The Kooks

[Moonfire]

Diva walked with great confidence, on the very tips of bare toes through town, kicking up the slightest bit of dust as she made way. A pale blue sundress complimented the ribbons in her hair, holding two braids, one on each side of her face.

It had been a week now since Gordon died, perhaps a little longer, his remains seized by the Sith officials for the 'investigation'. The officer who had struck him down was apparently being questioned for striking down a civilian, though if the townsfolk had anything to say about it wasn't good. Mostly likely the officer would walk free and Gordon's remains would be sent to his sister back on the otherside of the planet. But Diva? Diva technically wasn't even his responsibility. She was an adult.

And so here she was, doing adult things. Grocery shopping. That was something she hadn't done before, Gordon had always handled such things, afraid to let her go much of anywhere a lone. She never asked for independence, never had much need or want of it, but now it was thrust upon her. A kindly woman, after seeing what happened took her in, rented her a small, shabby apartment. Bought her food when she was too striken by grief and sorrow to move. But now it was time to move on, to be responsible.

Ya can't mope 'round here waitin' fer 'im, Girlie. Ya need ta take care of ya self 'til ya get a new man." The old woman'd voice croned in her ear before handing her some credits and shooing her out to door to pick up carrots.

Where did one buy carrots anyway? Diva had grown up on a farm, happy to grow her own carrots, always fresh and warm from the rich earth. What sort of place would sell something you could simply grow yourself?

Pale green eyes flicked across the storefronts, registering faintly each sign, determining what lay side. A barbershop for hair, a general store for... Generals? There were lots of military people around, perhaps they just made a store for generals. That made sense...

But what truly caught her eye was the sign for the local dive, the Wet Whistle. It was a grungy place, full of the seedier people in town as the afternoon grew into evening, but they had signs for food and drink. And all these people! They had to have carrots.

Stepping into the dim lit room Diva hardly noticed the attention she was getting. Men poured over their drinks as the tall young woman in her simple dress and bare feet wandered over, filling the space around her with a soft, but very noticeable glow.

Reaching the bar the Diva waved, attracted the curious attention of the human barkeep.

"Excuse me sir," she started, voice stiff. "I'd like to buy some carrots." Her hand outstretched, holding out the wad of credits from before.

See, this was easy! Why had she been worried at all?

[Poludnica]

Sneakily, Lucca entered the bar, trying his hardest to look much older than he really was. The boy's white hair where combed low on his forehead to hide any signs of youthful acne that still lingered on the near-human's skin. Being tall helped of course, as well as not being human. It seemed many of his mother's species had problems telling one Echani from another. It was worth a shot and so the slicer found himself snooping around the bar, finally spotting an empty seat.

”A glass of that nice ale, barkeep.” Lucca said with confidence, adjusting his neat, bantha leather jacket. The near-human did stand out from the common Dantooine crowd not only because of the looks. His accent was that of an Echani raised in the core and manners that could characterize a well groomed gentleman. Still, the boy considered himself a Dantooine dweller through and through, which showed in fondness for local ale.

This said, some of the people didn't really approve of that, especially the unhappy bartender who crossed arms on his large, bulky chest – looking down at the white haired mutt. The man clicked his tongue, visibly displeased by Lucca's display. ”And how old are you exactly?” The bartender asked, frowning darkly. So the amazing ruse didn't pan out...The boy sighed heavily. ”Twenty three, now can I have a glass of ale, please.” Lucca huffed indignantly which was met with a surprisingly cheering laughter from the man.

”Yeah, right.” He commented, coaxing few laughs from the nearest patrons. ”And I am the Naboo queen.” The bartender finished, taking a small bowl of fried crisps. They landed in front of Lucca who wrinkled his nose smelling old fish oil. Next to it appeared a tall glass of juice. ”That's all you are getting from me, kid.” The man seemed more amused than angry, which only added to Lucca's frustration.

Oh, well.

With sour expression he began to munch on the nasty chips, carefully gripping them with two fingers, watching not to get oily crumbles on his jacket.

Crunch...Crunch...Crunch.... After a while Lucca got really used to the specific taste of the snack and found himself eating much more eagerly when the doors opened and something shiny appeared. Everyone in the bar froze, watching the breathtaking sight, including the white haired slicer. The girl, from the looks of it, seemed to shine in the dark. Literally. Filling the space around her with radiant glow.

What the...

Lucca coughed, choking on the recklessly swallowed chips. Aside from being green and glowish she looked like a bare foot pile of misery. Another non -human on Dantooine, that was comforting. Vigilantly, Lucca watched the girl walking toward the bartender. That ought to be good... He smirked at the thought, seeing how lost and confused the alien woman was. But it was what she asked about caused a roar of laughter exploding in the shady dive. Lucca snorted, spitting some of the juice. The only one deadly serious was the barkeep who apparently had enough of being jerked around by kids.

”A what? “ The man shook his head. ”Girl, what kind of cuckoo house you ran off from?” The bartender looked completely defeated, deciding to take a break for a while, leaving only a service droid around. Lucca sought out a quick opportunity in it. Not to mention curiosity if the young woman was simply crazy, foolish or a best kind of joker. ”Oi! Glowstick! I will buy you carrots if you buy me a drink.” Lucca said, walking over to the girl, smiling cheekily.

[Moonfire]

”Girl, what kind of cuckoo house you ran off from?” The bartender asked before throwing up his hands in defeat, not bothering to listen as Diva tried to explain that shes never lived with birds before, but her words were drowned out quickly and the shuffling barkeep was replaced by a service droid.

"What did I do wrong?" The young woman asked softly, visibly becoming distressed. She had done everything right, hadn't she? It seemed so straight forward...

”Oi! Glowstick! I will buy you carrots if you buy me a drink.”

A new voice called out with the thunder of boots against hardwood behind her. Turning about Diva met the eyes of the half-echani, returning the smile out of habit before her freckled face twisted up in confusion. What had he just called her? Glowstick? What a queer thing to call someone... But he was looking at her, smiling at her. He had a nice smile.

"My name isn't Glowstick... This isn't where you buy food?" The green haired woman whispered to what seemed to be a new friend, here to help her through this difficult time. With a twist of her neck to girl called over the droid.

"Excuse me, can I please get two drinks?"

[Poludnica]

The young near-human didn't know if to be amused or irritated by the girl's odd silliness. He was ready to just walk away, refusing to put up with mentally challenged people. No matter how good they looked. ”Firstly, you ordered carrots at a bar.” Lucca shrugged, not really getting into details. It wasn't his role to educate peasants, giving the girl's rural accent. It made him wince a bit and the cheering smile faded, replaced by annoyed indifference.

That quickly changed when Glowstick ordered two drinks. Now they were talking. ”It is now.” Lucca replied confidently not really caring for any protest. ”How come you don't know where to buy food, where you kept in a barn all the time?” He sighed and rolled his eyes theatrically before pointing to last free table.

The droid swiftly brought two beers and the young half-Echani greedily took his, feeling now obliged to help the glowing girl, who seemed confused and distressed. Not that Lucca really cared for such things, he had plenty of own problems. He put back almost emptied glass, neatly taking care of any droplets hat might stay on his pale chin. ”You buy carrots in a shop. This is not a shop. It's a bar.” The boy tried to talk slowly, giving her time to understand every word just in case she was slow or something equally ridiculous.

[Moonfire]

Diva took the drink from the service droid and sniffed it curiously. She knew about alcohol, Gordon enjoyed from time to time, but she never had much of taste for it. A small, experimental sip of the brew revealed its complexity, rustic and earthy but refreshing. A soft sigh escaped her green lips before looking over the half-echani.

"No, I was raised in a house. But we had a barn... I'll admit that I didn't leave home very often though." The glowing young woman said taking another sip of the ale, "This is my first time being alone. I grew my own carrots, so I've never had to buy them before. I don't know this town at all." She said, responding in a normal though stiff way as though it was the simplest of explanations.

"This one has signs for food, I thought you'd be able to buy any food here... You must think I'm silly."

[Poludnica]

” I can see that.” He commented and just expected the girl was some Dantooine peasant with maybe some kind of mental disability. Maybe, though she had just seemed like an extremely naïve to the point of idiocy. For a young man raised in the Core in best schools with holonet access it seemed like something absolutely new and laugh worthy. Though to be fair something didn't add up...

”You aren't human and almost everyone else on Dantooine is, how did that happen?” Of course there was a fair share of migrated aliens, like him and Mo but neither was actually born as a proper Dantooine peasant like his mother. H didn't comment on the way Glowstick sipped her beer, like it was some suspicious looking piss. Maybe he should offer drinking it for her?

Growing own carrots doesn't justify this foolishness... Lucca thought but didn't really voice it, saying simply -”Yes, I think you are.” If the girl expected him to deny it, counting on some social pleasantries, she would be gravely disappointed. Lucca didn't play social games.

The boy sighed and leaned slightly closer as if betraying some terrible secret. ”But letters below say 'bar', it's not where you buy carrots.” Lucca said in a hushed voice.

[Moonfire]

"My father was Yaral Veline from Datar, he was a Ghostling musician. My mother was Rhaela Veline from Coruscant, she was a Theelin artist, when they got married they decided they wanted a simpler life away from the Core and away from Father's family. Father's family never really cared for my mother, wanted him to stay on Datar and marry a nice ghostling girl." Diva nodded as she recited the story from memory, the image of her mother's spotted face recounting the tale brought a dreamy smile to the young woman's face.

"But they were in love, so they got married and traveled the galaxy before deciding to settle down. Dantooine was perfect; cheap land, beautiful for growing crops, lots of fresh clean air... So they bought an old farm and I was born six or seven years later." Diva nodded again, satisfied with her explanation. Focusing back on the young man before her she repeated the question.

"You have the same accent my mother had, are you from the Core too?" She asked, genuinely curious about this stranger. "Whats your name?"

”Yes, I think you are.”

Diva took another sip, deeper this time from the ale, swishing the bitter liquid back and forth across her tongue before swallowing it, relishing in the sour. Lucca though leaned closer as though whispering some sort of special secret just for the two of them, voices hushed.

”But letters below say 'bar', it's not where you buy carrots.”

"I've never been to a bar before..." The woman whispered back with a smile before leaning back her seat. "Since you don't buy carrots here, where do you? I didn't see any stores on my way here with signs for carrots."

[Poludnica]

”A ghost what?” Lucca asked, frowning in confusion. Theelin he knew – some poor species plagued by genetic disorders that had more hybrids than purebloods but he had never heard about Ghostlings. The boy snorted, scoffing slightly at the strange background Glowstick had but despite his own indifference to most things he couldn't stop but relate slightly to that story. The girl reminded him of his own mixed breeding which was never particularly pleasant topic – he had met his paternal grandfather when nine and the old Echani had never truly accepted a half mongrel whose mother came from human farmers. ”It's a weird parentage.” He commented with a shrug, not really sure if it was about his own family or hers/.

”Took them some time.” Lucca snickered, not really keen on sharing his mother was pregnant before getting married, why would Glowstick even tell him that stuff? He rolled his eyes, hoping to get another beer. Maybe that would make listening to that gibberish easier.

I don't care... Lucca rubbed his temples, grateful the tale of her past came to an end and they could move on. The boy would never admit it but at least now he wasn't the biggest freak in the bar, everyone was more focused on Glowstick's faint aura than his white hair.

With a subtle smirk, Lucca leaned back, folding hands behind his head in a casual manner. ”There is a market near by, you can buy fresh vegetables and food there.” The near-human yawned, taking few more sips from the tall glass. Pleasant buzz began to fill his head when alcohol made its way through the blood brain barrier. He wanted to ask for another drink but Dutch wouldn't be happy if his protégé returned to him hammered into oblivious stutter.

[Moonfire]

Diva, or perhaps now, Glowstick sipped at her drink more enjoying the bitterness of the beverage. Her sips became deeper before transforming into an all out gulp as she slowly realized that the strange white haired young man didn't answer her question about him, but did reveal the secret location of a carrot merchant. With a satisfied sigh she placed the glass back on the creaky tabletop and smiled again, sweet and bright.

"So you'll take me to the market?" Her eyes flicked back to his nearly empty glass. "Do you need more? I can get you more!"

With a jump and flutter of her dress Glowstick had his glass in hand and was scurrying towards the bar counter back to the service droid. With a flourish she laid the empty drinkware on the table and beckoned the shimmying little droid back over.

The order for more booze barely left her green tinted lips when an imposing human figure appeared, casting a long shadow that made the woman only grow brighter in the sparse light. She didn't notice at first, blissfully unaware as long muscled arm snaked its way about her waist before grabbing and pulling the young woman close, possessively.

"Hey thar, darlin'. You're a funny 'lil wench ain'tcha?" Ale perfumed breathe curled sour and strong in her face as the uniformed man smiled and clutched her close, trying to pull her into his lap.

The small, panicked squeak that accompanied all personal contact quickly became all out horror as Glowstick let out a shrill, panicked noise and thrashed against the drunken Sith officers grasp.

[Poludnica]

”An extra beer is always nice.” Lucca grinned. ”It will certainly make finding a market this much easier.” He added, happy she didn't insist on knowing his name. Sith spies were everywhere and the boy didn't like the prospect of getting caught by the Imperials. It was enough his father had to suffer through it. If he was alive of course, which wasn't this sure at all.

The young near-human put back the empty glass with a sigh when a towering human approached them. Lucca froze, sharp intake of breath ended any sentence he struggled to say. Did the man know him from DLA? The boy prepared to show his fake papers, frigid with slowly flooding dread but to his utter surprise the man just wanted to pull Glowstick onto his lap with dumb, lusty expression on his face.

Lucca just couldn't believe his luck. An air headed smile spread on his pale lips. Of course, he did feel kind of bad for Glowstick, but he had a mission and nothing would stand in his way. Beside, playing a knight in shining armor didn't fit a freedom fighter he had become. Dutch was much better for this, sometimes even stupidly so and Lucca often found himself feeling the urge to smack him upside down the head. Getting himself killed in a meaningless brawl didn't serve the greater cause.

Poor Glowstick...But yeah...He looked around, at least four more Sith officers. No chance and if they caught him, the entire DLA would pay. Lucca looked to the girl who yelped quietly and with visibly sorrow shook his head. ”Yeah...yeah...I should go.” The boy sighed and slowly stood up, not to disturb the hulking Sith. Fortunately the man was too busy groping his newest, glowing prey.

Lucca began to walk away when another soldier reached his hand and grabbed him by a collar of the boy's jacket. ”Hey! Snowball! Where do you think you are going?” One of the other officers called out. Lucca stopped, traces of cold sweat began to trickle down his neck. ”Show me your papers.” The man demanded. The near-human looked at him coldly and reach for his datapad where all the 'official' documents were stored. He didn't say a word, though sudden sharpness to his features betrayed the disdain and fury that stirred close to the surface.

”Astor Manero” The officer read out loud. Oh good, you can read. Lucca thought, small snicker formed on his lips at it, apparently the Imperial didn't like. It earned the boy a hearty slap. ”What are you staring at, mongrel.” He snapped at the near-human who responded with an angry snark. ” Damn rimkin.” He replied quietly, his eyes unconsciously looking for Glowstick.

”What did you say, kid?” The officer demanded. Lucca was very close to just punching him in the face, even knowing fully well they would kill him. Thankfully, he didn't have to. A large silhouette of Dantooine farmer rose behind the soldier and slammed a bottle on the Imperial's head. It was the bartender. Glass and blood exploded and for a moment before everyone in the bar started to grab on any weapon they had on them. Including blasters.

”Run kids!” The man shouted out before being taken down by a precise shot. Lucca turned to dash toward the doors, as the cantina exploded with angry shouts when the locals began to brawl with Sith soldiers.

((Fell free to meet them outside! =3))

[Moonfire]

"Shhh Shhh." Slurred the officer, greedy fingers working their way across her sides as the girl thrashed harder, the panicked squeal catching the attention of some of the others. The other officers in the bar hardly raised an eyebrow, but the locals, the regulars saw the alien girl clearly uncomfortable as the man groped at her and whispered amongst themselves.

"Letgoletgoletgoletgo!" Diva cried, still thrashing, eyes wide with panic as hand clamped on her thigh, another moving its way over her stomach towards her chest, as the drunken Sith grumbled.

"Calm down, girlie. I just wanna talk to ya fer a moment." The sour ale breathe whirled in her face, causing the young woman to gag, his closeness, the way his hands clutched and roamed across her body causing horrid shivers and frenzied little insects to crawl across her skin. She struggled harder, moving in harsh jerking motions against the much larger man's grasp and she cried out before a loud crack pierced the air.

The hand snapped across the thin skin of her delicate cheek hard and loud, the burning sting punctuating the dramatic sound.

"That oughta shut ya up." The drunken man snorted before placing his hand firmly over her chest, the wild green eyed woman staring blankly in horror, still as tears welled in her eyes.

"Now isn't that better, darlin'?" He asked slackening his grip on his prize, his breath hot and sticky in her face, just millimeters from the quickly purpling bruise that blossomed across her face.

With surprisingly agility Diva wrenched herself, hard, tumbling from the man's arms and onto the floor, hand's withdrawing the slender throwing knives from their pouch at her thigh. Hopping up she punched the gaping, drunkard hard in the face and stabbed the glimmering thin knife through his hand and into the bar beneath, pinning the limb.

A ruckus had broken out, the bartender shouting for them to run as the locals rose up against the bar full of officers, the man howling in the background.

And so Diva ran. Her bare toes skittered against the smooth wood of the cantina before launching herself out into the steadily growing darkness of Dantooine at dusk. Eyes flicked back and forth before finding a familiar figure, not far in the distance, white hair flung back as he made his own escape.

Bare toes against rich, townsy grown propelled the woman forward with alien quickness and within moment she careened to a halt, crashing against the helpful white haired boy with a yelp before jumping back an acceptable distance

"Bunny!" She gasped "Are you okay?"

[Poludnica]

The boy stumbled froward, trying to avoid any punches directed at him. The brawl turned up into small revolution which gave him a chance to kick one of the Sith officers between his legs, following it with a strong punch to the nose. Lucca wasn't the strongest man out there, his skeleton and muscles were still those of a teenager but one didn't have to be a brute. Unarmed combat was about precision more than anything else.

Blood sprayed into the air, coloring a patch of Lucca's hair slightly pink but the boy didn't notice it, too busy trying to get away from the angry masses. Finally! The doors! Once outside the boy inhaled deeply and feel onto his knees, trying to catch the short breath. His body trembled with unexpected physical strain and anxiety. It was close...Too close. No doubt Dutch would scold him for getting in so much trouble.

Something distracted him, an odd tickling sensation on his nose. Lucca rubbed it, feeling something sticky and warm. Huh. The boy sighed, looking at his fingertips smeared with human blood. His normally comely features twisted in expression of disgust and horror. ”Ew...Ewewew.” He exclaimed, patting his hair feverishly, noticing they were all covered now in crimson good. It must have been from that broken nose...

Nearing panic, he barely registered Glowstick crushing into him. He stumbled back, catching the balance once more, directing his glaring stare at the greenish girl. ”It's your fault, unsavory country bumpkin.” Lucca snorted, in panic trying to clean his hair, which only served to smear the blood more into white, ruffled hair. ”Well,sh*t.” He complained close to tears, for the first time in months using such horrid word.

”I need to wash my hair. Wait what, a bunny? Where?” The near-human looked back at the scared girl with irritation, glancing around before realizing Glowstick was talking about him. "I am not..." Someone slammed at the cantina doors. ”We have to run.” Lucca stated and unceremoniously pulled the girl by her small hand into one of many alleys.

[Moonfire]

Diva pouted, as Lucca became visibly distressed, smearing the sticky redness of the blood into his hair, turning it a vibrant pink. He snarled at her, proclaiming this all to be her fault and even flinging an insult or two.

"I'm not unsavory. You shouldn't be so rude." Her voice was firm, watching as he all but clawed at the bloodied mess of his hair. The handsome young man was an odd one, maybe it was an alien thing?

"I'm staying not too far from here... You can shower there. I thought I saw a river, if you don't want to go there, Bunny. Its just a little blood, I got some on me too. No harm done." The bruised girl cooed softly in her most comforting voice, motioning to the splattered blood across her dress from when Diva had stabbed the Sith's hand, a slight spray dabbling the blue of her sundress.

Suddenly Lucca grabbed her hand, dragging her roughly into an alley and the panic started again, a soft squeak finding its way from her throat. "Don't touch, please don't touch." She hissed, fear apparent on her face she recoiled, slipping her hand away from his to stand away, glowing gently in the darkness of the alleyway.

[Poludnica]

The young man didn't care for Glowstick's protest. There weren't many things he cared about to be fair and the girl didn't happen to be one of them. ”Don't get me in troubles and I won't be rude.” Lucca snapped back, feeling wave of sickness nearing at the metallic stench of blood. It didn't help he looked at the droplet of blood at the girl's dress.

An expression of utter disgust crept on his features at this. ”It's nasty, that's what it is.” He said wincing at the new pet name. ”I am not a bunny. Why would you even think so?” Lucca quipped, at least his name for her made some kind of sense. This girl was weird, alien like some hermit locked up in an ivory tower. Or a barn. Though her offer calmed him a bit, there was a chance for cleaning off the blood without telling Dutch what happened.

”A river? You know how much filth swims there?” The boy looked at his companion as if something was wrong with her. Yep, definitely she couldn't be called the most normal individual. ”We will go to your place.” Lucca decided, not really thinking about thanking the girl. Especially not when Glowstick freaked out about touching her.

”What? “ The Echani asked confused, wondering if his hand didn't wonder where it shouldn't. Wait...NO, why would it. He just sighed. ”Weirdo.” The boy commented indifferently and gestured at the girl to show him the farm.

[Moonfire]

"I'm not stupid, I know you're not a bunny and I'm not a glowstick. You didn't give me your name so I gave you one, isn't that how this works?" Her brow furrowed in confusion. These social games were confusing, nicknames and given names and all this physical contact. But Lucca seemed more agitated than her, fussing and whining over the pink stickiness he smeared roughly through his silvery hair. He really didn't like being messy, did he?

"I'm not weird." Diva muttered, wringing her hands together as the antsy feeling went away, the tension starting to disappear again. What horrifying customs the people of this town have.

Pale green eyes darted about, looking over the corner of the building they hide behind. The authorities were rushing the saloon to break up the riot, and left them certainly distracted. If they walked casually they could probably get there rather quickly and without scene.

"Come on, this way." The woman said with a tilt of her head scooting between the buildings on the tips of her bare toes. They slipped through alleyways and backstreets before reaching the edge of town. The last building was on old farm house, though the land surrounding it had been sold off and developed in the years passed, leaving up the old house squashed between a couple clothing shops and an old rickety building for worship. This wasn't the farm of Diva's memories, no that was half a world away, but it was a place to stay for now.

Surefooted they crossed the fence and bounded up the porch, and with a few smooth motions Diva unlocked the door.

"Don't say anything until we get to my apartment." She warned in a soft voice. "Don't want Mrs. Figgins to see you all messed up."

The door creaked and groaned in protest as Diva opened it, quietly beckoning Lucca inside.

"Diva, that you dear?" A squeaky voice of an old woman called down the stairs.

"Yes, Mrs. Figgins. Just stepping in." She tilted her head towards the door on the left, a simple wreath of fresh flowers on the door, the door to her home for now.

"Did you remember the carrots?"

"Oh... Bother." Diva pouted, her face falling into her hands as she remembered her whole reason for going into town in the first place. "I went to the... Market? Yeah... the market. They were all out, said to come back in an hour." She lied, lamely, opening the door and ushering Lucca inside before her lies could be challenged.

The sparsely furnished apartment had a homey sort of feel. A studio, the bed took up almost the whole single room, only a small couch on one side and a tiny kitchenette and table to define it as more than just that. It was clean, almost impeccably, the bed made with tight perfect corners and the floor swept fresh that morning. If there was one thing Diva was versed in, it was keeping house.

"Bathroom and shower are over there." She pointed to a closed door on the right, heading instead for the bag left open and full of clothes on the couch, surrounded by a pile of weapons. Blasters, slug throwers, knives and vibroblades laid out carefully over the floral patterned couch.

"I'm going to have to change my dress." The woman explained as she shuffled through the bag of pretty dresses.

[Poludnica]

Lucca was too busy patting his hair, making sure to dig out as much sticky liquid as possible, to really pay attention to Glowstick's complains. To his horror the blood began to dry creating awful, disgusting clots - the boy was close to tears. But followed the strange girl, clinging to the promise of a shower and getting off all the filth that nestled in his wild hair. Keeping his one hand on the sticky mane, the near-human rushed to catch up with Glowstick. That girl was insanely fast, almost a blur and for a moment Lucca even lost her.

What a freak!

After less than fifteen minutes they reached a strange looking house. Lucca squinted his eyes to make sure he was seeing everything for what it was. The most peculiar sight – a farmhouse surrounded by new, commercial buildings stood like a stubborn, ancient tree that just refused to die. Lucca thought of his mother who lived in similar poverty on this Maker's forsaken planet which caused slight discomfort that the boy couldn't really place.

”Figgins? “ Lucca asked when the doors opened. The boy ducked forward, hiding behind a flimsy potty plant. Voice of an old woman broke through asking about carrots. Was she Glowstick's grandmother? Those damn carrots but the girl's awkward lie coaxed an amused snort from him. She was a funny one, even Dutch would see through that lame made up story. The older women did believe tho which caused Lucca to believe she was a bit demented.

He dug himself from behind the plant and entered the surprisingly clean apartment. The perfectly made bed and dusted shelves appealed to his nature that liked everything to be in order. Lucca didn't suspect this trait in Glowstick, on the contrary. She seemed like someone messy and chaotic but..

A bathroom! Without a word, ignoring the girl's dresses, the Echani darted toward the doors Glowstick pointed on his way taking off shirt that landed on the floor, seemingly disregarding the surrounding tidiness. Naked, Lucca hopped into a shower, finding a shampoo, pouring half of a bottle onto his hair. That felt good!

[Moonfire]

Diva shuffled through the bag, looking over the wide variety of colorful and patterned sundresses she had packed from the home she shared with Gordon in the nameless town across the planet. They smelled of their home still, left behind only a week or so before. The soft, Dantooine cotton was warm and familiar between the girls fingers as she stood poised before the bag, remembering Gordon bringing home each and every one to her.

After much shuffling she decided on a butter yellow one, with pale green grass across the hem and lemon and lime flowers blooming across the bust. With a shimmy and a shake she switched the blood stained dress for the other, letting her mind wander as the shower sounds echoed through her impromptu home.

With a frown Diva glanced in the mirror, her ribbons no longer matched. With a few quick swipes of her hand and brush she transformed the twin braids into a soft green waves about her face, a small yellow bow sweeping the long strands up and away from her eyes. Once satisfied with her appearance she turned towards the sounds of the echani mutt in her bathroom. He sure was taking a long time...

[Poludnica]

It was a miracle the boy didn't melt after nearly twenty minutes of hot shower. The water washed off any crimson left in his silver hair. Lucca clicked the faucet and exhaled slowly, enjoying the squeaky clean feeling. He was smelling of girly cosmetics now but it didn't bother him much. The most important part was that Lucca felt clean and shiny. He quickly put on his pants but left the chest bare as the shirt had been discarded somewhere in the room.

With still damp hair, the boy left the bathroom and stepped into the studio, his green eyes searching for the girl. Hmm..There she was. For a moment Lucca had doubts it could be the same Glowstick. Her hair was all fluffy, pretty nice actually and the dress nicely hugged the slender form. Lucca felt..something...A familiar feeling but one that didn't happen too often. The boy decided Glowstick was rather pretty for a girl and his body responded in kind.

Yhh...

He shifted uncomfortably, quickly looking away from the girl in search for his shirt. For a brief moment Lucca was even self-conscious about his body that was toned and trained but rather skinny for a man. The half Echani was still a teenager after all, two years before his twenty birthday. Awkwardly the boy massaged his neck, feeling slight flush on chalk pale skin. Focusing only on finding the shirt, the boy finally dressed himself, strangely trying to keep his back to the Dantooine girl rather than front.

”So...do you want those carrots?” He asked though didn't really want to go anywhere which was apparent in Lucca's face expression which now showed indifferent boredom, thought from time to time emerald gaze would flicker toward Glowstick, unconsciously trailing soft lines of her curves. Lucca thought he should go back to Dutch when his gaze rest on the girl's cheek...How come he had missed that bruise...Too busy with looking at other things apparently.

That was some nasty bruise.

”You have some ugly stain on your face.” Lucca commented without any empathy. He just didn't feel it was a very necessary thing in social contact. People lost way too much time for trying to be nice instead of stating plain facts.

Like this one. About a really ugly bruise. ”Maybe a make up would help.” He offered a solution what still felt generous in his eyes. Normally Lucca wouldn't care to do even that but watching nice things getting ugly was somewhat distressing.

[Moonfire]

Diva perked up, turning to face the door as Lucca left the bathroom, a plume of steam following the half-dressed young man as he entered the small living space. She smiled, as was polite, head tilted as she watched his eyes dart over the room, seeking out his missing shirt. For a moment, the Diva let her pale green eyes wander over the slender form of the Echani, his muscles lean but defined, before turning away, green freckled face flushed beneath the purple-black of the bruise.

"My name is Diva Liliwen Veline, by the way. I like being called Lili..." She said softly, wandering back over the weaponized floral sofa, reaching for a case of throwing knives before gently lifting up the hem of her dress to reveal the thigh beneath.

"Yeah, Mrs. Figgins won't be too pleased with me if I don't bring her at least a couple for tonight's stew." She called back casually as she replaced the knife lost in that cantina back in town.

”You have some ugly stain on your face.”

Standing up, stiff and straight on her tip-toes Glowstick faced him, fingers reflexively running over the feverish swollen flesh on her cheek.

"Is it really that bad?" Her voice wavered, palm trying to cover the worst of it as she sought out her mirror, prodding the tender flesh with a long finger tip.

”Maybe a make up would help.” Lucca offered behind her, watching as she began to fret.

"I don't have any." Her voice now visibly distressed, eyes watering as she peered at this ugly monster enveloping her face. "That... That uniformed man hit me. He ruined my face." A tear tumbled down the cheek, leaving a harsh, red line in its wake. "Can we get some at the market?" She turned about, eyes wide and face full of fear as she regarded Bunny. Bunny had helped her so far, he knew all this... stuff.

[Poludnica]

For a long moment Lucca stared blankly at the girl, trying to process her name that seemed unnecessary long and complex. ”Glowstick it is.” He nodded, not keen on using anything else but finally agreed to give his own name in turn. ”Name's Lucca.” The boy stated, pulling on his shirt. This time his gaze wandered around the room taking in neglected details. To his susprise he found quite an arsenal spread around. Including throwing knives.

A what...

The part Echani stood frozen in place, slightly astonished by the sudden revelation. He hadn't noticed it earlier too busy with sticky hair but now couldn't just pretend it didn't exist. Dark, green gaze traveled to the girl, silent question rising in it when Glowstick reached for the weapon. ”Wait...what...Who are you again? What's with the knives?” The boy blinked. From how pathetically she had shrieked when the Sith groped her, the Echani didn't suspect her of even owning a knife. Let alone use it.

As the girl began to fret over her bruise, Lucca still eyed the weapons with a suspicion. ”It will heal.” He chided Glowstick who seemed strangely anxious about his every remark. What a weird girl. Lucca finally looked back to her and a part of him was tempted to offer a bag to cover her face instead of make up she didn't have but oddly enough the boy refrained.

It just didn't seem all that right to abuse someone so miserable. Beside, Lucca hated tears in any kind or form. They were just pathetic and there was a fair chance Glowstick would start to wallow. ”Listen, we can go now get the carrots. For that...Fickins lady.” The near-human offered in return, hoping that would stop any river of tears that could happen.

Why the girls had to be so weird?