Chapter 4 – A Rose by Any Other Name #2
I don't know what I expected from the vessel, but it wasn't what I found.
I guess I thought that Araxis, who was immaculately put-together and offered basically free passage to the Thenat system, would have a ship that lived up to that implication of wealth.
The creche ship, though, was dingy, run-down, and clearly in need of repairs.
I noticed right away that it was darker than the shuttle and, while it wasn't as cold, it was still much cooler than I'd have expected.
Judging from the layers of clothing Egnax and Evreni had been wearing, it was clear that they kept the ship colder than was comfortable for even abayan bodies.
Fuel conservation, I guessed, which said a whole lot without saying it directly.
This creche had to be careful with their resources, and they were close to the edge of poverty – and the rest of the ship only confirmed that deduction.
The ship itself was small, with only three levels: the docking area was connected to a meagre cargo hold, which was half-filled with barrels and boxes carefully strapped into place, and looked to mostly be supplies for prolonged space runs.
I also spied a training area through an open bulkhead, the lights flickering briefly as we passed by.
The second level seemed to be dining and systems, with a lab nearby and some other functional common spaces that would, on other ships, be outfitted for pleasure or comfort.
Everywhere we looked was utilitarian, worn, and had clearly seen better days.
There were a lot of closed doors and dark rooms, like they were running the whole ship on auxiliary power and were carefully scrounging energy by keeping unused spaces closed, unheated and dark.
I followed Araxis across the metal grating, the sounds of our boots echoing along the stairs as we climbed to the top level while his creche-mate went to prepare the promised tea.
The walkway was a straight shot from the stairs to the bridge; on either side were a series of oval doorways, each two steps down from the walkway.
"Here," Araxis said, stepping down to knock his fist against one of the narrow metal doors, only two doors down from the bridge.
"This one's free." He moved to the side, and waited.
I smiled, stepping down next to him and pushed the door carefully open.
Murky lights came on overhead. A few ladder rungs jutted out beneath the bottom part of the door, the whole room sunken down into the body of the ship, likely to compensate for the curved arc of the hull overhead.
All in all, this berth looked to be about four or five feet down from the height of the walkway.
It was an efficient design for a ship as oblong as this one was.
My feet hit the floor of the room with a soft metallic echo.
The space was narrow – on one wall, there was a bank of storage, with a bed built in that was much like the narrow bunk I'd spent the last decade in at Trident's den.
The rest of the room wasn't much broader than the span of my arms. There was, to my delight, a small circular window at the end, which gave me a glimpse of the asteroid the ship was anchored next to.
I turned, shrugging my bag and swords off my shoulder, and looked up at Araxis who was watching me with very still features through the oval doorway.
"Nice," I said with a smile. "Those lessons had better be good to cover these accommodations." I meant it too: although it was cold and the air was a bit stale, the room was clean and more private than I was used to.
"The bed folds down as well," said Araxis.
He stood stiffly just outside the door and then, seemingly having made up his mind about something, joined me inside the narrow room.
He slipped past me, shoulder brushing mine; that same smell – some warm, unknown spice that kind of reminded me of cinnamon and clove – dragged at my attention.
A flush of heat rose up in my skin where he'd brushed past me, and he half-bent, grasping handles built into the silver edge of the bed, giving it a hard tug.
The bed made a soft clunking sound and didn't move. Araxis scowled, standing only a hand's breadth away from my hip. He wrenched on the handle again, and it still didn't move. "It should, anyway," he hissed under his breath.
"Here, why don't I grab this one," I said, reluctantly sliding a half-step down to a handle lower on the bed, "and we'll pull together."
He nodded and we gave it a haul. The bed creaked and groaned for a moment, and I winced, half-expecting the whole built-in to start collapsing, but the bed shot out into the narrow space and slammed down into a bed big enough for two. Well, two very intimate people.
I laughed, stumbling as the frame shoved me backwards. "This is the biggest bed I've ever slept in," I said happily, glancing at Araxis next me, who'd also been shoved toward the wall, his skin flushed silver again.
"There is clean bedding here," he said as he moved past me, pointedly not looking in my direction as he leaned up and tapped a cupboard high up in the wall shelving.
"And while this should be a room for hygiene," he tapped a larger door that was bolted shut, "we had to retrofit it for water filtration to the children's room below.
So you will need to share with me. I am just next door. "
"Great," I said evenly, trying not to think about that too much.
I'd just go into Araxis's bedroom on the regular?
When he was getting ready for bed, shrugging out of his crisp flight suit and into something more relaxed, warmer?
Would I see him when he was less composed, a bit softer and more vulnerable?
It would be a lot for someone as shy as he seemed; it was incredibly generous.
But maybe I didn't understand anything about abaya at all.
I definitely didn't understand the first thing about Araxis, nothing beyond the fact that he seemed kind and he definitely liked me in a way that left him blushing and flustered.
"Do you mind if I go wash my face now?"
Araxis shook his head, leading the way out of the room I'd be staying in for the next two weeks.
He climbed the few rungs to the empty hallway beyond, and I followed as he stepped down to the next door, the last one in this row of rooms and closest to the bridge.
"How many bunks are there in total?" I asked, mostly to make conversation as I dropped down after him into his room.
I figured if we were talking, I could look around his berth and get a better sense of who he was.
Araxis's room was nearly identical to mine, except that his was actually lived in: the pale metal walls were draped with tapestries, mostly woven from black and white materials that had bold streaks of purple that gleamed in the dim overhead lights, with one particular tapestry – smaller, all white except for what looked to be a pattern made from charcoal and chestnut twists of thread – hanging near the window.
Strips of translucent fabric drifted in gentle arcs along the ceiling, muting the tones of the overheads to something warm, welcoming.
A small wooden table and matching chair, with carved arms and a plush seat, sat beneath the window, with a large digital display angled gently upwards from the table's surface.
This bed wasn't folded out and stayed a narrow bunk, but it was plush with pillows in warm, gemstone colours.
A plant rested on an open shelf, its long emerald tendrils dripping down toward the floor.
The room was still chilly, but it smelled like smoke, almost, or incense or…
something. Whatever it was, it made me want to draw in a deep breath.
"There are twelve rooms like this, but we don't use them. Egnax is across the hall, closest to the stairs. Everyone else is on the second floor."
"Oh?" I asked, moving to peer out the window as if the view was somehow different from the one in the bunk next door.
Moving to it meant I did get to slide past Araxis again.
I gave him time to angle his shoulders away, to rock back a little to avoid the contact I was intending to make, but he didn't. He stood, rooted to the spot, and I heard his short, sharp inhale as the back of my hand brushed him near his hip as I drifted to the window.
I filed that away for later. That was a sound I'd definitely be thinking about when I finally curled up in bed.
His voice was a little unsteady when he spoke at first. "Vivith nests with the children, and none of these rooms are large enough for that.
Evreni, Yalrinn, and Avelthe would find these beds too small for three, so they have made their own quarters downstairs.
Evreni also likes to be close to the lab. She works unpredictable hours."
I turned and leaned against the wall, wedged between the window and the wooden desk. Up close, it was clear the desk was ornately carved, its finish gleaming in the lights overhead. I reached out and traced the vaguely floral shapes that flowed up over the edge and to the border of the table top.
Araxis watched my fingers as they skated over the surface, his dark stare steady.
"I like your room. And this is especially nice." I kept my tone mild.