They were woken by Fanny's pad, an incoming call.

"Hmm, eh Kayla!" Fanny jumped up. Now she was fully awake too.

"En," she groaned as Fanny switched on the far too bright Fallerian light.

"Yes, of course." "In 2000?" "Well, yes, can do. See you!"

A glance at the lock screen told her that it wasn't even 2000, assuming the pad had synchronised with local time. And the Fallerian day was shorter, so it must be the middle of the night.

"Fanny?" she mumbled.

"Ah, sorry, yes, that was Kayla, my second oldest clansister."

It took a few moments to process. "Your clansister is here on the station?"

"They just jumped in from Fallerian IV. She was there on clan business when she got the news from our data dump. It took her a while to sort through all the news in there. As soon as she found out that my pad was registered here on Fallerian III, she set out. She will dock in 1500, they are approaching the station."

"Great, another 1000 to sleep," she mumbled.

"I'll take a shower then!"

She turned as Fanny turned off the light.

* * *

It was 4200. Fanny was walking far ahead, almost at a running pace despite the hops and jumps to avoid trampling and possibly crushing the appendages of the natives. Even the brief scare and the resulting adrenaline rush she got when a thin Fallerian insect leg suddenly appeared just under her paw and she had to hop to the side last-moment, did little to wake her up. She was still dead tired, her internal clock still insisting that it was midnight, even though she had slept quite long. Well, jump lag, and she had left without much sleep from Hopkins.

As soon as they were at the docking port, where Kayla's ship was in its final approach, she fought again to stay awake. Now the docking office emerged from the small round exit next to the docking port, just as big as him. She mumbled a Fallerian greeting in his direction, which was answered with much more vigour and formality. She tried to stand a little more upright and awake.

The arrival of the docking officer had been the signal, the indicator turned yellow, then blue, then purplish, and the massive freight docking hatch slit open. The warm, humid air from the station formed a fine mist when it met the cold air from the ship. The cooler air helped to wake her.

A large cat stood in the docking hatch, with long fluffy fur with an ocelot pattern and, of course, a perfect body. Nothing else to expect from a Ketcher.

"Welcome to Fallerian," the docking officer greeted.

"I am happy to follow your contract," the cat replied in perfect Fallerian. "400 docking for innersystem travel for half a day. 145 per person?"

"Yes. Please take this contract seal."

The cat scanned his pad with hers and then vice versa. The officer wished her "Successful business" and disappeared into the small tunnel next to the docking port before she could yawn again.

"Kayla!" Fanny leapt forward as soon as the door closed behind the docking officer, latching onto the larger cat and causing her to stagger slightly.

"Fanny!" The youthful, happy voice did not quite match the imposing cat.

They hugged and spoke quickly. She didn't want to eavesdrop and politely stepped aside to give them some privacy. And she wondered why she was so tired? Could it be the suppressant? But why was Fanny not affected? Her pad chimed. It was an update from Marik. He and Jedro had already taken out engine 2, and Jedro was sure she could get it working again. Marik also sent a lot of captures. Good news, she wished she could be there. She looked through the captures and 3D scans of the details.

"Hey, bodyguard!"

The call made her look up. It had been Kayla. Fanny was standing halfway behind her older clansister, her ears almost horizontal and her tail between her legs up to her breasts. Fanny was completely embarrassed.

"Come closer, I am not afraid of a special OPs," Kayla teased again. So Kayla knew about her first encounter with Fanny, she was just teasing.

"Kayla, stop!"

She grinned, it would be fun to have the upper hand over Fanny. Even if Fanny had never been mean. But her brain was empty. "Yes, Mam, Rerra from Petra at your service," was her lame answer.

Kayla grinned. "Kayla from Ketcher. And I must thank you for getting my clansister off the station."

"Well, I did it mostly for Trina of Samul, she is my ex-cousin."

Kayla looked surprised but Fanny nodded at her.

"Seems there is a story. Since I paid for 4000, how about lunch? My treat."

She would rather be in the workshop. On the other hand, a lunch with Fanny's older clansister, until yesterday the third powerful cat of Ketcher, she could hardly refuse. Why would high-tiers always interfere?

* * *

They walked only the three flights of stairs and another short distance to some restaurants on the third deck, which catered for all kinds of visitors with high and low tables and seating arrangements and even climates. Most of the aliens were human, like everywhere else. Easy to spot, since even they towered over the Fallerians. In the distance, she saw what might even be a Dragon Triple, which would be a rare sight in any nearby system. But with the many races of Fallerians, she was not sure. It was certainly more cosmopolitan than Hopkins Station, where only a few humans ever visited and never one of the other races of the galaxy.

They passed a restaurant where three other cats sat at a table. But none of them wanted Krantagratin. And they wanted a private conversation out of earshot of other cats, so they kept walking.

Finally, Kayla chose a stew place. She was happy to follow her suggestion, as it was clear that she had been in the Fallerian system much longer than any of them. Therefore, the first thing she did was switch on a cooling breeze for their table, a feature she was sure did not exist where they were staying. Before they sat down, Kayla hugged her as well, almost smothering her with her soft fur and her Ketcher-enhanced assets at her face height. Yes, that short cat you are, as if she had needed that reminder.

"So, Rerra from Petra, you shipped two high-tiers just so from the station."

"Not just so but"

"Ok, details later. First, name your price."

She looked at Kayla, stunned. "What?"

"Kayla, why didn't you trust me?" Fanny intervened.

"These are dire times, you have been there. This is too serious. It could start another civil war."

"No," it escaped her, "please no!"

"No one wants war, never. But there will be fighting on the planet, between Ketcher tribes at least. So we must return quickly, the fewer members of Fiyul are present, the more the others will feel ready to challenge the Ketcher Council."

"My ship is currently being repaired. I will not be able to return immediately."

"No, don't worry. I will take Fanny with me, we will leave in 3500. But again, please name your price. My clansister is worth a lot to me, and jumps are not cheap. I did not want any obligations left behind."

"Fanny is a friend. I do not leave my friends behind."

Fanny turned to her and put a hand on her shoulder. "Come on, let us pay for the fuel and whatever else there is to pay for. All I did was sitting in your ship and then going shopping. No, I want to contribute more. But I cannot repair a ship, nor speak I Fallerian goo enough. So let me at least give you something to make your life easier. Space travel is expensive."

Expensive? Well, maybe in those fancy ships. "No, it's not that much. Xenon was about 1650 for the jump from Fallerian, innersystem jump 350, makes about 2000 together. Really, not too expensive, maybe two months of salary. Cheap if I can save lives. And the White Ocelot is not yet certified for commercial use, so I"

Now also Kayla put a hand on her other shoulder and shook her. "No, little cat, you want to become a trader? Where is your business sense? I am Kayla of Fiyul from Ketcher, second of one of the richest tribes in the Hopkins system. You should be milking me for good. Whether your ship has certification or not. At least 3000, your costs plus 50% profit is a very good rate. So let me give you 3500."

"But I also got Trina and me off the station, so a third would be"

Fanny interjected. "No, please, Rerra, why are you so stubborn? You helped me without asking for anything. So let me thank you with what I think is appropriate."

"Thank you." But she had still to state it, "I would have done it anyway. You do not have"

"transferred," Fanny closed the topic. "Now you can repair your ship without worrying about running out of money. And the next time we meet, I want to hear happy tales from distant worlds."

"Thank you." Then she slumped. "But first I will go back too, I have left my clan behind."

"You can come with us. But we might get into trouble."

"Quite likely," she nodded. "How do you plan to get down? Is the ship planet-rated? I doubt you can dock at the station."

"Indeed, that would be a problem," Kayla admitted.

"How many are on your ship? Less than 30 could fit into a shuttle. Do you have a docking adapter?"

"Thank you," Kayla said, scribbling on her pad but not answering. Still scribbling as their food arrived. But it was literally boiling, and that in the warm and humid station. The little cold wind from the unit above could only do so much. They all had some sort of spoon and blew on the stew in it.

Fanny spoke next. "Getting a shuttle means to involve Samul."

She nodded. "They are no monsters. I mean, you met Trina, even helped her. I would ask her, I don't think she's happy on Fallerian V."

Fanny nodded. "Quite a cold reception, yes."

She shuddered too. "I am sure that she wants to go back too. And she knows you, so that would work for both sides. Samul will try hard to get her down on the planet or onto the station and will take with them whoever Trina suggests."

Kayla nodded. "Thank you, Fanny, please send her a message."

"I think I should ask her." She got out her pad and quickly wrote the message. And then finally took a small spoon. She could barely eat it without scalding her tongue. But it tasted great, another nice Fallerian dish. Hard to believe that the insectoids were so good chefs.

The steaming stew meant slow eating. Between the spoons, Kayla told them of her time in the Fallerian system. How she had been on Fallerian IV for two months, scouting for ways to bring Ketcher, or at least Fiyul, into the space business, seeing that a single planet economy was not sustainable in the long run, and certainly not as profitable. Kayla talked freely about what she was planning to do and who she had met so far. She did not listen, it sounded too much like any conversation at the Curragh high table, an unpleasant reminder of her past. No, it was better not to become involved in this high-tier business again. If she was going back, it would be on her terms, in her ship. But Trina needed allies all the more, for even the Samul here blamed her for the loss of the station. After the next spoonful, her pad chimed. Her message had been dispatched to Fallerian V, the interplanetary charge applied. It would take a while to reach Trina as the stations were almost opposite sides right now.

* * *

They had been to their room to pick up Fanny's belongings and were on their way back to the ship when her pad chimed. "Trina answered." She went to the side in one of the frequent gaps of the corridors, probably designed for pedestrians to let pass large vehicles. Though they had never seen any. The two ocelot cats looked at her pad expectantly.

"Ok, Trina would like to return with you, with two other Samuls if possible. Kuri and Yerrin, both of the Carmak tribe, so middle tiers. Samul has no ship here, and probably none in the near future."

"Sounds like they are desperate." Kyala grinned.

She had to agree. After their cold reception, these pompous Samul did not deserve any better. "I think this is why they send only middle tiers, still too arrogant. More on topic, Trina also writes that fitting a docking adapter to a shuttle is nearly impossible, as it messes up the aerodynamics during ascent. Thus one would have to attach and detach it in space, which the shuttles are not prepared for. She suggests that you better get an adaptor here, it would not matter for jumping. If you like, she can arrange one and attach it herself on the way." She forwarded Trina's entire message to Fanny.

Kayla spoke first. "Sounds very reasonable, also I am not so sure how my pilot is about spacewalks. So, Trina is very welcome. We would even take the other two Samuls if Trina vouches for them, but only these two. My ship is not that big, and I do not want to share cabins between clans. Fanny?"

Fanny was already typing.

"Perhaps copy me in, so it is not automatically flagged as spam."

Her remarks drew an angry 'I'm not stupid' look from Fanny. And then, the message was sent and they walked on.

At the docking port, Fanny went inside for a moment while Kayla waited next to her for the docking officer. "You still have the modding from the Kolani."

She nodded, “Of course,” and lifted her feet-paws with the opposable toes.

Kayla laughed. "Nice thing but weird. You made quite an impression on Fanny. You know, she talked a lot about that mission. And more about you than she would admit, so much that some people thought Rerra was a distant clansister." Kayla chuckled at her embarrassment. "And afterwards, she wanted to stay on the station, not return to the planet. She was so sad that I was chosen over her to go out."

"No, you cannot blame me. Fanny must have caught the space bug even before. The first thing she did when she got on the ship was to order me to show her the cockpit. And she was so disappointed by the station structure outside the windows." She grinned. "By the way, Fanny has a B pilot's licence now, good for flights without jumps. So don't let her close to the cockpit."

Kayla's eyes widened and her ears stood straight. "What?"

"I had full Samul authorisation including licensing while we were fleeing the station. They did not revoke that part. There was time to kill, so I let her dock my ship here, all requirement fulfilled."

"Fanny's a pilot." Kayla was still digesting that.

"Now, a basic rendezvous in space is A, docking at a rotating station is B. To be honest, my ship is pretty hard to fly, no AI. So Fanny did well and certainly earned her B class. She must have done a lot of simulator training. Yes, another space-longing cat. And honestly, I think she could fly even your ship should ever the need arise."

Kayla hugged her tightly once more and ruffled her back fur. "Thank you, you are really like a clansister. You're sure you do not want to join Ketscher?"

Even if this was meant seriously, no way, never again high-tier politics, no thank you. "Kayla, I really appreciate the offer. But, no thanks, I grew up in the Curragh tribe from Samul. So I am familiar with the life of high-tiers and, no offence, I am happy to have left it behind."

"Curragh?" Kayla let go. "Really?"

"You can ask Fanny or Trina but otherwise, keep it a secret."

Then Kayla began to laugh. "Really, Curragh. Now I understand. And I had considered to bribe you."

"But I am Petra now, only Petra."

Kayla went serious. "She's coming back."

Fanny almost skipped when walking back. "Kiyu is there too! Can Rerra come on board?"

"I would like to meet your clansisters. But in these times, the less cats know about my involvement, the better. Petra has not Ketcher’s resources."

Fanny's smile faded but for a second. "Sorry, yes, then soon I hope." She smiled again.

It was hard to resist Fanny's excitement. "I look forward to it." She certainly hoped it would be soon.

"And here, three inhalers, all with 16 doses."

"Thank you, I will need them for"

Fanny did not let her finish her sentence. "I doubt very much that you will need them. When we were shopping, Marik wanted to know a lot about ships, about cats in general, and about you in particular. Like why my fur was so much thicker than yours, and if" She winked. "Go for him!"

At that moment, the docking officer emerged from the small side door, sparing her further embarrassment.

Fanny's deregistration as a resident took a little more discussion, but then it was all done.

She came back and hugged her. "Get your ship ready and then come anytime. The sooner the better. I'll miss you, my friend!"

She hugged Fanny too. "Good luck and please, take care!"

Then Fanny turned and followed Kayla into the ship. Once inside, they both turned and bowed until they were hidden by the rapidly closing docking port hatch.