"This is a bad idea."
"You were adamant that it's the best option."
"Yeah, that was then. I should just go. Find a patrol assignment somewhere, get out of the City, and-"
The sound of a door opening and closing drifts around the corner
"Shit, do you think tha-"
"I should hide."
Polaris decompiles in a shimmer. Linvana raises her hand to pull him back out when a willowy human in a long yellow coat rounds the corner. A canvas satchel hangs from their shoulder, and a puff of curly brown hair frames their sharp features. They stop short as soon as they see Linvana.
"Welp, guess I have to move again." They pull a keycard out of a pocket. "I'm not doing an interview, so get lost." They swipe the keycard against the lock. It beeps once and they push into the apartment behind the door.
Linvana opens her mouth to speak but the door slams shut in her face. She stares at it in stunned silence.
"Uh, you're right," Polaris says, reappearing near her shoulder. "Maybe this was a bad idea."
"Wait!" Linvana shouts, "I'm - I'm not a journalist. I just want to talk."
"I said get lost!" Their voice is distant, muted by the door.
"It's about Telysa!" Linvana blurts.
Silence.
The door flies open. Polaris vanishes with a yelp. Their eyes dart between Linvana and the place Polaris used to be. A frown creases their brow, and they'd taken off their coat.
Linvana raises her hands. "I just want to talk. I promise."
They huff, disappear into apartment, and reemerge a moment later with their coat back on. "Cone on," they say as they walk down the hall. "If you're serious, you'll at least have the decency to buy me a drink."
The server deposits a steel mug and a glass of light blue liquor on the table. The former Warlock takes the glass and settles back in their chair. "What'd you say your name was?"
"Linvana." She picks up the mug and takes a short sip.
"Linvana. I'm Tuli. But you knew that already."
She nods.
"So. How do you know Telysa, and why do you want to talk to me about her?"
Linvana shrugs. "Ran in to her on patrol a couple times. Then Oryx showed up and we decided to run some missions together."
Tuli's eyes narrow. "Together. As in…a fireteam?"
"Yeah. It wasn't really a formal thing. But I have telemetry of us working together." She raises her hand to summon Polaris.
"No no, I believe you." They wave her down. "It's just…I'm surprised she decided to start running with someone again. Wonder what gave…"
"That's what I want to know. She refuses to talk to me about her past."
"So you figure, why not track down her old teammate and see if they'll talk?"
She nods sheepishly.
"Mm-hmm. Does she know you're here?"
Linvana shakes her head. "She left. About a week ago. Said something about an old favor, and then she was gone." She takes a pull from her mug. "She said she'll be back, but how long am I supposed to wait for her?"
"Good question."
"So…"
"So what? I'm Tel's ex. Haven't seen her in nearly eight years."
"Yeah, you're her ex. So you know what a relationship with her is like."
Tuli scoffs. "Relationship? That's a stretch. It was more just screwing around in between bounties. You want something more from it? You gotta figure out how to make that happen on your own."
They take another drink and sigh. "I can tell you this much though: She blamed herself for what happened to my Ghost. It was my fault, but…I tried reaching out to her a few years back, and her response was 'I'm sorry.' That's it. Two words. If there was ever anything substantial between us, she killed it because she couldn't stand seeing me hurt."
They're both silent for a long moment.
"Do you think, maybe she's trying to push me away?" Linvana asks. "Because she's afraid of getting hurt again?"
Tuli shrugs. "Again, how am I supposed to know? Look, if this thing with her is tearing you up so much, then you obviously want it badly. Is she worth it? That's a 'you' problem. She's a difficult person who'll only push herself harder if she thinks she's not good enough. If that's what you want from a relationship, great. You've got one hell of a ride ahead of you."
They swallow the rest of the blue liquid in a single gulp and stand up. "Thanks for the drink." They hesitate. "If you do decide to stick with it? Do right by her. She needs someone, even if she won't admit it."
And then they're gone and Linvana is alone again. But this time she doesn't feel quite as lost this time.