chiron_survivor | Getting back in touch. ((for rogueinladysclothing))

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amelia

Getting back in touch. ((for rogueinladysclothing))

It has been several days since Adia has been in the Nexus.

Truthfully, her visits to the Nexus this past month have been a little sparse. She spent most of her time working on her new home and processing the emotions unearthed by her time in her Nightmare, making peace with the death of her Cylon ex-boyfriend.

And then her Cylon ex-boyfriend turned out not to be dead after all. And, well...

They had a lot of catching up to do.

But she is in the Nexus now, getting Caspar a PINpoint of his own. On a whim, she decides to get herself a new PINpoint, too, something that looks less like a stopwatch and more like a smartphone. As she transfers over her contact list, she realizes with a guilty start that she hasn't been very good at staying in touch with anyone lately.

Well, no time like the present. She'll start with the first person on her list, Amelia. She's actually seen Amelia a few times in the secluded garden near the library, but they haven't done much more than exchange pleasantries. No mention of what happened at the Halloween party. Adia didn't want to poke at fresh wounds.

But untreated wounds have a bad habit of festering...

Hi, Amelia. Thanks for the books you reserved for me, I'm returning them today. Would you like to meet up somewhere? I have some news to share.

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She starts to answer, then hesitates, a slight frown on her face. She feels like she understands perfectly Caspar's aversion to most people, but explaining it to someone else requires her to organize her thoughts first.

"He... doesn't like most humans. But even on the Chiron, when he thought he was human, he was very introverted. More than me, even." She worries her lower lip, thinking back to how quiet he was, how he only wanted to keep her company out of anyone on the ship. "He's used to people not thinking much of him -- or at least that's his perception. Avoiding others is his defense."

Adia's little comment about herself earns the smallest of smiles from the rogue. "For how many times you've asked for advice, I'd say you're more extroverted than you give yourself credit for. And if not that... I think you're incredibly brave." Not everyone is willing to put themselves out there the way Adia does. Whether it's heartache she needs help with or letting everyone know she's okay, Adia's willing to be heard and seen in a way many people aren't.

Maybe some of that stems from Amelia's doubts and fears that are lingering from the Nightmare, but she's always thought Adia was brave. Certainly braver than she could ever be.

"I hope he won't think people are like that here," she says, her smile melting into a neutral expression. "Living in a place like this can bring forward a lot of biases, but I think he'll find it's in his favor this time." A beat as she nods to Adia and takes her glass in her hands. "He has the best bias anyone could ask for in you."

The rogue's compliment presents Adia with a real conundrum: knowing how introverted she is, she simply cannot accept the label of extroversion. But to do so would mean that she can't brush off being labeled as brave, either... well, she can accept brave, but incredibly brave? The very thought makes her blush.

"I used to ask for advice from behind a computer screen," she admits. "But Josh told me that someone once hacked into the Nexus computer network that way, and I didn't want anyone to think I was up to no good, so I switched to asking my questions in person." She takes a sip of ginger ale and smiles sheepishly. "My social anxiety isn't as bad as it used to be, but I'd still prefer to send a text than to call out to passers-by."

She appreciates it, though. She needs to be brave, more often than not.

"I hope so, too, but..." She sighs. "Old habits of thinking are hard to break, you know?" And then her blush returns with Amelia's additional comment, but she laughs, too. "Are you sure?" she asks, her tone gently teasing. "You're ready to beat him up if he steps out of line. I'm sure you aren't the only one out of my Nexus friends who feels that way."

"I'm glad you came out to speak to us directly," she says after taking a few bites of her next slice of pizza. "We might never have met if you didn't." The thought of not having Adia as a friend is one Amelia doesn't want to linger on. She's glad they met and are such good friends that they can speak openly to one another like this. It's not often the rogue feels so comfortable with people she's met in the Nexus.

She's about to say something about habits when Adia calls her out on what she said earlier about Caspar. "If is right," she counters with a smile. "In the past, I'd have said when. But I trust you and your judgement enough to believe there's a good chance I won't need to exercise that option." She'll still be watching him, but she does that with everyone. That's her habit that's almost impossible to break. "I can't speak for anyone else, but if you can convince me to take it easy on him, I'm sure you can convince others, too."

The look of surprise on her face makes it clear that she's never thought of that possibility before. She had been so concerned about not violating the social norms of the Nexus that she hadn't considered the practical benefit of acting questions in person. "Oh... you're right..."

She's lucky that anyone had taken the time to respond to her electronically at all. Amelia's compassion for seeing another woman in pain over love lost was what brought them together. "Looks like there was a silver lining to Caspar being rude to me after all," she says with a faint smile. "And by the way, he's very sorry for that." In case Amelia still holds a grudge. Adia certainly doesn't.

Taking a bite of pizza, she has a moment to be pleased with Amelia's trust in her own judgement. "Thanks," she sincerely. "For trusting me, I mean. I"m still expecting him to get the shovel talk here... I mean, he's gotten it from nearly everyone on Earth, including the Centurion I helped on Galactica. One of the inorganic Cylons. He lectured Caspar in binary."

She can see what Adia's doing with offering the tidbit about Caspar, and it pulls a small laugh from the rogue. Even if she had held a grudge early today, it's gone now. Adia's too happy and convinced of Caspar's honesty for Amelia to be able to hold onto hard feelings. "If he's trying to buy you everything under the sun, I believe you completely." It's one of the many signs of trying to make up for past transgressions, and Amelia knows the feeling very well.

"You've had my trust for a long time," she says earnestly. "I believe in you." Adia inspires trust and loyalty like very few others, and Amelia feels lucky to be counted among the friends who can say they feel that. It's a warm, comforting feeling, one that the rogue couldn't begin to explain properly if she tried.

But one part of Adia's commentary earns a very confused look. "...binary?" Shovel talk she understands - and has given plenty of times - but that's a new one. Her lips draw into a thin line as she tries to work out what it is, at least in part, before clarifying her question. "The way you say that makes it seem like it's some language?"

Her smile grows in response to Amelia's words, even as she ducks her head a little at the observation. She is not too proud to accept Caspar's generosity -- in fact, part of her relishes the attention he lavishes on her when they go shopping -- but with so many people getting by with less than what she has, she can't justify anyone spending that much money on her. Not even her boyfriend.

It's much easier to accept Amelia's trust, and worth so much more to her than anything bought in a store. "That means a lot to me," she says sincerely. "I wasn't always this sure of myself, but I am about this."

As for binary, she grins and puts down her slice of pizza so she can wipe her hands on her napkin. "It is! Sort of. It's how computers operate at their most basic level." Hands clean, she rummages through her messenger bag until she finds a notebook and a pen. She flips through notes on gardening and beekeeping to get to a blank page.

"In binary, there are only two symbols. Zero and one." She writes them down. "All numbers can be expressed with a zero and a one. So... zero... one... two.. three..." She writes '0 1 10 11' respectively. "And so on. You can correspond numbers to other symbols, so you can pass on any information you like using zeros and ones. Or on and off switches, in the case of computers." She looks up at Amelia to see if she's following. "Basically, if a Centurion is going to take the time to talk to Caspar in binary, it's going to be a lot more... hmm. Serious."

Amelia watches carefully as Adia writes out numbers to... represent other numbers... on her notepad. She gives herself a little extra time to think about everything that's being explained to her by finishing off her current slice of pizza and washing it down with more ginger ale. This is more complicated than anything she's ever seen before and not even her magical translating ring is helping.

"That seems... excessive?" Her lips draw into a thin line as she cleans her hands with a napkin. "Why would the Centurion do that? If it speaks your language, why bother using this other one? Did it want to make sure Caspar didn't misunderstand him? It seems like it would take a very long time." And maybe that's the point? But Amelia doesn't fully understand.

She gives Amelia all the time she needs to think about it, working on her own slice of pizza while she waits. It's unlikely she'll have another slice, although a refill on her drink would be kind of nice. Pepperoni makes her thirsty.

When her friend finally voices her confusion, Adia can't help but giggle. Amazing how her friend both gets it and doesn't in the same breath. "Centurions are seven feet tall," she says, the beginning of a roundabout explanation. "They have machine gun ports in their wrists. Imagine one of them leaning over Caspar, a hand on his shoulder, staring at him, explaining to him in excruciating detail what will happen if he hurts me."

Maybe now Amelia will understand why the Centurion chose such an archaic language to express himself.

Knowing the full scope of who is talking down to Caspar definitely brings the point home. Even without having met him, the mental image of anyone being loomed over by a machine like the one Adia describes is rather humorous. Well, assuming she and none of her friends are the ones in that position, of course.

"That is quite the shovel talk," she agrees with a small, huffed laugh. "As intimidated as others may have been, though, I have a feeling Caspar wasn't as worried about it. Especially if he's gotten the talk from so many others." It makes Amelia less likely to give him a talk like that herself, since he's heard it so many times. She doubts she can add anything that would possibly scare him the way talks like that are intended to.

It's even funnier considering that Caspar is on the shorter side of average, but Adia is not about to bring his height into this. She's very fond of being able to look into his eyes without straining her neck. So far as she's concerned, they're a perfect fit.

"He's difficult to intimidate," she agrees thoughtfully. "Although his relationship with the rebel Cylons -- especially the Centurions -- is a little rocky." She shakes her head and exhales through her nose. That's a whole other situation that she's not inclined to get involved in, as it has nothing to do with herself. "Most Centurions take little notice of humans, but this one tried his best to help the wounded during the rescue mission. I guess we bonded a little over that."

Leave it to Adia to befriend a 7 foot tall robot with built-in machine guns.

Adia could befriend anyone, if she put her mind to it. It's not at all surprising that she befriended a machine like the Centurion.

"Maybe this will be the end of it," she suggests, a small, hopeful smile on her face. "Maybe even your Centurion friend will see that Caspar has no intention of hurting you and see how happy the two of you are together." It's a very optimistic point of view, but it's the kind that Adia ascribes to. And truly, Amelia does want the hard part of getting Caspar back to be over for her friend. "Both of you deserve the chance to settle in on your new world together."

It's the hardest friend she's ever had to make -- the Centurions were the face of the Cylon War long before any of the humanoid models. Their roving red 'eye', a red LED light endlessly cycling back and forth, was a source of many of her nightmares.

Turns out they're easy to get along with. Simple, straight-forward emotions. No mind games or lying. It's nice.

"Maybe," she replies, although she doesn't sound as hopeful. She doesn't sound upset about it, either. A little resigned more than anything. She returns Amelia's smile. "We're settling in just fine, regardless. We have a cabin that's the perfect size for us. Caspar has done so much work fixing it up. It's not like those concrete compounds on New Caprica, it's a real home."

Amelia's more than happy to avoid any topics that bring Adia down. The happier her friend is, the less likely the rogue will say anything about her own troubles.

"He's the domestic type?" she asks, a hint of a teasing note in her voice. She can't help it, really, because the thought of a Cylon dusting a house or chopping firewood seems terribly out of place. Endearing, but against their nature. "What kinds of things has he done for the place to make it more like a true home for the two of you?"

Adia grins in response to Amelia's teasing tone. It's not something people would suspect of a Cylon, especially not a Five, but she always had a feeling that Caspar would enjoy playing house, back when she knew him as something of a homebody on the Chiron.

"The first thing he did was build a wardrobe for our clothes," she says with a laugh. "But he built shelves, too. Put together furniture, improved the wiring to the generator... stuff like that. He helps garden, but it's not his favorite thing to do because he gets dirty." She leans in, as if sharing a scandalous secret. "And I think he's scared of the bees. Or scared for me. When I'm working on the hive, he has to go back inside the cabin because he gets too nervous."

The little "secret" Adia reveals to her earns a honest, open laugh from Amelia. The idea of anyone being afraid enough of bees (or anything, really) to hide away that way is really amusing. She's fairly certain she's never seen anything quite like what her friend is describing in her whole life. Not this viscerally, at least.

"Sorry," she says when her laughter subsides. "I know I shouldn't laugh, but it's a very funny thought." A beat so she can laugh a little more. "Does he watch you extra close while you're outside with the hive, too?" She's honestly imagining him peeking out of the closest window now as she works with the bees, wanting to go help but unable to do so.

"I don't think he can bear to look at all," she admits, "But it's hard to tell. I don't have the best peripheral vision with my headgear on."

She feels a little bad for bringing it up; she knows that Amelia is not being mean-spirited with her laughter, but she's pretty sure Caspar wouldn't appreciate it. It was too strange of an anecdote to not mention, however. "He helps with just about everything else, though. Even the cooking. He doesn't need to eat that much, but he has a real knack for knowing how long to cook any particular thing. Nothing gets burned or over-boiled on his watch."

The anecdote is appreciated, not only for how well it broke up the tension, but also because it was just... funny. Sometimes a person simply needs to laugh at something so out of the ordinary.

"That's a very useful skill to have when you live on your own." One that Amelia's never worked on because, well, she doesn't live in a place where she has to cook for herself. It helps that she prefers to eat fruits, breads, and dried meats when she stays in for days at a time. "Do you grow any herbs or spices in your garden for your cooking? I can offer some suggestions based on the kinds of foods you prepare." A beat, and she smirks again. "I have quite a bit of experience with that, actually."

"I remember he used to make random stuff with his electric plate so we wouldn't have to go to the mess hall for every meal." She smiles softly at the memory. It's nice when something from his past matches up to his present. It gives a continuity to their relationship despite the three years apart.

Amelia's offer is met with a bright smile. "I'd love to hear your suggestions. We have a little herb box in our windowsill currently, we'll expand to the garden outside in the spring. You carry herbs around with you, right? I didn't realize you used them for cooking." Now that she thinks about it, she's not sure why Amelia has all those herbs on her, except to make tea sometimes.

She shakes her head after Adia asks the second question and takes a moment to finish off her ginger ale. "I don't have any place to cook with them. The inn has a wonderful cook that I'm happy to put to work since I don't have a kitchen in my room." It simplifies her life a lot, actually, and that's something Amelia doesn't mind at all.

After flagging down the waitress for another drink refill, she turns her attention back to Adia. "My family were-- are spice merchants back home. I grew up learning all about them and their uses. What I always have on my person is for medicinal purposes - basic first aid and the like - or additions to tea. Much of it can be used for cooking as well, but I don't use it that way." The lack of kitchen being the main reason why, of course.

"I always suggest the basics when someone is beginning an herb garden - oregano, basil, sage, dill - but what to grow really depends on what you're cooking most often. Rosemary is another staple that's often suggested, but it can be offensive to the senses. Bay leaves and mint are far less common, but equally useful." She pauses, smiling sympathetically at Adia. "Let me know if I should slow down or if I'm getting too carried away. Sometimes I feel I know too much for my own good."

The waitress refills Adia's glass as well. She smiles gratefully and takes a long sip while Amelia talks about herbs. It makes sense that she would know a lot about them, considering her family's business. And fortunately the spices that she talks about are ones she's familiar with -- some of which grow wild on Atlantis, which makes incorporating their uses even easier.

"We grow all of those, although I use the first two the most. Caspar loves mint. He uses it as a breath freshener." She smiles to herself, thinking about why that's so important to him, before returning to the conversation at hand. "Oh, you're not getting carried away at all. Can you tell me about their medicinal properties? I've been researching that, too. Hermione lent me a book."

It's a relief to hear she's not going on too much about all of this. With all of the advanced technology Adia has access to, Amelia thought this might be boring for Adia. She smiles a little to herself as she takes a sip of ginger ale, then fidgets with the glass as she starts to explain things.

"Mint, in addition to being a breath freshener, helps with nausea and headaches. Sage is good for the mind, helping with the recalling of details of events in one's memory. Garlic can be used to treat wounds, aloe vera to treat burns or rashes. Thyme can be used to treat coughs and chest colds. Valerian is an aid for sleeping... And then of course there's things like eucalyptus and cloves for antibiotics, lavender and jasmine for calming the mind, and many others." A beat, and she huffs a laugh. "I'm sure you have medicines that do all of these things already, though."

...yeah, she really could go on for days about all of this without trying.

Quite the contrary, Adia appears very interested on whatever Amelia has to say on the topic. She almost takes out her pen and notebook, but with the table covered in the remnants of their shared meal, she decides it's better to not bother.

Some of the information Amelia shares is already known to her. Some is brand new. "We have medicines for some of those things," she replies. "But they often don't work any better than an herbal remedy. Except for antibiotics... and I suppose it depends on the severity, too. Anyway, any successful alternatives we can find would be really helpful. It'll be a while before we can manufacture certain medications."

She nods, smiling a little more. It feels good to be useful to her friend again. "I can write down what I know for you to take back with you to your world, if you'd like. I can't promise the accuracy of all of it - I'm not healer, after all - but if nothing else it'll make for a well cultivated herb and spice collection for your food."

More jokes? She must be feeling better if she's able to manage that.

"That'd be great, Amelia, thank you." She laughs at her final comment. "I can't complain if that's the final result. Fresh spices make everything taste better."

The lift in Amelia's mood has not gone unnoticed by her, but she most certainly does not comment on it, not wanting to make her friend self-conscious. She looks over the rest of the pizza and sighs happily. "That was really good... I wish I had room for more, but I'm stuffed."

Getting back in touch. ((for rogueinladysclothing))

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