HC that Cinder purposely never learns how to pilot a ship and Thorne never takes the Rampion to be serviced by anyone except Cinder because it’s this unspoken understanding that if Cinder ever needs a pilot outside the royal fleet he’ll be there and if Thorne ever needs a mechanic she’ll be there.
So while she absolutely could learn very easily, she always turns down Scarlett and Jacin when they offer to teach her and while other mechanics and shops may be more convenient, Thorne waves off anyone who points that out. It’s just a fact of their friendship. They’re partners in crime (literally, or least they were) and though they won’t admit it to anyone else or each other it’s just a fact that Thorne flies and Cinder is the Rampion’s mechanic.
And of course they both are secretly very touched and it means a lot to them that the other has reserved that place in their life for them.
















