Private Don’t Feed the Holographic Rancor

[Jack Sheltrak]

Alexi di Garthos

He only gave a shrug. "I do try to have a point from time to time... it does help." He said it with a smile on his face while guiding her and going backwards on the movement. He allowed himself to have a little extra speed so they wouldn't crash but also so that he would be able to move his feet almost unconsciously he was guiding her so that she would be able to come with him. "But it is not always a moment and plan on my part. I just try and sound a lot more put together then I normally do and add a little sauve mystery maybe... show off a little for the beautiful woman that I have met or trying to keep up with her intellect."

 

[Alexi di Garthos]

Alexi's expression softened slightly at that, though the faint shake of her head that followed carried quiet amusement. "Jack, I think you may be giving yourself far too little credit." The words came easily now, accompanied by a steadier glide across the ice than she would have managed earlier. Her hand remained lightly against his arm as they followed the winding path through the shifting lights. "You keep insisting that everything is accidental." The near-smile returned. "But most people don't accidentally create evenings that other people remember." Her gaze lifted toward him briefly. "And for what it's worth, I don't think you've been struggling to keep up with anyone." The observation was simple. Matter-of-fact. "You've spent the entire evening showing me things that matter to you. That takes considerably more courage than trying to impress someone."

For a moment her attention drifted outward again, watching the lights reflected across the ice. "Besides," she added lightly, "if your goal was mystery, you undermined it several attractions ago." There was an unmistakable amusement in her voice now. "I know that you care about your home. I know you enjoy giving people experiences they'll remember. I know you think entirely too highly of deep-fried pastries." A slight tilt of her head followed. "At this point you're becoming remarkably easy to understand." The comment was teasing, but gentle.

After a small pause, her expression settled into something quieter. "And I think that's been my favorite part of the evening." Not the attractions. Not the holograms. Not even the skating. Just the simple honesty of the statement as they continued along the ice together, letting the conversation settle comfortably into the space between them.

Tag: Jack Sheltrak

 

[Jack Sheltrak]

Alexi di Garthos

She was not wrong and he wasn't going to argue with a small compliment... it was nice and he offered. "And learning that your have not been upset or turned off by such things here has been most welcoming. If nothing else at least I was able to give you a day and sometimes that is all that you need." He said it and was guiding more of it so they could move around the people, he kept moving though as he navigated around the people there and allowed for a moment. "Though now that we have done myself, it comes back to you. What would you like to do, what would you like to see?" He said it and was looking at her with a nod of interest.

 

[Alexi di Garthos]

Alexi was quiet for a few moments after the question. The lights of the rink drifted across the hardlight ice beneath them while skaters passed in slow currents around either side. For once, she didn't seem in any hurry to answer. "What would I like to see?" The words were softer than before, more reflective than analytical. A faint smile touched her expression as she considered it. "I think that's the first time all evening you've asked me that without already having an answer prepared." There was gentle amusement in the observation.

Her gaze wandered briefly toward the winding pathways beyond the rink before returning to him. "The truth is, I'm not entirely sure." Alexi adjusted her balance through another curve, far more naturally now than she would have at the beginning of the evening. "I spend so much time deciding where I need to be that I rarely stop to consider where I'd simply like to go." The admission carried no sadness with it. Only honesty.

A small silence then settled between them. "But perhaps that's part of the lesson." The near-smile returned. "Not every worthwhile experience needs to lead somewhere else."

Her attention drifted across the park around them; the attractions, the lights, the distant laughter carrying through the concourse. "When I had arrived, I thought this evening was going to be about seeing Zeltros." Her eyes found his again. "But I think it was really about understanding why you love it." There was warmth in the observation, uncomplicated and genuine. "And I think I understand that now."

For a moment she simply skated beside him, comfortable with the quiet. Then, lightly enough to ease the weight from the conversation again, she added: "So perhaps you've already shown me what I came here to see." The faint smile lingered. "Though I wouldn't object to ending the evening somewhere considerably safer than a frictionless surface."

Tag: Jack Sheltrak

 

[Jack Sheltrak]

Alexi di Garthos

"Fair enough." He said it and motioned over while turning and directing towards the way they had gotten onto the hardlight surface. With a look though he was moving through and stopped only long enough to bend down and tap the projectors for the skates. With a nod. "It is a lovely place but don't think everything needs deeper meaning... if we treat everything as the most important, the most serious.. then nothing will be when the time comes." Jack was moving though while he found a palce that they would be able to sit if she needed to catch herself or her breath in the moment."

 

[Alexi di Garthos]

Alexi followed him from the rink, considerably more carefully than she would ever admit was necessary. Once her skates touched solid flooring again, she released a quiet breath. "There is something deeply reassuring about friction," she observed. The faint smile lingering on her expression suggested she was only half joking.

As they found a place to sit, her attention settled on him once more. This time there was less analysis in her gaze. Less effort to pull apart every statement and examine the machinery beneath it. "You know," she said softly, "I think that's probably a criticism I've earned." Her eyes drifted briefly toward the lights of the park beyond them. "I spend a great deal of time looking for meaning in things. When most of your life revolves around decisions and consequences, it becomes a habit." The admission was both calm and untroubled. "But you're right." The words came easier than they might have earlier in the evening. "Sometimes a pleasant evening is just a pleasant evening." A faint smile returned. "Sometimes a pastry is simply a pastry. Though I reserve judgment on that particular pastry." The amusement lingered for a moment before easing into something quieter.

Her gaze moved out across the crowds passing through the promenade. Families. Travelers. Friends. People making memories they would likely struggle to explain later. "I think that I forgot that for a while." The observation wasn't sad. If anything, it sounded grateful. Then her eyes returned to him. "So thank you, Jack...." Her tone was simple. Sincere. "....for reminding me."

Tag: Jack Sheltrak

 

[Jack Sheltrak]

Alexi di Garthos

"And thank you Alexi for... well it would be overly dramatic to say you pulled me out of something but you gave me enough interest and intrigue to leave Zeltros for the first time in a long time. Remember that there is stuff one can do." He shrugged it might have been overly sappy but he had found her offer strange at first and now he was enjoying himself. "Though next time, if there is going to be a next time. I will have to make a habit of traveling more. There is something to be said with it and the galaxy has changed now with all of the different galactic events. The Planeshift as they called it sent worlds closer together and some to fgar flung areas... it opens thousands of new trade areas."

 

[Alexi di Garthos]

Alexi listened quietly as they settled, her attention resting on him with a steadier kind of calm than she had carried at the start of the evening. There was no immediate correction in her expression. No analysis waiting to be unpacked. Just consideration. “That’s a generous interpretation,” she said at last, the faintest hint of amusement touching her voice.

Her gaze held him for a moment longer before drifting out toward the passing crowds again. “I don’t think I pulled you anywhere,” Alexi added softly. “If anything, I suspect you were already standing at the edge of that decision. But I’m glad it coincided with tonight.” The near-smile returned, quieter now. More settled. “As for Brendok...” she tilted her head slightly, as though weighing the suggestion without fully committing it to anything more than passing thought, “I imagine I’ll leave the redevelopment of mining sites to those with a stronger appetite for architectural ambition.” A faint exhale of amusement followed. “And I suspect that you are underestimating how many people are still capable of finding ‘nothing there’ rather compelling.”

Her gaze returned to him then, steady and uncomplicated. The warmth remained, but it had shifted now into something more conclusive. Less exploratory. “I think,” Alexi said after a moment, “this evening has been exactly what it needed to be. And I don’t want to risk turning it into something it wasn’t meant to become.” There was no sharpness in it. No distance. Only careful clarity. Her expression softened slightly. “So I’m glad I met you, Jack.” It was simple and honest. “And I’m glad I got to see your world through your eyes.”

The near-smile lingered a moment longer before easing. “But I think I should leave it here....while it still belongs to tonight.”

Tag: Jack Sheltrak

 

[Jack Sheltrak]

Alexi di Garthos

"You are most welcome." He said it as he was moving and the chance to lead her back towards the port and all fo the ships was easy enough walking through with a small bow. He was watching but arriving there with a smile. "It has been good, next time hopefully I shall be able to call upon you and I would love to see your idea of such an engagement." He said it while bringing a hand out and touching the hologram so that the vessels would be able to be moved or she could be brought to her ship. "I will endeavor to also make sure I am up to snuff as it were and do not bore you in our next interaction."

 

[Alexi di Garthos]

The walk back toward the port passed more quietly than the rest of the evening. Not awkwardly. Simply without the need to fill every silence. Alexi found she preferred it that way.

The lights of the park gradually gave way to the steadier illumination of the transit concourse, while behind them the sounds of laughter and distant attractions softened into something indistinct.

When they finally reached the docking area, she paused. Her gaze lingered briefly on the ships beyond the transparisteel before returning to him. The faint smile that greeted him was familiar now. Easier than it had been at the beginning of the evening. "I don't think boredom has ever been a serious risk, Jack." There was quiet amusement in the observation. "And I suspect you're far more prepared for most things than you give yourself credit for." She inclined her head slightly. "Thank you." Not for the attractions. Not for the food. Not even for Zeltros. The simplicity of the words seemed to encompass all of it at once.

For a moment she studied him as though committing the memory to itself rather than trying to preserve it. Then, softer now she added: "Take care of your world." The statement carried a warmth that was uniquely hers. "You've convinced me that it's worth caring about." The smile lingered a moment longer before easing.

After that, she stepped back toward the waiting transport. No promises. No expectations. No carefully negotiated future. Just the quiet understanding that some evenings were valuable precisely because they were allowed to end. And with one final inclination of her head, Alexi turned and made her way toward her ship, leaving the lights of Zeltros behind her and carrying something far less tangible home.

Tag: Jack Sheltrak