Ariel had been the last of the group to join. Their first encounter had been on the way to the Galactic Bazaar — she hadn’t met any of them before at that time, but they took her in and treated her no differently from an old friend. Most of the child soldiers had met each other in the Rau’ve camps; some had been brothers and sisters in arms. And of course there were even literal blood-related siblings, namely Iris and Samuel, who both seemed to have succumbed to food comas after indulging in a veritable feast.

Perhaps it was to be expected of twins, but all cuddled up to each other like that — the two were so unreservedly intimate that Ariel found it adorable. It didn’t look like the most comfortable position to take a nap in, head against head, but neither seemed to mind in the least. She didn’t try to stifle her giggle. 

Too cute!

Tarak and Finbarr — sometimes he was simply Fin; Ariel had called him that before, but for whatever reason he was always Finbarr in her mind — seemed to agree. Adding the latter’s jacket-turned-blanket into the mix only served to further amplify the twins’ cute factor.

[color=e9e6e1]“Always wonderful to see those two getting along, isn’t it?”[/color] It was more of a thought voiced aloud than it was a real question. She noticed her own lips and cheeks unconsciously making themselves into a little content smile. It was wonderful indeed.

Ariel had already finished her food: some fresh fruit and vegetables with a side of nuts, of Earthly origin for the most part. (Although the produce had probably come from some nearby greenhouse in orbit, the meal still felt like a familiar taste of home again.) Not feeling tired enough to take a nap either, that left her with two options: fiddle with her omni-tool like Ashton, or interact with those who were still awake. Although she had to admit that the amateur day traders had just all but secured their financial future, she wasn’t feeling too keen on catching the eyes of the revenue service or hackers or what have you.

Besides, why chat to strangers online when there were real friends to be had right here?

Finbarr had laid his head down, and although he was still awake, she did not wish to disturb him. There was no worse way to ruin someone’s mood than to interrupt their rest, after all. The girls were still relishing their meals, while the group’s de facto leaders were still busying themselves on the stock market. It was hence Flame who Ariel directed her next question to.

[color=e9e6e1]“Hey, Flame? Captain Natasha? What are we going to do as, um, rebels? I’ve seen movies and games before, but... probably a bit different from the real thing....”[/color] The old space operas had the rebels blowing up ships and sneaking into enemy bases, but surely those were just fiction, right?