Aren't You a Little Old for a Slumber Party?

[Kuzo]

M A E N A

After everything that had happened, [member="Matsu Xiangu"] had been very understanding about Raja chosing a new set of rooms on Maena. Of course, the new rooms didn't really feel like hers. The old ones hadn't either, but that was different. There were only so many things she could do to make herself comfortable, and for Irajah at least, few of them had anything to do with 'redecorating.'

A girls' night. A girls' night *in*. Everyone had agreed to bring pajamas and something to share that they liked- a drink, food, something to do- but what each person contributed was anyone's guess at this point. [member="Nisha Skaiyr"] had been unable (or, if she were being honest, knowing the other woman, unwilling considering the nature of the gathering. Irajah understood.) to make it. But Matsu had agreed to come down, as had [member="Aria Vale"]- who was bringing [member="Darth Imperia"], a woman Raja hadn't met before but was happy to accept, sight unseen, on Aria's recommendation.

And a friend of Aria's, was a friend of hers, as far as she was concerned.

Irajah wanted night where nothing outside of these rooms mattered. No training, no fear, no anger. She didn't know, right now, if that was possible.

But if there were anyone she could manage it with, it was with these women.

 

[Matsu Xiangu]

She was at once the last person that would be expected to attend, and also the most easily imagined. Despite her days spent on dead, dry fields smoking with the burnt out refuse of enemies...she also enjoyed her leisure time. So it was with ease that she filled a duffelbag with all the required items for entry: chocolate, a deck of Cards Against the Galaxy, and two bottles of wine carefully wrapped away from her designer pajamas. She hadn’t asked who else was invited, figuring whomever Irajah wanted around her would be good company regardless.

The New City was glittering brightly that night, raucous laughter and endless chatter traveling up from walkways below as Matsu made her way through her city towards the suite of apartments Irajah had chosen. Truly, the Sith Lord would have let her have her pick regardless of the circumstances that necessitated the move, but if it made the doctor more comfortable than Matsu was pleased.

The Atrisian woman came to a stop outside the doors to Dr. Ven’s, shouldering her bag as she pressed the bell to announce her arrival. She might have just gone in - she knew the code. But privacy and security were crucial at the current juncture and waltzing in would shatter that, even if it was just her.

Whether she was the first or last to arrive remained to be seen.

[member="Irajah Ven"] | [member="Aria Vale"] | [member="Darth Imperia"]​

 

[NightSister]

"Alright, I think it's down...that way?"

Aria stopped to squint at a street sign, then sauntered down the appropriate sidewalk, Imperia in tow. She'd been to visit Irajah a number of times before, of course, but not since the doctor's move to elsewhere in the New City, and she was careful to make sure she was going in the right direction. After all, she'd really rather avoid getting lost.

It wasn't unlikely to come as a surprise to those who knew her, but Aria was rather excited at the prospect of tonight. Irajah and Imperia both were excellent company - she wasn't sure how much further the guest list extended, but hadn't seen cause to be concerned over such a detail - and the prospect of a slumber party was appealing even to her. With all of that in mind, upon invitation she'd thrown her girliest pyjamas in a bag with a box of chocolates, an assortment of movies, numerous brightly coloured tubs of nail polish and an obligatory bottle of wine, and was promptly on her way over alongside Imperia.

"Ah, this is it," she finally announced, walking the last of the distance with Imperia presumably following. Her head turned as she heard the ding of a doorbell in the right direction - oh, familiar face. And they weren't exactly on the best terms.

"Oh! Um -" well, she couldn't be all that bad if she was friends with Irajah - "hi."

[member="Irajah Ven"] | [member="Darth Imperia"] | [member="Matsu Xiangu"]​

 

[Darth Imperia]

Imperia had been told to bring something she liked. Her first thoughts had run towards the sexual, the violent, and the violently sexual. It occurred to her, as a joke, to bring one of her favored consorts, a pretty young Hapan man with a feminine grace, and the sort of creativity that lent itself well to the more carnal aspects of Imperia's tastes.

Unfortunately, the Knight had come to the conclusion that that sort of joke wasn't likely to be appreciated by the rest of the attendants.

So wine and song it was - Vintage Corellian wine, to be specific, smuggled offworld during the unpleasantness that had befallen that planet. And as for the music? Well. That ran the gamut from somber orchestral pieces to the upbeat and electronic, to the heavy, angry harmonies of Heavy Isotope. Someone of Imperia's station should have a well rounded taste in the arts, after all.

Clad in black pajamas, Imperia trailed close behind Aria with a slight scowl on her face - not because she expected this to be unpleasant, though. Quite the contrary, in fact; she'd always been quite the social creature, and even a Sith needed a bit of time to relax. No, there was a far more serious problem at hand. Imperia had gone barefoot, and these streets were filthy. Matsu Xiangu, as impressive and worthy of respect as she was, seriously needed to review Maena's codes of cleanliness. If the halls of her keep had collected this much dust, the Knight would've had her maidservants lashed.

Speaking of Matsu, that woman there looked quite simila-

Oh.

In stark contrast to her paramour's awkward greeting, Imperia offered her fellow Sith a warm smile and a respectful dip of the head.
"Lady Matsu. What a pleasant surprise."

---

[member="Aria Vale"]
[member="Irajah Ven"]
[member="Matsu Xiangu"]

 

[Kuzo]

The door opened and Irajah smiled at all of them. If it was a little less enthusiastic, a little less bubbly than the grin that had greeted them in the past, well, that could be forgiven after the events of the last few months. And hopefully, [member="Matsu Xiangu"], [member="Darth Imperia"] and [member="Aria Vale"] wouldn't take it personally. She was, after all, exceedingly glad to see them.

"Come in, please," she said, stepping back. "And you must be Imperia. I'm Irajah, or just Raj, please make yourselves comfortable."

Comfortable. The order of the night. Her own pajamas were obviously focused on comfort. The suite was warm, but not oppressively so, and she led the way into the kitchenette to deposit anything that needed to be there. She already has small, nibble style snacks out on the table, and wine glasses because (surprise) she had also supplied a bottle for the evening.

Unlike the last places she had lived, here, on Dosuun, on Panatha, this place was obviously meant for only one person. Well, one person and a neurotic mouse droid, but Raj wasn't sure Bantam would come out of the bedroom with three extra people in the place anyway. The living room was sparse but comfortable- the convertible couch (sent to her what seemed like a lifetime ago by [member="Cait Falcor"]) was central to the room, and she'd folded the whole thing out for lounging. Large pillows and one ridiculously over stuffed chair occupied another corner. She'd brought every blanket and bed pillow she had out into the living room as well.

It wasn't a sybarite's paradise. But it looked comfortable and welcoming.

Picking one of the bottles deposited on the counter at random, she paused when Matsu shook her head slightly. With a shrug and a small smile, she picked up the one the Sith Lord had brought instead and started opening it with a look of sheer concentration.

"The entire freezer is full of nothing but icecream," she said with a small grunt as the cork finally came out. "Everything else got banished. And I have movies in languages I don't speak." She couldn't explain the appeal. She'd have to show them.

 

[Matsu Xiangu]

It seemed that - per usual - Matsu was overdressed. She’d somehow missed the memo that they were supposed to present in pajamas and not merely bring them. She was used to the feeling of being entirely too polished however and let it go, instead focusing her attentions on the two women that approached.

To the first that spoke up her eyes narrowed slightly, reminiscent of some animal that was trying to decide whether to rip out something’s throat or hold back. Truly her feelings didn’t run much to the former. But she’d made something of a mess on one of the only nice parts of the Wasteland and that felt sort of tragic to Matsu. “Hi,” she returned, her tone something venomous, black widow.

And then the woman at her side spoke, called Matsu by name. This one - she was familiar, though… Oh, that was it. She’d seen the face in her son’s memories. Though Onley was not a mentalist by trade he’d taken to at least becoming familiar with the technique to better defend himself. As training he focused on building memories as real things. Showing Matsu the skirmish through his eyes had been one of them. She’d seen both of these women there too. “Imperia,” she said, returning the nod and the smile. “My son thinks highly of you.” She wasn’t the type to demand bows or gross shows of deference. She made note of the demure respect from the other woman however - just right.

But just like that they entered the unexpected venue for an unexpected event, far too many - or just the right amount? - of wine laid out on the counter to compliment ice cream, chocolate, and smaller snacks. Matsu picked up one of the latter to pad her stomach for the alcoholic dairy firestorm that was about to commence, taking a glass as the wine was offered to her.

Dropping her bag by one of the blanket-couches, she looked around at what served for their cloud of a room for the night. “Good thing I’m not lactose intolerant,” she quipped, taking a delicate bite from the small pretzel she’d snatched up. “Movies in languages you don’t speak?”

[member="Irajah Ven"] | [member="Darth Imperia"] | [member="Aria Vale"]​

 

[NightSister]

It was doubtless good to see Irajah again, and Aria's expression brightened to show such clearly. Of course, that she'd opened the door in time to get in the way of the slight tension in the air was an added bonus - the Echani was not fond of uncomfortable silence, especially not when it was shared with a Sith lord ruling a zombie army. Irajah and the promise of ice cream were unquestionably enough to remedy such a silence, however; beyond that, ice cream was nice at any time.

She filed in cheerfully with the others, swiftly setting her bag down by the others and her array of treats on the counter. At some point she'd need to change into the pyjamas she'd brought with her, but for now wine was being poured out and there was chocolate to be had with it, so she left the change of clothes for now and poured wine from the first bottle she laid hands on. Another sweeping look around the room, and she plucked a chocolate from its box as she turned her focus back to Irajah.

Irajah's cheer reaffirmed her own, and she grinned at the doctor's proposal for the night's first event. Movies in foreign languages? It wasn't what she usually went for, but why not? As long as a film had a plot and a decent soundtrack, that tended to be as much as Aria needed. It also helped when the movie hadn't been remade with monstrous special-effects additions, but she put up with even those for a good narrative.

"Huh," was her immediate response, amused and intrigued, with a sip of wine before its continuation. "It sounds cool. What kind of movies?"

[member="Darth Imperia"] | [member="Irajah Ven"] | [member="Matsu Xiangu"]​

 

[Darth Imperia]

Imperia hadn’t ever been a fan of slumber parties, sleepovers, or that sort of thing – she had fallen in with the spiked-boots-and-glitterstim crowd as a youth. While it would be laughable (and potentially painful, depending on whether the Knight was within earshot) to call her masculine, the sort of femininity that involved garishly bright colors and an excess of sentimentality had never interested Imperia.

But Aria had invited her along, and so along she came.

Something about stepping into the apartment made Imperia just a bit uneasy, not that she let it show. Perhaps it was the (compared to her castle, at least) excessively cheerful mood that permeated the room. Perhaps it was the overall basic feel of the place, in stark contrast to the lavish intricacy that Imperia normally surrounded herself with.

Or maybe, just maybe, it was the dawning realization that tonight, she would have to socialize genuinely, without relying on seduction or deceit, and without amplifying her charisma through the Force. Sincere emotion (beyond rage and lust and pride) was still a new experience for her, and one that unsettled her deeply.

With swagger and confidence so polished it simply had to be artificial, Imperia slithered over to and settled upon one of the various cushioned surfaces in the corner of the room, then eyed the bottle of wine she’d brought along.

If she were going to get through tonight, she’d need it.

---

[member="Aria Vale"]
[member="Irajah Ven"]
[member="Matsu Xiangu"]

 

[Kuzo]

Irajah started to pour glasses, handing them out as she spoke.

"Yup! Languages I don't speak or understand," she replied to Matsu. "The trick is to try to figure out the story anyway. If it's a good movie, you can. If it's a bad movie, you have fun making the dialogue as ridiculous as possible while you go. It's been with wine."

Obviously.

"And I have no idea what kind! I picked these randomly from a shelf."

Irajah headed into the living room, carrying one of the bowls of snacks with her. Setting it down on the couch, she picked up one of the holocases.

"This one is..... Rodian? And this one..... has wookiees and ewoks in it. I'm *pretty* sure neither of them are porn? But not 100%."

She tipped the cases back and forth, studying them for a moment then shrugged. Turning, she handed the last wine glass to Imperia.

"I'm glad you could all come," she said quietly.

She hadn't gotten accustomed to living alone again yet. Having them in the apartment mattered.

[member="Aria Vale"] [member="Matsu Xiangu"] [member="Darth Imperia"]