Archive of Our Own

Ilyukhina relished the wary look that Grace shot her when she sidled up to him after the morning update meeting. She knew the reputation she'd gotten around the ship for playing tricks. Sure enough, before she even got a word out, Grace said, "I don't want anything to do with it." He flicked a pointed look in Stratt's direction.

The room was slowly clearing out, but Stratt was still standing at the head of table speaking with a small group of scientists. There was a crease between her brows, and the bags under her eyes were dark even under a light layer of concealer. To say that she looked tired would have been an understatement, and whatever the scientists were saying to her couldn't have been good by the way her shoulders slumped just slightly. Enough for Ilyukhina and probably Grace to notice, but not enough for the scientists who did not know her as well.

It was quiet between them for a moment while they watched her, and then Ilyukhina turned to Grace, pouting. "You do not even know what it is," she protested.

"I don't need to know," he replied, gathering his things.

Ilyukhina leaned closer to him and lowered her voice. "I want to do something nice for Stratt," she said. "I have been on ship one year! And no mention of Stratt's birthday. I figure if anyone knows, it is you."

"Her–" Grace cut himself off, eyes flicking up to Stratt again, who was looking increasingly frustrated by whatever the scientists were saying. "They're telling her that they've hit a roadblock," he muttered when Ilyukhina looked from them to him questioningly. "They just can't do much more until the engineers have figured out the ship's design, so they want to pivot to other research."

"So is engineers' fault," she scoffed.

Grace's eyes widened and he waved his hands. "No, no, that wasn't what I was trying to say at all, I–" He stopped when he saw Ilyukhina holding back a laugh. "Oh ha, ha, yes, very funny. Make the scientist panic."

Ilyukhina shrugged smoothly. "So, do you have intel?" she asked.

Grace looked confused for a second, then he caught up. "I don't know why you think I would know that," he said. "Stratt is a very private person."

"Yes," Ilyukhina said nodded. "But you have access to her calendar, yes?"

"Why would her own birthday be listed in her calendar?" Grace asked, brow furrowing. "It's not like she won't remember the date."

"Point," Ilyukhina said, tapping her chin. "Okay, is fine."

Grace narrowed his eyes at her, moving his glasses from where they'd been dangling precariously from one ear to the bridge of his nose where they belonged. "What are you doing?"

"Leaving meeting," Ilyukhina said, blinking at him innocently. "What else would I be doing?"

"Ilyukhina," Grace drew out her name as he scrambled to gather his notes and follow her out the door.

"Do not worry, science boy," Ilyukhina said, patting his shoulder. "You will find out. I will probably need your help to get Stratt into position."

"Into…" Grace trailed off bewildered. "Ilyukhina?" he called after her.

Ilyukhina ignored him. She forced herself to pay attention in the other meetings and training sessions she had that day, but in the back of her mind, she was plotting. The cake would not be a problem. Every so often there was sheet cake in the mess as a treat. If she asked very nicely, she was sure she could wrangle a birthday-specific cake—or unbirthday, as it was. People were very willing to do her favors, since she had volunteered to go on the mission. She tried not to take advantage, but sometimes it came in handy.

The real problem was the decorations. Or more specifically, getting decorations onto the ship. Ilyukhina would have to use a second favor for that. There were pre-approved items that the crew could choose from to order. They could put in personal requests, but they weren't a guarantee. Plus, Stratt always okayed the final list. Which meant she would see it. Balloons might raise some alarm bells. Especially under Olesya's name. The only way around this was to get one of the tech people to intercept and edit the list before it was sent. Okay, doable. Probably. Antony, one of the IT guys, always seemed particularly susceptible to her specific type of charm.

Balloons, streamers, party hats. After a moment, she added a birthday teddy bear to her mental list. Though maybe she would give that one privately. Stratt might be on the fence about a surprise party, but anything that would make the crew see her less seriously would definitely not be appreciated. For a moment, she rethought the party hats, but no, she simply would not force Stratt to wear one—though she did not doubt her ability to do so. Oh, and candles. She didn't know how old Stratt was(n't) turning, and she wasn't going to ask. She would simply cover the cake in candles. Trick candles. The ones that would not go out no matter how hard Stratt blew. Ilyukhina grinned thinking about it, earning an odd look from one of the other engineers.

Ilyukhina waved a hand at him in a nothing to worry about gesture and attempted to turn her focus back to the schematics they were going over. If the mission failed because she was too distracted planning a party for Stratt, Stratt would never forgive her.

When the engineer kept looking at her, she raised her eyebrows. "What? You are not excited to work on interstellar spaceship?"

Ilyukhina managed to keep her excitement contained until she made it to the mess for dinner. She'd grabbed a notebook and pen from her bunk on the way and as she ate, she began writing out a plan of action. Shapiro would be easy to recruit to help her, and DuBois would go along if Annie did. They had become a packaged deal, really. Did everything together. Which would only become an issue when it became an issue. Yáo may also be willing to help. He was stoic, but he had a playful side. Milena Orlova, Yáo's backup, could also probably be recruited and at the very least be trusted not to tell in the case that she said no. Her own backup was out of the question. He had zero sense of humor and Ilyukhina knew a tattler when she saw one. If she told him, Stratt would know before Ilyukhina had a chance to even try to get it past her.

The I.T. offices were located in the center of the ship so that they were mostly equidistant from anyone who could possibly need them. It wasn't uncommon to see people coming and going with minor equipment issues, so Ilyukhina wasn't worried about being spotted. Antony was at his desk when Ilyukhina entered, so she sauntered over and leaned on it, giving him a winning smile.

"Ah, my favorite nerd," she said, tilting her head to the side. "You are exactly who I was looking for."

Antony grinned and leaned back in his seat. "My favorite Russian," he replied. "What can I do for you?"

"I have teensy, tiny request," she said, holding up two fingers pinched together to show just how small.

Antony raised his eyebrows. "Okay?"

Ilyukhina pulled a folded sheet of paper from her pocket and slid it across the desk to him, dodging an energy drink can. "I need these items added to order list," she said. He opened his mouth, brow furrowed, but she continued. "After Stratt has approved it."

Antony stopped with one hand on the paper and gave her a skeptical look.

"Is nothing contraband!" Ilyukhina said hurriedly, waving her hands. She put one hand over her heart. "I swear."

There was a quiet rustling as Antony unfolded the sheet and read over it. Then he looked up at Ilyukhina, confused. "Why can't you just put this in the requests yourself?" he asked. "I'm sure it would be approved, it's nothing illicit."

Ilyukhina was already shaking her head before Antony even finished speaking. "No, no, no," she said. "If anyone else requested it, it would get approved, no problem! But me?" Ilyukhina shook her finger. "Too suspicious. Stratt would know something was up."

Antony choked on a sip of his energy drink. "Oh my god," he said, once he could breathe again. He wiped at the spots on his shirt. "It's for Stratt?"

"I did not say that," Ilyukhina said. Another grin spread across her face. "But I also did not not say that."

He tapped his finger on the edge of the list. "Ilyukhina, I like my job. I like my life. If I'm caught doing this, is the result going to put either of those in danger?"

"Oh no, no," Ilyukhina said. Then she tilted her head. "Well, probably no."

"Not a huge fan of the uncertainty," Antony said, eyes returning to the list.

"Is not a bad prank," Ilyukhina said. "Is good, will be good. Stratt will not be angry." She crossed her fingers behind her back and gave him a bright smile. "Please?"

Antony sighed. "It seems harmless enough so…okay. Yes. Sure. Fine. But I'm blaming you if she's mad."

"Of course!" Ilyukhina said, clapping her hands in delight. "I owe you big one, yes?"

"If this goes wrong, you'll owe me a massive one," Antony said, turning to his computer. "Good luck."

"I will not need it," Ilyukhina said. "But thank you!"

Grace shook his head. "Absolutely not," he said. "Stratt will kill me if I waste the research supplies on filling balloons."

Ilyukhina pouted. "Please? Just little bit of helium? Just to fill balloons! Is not very much, surely."

Scientists moved around them, running experiments, discussing results, and planning next steps. Even so, Ilyukhina could see them paying attention to the conversation happening at Grace's station. The good thing was, nothing would get to Stratt. Not unless one of the main crew heard. She already knew Grace wouldn't tell, and Dimitri was down in Little Russia. Lokken was probably somewhere around, but Ilyukhina hadn't seen her.

"I'm sorry, Ilyukhina," Grace said firmly. "You'll have to make due without dipping into our extremely limited helium supply."

"You are no fun," Ilyukhina said, crossing her arms.

Grace continued to type at his report. "My kids would disagree," he muttered.

"Oh yes," Ilyukhina said sarcastically. "I forgot, you were cool teacher. Clearly, you have lost touch. Stratt has changed you. Tragic."

"You won't convince me," Grace said without looking up.

"Fine. You will help me blow them up?" she asked. "Is least you could do."

Grace sighed and dropped his chin to his chest. "If I say yes, will you leave me alone and let me finish this? Stratt wants it by the end of the day."

"Yes."

"Okay then, fine. I'll do it," Grace replied.

Ilyukhina beamed. "Great! See you Saturday afternoon. The Break Room. I have whole bag of balloons!"

Grace rested his forehead against the top edge of his computer. "A whole bag," he muttered, and Ilyukhina laughed as she walked away.

The laboratory was only the first stop on Ilyukhina's list. Now that the supplies had arrived—one week after the order list had gone out—it was time to get things rolling. She wove her way through the labyrinthine aircraft carrier, making her way to the kitchens. It was between meals right now, which meant that the limited kitchen staff was cleaning up and preparing for the next meal while they rotated through breaks. There were a few stragglers in the mess when Ilyukhina arrived, but Ilyukhina passed them without stopping.

"Xiao?" Ilyukhina poked her head into the kitchen and looked around.

Several of the staff were bustling around prepping for dinner, but others were relaxing at a table in the back with a radio and some kind of board game. As Ilyukhina walked fully into the room, a slight woman at the table stood and smiled. Xiao Jiaxin was the de facto head of the Kitchen Crew, as they were affectionately called by the rest of the Vat. "Ilyukhina," she said in softly accented English, "to what do we owe the pleasure?"

Ilyukhina smiled back at her. "I have favor to ask," she said, her smile turning mischievous.

"Oh?" Xiao raised her eyebrows.

"I need you to make birthday cake," Ilyukhina said. "Can you?"

"I think we can manage that. Whose birthday is it?" Xiao asked, her smile spreading.

Ilyukhina tilted her head from side to side. "Technically, I do not know if it is anybody's birthday."

Xiao's brow furrowed. "Then why do you want a birthday cake?"

"I have been on ship for more than one year and there have been many birthday celebrations," Ilyukhina said carefully. "However, no one has ever mentioned Director Stratt's birthday."

Xiao froze, as did a couple of the kitchen staff working close by. All three exchanged looks between them. "Ah, we are not aware of the director's birthdate," Xiao said. "I do not believe we are supposed to bring attention to the event."

"So is that no?" Ilyukhina asked, widening her eyes. "But you are so good at making cake and if I try, will be disaster."

Now it was Xiao's turn to widen her eyes. "You? Try?"

"If you will not help me, I will have to try to make cake myself," Ilyukhina said, nodding. She made sure to look very sad about it. "I will do my best, but…" She shrugged as though apologizing in advance for whatever disaster occurred.

Xiao waved her hands between them. "No, no, we will make it. You will be the one to write her name though. If asked, we did not know who it was for."

Ilyukhina grinned. "Deal."

"When do you need it?" Xiao asked.

"Saturday," Ilyukhina said. "Night time, 8pm." Two days from then. If she waited too long, word would get around despite her best efforts and the more people knew, the more likely Stratt would find out.

Xiao nodded. "We will have it in time for you to decorate before then."

"Thank you!" Ilyukhina said, wrapping Xiao in a brief, tight hug and leaving the other woman flustered in her wake as she left the kitchen.

Carl was her next victim.

Although Ilyukhina wasn't entirely sure where to find him, he usually wasn't far from Stratt. Which meant it would have to be a delicate operation. Ilyukhina accessed the schedules from her laptop in her bunk and headed to the conference room where Stratt was in her current meeting—and would be for the next twenty minutes according to her time blocking. It was across the ship, so there was only ten minutes left by the time Ilyukhina got there, but when she did, Carl was standing patiently outside. Ilyukhina felt a wave of relief. Sometimes he was inside the room with her, but the meeting must have been confidential enough for her to kick him out.

It made Carl nervous—not that he would ever say anything about it. Ever since the second assassination attempt, he had stuck close to her. Ilyukhina was pretty sure he blamed himself for the first one, and probably the second, but it wasn't his fault. The Earth was in an extreme situation, and people were reacting accordingly. Ilyukhina could understand the fear that they were feeling. It was why she was there taking part in the mission.

"Ca-arl!" Ilyukhina sang as she sauntered up to him and batted her eyelashes.

Carl looked at her impassively. "Put it away, Olesya. You know you're not getting anywhere with me. I know where your interests lie."

Ilyukhina pressed her palm to her chest. "Carl, you wound me."

"I am not sorry," he said with a nod. His mouth quirked up into a smile but he didn't drop his stoic bodyguard act.

"You are listening to rumors, Carl," Ilyukhina said, shaking a finger at him. "Is not good."

Carl looked down at her and raised his eyebrows. "I don't have to listen to the rumors, Olesya. I have eyes."

Ilyukhina blew air out through her lips dismissively. "Nothing to see," she said, waving a hand. Then she turned her grin on him. "But if you would like to help me…?"

The skeptical look Carl gave her was legendary. "I am not replacing Dr. Grace's Skittles with M&Ms again," he said.

"That was funny!" Ilyukhina protested. "I still have picture of his face set as contact photo!"

Carl laughed but they were both mindful of the meeting happening on the other side of the wall. "Yeah, but that was one and done, Olesya."

"No, but this is good idea, not prank. Not really," Ilyukhina said pleadingly. "Promise. No harm done. Minimal tricking." Her eyes flicked to the door—still closed. She couldn't hear the meeting, but she only had a little over five minutes before the scheduled end. Knowing the types of meetings Stratt had to attend, it was more likely to go over time than end early, but it was not an impossibility. She had to explain fast.

"Alright, I'm listening," Carl said, skepticism still writ large across his face.

"I want to throw surprise party for Stratt because I do not know when is her birthday, but it must have happened sometime in year that I have been on ship," Ilyukhina said in a rush. "I need you and Grace to keep her from finding out and also to get her to location."

"And where is the location?" Carl asked.

It was not a no, which was good. "Break Room," she replied quickly. Originally, she'd been thinking they would simply have it in the mess. Stratt was far more likely to go there without too much duress—by her standards. The Break Room was what they'd taken to calling the officer's bar that had been set up in one small corner of the carrier under initial protest from Stratt. After two weeks though, even she had to admit that allowing the crew a way to blow off steam was doing wonders for morale. Stratt herself had only gone once when it opened and then never again.

Carl frowned. "That won't be easy."

"Oh, psh." Ilyukhina waved away his protest. "Between you and Grace? You will have here there easy. Tell her that she can bring work if she wants. Tell her is for crew morale, they need to see her relaxing because she is overstressed."

Carl opened his mouth, brow furrowed, but Ilyukhina barreled on.

"Is not even lie! She will start slipping if she does not give herself break every now and then," Ilyukhina insisted. "All work, no play is not healthy!"

The distinct sound of chairs pushing back signified the end of the meeting, and they both froze, eyes darting guiltily to the door. Ilyukhina recovered faster—years of experience with nearly getting caught breaking rules—and zeroed in on Carl's face. He looked back at her and nodded once, fast. "When do you want her there?"

"Saturday at 8:15pm."

"Done."

Running around to talk to everyone in person was time consuming, and Ilyukhina was certainly getting her steps in between all of her little unofficial meetings and her mission responsibilities. A trail of messages and emails would be too easy to trace, too much of a risk that Stratt would see one on a screen by accident. Call Ilyukhina paranoid, but there was a reason her pranks had such a high success rate. Her next stop was the Break Room.

So early in the day, just after noon ship-time, there weren't very many people there. Newer arrivals were still adjusting from different time zones, and some people functioned under the mentality that if it was an appropriate drinking hour in their home country, it was an appropriate drinking time for them. Everyone was very careful not to let it affect their work. It had been difficult enough to get Stratt to approve the Break Room to begin with, the last thing they wanted was for her to take it—and the bar—away. Ilyukhina made a bee-line for the bar, where one of the three bartenders was cleaning glasses.

Ilyukhina slid onto a bar stool and rested her forearms on the bar. "Hello!" she said, grinning.

Ines looked up, blinking out of whatever thoughts had taken over while she cleaned the glass. "My favorite customer," she said with a slight German accent. "You are here earlier than normal."

Ilyukhina waved a hand. "I am not here for drink," she said, and Ines gave a surprised laugh. "No, really!" Ilyukhina pouted. "Actually, I am here for favor."

"Oh?" Ines set the glass down and moved closer when Ilyukhina gestured to her. "What are you plotting now?"

"Plotting makes me sound so evil," Ilyukhina said, then she lowered her voice and leaned over the counter. "I am planning surprise."

Ines took the hint and leaned in, lowering her voice as well. "For who?"

"Stratt," Ilyukhina whispered.

"Do you have a death wish?" Ines hissed, and Ilyukhina gestured frantically for her to stay quiet.

"I am throwing surprise birthday party," Ilyukhina said. "Or unbirthday party, since I do not know when is her birthday. I have been on ship one year, no one has said anything. I think it will be nice, yes?"

Ines nodded slowly. "And you want to do it here?" she asked.

"8pm Saturday night," Ilyukhina confirmed. "Is okay? Will you be here?"

"It's toward the end of my shift, but I can extend it. That's the day after tomorrow. Do you need help decorating?"

Ilyukhina beamed. "I would appreciate it. Grace is helping with balloons, but if you could close bar for maybe thirty minutes before? So we can set up?"

Ines frowned and brushed away a strand of short, blonde hair that had escaped from her little ponytail. "People won't be happy about that."

"Is only thirty minutes," Ilyukhina said, waving a hand. "We can make deal. If they want to drink then, they can stay and help."

A loud laugh escaped Ines, and she rushed to quiet it before it drew too much attention. Thankfully, her and Ilyukhina laughing at the bar was not an unusual nor particularly suspicious occurrence. "Okay, okay," Ines said. "8pm Saturday night, and you will be here at 7:30pm to set up?"

Ilyukhina nodded and beamed. "Thank you, thank you!"

Ines shook her head. "You would have done it regardless."

"Well yes, but is easier with you on board," Ilyukhina said and winked at her. The other woman waved her off, pink spreading across her cheeks.

"I'll see you then." Ines waved and moved to help the crew member who had walked up to the bar for service.

"You will see me before then!" Ilyukhina called cheerily over her shoulder as she exited the bar. She had just enough time to get to her 1pm training session.

The email invitations went out the morning-of. Ilyukhina had thought about sending them the day before, but she didn't want time for word to get to Stratt—and really, planning a big surprise like this when they were all enclosed in such a small space really was turning out to be much more work than she'd anticipated. Each department head received an email with the information and instructions to inform their underlings while keeping it quiet. Ilyukhina imagined she'd get more people to attend out of sheer curiosity than for actual desire to celebrate their fearless dictator, but that was better than nothing. That and they knew Ilyukhina threw a good party.

A second email had gone out to select individuals. Dimitri, the rest of the primary crew, Shapiro, and Orlova all agreed to meet her early in the Break Room to set up. Grace was going to help her with blowing up the balloons and decorating. Carl's only job was to keep an eye on Stratt and to make sure she was in the Break Room at the designated time. If Stratt gave Carl trouble, Grace would tag team in to help. The nuclear option was Ilyukhina getting her there, but no one wanted to resort to that.

When Grace arrived at the Break Room at 4pm, he had taken one look at the massive bag of colorful balloons and nearly turned around. Ilyukhina caught him by the arm and dragged him inside, closing the door behind them. "You do not turn back now," Ilyukhina scolded, pushing him toward the bag of balloons sitting on the counter.

"But that's just…" Grace gestured helplessly. "Ilyukhina."

Ilyukhina laughed as she dragged them both to an empty table at the back of the bar. "Do not worry, science boy. We are not using whole bag, just enough for festive decorations." She tore open the bag and tossed him a green balloon.

"You know, there are dozens of scientists on this ship," Grace said, stretching the balloon. "Why am I 'science boy'?"

Ilyukhina shrugged and pulled a yellow balloon from the bag, mimicking his stretching motions. "You just–" she gestured to his whole person "–are."

Grace stopped with the balloon halfway to his mouth and stared at her for a moment. "You know," he said finally, "I can't even argue with that."

"Of course you cannot," Ilyukhina replied. "Is true." She took in a deep breath and began to blow up the yellow balloon. Grace followed suit. The room grew quiet then, with neither having breath for talking.

Ten balloons later, Grace flopped back in his chair. "I have to take a break," he gasped, gesturing for a time out with his hands.

"Weak," Ilyukhina said, looking down at him with disappointment. "You have barely done any."

Grace looked at her in disbelief. "Ten balloons is not none," he protested.

Ilyukhina gestured to the fifteen she'd done, along with the still mostly full bag, and Grace dropped his head back with a groan. "Is fine, is fine. Just lay there like potato. I would say useless, but potatoes can be used for vodka."

"Rude," Grace muttered, picking up another balloon.

Ilyukhina watched as he started blowing it up. "Ah, but it got you to start working again, yes?" she said, laughing as she picked up her next balloon—pink.

Between Grace's air breaks and Ilyukhina stopping to wheedle a couple of shots out of Ines, they finished blowing up the majority of the bag of balloons just before 6pm. Grace flopped back in his chair with a groan, allowing his arms to fall out to the sides. "That's it," he said. "I have no more breath left in me."

"Is good! We are done!" Ilyukhina said, clapping her hands together.

The balloons were scattered on the floor around them, bunched against the walls and kept in place by a line of chairs that Ilyukhina had commandeered to create a barrier of sorts between their project and the rest of the room. By that point, most of the crew knew what was up, so they had stopped receiving odd looks from patrons, but that had not stopped people from periodically looking over to watch in amusement when a balloon broke containment every so often. Ilyukhina still wished that Grace had allowed her to use some helium—Grace probably wished so too at this point—but she had to admit that it was easier to keep the balloons from escaping when they were unable to float.

"You look as though you have run marathon!" Dimitri's laughter rumbled through the Break Room as he approached them, followed by a whole gaggle of astronauts. The rest of the patrons had slowly cleared out over time to get out of the way.

Ilyukhina laughed and wrapped her arms around him in a hug. "Hello! We have done much work, see?" She gestured to the mounds of balloons. "Well, I have done much work. Grace is only scientist, he does not have athlete's lungs." Ilyukhina thumped her chest.

"You're welcome," Grace wheezed, relishing his freedom to breath without expelling the air into a rubber sack.

Ilyukhina darted over to the dry goods closet and pulled out her box of contraband party supplies. "Okay. So we do three balloons on center of each table," Ilyukhina said, tossing Dimitri and Grace each a roll of tape. Dimitri caught his just fine, but Grace fumbled his and there was a clatter as it fell to the floor. Ilyukhina tutted at him as he bent to pick it up.

"I'm oxygen deprived," he said with a sniff.

Ilyukhina snorted. "Right." She gestured to the box. "There are also streamers and party hats." She had removed the acquired birthday bear and hidden that in her quarters to figure out later. "Ines is in charge of coordinating your effort, I trust her decorating skills far more than any of yours," Ilyukhina said pointedly. "Maybe with the exception of Yáo." The astronaut smiled at the praise.

"I am sure they would have been fine," Ines said as she walked over from behind the bar. "It is not rocket science."

"I am worried because is not rocket science," Ilyukhina retorted. "If was rocket science, I would trust them more."

The scientists blinked, and Ines nodded thoughtfully. "Yes, I see what you are saying."

"Good! Then I have cake to check on." Ilyukhina gave them one last little wave before darting away. Behind her, she could hear Ines begin to give instructions.

Satisfied that the Break Room would be appropriately decorated, Ilyukhina made her way to the kitchen to check in with Xiao. The mess was bustling at the end of the dinner rush, and Ilyukhina was about to leave and check back again later when she caught sight of Xiao waving at her. Ilyukhina wove through the crowded room and slipped behind the counter. "We did not know what type of cake, so we did half chocolate and half vanilla and split the icing the same way," Xiao said briskly as she herded Ilyukhina to the back of the kitchen where the cake was sitting on one of the prep counters.

"Is beautiful!" Ilyukhina said, delighted. "You did wonderful job."

What appeared to be one cake was actually four cakes, two chocolate and two vanilla to make one chocolate with vanilla icing, one chocolate with chocolate icing, one vanilla with vanilla icing, and one vanilla with chocolate icing. A nice variety arranged into a sort of larger, checked square. Sitting beside the cakes was a tube of writing icing, clearly meant for Ilyukhina. Xiao had been serious when she said she wanted plausible deniability as to who the cake was for.

"What color?" Ilyukhina asked, pointing to the tube.

"Yellow," Xiao replied. "It was the only color we had on hand that would show up equally well on white and dark brown."

"Perfect," Ilyukhina said, picking up the tube of icing. She got a feel for the weight and required pressure before leaning over the cakes and writing, "HAPPY UNBIRTHDAY DIRECTOR STRATT!" in passable handwriting. One word went on each cake. It took longer than she expected it to, but when she was done, Ilyukhina stepped back to admire her handiwork.

Xiao stepped up beside her. "Not bad for a first attempt," she said.

"How do you know I have not done it before?" Ilyukhina asked.

"Have you?"

"No."

Xiao gave a nod of satisfaction and Ilyukhina rolled her eyes.

"Okay, okay. You will bring to Break Room, yes? At eight?"

"We will be there," Xiao replied.

"I can send someone," Ilyukhina said, suddenly realizing, "if you're too busy or–"

"We will be there," Xiao repeated. Then she smiled a little. "Director Stratt may be intimidating, but she is good. I am honored to do this for her."

"But I had to write her name on the cake," Ilyukhina said with a wry grin.

"Yes, well, I am honored, that does not mean I am willing to face her anger," Xiao said, laughing lightly.

Everything was done, Ilyukhina realized as she left the kitchen and returned to the Break Room. She took up some of the streamers and helped Ines frame the doorway in them, hanging balloons from the top corners and swooping the streamers off to the sides, like curtains. Now she had to hope that Carl came through with Stratt. Ilyukhina didn't know how he was going to get her there, but she trusted that he would. At one point, she looked over to see Grace looking at his phone and went over to see what was going on. Partially because she was nosy and partially because she had a feeling that it was Carl on the other end.

People had started arriving a few moments before and Ilyukhina had to weave through the growing crowd. Xiao and a few helpers had brought in the cake already, thank goodness, so it wasn't in danger of being knocked by an errant guest. It was sitting safely on the far end of the bar, candles waiting to be lit. Trick candles. Ilyukhina grinned and then turned her attention to Grace as she approached.

"Something is wrong?" she asked, looking from his furrowed brow to his phone screen.

Grace reached up and rubbed the back of his neck. "Ah, yeah. Carl is having some trouble coaxing Stratt away from her desk."

"You will go help?"

He coughed. "Actually, he's saying we might have to go for the nuclear option."

A grin spread across Ilyukhina's face. "No," she said, gasping and clasping her hands together. "Really?"

Grace looked pained. "Yes," he said.

Ilyukhina was smiling so hard that her cheeks hurt. "You do not want to try first?" she asked, practically bouncing on her toes.

The sigh bordered on what Ilyukhina thought of as "Grace Dramatics." He pinched the bridge of his nose, glasses dangling off of his ear. "No, if too many of us try, she'll just dig her heels in and then we'll never get her down here."

"Ah, great! Then I will be back here with her in no longer than fifteen minutes," Ilyukhina said.

"Such confidence!" Dimitri said, clapping Ilyukhina on the back with such force that she staggered forward half a step. He carried with him the strong smell of vodka.

"Do not worry," Ilyukhina said, preening. "Is not unwarranted."

"I'll believe it when I see it," Grace muttered.

Ilyukhina whirled, dark brown ponytail whipping around behind her. "You will!" she called over her shoulder as she left the festive bar and made a beeline through the ship in the direction of Stratt's office.

With much of the ship crammed into the Break Room and surrounding area—the celebration had quickly spilled into the nearby corridors—the rest of the ship was much quieter than normal. On the plus side, it was easy for Ilyukhina to move fast without having to worry about crashing into anyone. She had told them fifteen minutes, and she planned on following through. Which meant she needed to give herself enough time to convince Stratt to go with her—she hadn't quite decided how she was going to go about that just yet—and that meant getting to Stratt's office as quickly as she possibly could.

The door was closed, but Ilyukhina could see the light shining in the gap beneath it. Stratt was there, she'd never leave the light on if she wasn't. Ilyukhina knocked and then immediately tried the knob. No voices filtered through, so she wasn't on a call. Ilyukhina opened the door and sure enough, Stratt was there at her desk, squinting at her computer screen with an expression like disbelief on her face. She was so absorbed in whatever she was looking at that Ilyukhina made it all the way to her desk before Stratt even looked up.

"Oh," Stratt said, blinking. "Ilyukhina, did we have a meeting?"

Ilyukhina hummed and rested her hip against Stratt's desk. "In a sense."

Stratt's brow furrowed and she frowned. "Did I know about this meeting?"

Ilyukhina's face broke into a grin. "You did not."

"Then please come back tomorrow, if you don't mind, and we can discuss whatever it is then. Assuming it isn't urgent?"

"What are you looking at?" Ilyukhina asked, leaning around to peek at Stratt's computer screen.

"The Americans are unhappy that I am commandeering NASA's main campus for a few weeks during your flight training," Stratt said, rubbing the center of her forehead as she leaned back in her seat to let Ilyukhina get a better look. "They are making ridiculous demands and I am not entertaining a single one of them. They cannot stop me from using NASA's facilities and it is foolish for them to think that they can haggle like we are at some flea market. It is not optional! They should know that by now. Really, their president is an insufferable idiot. He thinks he can–" Stratt took a deep breath and let it out slowly, visibly getting her frustration back under control.

Ilyukhina's mouth had fallen open a little when Stratt raised her voice. It was a rare occurrence. The director was known more for her cold anger and disappointment than heated exchanges. Now, Ilyukhina watched as Stratt inhaled and exhaled on what was clearly an even count. "Maybe you should take break," Ilyukhina said, leaning closer. "Let off steam. Take your hair down."

Stratt—hair loose around her shoulders—raised her eyebrows, and Ilyukhina waved her hand. "You know what I mean," Ilyukhina said.

"I have too much work to do tonight," Stratt said, moving closer to her desk again.

Ilyukhina moved quickly to put her body in the way, one hip blocking the chair from moving all the way forward. "Is Saturday night," Ilyukhina emphasized. "When did you last have break?"

Stratt frowned but didn't answer. Which was an answer in itself really.

"You are frustrated, if you keep like this you will burn out, and then where will we be, hm?" Ilyukhina said coaxingly. "Come. Tomorrow is Sunday anyway and no one works on Sunday. Is there anything truly urgent on your desk? Anything that cannot wait until tomorrow or Monday?"

It looked pained, but Stratt did shake her head in the negative. Her lips were pressed in a tight line and Ilyukhina could see the bags beneath her eyes, the lines of stress that never seemed to go away.

A concession. That was good. Ilyukhina had to tread carefully now or Stratt could take her suggestion too much to heart and just go back to her quarters. "Come on, let's go hang out, relax. You need to be around people who are just enjoying themselves. You need to see people having fun." Ilyukhina bit her lip before continuing, "It…might be good reminder, you know?" she said softly. "Of why we are all doing this."

Stratt closed her eyes.

"Please?" Ilyukhina asked, bending down so that when Stratt opened her eyes, Ilyukhina was looking straight into them. Clear blue pools, tired but there was something there that Ilyukhina could work with. Loneliness, she thought. She would rid Eva of that, if Eva would let her. Ilyukhina smiled a small genuine smile, different than the mischievous grin that was so often on her face.

"Break Room will be good right now. People. Even karaoke machine," Ilyukhina said.

Stratt put her face into her hands, hair falling to frame it. "I knew that godforsaken bar was going to come back to haunt me," she muttered.

"Ah, but in good way, yes?" Ilyukhina said, clapping her hands together. "And you are one who got karaoke machine, I do not recall anyone asking specifically for that."

Stratt sighed into her hands, but when she sat up, her cheeks were flushed. "People like karaoke," she said stiffly. "It is fun."

Ilyukhina snorted, then she dissolved into laughter while Stratt watched, sitting very still and upright in her desk chair. "I am sorry," Ilyukhina said, gasping. "No, no, you are right. It is fun. It is very fun. We should go do song."

Stratt flushed deep red now, and Ilyukhina took note. Interesting. "Absolutely not," Stratt said, pushing herself to her feet.

Oh, no. Ilyukhina's heart raced. "Okay, no karaoke," she said quickly, raising her hands. "Come with me, one hour. Get drink, enjoy atmosphere, relax. Then…maybe you will sleep better." Ilyukhina tilted her head. "If you, you know, unwind first."

For one horrifying moment, Ilyukhina thought she was going to fail. Then relief flooded her as Stratt sighed and nodded. "Perhaps you are right," she said wearily, and Ilyukhina did not miss the confession hidden in the agreement. So Stratt hadn't been sleeping, but she'd been trying. Ilyukhina had always wondered how much of Stratt's sleep trouble came from her unwillingness to give up time she could be working and how much came from a genuine inability to turn off that brilliant mind of hers. It seemed at least some of it was the latter.

Twenty minutes would have been a safer bet, Ilyukhina thought as she gently herded Stratt out of her office and waited as she locked her office door, but she wasn't going to rush Stratt. Not in a million years would she tell Eva Stratt to hurry up when she was already leading the woman to an activity that was outside of her normal comfort zone. When getting her to relax was so precarious. Instead, Ilyukhina quietly congratulated herself on getting Stratt to agree to come along with her at all.

When they got close to the Break Room, Ilyukhina sent a quick text to Grace and jogged a couple of steps so that she was walking a little in front of Stratt. Ilyukhina opened the door and ushered her inside, closing the door behind them. Stratt came to an abrupt halt as she took in all of the decorations and the crowd of people facing them. A round of cheers and applause went up, more enthusiastic than Ilyukhina had expected, but she was pleased. She imagined Grace had something to do with that. Repayment for all of the times Stratt had forced world leaders to clap for him, probably. Stratt did deserve to be celebrated. Ilyukhina joined in, grinning when Stratt turned to look at her, a rare expression of surprise on her face.

"Come, come," Ilyukhina said, taking her hand and dragging her over to the bar where the cake sat.

"What is going on?" Stratt asked, breathless.

"Is an unbirthday party! Surprise!" Ilyukhina said. "I have been on ship over one year, so I know you had birthday at some point. Since you will not tell anyone when, we are celebrating now, yes?"

The candles were lit already, and Ilyukhina winked at Ines as they both watched Stratt take it all in. Grace and Carl watched from the wall, both wore expressions that were equally confused and impressed. How? Grace mouthed, eyes wide and brow furrowed. Ilyukhina almost laughed out loud, while beside him, Carl just shook his head and gestured to his eyes. Ilyukhina rolled hers.

"I–Thank you," Stratt said, eyes wide and posture stiff.

"You are not pleased?" Ilyukhina asked, suddenly very aware of all of the attention on Stratt. Surely, she was used to attention, but this was a very different context.

"No, I–" Stratt cleared her throat. "I am, thank you. Is this for me, then?" she asked, posture relaxing slightly as she adjusted to the situation.

"It is! Do not worry, Kitchen Crew made it," Ilyukhina said. "I did writing though."

"Thank you," Stratt said again, and then she turned to Xiao, who was standing at the bar close by. "Thank you," she repeated.

"Now you blow out candles!" Ilyukhina exclaimed.

Stratt leaned forward and everyone watched as she blew. The candles flickered but didn't go out. Ilyukhina felt a laugh rising in her throat as Stratt blew a second time and then a third and then made a sound of frustration before rounding on Ilyukhina, who was bent halfway over and wheezing audibly as she failed to hold back her laughter. She was the only one who dared, though several people had hands clapped over their mouths and eyes squinched closed with effort. A few people had even turned entirely away.

"Cosmonaut Ilyukhina," Stratt said in a dangerous voice, "did you put trick candles on this cake."

It was not a question, so Ilyukhina didn't really need to answer, and honestly the shout of laughter she finally let out at that was answer enough. She fell into a crouch, one hand down on the floor to hold her even a little upright as her entire body rocked with laughter. A few people from the crowd joined in, though it was partially at Ilyukhina. Her eyes had slammed shut and there were tears creeping down her cheeks as she struggled to breath. When she managed to peel her eyes open again, she was fully sitting on the floor and her entire abdomen hurt with the effort of the outburst. Stratt was glaring down at her. For one moment, Ilyukhina thought she had crossed a line, and clearly Grace had the same worry. She could see him out of the corner of her eye, watching with wide eyes and a hand over his mouth. Beside him, Carl looked ready to step in to keep Stratt from possibly killing her.

Then a quiet laugh got her attention, and Ilyukhina's attention whipped back to Stratt. The glare she'd been nailing Ilyukhina with wasn't holding up. Stratt's lips were quivering as she very obviously fought a smile and, to Ilyukhina's delight, she realized that the laugh had come from Stratt. Ilyukhina's jaw dropped into an open smile and her eyes widened.

Stratt raised a hand to cover her mouth as another laugh escaped her. Then she took a deep breath and swallowed. "Ilyukhina?"

Ilyukhina stared at her.

"I believe I asked you a question?"

"Yes, yes, they are trick candles," Ilyukhina said, words tumbling out.

Carl came up and began putting out the candles himself. "Okay! Let's cut this, it looks delicious," he said, pulling some of the attention away from the startling dynamic of Ilyukhina sitting at Stratt's feet. "Xiao, you have the knife?"

"Actually, I do," Ines said, stepping in smoothly. While Ilyukhina recovered and climbed to her feet, the bartender sliced the cake into neat blocks that Carl and Grace began putting onto paper plates and handing out.

Stratt nodded to Ines, who—now that she was finished cutting the cake—poured Stratt a whiskey, neat, and slid it down the bar to Stratt's waiting hand. Ilyukhina's mouth watered, and she swallowed. Then she caught Shapiro's eye, and Shapiro wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. Ilyukhina wiggled her eyebrows in return, then she made her way over and said, "Is joke, not a single thing is happening between us. Swear," Ilyukhina said, pressing a hand over her heart.

"Uh huh," Shapiro said, taking a sip of her beer. "Sure."

"Methinks the lady doth protest too much," DuBois said, appearing over Shapiro's shoulder with a glass of red wine.

"No protest," Ilyukhina protested. "Only fact."

The music, which had been playing quietly in the background, raised in volume as the party got into full swing, now that the guest of honor had arrived. It became more difficult to hear, and Ilyukhina was never going to convince the pair anyway, not when they themselves were fucking like rabbits at every opportunity. Instead she stuck out her tongue at them and went over to the bar to take solace in the tumbler of vodka that Ines already had waiting for her. Neat and Russian strong. She tossed half of it back in one gulp and turned to rest her back against the bar, observing the fruits of her labor.

The karaoke machine in the back was already drawing a crowd of interested parties. People were gathered around the tables drinking, eating cake, and taking part in the party hats that were scattered around. A few people had freed balloons from the walls or tabletops and were batting them around the room, drawing cheers whenever someone prevented one from hitting the floor. Ilyukhina kept scanning the room until she finally spotted Stratt, who was doing just what Ilyukhina was doing. They caught each other's eye and Ilyukhina waved cheekily at her. Stratt gave a small, close lipped smile and made her way over to Ilyukhina.

"I find I do not recall how to do…this," Stratt said, gesturing to the room as a whole. "I appreciate the effort you put into pulling this together."

Ilyukhina made a dismissive sound and waved a hand. "Was nothing. I had help," she said, throwing back the rest of her vodka and tapping the glass on the bar. Ines was there in a moment to fill it up and give her a knowing look.

"This is not nothing, help or no," Stratt said. Then she turned to fully face Ilyukhina, leaning one elbow on the bar. "I do not recall seeing any of these supplies on the requisition forms though." She raised an eyebrow.

"Ah." Ilyukhina took a smaller sip of vodka.

Stratt sighed. "I do not want to know. Please do not make me need to know," she said pointedly.

Ilyukhina shook her head. "No, never," she replied, breathing an internal sigh of relief.

Stratt pulled a bar stool out and sat on it, clearly settling in for a little bit. Ilyukhina sat as well, more relaxed now that it seemed like Stratt was—if not having fun, per se—having a nice time. Ilyukhina watched Stratt out of the corner of her eye while she nursed her second vodka. Stratt sipped her whiskey and leaned back against the bar, her feet hooked around the support rung toward the bottom of the bar stool.

Stratt's posture was looser, some of the earlier tension drained away either from the environment or the alcohol. Her hair still hung loosely down her back and it shined like copper in the warm light. The light was warm and brought out a slight flush on Eva's cheeks as she watched the crowd. Her expression was still neutral, but a little smile curved the corners of her mouth. Their bar stools were close enough that every so often their knees brushed, but Eva either didn't notice or wasn't worried about it.

"So, this is good? You are having good time?" Ilyukhina asked after a little while of sitting in quiet comradery.

No one was paying them any attention now, distracted by friends and colleagues and the buoyant balloons. Eva looked over at her, tilting her head so that her hair fell to the side, draping over her shoulder. "You did good," she confirmed, partially raising her whiskey glass.

Ilyukhina beamed. "I have another surprise, but is back in my bunk."

Stratt arched her eyebrows upward and Ilyukhina ran back what she said in her mind.

"Oh, no, no," Ilyukhina laughed and waved her hands. "That did not sound how I meant. I just did not think you would appreciate me giving it to you in front of crew."

Impossibly, Stratt's eyebrows moved incrementally higher. She took a sip of her whiskey as Ilyukhina flailed in front of her.

"Ah, that sounded worse," Ilyukhina said, slapping her palm to her forehead. "Is no good way to phrase to make clear is nothing naughty."

Stratt choked on her whiskey. "Ilyukhina."

"Really, promise is–"

"Ilyukhina."

"–nothing inappropriate, I just–"

"Olesya."

Olesya clamped her mouth shut, eyes wide.

Eva flattened her lips, clearly suppressing a smile, and her eyes sparkled with more amusement than Olesya had ever seen. The party was doing wonders for her mood, though Olesya knew it was impossible to undo years of stress with one night of fun. She was glad to see it was at least helping. A smile spread across Olesya's face again, softer than before.

"I do not believe you have any questionable intentions," Eva said, the amusement in her eyes carrying through to her voice. "I do believe that you are having trouble trying to say what you mean. So why don't you just switch to Russian." The last sentence came out in Eva's impeccable Russian, and Olesya's heart skipped a beat.

Down girl.

"I have a gift for you that I left back in my bunk because it's silly and I didn't want to embarrass you in front of the rest of the crew," Olesya blurted out. Why couldn't English be as easy as Russian? "I didn't think you would appreciate anything that may make them take you less seriously. Not that I think that's possible," she finished, when a corner of Eva's lip twitched up.

"See, that wasn't so hard," Eva said, switching back to English.

"Easy for you to say," Olesya mumbled into her tumbler.

Eva snorted. "Go, enjoy the party," she said, gesturing with her whiskey glass. The amber liquid within sloshed against the sides.

Olesya hesitated, but when Eva nodded encouragingly, Olesya jumped from the bar stool and darted off with a parting grin. She'd been dying to rub it into Carl's face that she got Eva to come down to the Break Room when he couldn't. The third tumbler of vodka in her hand—Ines was like magic—threatened to spill over the sides as she wove through the crowd. Maybe she'd put her name on the karaoke list.

Stratt watched the astronaut disappear into the crowd rabbit-quick. Then she was alone at the bar, which was frankly where she'd expected to be the entire time as soon as Ilyukhina had recommend they spend "one hour" at the Break Room to wind down. The timer on her watched ticked down. Just over half an hour left and then she'd fetch Ilyukhina to find out what the second surprise she'd mentioned was. Stratt sighed and took another sip of her whiskey, savoring it. Contractually, she could drink but she could not allow herself to get drunk. Which meant she was limited to one drink in a twelve hour period. Long enough for the alcohol to completely leave her system. Sometimes it was inconvenient, but it was also practical—though she was so often involuntarily drunk on lack of sleep that it almost didn't matter. Ilyukhina was probably right about it being due to working right up to—and frequently after—getting into bed.

"You look deep in thought." Grace slid onto Ilyukhina's abandoned bar stool. "She's something, isn't she?" He nodded to Ilyukhina, who was talking very enthusiastically with a pained-looking Carl.

Stratt watched her for a moment. "Did she really do all of this?" she asked softly.

The pressure of eyes on her had Stratt turning to face Grace again. His eyes were more keen than she liked when pointed in her direction, but she did not back down. "A bunch of us helped out, but the idea and coordination were all her."

"And she didn't miss a single session," Stratt murmured. "I have had no reports of her absent or even inattentive."

"I think she figured you'd be mad if she neglected the mission for a surprise party, especially one for you," he replied. They both winced as Dr. Andersen tried and failed to hit a high note.

"She was right," Eva admitted. "I would have been. I would have had to be mad. My position, the Earth's situation, would have demanded it. It would have only been partially true."

Grace blinked. "Wow," he said. "Getting soft on us?"

Eva scoffed and took a sip of her dwindling whiskey. "Never."

"She really knows how to slip under a person's defenses," Grace said with more of a knowing tone than Stratt appreciated, and she shot him a reprimanding look.

"I hope you're not suggesting anything," Stratt said, tone sharpening.

Grace waved his hands. "No, no," he said, backtracking. "I just meant she's very genuine about her friendships." He emphasized the last word in a way that Eva found she didn't quite like, but she also couldn't argue with. "She's not easily discouraged. I mean, she hugged you when you met and you looked, like, so intimidating." Grace mimicked Stratt's signature scowl and then laughed.

Stratt arched her eyebrows. "And how much have you had to drink," she asked, deadpan.

A beer dangled from Grace's fingers. "Not, ah, not much," he said unconvincingly.

Stratt checked her watch, and she must have been less discrete than she thought because Grace gaped at her.

"Are you…are you timing this?" he asked.

"Ilyukhina said one hour," Stratt said with a shrug. "To unwind before trying to sleep." She wouldn't admit it, but she was exhausted, and as much as she was enjoying herself, she was looking forward to getting into bed for once. Maybe she wouldn't dream.

"Oh my god," Grace said. "Can't you just enjoy yourself for once? Relax? Let loose?"

Stratt sipped her drink—it was almost gone now. "This is me enjoying myself. The timer is just," she shrugged, "time management. If my watch is doing it for me, I don't have to worry about it myself."

"And yet you keep checking."

"Yes, well," Stratt shrugged again, and Grace nodded in understanding without her completing the sentence. Instead, the start to a familiar song reached them. The next karaoke victim had taken the stage. Then both of them whipped their heads around as a familiar voice rang out.

"Go! So one-two-three, take my hand and come with me because you look so fine that I really wanna make you mine! I say you look so fine that I really wanna make you mine!"

"Ohmygod," Stratt whispered. Ilyukhina was less singing than she was shouting, but she was also looking mostly at Eva while she sang which was, well.

"A-four-five-six come on and get your kicks! Now you don't need money when you look like that, do ya, honey?"

"Oh my god," Grace agreed. Then he laughed, a huge, shit-eating grin on his face. Stratt made a mental note to force him into the next meeting with the American president. The man was sure to ask for one soon, especially after she responded to that infuriating email. Stratt would find a reason.

Eva fought the blush that threatened to creep onto her cheeks. "This is going to be a nightmare," she muttered, downing the last of her whiskey and briefly considering breaking the terms of her contract to get a second one. Who would know?

"It's a very popular song," Grace said, grin still on his face. "I mean, I doubt anyone will think…" He trailed off as they both saw several people sneak glances their way.

Stratt dropped her head back and sighed. At least Ilyukhina kept the lyrics the same. If she changed it to long red hair then there would be no dispelling the rumors that Stratt could feel multiplying with every verse. Plus she knew her own get-back stare was forming on her face again, a too familiar expression that would do nothing to help. Instead, she forced herself into calm neutrality. Her untouched piece of cake sat by her elbow and she pulled it to her now, sinking her fork through the chocolate icing into the spongy vanilla.

Mercifully, she only had to endure a couple more minutes before the song ended. Less mercifully, Ilyukhina appeared before them only seconds later. "How did I do? On scale of one to ten, karaoke standards."

"Very good," Grace said, still clapping along with everyone else in the room. Some people had watched her walk over but when she entered Stratt's vicinity, they quickly looked away again.

"Stratt?" Ilyukhina asked, thankfully maintaining the careful distance of her last name.

"I am afraid I am not aware of karaoke standards," Stratt replied. Her eyes darted down to her watch.

Ilyukhina caught the movement, of course she caught the movement. "You are holding me to one hour?" she cried in dismay. "I should have never given you time limit." She was grumbling now.

"Too late," Stratt said, shrugging. "Ten minutes until the hour mark. The cake was good."

"Good!" Ilyukhina said. "I am glad threatening them worked."

Stratt raised her eyebrows.

"Joking, joking," Ilyukhina said, grinning. "They wanted to do it as long as they had plausible deniability if you were angry. Actually, that was sentiment of many people I asked. Including Grace." She slid a small, mischievous smile his way.

He hid in his beer as Stratt turned to him. "Really," she said, a little pleased he wasn't entirely immune and somehow a little hurt at the same time.

"Self-preservation," he muttered, taking a sip.

Stratt hummed and reached for the water that Ines had placed at her elbow without even having been asked. Stratt made a mental note to give the woman a raise, clearly she was excellent at her job.

Ilyukhina and Grace kept chattering beside her, and Stratt sank into quiet observation again. Ilyukhina had been right. Seeing everyone happy, celebrating—even if they probably weren't celebrating what Ilyukhina had brought them there for—was good. It rekindled something in her that she wasn't even aware had been smothered beneath the stress of keeping everything running. Under the burden of isolating herself as a method of her own self-preservation. No one would be getting close to her, she knew that, but maybe just being surrounded by it, even while remaining separate, was enough.

The timer on her watch beeped quietly, and she turned it off, stretching. "Well, that is my cue," Stratt said with a sense of finality that meant they were not to argue with her.

Ilyukhina turned to her with a grin. "Ah, time for surprise number two!" It was not loud enough for those around their little perimeter to hear over the music, but Grace could not miss it if he tried.

"Second surprise?" he asked, eyebrows shooting up.

Stratt shot him a warning look. "Whatever you are thinking, stop right now."

Grace raised his hands in surrender. "I wasn't thinking anything, I swear."

"Good. Then I will see you in the morning at six," she said. "We need to go over the notes from the last meeting with the UN."

"Six?" he said, dismayed.

"Six," she confirmed.

"Come, come, come," Ilyukhina said, dragging her away. "I want to give to you before you change your mind."

"Please do not say that so loud," Stratt muttered, and Ilyukhina only grinned.

The silence in the corridors as they moved away from the Break Room rang in Stratt's ears. She hadn't realized how loud the music was until she could no longer hear it. Now that she was out of the excited atmosphere, exhaustion crashed down on her. She stumbled at Ilyukhina's quick pace and the astronaut slowed down so that it didn't have a chance to happen a second time.

"Sorry," she said sheepishly. "I am just very excited."

Stratt looked at her curiously when they arrived outside of Ilyukhina's quarters. "Should I wait outside?"

Ilyukhina rolled her eyes. "You are afraid if you are seen coming in? Eva, I promise my intentions are pure. Nonexistent, no intentions. Swear."

"Nonexistent," Stratt repeated, unconvinced.

"Fine, wait outside if you want," Ilyukhina said, waving a hand. "I will bring to you."

Eva shifted her weight as Ilyukhina opened the door and disappeared inside. Then she stepped in and closed the door when she began to feel too exposed. The bunk was smaller than hers, just enough room for a bed and a desk. It brought to mind Eva's dorm room from college. She sat down at the desk chair and watched as Ilyukhina leaned into her messy, overflowing closet.

It did not take as long as Eva would have thought for Olesya's upper half to reemerge with a quiet shout of triumph. "Here, is for you!"

A medium sized gift bag hung from Olesya's hand, and Stratt reached out to take it apprehensively. "What is it?" she asked.

"Usually, people find that out by opening," Olesya pointed out, sitting on the edge of her bed but somehow still practically vibrating from excitement.

Eva shot her a look but reached into the bag only for her fingers to come into contact with something soft. Extremely soft. She pulled it out only to find that it was a bear, around 50 centimeters tall. Olesya must have crammed it in the bag for it to fit. The fake fur was chestnut brown and it had little shiny black eyes. It was floppy and the beans made it feel slightly weighted. Eva found herself smiling softly at it.

"It was supposed to say "Happy Birthday," so they failed me," Olesya said with a dramatic sigh. "Still, is very cute, no? Very soft. I thought you could use, ah, something to cuddle." She gestured to her own teddy bear, sitting on the pillow at the top of her bed. "Sometimes is good to have company."

Eva placed it carefully back into the bag. Without squashing it, the bear's head poked above the edge, but Eva found she was unable to push it down. "Thank you," she said, the corners of her mouth still curved up.

"Night was success?" Olesya asked in a soft voice. She had drawn her legs up to rest her chin on her knees, arms wrapped around her shins.

Eva nodded, hand still petting the top of the bear's head. "Yes," she admitted. "I had…fun. For the first time in a while. You were right." The words didn't even taste bitter, as much as she normally hated saying them. Especially when someone had been right about her. "I think I did need that, more than I thought."

"Good," Olesya said, smiling. Not a mischievous smile, it was the gentle one again. The genuine one again. Well, all of Olesya's smiles were genuine, this one just somehow seemed more.

Eva's jaw cracked with the force of her sudden yawn, and she blushed. "Sorry," she muttered.

Olesya waved away her apology. "Is okay. You should go sleep, take advantage of your body demanding it," she said.

Reluctantly, Eva stood, bag in hand. She did press the bear down now, sliding it so that it was nearly horizontal in the bag. After exchanging a quiet "Good night" with Olesya, Eva left the room and made her way through the aircraft carrier to her own bunk. She did sleep, bear soft and warm and the perfect size. And for once, she did not dream.