In the morning Angharad found Gemma in the mess hall, sitting at one of the tables and gazing into the eyes of a scruffy looking guy with messy, wavy hair. He looked maybe a little older than Gemma but, whatever, Gemma was 18. She could date who she wanted.

Gemma looked away from gazing into the guy's eyes for a second and, oh, definitely a double take when she noticed Angharad. Maybe she looked a little guilty, though not that much.

She waved and Angharad waved back.

And then Jin bumped into Angharad's shoulder.

"Are you forgiving her for not going to your party?" he asked.

"Well, I'm forgiving her much quicker than I'm forgiving you. I'm not sure I'm forgiving you at all," Angharad said.

"I didn't do anything wrong," Jin said.

Angharad couldn't even look at him because she was pretty sure seeing his expression would fill her with rage. "You are literally the only person who believes that. I bet Freya already told you off."

"Who cares if she did? I don't have to listen."

"You are the worst!"

Angharad steered herself around him and dropped into a seat at Gemma's table instead.

"So, introduce me," Angharad demanded.

"This is Theo," Gemma said. She sounded pretty pleased with herself. That girl was definitely risking a zapping. "I'm sorry I didn't make it last night. Believe me, I hate being that girl that abandons their friends when a new guy comes along."

Angharad waved it off. "Whatever, it's romantic, and I think it's cute. I'm not even mad."

At least, it wasn't Gemma she was mad at.

*

It was hard for Maria to know how to talk to Tabitha. She seemed so independent, so self-contained. There was just enough distance between their ages for it to be awkward – they would never be peers, and Maria's memories of what it was like to be that age were already fading, turning wispy and pale compared to the sharpness and brilliance of the war still working its way through her mind. Frankly, they had so little in common, beyond the famous old movies they'd both watched during the media blackout, that it was hard to know where to start.

But she had to start, again, to reach out. Even if Tabitha was determined to turn her away.

Tabitha looked up as Maria knocked on the door but she looked away again just as fast, tired-eyed.

"Have you come to yell at me?" Tabitha said.

"Only to talk. There's so few of us here from the southern islands. We should stick together."

Tabitha scoffed, but it was almost a retching sound. "That's hard to believe when you spend so much time with that Major from the north."

"Being in this trap makes for strange bedfellows," Maria said.

Tabitha rolled onto her back. Her eyes shone like glass as she looked at the ceiling. "Are you sleeping together?"

"That's not possible here. You know that," Maria said.

Tabitha's laugh was a dry thing. "You should have just said no. Then I wouldn't have known you wanted to."

"Well," Maria said, starting to smile in spite of herself. "I didn't think you cared who I was interested in. We must be closer than I realised."

"Must be."

Tabitha's face didn't reveal much amusement, but Maria promised herself she'd keep trying.

Later, in the cabin, Maria relayed the basics of the conversation to Mnemosyne and tried not to feel too embarrassed.

"I don't really know how to talk to young people," Maria said.

"You do better than you think," Mnemosyne said. It was hard not to believe her when she looked at Maria like that, so knowing and assured.

"We have to create the better world we want, even if this is the only part of the world we can do that in. If I can make things just a little bit easier for Tabitha, then surely that's something good," Maria said.

Mnemosyne's look turned wistful. "That's what I admire about you, Maria. You want to make the world a better place. I never allowed myself to dream so big. All I could think of was to pick the least bad option."

Maria folded her hand over Mnemosyne's to share her warmth. "I haven't made the world better yet. But that means there's still hope for both of us."

*

Mixing painkillers and alcohol – generally not a great idea, but after the previous night Tabitha figured it was officially doctor approved. What she didn't get was why Angharad was so willing to come to see her.

Tabitha didn't necessarily regret anything she said the night before, because that would imply that she was wrong, that there was no reason for that burning rage under her skin. Jin was a killer and people kept walking around acting like that was okay, like he was some cool guy who wasn't responsible for the deaths of thousands. But maybe she felt bad it happened in front of Angharad. Tabitha supposed she could have chosen a better time.

"Why are you still being nice to me?" Tabitha asked. She felt cloudy like a dream, and surely the voice coming out of her mouth was barely more than a distant haze.

"I mean, enough other people are mad at you that I guess I have to forgive you, or you'll be stuck here alone all day, and I'm not mean enough for that," Angharad said.

"You're not mean at all. You're brilliant. I always knew you were the best person here."

"Okay, well, you're clearly reaching a whole new level of existence that I'm not prepared for, so I'll go away and let you sleep."

Angharad left just as Tsuyoshi arrived. Tabitha watched the weird dance they did in the door, not quite stepping around each other so much as leading each other into a turn. She didn't listen to whatever boring crap they said to each other. The indulgent looks on their faces said enough.

Tsuyoshi watched Angharad down the corridor long after Tabitha stopped hearing her steps.

"Why can't you be nice to me like Angharad is?" he asked, when he finally came into the room to check her over.

"Stupid question. She's in love with you. I'm not," Tabitha said.

Oh, there, that made him drop that playful argument routine. Something about the cold fury in his eyes soothed her soul.

"Don't do that," he said, his fingers forming into fists. "Don't ruin something I care about just because you're bored and angry and think it's funny to push people away."

"Why not? You'd do the same if you were in my shoes."

He laughed, and his laugh was sharp at the edges. "Do you want to go from not enough pain killers to none at all? No? Don't be ugly like this, baby. I don't have the fucking patience."

*

Angharad's breathed out sigh turned into a cloud in front of her, then disappeared into the night.

1090 stood like a silent sentinel against the cool, grey edge of her dorm building. As Angharad got close she could see a blue sky pattern running across 1090's eyes, clouds running across the screens that usually projected an eyeball image. And then closer and the image flicked back to eyes, their usual unconvincing too-blue and too-white. Like a screen saver turned off by a motion sensor. 1090 narrowed her unnatural eyes at Angharad and then looked away.

Angharad shivered all over and pulled her jacket tighter around her body. The day had been unhappy enough, in spite of all her smiles. She didn't need the biting cold biting into what little optimism she had left.

A woman stepped out from behind 1090, tall and thin with wild hair, fingers frantically signing a language Angharad didn't know. Had she been standing sideways just to see if she could hide?

Angharad blinked, and realised it was the woman she'd seen talking to Niall. His sister, she guessed.

"Um... I'm sorry but I don't actually know what you're trying to say," Angharad said.

The woman rolled her eyes. What had Niall called her? Rowan, or some other kind of tree, Angharad thought.

The woman grabbed at one of her pockets with restless fingers and pulled out a crumpled scrap of paper and leaking pen. Angharad stepped closer to see what she wrote.

'I am Willow', the paper said.

"Hi," Angharad said, and started to smile. "Niall said I'd like you. I mean, I don't know what the odds are on you feeling the same way. Maybe I'm, like, super annoying."

Willow scribbled fast: 'All people are annoying to me'.

"Uh, okay. I guess I can work with that." She paused for a moment, looking at Willow, who looked at Angharad like there was something important to see and Angharad wasn't getting it. Whatever, Angharad didn't have psychic powers. Say it or don't. "I'm just going to go to my room now. So, uh, have fun out here hiding behind robots?"

*

Angharad found Sophie waiting up when she got inside. Sophie was curled up in her fort of blankets, a small figure in her pyjamas, but she was no longer a wheezing snot machine, so that was good. And at least it was warmer in their room than it was outside. Angharad didn't know anything about architecture or building standards or whatever, but maybe it was the thick concrete walls that kept the warmth in and the cool night out. That was nice.

It's going to be gross in Summer, she thought. And then, no, no, we will not still be here in Summer, I refuse to give in to that.

"How was Tabitha?" Sophie asked.

"She was, you know, Tabitha. I think she was trying to fob me off but I've also heard that my good moods and positive thinking can be contagious, so, like, hopefully that's the only thing she's catching."

"I'm sorry I haven't been able to see her."

Angharad took off her shoes and collapsed onto her bed. Her hair spilled everywhere; no wonder Tsuyoshi had started threatening to cut it. Sophie's was no better, so long and grown out that the pink followed on from five inches of dark brown.

Angharad breathed out and then levered herself upright again. "No, she totally gets it. You've been sick, she doesn't need to get sick, I mean, it's not your fault."

"We'll go together next time you see her."

"Yeah, that sounds cool."

Angharad stood up again so she could put on pyjamas instead of sleeping in her tights and dress. She was almost too tired to think of cloud eyes or the feverish brightness of Tabitha's skin. Almost. And her dreams, when she sank through the bed straight into them, were nothing but blue skies.