Jack's ship had initially been designed to be a home for a family, but having seven argu'n and a human fill its space was definitely stretching its capacity for comfort. Fea'en shared a room with S'haar and Em'brel, but the rest of the workers simply found a spot on the living room floor to bed down.

Another issue that quickly became apparent was that this number of unwashed bodies being bottled up in an enclosed space had certain predictable effects on the atmosphere aboard the ship. After a light breakfast, Jack decided it was time to address his guests. This time Angela translated but, to the surprise of the gathered argu'n, did so with Jack's own voice. "Alright, I'm glad everyone was able to get here safe and sound, but this place is beginning to reek! Starting today, all of you will take turns showering, so my home doesn't have to smell like some overfull stables any longer! Angela will happily show each of you how the shower works. So who's willing to go first?"

Everyone looked at Jack in a confused manner until Lon'thul voiced the universal question. "What's a shower?"

Em'brel took it upon herself to answer that question. "It's like taking a bath under a heated waterfall. Honestly, it's one of the greatest experiences this place has to offer, the only trouble is that you'll have to keep your showers short so we don't run out of hot water too quickly."

With the girl's endorsement, everyone suddenly seemed eager to volunteer. As the most senior worker present, the honor of the first shower went to Fea'en. While the craft master figured out the wonders of the heated waterfall, Em'brel organized the rest of the argu'n to clean the ship. S'haar may be in charge of the camp, but caring for the house was Em'brels responsibility, and she approached the job like a general directing troop movement. "Ok, Lon'thul, you run the vacuum. I'll show you how in a moment. No, Tel'ron, if I let you do it, you'll spend the whole time trying to figure the machine out and not get anything done. You'll help with the dusting! Jan'kul, you help with the laundry and Nak'torn the dishes. If you all do a good enough job, I'll make something special for dinner tonight. Sound good?"

With the possibility of a special dinner cooked by Em'brel, any resistance faded away before it was voiced, and everyone took to their tasks. Angela did her best to explain what needed to be done to everyone, but occasionally Em'brel or S'haar had to step in to show someone how something functioned. Storerooms that hadn't been touched since the ship had set down were emptied, cleaned, and resorted. The kitchen was made to sparkle, and as it turned out, the shower was a big hit. Several workers wanted to go a second time as soon as the water was re-heated.

While all the excitement was going on, S'haar stepped in for Em'brel, helping Jack with his therapy for the morning. Jack had recovered well enough that she was mostly offering moral support rather than acting as a full physical therapist. The only real complication they ran into was when Jack had to tell S'haar she couldn't help him as much as she wanted.

Jack was shaking his head, trying not to laugh at S'haar's expression of minor annoyance. "This is supposed to be hard for me to do. That's the whole point! If I wasn't pushing myself to my limits, I'd still be unable to feed myself or use the restroom. You have to let me exhaust myself if I'm ever going to get better!"

S'haar grumbled with narrowed eyes, balling her hands into fists to resist the urge to reach out and help Jack as he did his leg lifts. "Fine, but I don't have to like it! I'm supposed to be the one doing the heavy lifting while you come up with the ideas! I'm your bodyguard, after all!"

Jack chucked through the strain in his voice. "I'm not the only one who has to come up with ideas now. You're in charge of the camp, remember? Being both a camp leader and my bodyguard might be too much for any one person to handle, even you."

S'haar's voice suddenly had a dangerous edge to it, and a growl was evident in her voice. "That's something only I get to decide! You don't get to dump this on me, then tell me how I'm going to go about doing my job! Get used to me because I'm not going anywhere!"

Jack relaxed his legs and held up his arms in surrender" Alright, alright, you win! It's your call! Not gonna lie; there's no one I'd rather have by my side anyway. After all, I think we work pretty well together."

As Jack resumed his leg-lifts, S'haar looked at him with a stony upraised eye ridge. "Is that the only reason you want me by your side? Because we work well together?"

Jack lost control and collapsed and sputtered a moment before being able to vocalize any coherent thought. "You know that's not the only reason I want you by my side!" S'haar's grin clearly indicated she did indeed know, but she waited for Jack to continue.

With a shake of his head and slightly exasperated sigh, Jack gave in to S'haar's unwavering expectant look. "Since I crashed on this planet months ago, you've been with me nearly every waking moment of every day, and a few non-waking moments as well. I quickly came to rely on you for your forthrightness and dependability. Before I knew what was happening, I also began to trust you as a friend. Then, just as I thought there might be a future for the two of us beyond simple friendship, I went and got myself nearly killed and lost in a coma for what seemed like a lifetime."

Jack felt his heart rate increasing as he found himself getting lost in the eyes of the woman listening patiently as he continued. "While I was gone, you took up my mantle and continued the struggle on behalf of everything I had been working toward. You never walked away despite how long it took me to get back, and you were the first person I saw upon awakening. Even when you saw how weak and frail I'd become, rather than look down on me, you decided to encourage and support me as I struggled to overcome this new obstacle."

Jack's face was quickly turning that shade of red S'haar had grown to enjoy over their time together. "So yes, I want you at my side, and I want to be at yours, for however long you'll put up with me. But I want you to be my partner, not my caretaker, and that's one of the main reasons I've pushed myself so hard in my recovery, but I still have a way to go."

S'haar looked contemplative for a moment as though judging the weight of Jack's words. Eventually, S'haar reached out and pulled Jack into a very human-style kiss, probably inspired by one too many movie nights, before pulling back with that predatory grin that contained just a few too many teeth. "I suppose that'll do for now, but eventually, I'm going to make you say it more directly than that. After all, a woman deserves to be told that she's wanted!"

With a slightly judgemental glance at Jack's legs, S'haar changed gears quickly enough to give Jack a bit of metaphorical whiplash. "Well, since you're working so hard to get better, you should probably get back to your leg lifts. I'm not going to be patient forever, so stop slacking!"

Despite the joking tone to her voice, Jack couldn't help but mutter something about some women being "impossible to please" before returning to his workout. Although he discovered that he suddenly had significantly more energy to push himself than he'd had moments ago. Whatever else he could say about S'haar as a physical therapist, she was undoubtedly an expert at the motivational aspect of the job.

-

Tel'ron was inspecting the shower somewhat dubiously. "So I just turn this knob, and hot water comes out? Enough to wash myself?"

Angela nodded. "Yup, it's really that easy! Once you're nice and wet, there's a bar of 'soap' in there. Rub it on the small square of cloth, and then apply that to yourself. It'll wash off all the dust and grime you've accumulated so far this winter."

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

The smith jumped a little at the sudden hiss of water when he turned the knob but quickly found himself drawn in by the steam emanating from the small cubic room. The area was already a bit cramped as far as 7-foot tall S'haar was concerned, so of course, Tel'ron really had to contort himself to properly fit, but once inside, he stood still, drinking up the warmth of the water passing over his hide.

Once he was adequately warmed, the smith started inspecting every nook and cranny. Eventually, his eyes rested on the knob he'd used to turn on the water. He quickly realized there was another direction available with a shaded blue color. "So if this side makes hot water, does the other side create cold water?"

Deciding to test his theory, the young smith flipped the knob in the other direction. Angela's voice quickly boomed through the shower. "Turn that knob back NOW!"

Tel'ron reached a hand out to do just that but was hit by a sudden jet of cold water, sapping him of all his energy. Though Angela was able to shut off the water to the shower, he'd already collapsed onto the ground, possibly hitting his head.

Angela appeared before Jack and S'haar. "Tel'ron fell in the bathroom. I'm not sure if he's ok or not!"

They drew some odd looks as S'haar half-carried Jack into the bathroom in a hurry. Jack immediately started checking for vitals. "His pulse is slow. He might be injured..."

S'haar took one look at the situation and chuckled under her breath. Turning the dial back into the red, she addressed Angela. "Go ahead and turn the water back on."

Angela was still somewhat concerned but deferred to S'haar's judgment. Once the water was running warm again, she shoved Tel'ron back into the shower.

It took a few moments for Tel'ron to wake up with a sudden sputter, but Angela started laying into him immediately once he did. "You are to NEVER fiddle with anything on this ship without first asking myself, Jack, S'haar, or Em'brel again! If you EVER pull another stunt like this, I might just leave to freeze to death next time! You're lucky S'haar was around to save you from your own stupidity this time!"

S'haar was too busy helping Jack back out of the bathroom to pay the rant much mind, but it was loud enough that everyone else in the ship certainly caught an earful. When Tel'ron sheepishly walked out of the bathroom later, he was greeted by hoots of laughter and tumultuous applause from the rest of the workers.

-

The enticing aroma of Em'brel's special dinner had each of the argu'n waiting at the table with salivating mouths. Whatever it was smelled better than anything she'd ever cooked for them before, and that was truly saying something.

Jack and S'haar shared a conspiratorial grin since they were both aware of what was coming. Em'brel had run her plans by Jack since this was the last of his stores for this particular meal. As sad as Jack was to see it go, he couldn't imagine a better time or a better group to share it with.

Just when Jack was starting to worry that the workers were about to snap and run onto his kitchen in a feeding frenzy, S'haar and Em'brel brought over several steaming platers and placed the two largest in the center of a couple of improvised tables and a third, slightly smaller platter, in the middle of their own table. She explained what she was serving as the hungry eyes followed the movement of the platers. "So you are all aware, this is the last of Jack's stores of steak from his homeland. This is probably the most tender and juicy meat you'll ever eat, so everyone be sure to thank Jack for sharing the last of it with each of us!"

Lon'thul held up a half-eaten new york strip. His voice was only slightly slurring around the large half-chewed morsel currently filling his maw. "Thanks, Jack, this is great!" His lengthy expression of gratitude complete, Lon'thul started biting off a second mouthful before he'd even finished chewing the first.

Most of the other workers were a little more disciplined and managed their own brief expressions of gratitude before digging in as well. Jack was glad he'd gotten used to S'haar's manner of eating a while back. Not long ago, the sight of 7 argu'n tearing away at a large pile of meat might have been enough to turn his stomach. Instead, he simply held up a slice of his own ribeye and said his peace. "Good food is always better when shared with friends and family! Eat your fill. Today we celebrate all the hard work that's got us this far!"

At least a couple argu'n showed enough conscious thought to share appreciation for his words through nods of approval. Though Fea'en's nod was cut short when she had to slap away the hand of Lon'thul as he'd reached to take some of the steaks from her plate. "Try that again, and you'll lose that hand!"

Judging by his grin, Lon'thul's attempt had been more about mischief than greed, but he seemed to know better than to test the craft master's patience a second time.

-

Not long after dinner, the argu'n were all contentedly complaining about their bellies being so full they ached. Jack thought now might be the perfect time to introduce his guests to another way to pass the time. "Alright, now that you've all eaten your fill, it's time I introduce you to a method of human storytelling. One thing I should warn you of first, long ago, humans mastered the art of creating illusions, and we use those illusions to aid in our storytelling. I want you to remember that much of what you will see is nothing more than a clever illusion, created solely for the purpose of storytelling and entertainment."

Of course, it was Lon'thul who cut off Jack's speech. "Yeah, yeah, we all know how plays work! I'm sure you're going to add a human twist to it, but get on with it already!"

Jack simply smiled and turned his attention to his sister. "Angela, go ahead and start the movie."

A quiet voice spoke out from the large reflective black panel that was hung prominently in the room. "The world is changed. I feel it in the water. I feel it in the Earth. I smell it in the air."

Everyone was so enraptured by the soft voice that when flames first erupted on screen, Jack had to pause to the movie to explain that the fire was all part of the story and that his TV wasn't really on fire. Then, he had to pause again at the elves' appearance to clarify that there were no tiny people inside the screen. It was just a series of rapidly moving pictures.

By the time the battle had begun, everyone was finally hooked and paying rapt attention. Jack and S'haar were seated comfortably on the couch together, with Em'brel sitting at their feet. Fea'en was using her new favorite chair. She'd been planning on letting herself doze off, but even she found herself unable to look away once the movie began in earnest. The rest of the workers were scattered about on the floor on whatever makeshift seats they could find, hanging off of every word and action.

More than once, Lon'thul had to be told to sit back down when he lept up to attack whatever prey or monsters he saw on the screen. Tel'ron was almost as bad with all his questions about how this new marvel functioned. After repeated threats from S'haar and Fea'en to make the young males suffer if they interrupted the movie one more time, both eventually settled down to enjoy the film.

There were a few more interruptions when Jack had to pause to the movie for bathroom breaks and to explain once again that no, Lon'thul could not hunt a balrog because they aren't real.

When the first Lord of the Rings movie came to an end, everyone protested, and of course, Lon'thul was the loudest. "What happens to Frodo and Sam now that the fellowship is broken? Who will stop Sauron? Are there really races of people smaller than humans? You can't leave us hanging with the hunt half finished! Tell the rest of the story!"

Jack chuckled as S'haar helped him to his feet. "That was just part one of three, and the other two parts are almost as long! I don't know about the rest of you, but there's no way I'm staying awake through nearly eight more hours of movie. We'll watch some more tomorrow. Now, get some sleep!"

At the mention of how long the rest of the remaining movies were, the room was filled with relenting sighs and grunts. As Jack hobbled to bed with S'haar's help, Em'brel set about preparing the ship for the night or, to be more accurate, she told the workers to prepare the ship for the night. "Come on, there are dishes to be done! I'm going to need a clean kitchen if I'm going to make another breakfast for you lot! Two of you wash dishes, the other two clean the room and prep the sleeping area, now move!"

Fea'en was recused on account of needing to rest her "tired old bones,'' but the rest jumped to their assigned tasks when Em'brel threatened to have Jack hold off on showing the rest of the movies if they slacked off in cleaning the ship.