Now This Is Podracing!

[Qae Shena]

"Rest... yeah, sure," Allaina said slowly, her brain still struggling to function. Outside there was some kind of din, probably lesser now that Omega had security outside the doors. She could see the black jumpsuits.

"Don't worry about me, Siobhan. Just make them take me up to the ship later. You do your thing." She felt the sudden urge to lay her head down and take a rest, knowing that Siobhan would have told her off if she didn't.

And yes, she knew what 'victory party' meant, but she was too tired to say anything about it. She wouldn't mind a decent victory party, right after...

Sleep claimed her this time.

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

So Malastare fell to Omega. Omega' shareholders rejoiced as their shares skyrocketed, Massive Dynamic leaders screamed bloody murder and presumably plotted revenge and the Gran acclimated themselves to a new order.

Presumably their submission to Omega involved certain drawn-out negotiations, but OP assuming direct control over the planet was pretty much a fait accompli with the pod race won and Massive Dynamic in retreat. One could assume that the Hutts, opportunistic as ever, comprehended their place in things.

Amidst all these important events, Allaina was later carried into a shuttle and transported up to her beloved Invicta, where she was later brought into her cabin. Incidentally a few albums of classy resorts on Naboo found their way to her cabin as well. Siobhan was so thoughtful, when one considered they were not a couple. She was also so thoughtful to order breakfast. Winning the pod race had been quite an exertion for poor Allaina, she would need her calories. As was well-known, whipped cream and maple syrup possessed a high nutritional value.

A message had been sent to @[member="Tegaea Alcori"], informing her that their victorious champion had awakened and was now on the ship. Doubtless the CEO would want to debrief Allaina in person. Moreover, she had been injured during the battle, it was important to keep her strength up as well and she could use a substantial meal after all the exertions.

For someone who was so often characterised as a battering ram with a supposedly one-track mind, Siobhan could be quite 'thoughtful' sometimes.

 

[Qae Shena]

Allaina awoke with a start. This time, the feeling on her back was softer. It wasn't steel. She was... warm, comfortable. In bed. The delicious smell of breakfast enticed her senses and knew that something good was there. Pancakes. Syrup. Siobhan. The usual glad smile adorned her face and she could not have been more glad to be in her own bed, on the Invicta.

She looked around at her bed, at the objects arrayed before her. The delicious pancakes specially prepared. The brochures full of the homes on Naboo she wanted to buy, that she could buy, with her winnings. She already knew what ship she was going to buy, anyway. Tucked into bed, obviously by Siobhan's hands. She had been there for her. She was always there for her, the guardian angel, watching out when she couldn't look after herself, reassuring her nerves. She was the one who would cross Chaos itself to save her, if the need arose.

Impulse took over and, taking hold of Siobhan's top, she pulled the Colonel in for a fierce, powerful kiss.

I wish I could keep you.

But she couldn't. She couldn't and it broke her heart. Siobhan was taken and claimed - not hers.

Slowly, Allaina let go of Siobhan's collar and laid back in her bed, eyes closing, letting the enticing scents filling her nose keep her awake long enough. She looked into Siobhan's eyes, cheeks flushed red from a mix of shame and adoration, unsure which of them she should have been feeling. Both were valid.

Both hurt.

"Thank you," she managed, holding back every last tear she possibly could while she looked into the face of someone who adored her for who she was but was eternally just outside her grasp. It was all she could manage without breaking.

 

[Valiens Nantaris]

Tegaea's cut had recovered sufficiently for her to meet up with @[member="Allaina Mare"] and @[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"] on board the orbiting ship. As she entered, still limping, she smelt the pancakes.
"I hope you've saved enough for me, girls," she said happily. She stopped. "Am I...interrupting something?" she asked. It seemed that both women were r ather emotional.

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

@[member="Allaina Mare"], @[member="Tegaea Alcori"]

Siobhan had her positive qualities, but she also was...not exactly the sharpest lightsabre in the Omega Tower. Beautiful Allaina pulled her at the top into a fiery kiss and Siobhan let her, eager for the clash of lips.

Allaina had been amazing at the race - and outside of it as well. Siobhan had not thought twice about pampering her a bit. She was strong, no one without guts - and a certain degree of craziness, but then she liked her girls a tad on the crazy side - would jump into a pod and she was a demon in space - but something about her made Siobhan want to take care of her. Moreover, she was an amazing lover. They would have such fun when Tegs joined them as well.

Their lips met and Siobhan gave as good as she got, after all the exertions she was hungry, as if she wanted to devour Allaina's lips and tongue. But then...Allaina pulled away. She saw her cheeks redden and noticed the hint of tears Allaina was holding back.

Siobhan could pick up on a swirl of conflicting emotions coming from her friend...but she was neither an empath nor a telepath, so she could not tell what her friend was feeling.

Siobhan frowned a bit, puzzled. "There's nothing to thank. Just giving my favourite pilot her well earned rewards!" she raised a callused, slightly scarred hand and patted Allaina's. "You ok?" she asked softly.

It was at this moment that Tegs arrived. For a moment Allaina was forgotten. Well, not forgotten, but Siobhan's focus shifted back to the muscular, glorious readhead that had just limped in.

"Oh, there's lots for everyone to go around," Siobhan quipped. Interrupting? The ex-Jedi flushed bit, Suddenly things felt awkward. Her gaze turned to Allaina but then she noticed the limp and immediately got to her feet and crossed the distance to Tegs, propping the taller woma up n and leading her towards the pilot so that she might sit down.

"No...you're just in time. You know you shouldn't exert yourself, that's not just a 'scratch'. You could've commed that you were coming," clearly Siobhan had the nagging part of being a 'good' girlfriend down pat, though the expression on her face was adoring upon seeing Tegs and she gave her a kiss.

"I, uh, figured we could use some time to relax and celebrate a bit."

In all her 'thoughtfulness', despite the best of intentions, Siobhan seemed to have forgotten a few important factors.

 

[Qae Shena]

@[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"] @[member="Tegaea Alcori"]

"I guess." There was the tiniest waver in her voice, something entirely foreign to the Allaina Siobhan would have known. This was the Allaina who handled a crash forced by being shot by Clockwork minions and allies alike, who ran from hunter-killer battle droids with a flechette launcher in her hands, who strapped herself into a pod with only thoughts of victory. Who dominated the stars, took them in her hands and beheld them as jewels before crushing them into dust like the titan of space she knew she was. She was her own master, beholden to none save her commanders - and even then she was that commander. She fought enemies across the stars like a crusading knight fighting for his princess' honour.

When that princess was not his to take, what did the knight do? Was Allaina's heart the only weakness she had?

All of a sudden, despite how delicious those pancakes smelled, she found she had no appetite. Allaina couldn't bring herself to touch her food. Tegaea was the lucky one. Jealousy. No anger, no bitterness, but certainly a touch of jealousy. She'd get over it. She always did. Her lifestyle mandated that things like this were bound to happen, in all fairness. She was a bit flaky at the best of times herself anyway, wasn't she?

Since when did logic have a place in matters of the heart?

Two voices warred. The one that wanted to keep her as a friend and the one that wanted to scream denial to the Gods and claim Siobahn, treasure her, keep her close to her heart. But they were both free spirits.

It would never work out anyway.

Allaina picked up the nearest brochure, not quite addressing either of them, burying her face in the beautiful homes that lay before her. She hid herself behind the pages, trying not to show either of them that she was vulnerable beyond her physical condition. The sun shined, water glistening. Her one true dream always just so far out of reach when she could never commit to one person anyway. How was it that she wanted a family, but she had no true home? Her home was where she was that day. That bed, that tiny officer's cabin. Surrounded by allies and like-minded warriors. She didn't have a place to call home. She needed a home. If she was going to build a life for herself, ever, she needed a place she could call her own. So that special someone could join her. So that the fairytale ending could finally come to be.

Page by page she flicked through, wondering. Wondering if she could even do it. She wanted a life. She loved her job. But that was all she was - a pilot, a military officer. She wasn't a mother, a lover, a family woman. Her mindset dictated that was impossible. Why was it now that when her heart ached most that she was faced with the brutal realisation that everything she wanted was a dream so bittersweet?

The pancakes, like Tegaea and Siobhan's presence, lay forgotten.

 

[Valiens Nantaris]

Welcome to Awkward City, Population: 3. She looked between them. There was something going on. The way Allaina looked away and studied some brochures, the way Siobhan was unusually bright and happy. It all spoke of something that had gone on here. But what?
She knew they had been sleeping together, and Tegaea didn't mind that. But if there was some sort of feelings then...that was different.

Still, she smiled. "So, how are you feeling, @[member="Allaina Mare"]?"

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

@[member="Tegaea Alcori"], @[member="Allaina Mare"]

Things were awkward. It said a lot about Siobhan's obliviousness that she did not see the reason immediately, but slowly understanding crept upon her. Allaina seemed to have shut them out, lost in her brochures. Siobhan tried to make sense of the swirl of emotions coming off her, but her strength in the Force did not lend itself to empathy. She could tell that Allaina was hurt, but not why.

She looked from Allaina to Tegs, noticing the smile on her lover's lips, which seemed forced to her. Siobhan was not the most observant person, but she liked to think that she could read her lover pretty well and Allaina seemed to have buried her face in the brochures since Tegaea got in.

She could not be...jealous? Was there something Siobhan had missed? And did Tegs think she and Allaina were doing more than just sleeping together?

That Siobhan slept around was no secret, considering how she blatantly hit on virtually any pretty female she came across. She and Tegs were not the 'let's be together forever, say our vows and be our true loves till death does us part' couple. Tegs had already been getting it on with Anya before Siobhan entered the picture.

Suddenly Siobhan felt immensely stupid. She had just wanted a fun celebration with her lover and best friend - the woman whom she probably cared the most for after Tegs....but not more than that.

"Have you, uh, found a house you're interested in, Allaina?" she asked lamely.

 

[Qae Shena]

Voices. Voices, voices, voices. Calling her. Saying her name. Trying to draw her attention. Trying to make her think about the painful facts of reality and draw her away from the safe little bubble she'd wrapped around herself like a blanket so desperately sought in the cold. Her shield was the images of buildings on a planet distant, a place that she could call sanctuary. Walls. Shielding from the facts of reality she just did not want to face right now and she knew it.

Could this possibly get any more awkward? So any more strange? Had she made a mistake?

Questions. So many questions. Not a single answer.

Her head hurt and Allaina couldn't sit up any more. Partly from the fact she wasn't well already but also the fact that she was only now just starting to brush away the dregs of consciousness with the jagged rock wall of harsh reality. Lowering herself back down to the bed, the magazine followed, all but blocking her sight of the two women in her quarters. Hiding her face, her shame. In fairness, they were checking on her. Caring. Making sure she was okay and that she could not possibly resent them for.

But it hurt. It hurt, damnit. It hurt to see someone you care about be so far out of your reach. Love? Hell no. She didn't love. It was something she could never afford to do for this very reason. She wasn't ready to have her heart broken.

Would she ever be?

"I, uh, yeah," she managed, barely stammering her answer out. "Two stories, a pool."

No, she wasn't okay, Tegaea, but she'd never admit that. She didn't have many more words - but she couldn't bring herself to tell them to leave, either, because then they'd know something was wrong. Her subconscious was screaming the fact that they already knew because they weren't utterly karking stupid, but that voice was being very pointedly ignored by this point. Could this possibly get any worse?

 

[Valiens Nantaris]

Tegaea still didn't understand what was wrong, what she had missed. Something had caused this awkwardness though, and she had a feeling that it was her presence. She was not the jealous sort, or even the suspicious type, but she would want an explanation from Siobhan quite soon about this. Not here though, not in public.
"Congratulations on your victory, Allaina. I'll see you both back aboard the Invictus." With that she turned and left, not in a huff, but with dignity. Though it hurt like the devil she did not limp, she forced her pace to be regular, even, and headed back for her docked transport.

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

@[member="Allaina Mare"], @[member="Tegaea Alcori"]

This one notes that they were already on the Invicta.

"Tegs, wait," Siobhan started, but Tegaea was already out, walking straight and dignified despite the pain it must be causing her. For a moment Siobhan felt torn between going after and staying with Allaina. The admiral's behaviour had deeply confused her, she also felt a stab of annoyance.

But she wanted an explanation. With a deep sigh she got up and walked Allaina, without further ado taking the magazine out of her hands. Not tactful, but gentle prodding had not worked. "Ok. What's wrong?"

 

[Qae Shena]

Now this was just getting strange. Suddenly, Tegaea was gone, irritation evident in her tone, and her catalogue of cottages plucked away from her. The sudden change in the situation caught her off guard, considering the fact she'd been trying to pointedly ignore the whole thing. She'd caused a problem, that much was clear. Tegaea wasn't happy. Siobhan wasn't happy. And for what? Because she couldn't control herself? This was, without any shadow of a doubt, her fault and she knew it. Certainly did not leave a pleasant taste in the mouth.

Now, Allaina was forced to confront the problem. Siobhan's style was written all over this. Well... while she was extremely annoyed that her bubble had just been broken, Allaina just couldn't quite look at her yet. No. It was too hard to.

"What's wrong is stupid feelings," she said, head down even as she laid back in her bed, cheeks burning so fiercely now that she all but had to blink back the tears out of sheer heat. "Now I'm just causing trouble because of the fact I care probably a bit too much for my own stupid good."

Slowly, she forced herself to look up at Siobhan's face, only barely managing to keep herself completely controlled. "It's okay. Go be with Tegs. I'll be fine. I'll just eat and go back to sleep."

Eventually.

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

@[member="Allaina Mare"], @[member="Tegaea Alcori"]

Well, it was time for Siobhan to finally get a clue and stop being so oblivious. Realisation came to Siobhan in stages, in retrospect she should have perhaps gotten a clue from how Allaina reacted as soon as she awoke.

"What...feelings...for me?" the question was a rhetorical one, as surprised as Siobhan was. She felt like reaching out to Allaina when she laid down on the bed and saw her fighting back tears.

"Allaina, I'm sorry...I had no idea. I thought it was..." she rambled, sighing. This was the terribly awkward 'I like you, but I just want to be friends with benefits' moment known from cheesy holo-movies. Well, normally the line did not feature the 'benefits' part, but the analogy still applied.

"I'm flattered, but I love Tegs. You're a great woman and a good friend, my big partner in explosions...I care for you, but not like that." There was no other way around it, much as these words would hurt.

 

[Qae Shena]

"Yeah, I know. It's not like I expected it either," she admitted, finally having to actually wipe a tear away. Karking hell she hated feelings. They sucked. "I just... don't worry about it. It'll be fine."

It would. Eventually. Really.

"This doesn't change anything except me being stupid," she said, lamely, all but feeling the fact that she had just been dropped face-first from the cliff of shame. It wasn't the best feeling to have your emotions... well, they weren't exactly trampled when even she wasn't sure she liked where they were going. She was a big girl and she'd get the hell over it. Right? Right. Sure.

"Go be with Tegs," Allaina said, a little stronger this time. "She needs you way more than I do."

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

@[member="Allaina Mare"], @[member="Tegaea Alcori"]

"Allaina, you're many things but stupid ain't one of them," Siobhan said softly. "I don't want things to change, but I can't give what you want." She briefly reached out to give Allaina a hug, but then just ended up squeezing her shoulder.

Yes, Tegaea. With that Siobhan turned and started to walk away, turning briefly. "We're still great friends, Allaina. Nothing changes that," then the doors closed behind her as she made her way towards the shuttle.

 

[Valiens Nantaris]

Tegaea had stopped before boarding her ship. The pain from stretching her stitches had been truly horrible. Pain is just weakness leaving the body she told herself, took a deep breath and was about to head aboard...then she saw Siobhan.
She smiled, a little wanly. "Just answer me one question dear; is there anything between you? Answer truthfully, I trust you enough to not question your answer."

There was a small slip of the smile, a wavering of her tone for a second. Losing Siobhan...it would genuinely hurt her.

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

"No, there isn't," Siobhan said softly, seeing the evident pain Tegs had to be in. She quickly joined her at the landing ramp, putting her hand on her shoulder, trying to help steady her. "I love you...just you. Yeah, we've been sleeping together, you know that, and I care for her, but as nothing more than a friend. I just heard now that she wanted more, but that's not happening and she knows."

 

[Valiens Nantaris]

The relief was visible on her face, just for a moment, raw emotion which was so often hidden. Then Tegaea pulled Siobhan into a tight hug and kissed her.
"Of course, I never doubted you for a moment," she said with a grin. "Besides, I bet she can't match me when it comes in areas of command and control, right?"

 

[Sarge Potteiger]

Somewhere Sarge started cursing. Violently. In more languages than anyone had a right to know.

They were as imaginative as they were bigoted.

No surprise there.

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

Siobhan returned the hug, holding Tegaea tight, though mindful of her injuries, and kissed her deeply. She thought she heard someone curse, though that might just be her imagination, though she did not care either way.

"No one can match Madam Whiplash when it comes to command and control," she responded, a small smile forming on her face. "You're the only one for me. It's been you since I joined Omega." Oh, Gods, she was getting bloody sappy, but the words were heartfelt.