Sol didn’t know what to expect when she was shown to Arys’ quarters. The Doctor has been kind enough to explain everything that had occurred, and it pained her.  She stood quietly outside the doors to the quarters, the guards paying her no mind until she addressed them. The little mugato plushy sat perched in her arms, staring blankly at the door, much as she was. She reached out to press the chime then hesitated.  According to everyone, Ary’s didn’t seem to want to move or speak, so the chime would just be a waste of time, but Arys was still a person entitled to the respect of the attempt. She pressed the chime and waited a few moments, before nodding to one of the guards who actually keyed open the door. She held her breath, not knowing what to expect inside and took a step in, looking around.

She found quarters that were as neat and tidy as they were impersonal and untouched, despite them being in use. Quarters like these were reserved for patients that couldn’t occupy normal ones, but could benefit from an environment that wasn’t as clinical as sickbay.

A padded cell by Starfleet standards.

“Arys?” Solaris asked quietly, taking a few more steps into the quarters, receiving no response. She glanced around the space again, soon spying Arys. She seemed so small, sitting huddled in a corner, arms holding her legs tucked to her chest, chin wedged between them.

There was no reaction.

Sol frowned slightly. She had been told about this, but that didn’t make it easier to see. She approached slowly, kneeling next to her. She tilted her head to the side a bit.

“Arys?” she asked again, struggling with the desire just to scoop her up into a hug.

Painfully slowly, Arys loosened the grip around her legs and relaxed her posture just enough to raise her chin a little.

Sol smiled a bit, waving just a bit.

“Hey…” she said. Surely the most eloquent greeting she could muster. She hadn’t exactly planned her words, and even now she wasn’t sure she would have stuck to it if she had..

There was, again, no response, though she felt like she was being observed, and if Arys was still trying to figure out what to do.

She quietly took a seat on the floor. She held up the little mugato plush, giving one of its arms a little wave.

“Remember this?” she asked, offering it to Arys.

Arys’ eyes flicked down to the plushy, then back up to Solaris. She gave a small nod.

Sol smiled, letting Arys set the pace of the interaction. There was no point in trying to force something. She set the plushy on the ground between them for now.

“I…”, Arys said slowly, straining to speak, as if forming the words took immeasurable effort. “I… didn’t tell them where they are.”

It took Solaris a moment to register what she had actually meant and who ‘they’ were. When it did dawn on her, it was the furthest thing from her mind. She gently reached out and placed a hand on Arys’ shoulder. No pressure, just a reassuring touch.

“I know…” she said. She hadn’t truly known, but she knew Arys and how she would have handled herself. There was never a doubt.  “Arys… I…” she began only to have her own voice falter. There were so many different words trying to force their way into existence. She worked her jaw some, trying to get something to come out, only to close her mouth and regard her friend sadly.

“I… I put you in a position I never should have…” she started again, voice almost a whisper. “And when I should have been there… I wasn’t…” she continued. The guilt was plain in her voice.

Arys seemed to consider that, and perhaps it would grant her some measure of peace to blame what had happened on someone else. But all Solaris got in response was a subtle nod of acknowledgement.

Sol took a breath. She couldn’t get trapped in that spiral yet. There were more important things to focus on. There would be plenty of time for her to blame herself later, not that she had ever stopped.

“Arys… you need to tell this crew what happened to you… defend yourself.” she stated. “I’ve shared what I could… but there’s still–” she paused, eyes searching for the right words, “-things to sort out.” she finished.

“Why?”, Arys asked. There was no defiance in her tone. It was a simple question, asked dispassionately and with at the very most a mild interest.

Sol wanted to say ‘Because that’s just what you do when someone tries to frame you’ but knew that wasn’t exactly the most helpful of suggestions.

“Arys…” she started, only to stop. She realized she actually had no good answer to that question. She blinked, looking at Arys before speaking again. “Why wouldn’t you?”

“It won’t bring anyone back.”, Arys responded quietly. “It doesn’t… change… my part in it.”

Sol frowned. Arys was right, it wouldn’t change her part in it. She shook her head.

“No. It won’t. But if that were reason enough… you wouldn’t have sent the message to attract someone in the first place.” she said quietly. She was betting that she still knew Arys, because the logs on the ship showed someone else had.

“Even in the darkest moment… you still wanted someone to know… for it to end.” she continued. Maybe even more than Sol actually understood.

Arys closed her eyes and shook her head. If she had been the one sending the broadcast and making Starfleet aware of what was happening, she didn’t appear eager to claim credit for it – despite surely understanding how that would improve her situation.

“If your Doctor hadn’t dug deeper… hadn’t found me… you’d have been shipped off with the rest of them. And then what? Rotting in prison for eternity? Or worse? That doesn’t change your part in it either.” she said. “I don’t even think it soothes the guilt you’re feeling.” she continued.

She looked up at the ceiling, eyes tracing invisible paths on the ceiling for a few moments. “Nothing is going to change it… but it isn’t about changing the past… this is about the future.”

“I… don’t think there is one.”, Arys admitted after moments of silence. “I can… tell you what you want to know. So the story is told in the way it should be told. But then, I want to be left alone.”

Sol sighed. She held up her hand gently.

“Arys… I wish I could say there was a future. Even in my current position… I can’t… but what I do know is your silence ensures there isn’t one.” she pointed out. Her gaze softened. “Don’t do this because I want it… do this because you want it. Fight for yourself, like I know you can.” she said.

Fighting for herself. The concept seemed to appear so alien to the other woman that it didn’t even get a reaction.

Sol frowned, seeing there was no use in continuing down that path. She stood carefully and sought out a PADD. She tapped a few controls, returning to sit with Arys. If she was going to do this, she was at least going to get it in Arys’ own voice.

“Ok… ok…” she said gently. “After you called me to get you out… what happened?” she asked, setting the PADD between them. Its screen was also reading out a transcript of their conversation now.