Outside of Room 221 and Points Beyond; Saturday Morning [02/02].

[in_sidon_we_trust]

A challenge had been issued. And if anyone thought someone like Sidon would do anything but fully rise to meet that challenge with aplomb and gusto....well, then, clearly, they did not know Sidon. He supposed he could have waited a little later in the day, understanding that it was the weekend and some people (very rarely him!) liked to enjoy not having to be up early for classes or jobs or whatever else they had, but it took a great deal of willpower to wait even as long as he had. After all, each second that passed was an opportunity to lose that challenge.

And that simply would not stand.

Which was why there was a very large Zora at the door of Room 221 that morning, giving it a strong and hearty knock. "Vette!" he called out, before delivering another rhymthmic rapping on the door. "Vette! It is I, Sidon! The Zora Prince!"

She could probably hear that sparkling grin through the door, really.

"You must come quickly! We haven't got a moment to spare!"

[[ for that girl he kinda likes, though feel free to grumble. and NFB for distance after they hit that sweet, sweet portal, natch ]]

Comments

[in_sidon_we_trust]

That would barely get off the ground, really. There was a difference between brave and bravado. He had the latter in spades, but she...well, anyone who could have been through what she'd gone through, experienced what she had, and still come out in the end to be the person Vette was today? Sidon didn't know a whole lot about it, no, but he had bits and pieces here and there that weren't difficult to put together, and he knew enough to know that rising above all of that took guts.

And he would absolutely refuse to hear otherwise.

But, for now, he just chuckled a little, tilted his head toward hers. "Well, there's an awful lot of me to give!" he said "It's be a terrible shame to keep it all to myself. But, speaking of giving," he leaned in a little bit, a sort of nudge, "I do believe it's your turn now."

[chirpchirpchirp]

Vette glanced up at him, smiling a slightly puzzled smile at him.

"My turn?" A beat. "For a story?"

Well, they did have a running deal going when it came to trading them, didn't they?

[in_sidon_we_trust]

And Sidon nodded, smiling back. "A story for a story," he said. "It's been a tragically long time since we've done an exchange, really, and you've made it abundantly clear that your time as a Scottish duck doesn't count. And I believe it should go without saying that the story, naturally, has to be similar in nature, in that it won't be a tale as much about Twi'leks in general, but, rather, one specific one."

And he gave Vette a tiny nudge, just in case he needed to be a slight bit clearer.

[chirpchirpchirp]

Vette's breath caught just the slightest bit at that. A story about her? About her? But none of her stories were especially heroic.

... Or happy.

She fell quiet for a few moments, scrambling for words. At a loss.

"Let's play a game," she suggested, all of a sudden. "Two truths and a lie. I'll say three things about me, and you tell me which isn't true."

[in_sidon_we_trust]

Sidon was thoughtfully quiet himself at that pause, at the shift in focus, at the faint feeling of something dropping into his stomach like a piece of bad fish. Everything had been going so wellcharging forward without slowing down to see much where he was going?

It wasn't an unreasonable request, he felt. But a difficult one? He supposed he could understand that.

But he did rather wish it wasn't so difficult.

Still, he smiled, as he nodded, hand to his chin to emphasize his thoughtful look. "A game, you say?" he mused. "I do enjoy games, and I'm actually familiar with that one, as well! But if I say yes to this proposal, I must warn you. I'll not let it absolve you entirely from a story, you know. You'll still owe me one, though it can wait...for another time."

[chirpchirpchirp]

"That'll give me a chance to think of a really good one," Vette replied, smiling crookedly. "You've got me at a disadvantage, I bet you've had your battle on your mind since you thought of coming here in the first place."

She tilted her head a little.

"Two truths and a lie, then," she mused, drawing the words out. "Okay, I have them." She squared her shoulders. "I've been in jail fifteen times. I have three sisters. I've done work as a hired assassin."

You wanted her stories, Sidon. This was how she let you know exactly what kind of stories Vette had to offer.

"Which is the lie?"

[in_sidon_we_trust]

It wasn't as if Sidon couldn't guess what kind of stories they were likely to be; he just also, perhaps somewhat naively, figured there would still be a few good ones in there somewhere.

The idea that there might not be any after all was just...unfathomable.

"I'll concede to you that point," Sidon allowed, in regards to his own story, especially since he'd pretty much had that battle on his mind all the time and took every opportunity he had to tell that story. "So you'll have time. However long you need..."

Because there had to be a good one in there somewhere; he simply refused to accept otherwise.

"And as for the game, let me see..." And he settled in to consider it, carefully, looking to Vette thoughtfully although he knew he wasn't likely to find any clues there in her face. And he really was trying to think, too, very hard, and rather hating the fact that it wasn't easy for him to parse it out. He should be better at this. He should know more about her...

Well, he told himself, giving himself a little of the encouragement he was so insistent on giving others, he did know the things to make her happy. That was never a bad start...

...but not even knowing for sure how many sisters she had? He so desperately wanted to get this right; he'd hate to get it wrong, but he answered with confidence as if his mind wasn't shadowed with thick and heavy stormclouds of doubt. "I believe," he said, squaring his own shoulders now, "that the lie is in how many times you've been in jail. Numbers tend to be details that can be made the most arbitrary, and that number in particular seems rather," high, "particular. I imagine that, at one point, one finds themselves not bothering to keep track. I can tell you precisely how many giant octoroks I have conquered, but I'd be hard-pressed to be truthful on how many lizalfos have suffered my trident."

[chirpchirpchirp]

"Ha!" Vette gave a little laugh, shaking her head, "totally wrong! Six times on Nar Shaddaa alone."

She said it like it was a point of pride. Really, considering the fact that she was sitting here enjoying the sunshine and a good meal with a handsome prince, it almost certainly was.

"Care to try your luck again? Sisters or assassinations?"

[in_sidon_we_trust]

Well, she'd laughed and actually didn't seem to mind that he might have gotten it wrong, so Sidon felt a little bit better about that much. And that a good number of them were on Nar Shaddaa, a place that hadn't exactly seemed like a particularly kind and lovely place in the bits and pieces he'd picked up about it so far. If one was to wind up locked up somewhere, six times alone, that did seem like the type of place it would happen.

"Then the sisters one," said Sidon, with barely a beat between her prompt and his response, because he really didn't need to think about it. "Again, with these sorts of games, the lie is much easier to make when involving a number. I've gotten Master Skywalker on that one before."

And he believed without a shadow of a doubt that Vette could have been employed as an assassin. Clever, competent, fierce. She knew her way around weapons and enjoyed using them. Around when they'd first met, she'd told him how she'd sought out artifacts stolen from her culture to return them to their rightful owners. And he could only assume she hadn't had the easiest time getting from who she was when they were hatchlings to who she was today. It didn't take a very long stretch of the imagination, really.

[chirpchirpchirp]

It was true; Vette's line when it came to killing was more or less drawn at how good the pay was, and how badly somebody needed to be dead.

"The sisters one," she agreed, smiling crookedly. "I have one sister. Tivva."

And the pang at saying her name stayed in her chest, out of sight, where it belonged.

"That was fun. I'll have to come up with some good ones that aren't numbers for the next time, huh? Really give you a challenge."

[in_sidon_we_trust]

And Sidon laughed a little, balling up his fist and punching it with an air of consternation. "Ahh, I have revealed my strategy far too early in the game! I shall have to find myself another clever trick to aid me in my pursuit of the correct answer, although it did not serve me as well as it could have with this one. I'd offer my own for you to guess, but I'm absolutely terrible at this game. I have such a difficult time thinking of any good lies."

Or any lies, really...

[chirpchirpchirp]

"It's because you're so wholesome," Vette teased. "C'mere, make up for it with a kiss."

Any excuse for more kissing, okay?

"I'm pretty sure you could make up for just about anything with a kiss," she added, more or less confirming what the narrative had said.

[in_sidon_we_trust]

And Vette could have convinced a kiss out of Sidon on far less than an excuse like that, too. So she was absolutely getting that kiss, before he grinned at her, staying close, because there was absolutely going to be another kiss to follow.

"Just about anything, you say?" he asked, in a voice fueled by thoughts that might not be so terribly wholesome after all (except that it was still Sidon, so, actually, really, the kind of were). "I shall have to keep that in mind."

As if he'd ever planned on doing anything he'd ever have to seriously make up for. And there was that other kiss. They were probably falling wretchedly behind on their kisses after their little story break, after all.

[chirpchirpchirp]

See? He could definitely make up for anything with a kiss! Vette couldn't help but melt against him, after all, her arms twining around him as far as they could reach.

... Which wasn't far.

"Of all the girls," she murmured against his mouth, "from all the worlds in the multiverse, how is it I was the one who got to be this lucky?"

This was a mystery that would forever baffle her.

[in_sidon_we_trust]

And how quickly any sinking feeling that Sidon might have felt earlier came soaring back up with just a few kisses and a few words, and he shifted a little, whatever was needed so that he could easily rest his forehead against hers. He grinned with the swell of pride he felt, a pride he didn't think he'd really quite earned, because, for him, he hadn't done anything special, he'd only just been doing what he truly felt she deserved and should have...

...though he supposed the pride came from the feeling that went along with knowing he'd been doing it just so well, even with the missteps.

"Perhaps," he proposed, "it is not your luck at all in play here, but rather mine, as I must say, I cannot help but absolutely marvel over the fact that I should be so fortunate as to right here, right now, with someone as incredible as you, Vette. Or it could be an instance of both of our luck working in conjunction with each other, because I cannot imagine that one individual person could be as auspicious as I feel when I think about how we've found each other."

Really, Vette. You expected to say something like that to him and not get something like that in return?

[chirpchirpchirp]

Vette bit her tongue when she realized that her knee-jerk reply was about to be, 'Yeah, but why me?' Knew by now that there wasn't an answer out there that would ever make sense to her anyway, and didn't want to make Sidon worry that he wasn't trying hard enough to make her feel wanted, when that wasn't the issue at all.

"Auspicious, huh? Well, that is fancy." She smiled and settled in, idly taking a bite of her fish. Chewed thoughtfully. Swallowed. "Auspicious."

And here she was just lucky.

[in_sidon_we_trust]

"Auspicious," Sidon agreed, smiling back, and doing his best to quell the little feeling of disappointment that her response wasn't...quite what he'd expected in a response. It wasn't difficult to squash, at least, because they were still there together, and he'd gotten a smile, and that was what really mattered in the end.

His attention did shift a little, though, to ward the sky, as the breeze pushed a cloud to cover the sun. And looking up, it was plain to see that many more clouds were following close behind. "Ah," he said, "it looks as though we may wish to finish our breakfast with a bit more haste. I suspect the weather might be in for a turn. Those clouds seem to be carrying the promise of--"

Of course, it was right then when a fat droplet of water dispersed from the clouds and made it past the leaves of the palm trees to land squarely on Sidon's upturned face.

"--rain."

[chirpchirpchirp]

Poor Sidon. He had to get himself all wrapped up in a girl who was more likely to say, 'And to be continued,' and flee from these conversations entirely in most situations. The fact that Vette was actually sitting around and still cuddling was practically a miracle unto itself. You were doing fine but dating a disaster, bud.

Well, less cuddling now, more giggling and trying to duck under Sidon's arm as more rain began to fall in earnest.

"And was there a contingency plan for rain?"

One of these dates she'd totally get more than two bites into her meal!

[in_sidon_we_trust]

It was a good thing that Sidon had as much confidence in himself as he did, then. One ounce less, and he'd likely develop a complex about it.

As it was, though, he just laughed, doing his best to make sure he managed to cover her as best he could from the rain, which ultimately just worked as an excuse to draw Vette close and hold her there. "I must admit," he said, "there certainly was not! Though I can't say I mind the rain too terribly."

It was warm, after all, and a little refreshing, but difficult to avoid when that wind started whipping it around.

"We could always retreat back to the inn," he suggested, "and wait for it to blow over. Rain like this tends to come and go with the blink of an eye around here. But I will say that what I have planned next should be taking us somewhere that the weather shouldn't bother us, but it rain or sunshine."

[chirpchirpchirp]

Vette grinned up at him at that.

"I mean," she drawled, "you can't say something like that and leave it hanging, Sidon. I'm fine with eating extra next meal if you've got something planned, you know."

The curiosity was kind of killing her.

[in_sidon_we_trust]

"There's a bit of a trek to get there," Sidon warned her. "Not a difficult one; it's relatively flat, with just a few curious and possibly irritated cows or goats along the way, so there'll be no avoiding the rain. Of course, if we're to be wet anyway, swimming around the coast will be much faster, but I know for a fact that there are lizalfos camped out that way, and we'll have to fight. How well do your blasters work in the rain?"

[chirpchirpchirp]

"Just fine in the rain," Vette promised. "Not super great underwater, I'd want to dry them out before doing much shooting with them if we go for a swim, though." She grinned and gave a little wiggle. "And, I mean, I won't ever complain about a little bit of fighting. Especially if it's fighting some jerks that are asking for it."

[in_sidon_we_trust]

Oh, they were definitely asking for it, what with their whole being there and minding their own business...

"Perhaps we'd best walk, then," Sidon suggested, almost a little regrettably. "Last we need is an attack while we're swimming, leaving you without your blaster and me to handle all the fun. We can also finish a bit more breakfast on the way, and, besides, who even knows what we'll find when we get there!"

[chirpchirpchirp]

Curse those innocent bystanders!

"Well," Vette teased, "you had me under the impression that you might know. Or are we running into the unknown now? Ooh, is this an adventure? Are we exploring the unknown corners of Hyrule now, going where nobody else has ever been?"

[in_sidon_we_trust]

"Oh, someone's been there," Sidon informed her, "but I suspect it's been a very, very long time. There are some ruins further east along the coast, very old ruins, quite possibly from even long before the Calamity."

And here, of course, he flashed a grin, one that seemed to contend with the nonchalance of the shrug he'd offered. "I figured it couldn't possibly hurt to give it a look."