Objects in space...

[Atham'aali'kema]

"Oh yes, that deal. Well, in that case, I think I can overlook dislike for my favorite beverage." A smile formed in response to an almost silent chuckle. In her assumption about him teasing her, she hit the nail on the head. What he didn't tell her was that it wasn't his favorite drink. It was simply the only beverage that they drank, in excess, on Selvaris. The old adage of a prisoner returning to the food they were served in prison hit particularly close to home in this instance.

"Room is down the hall a good bit..." He turned to the bartender, pointing in the direction he assumed was accurate.

"Go out the door, take a left. Walk down the hall and you'll pass three different halls. The forth one, take another left and signs should lead you to the domiciles. Though it's after curfew so keep it down."

Maalik wasn't exactly sure what that meant, given that they weren't exactly being a raucous sort at the bar, but he thanked the bartender for the information nonetheless. Once he was done running the charge, Maalik stood from the stool and let out a sigh. "Down the hall, three halls, on the forth we take a left."

He looked towards the door. "Room 419. I think." He nodded. "Yeah, 419." Stopping before he took one step, he looked back towards Harla. "Falling asleep in the sonic shower would be impressive. I'd like to see that." He stated, impressed by the act of falling asleep so quickly and while standing up to boot. He didn't realize the other implications as he waited for her.

[member="Taheera Sollo"]​

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Atham'aali'kema"]

Eyes widened slightly at the chastisement from the bartender. Lips pursed to keep from laughing. The healer quickly turned and slipped down from the stool, releasing Maalik's hand.

Pools of moss-green continued to widen as the chiss hybrid casually dropped his comment. Warmth flooded her cheeks immediately. Like a fish out of Manaan, her lips parted and then closed again. Throat cleared and she took off, walking at a pace that might match a fleeing tauntaun.

"Yeah. Very impressive," voice was an octave higher then normal before she got it under control. Somehow, she knew he didn't mean anything by it. Or did he??

Relief washed across her features as she saw the sign for the communal refreshers and sonics. But what if he was taking one too? She finally stopped. "Okay well....here I am so...meetyouattheroom?"

 

[Atham'aali'kema]

Eyes drifted up towards the signing, pale white light with blue lettering in a dull hologram display. Looking towards the door and then back to Harla, he blinked slowly.

As far as he could recall, communal and refresher would have seemed redundant in Yuuzhan Vong culture. The two tended to go hand in hand.

"Sure. I will meet you at the room." There was no perceived danger in this place, no need for him to linger. Giving a warm expression, he moved past the refresher area and towards the room. As the door swished open, he stepped in and looked around. Modestly decorated, a single bed rested against the wall. It wasn't yet made, with an abundance of linens at the end.

Two pillows. More than enough sheets and blankets. He realized that they assumed overbedding and provided enough to make an ad hoc bed if needed. Proceeding inward, he started to pull the sheets and blankets out, slowly making the bed.

[member="Taheera Sollo"]​

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Atham'aali'kema"]

Once inside, she exhaled slowly. Whew. Dodged that bolt of awkwardness. A part of her was still getting used to this body. And she felt...vulnerable. The other part of her very much wanted to be with Maalik in that way. Maybe after they spent a little more time together.

Stepping into a stall, she quickly washed and plucked a clean towel from the shelf. Rummaging around, she found a spare Alliance standard black tank and pair of grey shorts. The size mostly fit. Shorts were a bit long but she rolled up the hem to make them a bit more comfortable.

Scooping up her things, bare feet padded down the hall to the room, damp strands of chestnut hair clinging to her skin and semi-bare shoulders. A fresh, dry bacta patch was clutched in her hand. She'd have to change the dressing. Door swished open, arms full and wrapped around her belongings.

She eyed the single bed for a moment. Definitely not bunks. "At least we know my smell won't be the problem now," she joked to push back some of her own butterflies

 

[Atham'aali'kema]

"Oh..." He stated abruptly, flinging the blanket on to the bed and straightening out the sheet. "I didn't think your smell was a problem before." He admitted as he fluffed up the pillow at the head of the bed. With a satisfied expression, he looked towards the floor and the pile of linens that were left over.

Kneeling down, he had laid the thick blanket out like a quilt, folded over for thickness. Setting the pillow down at the head, with a sheet overlaid, he felt accomplished in the bed that was fashioned across the floor. He sat down as he started to remove his shoes.

"How was the refresher? Was it...uhh..." He scratched a few of the scars running across his cheek, looking for a word. "...refreshing?" He didn't feel the need to shower, though it was quite common for him to go weeks without having a proper bathing. Such was the nature of his former work and even the time that preceded it.

His eyes drifted over her clothing, more bare than what he was expecting. Though the sentient figure wasn't something to cause him to blush, he was still suddenly finding a loss of words. Blinking, he looked towards the bacta patch. "Do you need help with that?"

[member="Taheera Sollo"]​

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Atham'aali'kema"]

The Mirialan dumped her belongings in a corner, draping her clothes for tomorrow over the end of the bed. "Yes," she laughed. "Refreshing. Sometimes it makes me feel like a new person, to get the grime of battle off and the dried blood down the drain." It helped her to move on and bury the past and any past failings.

She turned back towards him, gripping the clean bacta patch in one hand. "Let me just...," green fingers drifted to the hem of her shirt and slowly lifted it, peering down at her side. The old patch was damp and peeled off with ease but she couldn't quite get the corner that was further around her back. Frustration flickered across her brow along with a mixture of chagrin.

A puff of hot air left a set of pursed lips.

"It appears I do," with her shirt lifted partway, she turned to Maalik. She could already see the purple, black, and yellow bruises that marred her green skin in a radius around the jab. She had other such bruises across her torso from the previous battle and crash on Varonoat. Most of those would be gone by morning, once she got a solid night's sleep.

He'd also see a serpent-dragon-like tattoo in blues, whites with red highlights curving along the edge of the wound and further up her back.

Compliments of entering a pirate queen's body.

There were also a few others.

 

[Atham'aali'kema]

He watched quietly as she struggled, knowing all too well the irritations of not being able to reach the back. Of course, his recollection was marred with far more severe memories - the sort that involved painful removal and shifting of flesh, the itch and pain that came with the healing. Laid out, flesh replaced with scarred armor.

It wasn't a memory that was painful so much as something that simply was. So he held a neutral expression until she let out a huff of frustration. Smiling, he moved to sit down next to her standing figure as he pulled the fresh bacta patch from her hand. Setting it down on the bed, he placed both hands on her side and slowly peeled away the wet bacta patch. Folding it over, meticulously, he placed it down by his feet and looked over the wound.

"The healing seems to be going well, especially given how recently you received this wound." Pulling the plastic from the bacta patch, he sighted in the target before rolling the patch over the wound. "Bruising does not appear to be spreading, which is fortunate." Running his hand over the patch, to flatten it, his eyes lingered before transitioning to the tattoo. His fingers moved on their own accord, feeling the transition of matte green flesh to blue and red and white gloss. And back again.

"This is an interesting marking...does it mean anything?"

[member="Taheera Sollo"]​

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Atham'aali'kema"]

"Your touch is surprisingly gentle," she mused quietly as he worked, keenly aware of how his touch warmed her, wherever his fingers went. "And that," lips pursed slightly. "Is embarrassing and an inheritance of this body. The pirate queen seemed to love ink and thought herself as serpent-like and fierce as that creature that I am forever stuck with."

Then again, there was a chance she'd essence transfer again. But stars, she hoped not.

Fingers dropped the hem of her shirt as she half-turned in front of Maalik and dropped the hem of her pants slightly below her hip-bone on one side. "She also liked skulls," the healer showed off a small black one that sat low on her hip laced with two blaster rifles. "And some star map," a small smile played along her purple lips as she lifted up the other side of her shirt, slightly. The map went a bit up one side of her abs.

"I always wondered if there was treasure at the end of it but never tried to figure out where it went, yet." A shrug went through her green shoulders.

Eyes flickered to the makeshift bed on the floor.

"You don't have to sleep on the floor. I mean...if you don't want to. I could take the spot or, I um, don't mind sharing. I mean, when I work in the field, we usually have to double up on mattresses or sleep like sardines in bedrolls."

 

[Atham'aali'kema]

"Some things require a more delicate touch." From the view of tools, a hammer could hardly do the task of a scalpel - and neither could perform the tasks of a brush. He wondered if he had such versatility, to be more than the singular thing that he was created to be.

His eyes moved as her hands guided him, the flicker of her own gaze aimed towards both herself and his reaction. In his own curiosity, he moved to touch each tattoo. "These don't seem like you but they are far from unappealing."

The notions of lines on her body interested him far more than concern for some line he might cross, between what was appropriate and what wasn't. He wondered, silently, if the clarity of the images and the nearly embossed expression on her flesh was a result of aging ink. If some markings stood out clearer with recency, he wasn't sure.

His own marking felt constantly raised, always dark and vibrant. But absent the detail that hers had.

"There are many things that I do...that are not required." He clenched his jaw as he titled his head, ever so slightly. He wondered where the star map might take her if she followed the instructions. "The floor or the ground was the only place we slept. It has been..." He pulled his hands from her skin and retracted into himself. Looking towards the ad hoc bed, he ran fingers through his black hair. "...A difficult habit to break."

[member="Taheera Sollo"]​

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Atham'aali'kema"]

She found her top teeth coming down lightly over her bottom lip as his fingers brushed against her marked, green skin. There was that same spark and rush of warmth. And suddenly, she found herself become a touch more embarrassed. Aware of the intimacy of his touch.

Maalik's sudden withdrawal helped her to focus her attention back on him and away from her own feelings and the way she still felt as though his fingers were dancing across her skin. Edge of her shorts were quickly settled back up her hip and hem of her shirt was subtly pulled down. With a slight turn and a step to the side she sunk down next to his rigid form, perched on the edge of the bed.

"Well, I thought it was a kind act, even if you did it out of habit. I don't mind if you'd rather not break that habit. Sometimes there's a comfort in keeping old ways. For a time." Her shoulder bumped into his in a little nudge of encouragement. "What else do you do that's not required? Floss your teeth three times in a row?" She smiled across from him. She tried to make serious situations lighter. It's what she did. The technique was probably picked up from her time in the field.

 

[Atham'aali'kema]

"Oh, things that I do that are not required?" He paused, scratching a scar over his cheek. "Oh!" He lifted up his fingers. "I trim my nails. I keep them quite short. Which, goes strictly against my original shaping." He held out his nails which were finely cut and filed. "When I was originally shaped, they hardened the nails and they will grow to a specific length. Exactly 2 cms and to a point. But..." He turned his hand over and looked over the nails.

"I prefer them this way. Found it was difficult to clean engines or guns with it otherwise." He cupped his hands together in his lap. "I cut my hair at the same length, every single time. Just shy of shoulder length. I force myself to sleep, even though I was built to function without it. Because I like the idea of dreaming." He looked towards her, smiling at the realization of the deflection. But he didn't mind so much, it was better not to dwell on the gloomy memories of his past. No matter how important they were, particularly in how he did his best to live in defiance of it.

Except when it came to matters of sleeping on beds.

"I can try sleeping on the bed. But..." He held up a finger, with a particularly well trimmed nail. "Under one condition. You tell me about your past. Nothing sad. A happy memory, something you think fondly on."

[member="Taheera Sollo"]​

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Atham'aali'kema"]

She leaned into him slightly, as if she needed to study the nails he held up. "Hm, yes I see." Though internally, she cringed. Even down to the nails they'd forced him to become a...weapon. It made her want to reach out and grip him in a sudden fierce hug, as if that moment of touch could take away all of his past pain. Instead, she listened quietly, soaking in the details he shared like they were own bits of treasure. A window into more of who he was.

"So you never get tired, ever?" Curiosity reflected in her moss-green orbs.

"Oh and so now you're giving me ultimatums, huh?" The corners of her lips turned upwards. "A happy memory," she frowned. She imagined like Maalik, there weren't many. She'd just known uncertainty and war for so long. Pain and loss. Everything about her short time alive had been the farthest from anything normal.

Slowly though, her frown turned into something lighter. She found her side leaning slightly into Maalik, fatigue making it easier to lean on him than keep herself upright. Fingers came up and tucked damp strands of chestnut-hair behind her ears. "Well, I can think of two. When I first...awoke, I was in an adult body. I had memories and knew things but I couldn't even pick up a spoon and feed myself soup. I didn't have the motor skills yet," she laughed quietly. "A man named Ordo took the time to feed me soup and taught me how to hold a spoon. And the second time was when I met Gabe. He welcomed me so quickly into his home - a complete stranger."

Her grin widened for a moment.

"And he fed me the best sandwich I've ever..." a hand went up to her mouth to ward off a yawn before dropping, "had." Eyelids were beginning to droop.

 

[Atham'aali'kema]

His arm instinctively moved back, bracing against the bed behind her, as she leaned against him. She told stories of her past and he smiled, an expression that felt more and more natural as it was no longer practiced. A mask removed to show genuine expression. "I find it funny that your happiest memories revolve around food." He narrowed his eyes as he turned to her, his expression once looking towards the wall as he listened to her words and breath. "Finding something funny...that is an odd way to describe something humorous. Though humorous is not the right word. Endearing. I believe that fits better."

His hand moved from the bed to the arch of her back as she yawned. "I will get ready for bed. I think I remember where the refresher is."

Standing up, he moved towards the door and exited.

~~~​

​

Few moments passed between when the door closed and when it re-opened. Entering back in with hair damp and a towel slung around his neck, partially covering an otherwise bare chest, he set his meticulously folded clothes back at the foot of the bed. Kneeling down by the bed black alliance shorts, he pulled the pillow and blanket from the pad and placed it on the bed. "If you prefer, I can just curl up in this blanket...on top of the sheets."

It wasn't that he needed to be shirtless. But in its own way, the armored skin felt like a shirt by itself. Something foreign and adhered to his body. His thoughts unintentionally focused on his own comfort, paying little mind to what might make Harla uncomfortable.

[member="Taheera Sollo"]​

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Atham'aali'kema"]

"It's a little funny," she smiled sleepily. The whole food thing. Gabe always teased her about the amount of food he had to keep on hand since she stepped foot on the homestead. Probably wondered where it all went on her.

Head nearly drooped onto his shoulder but at the slight touch on her back, she straightened just enough so she wouldn't fall onto the bed like a lump. She found herself missing his warmth at her side. Fingers drifted upwards to push damp strands of chestnut hair away from her eyes as she turned to wearily crawl into the single bed.

Slender legs extended as she sunk onto her side, back to the wall, trying to make as much room for Maalik as possible. Head was already pillow bound. Sheets pulled up to the hourglass shape at her hips.

Eyes stirred open at his voice. She'd already been dozing and may have mumbled something about pastries. Myrtle ellipses traveled across the length of his chest before returning to his face. Her heart quickened just a little. "If you do that, then I'll probably just steal the blanket in the middle of the night. Might as well just share both sheet and blanket."

Being so tired, she couldn't get as embarrassed as she normally would. And besides, ship travel always made her cold.

"And don't forget the light," another yawn.

 

[Atham'aali'kema]

He looked down at the blanket in hand. Shrugging, he placed it back down on the floor and set his pillow next to Harla's. Walking over to the lightswitch, his hand hovered over as the the lights dimmed. It seemed they were on a timer, allowing him to make it to the bed without having to wonder around in the dark. Not that it mattered, as his eyes were shaped to see beyond the visual spectrum.

Pulling the blanket and sheet out from his side of the bed, he crawled in and immediately noticed the temperature change. Letting out a long breath, he turned, hands brushing her as they rested at his side. Molten orbs looked up towards the lights as they grew progressively darker.

"You really do like food, don't you?" He blinked as the lights shut off. But even with the lights turning off, his eyes burned bright. His attention was on the details of the ceiling and the way it was a smooth like a grashal floor. Though not nearly as reflective.

I wonder what sort of pastries she likes. I bet it's the donut types or maybe mufkins. Or maybe crisp-munchies.

His hand shifted as he scratched his chest, not realizing that he knew that many different types of pastries.

[member="Taheera Sollo"]​

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Atham'aali'kema"]

Eyes widened slightly in the dark as she felt his fingers brush across her skin for the briefest of moments. Her knee brushed against his leg as she adjusted slightly. His scars felt like warm sandpaper. She caught twin flashes of oranges and yellows in the dark, like two setting suns.

"I do," she smiled briefly in the dark.

Eyelids began to droop again and her breath became shallower as she drifted closer to unconsciousness. Fighting against it for a moment, eyes cracked open in the darkness, searching a moment until they found those suns. "I meant to ask you earlier. That thing you did with your eyes and the detective. You can choose your eyes to be any color, like, are you choosing your eye color right now?"

 

[Atham'aali'kema]

He paid the brush of skin little mind. And if he did pay it any mind, he didn't do anything to indicate such. He might have shifted a bit, perhaps enough to show that there wasn't any concern over discomfort. Maybe he was just fidgeting to get comfortable.

His right hand moved up to rest between his head and the pillow, a usual and comfortable position for laying. Molten orbs moved from the ceiling to the green body lying next to him. The vibrant orange seemed to dim as he shifted his gaze back to the ceiling. "They are meant to reflect my mood. But the shaping never set properly. It was either that or I was more in control of my emotions, though the shapers simply proclaimed rejection."

"I can control the color as I fit. I can see beyond normal sight, even to a microscopic level." He smirked. "I can see you smile, even when it's dark."

[member="Taheera Sollo"]​

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Atham'aali'kema"]

THAT MEANT HE COULD SEE HER BLUSH TOO!

For a moment, she remained quiet. Microscopic level? Hopefully he wouldn't be too focused on her flaws because like any normal being, she certainly had them - even in a body she'd stolen. The smile remained, though, even if it faltered for a second before settling into something a little more relaxed.

"Seems like cheating to me," she muttered.

She felt herself drifting further away but as she began to dance along the edge of the void, her body naturally drew toward the closest source of warmth. Maalik. Green arm would flop out against his chest. Body turned more into him than staying on her side, head resting along his shoulder, close to the crook of his neck. Drying strands of chestnut hair would tickle along his skin as she shifted in her less-than-aware state.

Lips murmured against him as she mumbled a question she wouldn't be awake to hear the answer to. "What...madeyoudecideonorange?"

 

[Atham'aali'kema]

"I don't have to see you if you don't want..."

Maybe he hadn't quite gotten the hang of teasing.

Her flopping on him surprised him, though it seemed an inevitable fate for such a small circumstance. His left arm went to the only place it could, wrapping around her waist as she nuzzled against him. His hand found a comfortable area, just beneath where he knew the bacta patch to exist. He could feel the rhythm of her slowing breath.

Why did I choose orange?

"Selvaris...lava is orange." He couldn't help but press his cheek bone against her scalp, the smell of her hair was oddly soothing. He slowly began to close his eyes. "Why...do you prefer something else?"

[member="Taheera Sollo"]​

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Atham'aali'kema"]

"Mff mm," she muttered against him as she fell headlong into sleep's embrace. The steady rhythm of his heart against her own chest seemed as natural as if she'd always fallen asleep next to his side. Oddly comforting. And in her dreams, she saw those burning magma orbs.

Hours later, a soft beeping filled the room as the alarm on the chrono went off. Eyes stirred beneath closed lids. Hand moved along Malik's chest. Fingers came up along the curvature of his jaw, index finger and middle finger lightly pressing down on the tip of his nose. Why did the alarm clock feel hairy and rough?

"Five moreminutes," the healer mumbled, face pushing deeper into the side of his neck.

The insistent beeping continued.

She drowsily pressed again.