The morning after falling into the river, Vijay and Penny discuss who the bad influence is.

Bad Influence

The Robinsons' jupiter was busier than usual in the morning. Which was saying something since it had once been home to a giant flashlight project.

Seriously, when were all these people going to finish taking their stuff back to their own jupiters?

Hiroki appeared at first light, with every line on his face projecting some sort of concern. Given his latest assignment had been analyzing the water Penny fell in… she wasn't exactly breathing easy when he came knocking before breakfast.

"I'd like to see the river for myself, collect a few samples from the source to compare with what I got from Penny's clothing."

Maureen nodded thoughtfully, "I understand, but I don't think Penny can take you there with her ankle."

"Robot and I could take him!" Will jumped in, smile wide, "The waterfall was on the way to the cave. I know how to get there."

A look was exchanged between her mom and Hiroki. Some sort of silent scientist parent language that involved subtle eye contact and a nod.

"Alright," Maureen agreed and then Hiroki led Will off to his chariot. Robot's footsteps loudly following behind them.

"So… is taking additional samples ominous?" Penny asked, eyes narrowed on her mother's face. She shook her head, lips twitching up into a smile. Good sign.

"It's thorough. Hiroki probably has a hunch, but he wants to verify it first."

"Hunches are good, hunches mean possibly answers…" Penny trailed off, puckering her lips, "…possibly soon?"

Her dad started laughing beside her, "Eager to have your connection with Vijay severed?"

Penny sat back in her chair, "Eager to not have weird black lightning crawling up my skin."

"It's not as dark as it was yesterday," Judy shrugged, nodding towards Penny's arms, "They might be starting to fade."

"Now that would be good news," John snapped his fingers and rose from the table. Maureen was nodding beside him in her seat.

It was, technically, good news.

Penny didn't *want* to have some sort of alien weirdness permantly scaring her body. But she wasn't *entirely* against the effects either.

She'd woken up with a racing heartbeat that was definitely not hers. When she opened her eyes, the ceiling had been backwards from her cabin. Like she was facing the wrong way.

Or, Vijay was in a cabin that mirrored her own.

It had gone away as quickly as it had come. A blink later and Penny was staring up at her own ceiling, everything oriented the right way round.

Being able to see what Vijay saw had a plethora of potential opportunities.

Penny was curious to see what happened. Literally. She also had a fun feeling like Vijay was getting closer that she had no intention if mentioning. To anyone. Ever.

Sure enough, Victor arrived just after breakfast to talk with her parents. And Judy. With all the subtlety of his giant flashlight, he'd asked her to leave.

"Yeah, yeah, you have your boring adult meeting," Penny whined dramatically as she grabbed the crutches Judy had printed for her and left.

Her humor did not appear to break the serious mood of whatever they were going to discuss. Probably the fuel fiasco.

Well, at least there were fewer witnesses if they started yelling again.

She went towards her bunk, and then made a sharp turn to head for the garage and the exit as soon as the adults weren't looking.

Only problem? Smith.

"Oh. Hey doc," Penny smiled at the psychiatrist. The woman eyed her carefully, walking loosely around the chariot, hand tracing along the hull of the vehicle.

"Where are you off to? I thought you'd be holed up in your room with that ankle?" Dr. Smith looked down at her foot, eyes wide with concern.

Or, interest. It was honestly hard to tell with her.

Penny shrugged, "Pretty sure there's about to be an argument, so… figured I'd find myself a good spot outside. Ya know, fresh air and all that."

"Mhmm, maybe a bit of company too," Smith raised a brow knowingly as she headed for the main room.

Pursing her lip, Penny kept moving. Smith wasn't stopping her. And it wasn't like anyone had told her *not* to talk to Vijay.

It was implied after the Dhars left the night before, but implications can be misunderstood. Especially if you ignore them.

"Should you be walking right now?"

Literally, the first words out of his mouth. She wasn't even fully down the ramp yet!

"Am I putting any weight on my ankle?" Penny shot back, continuing her forward momentum. Vijay watched her, gaze drifting from her ankle several times.

"I'm pretty sure you're still meant to keep it elevated…" Vijay mumbled from the front seat of the metal frame ATV his dad had obviously driven there instead of their chariot.

Penny took the drivers seat, curling her good foot underneath her as she turned to face Vijay. Then she swung her leg up so her ankle was in Vijay's lap, "There. Now it's elevated."

His lips twitched up, but Vijay pressed them firmly together to avoid laughing. His hand moved to rest on top of the hard silicate cast that wrapped around her foot. Vijay turned his head to look at her, eyes intent upon her face, "My dad thinks you're a bad influence."

"I am a *fun* influence," Penny snorted, leaning her shoulder against the seat and tilting her head to rest on the top of the cushion, "And if he didn't want us to hang out, he didn't have to bring you now did he?"

"Him dragging me around with him is apparently the space version of being grounded since my mom is doing an inventory of all the other jupiters. I was given explicit instructions to avoid you," Vijay told her, head ducking briefly before he smiled at her. His hand was carefully cradingly her ankle as he shifted in his seat.

"What're you gonna do? Shove the injured omega out of the ATV? That'd look *very* bad for a colony rep's son. Quite positive." Penny wagged her finger in the air, "I could sue!"

She couldn't, the colony didn't actually have a court system yet, but Vijay was laughing now. A light chuckle.

He had a really nice smile, the sort with dimples and super straight teeth that everyone always wanted. Vijay ducked his head every time he laughed too, hiding that very smile.

"You're significantly more rebellious than your parents are aware, aren't you?" Penny narrowed her eyes on him, leaning forward slightly so she was closer. Her voice dropped low, "Are you secretly the *real* bad influence?"

Vijay's head popped up, an eyebrow rose. He didn't say a word. They were closer now, with her leaning over the center line.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Vijay shrugged, but he was staring at her lips now. His tongue came out to swipe over his own. Smirking.

There were many things Penny could've done in that moment. Including nothing. But Penny was not a do-nothing sort of person.

So she closed the gap entirely and pressed her lips to Vijay's. Much to her delight, he kissed her back. Their mouths moving in slow turns as they shifted in their seats.

His hand moved to her face and Penny took a fistful of his shirt in her hand as their lips pressed firmly together.

A shot of electricity zipped between them and they broke apart. Just far enough to meet each other's gaze without going cross eyed.

Her lips were still tingly.

Vijay stroked his thumb over her jawline as his hand slid back into her hair. The air felt thick, full of static.

The sky was empty, no storm clouds, no tornado. Nothing. It was just them.

This time Vijay closed the gap. He titled his head slightly, skimming his tongue over her bottom lip. Penny mimicked the motion. His fingers twitched in her hair.

The static did not disperse. It was almost like it was building up, like pressure in a can.

His tongue slid past her lips, feather light as it ghosted over the ridges on the roof of her mouth. Penny gasped, eyes fluttering.

Her hair was standing up on end.

She pulled away. Vijay drew back. His hand moved to swipe at her lips. Another shock passed between them.

"So..." Vijay breathed out, shaking out his hand as she pushed her hair back down. He chewed on his bottom lip, "Are we blaming that on the water or..."

Penny smirked. He was looking at her sideways, trying to appear nonchalant.

"50%?" Penny offered, brows low. She shrugged, "But maybe we're just that good at kissing."

Vijay laughed again, head ducking down.

It was officially her mission to make him smile like that while looking directly at her. Penny was fairly positive it would short circut her brain, but...

He pursed his lips as he looked back her, "I meant the kissing part. Not the static shock."

It would definitely be worth it.

"Nope. That one's on us," Penny leaned forward again, folding her arms on his shoulder. He hummed as she lay her head on top of her arms.

"Good," Vijay said, eyes flicking to her as he angled his face forward.

His hands moved over her cast again, fingers tracing over the little glimpses of skin. She shivered as he made contact.

Yup. Definitely a worthwhile mission.

"Alright, bad influence, what would you be doing right now if we were on the Resolute?" Penny nudged him.

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