‘Now, are you going to tell me what actually happened?' Pete asked. 'Why I’m racing clear across the star system to rescue my favourite damsel in distress.’
‘Damson,’ Kevin said with a funny little sparkle in his eye.
‘What?’
‘I’m in boy mode.’ He waved his hands to indicate his lack of a wig, dress, or any other tools of his trade. Makeup notwithstanding.
‘So?’
‘Language, darling. I’ve been toying with gendered words lately. A damsel is a girl, whereas a damson is—’
‘—a plum,’ Pete finished, his eyes narrowed.
‘What?’ Kevin’s shoulder’s fell. ‘Oh, so it is! I knew it was a word, but I couldn’t remember what it meant.’ He tapped his lip with a single finger. ‘Actually, that kind of makes me like it even more. I’ll be your damson in distress.’
‘Sure. And I’m on my way to rescue my favourite plum.’ Pete took a sip of his hot chocolate. And it was still hot thanks to his self-heating mug. Pete adored modern technology. ‘Now, I need you to walk me through what happened.’
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