Fixer-Uppers, Monday

[endsthegame]

"Awww, look at you. You look like a real tourist," Jane judged from the computer screen. "I'm sad I didn't get to catch you in a Hawaiian shirt all week, mr. Wiggin."

"The figures I asked for?" Ender prompted, wryly. "And don't start sulking and ordering me shirts online."

"Who said anything about ordering you shirts?" she chirped, but obediently coughed up the numbers Ender wanted. Some junk info from the colonies, mostly, but it seemed like they were figuring a few things out, and Ender was nothing if not interested in the thought processes of the researchers up there.

Though he was going to be distracted all day wondering if that meant she was going to start shipping stuff to Ben, which was just a whole new headache waiting to happen. He sighed, and left his laptop for what it was, and instead slipped into the workshop.

Today's special: papayas, apparently. Some days he didn't even know why he bothered.

[[ jane's nfb, post is open! ]]

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[momslilassassin]

"Ho, kreetle," Ben said, walking in with sandwiches and coffee. "Miss Hawaii yet?"

[endsthegame]

"Not really," Ender said. He was busy chucking papayas in the bin. "Plenty of work left to do." What? He thought that was an excellent reason to go home.

[momslilassassin]

Ben smiled, having not really expected a different answer. "Have some lunch between projects."

[endsthegame]

Ender considered that for a moment, then dragged up his chair. "What've we got today?"

[momslilassassin]

"Turkey and cheese," Ben said, peering into the bag, "roast beef, and some kind of grilled vegetable thing that was on special."

[endsthegame]

"Get me a roast beef?" Ender asked, pushing his laptop aside for now. "All done with Hawaii, too?"

Last night's movie night had certainly been a big ol' 'welcome back to Fandom'.

[momslilassassin]

Ben pulled out the sandwiches--roast beef for Ender, turkey for him--and nodded as he unwrapped his. "I don't think I need a vacation from the vacation or anything, but it's nice to back."

[endsthegame]

Ender picked up his sandwich and unwrapped it, too. "So I don't have to worry about you taking off in the middle of the night to hang out on a dead moon somewhere?" he teased.

[momslilassassin]

"I'd find one with atmosphere," Ben replied, smiling. "Less gravity than here would be fun, though."

[endsthegame]

"I'd like to hear you say that when we make it to Eros," Ender said, biting down into his sandwich.

[momslilassassin]

"Well, the thrill will wear off if I bang my head into the ceiling too many times," Ben capitulated. "Do you have a timeline in mind for that?"

[endsthegame]

"Not really, but I can show up any time I like if I give a few days' notice," Ender said. "Mostly I'm waiting to see what email rolls in and seeing how many of them require me to make a visit." He took another bite.

[momslilassassin]

"Jeesh or colonist email?" Ben asked.

[endsthegame]

"Colonist," Ender said, shooting him a glance. "I did get an email from Carn Carby, though. He's taking off for Eros tomorrow."

First one to go...

[momslilassassin]

Ben gave him a bland expression in reply. "The rest haven't made their decisions yet?"

[endsthegame]

"Nothing that I've heard of." He put down his sandwich.

[momslilassassin]

"I didn't put you off lunch, did I?" Ben checked.

[endsthegame]

Ender squinted at him. "My stomach isn't that weak," he said. Mostly because 'you pulled a face' seemed an odd thing to say even for Ender's standards. Not that he couldn't guess where that blank look came from.

[momslilassassin]

"Good," Ben said, smiling a bit. "I'd hate to bring you substandard sandwiches. Did you have a lot of mail to catch up on?"

[endsthegame]

"Not that much. I kept track back in Hawaii."

Raise your hand if you're surprised by that. C'mon.

He sighed. "I think the others are going to take a while," he said.

[momslilassassin]

"It's a lot to ask of them," Ben replied quietly. "They're a little more tied to the planet than you are."

[endsthegame]

"It's a lot to ask of anyone," Ender replied, "Even me." He was quiet for a moment, but not much longer. "But it's better than the alternative."

Maybe it was time to admit his heart had cracked a little when he'd first seen that footage of Alai's purge, months ago.

[momslilassassin]

"Alai and Han Tzu?" Ben asked, setting his sandwich aside to give Ender his full attention.

[endsthegame]

Ender sighed. "They're still ripping each other to shreds," he said. "I'd rather see everyone getting out of there before it becomes a trend."

[momslilassassin]

"How will Virlomi--" his pronunciation was unsure on the name, "--change the balance?"