Aberrant: Stargate Universe - Obligations

[Aradia McConnell]

Aradia made her way down the hallway, pulling her damp, tan-streaked brown hair into a simple ponytail as she walked. The summons from her new C/O, Ryan Hawke, had come during one of Aradia's frequent workouts. Indeed, it hadn't taken the messenger long to find her at all, because the base knew that the gymnastics equipment was where the ex-acrobat specialist spent most of her on-duty, off-assignment time. She'd taken a quick shower to wash away the sweat of her workout, and then dressed in military-issue fatigue pants and a matching tan t-shirt.

Even in such simple clothes, the stunning specialist turned heads wherever she went. With Kyria gone, it was mainly her and Yseult that drew the attention of the heavily-male military personnel these days, and the gorgeous doctor spent a lot of her time in the labs or with her family. Word around the base was that Aradia was dating Jennings-Izumi's brother, but hearing and seeing were two different things, and it didn't do much to stop the stares or wolf-whistles. Aradia was starting to adjust to the attention, though it wasn't necessarily something she enjoyed, and spent most of her time blatantly ignoring anyone who made any kind of overtures related to her enhanced appearance.

Finally, she reached the new C/O's door, and rapped sharply, wondering why the hell she'd been summoned.

"Major Hawke? It's Specialist McConnell, you wanted to see me?"

[Ryan Hawke]

He smiled and stood. "Please close the door behind you."

Once she had he nodded. "We can dispense with formalities here, this is largely an informal meeting."

"Please sit."

Once she had he sat down and smiled. "First off, how are you doing? Is everything going alright here on the base for you?"

[Aradia McConnell]

"Alright, I guess."

She shrugged slightly, looking a bit sulky, which from what most of Hawke had seen was pretty normal for the young woman. She wasn't, from the file he'd read and what he had seen and heard of her, very militarily inclined. Of course, he'd seen her away from base and knew she could be a very lively, engaging person.. it was easy enough to see that it was being here that made her kind of sour to be around.

"I guess. I get tired of being stared at like a piece of meat, but I guess I'm getting used to dealing with it."

She was quiet for a moment, and he almost thought that was all she had to say on the matter, when she spoke again, sounding a little less pissy and a little more despondent.

"I miss Livy. I mean, I get why she had to go. But I wish she were here."

Of course, everyone missed the gentle, intelligent specialist, but Hawke knew that the two of them shared quite a history, and were very close. Livy's absence probably made life on base significantly less tolerable for Aradia, and he wasn't too surprised that she spent as much time off-base with her boyfriend, Livy's brother Wakiki, as was possible.

[Ryan Hawke]

"Yeah, our last mission was rough for her, for all of us, but her in particular."

"I can't stop the men from staring, especially with the closed nature of this base. If any become a problem in particular, let me know and I'll handle it."

I cannot make it all go away, but I can offer something else to put your energy towards."

"I know you aren't inclined to fighting, and yet you're going to be made an integral part of the Specialist team. There is something in particular though, that I need from you."

He paused. "You can become anyone, or anything correct? Including a Goauld? This opens tremendous potential for you, to be able to get in and recon on-site for us, maybe even do missions effectively alone. But I need to know, Can you speak Goauld?"

[Aradia McConnell]

Aradia was quiet for a moment, just looking at him with arched eyebrows. After a moment his arched quizzically in return, and she blinked.

"Oh, like - seriously? Du- I mean, Major.. I don't even speak Spanish. It's just, like, the brainiacs that speak G'oauld. That's a totally alien language, you have to be super-smart to speak it, right? I know Livy knows it, and Yse.. and Cam knew it. But they're all really smart. I don't.. I don't know if I could learn an alien language."

She sounded a bit overwhelmed by the idea, and was staring at Ryan with a bit of a dubious look. After all, Vinny had only ever just had her go scouting and stuff. Ryan sounded like he was planning to do a lot more with her abilities. Mostly she was just terrified by the idea.. but some little part of her was secretly excited by the prospect. At least she wouldn't feel so useless.

[Ryan Hawke]

"I'm not super smart, but I speak it fluently. I've learned it in the time since we started here, and I realized as a team leader I would need to know the language of the people I was fighting."

He smiled. "I have faith in you to learn it as well. I've seen how energetically you've pursued things around the base, and if you turn some of that to this, I'm sure you can learn it well enough to handle simple conversation."

"I'll help you, if you want."

"By no means is this an order, I just see alot of untapped potential within you, and know that this can help keep the rest of the team safe. It will subject you to danger, and believe me if I could do what you do, I would mention this, but it's something only you can do."

[Aradia McConnell]

He saw a flicker of surprise cross her features, followed by a steady gaze that lasted a few long moments. But without realizing it he'd said the magic words: 'By no means is this an order'. After a long, pregnant pause, he saw her face soften a little, and she nodded.

"Okay. I mean, if you think I can do it, I guess it would be better than just playing 'eagle/scout' every mission." A wry flicker of a smile crossed her lips at the self-spoken pun, and she shrugged faintly. "So, what, is there a book or something? G'oauld for Dummies?"

[Ryan Hawke]

"I can provide you the texts I used, and I'm sure Yseult can help you as well. She knows the most with Olivia away."

He smiled. "You don't have to be perfect, but conversant would be nice."

[Aradia McConnell]

Several days later, Aradia sat in her rooms, pouring over the texts Ryan had given to her to start her formal G'oauld education. She was pretty sure that she was going to start ripping her hair out of her head. She'd already picked up the phone to call Livy twice before remembering that it'd be going straight to voicemail. She'd even called Wakiki a couple times over the last two days, but he must've been working some major overtime, cause she hadn't gotten a response yet.

Finally, she slammed the book she was reading shut with a frustrated groan.

"This is -worthless-, I feel like a retard! How do people even learn this shit?!"

She sat there quietly for a moment, considering her options. She didn't want to confess to Ryan that she was having so many issues - the poor, misguided idiot actually seemed to think she could pull this off, and she wasn't sure she wanted to bust his bubble quite yet. So after a little hesitation, she picked up her phone and dialed a different number.

"Hi, Yseult? Yeah.. not too bad. Look, I was kinda wondering..."

[Yseult Sierra]

"... Could you... maybe... teach me the Goa'uld language?"

"Quoi?" Yseult said, puzzled, the phone held in the crook of her neck as she tried to clean a squirming Loric's face. There was more cake on his face than the small piece she had given him. "I am sorry, Aradie, I was not expecting to hear you say this, yes? Of course, I am willing to be helping you. A moment, if you please."

Yseult laid the phone on the kitchen table and put Loric down, extolling him to join his father in the car. Their new home in Colarado Springs was in more than reasonable condition, but there was still much she and François needed to get done, including setting up her husband's new garage business here. She picked up the phone again as she rinsed the dishes and placed them in the dishwasher.

"Bien! Aradie, there is something you should be knowing. My facility with the Goa'uld language, it is not being all study. It is being bestowed by the Ascension Device, yes?" Yseult explained in her accented alto, not wanting to mislead or discourage the younger woman. "This just a warning, some things, I may be taking for granted - it is not a fault on your part. Please, come over, and we will arrange the details of when I can provide you with lessons. With the new home, we are still having much to do, yes?"

[Aradia McConnell]

"Okay, I'm on my way. Thanks, Yse."

With that, Aradia grabbed her purse and headed out. She was pretty sure that she wasn't allowed to take the books off base, and even if she was, they didn't seem to be doing her much good. Since Yse knew the whole language anyway, at least she didn't have to worry about not having access to it. And Aradia had never really been much of a book-learner.. she was definitely a more hands-on kinda girl.

About an hour later, Yse heard a knock at her door. When she answered, Aradia was standing there , holding a bag of what looked like Chinese take-out and two-liter bottles of soda.

"Hey. I don't know if you and your family ate already, but I brought a bunch of appetizer stuff.. egg rolls and dumplings and stuff for everyone. And caffeine. I think I'm gonna need some caffeine."

[Yseult Sierra]

"Ah, Aradie, please be coming in," Yseult greeted the stunning woman, waving her in with a gentle smile. "My husband and son, they are out running errands and I have already made dinner for Monique, but I am not having time to make dinner for myself. The take-out, it is appreciated, yes?"

Yseult led the way down the hall of her new home, the faint odor of paint still permeating the air. The house looked pristine with its new coats of paint, the light, muted colours contrasting nicely with the dark hardwood floors, the walls mostly bare as of yet. The furniture was still sparse and Aradia could see boxes stacked in various nooks and crannies.

Passing by the living room, Yseult looked on her daughter, quietly sitting at the coffee table, drawing, a fox-red lab with white socks and a flare on its chest keeping her company. On the TV, an animated show was playing, one with a young boy with an arrow on his head, though the sound was low and Monique paid it no mind.

"Monique, ma belle, Maman, she is going to be in the kitchen, then in the computer room, okay?" Yseult said with warmth and love. "Say 'allo to her friend, Aradie. Monique? Monique?"

Monique finally glanced away from her drawing, huge, lustrous black eyes not quite rising high enough to meet Aradia's gaze. "Bonjour, Aradie. Hello, Aradia," the nine year-old said with a faint smile, her voice precise and very soft. She waited a too long moment then turned back to her drawing, her face close to the paper and scribbling with a pencil crayon.

Yseult sighed and continued on to the kitchen. "François and me, we have been encouraging the children to use both French and English to help acclimate to Colorado. They are both bilingual, but mostly used French back home in Montreal."

The blond scientist gestured Aradia to the granite-topped island in the kitchen, then gathered plates, cups, and utensils before joining her. She waited until they had filled plates and cups before broaching the subject of Aradia's visit.

"So, you are wanting to learn the goa'uld language, yes? I am guessing we can start with the basics first, then proceed until you reach the level of fluency you are needing. There are some characteristics of the language that will be easy to follow and others... less so." Yseult nodded at the bottles of soda-pop and gave Aradia another brief smile. "Tonight, we can go as late as you wish, to establish a starting point, but do not be rushing yourself - you will not be learning a new language in a day."

[Aradia McConnell]

Aradia nodded slightly, looking a bit mollified as a result of Yseult's calm demeanor.

"Yeah - I guess that's a little much to ask for, huh?"

"Oui, Aradie - most definitely!"

Ari grinned slightly, and began to open up the containers of food that she'd brought. It appeared to be mostly delicious, highly caloric Chinese appetizers, things like crab rangoon and egg rolls and teriyaki chicken wings. Yseult would have wondered how Ari ate like this and still kept her figure, if it weren't for her specialist's stamina, as well as the workouts she'd seen the girl do in the gym. No doubt she burned that many calories a day, even without her nova benefits.

Aradia folded herself up on the chair, sitting with one foot propped up on the seat, her knee folded up to her chest, backwards. Yseult wasn't sure she'd ever seen her sit in a chair normally, except for the recent memorial service. It was the only time she'd ever really seen Ari be.. well, respectful. At least as far as military matters were concerned.

"So how are your kids doing, and your husband? I mean, they adjusting to everything okay? Not just Colorado, but you know.. you. And your appearance, and all. Has it been rough?"

[Yseult Sierra]

"Sometimes yes, and sometimes non," Yseult sighed, a melancholy smile on her face as she started filling her own place. "Moving to another city, another country, my family is having surprisingly little trouble adjusting. We found a nice house, as you can see - though the yard, it is smaller than I could have wished. Loric, he is always liking to travel and meeting new people - he misses his friends, true, but he is also having great fun. Monique, she is just happy to be having her mother back, yes?"

Yseult glanced in the direction of the living room and her daughter, her smile warm, as she chewed on a succulent rib. "Even my husband's business, a luxury car and customizing garage, is going well. He was able to sale his shop in Montreal for a very good price and we found a location here that will suit his needs more than sufficiently. He is in the process of arranging suppliers at the moment." The blond doctor chuckled softly. "He was even able to keep some of his high-end clients, the ones who used to ship their cars to him. Several live here in the States."

Yseult sighed again, then took a sip of her glass of soda. "As for my... new appearance, that is being... more difficult to reconcile. My daughter, ma coeur, she is knowing it is me, and that is being enough for her, bless her. Loric, on the other hand, is being a trial, more than he was. Sometimes he is knowing it is me and others, he is refusing to listen and behaves poorly unless François deals with him. And François..."

"Ah, François... That is being the hardest part. He is a better man than I am deserving." She hugged herself tight, trying to hide the emotions rising inside her... and failing. "He is seeing me I am sure. He speaks with me, interacts with me, as I was before, though any overt display of my... gifts does cause him to pause for a moment or three. It is the physical intimacy that is... lacking. He tries - mon Dieu - he tries! But still, he grows tense, distant, when I try to engage with something physical. Even something as simple as holding hands or a hug will cause him to withdraw, if just for a split second before he reciprocates."

Yseult laughed lightly with self-deprecating bitterness. "And I cannot even be angry about this. We've talk of this, of course. He feels he is being unfaithful to me... with myself." Yseult shook her head tightly, surreptitiously wiping her eyes clear. "Ça suffit! You did not come here to hear my problems. Me and François, we will work this out, it will simply take some time."

Her honey smooth voice grew wistful with yearning. "I must be admitting, I am wishing, for just a day, I was having your transformative capabilities. If François, he is seeing me as I was, I am thinking he could reconcile my old appearance with the new and our issues, they would be no more."

Yseult took several deep breaths and calmed herself with an effort. Serene once more, she took several more bits of various dishes before continuing. "What about you? I know you are missing Olivie, and the SGC, it is not what you would have wished, but you are doing well, yes?"

[Aradia McConnell]

She shrugged slightly, forcing a smile, but Yseult could tell her heart wasn't quite in it.

"Okay, I guess. I mean yeah.. I definitely miss Livy like hell. And I'm worried about her, you know? It sucks not being there to help her out, but I'm sure every little thing here is a reminder, so I totally get why she had to go away. And yeah.. you're right about the other. It's.. I dunno. Sometimes I'm still really, really angry. And sometimes I catch myself just doing it, like I'm starting to get used to it. And then sometimes that pisses me off, you know?"

She sighed, and picked up a two liter of soda. Yseult grabbed some glasses from the cabinet, filling them with ice before setting them down in front of the two specialists and resuming her seat as Aradia filled them with a bubbly, clear lemon-lime soda.

"At least I've got Wakiki around to keep me distracted. It helps, most of the time. Sometimes he tries for very distracted, and he can be.. really persistent. But.. we haven't quite gone there yet, if you get my drift."

The statement was fairly casual, though Yse could still see a touch of pink in the gymnast's cheeks. Then, as she recapped the bottle and sat it back down, Yseult saw a slight flicker of a frown cross her features, though she tried not to look too concerned.

"I haven't heard from him in a couple days, I hope he's okay. That's not like him. I hope I haven't played too hard to get."

She flashed a little smile at the end, but Yseult could still see that it was a bit forced, and she sensed a fair amount of actual concern in Aradia's words. She hadn't really heard enough from Livy about her brother - one way or another - to know whether he was the philandering type, or if Ari had cause for more serious concern. Either way, she could well imagine how she would feel if she'd gone several days without hearing from François, and it wouldn't be good.

[Yseult Sierra]

Yseult's hyper-evolved mind instantly proposed a dozen possibilities for Wakiki's silence, then another dozen, and another. However, that's all they were, simply possibilities, and she had little information to narrow it down. Yseult gave Aradia a sympathetic smile and reached across the table to pat her hand. "If I am recalling correctly, you are knowing Wakiki for some time now, yes?" Aradia gave Yseult a quick, short nod. "Perhaps, he is just needing time to reconcile having a friend becoming something more." A wistful smile graced Yseult's lips. "It is being my experience, with the men who are mattering, it is not mattering how hard you are playing."

Just then, Monique quietly walked in on slippered feet, though Yseult had already been turning to smile at her daughter. The young girl walked up to the table, shyly looking up at Aradia through sable lashes. After a slightly too long moment, Monique quirked a small smile than handed her a piece of paper. "Ceci est pour vous, Aradie. This is for you, Aradia," Monique said softly.

As Aradia turned the paper over, Monique went over to her mother, who picked her up with a smile and settled her on her lap with a soft grunt of effort. She is getting big, my daughter. Yseult pointed to each cardboard container, listening to Monique's murmurs and made her a tiny plate, which her daughter nibbled on delicately.

On the piece of plain paper, Aradia found a drawing of... herself, done in pencil-crayon. It was clearly amateurish, unpolished, yet readily identifiable as her, esecially in the shape of her face. For a young girl, Monique understood proportion, shading and perspective, if not to a great degree, but her potential was as obvious as the streak in Aradia's hair. In cursive that was both child-like and precise, the picture was labeled, 'ARADIE|ARADIA'.

[Aradia McConnell]

Aradia studied the picture quietly as Yseult's little girl climbed into her lap and began making her selections. Ari had been one of the youngest people at the circus for much of her life - little kids weren't as common there as one would think, though there was usually a steady flow of teenagers. So even after she'd gotten older, Aradia hadn't had much experience with young children. She'd kind of assumed they were all obnoxious little brats like she'd been - at least when she wasn't doing acrobatics or riding a horse. And she remembered having a pretty strong hatred for coloring as a child, though it took her a moment to remember exactly why.

Click to reveal..

The skinny little brown-haired girl ran up to her mother. She had been sitting at a picnic table, taking a drag off of her cigarette and laughing at one of the clown's raunchy jokes. The customers would have died in embarrassment if they knew what kinds of filthy minds most of Markie's clowns had.. it seemed to be some kind of affliction. No one would want them around their children, that's for sure. But on stage, they were just funny men in makeup and costume, and no one was the wiser. They were some of Janine's favorites to hang out with, though - she was fond of their crudeness, and the somewhat worn-out looking acrobat had a fairly open door/bed policy for most of them.

"Mommy, mommy - look! I drew a picture of one of the horses all done up for the show!"

Janine rolled her eyes, picking up the picture that the insistent little four-year old Aradia was holding up to her after crushing her cigarette into a flimsy pie pan that served as a large enough ashtray for all the smokers who'd gathered together. She studied it for a minute, then shoved it back at the little girl, looking annoyed as she pulled out another menthol and lifted it to her lips.

"I don't know what the fuck makes you think that looks like a horse, 'Di."

The little girl's lower lip protruded in a slight pout, and her eyes went from excited to confused in the matter of a heartbeat.

"But.. see, there's the saddle, and the legs, and the tail.. and this is the mane, see how it's all different colors?"

One of the men sitting at the table - his name was Rick, or Rich, or Rob, though Aradia couldn't quite remember anymore, snatched the picture away from Janine and looked at it for a second before he started laughing.

"Lemme see that.. yeah, that ain't no horse, kid! It's face looks kinda like a monkey, an' I ain't never seen no horse with a purple tail! Maybe you're gettin' yer animals confused!"

Janine snatched it back from him amidst the laughing of them men, looking more pissed off than irritated now.

"Now see? Don't bring me any more of this bullshit, this is just a buncha scribbles. You draw a horse, then you can tell me it's a picture of a horse. You bring me more scribbles, you better damn well say that's what they are, otherwise it just makes you a fuckin' liar, got it? Now get out of here, you're embarrasin' me!"

The little girl yanked the picture away from the hateful woman, and started to storm off. She heard one of the stupid clowns say something else smart ass about the drawing, and everyone started laughing, her mother included. Slowly, her hand clenched into a fist, crumpling the drawing into a hard little ball of paper. Then, with the quickness of the naturally agile, Aradia turned around and hurled it at the picnic table. It landed true, knocking over the trashy imitation ashtray, and upending cigarette butts all over the table and into one of the clown's laps. He stood up with a yell, and Aradia took off, knowing her mother or one of the clowns would be after her. With luck she'd find a tree she could hide in, at least until it got time for them to get ready for the show, and by the next day her mother'd be too hung over to remember the incident anyhow. And it would give Aradia time to stop crying before she had to go practice with Julie later on the acrobat rings.

She glanced up at Yse, who had taken a moment to gently run her fingers through her quiet little daughter's hair as she nibbled on an egg roll. A small pang of jealousy struck Aradia then - not for Yseult, but for Monique. She couldn't recall her mother ever doing that sort of thing with her.. nestling her on her lap and coddling her with that wistful little smile on her face. The closest Aradia had even seen on her own mother's face was a twisted version of the kind of bliss Yse was feeling right now, an expression the young acrobat had only seen on her mother after she'd gotten high, or maybe after a particularly good fuck with one of her brief flings.

She wasn't sure how much of that was genetic. She didn't know if Yseult'd had wonderful, loving parents.. but she'd probably bet money on it. They were probably wonderful, elegant, poised French-Canadians, just like Yseult. Aradia had always assumed she wouldn't have much patience for little kids - her mother obviously hadn't. But this little kid wasn't like her - furious at the world for the lot she'd been dealt, and ready to lash out at everyone around her. It's why Markie had been so relieved to find her taking an interest in the performing.. it had given him a way to help her channel her aggression, to focus her intensity. And it had worked.. at least mostly.

Gently, Aradia laid the picture off to the side, away from the Chinese food and the soda, next to her purse. What she was about to say was true, but she realized all of a sudden that she'd be saying it even if it wasn't, even if the little girl's drawing had just been a bunch of crazy scribbles that she couldn't make heads or tails of. Hell, even if she'd used crazy colors for her hair, chances are Ari's hair had been that color at some point or another anyway. She knew she'd never get to go back and know what it would've felt like to have her mother or her friends smile at her, and make her feel special because of a silly crayon drawing. So instead, Aradia got as close as she'd ever be able to. She tried her best to make another kid feel that way instead.

"Monique, this is the prettiest picture anyone has ever drawn of me. Thanks, kiddo. Do you mind if I hang it up on my wall at home?"

[Yseult Sierra]

Monique set her egg roll down on her plate with meticulous care, then looked across the island at Aradia, this time her eyes rising to meet the acrobat's gaze directly. The young girl's eyes were dark and lustrous and huge in her young, delicate face. After a too long moment, Monique grinned, not her habitual subdued, but a full smile of contentment.

"Oui, vous pouvez l'avoir, Aradia. Mais il faut l'accrocher sur votre réfrigérateur. Yes, you can have it, Aradia. But you must hang it on your fridge," Monique said softly, with all seriousness, pointing shyly at the fridge. Following her finger, Aradia turned to look at the fridge, seeing a majority of the door covered with drawings, half obviously by Monique's hand, the other by a child who believed lines were mere suggestions.

Yseult chuckled warmly, touched by Aradia's care with the drawing. "My little artist," she murmured fondly. "Monique, she is not getting her artistic talent from me. Aradie, you are being the first of those from the SGC she is drawing. Other than Janet, who has been a fa,ily friend for sometime now." Monique went back to nibbling on her egg roll, while Yseult ate from her plate with an arm around her daughter.

When Monique was done, she slid from her mother's lap, put her plate in the sink, then washed her hands and face, before heading back to the living-room, giving Yseult and Aradia one of her shy smiles in passing. Yseult watched her daughter leave, brushing a strand of honey-hued hair from her face, her eyes bright. "I am not knowing how I was being away from my family for so long," she wondered softly.

Yseult shook her head sadly, then ate another spoon of chicken fried rice, before facing Aradia once more. "When we are being done eating, are you wanting to go up to my office, to be seeing where to start with teaching you a new language, Aradie?"

[Aradia McConnell]

"Wanting, I'm not so sure about. But I suppose the longer we put it off, the longer I have to suffer the dread, huh?"

Yseult chuckled with amusement, and the two women finished their meals with casual conversation, work-related and otherwise. Eventually, they made their way upstairs, and sat down to start the tedious process of teaching Aradia a new language.

___________________________________

January 15th, 12:15 p.m.

"Ket.. makket."

"Mattet, Aradie. It is said 'Ket Mattet. And what is it again?"

"An argument, right?"

"It is a duel, actually. A physical fight, not an argument."

Aradia threw down her notes in disgust, looking aggravated. She had been acting particularly pissed off this session, which Yseult assumed was to be expected, considering everything that had happened in the last day or so. Aradia was obviously still very angry about what had been done to Wakiki, and it was interfering with her ability to concentrate on the lesson.

"I'm never gonna get this shit, I don't know why I even try!!"

[Yseult Sierra]

Yseult brushed a strand of deep gold hair from her face, then leaned forward, giving Aradia an understanding smile and a pat on the hand. "Calme toi, Aradie," she said gently, "you are doing quite fine. It has been only a few days since you have started, yes? Aussi, you are being understandably distracted."

The cause of the improbably attractive young woman's irritation was obvious, but Yseult left it at that - if Aradia wished to speak of it, she would. Instead, she collected Aradia's notes, squared the pages, and set them neatly aside. She settled back in her chair, crossing her legs and studying Aradia, who was glaring down at the computer desk. Perhaps, a distraction, it is needed, yes?

"Bon. The language lessons, let us leave them aside for now." A flash-drive pulled free of a USB port and floated through the air and landed softly on top of Aradia's notes. "I finished another voice file for you, Aradie. You can review it at you leisure at a later time. For tonight, let us try something different." Ysult's odd, turquoise eyes were almost luminous in there intensity.

"Do you think you can explain me your ability to alter your physical appearance, perhaps teach some form of it to me?" A vertical line appeared between her fair brows, a furrow of melancholy determination.

[Aradia McConnell]

The question seemed to catch Aradia off guard, and she sat back, looking a bit surprised at the change of topic.. though a bit of relief was apparent on her face too.

"Well.. yeah. I mean.. I could try. I don't know all the technical terms you'd probably use, but I could do my best to describe it to you, I guess."

Yseult nodded slightly, and Aradia could tell she had the telekentic doctor's full attention. She stood up and began to pace - sometimes Aradia reminded Yseult of one of the animals that must have traveled with her circus. She was caged and restless, especially in the confines of military life - it was easy to see why the girl's fuse always seemed so short. And she seemed to think better when she was moving and active, instead of sitting at a desk pouring over notes. She could see the young acrobat's mind churning, trying to decide the best way to put into words something that came so instinctively now.

"Okay, well.. here's the deal. The first thing I do is picture what I'm going to be. And I mean detailed, you know? It doesn't have to be accurate.. I mean, if it's a little different from real life, just so long as you know what you want.. that's okay. That's why when I turn into animals kinda like circus animals so much.. I know 'em better, you know? Big stuff like elephants and tigers and shit. I've touched them, interacted with them. Other stuff I don't know so well, so maybe I end up making it up.. like the birds. I just know I want to be a fast bird, like a hawk. Or a really small bird, like a humming bird."

She stopped pacing and leaned against the edge of a table in the room they'd commissioned. Now that she'd figured out what she was trying to say, the words seemed to flow from her naturally, articulated with a certain degree of vocal enthusiasm and hand gestures. As she watched, it occurred to her that even if Aradia wasn't too caught up with the military lifestyle, she had started to enjoy the actual abilities she'd been granted.. it was just the situation that came with it that seemed to bother her so much.

"So once you figure it out.. you know, all the technical stuff. I mean, I don't know how the insides of animals are put together, or how that works.. that's science stuff. Some of it, yeah.. the muscles, you know? I know how they feel or look when they move. But even if I don't, I just focus on what they can do - not just how they look. I want to be strong, or I want to have sharp claws that can actually hurt things, or I want to be able to run really fast or fly really high. I have to think about what I want to do.. not just what I want to be. Humans are a little easier.. kinda. It depends. I mean, yeah.. it's easier to imagine a human. And if you're just trying to look like someone other than yourself, or change something about yourself.. that's pretty easy too."

She straightened up and unclipped her hair where it had been twisted back and up off of her neck. It tumbled down in a wave of brown and blonde, which was the color of streaks she usually stuck to while on base. It probably wasn't exact dress standard, but it was close enough where no one bitched about it.

"Like the hair, you know? I just think 'Oh, I want my streaks to be blue'."

And sure enough, as she spoke, the streaks turned blue in front of Yseult's eyes. She was watching carefully, and she saw that it kind of faded, as if something in her hair was transforming it in front of her eyes, although somewhat swiftly. But it wasn't a quick blink from one color to another.

"And generic is easy.. oh, I wanna be a little plainer, I want brown hair, that sort of thing. If you don't care, it's kinda easy.. maybe your mind just pulls up bits of people you've known or seen who look the way you wanna. It just.. doesn't take much effort. It's looking exactly like someone that's more difficult.. just like with the birds and stuff. I might get the look right, but maybe I can't change colors very well cause I'm so focused on the flying and the feathers and all that stuff. So I end up with brown and cream and skin colored feathers, just like what I look like. Right? But if I wanna look just like someone else.. well, you have to really study them. Any little change or difference between you and them and it gets noticeable, fast. Hair color is a little off, or eye shape isn't quite right.. you end up looking like that person's brother or sister.. but not necessarily them."

She paused for a moment, tilting her head at Yseult. She could tell Aradia had more to say, but she faltered long enough to study the scientifically-minded specialist's expression.

"Does this sound stupid? Were you looking for more specific stuff? Or is this okay?"

[Yseult Sierra]

"Non, non, Aradie. Your abilities, describe them in whichever fashion you are feeling comfortable." Yseult waved Aradia's concern aside with an elegant hand and laughed lightly. "Even with my telekinesis, I am being able to tell you what I am doing, but not adequately how I am doing it." Her eyes sharpened on the blue streak in her unofficial student, a finger tapping a full lip, as she looked on with her unique biological awareness.

"By ability to manipulate biology and cell structures, it is a refinement of my telekinetic capabilities. I can perform internal and external alterations, if not as drastic as your own, but the manner in which I do it, it is very different than your own. A series of discrete alterations built one upon the other, mechanical if you will, rather than the single intuitive, fluid process that you utilize."

Her lips tightened with a mild frown, not satisfied with her explanation. The slight glaze in Aradia's eyes said she wasn't either. "Let me try another way. I use... Legos, very fine ones, that I arrange to produce the effects I wish. They can be very versatile, but I am still finitely limited to the material I have to start and I am needing to know how to put them together. You on the other hand, you are using modelling clay, limited purely by your imagination. Further, you are not needing to need the technical aspects of what you are doing, function follows form. You are understanding, yes?"

Aradia's gaze grew slightly distant as she mulled it over, worrying at a lip, the nodded. "Yeah, I think I know what you mean." She nodded and gave Yseult a smile, which faded as she tilted her head again. "Hey, didn't you just say you can make 'external' changes? Can't you use your Bio-Voodoo to change yourself?"

The blond scientist, who would have been considered one of the most beautiful women in the world, if she hadn't been sharing it with one of the two women who readily exceeded her, sighed. "Yes... and no. There is being a... feedback or empathic component, yes? Breaking down a foreign cellular object, that is being relatively straightforward. However, when I am healing someone, I suffer a limited amount of cellular degradation in return. I cannot restore myself in a similar manner. As for cosmetic alterations..." Yseult lips twisted wryly. "You are knowing Sergeant Knowles?"

"Isn't she the one that went on vacation a few weeks ago and came back with her hair dyed crimson and a lot of 'work' done, including," Aradia made the universal motion indicating for large breasts, "a new rack?"

"... Oui, that is her," Yseult admitted, blooms of red blushing her cheeks. "It is not being plastic surgery... I am doing that. Adjustment of fat cells, mild alterations to bone structure- nevermind, these are technical issues. I can make cosmetic changes, but only very, very minor ones are being permanent. More emphasized alterations require a certain amount of focus on the part of the recipient to become permanent. Similar to my healing capability, the empathic component prevents me from making cosmetic alterations to myself." She paused, pursing her lips, then nodded at Aradia. "At least in this fashion."

"I am thinking my difficulty in learning your method of appearance alteration will be forcing myself to refrain from dwelling on the technical aspects of the process and simply focusing in the end result. Presumably, without changing gross characteristics, it will be easier to achieve, yes?"

Aradia saw Yseult's eyes shift towards the door, hearing a soft click as the lock to the computer room turned, before they focused back on her. "Are you thinking, perhaps, that you can perform several more demonstrations for me, so I can see the differences - biological ones using my biological sight - between a standard state and an altered one? S'il vous plais? Generic one, as you are saying, they will be fine, maybe one a little more involved, if you are willing..."

Yseult's gaze shifted again, this time coming to rest on a framed picture on the, one of her husband and the old her. She looked back at Aradia, her expression self-conscious, apprehensive, and tenacious.

[Aradia McConnell]

Aradia nodded at Yseult, her expression both understanding and sympathetic. It was painfully obvious why the other woman wanted so desperately to learn this particular skill, and Aradia was more than happy to help her in any way she could.

The next couple of hours were spent with Aradia giving demonstrations of her abilities to the beautiful blonde scientist. They ranged all over the map, from random people to celebrity impersonations, and from humans to animals to inanimate objects. The only real limitation to her shifting abilities seemed to be the fact that she had to shift back into her natural form before she could move on to the next one. Finally, Aradia shifted back into her actual self, not even bothering with the streaks in her hair. She was stretched out on the floor looking exhausted, and she glanced up imploringly at Yseult, who had lost track of the time as she watched, occasionally scribbling down some notes about what she was watching, or asking Aradia to make specific changes.

"No more.. please, massa. I is tired, an' hungry, an'.. an'.. tired."

Yseult laughed at the jest, but flushed slightly with embarrassment. She hadn't realized how hard she'd been working the other woman, and until now she hadn't really done anything to show that exhaustion. It was kind of like a how a car could run on a tank of gas, and then when it ran out, it wasn't going anywhere, even slowly. All of a sudden she just seemed drained.

"Of course, Aradie - I am very sorry, I did not mean for you to tire yourself so. You must tell me next time when you are getting tired, yes?"

Aradia laughed slightly, and sat up. At least she seemed less tense than she had at the beginning of their lesson.. the physical exertion seemed to have burned off some of that frustration, much to Yseult's relief. An angry Aradia wasn't really a pleasant sight - Yseult had seen enough of that back at the Beta Site, when Ari had gone off on Carter. Not that you could blame her, but Yseult knew that building all that anger up constantly wouldn't be healthy for Ari's psychological state.. nor her relationship with Wakiki. The two of them were going to have enough challenges now as it was.

"It's fine. But I'm gonna call it a day, k? Maybe we can get together again in a couple days - I'll probably be in a less bitchy mood if I take a break for a day or two. I'll try to study though, I promise. And you can show me if you've gotten anywhere with the shapeshifting stuff!"

"Very good, Aradie - I look forward to it."

[Yseult Sierra]

January 30th, 9:30am

Yseult moved smoothly around the house, cleaning up after breakfast, picking Loric's toys, smiling as she saw Monique had already squared her drawings, her colouring pencils precisely put away according to colour. Engaged in the simple domestic chores, a portion of her hyper-active mind reviewed each of the numerous cellular manipulations she needed to accomplish to alter her physical form. Aradia's method wasn't feasible with her own capabilities, so she had to adapt the methodology.

It had been two weeks since she had Aradia demonstrate the shapeshifting abilities within the confines of her home. They had met again for their respective private lessons since then and both of them were approaching true aptitude with their studies. Despite Aradia's protests and occasional fits of temper, she was learning the Goa'uld language at a more than fair rate.

As for herself, after the aborted attempt last time, where she had tried to manipulate her bone structure too directly though her telekinetic ability, she believed she knew how to correct the error this time. It would take her a series of steps, enough to tax a super-computer, but one her enhanced grey matter could follow.

Hearing the knock at the door from the other side of the house, Yseult passed through the kitchen on the way back, flicking on the coffee-maker with a thought. Walking down the main hall, the front door opened apparently under its own accord, Yseult offering her guest a welcome smile as the smell of a raspberry-vanilla blend of coffee drifted pass her. She had recognized the pattern of the knock.

"Good morning, Aradie. I am thinking I am knowing what went awry last time." Yseult gave a brief shudder. "This time, it will work. And you, you are ready for your test, yes?"

"Morning, Yse," Aradia said, stepping inside, her smile a little forced. "Right. The test. I've been studying, really..." Aradia peered around as she took her shoes off, noticing how quiet the house was over the soft rock coming from the computer in the study room upstairs. "Where's François and the kids?"

"Oh, François, he is taking Loric et Monique to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo for the day," Yseult said cheerfully as she lead Aradia to the kitchen.

"Hey, if you want to spend the day with them instead, I'm totally okay with that," Aradia offered, looking back at her shoes. "We can reschedule the tests and all."

"Non, non!" Yseult laughed. "It is being okay. We went last week, but Loric, he is very much loving animals." She arched an amused brow at Aradia. "We should not be telling him you can be assuming such forms, or he will never be leaving you alone, yes?"

In the kitchen, pristine and gleaming, the fridge covered in Monique's drawings and Loric's cropped photos of animals, Yseult poured both of them cups of coffee and began cooking breakfast for herself and Aradia, if she wanted.

"So, are you wishing to start?" Yseult asked, nodding at a dark-blue duo-tang sitting at the island. "Or shall I?"