“Do you like your new sponge family, Leila?” Admiral Zeke Farmanzeh watched Allie lean down with a shy grin down at their daughter, the same expression that he’d fallen in love with so many years and planets ago.
“I do, Mama,” the little girl said. The pert, upturned nose was the same as when the Cuddly But Trouble had launched, but the smile was now gap-toothed.
Another sign of his little girl getting far too big for his taste, even if her precious, fluffy blue bear the ship was named after still waited on her bunk. Zeke settled most days for being grateful that they’d worked out the gravity well problem. He’d tried listening to the physicists, but – well, he was but an engineer, and all he cared about was that spacers no longer came back weak and brittle. And long term stability – like family life – was possible.
A man could put up with a lot for some stability. It made him forget the stale air and uncertainty of ever returning to Earth.
“These were mine when I was a little girl, you know.” The larger blonde head bobbed closed to his daughter’s curls. They looked so much alike! “We could only bring them because they’re so lightweight, but I wanted you to have them.”
“This is Little’un, and this is Littler’un, and there’s the mama and papa and the dog. They don’t have names yet. Floofbear will help me name them tomorrow.”
His wife gave that smile, the one where she knew she had a secret. “Do you want to see what happens when they go for a dip in the pool? Let’s take them in your bath and find out.”
Water filtration, now that had taken a leap forward, too. Even if they still were on rations, and everyone knew it was recycled water. That ten percent fresh the techies had been able to bring online made a difference. It didn’t taste flat, anymore, even though it tasted the same. Water was water, but indescribably altered.
Zeke pushed himself out of his chair. It pulled itself back into the wall automatically with a whir as he headed for the doorway to watch his girls. These carefree, childlike moments would be increasingly fleeting, especially as Leila continued her advanced studies.
“You see?”
His daughter gave a horrified gasp. “Littler’un was the green sponge! And she’s bigger than Little’un now!”
“And when she dries, she’ll shrink back down again, and fit into her capsule. What do you think, will Little’un fit into his?”
The precious face scrunched in hard thought. “Yes. Because they’re different colors but the same material.”
“Nano sponges will do that, but real sponges that grow in the ocean won’t.”
A giggle. “Sponges are weird.”
“A little bit. Why don’t you join them in the bath?” His wife raised her face to his, and her eyes glittered with mischief. “I think you’re part weird yourself, thanks to your daddy. Don’t you think?”
***
Need context? I always wanted these things to repack themselves into neat capsules. Mostly so I could have reusable fun, of course.
Need part one? Find the intro to Leila here.
This week’s MOTE prompt was a trade with AC Young – Little’un and Littler’un trading in size, and magical dust mores. Check out his detailed response – and more! – out here.
But before you go, how about something completely different? My new short story, Santa Baby, is available for preorder along with a whole anthology of stories. About Santa. As a military operator. Because someone’s got to save the day.
I promise it’s ridiculous, in the best of ways. Cheers!
