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#IlynaApartment – October 23, 2017
A black sky-car sets down on the street seen from the living room, though barely from the couch. It's late in the afternoon, around the time where the streetlights would light up on cloudy days like this. A purple asari maiden with a barrier west over her gray winter coat steps outside, the orange glow of her omni-tool in contrast to the snow's blue-ish hue from the setting sun.
Ilyna looks up upon hearing the familiar hum of a sky-car, and tilts her head. Given that she can't see it from where she's standing, she figures it must be a neighbor. Ilyna is standing by the dinner table she is in the middle of cleaning, since they ate dinner about twenty minutes ago. She's wearing a plain black t-shirt and simple gray pants. Ilyna does look a little under the weather from yesterday's festivities.
Li is lying in the couch, watching cartoons as she gets some after-dinner rest. She pays no attention to the sound of the car.
The sky-car opens while the aforementioned asari walks along the road past the window. Another asari, wearing a hood and a long red winter dress follows shorty after.
Ilyna throws the cleaning cloth into the sink and walks over to the window, her brows raised. "Dad?" she murmurs. Ilyna doesn't seem to be expecting her at all, even if she's told Jason she'll invite her to the wedding. She lights up as she waves to someone outside, and she heads for the entrance door.
Li doesn't hear Ilyna's murmur, her attention quite focused on the cartoon - another turian one. Meaning lots of violence, and lots of lessons about the value of cooperation.
Ilyna throws a jacket on, steps into her shoes without tying them. "I'll be right back," she says before opening the door and hurrying outside. The door is left open, letting in the cold winter air. From inside the apartment, Li might barely hear the cheerful reunion, but her translator won't be able to parse it.
Li sits up in the couch, looking around in confusion. She slips out of the couch and runs over to the door, hiding behind the frame and peeking out at the unfamiliar asari.
Vynira gives her back a gentle rub. "That's exactly why I didn't, kid," she says with a soft laugh. "You fuss too much, just like Eri'."
The older asari (who Ilyna is attached to) spots Li and raises a hand to wave at her. Her face bears visible signs of aging – and a lack of effort in hiding it –, but the hood is covering her gray crests. She's about 5cm shorter than Ilyna. The security guard stands out of the way, watching the streets with folded arms. There's a pistol holster on her hip.
Ilyna shows no signs of letting go. "You didn't say you were coming," she says. "I would have prepared the apartment, made something-..."
Li pulls back a little when the asari waves at her, but seeing Ilyna's reaction to her causes her to step out a bit into the doorway again and give a small wave, looking out curiously.
Vynira sighs as she starts untangling herself, with some resistance from Ilyna. "Let us get inside before we freeze solid out here," she says with a soft laugh. "I still haven't seen whom I really came here to see." She starts crossing the slightly slippery and snowy ground towards the door, lacking all the grace one would expect from a matriarch as she carefully does so.
Ilyna lets out a exaggerated pout. "You're terrible, dad, do you know that?" she says with a chuckle. "I'm still glad to see you, though."
Li runs further back into back into the apartment when they approach, maintaining a decent distance from the door and fidgeting as she waits.
Vynira enters the apartment, and walks over to hang up her hood. "Hello," she says. "I don't terrify you, do I?" She laughs softly and crouches down to her eye level. "My name is Vynira," she says. "What is yours?" The matriarch knows the answer after her correspondences with Ilyna, but she wanted to properly introduce.
Vynira smiles. "It is nice to meet you, Li", she says, standing up and walking further into the apartment. "You know, I never thought I'd have grandchildren," she says. "The T'Reas are known for taking their time." Her tone is light-hearted, for she is not really in a position to critisize.
Li furrows her eyebrows, looking like she's thinking. She glances back at Ilyna, the situation clearly having her a little confused.
Ilyna parts ways with the other asari when they're just outside the front door. "Please don't tell Natia where I live," she says with a chuckle. She closes the door behind her upon entering the apartment, looking between Li and her father. "What did dad do now?" she asks, noting the girl's confusion.
The other asari heads back to the sky-car, which is quick to take off again. It's heading north east.
Vynira shakes her head and crouches down next to Li. "Hasn't Ilyna told you about me?" she asks with a glance at Ilyna, feigning offence. "To us asari, the father is the parent that didn't carry the child through pregnancy, no matter the species or gender."
Ilyna rubs her neck, giving a sheepish smile. "I, well, I haven't gotten to that yet," she says. That's a topic she's been very careful about considering Li's situation.
Ilyna tilts her head. "What's the matter, Li?" she asks. "Don't worry about her, she's harmless." She walks into the living room and towards the kitchen, adding "most of the time" in a mutter as she pass the two.
Vynira places a hand on her shoulder. "Why don't you tell me about yourself?" she says. "Or if you have some gossip about Ilyna as a mother...." She laughs softly.
Li still looks a little troubled, but her attention is diverted when Vynira engages her directly. "I got a new dress!" she exclaims, apparently deeming this to be the most important bit of information she has to offer.
Vynira lets go off her shoulder. "Oh?" she asks. "May I see it?" She stands up, casting a glance towards Ilyna who's looking into a kitchen cupboard and lets out a sigh.
Li furrows her eyebrows. "It's for the wedding!" she explains, her face quickly lighting up with a big smile as she runs off to fetch the dress.
Vynira watches her run off before walking over to Ilyna's side, pushing the drawer shut. "Ilyna, Ilyna," she says. "What did I say about fussing?"
Vynira grabs her shoulder and squeezes it. "Calm down," she repeats herself. "I would have snuck a message your way if I wanted you to prepare something, T'Jora's excessive policy be damned." She turns towards the bedroom, awaiting Li's return.
Li returns soon, holding the dress out in front of her as she'd struggle to actually put it on on her own. She shows it off to Vynira with an excited smile. It's a cheap, light green dress, selection for children's formalwear being rather limited out on a planet like Aite.
Vynira smiles. "It looks fantastic," she says. "Ilyna should take notes, for she could really use some more color in her wardrobe." She could see it was cheap, but she assumes in good faith that it's due to availability. The matriarch crosses the room and stops by the couch, looking around for any means of shutting it off.
Li smiles, stowing the dress away again before hurrying back to the couch, her attention quickly returning to her cartoon, sitting on the edge of her seat now rather than resting.