“I know what you are going to say, but….” I trail off.

“But?” she asks expectantly.

“But what if, ironically, I become the catalyst that pushes the Silver government to sign an unfavorable trade agreement with the Empire?”

Volunteer 4711 shrugs, which I find an adorable Water person habit that she has never given up. “Have you asked your contacts about it in the Silver government?”

“They agree with my plan to combine my fleet with the other to reassure the government to continue under current agreements, but politicians cannot be trusted.”

“No,” she agrees. “But what other choice do you have? If you do nothing, something will change regardless.”

“Exactly,” I say. Then I say, just as much to her as to myself, “Perhaps I will have a better feel for this when I meet the other fleet’s commander.”

“But wouldn’t that be a breach of some pirate code? That you meet to discuss joining arms, then decide when you get there not to do it. If it were a date, I would feel slighted.”

“We have no such protocol. The other fleet will have to feel slighted if that’s the case, but again, that is just bad leadership,” I say, amused by her analogy of a romantic date. She has told me about this Water people custom of courting, and it seems strange to me. “Also, just so you know, there will be some formalities with the other fleet. I will need you by my side,” I tell her.

“Is there something in the cultural database I can study first?” she asks me.

“Not for this.”

“Oh, pirate formalities,” she says, and now she is smiling. I still don’t know why she finds my profession so amusing.

“Yes,” I reply. “You will be able to pick up on things easily enough, I think. You are not without good knowledge of our culture on board, but most importantly, please carry a weapon during these negotiations. Can you use one?”

“Where would I have learned to use a weapon? Farming?”

“I do not know, but I want you to have a gun, at the very least. I do not expect anything to go badly, but you never know.”

“Where and how do I get a gun and learn how to use it?”

“I will make an appointment for you with the armory, and someone will instruct you. I am sure you will pick it up in no time. Using a weapon is not difficult, which is why they are so dangerous.”

“I don’t feel comfortable being armed. And I’ll be with you.”

“You will be with me, but you must be able to defend yourself,” I say, slightly annoyed. I want her to be able to protect herself in case something were to happen to me.

“Is that all for now? “she asks. I can tell she is annoyed with me too.

“Yes,” I say. Once she is gone, I arrange for her to have lessons, not only in shooting but in self-defense as well. I will not have her vulnerable to attack. It never occurred to me that she was so physically helpless. I have prepared her intellectually, in the event something were to happen to me, so that she could find another position, but if she were attacked, she has little in the way of defenses.