How I learned to Drink

[Dire Wolf]

Sera offered a heavy sigh as she lie in her bed and simply stared up at the ceiling. Those hazel green eyes had a little sheen to them, one that was created from a lack of blinking. Her mind was delving down the winding cavernous tunnels of itself, not even knowing what it was searching for. While the pain in her shin had retreated since her and Dal's escape from The Wicked, it was still very existent. She didn't let a limp show in her step, but it was there. Sera doubted she could run well.

At first, the two had tried to simply run. Hide somewhere like a pair of frightened rabbits waiting for the barrel of a shotgun to point at them. Granted, the pair of frightened rabbits were some of the best Jedi Hunters that ever came out of JHC Sernpidal, but they were still acting like prey nonetheless.

That changed when they ran out of credits.

After that, they were forced to take on something of a life of crime. Sera didn't particularly care. She'd been mired in a life not unlike that since she'd been taken by pirates on her escape ship. Dal didn't seem to care either. While she didn't know much about his past, the woman found that she didn't really care. Past be damned, he was one great man in the present. Though great may have been a strong word... hell... good was a bit of a strong word, he'd always done right by her. That was good enough for the red tinted woman.

Vossk mourned as the shrill report of the chronometer met her ears: it was time to actually get out of bed instead of staring up at the ceiling like a depressed teenager. With a groan, her hand slapped against the top of the little plastic box hard enough to leave the soft flesh of her palm stinging. The alarm kept sounding, the shrill whine leaving her mind with the feeling of impalement.

Swiftly, her hand swept across the bolted down nightstand to slap the little alarm clock off of its surface. The hardened polymer of the alarm chrono didn't stand a chance against the unyielding durasteel of the bulkhead, and crunched into it. Slowly, its loud alarm turned into a pathetic whine... and then vanished completely.

"Fracking thing. Now I gotta steal another one." The heel of her palm slunk up and rubbed against her eye to clear out the blurriness from them. After she was satisfied with her vision, the woman swung her legs around the bed and pressed her bare feet against the durasteel. It was colder than Rhen Var. With another groan, she slunk her weight forward and ignored the chill as best she could... along with the biting and gnawing pain of her ankle. She really needed to get that fixed.

_~_~_~_~_
(to spare my sanity, and yours)
_~_~_~_~_

Sera walked out of the her quarters and into the small assembly area of the ship. A dark black spaghetti-strap clung to her chest, and accentuated her red skin somewhat. Her bare midriff and a pair of black pants with too many cargo pockets only furthered her dark look. The combat boots surely didn't take away from the "mess with me and you'll be dead before you can blink" look about her form. The countenance of her walk was that of a bha'lir as it stalked the Savannah. Every movement was precise, deliberate, and screamed mal intent.

The job was a simple one: board a mag-lev train as it hauled a particularly large package of precious crysopaz gems from a mining town to one of the larger space ports on the planet, take the gems, get out, and get their pay. It was too simple, really. Sera could do a job like that with half of her brain tied behind her back, asleep, and blind. Let alone Dal, who specialized in CQB. This was well below their skill level, but it didn't matter... one seemed to need to grow a reputation in the underbelly of society before they had a chance to make the big bucks.

Hazel green eyes shifted over to Dal. She looked tired. Truth be told it felt like the woman got no sleep the night before, and it certainly looked like it. A small groan preceded her comment and her voice was very a little grumbly, "how long we got 'till we're o'er that train?"

[Meira]

These days, Dal was only sure of two things: 1. Life currently sucked bantha balls, and 2. there was nothing to be done about it. After their sudden escape from The Wicked, Dal and Sera had been constantly on the move. They didn't stay in one place too long. They were always looking over their shoulders. It recalled Dal's days after his clan had betrayed his family.

There was nothing more shameful than running. His whole life, Dal had been taught to stand and fight. He'd never run away from anything until that fateful night, and hadn't expected to do it again. But he had. Not that it was avoidable. In his mind, there was no choice. He had to protect Sera, and therefore, he had to follow her. On some nights, when he found himself lying awake, he could convince himself that he wasn't running. Sera was running, he was helping her. Sometimes he could see the difference. But most times he saw straight through it.

When their credits ran out, they turned to doing what they had to do to survive. Again, Dal felt wretched. Thievery was supposed to be bellow a warlord's son. Like running, it was cowardly, and often enough it brought gain only at the cost of one less powerful. Dal had no qualms against taking what he wanted from those who stood a fighting chance. And so for the most part, their thievery was somewhat acceptable, since they tended to steal from the less savory sorts.

In any case, it was safe to say that Dal was a generally unhappy sort of man since their desertion of the Sith military. He was raggedy, often dirty, and always hungry. His skin, usually a pure, snow white, now often held an unhealthy gray tinge. Dark circles had set up a permanent camp under his eyes, and his cheeks were starting to show the first signs of sinking in. His typical black cargo pants were starting to feel loose around his waist, and his tank to hung slightly on his frame.

Rocky too was looking pretty shabby. His coat, which had once sported a healthy sheen, now looked dull and unkempt. He was much thinner than before and much more lethargic. He slept all day and rarely accompanied his master on his outings. At the moment, Rocky lay curled at Dal's feet as the wilting giant cleaned his rifle.

All Dal could hope was that this current job, lifting some crystals of some sort, would be enough to get a decent meal in all of their stomachs. As he had Sera had worked their way up the crime scene's corporate ladder, they'd been tipped off about this particular gem shipment. As simple smash and grab job, but important for establishing their reputation. Dal and Sera had hooked up with a pilot on an agreement to split the prize evenly three ways. It was more than the pilot deserved, disgusting Trandoshan that he was. All he was doing was dropping Dal and Sera off on the mag-lev train and then pick them up again when they were done with all the real work. But Dal was beyond caring how much the lizard contributed. He just wanted off the guy's fecking ship.

The creature was a slob. He ate worms and left trash and all kinds of filth everywhere. What was worse, he was apparently shedding. Dal couldn't move about the ship without finding some of the disgusting discarded dead skin stuck to his boot or his arm.

Dal had just finished reassembling his newly cleaned rifle when Sera entered the small common room. Dal didn't look up. He couldn't stand the sight of Sera like this, tired, near defeated. It reminded him too much that he was failing in his duty to protect her. Instead he double checked that the action on the reassembled gun was working properly with a few dry fires. The weapon issued a series of loud clicks. All was in order.

"How long we got until 'till we're o'er that train?"

It was unfortunate that as Sera asked the question, Dal had found a particularly large flake of discarded Trandoshan skin stuck to his forearm. Dal let out a frustrated growl as he peeled the flake off and tossed it across the room.

Do I look like a bleedin' chrono to you?

The words came out with a snap that the man instantly regretted but didn't retract. Instead, he heaved a sigh before finally looking up at the woman. As he expected, she looked tired, so tired. His face, trained over the years to give nothing away, hid the slight pain that gripped his chest at the sight of her. His eyes didn't linger, and looked back down at his weapon again.

Shouldn't be long. We'd better suit up.

As if on cue, the Trandoshan's voice came over the ship's comm with a hiss as he announce that they were five minutes out from their drop site. Dal stood, stepping over to a bench where his bag lay open. He pulled his armor from the bag. Nothing near the sleek high tech armor he'd become accustomed to in the Sith military, this armor was a simple blaster resistant vest and two arm guards. He'd lifted the shabby stuff off of some thugs that thought they stood a chance... obviously they hadn't. The vest barely fit the large man, but it didn't matter much. He strapped it on then slung the rifle and his scabbard over either shoulder. Strapping a blaster to his waist and stocking up on some ammo finished the job. He looked over at his companion again, her leg specifically.

You gonna be able to keep up?

Inwardly, Dal flinched. He knew the question would only elicit flack, but it was a legit question nonetheless. This job required a moderate amount of speed. If she couldn't do it, she should say something now before they ended up in a bad situation.

[Dire Wolf]

"Do I look like a bleedin' chrono to you?"

Sera's eyes flashed dangerously up to the pale giant as he let that little comment loose. He had to be a psychic. Her disheveled raven hair and the heavy bags under her eyes made the Zeltron female look something like a wild thing. One who didn't know the meaning of sleep. "No. Chrono's can count past three."

The Zeltron woman closed her eyes. Wishing, at that instant, that she could unsay what she said. He had done so much for her. Ruined his life when he could've just as easily let the firing squad do its work. Her own words hurt her, but her face didn't look it. Exhaustion and fatigue dominated any other emotions that could've possibly shown through. Even her eyes, knit together ever so lightly, didn't show the emotion beneath their green tinted windows.

"Dal... I'm s-," she was cut off by the loud hissing of that trandoshan. Oh how she loathed that giant lizard. His filth was everywhere, and shed skin seemed to be lining the walls. Instead of completing her apology, Sera's form deflated into a slump as she walked over and slumped against a chair. She was sure to check all of her weapons and ammo the day before, and to have all of it out and ready to go for the morning.

So, instead of suiting up, she simply propped her elbows against the table and rested her head heavily in her palms. Between her exhaustion, situation, Dal's stupid decision to help her, and her reaction to him not thirty seconds ago, she just wanted to cry. Alot.

"You gonna be able to keep up?"

She only grumbled in response to his little snide question, or she heard it as snide at least, and promptly let out a little whimper. Sera was looking gaunt. Fracking Hell. She felt gaunt. Felt weak. The muscles in her arms weren't quite as taught as they used to be, and bumpy lines below her breasts and under her shirt revealed the ribs that should have a good layer of muscle over them. Or fat. Or something other than skin.

Sera grumbled and spoke without looking up at Dalibor. "A bullet 'll keep up with just about anything, Dal." Only then did the former hunter let herself let out a little, almost inaudible whimper before pushing herself up and over to the weapons table.

The girl had no armor to speak of. Didn't need it. A good amount of cover and skill was good enough for her. Sera threw on a set of nylon straps that allowed her to easily carry her magazines, grenades (smoke/stun), and even her sawed off shotgun without stuffing much in her pockets. Obviously, she did anyways. One can never have enough ammo. Especially shotgun shells.

With a sigh, she slid her pistol into one thigh holster and her shotgun into the holster on her opposite leg, slung her rifle across so it was hanging limp at her chest, and looked up at Dal with weary eyes. Despite her weariness, her hunger, lack of decent hygiene (its tough to stay clean with a fracking trandoshan aboard), and, well, just general ornery demeanor... the ghost of a smile touched her lips. "You look like crap."

With that, she walked over and thumbed the docking ramp button. The loud groan of unyielding metal as it was pushed down from the hydraulics rended her ears. Her weary mind was hardly in the state to take such a high pictched squeal. Not to mention the sudden burst of wind against her face. They were moving at about acouple hundred miles an hour, after all. Her hand grabbed a simple looking thing of black cloth and slid it over her head, concealing all but her eyes from view. Balaclava's were cheap little things, but could save you from the wrong end of a good ol' fashion man hunt.

"Lets be bad guys," she couldn't even hear her own words over the loud howl of the wind in her ear.

[Meira]

"A bullet 'll keep up with just about anything, Dal."

Fair enough...

Dal wasn't going to argue with her. Sera knew her limits. He just had to trust that she would let him know if anything went beyond them. So Dal nodded his head and let the issue go. He double checked his gear, though he was sure he had everything they needed. The only thing left to add was the comm signal. He placed it in his pocket. It was a simple, round mechanism, nothing more than a button really. All Dal had to do was press that button and a signal would go off for the pilot to know to pick them back up. Easy.

Rocky stirred from his sleep under the table, he stood, then stretched his front feet out far before him, causing his back to bend concave with the stretch. He then straightened back up, stretching his back feet out instead of his front, before shaking his whole pitiful body and looking up at Dal as if asking to come along.

Not this time Rocky. Dal said, leaning over to give the once fearsome beast a good scratch behind the ears. Rocky didn't seem too disappointed as he curled back up again under the table. Dal shook his head, almost laughing audibly at the creature. From one of his pockets, Dal produced his balaclava, preparing to pull it over his head and face.

"You look like crap."

Dal's eyes turned toward the red skinned woman with a mixture of irritation and humor. His pride didn't much appreciate the comment, not after the one made earlier in regards to his counting abilities. But his pride was also growing weaker. It seemed the hungrier he got, the less he cared about what people thought, even Sera. The humor in him though took the joke for what it was. His eyes looked the woman up and down as she opened the ramp, the air rushing in and drowning out all else. Dal replied anyway, even if she couldn't hear him.

Speak for yourself, that mask is an improvement. Dal chuckled to himself at his own joke as he pulled his balaclava down over his face and moved to stand next to Sera on the ramp.

The wind was strong against them, but they had strength enough yet to resist it as the ship came down over the mag-lev train. It took a few moments before the pilot was able to match the train's speed and inch as close as was safely possible. Dal and Sera were left with something around a ten foot drop. Not too bad... but at these speeds, many things could go wrong.

Dal eyed Sera again, debating the pros and cons of picking her up for the jump. After a moment, he decided against it. She'd allowed him to carry her before, but only when injured. She was recovering still, but the woman would want to fend for herself. So instead he opted to jump first then catch her. He gave the red woman a lazy salute with two of his fingers against his brow before stepping down to the edge of the ramp.

The giant of a man squatted down, placing one palm against the smooth metal surface for balance. A moment later he allowed his legs to spring forward. Using the one hand as a stabilizer, Dal's massive, though now slightly gaunt, frame fell from view, landing hard on the roof of the mag-lev train. Without a moment to spare, he stood and turned around to face Sera and the ramp. He held his hands aloft towards the woman, ready to catch her. A smile managed to find its way onto Dal's features as he spoke.

Come to papa!

[Dire Wolf]

((sorry meira, is most phail))

Sera couldn't help but let a mild smirk crack across her tired face at his response. Despite her exhaustion and fatigue, myriads of responses were fluttering through her mind. Mot funny, some irritated, though she had no time to say one. Her lips had barely articulated in preparation to respond when the door slid open and the wind hit her. It felt like a powerful shove against her chest... though she refused to budge.

The emaciated zeltron fought her way past the thick wall of air that pushed against her every step. Eventually, the woman managed to make her way towards the precipice of the ramp and look down at Dal as he waited for her to jump down. What little remained of her pride demanded that she not take any help, though the part of her that actually used that thing between her ears told her that listening to pride would end badly for her. Sera's shin still pained her, and falling a good ten feet on a wounded leg wasn't exactly the way to start a job.

Those jade eyes watched as the world blurred after she hopped off of the ship, and for a brief moment she could feel the twisting of her gut that came with falling. It only lasted a second, however, as the withering giant caught her fall. She looked up at him as he lowered her down so that her feet would touch the ground, and mumbled a small thanks or two. Walking to the end of a train car while it was traveling at over two hundred miles an hour was tough. Doing it with a wounded foot was enough to get Sera's heart to pound in its cage. Every wrong step sent a lance of pain up her spine, one that she had to ignore unless she wanted to die.

By the end, she realized that dieing wouldn't have been much of a terrible consequence.

Her hand grabbed the stock of her type o2 carbine and slung it around to the front of her body, keeping it forward and pointing down in a “low ready” position. “We're on the train. Get the hell outta here until we call you back,” she mumbled into the communicator. It was barely comprehensible, but the big stupid trandoshan seemed to understand it all the same, as the ship pulled away from the train and took off like a bat out of chaos.

Sera pulled out a small tubular charge from one of her pouches and stuck it to the door. This was a semi-powerful breaching charge, one that would utterly annihilate the door but leave the occupants (and any cargo) relatively unharmed. Granted, if some idiot was leaning against the door he would be without his unneeded brain, but that was the best one could hope for. After the charge was in place, armed, and ready, Sera pulled back and brought the detonator up to her chest.

Generally she set the breaching charge, detonated it, and then Dal rushed in while there was confusion and slew as many people as possible. Sera would be in right after him, mopping up what people were out of reach of his sword or Dal simply hadn't gotten to. It seemed to work thus far. “3... 2... 1...”

Her hand squeezed the detonator.

[Meira]

Sera's weight was nothing in his arms. This was concerning. But it was a concern they were both familiar with. They knew they needed to eat, to regain some of that essential weight back. But to do that, they needed credits. So Dal said nothing as he gently set the red skinned woman down, and instead focused on their task at hand.

He followed her to the point of entry on the train, he kept himself as close to the train as possible. The last thing he needed was for the wind to pluck him up and drop him dead someplace far away. He pressed his back against the outer shell of the train as Sera placed the charge. His hands gripped his rifle in the low ready position as he waited for the charge to detonate. If the intel they'd been given was worth anything, they were either at the car that held the gems, or only one or two cars away.

The charge exploded and Dal rushed in through the opening not moments after. The smoke from the blast hung for a few moments around him, masking his exact location as he moved forward. No shots were fired. No shots were needed. This car was empty of all life. The only inhabitants were large containers. After checking the whole car to be sure, Dal allowed his rifle to hang at his side as he began to inspect the crates. After a few moments, it was obvious the gems were not in this car.

C'mon. Dal said, motioning with his head towards the opposite end of the car where they'd entered.

He moved forward and took up position alongside the door. Being inside, there was no need to use a charge. They could operate the control instead. But as Dal's hand moved to open the door, it opened on its own. Dal glanced up in time to see a security officer step through the door, his hand reaching to activate a comm.

He sprang forward, grabbing the man's wrist and twisting it away from the comm. Dal's other hand caught the man's mouth before he could scream from the pain. Two steps repositioned the ghostly giant behind the security officer and he repositioned his hands to grip the man's head. It was a simple thing to pull his arms in opposing directions, causing the neck to break and the man to fall limp on the floor. Dal pulled a key card from a pocket on the man's vest and tossed it to Sera. Quickly, he stashed the body behind a crate before returning to the door.

They know something's up. We gotta get through this fast.

He stepped through the open door and into the wind again. He moved across the small space between the cars, taking up position once again beside the door. The key card would make their entry much less of a commotion this time. A good thing, considering that Dal suspected to find more than just one guard in this next car. Hopefully, their presence meant the valuable shipment they were looking for was just ahead.

[Dire Wolf]

Sera's teeth rattled as the wave of pressure and reverberations sfrom the breaching charge met her face. None of it was too damaging, or even jarringb for that matter, but that hardly meant that she wouldn't feel it. Within moments after Dal entered the armored car she entered herself, rifle pointing precisely where the chest would be on your average man. It didn't take long for her to notice that the train car was as empty as Balax's soul. With a sigh, she went to check each of the various boxes for the markings that they'd been told to look for as Dal searched for people.

Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. Her search took a little longer than Dal's, which was fortunate as he was closest to the door as it opened. Sera barely glanced over at the newcomer, and then back to her crate when she noticed Dal was already on him. He knew what he was doing, especially up close. If he needed help she'd just shoot the poor dumb bastard. The guard, that is. After she was satisfied, she walked up to Dal and prepared to enter the next car.

"They know something's up. We gotta get through this fast."

Sera nodded at the giant as he said that, offering no verbal response. It was likely that people on Coruscant knew that they were there on that train. She followed Dal through the door to the space between the cars, taking care not not look at the rapidly passing ground on either side of them. The Zeltron yanked off a small cylinder from her combat webbing and waited for Dal to open the door. "Hit it."

The tiny cylinder barely had room to fit through the ever widening gap of the sliding door before she threw it through. It hit the ground, rolled, bounced, and had more than a few of the security guards inside diving. All thinking it was a lethal grenade. They couldn't have been more wrong. That tiny grenade was a flash-bang, meant for little more to incapacitate people long enough for them to be shot or captured.

A blinding light erupted from the cylinder, one that was so bright that it even affected people who weren't looking towards it. Its white light seared itself into people's brain, causing a pain that would be second only to the clap of thunder that followed it. by the time that the latter part of the two step grenade was finished, everyone's ears rang just a little... and Sera flung herself into the breach. Each man on the left side of the door earned himself two shots to the chest and one to the head. Each man to the right was left to Dal, and she trusted him enough to do his part.

When the combat was finished, she cast a little glance back to her partner in crime. "Candy from a baby," she looked around and spotted the crate. A simple thing, save for the fact that it had a pair of crossed scimitars burned into its surface, making it the care they were looking for. She keyed her comm unit that connected them to the trandoshan, "we found the goods. Packing it up now. Get your scaley arse over here so we can get some gorram food."

With that, she turned the comm off and flicked a glance over to Dal as she walked towards the crate, "whaddya say we kill that gorram creature 'n sell his hide to some gammoreans? Take the stuff for ourself, sell it and get more food. Maybe a ship eventually."

[Meira]

Dal took care to shield his eyes as Sera tossed the flash bang through the doorway. The bang half of grenade was harder to defend against, but having the wall between himself and the bang helped. But like before, Dal was in the car not a moment after the flash bang went off, taking down his half of the occupants. He found himself face to face with one guard as he came into the car. Disoriented as he was, it was nothing for Dal to pump a few shots into the man's chest.

His arm snaked over the man's shoulders and around his neck. The last few, painful, seconds of the man's life were spent as a human shield as Dal moved forward in the car taking down the following guards. When all was quiet once again, Dal let his shield fall to the ground. Sera's comment elicited a smirk that was invisible behind the balaclava that he wore. But it was there nonetheless.

As Sera signaled for their pilot, Dal searched for the controls that would open the roof hatch on the car. This hatch, designed to ease the loading and unloading of the cars with a crane at the stations, would now prove useful in the stealing of such precious cargo. With the controls located, Dal opened the hatch. The car was soon filled with the howling of the wind from outside. But within the remaining cover of the train car, the two had no need to fear being caught up and swept away.

Dal made his way back to the crate, checking to ensure the loading straps it conveniently came with would be ready when the ship arrived overhead. When all was secure, Dal lifted himself up on top of the crate. Once on top, he turned and offered his hand to lift Sera up. When she offered her hand in return, Dal grasped her forearm, lifting the woman fairly easily with the one arm. When she was safely atop the crate next to him, Dal pulled the balaclava off his face, revealing the self-satisfied smile that lie beneath. They might be starving, but he still had it in him.

He considered her option of killing the Trandoshan. It was a tantalizing idea, for sure. But Dal wasn't too positive that it would be in their best interest. If they were trying to make a name for themselves, killing a business partner might send the wrong message to others that might look to hire them. After a few moments, and just as the ship came into view and moved into position above them, Dal shook his head. He leaned in close to her ear so that she could hear him over the wind and the engines above.

I don't think that'd be too smart, doll. We gotta build the right reputation and all.

The hook line came down and Dal grabbed it out of the air. From it, he pulled four retractable cords and attached them to the four corners of the crate. Once they were secure, Dal pulled the small device he'd brought with him out of his pocket. When he pressed the button, the wench in the ship activated, pulling in the slack. The crate shook slightly as it lifted from the train. Dal held tight to the hook line and reached his arm out and around Sera to hold her safe as well. She could protest if she wanted. But they were about to be lifted up and out of a train traveling over two hundred miles an hour by a ship that didn't have the room to hold the crate they were standing on. The pilot would have to lift them out and then set them down in a nearby clearing where they would meet up with those they were stealing the gems for. Too much could go wrong for Dal to allow Sera her pride.

Luckily for the two, the trip to the drop site wasn't a long one. They were safely back on the ground within ten minutes. After detaching the crate from the ship, Dal jumped down to the ground and helped Sera down after him. His stomach growled audibly as he moved around the crate to where the ship was just set down. The pang of hunger didn't bother him as much now, knowing that he would soon be eating like he hadn't in months. All they had to do was get paid and they'd be on their way.

From the ship, Rocky came bounding, as if he could sense the same thing, that the recent events meant less foodless nights. Dal smiled as the wolf-cat leaped up into his arms. Rocky rubbed the top of his head against Dal's chin, issuing a deep purring noise before dropping back down to the ground. He then approached Sera, rubbing up against her leg.

Moments later, the Trandoshan came walking out of the ship. It was impossible for Dal to read the lizard's expressions. But he wouldn't need to. In an instant, the Trandoshan had produced a blaster from his hip holster and had it aimed at Dal's chest.

I think I'll take thissssss for myssssself! He said, scaly lips curling up over pointed teeth.

Rocky and Dal both let out low growls at the same time. When his hand moved to his rifle, the Trandoshan let out a shot that struck the ground just next to Dal's right foot. Dal's hands retreated from the weapon, and were held up to show his cooperation. From the corner of his eye, Dal registered where Sera stood and moved to put himself between the woman and the beast.

Ssssstop moving! The Trandoshan shouted.

Dal stopped. But he'd moved just enough. He just hoped Sera understood what he'd done and make a move quickly before the Trandoshan moved to clear his view of her.

Any time now... he grumbled under his breath impatiently.

What did you ssssay?

I sssssssaid your asssss is grassss.

Hoping beyond hope she got the hint, Dal duck and spun out of the path between Sera and the Trandoshan. As he turned, his hands gripped his rifle, ready to back his partner up should she need it.

[Dire Wolf]

(ohmahgawd it ate my post @_@ soz but this won't be as good as the first, Meira. mv.vm)

Sera didn't bother to watch as the hook came down and Dal began to link the thing up so it could be lifted out. She was too busy watching the unopened door like a hawk, keeping her rifle leveled to where the chest would be on most men. Her job was to watch Dal's back while he did the heavy lifting, and his was to cover hers while she pulled the trigger. She wasn't about to shirk that duty, no matter how much she'd rather enjoy the science of shooting something from a few miles away.

"Damn shame if you ask me, Dal. Though somethin' tells me that he's thinkin' the same thing right now." She spoke without casting a glance towards him. Of course, it wasn't long until the crate was ready for her to step up on it. When she did, her posture instantly relaxed and she pulled the black nylon rag off off of her head. Where a wash of jet black hair was supposed to cascade down there was only a pathetic half-neck length wiggle of matted black hair.

She let out a little squeak as she felt Dal's arm snake around her back. That was completely and totally unnecessary. Sera's mouth articulated to speak when, randomly, she reminded herself that she'd rather have him hold her than try and hold on with a bad leg. Only then did a sense of security flow through her, and she found that her arms wanted to wrap around his waist.

But she didn't let them.

A mild blush was barely visible on her cheeks as she latched one hand to the steel cable and the other to the handguard of her rifle. The skin over her knuckles was pulled thin, and its pigment was white underneath those jet black gloves. It was funny, really. She was comfortable yet uncomfortable at the same time.

It felt like years passed until the ship finally landed and she was finally off of that crate. She instantly flipped around, back to the ship, and began to work at freeing the crate from the power straps. The woman felt the odd urge to hide her blushing face from Dalibor... lest he see it. He probably could, he'd been around her for years. Could probably see the subtle differences.

Then she heard the scaly thing speak, and she froze in her place. If she moved now, she'd be dead. Then Dal would hulk out and he'd kill the trandoshan, or try, but he'd probably be dead out of it either way. She certainly didn't want that. Vossk stood up and slowly turned around, her hands hung loose at her hips.

Sera almost cursed as Dal placed himself inbetween herself and the giant lizard only to be yelled at half way. Why? She wasn't defenseless! She could hold her own just as well as he could! Anger almost clouded her vision enough to see that his massive body blocked half of hers. It wasn't the half with the pistol, but rather the half with the sawed off shotgun.

Slowly, without making it obvious that she was upholstering a weapon, she drew that shotgun out of the massive holster that took up most of her thigh. As he turned, her off hand moved towards the hand guard while the strong one latched onto the grip... finger along the trigger.

It took her half a second to twist the barrel towards the lizard and fire. The blast threw the barrel back, nearly hitting her in the forehead, and caused her to take another second before firing again. About eight durasteel ball bearings flew towards the lizard at subsonic speeds, ripping and tearing through his scales and into his scales. The first hardly killed him, nor did the second... but it certainly stunned him. One more salvo of bearings flew from her shotgun with the immensely loud report, these caused his body to slump to the ground.

With a sigh, she slipped the still smoking barrel into the holster and cast a glance over at Dal. "Told ya so," her tone was one of exhaustion. There was yet hope. Half of a rare gem shipment could provide for alot of food. Any amount of food would please the woman right about then. Without hesitation, Sera rushed over to the crate and kicked it open.

To find alcohol. Lots of alcohol.

Her heart sank as the florescent light of the local brandy reached her eyes. That glimmer of hope in her heart faded to nothing as the smile that snuck up on her face all but vaporized. Her eyes filled with tears and had to force herself to look down, away from the should have been pay day. Her words were barely an inaudible whimper, "damit. Why, Dal? Why?"

On second nature, one of her hands moved to pick up the brew and crack the bottle cap off of the top. Why not? She wouldn't be all that sad anymore. Just drunk. Eventually. It'd been awhile since she'd had a drink... a long while... years.

Without a second thought, the woman tipped the bottle back. Not-so-happy hour began shortly thereafter.

[Meira]

Sera's attack had only taken a moment. Dal hadn't even turned around before the giant lizard was on the ground, dead. He smiled, returning to his feet and dusting off his knees. Good ol' Sera and that shotgun. Never failed him. Rocky too seemed pleased with Sera's performance, bounding over to the woman and rubbing against her leg again, purring like mad.

Dal was happy enough to ignore Sera's "Told ya so". She had, after all, told him so. He merely shrugged his shoulders at the woman as he approached the crate. He was at her side as he opened it. What they found inside caused Dal's stomach to drop.

No gems...

As Sera whimpered, Dal was silent. In shock, he simply stared at the contents of the crate, at bottle after bottle of worthless alcohol. Soon, that shock filtered to anger. Dal's hands clenched into fists and his nostrils flared. He lashed out, kicking the side of the crate, causing the bottles to rattle against each other. Well packed as they were, none broke.

When Sera took a bottle from the crate and uncapped it, Dal was about to shout at her. What was she doing? Did she not realize what this meant? They wouldn't be getting paid! They'd put everything they had into this frakkin' job. They literally had NOTHING left. They were miles away from the closest city, had murdered the lizard that was supposed to be their partner, and she wanted to DRINK!?

Dal allowed himself to plop down on the ground. His arms fell to his sides. They were screwed. Completely screwed. He leaned his back against the crate for a moment, his head hitting against the side. Well... Maybe Sera was onto something. There was no way to change their circumstances. Might as well give in.

While Sera drank, Dal searched the ship for supplies. With their pilot dead, there was no need to respect his privacy any longer. There were some dried food rations in the ship's emergency kit, as well as fire starting supplies. Dal brought these outside and soon had a fire going. When that was done, he walked over to the crate and retrieved a bottle.

For a moment, he held the thing in his hand, staring at it as he sat down near the fire. He'd never had a drink before in his life. Never. His father had looked down on it because it dulled the senses, leaving the drinker weak. The sith military had all but forbade it due to the experimentation that they had done on him. And since then, well... he hadn't really had the opportunity, nor the drive. But now? Why the hell not?

Dal popped the top off the bottle and held it to his nose. It didn't smell all that great. The alcohol was prevalent. But there was something else in the scent as well, some type of fruit, and a spice. Not too bad, he supposed. His eyes found Sera, who seemed to already be on her second, maybe third bottle. He held his up.

Cheers?

He put the bottle to his lips and allowed a sizable amount to pass into his mouth. He held it there a moment, until the bite of the alcohol kicked in. He swallowed it then, making a grimacing face and giving a cough after it went down. The sensation was warming. His mouth, throat, even his stomach was warm from the drink. The alcohol taste subsided quickly, leaving the unknown fruit and spice in its place.

Huh... Not bad.

He took another drink, larger this time. Then another. Soon the bottle was empty. But he didn't feel anything. Not weaker, not uncoordinated... nothing. He looked over at Sera. She didn't seem much different either. Perhaps a bit more relaxed. He felt more relaxed. He also wanted more to drink. Dal let out a burp as he stood up, and found it a little difficult to keep his balance. Was that all that he would feel? He moved over to the crate and took another bottle, then sat back down.

By the time Dal was back on the ground, he could feel the dizziness, and a sensation that was almost akin to numbness in his limbs. He could still feel, but it was like the sensation was delayed... or dulled. He looked around for Sera again, to see if she was displaying similar symptoms.

[Dire Wolf]

(okay. Its crap, but i'm forcing it. x.x)

Sera drank, either unaware or apathetic to the world around her. The Zeltron's mind was far too focused on their utterly helpless situation, and trying to force it out of her mind to hope for anything more. In laymen's terms, they were screwed. No money, no means to get money, and their associate was killed. Screwed.

She didn't know how many she knocked back, or even really had a grasp on time. It was only until she drank enough to kill a normal drunkard that she slowly panned her head over towards Dal, her world tilting and turning as she sat. He was such an awesome guy, he really was. Sticking by her through all the crap, the snark, and even when she needed him most. "Dal," she said as she shakily stood up, leaning against the case heavily, "I love ye."

With the world tilting and churning around her, she stumbled towards the white giant. Even with the crate as something to lean against, she found it tough to make a straight line. Towards the end, she fell tripped on her own foot, and barely noticed as the world turned into a blur. It halted to a stop with her looking straight down into the grass, only she was stopped by something: Dal.

Slowly, she pushed herself off of the ground and his lap... and leaned heavily against his side. Sera moved in, trying to sloppily kiss the side of his chin. The Zeltron was aiming for his lips. From there, it didn't take long for the woman to drape a bottle holding hand over his chest, and give an awkward smile up to him.

That bottle? The one she held against his chest: it was full of jewels.

[Meira]

There truly couldn't have been two more opposite people sitting by that fire. At least when it came to drinking. Dal, having never touched a drop of alcohol in his life, and Sera, the Zeltron that could drink anyone under the table. But even though the two sat on opposite ends of the spectrum, what they shared that night was the ignorant bliss of being drunk. That dizzy sensation, the slurred speech, the loss of feeling, it was all there for them. For Sera, who knows how many drinks in, and for Dal, nursing only his second bottle, all that existed was the fire and each other... and Rocky of course.

Dal, at first, tried to study the effects of the liquor. He noted the odd sensation in his head, as if something were pushing outward at his temples. It wasn't painful, it just felt... odd. He marveled at his loss of coordination whenever he stood or walked. Rocky had since lost interest in trying to aid his master and had bedded down on the far side of the fire, away from Dal and Sera's antics.

Jokes were told, stories started and never finished. They seemed to have no cares at all. But every now and then, in the quiet moments after laughter would subside, they'd remember. Dal would catch a glint off the glass of a discarded bottle as it caught the fire light and he'd remember the gems they were meant to find, but didn't. He'd sigh, take another drink, and soon forget, laughing again at a thought that he wouldn't be able to explain to Sera.

They'd found themselves at such a pause, and Dal again stared down at the ever growing pile of bottles. All were closer to Sera than to him, and Dal could tell, with the little judgment faculties he had left, that she was well on her way to a nasty morning hangover. That's when she spoke his name. He'd turned his head toward her, taking a moment for his eyes to focus on her figure. She stood, leaning on the crate. He smiled lazily at her, letting out a slight chuckle at the comical angle of her stance.

"I love ye."

It was a bad moment for Dal to have the bottle to his lips and tilted back. He choked on the liquid and some of it spilled out around the rim of the bottle's mouth as he tried to recover. He wiped his mouth, mind reeling at the words. It was a foreign phrase to the Ratattaki man. He could only remember ever hearing it once, when he'd left his mother behind on his home planet to join the Sith military. He'd dismissed it then as a weak moment for an otherwise strong woman. And she'd had a good excuse. They were in hiding and this was likely the last time she'd ever see her son again. But here, on Commenor with Sera, Dal never expected to hear those words.

Before his mind had the time to react, Sera was falling toward him. He'd managed to catch her, but only inches before her face it the ground. He helped her sit up, and now the woman who'd used the word love was sitting next to him. He could feel her breathing. This was Sera, the cold, deadly sniper he'd spent so many days protecting. They were partners, teammates, friends, for sure. But they'd never spoken like Sera had just spoken. And now she was at his side. She was....

As Dal had turned his head once again to look at Sera, he found himself lip to lip with the woman. Her eyes were barely open, sleepy looking. His were wide, the ridges of his brows arched high over the gray orbs. Dal had only ever heard the term "I love you" twice, and now... he'd been kissed once. He froze, not moving a muscle until Sera pulled away from him. He rotated his body, facing toward the fire once again as the red skinned woman leaned against his shoulder. For a moment, he didn't know what to do. He was stuck in a frightening moment of sobriety, as if a bubble had formed around his mind. He could still feel the alcohol in his body, but his mind felt clear. What was this? He panicked. His eyes went wide again as he saw his arm, as if it belonged to someone else, lift and wrap around the small frame of Sera's shoulders. It came to rest at her waist and Dal waited for Sera to reprimand him.

No reprimand came. Instead, Sera's hand found a spot on Dal's chest and remained there. That bubble of sobriety was fading around his mind, the fuzzy edges of his thoughts came sneaking back in. That blurry line made the idea of resting his head against the top of hers seem too appealing to pass up. He smiled again, taking another swig from his bottle, the last. He tossed it toward the pile as he swallowed the now beloved liquid. Thoughts, jumbled as they were, were sneaking into his mind. Thoughts of what he might say to Sera in return. His free hand found the one Sera had on his chest and his fingers wrapped around hers. He noticed the bottle in her hand and took it from her grasp. She could spare to let him take a drink from hers. It wasn't like they were in short supply. As he raised the bottle to his lips, he nudged at the woman in his arms with a slight smile.

Right back atcha-....

Instead of liquid pouring from the mouth of the bottle, Dal felt small thumps land in his mouth. He spit the foreign objects from his lips and they landed on the ground between the two and the fire. They caught the light of the flames at just the right angle and shot an array of colors out in all directions. The gems they'd thought they'd missed... Dal stared, open mouthed, unable to speak.

[Dire Wolf]

To say that Sera was drunk would be an understatement. Her otherwise cold and intemperate demeanor was replaced with one that was warm and bubbly. She found herself giggling at Dal's bad jokes, and random memories that she reminded herself after hearing one of Dal's stories.

So when she got up, and subsequently fell on Dal, she couldn't help but giggle like a fiend at the dusty ground when he caught her. She slowly rolled away from his grasp and into his side, barely noticing that he'd put his arm around her. It'd truly been far too long since she'd been drunk. The pounding within her skull, the double vision, and the loss of coordination were a small price to pay for the amusing time she had, every time.

While the occasional reminder of her failure crossed her mind, it was quickly replaced with a downright hilarious thought that she couldn't remember a few seconds later. It was during one of these little laughing fits that he slipped the bottle from her grasp and took a quick swig. Her would-be protest was cut short by the beer being spit out of his mouth in a fine mist. "Wha'sh wrong," Sera managed to stumble out between the giggles as she took the bottle, "too shtrong fer ye?"

The bottle tipped upwards just as her snark was done, only instead of that fiery liquid pouring out into her mouth she found tiny lumps. A tiny spark of anger welled up within her heart as she spit the solid stuff out, and threw the bottle towards the fire. It didn't land within the dancing flames, but it was certainly close. "Well no won'er (wonder) ye shrit (spit) that oshik out. The'sh (that's) no- brandy!"

Sera took another brandy from the case, hoping to rid her mouth of the odd taste that the previous alcohol had left in her mouth. She stumbled about, trying to pry the bottle cap off only to find that her drunken and uncoordinated body simply didn't have the dexterity to do so. Not right away, anyways. Once that dratted cap was off, she tipped the bottle up to allow that precious liquid to flow down into her mouth.

More of that solid crap.

Once again, her she spit the crap out and threw the bottle towards the last one. "Wha' th' 'ell, Dal? Thish shuff (stuff) is oshhik!" Angry hazel eyes flicked up to Dal with a look of annoyance and anger scrawled across her face. That look quickly disappeared to be quickly replaced with one of amusement. His face looked so stupid. Sera found herself giggling and laughing at him, and moving in to peck him on the lips only to completely miss.

Not seeming to know or care, she slowly rolled over and placed his lap inbetween her legs. Her arms fell around his neck, and she looked into his eyes with a mischievous yet drunken glint in her eyes.

[Meira]

It had long long ago been discovered that drinking impaired mental processing, and in some cases it could flat out stop it. For Dal, this was certainly true. If the gears turning in his head were audible, no doubt they'd have filled the night sky with their grinding as he stared dumbly at the gems scattered across the dirt around their fire. Their existence kept all other sensory information from entering into the giant's brain. Sera stealing the bottle back and taking a swig of her own to come to the same conclusion that he had was not processed. Her complaints might as well have fallen on deaf ears. She stumbled around with another bottle, only to find more gems, and still he did not hear or see her. Not until she landed right in front of him again was he torn away from the hypnotic gleam of those stones.

This time, Sera hadn't fallen onto him, or at least not by accident. She landed where she was on purpose, And Dal suddenly found himself face-to-face with the Zeltron at a distance that made his previous discomfort seem childish. Many people would believe that when a Rattataki blushed, it would show easily through their chalk white skin. This was not so. Their white skin was thick, the white being a strong pigment rather than a lack of. It was like a paint. It took quite a lot of embarrassment to cause a blush strong enough to show through. Well, Sera had found that ideal level. It started at his ears, the tops reddened slightly, then deepened. The color spread down his neck, his adam's apple bobbing as he gulped. He could feel perspiration on his brow. All of these signs betrayed the stony face, which only chanced to reveal his confusion.

His mind commanded his hands to move from where they were rooted to the ground and lift her off of his lap and set her to the side. But his hands only managed to get as far as placing themselves on her waist before they lost their resolve. He was distracted by how tiny she seemed, sitting on top of him like this. A weak memory tried to surface. It was something important, something that... glimmered. But he couldn't remember. Maybe it was just the way the fire danced in her eyes. How did she do that... make the green burn?

Sera... I...

Everything was starting to spin, he was having a hard time keeping her in focus. One moment he would see her, then the next she'd have two ghostly copies hovering around on either side of her. His hands gripped her tighter, as if to keep her in place. There was something important that needed to be said. There was... There they were again. He closed his eyes, but that only made the spinning worse. He took a deep breath in, pulling the air in through his nose. His massive chest rose, then fell as he exhaled and enjoyed a moment of clear vision. There was something important...

You had... you have...

Her eyes drew him in again, the green burning impossibly bright. They gleamed, like... like something... He pulled her closer to him, like less distance might help him remember what it was. One hand had slipped around her neck to pull her in and now she was a mere inch or two from his face. He could smell the smoke from the fire in her hair. His brow furrowed as he tried to remember what it was he was going to say.

[Dire Wolf]

Sera couldn't help but smile. Perhaps it was the fact that she had the man that she was growing to like. (only like. Anything more would constitute a serious breach in her persona. Of course) Or Perhaps it was because she had another passing thought that caused enough amusement to force those soft lips to spread thin, but was forgotten too quickly to elaborate as to why. All that Sera knew was that she was there, existing, in the man's lap. And she liked it.

That smile only grew when his massive hand slipped around behind her neck and pulled her closer, far closer than a more sober Sera would be comfortable. But, rather than shift around and smile quirkily as a sober Sera would, her face moved the extra few inches and pressed into his lips. Her eyes closed, enjoying the hot yet cool feeling of it all. It wasn't long before the kiss was ended, and she pulled back to once again watch the pair of Dal's as they hovered and tilted about her vision.

"Sera... I..."

"Hmm," her voice rumbled in quick response, her whole head trying to track the left of his two images as it danced about her vision. He didn't respond, not right away anyways. He looked distraught, at least a fleeting part of her thought so, but unfortunately it wasn't enough to make her do anything about it.

"You had... you have..."

"What ish it, Dali-," she stopped halfway through her name, giggling incessantly at the cute name attached to the withering giant. Without saying anything more, the woman moved her head past his and pressed her upper body into his: a hug. As her head and arms were past his, she grabbed a bottle and brought it up to her lips to get another swig of that whiskey. She hadn't forgotten that it'd turned to lumpy crap, but she simply hoped that it was just those two. The rest of it had been good, after all.

Nope. Still chunks. She casually worked the chunks out of her mouth, not spitting for fear of... something. She forgot what. The little "clinks" against the glass, the crate, and the soft "shlump" of the gems hitting the sand was the only sound to be made from her idiocy. After inconspicuously tossing the bottle far away from them, she pulled back with a quirky smile on her face. "Well? What were'ye sayin'?"

[Meira]

This time, when their lips met, Dal didn't freeze. Maybe part of him expected it this time. Maybe part of him wanted it. He was still trying to remember what it was that was so important that he needed to tell her. That distraction, along with whatever unconscious desires he held, allowed for the otherwise aloof giant of a man to let go of that militaristic stoicism and just let it happen. He didn't analyze it, he just kissed her.

When it was over, Dal leaned his head back, a slightly smug, satisfied smile on his face. That was twice she'd kissed him now, would have been more if she hadn't missed a couple of times.

"What ish it, Dali-,"

Well that wiped the smirk from his face. He grimmaced at the nickname. He turned his face away from her as she giggled, as if refusing eye contact was a suitable rebuke. But turning his eyes away meant he didn't see her lean in again. This time, it was a hug. And Dal's face turned back forward to find the side of her head. Her hair, smoke from the fire still lingering in the strands. Her neck, warm from the flames and the alcohol. Her whole form was pressed close to his for a moment and his arms instinctively moved to wrap around her. His hands could reach his own sides, that's how small she was. He resisted slightly when she pulled away from him again.

"Well? What were'ye sayin'?"

Hmm? Oh.. nuthin'. You just... He yawned. He was tired, really tired. The realization made it hard for him to keep his eyes open. We found 'em, doll. He yawned again, picking up a gem and holding it up. That's what it was. He smiled. I'm gonna buy you a.... another yawn. He began to slump. He stopped trying to hold his eyes open. ...a slinky dress. He immediately began to snore.

[Dire Wolf]

Sera watched the multiple images of Dal dance around her vision as he replied, and held up a gem. Her whole head tracked it during its short transit, and moved to grasp it from the withering giant's grasp. A broad, drunken smile curled her lips as her eyes marveled at the glittering gem. They'd done it. The days where she'd go to sleep hungry, or try to sleep hungry anyways, were over.

That gaze shifted from the gem back to the now sleeping man. She wanted to throw her arms around him and wrap her arms tightly around his massive form. Not that she could, but she sure wanted to try. Though instead she simply rolled off of him, since he was asleep, and nestled in between his chest and his great arm. A light groan later, and the woman's eyes drifted shut.

------------
The Next Day
---------

The woman woke to a low droning in her head. It caused her brain to pound heavily within her skull, and her vision to see the blackness of her shut eyes as a blinding light. She let out a loud groan and rolled over, burying her face into Dal's flank to escape the searing light.

Wait... what? Her eyes shot open (a reaction to which she instantly regretted), to see the Dal's shirt dominate her vision. Her eyes grew wide, as she beat back the pain and pulled back from him only to find that his arm was at her back. The pace of her heart doubled, and then tripled into an all out sprint at this new turn of events. What was even more terrifying was that she had no recollection of what had happened the night before. A powerful blush reddened her cheeks as she pushed herself out from between the man's embrace, and looked down at the gems on the dirt.

Under normal circumstances she'd be happy. Overjoyed. But in light of the circumstances, the comparatively scant amount of happiness she felt was vastly overwhelmed by the fear that she felt. "Umm.... Dal? she gulped, the fear apparent in her voice, "what happened last night?"

[Meira]

Dal experienced yet another first that night; the void blackness of a drunken sleep. Not a single dream passed through the Rattataki's mind in the few hours between when he passed out and the sun rose. Indeed, the giant barely stirred at all, even as the fire died, as the light of morning grew brighter and brighter. Not until Sera stirred did the sleeping man register the pain of the light coming through his eyelids. A massive hand rose to cover his face against the blinding light and he rolled over, almost crushing the small Zeltron beside him.

Turn that gorram light off... he mumbled into the dirt. A small, ignored part of his mind registered movement near him, within his arms. But there was a pounding sensation at the back of his head that dominated the man's consciousness. He wanted nothing more than to slip back into that black void where there was no blinding light or pain in his head.

"Umm.... Dal? What happened last night?"

Huh? Dal slowly opened his eyes, seeing only dirt and a small object reflecting light onto his face. His eyes strained to focus, and when he did, he could see the thousands of reflective surfaces of the gem on the ground only inches from his face. What the frak was... He lifted his head, wincing against the pain in his head. When he finally made it to a sitting position, he tried opening his eyes again.

The whole world, Sera included, seemed to swirl before him. His stomach churned at the feeling. He squinted until the motion stopped and Sera came into focus. He looked around. They were still outside. Did they never go into the ship to sleep? What HAD happened last night? He could remember the heist, them having to kill their pilot... then they found the booze in the crate instead of... the gems. But... Dal picked up the gem that had been next to his head and stared at it, confused. Where'd they come from?

He looked back at Sera, the confusion plain on his face. It was then that he noticed the flush on her face, showing through her already red skin. What could cause her to blush like that? He looked around, and then noticed the ground next to where he'd been lying. The dirt and rocks were all scattered as if something had been there recently. He touched the ground, it was still warm from... Dal remembered feeling something move close to him, within his arms...

His eyes shot wide open at the realization that it had been Sera. He fumbled for words as his realization moved to the next conclusion. Sera wasn't talking about gems or anything like that. It was his turn to blush, the red spreading from his ears down his neck as he tried to get to his feet. All the while, he couldn't move his eyes off of Sera, much as he wanted to. That is until...

The sudden movement of sitting up, then trying to stand was simply too much for the man. All that alcohol had been too much for the man. Dal had barely managed to get to his feet before he whirled around on one foot, leaned up against the crate for support, and vomited the contents of his stomach onto the dirt. At least he'd managed to turn away from Sera.

[Dire Wolf]

Fear. It caused the black-clad woman's heart to fly forward in her chest, and her eyes to watch his every movement. His facial expression in particular, which seemed to be one of confusion at the very least. Good. He didn't remember either. Or he just woke up and was dealing with his first hangover. Probably the latter. Though his face was colored an odd shade; pink. She hadn't seen his face change colors like that before. She just assumed that he couldn't blush. That alone spoke volumes of what happened last night.

She carefully watched, a thick red blush barely darkening the skin of her cheeks and ears, as he picked up one of the many gems that were scattered about. Sera blinked. Wait... what? Gems? Where did they come from? Her eyes were drawn to the pair of bottles laying in the dirt. Half full of gems.

Confusion caused her to blink once, twice, and then a third time. That was an ingenious way to hide a shipment of gems. Just throw a few dozen bottles on top and hide the rest. If they had looked to see what was in the box in the train, they would have passed up their haul.

The woman couldn't help but allow the ghost of a smile to touch her lips, despite her disquiet heart. They had finally gotten a pay day. A big one, too thanks to the treachery of that trandoshan. They would have food. They could get new clothes. Ammo. Anything. That small smile quickly spread like the plague, turning into a massive toothy grin. Her eyes glanced a silent thanks back to his carrion before drifting back over to Dal, awaiting a response.

Then he threw up.

Her eyebrows quickly furrowed together and that grin vanished when he whipped around and heaved out the contents of his stomach. "Oh comon. What might have happened isn't that repulsive, is it?" She blinked at herself, mildly wondering why she didn't find it repulsive. They were polar opposites, and for the most part started out hating each other's guts. He'd grown on her, though, and she'd apparently done the same to him.

"Or maybe it is," she feigned indifference with a shrug, "what did happen last night, Dal?" There was still a blush on her face, a big one, but she needed to know for sure.

Or... she wanted to, at least.

[Meira]

Luckily for Dal, there was not much in his stomach to begin with. Unluckily, this meant that most of his retching consisted of dry heaves that sent every muscle in his abdomen into spastic convulsions. After a few minutes, however, it subsided. Dal spit at the dirt, trying to rid his mouth of the taste, but was unsuccessful. The whole experience reminded him too much of the experimentation the sith military had done on him with those stimulants. No wonder they'd watched his diet so closely and specifically forbade alcohol. The hangover was so similar to the side effects of some of the stims, he couldn't imagine what it'd be like if the two were combined.

Dal wiped the corners of his mouth with his arm as he slowly turned back around. He'd heard Sera's words, but too consumed by his own problems to even laugh, or become any more embarrassed. Truth be told, Dal couldn't remember anything after they'd built the fire. Obviously they'd drank too much, found the gems by accident, hidden within the bottles near the middle of the crate, and then fallen asleep at some point. How they fell asleep so close together, Dal couldn't say. What that meant, he had no idea. Judging by Sera's quick return to her usual mask of indifference, Dal assumed she wanted to move past it. Yet still she asked.

He shrugged his shoulders at her and gave a sigh as his hands wiped over his face. I don't know, doll. But you drank me under the table. That's for sure. He chuckled slightly at that. His head still pounded, but the more he was awake the less it bothered him. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all. He stood straight up, stretching his arms up over his head and yawning. Does it really matter? We got the loot, let's get our asses outta here.

He moved to start collecting the gems that had been scattered around on the ground and load them back into the boxes that were in the crate. They didn't need the whole crate, just the boxes that had the bottles of gems. In any case, the crate was too big for them to move on their own. He carried the boxes to the ship and set them down in the cargo area while Sera gathered their belongings. Once everything was loaded, Dal dragged the Trandoshan over to the crate and lifted him into it. There were still a few bottles of alcohol left, and so Dal poured them out over the crate and the body, along with a jug of oil he'd found near the ship's engine. It was then a simple matter of striking a match and throwing it onto the heap and the whole thing went up in flames. He watched the fire for a moment before he heard Sera call from the ship that it was time to go.

Gimme a sec. He said, turning back toward the fire and unzipping his pants. He'd needed to relieve himself for a while. What better time than this? It took a whole minute for Dal to thoroughly express his feelings about this mission and the Trandoshan, but when he was done, he felt much better.

I don't know if my memory is coming back to me, or not... He said as he sat down in the cockpit with Sera and she began to lift the ship from the planet's surface. ...butI'm pretty sure I promised you I'd buy you something.