Daeson had not, in fact, eaten breakfast, and was surprised when she found Clarise putting her lunch box down on his table. Then, she pulled out a wrap-- with what in it, he wasn't sure, and offered it to him. There was fresh coffee in the breakroom? He opened his mouth, then closed it. He was befuddled. Why was she doing this for him? "Thank you!" he said when he got control of his vocal cords. He took a bite of the wrap and blinked. It was... really very good. He'd never had a combination of food put together like this before. He headed into the breakroom to get some of the coffee, and poured some into his mug. After putting in  sugar and milk, he took a sip. It was good coffee, too. He finished off the mug, poured another one, and went back into the lab. By the time he started work, his stomach was full and warm. "Thank you again," he said, covering a small, polite burp. He would have to repay her, somehow.<br/><br/>He was looking over some papers the biology department had sent him, occasionally looking up to see what Clarise was doing. When he saw her reading his letter, he watched, a small smile on his face. Was she turning red, just as he had when he'd read her letter? "Don't stare" she had told him. As soon as he was caught, he quickly looked back at the papers, turning a light shade of purple.<br/><br/>The machine he'd sent over to the biologists returned through the tube, and he retrieved it, bringing it to his desk. Having read through their notes, he knew what to do to improve it. He was at the lab for another two hours after Clarise left, tinkering with it. Once he was satisfied, he shipped it back over for the biologists to test, and went home.<br/><br/>He got onto his computer and discovered that he had an email. He smiled slightly. His name had been meant to be ironic. He read that the schematics for her converter were attached to the email. Excited, he opened up the attachment before reading the rest of the letter and looked it over. He jotted down some notes on a few improvements that could be made, then returned to the rest of the email.<br/><br/>Reading that she planned to send him a pie, he grinned. He looked at when the email had been sent. Almost an hour ago! He stood hurriedly and opened the hatch of his mail pipe. Empty. He released a whoosh of breath and went back to his computer to read the rest, having a feeling the pie would turn up soon.<br/><br/>His grin widened as he saw that she had accepted his proposal. He quickly attached the schematics of his latest machine to his reply email, and set his notes on her converter aside to be used. Excitement rose in his chest at the prospect of being able to work with such a prestigious scientist and offer his mind to her work. He was confident that they could make innovations that would help their combined people for a long time to come.<br/><br/>His heart sunk as he read the last paragraph. He didn't like to talk about the old world-- it was something one just didn't speak about. There was a momentary debate within himself, trying to decide how much to tell her... how much he wanted to tell her.<br/><br/>He decided to deal with what was easy first. He opened a separate document to type his notes concerning her machine, then attached that to the email. There were two attachments-- the work he'd done on his own machine, and his thoughts on hers.<br/><br/>"Dearest Goldrym,<br/><br/>Thank you for satisfying my curiosity by sending me your schematics. It is greatly appreciated. There are two things attached to this email: my notes on your converter, and the schematics for my water... thing. I don't exactly have a name for it yet.<br/><br/>I look forward to trying some of your pie! I regret not replying earlier, but I didn't get home until just now. At any rate, I'm sure it will be delicious, whether or not you know the chemical compounds... Heh. I must send you something in return! Not only have you made me breakfast, but a dessert as well! Truly, I owe you something of the culinary medium.<br/><br/>I'm excited to work with you. Already, we are corresponding about the things we are engineering. Who knows what we will be capable of?<br/><br/>You ask me about the Old World. What is was like... I was young when we left it. Only twelve. I don't remember it fondly. People were unhappy there. My people, the Azurians, traveled for ten years before we found this world. I did a lot of my growing up on this very ship. It is the thing I remember more, and might be more agreeable to discussing.<br/><br/>We don't talk about the Old World.<br/><br/>It's true that your world is on the same path mine once was. But it can be saved. I assure you that our technology can heal. For Our World it was too late, but not here. If the damned politicians would hurry up and make a decision, then we could have forests bursting into life within ten years-- long enough for the trees to grow, that is. Some of the things growing here would have been seeds and DNA preserved from the Old World, as your people have lost  many of your native species. It will be some mix of the two, I think. I do worry, though. If there is too much more of a delay, then your world may be beyond saving... and the Azurian people may be, too. We need children. The last baby was born three years ago, when we arrived here. That's a long time, in terms of birth rate. I am afraid for all of us, Aurians and Azurians both. If only these people up top understood what's at stake, and that time is of the essence...<br/><br/>Your turn! I can't wait to try the pie.<br/><br/>--Dayshine"<br/><br/>He hit send and sat back in his chair, watching the screen anxiously for a reply. He scowled with mild annoyance as he heard his sister banging about in the next room over. She was seven, one of the few thousand children on the ship.<br/><br/>She ran into the room a moment later. "Wes!"<br/><br/>"Anari," he replied calmly, smiling softly.<br/><br/>"Fix it!" She proffered a small, mechanical toy.<br/><br/>He took it into his hands and looked it over. "Fix it...?"<br/><br/>"Please!"<br/><br/>He smiled. "There we go. Sure I will. Why don't you go play with something else in the meantime."<br/><br/>"Okay." She ran back into her room, leaving her older brother to tinker with the toy while he waited for the quiet bong that would announce that he had an email.