Halisi smiles at Ilyna's approval of her contribution, and her attention returns to the asari after Cynthia has been admonished. "I actually had no idea there were establishments serving human food on Thessia. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised..." she admits with a brief laugh and a small shrug. "...but it hadn't occurred to me."
#RedrockAgency – November 3, 2020
Cynthia starts digging into her food, opting for silence as the safer option for the moment - not to mention she's starving.
Li giggles and shakes her head. "No... but I'm hungry again!" she says, fighting with the piece of lamb for another forkful, after stuffing it in her mouth she looks to Jason again, speaking while chewing. "Did you know a tyrannasaur eats half a ton every day? That's 8 people!"
Vasquez lets out a quiet snort as Cynthia draws ire from across the table, seeming to deem it sufficient punishment for her teasing. While she's tempted to start eating as well - she's quite hungry after spending most of the day cooking - she instead holds off, waiting for an opening in the conversation.
Ilyna gives Jason the same pointed look, though hers soften at the exaggerated reigning in of his language. She chuckles at Li's answer to Jason, but Ilyna is in too good a mood to admonish her for speaking while chewing and she turns her attention back to Halisi. "I haven't been to one since they first appeared twenty years ago," she says. "I think they were more about the novelty than serving quality food, to
Jason furrows his brow as he scoots his chair in, momentarily trying to do the math on that. What's an average person weigh? A hundred and sixty pounds? A hundred and sixty times eight? Carry the one-... Nope. He quickly abandons that plan, deciding that if the eight year old says a ton is 8 people, then it's 8 people. Instead, he cranes his neck back in faux surprise at Li's revelation. "Eight whole people? Every day?" he asks
Li nods enthusiastically. "It's true! And did you know Klixen breathe fire?! They use it to hunt and-... and it cooks their food so they get more nutrents."
Halisi raises an eyebrow and chuckles. "I suppose that shouldn't surprise me either..." she comments, an amused, thoughtful look on her face as she cuts up a piece of lamb and eats it with some roasted veggies. "This is lovely, Linda." she says after swallowing, turning her gaze to their host. "If you'll allow me to say as much now." she adds with teasing smile.
Vasquez gains a faint, slightly embarrassed smile, and nods. "I-... thank you, Halisi." she says quietly, before raising her voice a bit. "Thanks to all of you. For being here. I'm, uh... I'm glad you could come. That... we could do this. It's... been a rough year for most of us. But things are gonna get better. I know they are." she says with a firm nod, looking around the table. "So... Merry Christmas. And... enjoy yourselves,
alright?" The final words are spoken with a small smile, and she grabs her glass of soda and raises it in a toast.
Ilyna dips the rest of the piece of lamb into vegetable mash and tries to stick some of the potato salad on the end of the fork before having another bite. She nods along with Halisi's words while she chew and listens to Vasquez speak. "I never would have expected to be a part of this when I reached out to Jason near the end of last year," she says, raising her glass of wine in turn, "but I'm glad to be here,
Jason pokes through his salad with a fork, all smiles while Li continues to rattle off facts. But Vasquez soon pulls his attention away. As she speaks, his smile turns a bit softer. It certainly has been a rough year. No, more than that. It's been a rough few years. One thing after another. It seems like the moment they take one step out of the shit, something shows up to drag them right back into it. But he gives her assurance
that things will get better a nod all the same. A firm nod. He gives a lift of his beer in turn, silently toasting with a glance about the table before taking a quick sip. Ilyna's addition causes him to level his smile her way. "Well, I'm just glad you were dumb enough to take me up on the offer." he teases through a snicker, but his grin soon shifts into something a bit more sincere. "But-... uhh-... really." he continues,
giving a small nod of his head as he seeks out the asari's eyes, "This place wouldn't be the same without you, Ilyna."
Halisi smiles softly as Vasquez speaks, raising her glass of wine in turn and taking a sip as she listens to the others. "It certainly wouldn't." she quietly agrees as Jason replies to Ilyna, shooting the asari next to her a small smile.
Li politely waits for the briefest of moments as Vasquez speaks before resuming her eating. Apparently growing Li-Rexes need a lot of 'nutrents' too.
Vasquez nods in agreement with Jason, shooting Ilyna an appreciative smile, silently glad they managed to work things out before the holidays. She grabs her cutlery and takes her first bite, satisfied that she's said her piece.
Ilyna lets out a small sigh at Jason's comment. "I'm paying the price for that every time someone new recognizes me from the magazines," she says, though it doesn't take the smile off her face. She returns the smile from Halisi and Vasquez, but her eyes fall on Li for a moment in silent contemplation before she returns her attention to her food.
Jason snickers and gives a shake of his head. "Hey, it's not my fault you got the attention of a famous vid star." he says as he shoves another bite of salad into his mouth. Shooting a look Halisi's way, he gestures to Ilyna with a stab of his fork, biding for time as he chews. "You-..." he swallows and gives one more fork-thrust, "...gotta keep an eye on her, Halisi. Let her out of your sight for one night and suddenly she's
Vasquez just shakes her head slightly to herself at the mention of the whole Tanner ordeal. Her next bite of food can't quite mask the curious glance between Ilyna and Halisi that follows Jason's words.
Halisi lets out a chuckle at Ilyna's comment, but Jason's teasing makes her go quiet, a bit of awkwardness entering her expression as she struggles with how to respond. After a moment she seems to decide that the best course of action when put on the spot is to put someone else in the firing line. Unfortunately for Ilyna, she's the easy target. So much for 'do no harm'. "You know, I've only actually heard bits and pieces of this whole
story. What actually happened?" she asks with a curious look to the asari next to her, hiding a not-so-innocent smile behind her wine glass as she takes another sip.
Cynthia 's curiosity seems to have been piqued, and she glances towards Ilyna and Halisi while eating.
Ilyna raises a brow at this great betrayal. On one hand, this draws the attention away from her and Halisi, but on the other hand it puts her on the spot instead. "I acted professionally, even when our conversations went in a personal direction," she says, her smile fading. "There is nothing more to it than that, no matter what he or the tabloids has said afterwards."
Jason forks up another helping of salad as Ilyna talks, shooting a smirk her way as she begins to speak. "Uh huh..." he hums unconvinced as he shovels another bite into his gullet. When Ilyna seems intent on avoiding the juicy details, he gives another fork-thrust, this time in Halisi's direction. "Regardless, I read the report. Sounded like they had a hell of a night in Adrasteia." he says, not letting Ilyna off quite that
easily. He shoots the asari a look, as if to challenge her to disagree. "Just sayin', none of us have spent the night in a jail cell with a famous celebrity." he adds with a gesture to the others.
Halisi listens with an amused look on her face, relieved for the spotlight to be off her and Ilyna's ambiguous situation. She seems about to say something when Vasquez interjects.
Vasquez lets out a sigh, seemingly deciding that Ilyna could use some backup. "And Redrock appreciates your professionalism." she assures. "It's a quality not everyone in the company shares..." she adds with a pointed look towards her husband.
Li blinks and looks from her food, attention on Ilyna. "You were in jail? Why...?" she asks, suddenly curious.
Ilyna sighs as Jason keeps pushing his teasing, and she lets the topic go without when Vasquez takes her side. That is, had Li not picked up on Jason's words and asked. Despite her wish to change the topic, that Li takes interest brings a small smile back. "The guy we were paid to keep safe got us in trouble by going against our advice," she begins her explanation. "The local police brought us there until we
could explain what had happened and then we were let go. We did not spend the night there." It's a oversimplified explanation, but Ilyna figures it's enough for a conversation around the Christmas dinner table.
Jason scoffs as Vasquez sends a glare his way, brow furrowing in defense. "Wha-... I am the model of professionalism!" he protests, punctuating his point by aggressively jabbing his fork into another mound of lettuce. "Matter of fact?" he continues as he lifts his fork, far too focused on shooting Vasquez smug looks to notice that his lettuce has vacated his fork and now sits in a small heap on the table. "I could probably teach
you a thing or two." It's not until he goes to take a bite that he realizes all that's left on his fork is some sad, residual salad dressing. Rather than acknowledge it in this pivotal moment, he shoves the fork into his mouth anyway in hope that she won't notice. Tastes like victory.
Vasquez just watches Jason with a blank look on her face, her gaze trailing the piece of salad as it falls, and then returning to his face. She elects not to say a word, just turning back to her own food. Her face says it all, really.
Cynthia snickers at Ilyna and Li's exchange, before noticing Jason's mishap and failing to cover up a snort. She returns to eating with a shake of her head.
Halisi smiles a little as Ilyna explains the circumstances of her brief time in jail to Li, taking the opportunity to eat some more while she waits to catch the asari's attention.
Ilyna sighs, not continuing immediately as she glances at Jason making his point which does get an amused look from her. "It went well after that, though," she says, returning her attention to Li. "None of us got hurt, and the rest of the job was trouble-free."
Jason frowns, shooting a look of betrayal at the heap of lettuce once Vasquez turns her attention back to her own food. He subtly pokes his fork into the table lettuce and quickly shoves the bite into his mouth. Like a professional!
Li nods again, a thoughtful frown on her face as she considers this tale. Would the police come for her too if she didn't listen to Ilyna's advice? It's not long before she's back to eating.
Halisi washes down a bite of food with another sip of blue wine, looking like she's pondering something.
Vasquez gives Jason's knee a playful nudge under the table with her own, a smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth as she glances his way after taking a bite of veggies.
Cynthia washes down another mouthful of food with a swig of her beer and nods to herself. "This is-..." she takes another bite. "...mghn... not bad, Chief. This what happens when you leave the Corps, huh? Getting all domestic?" she teases.
Ilyna looks a bit unsure as Li considers her answer, but when she gets back to eating, Ilyna returns her attention to her food as well. It's a full plate, and if she wants to enjoy the food warm, she better pick up the pace. However, she reaches for her wine glass first and goes for a sip of it instead.
Jason returns the gesture with one of his own, leg brushing up against Vasquez' as the lopsided smirk returns to his face. Cynthia's question pulls his attention her way, smirk widening. "Careful. She gets a bit touchy when you point out how soft she's gone." he teases, poking at the inside of his cheek with his tongue as he shoots Vasquez a playful sidelong glance.
Halisi shakes her head a little at the conversation to her side, a small smile on her face, but she turns her attention to Ilyna rather than getting involved. "I must admit I'm still a little stuck on what you said before. I'm curious what it was like when humans joined the galaxy. I was so young at the time, I suppose it hadn't occurred to me that, well... you weren't, of course." she says, curious, and perhaps a little embarrassed.
Vasquez gives Jason's leg a light kick without turning away from Cynthia. "Make no mistake, Spunkmeyer. I could still kick-..." Furrowed eyebrows and a brief glance in Li's direction. "...still take you down any day."
Cynthia looks skeptical, the pause and adjust for Li's sake not exactly helping Vasquez' case. She just grins confidently and shrugs. "Eh, I dunno. Making Christmas dinner, kid on the way... that sweater." The last bit is added with a skeptical look and a gesture towards Vasquez' clothes. "I think married life's made you lose your teeth. It's heartwarming, really. Adorable." she continues to tease.
Ilyna puts down the glass while Halisi speaks, and she is a bit at a loss for how to answer. She could see Halisi's embarassment, which makes it more difficult. Were their relationship to become something, the lifespans difference will inevitably become an awkward part of it. "It felt so far away from Thessia, but it was big, bigger than the hanar's rescue of the drell," she says. "You were entirely unknown, and
held your ground against the turians. That had a lot of us worried, even after the Council stepped in."
Jason flinches from the kick, causing him to try- and fail- to reign in his shit-eating grin as Cynthia gets her jabs in. "Hey now, I think the sweater is-..." he shoots a glance Vasquez' way, blue eyes turning to her festive fashion as he gives a tilt of his head, searching for the right word. "...cute." he quite pointedly settles on, deciding on perhaps the most barbed of adjectives.
Halisi rests her head against one of her hands as she listens, the other still wrapped idly around her wine glass. The mention of the First Contact War causes her to frown faintly and nod. "What about after things settled down? Once the cultural exchanges started properly?"
Vasquez lets out an offended grumble. "Cyn, you're still an ass." she says, voice a quiet mumble to bypass the Li-filter. "And you..." she continues, turning her attention to Jason and narrowing her eyes. "...you're lucky we're married." she mutters.
Li is still eating. The faster she finishes eating the faster there'll be presents, right? Unless... she has to... wait? No. It's inconceivable.
Ilyna hums thoughtfully as she pokes the fork into another piece of meat and starts cutting it. The conversation across the table does distract her for a moment, evoking a chuckle. "The concern didn't go away that soon," she says. "You established an embassy in record time, and expanded fast. As for the cultural...." She looks down at her plate, a bit embarrassed. "I wasn't the most social or outgoing person
Jason meets Vasquez' ire with a lopsided smirk still on his face. "I sure am." he offers fondly, shooting a playful wink her way before taking a swig from his beer.
Halisi smiles a little at Ilyna's embarrassment, shifting a bit in her seat and taking another sip from her glass. "What about the ones you did meet? What were your impressions?"
Vasquez ' offended staredown loses a bit of steam, a scoff slipping out as a grin tugs at the corner of her mouth. Mollified, she leans in to press a kiss against his cheek.
Cynthia makes an outraged face, gesturing with her fork. "Wh-... I get cursed out and he gets a kiss?! You're hurting my feelings, Chief."