diy energy weapon.

[t65]

Who: luke skywalker crudematter & cassandra deal
When: "ehhh prob around 5/10 or something idk"
Where: Hangar bay.
What: Luke Skywalker sticks his head inside an oven. It's okay; it's an electic oven.
Warnings: Second degree burns, unauthorized metalworking.

[Someone's been building in the cargo bay. Luke figures people won't notice, since he's in there pretty frequently to build droids. So what if he's also using the parts to construct a makeshift oven in the corner. Who will notice?]

[It's pretty small, about the size and shape of a few truck tires piled on top of each other. Most notably, it has no door, just an open hatch facing outward.]

[...It's an opening large enough for Luke to stick most of his upper torso inside of, and he has been, lying back on a wheeled board so he can enter and exit quickly. When Cassandra arrives, that's where she'll find him.]

Comments

[t65]

[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.]

[deal]

[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.]

[t65]

[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.]

[deal]

[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.]

[t65]

[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.]

[deal]

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.

[t65]

[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?

[deal]

[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.

[t65]

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.]

[deal]

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.]

[t65]

I'm not afraid, [he whines,] I just don't want you to have to pull me out. [That is completely different, obviously.] But I would like to learn one day... if you wouldn't mind? I'm not a good student.

[Bet just get that out of the way now. They land on the bank of the lake, and Luke takes a moment to make sure the transport is secure and powered down before he lets himself get up. Different kind of ship and all, best be careful. Also, he's stalling.]

[deal]

[She thinks that maybe he's stalling, but doesn't call him on it. Maybe she'll be able to get him in the water if she doesn't push it.]

I don't think I'd need to pull you out. But if I do, I'm strong enough to do it.

[The look she gives him then challenges him to disagree with her. The look doesn't last too long before she's getting up out of her seat, and hurrying her way off the transport. He may not want to go near the water, but she's about two seconds away from stripping off most of her clothes and climbing in.

She won't, though, because she values Luke's opinion of her. But the idea is tempting.]

[t65]

[If Luke's stalling, it's mostly because he's not sure what to do. It will take a lot more than almost drowning to make him afraid of water, something that he cultivated for nineteen years. She runs off, and Luke hurries after her,] Hey, wait-! [But he's smiling.]

[Luke finds a rock to sit on before pulling off his shoes and dipping his feet in.] Is there a lot of water on your planet?

[deal]

Earth is made up mostly of water. It's like seventy percent water, or something like it. But most of the still water like this is contaminated. Streams and rivers are bad too. The ocean is the only thing that's probably safe.

[Which explains why she's wanting to see one. She sits next to him on the rock and takes off her boots, setting them off to the side. Her feet dip into the water and she moves them about, enjoying the chill of the water.]

The pool back on the Moira is nice, but it's nothing compared to this.

[Outside is where she's comfortable, where she's used to spending most every day. She misses it, now that she's cooped up on the ship so often.}

[t65]

Seventy percent? [Luke leans forward, obviously amazed. Anything with that much water must be glorious to see.] What contaminated it all?

[deal]

A virus. And uh...those things we saw back on your home planet. They get into water and can't get out, so the water becomes contaminated. But the ocean is deep enough that it should be safe.

[Although now she's imagining zombie sharks and that has her eyes widening as she glances away.]

I hope.

[t65]

[Luke wants to reach out and comfort her, but he's not sure she'd appreciate it. He's not sure how much give and take should be from him, how much she would like him to invade her space in general. She seems like a very singular person, someone who can stand completely on their own. It's something Luke admires, and he doesn't want to imply it isn't there with unasked-for support.]

[If he can't help, he'll distract.] Well, this should be safe too. [And he jumps in.]

[deal]

Hey!

[Amused that he's the one that's leapt in first, she hops in right after him. She moves to dive beneath the surface, swimming out so she can experience the feel of moving through water. It's something she's missed doing. She pops up before too long, looking around until she spots him.]

You jumped in.

[She states the obvious, smiling as she skims her hand across the surface to splash at him]

Let me know if you need me to give you a hand.

pretend i remembered to have him take the prosthetic off first >>

[t65]

[Luke emerges choking and barely treading water, and paddles back to shore like a drowned rat. It's not that he's afraid of water, precisely, he just doesn't want to look ridiculous in front of Cassandra. He's done such a good job, he thinks, of impressing her; he doesn't want to ruin that now by displaying a skill he doesn't have.]

[He slowly climbs back on the rock, letting the Force give him a little boost.]

Very funny. [But he sounds genuinely amused as he reattaches the prosthetic arm.] Would you mind telling me more about your planet? I barely know anything about it.

yeah okay we will pretend that

[deal]

[She frowns a little as she watches him quickly get out of the water, wishing he would've stayed in. He went through the trouble of doing in the first place, and having him do it made her happy. But he clearly has an aversion to being in the water, so she figures they'll work up to it in baby steps.

She slowly swims her way back over toward the rock, but doesn't try climbing back up on it just yet. Instead, she looks up at him, nodding in response to his question.]

I've said it's called Earth, right?

[ha-ha, Cassandra. Not what he's looking for.]

It was a really pretty place, not that long ago. I mean, there were wars and shit, and things were really unjust all around the whole planet. But there was so much life, you know? What kind of things were you wanting to know, specifically?

[t65]

[If Luke has an aversion to anything, it's looking foolish in front of pretty girls. He gets enough of that... at almost every point in his life when pretty girls are present. He reaffixes his prosthetic and tests it a little, wiggling the fingers.]

What's it like growing up there? Do you miss anything about it? [It's not spacefaring, so he can't ask the usual questions-- who's in charge, what do they export, what do they think of the Alliance.]

[deal]

[She dips under the water for a second time, this time so she can pull her hair back and out of her face. When she pops back out, she moves to climb up on the rock, holding out her hand so he'll help her up.]

Growing up was okay. My parents worked all the time, and the city we lived in was rough. They immigrated to the US before I was born. So I don't know what it was like for them, living in Cambodia. But I knew they loved me and would do anything to make sure I was happy, which was more than a lot of kids who grew up with rich parents in nice places could say.

[She'll save telling him what she misses for when she's back up on the rock and comfortable.]

[t65]

[And Luke helps her. There's a temptation, for a moment, to use the Force-- it would impress her, he's sure-- but the Force isn't for that. He restrains himself, uses crude matter instead.]

Cambodia is a country? And the Yu-ess? [He's heard of pre-spaceflight planets having those, back before rapidfire travel across the planet made such borders effectively impossible to maintain.]

[deal]

[She smiles a little as she situates, nodding to answer his question.]

The US. United States. I guess people back on Earth think of it as the place where you can become anything, and a place where everyone can have a decent life. It's a lie, but it's a nice thought. It's a country, though. Just like Cambodia. There's a lot of countries, and inside each country there's smaller divisions like states or provinces. And then there's cities and towns inside those, and different neighborhoods in each city.

[She feels stupid, not being able to really explain it in a way that sounds interesting, but there's only so fascinating talking about the way people have divided up land can be. So she scoots in closer to him, because when she's right next to him, she feels a hell of a lot more interesting than she does the rest of the time.]

The thing I miss the most, though? Being able to speak my native language and have people actually understand and talk back. Oh! And things like carnivals. One would always come to town in the summer, and we'd go over and over again so we could ride and eat everything.

[t65]

[It is interesting to Luke, though; he's never been to a planet bountiful enough for the inhabitants to bother divvying up land.] On Tatooine, there were only towns and cities. Everything else was just parts of the desert.

Your native language? Maybe you can teach me some. [It's a small substitute, he knows, but his first instinct is always to help.]