Jade woke up, the side of her head pounding. She blinked a few times and stared at the ceiling. She stayed up way later that she intended to the night before and finally passed out in a messy tangle of sheets and dirty clothes that she hadn't cleaned up yet. If a hangover wasn't bad enough, knowing that she had made a fool out of herself the night before was enough to ruin her day.

She couldn't remember half of it. All she remembered was that she had gone into the infirmary looking for a fight after clearly telling Sabik about a week ago that she refused to fight with him anymore. She had an excuse, of course—she didn't really want to hurt him. Just spar. Kind of.

She got out of bed, tied up her hair, and brushed her teeth. She had a bruise the size of a half-tyche on her cheek from yesterday's fight with Fairburn. Coupled with the heavy purple bags under her eyes, she found herself painful to look at. She wanted to crawl back into bed and disappear, but that wasn't going to get today's work done. Today was the day they arrived in Aydesreve, and with any luck, Fairburn was far behind. She needed a day or two to recover. She left her cabin. Out in the mess hall, Suzaku stretched in between sips of coffee. He had a bandage on his arm and a few bruises. Haworth ate a tomato with a sour look on his face. He always needed twenty minutes to get out of the morning funk. He saluted her.

"Stellar day, isn't it?" he rolled his eyes.

"It pisses," Dav replied. Jade could agree with that.

"Woah, kiddo. Better be quiet so your mama doesn't hear you," Haworth said in a mocking tone. Dav reached out and stole Haworth's tomato. His bare feet thudded against the mess hall as he ran away. Haworth's face grew red. He got up and tugged hard on the hem of his shirt. "Alright, that's it, you little shit."

Suzaku rapped his knuckles against the table.

"Quiet down," Jade growled, pushing on her throbbing temple.

He stopped. "A headache?" The chair squeaked as he leaned back. "Get those often?"

Jade glared at him. "The Admiral isn't very fond of me," Jade said. "I think he'll find some way to blame me for yesterday's events."

"I am close to him," He took a sip of his coffee. "I can't promise that he'll pardon you, but I'll try my best."

"Perfect." Jade was starting to get the feeling that she should have never gotten out of bed. She should have just stared at the ceiling and prayed for the sweet release of death.

She opened the door to Ollie's room. He was awake, laying on his side, his elbow tucked under his head. His wound was pink. It was tough to see Ollie missing a strip of his hair. He'd always had the fluffiest, fullest dark hair. And she guessed he still did, but that didn't stop her heart from breaking a little for him.

"Jade," Ollie looked at her, pulling the blanket up over his bare shoulders until he looked like he was in a little cocoon.

"How are you, Ollie?"

"He is doing better."The desk chair creaked. "He is in pain, understandably."

Jade drew a quick gasp and stepped back into the bunk, nearly falling on her cocooned friend. Sabik sat in the chair, looking back at his medical kit once she met his eyes. He was looking for something that he didn't seem very intent on finding. "Doctor! Good...morning."

"You look tired." Still uninterested in her, he searched through his bag for a distraction.

Jade ignored him and looked back at Ollie. "We're arriving at Aydesreve today. Just stay on the ship, alright?

"I can fight if you need me."

"Stay on the ship."

"Harris," Nejem cleared his throat. "Can I see you out in the hallway?"

Jade brushed her hand over her side, missing her sword. She thought she recalled Sabik taking it from her. A smart way to conserve a limb, she supposed. She stepped out into the hallway. He took a deep breath. "You will be fine to fight today. Do not listen to her." He followed Jade, closing the door behind him.

Jade's ears burned bright red until the fire ran to her nose, her cheeks. She clenched her teeth hard. "Don't tell him that! Who do you suppose you are?"

Suzaku was still in the mess, starting on his third cup of coffee. He sighed deeply at the disturbance and stared back at the wall.

Sabik darted off to the infirmary and entered a code into a locked coffer. He spoke when he heard her set her feet into the room. "I've been a doctor much longer than you have."

"...I've never been."

"Exactly. And so I am quite positive that, despite your rather low opinion of me, Oliver is okay to return to work. We need everyone we can. We are outnumbered, no?" He pulled open the coffer and took Jade's sword out. She tore it from his hands.

"I don't think you get it. I know you don't care for Ollie like I do, but he's been shot—"

"Once before. I know. I saw his arm." Sabik stepped towards Jade. She crossed her arms and widened her stance. He matched her defensive stance. "Do you remember any of our conversation from last night?"

"Maybe."

"I doubt that." He rubbed his jaw. "But I want to remind you that I had mentioned that I like Oliver."

"Oh, that seems—I guess you act so cold around everyone, I didn't think it was natural for you to care..." Jade trailed off. "Fine. I...trust...you." She fidgeted with her hands and fixed her eyes on them. No matter how much time she spent out on the deck, her skin was still a milky white color. The only warmth to her was the ever-apparent redness that stippled her face when she became angry. Or sad. Or embarrassed. Now she was merely apathetic. Her worries about Oliver felt somewhat relieved. She probably—definitely—worried about him too much.

"Are you heading out to Silas Noble's Ranch today?" Sabik asked while locking the coffer back up.

"No. It can wait. I have to beat Fairburn to the Raven's Perch Light. My father was meant to go there before he died."

Sabik nodded. "I will come with you if you don't mind," he said. "I know you think I am a reptile." He almost smiled for a minute. Jade furrowed her brows. That was an accurate representation of her thoughts. Disturbingly so.

She did mind if he came. Help wouldn't hurt, though. She only nodded before setting a rendezvous time on deck for noon. With that, she headed back to the mess hall.

"Harris," Sabik called after her.

She popped her head back into the room.

"I made this for you," he said, picking up a cup of his desk. He handed it to her.

Jade reached out. The cup was warm to the touch, and inside of it was a clear brown liquid. It smelled delicious, although Jade couldn't place the flavors. "What is this?"

"Tea. Ginger and ginseng. It'll help with your hangover."

"I'm not..." but Jade stopped herself because even she could tell how shitty of her it would be to refuse his kindness especially after the high probability that she'd messed up his night. "Thank you. That's awfully generous of you."

Sabik shook his head. "It is um, it is my job." He replied. "I am a doctor."

"Right," Jade said, hoping her cheeks weren't giving away her embarrassment. She took a sip, hoping the cup would block his view of her face. It was warm and soothing. In another life, it would be the kind of tea she'd want on her bedside table on a rainy day. But this wasn't that life. This was a life with fast ships and hot cannons. She wasn't going to let Fairburn get away from her this time without a fair and proper fight. "I'll see you at noon."