A Spaceman

Chapter 8--One big happy_________

I still can't shake Thorn from my mind. He'll get his. I'll give it to him. Pairing MY Major Tom with that lovely young handsome thing. How dare he. I'll see them both get theirs before this story is out. But Thorns murder and Captain Ziegfeld's mutilation will come at another time, I'm afraid. for now, to cheer up.

I see her lying in the grass, looking at a tablet, dark hair a veil around her face. I soften my steps so she doesn't hear me come up behind her. her legs are bare and brown from beneath the short grey pants she's wearing. It's a warm day, nice to be outside in the sun.

I bend down carefully and lock one hand around her mouth, the other around her waist, lifting her into the air quickly. She kicks in annoyance but I easily hold her away from me.

"What have I told you about letting people sneak up on you?" I ask flipping my daughter upside down and finally releasing her mouth.

"Put me down, Dad," she laughs, hanging upside down and wiggling, trying to kick my face, "I was ruminating on my classes."

"You must always keep a portion of your brain dedicated to self defense, you know that," I say, letting her down. she immediately hugs my legs. I can't stop from smiling at her. Bouncy, happy, clever little thing. Terribly clever, my copy, my clone. I do not foresee ever ceasing to worship her. Not that she needs to know that, cocky devil she is my clone after all, it wouldn't do for her to know I would never harm a hair on her head, possibly not even to save myself.

"Yes, sir," she says, looking contrite, "But you are more skilled than most, others would not have gotten the better of me."

"Nobody can get the better of you, ever, because you are the best," I say, tipping her chin up and stroking my hand through her thick dark hair, a shade lighter than mine though still a rich brown deep almost ebony in parts.

"Yes, sir," she says, nodding.

"What were you studying?" I ask, nodding for her to walk with me.

"Mathematics," she says.

"I'm well aware you're on summer break."

"I'm working ahead so I can get into a higher grade next term," she says, skipping a little bit.

"Good, I'll quiz you tonight if you like," I say.

"Your face is looking better," she says.

"Quit trying to placate me it does not work I know when you are being false," I say.

"Okay. Aiden says if I fake it people will like me better," she says. Aiden. One of the scrappy little sub par Project 10s my offspring is regrettably allowed to mix with. I would have had her moved except most of them are scrappy and sub par. I know Aiden's father, or knew him. He was one of the Spacemen I betrayed in the process of convincing the Isylgyns I was not loyal to the human race. Hopefully Tess will be able to do similar to this fellow, but for now she seems to hold him with a childish affection. I need to explore that.

"Why bother? Do you care what people think?" I ask.

"No," she says, immediately, "But people can be useful."
"Yes, they can, and there may come a time when you must manipulate people, but I do not want you to waste energy on that. your mind is better devoted to your studies than understanding these people and their ways. You're like me, and I hated being trapped in the nothingness of them. wanting to be one of them yet knowing I wasn't, trying sometimes to pretend I was only to know deep inside I'm something very different. It's lonely. but it's less lonely if you are who you are, then gain allies that way," I explain, "Leave any manipulation and charm to me, sadly I've had to learn it. I don't see why you should when I can clear the way for you."