Note: I hope everyone is well and safe. Thank you for all those that reviewed the last chapter, I was surprised how much people enjoyed the Sam/Jack insight and Splodge's trip out of the Hydroponics Bay :) However, we are now arriving at Day 39 of the 40 days that this fic will span, so we are edging ever closer to the end of this big 'interlude' fic...
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DAY 39 – The Last Day of Before
Chapter 37 – The Contract
It was a beautiful day outside of Atlantis' tall spires, and the brightness of the day felt very appropriate, yet also a little too symbolic for Teyla. Today, finally, after so many days and long hours of work, the trading contract between the Elite and Atlantis and Earth was to be signed. It was a glorious day for the future, and hence the beautiful warmth of the summer's day outside the city felt hugely fitting. Yet, she was also profoundly aware of how today would be her last time with John for awhile, for tomorrow she would be departing on the Sythus on the hunt for the Skerti. So the bright glow of the sunshine over the balconies of Atlantis felt very symbolic of these single golden two hours she had in Atlantis with John before she and her fellow Elite would be leaving.
And none of her time here would be alone with John.
She had tried to think of a reason to remain behind in Atlantis to steal some time with him, but as it was already early evening back at the Facility, she had to leave all too soon. Once the trading contract was signed, she needed to officially deliver it to the Elite at the Training Facility and then lodge the contract at an evening meeting of the Military Council, organised just for the event. Once that was done, she would hopefully have enough time to visit Oneakka and Massa in the Facility before a late return to Athos for the night. Then, early tomorrow morning, she and Si would be leaving Athos for the Sythus and the mission ahead of them.
It was a busy and important day, but it also felt all too official and impersonal, unlike her usual time with John. Still, it was wonderful to see him, and he had been at her side since the moment she and the other fourteen Athosian Elite had arrived for the two hours set aside for the contract signing. The first hour had been spent with Colonel Carter and the IOA representatives leading a tour of Atlantis' Central Tower for her fellow Elite, all them clearly fascinated by the Ancestral City. However, since she was more than familiar with the city now, she and John had followed along at the back of the tour, walking side by side and afforded just enough privacy to at least catch up with each other. He had apparently spoken with Father earlier today, Father having invited him for a meal in the Governing Complex next week. She had felt a surprisingly large pang of jealousy at the news though, knowing they would be meeting without her, but she was also simultaneously pleased and touched that Father was clearly ensuring that John would continue to be treated as family even with her away. She just wished she could stay off mission a little longer to be with John some more, but the Skerti hunt was important and her Seeker status particularly significant for the mission.
So, she had drawn in every moment walking with him, listening to him recalling his last few days, laughing at his jokes, and letting herself find the smallest little moment to 'accidently' brush her arm or shoulder against him as they followed along at the back of the tour. Such little stolen moments were all she was going to have today, so she took every opportunity she could and John had clearly caught on, finding small moments in turn to touch her arm or back.
But all too soon the tour had arrived at the city's Mess Hall which had been prepared for the official signing of the trading contract, and she had to once again focus her attention on her work.
She was not overly used to melancholy, but it had started plaguing her these last few days knowing that today was approaching, and the feeling had washed fully over her as the ceremony had begun. It would not be a long ceremony, after which there would be the inevitable small talk and then she would have to leave. Off to battle and leaving John behind.
And this mission felt acutely dangerous, considering the unknowns concerning the Skerti. They had no idea how many Skerti might be waiting for them out there, what technology would be deployed and how long the mission would last. Elite were more than used to dangerous missions, but this one felt particularly risk-filled. She knew from experience that unknown situations and a lack of knowledge were normally only ever overcome by difficult battles and, more often than not, loss of life.
She had great faith in all those on the mission with her, especially her fellow Elite on the Sythus, but Halling was the only Elite to have actually faced a Skerti. She had watched his recreation of his battle against the Skerti Queen perhaps a hundred times, trying to learn and prepare herself for the vicious speed and strength of the Skerti, but only face-to-face battle would truly instruct her.
Leaving John in the past had always felt difficult and plagued with the knowledge that she might not return, or even that he could be hurt and killed in his own missions, but today's departure felt even more significant. She did not know what she would face out beyond the border against the Skerti and whether she would be able to meet the challenge.
She sensed that John had come to a similar conclusion about her mission, as he had asked her many questions about the Sythus preparations and she had seen the touches of worried sadness in his expressions and heard it in his voice. He didn't want her to go anymore than she wanted to leave him, and yet she did feel some comfort in knowing that John would be safely distant from the Skerti hunt. As much as she worried for her and her fellow Elite's safety against the Skerti, she would not allow herself to imagine how John might have fared in Halling's place against that deadly Skerti Queen.
She just wished they could have some time alone together. To have the chance to hold him, kiss him perhaps one last time.
Instead though they were having to be on their best public behaviour at the ceremony, professional and at a polite distance from one another, as the trading rewards of their Political Marriage were brought to final fruition.
She glanced at John out the corner of her eyes where he stood tall and handsome at her side. The sunlight was pouring in through the Mess Hall's windows and it was casting him in the most beautiful light. He was in his extremely smart formal blue uniform again today, which she knew he did not overly enjoy wearing, but he looked so handsome that he made her heart ache in her chest. If only they could steal a few minutes alone together...she wondered if there was some reasonable excuse to give them time. Perhaps she could suggest she needed to check her quarters here before she left for the mission? Could she retrieve some of her spare tops she had stored in the drawers in her Atlantis quarters? Or would that seem a foolish and weak excuse to leave this formal gathering after the contract was signed?
"...my Mother used to say," Mr Woolsey's voice returned sharply to Teyla's awareness and she quickly directed her attention back on the man's speech to the crowded Mess Hall. The usual tables in here had all be set along the walls today, now covered in a wide selection of food and drinks for her and her fellow Elite and the watching Atlantis base members. All of the IOA group were in attendance stood behind Mr Woolsey, all smartly dressed and smiling, and Colonel Carter and General O'Neill were also in their formal blue uniforms – though the General kept noticeably pulling at the collar of his uniform with clear discomfort. There were several newer faces from Earth among the watching audience today, arrived from John's home-planet for the event, though Teyla could not recall their names as the introductions had been so swift and their professions a little unclear to her. If she had the chance, she would try to remember to ask John about them.
"But," Mr Woolsey continued after some light laughter from the audience at what must have been a joke, "this is a historic day," he continued more formally, the tone of his voice now more weighted and serious. "As Robert Grosseteste once said: "United we stand, divided we fall", and today we have taken a great step forward in proving this truth once again. That together Earth, Atlantis, the Elite and the Alliance can help bring peace and prosperity to both our galaxies."
Teyla could not agree more with Mr Woolsey's statement, after all it was the guiding principle of the Alliance that unity created strength and advancement, and it gave her true hope that today's contract would completely alter all of their futures for the better.
"Honoured Elite Emmagan?" Mr Woolsey's eyes found hers, "we would be honoured if you would sign the contract on behalf of the Elite?"
It had been a prepared point, Aedii' idea in fact that she be the name that represented the Elite on the contract and no Elite had objected, so she had found herself at the front of this gathering.
John's hand brushed against hers, gently taking the glass of fruit juice from her hand, and she stepped forward to join Mr Woolsey at the table on which sat the Alliance electronic contract pad and also a paper printed copy of the contract, as this was apparently required for those of Earth. She reached down and tapped awake the Alliance electronic pad, finding the signature screen ready and waiting for her. She was struck for a moment as she pressed her thumb to the sensor panel, that the last contract she had signed like this had been her and John's marriage contract. Her name and details appeared on the pad's screen, confirming her signature of the contract, and she stepped towards the paper version. She picked up the Earth pen and wrote out her full name in Alliance Standard rather than Athosian. As she stood up from the contract, she saw Mr Woolsey's name and thumb print display on the electronic pad and she handed him the Earth pen. He took it with a bright smile and delivered a very fast and efficient signature beside hers on the paper and it was done.
After all the hard work, the contract was set and binding. She felt surprisingly relieved at the moment, as if some small pressure formerly sat upon her had been lifted. All she and John had gone through in finding their way to each other, in helping guide and oversee the negotiations of their Political Marriage and the trading contracts, it was all more than worth it. With the contract between Athos and Atlantis already complete, this was now the final piece, the literal benefits of their Political Marriage made real for both their peoples. And, hopefully, long lasting.
The room broke into loud applause as Mr Woolsey led her back to the slim lectern at which he'd given his speech. The crowded large room was loud with clapping and no small amount of cheering. She was almost convinced she had recognised Lieutenant Ford's voice in the loudest cheer. Everyone was so pleased, even her own fellow Elite stood to one side where all smiling as she looked across all their familiar faces, but it was Si' face in the middle that drew her full attention. As a fellow Athosian he had been first to ask to be here today and he was smiling up at her now with his dark handsome face, and she knew he understood how important this had been for her.
Her legacy.
Several people shifted in front of her and Mr Woolsey, taking images of the moment for Earth posterity. Colonel Carter and the IOA group moved to join her and Mr Woolsey, all forming two lines in a slight semi-circle for the pictures. She glanced round to where John had been standing with her, only to see that he was already joining the line right behind her, able to look over her shoulder into the cameras taking images. As she smiled forward at the small boxes that John's people used as cameras, she felt the warm press of John's hand against her back, unseen by anyone else, and she drank in the moment. They had helped achieved this historic moment, and it would hopefully be worth all the work and sweat spilt by them both to help their peoples find common ground for the contract.
"Thank you all for attending," Colonel Carter called to the room as the applause died down. "Please all help yourself to some champagne," she indicated the trays of tall glasses being handed out to the crowd. Teyla knew this particular drink was a favourite of John's people to celebrate significant events, however, as Mr Woolsey handed her one of the glasses, she felt her stomach turn a little.
She was very cautious of late about eating or drinking anything unusual, after her bad reaction to the Satedan stew. She had finally visited the Facility's Healing Bay for some proper medication to deal with her ongoing but light nausea. The Healer had agreed that Satedan food could be rather harsh on many stomachs, but had suggested that perhaps she had had some food poisoning and, given how overworked she had been lately dealing with the contract negotiations, that she was a little run down as well. However, Teyla felt fine otherwise and the Healer had simply given her some anti-nausea tablets, which had been very effective. The course would last her another week, but by that time she believed she would be well again, and the Sythus' Healing Bay had more of the tablets if she needed them. Though the Healer had offered her blood tests, she'd turned down the offer. She was fine otherwise and, besides, it was vitally important she was on this mission. She and Si would be the only Seekers on the hunt and their ability to withstand the Skerti psychic ability was going to be tested, and she would not have herself removed just because of a slightly upset stomach. The trip to the border would take weeks, so she had plenty of time to regain some sleep from the negotiations and provide her time to practice her Seeker development practices in preparation for facing the unknown Skerti psychic powers.
Still, as effective as the new tablets were, she was not overly keen on testing their strength by drinking the Earth Champagne, so she would find a way to set it aside and stick to the apple juice that she knew sat well on her stomach.
"Please help yourselves to food as well," Colonel Carter continued to the full Mess Hall. "If any of the Honoured Elite would like to again visit the balcony outside to enjoy the view of the city you are more than welcome."
More applause filled the large room and Teyla smiled once again out at the sea of happy faces, both Elite and of Earth.
"I think that went really well," Mr Woolsey turned to her, still grinning brightly.
"I agree," Teyla replied with a smile of her own.
"And none of it would have been possible if not for all your hard work, Honoured Elite," Mr Woolsey added kindly.
Teyla was aware of John at her side now and, though she didn't glance at him, she suspected she could picture his expression at Mr Woolsey's flattering comments. "For all our hard work, Mr Woolsey," Teyla corrected the politician with a smile. "I completely agreed with your summary in your speech, that this is indeed a historic day."
Mr Woolsey's smile grew larger. "Thank you. I did practice the speech quite a few times and I hope the quote I selected holds true for Alliance beliefs as well."
"It does indeed," Teyla agreed as John shifted at her side.
"All the hard work has paid off," John interjected into the conversation.
She finally looked up and round to her Husband, seeing his eyes only on her as Mr Woolsey replied.
"Finally, and we'll be seeing quite a lot of changes around here with the joint taskforces and our new ship building plans."
John's gaze slid to Mr Woolsey. "Our new ship building?" He seemed to sense something in Mr Woolsey's statement.
"The IOA have agreed the first stages of expenditure," Mr Woolsey replied to John, "and I have been nominated to remain in Atlantis as the IOA's official representative here in Pegasus."
"Oh, great," John's response was not overly enthusiastic to Teyla's eyes, but Mr Woolsey didn't seem to notice.
"I'm actually rather looking forward to the new responsibilities and I have to say Atlantis has fast become like home to me."
Teyla smiled at Mr Woolsey. "I have a similar sense myself when I visit now."
"We look forward to your next visit when you return from your mission to find the Skerti," Mr Woolsey's expression dimmed from his bright smile to one of more concern. "Has there been any development on the scans of the moved asteroid field?"
"Nothing has yet been detected by the Fleet ships near the target area, but they are awaiting the rest of our support ships before proceeding into that area. We will be taking one of our most sensitive sensor ships with us that should, hopefully, help us identify the source of the strange movement of the field in that sector of the galaxy."
"How long's it going to take you to get there?" John asked, his tone slightly grave now.
"Two weeks to meet up with the waiting ships, but then only a day or so by hyperspace to the target area itself," she explained looking up at John. He was definitely looking concerned now.
"You sure you don't want some Earth support on the trip?" He asked. "We might be able to free up the Apollo-"
"I think we should leave such decisions to Colonel Carter, Colonel Sheppard," Mr Woolsey interrupted John.
"Sure, but I'm just saying-" John replied with a clearly annoyed frown.
"I'm sure the Elite know that we are on hand as needed," Mr Woolsey swept over John's statement.
"Of course," Teyla agreed quickly and calmly, hoping to soothe the moment. "As we are on hand to assist Atlantis as required."
"Exactly," Mr Woolsey smiled.
Teyla looked to John, seeing him still frowning towards Mr Woolsey. "Colonel Sheppard, I was hoping," she began and John instantly gave her all his attention, "that there would be a few spare minutes that I might be able to quickly visit my quarters here and ensure I have not left anything that I may require for the mission?"
"Sure," John agreed with a mostly controlled smile. "We can go now if you want?"
"That would be most helpful," she agreed and looked quickly to Mr Woolsey. "Please do excuse me Mr Woolsey, I shouldn't be too long, but it is important for me to check what I left here."
"Of course, of course," Mr Woolsey replied. "I can accompany you, if you wish?"
"No, I am well aware of the way, and Colonel Sheppard as my Honoured Husband should accompany me as per tradition," she quickly made up a further excuse. "Though, I do believe my colleague, Honoured Elite Aedii was hoping to have a few moments to talk with you before we leave to thank you for all your work on the contract."
"Oh, yes of course," Mr Woolsey agreed instantly and looked around. "I shall find him right now."
"Wonderful," Teyla agreed as she moved away, finding a spare space on the edge of a table to set down her untouched glass of champagne. John was instantly at her side, setting down his own glass, and his hand briefly touched against her arm guiding her in the best direction for the closest exit.
"This way," he said hurriedly but appearing calm.
"Thank you," she said formally and politely for anyone nearby that might be listening, though everyone seemed to have formed into small groups to talk.
She followed John as he led the way, weaving between a few chatting groups to an open doorway that led to a corridor beyond. Stood at the doorway were two guards, one of which was Major Lorne. She smiled at the Major as they neared him.
"Honoured Elite," Major Lorne bowed his head with a big smile.
"Major Lorne, are you well?" She asked as she stopped in front of him.
"Very well, Ma'am, but even more so for the Bantos tickets we've got for the latest competition next week," Major Lorne grinned.
"I am pleased, I know that Hakon was organising those for you. Enjoy yourselves. I am very disappointed to miss out on going myself."
"Honoured Elite Emmagan wants to check what she's left in her quarters before they all head off," John put in.
"Sure, Colonel. You need one of us with you?" Major Lorne asked with a pointedly polite smile.
"No, we're fine. Just gonna be a few minutes," John replied but there as some tone in his voice that sounded like a warning to his friend and colleague. Teyla worried for a moment what Major Lorne's smile meant, but John's hand was on her elbow again, gently guiding her to move forward.
She smiled at the Major one last time before she and John headed into the corridor, finally alone.
"Major Lorne's question seemed to imply-?" She asked John in a quiet tone as they walked at a suitably speedy pace down the corridor.
"Don't worry about it," John replied instantly. "We all rib each other all the time."
She wasn't exactly sure why ribs were involved in the phrase, but she believed she understood his meaning.
"The more important point as you throwing Aedii to the Woolsey wolves back there," John grinned as they walked.
She smiled up at him. "I warrior must always think on her toes, besides I am sure that Aedii would like to thank Mr Woolsey for his hard work."
"Yeah, sure, he'll have to now," John chuckled.
She chuckled in turn, feeling almost lighted-headed with delight that they were able to steal a few moments together. That, once in their adjoining quarters, she would have one final chance to hold him and kiss him goodbye before she left.
Especially if it might turn out to be her last.
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Her day had been rather unusual, as Seeal had spent her Midday Meal with Halling and then had had an early Late Meal in the project room.
As it was Halling's last full day here in the Facility before he headed off on the big Skerti hunt, he'd invited her to have Midday Meal with just him, which had been really nice and unexpected. Halling was clearly excited about the upcoming mission, being a typical Elite all of a sudden, actually viewing heading off on what had to be a seriously dangerous mission as something to look forward to doing. She'd almost forgotten that Halling was still like the rest of his creed: all too ready to just throw himself into danger like his life didn't really matter. What did clearly matter to him though was whether Oneakka was going to be okay left behind. So she had repeatedly reassured him throughout their meal that Oneakka didn't need watching over anymore – well outside of making sure he didn't re-injury himself as part of his clearly foolish plan to get back to sparring and battle training in just over two weeks. Halling agreed with her that Oneakka was being "a little optimistic", which she felt was a serious understatement, but apparently Oneakka tended to defy expectations, so Halling clearly wasn't ruling it out.
Oneakka certainly always managed to find a way of being completely unpredictable and surprising, which included his continuing good mood recently. She suspected it was because he was so focused on his target for his recovery, but she wasn't about to complain about him being so good-natured and polite. She had no doubt it wouldn't last long, so she was going to enjoy it while it lasted.
But her meal with Halling hadn't lasted long enough, and soon enough she'd had to head back to the project room for the rest of her workday, only for the end of the day to have turned into a 'goodbye party' for four of the project team who were being reassigned tomorrow. One of them was going to join the Sythus on the Skerti hunt and the other three were joining the Skerti Drive research project. She wasn't entirely sure why such a big goodbye session was required for those three because she knew from Ru, who was also being reassigned to the Drive project, that they would still be working half their time out of the Facility anyway. Still, it had been a new experience for her, having Late Meal served early in the project room, all the team sitting around in a big circle sharing stories as they ate. She'd learnt that a good number of them had actually served some of their career on battleships and had some real firsthand experience of engineering on the fly. For a brief while, attention had turned to her as the team member heading to the Sythus had asked about her experiences on the ship. She had no idea how much detail of the things she'd experienced on the Sythus she could share, so she'd just told the story about how she'd found the first Slug Robot when it had broken out of the ship's hot water piping system. That had seemed a safe and very Skerti related subject to talk about, which was the constant subject of conversation everywhere in the Facility right now.
Once the project goodbye party had broken up, she'd visited the goats, as she'd missed her usual Midday Meal visit to see them. The goatlings had gone berserk when she'd gotten there, racing mad circles around her for the full hour she was there, and Splodgy had repeated jumped on her lap and even tried to get up on her shoulders at one point. Somehow through all that, she'd still managed to have a nice relaxed chat with Neligan while he'd been working on the final schematics for the new huts for the goat family. Oneakka had decided on a final design, which included a much larger area being fenced off, creating a larger enclosure for the goats that they could run around in, with a suitably taller fence around it. Then there were going to be two huts inside and several platforms at varying heights for the goats to climb, all carefully distanced from the enclosure fence so as not to allow escape attempts.
She liked the design, though Neligan had made the point several times that obviously not all the goats would be staying here long term. She knew that and she also knew that Neligan had been helping Oneakka with his plan for where the goats would be going, but neither of them had told her anything yet. She knew that Oneakka had originally gotten Belka to see if keeping a goat in the Sythus' Hydroponics Bay would help with weed control and provide fertilizer, and that Neligan was all about that kind of research. She just hoped that meant that Oneakka was going to keep at least one goat here in the Facility's Hydroponics Bay.
And she secretly hoped it would be Splodge.
But she wasn't going to ask Oneakka about it again, just wait for him to tell her his plans.
With that in mind, she'd spent a little longer than planned with the goats this evening and now had just half an hour until she was due for her usual visit time with Oneakka. But, it was plenty of enough time for her to head quickly to the Canteen to get herself some tea and also a sweet pudding, since there had only been main courses served at the goodbye party.
As she arrived in the Canteen, the newly approaching Skerti mission was made obvious again by the unusual number of Elite warriors in the Facility of late. Though she understood a group of them were currently visiting Atlantis to sign the big important trading contract, but there were still plenty here this evening. She cast her gaze across the large room, assessing the mood of the space, who was here, and whether-
She stopped, surprised at seeing three particular faces at one table: Massa, Halling, and Oneakka! He'd not been in the Canteen since before his injury, yet here he was, in the Canteen like normal again. They'd noticed her, and Massa, rather unnecessarily, lifted a dark arm to get her attention and he waved her over. She headed quickly towards them. There was a free seat next to Massa, with Oneakka and Halling sat on the other side of the table, and there were trays of partly eaten food across the tabletop. Clearly they were here sharing Late Meal together, possibly because it was Halling's last evening here in the Facility?
As she neared them, she focused her attention on Oneakka, checking him more closely. He looked a little tired, but seemed comfortable enough in his chair, though she noticed the edge of a pillow jutting out from behind his back; good he had some decent support while sitting here in a 'normal' chair again.
"You're in here," she found herself saying stupidly to Oneakka as she reached the table.
"Walked all the way here myself," he replied with a proud smile.
"Well, there were a few breaks on the way," Massa added some commentary.
Oneakka slid a frown to Massa. "Because you dropped Aki in with Nalla."
"Where you had to sit down for awhile."
"Because you took half an hour to explain to Nalla how the teething ring works," Oneakka countered.
"It wasn't half an hour," Massa bantered back.
"So Aki isn't here?" Seeal cut into the teasing, realising how unusual it was to see Massa without baby Aki close by.
Massa looked up at her with a smile. "Nalla is enjoying his company this evening before she leaves on the Skerti hunt tomorrow, and we thought we should have a last evening with Halling before he also heads off to battle."
She'd been right then, the three were celebrating a last meal together for awhile. She was a little surprised none of them had told her, as she'd thought she was having her usual evening time with Oneakka, but she could easily do something else. Maybe see if she could go visit the Sythus in dock, see Madesh once more before he left.
"That's nice," she replied as she smiled at Halling enjoying his two friends' company before he left. "I'll leave you three to it then."
"No," Massa frowned. "You're included; we were waiting for you to turn up."
They were?
"We just weren't sure if you wanted to eat Late Meal with us or someone else?" Massa asked with a complete lack of subtlety.
She narrowed her eyes at Massa and his constant attempts to drop insinuating comments. He clearly knew that she'd shared two meals now with Smee, though she had nothing to be ashamed of, it was just that his comments were getting a little embarrassing, especially in front of Oneakka. Not that Oneakka had said anything about it, in fact he'd even come to her defence against one of Massa's teasing comments yesterday. Oneakka defending her had been a very new experience, which she'd pointed out to him with great relish.
Still, she was getting a little fed up with Massa's attitude. There was nothing new about his style of teasing, but something felt almost judgmental and pushy about his insinuations about Smee; as if he had some sort of ulterior motive behind his comments. She suspected she was going to have to have a word with him about it.
Massa smiled up at her now, his eyes full of teasing mirth.
"Please join us if you would like to, Seeal," Halling put in, playing the peacemaker as always, which, she realised, was something of a contradiction for an Elite warrior. "There is a particularly good selection of food this evening."
Seeal gave Massa one last warning glare and smiled at Halling. "Thank you, Halling. I actually ate at a goodbye thingy in the project room, several of them are being reassigned to the whole Skerti thing. But," she glanced towards the food selection over her shoulder to see what might be available, "I was thinking of getting something sweet and some tea." She returned her attention to the table, noticing that Oneakka's tray was empty of any remaining food, and that there appeared to be more bowls than necessary. She met his blue gaze. "I see you've already enjoyed the puddings?" She smiled.
They'd gotten into a habit recently of ordering extra puddings in the evenings and it had become clear to her that Oneakka had something of a sweet tooth, which he was particularly indulging now he could select his own food again after being discharged from Meiyo's strict meal plans.
"Its baked kita pie," Oneakka said with feeling, "they're healthy pies."
"Do you want another one?" She asked.
He pretended to think about it. "No," he said, but his expression and tone said just the opposite.
She smiled at the ambivalence and turned to leave, but paused long enough to lean closer to Massa. "Just as long as there's none of those disgusting berry biscuits there."
"Hey!" She heard Massa object, but she was walking away too quickly to catch anything else he said.
There was no queue at the food selection, so she quickly picked up a tray and headed straight for the sweet treats. She selected two bowls of the kita pie and added a big scoop of whipped sweetbean topping onto her helping, and then reached for a large mug to fill with Athosian tea.
As she poured the tea, she sensed someone moving close by and she glanced round to find Smee stepping up next to her.
"Good evening, Seeal," he smiled.
"Sleepy," she smiled back, pausing in filling her mug.
"Have you had a good day?" Smee asked with his smile turned right up to charming levels.
"I have, thank you," she replied back. They'd shared another meal in here yesterday, through which they'd shared more interesting security stories. It had been nice, as talking with him always was, but she just wasn't sure if she wanted what his eyes were clearly offering. The more she'd been thinking about it, the more the old niggling worries about attaching her life to a male had reared their ugly head and she'd only managed to confuse herself more about what she wanted.
"I enjoyed our meal last night," he added. He was holding a tray full of empty bowls, which meant he'd already eaten, so he wasn't about to ask her to share another meal right now, which was a relief.
Because...she suddenly realised that she and Smee were stood in clear view of the three sets of male Elite eyes, and she knew damn well Massa would use every moment of this to his advantage. Not that she could tell if they were watching, because Smee was blocking that direction.
Not that it mattered. She could talk to whoever she wanted.
It didn't matter that Oneakka would see Smee and maybe work out that he was the male with whom she'd spent a couple of meals.
But it didn't matter, because Oneakka had a female of his own anyway.
And he wouldn't care.
Wait, she had missed something Smee had said.
"Sorry?" She asked.
"If you're free for another meal tomorrow?" Smee repeated his invitation.
"Um," she worked hard not to try and peer around his shoulder to see if certain Elite eyes were watching. "I probably can't for the next few evenings," she made up, "I'm helping out looking after Honoured Elite Oneakka, with others heading off on the Skerti hunt." Wow that was a particularly weak excuse, but Smee nodded and smiled.
"Of course. You're very kind to help out," Smee complimented her.
"Sure," she tried not to wince back. Why had she gone and lied like that? That wasn't like her.
It was just because she was feeling a little flustered at being on display in front of everyone right now.
She lifted up a fraction on her toes without thinking, angling herself slightly to glimpse the table behind Smee.
Smee seemed to pick up on that and he glanced over his shoulder, which only obscured her view further. He looked back round at her with what looked like a smile in which he'd made some big conclusions. "I understand," he said with feeling. She wished she did. "Just let me know when you're free," he winked at her as he moved away.
She wasn't sure the wink had been necessary, but, as Smee left, the view of the Elite table was revealed...and, of course, all three males were looking this way.
Halling had the good grace to immediately look away politely, while Massa simply lifted his eyebrows at her pointedly.
And Oneakka was watching Smee walking away.
Great, so the identity of her meal companion was clearly out, if Massa hadn't already told everyone anyway. She turned quickly back to her tray and carried on pouring her tea, glad for the excuse to turn away from the males for a few seconds.
She was a grown woman and she could spend her time with anyone she chose; there was nothing for her to be embarrassed about. She had fought killer slug robots and dealt with some of the worst scum imaginable...it didn't make any sense that she felt so self-conscious and weird about this.
It was just those stupid soft feelings again, rearing up whenever she least expected it, messing up her head and heart. And her heart was beating a little too fast right now.
Stupid biology betraying her.
She set the somewhat overly full mug of tea on her tray.
She would spend her time with whoever she wanted.
It didn't matter.
She lifted her tray, held her chin high, turned round and strode back towards the table.
The males were talking about something else as she arrived, something about a meeting, so she didn't say anything as she sat down in the free chair beside Massa and set the extra bowl of kita pie onto Oneakka's tray where he sat directly in front of her.
"Thank you," Oneakka said politely, spoon already in hand.
"If you want to eat your pudding with someone else, just say," Massa said from her right.
She glared round at him.
"Massa," Oneakka warned around a mouthful of pie, coming to her defence for the second time in two days!
"What? I was just saying there's no pressure from us," Massa explained, but his face was far from innocent.
"I wouldn't want to miss sharing this important meal with Halling before he leaves," she simply answered and smiled over at Halling, who smiled back at her. "Plus, celebrating the fact that Oneakka can walk all the way here now," she added as she looked at Oneakka.
Oneakka smiled around more pie.
"And able to eat his own weight in food again," Massa muttered.
"I'm healing still; I need the calories," Oneakka argued as he filled his spoon with more pastry.
"Do you know what time you're leaving tomorrow yet, Halling?" Seeal asked Halling across the table.
"Probably just after First Meal," Halling replied. "Actually we were just discussing us all gathering in Oneakka's quarters when I have to leave, and Madesh is going to visit too, if you'd like to join us?"
"I'd love to," she agreed instantly, pleased she would get another chance to see Madesh. She'd had a nice long chat with him yesterday, the two of them sitting in the Hydroponics Bay with the goats running around, but it would be nice to see him again before he left.
"I'll confer with Madesh as to what time he will be here, then I'll let you all know," Halling added as he tapped what was probably a reminder, or even a text link to Madesh, on his electronic pad.
"You'll keep an eye on Madesh?" Oneakka asked Halling as he stacked his now empty pudding bowl into the previous two.
"Of course," Halling agreed smiling patiently at Oneakka.
"And make sure you stay close to Emmagan or Si," Oneakka added. "Seekers might be able to give some mental defence against the Skerti."
Halling nodded. "And perhaps Madesh might even be able to discern something from a Skerti captive, if we can catch one."
Seeal frowned as she cautiously picked up her mug of tea, which she'd definitely overfilled, and carefully sipped at the full liquid. Madesh was far from inexperienced, but she really didn't like the idea of him being in the same room as a live Skerti, let alone maybe fighting one!
"And see if upping the output on the alpha energy blasters can kill them," Oneakka added.
"We will," Halling promised, his tone suggesting Oneakka was repeating points he'd already made.
"How long do you think the mission will take?" She asked Halling as she lowered her mug back to her tray.
"It will take two weeks just to reach the border in that region and then perhaps two days further just to reach the sector in question, and then finding the Skerti..." Haling trailed off with a slight shrug.
She nodded. At least five weeks then, probably far more. Suddenly she felt rather like she imagined Oneakka was feeling, being left behind all safe and worrying about them all out there facing the Skerti.
She picked up her spoon and sliced into her pie, making sure she had plenty of sweetbean topping on the piece.
"We were discussing the goats before you got here," Massa added into the silence that had followed the prospective timescale of the mission. "After hearing one visited Oneakka the other day."
She returned Massa's smile, glad he was talking about something other than Smee. "Yes, Splodge enjoyed her visit."
"If they were older, we could take some on the Sythus with us," Halling added.
"They still need Belka," Oneakka replied as he leaned forward slightly and reached back to adjust the large pillow behind him. Was he getting uncomfortable? "Once they're weaned, I've agreed to lend some of them to a couple of space stations instead of battleships."
She snapped her attention from the pillow up to Oneakka's face and his sudden announcement.
"You're going to leave some here in the Facility though right?" She blurted out, which hadn't been the calm casual reaction she had planned for when he told her.
Oneakka looked at her across the table, his new hairstyle and scalp scar suddenly seeming brand new again here in the Canteen. "I'm going to lend two to the Hydroponics Lead on Mil Hub," which was where Pampata lived and worked, "two to the Hydroponics Bay research team on Station One, and Belka and one youngling will stay here."
Ah good, he was keeping two here in the Facility, but wait, that missed one out. "That's only six; there's seven of them," she pointed out.
"Six are mine, but Splodge is clearly yours," Oneakka replied.
It took a second to be sure he'd said what she thought he had. "What?" She uttered. "You're letting me have Splodge?"
He nodded back.
He was giving her Splodge? To be hers permanently? "And what happens when I've finished working for the Elite and leave the Facility?" She checked.
"Then she goes with you," Oneakka replied as he glanced away. She looked round to see another table of Elite across the Canteen had caught his attention, all of them looking towards him. The elderly female Elite that Seeal knew had been one of his trainers was at the table.
But she didn't care about that right now; she was getting to keep Splodgy! She quickly looked down at her pie, feeling stupidly emotional all of a sudden and she forced herself to resist the urge to cry a little bit. She'd never had a pet and she'd been dreading the day when she'd have to leave Splodge, but now she was hers.
"Thank you, Oneakka," she said looking back up at him across the table.
"You're welcome," he replied all nice and kindly. "If you'll excuse me for a bit," he added glancing to Halling and Massa and carefully stood up from the table. Seeal watched as he walked in the direction of the other table of Elite, probably to visit his old teacher. He was walking surprisingly well today, though it still wasn't a smooth and normal walk yet.
She looked back to her pie and then glanced round to Massa and Halling. Both men were looking at her.
"Awww, wasn't that nice of him," Massa said with definite overtone.
Annoyed that he was ruining what had been a particularly kind moment from Oneakka, and perhaps because she was feeling a little embarrassed at her emotional reaction, she set her spoon down in her bowl and held Massa's gaze.
"You and I need to have a conversation," she told him firmly. Her Security Lead tone had arrived without her meaning to use it and she saw Massa react to her change of voice. Good, he needed to pay attention.
"Oh?" Massa asked.
"I appreciate that we all tease each other and that's nice, but you need to stop it with the insinuations and innuendos," she told him plainly.
Just on the edge of her view of Massa, she saw Halling glance away with what might have been a smile, but she kept her attention on Massa.
"Are you talking about Smee?" Massa asked with an air of challenge to his voice, and she realised that perhaps this had been his plan all along: to goad her into reacting. "Or Oneakka?" He added.
"Oneakka and I are friends; Smee and I are also...friends...for now," she told him, though struggled a little to describe exactly what the situation was with Smee, but it was about time that Massa let the whole Oneakka side of things go at least. Oneakka had a female anyway, so it definitely wasn't appropriate teasing.
"He isn't the best choice for you," Massa gave his opinion without her asking.
"Are you talking about Smee or Oneakka?" She used his own question back at him.
"Smee," Massa replied firmly. "You and Oneakka are a far better match."
It felt just plain bizarre to actually hear that out loud, and that she was actually talking about this subject rather than just arguing about it in her own head. But it was about time that everyone started facing reality about the situation – Massa and herself.
"Oneakka and I have formed a good friendship after everything that's happened and that's all we want," she told him clearly. "So you need to drop it, otherwise Oneakka is going to end up punching you in the face."
"Wouldn't be the first time," Massa smiled at that as he glanced at Halling, clearly still not taking this seriously.
Halling just shook his head at Massa.
"Or I will punch you in the face," she added as a further threat.
Massa's expression shifted slightly, amused and maybe a little surprised at that threat.
"I know you mean well, but you need to let it go," she continued, keeping her tone calm but firm. The same tone she'd used to use when patiently explaining that setting a fire or trying to murder someone in the hallways of Dream was not acceptable behaviour on the station.
"I'm just saying what I see, Seeal," Massa returned with what looked annoyingly like smugness.
Okay, so clearly her unintentional crush on Oneakka had been far more obvious than she'd hoped. She glanced quickly off to her left, checking where Oneakka was and that he wasn't on his way back here and might overhear something he shouldn't. He was at the other table across the Canteen, in deep conversation with the Elite there, and she was pleased to see that he had been given a chair to sit down rather than have to stand.
She looked back around at Massa, free to have this conversation for the time being.
"And what do you see, Massa?" She challenged him.
"What other people refuse to see and accept," Massa returned with a sharp-edged smile. His usual more light-hearted open expressions had started to slip into a firm set of his jaw.
Interesting. She'd not seen him take a firm stance on anything else like this before, which told her that this subject meant something important to him. Which was odd considering it was about her and Oneakka and Smee, and not him.
Still, it didn't change any facts about the situation.
"I think Oneakka's female might have something to say about that," she told him, pointing out the obvious flaw in his logic.
Massa instantly screwed his face up into a confused frown and Halling glanced round at her with a frown of his own. "What female?" Massa asked.
"Pampata," Seeal explained to them. She knew Halling knew Pampata, as she'd gleaned as much from her short and awkward conversation with the female, so it was likely Massa knew her too, but clearly they didn't know about the truth of her and Oneakka's connection.
"You met her already?" Massa asked, almost eagerly.
"Yes, in the Healing Bay."
"Oh," Massa said with overly exaggerated disappointment as he looked at Halling, "I missed it."
"Seeal," Halling caught her attention, "Oneakka and Pampata are not lovers."
Oh dear, they really didn't know.
"Look, there may be a lot of things I don't know about in this galaxy," she told them, with just one quick glance back towards Oneakka. He was still sat at the other table, his back to her. "But, I consider myself a bit of an expert in reading body language," she continued to Halling and Massa, "and I know an intimate relationship when I see one. So maybe he's not told you both-"
"They used to lovers," Massa interrupted her. "Very casually, and they've stayed friends."
She paused, taking that in.
It would explain why Oneakka had never mentioned Pampata...but she'd seen Pampata kiss Oneakka in the Healing Bay. Though she had looked away so she couldn't really remember how long the kiss had lasted. It could have been just a quick peck on the lips between old lovers now friends...
"Maybe he just hasn't told you that they've started up again?" She suggested a possible theory.
"No," Massa shook his head instantly. "Oneakka would have told us, he doesn't keep secrets about anything. He told us when he and Pampata ended their previous casual relationship."
"And Pampata is getting married soon," Halling added. "To her long-term female partner."
She was?
Then Oneakka really didn't have a female?
She glanced around again towards Oneakka's back. He was still talking.
Then Pampata wasn't an issue here...wasn't the excuse she had been using in her head to explain and accept the line between her and Oneakka. There was no other female, just him definitely not wanting anything between them.
Not that she did either.
So it didn't matter.
It didn't change anything.
Just made the stupid reality of her crush all the more embarrassing and foolish to her now. He was an Elite warrior, and though there was an attraction between then, that was just what it was: a faint attraction, probably because they actually had quite a bit in common.
Why their friendship had grown of late.
And he was an Elite warrior, which he'd repeated enough times to her. That was his life. He didn't look beyond that.
Which explained why he didn't have a female. And, now she thought about it, made a lot of sense for the Elite. She'd never seen any sign here in the Facility that Elite had partners, were pairing up among themselves, or were married. Well, except for Sheppard and Emmagan, but she didn't think a man from another galaxy probably counted as 'normal' for Elite.
Elite threw their lives away all too easily, so it made some sense that they wouldn't have proper relationships, just casual things like Oneakka had had with Pampata.
It was probably very much the Elite way.
Well, except for Massa...
She glanced back round at Massa, his insistence and preoccupation with all this taking on a new light for her now.
He was watching her, looking like he was expecting something from her after their revelation about Pampata.
"It doesn't matter anyway," she told him, "Oneakka and I are friends."
And that friendship was important to her. It was all she wanted.
As she'd told Oneakka once: an Elite warrior and a pit fighter would never work; to which, she remembered, he'd readily agreed.
Because he was a big heroic Elite, he didn't look for things like that. And if he did, clearly Pampata was the kind of female that drew his eye – curvaceous and exuding sexuality from every pore. The kind of soft and non-threatening female that she was never going to be. No, instead she was hard-edged, more than a little bit broken by life, and had far from a clean past.
No, they were friends.
"And that's all there is," she concluded out loud.
"Is it?" Massa challenged her though, behaving like some sort of attack animal on this particular subject.
She narrowed her eyes at him, annoyed but also a little confused at why this was so important for him. Why should he care so much about how other people felt about each other? Unless it was something to do with his lost female?
"Massa," Halling's voice entered into the moment, his tone full of gentle warning, "let it go. It's none of our business."
She studied Massa's face, taking in the pinching around his eyes, the straight demanding glare of his stare. Gone was the teasing, good-natured man she knew him to be; now he was a man with a determined mission, with something driving him that seemed to be simmering somewhere deep inside.
Maybe this had nothing to do with her; maybe this was just about Oneakka?
"What is this really about, Massa?" She asked him.
"I'm just being honest, like maybe other people should be," he countered.
"Okay, if you want to be honest," she challenged him. "If Oneakka is so open and honest about things like his relationship with Pampata, then tell me, honestly, has he said anything to you about him wanting a relationship with me?"
Massa's expression froze, surprised and thrown by her question, but his answer was already clear enough.
She wished she didn't feel like her heart had dropped like a stone.
No, this was good. She needed to face the cold brutal truth about things, not allow the warm little whispers of things she would never have with Oneakka.
"Has he?" She pushed.
Massa looked away, pursing his lips to hold in the truth he didn't want to admit.
"No," he admitted.
Good. There is was: the truth. Cold. Brutal. Truth.
She and Oneakka were friends and she liked that. She liked her evenings with him, and the soft silliness inside would fade away...especially when he went back to battling monsters and trying to get himself killed again.
No, this, and the truth about Pampata, was good.
Because she had barely been able to stop herself from freaking out about Smee's far less challenging offers of something, so she could barely imagine how fast she'd run away if Oneakka had actually stepped over the line between them. She had almost packed up her things that morning after he'd nearly died, and she'd let her guard down, practically sobbing her heart out like a grieving widow. Maybe it was that which had given Massa the wrong idea, made him think there was more going on between her and Oneakka.
"But I know him-," Massa started what was clearly going to be some sort of excuse for what he believed, despite it being in contradiction to what Oneakka had actually said and done. It was like he was blinded by his own experiences, not seeing the truth as it was.
"What is this really about, Massa?" She interrupted him. "Is this about trying to force Oneakka to have a relationship like you had with Mera?"
Massa's entire being changed in front of her at that. His spine straightened taller and his face transformed into a wall of insulted glare.
"This has nothing to do with Mera," he stated with the harshest edge she'd ever heard from him. Suddenly she was reminded of the fact that, as easy going as Massa normally was and how doting a father he was to Aki, he was also an Elite warrior. A living weapon trained to kill monsters since he'd been a child.
And the man who had bested and killed Iketani.
But it was also very clear to Seeal that Mera certainly did have something to do with this. Why else would he react so dramatically?
"Maybe you want him to have the love that you've lost?" She stated her theory out loud for him, knowing that as angry as he looked, he wasn't ever going to hurt her. Though, perhaps, she couldn't say the same about her actions towards him right now, but clearly there was something here that Massa needed to be honest with himself about.
"What?" Massa asked, clearly confused by the theory, but she could see his mind working behind his eyes. In the corner of her view of him, she saw Halling watching them both closely.
"Maybe you feel you owe Oneakka something," she considered. "Some emotional debt?"
She saw Massa's expression twitch again and she knew she'd guessed right.
"I owe Oneakka more than I can ever repay; a lifetime of friendship, loyalty, and support," Massa said passionately.
"About Mera?" She guessed.
"Yes," Massa instantly answered her. "When the rest of them," he gestured randomly around the Canteen, which she guessed meant the other Elite, "Judged us, Oneakka always respected what Mera and I had."
"The other Elite disapproved of you and Mera?" She asked.
"They may all think love is foolish," Massa continued on passionately, like a plug holding in old simmering frustration and resentment had been broken and his feelings were now pouring out. "But, I know it's not true. I wouldn't give up a single moment with my Mera, even if it made the pain of losing her more bearable," he jabbed at the tabletop.
She wondered how the other Elite's prejudice against them had played out, how long it had gone on for.
"None of us judged you two for loving each other," Halling insisted from across the table.
"You didn't, Halling," Massa faced him. "But others did. We saw it, heard it in the little sideways comments, and then when she died-" Massa's voice cut off and he looked away.
Seeal's heart ached for him. "It was like they'd been proven right because of the pain you felt?" She finished.
"Love is always worth it. Always worth fighting for," Massa looked back round, mostly back in control of himself now. "Love is what binds the Alliance together. Love of life and freedom and people who mean so much to us. It's not what the Elite call it, but it's what keeps us fighting the Wraith to protect everyone, protecting each others' backs," Massa stated to Halling. "What kept us three at Oneakka's bedside even when he was raging at us to leave him alone," Massa's eyes met hers again. "And you need to know that," he pointed at her.
His impassioned speech had already made an impact, but his stare and pointed finger did the rest.
It felt like there was a hell of a lot of truth in what he was saying, and she felt an echo of it in her chest. It pulled hard on painful memories of Father, of how he'd worked so hard to take care of her, love her, even when everyone else made their family's life so hard because of her curse on them. And it echoed through all those years she'd striven to keep Ulfur alive and fed on those dangerous streets. She'd never even considered the word 'love' alongside Ulfur, but there it was as Massa looked at her. She'd made her deal with the Elite, through Oneakka, to make sure Ulfur would finally return home. She'd thought she'd done it to repay the damage she'd caused him, but now... Her older brother, as hurt and lost and stupid as he'd continued to be all his life, she'd made sure he'd gotten back home.
Back to where he belonged.
She had no idea where she belonged, but she knew here, in the infamous Elite Training Facility, she was the closest she'd ever been to love. And Massa was the greatest example of the power, and the pain, that love brought with it.
"Because love is always worth fighting for," Massa insisted at her, as if replying to her own hidden thoughts. His voice was softer now, but no less compelling. "Don't ever let them convince you otherwise."
She blinked out of his forceful stare, remembering where she was, what they'd been talking about.
That he was talking to himself as much as to her.
"They never convinced you," she reminded him. "And they never will."
He blinked, surprised by the looks of it, but he nodded firmly.
"But you can't try to force things on other people, on Oneakka," she continued.
Massa frowned. "That's not what I meant," he insisted, but he sounded a little confused now.
"And he doesn't need it proven to him that love is worth fighting for," she added. "He crawled on his impaled belly through that Rogue Hive to save Halling," she glanced at Halling, the tall Athosian's eyes grave. "And whatever moments you feel you need to repay to Oneakka, he did them all because he loves you."
Massa's dark eyes met hers again, but this time she could tell she'd said the right thing to help ease things for him. Because the language of love was what Massa spoke, that was so clear to her now. He did everything he did because he loved passionately, whether it was his work, his lost Mera, his friends, being a father, and, of course, even his berry biscuits. It was as impressive as it was scary.
He took a deep breath, his eyes straying away over the table of empty trays of shared food, his mind clearly turning.
She wondered when he'd set out on this crusade to prove that his bold un-Elite stance on love was worth it and that Oneakka should believe it too. Maybe it wasn't limited to just Oneakka and maybe it had been a lifelong thing for him. Growing up surrounded by military brainwashing that told him that love was dangerous and distracting had probably done a lot of damage to someone like him, but he was still fighting. And, in her opinion, clearly wining.
Maybe that was why he'd adopted Aki...to make sure that the boy was loved, when Iketani clearly hadn't cared about him and to counter the Elite message here that would tell Aki that loving was wrong.
Which was probably exactly what she'd been telling herself about Oneakka.
Afraid of the truth of what she felt for him, and that she'd been so stupid as to fall for an Elite.
It was just that it had snuck up on her so slowly...hadn't it? Or was that another lie?
She glanced away to where Oneakka was still sat at the other table, his back towards her which felt all too appropriate right now. He was so larger than life, and elite in all ways in her mind.
It really wasn't fair!
But when did fairness ever matter in life? If it did, Massa would never have lost Mera, Oneakka's people wouldn't have all been killed, and she'd have been treated nicely by the Glisi.
She looked back round at Massa and considered his silence. His massive heart and deep grief. "I think maybe you're the bravest Elite there is," she told him.
He looked round, clearly surprised.
"You and Mera," she corrected.
Massa smiled at that, a soft little smile that made her smile back.
He glanced away and sighed. "You would be good for him," he stated. Not with any innuendo this time, just him sharing his opinion; as weird as it was.
She let out a faint snort. "Arguing all the time? Bickering over every little thing? I don't think so," she shook her head. "But, I accept the compliment."
"Fine, I promise not to say anything anymore," Massa abruptly agreed, but he said it like she had him in an arm-lock and was forcing the promise out of him.
"Thank you," she smiled, ignoring his theatrics. "I really appreciate it."
He glanced at her out the corner of his eyes. "We'll see," he muttered, which sounded almost like a threat.
Sudden movement across the table was Oneakka abruptly arriving back at the table. She quickly picked up her spoon and scooped up some of her forgotten pie.
She watched as Oneakka sat down carefully, Halling helping him adjust the large pillow behind his back. As he settled back in his seat with a slightly tired sounding out breath, Oneakka glanced around the table and she saw him instantly pick up on the dramatic change of mood.
"What happened?" Oneakka asked.
"Massa was just telling me about Mera," Seeal said quickly, which wasn't really a lie.
She saw Oneakka's eyes snap instantly to Massa, a deep worried look of concern creasing his pale, half-tattooed forehead.
She looked round at Massa. "An amazing woman for an amazing man," she told him.
Massa smiled at her. "She was amazing, and she would have loved you."
Seeal was immensely flattered by that. "Fine," she used the same tone of struggling acquiescence that he'd used before, "you can always have my berry biscuits," she told him.
He pulled a teasing expression. "That sounded very suggestive, but I'm afraid I'm not looking for a female."
She chuckled at his joke and made a show of rolling her eyes, but she was really relieved at the break in tension and that he wasn't about to give up his teasing nature. It just wouldn't be about her romantic life, or lack thereof, anymore.
Good.
She scooped up some more of her pie and looked across the table at Oneakka. He looked at her and then shifted his eyes to Massa and back, his question clear without any words. She gave him an assuring 'don't worry about it' shake of her head – it wasn't important for him. For her though, it had been very important.
Like Massa, she had to accept the reality of her life. Considering where her life had been a year ago, she could hardly complain.
She had new friends, a safe home, a worthwhile job, and now Splodge.
That was enough.
She didn't need anything more.
00000
TBC