A Concerned Touch

[Malia Afredane]

"There is a place I stay when I go. There's no casino on property, so Rusty prefers it. Plenty of bars and shops and other crap to do and a fairly nice piece of property. I've got some left from Lar's stupid incident, so I'll pick up the tab for the rooms for the crew. I think your guys need a bit of R&R as well."

She took the datapad and started to pull up the resort information. She booked rooms for everyone to have their own but she booked a suite for her and Kairon. Something with a nice jacuzzi tub and a lovely view of the bright lights. She handed it back to him, snuggling into his pillow.

"There, all booked. Everyone has a private room and Asmus has a spending limit on how much he can charge to the room."

She wanted to kick off her shoes and go to sleep, but she forced herself to stay awake, dragging herself off the bed and over to him, sitting on the top of his desk, watching him sort through his things.

[member="Kairon Rees"]

 

[Kairon Rees]

[member="Malia Afredane"]

“Much appreciated,” Kairon said with a chuckle. “I'll pick up the hotels on Sullust,” he offered. Last time he'd beaten her to a tab on an evening out, she'd wired him half the funds afterwards. Thinking back on her playful expression when she had beaten him to a tab, he decided it was a trait in Mal he greatly admired. Just as long as she could take a genuine gift when it was offered. They had so much to work out about each other still. Their time together was far was miniscule compared to the time together in space they were about to embark on. It was frightening and exciting at the same time.

There was a click as he sealed his case shut. As he entered the code to his safe to retrieve his data crystals of off-the-map hyperlanes he had a thought. “You know, we could take a deck of cards…” he said with a sidelong glance from his blue eyes. No need to gamble with credits after all. He almost immediately regretted the suggestion as he recalled how thoroughly she had thrashed him last time. He could see the tiredness in her eyes. "I've forgotten, are we taking the Grace down or grabbing an Alliance shuttle? I'm shattered too."

 

[Malia Afredane]

"It's so cute that you think I don't have cards. I have a few decks. Yours can stay with the Quin unless you're sentimental about them."

She had illustrated the point by producing a deck from the leg pocket on her cargo pants. She slipped it away again, her eyes playing over the things on the top of the desk.

"We can take a shuttle. Rusty needs to get your things loaded up and get off. That feth with my mum pulled him off a job and he's got to finish it. So he will meet us when he is done. Probably a week. Might be more."

She winked at him, excited and nervous to get an opportunity to actually have a retreat with him. For once, she wasn't thinking about hitting the casinos, more she just wanted to be alone with him.

"How much is Asmus going to drive us insane on Zeltros with interruptions or a need to be babysat?"

Secretly she wondered if she could pay Mai and Jarrick extra to make sure the kid was kept entertained and away from Kairon and Mal for at least a day.

 

[Kairon Rees]

[member="Malia Afredane"]

One eyebrow was raised as the pack of cards appeared suddenly. “Alright, I’m curious now. How many decks do you actually have on your person?” he asked with a broad grin. “For some reason I pictured Rusty each night feeding sabbac cards into a shredder one by one!”

“Ahh we might have to to keep tabs on the boy an evening or two. Jarrick is pretty much resigned to the fact it's part of his job description. To be honest, he’s an adult now I should probably just leave him to his own devices.

“Or I could hatch an evil plan!” he said as an idea struck him. “Perfect,” he mumbled as he picked up his data pad and scrolled through some old messages. “Last time we spoke my sister made me promise to make him do this short course in astrogation. That could keep him tied up a few days!”

A whole week on Zeltros together, even with the crew in tow, sounded like bliss. She didn't need tying down with his responsibilities during the short break. By the Force, he hoped the boy wouldn't drive her mad on the Warden. He was all packed up now, time to say goodbye to his ship and home for a while and catch that shuttle.

 

[Malia Afredane]

The night on Sullust was short as both of them decided to call it an early night, the trip to Zeltros was fine, and then vacation began in earnest. Zeltros was a pleasure world and they were not fooling around. The first day, Mal had arranged for everyone to go on an actual boat cruise, and promptly discovered that she got seasick unless she was standing out on the bow of the boat. She felt fine after a few minutes of being back on land, but out in the water, she had turned positively green.

Dinner that night was at a decent pub up the street, the food was pretty good, the drinks kept flowing and the seedier element was missing. It was all tourists and people looking for a good time. The place was hosting a trivia night as it turned out and the crew did fairly decently as a team, earning a second place finish and a free round of drinks.

Asmus' course forced him to turn in early, but Jarrick and Mai headed for the casino while Mal and Kairon excused themselves to their room. Daily applications of bacta patches had been doing wonders for Kairon's injuries, so when they were finally, blissfully alone in their room, there was nothing to hold back the torrent; not pain, nor uncertainty, or space.

Knowing that for the next few months, there would be no loneliness, no missing the other one, did wonders to take the tension off them. There was still a sense of urgency in their tender months, however it was tied to need and not to dread that they would soon have to part. Sleep took them, wrapped in each other's arms when long shadows had turned to splashes of neon across the shiny marble floors. The lights of Zeltros never stopped, and as the sun crept up the next morning, it washed out the wild colors with the golden glow of a new day.

Mal woke up as it got more light out, her eyes falling on the sleeping features of Kairon, strands of his hair failing in front of his eyes and shielding him slightly from the light of the morning. Mal just lay there, eyes closed, not moving for a while, just taking the whole thing in, listening to his slow, rhythmic breathing.

[member="Kairon Rees"]

 

[Kairon Rees]

[member="Malia Afredane"]

[SIZE=14.6667px]Kairon slowly blinked his eyes open as his thoughts fought through the fog. He could tell from the lethargic way his mind was working that he'd slept particularly deeply. There was a brief flare of panic before he felt her skin against his. For the first time she hadn’t left him alone, or dressed for a meeting, or had to respond to an emergency. Letting out a small contented sigh, he turned his head over to look at her. He realised she was awake from the way she moved to accommodate him rolling over. Her eyes remained closed, but there was a smile on her lips. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=14.6667px]“Morning you,” he said quietly, though his voice was raspy. Stretching backwards, his hand found the glass of water he’d left on his table so he could soothe his parched mouth before kissing her. Sometimes practicality had to come first. He idly wondered if she would now always end up sleeping on his right hand side. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=14.6667px]They exchanged quiet whispers and a few small kisses as they continued to wake. It wasn’t long before he pulled her closer and allowed his hands to roam. Compared to their previous times together this morning was a slow burning passion. They started off displaying their affection in a tender, gentle manner, but built to a crescendo that burned brighter than the night before. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=14.6667px]As his head found a comfortable depression in the pillow nearly an hour later, his slightly sore hand gently ran across the leg she still had draped over him. “Lots to do today...I’m sure,” he said slowly. “Don’t go...don't’ fall....asleep.” But his blinking eyes showed that he was failing to follow his own advice. [/SIZE]

 

[Malia Afredane]

"Hey."

She poked at him, fully awake now, her blood still pumping quickly in her veins from their morning escapades. She shook him from the clutches of sleep and dreams, as the sunlight was filling the windows now and the pleasure world was waking up.

"No more sleep. I'm hungry. And I need a shower..."

She leaned in to playfully give him a kiss and impress upon him the implications of warm water and sustenance. She pulled her leg back and began to extricate herself from the sheets, her body protesting her recent mistreatment of it.

She padded across the floor to the bathroom and looked between her options, finally choosing the marble stalled, glassed in shower. The whooosh of water hitting the stone filled the silent room while steam filled the air.

Apparently her intent was received as Kairon joined her.

Another hour or so later, they were dressed and headed downstairs for breakfast although Kairon was decidedly against pants and leaving the room, she mentioned wanting to take him to a great breakfast spot she liked. She pouted and won and so now they were walking down the street, fingers intertwined and enjoying the fact that neither of them had any real place to be.

[member="Kairon Rees"]

 

[Kairon Rees]

[member="Malia Afredane"]

For this first time in a while Kairon felt utterly content. There was no cargo to worry about, no creeping realisation that he’d be apart from Mal soon, no responsibilities. He was thoroughly satisfied from the morning’s exertions too, though in the heady mix of pheromones on Zeltros there was no telling how long that would last. As they walked he mention the notion of trying out the hot tub in the room whilst polishing off that bottle of Whyrren’s. It seemed to go down well.

As they meandered through the streets of Zeltros, carefree with the exception of a growing pang of hunger, Kairon suggested a game of questions as they went. The pair had now revealed a great deal about their pasts. For Kairon this had certainly been an almost painful experience just two nights previous. He could still vividly recall the look on Mal’s face when the Union officer had hinted at her past conviction. So perhaps a lighter look at their past would be a pleasant change. Mal suggested a topic.

“Weirdest place I’ve been in a fighting? Oh I’ve got a good one for that! Once worked for this houk who was called “Fat Barry”. Massive wobbly jowls on him. He loved to be called Fat Barry, unless you were in his bad books, then it sight him right off.

“Anyway, Fat Barry owned a group of spas in the lower levels of Coruscant. Like to conduct his business there, show off his property to potential business partners. So me an’ Jarrick are there, can barely see Fat Barry as he explains the cargo he wants us to haul. There’s an explosion,” Kairon continued, disengaging his hand to gesticulate for a moment before putting it back around her waist.

“It turns out, he’s got a rival organisation who’ve bene trying to off him for months. Gang of young rodians. His bodyguard, without a flitch, unlocks a case filled with blaster pistols and hands one my way. These are, like, very small towels. Bolts start flying and I’ve got the choice of towel or blaster. I have never seen a look of fear quite like what was plastered on those rodian kids when we sent them packing!” he said, idly swinging he clasped hand as he smiled.

“Your turn then!”

 

[Malia Afredane]

She looked blankly in the distance for a moment, the shook her head and sighed deeply.

"Well, when I left for the Navy, I was seeing this guy. I had a break between semesters at the academy so I came home to see mum and catch up with him. I give him a call, tell him I'm in town but he acts really odd that I would come all the way to Balmorra but never says anything about it. He asks me to meet him at this restaurant downtown. So I show up, and he catches me at the door before I ever make it inside. He pulls me into the coat check and starts telling me he missed me and I look great but he's being cagey. I ask what's wrong but about that time, the door gets yanked open by this wicked snotty girl I knew from prep school. She grabs his arm and lights into me about messing with her fiance at their engagement party. She drags him out, and she's screaming in the front of the place and people are staring. I come walking out of the little closet and all eyes are on me, his family are in the back, her family. It's getting ugly because everyone is getting up to see what the ruckus is. I look at him and her and then just haul off and deck him. She jumped on me and it just went nuts but her brother pulled her off and I left the place. Went to mum's, stayed the night and went back to the academy the next day. So I guess the weirdest place I was in a fight was my boyfriend's engagement party."

She looked sheepishly at him, shrugging her shoulders and then rolling her eyes. It was a little dramatic but Mal had seen some pretty nutty things. She curled into his side, enjoying the closeness, as she scrunched her lips up in thought.

"What's the most embarrassing thing you ever done?"

[member="Kairon Rees"]

 

[Kairon Rees]

“Oh I see how it is! Going straight there are we?” he said, pulling away a little to turn to face her, nearly tripping over his own boots as he went. The feigned incredulity was clear in his expression and tone.

“Alright then,” he said, holding her close once more. As he briefly leant his head across hers he suddenly realised how familiar the scent of her hair and the feel of his hand hooked around her waist was.

“There are many, many stories on the ways in which my nephew has strived to embarrass me over the years. Including a particularly good one where we had to move a girl - I think it was a female - that he'd brought home from the ship so we could launch. She literally had suckers on her limbs and damn but they could grip a bulkhead.

“But anyway, I think you probably want something closer to home,” Kairon said, pausing for a moment. “Alright so Eriadu balls…you’ve seen a few of my colourful neck ties. The only formal event at which a true Eriadu merchant would wear something so drab is a funeral," he said in a deadpan tone. "The Eriadu Noble class actually have a series of black and white balls each year just to make a statement on how crass the merchants are.

“Now I’m twenty four, I’ve come back from years as a pirate and I’m trying to fit in. However, I’m used to drab spacer wear and I tone down what my parents think is an acceptable outfit to reintroduce me to formal society. One of the Tonkins from the south side of the city almost immediately tried to send me to get a round of drinks.

“Odd thing was I wasn’t really ready to face civilisation at that point,” he said, his tone suddenly more sombre as he recalled how difficult, and ultimately fruitless those years of had been, striving to fit in with a society he had only known for the first years of his life.

“For some reason I didn’t spill any blood. I simple couldn't face their derision. Somehow that was worse than being forced to fight a man to death with your bare hands! When they realised who I was and laughed I simple walked away. Didn’t go to a ball again for six months, but ultimately I got my own back on the little kark stain.

“Alright, in hindsight, not the best story. Pretty downbeat and at the end of the day I dressed badly for a party once. Yours had best be funny!” he exclaimed, gently poking her on the shoulder. “Where are we headed for breakfast anyway?” They walked past a building still thrumming with noise that reverberated through the street. The parties never stopped on Zeltros. He was too old to try and get through a two day drinking binge these days and would invariably end up snoring in a corner much past three in the morning.

 

[Malia Afredane]

"It's right here." She tugged his arm into a small cottage looking building with flowerpots dotting the walkway from the street. They grabbed a small table in the corner, Mal sinking into a chair her eyes on the massive plates of food at the next table over. She felt famished from their trysts deep into the night, her stomach grumbling in protest of the aromas of food around her.

She looked over the menu with zeal, her mind playing over the thoughts of pancakes and french toast and bacon. Crispy bacon. Once they had given their orders to the waitress and had fresh steaming mugs of caf, she remembered their earlier game.

"Most embarrassing I've done? You mean apart from letting Rusty talk me into thinking that you and Jarrick were an item?"

Surely he had not forgotten how positively gutted she had been at discovering her incredible mistake.

[member='Kairon Rees']

 

[Kairon Rees]

[member="Malia Afredane"]


Despite voicing his protestations, he was glad for a hot mug of caf and the promise of food. Even if it had required dressing and leaving their room. “Ah of course,” he replied, with that wistful look that came from considering some of the best and worst moments of his life at the same time.

“Bless, I think I really annoyed him by referring to him as my “second-in-command” rather than partner in the following weeks. I think he felt like he’d been demoted!” he said with a chuckle. He looked up hopefully as a serving droid came past with two plates, but it wasn’t for them. “But if that hadn’t ended up as an embarrassment you’d have remained blissfully ignorant and this wouldn’t have happened. So worth it, I guess,” he said. “Please say worth it,” he added in a desperate whisper, his expression making clear he was trying to be amusing.

Kairon hadn’t visited Zeltros too often before, he certainly hadn’t stayed for any length of time. “This is nice,” he said, looking around the quit café she had chosen. There had been some signs about a new festival starting up that night. Something to do with celebrating the end of the Yuuzhan Vong occupation. Apparently fake scars and tattoos were advised as part of the costume. Right now he quite fancied heading back to the room, but perhaps just to listen to some music or watch a film. He didn’t want to readily admit he wasn’t twenty anymore and that he was still sore in several places already.

 

[Malia Afredane]

"Completely worth it."

She grinned widely, as their breakfast was delivered and she practically attacked the mountain of brioche french toast with cinnamon and raisins and plenty of syrup and butter drifting lazily over the curves and edges of the slices. Her eyes rolled back in her head in delight as she savored every bite. One hand held her fork while she ate, the other had reached over and slipped gently into his free hand, her need to touch him and know that this wasn't just some long intricate dream still rather strong.

She set the fork down and reached for a sip of juice, her eyes casting over to him as she had a thought.

"So after breakfast, would you like a private tour of the Grey Warden?"

She was eager to show off the new ship to someone she figured would appreciate it. They were still getting the paperwork in order, but the Warden was in drydock just outside of town, waiting for the crew to arrive and take off.

[member="Kairon Rees"]

 

[Kairon Rees]

[member="Malia Afredane"]

“Oh is she nearby? Yes that sounds great," he replied with genuine enthusiasm, thoughts of the state of his own ship forgotten for now as he held her hand. "We can see if any of the cabins have a slightly larger berth,” he replied. It was perhaps presumptuous to assume they would share a room, it might not turn out to be the case. However, the last time they had stayed in a freighter bunk made for one it had been mildly painful the following morning.

“It’s nice,” he said, as his fork noisily pushed chunks of fried bread through the yolk of his fried eggs. “Feeling like we have plenty of time?” Kairon felt in no hurry to head out from the café, his legs were certainly content with a short rest.

 

[Malia Afredane]

"It is. Every time I take time off, it turns into a mess. I'm hoping that doesn't happen now."

The breakfast was delicious and after they squabbled over the bill and she finally let him pay, they caught a speeder out to a dockyards a few kilometers outside of the city. The ride out was pleasant, she leaned into his shoulder, the wind wiping their hair around as they just enjoyed the ride and the countryside.

They pulled up to the dockyards and after showing all the relevant identifications, they were escorted through the drydock until they came to where the Grey Warden was parked. She was pristine in the sun; Makers had her refurnished and painted and only used her for vanity runs. The YZ-2500 didn't look several hundred years old, she looked as if she had rolled off the assembly line last week. Mal paused, looking up at her with a grand sense of awe on her face, and maybe a little glee as well.

The ship was huge, hulking over them as they passed under it. The turrets held turbolasers and heavy armor plating. The Warden and her sisters were built to ward off pirate attacks and she was sleek and fast, and armed to the teeth. Mal felt a kindred to the ship. Something that had been so comfortable when they had first seen her before the auction.

Standing in the middle of the common area, she turned to Kairon.

"Well, what do you think?"

[member="Kairon Rees"]

 

[Kairon Rees]

[member="Malia Afredane"]

“It’s shiny,” Kairon announced. “I mean it, it’s literally shiny. It’s not often they polish up your second hand ship. Then again you picked this up at auction, not direct I suppose,” he mused. Already he was doing the rather nugatory work of checking each of the cupboards and drawers in the common area. “Asmus was whining at me for years to get a new paint job. Finally did it for the Alliance assault as well. Perhaps it’s bad luck and I should leave the Quin looking like a flying dumpster.”

“I like her!” he announced, turning to Mal with a slightly childish smile on his face. “Good capacity, easy maintenance. Nothing says ‘kark off and pick on the next guy coming through here’ like a good battery of turbolasers,” he said. He paused for a moment, his eyes settling on Mal’s happy, almost dreamy expression rather than the ship. She turned and saw him watching her closely. He looked back to one of the doors at the back of the common area, a small smile on his face.

“Cockpit, turrets and check out the cabins?” he asked, taking her hand and leading her out of the galley. “I remember talking with you – back on Nar Shaddaa when you were busy trying to balance drinking enough to relax and stay conscious – about what it was like to fly alone. How are you feeling about taking on a full crew again?”

Kairon felt something, almost pride. This was a big step up for Mal’s operations. It was a good purchase, a solid ship that would open up new avenues of business and he’d be there to help.

 

[Malia Afredane]

"I haven't commanded a crew in years but I had one when I was in. I guess I am more acutely aware now of how my actions will affect their lives. It's daunting, but it's forcing me to stop being a brooding drunk loner. Which is probably a good thing."

She let him pull her around to the cabins, and the meeting room that a couple of them had been converted into. It cut down on passenger berths but she wasn't in the business to ferry passengers. The Warden had plenty of space for cargo and that was her draw.

Mal leaned on the bulkhead leading into the cockpit. It was wide open and spacious, several seats for crew members at stations to monitor weaposn, navigation and helm. She'd flown something similar in the Navy. It felt familiar and comforting, even if it did present a new set of potential problems.

[member="Kairon Rees"]

 

[Kairon Rees]

[member="Malia Afredane"]

Like a small child Kairon had started flicking switches and pushing buttons. Almost as if the feel of the controls gave someone away about the quality of the vessel.

"Whilst there's a lot to be said for brooding over a pint, in my opinion," he said, looking over his shoulder, "I'd tend to agree."

He stopped pretending he was garnering any useful information from his button pressing then and turned to approach her. One hand found the small of her back, the other her neck and he gently pulled her from the bulkhead into a gentle embrace. He simply held her against him for a time.

When he pulled away there was an almost apologetic smile for the spontaneous cuddle. "Seeing as we had a good night's sleep," he said quietly, it has almost true. "We could get into the Zeltros spirit. They're celebrating the liberation of the world by holding a mock Yuuzhan Vong festival I think. We could grab some lunch, get dressed up and have a late one... If you want?"

 

[Malia Afredane]

"You wanna go clubbing like a couple'a kids?"

She laughed at him but her fingers traced the lines of his beard as he held her and nodded.

"Yeah, why not? We're on vacation, might as well. But if we're gonna be up all night, I think we at least need a nap first."

There was a glint in her eye that clearly did not mean nap, and she was hoping he would pick that up. Or she would force the issue once they got back to room. The lazy hours of the afternoon drifted away as they spent them wound together in sheets and skin. By the time the sun was slipping behind the horizon, they were ready to go join the festivities down at street level.

After lunch, they had picked up some costumes and masks. Hers, a Vong shaper, had wild sequined tentacles on a headdress that went with a short dress that showed off her long, lean legs. She looked like a campy Vong squid creature but the blues and greens of the dress and headdress went well with her coloring. She even went with silver high heeled go-go boots like one of the dancers in a club would wear.

When on Zeltos...

She gave a twirl when she emerged from the bath, wanting to see what Kairon thought.

[member="Kairon Rees"]

 

[Kairon Rees]

[member="Malia Afredane"]

Kairon had been applying make-up with the help of a small, hand-held mirror when Mal walked in. He had been occasionally drinking from a mug of double-strength caf trying not to regret making the suggestion. Her joke wasn't that wide of the mark, he did feel a touch old to be joining a Zeltros street festival all dressed up. What energy he'd regained from the extra sleep on Sullust had quickly been cashed in over the last thirty six hours. Another afternoon spent exploring each other and he had felt perfectly content to curl up with her and order room service.

Then she walked in and gave a twirl as he finished another red tattoo over his eye. His gaze followed the lines of legs and the gentle curves of her body through the form-fitting dress designed to mimic the robeskins the Yuuzhan Vong wore. There was a silly smile on his face and suddenly he felt quite enthusiastic about joining the street party he could hear kicking off through the window.

Kairon realised he was just starring.

"You look stunning!" he pronounced. He bit his lower lip and briefly considered going back on joining the party again. "I think I've made a mess of the tattoos on the face, could you help?" he asked. His own costume was that of a warrior. A rusty red coloured plastic creation covered his upper torso, giving him the appearance of being adorned in that crab armour they wore. It had big pointy shoulders and flexible fake spines pointed skywards to frame his face. His broad arms were bare and like his face he'd covered them with a range of red and blue tattoos to match those he'd bodged on his face. He'd tied his hair back in a tight knot to keep it back from his face, with a single braid like one of the fanatical warriors. Apparently some of them did have hair. The outfit was completed with a belt that came with a buckle shaped like the head of an amphistaff.

"Slay the infidels!" a cry drifted up from the streets below, followed by a round of roaring laughter.