Cellulose & Steel

After washing her hands and face in the bathroom, Olivia returns to find Verda tending to some things on her tablet. The way she looks over at her suggests she’s read Olivia’s little note. She smiles to herself impishly. Pesticide power.

The tower of leaves shakes her head and beckons her rogue captive to her. With nothing better to do, she obeys. “Verda.”

“Olivia, you still need to change into something clean. I’m not allowing you into the bed like that.” She gestures down to the part of Olivia’s shirt that’s now permanently stained tomato red. Not her proudest moment, but it’s having the desired effect. How many more times would it take to overcome the xeno’s tolerance? Not many, she’s sure.

“Is there anything you’d like before bed? Water? Some sedatives to help you with insomnia?”

“My freedom.”

“Well, I’m sure you don’t need me to give you any such thing. Pajamas are on the bed. Put them on and get in.”

Olivia finally understands something her brain hasn’t been willing to accept, something weird and confusing. Can it be?

“Is that what you meant by ‘our bed?’”

“You remember me saying that? My, I didn’t expect you to be hanging on my every word so soon. You truly are the most adorable Terran, my lovely pet.”

“I refuse to share a bed with you, you chlorophylled abomination.”

“Then my Terran, you’re ‘free’ so sleep on the floor. If that’s what will make you happy then that’s what you should do.”

That was easy.

“But I’m going to insist that you change. It’s important that you stay at least a little clean, unless you’d rather have an entire bath.”

This time Olivia is allowed to dress herself, a fact she’s grateful for, just a tiny bit. She finds a smooth and loose nightgown that looks quite comfortable. She’s never worn one before, seeing as they’d fallen out of fashion before she was born. She locks herself in the bathroom and puts it on. Looking in the mirror, it’s not that bad. It could certainly be worse, and it doesn’t even look that alien.

She finds a comfortable spot on the wooden floor and settles down. In the time she’s been away, Verda has gotten into bed herself and is preparing to shut off the lights. When she sees Olivia lying down, she hits the switch and they’re suddenly in almost complete darkness, aside from a safety light and the exterior viewscreen. The rotation of the hab unit is quiet and there are almost no sounds. It’s very peaceful.

Tump thump ta-tump. The sound is still in her ear but she puts it out of her mind. TUMP. No. She rolls onto her other side and tries to sleep.