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When Sissel rejoins his body, he expects to see Yomiel and Jowd return to theirs.
They don't.
"Why aren't you going back? Don't you want to see your girls again?"
Yomiel looks pained.
"The worst thing he has done is hold a child hostage. He will have his fiance when he gets out. He will never have done the things I've done."
"You're sending him to jail for crimes he doesn't remember."
"That wouldn't be the first time."
"You're just going to watch, lonely on the sidelines, suffering as they are happy!"
"I don't want to remember the crimes I've committed against innocents! Why would I want to give that to him?"
"You wanted to be back with your Fiance for so long."
"And she deserves better. Even if I wanted to, my body… it doesn't feel like mine anymore."
Yomiel doesn't seem like he will be moved.
"Do you want to be with me again?" Sissel offers, a little awkwardly. "I'm not a living cat anymore, but we could go befriend your fiance. Keep tabs on her."
Yomiel looks contemplative, and Sissel wants to persuade him. Crimes committed or not, they were each others only friend for ten years, and that would be hard to give up.
"Besides, this way one of us can stay in the body, and not look absolutely unnerving to outsiders, when the other is doing tricks. "
Yomiel hasn't said yes, but he looks like he might not say no. It's time to talk to Jowd.
"So, let me guess. You don't want that Jowd to remember the many years you spent in jail wanting to be executed, while living with the guilt of your wife's death. "
Jowd is silent.
"Or maybe it's that our prison break didn't exactly go smoothly the first time… or the fifth. You seemed to find it funny at the time."
Yomiel blinks at that.
"Are you suicidal?"
"I got what I wanted. My family is safe. That's all that matters to me."
Yomiel is now giving Jowd a look that Sissel does not know the name for.
"I was going to argue with you that we don't know how long a soul without Temsik exposure can last without passing on, but you're right. Neither of our past selves should have to deal with our baggage."
"Ray waited ten years. I don't know how long regular souls can last, but I know a soul with Tensik exposure can last at least ten years."
"Who is Ray!" They both ask.
"Missile from the first timeline."
"What!"
"This is the third try!"
"You humans have a saying. Third times the charm. "
"So Missile hung around for ten years for a do over!" Yomiel asks incredulously.
"Yep. He tricked me. I wouldn't have expected the little doggie to learn deception. "
"I wouldn't have expected him to have the patience. " Jowd remarks.
"Why did he do that?" Yomiel asks.
"That's what doggies do." Sissel remarks. Honestly, for all humans know how reading, guns, and prisons work, he feels they fail to understand the important things sometimes.
Yomiel turns to Jowd.
"I spent a lot of time resenting you in life. But I think I wouldn't mind getting to know you better in death. Care to stick around. Sissel kept me company for my ten years of immortality. I should stay around as long as I can for his."
Sissel chimes in. "We can spend time seeing both of your families. It will involve a lot of traveling, but that's not a problem. "
Jowd still seems to need convincing, so Sissel adds.
If we need something to do besides keeping our loved ones safe, we can always help other people. I'm sure between the three of us we could save some lives." He waits for a moment, then adds. "Or Lynne's"
Jowd looks at him sharply. "I'm a little afraid to ask, but how many times did she die?"
"Five times. "
Both humans look shocked at that. It seems to persuade Jowd.
"Alright." Jowd concedes. "For however long I can stay, I will stay."
"I'm glad."
"I never thought that one day I would become sort of in-laws with my wife's killer over a cat. "
"Me neither." Yomiel admits. "But he's family."
"He's family." Jowd agrees.
Sissel feels warm with the praise.
Having made some sort of peace, they both join him in his cat body.
Three ghosts inside a cat's core is a new sensation, but Sissel has spent ten years with his best friend coming and going from his body. He can get used to it.
"I know we said we were going to visit family, but I want to check on Missile first, and see if he's in his body, or leaving his past self alone. Then, I think I want to meet my namesake. "
The other two agree, and Yomiel takes over to walk them there, while Sissel uses tricks on the obstacles.
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