She had been waiting long for this. Lia came closest to what she could call 'family', especially after the desaster with Dennis. And at the same time, she was scared. Not because of the fact that she was here on a suicide mission, or because she was hunted by half of Rheinland. That was something she was used to. She was afraid what her friend would say. Years of separation, the path of a criminal... It was entirely possible that Lia would not approve. That she would show her the door. The most terrifying part of this was that a part of her hoped that she'd be shunned. That way her task would be far easier, without people that she would have to look out for. With the confirmation that her old life didn't want her anymore.
A few seconds of silence were necessary to shake off these dark thoughts, and it took her another two to actually start speaking. Her voice was soft, calm, and delicate - completely different from the hard, confident voice she usually used when talking to her students or her fellow pilots. It was the voice of a terrified teenager coming home to her mother.
"I hoped we'd have time to relive the old days a bit longer, but I guess that'll be impossible now. You were... Half correct. I don't think that I am actively hunted, hardly anyone knows that I'm on the surface, and only people I trust. At least I think that I can."
Nika paused for a second. Searching for a reaction in Lia's face, but the only move that she noticed was the dance of shadows created by the flickering light.
"I should probably start from the beginning. You remember back then when I finally got my doctor's degree? The night we alone drank more than a bull could take? When the fingermen took us to the 'sobering cell' for the night?"
