Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters from the show 'Andromeda', but I do own 'the girl'. She gets a name in the next chapter, but I'm not giving anything away!

Constant Reminders
Chapter 1: Beginnings?
By aelrayne

The girl sat at the bar, staring at the rows of bottles that were lined up on the shelves behind the counter. Glancing downward she took another sip of what the bartender had given her, a toxic looking mix that he had called beer.

'Tastes more like engine oil mixed with lighter fluid with a dash of…' she sniffed delicately at the mug '…Tabasco sauce. ' Shrugging she braced herself mentally and gulped down the rest of the mug. Folding her hands together she leaned on the counter and rested her head on her hands. She glanced up and saw the bartender staring at her funnily. 'Well that's no surprise. I'm a girl and probably around 10 years younger than anyone else in this place.' Running her right hand over her blond hair, which was currently in a long braid down her back, she let her hand fall to rest on the holster strapped to her right thigh.

Sighing deeply she raised her eyes until they met the gaze of the barkeeper. "Another round, please."

Seamus Harper looked around the bar with apprehension. Beka and Dylan were currently talking with a supplier of parts that the Andromeda desperately needed, the others had disappeared, and he was left at loose ends.

'I'm here, might as well get something to drink. I wonder if they have Sparky Cola…?' Walking up to the bar he took the only available seat, one next to a girl with a long blonde braid and a lethal looking gun strapped to her thigh. The barkeeper plunked a mug of something in front of her and turned to look at Harper.

"What do ya want?" He asked gruffly. Nonchalantly as he could Harper countered "What are you serving? Anything non-alcoholic?" Noticing the barkeeper's stunned expression Harper continued "If I have any alcohol I'll die pretty quick and then I wouldn't be able to pay…" "I think I've got some cola in the back. Just let me check." Grinning inwardly as he watched the barkeeper scuttle away, Harper relaxed.

"Wish I'd thought of that trick. Then I wouldn't be stuck drinking this crap."

Surprised Harper realized that the silent girl had spoken this. "Yeah?" He replied "What is it supposed to be?"

The girl made a funny sound that could pass for a laugh if he used his imagination, and replied "I ordered beer. After much consideration I've decided that it's actually engine oil with lighter fluid and a dash of Tabasco sauce."

Smiling at this Harper turned and looked at the girl directly for the first time. She was hunched over the counter and he couldn't see her face, but she didn't look any older that 20 at the most.

"Aren't you a little young to be drinking?" Harper asked his companion. The girl quickly sat up and whirled around to face Harper, her anger evident. "Who on Earth…" the girl started, but trailed off when she faced Harper for the first time.

Bright blue eyes met bright blue eyes.

Harper's eyes widened until they resembled dinner plates, and it appeared that the girl's eyes had undergone a similar transformation.

Swallowing audibly the girl whispered "Shay…?"

Authors Note: This is my first stab at an Andromeda fic, so tell me what you think!

Coming up…The girl's identity is revealed, Beka gets curious, and a fight breaks out.