Star Nomad Cast (starnomadnpc) wrote in starnomad, @ 2016-06-13 12:41:00 |
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The headache pressing at the back of his neck wasn't a typical morning after sensation for Rogan. Sure, there had been times where he'd drank a little more than he should have, and there were times when he'd woke up not feeling so fantastic because of it, but this was more than the alcohol and he was well aware of it because it wasn't just his head that ached. There was this sort of empty raw sense in his chest cavity as well, an aching that he didn't remember ever having felt quite this extremely. And it was an ache that he almost felt guilty about. He'd been aware of how Lyric had missed Jacen. Not immediately, but after he'd known, the absence of the man he'd been engaged to had been something that Rogan had picked up on. He'd been cognizant of it, and tried to ease it not just through sex, but with support as well. And somehow in the process of all of that he'd fallen in love. Head over heals, completely and fantastically, stupidly like an adolescent school-boy, ardent and hopeful, one hundred percent in love with a man whose heart belonged to someone else. And having done that, having begun to wish Lyric happiness in the most ridiculous of ways, he couldn't unwish it now. He'd seen the look in Lyric's eyes, and like a masochistic idiot, he'd watched the two greet each other on the base, and then he'd gone out, and found the first slightly shady cantina he could find. Because he wanted Lyric happy and Lyric was undeniably happy right now. But he'd also hoped, in a way that felt ridiculous at the moment, that maybe he'd be able to do that for Lyric. That maybe when the war was over, he could build a little home with this boy he'd saved, and the man who had saved the boy once again. Like the silence after a huge thunderclap, Rogan was left reeling with no immediate cause to blame it on. The base was largely quiet this morning. He wasn't due to ship out until the next day - which gave him enough time to sober up, even if all he really wanted to do was find the cantina and start back in until he could blame all of the ache on the alcohol rather than on his heart, so he could stop feeling guilty for having his heart breaking when what he'd said he really wanted - Lyric happy - had come true in the most unexpected and impossible of ways. But more drink wasn't going to solve the problem, and Rogan knew that. Most Corellians did even if they didn't all let their knowledge guide their actions. You could drink off the immediate edge, but then you had to let the wound heal. His X-wing looked the same as it always did as he approached it, and he reached for the work gloves in the pocket of his flight suit as he approached, one hand raised up to touch the bow of the ship gently. She was the only thing between him and death for a large portion of his life, and he liked to make certain she was taken care of. "Looks like it's just you and me this morning," he told her. Kess enjoyed the rare mornings when it was quiet. Really it felt like it hadn't been quiet for years, maybe as long as Kess had ever been alive. So maybe she shouldn't enjoy them as much as she did. But right now the bay was only filled by the quiet home of electricity buzzing around them. Even the droids seemed to be busy elsewhere. It made sense though, they weren't expecting anyone in and people wouldn't be going out for a few more hours. There were a couple other mechanics scattered but right now it was just her and the xwing that was above her, all parts and grease and tune ups. She could fall into a wonderful focused daze where nothing mattered but how metal fit against metal, wires, and plastics. That was disturbed by a familiar voice that jarred her out of her daze. Her cheeks flushed bright because of course he would show up, it was his xwing and maybe she should have worked on a different one this morning but he hadn't even been scheduled to be back and she was already mostly caught up on the rest of what she had to do. What if something happened and she hadn't taken the chance to make sure the ship stayed safe? Or as safe as it was possible to be out getting shot at by Yuuzhan Vong. "Oh, sorry. There's me." Kess popped her head out from beneath as she popped out of the panel she was hunched over. "I mean. Well, I'd have to finish this up, but I can do that!" Rogan was startled by the sound of a woman's voice and then the sight of the mechanic working on his X-wing as she peered out from behind her panel. There was a rush that fell somewhere between a sigh but also some relief? He couldn't quite decide which emotion was stronger, and maybe it didn't matter in the long run. It was probably good for him to have some company about now even if he half wanted to wallow in the depths of his ship. Who knew if he was even really fully qualified to work on the ship in the moment It might be good to have someone to check in on him. He managed a smile as he tried to place her. He'd seen her before working around the hangar, and they'd spoken a few times, somewhere on the other side of his headache was her name, but he wasn't going to pull it out in the moment. "You're fine," he replied aloud. "Whatcha working on?" Rogan Ardellian. She had known exactly whose X-wing she had been working on and really maybe she kept too many tabs on him. It wasn't as if she had fallen a little in love the first time she saw him step out of an X-wing. It hadn't at all been like light had shined down and her knees had felt weak and her tongue had stopped working. That would have been foolish. And she definitely hadn't been the one to volunteer to act as a quasi liaison for the Imperial Remnant for Jag just because of how her stomach had fluttered. Kess didn't make stupid split second decisions like that. Except she did. And she had. And now he was talking to her and usually that only happened when she had a reason to leave quickly and instead right now she was in the middle of repairs and there was no getting away and Kess was glad the X-wing was holding her because she couldn't feel her knees again. "I am?" Her cheeks flushed bright as her tongue went thick and she tried to focus on what she was working on. What had she been working on? None of that seemed to come to mind as her mind zeroed in on the fact that his eyes were rimmed red, his skin sallow compared to its usual glow. Okay maybe he didn't actually glow but it seemed like that sometimes. "Oh. Uh. I." she looked at her hand only for the binding tape to remind her. "Oh! Working on the thermoregulators. It looks like they got snipped a bit but I'll have it up and running in no time." Kess. Her name came in suddenly. For some reason the binding tape had triggered something that Rogan had tucked away. He tried to keep tabs on the mechanics. Some pilots tended to consider them not worth the time of day, but Rogan had always thought otherwise. Whether the mechanic was training to fly or not, they were your best shot at your ship working as it was supposed to and that could matter hugely - especially in a war. He stepped over, glancing over her shoulder at the thermoregulators and frowning at them. "You know I could have sworn they did those the last time I was on Daq," he shook his head. "Then again, I've not been exactly easy on her this round," he placed his hand back on the ship and stepped back over to pull down the ladder to the cockpit. "Or really this year." "It's Kess, right?" He knew her name. He knew her name! Kess had to force herself to remember to breathe as it registered in her mind that somehow Rogan Ardellian knew what her name was and right now she was working on his X-wing and barely able to talk. And somehow she had managed to make enough of an impression that he knew her name. That wasn't supposed to happen, or maybe it was, he was probably just being polite. After all he was always so nice and polite to all the mechanics, even when a lot of pilots couldn't be bothered. It was kind and sweet and... Kess realized she had likely been quiet too long. "Yes! I mean. Yes. That's me. Kess." she laughed awkwardly as her voice squeaked from nerve pulling it tense. She had to keep it together, Rogan hardly looked like he was awake enough to stand up straight let alone deal with her. "Kess Lindersun. Mechanic. But you knew that." She felt another bubble of nervous laughter escape as she looked back down at the X-wing. At least she knew how to fix this, she always knew how to fix a ship it didn't matter what the ship. "Well, I'm the best there is. I mean maybe not the best okay that sounded a little boastful but it'll be maybe even better than new by the time I'm done!" Rogan couldn't help a smile at her words, even if he hadn't much felt like smiling yet this morning. But she was bright and cheery and she seemed sweet, maybe too sweet to be a mechanic in the middle of a war, but then again, the Yuuzhan Vong hadn't run a test to determine who was nice and who was nasty before running over the galaxy at large. "It's a pleasure Kess Lindersun," he offered warmly. He stepped up the ladder into the cockpit and started a full systems check, at least as far as he could go without his droid. He'd have to run the rest later. Pressing his hand to his forehead briefly he jumped back down and then wished he hadn't. "I didn't mean to interrupt your work," he said. "You've just about got the whole bay to yourself." "Oh. Thank you. I mean! You're Rogan." Kess stumbled as she tried not to stare at his smile. He had been smiling a lot more recently but right now it seemed like he barely could. But then again they were in the middle of a war, there weren't very many reasons for a lot of people to smile and Kess had to remind herself of that. "Rogan Ardellian. Cause this is your ship. So I know that. I know all the ships." Oh, cool, she sounded incredibly smart right now. Kess tried not to get into a quick loop of beratement in her head as she heard just how foolish she sounded. Still he seemed to be sticking around though that was only because she was in the middle of his ship after all. He didn't really have much of a choice did he? Though none of the other pilots seemed to be so eager to get back to their ships, instead taking what free time they had. "It's not interrupting!" she quickly stuttered out. She looked out at the bay and gave Rogan an awkward smile as her eyes flickered up. "I like the early mornings when it can get quiet like this. It never gets quiet like this you know?" For a moment Rogan was a little startled, but then he realized that yes, of course she'd know whose ship she was working on. That was just natural, even if there was no reason for her to remember every pilot that came through the bay. He wondered how many different ships she worked on. He leaned against the ladder for a moment and looked out across the bay. "No I get what you're saying. And probably you've got a lot of people around you most of the day. Especially with most of the New Republic military fleet flying through here at some point or another." What had he been thinking he would accomplish here? It had mostly been getting out of the quarters, away from the other guys, away from any questions about what he'd gotten up to last night. His regular bunk mates knew he had someone he checked in on. Rogan wasn't one to kiss and tell, but they guessed well enough from his demeanor, and while he hadn't mentioned a name, they knew it was someone regular. And really he didn't want to say 'no, it's fallen through'. "Are you stationed here, or with one of the ships?" He pushed Lyric to the back of his mind and instead focused in on the girl in front of him. She had a nice smile. "Oh, yeah, they like to keep an eye on me." Kess's laughter was tinged with nerves. So far no one had seemed overtly suspicious of her. After all there were bigger things to worry about and technically there was that whole treaty and peace talks and all that which had gone on between the republic and the remnant. But the higher ups knew who she was and most of them had been around long enough to have enough of a memory to occasionally look at her sideways while she was working on something. She hadn't been sent to mess anything up though. She was here so that Jag could have an extra way to help out, and she imagined that was in part because of Jaina Solo. Not that she could really deny Jag that, Jaina was pretty amazing. She flew like a dream and she was just so gosh darn sure of herself all the time and Kess was zoning out again. "Sorry." she offered a smile as she perked up to him actually asking her questions. It didn't seem like they were suspicious, the usual probing ones from people who were trying to put her in a category. This seemed more like actually wanting to talk to her and her heart gave a little flip. "I'm here. For now. Commander Fel has me stationed here till he sees fit to put me elsewhere." Commander Fel. Rogan placed her then. She was one of the group that had been sent over from the Imperial Remnant along with Fel. It was a small group, but they'd proven helpful in battle more than once, and Rogan had met Fel. He seemed like an honorable guy - and one that had an in with Jaina Solo. The thought of Jaina Solo mostly just reminded him of Jaina's brother, Jacen Solo, which reminded him of Lyric... He suppressed a sigh at the train of thought and nodded. "Well, you probably do get to meet a lot of people this way then. How long have you been here?" Then he realized that she'd been saying that she liked the quiet, maybe he should figure out some reason to walk away while the system checks were being done. "You know, I'm sorry, I'm just like twenty questions here, so I can let you work if you need." His face seemed to fall slightly and Kess came to the realization that maybe he hadn't known exactly who she was. It wasn't unusual she guessed but on the base Kess had just gotten used to everyone knowing where she was from. Gossip was common and maybe she stood out a little. The commander wouldn't be too happy to hear that, she wasn't here to distract people anyway. She was here to help and maybe gather what information she could on the Yuuzhan Vong if it would be useful. But people had a right to be suspicious she supposed. And now he was looking to get away. Of course he was, as far as she had been able to tell he was incredibly loyal to the Republic and that came with its own set of issues even if right now they were technically supposed to be allies. "You don't have to." she offered another shy smile as she worried at her bottom lip. "I don't mind. I mean. Most people don't really talk to me much. They get a little awkward." Rogan looked over at her then, the smile, the worried lip, and the information that she was giving him and some things clicked together. She was from the Imperial Remnant, and probably some people didn't like that. It hadn't been what he'd been thinking about - it hadn't even really occurred to him - but now that she said that he felt a little bad for offering so quickly on the comment about commander Fel. "That's not," Rogan stopped and shook his head, a smile pulling to his lips as he looked down at his hands. When he finally looked up it was to look at her directly. He hadn't intended it to sound like it clearly had, and he wasn't going to let that stand. "It's not that. I just figured you'd mentioned you'd liked the quiet, and here I am asking you five thousand questions as you work. I didn't want to be a distraction or a bother, if you preferred to work in quiet. If you don't mind, then I'll stay, although I'm not certain I'm great company today." "I'm sure you're fine company!" Kess chirped perhaps a little too eagerly. She wanted him to stay even if he was just a distraction standing there and Kess could already hear Commander Fel telling her to focus and get back to work. But she was working, she was supposed to be helping and gathering information, benign information really but still. And her heart felt so tight that she just might burst under the attention. "I mean. It'd be okay if it was." Kess smiled and looked back at the wires and metal before her hands. "There's some bad blood and I get that. There doesn't have to be though, I don't think. And Commander Fel must agree otherwise I wouldn't be here!" If the republic fell the imperial remnant was next. It was in their best interest to help, in everyone's best interest. "I mean. If you don't mind watching me work then I'd lo- I mean I don't mind the company at all." "No, really, you should not judge me by our conversation today," Rogan shrugged lightly. It wasn't him being self-depreciating to say he wasn't good company. He knew he wasn't and he suddenly wished he'd grabbed a cup of caf so he had something in his hands because he really didn't know what he'd come out here to work on. It had been something to do, but now that he was here, he realized he was just avoiding his bunk mates, and additionally, a cantina because no one should be in a cantina this early in the morning. "Have you had any caf this morning? Cause I haven't and I'm guessing there's some pretty terrible caf over in the break-room. If you'd like, I'll bring you a cup - if you promise not to be offended by how terrible it is cause I've got no control over that. If I'm going to watch you work, it feels like you ought to get something out of it." "Well if you're offering, caf always tastes better if someone else gets it!" Kess beamed happily as her eyes flickered back up to him. She didn't know why he was back so soon, she knew that he hadn't entirely been expected. Something must have happened that was dragging him down because usually Rogan Ardellian was one of the more animated pilots, smiles and happiness that just seemed to pour out of him. Right now it was restrained, quiet. He wasn't himself and Kess knew she had no place to ask why. After all he barely had any idea who she was. "I'll try to put on a good show when you get back." she teased before going bright red as her words actually hit her. "I mean. The ship will be great when I'm done!" Rogan grinned, quick, but genuine. "I'm not certain that me getting it for you will make up for the terribleness of what they keep in the break rooms, but maybe it'll at least bring it up to 'tolerable if not great caf'. I'll be right back," he told her, thankful for the task even if it wasn't a particularly important one. Rogan found the caf maker empty, so he had to dig around to try to figure out how to work this one, make it, and while he waited for that he pushed his hands up to his forehead to try to make sense of what he was doing. Somehow he was standing in a bay bothering a mechanic from doing her actual work. On the other hand, She didn't really seem to be that bothered and maybe company wasn't all bad for him right now. She wasn't going to ask about anything because she didn't know, and there was no need for her to know. That was sort of a relief, even as it occurred to him that talking about it to someone might not be a terrible idea. The idea of who though, was a question, and it wasn't one he could easily answer. Lyric had not been a planned adventure. He'd allowed himself to fantasize about it, and he'd definitely allowed himself to fall into it, but it had been a mistake to really entertain for any length of time. Even before Jacen Solo had come back, Lyric had still loved him and Rogan had known it. He really had only himself to blame. He poured off two cups of caf, snapped lids on them and left the room to return to his X-wing. At least he'd have something to occupy his hands now. And now that he knew she was with Fel, he could ask better questions about where she was from perhaps, or maybe even just watch her work. It would take his mind off Lyric before he was scheduled to go back up, and that would be good. And he'd get to know his mechanic a little better, and that might be good as well. Certainly, it couldn't hurt. |