Stratos almost, almost smiles at that. Instead he nods, and with a gesture vanishes from sight. All that's left is his voice, oddly muffled when he says, "I'll be your very shadow, then."

Though there won't even be a shadow cast behind Jim as he strides down the corridors of the ship. Only a touch at his arm when he looks back questioningly. Stratos half takes in the subtle differences between this ship and the one he saw before, though his mind is elsewhere. And this time they're taking a very different route into the ship.

At least Felix won't be quite such a mess when they reach the sickbay. He's sedated and dosed with painkillers that ensure he won't be making those awful little noises any more. Lying back in a daze as he's patched up bit by bit. It seems that it's been a while since he's seen Jim but he doesn't know if that's good or bad.