Take Off The Mask

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

"This is one of the communal boats." He told her as they slowly moved away from the pier.

Most of the time boats just didn't move on their own obviously, but Vineta had only the best. The little ship they were on had tiny repulsors on both sides as well as underneath that helped it maneuver more easily when it was close to the docks. In truth the damn thing could drive itself.

"Vineta has tons of them." Alric half turned to her. "If you stay in one of the hotels, which pretty much everyone here has to, you can use these boats to get to and from the beach, take a boating day, stuff like that."

It was smart really, allowed everyone to get around without having to pay more money. "We're going to a small beach over...."

He put his hand over his eyes. "There."

Alric pointed to the far side of the lake.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

"So it is for the use of the guests?" Danger would echo. Sitting down, she gave Alric a half smile. The boat gave a small sway, prompting Danger to use her hand to hold herself level. Even if she had gone sailing with Makai and Judah, open water was still a little nerve-wracking for the Queen of Trade.

"It is nice." turning round, she let her gaze drift over the scenery as they began to pull away from the pier. "Myra would like it here." she added, thinking back on their adopted daughter. How was she doing today? Mentally, Danger had to remind herself that things would be okay for the little girl. Rose would ensure that nothing would happen and if something came up, she would call them directly.

"Trying to get me to yourself then?" an arch of her brow rose behind her large sunglasses, humor drifting over her face.

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

He had no doubt that their daughter would enjoy Vineta. Though it wasn't really a place for families, there was still plenty for everyone to do and some parents did bring their kids along with them. Mostly though it was just adults, something that Alric didnt really think about all that much. This place had been made for a purpose, and it filled that purpose very well.

”Of course.” Alric said with a simple smiled.

That had really been the point of this entire trip in the first place. He wanted to be alone with his wife, he wanted to spend time with her and he wanted to just have those little moment they had before Myra came into their lives. He wouldn't trade his daughter for anything at all, but he still missed the times when it was just him and Danger.

No one could blame him for that.

”Im hoping the beach will remind you of Tatooine.” He said half in jest. ”So you can jump and ravage me in the dunes.”

Another smirk.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

That prompted a bark of laughter, Danger tipping her sunglasses down her nose so the sparkle of green eyes shone over at him.

"So I can jump and ravage you on the dunes?" well that certainly painted an interesting little scenario, one that Danger found rather appealing. However, "Now that's a first. Didn't think that Tatooine would do it for you."

It was a tease. Decades back, Tatooine hadn't been the favored spot for the Tetan to visit. However, since his return, he had made a point of going there simply because Danger was there. The ring in her hand was an artist testament at that he understood what Tatooine meant to her. What it would mean for her to have the Twin Suns at her hand, a little part of her home, with her at all times.

"However...I might be so inclined... given the right bait."

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

"Well no, the Tatooine does it for you." He said with a smile.

The beaches weren't exactly like her homeland, but close enough to feel the sand between her toes. Borleias was a bit more unique when it came to sand, mainly because its beaches were composed of a purewhite sand that was supposedly bleached from thousands of years of perfect sun.

Alric didn't quite believe that of course, mostly because it was highly unscientific, but it was a nice story to put on tourist advertisements.

"The trip is the bait, My love." Alric turned away from the boats controls. "That and you know..."

He gestured to himself. "All of this."

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

Alright, when he put it that way, Danger couldn't help herself. She understood it. Why they were here. Why they were getting away. Doing what they could to be able to reconnect, be one with each other.

Ever so carefully - mindful that they were still on a boat and the swaying of the water could make her lose her balance - the woman brought her hand up to take off her sunglasses. It was bright out, but nothing compared to the intensity of the Twin Suns.

"All of that, eh?" she began to drawl out, a bit of the Danger before the worries of Myra made her a mite bit more stressed. Coming to her feet, she gently padded her way over to her husband. When she was but a foot away, her hands went reaching out, snaking to wrap around his waist.

"Well, I reckon this is starting to sound like I'm getting all that I'm wanting. You might want to get something out of it as well."

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

He smiled.

"Well I better." He gestured around them. "This place wasn't cheap."

The implication of course was that Alric had built Vineta exactly with this future in mind, intending to eventually bring Danger here for a vacation. Perhaps that was even partly true, he did always intend to bring Danger to pretty much anything he constructed. A smile painted on his lips as he wrapped his arms around her.

He pressed a gentle kiss against her nose. "Don't hold me too tight, I still need to drive the boat."

Alric nuzzled her for a moment, content and at peace.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

Loosening her hold, Danger gave a small laugh, the vibration of the jolly shake of her bosom and shoulders lightly brushing against Alric's chest.

"Yes, well, I reckon we don't want you to capsize the boat." indeed, especially since Danger still didn't know how to swim. While some might make crude jokes that she was bound to float, the woman still wasn't comfortable over open water. Thankfully, this wasn't out in the open ocean and instead an enclosed body of water.

The further along they went, the more the pair would be able to smell the moist air. The wind picked up, sending Danger's hair dancing lightly in the wind.

"It's hard to simply put my mind to rest," she admitted, her green eyes drifting around the beautiful scenery. "This does help a bit though," she said, smiling out at him.

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

The boat continued to chug along, and Alric made sure that they stayed close enough to the coastline.

"I know." He told her simply. The idea that they could ever forget about Myra was of course absolutely ludicrous. They loved their daughter dearly and to them she was everything, but it was good to get away now and again, good to simply enjoy their lives.

"Don't worry about Myra." He told Danger. "I'm sure she's having more fun than we are."

By now rose had probably stuffed the girl with more candy than one could ever even dream of. They would probably have to go to the dentist eventually, something that he was sure wouldn't be all that easy for the little girl. He frowned for a moment, then gently grabbed the controls as they came closer to the beach.

"We're gonna have to get a little wet." He told Danger as the water became more and more shallow and the beach drew closer.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

Thinking about Myra always had a two fold effect. There was the love of the little girl along with the worry. She had seen so much in her young life and Danger had so much love to give to a child that it only enhanced the emotions involved. Myra would be doing well with Rose, she had to tell herself that. Danger knew it, but the mind and the heart were always constantly plaguing itself with ifs and maybes.

At the mention of getting a little wet, Danger arched a brow, "So fast already?" a trite play on words but it prompted a half chuckle. On a more serious note, the woman gave a glance down along the side of the boat. Already the water was shallower, lighter in color. There were a few colorful fish that she could pick upon, swimming along. Coral as well as a sandy bank. Recalling how she almost fell over on Dac, Danger gave a small frown.

"I'm going to fall on my ass, i bet."

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

Eventually they came to a stop just a few feet away from the beach.

Luckily for Danger the boat's keel was actually pretty small, meaning they were more than able to move closer to the beach. The boats had been designed that way of course, traveling across the small expanse of the lake like sea rather than the ocean waves. For a moment Alric messed with the controls, anchoring the ship with the repulsors and then quickly walking to the end of the boat itself. He slowly rolled up his pants, and then stepped on the small ladder.

He climbed up and over, landing in the water with a small splash. "Your ass is only going where I say today."

Alric said with a smirk.

"Come on." The Tetan offered Danger his hand.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

"You're only saying such things because you just want to grab it!" Danger called out behind the Tetan, placing her small hand within his larger one. There was a bit of a rock of the boat as the pair carefully stepped out onto the water. Alric spread his legs a bit, the water already saturating his clothing below the calves. Meanwhile, Danger deliberately attempted to wiggle her way in the sand without falling completely overboard.

Yet as the Tetan had promised, her ass didn't go anywhere he had not wanted it to.

Feet first and Danger sank into the water. Turning over her shoulder, she peered back at the boat. Alric had set the anchor, but it didn't stop Danger from asking.

"Sure that will stay put?" the last thing they needed was to be stranded.

Actually, Alric likely would like that.

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

"It's anchored, and repulsors keep it in place." He explained as his hand slowly came up to grasp her rear. "And I can grab it all I want."

His fingers squeezed, and then he gently urged her towards the land. "Let's get on the beach."

Alric had never actually made it this far in Vineta, these beaches were something he himself had never visited. Supposedly the sand was so fine and high quality that it was almost like water itself. The Tetan wasn't entirely sure if he believed that, but he could already see the bright white of the beach from where they were now.

It was spectacular in it's own way.

Slowly the couple wandered through the water, Danger's dress getting a bit wet and Alric's rolled up pants joining it. Soon enough however they managed to escape the gentle lapping waves.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

The rest of the day was spent in simple harmony. The kind that been months since either had really truly felt. It wasn't that they didn't enjoy having Myra back in their lives; it was that the complication of her heath and the ongoing mystery on what her sickness truly was that made an an emotional battle as well. Hand in hand, Danger used the quiet time of them both ambling to gather her thoughts. Every now and then they'd come to a pause, with the Queen of Trade reaching up close to simply hold Alric in her arms.

Such a strange thing their lives. Every chapter had been their own version of turbulent affairs. What would happen next? What would follow in the next chapter? It was all up in the air, but for now, Danger knew that simply having this time was a comfort. A reconnection one would say with Alric. They only had a few days here, but they would be able to spend them to the point on being able to simply just breathe.

It was all honestly Danger could hope for or wish to be.

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

Age was supposed to be something that weighed heavily upon oneself, the thing that kept you down when you'd gone in no other direction but up.

Alric didn't find that to be true.

Sure his bones ached every now and again, his knee hurt, and the muscles in his body protested against him running any further than a few hundred meters, but all in all things were good. He was a wealthy man, he had three beautiful daughters, and the most loving wife anyone could ask for. True there were troubles every now and again, Lily's odd departures from reality, Rose's absence, and Myra's illness, but by and large everything was...okay.

That was really what mattered. Everyone was safe, everyone was surviving, and everyone loved each other. Alric really couldn't have asked for more if he tried, at least not really, and as he sat on the small balcony attached to their main apartment in the farm he couldn't help but muse on the past. He thought about his first trip to Tatooine, the founding of Titan Industries, even Siliara, everything that had brought him here. He smiled, his eyes drifting over the vast expanse of the land he owned.

Briefly he wondered what life would have been like had he been a simple farmer instead of the man he was now.

He chuckled quietly to himself at the thought. "Nah, too lazy."

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]


“What you chuckling about,” the soft drawl of Danger’s voice went bathing over the Tetan, twin arms coming round to loop around his shoulders. The faint scent of lemonbalm soap and the tickle of strands of hairs caught along an angular stubble covered cheek. Danger gave Alric a small nuzzle, taking in a deep breath.

They had much going on but at the very least Myra was doing better. The care and investment they made in Arkuhn had bore fruit, allowing them a method to finally figure out what was going on with the little cure. A victim of a rare disease for sure, but curable. Now Arkuhn’s research and growing technology was moving forward to aide others much like Myra. It was a small thing they could do with the vast wealth they had to pay their good fortune forward.

“Credit for your thoughts?” Danger had a few business meetings to go to, but it was nice to be able to cuddle with Alric now and then. However, how was the Tetan going to keep himself busy now a days when she went off to meetings?

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

"I was thinking about being a farmer." He told her quietly.

The idea was probably as ridiculous to Danger as it ever could be. She had known him longer than anyone, and...well he'd never really put up the front of a farmer. From the day they had met each other he had been a fast moving, hard working, but aristocratic business man. Imagining him as anything else was likely to send her into a fit of giggles.

"I think I would've been decent at it." Alric told her with a smile. "At least the end of the day part."

He smiled. "Sitting on the porch, holding a drinking and watching the sunset."

That was at the very least something he could get behind. It wasn't all that different from what he did now. With the kids all active, healthy, and moving around Alric had plenty of time. Plus with Danger always on her meetings the Tetan often had to find ways to entertain himself. Sometimes that meant holo-games, sometimes that meant movie marathons, and once or twice he'd even tried to take up various hobbies like wood carving and knitting.

Danger didn't know about the latter though.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

Now that peeked Danger’s interest and had her swivel her emerald gaze to peer at her husband. The expression of her face was of one of amused incredulity. Did he really say he wanted to be a farmer? That was such a stretch from the man that has crossed the threshold of her VIP suite at the bazaar over twenty years ago.

“Has the time at the farm gone to your head?” She inquired with a tease, chuckling at the thought of Alric trudging through dirt and rows of fields to set down seeds. Unless he meant like raising Nerfs?

“What you gonna do? Be a nerf herder?”

Now that did make her laugh.

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

”I could be.” Alric claimed with a small smile.

The idea was somewhat appealing in truth, going out every day, knowing exactly what you were going to do. It was simple, though then again his life was nothing but simple right now. He frowned for just a brief moment, glancing at Danger.

”It would have been a lot simpler.” He told her with a smile. ”We could've met through an ATC expo.”

He smirked and gently poked her side. ”Handsome farmers are your thing right?

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

At that, Danger couldn't help but reach out to plant another kiss upon the Tetan's lips. The way he had said it was adorable and charming all the same. Didn't matter what age he was, that little boy smile was as addicting as i was charming. And he knew it.

"Mm... I don't know. Reckon handsome farmers were not really in my social circle. I fluttered from one event to the next early on the Southern Systems Business Bazaar's days. " she had. Danger was a workaholic. Even now, it was difficult to really let go. She had a strong desire to feel productive. Back then, it had been worse. She had a goal. A plan. To make Arceneau Trade a household galactic name. It took work, a lot of hard work ,to get there, but now here she was.

She did all she had aspired to and more. Her Daddy would be proud.

"Well we already go the Farm... aint' like you cant go use some of the land there to fulfill your fancy. "