A place to call home

[connorbeckett]

When they arrived at the room that would be his home for the foreseeable future, Connor ushered Ari in and shut the door behind them. The room was stark and empty, a blank canvas to be filled by what lay ahead. "You couldn't draw up a better metaphor for our lives," Connor thought to himself.

Setting his duffle and rucksack on the bed, he began digging through the smaller bag. He spoke to Ari as he searched for one case in particular. "I've give a lot o' thought t' comin' aboard as Captain, Ari. An' I finally figgered that it'd be best iffn I ... here it is!" he announced, pulling a small, solidly built chest from his bag. Quickly rolling the tumblers on the outside, he set the proper combination and opened the box with a *click.*

Inside was a small vault, money he'd painstakingly saved over the years. Swiftly counting out a large amount of credits, Connor dropped them into a small drawstring bag and tied it off, then turned and held out the money to Ari ... who was standing there with a somewhat befuddled look. "Like I said," Connor picked up where he'd left off, "I been doin' some thinkin,' an' I reckon this'll more than pay off th' debt you incurred gittin' this boat ready to sail. I know that couldn' o' been easy, and it's right obvious how good a job you done. So I figger you had t' call in many a favor to pull it off, an' now you owe some folk. Well, that's always a tough spot t' be in, and now you don' have t' be in it. Also, I figgered it might git tough at some point, what with you ownin' the ship an' me givin' the orders, an' I'd hate for that t' mebbe cause some headaches down th' line."

Pausing briefly when he saw that Ari was frowning as if she didn't want to accept the money, he added, "This ain't charity, Ari. I wanna buy in. I been savin' this up for a new start, an' I reckon this is as good a time to use it as I'm gonna git. This way, we'll be in this together. One hunnert percent. Whatta ya say?"

The sudden smile on her face was all the answer he needed.

After Ari had finished talking, they left with Connor adding one small request before heading up to the cockpit. "Would ya git the schematics, any modifications ya made, and all that kinda stuff together and drop 'em off in my bunk when ya git a second? I need to know what this boat can do and what it can carry iffn I'm gonna keep us in the air."

When he arrived at the cockpit, Olympia and Rade were already there waiting. "Rade's prob'ly bored, too, 'less I miss my guess," Connor surmised. "An' I can't really blame him," a little voice added, and a small grin flashed across the gunman's face before quickly hiding again, like a rabbit that didn't want the hawk to know it existed.

Wasting no time on pleasantries, Connor got straight to the point, speaking to the young pilot first, as his conversation with the first mate would be a bit more lengthy. "I ain't one fer speeches, so I'll keep this short. I been around the 'Verse a bit, Rade, an' I reckon yer as good a pilot as I ever seen. I don' know what happened on the Riley, an' I don' wanna know ... 'less it's gonna come back to bite me an' mine on this boat. Th' way i figger it, a man's past is his own, an' I'm gonna treat you thata way. That being said, you got a choice iffn you want t' fly with me. Iffn you wanna be crew on the Lenore you will NEVER walk out in th' middle of a job 'r screw over any of th' crew, and you'll obey any order o' mine like it's th' word o' God ... or you can walk right now. The choice is yours, so what'll it be?"

[radegrasan]

Rade sighed as he stood up to face Connor. Was that really the kind of man Connor thought he was? That he ran out of people during a job? Turn tail at the first sight of bad luck? No, he wasn't. This was a new ship, and he had come to start with a clean slate, as the start of a new life. He appreciated Connor complimenting him on his flying, but Rade knew he had to clarify one or two things to his new captain before they could continue. Tell Connor how things had become aboard the Riley and why it was he decided to jump ship.

"Look Cap," Rade said. "I don't know what kind of man you take me for, but I do know loyalty. And I stayed loyal to Faye Murphy, despite her constant verbal abuse toward me, and even when she decided to stop feeding us. And I remained loyal to her, even when we didn't got paid for the third month in a row. In fact, as a last act of my loyalty, I put her ship down on a planet where she can find another crew in no time. That's right, me. I decided to come to Persephone because Faye stopped telling me where to go a long time ago. Tell me, what good is staying on a ship with a captain who doesn't know how to support it? And don't forget, I'm not the only one aboard this ship who decided to leave the Riley."

Rade crossed his arms. It sure felt good getting that off his chest.

"Look Connor," Rade continued. "You make sure this crew's got plenty of work, make sure myself and the others get to eat at least two square meals a day, and treat me with dignity and respect as both a crewmember and a person, and I'll be your pilot for life."

[arabella]

Arabella turned as Ari mentioned they were both from the Riley. Arbaella felt the need to pipe up. ”I was only a passenger, and everything’s squared away. Fare’s paid up and whatnot.” She didn’t mention Faye knew that she was gone. But, she did leave the rest of her fare behind. But, she wanted to see what Olmypia thought. All she seemed to care about was the food. She felt a little lighter as she smiled. ”Well, then everything should be fine. I do plenty of things in the kitchen to make food last long.” What she had become grateful for was others let that comment from Haven pass over. A single was perfectly fine with her. She had so few things that it didn’t matter much anyways. She nodded to Ari. ”Passenger dorm is fine with me.” She watched as Rade disappeared, making her way to the passenger dorms. She made no effort to ask anyone where they were. Passenger dorms weren’t hard to miss. They were always closest to the lounge area. Plus, she wanted to explore a little.

It took her all of a few minutes to find them. She peered around and found both of them were available. Arabella shrugged and simply took the last one she had peered in, settling her things down. She dumped out the smaller of her bag, watching photos, books, her favorite lights, fold lanterns, and a few novelty items she had recently picked up spread out. Since no one had asked to speak with her, so she simply took to waiting until she went through the kitchen to see what needed to be bought. She spent the next twenty minutes or so hanging up lights and lanterns, organizing books next to the small couples chair, putting her clothes away in the drawers. There were some she put into a hamper bag to wash soon. The couple pairs of shoes and pair of slippers she had, she slipped them under the bed after the bags went under. Her small box with momentums and the couple pairs of jewelry she had. She slipped that in the drawer by her bedside.

They’re were a couple gowns under her bed to sell at some point. They were slightly novelty at best at this point. They held memories with Kyle and a couple with Bettie…but she pushed those aside. One was special, that she told no one about. Her mother’s wedding dress. It was packed away in a drawer all it’s own. Folded carefully. It was special, something she figured she may be able to wear someday. Someday being the key word.

Her thoughts drifted away from that as she looked at the bed. It was probably time to finally break down and get some new blankets. She tended to get very cold at night, and these blankets wouldn’t do. If only she had been able to grab more things from her grandmother’s. There was a whole trunk of personal items-more pictures, books, jewelry, blankets, and her journals she had written in. Plus the countless things around her room. Other items of priceless jewelry she could have used to sell along with some of the clothing-gowns, custom designed pieces and exotic fabrics. Things that would have set her for life someplace. Or at least a permanent place on a ship. Especially selling them on the black market.

After she smoothed out her bed, she made the way to the kitchen to begin going through things and making a list of everything needed to buy. There were seven mouths to feed, so plenty to think about.

[haven]

Haven raised her eyebrows at Arabella. Well, they weren’t together. Ok then. By the way they only interacted with each other, what other conclusion was there? Whatever. ”Well, sorry about that. I just assumed you two were.” She shrugged and turned to Leighton and Olympia. “I think I should take a dorm near the doctor and infirmary? In case we’re both needed. Unless all are claimed, then I can get a passenger dorm. She had no clue where everyone had chosen to sleep. Haven was off to the passenger dorms and the captain and Olympia got the doubles. How many did that leave for crew dorms? No one had told them. Blah, this was all a bit confusing to try and figure out right now.

”Anyways, I’ll just set my stuff down here for now until all the room assignments are settled?” It was a cross between a statement and a question. She unloaded her things, she dragged her trunk with one hand, and settled her bags on top. It took less then two minutes to take the dolly and drag it back out to the docks for someone else to grab if needed. Her most important thing was talking to Leighton and checking out the infirmary. She ahd to jog to catch up to him. ”Hey doc! Thought I’d introduce myself.” As she walked beside him, she stuck out her hand in a polite manner to offer him to shake it. ”I’m Haven. I’m a nurse. Trained on Ariel and worked there for about a year. Being doing some side jobs the last few months, but still know how to do the things I’ve got to do.”

She kept her eyes on him, letting him know she meant business. ”I do know my place, and I’m here whenever you need the help. Even going over stocks or whatever. Is there anything in particular I need to know about you as a doctor in general?” Haven liked to get to know the people she worked with. Helped to create a tense-free environment and create a level of communication between them.

[phantomseige]

Leighton smiled as Haven introduced herself, and he shook her hand as she did. Ariel was a hell of a credit to any medical professional, and even if she had been out of the profession for a little while, Leighton had confidence she still remembered her stuff; after all, he hadn't been a 'practicing' physician for a while either, but still retained full confidence.

"We could probably inventory the infirmary, but I want to help out so I can get a feel for the place." He smiled at her. "As for me as a doctor, well...I like to think I know what I'm doing, but I always appreciate having help in the ER." He thought about what else to tell her on this first meeting as he tossed his bags into the cabin nearest the infirmary. "Went to school on Hera, it's also where I did my residency and worked for a while until..." He stopped for a second, pondering how much to go into detail. "Well, until the war. Until the Valley. I left after that, I couldn't take what the planet had turned into." He walked over to the infirmary doors and opened them, looking inside. "My family's still out there, and a lot of old college friends, but...I guess life just had a different path."

The infirmary was nice; definitely not the highest tech facility in the 'verse, but more than enough for any foreseeable emergencies. "I think the big thing to know is that when you work with me, we will not give up." He looked at Haven and smiled. "Back on Hera, people said that I always sounded military. 'Leave no one behind,' or so it goes." He walked in and started to open the drawers of the infirmary to start the cataloging. "That got me in more trouble than I'd like to admit."

Leighton thought about what he said, and his brain shook its head at him - Leighton tried to stay calm, but little drove him to such lengths of passion as the duty he felt as a doctor; it sounded melodramatic, but he took some small refuge in the fact that it was true.

[connorbeckett]

"Nice speech," Connor deadpanned. "Now jus' fix up yer hair a mite an' buy a sparkly gown, an' mebbe you can win the next Miss Persephone pageant." A grin spread across the gunman's lips at the joke, but it never reached his eyes. They crackled like blue fire.

The only way to establish a proper working relationship with any crew was to lay out the rules early on and then stick with them, so everyone was treated fairly. Allowing a prospective crew member to dictate stipulations was the first step toward disaster. As such it had to be stopped ... dead.

The Captain spoke with an icy coolness as he laid down the law.

"You need t' clean out yer ears, though. I said I didn' wanna know, 'less yer leavin' was gonna come back to bite us. As far as I'm concerned, yer life starts right now. Yer a damn good pilot, but it takes more than that to be part of a crew. Ever' one on board has t' work t'gether like a well-oiled machine, an' no one can be too big for their britches. So git this through that head o' yers, Rade, 'cause I won' be repeatin' it. You can take yer demands an' wipe yer ass with 'em th' next time you visit th' head.

"You heard th' terms o' employment. Either take it, 'r git walkin.' "

Connor looked levelly at Rade and waited for his decision.

[radegrasan]

Rade sighed annoyed. That's what he got for being honest. Miss Persephone pageant? Well, if that's how the oldtimer wanted to start things off, then so be it. Seemed the only thing that had changed changing ships was the captain's gorram accent. At least Faye was a pleasure to look at. Or smell for that matter. Hicks like Connor were just a breed apart.

"Yeah." Rade answered, in a somewhat annoyed tone. "I'll just stick to flying the boat... sir."

Rade hoped for Connor's sake that was going to be the last time he was going to give him grief. He was sick and tired of people thinking they were better than him. And who was Connor to think he was better than him?

Rade sat down in the pilot's seat and waited. He just wanted to get the damn boat moving.

[connorbeckett]

"Good to have you aboard, Rade. Jus' lemme know iffn ya need anythin.' Otherwise, take whatever time ya need to git familiar with th' ship, an' I'll get outta your hair."

He finally turned to Olympia and extended his hand. "I'm Connor Beckett. Would ya mind walking with me while we talk? I need to git familiar with th' ship, too." He turned and exited the cockpit, giving Rade the room to fiddle with all the knobs and dials and such. Each ship was a bit different, and a good pilot always took the time to learn the quirks in order to get the most out of a boat. Connor didn't want to get in the way of that.

He waited until Olympia had come through the doorway before walking alongside her. "Well," he began, "I reckon this is th' part where we git t' know each other, so I'll start out by gitting t' th' point an' we can go from there. As my firstmate, I expect you t' watch my back. I'll run anythin' by ya that I am unsure about, an' in private ya can tell me I'm a complete gorram idiot iffn ya see that I'm doin' somethin' stupid. I will always hear ya out, even iffn I disagree. In turn, I'll trust you t' handle what needs t' be handled when I'm gone. Sound like a fair deal?"

"Now that we've got that outta th' way, what would you like from me, and is there anythin' else I need t' know about you?"

He listened attentively as the two of them made their way through the ship, taking the time to get the feel of not only each other but the vessel that they'd be calling their home. When Olympia finally finished, and they'd made a complete circuit of the Lenore, Connor asked one last question.

"Would ya see what ya can find out about th' rest o' th' crew? Ari put 'em together in a bit of a hurry, an' I'd not like us t' put our heads in a hornet nest without knowin' about it. We don' need t' be borrowin' trouble, 'cause we got more'n enough of our own t' be goin' on with. In the meantime, I'll be in my bunk goin' over the specs, seein' what kinda supplies we need, and makin' sure all our papers are in order."

[Ari Deschain]

When Connor cryptically waved her into his room, Ari rose an eyebrow quizzically, but followed him in. "Gee, Cap," she said as he shut the door, "You're not gonna take advantage of me, are ya?" Smirking, she winked to show she was kidding and watched as he set his things on the bed. He pulled something from his bag as he spoke, and she cocked her head as he unlocked the box. When he began counting out credits, Ari's eyes widened. She shook her head before he even started talking, already knowing where this was heading. "Connor, I..." she paused, seeing the look on his face, and she stood quietly and let him talk. What he was saying made sense, but she was still a bit reluctant. Her lips twisted in a frown.

He was persistant, though, and eventually it became obvious she was going to give in. What he was saying was true enough, and if he wanted to buy in, who was she to not accept that. She smiled and threw her arms around him in a quick hug before she even thought about it. Ari was an affectionate person, and sometimes it unnerved people. Pulling away with an apologetic grin, she took the credits and counted out only what she needed to repay her debts, then tucked the rest into his pocket. She wouldn't take any more from him, and he'd probably realize that."You drive a hard bargain, Cap. Consider it done. Your name is gonna be on the Lenore's papers, right next ta mine." She tipped an imaginary hat at him and opened the door.

He asked her for the ship's schematics, and she shrugged. She'd figured he would need it, and everything was already laid out on her bed. "Sure thing. Won't take me but a second ta grab 'em. Then I'm going on-planet real quick to finish off my debts. I hate leavin' 'em standin' when I've the means ta pay them off now, yeah?" Tossing him a jaunty little salute, she heading for her own room, which was one down and across the hall. Once she'd thrown the papers he'd asked for on his bed, she made her way from the ship back onto Persephone. She'd pay back the people she owed, then come back to the Lenore free and clear to start her new life. It was a weight off her chest, and she smiled the whole way.