Evening


    Valorie watched the clock as her body slept. Her first nap had been a failure due to her fears. Her body still required rest, so she was giving it another go. Leon had not given her a specific time for dinner, so a long wait stretched out before her. The intervals between each second seemed to feel longer and longer. Why was she even watching the clock tick by? It was no wonder humans found her so strange.


    As self-reproach filled her thoughts, she tried focusing on the people around her instead. She could feel everyone at work around the ship. The real question was which light was which person?


    She was getting better at identifying Quinns. He rarely moved out of his favorite haunts. Indeed after the meeting, two lights trekked back to engineering almost immediately. Whoever had followed him eventually left. Since then, he had been puttering around in the bay.


    The other lights mingled in a way that was hard to parse out.


    There were three that remained in their quarters nearby. They must be the guests. She remembered the hot malice burning off the representative. The memory translated into her body shifting, turning over with a soft whimper. Sorry, she thought. If she got too worked up, her body would wake and her physical ability would suffer. She tried to focus on the clock again.


    It was no good. Her thoughts drifted back to the meeting. Shayla’s feelings were different than the hate she had encountered so far. There was malice and fear but the feelings were separate, not mixed. It was normal for others to hate and fear her for what she was in their eyes – a clone.


    In the silence of her room, it finally dawned on her. She was no longer in a clone’s body. Humans no longer saw her as any different from any other person. When she looked at it this way, things started to make more sense. The malice was because Shayla believed Valorie called in the inspection. What was the fear for?


    The feeling of someone drawing closer to her room distracted her. The light was bright, with a sense of tired responsibility. Leon, maybe? She eased her body from slumber. Depending on how much sleep she got, this process could be time consuming. Her body was at the beginning of a new cycle, so it was easy to drag it back to alertness. She sat up and her PD buzzed, followed by a knock on the door.


    “Valorie? It’s Leon. I have your dinner.” He called. She stood up and saw the door panel was still locked. “I’m coming in.” He said. She tucked loose hairs behind her ears and flattened out her shirt.


    The door slid open, and Leon walked in carrying two food containers and a metal canteen. The door slid shut behind him, but it did not lock. He made his way to her table, and set down the containers.


    “Were you taking a nap?” He asked, his back to her. She glanced at the door. Still unlocked.


    “Yes.” She said, her eyebrows furrowing at his abrupt manner. He started opening the containers, and setting them up on one side of the table.


    “Come here. Come eat.” He said. She watched him setting up the food and felt thoroughly confused. When she reached out, he was feeling guarded – hesitant. Was he testing her? She stepped towards him, and his suspicion eased. He looked over his shoulder.


    “You alright? Come on, while it’s still hot.” He said, sitting down on the opposite side of the table. She did as she was told, but her movements felt unnatural. He was watching her every move. She looked down at the food. The larger of the two containers had a full serving of the ReNutri stir fry and rice. Steam rose from the replicated white meat mixed with vegetables in a dark sauce. She was more interested in the second container. It was full of the dark granola from breakfast.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    “Serge picked’em out. Like he would let me handle anyone’s nutrition.” Leon said. She stared at him and he added, “Poison isn’t his style.” He gave her a cold smile. She took a sip from the canteen. Water. It slid over her tongue, clean and cool. The cold spread down her throat when she swallowed, banishing the last of her sleepiness. She started on the food, but her movements still felt mechanical. Leon leaned back in his chair, but his attention was still laser-focused on her.


    “Are you scared?”


    “No.”


    “Really? Well, that’s suspicious.” He said, and she balked.


    “W-why?” She tried to regain her composure. There was a hint of a smile on his face before he squashed it.


    “It appears you know you are safe – that the inspection poses no threat to you. There’s no way to know what will happen to you, unless perhaps you have allies on the imperial side.” His voice was dry as he explained it, but the intensity never left his eyes. As she thought about it, her eyebrows knit together, creasing in the middle.


    “I should be afraid, but I believe…” She trailed off and frowned. Embarrassment rose as bile in her throat. With her sisters’ help, she planned to hide the fugitives from detection. She had not entertained the idea that this could fail.


    “You believe?”


    “I did not consider failure.” She muttered. Her heart ached as she realized her miscalculation. What a strange feeling. “My sisters will be mad with me.” She sighed. Leon actually laughed at that. She looked up in surprise. “You’re laughing at me.” His amusement settled into an easy smile. She liked his face when he smiled. Despite the suspicion that rolled off of him when she reached out, the smile made her feel better. It drew her in.


    "What do you believe?” He asked. She paused to think of an answer. A real one.


    "That the Helianthus will be safe.” She said. He watched her for a moment as if expecting more. When she didn’t add anything, he huffed.


    “If you aren’t scared, what’s bothering you?” He asked. She blinked in surprise. “Clearly something is. I thought that representative scared you.” He said. She shook her head.


    “You know about my mission to free my sisters.” He nodded. “I feel like I have already failed them.” She said.


    “How so?” He asked. She wasn’t sure how to explain the fear and suspicion she felt from the entire crew. The amount differed, but the way everyone looked at her had changed.


    “How will anyone ever trust me after all this?” She asked, “If they never trust me, how will I become part of the crew?” She added. She was taking a chance by exposing herself. Mother’s experience with humans showed a very low chance of kindness after exposure. Nearly all of Mother’s human interactions occurred within UEE’s scientific and military branches. It was possible things were different outside the empire. This Question had no answer yet, so Valorie could not be sure.


    When she realized how quiet Leon was, she looked up at his face. His brows had creased and he was looking to the side. She followed his gaze through the window into the gardens. A large group had gathered around the tree at the center. She could see Serge and Yulia among them.


    “Don’t worry so much about it.” Leon stood up. “You should eat before it gets cold.” He added. Her attention snapped back to her food.


    “Right, sorry.” She said, and started working on the stir-fry. He laughed and opened his PD – a ring PD, like the Captain’s but cheaper with more wear and tear.


    “You. You are a weird one. Here.” He held it out to her. She paused eating and held out her own. A bell confirmed she had received his personal net code.


    “Call me if you need anything while you’re locked up in here. Otherwise, see ya tomorrow.” He said. She stared at the PD, mouth hanging open.


    “You’re sure? You’re trusting me?” She said.


    “You’re asking me now? It’s already done.” He laughed and she blushed. She looked over her list of three contacts and a smile tugged at her lips. Leon would tease, but he was still kind.


    “Thank you.” She looked up and smiled as she met his eyes. It surprised her to see a faint pink appear on his cheeks. He reached out and ruffled her hair.


    “Don’t forget to eat. You’re gonna need the energy.” He said as he left. The door slid shut behind him, and LOCKED appeared on the inner panel.


    She looked down at her food, and then back at the door. Her eyes followed his light as he went down the hall. When he had touched her, she picked up direct thoughts.


    “Too bad she’s cute.” He was prepared to do whatever was necessary to protect the Captain. If the Helianthus was important to the Captain, it was important to Leon. He had ruffled her hair while wondering what else he might have to do to her. Imagining what else he might have to do. “I hope Cap is right about her.”


    The vision soured her appetite.