High Light Bar, the Presidium, the Citadel, Saturday Evening

[not_a_whiner]

There was one thing you could always rely on, on the Citadel: life went on, even when invaders had stomped through it just hours ago, whether they be geth or Cerberus. They were still brushing up glass shards and blocking out bullet holes by moving planters around, here at the High Light, but the bar was open.

It wasn't as full as it would've been any other night, but there were still people coming in. Kaidan had to admire the guts of the Citadel's population, if nothing else.

The air was different, though. Until today, the locals had more or less assumed the Reaper War was something to be fought elsewhere, on different planets, well away from their safe haven. They had worried about family and friends back on their home planets, but they had thought themselves safe here.

That had changed. Kaidan could tell as much.

"This place isn't going to be the same," he said to Allie as he sank into a booth.

He wasn't sure whether he was going to be the same. He'd put a bullet in Udina's chest. That was gonna hang over him for a while.

[[ for allie. ]]

Comments

[not_a_whiner]

Kaidan let out a soft snort. "If it's going to settle down," he said. "Might be a while. A long one."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

Allie shrugged. "I've got nothing but time on my hands. So it'll work out in the end."

[not_a_whiner]

"I'm definitely going to fight for it," Kaidan said. He shot her a wry look. "But that might not fall under, uh, upbeat conversation. Again."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"It's a pretty big thing. It's not surprising it keeps coming up. I honestly don't mind listening. God only knows you've listened to me often enough at times," she reminded him. "So we can do serious, or I can ramble on about the movie collection I'm building that's starting to rival my book collection."

[not_a_whiner]

"I've just got a lot bouncing around my head," Kaidan admitted. "I just don't want to be, you know. The whiner."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"You're not. You're just working it all out in your head and figuring out the right thing to do." Allie grinned wryly. "You're not making an impulsive decision and jumping into a situation without thinking it through. That's my job."

[not_a_whiner]

"You said it, not me," Kaidan said.

He took another sip from his drink. "Yeah, the Udina thing isn't leaving my head any time soon," he said. "I just hope tomorrow I'll be able to step up and start doing something. I've been hanging around here for too long."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

She nodded, more then understanding the desire to be doing something. "I'd be willing to bet having Cerebus troops running through the Citadel is enough to light a fire under someone to get things moving."

[not_a_whiner]

"Yeah, I'm thinking the Council might finally be willing to do something," Kaidan said. He shook his head. "They've been sitting around, trying to keep their own worlds safe while Earth's burning. That's... well, I'm not going to linger too much on that."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, I can see where that would be a bad topic." The word bullshit sprang to mind.

[not_a_whiner]

"Wonder where everything's going," Kaidan said quietly. "I haven't heard from my father in a long time."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"He's probably busy. I mean, they'd let you know otherwise, wouldn't they?" Because if not, that was just cruel.

[not_a_whiner]

"No," Kaidan said, after a long pause. "I... I don't think he's busy." He looked up at Allie. "I've heard from my mom, Allie."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

Well damn.... "That sucks. I'm so sorry."

[not_a_whiner]

"She's off Earth, at least," Kaidan said, fidgeting with his beer.

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"Somewhere safe I hope?" Although after the previous few hours, safe places didn't seem to be such a certainty anymore. "Any chance of getting her to the island?"

[not_a_whiner]

"She's safe, for the moment," Kaidan said quietly. "Portalocity is getting... stingier, with trips from here. I think they're worried about the Reapers, too."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

Allie nodded. "It makes sense. When you're responsible for access to the multiverse, I guess it makes sense to keep the bad guys contained when you can. Still, if you can get her out, you know Jack and I would look out for her."

[not_a_whiner]

"Yeah, it's not that I don't trust you," Kaidan said, with a little smile. "I mean, really. Thanks."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

She met his smile with one of her own. "No thanks necessary. It's what friends are supposed to do."