The final day of Rendezvous, the Day of Renewal, was a simple affair. Maggie had secured a spot in one of the hydroponics bays, taking Diggs on a circuitous route through the ship until they arrived at their destination. He’d refused to budge until she allowed him to wear his wrench medal, and since it wouldn’t be dirtied by the planned events she’d relented. Having grown up planetside took away some of the awe he might have felt at the rows of lush vegetation...he’d shown little interest in the garden Blye tended back on Azhakom...but shipboard, things were different. Seeing nothing but bulkheads and deck plates got to everyone, and watching his eyes light up as she laid out a blanket beneath the man-made jungle gave her a feeling she wouldn’t have traded for anything.

He looked on in wonder as she pointed out the various growths and sprouts, Areca palm and Money plants for oxygen and air filters, lettuce and tomatoes for food, spinach and broccoli for Vitamin C. Some were grown for their ornamental value, but even they served more than one purpose; Gerbera daisies were great O2 producers in their own right, while nasturtiums had a peppery taste that made an excellent garnish. The Task Force had been well stocked with seeds when they set out from Earth, not knowing how long they’d be gone or if they could resupply.

It was a good thing, too. That stockpile had meant the difference between life and starvation in the lean years after the Great War.

She had done no gardening herself since she’d been a girl, but Maggie had spent time in hydroponics growing up, just like everyone else. Shipborn children learned early to fill multiple roles, helping where needed, and it was amazing how it all came back to her.

They munched on sandwiches and snacks as she pointed out the various greenery as others filed in, enjoying the peace and quiet. The Remembrance rites left one feeling drained and wrung out, so the Hanami was meant to rejuvenate the soul through fellowship and simple pleasures...including the exchange of gifts. As they finished their meal Maggie pulled a small box from her pocket, wrapped in brown paper, and presented it to Diggs.

“This is for you,” she smiled, handing it to him. He stared at it in confusion, turning it over and over, until she explained, “...you’re supposed to take the paper off.” The matter now cleared up, he tugged at the covering, ripping it free and exposing the box underneath. That he understood, and as he opened the lid, his eyes widened in surprise, turning it upside down and cooing in wonder as a plain metal-handled folding knife dropped onto his palm.

“It’s something I thought you could use,” she explained, reaching over and showing him how to open and close the blade. “But you have to promise me you won’t go waving it around. I don’t want you or anyone else getting hurt. Understand?”

Diggs nodded, still staring at the gift in awe, before turning up his face and giving her a questioning look. Instead of answering, she smiled, reaching over and folding his fingers around the handle and pressing it to his chest. As the realization sunk in that it was his, and not something just being loaned to him, he turned away, clutching the gift to him as tears streamed down his face.

“Hey, it’s okay,” Maggie told him, caught by surprise...though as she thought about it, she kicked herself for not seeing it coming. When she’d found him in that alley, he’d had nothing, just the rags he was dressed in. The concept of having things had been all but lost to him and having her give it to him without demanding something in return...it was all too much for him.

Sometimes...words just won’t do. She pulled him close and wrapped her arms around him, rocking him as she tried to brush away his tears...only to discover she was crying too.

…damnit.

It had been so long, so many years since she’d meant something to someone. Her family was gone, and with her constant travels, friends were just transient moments. She’d decided ages ago that she didn’t need anyone...but now a mute little boy with mismatched eyes had wormed his way into her heart, despite her best efforts...and worst of all, he wasn’t hers. Maggie had come to Freya to locate his people, only to find one excuse after another to put off her search. They’d been too busy during transit, she wanted him to experience Rendezvous, he was still too traumatized...and even though those reasons were all true, each one hid a shameful lie.

She’d never wanted someone in her life...and now, she couldn’t bear to let him go.

Damnit it all to Hell.

----------------------------------------

Eventually, the tears were dried, and the meal finished. They packed up and made room for another group as they returned to the main concourse, joining the queue for the cleanup. Rendezvous was fun...but messy. They relaxed the shipboard rules for the holiday, but spacefaring vessels that allowed themselves to become contaminated, the air and water reclamation plants tainted with unwanted residue, didn’t stay spacefaring for long. The yearly cleanup reinforced the sense of community, of working together towards a common goal, and was even fun in its own right. When they reached the job assignment table Maggie requested something simple, citing Diggs limitations, so they pointed them towards one compartment where the Holi had been held and given brooms to sweep up.

Diggs stared at the sweeper, something new to his experience, but Maggie shook her head. “First things first,” she told him, taking a face mask and securing it over his mouth and nose. “I know it seems a little odd, the way we were throwing it around before, but trust me, it makes the job easier.” Others had already done the same, and as she showed how to use the broom, the boy nodded with gusto and went straight at it, though his enthusiasm proved to be more entertaining than helpful. The Tinker just shook her head and began cleaning with slow, deliberate strokes, certain that once he wore himself out the boy would discover the less-taxing method.

The group formed in a line, starting at one end of the compartment and moving the debris forward into piles. The first pass wasn’t meant to get everything, just the worst of the mess, as they brought containers and dust pans out to discard the garbage. Others were dismantling what was left of the Yīqún effigies and scrubbing down the bulkheads, while yet another group readied water and simple refreshments to keep them going.

After an hour the first pass was done, and they removed the bulk of the trash, it was time for the second pass. This one was slower as they did their best to get the remaining dust and powder, though some traces would end up being left behind. They left those for the third pass, a more specialized group with vacuums and mops who would come in behind them.

She paused for a moment, pulling down her mask and leaning on her broom, taking a quick breather, as she watched the others hard at work. No one complained, no one shirked their responsibility, in fact it was a source of pride to be a part of this and do the best job you could. It wasn’t just the need for survival; it was something more, something that went to the very heart of being human. Maybe they had few options available to them, and maybe they were at the mercy of other, more powerful agents, but they weren’t beggars, and they weren’t slaves. They’d chart their own course, by God, and reap the benefits for themselves...or take full responsibility should it all go south.

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To hell with the aliens...Man didn’t owe them shit.

A group of children ran screaming past her, playing some game, as an older man hurried after them. “Mattias! Chana! Come back here!” he shouted...skidding to a halt as they made eye contact.

“...Maggie?” he said in surprise.

She ground her teeth, giving him a hard glare. “Júlio.”

The man sighed, shaking his head. “It’s been a long time. You look good.”

“...Liar,” she spat out.

He closed his eyes. “You’re not going to make this easy, are you?”

“Any reason I should?” she fired back.

“Maggie...what happened between us, it was a long time ago,” Júlio replied, choosing his words with care. “The Day of Renewal is about fresh starts...so maybe we could bury the hatchet?”

She started to reply, but before she could say a word, the children he’d been chasing bounded up to him. “Avô! Avô!” they screamed in delight, pulling at him as he smiled and handed them sweets he’d had hidden in his pockets. They raced away, satisfied for the moment, as they resumed their game.

“Grandchildren?” she guessed, feeling an all too familiar pain in her chest.

“Yes,” he smiled. “You’re here for the holiday?”

“Yes,” she nodded. “You?”

He shook his head. “Freya is my home now. I’m Chief Engineer.”

Bile began churning in her stomach. “Well congratulations then,” she all but snarled, “you got everything you ever wanted.”

“Don’t be like that,” he protested. “Things changed between us, is all.”

She stepped forward, jabbing her finger into his chest. “Only one thing changed,” she snapped, “so don’t you dare try to be the good guy.”

His features turned hard. “I wanted children, and grandchildren,” he said, gesturing to the kids still playing. “Is that so terrible of me? So wrong?”

“We could have had children!” she all but shrieked. “Lord knows there’s plenty of kids that need adoptin’...but no, they had to be your own blood. So after my accident, after all I’d already been through, you tossed me aside like I was nothin’!”

Júlio started to protest, but Maggie was just getting warmed up. “You promised me,” she hissed, “swore you’d love me forever...but I reckon we both know what your promises are worth. And you know what? I’m glad. I’m glad we didn’t get married, otherwise I’d be forced to spend my days with you.” The gloves were off now, as his eyes narrowed in anger.

“Still stubborn as always, I see,” he growled. “I begged you not to go, but did you listen? No...not the great Maggie Al-Hajjah,” he said in mocking tones. “And just look at you now. You look like a vagrant.”

Diggs chose that moment to step between them, guarding her from the interloper, baring his teeth and gnarling at Júlio while fumbling in his pocket for the knife.

Maggie clamped down on his wrist. “Diggs, no!” she barked, pulling his hand away. He continued to glare at the intruder, hissing and growling, as Júlio took a step back.

“I think it’s best we go our separate ways,” he told her, not taking his eyes from the furious young boy.

“I reckon you’re right,” she sniffed, holding Diggs close. The man paused for a moment, debating if he should say anything else, before managing a brusque nod and spinning on his heel, retreating the way he’d come. Maggie watched as he gathered up the kids...his grandchildren...and ushered them out of the compartment, as she struggled to calm herself before taking a knee and turning Diggs to face her.

“You can’t never pull a knife on someone, you hear me?” she demanded. “I gave that to you to protect yourself if need be...but if you go around threatenin’ folks with it, I’ll take it away. You hear me?”

His eyes went wide, showing hurt and distress. She sighed, releasing him. “You swore you wouldn’t stick folks with it, remember? That’s all I’m saying.” Diggs blinked as her words sunk in, nodding as he looked down at his feet in shame. “Aww...it’s okay,” she smiled. “No harm done this time….but you remember what I said. If you ever use that blade...that person best be tryin’ to kill you.”

He nodded again as she gave him a hug. “I think we should get back,” she said at last. “We got plans to make, and I ain’t too sure where we go from here.” Standing up, she took him by the hand, leading him out of the compartment and back to their room.

It wasn’t until she closed the hatch that the tears came. Seeing him like that, after all these years, it was like tearing off a huge scab and reopening an old wound she’d thought was safely scarred over. But his betrayal had cut deeper than she’d realized, and even now, almost forty years later, it still hurt.

Diggs crawled up next to her, wrapping his skinny arms around her waist and holding her tight, comforting her as best he could. And he was a comfort, she realized. She’d lived alone for so long she’d forgotten how the presence of another human being could ease one’s pain. All those years spent holding it in, never showing weakness, never allowing herself to feel it all came roaring back with a vengeance. She started bawling like an infant, great wracking sobs that tore at her chest, as Diggs whimpered in fear.

Maggie had no idea how long her crying jag lasted, but after a while she started feeling more like her normal self, though her tantrum had left her exhausted. Diggs lifted his head, gazing at her with frightened eyes, as she managed a small laugh and ruffled his hair. “I’m okay,” she promised him. “Guess I just needed to get that out of my system.” Her words failed to convince him, however, and as she tried to pry him loose to wash up his grip grew even more tenacious, until she had to yank his arms from her. “Damnit boy let me up,” she groused, stumbling over to the sink to wash her face, gazing at her reflection in the mirror. It wasn’t a pretty sight.

With a sigh, she sat back down on the bed, throwing her arm over his shoulder. “Ain’t we a pair,” she chuckled, “just a couple of alley rats tryin’ to scrape by.”

A knock on the hatch interrupted them as she rose to answer. Pressing the button, the hatch slid open, revealing Blye standing in the doorway. “I was hoping I’d catch you,” she smiled, waving hello to Diggs, her expression faltering as she looked at Maggie’s puffy face. “Are you all right?”

“Ran into an old...somethin’,” she shrugged. “Not sure what we were.”

“Not a happy reunion, I take it.”

“Not so much,” Maggie sighed. “Damn, where are my manners? Come on in.”

Blye stepped inside as Diggs climbed off the bed and joined them. “I can’t stay long, I’m afraid,” she explained. “I’ve heard from my superiors. Prash and I are boarding a transport bound for the Malta, to get resupplied. After that?” She shrugged and smiled. “Mother Terra only knows.”

Maggie raised an eyebrow. “Malta? The Hospitaller flagship?”

“That’s right,” she affirmed. “It’s where I trained, in fact. And we’ll have a new Sixième assigned to us, to replace Joona.” Her eyes misted as she recalled her lost comrade.

“He’ll be missed,” Maggie said.

“Yes...he will.” Blye took a moment to gather herself before continuing. “I just wanted to say goodbye before we left, and to give you this...well...it’s for Diggs,” she smiled, kneeling down as she revealed what she’d been concealing behind her...a short staff, a smaller version of the one she herself had trained with.

The boy looked up to Maggie once again for approval. “Go ahead, take it,” she told him, watching with interest as he accepted the gift and turned it over in his hands, before grinning at the medic in thanks.

“Soon you’ll be armed like a Valkyrie,” Maggie chuckled.

Blye laughed along with her. “You make sure you keep her safe,” she told the boy, before whispering in conspiratorial tones. “She’s the type that’s just bound to get into trouble.”

Diggs nodded gravely, clutching the staff as the Chevalier held out her arms. “Now, how about a hug?” He hesitated for a moment, still unsure, but then smiled and wrapped his arms around her as she enfolded him in hers. Maggie watched in silence, her eyes threatening to well up again, before she released him at last and rose to her feet.

“He has a hard road ahead of him, Maggie,” she said softly, “but I believe you’re the best medicine for him right now.”

“Hope so,” she shrugged, before glancing down at him. “Worry about him though.”

“Of course,” Blye smiled, “that’s what mothers do.” Maggie’s head jerked up with a start as the medic touched her shoulder. “Next year, on New Terra,” she promised.

“Next year, on New Terra,” Maggie answered, returning the ancient vow. “I’m glad to have known you, Blye.”

“Me too.” The Knight smiled at them both for a moment...and then turned and left, disappearing down the corridor.

Sighing as she closed the hatch, Maggie faced the boy, still marveling over his gift. “Guess it’s just the two of us,” she told him.

From the look on his face...Diggs was okay with that.