108

--The Enclave--

It seemed strange that everything in her house was exactly the way that she had left it. The dishes were in the sink. The mugs hung in a line above, dangling by metal ‘S’ hooks. She wasn’t the neatest person in the world; and the tiny kitchenette reflected that. Small splatters of sauces and things from her mostly experimental cooking were all over the walls near her two burner stovetop.

Kicking off her shoes in the entry area, she started pulling out her cleaning supplies. If she was going to wait for Bahena and Stella, she may as well get to cleaning up for them.

She ran around with shopping bags, collecting and sorting bits of trash that had been left behind. It was lucky that she didn’t really spend all that much time at home, or she knew that it would probably be worse. Though she didn’t go out to eat at restaurants a lot, she did tend to stop at the grocery or convenience stores on the way home to get ready made food. Everything the valkyrians made as far as storage containers went was biodegradable and multi purpose, but it was still stuff that needed to be cleaned and put in the right places — one of her least favorite chores.

After taking a shower, tidying up the bathroom, and starting a load of laundry, she figured she had a good half hour to start defeating her kitchen.

In a way, she was thankful for the mess. It gave her something to focus on. Something to help her forget. Instead of worrying about the sound of bullets bursting through the air, she could focus on the feel of the water and across her hands, or the stubborn food residue on poorly cared for plates. Or on wishing that her apartment had a dishwasher.

What a silly thing to not have in such an ultra advanced apartment, she thought, scrubbing stubbornly. The valkyrian were always supposed to be such an advanced civilization, and yet there were some things that they just didn’t seem to think of. If they could synthesize food, why didn’t all the apartments have synthesizers? And why was it that trash needed to be cleaned and sorted in the first place? It all went to the same place, anyway.

Bahena was the first to message her, saying that she’d be on her way. She wasn’t far; closer than Sathuren’s biodome was, and that only took Dassah no more than twenty minutes to get to. It was enough time for Dassah finish up her last dish, scrub down the counters and walls, and start a pot of hot water for tea. Feeling accomplished, she admired the quick work she’d made of the house.

When her doorbell rang, she to the security screen and flicked it on to see Bahena with a couple of suitcases in hand. Dassah opened the door and waved to Grim, who had been standing just off camera, before helping Bahena get her things in the door.

“Don’t worry,” she said, lugging the second suitcase in with her. “I wasn’t sure what you had, so I bought a couple of pillows and inflatable beds. Figured that, if it’s alright with you, maybe we’ll just stay in for the weekend and play TheirWorld or watch movies or something, unless you had someplace to be.”

“I didn’t even think about that,” Dassah said. “I think I have a couple of extra blankets, at least. As far as places to go, if I had any, I’ll —” Dropping the suitcase onto the living room floor, she paused and looked at her watch. “Oh, crap!”

“Something wrong?” Bahena asked, managing to squeeze her way through the small kitchen.

“Just — Something… Hold on,” Dassah told her and went into the bedroom. In all the excitement, she’d forgotten about Jake. Chewing on her lip, she decided it was better to try and give him a call than sending a text.

It was only after three rings that he answered, and it was with a dour: “Hello?” It was obvious from his tone that he knew who was calling and wasn’t the least bit happy about it.

“Hi,” started Dassah, fiddling with the hem of her blouse. “Jake. I’m — Well first off, I’m sorry if you were sleeping just now. I just thought it would be better to try and call you. I didn’t even get your messages until it was over, you see. I just... There was a… a thing. That… That happened. At the University. I got… caught up in it. My coworkers, too. And I just — you see… and the police, they…”

“And it just occurred to you to check your phone?”

Kicking at the floor, she said, “I can’t give you any excuses. I’m not even sure what I’m allowed to say. It was just really shocking, and really scary, and the first thing on my mind was to just… to get home. I can’t really talk about it, but… If you would be willing to give it another chance, then...”

In the moment of silence that rested between then, she actually really hoped that he was going to say ‘Nah, you aren’t worth it’. Why did I even call him? She wondered. Why was she really so desperate to meet with him. Even if he did happen to know something about Jace and Varier Co., what should she learn from that? And for what reason did he have to meet with her again if not because he was working with them?

“How about tomorrow night?” asked Jake.

“Hm? Tomorrow?”

“At seven, like we had originally planned. We can meet at your place?”

“Uh,” she hesitated as awareness kicked it. He was serious. “Well…”

“Where do you live?”

“A-Alamori House,” she answered cautiously. “S-Security probably won’t let you in, but you can call me and I’ll go to meet you…”

“Security?” he asked, then said, “Nevermind, you can tell me about it tomorrow. It’s late; you’re probably tired. If anything else is wrong, you’ll give me a call, right?”

“Yeah,” she said. “Any problems, and you’ll be the first to know…”

No, her brain went. No, no, no… this isn’t right. This isn’t what you want… But how else would she be able to control the situation? The EPD wasn’t like to tell her anything but what she ‘needed’ to know — or what their definition of that was. What she wanted was answers. Varier Co. was the best lead she had, and, aside from Jace himself, Jake was the best potential in that she had.

“Good. I’ll see you tomorrow, then?” Jake asked, though he sounded skeptical.

Her phone dinged with a text message, so she quickly said, “Tomorrow. Bye!” and hung up.

The message was from Stella, telling her that she was about ten minutes out. With a deep breath, Dassah walked back into the living room where Bahena was fiddling with the TV.

“What are you doing?” Dassah asked, blinking.

“Your TV isn’t set up right,” Bahena told her, grabbing the remote. “You never set up the University Access?”

Shrugging, Dassah told her, “I don’t really watch TV.”

“What was that about?”

“What?”

“The call.”

“Oh,” Dassah went, plopping down on her couch and hugging her knees to her face. “Nothing.”

The garule woman looked at her suspiciously. “I’m sure you’re tired of people asking if you’re okay, but that didn’t really sound like ‘nothing’.”

“I had a date tonight,” Dassah admitted, pulling at her hangnails again.

“I… see.”

“Bahena,” said Dassah carefully. “I’m… sorry. About the way I was this morning. I wasn’t… And with Sav, really, I didn’t mean to…”

Bahena sighed and sat on the couch with her. “I’m… sorry too,” she said, turning the remote in her hands. “You shouldn’t have to worry so much about how you talk to me. And I think… I think I was yelling at you when you were actually talking to me as if I were just anyone else in the first place. I can’t really expect you to treat me the same as you treat Stella when I’m scoulding you for it at the same time, can I? It wasn’t very fair of me, regardless. I should have… respected the fact that you’d come to the defense of my brothers… agency.” The last word was spoken in garuli, translated into a rather hauty sounding tone. “Not many do, especially among our kind. I forget, sometimes…”

Wincing, Dassah interpreted: “He got to you, didn’t he?”

“He is very good at what he does,” went Bahena, looking very dignified with her head held high, even as her voice made her dissatisfaction with the situation quite evident. “But I will admit that… there are times that I feel like I don't know him as well as I should. As I think I do. We grew up together; we were born in the same litter. We should have continued that way had the situation been different. But he…”

“Left.”

“He left.”

“How long was it, between the time he left and the time he came home?”

“... I really don’t know that I he ever did, if I’m being honest,” Bahena said sadly. “And maybe that’s where the real problem is. I keep going back to those times as if that person that he was when he was still… my sister… is the only person that he could ever be. But he’s not. He’s so much stronger now; and I forget that. I always forget — but he never does.”

Unsure of what else to say, she said, “He loves you, you know that, right?”

“I do,” she said, smiling. “I just wish I knew how to love him better.”

“Is there such a thing?” Dassah asked, very seriously.

“I don’t know,” Bahena went. “Tell you what, I’ll tell you if I figure it out.”

Chuckling, Dassah asked, “Would you like some tea until then?”

“Tea would be lovely. Is there anything I can do to help?”

“No, but Stella should be here soon. Did you want to set up those beds?”

“Where would be best? Living room?”

“Probably.”

As Bahena started busying herself with the beds, Dassah made three cups of tea as to be ready for Stella’s arrival. As if on cue, the doorbell rang, and she helped Stella in with her suitcase and bags of food.

Free of baggage, the young woman peeled off her heels and plopped into the nearest chair going, “I. Am. Exhausted,” before noticing the tea and accepting it gratefully.

Stella had brought a curious selection of pizzas, sandwiches, salads, and fried foods which they doled out between them and the fridge for later before moving into the living room where Bahena introduced them to a cheesy valkyrian drama. There, they huddled together on the couch, laughing and enjoying themselves as if nothing in the world could touch them.