Suicide is Painless

[Saa'riaana Dage]

She was on leave. Or at least what passed for leave. Really, it was a glorified two days away from the day-to-day tasks and duties that came with a Republic surgeon's life. Everything had become mundane and same. Still though, it was a decently secure posting that allowed her a nice enough safety net. She was a respected enough doctor, and it wasn't all bad, she supposed. But still, there was something else pulling at her, and it was what brought her here now, to Jovan Station.

The ages-old Nebulon-B cruiser Cassarie had docked at spire 5, and Saa'ri had spent the last hour thumbing through old holos and comms. And when she did finally leave, she joined her last remaining straggling crewmates through the airlock umbilical and on to the spire's entry area. A few minutes of customs checking her pepers, and she was waved through without fuss.

She'd timed her few days off with the clockwork predictability of her parents and their peculiar affinity to Jovan. Every year for a few days they visited Jovan, and each time they seemed just a little bit happier upon their return. Though, that was what she could guess from the infrequent comms from each one once they'd gotten back to their own respective wherevers. It had always seemed like some silly game to her the older she got and the more she'd come to understand, but it was what it was, and she'd long ago given up trying to understand either of them. Of course, as the years went by they gravitated closer, until finally living under one roof, but it never changed their yearly visits to Jovan.

Which was what brought her here now.

The lift took her swiftly in toward the center of the station before finally coming to a slow stop. The doors opened, and Saa'riaana stepped out onto the main merchant's promenade.

She seen plenty of holos of how the station used to look, and while it was certainly different nowdays, in some ways it'd never changed. There were still bright vendor signs and hawkers trying to foist their wares on passerby.

But the real challenge for the moment lay in attempting to find her parents in this mess of flesh wrapped up in durasteel girders and bulkheads.

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

It wasn't difficult to see when Admiral Meorrrei made an appearance at Jovan station. Dwarfing the old frigate Cassarie on Spire Five, the Keppaa-class destroyer Hai'raathee drew in all the eyes from his perch on Spire Two. Adorned in the white and red liveries of the New Republic, the Hai'raathee had come to represent a symbol of the strengthening union of the nascent Republic's return to rule. His keel had been laid at the Royal Cana'daari yards seven years ago, and he was the third of the Pride's newest line of capital starships. In the tradition of the Cizerack navy, he was a galleon - a ship equally suited to times of peace and war, with vast cargo reserves and enough gun emplacements to chill the spine on any opportunistic pirate. The hull's shape had been strongly influenced by the rehabilitated former Imperials who had been brought back into the galactic fold after the treaty of unification, and Hai'raathee's dagger shape was a sign of their influence. With two Gorroka-III batteries and another pair of Saanja torpedo tubes, however, it was clear that Hai'raathee spoke with a Cizeri accent. He was a halfbreed, full of thousands of Cizerack and forrda alike. In many ways, he was a symbol of the peculiar union, and the erosion of long-held biases within the Cizerack Pride. T'yeellaa wondered how much of that tectonic change had come at her mother's influence, or if she was merely the most prominent advocate of such change.

Her Mother.

Admiral Meorrrei paused on the concourse at the window which afforded her the best view of her ship. How long had it been since they'd spoken? A year? Two? Whatever change the former Chancellor Meorrrei had brought about in the Republic, she'd exacted a high price for it. Maybe Taataani could see the changes happening in the Republic she presided over, but she never saw the changes in herself. T'yeellaa couldn't remember when they'd last spoke, but she certainly remembered when it had all fallen apart. Mother offered her the very thing she'd been planning to give her for years, the title of Rrou'fai.

T'yeellaa refused.

Maybe that's when the fall began to happen. Maybe her mother had been so deeply wounded by no, that she was determined to never have the word wound her again.

Something had changed years ago. Changed right here, on Jovan station. T'yeellaa had spent so long fighting on a headstrong path to merely defy Taataani; to force her to respect her eldest daughter. But here? She found something she wanted beyond defiance and recognition. She found her own life. Her own slice of the galaxy and her own path that she could walk. Not one that was imposed upon her or that existed as a reaction or a rebellion. But one that she looked at with both eyes open and wanted.

"Admiral Meorrrei?"

T'yeellaa's ears twitched, and she turned from the viewport to see an Iridonian man with commander pips.

"Commanderr Kolaji, jI prressume?"

Kolai's horned head gave a curt nod.

"Yes ma'am. Commander of Jovan Station. I only recently got word that your ship was arriving. Is this an inspection?"

"What? Oh. No." T'yeellaa shook her head and smiled. "Ssomethjing of an old trradjitjion."

There wasn't a dawning recollection in Kolai's expression, so he must not be aware.

"jI hearrd Commanderr Sai'eethraa wass rreasssjigned."

"Two weeks ago, ma'am. The Trade Navy wanted her on a destroyer, and she accepted the post."

Kolai had a look of barely-tamped frustration on his face, and his posture was a little restless. T'yeellaa gave him a glance up and down, and her smile grew into a chuckle. The Iridonian raised an eyebrow.

"That's funny, ma'am?"

Admiral Meorrrei's widened smile mellowed a bit.

"jIt'ss not that. jI jusst rrecognjize the look."

"The look?"

T'yeellaa nodded with certainty.

"The look of a Commanderr who jusst rrecentljy had Jovan Sstatjion fall jinto hjiss lap, and jiss wonderrjing exactljy what the hell to do wjith the zoo."

She had him exact, and Kolai's expression gave that away. Maybe her mother's empathy was genetic after all.

"Is it that obvious?"

"jI've sseen the look, Commanderr. Ssometjimess jin mjy own mjirrrorr."

"You served on Jovan, Admiral?"

"Oh jyess."

At this, the Admiral gave a look around her surroundings with a wistful gleam to her eye.

"A long tjime ago. jIt'ss sstjill sso wonderrfulljy ugljy, but ljike everrjy ugljy man, jit hass a grreat perrssonaljitjy."

Since the previous Commander hadn't managed to brief her replacement, T'yeellaa didn't let the mystery linger.

"jI come back forr a few dajyss each jyearr, sso jit'ss not an offjicjial vjissjit. Mjy crrew have been gjiven a weekend ljiberrtjy. jI trrusst thejy won't be a burrden on jyou orr jyourr sstaff. jIf thejy arre, jI want to hearr of jit."

Kolai nodded, still finding the notion of an Admiral using a strategically-unimportant space station as a holiday spot to be high-order strange.

"I'll inform my command of your visit. Is there anything further I can do to accomodate you?"

"jI'd ljike quarrterrss on the sstatjion forr mjy sstajy."

"I'll make the arrangements. Anything else, Admiral?"

T'yeellaa's ears raised.

"jI rrememberr an old tea housse frrom jyearrss ago. Neverr botherred to check to ssee jif jit'ss sstjill arround. jYou wouldn't know anjythjing about that, would jyou?"

The clueless look on the Commander's face telegraphed it all.

"Can't say that I do, ma'am. I'm more of a caf drinker."

T'yeellaa again wore a knowing smile as she moved to walk past the Commander, clasping a hand lightly on his shoulder before letting it fall away.

"Blesss jyourr hearrt. jYou've got a lot of catchjing up to do. jI won't keep jyou anjy longerr."

[Samus Dage]

He'd come in on a civilian transport. Some years he traveled to Jovan in this fashion, and others he opted for the more military approach. Either way he ended up at his destination, and though sometimes it was preferred to not bother with the added discomfort of sharing your ride with a multitude of others, there were times that he decided it would be bearable.

They never were.

And he never seemed to learn.

Quentin Saums Dage, in his 70's, had only become a far grumpier, far more stubborn version of his younger self. The years had added a spiderweb of age-lines that somehow gave him a stately appearance (despite being accused of being the exact opposite of on more than one occasion), and his gait was - at times - less than solid-footed, but he never faltered, and his eyes always remained sharp. Decades of service had ingrained a durasteel core within him, and he was thankful for it. Of course, those same decades had taken the blonde from his hair and replaced it with a solid grey... something that he was distinctly not thankful for.

Passing through customs was easy enough, as the civilians seemed as eager to leave their transport as he, and therefor they cooperated with security in quick fashion.

He'd caught sight of the Hai'raathee on their approach to Spire Four. Really though, it was hard not to notice the behemoth.

And just as it'd taken little time to pass through the boarding checkpoints, getting into the bowels of the station was just as quick an affair.

It was true, what they said; time moved faster the older you got.



The observation deck had become an admittedly beautiful place, having been transformed from a simple, spartan area with a few chairs and table set up to watch the traffic, into a vibrant lounge area with lounge seats upholstered in bright reds and golds. It was no real surprise, and as he slowly descended the shallow stairway that would bring him properly into the lavish 'room', his eyes traveled to the far viewing window. And while the ship beyond the transparisteel panes was monstrous, dwarfing all others around it, it was the woman who was now striding away from the station's commander that held his complete interest.

Samus couldn't help the smirk that pulled up one corner of his mouth, and his hands moved to bury themselves in his front pockets as she came closer.

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

She caught sight of him only a few paces past Commander Kolai, and her smile returned in force. She saw the grey on his head and the lines on his face, but his geography was perfectly comfortable to her. She knew it wasn't true, but in her mind's eye he'd always looked this way. She saw the young Samus there in his eyes as he looked back, and when she was alone in her quarters, she could browse through the volumes of old holos at the younger man, and see the old soul she'd grown to love.

They'd never traded names, rings, or ka'arri, or anything else for the matter that people tended to formalize their union, but that was simply the curious nature of their love. They'd spent decades as two awkward dancers - two pairs of feet and two minds unsure which one was leading with the music. If that wasn't enough of a challenge, they'd somehow managed all the strangeness by having a daughter.

As T'yeellaa gave her lover the unguarded smile he always managed to coax from her stony expression, she had to wonder at how far her life had gone from her expectations. Daughter to a Baroness, heir to more privilege and wealth than most galactic pashas would ever see. She'd turned her back on it all - and Quentin Samus Dage had a healthy hand in it. She'd likely outlive him, but she'd never forget him.

"Hello Quentjin."

[Samus Dage]

"Look at you, Kitten," he rumbled softly as she closed the distance between them with a steady pace. What they'd become to each other over the many years had come as just as much of a surprise to him as he suspected it was to her. But, it was a surprise that he found he rather enjoyed. And while their paths had sometimes taken them apart, they had always found a way to come back.

She stopped in front of him, and one of his hands pulled out of its' pocket to reach out and give one of the duty pins on her collar a small tap.

"All proper and military-like," His smirk overtook him, then, as he couldn't help himself.

"... and not a day over 53."

Without allowing her to answer, he went on even as his eyes moved up from her own intoxicating blues and past her shoulder to stare at her ship.

"A fine lady like you, showing up in a big ship like that," he continued to tease as his hand moved from her pips to trace over her jawline, fingers coming to rest behind her neck. Another moment passed before he cast his gaze back to her.

"You meeting someone important, then?"

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

"jI hearr that pulljing rrank and puttjing on a unjiforrm tendss to drrjive men wjild."

The Admiral's eyes glittered with delight as she looked her tall drink of water up and down.

"Orr at leasst makess ssurre thejy'rre punctual. Bessjidess, onljy one of uss wearrss plajinclothess well."

His diversion toward Hai'raathee didn't go unnoticed, and T'yeellaa casually glanced back at the ship before returning to Dage's embrace.

"Oh, don't be jealouss, gai'tou. No Cizerack woman can be content wjith onljy one man jin herr ljife."

At that, she planted a kiss on his lips.

"But jyou've alwajyss made the arrgument convjincjing."

[Samus Dage]

He couldn't help his smile as she bestowed upon him a kiss.

"Well that's good for me then," an arm draped over her shoulder as he pivoted, and pulling her in close Samus led the way from the viewing lounge. Up the shallow stairs they moved, until the milling crowds around them became like the crashing sea of old. Like times past they were wading through bodies. And yet, it was an easy thing as everyone was like a single fluid entity. No one really jostled anyone else, and most seemed intent on their own destinations being reached without incident. To that end, everyone seemed accommodating enough. It was a welcome observation.

With his arm still keeping her close, Dage sent a quick sidelong look her way.

"You heard from the little sprog recently? Last I knew she was getting posted to Dac for some cushy doctor's job."

Just the thought of his little girl made his back just a little bit straighter, and his step a bit more energetic.

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

Saa'riaana had become the new star, pulling both of her parents into comfortable orbit. She was, like everything else, not a part of T'yeellaa's plan. But that was the charming thing about fate and chaos. All the detours and strangeness now felt exactly how they ought to be. She remembered the morning she discovered she was pregnant as if a light switch turned on. She hadn't planned to have a child with Samus, but everything had changed for the better when she did.

And much like the half-breed ship she had departed, Saa'riaana had become a beautiful blend of worlds. She'd taken the Admiral's sense of ethics and duty happily in hand with Samus's devil-may-care ease. When Saa had joined the Royal Academy, T'yeellaa imagined her daughter would follow in her footsteps and command a starship. Only years later did she learn the lesson she'd once taught Taataani. Sometimes the best-laid plans are meant for breaking.

"Sshe'ss thrrjilled. Sshe passsed the ssurrgeon'ss exam, whjich jI thjink sshe wanted morre than generral medjicjine. Sshe holo'd a few dajyss ago to talk about a prrocedurre..."

The Admiral's eyes glazed over a bit as she swam out of her comfort zone.

"...ssomethjing about rremovjing ssomethjing frrom a Wookjiee. jI couldn't keep up wjith half the thjingss sshe wass ssajyjing, but jyou can see that look jin herr ejyess."

T'yeellaa didn't have to elaborate. They'd always shared a singular passion for their work, and that was once again part of the charm and frustration of their life. When you found yourself doing the one thing you were meant to do, everyone around you could tell.

[Samus Dage]

He gave a chuckle.

"Sounds like she's having a time of it, then."

The two continued on, neither speaking, but rather enjoying the closeness for the time being. The joys of hello were invariably always followed by goodbye, and it was that looming assurance that sometimes dulled his happiness. Of course, each had their own careers, and while he knew that his own was winding down with retirement looming close on the horizon, hers was much farther off. She had a lot longer road than he, and there were times, when he was alone in his office on Bothawui, that that fact hit particularly hard. It was during those times that he nursed a glass of Coruscant brandy, locking himself away to mull in the memories of his life.

But here, now, Samus Dage was intent on capitalizing his time with the only woman that'd ever truly taken his heart. And truth be told, she'd still not given it back. Which he didn't mind at all.

Guiding her along, he gestured at a modest restaurant sign that read Quarren Cuisine.

"It's no Diktat's Roost, but I think it'll do," a grin, and he leaned over to gently deposit a kiss to her temple. "Plus there should be things on the menu for both of us."

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

Admiral Meorrrei hid her crestfallen expression with a turn of her head. Diktat's Roost had finally closed after all these years. It was never wildly popular even back on her service days, but she'd grudgingly longed for that hole in the wall with it's strange food and strange people. Half the menu she hated, but the other half had really grown on her. In it's place was a restaurant with a decidedly...boring name. T'yeellaa stared blankly at the plain black and white sign, her lips pressed thin in skepticism.

"Well, jI would have neverr ssurrvjived wjith jyou jif jI djidn't trrjy everrjythjing at leasst once."

At least it smelled appetizing inside. Although, that could be the Quarrens she smelled. No bigotry intended, but it was difficult to cohabitate with aquatic sentients at times.

[Samus Dage]

"That's the spirit."

His arm slid from her shoulders so that his hand could take hers, and he led her inside. It was a simple interior, with plain tables and chairs, and a warm grey paintjob on the walls. There was a pair of Quarren at the bar toward the back, and a demure Bothan woman idly sitting at a far booth wrapping silverware in crisp white napkins. She rose up at the sight of the two new customers, and grabbing up a pair of menus from a nearby counter.

"Two?"

Dage nodded, and the pair followed their guide to a booth set in one of the front windows. Waiting as T'yeellaa sat first, Samus gave a nod in thanks as he himself slowly lowered to sit and their menus were placed on the table.

"Two waters, please."

The Bothan nodded, and backed away.

Picking up one of the flimsis, Dage gave their choices a once-over for a moment. He frowned, held it out a short ways, then gave a defeated sigh before pulling a slim, black case from the breast pocket of his shirt. Opening it, he plucked out a pair of reading glasses.

A look from over the tops of his eyes as he put them on was sent across the table to his significant other, and a wry grin managed to peak past the crusty exterior.

"Some of us don't age as gracefully as you, my Dear."

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

"jIf geness arre anjythjing to go bjy, jI'll be followjing ssujit jin a decade. Lasst tjime jI deljiverred a rreporrt to motherr, sshe looked ljike a sspecjiess of owl."

The Admiral bided the time by perusing her own menu, but her heart wasn't in it. There was a raw seafood section, and she'd probably pick whatever wasn't too expensive off that. But the real reason she was here was sitting across from her.

"Ssamuss..."

T'yeellaa folded up her menu for a moment, laying her hands over the cover.

"...what arre we dojing?"

[Samus Dage]

He didn't exactly look up from his own menu, instead letting his eyes pass over the more... well-done portions of what was offered. His voice in answer was somewhat distant, his thoughts working on two fronts. However it was obvious that his stomach was winning the fight with his brain.

"We're ordering lunch, Kitten."

[Saa'riaana Dage]

A bit of time was spent perusing the merchants and their wares, but Saa'ri was honestly preoccupied with the task of trying to find two very specific people in an ocean of bodies. It wasn't an easy task.

One ear flicked in mild frustration. She knew her mother was here; the imposing hulk of Hai'raathee testament enough to that fact. And odds were good that her father was somewhere about as well. It was just a matter of actually finding them that was proving to be a shade of nearly-impossible.

Biting her lip, the halfbreed continued on, a scowl beginning to form on her features as she kept coming up empty-handed. She supposed it was entirely possible that the two had already made their way to some station quarters (ugh), but she was betting on the fact that her father's stomach would win out the day. Or at least the afternoon.

And then... luck struck her like a bolt of lightning as she happened to turn her head.

The couple sitting in the window booth at the front of a Quarren joint was unmistakable.

A triumphant grin, and Saa'ri moved closer. They hadn't noticed her, and making an impatient face, she leaned forward to rap a claw on the glass.

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

An involuntary flinch and a flutter of her ears, T'yeellaa's attention immediately turned to the sudden rap at the glass facing the concourse...

...and to the very familiar face causing it. The Admiral's eyes widened and her open smile betrayed her happiness.

"Saa'ri!"

A stolen glance to Samus confirmed he was equally surprised by the little ambush. Now they were all frozen in this awkward moment, to which T'yeella made a hurriedly beckoning gesture.

"Come jin!"

[Samus Dage]

Just as taken by surprise as T'yeellaa, Samus only stared, giving a blink as their daughter was waved inside. It didn't take much time at all for Saa'ri to sweep in through the door, her uniform an olive drab and much less showy than her mother's.

His menu was set on the table as Dage lumbered up to his feet, and wasting little time he wrapped her up in a strong embrace.

[Saa'riaana Dage]

Swallowed up in her father's arms, Saa'ri beamed wide as she pulled away, and taking her mother's hand, pulled her in close for a swift hug, and ever mindful she delivered a gentle peck to each of the older woman's cheeks.

"Hello, Motherr."

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

"Goddesss, what arre jyou dojing jin thjiss corrnerr of the galaxjy??"

Tail buoyed in elation at a chance to see her daughter in the flesh and away from clinicals and exams, T'yeellaa separated a moment, holding Saa'riaana at arms' length by the shoulders to get a full look at her. She favored Samus on height, with a few inches on the shorter Admiral. Though her uniform was the more drab sort favored by the Republic Federal Army, she looked fantastic in it. Her rank insignia displayed as a Major, though those were less prominent than the badge with a staff held within a pair of coiled serpents.

"Do jI call jyou...Doctorr? Majorr?"

[Saa'riaana Dage]

"How about just Saa'ri forr now?"

A knowing smile, and she took a seat beside her mother as the three sat down.

"And well, I had some time off, so I figured I'd come to the one place I knew the both of you would be at this time of the year."

[Samus Dage]

A rueful smirk, and Samus once more picked up his menu. He offered a wink, then went back to his perusing.

"I think she's on to us, T'yeellaa," came the good-natured rumble.

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

The Admiral cast a grin at her not-so-sneaky co-conspirator.

"Well, jyou have to admjit, jit wass the besst kept non-ssecrret everr."

T'yeellaa's eyes traveled from Samus, to Saa'ri and back. She let out an elated sigh.

"Look at uss. All togetherr jin one place. We haven't done thjiss ssjince jyou werre sshorrterr than jI am."

[Saa'riaana Dage]

At that, Saa'ri gave a chuckle.

"Then jit's cerrtajinly been a long tjime."

The Bothan returned with a third glass of water and another menu, and Saa'ri gave a nod in thanks as she took the flimsi. A brief, almost uninterested look was sent over both sides and the food listed.

"You know," she started idly before sending a quick look up to her father, then to the side at her mother before once more returning to her menu, "Speakjing of non-secrrets... "

She let out a cough before going on.

"Have you two everr thought about fjinally gettjing jit overr and done wjith?"

[Samus Dage]

It wasn't exactly what he'd expect to hear so soon out of the gate, and in the midst of taking a drink of his water, Samus let out a surprised cough as he set his glass back down.

"Ex... excuse me?"

Another moment of coughing, and he pulled his reading glasses off. The look he was getting from Saa'ri was enough to spark realization.

"Oh... "

And looking to T'yeellaa, his brain seemed to finally suss out what his hungry gut had brushed off. He very nearly went slack-jawed, but with a blink and a slightly puzzled look, Samus leaned back.

"Ooohhh... "

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

"Well, asss a matterr of fact, jit'ss been on mjy mjind."

Admiral Meorrrei exchanged a candid glance with her daughter, then turned to her gai'tou, who maybe could hear the same line in stereo this time.

"jIt'ss alwajyss been compljicated."

There was an awkward pause, and T'yeellaa elaborated with a glance back again to Saa'ri.

"jYourr fatherr and me, jI mean. jIt djidn't take me long to fjigurre out jI loved hjim, and jI thjink he came arround to that notjion not long afterr that. Forr a whjile, that wass all we needed. Then jyou came along, ourr ljittle blesssjing, and...we made the ssacrrjifjicess to keep closse enough sso that nejitherr of uss sstrrajyed too farr frrom the otherr and frrom jyou."

The rise in T'yeellaa's ears began to fall a little, and she traced her finger along her glass of water.

"And then, jyou got olderr. Went off to Academjy. And we werre both too sstubborrn to sstajy wherre we werre. jI went to fleet command, and jyourr fatherr went to worrk on Bothawuji. We haven't sstopped lovjing each otherr lesss. jYou jusst have a pajirr of verrjy sstubborrn parrentss who neverr felt rrjight about a housse and a whjite pjicket fence."

[Samus Dage]

Half-folded glasses were pointed at T'yeellaa despite his eyes being on Saa'ri. The old mischevious glint shone through like a radiant sun.

"Your mother is much more stubborn than I could ever hope to be."

A smile as he shared a knowing look with T'yeellaa.

"Though, it's true that I don't really care for that house or picket fence life."

For the briefest of moments he stared at the women he'd been with for decades. And while there were times that they weren't together in the flesh, not a day went by when his thoughts hadn't wandered to her in some fashion. Wondering what she was doing or where she was. If she was well, or if she was upset. It was a constant game of internal guessing that he occupied himself with nearly every night. It was true that he missed her sorely, but it was also the way of things. Yet, as they invariably do, attitudes and desires change with time, and he would be lying if he didn't admit that he was elated at this turn of events.

He was tired of being alone more often than not.

He smiled, let out a long breath, and returned his glasses over his eyes before retrieving the menu for what had to be the hundredth time. When he spoke, it was to Saa'ri, and the tone of amusement was unmistakeable.

"You're Aunties would have a collective stroke, I'd wager."

A hmph.

"Especially Aunt Rai'fa."

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

"Pfft." T'yeellaa scoffed as she picked up her menu to hold it below her mouth, hiding her unguarded grin.

"jI can hearr jit now. 'Wherre-eeeverr do jyou parrk jyourr yacht, Sai'ella.'"

By now, Samus had enough time to get her coven of sisters exact. They were all richer than Gunray and so very, very...different. No, she was different. Again, the choices T'yeellaa made sometimes caught her by surprise. Now, the Admiral lowered her menu, no longer hiding her smile.

"Let'ss do jit."

[Samus Dage]

His eyes looked at her from over the top of the menu.

Her smile was radiant.

And sitting beside her was the wonderful life they'd brought into the galaxy together. All grown up, off having her own career. It was a future that he'd never thought possible for a man such as him. And now?

Now.

Samus Dage finally lowered his own menu.

The reading glasses were slowly removed as he meticulously replaced them in their case. He snapped it shut, and returned it to the right breast pocket of his shirt.

"You're serious, aren't you."

His voice was a quiet rumble.

[Saa'riaana Dage]

She knew that look on her father's face. She could read him like a book at times, and now was just such a time.

"jI knew jit!"

She leaned back, a smile from one eartip to the other.

"Ha!"

Saa'ri stopped just short of slapping the table with the palm of her hand. Rather, she flagged the waitress, placing an order for three entrees for take-out.

Looking to her mother, she waved a dismissive hand.

"You've arrranged forr quarrterrs on the statjion, jI know that much. So how about we eat lunch therre jinstead of herre?"

There seemed to be a pause, and the halfbreed gave her mother a reassuring wink.

Of course, it also made it less awkward for when she decided to tell them the real reason for her seemingly spontaneous visit.

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

Now how in blazes did she know that? T'yeellaa began to look surprised, but the expression died mid-execution. That had been a regular part of this little ritual too.

"jYou know, jyou'rre a meddlesome ljittle thjing. jYou know that?"

Definitely a Meorrrei. The trait had merely skipped a generation. The Admiral shrugged her padded shoulders, falling in lockstep with her daughter's suggestion.

"jI ljike the ssound of that."

[Samus Dage]

* * *

The quarters that'd been provided were just like the ones provided the year before. And the year before that. And so forth and so on. Oh, a few things changed, but overall it was the same, and it was that familiarity that Samus Dage enjoyed. The trappings could change, so long as the company and layout remained the same. This year his 'company' included a wonderfully surprising extra, in the form of his and T'yeellaa's daughter. She was the perfect melding of mother and father, bringing together parts of the other into something wholly new and wondrous.

And now, half-sitting and half-reclining back into the comfort of a sofa, with T'yeellaa nearly curled up in his lap and Saa'ri busying herself with correspondence in one of the bedrooms, Samus happily kept his arms securely wrapped around the woman who'd kept him wrapped around her little finger.

"You know," he voice was low, "I have to ask... "

His head angled down ever so slightly so that he could rest his chin atop her head. Her hair smelled of Myomarian lilacs and sweet peas. He breathed in deeply through his nose, his eyes closing in content. Just another of the small touches that she paid mind to with incredible detail. It never ceased to amaze him.

"How long has this notion to tie the knot been rattling about in your head, Kitten?"

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

This was her favorite place to be, and the Admiral enjoyed the times when she could let down her defenses and lean into the embrace of the man she'd so improbably loved for so long. It didn't take long in Samus's close proximity for that low, familiar purr to begin as if it never missed a beat. They could be apart for weeks, months, even a year. The heart didn't mark time.

"How long?"

T'yeellaa hadn't marked time on a lot of things, it seemed. The lazy rise and fall of her tail slowed, and she reluctantly tilted her head up.

"jI don't know..."

Truth and lie tangled together to the point where they could be one and the same.

"jI thought about a lot of thjingss, Quentjin."

What was she afraid of saying? That it hadn't been a sudden plot to pop into her head? That she'd always wanted it in some way? Was she afraid that would make him seem aloof? She wrapped her arm around him closer.

"Don't thjink jI've rregrretted the chojicess we've made. Not forr an jinsstant. jIf we werre both lesss drrjiven, majybe jit would have happened ssoonerr, but majybe we would have neverr met."

[Samus Dage]

"I wouldn't be here if I thought you regretted anything we did," he reassured in a rumbling tone.

But, owing to her nature and the years they had been together, Samus gave a wry grin as their foreheads touched. She could be as off-hand as she wanted to be with whatever questions he asked of her, and he would always revel in the delight of sifting through the vagueness to get to the detailed heart. But in the moment, he only wanted to know one thing.

"Are you sure?"

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

The smile eased from T'yeellaa's face, and she looked up at her gai'tou with earnest eyes.

"jYou've been mjy gai'tou forr thrree decadess, Quentjin. Thjink of everrjythjing that hass come and gone jin that tjime. jYou sshould be mjy Arr'tai. jI haven't been morre ssurre of anjythjing jin mjy ljife."

[Samus Dage]

He thought on her words, staring into her eyes with a calm that seemed to radiate from his very core. She had always been his only. Ever since he'd first laid eyes upon her he just... knew.

And then he gave a gentle smile, tilting his head up ever-so-slightly to deliver a kiss to her lips.

"T'yeellaa Meeorrrei," he'd always imagined asking the question that he'd come to so desperately want to ask. He wouldn't get down on one knee, as she wouldn't want that. Instead his hold on her only tightened for a brief moment before one arm pulled back so that he could brush away an errant bang from her eyes.

His voice was low, so that only the two of them, sharing this moment here and now, could have all to themselves.

"... will you be my Rrou'tai?"

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

"jI..."

A breathless look caught on T'yeellaa's face as her eyes were as big as moons. She smiled, which suddenly drew up into a smirk as her left ear flicked.

"...sshould be asskjing jyou to be!"

A stammer, and she blinked.

"Mjy, Arr'tai, jI mean."

It only made perfect sense that even in the act of that ever-important question, the two of them both wanted to lead in the dance.

[Samus Dage]

A rueful grin met her, and Samus leaned back just a little bit to settle himself a bit more.

"Then ask away, Kitten."

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

"Hang on."

T'yeellaa sat up, then jumped off the couch, looking left and right for a moment. Oh, Idiot she flinched, thinking she was somehow still living aboard Jovan. No wonder none of her things were about. Her tail tuft poofed, and she glanced from Dage, then to the door, then back to Dage again.

"At the rrjissk of sspojiljing the moment, can jyou wajit ten mjinutess?"

[Samus Dage]

Now what was this?

Even after all this time, she still managed to confound him in some moments.

"If I must... ?"

There was no hint of any upset tone, but more a gravelly patience. Not to mention a bit of intrigue.

She seemed to hesitate, and Samus rolled himself forward, lifting himself up from the sofa to tower over her.

"Hurry though," he delivered the old threat with an ease that the both of them had become accustomed to, "... else I'll find some other tail to chase."

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

"Ten mjinutess!"

T'yeellaa held out a plaintive hand as she backtracked toward the door. Turning to face it as it opened, she bolted into a sprint, shouting back through the threshold.

"And orrderr champagne!!"

[Samus Dage]

Even before he could hope to answer, she was gone.

" 'Order champagne', she says."

Still though, he couldn't help but oblige, and leaning down to pluck his comm from the side table, Samus dialed in a number that he'd memorized ages ago. A voice on the other end answered, and with a healthy amount of relief he was assured that yes, the old wine and spirits shop on Jovan - Ara'Bar Cee's - was still kicking about and providing the occupants of Jovan with their wares.

"Da?"

He turned at the sound, watching as Saa'ri finally emerged from the second bedroom. He held up a finger in a signal to wait.

"Uh, yeah. One bottle. Yes. Yes. Oh now come on... "

Silence overtook him as he turned back away.

"I don't care what you're problems are you old cheat, I know what you used to charge, and for all the credits I've given you over the years... "

Another moment of quiet, and Samus pivoted back to flash a smile to Saa'ri.

"Good. And send it over quick-like, yeah?"

Before any further argument could be had from the other end, he ended the call, tossing the comm unit to the sofa.

"Now."

There was a peculiar slant to his daughter's ears, and just as in times past, he became instantly cautious.

"What's on your mind?"

[Saa'riaana Dage]

There was a moment that she paused, and Saa'ri stared suspiciously at her father.

"Wherre's Motherr?"

[Samus Dage]

"Off doing whatever it is mothers do, I suppose."

A long sigh, and he lowered himself to sit on the sofa once more, leaning forward to move his comm back to its' spot on the side table.

"Anything I can help with?"

[Saa'riaana Dage]

"Well... "

Saa'ri gave a strange look to him, then to the door.

"jI kind of wanted to talk to the both of you."

[Samus Dage]

"Have a seat then," He made a gesture to the other side of the sofa.

"I was told I'd only have to wait ten minutes, so we can wait together."

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

T'yeellaa made good time from her quarters back to Hai'rathee, breezing past the corpsman on guard at the airlock, who barely managed to get 'Admiral on deck!' past his gums before she was gone. Getting places on a Keppa class destroyer meant taking trams, and T'yeellaa beelined it for the main artery that would take her near the conning tower, where the senior staff quarters were located. She raced down the hall, artfully dodging the few lollygaggers who weren't at the threshold of getting married, until at last she pushed through into her own quarters. She went straight to her desk, yanking open a drawer as she rifled through a heap of personal effects before at last finding the object of her desire. It was an oblong leather case, and it looked a bit old.

"jYess!" T'yeellaa exalted as she clutched the box against her chest, and away she went once more. Back through the corridors, back aboard the tram, back through the airlock and the too-slow corpsman, aalll the way back to her temporary quarters on Jovan station.

When the door parted, the Admiral stood at the threshold. Her hair was beginning to rebel from it's ponytail hold, and there was a glisten on her skin as she paused to catch her breath.

[Samus Dage]

He turned his upper body to look at the sight that stood in the doorway. His expression gave away his amusement, and looking back to Saa'ri, Samus gave her a wink.

"The old cat still moves when she's got a mind to, it seems."

[Saa'riaana Dage]

Her tail slapped at the lower edge of the sofa in surprise as she rose swiftly to her feet. It'd been a long time since she'd seen even a single strand of hair out of place on her mother's head, let alone the telltale shine of the beginnings of perspiration.

"Motherr... ?!"

[Samus Dage]

He too stood, facing T'yeellaa with a devil's grin and one hand in his front pocket.

"The Spirit in the Sky herself."

All three stood for what seemed like an eternity before he spoke up once again.

"Is the Spirit going to come the rest of the way in?"

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

"jI..found jit." Admiral Meorrrei declared triumphantly between breaths, holding up her prize in the air as she stepped into the doorway. She hadn't gotten better at running with age, but at least she could still do it, with a sacrifice of dignity.

"Quentjin..."

She took him by the hand, pulling him from where he was, over to in front of the window. It was a modest window, but any view of space would do.

"...sstand herre."

She paused, blowing a stray strand of hair from her face in defiance of it's attempt to derail her. Her eyes were serious, and she was biting at the insides of her cheeks to keep her smile from usurping her.

"Saa'riaana, come sstand bjy me."

[Samus Dage]

Samus was loathe to disobey, and allowed her to pull him along to the window.

He'd not really studied up on whatever ceremony went into Cizerack proposals as the need had never arisen. And so he did as he was told with no resistance, his hand still buried in his pocket, fingers firmly surrounding the small velvet bag that he always kept with him.

[Saa'riaana Dage]

Her mother's order was followed, but there was a healthy amount of confusion written all across her features. This new strange behavior was enough to put on hold whatever conversation she'd wished to have with her parents.

"Motherr, what arre you dojing?"

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

"Ssomethjing jI sshould have done earrljierr."

T'yeellaa looked at her daughter as she passed the box to her.

"Thjiss wass gjiven to me bjy mjy motherr. A long tjime ago. Everrjy Cizerack gjirrl getss one, afterr krree rrou. jIt'ss a kaa'rri. jIt'ss a token of marrjiage to be gjiven to a mate sshe choossess. Ussualljy, mosst women go thrrough sseverral. Thjiss jiss mjy fjirrsst. Mjy onljy. jI got thjiss when jI wass fourrteen jyearrss old."

Carefully, T'yeellaa opened the old box. It creaked on hinges that were a few pivots away from failing, and the once-white silk interior had yellowed somewhat with age. Within, however, lay a delicate gold and silver chain, with a pendant in gold and an inlaid ruby. It was the kaa'rri of a woman of privilege, a beautiful token.

[Samus Dage]

Unable to help himself, Dage leaned forward slightly, craning his neck to have a look at the box's contents. T'yeellaa's explanation of what a Kaa'rri was was one he'd known, but the history behind this one was distinctly different, and his eyes went from the pendant to his little Kitten. She'd never mentioned this bit of history, and in that moment he wondered if his own token... the ring that he'd had made especially for her so very many years ago would stack up.

It was a thin gold band with tiny, intricately cut azure-colored Myomarian diamonds set atop in an artistic spiral pattern. He'd kept it in a small pouch, bringing it with him everywhere. And yet, he'd been careful enough to keep it hidden every time they saw each other.

He pulled the pouch from his pocket, returning his attentions to the well-worn bit of velvet.

"That's a shade nicer than what I have to offer, I suppose."

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

Now it was T'yeellaa's turn to be surprised by custom. Her eyes widened at the sight of the band he offered her. It was beautiful in it's own right, and it's significance was further highlighted by the fact that she knew that a token like this was much harder to come by for a man of his means.

"Quentjin, jit'ss beautjiful."

A thought came to the Admiral as she looked from the offered band, to the man who presented it. She knew from her time browsing Jovan jewelry kiosks that human customs were different. Males weren't given rings to be given to a potential wife. Only when they'd settled on the fact that they would embark on that path did they begin to make that preparation.

"How long have jyou had thjiss?"

[Samus Dage]

He swallowed.

"Well," he tried to casually brush off the significance of the ring he'd pulled from the pouch. He looked at it, and despite the years, it still shone as brilliantly as the day he'd picked it up on Myomar. Just like the woman he had wanted to give it to for so long.

"A few years. Memory's a bit foggy but... "

He coughed.

"Twenty-six, I think."

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

And at last, T'yeellaa could no longer contain her smile. It grew slowly but certainly, and she couldn't help but be amazed at how they'd both spent so long dancing around this moment right now.

"Quentjin Ssamuss Dage...wjill jyou marrrjy me?"

[Saa'riaana Dage]

She was still holding the box, her eyes having gone from its' beautiful contents to the ring that her father held out for her mother. Everything seemed like some surreal dream, watching her parents propose to one another in their own peculiar fashions. She remained quiet, letting them have their shared looks and smiles, but dammit she was here for a reason!

Her features twisted in a split-second of indecision before her mouth opened, and the words came tumbling out unbidden.

"jI'm leavjing serrvjice... "

[Samus Dage]

And just like that, his world was flipping every which way as T'yeellaa spoke those words he'd wanted to hear for so long followed by a crack shot out of left field from Saa'riaana.

Samus Dage shifted his attentions immediately from the love of his life to his daughter, and for the first time in a very long time, his mouth fell slightly open in silent shock.

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

As T'yeellaa's ears strained to catch every perfect nuance of Samus's voice in it's expected reply, three little words to her right caused the same ears to flinch. The surprise in T'yeellaa's face was delayed, still hanging on joyous expectation as she turned to look at Saa'riaana. She expected to see some sign of teasing or insincerity.

She got nothing of the sort.

"Excusse me?"

[Saa'riaana Dage]

There really was no going back now, and her ears drooped apologetically, her tail wrapping around her left leg before growing still.

Her voice was low. Not necessarily meek, just quiet.

"jI... jI'm leavjing serrvjice... "

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

And just like that, everything changed. The Admiral calmly took the case from her daughter's hands, closed it gently, and sat it on the arm rest of the sofa.

"Saa'ri, jyou've onljy jusst gotten jyourr ssurrgeon commjisssjion. What jin the Goddesss's name arre jyou thjinking?"

[Samus Dage]

His lips had formed a straight, thin line as his fingers slowly closed back around the offered ring. He wasn't really disappointed at the interruption itself, though he couldn't help but inwardly grouse over the timing of this little nugget of information.

"Not the best timing, Sprite."

His voice came out on the tail of a sigh as he moved back to reclaim his place on the sofa. He fell heavily onto it, his lanky frame finding comfort in the deeply-padded cushions.

[Saa'riaana Dage]

"jI'm not gojing to stop bejing a surrgeon, jI'm just gojing somewherre else to do jit. And jI know jit's bad tjimjing, but jI don't have much tjime... "

Her ears seemed to droop lower still, and her next words came out in a barely audible mumble.

"jI'm... jI'm jojinjing the Rresjistance... "

[Samus Dage]

With an audible groan, Samus let his head fall face-first into his waiting palm.

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

T'yeellaa's surprise turned aghast, her mouth gaping as her ears turned back a degree.

"The Rressjisstance?!"

Not just the Resistance. Mother. Was this Taataani's doing. All the Admiral could do was stand in one place to keep from shaking. Her eyes moved from Saa'ri to Samus.

"Djid jyou know about thjiss?"

[Samus Dage]

Samus gave one last final sigh, his head lifting back up as her turned his eyes to T'yeellaa.

"I did not."

Which was the honest truth. But it would do nothing to calm to storm he could see building in her face.

He lifted his hands in that universal sign of surrender.

"I swear."

[Saa'riaana Dage]

"Oh of courrse he djidn't know, Motherr."

The words were snapped out like a whipcrack, impatient even at the notion that father and daughter had colluded behind T'yeellaa's back. Saa'ri's Meorrrei temper was rising.

"jI'm old enough that jI can make decjisjions wjithout you orr Dad lookjing overr my shoulderr."

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

"Arre jyou trrjyjing to prrove ssomethjing to ssomeone? Saa'ri, jyou don't have to prrove a thjing. jYou'rre gjifted. jYou've alwajyss been. Don't take jyourr talentss and thrrow them awajy out on the frrontjierr. Thjink of jyourr carreerr, thjink of what jyou can be..."

Stammering, the Admiral again turned to Samus.

"...talk to her, would jyou??!"

[Samus Dage]

Whatever T'yeellaa was hoping he would fix was beyond his powers. Instead, he determined to follow the letters of her words rather than the spirit. One arm lifted to rest along the top of the sofa as he twisted about to look at Saa'ri.

"What brought this about, then."

[Saa'riaana Dage]

She looked to her father, her tail slowly unwinding from her leg to twitch nervously from side to side.

"jI don't know... jit just makes sense?"

Which was a non-answer, and the look on his face spurred her on to a deeper meaning.

"jI want to help people out therre. jI can help the people out therre, and jI beljieve jin thejirr cause. jIt just feels rrjight."

[Samus Dage]

Which was about as much good as he could do. She was as stubborn as both him and T'yeellaa, and he knew that to try and dissuade her would be next to impossible. The only other thing he could do was try to understand her reasons. Which, he had to admit weren't really all that different from his when he joined up with the Rebellion.

Samus looked back to T'yeellaa and gave a small shrug.

"She seems set on it, Kitten."

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

She never wanted to be the imperious, domineering figure that her mother had been. She'd thought she'd gained enough mileage away from that to be different. Now? She was faced with her own daughter, who had her own rebellion, and it was increasingly obvious there were few things she could do to make her change her mind.

Save for one.

"jI could orrderr jyou to rremajin at jyourr posstjing."

The words came softly, and T'yeellaa looked away from Saa'ri to the viewport. Her daughter's resignation would have to be accepted to be valid. If she quit her post without it, she would be a deserter.

[Saa'riaana Dage]

Saa'ri made a face at that.

"Sjince when djid you starrt gettjing authorrjity to gjive orrderrs jin the Federral Arrmy? Last jI checked, you'rre Navy."

She crossed her arms, her ears switching back. She knew that this wouldn't be easy.

"Even jif jI have to deserrt, jI'm gojing."

[Samus Dage]

That got him up, and heaving forward to rise, Samus came around the sofa with a quickness to place himself between the two. His hands came up, index fingers angled to both T'yeellaa and Saa'riaana.

"Now just hold on," it was like diffusing a thermal detonator.

"Let's not be careless with our words, ok?"

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

"Carrelesss?!"

T'yeellaa turned back to face her gai'tou and her daughter, unable to cover up her wounded expression.

"What sshould jI ssajy? jI've gone frrom the happjiesst jI've everr been to the mosst djissapojinted jin the matterr of mjinutess! Sshould jI be happjy that ourr daughterr jiss gojing to the farrthesst rreachess of the galaxjy to fjight a cult of fanatjicss? No ssupporrt, no backup. Bad enough that mjy own motherr decjided on that lunacjy! Bad enough that jI have to worrrjy overr herr everrjy dajy."

The Admiral looked at her daughter, and swallowed deeply.

"Therre'ss nothjing jI can ssajy to jyou, jiss therre?"

[Saa'riaana Dage]

There was a hope for understanding that glinted in her eyes.

"jI want to go, Motherr. jI can help people jin a betterr capacjity out therre than jI can herre, and... "

Saa'ri looked past her mother to the view of the stars. This concern about there being no safety net, no backup...

"And out therre, jI am the backup."

[Samus Dage]

He felt like a rancor in a crystal shop. In true fashion he'd managed to cut the wrong wire, and the detonator and gone off right in his face.

Any apologies would have to be made later however, as T'yeellaa had moved on from him to Saa'ri.

He could at least still try to salvage something, and he laid a hand on her arm, shifting his stance so that they stood closer together.

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

She'd lost. That realization was bitter. And within that loss came the terror. The thought that this loss was only the beginning. That she could lose Saa'ri for real. Forever.

"When do jyou leave?" came her hoarse whisper.

[Saa'riaana Dage]

Her own voice was just as low.

"Tomorrrow evenjing."

She bit her lip, eyes going to the floor momentarily before slowly rising back up.

"jI have to go out therre, please underrstand. They need me."

[Samus Dage]

Staring at his daughter, his little Saa'riaana, Samus seemed to watch a reel play of her life. From when she was born and the tiny hurricane of trouble that she had been, to the demanding toddler, to the wide-eyed pre-teen. And then she had begun to truly grow and mature, to become her own. Oh, she was always her own person, but it only really began to show itself when she'd turned fifteen. And it only went uphill from there. She had a passion for medicine, for understanding all things in the body that made a being tick. In a way it was confounding, as she'd certainly not gotten such desires from him.

She had become a woman, but she would always be his baby girl.

"You sure you can't just go back to 'operating' on your stuffed animals?" He quietly rumbled.

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

"We have one dajy." T'yeellaa nodded, resolute. "Okajy. But we sspend thjiss one dajy togetherr, asss a famjiljy."

She reached with one arm for Saa'ri, and another arm for Quentin, and she pulled them in close to her.

"And we do thjiss rrjight."

[Samus Dage]

* * *


They were alone, in their bedroom. It was nearing midnight, and Samus had welcomed the comfort of a fresh bed to share with the only woman he'd ever wanted to share anything with. But this night was different, and he lay back, a small stack of pillows supporting him as he only partially reclined. He held T'yeellaa tightly, feeling as her tail wound around one of his legs like a constricting snake. She hadn't said much when it came time to bed down for the night, and he let her have her thoughts for a small while.

Holding her now though, he offered what comfort he could.

One hand rested over her hair, and the other engulfed her own small hands in a protective grip.

"You wouldn't be a good mother if you didn't worry, or if you weren't afraid of her going out there," he offered in a whisper.

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

"jIss sshe rrjight?"

T'yeellaa curled up adjacent to her lover, her back to him. She clutched a pillow against her cheek, staring out into the stars.

"What arre we dojing herre? We'rre not bljind. Therre jiss a warr out therre. jI'm not lookjing forr a fjight, but jit feelss ljike ssometjimess jI'm hjidjing frrom one."

[Samus Dage]

He thought about that.

"What's right for one person might not be right for another, Kitten."

His fingers wound into the soft strands of her hair as he stared at the far wall.

"Where would you be if you did what your mother wanted you to do?"

Looking away from the wall and to the endtable on his side, and the velvet pouch that rested atop it, he exhaled a long breath. Disentangling one hand, he reached over to take it up, snaking a finger into the opening to loosen the delicate silk-thread drawstring. The ring came out with ease, and letting go of her hair, he ran a hand down the length of her left arm, taking gentle hold of her wrist.

The ring slid onto her finger with ease. It was a perfect fit.

[T'yeellaa Meorrrei]

Her eyes widened at the feel of the metal band sliding along her finger. T'yeellaa looked down at the beautiful jewelry, catching the faint light of stars and throwing it back. Her hand closed into a fist, and her other hand move to close Samus's over that. Once again, he'd gotten his way. Leading first on the dance floor. Tonight, she didn't mind. She needed him right where he was.

"Hold me."

With Samus's arms around her, T'yeellaa stared out into the far-off stars until she could look no longer, and fell asleep.