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Clara is seated at a table, no surprise, and with food. This is still no
surprise, although it's something with a high garlic and ginger content and
lots of little red peppers amidst the chicken, water chestnuts, and peanuts.
At least she's careful enough not to get any on her dress uniform, even if
she is reading a novel.
Niko actually manages to catch the obligatory can-missile from the Vendotron, though he shifts it to his other hand, the better to shake the hand with which he caught it. "Stings," he murmurs. "Stupid machine. Ought to get you replaced--ow!" That would be as another can smacks him in the abdomen. "Quit that." Taking the cans--and, of course, they're both red--he quickly moves out of the machine's range, and starts to go get some food.
Ow is a sound that every doctor automatically hears, even in a crowded room.
The medical version of the cocktail party theory? Regardless, Clara glances
up at the sound, then can't help but grin at seeing the victim and the
missiles. "Don't shoot it, Niko," she calls over in amusement. "Catering
would have your hide."
"It would be worth it," Niko retorts, though not without a chuckle. "Stupid machine. I swear, one of these days it's going to clock me. I'm -not- wearing a helmet just to get a meal, though. That's just going too far." With his tray--something black and yellow and green--and a beverage other than the red cans, he makes his way over to the table. "Can I join you?"
Clara dogears her novel and sets it to the side, trying not to laugh, rather
unsuccessfully. "I'd lend you my field armor, but I don't think it'd fit.
Sit, sit, sit, please yeah. Did they let you escape from Security, or are you
just on dinner break?" she wonders amiably, reaching for her own glass of tea
to add some sweetener to it.
Niko seats himself, and offers over the red cans. "Want these? Or maybe you
could find a home for them? I've got a charity for wayward beverages, but I'm
afraid I'm full up on red cans. And I'm on a break. I, uh, have to work late
tonight." Why in the world this would make him look both embarrassed and
pleased at the same time is anybody's guess.
Clara accepts the cans and sets them next to the book, brows scooting up in
certain curiosity. "Sure, not a problem. Goodness knows I'll drink them
eventually, thanks." She tilts her head, fork trailing through her food
absently. "That isn't a paperwork expression, my fried. Guarding some
Councilor's gorgeous daughter?"
Niko shakes his head firmly. "No, no, no guarding. I actually -am- doing
paperwork and such. I'm catching up from yesterday. I, uh, went home early."
Yeah, went home to clean off the butterscotch pudding. Draw your own
conclusions.
A flash of wistfulness? If it is, it's rapidly replaced by a broad grin as
Clara reaches across the table to poke your arm lightly, obviously amused and
pleased. "Good for you. Very good for you, actually. I'm going to assume your
wife was at home, yes? How's she doing?"
Niko manages to make that cat-who-got-the-cream look disappear after a moment.
"Ela's... really good." Yeah. Ahem. He snags a gulp of his drink. "Really
busy, though. She's working late tonight, too."
Clara can't quiet hide a smirk at the expression, bending her head to her own meal to eat in silence for a moment. "So many comments, limited supply of blushing," she murmurs to a bite of water chestnut. "Busy seems to be the order of the day, yeah. I'll probably focus on paperwork tonight, myself."
"Paperwork is an adventure," Niko drawls, scooping up a forkful of black beans
and spinach. "I get to go visit Butch in Customs once I'm done here, to deal
with some of those happy RY-47's. Those," he adds, "Are the joy of my life."
Yes, he's kidding.
"Oh, I can -tell-," Clara drawls with a laugh, spearing some of the chicken and one of the peppers. "She's not a bad person, though. Just...not to be trifled with. I've likely got reports to work on since I've been in the AF offices most of the day. Anything medical go through to Security at all today?"
Niko shakes his head. "Nope, not that I saw. I've been out and about for part
of the day, though, dealing with stuff. But nobody said anything about
anything like that on the radio."
"Hmm...maybe I won't be stuck in my office all the night after all," Clara
muses thoughtfully, then shakes her head rapidly as if to clear a thought
from it, and grins. "Just one of those days with contant busywork, I think.
At least the cooks had the niceness to make something with enough spice to
keep a girl awake. How's your sister doing?"
Niko pauses a moment as if to try and figure out -which- sister, as he's got four--no, sevent of them. "Aspasia?" he ventures. "She's fine, settled in nicely to school. And she's going to go home for their winter break in a few months, so I can send some evil presents for the kids." There's a smile, then, half wistful, half wicked. It's a bizarre combination.
"Aspasia," Clara confirms somewhat apologetically, as if remembering the vast
amount of sororital family members you actually have. "I'm glad she's settled
in, then. Linnae's a whole new world, aside from literally, for going to
college on." She grins slightly at the expression, gesturing with her tea
glass. "Noisy presents?"
Niko nods firmly. "Oh, of course, definitely noisy. How am I going to get
Stavros annoyed with me if I don't send really horribly obnoxiously noisy
toys? I never did get them Sectassian rhythm sets. You'd think that they'd
design quieter toys, as many kids as they have."
"There you go, then...send them each a series of the rhythm sets, and you have
a gift that Stavros will try to shoot you with your own gun for," Clara
suggest cheerfully. "Just don't -let- him shoot you. Patching you up once for
that was plenty," she points out.
Niko shakes his head once more, still munching efficiently at his meal. "Nope, no shooting. I don't want that to happen. Besides, Stavros would never do that. Nacippe would hurt him right back, if he did."
"Somehow the idea of one of your sisters defending you doesn't surprise me in the slightest. I'd probably have to hurt someone if they hurt Rhys, and I'm not even related to him," Clara points out with a laugh, tilting some rice into the sauce left over from the chicken and whatnot.
Niko grins crookedly at that. "Hey, Mathraki's matriarchal to the extreme,
especially my family. It's not only unsurprising, but expected for that sort
of thing to happen. And, really, having all of my sisters defend me is
probably more likely. Glad that didn't, say, happen in school, though. I can
just see getting teased for having my little sister defend me." Of course, he
doesn't have a problem with it -now-.
"Hey, that's it, I need to move to Mathraki, yeah," Clara decides with sudden
mock determination. "Find a man that I can browbeat into docility," she adds,
very obviously facetious. "And I'll be little sisters can be downright
fierce, y'know? They have to learn to defend themselves from evil big
brothers."
You faintly hear a chime mark the hour.
Niko shakes his head, with a laugh. "Yeah, browbeaten and docile, that's my
dad. But, hey! I wasn't -evil-. I was a very nice big brother... er, well,
sometimes. Just don't ask my youngest sister. She likes to make up stories
about my evil just for the fun of it."
"Oh, of course, and you too," Clara points out with a wink, stirring the rice
together before munching a fair amount of it. "Missing lunch is evil," she
notes, then chuckles. "I'll have to match tickets with your youngest sister
then, just to see what stories she comes up with. Could make for amusing
gossip fodder..."
Niko shakes his head. "You'd have to go to Mathraki to do that," he says, with a grin. "Or, no--school's in session, so it'd be Hellas City. That'd be infinitely easier. And her Standard's gotten a lot better, so maybe she'd be able to tell you the stories, though I'm not vouching totally on that."
"I can wait till Corian comes back and take her? Then you'd have another sister
knowing stories," Clara wheedles, finally finishing the rice and setting her
tray to one side, although keeping the glass of tea. "Suddenly I'm really
glad I'm an only child."
Niko pauses a beat. This is not an eventuality he considered, getting
tag-teamed with two sisters. "Uh, probably a bad idea, isn't it? I mean,
Corian's really busy and all. Where is she, anyway? I tried to get in touch
with her a while back, about the time that blue-haired guy showed up, and got
a message about her being gone."
"She's off planet," Clara explains helpfully. As if this weren't already
obvious. "I'm not sure when she'll be back, but I have a message from that
Er'dan fellow for when she and Tarrant do return. Riley says he's an okay
guy, but I guess I'm still a little wary."
Niko lifts his eyes briefly skywards. "I figured out that much, Clara," he
says, while polishing off the last of his meal. "Ah, well. I'll catch her
when she gets back, I guess. And, hey, you're allowed to have your own
opinions," he adds, with a grin. "I thought he was a little weird, too,
personally. But I guess it's not all -that- surprising that Corian has some
weird friends."
"I don't have access to exactly which planet they're on," Clara adds with an
apologetic grin, leaning back in her seat and tilting her tea glass from side
to side. "Oh, I don't necessarily think he's a bad guy, rather personable,
actually. I guess I'm just suspicious when folks come looking for people I'm
fond of."
"Ran off and didn't tell anybody where they were going, did they?" Niko
inquires amiably, as he gets to his feet. "Can't say as I blame them. I'm due
back upstairs, now, though, if you'll excuse me? Got another couple hours'
work to do, alas."
"Mm-hmm, something like that," Clara allows amiably, then wrinkles her nose
with a light sigh. "Paperwork. Yeah, excusing is. Have a good night, hmm? I
should probably get back to my own office as well."
Niko nods, apparently taking the vagueness for confirmation of his guess.
Trusting man. "Have a good evening, Clara," he calls, skirting a table to
take the long way around the dining hall, the better to avoid getting smacked
again by the Vendotron. It seethes.
You head towards the Central Atrium.