“There you go,” the momish said. Now that she’d gotten her way, she sounded a little more cheerful. They always did. “Reading is very important, you know. The more you practice, the better you get.”

“It’s not study time,” Ab’begh said. “We don’t have to study, do we?”

“It’s study time if I say it’s study time,” the momish said sternly. “Which you know perfectly well. When our ship is on a journey we never know when you’ll be called to the bridge, so we have to study when we have the chance.” She looked at Che’ri. “But since we have a guest, and her classes won’t be the same as yours, no, we’re not doing studies. But you still have to read,” she added as Ab’begh started to say something. “Whatever you want. Half an hour, and then you can play until dinnertime.”

There was a ping from the hatch. “Enter,” the momish called.

The hatch slid open, and Admiral Ar’alani stepped into the suite. “Everyone all right?” she asked.

“Do you need Ab’begh?” the momish asked.

“No, it’s all right,” Ar’alani said, holding up a hand and smiling at Ab’begh as the little girl put down her questis. “I expect the Vigilant to stay where we are for the rest of the night. If we have to go anywhere, we can do a short jump-by-jump. So, no, you girls can relax.”

She shifted her eyes to Che’ri. “I mostly came by to tell you, Che’ri, that Thrawn and the Springhawk have made it to the asteroid where they’ll be hiding for the next few hours. They’re safe, and it doesn’t look like anyone saw them.”

“Okay,” Che’ri said. She still wasn’t fully clear on what all the fancy flying had been about, but she was glad the Springhawk was safe. “Thalias is with him, right?”

“Yes, she is,” Ar’alani said, her voice sounding a little strange. “But I’m afraid you’ll have to sleep here tonight. I’ll have an extra bed brought in for you.”

“She can sleep in my bed,” Ab’begh said, sitting straight up in her chair. “It’s big enough.”

Che’ri cringed. She’d never ever had to share a bed. And with an eight-year-old? “I’d rather have my own,” she said. She looked at Ab’begh’s suddenly disappointed expression—“I kick a lot when I sleep,” she added.

“Can you put the bed in my room?” Ab’begh asked. “I—” She stopped and looked over at the momish. “I sometimes get scared,” she finished in a little voice.

Che’ri winced, feeling guilty. After talking with Thalias about nightmares…“That would work,” she said. “Sure. We can take some figures with us and play before we go to sleep.”

“Caregiver?” Ar’alani asked.