�Why?� CJ asked, turning in her seat to look at the captain. �Did we do something wrong?�
Larabee smiled and shook his head. �Nothing like that,� he said softly. �The Confederation Council approved some additions to our team and we�re picking them up there.�
�What kind of additions?� Toby asked curiously.
Chris shrugged. �They just finished working on a companion vessel for the Solaris, called the Estralla. We�re getting hooked up with our companion ship,� he explained. �It�s called the Enjaku and her captain is Seijiro Hiko.�
�Kenzian,� Daniel said from his seat near the wall.
�Yeah?� Jack said, blinking in surprise. �I always wanted to meet some people from Kenziah,� he added, when the archeologist nodded. �I�ve heard some interesting things about them. Supposedly, they�re a lot like the original Shynians were.�
Daniel nodded again. �They�re culture wasn�t influenced by the Loyalians as much as those living in Shynia has been,� he agreed.
Chris smiled. �I�ve heard some very interesting things about Captain Hiko,� he said, taking his seat.
�Like what?� Buck asked, grinning.
Chris chuckled. �They say there�s no one more arrogant in the whole Confederation.�
�Maybe you,� Vin said softly, a mischievous glint coming to his eyes.
Chris rolled his eyes and said, �Just set the course so we can get there some time this year, Tanner.�
�Aye, sir,� Vin replied, entering the new heading into the navigational computer.
**
Kenshin shook his head as he wandered down the hall mumbling to himself about his current situation. Here they were, about to be deployed on an extended mission and he�d managed to lose Shuichi. His master would definitely be unhappy, unless the young man was found soon. As he was about to step into the station�s commissary, the doors opened and he almost ran into a tall blond-haired man. Judging by the insignia on his uniform, he was the captain of the Larabee�s Lady. Himura paused and gave an innocent smile to the other man. �Sorry,� he apologized softly. �I was� distracted.�
�That�s alright,� the blonde replied. �Are you lost?�
Kenshin blushed and shook his head. �I am just� looking for a member of my crew,� he explained.
The captain nodded. �Good luck,� he said, as he started back down the hallway past the smaller man.
Himura sighed and peered into the room he�d been heading into when he�d nearly collided with the tall captain. He sighed in relief upon seeing the man sitting at the bar and sprinted across the room to join him. �Yuki!� he said in a hushed voice.
�Hello Kenshin,� the other replied, adjusting his glasses. �You look upset. What�s wrong?�
Kenshin sighed deeply and looked down. Without making eye contact, he said, �Shindou is missing.�
�What?!� Yuki exclaimed, hopping off the stool.
Himura�s head snapped up and he glared briefly at Yuki, then smiled at the bartender and grabbed the taller man�s arm. Pulling him toward the door, he said, �Try to keep your voice down, Yuki. His kind aren�t even supposed to leave their home world, we can�t let them know we brought one with us to the station.�
�Do you have any idea �� Yuki started, cutting himself off as two other officers from the Larabee�s Lady walked passed them. In a softer tone, he asked, �Do you have any idea how much damage he could cause if we don�t find him soon!�
Kenshin rolled his eyes and locked eyes with Yuki. �I think I have some idea,� he said softly. �That�s why I came to find you when Sanosuke told me he was missing.�
Yuki scowled and shook his head. �I haven�t got any idea where he is,� he argued. �How is finding me going to help?�
Kenshin took a deep breath and, with exaggerated patience, said, �Shuichi Shindou chose you as his mate.�
�I know,� Yuki said, grimacing. �That�s why we had to break protocol and bring him with us.�
�So,� Kenshin said, smiling. �You�ll be able to find him, if you just open up your thoughts to him.�
�Of course!� the younger man said softly. �I should have known that.�
Kenshin nodded, as Yuki closed his eyes and tried to center his thoughts on the missing Hijuran. As long as Shuichi hadn�t somehow gotten off the station, it would be a simple matter to locate him. The problem was that Hijuran�s had boundless supplies of energy and an incredible capacity to get into mischief. No one knew this better than Himura, who was fully half Hijuran himself. Although most people from the Sister planets considered them too volatile to deal with people from other worlds, Kenshin�s master had realized that, once they were given something to focus on, they could become indispensable. Hiko had helped Kenshin focus on fighting, making him a force to be feared if you were opposing him. Shindou�s energy was focused entirely on music and Kenshin had never heard a better singer in his life.
Yuki touched his shoulder, bringing him out of his reverie. �Found him,� he whispered.
�Where?� Kenshin asked, as the taller man took off at a rapid walk.
Yuki grimaced. �I think he�s in the cargo bay,� he said in dismay.
�Oro!� Kenshin exclaimed, bounding forward to catch up with Yuki.
The two men entered one of the cargo holding rooms and then exchanged dismayed looks. The large room was strewn with the contents of several boxes. It seemed that Shuichi had been looking for something. Before either man could even guess what it was, Yuki�s name was shouted across the hold and a giggling pink-haired form tackled him.
�You found me!� Shuichi exclaimed happily.
Yuki sighed and forced himself to a seated position. �Shuichi, what were you looking for?� he asked, gesturing at the mess in the room. �You were supposed to stay on the ship!�
The young man pouted. �I was lonely,� he mumbled. �And hungry.�
Yuki shook his head and pulled the smaller man to his feet. �Let�s get you back to the ship before someone realizes you�re here,� he said.
�Too late for that,� a voice said from behind.
Kenshin, Yuki and Shuichi turned to find a tall dark-haired man staring at them. �Hello,� Kenshin said softly. �Yuki, if you will see that Shuichi is brought back to the ship, I will clean this up and explain to this gentleman what happened.�
�Right!� Yuki agreed, taking Shuichi�s arm. �Come on,� he said quickly.
�Not so fast,� the dark-haired man said, blocking Yuki�s path. �You�ve got to know that it�s illegal for Hijurans to leave their home planet.�
�This is a special case,� Kenshin said softly. In a gentle voice, he said, �If you allow them to leave, I will gladly explain it to you.�
The man scowled, but nodded and stepped out of Yuki�s way. The blonde glanced at Kenshin and could see that the redhead had the man entranced. Nodding once, Yuki all-but-dragged Shuichi out of the room.
**
Chris smiled at Seijiro Hiko, doing his darnedest not to laugh at the other man. Everyone in both command crews were supposed to meet with Travis before deployment and, while all of Chris� people had arrived, Hiko was waiting for two more people.
Finally growing angry enough that he could wait no longer, Hiko touched the communicator on his wrist and practically growled, �Stupid apprentice, where are you?�
�Oro!� came the startled reply. �I�m coming, Master,� the other answered. �We had a� small problem that required my attention and that of Mister Yuki. We are now on our way.�
�Fine,� Hiko growled, turning the device off. Turning to Travis, he said, �My apologies, sir. Kenshin is usually quite reliable, but his duties as Security chief must come before any commitments such as this.�
�I understand,� Orrin said softly.
While they waited, Jack turned to the supply officer from the Enjaku and smiled. �How�d a kid get a job like Chief Supply officer?� he asked. The boy looked to be about nine years old and Jack was rather surprised to hear he was a member of the command crew.
Loki�s green eyes narrowed dangerously. �I�m not a boy,� he said softly. �I�m kawaiian and you should know that size and form does not matter as much as talent and ability do.�
�Sorry,� Jack answered softly. Leaning over to Daniel, he said, �He looks like a kid.�
Daniel rolled his eyes and whispered, �He�s certainly young, but he�s no child, Jack.�
Jack nodded and turned toward the door as it opened to emit two people. One was a tall blonde with glasses and golden eyes and the other was a rather short man with lavender eyes and red hair. The redhead walked over to Hiko and sat down, saying, �Hello, Master.�
�Kenshin,� Hiko replied evenly. �This is my security chief, Kenshin Himura,� he said, pointing to Kenshin. Pointing to the blonde, he said, �That is Eiri Yuki, my chief records officer.�
�Hello,� Yuki said, seating himself beside Loki. �Sorry we�re late.�
Chris nodded and asked, �What happened?�
Yuki frowned and said, �My� spouse got lost and Kenshin needed my help finding him.�
Travis nodded. �Now that we�re all here,� he said. �I can explain to you what your mission will include and how the two teams will work together.�
�Thank you,� Kenshin said softly.
Travis smiled and explained, �The new Estralla class ships are engineered to work with a larger vessel, such as the Solaris class. They are more maneuverable in the atmosphere and would do away with the need for landing craft, making more room for storage on the Lady.�
�Great,� Chris said. �How many people can they hold?�
Travis turned to Chris. �The present crew compliment is forty-three people, but its capacity is actually seventy-five.�
�There are forty-four members of our crew, sir,� Kenshin corrected in a soft voice. �We� picked up a new member just before we left our last assignment.�
Travis frowned and turned to Hiko. �You were studying cave paintings on Hijura, weren�t you?� he asked. When the other man nodded, he said, �That would mean that ��
�The new crewman is a hijuran,� Kenshin finished softly. �He had� extenuating circumstances that made leaving him behind impossible.�
�They would be?� Travis asked, turning to the small redhead.
�He bonded to me,� Yuki explained. �If I�d left him, he would have died. I couldn�t stay, so he had to come.�
Chris scowled and turned to Daniel for an explanation. Dr. Jackson adjusted his glasses and said, �Hijurans are a race that is closely related to Norabardians. Physically, they are rather small, with red or pink hair and tend to be lightly framed. They have enormous amounts of energy and a tendency to find trouble when they leave their home world,� he explained. �They also have almost no concept of personal property or privacy.�
�The last being the reason why they usually aren�t permitted to leave Hijura,� Yuki finished. �They can be taught, however, just like anyone else. It�s just an aspect of their culture, after all.�
Daniel nodded and Hiko smiled as Chris turned to look at Kenshin. �You�re hijuran too,� the captain said softly.
Kenshin blinked in surprise and then shrugged. �I am only half-hijuran,� he explained softly. �Master found me when I was only eight and raised me. He taught me how to fight and himself learned that, when we focus our energies on one thing, we quickly master it.�
�Interesting,� Daniel said, smiling at Kenshin. �That�s why he chose you to be his security chief.� When the other man nodded, Daniel asked, �But what about the other� aspects of hijuran society?�
Kenshin blushed and said, �I� have learned when such behavior is not appropriate, Dr. Jackson.�
�What behavior?� Chris asked, turning to Yuki.
Yuki blushed and explained, �Hijuran males� are very��
�Sensual,� Daniel finished, grinning. �The females aren�t quite as bad, but the males tend to let their� physical needs guide their actions.�
Yuki nodded. �That�s how Shuichi ended up bonded to me,� he explained. �He noticed me and then� he started following me around and eventually� one thing kind of led to another.�
Travis shook his head and turned to Hiko. �Just how many hijurans do you have in your crew, Hiko?� he asked irritably.
�Four,� he answered evenly. �Kenshin and Kurama are half-bloods,� he added, pointing at the slender redhead seated beside CJ.
�Hello,� the man said softly.
CJ blinked in surprise and said, �I thought your name was Shuichi?�
�It is,� Kurama said evenly. �However, I usually am called Kurama. I�m half shynian and Kenshin is half kenzian.�
Kenshin nodded and said, �The mixing tempers some of our more� troublesome characteristics. Kurama isn�t as flighty as most hijurans and we are both more able to think our actions through more completely than average.�
�Mayura�s invaluable to our supplies office,� Tohma said softly.
Loki rolled his eyes. �Oh, yes,� he muttered. �Indispensable.�
�And Shuichi�s been helping me organize our records,� Yuki said quietly. �We�ve made a lot of headway because of him.�
Travis nodded. �Alright,� he agreed. �I�ll allow it on a provisional basis, but at the first sign of trouble from any of them, they all go home.�
�Understood,� Hiko said softly.
Travis shook his head and got up to leave. �The Lady will be responsible for the collection and study of physical artifacts and the Enjaku will be responsible for the study of written and oral histories,� he said softly. �Get to know each other. You�ll be deployed tomorrow.� Still shaking his head, he quietly left the room.
�Well,� Kenshin said brightly. �That went quite well.�
Yuki moaned and said, �This means I have to get a handle on Shuichi or all four of you will be deported.�
�I�m sure you�ll do fine,� Loki said gently. �Once you�ve figured out how to handle them, they really aren�t that bad.�
�Handle them?� Buck asked.
As if to answer Buck�s query, a pink-haired young man bounded into the conference room and tackled Yuki. �I missed you,� he said hugging the older man tightly.
Yuki sighed and said, �We�ve only been separated for thirty minutes, Shuichi. You were supposed to wait.�
�Waiting�s boring,� Shuichi complained, stepping back and folding his arms over his chest. �You�re mean!�
Yuki rolled his eyes. �I�m not mean,� he argued. �I�m just annoyed.� Standing, he took Shuichi�s arm and said, �Let�s go back to the records room and we can finish entering that information into the database.�
�Alright,� Shuichi said happily and bounded ahead.
Loki smiled at Buck and said, �Hijurans have endless amounts of energy. They�re hard to keep up with.�
Chris sighed. �Let�s get some dinner and turn in,� he suggested. �I�m exhausted.�
Kenshin blinked in surprise and said, �Why are you tired? It�s not so late yet.�
Jack frowned. �By the time we get something into us, it�ll be almost midnight,� he pointed out gently.
The smaller man shrugged. �I am not tired,� he said. �After dinner, I will write up my reports and do a few rounds of the ship and then perhaps I will meet with your security chief.�
�I�ll be sleeping,� Simon said, shaking his head.
�Then we will meet now,� Kenshin said brightly. With that, he began discussing with Banks how to best coordinate security on the two vessels.
�I think,� Buck said. �I�m beginning to understand what you meant when you said they needed to be handled.�
Loki nodded and smiled. �I seriously doubt Mister Banks will get any sleep tonight,� he added, following the rest of the command crew out of the room.
Chris chuckled and turned to Hiko. �This should be interesting,� he said.
Hiko smiled and nodded in agreement. �My life hasn�t been dull for the past twenty years,� he stated. �Ever since I found that stupid apprentice of mine, I haven�t had a moment�s peace.�
�Great,� Jack said, eyeing the loquacious redhead and then following the two captains toward the commissary.
End