December 26th. Another cloudy winter morning. The Miner's Respite is a haven of warm beds and food as always. Well, technically just the former at the moment, since the kitchen is still awaiting the arrival of its cook. It's quiet as it tends to be this time of day, although there's a couple of patrons scattered about. Mostly regulars aside from a human and batarian that have taken up one of the booths. They look like they might be in
#Miner'sRespite – January 24, 2022
their late teens or early twenties, both dressed in worn, fraying clothing, several layers thick to ward off the cold outside. The human seems engrossed in her omni-tool, while the batarian is people-watching, his hands wrapped around a hot cup of coffee.
Va'ynna had a very busy return to work yesterday evening as she arrived with barely enough time to prepare to handle the kitchen on her own, but today she is here bright and early. She has just gotten out of her winterwear and is sitting at the bar sipping on a mug of some warm low-caffeine drink to get the cold walk here out of her system. She's wearing a long red shirt and dark-gray pants.
Enila is behind the bar, tapping away at one of the terminals. She's wearing a dark-blue fleece jacket over a white tank-top.
Leah arrives with Tara a good 15 minutes early for their shift, as is the norm for the pair. It seems that the Christmas spirit still hasn't quite left her as- despite the rather somber note the night ended on- she still seems to have some pep in her step. Well, some additional pep in her step than usual. She's dressed in a pair of black, form fitting pants, clunky black boots, and a white t-shirt beneath her winter jacket,
armor crate in tow. It's not out of the ordinary for her to wait to armor up at the Respite when they have a ride to work. For that matter it's not out of the ordinary for her to go entire shifts without ever having gotten around to putting on her armor. She gives a raise of one arm to send off Jasper as she and the woman beside her reach the Respite door before giving the doorframe a few quick taps with her boot to loosen
Tara does much the same, making sure not to track any snow as she enters. She's dressed in a pair of jeans, her colorful hat, and her puffy blue winter jacket over a long-sleeved, green shirt. She too seems in good spirits, although leaving Zoe for the first time since the gzzk joined them was clearly difficult for her - she spoke at length to the fuzzy little creature before they left, assuring it that she would be back soon, and she
made sure Francois knew anything he might need to - not that the gzzk is particularly high-maintenance.
Varisa has been working for a while already - she doesn't exactly have far to go. She did the pre-opening cleaning, made a dent in the backlog of dishes, and got a room ready for its next guest, but at the moment she's sitting next to Va'ynna in the hopes of greeting the co-workers that she has yet to meet. She's wearing the clothes Enila got her - slim black pants and a loose-fitting white crop top. The only ones she own that aren't
The batarian patron's gaze follows the new arrivals as they enter, lingering on Leah for a while before his attention moves to the girl across from him in the booth, talking to her.
Leah lets out a deep breath as she's greeted by the warmth of the Respite, giving an exaggerated chattering of her teeth as she casts a quick glance Tara's way. She gives a quick scan about and, as she spots Va'ynna, that big, bright smile of hers spreads across her face. "Morning, Va'ynna!" she greets the familiar face from across the room as she starts towards the counter. Her green eyes bounce off of the asari behind the
Tara , of course, follows closely after Leah, offering Va'ynna a polite tilt of her head and a small but friendly smile.
Va'ynna follows Varisa's glance towards the door and turns around in her stool when she recognizes them, still cradling the warm mug in her hands. "Good morning," she says with a smile of her own, waiting until they're close enough to hear her first. "Did you enjoy your holiday?"
Enila stands up from the terminal as the door opens, expecting another patron. She has a brief description of them and knows that they should be here soon, but that is not enough to recognize them. Though, she assumes that is them when they greet Va'ynna right away.
The human patron casts a brief glance in the direction of the group of employees gathered by the bar before returning her attention to her omni-tool while talking to her companion.
Leah's smile widens in a way that probably answers the asari's question before she even has a chance to speak up. "Mmhmm." she hums an affirmation, coming to a stop as she reaches the counter. "Nathan, his sister, and Mendez spent the day at our place. It was-..." she stammers, sucking in her lips in a futile attempt at reigning in her smile downplay just how much she enjoyed the day. Just how much she needed that. After the
whirlwind of a year that they've had, it felt nice to at least pretend that they live normal lives for a few days. She gives a small, restrained nod of her head, dimples betraying the smile behind her lips, "...nice." She casts a glance Tara's way for her input, offering a small lift of her brows. "What did you think, kiddo?" she asks, "Did you enjoy Christmas?"
Tara gains a bright, but slightly embarrassed smile, nodding emphatically. "I liked it a lot." she confirms.
Leah's smile widens a bit, snickering as she glances back to Va'ynna. "How about you?" she asks, seeming to be in no hurry, "Do you celebrate?"
Va'ynna can't help but smile at the answer, especially the body language underscoring it. "Yeah, it was great," she says, not sounding anywhere near as worn out as Leah might be used to seeing her. "I spent it with Victoria,... her sister and Uvena, but we also visited Li and the others at Redrock to exchange gifts."
Leah gives a few small nods, a genuine smile decorating her features. "Well, it sounds like you had a good time." she muses. Sucking in her lips, her gaze travels to the asari on the other side of the bar as she allows her crate to sit upright. She greets the fresh face with a small dip of her head and a friendly smile, "And-... umm-... you must be the one stepping in while Aylena is... out." she says, having apparently been
Enila nods, meeting her eyes. "I must be," she says with a small chuckle. "Enila Aehan; nice to meet you. And you two are Tara and Leah Mercier, correct?"
Va'ynna nods in agreement and takes another sip of her drink as their attention moves on towards Enila. She casts a brief apologetic look at Varisa for not having introduced her yet.
Leah gives a small snicker, smile widening as Enila attempts to break the ice. She offers a nod to the asari's question, briefly glancing Tara's way. "That's us. Hopefully the Christmas crowd wasn't too rowdy?" she asks, suddenly feeling a slight twinge of guilt over having left the new arrival to find her footing short handed amidst what was probably one of the busiest nights out of the year. But Tara only gets one first
Tara offers a respectful tilt of her head as Leah confirms their identity, standing silently with her hands clasped in front of her.
Enila offered a small smile. "We made do," she says. "Janysa had hired temporary help in the kitchen on the busiest day, so I and Varisa could focus on holding the ground out here. I think I even saw your colleague pouring someone a glass at one point." She chuckles, knowing full and well the context of that. Realization hits her soon enough, and she continues. "Oh, you probably haven't met her either," she says and
gestures to the asari sat next to Va'ynna. "That's Varisa. She started here just two days after I did, and that night would have been impossible without her."
Varisa chuckles quietly, briefly looking a bit sheepish before she leans back on her barstool to look at Leah and Tara from behind Va'ynna, offering them an enthusiastic wave and a smile. "Hii!"
Leah's bright smile remains as Enila speaks, only shifting to a brief look of confusion at the mention of Varisa, which then shifts to mild surprise when the asari seated beside Va'ynna is indicated. At first she leans forward to look across the counter towards Varisa before realizing she's leaning back, causing her to do an awkward back-and-forth shuffle for a moment before stepping out behind Va'ynna. "Oh~ Hey!" she greets in
turn, smile re-emerging as she's introduced to her newest co-worker. "Welcome to the madhouse!" she jokes. "I'm Leah." she introduces herself, touching a hand to her chest. "Annnnd~ this, is my-..." she stammers slightly, twisting at the waist to glance Tara's way, "...is my sister. Tara." she continues, smile softening as she meets the younger girl's eyes when the words leave her lips. Sure, it might not be official
yet. Maybe there's no documentation. No Alliance or council space records. But that doesn't make it any less true.
Tara 's head lowers briefly as she's introduced, a small smile crossing her lips, but then she looks to Varisa and offers her the same greeting as Enila.
Varisa snorts quietly, her smile lingering. "Nice to meet you." she says with nod, gaze shifting between the two of them.
Va'ynna adds some more awkwardness to the back and forth shuffle by trying to lean out of the way. An amused smile is on her face when Leah gives up, and she is quick to cover it up by lifting the mug up to her lips.
Leah's gaze returns to Varisa, offering a small, friendly nod of her own that matches her smile. "You, too, Varisa." Drawing in a breath- the kind that says 'I should probably get to work'- she gives a quick glance out across the few patrons that populate the bar at this time of day to take stock, exchanging a small nod as she meets eyes with one of the regulars, before glancing back to her present company, gaze shifting
between her co-workers. "Alright, well I guess I should-..." she gives an idle nod in the direction of the backroom, "...probably stop by the office to drop off my gear and get out of this jacket." she muses aloud, as if realizing she's avoided getting to work for long enough. Gripping the handle of her crate once more, she takes a couple of steps before something occurs to her, causing her to swivel back Tara's way. "Do
Tara blinks, and there's a brief pause before she accepts the offer with a nod, taking off her hat and stuffing it in the pocket of her jacket before slipping said jacket off and handing it to Leah with a small, appreciative smile.
Va'ynna downs the last of her drink and gets up. "We should get started on breakfast," she says, looking Tara's way. "I had... no time to prepare it last night."
Enila raises an eyebrow as she spots the mark on Tara's forehead. What little information she had did not mention that, and she knows from the payroll system that there is no literal slavery going on under this roof. This is not the time or place to say anything about it. "I've got the bar covered for now," she says.
Leah gives Tara a playful little wink as she scoops up the jacket and drapes it neatly over the top of her armor crate. Va'ynna's comment draws a snicker out of her. "Sounds like you guys have a busy morning ahead of you." she teases before shifting back around to start around the bar. She manages to catch sight of Enila- and the confusion on her face. It causes her smile to waver ever so slightly, but she manages to catch it
before it falls away completely. Just another reminder that they need to get that taken care of as soon as possible.
Tara nods in acknowledgement of Va'ynna's words, leading the way towards the kitchen. If she notices the looks from Varisa and Enila she doesn't show it.
Varisa slips off her barstool. "Guess that means I should get back to work too... where am I needed?"
Va'ynna is right behind her. "The... extra help Aylena hired left the kitchen clean and tidy, but they didn't leave everything... in their usual places and the inventory terminal isn't correct anymore," she says. "I tried to correct what I could, but... I didn't have much time between orders last night."
Enila hums thoughtfully as she looks down at the terminal. "There's one vacant room upstairs that should be cleaned by evening, and some stuff that needs to be brought out here from the dishwasher in the kitchen," she says. "Other than that, you could help me out around lunch, and clean tables as guests leave." Enila taps some more on the terminal. "Also, Abnus is on tonight, so your shift ends after lunch today."