Times were hectic. One week Ellie had finished up her bed-rest and was back to patrolling. The next week she was back in that same bed for the same reasons.

It made things very difficult for one tailless cat to catch up with the team captain and inform her to certain changes which had happened recently. However, with said team captain stuck in bed, it left room for the manx to try and catch up with some other "girls."

********* had been keeping good tabs on Ellie, Anemone, and Lydia, but one "girl" she hadn't checked in with recently wasn't a girl at all. After what had happened with the Captain known as Labyrinthite, the manx still wanted to see how the senshi usually known as Parthenope was doing.

Though it was likely he wasn't patrolling and was simply Waylon.

Fortunately for the tailless cat, her journey didn't need to go much further than a block from Ellie's place, leading her to the park.

Rather easily, the chubby cat hopped onto a swing next to the boy. "...fancy seeing you here, Waylon!" she greeted with a partial purr.

Desukyun
No matter where he wanted to go, he always ended up at the park when he was thinking. Being cooped up in that apartment with his brother was never an option. He was always kind and understanding but the man had an aura of perfection around him. Even looking at his older brother made him feel even worse than he already did. So that was why he was currently occupying on of the swings at the park, making designs in the dirt beneath him as he swung lightly back and forth. He’d normally be out patrolling or at least training as Parthenope but the last meeting with Iris had, for lack of a better word, grounded him. Like a bird getting it’s wings clipped. For now, he was just the man that was formerly Parthnope. The man that wouldI be Parthenope but couldn’t be.

Why wasn’t he getting stronger?

Why did he have to go out and prove himself?

He was so deep in thought that he didn't even notice the little cat until he could see the swing gently swing next to him, her cheerful voice accompanying the action. Waylon turned towards her, stopping the movement of his swing with a foot firmly planted on the ground. “Fancy?” He chuckled, solemn as it was. “Nah. Not really.”


The manx tilted her head at his comment. True, she hadn't spoken to Ellie recently, but she couldn't help but feel as if she was out of the loop for some reason.

Presumptuous as ever, the cat hopped off her current swing before hopping up into the boy's lap. "This is more comfortable!" she said in a cheery manner before seeming to already curl up.

"I was actually looking for you... wanted to catch up on things and what-not! I honestly would have thought you'd be patrolling with someone, but not everyone likes doing that a lot... so how are you doing?" Her green eyes were eagerly upon his golden ones, a completely innocent smile upon her maw.

Desukyun
Waylon couldn't help but smile as the little cat nestled herself in his lap. Even if it meant his legs would probably fall asleep in an effort to not disturb her. He raised his hand to her head, scratching between her ears as she gazed up at him.

“I’m jus’ sittin’ here by myself.” The smile quickly faded when she mentioned patrolling. So it was obvious she didn’t know about what happened. About Iris and him. About the “punishment” he’d been given. Unless she thought it was a joke, or worse, believed that he would go against Iris’ words so easily. Though, considering this was *********, he sincerely doubted it was the latter.

His hand moved back to the chain links holding the swing in place as his foot pushed along the ground again, causing the swing to start up it's gentle motion once again. “I can’ patrol anyway. Not for awhile. Iris told me I couldn' until I could power up like everyone else. Not that I blame her really..."


The manx's brow seemed to furrow in confusion as Waylon explained the situation. "...didn't know that one... but... I would think she wouldn't just pull that sort of punishment out to be a jerk..."

Her hind leg briefly went to scratch behind her ear in puzzlement as she seemed to contemplate it somewhat verbally.

"I mean, I know that I gave Ellie a similar restriction a while back... you remember when she broke her arm... I did it to protect her. Maybe she did it to protect you...? I don't know!"

Her fur bristled slightly as she retracted her leg into a more restful position.

"...I don't think I could even talk to her right now... she ended up doing another one of those purifications recently... so she's conked out again..."

Desukyun
“I don’ think she was bein’ a jerk about it…” Maybe she was trying to protect him. It had been an ordeal to say the least when she’d been stuck in bed for all that time but it was for her own good. She needed time to heal and they needed to keep her down for that to happen. It sounded like what was happening now. He’d been reckless and stupid to the point where he’d been hurt because of it. No matter what any of them tried, it would do no good for him to keep going. He had to be kept from everyone else and himself lest there be even more damage.

Maybe that’s what she was doing; waiting until he healed in a sense.

When she mentioned Ellie being out of commission, his entire body tensed. He didn't want to hear about it. He didn't even want to think about it. The swing began to move faster as he tried to think of something to say. Anything to say. “Can I ask you a question, cat?” It was less like an actual question and more like a quick stall maneuver and he stuttered over the words none too gracefully. Before any one would be quick enough to answer, he continued. “I need to be a super senshi. Before she grounded me, she told me you coul’ help me with that. Is that, like, by request or do I gotta spend a week soul searchin' or somethin' like that?”


The furball in his lap seemed to roll her neck back so she was looking at the boy with wide eyes (at an angle that would have been impossible for a human). Waylon had a question, and before she could say "Sure I would be willing to answer a question," he had already asked.

Her eyes blinked, but she still managed to keep that weird position to keep looking to the boy as she spoke.

"I think I could best explain this with a short story about another teammate of yours... Irene..." Her whiskers seemed to fan out as she mentioned the name of the Senshi of Peace.

"...see... I have been known to attempt giving a senshi a power boost from time to time on request. Irene... however... came to me requesting me to make her stronger. When I attempted it... well... it didn't take. She was upset with me and wouldn't speak to me for a long while. It upset me as well... since I had never encountered such a thing before! However, after talking it out with someone... we figured the reason it hadn't worked was because her starseed wasn't ready yet."

The manx finally seemed to roll her head back to slightly more normal position before she continued. "As you know, Irene is now a Super Senshi... so she obviously was able to find what she was looking for. I am willing to try and help you out... but I want you to know that... if it doesn't work... it isn't because I am holding back... it means that you need to find out what might be holding you back. Perhaps it is physical strength, perhaps it is something tied to your emotions... heck, maybe it could be something as silly as you are distracted by a ball of yarn!"

She offered a tiny giggle at the blatantly feline humor.

Desukyun
Listening to Irene’s story cemented the fact that talking to ********* had been mostly useless. Mostly, if only because he knew that there was no fast track to getting his way. No way to cut corners without possibly screwing up everything. If he wasn’t ready then he wasn’t ready. There wasn’t anything anyone could do about it. Even ********* wish it was a ball of yarn. We coul’ both be happy with that…” If he wasn’t able to reach that level, he would be out of commission indefinitely. He’d be forced to the side lines in case of an emergency. A weak link in the asteroid chain. Or he could go rogue. Go off by himself and forget about the team entirely. Could he even do that? Wouldn’t they find him? The answer to both questions was a resounding most likely. As a lone senshi that could barely hold his own, Parthenope would have almost no chance even if the he didn’t get shot down by Iris. No. Leaving wasn’t an option. He’d have to face the problem head on. No excuses. “I guess I gotta do this one myself.”


The manx seemed to squeeze herself through the crook of his arm to peer back towards the boy's three braids trailing around behind him.

"...truth be told... your braids are more fun than yarn... don't know why... just know it is!" A stray paw attempted to bat for the hair, but it fell drastically short that she didn't attempt a second swing.

Seeming finished with her temporary distraction, she pulled her head back to look at the boy again. "I suspect it is mostly on your shoulders... but you aren't alone on this one. If you need my help, I am always willing to lend a paw... you just say the word!"

Desukyun
He laughed as he tried to corral the cat small cat going for his braids, nearly sending them both crashing backwards off the swing. “Well, I’m glad my braids are so amusin’ to you!”

When ********* settled back in her place, Waylon felt a calm wash over him. It wasn’t contentment or relief. It was more of a lack of hopelessness. Like maybe, just maybe, h could do something about his situation. If Irene could do it then he at least had something going for him. “I know I ain’t alone but I guess I’ll figure it out. If not, then I’ll ask for help.” He gave ********* a small scratch under her chin as he brought the swing to a stop. “Simple as that. Alrigh’?”


The cat didn't need to say anything else. All she did was offer a jingle-accented nod and a steady purring sound.

He would figure things out, she had complete faith in him. It truly was now all up to Waylon.