Private Sketches in the Starlight

[Zaiya Ceti]

Nearing Volik
Unknown Regions
Aris Noble

It had been a while since Zaiya had been in the Unknown Regions. She'd been just a young Kluk then, and most of it to be honest was a bit fussy in her memory. Traveling through this part of the galaxy was quieter, perhaps a little scary, as the stops and travel times between their connections to their final destination stretched out longer and longer across the distance.

But right now? Right now wasn't scary.

Right now was exciting.

The Lovalla Padawan sat cross-legged in the communal galley, the small holo-array table between her and Aris covered in flimsi sketches, datapads, and a small holoprojector flickering with the slowly spinning shape of a pale blue planet.

Volik. Or at least what they thought might be Volik.

Getting permission hadn't been easy. She'd had to explain everything to Iris on why this mattered, why she needed to go, and yes, she'd also promised to take Domxite. Definitely promised. And now the small droid waddled between Aris and Zaiya as they poured through the information before them. They bumping gently against her shin like a curious lothcat, automatically prompting the Lovalla to reach down to give Domxite an affectionate pat.

They had been lucky, or maybe the Force was with them as well. While the hyperlanes were still a bit messy from the convergence, they'd made it this far with only a few hiccups. Like the pirate barge. That had been a wild detour, but their piloting droid had zipped them out of trouble before things got too hairy.

For now, Zaiya gave a gentle hum of pondering, her rosy golden skin softly colorshifting in the dim lighting, gentle waves of amber rippling through her mottled stripes in thought. There wasn't much to go off when it came to Lovalla art to be honest, just fragments and maybe a few assumptions, but she was determined to piece together something.

Irridecent opal blue eyes flicked over toward Aris, watching his profile for a second before a smile tugged at her lips.

"Okay!" she chirped, nudging a few sketches his way.

"Why don't you tell me what kind of designs you like first? That'll help me narrow it all down."

She was trying to keep it light and fun, but there was no way to hide the spark of excitement bubbling beneath. This was going to be something for them both. Something they could wear and keep all the time and hopefully still feel connected to each other.

 

[Aris Noble]

Aris was still nursing a little headache from the pirate barge. They weren't prepared for Jedi like them together, in truth, but it still stressed him out having to handle them attaching to the ship and trying to vent him into space. Would that actually kill him? Would it just leave him immobilized forever? Maybe that was his aversion to flying, the unknowns of space on him compared to others.

On the other hand, they'd handled it. Together. That made him happy. Really happy. Being able to fight side by side was- Not something he was going to focus on now since it brought a string of emotions he wasn't sure how to handle yet.

He looked down to the notebook before he smiled warmly. They were heading to her people's home, but she was excited and happy. Was it because of their goal with it? Or because he was with her? Those sorts of thoughts brought a faint blush to his ears, but he wasn't going to let them take hold. It didn't matter, so long as she was happy.

"I like simple things for me. In that same vein though, I want it to be something not so simple or subtle. It's about you and I. Maybe not incredibly loud in appearance, but I wouldn't mind something that stands out so I can bra- talk about it with others when they bring it up first."

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

Outfit: x x x x x | Equipment: x x x x x x | Weapons: x x x | Companion: Domxite
Interacting with: Aris Noble

Zaiya blinked up at Aris, her irridecent blue eyes softening with affection warmth at what he revealed, even more so after his face flustered up a bit and he stammered just a tiny bit. For a second, she didn't say anything, just smiled a wide and bright smile that made her entire expression glow and the mottled stripes along her arms pulse with a delicate teal glow that slowly deepened into bronze and the faintest flutters of peachy pink and red. Happiness and something more, something that settled in her chest like warm summer sunlight.

And while she was getting better at regulating her emotions so that her colorshifting wouldn't reveal too much of her inner thoughts or feelings, but the faint shimmer of coral across her cheeks and down her arms gave her away. There was no reason to hide it anyways around Aris -- he could read her easily without it.

"Hahah... so, simple, but not so simple, but just shiny enough so that we can show it off too, right?," she repeated only to add in what the Epicanthix Padawan had been trying to peddle on, her lips curling into an even wider playful grin as she gave a giggle.

"I'd like to be able to talk about it with others too -- talk about you. I like bragging about you." She added, bringing her palm up to cup her chin as mischevious but genuine teasing hues danced over her skin again. She nudged the notebook with her stylus, a little spark of mischief in her eyes.

"I mean, you are pretty amazing, super handsome, and a strong, awesome fighter!" she added, her bubbly personality shining through as she showered him with giddy compliments.

 

[Aris Noble]

She liked bragging about him? That news brought the kind of blush Aris had thought had before. It wasn't just limited to his ears, but even his cheeks as he glanced away briefly to try and still his mind. He liked that. Liked being someone she wanted to brag about. The further teasing only.made him blush more. To think that this was what would finally get him to blush like this.

".. Well, you're the most beautiful, smart, and creative person I know, so. I guess we fit pretty well, huh?"

He scratched his cheek a little before finally looking back towards her, smirking his own smile now. Two coupd play the flattery game.

"Whatever we make is going to have to represent just how vibrant and beautiful you are."

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

Outfit: x x x x x | Equipment: x x x x x x | Weapons: x x x | Companion: Domxite
Interacting with: Aris Noble

Zaiya was glowing brighter. Literally.

Her face flushed an even brighter coral pink, the edges of her mottled stripes fluttering with teal and golden flecks that shimmered like stardust under her skin. Everything about her was brighter, warmer as if someone had poured liquid sunlight into her colors. If Master Iris had ever painted a joy so vivid, this was what it would've looked like.

She ducked her head a little, smile completely impossible to hide.

"I -- I mean, thank you," she blurted, voice flustered and full of light, even as she tried to play it cool.

But nope. That was not happening.

It was nice to be told she was beautiful, smart, and creative. The affirmations clearly had an ongoing effect because of the constant vibrancy that seemed to permeate from her the longer she spent time with Aris and the closer they became. Healthy, joyful, full of life.

Almost like a properly socialized Lovalla would be.

"Umm... so, then maybe as a base, a circlet? Or maybe a torque..." she said quickly, pointing to a few sketches on the filmsi, trying to focus even as her glow kept betraying her.

"I don't want anything that can get caught or tangled when we are in a fight but can also be used while wearing anything… and I was thinking maybe something like my headpiece? Y'know, if you want it to shapeshift into different designs and stuff. Otherwise, maybe something hammered? Or-r...we might find a cool metal on Volik that could work too?"

As her words came out in a cheerful tumble the golden flecks edging the markings over her rosy golden danced a little faster.

 

[Aris Noble]

There were a lot of good ideas Zaiya was saying. Especially about the necklace being able to change shape so it wouldn't be in the way if they were in a fight or a dangerous place. Having anything dangling from around the neck was an invitation for trouble. It was logical, it was a good plan to sort out and discuss more on.

Aris wasn't actively thinking about that though. He was, passively in the back of his mind, sorting out just what he could have it turn into to keep safe. A choker probably, something that wasn't loose or perhaps it just moved to cling to something else, like a hair band when he needed to fight properly. He was way more mesmerized by the colors dancing over Zaiya's skin.

The vibrancy of her colors was something he hadn't seen before on her. Only with the professors they met had he seen it prior. The most vibrant emotion he showed in return, the smile he had, was one of relief. Relief and joy in equal measures. He promised himself he'd make her be able to shine like this, even if he wasn't Lovalla, that he wasn't able to feel her as she could him.

"So long as it helps you stay like this, it could be cardboard. We'll make it beautiful to look at and sturdy so it doesn't break, but this is what I want to see."

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

Outfit: x x x x x | Equipment: x x x x x x | Weapons: x x x | Companion: Domxite
Interacting with: Aris Noble

Oh. My. Stars!

That fluttery, excited, overzealous, giddy sensation rose up her belly and blew up in her chest. Had to, otherwise how else would it make sense to have this effervescent, happy, giddy feeling?!

"Aris!" Zaiya squeaked, her voice high and full of flustered delight. "Keep saying stuff like that and you're gonna make me want to kiss you again!"

She was blushing so hard her whole face glowed coral pink, but she was grinning, too in this wide and beaming half moon because hearing him say those things? It made her feel like a star had lit up just for her.

And, well… she couldn't help it.

With a soft laugh, she leaned in right over the table, reached for his cheeks, and kissed him square on the lips with a giggle, all soft, warm, and still tangy sweet from the juice she had drunk earlier.

 

[Aris Noble]

Aris was pretty good at reaction time. It was a byproduct of what he was, his mind processing and reacting to things at a speed that would make him more a droid than a humanoid. It was moments like this though that reminded him just how human he actually was, though. The words hit his ears and he just sat there blinking for just long enough that when he did finally register what Zaiya said, he felt her kiss.

He was still a little frozen before he let out his own laugh in return, then leaned forward just a tad. Leaned more into the totally surprise kiss. He was going to reach a hand up when he heard a little trill from Domxite beside them.

Judgement.

He cleared his throat as he leaned right back, his face incredibly bright as he couldn't bring himself to look to the droid guardian. "Right- Ah- sorry- .. How much longer till we arrive?"

He kept his gaze away from Domxite, if only to hide the smile on his face. One he certainly wasn't hiding from Zaiya as he glanced towards her.

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

Outfit: x x x x x | Equipment: x x x x x x | Weapons: x x x | Companion: Domxite
Interacting with: Aris Noble

It didn't help that Domxite gave their little judging trill, and as a result, Zaiya shot them a little huffy pout. What was wrong with showing how much she felt for Aris?

It was just a kiss!

"Aris, you don't need to apologize. Or are you sorry for kissing me?" She asked him, curiously, wondering.

Domxite answered the question on how long it would take, saying that based on the navigation system, they should be there within the next half hour -- that is if things were still the same before the convergence.

Which meant at anytime, anything could still go wrong,

 

[Aris Noble]

Aris was flustered. The fact that Zaiya could ask that aloud, with Domxite still practically judging them right there- Whatever shy if happy expression he had was replaced with the most expressive Aris had ever been. It wasn't discomfort in the slightest, he was just absolutely flustered. "I- am- No that's- I'm never sorry for kissing you-!"

Then his face was in his hands. His brain couldn't keep up with his mind, or was it just that he wasn't sure what to even think now? How in the world had he stopped being able to think??

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

Interacting with: Aris Noble

Even Domxite was amused, but they were still trying to show some sort of chaperone-like oversight of the two Padawans. Clearly they had taken up Iris's warning to make sure Zaiya didn't get pregnant as a Padawan.

Not that would be an issue now; her Red Days hadn't come yet -- deep diving more into Lovalla biology and all those interesting bits with growing bonds made it clearer for the Padawan what building a stronger bond around Aris meant. Eventually, she was going to start looking at Aris in a way that was by no means just in admiration of how handsome he was, but also with the sort of attraction that likely was the very reason why Domxite had given their little trill in alert.

Either way, she flashed Domxite a brief flash of her tongue in a mock raspberry and then hopped off her chair, then rounded the table until she was able to simply hug Aris. No kissing.

Even if she really wanted to kiss his cheek because he was being so cute.

"Good. I'm glad. Because I am not either." She chirped out, their embraces flowing over with the warmth, affection, and slight fluttered giddy amusement within.

"Okay, okay. Let's make sure we have everything we need before arriving. I don't remember much of Volik...but there are three different subraces of Lovalla and each are located in different areas....Hmm, should we try for the more temperate areas or try the tundra?"

 

[Aris Noble]

Aris was quick to return the hug. Flustered as he was, he couldn't actually say no to affection with Zaiya, no matter how much more it embarrassed him than most other things in his life. It was the kind of embarrassment he welcomed. Wanted. Even if he was certain Domxite was giving them the raised brow look even with the simple hug they'd given each other.

"Well- which are you? I mean, which place do you hail from. I want it to represent you and your people, but mostly you, y'know?" He leaned back, though did reach down to take one of Zaiya's hands in his just because. There was no reason to not at least hold hands, right? Totally subtle, too. He wasn't at all still flustered even as he squeezed her hand.

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

Outfit: x x x x x | Equipment: x x x x x x | Weapons: x x x | Companion: Domxite
Interacting with: Aris Noble

It was nice to be able to indulge in little moments like this, even if Domxite wasn't too happy about it. He was just being protective in his own way, the same way her Master Iris was too.

Another quick squeeze and nuzzle of her cheek by his shoulder and Zaiya gave a little excited bop once more. Truth be told to Aris's question, she was a Dresh Lovalla, which meant that they originated near the colder northern tundras that were frozen much of the year, but still teaming with resilient life.

"Well, the northern regions is where my mother was from but my father was from the northernly western regions, so a Si'nesh. We could visit both areas and explore to find out more regarding both. " Zaiya added, going back to the table and dabbling with the holographic array to zoom in and lock into the regions she was discussing.

"It can get very, very cold in the eastern north, but between your ability to put out heat and my natural attributes to handling the cold, we should be fine without having to put on too much for protection. The northeastern regions will be warmer, more of a jungle but cooler, a lot of rain though."

"Dr. Nova said that Volik is a world with a significant amount of coexisting flora and fauna that also use bioluminescence as well, not only for communication but also for camouflage, mating display, and survival strategies. So it will be really interesting to see first hand." Zaiya added in growing excitement.

Not only were they going to her homeworld, but Aris was here with her! Domxite, too, even if they took their role of chaperone hilariously seriously.

"We do have a few options. We can try to meet up with the main village, or we can set out on our own and have a little adventure exploring and finding things on our own?"

She was happy to do the former, but was also intrigued and excited to do the latter and really just discover things themselves.

 

[Aris Noble]

The whole world was bioluminescent? Aris was incredibly intrigued by the idea. Did that make it a world of light much like Coruscant was, but naturally instead of artificially? Would he be able to catalogue which colors ment what as he kind of had with Zaiya? Were there similarities? So many questions, all which sounded much more fun than he expected to answer.

"Let's explore. I want to see everything we can. There's no hurry to leave, we can spend a while here after all, you know?"

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

Outfit: x x x x x | Equipment: x x x x x x | Weapons: x x x | Companion: Domxite
Interacting with: Aris Noble


"Perfect!" Zaiya beamed, flashing Aris a grin along with a dazzle of color shifting and glow effects that raced down her arms along her markings.

"Once we arrive, we can do a quick map of the world, check out the weather, and see which areas are best to land based on how the weather is." she added, already fired up as she jumped up to race over towards the cockpit of the shuttle.

"Double check we have everything we need to hike and explore, and I'll land us!"

---

Zaiya pressed her hands to the viewport, her breath catching the moment Volik came into view.

It was beautiful.

Below them, the planet shimmered with color and light, with two moons. It was half wrapped in soft, icy blues and glowing tundra, the other half a wild sprawl of green and gold jungle, lit by sof,t airy clouds that swirled across the aqua atmosphere.

Then her gaze shifted west, where the jungle bloomed thick and endless. Towering trees stretched through clouds, their leaves glowing in soft purples and teals. Even from space, she could see lights blinking through the canopy like the planet was breathing.

Her rosy golden skin flushed brighter, the golden flecks dancing across her cheeks along the edges of her mottled spots in excitement, wonder, and awe.

"That's it," she whispered, eyes wide. "That's my homeworld."

Weather scans revealed a small storm in the northern regions, and after considering it, Zaiya settled on the Northeastern side, where the jungle lay.

"Okay, let's find a place to land in the jungle then."

 

[Aris Noble]

There was a mix of looking at the world and watching Zaiya from the corner of his eye. She had all of his attention, in truth, but he didn't want to just stare at her all the time. That was weird, right? So he was constantly reminding himself that yes, this was her world, and he should be just as interested in it as she was.

Which he was, just, seeing how her colors shifted with joy and awe at finally seeing the world she came from had him smiling.

"Yeah. Lets. I think the farther from civilization the better. We can take our time to explore. Make it into a lesson of wildlife for the Master's back at the Temple to appreciate." And spend more time together. He just wanted to spend more time together, even if he wasn't going to say that aloud.

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

Outfit: x x x x x | Equipment: x x x x x x | Weapons: x x x | Companion: Domxite
Interacting with: Aris Noble

Shan had taught her the basics of flying a while ago, but Iris Arani had continued to teach Zaiya more advanced methods of piloting, along with some additional survival methods that might come in handy in case of an emergency.

She still hadn't taught the Lovalla Padawan how to jumpstart a shuttle, just in case -- but that was a topic that needed to be revisited and renegotiated later. One day, Zaiya! One day!

So it was to Aris's relief that she was the one who would set them down on a small, open area of jungle that she had managed to identify. It was a delta beside a river, and so far it seemed to be pretty stable.

"So, when are you going to try your hand at piloting?" Zaiya asked Aris, flashing him a bright grin as she turned towards him -- just to catch him in the act of watching her. She flushed and brightened in a dazzle of iridescent color in pleasure, her eyes twinkling in turn but not teasing him about it.

It felt nice to be seen by Aris.

"Well I hope this lesson in wildlife doesn't end us up on top of a stone snake, " She teased, flashing another grin. "Then again... who knows what we will find. But that's the fun part of it."

 

[Aris Noble]

His ears again heated as she caught him looking towards her. But, much like she had chosen to do, he didn't make a point of it. It was a moment for them to share in silence, and that was enough to have his smile brighten more. "That would be the fun of it, yeah. No more stone snakes, but, I'd be curious to see what kind of trouble we can get into you know?"

Trouble, from Aris? He ended up chuckling a little at the thought but it still brought a sense of joy to him. So long as they were together, was it even trouble?

".. But no flying. Not from me, anyway. I don't like it. It's uncomfortable."

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

Outfit: x x x x x | Equipment: x x x x x x | Weapons: x x x | Companion: Domxite
Interacting with: Aris Noble

Zaiya shot Aris a silly expression.

"Hmmm, maybe you do want some trouble!" She teased, only to give a thoughtful hum.

"Why is that?" Zaiya asked curiously, a flutter of amber in curious contemplation would dance over her mottled spots across her cheeks, down the curve of her neck, and over her shoulders.

"You already know how to fly a hoverboard and a speederbike, right?" the Lovalla inquired, her slender hands reaching to go through the post-flight procedures and turn off the engines, the hum of the shuttle coming to a close. The many bracelets on her arm gave a musical jingle, every bit a part of her, just as she had dyed her hair a multitude of colors in cobalt, magenta, and teal to keep it bright and shiny.

"You never know when you might need to."