Friction Chapter Four

When Naveed came home he paused at the door and collected himself before sliding his keycard in the security panel. He knew Kilandra would be waiting for him on the other side, ready to renew the argument she'd been forced to let go of upon dropping him off at work earlier that morning. She hadn't taken well to the idea of a "stranger" in their home, and she'd made him aware of her displeasure in tones that made his sensitive ears ache. What bothered him most about the exchange was the undercurrent of venom in her voice that he'd never heard before, and it had been playing in his head all day. It upset and worried him, so much so that he'd spent half his lunch break staring at the comm device on his desk, debating whether or not to call Blair and cancel his plans out of concern. As he stood reflecting on his doorstep, he wondered who it was he was more concerned for: his lover or his patient. Before he could form a conclusion, the door opened in front of him, revealing a very angry asari.

"Kilandra..." he muttered.

She stared at him coldly for several moments before reaching out and slapping his shoulder. "I can't believe you, Naveed! I tell you that you're spending too much time at work and so you decide to bring it home with you?"

"'It' has a name," he said, bristling, "Blair is a person, not a project."

"Oh really? Your other patients are people, but you don't invite them to dinner. What's so special about this one?"

"Can we go inside to talk about this? The neighbors can hear you."

"What's the matter? Are you embarrassed? Don't want all of Port Hanshan knowing what an insensitive ass you are?"

"Insensitive? For being supportive of a young woman with very real problems who has nowhere else to turn? She's a human, Kilandra, a female one. Where is she supposed to go on a disproportionately male spaceport full of aliens to meet people? Some filthy bar in the Foundations? You know as well as I do that the denizens of the Atrium wouldn't give an NDC tech the time of day."

"That's not your problem, Naveed. She isn't your responsibility!"

"So you're telling me I should have walked away? Just left her bleeding there in that freezing garage? Because in my mind that is the behavior that befits an ass, and I won't do it. Not after what happened to Vashtee."

The asari's face froze and her arm dropped from where it'd been barring his passage on the doorframe. "You haven't mentioned her in a long time. I thought you were over that."

The drell scratched at his patterned throat absently. He hadn't meant to blurt out that name and bring forth all the dark things it represented, but heavy memories had a way of resisting being hidden. He cleared his throat. "I thought I'd put it behind me as well, but this morning, when I heard Blair's voice on the tape…she sounded so distraught. So alone."

"That's why you passed out this morning isn't it? The memories came back again."

He nodded. "I didn't even feel it coming on. I just got up and I was there, with Vashtee on the cliff by the sea. I watched her drown all over again."

Kilandra softened and reached out to touch the fringed side of his face. "Blair isn't Vashtee, Naveed, and what happened to her wasn't your fault. This is why I want you to stop working so much; you're becoming obsessed." She left the doorway to embrace him and force his huge eyes to hers. "You need a break, to let someone else listen to your problems for awhile…"

"Perhaps you are right," he mumbled. "I haven't had a sabbatical since - since the accident. I just thought that if I kept busy…I'm sorry, Kilandra." He rested his chin on top of her head and sighed. "I feel like we have been drifting apart lately. Maybe I should take some time off so that we can reconnect. Somewhere away from here. Somewhere warm."

"I'd like that." she said, nuzzling his arm. "I suppose I should have prepared myself for this. I knew when I met you that you were the type to put others before yourself. It's part of what made me love you."

"Do you still love me, Kilandra?"

"Of course. It's why I'm willing to put up with your patient, but only for one night. I will cook and clean and make her feel welcome, but tomorrow I want you home early - alone."

She left his embrace and tugged on his arm. "Now come inside, it's cold out here in the hall."

.oO-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Oo.

Blair picked at the protective sleeve on her bionic arm as she walked slowly down the hallway of Naveed's living complex. It was a pricey local in the Atrium district, and she felt out of place in it. Everything around was too clean, too cold, and too quiet. Even the potted plants that crowded the gently curving corners seemed dormant, like they'd been bored into hibernation. She couldn't hear the dull roar of Noveria's hydraulic systems - a sound she focused on during sleepless nights down in the Foundations - and she hadn't seen a single soul since entering the lonely compound. Not even a maintenance mech cared to cross her path before she reached her destination.

She stopped in front of the appropriate airlock and fished in a side-pocket of her tool belt, producing a small box wrapped in a blue ribbon. After failing miserably to remove the stains from the handkerchief the drell had given her earlier, she'd checked her credit balance and decided to simply purchase him a new one. Money was tight , but she refused to show up at her host's house empty-handed, especially after he'd gone out of his way to check on her. With a deep breath, she discharged her bionic arm into the metal wall and pushed the security panel's comm button. She heard a faint chime from inside the unit that summoned Naveed to the door.

The airlock retreated into the walls, replaced by the drell's sunny yellow face. He smiled and tented his slender fingers in front of his chest before greeting her with a small bow.

"Welcome Blair. Please, come in."

He stepped to the side and allowed her to pass in front of him into a large living room lined with art and expensive electronics. A dining table stood in a alcove to her left, already laid-out with placemats and pricey silverware. She tried to keep a nervous laugh from escaping as she eyed the wealth around her; her modest gift seemed like a joke in comparison.

"I hope you didn't have any trouble finding the place," Naveed said as the airlock closed shut.

"No," she replied, "but I was a little worried when I came up the elevator. There didn't seem to be anybody home."

"Many of the units here are retained by the Peak corporations for visiting associates, so they are empty much of the time. It was actually a selling point for me when I moved; I enjoy the quiet."

Blair used her good hand to present the small box she carried. "I brought you something."

He simply stood and smiled for a moment before accepting the package and sliding off the ribbon with slender fingers. She held her breath nervously as he lifted the lid. A light laugh left his fine mouth, and his eyes glittered when they returned to hers.

"No gift is necessary, Blair, but it is warmly received nonetheless. Come, I would like you to meet Kilandra."

Naveed lead her into the kitchen, where a pot sat simmering on the stove and the smell of baking bread filled the air. A tall, pale blue asari was busy attending to the cooking, but she stopped when the pair approached. The asari gave Blair an appraising glance that made the cuts on her face sting.

"Kilandra, I would like you to meet Blair Hodges."

Kilandra replaced the cover over her pot of soup and turned to take the human's outstretched hand. "I'm glad you could make it. It looks like you had a hard time last night."

A flush heated its way up Blair's neck, and she tensed when Naveed's cool hands came to rest lightly on her shoulders.

"I think she'll pull through," he interjected. "Will dinner be ready soon?"

"The bread still has to finish baking," Kilandra told him before looking to Blair. "I'd offer you something to drink while you're waiting, but Naveed says you're not allowed."

"I said she can't have alcohol, Kilandra," the drell clarified as he stepped around his guest to open the fridge. "I bought something else for us to have instead."

He pulled out a frosted bottle and retrieved two crystal glasses from a cabinet. While he poured a glass for each of them, the asari questioned Blair.

"So you're a mechanic?" the woman asked, gesturing to Blair's NDC uniform.

"An engineer, actually," Naveed said, once again arresting the conversation. "Blair has an advanced degree in robotics and AI research."

Kilandra's eyebrows rose in surprise and her painted mouth pursed. "Really? What are you doing in the NDC garage?"

Blair swallowed and brushed at her jumpsuit.

"It's been hard for me to find work in my field," she explained. "My schooling was stalled for awhile due to my accident, and the gap doesn't look very good on my resume."

"I suppose many employers don't want to be saddled with paying for your pre-existing condition either, do they?"

Naveed cleared his throat and handed Blair a glass of a chilled, pale-gold liquid. "Why don't we save that discussion for later? I'd like to show our guest around before we eat."

"Are you going to make her touch your rock?"

The human choked on her sweet-flavored drink. "His what?"

"His rock. It's in the bedroom; you can't miss it." Kilandra leveled a challenging glare at the drell and grinned smartly. "Show her your rock, Naveed. I want a third opinion on it."

"It's not a 'rock'," he explained in response to Blair's confused expression, "It's an altar to the drell goddess Arashu that has been in my family for many generations. Kilandra is only goading me because she's jealous."

"No, I goad him because I think it's ugly, and I want him to send it back to Kahje where it belongs." She gestured down the hallway energetically. "Go see for yourself; I'll start putting plates together."

Blair wasn't sure whether to laugh at the couple's squabble or stay out of it, but when Naveed gestured for her to follow him, she didn't hesitate. As they neared the end of the corridor, a rich smell flooded her nostrils and made the sugary drink on her tongue turn tangy.

"What is this?" she asked.

"The drink? It's a traditional beverage carried over from the drell homeworld of Rakhana. It's made using a fruit similar to what humans call a 'pear'."

The human's ears perked at the word. Though the difference in sentence structure made it slow to register, she realized he'd spoken using a human tongue. She stopped in her tracks.

"You speak English?"

He froze in his own path and turned to face her. "Yes."

"But…why haven't you used it before? Why not in our session?"

He blinked in consideration. "Because people prefer what is comfortable to them, and while your language - English - is familiar to you, hearing an alien speak it is not. Eidetic memory makes it very easy to pick up languages, particularly when you spend as much time talking to people as I do, but I've found most individuals are unsettled by it. Language forms a social barrier and crossing over it, even with good intentions, can be seen as invasive. Like straining to hear a whispered conversation."

Blair grinned at his perfect speech. "That's amazing," she said.

He smiled back. "Would you prefer I use it when speaking with you?"

"Oh, I don't mind either way. I kind of like the drell language."

"As you wish," he said, reverting to his native speech. "But while we are out of earshot, I would like to apologize for Kilandra's comments. She is coming upon her Matron years, and I fear the transition has not been easy for her."

"I understand. Human women go through the same kind of thing." She waved her bionic arm. "Besides, after living with this for seven years, I've pretty much heard it all."

"You are very forgiving, Blair. I believe Arashu will be pleased by you." He took both of her hands in his and directed her down the hall. "Come."

When they rounded the corner, Blair paused in the doorway to absorb the onyx-colored monument commanding the room. Several low-burning candles sat on its smooth surface, throwing shadows that intertwined on the walls like dancers before disappearing to reshape themselves. A thin trail of smoke rose up like a prayer from a bowl of ashes, wavering from time to time in the slightest current of wind. All the movement felt rhythmic and alive, as if the dark stone at its center were breathing.

Naveed genuflected in front of the altar before taking to his knees on a pile of multi-colored rugs stacked in front of it. He turned to Blair and invited her to sit by him with one outstretched hand. She tugged at the sleeve on her bionic arm nervously.

"What kind of goddess is Arashu exactly?" she asked softly.

"She is our mother - though it is important to note there is no comparable father deity in our religion. Arashu was the beginning of all; she stands alone as our great protector. She exists beyond time, in a state of constant recreation."

"Sounds like an important lady."

He laughed. "Very. Especially to one raised in her priesthood."

Blair's eyebrows lifted. "You were a priest?"

He tapped the rug beside him. "I will tell you, but please sit. Arashu will not bite."

"Says the snake-man," Blair quipped. She looked at the oily forms dancing on the walls again and noticed the stream of incense smoke had gone still. A twinge of phantom pain crept up her left side, but she did her best to block it out as she took a seat next to the drell.

"To call myself a priest is misleading," he began quietly. "I was raised in Arashu's traditions, but I never took any vows. You see, amongst those of the drell who still follow our old ways, gold is the color of the goddess. Children who are born with that coloring are considered to be blessed, and their parents often send them to serve in the remaining temples."

"And I'm guessing your yellow skin made you one of them?"

"Yes. After being passed over for the Compact, I entered the temple of Arashu with another child from my community. Her name was Vashtee."

"How did you end up out here on Noveria working as a psychologist?"

Naveed laughed. "That is a long story; one we don't have for time for tonight I'm afraid. Suffice it to say, my desire to help people was instilled early in me, and I find it fulfilling to aid others when I can. Do you remember when I said I am in a unique position to help you?"

"Yeah."

"This is because the technique I would like to try on you was taught to me in the temple. It is a dying discipline these days, but I have used it to provide relief to others before. I hope I can do the same for you."

Blair looked away from him and picked at the rug beneath her. "I've never really had much faith in gods or goddesses."

"Then have faith in me," he replied. "Touch the stone, Blair."

"Won't that make her mad? I'm not a drell…"

"Mad? Of course not. Have you ever known a mother to do anything but love a child, even if it was not her own? Trust me, Blair. Touch the stone."

The woman reached out to the black rock timidly. She tried to tell herself it was just exhaustion that made her hand shake as it did, but she didn't believe it. One of the candles popped just as her fingers were about to brush the marble surface, but before she could snatch her hand back out of reflex, Naveed pressed her palm to the altar. Time seemed to shift around her as warmth flowed into her hand and up her arm. She felt like her soul had suddenly left her body, and she was looking down on the scene in front of her as it unfolded in slow motion. Naveed was crouched next to her, watching the reaction on her face in awe. The smoke swirled wildly once more, and a shadow had appeared on the far wall that hadn't been there before. Blair's consciousness whipped around in perspective, affording her a view of the room's doorway. Kilandra stood there, watching the two of them, her face pinched in a sneer.