Nar Shaddaa

Frowning, Niall leaned forward. He turned his head one way, then the other, carefully scrutinizing every inch of his face. Freshly showered, shaved, and refreshed, he was ready for the evening. He'd put a lot of work into it, but of course he had. After all, he'd promised her an evening with Lord Niall. He was obligated to deliver.

He had it all planned out, too. Reservations in a fine restaurant, and then dancing. Just like when they were young. He knew she had the shoes for it. He hoped she had the dress as well.

Now, all he had to do was wait. Adjusting the low collar (as she'd told him she preferred) of his Alderaanian house uniform, he waited. If someone were watching, the only sign of any nervousness would be the drumming of his fingers on the table, and the slight pursing of his lips.

Alysele was grumpy. Her arm was in a sling, for resting purposes. Her day was long. She was looking forward to tonight... but she couldn't get dressed with one arm. She tried. Oh, she tried. Desperately. But... reality won over fashionthis time.

So, she was dressed in her usual white robe. Cleaned this time. She pondered just sending a message to Niall and getting it over with, but that would have felt dirty. He deserved better.

She stopped at the door, and chimed in. "It's Aly." There was some forced cheer in her voice.

Niall rose easily to his feet, crossing the few steps required to the door. A moment as he arranged himself, fixed his most charming and regal smile on his face, and hit the button. The door slid open.

He blinked. This was... rather unexpected. His eyebrows rose noticeably when he spotted the sling. "Aly." He said, surprise evident in his tone. "What happened? Are you okay? Ummm... won't you come in?" Remembering himself, he stepped to the side, allowing her to enter.

"Well, I did say I would surprise you." She offered weakly before stepping in. "Sorry, we have to cancel tonight. I had... some Jedi business the other night, and I would just embarrass you in my current state." She waved with her left arm, though there was also a small flinch as she did.

"Nothing major, and I'll reimburse you if you booked anything."

Niall took a half-step forward at the wince. She was a Jedi now, she didn't really need him to protect her... nevertheless, the instinct was still there. "I very much doubt you would embarrass me. You look lovely." He said, his tone earnest. And yet, his grey eyes were concerned. He could see her tiredness, and of course her arm was in a sling. Dancing was right out, and even dinner would be difficult. Could she use chopsticks with her left hand? He could feel his heart begin to sink.

His eyes lit up suddenly. "As it happens, I did have something planned." He said, a smile crossing his lips. "I was thinking we could order in. I know there's a place right next to the compound that's been screened to deliver. And..." The smile grew as he took a few steps back to the holoviewer, situated across from the couch. He jerked a thumb at it. "Galaxy Commando Seven, available upon request for our viewing pleasure. Although 'pleasure' might be somewhat optimistic." Galaxy Commando Five was the last good one, after all.

He crossed back to her, still smiling. "What do you think? Instead of a night out, we have a night in? I still say we deserve it."

"Oh, I am sure I could waddle gracefully." She forced out a small laugh.

"Galaxy Commando Seven? Is that the one with the cybord Wookie?" She narrowed her eyes. "Is this punishment? You know how Galaxy Commando 6 ended right? They killed everyone! Even the comic relief ewok! And announced the new one right after."

"I never thought I'd miss that ewok." Niall said, shaking his head. "It's okay, though. The new one is supposed to be his younger brother."

"But... no, it's not punishment. It'll be fun, I promise." He looked at her, his expression curious. "Haven't you ever watched a bad movie with good friends before? It's terrific. You get to laugh. Talk. Make jokes. Pay attention to the other person... or people."

His lips twisting, his smile going charmingly crooked. "I know it's not exactly the evening with Lord Niall and Lady Alysele that I promised you..." He trailed off, but his grey eyes were bright.

"I hear the ewok was asking for too much." She stage whispered. Her own blue eyes turned somber. "Not really... though what movies were available were all bad at least."

She smiled finally. "That's okay. I left the Lady at home, But perhaps... we can be Ni and Aly for a night?"

The joke made Niall laugh, chuckles making his chest rise and fall. Her words after that just made him smile. "Ni and Aly. Yes. That sounds perfect. Here, come sit down. I'll take care of it."

Well. An evening in. He would adjust. Niall stepped out of his fine black riding boots, and slipped out of his jacket, hanging it by the door. Underneath it, he wore a short-sleeved t-shirt, still blue, but paler. Without the jacket, one could better get a sense of his build, fit but slender, military life having filled out the skinny child he'd one been. Niall gave Aly a nod, no longer feeling quite so overdressed.

A quick call, and dinner was on its way. Something easy to eat with one hand. Niall glanced at Aly again, smiling. "Well. Dinner's on the way, then we can start the movie. Ah... would you like to tell me about that?" He nodded at her arm.

...

And indeed it wasn't long before dinner was served and eaten, and the two sat down in front of the holoplayer with a bowl of starblossoms. "Well, here we go." Niall murmured. Pushing the button to start the film, he leaned back against the cushion, his arm stretched along the back, towards Aly.

Aly smiled,and slipped off her outer robe, the armored part. Underneath was a white blouse, perhaps a bit too skintight.

She sat down on the couch, and admired his form. "Military has done good thing for you. I recall your holocalls from the Academy. You were pole. A cute pole, but a pole." She smiled at him, mouthing a silent 'thank you'.

Seh glanced at the arm, frowning. "Had a fight with a... cultist, I'd say. Targeting force users, and prepared for them. It went mostly well.... and if he hadn't have his damn armor, I would have had him in pieces." She looked up at him, her eyes strong with determination. "I'll get him next time."

And then dinner arrived. She enjoyed the food, especially eating it on her own. Not a retread from the morning.

She didn't react to his arm, engrossed in the movie. "Huh, the director is the one who directed the original Galaxy Commando. The Trandoshan art house one."

Niall's eyes slipped down, then back up as she removed her outer robe. "Cute pole." He echoed dryly. "Well, I'll accept that." He smiled.

His look grew concerned. "Aly..." He shook his head, smiling at her determination. "Consider bringing me along next time; I'm no Jedi, but I can help. It'll be like the swan, only with our roles reversed."

"Oh, that's promising." Niall said, responding to her comment. He turned towards her smiling. "You really do know your action films, huh?"

...

The film began with a recap of the ending of the last one. "Get to da speeder!" The titular character yelled.

They got to the speeder. It exploded.

The camera zoomed in on another man, smaller but wiry, bald-headed. He squinted, turning his head and looking off to the side. "Looks like I'm up." He said, his voice deep and rough.

...

"That's a bit less promising." Niall said dryly. He turned, glancing at Aly. "You comfy? Need another pillow or anything?"

"Sure, I'll do so. I'll think of you." The words were hurried, and not exactly a promise, but... the movie was starting!

"Well, it was one of the few things I could beg my master to allow me to do. Plus I read all the news. As for the movie... well, arthouse director. It might be weird. Or he might be doing it for the creds. Supposeldy he wants a Wookie - Trandoshan romantic comedy off the grounds."

She turned to the movie and saw the explosion. And the new main character. And his struggles to assemble the classic team against the common foe. The athletic Cathar femme fatale. The angry wookie with a life debt to the dead commander. The plucky Jawa sidekick.

"Wow, this is all paint by the numbers so far. They even have him crawling in the air ducts! What is he doing in the trash compactor? Pft, that is so unrealistic. That never happens."

She seemed distracted by the movie. "Oh yeah, I'm good. Thanks."

The door to the lift tube opened. The evil henchmen raised their blasters, but there hero wasn't inside. Just one of their fellows, dead, sitting on a chair. A note was pinned to the dead man's chest.

Growlbacca stepped forward, his cyber-arm flexing. He tore the note away, reading it.

NOW I HAVE A LIGHT REPEATER
HAPPY LIFE DAY

"Rrrrrrrraaaaaaaaoooooooowwww!" The evil cyber-wookie howled, the shrill mechanical screech of it echoing throughout the building.

"This actually isn't bad." Niall whispered, moving just a bit closer so that Aly could hear. "I mean, it may be paint by the numbers, but they're doing a rather good job at that.

And then, being a bit closer, Niall felt it was only natural to let his arm fall gently across Aly's shoulders. It was just how they'd watched movies as children, after all. His arm was warm, comforting.

Foekiller! Foekiller! It's Catnip here. The enemy has cyborgs. And not just any cyborgs. They have... The Commander! He now responds to Cyber Commander.

"Of course the Cathar woman goes undercover. It's always the woman. What is the hero doing? Skuling around."

The next scene shows the hero, Ja'red Foekiller, an aging, balding veteran lighting another death stick. "Wrowrean... you heard what Catnip said. Are you up for this?" What followed was a 5 minute monologue reaching dramatic heights unheard of... in Wookie. With subtitles at least. Badly translated subtitles.

"True... and they do seem to have fun." Aly leaned in against his shoulder, not even realizing what she's doing, just... doing it.

"I didn't see that twist coming." Niall said softly. Idly, his fingers began teasing Aly's hair gently, running it through his fingers. "But that speech was really better in the original Wookie."

"Urghhhh..." Desperately, Ja'red struggled with HK-97, taking blow after blow from the droid's mechanical arms. His shirt had torn on a strut, leaving his incredibly muscled chest bare, and covered with oil from his battle with the droid.

HK-97 shoved him up against the edge of the catwalk. Ja'red looked nervously over his shoulder. Down below, far below, was a vast sea of liquid nitrogen.

"Emphatic Statement: "Soon, I will have my revenge, Ja'red Foekiller." Ja'red narrowed his eyes, squinting, and looked around.

"Yeah? I think you're getting too angry." Powerful muscles surged. He gripped the robot, and with some weird twist of his body, flipped it over the edge. He looked down as it plummeted into the liquid nitrogen. "You should probably cool down."

"That wouldn't have worked. Would it have?" Niall whispered. His lips were almost against Aly's ear, his breath brushing her cheek.

"True. I mean... who translated that? Like... " She threw up her arms, almost hitting poor Niall.

"Okay, yes that's not how it goes. I'm not much of a grappler, but... the droid is almost twice as big as he is!" She shivered at his breath, and a fleeting thought entered her mind.... and left quickly.

"Look, it's the Wookie showdown. This is going to be fun!"

The two wookies battled fiercely, but in the end Wrowrean couldn't stand against the fearsome Growlbacca. He wounded him, tearing away some of the servos in his cyberarm, but was fatally wounded in return. Ja'red found him not long after, throwing his head back and howling no.

"Nooo!" Niall said along with him, although much more softly. "I rather liked Wrowrean."

He turned a little to look at Aly, his face just a few inches from her temple. He could smell her hair... awareness of her suddenly nearly overwhelmed his senses. "I... didn't we watch the first Galaxy Commando together, like this? Just before you were taken?" He said. He was pretty sure they had kissed then, in the way that children sometimes did.

The Commander is not himself. You have to save him. Ja'red. And tell him. I. Ate the last cookie.

"I am pretty sure that wasn't his last monologue. In fact.... though I am a bit rusty. I think he said something about the last of his tribe or something."

Alysele was completely lost in the movie..

Growbacca raissed his sparking arm ready to smash the hero, but was interrupted by a high pitched battle cry. UTINIIIIIIIIIIII!!! The wookborg only saw the rocket coming at him before blowing up.

"What? Oh, yeah, you're right." She smiled, and it was a simple smile, of fond memories past. Not balls, or galas, or being dolled up... something far simpler. Of a fun time with a friend. She turned her head sideways to show him that smile."

Niall saw that smile. It drew his eyes instantly to her lips. Niall felt a sudden surge of emotion, a thrill, like leaping over a cliff. He could feel himself acting without thought.

"It's over, Ja'red. It's finally over." Catnip said, her chest heaving. The two were framed by twin setting suns. Ja'red squinted and looked around.

"Yeah. He can rest now. We can rest now. Finally." Catnip stepped forward into the circle of his arms.

"I love you, Ja'red Foekiller." She purred. Ja'red looked down at her face.

"I know." They kissed passionately.

The movie ended. Niall didn't notice. He was already kissing Aly. His other hand came up to gently cup Aly's chin as he pressed his lips to hers.

Aly glanced towards the scene... but her eyes soon darted back to Niall. And his sweet lips. She melted into his kiss, any defenses she might have had given up with a smile.

She allowed Niall to dictate and lead, for once.

Niall had a few reservations about kissing his oldest friend, who also happened to be a Jedi Knight. As she melted against him, though, he suddenly couldn't remember what they were. And having started to kiss Aly, he found that he didn't really want to stop.

He was a fairly good kisser, responding well to her, his lips moving against hers with just the right amount of pressure. His hand slid down from her cheek, tracing along her shoulder, down her arm. He stopped when he reached her sling.

He broke the kiss, but barely, his lips still inches from hers. "Sorry." He managed to gasp, panting lightly. "You okay?" He meant the arm... mostly.

Alysele Cortess wasn't in the building. Or on the moon. Possibly still in the galaxy.

Whe he broke she slowly opened her eyes, and took a breath. "Mhm? Yeah. I'm good." She smiled, and leaned in to kiss again.

Niall matched her smile with one of his own. "Oh, good." He murmured. "I-" His words stopped as their lips met once more. Well, he didn't really have anything more important to say at the moment anyway.

In all things, it seemed Niall was a natural leader. He willingly took the lead here, beginning to move with more passion against her, his lips parting. His hand left her wounded arm, sliding down her side to the curve of her hip, as he began to lean into her a bit more.

Niall Organa wrote:Niall matched her smile with one of his own. "Oh, good." He murmured. "I-" His words stopped as their lips met once more. Well, he didn't really have anything more important to say at the moment anyway.

In all things, it seemed Niall was a natural leader. He willingly took the lead here, beginning to move with more passion against her, his lips parting. His hand left her wounded arm, sliding down her side to the curve of her hip, as he began to lean into her a bit more.

Aly allowed Niall to guide them to the next step, and she seemed to be forgetting everything. She leaned towards him, her left arm taking her weight.

"Ngh!" she expressed the pain. Directly while kissing.

"Sorry! Sorry!" she was bashful.... probably the first time Niall saw her that way.

Niall winced as he heard, and felt, her sound of pain.

"Aly, it's okay, it's okay..." He smiled at her, gently stroking her cheek with his hand. "Here, let me help you be more comfortable."

He shifted, gently taking hold of her. From there, he guided her down, helping her to lie comfortably on the couch. It was a nice couch, very spacious. Large enough for two. He followed her down, lips seeking hers again.