Owen

I watched Vai's large back as he left. And then my only protection went with him. Warpaint.

I thought back on all my actions that day and wondered if it was somehow my fault. No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn't link those weird predators with anything we had done. I didn't know anything about Brist though. Maybe we walked wrong and it summoned them.

I had asked Shel about his ear studs though. Vai's dad had obviously been monitoring us so he must have seen that. I hoped my acting was convincing enough that Lieutenant Commander Ma'amaloa didn't realize I knew he had made them.

The silence stretched out between all of us. I didn't realize Minmin held my hand until Hani reached out and took my other hand. I knew the ladies liked me, but I wasn't sure this was the time. Then I noticed Hani's other hand was holding Rebecca's hand. Minmin's other hand held Shel's. All the students were holding hands. That was nice and all, but I highly doubted we could protect each other from Lieutenant Commander Ma'amaloa.

The other three shuttles flew in and landed around us. We stayed still as the shuttle doors opened and the other three pilots stood nearby. Teacher Miller looked at one of the pilots and nodded. A strained smile reached her lips.

"Ah, my shuttle is here. Good day, Lieutenant Commander."

She took a step towards the shuttle, but the Lieutenant Commander stood in front of her. Towered over her. He was taller than Vai.

"You put all of the children at risk, Ms Miller."

"We had special permission to go planetside," she said. She couldn't quite meet his eyes. She tried to several times, but her eyes always shifted away. "The Plerousnin were being monitored. They weren't a threat."

"Obviously they weren't a threat," Vai's father bit out.

I assumed Plerousnin were the predator creatures that had almost killed us. I wondered who was supposed to be monitoring them.

"It wasn't my fault." She finally looked into his eyes.

"You were the adult in charge."

"It could have happened with anyone . . ."

"It happened with you. If I hadn't seen the creatures on Warpaint's monitors, you wouldn't have gotten them back to the transport in time. The only reason you and the children are alive is because of my mechatronic and my monitoring."

"I think you are overreacting."

"Overreacting?!" he yelled.

We all flinched. Rebecca crushed into Hani's side and she in turn crushed into mine. Both Hani and Minmin squeezed my hands tighter.

"They almost died!" he went on. "How are you going to tell the other parents what happened with their children?"

Teacher Miller looked at us. The silence stretched out.

"We're okay," Rebecca said softly.

Vai's father stretched out a hand in her direction to silence her.

"This can never happen again," Lieutenant Commander said quietly to Teacher Miller. It made the hair on my arms stand up.

"You need to let Vai . . ." she started, but Vai's dad put a finger up between their faces. His face had gotten very close to hers.

His voice was quiet when he spoke, but it crossed the space between all of us. "You have no idea what I would do...what I have done to keep my son safe."

"You overstep your authority," she whispered.

"Report me then. See what happens."

He stared at her a bit longer before he turned and left without another word. As soon as the docking doors shut behind him, we all breathed out. I hadn't realized I was holding my breath until then. I let go of the girls' hands.

"Well," Teacher Miller said, "we're all safe. That was quite the experience planetside, yes?" She smiled, but it quickly faded. "Let's go home." She wrapped her arms around Hani and Rebecca and headed towards their shuttle. When she reached Minmin and Shel she let go of Hani just long enough to give a gentle push to Shel and Minmin in the direction of their shuttle.

"Teacher Miller," Minmin said.

"Yes?"

"You are going to tell our parents, right? You aren't going to try to keep it a secret."

"Of course," Teacher Miller said, but her voice faltered. "Of course," she said again with more conviction.

Shel and Minmin still held hands as they walked to their shuttle. Minmin stopped halfway there and turned to wave at me. Shel followed her lead. I waved at both of them.

Rebecca and Hani boarded their shuttle. Teacher Miller left them and went to her own shuttle. She turned to me right before she got on and said to me, "I'll see you in school, Owen."

I nodded, but wondered if we would really ever see her again.

I turned to thank Lieutenant Tanpo before I left, but she and a mechanic were looking at the backside of her shuttle. Music filled the corridor just outside my quarters. I knew it was my dad playing. His viola had a rich tone.

I opened the door and stepped inside. My dad sat at his favorite chair. The viola and bow in his hands. He stopped playing and smiled when he saw me.

"Hello, son. How did it go? Was it fun? Did you make new friends?"

Should I lie? But if I lied and then Teacher Miller told him...or worse - much worse - Lieutenant Commander Ma'amaloa told him, then dad would know I lied. I wasn't opposed to lying. I was opposed to getting caught. So I told him. Everything. When I finished he set down his viola and bow and hugged me.

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"I'm okay," I said. "It was fun to see the Slpsis and the Plerousnin will be an experience I'll never forget."

He kissed the top of my head like he used to when I was a child.

"I need to tell your mom." He let go.

"Don't," I said. "She'll want to come home early."

"I think that would be okay this one time."

Part of me wanted to tell him I wasn't a child anymore, but I didn't. I wanted a hug from my mom.

"I'll just be in my room until she gets here then," I said.

Dad nodded. He was already on his okulus.

I went into my room and made a call that needed to be quick. I made it then instead of later because I wasn't sure if my parents would let me out of their sight later and I hoped to have an answer for Vai about his Mars friend.

"You have an answer for me, friend," I stated rather than asked when Mario answered.

He nodded. "I found that K'thaktra kid, Thrissko. He seems normal. He goes to school, goes home, goes to the gym. He seems to be on good terms with his parents. The only thing that seemed different than a few months ago is that after the gym he goes to a tailor shop."

"He does that everyday?"

Mario nodded.

"That's it though? He doesn't seem hurt or high on drugs?"

"Nope. Just a normal kid."

"Thanks. I'll give the okay to my contact to send you the mechatronics."

I messaged my other contacts instead of calling because I didn't know when my mom would come home and I didn't want her to overhear anything she shouldn't.

I sent a message to Professor Rufus first. I told him I had a small piece of a Plerousnin claw. No one had noticed that a small part of the claw had chipped off while the Plerousnin had tore away at the transport above us. No one noticed that I picked it up and put it in my pocket before I climbed the ladder. Everyone had been too focused on the predators.

The professor replied immediately about how excited he was and that he would send the slugs right away.

My mom came into my room without knocking.

"I'm okay, mom," I said.

She wrapped me in a tight hug. "My boy." She patted me on top of the head even though she was now slightly shorter than me.

"I'm okay," I said again as I hugged her back.

"Let's go out for dinner," she said. She released me, but I wasn't quite ready to let go so I hugged her longer. "Oh, son," she said as her arms wrapped around me again. "Were you scared? Of course you were."

I was more frightened of Lieutenant Commander Ma'amaloa, but my mom didn't need to know that. Warpaint would protect me against the Plerousnin as long as I was close enough to Vai's side. I didn't think Warpaint would protect me against Vai's father.

I let go of her. "It's a little early for dinner."

She smiled. "Not the Museum Delectables. The Starrise. We need to dress up for that one."

"We can't afford that one." Actually, I probably could have afforded the Starrise. My parents didn't know about my savings account. There were only two restaurants on the Shadow. The Museum Delectables, which was mostly sandwiches, and the Starrise which was fancy, on the second floor directly below the bridge, and had a dress code.

"We can afford it this one time," my mom said. "You are alive." She hugged me again.

"Okay," I said. "I'll get ready."

She left and I messaged my next contact that the slugs were on the way and to confirm the Lithium discount. The Lithium supplier replied with an affirmative. My final message was to the mechatronic supplier. I told her she had the Lithium discount and to go ahead with the mechatronic shipment.

Once that was done I got in the shower. I dressed up in my finest - my only - suit.

Mom and dad waited for me all dressed up when I stepped out of my room.

"You look so handsome," my mom said as she took my arm in hers.

"Thanks," I said. I did look good.

We made our way to the Starrise. It was busier than I thought. I didn't think so many G.E.V. employees could afford this place.

The second deck's windows were bigger than on the other levels I had been on. Evidently we had already gone to FTL. The space outside shifted from one set of stars to the next.

The restaurant also had large windows with the tables and chairs arranged with a view of the changing vistas outside. We sat and ordered. I ordered one of the cheaper options because my parents had done the same. Like the Museum Delectables, they also had chocolate on the menu for dessert.

I hadn't realized the Starrise was Spencer's family restaurant until he came up to take our orders. He didn't look at me, but he was very polite with my parents - as he always was. When Spencer had said his father had been transferred to the Shadow, I had assumed his mother would take the opportunity to rest, not make an even fancier restaurant than the last one.

"I wonder how much chocolate they have left," I said casually to my parents as we left.

"Not much," my mom said. "The Chief Engineer," that was Spencer's father, "said his wife was running out of chocolate faster than they had planned. She doesn't understand why as she brought on the same amount as she had on the Remembrance."

I didn't say it to my parents of course, but the reason she hadn't run out of chocolate faster on the Remembrance is because I was supplying some to Spencer. That wasn't going to happen again. Spencer and I didn't mesh well.

If the Starrise was running out of chocolate this quickly, the Museum Delectables must be running out too. Maybe I could start my side business sooner than I thought. I'd have to scope out places. Maybe somewhere on level 6 near the museum.

We arrived back at the quarters and I went into my room. I put in a call to Vai. He answered quickly. His image was projected through my volo. He was sitting at his desk in his bedroom. Like I was.

"Hello, my friend," I said. Then quieter I said, "How's your dad?"

Vai waved a hand vaguely in the air.

"Okay," I said. "Well, I have some news on your friend."

"Thrissko?" Vai leaned in quickly. "Is he okay?"

"He is okay," I said.

Vai sighed out deeply and leaned back. "That's good."

"I told you I would find out, my friend, and I did."

Vai finally smiled. "You did."

"There is one strange thing though."

His smile disappeared. "What?"

"He seems fine, not on drugs, not hurt. He's back home with his parents mostly on his regular routine."

"What does mostly mean?"

"Well, there does seem to be one irregularity from the past months. After the gym, he goes to a tailor shop."

Vai looked down at his knees.

"Does that mean something?" I asked.

"I don't know," Vai said. "But he's not on drugs? You sure?"

I nodded.

"I guess he's okay then. I don't know. It's weird. That tailor shop is where he got drugged the first time."

"Do you want me to look into it more?"

There was a long silence. "No. I guess not. As long as he's home and not injured."

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Wait," Vai said before I could hang up.

"What is it?"

"I saw that girl today."

Now I leaned in closer. "Where? Did she touch your forehead?"

"No. She didn't touch my forehead. She was in the museum. She was staring at one of the displays. You've been to the museum? Seen all the displays?"

I nodded. I had looked all around the museum before I put that box behind the Aether Field Prototype display to make sure I was alone. The same box I highly suspected was the same one the captain of the Shadow had sent to Shel's father. My stomach turned. I hoped I hadn't done something really terrible by bringing that box onboard.

"She was at the display with the K'thaktran wall. The one with the writing."

I nodded. I remembered seeing it.

"She didn't think it was K'thaktran."

I almost had it then - what she said to me - it was there at the forefront and then retreated. It was gone.

"That's it? She didn't make you forget anything or just disappear?"

"That's it. She just left."

"Weird."

"Weird," Vai agreed. "Thanks, Owen, for the info on Thrissko."

"Sorry it wasn't more. I should have found out more about the tailor shop."

"No," Vai said. "I don't want to know anymore about that tailor shop. I don't want anything to do with it."

"I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Tomorrow, bye." Vai disconnected.

I waited until it was late - until my parents were asleep. Then I left our quarters and made my way to the museum level. I walked around by the Museum Delectables first. There was a spot beyond the restaurant that might be a good place to sell chocolates. I wasn't sure it was a good idea to setup too close to the restaurant though after what happened on the Remembrance. On the other hand, people would want dessert right after they ate and they wouldn't want to go far for it.

I walked back towards the museum. There she was. The wizard girl.

I opened my mouth to call out to her. Her back was to me as she made her way to the elevators. I closed my mouth. I didn't want her to erase my memory again.

She got on the elevator. Our eyes met a brief moment before the elevator door closed.