As Shinespark and Grenada made their way to the kitchen, Valey strolled in the opposite direction, under Nyala's invitation to do something with herself and her own judgement that Yanavan was well and truly stuck. And she certainly had a lot to do; a list of ponies to talk to piled on her shoulders, to Starlight and Maple and ensure they were well, to Harshwater about everything in the Varsidelian camp and to Felicity about her job and past.
But Yanavan didn't number among them. She was certain there was something he wasn't saying, that everything in that valley added up to a bigger picture she didn't see, but it didn't matter. This was a problem someone else was going to deal with. They had accidentally freed Yanavan but removed his Nightmare Module ability, and now the Monk Lords and their grand temple would get to deal with him. It wasn't her problem, and despite everything else she had to do, there was more of a spring in her step than she had felt since passing the tournament.
Mentally, she flipped a coin, standing between the doors to Felicity's and Harshwater's rooms. Gotta start somewhere... Harshwater. With a level of politeness she could never have mustered months ago, she knocked on the door.
"Who is it?" a sleepy pegasus voice mumbled from the other side. "Unless you're Valey, go away!"
"Wow." Valey cracked the door open, slipping inside without shadow sneaking. "I feel special."
Harshwater was on her back in the bed, a small light on and a book open before her, though she was looking up at Valey. "Don't take it too flatteringly," she warned. "I just knew you'd come in anyway."
"Oh, well thanks." Valey rolled her eyes, tromping in and seating herself at the edge of the bed. "So. You're coming with us, and I'm pretty sure that mess with the cave doesn't change anything. Like, you know your stuff, we could use the help, you said you didn't have anywhere else to go... So I figured we should chat."
"I'm not really sure what's to say." Harshwater stared straight ahead, looking past her book. "You could have killed me in Ironridge, when Kero sent me on a suicide mission against you, and you didn't. Then he sent me on another suicide mission up here, and I probably would have died if you hadn't bailed me out. And when I tried to repay you, Kero tricked me again and I nearly made things that much worse."
Valey tilted her head. "So Kero's a jerk. And?"
"I don't know if you get it," Harshwater went on, no fire in her voice. "I had a crush on him. Enough to forgive the first time this happened and run right back to him into a trap. My judgement must be nonexistent, and going into that cave doesn't help. I ran away from the company; any other plans I might have had for my life are left behind in Ironridge. I don't have any possessions, either. So you wanted me enough to keep me? Congratulations. You got me. What you do with that is your call."
Valey groaned. "Please don't tell me we just picked up a depressed pegasus. Look, girl, life around here is not that peachy. I've got my hooves full dealing with weird goddess technology and trying to be a good pony while keeping my friends motivated, so if you're needing to feel good about yourself, you're not gonna have a good time. This is the one time I'm gonna say this: you're not a tool. Have some dignity. This is not a discussion I need to have."
Harshwater frowned. "Maybe I didn't make myself clear. I'm a mercenary. Being other people's tools is literally what we're paid to do. You gave me my life twice over, so now I owe you, and that's just how it works. And even if I didn't, you are way more competent than me and more likely to keep me alive, so it's in my best interest to stick with you. Have a problem with that?"
"Uhhh..." Valey squinted.
"I'm from Yakyakistan. You're from Yakyakistan. You should know how it is." She looked through the pages of her book. "You do what it takes to survive. That means recognizing your own limits, and I've proven time and again that my own judgement is going to get me killed. I'm not depressed. Just, telling myself I'm great at everything and can go it alone isn't how I stay alive."
"Well, don't worry about that, then." Valey went back to leaning against the bed. "Keeping ponies alive is what I do. But seriously, if you're taking orders from me now, try to enjoy yourself. That's an order."
Harshwater gave her a strange look. "Are you serious?"
"Have you never had a cool boss before?" Valey countered, raising an eyebrow. "Yeah, I'm serious. Look, nothing bad is going to happen over the next few days. Rest up and heal, yeah, but this is a great time to focus on morale. It's good for you, it's good for everyone else, and it's great for me, too."
"Look, I just had the worst weeks of my life." Harshwater averted her gaze. "Give me specifics and I'll do it, but I'm not feeling particularly creative right now. And don't just tell me to cheer up. You know brains don't work like that."
Valey flopped a foreleg atop the bed. "There, see? I told you you were feeling bad about yourself."
Harshwater sighed. "Once again, I'd rather be alive than blissfully ignorant and dead, or idolizing people who didn't deserve it. It might not be pleasant, but believe me I've been in enough war zones to have seen the alternative firsthoof." She glanced suspiciously at Valey. "What's up with you, though? Why do you care how I'm feeling? Again, I'm not being a downer; you make everyone feel awkward for sport. How come I've just told you I'll do anything you ask and your first reaction isn't to take advantage of the fact I'm a mare?"
"Bananas, I dunno." Valey shrugged. "I changed."
"I'll say you did," Harshwater mumbled.
"...Wanna talk about it?"
Harshwater raised an eyebrow. "Do you?"
"What I'd like to do is be friends," Valey said, folding her forelegs behind her head. "I kinda don't get out much past this ship, and if you're going to hang out here, I'd rather get to know you than have you be a face in the background, you know?" She looked up. "Please?"
Harshwater shook her head. "Being asked please by Admiral Valey. My life is so surreal right now." She closed her book, setting it aside with a battered hoof. "Sure. Let's talk about whatever. Tell me what kind of team I've gotten myself into."
"Well," Valey started, "it all started with this dumb mare who gave me way too much benefit of the doubt..."