Teach Me To Fly

[Kohai Drenn]

"Oh yeah?" Kohai had never known Corvetta to just sit down and read for pleasure, at least not in her presence. It wasn't exactly surprising that the young pilot followed the ebb and flow of politics and galactic news, however, it was important to keep track of who was currently in charge, and what parties were fighting each other. On the one hand, that was where the work was for smugglers and all the rest of their kind. The fact that Corvetta's cousin was apparently some big Republic honcho was also definitely part of it. "That's actually kinda perfect for you."

"I read a lot of manuals, just to kinda expand my expertise, but I really love adventure stories..." Kohai had always been more partial to stories,tales of heroes and hardship in a galaxy not so different from their own, but where everything was a bit less complicated. It wasn't that the blond engineer didn't care about current events at all, but it was so much easier to keep her hands busy with some distant invasion or next door war wasn't bringing her spirits down. Galactic news hardly made a good guilty pleasure, she'd take her heroes any day. "Action, adventure, romance..."

A gloomy shadow cast over Kohai's usually bright face, then. "It makes me kinda sad, though..." Emerald eyes stared absently out into hyperspace, momentarily somewhere else entirely.

[member="Corvetta Salvo"]

 

[Corvetta Salvo]

"Oh," the colorful spacer uttered upon realization that it was not going to actually be abnormal to admit that she enjoyed a romance plot or two. "I like romances too." Now, some might call her type of stories more dreamy and cute than the elaborate and more mature sort, but Corvetta had no idea about these things. She hardly knew anything beyond the differences between boys and girls. Besides, all the innuendo she came across typically went right over her head like a certain YT-1300 blasting out of Mos Eisley.

"But why's it make you sad?" Corvy asked, though she felt like she knew the answer already. Loneliness was not something she was unfamiliar with, and despite what everyone thought about Corvetta's intelligence and what could honestly be said about her ignorance on certain subjects, she was not immune from a longing for something--rather, someone--more. "There a cat on your mind?"

[member="Kohai Drenn"]

 

[Kohai Drenn]

"...Cat?" With a blink, Kohai was back in the pilot's chair, Corvetta's familiar voice pulling her from her brief reverie. "O-oh no..." The young engineer brought a thumb up to her face, dragging it stealthily under her eye with an exaggerated stretch. "I'm fine." With a little sniffle, she turned a smile towards her pilot. "It's just... It feels like it's just us out here, you know?" As the last word left her lips, a nearly imperceptible quiver came to her lip.

Squirming in her borrowed seat, Kohai made herself busy examining the console before her, checking and rechecking systems in a familiar, redundant fashion. She had been thinking about this for a long time, but she wasn't sure she could make it through if she made looked up, even with Corvetta. "I mean we- we ship stuff around, right? The guys shoot, you fly, and I fix things. We make money and we keep moving, and we make money to keep moving." She wasn't so sure she was making any sense, biting her lip as she stared at her shaking hands. "...but everything's going crazy, isn't it?" She could still remember looking down from orbit as her home planet burned below her, just like so many other places.

Finally, she turned to catch her pilot's eye. "I know I'm talking a bunch of junk... but everything's so weird and complicated and scary..." Self conscious about her moist cheeks, Kohai turned back to look at the spiraling hyperspace tunnel enveloping the ship she called home.

"It's just..." It's lonely and terrifying and there are no happy endings to be found... "...sorry. I'm being a big ol' bummer, huh?"

[member="Corvetta Salvo"]

 

[Corvetta Salvo]

What Kohai brought up was not as simple as she had considered it might be. Her heavy stuff called for a dose of heavy stuff, and Corvetta tipped back her flask of alcohol once more to bear it--not out of indifference, but more to open herself up to the talk a little more. The problem was not that she did not understand, but that she understood too well. "It's been this way all my life," the pilot whispered, watching as her friend absently played with the control components a bit. "Though the wars are new to me too."

There was a trace of a shimmer emanating from beneath her buddy's blue eyes, and Corvetta could not maintain such a nonchalant, lounging pose any longer. Her boots dropped from the dash to the floor, and she swiveled her chair about to face her pilot-in-training with her bottle held out in offering. "Wait. No, no..." Best not to promote any addictions, as much as drinking might distract the lightweight from her troubles.

Weird and complicated and scary... She could certainly relate to that. Growing up was a struggle alright. "I know I'm weird, but I'm not that complicated," she joked--probably not at the best time. But Corvettas will be Corvettas, and sometimes they just say the most awkward things. Might as well go for the full leap, though. And so the brunette leaned over and wrapped her arms around her fellow smuggle buddy, moisture now streaming from her own eyes. This was what best friends were about, right? "Just keep crankin' with me, 'kay?"

She continued to whisper, never content with just being a little awkward. "Someday we'll find a couple cats and get matching houses on a beach place like Naboo 'cause you're frakkin' hot and I'm your cray chum you can introduce to some sucker." It was humorous and wishful thinking on Corvett'as part and a scenario she was hardly convinced of herself--but one could dream. "Sound like a plan?"

[member="Kohai Drenn"]

 

[Kohai Drenn]

"Sound like a plan?"

Resting her meager weight into Corvetta's embrace, Kohai closed her eyes, blocking out her tears with images of beaches and fancy complimentary drinks with her friend. It all seemed just a little too good to be true, being able to put everything well and truly behind her. With a muffled sniff, the galaxy's newest pilot's muffled voice vibrated against her favorite flygirl's shoulder.

"...don't like cats..." With one arm pinned to her side between them, Kohai awkwardly snaked her left arm across her body to wrap itself around her friend in an attempt at hug-reciprocation. "...and this is the point in any good novel where something bad happens. Expect the Sith fleet any moment..." It was actually a little different in the books she enjoyed, but there was no need to make this any more awkward than it had to be.

[member="Corvetta Salvo"]

 

[Corvetta Salvo]

"I'll get you a cat anyway." Corvetta giggled and gave her friend a tighter squeeze, now allowing the tears to really come even as she tried to shake it off with humor.

The situation was no longer what Corvetta would consider awkward, but it was glaringly apparent that neither of them really knew how to divulge their more concealed emotions with another person. She and Kohai had always been great friends since they met, but she supposed neither of them were able to give it that extra bit of heart. Corvy was half-drunk half the time, anyway. Maybe that was part of her problem. Or maybe it was the fact that usually she just felt... stupid. The ship--and more specifically, the cockpit--was her domain; it was where she felt smart and like she belonged.

While they were being uncomfortable, she might as well tell the truth she had been hiding, even if it meant suffering some embarrassment. But, then again, they were two friends crying on each other's shoulders right now. How much more embarrassing could things get? Maybe that was the whole point to being buddies. "I've got to tell you something, Koko," she whispered, chest vibrating rapidly in a strange combination of timidity and laughter. "I can't actually read."

[member="Kohai Drenn"]

 

[Kohai Drenn]

"I can't actually read."

Eyes widening a bit, Kohai's gaze focused more intently on her friend. "You... you can't?" The blonde wasn't really sure what she had been expecting, but in hindsight it probably shouldn't have been such a surprise. She found herself thinking back to various hints to this revelation. A non-committal remark here, a vague approval there. It certainly explained some of those misadventures back on Chandrila.

Kohai was just glad it wasn't bad news.

"Well, that's okay." An infectious grin pulling slowly across her face, the gears in the newly christened pilot's head were already turning. "I've just... I've just gotta teach you!" Her whole body turning forward, the usually shaky hands were brought in front of her face, uncharacteristically steady as she seemed to be looking for some imaginary piece of a future plan. "It'll be a great, I know just where to..."

In a moment of clarity, the girl snapped back to the cockpit, turning her focus once again to Corvetta. Now wasn't the time for planning, she was supposed to be supportive. "Oh... I'm sorry..." Genuine remorse darkening her features, she brought her hands forward to grip her pilot's shoulders tightly, "Look... there's no reason to be embarrassed, you know?"

[member="Corvetta Salvo"]

 

[Corvetta Salvo]

Well, the good news was that she had at least been able to fake it all this time, so mission accomplished there. And maybe her success in hiding her inability had made it that much harder to tell. But she had finally done it, and she had told the one person who was both the most uncomfortable yet easiest to confide in. Corvetta sensed that they just needed to get used to this sort of intimacy, because everything else just seemed so natural between them. At least, that was how the pilot saw things. The firm grip on her shoulders; the consoling voice; the mirroring smile: they were all unique to the one person in the cockpit with her, and it just proved how silly it had been to withhold anything. "You're the best. You know that?"

Whether Kohai taught Corvetta anything at all hardly mattered. But maybe if someone took the time to help her, perhaps she could one day actually manage in the literary world. "I mean, I'm not totally drafted. I can write my name and stuff, ya know... Well, yeah. At least I can do that." She took a few strands of Kohais' hair between her fingers and slid them gently down, curious as to how the grease monkey kept her hair so maintained. "But that would be frakkin' snazzy, right? Reading?" Maybe one day...

[member="Kohai Drenn"]

 

[Kohai Drenn]

Am I blushing right now? Oh I'd better not be blushing!

She was pretty sure that she wasn't the best. "Well, it's sure the best way to start!" Kohai had always been a positive person. In the years since she was little, the engineer had worked it down to a science. Wake up, check! Put a smile on, check! Repeat! The way she saw it, it kept the people she worked with nice, and it made everything a lot less scary. The smile stretched across her face right now, however, was totally different.

She couldn't have put it away if she tried.

Giving her pilot's shoulders a squeeze, she gave the other woman a bit of a shake as she continued. "Geez though, Corvy..." Her face twisted into a bit of a frown. She had never, in all their time together, neglected to use her friend's full name. It was just something about 'Corvetta' that really rolled off the tongue for her, and she vastly preferred it to the nickname.

The boys can have 'Corvy'... I'm keeping Corvetta!

Shaking off her momentary pause, Kohai hurriedly continued where she left off, her smile returning as if it had never left. "...I mean... ya didn't have to be so ominous, you know? 'I've got to tell you something, Koko.'" She changed her voice during the last bit, pulling her out a not-even-remotely passable impression of the pilot. "For just a second there, I thought you were sick... or leaving... or pregnant!" She may have gone a bit far with that one, but she was still feeling giddy from the distinct lack of a problem where she was sure one was going to be.

[member="Corvetta Salvo"]

 

[Corvetta Salvo]

Corvetta cocked her head to the side and blushed at Kohai's commentary, finding it odd how the most embarrassing thing was not in what she said, but how she had broached the subject in the first place. As weird as it had come out, she supposed it made the situation all the more entertaining.

"You thought I might be pregnant?" she chuckled nervously, glancing down at her stomach. Was she getting fat? Maybe it was time to hit the gym with Robb. After all, she did spend most of her time in Koko's current chair, or slouched in one of the seats in the lounge. "Ain't never had any ship in my docking bay. Not yet, anyway..." To say she was shy around boys would be a falsehood, but anything that went beyond small chatter, business, or taunting in drinking games was rather foreign to the spacer. Heck, she barely had a clue as to what one did with their pants down. Maybe that was the result of good parenting, or maybe she was way too naive. Either way, male prospects were not exactly plentiful out here excepting whatever fantasies one might conjure up. Robb was just Robb and Davik was just Davik.

A faint twinkle shattered her iris, and Corvetta curled her hand into a fist and playfully rubbed her knuckle over the blonde's crown to provoke a static frizz. "Ever think about going to college?"

[member="Kohai Drenn"]

 

[Kohai Drenn]

Kohai felt the brief pangs of guilt build up in her stomach. She hadn't meant it to say that Corvetta looked pregnant, and the last thing she ever wanted to do was make anyone feel self-conscious. Regardless, the flygirl reiterated that she definitely wasn't pregnant, her unique way of phrasing it bringing some momentary red to the blonde's face. "O-oh... Well, that's good." She definitely didn't want to have that conversation.

Not like I'd have much to say on the subject of... docking bays... The very notion caused an uncomfortable quake to pass through her body, and Kohai had to fight to suppress an overt sigh of relief when the subject was pulled away from such dangerous territory... even if the segue did come in the form of an remarkably charged noogy.

Face contorting with the threat of impending laughter, Kohai brought a hand up to gently bat the offending knuckle away, before assigning it to damage control on her tousled golden mane. "Agh! No fair!" She knew full well that she had terrible hair for her line of work, but this was hardly her idea of an appropriate environment hazard.

Fires, sparks, grease, she could handle all the typical threats, but knuckle static? She was doomed!

"Seriously though..." She absently tried bringing her standing hair back under control as she tried finding the right words. It wasn't like she had actually gone to school growing up, and now that she'd found a place here, it never even crossed her mind. "I'm not really... good at stuff... besides the stuff I'm good at, you know?" She sighed as her attempts at taming the seemingly spreading charge in her locks served only to worsen the situation, her hair actually obstructing her view before she decided to let sleeping dogs lie. Sporting an exaggerated pout on the uncovered section of her face, she turned her full attention back to Corvetta. "If you asked me a history question, or told me to write you an essay, I'd end up lookin' real stupid, I think."

[member="Corvetta Salvo"]

 

[Corvetta Salvo]

Corvetta snickered at Kohai's new 'hairdo' and her vain attempts to repair it. In a sympathetically amusing gesture, she followed up the act by tousling her own hair, though it hardly made a difference since she rarely combed it unless she was going out in public. "You always have somethin' cute going there." How her blonde friend had the know-how or patience to actually fix her locks beyond the brunette's lazy bed hair was outside her understanding. Maybe she would try it sometime, but assistance would obviously be in order.

Another thing Koko probably did that the pilot more-or-less neglected was laundry. Corvetta's mind briefly meandered to thoughts about the heap of unwashed clothes lying in the corner of her bedroom. But only briefly.

"I think you're real smart. I mean, you can read, and you build all sorts of things, and you're already gettin' some basics flyin' this bucket," Corvetta encourages, slumping back casually into her chair and gazing into the swirling portal of hyperspace. She brought her flask back to her lips one more time, but balked at the maneuver and returned the canteen to her pocket. She could resist; she could stay sober for a little while. For a friend, anyway. "'Course, why didn't you go to college anyway? What's your family like?" Come to think of it, this flygirl had never really heard nor divulged any details about her mates' or her own clans. Funny how much one could know about someone and still miss an entire aspect of their life.

[member="Kohai Drenn"]

 

[Kohai Drenn]

She shouldn't have been surprised when Corvetta popped the dreaded question; in fact, it was actually a miracle they had gone this long without talking about this. "I... don't have a family." The smile had fallen from her lips as easily as it usually came, the young engineer's voice taking on a measured, even tone as she caught herself spouting her go-to answer. This time, however, something was different.

A quake shook the girl's chest, her body almost deflating back into the pilot's chair as she looked out into the unreal space that enveloped them, but not really seeing it. She didn't know if it was bad timing, mood whiplash, or just a gradual eroding of her defenses, but it surprised her how unprepared she was to even say the words. In spite of herself, however, she continued. "That is... they died, you know?"

As those words left her lips, she slapped a practiced grin on her face, turning once again to face her pilot. "It's fine, though. Ya see, I was actually really young when it happened, like still a kid, and it's been a long time, obviously..." She found herself picking up speed, her words threatening to mix together into a stuttered mess at the slightest slip up. "-Cause, you know I grew up on Coruscant way back when, yeah? And we had this shop, fixing speeders and all that, but there were these gangs who always talked a big game, but they were okay for the most part... B-but then... then..."

As if a switch had been flipped, her sentence was cut off as her lip quivered like that of a child, her composure visibly breaking from moment to moment, threatening to give way entirely if she continued. Also she could do was hold still, jaw clenched and shoulders raised, waiting for the wave to pass without breaking her facade. "...Then..." A small hiccup escaped her closed off throat. "I just sorta worked, instead... you know?"

[member="Corvetta Salvo"]

 

[Corvetta Salvo]

"Oh..." Come to think of it, she had never seen the engineer call or write to her parents, or whatever it is that non-estranged children do when they are absent from home. Corvetta did not exactly maintain any sort of regular contact with her parents either, but there were always holidays or birthdays if she remembered them. "Well, frak. I'm sorry, Koko." This time the pilot returned her drink to her lips and actually wet her tongue in hopes of easing her composure in this uncomfortable situation. Did she always have to ask the painfully obvious questions? Holy Sithspit, you really are dumber than a glued piston.

And what was the worst way to proceed from here? Probably whatever the brunette said next. "Hey, maybe someone will adopt you. Frak, maybe I could get my mom 'n' dad to if ya want. Though you can't tell 'em about my drinkin'. They kinda get upset." At the end of her musings, the spacer chick sat up straight and squinted out the cockpit viewport, quite irritated with how bad she was at conveying sympathies appropriately. It was not that she was insensitive; she just was not cultured.

Maybe it would be best if she let her buddy do all the talking for now. Besides, there were some explanations she was sure they all could use. "What else do I not know about you?" As close as the Lost Cause crew was, they still seemed to carry some distant secrets with them. It was probably in the way they had met. And if even Koko and Corvy were missing some details between themselves, then who knew what the guys were hiding?

[member="Kohai Drenn"]

 

[Kohai Drenn]

"It's okay. I mean, it was a long, long time ago. It's not like there's any shortage of... orphans in the galaxy." She hadn't used that word for it before, and saying it like that brought another quiver to her voice. "It's not even a super cool story or rebellions and Jedi-monsters and explosions, it just..."

It just sort of happened... and she had to move on.

Shaking herself back into the cockpit, the blonde sputtered briefly as she began talking again. "N-now lemme see..." Swallowing the lump in her throat, Kohai sniffed quietly as she pulled her composure back together. It had been years since she'd thought about them, but she was hardly an emotional wreck; she'd been called eccentric at times, but that was hardly unusual in her line of work. She had certainly never been one to crumble and cry like this.

"I mean, there's not too much about me you don't know already, you know?" Cringing slightly at her redundancy, the galaxy's newest pilot brought her knuckles up to her eyes, wiping away any moisture as her breath began to steady. By the time she was done, the smile was back, but it felt forced, and that meant it probably looked forced.

Come on, girl... buck up! Back in the groove!

"I mean, I kinda started with my best foot. I mean, you saw me work on a saber literally on the first day we met. That's sorta my impressive thing that I can do." It was a hard question to answer, certainly. What could she say to Corvetta without being icky or too open?

I don't drink because it tastes bad, but also because it gives me uncomfortable dreams? My tremors are getting worse all the time and I'm terrified? I've never been with a boy, and never ever want to? ...probably best not to start with that one...

When in doubt, she figured it was best to start small. "I've got a pretty bad ass scar, though... see?" Turning her face away from her friend, she reached her hands up to the back of her head. Her fingers only slightly shaky at the moment, she had no trouble pulling the long, golden tresses up over her head, revealing the scar on the back of her skull where she'd hit her head so long ago. "Got in a fight... ya know, 'cause I'm tough?"

[member="Corvetta Salvo"]

 

[Corvetta Salvo]

"I'm sure there's lots of stuff. You're a really complex chick." At least more complex than a dusty flygirl could be, right? "Do you speak any weird languages or something?" Corvetta knew an elementary amount of Huttese, but rarely used it unless she had to work out docking procedures in the Hutt part of the galaxy. The flight control officers probably got a good laugh out of her accent. Not that she had never been teased about her drawl in Basic. Even within their ragtag little freighter crew, Corvetta knew her voice stood apart from the others when compared with Kohai's more refined Coruscanti tones and Robb's Corellian.

Another thing the mechanic had that Corvetta had not acquired were battlescars. Of course, the brunette was not really interested in earning any herself, but there were always stories to be told behind them, and that just made Koko more interesting. "Frakkin' cool!" The pilot leaned over to get a closer look. This was definitely a version of the blonde she had never witnessed. "I didn't know you were a brawler. Or are you like one of those martial arts people?

"I'm not much for a fighter. But I always wanted to--you know--learn how to dance?" She blushed and turned away for a moment, downing another gulp of her Taanab gin. It would be time to get a refill pretty soon. Or maybe it was best to try to go sober for the rest of the day.

[member="Kohai Drenn"]

 

[Kohai Drenn]

"You should see the other guys!" Letting her hair drop, Kohai turned back to face Corvetta, amusement plastered on her face as the conversation began to feel light again. "I mean... I didn't win, technically, but I was outnumbered four to one, and I got two of them!" She held up two fingers, as if she had to emphasize her point, before scratching the back of her head. "Cracked me good against the wall, though..." She neglected to mention the mysterious stranger that had appeared out of nowhere to save her, preferring to remain the hero of this story. While she had always been scrappy, as was necessary growing up where she did, she was also a fairly small woman, so she was more of a dodger than a brawler.

"I'm not much for a fighter. But I always wanted to--you know--learn how to dance?" Eyebrows lifting at the mental image, Kohai felt a grin tugging on the corners of her mouth, slightly lessened, however, as the pilot turned to take a swig of her drink. When she was finished with her sip, the blonde gently laid a hand on top of the flask. Kohai wasn't Corvetta's mother, and as such, didn't feel the need to reiterate her feelings on the matter. The barest hint of worry crossed her face as she glanced at the drink in their shared grip, before she carefully brought an uncharacteristically steady hand down off the top of the flask, giving her friend's hand a brief squeeze. "You know... I like to dance." As quickly as it had darkened, the girl's face lit up to it's comfortable smile.

[member="Corvetta Salvo"]

 

[Corvetta Salvo]

It was not even a habit--no, not at this point. It was like breathing to her, and a few waking hours without those fermented liquids passing her lips seemed almost impossible. Despite all her enthusiasm and spacer charm, Corvetta had her abundance of faults--loaded and distributed by the liter. Alcohol had become a crutch to cover a multitude of worries.

And maybe that was why she should be concerned as her friend was. The gentle grip on her flask and then her hand persuaded the pilot to give up the effort. Not now. She would put away her drink in finality this time. At least until Kohai was gone to bed or found some machine bit to work on. Sleep and serenity would not come for the flygirl until she was wasted. Whatever happened in the state between tipsy and unconscious had little effect on Corvetta's mentality. And why be miserable, anyway? She was too far gone to functionally revert back to the innocence of sobriety. Koko was lucky she would never know.

But she did know a lot of other, more productive things of her own, as Corvetta suspected and as Kohai's latest revelation proved. "See, I told ya you know everything!" This skill caught the brunette by surprise, however. She could not recall ever seeing her mate dance. "All I got is the flats." She winked and took a careful jab at the blonde's shoulder. "'At's right, comrade."

[member="Kohai Drenn"]

 

[Kohai Drenn]

The engineer's smile grew just a bit brighter as her friend's flask disappeared from view. Even if she understood fully that it may very well come back out before long, she was comfortable counting this development as a minor victory. Every ship was made up of a staggering amount of small parts, after all, and every single one of them was important.

...and every working piece was as good as a working ship...

Her body twisted a little as the pilot's hand connected with her shoulder, the soft impact pulling a familiar giggle from Kohai's lips. She wasn't used to getting this much praise heaped on her in such quick succession, but she certainly liked it. "Oh, it's a cinch! See?" Maintaining her current perch in the pilot's seat, the blonde proceeded to lift her arms in the air, her upper body moving to a silent rhythm in her head. Much like anything the Coruscanti gear head did, her alleged dance moves were jerky, excitable, and just a little bit over the top. "It's easier if you pretend nobody can see you!"

[member="Corvetta Salvo"]

 

[Corvetta Salvo]

The flygirl followed along, raising her hands to the ceiling and rolling her upper body back and forth. It was not difficult, but it sure did not look as coordinated as the engineer's movements. Maybe it was easier to dance alone, but it was not so embarrassing to do it with someone else, either. "Oh, come on. We need the whole deck for this," the pilot laughed, swiftly grabbing for Kohai's extended hand as she leaped from her chair. Peeking around the corner first to make sure the boys were not nearby, Corvetta closed the partition between the main corridor and the cockpit.

Releasing her co-pilot initiate's wrist, the brunette swiveled her feet and swayed her hips in her best imitation of party girls. It was far from a fluid performance, but the exaggerated movements were easily accompanied by a smile. "Is this good? Crank to the left, crank to the right?"

[member="Kohai Drenn"]