Take Off The Mask

[Danger Arceneau]

“I wouldn’t doubt it.” Danger would murmur to her husband, her arm wrapped around his waist while the other would help ease him to his feet. A frown came to her, concern washing over her features.

“I’ll called to get a hover chair for you.” She told him, already deciding that they will need to make sure that he didn’t strain his knee any further. By now it had some swelling to it, and she didn’t have to be no medic to discern it was far worse for the wear.

“With it swoll up how it is, wouldn’t doubt that you’ll just plumb collapse if’n you put more weight to it.” She told him.

“I can get Myra so she don’t spook.” A small beep would indicate that the med request she put in had arrived.

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

Alric raised an incredulous eyebrow. "How old do you think I am?"

A hoverchair?

His leg might have been bad, but it wasn't like they were going to be running a marathon. He would have been fine getting another cane or simply having something to lean on, he didn't need a hoverchair to move around. The idea stung a bit. He knew this limitations well enough and the Titan thought that he could at least make it to their suite here on Etti. A frown pulled on his lips as he shook his head at Danger. HIs leg hurt but he could still hurt, especially if he had something to lean on.

"I'll be fine." He told Danger, not entirely sure if that was actually true. "I don't need a hoverchair."

Plus, he didn't want to scare Myra by making her think that he had hurt himself saving her.

He knew how children thought, he knew that the girl was likely already on the edge of emotion and Alric didn't want to be the thing that pushed her over the top. The little girl had spoken a single word, hadn't said a single thing, but it was obvious that she at least felt safe around them.

Alric wasn't about that change that.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]


The ferocity in Danger's eyes said it all. There was no arguing with her here.

"No." she said firmly, helping him along. "You need a hoverchair." he could not put his weight on his knee for too long, and with the way Myra desired to always have some measure of contact, Danger could not carry them both. Gone were the days where she could do that across the Tatooine desert.

"You are hurt Alric," her voice softened a bit. "Don't be fool." she told him, just as the sounds of the approaching droid assistants came in with a hover chair. Certainly one of the more comfortable models, with a setting to allow him to brace his knee up so there wasn't any undue pressure.

"Come now," she encouraged him, the redhead moving forward as the hoverchair came to a small stop beside them. "Let's get you settled so I can get Myra."

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

He let out a loud sigh. There was a tell that Danger got sometimes, when she was really determined. Alric had seen it plenty of times before of course, and this time it was the same. He frowned for a moment then cast a glance towards Myra laying on the couch. She was still asleep now, not aware of anything around her.

"Alright." Alric said quietly. "Let me go inside first and get settled, then bring Myra."

The Titan shook his head slightly then explained to his wife. "She's already lost so much, I don't want her blaming herself for me getting hurt."

A short medical checkup was one thing, a hoverchair?

Even a child good tell that something was wrong.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

Danger knew that the Tetan wasn’t trying to be stubborn; well he was to a degree but it wasn’t meant in malice nor to be troublesome. The hours spent in hyperspace brought to the surface a facet of Alric Danger had not seen personally before. He slipped easily into that protective parent type role that she’d missed during the first few years of the twins lives.

One could see his experience in interacting with younglings; how he took care of Myra’s concerns and cries. How he provided her support. A natural it would seem, after raising two daughters.

“Alright.” Danger would agree, acquiescing for a compromise. “But if you hurt yourself more on the way, I’ll need you on it for your own good. At least until we see what the doctor’s diagnosis is.”

“Let’s get you settled, and I’ll come get her.” Etti VI had a wealth of medical facilities, and she was sure that they could get adequate care here. While Alric and Myra were attended to, she could discuss more in length with the Eve Foundation. Perhaps comm Amore.

There was still much to be done.

“Lean on me, I got you.” She murmured, the words echoing what she had told him decades before despite the fact that she also was sore and weary. Yet the woman was as stubborn as he.

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

As soon as they reached the bottom of the ramp Alric gently nudged Danger. He of course appreciated that she wanted to help, and he recognized the concern and love in her eye, but right now Alric knew that there was someone else on the ship who needed that concern much more than he did. Myra was still asleep on the couch, but the idea of her waking up alone and without either him or Danger there was enough for Alric to reach up and grab the edge of the hydraulics that lifted and folded down the ramp of the ship. He steadied himself upon it then kissed Danger's forehead.

"Go back to Myra." Alric said quietly.

He wasn't worried about himself.

Not right now anyway. "I can make it there on my own."

Well...not entirely on his own. One of the dock workers walked by without a care in the world, his eyes set forward as though he intended on going somewhere. Alric looked down at Danger and quirked a small smile at her, his eyes shifting from her towards him. His lips formed together, and then suddenly there was a sudden and sharp exhale of breath. A loud shriek like whistle exited his lip, loud enough that it caught the mans attention. The worker turned towards him, surprise on his face.

"Hey buddy, help me out would you?" Alric pointed to his bum leg. "Need to get inside."

The man looked confused for a moment, looking at Danger who gave him a flat stare that gave him little option. After a second of deliberation the young man wandered over to the two corporate Titans.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

Her slight stern gaze faded as the young man came over to aide Alric. She pressed a kiss against his cheek.

"I'll get her." she promised, the young man Alric had whistled to gain his attention coming to a stop beside him. He wore a short cap upon his blonde head, and had a hooked nose as if it had seen a scuff or two.

"Ma'am." he said in greeting, "Sir." there was a bit of a sheepish expression to his face. He immediately came to help the elder Tetan to use his body to brace against.

"Please be careful with his knee," Danger would murmur, bright green eyes lifting. "I leave him to your good hands." she'd state, her hand passing in a caress down Alric's back.

There was worry in her expression as she saw the Tetan adjust to find his bearings against the younger man. A slight furrow of her brow rose, tendrils of silver streaked auburn lightly brushing her cheek. There was no time to mull on it some more, there was Myra to attend to.

Danger offered Alric a parting smile. Then, with a few backward steps, returned into the ship. Myra was still asleep upon the couch, curled up under the blanket. It was a blessing that she had not awoken. Coming to a slow halt beside the wide acceleration couch, Danger gave a sigh. Even amidst that blanket, the youngling seemed to be dwarfed by the thick fabric.

She required food. Adequate nutrition. That wasn't even including the emotional and mental support the child would need. Having to face a horde and losing their parents in such a violent and horrid fashion was sure to leave deep scars.

Bending low, Danger carefully coo'd in a soft call, "Sweetheart?" a hand would gingerly brush down one scrawny shoulder over the blanket. A small frown would give way to a start, the child's confused expression and growing alarm rising as she awoke.

"Shuuush... it's okay.. hey... I'm here." she assured her, holding out her arms. "Come on sugar, I got you."

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

The young man was kind enough to let Alric lean on him, in fact, the he very nearly carried Alric into the building. There was a look of determination on the boys face, there were no questions asked and no judgement from him. Alric liked that.

There weren't many people his age that actually knew when to shuttup and just do as they were told. Maybe that was just cynicism, but Alric found that most young people generally tended to be full of questions and didn't know when to shut up. The Titan appreciated it when he finally found someone that knew a little quiet went a long way. The two of them made their way into the building, Alric limping along and half clinging to the young man was they ventured into one of turbo-lift.

"So." Alric asked as the button heading towards the suite was pressed. "What's your name?"

"Bly, Sir."

The former Titan raised an eyebrow. Bly? That wasn't really a long name, in fact it was actually kind of short. A shrug half rolled over his shoulders. "Nice to meet you Bly."

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

The short gasp of alarm turned into a whimper. Two tiny arms went wrapping desperately around Danger's shoulders, clinging as tight as she could. Her heart broke, and despite the weary bones, drew the youngling up into her arms. Myra burrowed her face against the crook of Danger's neck, and her tiny legs went wrapping around her waist, much like a Kowaitan monkey lizard attempting to latch on.

Her left arm steadied the child by holding her in place just under the curve of her bottom, while her right hand gently curved around to cup the back of Myra's head. There was a tremble to her limbs; Myra was still very much in shock. Once she noticed that Alric wasn't around, she became agitated again, tiny whimpers mewling at the back of her throat.

"It's okay, it's fine sugar." Danger would assure her, "He's alright, just moving on ahead. You'll see." her voice would murmur beside the youngling's ear. While Myra would quiet down a bit, she didn't quite believe it. Not until she saw him with her own eyes.

"Come on, I'll take you to him." she told her, giving Myra's body a small lift. "We are just going for a little walk into my house. Reckon it is pretty huge. Want to see it?"

Danger would start a conversation, trying to distract the child as she slowly ambled back towards the exit.

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

"Ugh." Alric said as he flopped himself down onto a comfortable plush Sofa, Bly making sure that the old man didn't hurt himself more than he already had. The Titan let out another groan, and then finally managed to lift his leg onto a comfortable ottoman. Bly hung around for a moment, watching Alric as he settled into place and ensuring that he made himself at home. There was a slight pause, and then finally the old man turned to look up at his younger companion.

"Thank you." It was a simple gesture, but the young man seemed to appreciate it. "As a reward I'll introduce you to one of my daughters."

Bly instantly turned beet red causing Alric to burst out into laughter.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

"You trying' to pull arrange marriages already, Alric?"

Danger's voice would coo with mild amusement over the brown crown of Myra's head. The duo would enter the living area, walking slowly with a rather pale faced youngling clinging to her.

"See, sweetie.. he's right there." The grip around her neck would not ease. In fact, she was still quite unsettled, you could tell just by the expression of anxiety that would flow over her face.

"How about we sit you next to him and you can hold his hand, hmm?" seeing how quick she'd been to latch to Alric, Danger thought it best. In the back of her mind, there was a bit of jealousy at how easy the Tetan had managed to capture the younglings' affection. However, that quickly was shoved to the side. That wasn't at all appropriate considering the situation, but Danger could understand that she was only human. She had her flaws and children, well ... she was a bit sensitive around them.

Myra needed support and Alric already had the experience with the twins. It made sense that the youngling would latch onto him. They had to consider what would be best for her.

"Here we go." Danger would say, whispering along the younglin's ear as she carefully set her down beside Alric.

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

"Not at all." Alric said with a small smile, wrapping his arm around Myra as she came to sit beside him, he looked at her for a moment then back up at Bly. "Thank you again, Bly. You can head out for now."

The Tetan was sure that the young man would of course stay in the building, if only because that was his job, but there wasn't any need for him to be there right now. A proper doctor would come soon, as arranged by Danger, and then they could see about getting his knee looked at. For now however Alric didn't want Myra to be around anyone that she didn't need to be. The situation was still entirely too precarious and things would be better if they stabilized her environment.

They could at least do that.

Bly nodded his head, said a short word of thanks then left. The three of them remained there, Myra huddling close to Alric and Danger standing above them. Alric looked up at her, pain in his eyes, not from his leg, but from thoughts of what could have been, what had happened to this little girl. He frowned for a moment, then reached up to grab his wife's arm.

With a slight tug Alric pulled at Danger, gently prodding her to take a seat. The Trade Queen placed herself down next to Myra, Alric's arm snaking around the little girl between them and then Danger herself. He pulled both of them close, with Danger half enveloping the little girl as Alric he;d them both in a comforting embrace.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]


That curling embrace was all that Danger needed to finally relax. A shuddered sigh came rushing from her mouth, and her arms joined the embrace as her arm went looping over Alric and Myra's waist. She brought her cheek to rest against his chest, Myra joining the other. She had yet to utter a word, but Danger wasn't one to push nor was Alric. With everything that had occurred, it was understandable.

The faint lub-dub of Alric's heartbeat was a comforting sound, resonating under her cheek and ear that was pressed against his chest. Lids fell shut, and for the moment, she relaxed. To be honest, while there was still plenty to do and people to see, this, just this, was all she wanted right now. To be in Alric's arms and hold Myra.

Danger didn't know what the future held, but she knew that Alric and she would do what was best. For now, simply resting here, was enough.

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

Predictably the trio quickly found themselves dozing off. It wasn't intentional, at least not on Alric's part, but he was so tired, so worn out. He didn't seen it coming, didn't even really think about it, but as his arm tugged Danger closed and his head gently leaned against her his head tilted back and his eyes. Thoughts quickly found themselves wandering from his mind, and eventually the drifted off into slumber. Myra followed him shortly, still worn out and completely run ragged by her experiences on Dromund Kaas.

And Danger?

Well, even Danger couldn't resist the tide of sleep that fell upon her with Alric and Myra's lights out.

Each of them drifted off into slumber, Alric holding them together in an unconscious embrace. The Titan had no idea how much time went by, how long they slept, but for a time at least everything else was forgotten. The horrors of what they had seen, the pain in his knees, the daunting task that lay ahead of them. For a a few hours at least Alric and Danger found themselves some rest, Myra finding safety and comfort between the two corporate Titan.

Perhaps that was all they could do, perhaps it was for the best.

What more could one ask?

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

A low whimper would stir against Alric's side.

Tiny arms would tighten against his torso, young Myra slightly stirring from her slumber. There was no night terror, but the little girl was sensitive to sounds. A buzz from the door would be what woke her. Barely blinking the sleep from her eyes, Myra clutched the Tetan tightly. The temptation to rub the sleepies from her eyes was high, but she didn't want to rub them. It would cover her eyes and she wanted to be aware of where everything is at. It was a lingering effect of the fight or flight syndrome and the lingering PTSD.

The buzz would sound again. It was the doctor, coming to make a house call since Alric did not make it to his appointment Danger had called in. Not willing to take the chance that perhaps it may be urgent, he'd come to Danger's apartment to personally check himself.

It would appear that Alric was not getting out of his hoverchair just yet.

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

Alric woke up before Danger, he always did, though this time Myra had beaten him to being first. She squirmed slightly against him, trying to get his attention so that he could go get the buzzing. He looked down at the little girl, offering her a small smile as her eyes followed him in a slight bit of wondering. He made a small motion with his hand quieting any concern that she might have had and gesturing for her to move a cbit closer to Danger and wake her up.

Tiny hands gave Danger a gentle nudge. "Danger."

He would have left her sleep, but...well getting up didn't seem entirely possible at the moment. A good amount of pain pulled through his propped up knee, and he could feel the joint was as swollen as could be. His head shook slightly as he dispelled the pain.

"Honey." His wife made a small murmur, she had been tired. "There's someone at the door."

Alric of course had a pretty good idea of who it could be, but it wasn't like he could check.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

"Hmm?" a rather sleepy noise came from the woman. There was a furrow to her brow, and she gave a slight grimace as light filtered through the thin slits of her eyes.

The buzzer rang again, awakening her further. Danger was typically the last to wake up, and this was no different. Blinking, Danger slowly drew up. Her hair was mused, half sticking up. A hand went threading through her hair, pushing the strands away from her face.

"That must be the doctor." she told him. A faint smile shone at Alric's direction, panning over to Myra right after. "I'll be back." she told them, getting to her feet.

The rest had done her good. Rubbing the back of her neck, she ambled on over towards the door. "Do you want anything to drink?"

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

He grumbled something before actually giving her an answer. The old man still wasn't too keen on seeing a doctor, mostly because they tended to poke and prod well beyond what he was comfortable with, that was why he usually settled for seeing Rigor, the medical droid turned Soldier. That might have seemed odd, but Rigor was straightforward, only as intrusive as he needed to be, and that was that. Sure he could use a lesson in bed side manner, but pound for pound he was the most knowledgeable thing Alric had ever met.

That said something.

His gaze casts towards Myra who was picking up on some of the discomfort that Alric felt towards the doctor. He smiled at her then looked back at Danger. He would need to keep her busy while the doctor inspected his knee, give her something to do. "Hot chocolate I think."

Alric said the words and saw a bit of excitement behind Myra's normally nervous gaze.

"Would you like some?" He asked the question carefully, his voice soft. The little girl looked up and gave him a very slow nod. "Why don't you go help? I don't think she can handle it on her own."

Myra gave him a moment of consideration, then slowly nodded again. She slid from her place on the couch and landed on her feet, quickly rushing over to Danger as if the gap between Alric and his Wife was populated with monsters.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

Seeing Myra hop off the couch and run towards her made Danger catch her breath. There was a pang in her heart, seeing that little girl run towards her, tiny hand extended to capture her own. It made a knot grow in her throat.

It made her remember.

“You like hot chocolate, honey?” Danger would coo, wrapping her larger hand around Myra’s, her fingers curling around the younglings. The only other child that ever really paid Danger any mind was [member="Makai Dashiell"]. That little boy had stolen her heart years ago, and he would likely continue to claim it as the years progressed. He was a charming little man, and in that empty wake where the motherless Queen of Trade had no one to shower affection to, he’d taken comfortable vicinity.

Myra gave a nod of her head, those large grey eyes of hers practically dwarfing the rest of her oval face. “We’ll make you some. “Danger assured her, giving her hand a gentle pat with her left hand. “We just gotta go check to see whose come a callin’.”

Much as she’d anticipated, Doctor Yund stood on the other side of their apartment’s entrance.

“Mrs. Arceneau.” His garbled voice would bubble forth. He was an older human male, well respected within Etti VI for his practice. Despite much progress in the area, there was still a bit of a humancentric tendency throughout the former Corporate Sector Authority territory. One that could be discerned by the high percentage of humans dominating professional fields.

Myra sought to keep herself out of sight, and she would hover behind Danger, her arms clinging round her hips to hold on tightly. Grey eyes barely peeked over one round him, not quite sure what to make of the newcomer.

“Doctor Yund, thank you for comin’.” Danger would say, shaking his hand and ushering him inside. “You’ll find him in the living room, right on the couch.”

“Thank you, “ he told her, already moving past the Queen of Trade to find his patient.

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

Alric of course had met Doctor Yund before, the man having treated his knee and a few other injuries that the Titan had sustained. He stretched for a moment, shifting slightly so that he could further pull himself up on the sofa. He watched Myra and Danger go, his wife giving him a stern look that told of an order to cooperate with everything that the doctor said. A few moments later Doctor Yund appeared at Alric's side a doctor bag coming to rest beside the old Tetan.

"Well Mr. Kuhn, here we are again."

Alric gave the man a flat stare. "I can't help it doc, trouble seems to find me."

The other man rolled his eyes, then opened up the bag.

The next few moments were filled with an odd sort of activity, Doctor Yund cutting open Alric's pants and removing the section that had been trapping his swollen knee. The doctor made a noise of surprise as he saw the broken join, how swollen and red it had become. The Doctor looked up at the old man, shaking his head and retrieving a scanner form his bag. A few minutes past, Alric simply sitting on the sofa while the doc did his work. He could hear Danger and Myra in the next room, the clattering of cups and Danger asking the little girl questions.

"Well."

The doctor began.

"You knee is completely shot."