Wild shipping trash returns!
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Comfort (Kongou x Warspite x Iowa)
Warspite was rapidly becoming cross with herself. She felt her heart pounding in her chest, and the butterflies doing their little dance in the pit of her stomach. Really, she was acting like an overgrown schoolgirl; and she would like to think that she had grown to be just a little more mature.
"Feeling nervous, granny?"
Warspite cleared her throat before she even attempted a response. Then she turned, and looked up at the other blonde.
"Perhaps a little," she answered, and unconsciously tightened her grip on the package in her hands.
Iowa chuckled.
"Yeah," she said, with a grin. "It'd be a little awkward if Bongou threw these back in our face."
Warspite smiled in return, but it was a tight, thin line on her face. As ever, Iowa had a talent for cutting straight to the heart of the matter.
"I trust Kongou would at least be polite about it," she replied.
Iowa waggled her eyebrows.
"Hopefully she'll be a bit more than polite," she said.
Warspite rolled her eyes, but her smile did become a bit more natural.
However, there was no time to respond to the remark, because they had finally arrived at the mess hall, and there was Kongou, just as Miss Haruna had said. The brunette was just sitting there with a bowl of soup on the table in front of her, seemingly untouched. She was glaring at her food like it had offended her, and was grumbling under her breath.
She felt her stomach tighten at the sight. Kongou may not be open to their advances right now; perhaps it would be best to withdraw, and try again later? Of course, Iowa swiftly removed that option from the table.
"Bongou!" she called, jovially.
The brunette quickly turned her head in their direction, and stared at them with a glum, defeated expression. She sighed at the two of them as they approached, before turning back to her soup, stabbing at it violently with her chopsticks.
"What do you want?" she grumbled.
Oh dear, Warspite thought. The feeling in her stomach only got worse as the two of them approached, and she felt a little pang in her chest from seeing Kongou looking so miserable. So she swallowed her nerves, and lowered herself into a seat opposite the Japanese ship-girl. Iowa sat down in the seat next to her, an uncharacteristically solemn look on her face.
"Kongou?" Warspite began. "Whatever is the matter?"
"None of your business," she answered.
"Hey, c'mon," Iowa said. "You'll feel better if you get it off your chest."
Unfortunately, the only response Kongou gave was to sink her chopsticks into her food, and morosely stir it around the bowl. She stayed like that for a couple of minutes, stirring the soup but never actually making a move to eat it. Then she gave a little sigh, a miserable little noise, that once again tugged on Warspite's heartstrings.
The two western shipgirls exchanged a glance; Warspite had an idea of what had gotten Kongou so down, and judging by the look in her eyes, Iowa had the same idea. The problem was in how to broach the topic, if she was right it would be a delicate subject, and she didn't want to upset Kongou more than she already was.
Another couple of minutes passed as the mulled over her choice of words in her head, but it was no use, none of them seemed quite right.
"C'mon, Bongou! Y'know what today is right?"
Of course, she should have remembered that Iowa always favoured forcing the issue.
Kongou did not make any indication that she had heard, instead she just kept silently stirring her soup. Then Warspite heard it, a sound that almost broke her heart in two, a tiny little sniffle; and it was quickly followed by another, slightly louder one.
Almost immediately the two western shipgirls were out of there seats, and kneeling at Kongou's side. Warspite took her left hand and began stroking it gently, and she saw Iowa grasp Kongou's right hand in both of her own. From this close she could see the tears leaking out the corners of her eyes.
"Come on, now," Warspite whispered. "Surely it can't be all that bad?"
"Yeah," Iowa said. "It's not the end of the world right?"
For a moment it did not seem lie Kongou had even heard them, her shoulders continued to shake with her sobbing, and the tears continued to run down her cheeks.
"I – I went to see the admiral this morning," she said eventually, her voice thick.
Warspite quickly exchanged another glance with Iowa, and saw the same concerned look she was sure she must be wearing herself.
"And what happened?" she asked.
"There was a man her office, and they were on her sofa..." Kongou trailed off, her voice devolving back into sobs.
Warspite was quietly grateful, as much as she sympathised, she did not need the details.
"I'll just go and put the kettle on," she said.
As she waited the minute or so for the kettle to come to a boil, a flurry of thoughts flew through her head. She supposed that hers plans with Iowa were shot, giving Kongou their gifts now seemed a little inappropriate; although, would it not help her mood, knowing someone appreciated her? Then again, given the probably reason she had gone to the admiral's office today, it would seem a little insensitive.
She was also trying not to think unflattering thoughts of the admiral, because she supposed that she wasn't shouldn't cast stones.
When she returned, she found Kongou just as she had left her, with Iowa still kneeling next to her. She set the serving tray down on the table, and placed Kongou's cup down in front of her.
For the first time she saw Kongou lift her gaze, and stare at the freshly made drink. Then the brunette's body completely stiffened, rather like a deer caught in headlights, to use the old phrase. Warspite felt like a stone had sunk into the pit of her stomach, wondering if she had inadvertently done something wrong.
"What's that?" Kongou asked.
"...Tea?" Warspite offered.
Kongou shook her head slowly, and raised her hand.
"No," she said. "That."
She followed the path of Kongou's finger, and felt the stone in her stomach turn to ice, as she realised that she was not looking at the tea. She was in fact looking past the tea, at the two bright, red packaged laying in the middle of the table; where she and Iowa must have set them down in their rush to comfort the crying girl.
Well … bugger...
"Those are, um..." she began.
"Me and Warspite made them for you Bongou!" Iowa interrupted, brightly.
Warspite looked at the other blonde, but the American seemed to pay it no mind.
Kongou said nothing for a moment, then made a beckoning motion with her hand.
Well, in for a penny, in for a pound. With that thought in mind, Warspite slowly reached and lifted her chocolates off of the table; and Iowa did the same. Then together, the two of them handed their gifts over.
Warspite's nerves were the worst she had ever felt, even going into battle for the first time had not made her feel this nervous. If she had been capable of thinking a little more clearly, she would have cursed herself for acting like a schoolgirl. She wondered whether Iowa was feeling as nervous as she was?
Raising her gaze, she found that the American was wearing her usual confident grin. However, perhaps it was her imagination, but as the seconds ticked by with no response, she figured she could see a flicker off doubt behind her eyes.
"You made these for me?" Kongou whispered, her voice very quite.
Warspite nodded, as she tried to speak through a mouth that was suddenly very dry.
"Yes," she managed.
Kongou hugged the boxes to her chest, as though they were two oddly-shaped teddy bears.
"Thank you," she mumbled, before the tears began to flow again.