"Oh -- " Clearly surprised, but undeniably pleased, Gaeta accepts the geode. "If you're sure... thank you."

For a beat, he just studies how it catches the light. Presses the pad of his thumb against one of the pointier formations.

And then, not entirely sure why he's telling her in the first place, Gaeta says, "The first real friend I made here hated gifts. Lieutenant Tayrey. Her civilization had a core tenet where you'd never accept anything for free; it had to be fair trade. Fair contract. I even had to work out a trade with her just so she'd feel comfortable taking out books from the library. I didn't understand it at first, I'm still not sure I do, but."

A quiet sigh.

"She was a spacer too. And military. Her being here, it made the transition a little easier. And when she left after a couple months..." He shakes his head. "I think it knocked my feet out from under me more than I realized. For a while we were some of the only people here who understood what it was like to live in space."

He meets Ripley's eye again. "I'm glad there's more of us now."