Pony gave a shy but sunny smile as the two came over to sit with her, lifting her spirits. She gave a timid little wave to Jake, undiscouraged by his obvious reluctance to be near her, and then shook her head at Cassie's question. "No, I haven't seen him. I know he got up really early this morning? But he didn't say where, just that he had some stuff to take care of." A thought came to her, and she cast her eyes downward in embarrassment. Her lowered, quiet voice and slight blush confirmed her state of mind. "I think he needed some time to think about things. About you. And me. He wants to be with you, I mean... he really wants to be with you, Cassie. I can hear it in his voice and see it in his eyes. But Uncle told him, Hassle and Toni to stay away from you for now, so Lucien has nowhere else to stay but with me. He also feels bad about me. We talked about it. Well... I talked. He listened."

Raising her head to give Pony a smile smile of resignation. "I think... I think we reached a compromise, Cassie. One where you get him back and I... I won't be alone. It won't be as good as having him to myself or the three of us together, but... It would be something at least."

Before she could elaborate further, Pony cocked an eyebrow. "I saw Hassle talking to you by your nest last night, by the way. I don't like him. When you and Lucien said you were getting married? He was suddenly all friendly and touchy with me." She gave a slight sniff of distain, then took a sip of her juice. "I think he thought that because I'm a little slow sometimes that I'm stupid, too. And easy. i had to knee him in the-" Pony broke off as she remembered that Jacob was sitting there watching and listening to them. "In the hallway," she finished lamely. 

"Anyway, I wouldn't trust him." Setting down her juice cup, Pony got a far away look in her eyes. Silent for a moment, she suddenly spoke very slowly as though being sure of her words as they left her mouth. "I would only trust someone who... listened... to what I wanted... and... who didn't tell me what I should want. Does that make sense?"

*** 

Lucien had sat in the Armory long before anyone was up - dismantling, cleaning and reassembling the spare rifles, shotguns and handguns that had been scavenged for The Colony's defense. Most of the humans carried some sort of sidearm, but the narrowness of the tunnels and confines of some of the smaller caves made toting about the longer weapons difficult. Normally they were only broken out for guard duty and missions to the surface. The act of inspecting and making sure each and every weapons was at its best possible operating proficiency busied his hands while leaving his mind free to think. Not that it was helping this time. There was just too much to think about! By breakfast time, Lucien had cleaned every single firearm in the lockers and had started in on sharpening the assorted knives, axes, and machetes on hand as well. His own breakfast earlier that morning had been a bit of jerky and fire-baked hard tack, washed down with well water.

It was just as well. There was a mission planned for later that day, a scavenging party being sent out to gather whatever materials they could find. The target site was chosen from information provided by one of Hassle's reconnaissance patrols, and if his survey of the area was accurate then the Colony's food and clothing stores would be well stocked for some weeks. And it was in an area where there was little robot activity of late, or so the report said. Lucien was cynical. It smelled too good to be true, and the fact that he disliked Hassle didn't help. Considering Hassle's sudden reappearance in the lab the night before to (as Lucien saw it) woo Cassie, Lucien distrusted the whole thing all the more. He had said nothing, however, putting it down to his petulance and ill-temper. Uncle had approved the mission, and that was all there was too it.

Lucien was still there well past breakfast when other patrol members started to saunter in to claim gear and weapons. Toni passed by him, neither man saying a word to another as they prepared. Still sharpening the last of the knives, Lucien warred with himself over whether or not he should finally say anything. They had once been the best of friends. While it was doubtful they could ever be that again to one another, he had to admit it was at least partially his own fault that their relationship had come to what it now was.

"I didn't, you know," he finally spoke to Toni as he bent over the honing stone and blade, not looking up from his work. The metal rasped along the oiled stone cleanly. "Sleep with Pony, I mean. Not at first. Not right away. I just couldn't stay in the same nest that Cassie and I... But me and Pony didn't start until long after the rest of you gave up on Cassie. Not until long after I gave up. Think what you want, but nothing happened until about two months ago. Before that, all Pony did was keep me from killing myself and give me a shoulder to cry on." 

He fell to silence for a few more whisks of the blade. "So believe what you want, Toni. Take what I'm giving you as truth or don't. You're as stubborn as Cassie so I doubt anything I say is going to change your mind now. But you never asked. You just assumed. just like everyone else. Even Uncle. So if Cassie does ask you? Do me one last favor and tell her the truth: that you never actually asked me what the deal was between me and Pony."