Private Hold my beer... and my hair.

[Brie Jaxx]

Brie swiped the keycard to make the ramp of her old but trusty and customized B-29 freighter lower down before them. In her other hand and arm, she held her best friend and fellow shadowrunner Daiya , supporting her in an effort to stand still and upright. It had been a short but very eventful night at the Verdoz Jatz Club, and a bit too emotional for the blonde salvagers taste. A bit too much of everything for one night, actually. Despite it being shorter than she had expected. One thing was for sure, she would never order the drink Port In A Storm for her friend again. That concoction was devestating!

They had nearly been at each other tonight. In fact, Brie had been very close to just leave Daiya right then and there after the young and tipsy shadowrunner had started babbling about and questioning where Brie had been when not conducting Darkwire business, which in turn had led Brie to think of her parents who she still searched for when time and credits allowed. She had stayed, though. She would not leave her best friends side because of some booze talking.

''We're here!'' Brie sighed and led them aboard, lights turning on automatically.

She led Daiya to the small but cozy lounge area. Pillows and blankets were ready to use in the round sofa and Brie turned on the holotelevision from the remote laying on the table. She gave her friends face a closer look to check her status from the drinks and the walk.

''How are you feeling? You need to use the refresher?'' she asked carefully.

 

[Daiya]

Coming back out of the fresh air may have been a mistake.

The blonde-haired girl was trying hard not to look too worse for the wear. She could already feel the weight of the evening, and drink, bearing down on her. The heady rush of it returned when Brie ushered her into the starship, its narrow confines rushing up to meet her in a rude way before her friend took command. Guided into the small lounge area, Daiya was ready to sink back into blissful leisure when Brie stopped to look her over.

"I'm okay, she offered, and forced a smile. It was more of a wish than admission, but the teen couldn't allow it to be wasted. Her eyes were having a little trouble focusing on Brie, but that wasn't so bad. She'd be better once they sat down again. And way better once she had another drink. "I don't need the refresher, I just need a little pick-me-up."

Of course, Brie had already literally done that once tonight. It hadn't been her fault that she tripped, the uneven ground of the walkway had it in for her. Daiya was sure of that, she hadn't even noticed the cracks and unleveled duracrete blocks until she was face to ground with them. Brie's steady arms had set her upright, and kept her that way the whole trip back home.

"Hehe, you live on a ship," Daiya giggled, a warm grin spreading over her face now as she looked at her best friend. No matter what oddities she had about her, the scrapper girl was a treasure unlike any in the galaxy to the young shadowrunner. "It's cute, I love it. What are we drinking?"

The girl stepped right from one topic to the other, setting her foot forward, or rather she meant to. Daiya found her head pitching down, only stopping a hair's breadth from the floor as her hands found the edge of the sofa during her fall. All her senses came rushing back to the forefront, returning sobriety to her mind for a moment. And to her stomach. The young shadowrunner clamped a hand over her mouth, climbing off her knees to face Brie again. She patted her mouth for a second, and then admitted at last, "On second thought, I think I'm gonna go throw up first."

Daiya barely beat the rush of her stomach as it upended her evening into the refresher bowl.

Brie Jaxx​

 

[Brie Jaxx]

''A little pick-me-up?'' Brie repeated with deep doubt in her voice, helping her all to tipsy friend to settle down in the sofa. Daiya was amazing in that way. She was a couple of drinks from being knocked out, having made a true name for herself at the Verdoz and almost got them thrown out. Still, she wanted another drink!

''What? You want another Port In A Storm?'' she asked in disbelief, as she made her way over to the kitchenette, looking at her friend from over her shoulder. Brie looked through the cupboards and proceeded to put on a pot of tea. She heard Daiya mention that Brie lived on her ship, a fact that the younger shadowrunner had been aware of for some time now. Brie raised her eyebrows and put on a sarcastic fake smile, nodding as she prepared the tea.

''Yeah... I do. I'm sure Ahxel is going to be real impressed.'' she said oozing with sarcasm before Daiya, despite before deniance, announced her departure to the refresher and rushed past behind her. Brie left the boiling pot and followed her friend to the ships small but functional refresher. It was big enough for Brie to squeeze in also, which she did and put her arms around her best friend, pulling back some hair and supporting her forehead.

''I think we had enough for tonight, Daiya... Don't you think?'' Brie said gently as she stayed by her best friends side, ready to help her with whatever she needed to feel better.

 

[Daiya]

Joy and regret both spewed past her lips into the refresher. The girl heaved and coughed, a prisoner to her stomach as it threw up its contents. Daiya quickly felt Brie's comforting presence, rescuing her hair and wrapping gentle arms around her. She was a salve for the worst of it, this scrapper friend of hers, but even Brie couldn't save the girl from the punishments of her own body.

"Uuuunnnnhhhhh!" Daiya's low moan became a whimper, her eyes leaking just as soon as her mouth stopped. She wiped at one with the back of her hand, mopping the other with her fingertips. Her face was probably all smoodged up now, not that the teen much cared right now. She couldn't stop the tears any more than she could stop the flood of emotions that fueled them, all the emptiness and shame of the night came rushing back at her.

From the highest of highs to the lowest of lows, that pretty well summed up her night so far.

She sat back on knees for a moment, then looked back at her friend's face. Daiya nodded and failed at a smile, unable to expressed the multitudes she felt just having the other girl there. The teen made a motion to get up, steadying herself on the rim of the refresher bowl. "I think I'm okay now," she said, to herself more than Brie. Daiya got herself up, taking the couple steps over to the refresher sink to clean off her hands. As the water ran over her fingers, she looked up into the mirror.

"I look like chit."

It wasn't much of a stretch. Her lips held a dribble of her regurgitated evening still, her cheeks ran with tears mixed with makeup, and her red eyes stared back from the mixture like some creature from a horror holo. The teen shook her head, and started to pull at her shirt. "Dirty, dirty, dirty," Daiya muttered, pulling the shirt over her head and off her body. Her hands moved to the next article of clothing, and fumbled with the fasteners. Frustrated, the teen chided her fingers, "I gotta get clean!"

The refresher held a shower as well as the commode and sink, all squeezed into the narrow space with Daiya. Also squeezed in with her was Brie. Her friend's presence didn't really bother the girl, she was barely even acknowledging anything else at the moment. Much less her friend, or her modesty. The rest of her clothes fell to the decking as the girl stumbled toward the shower.

She turned the handle, and let out a shriek as the frigid water hit her bare skin. Heavy breathing and frantic adjusting got the water temperature where she wanted it, and then Daiya let out a sigh of contentment. The water ran over her body, soaking her hair, rinsing off the night's detritus and worries. She laid her palms flat against the shower wall, letting the water cascade over her exhausted form.

Daiya's head felt clearer now, much clearer. Her feet were unsteady, and the world swam around her. Yet under the tepid warmth of the shower water, the girl found a steadiness again. Her breathing turned even, and once she found some soap to use, the water began to run as clear as her thoughts now. "Brie, you were way right," she murmured as if the other girl could hear her. Nothing really existed beyond the shower for her right now and that, in itself, was satisfying. "I am definitely more drunk than I need to be."

The teen had no desire to go through all that again. The fears, the tears, the vomit. Not a pleasant way to end her evening.

"Brie?" Daiya called out more forcefully this time. She was almost done washing up, and her vision was blurry with the water in her eyes now. "Got any clothes I could borrow? Just for tonight, I swear."

"Or at least a towel?" She giggled to herself as the results of her impromptu shower began to wash over her at last. Naked on her friend's ship had not been the plan at all, and now she was glad that the water hid her flushed skin. She shut it off, letting the last of the shower dribble down from the faucet and drizzle onto her skin. A shiver rushed through her as she felt a self-consciousness return with the sudden cold of pure air on her body again. Wrapping her arms around herself, Daiya added one more thing to her requisition order. "And maybe some caf if you got it."

She stepped out of the shower, not needing to grip anything for balance this time. Her thoughts were more clear now, her footing seemed more steady, but, "Stars, my head hurts."

Brie Jaxx​

 

[Brie Jaxx]

While Daiya did that thing that hopefully would make her feel better, Brie could not avoid to turn away her head from the mess. Mostly because she didn't want to see her best friend in such a poor and vulnerable condition. Being a salvager had made her used to all kinds of funky smells, so she was hardened in that regard and it didn't bother her too much.

Brie stood up when Daiya did and followed the young shadowrunner over to the sink. That thing in the bowl had done the trick, but she still looked like: ''...chit." Daiya said herself and filled in Brie's throughts.

''Mhm.'' she uttered silently in agreement, pursing her mouth while leaning against the wall beside the sink. With her makeup all smudged like that and tears from the little eruption, Daiya was far from the pretty and cheerful girl that she was known for. While some particular shadowrunners would have the indecency to mock her for her mistake, Brie would not and it was only them here now.

Brie looked around the refresher for a moment, but in the corner of her eye something made her attention instantly fall back on Daiya and her eyes grow wide. Daiya had just pulled off her shirt as if she either didn't care about Brie's presence, or had completely forgot that she was here. Brie got tongue-tied for a fraction of a moment before she turned and jumped out the door. Staying just outside it, Brie heard how her friend turned on the shower. That was too close Brie saw more than she had really wished for and Daiya showed more than she had wished for.

"I am definitely more drunk than I need to be."

''Uhm, a little tipsy that's all!'' Brie bewildered called back in assurance to her showering friend.

''Sure! I'll get you some. Towel's in the cupboard to the right of the shower.'' she continued to the request of her friend, before she headed off to her quarters and picked up a pair of clean blue and white striped pyjama pants and a white t-shirt with a large comic starfighter print on the front. She also stopped by the galley and put on some caf for it to be ready for them in a couple of minutes.

''Can I come in?'' she asked politely and awaited a clearance that Daiya was finished and had a towel on, before she would go in and hand her friend the clothes. ''They might not be too big for you.'' she said and smiled at Daiya. There was a slight height difference between the two.

Daiya

 

[Daiya]

Her head was clear. And pounding, but at least it was clear now. The teen knew what was going on now, she could hear Brie's words guiding her to the cupboard with the towels. It was just slow going to get there, every moment punctuated by her throbbing head and shivering spine. One step at a time, one moment a time, Daiya made it work.

The towel helped abate the cold, at least. She dried most of herself off just in time to hear Brie waiting at the door. The girl's cheeks warmed with a gentle blush as she realized how awkward she had made things for her friend earlier, and wrapped her body in the modesty of the towel. It was a little tight as she tucked in the end of it, but Daiya clamped down her arm on the towel anyway just to keep it in place.

"Yeah, come in Brie. It's safe again." Daiya giggled at the implication as Brie opened the door bearing gifts. Clothes that were probably the right size for her. The teen returned her friend's smile, "I'll roll up the sleeves if I have to. Thanks."

Daiya took the clothes and shooed her shy friend back out the door. A contented sigh escaped the girl's lips as she slipped into the clothes, feeling whole again. And if she pulled the pyjama pants up a little, and cinched the waistband, the shorter teen didn't even have to roll up any sleeves.

She only paused a moment to glance in the mirror. Daiya frowned a little at her appearance, rubbing at her eyes. They were already a little droopy, and she feared she might wake up tomorrow with dark circles underneath. She sighed and turned away, running her fingers through her hair. That was tomorrow's problem.

Right now it was where to find a hairbrush.

Stepping out of the refresher, the teen was hit by just how chill the air was in Brie's ship. Had she noticed it before now? Wrapping her arms around herself, Daiya stood for a moment at the top of the ladder down to the lounge again, contemplating. She tried to be quick, pulling her arms apart to grab the ladder and get back to Brie.

A grin swept over her face as Daiya found herself facing the backside of her best friend. She wrapped her arms around a new place, capturing Brie in a backwards hug. The teen giggled as she stood on her tiptoes, dragging the top of her head along the back of the other girl's neck and her shoulders. "There, now you've been anointed with me. My shoulders are all damp, and now yours are too!"

Daiya flicked a lock of wet hair at Brie's face, giggling as it made contact for more than a second. Then she peeled it away, turning around to find her satchel again. Inside was her hairbrush, and with it the young shadowrunner started to finally tame her hair back into place. "Do I smell caf?" She sniffed at the air as she tilted her hair this way and that, maneuvering the brush to its optimal effectiveness. "Tea? Whatever it is, it smells a-mazing!"

Now that she was clean, and a little more sober, Daiya was about ready to carry on with their night.

Brie Jaxx​

 

[Brie Jaxx]

Brie shrugged casually and entered the private space after her friends assurance that it was safe to do so. She handed Daiya the small pile of clothes before leaving her to it, shutting the door after her and climbing down to the lounge.

It struck Brie that Daiya would be her first ever guest to sleep over aboard. It was a peculiar but good feeling. Good in the way that it was Daiya, her very dear friend that had introduced her to Darkwire and indulged her to become a shadowrunner. Something more than a salvager jumping from star system to star system in the hunt for richies. It was nothing wrong with that per say, she would always defend her work which led her to new places and aided her in the search for her family, but with Darkwire she had been given another kind of family which she had Daiya to thank for.

''Oof!'' Brie exclaimed standing by the galley, as a pair of arms suddenly was wrapped around her and some wet locks hit her neck and one in her face. Someone was in a better mood and seemed to feel better after a refreshing shower. It was nice having the little mischief-maker aboard.

''Yes, I can feel that!'' she uttered with laughter of amusement, before Daiya freed her and brought up the topic of caf just when the pot was ready and spread the inviting scent inside the spaceship. Brie grabbed and poured them each a mug, setting them on the small table in front of the round sofa which she had filled with pillows and blankets. While Daiya was showering, Brie had also had time to change into her own grey sweater dress.

''It is just ready! Feeling better now?'' she said and took a seat in the sofa. ''Stars, there is never a dull moment with you, Daiya. At least we didn't get kicked out.'' she chuckled with a smile. ''So, welcome aboard!''

Daiya

 

[Daiya]

"I feel a-mazing!" the teen declared, beaming from the rush of euphoria. Throwing up had been oddly cleansing, and the shower refreshing. Now here in the lounge, she was elated by the solitary time with her friend in the comfortable mess of pillows and blankets. Daiya drew one of the soft blankets up around her head, wrapping other parts of it around her like a robe. "Mmm, this is perfection. Your ship is great, Brie."

She let herself fall back, still clutching the blanket tightly around her, and bounced against the pillows as they cushioned her toppling form. A giggle quickly cleared her system as the young shadowrunner affirmatively declared, "Life's too short to be dull. Live fast, die young! Well, not this young, but that's how I wanna go."

"I wanna be somebody, you know? Like Frankie is to Darkwire, everyone always looked up to her even when she disappeared." The girl studied the ceiling of the lounge, before she rolled over to face Brie. "I want someone to be able to say 'Remember Daiya?' and everyone just knows what they're talking about. I don't care if it's, 'Remember how fierce she was?' or 'Remember all the stuff she did?' or whatever, they just gotta know, yaknow?"

Daiya was starting to get far more serious than she expected to be, and her eyes cast down to look elsewhere. A hand snaked out from the blanket-robe as she discovered the caf sitting on the table in front of them, picking up the nearest cup. She sat up to take a sip, and the warm liquid slithered down her throat. The girl smiled in bliss, and despite its brutal heat, she gulped down half the cup before setting it back down with a resounding, "Ahhhhh," but also left her mouth hanging open as she pantomimed fanning away the flames that she nearly felt upon her tongue.

Now the other arm came out, and Daiya let the blanket fall back beneath her. She stretched them both above her head, leaning her head back to gaze up at the ship's interior again, letting her eyes wander all over. She finished her pose by linking her fingers behind her head, leaning back against the wall of Brie's makeshift pillow-fort. "You can go anywhere you want to in this ship, can't you Brie?"

Her eyes fell back on her friend again, and Daiya couldn't remember a time she'd ever had an actual chance to talk, really talk, with Brie before. As long as tonight lasted, the teen aimed to do just that.

Brie Jaxx​

 

[Brie Jaxx]

Brrr. Brie fought back an uneasy feeling in reaction to her carefree friends live fast and die young motto. The last thing Brie wanted to see was for the girl, her closest friend that had invited her into her life and offered her a place in Darkwire, to live by and realise that motto. It didn't make any difference that she was used to live and work alone for what she could remember her entire life. If anything, it actually made things worse as Daiya had showed her another kind of life, a more... rich and joyful one. The terrible thought got Brie to lift her feet off the floor and wrap her arms around the knees, holding her cup of hot caf close as she cuddled up in her own corner.

As Daiya continued to explain her wish to be somebody and turned towards her, Brie met her gaze with her own silently grumbling one, and was thankful that their conversation continued in another direction. Brie was absolutely certain that the fellow shadowrunners wish would come true sooner or later, if it not already was fullfilled. Probably the latter.

''Don't you think they probably already do? You definitely must have made a lasting impression on that mirialan!'' she uttered with a giggle, finally being able to laugh about it.

Brie joined Daiya as they brought the cups to their lips and tasted the hot and strong caf. It was alright and kicked their cozy hangout up a notch, but Brie was more a fan of sweet hot chocolate, to be honest. She sat the cup back down on the table and resumed the same position as before.

''Umm, yeah... Kind of.'' Brie confirmed kind of evasive, while she also took a glance around the small lounge. ''It takes me to where I need to go... Even if really long distance travels can take some time... Sure, it has its limitations. Like cargo hold, hyperdrive... Though, I'm going to make some changes to the hyperdrive, as soon as I get the time and credits for it.'' she explained and pinched some at her fingernails in contemplation.

On a silent window between them two, Brie took the opportunity to say something that she had been wanting to say to her friend for some time now. ''I've been wanting to... thank you, Daiya. You know... For taking me in to Darkwire.'' she begun sincerely. ''It have been... fun, sometimes completely crazy I can't deny that, but still more fun than I expected it to be! You. Zo'i. Xan... All of you have been so nice, and also taught me a lot along the way.'' she continued, thinking specifily of Xan Deesa when she mentioned the teaching bit. They had done quite a few missions together, and Xan had been the older and more experienced one. Sadly, she was not with them in the same form anymore and Brie really missed her.

Daiya​

 

[Daiya]

Daiya tried to hide her amusement while Brie aired only the negatives of having her ship. It wasn't like the young shadowrunner was one of those nerdy ship types anyway, who geeked out over equipment or capabilities of machines. For all she cared, ships just were. Sometimes she wished they were a little bigger, a little faster, a little less prone to making her feel spacesick. Daiya didn't care about all that now, just that Brie had one all to herself.

After she had split from her former partner, Daiya hadn't bothered to ask about their shared ship.

"It's only a long time 'cause you're alone, yaknow?" Daiya pointed out, pulling a hand away so she could gesture broadly to the ship. "You just need a friend with you. Or a partner. Or," a wicked grin passed over the teen's face, and her voice sank lower, "A lover."

The teen giggled as she buried her head under the blanket again. Effects from the alcohol, the caf, the presence of her friend, they all swirled and congealed in her thoughts. For a moment, Brie with a lover was the funniest thing in the world. In the next, Daiya was plotting on how to make it happen. Then it was funny all over again.

She had quieted by now, and Brie was talking again. Daiya poked her head out from the blanket to look at her friend, and was surprised to find the salvager girl intoning something serious. The teen sat back up, doing her best to focus on listening, the words felt important to Brie. The older teen's reverence for her was undeniable, and it made her feel a little guilty for all the remarks she had made at Brie's expense.

"I'm really glad you like it here. Here, there, wherever we go for Darkwire," Daiya started, rambling a little. She took a sip of her caf again, letting the dark liquid swirl around her mouth. It helped focus her thoughts some more. "I love having you around, Brie, you're a-mazing. It would be way more boring and scary without you."

Her head rushed even with the implication of her fears, and the teen found herself crawling over the pillow-works to get near to Brie. Daiya threw her arms around her friend's neck, leaning in to get close enough to whisper, "Thank you for being my friend."

She tried to keep hugging Brie as she twisted into a seating position, but it didn't quite work out that way. Instead, the girl just laid her head —with hair that was no longer so wet— against Brie's shoulder. Daiya closed her eyes, enjoying the quiet moment between them.

Then, surprising even herself, Daiya asked, "Friends can talk about anything, right? Even if it's a secret?" She tried not to look at Brie, fearing what she might see in her friend's eyes now. "A bad one?"

Brie Jaxx​

 

[Brie Jaxx]

Brie answered the younger shawodrunners tease about a lover by hurling a soft pillow at her. Daiya was quick enough to evade the attack by covering herself under the blanket. It elicited some heartly giggle from them both

''Tss! You are the one that every shadowrunner boys are after like a rash!'' Brie uttered in response between the giggles. She came to think of Ahxel though, whom she met on their infiltration mission to Frego. He had left an impression with her, even though he was a part of one of the most dangerous criminal families in the system. Looking beyond that fact, she could actually see them together one day.

''I always feel so mature when drinking this...'' Brie remarked out of the blue, as she took another sip of the caf before setting the cup down again.

As Daiya crept across the couch and ended up beside her, Brie welcomed the hug with one of her own.

''I wouldn't be if you were not that awesome, right?'' she pointed out while she enjoyed their moment of shown and appreciated friendship. That was just before Daiya mentioned that she had a secret. A rather tasty one, by the sound of it. It caught Brie's attention and she looked at her friend with a mix of utter curiousness and friendly suspicion. What had the little gamine done now?

Daiya ​

 

[Daiya]

A mirthless chuckle reached Daiya's lips, and she held it back. Her eyes couldn't meet Brie's, it was too difficult. She knew her friend would be there, smirking or smiling the way Brie did. Those often delighted the teen and fueled her schemes with her friend, but now Daiya had a need to be serious. She couldn't play this off like a joke, it was a matter of life and death for her.

Her life was something Daiya trusted Brie with, so why not this?

"I—" Daiya started. Even after everything between them, she still wanted to hold back. Her secret was too important, too dangerous to just be let loose. She was starting to lose her nerve, and her hands fell to her lap. The girl played with them for a while, turning her fingers over to inspect her nails, her palms, and the patterns that seemed to tell her life story in their lines.

Her eyes were wet. She noticed it as her vision grew blurry, and quickly wiped them away. Daiya drew in her breath, sitting up straight while setting her jaw. She wasn't going to let herself down. The teen had mustered the courage for weeks now, wishing and hoping to find her friend here beside her once again. All her worries over rejection and her fears of being abandoned had to be ignored. Daiya needed to do this, to confide in someone so she could look just one person in the eyes as her true self.

"I see things, Brie." Daiya let out a thready breath, it almost impossible to talk about it. She just Saw it and drew it, that was the extent of how much the girl wanted to acknowledge her visions. If only they would let her. "Awful things. Beings in trouble, getting hurt, killed even. Sometimes even me." She cast her eyes aside for a moment. She had never Seen Brie yet in one, and silently Daiya prayed she never would. "Sometimes my friends. I have to help them, to stop Seeing it all, but it doesn't. I see new things, again and again. It never ends."

The words came easier now, but each of them felt like grenades that could explode at any moment. Daiya sneaked a peek back at Brie's face, steeling herself for a bad reaction. The girl looked away quickly, not sure whether she saw the truth or just a reflection of her own mind. "They keep telling me it comes from the Force or something. You know, like Jedi and others. I've seen people use the Force, it's not like this. They're not scared of it, they don't get bad dreams. They don't get," the word caught on her tongue for a moment, "visions like I do."

There it was.

Now it was out, and Daiya couldn't take it back. Her head felt light, while her stomach was doing somersaults. The girl couldn't stand it, the not knowing. The wondering if Brie would understand, if she could still accept her friend. It had never worked before, not really. She hoped against hope that this time was different.

The whole ordeal was exhausting. Forgetting her fears for the moment, Daiya leaned down and put her head in Brie's lap. She closed her eyes, just living in soft comfort of friendship and shutting out the world for a moment. If it was all going to end tonight, then she would at least have this one moment of bliss. "Nobody will believe me when I tell them I'm cursed." She turned her head, looking up at Brie's earnestly at last. "Do you hate me now?"

Brie Jaxx​

 

[Brie Jaxx]

Daiya's mirthless reaction and serious expression spread itself over to Brie, realising that her friend was not just going to tell her about some love interest or something else within Darkwire. Maybe something that the younger girl had done, a crime commited placing her at the top of the Corpos most wanted-list. Well, the thought had already struck Brie that they all were wanted in some way, by now. She didn't blame Daiya for that, but more the general shenanigans cooked up higher in the Darkwire ranks. A life that Brie, while reluctant at first, had slowly accepted. No, judging by Daiya's careful introduction to the matter and how she still seemed to hesitate, this was something very serious and a very delicate, greater than th more known troubles considering Darkwire.

It made Brie lean a bit closer to Daiya to show her interest and support to her, making sure that Daiya knew she was there for her whatever she wanted to tell her. Brie hoped that they had knew each other for long enough for Daiya to feel comfortable to share the most serious things with her.

As Daiya carried on struggling to tell her story, it brought a memory back to Brie. She had also suffered from similar kinds of visions. Visions of the near future, visions of people and places. Visions she still didn't understand. The first time was on Terminus, and now they came and went, triggered by something she still had to figure out. Brie wasn't scared of them, they had not been half as bad as the ones Daiya described, but it had both confused and intrigued her.

"Do you hate me now?"

Brie looked down at Daiya from the gaze of deep thought that her friends story had forced her into.

''Wha- No! Why would I hate you, Daiya?'' Brie said, thinking her friends questions showed an awful way of thinking. She laid a hand upon her friends shoulder to comfort her. ''You- You are my best friend, and friends don't hate each other. Friends stick together, no matter what happens... Curses or not...'' she continued, remembering the stories about true friendships from her holobooks.

''I... I have also had visions... Not as bad as yours, but visions of the near future... of people... and of dangers around the corner... I never really understood why or where it came from.'' Brie confessed thoughtful. If the two friends were in the same boat, maybe they could figure all this out. ''Why would you think it is a curse? Have you... talked about it with someone else? Maybe... Maybe we should go to the Jedi?'' she finally suggested, thinking if what she had read about them was true, they could give them some answers.

Daiya​

 

[Daiya]

Daiya could hardly keep her eyes straight. When her vision grew blurry, she blinked back the damp beginnings of tears. The girl drew in a trembling breath, uncertain what she might hear in her friend's voice. She couldn't bear the thought of Brie hating her, but she had to know. Daiya swallowed over the lump in her throat, holding back her tongue and her nerves to let Brie answer.

"You are my best friend, and friends don't hate each other. Friends stick together, no matter what happens... Curses or not..."

A shuddering relief coursed through her body, and the tears dropped from the corners of her eyes. Daiya wanted to scream, to jump up and dance, yet nothing but her eyes would work. After all this time, longing to tell Brie and fearing to hear the answer, all that Daiya could manage was to let the tears stream down. The weight that had crushed upon her very soul was lighter now, and still she wept. Daiya begged her eyes to stop, so she could hug Brie and say how much it meant to hear that promise of friendship.

She didn't deserve it.

Nothing felt right in the moment. Daiya couldn't understand, she felt turned inside-out and upside-down. She turned her head, managing that much, pressing her face into her friend's shirt. It was the second measure of comfort the girl had stolen from Brie in that moment. It was unworthy of her, this understanding. This closeness. Beings didn't stick with Daiya. They pitied her, or used her, or abandoned her.

So why didn't Brie? The older teen had not even a moment of doubt or disgust for the young shadowrunner. It twisted everything up inside her, as if Daiya was just waiting for the hammer to fall. Her friend pressed on with a confession of her own, even trying to problem solve for the two of them!

"No Jedi," Daiya insisted. She turned her face, dry again now, back up to look at her friend. Her mouth felt dry, as if she had spent it all through her eyes, and her voice came out hoarse until she cleared it. "I...I don't trust them. I guess I don't trust a lot of people, but not them either. Every time I get near one, like a real Jedi, I get so scared Brie. I had nightmares after one of them told me about the Force. I kept dreaming that they were going to come steal me away and it just kept never happening, and that just made it worse!"

"What do you...See? You know, when you had visions?" She was curious now, despite herself. The girl's hands played with the hem of her borrowed t-shirt, and she shifted her head on Brie's lap to match her friend's gaze again. Daiya was sincere as she told the older girl, "I've Seen myself die. Me, the people close to me, even people I've just met. I..."

The tears were back, and Daiya wiped them again. "I hate it, Brie. It's why I draw them, to get it out of me as fast as I can. I hate Seeing that chit, and I hate reliving it over and over. What else is it but a curse?"

She forced a grin, a pained smile that didn't even feel very convincing to Daiya, either. "I've never really talked about it with anyone, not like this. If we're still friends, then you're braver than I am."

Brie Jaxx​

 

[Brie Jaxx]

A bit taken by the reaction of her friend, Brie wrapped her arms around the youngest of the two shadowrunners. She simply could not understand why Daiya would think that she hated her for telling her this. You could think ill of people that stumbled into your quests and tried to steal your loot. Yes, she was thinking of boys like Cartri Keswoll , who also had manners like a gamorrean. Brie could not think of a person that she really hated in the words true meaning. Well, the persons that robbed her and Ruby Jaxx parents from them was an exception.

Brie comforted her friend and let her speak freely about the matter. Daiya wasn't that cheerful of Brie's suggestion to go and meet the Jedi, and Brie would respect that decision even if she thought it was pretty stubborn of Daiya. Brie thought of how she could otherwise help her best friend. Looking at Daiya and the tears, some dry and some wet, that now invaded her cheeks made Brie shake down the sleeve of her sweater and wipe the worst away.

''I've... seen things before they happen... You know when you have a bad feeling about something, only this is more... tangible. Nothing that had scared me, though.'' Brie explained and wiped the last tears off Daiya's face. As Daiya explained how she had visions of people dying. ''Yeah, that sounds terrible, Daiya... So, uh...'' Brie glanced down thinking before looking up again. ''What about... us? You and me? You've seen me in your visions...? Or... Ruby...?'' she asked and looked closely for a truthful answer in her friend. It struck Brie that she had not told Daiya about her and Ruby yet, things had been busy enough for tonight and there had not been a suitable time to do so.

''I'm here for you whenever you need me, Daiya. You know that, right?'' Brie assured the young and troubled shadowrunner.

Daiya​

 

[Daiya]

Warm arms encircled her, and within them Daiya melted.

The tears wore creek beds into her cheeks. She did nothing for them now, just left them to be so that she could just be.

All the girl needed in this moment, all she had ever needed, was someone to care.

Brie was everything that Daiya needed tonight, a warm embrace, a tender hand wiping away her tears, a safe haven for her vulnerable state. The teen let her friend carry on talking, the sound of Brie's voice like a salve. Daiya thought she might enjoy listening to Brie speak forever, just so that she wouldn't have to anymore.

She was tired, so tired now. Not only tired of the day's events, or the escapade on the communications station. The young shadowrunner was tired of running, of Corpos and their manipulations, of facing problem after problem. What Daiya wouldn't give to be just a normal teenager right now, worried about classes or boys or just what she wanted to be when she grew up.

Daiya didn't even know if she'd get the chance to grow up.

"Us?" Daiya asked her friend. She closed her eyes, asking herself the same question. Visions floated at the edges of her mind, just out of reach. She liked them best this way, she even tried to keep them this way. Reaching for one, any of them, just to See it again felt like a violation. She shuddered, a soft whimper fluttering in her chest.

"I don't think so..." she managed. Daiya just wanted to be again, to go back to listening. Maybe she would feel more involved, more alert again, if she took another drink of the caf. It was so far away, and her datapad was even farther. "I don't remember. I try to draw them before I make myself forget, it'd be in my holojournal if I did."

Daiya looked up at Brie at the mention of a new name. "Ruby? What does she got to do with anything?"

She stared up into Brie's green orbs, waiting for her friend to start talking again. The teen suppressed a yawn, not knowing how much longer she could stave off the inevitable tonight.

If Daiya could wish for nothing else, it was for this night of respite to last forever.

Brie Jaxx​

 

[Brie Jaxx]

Brie blinked as her own green orbs met with the blue ones of her best friend. Like if something had dawned on her. Daiya's thoughts had been diverted by the mention of Ruby, and with that tonights focus was abruptly directed to Brie. It dawned on her that she had meant to tell Daiya the whole night, but had ultimately failed because of a certain drink that set the night on collision course with an asteroid.

''Uhh... She... I... We're...'' Brie got tongue-tied when she tried to tell it to Daiya. She didn't even know what Daiya thought of the older girl that was her sister. Been, all her life, without they knowing for so long time and one single night on Denon had changed their world forever. Brie looked down, deeply sunken in thoughts, remembering the discovery just a couple of days ago and pondering wondering how her best friend would take the news.

She took the end of her sleeve and wiped a tear that was building up and about to escape. If anything, it was a happy one. She probably looked really silly in front of Daiya, but she could not help it. ''Me and Ruby...'' Brie continued and looked up, carrying a shaky but noticeable happy face. Her whole body screamed at her to smile, wide and bright, because of the piece of puzzle that had been added that night a couple of days ago. A piece she had searched for in the Outer Rims deepest and darkest places for, but that had been closer to her than she would have ever imagined. A piece of the puzzle called Ruby Jaxx .

''We're... We're siblings, Daiya...'' Brie said with delight shining through her, she even dared to smile a little. ''Ruby's my sister...''

''We... found it out when searching for her clone, you know after that stuff that happened in the Seven Corner's district? We found both of our clones, and they were behaving like they had knew each other for a lifetime...'' Brie continued to explain, looking at the cups on the table and shaking her head out of incomprehension. ''It was crazy... Yet, that odd obvious feeling when it dawned on us...''

''I'm home, Daiya...'' she stated and looked back at her fellow shadowrunner. ''I mean, where else could I be if I have my best friend and my sister right here?! You realise what that mean, right? You invited me. You took me in. You made this possible. That's a gift!'' she proclaimed and wiped another tear from her now brightly smiling face, even a giggle forced itself out, before she once again pulled Daiya into a tight hug.

Daiya ​

 

[Daiya]

Daiya could feel her friend's distress, growing gradually aware of Brie's muscles tensing beneath her head. Thoughts cleared away as the young shadowrunner slowly picked through the haze in her own mind, seeking out clarity she couldn't find in Brie's wavering voice. Daiya's breath caught, and she realized that it wasn't her own emotions she was feeling.

She sat up, leaving the warm comfort of her friend's lap to meet her face to face again. Daiya sat crosslegged on the couch, concern laced over her face. She hated these moments, the uncertainty, the helplessness. The love of mysteries she held worked only for strangers, or those eager to tell her the tale. With her friends, the people she cared most about, Daiya could barely contain herself waiting for the words to spill forth. She bit her lip from the inside, her brow knit close as she waited for the other shoe to drop.

"Me and Ruby...We're... We're siblings, Daiya..."

Daiya let her head back, a voiceless laugh tumbling out of her towards the ceiling, the weight lifting from her chest. She tucked her chin back down, a smile lit upon her cheeks now as she listened to Brie. The teen willed away the grip of terror from her mind, her friend's news was the best thing she could have heard.

Grabbing the cup of caf where it had sat discarded for a while, Daiya snuck a long gulp of it while Brie explained the sequence of events. She turned a yawn into another grin, nodded along as best she could. It wasn't clear how much longer she could stay awake tonight, but Daiya felt determined to try for every minute she could get.

All at once, the girl found herself wrapped in the warm embrace of her friend again. She held out the cup of caf, its level too low to spill anyway, wrapping her arms to complete the hug on her side. Daiya joined in with Brie's giggle, her giddiness an infectious salve that washed away the terror completely.

"Oh my stars! Oh my stars!" Daiya felt the words tumble forth, a melody of mirth and solace in her friend's joy. She pulled back, gripping Brie's forearm with her free hand. Her smile gazed upon Brie, her friend seemed wholly transformed by the news, wet cheeks pulled back in a bright smile that Daiya couldn't help but giggle at again. She had never seen Brie this happy!

"A sister, Brie! Oh my stars, you have a sister!" Daiya passed her cup over to her other hand, closest to the table, and set the caf down again. Then she took both of Brie's hands into her own, bouncing up and down on the couch with renewed energy. "That's so incredible! Like, totally astral! When did you find out, was this last week? Did you ever think Ruby felt familiar before or anything? What about your parents, do you guys remember anything about them? Ohh, you know it's kind of weird, you're blonde and Ruby's got brown hair, but you're sisters. Maybe you share the same mole or dimples! My brother and I had the same patterns of freckles on our nose!"

"Oh, you know what you should do?" Daiya was far from stopping now, she could barely contain herself. "You should get matching tattoos. Like something you both share, or something about that first moment when you realized it. Or maybe there's some animal symbolism somewhere, like a lizard with two heads or something, I don't know. I always wished I had a sister, oh my stars, Brie, this is so exciting!"

Daiya finally took a breath of air, giggling again from euphoria. Here in Brie's presence, with the secrets they shared, it just felt right to be happy. A perfect moment. A friendship she would never give up. "Ohhh, it's like seeing a whole new you, Brie. Like, the Brie With A Sister you, y'know? You should see yourself, you're practically glowing!"

Brie Jaxx​

 

[Brie Jaxx]

When Brie dropped the news, Daiya reacted in a way that relieved the blonde salvager girl, whos life not long ago had turned to little less of a mystery. That voiceless laugh from Daiya was a sign that it had landed well, but just as Brie had guessed she had a ton of questions coming after it.

Nothing could scare Brie's smiling face away now, probably not Daiya's either, especially after that hug that forced Daiya to hold the cup of caf steady for it not to spill. If that had mattered the slightest. The ever so energic Daiya took her hands and jumped up and down like jawa excited to finaly find that special part.

''Yeah, kind of! Just a couple of weeks ago! When we were looking for Ruby's clone. She were at this club, and all of a sudden mine also turned up... You know they were a meaner version of ourselves, and soon we were fighting this gang that Ruby's clone ran...'' Brie continued to explain all the while she were trying to remember the details and find the next words to make sense out of the long story. ''We could fight them off and chase after the clones who fled through a backdoor... Unfortunately, we lost them but then it dawned upon us... The conversation that they had between them... Calling each others sisters... That we were to...''

Another tear, quickly wiped away, was formed in Brie's eye. ''I couldn't believe it at first... That I have had a part of my family right here in Darkwire and on Denon, for all this time without knowing it. Ruby was the one to mention it, that night after we lost our clones...'' Brie said and wiped yet another tear of happiniess. She nodded half confirmingly.

''Well... You remember the nanotrips we went through? I saw her in mine... Along with mom and dad, but it was long after that I thought that Ruby seemed familiar with the girl I saw leaving our apartment. Like I said, I couldn't believe it... Until that night some weeks ago, when we both realised it.''

Brie reached for her cup of caf and emptied the few drops that were left in it.

''We will find mom and dad. Sooner or later.'' she said with afterthought, looking down into the empty cup. ''Until then, I guess we will have to focus on getting to know each other better.'' she said with a chuckle. It was something that she very much looked forward to, indeed. Brie beamed for herself, touched by Daiya's compliment on how she was practically glowing, before she looked up at her friend.

''If we are getting tattoos, I'm not going to let you choose!'' Brie stated with a giggle.

Daiya ​

 

[Daiya]

Her eyes shimmered like mirrors for her friend, reflecting the exhuberance and relief that radiated from Brie. From almost the time she'd met her friend, Daiya had found them to be kindred souls. Both basically alone in the galaxy, having to make it on their own, taking odd jobs in between bigger or better scores.

The only difference was that Daiya didn't mind being alone.

She could melt away in her friend's eyes, watching the mix of emotions play out like a holo-film. Brie seemed to come alive for the first time, and Daiya had a front-row seat to it all. She beamed and giggled, nodding along at the older blonde's retelling, gasping at just the moment the pair had realized their sisterhood.

"So it was like fate!" Daiya hated the idea of fate, but riding the rollercoaster of Brie's emotions let her put that aside for now. She followed her friend's eyes into the empty cup of caf, watching Brie dip into something mournful. A sister gained couldn't mend the hole left by Brie's absent parents. Her heart sank, and the teen reached up to wipe a forgotten tear off her friend's face. "You'll find them, I know you will!"

The teen grinned as her friend looked up, pulling back her hands to clasp them in front of her chest. A squeal emerged from her throat, and the younger blonde scrambled over to where she'd left her satchel. Her fingers fumbled over the fastenings, feeling thick and slower than usual, but at last she extracted her datapad.

"Oh, I have just the idea!" The artistic girl opened up the holojournal, and grimaced at the image still displayed on the screen there. She flipped to a new canvas, popping out the stylus and setting it to the screen. "Obviously, a heart. And then we'll make one side teal, that's you. And the other side is red, for Ruby."

Giddy with excitement, her hand rushed over the drawing making little marks here and there. As Daiya recognized what she was doing, she swapped colors and scribbled fast, adrenaline guiding her hand more than her thoughts. "We can even make Ruby's side a, you know! A ruby!" She cackled with her cleverness, and swapped to Brie's part as she finished up the gemstone angles. "Now your side needs something...salvage-y. Oh!"

It was almost there, a feeling more than anything else. Daiya finished it up with some dots and a few lines, mending the black crack she'd drawn in the middle with some multicolored thread. "Aaaaaand, there. Something like this, maybe."

Daiya flipped the datapad around to show off the design, hoping her friend would like it. "I know it's rough right now, but you get the idea."

She giggled nervously, waiting for Brie to comment. Her eyes wandered around, catching a glimpse of the chronometer. The teen gasped, "Oh my stars! Brie, it's almost morning already!" The giggle came harder this time. "We haven't even slept. We pulled an all-nighter sharing secrets and caf!"

Brie Jaxx​