[Illium and beyond] The beacon needs to be found (closed)

Oh wait, what?
"What do you mean, 'kids drink'? That batarian was advertising it like something special. Did he pull my fin or something? If it is nothing good, then please, widen my horizon on human beverages."

That other question did take her a bit off guard. Should she have someone else talk to Freh'ya? What if she just took off?

"Sil, thanks, but that's a bit complicated." How much should she tell? "In fact, I am not sure if she'd just run if she knows I am looking for her... we had... well, we were together before the war."

Behind the bar, Silel gave a little, amused snort.

"It's juice, darlin'," she replied. "Like, literally, it's juice."

The woman disappeared for a few minutes to allow the asari to contemplate her mistakes, then returned with a pink martini of her own. She sipped on it daintily and raised a brow towards Taleeze.

"Together, eh? Missed the ass?"

Juice. Batarian juice? Taleeze was shaking her head. Bintar was just like he seemed to be on the boards. A little bit weird. She didn't even know batarians drank juice. Most acted like drinking fuel and eating ground glass. But then, Bintar wasn't the random merc either. "hm..." she smiled at her Bloody Marry and it smiled back.

Silel returned with an interestingly colored drink. Pink was a color that ran well with most humans.
"Did I miss her... yeah, I did." And not only the ass. "And not only the ass, mind you." Nothing wrong with Freh'ya's ass, nothing at all. She laughed.
"It's one of those things where you think you can get over it by just ignoring it but it keeps nagging at your brain, tugging, tickling. It was a bit of a hassle to track her down, I can tell you that. One of your girls was recognizing her and reported that back through the Intimate Sisterhood."
She sipped at her drink, calories going to her stomach, alcohol to her brains.
"What's that you're drinking there? Looks nice."

"Man, you asari are tight with each other."

Silel took another sip and leaned her elbows on the bartop, giving the men at the other end of the bar one hell of a view. Ah well. She was used to being leered at by now, even if she wasn't one of the dancers; the hazards of being beautiful.

"This's a Lil' Nipple," she answered. "Really sweet, just how I like it. So what, you wanna' get back with this chick or something? Or do you just wanna' see her again?"

The Bloody Mary on an empty stomach did its work.
"If I could have my way, I'd grab her an drag her back home." She sighed. "But seriously I have no idea in what state she is. something is working on her, she must have a reason to disappear from her former life. So, I guess I'll only know when I actually meet her."

"Do you know these situations, where you think about all the possibilities and then it still develops completely differently? I have realized that this is such an occasion. I'll take what I get."

Taleeze was emptying her glass and devoured the last pieces of vegetable.
"So, this Lil' Nipple is something I never heard... hey they told me to widen my horizon when I went off to Omega. I guess it will be in the cocktail department. So, would you lovely lady be so nice to prepare a Lil' Nipple for a lonely asari?"

Huh. Silel had a feeling that this was going to be a real piece of work.

"Sure, hon. Just hold it together."

Goddess, did she act that weird?

"I will, don't worry." Alcohol. She had been babbling about the whole drama more than she wanted already. Or was it the bartender thing?

Silel didn't think Taleeze was weird at all, but that's the downside of not being telepathic. After a moment, she added, "This one's on the house - to finding your girlfriend!", and slid a freshly-made Lil' Nipple to the asari.

Ho, that was a surprise. "Thanks a lot!"
That Nipple was a sweet explosion in Taleeze's mouth... nice. Usually she preferred sour but in her heartache condition it was just the right thing. She pulled herself a bowl of nuts and started munching, her eyes wandering between the entrance area and the stage. A turian was on display and that was some sight. A group of turian mercs made some noise for her and probably the tips were high that night.

As the club got more populated at that late hour, Silel had to move on and tend other patrons at the bar. So it obviously wouldn't happen this night... Where would Freh'ya be tonight? Knowing she was on the same station was exciting. So close after all that time.

After a couple of fancy and potent drinks and a surprisingly good and fruity Baror Little Devil she called it a day. She left a big tip for the absent Jasis and also a decent one for Silel before she left the place. It was a night cycle but somehow you just never noticed it really on a space station, so she walked one block to a cab terminal. On the way she picked up a bacon sandwich from a street vendor. Finally some food...

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It had been a couple of days since Freh’ya had last visited her favorite hangout, the Periwinkle Paradise. The well known holos in front of the club were flashing as usual and the bouncer already grinned upon her arrival. A greeting for a regular who spends a lot of money on fancy drinks each night.

She took a seat on her usual end of the bar.
“Hey, Miss Periwinkle” , she greeted Silel. “The usual. Slap me.”

Freh'ya was ordering her usual starter, the double Face Slapper. Another night out, drinking. At least this was a good place to do that.

And there came trouble.

Silel raised a brow as she saw Freh'ya come in, but, remembering Taleeze's instructions to keep her mouth shut, did not immediately explode with a greeting of "HEY DID YOU KNOW YOUR GIRLFRIEND WAS HERE LOL". Instead, she simply offered a lopsided smile as she cleaned out a glass.

"Hey girl," she said. Damn, there were a lot of asari visiting lately. "No problem, comin' right up. Rough night?"

Taleeze had slept in long, the last night and the drinks had worn her out a bit. Just being at a club, waiting, was sure different than actually being there doing something. In a strange way it was more exhausting – emotionally mostly in this case. Maybe she should ask Silel to send her a message whenever Freh’ya would show up, but she didn’t want to drag the human into this too much. Also, waiting alone in an Omega hotel room was even worse than sitting alone and waiting at the club.

She nodded to the bouncer as she entered the Periwinkle Paradise. Her eyes went for the bar immediately but the curvature hid a part from her view. She progressed into the room, like usual, the music was at an okay level and at a fairly decent beat. Another night…
Then her mind went blank and the world faded out.

Freh’ya. At the bar.

Taleeze stopped in her tracks. Freh couldn’t see her as she was coming slightly from behind, but Silel recognized her as she was serving a turian at the other end of the counter.

After what seemed minutes of hesitating she approached the muscular form of the former commando. A few steps. Taleeze imagined Freh’s scent. No way, she could really smell it here. Now. Or never. Only inches, her hand, Freh’s shoulder.

“Hello, Freh.”

The big asari turned around slowly. She was dizzy from the alcohol, what…she knew that voice. That just couldn’t be true. But it was.

“Hello Taleeze.” Those eyes. She wanted to stand up but her knees were shaky, Freh’ya wasn’t sure if that was the alcohol or the shock. She had to hold onto the counter. Some two and a half years…
“You…shouldn’t have done this, you shouldn’t have…”

The big asari turned around slowly and the shock hit home hard with Taleeze. Who was that? The eyes were dark pits where once blue irises reminded of Thessia’s seas, now surrounded dark rings. The skin looked pale and unhealthy and the expression was gutwrenchingly sad.

Taleeze had to swallow a sob. She closed her eyes and threw herself at Freh’ya’s chest without further thinking, hugging her hard.
“I had no choice; I just couldn’t let you go… I had to…I had to”

It felt good to be so close, it just felt so good. Finally.

Hesitantly Freh’ya closed her arms around the much smaller asari. Her chin resting on the light blue scalp, she smelled the specific scent and it seemed like ages.

She let out a heavy sigh and broke the embrace. This was wrong, this was getting too much. She had no right to even consider this. Freh’ya turned towards the counter again, looking at her drink.

“I need no help.” It was spoken so soft yet the words were cutting like knifes.
“You should not have come here. You should have never looked for me. I am not…. what I used to be anymore.” Freh’ya felt her eyes getting wet. Goddess not this. “Leave now. And forget me. “ She gritted her teeth.

Well, this was getting awkward.

Sensing that she was sitting in on something she wasn't supposed to, Silel quickly scuttled off to the other end of the bar.

Taleeze snapped. She sprang up and leaped over to the asari who was so much larger than herself and shoved her wild, hammering her fists into the muscles of Freh’s back

“You arrogant, selfish bitch, WHERE HAVE YOU been!” She screamed, absolutely not caring if anyone could hear them. “Don’t you dare tell me what to do and don’t you dare look away, face me… FACE ME goddessdamnit!” She pulled at Freh’ya trying to turn her around and yanked at her arm.
“Face me and tell me what the hell is wrong with you! Why did you do this to me?”
The turian on the other end of the bar looked over, slightly annoyed.

“I wish I was dead, Taleeze… for what I have seen, for what… I have done sets me apart from society, and specifically asari society.” Sighed and was just staring. “I am dead inside, Taleeze. I got killed in the war. I tried to forget you but it didn’t work. I tried harder. You don’t dissolve in alcohol, Taleeze. I tried very hard.”
Taleeze had no idea what to say now. Instead Freh’ya continued.
“I tried to drown a lot of things. Not just one thing, but myself. I…”

Freh’ya turned around again, their eyes connected, Freh’s covered by a thick haze of tears and then Taleeze broke down herself, hanging on to the arms that slowly, reluctantly folded around her smaller body while she gave in to the tears. Freh picked her up like a feather and held her, both of them sniffing between tears.

“Freh’ya, I am not completely stupid. I have recognized by now that there was stuff going on that’s not easy to take.” She took a moment, the continued. “Don’t force this, but don’t be ashamed of anything. You are talking to me, remember? There is nothing that you ever have to hide from me.” She was whispering the last words.

“Okay, this is a bit embarrassing, you know” she chuckled, sniffing and looking up at Freh’ya. “Maybe we should go somewhere more private? And… talk?”

This wasn’t how Taleeze had envisioned it but maybe she hadn’t envisioned anything. What did she expect? Freh’ya just waiting to be picked up?

“Do you have an apartment or something?”

Freh’ya was breaking the embrace with sigh and paid her bill.
“I’m sorry, Miss Periwinkle… that was… just… sorry.” She murmured towards Silel and gave a significant tip.

“Come on… but don’t expect anything fancy, it is just a roof and four walls.”


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