2,500 tons of awesome

Herc stepped out of Striker Eureka, breathing a small sigh of relief as he did so. Fighting in a jaeger waas still one of the most exhilarating things he'd ever experienced, but it was also very tiring and it taken quite a while for them to take down the kaiju. He rolled his head to loosen the muscles in his neck before making his way over to the techs so they could take his suit off.

Chuck trailed after his father, he was shattered. He’d had a rough night’s sleep only to be woken before dawn to suit up. Stifling a yawn, he nodded to the techs as he stepped past them and instead headed over to Max. He dropped down onto one knee and tickled the top of the dog’s head. He glanced up at his father and offered him a small, stiff nod. “You alright old man?” he asked.

"I can still keep up with you easily, " Herc replied, trying to inject a bit of lightheartedness into the conversation, "Don't worry about that." He lifted his arms for the tech briefly, and then after another pause he stepped out of the last bits of his suit and stretched.
"You coming to the mess?"

Chuck shrugged and carried on stroking Max. "Later, maybe," he pushed himself up and motioned to the techs. He needed to get out of his suit, and he needed to sleep. He was dead on his feet.

Herc sighed inwardly, wishing not for the first time that he had a better relationship with his son. He thanked the tech crew, nodded goodbye to Chuck and headed down the corridor in the direction of the mess and hopefully some hot food. He yawned as he entered the lift, almost as tired as Chuck was, but his stomach was refusing to be ignored and so sleep would have to wait a while.

Chuck stood still and waited for the techs to finish their jobs before he knelt down and scooped up Max's lead. He'd humor Herc and head down to the mess... but only to give him Max for the night. After that he was heading for bed.

Herc was very glad that there wasn't a queue for food. He took a portion of everything on offer and then headed over to the table that was the usual hangout of the Striker crew, although given the time it was pretty empty. He greeted the couple of people sat a bit further down, before digging into his food with the manners of someone who hadn't eaten in days. It might not have actually been days since he'd last eaten, but it had been the night before amd piloting a jaeger was hungry work.

Once he was finally free of his suit, he retraced Herc’s route until he reached the mess, dragging Max along with him. He paused by the door to the mess, even though he knew exactly where his father would be. After a moment or two he headed over to their usual table, tugging the dog along with him. He dropped the lead next to his father. “Here,” he said. He knelt down to give Max one last stroke.

Despite knowing Chuck wouldn't be there to talk to him, Herc couldn't help the brief flare of hope that appeared as he saw his son crossing the mess. He put down his fork and turned slightly in his seat to watch Chuck pet Max.
"You off to bed?" He asked, purely for something to say.

Chuck didn't look at his father, but nodded. "Yep," he straightened up and glanced down at Max. "Stay here with the old man, you got that boy?"

Herc could feel the eyes on him as the few people nearby watching the awkward exchange between them, but he ignored them, having gotten used to the lack of privacy a long time ago. He leant down so he could pet the top of Max's head, distracting the dog from Chuck's departure.

“I’ll see you in the morning,” Chuck said quietly to his father. He turned briskly on his heel and headed back the way he’d come.

Thankfully, for the sake of plot and replies, Stacker soon materialised. He watched as Chuck left his father sitting alone at the table and waited until he was out of sight before he took himself over there. He motioned to the seat opposite Herc, “good to sit here?” he asked.

Herc stopped petting Max and sat back up as the marshal came over.
"Of course," He replied with a brief smile, happy to see him even if he was also wondering whether he wanted something or whether he was just here as a friend. He slipped the end of the lead around the table leg so Max couldn't wander off while he was talking.

Stacker was armed with tea. He placed the cup on the table in front of him before he sat down. He glanced down at Max. "He hasn't pissed anywhere he shouldn't have has he?" he asked Herc, remembering the dog's habit of cocking his leg up Jaegers.

"Not that I know of," Herc replied with a slight scowl, remembering the grief he got from the Wei triplets the other day.
"I've only just got off duty though."

"I wasn't kidding when I said I'd have him fired at a kaiju," Stacker said, his tone serious. He smiled a little though, just to assure his old friend he was fucking with him, and looked round the room, which was gradually becoming more and more empty.

Herc chuckled, knowing Stacker was joking, at least mostly.
"I've no idea where he got that habit from," He admitted, before finishing off the chunk of bread on his plate and following it with a mouthful of water.

“I imagine your son played a part in it,” Stacker commented dryly. He took a sip of his drink before placing it down again before asking, “have you heard? Mako wants to restore Gipsy."

"Hmph, no doubt." Herc put his plate on the floor so Max could eat the last few scraps of food. He looked back up again when Stacker spoke, replying, "Oh yeah? What for? There's no one left to pilot her."