Catala clears her throat and brings a hand up to her neck, “ah-haaa, that’s about all the practice I can do today.”
Avi snickers, “weak.”
Catala smiles politely, “how much practice did you get through today?”
Avi frowns.
Tammy sighs and pulls the bow from his violin, “that’s it? Fair enough, I suppose using one’s voice is more straining than just playing an instrument.” He walks over and steps onto the chair to put his violin away.
“You say that,” Catala says calmly, “but you’ve worked up a sweat yourself.”
“Hm?” He looks down at his slightly damp shirt, then brushes his sleeve across his brow, “wow, I really have! Crazy. We were only practicing for like, what, half an hour?”
Avi blurts out, “four. Hours. And that’s on top of the five you practiced with me earlier.”
Tammy’s eyes open and he pulls back, “f-four..? Huh.” He thinks for a second, then turns to Catala, “would you like to go with us and get something to eat?”
“That would not-“ She says, ready to refuse.
“Can’t we just toss her something from the fridge?” Avi says bitterly, leaning against her elbow on the table. “I’m sure some big beautiful singer maid like her needs to go back to master.”
Tammy glances between the two girls, “o-oh, is that right? Do you?”
Catala stares at her for a moment, though her frustration doesn’t yet push her to frown. “I would be honored to dine with you, Mr. Parabba.”
Tammy beams at being called that, and scampers over to the fridge. He opens it, then frowns. “Uh, Avi?” He turns and shows off the inside. “Where’s all the-“ his eyes settle on all the empty cans on her table, “oh.”
Avi looks at him, then looks at the table, then purses her lips. She turns to Tammy and points at Catala, “she ate it.”
“…” Tammy claps his hands and smiles, “so! Off we go to get food then?” He heads over to the door, “Ms. Catala, would you like to come?”
She smiles and follows behind, her hands respectfully placed over her belly, “I would.”
Avi watches the two leave, the door closing with a clack. She sits there, stonefaced, quietly seething. It takes her a second to realize that Tammy and Catala are now alone in the hallway. She leaps to her feet and rushes to the door, only for Tammy to open it.
“Avi are you- oh! Come on,” he opens the door wider, “I’m hungry.”
Avi gasps softly, then raises her chin as she passes through, “oh my gosh, thank you, Tammy!”
He raises an eyebrow but says nothing.
The three walk through the hall of the ship. There’s a luxurious red carpet with golden trims and fine art secured to the walls. Next to every door is a small cabinet with a plant on top. Tammy is on the right, Catala is to his left, and Avi is walking behind them. Avi isn’t blinking, and her eyes shift depending on who speaks.
“So when is this ship supposed to take off? I kinda want to see the port get smaller on the horizon.”
Catala keeps looking forward, “Mr. Parabba, the port was already out of view long before I knocked on your door.”
“…I can’t wait to go up on the deck and see the vast, open ocean!”
She nods, “the moonlight reflecting off the water is excellent.”
“Do the stars reflect too?” Tammy looks up at her.
“They do. If we’re lucky and the waters are calm, it will look like a mirror has been placed along the surface. A pure dual image.”
“How often is the water so still?”
She looks down at him, “not particularly often. I’ve only seen it once.”
He cocks his head, “when?”
“It was a long time ago,” she says, her voice even. “I was-” She halts, prompting Tammy to stop and turn around to face her. Avi stops on a dime, watching everything. Catala debates saying it, but decides she might as well. “It wasn’t too long after I was taken from my family and sent to live in an orphanage. My parents hid my brother and I for a long time, until I was eight and he was four, but eventually we were discovered.”
Tammy gives a solemn nod, “I was taken from my parents right at birth, so I never really got to know them.”
“…” Catala wonders about how that tracks with Avi being his older sister. When the gurant took her and her brother away, they were sent to different orphanages. Furthermore, Tammy said his parents bought him the violin, did he not? The boy must be confused somewhere, like when he said he was married to his big sister. “The orphanage was on an island, and I wanted to go home. I built an entire raft and set sail in the middle of the night. On the… third or fourth night I was on the verge of death. No food, I only drank salt water. The sail was dead from lack of wind, and the waters were calm. I laid there and looked out over the ocean, and the water was this pure black, the moon illuminated everything. I looked into the water and I swear I could have counted my eyelashes. It was so reflective. It was beautiful.”
Tammy maintains eye contact, hanging onto every word of her story. “How’d you make it out of there?”
“A fishing vessel happened to come by. Men dumping corpses in the water, far from shore. They took me in.”
“Was that Mr… Kracken? Your current boss?”
“No,” there’s a hint of bitterness in her voice, and Tammy gets the sense he shouldn’t ask too many questions. The calmness in her voice recovers, and she continues walking. “I wouldn’t find myself in Mr. Kracken’s employ until some time later. He stumbled upon me and heard my singing voice. He asked my then-owners how much it would take to buy me, and they refused. He slit their throats in return and took me.”
“Oh dear. Was… that at least an improvement?”
“He gives me a wage for my work. Once I amass the money necessary to replace the outfit he ruined with my previous-owner’s blood, I’ll be able to buy my freedom.”
“That’s awesome!” Tammy smiles.
The corner of her lip curls up for a moment, “the current plan is to save my money and buy my freedom once I’m 22. I should have a good reserve by that point.”
“Smart! No need to buy your freedom only to end up poor.”
“My thought exactly.”
Meanwhile, Avi’s only thought at this moment is “why does EVERY GIRL HAVE TO BE TALLER THAN ME?! She’s not even a bone-tail and she’s bigger than me! Who cares about her stupid story? Tammy, I’m RIGHT HERE! Pay more attention to ME!” Yet she says nothing.
The three continue up towards the main dining hall. A large room full of circular tables and seats, below the top deck and positioned all the way forward on the bow. Besides a few thick metal struts, the walls of the dining hall are glass, allowing the passengers to look out on the water port, starboard, and forward. It’s late at night, and the energy is starting to pick up. Cigar smoke, alcohol, millionaires in suits positioned around a few larger tables, passing around stories and networking. There’re around 30 patrons in total, and a few waitresses dressed in fitted uniforms. The tables are laid with pristine white sheets and candles in the middle. A golden chandelier hangs from a domed spot in the center of the room, with a raised, circular wooden stage beneath it. The back of the room houses a bar stocked with alcohol, flanked by two doors which lead to the kitchen. Flanking those doors are staircases, one going up, and one going down.
On the wooden stage are a group of six, setting up for a performance.
Tammy climbs to the top of the staircase and stands in awe. “It’s perfect!” He says quietly, not wanting to disturb the rich men as they drink and joke and laugh. He reaches back to tap Catala’s arm, pointing at the platform, “right there! That’s where we’ll be performing!”
“Indeed. I already checked the location and the acoustics are suitable.”
Tammy just starts giggling, it’s up to Catala to grab the initiative and lead the two children to a table on the opposite side of the room. She pulls Tammy’s left hand while Avi runs forward to pull his right. He’s too busy looking at the stage, imagining the room full of those admiring his music. The girls position Tammy on the far side of the table so he can watch the stage, and Avi quickly grabs the seat next to him. Catala, mature enough to not cause unnecessary hostility, sits on Avi’s opposite side, away from the boy.
Avi turns around and jostles Tammy’s shoulder. “Whoa, Tammy, look! The ocean!” A brilliant night sky full of millions of stars, each reflecting off the water. There are only a few waves, enough to disrupt the reflection, but not enough to rock the boat.
“Yeah, it’s beautiful.”
Avi looks over at him, but he’s still watching the stage. “N-no, the ocean. It’s right there.”
He nods, then starts mumbling to himself.
Catala smiles. “My apologies, girl, but your brother is too obsessed with the stage.”
Avi clenches her teeth, “I’m aware of that.”
“It’s a good obsession,” she continues, turning to face the raised platform. Her posture is excellent; back straight, feet together, both hands on her lap, as opposed to Avi whose slouching slightly and bouncing her right leg in annoyance. “The path to fame and wealth. If you’re lucky, a gurant might even pick you up and then you’re set for life. Untouchable. Nobody would harm a gurant’s favorite pet.”
Avi cocks her head, “you want to be a gurant’s pet?”
“I want safety and security. I want to one day find my family, then extend that safety and security to them.”
Avi scowls, but Catala isn’t looking at her. “If you want safety, just kill everyone messing with you.”
She cracks a smile and lets out a rough, unladylike snort. “That is rather impractical advice.”
“Wha-?”
“In your mind, I have been messing with you. You haven’t killed me.”
“Yeah,” Avi’s face crumples in disgust, “Tammy has his heart set on playing with you, so he’d be sad if you died. For some reason.”
“Did you not just say the reason?”
She slams her hand on the table, “he has his heart set on playing with you for some reason! Even though I’m right here!”
Catala turns her head, “aren’t you unable to play the violin?”
She leans in and bares her fangs, “shut. Up.”
Catala locks eyes with one of the waitresses across the room, then raises a hand to let her know they want to order. “Mr. Parabba.”
“Hm?” He turns, still watching the stage preparations. There are four men and two women on the stage, and they’re finishing their preparations. One girl and three boys have various flutes, while the remaining boy and girl are stretching.
“You said that you would pay, yes?”
“Hm? Ah, yeah.” He reaches into his pocket and grips a load of the local currency they were given before they left the Barabba Tribe. “That’s probably enough.”
Catala’s eyes round as he sets the bills down, “oh… my.”
The musicians on stage start their performance.
The three in the back play their flutes and recorders, while the two in front tap their shoes on the wooden stage, creating a series of satisfying clicks. It’s a high energy song, perfect for an after-dinner party with drinking and laughing. The pair performing this tapdance have a lot of complex choreography, at one point their torsos remain perfectly still as their legs tap and kick away. At other points, they wave their arms, twist, and there’s even a front flip incorporated into the routine.
The blonde waitress approaches and gives off a bubbly smile. “Hello, my name is Alice. Is there something I can get for you three?”
“Soup, please,” Catala says.
“A bigger bowl of soup for me and my husband.”
Catala turns to her, “husband?”
Avi raises an eyebrow. “…husband?”
“That’s what you said.”
“…Oh, I meant brother. In our language the words are pretty similar.”
Catala narrows her brow, “you speak two languages?”
Avi’s mouth twists into a scowl, “I speak three. Four if you count the secret language me and my husband came up with.”
“You said husband again.”
Avi closes her eyes to breathe in softly, then turns to the waitress with a put-upon smile. “My brother will have the soup too.” She grabs the bills from the table and slides it over, “you can keep the change if you spit in what’s-her-name’s food.”
Alice’s eyes round, “y-yes ma’am!” She hurriedly grabs the stack of bills, bows deeply, then heads off to the kitchen before her generous patron changes her mind.
Catala glares at her but quickly regains her composure. “Thank you for purchasing my meal.”
“Hey, Catala,” Tammy says. Catala calmly turns to her young friend, while Avi’s wide eyes pierce into Tammy’s soul. “What do you think? Like, right?” He turns his head a little towards her but keeps his eyes firmly on the band.
“…I’m sorry, but I’m not sure I know what you mean.”
“That… dancing! The clicking sound from their feet.”
“Tapdancing?”
“Yeah!”
“…What about it, Mr. Parabba?”
“Add in my violin, and your singing. You think it would sound wonderful?”
Avi’s jaw clenches so hard that, were she a normal human, her teeth would shatter. Every breath slow and deliberate, her eyes stop blinking.
Catala takes a moment to appreciate the flutes and the dance. “Ah, yes. I suppose it would complement each other naturally.”
“Hehheh, once I’ve mastered the violin and take my rightful place in the orchestra, I might give one of those instruments a try.”
“The flute.”
“The flute, yeah. They sound pretty.”
“And the tap dancing?”
“It sounds really cool too, but I’ve never been very physically active,” he says, comparing himself to the bone-tails. “It seems like a lot of work.” He smiles, “oh, Avi! Maybe that’d be a good fit for you, eyy?”
The two continue talking, but Avi blocks it out. Her gaze shifts to the two tapdancers on stage.
“A… good fit for me? That nonsense? But wait. Bitch-face-redhead sings… and Tammy can’t sing. Or, rather, he hasn’t tried. He thinks tapdancing goes with his violin… and he wants to try the flute later… so if I learn tapdancing… wouldn’t that mean that’s my ticket to practicing with him? I can’t learn the violin because of the incomprehensible music sheets. But that? That’s just, like, a routine. Learn the moves, repeat it over and over. I can do that. And so, if I can learn that, forget about practice, I could be the one performing with him! Him and me, together! On stage! WAIT! On stage?! Bitch-fac-… the kind redhead said that’s the way to fame and fortune. Wouldn’t it also be the way to love? Everyone in the tribe loves when Tammy plays. So, if we play together, and I show my skills… won’t everyone love me too?” A smile crawls into Avi’s heart, though it doesn’t show on her face. “I need to learn tapdancing.”
Meanwhile, a sharp whistle pierces the dining hall. Catala looks over at the large table full of wealthy patrons and sees her master, Sir Kracken, beckoning her over.
She jumps to her feet and bows, “Mr. Parabba, Sir Kracken wants to see us.”
“Oh?” He jumps as well. “That nice guy from earlier? Sure, let’s go see him.” He wants to strike up a good relationship with his soon-to-be fan.
The pair walk over, leaving Avi to her thoughts and observations.
Catala maintains perfect posture and etiquette, and Tammy mimics her flawlessly. “Master,” she says with a respectful bow.
“Sir Kracken,” Tammy bows as well.
Everyone around Sir Kracken at the table watches the young boy, and they’re impressed.
Sir Kracken takes a cigar out of his mouth, “polite little guy, aren’t you?”
“Thank you for the kind words, sir.”
“Your sister isn’t interested in seeing us?” There’s no anger in his tone, just curiosity.
“My sister… isn’t nearly as polite. It’s for the best she stay away.”
“Hmm.” He sets the cigar down on an ashtray. “What do you think of the stage?”
Tammy smiles with a fire in his heart, looking Sir Kracken in the eyes. “I can hardly wait to hear your applause after our performance is complete.”
Every man at the table appreciates the answer. One of them, a millionaire that manages several factories that pump out guns for the gurant military, leans forward on the table. “You understand that we only listen to the best musicians, yes?”
Another man leans back, rolling a glass of fine wine in his hand. His logistics company is utilized by 17 gurant lords across the planet. “If it’s not up to par, we might kick you overboard and have you swim back to shore.”
Tammy puts a hand over his heart and bows, “I must apologize, sirs. We’ll be setting a new standard with our performance, and none of your usual musicians will be able to measure up to the accompanying rise in expectations.”
There’s a chuckle across the table. Bold, confident, yet polite and respectful.
Sir Kracken brings his right leg up and sets his ankle on his left knee, “where’d you learn to talk like that, boy?”
He looks at him for a second. There’s a bit of tension in Tammy’s eyes, he twitches, and his throat tightens. It’s a perfect act. “S-… seeing people I knew and loved get executed by a gurant for disrespect… I figured out fairly quickly how to act.”
Understanding spreads around the table. This is a perfect lie. Nobody likes the gurant, especially not the people who work with them on a daily basis and have to risk arbitrary executions. Upper-human society in the Gurant Empire is self-selected for excellence since missing your quota just once can get you executed. Every man here deserved his spot in the elite, nepotism doesn’t exist.
“That’s too bad,” Sir Kracken says. He nods his head to Avi, “she didn’t learn those lessons?”
“My sister learned that she doesn’t have the aptitude for respect, so she keeps her mouth shut.”
“Reasonable.” Sir Kracken turns to his maid, “excited about your performance?”
She nods respectfully, “while I lack my partner’s overwhelming confidence in this matter, I am certain it will be to your liking, master.”
“I should hope so,” Sir Kracken grabs his cigar. “I’ve been singing your praises to my new friends and I’d hate to be made a liar.”
A chuckle rings out from the table.
An old factory manager slaps his knee, “why, I’d hate to see what happens if you do prove him a liar, girly! Hehhehhheh!”
The smile on her face doesn’t alter for a second.
Sir Kracken waves his hand, “now go on, get out of here, kids. I see your food arrived and you’re probably hungry.”
The two bow, step away, and only after Sir Kracken has returned his attention to the table do they turn around.
“You even know not to show your back to your betters?” Catala asks.
“Yep,” he gulps. “Had a cousin… get his head crushed for that mistake.” He exhales sharply, perfectly delivering the lie.
Catala is silent for a moment, but reaches over and pats Tammy’s back. He almost feels bad for lying to her, but sympathy is the best way to hide that he’s an assassin. His act is so effective that Catala doesn’t wonder how Tammy could have cousins if he was taken to an orphanage when he was just a baby.
The two return to their table, sitting on opposite sides of Avi, and watch the show. Tammy starts eating right away, and Catala realizes that Avi is still staring at the band. She switches their soup and Avi doesn’t notice.