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Cressida Ryder was not a giver-upper, despite what Mickey Callahan had said in the third grade. She wasn’t. And she wasn’t a cry-baby either, Mickey.
She was just tired.
And unsure.
And a little lonely.
Button curled up on the couch beside her, resting his head on one of what must have been a million datapads scattered on the seat beside her. One on the Initiative and the Nexus, one from Tann on the missing Arks, one on Scott (which would supposedly be updated when there was news—she’d checked it four times in the last hour), one on Helius, one on the Scourge…the list went on and on. And she would have to read up on and update each and every one. She should have shoo’d Button away, but she pat his fuzzy little head instead. Pyjak fur was surprisingly soft—like velvet. That was another thing. She had no idea how to care for this little guy. He’d just barely fallen into her lap, and he definitely didn’t come with an instruction manual. She rested her head on her knees and sucked in a deep breath.
“Ryder?”
Cressida poked her head up for a second to look, but she already knew it was Liam. Trust Liam of all people to know just where to find her. She’d only sat up in the meeting room because it was the last place anyone on her new team seemed to want to be. Cora kept coming to her room with advice and Suvi practically chased her around the loading bay asking about Habitat 7. She nodded to Liam and made some noise—it was supposed to be a greeting, but it came out more like a squeak. Great. Just great. She may have inherited his position as Pathfinder, but she had not inherited her dad’s commanding tone.
Liam sat down the other side of Button and leaned back against the couch, the picture of ease. She should be nicer. Liam had waited up for her to wake after the whole Habitat 7 mess. He was the one who told her about Scott, and the first person to believe in her as the Pathfinder. She couldn’t even convince Addison to address her as “Pathfinder.” She wanted to say something, but it was hard to talk around the lump in her throat.
Still not a crybaby, Mickey Callahan. It’s just been a rough week, okay???
“What did you name the little guy?” Liam looked over at Button and held out his hand like he was approaching a stray dog. Button sniffed for a second before nuzzling Liam’s knuckles. At least those two were getting along just fine. First contact hadn’t been a strong suit of hers so far but who knows. Maybe she just facilitated a bright and shining new relationship between humanity, and this strange, squeaky little stow-away. Great.
“Button.”
“Button?” Liam didn’t look at her directly, but she saw him glance over at her quickly out of the corner of his eyes.
“As in ‘cute as a’—”
“Button.” Liam rubbed his forehead like he was suddenly very tired. His laugh surprised her—warm and a little loud. “Ryder, really? That’s just terrible.”
A grin tugged at the corner of her lips. “Terribly clever? Thanks, Kosta. Glad to hear it!”
“Liam,” he said. “Just…you can call me ‘Liam.’”
“Then you can call me ‘Cress,’ I suppose.”
He beamed at her, a bright smile that started at his eyes and worked its way to every corner of his face. Cressida didn’t think she had ever seen anyone smile like that. It was contagious; she couldn’t help but smile back.
Liam looked down at the datapad in her hand and nodded.
“Hey, Cress?”
“Hmm?”
“When was the last time you ate?”
600 years ago, before Cryo? No, she must have eaten something since then. Ration bars from Harry? Before leaving the Nexus, for sure, but she couldn’t remember exactly when, or exactly how long ago that was. She shrugged.
Gee. What good company you are, quitter-crybaby.
“Well, we just got the Tempest, right?”
“Right.”
“Which means that no one’s had a crack at the rations yet. Probably plenty of stuff to pick through.” He stood up before she answered and stretched out his hand in invitation. “Coming?”
Well. It seemed rude to say no.
She took his hand and he hauled her up to her feet. Button stretched out like a cat over the space where she’d been sitting. She’d figure out what to feed him later.
The walk down to the galley was short, but it might as well have taken a hundred years. Cressida was usually a talker but, for once, she couldn’t think of anything to say.
There was an awkward silence as they both opened and closed every cabinet door in the kitchen. It was cramped and pristine—Liam was right about them being the first people to ransack it. Bigger things on people’s minds, she supposed. There were tons of nutrient bars, vitamin-infused shakes, freeze-dried meal packs, and some meals in languages that wouldn’t quite translate that must have been for Kallo or Vetra (not comfort food by any stretch of the imagination, and if anyone could use a grilled cheese right about now, it was her). Also, oddly enough, a packet of crackers. And that was about it.
“What are you thinking?” Liam examined one of the meal packs closely, turning it over in his hands. “I was debating between the steak and the fish.”
Cressida snorted. “Think they have any soup?”
“Anything can be a soup if you add too much water.”
She rolled her shoulders back and took another look at the rations. There was some sort of fish. Tuna. And something steak-ish with potatoes. She opted for rehydrated rice, carrots, and chicken. Someday, she really hoped that they wouldn’t just be subsisting on the rations from the Milky Way.
It took the two of them a while to figure out how to work the rations. Sure, they’d both been in space before, but he’d only ever hopped planets on short trips, and she had been Alliance, which meant having a mess sergeant and scheduled meal times. After reading the instructions twice, they finally figured out how to get the food from the packets into bowls they found in one of the cabinets.
“Well.” Liam dropped down into the seat beside her at the table. “If we figured that out, I’m sure we’ll figure Heleus out in no time.”
She rolled her eyes, but it was harder to be grumpy when he said it so sincerely. As if settling a whole new galaxy that seemed bent on killing them was as easy as prepping pre-packaged nutrient slop. He nudged her shoulder with his when she didn’t respond.
A whole new galaxy. It hit her in waves. A new galaxy and no Mom. No Dad. Maybe even no Scott if he didn’t wake up. She and Scott had never been apart like that.
Still not a crybaby, Mickey Callahan.
It probably wasn’t appropriate Pathfinder behavior, but she leaned over and rested her head on Liam’s shoulder. She wasn’t sure why. She just…needed someone. Just for a minute. He shifted slightly and her stomach dropped. It was day two and she was already overstepping bounds. But then, he draped his arm over the back of the booth so that she could sit more comfortably. He didn’t say anything about it, but bumped her when she stopped taking bites of dinner. They sat there for a while after they were done eating and for the first time since waking up, Cressida Ryder caught her breath and decided that everything would be alright.