Katalina and Yavir Moray - Escapism

[Alora DeVeau]

((Medical Facility, Miranda VII))

Yavir stood outside the front door of the medical facility. Sipping tea that went cold an hour ago, he watched the artificial sun slowly set. It was quiet for what felt like the first time all day. He’d been helping Kat and Nyra move and organize the supplies recently acquired, and the manual labor left him feeling tired, sweaty, and aching all over, but also lifted his spirits somewhat.

Kat and Nyra - as he thought of the two, he couldn’t help feel a small sun inside his chest, mirroring the one drifting below the horizon. They were the best people he’d ever known. He knew how lucky he was. Most siblings, he knew, had some manner of contention or strife. It had never been that way with him and his sister - unless you counted the nickname he’d given her when he was 8 and she was 5. She hated being called “Kitty,” but Yavir held that Katarina to Kat to Kitty was just a logical progression. He’d prided himself on his cleverness at 8, and if he was honest, he still thought it was a pretty good nickname.

Then there was Nyra. She was, without a doubt in Yavir’s mind, the most amazing, most genuine, most in-tune woman Yavir had ever met, and for some reason, liked him! At first, their living arrangement had been largely out of convenience. Kat had needed an assistant (a task to which Nyra had risen to remarkably well), and Nyra needed a place to live. When Yavir realized he was starting to fall in love with Nyra, he braced for disappointment. When Nyra returned his affections, he felt like his whole world got bigger. She changed everything for him. Made him want to be the best person he was capable of.

He leaned back against the faux weather-beaten stucco. It felt cool through his shirt, still damp with perspiration. The sun was now nothing more than a sliver of gold in an orange and purple sky. He closed his eyes, reflecting on the incredible dichotomy of such pure joy in the midst of chaos and suffering. When the door to his left slid open, he opened his eyes again, glancing over to see his sister joining him for some fresh air.

Katalina: Needed a break?

Which, in the tone of voice Kat said it, might as well have been a ‘you’re lazy, get back to work’, but Yavir was far too used to it to be phased at all.

Yavir: Yeah, I just wanted to breathe for a minute. The sunset’s pretty tonight.

She gave a short nod and walked over to him, away from the door. She was carrying a cup of coffee - one of the few luxuries she allowed herself - holding it carefully with both hands.

Katalina: It’s the one thing sunsets are good for, artificial or not. Look pretty. 

He sighed at the emphasis that this - this life they’d been building together - was largely founded on illusion, wondering at the stability of anything. Then as he looked again at his sister, he realized that whether the setting was real or not, the life and love they shared was as real as anything in the universe. He noticed the hint of distraction in Kat’s face. It was just the faintest of creases between her eyes, now scanning the would-be calming environment into which the facility was set.

Yavir: Bee in your bonnet, Kitty?

She rolled her eyes and sipped from her coffee, letting the silence settle between them before she spoke again.

Katalina: I am worried about Nyra. She’s been daydreaming a lot more than is usual for her. 

Daydreaming. That’s what Katalina called it when Nyra seemed to zone out. At first, she had found it annoying. Then, entertaining. Now, she was worried.

Yavir: Any idea what’s got her attention?

Katalina: I am not sure. She doesn’t look too healthy either. I guess I am wondering if staying here is really what is best for us. 

It wasn’t the first time Kat had suggested a move. Over the last year or so, she had hinted with varying degrees of insistence that they find a new place for her work. The conditions here were harsh. He supposed that’s why the resources needed to maintain the facade of the natural environment had been prioritized. Typically, when Kat would raise the suggestion, it had the flavor of “wouldn’t it be nice if…” but now there was something in her tone that carried more gravitas.

Yavir: Do you want to leave?

Katalina: I… ::she hesitated:: … sometimes I want to. But where would we even go, not like they want us anywhere.

Which wasn’t entirely true. It was rather that Kat didn’t feel happy anywhere. Terra Prime had fed into her dislike of other species and turned it into hatred, but the discomfort had always been there. 

Yavir: Where would you go if you had your choice?

Katalina: Home. ::she sighed:: 

Europa Nova. The colony they had been forced to evacuate, and where they had been separated from the rest of their family. 

Yavir: ::shifting the subject in hopes of re-centering Kat’s focus:: I think I know what you mean about Nyra. She tends to come home so exhausted most days. I think she’s probably more shaken by the … conflict than she lets on. Most days she barely touches the food I make.

Katalina: Maybe your cooking is just that bad. 

Yavir: Hey! You’ve always liked my cooking!

She grinned. Yavir’s cooking wasn’t half bad, but the limited supplies made it difficult for him to produce anything better than ‘edible’ 

Katalina: Have I, though? 

Yavir: ::rolling his eyes:: Ok fine: you’ve always eaten my cooking.

The good-natured ribbing was something they’d always shared. It was a way for a brother and sister to love each other in shorthand. It drew from experiences shared, burdens borne, and heartaches endured together. In a lot of ways it was deeper and more personal than any hug could be. Yavir admitted to himself that he felt better even after having his culinary prowess called into question.

Yavir: I’ll concede I use a little too much Tricalean yellow pepper seed sometimes, but–

Katalina: Shh!

She glared at him, the playful mood forgotten. 

Katalina: Just… ugh. Behind closed doors, okay? I don’t want to have someone hear you say the wrong kind of spice and get us into trouble.

He looked around dramatically, as if he expected a shadowy figure to peer around a corner and yell, “A-HA! I’ve got you now!”

Yavir: You don’t think that’s overreacting a touch?

She sighed, pressing her lips into a thin line. She wasn’t overreacting, she was reacting exactly *right*. But that was the problem. 

Katalina: ::quietly:: What if we really did leave?

Yavir: Seriously though: where would we go?

Katalina: Maybe that nearby Starbase. Or somewhere far away.


Yavir: You know there are just as many non-humans at a starbase. There’s always gonna be a mix. We’re living in an age of hodge-podge.

Katalina: I know. And I still don’t want to see their ugly blue faces or their stupid wrinkly noses. But I also don’t want to lose my family to someone’s… power trip. So let’s… work out a plan. You, Me, Nyra.

Yavir’s heart ached for that. Nothing would make him happier than to live out his days peacefully with his sister and the woman he loved - his family. After a moment, he spoke.

Yavir: I’d like that. I really would. The tricky part will be getting Nyra to let go. She’s so committed.

Kat sighed.

Katalina: Perhaps. ::she slowly turned back toward the door:: But I’ve found that, sometimes, people just need something *better* to believe in. 

She still cared about their cause - but she cared about her family more. 

[End Scene]


Katalina Moray
Simmed by Trovek Arys
J239809TA4

And 

Yavir Moray
Simmed by Hiro Jones
E239510KD0