At Long Last

"Want to stay with me?" Oceane came up behind Ava while she was gathering her stuff from where it had been thrown into Theo's room to make room for the new guests. It was still dark outside and the lower deck girls were gathering their things to move into cabins.

Ava turned around with an arm full of books and broke out into a smile, "Sure."

"Fair warning, I do not have a lot of space for our bodies. There are a lot of plants in there," Oceane commented and helped Ava with a knapsack that was filled with her clothes.

"Plants?" Ava asked and Oceane provided no more information. Just a nod.

They walked into the hallway lined with cabins and Ava let Oceane lead the way to her cabin. Oceane usually stayed in the lower decks and was one of the only crew members that actually used their room as somewhat of a storage area. Apparently, the cargo she was storing was... plants?

Oceane popped open her door with ease, having been unlocked the entire time. She walked into Oceane's room and sure enough, there were plants everywhere. Green ones, colorful ones, big, small, leafy, stalky. She had all kinds of varieties and she proudly stood in her room to show off her pride and joy. Ava set down her stuff with a small thud and began to walk around the room. Her hands came up to touch one of them and Oceane stopped her.

"That one will stain your hand green if you touch it," Oceane said and Ava really wanted to test that out.

She reached out and touched one of its leaves and she felt one of its spore pop against her hand. A small puff of powder was released and when Ava removed her hand, the powder that had fallen onto her finger had mixed with the slight sweat on her hand and stained it. She laughed and held up her finger to Oceane who laughed as well. There was only one bed in the room and it was small. The ship was so crowded that she didn't dare to even go look for an extra mattress or blankets to lay on the floor; someone else probably needed it more.

Ava sat down on the bed, there was nowhere else to sit. The chair, desk, and small night table had all been overrun by plants. Ava was quiet once she sat down. The smile and laughter that she had experienced only moments ago giving way to reflection. She remembered why she was in Oceane's room and not the lower decks and the mood became somber once again.

Oceane sat at the edge of the bed, opposite Ava, and reached a hand out onto the bed. She opened her palm and Ava slid her hand into Oceane's. Oceane squeezed it and let out a sigh.

"The first times are always the hardest," Oceane whispered.

"The first time for what?"

"Everything. Killing, watching a town burn, being a part of an uprising, stealing, lying... Any pirate-type activity is hard the first time. I would say it gets easier but it doesn't, you just learn to know what to expect," Oceane said solemnly.

Never the one to be anything other than chipper, Ava could tell this affected Oceane.

"Are you alright?" Ava asked and Oceane reassured her with a nod and a tight-lipped smile.

"Just something about seeing people out of their homes that doesn't sit right with me," Oceane said, "I always feel so powerless to stop it. I know we are doing what we can but it's never enough. My family could be next. There is always talk of rebellion around their parts."

This time it was Ava who squeezed Oceane's hand. They sat in silence together, both thinking about the night's events. Ava felt the exhaustion tug at the strings that kept her sanity intact, pulling them taught and threatening to break them. They had just begun and there was still so much left to go. Ava had never been through the process before but she assumed it entailed reuniting those they could and then relocating those on the ship. For that moment though, she allowed the short peaceful reprieve that came with the silence.

---

Ava was not acting as the quartermaster any longer, she was practically the quartermaster and she could see why no one wanted to take it. It was hard work and Ava slept like a brick every time she laid her head on the pillow. She was constantly needed, not so much by the crew but by the families and the people aboard the ship. While it was hard work, she was passionate about it. She didn't realize how hard she had been going all sun until it was time to rest. Ava was happy. The situation was unfortunate and she wished she didn't find her use on the ship through these means but she thought she had finally found what she was good at.

Being a catch-all for the crew.

If Xyra needed help, she was there. If Evana needed a favor, she could help. If Pearl needed some assistance, Ava would be right behind her. Ava had been filling in for miscellaneous roles for the better part of a cycle and this was no different. If she could be trusted to be the temporary quartermaster then she could be trusted to do anything around the ship. As much as she liked Tuni and enjoyed learning about healing, she would have been better suited for a more fluid role. In some ways, the quartermaster position was no different than what she had been doing for the past cycle but she didn't think there would ever have a chance of convincing Theo to pick her.

Ava finally felt useful on the ship and opted to discuss a floating role on the ship soon. She had found her rhythm and the six suns since they had left Alenroux had been a chance to prove her worth. The night after the razing, she woke up at the first sign of light and began her work. Theo had asked her to try and reunite kids with their families but Ava was going to take it a step further. She was going to see if she could reunite everyone on the ship that was missing someone. She made her way quietly out of a sleeping Oceane's room and walked to the Captain's quarters.

Walking in she saw four different lumps huddled together on the bed. Theo could only make out two of their faces, Cooker, and Theo. The other large figure had to be Xyra from the way her body took up most of the length of the bed and the smaller one was splayed across Theo's chest; the child. Ava's heart fluttered at the sight, they all looked so peaceful. She tried to be as quiet as possible. They had set sail only a few hours before sunlight and the others had been up that whole time. Ava knew because she was constantly being woken up by the shout of their commands to the crew.

She found the log, it was in the same spot as she had left it the night before. She scanned the desk and found a piece of charcoal with a chiseled tip, perfect for making any notes on the log. She quietly exited the room and the sleeping figures were none the wiser. Ava wasn't so sure sleeping through anything was a skill that pirates needed, it seemed like a death sentence. With her supplies, she headed into the lower decks. Being lit up by the morning sun, the lower decks were usually earlier risers than people in the cabins so that is where Ava started.

The deck was packed, there were only two or three feet of space between families and both the hammocks and the floors were full. There was even one hammock with five children in it, their parents asleep below them. Ava scanned the room and then made it over to a man that she found awake. She made her way across the maze until reaching him.

She offered a friendly smile and squatted down to his level, "Good morning, my name is Ava. I remember you from yesterday. I just want to ask you a few questions."

The man gave a tight nod.

"What is your name?"

"Lorli," he said quietly, as to not disturb the others around them.

"Hello Lorli," she repeated, "Are you missing anyone? I can check my list and see if they are on my manifest."

He glanced around to make sure no one was listening and whispered with pain in his voice, "My partner, Jinai. He went to the vigil and never came back home. I had to leave our home and I came here when I couldn't find him. I had nowhere else to go. I didn't want to leave him."

Ava's heart lurched in her chest and she glanced down at her log and flipped through it until she found the name. Relief washed over her. She was going to be able to tell a man in pain that she found his love.

"Jinai is aboard our ship. He's in the infirmary right now," she said.

Lorli let out a relieved gasp and put his hands over his mouth in shock, "Can I see him?"

"Aye, I will lead you there," Ava said and stood up. She made sure of her promise and reunited the couple. Jinai wasn't badly injured but did need to stay in the infirmary for observation but Lorli was not planning on leaving his side.

Tuni pulled Ava aside, "I'm going to give a checkup to him too. I need you to ask anyone you talk to if they've seen me yet. If they haven't, send them my way please."

"I'm going around speaking to people about their missing family and friends, I will make sure to ask that too," Ava promised and Tuni reached out and took her arm gently.

"You must be careful, child. Do not tell anyone that who they are looking for is on the ship. It might be someone's only chance to get away and you just put them back in the hands of someone they don't want to be around. Talk to everyone involved first," Tuni advised and Ava hadn't thought of that.

Tuni must have had a reason to say it, everything she advised always did. Ava was happy to oblige, anything to keep those who had lost everything from losing their freedom too. Ava went back down to the lower decks and most of her morning was spent asking questions, checking the logs, and sending people to Tuni. She wished she could say her luck with her first conversation was the luck she had with all of them but that wasn't the case. Only two people besides Lorli and Jinai were reunited. A little girl with her older sister and older brother. And an elderly mother with her son. Hundreds of people were all missing at least one person from their party, caught in the fire and the chaos.

While Ava was finally happy to be of use around the ship, she regretted that it took this to realize. No one deserved the pain she was seeing. She couldn't imagine having everything ripped from her grasp. She couldn't imagine being oppressed by the constant patrolling of soldiers and not being able to fight back. She couldn't imagine that at the first sign of resistance, peaceful resistance, their town was destroyed. Ava knew it was twisted but she was glad those guards died, every last one of them and she understood the resentment for Eloxians. Safritians had every right to want to see them all burn in the same flames that consumed their cities and their culture.

Her heart was heavy and that feeling didn't go away. Ava's suns were consumed with non-stop helping the Alenroux refugees, even beyond her regular duties, and she knew it was her way of trying to deal with the guilt. Sadness, grief, and guilt plagued her mornings and nights as she dove into the work. The people she grew up with were the ones killing innocent people. Her father was one of the ones commanding the eradication of town after town, and she was keeping that secret. Knowing he was one of the reasons that dozens of children on the ship had no parents kept her up at night and she could tell no one about it.

She had been complicit in it for 16 lengths of her life. She thought about all of the people that were fed the same lies she was and wondered how much of a change would occur in the world if those people were just taught the correct version of things. As the suns went on, Ava grew attached to the people on the ship. She dined with them and spent time with them, some nights they even all partied together. As the sun rose and fell in the sky, morning after morning the people of Alenroux became more and more resilient. They had taken time to grieve their situation and then with incredible strength began to think of ways to rebuild their lives. It wasn't fair that they had to. She shouldn't have been praising their bravery because it shouldn't have been necessary in the first place.

Theo had many meetings with them as a new route was planned. They were tight on time, the cargo to Gossem still needed to be delivered. They had less than a cycle to arrive but Theo took the risk of stopping in multiple places anyway. They wouldn't stay longer than it took to row those that wanted to leave back to shore. Slowly, more and more people were disembarking from their ship and space began to open up. Every morning when they would arrive at a new city, two or three boatloads of people would get off. They were all equipped with ten gold for personal use and as money for passage to whatever other Safritian cities they needed to get to. Five gold came from the ship's fund and five gold came from a pool of the "officers" of the ship.

The crew also pitched in to help, they would share their on-land resources with those disembarking. They would give the name of friendly shops that would hire them or family that lived nearby. Theo provided each of the groups leaving with a list of shops under her protection that might have been willing to employ them. The citizens of Alenroux could never regain what they lost, their community, and their livelihoods but at least the Scorned Woman was there to do what it could to help.

There were still around fifty people aboard the ship and there was only one stop left in Safriti, Jiorma. They were only two suns away from Jiorma and there were no stops between then. Ava was going to miss the passengers, having a soft spot for them, even if they led to rations being halved. Over half of the passengers that were left were mostly women and girls that had come onto the ship alone. With no family, nowhere to go, and little protections due to being alone, most of them wanted to stay. Theo had informed them that if they stayed on board it would be a few cycles before they reached any other continent to be dropped off at. Their next stop was Nefriti which none of them wanted to live in and then Corinspe. But most of the girls that were staying had no interest in getting off in another place, they wanted to stay.

Ava had just finished her routine rounds, checking on each of the people in her care, and then resurfaced to the deck. There, she found Theo playing with the little girl that had not left her side since they left Alenroux. Actually, playing was a bit of an exaggeration. It was more like a game of fetch.

Theo had a rock in her hand and she would skip it across the wood. The little girl would giggle and run off as best she could to grab it and bring it back. Theo would say something to her in Safritian and then toss it again and the girl would be off. There was a slight half-grin on Theo's face as she watched the little girl enthusiastically run after what she just threw.

Ava walked up to them and chuckled, "Looks like you've grown to like her."

Theo's grin disappeared and it was replaced with a cold expression, "Lies. She won't leave me alone. This is purely a captainly duty.."

The little girl returned and reached the rock out to give it back to Theo and Theo took it, " Bur nio, Kiri ."

Theo threw it and the little girl squealed and ran over to the rock.

"What are you saying to her?" Ava asked.

"I'm telling her to go retrieve it," Theo said.

" Bu nior, Kiri? " Ava tried and Theo chuckled a little bit, one of the only displays of positive emotions she had seen from the captain in a while.

"Close. Bur nio means 'advance and retrieve' and Kiri is the name given to those that work the rock quarries," Theo explained and it was Ava's turn to laugh, "What? She likes to fetch rocks. It fits."

"If you go around naming her you are going to get attached. She's leaving in two suns," Ava teased Theo about the obvious connection she had made with the little girl. Ava had watched them over the past few suns during meals and while they were out on the deck. The little girl never left Theo's side and Theo never let the girl out of her sight.

"The orphaned children will not be getting off in Jiorma," Theo informed, which was the first Ava had heard of it. She had been acting as a representative for everyone and this development was news to her.

"And where are they going?"

"I'm afraid I cannot disclose that to you."

Ava laughed but Theo's serious face showed that she wasn't kidding, "You're serious? Theo, I've been helping these kids from the time they arrived. I deserve to know what will happen to them."

Kiri stumbled and fell forward on her way back from fetching the rock, Theo could clearly see a cut on her leg. Kiri's face scrunched up, threatening to break into tears. Theo looked over at Ava and shrugged as an apology for exiting the conversation so quickly and ran towards Kiri. She had to get the little girl to Tuni before any crying occurred, Theo's nerves could not take a wailing child and she had no escape if the girl began to do so.

"Tuni, Tuni" Theo called as she rushed into the infirmary, "I have a small child in need of assistance."

"Oh! It's the little one! Hello little Theo," Tuni said and took the child from Theo's hand and set the girl down on a chair, "What have we got here? A little scrape."

Tuni pouted at the little girl and made an exaggerated face to get her to laugh. It worked and when Tuni was convinced that the little girl would not explode into tears, she began to collect her supplies to disinfect the wound. The little girl looked up and Theo and made her signature baby noises and Theo just folded her arms and nodded along.

"Interesting point you make there, Kiri," Theo said thoughtfully and the little girl clapped her hands together three times, "I would have to disagree with you on that statement though."

Tuni laughed and shot her a questioning glance, "Is your new hobby pretending to have conversations with a baby?"

"Helps pass the time," Theo joked and watched Kiri get bandaged up.

"Little Theo is all set to go," Tuni said and handed Theo the little girl.

"Stop calling her that," Theo grumbled and walked out and to her room. The little girl rested her head on Theo's shoulder and let out a soft, sleepy sigh. Theo rubbed her back and walked to her room before setting the little girl down for a nap. They were sharing a bed, the little girl having no crib on the ship. Theo laid down next to the cooing child.

She was going to rest before she was needed for dinner but her crew had other plans for her. Navi ran into the room looking stressed, Theo feared they were in for another storm.

"Come down to the training room," Navi said and then ran out but not before shouting, "Quick!"

Theo bolted out and followed Navi, leaving the little one behind. She pushed past people crowding in the hallway until she got to the training room. What she saw were two masses of people on either side of the room. At the center of each of the masses, Xyra and Morgana. Morgana was shouting nasty insults at Xyra as Xyra struggled against the arms that were holding her back. Morgana was also being held back but she wasn't resisting, simply using the moment to her advantage.

This was out of character for Xyra. The fighters of the group were Cooker, Morgana, Navi, and maybe even Tuni if it came down to it but never Xyra. Morgana was out of character too, while a physical threat to all, Morgana never settled for nasty name-calling. Theo felt anger in her stomach at the unprofessionalism being exhibited between her officers. They were supposed to be an example, no infighting. Especially not around the crew. Plus, Morgana and Xyra had never had any bad blood in their four lengths together. It was a sight to behold, two giants, face to face.

Xyra slipped from the grasp of her captors and she lunged forward before being yanked back once again. Cooker was the main one holding her back and Xyra was seeing red, Theo could see the fury in her eyes. What the fuck had happened?

"Enough!" Theo bellowed and everyone turned to look at her. Xyra stopped straining and looked down at her feet, "Everybody has five seconds to get the fuck out of here."

Everyone scrambled away before the five seconds were up and Theo heard the door shut behind the last person. She stepped in between Morgana and Xyra and looked at both of them. She rolled her eyes, "Well someone's gotta fucking start talking."

"It should be the instigator then," Morgana said accusingly.

Theo raised an eyebrow and turned to Xyra, not who she expected to have started it all, "Go on then."

"I didn't fucking do shit," Xyra defended herself, "I stated a fact and farm girl over here got an attitude over it."

"Tell her what you said! Tell her what you told me and say you meant it so I can take you to trial as is my fucking right!" Morgana kept yelling.

"Xy," Theo prompted, threatening a trial was a serious thing. Trials had major consequences depending on the charge and the outcome.

Xyra's lip curled in anger as she clenched her fist, "I said she was a saboteur. I said she was a traitor to you. And I said she was a selfish cunt, because she is."

"Xyrabellis, that is completely out of line! Not another word from you," Theo snapped, this was not how her evening was supposed to go, "Mor, explain."

"She just came barging in here and said all those things in front of my fucking vanguard, Theo. She belittled and undermined me in front of the women I lead. Not only that but she accused me of actively working to subvert your authority. I have every right to take her to trial over slander, false accusations, and libel! She would walk the fucking plank and you both know it," Morgana threatened and Theo held her hand out to stop Morgana.

"If we cannot come to an agreement and a conclusion we will talk about a trial but I cannot have this rift between my two most important officers. Morgana, do you know why Xyra said this?"

"Because I don't want to be the quartermaster."

"She's lying! There's more than that! Morgana, you are not completing your duty to this ship as the acting quartermaster! The vanguard isn't active so why the fuck aren't you helping us with the passengers? Knowingly putting yourself before the crew while you have a duty to them makes you a fucking traitor," Xyra exclaimed, "I simply pointed out the truth and she bloody punched me then-."

"It's not my job! It never was. I was supposed to have it for a cycle or two until there was a replacement!" Morgana tried yelling over Xyra and Theo was getting lost in all the chaos.

"Stop! Both of you!" Theo screamed and they both fell silent, "Xyra, last chance to tell your side. Explain yourself. Calmly."

Xyra was unwavering in her anger the whole time. Staring daggers at the white-haired girl in front of her. Her hands were in fists and they both glared at each other, like two predators ready to leap into a fight.

"I passed by and saw her messing around down here and it just made me angry. None of us have been sleeping or eating to make sure our passengers are safe and cared for and here she was, just lounging around. I also was made aware that she's been talking shit about how she was never supposed to be in this job and that you kept ignoring her requests to change it. Sabotage, Treason, Selfish. It's not libel, it's the truth."

Theo let the explanation hang for a while. Xyra hadn't ever lashed out like that so she had no idea how to deal with it.

"I am disappointed in your actions here today. I am disappointed in you," Theo said, opting to say it with an audience instead of alone. Xyra's mouth dropped, she was shocked Theo took Morgana's side.

Morgana had been embarrassed and it was only fair that Xyra felt a bit of that too. Not because Theo was trying to prove a point or be rude but because Morgana would be less inclined to pursue a trial if the playing ground was even. Not that she thought Morgana would actually go through with calling one but she also didn't expect Xyra and Morgana to be the ones at odds out of her whole crew so anything was possible.

"I will speak to you later but I suggest you retreat to your room for the evening. Tomorrow, I expect you to make a full and sincere apology to Morgana. You were so fucking out of line, Xyrabellis. You do not speak for me and you do not throw around accusations like that. I cannot believe I even have to tell you this," Theo drove the point home and then dismissed Xyra with a wave.

Xyra walked out fuming and Theo would have to have a long conversation with her later. Xyra had been on edge for days, worse than any of them had been. Bari's death was hitting her hard and she had begun to push everyone away. Cooker and Theo occasionally were clued in to what she was thinking or feeling but for the most part, she had been quiet and stoic- more so than usual. The journey from Alenroux had been tough for all of them. Cooker and Theo had managed to keep afloat but they could tell Xyra was slipping. Too much stress, too much grief, and too little rest was a recipe for disaster. She was going to give Xyra a few suns off.

"Mor, I'm sorry," Theo apologized for Xyra, "I'm not trying to make excuses for her but Bari's passing is taking her a bit longer to get over. I'm sure she didn't mean any of what she said."

"She wouldn't have had to say anything if you had listened to me before. Where is my replacement?" Morgana threw the blame around and she was right.

"I looked for one, Morgana. I searched for a quartermaster and no one is interested. I'm trying to figure out what to do," Theo defended herself, she knew Morgana was growing less and less patient but no one was biting.

"You mean the two people that you interviewed? Xiomara and Skins?" Morgana laughed, dry and sarcastic, "That's like me saying I trained the vanguard but just taught them how to duck a sword. Bare minimum."

She was right. But Theo didn't have time to sit down and field every crew member, then go through the process of whipping votes and then the stressful confirmation process just for it to potentially fail.

"I'll be happy to take any candidate you suggest for an interview but you have to help me get the-" Theo offered. Morgana would have to help out if she wanted an immediate solution to the issue.

"No need to even lift a finger for the votes, I have the perfect candidate," Morgana provided before letting Theo get her whole sentence out.

Theo rolled her eyes, if there was a person on this boat that was qualified and could get the votes, Theo would have interviewed them already. Morgana thought it was so simple when it wasn't, "Oh, aye? Please enlighten me on this perfect mystery candidate"

"Ava."

"Red?"

"That's the one," Morgana confirmed.

"Impossible," Theo shook her head, "I thought you were going to take this seriously. I'm genuinely asking for your input so I can help you."

"And I'm genuinely giving it," Morgana took a few steps forward, "You were willing to give Skins a try and she's not technically a pirate either."

"Skins has been here for six cycles longer and she's been confirmed already. Ava has not. Besides, not being a pirate isn't what concerns me. She's not fit for the position," Theo dismissed the comment, "When you have a candidate bring them to my office."

Theo turned on her heel and walked to the door and Morgana was right on her heels.

"I have a candidate. I will bring Ava by shortly," Morgana insisted.

Theo spun around, "I said no."

"At least explain why?"

"She's not familiar with the nuances of this crew. She's educating herself but I don't think she's at a level that will allow her to interact in an unbiased way when the time comes. Plus, she's new, she's not a pirate, and she already has a job. She wouldn't get the votes for quartermaster" Theo went into detail against her wishes. Hearing the reasons out loud, they were either speculation or had weak logic. Theo knew she was rejecting a perfectly good fit but something was stopping her from saying yes.

"I think reducing her to being incapable of something just because of the circumstances in which she was raised is not our mission," Morgana challenged and Theo let out a sigh, she was right again, "She hasn't been here long but everyone knows her. She has no issues with anyone and has spent most of her time in the lower decks solving conflict without even knowing it. I know because I have been watching her. Her three cycles as a recruit are over, she's due for an election soon to confirm her, it works out."

"That doesn't mean she is ready," Theo insisted, trying to get Ava's lack of experience to register with Morgana.

"Really? Cause from my point of view she has single-handedly managed the entire group of 200 passengers by herself with no instruction from anyone."

Once again, Morgana had a fucking point. Theo had been so preoccupied with her own things that she failed to realize all the work Ava had already been doing. She had been the pseudo-quartermaster for a while and Theo had glossed over it. Theo had her reservations but it was only fair to give Ava a chance. She felt anxiety build in her chest. Something about Ava being the quartermaster made her nauseous.

Between thinking about all of the responsibility that was going to be put on Ava and the risky nature of the job, Theo was worried. Ava being quartermaster meant she would be at Theo's side for every major meeting, fight, or event and that put Ava at center stage. People on stage with Theo were prone to a lot of things including but not limited to assassination attempts, kidnapping threats, and harassment from local officials. However, despite her reservations, she needed to be fair. She had asked for Morgana's opinion and needed to pay attention to it. The least she could do was bring up the position to Ava and interview her if interested.

"Fine," Theo conceded, "I'll see if she is interested but I need you to do me a favor."

"What?"

"Please do not talk shit about Xyra to anyone. I don't want the crew thinking it's okay to do that. But I will make Xyra make a public apology to you so you don't feel slighted," Theo said,

"I can do that," Morgana said, lacking the enthusiasm Theo wanted.

"Very well. I will be skipping out on dinner so I will see you tomorrow," Theo informed Morgana so Morgana could pass the news along if anyone asked.

Theo left Morgana in the training room and began to walk towards Xyra's room before she remembered she had deserted a toddler in her room. A room that was filled with swords and small knick-knacks that would find a perfect home lodged in a tiny throat. She turned on her heel, comically stumbling to right herself and she sped towards her room.

Upon arriving, she spotted a tuft of red hair barely peeking out from under her desk. Looking at the bed, the small figure was gone and Theo pressed forward to investigate. She peeked behind the desk to see Ava and the little girl sitting with an assortment of toys and rocks in between them. Ava looked up at the sound of footsteps and flashed a wide grin.

"I found Kiri trying to roam around outside," Ava chuckled, "Looks like her caretaker decided she was too much to handle."

Theo ignored the jab and smiled back at Ava, "Don't give her a name. You'll get attached."

"I don't mind getting attached," Ava said, "I will just keep her and we can both annoy you together."

Ava turned back to play with the little girl and Theo felt warmth spreading in her chest. Fondness over the interaction in front of her. Ava managed to win everybody over Theo, Xyra, most of the crew, anyone on land that met her, even the little girl that refused to do anything with anyone but Theo.

"Red," Theo called and Ava turned around, wide-eyed and grinning, "How would you like to be the quartermaster?"