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She didn’t know quite when she had fallen asleep.
The darkness of her office had pulled her into its lull, the wolf unsuspecting of its strength. Fault of her own, for she could have avoided it if she had stronger lights on. That little lamp didn’t inspire much. A simple flick of the switch on the wall, but those harsh lights put her on edge. They reminded her too much of the clinic, of dealing with patients and their slow march to a sad end.
She was always dealing with it, the doctor couldn’t escape it, but she could trick herself into thinking so.
Blurry silver eyes blinked over and over, letting her mind play catch up. Touch came back first. There was a pen in her fingers, papers underneath her hands. Ah yes, she was signing to redistribute a large amount of battle records to her main squadron. The level of experience of her operators varied greatly, so this was part of her attempt to shorten that gap. It wasn’t the same as truly being on the battlefield, but every last bit helped in her eyes.
There was a few more papers scattered about in different places—lesson plans for some of the operators like Ifrit and Projekt Red, a few operator files she still had to read over, an order she was sending to Closure for some things in the shop—but those were in separate enough piles. A bit of a mess, but an understandable mess, and that’s what mattered to her.
Her computer had fallen asleep along with her, gently nudging the mouse to only get blinded by the blue light of the screen. “Shit…” she muttered under her breath, head turned away as her eyes furiously blinked to get the situation under control. A few moments past. Then a jolt made the doctor jump, hearing the sharp knocks on her door again.
Right, that’s why she had woken up in the first place.
A deep, familiar voice spoke out. “Doctor, are you in?”
“Yes, yes… come in Silverash.”
The door was smooth and silent as he entered, illuminated by the warm yellowish light from the outside. His heavy coat brushed past the frame, cane in hand. Tenzin was suspiciously missing, the perch of Silverash’s shoulder bare.
“Good evening Doctor. I had thought you had already turned in for the night.” A smile tugged at his lips as he took a seat in the black leather chair across from her. “No no, not yet. I’ll be here for a while yet.”
A bit longer then she thought, as her eyes flickered to the corner of her desktop. 10:44 PM. Not terribly late, but she already knew that her sleep schedule had been ruined.
Well, as ruined as it already was.
“I thought you were still in Kjerag. Wasn’t your flight coming in tomorrow?” Her fingers silently got back to work, now fully awakened from their slumber. Silverash frequently traveled between Rhodes Island and the Snow Realm; after all, it wasn’t like Karlan Commercial's offices were here. Every company needed a spearhead, and while Silverash was a operator, he was always the CEO of Karlan Commercial first and foremost.
Avery could respect that. Plenty of other operators had lives past Rhodes Island. In some ways, she too wished she could have that. Maybe she did, at some point.
“It is nearly tomorrow.” He pointed out, legs crossed and cane settled to the side. “Business went smoothly enough I could come back earlier than expected.”
Avery had no idea what sort of “business” that was, and maybe it was best that she didn’t. The true extent of Karlan and Silverash’s ventures was unknown to them, but she could safely say it was more than just your simple trade company. They knew that much.
“I’m glad it went well for you.” Avery put some cheer into her tone, writing her signature in a flurry as the finishing touch. The paper rattled the cold metal tray she casually threw it on, for later filing. “I have to say though, I don’t think you decided to come all the way over here just to say you’re back.”
The smile that threatened the Feline’s lips earlier finally made its way to the center stage. “No, no it isn’t. I have a little gift for you.”
“Oh? For me? I don’t have anything in return.”
His hand was already digging into his sturdy coat. “What is a gift between friends, Doctor?” he questioned, pulling out a fine crystal bottle with a warm, golden liquid inside.
A gift from Silverash was never just a gift. It was one of those kinds, with invisible strings attached at every part. This man did nothing without a reason, nothing was done out of a whim. In the back of her mind, she could see the frown on Kal’tsit’s face.
Her hand laid outstretched for the bottle.
“Is this whiskey?”
“Scotch, to be precise.”
“You know, you strike me more of a vodka kind of man.”
The chuckle that came from the leopard was deep, coming from within as he past over the liquor. “Do I now? I enjoy many alcohols, but scotch is a particular favorite. Mellifer’s is an old, respected brand from Victoria that I—and I expect you—would enjoy.”
She gazed over the bottle. The crystal was on the heavier side, fingers wrapping around it as to not drop it and make an embarrassment of herself. The label was what she would have expected from Silverash—high quality, carefully done—gold lettering glistening from the orange glow of her desk lamp. Avery huffed slightly as she rose to her feet, hearing the faint crack of joints as she pushed her chair back.
She kept a lot of things in her office. Mostly everything revolved around Rhodes Island in one way or another. But there was some slivers of a personality left over. Like the glasses she kept in the back. A surprise for her at first (did she drink often back then?) but a welcome one. It was nice to have a little sip of something special every once in a while.
She picked out two from the shelf, offering one to the operator who gladly accepted it. The top of the bottle was easy enough to remove, and soon the glasses were filled with the amber liquid.
Avery let herself sit down, holding out her glass. “A toast I believe is in order.”
“That it is, my friend.” Silverash clinked his glass against hers, a satisfying sound echoing out. “Cheers.”
She hadn’t even realized she was smiling until the glass was against her curved lips, letting the scotch in. The doctor didn’t have a particular favorite drink, but this was already making a strong case. The honeyed notes of malt and the hint of cinnamon were delightful.
“I personally believe scotch is best enjoyed with some spring water between sips, but a fine scotch should be able to be had by itself.” Silverash mused, lifting his glass so the rays of her lamp would illuminate it. Avery couldn’t resist the urge to roll her eyes; something he caught by that knowing smile.
“I think it’s pretty good.” Her shoulders slid up and up in a shrug, taking another sip. “Sweet, but there’s some faint spices underneath.”
“I am quite glad to hear you enjoy it.” He finally drank some for himself, eyes closing as he let himself savor the scotch. Leaning back, letting himself sink into the comfortable leather. It’s there where she began to notice the weariness, letting the mask slide away. Avery wasn’t the CEO of a large corporation, but she knew what it was like to have work that would never end.
After all, didn’t she do the same movements, letting her chair consume her when she needed it to?
It took her a moment to realize that likely, not many people see him like this.
“Where’s Tenzin? He’s usually with you.”
“Soaring now. I’m letting him stretch his wings.” He answered, taking another sip of his drink. “The night sky was marvelous, it would be cruel of me to keep him bound to me.”
A surprisingly sweet answer, but Tenzin was always properly taken care of. Avery didn’t know how hard it was to train an eagle, or even if Silverash had trained Tenzin himself, but the two shared a bond. She always found the little bandanna around the bird’s neck to be a cute touch.
“He’s lucky to have you.”
“Hah, I do believe I am the fortunate one. Tenzin is a treasured partner.”
They began to fall back into their familiar banter, her work forgotten to the wayside. There would always be the next day. For now, she would let an old friend burn the midnight oil with her.
Avery had her friends here; operators she had an easy time speaking to. People she was more than happy to spend her time with. Silverash was a special case. He held his agenda close to heart, never letting it diverge. It was something that was irritating at first, and even now it still could rub her wrong. He only gave her crumbs. The morsels he gave out of their prior friendship was scarce, only with passing mentions of something she would have liked.
At the very least, she guessed, he was willing to hint at something. Heaven knew she couldn’t get anything out of Kal’tsit, even if she tried. She didn’t doubt their friendship; they fell back to it easily enough. Or perhaps partnership was the better term. Partners on friendly terms. They both knew that the potential for mutiny was there, in the end. That one day they could be on opposing sides of a battlefield. Kal’tsit couldn’t trust him as far as she could throw him for that very reason.
As for herself? Avery couldn’t fathom what Silverash’s overarching goals were. The contract Karlan Commercial and Rhodes Island had was one that only befitted the latter. Cliffheart was being treated here, but that wasn’t a good enough reason in her eyes for it. To her; maybe to him it was. Pramanix was also often here, but she had never seen the two speak to one another, let alone be in the same room.
Whatever they were, she could only hope that it wouldn’t come down to a sword at her neck and a pistol at his heart.
She was on her second glass, him on his third. She hadn’t read the proof of this scotch, but Silverash seemed as fine as ever, the alcohol having little effect. As for her, two glasses wasn’t quite enough to get her over the edge. Avery wasn’t that much of a lightweight. A quiet chuckle escaped her lips as she finished off the last remaining drops of amber, her eyes taking a quick glance at her desktop.
The time nearly made her heart stop, head jerking back a bit. 3:19 AM.
“Oh, we’ve been at this for a while… Lord.” A tired smile found its way onto her features, the warlord across from her having a similar one. “Time is of little meaning with a fine friend.”
“Can’t argue with that.” She could argue with the yawn that had followed after, shaking her head as the doctor tried to suppress the sleepiness. However, that cue was enough for Silverash. He rose up gracefully, placing his empty glass besides hers.
“I believe it is time for me to depart.”
“You should sleep.” Said the sleepy one, collecting both glasses. She can wash these out later. “It’s late and we got an early morning tomorrow.”
“We?” His eyebrow raised, more amused than anything else.
“Yes, we. You’re a part of my main squadron, even if you’re not a permanent member.” Couldn’t be with how often he left Rhodes Island for business. “We have a mission tomorrow. You’ll be briefed with the others in the morning.”
The smirk on his face was sharp, almost looking excited. “Of course Doctor Avery. Rest assured I will be there.”
“I have no doubts.”
His cane swung once in a clean circle, approaching the door. Avery had gotten up, placing the scotch in a safe location. Not like she didn’t trust her operators but… well, better be safe than sorry.
“Goodnight Silverash.”
“Goodnight Doctor. Rest well.”
He exited silently, the door’s click barely audible. Avery’s flop to her chair was far more audible, nearly sending the office chair back but she caught herself before it happened.
She should take her own advice. Knock out for the night. The alcohol in her veins sang for a soft bed, and she would soon give in to the siren’s call. Her mind was the one hurdle that was stubborn, as it tried to go through the hours of conversation to make something of it.
The first conclusion she came to was that this wasn’t their first time doing something like this. (The glasses probably came from him, they were far finer than most things in her office.) That late night chats with a fine bottle of liquor weren’t unusual between the two.
The second conclusion she came for was that was one of the enjoyable set of hours she’s had all week.
The third conclusion she came to was that she that she was going to ask him to bring vodka for the next time.