[Center][h1][color=8882be]"Phi"[/color][/h1][/center]
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The lavender skinned alien's positivity was very infectious, and Phi had no immunity built up in that moment, nor did she care to resist the smile Amy drew out of her. She inclined her head, confirming the obvious guess, though the way Amy took to snuggling the thing a passerby might think it was meant for her. That smile transitioned into a frown with furrowed brow and slightly cocked head, not because she was averse to joining her on the bed, but for confusion about what she said. However, with a little thought put in she realized she must seem antisocial so far, especially to someone she had only just met and barely spoken to. 

Amy went on and that confused expression deepened into a soft scowl. Phi opened her mouth to say something, and then snapped it shut once Amy slipped up. At first shocked that she had been exposed so easily Phi's face went pale and her body rigid. Briefly she considered trying to cover it up, but logically there was only one way Amy could know and any lie would be a stretch to sell. Instead she had to consider herself fortunate that Amy wasn't mischievous enough to want to spread Phi's little secret. With a long sigh her slender shoulders slumped in defeat. A few steps later she plopped down beside the older woman, resignation and embarrassment settling on her features.

[Color=8882be]"So you saw. And here I thought I covered all the camera angles. How careless. That is…"[/color] She paused as deeper embarrassment colored her cheeks. 

[I]I am so damn lucky I didn't start my master plan making plushies of everyone yet. If she had seen [b]that[/b] I don't think I'd ever be able to show my face again.[/i]

[Color=8882be]"..well, that little hobby is super embarrassing. Needless to say I don't want the others to find out. Even if they didn't make fun of me I could never live it down."[/color] She finished this thought and closed her eyes, leaning back on her hands. With another deep breath she looked back at Amy, as serious an expression as she could muster returning to her face. Of course the severity of this look was somewhat undermined by that lingering blush.

[Color=8882be]"More importantly, I wanted to correct you on one thing- no, two things, but first! 'Professional nanny' doesn't feel right at all, nor does the mere title of counselor. Not that I think you're unprofessional or lacking in good counsel. I may not know just the right word, but I feel like you're going to be, and already are, something more special than your average therapist. So don't you dare sell yourself short, ma'am. Deal?"[/color]

[I]Dammit, I do know the words, I just can't bring myself to say 'surrogate mother.' I might not even be able to until I know for sure what happened, and there's no telling how long that will take.[/i]

[Color=8882be]"As for the other thing, it's harder than I expected to kick a habit I didn't even have for very long. The way we were thrown into war like that, no, it's probably true for any soldier to a certain extent. At any moment in war you might lose a close friend, if not for being killed then for sudden reassignment. Day after day like that, you start building a mental wall without even realizing it. You start to… protect yourself and avoid getting too close to others. At least that's how it was for me, but I did have a few other reasons for feeling isolated from my comrades. I've been trying to bridge that involuntary gap between myself and everyone, I really have. But I guess it's going to take more time and work. I want to connect as family again, or at least friends, and not just have those things be words on my lips."[/color]

Her wistful smile and otherwise calm demeanor belied Phi's true feelings. Unaware of Amy's ability her mental guard was down, and her actual emotions were easy to read. Loneliness, desperate longing, fear of failure or rejection, the desire to be able to rely on others and have others rely on her. And swimming beneath these feelings was a deeper issue of doubt and uncertainty, silently threatening everything important in her heart. To be able to sense these things without seeing the facade Phi wanted to present, one might expect to see the girl shaking and on the verge of tears. But no matter how skilled an actress, that mask was only skin deep.