I always like to know everything about my new friends, and nothing about my old ones. Oscar Wilde (1854 - 1900)

Exile: Day 6

Lady Jaye rummaged through the cupboards. She had placed the damn thing there a few weeks back in anticipation of some well-deserved downtime. Just as she was about to give up her search, her fingers slid across the smooth glass surface of the bottle of rum. Eureka!

"Did you find it?" Scarlett asked from her perch on the counter.

Lady Jaye held up the bottle, "Sure did! Do you think we have enough strawberries?"

"Well, if we don't, it's not as if we can just run out and get some," Scarlett scowled at the sealed door of their apartment.

"And here I thought we were getting along just fine." Lady Jaye threw her a smile, "Speaking of getting some, you never did tell me if you had a boyfriend."

"Not for a while now. I broke up with Greg about two years ago," Scarlett replied as she dumped the strawberries and ice in the blender.

"How long were you two together?" Jaye asked as she handed Scarlett the rum.

"About a year." Anticipating the next question, Scarlett continued, "We broke up for religious reasons."

"Religious reasons? What, was he in a Satanic cult or something?"

"No. He thought he was God and I disagreed," Scarlett answered turning on the blender.

Lady Jaye considered Scarlett for a moment. She wasn't a bad person. She actually pretty easy to get along with once you got to know her. Jaye still got a sense that Scarlett was not as open as she wanted people to believe. The redhead had a story, and Jaye was determined to get to the bottom of it, and she knew exactly how to do it.

"What do you say we play a game while we drink our daiquiris?" Jaye gave her a wicked smile.

Scarlett wasn't sure she liked the sound of this. She never got the chance to ask if Jaye ever called her mother back, but she could guess the answer to that question. The evidence was lying in a thousand pieces in the garbage can. They were going to have to get a new phone.

Scarlett crooked an eyebrow at her, "What kind of game did you have in mind? I don't gamble. Ace broke me of that habit real fast. The man would take the vital organs from his grandmother if she wagered them."

"I was thinking of something a little less painful than losing one's vital organs. How about a game of truth or dare?"

"What, have you turned into Madonna? Are you kidding? Besides, how would we enact any dares if we are locked in this apartment?" Scarlett asked

"Hmm...good point. Well then, how about just a simple game of twenty questions?"

"That sounds pretty harmless. Sure, why not?" Scarlett turned to pour the drinks, missing the mischievous look in Jaye's eyes.

"I'm sure it will be."

After a few more minutes, the women settled in the living room with their drinks. Jaye sat on the couch with her feet tucked under her, while Scarlett opted to get cozy in the recliner directly across from her.

"So, you want to start or shall I?" Jaye asked after taking a sip of the strawberry concoction.

"Your game, so you start," was Scarlett's benign reply.

Oh, this was going to be fun. If she didn't want the other woman to crawl up in her shell, she was going to have to start with some easy questions.

With that thought in mind, she started with, "What's your favorite movie?"

"Oh, that's easy, it's The Thomas Crowne Affair," Scarlett answered and took another sip.

Jaye was momentarily taken aback, "Which one? The one with Allie McGraw and Steve McQueen or the one with Pierce Brosnan and Rene Russo?"

"I liked them both, but I get a real case of the vapors over Pierce Brosnan," Scarlett fanned herself in mock lust.

"Not a bad choice. Your turn."

"I guess I'll ask the same question of you."

"Roman Holiday," Jaye answered without giving the question much thought.

"That was a good one too," Scarlett answered with a slight edge.

"Ok, where did you go to college, and what did you major in?"

"I Majored in Sociology, and received my bachelor's from Dartmouth, and my Master's from Brown." Scarlett answered becoming more and more annoyed, "Now I have a question for you."

"Fire away," Jaye answered.

"How long are we going to play this game?" Scarlett asked

"Until each one of us asks twenty questions. Hence the name twenty questions," Jaye replied with a smile.

Scarlett did not smile back, "That is not what I meant, and you know it. I want to know how long you were intending to continue with this little fact finding mission of yours disguised as a game."

Ok. She was busted, and now Scarlett was angry, or getting there very fast. Jaye should have known better than to try and question someone whose occupation was listed as counter-intelligence.

"Ok, I'm sorry. I just didn't know a better way to get you to open up a little. You're always so withdrawn."

"Jaye, if you want to know something, just ask me. If I want to tell you, I will. If I don't, I won't. Deal?"

"Deal." Jaye smiled sheepishly, "So, uh...there is one question I have been wanting to ask you."

"As long as I get to ask one too," Scarlett answered.

Jaye nodded, "Which rumor is true? You and Duke or you and Snake Eyes?"

"I told you a few days ago, Snakes and I are just friends. Always have been, always will be," Scarlett groaned.

"So what about Duke?"

"What about Flint?"

"You're not supposed to answer my questions with questions."

"Is that what I'm doing?"

"Yes, you are."

"Really?"

"Scarlett..."

"What?"

"Stop that!"

"Huh?"

"Will you just answer the question?"

"What question?"

"Scarlett!"

"What?!"

Lady gave an exaggerated sigh as Scarlett began laughing.

"Think this is funny do you?" Jaye asked.

"Actually yes I do," Scarlett chuckled. "It usually takes the new ones five or six months to ask me that question."

"How long does it take to get an answer?" Jaye asked.

"I'll let you know when I finally give one," Scarlett winked.

TBC