Nathan has his focus drawn by the sudden call of Vasquez, he too missing the sneaky move pulled by Cynthia. However, since he had no steak in this game, he merely gives an approving nod before returning his focus back to Vasquez.
#RedrockAgency – April 2, 2023
The hour is closing on midnight by the time everyone has gathered on the roof of the Redrock building. It looks considerably more barren than it did for the wedding - no decorations here, just reinforced concrete, solar panels and a concealed AA gun. On the far end of the roof from the ladder stands the pyrotechnics-launchers rigged by Redrock's own expert, Nathan. On a folding table waits filled champagne glasses, enough for everyone. A
handwritten sign reads GOLD=LEVO, BLUE=DEXTRO. There’s also a couple of glasses simply labeled ‘Li & Linda’. The night air is cold and crisp, and the Aitian sky is clear, the bright band of the planet's rings casting a pale glow that reflects on the snow that covers the ground. With Litae on the other side of the planet, twinkling stars crowd the sky, Freedom Falls' diffuse yellow glow insufficient to drown them out. Scattered fireworks
launched by impatient celebrants across the town are already going off here and there, scattered pops of colorful light, and sound that echoes against the mountains. The spaceport lies silent in the distance, air traffic grounded for the night.
Vasquez stands in front of the pyrotechnics array, facing the crowd. She's slipped on her green winter coat, and she's wearing the hat she got for Christmas. The slight wind that's picked up makes loose strands of long black hair dance, and she brushes one out of her face before folding her hands behind her back and waiting for everyone's attention.
Tara scrambles to get her heels back on after bouncing away from the ladder, the concrete-and-metal roof ice cold against bare feet. It's not going great judging by her quietly frustrated frown.
Emma reaches out for Shane and Sam to steady herself after receiving some biotic assistance from Senya down below to get her up the ladder onto the roof without having to climb with a broken leg.
Senya allows the indigo glow around her body to dissipate once Emma is safely on the roof. Precision lifting of people-sized masses is a handy skill in the medical field.
Halisi already has a glass of champagne in hand, observing Emma's ascent from a distance. "Not for the first time I find myself wishing I had access to that particular skill in my toolbox..." she laments with a quiet chuckle to Ilyna. Her sparkling silver dress glimmers with color every time one of the premature fireworks go off.
Li lets out a puff of air that turns to mist, hand clutching Ilyna's tightly as she watches a distant rocket explode into a burst of color with a flinch and an apprehensive frown.
Holly has wrapped the loose outermost layer of her quarian robe tighter around herself to ward off the cold. She's at the table, fetching a glass for herself. She appears to have also, somehow, managed to bring a few canapés up the ladder.
Lucy has slipped her worn sheepskin jacket on, the fluffy lining a welcome shield against the chilly roof. She's looking out at the lights of Freedom Falls - and the occasional pop of color - with a distant gaze.
Elena has just grabbed a pair of champagne glasses, and is making her way across the roof in Lucy's direction.
Zaylus spots the ladder from a distance, and sighs forcefully as he looks down at his slung arm. "Yeah. Of course. The roof." He mutters to himself, letting the able bodied party-goers ascend before making a fool of himself.
made his way to the rooftop, helping his sister up before finding a spot to observe clearly so that he could trigger the display the moment he was told to. There was that sort've nervous excitement that bubbled within his stomach, knowing that his work would perform up to scratch... yet unable to quite shake that anxiety that lingered.
Nathan made his way to the rooftop, helping his sister up before finding a spot to observe clearly so that he could trigger the display the moment he was told to. There was that sort've nervous excitement that bubbled within his stomach, knowing that his work would perform up to scratch... yet unable to quite shake that anxiety that lingered.
Sofia thanked her brother for his assistance and took a spot next to her brother, a little merry smile on her face.
Oxaris stopped at the bottom of the ladder and looked across to Zaylus with a perked brow, a gentle canting of her head accompanying. The turian woman had spent most of the night quietly observing everyone, comfortable in the solitude granted. She had, oddly, enjoyed her night. "Would you like some help?" She offered.
Sam and the rest of Ironheart have taken on the unofficial duty along with Senya of helping people up to the roof. While Mendez was a team effort, Emma is much less so, though Shane remains with her to help her keep her balance while she gets her crutch back beneath her.
Thiago lips remained a thin, unamused line as he found himself needing assistance to climb onto the roof. With that behind him, however, he's taken up a position beside Leah and Tara, offering the latter his free arm to help her steady herself while she addresses her footwear.
Leah is a step behind Tara performing a similar goofy bounce across the roof as she hurries to protect cold feet with her heels, albeit with a bit more grace than Tara. Once handled, she tugs her jacket closed. It's not quite suited to fight off the harsh Aite winter, but for a special occasion like this the rule of fashion-over-function must be observed. She runs a hand along her dress to straighten it out and. with Mendez
assisting Tara, turns her focus to the colors erupting in the night sky. She flashes an ear-to-ear smile as the flurry of colors reflect in her big, green eyes and she prods Tara, attempting to draw her attention to the premature display over the town.
Jason has donned his brown, winter jacket and a tight hugging beanie. The gloves he wears over his cybernetic hands are mostly force of habit by this point. He's waiting patiently near the ladder in case anyone needs assistance.
Steve waved off any assistance and wasted no time scooping up a pair of wine glasses for himself and Renala, offering hers with a small dip of his head.
Zaylus flinches and looks down, embarrassed by his obvious predicament. "Thought you were avoiding me." He remarks hastily. Leaving no chance to reply, he gestures toward the roof. "I got it, just don't really want an audience. Go ahead." He assures her, taking a step back.
Ilyna chuckles at Halisi's comment. "I can see that," she says, but Li clutching her hand at the fireworks keeps her from continuing that thought and she looks down at her with a reassuring smile. "Don't you like the fireworks, Li?" she asks.
Senya shoots the two injured turians a skeptical look, but given that they seem uninterested in her assistance she starts her own climb rather than remaining at the bottom of the ladder. If they want to get themselves hurt that's their business.
Lema is not far behind Leah (who let her in earlier) on her way onto the roof. She is a bit awkward among the crowd of mercenaries, as many of them probably didn't get to know her in the best of circumstances, or might have heard of her from them. And with a worn black coat, beanie and boots, she's also severely underdressed for the party. Still, she's happy to be here for a fireworks display.
Emma grips Shane's shoulder tightly as she manuvers her crutch back under her other arm, eventually able to shift her weight off of him with a slightly stilted "Thank you."
Shane offers a small nod, focus on the woman at his side, hand hovering just over her shoulder in case she stumbles. "Not a problem. You good...?" he asks once she's able to get a handle on her crutch.
Tara has better luck with Mendez helping her keep her balance, her heels back on soon enough. She shoots him a small smile, about to offer a thanks when Leah's prodding draws her attention. The scattered bursts of color and sound catch her off-guard, making her stumble.
Li clings closely to Ilyna, her gaze fixed down on the roof, illuminated by occasional flashes of color. She flinches with each explosion.
Renala has her omni-tool faintly glowing around her right arm, and there's a few status indicators and scrolling text as she might. She's not looking at it right now, though, so she is quick accept the glass with a nod. "Thank you," she says just before a flash of light from a not-too-distant neighbor lights up her face. "These blasts are much better when you're not trying to sleep through it," she says with a
Va'ynna is stood off to the side next to Uvena, each of them holding a glass of wine. Va'ynna is relating her last year's experience where she did not know of the tradition.
Ilyna crouches down and gently grabs Li's other shoulder; her hands are free since she hasn't gone to get herself a glass yet. "They won't hit us, I promise," she says with a lowered voice, "but would it be less scary to watch if I held a barrier around us anyway?"
Leah's eyes widen and she lets out a surprised 'whooop' as Tara stumbles, quickly looping one of her arms through the younger girls in an attempt at steadying her. "Careful!"
Steve snorts, gaze following to the target of Renala's attention. "You oughtta see New Years on Earth." he muses, taking a position beside the asari. "Whole sky lights up." he adds, gesturing with a sweeping sky across the night sky.
Emma offers a nod once she has a firm grip of the crutch and she's tested the roof to make sure it won't slip. "I have it," she says, shooting Shane a quick, appreciative look, corner of her mouth twitching in an almost-smile, but a bit of discomfort lingers. "You must be getting tired of helping me get around."
Shane slowly pulls back his hoverhand as it becomes clear that Emma has it under control. A smile tugs at the corner of his mouth. "Nah, you're good." he assures her, a hint of sincerity showing through the dismissiveness. "Besides, I know all too well how it is to be on the other side of an injury. It's worse for you than it is for me." he snickers. Pride and a reluctance to accept help is an occupational quirk, it seems.
"Now, if I gotta keep helping that big motherfucker-..." he lowers his voice, indicating Mendez with just a shift of his eyes, "...then I might have to talk to Jay about being put on the payroll."
Nathan watches the group assemble upon the roof, eyes flicking towards the smattering of fireworks that burst off nearby and in the distance. With a smile, he nudges his sister toward the others and leads the way to hover near Mendez, Leah and Tara.
Sofia responds to Nathan's prodding by giving him a few whaps on the arm. "I'm going, I'm going," she whines, needing no prompting to make her way to the trio. As she arrives, she just manages to witness Tara's stumble and let out a small giggle. "Going to be a lot more of that soon! Better brace."
Oxaris looks more confused than anything. "Why would I be avoiding you? You just seemed to be enjoying yourself tonight. So I left you to it." There's a ghost of a smile at his defiance and refusal of help. She gives him a nod and says, "Well, if you change your mind, just call up." With that, she climbs up the ladder, a little more stiffly than usual and with a few subdued grumbles about the dress making this harder
than it had any right to be. However, she pulls herself up and takes a position at the back of the group, watching the ladder juuuuuuuuust in case.
Halisi 's frown is softened a little by Ilyna's solution and she nods in agreement with the idea. Then she digs around in her purse for a moment before pulling out a pair of ear plugs and crouching down next to Ilyna. "Here. These will protect your ears too," she explains, putting them in Li's ears, which makes the girl grimace and squirm. Much like most of the people on the roof her hearing has suffered enough from the firefights
she's unfortunately found herself in the middle of, it's not going to get any worse if Halisi can help it.
Tara steadies herself with Leah's help, looking a bit embarrassed when Sofia arrives just in time to tease her about it. "Those are the... 'fireworks'?"
Zaylus sniffs, shaking off whatever had caused him to bristle. He gives her a sidelong glance, smirking at her own personal ladder struggle, but doesn't comment yet. Once she's clear he will follow, slowly and methodically creeping up the ladder, cresting the top only slightly exhausted. "Nice dress." He quips breathlessly, immediately shrinking under a loud boom. "Spirits." He snaps.
Jasper sniffs at the cold winter air as he takes a position beside Nathan, arms folding across his chest. "Good night 'fer this." he muses to the other man, his tone giving away that he's still a bit unsure of where he stands with the man he considered a friend. He's kept his distance since being put out by Leah and Nathan's underhanded stunt against House Bar'adon.
Emma grumbles in quiet agreement with Shane's astute assessment. The addition about Mendez catches her off-guard and draws out a surprised snort of laughter. "I'm impressed he's even walking. He took a real beating," she says quietly as she starts to limp her way towards an empty spot where she can see Vasquez.
Senya makes her way over to the drink table to grab her glass of champagne now that she's on the roof.
Shane accompanies Emma, snickering along with her. He shoots one last glance Mendez' way as she speaks up. "I-... uhh-... only heard the short version of things. But it sounded like you were all lucky to come out of it without any losses..."
Jason glances Vasquez' way before beginning the thankless job of passing out the remaining, unclaimed wine glasses.
Vasquez remains silently in place where she is, gaze scanning the slowly assembling crowd, although her attention lingers on Jason for a moment after their eyes meet.
Ilyna gives a reassuring smile and lets go of Li's shoulder and holds her hand up. A violet glowing dome forms around them, except for a Halisi- shaped opening in the side of it. The view is a bit tinged and slightly distorted, and the wind feels stiller. It'll stop stray debris from the fireworks that will go off underway, but a real attack she'd need to see coming to stop. She stays crouched while Halisi help Li.
Nathan glances towards Jasper and offers a smile. Despite the... stunt, he was clearly still trying to keep their friendship alive. He just wasn't sure on how to broach the subject. If it needed broaching at all. This kind of thing was wildly out of his comfort zone. "Best night for it. With the pyrotechnics I rigged, should be the brightest display in the whole town." He gave a firm, confident nod at that and a crooked
Sofia nods enthusiastically to Tara, gesturing this way and that as fireworks lit up the night sky. "Uh-huh! There are so many different kinds, you wouldn't believe it. Back on Earth, there are so many displays that the night turns into day." A pause. "Well, a more colourful day than normal. I used to be terrified of them when I was younger. So loud! But now? Now they're wonderful. Beautiful even."
Oxaris looks down at herself and brushes out a crease in the dress, sighing softly. "Thank you," she said with a smile. "I see you also dressed for the occasion?" She said, a hint of mirth dancing behind her tone. She didn't seem to even register the detonations in the sky.
Emma lets out a faint sigh, nodding as she comes to a stop. "There were some close calls..." she acknowledges quietly, looking over towards Leah, Tara, Mendez and Nathan. "...but it was worth the risk."
Leah gives a few enthusiastic nods, releasing her grip on Tara. "Mmhmm." she agrees with Sofia. "Annnnd~..." she gives a sweeping gesture towards Vasquez and the launchers rigged up behind her, "...those are ones Nate set up. Assuming he knows what he's doing~..." she teases with a little glance Nathan's way, unsure if he's even paying her any mind, "...we'll have a front row seat to our own display."
Sam , Gage, and Priya all step away from the hatch once everyone is up, moving to meet Jason and accept their glasses with a nod of appreciation before taking up positions amongst the others.
Jason blinks as a barrier pops up before him, lopsided grin spreading across his face. "Looks like someone isn't quite ready to put their trust in your EOD experience, Ten." he teases, having to raise his voice to be heard.
Halisi gives Li a reassuring pat before standing back up - and stepping out of the low-intensity barrier. "Can I fetch you two some drinks?" she suggests with a look at Ilyna, a quiet chuckle following as she overhears Jason's comment, a smile tugging at her lips.
Renala raises an eyebrow as she watches a battery of them go off in the distance, with the relatively faint sound lagging far behind the flowers of sparks. "Do cities on Earth let everyone shoot it like out here?" she asks, astonished.
Li seems immediately reassured by the barrier, keeping hold of Ilyna's hand as she observes their slightly distorted surroundings from the safety of the faint, violet shimmer of the bubble.
Zaylus plays off being spooked by the noise, tracking the trail of the fireworks with his gaze. His mandibles flare in amusement, either at the sight or Oxaris' musing. "I was lead to believe it is appropriate to wear human clothes to observe human holidays." He insists, genuine but softened by mirth.
Tara listens as she watches the distant pops with fascination. "They're loud. And pretty," she says, before following Leah's gesture towards the launchers behind Vasquez.
Shane follows Emma's gaze to the others, nodding along to her words. "It is..." he offers a bit distantly, no stranger to that side of the galaxy. His team has crossed paths with more slavers than he'd like to admit.
Steve's gaze remains on the colors in the distance, shaking his head to Renala's question. "Nope." he replies before turning his focus back to the asari, smile slipping free, "Doesn't stop everyone from doin' it anyhow, though."
Jasper gives a few nods. "Be a sight ta see, that's 'fer sure..." he muses. A few moments pass before he draws in a breath, crisp winter air filling his lungs. "You-... uhh-... doin' alright?" he asks awkwardly, shooting a sidelong glance Nathan's way as he pats his chest to indicate the man's gunshot wound. "Been meanin' ta ask..."
Emma falls silent, her gaze scanning the horizon, and following the flight paths of ascending fireworks, but looking away from each before it explodes.
Nathan looks down at himself and instinctively places a hand over the wound. A low hum escapes him and the man offers the slightest of shrugs. "It aches now and then," he admits. However, a disarming smile follows. "Thanks for asking though. You? You, uh, you been okay?" Leah's words seemed to go unheard, either because of the fireworks exploding above or he simply chose to ignore her. Who knows? A mystery.
Sofia's head bobs up and down in excitement at Leah's words. "I'm sure it'll be great," she says, for once deciding to not hop onto the bullying of her brother. "This'll be your first display, right Tara?"
Oxaris breathes a laugh. "You read that out of a 'How to guide for humans'?" The older woman shakes her head affectionately and says, "Regardless, the effort is there. I'm sure many here appreciate it. How's your recovery coming along?" She glances to his sling, brow plate furrowing for a nano-second.
Nathan blinks as Jason's voice is caught in the hub-bub of the rooftop. He looks at him in confusion for a moment before he notices the barrier that had been erected. "Well, now I'm really hurt!" He calls out, giving a somewhat overdramatic display of clutching his chest, mimicing a breaking heart. A laugh follows and he waves it off. "Never going to fault anyone for wanting to be overly safe."
Jason snickers, raising his voice once more to be heard by Ten. "I don't blame you! I'd be offended, too!" he agrees before slyly leaning a bit closer to Ilyna. "Save me a spot?" he jokes, whispering out of the side of his mouth.
Jasper pauses, smile growing at the exchange between Nathan and Jason. "Sure it'll get better with time." he offers. The question leveled at him causes him to draw a heavy breath in before nodding in response. "Can't complain." he says, though it seems like there's more that he's keeping himself from saying.
Tara tears her gaze away from watching another burst of color in the dark sky, looking to Sofia and nodding.
Shane clears his throat, seeming to realize he's picking at a sore spot. "Gotta admit, I didn't expect this much of a display all the way out here." he says in a not-so-subtle change of subject, nodding towards the town.
Zaylus narrows his eyes, glaring at Oxaris for a moment. "Course not." He snorts, shaking out the hoodie to fit properly after being twisted up on the ladder. "Ah, slowly." He replies in a grumble, pausing to let a particularly loud string of pops die down before nodding in her direction. "I think you'll be running laps around me before I can raise this arm up."
Ilyna smiles slightly at the reactions to the barrier coming up, but she doesn't apologize for it after seeing how much it helped Li. "I don't think I can drink without spilling while I hold the barrier," she says to Halisi, "but that's fine, I'll have mine later." Jason's comments just draw a chuckle out of her, but the barrier remains just big enough for her and Li.
Jason scoffs playfully. "I see how it is." he grumbles before heading back for another round of drinks and delivering them to Jasper, Nathan, and Sofia.
Leah sucks in her lips, concealing a big smile that her dimples give away. "How about you, Lema?" she asks, attempting to include the young asari in their conversation. "Do you come into town for the fireworks every year?"
Nathan grins towards Jason before turning his focus back to Jasper. He notices the withdrawn manner of the man and pauses for a second. "Tell you what, how about in a few days, we hang out a bit? Shoot the shit, tinker over the shuttle and chat? Seems like its been a while, eh?" As if on que, drinks arrive in the form of Jason. "Thank you, Jeeves."
Sofia lets out a squeal of excitement and claps her hands together. "Oh, wonderful! To experience your first display like this, truly wunderbar! I wish I could experience it again for the first time." She seems genuinely happy for Tara to experience this and bounces a little on her heels. And, with Jason delivering some fresh drinks, it now turns into tipsy glee. One moment there's a drink in Jason's hand. The next, it
Oxaris hums and reaches over to adjust the hoodie a little more on Zaylus, shaking her head. "Doubtful. Seems it'll be quite some time before I'm able to run rings around anyone. Understandable, given the extent of my wounds," she says matter-of-factly.
Emma 's attention shifts briefly to Shane before looking back out at the town. "I'm not surprised. Freedom Falls has has a sizable human population. I would guess people come in from the surrounding areas too." A smile crosses her lips, and she looks on the verge of saying something else, but then it falters and slips away, discomfort taking its place.
Zaylus perks a brow, looking between her and the extended hand. "Wow, no resilient optimism?" He snorts. "I think that's like, the whole point of this celebration."
Jason offers a big smile in turn. "Hey! Fuck off!" he offers cheerfully, punctuating it with a stiff middle finger before turning back to fetch more drinks.
Jasper opens his mouth to respond when Jason arrives, cutting him off. He accepts the drink with a nod of appreciation, snickering at Nathan's jab. "That-..." he nods, seeming more put at ease by their silent agreement to step past their previous disagreement. "...yeah." he nods again, "That sounds good. Besides, we should prolly put more work into that gunship proposal 'fore the Chief changes her mind." he snickers.
Shane nods along absently as he observes the fireworks. "Makes sense, I guess." When Emma stops herself, he furrows his brow, smile remaining. "What is it?" he asks.
Halisi smiles a little and nods, but still goes to fetch one of the marked non-acoholic glasses for Li, crouching down to hand it over to her once she returns, once again disrupting the barrier temporarily.
Emma shakes her head slightly, eyes still on the distant rooftops and the occasional fireworks above them. "Nothing, just... that's what we would do when I was little. Drive into town to watch the display. All the homesteaders would."
Shane watches Emma for a moment, not oblivious to the discomfort behind her words. "Sounds like good memories." he offers simply.
Lema eyes the barrier with some curiosity before Leah's question snaps her back. "Yeah, if dad's off work or the weather is nice enough go myself," she says. "The best years are the ones where I've got human friends my size, but you guys grow up too fast."
Renala laughs. "Maybe I should go see that chaos in person one year," she says. "Not without shields, though, can't imagine travel insurance would cover willfully being in the middle of a war against the sky."
Leah scrunches up her nose, having never really stopped to consider how inconvenient it must be for a young asari to grow up in a place with so many humans. "Yeah, I guess that's probably a bit frustrating..." she mutters.
Nathan brightens up at the comeback from Jason and at Jasper's agreement. He raises the bottle towards him for a toast. "Abso-fucking-lutely. No way we can let that opportunity pass us by, ey?"
Oxaris tuts softly, giving him an apraising look. "A new Year, a new me? I believe that was the expression the humans used for this event." She takes a step back and shrugs softly. "I am merely being... realistic I suppose. But, Doctor Halisi and her staff were very professional and efficent. Perhaps I shall recover faster than thought."
Steve snorts. "Eh. Few idiots blow off their fingers every year. But, in terms of danger? You're prolly more likely to butt heads with some drunken jackass than any firework-related injury." After a few moments he seems to reconsider, offering a tilt of his head in consideration. "Unless you're the drunk jackass settin' off fireworks, 'course."
Jason is beat to the punch by Mendez, the larger man having already retrieved his own drink. He passes a glass off to Leah and Tara, but holds the third glass in confusion as he stands in front of Lema. He slowly looks from the miniature asari to Tara, confusion written all across his face as he gives a big shrug of his shoulders as if to say, 'I'm stumped!' He seems to quickly realize he's looking in the wrong place for answers
and shoots a glance Leah's way. Then to Lema. Then back to Leah, eyes widening in a 'What do I do' sort of way.
Leah furrows her brows in confusion over Jason's confusion. "Wha-... she's a child, Jason! No!" she huffs, reaching out to put a hand between Lema and the glass. "Juice!" she exclaims, flicking her eyes between Jason and the drink table before shooing him off.
Jason stammers, "Huh-... This?!" he lifts the glass of wine before scoffing dismissively. "Yeah! No! Of course! This is mine! Obviously!" He takes a quick sip from the wineglass, holding Leah's gaze as he does in an attempt at selling it. "Alright! Juice! I'm going!" he mutters as he turns back, shooting a scowl back towards Leah as he scurries off.
Zaylus touches his finger to his forehead, tapping it once before saying, "Positive mental attitude" clearly having just learned the phrase. "And, explosions." He adds, with an appreciative, if uncertain tone. "He's not gonna blow us all up, is he?" He ponders, looking at Nathan.
Tara blinks in surprise as she accepts the glass, bowing her head in thanks and holding onto the champagne gingerly. She ends up observing Jason's subsequent confusion, gaining some of her own in the process.
Nathan clinks the glasses together with a small laugh and takes a long, hearty swig before he turns his focus to the chaos that follows Jason's shenanigans.
Oxaris glances over to Nathan as Zaylus asks his question. There's an uncomfortably long silence before she merely replies, "No." That inspires much confidence.
Lema looks like she's trying to speak up about the drink, but she's left no room to do so before Jason scurries off. "It's not like I'd die from it," she mutters before getting back on track again with an akwawrd rub of her neck. "I mean, I've seen three times the years that humans my size has, and I'm short which doesn't help, so it is weird to me too to fit in sometimes, but... when things work out anyway it's
Leah sighs, shaking her head. "I work with idiots..." she mutters quietly as Jason departs, though a fondness undercuts it. But her focus soon returns to Lema as she begins to speak. The young asari's struggles draw a small frown from her, but she's quick to tuck it away. "Well, I'm glad you were able to join us tonight." she says, hoping to help the young asari feel welcomed. A sudden realization seems to hit her, sparking a
sharp, "Oh! Crapper!" as she turns back to the others. "This is Lema~" she gives a belated introduction, giving an exaggerated, sweeping gesture to the young asari. "Lema, this is my sister, Tara." she continues, shooting Tara a small smile, "And this is myyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy-..." she drawls out, the word getting caught in the back of her throat before she spits it out in a hurry to get past the
discomfort that still lingers in her situation, "....boyfriend's sister, Sofia~ Annnnnd you already know Mendez." The large man gives a small dip of his head. Her focus turning back to Tara, she continues, "Lema is going to be visiting us every now and then when the weather gets better so I can help her out with her biotics."
Tara listens curiously to Lema, before Leah's introduction prompts her to offer the young asari a respectful tilt of her head.