"It's fine," Shiro remarked, kneeling to help gather mint. "I don't mind doing it. It's kind of relaxing actually. They don't really fight you and will pretty much wait to be brushed, especially if their treat comes at the end of it."

After everything he had been through, having the company of animals helped more than he would be able to accurately explain... since he didn't even really understand it himself. Just that it did.

"I think drying them would be good. They last longer that way. A lot of the foods packaged for space travel were dried or dehydrated. At least on Earth, they were."

The Alteans had food goo, but that was another story.

"I'm doing okay." He smiled. "I'd say that isn't the weirdest thing I've experienced... but that one was certainly up there."