Xyra Approves

Ava was up early to meet up with Xyra at breakfast. Theo had informed her that her next position would be training for cabin girl. She had no idea what that meant but it didn't seem too hard. Xyra had cut Ava's breakfast short and was showing her around each cabin. There were two separate rows of cabins, the ones to the right were for newcomers and passengers. The row of cabins to the left was for crew members. Ava also found out that some girls that slept in the lower decks did indeed have cabins, they just chose to sleep elsewhere. Because of that most of the cabins on their side acted as storage spaces.

There was not much to do at all. She was in charge of preparing the rooms and getting newcomers settled but that meant there was nothing to do at that moment. Xyra had gone over all of the basics of the job within two hours and then there was nothing left to do.

"Now what?" Ava asked when they reached the bottom of the stairs and emerged onto the deck.

"Go about your day," Xyra shrugged, "There isn't much to do. The job is practically yours."

"Can I follow you around?" Ava knew the answer was probably no but she figured she might as well put herself out there.

"Why?" Xyra raised an eyebrow.

"I followed Theo around the other day and it was fun. Just thought it could help pass the time," Ava explained.

"Sure, keep up," Xyra said, much to Ava's surprise. So kept up is what Ava did. They traversed all around the ship and Ava didn't understand what Xyra was doing most of the time. She effortlessly switched between languages when speaking to different heads of the ship and Ava was at a loss. It was still fun though and Ava felt official and important. Xyra gave her permission to skip out on training to do something in the storage room. While she loved to train she couldn't pass up an opportunity to stick around with Xyra.

Miss Yurwa was not in the storage room when they got there but that didn't stop Xyra from making herself welcome. She opened some drawers and pulled out different papers.

"What are you doing?" Ava watched as Xyra's eyes skimmed the page.

"None of your business," Xyra said without breaking contact with the pages in front of her.

Ava fell silent after that. Sitting quietly in the storage room was surprisingly growing more common for her. Oceane had made her do it a couple of times too. Ava settled into the corner she had found. It was her preferred spot and the way the barrels and crates were set up felt like it was her throne. She was content sitting in silence, a stark difference from the constant bustle of the ship.

"What's your deal?" Xyra asked, looking up from her papers and over at Ava.

"Thought the point of vetting was to answer these questions," Ava replied, unsure of how to answer her question.

"I don't mean like where you are from. I mean, why this? Why become a pirate? Why are you so..." Xyra motioned around in Ava's general direction.

"Weird?" Ava provided.

"Odd," Xyra smiled a little, "weird is harsh."

"I became a pirate because the opportunity presented itself. As to your question about my oddity, I cannot help you with that one. If you figure it out I'll be more than happy to hear what you've got."

Ava knew she wasn't everyone's cup of tea. She was used to deprecation from her family and others around her. She was a recluse, opting to play in her room rather than with the other children at the estate. Never getting along with many people. Overall causing trouble with her rebellious attitude. She had felt more accepted on the ship though and even Xyra's current line of questioning wasn't too harsh. Ava had seen what Xyra was capable of when it came to intimidation and rude conversations.

"I'm sorry if I offended you," Xyra said, "We just don't get too many rich girls and I find myself struggling to understand why you would run away from that and go into piracy."

"I'm sure I'm not the first like that from this ship," Ava shrugged, "What makes it different with me?"

"When I first saw you I didn't think you'd last three suns out here," Xyra admitted, "You seemed to be closer to the top of the family than others we've gotten. Makes it harder to leave sometimes. Harder to adapt to this lifestyle."

"Why do you assume that I am from an important part of my family?" Ava asked, she had never mentioned where in the Ableworth family she fell. She thought she had played off that she was part of a fringe group of Ableworths.

Xyra snorted, "You're blind, Red. Your education has been restricted to revised texts and you probably barely saw the outside of your estate walls. That screams head of the family or close to it."

"Well, I've adapted and made it this far. I'm sure if I find a job I can manage to stay," Ava said, challenging her assumptions that she was bound to fail.

"Even if you don't find a job, you've got my vote," Xyra stated, "I know we got off on the wrong foot, so, I'm sorry."

"Why didn't you like me before?" Ava asked the question that had been weighing on her mind every time she saw Xyra.

"I can make snap judgments sometimes. It's my job to be protective over Theo and the crew and I didn't know if I could trust you. As I said, I struggled to understand your reasoning," Xyra said, "But I think you're alright, Red."

"Thank you... For answering my questions and also for saying you'd vote for me. Also for letting me tag along," Ava chuckled a bit, "thanks for putting up with me."

"It's easy to put up with you once you've dealt with Theo for a whole lifetime. At least you know how to shut the fuck up. A trait your captain lacks," Xyra dragged Theo's name through the mud, a common practice for the first mate. Ava found it funny because if anyone else were to speak ill of Theo around Xyra, their head would be on a pike.

They didn't speak much after that. Just some light back and forth and Ava asking dumb questions that didn't matter all too much. All in all, she enjoyed her sun with Xyra but she knew that it wasn't meant to last. Her next suns as a cabin girl would be mundane and without any meaningful tasks. She recalled Theo making fun of her for wanting to work but if there was one thing Ava had realized it was that she was tired of having things handed to her. She was 16 and had not worked a sun in her life; it was time to start pulling her weight; she would just need to figure out how.

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Ava went by Theo's place every night after the whole running away crying debacle happened. It was unspoken. For ten nights until they landed at Undis, Ava came by after dinner and stayed until the early hours of the morning. Theo, who had healed and progressed significantly in the time Ava had been gone, was less tired and more active. The renewed energy resulted in very long nights together. Theo tried to let go of the fact that Ava hadn't been by for such a long time but it was eating at her. Had she pissed Ava off? Theo wanted to know the cause so it could be avoided. On the third night together, she posed the question.

"Why did you disappear for a while there?" Theo asked, nonchalantly. She had pulled out her wooden fish that she had whittled down and had begun to paint it, borrowing some materials from Iona.

"Didn't think you'd want me around," Ava shrugged and looked up from her piece of art. Ava had wanted to paint too so Theo found her a random piece of wood for her to pass the time on. Ava seemed to be enjoying herself even though there was not much to what she was doing, simply brushing some dye onto a broken piece of plain wood.

"I've told you many times that you are always welcome. You are my friend," Theo said and her inner voice chimed in with an unhelpful thought about how she was more than that to Theo, "I missed you."

"I know. I have a profound effect on people and they usually can never get enough of me," Ava joked and Theo rolled her eyes. Ava smiled and looked down at her painting to avoid eye contact, "I missed you too, Captain."

Theo kept herself from making a snarky remark as Ava had. She thought it was best to leave the statement as it was. Theo's heart did a bit of a backflip when Ava said those words though and Theo cursed everything. Theo and Ava continued to see each other every night. Now somewhat healed, Theo was not limited to the confines of her room. Every night they switched up their routine. A few hours partaking in random activities, a few hours with others in the crew, and then they always ended the night on Theo's balcony. Theo had noticed that the more they spent time together the more their conversations veered away from personal stuff and more into ludicrous topics. Theo found herself laughing a lot more frequently and she felt lighter than she had since she became a Captain. Xyra and Navi were right, the longer Theo spent away from Ava the more the stress piled on. Theo ignored the dangerous implications of falling for someone with that kind of influence over her.

Theo's favorite activity was sitting up in the crow's nest for a few hours and just talking to Ava. They would offer to relieve whoever was on duty for a few hours and that person always agreed. Theo regularly enjoyed taking some shifts up there at night, nothing was more calming than the ocean wind and utter silence. With Ava up there with her, there was no silence but Theo didn't mind. They took turns passing the looking glass back and forth and speaking about whatever topic came to mind. They were back to back one night, the looking glass in Ava's possession. She put it to her eye.

"If you could trade one talent you already have for one that you want, what would they be?" Ava asked.

"Damn, I'm going to have to think about this one," Theo rubbed her legs to keep warm. "Okay, I would trade my skill in basket weaving to be able to sew."

Ava laughed, "You can basketweave?"

"I am quite good at it too," Theo chuckled, "Could never sew for the life of me though. Always wanted to know how."

"What would you sew?"

"Not sure, just want to know I can. What about you? What would you do?"

"Trade my ability to play the lyre to be able to sing."

"The lyre?" Theo laughed and Ava hummed a tune and pretended to play an instrument. Theo turned around to watch her, "Ah, I can see it. The form, the technique; impeccable."

"I'm quite good with instruments but I cannot sing," Ava lamented, "I wish I could. I could be a siren, luring men to their deaths."

"Spoken like a true member of the Scorned Woman."

Late at night after everyone had left them for the evening, their conversation would take a more serious tone. They stayed up on Theo's balcony talking about politics and history for hours. They debated philosophical topics and they challenged each other in their way of thinking. Theo saw things on two ends of a spectrum, usually never accounting for an in-between. Ava enjoyed playing the middle, pushing on Theo's radical and absolute ideals. Theo would get ramped up and passionate, trying to explain to Ava her logic. Ava let her speak and speak and Theo would often find herself having to apologize and slow down. Ava was smart and while she might have been new to a lot of the concepts they discussed, she picked up quickly. Theo noticed that while Ava liked to toe the middle during the conversations, her beliefs aligned with Theo's.

"Equality for all Baethan citizens is not possible. I'm not saying it shouldn't happen, I'm saying it won't. It can't. Society cannot function without someone to exploit. Every book I have read has pointed that out very clearly," Ava countered during a particularly long discussion towards the end of their trip to Undis.

"That may be true but what is to stop us from trying to achieve that?" Theo questioned, "Why should we lay down and stop fighting just because it's never been done before?"

"Because we are only a handful of people in a world with millions of others. We live in a system that cannot be taken down. The individual is not powerful enough to dismantle something that took 800 lengths to build," Ava said, their discussion often touched upon various topics in one conversation.

"I disagree," Theo insisted, "Assuming that mentality is how they win. Being a giant force that seems too great to eclipse is part of the reason they cling onto power. The system wasn't built in an instant. The revolution will not be either. It will take time, careful planning, and a consolidation of power in the hands of those most capable of wreaking havoc."

"And you are going to be the revolutionary that unites the rebels?" Ava said, only half teasing.

Theo chuckled and rubbed her neck, "No, I will fight that fight when the time comes but I have no interest in organizing it."

"I think you would make a good resistance leader," Ava complimented and Theo tried not to read too much into the comment.

Recently, Theo had been nitpicking their conversations. Hanging onto every word Ava said and how she said it, searching for a hint of something, anything to tip Theo off to what Ava was thinking. There was nothing. No indication that Ava liked Theo but no indication she didn't. It was driving Theo insane. She was usually able to get a read on people but Ava was a mystery to her. The way Ava looked at Theo sometimes made her wonder if there was something more, something similar to what Theo felt but Theo never knew for sure. Her thoughts would interrupt her and remind her, Ava was a koldi. There was nothing there.

The longer they spent together the harder it became for Theo not to think about her feelings. The smile that took over her face when she saw the redhead. The anticipation of seeing Ava after dinner. The warm feeling in her chest she felt when they sat outside on the balcony and passionately threw around their opinions. Theo was aware of the symptoms she had and was dreading the diagnosis. Theo believed the technical term for it was: stupidly infatuated.

After nineteen long suns at sea, they had finally landed in Undis. They only had one day and one night at the port before they were due to leave and Theo was happy for the distraction that land proved to be. From landing until sailing away again, Theo was preoccupied and had no time to think about or see Ava. It allowed her some space to clear her head and take it down a notch. Theo wanted to talk to Xyra about it, get her advice on what to do. But talking about it would be admitting she liked Ava and that wasn't something she was ready to do. Theo thought if she kept it to herself and didn't act on it then it would all just go away.

Wishful thinking.