Responsibility

[Kaile Vera]

Kaile gave a slight half grin.

She was half tempted to tell him that if he wanted her company, all he had to do was ask. However, seeing how he was already slightly embarrassed to begin with, Kaile held her tongue. Bobo didn't seem to have too much of an issue with the noise, he was too busy enjoying sunning himself.

"I can help out." she told him, giving a small roll of her shoulder. Threading her fingers through her hair once more, she shot him a half grin. "Gotta pull my weight a bit at least while I'm here."

Glancing down, she looked at the half damp spots. Another shrug. Well they would dry.

[member="Asmus Janes"]

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

His grin was sheepish, but entirely real. "You'll regret it when you realise how many containers we need to check. But then two of us means twice as fast and then we can break off early," he said. He retracted his hand from Bobo who looked more put out at the attention coming to an end than he had been by the hairdryer.

"Music box is in the bridge!" he said suddenly. "We'll go fetch it!" he said as he turned to head out if the cabin. Get the work done, have some dinner and maybe grab a bottle of wine and head back to the room. Sometimes Asmus was complicated sometimes he was very simple.

 

[Kaile Vera]

"Okay." Kaile would chuckle out, watching him bounce back effortlessly into a cheerful mood. It was an endearing trait. "I can meet you down there." she told him, turning over to Bobo.

"Hey there, think you'll be okay?" He merely blinked at her once, before settling back down to enjoy his time off sans the hum of the blow dryer.

Again, her fingers couldn't seem to stop playing with her hair. It was nice and all, she thought to herself, bringing a lock of it up to brush right under her nose. The soft tendril grazed over her sensitive lips and brought with it the lingering fragrance of the shampoo.

Seemed like a lot of trouble for it, but she had to admit, it did feel fantastic. Her scalp was still even a bit tingly from the earlier massage and the heat of the blow dryer.

"Hmm..." she wondered, before giving Bobo a slight caress over the crown of his head. "I'll be back later. Don't forget to get into your tube." a pause and a wag. "And don't go wandering off!"

A half step back and she spun on her heel. Okay... so.. cargo bay right?

Hmm, she mused stepping out of the cabin. If I remember correctly.. up and right?

[member="Asmus Janes"]

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Asmus strode boldly into the cockpit where Kairon had his nose in a book. He headed to the console where he'd tucked the little cuboid speaker and put it in a pocket.

"Alrigh'" Kairon grunted.

"Yup."

"Were you...washing each other's hair?" Kairon asked. There was a twinkle in his eyes that Kaile would have found all too familiar.

Asmus gave a nod. Kairon snorted.

"Such a girl's blouse," Kairon chuckled. Asmus shook his head as he wandered back off towards the cargo bay to find Kaile.



Sliding open the door, he revealing a bay that was packed with cargo pods of all shapes and sizes. A mixed cargo and each pod under different environmental conditions. A tricky cargo, but a legal and financially rewarding one. A good cover for the other item they'd already handed over too.

Asmus placed the speaker on a tall container and handed Kaile a datapad. "So if I read out each container number you can tell me which setting it's supposed to be on. If I say it is just check it off the list. Simple. Boring. But I've also hooked the datapad up to the music bank and the speaker so we can alternate songs. That alright?" he asked.

https://youtu.be/YFSoXOzVzmU

 

[Kaile Vera]

Tucking the stray strands of her hair behind her ears was a bit more difficult now, but Kaile did her best as she gave [member="Asmus Janes"] a nod.

"Okay," There were several rows of environmental pods, many of which were set to different settings depending on just what was in it. The Lorrdian herself had no clue, but she got the general gist of it on how it worked.

"Start on this row?" she would ask him, glancing over her shoulder as she took a few steps ahead. She gave a slide and a stop of her feet, in front of environmental pod Aurek - One.

Not too complicated.

Just as she did so, the first few beats of the song came on. It resonated in the large cargo hold, giving quite a surprising bit of acoustics.

[ Sonny signed his name up for tomorrow....]

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

He figured the system probably didn't warrant additional explanation, but it was a good excuse. Arms slid under hers to wrap around her waist and his chin nestled in the crook of her neck.

Standing behind her, cheek to cheek, he pointed out Aurek One. "Temperature, humidity, pressure. I'll also check each alarm and wireless network is running."

 

[Kaile Vera]

There was a slight widening in her eyes at the surprise embrace, but it was by no means unwanted. A subtle smile of pleasure softened her features, and her head gave a slight tilt to allow him a bit more room. His warmth permeated at her back, and the length of his inky hair tickled her cheek as much as her own. When he spoke, it sent little shivers as it resonated by the shell of her ear.

"Okay." for a moment, Kaile felt as if she kept on parroting herself so much today. Lots of 'okays'. Did that make her sound silly? A little bit off in the head?

"Temperature, humidity, and pressure." she gave a nod, feeling the brush of his smooth cheek.

"Reckon I'll head from this one all the way down then back."

[member="Asmus Janes"]

 

[Asmus Janes]

"Right then, we'll get this done in no time." For a moment he held on. He didn't want to let go. With a quiet sigh he turned in and placed a kiss on her neck just beneath her ear. It was very strange smelling his own conditioner on her hair. His arms slipped from her waist and he turned away.

Letting go lowered his spirits and a good bit of mind numbing checks did nothing to help. Grabbing another datapad he started on the adjacent row of containers. Kaile would hear his voice float across the deck, tuneful of not an exceptional singer.

"Then the nightmares come and you get blown away
And up in your room your walls are cold
You find your head is holding out
For the welcome of a better day

"Oh, don't forget to queue another song!" he called. Soon. Soon the work would be done and he'd get Kaile all to himself for a while. He tried not to imagine this time being finite. Another three whole days was like a short holiday, he told himself.

 

[Kaile Vera]

"Okay!"

Immediately Kaile gave a wince, giving a slight flinch as she mentally chided herself. I did it again! The whole thing with the okay! Her shoulders drooped and she gave a half spin, expelling a sigh. Her brown eyes managed to dart up towards the the datapad. Taking a few steps, she went on to select a few songs.

It was a quick selection, as Asmus would be waiting to tell her which container number first.

The last bits of the chorus were still underway, but soon enough the other three in queue would resonate within the cargo bay. Something, perky.

Spoiler: Playlist

https://youtu.be/NIGMUAMevH0

https://youtu.be/jJo0MT3wDBs

https://youtu.be/HQt6jIKNwgU

[member="Asmus Janes"]

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Had he done something to upset her? She was using that word a lot. Perhaps she was just being contemplative about what had happened in the last few hours. Worrying about things was new. He didn't like it. Still it was all kinds of exciting too. The track changed as he moved onto his first container. He slid open the control panel and touched the screen to bring it to life. "One twenty kay-pee-ay, twelve celsius, fifty percent," he mumbled to himself as he checked off the container on his list. Eugh, boring.

Still, very few people could remain down when ska was playing. Catching Kaile's eye he skanked all the way to the next container.

"You sure you need dropping at Denon this week?" he asked. "We'll be back in that sector next week!"

 

[Kaile Vera]

"It is good." Kaile called out back to [member="Asmus Janes"], relaying that the first pod was okay. She herself moved along to the next pod down the row. 123 KPI, 14 Celsius, Forty-Nine Percent.

In the mean time, the uplifting beat of the new song bringing a bit of a lighter note. At least until Asmus's question floated over to her. Glancing at the datapad, she gave a slight nervous bite of her lip.

"Yeah... I've a pick up there to meet up with." she told him, turning on the ball of her foot as she ambled off to the third pod. "Can't miss it."

Not with how she had to report to Retii...

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

"Okay!" Asmus called back. Feth it, I'm at it now! he silently chastised himself. His annoyed expression turned to mirth at that.

"That is a shame," he said, "never mind!" He concentrated on the next couple of containers, allowing the music to wash over him. Better to keep his mind off the tedium of the work at hand. He started to consider other things he wanted to discuss. It wouldn't be long before they were in that sector again. If he left her his contact details perhaps he could stop off on they way back through,

Not now, he decided. That subject could be broached tomorrow. "You've got pretty eclectic tastes!" he remarked.

 

[Kaile Vera]

A half smirk drew at him now starting the parroting. At least I'm not the only one.

A sideways glance over to [member="Asmus Janes"] 's would catch him mulling on things. He seemed a bit figgity, rocking on the balls of his feet. The music? Just then he mentioned about her varied taste on the subject.

"I've been around the 'verse a time or two. You pick up a few habits - songs included." she would elaborate, using her finger to place a check-mark on the following environmental pod. The next one, however, needed adjusting.

"This one a few degrees warmer." the Lorrdian told the scoundrel, giving a slight frown as she took a step closer. "Should I just adjust it?"

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

He didn't need to, but he took the opportunity to walk over to her and gently rest a hand in the small of her back. "Hmm," he said, making a show of checking the console. "That shouldn't really be off that far, it's way off the tolerances."

He checked the adjoining cargo containers, rubbing a hand over his chin thoughtfully. "Ah, I see," he said, pointing to the fact that the next container was touching it.

"Twins!" he called out at the top of his voice.

There was a loud clunking as the two robots approached. "Right," he said to Kaile. "They're a joint intelligence. If they're separated by more than ten metres or so they get a bit...stupid. So stay out of their way if that's the case."

"BOY," they said together.

"A-ha, it's Asmus."

"CAPTAIN REES PROGRAMMED US TO ONLY REFER TO YOU AS 'BOY'"

Asmus sighed, looking to Kaile out of the corner of his eye and laughing nervously. "Right well, these two containers are too different in temperature to be touching, can you separate them please?"

"YES THAT IS WITHIN OUR CAPABILITY."

"Separate them then," he sighed with a face-palm. "I wish we could afford a tractor beam instead of these old rust buckets." The two droids walked to either end of the container, lifted it a few inches from the ground and moving it just a short distance.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Kaile couldn't help the slight giggle at the Twins calling [member="Asmus Janes"] 's 'Boy'. She didn't need to glance over to him to realize that he was slightly embarrassed by it.

"They seem to have their humor meter set high." she'd joke, rocking on her feet as she upturned her face to look at him. His hand still sat at the small of her back. Seeing he was still a bit put off, she reached over with a finger to poke at his ribs.

"I think they do fine." she'd say, giving him a cheeky grin. "They just have a personality. Most of these old models tend to if they haven't been wiped." a thought came to her, "I think that makes them interestin', y'know." big brown eyes met green.

"Like that makes them unique. Might be thousands of the same models out there... but these are their own."

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

"You hear that lads? You're unique!"

"THE BOY SAYS WE'RE UNIQUE."

"HE'S TRYING TO BE FUNNY FOR THE FEMALE."

"AGREED."

"You know," Asmus said to Kaile. "They're a joint intelligence when this close, so when they talk to themselves they're just trying to be funny. Tell me more about this wiping?" he said, clearly enjoying the distraction.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Kaile brought her hand up to cover her mouth, her shoulders shaking momentarily. Humor would dance in her eyes, twinkling in growing mischief. The Twins shuffled along as she did so, moving the environmental pod about two dozen centimeters.

"It would wipe their entire memory banks." she'd explain, tucking a lock of hair behind her right ear. "But then they wouldn't be who they are now!" she'd add, grinning over at the twins.

"And I like them. They are funny." she'd add, flashing Asmus a grin. "Like you."

Well point for [member="Asmus Janes"] regardless. With another slight poke at his ribs, she nodded towards the other pods. "Come on... let's go through the rest."

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

"Alrigh', alright,'" he complained, but his eyes were smiling. Feeling a little more buoyed than he had been he meandered back over to his row of pods and continued as quickly as he could. Asmus didn't realise that it was partially because if the mental connection that touched new memories when Kaile tickled him.

The twins stomped back to their charging bay, recessed in the far wall. Looking at his list, Asmus ran through a quick mental check and wondered how he ever took more than two hours to get this done. Because I get bored and distracted and start looking at stuff on the 'net, he told himself. He attacked his line of cargo bays with renewed vigor.

 

[Kaile Vera]

The upbeat tune of the subsequent song was one of the more catchy songs the Lorrdian knew. It had that ability for the chorus to just come up out of no where, and before one knew it, they'd find themselves humming or singing along.

Much like Kaile.

"I had visions, I was in them; I was looking into the mirror..." again with the light sway as she went about checking the following pod. Thankfully this one didn't deviate from the standard. Brown eyes darted over as Asmus. She watched him with mild amusement, observing his renewed fervor to check the pods at a quicker pace.

He was a curious fellow, but she liked him.

I like him a lot.

[ Fingertips have memories, Mine can't forget the curves of your body...]

[member="Asmus Janes"]

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]
Lavender, music and Mai’s dreadful spiced chicken. These were the foundations upon which the trail of his memories were being laid. Perhaps when he heard these songs his mind would always be cast back to this time. Or maybe one day Kaile would have to remind him and they'd realise a different selections of the songs played had stuck for each of them.

The last lyric was a stark reminder of Asmus that he touch had a memory too. He looked over his shoulder, eyes running the length of her body. He sighed softly. She caught his gaze and his head snapped back to the container in front of him.

“Right, four out of twenty for me down. The exciting life of a-family-of-honest-traders-who-definitely-didnt-steal-this-ship!”