Private Holo the Fun Be With You

[Zaiya Ceti]

Aris Noble

Zaiya felt her face flush with warmth at Aris's compliment, a soft ripple of pink and gold shimmering across her skin. As much as it flustered her in the best way possible, it was immediately countered by the mock indignation sparking within her when he teased her about being scared.

Her hands dropped from the holo, and she spun around with a mock huff, jabbing a finger at his chest.

"I was not scared!" she declared, lifting her chin in defiance, her lips curling into a playful pout.

"It was just... surprise! That's all!" she insisted, giving his chest another poke for emphasis. But the stern front only lasted a second before she broke into uncontrollable giggles, her iridescent skin swirling with mischievous blues and cyans.

"Alright, fine," she said, catching her breath and tossing him a teasing grin.

"I've got one picked out already... but where's your holo picture, huh?" Her eyes sparkled with a challenge as she turned back toward the holo screen, fingers already poised to swipe through the images.

"Let's see how you turned out!" she added, laughing as she searched for his picture, her excitement lighting her up. Whatever she found, she was already prepared to make it her new favorite thing to tease him about.

 

[Aris Noble]

"Surprised, scared, very rarely not the same thing you know."

He teased again, his grin wide as she jabbed a finger in his chest. He just leaned over to get closer to eye to eye, especially as she poked his chest again. This banter, this teasing. It made the day that much more enjoyable. Fun. His grin only turned more smug as she tried to turn it back on him. He pointed to his picture, not too far from hers, with his excited grin plastered over his features in it.

Aris didn't seem to really feel fear.

"I think I turned out pretty well, don't you think?"

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

Aris Noble

Zaiya's breath hitched as Aris leaned closer, his grin utterly disarming and his vibrant green eyes catching the holo lights in a way that made her chest tighten. Her finger, which had been poised for another poke, froze midair. The heat rushing to her face was immediate, the glow of her skin betraying her with soft, flickering shades of pink and coral, her mottled spots shimmering in flustered bioluminecence.

"I...umm--" she stammered, suddenly acutely aware of how close he was. Her heart thudded so hard it felt like it might knock the air right out of her lungs.

Pull it together, Zaiya, she thought desperately, forcing a laugh to cover the awkward silence.

"I mean, su-rre, if your goal was to look like you just saw a mynock up close and thought it was cute!" she teased, her voice a touch higher than usual, waving a hand vaguely toward his holopicture. She tried to sound confident, to lean into the teasing, but her voice wavered ever so slightly. She stepped back just a hair, as though putting a little space between them would help her cool down the radiant blush still shimmering across her skin.

Aris's grin only grew, his amused smug gaze flicking between her and her shifting colors. Zaiya could practically hear his seemingly unspoken thoughts: Gotcha.

Her arms crossed as she tried to regain some semblance of composure, though the giggle that slipped out betrayed her efforts.

"You're impossible," she muttered, but the fondness in her voice gave her away.

"Okay! On to the next one, Your Highness!" Zaiya chirped out, grabbing his hand once more to tug him along. Better to do that now or else end up even more flustered.

"I heard there is a cool rollercoaster that spins and turns while it does twists and flips all while playing awesome music. It's all in the dark too, making it seem as if we are flying through space!"

 

[Aris Noble]

He didn't expect it to be as fun as it was. Aris could hear her breath hitch, her heartbeat quicken. Flusteredness. That was the term for it as her words failed her and her eyes widened. It was cute. He couldn't help but want to see more of this blush, of this embarrassment. It was the kind that had her giggling and smiling. That was more than enough for him. "Not impossible." He flashed one last grin before looking up, towards the ride she mentioned. There was a bit of a line, but nothing too long from what he could see this far away.

Mysic in the dark, all the twists and turns. That sounded like fun. A lot of fun. He took her hand in his, smiling all over again as he started to head towards the line.

"Sounds good to me. Maybe the dark'll hide your scared expression." He teased again, glancing to her with an all too wide smirk.

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

Aris Noble

Zaiya was grateful for the cool drift of the atmosphere recycler as they exited the ride, hoping it would cool her cheeks. She tilted her head down, pretending to be absorbed in her holomap, but mostly just trying to calm the topsy turvy swirl in her chest. At least until she caught Aris's teasing smirk and commentary about how maybe the dark ride would hide her expressions, prompting a rueful flicker of opal blue eyes in his direction.

"Now I know you are teasing me! Considering I can literally glow in the dark!" she shot back in a mock affront, her lips pursing in a narrowed, huffy, but comical scowl. She peeked up at him through her lashes, catching that all too smug smirk he was showing off more and more often. Ugh, why did he have to be so good at teasing her?

"Not that I'll be scared," she added quickly, her bioluminescent spots flickering a defiant bright yellow, though the shimmer softened as her focus shifted back to the map. With a flourish, she deactivated it, her bracelets giving a musical jingle before tugging on his hand to weave through the bustling crowd.

The smells of sweet fried snacks and savory vendor food filled the air, blending with the hum of music and the flashing lights of holobillboards advertising the next big ride or the best deal on nerf nuggets. Zaiya focused on the lively surroundings, hoping the distraction would keep her from focusing too much on the fact that Aris was holding her hand and how the warmth of it made her feel.

"So-o," she started, hoping to sound casual, "what's new with you? Feels like we haven't had a second to breathe since then." They hadn't had a chance to speak since Iridonia, and so much had happened since then, not just in the world itself but in other things.

 

[Aris Noble]

"Oh I'm aware you glow."

He was just all teasing smiles as he watched her colors, her own smile and blush. His hand idly squeezed hers all over again, relishing the warmth her skin had to offer his own. Aris was wholly focused on Zaiya now, even has his mind sorted out the different smells. sights, people. It was a passive thing, sorting the information his body naturally absorbed. All he wanted to do was focus on her, and now that they were in line it was that much easier.

"I can turn into f- .. No wait that's a surprise. Hmm. Honestly not much asides from the surprise. Things have been real steady for me. What about you? Anything new?"

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

Aris Noble

"You can turn into what?" Of course, Aris had to bait her by starting to tell her something, only to stop and say it was a surprise. The Lovalla eyed him a bit through amused, narrowed eyes, only to chuckle a second later.

At his question, Zaiya hummed. What to discuss? She had a few sobering thoughts regarding past events, including Iridonia, but she didn't want to bring down the mood with them. Maybe later?

"My Master has been teaching more healing applications and practicing how to do a Battle meld with others. Domxite is there to ensure I don't get too attached to doing it because of how I seem to bond and such... " Zaiya explained, pondering back at how wonderful that had felt to be so connected.

"It felt ... surreal and interesting. Being both parties at once and feeling what they were feeling in such a way; thoughts, actions, and all of that."

 

[Aris Noble]

"That- does sound really surreal, honestly. Being two people at the same time? Not sure if that was something I could handle." He hummed in thought as he tried to wrap his mind around it. Double the senses. No, that didn't work out in his mind. He chuckled after a second, glancing down to Zaiya again as they waited in the line they were in. Wasn't too much longer until they'd get onto the ride. He could already hear the music.

"Healing though, glad you're able to keep up with that. I know Shan was teaching you that for a bit."

Zaiya Ceti