(ಠ_ಠ) (break_the_cycle) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2016-04-03 20:50:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, agent carolina, commander jane shepard |
My friend had a saying: old enough to know better, young enough to do it anyway.
Who: Shepard and Carolina
What: New Co-workers go out to lunch
when: early march
where: A place
status: complete
Eating was a crucial part of being alive, but that did not mean Carolina enjoyed the concept of ‘meals’. Growing up she had spent more dinners than not on her own, eating what she could find in the cupboards or fridge. Meals out were usually with her mother’s friends and their own families, which only made her dinners at home feel even more awkward in comparison. Once she was off to college and the military, lunches and dinners were simply study breaks or MRE’s eaten in a tent between shifts. Meals spent relaxing with friends had come to be the exception rather than the rule - until now.
Now that she had resigned, Carolina was a civilian who had nothing but time for lunches and coffee breaks with friends. Not that she had many friends. She had run into her old bunk mate from basic training at the V.A. this week, but that too was becoming more business than pleasure. Her lips quirked up in a smirk. She was one poker game away from her goal, and the game was set for tomorrow evening.
Pushing up her sunglasses, Carolina squinted in the bright west coast sunlight. This looked to be the right place, at least. A swirl of enticing smells passed by her nose as she turned to see if her dining companion had arrived yet. She had met the Commander on her first day for a tour and job assignment, but something along the lines of lunch felt a bit more… informal. Which was good. Meeting for lunch was a normal, civvie act that she would learn to love. Eventually. Probably. At the very least, the delicious smells were beginning to make her stomach rumble. Everyone had to eat to stay alive, right? With a shrug and a smile, Carolina headed inside.
Shepard, on the other hand, enjoyed a good meal. She'd spent too many hard nights in the field to not appreciate good food when it was available. Her last romantic entanglement had been a great cook, before dreams and opportunities had sent her moving away.
Unlike Carolina she'd had a longer time to adjust to civilian life. Unfortunately her dreams had stopped that adjustment abruptly and in a spectacular fashion. After all, with the apocalypse nigh and a Reaper attack inevitable, Shepard had her work cut out for her. But it also meant trying to enjoy life while she recruited people to save the world.
Naturally, she was inclined to make the same mistakes in real life as she had in the dreams, and that was befriend the people she encountered. It meant it would hurt more if it came down to using them as necessary tools. But strong bonds meant stronger fighters.
The squealing of tires and the sound of what could have been a trashcan announced Jane's arrival. She parked her modified H3, barely in the lines, then got out and headed in. She spotted Carolina and came over. “Hey. Easy to find, right?”
Carolina had chosen the table for it’s good view of the dining room, the outside windows, and the fact that it was within a short dash of the emergency exit. Old habits died hard. That being said, the seat she had chosen meant that she was in a prime position to see her dining companion arrive. Was that a trash can? The H3 was definitely far nicer than her beat up station wagon and she found herself suddenly itching to see how it would maneuver at high speeds. I really should look into getting a new car.
She stood as Shepard approached the table; another habit she would likely need to break. Carolina tried to normalize the movement with a small smile. At least she hadn’t saluted. That would likely have been too awkward to cover up, even with the largest grin she was capable of.
“Didn’t even have to break out the phone nav.” She waited until the woman moved to take a seat before sitting back down herself. “If the food here tastes anything like it smells, I doubt I’ll ever need one.”
Carolina was the opposite of a foodie. In fact, most foodies would cry mournfully over the state of her pantry and the number of boxed meals it contained. She was, however, a great fan of take out food as it meant no cooking, no dishes to wash, and travel convenience all wrapped in one neat little package. She made a point to remember the good ones.
The H3 was only one tenth as badass as the vehicle Shepard kept for off road maneuvers. If by ‘off road’ one meant going straight up a mountain this is why you’re not allowed to drive Shepard
Shepard could have called it out, say ‘at ease soldier’ but instead she just smirked and took a seat. “It’s pretty good eats. Not the best I’ve ever had, but pretty good when it comes to cafe food.”
The smirk said it all. Dammit. On the bright side, it looked as if Shepard was used to dealing with former soldiers’ habits. Maybe she’d ask later how long it took the woman to properly get over them once she got out.
“It’s definitely convenient.” Carolina remarked. If she squinted, she imagined she could barely see the looming outline of the Agency building. She glanced back at her companion over the menu. “But I suppose the real question is: how good is their coffee?”
Try never. Jane tapped her finger on the table. “Its not the best. It’s actually kind of the worse. But I’ll let you in on a little secret.” She gestured with her hand, towards the street. “About a block from here there’s this hole in the wall coffee shop. They have some of the fancy stuff and I’ll never turn down a latte, but their regular brew is fucking amazing.”
It looked like her habits were sufficiently doomed. Carolina grinned at the endorsement. “Is that right.” There was a lot to learn about a new city. Even more to learn about this new city, or rather, its residents. Her attention shifted as a waitress arrived with menus and a pad of paper to take their drink orders. Remembering Shepard’s warning, Carolina opted for a glass of iced tea instead of her usual cup of joe.
It had been a while since she had eaten somewhere other than a fast food chain or out of a box and Carolina was determined to make the most of it. “So, other than the java, any other firecrackers I should know about?”
Shepard grinned at her. “There’s always the good bars.”
“I'm all ears if you're talking my kind of bars.” Carolina smirked.
“Something tells me your kind of bars are my kind of bars,” she replied. But then,there was often that common thread among ex-military like the both of them. “And I know a couple.”
“Only one way to find out.” She hadn’t been bar hopping - or clubbing, for that matter - in ages, and a new city and a list of bars was her kind of excuse for a night on the town.
“We could get started right now.” Shepard nodded towards the door. “Well. We should eat first. And it’s probably a bit too early for normal people.”
“You’re right; we should eat first.” Carolina’s eyes went from the door and back to Shepard. “Give those ‘normal people’ a bit more time to get ready to part with their hard-earned cash to buy us drinks.” She winked.
Shepard grinned back. She was really starting to like this woman. “Good thinking. Besides, I’m too young to start on a life of drinking before dark.”
“Definitely too young.” Carolina had never held a job outside of the military, but she could definitely see herself being right at home working for someone like Shepard. “Unless, of course, you’re drinking mimosas.”
“Mimosas are an every hour drink, true.” Though the last time she’d had one had been years ago. She pushed the memory away.
“My friend had a saying: old enough to know better, young enough to do it anyway.” Which likely accounted for more than a few scrapes said friend had gotten her into. “And smart enough to get away with it.” If there was a way to get what she wanted within the rules, Carolina would find it.
“That’s probably something I never want to grow out of,” Jane admitted. It was only a half truth - while she had certain aspirations for herself, she never expected to live to see them. She didn’t like to think about how her dreams had ended. The explosion. Not knowing if she’d survived and not really expecting to have.
So much for that family she’d wanted with Liara. There wasn’t much expectation for that in the real world either. Not with the Reaper threat looming. “Know plenty of older people too stupid to know better, anyway.”
“I certainly try. Not sure if I succeed or not all the time.” After the past year, Carolina had figured she had gotten too old to ‘get away with it’. She had always figured she would end up dying on foreign soil while serving her country. Then again, she was also doomed to be thrown off a cliff in her Dreams. Not very patriotic.
“Maybe they figured that when you’re too old to die young, you might as well keep being stupid.” Carolina was under no illusions that staying here and helping Wash and the other Dreamers fight… whatever it was they were fighting was anything other than another stupid war that would likely get her killed.
Her lips tugged upward in a rueful smile. At least if she died here, it would be on familiar soil defending the same people she had sworn to protect. But... maybe she should ask if there were any cliffs around first. Just in case.
“That describes half my life,” she said, her own smile tinged with something between sadness and regret. “But what’s the point of being alive if you don’t try to enjoy it. That’s what people like us fight for, right? So people can enjoy being alive.”
“We chase away the boogie men that they didn’t even know were there.” Carolina agreed. And then we die to ‘occupational hazards’. “Half sounds about right.” Well, maybe more than half. “But if we’re going to spend half our life being stupid, at least we chose the right half.”
“Sounds like something to toast to,” Shepard said. She grinned at her new friend. “We should find something really stupid to do later too.”
“I think that sounds like a plan” Carolina chuckled. “And then we can toast to those stupid things as well.”