Deep in the City, the Horned and the Pink.

[Zatten Black]

I woke up smiling, with Kadrak's head still on my chest. My corvette was still about an hour away from Coruscant, still in hyperspace. But at least I had good company, and I was holding said company very close. I stroked her spine, and grabbed one of the hands she had on my neck, kissing it.

"Do you want breakfast, love?"

[member='Kadrak Jalaan']

 

[Avery Rose Garter]

A quiet murmur near her ear and Kadrak stirred, yawning quietly and pausing as the previous hours events came back to her. With a smile she blinked sleepily and stretched up to kiss his cheek, still pondering his question, not having quite shook the last foggy cobwebs of sleep from her brain. Taking her time, she brushed a kiss across his neck, the one spot she could reach without having to stretch even a bit. "That depends entirely on what's on the menu, but I could go for something to eat, on the condition that we always fall asleep like this from now on. This has to be the best I've slept in a while, at least."
Yawning again she slowly sat up with another yawn, rubbing the last vestiges of sleep from her eyes and stretching momentarily, looking to him with another smile. "You make an entirely all too comfortable pillow, I'm afraid, but you didn't seem to mind. Did you sleep well?"

[member="Zatten Black"]

 

[Zatten Black]

Smiling wanly at Kadrak, I got up and slid across the bed towards her. Hugging her, I sat down.

"Why only fall asleep like that? Anyway, I think there might be pancakes and bacon or something in the near future. You can hug me like this while I'm cooking, too."

Squeezing her waist, I smiled wider, and ran a hand over her horns.

"And you're the most beautiful teddy bear I ever had, Kadrak. Though you're closer to some kind of feline than a bear."

[member="Kadrak Jalaan"]

 

[Avery Rose Garter]

With a smile as he ran his hand over her horns again she shrugged. "There are plenty of other ways to fall asleep, certainly, and plenty more places to do it in as well. But, in terms of myself, in your arms happens to be my favorite. Whether that's fortunate or not for you I can't say, but it is quite comfortable." Kadrak smiled again, more crookedly this time. "You seem to like these horns of mine. Unfortunately for you there isn't any Zabrak in your family tree, otherwise you might have some of your own. But I'll let you keep it up. It seems to be something you enjoy, after all." She winked, leaning over to kiss him again on the cheek. "Pancakes and bacon, huh? Doesn't sound like a bad deal to me. And I get to hug you while you're cooking. This just keeps getting better and better."
Standing now she took his hand in hers, squeezing it gently. "What do you say we go test your cooking skills, then? I'm not asking because I want to hug you, of course. Not at all." She smiled innocently.

[member="Zatten Black"]

 

[Zatten Black]

Getting up and squeezing back, I smiled at Kadrak.

"You can fall asleep in my arms whenever you like. Just as long as we're not in the middle of getting shot at."

Embracing her, and beginning to step backwards towards the door, stroked Kadrak's horns again.

"I like your horns, though. Even if you did scratch me that night in the walker."

Spinning away from the middle of the room, I carried her with me, and grinned.

"You don't have to leave my arms until we get up there... and I don't have to leave yours at all."

[member="Kadrak Jalaan"]

 

[Avery Rose Garter]

Kadrak met his grin with one of her own, laughing quietly when he mentioned getting shot at. "Oh, I can't imagine that happening ever. It isn't like either of us have a way with provoking people or attracting blaster fire. But you don't have to worry about me there. If there's one thing you should have learned from our night out on Nar Shaddaa, it's that I have no problems with returning the favor when it comes to us getting shot at. Unlike our adversaries, however, I prefer to hit my targets."
She rolled her eyes as he mentioned her scratching him, smiling all the same. "I never said they weren't sharp. And you were fond of resting our foreheads together, in my defense. But it didn't draw blood, or none that I could see, so no harm, no foul, or something of the sort.
"At all, is it? That hardly seems fair, although I can't complain. It still involves me hugging you, so it's a win-win situation. For both parties, if I'm not mistaken."

[member="Zatten Black"]

 

[Zatten Black]

I continued spinning with Kadrak in my arms, grinning at her.

"I didn't say I didn't enjoy having you burrow in my chest like that. It was cute."

I ran my hand over her back again, hugging her close.

"So, I have to make up for lost time on the way up?"

[member="Kadrak Jalaan"]

 

[Avery Rose Garter]

Kadrak only grinned and shook her head at his compliment. "If you insist, I suppose. As I said, you do make quite a comfortable pillow. And not a bad looking one by any means. That doesn't hurt things either, nor does the fact that you seem to like me just as much as I like you. That certainly has helped things along."
Smiling at his touch she reached her hand up to gently trail her fingers down the back of his neck, simply enjoying the feeling of his close proximity for a moment. It was unique for her to feel completely relaxed around another being, but she'd decided she could get used to the feeling once she'd woken up next to him on the walker. It was nice not to have to keep her guard up constantly, more or less. "There's a chance you might have to, yes. But I don't think you'll complain much, really. But I could always throw in another blanket for to sweeten the pot, if that helps things along. I'm afraid if I suggested something of the sort now we wouldn't be exactly making it to the kitchen."

[member="Zatten Black"]

 

[Zatten Black]

I smiled, and bent down to kiss Kadrak lightly.

"We're still a couple hours away, and breakfast doesn't take very long. I'll bring the blanket, just in case."

So saying, I reached out with the Force, and dropped the blanket on our shoulders.

"I can certainly say I like having you here. I've never had guests on the ship, before."

Spinning again, so the blanket flared around us, I kissed Kadrak for a bit longer.

"I'm sorry I'm so hungry, though. Otherwise we could've waited longer before getting off the bed. I was very comfortable with you lying on top of me."

[member="Kadrak Jalaan"]

 

[Avery Rose Garter]

In response to his apology all Kadrak did was stand up on her tiptoes to give him yet another kiss, looking up at him with a smile and a shrug, pulling the blanket tighter around the both of them. "You don't need to apologize, really. If you hadn't brought it up I probably would have ended up asking sooner or later anyhow, so it's fine. Besides, it earned the prospect of another blanket fort, so I can't voice any objections. And I get to explore your ship a bit more, so that's nice. I still say we should do a bit of interior decorating. Nothing too fancy, but just something to spice it up a bit."
She studied the halls as they walked, keeping an eye out for any panels that looked to be capable of hiding something underneath. She'd learned enough of that trick on the walker, and was almost certain that he employed the same one on this corvette of his. "You never did properly introduce me to your little brother, I don't think. All things considered, I wouldn't mind meeting him. That is, if he and you are okay with the idea. Something about artificial intelligence has always interested me, but I've never perfected the technique."

[member="Zatten Black"]

 

[Zatten Black]

Kissing her back, I snuggled Kadrak closer.

"Interior decorating, huh? You're gonna pick out furniture for me?"

I squeezed her hand, and started walking us towards the lift again.

"It'll be interesting to see what you pick. My little brother has some odd tastes, so you might have to hash it out with him."

[member="Kadrak Jalaan"]

 

[Avery Rose Garter]

Kadrak could only shrug at his question, squeezing his hand in return as they began walking once more. "I'm not much of an expert on the subject, but I'd be willing to if you are. And unless you know any hot spots that are good for picking out furniture and that sort of thing, we'll both be guessing as we go. As long as no one gets thrown through any windows or hurt too badly, we should be fine. We don't want the shop owners to think we're too crazy, after all. I've heard it's bad for business, along with that rather terminal case of death.
"And as for your little brother, I don't think there will be any problem swaying him either way. I've been told I can be rather, hmm, convincing, after all." As if to prove her point she stretched up to press a kiss to his jaw as they walked. "Or we can compromise. He can decorate one half of the ship, I get the other. But he's probably more of an interior decorator than I am anyhow, so his side might look a little better. As long as it's not anything too outlandish, I'm okay with it. But I assume the two of you have similar tastes."

[member="Zatten Black"]

 

[Zatten Black]

I smiled at the kiss on my jaw, and held Kadrak closer.

"If you let me pick out the furniture, the whole ship would be gold and black. Dunno how much you or my brother would like that."

I kissed her back, and keyed the lift up to the kitchen.

"I'm sorry to tell you that my brother has a bit more willpower than I do. He's not so taken with your beauty as I am, I guess."

[member="Kadrak Jalaan"]

 

[Avery Rose Garter]

"I always saw you as more of a bright colors person myself, but that just teaches you to never go with first impressions. At least, not in that department. Take it from me, it's not wise to get in the habit of not trusting your gut instinct." Kadrak smiled. "And, hey, gold and black isn't all that bad. It'd all match in the end, at least. Better than piecing everything together from what we can manage at the odd shop or private sale. Unless there's a black market for furniture that I'm unaware, in which case do speak up now. All of those illegal modifications on chairs and whatnot." Cracking a grin at her own sort of joke she laughed quietly.
"Fortunately for him, I'm more than happy with being with you, and just you. You've done a great job of enrapturing me as it is, after all. I can't help but wonder how it comes so easily to you." She winked.

[member="Zatten Black"]

 

[Zatten Black]

I raised my eyebrow, and smiled crookedly back,

"I want chairs that do crazy stuff. A cushy job, that has a barbecue in it wouldn't be unwelcome. Or maybe an even softer bed, so we just sink into it. Something so comfy, it's illegal."

My crooked smile extended, and I squeezed Kadrak again.

"I didn't even use pheromones."

[member="Kadrak Jalaan"]

 

[Avery Rose Garter]

Kadrak listened with quiet amusement to his list of preferences, not at all surprised by any of them. It would have come as more of a shock to her if he didn't have any ideas. "What exactly is your idea of 'crazy stuff', as you put it? Because depending on that and what type of chair we're looking at, I might be able to hash something together. It won't be as quick as just going out and buying it, but it also won't cost near as many credits, not that I can see that being much of an issue." She grinned at his last suggestion. "That's something we'll have to buy. Unfortunately, in my long list of tricks of the trade, that isn't one of them."
Although she knew he was part Zeltron, her knowledge of the species didn't extend much beyond the basics. She was aware of the pheromones, certainly, along with just what effect they had on people, but had never borne witness to their use. Yet another thing she would have to look into. "I wasn't aware you had to. You seemed to be doing a fine job of things without them, from what I witnessed. But maybe I'm unfairly biased."

[member="Zatten Black"]

 

[Zatten Black]

I smiled back, and shrugged.

"Cushy objects are good. Especially beds. Feeling like you're melting into your bed is fun. The chair thing was sadly a joke. I like going outside if I'm gonna barbeque."

Then, I looked back down into Kadrak's face, and I kissed her on the nose.

"You're unfairly biased, and I was doing a good job. Both is good."

[member="Kadrak Jalaan"]

 

[Avery Rose Garter]

A part of her was slightly disappointed that he'd decided not to go along with the idea, because she'd been at a loss for any projects for some time. But then again, it would have been nearly impossible to rig up. Maybe she'd have to ponder the idea after all. Drawing up a few blueprints just for amusement couldn't hurt anything. "It would still be worth thinking up, if even just for fun. Beds, however, aren't near my speciality. Unless you want something technological to go along with it, in which case you might just be in luck."
A grin broke out on her face. "Both works, definitely. Especially the part where you were doing a good job." She thought for a moment. "In absence if any stories to tell, now that I think about it, I might have one or two. One of which when you were present, but not exactly there. Remember that time I had us stop by Belasco?"

[member="Zatten Black"]

 

[Zatten Black]

I shrugged. I'd probably been really drunk when we went to Belasco.

"I think I was insanely drunk. Did I insult an important noble? I do enjoy doing that once in a while."

I thought for a couple seconds.

"Was that the place we went swimming and ended up on some castle/island thing?"

[member="Kadrak Jalaan"]

(I'm totally gonna start that thread... There's no way I'm not.)

 

[Avery Rose Garter]

Kadrak could vaguely recall their swimming exploit, and decided that she had most likely had just a bit too much to drink that time around. It was odd for her to drink to that point, but depending on exactly what Zatten had been up to, it was entirely possible. "I don't think either of us went swimming, that time around. And if I recall we weren't anywhere near any royal palaces, so that's out." A thoughtful pause. "Unless I don't remember, in which case that is more than likely. But nobody tried to arrest us, so probably not."
She smiled and shrugged. "No, that was the time where I went to that psychologist's office for fun, and it turned out not to be all that bad. Besides the fact that they insist on confiscating your weapons at the door, which only includes firearms. He did bring up the idea of couples therapy, which is still amusing in a sense And he did have quite the liquor cabinet."

[member="Zatten Black"]

(I can see it now...)