Private Intruder alert

[Quain Pluvinage]

Apparently, she didn't think too much of his work, something which he was quite used to by a certain group of people. Sitting there passively, he shrugged lightly and let out a short "You'd be surprised" before dropping the issue. If she argued back, he knew that he'd just let her 'win' as he really needed to pick his battles and this was not the hill on which he planned on dying.

His eyebrows shot up as he looked at her in surprise. Was she taking his words as an insult? Raising his free hand to show her the palm, Quain spoke "No! No, no, no." he insisted and hurriedly kept defending himself "I just wanted to see if I could, uh, you know, make it a bit tastier" With a sigh of relief, he nodded eagerly as she said that he could have a go at it. The momentary relief would however not last for very long as she then aimed her blaster at him. "I got, it, I got it" he said, afraid of being shot. "Please put it away" he pleaded, still a bit taller than her as he bowed his back a little. "What could I possibly do against you?" he asked, remembering how easily she had beat him when he got the jump at her earlier. For a moment, he even considered taking off his coat - it did add a few extra kilos to him which was quite substantial considering his otherwise light body. But ultimately, he decided against it as she was already having her way with him and he felt like the extra padding was needed.

Struggling to fight the pain that lingered from the beating she had given him, Quain slowly made his way to the kitchen and began working away at the food. He had always liked cooking and worked away to fix the damage which she had created. Liking the idea of making much with little, he had no trouble salvaging the situation. Still remembering what she had in which drawers, an outsider might have believed that he lived there himself. Not too long after, he started putting the food on a plate "I hope you will like this" he said, turning to serve it to her by the table.

Sam Sheridan

 

[Sam Sheridan]

He assured her that he wouldn't do anything, though his question made her scoff. "You want a video clip?" she fired back, the day's earlier events still fresh in her mind.

Without a word he moved into the kitchen area and started to salvage her biohazard of a meal. She helped herself to another beer and sat back on the booth. She watched how he moved around her kitchen like he knew it for weeks. She was rather uncomfortable over the fact that he was watching her so carefully. She placed the gun on the table and sat back, slurping at her beer idly as she watched him work.

All the while she was mentally degrading him, his elegant and bourgeois technique, how easily he fixed her meal, the works. She had it set in her mind that there was no way this pencilneck could fix her food or make it any better. She ignored the smell and her watering mouth, refusing to give him credit.

A bit later he placed a plate in front of her. Her pistol was in her hand once more as she glanced at the plate then back to him. "You first." she ordered, sliding her plate back to him. Once he took a bite and she confirmed it wasn't poison, she pulled it back towards herself. She picked at it a bit with her fork, inspecting the food as if it was a bomb. Finally she took a small bite and slowly chewed it. She looked up at him, glaring while her pistol was aimed right at his gut. On the outside it looked like she absolutely hated it...

Meanwhile she was screaming internally. It was tasty. More than tasty. It was amazing! She even took a second, bigger bite before she could stop herself. Her glare softened and the faintest of smiles formed on her lips.

She looked up at him again as her hard glare returned. But despite the look, she helped herself to another bite. "Okay, fine. It's...nice." she muttered softly, almost embarrassingly. "I'm still a better shot than you, so don't get too full of yourself." she quipped, almost sounding childish. She couldn't be seen coming off as weak or friendly with her prize. Pretty soon the pistol was put aside and her plate was clean. She looked at him again, a pleading gaze hidden behind her glare. "...Got...any more?" she asked in a somewhat hushed voice.

Quain Pluvinage

 

[Quain Pluvinage]

It felt good that she was no longer pointing a blaster at him. Cooking was so much more fun when you weren't under the immediate threat of death. Actually, it felt pretty good to be doing something normal again, even if he was doing it for his captor. There was just this sense of freedom and and focus that came with cooking which was of much comfort in his current situation. Once again, however, he felt small as he saw the blaster in her hand. It really shouldn't cause that much fear as he knew that she was rather formidable without the weapon too. He was in danger regardless. Nevertheless, there he stood, starting to feel a little weak by the knees.

Setting down the plate in front of her, the captive sat down. He looked puzzled at first - the idea of him poisoning the food had not even crossed his mind. After a short while, he nodded and took a small bit of everything and loaded it onto his fork before taking a bite. Never having been one who needed much food, he was quite happy with having been forced to eat a little. Quain was well aware of the fact that the bite he just took would be enough to sustain him for a while longer and when held by Rebecca, he really didn't want to give her even more edges than she already had.

Sitting silently, looking either to the side, or down at his hands, Quain waited as she ate, nervously throwing a glance at her from time to time to see if she liked it. It was a bad idea as her displeased look and blaster were enough to cause his hands to shiver. Letting out a sigh of relief, he slouched down to lean against the chair upon seeing her smile but it wouldn't last for long. Her glare returned and he soon realised that she did not want him comfortable. It was good to know and Quain would be quick to react, quickly sitting back upright. Nodding, he was quick to agree "A much better shot" he said - still a bit confused at the comment as she had never seen him shoot and as far as he knew, she had only displayed skill at taking people out from close range. Still, he knew she had quick reflexes, good aim and grace - surely, she would come out on top.

After quite some time - time which passed by way too quickly as he rather enjoyed just sitting there, watching her enjoy the meal - Rebecca asked for more. "Yes, I can go get it for you" he said before standing up and walking over to the kitchen where he loaded a second portion onto her plate. Returning, he set it down in front of her and sat down again "There you go" he said with a friendly voice, sending her a meek smile before letting his gaze fall to his hands at his lap again. It was almost weird, how much he liked seeing her enjoy the food, but he did. Eventually, he spoke "So, uh, what do you do if getting the credits released drags out on time? Even going to get them in cash could be problematic."

Sam Sheridan

 

[Sam Sheridan]

Sam sat still with her hands in her lap, almost nervously waiting for Quain to bring her second serving for her. He soon returned and she immediately dove into her meal once again. For a few minutes she completely forgot about him and genuinely enjoyed her meal. She was almost done when he spoke up. Luckily he caught her at a very good time. "You'll stay on board as a cook if you keep making food this good." she joked before taking another bite. She realized what she said and tried to work on putting up the cold exterior once more.

"Either I keep you around until the money is in, or I sell you to the Hutts if it takes too long. So I'd suggest making sure you tell the bank it's a priority job." she spoke on a more serious note this time, her hard look back again.

She finished her meal and pushed the plate aside. She took her weapon once more and tied Quain back to the table. But this time she merely tied his wrists and ankles to the table instead of completely restraining him like last time. "You know the rules." she said as she holstered her gun. While she didn't say as much, she clearly was more at ease with him. She left him there and returned to the cockpit, taking out another cigarette while still sipping at her beer. She glanced at Beebee and rubbed his dome a little before sinking further into her seat. There se sat, smoking and minding her own business until she accidentally fell asleep in her seat.

Quain Pluvinage

 

[Quain Pluvinage]

He didn't know whether to be happy or fearful of the news. Keeping him as a cook? While he wouldn't have to die, it would probably bring him a fair bit of suffering and more importantly, it was practically slavery but without the Hutts as middleman. She soon made the pondering moot, however, as she changed her plans. Mysteriously enough, he almost felt a bit sad that she'd prefer selling him to the Hutts rather than keeping him herself. Perhaps there was just a sense of safety in the known - if the Hutts got him, there was no telling where he'd end up. "Oh, um, yes, okay." he said with a defeated tone.

"Please don't. Just put the gun away" the idea of saying it crossed his mind. He felt uncomfortable with her constantly flailing about with the blasters. But then, speaking up seemed rather stupid. Instead, he kept quiet and tried to relax, offering as little resistance as humanly possible. Soon, he found himself deprived of his freedom again, being tied to the table as he watched her leaving the room. Looking at the droid, he smiled weakly "So, little friend. Why did she think that you'd help free me?" he asked, happy to speak to 'someone' more friendly.

Once the conversation with the droid was over, Quain would fall asleep too. While his position was far from comfortable, it was still better than before and there was really not much else for him to do. If she was sleeping, he might as well give it a go too. Still, he only allowed himself to go half asleep as the need to jump to attention as she entered was still lingering.

Sam Sheridan

 

[Sam Sheridan]

While Sam was upstairs, Beebee was doing its own thing. It decided on looking into their prisoner, careful not to cause any sounds that would wake Sam up. It figured that Quain would want to talk and was happy to oblige. //My programming is more...delicate.// it beeped away. //This unit wasn't designed for illegal or amoral activities. She repossessed this unit some time ago on Coruscant along with this ship from this unit's previous owner. But this unit can confirm that, while hard to connect with, she takes care of her belongings.// it explained, giving a little context.

It rolled over to the fridge and brought Quain a bottle of water. //If this unit had an input, better care of passengers would certainly be top priority. Only input this units has for you is to try and be friendly. You have made great progress by cooking food for her. This unit hopes you can elevate yourself to a more favourable position before your journey reaches its end. Perhaps you may be able to acquire her services if all factors develop favourably.// it finished and rolled off, throwing away the bottle of water after Quain had his fill. It returned to the cockpit and resumed control of the ship.

After a couple hours the ship dropped out of hyperspace. Sam stirred awake and cracked her neck. Stretching out, she sat up and looked around. "Hey, what's going on?" she asked Beebee. //Simply recalculating the hyperdrive. This angle has placed the vessel in a dangerous route. This unit is recalculating the journey to go around and avoid the anomalies.// it explained as it worked on the navicomputer. With nothing better to do, Sam descended the ladder and entered the mess room. "Hey, lord Plumage. You still alive?" she asked him rather loudly as she walked towards the fridge. She opened it and sighed with annoyance before closing it again. "Unless you feel like cooking again, we got no breakfast on standby." she grumbled.

She fished out a cigarette and lit it as she sat in the booth. While she was being serious over the breakfast, it was also a quiet beg that he would cook again. Even if it's the only use he had, she would keep him around just for that. "By the way, you stink." she said abruptly...then glanced down at herself. With a sniff at herself she grimaced, then looked up at him with an embarrassed look. "...You still stink too." she spoke up again as she sank deeper into her seat. "I'm gonna shower. Stay put. You can go after me." she ordered then got up, walking towards the ladder again.

Quain Pluvinage

 

[Quain Pluvinage]

The droid had been nice to him again and his fondness of it was starting to grow. And it had a sad story too as it sounded like it had just been stolen and had had to live with belonging to her ever since. The company of the BB-unit wouldn't last for long, however, naturally, it had things to attend to and Quain? Well, he would remain in the booth.

Half asleep, the lawyer was quickly shook to life as the ship dropped out of hyperspace and soon found Rebecca at the mess room. "Hi" he said, welcoming her to the room "Still alive" he added, replying to her question in a hurry. It was starting to get annoying, how she called him 'Plumage' but he supposed it was the way of people without a real education. In any case, he wasn't about to complain about it - ignoring it and complying was the safer route now.

It was worrying how happy he felt about the possibility to cook for her again. Practically jumping to attention, he nodded "I could make something for you" he said with an eagerness to his voice. Upon being released form his bonds, Quain thanked her before going to work. While preparing some coffee and bacon, he always made sure to turn and look at her when she spoke to him. It was surprising to hear her accuse him of stinking as he hadn't smelled anything himself. He was also a bit surprised when she seemed to think that she smelled herself. To him, she didn't really smell bad - perhaps it was because he had gotten so used to it by now?

Confused, Quain thought about what she had just offered - even more freedom? And it would almost only be for his own enjoyment as he didn't think that she stood to gain much from him showering. "Thank you, Rebecca. I would love to" he said before returning to the breakfast preparations. By the time she was done, the table would be set with a plethora of breakfast foods including a rather fancy Sandwich on her plate He was fully prepared to help her out with something and patiently sat with his hands in his laps by the table, waiting for her to arrive.

Sam Sheridan

 

[Sam Sheridan]

She was quite happy that he volunteered to make breakfast and released him from his bonds. He thanked her for the offer of showering but she simply scoffed. "Yeah yeah, no need to suck me off." she dismissed him. "I won't be able to get much out of you if you're a festering heap. Now don't do something stupid. I'll be back in a bit." she said as she left.

As she walked through the cockpit she ordered Beebee to keep an eye on Quain, much to the droid's delight. It descended to the mess room and kept Quain company, more as a friendly face than a guard. She stripped from her skimpy clothing and hopped into the shower. She spent a good long while in there, clearing her head and figuring out what to do with him. She knew she couldn't have him roaming around freely in her ship, but at the same time she knew better than to ruin him until he was useless to her. The fact that he was such a good cook was also really messing with her judgement of how to treat him. She finally emerged and dried off. She slipped into some fresh underwear and a clean tank top, though she still wore her old shorts. She left her hair loose and finished up before returning to the mess room.

The smells and sight shocked her quite a bit. She skeptically eyed him as she got out another beer and slid into the booth. "You trying to get on my good side or something?" she asked curtly. She had to admit that it was definitely working. She eyed and inspected the sandwich and other food on the table carefully before digging in. Once again her demeanor shifted and she became a lot more tolerable. She packed some bacon on the sandwich halfway in and kept on devouring the food. "You can go shower, you know." she said in between bites. "Beebee, show him to the refresher." she said before getting comfortable and eating further.

"Hey." she spoke up as he got up to leave. "This stuff's real good. I have half a mind to keep you on here just for this." her voice was stern, but she clearly loved his cooking. Once he was gone, however, she sunk in her seat and continued on with a happy smile. In the privacy of her room she completely relaxed and enjoyed her meal properly.

Quain Pluvinage

 

[Quain Pluvinage]

He was used to being insulted and treated poorly. Many businessmen had way too high believes of themselves and didn't seem to have much self control. It was easy for him to shrug it off. Sam's insults were, however, starting to make a dent in his defences. Unlike the others, Rebecca could actually inflict harm and pain on him - something which his clients would never do.

After a bit longer than he had expected, she returned. Her hair wet and untamed, just like her. Her question was spot on - of course he was trying to get on her good side. After a few moments of consideration, he nodded "Well, yes. Wouldn't you if our positions were reversed?" he asked. Going silent again, he watched as she ate - this time, he didn't have to test it for food poisoning and she seemed to enjoy the food. It made him way more happy than it should have. It was strange, how well aligned his feelings were with hers, something which was rare even with friends.

With a smile, he rose up "Okay, thank you, Rebecca" he said before following the droid to the shower. He froze with a cold shiver running through his body as she called for him. Standing still, he slowly turned around to see what she wanted. Now, the lawyer really couldn't believe himself as he almost felt relieved upon hearing that she would keep him instead of sending him off to the hutts. The thought in itself was insane.

He felt naked, taking off his heavy coat which had kept him safe during his time with his captor. Still, he knew that it would remain there still when he was done and thought nothing more of it. Keeping his shower brief, Quain used the little extra time he had to start washing her clothes, seeing as the pile of dirty clothes had grown rather large by now. Once done, he returned, almost looking exactly the same as before he had left the mess room earlier. Heading straight to the kitchen instead of the booth, he asked "Would you like anything else?" as he started doing the dishes from the previous night.

Sam Sheridan

 

[Sam Sheridan]

It took Quain quite a while to return, but Sam didn't notice. She was too engrossed in enjoying the heavenly breakfast she had before her. By the time he returned, the massive amount of food was almost completely done with Sam finishing her final bites. She finished her beer and sat back with a content sigh. She watched as he walked over to the kitchen...and started to wash the dishes. She blinked in surprise, not sure on how to react at all. "Ummm...no, I'm good." she said hesitantly. "What are you doing?" she asked as she stood up, still not sure on what to do or say. It was harmless and saved her the trouble, so she didn't bother to stop him. It was just...odd.

"Uhhh...okay. Just...stay put." she stammered a bit before turning to leave the room.

She was abruptly stopped as the ship lurched. Beebee screamed from the cockpit, making Sam rush up. "What's happening?" she asked it. It didn't even get a chance to answer as Sam turned and pushed it towards the ladder. "Get downstairs, take the pencil and get out of sight." she ordered coldly then rushed down the ladder. "Hey! Follow the droid and keep your mouth shut." she ordered Quain as she drew her pistols. A familiar hiss-and-click sounded off from each one as she pressed herself up beside the entrance to the cargo hold. "Bloody pirates." she said coldly, getting ready as the unknown enemy docked with her ship.

She glanced back into her ship to make sure Beebee and Quain got out of sight. "Beebee, coms on." she called out, then pointed her pistol at the door as she waited for the breaching to start.

Quain Pluvinage

 

[Quain Pluvinage]

"The dishes" he said innocently. Since she obviously weren't doing them, he might as well do it himself - besides, it might earn him a little more time in freedom. Rebecca, although puzzled, did not seem to mind, much to his joy. "Staying put" he confirmed whilst looking at her leave the room. With both her and the droid up in the cockpit, the lawyer looked around. Did she just enable him to roam freely? He no longer had any restraints and currently found himself cleaning a bread knife. Looking at it, he wondered - it did not seem like she used the kitchen much, it was far from sure that she would notice if he took something and hid it in his coat. But then, she had rather handily beaten him last time - trying is luck again but with a weapon would probably lead to another defeat and a lot of suffering afterwards. No, he was not going to defy her like this now. The risks were far too high.

Suddenly, the ship lurched, causing him to cut himself with the knife and hitting his head against the shelf above the sink. "ow" he said with a low voice whilst analysing the situation. Once he had brought out the med-kit, the BB-unit arrived, soon followed by Rebecca. Quickly starting to apply a bandaid over his wound, Quain followed the droid, just as the instructed. "What's happening?" he asked with a surprisingly cool voice as his training from the navy started to become more clearly present. Looking at her, he seemed to see a sense of concern, similar to what he saw earlier when he tried to break free. Nevertheless, he soon arrived at a small side room. Room was a generous description as it was only a space where one could stand whilst fixing the engines.

The door shut behind him. Looking around, Quain found a toolkit. Kneeling down, he looked through it, finding both a hammer and a screwdriver. He decided to stay down so that he would be able to reach the tools quickly if needed and tried to remain as silent as possible. Not only because he wanted to comply with what she said, but also because he wanted to hear what was going on outside.

Sam Sheridan

 

[Sam Sheridan]

At least Quain listened and obeyed, hiding away with Beebee. Sam kept her comlink on, in case she needed help on the fly. It also allowed Beebee -and Quain- to listen in on what was going on. After a few moments the door started to smoke and finally explode open. She looked away as the explosion erupted, but was quick to recover and shoot the first intruder point blank as he breached. She followed up by shooting down the docking tube at the few pirates bunched up in it. "Kark off my ship!" she shouted as she fired, then moved into the docking tube.

The pirates fell back into their ship, though they still kept shooting. The pirates shouted back, but all that could be heard was a very loud "Kark you, you greedy pig!" over the comlink.

She lost her momentum and had to fall back to her ship's doorway. In the chaos, a few concussion grenades were thrown into her ship, knocking her completely off her feet. She tried to get back up, but the ringing in her ears and stars in her eyes made it impossible. The next moment, a barrel was in her face with a massive Trandoshan standing over her. "Well well, what a surprise!" another pirate said as he entered. He was a Nautolan with a few missing lekku and a mechanical left arm. "What's a Hutt enforcer doing on out here?" he asked, though Sam didn't hear a word.

"Bring her. Take any cargo that's worth something as well. She'll be worth something to us." he ordered. The Trandoshan nodded and gave Sam a hard punch, knocking her out cold. They took any valuables in her cargo hold and left the ship behind, disappearing into hyperspace.

Back in the room, Beebee looked up at Quain. //It appears we have been boarded. They have taken Sam captive. This unit suggests we stay hidden until we are certain it is safe to exit.// it beeped softly.

Quain Pluvinage

 

[Quain Pluvinage]

They were getting boarded and everything pointed towards their opposition being the superior force, by far. Quain had seen Rebecca fight and knew that she was extremely competent, but with limited space and probably outgunned, there was really not much she could do. And the idea of him accomplishing anything with a hammer was preposterous. "She's got quite a bit of fight in her, doesn't she?" he mumbled with a low voice as he and the droid heard her swear whilst fighting the pirates.

The outcome was inevitable as they eventually bested her. It was surprising, hearing them refer to her as a Hutt enforcer - so far, the girl had come across as someone far more independent than to join up with them. Still, she was a criminal and for a few people to associate her with the Hutts was probably to be expected. Soon after, several people could be heard looting the ship and were close to coming to Quain and the BB-unit several times, probably refraining from doing so since the kind of engine compartment rooms he was in never really contained anything of value.

Finally, the pirates were gone - or at least their ship was. Looking down at the droid, Quain shook his head. "No, if anyone is still on board, we need to act before they reach their destination. Go out and have a look around. They won't suspect another person if they find a droid. If there's still anyone here, whistle loudly and I'll be prepared" he said, grabbing the hammer in one hand whilst hiding the screwdriver under his coat. The droid went out and after a few long minutes, it returned, cheerfully beeping that the pirates were gone before turning into a sorrowful tone as it informed him of the fact that Rebecca was gone. With a sigh, Quain acknowledged it and walked towards the cockpit. He was not too fond of the girl - she had tried to kidnap him, after all. At the same time, she had strangely started to grow on him and he was really quite opposed to slavery or whatever the pirates had in mind. Looking to the droid, he asked "What do I do now?"

Sam Sheridan

/End thread