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Thrawn wasn’t himself, and hadn’t been for a while now.
He used to wander the bridge, checking in with the crew, offering comments here and there, even joking from time to time, but that had stopped when Eli went.. wherever he had gone. And when he left, it was like he took Thrawn’s vibrancy with him. It was troubling, so Faro decided to do something about it.
It started with a cup of tea.
Faro hadn’t said anything; she just came into the office where Thrawn had been working all day, stuck in conferences with High Command and the other Grand Admirals, and set the steaming cup down unobtrusively on the corner of his desk. He had glanced up, at first annoyed, and then curious; Faro just smiled and let herself out.
Thrawn had studied the cup for some time before drinking. No one had ever brought him tea, aside from Eli. It wasn’t the exact way he preferred it prepared - it was the wrong blend, oversteeped, not sweet enough - but he was surprised to find that he greatly appreciated the gesture nonetheless.
He never mentioned it to Faro, and she never mentioned it to him. But whenever he had to spend long, stressful hours engrossed in tasks he would rather not be doing, she would appear, a cup of tea in hand.
It continued with the summons.
Whenever he was shut away in his office for too many days in a row, Thrawn would get a comm from Faro requesting his presence in some portion of the ship for whatever reason she came up with at the time. On the way to the excuse, or just after it, they would inevitably end up in a mess hall where she would invite - and occasionally insist - that he take a brief break and share a meal with her and whomever else was present. As annoyed as he was by the interruption the first few times, he had to admit it was good to get out of his office, to fill his stomach, to address the problem waiting for him upon his return with fresh eyes. More than that, it was… nice, to sit among others, with no expectation that he participate in conversation if he didn’t feel like it, welcome to contribute if he wished to do so.
He never mentioned it to Faro, and she never mentioned it to him. But Thrawn was surprised when he found himself looking forward to the shared meals, and the company, and eventually there was no need for false summons to bring him to eat with the others.
After returning to his office after one such meal, Thrawn paused in the doorway, frowning. He was lonely, he realized. He missed Eli. And while Faro would never replace Eli as a friend - let alone a companion - that didn’t mean that he couldn’t have another friend.
Decision made, Thrawn waited until he saw Faro again - the next morning, in the lift on the way to the bridge.
“Good morning, Sir.”
“Commodore.” Thrawn paused, his voice soft and almost timid sounding when he continued. “Would you be interested in meeting me in the Officer’s Lounge after Besh shift to consume alcohol and engage in conversation?”
Faro glanced at Thrawn, surprised - he was the last person that she expected to want to hang out socially. She noted how he wasn’t quite meeting her eyes, the tension in his frame, and realized he was bracing himself for rejection, or maybe second guessing even saying anything in the first place. Before he could take it back, she grinned. “I’d love to, sir. You can show me Chiss drinking games and I can beat you at them.”
Thrawn simply nodded, not feeling the need to continue any conversation, but Faro noticed how he had relaxed the smallest amount, was standing a little straighter, and she thought she saw the hint of a smile on his lips. Good. If sitting and drinking with Thrawn - if making herself available - was what he needed to come back to himself again, she was happy to do it. And should things progress to that point, well.. she would feel fortunate to be considered his friend.