Obviously, Isa was not able to hear Kole sing, and she regretted it a little. Even his accent was hard to understand, much less she would be able to decipher his singing.<br/>Sometimes, when he would get really into it, forgetting that she was also in the kitchen, doing small tasks like cutting or washing vegetables, there would be slight vibrations on the bowls and glasses from his booming voice,<br/>it was almost as powerful in vibrato as the capitains. The difference was only that in Koles case he was singing loudly, while the capitain just talked or laughed. The deaf girl could not compare it, obviously, but the powerfulness of the Capitains vocal cords was just on another level. Sometimes even Isa felt, just a little bit more and she would be able to hear it.  A little chuckle emerged from her, as the neighboring table shook so hard from Alfhilds laughter, that it resonated with her own table.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">Capitain is so powerful, that even I can feel her booming laughter.</span><br/>Indeed, the girl thought,<span style="font-style: italic"> just a little louder, and I would be able to hear Alfhilds voice</span>.<br/><br/>Glancing on Kole, who paid attention to her, and retold the stories in a fashionable manner, playing translator and harlekin at the same time, she was of course aware, that he was doing that specially for her.  She never met a person like Kole, even his sign language was something like a new developed communication method with aliens. He used eyes, - especially eyebrows-, face expressions, forks, spoons, ladles, movements...everything but handsigns to get his message across.<br/>Still not used to be the center of attention and due to Koles funny presentation, Isas cheeks reddened slightly and the redness spread across her face almost up to her ears. Her smile widened, anoter stifled laugh escaped her. Suppressing her guffaws, she was careful this time, not to eat or drink while paying attention to Kole and the others, not wasting any more food.<br/>Though she could not always understand what he was talking - gesturing - about, pieced together with the fragments of speech from the other table, she had a general idea of what was going on.<br/><br/>Munching  carefully on the rest of her food, Isas eyes often left her bowl, to see what all the other crewmembers were doing. Some of them ate quickly, and returned to work or other pressing matters, others stayed behind to chat even after eating.<br/>She suppressed her desire to go and start cleaning the dishes, because Kole, Capitain and Vice-Capitain were still there, relaxind and eating or talking.<br/><br/>Waiting and trying not to get too much attention was the better strategy, especially with the Vice-Capitain there. Isa did not hate him, but she could not get used to his somewhat strange personality at all. Besides, she was not immune to the apparent look of pity that flashed sometimes in peoples eyes while they looked at her. (him being one of the culpits) Even if she already suppressed her own self-pity as hard as she could, and moved on, she was not yet used to the title of a 'deaf cripple'. The past was still fresh, it was not that long ago, when she had almost given up on her goals, and found them anew.<br/>It was an accident and not anyones fault, in the end, but every time she caught obvious looks of pity, and rarely, ridicule, she had to suppress a gut wrenching desire to kick the persons shin and scream loudly:<span style="font-style: italic">Never seen a deaf person?!</span><br/><br/><br/>Not that she would ever dare to hit her superiors. Even in her behaviour to her crewmates, she mostly used Ragna as an example and stayed polite. In the long run, that was for the best. As for other people at the other ships or inside the Village - Isa learned to ignore them more than ever. Honestly, the positive side of being deaf was that you had a very good reason to ignore idiots, who thought she was deaf<span style="font-style: italic">and dumb</span>.<br/>Isa trained  secretly in her room, to vent out the frustration.  Usually with a picked up and repaired old sandbag, punching and kicking it vigorously.<br/>If somebody asked why she needed so much sand, when stocking up on other planets, she would answer with a half-truth: That sand could make a good emulsion with soap, to scrub off oil and dirt residue from skin and clothes.<br/><br/><br/>Speaking about sand... her usually attentive gaze to everything in the room slipped and was distracted by the drawings on Fiskes face, as he turned around to talk to her. She closed and opened her mouth multiple times, but did not say anything in the end.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">They look like tribal tattoos.</span><br/><br/>Unconsciously she rummaged in her bag  under the table and took out a cotton tissue, clutching it tightly in her hands, preparing to launch an attack on the inky smears... After a while of fretting, and almost standing up, she awkwardly put it back in her bag, and only gestured slowly to the Doctor, keeping in mind that he was still learning sign language:<br/><br/><span style="color: #aaaaaa"> "Will bring...you...sandscrub ...as well... alcohol.. not good.. for... cleaning face."</span><br/><br/>She would be getting too many looks from others, if she stood up, walked over, and started to scrub another persons face, in the middle of lunch.<br/><br/>Her expression entered work mode as she nodded at his plea, thinking about the possible states of his room. Johan and Fiske seemed to compete in being the messiest people on board. They had totally different habits, and different behaviour - Fiske almost apologetic and helpless every time he made himself or his studyroom messy because of his scatterbrainedness, saying<span style="color: #BF00FF"><span style="font-style: italic">"Blast... I swore I had just tended to this yesterday. Another curious feat of human nature, I guess one could put it..."</span></span><br/><br/>Johan stubborn and never repenting stayed on a straight course with his habits:<span style="color: #00BFFF"><span style="font-style: italic">"I feel that you don't quite understand my sense of direction, my own organisation is somewhat of a compass " </span></span>but in the end, a mess was a mess for Isa, if it was documents or footprints - something she or the robots had to clean up. She frowned, and resisted another urge to jump up and immediately attack the rooms.<br/><br/>Instead, she sat down first - she did not remember how and why she suddenly was standing - finished the rest of food in her bowl, with slightly red ears, nodded thankfully at Kole for the food and the performance, and stealthily made her way to the kitchen, pretending to grab something to drink.<br/><br/>Passing by the other table, she noticed Ber having milkstains on her face and clothes. She seemed to have a talk with the capitain, and while the capitain may not pay attention to such small matters, it would be better to have a tissue, - or something to clean the stains with.<br/><br/>Isa quickly crouched down, as if she was tying her shoelaces, grabbed the white cotton tissue from her bag, and threw it<br/>- right on target -<br/>onto Ber's thighs. Standing up and peeking at Fiskes face, she decided not to give him one, after all, because then his face would probably turn from tribal tattoo into a half black half white one.<br/><br/>As if nothing happened, she went into the kitchen to get herself another glass of juice, while 'accidently' putting all the dirty dishes she saw to soak in the tub with warm water and preparing a small bucket with water and a  rag to wipe the tables later. On her way back, she was 'held up' by some of the crewmembers bringing back their dishes and glasses and of course she took them all and put them in the same tub.<br/>Then she walked back to her spot with her drink, looking secretly on everyones plates as she passed by, if they needed something.