Trinity RPG: Back to the Stars - Delicate Situations

[z008]

Lien threaded their way through halls of the Xiao Dao, her steps mincing and quick. She hadn't said anything since leaving the meeting room and the way her head and hands moved as they passed through the shipped suggested that she was having a conversation with someone. The sharpness of her movements and the increasing air of annoyance seemed to say that the conversation was not going smoothly.

The door to the Ambassadorial suite swished open as they approached, Lien's shadow frowning from just beyond the doorway. "This is a bad idea, Lien," she snipped in rapid Mandarin.

The Ambassador stepped smoothly in and regarded her subordinate with an arched brow, "It's a point that will be moot rather soon, Mai," she replied coolly, her own Mandarin crisp and sharp. "At least on the ship, unless you're suggesting I confine myself to quarters. Evanna's mimicry gives us....options."

The fiery Chinese woman's eyes flicked angrily back and forth between the twins, "Then what is he doing here? You only need one of them."

"They're siblings, twins. My own family notwithstanding, do you really think they keep many secrets from each other?" Lien sighed and shook her head, motioning the Norça to take a seat and switching over to English. "Please, sit. Mai, if you will get drinks for us, please. Water for myself."

She took a seat across from the two of them as the assistant grumped her way over to the wet-bar in the room and began filling glasses. There was a moment of silence as they settled into the room and Lien looked for the words to start a rather delicate conversation.

[Evana]

With a graceful runway strut Evana followed along side her brother, Anatole. Her stride was particularly bouncy, as if she enjoyed being called to the principal's office. Hell, why not? Half the crew wasn't sure whether they wanted to fight her or fuck her and even her own Psion 'brethren' didn't seem to be fairing any better. Two didn't seem to like her, and one couldn't bring himself to talk to her because she got mad at him and hurt his feelings... she wasn't sure if he was afraid of her or just had no idea what to say to a woman considering he looked like he never had a 'real' one. She couldn't be too hard on John though, she'd wondered on several occasions about precisely how many times George rubbed it out while his avatar talked dirty to him.

Which was sad... because it was by far more action than she was getting. Life was so cruel.

Along the way she indulged in some chaos-letting, grinning a bit as she winked or found other means of distracting officers that crossed her path, a few tripped while other stumbled but she didn't turn to look. She was grining like the trouble maker she was when she looked up to her brother. His cold, emotionless gaze met hers.

"Oh," she rolled her own eyes and huffed. She had a thick English accent this time. "Don't you lecture me like that, they don't have to fall for it you know... I'm just having a bit of fun."

Anatole said nothing and just looked ahead.

When they arrived Evana cursed inwardly at forgetting her vocoder, she rarely had it with her on board the ship since everyone spoke English. When the two finished their exchange Evana quirked her brow. She pondered for a moment if the subordinate was going to be a problem and possibly require 'handling'.

She looked at Mai, winked and let a grin form on her perfectly glossed lips that begged her to challenge the Norça assassin. She sat and crossed her legs. "It would seem your assistant isn't to fond of our presence. Pity.

Evana had moments where she was the sweetest thing in the world and other times where her attitude and cruelty shone through her undeniable beauty. The word 'pity' seemed to hang like a veiled threat, hinting that the lesser woman needed to learn her place.

[Grim]

Anatole sat down, accepting a glass from Mai and letting it rest neglected in his hand as he waited for Lien. As always, he was such a contrast to his twin that it was jarring, especially seeing the two of them sitting together. Where Evana was immaculately made-up and groomed, Anatole was unkempt enough to be unremarkable, but not so much as to stand out. Where Evana wore tight, stylishly provocative clothing, her brother's garments were shapeless and seemed too large for him.

"I believe the Ambassador's aide has a grievance with whatever it is Lien has in mind, rather than us. I cannot comment on her judgement, since I myself am not yet privy to the facts." He said in his quiet, inflectionless fashion, pale eyes studying Mai for a long moment, then moving to Lien's face. He said nothing more, revealing nothing of what was going on behind the mask of his face.

[z008]

"I..hmn, yes, Mai is upset with me, not the two of you." She sipped at her water for a moment, her dark eyes distant. "I'm pregnant."

She looked at the twins, taking another breath to continue as she carefully set her cup down, tension in every line of her movement. "Which, in and of itself, wouldn't normally be a matter to bring to your attention or to much interfere with our mission here. Except that I was assigned as the Ambassador of the Xiao Dao more because of political expediency by putting me out of sight and mind for a few years than because of any actual qualifications as an Ambassador. In short, I'm rather out of my depth, likely to become highly emotional over the next several months, and..."

She swallowed, but continued on, "And after what happened on the transport from the Moon to the ship...I'm not sure how dangerous it would be for others if I am in danger or think I'm in danger." Mai had taken another one of the chairs in the room, slightly off to the side; she frowned, almost glaring, at her own cup as Lien continued. "Your suggestion," she nodded towards Evana, "of providing a double for potentially dangerous meetings is both a valid and good one, but more problematic. Either I'd have to not be present at all or you'd have to assume my public identity for the run of the pregnancy, as two pregnant women in a small diplomatic contingent is remarkable and will garner attention. Or scap the idea entirely."

She sat back, still tense but ultimately focused. "That is, unless either of you have another suggestion? I assure you, I'm quite open workable alternatives."

[Evana]

"Pregnant? I wasn't aware of this, whom else have you kept this from Ambassador?" She asked but then quickly waved her hand dismissively. "It-, you know what? It doesn't matter, never mind."

"Honestly you're not showing, and since apparently we, your closest teammates and fellow Psions, were kept in the dark it's my guess that the rest of the galaxy at large isn't up to date either." She tried to focus on the topic. She was a bit irritated that an emotional and physical health hazard was accepted for the mission (which made her a complete hypocrite), but it wasn't her place to question these matters. Only when the child or mother became a liability did it then become her responsibility to diffuse the behavioral anomaly and restore the mission's integrity.

"Truly, if you are 'new' at this then chances are we can capitalize on your lack of a reputation. I doubt the colonies and dignitaries have been informed you're pregnant so it's a non-issue at this point. Even if they have, as part of missions I've had to abort my own pregnancies on several occasions. I'm quite confidant I can shift to accommodate the appearance and emotional condition of a pregnant woman." She shrugged and passively added. "Can't say I'd be too happy about the wardrobe."

With a gentle wave she tucked her icy blue hair behind her ear. "Since you're not showing, if you'd like for me to act as a body-double, which I've done for Anie a few times, it's not a problem. If they ask, you're simply my pregnant aide and you can commune with me via your abilities and pray I don't screw it up." Evana smiled, but it still showed that she wanted nothing more than to fix Lien's 'problem' before it became a bigger one.

[z008]

Lien's complexion had gone pale white, no small feat for a woman of her skin tone, at Evana's casual dismissal of multiple self-induced abortions. To her credit, she managed not to curl up around herself and her child, but it took a moment for her to regain her composure and in the meantime she unconsciously leaned away from the blue-haired beauty. It wouldn't have been obvious to most normal observers, but neither of the twins fell anywhere near 'normal'.

"I-I wouldn't think that the colonies would have any reason to know that I'm pregnant..." She hesitated, unsure for a moment on how to proceed. "As for any others that would know, the medical staff aboard is aware, obviously. I don't know if anyone else...the captain, most likely. And I'd prefer not to put either of us in unnecessarily complicated positions unless there is a need; hopefully the situation on the planet will not require the sort of diplomatic meetings that seem dangerous enough to need a body double."

She fell quiet after that, still thinking deeply or possibly conversing telepathically with Mai; she seemed concerned and sad.

[Evana]

"First, Ambassador, with all due respect, a pregnancy is a complicated position. By keeping it a secret you run the risk of possibly placing one or all of us in a compromising situation. Any actions you take, or are possibly taken against you could harm the child and greatly affect your ability to perform your duties." Evana seemed serious, like the day they'd all first met. Her moods and mannerisms were as protean as her shape Lien was quickly realizing. "We Norça understand family better than most would believe. You obviously have hopes of starting one yourself, and that's admirable, but up here in this ocean of stars Ambassador we are your family as well, we might not all like the idea, but it doesn't change the truth. You need to tell the captain and the others so that your condition doesn't inadvertently harm other members of this family."

She sipped her drink before continuing. "I will not press the issue, nor will Annie and I spill your little secret. Now, moving along, if you feel a body double is not necessary than we can continue with a standard ground team if a meeting is what they desire. I would request that I be a part of it so that I can observe you at your job in the event that I later need to make use of your body." That wry grin formed on her lips that warned of an upcoming snide remark. Her eyes wandered across Lien's frame that was covered by clothes that hardly did her curves justice. Her stare finaly locked on her abdomen where the child was forming as the spoke. "Since, y'know... you won't making use of it for quite some time. You're so delicious, I'd hate to let it go to waste."

[z008]

Evana's blatant flirting finally hit home with the Ambassador; Lien blushed bright red and was suddenly looking anywhere in the room other than at the blue-haired Norça. Mai snorted from her position a bit away from the group, "Well, she's pretty much sworn off men, so you might actually have a shot."

"Mai!"

The assistant shrugged unapologetically at her friend and scooted over closer to the three of them, "And Lien's not the one keeping it a secret. The pregnancy. She's being a good little Ministry member and doing what she's told. So lay off a bit. I'm sure the captain's been more than made aware; they added an obgyn to the crew just for her, so he'd at least have wanted to know why the Ministry was insisting on extra personnel. Otherwise he's got more issues as Captain than just being uniformed."

She swirled the the contents of her glass thoughtfully and then downed the last of whatever it was, though the sweet smell suggested a fruit drink or a weak liquor. "As for telling the others....it's probably a good idea. They really could have given us some better pointers on what they expected from us while we're here; as it is, we're basically here to keep out of the way for a few years and let things settle down." The quick movement of her eyes away from the group told the Norça that she was lying or hiding something as loud as if she'd yelled it in the room.

She glanced over at Lien, "And I can also act in your stead, without having to go through all these....contortions. I was actually training to do things along these lines. Well, the paperwork at least. You were the Peace Officer candidate, not me." Her tone was teasing, but underneath it was just a little amount of hurt that Lien seemed to trust these strangers over her.

[Evana]

"How delightful." She said in response to Mai's comment loud enough for Lien to hear but casual enough to not press the issue. She was embarrassed enough, for now. Although Lien could see her enticing glossed lips stretch into a half grin that crept nearly to her ear. "I'll certainly keep that in mind."

Evana took another sip of her drink, mostly to listen and buy Lien some time to recover. When Mai was finished Evana had an appropriate retort. "Do understand, Mai, that my intention was to imply that she is in error, simply that keeping it a secret could spell disaster for the rest of us. Communication is integral to continued survival." Anatole visibly nodded his approval of the statement, but remained eerily quiet. "If it'll make her feel more comfortable, I'll share a dirty little secret or two of my own," Her tone slipped into a seductive coo. "I've so many, I'd hardly know where to start."

"If you're capable of performing her job, then by all means, do so. A body-double is only used in situations where the well being of the Ambassador may be compromised." She dismissively waved her hand again and the snooty tone of her English accent drove her next point home. "Trust me, I've no desire to play her role full time. My masquerading as Lien should only be done when the Ambassador herself," she added to make sure Mai knew that she was in no position of authority when it came to the Norça Primo. "feels it's necessary."

"But yes, as an act of good faith Ambassdor," Evana addressed Lien, hoping she regained enough composure to look her in the eyes. She hadn't, but Evana didn't take offense. Lien was just too adorable! Positively delicious! "Tell the others, that doesn't mean announce it to the entire crew, just us your fellow Psions. It would mean a great deal to them, I'm sure."

[z008]

Lien nodded both to Mai and Evana, her cheeks still flushed, but other than that her composure was mostly recovered. "After we've dealt with whatever comes from the Captain's communication with the colony, then. We should probably head back to the meeting room soon, unless you two have any other questions I should answer before we go?"

Mai began quietly cleaning up the nearly non-existant mess they'd made while talking, using the movement to pull her out of the conversation while still leaving her where she could hear what was said. Lien stood, but waited to see if they did have a question; now that they knew her condition it was easy to spot the slight alterations in the cut of the cloth that played down the roundness that was just barely starting to stretch the line of her clothes.

[Evana]

"That's all I have." When she stood her uniform tightened and hugged her hips displaying a figure that was in contrast to Lien's own slowly expanding one. The large diamond earring in her navel glimmered and reflected the light around them. The father was apparently not well respected and the child already seemed more trouble than it was worth. Why Lien hadn't flushed it out an airlock in an air sickness baggie already was beyond her callous comprehension.

Lien remained unaware that to the twins' Biosense, a power unique to all Norça, she'd been registering to their senses two life forms for quite some time. Neither felt the need to state this. As Evana said, it was Lien's secret and it was she who'd have to come clean with it. More than anything the icy hearted vixen was disappointed since Lien, in her current condition, was simply not as much fun to toy with. Never the less, she'd enjoy harassing the poor thing until the mewling infant ruined her good time. "At least, for now. Rest assured there is much to this story that I'm dying to know and I'll squeeze it out of you if I have to utilize every technique I know."

She offered a wink and a smile. "But I suppose we should head back. Personally I don't trust a few of our other members alone in a room for very long. For all I know they're finger painting and getting it everywhere but the paper..."