************************Chapter 8******************************************

We were actually on the bridge for about 9 and a half hours instead of the 8 we had thought. After the eight hours, we woke uncle Mike, he said he had some work to do, so we could stay on the bridge until he came.

It was fun. Though there wasn't really that much that needed doing, we did learn quite a bit about the running of a ship. We also learned a few the things we hadn't expected. Kahlen, for instance, learned that Hyperspace strengthened her already impressive telepathic abilities. She claimed that she was able to reach Minbar, but since she didn't know anyone there, she wasn't able to pinpoint any specific thoughts. She said she felt an overall sense of peace and general contentment. Which I have to admit, pretty much describes the feeling of Minbar.

Shannon and Kahlen tried to talk Marcel into letting them pick out some clothes for him. They used me as an example as their success as designers and I pretended to be upset. He refused, stating that the only things he would wear were his Ranger uniforms or the clothes that had been made for him. I had to admit, the fabric of the material was amazing. I had once tried to cut it with a pair of scissors. All that accomplished was dulling the blades of the scissors.

He admitted that the clothes had always been there for as long as he could remember. He said that when he had become old enough to survive outside of the incubation pod and had learned what he needed to care for himself, he had found the clothes in a dresser. They had fit him perfectly when he was young, and the same clothes had somehow stretched and grown as he had, always remaining taunt on his body. This had the effect of showing off his excellent physique to great advantage.

I asked him what his friends, the aliens had thought. He shrugged and replied that he had, when he had visited them, worn the same clothing they had. He had found those clothes also in the dresser with his more "down to earth", as the expression goes, clothing.

Kahlen and Shannon jumped on this and finally convinced him to at least think about getting a change of clothing that would let him blend in more. He shook his head and said that it wasn't his clothes that caused people to notice him. Kahlen studied him appreciatively and told him that the tight material helped a lot, at least with the female population. I swear, I saw him blush!

When Uncle Mike finally showed up, he told us to go get some sleep. Since we had had only four hours of sleep the day before we left, we all readily agreed.

I had trouble sleeping. The bed was too soft and was flat. This was a combination, I knew, that would cause me to oversleep. Although I did my best to hide it, I had always preferred sleeping in a Minbari style bed. I found it easier to sleep and more importantly, to wake up on time, on one of those solid, slanted beds. I had always had trouble getting up from a human bed. There was just something about them that made me want to stay in bed as long as I could.

I decided that I wouldn't be able to sleep in that bed, so I tried to think about what I could do to get to sleep. I took the mattress off the bed, and that was a little better. I studied the construction for a few moments. I noticed that the end of the bed could collapse to form a shallow angle to the floor. Further exploration led me to find that the head of the bed could be raised to something resembling a Minbari bed. I grinned, marvelled by the ingenuity of the designers. The beds could be converted from Minbari to Human and back depending on the preference of the sleeper. Deciding that a touch of padding wasn't necessarily a bad thing, I placed the mattress back onto the now angled bed and found that there was a slightly raised border along the edge of the frame. I guessed that the designers had also implemented this so that the mattress could be used without risk of it sliding during the night.

Now comfortable, I closed my eyes and ordered myself to sleep. It was a meditation trick we had been taught to help us rest when we were in pain or when we were not mentally tired but our bodies needed rest.

A gentle musical note woke me. My eyes opened and I checked my internal clock to see how long I had slept. I was surprised to find that I had been out for nearly 9 hours.

I jumped out of bed and put on a robe. I had changed into a pair of shorts to sleep, something that my father had taught me. It was much more comfortable than the heavy robes usually worn as sleep garments by Minbari.

I opened the door to find Kahlen, wearing one of her own creations. She claimed that it was a popular outfit from her own time and world. She called the shirt a t-shirt, which I guess came from the fact that it looked sort of like a 'T' when it was lying flat. It was a dark blue and had some sort of corporate logo on the left breast over the heart. She had a pair of shorts on, not much different from the ones I had on except for the colour and size. On her feet, she was wearing an old pair of shoes from a style she called sneakers. I have no clue where the manufacturers got the name, for they tended to squeak and slide on the floor, making it almost impossible for anyone wearing them to sneak anywhere.

The shorts went down to her knees and were a navy blue that was almost dark enough to be purple. They were made of denim. The ones I had on under my robe were grey and were made of a Minbari material that I found to be the most comfortable for me while I slept. They were quite short and I had never worn them at the training center.

"Hey. What's up?" I asked, inviting her in.

"Nothing. Just getting a little bored." She looked around the room, going to stand by the desk. "Man, it's not fair. Your room's huge! Mine's smaller than the turbolift."

"Oh, come on. It can't be that small." I said looking around the room. I did see her point. My room was quite large by normal standards. I wondered why.

She laughed. "You're right. It isn't quite that small. But it's also not this big."

I leaned against the wall, flashing her a quick grin. "Privileges of command, I guess. I think Uncle Mike knew or guessed how things would turn out for us. He usually does."

"Yeah, well it's not like it would be hard to do. You're a natural leader."

I shook my head. "I wouldn't say that. I just happen to be well liked."

Now she shook her head. "You don't get it, do you? You are so tied up in thinking about humbling your self and not taking advantage of your rather unique situation, that you just don't see how others look to you."

"What do you mean?"

"Davdan or David. It doesn't matter what people call you. It isn't even who your parents are. You are so busy trying to fit in, that you don't realize the power that you have."

I laughed. "I don't have any power. I'm just a Ranger in training."

She emitted a short snort. "You are not 'just' anything. You have an air of confidence about you that draws people to you. You have - let's call it an aura- that makes you approachable. Yes, partly because of your family, you have an ingrained sense of power and the applications of power. You don't have any official power base, but you are in a position of authority over the rest of us. You have lived with the Rangers hanging around you since, well likely the day you were conceived."

I tried to deny it but she cut me off. "You can't deny that people are always coming to you with their problems. Even people who don't like you very much. Whenever they have trouble with something -rules, classes, other people, it doesn't matter what- they come to you. Because they know that you can help them. They trust you to look after them. I told you once that WE would do anything for you and I wasn't kidding. We would DIE for you, if we had to. Look at us, your friends. Think about us for a moment. NO one would have guessed that we would be friends." She gave a small grin. "Let's face it. The three of us aren't exactly the most lovable of people."

"Shannon's more human than Minbari, despite her appearance. She's ignored by the other Minbari trainees, and not because she's Worker cast. The only reason she hasn't had any problems with them, especially the ones who are Warrior cast, is because of her friendship with you. Sure, at first, they only did it out of fear of your parents. They might not like your parents, but very few of them have no respect for them. And they've learned to respect you, not because of THEM, but because of you. You have earned their respect simply by being yourself."

I was fascinated. I had never heard anything like this before. She was telling me how other people saw me. She was explaining myself to me. "I don't know what to say." I said truthfully.

"Then say nothing. I'm not done yet." She was pacing now. "That's just Shannon. You've helped me too. You've giving me something nothing else has since I came to this universe. Since I've met you and the others, I've felt a sense of home. By being my friend, you've given me a home among the Rangers." Her eyes were watering. "You have no idea how much that means to me. My parents kicked me out when they learned what I am. Then I was found by people who were dearer to me than any blood family could ever be. Because they accepted me, all of me, without reservation and without any encouragement. They loved me. They treated me like I was one of them. But I wasn't. Not really. Their lifestyle didn't suite me. Constant warfare had made the world a horrible place. We were hated and feared because of our differences.

"I know now that I didn't belong with them. They took me in and trained me, loved me, but I never really felt like I was one of them. Then I was trapped here. I've only been here a short time, but I know that I do belong here. I don't mean in this universe or in the Rangers, I mean here, with you and Shannon and Marcel. The three of you are more of a family than anyone else I can remember. You've been there for me when I had trouble adapting to the rigid order of the Rangers. You've helped me with my classes and with my attitude. Before I met you, I felt lost. Than I walked into that room, and you were there. You accepted me more completely than anyone I have ever known."

"You don't see me as a freak or as an oddity. The only thing you've ever asked is that I treat you fairly and that I be your friend. You've never asked me to use my abilities to your advantage, like my people, you don't look at me like a science experiment like many of the others. Or like a brain dead doll only good enough to look at and to ... well I'm sure you understand." She sighed. "Poor Marcel."

I frowned. "Huh?"

She giggled. "Always left to last, despite his obviousness. He may act like he's an emotionless drone, but we know better. He just doesn't know how to relate to others. He was, for all intents and purposes, alone for his entire life before coming to the Rangers. Sure, he has all those doctorates and he's probably the strongest person either of us will ever meet, but he isn't a people person. He can't understand other people's actions. If it wasn't for you, he would probably have killed someone by now. He has no skill at subtlety or subterfuge. He says what he means. He HATES it when people don't do the same. You've been able to help him learn how to control himself. By your example you're showing him how to react and how to behave towards others. He'd be lost without having you to follow. Have you noticed that he has never really let go? I mean, during the spars. He's never used his full strength. He ALWAYS holds back."

"I have noticed. I thought he was just being careful."

"He is. And he's being careful because of you. He's watched you and the others. He's tried to limit himself to what you are capable of. And it's not easy for him. You've SEEN him fight. You have to have realized that he is better than anyone else there. Including the instructors." She was staring at me now and I squirmed uncomfortably.

"Yes. He is the best of us. If he were to try. But I wouldn't say he's better than the instructors. What about Derhan?"

She shook her head. "Even Derhan. Derhan knows it too. Why do you think Marcel was also excused from the classes? He didn't show as much talent as you and the others. But Derhan recognized that he was holding back. And why. He's expecting you to be able to bring Marcel out of his shell. It's no good for the trainees or for Marcel if he holds back as much as he has. He has to at least try to look like he's working hard. I've never seen him break a sweat, have you? Not in the circle, and not while doing anything else. It's so easy for him, that he's limiting himself. Derhan and the others want you to get him to open up and let loose."

"But why me?"

"Because it's what your are. Haven't you been listening?" She leaned forward, her eyes blazing. "You were born to lead. Everyone knows it but you."

"How do you know all this?" I asked, looking at her suspiciously.

She seemed to become embarrassed. "I eavesdropped on the instructors a few weeks ago. They were talking about our group. One of them mentioned Marcel and the whole thing came out. They discussed everything."

"How much did you hear?" I asked, not criticizing her eavesdropping.

"Most of it." She blushed. "I was sort of distracted at the time."

"Oh. With what?" I asked.

Her face was almost as red as her hair. "Nothing important."

It took a few seconds for me to get it. "Oh. Anyone I know?"

She stood and went to the far side of the room. "It wasn't that. I was sleeping -dreaming."

I shrugged, dropping the subject. Whoever the person was, if Kahlen ever decided to let them know, I for one would consider them the luckiest person in the universe. "Look, why don't we stop? I'm hungry. Why don't you go to the mess hall and see if the others are there, while I get dressed? We'll all meet there in a few minutes, ok?"

She nodded and started towards the door. "Sure. I believe Shannon is in the temple meditating. I think Marcel is already in the mess hall. He's been up since before I woke. I went to get a snack and he was eating. After I got dressed, I stopped by. He was still there and still eating."

"How long ago was this?" I asked, sliding my robe off and stepping into the small washroom. I started the water of the shower running and looked around for a towel. There were a few of them on a small shelf over the toilet.

"About two hours." she replied. I started when I heard her voice. She was standing in the doorway to the washroom, watching me.

"Then he should still be there." I stated, looking at her in the mirror. "Now, if you don't mind, I intend to shower and get dressed."

She still made no indication that she would move as she replied. "I don't mind. Go right ahead."

I turned to stare at her, my jaw pumping up and down in the air. "Kahlen!"

She laughed at my expression. "Don't worry, I'm going." She shook her head and left, the door chiming closed behind her.

Muttering about her sense of humour I tossed my shorts onto the shelf, and stepped under the stream of hot water.