star (![]() ![]() @ 2015-10-25 16:31:00 |
![]() |
|||
![]() |
|
![]() |
|
![]() |
Finally, the last dish. Star had been drying her own hands when she had cast a glance over to Ireland. “You said you had something for me when we were done with chores.” She set the rag down near the sink as she turned to give the tall navigator her full attention, though it took Ireland a full moment to reciprocate it; busy wiping down the counter where Dix had been sitting, a content hum as he finished that final task. Cleaning could be incredibly soothing, a way to draw his attention away from a multitude of problems(and there were a fair amount of things to be dealt with); the company of Star and Dix was a bonus, their bickering causing him to smile the kitchen went from messy to clean. "Yes," Ireland flashed a smile before rinsing his hands and gesturing the younger pilot to follow him back to his room. "I have not forgotten," the corridors quiet now, the cleaning had taken longer than planned. Unsurprisingly, really. "Thanks for helping." Ireland's side of the room was military-style tidy, the bunk on the opposite empty but regularly dusted and kept. His clothes all folded away, the pictures pinned on the side showing different areas of Ganymede, Io, Mars. A lone picture of his mother and father was stuck nearby, and carefully folded between the pages of his favourite book was a photo of his brother. Out of sight, out of mind. As far as rooms went, Ireland considered his to be pretty boring. The desk, however, was covered in paper and charts and books; though it appeared as though Ireland knew where everything was as he sifted through several charts looking for something. "Give me a minute to find it." Thumbing carefully around calculations, and instruments and notes. There were more modern ways of plotting courses, but he liked the paper and pencil - his fingers lead grey from rubbing the edges as he traced and underlined. “No rush.” In all honesty she had been expecting sweets, but this was proving far more interesting. Star couldn’t help but glance about his room as she skimmed through the details of the blond’s room. It certainly wasn’t the first time she had been in Ireland’s space but that didn’t mean she wasn’t any less curious. Personal rooms were always telling of their underlying personality. His room was impeccable. Everything was spotless, organized and if Star were any wiser she’d suspect he was hiding something. It was his desk that stirred the most interest. The jumbled papers, the scribbles-- a true glance into the inner workings of her brother’s best friend. Though, per usual, it was only ever a glimpse. This was much neater than the way Dix kept his side of the room. And yet Ireland loved the chaos that Dix seemed to bring with him, a respite from the invisible restraints that kept him in line; in all likelihood had Ireland and Dix shared a room, it would have become a matter of Dix's things slowly encroaching boundaries. Blurring until Ireland pulled on a shirt that did not belong to him. "Here, come look." The map was unfolded across, fingers slightly stained that pencil grey as he pressed down and the design sharpened. Careful calculations had been etched on the right hand side, a solar system but the focus was around Star's point of interest: the asteroid belt. "What do you think?" It was still pale, the lines barely placed: plenty of room for changes in the days to come while more data was gathered. Star blinked down at the map as she neared closer to the table to get a better look at it. Her head tilted curiously as she looked over the neat handwriting. Disregarding the math, her gaze directed itself towards the asteroid belt. “It’s nice?” There was a pause in her sentence as though failing to understand his notion. For a moment Ireland seemed confused by her lack of reaction, (of course, he needed to explain, maybe she had forgotten already)but then his laughter filled the room warmly, as one hand rose to tussle Star's hair. "Map of the asteroid belt. Technically, chart, here--" his fingers traced a line, lightly drawn as it held back by uncertainty, "--a route for pilots to use." His attention flicked back to her, waiting. A route for pilots to use. The growing grin on the girl’s lips was undeniable. Her eyes widened with wonder as he picked up the map to better look at it, the uncontrollable excitement even wrinkling the edges of the chart. “You mean we can do it?!” she blinked back up at the navigator. “Wait, did Cas say this was okay?” Ireland felt his own smile widen a bit at her excitement, a knee-jerk reaction(always, always wanting to please). Until the mention of their captain; guilt filtered around the edges a little, "No, no we cannot race in the asteroid belt." That much Ireland would be firm on, even when faced with Star's pouts. "However, I think pilots should have some knowledge of the field. I don't think teaching you how to navigate it is a problem, and once I speak to the Captain." An uncertain pause, it really could go either way. "Well, we will see." Star raised her brows as she stared at Ireland, fingers still gripping tightly at the edges of the paper. “Really?” Her eyes dropped down to the map, dutifully gazing at the course though not committing it to memory just yet. “How long were you working on this? It couldn’t have been very long.” "No, just a day or so, since you brought it up. It's not entirely done yet, but since you helped me with the kitchen you deserved a surprise." Ireland would not think of it as enabling, though to be frank, it certainly was just that. His mode of reasoning was: better to know, and forbidding Dix or Star from doing something usually did not have good results. Curiosity was a very powerful motivator, and forbidding anything made the action or object all the more attractive. When Star had set the map back down on her desk, a frown pulled at her lips noticing what her enthusiasm had caused. Her hands spread over the chart, smoothing out as many of the wrinkles as she could. She beamed down at the map, “I’ll have something to look forward to,” she grinned over at the blond. “Can’t wait for it to be done. I’m sure Dix wouldn’t mind testing this route out either.” He let out a laugh at the mention of her brother. "He'll probably try to convince the captain to use this route sooner rather than later." Star rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. “On second thought, why don't we keep this our little secret?” |