#Miner'sRespite – August 15, 2015

Leah steps into the the Respite and slides into the booth near the door without even bothering to look for any familiar faces. "Well, here I am." she says with an exasperated sigh, "I swear, if this is some fucked up attempt at a first date and you show up with some flowers it's not gonna be pretty, Mr. Kurt." The normal sound levels of the Respite would conceal her insane rambling,

Va'ynna looks up at the entering patron, but stays where she is, as the Respite doesn't do table service. (Gisle)

Leah bites down hard once more and strains to keep a straight face through the pain. She wipes a strand of hair out of her face and tucks it behind her ear, "Whatever you say... Now, can we get this over with-... whatever this is, so I can go home?"

Victoria walks down into the Respite, wearing her typical t-shirt and long pants. She gives a quick look around to bar and thinks she spots a familiar face.

Va'ynna keeps looking towards her with a tilted head, but assumes she's making a cal and turns back to placing the hundred-and-nth call to Aylena. (Gisle)

Leah grabs onto the table and pulls herself out of the booth. "Your wish is my command." she groans. She rises to her feet and proceeds towards the staircase as she slides her hands into her pockets. She keeps her head low, hoping to go unnoticed.

Victoria stares at the woman walking towards the staircase. It takes her a few seconds "Leah?" She asks in a rather shocked tone.

Leah furrows her brow as her hands make contact with unfamiliar items. Her confusion turns to a wince as she hears her name being called out. With her back to Victoria, she puts on her best smile and rotates in place, "Vicky!" she says, "So good to see you! Good to see anyone after being stuck in that hospital all week." She glances towards the staircase and bites her lower lip.

Va'ynna looks towards them, or where they went, glancing impatiently back at the terminal screen. (Gisle)

Leah glances down at her legs and then stands up straight on her tiptoes, as if showing them off. "Yeah! I can't believe it either!" she says, "I got lucky and some charity organization, Bozeman. Cybernetics. came through for me. An entire spinal cybernetic for free." She remains in place and nods a few times, "Think there's a few kinks to work out of it, but yeah..." she gives a

Victoria smiles and gives the woman a quick friendly hug "Good to see you walking kiddo. But an entire spinal cybernetic for free? That sounds crazy." She expresses her disbelieve on her face with her last sentence.

Leah reaches around and awkwardly pats Victoria on the back a few times. "I know, right? I was beginning to get a little worried. Seemed like this wasn't going to be a cheap fix and we all know Redrock hasn't been in the best of positions recently." she responds, going a mile-a-minute. Not at all like her usual, not-so-spunky self. "But yep. Got lucky. Bozeman. Cybernetics. really

Victoria looks at Leah for a few moments "Are you alright, Leah? Don't seem like your normal self." She sensed there was something off about Leah. "These Bozeman people only gave you a spine right? Nothing else or made a shady deal with them?"

Leah wrinkles her forehead. "Huh? No. Just trying to get used to this whole-..." she sighs and glances down at her legs once more, "...walking thing. It's a lot to take in. We'll catch up soon, though, okay?" she says. She doesn't bother waiting for a response before spinning on her heels and marching off up the stairs. When she reaches the top of the stairs she lowers her voice as

Leah frowns and continues down the hall until she reaches the indicated room. She stands beside the door and lets out a sigh. "I'm here... Now, please, what are you talking about? What does additional insurance mean?"

Victoria frowns when Leah just spins and marches off upstairs. She decides to go to the bar and wait for the woman.

Leah lowers her head in frustration but complies. She reaches up and buzzes the door.

Jason is in the doorway once it slides open. He's still dressed the same as he was earlier in the day, but a strong scent of alcohol is on his breath. He's holding a beer in his left (and only) hand. He stares at Leah for a moment before furrowing his brow. His confusion turns into a genuine smile, "Holy shit! You're fucking walking!? What sort of hoodoo-voodoo magic did Halisi do!?

Va'ynna looks over at VIctoria after Leah left with a titled head. (Gisle)

Leah looks utterly confused for a moment before shaking her head and stepping into the doorway without being invited in, "Oh. Yeah. Thought I should stop by and let you know." she says with a slight chuckle, "And don't worry, it's not gonna cost you a dime!" She lowers her gaze to his beer and raises her eyebrows in faux-surprise as her hand manipulates the small box in her pocket.

Jason gives a lopsided smirk and steps back. "No shit. She's been blowing up my omni-tool with instructions and rules all week." he says. He steps over towards the table and sets down his beer to fish a fresh one out of the holder. He extends the beer towards Leah, "I just told her I had shit to do. No way they were keeping me in that place. Not like my arm was just gonna grow back,

Leah glances down at the beer, hands still in her pockets as she fishes the pills out of the box incognito-like. "Oh..." she frowns, "Could you open it for me?"

Va'ynna smiles. "That's great," she says. "It's... good that the agency really takes care... of you." (Gisle)

Jason gives a slight chuckle and takes a step back towards the table. "Oh, shit, yeah sorry." he says. He sets the bottle down on the table momentarily and uses his hand to regrip the bottle with his shirt. He takes a moment to wipe off the condensation to keep the bottle from slipping out of his grasp. "It's really good to see you back on your feet, Leah." he says sincerely, passing

Leah palms the pill and goes right for his beer when he turns his back to open the new bottle. "Yeah, me too..." she responds and withdraws her hand as his glance nearly catches her. Once he returns his attention to opening the beer, she swiftly steps forward and drops the pill into the bottle. A wave of guilt and relief overcomes her all at once. "I... I know, Jason. Thank you."

Va'ynna giggles. "I... like you just as you are, too," she says. (Gisle)

Jason yanks the bottle hard, cutting another deep gash into the side of the table, but causing the cap to go shooting off the top. "And voila!" he says, passing the opened beer back to Leah with a smile. "Well, let's hope we don't need your cousins help again. I'm-... sorry about how that whole thing went down." he says with regret heavy in his voice, "I was trying to do the right

Leah lowers her gaze and goes quiet for a few moments. "You couldn't have known how bad things would get, Jason." she says, glancing up at him momentarily, "I knew the risks when I signed up for this job. It's dangerous work." She gives a shrug and takes a sip of her own drink, "I don't want you to think I blame you for what happened. I don't. Honest."

Jason nods a few times to himself, but stares down at the ground. "Thank you. That means a lot to me..." he says, although it's obvious that there's a lot on his mind. He takes another large gulp from his beer. "I just... I'm gonna make damn sure nothing like that ever happens again." he adds, plopping down on the edge of the bed, "We'll be better prepared next time."

Va'ynna frowns. "It's... been two long days," she says in a lowered voice. "D'Inea is still absent." (Gisle)

Leah paces a bit and sips her beer as he speaks, nodding along. "That's all we can do, right? Hope for better results next time?" She glances at his damaged shoulder, "How about you? When are you gonna get that all taken care of?" she asks.

Jason glances over at his shoulder in turn and gives a nod, "Soon." he says, blinking hard a few times. "I-... I just need to-... to see what Halisi can do for me." he continues, his vision rapidly getting pretty blurry. "Shit..." he says with a quiet snicker, "Halisi warned me about mixing those meds with alcohol..."

Leah sighs, feeling even more guilty as she notices the effects of the pill kicking in. "Maybe you should just get some rest, Jason. I can't imagine how stressed out you've been with everything going on. Sorry I bothered you like this, just thought you should know I was all taken care of..." she trails off.

Jason gives a couple nods as his body begins to go slack. He opens his mouth to speak, but all that manages to slip out is a groan. His bottle falls to the ground, spilling its contents all over the floor and his body tips to the side. He looks quite peaceful on the bed as his chest rises and falls slowly.

Leah stares sadly at Jason's body and gives a loud sigh. "Whatever you say..." she lets out a deep breath through her nose and follows her orders. She steps over to the desk with the disassembled Revenant and makes room to slide the flashdrive into the terminal.

Va'ynna nods. "T'Iavay and Briggs," she says. "They... did go through her apartment, but... I haven't heard anything from them." (Gisle)

Leah glances over her shoulder at Jason. "How long is this going to take?" she asks, quickly growing impatient.

Leah rolls her eyes as her question is answered. She reaches over and unplugs the flash drive. "Sorry, Jason..." she sighs as she stuffs it back into her pocket. "Is he going to be okay?" she asks out loud.

Leah moves closer to Jason and crouches down to examine him. "Yeah, yeah. Will. He. Be. Okay?" she repeats.

Va'ynna nods. "Mhm," she says. "I'm... just worried about her. I... I don't know what to do should the... worst happen." (Gisle)

Victoria thinks for a second trying to think about what Va'ynna should do in the worst situation and then it hit her. "Well, you could run this place right? I mean, you do quite a bit here already."

Leah glances over at the photo of Vasquez on the night stand and another pang of guilt shoots through her conscience. She picks up Jason's bottle and dumps the rest of the contents out on the floor to ensure he doesn't just wake up and drink more of whatever she put in his drink. She sets the empty bottle on the table and exits the room, closing the door behind her. With beer in

Va'ynna hums. "I... don't know a single thing about... management," she says, "and... I can only sign for deliveries, not... payments." She looks at Leah with a tiny smile. "Hey. Can I get you anything?" (Gisle)

Leah returns the asari's smile and holds her beer up. "Nope. I'm good. Jason had me covered." she says before shaking her head and chuckling, "You know, before he passed out. Looks like he's been going hard at the bottle all day.." She gives a short shrug as she looks between Vicky and Va'ynna, "Suppose he's sort of earned it, though. Been a rough time for him lately..." She winces

Va'ynna remains by the two, as it's still not many patrons about. "I... don't have access to more than I need to do... my job. I could do some of it, I suppose, but... not making deals or paying." (Gisle)

Leah gives a short chuckle and takes a swig of her drink. "That's right. You still owe me lessons. Gotta put this new spine through its paces!" she says. "Need to make sure my cousin didn't pass it down from some rejected bat-..." she pauses, wincing a bit as if she just let slip some sort of information she didn't intend to. She stared at Victoria with a look of shame on her face

Damien enters the Respite after a refreshing walk through the friendly streets of Freedom Falls. He smiles at the familiarity of the bar, taking a moment to let it all sink in. He spots the trio by the bar and walks over to them, giving them a wave with his new arm. "Surprise."

Victoria looked at her intensely "You don't need nothing but your hands, minds and eyes to fly, kid. Broken body or not you can still fly." She was too caught up on Leah former cripple state. "Was gonna teach you how to fly no matter what. If you were still crippled at least you could still fly." She said with a cheerful outlook.

Va'ynna looks at Damien with a surprised expression. "Hey," she says with a smile. "It's good to see you. It's great... that the agency looks after their people like that." (Gisle)

Leah lets out a disappointed sigh as Vicky responds, but she masks it with a smile. Upon hearing the familiar voice, she winces a bit and rotates in her seat. "Hey! Look at you!" she says before cutting to the chase, "I know, I know... I should have stopped by. I was going to! Honest! I just needed to let Jason know what was going on. Didn't think you'd even notice I had been released

Victoria tilted her head to the side for a second and said quietly to herself "Wait cousin?" She then shook her head, and thought that Leah's cousin might work for that cybernetic company.

Damien smiles at Va'ynna, wiggling his fingers with a chuckle. He then looks at Leah and folds his arms across his chest, raising an eyebrow curiously. "It's alright," he says halfheartedly. "I'm just glad to see you walking again. Honest." He smiles, before looking at Va'ynna. "Is Jason in his room? I thought about messaging him, but I thought it'd be more rewarding to speak to him face to face. Y'know, to

Damien - Y'know, to rub it in." He points at his new arm to punctuate the point.

Leah winces once more as Victoria catches her words. It's for show, obviously, but she sighs and plays along. "Shit... I-... I guess I might as well fess up. I trust you guys just-... keep it to yourselves, okay? I don't want to get my cousin in trouble." she says, doing her best to sound convincing as she looks around at the others, "There is no charity." she sighs, "I mean-...

Leah gives a slow nod. "Sorry, Vicky... I didn't want to lie to you, but my cousin took a real risk to get me this hardware." She raises her head to meet Vicky's gaze with a sympathetic look, "He assured me that whoever it was going to would get a replacement. It might take a little while... But it's not like I stole it from them, you know?" She takes a deep breath in through her

Va'ynna nods. "I... I don't want to cause the agency trouble," she says in a low voice, almost a whisper. "I won't tell anyone." (Gisle)

Victoria nods believing the story that Leah has told her. "That is alright, kid. We all do something like that in that type of situation."

Leah lets out a sigh of relief. Moreso that Victoria actually bought the story than that she gave Leah her forgiveness, although it would appear as the latter. Her disposition visibly brightens up and she glances up at Monroe to finally address the question he asked previously. "I just came from talking to Jason. He was so wasted he couldn't even keep his eyes open. I'd give it a

Va'ynna tilts her head. "Isn't he... supposed to be working?" she asks. "With... all that's going on?" (Gisle)

Damien keeps his arms folded and looks at Leah evenly, something still nagging on his mind. "I better make sure he doesn't choke on his own vomit then."

Leah gives Va'ynna a shrug. "Maybe he finished up for the day? He mentioned some meds Halisi had him on. Guessing mixing it with alcohol put him on his ass real quick. I think he could use the rest, anyway." she says with a chuckle. Upon hearing Monroe, she leans over and reaches to grab his new hand. She glances up at him with a wide smile. "He's a big boy. Seems to have a whole

Damien pauses and looks down at Leah gripping his new hand. "I suppose not," he says finally, gingerly giving her hand a squeeze back before letting go. He's still not overly confident in his ability to control his strength with his robo-arm yet.

Victoria stood up and yawn "I got a few things to take care of. I shall talk to you two kiddos later." She then looked at Va'ynna "And I shall definitely see you later."

Va'ynna can't help but giggle at that, moving a hand up to cover her mouth. "See you," she says. (Gisle)

Leah pulls her hand back and waves off Victoria with it. Despite the guilt she feels from lying to her friends, she can't help but feel the surge of adreneline coursing through her veins from getting away with it. She spins on her stool to fully face Monroe and hops off of it, onto her feet. Despite the adreneline, she instantly feels a bit uneven on her legs and grabs on to the edge

Victoria heads out of the respite with a smile on her face.

Damien moves to steady Leah with his regular hand, frowning slightly. "I'm surprised," he begins to say. "Aren't there usually rehabilitation programmes for this? Therapy and such? My dad need a few months just for a ruptured Achilles heel."

Leah raises her shoulders and lets them drop in a shrug. "I don't know... They said it would take a while before everything came naturally again, but that I'd regain use of my legs immediately." She looks down once more, "Doesn't really feel the same, but they work." she says with a nod, "I'll get used to it. Just don't expect me to be dancing anytime soon." she says with a wink.

Damien chuckles, giving her shoulder a light squeeze. "I'm just glad you're alright." He looks over at the bar and grins, looking back at Leah. "And I'm pretty sure I owe you a drink."

Leah reaches over and grabs her beer. She pointedly tips it back to empty the last of it into her mouth. With a satisfied sigh, she sets the empty bottle back down, "And would you look at that? I'm about due for another beer."

Damien laughs and taps the bar, his metallic fingers echoing on the surface. "V, couple of beers if you'd kindly." He glances at Leah with a raised brow. "Unless the lady would like something stronger?"

Leah retakes her seat beside Monroe and gives a short chuckle. "I'm gonna have enough trouble walking as it is... I think a beer will be fine." she admits. "So, how does it feel?" she asks, giving a nod towards his hand, "Everything you had hoped for?"

Damien clenches his hand and releases it, repeating the process a few times. "It's certainly got strength. And it's got modification capabilities. So yeah," he nods contently. "It'll do."

Leah nods. "It'll do..." she repeats. "How about you?" she asks, "You doing alright? Seemed pretty down the last time we spoke..."

Va'ynna nods and pours two pint-glasses of beer, and places them on the counter. (Gisle)

Damien hands Va'ynna a chit, his face darkening slightly as he nods. "I'm... I'm not sure," he admits, tracing a finger along the rim of the glass. He takes a long sip from it, obviously conflicted about something.

Leah gives another nod as she pulls the glass closer. "I understand... It wasn't the sort of thing you can just forget." She glances over at Monroe's hand and then down at her own legs, "Suppose we'll be carrying it with us for the rest of our lives..." she mutters. She stares at her drink a bit distantly before taking a sip from it. "I'm here, though..." she says with an uncomfortable

Va'ynna takes the chit and charges the amount before handing it back to him. (Gisle)

Damien nods slowly, glancing at the woman from the corner of his eye as he takes the chit back. "Same for you, Leah. Though I'm not really good at the whole conforming thing," he chuckles without humour. "Seriously though, is something bothering you?"

Leah places her forearms against the counter and stares down at her hands. "Of course..." she says honestly, "...Suppose it would be stranger if it didn't bother me." She looks over at Monroe, "I almost died. We almost died. The whole trip back to the ship from that fucked up facility, I was helpless. And all I kept thinking of, is what would happen to my dad if I didn't make it

Damien listens, simply clutching the glass in his organic hand. He nods lightly as she finishes, staring at his drink. He stares at his faint reflection, blurred by the alcoholic beverage. He doesn't know how to respond, what to say. "They would've carried you out again, y'know."

Leah gives a few nods in response, although it's obvious that she doesn't exactly agree. Nevermind the guilt his talk of family incites. "Sorry. Not trying to be a killjoy here. Should be a day of celebration." she says, forcing a smile, "You got your arm back."

Damien snorts. "I'll probably end up losing it again by the end of the week." He downs his drink, placing the empty glass back on the counter. "It's one problem after the next."

Leah manages a sincere chuckle. "Is that your thing? Losing limbs?" she teases, "Doesn't seem like a particularly productive way of passing your time." She leans forward and lifts her glass up, staring down into the beverage, "Hopefully it's smooth sailing for you from here on out. You deserve it."

Damien hums a laugh. "And I'm sure you've got better ways," he teases back, winking. His mood falls to a more sombre one at the mention of smooth sailing. "Deserve it? What in the hell makes you think that?"

Leah sits up straight and scrunches up her nose, almost as if to say 'good point'. She seems to consider it for a few moments before finally tilting her head to the side, "Because I like you, dammit, and I've got damn good taste." She lets out another snicker before slugging back a bit of her beer, "You're alright, Monroe. A bit of an idiot, but you're alright."

Damien tilts his head back and lets out a boisterous laugh. "I think you need to redefine your definition of good taste." He pauses and looks back at her, smiling warmly. "Charming. But the feeling is mutual. You have a certain... Allure."

Leah cocks an eyebrow and leans an elbow against the counter, resting her chin on her hand. "Oh?" she asks coyly, "Is that so? Aren't you the flatterer." she teases. With her other hand, she brings her glass up to her lips, emptying the last of her drink.

Damien chuckles, shaking his head slightly. "I thought it might be a better compliment than 'idiot'," he retorts. "Another?" He gestures at her empty glass.

Leah lowers her eyes to the glass, but keeps her chin propped up with her hand. She gives a short shake of her head, "Like I said, it's gonna be hard enough for me to get around without getting hammered." She tilts her head slightly, "And what's wrong with 'idiot'? It's a term of endearment. You know, like 'awww, what an idiot'. I mean it in the best way possible." she adds with a

Damien snorts. "Uh-huh, sure. It was a compliment," he says with a totally subtle eye roll. "It this how you charm all of the fellas you come across?"

Leah gives a quick shake of her head. "Of course not!" she insists, "You're a special case so I had to bring out the big guns." She wrinkles her nose and lowers her voice to a whisper, "Is it working?"

Damien leans forwards, similarly lowering his voice. "Idiot and now a special case? Consider me wooed." He snickers and leans back, his omni-tool beeping with an incoming message, though he pays it no mind for the moment.

Leah 's smile widens a bit, but slowly fades away as his omni-tool begins to beep. "You should take that." she says, "I need to be heading out anyway." Her demeanor seems to change drastically as she slides her empty glass across the counter and everything begins to set in once more. She tucks a few loose strands of hair back behind her ear and climbs off the stool, holding onto the

Damien smiles warmly, titling his head to her. "Anytime," he says. "Don't be a stranger. And take care of yourself, alright?" A flicker of concern passes behind his eyes at her change in demeanour, though what with recent events it honestly doesn't surprise him.

Leah gives a couple quick nods. "Of course. And-... Monroe?" she continues, lowering her gaze for a moment, "You were wrong, you know? All that talk about not being 'strong enough'? You were just-... wrong." She grabs his new hand in her own and looks down at it, running her fingers over it as a small smile crosses her lips. "It's nice... But it's not going to give you strength. Not

Damien held her gaze, his mouth parting slightly though no words would come forth. He simply sat there, muted, as she spoke. As she turned to leave, he looked down at where she rapped her hand on his chest. His metallic hand brushes against his chest, her words mulling over in his mind. After a quiet moment, he smiles. "I must be going soft...". He mutters to himself.

Damien stands up, staring at the doorway as he shoves a hand in his pocket. He chuckles lightly, turning to the stairway and heading back to his room for the first time in weeks.