Kanna chapter 1

It was ten simple words uttered by his friend Thomas that ended up changing Hagen’s life that day. “So, I don’t think this is going to work out.”

Hagen looked up from his coffee as he stirred in his cream and sugar, a frown crossing his face. “Wait… what do you mean?” For some reason, rather out of the blue, Thomas had sent him a message this morning saying that he wanted to talk. The two had ended up meeting at Starlight Station, the rather cliche name for the diner on the space station they lived aboard. Hagen had naturally assumed that his friend would want to discuss their moving to Stranga, after all that was only a couple of days away. “What’s not going to work out?”

Shifting uncomfortably in his seat, Thomas avoided Hagen’s gaze as he started dumping sugar into his own coffee. “Well… the whole Stranga thing. I guess.”

Both sat in silence for a moment, Hagen waiting for his friend to elaborate for a moment before continuing. “And what exactly do you mean by that?” he demanded, leaning forward with a scowl. The two of them had been planning for these last couple of months to move to the jungle planet of Stranga, mostly due to a very lucrative job offer. There was a brand new space port on the planet that had just been built, and they were looking for competent staff to man it. Fortunately both he and Thomas had been offered jobs at the facility, pretty cushy ones that mostly involved supervising maintenance robots. This past month had been an extremely busy one as Hagen made plans to leave, making housing arrangements on the new planet and putting in his two weeks notice at maintenance bay here in the space station. So for Thomas to now be saying ‘this isn’t gonna work out’ wasn’t exactly cutting it for Hagen. “Well?” he demanded as Thomas was still reluctant to talk.

“Yesterday… was our last day on the job, right?” Thomas finally said, reluctantly looking Hagen in the eyes again. Hagen nodded in return, of course it had been. “You had left early, to start packing. I stuck around for a bit to clear out my desk, and I was approached by one of the branch managers.” Now that he was getting the story out, Thomas looked slightly more confident as he sipped his coffee. “He told me that the company really didn’t want both of us leaving, so they offered me a promotion. And a pretty nice pay raise too. So I… took the job offer.” With a miserable look in his eye, he once again broke eye contact. “I’m really sorry man. It was too good to pass up.”

Opening and closing his mouth for a moment, Hagen found himself genuinely speechless. “So you just… took the job offer?” he finally demanded once he could manage words again. “Dude, we’re supposed to be leaving for Stranga in TWO days to start this new job! We already arranged to get a place together!” The housing situation particularly pissed Hagen off, they had just put down a non-refundable deposit on the property mere days ago.

“Oh, well I actually have good news on that” Thomas said, looking pleased with himself as he reached into a pocket. For a brief moment Hagen held out some kinda hope that his friend had good news for him, even though there was a sinking feeling in his gut. Thomas passed Hagen an envelope, a grin on his face. “I talked to the property manager the other day about the deposit. I had to come up with one hell of a sob story, but I managed to get our money back. So, here ya go!”

Hagen had a blank look on his face as he took the envelope and started at it for a moment. “So… you’re saying that now I don’t even have a place to stay when I get there anymore” he said in a monotone voice.

The grin slowly fell from Thomas’ face. “Well… uh…” both were quiet for a long moment as the sounds of the cafe went on in the background. “Well…. Yeah, but… I managed to get your deposit back, right?” he asked with a sheepish grin that quickly gave way to a more serious expression. “Look, I really am sorry. It’s not like I went into all this wanting to fuck you over. I really hope that you can forgive me for doing this to you.”

Letting out a long sigh, Hagen slipped the envelope into a pocket as he looked at his friend’s downcast expression. It wasn’t really fair when he put it like that. “Look… fine. I forgive you, alright? I suppose there’s no crying over spilled milk anyways.”

A look of relief spread across Thomas’ face as he let out a long sigh of his own. “Thank you, man. Geez, this was stressful as hell for me” he said as that grin spread across his face again. “I really thought you were going to-” he began, but stopped as his communications device began going off. “Oh, one sec. It’s Dahlia. Do you mind?” Thomas asked as he glanced up.

“Go ahead” Hagen said with a wave. Dahlia was Thomas’ personal android, one that he’d been getting more attached to as of late, at least judging by the way he pampered her.

With a nod of thanks, Thomas answered the call as an image of the short, feminine form of Dahlia appeared on the screen. By the looks of it she had a frilly maid outfit and cat ears on, which Hagen found slightly odd. “Hey Dahlia, what’s up?”

“Master, when are you getting back home?” Dahlia asked, looking concerned. “I should have lunch finished soon.”

“I’ll be leaving here in just a bit, don’t worry” Thomas said with a reassuring grin.

Dahlia’s face began to pout a bit as she looked away from Thomas. “...You were already supposed to be here, you know. You promised we’d spend all day together” she mumbled.

“Uh…” Thomas glanced briefly up at Hagen and back down again, looking distinctly more uncomfortable. “Sorry, like I said I’ll be there soon” he promised.

“I recalibrated all of my input ports for you” Dahlia said in a husky whisper, as she gave Thomas a smoldering look. “So please hurry, master.” With that, the phone call shut off.

Thomas gave a brief embarrassed chuckle as he continued to avoid Hagen’s gaze. “Wow, she… really gets excited, huh?” he asked before sipping at his coffee.

“Hmm” Hagen said with a nod. “So, this new job offer is the ONLY reason you’re not going to Stranga with me?” he demanded, narrowing his eyes.

Clearing his throat, Thomas looked like he he wanted this conversation to end. “Well… maybe Dahlia… is kind of a factor there too. A bit. Um… are we still… cool?”

Letting out a long sigh, Hagen just shrugged his shoulders after a minute of making Thomas squirm. “Sure. She’s a super cute robot, I don’t exactly blame you after all. Now…” Hagen pointed a thumb at the door. “Don’t you have somewhere to be? I mean, she DID just recalibrate all of her input ports for you.” Hagen couldn’t help but grin as he said those words.

“R-right.” Thomas stood up as he finished his coffee, giving Hagen one last look. “And hey, like I said, I’m really sorry. But I’m still your friend, so if there’s anything I can help with just let me know.” With a final nod and a handshake, Thomas took his leave as he headed for the exit.

Now that Thomas had finally left, Hagen let out a long and annoyed groan as he rest his head on one hand. Well, now he was pretty fucked. He was officially starting a job on a new planet in two days, but he had nowhere to live. There was only one solution at this point, and it did not sound pleasant at all to Hagen. Pulling out his phone with a grimace, he began to search the Internet to see if he could find a solution to his problems.

-

It was nearly an hour later as Hagen was still in the same spot, bent over his phone as he browsed through multiple different links. Sitting back, he sighed as he put the device aside for a moment and sipped at what was now his fourth cup of coffee. This was turning out to be a lot more stressful than it had been a month ago. The new space port seemed to be bringing in some fresh faces from offworld, and as a result most of the free and open apartments that had been avaliable last month were now taken.

There were two practical choices ahead of him, going by his budget. The first was the large apartment complex located near the port itself. That was a tempting offer for a number of reasons, namely the rent was cheap and commuting to work would be simple. However there were a number of downsides, the first being the noise pollution from the ships taking off. By all accounts it sometimes went on all night, and Hagen wasn’t exactly thrilled about the possibility. Then of course there were the other tenants to consider as well. This was largely temporary housing, all the contracts going on a month-by-month basis, so apparently there were a decent amount of shady characters living in the premises. The recommendation from the people online was to get a second lock for his door if he got a room there, pronto.

Then there was the other option, in other words trying to find someone to move in with. So far there had been no luck on that front either, Hagen had spent the last half hour messaging and replying to people only to be met with negative responses. He also made a profile on a local Strangan message board with his information and the rates he was looking for, but he didn’t have much hope that would turn up anything either.

Sighing again, Hagen finished off his cup of coffee. He was just debating if he should other another or just ask for the check when he heard the ping of an incoming message from his phone. Curiously he picked up the device, though he cynically expected it to be more spam again. However it seemed to be from an actual person, the subject of the message reading “hey i herd u were lookin 4 a place”. Curiously he tapped it and glanced over the brief message inside. ‘hey i saw ur post! ive got a room i just clened out u can use. rent is 650 credits + im prety near teh spac port, ull hav ur own bthrm but we share kitchn + living rom. if u wana stay tho i got to meet u first 2 make sure ur not a loser ot anything LOL! :D oh + im a ma pilot btw, hope thats not weird 4 u! hop 2 c u son! -kanna’. At the bottom of the message this Kanna person had also included an address, likely to her (at least, he assumed it was a her by the name and the way she typed) home, that was equally as poorly spelled.

It took Hagen a moment to decode the message. At first he was inclined to think this was a joke, or possibly even some kind of scam, and even if that wasn’t the case the fact that this Kanna person was an MA pilot sent red flags up. True most of the MA pilots he’d met had been perfectly fine people, but others… hadn’t been. Frowning to himself, Hagen drummed his fingers on the table as he first deciphered the address and then entered it into the web browser. “Hmm… it IS pretty close to the port…” Hagen muttered to himself as he checked the info closely. It was actually closer than the house he was going to get with Thomas, that and the rent was cheaper as well. He was originally going to be paying 800 credits in that house, so this was a notable drop in price as far as he was concerned. It was all very convenient. Almost suspiciously convenient. There had to be a catch, right?

For nearly ten minutes Hagen sat there, arms crossed as he considered. Finally with a nod, he looked up with a determined expression and typed a quick response to Kanna’s message. ‘Sounds good. My shuttle to the planet will be landing 2 days from now your time, sometime in the afternoon. Will you be around that day? I can stop by as soon as I’m able.’ Sending the message, Hagen turned and waved towards the robotic waitress. “Check please?” he asked.

It was right when he was paying the bill and getting up to leave that he heard the chime of another incoming message, once again from Kanna. ‘sure ill b aroud all day! heres my # btw just call me whn u lnd’. The message managed to bring a small smile to Hagen’s face despite the crappy last hour he’d just endured. Well this was probably gonna end up being a bust, but he might as well check it out just to be sure.

-

As Hagen rode along in the automated cab headed towards Kanna’s address, he couldn’t help but think he’d made a huge mistake.

It wasn’t like anything particularly bad had happened since landing here on Stranga. In fact Hagen’s shuttle had turned up an hour early, and since he was one of the few people here in this remote spaceport it had been easy as pie to get his bags. However his feeling of trepidation had begun almost immediately as he was leaving and he noticed the large posters along the wall. They had the words “WARNING - REMAIN WITHIN CIVILIZED, HABITABLE AREAS OF THE PLANET! REMEMBER TO CHECK WEATHER FORECASTS AT LEAST ONCE EVERY THREE HOURS AND SEEK SHELTER AS NECESSARY! IF YOU ARE BITTEN BY ONE OF THE FOLLOWING SPECIES, CONTACT POISON CONTROL AT ONCE!” In large, bold red letters, along with around thirty pictures of various dangerous-looking creatures on the bottom.

Of course it wasn’t just that, there was also the weather to consider as well. He had heard that it was a bit hot and muggy here, but he had no idea it would be as overwhelming as it was. Right now he was just enjoying the brief respite of the car’s air conditioning as he very much did not look forward to stepping outside again. Then there was the last thing, namely Kanna. He had called her right when he got off the plane like he’d said, but he hadn’t got a response, and it was only now while riding in a cab to her home that he realized he hadn’t actually talked to his person beyond a few quick messages. He didn’t even know what Kanna LOOKED like.

Hagen pursed his lips as he considered his options, staring down at his feet. Though he hated to admit it, he was actually thinking of going back to the space station. From what he’d heard they hadn’t quite filled his old position yet, maybe he could just go and beg for his old job again. Sure it’d be humiliating, but he wouldn’t get bit by some weird spiked bee on an alien planet. Maybe he could even get a shuttle back to the station today if he went soon.

The cab same to a halt, stopping any more thoughts. “We’ve arrived at your destination, sir” the robotic cabby chimed as it opened the trunk and turned to face him. “Your account has been charged six credits. I hope you had a pleasant trip.”

“Oh... right. Thank you” Hagen said with a brief smile, looking out the window. The place was pretty much what he expected an MA pilot’s house to be like, namely a large metal bunker to house a tank with a metal structure bolted onto the side. However there also looked to be two large greenhouses to the far right, which was a bit curious to him. Kanna obviously liked gardening, he supposed, though that seemed excessive. Reaching up to the handle, Hagen hesitated before opening the door. It’d be very easy for him to just tell the cabby to turn around and head back to the spaceport, after all.

“...Sir?” The cabby eventually asked, snapping Hagen back to the present. “Is everything alright? Did I perhaps go to the wrong location?”

“No. No, sorry.” Hagen smiled reassuringly as he opened the door and got out, holding it open for a moment. “But I was wondering. This may sound weird, but can you hang around for a few minutes, like thirty or so? I might need to go back if things don’t work out here.”

Nodding, the cabby tipped its hat. “Of course. I’ll wait around the corner, so just call me if you need me.”

“Thanks” Hagen said with a grin as he shut the door and grabbed his bag, Hopefully he wouldn’t need it, but it was good knowing a potential escape route was waiting if this didn’t go well. As the cab sped off, Hagen made his way cautiously up to the door, or what he figured to be the front door. Frowning, he let out a long sigh before pressing the doorbell. Better just get this over with he supposed.

There was a long pause as Hagen stood there, drumming his fingers against his leg. Then, right as he was considering turning to leave, he heard a noise faintly from inside. “Just a minute!” came a cheery, female voice as he faintly heard footsteps getting closer. The door suddenly flew open a moment later, causing Hagen to take a tentative step back. There was a person standing there in the doorway, a decidedly female one at that, who was a little taller than him. “Oh! You’re Hagen, right?” she asked, her face perking up.

“Uh…” Hagen said, finding himself speechless for a moment. There were two major features about this woman that his brain registered. The first was her head as she kept smiling at him. Not to mix words, it looked like a flower pot. However it clearly wasn’t completely solid, at least judging by the way her expressions and mouth animated freely. The top of her head was blooming with a number of long green plants, styled back in a sort of hairdo complete with a flower in the center. The second thing Hagen noticed (and the thing that was now taking up the bulk of his attention) was her shapely green figure. She had an extremely large pair of breasts, the green cleavage barely held in with a watermelon top and criss-crossing strings. Below that her waist was narrow and her hips wide again, frankly he couldn’t help but stare like an idiot. It was just when he was looking at her clothing, a jumpsuit zipped halfway up, that he finally realized she was looking at him with some concern.

“Um, are you alright?” the flower lady asked as her face nearly stopped smiling for a moment. “And you ARE Hagen, right?”

“Oh, yes, I’m Hagen” he quickly replied, giving her a reassuring smile. “Sorry about that. It’s been a long trip.” Hagen was hoping that brief excuse would somehow explain away the way he was clearly gawking at her, and he held out a hand in a desperate attempt to move the conversation along again.  “It’s nice to meet you. You must be Kanna, right?”

It seemed like Hagen was nervous for nothing however, as she beamed right back with a huge smile and began shaking his hand. “Yup, I’m Kanna. It’s real nice to meet you too!” Suddenly she dropped his hand, and without any warning pulled him into a hug. “Oh, why are we shaking hands? We’re gonna be roommates soon! Get over here!”

“I… um…” Hagen stammered. He was currently being pressed right into Kanna’s chest, his head resting right on top of her boobs. His mind went blank as he savored the feel, not really knowing what else to do. Finally she disengaged the hug, and Hagen could only smile stupidly for a moment as he tried to think of something to say.

With an excited look on her face, Kanna reached down and took Hagen’s hand in her own, pulling him gently inside. “Alright well, come on. Let me show you around for a bit. I just cleaned your bathroom today too so you’re all set to go!” It was only now as she turned around that Hagen properly noticed what looked like a tail at first glance, swishing back and forth as Kanna walked. It dawned on him though, due to the unusual shape, that it was more than likely a root of some kind. Made sense, she was a plant after all.

As they entered the house, Hagen looked briefly around the room as he placed his bag next to the door. Unlike the outside which was metal and uninviting, the inside was rather cozy. There were a few couches and chairs in various shades of green or pink, and the walls were painted with a pale melon-looking pattern. Though it may have been tacky for a normal person, he had to admit that it pretty much fit Kanna like a glove. Finally he glanced back to Kanna as he spoke, who was looking at him excitedly. “Well I’m really glad you’re so excited but… are you really ok with me moving in? Just like that? In your message the other day you made it seem like you wanted to meet and talk first.”

“Huh?” Kanna looked confused as she tilted her head to the side slightly. “Hmmm… oh!” Perking up, Kanna’s smile brightened as she clapped her hands together. “That’s right! I got so excited I nearly forgot. Well, why don’t I just ask you questions while I show you around then?” she offered, turning and walking deeper into the house without waiting for a response. Hagen found himself rushing to catch up, still not quite used to her energetic pace.

The two entered what was obviously a kitchen next, the tiles on the floor colored the same pale green as the walls. “And here’s the kitchen!” Kanna exclaimed rather unnecessarily as she strode around the island in the middle of the room and up to the massive pale green refrigerator, putting a hand on it. “We get plenty of fruits and veggies from the greenhouses, and they’re restocked automatically so feel free to have whatever you want. I was also thinking of making you dinner tonight as a sort of welcome gift, if you want.”

Hagen couldn’t help but grin back at Kanna like an idiot. He seemed to be doing that a lot since he met her. “That sounds great” he said without thinking, though he quickly kicked himself mentally. He shouldn’t just be assuming he was going to move in, even if Kanna was. After all, this could still all be too good to be true. In fact, the more he thought about it that only made sense. It likely was too good to be true. There’s no way some sexy plant lady was going to give him a nice, cheap place to live AND want to fuck him moments after meeting him. There was a second shoe that was bound to drop, he just knew it. “Well, before we talk about that… you said you had some questions for me?” he prompted, hoping he could find out what that second shoe was exactly.

Nodding, Kanna actually got a serious look on her face for once as she clasped her hands behind her back. Hagen tried not to notice how it made her chest poke out more. “Right. Yeah. Can’t get distracted. Ok, first question. You said you’re gonna be working for the space port, right? What are you gonna do there exactly?”

Feeling strangely relieved that he was finally being asked an actual question someone might ask a potential roommate, Hagen shrugged nonchalantly. “Well, nothing spectacular. I’m part of the service crew for the maintenance and security robots. Mostly it’s just monitoring everything to make sure things are going smoothly, though I’ll also be helping to do some programming as well.”

“Oh.” Kanna’s face drooped into the first frown he’d seen on her face yet.

“What’s wrong?” Hagen asked, looking concerned. He wondered if he’d said something to offend somehow. That did happen occasionally with aliens.

As she looked down at the floor Kanna kept frowning and mumbled, “That sounds like a pretty important job, right? ...So that means you’re probably not going to be home very much, huh?”

Shaking his head, Hagen gave Kanna a nervous grin. This was the part that might dissuade some potential roommates. “Well, not exactly. For the first week or two, yeah I’m going to be at work a whole lot. I’ll probably have to pull a few twelve or sixteen hour shifts. But once everything is up and running properly, I’m actually going to be at home a lot. The systems are all automated, so if everything goes right then some weeks I’ll only have to stop in a couple times to check up on things.” That was the part of the job that drove some people crazy, the amount of downtime you had. It was likely why the wages were so high, almost nobody wanted work like this on some remote planet with nothing to do after all, but it had always suited Hagen pretty well. Of course, if Kanna had a problem with him being home all the time then it might just backfire on him here.

Heaving a sigh of relief, Kanna smiled widely again. “Awesome! You really had me worried there, Hagen. I thought I was hardly going to see you at all.”

“Nope, after those first couple of weeks you’ll see me plenty!” Hagen said with a laugh, feeling like an idiot as he did so, but to his relief Kanna giggled along like he’d made a hilarious joke. As he smiled though, Hagen had a brief curious thought. Why had she been so worried she wouldn’t see him much?

Before Hagen could even think to ask however, Kanna was already off again. “Ok, next room!” she called as she strode deeper into the house once again. This time Hagen was at least more prepared, and he followed along as Kanna lead him down a short hallway. Off to the left was a bathroom and stairway leading up, but Kanna turned instead to a door on the right wall. There was a hand scanner there, and as Kanna placed her hand on it the door slid open with a gentle hiss. “This is my lab, and kinda my hangout spot. I make medicines and junk here” she said over her shoulder as she walked inside.

“Wait, you make medicine?” Hagen asked, feeling a bit bewildered as he followed her inside. He almost laughed, for a moment he thought that Kanna was trying to make a joke. However looking around properly that thought died. This place actually looked like… well, a proper laboratory. There was a large work desk against the back wall that was covered in various beakers and corked vials, and against each wall there were various pieces of medical equipment, most of which he was clueless of. He recognized a centrifuge that was currently spinning some strange purple liquids, but most of the rest he could only guess at. “Wow. I guess you do” he said, not knowing what else to add. This girl had been full of surprises so far. “What are you working on here?” he asked, pointing at the spinning purple vials curiously.

Glancing over at the centrifuge, Kanna shrugged. “Oh, nothing much. Just an antitoxin for one of the creatures out there in the jungle. There’s a reward if someone can actually make it and I was bored, so I figured I’d give it a shot. It’s been harder than I thought, but I think I’m getting close. Ever since I started using my flowers as a component I’ve been making a lot of progress.” Perhaps she saw the confused look on Hagen’s face because she quickly explained as she pointed to her head. “Oh, I can grow various medicinal herbs up here. It’s real useful, I’m basically like a walking pharmacy!”

“Cool” Hagen said, feeling especially like an idiot now since he had nothing to add to that. “Well, I’m rooting for you to finish that then!” He grimaced, realizing what he just said as he glanced at Kanna’s tail. “That… wasn’t a pun on purpose. I swear.”

Though he was expecting Kanna to react negatively in some way, Kanna just looked blankly at him for a second before she let out a snort of laughter. “Oh, I get it!” As she giggled, she reached out and pulled him in for another brief hug. “Thank you, Hagen. I think you’re a sweetheart~”

Laughing a bit nervously, Hagen tentatively reached out and hugged back. “Well, I think you’re pretty awesome too.” He thought it might just be his imagination, but Kanna seemed to linger for a bit before she finally let go this time.

“...Well. I guess we should continue the tour” Kanna said as she made her way back into the hallway and started up the stairs. “There’s really not that much to show you in the lab after all.” Hagen followed behind, admiring her ass as it swayed in front of him, until she stopped by another door. “And here’s your room!” she said cheerily as she entered, standing aside to let him in.

The room was completely empty save for a broom in the corner, though there was a faint earthy smell in the air. However, Hagen nodded with approval. This looked fine, the delivery vehicle would be showing up on the planet soon with his furniture and it looked like everything could fit nicely in this place. There was even a window that overlooked the jungle, and he spent a moment admiring the view before looking back to Kanna. She was standing there, a nervous expression on her face as she shifted in place. He was about to ask what was wrong, until he realized what she was probably waiting for. “This looks fantastic, Kanna” he said as he gave her a thumbs up. “Plenty of space for everything.” It was actually a bit smaller than his place back on the space station, but frankly it was still enough room, and there was no way he was going to let that be a factor right now. Frankly it could have been half the size of his old room and he probably wouldn’t care as long as he could get his bed inside.

The look of relief was instant. “Whew, that was the part I was most worried about! I wasn’t sure if this was enough space for a human or not.”

Though he smiled back Hagen’s brain reminded him of the potential second shoe, and he decided to check again for the catch. “So, what else do you have to ask me by the way?” he prompted.

“Well, there is something I’ve been wondering. But it’s a little personal. Is it ok to ask?” Kanna had a curious smile on her face as she walked closer, tilting her head to the side.

“Sure, shoot” Hagen said with a shrug. She didn’t seem too concerned, so it couldn’t be that serious.

Standing up straight, Kanna looked Hagen right in the eye with a piercing glance. “Do you have a girlfriend?”

Once again Hagen found himself momentarily speechless. Kanna was looking at him very intently, clearly anxious for the answer. Why was she so eager to know? He was tempted to think that she was making sure he was single, but part of his brain played devil’s advocate and reasoned that she was probably just making sure he wasn’t going to have someone over at the house all the time. Either way, he quickly shook his head. “No, nothing like that.” He was about to say more, about how he wasn’t exactly very popular with women, but thankfully his brain silenced his mouth in time.

Nodding, Kanna looked very pleased. “Good” was all she said as she turned towards the door. “Alright, only one more stop left, come on!” As he followed along, Hagen’s mind was busy trying to process her response. What did she mean, good? Was it good he was single, or what? Before he could properly ask that question though, Kanna had already brought him to a door across the hallway and opened it, revealing a pretty standard bathroom with a sink, shower and toilet. “And here’s the bathroom. I’d show you inside, but it’d be kinda cramped with both of us, and you’ve seen bathrooms before.” Shutting it behind her, Kanna turned and pointed to the end of the hall, where one last door waited. “And there’s my room. I’d show you inside there, but a girl has to keep her secrets you know~” she said with a wink.

“Don’t worry, I get it. We’ve all got a right to privacy” Hagen said with a nod.

Nodding back, Kanna’s smile was wide as she maintained eye contact. “Great! Thanks for understanding.” Clapping her hands together, she looked quite excited as she bounced in place. “So. Are you gonna start moving in soon or what?”

“Uh…” Hagen hesitated in the face of Kanna’s boundless enthusiasm, his response stalled as he briefly watched her bouncing breasts. He nearly gave in and just told her sure, but he pulled it together as he tried one last time to find out what the catch here was. This HAD to be too good to be true. “Are you sure that’s all you wanted to ask me? That was only like, two questions after all.”

“Well I never had many questions really. I just wanted to see if, you know, you were a loser or not. And since you’re not I’m ok with you staying here.” Kanna’s smile was bright, though it slowly faded as something seemed to dawn on her. She gasped, and looked at Hagen with wide eyes. “Oh, no! I forgot! I had something really important to ask you! It’s… kind of something I wanted you to do while you’re staying here.”

This was it, Hagen thought to himself. This was the second shoe right here. “Well, go ahead then” Hagen said, bracing himself for the worst. She was probably going to ask him to help clean out septic tanks or to help with repairs around their workshop. Either way it was going to be something horribly unpleasant, he just knew it in his gut.

Fidgeting in place, Kanna looked a bit nervous again as she put her hands together and began twiddling her thumbs. “I-it’s not something I’d ask you to do for free of course. You wouldn’t have to do it, but if you did I’d be willing to take fifty credits off your rent.” That didn’t make Hagen feel any better but he didn’t interrupt her as she worked up the courage to say it. Finally, avoiding eye contact, she spoke again. “W-would you maybe be willing to water and feed me?”

“Water you?” Hagen asked, his mind going to a completely different place for a moment before he realized what she was talking about. “Oh… you mean your head?”

“Yeah.” Kanna gave him a nod as she tentatively made eye contact with him again. “I mean, I can technically do it myself, but it’s just kinda hard to do right. I end up splashing water everywhere.” Giving a brief frown, Hagen was surprised to see her actually look annoyed as she spoke next. “And Kenwood just doesn’t really do it right either. He doesn’t do a bad job at all but… Anyhow, so I was hoping maybe you could give it a try.”

“Well...” cocking his head to the side, Hagen raised an eyebrow. “Who’s Kenwood?”

“That’s right, you’ve never met him.” Kanna motioned in what seemed to be the general direction of the hangar attached to the house. “He’s my support droid. I did mention I’m an MA pilot, right?” Hagen nodded, and Kanna smiled back in return. “Good. So… would watering me be ok with you?” Though Hagen would have liked more actual details about this Kenwood droid, he supposed he’d have to ask about it when Kanna wasn’t so focused.

Scratching his head idly, Hagen considered the offer. Well, watering didn’t seem like it’d be a big deal. Kanna was acting pretty shy about it, but he imagined this was a pretty personal thing to her. It certainly sounded like it’d be worth the fifty credits a month though, on his end. “Sure, of course. That sounds perfectly fine to me.” Hagen shrugged, trying to sound casual about it.

“Awesome!” Reaching out, Kanna wrapped her arms around Hagen’s waist and hugged him harder than ever. “Thank you! I’m so excited to have you as my roommate!” After she spoke though she hesitated, and pulled away from the hug a bit. “Oh, I’m sorry. I keep on hugging you like this without asking, don’t I?”

“Don’t worry, I’m completely ok with it” Hagen replied almost as soon as Kanna was done talking, his brain immediately supplying the words this time. “We can hug as much as you want.” He hoped he hadn’t sounded too eager, but the feeling of her tits pressing against him was simply amazing.

Looking surprised, Kanna’s eyes widened and she smiled before going back in, wrapping her arms around him. “Really? Kenwood told me that some people are uncomfortable with this, so I just wanted to make sure.” Kanna let out a satisfied sigh as the two held each other, and Hagen could see her close her eyes out of the corner of his own. “You know, we only met today but I really like hugging you more than Kenwood. Humans are really warm. It’s very… relaxing” She squeezed just a bit tighter, and remained like that without moving or speaking.

Hagen just remained silent himself, completely unsure of what to do. He really didn’t mind if they just stayed like this if he was being honest, but he was also painfully aware of his erection, and from this angle he could see her ass quite clearly. He was really tempted to just reach down and grab it right now, though the rational part of his mind told him that it’d likely be a terrible idea.

However before Hagen could do anything, a sound cut through the silence. A sudden insistent beeping came from Kanna’s belt, and both seemed to come back to their senses as Kanna reluctantly disengaged the hug. “One sec” Kanna said briefly, pulling a communicator off her belt. As she glanced at it she groaned. “I didn’t even realize what time it was.” She gave Hagen an apologetic smile. “Sorry, I’ve gotta go run a few errands. Kenwood will get reaaaal angry if I don’t get things prepped properly. I should be back in time to make some dinner tonight though.”

“No problem, do what you need to do.” Checking his phone, Hagen saw that the movers had landed on the planet and were awaiting instructions on what to do with his furniture. He looked back up at Kanna with a grin. “I’ll have all of my stuff moved in by then, so that works out just fine actually.”

Replacing the communicator back on her belt, Kanna nodded. “Then let’s both do our best! I’ll see you at dinner!” As she turned and made her way to the stairs, Kanna paused and looked back to Hagen with a smile. “Oh, and Hagen? I really am glad that you’re my new roommate.”

“I’m glad you’re my new roommate too, Kanna” Hagen said, once again feeling like he’d been a bit lame with his response. She was really making him feel self-conscious. But Kanna just giggled and waved, and like that she disappeared down the stairs.

Now that he had a moment to himself, Hagen waited a bit to make sure Kanna wasn’t going to reappear before he let out a long sigh of relief and slumped against the nearest wall. He ran his hands through his hair, taking a few deep breaths. “Alright… alright” Hagen told himself, standing up straight once his heart had calmed down a bit. “First things first.” Whipping out his phone, Hagen typed out the address to the movers and sent it off, receiving a message in response that they’d be arriving in around fifteen minutes with his things. That was just enough time. Turning to the bathroom door he opened it up and entered, locking it firmly behind him. The image of Kanna’s body was still fresh in his mind, and Hagen quickly got to work relieving himself after all that buildup.

-

It was later on that evening, and Hagen wondered how much more of this he could take. Currently he was watching a movie on the couch alongside Kanna as she clung tightly to his arm, eyes glued to the screen. She had said they she wanted to watch a “old scary human movie, with aliens” with him, and so being highly unoriginal he had chosen the movie Alien. Like many things today he had expected it not to go down very well, but she had gotten quite invested. So invested that when the chestburster scene happened she had yelped and grabbed right onto his arm, where she had remained the rest of the movie.

This had all started around two hours ago, when Kanna had finished up with her various errands. Hagen had also finished by that time, the movers having done their job very efficiently and giving him plenty of time to unpack. Kanna had indeed made him dinner like he promised, a whole variety of mostly raw fruits and vegetables with a sort of mushy rice-like grain as a side dish. He was a little surprised, but of course he should have expected Kanna to have a vegetarian diet, and everything was still quite delicious so really he had no cause to complain. While the two were cleaning up Kanna had casually asked “So tomorrow you start your job, right?”

“Yeah, unfortunately” Hagen said with a shrug as he closed up the dishwasher. He both was and wasn’t looking forward to it at the same time. Eager to see his new workplace, but also dreading the workload he knew was waiting for him.

“Hmm.” Kanna was silent for a moment as she wiped down the counter. “So, you probably don’t have time to hang out tonight, do you?” she asked, her voice just a bit sulky. It was a bit late after all, the sun having already gone down.

“Well, of course I’ve got time to hang out. I got some sleep on the shuttle over here, so I’ll be fine if I stay up” Hagen lied. He hadn’t slept a wink on the trip here, and in fact he hadn’t even slept much the night before as he got last-minute prep done. However he wasn’t going to let that stop him, frankly Kanna could have probably asked him to stay up with her all night and he’d have just agreed right now. “We can do whatever you want.”

Looking up at him, Kanna’s face was beaming. “Really? Alright, cool!” standing up straight, Kanna began to excitedly bounce in place. “Ok, I was just thinking about this before dinner. Why don’t we watch a movie? I’ve never seen a human movie before.”

“Sure” Hagen said with a stupid grin on his face. “What do you want to watch? There’s been thousands of movies after all.”

“Hmm…” Kanna stopped and crossed her arms as she took a long time pondering. Hagen briefly wondered if she was taking more time deciding on this than she did on him moving in with her. Eventually though she gave an answer, slightly hesitant at first. “How about… an old, scary movie? One that has aliens in it too, I wanna see what humans used to think aliens looked like.” She nodded after she spoke, looking more confident now. “Yeah, let’s do that!”

Shrugging, Hagen nodded. “Cool. I actually have a movie in mind already.” He wasn’t sure if Kanna would like what he was planning, but as of yet she’d gone along with everything so he didn’t worry too much about it.

“Ok, I’ll go change real quick into something more comfortable.” Before Hagen could respond Kanna had already made her way towards the stairs, looking back briefly over her shoulder. “Oh, can you make some popcorn? It’s in the pantry. Let’s make this a proper movie date!”

“S-sure” Hagen said slightly nervously as Kanna smiled brightly and walked towards the stairs. Telling himself to calm down and that she probably didn’t mean anything by ‘date’, Hagen made his way to the pantry as he retrieved the popcorn and began to open the packaging.

By the time he had poured the finished bag into a bowl, Kanna was already coming down the stairs. “Thanks for waiting. It feels soooo good to be out of those clothes.” She had removed her form-hugging jumpsuit and was now wearing a loose-fitting green shirt with a cartoon watermelon mascot on the front, and a pair of pink gym shorts that came only halfway down her thighs. She was also still wearing those pink metal caps at the end of her feet, though Hagen guessed that she might need those for walking around. “How do I look?” she asked eagerly, turning on the spot for him.

“You’re really cute. That outfit looks great on you” his brain supplied immediately, Hagen glad that he wasn’t staring mutely like an idiot. It was true though, she did look quite good in her casual wear. Plus she was still showing a healthy amount of cleavage, that helped.

“Wow. Thank you.” Kanna looked genuinely touched as she smiled, then walked over to take Hagen’s left arm with both of her own, pulling insistently on him. “Alright, come on! Let’s start the movie!”

Now, here in the present, Kanna was clinging to Hagen as he tried hard not to stare down her shirt too much. It was proving harder than it sounded, she was leaning against him in such a way that he only had to look down slightly in order to get a nice eyeful. The movie was nearing the end though and Kanna didn’t even seem to notice at all as she kept her eyes glued to the screen. Whenever something scary would happen she’d yelp or gasp, always squeezing him tight in the process. He really couldn’t get over how good her tits felt resting against his arm.

However all too soon the film ended, and as the credits started to roll Kanna finally released Hagen as she sat up, stretching her arms above her head. “That was a great movie Hagen, thanks for sharing it with me. Those old humans really knew how to make a freaky monster, huh?”

Trying to hide his mild disappointment, Hagen smiled. “Yeah, that was back when they didn’t make all movies with computers. We should watch some more human movies together if that’s the only one you’ve seen, there’s plenty good ones out there after all.” He really didn’t mind offering at all, even if Kanna wasn’t trying to sleep with him this had still been a lot of fun. Even if he had barely paid attention to the film.

“Sounds good to me” Kanna said, smiling back as she took a handful of popcorn. “We should do this every night then, once you’ve got more free time.” Hagen laughed, nodding his approval, but before he could say anything more Kanna casually asked a question as she munched on the popcorn. “Well I’m not ready to go to bed yet so I was wondering, do you maybe want to try watering me?”

“Alright, yeah. Just be patient with me if I’m not very good. It is my first time” Hagen told her, feeling a bit anxious.

Giggling, Kanna took his hand in hers and squeezed. “It’s ok if you’re nervous. We’ll have plenty of time to practice after all~” she was maintaining direct eye contact as she got up and made her way to the kitchen. “Just wait there, I’ll be one sec.”

Resisting the urge to let out a sigh, Hagen sat back and took a few deep breaths. After all of that he was likely going to have to jerk off again. A small part of him was hoping that this wouldn’t take all that long, after all he did need to get some kind of sleep eventually, but he was still pretty awake so he might as well go all in. For some reason Hagen was feeling pretty anxious, and he told himself again to relax. This whole watering business was just going to be a quick, nondescript thing, he knew it.

“Here we go~” Kanna called out as she came walking back into the room, a silver watering can in one hand. The other hand was currently filling it with a bottle of water, and she placed the empty bottle on the coffee table along with her communicator. “The water today is from a comet. I can’t wait, comet water always feels so nice!” Bouncing over to Hagen, she handed over the watering can gingerly. “Be careful with this. That water was pretty expensive. Let me go ahead and get comfortable.” Reaching over, Kanna grabbed a cushion from the couch and placed it on the floor between Hagen’s legs, settling down upon it while facing him. “Alright, you can start whenever you want” Kanna told him happily, her legs crossed.

“Um, ok then” Hagen said, feeling very self-conscious right now. He could see directly down her shirt, and this time there really wasn’t much he could do to avoid it. It was very noticeable. In fact from this angle he could see underneath, to the melon-striped bra below. “W-wouldn’t it be a little better if you… faced the other way?” he asked, not necessarily wanting her to face the other direction, but also painfully aware that her face was level with his crotch.

Frowning a bit, Kanna looked down as her hands. “I’d rather not, honestly. It’s kinda weird to be watered when you can’t see who’s doing it, you know? Even if you know who’s back there.”

Hagen didn’t know at all, but he still nodded. “Right, that makes sense.”

“Are you… having second thoughts about this?” Kanna kept looking down at her hands, the disappointment evident in her voice. “I-I understand. We don’t have to do it if you don’t-”

“No, it’s really not that! I want to water you, honestly” Hagen blurted out. Kanna looked surprised but didn’t respond right away and he found himself quickly adding “It’s just that I’m a little… well…” he trailed off, wishing he had just stopped after ‘honestly’.

“A little what?” Kanna looked up at his face with some concern. “What’s wrong?”

His mind cast around desperately for a moment to try coming up with something to say that wouldn’t sound too creepy, but Hagen found himself saying “I’m just a little… distracted. By your body. I don’t wanna stare too much.” Kanna looked confused, and without speaking Hagen pointed down to her tits. As he did so he felt like he wanted to slap himself, way to go with not being creepy.

Looking down at her tits, a look of understanding came across her face. “Oh… oh I understand! I was reading about humans online, it was saying they really enjoy breasts of all kinds. Does that mean you’re embarrassed because you like my breasts?” Kanna had a slightly teasing look on her face now as she grinned at him.

“Well, yeah. They’re really nice.” Hagen had already stuck his foot in his mouth, why not go further. “I think your whole body is beautiful.”

“Oh.” Kanna looked away from him again, and Hagen thought for a second that her face looked a little darker than usual. “I… didn’t expect you to say that so seriously.” The teasing tone had gone from her voice, and for a long moment the two sat in silence. Suddenly Kanna looked up with a smile. “You know what? I have a solution then. It’s pretty easy, why don’t you just look at me as much as you want?”

“What, like… I can just stare at your tits if I want you mean?” Hagen asked, making sure he was getting this right.

Shrugging, Kanna looked unconcerned. “I don’t mind. I mean, if you like it that much then go ahead and look at it.” She smiled wider and sat up straight again. “So, if we do that would you be ok with watering me?”

“Sure” his brain supplied before he could really think about it further. “That’s a good compromise.”

Nodding, Kanna looked very pleased. “I’m ready when you are. Just kinda… move the plants aside a bit, and make sure the water gets to the base. You don’t hafta be super gentle either, they all have some strong roots~”

Leaning in, Hagen hefted the watering can with his right hand as he leaned in. “Ok. Here I go then.” Out of the corner of his vision he could see Kanna closing her eyes and taking a deep breath as he got ready. Unsure exactly where to begin, Hagen took a moment to just properly examine the top of Kanna’s head. There was the large, blooming plant in the front with flowers in the center, a number of long, flat leaves coming off the back, and a few smaller leaves jutting off the sides. He supposed his best bet would be moving the large plant aside first. Feeling slightly anxious and hoping he didn’t screw something up somehow, Hagen reached in with his hand and brushed the plant, folding it to the side and allowing him to look at the base of the stems.

Right as Hagen was about to move in and apply the first bit of water though, he was distracted when Kanna let out a low moan under her breath. He stopped, eyes wide as he looked down at Kanna, who had opened up her eyes and was looking at him was an embarrassed expression. “S-sorry” she stammered. “My plants up there are a little sensitive. Your hands are warm, so…” Kanna trailed off, not finishing the thought.

“Oh.” Hagen didn’t know what to say other than that as he sat there. “So... should I try to touch you less then?” he asked, hesitantly.

“Oh no, you’re doing fine!” Kanna looked up earnestly at him, her face smiling. “It feels really good. It’s just that I might make… some noises while you do it, that’s all.”

Nodding, Hagen tried to seem confident as he smiled back. “Right. No problem.” Though Kanna seemed nice and casual, Hagen felt his heart beating wildly. How sensitive was she exactly? Deciding just to go for it he reached in again and moved the plant aside, maneuvering the watering can into position and pouring a bit at the base. Kanna let out a contented sigh and Hagen felt himself relax a bit. Of course it was nothing sexual for her, it had probably just been surprising.

Things went a bit smoother for a bit as Hagan began moving around Kanna’s head, gently moving plants aside and applying water to the base. It didn’t seem like there was soil there exactly, it was more like rough skin, but it still absorbed the water poured on it all the same. Both were nearly silent until Hagen was down to half the can, when Kanna let out another satisfied sigh. “This water really is refreshing” she said with a dreamy look on her face, eyes still closed. “I should buy this more often.”

“Glad you’re enjoying it” Hagen responded with a nod. “Am I doing this right, by the way?”

“Mm-hmm. You’re doing fine.” She was quiet as Hagen reached up to water her more, her eyes opening as a thought seemed to cross her mind. “Well… you could…” she trailed off as she began twiddling her thumbs. “Nevermind.”

Lowering the watering can, Hagen looked her in the eyes. “Kanna. It’s ok, you can tell me. I’ll do what I can” he told her with a reassuring grin.

“Maybe you could… stoke my plants a bit more?” Kanna looked embarrassed and eager in equal measure as she looked up at him now. “You’re doing a good job and all but, it’d be… better that way.”

“Alright then.” Hagen felt a little anxious now as Kanna closed her eyes again. He took a few slow and steady breaths before extending his hand out towards Kanna’s head. There were two large, white petals coming out from behind the large plant, and on a whim he decided to try those first. Not knowing exactly what he was supposed to do, he just started brushing them gently with his fingertips. “Like this?” he asked, unsure.

His question seemed unnecessary though as he felt Kanna shudder and let out a short gasp. “That’s good” she purred, her breathing getting slightly faster. “Maybe just a liiiiiitle more pressure.” As ordered Hagen started using more of his fingers, going slightly faster. Kanna reacted appropriately, sitting up a bit further eagerly. Remembering that he was supposed to be watering her, Hagen lifted the watering can again and sprinkled a healthy amount on an open space. Suppressing another gasp, Kanna briefly raised a hand to her mouth. “Yeah, just like that… Kenwood won’t stroke my leaves like this, he says it’s ‘inappropriate’. And even besides all that your hands are so much warmer, I kinda wish you wouldn’t stop.”

Hagen was having some very mixed emotions right now. He wanted to be calm and look at this as purely something non-sexual, but Kanna was making that extremely difficult. Her breathing was steadily quickening, and from this angle it was very noticeable the way her breasts pushed out and retreated. While he was sure that aliens worked differently than humans, this seemed an awful lot like she was getting turned on. As he continued to move around her head, applying water and stroking along her various plants, Hagen became aware that Kanna was beginning to make constant low moan. Even as he watched Kanna bit down on a finger to try and stop herself, but it didn’t do anything to muffle the sounds.

Moving his arm to apply more water, Hagen was slightly dismayed when he felt that he was nearing the end of the can. He really didn’t want this to end just yet, and he got the impression that Kanna didn’t either. “Sorry” he said, putting the watering can aside and freeing both hands. Kanna opened her eyes with a confused look, but before she could say anything Hagen put both hands in together and began stroking the large plant on her head. “I’m gonna save the last bit of water and just… massage your plants for a bit” he said with a shrug.

“I… I-I’m ok with that” Kanna mumbled, her eyes fluttering shut as she leaned a bit further into Hagen’s hands. “A-are you sure this is your first time doing this?” Kanna asked, letting out a sharp intake of breath as his fingers brushed one of her flowers. “You’re really, really good at it.”

“Yup. First time.” Hagen was surprised how nonchalant he sounded, right now his dick was rock hard. “I’ve always been good with my hands though.”

Kanna’s hand came up and grabbed his knee gently, giving it a squeeze. “Well, you sure are.” She didn’t remove her hand either as she began to rub his skin, slowly moving in a circle. Her other hand came up to her collarbone, rubbing herself.  For a few minutes the two remained like that, Kanna clearly enjoying herself. As Hagen got an idea he leaned forward, puckering his lips as he blew a soft stream of warm air over Kanna’s flowers. She noticeably shuddered, letting out a soft moan. “Th-the water” she panted, pointing to the watering can. She was gripping Hagen tightly now, her other hand shooting out to grab his remaining knee.

His left hand still stroking her various plants, Hagen wordlessly retrieved the watering can and moved into position, smoothing out a space, he poured on the remaining water with a flourish. The reaction was immediate, and as Kanna squeezed down on his knees she let out a wavering little cry, her body tensing up. “F-floooooower…” Then she let out a long satisfied sigh as her hands dropped to her sides. “Oh wow” she said, opening her eyes halfway as she gave Hagen a slow smile. She leaned her head against his knee, maintaining eye contact. “That was… so good. You have to do that again next time I need watering, please?”

“Sure” Hagen said with a shrug, once again shocked at his nonchalant he sounded. She just had an orgasm, right? He asked himself, feeling his cock throbbing as Kanna rubbed against him. He wasn’t stupid, was he? “Anytime.”

Sitting up Kanna gave him another of her wide, sincere smiles. “Thanks! I already can’t wait for next time!”

Nodding back, Hagen smiled back. “Neither can I. I had a good time too, honestly.” Things were silent for a moment, and Hagen was uncomfortably aware that Kanna didn’t move from her sitting position. In fact she was looking at him rather expectantly. “Um… did you want me to stroke your plants more?” he asked, not minding the idea.

Shaking her head, Kanna’s smile was as wide as ever. “Well, no. I wouldn’t mind that but I was actually wondering, we tried watering me tonight, how about we try feeding me now?”

Frowning now, Hagen cocked his head to the side. “Feeding?” he asked, unsure what she meant. They had just had dinner a bit ago, right before the movie. Was she hungry already? “Oh, did you want me to make you something?” Hagen said glancing towards the kitchen.

“No, nothing like that.” Kanna looked a little embarrassed now as she avoided his gaze. “I’m talking about… You know…” she mumbled, finally looking up at him. “Your human protein.”

“My… human…” Hagen felt like his brain locked up. Wait. Was she talking about… what he thought she was? “Are you talking about… sucking my d-”

The sudden noise of Kanna’s communicator going off made both of them jump. It was rather insistant, even letting off short flashes of red light. “Oh… no!” Kanna said, her voice teeming with frustration as she got up and marched to the table, picking it up and pressing a button to answer. “What?” she asked irritably.

“Miss Kanna, I’m afraid we have an emergency. Mutants have been detected entering the atmosphere.” It was a voice Hagen didn’t recognize, though judging by the way he remained perfectly calm even with this news it was likely Kenwood. “If we move out now I think we should be just in time to intercept them before they cause harm to any populated areas.” Kanna didn’t respond right away, and after a brief pause his voice came again. “Miss Kanna? Are you there?”

Pouting, Kanna nodded. “Yes. I’m here.” She paused again, this time glancing briefly at Hagen. “...Are you sure it’s an emergency? Couldn’t we leave in, like, an hour?”

“Miss Kanna…” came Kenwood’s voice, slightly disapproving. It reminded Hagen of a father reprimanding his daughter for not doing her chores.

“Hmph. Fine. I’ll be there in a minute.” Shutting off the device Kanna heaved a heavy, annoyed sigh. “This is so unfair” she muttered darkly, glaring at the ground. “By the time I’m back you’ll probably be at work.”

Standing up himself Hagen walked up to Kanna with a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry. Like I said, I’ll be busy for a while at work then I’ll have tons of time off. Then we’ll have all the time in the world to hang out.”

Pouting a bit, Kanna looked away from him. “...Promise?” she asked, sulkily.

“I promise.” As she looked up at him, Hagen moved forward and hugged Kanna himself this time. She seemed quite pleased, judging by the way she hugged back and giggled a bit.

The two spent a long time like that, neither one wanting to let go, until Kanna’s communicator began beeping insistently again. “Oh… fine! I’m coming!” Kanna shouted over her shoulder irritably as she finally let go of Hagen. Giving him one last look, she waved and made her way towards the bunker via the door in the kitchen

Now that he had the house to himself, Hagen briefly considered a number of different activities, including watching Alien again because he had missed so much of that last viewing. However he quickly noticed the time, and deciding that it would be best to leave that all until he didn’t have work, made his way up to bed.

Though Hagen wished that he could get to sleep quickly that night, he couldn’t help remembering Kanna’s face as he’d poured that last bit of water on her. It was no easy feat to drift off with that fresh in the mind.