Khalisah Bint Sinan al-Jilani, Westerlund News

Chapter One

"Khalisah Bint Sinan al-Jilani, Westerlund News," the introduction was spoken like a threat as an ID card was tossed down on the reception desk of the asari embassy. Behind the desk, Tiana T'Lark looked up and felt her mouth fall open, just a little.

The human woman stood tall in a long, dark dress that pressed neatly against a high waist and a slender pair of hips where a jewelled hand rested elegantly. Her beautifully toned, light brown arms were specked with a few darker freckles up to her shoulders, where locks of dark hair were coiled. Her face was as defined as her figure with a neat, slender jawline, full, dark lips and a long, sharp nose. But it was her eyes that really drew the attention, bright green and piecing as they shone out from her dark skin like glittering emeralds beneath two, beautifully defined, what did they call them? Eyebrows? Both of which were arched expectantly for a response.

Still with her mouth half open, Tiana felt all words escape her.

The eyebrows arched further, "I have a scheduled meeting with Councillor Tevos."

"I- yes!" she managed to stammer, "Of course! We've been expecting you," she dragged her eyes away from the dazzling stare and down to her desk where she fumbled with the ID card as she checked it against her console, "that all seems to be in order, go on through," she said, thrusting the card back at her too sharply and smiling far too broadly.

Khalisah blinked at her for a second, a soft, beautiful frown creasing her forehead, "Thank you," she said slowly, took the card and headed into the embassy offices, her thick locks of hair bouncing gently with the sway of her walk. Tiana had never touched human hair, but right now she could imagine it felt like silk.

"Well, that was smoothly done."

She looked up to see Jacana, a freelance journalist who often hung around the embassies to find her stories. She was leaning casually against a cabinet, flicking through a datapad and pretending not to listen in on two diplomats talking nearby. The older asari wasn't looking at her but a wry smile had spread onto her lips.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Tiana told her, aiming to sound casual and ending up with indignant.

"No? You're like that with everyone who walks in here are you? You've never seemed the type to get starstruck, Tiana, particularly not over a human news reporter."

"I'm not starstruck! I'd never even heard of her before today!" she insisted, then instantly regretted it as the smile spread further and Jacana chuckled.

"Ah, I see."

Tiana glared irritably at her tone, all-knowing and arrogant as usual, "What are you even doing here?"

"Listening," she replied casually, a brief twinkle in her eye. Tiana looked towards the two diplomats she appeared to be pretending not to take notes on and realised the whole thing was probably an act. One was Petra, an asari who had been at the embassy for three decades or more. She was an underachiever, still too young to be taken seriously by most. The other was an elcor who was busy droning his way through some mundane complaint in such minute detail that poor Petra looked about ready to fall asleep. She was sure neither of them had anything to say that could interest Jacana or her readers.

"Tell me," Jacana began casually, "what is it about these human women that gets you maidens so excited? I remember when there were similar feelings about the quarians, before they had to hide themselves away under those suits. Is it the hair?"

"Quarians have hair?" the question prompted an amused look from the journalist, which infuriated Tiana even more as she huffed and stated: "I still don't know what you're talking about. It's not like I go around eyeing up every human woman I pass in the street."

"Just the tall, glamourous ones then?"

Tiana opened her mouth, failed to come up with a response, and glared irritably, "Shut up, Jacana."