RP (18+) Yoi-no-Myōjō/Evenstar [Motoyoshi Rising] What In The Void-Filled Hells...?

[Hollander]

RP Date

YE 45.3

RP Location

Open Space in the Kosuke Sector

ISS Evenstar​

The ISS Evenstar was a sight to behold as she sailed, elegantly, through the calm sea of open space. All around her the stars twinkled like the eyes of smitten observers, glittering against the Yamataium hull. Its deep shades of purple were almost royal; an amethyst cloaked in shadow. Puffs of stardust flowed up and through its encircling, elliptical docking ring. An imaginative viewer might think the ship was some grand, cosmic dancer, debuting before a captivated stellar audience. Within that colossal carriage of metal and technology, hundreds of lives moved about their duties with focus. Each was clad in their Type-43’s, arrayed with the patches and logos of their organization, fleet, mission and, of course, the patch of the Gundan. Each left shoulder bore that noble, delicate peony, itself an arrangement of violet inner petals crowned by rich navy blue ones. In its center, a single golden dot shone like a yellow sun. The crew wore their patches and their uniforms with a profound sense of respect and a knowledge of what that clothing represented. They were members of the Merchant Spacy! Of the Yugumo Corporation! They were citizens of the Yamatai Star Empire, and proud supporters of the storied Mitoyoshi Clan!

One such member of that Clan strode through its well-lit passageways and transit decks, his black dress loafers trodding on the Yamataium flooring with purpose. He was new to the ship, this man, and had never set foot upon a Tanya-Class Expeditionary Heavy Cruiser before; the first of its kind had only been produced two years ago. But this Motoyoshi youth was a deliberate person who preferred a plan wherever he could possibly make one, and he had been practicing his own pathing of the ship’s interiors relentlessly, as much as he was able. What this meant was that the first impression many had of him was... less than ideal. They'd see him storming, with almost angry intent, through hallways and decks, sometimes to stop and glare at the entryways and exits, then to nod, as though he was pleased that they were where he expected them to be. He was a Security man, a Lieutenant, tasked with the safekeeping of vessel and crew. It was absolutely necessary for him to be able to navigate Evenstar's depths, to know shortcuts and routes and the locations of common spaces and secure doors.

Such as the door that now lay before him which lead to the ship’s Misha-Class Bridge.

He stood before it, steeling himself, taking a moment to tug down the gold-trimmed hem of his charcoal black suit top. It cut tightly against his athletic form, stretching across his chest muscles. His beret, black and bearing the peony mission patch that was on his left shoulder, fit well over his head; he’d reshaped it that morning, sliding it over his own lead-gray hair carefully. With a final sigh, he entered through the door, announcing himself to the staff officer on deck as being just a pair of minutes early for the Third Shift. His heart beat swiftly in his chest. This bridge was familiar, in some ways… The ISS Shiori, which the man had served on not so long ago, had been a Misha-Class Explorer with a bridge upgraded to look quite like what he was seeing now. A hemispherical ceiling, windows displaying arrays of data or walls or text or the space outside, the Captain’s station, and six subordinate stations. The man looked to his intended section, seeing that his seat was just being vacated by the officer he was relieving.

He headed over, approaching the left seat at the station. Tactical’s two seats were arranged with Navigation at their left, or counterclock-wise, and the Underwater Steering and Navigation station to their right, or clock-wise. Oddly, the man noticed that the environmental lighting in this space of the bridge was quite lower. Was it darker across the entire bridge, or just over here? Figuring it must be an oversight of some kind, he reached for a manual interface, slowly bringing the light back up to what was typical, at least in his experience...

@Nakshatra

 

[Nakshatra]

ISS EVENSTAR - BRIDGE

With an even yet composed pace Yuki strode on to the bridge of the ISS Evenstar, wearing her Type-43 uniform with great pride. Things had changed so drastically in her life from when she left the leviathan arks till now. When her mother made the ultimate sacrifice so that she might have a chance at survival, Yuki became determined to make the best of things and to honor her ysi no matter what. It had been a difficult working through the trauma of not only losing her mother, but millions of norians losing their lives during the journey to what would become their new home. When powers that be plucked her out of the abyss offering her a place on the ISS Shiori with Eidan and Kuroko, she happily accepted. During the course of their education she had come to consider them as friends, the opportunity to continue along with them in whatever capacity was one that provided the potential for deeper friendship. If anything adventures with crew onboard only further solidified this fact as she developed connections with many of the other crew.

This attitude she held continued as the crew that she had come to know transferred from the ISS Shiori to the ISS Evenstar. She approached her duty station at Navigation, her pink hair swishing to one side as she tilted her head to observe the person that she would be taking over for. "They're awfully cute" she thought to herself momentarily as she reported in to begin turnover procedures. After turnover had been successfully completed she took her position sitting her rump into the chair at Navigation. One thing she was grateful for about being on Third Shift was that the lighting, at least in her area, was minimal. Not many times did she take pleasure in such comforts, but with her eyes being sensitive to bright lights she appreciated any opportunity to work in more darkened places. Though she did come prepared with special light filtering lenses just in case, she patted where their container was concealed to ensure that she had remembered to bring them.

Satisfied that the contacts were in fact on her person she took another look around the bridge briefly before looking back towards her station. In the background she heard footsteps of another entering the bridge, though this was to be expected as it was shift change for duty watch. Things seemed as though they would go swimmingly until all of a sudden an uncomfortable amount of light glared right into her blue eyes. Letting out an audible groan she peeked around to the source, "What in the void-filled hells?" she hissed. Sitting up further in her seat to see who the offending party was she noted that it was a rather handsome looking disturbance. Quickly she slipped her contacts in, secreting the container for her contacts back to their place. They were in a rather precarious position as it were, due to the fact that most norian women do not generally wear undergarments. She shook her head slightly, in this one instance such an infraction might be forgiven, keyword "might". This would come to entirely depend on whether or not Lieutenant bright ideas over there heard what she said.

 

[Hollander]

ISS EVENSTAR - BRIDGE

When the light levels in their part of the bridge returned to what he felt were ‘typical’, the Lieutenant was surprised to hear some rather unexpected noises from behind him. A groan! Followed by a hissed expression! He turned, and though he couldn’t say for certain which bridge officer had been speaking, his eyes happened to settle on the most outstanding member present. She was the only one with elegantly pointed ears. She was the only one with a flowing mane of hair that might’ve reminded Motoyoshi Zabuza of bubblegum, if he’d had any way of knowing what bubblegum was. She was also the only person within view with the most… well the most striking blue eyes he could recall ever seeing.

And he’d seen eyes, eyes of all kinds of colors. In a universe where a body could be designed and re-designed, Zabuza had seen eyes of purple and red and violent yellow and jungle green and blue, yes even blue! He’d shared glances with hundreds of blues over the years but… Un-obscured as they were by the light filtration contact lenses that he hadn’t seen her put in, Zabuza found his gaze captured by those twin cerulean orbs for just a moment before he tore his eyes away. There were other people who might’ve spoken. Dull-haired, dull-eyed fellow officers. It didn’t have to be this girl, just because she stood out.

Immediately, he began to put the pieces together. He’d just assumed the lower lights were accidental, or something the outgoing shift needed for a temporary work assignment. The groan and the hiss were clues, and so a bit of guilt led him to call out; he couldn’t know if he was doing something wrong if he didn’t ask.

“Did we… need these lights lower?” he asked, casting the question out to those within hearing. His counterpart at the other seat at tactical, who was still waiting for their own replacement to arrive, seemed to pretend not to hear him...

@Nakshatra

 

[Nakshatra]

ISS EVENSTAR - BRIDGE

For a few moments Yuki blinked slowly in mild shock at the apparent audacity displayed by this new to her crewmember. Taking a moment to observe the Lieutenant before he turned she was able to ascertain that he must have some experience due to his rank. Though perhaps he had not encountered her kind yet, let alone worked with them before. So infractions of such a minor nature could be forgiven until such a time as it could be determined whether or not he was trying to purposely make her suffer. As he turned her eyes narrowed ready to give him a piece of her mind if it came to it, respectfully of course. Though his cool manner and chiseled features caused one bubblegum pink eyebrow to raise subtly as her gaze met his. While his demeanor outwardly remained coolly composed, there was something about his warm chocolate toned eyes that captured her full attention. In the flash of a moment she pondered on the subject of what lie below the surface with questions that could quite possibly last for eons.

Naturally it probably was not the best idea to stare at an officer for too long, it might give them the wrong idea on her professional demeanor. Certainly she had stared into her fair share of eyes over the course of her life. One pair more intimately than others, but that was besides the point. Other than Eidan there had not been anyone that had dared approach her in such a personal manner. Sure she casually flirted with Lumi and Tomoko, but something about this particular man who had so errantly adjusted the lights drew her interest. She lowered her raised brow, closing her eyes to shake her head which jostled her pink pony tail a bit. It helped to clear her mind, that is until she heard his hesitant question regarding the bridge environment. It brought her gaze right back to his with an intensity that might cripple normal beings.

When he tore his gaze away she awkwardly look away as well, clearing her throat softly humming to herself as she focused back on her station. His question to the general audience seemed to pique her interest though, had he really not known it was her? To be fair, he likely had never heard her voice before now. Nonetheless she she turned to face him once more with as fiery a gaze as blue eyes could muster, her eyes rolling in a slightly dramatic fashion. "We? No. Me? Also no, I came prepared for watch. It is your lucky day S-I-R." she emphasized smiling sweetly before once more settling back into work with a bit of an adjustment to her seating position.

 

[Hollander]

ISS EVENSTAR - BRIDGE

Their mutual looks seemed to lance out into the empty air between them like jousters; mounted knights on thundering steeds, clashing in a blast of… something. The two jousters broke, with both Yuki and Zabuza looking away. She was the first to ‘ride’ again in their jousting, rolling those damned eyes of hers with just a smidge of drama.

“Coming prepared is... good... Cadet.” he said carefully, neutrally, in response to her words, noting the rank insignia on her uniform. Zabuza wasn’t quite sure how to interpret her ‘bit’ about today being his lucky day. Lucky that she came prepared? Lucky that he was seated close to her; she at Navigation, he at Tactical? But by then the other connections were starting to form in his mind; the ears, the reaction to the light, two major clues so far. He couldn’t exactly feel her slender neck to see if she had two distinct pulses thrumming through her veins, sliding his fingers over the soft, pale skin…

He blinked, breaking eye contact with her once more in an attempt to cut off the oddly-surfacing thoughts. “Ahhh…” he said, a sound of discovery and realization. Now he truly was feeling a little guilty. He hadn’t known it would’ve bothered her, but he should have taken the time to ask his bridgemates about the lighting before making a change. “If, uhh, there’s no opposition, I’ll… dim them again.” With assenting silence from his awkward colleague still at the Tactical station, Zabuza dropped the lights back to what they were. Recognizing he ought to address the situation, and his faux pas, Zabuza strode over to Yuki’s station directly. It only took him a few steps.

“Sorry, Cadet, I didn’t realize that you were…” he began, stopping himself from saying ‘that you’re an extra-dimensional being with an unusual physiology’. “It’s a force of habit for me, I think, to… Make things the same. Around me. Like the lights.” Oh yeah, it was about as awkward to hear it was it was for him to say it. He made it worse by pointing at his department insignia. “Security Officer.” he explained, as though that was, in any way, an explanation.

Was he normally this awkward? Who could say? He was being genuine, at the very least, in his awkwardness. That much was clear. He even tried to smile, in spite of himself, as he issued his apology and explanation.

 

[Nakshatra]

ISS EVENSTAR - BRIDGE

Yuki mused at the carefully paced words that flowed from the Lieutenant's mouth almost like music to her ears. Even if his words were neutrally spoken she sensed something out of the norm, as if there were more questions that lay underneath. There had to be more to this interaction that what met the eye, she had stood dozens of watches before and none had ever taken such an interest. Internally she shrugged off the thought, choosing not to think much of it other than the few butterflies that began to flutter about. There was somewhat of a tension in the air and it somewhat bothered her that she could not pinpoint exactly why it was. When his eyes move to her rank insignia she allowed her gaze to fall to his hands, those hands were not as slender as those she normally saw and with that her mind wandered into the abyss.

As he uttered the sound of realization her gaze ripped back up without breaking her composure while she switched her train of thought. Her eyes gently focused on is in a manner that was not nearly as harsh as the look she had thrown earlier. It seemed that he might be feeling bad about something, but she could not be quite sure with someone she had never met before. One thing she had come to expect being one of few if any other norians on the crew was that she would receive no special treatment. This made her come fully prepared for any reasonable scenario that she could, she was just lucky to have those dang contacts. Otherwise she might have wanted to react less kindly, not that she would have dared lash out.

While she sat at her station focusing intently on work to subdue certain thoughts that had intruded into her mind she noticed the lights once more went dim. This caused her to look up from her station as her eyes adjusted to the more comfortable level of lighting. A soft expression of curiosity befell her face as she looked around to see what had happened, that was when she saw the security officer coming her way. The circumference of her pupils increased dramatically for every step taken that closed the space between them. Had she realize before that he was so tall? No of course not, she had been so lost in his eyes the only other observances had been his eyes and hands that looked like they could, she cut that train of thought off so fast as he had stopped right next to her.

"That I was what Lieutenant? Norian?" she uttered nervously praying to the gods that he could not see the slight blush rushing to her pale cheeks. Her head tilted slightly, her ears twitched a bit as she focused on what it was he was trying to say. The circumference of her pupils returned to normal as she calmed down, though she still felt butterflies fluttering in awkward nervousness. Her head tilted to the other side causing her ponytail to swish as he finished going on about the lights. "Lieutenant, it really is okay. I promise no harm has been done and I understand completely. About things being the same that is. If it makes you feel any better, I do carry light filtering contacts on me at all times. I do not expect any one to make special accommodations on my account. However, I do appreciate you dimming the lights." she said with a bit of a smile. "I am wholly accepting of the idea that you may want to turn them back on, please do if you so wish. If I really need a dark retreat I always have my quarters after shift." she said with a warm tone.

"Ah...." she trailed off awkwardly when he pointed to his department insignia. "Security Officer, I am Deck" she said pointing to her own department insignia. Her eyes shot open as the movement of gesturing to her insignia had knocked loose the contact container from its precarious perch. In an effort to distract from this quite awkward situation she softly spoke, "Yuki, Cadet Yuki...or Inihara. whichever works" she wiggled a bit in her seat attempting to readjust to a more comfortable position. She met his smile with one of her own, albeit quite nervous, which was very unusual for her around male counterparts.

 

[Hollander]

"That I was what Lieutenant? Norian?" she'd said.

Zabuza had to look away. That's precisely what he had been about to say. And it had been true! And though he was higher-ranking than she, one could argue that she was merely toe-ing the line of insubordination with her tone. Again, the original misstep had been his.

Thankfully, her fire seemed to cool just a little, the flames shifting from blue to a still-burning orange. She spoke at length, assuring him that no harm had been done, and that she made use of light filtering contacts. She even smiled again, and he couldn't help but notice that this expression was quite different than the last smile she had weaponized and flung his way. She identified her own department insignia and then...

Then something happened.

His mind went blank.

At least, that's what he remembered later. It was one of those 'black-out' moments where something so surprising, so unexpected happens that your mind can't process it, and it becomes a lost memory, perhaps only to be recovered later.

In the moment, however, Zabuza was QUITE aware of the little contact container leaping out of his hiding space like a meerkat hopping out of its hole. The security man's quick attentiveness meant his eyes went directly to where the moving thing had come from, and he was, perhaps, just a second too long in averting his gaze. Thankfully, the pink-haired woman with the blazingly intense eyes was covering up the awkwardness once again.

"Cadet Yuki." he repeated, trying to give her back a smile of his own. "Lieutenant Zabuza." He stepped back, heading toward his seat which was just about within arm's distance. "Thank you. I'll... leave you to your work." They'd both only just began their shifts after all, and Zabuza hadn't even sat down yet! Now, he did, loading up his own layout and interface preferences on the console in front of him. In due time, he was 'in', and a bevy of system monitors came up on his screen related to ship's shields and weapons. Levels, percentages, bar charts, line graphs, and representations of data even more esoteric and technical marched across his screen in a slow beat. The Evenstar's avatar, Lucia, was of course a capable creation and could monitor this same information, but organic minds still had their own expertise and experiences to bring to the table. Zabuza was checking for signs that any vital systems might be functioning with even a hint of a problem.

He didn't get long to run through his initial checks.

"Alright, Third Shift!" rang out a deep feminine voice. "We have got ourselves a 'dirty snowball' on the horizon, about a 'five-miler' in diameter, so she's little. Sciences has filed a request to gather data on her, and the timing means that we get to be the gatherers holding the basket."

The speaker, with all her odd idiomatic speech quirks, was Third Officer Motoyoshi Ponyo, a Minkan from the Anisa system. She'd grown up on a remote mining site, managing automated resource extraction units with her small family where they'd developed some unique and bold personalities. She and her family were quick recruits to the Motoyoshi name in its first decade of existence, remaining loyal to the Empire as Yamatai no Motoyoshi following the events of the Pisces station disaster. The officer was burly, almost shockingly so, with broad arms that she frequently crossed over a weighty chest. Ponyo was known for her voice, her enjoyment of dance, and for her sense of duty to the Yamatai Star Empire and to the Motoyoshi Clan and values.

"Navigation." she said, addressing Yuki. "The Science stations here on the bridge will share with you the distance they'd like us to remain within for an extended period of study. Work up a flight path that gets us there and keeps us there. Preferably one that doesn't put us directly behind it, of course. We have no intention of flying with a comet tail fluttering in our eyes." Other orders were shared with Communications, and even a message to the crew in Engineering. "Tactical, review Navigation's flight plan. It's fine practice to appraise a flight plan for dangers or advantages, no matter how mundane that plan seems to be. There'll be more for you to do once we lock in on a way forward."

 

[Nakshatra]

Yuki had not meant anything by stating what she was. If anything it was understandable that he not be sure if she was an elf or a norian. As for many years the norian people had lived among the elves, that is until a short time ago. The lieutenant might just not have had a run in with someone unafraid to make things known, within respectful parameters that is. After all she was here to do her job as a Deck Cadet and while she appreciated the interaction they had a job to do.

A singular eyebrow raised on an otherwise unfazed Yuki's face as the Lieutenant looked away. Though given the level of distraction she might have to have one of her Senchō-no-joshu that were on call bring something to help the head honcho over there focus more. Seemlessly vespering the one other norian she knew of Ialnys, "I nuuk uojhs onchus if flojhs lonu si shu lrokju ommukoausulw phluausu//I need eight inches of flight line to the bridge immediately please." The boatswain's mate would understand what she was asking for as it was somewhat of an insider code, deck speak if you will. "Awu auwu liss//Aye aye boss." he vespered back to her. This exchange would not have been noticeable to anyone else as her facial expression did not betray it in the least.

When his gaze fell hers did to, unaffected by the time it took thinking that perhaps he might have been worried about a uniform infraction. Which is the kind of thing she would never permit and so she played it off as nothing. Not that she minded him looking. Eventually she would retrieve the little escapee of a container, but not while eyes were openly on her, might give the man a heart attack. That was not something she would look forward to explaining at all, best to avoid it. "Hai Lieutenant." she said in a professional tone watching out of the corner of her eye as he resumed his post just an arms length away.

Once everyone's gaze was averted she began pulling up her systems displays, conspicuously working the container out of where it had slipped. Relocating it in a much safer place she began preparing to look over the navigational charts that the previous shift had put the final touches on. She knew from experience that tactical would have to take a look over it to make sure it would suit the purpose of the task at hand. A deep feminine voice drew her attention, causing her to look from her station to the speaker, Third Officer Motoyoshi Ponyo. "Gatherers holding the basket? You mean navigation driving the basket that everyone else is in?" she thought to herself as she paid rapt attention without outwardly betraying her thoughts.

"Hai Third Officer, plans are ready and waiting for tactical's evaluation." she responded professionally. Though the whole speech was very normal for officers to their crew it still irked her that people felt the need to lay it out like craft directions to a child. Nevertheless as soon as the briefing was over she waited for tactical to pop over and sign off on what had been set into motion by the previous shift. A more dark, serious tone had enveloped the environment around her as she set to focus on work.

 

[Hollander]

With a click, Lieutenant Zabuza detached his seat, allowing it to slide the few feet over to bring him right up next to Yuki. The Security man was in focus mode now, finally; the unexpected interaction with the beautiful woman earlier had shaken him up, to be sure, but there was a mission at hand! He drew in near to her, about five centimers taller than she in their respective chairs. Up close, the fit of his uniform across his chest and shoulders was more apparent. When he leaned in, his left knee moved over to possibly bump hers, unless she pulled away. He'd be oblivious of the contact in the moment.

"Yeah, super simple." he said, sharing his thoughts aloud. "It's within the scanning range they want, keeps us out of the tail. The comet's not going to change direction on its own, unless we get really close." He looked at her, his eyes on her lips for just a half-second before readjusting up to her eyes. "So, the only thing I thought of..." he said quietly. "Was the... risk of it breaking apart." He reached up and flicked open one of the diagrams of the comet that Sciences had made available. It showed the comet's ovoid shape in a three-dimensional grid, with sharp red lines criss-crossing it here and there. "These are like fault lines, apparently. If the comet broke apart, it'd most likely send the chunks between the fault lines outward. If our flight plan kept us in just the right spots, outside of the predicted paths those chunks would take, we'd have an easier time dodging a mile-wide chunk of frozen gas."

It was true that it was an unlikely scenario. The data Sciences had gathered already, from afar, indicated a low risk of the comet spontaneously fragmenting. The Evenstar herself would have to do something to spur an explosion. Still, Zabuza had been asked to assess the risk, and he'd proposed his changes to Yuki. He watched her now, wondering how she would respond? It would mean extra work, plotting a slowly-rotating path between possible ice chunks. Was it too much work for too little risk?
He'd kept his voice a little low, only addressing her and not anyone nearby. It was up to her to shoot his idea down, accept it, or do something else entirely.

 

[Nakshatra]

Something had disturbed the circle of concentration of the feisty Deck Cadet, before she even looked over she thought to herself, "Who in the...?" The thought process cut short as she slowly side-eyed who had approached her. Of course out of the two people at tactical it had to be the cute one didn't it? The Lieutenant who had so nicely apologized for his light flicking earlier. Luckily she had built up a special resistance to such temptations, especially when there were important duties to undertake. Though when his seat came to a stop next to hers, so dangerously close her eyes glanced over his uniform noticing the musculature of his chest.

For the blink of an eye the fires of mischief lit in her vibrant blue eyes as her thoughts delved into those of a more personal nature. Clearing the momentary temptation came an unexpected bump against her knee, which caused her to rip her gaze back to the displays in front of her as she bit the corner of her lip. Though she had felt his knee bump into hers she had refrained from moving in the slightest. If he did not want to be that close to her, then he should have sent the other lackey over at tactical. Not that she would admit it on duty, but she did not mind this accidental contact in the slightest.

Her slender ears twitched as he poured over his plans that were allegedly super simple. It made her wonder what flight qualifications he was hiding in his back pocket. "I see" she said in a soft low tone directly to him as he spoke about the comet not changing unless she brought the ship too close. "No let me fly right up its back end." she thought jokingly to herself. She was curious for a moment where he was going with this, completely unaware of his half-second examination of her lips. When his arm reached out in front of her she realized just how close he was to her, subconsciously she set her hands to her sides as her nails dug into whatever was closest to keep her focus.

This was the first time in all the watches that she had been on during which someone reached in front of her at her own station. Her head tilted slightly, her eyes focusing intently on where he was pointing as if she might burn a hole through the screen as her cheeks flushed to match the color of her hair. Adjusting in her seat to get a closer look at the grid, her hand reached out to flick over to the path prediction of the chunks if the unfortunate did come to pass. After the last mission she had flown through this seemed like a walk with tea in the park. What she did not notice was that when she adjusted her foot had nudged against his as she did so.

Satisfied with his explanation of the tactical scenario she made the necessary adjustments to accommodate his new information. Her eyes narrowed as she intently made slight changes and a few back up plans should things go awry. After all it was better safe to be prepared and not need it, than to be caught in a situation you were not ready for. Content with the adjustments she straightened her back looking to meet his gaze, "Lieutenant, does this satisfy you?" she asked only so he would hear as her eyes flicked back to indicate that she was talking about the modified flight plans. His ideas were reasonable enough that she did not see why to bite his head off over it and changes so miniscule that she was not required to run them up the chain any further.

 

[Hollander]

A sense of heat began to surround Zabuza's concentration like an invading horde. He'd been doing marvelously up to this point, but being close to her again placed her right in his peripheral vision. There, she was well-placed to invade his subconscious. Right on the edge of his vision, a fair-skinned, pink-haired knockout. How much could she see with those potent eyes of hers? What walls could she peer through, and what lies could she detect? What else might suddenly leap out of her clothing, like that container...
The sensation of her foot meeting only increased the gentle little touches of contact they were sharing. Brief presses of body against body, like tiny teases of what could be. Zabuza was a man of respectable self-control. He was also twenty, healthy, physically fit, and on a new ship with a host of other youthful, healthy people who were eagerly seeking enjoyable connections. And somewhere in his subconscious, the fact that she was close, and not withdrawing, suggested she wasn't entirely uninterested in a possible connection of her own. Maybe. He could also be misinterpreting-

"Lieutenant, does this satisfy you?" she asked.

Oh... you devilish woman. he thought, and he found himself grinning into her attractive gaze. I could STILL be misinterpreting that, as well. I don't know your species' body language, cultural expectations... You could be telling me that I disgust you with that... that damnable staring of yours. He tried to cool his heartneat, acknowledging that he needed to do some research on Norian cultural behaviors. Or Tsenlanese? Both, probably, to be safe.

"It does, Cadet Yuki." he replied, the gaze fading only slightly. "Then with your consent, let's send it up to Third Officer Ponyo."

Whether he or she sent it up to the current commanding officer's station, it didn't matter. Motoyoshi Ponyo tapped at her screen to accept the submitted flight plan, which was receiving concurrent evaluations from Sciences to make sure it met their requests. The woman crossed her arms, unsurprisingly, throwing one heavy leg over the other as she observed the flowing flight plan built by Yuki and inspired by Zabuza, and the reasoning behind it.

"No reason why not to. It'll make for good practice, doesn't burn that much fuel. Alright, fine work, Shōkō-Kōhosei." She addressed only Yuki, by her title of Deck Cadet, leaving Zabuza out of the praise for some unknown reason.

As she reviewed it, and even after she accepted, Zabuza did something strange, perhaps revealing his subconscious thoughts.

He stayed right where he was, next to Yuki at her Navigation station. He didn't seem to realize it. It was though staying there next to her, even after their partner-project had ended successfully, was the most natural thing in the world to do!

 

[Nakshatra]

Suddenly Yuki had become all too aware of how close she was to Zabuza, sending her hearts racing as if they would pound out of her chest. She had flown through combat situations that had rattled her less than she was now. The light touches that had happened between them sent her mind right off the deep end as if it were possible to drive her desires further off than they were. A barely audible gasp wisped past her lips before she clamped them right shut again. At nineteen years of age and only one rank below the lieutenant she had not thought such possibilities were off the table, but perhaps he was not open to the same things as she. Though as always she would not cross that boundary without clear indication it would be allowed by the other party. The atmosphere between them was certainly putting her professional abilities to the test as she was inwardly struggling with containing the message her body language so direly begged to send.

Was that a smile? Was he smiling at her? No, it could not be possible. Without even realizing it she found herself returning his smile with one of her own, flushed cheeks and all. Thank the gods for that dimmed lighting. While the signals she was sending may have been those of clear interest to her, she had no idea what was going through Zabuza's mind. "Then consent is granted Lieutenant, full send." she said in a warm tone as she watched the confirmation of materials being sent up to the Third Officer. Instinctively she turned a bit to look behind her to see if they had been received by Ponyo, she may or may not have unintentionally brushed up against the Security Officer in the process of doing so.

When the Third Officer tapped at the screen accepting the flight plan Yuki straightened to look back at her station, with an attempt to focus back on her tasks. That was when her ears twitched a bit, the officer in charge had only thanked her. Yuki's nose wrinkled a bit as her head tilted to the side, this simply for professional reasons, could not go uncorrected. With the utmost magical display of military bearing and tone of voice Yuki said, "Thank you Third Officer, Kaihei-chui provided excellent information and was a great co-author of the updated flight plans." After ensuring the issue of idea accreditation had been remedied she settled into a more calm mood than that of the perfectionist guard she had put up to ensure such a message was delivered with the utmost respect to their superior officer.

After a few seconds she noted that Zabuza had not departed her side after their joint tasking had been wrapped up. This made her think that possibly he would be interested in getting to know her better? She could not be sure, though had this been off duty or in a different environment she might have leaned her head over to rest on his shoulder. While she wished that he could stay right there for the whole shift, it would be a bad look and that much she knew. Pulling up a few other windows as if she were about to show him something she then leaned in close to whisper in his ear, lifting her hand to block the view of those who might try to lip read what she was about to say. This action was something she had done many times before when she needed to have private conversations with other watch standers so it was not new behavior for her. Though her whispered message would be. Her hand would barely graze his face, brushing against his hair just a touch as she moved to block the view of those who might try to read her lips. "Sir, if you have any questions about navigating Norian physiology, you know where to find me." she whispered quite softly to him before dropping her hand back onto her thigh, closing the windows she had brought up with her other. Then she cast a short glance back over to tactical, silently signaling that he might want to be getting back over there. They had work to do after all. Even if him being in her bubble did feel as if a matching piece to a puzzle.

 

[Hollander]

As Yuki endeavored to give Zabuza the credit he was due, the Third Officer merely huffed a disinterested "Hmm..." in reply, her amber-colored eyes remaining solely on her screen. Zabuza seemed to expect this tepid reaction; something unusual was going on there. But there was little enough time for either of them to reflect on it as the cerise-haired seductress leaned in. Her hand came up, and the man found himself playing along, suckered in to her ploy that she was going to share something genuinely professional with him. She was, in a way.

Zabuza was glad that he had the self-control not to shiver like a teenager as her whispered words met his ear.

He opened his mouth to say something clever. "Errr... I do. I will." was all he could manage to say. Yes, well done Zabuza. Smooth as a river stone. he thought. Awkwardly, he returned to his station as she cast her glance, catching her signal that he had unconsciously stayed a little too long at her shoulder. At this point, he was pretty damned sure that was a proposition of some kind. Non-native speakers couldn't engage in that kind of clever work-play, and that face she'd made while whispering to him... They were alike enough in rank, and in apparent age. Lieutenants and Cadets in entirely different departments could fraternize without there being any risk of preferential treatment or serious worries about mission readiness.

He went about the rest of his work with half-an-eye glancing over to his left from time to time. To a possible future teacher of physiology lessons.

********​

The ten hours of Third Shift passed somewhat eventfully. The comet had been named LB-42E-489, nicknamed 'Love Bug' by someone in Sciences. The Evenstar had been capably piloted along the curving flight path, keeping it well within the safety zones Yuki and Zabuza had prescribed. The Bridge crew spent the last several minutes of the shift prepping shift-change reports for their replacements. As was typical, the two-person teams of most stations went off-shift in a staggered rotation; this meant that stations were never left with two empty seats, or with two entirely-fresh crew members. Zabuza, clever as he was, found a reason to linger. He urged his fellow Security man at the station to leave first. They agreed, giving Zabuza an elbow-bump of ignorant thanks. He hoped Yuki was too preoccupied to notice the tactic; Zabuza didn't want her thinking he was to eager to take her up on her offer.

When she stood, he stood, heading her way with a casual stretch that reached up for the curved ceiling of the bridge.

"So. Off-duty now... Yuki. Where were we thinking of, the setting for the education you're offering me? Library? One of the Lounges?"

 

[Nakshatra]

The navigator's vibrant blue hued orbs were momentarily shielded as she took a quiet deep breath. Somehow she was not surprised at the Third Officer's shenanigans either, it was just part of who she was to make sure every one got accredited for the work they did. It did not even wander into the realm of her realization of how much self-control it took Zabuza to not shiver like a teenager when she whispered to him. Probably about as much as it did for her to not "accidentally" brush her lips against his ear as she whispered.

His response certainly caught her pleasantly by surprise as she had not expected him to accept. Though she did note the fumble in its delivery, was he nervous? When he returned to his station she was fairly certain that her point had gotten across, though she could not be sure at the moment. For the duration of the ten hour shift she would devote all her energy to focusing on her work, anything else would have to take place after. Ialnys had delivered the previously requested items before disappearing back to his duties elsewhere aboard the vessel.

SHIFT CHANGE

Everything had seem to perform well within the planned parameters that were previously set forth. It is always a good day when the back up plans are not necessary and everyone is more or less alive at the end of a flight. At this point she had become accustomed to flying an assortment of spacecraft in a range of sizes, but the same principle always applied. Only after completing turnover with the oncoming crew did she stood and dare to cast a glance towards tactical's position. To her pleasant surprise Zabuza was there and he was, oh gods, he was walking towards her. A pleasant smile graced her lips, a small feisty look emanated from her eyes as she observed his casual stretch. He was quite delightfully tall, was he not? When he asked what "we" were thinking of she threw a slightly devious grin his direction. "Somewhere, anywhere, I just need to take this thing off." she said gesturing to her uniform.

 

[Hollander]

Zabuza laughed, and he walked with her as they headed out of the Bridge and into the Evenstar's transit hallways beyond. They were relatively alone, but it didn't matter; crew talked pretty frankly on the Evenstar, and he wasn't planning on saying anything shocking.

"Well, let's see. We could change and meet up somewhere, like a Lounge or the Izakaya. Or the Library." he chuckled a little, figuring the last one might be unlikely. "Or we could hit up the Onsen, take a dip, steam a little, chat. They've got towels on site, and I bet we could get a low-priority servitor drone to bring us a fresh set of clothes from our respective quarters. All depends on what you're in the mood for." He was definitely revealing his ignorance of Norian physiology, not realizing the Onsen was hardly a viable option, given the heat.

He waved his hand. "Let's start with the Observation Lounge. Shake the uniforms off and find somewhere to sit for a bit. Meet you there in... twenty minutes?"

Given her agreement, he'd wave and dash off in a light jog. He was heading for the Security Barracks on Deck 18.

********​

The Evenstar had multiple lounges throughout the ship. Most Departments had a dedicated lounge of their own, in addition to the general lounge which was distinct from the Izakaya. Tanya-class vessels also had an Observation Lounge located in the four-deck-tall dome at the top-center of the ship. Magnificent views were afforded by the transparent durandium windows; a vast assortment of stars and nebulae dotting the black void of space.

Zabuza's civilian wear was a loose-fitting silk double-down shirt, its topmost button left open to reveal the topmost crease between his pectorals. The shirt was a light silver color, one that he'd been told matched his hair and eyes 'beautifully'. As a younger man, he had sometimes struggled with being called 'beautiful' instead of 'handsome' or 'rugged', but that was probably just silly masculine posturing to worry about such things. the shirt was tucked into a pair of black trousers; on his belt was some of the standard daily-carry equipment of a security man, including a holstered E2 energy pistol. Did a security man always expect trouble?

He looked about to see if his date was already present; if she wasn't, he'd secure a table with a good view. The comet, Love Bug, was currently out of view, but... Zabuza checked his timekeeper... It should start spinning slowly into view as the ship rotated in just a few minutes! It'd be perfect timing. Now... was there a pink-haired wonder already here?

 

[Nakshatra]

Yuki walked next to Zabuza as they exited the bridge simply enjoying the company of such an intriguing person. His first three options of a place to chat more were quite doable, especially if time to change before hand was worked in. However, when he threw in the Onsen she chuckled a little, shaking her head in response. "The lounge will do just fine, I will fill you in why later. See you then!" Now the idea of the lack of clothing scenario the Onsen would facilitate, simply was not worth the risk of her, well, dying. What she was in the mood for was becoming more, intimately acquainted with him, one way or the other. Seeing as aiding in the removal of his uniform was not an option, she headed off to her room to change.

LOUNGE

After a quick shower Yuki had slipped into a low-cut silver satin mini-dress that hugged her curvature and a pair of luxurious shiny black flats. Her pink hair flowed over her shoulders occasionally helping to disguise her décolletage as the low-cut in her dress dipped to her mid-abdomen. Again the lack of undergarments had not even been a thought to her as she did not partake in wearing such things given that norians rarely wore them. Whatever was to come out of this physiology lesson she was not sure, though getting the chance to know Zabuza a little better was reason enough to he pleased. At least those were her thoughts when she entered the lounge and had her breath stolen from her lungs as she caught sight of her attractive companion for the occasion.

His outfit suited him quite nicely, that tease of a crease in his pectoral musculature made her bite her lip just a touch. That was when it hit her, were they matching? She could not be sure yet as she had been mesmerized by how well his silver double-down shirt had just that hint of a tease. Her gaze slowly fell over his form noting not only how very well dressed he was, but also that he never seemed to go anywhere unarmed. "Lines up." she thought to herself as she approached the table. For a moment she looked between the seating options and while she would have loved to slip in next to him, she figured that she might let him offer the invitation to be so close before just making the assumption that she was wanted there.

Given that train of thought she slipped into a spot across from him looking out the window for a moment at the view. It really was quite exquisite, he had done an excellent job of picking a spot to chat. Casually resting against the back of the seat she placed just her hands on the table, one on top of the other, as if to signal the beginning of his first lesson. "What is it you have questions about?" she asked tilting her head slightly making no effort to hide her curiosity about him as she held his gaze as if to seek out the answer within them herself.

 

[Hollander]

When the vision that was Yuki strode into the dome's Observation Lounge, Zabuza forgot all about the stars and the nebulae outside. Those astral bodies themselves seemed jealous of the flesh-and-blood body currently wrapped in silver-colored satin. He couldn't prevent his eyes from following the vertical pink lines of her hair down, down, down, where they paralleled the low cut of her dress. He wondered whether Norian bodies were designed, hand-crafted, like so many other physical forms in this modern era. If her body wasn't made, Yuki herself had done a splendid job of building it up on her own. You should win an award for your work, Yuki-san. Or perhaps 'Yuki-sensei' would be the right way to go. he thought.

He stood when she approached, and sat after she did, saying "Look at that." as he indicated the colors of their respective outfits. "People will think we color-coordinated."

But she offered to satisfy his curiosity, and damned if he wasn't going to take her up on her offer. "Lets start with where we started. The... light sensitivity. I take it your homeworld is dimmer than what other humans are used to? Maybe you used your hearing as well, to pick things up in the dark." He slid a finger along the edge of his own ear, looking at the pointed, elegant forms on the sides of her head with curiosity.

 

[Nakshatra]

A smirk graced her face as he stood, her eyes moved to quite clearly get a better look at his form in its clothed entirety. It was true that they did seem to accidentally have matched. This made her a bit, the satin of her dress emphasizing her perky c-cup sized breasts and little nipples as she did so and it would not be disguised even as her shrug relaxed. "Well that is what happens when we change in our own rooms is it not? I could not exactly confer with you as I was getting changed," she responded with a devilish little grin before they got settled.

While Yuki waited for the delicious specimen of a minkan in front of her to compose his answer she reminisced on his reaction to her approach. She had been oh so aware of where his gaze along her form had traversed, it caused her to wonder if perhaps his hands would do the same. Had this type of thought been there since her first time or had these type of thoughts been there before? Whatever had happened something within her had been unlocked that night and it would not be put back. The scenery around them had all but disappeared in the moment, her attention and gaze completely absorbed with fantasies of just how well their forms might fit together. See just how well those colors really coordinated. Would it make the stars themselves jealous?

Her slender fingers drummed lightly against the table as she rested in against the seat, the fabric of her satin dress teasing against her curves with every shift she made. When he started with the lights her gaze lit with playful ambiance and slight annoyance at being compared to, well, humans. "It was dimmer compared to those that most other species inhabit. I say was, as we had to flee." She said not sure exactly how to explain it without delving into things she knew were best left unsaid. The mood on her face turned to a more sorrowful look as talking about such things brought back up the painful memory of loved ones lost.

That dark dive into painful memories of the past was shortly thereafter dulled. It was as if a hand had reached down and pulled her back up. Well at least that is how she felt when she noticed his curiosity as he questioned about her hearing. "Now if only he had run his finger over the edge of my ears like that," she thought. "Aw screw it," she thought shortly after getting up from her spot to slip in next to him. Shimmying in next to him she tucked the hair on the side closest to him behind her ear as if offering to let him touch them for himself, "You can touch my ears, they do not bite." she said playfully. "As for the other thing... we could see just fine in the dark. It was dim, not like the dark recesses of the abyss of space." she said with a hint of a sassy tone. "What about your homeworld?" she inquired in a soft yet curious tone. Surely it was one of the ones she knew about, but she did not want to go making assumptions so readily.

 

[Hollander]

"I could not exactly confer with you as I was getting changed." she'd said, quite nearly causing Zabuza to turn and chew on a finger-joint. This girl was dangerous!

He caught the emotions that seemed buried under her words as she spoke of having to flee her homeworld. In his training as a Security Officer, and in courses on Psychology and humanoid behavior, he'd learned about body language, facial expressions, and other cues that might suggest hidden feelings or motives. Though this was all intended to help him spot criminals or terrorists and the like, it had occasional applications in regular social situations. It helped, in a sad and somber way, that he too had lost a homeworld. Had lost a family and a government and an entire future-that-might-have-been. Zabuza felt it prudent not to pry further, just nodding solemnly as she continued.

When the beauty in the silver dress moved next to him, Zabuza's ancient ancestors applauded; he handled it cool, without the slightest flub or stutter. He threw an arm up on the bench behind her, not quite draping it over her shoulders, but placing it well for some possible future maneuver. Yuki let him know he could touch her ears, but he didn't take her up on her offer immediately. He felt a desire to retake the initiative a little, and if her ears turned out to be sensitive, maybe he could get her to shiver a little bit.

At her revelation that they could see fine in the dark, he was impressed. That sounded terribly useful in the right situations. She asked about his own homeworld, and he leaned forward a little. "Well, as it happens, we... also had to flee our homeworld. But it's a world you probably know quite well, I imagine you spent some time planet-side when you came to the Kikyo Sector. Jiyuu III is where I grew up. I only lived there for a couple years, but... I think of it as my birthplace." He, too, felt it best not to delve too much on such things; it was enough that they shared a similar feeling of loss together. "But now, my home is on starships. And my family are the people around me. A very interesting mix of people, I have to admit." He grinned, and with the hand that wasn't behind her shoulders, he reached forward within her field of view. She'd offered to let him touch those delightfully pointed things, and he brought the side of his finger to her. The sides of his fingers were softer than the coarser skin on the flat of his palms and fingers. He was wise enough in the ways of physical contact to know you didn't give a romantic partner a rubbing with sandpaper-hands.

He slid carefully along the length of it, feeling the supple cartilage and delicate skin. The low lights of the Lounge seemed to pass right through them, almost making them glow.

"They're beautiful." he whispered, mystified.

 

[Nakshatra]

Spoiler: OOC

Continued here: https://stararmy.com/roleplay-forum/forums/nsfw-rp.106/