Blue Bird

@itsqingniao

"The Alliance? Get real. They're just Cerberus backed by the government." Independent Mass Effect OC roleplay blog for Léi Yunru, an artist, webtoonist and radio talk show host under the alias Qingniao who vehemently attacks not only Cerberus, but the Council and Alliance. Read the "Rules" page first. Thumbnail and sidebar image credit: chakhansaram

61 posts

Liselle just shrugged her shoulders. "She seems to enjoy her job, but I agree with you on the working all day thing. I dunno how she does it; I used to work all day, but a lot of what I did was just scouting and keeping watch. Not dealing with sick people," she said. Her hand than came up to her neck, toying with one of the ends of her scarf when Yunru indicated the article of clothing.

"… Yeah. It—it covers the scar I have," she said, rubbing at it through the fabric as she spoke. She hesitated when he asked what had happened to her, and then she heaved a sigh. "Certainly was dramatic, yeah. Definitely not romantic … That came quite a bit later. But how I ended up there was, well, a case of wrong place, wrong time. Guy I’d been sleeping with had Cerberus on his tail, and they caught up with him one night back on Omega while I was with him."

"Must be a doctor thing. You know how they are. Saving people, doing the world good... Such a thankless job. I always thought you had to be a masochist or something," he joked, his words falling like water. He rolled his wrist out of habit and looked up in contemplation. "What an emotional drain. Like healthy people don't already drive me crazy."

At her story, he looked tired, but not sleepy. It's as if he understood her on a personal level. "Men can be completely cruel and basic savages. Sometimes it feels like I'm a sacrifice in one of those Aztec rituals--what do they call it? Anyway, I'm a firm believer of what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. And if my perception's ever anything to trust, I'd say you got that in the bag."

She didn’t pull her arms away, although if it had been any earlier, she definitely would have. She was a bit more at ease with him now, and actually starting to like him a little. He wasn’t bad company, honestly. His last statement, however, made her skin darken with an obvious blush, and she glanced away, clearing her throat. "She did tell me that, actually. She never seemed all that distracted to me, though; she’s the head of diagnostics, and I don’t think you get to there while being distracted by something like that," she said.

"What, as a kid, or as an adult? ‘Cause as a kid, it was simply because she’d never really seen aliens before, so she followed me out of curiosity. She was probably only ten at the time. I was on the colony with my cousin every so often, so I’d stop by to see where whenever we were there. Guess it all became a sorta crush when she became a teenager," Liselle said. "As an adult well … We met again when I was dragged into the hospital by that very same cousin of mine with my throat cut open. Great way to meet after nearly twenty years, eh?"

"Then a great actrice she is," he articulated, hand motioned as if talking of a fine wine. Yunru lowered his voice but smiled. "You know what I think? I think if she had to go out of her way to say that, she's way more distracted than you think. Must be so frustrating working all day. I'm feeling frustrated for her. Not that way."

Holding a small laugh in his chest Yunru propped his weight onto his elbows and listened on. His face fell, but not of sorrow, more like surprise and curiosity, and finally became normal. He exhaled through his nose and his lips were presses firmly together. "Is that why you wear the...?" He pointed to the scarf. "When I thought dramatic, I thought about something hot and passionate, exotically forbidden. Forbidden love under the setting sun, a modern day Lady Chatterley's Lover. Not Sweeney Todd's barber shop of horrors. I don't think I've ever deflated faster. What happened?"

"She’s always just been married to her work, I guess," Liselle said with a shrug. "Being a doctor doesn’t leave a whole lot of room for a love life. Nothing quite so dramatic as a … succubus." She hesitated on the word, struggling to get it to roll off her tongue. It wasn’t a word she was familiar with, and there wasn’t really a logical translation for it in Armalian. She chuckled at his description of her, however.

"Guess so. But I guess it helped that she knew me from childhood, and not just some Asari that randomly came into her life as an adult … Although, I guess that did kinda happen too," she said. "And I probably haven’t heard of it, you’re right. Don’t read a whole lotta human literature."

"Let me guess: she told you that?" he challenged cheekily. He laughed and leaned in towards her, his hands on her arms, the way friends do. "Don't believe that. If it's one thing I learned, it's that hormones are raging flies. You're busy doing this and that but you can't focus because they keep buzzing around you and before you know it, there's two, three more and you're just positively irate. A hot mess. But, maybe not. Maybe she gets all pent up, all bothered, and unleashes holy Hell on you, mhm?"

Pulling back, he looked to be in good humor and rolled his eyes. "Oh, good," he groaned, sighing deeply. "I was starting to worry either blondie is a lot older than she looks or you have been seeing each other almost as long as I've been alive. So, give me the 411. How did you catch her again? The sun setting in her eyes? The summer breeze brushing through her long, prairie skirt like curtains? Sounds real romantic."

“‘Course I love her. I wouldn’t have asked her to be my bondmate if I didn’t,” she said, spinning the cup between her hands as she spoke. She then pushed away from the table to walk back to the sink and refill the glass for Yunru. She just chuckled at his comment about her biotics. "Hey, if you had them, you’d use them like that too."

She nearly dropped the glass in surprise, her head whipping around to stare at him in surprise, and then shoot him a rather nasty glare at his word choice. Her scowl didn’t let up at his explanation of why he’d said that. She simply refilled the glass, and then walked back to the table, sliding it back to him.

"They’ll have a hard time getting her attention," she said. "She loves me just as much as I love her. Not to mention, she’s really not the sort for romance. ‘Cept with me, of course."

Yunru looked back at her glare, saw that brimstone and fire in her eyes, and watched until she settled the next glass beside his hand. He went back to the photo album and stabbed at Cecilia's photo in his head.

"Not into romance? Oh, brother," he remarked tiredly but casually. "The only people who say that are those who've never experienced love or have had their still-beating hearts viciously and maliciously ripped out of their bare, perspiring chest by some greedy succubus." It came out level-toned by almost judgmental, passionate. He smiled and waved himself with an excuse, smiling and drinking the water. "Sorry, reading too many books these days. But, you're her one-of-a-kind, aren't you? Like her budding rose on a cold winter's day. That's touching. Mhm, the way I said that reminds me of a novel. Don't think you've heard of it."

Liselle settled herself into the chair he had kicked out for her, hands folding on the table in front of her. She smiled a little, eyes down at her hands for now. "I’m used to it by now. I’ve had a lot of partners over the years, and I’ve outlived them all … Never been … married before, but still,” she said. She then laughed softly. "Yeah, I dunno how I’d do it if I was with the same person for a thousand years. My foster parents managed it just fine, though."

Her brows went up a little as the man practically inhaled his drink in one go. He really had been thirsty. "You, uh, you want more?" she asked, reaching for the now empty glass. She then gestured to the photo album, biotics lighting up as she did and pulling it closer. "There’s a few pictures near the front of her now if you’d like to see her."

Yunru twisted the cup over the table and gave her room to settle down. Nodding his head, he patted one of her hands. "Mmm... I see what you mean. But true love is never equivocal. You love her, don't you? 'My heart will go on.' I swear you better know where I got that from, because that's what real love is: ever-lasting," he smiled, taking his hand back. He watched as the photo album, illuminated in an electric blue wave, settle in front of him. "Gnarly how you do that... Makes me feel so dreary and somber. Such a buzzkill."

Running his fingers down the spine, he tossed the cover over and his red-stained eyes flew open. "Whore of Babylon!"

He straightened up.

"Sorry, I say that every time I'm shocked. You never told me your girl was the Venus. Be careful. A lot of people might want to snatch her up. And, if you would, I'd like just one more glass."

She frowned, a little unhappy with his way of describing Omega, but she didn’t say anything about it. She figured it wasn’t worth her time arguing with him about it, and really, she couldn’t explain why she liked Omega without getting into things she didn’t want to talk about with a stranger.

"Yeah, pretty much," she said, eyes rolling to the side, her face falling just a little. "And we don’t … Or, at least, I won’t. I get to have close to a century and a half with my bondmate, but not a whole millennium. I’ll outlive most of the people I know." She felt her stomach sink a little, but she didn’t let it show on her face. The whole lifespan thing wasn’t something she liked to think about too much. "And anyone who’ll be around for my entire life I only see them every so often, so I won’t get sick of them."

He laid his right hand over his heart then kicked out the chair beside him for her to sit. "I'm so sorry. I had no idea," he exclaimed, though it sounded off. If her hands were over the tabke, he would have taken them in his. "I thought your lover--I told you 'bondmate' makes me feel funny, didn't I?--was another asari. Tough break... I'm sure it's the quality that matters. You know what they say." He leaned in and whispered to her. "I knew this one krogan couple who was married for 700 years, and let me tell you."

Backing off, Yunru tilted his head back and chugged the water down, not just taking a sip but taking the whole thing. The lump in his throat rocked, moved with every swallow. He let out a deep sigh. "That seriously hit the spot. You have no idea. Can I see her?"

She snorted. “Sorry? What’s there to be sorry for?” She knew he was talking about her apartment back on Omega, but she saw nothing to be sorry about, regardless if it was sincere or not. "My apartment back on Omega is just a little, I dunno, dark in colour scheme. This is a nice change from that." She then turns to go get him the glass of water she promised. She slide it across the table to his waiting hand once she grabbed it.

A shrug. "Most of the pictures of us are in that," she said, pointing to a photo album sitting at the edge of the kitchen table. "And a good number of them are from, like, fifteen, twenty years ago. Not really the sort of pictures we want to hang up as a bonded couple."

"Omega? That pigsty?" His eyes widened and he blew out the air from his cheeks. "Order, order! The ruling has been overturned by the State Supreme Court. This woman is lucky to be here, even if it is deprived of all color and life."

Dropping his hands to the table, he snatched the water, uncrossed his legs and turned to her in his chair. His tears have finally dried up but he was still swollen and puffy. He followed her finger to the photo album. "Twenty years? Oh, right, you asari live to be--like, what?--a millennium? Some of us would be green like a jade with envy. But spending a thousand years with someone else? As if I need to go crazy. How do you do it?"

"You still haven’t explained a damn thing to me yet. If you’re tryna act crazy to scare me away it ain’t workin’. This is my seat now." she folded her arms over her chest in defiance.

"Lord Almighty... Your seat now? What are you? Six? People always needing things fed to them like it's my job." Yunru's eyes roved over the sky of the city and, legs crossed, he folded his hands over his knee. "I see angels. You want me to explain what 'see' means, too? And then they sing and they do things to me, get my mojo all crazy like gas molecules and heated atoms. It's actually uncomfortable. But their voices are so good, so I keep them around. That easy enough for you?"

Liselle rolled her eyes for a moment. "I happen to quite like the place the way it is," she said. "A lot nicer and brighter than my apartment on Omega." And that was why she never really complained of the rather stark white layout of the apartment. It felt brighter, more alive than her Omega home. She wasn’t going to take decorating advice from a man who likely wouldn’t see the inside of the apartment a second time.

She then raised a brow. "Buddies? I said bondmates, there’s obviously a big difference between the two,” she said, a little confused by his wording. She leaned against the table, watching him for a moment. "Camera shy? You mean my bondmate? No, she’s just at work right now."

A lot nicer than her apartment, she said. All he heard was a funeral song. "I'm so sorry for you," he consoled, patting the table. It wasn't sincere.

Crossing his legs, he crashed his elbows over the table and held his face, pressing lines over his cheeks with his fingers. He coughed loudly from his dry throat and moaned. "Where's the water? I'm dying. She has no pictures of herself. Either she's insecure or the God of Islam, but something tells me it's the former. No family, not even you. Why's that?"

She just kind of looked at him for a bit as he tried to explain the reference. Growing up, foster care hadn’t been real big on enforcing classical literature. Besides which, she’d found more important (read: lucrative and fun) ways to pass the time well before they covered that unit in class. Eventually she just gave a gallic shrug and watched him pocket the phone. Finally. Now to lift it off him without his noticing. His energy was so frenetic she couldn’t really tell where his focus was. Focus was an important part of thievery.

”Mate, are you like the human mascot for anarchy? ‘Cause, like, I’m just sayin’, I’m not the biggest fan of government but I don’t go around talkin’ to strangers about it, innit?” The thief gave him a look that was a cross between confused and wary.

Yunru grunted in his scoff and stuck his tongue in his cheek. He looked like an arrogant rich boy in his turtleneck and blazer. "The human mascot? Someone filled in those shoes long before I've ever laid my eyes on the sight of you. Believe me. And their name is Commander Shepard. Not sure if you've heard of them. Big news in this part of town. Quite popular."

Arms crossed over his chest, he tapped his fingers and narrowed one eye, stole a better look at her. When he smiled, it was one-sided and white, and he made a throaty sigh deep from his chest. "And don't call me 'mate', oh God do I hate that. It's Yunru. Léi Yunru. What should I credit you as when I finish my piece? Or should I just give you the honor of being in it?"

Liselle rolled her eyes, stepping back into the apartment and making sure the door closed itself behind her. This man was incredibly critical, but it didn’t rally bother her. The choice of wall paint hadn’t been hers, anyway. It had been like that long before she moved in.

"I dunno. My bondmate seems to be fine with it. Might just be part of the lease rules that she can’t paint the walls," she said, moving to the kitchen to get the man some water. And a drink for herself as well. She really wished she could have something alcoholic right now, but with her being pregnant, that wasn’t going to happen. "What were you doin’ out there that’s makin’ you feel dead?"

"I mean this place is making me feel dead. Do her a favor and throw something in here that's not white, but don't go making it yellow 'cause that's making me all sickly. Like I'm plagued with a bad case of jaundice," he criticized dramatically, but that was his normalcy. Yunru glanced over the photos. Most of them were of sunflowers. He couldn't find one of her or the both of them.

"I thought you two were buddies, mi casa es tu casa. You're even pregnant. That makes it base four. Congratulations, by the way. Someone camera shy?"

She didn’t follow half of what he said, except that he didn’t like her hanar suggestions. That was fine, art wasn’t really her area of expertise, so being unable to find inspiration in singing jellyfish was no great loss to her. He had this tendency to rant at her, though, to which she merely raised eyebrows. “I don’t really watch the news, ‘less I’m lookin’ for sommit in particular.” Usually she looked for news post-heist. She liked the validation it gave. Yes, something expensive was missing. No, they had no idea where it went. Gave her a sense of satisfaction. She tried to keep up with his ramblings. “Mate… who the fuck is Winston Smith?” She also wasn’t sure at this point what he even meant by spiel.

"Winston Smith, that middle-aged, unorthodox rebel in Orwell's 1984. Oceania? Party? Ministry of Love? No bells? Can't do you any more favors," he flatly said, but if she didn't know, he couldn't make her know. Yunru didn't turn his cellphone off, but slipped it at the inside of his jacket's pocket.

"Oh, sister, don't make me do it again. I'm talking about your spiel. Your opinion, in other words. You said it's not your place to tell other people what to think. So what? Doesn't mean you don't think. What do you think about our great, benevolent Council and Alliance?"

"The fuck are you talking about? Are you hallucinating or something?"

A click went off inside him and he hoped he was going somewhere. He pointed to his eye.

"Look in my eyes. Do you see it dilating? This reads negative for dope. And I slept seven hours and have no history of mental illness, thank you very much. But I do have dreams. Very real ones. Ones that make me wish were reality." He dropped his hand down then looked away, up. "Wait.. I think she's coming right now. Oh... Oh, that weirdness in the periphery I told you about, it's starting."

“I don’t mean home, buddy, I mean like a mercenary contract. That’s what I do for a living, I’m a freelance Merc.” though he was right, Someone had to enjoy the chaos and life of Omega. The utter havoc and mayhem that kept the city living was no where to be found on the Citadel. Theodora hated it there. Theodora kept thinking to herself that she must not have looked much like a merc with out some gnarly big scar and weapons. Her height just did not intimidate.

"Freelance mercenary Theodora Sinclair. Look at you," he said almost in a coo. Yunru's head moved back as if he were doubting every word she said. "I don't know if this is the life you want, Theodora. All I know is that I don't envy you. Mercenaries are fine. But freelance? You better hope I'm no Officer Chen making an arrest." He looked down to her collarbones, knees, feet. The dried tears don't match his expression. "But I wouldn't bother. Like ticketing a dead man."

"Don’t snap at me, then," Liselle retorted. She wasn’t at all sorry for the shock she’d given him, and at least she could tell her message had gotten through to him. It had been a simple tap to the cheek, but the shock of biotics would’ve definitely hurt. The look on his face clearly said it did, or that it had at least been startling. Good. Maybe it had knocked whatever screw was loose back into place. But that was wishful thinking.

She stayed where she was for a long moment, and then moved to the side to let him in. "This technically really isn’t my apartment, and I don’t know how my bondmate would like me inviting strangers into her home, but as long as you’re gone before she comes home, you can come in for a bit," she said.

"Snapped? I never snapped at you. God, people. So paranoid." He brushed past her as she gave her explanation and the moist glint at the puffy, pink border of his eyes reveal he wasn't listening. Everything was so white. It glistened.

"White, white white... Has your lover ever heard of color? ...Oh, wait, I get it. You two, you and your 'bondmate'--never got used to how that sounds. You two happy together? In Heaven? That's why it's so white? Or is someone practicing their debut in the afterlife? Don't. Improvising works a lot better. You'll see." He pulled a chair back and fell into it. His throat felt raw and he surveyed the colorless surroundings more. "Hail Mary, I feel dead already."

"I have no idea what the fuck you just said to me." she blinked. "Are you crazy or something?"

Yunru's brows raised and it widened his far-gazing eyes. He focused up at her.

"It gets me, you know. Like Thor's hammer." His body rocked when he hit his back against the bench and tapped the picture on his datapad. "And the angel that comes to see me looks like her, but in a white dress flowing in the wind, swan's feathers... They don't practice abstinence. Angels. Ask me how I know."

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