Private You Just Walk In Like You Belong

[Kaile Vera]

Please give it up to Kaile, who hilariously was using the decades of infiltration work to play along a good Corp, Bad Corp act. She gave an exasperated expression as if she was only trying to keep the peace.

"Hey now, look. At this rate, you'd be losing time and money if you have to take them back. " reminding Theo of the present circumstances. "While we may not have too many options, " Kaile continued, letting her keen eyes read Theo's body language. Oh he wasn't too fixed on the price. From the twitch of his hand and shifting weight, odds were he was pricing high to see if he could get a few more extra credits.

Using this knowledge, the Lorrdian continued, "You are talking eighty percent of what the products cost new. Odds are, while these may come and few and between, not many are looking on getting refurbished ones. Most folk want them new, seeing how they rather go through the maintenance plan Theed Hanger slips in with every H-Type sold."

That is where they made their money. Maintenance contracts and service appointments. Not refurbished parts.

"Cut the price by thirty percent, and I reckon we got ourselves a deal." Kaile fully expected Theo not to accept that. Sure enough he gave a guffaw and said, "You are out of your mind if I am dropping it that much."

It was Asmus's turn to make it seam as if they would walk now. If she could get him to cut it down by 20 or 25 percent rather than the thirty, that would still be a win.

 

[Asmus Janes]

She was good. She was very, very good. He couldn't even believe she was coming in at thirty percent. He might have angled for ten and taken five.

"I'll get the parts we've got going," Asmus declared. "They've got a fee thousand parsecs still before they'll really become a problem."

He crossed his arms over his chest and looked at Theo. Asmus was hardly the most intimidating of men, but he just needed to play his part.

"Ten, best I can..."

"Call it seventeen and I shake your hand and we go about our days," Asmus interrupted. He wanted the line drawn and to get them in the air. They'd used up some time in the best possible way, but he wanted to get some back on the next leg.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Theo’s lips pinched with the slightest of shows. Oh, he was annoyed. At least not angry, but certainly annoyed. He’d hoped for an easier and more lucrative transaction, but of course, he should have known anyone who knew Meyer would turn out just like him.

“Fine. Seventeen.” Theo acquiesced, handing the tablet to Kaile to sign and gesturing for Asmus to pay him the credits.

“Thank you so much,” Kaile replied sweetly, appearing relieved and grateful. On the inside, she was chuckling to herself. Kurt will love hearing about this later.

Not to mention, seeing Asmus play the bad guy has been well worth it.

“I’ll get these inside.” She relayed, motioning for the delivery droid standing on the side to follow her. It could be dropped off in the cargo hold, and Asmus and Kaile could get to work from there.

Asmus Janes

 

[Asmus Janes]

He felt a note of the past as he followed Kaile up into the hold of the Solaris. Bartering with stubborn people and loading a ship took him back to his days on the quintessence.

"Kairon would have got them down to twenty," he laughed to Kaile.

He would have enjoyed some loading droid. The parts weren't individually heavy but his back had already been put under some strain. Asmus was certain the months helping Bix toddle when she couldn't stay upright on her own had done permanent damage.



"I've sorted these into 'stuff we're swapping now' and 'stuff we can stow for spares'," Asmus declared. They couldn't be too wasteful with their time.

 

[Kaile Vera]

"Good," Kaile replied, wiping the back of her hand over her forehead to take the beads of sweat off. Immediately, she also groaned, the ache on her lower back and now shoulders a tangible ache.

"Stars, I'm gettin old." She mused dejectedly, exhaling a tired sigh.

A weary smile and the Lorrdian came to a stop next to Asmus to see the selection.

"Alright," Kaile was exhausted, but they couldn't waste any more time. Precious, precious time.

"You want to take what we need to swap out for that power converter and I'll do the rest?"

With luck, they could get this done in half a day. Any more was pushing their luck.

 

[Asmus Janes]

"Yeah, we're both getting older," Asmus laughed. "Sounds like a plan."

Sometimes he felt it more than other times. Aches and pains could be pushed to the back of his mind when he was having fun, but not when they were methodically changing parts on the Solaris. This ship was rather particular about the fittings.

The computer seemed to take its own joy in rejecting replacements if its sensors picked up any variances. A part would need removing again, re-wiring in the right order and everything tightened to a precise tolerance. Then the Solaris might contemplate accepting it without flashing warnings all across the screens.

"Hey!" he called out to Kaile from underneath the floor of the engine bay. "You want me to see if someone will send take-out to the ship before we get going?"

 

[Kaile Vera]

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

Sometimes, one needed to be a little rough with parts. Sure, the Solaris was a delicate lady, but having to deal with cotter pins, sheer wire, and getting parts back into place within a tight fit required getting more than a little physical.

Sweat beaded over Kaile's temples, her hair sticking to her cheeks and neck, the high ponytail waving to and frow with every swing of her arm with the hammer onto a durasteel mount that she had to beat into submission. They didn't have the fancy tools that would have made this easier, so good ol' elbow grease would do it.

Dark stains saturated along her neck and under her arms on the loose grey blouse she wore. Pausing, she took the hem and brought it up to her face, wiping as much of the sweat and grime as she cool.

At the mention of food, the Lorrdian's stomach gave a rumble loud enough to make a Wookie proud. A near orgasmic expression colored her face at the sudden thought of take out, cravings and hunger pangs immediately focusing on what there selection could be.

"Oh stars yes!" she chimed, immediately adding her recommendation, "Can we have Gluk?" the chances of finding that on Naboo outside of Denon were slim, but the thought of a double handful of thick, flat noodles, with nuna strips, a thick rich stock, garlic, LOTS of garlic, and a bunch of Herglic black pepper and Kashani chili flakes...

Yes her mouth was watering. Kaile had no shame whatsoever regarding it.

 

[Asmus Janes]

Asmus' head popped up from beneath the floor. He placed a hydrospanner on the smooth durasteel cover for the compartment he now stood in.

"Was that you?"

He knew it had been her, but he enjoyed asking the question as he made a face.

"You know this ain't a slum town right? Even if they do the really cheap and nasty noodles it will be called something fancy."

Given that his mother had handed over enough credits to see them through and get the ship patched up, Asmus maintained some self awareness of his accusation.

Asmus placed both hands on the floor and lifted himself up. He felt his legs dangling into the void below the floor. He wiped down his hands on his pants and reached for his device.

"Alright...we got...yeah I don't know how to pronounce this but it is definitely posh spicy noodles. You want the slightly spicy or burn off the roof of your mouth kind?"

 

[Kaile Vera]

"Burn the roof of my mouth and extra garlic, please!" That's what gave it all that flavor. Her arse might pay for it later, but oh it was just so good and worth the additional soreness. All the lovely things in the 'verse rode that fine line between pain and pleasure. Spicy Garlicy Gluk was one of them.

Popping over beside him, she peeked over his back, resting her arms along his shoulders. "Ooo, what beers do they carry?" of course, it was nothing but fru fru drinks. Antakarian Fire Dancer, Takodana Quencher, pricy Whyrens Reserve. There were a few that would likely tempt Asmus, but they weren't looking to get wasted.

"Uhh, oh Naboo ale. " A scrunch of her face. "Corellian is better, but I'll take it if that's all there is." Seeing his exposed neck, Kaile decided to give it a little nibble. He tasted salty and sweet.

With this wrap-up, they could potentially get underway in a few hours. Maybe send an encrypted Comm to check on Bix and be on their way.

A thought came to mind, 'Has Vo sent anything? " perhaps they missed an update. If not, the plan was to continue on to Terminus after this.

 

[Asmus Janes]

"No..." he replied.

It took his brain a few seconds to swim back out of the fog. Apparently she hadn't quite tired him out and recently memories only made it worse. It had just been one kiss. She'd known what she was doing.

"Er...yeah but at this point. It wouldn't surprise me if he kept radio silence til the last minute."

He away and ordered two of the ales.

"We eat, test, get away and probably catch some sleep," Asmus said. That nap wasn't going to cover the time on the Messa, nor the work to fix up the Solaris.

Even though they made this trip, Bix's safety came first. That meant the truly ready ship remained on Eriadu for her and Jay.

"Extra garlic..." he muttered. "Glad we didn't order this first. You can stay in the spare cabin!"

 

[Kaile Vera]

“Rude.” Kaile replied with a laugh, well aware that Asmus didn’t mean it.

With a sigh she wrapped her arms over his shoulders from the back, resting her cheek against the top of his head.

“I miss Bix.” She murmured suddenly. When their little part of the world included the chaos, delight, frustration, and wonder of their daughter since birth, being away from her with the uncertainty of what would follow with this mission stung a little deeper. Maybe it was the mother in Kaile- or perhaps it was the potentiality of not being able to go back to their little slice of the mundane.

After a lifetime of covert operations and deep embedded play pretend lives, the Lorrdian just wanted to snuggled their daughter and hold her tight.

 

[Asmus Janes]

Asmus visibly deflated at those three little words.

"Yeah, I do too," he said. He felt a much more acute pang of longing the moment she said it. There were feelings that he had pushed aside, but they latched onto her words and clung on.

He rested a hand on her thigh, letting the moment carry on in silence for a few seconds.

"We weren't hiding from the world," he said quietly. "We were making out own."

One touch could change the stars.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Kaile nodded, moving from resting her cheek against the top of Asmus's head to the curve of his neck, hiding her face. She breathed him in, her arms tightening around him, bending slightly forward as she hugged him from behind as he sat.

Hours before, they were tightly wound, in a passionate embrace, enjoying each other and the opportunity to reconnect in a way they hadn't freely been able to in a while. At the same time, that came with the knowledge and the longing of the beloved chaos Bix gave them daily.

"I know." she'd murmur, giving him another tight squeeze. A tactile creature, the Lorrdian needed the moment of comfort of a different kind, one she knew Asmus would understand just as well.

"Chances your dad might have been convinced to play hair salon with her?" Because Asmus had grown out his hair and since he was always so particular with its conditioning, he had the perfect base for a little girl to enjoy braiding, tying bows, and practicing ponytails.

Order placed for food; it was just a matter of time waiting for their food and the beer. But that didn't mean they could both enjoy a chat regarding their sprog.

 

[Asmus Janes]

"I think Dad will do exactly what Bix tells him to do," Asmus replied.

His father had retired now. His mother still attended board meetings and worked frequently into the night at crunch time. She still maintained a significant interest in the galactic shipping company and it showed. His father had always been quite a docile man, in contrast to the fire of his mother.

"You know if we have a second, they've still got plenty of room to babysit," Asmus thought out loud. "Would you mind being on Eriadu longer?" he asked.

He had to admit to himself there was some convenience there.

"I think wherever we are will feel like home," he said.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Kaile took a deep breath, enjoying the musk and scent of Asmus's body. She let him permeate her senses, lifting her head to muse at his query. She straightened, returning her arms to set her palms along his shoulders.

"Reckon that wouldn't be too bad of a thing," she answered, reassuringly squeezing his shoulders. There were many things here that were making them want to reconsider a few items. Family and what have you. One of the biggest reasons Kaile had spent so long trying not to reach out to him was because she knew he had a life and connections at Eriadu and that he had a promising future, one that she believed would only hold him back.

"Let's see where this bucket of Giju lands." the Lorrdian added, "If this all works out well, I bet Bix would like that as much as you."

 

[Asmus Janes]

"Yeah, let's see where it lands," he agreed. They were out of practise, a little out of touch with galactic events. There was a chance that this could go disastrously wrong.

It would have been easy to let his bountiful imagination run wild. Would they stay on the beach? Would they move closer to a city and people and food?

He remembered recounting their experience with a sith inquisitor who had stopped their ship to Kaile. He had barely even questioned why she had advice on the subject.

"You need to get showered off...again," he observed with a little, one sided smile.

"Actually save that for washing the liquid coaxiun you're about to get everywhere."

---

"Noodles are better from a kart," Asmus laughed. "I mean, these are good, but you can tell its from a restaurant and not a street vendor."

They had taken up residence in what had been a board room. The previous owner so vain that he built it into his ship to host people on the move. Most of the equipment had been told, but there was still a table and the most comfortable chairs on the ship.

"We haven't had many takeouts," he reflected. They had wanted as few people as possible coming to the house.

 

[Kaile Vera]

The disappointment radiated from Kaile. One could even tell by how her eyebrows furrowed and the slight pout.

"It isn't even that spicy or garlicky!" she bemoaned, using her two gluksticks to pluck a few strands of the thickly sauced noodles, moving them around in her bowl.

"I should have known that the chance of a good bowl of Gluk wouldn't be synonymous with Naboo." when one thought of it, there were various nobility and noblemen in the world. They were known for arts, architecture, and politicians. Not street vendor food.

"Well, I reckon that a politician wouldn't want to have their breath smelling like garlic come time for fundraising," she said with a sigh, setting her half-eaten bowl to the side. She would finish it in a bit; she just needed to wallow in her disappointment for a minute. If anything, Kaile would never waste food. She was too much of a credit-pincher to do that.

"How was your bowl?" she inquired, bringing the bottle of Naboo ale to her lips. It wasn't the best, but it was beer.

At his mention, Kaile took a pause, thinking back. "No, we haven't. Between stayin' at home and savin' money, there hasn't been much reason to. " Making their own food had been the cheapest option.

"Is there a particular takeout you like that you haven't had in a while?" it was a new topic they hadn't discussed before, so Kaile was visibly intrigued, even perking up from her mild disappointment before.

 

[Asmus Janes]

"You know where we will get good Gluk!" Asmus said, talking and chewing and pointing his gluksticks at Kaile.

His mother would have been aghast by his table manners, but he had spent a lot of time growing up on a smuggling freighter.

"Trade station. Find the darkest alley with the thickest smoke and we'll find proper Gluk! These..." he said, reflecting on his bowl, "are almost without flavour. You probably wouldna taste them."

"Oh you know we have a caamasi population on Eriadu that came from Susevfi. They do this dish cold ano-gabi. It's actually insect protein, shredded and re-fried in chilli oil, with spices, crushed nuts and over a bed of mallan. Those are these big yellow sweet salad leaves. You have to get it fresh or the leaves have wilted and the protein soggy by the time it arrives. "

 

[Kaile Vera]

“Cold ano-Gabi?” Kaile had never heard of it but she was immediately intrigued by the refrying of the protein in chilli oil. Her mouth even curled in an ‘ooo’ of curiosity.

She picked up her bowl and ate a few more of the gluk noodles - she wasn’t going to waste anything, it had been so pricey already.

Swallowing, the Lorrdian licked her lips and gave a wide smile, “sounds like you need to take me out on a date to get some of that cold ano gabi!” She teased, with a wink, gabi sticks working with a flourish to get more noodles. They weren’t trade station noodles but they were something.

“Where else have you traveled that you’ve liked the food? Kurt and I had these amazing fried taki taki balls on a stick when we stopped at the Bahrain.” Kaile gave a whimsical smile in memory. NeverMind that she’d almost been killed by the pod race gang.

“It's a nice little trade world near the moon of Endor, at the end of the Santuary Pipeline. All the local worlds within the Wild Regions and the nearby Unknown brought local trade there.”

 

[Asmus Janes]

"Oh neat," Asmus replied.

At one time he had been confused by the nature of her relationship with Kurt. That was no surprise; he had been in the dark about a lot of her life. Even with all the trust they had built, she had only just spoken openly about her own childhood.

"You know we should take advantage of that a little bit. I mean, being by my parents. Before we give her a sibling. Like, go on dates."

His green eyes lit up: the first bloom of spring. Asmus had been content with their lot, but he hadn't even thought about some of these things.

"Yeah. Yeah.

"Let's get this fucking done right so you and me can live our lives."

For such a gentle conversation about food, it had taken a few twists and turns to end with such a forceful declaration.