Old Stomping Ground [Nallia]

[Syravari Elik]

"So," Syravari crouched next to his mechanic aboard the Grosetto, surrounded by machinery and high-tech electronic systems. "How many of these filters you have to replace, normally?"

Bodil reached in, grunting as he extended his arm into the clean, white tubing and conduits. "Four for the air recirculation system, eight for the water purification system." He tightened two bolts and straightened again, reclaiming the hydrospanner with him and dropped it into his tool belt. "Two in the main fuel transfer systems," he glanced to the yacht's owner, grinning. "Want me to go on?"

"I get the point," the middle-aged pirate smirked. "A lot more than I imagined."

"It's alright," he chuckled as his dirty hands replaced the panel and then wiped it off from any dirt placed on it by his contact. "I don't mind it. Nicer than working on a garbage scow or something."

"No doubt." Rising with the ship's engineer, Syravari felt like a fish out of water.

"Cap, you mind if I ask why the sudden interest in engineering? Never were down here that often before."

Trying to play it off, Syravari shook his head defensively. "Nothing. Just curious that's all."

Bodil grinned, moving to the next panel that had to be accessed and crouched before it, the loosened the four bolts. "Nervous about going home?"

Steel-blue eyes fixed on the younger man, knowing he was more exposed to his crew than he thought. "Why would I be nervous?"

"Homeworld known for it's piracy background. Gotta be hard to keep up with such a reputation as that. Comparing battle scars and such at the local tavern," blue eyes looked up at him as Bodil yanked out the dirty filter and placed it within a collection bin. "You been back since you left?"

Hands on his hips, Syravari was suddenly wishing he had stayed in the lounge. Sniffing, he shook his head.

"It's cool, boss. I haven't been back home in a long time either."

[Nallia Oberon]

It had been over a week since Nallia had nearly been abducted. The girls hardly left her alone anymore, and when meals were being fixed, it seemed even if she snuck off, the ever present Brannoc was in her shadows. He always seemed to have a reason for being nearby, and Nallia couldn't find fault in them. But she also knew he was merely being over protective. While she had initially been upset at finding out they had tagged her jacket with a tracking thread, she eventually managed a grudging 'thank you' to the man feared for her enough to protect her that way. To ease his mind, she had allowed him to tag not just her new jacket, but her boots as well.

While nights in Syra's arms were the comfort and time of her life, during the days, it seemed he hovered to the point of almost smothering her. She was glad when Brannoc sent him down to check on the mechanic this morning. Unfortunately, it also meant that she was left in Brannoc's care. They were currently rearranging cargo in the holding bay and making inventory list of things they needed to get. Most they could acquire here where they were, but some thing were needed from off planet.

Brannoc laughed softly as she took notes. "I would say we probably need to order a few more chairs and a couple tables, as well." He was trying to make light of the fight but Nallia barely managed a smile.

"We can order those and get them on the way back. Syra says we're taking off soon?" She hadn't had the nerve to ask him where. She figured he just needed the darkness and confines of space once more. She always figured he felt better out there. And after what happened to her, she wondered if the casino and brothel were still even going to happen.

Brannoc nodded. "Yeah. Syra says we're taking off soon as Bodil finishes up the necessities. We were supposed to do full refit but he wants to be off before chow tonight. Ladies are already making orders for what we can't live without." He thumbed over his shoulder towards the kitchen. "Shouldn't you be back there helping them?" His eyebrow went up teasing.

"I think being in here is better for everyone. Honestly, Brannoc. I don't need to be coddled or babysat. I'm fine, Syra is fine, I'm not going anywhere. I swear!" She huffed indignantly as she moved the final crate. "Besides, something tells me if I have to step a foot outside this ship, I'll end up with half a dozen armed guards anyway." She rolled her eyes but turned back to the man and smiled. "I know you all mean well. But I'm fine. Honest."

Brannoc walked over and set his hand on her shoulder. "We can't lose you, little nexu. You think Syra went nuts even knowing you were right beside him, think of what would happen if you weren't. He needs you..." he winked and ruffled her hair, "we all do."

[Syravari Elik]

Within an hour, the filters and other small fixes had been taken care of, letting Syravri leave the engineering section and left Bodil to preparing the yacht to leave. Climbing the stair to the main deck, the captain quietly headed through the main lounge and then upstairs to the bridge. Hearing over the intercom as Tomas announced their departure, he stepped into the clean and plush control center for the large ship, claiming his chair in the center and behind the pilot and copilot's seats.

"Alright ladies," Tomas grinned as he glanced back to the captain, then to the large console before him. "Leaving Cloud City behind, hope you enjoyed your stay and didn't leave anything behind. Besides a pregnant woman you don't wish to claim. Brannoc."

Syravari could already hear the chatter on that one as he helped the two pilots go through the startup sequence, grinning at the banter. Soon, the ship rose into the air, spun lazily around and exited the hangar, cold metal now being replaced by a heavenly clouded scene. Rising into the blue, they soon entered the inky black of space and within moments disappeared into hyperspace. Sitting back, he took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly. He hadn't seen his mother in years, nor all his friends which some were rumored to be successful pirates in their own right, or business owners. Rumors floated from Ord Cestus on many occasions, giving Syravari a chance to hear familiar names again.

Pushing himself up as Tomas let the ship now fly, he left the bridge and headed to the lounge, needing a distraction.

[Nallia Oberon]

Nallia hadn't felt ready to return to the hen pecking coddling of the ladies in the kitchen so she had retired to the lounge as they began their take off. She laughed as Tomas mentioned Brannoc leaving some pregnant woman behind. A thin stream of thought went thru her mind that despite the jeering, Brannoc would make an amazing father. Though she also had a tinge of sympathy if the child was a girl. Chances are she wouldn't even know what a man was, besides her dad, till she was in her 60s.

Once they were settled in flight, she rose and moved to the viewing port. Her back to the door, that's how Syra would find her. Her hair pulled back in a messy ponytail, her jeans hugging her curves in the right places without being vulgar, and her blue tshirt tucked in. She was barefoot, in stocking feet, her boots kicked off by the couch and her chin was resting on her crossed arms in the window frame.

[Syravari Elik]

Stepping in closely, Syravari moved initially toward the whetbar, but diverted his path once seeing Nallia gazing out into the swirling, blue-white of hyperspace. Keeping quiet, a soft music now playing in the background and allowing this room to be one of his escapes, even though the rest of the crew were allowed to come in.

Nearing his love, he wrapped his arms around her, laying his head on her right shoulder and relaxed, though didn't lean into her knowing he was much heavier. Taking in the feeling of being close to her, the pirate and sometime slaver was beginning to ponder a change of profession. "Hey there," he whispered, then kissed her gently on the ear and returned his chin to her shoulder. "Four days to Ord Cestus," he soon revealed, though he was sure they had talked about it before. Taking in a deep breath, he let it out slowly, just enjoying the moment.

[Nallia Oberon]

As the air in the room shifted, her body stiffened in panic. A quick flicker up of her eyes revealed it was Syra who had come into the room. She dropped her gaze back to the miasma swirling past the ship. She was going to be jumpy for a while, she had told herself. But she was trying her damndest not to let it show to her lover. But despite not wanting to give away her lingered trauma had left her shaken, when his arms enveloped her, she went still for a moment. It was just the barest blink of an eye before she closed her eyes and leaned into his kiss, then his body. But he knew her well enough. He would sense it.

Ignoring it, hoping he hadn't realized it, she smiled. "So I have four days till I have to be on better than best behavior, is that it?" She took a deep breath and smelled his closeness. It was a comfort like she never in her life imagined. Turning her head to kiss his cheek, she whispered in a half strangled voice, "I'm sorry, Syra. I never wanted you to have to do what you did. I'm sorry I'm the reason it happened."

She had seen him go nearly berserk in his zealous overkill of the man who had contrived her kidnapping. Seeing him like that, almost animal like in his rage, she had known it cost him something. Something deep inside him. And it pained her that she was the reason it was gone. Laying naked on the grating of the ship that had nearly stolen her away, she had dreamed of him. She had dreamed of Syra tearing the galaxy apart searching for her. It had been a dream, nothing more. A child's desire to be valiantly rescued from an impossible situation. But seeing him there, in the bloody aftermath of the bar, she knew it wasn't a dream. Syra loved her and would tear the galaxy, and more, to shreds if someone did something to her.

The idea both turned her on and frightened her. She would have to be far more careful in her actions because of it. While Syra would lose a part of himself in what he was doing, she would lose a part of herself in knowing his loss and being the cause of it.

[Syravari Elik]

His smile from her initial comment warmed him, the otherwise cold pirate had found a safe haven that few, if any had ever allowed or provided during his many years on the spacelanes. Steel-blue eyes turned to her as he shifted his head back to allow her more room, still holding Nallia close and enjoying the adrenaline rush that she prompted. The follow-up statement melted his amusement and turned it to more sympathetic.

Shaking his head, he huffed lightly, "Wasn't your fault. They were trying to get to me through you and you may have to get used to this kind of life from now on. Like I mentioned before, Brannoc and the others wanting to train you in self defense is more about you being able to defend yourself when I'm not around." He took in a deep breath and straightened slightly, feeling emotion begin to roil within, his eyes misting. "You mean a lot....," he pushed out, then swallowed hard. Why was this so difficult to say when he felt it so strongly? Clearing his throat, he glanced out through the large window before her, eyes now welling.

[Nallia Oberon]

Perhaps it was best they were both staring out the window. Their silhouettes blocking the view of one another's faces from the other seeing it. As he mentioned she meant a lot, her eyes closed and she tightened her grip on his arms slightly. "I will learn well, Syra. I promise." She half whispered the reassurance to him. She would learn... and fast. She knew what this life meant and had been prepared. Prepared to be kidnapped, used as leverage, even just plain 'used' when she had no choice and it meant death or life.

What she hadn't been prepared for was the pirate who scared the living daylights out of her when first she set eyes on him. Being caught behind those crates, fearing her return to the station in leg irons and a collar, she had felt her heart stop and disembark the ship entirely.

Her heart was gone, again. But this time it hadn't fled in panic, it had taken wing and flown with them man who had been a beast. And that beast now loved her and she him.

Trying to lighten the mood, she changed the subject. "Will we stop practice when we reach your home? Not sure how good of a woman I will be for you if your mother sees me with blade or pistol trying to best your cargo man." The idea tickled her. Training with Brannoc and the others would be mind blowing. She had seen Brannoc fight a few times... bar brawls, upstarts who claimed to be good enough to join the crew... every time the others had crawled or run off, tail between their legs, aware they were not ready to be part of this hodge podge family of a crew.

Another thought hit her like a brick. "Syra, I have no clothes worthy of meeting your mother in!" Suddenly it wasn't her lover in a battle rage covered in blood, or even Brannoc standing over her with an energy blade. It was the thought of his mother, glaring down her nose at the orphan upstart claiming to be good enough for her son. She turned in his arms with a look of fear and panic on her face he hadn't even seen in the worst moments of her last ordeal. "Syra, she's not gonna like me. I know it!" She had never been a mother. But if the woman had raised this man, this strong, intelligent, crazy man before her... surely a little no name who couldn't even stay out of trouble wasn't worthy of her son! All the fear filled her eyes till their closeness was unable to hide the racing of her heart against his chest.

[Syravari Elik]

Seizing the change in subject, he took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, then chuckled at her vision of being thought the wrong sort for a pirate. "My mom and sister may want to adopt you if they saw you fighting with Brannoc," he laughed knowing he wasn't far off the mark. "And," he craned his neck around to take all of her in. "My family are all descended from a long line of pirates, so it's them that may insult you," he smiled. "You have nothing to worry about, trust me."

Though his mother was probably going to beat the living daylights out of him for not at least calling in the last few years. She had always been sensitive that way, even underneath that hard exterior that she exuded to everyone else. Most sensitive people hid behind other strong emotions, he knew. Syravari moved around her right arm, keeping her within his and pulled her close. "My only concern is having to answer for the last four or five years of not keeping in contact with my mother. You may be helping me collect teeth when we meet," he grinned.

[Nallia Oberon]

Nallia relaxed against him and sighed with a soft chuckle as she teased him. "Then I guess I better not fight Brannoc while there. Would hate for you to lose me to your mother."

As her lover turned around to stand before her, his back to the window, she looked up and rested her hands on his chest. "I know they are all pirates, it's not being one that worries me," she confided. "You talk about how beautiful they are and all the women she raised and oversaw. I can barely make a dress look presentable, much less pretty." She laughed sincerely then trying not to pictures the girls' faces when she put on a dress a few nights ago. She looked so helplessly angles and corners in it, much to the others' chagrin.

When Syra mentioned that she would be helping him pick up his teeth because of not being in touch with his mom for so long, she playfully thumped his chest. It was about as affective as a child's hands pounding on steel bulkheads, but the affect was there. "Syra! How could you do that? And now you are going to show up with ME?" The indignation in her voice was bordering on funny, were she not looking so serious. "I am thinking I should stay on the ship and let this be about you and not the rest of us."

[Syravari Elik]

He laughed as she went on about the meeting with his family, the playful pop on the chest and her comment about staying on the ship. "I was talking about my teeth, not hers," he chuckled. "Not even a good dental plan," he gazed off for a moment, then returned his steel-blue eyes to hers.

"Not having my crew to back me up would be suicidal," he grinned, still amused. Pulling her in once more, he kissed her on the forehead and hugged her, laying his cheek on the crown of her head, taking in her scent once more. "You'd look like a pirate queen in any dress," he said quietly, as if a secret between them, though he knew that most of the males aboard this ship would gladly step in were he not here. "I'm sure the girls have something if you wanted to dress up. Once you meet my family, then you are more than welcome to go shopping if you wanted. We're probably going to be there for a week or so."

[Nallia Oberon]

She laughed and relaxed against him a moment before stepping away and padding on stocking feet to the bar. Pouring them both a drink, she continued her thoughts. "I highly doubt she would knock your teeth out. After all, it would seriously cut into the financial advantage she could saddle you with for penance." She laughed and moved towards him with almost catlike grace she still hadn't realized she possessed. "And besides, she knocks your teeth, then I have to get upset, and then Brannoc has to protect me, and," she sighed with feigned melodramatic emphasis and handed him his drink. It was the way he always made it, neat, on two ice cubes. "Then it would get really messy." She laughed and moved to sit on the couch with her feet curled under her, almost childlike. There was room on either side for him to sit, along with the other places in the room.

She took a long draw of her own drink, a mirror to his but without the ice. "I'm not sure about being a Pirate Queen," she smiled. The idea of letting the other ladies in the kitchen doll her up like one of his mother's pleasure girls scared her more than being kidnapped or seeing him rage again. "If it's all right with you, I think I'll save the dress up for later in our visit." She also had no clue about shopping. It wasn't like her to spend her credits. Even now, short of a new knife, and a new belt to hold her tools when working on the ship, she had barely spent a single cred. If she was going to meet his mother, she would feel better with less of her own self showing and more of her appearing as his shadow.

[Syravari Elik]

Taking the drink, he followed her to the long sectional and sat down to her left. A sip down, he set the tumbler on the glass topped table before them and reclined again, listening to her ideas on the visit, prompting a smile and laugh at thinking about her getting involved. The idea that his meeting with family on Ord Cestus being initially violent was very speculative and he knew that it was more than likely going to be quite the opposite. Having a close family that all depended on one another's success made for quite an interesting home life.

"That's fine," he nodded, his eyes drifting to the thick carpet, his right hand mindlessly resting on her thigh. "Most of the shops there have a wide array of things. Probably going to make most of these miscreants broke again, then we really have to get back to work sooner than I thought," he chuckled.

Laying his head back a bit, he turned to her. "Never really talked much about your own family, if any. I know you had been on that station for a long time, but.."

[Nallia Oberon]

Nallia took a sip of her drink, smiling as he spoke of the others going on mad shopping sprees while they were planet side for a while. "By that time, we'll probably want to be back in space, anyway, sweetheart. I have the feeling that being land locked isn't your fancy anymore either... is it?" She reached to caress his hand. She watched him, sometimes, when he wasn't aware of it. Watching him stare into the stars out a portal or the screen shield in the cockpit. There was a calm that would come over him no matter what was on his mind a moment before. It was as if the black vastness of space was swallowing him for a moment and letting him forget everything. She doubted that looking at the sky with his feet planted on dirt would have the same affect.

As he changed the subject to her family, she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear in a nervous gesture and took a long draw of her drink, fairly finishing it. "I was born on the station." She looked up at him as she felt her shields rise. If she told him... told him everything... would she still be his pirate queen? Or would she simply be some rat from the proverbial sewers of space?

She bit her lip a moment in contemplation then spoke after several moments. He was bound to know sooner or later. They had avoided resupplying at that station for the last year or so, but they couldn't forever. Some of the best jobs went thru that quadrant. And if you didn't stop there, you didn't stop. "That's how they populate the waystation, Syra... with the kids born there. We have no fathers, and our mothers are just the women born far enough before us in time to birth us when their bleeding begins." She couldn't do it. She couldn't look into his face and finish the tale. She would lose her nerve if she saw his features change on her mid-story.

As her voice cracked and wavered, she continued. "The woman who had me told me who had sired me, but only because she had been sure to be his favorite and always there when he had need. She was one of the girls with ambition and drive to move to the top of the chain." She closed her eyes as she made the ambition she knew would cause an affect on him. "The man you killed was my father. The man who wanted to get me with child as well. He said I came from ambitious stock, but it had skipped me. Perhaps my own whelp would show promise." She dared a glance up at him as her eyes glossed with barely contained tears. "Boys were for breeding, girls for bedding. That's how it's always been. Every few years they would trade the women to slavers to keep us from inbreeding too much. To keep the mutations from coming to the surface as fathers sired children from their own children." She swallowed hard and barely whispered. "I told you I wasn't worthy of you, Syra..." she steeled herself expecting him to rise and depart in silence, in disgust, in anger. "Just another whelp amongst whelps, who would have been full of breeding r traded off if you hadn't let me work for you."

She felt her knuckles whitening as she gripped the glass in her hand. She knew, in the back of mind, that it would shatter if she wasn't careful. But somehow, it didn't actually register as an issue as she fairly held her breath.

[Syravari Elik]

Initially thinking her own story wasn't that far from his own, Syravari then regretted asking the question, though as he listened he realized that his efforts in keeping her safe was probably the most alienating thing she had known. His face showing his growing displeasure with the way she had to grow up emerged without thought. Taking in a deep breath to remind himself to keep breathing, the second thought that crossed his mind was to return to that station and liberate all those girls like Nallia and kill all those that promoted this theory of enslaving.

His own eyes glistened as well, her self-deprecating musings only make him love her more. "Hey," he quietly called, drawing her to him as he turned toward her. "That old life is over," he stated emphatically. "You're here with me now and nothing and no one is ever going to treat you that way again. Got it?" His left hand rose to her cheek and caressed it lovingly. "I'll die before I let that happen."

[Nallia Oberon]

She put the glass on the table and willingly crawled up closer to his body, to be close to his caresses. As he spoke of never letting anyone hurt her again, she smiled and was grateful she was managing to keep the tears at bay. "And I will do my best to stay out of trouble so I don't hurt you anymore, either."

Despite these moments, curled up close to him and feeling safe like a child always should, it wasn't childlike feelings she was having. Her own hand rose to caress through his hair and down his cheek. "How is it, of all the ships I could have stowed away on, I would choose yours?" A soft laugh fell from her lips. "You know I chose you because I heard you were cruel but fair. I figured if I managed to live and hide long enough to be far enough from the station, you'd be fair and merely set me on a planet where others were. I could disappear into nothingness. I never thought you would find me so soon," she did laugh then, "much less give me a bed."

The bed had become a joke between them, now. And often times their love making left them on the floor before the fire anyway. But it was by choice now if she slept there, wrapped in furs and his arms. No longer a necessity. "I just hope your mother likes me." The old worry came up once more. She sighed and then smiled. "At least you don't have to worry about my parents liking you. You've already met my father, and mother is probably popping more whelps for the newest Head Man or passed on from being worn out." She laughed at the idea that a few short years ago, her own mother was saying that was to be her fate as well. She was never so glad to know her mother was wrong.

Wanting to change the subject, she shifted to kneel straddling Syra's lap. "Soooooooo.... How many days till I have to be the prim and proper pirate's lady?" She smiled and brushed her lips against his teasing.

[Syravari Elik]

Adrenaline rose as she moved to sit in his lap, wanting to reassure her even more, Syravari knew by this point that he had already said more than he needed to on that subject. Nallia would never need a home, or anything else for that matter. As long as she stayed with him she was safe. Her inquiry was met with a whispered, "At least three," he smiled, then kissed her passionately. Hands roving her curves as his growing passion threatened to overwhelm them both, he didn't care if anyone stepped into the lounge as they loved...

*******

In the afterglow, Syravari knew there were many things that still had yet to be ironed out, though the pirate had feigned to even bring them up before. He had fallen for this woman and no one would ever take her from him. Unless she chose another, that is. Lying entangled on the thickly padded couch, sweat cooling his body, he slowly caressed her face and hair. "I love you," he pushed out without thought, then realized he had said it finally. Those words that people in his profession never dared say as the galaxy was a cruel one, the life of a pirate a very short and violent one. But, here aboard his ship and with Nallia at his side he felt like a king. He chuckled, then kissed her on the nose and backed, then nestled his face beneath hers. "Yeah, I said it."

His mother and siblings were going to have a fit, he imagined with amusement. A pirate marrying before they were retired was unheard of; Another word that he never thought would cross his mind.

[Nallia Oberon]

His lips were her undoing. She had found out long ago that Syra was her only weakness. When his voice came over the intercom, or she saw him overlooking the cargo bay railing, she was completely undone. She had caused so much trouble, and he had nearly lost himself in saving her... twice. But then he'd touch her, kiss her, and all that went out the window. Like him, it never occurred to her that anyone would walk in. Like him... it didn't matter.
---

A couple hours later, the couch blanket tossed over them for modesty, they lay curled in one another's arms. She had her eyes closed and was running her fingers lightly up and down his back. As he said those three words that had been in the back of her mind, her heart nearly stopped. The kiss on her nose caught her off guard and she was speechless as he tucked his head back under her chin. Her grin grew bigger than she ever thought it could be as she nuzzled his head. "Syra...." she whispered with a sense of curiosity.

His voice, though he was facing away from her, was clear. "Yeah, I said it."

She loved him as well. She always had, though till not it had only slipped her lips once. And even then, she wasn't sure he had heard because it had never come up again. Brannoc had once told her when a pirate says 'I love you' it's because he's retired and is ready to settle down. That thought hit her like a brick in the pit of her stomach. Suddenly her heart sank. This trip home... was it the end of the line for him? Because of her?

Her voice was soft as she tried not to choke out the words. "I love you, too, Syra. You know I always have." She bit her lip a moment and closed her eyes to fight the tears. "Syra, are you taking me to your mother's to retire? Are you stopping," she felt her voice crack despite her best efforts, ".... because of me?"

Part of her was flattered. He would be willing to give it all up because of her. But the other half of her, the half that loved him back with every fiber of her being, knew it was wrong. He was a pirate. That's what he was supposed to be. That's what made him who he was. Would he blame her, years from now, for making him give it up? "I don't want you to quit because of me, Syra..."

[Syravari Elik]

Her question made him chuckle. The thought of giving up what he had been born to do was ridiculous. Wasn't it? Could he hang up his pistols and settle down? Was she that one that could change the life of a rogue and make him think about kids and a quieter home? The normal life? He drew in a long breath and let it out slowly, cooling her neck as he thought for a long moment. The club and brothel on Corellia were being established and was going to make him a ton of credits, so they would still have a life. Lying here in her arms, he knew she was that missing piece that he had searched for, for so long. Could she survive this life?

Too many things to think about.

All he knew right now was he didn't want to let her go. "Things stay as they are now, then no. I can't quit," his head backed and he looked into her eyes. "As tempting as that is," he grinned, feeling her heart beat next to his own, the warmth of her skin. Winking at her, he kissed her again. Sighing, he relaxed against the pillowed cushions behind and beneath him. "You'd be safer if I did, that's for sure. But, you have a krayt dragon in you," he chuckled. "I've seen it." Nestling his nose and face into her cheek, he closed his eyes, feeling that adrenaline rush again.

"We get to Ord Cestus, my mother and sisters are going to love you." Of that he had no doubt. "Just be yourself."

[Nallia Oberon]

As he replied he wouldn't quit, a knot inside her untied itself and she was able to breathe again. "I thought you would quit, because of me. I'm glad you won't." She kissed him once more then scooted down a bit to lay her head on his chest this time, her head nestling under his chin. Her hand, now resting on his chest, lightly rubbed up and down as if making sure he was real. "I couldn't bear being the reason you stopped doing what you loved." She laughed and kissed his throat, "And are so good at."

As he spoke of her having a dragon in her, she laughed and slapped his chest. "You better not forget that either. You get into trouble and I'm coming after you again like that dragon you speak of. And no one's setting me on a station." She laughed referencing his disappearance before and they separation. "Perhaps I will have your mother help me drug you so I can slip a tracking device in you when you aren't conscious." She laughed once more and propped up on her elbow. Brushing her hair behind her ear as he spoke of his mom loving her, she laughed. "I will be myself, I promise. Well, the well behaved me anyway." She shook her head. "You realize with us not being married, I should probably stay on the ship or at the least, in a guest room. I wouldn't want your mom thinking you are taking advantage of me." She grinned teasing him.