SECTIONS:

Dinner

The Calm

The Incident

___Dinner___

Ruth and I were the last to arrive at dinner. I looked around checking on my flock.

It looked like Beck was staying in the nest with the chicks that night. Ruth sat down at a table, sitting with the foxes and the cat. The other table sat only Captain... um, I still didn't know her name... and Kuril, her Second. How the other creatures in space continued these social oddities has always been beyond me.

Each table had been obligingly built with rows of little perches to the side of each groove - the groove was to keep food in place if the ship suddenly made a maneuver. I saw that Jimmy was glued to the young cat who was talking to him in a low voice. The cat kept stealing worshipful glances at the new Captain. Green Susan and gray Dave were being handily charmed by Kuren and Eigren. I could tell Dave was getting a lot of admiring comments on his unusual plumage. Bright, yellow Mike was nearly getting his head talked off by a chatty Ruth as she nearly stuffed tidbits of food in his face.

They all seemed to be doing well, so I jumped over to perch at the other table. Kuril and the leopard Captain spoke in quiet voices about loading cargo in the morning and the crew schedules. All familiar talk to me. What bothered me was the way she kept staring in annoyance at the other table.

I tried to be on my best behavior, perched by Kuril. I didn't make any begging gestures or sounds, just relaxed and kept a steady watch on him. He occasionally passed me a tidbit which I accepted each time with a muted cheep. When the eating was well under way, I jumped the short distance and settled onto the other perch. I gazed steadily and calmly at the spotted, feline Captain, still making sure not to beg.

After a few minutes, she glanced up. "You won't get anything from me," she stated clearly. Her patterned, spotted fur rippled over her arm muscles as she moved her fork over her food.

I shrugged and she returned to eating and talking with Kuril. I sat there, growing bored, but this was important. I needed to establish some sort of relationship with her. Even if it meant I sat like this through every meal and contented myself with scraps before the plates were washed.

If I had to, I could get one of the other adults to cough up some food for me. It was a tad embarrassing, but it would work. I wouldn't care if it came to that, I decided. I knew from other finches' accounts that some individuals didn't respond to us and ignored us. My little flock of finches supported each other, and that was simply how we handled things. What needed to be done, was done.

I resigned myself to a boring dinner with a dinner companion whose attention was turned to the otter next to her.

I watched her steadily, examining her movements. Her coloring was bold. I had never been close to a leopard before, so this was new. Black spots clustered together in a spattered pattern over a golden tan background. Her fur had fascinating texture. That, paired with the colors, had me staring and examining her appreciatively.

Suddenly, her muzzle swung towards me. "Git! Skip me and go beg somewhere else!" she growled, showing me her fangs and angry eyes.

I jumped away, alarmed. Maybe I shouldn't have. It would just let her know she could intimidate me. I... felt intimidated. And unsettled.

Seeking more familiar ground, I jumped to the edge of the other table and chirped at the three adults, checking on how they were doing.

"Susan. Dave. How goes the meal?"

Susan flicked her tail in laughter, "Eigren is so funny. And Kuren keeps complimenting Dave until I swear I can see him blush!"

Dave shrugged and said, "He really seems to like my plumage. I would swear Eigren is flirting with Susan the way they are behaving."

Susan flicked her tail, then flapped her wings happily and ogled at Eigren as he made a clever comment about her eyes.

Dave shook his head, another behavior fully adopted into our own communications. "Kuren is really nice, though. Not over the top like Eigren. How goes things at the other table?"

I looked over Dave's shoulder at the other table. The Captain was frowning at me and Kuril was urgently trying to tell her something.

"I'll tell you about it later," I shivered slightly. Whatever was happening, I didn't like it. Had I done anything wrong? I thought through the day, but the only thing I could think of was the incident in her quarters. Maybe old Captain Ivanovich had been right, some creatures demanded full privacy. Was that incident enough for her to revile me that much? It had been an honest mistake, right? I wanted to curse my inexperience.

Remembering my earlier agreement with the young cat, I hopped over on my feet to where Jimmy sat.

"Oh! Little leader! Thank you for coming," he said very carefully. "This red one of your flock has been keeping me company. Would you join me a moment?"

I nodded and bounced closer.

The little cat - I really wished I knew his name - set down a choice tidbit from his plate. Oh, somehow he had learned which foods finches preferred. Probably from the fox brothers. Quick learner, that one.

As I ate, I saw the young cat's gaze flick between Jimmy and the Captain. He couldn't seem to decide which to watch more of.

That leopard was still glaring at me. Finishing my morsel, I nodded my head in thanks and jumped away to a light fixture. Her eyes flashed for an instant in triumph as she found my new location, and she went back to glaring at the other table.

This really was strange. Unsettling. Worrisome. Dinner ended and the Captain was the first to stomp out. Only Kuril seemed to really take notice, though. He twitched his whiskers worriedly at her back, then up at me.

I nodded back. This was going to be a problem.

___The Calm___

I spent a long night, worrying. Maybe I slept a little, but not much. Deneb Finches, like many other birds are set to day and night rhythms, during the night metabolism slows. Not sleeping when the ship's lights were dimmed was very hard on me. Everything was piling on at once. First Jimmy and his - as far as I knew - unprecedented song, then the new Captain who seemed to hold a firm dislike against... all finches?

A dislike of finches that strong in a ship's Captain? Unheard of. How would she have been made a Captain with an inappropriate attitude like that? If she hadn't been promoted, who would back such a terrible choice of Captain?

We are pests, in the sense that we fill every ship uninvited, but we do help the ship and crew in our own way. If she was Captain and didn't understand that... well, there would be problems soon. I wouldn't be the one to start them, but I had a feeling trouble would arise.

After dinner the previous night, I'd been upset enough to head for the nest without eating more food from the scraps. I was regretting it now. Without the semi-stupor of sleep, my metabolism was munching through energy too quickly.

By morning, I was a wreck. I had eaten some at dinner, but not really enough. My reactions were sluggish. I rose from the nest before anyone else - finches nest together for warmth and comfort - and slowly jumped through the ship. Everything seemed quiet and in order. Nothing to worry about, right?

I thought about jumping over to the station, just to get away from the worry and maybe find some food. But, I really needed to be here. Things seemed unstable enough without me skipping out on my post for a few hours. The last thing we needed today was for some excitable flock to take our ship while I was out. This was bad. I wasn't even in very good shape if some flock did try.

All I could do was hold out until the ship had jumped away with those massive FTL drives.

The ship's daytime lights came on. I settled on a perch in the corner of the galley and mess area until breakfast. I drowsed slightly, my body demanding sleep, but the bright light disallowed it.

Kuren was the first to arrive and he began fixing breakfast. He eyed me, worriedly. "Rough night, little one?"

I nodded.

"I saw what she did last night. I don't know if the other Furs saw...." He moved around the galley section, gathering pans. "I just wanted to let you know that none of the rest of us will treat you that way." He looked towards me warily, "If anything happens, don't go overboard, okay?"

I nodded and sagged. I was just one tiny bird....

"That was really amazing yesterday, though. A beautiful song for a youngling just starting out. Never seen one sing that young before."

I nodded again, feeling more weight on me.

"Eh? You're not happy about it?"

I shrugged.

"Just another thing to worry about, huh?"

I nodded slowly. Oh, this fox, Kuren, was very good. Somehow, he was intuitive without any song's connection. I was impressed. Maybe....

I shook my feathers. No. That wasn't right. Even if I liked the behaviors I saw in this fox, it didn't mean he had the makings of a good Captain. Also, things worked differently with these large creatures. They had systems to punish stealing. I wondered idly if it would still be considered stealing if I were to steal something, being outside their law system. Usually my mind enjoyed such exercises, but I was too fatigued.

I blinked. My mind had wandered, and breakfast was nearly ready. I flew over to a table perch and gripped my feathers close to me, unconsciously showing my discomfort. I felt exhausted and stressed. My metabolism was high, and I could not afford to miss out on more food. I perched at the table where the crew had eaten last night.

I needed food. Then, maybe I could find some dark nook where I could trick my body into believing that it was nighttime. Perhaps I could go to where I kept my tablet computer....

Kuren pushed the chow chime button. The rest of the finches arrived quickly, shortly followed by the Furs. I chirped a warning at Beck, who was going to go perch at the Captain's table. Best not to have anyone over there. An unstable feline resided there, as far as I was concerned.

Kuril was the first Fur to arrive. His manner was subdued. Taking notice of the empty perches at his table, his face fell and he seemed a little withdrawn.

The rest of the crew arrived, and the lively chatting and chirping over the sound of finches' wings fluttering began.

Kuren carried two large serving bowls of breakfast food to the tables. A separate type of food was in a smaller bowl for Ruth. Being the only fully vegetarian species aboard, she would rarely take what was prepared for the others. I knew this. I'd seen vids and researched species on my own tablet computer.

"You feed those little brats, and it only encourages them," grumbled the Captain. It didn't look like the leopard handled mornings well. Her spotted fur didn't look as smooth as it had last night.

Eigren grinned, "Ah, they only eat a little, and they'll sing for us if we're nice."

Captain muttered nasties under her breath, but I was beyond caring as Kuren settled in front of my perch.

"Hey, little one," he said lowly as the other Furs at our table began a lively conversation, betting which one would sing for them first. Since a song didn't have to target a single individual, a group could share a simpler song together.

Kuren sat with me quietly, listening as the crew grew more excited about shipping out soon. He slowly fed me bits, which I gratefully took. He filled me steadily all through breakfast. A few I even accepted from off his fingers. Exhaustion or trust? I couldn't care at that moment.

Breakfast passed, and I chirped at my little flock afterwards. "I'm going to try to find a dark place to sleep. Go enjoy time with the crew and 2nd, but stay away from the Captain. Hear me?" I flicked my wings in annoyance, "No one goes a jump-distance to the Captain. Don't enter her quarters either."

The brightly-colored group tweeted in dismay, but accepted.

"If they bring on any cargo, check it all for stow-aways." At my flocks nods, I chirped, "I'll be in the tablet room. Wake me before launch."

Without another peep I jumped away, through the ship to a tiny space in the starboard hull of the bridge. This was my "private" place. A concept unfamiliar with most finches.

All metal, with a tiny perch attached to the siding. A little tablet computer filled the rest of the space. Captain Ivanovich had set this up for me, just after my fledging. As soon as I could jump around the ship, he had provided this place for me to learn things on my own. He'd set the tablet's sensitivity so high, that even a finch's faint touch could direct it.

I had been so curious. My constant curiosity had been welcomed, but it drove him to distraction. Instead of shutting down my learning, he gave me a way to expand it on my own.

I didn't need the tablet now, just the quiet, dark space around it.

Perching sleep wasn't as beneficial as nesting, but the nest would be full of activity during the day.

I got as comfortable as I could. My beak settled into my feathers, and I drifted off into a drowsing sleep.

___The Incident___

I roused slightly when I heard Furs' voices. A second benefit of this refuge was my proximity to the bridge and to the nest. If anything came up needing my attention, I would learn it faster by being close.

I shifted my feathers, feeling better. A warm body perched, dozing next to me. I wasn't sure which finch it was. Difficult to say in the darkness and finches don't have very good noses. I shifted my sensory nubs on my beak outwards.

Ah, it was Beck. I could feel her clearly through my nubs. She had come here to keep me warm while I tried to get some sleep. I stretched my wings, and noticed I felt better. Still tired, but better.

"Feel better?" asked Beck. She had a tenderness and firmness in her that had calmed her mate Mike's wild behaviors.

I sighed, "Quite a lot, thanks."

"Mike squeezed in here a few minutes ago to say they're done packing. One passenger came aboard, a raccoon Fur. The guest will stay in the 2nd Officer's Quarters; Kuril will bunk with the Captain."

I chirped acknowledgement in the darkness. "Any incidents?"

"Nope, most of the station knows you're too strong to mess with. Good thing they didn't notice your slip."

I was glad. It could have become serious if we'd had a breech today. Finches are aggressively territorial. "Did everyone have fun with the crew?"

Beck chuckled next to me, "Yeah, Mike and Susan both tried out songs. Oh, just little ambient songs, nothing direct." She paused, "Did you know that Jimmy found his song?"

"Yes," I chirped, "I was there when he first sang to that little cat."

"It's amazing!" she continued. "He's so young.... Oh, my chick has grown!"

"He still has some chick fluff too."

"-And his song is growing so quickly! I don't know what happened, but he's really opening up to that kitty.... Do you think it's okay? He seems awfully young to be sharing so soon."

I sighed in the darkness. "How close are we to launch?"

"A few minutes." She seemed grateful for the change in subject. "They're starting to warm up the drives."

"Good," I spoke, straightening from my drowsed position. "I should have just enough time to check the ship over one last time before launch."

Beck chirped, and I jumped away. First under the Bridge decking so no one would see my movements, then I quickly popped through each room. Sparing the Captain's quarters of course. Jump... hop... jump-jump... flit. I made it to the engine room.

Ruth poked around, busily, pausing regularly to listen as the drives warmed up.

I tucked the sensory nubs in my wings and beak into my feathers. The space-time vibrations from the FTL drives bothered them. It's a sensitivity issue for finches. With our nubs out, being this close to a fully active engine would be... deafening in a sense. This one was only warming, and my nubs were tucked in, so I was only slightly uncomfortable.

I hopped into Ruth's view, using my birdy legs. I chirped out my question.

She looked up. "Everything seems in order here. You ready to go soon?"

I nodded. Being this close to the station for so long had been nerve-wracking. Many finches inhabited a station, often looking for a way out. The ship had sat here for weeks. When our gathered food stores ran low, my flock had foraged at the station. Competition for resources there was fierce.

"Right," she replied with a flick of her large, round ears. "Hey can you check? See if anything sounds off to you?"

I fluffed my feathers, loosening my nubs slightly, bringing in more of the drives' noise. The drives sounded fine. I chirped happily.

"I'll let the Cap'n know we're able and ready to go."

I jumped away, whistling for my flock as I went. My jumping was still pretty shaky, but after the doze and food, I was reacting a little better.

"Time we're away I guess," I heard as I passed the crew's quarters.

I jumped further down the corridor, checking ports, settings, and air quality.

"Available crew to the Bridge," came the leopard's voice.

I jumped into the Bridge, perching on a light fixture.

All the crew, except Ruth, gathered at the Bridge. Like any responsible ship's engineer, she was more concerned about her engines than the scenery and pomp of launching. The leopard took the Captain's chair. The other chair was occupied by Kuril. The raccoon Fur stood on the far side of the Bridge. The three crew members crammed the space at the hatch.

All of the adult members in my flock appeared in the room, settling in to watch. The three young chicks had been settled down into the nest, and songs had been sung to ease them into a stable sleep. Jump entry into FTL space-time could be upsetting for chicks too young to control their developing nubs well. With the chicks asleep, the adults could watch the launch without worry.

Beck and Mike perched together, above the hatch. Susan and Dave perched together on another light fixture.

" 'Ere ya go kid," said Eigren, holding the short, young cat by the shoulders and steering him to the front so he could see. Kuren and Eigren crowded the hatchway, and the cat was squeezed in front, mouth agape in awe. When Eigren's paws left, Jimmy jumped and perched on the cat's shoulder. The cat stared around in awe, especially at the Captain.

Whatever relationship they had, it was growing very fast. Probably a good thing.... I could only hope.

"Fleeting Minnow to Station, we're ready to depart," the leopard Captain spoke, pressing a button on her chair's small console.

The communications console lit. "Fleeting Minnow, you have clearance in 3.4 minutes, starting in 3...2...1... mark. Vector 8-4-2-dot-7-7, 0-7-3-dot-4-1, heading class C."

"Roger Station, readback Vector 8-4-2-dot-7-7, 0-7-3-dot-4-1, heading class C." Confirmed like a first class officer.

"Successful jaunting, Captain Fellows. Tides of Space and Time return you safely," the station officer ritually intoned.

"Ahoy, as our safe return, Fleeting Minnow out." With pointed movements Captain Fellows ended the call.

Well, at least I had a name for her now. It was awkward always calling her 'that leopard' indefinitely.

I jumped to the viewport window, right up to the well-shielded glass.

Stars shone in hard points and a curve of the station was just visible to the side.

I extended my little nubs, feeling the space-time textures. An excellent shipday to fly, I nodded to myself. I chirped my approval, making it warble a little in my pleasure. To be out in space again... safe....

The other five finches chirped happily.

"It looks that good today? That's wonderful!" exclaimed Susan.

"It should be a smooth jump entry as we leave!" chirped Beck, fluffing her blue and green feathers.

"A fortunate beginning," said Kuril, smiling for the first time that day. "The finches sound very pleased."

Fellows huffed, though the rest of the crew chattered excitedly in hushed tones.

Dave was very puffed in pleasure. He had always liked leaving any port.

I whistled softly to myself, idly thinking. I hopped my feet closer to the glass, peering out. The stars drew my attention....

"Out of the way, you little brat!" yowled Fellows. "This is important, not playtime. Don't block my view!" Her voice rose to a yell when I just looked at her curiously, "Scram!"

And she gave a swat at me, claws extended in her sudden fury.

Startled, I gave a tiny squawk. I jumped away, but I was still slowed with fatigue, so her claw-tipped fingers slipped along my wing. I was two jumps away when I realized something was wrong.

Nothing.

Nothing at all.

Nothing around me! I was in space! In my panic, I had jumped outside the ship into open space.

My time was severely limited here.

I jumped back aboard ship as quickly as I was able. I fell a few inches to the decking near Kuril.

Air.

Alive.

My tail flicked up and down... actually side-to side since I was collapsed on my side. Tail flicking hard, trying to help my air-sacs run air faster through my lungs. I was panting, a bird's panting. My eyes had felt foggy, but slowly they cleared.

Fellows....

Fellows was... laughing.

Horrible leopard.