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#IlynaApartment – May 19, 2017
Li has gone to bed about an hour ago, and she seems to have fallen asleep at last. It's not unusual for her to lie awake for quite a while on days where she hasn't tired herself out running around.
The apartment is very dim and quiet, the only sound being the occasional tap on the table as Ilyna's fingers press a haptic interface button too hard, and the hum of the fridge behind her. The asari has made no preparations for the visit.
Ilyna is currently typing away on her terminal at the dining table. The asari is wearing her usual casual dress, a long black and gray dress going from neck and all the way down without exposing any skin except the outher half of her hands. The triple knock makes her shut off the termianl's screen and stand up. She does remember that Halisi were to visit, and thus all caution is thrown to the wind when she walks into
Halisi stands on the doorsteps, wearing her winter coat, purple knit hat and scarf, as well as leather gloves. Her purse is hanging from her shoulder and she's holding a bottle of red wine. When she spots Ilyna a smile spreads across her face and she gives a wave with her free hand. "Hey... I meant to come by sooner, but... things are busy at the clinic. You know how it is."
Ilyna returns the smile and steps aside to let her in. She looks a little unsure for a moment when her eyes catches the bottle of wine, her mind racing for a meaning. "It's fine," she says, "I hope I'm not ruining your next busy day by keeping you up." Her tone and expression are light-hearted, though there is a hint of concern.
Halisi steps inside with a small chuckle. "Not to worry. I'm taking over the night shift tomorrow." she explains, reaching down to unlace and remove her boots. "I hope you don't mind me showing up at this time. I realize my schedule isn't always the most convenient." She removes her gloves and hat, brushing some hair out of her face before hanging the winter coat in the hallway. "I brought some wine, if that helps!" she says,
smirking slightly and showing off the bottle. "I, well, I don't know if you care for Earth wines." she adds, with a shrug and a slight frown as she studies Ilyna's reaction.
Ilyna gives a sigh of relief when Halisi tells her not to worry, for once heeding those words. Some of her fatigue manages to show up now that the rush of cold air has passed, despite her attempts at hiding it. "It's fine, I can push my work schedule," she says. She studies the wine bottle again with a tilt of her head. "I haven't tried it," she says, "but I do like wine." Well, what she's had has a word in common
Halisi nods with a small smile, grabbing her purse but waiting for Ilyna before walking further into the apartment. "Is Li up...?" she asks, craning her neck as if to see if she can spot the girl.
Ilyna waits for Halisi to move at first, but at the question she sidesteps and makes her way over to the kitchen. "She went to bed an hour ago," she says. Ilyna opens a cupboard and picks out two simple glasses, not exactly what one drinks wine out of.
Halisi follows Ilyna into the kitchen, watching as she takes out the glasses. She raises an eyebrow as she spots them, but doesn't say anything. She reaches into her purse and pulls out a small bag of sugar-free gummy varren. "Suppose you can give her these tomorrow. I wasn't sure if she'd be up." she says with another faint shrug as she puts the candy down on the counter.
Ilyna chuckles when takes out the candy, not realizing it's sugar-free yet. "I'll do that," she says. "I haven't bought her any since the party, so I'm sure she'll appreciate it." She smiles and moves over to put the glasses on the low table in front of the couch, but she waits for Halisi to sit down before taking a seat herself.
Halisi joins Ilyna over by the couch, taking a seat and uncorking the bottle with a quiet grunt of effort. She pours some into both glasses before placing it on the table, grabbing her own and turning in her seat to face Ilyna as she lifts it. "Let's hope this was worth the credits. I haven't had any good wine since I left Earth." she says with a faint grin.
Ilyna sits down a moment after Halisi, and grabs one of the filled glasses. "It's worth it to get a taste of home every now and then," she comments, no doubt referring to her own preference for Serrice Ice on the increasingly rare occasion she's out for a drink. She brings the wine up to her lips and looks at it with a thoughtful frown, not yet taking a sip of it.
Halisi shifts a little in her seat. She's wearing a dark green cami top and sleek grey pants. She takes a small sip, and a smile spreads across her face. "Yes... yes, it is." she says, her eyes remaining closed for a moment as she savours the taste. As her eyes open she glances Ilyna's way, chuckling when she notices her frown. "I won't hold it against you if you don't like it, I promise. Different species have different
Ilyna looks a bit flustered at first. "No, no, it's... just...." Giving up on articulating herself, she takes a tentative sip of it, doing her best to avoid any external reactions as she savours the taste. It's completely alien to her, and a little bit of a grimace is visible in her features. "It's good," she says, "just... different from anything I've had."
Halisi raises an eyebrow at Ilyna's reaction, seeming amused. She takes another sip of her wine and then lowers the glass into her lap with a nod. "It's made from grapes. These... rather large berries. They grow on vines. I... don't actually know much about asari beverages. I have heard of some referred to similarly though."
Ilyna nods thoughtfully before taking another small sip of the drink, regaining composure as Halisi changes the topic. There is still a hint of concern in her expression, however. "There must be some similarities beyond what we call it," she says, "though I cannot say I know anything about it."
Halisi lets out a quiet hum, looking down at her glass in silence for a moment before turning her gaze to Ilyna, studying her. "So... let's talk. How are you doing, Ilyna? Really? You... seemed so stressed out when we were talking this morning. You mentioned your sister?"
Ilyna takes another sip of the drink as she considers the question, looking incredibly guilty. "You took time out of your day, and brought wine, and... it would not really feel right to weigh you down with my problem." She lets out a long sigh and rests the glass against her right thing; not letting go of it, obviously. She's hesitant, but she does continue without offering her a chance to insist. "I... I've talked
with Jason about it, but... I still don't really know what to do," she says. "There's no end to the trouble she gets herself into working for Redrock, and I feel responsible for all of it. If something were to happen to her out there..." She looks down as she trails off, doing her best to remain calm as the implict end to that sentence is enough to form a lump in her throat.
Halisi frowns slightly, lowering her gaze with a small nod. "Yes, I... imagine it must be terrible to worry what may happen when she's in the field. I realize it's not the same, but I never stop worrying about the rest of you when you're in the field. I have precious few friends out here, and..." she hesitates for a moment, rubbing her thumb against the glass. "...and I've lost enough people under my care." she adds, her voice
quieter, a brief, distant flash of pain in her expression as her mind inevitably goes back. She takes a deep breath and sips her wine. "I-... ahem. I'm sorry. I-... Ehanis. You're worried for her safety? It's no wonder. She's your family. And you're both in a risky business..." Her voice is a little shaky, whatever crossed her mind still linger, although she does her best to hide it.
Ilyna lifts her head to look at Halisi while she speaks, frowning as she mentions the people lost. She has read the reports from the agency's past operations, so she can confidently guess what's bothering her. Getting well acqainted with loss and tragedy is the price asari pay for their long lives, but that did not exempt the other species from it. "It's also that she doesn't talk to me," she says. "There's...
something that's not right, but I can't help her." She gives a long sigh, looking quite guilty about going on about her troubles after involuntarily reminding her of the terrible experiences she's had. "But that's nothing next to what you've been through," she says. "If you want to talk about it, Halisi, please do."
Halisi raises an eyebrow, seeming a little caught off-guard. "Oh. I-..." a faint hint of a smile briefly tugs at the corner of her mouth, but it never manifests. "I suppose it would be a bit hypocritical to deny it, wouldn't it?" she muses, a slightly uneasy chuckle following. "I'm... not sure how much you know about the mission where Redrock rescued me." she says, swirling her glass a little as she stares down at it, her gaze
distant. "I-... well, it was my first encounter with those... things." There's an equal measure of disgust and unease in her emphasis on the last word.
Ilyna chuckles at first, but her expression quickly turns uneasy when the doctor elaborates about her experience. "I've read the reports," she says, "but we've had other encounters with those things, but no real sign of why, only... artifacts that's too dangerous to study." She casts a glance towards the rightmost bedroom door, silently wondering if Li could be awake and listening in on their conversation. Worry
Halisi keeps her gaze focused on the contents of her glass, a faint shiver running through her body. "Everything... everything went so wrong, so quickly, on Ogofau. One of the miners, Erik, he came into the infirmary, all pale, grey... and there were these... blisters." She shakes her head. "You've seen what they look like." She takes a long sip of her wine, letting out a heavy sigh. "At first I thought it was eezo exposure of
some sort... but then he started lashing out. We tried to restrain him, but-... yeah. My nurse was the second person to go, and everything fell apart from there. Eventually all I could do was hide... so I did. I hid and I waited. If Redrock hadn't come along when you did... the rest of us would've been infected too. Turned into-..." she trails off, a quiet sniffle escaping her as she tries to blink back the tears that
threaten to escape her silver-grey eyes. She lets out an embarassed, subdued chuckle, putting her glass on the table and lifting a hand to wipe away a rogue tear. " I'm sorry, I-... I didn't mean to come here and-..." She shakes her head to herself, another sniffle following.
Ilyna frowns deeply as she goes into more detail, giving a slight nod at the description. She considers herself fortunate to never have known anyone afflicted by this menace, but she could sympathise. The asari leaves her glass on the table in turn while placing her free hand on her shoulder. Ilyna is barely managing to keep her emotions under wraps, the guilt and sympathy both causing her eyes to water. "I... I'm