What Does the Seashell Hear? I

Posted on Fri May 3rd, 2024 @ 3:12am by Lieutenant Commander Lyra Cassiel & Lieutenant Commander Andrei Petrov

Mission: In-Between (S1:E7-S1:E8)
Location: Holodeck 1
Timeline: Date 2371-10-12 at 1630
6798 words - 13.6 OF Standard Post Measure

ON


Andrei had made it clear they would do something to celebrate the life of Lyra’s papai the evening before, but the idea still hadn’t quite solidified what exactly that might be until he’d made his way to the Holodeck late at night. Calling up his program that replicated her family’s former vacation home on the beautiful shores of Oaxaca, he made just a few adjustments before returning home and getting back to bed around 0130 hours. Now that his duty shift was over, it was time for the arranged events. He’d told Lyra he would pick her up from her quarters and had given her the instruction to dress for a night near the water, figuring that would be clear enough. He stepped into a pair of sockless and laceless shoes, a pair of black shorts, and a white button up which he buttoned only about half way up. He decorated the casual beach-purposed outfit with a string necklace ending with a bear claw.

Spraying a new blend of cologne, he stepped out of his quarters and started around the hall to hers. With mixed feelings of eagerness and a bit of trepidation at the thought of coming so close to Lyra’s deepest feelings for the man who had been most important to her until his tragic death, he started working on the security code.

The only other individual who had a permanent security code to enter her quarters was Andrei, much the same as she was the only one who had one for his quarters. Of course, that didn’t bar certain personnel from entering in an emergency, but day to day there was no worry of intrusion. She heard the familiar series of quiet beeps that indicated someone was trying to get in, but she paid it no mind.

She was just finishing tying the knot of the sarong she was wearing just above her breasts which effectively turned it into a tube dress. The pattern on it was quite pretty, a dark blue background overlaid with brighter blue leaves and plants with bright flowers of orange, gold, and red on top to catch the eye. It wasn’t something she would usually wear, but it certainly seemed like something traditionally Brazilian judging by the patterns and colors. The red straps of a swimsuit rested on her shoulders, but the sarong hid exactly what she was wearing from view.

As the door opened, she was just sliding into her sandals while seated on the couch. She looked up at him with a warm smile, her dark hair loose and free around her beautiful face. She seemed excited to see him. “Hello, darling.”

“Hello.” he said, his mismatched eyes finding hers eventually, after taking in her attire and lingering on her body, being sure to stop at her lips on the way up. “You are incredibly beautiful. I can’t wait to see you walk around in it.”

With her sandals on, she stood and walked over to him making her sarong sway and move easily with the motion of her long legs. As she drew near, she caught his cologne and unconsciously breathed deeper. “That’s a new scent for you.”

She drew close and placed her hand on his chest while leaning up to give him a quick, sweet kiss in greeting. Lyra was a powerful woman in both the mental and physical sense and it was easy to make the assumption given her job and physical prowess that she wouldn’t like to be considered feminine, but the truth was she embraced it just as easily as she did anything else. She enjoyed it even, especially with a man like Andrei who made her feel more feminine just with his presence.

“I like it.”

“Oh, do you?” He asked with a smile, his hands shifting at her sarong and lifting it as he touched her thighs and bottom smoothly, and without hesitation. He enjoyed that Lyra always had something new to wear, especially considering the monotony of their uniforms. It was royal of her, and he tended to like how it showed her personality. He had never embraced that kind of flair, but he always imagined himself doing so in the future. “I thought it appropriate for the venue. A smell that goes well with the ocean and wind. Speaking of which, are you ready to go? Because only being in here with you is a temptation for me, Love.”

As he said that, his hands became firmer on her backside as he squeezed there, possessive. He knew the occasion wasn’t a particularly happy one, necessarily, so he winked to indicate he was joking, even though he was quite serious in a certain sense.

Lyra chuckled, pressing up against him briefly and kissing the underside of his jaw in a playful manner. “I’m ready, darling.”

The weight of the day was not at the forefront of her mind - she simply hadn’t allowed it to be. She had committed all of her focus to her work on her shift, getting ahead on a few projects that had been simple ideas or outlines before. Afterwards, she had focused all of her attention on getting ready, and now it was all on Andrei. She just wasn’t letting herself think about it.

“Good.” He said in a low and soothed voice. “Then let’s get out of here.”

He turned and led her out of the room, his hand in hers. As they walked to the turbo lift, they passed several crew members who had gotten very used to seeing them joined together and had even encountered Jackie coming from the lift when the doors opened. She had smiled at them devilishly and offered a whistle before stepping around them and continuing without a word, her sentiments made clear with just a sound.

Lyra chuckled but said nothing as Jackie walked past them. When the doors closed, she looked up at Andrei with a playful smirk on her face. “So much attention on us, darling. I think Jackie may be a bit jealous of you, what do you think?”

Andrei smiled at that and shook his head as if he disagreed.

“No, I know she is.” He said, and then chuckled lightly. “She says all the pretty girls in Sydney cried the day she boarded Vengeance. I told her it must have been tears of sweet relief.”

He noticed that Lyra didn’t seem to be as intimidated by Jackie as she was Revana. But he had to admit there was much less attraction between them than with him and Revana. The fact that Jackie was into women said a lot as well. Maybe he should cultivate their friendship instead.

“So mean.” She teased and slid her hand into his. “I’m sure she knew lots of lovely girls in Sydney.”

The lift came to a halt and they stepped off, walking hand in hand toward the holodeck for whatever surprise he had in store while she tried to simply focus on the moment and not let her mind wander. It was challenging this time, to say the least, but she was genuinely curious and looking forward to seeing what he had come up with. At the very least, the gesture certainly meant quite a lot to her itself.

Once they reach the appropriate floor, the two of them continued on until they reached the holodeck. Andrei walked up to the control panel and ran his fingers quickly along the surface, queuing up the appropriate program. He turned to her and gave a friendly wink as the doors began to depart and they felt the start of a nice warm breeze and the beauty of a sunset just beginning, leaving its high, yellow swell of colors with increasing orange and blue.

Taking her by the hand, he gave it a squeeze and stepped out with her onto the pristine white deck of a huge yacht. A young Brazilian man walked by in a sailor’s uniform, and flashed the two of them a professional smile. They walked past the hard surface of the top covering and onto an exposed deck with comfortable bench seating all around. He looked at her and raised an eyebrow.

“Do you recognize it, Love?”

Lyra immediately looked out to the sunset and took a deep breath of the ocean breeze. She didn’t care that it was holographic - she was someone who could suspend her own belief and embrace the holodeck like it was real when she chose to. As she caught sight of the sailor and then looked around, she gave an introspective frown. It definitely hit noted of familiarity, but it didn’t come to her right away. After looking around a few more seconds, she chanced a guess.

“Is this the Delmara? The family yacht?”

“It’s at least the same kind of yacht with the same kind of name. My research didn’t produce finer details.” He said, almost sounding modest as he got to the back railing and stood before the mile of beach owned by her family directly.

“Your drinks, my Lord; my Lady.” Sounded a voice from below them, high but definitely masculine. A vibrant and smiling man in a purple shirt extended a tray with two drinks on it. “Caipirinhas, one mango and one passion fruit.”

Andrei gestured to the tray, silently indicating that Lyra should choose first. Each had sugar on the rim and a bit of fruit garnish.

Still smiling, Lyra reached down and picked up the passion fruit drink and held it in one hand, but didn’t sip it until Andrei had his. Her eyes which were usually so unreadable were full of excitement and curiosity. She was obviously very happy with what he had done so far and they had only just begun.

“Well, it is how I remember it… though I was much shorter.”

“And you probably weren’t drinking cachaça unless your papai really did let you do anything when your mother wasn’t looking.” He said before taking a sip of his mango drink. Closing his eyes, he enjoyed the refreshing, fruity taste, before looking at her again. “Delicious, but you know they make these with vodka too, right?”

Lyra grinned, flashing her radiant smile and giggled in a girlish way. “Papai would always let me have a sip if I asked.” She took a sip of her own drink and enjoyed the sweet, tropical flavor on her tongue. “They do make these with vodka, but my papai would have never allowed that on his boat. A caipirinha had to be made the traditional way. He hardly even liked extra flavors.”

“Well, I’ll try to respect those rules today in his honor.” He said with a grin, holding his glass over the side of the boat and letting a bit of it slip into the crystal water below. He looked at her with an amiable question in his eyes.

She smiled at the gesture and then repeated it with her own drink. Her hand found his side and her eyes moved up to his. “Thank you, Andrei.”

“To Papai, his life, and the sweet memories.” He said in a gentle voice, his eyes locked on hers.

There was a shimmer of something in her dark eyes that was there for an instant and went away just as quickly.

“To Papai.” She repeated, taking a sip of her drink and then pouring the rest over the side. She watched it fall into the ocean below them with a pensive and slightly forlorn expression on her beautiful face that had immediately devoured the joy and excitement that had been there.

Andrei poured the rest of his out as well, taking the cue from her, and then dropped the entire glass. He put his arm around her waist and held her tightly as they watched it cascade to the surface of the water and splash away.

“Now we aren’t nearly as drunk as I intended.” He said, looking at her and noting her sad expression.

Lyra didn’t respond immediately and instead just leaned into him as he held her. After a few seconds though, she smiled again and seemed to refocus on Andrei himself. Her eyes met his and she squeezed his hand. “Well, we can fix that. You like drunk Lyra.”

“I like Lyra in all states.” He said, leaning in and kissing her forehead from the side. “But I remind you, Drunk Andrei can barely finish in the bedroom. Just hours of nonstop work.”

“I finish Drunk Andrei just fine, thank you.” She teased, smirking at him. “Sober Andrei always wakes up with a smile on his face, haven’t you noticed? I have.”

“Well, yes. And, after all, some people like all night fun anyways.” He said, and started to walk with her over to a young woman with tan skin and dyed blonde hair wearing a sailor’s uniform. “You, we’d like more drinks. The ones we were given…went down very quickly.” He said, looking at Lyra, “something new, this time, Love?”

“Mmm… a traditional caipirinha just to honor papai… but I actually like the different flavors.” She chuckled and squeezed his hand. “I know how much you like your mules and other things though, darling, don’t feel you have to get one too. I won’t mind.”

Andrei looked back at the attentive woman who was waiting for a final decision.

“Caipirinhas, traditional and otherwise. Keep them coming.” He said finally, squeezing Lyra’s bottom. “I plan to have my way with this one.”

The woman giggled at that and turned to carry out his orders. The fact she was just a hologram no doubt eliminated all potential embarrassment from the interaction as she left them alone in the increasingly orange sunlight.

“Oh, and if you slip a caipiroska or two in there, I won’t be angry with you.” He called out over the sound of wind to the departing servant.

“Plan to have your way with me, hm?” Lyra purred and turned into him so they were chest to chest. Her arms went around his middle loosely and she didn’t interfere with his handholds on her bottom. “What else do you have planned, darling? I’m very interested.”

“Patience, you tiger.” He said with a playful growl. “I’ll show you. Once we’ve had a few drinks, you’ll see.”

“Fine, fine.” She surrendered with a laugh and leaned in like she was going to kiss him, but instead playfully nipped his lower lip. Moving from his arms she walked over to one of the lounge chairs and reached up to start undoing the knot at the top of her sarong.

“You can’t beat a sunset here. They were always so beautiful.”

“I remember being impressed when I would come here with my mother. I saw a lot of places, but none were quite like this.” He said, unbuttoning his white shirt and then laying on a chair right by hers and allowing the sun to kiss his pale skin.

The woman returned with a tray of their drinks a few seconds after he sat down and handed both of them a traditional caipirinha.

Lyra finished unwrapping herself like a present and spread the sarong out on the chair. When the fabric settled, she was standing in her strappy red bikini that he had been so fond of on Anorra. She slid down into the chair gracefully and stretched her tall, curvaceous figure out like a cat would have and tried to ignore the fact that nearly all of Andrei’s visits to this place were when the Ivers family was in control of it.

“Did you come here often?”

“Three times, I think.” He answered. “Each one years apart. Some places we blazed out of, but I was insistent we stay a while here.”

“Well with beautiful beaches and pretty girls abound, I’m not surprised.” Lyra turned her head toward him and smiled. “What brought you and your mother here for the visits then?”

“I don’t know, really. My mother only left me around for the pleasantries. The business was conducted between herself and Lord Ivers.” He said, not being certain what on earth else he should call the man. “I busied myself with his children and, of course, half naked girls on the beach.”

“You went to the wrong beaches then, darling. There were several nude ones nearby.” She teased him with a smile and reached for her drink. “I thought after a certain age your mother might involve you more especially with your father being more absent than present given his career.”

“Yes, normally she did. But there were exceptions. And here was an exception.” He said, shrugging. “I knew about the nude beaches, but my mother had me kept away from those, at least the first two visits, that is..”

What could Yana have possibly been doing with Matthias Ivers that would constitute an exception over involving Andrei? She mulled it over for a few seconds, then realized it was not the time nor place and just shrugged while moving her attention back to the sunset. “Did you sneak out for that last one, naughty boy?”

“No, I was 17, and I talked my guard into going to a nude beach.” Andrei said with a chuckle, then he took a quick sip of his drink. “It wasn’t hard once I started thinking like a man. I don’t even think my mother found out about it, really.”

“Well, even if she did, that would be the age where she would care less, I imagine.” Lyra shrugged and crossed her long legs. “Was there anything else you enjoyed doing while you were here?”

Andrei understood that he was the center of the conversation. Normally, he wouldn’t mindX but he was quite aware the occasion was Lyra’s own trouble. He wondered if she was trying to avoid the topic, and whether it was good. He decided to allow it for now.

“Oh the food, for sure. And, once we were here during some strange festival. The locals were holding up images of some woman.” He said, thinking back on it. “I have no idea what that was about and I only watched it from a distance. But, mostly, I spent time with the Ivers children.”

“Mm… do you remember what month you were here when you saw the celebration?” She asked, staying away from the topic of the Ivers children again. Christoph was dead and it was likely his sisters were too - or perhaps worse. The sisters hadn’t been her responsibility after all.

“Mid December, thereabouts.” He said, taking another sip of his drink.

“It was probably the celebration known as Our Lady of Guadalupe.” Lyra offered up. “The Southern Dominion and Mexico have always been very traditional and honor the past much more than the present. It is a holiday celebration of a very old religion known as Catholicism. I hear some people still practice it, but it is rare.”

“Oh, I thought we’d put an end to all that, really. Quite odd.” he said, seeming less than interested in the topic. There was something about it he didn’t like, though he wasn’t interested in exploring it now. Instead, he looked at Lyra. “What was your favorite festival? Your people do love to celebrate, after all.”

“When I was younger I loved Floralia the most. With all of the flowers everywhere, everything was so beautiful.” She gave a wistful smile. “They tried their best on Luna to make it lovely, but it was never as grand and most of the flowers were synthetic to save resources and having to dispose of so many. I didn’t really celebrate many festivals living there, though.” The smile faded slowly, her dark eyes lingering on the changing sunset sky.

“Floralia was always Mika’s favorite when we were growing up. We used to have a parade and pass out little gifts to people in Moscow.” Andrei said with a smile. “Did your family give gifts as well?”

“Oh yes. We usually gave out bags of walnuts, Brazil nuts, oranges, and little rabbits carved out of brasilwood.” She took a sip of her drink and sucked the remainder off of her lower lip. “I remember people seemed to like it a lot. I didn’t really understand the meanings until I got a little older.”

“Mika used to hand out actual bunnies.” Andrei said with a chuckle, silently wondering how many of those creatures were eaten later rather than kept as pets. “I’m picturing little Lyra handing out bags in the streets. Did you celebrate here or in Brasilia?”

“We spent the first three days of the festival in Rio and on May 1 we handed out our gifts. Once that was done in the late evening we traveled to Rome to spend the last three days with the Emperor and his family.” She shifted and stretched slightly in her chair then closed her eyes. “I actually thought Rio’s display was better - Rome was grander, but it lacked a certain sense of community.”

“That can happen when people from all over the world flock there to make their fortunes or to serve the Emperor in some way.” he said, considering what she had told him. “Was it Angelus you were visiting? How often did you go?”

“It was Angelus, yes. We went every year during Floralia and often for a few days during other festivals.We’d also spend the Emperor’s birthday there with him.” She folded her hands across her flat abdomen while she continued, “of course they would come to Rio during the summer months in Rome and we would see them quite often then. During our summer during some of the hottest weather though, we would retreat to Versailles and spend time there.”

“Well, that sounds lovely. I’ve actually never seen Versailles in person.” he commented, finishing off his glass and taking another from the tray beside them. This one was lemon, and he was eager to try it. The drinks were rather strong, and he was feeling the first one already. “My interactions were generally in passing with Prince Giuseppe. He was desperately difficult for me to get along with, and I admit I tried once or twice. I must also admit I tried with Princess Giana, but..was distracted by another wild boy.”

Lyra scoffed audibly at the mention of Giuseppe and rolled her eyes. “Giuseppe… what a poor excuse of a man he must be if his boyhood was anything to judge by.”

She finished her drink and looked at the tray, deciding to try one of the berry flavors next. “He was a mean little cretin.”

“No one elver made me feel quite so thoroughly excluded as he did.” Andrei said, shaking his head. The disgust in her voice was mirrored only slightly in his. “I hope you won’t mind me saying so, considering he’s your cousin, but I hope he gives me a reason to kill him one day. After all,” he paused and looked at her, admiring the sunset in her hair. “After all, he’ll probably be sitting in my chair.”

“He pushed me down the stairs once.” Lyra said and then looked down into her drink before taking a small sip just to test the flavor. Not her favorite, but she would drink it and maybe it would grow on her.

Andrei’s eyes went wide at that, his imagination moving to picture the rough-mannered Crown Princess shoving his beloved down the stairs. He frowned deeply.

“Did they beat him for it?” he asked in a tone that matched the exasperation on his face.

“No, of course not.” She lifted her shoulders in a shrug. “I was nine. We were at the Rio palace and I walked out of my room really early in the morning. I heard arguing coming from Giana’s room, so I went to figure out what was going on and saw Giuseppe yelling at and hitting her. I don’t even remember over what. I ran up and kicked him in the back of the knee then grabbed her and we ran out of the room. Of course with the age difference, he was much faster and caught up to us. We were by one of the staircases when he did and he grabbed Giana from me and pushed me down the stairs.”

Andrei listened with the most intense interest, making it perfectly clear that his attention wasn’t even remotely divided. Taking a deep breath once she was done, he responded, “Is that the only time he hurt you? Or did he behave that way often?”

“That was the only time he did anything that violent, but he liked to pinch me or pull my hair if I upset him.”

“I’ll have to pinch him then; put three and a half feet of steel between his ribs.” Andrei said, leaning back again and frowning. He pulled his glass to his lips then and fell silent.

Lyra didn’t respond verbally, but she did reach out with her free hand and placed it on top of Andrei’s gently. He had always been protective of her, his lapse in judgment on Banea had only made him more so it seemed. She took another healthy drink of the caipirhina and let her eyes close halfway to watch the colors fade from the sky.

The sun had sunk low enough that the yellow had been banished from the sky by orange, blue, and now purple. The yacht had been sailing around the bay since they’d sat down, but was now drawing near the shoreline. The beach was populated with tourists and fire torches were being lit to ward off the quickly approaching darkness. As the pair of them finished their drinks, Andrei leaned over and looked at Lyra.

“If you could eat anything in the world right now, what would it be?”

“Picahna. The best quality, of course.” She said and shifted to sit up a bit more. “Cooked to perfection.”

He shook his head and smiled as if something were very funny.

“Gods, I’m good.” he said, and downed the rest of his drink. He was certainly feeling it now, but was only a bit more than tipsy. Standing up, he grabbed his shirt and pulled it back over his arms. Leaving it open this time, he looked at her and nodded toward the shore. “Now that we’ve got some drinks in us, lets try those jet skis”

“You know I think you’re supposed to jet ski before you drink… but oh well.” She flashed her beautiful smile at him again and stood, grabbing her sarong and wrapping it around herself. She reached for his hand and slid her fingers between his. “Lead the way, darling.”

“No, much more fun after.” he said, and lead her down a set of white stairs to the back of the boat where two tethered jet skis were housed. One was white, while the other was black. He selected the black one right away and climbed aboard. Looking at her, he smiled. “You can ride with me or we can race.”

Lyra paused where the jet skis were and seemed momentarily torn on what to do. She liked the idea of riding with Andrei, though she was also feeling rather playful. She was also ignoring the fact she used to ride on jet skis with her papai and she wasn’t sure she wanted those memories plaguing her right now. Ignoring it all was working much better.

“Race, hm?” She hopped on the white jetski and with a quick, skillful tug to the end of the rope she had hers free and used her strong leg to kick back from the dock. As the little craft floated back, she started it up and it revved to life. “Well then…”

Andrei hadn’t anticipated her getting ready so quickly, and moved to take his own rope loose as she revved her engine and sped off.

“Hey!” He shouted, sitting down and kicking off of the dock just as she had. When he was free, he gunned his engine toward her, leaning forward and determined.

Lyra laughed, the sound barely audible over the sound of the jet skis and waves, but what little could be heard sounded joyful. She twisted her hands around the handles and she was off again, fleeing from her lover as he gave chase while heading toward the shore. This was a contest she could likely win, but truthfully she was just more interested in having fun with him than anything else.

“You cheater!” Andrei shouted, laughing as he pursued her. The two vehicles were identical on the inside, and so he had no real hope of catching her unless something went wrong. That didn’t stop him from trying though, but all in good humor. He watched her stream quickly toward the shoreline and heard her laughter.

“Love and war, darling!” She called back to him and continued to lead on. If he was going to be mad at her for winning something this silly well… that would be telling. Once she reached the shallows where people were starting to swim, she let off the accelerator and began to coast toward the sand as was proper and safe.

Andrei did the same as he entered the shallows as well, and besides the sound of music in the background, pumping with a festive South-American beat, they could hear each other just fine now.

“Wait until I get my hands on you, Lyra. It’ll be all over.” He said in a joking voice with an obvious smile. The threat had nothing but playful danger in it.

“Well you know how to threaten me with a good time.” She replied just as playfully and gave him a wink. They both coasted up onto the shoreline and several holographic attendants moved to pull the jet skis up onto the sand after they hopped off. She moved to join him immediately and looked up at him with a smile, waiting to be led to their next event.

As soon as Andrei joined her, he put his arm around her and started playing with her side in a way that would most certainly tickle.

“Now you'll pay, woman.” He said, grinning devilishly. As his fingers danced along her stomach and side over the sarong.

“Hey!” She protested, immediately starting to squirm as he tickled her. “No fair!”

She swatted at his chest playfully, not really putting in any effort at trying to get him away nor was she upset by his tickling assault.

Andrei kept going for a little while longer before stopping his tickling tirade and leaning in to kiss her neck. Once he started that, however, he started nipping and assaulting her as well, enough to turn that into its own tickle eventually, he stood and smiled at her.

“Let’s go grab some food. I found a way to mix meat and beach in perfect combination.”

“Your pants interfere with that perfect combination I think, but I’m open to surprises.” She smirked at him, her neck still tingling from his attention. Looping her arm with his, they began to walk along the soft, warm sand toward the activity not far away.

“I wish I had been able to come back here after… everything.”

“I bet you do. It’s wonderful and, really, it must have a feeling of home for you no other place really has.” He said as he guided her across the sands and passed other beach goers to a large, brightly colored tent with chairs, a hundred lanterns, and a couple half-naked men unwisely standing before a giant hearth grilling meat and other food. They stepped up under the tent where music played in the background and the sound of lively conversations in Portuguese were heard. Andrei steered them to a table facing the ocean with a vibrant green and yellow tablecloth and pulled out her chair.

“Gods, do you smell that?” He asked in Portuguese, referring to the mouthwatering smells coming from the grill.

Lyra took a slow, deep breath and hummed out in anticipation. “Oh yeah, smells delicious.”

She spoke easily in her perfectly accented Portuguese and her eyes shifted over to the men cooking over the open fire. She could see the spits of meat being turned over the grills and her mouth started to water. Outside of a breakfast he had to convince her to eat, she hadn’t eaten anything all day. Taking a seat, she looked out to the ocean and the people dancing, then back to Andrei when he sat down.

“You said you enjoyed the food when you came here; did you have a favorite?”

“No contest there. When I was young, I loved pastel. Ivers didn’t serve it at his table, but my mother and I had them from some family restaurant near the beach. I remember sitting on towels with her and counting the stars.” He said, answering all in Portuguese. He had clearly been practicing in secret, and though he had made no fanfare of it and his accent was distinctly Russian, he knew the words.

He looked at the darkening sky and admired the natural beauty that came out especially as it was dark. The yacht in the distance was still making its rounds, and he watched that too. For the first time in a while, he found himself homesick. He missed Russia most of all, but he’d take a Terran swamp over an alien paradise.

“My favorite part about coming to Brazil was the history. Antonius I, the Silvas, and the founding of the Empire. I was a very patriotic young man.” He said, and looked at her. Before he could get the obvious question out, a woman in a themed bra and a pair of tight shorts stopped in front of them. She was plain enough that it was clear Andrei hadn’t taken liberties with her, and perhaps had even intervened to make sure she looked quite normal.

“Welcome to the Sunset Grille. What can I get you?” She asked, smiling at them brightly.

“Picanha and pastel for the both of us.” Andrei answered, and then looked to Lyra. “Anything else? You are the expert, after all.”

Lyra had noticed the relative plainness of the woman who had served them on the yacht and hadn’t paid it much mind, but now that another one appeared, she briefly wondered if Andrei had taken the time to make sure she felt like the most beautiful woman there. It was a sweet gesture though unnecessary, holograms weren’t a threat unless a man had a mental illness… and thankfully Andrei was not that kind of man, though he had his own vices he was working through.

“Farofa, plantains, rice, and salad as well, please.” Lyra asked with peasant politeness, not really thinking about it. When the woman left, she turned her attention back to Andrei just as another round of drinks was delivered to them.

“One of papai’s most prized possessions was an authentic journal of Antonius I. He kept it in his office with all of his other prized books, though wisely kept it out of reach of my brother and I.”

“That’s amazing. I would love to get my hands on one of those, though I’m fairly certain I’ve read the text of it before. Digitally.” Andrei responded, his hand finding her leg under the tablecloth gently. It wasn’t suggestive, but there was always a possibility it would start something. Despite that, he seemed focused on the conversation.

“That’s likely, someone in the family surely made the effort to digitize it just in case something happened, but there’s just something different about holding that kind of history in your hands.” She pressed her hands together and then opened them as if she were letting a book unfold between them. She felt his hand on her leg and smiled. They loved having sex, but they also enjoyed the physical act of touching each other. It brought genuine closeness and comfort, a rather rare experience for the both of them.

“Maybe I’ll steal it from my brother.”

Two waitresses returned then with sizzling plates of food and started to set them down in front of the couple with practiced care. Andrei joined Lyra in his mouth watering at this point, and his eyes drifted from the meat to the pastels, and then the rice. He had read somewhere that men have the same emotional reaction to red meat as they would a naked woman. Right then, he found that easy to believe.

As the women left he glanced over at Lyra to gauge her reaction.

Lyra’s eyes were firmly on the food being put down in front of them, obviously looking forward to eating it. Once the plates were set down, she picked up the bowl of rice to put some on her plate assuming Andrei would go for the meat or pastéis first. “This all looks delicious.”

As they both rotated the dishes between each other to fill their plates, she glanced up at her love. “Have you ever had the pastéis they serve at local fairs or sometimes during Carnaval that are as big as your face?”

“I can’t say I have, but I intend to fix that some day.” He said with a grin as he scooped meat and pastels onto his plate before sliding them towards her and accepting the rice, farofa, and plantains.

“Then we will; I’ll show you where to get the best ones.” Lyra promised with an easy confidence and pretty smile. After sprinkling some of the farofa onto the steak, she picked up her fork and knife to cut into it and found it to be a perfect ruby red throughout. It really was one of her favorite meals.

The two of them sat and enjoyed their meal together, engaging in conversation and sticking almost exclusively to Portuguese. Though they were in Mexico and it was a bit out of place, they rarely conversed in Lyra’s native language. The meal had been delicious and the atmosphere a definite improvement on the monotony of the gray walls and carpet of Vengeance. Once they were done, they stood up and walked into the darkness outside the tent, wading into the darkness which was only interrupted by the full moon and occasional torches and bonfires lit across the beach. Eventually, they waded into the shallows of the ocean and Andrei wrapped his arm around Lyra as they stopped, the water lapping at their ankles.

"Go home to the palace and get your dress the color of the field and all its flowers," he said, pointing to the nearby vacation home her family had owned, "and your dress the color of the sea and all its fishes, and your dress the color of the sky and all its stars. Then hurry back here to the sea for I have been preparing a surprise for you."

Lyra had been excited about the prospect of going swimming in the bioluminescent waves; it had after all been one of her favorite things to do while her family had come here on vacation. When he spoke, she blinked once and looked up at him.

“My…” She paused then and looked toward the house, contemplative. “Do I wear one…? Do I bring them back here…?” She asked slowly.

“I think you should wear the one you like the best.” he said with a smile, but certainly didn’t seem insistent in the slightest. It would be up to her to decide how she would dress herself or spend her time in the house. He knew it likely wouldn’t be very easy for her, and is likely an experience she had avoided for a while.

“Alright, darling.” She placed her hands on his sides and leaned up to steal a kiss from his lips. She didn’t press him to join her as she imagined there had to be a reason he would send her alone in the first place. She parted from him then and turned to move up to the path above the beach so the walk back to the small palace would be faster.


TBC