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A short message ends up in your box, "I have a penguin and I know how to use it. Love you. - Riley, fearing the lunacy of this place."
After several moments, the light blinks on your comm, indicating at subspace call to be answered where and when you choose. Now isn't this a surprise? (to Riley)
After a brief pause, the accepted light glows green, and there's a scuffle of sound. "Ack, there's button. Hello?" Yes, it's Riley.
The answering sound is at first a quiet burst of laughter in Clara's voice. "Hello yourself, sailor. Taken to threatening distant physicians with flightless waterfowl?" (to Riley)
There's a quiet chuckle, "Hello, love. Yeah, it seemed like an idea. I managed to get out of my office and upstairs, so I figured it'd be nice to annoy you."
"I like being annoyed," is the cheerful reply. "Being annoyed by you is my favorite pastime nowadays. So you're back home? Does that mean it's all over?" (to Riley)
"The worst of it, yeah. We got a new Chairman, seems a decent sort. He set right the whole mess with Nick in no time flat and bribed me with fudge. I may be able to forgive him the whole ceremony thing on one knee. Maybe. How're things out your way?"
If relief can flood palpably over sixty-three light years, Clara's certainly is. "A decent person. Thank goodness," she breathes. "Uh...here? It's...it's research. I blew up a set of beakers today. I think I've found my niche in life as a demolitions expert. Think we can get my MOS reassigned?" (to Riley)
Riley stifles a chuckle, "I can lend you my old demolitions text? Might as well do it by the book if you're blowing things up." There's a pause, and Riley sounds a bit sheepish, "I filed another full protest today, and had after a dozen subcomittees about getting you back here...Now that Lexington's gone..."
Hesitantly, Clara asks, "What did you find out?" There's another pause. "Love, I don't know that I'll make it three years here. I was never trained Navy...and I keep forgetting. The Captain's at wit's end trying to keep my record clean." (to Riley)
Riley sounds a bit lost as he replies, "I don't have anything solid yet, mostly folks told me they'd see. Nobody said no outright though, like they had been, it's something. The defense sub-committee told me they'd get back to me in a day or two. I offered fudge to speed up the process, they said that was really the best they could do. I think they -want- to help..."
"I -know- Conrad does. He's entirely not pleased at having to haul an Infantry major on the carpet at all, and for things I never even knew were regs." No frustration there, not a bit. Riiight. "You folks have rules and regs that are 180 from ours. Makes sense...did you hear how this was pulled off?" (to Riley)
"Ship underway, or any space installation...theocracy, and not a pleasant one." Riley muses, although he doesn't sound at all pleased about it. "We'll get you out of there, love. We have to." He murmurs a quiet negative. "They haven't unlocked a lot of Lexington's records yet, I have no clue."
With a rueful laugh and a rustling of cloth, Clara replies, "I can tell you that at least. Conrad still doesn't know who signed the orders originally, but he needed a greater than level five psi. So here I am. He -wanted- a telepath, but didn't think to specify. To say he's disappointed doesn't even begin, poor guy. Politics billions of klicks away, and he gets the shaft with a groundpounder meatball surgeon." (to Riley)
There's a rustle of movement and a quiet sigh. "Nobody wins on this one. Just the way Lexington liked things. I swear, if he weren't already dead..." There's a pause, "Nice couch."
"Nice...wha-huh? Couch? I thought you were at home, love?" Confusion filters through her words along the channel. (to Riley)
"I am. The couch at home. Not as nice as the one at work but..." Riley's tone is sheepish, "The bed's too empty."
"I know," is Clara's very quiet reply. "Even my bunk is empty, narrow and straps and all. But you have Pen? He can keep you company at least a little, you know. He's warm, if nothing else." There's a significant pause. "I'm not the only one who can provide warmth at night, Greg. You don't have to...wait." (to Riley)
"Pen's downstairs in Central. I can't monopolize him too often. He spent most of the afternoon in my office as it was. Clara, excepting you nobody's shared my bed for a dozen years. Until you return, there will never be anybody else. You are my lifemate, I have no need for any other now that I have found the other half of my heart."
"I...thank you." There's another pause of quiet that follows a single muffled sniff. "Mine would stay empty as well even if it were big enough for two. Still...I just wanted you to know that I'd understand. I know there are cultural differences for us in that. Anyway." Clara's voice brightens perceptibly. "I have discovered null-gee basketball. Doctors are really lousy at sports." (to Riley)
"Not when it comes to lifemating, the concept is the same." Riley chuckles quietly, "Most sports are far better in null. Or at least they are so amusingly impossible that enough laughs are garnered that they seem better."
A rather relieved laugh fills the line in affirmation. "My ribs still hurt. Ensign Boomer does a great jump shot, for all that she's a good eight inches shorter than I am. Battenly says I should be great at it since I'm tall. I say he's full of it. Then again, I tend to have my mind on a certain admiral when I'm not in the lab. I miss you so much..." (to Riley)
"And I miss you, I wish I was there with you." Riley's words are very soft, and the machine kicks in to bring the volume up enough for them to be clearly audible. "It as if a world that was full of color and sound has been muted and grayed out. I had never missed the lack of color, or music before, but once having been gifted them, the world is immeasurably sadder for their lack."
"I can't even imagine what this would feel like if we were fully separated...no longer a couple. If just distance feels like this..." She clears her throat lightly then offers, "But the ring helps, actually. It's like having part of you with me all the time. That and I borrowed one of your t-shirts to sleep in. I hope you don't mind? I'll return it when I come home. Did the new Chairman stop the construction?" (to Riley)
There's a soft chuckle, "You are welcome to keep it, love. Even after your hopefully soon return." There's a quiet uh-huh, "Although it was not really necessary. When the temple collapsed it brought down all of the new building. They're still trying to jack the Complex up to its former height."
"Temple? Darling, what temple? I thought...I'm not sure what I thought since I was too busy worrying about you. You found a temple?" (to Riley)
Riley chuckles ruefully, "Some ancient pre-colonization dragon temple. Quite lovely. Well, if you ignored the charnel house stench. And of course this prior to it being filled with rubble and us having to dig through several hundred feet of stone and dirt and wood to get free."
"The...dragons?" Clara's beyond baffled now. "Riley, I thought the dragons didn't have organized religion. Wait...if this was pre-colonization, they well could have. Still, it shouldn't have smelled like anything but dust." (to Riley)
"We've not sorted out about the dragons. But it'd been found by some loony humans who were sacrificing women there. Which is what got us down there in the first place. A slew of missing persons cases."
"-Sacrificing-? Women? Loony isn't the word. Criminal psychopath is the term. Have you caught the culprit yet? Or did he or she get squished in the great letdown?" (to Riley)
"There were a couple dozen of them. Quite squished. The only reason we survived was our location. They were on the bottom floor, we were about fifty feet above it."
Clara sighs softly, voice wistful. "My a'trez. More lives than a cat. Just keep on surviving, love? I want to come home to an in tact man to steal off and hide for a day or so with again." (to Riley)
Riley chuckles quietly, although it's definitely a bit sheepish. "I didn't manage to get too battered this time. Just caught between two teeth of the sculpture, then the weight of the beam, and I ended up a bit squished. I'm intact though, and intending to stay that way. Spending my spare time in the diplomatic hall harassing committees has to be safer."
The laugh is answered with a quiet one of Clara's own. "Oh, sure. I'll bet the committee members figure out soon you can be shooed away with chocolate, though. Did Mother send you a message by the way? I mentioned to her about you needing to talk to her, although I was just joking. Still...Mother gets odd ideas sometimes." (to Riley)
"Not that I've seen, no love. But then I've been a remarkably hard man to track down of late. Until about ten this morning I was on the Hall floor, then in offices with the chairman till almost two. Then the afternoon spent processing paperwork and setting in complaints and such."
"Thank goodness," Clara breathes with slightly weary relief. "Have you...have you told your family about what we've done?" (to Riley)
Riley laughs softly, "Yeah, I did. My mother almost fainted, my father was exceedingly pleased and began going on about there being goldfish for everybody out there yet again..." He snickers quietly and sighs, "Corvil and Evvy are out of easy range at the moment, but Zach was very pleased as well. I have been enjoined to bring you home the next time it is managed to get the family into one place."
"To -Kashid-?" The final syllable is just a dolphinish squeak. "Uh...your family does know I'm a Terran, right? They're not upset?" Yes, Clara is slightly paranoid. (to Riley)
Riley laughs outright at that, "Love, I promise we're not all barbarians slavering colonially to get our hands on one of the old Terran demons and rend it limb from limb. Yes, they know you're Terran, didn't even blink. Although Zach did want to know if you'd ever been to Australia."
"Barbarians? Riley Addison, what kind of a snob do you take me for? You're no barbarian, although I have to admit you're awfully attractive when you're angry. That's beside the point, though. No, I've never been to Australia, but I'd love to someday. I hear it's lovely. I've been to Europe, but that's no where near as exciting." (to Riley)
Riley continues to snicker, obviously still amused, "Sorry hon, but if I don't tease you, well, you might not get your lifetime quota. It's okay love, they just want to meet you. I think they considered me the least likely to drag my nose out of duty to have time to fall in love."
"Aaah, you were. See, I had to lay this trap for you and visit a witch doctor or two to make you notice me," Clara explains, laughing. "Putting love potions in all that coffee really was an effort." (to Riley)
Riley laughs softly, "What is it about all the women in my life putting things in my coffee. No wonder I prefer tea."
Clara's voice drops to a mixture of teasing and uninhibitedly sappy. "Are you really complaining about us reaching an understanding? I could put in for a transfer...oh, back to Earth. Oh, but then I'd have to have my stuff shipped from storage on Linnae. Heck, may as well come home." (to Riley)
Riley acks softly, his words vastly wistful, "Come home, please yes. I miss you so terribly much. I have this wonderful mental image of you coming home, and us being curled up in a room with a window and a larger bed, and penguins, and the demon bunny, and all the comms and radios turned off and..."
"A larger bed?" Clara's voice is rather awed and a touch hesitant. "Love, did you order a new one? You've been needing it so much, the old one is so short. And..." She hesitates, then admits sheepishly, "I guess I've been thinking about it too, except the part when I first see you." A pause. "My bunny isn't a demon!" (to Riley)
"I haven't, other than to put in on the list for re-assignment of quarters," Riley is quiet. "No point in a larger bed now, I...it'd be even -emptier-." He hmphs, "Is too!"
"Is -not-," Clara counters automatically, then pauses again in thought. "Moving is good. Ranking officer needs decent sized quarters, if only for show. But you need a bigger bed. I can ship back my rabbit to terrorize your penguins if you like?" (to Riley)
"The rabbit needs to keep you company. I never bothered with quarters before. No time in them. But windows, I have found, and beds big enough for two, are wonderful things. I'll stick to the couches. Nice couches, long enough. Comfy, not as empty. Nice."
"I can try to ship myself back cargo? Then again, that's just enough to get me tossed out of uniform on my ear, and then I wouldn't have enough clothes," Clara decides, slightly amused but still hesitant. "I guess the VIP room spoiled you. Maybe I can get reassigned something with a window when I come home, too." (to Riley)
There's a sleepy chuckle and Riley mrrhrrms, "Spoiled indeed, having you to hand so much. Figure a window and a decent bed might lure you into my lair more often."
A quiet laugh answers that, equally blurred with sleepiness. "Hey, I left you my notes on how I felt about that. Still, I don't mind being in separate quarters if you want. You though, my dearest sailor, sound pretty darn tired. I'll bet you haven't slept in more than twenty-four hours, have you?" (to Riley)
"I'd rather share. Much nicer to share. The penguins will have your bunny to hand though." Riley makes a quiet negative sound, "Fraid not. Not since Lexington had me hauled out of bed. A lifetime ago."
"Share..." The word would be inaudible but for the pickups amplifier. "Does this mean you still..." She cuts off with an amused sigh. "Never mind. We'll talk it over later. Right now, mister, your personal physician prescribed sleep and dreams of the most pleasant nature." (to Riley)
"I still? I still want you here with me. In our space. Wherever that space ends up being." Riley chuckles softly, "Yes a'trezla, sleep I can handle. All the better for having heard your voice however."
"Now I really have to come home. It's not every day a woman gets a chance to cohabitate with the most amazing man within a hundred Sectors. I love you, darling. Sleep as long as you can, yes? Goodnight..." (to Riley)
"Goodnight love, sleep well, I am thinking of you always."
"As am I," is the quiet response from so far away. "Aleron out." (to Riley)