around it. I noticed he did this often when he was confused or unsure of something. I thought it was a cute habit of his. "Are you really alright Laika? You didn't even make a sarcastic remark." I slightly shoved him for this, resulting in Yuliy taking a step to the side before returning to his original position.

If it would have been anyone else, I would have been angry at this statement, as I'm provoked pretty easily, but now it simply made me smile. I enjoyed such carefree times in between the missions. A time were we could be ourselves and not some Vampire killing maniacs. A time like this must be cherished in our business.

I sighed, putting my forearms on the railing and crossing my ankles. A position I gladly took whenever I could. I don't know why, it was simply the most comfortable for me. "I'm really fine Yuliy. It's just...." I couldn't finish, too embarrassed to speak it aloud. Especially in front of him. "Just?" He nagged, trying to find out what was bothering me.

Sighing, I fully turned to him before speaking aloud what has been bothering me for quite some time now. "I'm just frustrated you know? We have been hunting Kerschner for what now? Months? And every time we think we have him, he just vanishes!" I turned back to the railing, grabbing it with my hands. I squeezed the poor metal bar in order to let out my frustration on something that wasn't a living creature.

"We are Jaeger for God's sake! Why can't we get him?" I didn't even notice my knuckles going white from the pressure until Yuliy took my hands and peeled them away from the cold metal. Even though he managed to loosen my death grip, he didn't let go of my hands as he made me look at him. I had to look up in order to meet his eyes since he was taller than I was.