IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE. PLEASE READ: Sorry for the lack of author commentary on the last chapter. I was in a hurry to get it published. I would like to remind my readers that I am trying to work on chapters but life happens and a lot of life is happening right now. Now for the important part. I SWEAR THAT UNLESS SOMETHING INCREDIBLY HORRIBLE HAPPENS TO ME THAT MAKES IT IMPOSSIBLE FOR ME TO CONTINUE WRITING, I WILL NOT ABANDON THIS STORY. It may take a while to post chapters and I may not have much time to work on them but the story of Cira and Saren will be completed, hopefully along with many other stories. Without further ado, Chapter 4...finally.
With a satisfying click, the last piece of Saren's rifle snapped into place. He had just finished pulling it apart and cleaning it…for the fifth time. If he had been conscious of his actions he might have taken the time to clean his other weapons but his mind had been preoccupied, puzzling through the events of that evening. He wasn't sure why he had attacked Cira. Normally that kind of joking had no effect on him.
Maybe it's because she was talking to Nihlus.
Why would I care about that?
Because she seemed happy.
And?
You like seeing her happy. But you weren't the one who made her feel that way.
Nihlus…
Exactly.
Then why didn't I attack him?
If you had, what explanation would you have given Cira?
I don't know.
And that's why you attacked her. See? It's not so hard to figure out.
I still don't see why any of this matters.
You still haven't accepted your feelings?
I don't know what you're talking about.
Oh really? Well alright… I wonder where Cira went after she left here.
To her room. Where else?
Yes I'm sure that's where she is.
You don't sound sure.
I'm not. You should go check.
That's not necessary.
You're right. She's probably not there anyway.
Ok is she in her room or isn't she?
How should I know? Maybe if you went and checked…
FINE!
Ok so she's not in her room… So what? She's probably looking around the station.
Or snuggling up with a certain Turian…
So what if she's with Nihlus. If they get together then maybe you'll stop obsessing over these nonexistent feelings.
Uh huh. Now what is it you really want to say…think.
Just drop it.
Alright…What do you think they are doing together?
Drop it.
Do you think they're mating?
…
…
…I hate you.
I know.
The station was a lot bigger than Cira had realized. She had already known about some of the restaurants. But there were so many other places that she hadn't seen. It made sense; Spectres came from all over to train at these facilities for months so there had to be stores that catered to the needs of all species. Nihlus had just finished showing her around the shopping district and now they were heading into a quiet little café. It was nearly empty, most of the station's inhabitants were probably at the bars by now, but both Cira and Nihlus appreciated the privacy.
They claimed a seat in the back corner and within moments, an Asari waitress appeared, took their orders and scurried back in to the kitchen. Nihlus leaned back in his seat, watching Cira as she examined her surroundings. The café was small and sparsely decorated but cozy. The atmosphere combined with an agreeable companion made Cira feel calm. Over the past few months she had spent most of her time training or in her room and she had always been anxious, wondering what Saren was going to put her through the next day but now, right now there was no training, no Saren. She was free to enjoy her evening with Nihlus.
She turned her attention back to her turian companion, feeling slightly embarrassed when she realized that he had been watching her so intently. Nihlus, realizing that his scrutiny was making her slightly uncomfortable, though not in a bad way, had mercy on her and broke eye contact first, choosing instead to hold her attention with conversation.
"I have to admit that I'm a little surprised Saren picked you to train. I mean, you are human, even if he worked with you before."
Cira just shrugged. "I guess he thought I had potential. Anyways, I don't really want to talk… about him."
The rest of her sentence trailed of when she caught a mischievous gleam in Nihlus's eye.
"Oh really? I have some pretty funny stories from when I was training with him."
That had Cira returning his grin with renewed interest.
"Seriously? I could use some new teasing material. It's fun to piss him off. Though he is still pretty mad right now."
"He has no reason to be. He'll get over it."
"I know. Go on and tell your stories."
An hour later, they exited the café. Nihlus had his arm draped around Cira's shoulders and they both were laughing hysterically as they headed back toward the apartments.
"And that's how I learned that I would not make a good assassin." Nihlus finished his story between gasping breaths.
Cira paused for a moment, sucking air into her lungs before replying.
"I can't believe Saren let you go in there alone. Actually, I can."
"Yeah that's just like him. What I can't believe is that he actually came in and saved my ass."
"I guess he thought you were worth the effort."
"We'll never know why Saren does some of the things he does. But I guess it's kind of fun trying to figure him out. You know, now that I think about it, you'd probably make a good assassin."
"Yeeeah, I think I'll just focus on getting into the Spectres so I can access their database."
"Is that why you're going through training."
Cira relayed the entire story about how Udina had pressured her to go through training and how she wanted to search for information on her parents. In to time, they were standing outside her door. As she typed in the code to unlock it, Nihlus rested his hand over her own.
"You know you could have just asked a Spectre to look for you"
"Which Spectre? I only know Saren and you; and to be honest, you weren't really on my mind at the time."
"Ouch. That hurt my feelings."
His face contorted into what Cira could only guess was the Turian equivalent to a pout; the sight of which brought forth a new wave of giggles. She quieted when Nihlus slid his hand up her arm and lightly gripped her shoulder.
"I don't think that you'll have any problems becoming a Spectre. Training is tough but you can handle it. Still, remember that if you need anything, don't hesitate to ask. I'll do all I can to help you."
She looked down at the floor and her voice was quiet when she answered.
"Ok Nihlus. Thank you."
She felt him step closer to her. He was warm and Cira felt the urge to lean back into him and let him wrap his arms around her and hold her until all of her problems drifted off into space.
The sound of a door opening snapped her back into her senses. A little farther down the hall, Saren had just stepped out of his room. He glanced at them, his eyes narrowing to slits, then snorted turned away, storming down the hallway to his destination.
Cira sighed, turning her attention back to Nihlus and realizing that upon seeing Saren, she had unconsciously stepped away from Nihlus, who was now gazing at her with a look that was a mix of curiosity and amusement.
Cira scowled and before she could stop herself, stuck her tongue out at him. He starred at her in disbelief, and then burst into laughter. Cira finished unlocking the door and stepped inside.
"Good-night, Nihlus."
Before the door closed behind her, his hand darted out to snatch hers again and she turned back to take in his now serious expression.
"Good-night, Cira."
He squeezed her fingers gently before releasing her and heading in the direction of his own room. His retreat was halted however, when this time, Cira grabbed his arm.
"Nihlus…this thing, with my parents; it's something that I had wanted to handle on my own. But if I don't make it through training, if I don't become a Spectre, would you look for any information for me?"
He smiled warmly.
"Yeah, I will."
She returned his smile, gave him a quick appreciative nod and let go of his arm so he could continue down the hallway. Cira stepped all the way into her room and relocked the door behind her.
She yanked her jacket off and flung it over the back of a chair before collapsing onto the bed. Nihlus; he was nice, funny, good looking, and he seemed to like her.
But what about Saren?
What about Saren? He hasn't shown any interest in me. We've been here for months.
You haven't exactly shown any interest in him. Maybe he's afraid of being turned down.
Please, this is Saren we are talking about. If he wants something, he takes it.
We're talking about a relationship, not a new sniper rifle. He has a reputation of despising humans. If he does have feelings for you, he probably wouldn't want that to become public knowledge, nor would he want you to know how unless he was sure you felt the same way.
Still that's all just an assumption. I'm pretty sure that Nihlus likes me.
Then go for it, but if things go wrong, it's your fault.
You're me so it would be your fault too.
I am just a figment of your imagination that you created so you would have someone to argue with. Don't blame your problems on me. Oh and by the way, that sticking your tongue out thing, real classy.
…I hate you.
I know.
For the next couple of weeks, Cira and Nihlus constantly spent time together after their work was done and Cira had to admit that she liked where their relationship was heading. Flirting had escalated to more affectionate gestures; holding hands and cuddling. Nihlus seemed content to take things slowly and she wasn't going to argue with that.
On one particular day, Cira entered the little café that had become a frequent meeting place for the couple. As usual, Nihlus had arrived early and was waiting at the back table. As she approached, Nihlus stood to greet her, pulling her close and allowing her to kiss the plates around his mouth. Cira couldn't help but grin when his tongue flicked out for a quick taste. She stepped closer and drew in a deep breath. She couldn't identify his scent and there was nothing she could think of to compare it to but whatever it was it had a calming effect.
The waitress who had just arrived with their orders, coughed lightly to get their attention. Both the Spectre and the candidate turned on her, Nihlus looking apologetic and Cira just staring back, seemingly oblivious to the daggers being thrown from the other woman's glare. No one said anything as the waitress set the plates down and flounced back through the door to the kitchen. Nihlus came around the table to pull out Cira's chair before reclaiming his own seat.
"I ordered for you. Hope you don't mind."
Cira shook her head. "That's fine. What's up with her?"
"She wants to mate with me. She sees you as competition."
"Seriously? How did I not notice that?"
"She's been pretty discreet about it. Until just now."
Cira wasn't really all that surprised that another woman was after Nihlus. She already knew that he was attractive by Turian standards and incredibly handsome by Asari and Human standards. Still, she wasn't in the mood to be competing with other females for mating rights.
"Maybe we should start making out when she brings the check. Think that will get the message across?"
"That might work… but we'll deal with that when it comes. How's Saren been recently?"
"Umm…other than being a little more annoyed and annoying than usual, he's doing great. Why?"
"Just curious. I noticed that he's been keeping you busy for longer and longer each day."
"He probably still thinks that I need all of the training I can get."
"Right…"
His tone made her wonder if he knew something that she didn't.
"Is there another reason that he would be increasing my training time?"
"I don't know."
Just then Nihlus's omni-tool pinged to signal that he had received a message and he read through it quickly.
"It seems Raithius needs help with an emergency."
Cira grinned. She had gotten to know Nihlus's trainee during her time here and he had proven to be a great friend.
"What kind of emergency?"
"He didn't say. Sorry, I'm going to have to cut our date short."
"No problem. I can go bother Saren a little before getting some rest."
"That's a good idea."
They both stood up and the Asari, who had obviously been spying on them, darted out of the kitchen with the check. She held it out to Nihlus but Cira snatched it out of her hand before he could grab it.
"I've got this Nihlus. You'd better hurry before Raithius destroys the station."
He smiled and pulled Cira close, pressing his forehead against hers and running his hands up and down her arms.
"I'll talk to you later."
He released her and strode briskly out the door. Cira turned to the waitress, who was once again glaring savagely at her. Even though the whole make out session didn't happen, Cira was still sure that their final affectionate display had gotten the message across. She smiled politely and handed the Asari a credit chit before heading toward the door.
"Keep the change."
As usual, hope you enjoyed the chapter. I can't sleep for some reason and I have chapter 5 all worked out in my head so maybe I'll start working on it now. Hopefully I can get it posted soon. Thanks for reading. COMMENTS ALWAYS WELCOMED AND GREATLY APPRECIATED!