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(A/N: For anyone reading, feel free to use the first names I give these characters in your own writings if you want. Heck, use the head-canons and backstories too if you like them. Or even any ideas in general. They're pretty open-source.)

Aubrey LaFette

Aubrey LaFette had had a relatively normal life. Orphan status aside, that was. Her adoptive parents had been good to her, so she'd never felt deprived. She'd desperately missed her birth parents, and for years after had hoped they'd come back one day, but she'd never resented the ones who took her in, and she liked to think she hadn't been a problem child to them. Things had just maybe been a bit tougher at the start, when she was still hoping her birth parents would come back. That was probably the most problematic she'd ever been, telling her adoptive ones again and again that one day her bio parents would come back and she would go with them. She couldn't imagine how that must have felt to them, but those statements had eventually stopped and things had been good, really they had.

High school had been eventful. Leave it at that. False friends, lustful teenagers, jealousy, competition. It had been rough, but she'd navigated it. She'd refused to let a few bad relationships spoil her. At least she'd thought she had, but looking back her taste in romantic partners in high school had been questionable at best. Always that cliched idea of being able to 'fix them'. Naïve beliefs that just because they acted a certain way with some people didn't mean they'd act that way with her. Maybe sometimes that was true, but most of the time it wasn't and she'd learned it the hard way. She regretted prom night and letting herself be pressured into something she wasn't ready for. She'd hated herself for it, in fact, and had carried the feeling of worthlessness that accompanied the mistake all the way into college. Alright, maybe she'd been a bit more of a mess than she liked to believe, but she'd smartened up by freshman year and had determined to leave her red flag ridden high school BF behind. She'd just needed to work up the nerve. That was when Ozwald Jones had come into her life.

She remembered vividly the moment the back of her ex's hand had struck her face. She remembered the punches that followed it up and the violent shouting and wrestling she'd desperately tried to escape. The beating hadn't lasted more than three seconds before Ozzy was there and delivering the smack down of a lifetime on her ex. She knew Oz didn't remember exactly what happened that night, but his first concern—as soon as he'd knocked out the ex—had been her.

"Are you okay?" he asked, taking her arms gently.

"Yes," she barely managed to squeak out, she was so shaken.

"Hey, it's okay now. You're okay. I'm not gonna let anyone else hurt ya," he said sounding so unbelievably tender. She'd never had a man speak to her like that before. She couldn't even find words to say. True to his word, he stayed at her side until he began getting sick. At that point he politely excused himself. "Excuse me Miss LaFette. I'm not feelin' so good. Gotta find a bathroom, but if anything happens, just call my name and I'll be there, okay?"

She watched worriedly after him. When he didn't return to her by the end of the party, she got concerned. She'd been concerned before, but now she was extra concerned. She went to find him, and that was when she found him choking on his own vomit on the ground. Her heart had almost stopped. She cried his name, she ran to him and rolled him over so he could properly expel it. The second she was able to, she called the emergency number. It hadn't won her any popularity points, but damn popularity! A boy's life was on the line! They arrived swiftly, and she refused to be separated from him. Claimed she was his girlfriend so they'd let her come and rode that lie straight through until she knew he would be safe. She'd never been more terrified than when they swept him into emergency to pump his stomach. She'd been in tears at that point, and when they came out with the news he'd be alright, she collapsed into a chair with a sound of relief and almost passed out. The moment she was able, she went to sit at his side and wait for him to wake up.

Subnautica

She had known from the day she first met him that he was the one she wanted to be with for the rest of her life. She'd never known a man more genuine than him, and she'd be hard pressed to ever find one who could compare. He didn't put on masks or airs. What you saw was what you got, and what she'd seen saw was the sweetest, kindest, most caring man you'd ever meet. There was nothing about him she didn't like. Well, that wasn't entirely true. She didn't like his obliviousness or how down on himself he sometimes got. She didn't like his lack of self-confidence. She didn't like that he would give up his life for her, or for anyone really, be they stranger or friend. That was to say she loved that he was such a good person he would willingly die for someone else without even thinking about it, but she hated that it meant he might be taken from her too soon. She wanted a lifetime with the man, not a fleeting moment, and whether she got it as his friend or his love she didn't care, but she desperately, desperately hoped it would be as his love.

She remembered the day he had saved her from her ex the second time. She'd gone to visit her birth parents' memorial that night. Names on a plaque with no bodies to bury. It had been about the anniversary of their disappearance. She still remembered their promise they'd be home before she knew it. Well, she was still waiting. Waiting and knowing they'd never return. Anyway, it had been on her way back from that place that her ex had attacked her. She'd been so terrified, so sure she would die that night, but when she'd heard Ozzy's voice… Just the sound of it had made her feel like everything would be okay, so she'd screamed for him and immediately realized what she'd done and wished she could have taken it back. Sure, everything had worked out, but if he had come to her rescue and her ex had been armed—if Oz had been killed—it would have been all her fault, and she never would have forgiven herself for that. Sobered by the close call, she'd done what she thought she had to do. Enlisted in the army for some proper self-defence training. She'd been beating herself up for it ever since, because she knew she'd hurt him the day she left. Probably pretty bad. She hadn't meant to. The last thing she ever wanted to do was hurt him or be the cause of his getting hurt.

They'd kept in touch over the years, whenever she could find time. He'd still been with Hollister, he'd still been living the dream, and she'd still been wishing she could be there with him for it. There'd been one short stint where she'd travelled with them on a leave. Ozzy had been so thrilled. So had she. It hadn't lasted nearly long enough. When he mentioned he would be on the crew for the Aurora, though? She couldn't pass up that chance, so she'd pitched herself to Alterra and hoped for the best. Luckily, her resume had impressed them. She'd been all but a guarantee, and that meant she'd be with him in relatively close proximity for a voyage that might take up to two or three years, and she'd never been happier. Now here she was on the trip of a lifetime, and him right there with her. Still oblivious. Meanwhile, she was out here floundering and wondering how she could make it more obvious. She was too much of a coward to just say it outright so there'd be no room for interpretation.

After leaving Ozzy in the cafe, she went to her room and finished putting it together. It wasn't much, but it was home for the next year or two. Or three. Assuming it was eighteen months there and back, they would definitely be looking at three. One and a half to two yeas if the phase gate took a few months to build and could be used for transport back. Who knew what could happen in that time? Maybe Ozzy would finally catch on. Or maybe he was already catching on but didn't have romantic interest in her so was just ignoring the signals? She hated this limbo they were in. She looked around her room, making sure everything was in its place, then headed out to meet up with CTO Yu and Chief Engineer Hinkle.

Subnautica

Peter Hinkle was an altogether unimpressive man. Average in every respect and wound about as tight as could be. She could see others having trouble respecting him, but she would do her best to do so. Saran Yu, in contrast, was a very impressive woman. Well put together, tall, elegant, absolutely gorgeous. Aubrey almost felt inadequate in her presence. She wasn't sure how she was going to fit into this trio, but she was hoping for the best. They had chatted a bit, long enough for her to learn Hinkle was by-the-book Alterra. No small talk, just business. Not talking business? Stop wasting time and start doing so. He gave the impression that he was there to do a job and nothing else. He'd be a very lonely man if he kept up that attitude for long. Yu, on the other hand, was open and easy to get along with. She quite liked Yu.

"So, everyone grasps the basics of our jobs and duties?" Hinkle asked as they conversation came to a close.

"More than the basics, Hinkle. Take a breath. You're going to hurt yourself," Yu replied.

"I have a job to do and no time to waste on frivolity. I suggest you take the same attitude, CTO Yu."

"And I suggest you lighten up. We're up here for at least a year and a half. All work and no play makes a very dull boy, and certainly not a happy one," Yu said.

"There's not going to be time for wasting time. We're in space on a giant experiment! All our focus needs to be in making sure it stays operational so we don't end up dead in space on some ghost ship."

"Hinkle, relax! Everything's going to be just fine," Yu said.

"Fine. Fine! Don't say I didn't warn you."

"I doubt highly I'm going to be saying anything of the sort," Yu replied with a smirk. Hinkle huffed and walked off. Yu turned to Aubrey. Aubrey gave her a curious look. "We're probably better off not minding him or taking anything he says to heart. Alterra stooge through and through, all business no pleasure. He's going to be miserable up here."

"I can't imagine being like that all the time," Lafette said.

"Neither can I, but it seems some people thrive on it better than others. Maybe Hinkle's one of them. By the end of this trip, though, I'll have broken him out of that shell of his. I guarantee it."

"He might be an insurmountable odd," LaFette said.

"I've always liked a challenge," Yu replied with a grin.

LaFette grinned back. "If you ever need a partner in that, I'm ready and willing."

"I'll keep you in mind. So, ready for all this?"

"More than ready."

"We'll see if it stays that way half a year in."

"I'll find ways to make it bearable," LaFette replied with a smile, thoughts drifting to Ozzy.

"Ooh. I know that look in your eyes. Someone caught your attention?" LaFette flushed deeply. "Don't worry, I won't tell."

"It's no one," she said, glancing away and tucking some hair behind her ear.

"Right. Well, if you ever feel like spilling the tea, you know where to find me. Update for you. Next port is where we'll be picking up the medical staff, so we're on schedule for an early departure. Brace yourself. This is going to be the adventure of a lifetime." Yu walked off, leaving Aubrey a blushing mess.

Subnautica

She felt like a pining schoolgirl sitting in that café of his lamenting her own cowardice and watching as he chatted up whoever came by like it was the easiest thing in the world. She disapproved heavily of some of the women, and a couple men, trying their hands at flirting with him. He took it all in stride and she couldn't say whether he was just oblivious or genuinely not interested in them. Just as she was about to get up and take her turn speaking to him, her communicator pinged and she had to go deal with some problems in engineering. It seemed like every time she wanted to have a moment with the man, something popped up. She finished up in engineering as quickly and efficiently as she could risk getting away with, then headed back to the café. She approached him almost immediately.

"Hey you," she said, sitting at the bar with a smile. She loved the way he lit up to see her.

"Aubrey, hi! How goes things?"

"Busy for sure. Always something to do. Hopefully we'll have all the kinks worked out by the time we hit deep space."

"Tell me the ship's more stable than you're makin' it sound."

She smiled a little. "It's stable. It takes a lot to keep it that way though, you know?"

"No one I'd trust with my life more than you," he said, leaning across the counter, and this was one of those moments where she felt like he was flirting, but whenever she flirted back he seemed to lose the plot, so she didn't try this time. "Just don't overwork yourself, okay?" he said, straightening up and wiping the counter.

"Same goes for you," she replied.

"Not work if you love your job."

"No excuse not to take breaks," she replied.

"Fair enough. I'll work on that."

"Good."

"I hear you, Yu, and Hinkle make up a heck of a trifecta."

"For as unimpressive as Hinkle is, the man knows his stuff, and Yu's certainly no slacker."

"And you're keepin' up with them both. Good for you," he said.

"You're sweet, Ozzy, but I'm just doing my job," she replied with a small smile.

"And doin' it well. That's somethin' to be proud of."

"You're wonderful, you know that don't you?" She asked, resting her chin on the back of a hand and giving him 'the eyes'. As expected, he flushed deeply, but little else.

"Aw come on, Aubrey, you're makin' me blush. You're pretty wonderful too. Not like I'm all that special."

"No, you most definitely are," she said, dropping her hand. "I wish you wouldn't try to convince yourself to the contrary. Anyway, any rumours on how long it'll take to get to the next port and the medical staff?"

"A couple days," Ozzy replied with a shrug. "Hopefully nothin' goes wrong before then. Not sure why they put off boarding the med staff. Seems like the last thing you wanna head into space without."

"Any other tidbits to add?"

"Hollister isn't convinced he's gonna like what he sees. Not sure why. Mentioned something about the Chief Medical Officer passing a screening by the skin of his teeth. Hollister said that if he'd had a choice in the matter, he would have gone right back to the drawing board, so that's not bodin' too well."

"Any reason why he passed by so little?"

"Probably my fault. Somethin' seemed off about him. I mentioned it and I guess the Captain puts a lot of stock in my word, so here we are. I dunno. Maybe I was just bein' paranoid."

"You don't strike me as one for paranoia."

"I'm not really, but sometimes these little suspicions creep up on ya."

"Have you ever been wrong with them before."

He smirked a bit. "Besides the point," he said.

"On point I'd say. I'm curious about this medical officer now. Keep me in the loop." Her communicator went off again and she sighed, pulling it out. "Hinkle again in crisis mode. He's a catastrophizer."

"I figure it'll die down the further into the trip we get. Seriously, Aubrey, don't overwork yourself."

She smiled. "I won't, Ozzy. I'll see you tomorrow maybe."

"Sure thing. Bye." She waved at him and left to answer Hinkle's summons. The next few days promised to be interesting, she wryly noted.