Pick Up in Aisle Voss

[Joran Del-Finn]

[member="Nei Laa"]

“I, don’t do charity, Love.” He explained. “I’ve told you before, I like you and waiting here is better than waiting out there, yeah?”

 

[Nei Laa]

[member="Joran Del-Finn"]

"Tcha," she said again. Nei knew Joran didn't do charity. But she was still suspect of his motives. "Do ohk imhalyan dan, foh." With that, the Nautolan submerged herself again in the water, being sure to do it as creepily as possible.

Right now, her focus was back to enjoying the feel of the water against her skin -- a sensation she'd been deprived of for too long. However, once she was sitting on the bottom, a mischievous thought took hold of her brain, and Nei grinned wickedly. That be funny.

Still crouched down, the Nautolan floated herself across the sand until she was directly beneath the human. Then, drawing in as much oxygen as she could, Nei then exhaled it in a flurry of bubbles from her mouth, her black eyes gleaming as they watched the bubbles float up...towards Joran's back.

 

[Joran Del-Finn]

[member="Nei Laa"]

One moment Joan was on his back, eyes closed, floating along the surface of the water enjoying the sun and the next he was upended by some unseen force.

Joran popped up spitting water from his mouth. He had to assume Nei was responsible for his sudden submergence. Joran was surprised to see such a playful side of this young lady who for the entirety of their knowing each other had shown nothing close to it. Joran didn’t even know she knew how to have fun.

“Good one.” He said. “Lucky you’re off hiding somewhere under that water or I’d pay you back.” He challenged playfully.

 

[Nei Laa]

[member="Joran Del-Finn"]

Oh, Nei knew how to have fun. The problem was, sometimes it was interrupted by thoughts of her dead crew, conflicts over contacting her parents, or other things of that nature. Similarly, it wasn't always possible for Nei to return to the water like she was now, and a prolonged absence didn't make her mood any better. But right now, she could forget about all of that, and spilling her recent hardship with the human had lifted a weight she didn't know she'd had.

In any case, Joran's spectacle elicited another snicker from the Nautolan, which only grew upon hearing his muffled challenge.

She drifted back some, away from the human as the gears in her head began to turn. Even though the glare from the sun and the overall ripply-ness of the water made it difficult to see, the liquid was still as clear as glass, which would make sneaking up on an alert Joran rather difficult. The distant memory of their fight was not yet distant enough for her to forget.

Even so, she managed to come up with a plan. Drawing parallel with the bottom, Nei used her hands to disturb the sand enough that a large, obscuring cloud began to form. Eventually it surrounded the human and, when it was tall enough, the Nautolan made her move.

Silently as she could, Nei used the cover to emerge behind Joran, not quite out of arm's reach. Then, if he hadn't detected her, she would pull her arms close, palms flat and parallel to her body, before pushing a good-sized wave of water at him.

 

[Joran Del-Finn]

[member="Nei Laa"]

If Joran had been hoping to spot Nei before her attack he was going to be disapointed. A cloud of sand had disrupted the clear gleam of the water past the point of visabilty but they didnt stop Joran's ears from working as soon as Nei burst through the water Joran turned to face her and was met with a mouth full of water as she shoved a massive amount toward him. unluckily for her water was not able to defeat the great Joran Del-Finn and he came crashing through the wave going for a tackle that would drag both of them into the now again crystal water.

 

[Nei Laa]

[member="Joran Del-Finn"]

The man's arms wrapped around Nei's waist and she was reminded of the time when they'd both decided to duke it out in the Red Ravens' Fight Club. It felt like a century ago, back when bad guys were bad, good guys were good, credits were credits, and Joran was just an annoying flirt.

Nei let him drag her underwater before attempting to break free of his grip. Unlike Joran, Nei could actually breathe underwater, and she was a lot more graceful than the human. Once they were above water? Not so much. Nor did she, in the heat of the moment, realise that she was attempting to escape in such a way as to make sure the human was still capable of surfacing. Meaning she, Nei Laa, did not really want the si'hklesi foh to get hurt.

Interesting how things changed.

She squirmed and wriggled, twisted and turned. No doubt in the water it would be harder for Joran to hold on to her - there was very little friction for him to use, and, again, the water was her home. But, it remained to be seen what the human would do.

 

[Joran Del-Finn]

[member="Nei Laa"]


Joran had a hold of Nei for almost a whole second...almost, and then she was through his arms and swimming off again. Joran had no choice but to concede his attempt as a failure.

Joran came bursting up through the water laughing. A true laugh too, it was like he was thirteen again playing in the lake with the girl from the farm down the street. Two years older and skin pale as milk covered in freckles, it was safe to say she was the first girl, Joran ever loved, puppy love, but still.

This girl here was nothing like the one from before. One was soft and pale; where the other was almost blue and hard. One had curly red hair and the body of a gir;, the other sported tresses and was clearly a woman.

One was kind, tasted of honey and loved him back; the other, well, she was intriguing to say the least.

"Is that all you got?!" Joran called out between laughs, unaware of the change in perception that was happening in regards to [member="Nei Laa"].

 

[Nei Laa]

[member="Joran Del-Finn"]

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avz6wz3GD2Y[/media]​

Nor was he the only whose perception was changing, albeit without any awareness on her part.

The moment she felt his grip vanish from her skin, Nei darted off through the water like a little minnow, graceful as a ballet dancer. Even under water, she heard a strange sound and, concerned, surfaced. What she saw next made her jaw drop slightly.

It was Joran. That sound she'd heard was Joran laughing. Actually laughing. She stood there, listening to the sound. Even without her ability to detect pheromones, she could tell, too, that it was pure happiness. In response, the Nautolan couldn't help but smile a bit. She hadn't been this relaxed in, well, forever; at first, she'd chalked it up to finally returning to the water, but... Now? Now she suspected it was for a different reason, a reason which she was afraid to admit to herself. Afraid of what it would mean if she explored the reason further.

It was this same reason, ironically enough, that let Nei avoid examining things too closely. Her smile turned into another impish grin, and without further ado the alien dove back underwater. Aiming for Joran, she pushed off from the sandy floor and swam as fast as she could towards the human, her body resembling that of a shark or dolphin. Her goal was to push against the si'hklesi foh as hard as she could, maybe even knocking him into the water again.

Unless he managed to apprehend her. Again.

 

[Joran Del-Finn]

Joran watched as she flew through the water with all the grace one would expect of someone was quite literally at home in the water, for half a beat he thought of diving on her but his chances of actually catching her were close to zero, so instead he waited. She would do his job for him, getting within arms length.

He braced himself and took a deep breath prepared to go under the liquid glass once more.

[member="Nei Laa"]

 

[Nei Laa]

[member="Joran Del-Finn"]

Midswim, Nei decided to (slightly) alter her tactics. Slamming right into Joran wouldn't do much - that man was as solid as a rock. Even in water, he had the advantage of strength. So, instead, she decided to do something else.

As soon as she got close enough, the alien pushed up and out off the sandy floor, coming up out of the water with a whoosh. If her plan worked, the Nautolan would pull herself onto Joran in such a way that her legs could wrap around his waist and abdomen, pinning one arm to his body. Her own arms would clamp around his other arm, thereby restricting his movements. After that?

Well, let's just say that Nei wasn't always very good at long-term thinking.

 

[Joran Del-Finn]

Unexpected. That was the only way to describe what happened.

One moment Joran had been ready to be back in the water and the next he found himself literally wrapped up by Nei, one arm pinned at his side and the other caught in her grasp. He had a dozen options on what to do next each more practical and less surprising than the one he chose. Her legs were occupied and so were her hands, leaving her face unprotected. Joran could of smashed her face with his, he could of dove under the water slamming her on the shallow floor below, he could of done literally anything but no he did something truly unexpected.

He kissed her.

So maybe unexpected wasn't the only word, crazy or foolish would apply just as well. For all the time he had known her Nei was perfectly clear on her dislike of Joran Del-Finn and yes, okay, Jora. Had thought about it before but he was drunk at the time, well more drunk than he was now but he had never taken the urge seriously not until now.

The kiss was soft but not without some passion, he tasted the salt from the sea water that was running down her face and it was the sweetest taste he'd had in sometime. As he kissed her, he knew almost right away that he was making a mistake, taking advantage of her somehow, ruining whatever friendship they'd had, he knew he was wrong but for the moment their lips touched he didn't care.

"I'm sorry, Lo-Nei." He said as he gently pulled his mouth away from her's. He was prepared now for her to hit him, he surely did deserve it. "Momentary loss of sanity." He said calling back to their earlier conversation with a shy apologetic smile.

[member="Nei Laa"]

 

[Nei Laa]

[member="Joran Del-Finn"]

Karking hell.

He kissed her.

Really kissed her.

She hadn't been expecting that.

You know what else she hadn't been expecting?

She kissed him back.

At first it was pure instinct - Nei hadn't been kissed in a while. Being a paranoid smuggler, and going through the stuff she had recently didn't exactly leave much room for a love life. But after a heartbeat or two, it became less instinct and more...natural. He, at least, was a natural kisser. Probably from all the, ah, "practice" he'd had. Even so, she was in a bit of a daze. After all, Joran Del-Finn was supposed to be the one human who got under her skin. The one who drove her up the wall. The one who could ruin her mood in a single breath. And yet...

And yet he was the one who she'd confided the most in. It wasn't a lot, but he knew more about her history than anyone else. He was the one she'd called to for help, thought of when she was in danger. He was the one that she, despite her earnest attempts to deny it, that she thought of as a friend. A true, honest to goodness friend.

Maybe even....something more?

Either way, it was he who broke the kiss. He who pulled away as Nei slowly released her grip on him, til the only thing she held was his arm. It was then that she came to her senses.

Pulling away, the Nautolan looked at him with an almost unreadable expression, her eyes dark and murky. Gone was the youthful exuberance of earlier; gone, even, was her normal grouchy attitude. She stayed like that for a moment. It felt like centuries, though it couldn't have been more than a few heartbeats. "I..."

Suddenly, the woman looked down and away, lips pressed firmly together as her tresses began to writhe. Karking hell, what was she supposed to do now? Nei was no sappy romantic. But this? Even she, dull though she might be sometimes, recognized that this was a make or break moment. This was a moment that would define the relationship she and Joran had for years to come.

It was also starting to make her head hurt.

Her black eyes turned back to look at the human. "Si'hklesi foh," she whispered. There was no malice, no regret...but no tenderness or passion. It was.... it was a plea, of sorts. A plea from Nei Laa, asking this human to just...give her a moment. She needed it.

With a soft snort, the Nautolan sunk into the water and sat on the sandy floor, far enough away from him that she had her own space, but close enough to let him know she didn't plan on rejecting him....yet.

Submerged in the water, Nei began to think. Her old self would've definitely given him a shiner or five. Maybe bitten off a chunk of his throat. Maybe scratched and clawed him until he was a bleeding mess. But that was before everything. Before he picked her up from the tavern. Before she confided in him about the Horizon. Before he made this special detour, just for her.

Before he made her feel like the world was okay. Like there was nothing to worry about. Like she could relax and just be herself, the Nei who knew how to laugh and joke and tease and didn't have to watch out for enemies, both real and fake.

Two minutes later, Nei knew what she had to do.

Unnaturally quiet, the Nautolan resurfaced so that she was in front of Joran again. Studying his face for a moment, her fist suddenly flew out and hit him in the arm. "That be for not asking first," she told him, half-joking. In a more serious - and quiet - tone, Nei asked, "Why kiss me?"

 

[Joran Del-Finn]

The million credit question: Why? He wasn't so sure himself. Sure the setting was ideal, the girl was pretty and the timing was right but this was different than Joran making moves on some bar girl he'd just met or some les than reputable woman he had just done a job with, there was some actual feelings here. He couldn't really explain them even if he'd wanted too and right now he didn't. He didn't want to think about his feelings, he honestly just wanted to do it again but from her tone and their earlier talks he knew he owed her some answer even if he didn't have one.

"Why not kiss you?" He said with a small shrug defaulting to his usual attempts at charm and deflection. Certainly there was more than the casual answer he gave. how much more? Well Joran wasn't eager to explore that right yet. The one thing he knew was that he felt something more for her than he'd felt for any other woman since N'Tasha and that was a scary thing.

Tash had been the love of his life, more than his wife had ever been and he had watched her be killed. So much of himself had been lost that day, more than he knew, and this girl here with the life she, they lived, it was entirely possible he would have to go through that again and if he let himself feel for her the way he was starting too and did go through that again there would be no going back for Joran.

"Why kiss back?"

 

[Nei Laa]

[member="Joran Del-Finn"]

Though Nei was careful to mask it, she felt a painful little twist in her gut. It wasn't til now that she realised she'd been hoping that the kiss meant something more. But from his tone, and from his behaviour, it seemed like it didn't. Her "superpower" was no use, either. The pheromones Joran was giving off were hard to read, even in the water. "Why not kiss back?" the Nautolan retorted, mimicking his voice and his stance. She couldn't bring herself to look him in the eye. "Besides, you started it." Her prickly demeanor was little more than a façade this time, though.

​Foolish, foolish woman! she chided herself. You should have known better than to expect any more from him! He not really be interested in you!

Nei suddenly brought the palms of her hands to her eyes, lids squeezed shut as she rubbed them hard. I'm not crying, she told herself. I'm just tired of this. By gods, she was so stupid. How could she have expected anything more than an uneasy friendship from Joran? Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Taking a deep breath, she withdrew her hands and straightened up. Still avoiding his gaze, Nei made to move past the human. "I be going--" Her voice cracked, and she mentally kicked herself before trying again, making sure to clear her throat. "I be going back to the ship. I feel tired."

 

[Joran Del-Finn]

He heard the crack in her voice. He saw the slump of her shoulders. He knew that he had let her down. He always knew that he would but to do it so soon was surprising even for him. He felt ashamed and sorry for so thoroughly living up to his own expectations but he felt anger too and resentment. Toward her and toward Selonna and toward N'Tasha. Why did everything have to be so goddamn complicated? Why could she not be happy with just this? Why did there have to be more?

He half thought about just letting her go, of just forgetting this whole thing but he had been drinking and was mad so now he was impulsive or at least not willing to just drop this for whatever reason(he refused to believe it was because he cared about her.)

He grabbed her arm to keep her from leaving and not softly either.

"What do you want from me?" He asked with a desperate sort of anger, his frustration was clear.

'What do you want from me' for force sakes it'd been so long since that question had come up and the last time he was in the same spot Nei was now. Hours before Tash had died Joran tried to marry her, to convince her that she loved him as much as he loved her and she shot him down so hard and so fast it was unbelievable. He thought he'd been heart broken when Selonna left but it was nothing compared to N'Tasha explaining clearly that he had no chance that he was beneath her and now what? He was supposed to bare his feelings to this girl here? Supposed to tell her how he felt when he couldn't even decide for himself? No. He wouldn't. He couldn't.

"What do you want?" He asked again fearful of her answer, knowing full well he wasn't capable of giving even half of it to her.

[member="Nei Laa"]

 

[Nei Laa]

[member="Joran Del-Finn"]

Nei let out a soft cry of pain as the much stronger human grabbed hold of her arm. A roiling, boiling rage began to surge inside of her, as a response to Joran's own frustration. The familiar feeling welled up, expanding up and out like the cloud of a nuclear bomb. It threatened to overwhelm her, to overtake her and be released. It whispered to her, urging her to give in to her usual impulsive nature and beat the chit out of this man who dared grab her like that, who dared to play with her feelings after she bared her soul to him--

When just like that, it was gone. Completely vanished, like a burst balloon. Replacing it was a feeling of unmistakeable weary, the kind of marcid feeling that went soul-deep. The young woman felt aged well beyond her years, and for a moment she was aware of the entirety of the weight upon her shoulders, of the burden that life had continued to pile upon her. This time, she had to look at him.

The alien's black, tristful eyes gazed steadily at Joran's own brown eyes. She felt old, defeated. A complete flip of what'd she'd been experiencing not all that long ago.

Her face solemn, Nei replied in a thick voice, "Si'hklesi foh. I want..." She swallowed painfully. "Do karau dan." The woman couldn't bring herself to repeat it in Basic; never before had she wished Joran could understand Ryl as much as she did now. But she could only hope that the human wasn't so daft as to miss the meaning of her words.

 

[Joran Del-Finn]

[member="Nei Laa"]

Joran almost laughed. Not because what she said was funny but because of the sheer absurdity of it all. Less than two minutes ago they were laughing, playing, kissing in a literal paradise and now it seemed as though what ever relationship they had was already coming to the end. Two minutes, that had to be a record even for Joran.

"Cea y ohk san" He responded to her in Ryl. It hadn't immeditley crossed his mind that he had never told her he could speak Ryl so there could of been some surprise on her part, though not much to be sure. It was common for smugglers and scoundrels of Joran's ilk to know a couple of different languages, so they could conduct business in as many places a possible, though most smugglers stuck to Huttese(Joran could speak that as well.) but Joran thought Ryl was worth knowing as well and it had come in handy more than a couple times.

Joran remembered a couple late nights spent laughing with N'tasha teaching her Ryl. The Jedi was a Twi'lek but all the words she knew in Ryl she learned for Joran and that was mostly curse words and how to order drinks.

"This is it, Love."

 

[Nei Laa]

[member="Joran Del-Finn"]

Nei jerked back with a start, surprised at the Ryl that left Joran's mouth. All this time, and he knew how to speak the Rylothian language?! No wonder he always seemed rather amused by her nickname for him... But no matter. That wasn't what this topic was about.

"Do ktan cea," she barked. "I not be daft! ...Much." The Nautolan made another half-hearted attempt to free her arm before continuing, this time switching over almost fully to Ryl; knowing he could understand her meant she wouldn't have to use her broken Basic as much.

"Nie dan tarhan Do cahsinark fic dos toe dan?​" Nei asked, testily. "Ko Do sahak ktan ji dae dan?​" Moving closer, the woman jabbed at his chest with her index finger. "I know you. Do. Ktan. Dan.​" Every word was accentuated with a sharp poke. "Vil Do. Karau. Dan.​ Si'hklesi foh.​" Her face contorted into its usual scowl. "Otherwise we not find ourselves here, hm? When be last time you see me without armor, hm?" She tried again to pull away from him. "Do vorcekan dan, dan mliry mlihi ekeosur. More than anyone else. Even if it be a mistake."

 

[Joran Del-Finn]

[member="Nei Laa"]

He wanted to tell her she was wrong, that she was nothing more than a foolish girl with foolish thoughts. What did she know about him? nothing, that was what. She had some idealized notion of who or what he was with no idea at all the things he had done or the ways he was capable of hurting her.

He wanted to tell her that trusting him was the last thing she should do but when he looked at her all he could say was "Okay, Love." with his most reassuring smile and genial tone, once again showing what he truly is: weak.