So far, this was shaping up to be the worst day of Thea Wren's life. Well, at least it was the worst day that she could remember. She could've possibly had a lot worse days, but being betrayed by your father figure (no matter how much you loathe him), being arrested (with the fate of a lifetime in prison hanging over your head), meeting the most annoying Lieutenant in the world (and learning you swindled him), and then meeting his Captain who so happened to have a mysterious proposition for you, made up for a pretty awful, albeit, interesting day.

And what the Captain said about getting her 'cleaned and dressed'?

Ha!

It wasn't as if she was filthy and naked! Thea knew she probably looked a little dingy, but she was wearing clothes despite his rude command indicating that she wasn't clothed at all. And! He had been addressing Lieutenant Hawkins!

The day that boy is in charge of any aspect of my life is the day Cero Stratus goes supernova.

Thea's scowl was waiting for him as he turned from the door and back to her.

"Would you stop looking at me like that!?" He barked. "It's not like this was my idea at all. I was going to arrest you then tell you off then hand you over to the Mosli Police Force. I'm a Lieutenant of the Interstellar Federation, dealing with criminals like you isn't even my job. I was doing this as a favor and figured I'd enjoy bringing in the person who made me look like an idiot!" He was ranting and his arms were flailing about, making Thea want to laugh, but she just kept on scowling. He huffed out a breath.

"This is so not how I thought this day was gonna go." He said, bringing up a hand to rub his face in exasperation.

"Yeah, well that makes two of us, handsome." His green-blue eyes blaze something terrible and angry at her making her take a few cautionary steps back, regardless of her handlers.

Before he could really go off on her, Officer Geenam (or was it Hoth?) interjects, "Lieutenant, what are your orders?"

"My orders?" Lieutenant Hawkins said, looking a little puzzled.

"Yes, sir. We're supposed to have her presented to the Captain in an hour."

"Or less." Officer Hoth (or Geenam?) added.

"Well, Lieutenant, we could always go back to my place." Thea winked at him, the green of her eyes flashing intense and seductive. All for show, of course.

James Hawkins, former delinquent and ruffian, and now having been pushed far from the desire to act the cool, calm, and collected gentleman he has learned to become, heard this and got an idea.

He lets his eyes roam up and down her form freely, making sure that she noticed his less than proper gaze.

"You know, that sounds like a great idea." He saw her demeanor change instantly, and he had tried not to smirk.

"Excuse me?" She gasped.

"Might as well have a bit of fun before you get shipped off to Ream Keo for possibly the rest of your life. And we do have an hour." He winked at her for good measure.

Thea was shocked, to say the least.

"A little less." The officer on her left muttered.

"Gentleman," Lieutenant Hawkins whirled around, addressing his small convoy, "you are dismissed."

The 13 guards that had been lingering at the entrance of the establishment saluted their commanding officer and left single file through the door. Thea noticed that the guards on her left and right, Geenam and Hoth, made no effort to follow their fellows.

The officer to her right, Geenam, Thea thought, stepped away from her, leaving only Hoth to hold onto her cuffs. "Jim, are you sure this is a good idea?"

Thea noticed how informally he had addressed his superior officer.

The Lieutenant put a hand on the man's shoulder. "I think I can handle myself."

Thea scoffed and rolled her eyes. They both looked at her and the Lieutenant gave his friend a reassuring smile.

"Hoth, you can remove those cuffs."

"Are you sure, sir?"

The Lieutenant nodded.

Thea felt the pressure around her wrist instantly vanish as the cuffs were undone. A sigh of relief went through her and she cradled her wrists. They weren't on long enough to cause any harm, but old habits and all that.

"How do you know I won't make a run for it?"

"Because I know you are as interested as to what this proposition is as I am. Running would be counterintuitive."

"Ooh, what a smart Lieutenant using his big words." She teased, waving her freed hands at him.

He ignored her then told both Geenam and Hoth to go back to the barracks for assignment. They both saluted him but Geenam shakes his hand amicably before they both go.

Now that Thea was free to move, she went back to the table where she and Spratt had been less than twenty minutes ago, unaware of the nervous glances of the patrons she passes on her way there.

She could see the grooves in the table from where his claws had dented the old wood, making her mind darken.

"ARGH!" The sound that ripped through her throat was guttural, flooded with anger and sadness. She was so frustrated all she wanted to do was cry and tear this place apart. Instead, she slammed a fist down onto the table, her anger completely clouding her senses. She knew her hand would be throbbing in a few minutes, but she didn't care.

Her life hadn't been perfect, but she had been content. She had done what she was told. She had been loyal to Spratt and his gang of thieves and misfits. Why had she been punished like this?

Around her, she didn't hear Lieutenant Hawkins reassuring the patrons of the bar, all she heard was the pounding of her heart in her ears and all she felt was the numbness that coated her body, and the cold, wet path of the tears that trailed down her cheeks. Spratt's words kept replaying in her mind.

I had great hopes for you.

I am sorely disappointed.

What had she done to deserve any of this? The botching of her last mission hadn't warranted such obliteration of her freedom, and she had definitely messed up before, but so did everyone that worked for Spratt. She had never come back from a job empty-handed. He had had no reason to do this to her and that was what made her want to rip his yellow tiger-eyes from his skull.

I'll kill you for this Thelonious Spratt.

Flopping down into her chair from earlier, she stared at the table letting her mind wander back to when she thought her life had been simple. Steal this, get paid for that. Everything had come spiraling down in a matter of minutes just to land in a raw pile of twisted emotions and sickening nothingness at the pit of her stomach.

She was dazed and her mind was weary. So much so that she didn't register Lieutenant Hawkins standing on the opposite side of the table nor did she hear the revival of the friendly banter and clinking glasses to the bar.

As she sat there, the Lieutenant observed her, curious and a little perplexed as to how her demeanor had changed so suddenly. She had been yelling and slamming her fist on the table seconds before but now she sat in that chair like a ragdoll. He felt like he watched her too much to not know what kind of person she was. He knew she was a thief and a con artist, a gangster, but there was something else too.

The riled up angry girl from before had disappeared and had been replaced by someone who looked young and so broken. He didn't feel sorry for her (she had punched him in the face for Star's sake), but he was intrigued by her, if ever so slightly.

When he had first been promoted to Lieutenant and put under the command of Captain Neyo, the first thing the Captain had told him was that people got to where they were not only because of the choices they made, but also because of the choices that people had made for them. Jim hadn't really known what he had meant at the time, he had just gone with it, replying 'yes sir', knowing full well that the Captain was notorious for spouting nuggets of wisdom sporadically, but as he stood there and simply looked at Thea Wren, he believed he understood what his Captain had meant by it. That didn't mean he felt sorry for her, nor did it mean he was going to be any less lenient with her. She was a criminal, and on top of that she had stolen from him and made him look like a fool in front his fellow officers, and that was something he couldn't easily forget, but he did understand her. He knew what it was to feel like you were alone in the whole galaxy, void of any hope.

He could see that familiar bleakness reflected in her dull green eyes and the way her shoulders sagged. He remembered what having no future felt like.

Then her face changed. Her brow furrowed, her green eyes now bright. Suddenly her hand snatched something from off the table, something that he hadn't noticed, and apparently she hadn't noticed it either. She brought it directly up to her face and turned it over and over in her hands, examining it intently like a child would.

Jim couldn't see what it was so he asked her, "What is that?"

Thea, completely unaware of his presence until just then, jumped a little in her seat, nearly dropping what she held in her hands, something Spratt had left behind. Intentionally.

"It's a badge, I guess." She said, answering his question.

"I gave it to Spratt when I was ten. He asked for something of mine, a token of sorts, that would symbolize my obligation to him and in return, he wouldn't kill me."

Jim was a little shocked by both what she was telling him and that she was even telling him in the first place.

"I gave this to him. It was all I had. All I could find really. I was so scared. I had nothing except this, and I gave it to him without a second thought. And now he's given it back to me in exchange for my freedom." She slid it across the table and Jim stopped it before it flew off.

"This is an Interstellar Federation medal."

He stared at it for a second before realizing that it was a Medal of Valor. The depiction of the five galaxies of the Federation on the front was worn but still recognizable. The red and white stripes of the tail are dirty, but this was definitely a Medal of Valor. They're only awarded to Captains and Commanders that have demonstrated complete selflessness and honor in war. He looked at the back and there was part of a name although it was barely visible.

"Where did you get this?"

"I can't remember." She shook her head. "All I know is that I found it in my pocket and it saved my life." She stuck out her hand and wiggled her fingers, wanting the medal back. He reached over the table slowly with it in his hand and she grabbed it from him violently.

"Just chill out." He told her, then he asks, hesitantly, "Does that name on the back mean anything to you?"

Thea shrugged. "It might have, but it doesn't anymore."

"And that doesn't bother you?"

She looked at the medal closely and stared at the name, 'R. Jameson', engraved on the back. Nothing about it was familiar, nothing at all, and it bothered her more than Lieutenant Hawkins would ever know.

"No," was all she said

Thank you to all who are taking the time to read this story! It's been really fun to write so far and I'm excited to be getting into the deeper parts of the plot and the characters, so stay tuned!

Happy reading,

Legless Legolass