Author's note: This chapter is quite late and was probably the most difficult to write so far just because of the strain, but I refuse to not continue. If nothing else, this is proving to be a valuable learning experience. By this point, I want nothing more than to keep writing. I suppose that it's best that I learn now how to deal with the things that interfere with my process and continue to produce. It's taken far longer than I would like, but I think I'm finally getting the hang of this new schedule. I still worry about the drop in quality even though it's a rough draft and a quick reread at best, but I feel that it's still far more important to get into the habit of finishing than it is to worry about the details at this point. I'm pretty sure that this chapter is going to make for a painful second edit, but at least there will be a second edit as long as I finish the first one.

Again, a huge thanks is owed to the friends that have played Overwatch with me while I've been utterly miserable. I also want to thank everyone that has sent me messages wishing me well. It's a long road, but I'm getting there. Thank you all for helping me along the way.

1. "Rubella" by Smoking Popes

Fareeha checked her watch as she took her seat in the back of her transport. Damn. Nine seventeen. She tried to lean back into the soft leather and relax, but the thought of her upcoming conversation wore away at her nerves. It was already past nine, which meant that Lieutenant Colonel Fawzy was already in her office. Worse still, Giza was an hour ahead of her; Fawzy wasn't the type to consider a difference in time zones to be an acceptable excuse for not having returned the call as soon as she was ready to take it, so she had likely been sitting at her desk for well over an hour and waiting for her phone to ring. Fareeha hadn't had any dealings with her before Helix had been contacted by Overwatch regarding her contract and the possibility of recruiting her, but in the last several months, she'd been given plenty of reason to be glad for that fact. Fawzy was often difficult to deal with. Most of her superiors were much the same, but there was always a reasonable explanation for it. She knew the difficulty of their positions, often expected to produce results and lucky to have half of the resources that they needed to get the job done. Though it often outraged her to no end when those expectations were passed on to her and the people under her, she made it a point to remember that the ones giving her orders were in no better a position than she was.

Fawzy was another matter altogether, though. Though her demands were often as unreasonable as anyone else's, there was rarely any logic behind it other than an apparent personal desire. Fawzy was quick to assert her authority at every given opportunity; it was clear that she enjoyed having power over others and seemingly little interest in anything else, including accomplishing missions and saving lives. It was a popular opinion that she enjoyed her authority far more than the responsibility that came with it. At best, it was annoying. At worst, it could end up getting someone killed if she ever found herself in charge of more than working at a desk and managing public opinion. Helix had established the office of public relations hastily in the wake of public outcry against private military organizations. Given Fawzy's natural talent for worrying about her image and the fact that the rank of Lieutenant Colonel came with the position, it was no wonder that she had ended up there. Nobody else wanted the job, she wanted the prestige and nobody liked the thought of having their lives depend on her decisions.

Fareeha didn't realize how tense she had become from just thinking about Fawzy until she noticed the transport's progress slowing to a crawl. She was unconsciously grinding her teeth together and her stomach was once again tossing violently. Heeding her stomach's warning, she forced herself to relax and shift her thoughts elsewhere. She looked out of the window and again felt her irritation continuing to steadily grow. They were approaching her hotel and, as Lena had suspected, there was a large crowd gathered outside of the front doors. She had made her way through the surprisingly small crowd outside of Angela's hotel with minimal difficulty and was already comfortable in thinking that she had just missed the majority of it. To her dismay, the crowd outside of her hotel looked as large as it had outside of Angela's the day before, if not slightly larger. As her transport approached, spectators crowded around it in an attempt to see through the nearly opaque rear windows. As several unusually bright camera flashes went off, Fareeha again forced her thoughts elsewhere.

This will be over soon...and I'll be seeing Angela again.

The thought calmed her and, to her surprise, her stomach seemed to settle. She still felt nervous, but now for entirely different reasons. Thinking of packing her things and settling in at Angela's suite reminded her of her thoughts of having a loving wife send her off to work, only now she would be coming home after a hard day. The urge to cry hit her so quickly that she wasn't immediately sure what the feeling was. It was certainly unusual for her; no matter how bad the situation, crying almost never occurred to her. It simply wasn't in her nature. It was especially confusing to her as this was hardly an unpleasant sensation. It was simply overwhelming. The thought of having a place to call home and having someone other than another soldier waiting for her to return were entirely separate thoughts in her mind. Something about putting them together made the feeling something more than the sum of its parts. She couldn't work out exactly what it was and was both too exhausted and too preoccupied with the task ahead to make sense of it.

Looking out of the window again, she saw the distance to the hotel's front doors and the slow progress with which the hotel employees were moving the crowd out of the transport's path. Remembering the day before, Fareeha estimated that it would be at least five minutes before she would be able to get out. For once, she was grateful for the few minutes of relative calm despite the storm on the horizon. She picked up her phone and flipped through the playlists for a moment before settling on a song that seemed to suit her thoughts. (1) As the music began playing over the transport's speakers, she smiled and thought about the return trip to Angela's suite. Approaching the thought cautiously as she felt her eyes starting to sting, she thought back and tried to find any memory to compare it to. Throughout her entire life, despite the numerous times she'd returned to overcrowded barracks, she had only returned to a home that was either empty or only held a person that might as well have not actually been there at all. Outside of the occasional return trips home that her mother had made over the years, this would be her first time going to a place she felt comfortable calling home with someone special waiting there for her. She thought of the other members of Helix, but she couldn't draw parallels between the two situations. They were as good as family, but Angela somehow stood head and shoulders above everyone else. She hated to think that she was trying to replace them somehow, but she couldn't deny that Angela was special, either. Life with other soldiers felt like having a family, but thinking of life with Angela made her think of the suite as home.

It wasn't until the song ended that Fareeha was pulled out of her reverie and realized that the transport had stopped for the last time in front of the hotel's front doors. She groaned when she saw the path to the doors, hotel employees only barely able to keep it clear of journalists with their microphones already in hand. She quickly reviewed her practiced routine of smiling politely and waving to people while completely ignoring their demands for her attention. The practice didn't seem any less rude than simply ignoring them when she thought about it, but they seemed to appreciate it. She simply took it as one more thing that she didn't understand about how most people seemed to think as she stepped out of the transport and took shelter behind her driver and the hotel employees as they escorted her to the front doors. She smiled as best she could, but just as when she was leaving Angela's hotel, the action seemed to cause her pain. She thought that she was simply overthinking it earlier, but remembering trying to open her eyes for the first time that morning made her wonder if it had more to do with wine than being annoyed. She focused through the pain and continued to smile and walk, ignoring questions about Angela and why she was just now coming back to her own hotel so late in the morning. It wasn't until she had passed through the hotel doors that she noticed Lena standing in the lobby waiting for her to arrive. She had a smile on her face that made it obvious that she had the same questions as the journalists and wouldn't be quite so easily dismissed. Knowing what was coming, Fareeha wasted no time putting the task aside in favor of getting to the safety of her room and getting her phone call over with.

"In a minute, Lena."

"Promise?"

"Yes, of course. I just need to take care of something first."

Satisfied, Lena immediately took a place at Fareeha's side as she quickly thanked the hotel staff and made her way to the elevators. "Sorry about the bad intel. I saw them starting to clear out and assumed that they were headed your way. They only came back a few minutes ago."

"How did they know?"

"They heard that you were leaving Mercy's and assumed you were coming back here. News travels fast. You really ought to check your fansites more."

As they entered and the doors closed behind them, the carefully maintained smile disappeared from Fareeha's face in an instant.

"Are...are you alright, love? You don't look well."

Hearing the worry in Lena's voice, Fareeha guessed at what she must be fearing. "Yes, I'm fine. Better than ever, really. We just...well, we may have overdone it last night." She was relieved when Lena smiled at her response, but something about it gave her the urge to add, "we had quite a bit of wine and I don't drink often." Seeing Lena's slightly disappointed expression made her certain that she'd made the right decision.

"I'll send you the recipe for a prairie oyster."

"A what?"

"It's a hangover cure. McCree showed it to me once. It was disgusting, but it worked. So...where have you been all this time?"

Well, that didn't take long. Seeing Lena bounce back so quickly and clearly incapable of restraining her curiosity entirely, Fareeha sighed and met her excited smile with the shortest answer possible. "I've been with Angela. We were up late talking and fell asleep. We just woke up about an hour ago."

"Just talking?"

Though she wanted to confirm this, something about Lena's excitement made it difficult for her to deny that there was far more to the story. "Well...mostly talking. I'll tell you about it when I get done with this phone call."

"A phone call? You're not the type to be bothered when you're not working. Is it Helix?"

"Unfortunately. They're waiting for a report from me, apparently."

For some reason, Lena looked as irritated by this as Fareeha felt. "What do they want? I thought you were on leave after the festival."

"I can only assume that they've been watching the news."

Lena grimaced in response. "They...they won't make an issue of this, will they? You and Mercy, I mean. You're not in trouble for it, are you?"

"For their sakes, I hope not."

Fareeha's expression turned grim as she once again thought about the call that she was about to make. There were no guarantees that the call was about anything other than mere curiosity, but there was no denying the potential for a problem, especially where Fawzy was concerned. Lena was momentarily struck silent in her surprise at Fareeha's stern response and sudden change of expression. It wasn't until the elevator doors opened and Fareeha stepped out that she was able to manage a response as she blinked ahead to catch up.

"You know, I reckon I was right about you."

"What do you mean?"

Lena smiled and shook her head. "Never mind. Just hurry and get this thing with Helix sorted. You're done after that, right?"

"As far as I know."

Fareeha felt uneasy as she thought about the possibility of another surprise, but she quickly dismissed it. It wouldn't do to appear to be nervous or upset in front of Fawzy. Any of her other superiors would be merely confused or concerned as it was quite unlike her, but Fawzy picked up on signs of weakness like a shark smelling blood in the water. As they entered her hotel room, Fareeha looked around and tried to remember where she had last left her dress uniform. The events of the day before seemed as far behind her as memories of her childhood now that she was fully immersed in thinking of the future. Just as her mind started to once again drift back to Angela's suite, she jumped as Lena blinked in front of her, a long black garment bag in hand.

"I'm guessing this is what you're after."

Fareeha opened the garment bag and, to her surprise, her dress uniform was inside, freshly laundered and pressed. "How...how did you know I would need it?"

Lena smiled and shrugged as she took a seat on the bed. "I didn't, really. I just know how you are about your uniforms. I ran across it when we were cleaning up yesterday and figured I'd get it taken care of. The hotel is to thank, to be honest."

Fareeha shook her head. The words she wanted were no closer to coming out than they ever were, but she refused to remain silent in the face of the surge of emotions inside her that were coming to the surface. "No...I owe you. Truly. You've done more for me in the last day than most people have done for me in my entire life."

Lena tried to restrain a smile as she began to turn red. "Come on, love, it's not that serious."

Fareeha shook her head again as she started digging through dresser drawers for a set of the more familiar and comfortable sports bras and compression shorts she was used to wearing. "Don't be so sure of that. Genuine kindness isn't something I encounter often. It's something that usually only comes as part of an arrangement, so I make it a point to remember when I find it with no strings attached. There's my mother, Helix, Angela and you...so I'm sure I'm not confusing it for anything else. Thank you, Lena...for everything."

Lena fidgeted as the red tint became more pronounced on her skin. "I...I'm just glad to help, Pharah."

Fareeha smiled as she took her clothes from Lena and made her way to the bathroom. "I know. That's why I appreciate it so much."

She closed the bathroom door behind her and started to undress. She took off the jewelry and put it on the countertop next to the sink, then she quickly took off her clothes and threw the dress and lacy undergarments into a corner, glad to finally be free of them. She surprised herself when she unconsciously breathed a sigh of relief as she stepped into the shower. The good memories she had of her time wearing them had long ago outweighed the bad, but it certainly wasn't what she considered comfortable. The thought of the tidy dress uniform and the undergarments that kept everything stable and in their proper places gave her a peace of mind that she had never taken notice of before she found herself spending a day wearing something so different. She hadn't been paying much attention to it before in the interest of keeping herself focused on ensuring that the evening went well, but the thought of so much bouncing with every step and the nearly complete lack of a feeling of significant support was maddening. It had been well worth the discomfort given that Angela had reacted favorably to her appearance, but it was also a great relief that Angela had been expecting her to turn up wearing what she always did. I suppose that is just one more thing that makes her special. She appreciates the effort, but that doesn't make her try to turn me into something that I'm not.

Fareeha had intended to take her time in the shower. She was already late for the call, so there was no sense in passing up the opportunity to put her mind and body at ease. Despite her desire to take it easy and go back to bed, thinking of the task ahead only ruined the moment. It was a job that needed to be completed and would only continue to hang over her head until it was dealt with. Irritated that her moment of peace had been disrupted, she rushed through her shower as quickly as she could, though she took special care to do the job thoroughly. She wasn't dressing up again, but the day ahead was still quite special. In spite of nicking herself several times with her razor in her haste, she was quite glad to have the job done and wasted no time getting dressed. She smiled at herself in the mirror as she gave herself a quick inspection before leaving the bathroom. Standing there in her dress uniform, she felt more confident than she had in the last full day. She was back in her element, dressed appropriately to meet a familiar task that she fully understood.

As she left the bathroom and walked around the corner, Lena looked up with a concerned expression. "You look better, love, but not quite well. Are you sure you're up to this?"

"It doesn't matter whether I'm up to it or not. It has to get done, and it has to get done now."

Lena still looked concerned, but the response pulled a smile from her. "Well, you sure sound like yourself again."

Fareeha shrugged as she sat in a chair in front of a desk in the corner of the hotel room and pulled up Lieutenant Colonel Fawzy's contact information on the screen of the room's private terminal. "That will have to do. Give me just a few minutes. This shouldn't take long." I hope.

Lena stepped out of the camera's view as Fareeha placed the call and waited patiently for it to connect. She couldn't help admiring Fareeha's determination and calm under adversity. It was the first thing about the famous Pharah that drew her attention. Nothing ever stopped her from taking on whatever challenge was in front of her. She'd seen for herself how Fareeha was driven to the point of being seemingly incapable of feeling pain when there was a mission to be completed. It was awe-inspiring, but it also made sense in a way. Ana was the only other one she had ever seen take her work that seriously. She spent her years in Overwatch surrounded by the world's most elite soldiers, but none of them seemed to have the same talent for ignoring their discomfort the way the Amaris did. It didn't even register in their expressions that they were in any kind of pain. Just minutes ago, Fareeha had walked into the hotel lobby looking as though she may topple over from the strain of simply being awake, but now she looked as though she was ready to charge into battle.

Though she was trying to stay out of the camera's view, Lena couldn't resist peeking at the screen when she heard the announcement that the call would be connected momentarily. The Helix Security International logo was displayed in the center of the screen with a message beneath stating that a call was being placed to the public relations office. "That's Fawzy again, isn't it? All she handles is PR, right? I didn't think she'd be busy enough to have to put you on hold this early in the morning."

"I doubt that she is. It's more likely that she just doesn't want to seem like it."

Lena restrained a laugh as she continued watching the screen. She had only met Lieutenant Colonel Fawzy once during the negotiations over Fareeha's contract, but she had definitely given the impression of someone that cared about people's perception of her above all else. Though she resisted the urge to ask, Lena distinctly remembered wondering if that wasn't how she ended up in charge of public relations. More than that, she wondered how someone that self absorbed ever managed to become a Lieutenant Colonel. She came across as completely lacking in substance and far too delicate to have ever lived the life of a soldier. Facing someone like Fareeha, Lena almost felt sorry for her.

The screen blinked for a moment before Fawzy came into view. She looked the same as Lena remembered, with her dress uniform as meticulously pressed as Fareeha's and her long black hair pulled neatly into a bun behind her head without as much as a single hair out of place. She adjusted her oval framed glasses as she turned to face the camera and terminal screen on her desk. She actually seems like you can take her seriously until she starts talking. Her carefully composed smug expression was disrupted when Fareeha's sharp gaze came into view. She was clearly startled, but she quickly closed her eyes and loudly cleared her throat in an attempt to get past the moment unnoticed. Lena had to restrain another laugh when she saw Fawzy nervously look at her screen again. She doesn't know how far out of her league she is, does she?

"Captain Amari...where have you been?" Lena was unsettled by the unnecessarily stern tone of her voice. Though Fareeha seemed confident that she had done nothing wrong, Fawzy seemed to already be accusing her of something.

"On leave, Colonel Fawzy." Unlike Fawzy, Fareeha didn't seem to move a muscle other than to respond to the question asked of her. Lena was amazed by the fact that she didn't seem the least bit bothered. If anything, she looked bored as she waited for a response.

"I've been attempting to contact you regarding your recent...exploits. Your name has been coming up constantly in the news. Very little of it seems to have anything to do with the festival."

"Is there a problem, ma'am?"

Fawzy appeared to be unnerved by Fareeha's lack of a reaction. She continued, but the harshness in her tone seemed to have been drained from her voice. "Not at the moment, no. My concern is that this needs to continue to be the case. You are on leave, but you are still charged with the task of increasing public approval of Helix Security International."

"Do you have specific instructions as to how I accomplish this task?" Fareeha struggled for a moment to maintain her composure. She was starting to feel ridiculous for having been so nervous about this call. The memory of Fawzy's persona was far more troubling than Fawzy herself.

"Not exactly. The purpose of this call is to be absolutely certain I understand the situation. Your meeting with Doctor Ziegler last night was romantic in nature, was it not?"

"Yes, ma'am." Fareeha had to consciously remind herself to not breathe a sigh of relief. She was expecting the tension of nervous energy in her stomach to return when she said it, but it was nowhere near as intense as she was expecting it to be. Declaring her feelings for Angela was somehow much less intimidating when she was doing so as part of a report to a superior.

"And your late departure from her hotel this morning...is this related to your meeting last night?"

"Yes, ma'am." For a brief moment, Fareeha understood why Angela wasn't bothered by people's assumptions about what passed between them the night before. Though it was obvious what was being implied, the thought was hardly troubling even though it was largely inaccurate.

"It is troubling what this could potentially mean for our public image. For the time being, you are the face of Helix Security International. We don't want people to get the wrong idea about your character."

"Is there a problem caused by my being in a relationship with someone, ma'am?"

"Not as long as you are, in fact, in a relationship. Of the talk that has been going around, the most troubling has been some of the rumors surfacing about the doctor's past romantic involvements. Merely gossip from fan sites, I'm sure, especially considering that few of these stories are any more recent than her days as a university student. Still, part of my job is taking any and all potential complications into account, so I must ask if there is any validity to the claims that Doctor Ziegler has...questionable morals regarding her romantic entanglements."

Fareeha's gaze turned icy. Fawzy held her breath for a moment and, though she tried to hide her shock, she was betrayed by her eyes when they went slightly wider. "It has been my experience that Doctor Ziegler's morals are unquestionable. As for her past, I cannot speak from personal experience and am not inclined to speculate."

"Y—yes...of course." Fawzy was clearly torn between playing the role of an unshakeable superior officer and needing a moment to compose herself. "W—well, that is...reasonable. I still must express my concerns regarding this relationship, small though they may be. Should you appear to the public to be in a stable relationship, it can only help our public image. If you have any reason to believe that this could be a mere fling, however, I insist that you inform me at once. Distancing yourself from her will take time, so it would be best to start immediately."

For the first time, Fareeha showed a visible reaction. It was a simple raising of the eyebrows, but it was unmistakable to Fawzy even before Fareeha responded that she had made a terrible mistake. "I have no reason whatsoever to believe this to be the case, ma'am. I believe Doctor Ziegler's character to be impeccable and have yet to be given reason to believe otherwise. Far more important is that to anyone with any sense, her reputation as a healer, scholar and selfless philanthropist speaks for itself. Surely that excludes those that would see anything negative in my relationship with her over nothing more than rumors."

Though her speech was as formal as ever, the edge in Fareeha's tone was clear. Fawzy didn't seem to remember to be offended by it as she rushed to settle the matter. "O—of course, Captain. Please, do not misunderstand my intentions. I am only acting in the best interest of Helix by considering the possibility. I do not mean to call Doctor Ziegler's character into question myself, nor do I have any desire to make you angry."

"Of course. However, if one of these people attempts to interfere with my relationship with Doctor Ziegler over mere gossip and unfounded speculation, it will be far worse than my simply being angry. Ma'am."

Fawzy's initial attempts to appear to be an intimidating authority figure were entirely lost as her eyes went wide. She nervously fidgeted and needlessly adjusted her glasses for a moment before nodding. "Understandable, Captain. Do you have anything else of significance to report regarding the matter? Anything that you feel may be of concern?" Her eyes went from nervous to suspiciously shrewd in an instant. She seemed to be thinking for a moment before adding, "you may speak freely, of course."

"No, ma'am. Unless you have any further questions, I have nothing more to add."

Fawzy looked disappointed by the response. "No, no further questions. Taking everything into account, it is my decision that you should be seen with Doctor Ziegler as much as possible. News of the relationship between the two of you will undoubtedly have a positive impact on public opinion of the cooperation between Helix and Overwatch. Enjoy the rest of your leave, Captain."

The screen blinked again as the call disconnected and once again displayed the Helix Security International logo. Fareeha closed her eyes and took a deep breath as she turned the terminal off. She was pleased to have the ordeal behind her and even more pleased that it had been brief, but it had been exhausting. Worse than that, she was still seething. The implications being made were nearly too much for her to endure calmly. Fawzy spoke of her relationship with Angela as though it were a thing to be discarded when it became inconvenient. More than that, she was as concerned with rumors and gossip as the people Angela had spent so much of her life trying to escape. Even if she were feeling entirely well and able to properly process it all, it would have enraged her.

"Are you alright, Pharah?"

Lena's voice broke through the thick haze of fatigue and anger clouding Fareeha's thoughts. "Yes...I'm fine."

"Better than her, I imagine. She looked like she was about to piss herself."

Lena wasn't at all convinced, but she let the matter drop. She hadn't known Fareeha personally for very long, but she knew her well enough to know how hard she was capable of pushing herself. No matter how she was feeling, she was never likely to admit that anything was bothering her. That being the case, if she was under some sort of strain, she didn't need to also be bothered with constantly denying it. She's so much like her mum, I could almost swear I was talking to her. With the obvious need for a change of subject, Lena turned her attention away from the toll that the call took on Fareeha and toward the conversation itself.

"I wasn't supposed to hear any of that, was I?"

Fareeha shrugged, then stood and started crossing the room. "She didn't ask if anyone was listening. As you're part of the negotiations between Overwatch and Helix, I saw no reason to bring it up."

"But...she was assuming that the call was private, right?"

"Exactly. Helix has no end of code words and pass phrases to ensure that a connection is secure beyond our encryption software. She failed to employ a single one of them. It's unfortunate that she's so inept, but I see no reason to help her do her job."

Lena replayed the beginning of the call in her mind. She was surprised to remember that there was no opening to the conversation; it started with questioning Fareeha's whereabouts in an accusatory tone. Curious as to whether or not she'd missed something in the news coverage that may have given her cause to be suspicious, she pulled out her phone and started scrolling through the news feeds again. "I guess she was in too big a rush to assign blame. What was that about, anyway? You weren't in trouble, were you?"

Fareeha sighed as she opened up a wardrobe and pulled out her suitcase. "No. She's just the type to hope that I wouldn't notice."

Lena couldn't help laughing. It sounded ridiculous, but it certainly fit the impression she had of Fawzy. "And what was that about not wanting to call Mercy's character into question? Isn't that exactly what she was doing when she asked you about it?"

Fareeha sighed again as she made her way back to the drawer holding her undergarments and started picking them up. It was nice to have someone openly agree with her disgust of Fawzy, but it was also tiring to keep hearing about it now that it was over. "That's just what she does. She's not the type to admit that she's made a mistake. She'll just pretend that it never happened. She knew better, but there was no way she was about to pass up an opportunity to have gossip confirmed. She passes it off as being part of her job, but I'm pretty sure she just enjoys knowing about matters that don't concern her and gauging people's reactions to them. As much as I hate to admit it, but of all of the people working for Helix, she's probably the best suited for the job."

"And what was that about having permission to speak freely? It hardly seems like you needed it at that point. Is that just her way of reminding you who's in charge?"

"Possibly, but I doubt it in this case. I've heard of her doing that before. She can't reprimand you for what you say after having given permission, but you make her little revenge list and can expect to have trouble from her later if you say something that she doesn't like."

"How did someone like her ever last long enough to make Lieutenant Colonel?"

"I can only assume that it's because Helix is a business as much as a military organization. I hear that she's not entirely useless in a fight, but her greatest talents by far are following orders, sticking her nose where it doesn't belong and worrying about what people think of her. I don't like it, but to be fair, that's saved Helix quite a bit of trouble from the public in recent years. The fact of the matter is that she's good for business. That was my initial assessment, at least; honestly, I've long since given up on wondering about it." Fareeha thought for a minute and a grim expression darkened her features. "I just make it a point to remember who I'm dealing with. My problems with Fawzy haven't ended until this transition to Overwatch is complete. Even then, I'll be working for Helix in a lesser capacity so I'll surely have to deal with her from time to time. She won't forget that this conversation didn't go her way."

"Is she gonna be a problem? I mean, why provoke her?"

"She was speaking badly of Angela. The fight won't end anytime soon, but if I'm going to be working with her, it's important to make my stance on the matter clear."

Lena finally looked up from her phone at the sound of Fareeha's response. Something in her tone was off that it had taken her a while to notice. She sounded less exhausted and more irritated with every response. She was pleased that her assessment of Fareeha seemed to be accurate, but this didn't seem like a good time to bring it up. Quickly deciding that another change of subject was in order, she turned her attention to the suitcase that Fareeha was slowly filling with clothing. "So...what's on the agenda now?"

The question made Fareeha stop cold. A telltale blush forming on her face made it easy for Lena to guess what she was about to say. "I'm...well...heading back. To Angela's suite, that is."

Reminded of the answers that Fareeha promised her earlier, Lena smiled widely as she threw her phone aside. The only thing stopping her from immediately beginning her line of questions was being reminded of a question she'd been trying to remember to ask for most of the night after Fareeha left. "Why did she rent a room when she lives here?"

"She said that she wanted the evening to be special."

With nothing else to derail her, Lena immediately began asking for every minute detail of the evening as she helped Fareeha put clothing into the suitcase. The next hour passed with continuous conversation as the suitcase lay forgotten. Though it was exhausting and often embarrassing, Fareeha was surprised to find that she enjoyed recounting the events of the evening before. She was soon lost in remembering every exhilarating moment that had passed between herself and Angela from the time she walked out of her bedroom. Despite the haze left behind in her mind by the wine from the night before, she recalled every taste and touch as though it had been minutes ago rather than hours. More than enjoying the memories, Fareeha found herself enjoying being able to share the experience with someone she considered to be a friend. Every moment she explained was followed by a gasp or a squeal from Lena and a thorough analysis of what Angela must have been thinking or feeling at the time. The only time that Fareeha was light on the details was when she told Lena about how they'd discussed their past relationships with each other. It was still painful to remember, but Fareeha didn't mind sharing the details of her past with Lena. Going into detail about Angela's past, however, seemed inappropriate. Lena seemed to agree; it was the only time that she didn't ask for more information. Though Fareeha couldn't say why, she was enjoying the time she was spending sharing her evening with Lena. It wasn't until she a clock on the wall chime as the time reached ten o'clock that she remembered that she hadn't finished packing.

Lena could only smile at Fareeha's excitement to get back to Angela. Looking around the room for anything that might end up forgotten, she caught sight of a sturdy black case sitting near the wardrobe. "Don't forget to change your prosthetics. Do you need any help getting them on?"

Fareeha again thought back to her evening with Angela. The simple subtleties of the sensation of silk beneath her fingertips and Angela's smooth and delicate skin were burned into her mind; it was upsetting to think that she had nearly missed out on them. "N—no, I think I'll keep wearing these for a while."

Lena raised an eyebrow. "How come?"

Unable to find a way to avoid saying what she was thinking, Fareeha looked down at her hands as her face quickly changed from mocha to burgundy. "I think these are more appropriate. They're more...sensitive."

Lena's mind immediately went back to the detail with which Fareeha had described the sensations she experienced when Angela had first taken her hand. It was no mean feat, but Lena resisted the urge to tease Fareeha about it and instead made her way to the bathroom to pack toiletries away. She's been through enough this morning and has a big day ahead of her. I shouldn't be taking the mick out of her...for now, anyway. She doesn't need anymore stress, really. Thinking of this as she walked into the bathroom and picked up the toiletry bag on the counter, she packed the makeup and jewelry from the night before at the bottom of the bag. She won't want to think about it, but I'm hoping she'll need these again.

Several minutes later, Lena returned from the bathroom with the toiletry bag, full nearly to bursting. As Fareeha was thanking her and taking the bag, she noticed that Lena was holding the golden locket and the fragrance bottle from the previous evening in her opposite hand.

"What are those for?"

"Trust me, you'll want to wear them out."

Fareeha looked at the small bottle of perfume with its shining silver top and glass bottle wrapped in what appeared to be black rubber. She thought about how close Angela had been all night long and wondered if it wasn't to thank. It hardly seemed that a fragrance could be the sole reason for it, but when she thought of the effect that Angela's perfume had on her, she admitted to herself that it didn't seem to be hurting, either. It was certainly a positive experience for her. Smelling Angela's perfume was the first pleasant thought she'd had that morning. Thinking about that moment, Fareeha was reminded of the first thing that Angela had said to her. She hadn't understood all of it and was too disoriented to give it much thought until now.

"You said that you know some German, didn't you?"

"A little. Why?"

"Something Angela said when I woke up. She said 'good morning,' but then she said something I didn't catch. It sounded like...mine leeba. Do you have any idea what that means?"

Smiling widely and suddenly unable to keep still, Lena started grabbing Fareeha's clothes and quickly throwing them into the open suitcase. "It means that we need to hurry up and get you back to Mercy's."

Fareeha was curious, but after everything that had happened since she woke up, she was too tired to argue. She took the bottle and jewelry and headed to the bathroom to put them both on. When she came back out a moment later, Lena gave her a curious look.

"Where's the locket?"

"It's under my shirt. Having jewelry displayed while in uniform is against regulations."

Lena was about to argue, but the thought of the locket beneath her uniform caused her to smile as she imagined the moment when Angela finally saw it again. "Yeah...I think that will work out better, actually."

"Better? How?"

"You'll see."

Fareeha was about to insist on being let in on the secret, but the mischievous smile on Lena's face made her decide that she'd rather not know. Putting the thought aside, she reached out for the handle of her suitcase, but Lena immediately stopped her.

"Don't worry about that. I'll have someone send your things along."

"Why?"

"People's imaginations are already running wild as is. Trust me, love, you don't want to help them along. It's best to make it look like you're just out for an afternoon stroll."

"Even though we all already know that isn't true?"

"Especially because we all already know that isn't true."

Fareeha couldn't make sense of the logic, but it all seemed like a matter of public relations, which meant that she was outside of her areas of expertise. More than that, she certainly didn't want to be bothered with any of it. It seemed best to simply trust Lena's judgement. Thinking about that brought a question to mind that she seemed likely to be able to answer.

"Do you think that my dress uniform might be a bit too much? Angela seemed to want to take it easy today. Maybe I should wear something a bit more casual."

Lena smiled and shook her head. "You didn't hear it from me, but Mercy loves to see you in uniform. Tell her that you'll change when your things get there. Just make sure you wear the first thing you see when you open the suitcase."

Fareeha was about to ask, but Lena's smile again made her think better of it. She instead decided to simply trust her judgement when the time came. It's brought me this far, after all...no sense in getting suspicious about it now. Though she had made her decision, she still wrestled with her curiosity and a slowly building nervousness that caused her stomach to churn in protest. It wasn't until Lena spoke again that she realized that she was wasting time.

"Come on...let's get you back to Mercy's. She's been waiting long enough."

Fareeha's mind immediately switched tracks. In an instant, the unpleasantness of the morning was finally behind her and she could focus on the day ahead. Remembering speaking to Angela on her way out, she pulled out her phone and sent a quick message to say that she was on her way back. She only vaguely remembered the breakfast that would be waiting for her that was the reason for the message as she thought about walking through Angela's door again. She turned to Lena and, between still thinking of seeing Angela again and being once again overcome with gratitude, she struggled to find the words for the moment.

"Lena...again, everything you've done—"

"Don't worry about it! I'm happy to help." Lena cut her off and hugged her tightly. Fareeha was initially startled by the gesture, but after a moment returned it. This is...nice. Is this what it's like having friends?

Lena quickly let her go and started turning her around toward the hotel room door. "Come on, now, no more stalling. Mercy, remember? Just call me when you get a chance and let me know how it's going."

Her mind once again focused solely on the future, Fareeha nodded and started walking toward the door. The few steps felt as long as they had the night before as she was preparing to have what was certainly no longer just dinner. Just like that moment, she was preparing for what was no longer just a vacation. This is it. It's really happening, isn't it? This...this is where everything begins.