"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Is this a game to you?"
Elena scowled. "Of course not."
What kind of person would dare play with life-and-death stakes?
Fyr resumed walking. "You certainly act like it."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing," Fyr said dismissively. "You're right, new girl. Your presence here threatens our survival. For you to live, one of us must die. Stop trying to be friends with us. If you want to survive, you'll have to do it on your own."
Fyr didn't say anything else after that, ignoring every attempt by Elena to strike up a conversation. Even when they reached the crèche, he remained stubbornly silent, disappearing into his room and leaving her standing alone in the common area.
"He has a point," Uncle Jin said softly. "These children don't have the luxury of caring about others when they can barely keep themselves alive."
"You're not like that. Aunt Kira isn't either."
"Your aunt's a strange bird. No one else in the universe would have come back for me in the circumstances she did. They would have taken the escape the forty three offered. It's why I'd die for her. Why she'd die for me too. But you can't judge others by those standards."
Elena glanced at Fyr's room.
The conversation she'd overheard made her think Fyr wasn't so simple. He was protective of his companions. If he wasn't, he wouldn't care about Elena's presence.
Like Uncle Jin said, caring was a luxury. For Fyr to go to such lengths, it pointed to a strength similar to her auntie’s.
Maybe that was why she didn't hate him the way she should.
With a heavy heart, Elena headed for her quarters.
Pulling open the door, she froze.
"Hello, child," Elise said calmly from her seat on Elena's cot. "I think you have some explaining to do."
Kira - Rothchild
Kira rolled onto her back, burrowing deeper into the covers as she fought the tug of sleep. Not quite willing to start her day, she cracked her eyelids, coming a little more awake as she spotted Graydon's fully dressed form leaning over her.
"What time is it?" she asked around a yawn.
She stretched, her joints popping as she blinked the drowsiness out of her eyes.
It felt early. Much too early to be up and about.
"The sun is up," Graydon said, glancing out the light filtering window.
That explained it. When they'd arrived, it had been nighttime. Their circadian rhythms hadn't had time to adjust to the planet's rhythm yet.
Day was when she'd been getting her rest.
"What are you doing up? Come back to bed." Kira tugged on his arm, trying to draw him back under the sheets with her.
"I can't do that," he said.
The eyes that had just drifted closed, opened as she gave him a grumpy frown. "Why not?"
He smiled, smoothing a hand over her head. "I think there's something we need to do."
