A/N: OMG this is the fastest I've cranked out a chappie since the prologue! AND it's the longest chapter yet! WOW! All the credit goes to my wonderfully industrious readers who oblige this poor inspiration-deprived author with shining reviews. I love all of you!

As a reward (I know, right? The carrot in front of the donkey. I am shameless.) the first THREE people who review will have tiny parts in the next chapter. I need some extras and instead of scraping the bottom of the barrel of creativity and actually making them up, I thought I would feature some of you wonderful folks! So I will email/PM the first three reviewers, and ask for some basic info for descriptive purposes, and then that will be that!

Love all of you, and this chappie is dedicated to MirieDearie, my lovely beta!

Oh, and I own nothing except for a cracked mug, which is currently empty of tea. Off to remedy this catastrophe! Toodles!

CHAPTER 6: THE AFTERMATH

Jim caught himself staring at the cabin boy, and not for the first time that day. He really didn't know what to make of the kid. He...she was scrubbing the deck, on hands and knees, knuckles bleeding sluggishly. All at once Jim was torn in two. He recalled the boy—girl! She was a girl!—in the same position only a week or so before, and he recalled at that time feeling a sense of satisfaction that Nick was both obeying and doing a good job. Now he was flooded with images of the ladies he known at home, even the various maids and helpers his mother had hired over the years, who never had worked as hard, or as long, or without complaint as Nick had learned to do in the last week. Only his own mother had worked so industriously, and then only out of desperation to keep herself and her delinquent son fed. Jim could not reconcile the boy Nick and the girl Nick in his head. It was bothering him that he could no longer demand of the cabin girl the same work he would have demanded of the cabin boy.

As he watched the girl work, he also recalled various conversations, crucial moments, and arguments that they had shared in the past weeks. Much of what had come to pass now made sense. Most especially Nick's warning about trusting women. She had been lying to him all along.

But , as Jim took stock of the events of the past day , he found that he would not have taken a different course. The girl was learning—to take orders, to hold her tongue, to interact with people above her on a friendly and respectful level. Jim knew these were things that could help her in the future, should she ever seek a position as a servant, or a ladies' maid...

A thought struck Jim as suddenly and forcefully as a bolt of lightning. The princess. It had been an unorthodox punishment; allowing the cabin boy to wait on the crown princess of the Empire. But Jim knew that taking orders from one as haughty and demanding as the princess was sure to grate on Nick. But he hadn't rebelled against the punishment. In fact, the princess had often required Nick's assistance more often during the day then she had ever called upon Jim. Did Her Highness know something that had taken Jim longer to figure out?

"Good day, Mister Hawkins," came a cool voice behind him. He spun, and quickly morphed the motion into a bow, causing the pink blob asleep in his pocket to emerge. Morph flew over to inspect the princess, who smiled amusedly as he became her in miniature, replicating every tiny detail right down to the flounces at her hem and the lacy pattern on the parasol that graced one shoulder. Jim never ceased to be amazed by Morph's exactitude in his little games. Then he flew off to distract the cabin boy.

"Good day, your Highness. What brings you out on the deck today? I was under the impression I would see very little of you, now that you have taken such a shine to my cabin boy." Jim knew it was forward of him, and that he oughtn't question the princess, but he couldn't believe the good fortune of her presence just as he put the pieces together.

"Yes, indeed, I have found him to be quite the satisfactory worker. He does everything I ask promptly and respectfully. Were he not a boy, I would think to hire him to replace Mignonette or Natalya!" There was a certain tone to her words, and a glint in her eye; and when Jim gave her a questioning glance, she nodded almost imperceptibly. It appeared that there were two persons on this ship who were aware of the cabin boy's deception.

Both turned to survey the crew on deck. There was not much activity, as it was the hottest part of the day and most of the crew was belowdecks. The few crewmen that were on deck were high in the rigging, or else moving empty crates and barrels to be unloaded at the next port. As they looked on, one squat alien brushed past the kneeling cabin boy, and then pretended to trip over his own tail, dumping a barrel half-full of kitchen waste on the clean deck. Nick looked up wrathfully, then flung herself at the crewman in an animalistic fury. So much for respect.

Jim hustled down the stairs and threw himself into the growing fray. He hauled Nick out by her shirt collar, and placed a firm hand on the other crewman's chest. Nick was practically dangling in his hold, and he was again surprised by her slight weight. But a last-ditch effort at escape—a desperate lunge toward her offender—reminded him of her hidden strength. When her attack failed, she fell back and wiped a bloody nose on her shirtsleeve.

"What's wrong with you?" he shouted at both of them. "Brawling in front of the Princess? What would the Captain say?"

"He'd say Krump was a lowlife stinking worm!" shouted Nick. "He dumped his shit all over the deck! He—"

"The louse tripped me! He tried to take me foot—"

"SILENCE!" cried Jim. "The both of you! Nick, next time I suggest you keep your mouth clean around the Princess. Krump, I saw everything. You dumped the kitchen waste on the deck intentionally. The Princess saw it too—am I correct, Lady?" The princess nodded somberly. "As reward for your--shall I call it clumsiness?-- you will spend the night in the brig. I had thought my warnings against Mr. Hobb would be enough to discourage the fouling of our ship as a means of tormenting the cabin boy, but it's clear I was wrong. Again, I have a disobedient crew, and a mess on the deck. Mr. Slopes?" Jim called for the second mate, a slight, pasty-faced man who clearly suffered from a weak constitution. The little man darted forward. "Take Mister Krump down to the brig, and tend to his injuries." Krump had a split lip and a tiny cut above one of his four eyes that bled slightly, leaving a purple trail down his nose. Nick was certainly the worse off. "As for you," said Jim, turning to his feisty cabin boy, "You will clean this mess of the deck, and then you will tend to your own wounds."

As Nick attempted protest, Krump lost control of his temper. "Tha' guttersnipe has been nuffink but trouble, always breakin' stuff and makin' messes, and 'ere you've made a pet of 'im! Tha's no way to raise 'im up a man! Unless you likes li'l boys better?" he sneered. Jim's jaw tightened, and unfortunately, his grip on Nick's collar loosened. She flew at Krump's face, spitting and punching every inch she could reach. By the time the rest of the crew could drag her off, Krump's entire face had been scratched bloody, his nose was clearly broken, and there was a tooth (or two) lying on the wooden deck.

------------

Later that night, in their cabin, Jim scolded Nick for her rash action.

"You know you only confirmed their suspicions. You acted as though on my signal! It was too well timed. Plus, you attacked in defense of my 'honor'. You most likely did more damage than good." He said the last in a half-sigh, as though he was exhausted by the entire ordeal.

Nick was near tears. Her eye had swollen almost shut, her nose had continued to bleed onto the clean deck as she scrubbed it, leaving a bloody crust on her upper lip, and there was a rake across her cheek, opposite the black eye, from her opponent's nasty claws. Her shirt was torn across the shoulder, revealing a matching set of slashes, and her pants were ripped just below the hip—a testimony to the method employed to haul her off of Krump.

"I'm sorry. I just—I dunno. Lost it. I won't do it again." She swiped again at her nose, which was running blood again. Jim automatically handed over a handkerchief.

"No, you won't," agreed Jim. "But I'm curious. You're a good fighter. I remember you dodged Hobb without even trying. Why did you let Krump beat you to a pulp?"

Nick blushed. It was mostly invisible under the crusty blood, but Jim noticed anyhow. "Well, I didn't—I didn't really notice. I mean, I do now, and it hurts like a drunk danced a jig on my face." After a moment's thought, she added, "And ribs...and back," she winced. "But at the time, all that mattered was beating him. I prolly should'a stopped sooner. He got me but good." She groaned and flopped backwards into her hammock.

"Well, you gave as well as you got. But now the crew is going to be after you, for at least a few weeks. Then we hit port on Niamath, and they'll go ashore and get drunk and hire some floozies and when they come back they won't care much for what you've done. Keep your head down until then, and you should be fine."

"Thanks." She dropped her gaze and sniffled. Then a shudder followed, and Jim realized she was crying. Panic flooded him. He had absolutely no idea what to do. He would rather have been anywhere in the galaxy than right there, right then. So he turned and left the room. He walked a little ways down the corridor, and knocked on the door to the Princess's cabin. Natalya opened the door.

"Is the princess awake?" he asked quietly.

"I'm here," called the princess, swiftly dismissing Natalya and beckoning to Jim.

"No, thank you. I just need a small favor." He looked at her significantly. She rose and met him at the door. "It's Nick," he whispered fiercely, inadvertently revealing a little of his panic. "Sh--he's crying."

The princess laughed softly, and called to her maids that they were to tend to the cabin boy's wounds, as the ship's doctor had been called upon to tend to Mr. Krump. Jim was astonished by her swift lies.

"Do they know too?" he hissed.

"No, and they shan't unless it is necessary. I only hope that Nick isn't wounded too badly under her clothes. I would hate to have to explain to them to ignore the cuts and bruises, but they're not thick enough to ignore a lack of certain anatomy."

Jim blushed furiously; despite his determination to refuse to consider that aspect of Nick's secret, the princess's mention of Nick without clothes brought a startling new concern to the fore of his mind. What would happen if Nick were injured beyond her maid's talents? Or somewhere that the doctor would be forced to examine her without clothes on? Jim was startled by his determination to keep Nick's secret, and thus protect her. He would have thought that it would be her own concern to keep herself safe from such harm. But since her own safety clearly did not rank highly on her list of priorities, Jim had assumed the responsibility himself. He shook his head, putting the thoughts aside with the excuse of tiredness and stress.

"Should I get her?" he asked softly.

"Immediately. Is there still much blood?"

"Yes. Sh—He keeps wiping at the bloody nose, which starts it up again. And her eye is almost shut."

"Could you bring a bit of warm water from the kitchen? We may have to demand that she bathe. And stop blushing. You'll make everyone think you two really are secret lovers if every time someone mentions bathing or undressing you blush like a maiden."

"I can't help it! I never had to discuss it before! At least not in regard to girls!"

"Nick is a woman now," pronounced the princess solemnly. After a moment's confusion, Jim drew a sharp breath in horrendous embarrassment and took off for the kitchen; the sound of Alanna's laughter echoing behind him.

------------

As Nick bathed behind the privacy of the screen, she heard the giggles of the maids on the other side of the room. Alanna had excused herself to the quartermaster's to fetch Nick some new clothes- her old ones had been torn to shreds. This gave the maids an opportunity to shove Nick into the tub, insisting that he be finished before the princess returned. She was already testing the limits of propriety by having the boy in her room. But none of the crew knew that Nick was a frequent visitor—only Jim and possibly the captain, so the rules were mostly just guidelines.

Nick rolled her eyes at the maids, who thought they were hiding their eyes from the body of a young boy, not the raggedly thin body of a young woman. With her good eye, Nick appraised herself as she soaked in the tub. She was still too skinny, but the consistent feeding aboard the ship had brought her back from the edge of starvation. Unfortunately, she was not in a position to appreciate what the sound food had done for her form. Had she been dressing as a girl, the appearance of curves at her hips and bust would have been cause for celebration. As her situation stood now, it was only dangerous. But she couldn't bring herself to stop eating so much, especially when the sensation of a full belly was so satisfying after her years of hunger. But after that close encounter with Jim, she had been fearful enough to start binding her figure. Jim had given no sign of having noticed anything, but Nick blushed at the memory. She had been pressed up against his chest, sprawled on top of him, and when he met her eyes a furious heat had flooded her. She refused to call it anything but embarrassment. After all, he had been forced to save her life when she recklessly attempted to prove her courage and almost got herself killed in the process.

Another appraising glance told her that there was little chance that her very minimal curves would be spotted, but she would feel safer with a baggy pair of pants and a length of bandage wound round her chest.

Just then the princess re-entered the room, and the ladies maids shouted at Nick to get out of the tub and get decent. Nick heard Alanna's peal of laughter as she tossed the clothes over the screen and then exited the room, taking her maids with her. Glad of the privacy, Nick toweled off, and grabbed at the bundle of clothes. A roll of bandage tumbled from the folds, and Nick said a silent prayer of thanks for her unlikely guardian.

When she was dressed, the maids and Alanna re-entered, and there was much chatter and clucking of tongues as they fussed over her bruised face and torso. With the excuse of wrapping her bruised ribs, Nick explained away the bandage around her torso as they peeled her new shirt from her. They daubed on various ointments and tinctures, most of which stung and smelled strongly. Only the one blotted onto her nose felt pleasant, and that because it eased the swelling that made breathing difficult. She swatted away the bandage that they tried to apply to her shoulder, and shrugged off their incessant questions. By the time the princess finally called them off, Nick was absolutely exhausted. She excused herself, bade them goodnight, and stumbled back into the cabin she shared with Jim. She collapsed in her hammock, hoping to sleep until daylight. Unfortunately, sleep proved elusive, and she lay there for nigh on an hour, holding a now-lukewarm poultice to her swollen eye. She heard Jim return to the room after his nightly conference with the captain. They sat for a while in companionable silence; Jim attempting to relax, and Nick staring at the ceiling through her good eye. Nick decided to take advantage of the quiet moment to ask a question that had been bothering her recently.

"What do you know of the princess's betrothed?"

Jim was startled by the question. He responded after a moment's thought, "His name is Alexandre Di Salvatore. He is a prince on a planet out by the Caeryn Abyss. It's a little one, but it's full of gold and other riches. A lot of people thought that the stories of Treasure Planet actually referred to Mayamin, his planet. They may be tiny, but they're really powerful. It's a good match for the Princess, and for the Empire. Why do you ask?"

"That's who we're headed to meet, isn't it? Just wondering what to expect. Do you know what he looks like?"

Jim raised an eyebrow in question. It was because Nick had revealed knowledge that Jim himself had had to scavenge for, and that no-one below the captain was to know. There was too much risk of the information leaking, and pirates attempting to intercept the mission. Nick blushed, thinking Jim was questioning her reasons for asking.. "I don't care, I just want to know for the princess's sake. She's been kind to me and I want to know if she's being forced to marry an ugly, old, potbellied scumrunner. She deserves better."

"Like you?" he teased, and Nick burst out laughing at the thought. Jim chuckled. "No, he's quite the opposite, actually. They say he's quite handsome, though I'd be no judge of that, contrary to the crew's apparent belief."

Nick looked away, slightly shamed by the gentle reference to the day's events. "I'm sorry I caused such trouble for you. I hope they don't make things bad for you,"

"I don't think it'll be anything I can't handle. Just promise me no more fight with the crew. I can't save your ass again." Nick nodded solemnly. Jim sighed. "If I didn't know any better, I'd ask you to start wooing one of the princess's ladies maids." Something in his tone gave her pause.

"If you didn't... know better?" she asked, voice a bit higher than it would have been had she given it a thought. "What does that mean?"

"It means that I—I think you have your sights set on someone else. So the ladies' maids wouldn't catch your eye." Jim held his breath for her reaction.

Nick was slightly flustered. She knew Jim meant the princess, of course he meant the princess. He thought she was a boy, and that she would have been dazzled by the princess's beauty and favor. It was a perfectly sound conclusion.

But for just a moment, just for the slightest instant, she thought he'd meant himself. And she'd blushed, not realizing until that very second that she might have stopped hating him. And that the possibility existed that she might actually have liked and respected him. And beyond that...well she took the tiny little voice in her head that dared think beyond that and locked it up tight in a dark closet where it beat its tiny fists on the door and demanded to be heard. But she refused. So she rolled over and stared at the wall, wondering how she had ever managed to convince herself that this harebrained scheme had actually been a good idea. She lay awake for a little while, aching all over, and with a tight knot in her chest.

Jim also lay awake, wondering how to tell someone that you knew they were hiding something. Something really big, and possibly life-threatening. Especially when you knew that person would likely take off and never be seen again. And especially when you were pretty sure that was the last thing you wanted to have happen.