Good Cop Bad Cop: Chapter One

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One week. Asher has to be mean, Kay has to be nice. Whoever gives up first has to write a story for the winner. Should be... interesting.

[I think if I had to be nice all the time I really would have a stroke.] Kay remarked, his eye had stopped twitching at least. [And besides, i'm not mean ALL the time. Only when people actually deserve it for being stupid or unreasonable or stubborn. ]

"They still expect you to be scary though," Asher said sagely, "Whereas when I tell off Matt, it's a shock." He laughed, "I can't imagine you being nice like this all the time though. It just isn't right."

Kay shook his head [It isn't. It's like you being mean, it's just not who you are. ] He smiled. [Not that it isn't very very entertaining to watch you try. ]

Asher nodded in agreement. "This is fun for scientific reasons, but I'll be happy when the week is over."

(Next day?)

(yessss hahaha)

TIMESKIP - DAY FOUR

"Well, Luka didn't come in yesterday, so I lost that bet," Asher told Kay as he wiped down a counter, "Let's see if she comes in today so you win, or if she somehow makes it to day three!" He laughed.

Kay looked amused. [Either she'll come in having bust her ankle again, or Esk will be back having burst his stitches. Question is which one is more stubborn and less inclined to listen to medical advice?]

Well as it turned out, Esk had no intention of reopening his wound but he did stick near the medical room just in case there was an entertaining meltdown to watch. He was actually looking forward to Kay's eventual complete loss of control, it was going to be amusing.

Some time in the late morning Luka did appear, moving painfully on crutches and looking irritated.

Kay looked to Asher with a "told you so" expression on his face.

Asher looked at Luka suspiciously. "What happened?" He asked, coming over to help her sit down if she needed a hand.

Luka grumbled. "It wasn't hurting so much and I ran out of books so.. I tried to go to the library okay?" She looked like she fully expected the lecture.

Kay bit his lip and tried to wipe the smug look off his face as he came over with the medical scanner. [Unfortunately that often happens with sprains, they feel alright till you walk on them and then you reinflame the original injury.] He was trying to be all sympathetic and all that but damn it was hard. The instructions had been simple, DO NOT put weight on it for at least a week. Bah, fleet pilots, stubborn morons.

Luka huffed. "I didn't walk that far!" She protested.

Kay read the reading on the scanner. [More ice, luckily you haven't done more damage.]

"Luka," Asher said sternly, "We don't just give our patients instructions for the fun of it. When a medic says you should stay off your feet for a week, they actually mean stay off your feet for a week. This sort of nonsense only prolongs the time you have to spend not walking!"

Luka frowned at Asher but said nothing, looking sullen instead.

Kay got the ice. [Keep applying ice ever 3 or 4 hours for 20 minutes at a time until this evening, keep it elevated and please stay OFF your feet. Send one of vestia's bots to get you books if you need to, or I can bring you some when i'm off duty. ]

Luka frowned, but nodded. She sighed.

[You should be back on your feet in a few days but if you do have to walk anywhere, not far and make sure your ankle is braced with one of these.] He gave her an elasticated bandage. [But no walking on it, no weight on it at all until you're given the all clear, alright?]
Oh he wanted to lecture her and be snide, it was hard to word things in a way he thought was polite. It went against every instinct he had.

He was struggling with the need to be stern and authoritarian. Being polite was awful!

Luka just looked grumpy about it all. Stupid Mourn, this was all his fault.

Asher tried to not smile as Kay attempted to not scold. It was kind of funny. "Remember, you can make James fetch you things," he said, "If he refuses, I'll talk to him for you."

That actually seemed to cheer Luka up a bit. She imagined sending him to go pick out books with the most amusingly epic covers, full of shirtless men and monsters.

Kay caught that thought and couldn't help but look amused.

"you're reading my thoughts aren't you?" Luka criticised.

[Only those you're projecting too loudly to ignore. ] Kay looked apologetic. [You enjoy the Imperium paperbacks then?]

Luka snorted "They're good fun." She shrugged. "and before you start I know they're badly written and the romances are terribly stilted and overly idealised but it's entertaining and they're an easy read."

Kay shook his head, bemused. [I'm not judging you for reading terrible books.]
Yeah he read them too, so what?

Luka snorted. She imagined Kay only ever read boring stuffy text books.

Asher couldn't keep himself from looking amused at that. Yeah, he knew about Kay's taste in books, and that made it slightly funny to hear Luka defending them to him.

[I'll send some over later on. In the meantime, rest.] Was that rude? he wasn't sure if that was rude. Arghh this was haard.

Luka sighed. "yeah yeah i'll rest. " eugh bedrest was SO BORING.

"I suppose I should help you back to your room," Asher said. He was SO going to make James keep a better eye on Luka from now on.

Luka nodded. "But no more lecture on the way okay? I don't think I can deal with yet another lecture."

Kay smirked at Asher, oh he was doing too well, he had to be stopped.

[Just look pathetic and he'll usually take pity on you.]

"I'm NOT pathetic." Luka snapped.

Kay frowned. [I never said you were lieutenant, but it's his weakness. ] He smiled to Asher and waved.

Luka hesitantly hopped down from the bed and grabbed her crutches.

Asher frowned at Kay, ooh, he was trying to use Luka against him, huh? He went to help Luka. "Don't you dare act pathetic, and I might not lecture you," he said.

Kay smiled to Asher, hey, cheat to succeed. If he had to deal with Matt, Asher needed his own handicap.

Luka looked bewildered. "You guys are so weird." She remarked as Asher lead her back to her room.

Asher headed quietly with Luka back toward her room. He sort of wanted to scold her, but he also didn't want her to use the secret weapon Kay had told her about! Argh!

Luka just looked at him confused as she struggled back to her room.

Once Luka had been returned to her room, and James had been firmly ordered to keep an eye on the girl and NOT LET HER WALK ANYWHERE, Asher returned to the med bay.

Kay looked up and smirked. [teetering yet?]

"She didn't even try," Asher said smugly, seating himself in an office chair and rolling behind the desk. "The universe wants you to lose, admit it."

[Sadly the universe does hate me.] Kay shook his head grimly. [Still, i'm not admitting defeat. You'll crack first, and then I can gloat. Face it Asher, you're just too nice to be bad cop.]

Asher smiled softly. "It'll take a more pitiful patient than Luka to make me break. Let's hope the next one is someone nice and sweet and easy to feel sorry for."

[Or maybe by some lucky fluke, the people on this ship will manage not to hurt themselves for a few hours. Wouldn't that be nice?]