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The Cohen Clover

Angie Mae & Anin A

copyright comidacomida 2022

A week had passed since Angie Mae had the falling out with her Ikali partner and, while much of the pain had since passed, the shame and self-reproach only grew. She and Anin continued to work together in the labs but he also remained respectful of her space and did not engage her in conversation nearly as much as he did once they were first made junior research assistants. Despite her misgivings about the Ikali taking a haphazard and casual approach to science, she felt the lack of interaction acutely, and the days dragged on in relative silence.

Monday through Friday were spent in the same room as Anin, but he felt a world away from her. It was what she wanted... she thought. He had hurt her with his prying, and she felt betrayed, both by Roller and By Anin; how could they have a casual discussion about something so personal to her? It was not reopening wounds-- not precisely. It did dredge up memories which had only just been starting to heal, making them fresh and raw, but there was more to it than that, and she found herself fixating over it when she should have been spending time working on her research.

Anin, for his part, looked as though he were slogging through the day with the same detachment as she. He hadn't joined her in The Parlor since their falling out and the Pod often asked about him. She responded that he had other things to do to prepare to leave; Angie Mae didn't normally lie to her friends, and it was yet another thing that bothered her. There were only six weeks to go until they were set to transition over to Riparian Earth, and she knew acutely that she had to find a way to get past whatever it was that stood between her and her Ikali partner, but with every day going by acting like they were strangers sharing a work station she felt it getting harder and harder.

Others began noticing toward the end of the week, and she realized it well before she was called in for her end-of-the-week meeting with Nathan that Friday. He had that 'we are going to be discussing something' look of his that he wore like it was his favorite expression. "Good afternoon, Angie Mae... take a seat, would you?"

She helped herself to the armchair to which he'd gestured. "I'm almost done with recording the results of phase three of the atmospheric testing. I should have the full mark up by the end of the day Tuesday, or Wednesday morning before--"

Nathan had a way of getting to the point without saying it outright. "Is it safe to say that you and Anin haven't had a chance to discuss your apartment layout?"

Angie Mae knew that Nathan already expected a specific answer but she couldn't bring herself to come out and admit it. "We started to... but... it's complicated."

He leaned back in his chair, letting out a long, relaxing breath; she found it hard not to mimic it. "Would you like to talk about it?"

She fidgeted, pulling at the cuff of her sweater as she responded in a way that didn't even sound convincing to her. "Not really?"

Dr Cohen let out another breath, reaching into one of his drawers to pull out a tea kettle and two tea cups. "If you make me guess, I doubt that it will take many attempts... especially the way you responded last week to the discussion on student files."

Since he opened the door for her, she stepped through, and it all came out in a flood. Angie Mae explained that she and Anin had started talking about living arrangements. She sidestepped the part of the discussion in which they talked about their relationship, and went straight into talking about him bringing up Jackson Robberts. The young woman elaborated that he hadn't read the dossier, rather, he'd gone to Roller, who talked to Anin about it behind her back. "And... I think THAT'S what hurt the most."

Nathan was quiet for several moments, not saying a word in the time it took him to take a sip of tea and then set the cup back down. When he did speak, it was not advice; it was not a suggestion or an order; he asked a clarifying question. "And you are keeping your distance from Anin because you feel he overstepped polite boundaries?"

She paused, assessing the physicist's inquiry. Was that the issue? Was she keeping Anin at a distance because he'd gotten to close? No-- that couldn't be the problem, she reasoned. "I got angry that he went behind my back to get information about me rather than asking me directly."

Her patron nodded thoughtfully. "I see... you feel betrayed that your friends would talk about you behind your back?"

That statement sounded reasonable to her; that must have been it. "Yeah-- yes. It felt like a betrayal of trust."

Nathan continued nodding, taking another sip of his tea. He set the tea cup and saucer down on his desk before addressing her. "And you have been avoiding Roller too?"

She didn't have to answer his question to know what he was getting at. "You think I'm being unfair to Anin?"

He offered a patient smile. "I didn't say that... no. Do YOU think you're being unfair to him?"

Angie Mae took a sip of her own tea, but she didn't have to delay as long as Dr Cohen did before she spoke, realizing exactly what he was getting at or, rather, what he was letting her figure out for herself. "Yes... I... I know I am."

She'd known it since the moment she shut him out of her room. Angie Mae had been hurt, and her initial reaction was to withdraw from the Ikali. Anin had done something wrong in her mind, but, at the most fundamental level, he hadn't meant to hurt her-- if anything, he'd been trying to avoid hurting her but his lack of understanding led to him causing more harm than he prevented... in her mind, at least. Everything she'd done since that moment had only made things worse, and that wasn't HIS fault; it was her's.

Nathan stood up and smoothed out his pants. "May I ask a favor of you, Ms. Kline?"

His inquiry snapped Angie Mae out of her guilt spiral. "Hmm? Oh... of course. What can I do for you, Nathan?"

He offered a patronly, good-natured smile. "I would really like the results of the atmospheric test on my desk by Monday morning. Would it be too much to ask to have you come in tomorrow morning to get that done? If it is too much of an imposition I can tell Anin that he can assist you. With both of you working on it you should have everything completed before noon, wouldn't you say?"

Nathan's subtlety was about as easy to miss as a charging rhino, but she couldn't deny the well-meaning nature of it. Although the prospect was uncomfortable for her, she found herself smiling never-the-less. Making amends with Anin would be difficult, but he provided her a spring board from which to start. "I know I can fit it into my schedule, Dr Cohen. I'll get it done."

They both knew she wasn't talking just about the results. His smile widened. "Thank you, Angie Mae. Good work this week."

Concluding their meeting, the young woman made her way back out into the laboratory. Having already concluded most of her tests, Angie Mae had put away all of her testing samples and had secured her notes, but she'd still left her testing equipment out; Anin was at her station carefully storing them. Despite the fact that she'd continue to ignore him, the Otter remained a faithful research partner and was already thinking ahead regarding her needs. Realizing that, she felt simultaneously more self-reproachful, but also more hopeful.

Anin let out a churl of surprise when she stepped up next to her. Tail curling around his leg, the Ikali looked up to her, both of his paws on the counter as he waited silently, as if disbelieving that she was finally ready to talk. Angie Mae managed to maintain her composure as she slowly broke the ice. "Dr Cohen asked me to come in tomorrow to finish up the testing and record results... he thought that it would go faster if you were willing to help me with compiling the data."

The Otter avoided eye contact, focusing instead on his paws resting on the counter. "I would be happy to assist you, Angie Mae Kline."

Swallowing the bitter tenseness of hesitance developing in her throat, Angie Mae committed to making things right. "I also wanted to apologize to you, Anin."

Whether it was her use of his short name or announcing that she wanted to apologize, she didn't know, but the Otter let out a chirp of surprise, eyes going immediately to her as he almost fell off the step-stool he was on for easier access to the counter. Once he'd recovered, the Ikali asked "Why are you apolgizing to me... Angie Mae?"

He spoke her shorter name as if testing the waters. In that moment she actively missed the name he'd come up with, and the regret set in again; she'd made such a mess of things. Forging ahead, Angie Mae committed herself to correcting the problem sooner rather than later. "I'm sorry for not accepting your apology even though I said I did. I didn't mean to push you away, and I'm sorry that I couldn't admit it to myself earlier."

Anin's whiskers vibrated, twitching upward, and then stopped. His entire body froze, not unlike when he was trying something new, almost as if he was trying to figure out if he correctly understood what she was saying. Rather than accept her apology, or tell her the apology wasn't needed, he instead asked her a quesiton. "Are... are we okay again now then... Ammy?"

Angie Mae felt a strange sense of wholeness once she heard her little companion use the name he'd selected for her. Reaching out, she rested a hand on one of his paws. "I'm not sure we are quite yet... but I think we're getting there."

He accepted her apology and she accepted his hug.

* * * * *

Angie Mae rarely missed a Friday night meeting with her pod but she made an exception that weekend. She and Anin spent that evening sitting in their apartment talking-- REALLY talking, and opening up. The majority of the talk was her being candid, answering his questions so he wouldn't feel obliged to go elsewhere. She discussed the importance of bodily autonomy for humans and the significance of rape. Angie Mae managed to keep the discussion disconnected and impersonal, approaching things in a scientific and analytical manner so as to help educate her Ikali partner without dredging up past trauma. For the most part it worked.

Despite all of Anin's naivete, there was still a certain amount of insightful perception to him and he seemed to be able to tell when she was nearing her limit, skillfully backpedaling the discussion and moving into safer territory. He brought up a near endless barrage of questions about where she grew up, calling back to little comments she'd made as part of other discussions; for as flighty and bird-brained as the Otter came across at times he had an amazing memory. Just like with the first round of very personal questions she addressed those as well and she was thankful that they were much less invasive.

Angie Mae spent most of Friday night talking about where she grew up, what it was like living so far from the water, and what Ikali were like on Land Earth. She had to explain otters to him and, as he listened attentively, she began to come up with a few questions too. By the time she had elaborated on 'four legged Ikali' she figured she'd earned up enough answers to demand a few questions of her own, and so she stared with the obvious: he'd asked about Ikali on Land Earth, so she asked about Humans on Riparian Earth. What followed, was an incredibly in depth discussion on the primates of his world.

The fact that Anin was part of the Unity Programme implied that he was intelligent but he spent so much time on tangents and being distracted by 'the next interesting thing' that the Ikali didn't often get a chance to show off just how much he knew, or present information in a linear, direct manner. She was honestly surprised when her partner began explaining the differences he'd been tracking between primates of both Earths, including what she presumed was the evolutionary offshoot of the great apes-- a species he referred to as Chiikrowi, or 'tall monkey' because they often walked on two legs.

The night continued with just as much learning on both sides and, once Angie Mae realized it was already past midnight, she surprised herself by proactively giving Anin a hug before wishing him good night. The Ikali let out a happy chitter in acknowledgement, returning the hug as he wrapped his arms around her midsection and his tail around her leg. He smiled warmly, stating quite simply "I am glad we are talking again, Ammy... I did not want to lose you as a partner."

That thought stuck with her through the morning, and when she got up she found out that the Otter had beaten her to the kitchen and he was preparing more than enough breakfast for himself, cooking food that was Human safe with the obvious intention of sharing it. She watched from the hallway as Anin worked at the stove (with a step stool); he was moving with the same bobbling gait as always, but there was more spring to it, and, as she listened, she realized he was humming to himself. It sounded like a pleasant, upbeat melody. Before long, Anin was singing.

Preparing eggs, the Ikali shook the pan, using the spatula in time with his verse. Although he sang in the Ikali language, which was still relatively new to Angie Mae, he sung it slowly so it was not hard to translate. She remembered hearing about how most Ikali were taught about the world through song and, as she listened, she was able to connect the significance of the words. The Otter people, were known collectively as 'All of us', or, specifically, 'ik' which meant 'all' and 'kali', which referred to 'we' or 'us'. Likewise, the Sakali, Lokali, Nokali and Tukali were a combination of Sak (large), Lok (big), Nok (small) and Tuk (little) added to us (ali), and the song made that all the more apparent.

Bobbing along with the tempo, Anin sang happily while cooking. "All-of-Us, All-of-Us make up the whole of the world around us. The Large-Us and the Small-Us live in mountain rivers and shores of the Western West and are a part of All-of-Us. The Big-Us live in the Southern West and hold their rivers pure. The Little-Us have the Western East and Eastern East and are a part of All-of-Us. We are all All-of-Us. All-of-Us. All-of-Us. Large-Us and Small-Us, Big-Us and Little-Us. We are all All-of-Us, yes and you are All-of-Us too."

As the song came to an end, Anin set the pan off to the side, attending another one before pausing. Although Ikali hearing was only marginally better than that of Humans, he must have heard Angie Mae's near-silent chuckle since he about-faced. Whiskers vibrating, he welcomed her into the kitchen. "Good morning, Ammy. I hope you slept well!"

Smiling, she blushed just a little. "I did, yes... and... I noticed you singing. I don't think I've heard you sing before."

The Otter matched her smile with oen of his own. "Oh, yes. I love singing, but I do not do it often because most Humans find it distracting when Ikali sing in our own language. My last Human partner asked that I did not sing near him. If you did not like it I--"

She waved away his concern. "I just didn't expect it. It's fine, Anin... I'm just a little curious about it. What is that song, exactly?"

His relief was evident and immediate as he turned back to the stove. "That is a song Ikali learn early when we're kits so we can understand more about all of our people."

The young woman entered the kitchen, finding it easy to peer over Anin's shoulder since he was significantly shorter than she. "I suppose people can sing just about anything when they cook, but I can't think of anyone else I know that sings songs like that when they're making breakfast... what inspired you?"

Anin tapped the pan containing scrambled eggs. "When I learned how to make breakfast my udi taught me to sing that song because that's how long it took to cook eggs.

'Udi', Angie Mae knew, meant 'mom', and just thinking about the use of a song as a timer both irritated the analytical part of her break, but stood as an endearing anecdote to the more emotional side; Anin had a knack for pulling the second one out of her. "Well... it looks like you're making a feast. Are you going to be able to eat all this?"

Anin let out a sound reminiscent of a human blowing a raspberry; among the Ikali it held a similar significance. "No, of course not, Ammy-- I am making breakfast for the both of us. You said before that you don't want to eat in The Parlor for every meal, and I was hoping we could go together tonight."

Angie Mae found herself smiling again. "It has been awhile since you had some time with the pod. I'm sure they've missed you-- they spent all week asking where you were."

His whiskers twitched. "You did not tell them that I made you angry and that you needed space from me?"

She stepped up beside him again, rearranging several of the pans on the stove in a bid to assist him with cooking. He took her aid in stride, and even adjusted his own activities to better incorporate her changes. Watching his responses to her actions she was astounded at just how in tune he was-- except socially. "Anin... what happens between the two of us is our business. Just because I was angry doesn't mean that everyone else needed to know why, or even that I was angry at all."

He let out a soft chirr. "Why? Shouldn't they know that you were angry with me so that they could take sides?"

Angie Mae found herself laughing. She remembered something about 'social wars' among Ikali, but she hadn't really thought about it. "Humans don't do that."

Anin completely removed the pans from the burners, setting them off to the side on a cooling pad before turning to regard her. "That must get very confusing... if I didn't know what friends were mad with each other I'm not sure I would know how to act around them."

It took even longer for the young woman to regain her composure, and longer yet to explain to her Ikali companion why she was laughing at all. The elaboration of social interactions in a one-on-one basis even as part of a group was a lengthy discussion in and of itself, taking up the entirety of their breakfast together. They had made it through the entirety of the meal and he still had follow-up questions but, thankfully, by the time they had finished cleaning the dishes he seemed to be getting the hang of things.

It didn't stop him from seeking more clarification, however. "So... if Max and Carver were mad at me, you would still be able to spend time with me and that would be okay? They would not be insulted?"

At first she was going to dismiss his concern but, as she thought about it for a moment, she realized that some clarification was needed. "It would depend on the severity of their anger... and what you did to make them angry. If what you did was REALLY bad then it might not be okay for me to still be friendly with you, but for most things Humans and Phins don't take slights against their friends personally."

Anin's expression froze for a moment, whiskers vibrating as he stared at her, deep in thought. He did speak, ultimately, but the words came out slowly, as if he'd just had an epiphany. "I was avoiding all of your friends for no reason?"

Rather than answer his question directly, she elected to correct him. Reaching over to rest a hand on his paw, Angie Mae stated "You were avoiding OUR friends, Anin."

His happy chirr declared that he was far more pleased at her clarification than he was displeased at his misunderstanding.

* * * * *

That evening, the two made their way to the parlor, where the pod was already gathered. Many happy declarations were shared from among the group (much to Anin's overloaded chagrin), but, once everyone quieted down, the Ikali went around the gathered individuals and made sure everyone got a hug. Once the physical interaction portion of his greeting was out of the way, Anin returned to Angie Mae's side and climbed up onto the bench beside her. Max was the first to fill the two of them in on what they'd missed the prior night, and did so with a hand on his stomach. "The doctors say that I might actually have our little one before the two of you leave."

Angie Mae had done incredibly well when it came to her study on Phin gestation time, but she knew that there were bound to be differences between Human, Phin, and Hybrid pregnancies. Even so, it caught her by surprise, but in a good way. "Really? That's fantastic! I hope I get a chance to be there."

Carver offered his wide,patient, Amplus smile, reaching a hand out to join Max's on the Human's inflated belly. "You will be able to wait with the rest of us in the lobby, Angie Mae, but the procedure requires an operating room."

Anin let out a little chirp of surprise. "Operating? It isn't a big procedure, is it? It isn't dangerous?"

Seraph, who had originally intimidated the Ikali, had no trouble scooping him up and giving him a firm hug. "Nah, little man. The med staff at Station Zero are really good at this. They have dozens of Human male births every season. They know what they're doing."

Angel was right there to further calm him. "Yeah, Short Stuff... nothin' t' worry, 'bout, Boo... docs got this covered. Max'll have a lil' one of his own in no time... I bet he'll ALMOST be as cute as our lil' man."

The Otter seemed placated, even going so far as to venture another one of his silly word games. "I remember reading something about that.... he is going to have a cetacarian section... yes?"

Angel and Seraph didn't quite appreciate the humor as much as someone used to an Ikali, and they returned Anin to Angie Mae so the two of them could get back to doting over their own offspring and, as the Pod settled down, various conversations were struck up, leaving Anin free to address her. "Did you hear about the report that Cutting-Edge Researcher gave to Dr Nathan yesterday?"

It was very strange for Anin to talk about work, let alone in off hours, so his inquiry caught Angie Mae by surprise. "What report?"

Anin's whiskers vibrated with excitement; he loved sharing information with her. "Cutting-Edge Researcher was doing genetic coding experiments and compared Ikali, Phin and Human DNA. You know how Phin and Humans are able to have little ones?"

Angie Mae glanced over at Max... then at Angel... then at Charlie. "Yes... I remember hearing something about that."

The deadpan humor was not really her style, but Anin brought out her playful side. He also didn't miss it and he let out a happy squeak, but didn't let the joke deter him from saying his piece. "Cutting-edge Researcher tested Phin semen against Ikali semen and ovum both, and they were not viable."

Andy, who had apparently overheard a portion of their discussion, quickly piped up. "Hey, Kline... you talking about work in The Parlor? Isn't that a no-no?"

Angie Mae took the hint and waved Andy's statement aside, whispering quietly to her Otter companion "You can tell me later... he's right-- no work talk in The Parlor, remember?"

He seemed content to leave it at that, and, as the evening wore on, the Pod shared laughs and a few tears, discussing their past as well as their present, and forecasting to the future. It was well into the early hours of Sunday morning when the group finally decided that it was time to call it quits-- not just because those with little ones had already called it a night, but because The Parlor was waiting on them to vacate so they could close; Pleasant Server, the Phin attendant had already finished the clean-up.

Offering farewells and good nights, everyone resolved to meet up again Monday after their perspective work sessions, at which point a few more hugs were exchanged among Podmates (and Anin got one from everyone) before Angie Mae and the Ikali headed back toward their quarters. She didn't even realize that her hand had slid toward Anin of its own accord until he grasped it in his paw. Although he took the freedom of doing so without asking, he did follow up with a courteous "I hope this is okay."

Angie Mae found herself smiling at the statement and she nodded. "Of course it's okay, Anin, but thank you for checking."

He took three steps for every one of hers; he was about a half foot shorter than she but his torso was longer with shorter legs, meaning he had to hustle to keep up. Even so, he managed to engage her in conversation (he did bring up that the corridor didn't have planters he might trip over like outside). "I am happy to check with you, Ammy. I want to make sure you have chassis autocracy."

She didn't even miss a beat. "Body autonomy... and thank you."

He followed the statement up with another one, out of the blue. "I am still not sure how Humans work when it comes to emotions... like..." he paused, even to the point of coming to a stop in the hallway, whiskers vibrating as an obvious indication of his brain working. "... you are a very good partner, Ammy, and I do not want to make you angry so I am trying to be very careful."

Angie Mae turned back to regard the Ikali. "Do you think you might make me angry by saying something?"

He offered a shrug; it looked strange coming from an Otter and it wasn't a normal gesture for Anin's kind, but he was obviously making an attempt. "I do not always know... but I wanted to ask if we can call tonight a date."

Very carefully balancing her emotions, Angie Mae took a few seconds before responding. She knew Anin meant well and that he had the best of intentions. Honestly, she often wondered why she had such trouble just coming out and approving of the idea, but she also knew that she was not really in the healthiest frame of mind for a relationship, if that was in fact what Anin was proposing. When it came to emotional maturity and intelligence, however, Angie Mae had no doubts that Ikali were stunted to say the least-- she went to school with a young girl who was on the spectrum and she couldn't help but notice some similarities, and yet Ikali seemed capable of emotional feelings far in excess of Human standards.

She had to remind herself that the Otters, despite how human-like they were, had dramatically different reasoning. Still, she noted to herself, she did like Anin, and they were partners. In the end, she offered a measured answer. "To what end?"

He blinked, gaze blank. Several seconds passed before he answered. "Um... the date would end when we get back home... right?"

Angie Mae wasn't about to explain how some dates lasted throughout the night; she wasn't quite ready to go into details about THAT-- plus, he didn't quite understand her question. "What I mean is, why do you want to date me, Anin?"

His blank stare returned and, once again, time passed as if he had to restart his brain. Ultimately he reached up and scratched at the side of his neck. "Because I like you?"

She HAD asked a fairly basic question, so a basic answer made sense... despite it not being helpful. "Okay... and if I said 'Yes, it could be a date.' What next?"

Anin's whiskers perked up, and so did his little ears. Holding his webbed paws together in front of himself, he rose up another inch as he went to his tip-toes. "Then I would say that I would like to have another one."

Sometimes Anin was so easy to talk to that it was almost impossible.