“     don't  worry,   i  can  handle  this.    i'll  make  it  right.    ”      truth  is  they  were  way  in  over  their  heads,   despite  knowing  the  risks  when  signing  up  for  a  mission.     they  certainly  didn’t  expect  to  meet  someone  else  out  here,    especially  not  anyone  that  wasn’t  eligius.       still,   it  was  now  his  responsibility  to  get  them  out  of  this  mess.       “     i’ll-   talk  to  them,     figure  out  what  they  want  and   make  some  agreement  to  let  us  go.     ”         it’s  the  best  plan  he  can  come  up  with given  the  limited  information  they  have  &  hope  they’ll  be  willing  to  hear  him  out.     at  least  they  weren’t  spaced  right  away  so  it  gave  them  some  kind  of  hope  at  getting  out  alive.

   “ When was the last time you did something just for YOURSELF, hm? ” A pointed question perhaps but one she believed would have good intentions behind it eventually. It always seemed like her daughter was keen on working herself into an early grave. While she might have admired this kind of dedication if it actually payed off properly, she was very much under the impression that no one ever truly HONOURED all of this hard work. To Philippa, that was reason enough to wreak havoc, demand the woman pay attention to herself for once, as much as it seemed that such a thing was seen as absolutely sacrilegious to her. “ You know no one’s going to give you extra credit just for doing things extra fast. They don’t care. ”

“     this  wasn't  on  you.    okay ?   i  swear.    ”        they’ve  had  this  conversation  before.      or  well,    she’s  tried  to  tell  him  that  whenever  she  can,    whenever  it  seems  like  he  needs  the  reminder.     they’ve  been  through  a  lot  and  it’s  easy  to  get  lost  in  that.      “    none  of  it  is.   ”      she  had  a  wildy  different  impression  of  him  during  their  time  on  the  canterbury.     but  ever  since  he  logged  in  that  distress  call,   ever  since  he  told  her  he  did.    it  seems  like  he  hasn’t  been  able  to  shake  off  that  guilt  or  any  of  the  events  that  followed.      so  she  tries,   hand  cupping  his   cheek.     “    tell  me  you  can  see  that,  jim.    ”

sharing  clothes  isn’t  uncommon  between  them,    she’s  worn  his  shirt  in  bed  a  few  times.    the  fabric  resting  comfortably  on  her  frame  like  a  blanket.     yet,  she  wants  to  tell  him  she’s  grown  up  on  stations  like  this  and  it’s  not  something  she  can’t  deal  with.     but  his  jacket  has  already  found  itself  around  her  shoulders  before  she’s  settled  on  a  response.      “     you  can’t  help  yourself,  can  you  ?     ”      voice  speaks  as  her  arms  pass  through  the  sleeves,   wearing  the  jacket  properly.      she  moves  closer  to  him,    lips  pressing  against  his  shortly,  as  a  thank  you.