And at 15, a teenager is considered not to be fully independent. How quickly things change for humans. [Makes sense, for how short their lives are.] For years, I traveled with a runaway of that age who I believed was mature enough to live on her own. It was quite a surprise to learn later that her stowing away on my ship should have been cause for alarm.

[But they became good friends anyway, and Minimus misses Verity dearly centuries after her death. How quickly humans age.]