Interning on the Aronnax

A Secret Hideaway

Fontaine was up to something.

"Why do I need to hide in the ducts?" Finn asked, pausing in his crawling through aforementioned air ducts.

"Ant is way too nosy for his own good," Fontaine said, pausing to look back. "You don't want to get found before we get to land, right?"

Right, except Fontaine was grinning like she had a secret. The tables had turned against Finn, but he couldn't help smiling back.

He hadn't been just teasing Fontaine before when he told her she'd make a great pirate, and there was nothing a pirate loved more than secrets and sneaking around. Finn technically wasn't a pirate anymore but, well, he was curious.

"Now come on. And stay quiet," Fontaine warned. "Mum might be up by now, and these ducts carry sound."

Finn nodded and followed Fontaine in silence. After a couple minutes, the teens reached what appeared to be a dead end. But then, Fontaine reached forward and pushed aside the gray cloth and climbed into the space beyond. Finn followed, rolling forward when his hands found open space to land in a crouch.

The new space was a ten-by-fifteen foot room that Fontaine had obviously turned into a secret hideaway. The walls had been brightly painted with the image of a sunny beach -inflatable palm trees included- a few rugs were scattered on the floor, ocean trinkets hung from the pipes criss-crossing the walls, a stack of books sat in one corner, and various odds-and-ends were scattered across the floor.

"It's safe to talk here," Fontaine said. "This room used to hold a back-up generator, so it's soundproof."

"Let me guess, this is how you escape your family," Finn said with a knowing grin.

"Wouldn't you?" Fontaine asked. She started cleaning the hideaway, like she had in her room. Did she think Finn wasn't used to messes? "Mostly Ant. But this will be a safe place for you until we come up with a plan."

"I thought we had a plan," Finn said, sitting on the floor.

"Why do you want to go to land, anyway?"

"Haven't you ever wanted to try living on land?"

"Well..." Fontaine got a wistful smile as she stared at the painted sunset.

Okay, Finn wasn't being serious. Personally, he couldn't stand being on land. It was just too permanent, hard, and dry. Why would Fontaine feel different?

Fontaine looked back at Finn. "What will you do?"

"Well, I couldn't leave the sea for good. Maybe I'll work on a fishing boat," Finn said.

A curious expression flashed across Fontaine's face. "You're actually serious."

"You didn't think I was?"

"You sure sounded sincere yesterday that you didn't want to be a pirate," Fontaine said slowly. "But I thought you wanted to stay on the Aronnax."

"I do!" Finn insisted. "I just think your parents need some time to get used to the idea before I try to stay."

"Mum and Dad will understand if you just explain," Fontaine said, rolling her eyes.

"I still think I should lay low for a bit," Finn said. He was an expert at laying low, after all. "Then when you're in the area again, I can talk to them."

"No good," Fontaine said. "By next week, we'll be halfway across the world. It could be months before we're back here."

He'd be on his own for a while, then. Finn didn't doubt his ability to take care of himself, but one of the issues with the mainland was that a teenager like him on his own would attract attention.

"People would ask questions," said Fontaine, having reached the same thought. "And what would you tell them?"

"That my dad is away on business," Finn said.

"You can't even get a place to stay alone until you're eighteen," Fontaine said.

"Seriously? I once stayed at home base alone for a week. When I was ten!"

"That's not how it works on the mainland."

"Okay, so that's an issue."

"Just stay here," Fontaine said, sitting in front of Finn. "Just for a few days. Then, when the Dark Orca is really out of reach, we'll tell my parents. They can't send you away without the Dark Orca to pick you up!"

Finn nearly asked why they couldn't, then remembered who he was with. The Nektons weren't like the pirates, who would throw off stowaways wherever they happened to be. With them, he actually had a chance to stay.

"Only for a few days," Finn agreed.