Leon’s teeth idly prodded at his second cheese wheel of the day. He meant to go back out and look for his brother, but invisible forces kept him on his bed with his eyes glued to his phone, mainly the force of just not feeling it. Even texting his parents to thank them for the care package took a lot out of him.

‘I’m happy you’re enjoying it.’ His eyes drifted over the text his mother sent back. ‘How kind for your crew to throw you a party. I’m sure it was a welcome distraction from everything.’

The party, what a good time. Leon remembered it like it was yesterday. He checked the time to see that It had only been a few hours ago.

‘Let me know when you’re available to talk on the phone. Don’t worry about calling in the middle of the night. Know that I’m here for you anytime, for anything. <3’

She didn’t have to tell him that. Leon knew from experience that he could talk to his parents about anything. He told them almost everything, it’s just that the ‘almost’ part grew to be a lot more than he could handle on his own. It helped to talk to a friend during times like this. Unfortunately, all of his available friends were his crewmates, and telling them would risk Angelo’s safety.

“What the…?” Aiden stood in their doorway, looking out at something. Leon had honestly forgotten him being in the room.

“Aiden, is something there?”

Aiden looked back at him, paused for a moment, then re-entered the room. “Nothing for you to worry about.”

Leon’s curiosity led him to the doorway. He heard a door shut, but by the time he looked where Aiden did, the hallway was empty. “Aww man, I missed it.”

To his right, he did catch a glimpse of Jun through the kitchen window. He spent all of his tears in the past three days, but thanks to them, he no longer felt guilty about being sad on his birthday. Along with the party and most of the care package–Leon buried the picture under the cheese wheels–he held their words fondly in his heart.

‘If something’s ever, like, on your mind and you wanna talk it out…’

Oh, how he’d love to take them up on that offer.

“Did the captain leave yet?” Aiden propped his head up from his bed.

“No, not yet.” Leon watched him drop back onto his pillow, but that wasn’t what kept him staring. Looking at Aiden reminded him that he’d been able to talk about Angelo today. As long as he was clever, he should be able to with Jun, too!

“What’re you staring for?”

“Ah, don’t worry about it.” He stole Aiden’s line and left the room.

Leon entered the kitchen to see Captain Galhardo’s cape billowing around, its owner giving him a bone-chilling glance. Jun’s eyes, on the other hand, were much more friendly.

“Hey Jun, hi Captain.” he greeted.

“Hello, Ranger Summers.” the captain spoke. “How has your… search gone?”

“Sorry, Captain, I meant to look for Ángie, but I got distracted talking to my mom.”

“Your honesty is appreciated.” He adjusted his hat. “I’d reprimand you for your inaction, but according to Ranger Kim, focusing on a select few areas may be the better plan. Have you seen or heard anything suspicious lately?” His eyes bore into Leon.

Leon wanted to sigh in relief, but found it hard to in front of the captain. “I can’t think of anything… Wait! I’m pretty sure Aiden saw something in the hallway. You should ask him!”

Captain Galhardo mulled over his response for a moment. “Thank you, Ranger Summers. I will go question him.”

With a swoosh of his cape, the captain left Leon and Jun alone in the kitchen.

“I was thinking about what you said earlier, and–”

“Yeah?” Jun snapped out of wincing.

“I was wondering if I could talk to you about something.”

“Anything, dude.” They smiled down on him.

Leon took a deep breath. “So, I have this friend, and he’s made quite a big mess for himself right now, and I don’t know what to do for him.”

“What kind of mess are we talking about?”

“Well,” He tried to choose his words carefully, “he–”

Just then, Captain Galhardo passed back through the kitchen and into the stairwell. It occurred to Leon that this might not be the best room to talk about such a private issue.

“Hey, uh, Jun, if it’s okay with you, can we move somewhere else to talk about this?”

Jun sucked air through their teeth, looking around, deep in thought. “Okay, where can we…?” Something in the stairway caught their attention. “What about the entrance to the generator room? No one really goes there, plus I can keep an eye on the kitchen.”

“That works for me.”

“C’mon.” They waved him along with a hand.

Leon trailed behind Jun as they ventured across the stairway. The two finally entered the short hallway leading to the generator room. Leon sometimes visited the generator room to look at the glowing pipes, but he never paid this area much mind. It was almost surreal to stay here for more than a second.

Jun leaned against one of the walls. “Alright, shoot.”

“My friend ran away from home.” Leon started.

“Aww man, that’s rough. How old is he?”

“He’ll be 16 soon.”

“So he’s not even 16 yet.” rephrased Jun. “Do you have any idea where he ran off to?”

“Yeah,” Leon admitted, “I know exactly where he is.”

“Oh, nice. So, have you told anyone yet, or…?” They folded their arms. “I’m gonna guess no, otherwise this would be very cut-and-dry.”

“No, I haven’t told anyone yet. I really want to!” he declared with all of his heart. “It’s been eating away at me for the past few days, but…”

Image: Leon earnestly talking to Jun, who has their arms folded, paying attention. They stand in a dark hallway, illuminated by the light from the stairwell. [https://f2.toyhou.se/file/f2-toyhou-se/images/61629365_C7acmfEnbumTDet.png]“But?”

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“Like I said, he’s gotten himself into a big mess. He committed a–shoot, probably a couple crimes to get where he is right now, and if I say anything, he might go to prison. So I asked Aiden about what chance someone like my friend might have there, and it wasn’t good.” He pushed past the lump in his throat. “I want him to go home, but I don’t want him to get hurt.”

“Hmmm.” Jun bobbed their head sympathetically. “Huh?”

Something in the kitchen broke their attention, but Leon couldn’t see anything.

“Sorry. Thought I saw something.” They focused back on Leon. “But yeah, I understand how that would be a tough situation. Though Aiden’s probably speaking from experience. He went to a pretty rough jail and really shouldn’t have been there.”

“That’s what he told me.”

“If you’re, like, cool with telling me, what exactly did your friend do?”

“Actually, he did something kind of similar to how you got in the IF. I think he faked his documents to get he–I mean, into a different place, not the IF.” A little bit of hope sparked in Leon despite the slip of the tongue. If anyone would know how to handle this, it would be Jun.

“So not like a fake ID?”

“No, no, much bigger than that.”

Jun sighed. “I wish my personal experience could help you more, but I didn’t actually fake my documents to get into the IF. I just changed my gender marker. Legally. I’m still male as far as the law is concerned. Technically, I should be rooming with you and Aiden, but the IF kinda made an exception for me ever since I was found out.”

“Oh…” Leon’s mood deflated. "Wait, but didn't you still need to change your birth certificate?"

"Oh yeeeeah." They thought for a moment. “That situation's a little more complicated. But if that’s all he did, especially if he’s a first-time offender, he should end up in a better prison than Aiden for sure.”

“Aiden told me that people who did bad enough fraud could end up in a prison like his.”

“That’s fraud. What your friend did would fall under forgery. In fact, let me check something. You guys are from Nevada, right?” Jun took off their phone band, expanding it to tablet size. They typed on it for a bit before looking puzzled at something. “Huh. That’s weird.”

“What’s weird?”

“I was gonna look up forgery penalties in your state, but it blocked me. See?”

“Hm?” Leon read the message. “‘Some results have been blocked in accordance with the United States Domestic Information Privacy Act?’ But we’re on an American ship.”

“I know right? Bogus.” Jun strapped their tablet back on their wrist. “But if I remember right, if he goes to prison and how long he goes in for is gonna depend on whether he faked the documents himself or if he bought it off of someone, if he used it to steal from anyone, that kind of stuff.”

“Hm. I have no idea about any of that…”

“There also might be, like, a fine for his family. I know the possibility of him going to prison isn’t ideal,” they sympathized, “but he shouldn’t be in physical danger.”

“That’s great!” Relief washed over Leon. “I could chip in money for the fine if it comes to that! There’s not much I’ll be able to do with it in space anyway.”

Jun smiled, but soon, the smile faded. “Take it from me, your friend really doesn’t wanna have the guilt of running away hanging over his head. Like, I still regret ditching my parents to join the IF. It’s the kind of grief you never truly feel like you can make up for.”

“Oh wow, really? I guess I can kind of understand. People… miss him a lot. I know.” The tearful voices of his parents over the phone, the hurt that spilled from their every word, the hopeless feeling of not being able to tell them, all of it came to mind. He shook his head. “They’re terrified. I feel awful even covering for him.”

“Aww man, I’m sorry. It’s probably best for everyone if he just goes back home.”

“I’m starting to think so, too.” While saddened about remembering his family’s pain, Leon felt hopeful knowing they might not have to suffer much longer. The idea of telling the captains even pumped him up. “Thanks, Jun, that really–”

Uneasiness replaced Leon’s hope. While his main fears were taken care of, a new one popped up in its place: How would Captain Galhardo feel knowing Leon didn’t tell him about Angelo’s age earlier? Surely, he’d understand if Leon told him what led him to believe his brother’s stay was only temporary. Maybe they could laugh about it!

…Had he ever seen the captain laugh before?

“Leon?” Jun waved a hand in front of his face. “Something up?”

Leon shook himself back into the real world. “Oh. I was just wondering what would happen if the captain got wind of this. I’ve been covering for my friend, even if I didn’t mean to at first. Wouldn’t that be a crime too?”

“If it had nothing to do with the IF, I don’t see why he’d need to know, but,” they shared his concern, “if it did… A lot of punishments here are doled out based on what a commanding officer sees fit.” Their finger stroked their chin. “He’s weirdly lenient with them despite how seriously he takes the rules. But I don’t know for sure.”

That didn’t sound reassuring. Worst case scenario, Leon might get kicked out of the IF. He’d be torn away from his new friends. His dreams would crumble to stardust, forever out of his reach.

“Hey, hey.” Jun noticed his watery eyes. “This is a big decision. If you’re, like, absolutely certain that your friend is safe right now, you don’t have to make it right away, okay? Give it some thought. You seem like you care a lot about your friend, so I’m sure you’ll make the right choice, even if it’s hard.”

Leon sniffled, wiping his tears. “Thanks, Jun. I’m sorry I can’t tell you everything right now, but somehow,” he smiled, “you still know exactly what to say.”

“Glad I could help. I’ll leave the rest up to you.” A warm smile crossed their face. It might’ve just been Leon, but even they looked a little down. “Need anything else?”

“No. I think I’m all talked out for now.”

“If that’s the case, I’m headed back to the kitchen.” They pressed a hand against the transparent door. “You comin’ with?”

“Yeah.”

Leon followed Jun back across the stairway area, chest heavy with conflicting feelings. Some part of him held onto the hope that his family’s suffering would end soon and that Angelo would be safe, but the idea that today might be one of his last on the ship was too much for him to bear. He’d miss floating among the stars. He’d miss the ship. Still, he appreciated getting the chance to be here in the first place.

All the time in the world didn’t feel like enough to help him sort out his emotions.

“Hail and well met, travellers!” Roxie shocked him out of his thoughts.

“Hey, Rox.” greeted Jun.

Leon managed a smile. “Hi, Roxie.”

Her eyes laser-focused on his. She tilted her head, concerned. “Your eyes are red. Is it from sadness or conjunctivitis?”

“I don’t know what that second one is, but it’s not it.”

“Oh noooo! Would you like a hug?” she opened her arms. “A pinch or two to turn your frown upside down? The rousing tale of how I’m pretty sure I saw your brother vanish into thin air?”

“Rox,” Jun’s eyes glanced between her and Leon, “I don’t know if he’s really feeling it right now.”

“No, it’s okay. I’ve spent enough time in my room this week. I wanna stay out here for a little bit. Just… don’t mind me if I start crying for no reason.” Leon laughed.

“Okie-dokie! As your ship’s medical professional, I can guarantee you that distractions are a proven effective treatment for melancholy.” She wagged a finger authoritatively.

That brought a smile to Leon’s face. He had to agree that distractions helped him in the past.

“Have you shown him pictures of your dad yet?” A new voice entered the room.

It was Emil, and he carried a small box of some kind.

“O-Oh no, I haven’t yet. I need to find my phone!” Roxie nearly sped toward the hallway.

“It’s on your wrist.” Jun pointed out.

Roxie examined the blue band on her wrist. “...Ha. So it is. Ho-ho-ho! What would I do without you, Junzie?”

“Anyway,” Emil handed the box to Leon, “there you are! I was just lookin’ for ya! Forgot to give you this for your birthday. Consider it a gift from me and the captain.”

“What is it?” Leon examined the dark blue box.

“Why don’tcha open it and find out~?” He winked.

Leon lifted the lid to find a folded sheet inside, covered with stars. He unfolded it to reveal exactly what he expected. It was a constellation map, but with the way his mouth dropped, it might as well have been a treasure map. Of course, stars were already treasure enough. It also came with a booklet to identify constellations.

“Emil… I…”

“Now you’ll have one for the ship!”

“Yeah…”

Emil’s words took on a bittersweetness now that Leon knew he might soon be shipped back to Earth, but he tried not to let that get to him. If these truly were his last days on the Celestion-5, he’d rather not waste them all moping in his room. What better way to end things than to enjoy the sights, sounds, and people he’d grown to love here?

“Does anyone wanna go stargazing with me?”

“What about finding Muffinhead?” asked Roxie.

“Oh. Right. Angelo. “ Leon looked at the constellation map in his hand. As much trouble as his brother caused, he promised to take him stargazing. It’d be a shame if he missed out. He put the map back in the box. “Maybe we should look for him together!”

“I’m fine with that.” Emil responded. “It’s not like our ‘battle’ was going anywhere. What say you, Roxie?”

“It’s the strategically worse option, but how can I say no to faces like that?” Roxie cooed. “Junzie?”

“I’d go with you,” Jun sat down at the table, “but I’m already busy looking for Angelo.”

Everyone else shared a puzzled glance.

“Well, onward we go!” declared Roxie.

She offered an arm to Leon, who offered an arm to Emil. Linked together, they marched forward on their search. They had to unhook to fit through the door, but Leon knew that no matter what happened, the people on this ship would be linked to his heart forever. That included Angelo too. If only he could prove it to him.