Private On This, the Day of Your Daughter's Celebration

[Daiya]

The dance was easy enough to follow, even Jezper could have done it! Daiya's mood was hardly dampened when she saw that only Brie had joined her in the line dance, the grin on her face was immovable. Her feet were not, and neither were the girl's arms and hands. She had to work a little to keep up with the song caller's ambitious pace, but pretty quick she managed to find the pattern of the song.

"Two hops this time!"

Daiya leapt forward, giddiness rising in her chest each time she did so. The song's tempo kept her heart pumping fast, the energy of the party only adding to her thrill. She kept glancing over at Brie beside her, grinning ear to ear as the two girls followed the footwork that the song demanded.

Over the sound of the music, Daiya told her friend, "I don't think I've had this much fun on a mission before, Brie! Beats shooting people."

"Definitely beats reading a holobook while going through hyperspace!"

There was nothing that could have removed Daiya's smile, but her eyes crinkled as she gave Brie a sidelong look. "Reading? Now I'm really glad I got you out to this party," the girl admitted, giggling for a moment at her introverted friend's choice of idle hobbies. Then she adopted a more serious tone, "Have you learned anything from Ahxel? Any dirt or juicy info?"

Brie's face turned colorful as she blushed. "Uhm… Yeah…" Daiya waited as her friend tried to put her thoughts to words. "Gosh... He wants to meet again... He wants my holonumber, but… I don’t know."

Daiya couldn't help but laugh again at Brie's answer. That wasn't what she meant, but it was good to know. "Okay, okay. First of all, absolutely give it to him, he's cute. But I mean the reason we're here, Brie! Trying to dig up dirt on the Cabrals, you know?"

"Oh…" Brie seemed to think for a second, as if the dance was taking all of her focus. "Oh! I almost forgot about that! No, not yet..." she said, slightly disappointed at herself for forgetting the true reason that they were here.

"Stay on target, Miss Bookworm," Daiya teased a warning to her friend. She didn't hear what Miss Bookworm said in response, for at that moment all she heard was the high-pitched screeching of one well-dressed birthday girl wondering where all her partygoers were heading.

Prompted to look, the girl spied more partiers peeling off, following a group of guests heading into the Cabral family's mansion. She found herself wearing an amused look, eyebrows high as she glanced from the guests, to an indignant Kasathé, to Brie. Her face fell as she noticed Jezper, still off to the side with Ahxel staying clear of the wild dance motions. He wore a dark expression, glancing nervously at his celebrated cousin and looking very much like he wanted to sprout wings and fly.

Daiya went over to the Arkanian boy, hoping her approach would prompt him to explain. When it didn't, she took his hand in hers and brought it up. His almond-shaped eyes blinked, as if noticing her for the first time, but Jezper didn't say anything until his date suggested, "You okay?"

Jezper gave her his full attention now, giving his head a slight shake. The boy's discomfort was easily apparent, in a way that it hadn't been when they were dancing or just talking before. Daiya felt a pang in her chest seeing Jezper so uncomfortable, and she gave his hand a squeeze. "How about we go inside? Looks like that's where all the 'cool kids' are going anyway."

She grinned again when Jezper gave her a little chuckle, and the girl found some light in those steel-blue eyes of his. He looked into hers, and Daiya felt a flutter in her chest when he spoke at last, "Yeah, good idea."

Daiya took the assertion as agreement, and pulled Jezper along towards the mansion. She threw her head back across her shoulder to call to Brie, "We're heading inside."

Turning back to her date for the day, Daiya wrapped Jezper's arm around hers as if he was the one escorting her through the dwindling crowd. The teen leaned her head against the boy's shoulder, and for a while she actually let him guide them into the house. This was his family home, after all.

And maybe she'd learn a little more about it once they were inside.

Brie Jaxx Zo'i Prihm AMCO​

 

[AMCO]

Appearance: Teenage Mikkian, female, blue skin; elegant grey Gildenweave dress.
Objective: Explore abilities, acquire blackmail, and have a good time.
Writing With: Zo'i Prihm | Brie Jaxx | Daiya
---

As if on cue, his Zeltron co-conspirator caused a greater distraction yet - one heading towards the very mansion he sought to enter.

Clearly, her sense of timing was on point, so much so that he quickly arrived at the conclusion that she was, in fact, Force Sensitive. Or at least attuned. Little did he know the incident, however well-timed, however convenient for his needs, was entirely accidental.

Smiling wickedly, he leaned closer to his target, finely-tuned telepathic senses ever on the look out for even the slightest hint of doubt or discomfort.

"Why don't we slip inside with the crowd, then find somewhere more private? Piss off the brat at the same time?"

The malicious glimmer in the elder sister's daughter was answer enough, "Thallassa" keeping to her side as if the whole thing was her idea. To exactly no one's surprise, Kasathé's expression turned more offended still at seeing her sister among the unexpected departures, the birthday girl stomping over to what looked like a stressed-out butler, as if the man's arrangements (or perhaps the catering) were at fault.

Far easier to take it out on the staff, unable to do anything but nod along as they are.

 

[Zo'i Prihm]

Wearing: This dress
Tags: Daiya | Brie Jaxx | AMCO
Objective: Split up from the split up and uncover some dirt

As the cadre of teenagers made their way into the complex of buildings and, primarily, the mansion, the influence that Zo'i had previously exerted began to fade. Instead of going in a single direction, small groups from couples to quintets started to break off and head in ways that suited their party. That suited Zo'i just fine, as it made keeping track of every single teenager nearly impossible for any guards who might follow. And since she was already with a guard, she figured that the other security people would leave them alone.

Arm in arm, Zo'i moved into the mansion rather aimlessly at first as Vistri fielded another call from her fellow watchfolk. "What? No, gross. She's just a kid! ... Listen, she just wants to take a look at the place and wanted an escort. Can't blame the kid for being responsible. ... Ugh, no. Again. Gross. Where do you get these delusions laser brain? ... I bloody know that she's a ... Oh switch off." Vistri tore the earpiece away from her in frustration and pocketed it.

Zo'i gave a look to her unsuspecting partner. "Everything... ok?"

Vistri looked back and sighed before letting her eyes wander around the mansion. By this point, there wasn't anyone else around. "Yeah, ugh, just... some people only have one thing on the brain. You know?"

"Uhhhh, chocolate?"

Vistri shot a look as if to say: 'Is she serious?' Seeing no indication to the contrary, Vistri laughed hard. "Ha! Uh, no. How old are you again?"

"I turn 16 in a few months," Zo'i announced proudly, her chin forward and her chest out.

Vistri's demeanor turned quizzical again. "And you... don't know? But... well, you're Zeltron. Right?"

That piqued Zo'i's interest and she turned fully to face Vistri. "Yes," she said with an intensity that she meant but didn't realize the effect it would have. "Why?"

Vistri seemed to melt a little. "Well. You know. You folks are... sexy."

If it worked that way for a Zeltron, Zo'i was sure that the color was draining from her face. She'd seen that happen to humans before. But having nothing to compare in Zeltron physiology, she just assumed she was going pale. She stammered before she found something. "I-I-I grew up around humans. I've only met a few Zeltrons s-so, w-w-w-well... A-Anyway, I'm not like that. Is that what the other guards thought. Oh, I'm sorry. This is so awkward."

To her credit, Vistri was readily there to support her newfound friend. "Oh, that's ok. I get it. People get the wrong idea sometimes. They're the ones who are at fault. Not you. I can tell you're not like that." As if trying to physically move on from the conversation, Vistri grabbed Zo'i's arm once more and started leading them further through the halls of the mansion. "So, what would you like to see?"

Zo'i recovered from her faux pas somewhat awkwardly and shrugged. She was still a little taken aback by the insinuation of her people, but she didn't really have any point of reference. Was that what Rhé and Sun saw in her? Sex appeal? She shook off those thoughts for later and tried to refocus on the now. She was good at now. "I don't know. You know this place better than me. Something interesting!"

"Hmm, oh I know." So the pair walked through hall after hall, passing so much artwork and bespoke fixtures and trophies that Zo'i could only assume were bought because no one could be that good at so many different things. She was totally lost in the massive home, to the point where she wondered how anyone could actually live there. "Here we are," Vistri announced as they reached whatever destination she had intended. She swung a door open and entered a room that Zo'i couldn't quite guess as to its purpose. The guardswoman anticipated the questioning look and smirked. "This is the family recording studio."

"Oh, neat!" Recognizing the purpose of the room, all the knobs and dials suddenly gained a certain kind of clarity and she started to identify different things. Lumi was a former actress with galactic renown after all. The DireX had spent countless hours in rooms such as this one. But the thing that interested Zo'i the most was a giant-locked file cabinet. Paydirt.

 

[Brie Jaxx]

"We're heading inside."

Brie's gaze followed her friend when she and her cavalier headed off towards the mansion. She had been distracted, yes. Being all new to this spy game they pulled, not to mention the new experiences of wearing a dress and attending to a fancy party like this, on top of it all hooking up with a boy... Kriff... It was not so easy!

Thinking of it made Brie purse her lips in slight disappointment and forethought. She turned to Ahxel, meeting his cute blue eyes, before she took one of his hands and pulled him along. All of a sudden, their roles were reverse and she now led the way. By the twin suns, she didn't know how, but they were on the way with the rest of the teens that aimed to take the party inside the mansion.

Walking up the grand staircase of the Cobral family home, Brie happen to bump into Daiya when they squeezed through a small crowd.

''Oops! Sorry!'' she said with a slight giggle, silently blaming her clumsy move on outer factors.

''Place is impressive! No doubt about it!'' Ahxel spoke up like he been inside before. Well, it was no wonder if he was a close friend to one of the family members, but it provided a good opening for a chat and maybe a tour around. Brie turned to him, catching him looking up and around the ceiling high above them.

''You been here before?'' she asked with curiosity and spiced interest.

''Heh! A couple of times...'' he remarked and met with her gaze again, as well as Daiya's and Jezper's to who he gave a knowing look. The boys surely had something to tell them now. The question was if they would?

Daiya Zo'i Prihm AMCO

 

[Daiya]

The Cabrals certainly lived in the lap of luxury. Daiya had noticed the elegance of the exterior of the house, but it was just a backdrop while the party raged. Stepping inside was like a totally alien world. Not even the august halls of the Corpos could hold a glowrod to the opulence in which the streetwise teen now found herself surrounded.

She had been in a place like this before. Zenie's hotel penthouse, owned and used by her father, Belazura's governor, was lavish and adorned with beautiful decorations. But that place felt like a dream then, now Daiya was prepared for the way the rich and wealthy lived.

Or so she thought.

It was hard not to stare at the fixtures and furnishings, letting Jezper lead her along. Daiya nearly stumbled a couple times, her feet wanting to follow her eyes more than her escort, or the crowd around her. At one point, someone bumped into her and muttered an apology. It took Daiya another moment to realize it was Brie standing next to her, giggling over the collision.

The girl flashed a grin to her friend, still letting her bewilderment show through. "Have you ever been in such an a-mazing house, Brie?"

It was Ahxel who answered, in a casual manner as if it wasn't much of a big deal to him. That seemed incredible to the wide-eyed girl. The Cabrals didn't seem like the Corpos, nor had Zenie's father, the richness of their world didn't seem so tainted. To her, they seemed like rare finds, so Ahxel's comfort with it all surprised her. Daiya was confounded long enough for Brie to ask what she wanted to,

"A couple of times? Maybe this week alone!" Jezper said in retort at the humble mention of his friend's attendance record.

"Nope." Ahxel crowed. The four of them had meandered their way out of the bustling crowd far enough that Ahxel had free reign to swing up his hand and hold up a pair of fingers. "This is only my second time for the week."

Jezper made a mocking sound, "You're falling behind, then." He gestured a thumb at Ahxel as he told the girls, "This guy practically lives in my den after school."

Daiya smirked as she listened to the boys banter. No wonder Jezper had been so quick to pick up her tone when they were dancing earlier. The girl watched them, amused at the new entertainment in front of her and Brie. And even better, she didn't have to sweat for it!

The girl got up on tiptoes as she leaned against her friend, cupping a hand against Brie's ear to whisper to her. "Where's the popcorn when you need it?"

"Hey, if my house had the good snacks, that's where I'd be recovering from all that hard work," Ahxel shot back, shrugging as if it was all Jezper's fault that he was over so often.

That prompted a chuckle from Jezper as he chided his friend, "Daydreaming and slacking off take that much out of you, huh?"

Ahxel shrugged again, but Daiya could see the glimmer behind his eyes. "It ain't much, but it's honest."

Daiya put her hands out between the two of them. She was enjoying this, but the hall had practically emptied out, and the teen felt exposed. Someone was sure to walk by and see them, question them. There was enough muscle outside in the courtyard to deliver the unspoken message that the house was off-limits, and Daiya was not ready to leave it yet. "Boys, boys, you're both beautiful, okay?" she said, her voice full of the same sarcasm that the boys had been dishing out between them. Her hands found her waist, spreading her arms akimbo as the teen glanced between her date and Brie's. "Now, are we going to get to see this den of yours?"

"Oh, the den isn't much to look at," Jezper said apprehensively. Daiya didn't buy it, she was certain the boy was just embarrassed to have a couple of girls inside it. "If my uncle were here, he'd be showing off the holo-theater, but..." he gestured to the stragglers from the teen crowd they had come in with, "everyone else seems to be headed that way."

Daiya felt a little disappointed. A holo-theater inside a home? Now that would be something to see!

"Drawing room?" Ahxel suggested.

Jezper nodded, though he didn't seem enthusiastic about the idea. "Yeah, I guess."

Daiya perked up, though, her face brightening at the suggestion. It sounded like just the place for her. She was often found with her nose in her holojournal, sketching something, if she wasn't desperately drawing out the vivid imagery the Force bombarded her head with sometimes. As painful as those incidents were, the girl appreciated the way they challenged her artwork. Looking at someone else's would be a real treat to her. "Oh, a drawing room? Let's go there!"

The drawing room was...less impressive than Daiya had expected it to be.

"Okay, first of all," the girl complained to their hosts, "This room isn't even about drawing."

Looking around, all Daiya could really notice were a bunch of chairs, furniture and some knickknacks. There was nothing to draw on, no tablets or holo-surfaces, and clearly none of the old fashioned supplies like flimsi or inks. She frowned, looking about the room again in hopes to spot something, landing back on Ahxel for his suggestion.

It was Jezper who spoke up, drawing her attention to him as he gestured like a game show presenter at a sculpture, "Well, we have this lovely bust of Hugo Cabral, the first governor of our planet."

"That's art, but not the right art..." Daiya asserted, folding her arms across her chest. Jezper laughed, coming over to put his hands just below her shoulders. Like she had during their dance before, he guided the girl to look at another part of the room.

"How about this? Here we have a fantastic chair once occupied by the great Kanner Cabral," Jezper declared, continuing the voice of his presenter act. Daiya let out a giggle despite herself.

"Once?" she asked.

"Once and future occupant!" Ahxel added. He gestured to a nearby seat, "And this is the seat of his lady, Niobe Cabral. Here, Brie, come sit in this one..."

The routine continued for a while, as Ahxel and Jezper tried to animatedly describe the room to her, but Daiya quickly found it boring. Her eyes drifted around, floating up to the ceiling once or twice to admire nothing in particular. Her idle brain considered nothing in particular, painting it in wide brush strokes of the nullest null color she could fathom.

She suddenly squealed as her sides tickled, and the girl grabbed for whatever it was only to grasp air instead. Daiya turned her head to find Jezper behind her, trying his best to look innocent. "Hey!" she demanded, but his only explanation was a shrug, and a gesture back to the gesticulating Ahxel.

Once more she drifted off, and once more she felt her sides tickled as an involuntary sound escaped her lips. Daiya was faster this time, and her hands clasped on Jezper's slowly retreating ones. She grinned, tilting her head back to look up at him. "I know it was you."

Jezper's pouting lip told her he was going to keep playing innocent. She giggled and let her guilty party go free. For the moment.

Brie Jaxx Zo'i Prihm AMCO​

 

[AMCO]

Appearance: Teenage Mikkian, female, blue skin; elegant grey Gildenweave dress.
Objective: Explore abilities, acquire blackmail, and have a good time.
Tags: Zo'i Prihm | Brie Jaxx | Daiya
---

Without any urging whatsoever, the teenagers scattered to the winds, looking through the mansion as if it was an open museum - their actions could not have been more perfect even had they all been puppets dancing to his strings. Security would be hard-pressed to cope, seeing as they could hardly be impolite to the droves of well-connected youngsters. Given the circumstances, the patriarch's own daughter would be the last on their mind...

... unless, of course, she was threatened in some way, but that was most certainly not what he had in mind.

No, if he had his will he would be left with useful information and fond memories, and her with the latter.

Expelling a small gadget of uncertain make (though he knew it to be the latest product of Sith-Imperial R&D, destined for Intelligence... and him) from within his own body and swiftly attaching it to Kalani's personal computer while her back was turned, he felt a twinge of satisfaction. Assuming a link to their home network, he should have a bug on anything that wasn't isolated by the time he was... ready to leave.

Best of all, it required no guidance from him - good thing too, for he was about to be distracted.

 

[Zo'i Prihm]

Wearing: This dress
Tags: Daiya | Brie Jaxx | AMCO
Objective: Get the dirt and sneak away!

"I always wanted to be a holo star."

"Oh yeah?" Ugh. This was the worst part of the job. She'd gotten somewhere where she might be able to find the kinds of things that would be useful to Lumi. The Darkwire people had called it "dirt." Which was a silly name. She was in a room that served as a recording studio. But there was no way that the giant file cabinet in the corner only had physical recordings of music or audition tapes or whatever on them. The recordings therein could have all sorts of incriminating "dirt" on the Cabral family. After all, duh, what mob family really needed a recording studio like this? All of the equipment looked fancy, but having been on a couple of Lumi's recording sets, she could tell that most of it was for show and never touched. Everything except for the microphone and holocam systems. No one was carefully adjusting levels here.

"Yeah. Eventually I realized that not everyone gets to live in a dream. Some can. But not everyone."

"That's kind of sad." But now she had a different obstacle to get through. Vistri had been brilliantly useful in getting Zo'i to this point. But now she just wanted to... talk? Sure, Zo'i loved a good gab as much as one could love gabbing. But she had a job to do, and now Vistri had gone from helpful to unhelpful in a matter of seconds. The Zeltron teen needed to get the guard out of the way, out of the room, give Zo'i enough time to dig through the "dirt," (Oh! That's why it's called dirt, duh!) and she then needed to get the kark outta there.

"Sorry to burst your bubble. Adulthood kind of sucks. I settled on working a job that put me near the stars. But... well, I kinda missed the mark a bit." The worst part, though, was that Zo'i felt bad ditching Vistri. She had never felt bad getting other kids into trouble back in school. She'd put people into compromising positions all the time, sometimes unintentionally, sometimes very much on purpose. People in trouble made great distractions, after all. But this was different. At school, kids were just going to get scolded. A guard for a mob family? Zo'i had seen enough holos to know how bad it could get.

"I know a holo star. Maybe I could introduce you?"

Vistri was running her hands over some musical instruments tucked over in one particularly dusty corner. She stopped and turned to look at Zo'i. "Wait, really? You know a holo star?"

The question seemed a little ridiculous. After all, Vistri was right. She did work closely with famous people who knew famous people. Although, as a guard, there was probably no way that she ever really had a meaningful conversation with any of the dignitaries who visited, let alone the Cabrals themselves. Even if she had just been hired for this job alone, there was no guarantee that the guardswoman regularly came into contact with someone who could help her pursue her dreams.

And that's when the idea struck Zo'i. A way out that didn't involve any unpleasantries. Hopefully. "Yeah," she said, smiling maybe a little too wickedly. "Let me tell you all about my friend, Luminous Sun." As she spoke, she layered on her persuasion once more. There would be no taking chances. Zo'i would get what she wanted. And Vistri wouldn't wind up sleeping with any fish. Win-win.

 

[Brie Jaxx]

"Where's the popcorn when you need it?"

The younger teens whisper made Brie giggle slightly, her attempts at hiding it ending up futile. The boys were certainly cute with their on and off banter. They both seemed like very easy going persons and it was hard to imagine them as some sort of criminals. Somewhere inside her, Brie hoped that they would just be the sons of criminals, and not themselves evil-doers. Especially Ahxel, who she strangely found as likeable. It was certainly odd to the stoic but usually reserved teen to find herself right in the middle of one of her holobooks. One of the more romantic genres, it seemed.

Daiya eventually broke interrupted the boys and more or less asked for a guided tour of the mansion. It was rather straight forward, but they didn't seem to suspect something which elicited a silent exhale of relief from Brie. If the boys were indeed evil-doers or even if their loyalty laid deep with the family, they would be in big trouble. Yet, the boys acted like any common boy with a girl interest would. It put her in a difficult balance between trying to be nice and enjoying the company, and being aware of the mission and alert any suspicion that might rise.

Making their way to the drawing room, holding hands with Ahxel, Daiya was clearly disappointed as they entered. Jezper tried to impress the assertive teen, but his attempts would lead to nowhere.

"And this is the seat of his lady, Niobe Cabral. Here, Brie, come sit in this one..." Ahxel spoke up, bringing Brie's attention.

''Oh, umm...''

''No 'umms' now, missy - come on and try it. I wanna see how you look in it.'' he insisted and walked over to the chair, nodding for her to come over and flashing his cute and charming smile.

Brie felt that she was being tricked into something that would not have been appreciated by this Kanner and Niobe, but she also wanted to please Ahxel and figured that it was best to go with the flow now. A small uncertain smirk appeared on her lips before she approached the chair and sat down, immediately feeling a little criminal and uncomfortable as she did.

''See? Feels good, right?'' Ahxel asked and looked at her with a questioning face. ''You look grand in it - Lady Brie Cabral. It has a nice ring to it.'' he continued, turning his gaze to Jezper. ''Hey, I think we got two future Cabrals here. Don't you think?''

While meaning no harm to his statements, it made Brie feel all the more uncomfortable and she stood up.

''Tss, you're silly!'' Brie uttered and shook her head disregardingly at the proposal. ''Who are this Kanner and Niobe, anyway? They sound like a pretty big deal...?'' she continued and made a Daiya, glancing around some and hoping that the boys would give them more to work with.

Daiya Zo'i Prihm AMCO

 

[Daiya]

"Lady Brie? Try Queen Brie," Daiya giggled as her friend sat in the fancy chair. Everything in the room was fancy, really. It was all a bit overwhelming for a girl used to simpler decor and cheaper things. She was pretty sure that chair cost more than she'd ever earn in her lifetime, but Brie looked so good sitting in it with her dark blue dress, a great glow-up transformation for the salvager girl she knew. "You look great in that chair!"

"It's just a chair my aunt likes to sit in," Jezper explained, nonplussed. He was still behind Daiya, but she had his hands held up where they couldn't tickle her anymore. "My aunt is Niobe, my uncle is Kanner. They're the head of the family, and they run the business."

"And keep all these boring mementos in here for guests to look at?" Daiya quipped, craning her head around to deliver a sly grin at Jezper. She was goading him, and he knew it, but he just didn't know why.

The silver-haired boy gaped at her, pulling his hands away to strike a dramatic pose of shock and hurt. She giggled at the theatrics, but he continued by saying, "These are some of the finest mementos in our memento collection, Daiya. Collected from all over the galaxy..."

"...to sit in your 'drawing room' and collect dust?" Daiya suggested, pushing the subject even more. While she was being truthful about finding the gaudy items on display boring, the girl was being a little more hurtful than normal to get a reaction.

Jezper clapped back, but something told her she was on the right track, "Hey, that dust would fetch a high price on the black market."

Daiya opened her mouth, as if to say something, but then she brought up a hand in front of it. Cracking her jaw wide, she patted her mouth a few times in a fake yawn, a withering assessment of the memento collection. "Call me back when something besides a chair gets some use."

She heard a chuckle from Ahxel, but Jezper's face turned a little harder. He moved a little closer to the girl, making the difference between their height more apparent, and said, "Fine, you don't like this, I'll show you something really interesting."

It was hard to tell if Jezper was trying to tease or be intimidating to her. The girl just folded her arms across her chest, letting them be her shield to whatever the boy was implying. She asked, "Like what?"

Jezper's tone was eerily calm and even, not the melodic cadence he used for japes. "It's in my uncle's office. He's got a collection of something that definitely gets used."

Daiya tried to hide her delight. Jezper was leading her straight into the dragon's cave, and still thought he had the upper hand. She looked up at him, her eyes searching his as she asked, "Well, I don't know. Are we supposed to go in there?"

Jezper chuckled wryly at her, taking her hand. "Yeah, it's fine. Besides, you wanted something more useful, and you owe me from before, remember?"

Daiya had forgotten all about the fake 'debt' she had accrued from their dance earlier. It was harder than ever to keep up the game face, and to keep her eyes on the boy. She wanted so badly to catch Brie's eyes, or tell her friend somehow that she'd just hit jackpot. "Yeah, alright. Let's go."

"I'm not so sure that's a great idea, Jez," Ahxel pointed out. "Your uncle's gonna be pissed if he finds you in there."

Jezper's tone wasn't any cheerier for his friend, either. Daiya was starting to get a little worried about this mobster's nephew now. "Then stay here, Ahx. We'll be fine so long as you don't tell him." The Arkanian boy pulled at his charge, "Come on, Daiya."

The girl let Jezper lead her out of the room, brimming with emotions she couldn't reveal. She couldn't wait to get close to the Cabral family secrets that assuredly awaited her inside. Yet Daiya would have to contend with the nature of Jezper as well, and his tone and behavior were starting to scare her.

She let her feet carry her onward, through the hall and down the stairs of the Cabral mansion. Here and there, Daiya spotted another one of the day's partygoers, easy to identify in their classy attire. The girl didn't call out to them, though she probably could have and used them to get away from Jezper. For whatever the danger was that awaited her in the office, the young shadowrunner was sure she could handle it. And the mission, too.

Jezper just made idle conversation with her until they were at the office door, down a hallway that looked a lot less fanciful than the others. The boy let go of her hand at the door, then pulled out a device from his pocket and hooked it up to the control panel next to the door. Daiya nearly fell over in shock, Jezper was hacking the door! He turned to her, a grin on his own face as he told her, "Nifty little thing, huh? I got this when I was eleven and my dad took away my favorite model speeder. My uncle put it in his office for safekeeping, and I just had to have it back. And now? It gets me wherever I want in this house."

Something clicked, and the door slid open to admit the pair. Daiya giggled at Jezper's explanation, feeling a little more comfortable again with the boy sharing secrets with her. He stepped through the door first, and she followed him into the secret alcove of the Cabral family, a place the girl was certain would harbor secrets and dirt for her mission.

Daiya was surprised to find that Kanner Cabral's office was mostly normal. It had a simple desk cluttered with flimsis and a holoterminal on it, a few screens for holo-vids around the room, a chair behind the desk and some more for sitting, and that was about it. At least until Jezper walked over to the wall and pushed a button. The girl's eyes widened as a piece of wall art slid back, revealing a glittering array of weapons on display.

"Whoa!" was Daiya's first instinct. So that was what Jezper had been insinuating earlier, a mobster's weapons collection. The m-word wasn't spoken, but the girl was certain that she was supposed to know about it, and be properly alarmed by the scene. If anything, she was pretty sure that even the existence of the weapons rack would rattle any normal girls in Jezper's pampered, wealthy social circle. The girl tried to emulate someone like that. "Those have all been used?"

It sounded innocent enough.

While Jezper looked over the rack, the girl made her way over to the desk, eschewing the chairs to hop up on one of the few parts of the desk not covered with clutter. She grasped the edges of her dress hem, giving it a tug to straighten the edges and keep it from riding up too high. As she did, Daiya glanced around the desk, looking at flimsis and anything that might be useful. Most of it was just news articles or tables of numbers that made her eyes glaze over, but the holoterminal held some promise.

"You ever seen one of these?" Jezper said, holding up a particular weapon he had taken from the rack.

"Sure, that's a DS12 Blastech Carbine," Daiya remarked, hardly even thinking about it. Then she froze, glancing over to Jezper who was looking at her strangely. The girl begged her body to relax, shrugging her shoulders in a casual manner, "Murder planet girl, remember?"

"Oh," Jezper said, and he looked a bit deflated by the reminder. His earlier bluster was muted now, with his intimidation routine no longer effective. "Right, I almost forgot. You've probably seen most of these before."

"Umm, some of them I guess," Daiya mentioned, trying to pull back on her knowledge for a moment. If she wasn't careful, she was going to ruin the whole setup.

"Hmm," Jezper considered, turning back to the rack. After replacing the carbine, he started looking over the display, giving Daiya the moment she needed.

The girl had been keeping her clutch purse in her hands, or tucked under an arm, since the day began. Now she opened it up, reaching inside to pull out the device Thalassa had given all the girls today. With a glance back to make sure Jezper was still busy, she quickly hooked up the device to the holoterminal on the desk. Then she put it back in the clutch, leaving only the wires sticking out as evidence. Moving around a few of the flimsis on the cluttered desk made it look more normal. She thought.

"Be careful, my uncle likes his desk neat," Jezper warned, then grinned at Daiya when she gaped at him. He was holding another weapon in his hands, but he nearly dropped it as a huge belly laugh erupted from the boy. "By the Core, your face!"

Daiya felt her cheeks warming as she blushed, turning back away from the incriminating scene behind her. She placed her hands in her lap, and looked down at them, admonished. In a small voice, the teen squeaked out, "I'm sorry."

"Aww, where's that murder planet girl? I swear she was sitting right here," Jezper said encouragingly. He stepped closer to her, putting the blaster on a nearby chair to be quickly forgotten. Daiya looked up as a finger slid under her chin, lifting her face into his. Her vision was swallowed by the Arkanian boy as he stood right in front of her, his boyish charm seated closely behind a gentleman's courtesy. "I like that girl, she's fun."

"She's dangerous," Daiya said quietly. The teen wasn't thinking about the mission now. She was thinking about her quickly beating heart, her clammy hands, her fluttering stomach. She was thinking about Jezper, and how close he was to her. His warm hand touching her face, his deep, blue eyes looking into hers.

"I like danger," Jezper told her. Daiya tried to look away, but he brought her face back up to face his. He smiled at her, a gentle smile, a nicer one than the playful or conniving smiles she had seen before. The girl couldn't help her lips from pulling at the edges, showing a little smile despite herself. The boy chuckled as he leaned in and said, "I like you."

Then he kissed her.

Brie Jaxx Zo'i Prihm AMCO​

 

[AMCO]

Appearance: Teenage Mikkian, female, blue skin; elegant grey Gildenweave dress.
Objective: Explore abilities, acquire blackmail, and have a good time.
Tags: Zo'i Prihm | Brie Jaxx | Daiya
---

Distracted though he was, it occurred to him that his novel approach to intelligence gathering ought to remain between him and Kalani. A less than carnal explanation would have to be given to his young contractors, certainly - but he was paying them, and quite well at that, so he doubted they would raise too much of a fuss if he vanished for half an hour. Or an hour... or two. It depended on the mobster's daughter's stamina, really.

Even as their owner was otherwise indisposed, the little gadgets he had doled out were busily chipping away at the Cobral family's security, the one he had attached slithering into the home network even as the one he had given Daiya trawled through a device that would no doubt have "broken down suddenly and irreversibly" if anyone had shown up at the front door with a warrant.

Not that any judge on this corrupt cesspool of a world was likely to side against the Cobrals and their ilk, not without an even more impressive bribe and a credible assurance of their safety. Something that Globex would need to keep in mind - and why they wanted as much blackmail material as possible.

Enough dirt to bury the family many times over would be ideal, though enough to force through a few key projects would be acceptable.

 

[Zo'i Prihm]

Wearing: This dress
Tags: Daiya | Brie Jaxx | AMCO
Objective: Get away!

"Are you sure this is ok?"

Zo'i threw the woman a look that should have been rhetorical. But the worried expression on Vistri's face didn't fade, so the Zeltron girl provided an answer. "Uh, duh. No. Of course it isn't 'ok.' We're stealing something. That's never ok."

Worry was replaced by confusion. "Then why are we doing this?"

"Because this is your entry fee for meeting a holostar." Zo'i was nonchalantly trying to walk down the corridor, a handbag that she had "procured" from an uninhabited room was stuffed with datacards from the recording studio. Unlike Vistri, Zo'i had no pockets to fill, a dress was no place for pockets after all, certainly not practical ones. Vistri, on the other hand, was a little hunched over with all of the datacards that she had managed to put into her jacket and various other places. The pose was anything but discreet and Zo'i tapped at the woman's spine and motioned for her to fix her posture.

"So, what, this is just a hazing thing?"

Zo'i felt irritation coming on. She had explained all of this already. She was on a job, yada yada. She needed dirt on the Cobral's, yada yada. If Vistri helped, yada yada, then Zo'i would introduce her to Luminous Sun. She had poured on plenty of her persuasion skills and Vistri had been all for it. Why this sudden change of heart? The teenager was pretty sure that she hadn't lost her concentration on her persuasion. So... what? "No. Listen. I'm here on a job. And sometimes a job means you have to do stuff that might seem bad. But, look, the Cobral's aren't good people are they? So what if stealing from them brings them down a notch."

Vistri paused at that. Zo'i could see the conflict on the woman's face. "Are the people you work for good people?"

The Zeltron pursed her lips. "Honestly? I don't know. I hope so, but... I don't know..."

"So are we doing the right thing?"

This was not the time for a moral debate. They needed to get the kark out of there before someone found out what they had done. She was certain that the other girls were making their way out as well. "What I do know is that this is the best shot you have at pursuing your dream. Maybe ever. So if you want to take that shot, this is what you have to do. You don't have to like it. You don't even have to agree with it. But right now, I really, really, just need you to get us out an exit where we won't be seen. Are you with me?"

A few silent moments passed as the two continued walking down the corridor of the mansion. Zo'i didn't bother to look at Vistri. She wasn't sure if she was going to have to run or find a way to subdue the guard. Suddenly, her own worry started to grow as she just then realized that she had no backup if her plan suddenly went belly up.

But then Vistri straightened up fully. "Alright. Follow me."

Zo'i silently blew out a sigh of relief as she followed Vistri through the twisted corridors and out of the mansion.

 

[Brie Jaxx]

"It's in my uncle's office. He's got a collection of something that definitely gets used."

The less delighted voice of Jezper catched both Brie's and Ahx's attention as well as sending a bad feeling into Brie's stomach. She tried to read the boy from across the room, where he stood to spar with Daiya. She did well with that, despite being the slightly younger one of the lot. What Daiya lacked in height, as Jezper tried to point out in a cocky but almost as silly way. The mood in the room was instantly bumped up a notch on the serious scale.

Ahxel remarked if it was such a good idea for them to invade the uncles office without permission. It would be a nightmare being caught, Brie thought, as her gaze jumped between the boys. Ahxel's remark was utterly dismissed by the other boy before they headed out from the room, and Brie gave Daiya a look to be careful.

''Hm... We don't always get along.'' Ahxel started to explain, placing the hands in the pockets of his slacks and looked over to Brie. ''He's been under a lot of stress lately...'' he continued and nodded at the door where their both friends left. ''Don't worry about them.''

''Don't worry about them?!'' Brie blurted out. ''You say that h-hes been under a lot of stress, he's about to show Daiya that collection and you tell me not to worry about them...??'' she continued and motioned towards the door. Ahxel looked at her with raised eyebrows, surprised by the sudden and out of the blue reaction. Though, before the boy could say anything, Brie realised her mistake at letting her thoughts and feelings just being exposed like that.

''Hey! What do you think he's gonna do? Kill her?''

YES!!

She thought it but could not say it out loud, her hand blocking her mouth and eyes would not dare to look at him. Not until they with repentance fell on the before nice boy.

''I... No... I guess not...'' she replied cautiously and slowly let the hand leave her mouth. ''I-I just got this picture in my head that... Yeah, I was the one being silly now, right?'' she continued and tried to chuckle it off coyly, but Ahxel did not quite follow her lead. Instead he approached Brie and laid a hand on her naked arm. She had blew it. She had blew it all!

''Maybe a little...'' he begun, but his touch on her arm was not the harsh grab that she had expected - instead it was soft and gentle, almost pleasant if it had not been for her frozen and vulnerable state right now. ''But what you also are is...''

Busted? Brie thought as her heart sunk.

''Clever.''

Aided by Ahxel's touch and seeminly unsuspecting reaction, Brie was slowly starting to come back from the shock and her eyes slowly lit up.

''If the picture projected in your cute mind was a collection of weapons, then you're right... Kanner's collection is an impressive one, but I'm more worried about him finding out they were there...'' Ahxel explained, and glanced after their two friends that hopefully wasn't up to any shenanigans in that room.

''And... You won't tell on them... Right?'' Brie piped up, searching for a sign in Ahxel's eyes before the cute boy met he gaze and they both became stuck in the moment. A moment that was about to turn into an awkward silence before Ahxel gave her a comforting answer.

''Nah. I got no reason for it. Me and Jezper go a long way, but sometimes the family relations are... complicated. I won't bother you with the details. I just...'' a sigh left him. ''Ah, never mind...''

Brie tried to read his emotions, which surprisingly came easy to her as she did. Something was troubleing the Cabral boys and affected them greatly. Suddenly, a fraction of a scene flashed before her. A city scene with her, Daiya and... Was it, realy?

Her thoughts was interrupted by a hand grabbing onto hers and lips touching hers in a kiss. A second felt like a minute, a minute like an hour. Brie felt her heart flutter and didn't know wether to panic or simply surrender herself to the brief moment. As the kiss ended, Brie instantly fell into a never before felt blush, cheeks all rose red.

''I'm sorry! I don't know what got into me.'' Ahxel said, but was not thrown into half the blush as she was.

Brie turned her gaze away and tried to gather herself from the unexpected and sudden taken liberty of Ahxel. She was not mad about it, though, just surprised. It was, after all, the first kiss that the salvager girl har experienced.

''Uhm... No, t-that's...'' she gulped trying to find words. ''It's my first... I mean... Oh, kriff!''

Great. Great show of honesty, Brie! she thought and silently cursed her blabbing mouth.

Ahxel gently pulled at her chin to make her look at him.

''Well... Then I'm honored. Still, I'm sorry if I took too much of a liberty doing that to you.'' he told her sincerely before tugging once at her hand. ''C'mon - let's go see if Kanner's caught Jezper and Daiya yet!'' he continued and cracked a smile.

''Stop saying that!'' Brie replied before she was pulled along to find their friends.

It didn't take long to find the office of Kanner, Ahxel knowing it as well as Jezper. They entered the room, Brie still wearing a prominent blush, to find Daiya sitting on the desk with Jezper awkwardly close to her.

''Hey! Guys! Kanner's on the way!'' Ahxel called, but Jezper saw through the bluff and gave him a punch on the shoulder which Ahxel laughed off and sat up on the luxuorious desk. ''My my... Were we... interrupting you in anything?''

Daiya Zo'i Prihm AMCO

 

[Daiya]

Her world exploded at the touch of their lips. It felt like something impossible, like it was one of her visions. Her mind kept telling her it was real, she just couldn't believe it.

Jezper had just kissed her!

Daiya could feel, really, everything there was to feel. There was a hyper-awareness that stretched from the edge of her lips to the tips of her toes. Every molecule in her body was reporting back to her brain, each screaming a fraction of her whole perspective compounding in deluge of sensation. It froze her in place, catching the very breath in her throat, paralyzing the girl from any semblance of worthy response.

"I—" Daiya finally managed, and it was all she could for the moment. Her mind was still in shock at her realization of what had just transpired. Jezper had kissed her. Her. She had been kissed. Daiya couldn't comprehend what that was supposed to mean for her. Part of her knew that first kiss was supposed to signify growing up, and romance, and she was supposed to feel special right now. Except that, right now, all the girl felt was confused about how she should be feeling.

"Oh, sorry," Jezper offered, and the Arkanian boy seemed genuine for the first time that whole day. Daiya could see disappointment in his eyes, and behind them something that looked like hurt. "I guess you don't like me that way."

"I—" Daiya's jaw worked, but nothing else was coming out. She didn't want Jezper to get the wrong impression, but none of the words she wanted to say were coming out. For that matter, the girl couldn't even fathom what words she wanted to say. Or even what she was supposed to say in this kind of moment.

"Hey! Guys! Kanner's on the way!" A new voice crashed into their world, as the door opened to reveal Jezper's friend Ahxel. Daiya's heart jumped into her throat at the interruption, stiffening in place as if stillness would stop the Balosar boy from seeing her. For a moment, the girl wondered if it had worked as Jezper gave his friend a hard-earned punch for the prank attempt. Her eyes, stuck staring straight ahead, grew big and wild as Ahxel hopped up on the desk next to her to ask the most guilty of innocent questions. "My my... Were we... interrupting you in anything?"

Heat blazed across her cheeks as Daiya felt like she could move again. Yet all the girl dared to do was tuck her chin down to hide her blushing face. That was when she spotted Brie out of the corner of her eye. All the awkwardness of the moment felt even worse with Brie standing there. Maybe the girl could have escaped the frat boy routine in front of her, but now even Brie knew about her kiss! There was no escaping the reality of it, or the questions that she feared Brie would have for her.

Frantic thoughts rushed through Daiya's head as she busied her hands, turning away from the sudden scrutiny of three pairs of eyes on her. She gathered up flimsis and datapads in her hand, trying to order the chaos on the desk behind her.

"No, we were just hanging out, weren't we Daiya?" Jezper offered. Was he trying to be nice now, and give her a way out? Daiya couldn't figure that out now, she was too busy trying to balance a stack of flimsis on the back of her hand. The girl hoped no one noticed her sleight of hand as she disconnected the wires from the holoterminal leading to the device in her purse. "Daiya, I was just joking about the desk." She ignored him and kept going. Jezper's voice was more disparaging again now. "Girls... I think you scared her, Ahxel."

"Who me? No way, I'm a teddy bear!" Ahxel declared proudly, throwing out his arms wide until one tapped her arm. Daiya heard Jezper chuckle at the statement, and it was all just too much for her. The girl grabbed her purse and hopped off the desk, stepping away from Ahxel's waiting arms. Her eyes searched for retreat like a cornered animal. The Balosar's antennae flattened on his head, and he gave his friend a strange look. "What did I say?"

Jezper's form filled her vision again, blocking out the sight of their friendly intruders. Daiya's eyes gravitated towards his blue eyes with nowhere else to look, but once they locked eyes she turned her blushing cheek toward his face. The olive-skinned boy clapped his hands around hers, keeping them steady. "You're okay, Daiya. I didn't mean to scare you."

"No, you...I mean, kind of? I don't know." Daiya's mind raced for the right words to reassure Jezper, but her dependable tongue had little to offer the normally-chatty girl. Her eyes sought the focus of anywhere other than him, she didn't want to see that hurt on his face again. Or admit to herself that the Arkanian boy looked really cute when he was disappointed. "I really..." like you she tried to say, but it left her mouth on a voiceless breath. Her eyes caught his at last. All she could stammer out after that was, "...need to use the refresher!"

The announcement seemed to stun Jezper enough for his hands to loosen and for her to pull away. Daiya stepped around the flustered boy, avoiding the tracking stare from Ahxel at the desk. The self-proclaimed teddy bear was offering some loud instructions on the way, "'Fresher's at the end of the hall, on the left side. It's a big house, don't get lost!"

Daiya hurried past him to step up to Brie instead. She touched her friend's arm lightly as she looked at the older teen's face for the first time since the interruption, and the girl was surprised to see that it, too, was red with blush. Something stirred in her, a budding curiosity of whether Brie shared her uneasiness. "Come with me?" Daiya asked, looking into those green eyes with a sudden rebirth of confidence. "We need to talk!"

The girl gave Brie's arm a light tug before her hand slipped away, and she stepped up to the office door to venture back out into the Cobral's mansion and away from the suffocating tension in the room.

Brie Jaxx Zo'i Prihm AMCO​

 

[Daiya]

Stepping out into the hallway proved to be a huge relief for the girl. Daiya didn't turn back to the room behind her, the mobster's office, where Ahxel and Jezper were still staring at her back. She could feel their eyes on her, wondering, waiting. Daiya grinned to herself, happy to keep them waiting a lot longer.

"Come on, Brie," the girl cajoled her friend. Hopefully Brie was going to follow her. Daiya stretched out her hand behind her, wiggling her fingers for her older friend to take hold of. She was bursting with the desire to share now, and she couldn't wait until the two were out of earshot. Loud enough for the boys still in the office to hear, the girl proclaimed, "The refresher is down this way."

Brie had been standing in silence, holding one hand in the other in front of her while Ahxel among other things declared his innocence over scaring Daiya. In many ways, he really seemed to be a teddy bear, only a bit bluff and brash sometimes. The usual teenage boy behaviour that she had mostly only read about in her holobooks. It was certainly strange being right in the middle of those books now.

As her younger friend tugged at her arm and motioned at her to follow, Brie did with an excusing look at the both boys watching their company for the evening leave them for a moment.

"I’m gonna..." Brie began cautiously and half turned to follow her friend out, suddenly finding it hard to continue and even breathe before it all came out in an exhale. "Do the same! We’ll be right back!" she said and smiled sweetly at Ahxel, before leaving the room and following Daiya down the corridor in a rather hurried pace once they were out of sight. Of course, Brie had her doubts about Daiya intending them to come back to them. It felt like the right time to rejoin Zo’i and Thalassa.

"Kriff, I’ve never been that nervous in my life!"’ she uttered as they went down the hallway.

"Oh my stars, yes Brie," Daiya agreed with an exaggerated sigh once she and her friend were far enough down the hallway. It was much easier to breathe out here, as if the air inside the office had been physically suffocating. The girl pulled at the air with her finger, motioning Brie to step out of sight with her, far enough that she could show the older teen what was hidden inside her purse. "I didn't think I'd make it out with this. I think I got the motherlode, Brie!"

Inside her purse was the data-stealing device from Thalassa, that Daiya had managed to plug into the holoterminal of the mob boss himself!

Brie watched as Daiya, quite the master thief, showed her the contents of her purse.

"Oh, my! You think you got enough data downloaded to be of use for us?" Brie said, as it was her first reaction. Thinking of it though, a bad feeling grew inside of her and Daiya would probably notice it. Not only because of what would happen if the Cabral’s found out, but also for stealing in general and from two rather kind boys as Ahxel and Jezper in particular. Salvaging abandoned ships for parts that no one else would use was a whole other story.

"I hope so, but that's all Thalassa's problem now, right?" Daiya asked with a giggle. She looked up at Brie, watching the older girl's expression. The girl felt her stomach turn, she had been so focused on her own problems that she had barely noticed her friend's. "Uhh, I was going to suggest we skip the refresher and find the exit, but now you look like you need it. Your face is all pale!"

"Wha-? No, I’m good! I’m good... It’s just that... I’ve never done anything like this before and, well... Never been kissed before, either!" Brie continued and felt her blush return from thinking of the kiss she had received from Ahxel. "Ahxel made a move, and I didn’t know what to do..."

Daiya blinked at the older teen, before a gigantic grin spread over her face. All this time, she had been embarrassed to think Brie had caught her and Jezper's kiss, only to realize that she wasn't the only one to have passed that particular milestone today. "Briiiiiiie! That. Is. A-mazing!"

The girl enunciated every word as she wrapped her free arm around Brie's higher shoulder. Her own embarrassment fell off her like a discarded shawl, it was easier to cling to her friend's problem than hold onto her own. She patted her friend's shoulder for a moment before trying to lead them away from the refresher door and towards a stairway. "Well, you did the right thing by telling me." It wasn't easy for Daiya to walk while trying to drive someone taller, and her calves were stretched by walking on her tiptoes. "Do you like him?"

Brie noticed her friends struggle with her height and instead laid an arm around her, her arm being at a much more convenient height for that. An uncertain smile struggled to form upon her lips, but soon turned to a slightly more solid one. Brie had never thought she would have received that question.

"Umm, y- yeah... He’s cute and all... Seems to be all over the top sometimes, but I’ve only just met him, and..." she said, before her thoughts drifted as she realised that there might not come a second time. It was sad in a way, but they were here on a mission and would probably just risk a lot if meeting them again. Then again, judging by their reactions as Ahxel stormed in, Daiya seemed to have met the same treatment from Jezper.

"We were interrupting you in something... right?" Brie said and glanced suspiciously upon her friend.

"Oh, you saw that, huh?" Daiya asked. She couldn't duck out of it now, not now that Brie had an arm wrapped around her neck, too. The girl giggled nervously as they started down the stairs. "Oh, stars, I was so nervous! I thought Jezper was just showing off like he was before, and then he got close to me, and then he kissed me!" Her heart pounded again as if she was relieving the moment all over. "And I was like 'whaaaaaaaaaaaat?' You know? It was good, I guess, but I don't have anything to really compare it to."

"I guess I like him, you're only supposed to kiss boys that you like, right? But I don't know. I thought we were just having fun and all, just joking and showing off, and then he just kissed me. And, Brie, I think he wanted to since we first met, and I was so not expecting that at all." Daiya's mouth finished motoring as they reached the bottom of the stairs, placing the pair back on the ground floor that was eerily empty and quiet now. The silence felt awkward, too awkward, and the girl couldn't help but let out a nervous giggle to fill the space.

Brie listened closely to what her friend said and her reactions when she told her about the sweet details. Daiya was a true gossip girl when it all came around, and it was fun listening to her story about this first time of hers.

"Somehow, I knew it from the moment we stepped into the office and saw you... You should have seen yourself!" said Brie with a joyful chuckle as they reached the ground floor. "Looked like you just had been face to face with a gundark or something!"

"A gundark?!" Daiya put her hands against her cheeks, as if she could feel any residual heat still there from the moment.

"I was not expecting it from Ahxel either, and afterwards he apologized... It was so... cute? After this, who knows? I gave him my number..." she continued and got a second thought about the last part being that smart, but soon shook it off and looked around. "So, we better meet up with the others and get the kriff away from here..."

"Wait, what? Back the speeder up there, Brie, you gave him your number?!" Daiya squealed, happy that her hands were already on her face. She bounced a little on her toes. "You have to tell me if he calls, alright? And, and, oh I don't know, that's really brave of you. I don't think I would have had the guts to give it even if Jezper asked me."

"Heh, yeah I promise you’ll be the first one to know!" chuckled Brie in response to the younger teens unstoppable curiosity.

Now Daiya felt heat rising on her cheeks again, and she pulled away one of her hands to grasp Brie's. "You're right, let's find Zo'i and, uhh, that other girl, what's her name?"

"Oh... Umm... You mean Thalassa?" Brie replied, looking at Daiya.

"Thalassa, right." Daiya nodded, letting out a little giggle. "So find them both and get outta here before the mobsters realize our little ploy today." She clapped her free hand over her mouth as she giggled again a little harder. The euphoria of the past few moments was making it hard for her to think straight, and her mouth was blurting out more than usual.

"If they are as big of a crime family as the rumors says... He’ll find you in one way or the other... Oh, my... We really got ourselves tangled up in trouble, haven’t we?" Brie continued as the two continued their quick stroll through the halls to meet up with their friends and get the kriff out of the gundark’s den while they still had a chance.

That sobering thought put Daiya back on the right track. Side by side with Brie, the two of them set out to track down their other partners in crime, and get out before they found, or caused, any more trouble for the day.

— F I N —

Brie Jaxx Zo'i Prihm AMCO​

(Written jointly with the wonderful Brie Jaxx )