The Russian Federation's Embassy was a huge, grandly lit building with marble, chandeliers, windows and antiques as far as the eye could see. A staircase led down into the ballroom that they were assembled in. Lucas thought it was beautiful, it wasn't as stuffy as he'd expected such a place to be. A string ensemble was playing classical pieces as people milled around talking.
Juliana's arm was threaded through his and she looked very pretty. He was proud to have her as his date for the night. Dr. Westphalen and Hitchcock looked great too, and were chatting with the Captain, Ford, Tim, Miguel and Ben. He hadn't seen Katya yet, and didn't know if she was here. They'd already been here for quite a while. He was able to pick up small pieces of the conversations that were taking place in various languages around him.
He and Juliana, as well as everyone else in the room, turned at the sound of a commotion near the stairs. The press in attendance were busily snapping pictures, though he couldn't immediately see who of. It was only when they moved that he saw them.
At the top of the stairs stood Katya and Jason. His breath caught. Friend or no, she looked stunning. Her long black hair smoothed back into a sleek bun, she was wearing a flowing ivory dress that ended just below her knees. To finish it off was a diamond necklace that caught the light from the chandeliers and seemed to make her sparkle as she moved.
"Who is that? Do you know?" Juliana asked him as they watched Jason and Katya descend the stairs like some modern day homecoming couple. Was the press there for Jason or for Katya?
"That's Katya Derevenko, one of our new crew members."
"Oh, why all the attention?" Lucas caught the note of jealousy that laced Juliana's voice.
"I'm not sure. Maybe it's because of Jason."
"Who's he?"
"Jason Barnham, my friend. He used to be an actor."
"I know who he is! You know him?"
"Yeah, he's also a new crewmember. He quit acting and enlisted."
"Too bad," she replied. Lucas moved closer, taking Juliana with him. He wanted to hear what questions were being asked.
"Miss Derevenko, how does it feel to be back home…your family are guests of honor here tonight…what is it like to be the heir to the Derevenko fortune…"
Lucas frowned. Derevenko fortune? He knew she came from a wealthy family, but just how wealthy? She answered all of their questions politely, her smile sweet and unwavering. She was used to this, he realized. How often had she had to attend events like this one?
Once the press had gotten the answers they wanted, they moved away, allowing her and Jason to step further into the room. Lucas suddenly noticed the security detail that surrounded her, blending into the mix of people. He watched as the Federation President and Vice President greeted her, and she conversed with them in perfect Russian.
Jason noticed Lucas and Juliana and excused himself. He whispered into Katya's ear and gestured slightly toward them, indicating where he would be. She nodded and returned to her conversation.
"Hey Lucas," he said. "Glad to see a familiar face!"
"Hey Jas. This is my girlfriend, Juliana. Juliana, meet Jason Barnham."
"Hello."
"A pleasure Juliana," Jason said with a smile. Lucas grew tense as he saw Katya end her conversation with the President and Vice-President and walk toward them, though he wasn't sure why he was reacting this way.
"Good evening Lucas," Katya said. "You look very nice."
"Thank you," he said. Juliana squeezed his arm. "I'd like you to meet Juliana."
Katya smiled pleasantly. "I've heard a lot about you. It's a pleasure to finally meet you and put a face to the name. Lucas talks a lot about you."
"He does?" Juliana asked, grinning. Lucas was instantly grateful for the boost she'd just given him.
"Yes, he misses you terribly, so I'm glad that he gets the chance to see you. I hate to leave so quickly, but I see that someone is looking for me. Excuse me," she said sweetly before walking away.
"Aww Lucas…you miss me?"
Lucas took the opportunity that Katya had set up for him. "Of course I do, I tell you that all the time."
"Well now I know for sure," she replied, kissing his cheek. "I'll be right back," she said, moving off in the direction of the restrooms.
Lucas breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Jason. "You're a lucky man, she looks fantastic tonight."
"Yeah, she does, like a princess. I've never seen someone work a room like she's doing, and I've been to a lot of things like this."
"Probably a lot of practice."
"Probably."
"Will you excuse me? I want to talk to her really quickly, before Juliana comes back."
"Sure thing."
Lucas headed off in Katya's direction. Katya saw him coming, noticing he was alone, and excused herself from her current conversation.
"Hi, everything all right?" she asked.
"Yes, fine. Thanks for that, what you did."
"You're welcome. I remembered your conversation with her and figured a bit of reassurance wouldn't hurt."
"No, you're right about that," he replied.
"I want to say that you like more than 'nice,' you look phenomenal in that tux. But look, I don't want to get you in trouble, so you should go now okay? If you stay any longer she'll see you."
He nodded and walked back to where Jason stood as he watched her rejoin the conversation. She was in her element here, and he'd never realized how cultured she really was until this moment. She really did seem like royalty here amongst all of these candles, chandeliers, windows and marble columns.
"Everything cool?" Jason asked.
"Yeah, just wanted to thank her for helping me out."
"Yeah, I noticed that too," Jason said as Juliana rejoined them. "Juliana, it was a pleasure meeting you. If you'll excuse me, I need to go keep my date company," he said with a grin before he walked away. Lucas said nothing as Jason rejoined Katya and she brought him into her conversation.
"She seems popular," he heard Juliana say from what seemed like a long distance away.
"Yeah, there isn't anyone on ship that I know of that doesn't like her."
"Do you?"
"Do I what?"
"Like her?"
"Of course I do, she's a very nice person and fun to talk to."
"Is that all?"
Lucas turned a questioning gaze on Juliana. "What are you trying to get at Juliana?"
"I'm just wondering…"
"Well, stop because it's silly. What is with you lately?"
"How do you mean?"
"You've been asking weird questions every time we talk. Maybe you don't realize you're doing it, but if you do, I'm asking you to please stop."
"You've been different the past few months too."
"How so?"
"You've been distant, we don't talk like we used to."
"Like I've said before, things have been busy and I've had a lot of work to do."
"It has nothing to do with her then," Juliana said, gesturing to Katya. "It seems that this mood change coincides with her arrival."
"No, it has nothing to do with her. We don't even see each other that much because we work in different places," he replied, irritated and knowing that with this line of questioning an honest answer about his relationship with Kat was entirely out of the question.
"Okay then, I believe you. Wait, what are they doing?"
Lucas looked in the direction she indicated and saw Jason and Katya heading for where some others were dancing to the music being played. Jason could dance? He knew Katya could, she'd told him once. As a new waltz started, Lucas watched in amazement as Jason expertly guided her across the floor. He grinned and made a mental note to give Jason a hard time about it.
"Lucas," he heard the Captain say.
"Yes?"
"We're going to head out. Katya has to stay a bit longer due to family obligation, but we have to take Jason with us, he's got to get back to duty along with the rest of us. Would you mind waiting here for her and taking the last shuttle home? It's been her family's request that she not be left alone."
"I wonder why? But yeah, sure, it's no problem. I'll wait."
"Great, thank you Lucas. Juliana, always a pleasure."
"Good night Captain."
Jason waved goodbye as he dashed up the stairs to catch up to the rest of the crew. Lucas turned his head to see where Katya was; she was in conversation with a man and a woman who seemed to be her parents.
"Juliana, let's get out of here for a bit. Let me tell Kat that I'll be back for her."
"Okay."
Lucas headed in her direction, and she smiled when she saw him coming. "Hi Lucas, so you're going to be my escort home tonight are you?"
"Seems that way."
"I'd like you to meet my parents, Levi and Maria Derevenko."
"Very nice to meet you," Lucas replied, shaking both hands. He remembered quite clearly how absent they had been, and still were, from her day-to-day life. "Kat, I'll be back for you. It's almost time for Juliana to leave."
Something flashed across her eyes so quickly he couldn't tell if he'd actually seen it or not. "Alright."
He smiled and walked away from her. She bit her lip to silence the real words she wanted to say. Katya, in the brief moment she'd been near Juliana, had seen all she needed to. She had sensed very clearly the other girl's jealousy and distrust of her. She'd walked away from them because she couldn't stand to be around Juliana for another second.
"Ekaterina is everything fine?" her father asked.
"Yes, fine," she replied, smiling and turning her attention back to them.
Juliana grinned when he returned. "You ready to go?"
"Yeah, let's go back to your room," she said.
A sly grin spread across his face. "What do you have in mind?"
"Take me back to your room and find out," she replied with a mischievous grin.
