Private Digging for Worms

[Prennis Keeoli]

The respect of her choice took her off guard.

”I snagged an old hydrospanner on the way out of the clinic,” she replied easily, leaning her elbows on the table with the same ease. “A man like you wouldn’t be bothered with a little thing called sterility, would you?”

Was she serious?

She smiled.

Maybe.

Then her eyes followed his to the bar. “I’d be having plenty of fun,” she argued after a moment of silence. Her sparkling water arrived, causing her eyes to slide first up to the waiter as she thanked him and then back to Aro as she rose her glass. “To your good health.”

Aro Harcrow

 

[Aro Harcrow]

Prennis Keeoli

He almost choked in his drink when she made that joke.

Almost.

Instead Aro breathed through his nose and finished swallowing the burning drink. Before he devolved into a coughing fit... and would likely tear open his wound again from the dry-heaving. So it was a good thing he had it under control. "Oh, you." Waggling his finger at her with a smirk, laughing there carefully because he definitely didn't wanna tear anything open.

"Didn't realize the Doc had a wicked sense of humor like that. Very nice."

He was going to stretch there, but managed to stop himself.

"My good health and your fun, hm?" Raising his glass too and ticking it against her rim gently. Then he sipped from his drink, deciding to be a bit slower with the uptake now.

If they weren't going to get drunk together that was half the fun.

"So, what do you do for fun, besides knitting handsome men together like me and having seltzer drinks?"

 

[Prennis Keeoli]

She stared over the rim of her glass at him, trying to figure out if that had been a joke.

”Kind of difficult to find the time for much more when those handsome men take advantage of a woman’s doctoring instincts.”

She said it straight, and at a normal volume. With the loud ambience all around them—blaring music, drown out chatting—she wasn’t worried about anyone overhearing.

Aro Harcrow

 

[Aro Harcrow]

Prennis Keeoli

A smirk there.

"I wouldn't mind taking advantage of a bit more than your doctoring instincts." Drawled there lazily. If she hadn't been sure about him being serious or not, this would most likely not help at all. They had 'known' each other for a few months now. This was the first time that Aro seemed to actually be flirting with her.

There was a simple reason for that.

Don't chit where your sleeping. So when he was taking bribes from her? It wasn't wise to try and develop some sort of emotional relationship. Not even one based on passion.

But, she had saved his arse, so that was already out of the window.

Might as well see what was going on here, no?

"Must be exhausting... only doing yar job and nothing else."

 

[Prennis Keeoli]

A shiver ran through her at his drawl. She tensed up in response, unsure at first what it was, but soon realized it was just a blip of excitement that she hadn’t felt for quite some time, and settled back down into it.

“And methinks you want to further exhaust me,” she replied after a sip of calming water. ”That’s not very…” She was going to say chivalrous, but stopped herself. “…something of you.”

Aro Harcrow

 

[Aro Harcrow]

Prennis Keeoli

A laugh.

"Naw, darling, exhaustion ain't the aim... it is just a natural side effect." Aro grinned there and leaned back into his chair. This was probably a bad idea regardless of his rationalization. He was still taking bribes from her. It was a bad idea to mix that kind of business with pleasure. But... she had saved him and if Prennis had been attractive before? Well, having your life in someone's hands made them infinitely more attractive.

"So what brought ya to Coruscant? Plenty of worlds in the Galaxy ya can practice medicine without the... overhead, so to speak."

There was always a colony in the Outer Rim jonesing for a practiced field medic. Ships going back and forth who wanted someone on-board and knew what they were doing.

Why Coruscant out of all places?

There were a few options.

Well, Aro's imagination was running wild... in more than one way.

 

[Prennis Keeoli]

”Right,” she muttered into the sparkling water even as she tipping it towards her lips to take a sip.

What was she doing indeed.

”Making right a bit of my past,” she then answered his question. “Exploring a calling I could have listened to but didn’t. If a weekly bribe is what it takes to do that, then…it’s a foregone conclusion.”

Aro Harcrow

 

[Aro Harcrow]

Prennis Keeoli

"Oh, dear, yar one of those uh... so-called..." He made quotation marks next. "..."true believers", arentcha? Those that believe they ought to do all they can in life to help the folk around them." Interestingly enough Aro didn't sound scathing or sarcastic about it. It didn't seem like he was making fun of her at all.

"I was like that once."

He'd add that to dispel the mystery. His knuckles wrapping slowly against the table in thought.

"Streets got a way to beat da out of ya tho." Aro leaned in there, chin on one hand as he watched her thoughtfully. "Am surprised it hasn't been beaten outta ya yet. Yar not a greenhorn."

Did he just call a woman old in a roundabout way?

But then Aro sipped from his drink and shrugged.

"I respect that. Tough to go through this life and still have morals."

Notably... he didn't offer not to take bribes from her anymore.

 

[Prennis Keeoli]

She didn’t seem offended either way.

”I’m pragmatic,” she said, setting her glass down and sitting back in the booth chair, arms crossed, “and pissed off, not a plushie, don’t worry too much about it. I don’t get any more sutures in until the middle of the week.”

She was tempted to say a word about her service with real bullies, the brass of the First Order. That was not a story, not even a tidbit, for now, she told herself.

”Either way, I doubt you’re really interested in my morals, past knowing that they’re your credit insurance.” There was that no nonsense tone again. “And I suppose also thinking I’m going to go home with you out of my nurturing nature.” She rose a brow though she knew she was right.

Aro Harcrow

 

[Aro Harcrow]

Prennis Keeoli

Not a plushie, she got that right.

Some kriffin' grit in this one.

Which was a surprise. What kind of gritty pragmatist goes to take care of regular folks in the underbelly of Coruscant? It made no darn sense. It made the opposite of sense. Whichever that was. It was a mystery and maybe Aro was a corrupt officer of the law today, but some time ago he had been an idealistic detective.

Part of him was still gnawingly curious about things.

"Not a plushie, huh? So not soft in all the right places?" Smirking there as he sipped from his glass. His eyes gave nothing away of the calculation going on in his head.

Maybe he ought to do some actual investigative recording.

Then he laughed when Prennis called him right out.

"I dunno about nurturing, darlin', I dun' be looking for something tender an' sweet." No, suppose not, Aro didn't look like the type for it. "But something tells me you might need some... release, eh? Must be difficult being cramped up and under stress all day long for weeks on end."

 

[Prennis Keeoli]

She smiled, glanced away, then looked back to him.

"Maybe," she admitted, "but I got quite the streak going." A little laugh as she continued. "You'll have to make it worth my while to break it."

Aro Harcrow

 

[Aro Harcrow]

Prennis Keeoli

A laugh there, shaking his head.

"Ah, well, ya dun' know this but I am quite motivated when I set my desire to something." She was fun in a way. Somewhat interested, flirty, but at the same time keeping him at just enough of a distance that Aro had to work for it. He could enjoy it any which way realistically. It all depended on his mood and then some.

This? Yeah, it was working for him now.

"So, how can I make it worth ya while, hm?"

Leaning in just a touch to watch her more closely.

 

[Prennis Keeoli]

Shrugging, she leaned in too.

”I suppose you can convince me to start a new kind of streak.”

She left it at that. Straightening back up, she rose her drink to her lip, watching Aro now over the rim.

Aro Harcrow

 

[Aro Harcrow]

Prennis Keeoli

One sip in he practically choked in his drink when she bounced that right back at him.

Luckily Aro managed to recover just in time. Otherwise this would probably have been a very short flirt session. Either she would have laughed in his face or he would have been too embarrassed to continue. Instead... instead he forced down the drink and then breathed out. "Oof, lady, yar full of surprises, arentcha?"

But definitely not in a bad way.

"Could go back to my place and I will be very convincing."

 

[Prennis Keeoli]

She leaned a bit back, then her foot brushed against his under the table. "Oh, you'd do that, would you?"

Aro Harcrow