Several days had passed since the fight. Clan medicine was proving to be something of a marvel. She didn't understand the science of much of it, all she knew is that she was feeling much better and healing more quickly than she had imagined. 

          That wasn't to say she still didn't hurt. They had repaired her nose several days ago, and she still had powerful headaches whenever the painkillers wore off. 

          Lovvins walked into the medbay as she was sitting up. "How are you recovering?"

          She rubbed the back of her neck. "Quicker than I would have imagined. I think I should be back to normal in a few days."

          He stood with his hands on his hips. "This foolishness should never have happened in the first place. I do not know what you were thinking."

          She shot him an aggravated glance. "I was thinking like a clanner."

          He smirked. "Please, tell me how you fathom that?"

          She wobbly stood up. "Simple. Something was standing between me and something I wanted, so I fought it. Star Commander Joanna was driving a wedge between Abigail and I. I value her friendship too much to let that go without a fight."

        He scoffed. "And that is it?"

        She let her shoulders sag. "What more do you want?"

        "You are filling her head with silly freebirth notions like love and romance. Things that have no place in a warriors life."

        She shook her head. "Neg, I have fed her nothing. Whatever feelings she may or may not have are her own. They do not make her any less of a warrior, and they do not concern you."

        Lovvins bristled and stood to his full height. "You are growing rebellious, Fiona. And arrogant."

        Now it was her turn to stand tall. "Rebellious and arrogant. That sounds like the characteristics of a Jade Falcon warrior. Do not try to berate me for becoming the very thing you asked me to become. "

        Lovvins fumed for a moment. "If this ends badly, remember where it all started."

        With that, he turned and stormed out. Fiona let out a temporary sigh of relief. A moment later, Abigail arrived. "You are officially to be discharged from the medbay today, surat. You will be back on duty in no time from what the doctors tell me."

        She ran a hand through her hair. "Aff. I long to get out of this place and get a hot shower, even in the barracks facility here, though I never thought I would hear myself say that. I feel like a hot mess right now."

        Abigail gestured towards her. "I see they have removed the bandages from your nose. The scientists did an excellent job on your surgery."

        She gingerly touched her nose. "Aff, it is still slightly tender, but clan medicine is amazing. I was worried I was going to come out of this looking like a prize fighter or a hockey player."

        Abigail smiled. "Aff, you look like the surat I am familiar with. Speaking of, you mentioned you needed a shower. If you are cleared to leave, I might just be able to help you with that."

        Fiona shook her head and smiled. "You are incorrigible, Abigail. But yes, I am cleared to leave. So shall we go?"

        Abigail helped her make her way to the barracks, which would have been difficult in her current painkiller-induced haze. Her shoulder was still immensely sore, she could feel the dull pain through the fog of the painkillers, and so Abigail helped her top off. When she wobbled slightly from the buzz, Abigail eagerly volunteered to help her get undressed the rest of the way. Abigail's own clothes quickly followed, and they went into a stall and pulled the curtain closed behind them.

        In her mild morphine high, Fiona watched Abigail turn and crank the valve activating the shower head. She soaked in every bit of flesh, watched every muscle movement, and wondered how fate had brought her to such an amazingly beautiful example of a woman as this. The water began to spray, and Abigail turned and pulled Fiona by the hands into the stream.

        As the water poured over them, their eyes met and locked together. "I missed you, surat. I know, it is my own fault, and I hope you can forgive me for that." She draped her arms over Fiona's shoulders, linking her hands behind her head. "I was scared. There are feelings going on inside me that I do not know how to deal with. I have never encountered this before, and I do not know what the right way to handle it is. Everyone I have spoken to about it has told me to cast them aside and collapse in on myself, but that does not feel right. And so perhaps I am messing this up, surat, I do not know, but my last resort is to share my feelings with you. You have grown on me, surat. Slowly I began to realize I missed your company. First it was your wit and arrogance, then it grew to include the feel of your body against mine. I have felt the unfulfilled desire to couple on occasion, but never until I met you have I felt a singular desire to couple with a single person. Not even among my sibmates. I am confused beyond all reason, but I believe I can honestly say to you, surat, that I love you."

        Fiona saw Abigail close her eyes, as if waiting for an artillery shell to drop and destroy everything. She gently took Abigail's face in her hands and kissed her gently. "I know. I have known for some time. Because I feel the same. I feel sometimes as though I am living in a fantasy world, having this amazing woman practically dropped in front of me. But it is not fantasy. It is reality. And it is you and I."

        With that, both of their barriers fell away and they kissed deeply and passionately, losing themselves in the moment for a time, before having to break the kiss and deal with reality once more. Abigail squeezed her gently. "What do we do now, surat?"

        Fiona took a deep breath. "Nothing. we just be ourselves. This is not the Inner Sphere where we can run off and live a life together. We are bound by our duties. We are warriors. But that does not mean we cannot share our feelings, our love, when we are alone. But it can only ever be when we are alone."

        Abigail nodded slightly, never breaking eye contact. "Aff. I understand." She smiled coyly. "I have no further duties today, and you are not back on active duty yet. Let us make the rest of today one of those times where we share ourselves."