Starless Horizon RP File #11
(Vela’s part in italics.)
The next couple of days passed in a blur of preparations as the repairs and upgrades to the Nova were finally completed. Vela and Dritz were standing outside the ship and admiring it together. While the hull hadn't been changed much, it had at least received a fresh coat of paint in a dark grey shade which the Aurian preferred, though she had also accepted Dritz's idea to have a bright star painted in white along one side as a sort of symbol for the ship itself. It did look rather beautiful, as a whole. The work had been hard but it had also been incredibly rewarding, as well as in the sense that it had brought the pair ever closer as friends.
Vela turned to Dritz with a slight smile, asking for his datapad and typing for him. "Would you like to test the systems? We could fly to a nearby planet, maybe. So we'll know if there's anything else to fix before a longer flight." Whenever she had something incredibly important to say she would still use the datapad in order to ensure there were no misunderstandings. There was also still about five days remaining for Fera to find them, and with a short trip like she had been thinking of, it would not be a problem for them to leave.
Dritz had felt a great sense of acceptance and friendship when Vela had agreed to the additional decoration for the hull. Of course, he wasn't about to suggest the same sort of thing he had wanted for the Papilio, as it just wasn't her, but the star really distinguished it from other ships (though it was already unique.) He hadn't wished to suggest any words, but to have a symbol for the ship seemed right.
With the datapad handed back to him, Dritz nodded enthusiastically, "Oh, cap'n, I was hoping you'd ask. I would love to."
He brought up a map of the system to check out the closest planets for anything interesting.
Vela leaned in close, studying the map on the datapad's screen. She had already looked it over last night, but wanted to be sure her choice had been a good one.
[Here.] She pointed at a planet less than ten light years away. That was only a jump of two hours, a good test of the Nova's warp capabilities. Its name was Thauros and it was a largely uninhabited desert planet with little rain but occasional sandstorms. However, they were incredibly rare during this season on Thauros and Vela felt sure they would be safe from any hazards.
[Does this look okay? Would you clear us for departure?] Vela began making her way onto the ship once Dritz agreed.
"Thauros, huh? Pretty cool, I've never been there!" Dritz said brightly, before nodding and squeezing her shoulder, then scurrying to the station marshal to clear their take off with the docks. The gent, a broad fellow with an almost permanent expression suggesting he tired of everything around him, recognised Dritz and greeted him with a grunt.
"You off again?" he asked, though there was little interest in his voice, "I guess I'll clear ya."
It was not too long before Dritz burst back onto the ship in typically noisy fashion, leaping into the engine room to begin their launch sequence, checking the new parts over several times as he did.
When the usual amount of noise announced that Dritz had returned, Vela busied herself at the navigation console, programming it for a flight to Thauros. This was far less complicated than it had been with the older equipment, and took much less time. Once she was prepared and given the thumbs up from Dritz (who had had to explain this gesture to her previously), she set the Nova in motion for the smoothest takeoff it had ever been through.
Vela set them into warp as soon as they were the proper distance from Hesperus. It feel like such a smooth jump that she could hardly tell it had happened, but the stars beginning to streak by proved it beyond any doubts.
Unaware until now that she had been tense, she relaxed back into her seat and turned it to see Dritz near the engines, giving him a little smile. [Everything is good so far. The engines are alright?]
With the new components doing their job brilliantly, Dritz needed to do very little to keep everything in motion. Before he was even completely aware, they had made the jump, and he could see the telltale strings of starlight if he focused very hard when he looked out.
He gave Vela the most excited, delighted grin, dashing over to her seat and taking her hands, spinning her and the seat with him, "The engines are great! Everything looks good, we have completely got this perfect, Vela!"
After a second, he seemed to realise how dizzying spinning her might be, and slowed to a stop, looking up at the monitor. [What about here?] he signed, very slowly. The Aurian language was remarkable, once he had started to learn the different ways to emphasise words to make them into questions.
Somewhat alarmed by the spinning, Vela frowned at Dritz until he stopped, as she did feel the slightest bit dizzy. Soon enough she was smiling again, thinking about how excited he was over the whole situation. She never would have imagined he would be this intensely interested in how well the Nova could perform.
She watched his careful signing before turning to glance at the new navigation monitor and viewscreen. The monitor displayed a map of their progress through space as well as their destination and a number of other small details, and it was far easier to view than the old one. The viewscreen showed what was ahead of them at the moment, tiny star trails seeming to streak toward the screen, but it could be adjusted to show a view anywhere around them and even to show video communications with other ships enabled with the same. It had nearly been overwhelming for Vela to think of all this new technology she was now able to use, but she was more happy about it than anything else.
[It's working well,] she signed back. [No more surprises.] She gave Dritz a significant smile, thinking of Fera. [We don't have to watch it as closely anymore, either. We can do something else for awhile, if you want?] She stood from the chair and stretched her legs, knowing that once they arrived they would be able to briefly explore on the planet as well.
"Good stuff, I am definitely pleased there won't be any more unexpected appearances by monarchs or otherwise," Dritz laughed, flopping into the chair opposite her. "When we next dock we can try out the new video comms too, I don't think we needed to when we launched, right?"
He grinned in an almost flirtatious manner, spinning himself in the other chair, "Weeelll... maybe you could show me some more Aurian. Or we could play a game, or ask more questions. I think after all this work together we might be running low on them, though!"
They settled in the canteen, at the table, and Dritz taught Vela a simple card game which, after a somewhat shaky start, she picked up easily, resulting in him losing four of the five rounds they played, leaving him fake-pouting in confusion.
The game was fun, after Dritz taught her how to play, as well as explaining what a game actually was. It wasn't the sort of pastime one might have on Aurctas, though she had to wonder if they had games in the distant past. Why she kept winning, however, was beyond her ability to figure out. She was only following the rules the way he had taught her.
She didn't notice that he seemed a little disappointed by this, especially since immediately afterward, one of the intercoms alerted them that the Nova was approaching its destination and would need to be brought out of warp for the approach. They returned to the bridge together and Vela slowed the ship, enabling manual controls to test them as well.
Their descent through the atmosphere of Thauros was a little rough, but Vela thought it would have been much worse before. She had carefully chosen the coordinates beforehand, well away from any habitation and on a flat plain. There was no need trouble any of the locals with their brief presence. Once the Nova had landed solidly on the ground, Vela turned to Dritz while he was shutting down the engines. [How was it?] she signed as he looked up.
Where the Nova would have been audibly struggling with the break through the planet's atmosphere, the descent was smooth and easy. Dritz barely needed to do anything, such was Vela's piloting. The Aurian knew her ship well, and the enhancements had only served to make her flying even smoother. If he didn't know any better, he would have guessed she was a professional pilot.
He shook his head, smiling in an almost bemused way, "I can't believe how easy that was. Everything was great."
He sauntered over and squeezed her shoulder, something which was becoming quite the habit.
"We make an ace team," he announced.
Though reassured that everything had gone well, Vela had to puzzle over what Dritz meant by "ace team." Did he mean they worked well together? She decided not to ask, as she liked that definition. His touching her made her happy as always, and she gently brushed against his arm in return as they headed to the hatch together.
Vela punched in the sequence on the keypad near the door, and it slid open to reveal a world she could have never imagined. The air was dry and warm, and a stiff wind was blowing about a fine, grainy substance which she recalled as "sand." There was nothing else as far as the eye could see in any direction.
As they both stood outside the ship, Vela gave Dritz a slightly troubled look. [It's hot] she signed, almost as though the fact distressed her.
Dritz looked Vela up and down, before smiling.
"It is. It's really dry. Chrysala is hot, but it's kinda... wet heat. This is weird. Do you have anything lighter to wear? If not, I think I left a shirt of mine in the bunk. It, uh, might not be ideal, but it's there. Thing is-," he looked up, shielding his eyes from the sun. It was quite a close one, if clouded by the thick atmosphere. "- I reckon we will need to keep covered up. Exposure to this sun is likely to burn. Do you have anything to keep your head covered?"
He glanced around in amusement, "Then I suppose we should pick a direction we wanna look in, if you fancy a quick explore."
Vela's normal eye had widened in alarm. [Burn? I didn't know. We should keep covered, then. Wait here.] She went back inside quickly, grabbing two pieces of clothing from her closet in the bunk room and hurrying back to Dritz. She handed him a length of cloth which he could use as a sort of head covering if he wanted to, and started putting on one of her looser tops with a hood attached.
[It's a good thing you're here. I didn't think about the sun.] She felt somewhat embarrassed, wishing she had done better research beforehand, even though she had actually done a lot. [We'll only look around a little while. I don't think there's much here anyway.]
They wouldn't move beyond sight of the ship, she decided, so they didn't need to worry about finding their way back. She started slowly across the ground with Dritz close by, feeling the strange sand, light grey in color, gently pulling at her feet every time she took a step. It was a new sensation to her, and she focused on that at first rather than anything else.
"Weeell, not burn like going crispy... Well, maybe a little. I just think we're kinda vulnerable. Chrysalan skin dries out easily, and you're really pale so your skin is delicate, so it's better to be safe," Dritz explained as he gratefully accept the item of clothing, draping it over his head and shoulders, tucking his antennae away, uncomfortable as it was.
He couldn't help but watch Vela's fascination with the sand. "You like it here? I mean, it obviously needs some more... Plants. Civilisation. Stuff like that." He glanced around, nudging the sand with his boot. It was weird to him, having never experienced such a thing. There were areas of dryer, grainier soil on Chrysala, but it was mostly damp, clay-based.
After considering a moment, Vela shook her head. [No. I don't think I like it very much. It's not good for either of us, with this close sun. It does need some plants.] She smiled, wondering what a planet with both sand and plants would be like.
Truthfully, there was no real reason to stay and look around. It was obvious there was nothing to see, and the climate was not to their liking. But Vela felt as though she couldn't help but stay at least a little while. [This is the first planet I've been on besides Aurctas] she signed to Dritz as they walked. [I went straight to Hesperus Alpha. The ascent from my planet was... difficult.] She had thought the Nova was about to shake itself apart as it left Aurctas' atmosphere, and she hadn't wanted to risk another attempt until it had been upgraded.
Squinting against the horizon, Vela focused her mechanical eye across the plain to where she could see an amount of sand swirling about, perhaps due to wind. It was not windy at their present location, so even if she puzzled over it briefly, she decided it was probably nothing to worry about.
"Hm. Nah, me neither. The heat's not a problem, but the potential for burning and the lack of plants sort of sway your opinion, don't they?" Dritz said idly. He did, however, focus closely when Vela explained having travelled straight to the station. She would have a lot of exploring to catch up on, that was for damn sure.
"Well, not every planet we come to will be great, I suppose. Hey, at least you can say you've been here!" he chuckled, beginning to meander widely, taking some shallow steps and some much wider ones, apparently trying to leave a winding, bizarre trail of footprints, occasionally looking back on his handiwork with a grin.
Vela decided that this visit to Thauros as her first planet was not totally disappointing, especially as Dritz still seemed optimistic about it. She watched him walking, realizing for the first time that she left footprints as well. It was different from prints in snow, as the sand seemed to slowly fill itself in over time so the marks were less noticeable.
She hesitantly tried copying Dritz by varying her footsteps, which amused him and made her smile even more. This was entertaining when nothing else on the planet seemed to be at the moment, and eventually she was aware they had moved so far from the ship that it appeared like a miniature version of itself to her normal eye. This wasn't worrying to her, as she could see much farther with her other eye, so maybe they could keep going a little while longer.
It was then she heard the noise, an oddly faint roar coming from the direction she had seen the swirling sand. It was not faint long, approaching them within seconds until it was nearly deafening. There was very little time to react; it all happened suddenly. What seemed to be a whirlwind of glistening sand descended upon them shortly after this, and even though Dritz had only been a few feet away, she could no longer see him, or anything at all.
Vela dropped to her knees for a moment, trying to keep the sand out of her eyes with her hood. She could not call out, or even if she could, she would not be heard. Eventually she struggled her way up and tried to move in his direction. Or at least, what she thought was his direction.
Fear clawed at her, a terrible fear which said this might be her first and last trip, and that some harm might come to Dritz. The second thought seemed far less bearable than the first.
Such had been his fascination with Vela's endearing participation, Dritz only heard the roar of the storm, turning to Vela just in time to catch sight of her briefly before what felt like shards of broken glass hit his face and he scrunched his eyes closed against the sand.
He tried desperately to call her name, but could barely hear himself over the rush and roar.
"If you can hear me, try to keep yourself covered, and get low," he yelled, "I'll try and get to you." He yanked his shirt collar up over his nose and mouth, blindly groping in the direction he though Vela should be, desperate to feel the brush of her hand, or even to barge into her, anything to know she was okay and that he could protect her.
Vela thought she could hear something, just maybe, but it was soon lost in the sound of the wind. It was difficult to determine which direction that other noise had come from, so she moved toward where she thought Dritz had last been standing.
It turned out that her sense of direction had been all but destroyed by the swirling sand. There was no way to open her normal eye, and her mechanical eye couldn't see through anything. Before much longer she had dropped to her knees again, huddling down on the ground to protect her head. It was all she could do to even keep the shawl wrapped around her and the hood up.
"Dritz," she could have been heard to say quietly, if not for the noise. What if something had happened to him? What would she do without him now? Her ship was complete, but it would be more than losing her engineer, or even the only one outside Aurctas who had learned how to understand her. There was something else, the way he appeared in her mind, a longing to see him that she didn't fully comprehend at the moment. She kept thinking of him, happy and smiling, trusting she would see the same again once the storm had ended.
With his sight robbed from him, Dritz could only hope that, in his attempts to find Vela, he didn't wander too far from her. Thankfully that seemed impossible, given how the storm nearly whipped his legs right out from under him multiple times.
He stopped, his eyes tightly shut, and tried to remember... They had been winding around, looking at their footprints, ending up ten feet from each other at the most. He'd been facing the ship, then turned... Meaning that Vela would have been on his right. He had turned in confusion in the storm, though, then walked right. Was Vela actually behind him? He spun and started in that direction, walking in a crouched position. If she was on the ground, he didn't want to trip over her. At worst he might walk into her backside, a thought which raised a nervous smile behind his shirt collar.
He continued to call her name, his voice wavering whenever he felt the sting of sand against his face and hands, waving his arms out wide, hoping to find her.
After what felt like far too long, his hand connected with something, and he felt his heart leap into his throat, but his fingers had found nothing more than a rocky outcropping uncovered by the storm. No matter how much he checked, it was not her.
Vela was beginning to think the storm might never end. It was different from a snowstorm, though possibly not as bad, since it wasn't cold. Either way, she didn't want any part of it, only wanting it to stop. The sand stung, and she knew her hearing would be affected by the noise when it did end.
Just as abruptly as it had started, the storm either passed or made up its mind to simply move on. The silence was now nearly as deafening as the noise had been. Ears ringing, Vela sat up slowly and looked around, unable to stand for the moment. Dritz was perhaps twenty feet away near an outcropping of rocks. He was on his feet, and she felt tears beginning to form in her left eye from sheer relief. All she could do was wait until he noticed her.
The storm cleared before Dritz was fully aware that it had done so, and he idly wondered how long he had been stood there, covering his eyes with one arm while clutching the outcrop with his free hand, whether trying to steady himself or not, he wasn't sure.
He risked a peek from behind his arm first, blinking away the remaining sand which, without the strong wind, was little more than dust. His nose, lips, cheeks and fingers were raw, dry and sore, but he was not harmed. With his vision clear once more, he glanced around, panicked and calling Vela's name desperately, the roar of the storm still ringing in his ears and making him shout louder than he might have done.
It was then that he spotted her, and immediately staggered towards her, stumbling in his haste. When he reached her he flopped to his knees in front of her, cupping her face and checking her over in alarm. Her skin was just as dry and raw as his, tiny scratches from the sand, but nothing lasting.
"You okay? It's over now, it's alright," he panted. He touched her face in a couple of different places, gently and almost absently, before pulling her into his arms and holding her tightly. Without thinking, he kissed the top over her hood. "C'mon, let's get back to the ship, I think we're done exploring."
Still barely aware of much else, Vela watched as Dritz knelt down and looked her over, keeping her gaze on him no matter what. It was such a relief to see him, and know he was alright, though he appeared as lightly scratched and sore as she felt, his expression one of great concern.
She didn't resist the embrace, putting her arms around him as well and feeling better almost instantly. The kiss on top of her head didn't really register, as she couldn't feel anything beyond him holding her for the moment. [I'm alright] she signed after they finally separated. [Yes, we'll go back.] She chose not to comment further, standing on shaky legs and allowing Dritz to help support her, as he seemed to want to.
Once back inside, Vela found she had to sit at one of the console chairs to rest. The wind had probably taken more out of her than she expected. Hands trembling, she found the courage to sign to Dritz. [I'm sorry. I should have researched more. I thought it was not the season for these storms. We should not have come here, and it's probably my fault. You could have gotten hurt.] The idea was once again enough to make her bow her head, feeling the tears coming back. She was much more upset than she could have imagined she would be.
Dritz shook his head, frowning immediately. [No. No, no, no,] he signed firmly. "You did nothing wrong, Vela."
He moved to crouch in front of her, unable to stop from touching her chin to hold her gaze. He was unsure as to whether he was simply relieved they were okay, or if he'd never noticed, but her remaining eye was a more lovely shade of lavender than he had noticed before. After kissing the top of her head, it seemed silly to be shy about physical touch. "C'mon, you couldn't have known. Neither of us had ever been there, it was an oversight on both our parts, but we're okay, and we will learn for next time."
He smiled, somewhat shyly. "I was real worried about you. I'm so glad you're alright," he said, patting her knee.
Smiling faintly, Vela tried to nod in acceptance. Of course he wouldn't blame her, he wasn't the type to do that. [You're right. We'll know better next time. Thank you.]
She touched his hand where it rested briefly on her knee, feeling as shy as he seemed to be speaking. [I'm glad you're alright too. I was scared... I didn't want you to be hurt.] She found it sweet that he would say so, wanting to also say more, but feeling more confused than anything.
Abruptly she realized they were still on the ground, and the storm could possibly come toward them again. She pushed her internal conflict aside for the moment as they worked together as a team once more, setting the Nova back on its course through the atmosphere, and back into space. It went just as smoothly this time, which made her feel a little more settled.
After she had set in their course back to Hesperus, however, Vela found she still didn't know what to do. She remained at the console as Dritz was back by the engines, even though she felt the strangely strong urge to be nearer to him, at his side if possible.
The poor Aurian seemed incredibly eager to leave the planet, and Dritz couldn't blame her for that. He actually was relieved to see that she wished to do so, and eagerly tended to the engines.
Once they were out of the atmosphere and prepared to return to the station, he walked back through to her, beaming. Even while he'd been concentrating on the take off, in the back of his mind he'd been thinking of other things.
Seeing Vela engulfed in the sandstorm had only confirmed something he'd felt for... Well, almost since they had first met. Hadn't he recently fallen asleep while thinking about her? He needed to just admit to himself that he liked the idea of being closer to her. More than that.
"Hey you. You seem a bit more relaxed now we're off planet," he chirped, leaning on the back of her chair and ducking over her, appearing upside down to her. "You wanna go sit in the bunk for a bit? Just for a change from the canteen."
Vela had heard Dritz approaching, but was startled when he appeared so close and upside down. But as usual around him, she found herself smiling as he was so often entertaining and endearing to her.
She agreed to accompany him to the bunk room readily enough, but was confused as to why he wanted to be there. Once inside, she sat down at the edge of her own bed and leaned forward tensely, concerned.
[I do feel better now. But is there anything else wrong?]
Dritz remained standing for a moment, apparently considering something before he finally sat on the bunk he had claimed.
"That depends," he said slowly. Why was starting the conversation so difficult to him? "Uh... Well, I guess I need to talk to you about something. We haven't exactly known each other long, I know, but... That's the culture I grew up in; Chrysalans are fairly... Let's say open when they take an interest in someone." He looked up, taking in the sight of her, making sure he was willing to risk the potential rejection.
"With that in mind," he announced, his voice firm and gaining confidence, "I’ve decided to embrace home and be forward." He smiled at her, something in the action hinting towards flirtatious, "I like you, Vela, and I'd like to be your partner. Your primary partner. I dunno how it works with Aurians, so if you want to see how our relationship develops first, I understand."
Of all the things Dritz could have said to her, she was maybe expecting this the least. Yet it was not an unpleasant surprise, somehow.
[I see.] Vela herself remained very serious, even though Dritz was smiling. It was not a light matter to her. She gestured for the datapad to type, just in case. "I do like you. I've wanted to be near you before. But is it allowed? I am not Chrysalan." She didn't know how anyone on Aurctas would have felt about it, since it had obviously never been done before. "What is a primary partner?" Handing the pad back, she watched him closely for his reaction. The thought of having Dritz as a mate was not one she felt opposed to all, but she kept her hope held back just in case she changed his mind.
Dritz's antennae flicked gently, and he let out a slight chuckle, "Ah, well, on Chrysala, it's common to take multiple partners. I wasn't sure how it is on Aurctas, so I thought 'prob'ly best to specify.'"
He shifted on the mattress, looking at her words again.
"Hm. Well, I don't think it's common, but it's not... Frowned upon or anything like that," he said carefully. He'd never heard anyone disputing the idea of interracial coupling, but then, he wasn't sure he'd heard anything about it at all.
[We only take one.] Vela smiled faintly. Maybe it was more convenient to have multiple partners, for Chrysalan. [Will you want more someday? It's alright.]
Vela shifted as well, lost in her own thoughts. There was no harm in the idea of having Dritz as a mate. To Aurians it brought a feeling of safety, warmth through coldness, an assurance of the continuing their race. That would not be as applicable off the planet, but she still liked the idea. And if there was no opposition to their being of different species...
[I accept], she signed formally. [I think it would bring me happiness.] She had to smile then, unable to help herself. [I want to bring you happiness too.] It was remarkable to her how true that was, how much she wanted to see Dritz smile back at her.
Dritz shook his head, holding up his hands, "I don't want additional partners. Well... Not now, anyway. It's never really been something I've thought about. Let's not get ahead of ourselves."
He remained seated on his hands for a long moment, beaming and attempting to contain his excitement.
"I'm gunna come and hug you, okay?" he chirped, leaping up and moving to crouch in front of Vela, wrapping his arms around her.
Vela nodded. It was too soon to know, of course. They had so much to go through first with this particular relationship, it might even seem strange for a time.
Dritz's announcement of the hug lightened her heart, and she welcomed it by putting her own arms around him. It still felt warm, and safe, even if she was no longer in need of such feelings in particular. Maybe it was not so much different than being on Aurctas. It also felt good to know they could do this whenever one of them might feel like it.
With Dritz's position in front of her, Vela was able to rest her chin on the top of his head. One of his antennae twitched, tickling her neck, and she almost made an involuntary sound in her throat which was quite unfamiliar to her. Whatever it was, she soon pulled back shyly to sign to him.
[What now?] she asked, genuinely unsure. He had asked her into the bedroom. Surely... no, of course not. They wouldn't be intimate so soon. She gave him the slightest suspicious look anyway, deciding to believe it was a sort of coincidence.
Dritz looked up at Vela, his usual grin in place, but somehow so much happier. He did, however, shrink somewhat under her suspicious gaze.
"Heeeyyy, what?! You don't think-," he held up both hands, a light blush spreading over his cheeks. "Vela! You're so cheeky. How am I to know that you didn't want to get me and my totally irresistible body in here?" He laughed, leaning forward and giving her a light, chaste peck on the cheek. "What we do now is anything we want. You hungry?"
It was Vela's turn to feel her face warm slightly when Dritz turned her sort-of accusation back on her. She warmed further with even the briefest kiss on the cheek. If she had doubted this before, there was no doubt now. She was definitely attracted to him.
She shrugged, choosing not to comment on it either way. [I am, actually.] It had been a somewhat long day already, with the flight and their "exploration" and the storm, and now becoming partners... it had been a very long day, she decided with amusement.
Taking the lead, she headed to the kitchen area with the Chrysalan close behind her. [We should have something more special,] she decided after taking a look at what they had available. Of course, "space food" (as Dritz called it) was hardly ever anything fancy. But there were two packets of dried soup mix made from an assortment of vegetables in a meat broth, and this was on the special side from Vela's point of view.
She started opening the hot water containers to prepare their food, setting them down to give Dritz a hopeful glance. [Tea?]
Smirking in a way that was decidedly affectionate, Dritz nodded, [Of course.] "I can hardly say no when you look so happy at the idea!"
As before, he prepared his own tea, leaving Vela to add her own blossom to the water, as it seemed to bring her such happiness. This time, instead of sitting opposite her at the table, he sat in the chair next to where she usually would be, smiling.
"We should get something special to keep on the ship," he suggested, giving her a gentle nudge as she sat, "In case you feel the need again. It'd need to keep for a long time, but I think we can find some treats."
While he was usually very cheerful, Dritz was near giddy with how pleased he felt that she was willing to try them as a couple.
With a shy smile in return, Vela sat down after placing a hot bowl of soup at each of their seats at the table. She was pleased that Dritz had chosen to sit beside her, and further pleased with the way he always remembered how much she enjoyed making the tea herself. With a soft expression, she watched the blossom unfurl into a blue shade not too dissimilar from the Chrysalan's skin.
[What do you think might be special?] she signed as she let everything cool slightly. [What are your favorite foods?] This sort of knowledge might come in handy someday, she felt.
While Vela seemed to be waiting for something, in his blissful state, Dritz didn't think to let his soup cool, taking a large spoonful. He whined at the heat, but swallowed it, hissing something in Chrysalan, his eyes watering.
"Welp, it's hot enough," he said with a weak smile. Clearing his throat, he stirred his soup thoughtfully, absently blowing at the steam rising from it.
"Hm. There are some quite nice sweets that I think keep for up to a month. They're made of dried fruit, squished into a paste, made into little discs, and baked to preserve them. It's a good way of eating fruit while in space for a long time. I mean, some ships probably have great preserving facilities for food, but as far as I'm concerned, it's a waste of your fuel and energy keeping them the right temperature. You're almost always better with stuff like this." He took another, tentative mouthful of soup before continuing. "There's also lots of good sweet stuff from Earth, if you can get hold of it."
Once Vela was sure Dritz was alright, as it seemed he had started eating without thinking to let the soup cool first, she pondered the idea of having sweet foods for special occasions. Â She hadn't liked the drink he had bought for them the day Fera returned, and it had been mostly sweet. The cake had been a bit less sweet, and she had liked that better. [Maybe some that are less sweet,] she signed hesitantly, wondering if that made any sense.
[I've never had fruit,] she continued, showing him the sign for it at the same time. It wasn't exactly a word Aurians used often. [Drying it sounds interesting, but I don't know how that would taste either. Can we get some back on the station?]
She tested the temperature of her own meal, sipping at it quietly until she was sure it was cool enough, then continuing to eat. Eventually she lifted the bowl and drank straight from it, as she used to do alone on Aurctas, where manners didn't matter in particular. [Hot foods are my favorite. I can't help it. I'm not sure that will ever change,] she signed after putting the bowl down.
"You've never had fruit?" Dritz asked, both eyebrows raised in surprise. He touched her shoulder with a fond smile, "Huh, I'm sorry... I really do forget that you grew up somewhere so very different to me. We'll definitely have to get some fresh fruit next time we're around for any length of time. We won't be able to keep it on the ship, but I think you'd like it, so next time we go to sit in the holographic gardens, we can maybe take some, if we can get any on the station. I think it's expensive, but it'll be worth it."
He watched Vela tip her up her bowl, chuckling slightly before mimicking her. It seemed rude not to.
"Mine too. It's weird, because Chrysala is considered to be so warm, but stuff like this; a hot meal with a hot drink, I think's really... comforting," he said, pushing his empty bowl away to pick up his tea, swirling the flower around in a circle.
Vela shook her head, but continued smiling as Dritz spoke. She liked the idea of experiencing things with him for the first time, and there was so much she had yet to experience. [That sounds good. Of course we can afford to get some. I'd like to share it with you.]
She felt a little shy then, watching him drink from his bowl the way she had, and then also turning her gaze to her tea. They both drank in silence, as Vela was deep in thought. But when they finally stood to begin clearing away the table, she turned to him with a serious expression.
[Warmth is very important to me, too] she signed, as though trying to explain her next action. Slowly she stepped closer to Dritz, concentrating hard as she put her arms around him and rested her head against his chest. Her main caution was if he would like her initiating such a thing when it might not seem the most appropriate.
The silence between them didn't feel uncomfortable. Dritz continually marvelled at how this could be possible. He turned to face her, his own expression becoming one of concern when he saw how serious she had become.
Whatever he had been anticipating, a warm embrace had been the last thing he expected. Her head against his chest, and her arms around his waist gave him temporary pause. He wriggled out of her grip for a moment, pulling his jacket free. He pulled her back against him, wrapping his own arms around her, holding his jacket so that he could nearly fasten it around her. Sometimes he wondered how he could forget she was so slight.
"How's that for warmth?" he asked brightly, squeezing her slightly.
Dritz wrapping his jacket around her in addition to his arms was indeed warmer, though she had no way to sign it to him. Instead she just nodded, turning her head a little against the fabric of his shirt. She breathed in his scent, which she had only caught briefly before, trying to find a way to memorize it. It was a silly thought.
She exhaled slowly, realizing how nice it would be to do this anytime they might want. Not having been close to another in such a way for years, she thought about how lucky she was all over again.
Eventually she did have to pull away, giving Dritz a smile, their faces close. She backed up quickly, however, unsure about anything beyond the hug for now. It was only the first day. [Help me clean up?] she signed, feeling awkward now and not waiting before she began picking up her bowl and cup, empty except for the flower.
Faced with Vela's pale gaze, the two of them seemed unsure what to do. She remained in his arms, and the embrace remained comfortable, but there always something unspoken between them. At almost the same moment, they chose to pull away from each other.
Dritz was happy to kiss her on the cheek, but given that he'd never kissed-kissed anyone at all (on the lips, that was), the idea of doing it then had alarmed him. Was it expected? He didn't feel at all confident about it, perhaps one of the few things he wasn't terribly bold about.
He cleared his throat, going back to tidying.
"Want me to finish up here while you check on the coordinates?" he asked, slyly taking Vela's dishes from her.
The journey back to the station was quiet, but content, with the two of them signing (and practising), and deciding what they would like to do on their return.
With such an odd day behind them, they decided to return to their respective rooms, where Dritz immediately locked his door and fell face first into his unmade bed, unable to continue to fight the enormous grin on his face as he reminded himself that Vela had felt something too.
