thisavrou_log | diy energy weapon.

[She goes quiet as the planet seems to be moving toward them, and although she knows logically they're the ones moving it's impressive. At his words, she feels a warmth rising to her cheeks and a sense of happiness that she hasn't felt in years.]

Me too.

[She feels completely out of her element here, but turns her head to look over at him instead of the planet that's edging in closer and closer.]

I know it sounds stupid, but there's not anybody else I'd want to have here with me.

[She leans in a little, almost as if she's considering trying to kiss him. But then hesitates and decides to just keep talking.]

I've never had someone take the time to do something just for me before. Thank you, Luke.

[And she means that.]

[If Luke were more self-conscious about displays of emotion, he'd be horrified at how absolutely goofy the grin on his face is. But at the moment, he's just too pleased with himself to feel anything but ebullient pride at having successfully impressed her. That, and a deeper, more gentle and vulnerable emotion deep in his chest. It's a delicate little thing, quivering in his chest, and he feels like if he breathes too deeply, he'll loose the feeling entirely. He wants to hold onto it, hold onto this. He wants to hold Cassandra's hand.]

[...But he has to make sure they enter the atmosphere without dropping in too low. They're already making the grav field work with the angle he chose to bring them in, and Cassandra isn't even properly buckled. He has to watch it, or she'll topple over when they completely enter Amissis-Re's field of gravity. There is, strictly speaking, a reason most pilots don't come down on planets upside down.]

[Still, he can't help from whispering,] You're welcome. I- I'd always do something like this for you. [It's not quite what he means. There are too many variables, there, it sounds too specific. He'll blame it on being distracted trying to keep them from coming in too hot. Entering the atmosphere isn't smooth, and he has to turn the transport around in the air to keep them from dropping. Oriented correctly, they come in over the clouds with only a few plumes of flame having licked over the hull. That was exciting and not embarrassing, right?]

[The thought of toppling out of her seat doesn't ever cross her mind, which likely speaks to how reckless she is when it comes to her own safety. She's having a good time, so things like buckling up aren't even a thought that enters her mind. She does, however, slide a little when they enter the planet's atmosphere. And she most definitely feels like she's going to fall right out of her seat when he starts to turn the transport around. Her hands grip hold of her seat, and she's knocked about as he turns them right side up,

She turns her head to look over at him, almost seeming bewildered by how fast that had all been. She opens her mouth to speak, but finds she can only laugh, because that had been so much fun.]

Next time. [Because there will be one, she's determined.] we're wearing seat belts and you're doing barrel rolls.

[She may or may not be an adrenaline junkie when it comes to things like this. She's thinking that's not likely to be a problem with him, at least. It makes the happiness that she was feeling a few moments ago reach nearly ridiculous levels, to the point she can feel herself smiling like an idiot. She tries looking away so he won't notice, but her attention gravitates right back toward him before too long. Every part of this is new to her, and she's grateful that she's not afraid of being able to experience it.]

[Luke is definitely grinning like an idiot. He's not sure he's going to be able to top this, but for now, he's just overjoyed at how much she's smiling. He decides then he really, truly adores her smiles; they always seem so hard-won and genuine.]

If you want barrel rolls, I can definitely do that. [He thinks he could probably manage a few before the transport started complaining.]

[Outside, clouds whip by them in a frosty blur. They're above the weather, above the cloud covering, and all that can be seen is the mottled blue of the planet, and an ocean of clouds below. On the far horizon rests Amissis-Re's single sun.]

What, now? I won't say no to that. Just make sure we don't catch on fire or anything.

[That's all the prompting she needs before buckling herself in properly just in case he decides to treat her to some barrel rolls. While she's in the process, she looks out to take in the sight of so much blue. It's beautiful, she thinks, that something so ordinary can feel completely extraordinary. Not because of the fact it exists, but because she gets to experience it up close. She falls quiet and goes still as she just looks out at the clouds, glancing over at him in order to judge if she should be talking more or not. Words probably aren't needed anyway, not with the way she reaches over to put her hand atop his. It doesn't take her any time at all to decide that she likes it.]

[Luke laughs, still joyful.] We won't catch on fire! [If they die today, it'll be from a crash, duh.]

[Luke begins depowering the repulsorlifts, trying to get them some momentum from the drop and pull of Amissis-Re's natural gravity wells. The reason why speed matters in space is because you can't use gravity to cheat and go faster; you're only as good as your engines. Planetside, though, you're really only as good as your breaks. You can freefall forever, but if you can't stop, well...]

[Luke has crashed plenty of skyhoppers that way. Which is to say: Luke is no adrenaline junkie. Speed is his choice devotion, though. He swings the carrier left, right, left again-- familiar motions from the speeder on Tatooine, since the idea's roughly the same-- and eventually gets enough momentum to spin them upside down. They're close enough to the clouds that they disappear within them for half the loop, and everything goes shadowed and grey.]

[Her eyes look upward as they flip around, taking in the sight of being a part of the clouds. It's one of those weirdly beautiful things, where even though it's dark and grey, it's still something that you feel a sense of wonder seeing up close. The motion of the roll has her head reeling, but it's not disorienting as much as thrilling.

She briefly glances over at Luke, taking in the joy she sees on his face. ]

Do you think you can teach me how to fly this thing?

Of course. [He says it immediately, barely thinking about it. Of course he can teach someone to fly, that's easy, right?] I'll see if we can get a better craft to do it in. But I guess you'd be flying these most often... [He frowns. Cassandra clearly deserves a better quality of starcraft.] There's a starfighter on the Moira, but I don't have access to use it.

[While he thinks on this, he starts easing the transporter into slowing down. He does not, actually, want to risk crashing on this... their... well, it is a date, and he wants to do well. He keeps getting distracted-- she touched his hand-- and getting them stranded on an alien planet would likely put an end to things.]

[That, and he has an idea. He just needs to stop the transport first.]

Do we need permission, if we're only going to be using it for a little while?

[Her tone borders on mock innocent, as if she's suggesting they can't really get in trouble for doing something that she deems as a small violation of the rules. She's still adjusting to having so many social norms and rules to abide by here, and it's a little stifling. Who cares if they take a starfighter out for a spin so she can learn how to fly?

She doesn't want to be a bad influence on him though, so she laughs and shrugs the idea off. Like it's a joke and she'd never.

It doesn't take her long to realize that they're slowing down, which gives her plenty of opportunity to reach over and touch at his hand again. She wants to actually hold his hand, but she knows he won't be able to safely fly the transport if she does.]

[Thinking nothing of it (this is the thing about always thinking the best of people), Luke says,] Probably. It's got canons on it.

[Luke can't help but grin when he feels the faint tingle from the prosthetic, letting him know her hand is on his again. He moves his hand, gatching hers in his and giving it a squeeze. This, at least, he can do without feeling like he's mucking it up.]

[He lets the transport idle into the cloud covering, until everything is shadowed once more, before stopping the transport in the air. The thing about repulsorlift technology is how you don't really need momentum to stay in flight. The ship hangs in the air, covered in clouds.]

[Luke stands, still holding her hand.] Come on, I want to show you something.

[She grips hold of his hand a little tighter as she unbuckles herself and pulls herself up to stand. She's not sure how safe it is to be up and moving around just stopped up in the air the way they are, but figures he knows what he's doing. So she doesn't worry about potential death, given that she's too caught up in being excited to see what it is he has to show her.]

We're not jumping out, are we?

No, I hope not. I'm not that strong in the Force yet. [But maybe, if he ever gets to that point, there's an idea... he stashes it away for later. For now, he opens the transporter's main entry door.]

[Outside is a solid wall of white-grey. Luke reaches out to to touch the wall of clouds, cupping his hand before pulling it back. A tendril of white comes with him, but it dissipates quickly in the warmth of the transporter. He always appreciates how he can feel the chill of clouds, even sometimes the moisture, but not anything else. In that way, they remind him of the Force.]

Don't reach out too far, but... I don't know, I thought you'd like it. [He's aware showing someone a grey wall isn't the galaxy's most fascinating view.]

[She starts to laugh in disbelief, but the noise catches her throat as she watches him. She's never even thought about touching clouds before, and the fact that he's bringing her to do something so completely whimsical makes her heart flutter in a weird way that has her feeling completely smitten. It's not hard to feel that the smile on her face expresses exactly how smitten she is, watching him try to impress her.

Luckily, he's left an opening for her to lean out and reach as well, running her fingers through the clouds. There's a coldness there that surprises her, and she recoils her hand with a gasp. She looks at her hand, then over at him, and quickly back out to the clouds. Determined now, she reaches out and runs her hand through the clouds once again, fingers waggling as she does.

It really doesn't actually take any concentration, but there's a look of great focus on her face anyway, as she scooped up a handful and held them outside of the transporter. Her jaw drops, and this time her laugh is awestruck as her fingers curl in against the cloud that's in her hand. She stares at it, wishing she could keep it forever. But since she can't, she opens back up her and and raises it upward, sending the cloud back to where it belongs.]

No, I love it.

[She whispers the words, and reaches back out to pull in a larger handful into the transporter with them. She watches it dissipate, still completely wonderstruck by the whole thing. It's the most open and vulnerable that anyone's seen her in a very long time, all of her usual hardness and bluntness that she projects on the outside completely set aside and gone.]

I literally just touched clouds, and I'm not ever going to let myself forget that I did.

[Luke sees her joy, and he wishes he could capture it, somehow; her happiness is so complete, he wishes she was always so contented. It's not that she's usually morose-- when they've met before, she's always been of high spirits. But something about her quietness on Tatooine, and the scar on her cheek, makes Luke suspect this isn't how she always is. Maybe it's in her words or her bearing, Luke doesn't know, but he wants to cultivate all the happiness for her that he can.]

Good. Everyone should touch the sky, I think. [While they've dawdled here, the natural movement of the wind has moved the clouds further inside the transport; they creep in slowly like a fog. It's cold-- this high up, the chill is serious-- and Luke knows they should probably pack up before one of them freezes. But he can't quite tear Cassandra away from this moment.]

[He lingers.] I... I'm glad you like it. It's one of my favorite things in the galaxy.

I can see why.

[She's most definitely cold, to the point her teeth are chattering, but she doesn't want to go yet. So she just moves in closer to him, since there's warmth in proximity to others. She reaches out to touch at the clouds one more time, this time just letting her hand run through them until she's chilled to the bone and has to retract her hand back to her own body.

It dawns on her that she's pressed up against his side, and she looks up at him with a slightly apologetic smile.]

Sorry. I -

[She realizes that he probably doesn't mind, but feels the need to say something anyway.]

It's cold.

[Luke wants to reach out and hold her, or put his arm on her shoulder or... something, he's not really sure how he'd do it, and he doesn't want to be overbearing. She's close to him, yes, but he... probably shouldn't push it. And anyway, she's having such a good time, should he really try to twist it and make it about him? He's not sure why, but that seems like a serious concern. He pulls his discarded jacket from the pilot seat and hands it to her.]

Here. Uh, let's go down, it'll be warmer there. [He starts closing the door.]

[She's slightly disappointed that he doesn't put his arm around her, but also respects him more for handing her his jacket. It's an oddly conflicting emotion that has her giving him an amused little grin, as she slips on the jacket. She watches him close the door, and is overtaken by the urge to show him more affection than just standing at his side.

Waiting until after he's got the door closed, she quickly darts in to kiss him. Her aim is a little off and she catches the corner of his mouth, but the intent behind the chaste gesture is still the same. It's not easy to figure out how to be smooth with someone she's actually interested in. At least she's able to laugh at herself, which she softly does as she leans back. And wonders if she can open the door and let the clouds consume her.]

Next time, that won't be so rushed or awkward. I...hope.

[Kill her now.]

[Luke goes bright red and stares at her, so, you know, it could always be more awkward. He opens his mouth without thinking, and words spill out-- he's forgotten that he's only remotely clever when he's angry.] As long as there's a next time. I mean- not that, um, you have to, or I have to, or- you don't- It's really cold. [And yet, his face is so warm. He smiles, nervous and happy and embarrassed all at once.]

It- was a good kiss. Thank you. [Some little wistful part of him wishes it was his first. Still smiling, he shuffles back to the cockpit, taking two steps before he reaches out for her hand to hold.]

[Did he just thank her?

She feels her own cheeks becoming warm as she flushes with embarrassment, and is grateful for the fact that he seems to be just as awkward with everything as she toddles forward to take hold of his hand. She laces her fingers through his, giving his hand a squeeze.]

I'm pretty sure there will be a next time. Don't worry.

[He's right though, it is still cold. So she stays close to his side, allowing the warmth between them to make things a little better until they reach the cockpit.]

[Luke beams. Now, he does put his arm around Cassandra's shoulder, because surely he won't be distracting her, surely that's acceptable, now. She kissed him, and she said she'd do it again, maybe, and that might mean something. He hopes it's something good.]

[Letting go of her to take the wheel again, he starts edging the transporter down. The ground rises up to meet them by inches. Crosscrossing rivers and vacant fields pass by underneath them.]

Is- is there anything else you want to do? Or see? [The cloud thing was Luke's finishing number, he realizes. He hasn't got a clue what to do next. He should have brought food, or something, maybe mapped out the landscape beforehand so he could find interesting locations. He doesn't want her to get bored, and surely he can't repeat himself.]

Do you think there's an ocean on this planet?

[It's the only other thing in nature she really wants to see up close, but she doesn't want to seem like she's asking for too much. Especially since she doubts he knows the terrain of this planet any more than she does.

The truth is, she's just happy to be spending time with him, and the fact that they got to experience flying and a close up view of the clouds together is already perfect to her.]

I'd be happy going back and working on your oven, though. [Well, that's the weirdest sentence she's ever said to a man.] Or painting my speeder.

[She pulls a face as she worries he may think that she's suggesting work is preferable to being here with him. She's a practical girl, but there's a fine line between being practical and being boring. She doesn't want to be the second.]

I just meant that you don't have to try and impress me. But if there's an ocean here, I wouldn't say no to seeing it.

[It is far, far too late for Luke to give up the idea of impressing her. He doesn't, really, know how to be romantic or handsome or romantically desirable, but he does think he can impress people. Well, people who are impressed by the things he is, at least.]

[Of course, you say ocean, and Luke's eyes light up.] I- I hadn't thought of that. I've never seen one before. [He's already looking over the transporter for some kind of scanning equiptment, but it either doesn't have any or Luke doesn't recognize it. He frowns, and begins moving the transport off their current course. There are no oceans he can see, but he does find a large lake, bigger than any he's seen before. Most of Mos Eisley could fit in it.]

[He points.] What about that?

[She files away the fact that he's never seen the ocean before either for later, when she can plan something for them to do. They're bound to come across a planet with a really amazing beach to visit.

For now, though, she focuses on the lake he's pointed out, and leans forward in her seat to peer out. Like it's going to help her get a better look. A corner of her mouth tips upward and she nods, pointing down to it.]

It probably has sand and a beach around it. It's close enough. It looks safe from up here, maybe we can actually go in the water.

Uh... [Luke squints.] The last time I did that, I, uh, almost... drowned. [Cough.] Maybe you go in the water. I'll make sure you're alright.

[He's pretty sure he could pull her out if there was any trouble with the current. It's the pulling himself out he has trouble with.]

You don't know how to swim?

[She quirks an eyebrow, not out of judgment but because she sees an open to teach him something. He's done so much for her, it's something she can do for him.]

I could teach you. Not today, if you're afraid, but...eventually.

[It gives them something to look forward to, at least.]

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