Purple!????????????

Posted on Sun Apr 13th, 2025 @ 11:36am by 1st Lieutenant Joshua Young [Taylor]

Mission: Season 6: Echoes of the Zynari
Location: Josh's cabin
Timeline: MD 2
718 words - 1.4 OF Standard Post Measure

Josh rose early as was his routine and did his morning exercises just like he did when Anna was alive. Now there was no joy, no friendly competition. It was just a morning routine to do and complete. When he finished, he went to take a shower a real one not a sonic one. He was careful in using the water and limited his shower to seven minutes which included shaving. When he finished and put on his underwear and tee shirt, He next headed into the small kitchen for breakfast. He poured himself a glass of orange juice, fixed two slices of buttered toast, two slices of medium cut bacon and a hard-boiled egg. After finishing his breakfast, he returned to the bedroom and pulled out a fresh, uniform from the closet. As he put on his pants he froze, they were purple! He blinked his eyes and shook his head and looked again. Same result, still purple. "What the hell?" He muttered as he walked back to the closet ready to pull out another uniform and groaned....loudly. All his unforms were bright purple! Not their normal marine green. This just couldn't be! It couldn't be. He couldn't begin his shift dressed in a purple uniform; he'd be laughed right out of the department. He looked at the chrono on the wall and saw he needed to begin his shift in ten minutes. Sighing and silently preparing himself for the teasing to come he got dressed and opened his weapon locker as he did it spoke to him. Rather it recited poetry to him.

"The colors of the past, they paint my today,
Like scrunchies and flannels, they never fade away,
I’ll dance like no one's watching, with joy amplified,
In the heart of the ‘90s, forever I’ll glide.

With the spirit of the legends, I rise, and I stand,
Embracing the echoes of a carefree band,
So, here’s to the memories, the laughter, the cheer,"

Josh's reaction was simple and direct. "What?" Quickly closing the locker, he just stared at it and then decided to see if he was imagining things. he opened the locked again and again it recited poetry.

"With every beat of the heart, I’m where I belong,
The world may have changed, but my spirit stays true,
In a throwback groove, I’m still feeling brand new."

Josh slammed the locker closed with a thunderous clang. "I'm seeing things and hearing things. I'm having a nervous breakdown. Missing Anna has finally caught up to me, I better go see Captain Richardson and tell him I've gone off the deep end and then to Sickbay or to Counseling as I definitely need my head examined." With a weary, downcast and dejected sigh he headed out to start his shift. Along the way the people he met greeted him as they normally did, and no one mentioned his purple uniform. Not a single soul. Not even that smart ass Connelly. As he walked, a clicking like a rhythm, like a dance rhythm reached his ears as it echoed off the corridor floor. He stopped the clicking stopped. he took a few steps, the clicking started. He took as few more steps and it continued, it was a dance rhythm! More precisely a waltz dance rhythm and it was coming from his boots! "Man, this has been one freaking weird morning. I bet one of those marines of Col. Naxea is behind all this. Well, let them laugh. Payback is hell and Josh Young is a master at payback! *Or...* The little voice in his head spoke up, *It's Anna, telling you to lighten up, relax. * "Yeah, this would be just like Anna. I can hear her now saying Joshy, you just have to enjoy life more, lighten up, chill." He whispered as he walked, and his spirit began to lighten as he embraced whatever was going on and the first time in a long time, he wasn't sad when he thought of Anna. As he walked his step became lighter, bouncier as the rhythm continued making him consider... briefly dancing but professional discipline kicked in and stopped him from making a complete fool of himself and a miracle occurred, well almost occurred as First Lieutenant Joshua Young almost smiled.