nysalogs | ( open ) out of isolation

( she feels lighter. it's part of why she squeezes his hand back and smiles again, eyes crinkling a little at the corners, all warmth and no pretence, no appreciation for the cruelty of life and no ironic or sardonic reference to that. it's just — it's a beautiful afternoon, the sun is warm but not too hot and she's walking hand in hand with a guy she likes.

it's good. )

Hey. ( she says, soft and slow, coming to a stop just long enough to lean in to kiss his cheek. )

[ Hey yourself he's stalled from saying, distracted by that kiss.

It's sweet. Did he know Dutch could be sweet? What a day.

Jim adjusts his hand so he can wrap his am around her waist instead, tucking them against each other as they walk. ]

C'mon, let's explore.

[ He sounds mellow, though. No forced energy. ]

( dutch takes up a lot of space, ordinarily, with her swagger and her confidence, but she fits easily against jim's side. )

Are we looking for something or just looking around?

We'll decide when we see something.

[ Aimless wandering. But it's aesthetically pleasing enough, and such a nice day, it seems a waste not to.

The locals are friendly, and almost gentle compared to Wyver's fire and Olympia's steel. Jim's amenable to whatever suggestions, and so they've got options: go play with the animals or go swimming naked? (Because they'd never offend cultural norms by leaving clothes on.) ]

( it's aesthetically pleasing for sure, and dutch wouldn't ordinarily be someone to just wander aimlessly, but today, things are different. today, her heart is light and jim's hand is warm against hers and she's glad to enjoy the warmth and beauty around them.

most locals move toward the heart of khalo and after a while, dutch tugs at jim's hand, curiosity leading her down that path as well. swimming naked it is. )

I'd want to keep all the argumentative politics out of this place, too, [ he muses aloud as they approach the heart of the village and the crystal pond there. Damn. They're told they can keep their clothes on if they want - but Jim just shrugs. Boots go off first. (The walking ones.) He spots a few other refugees, at least one familiar face from Wyver, but he's content to let his attention stay with Dutch. ]

Yeah. Politics are bullshit, anyway. ( she believes that, but for once, there's no bite behind the words and none of the memories associated with the nine come floating up at the thought of politics. none of the memories of her childhood training to be a good wife to a monarch some day, either.

instead, she pulls off her top and throws it at jim's face, playful. )

[ Oof. Jim catches the shirt with his face (it's a skill), and then pulls it over his head and back up, like a hair cap. What now, lady.

Laughing, he leaves it on (dodges at least the first attempt to remove it, if there is one) while he undoes his belt and pulls it off, though it's dislodged anyway when he has to remove his own shirt. ]

Wyver's definitely missing more swimming pools, [ he observes. This is high quality, in the region's oppressive heat. ]

( what a fantastic skill to have. what a good look on him as well.

she rolls her eyes, first and foremost, and waits with her attempt to remove the shirt from his head until she has her pants off, thinking maybe the distraction will help — but then he's already dislodged it by removing his own shirt. )

Yeah, I wouldn't say no to some.

( she's grinning. it's warm, but for once there's no sexual edge to it. )

[ Good thing they're here, then. Jim gets the rest of his clothes off - no sexual edge to this, either; they've seen each other plenty, and whatever default machismo 'don't look at me it's cold out and I'm not hard' paranoia he might have (all men do that, even the secure ones) is curiously absent. (Also it's not cold out.)

He steps into the crystal water, unbothered by the few Khali who look over, though they're just watching the newcomers with approval, anyway. Most don't care, and he enjoys the open, normal feeling of everything. ]

Hopefully this place'll stay open. [ .. also he flicks some water at her. Just a little. ]

( it's not cold out and she's looking, but it still isn't sexual. she's seen him plenty, but she's never just looked at him without that component of want, of the heat of the moment. she finds, now, that she likes his eyes and she likes his shoulders and his hair being floppy.

it all feels warm and casual and easy. nothing's ever felt so easy, really, as wading into the water once she's divested herself of shoes and underwear as well, reaching up to pull her hair into a knot on the top of her head. )

Enjoy skinny-dipping?

( he flicks a little water at her; dutch shoves a lot of water back. like the measured and restrained lady she is. )

[ He's got the teensiest bit of color since that day at the beach, so he's not the pastiest ball of dough he could be. It compliments the mole on his tits. Anyway,,

Jim laughs as that water hits him, and all he does is let himself walk backwards into deeper water, so that he can dip backwards and dunk himself under, shaking his hair when he rises back up. ]

I do, [ he admits. ] Though I haven't since - Jesus, a lifetime ago. Since I was a kid in Iowa I think.

It's my first time.

( she — doesn't quite laugh. she giggles. )

What's Iowa?

[ That is .. a really cute sound, one Jim's a little bit fascinated by. ]

Iowa is an area in the middle of nowhere on the human homeworld. Nothing to do, not that populated. When it was really hot out in the summer, sometimes kids would just go play in the woods and find ponds to throw ourselves in. Or I'd just go, because anything was better than staying at home.

[ He sounds fine with it. ]

That sounds fun.

( little yalena yardeen would have liked anything better than the royal harem, but she hadn't gotten to leave until the night of her wedding. well, not outside of training with khlyen, anyway. )

It was.

[ Brief moments of peace in between the dozen moves, the bitters and the abuse, and the last straw, sending him offworld, where there were no ponds at all. For a split second Jim looks more serious than he's ever looked; not dramatic, or grave, just --

like he's not trying to be positive. But he has to keep that up, doesn't he? He flicks more water at her. ]

This is fun, too.

Yeah.

( she smiles, diving under the water and swimming to where he is, emerging just behind him and putting her hands on his shoulders. almost as if she was going to try and dunk him, except she doesn't try. she's just holding on, for the moment. )

It is.

You're a mermaid now? [ He touches one hand to hers on his shoulder when she's in place, though nothing further. ]

I kinda hated being a kid. [ Nefarious skinning dipping aside. Those little moments - swimming, learning to drive motorcycles, getting too drunk on stolen beer at fourteen - they were all just things to distract himself. Constructs made to be happy memories so he has something to think back on besides the truth of it. ]

Nice that it's over.

Yeah.

( she hasn't really admitted to anyone here how much she hated her childhood and early adult years, but the admission comes easily now. ) Yeah, me too. I grew up in a royal harem, you know.

I didn't know that.

[ Dutch told him ... something, about a prince. That story seems darker now, but through the strange haze of Khalo, he can't remember the details. If there were any.

(Gaila had something similar, he thinks. Didn't she? He hadn't known, until after the Academy. What a dick he was.) ]

Mh.

( she hums, thoughtful for a moment but not really bothered. it's hard to feel bothered. the water's so nice and jim's body is warm, right there, alive. she likes jim.

so she sets her chin onto his shoulder and wraps her arms around him from behind instead of holding on to his shoulders and lets herself float. )

I learned how to dance and entice royalty and kill.

[ He laughs softly when he notices what she's doing, and extends his arms out, skimming over the surface of the water and being a very cooperative flotation device. ]

You any good? [ Jim glances over his shoulder. ] I mean, I'm not royalty.

[ And she hasn't murdered him yet, though he's definitely already picked up on her abilities, there. ]

Damn good.

( the response is immediate and unthinking, confidence a second skin she wears easily. )

Married a prince and all. ( for a moment, her lips press together and her face turns into his neck, the memory of her wedding night penetrating for a moment. ) He's dead.

You didn't want to do it anymore, [ he observes.

Because she didn't like her childhood. Because she's a bounty hunter now - no, a reclamation agent? What had she called it? A Killjoy. ]

I ran away the night of my wedding.

( after her husband died. he'd been meant to be her ticket out; instead, he'd been another target. she hadn't loved him because she hadn't known him, but she'd wanted the idea of him and the idea of freedom from khlyen so badly.

none of that seems particularly pressing right now. )

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