Closed to @firebreathcr
She was strong enough to stay away. It was a lie she had been telling herself for months. And thus far, Natalia had succeeded in making her lie true. She had stayed far away from Poshlost, far away from Faddey’s usual haunts. She had a war to fight, scores to settle. But time had a way of changing things, and curiosity called to her, urged her to request that a soldier here or there keep an eye on them, to ensure that her hands needn’t become bloodied so needlessly so soon.
Perhaps her strength had ran out, it was the only explanation for what ensued:
Natalia Lazareva– no, Nadezhda Lacusta– crossed the lounge’s dimly lit floor, neared the bar, and tapped Thaddeus’s shoulder with a lone finger for the first time, just as she had done it a thousand times before.
“Excuse me,” she said, “would it bother you if I took this seat?”