Above Board, Below Deck - Mara

[Morgan Evanar]

Novgorod - Officer's Quarters Common Area.

The Keyensoar spook box, when it came down to it, was a computer. Like any other computer, it had rules, commands, memory, and programs. It just happened to have an AI, a quantum signal generator, and whole host of other tricks. It was a complicated computer, and right now Morgan didn't want to look at it any more. After their encounter and summary dress down by the field commander, Morgan needed a break. Cirr didn't need to say anything to the Jedi. He knew fully well that pulling a stunt like that in a live mission would not work remotely well, unless the scenario called for it. The look they had after Captain Soto Terius had read the riot act said it all. Morgan would have volunteered for the brig, but he knew the big kitty would have had none of it. It was fortunate that no one ended up there. The fact was the Novgorod was far more valuable in the field with it's captain than without.

Right now, the furthest thing from his mind was any sort of AI, script, or signal propagation profile. Right now Morgan was flipping through a mix of used speeders and speeder parts, until he looked up and spotted a familiar, unexpected and welcome face.

[Mara Tallen]

"Right...an entire crate of Cresh-Four. I have no idea when its getting here or if we're picking it up."

"What else, then?"

"Ok. I'm going to need wire, det caps, couple of rolls of det tape...EMP grenades, CryoBans, and RVPs."

"Asking much?"

"Always, G-man. Tallen out."

Her last task done, she dropped her earpiece and datapad onto the top of her desk. There was a pile more paperwork to be done, but Mara decided that it could wait. Specifications for new weapons and read-outs on explosives testing weren't critical.

Running her hands through her auburn curls, she stood and stretched before walking out of her door. She spotted him before he looked up, and sauntered over to join him.

"Hey Morgan...what are you up to?" Mara asked with a bit of her usual purr in her voice.

[Morgan Evanar]

Morgan looked up at the familiar voice. His brain spun as it sought traction for placement of face and voice.

"Oh!" Surprise arrived first, well before the name. Morgan had gone straight to the bridge and the Captain's conference room, and nowhere else. Morgan got to his feet to greet her.

"Hi Mara." He said, the corners of his mouth turned slightly upward. He'd never gotten the chance to really talk to anyone before the rescue attempt. He had been completely preoccupied with Serena's rescue, and so had everyone else.

"It's good to see you. Are you assigned to the Novgorod?"

[Mara Tallen]

"Good to see you too. And yes, I'm afraid you're stuck with me. Glayde needed a second, and the General decided this was as good a place as any for me."

The redhead responded with a smile and a tilt of her head as amber eyes trailed up to meet a pair of green ones. She'd forgotten, oddly, that Morgan was so tall. Then again, she mused, the last time she'd seen him, it wasn't him that was the center of attention. Survival was.

"What about you? I didn't expect to find a Jedi on the Novgorod. Unless of course, you've got secret talents I just don't know about."

[Morgan Evanar]

Morgan grinned slyly.

"I might have a few." He said. Mara raised an eyebrow. He looked into her eyes to keep his from wandering. She smelled... nice. Morgan had never noticed her auburn hair, either. He wanted to run his fingers through it. Oh, delightful lizard brain, you are so troublesome at times. Some higher thought processes kicked back in, and spat a sensible statement.

"Seriously, before I became a Jedi, I was a slicer. I've know the captain for a few years now, and he recruited me as the new E-War specialist. It's very boring for most people until the thing goes live."

[Mara Tallen]

"Just a few?" Mara purred.

The fingers of one hand curled into her auburn locks, toying with the ends that draped over one slender shoulder. Grins like the one Morgan gave her generally got her into trouble. A whole lot of oh-so-pleasant trouble. The kind of which she'd hadn't been in for far too long.

She let her eyes wander, at least for a moment, amber eyes warming.

"Boring enough to make you flip through a speeder and parts catalogue?" Mara winked as she gently tugged on the catalogue in his hand.

[Morgan Evanar]

"Oh, I think I might have extra talents hidden up my sleeves." He said. That purr was distracting. It made his legs feel strange; good strange.

Morgan felt his lips part, again and let her have the catalog.
"Staring at code all day isn't healthy. Let's just say it's good to take regular breaks and think about something else. Like speeders." He said, and then looked into Mara's eyes, but saw a bit of everything. Mara as she existed in space, the echo of her displacement in the universe.

"Or a beautiful woman."

[Mara Tallen]

"Hidden talents...sounds promising..."

She took a slow, measured step forward, dropping the catalogue on the cushion beside them. The once polite distance was soon reduced to nearly nothing, while Mara tilted her head to one side, auburn curls cascading over her shoulder.

Amber eyes went from warm to heated in record time, as her purr echoed the change. The fingertips of one hand trailed lightly up his arm, toying gently with his sleeve. "Careful, Morgan..." she purred softly, her words trailing off as she tried to form a coherent thought.

"...I'm not sure I can resist that pretty of a compliment. Especially not from you."

[Morgan Evanar]

Morgan didn't throw caution to the wind. Morgan forcefully jettisoned caution with a rail gun into a hurricane.

One of his hands found her hip, and the other traced her hand to her elbow and up her back. He leaned down. She rocked up on the balls of her feet. Their lips met with purpose. The kiss was surprisingly non-exploratory: it was mutual want intertwined with biological imperative. He could feel her purr in his throat, on his tongue. Her free hand was on his chest for a moment before it ventured to the base of his skull. They slowly backed into one of the officer's quarter's doors. Hers, actually. Morgan's skin tingled with sensation. Her lips were soft, her backside firm, her hair smelled wonderful.

They came up for air, eyes filled with mutual lust.

"Hi." He said, stupidly. She kissed him again, anyway.

[Mara Tallen]

He tasted ridiculously good. Not just in a its-been-far-too-long kind of way. But...really, really...good. She wouldn't be able to explain it, because no one would understand the nuances of the way her half-breed senses worked.

Mara's back came into contact with a door, and it wasn't until they tried to catch their breaths that she realized it must have been hers. If it had been his, they'd have been through it and the one behind it already.

She did kiss him again, in spite of the 'hi' which she would have thought was adorable had she not been preoccupied. One hand reached for the touchpad beside her door, while the other remained on the back of his neck. Her back arched reflexively as she felt the door open behind her, which also served to press her even more tightly against him.

The door whooshed closed behind them, and mercifully, it also chimed a confirmation when she gave a decidedly breathless command to lock. The words were almost lost in the middle of the very wanton purr Morgan's hands coaxed out of her.

[Morgan Evanar]

He could feel her purr reverberate through his bones. Now out of the public eye, Morgan slipped off his jacket one sleeve at a time. He was noticeably bulkier than the last time they had seen each other, easily evinced by his upper body.

Morgan lifted her up, and part of his brain noted Mara was a bit heavier than she looked. That part of his brain also noted she was a shape-shifter, and chalked it up to that. Not that 50 pounds mattered much when your best gym partners were Wookies.

She squealed through her purr and wrapped her legs around his waist. He kissed her neck, and then worked his way up her jawline. Morgan gave her ear a gentle nibble before he buried his face into her neck.

[Mara Tallen]

He'd picked her up as if she'd weighed nothing.

The thought raced haphazardly across a distant part of her brain, looping around a few times. After about half a second, it didn't matter. The light jacket she'd had on over her olive-drab tank-top soon fell away as she shifted her arms out of it.

Pleasant as the thought was, it paled in comparison to the feel of his lips on her skin. Her head tilted to the side of its own accord, giving him free access to wander. A shudder wound its way through her body as he buried his face in her neck. His lips inevitably fell on the tenderest spot, drawing a breathless purr of his name from her lips.

Fingertips stroked down the back of his neck, while the other wandered across his shoulders. Mara reveled in the sensations, murmuring wordlessly as she dragged a fingernail delicately along the path her fingers had been taking.

[Morgan Evanar]

Yup. That was definitely the spot. The low rumble coursed through her body, intermingled with half-formed words. Morgan sat down on Mara's bed, with her legs still wrapped around him. That was something he could get used to. Her hands tugged at his shirt. They kissed, only interrupted when the garment passed over his head.

A very small part of him was wondering if this was a good idea, but was drowned out by a mix of wet lips and smells and sounds. This was the best idea. It had been roughly a year now. Morgan thanked his lucky stars.

He slipped a long finger into her waistband at the hip, and dragged it slowly from her hip to her lower abdomen.

[Mara Tallen]

It wasn't often that someone managed to take control of a situation the way Morgan had. Normally, Mara wouldn't let them...but somehow she didn't care. She'd been forced to lock her more carnal needs away for the last six months. Unable to indulge the desires that kept her feline side in check.

She'd learned to cope...

...but this was so much better.

Her fingers coursed across his skin, tracing each defined muscle and feature of his shoulders and chest. Her lips trailed across his jaw to his ear, where the tip of her tongue emerged to trail up along the curve of his ear.

Mara paused, her purr deepening as his finger slid across her taught abdomen. She tilted her head back as Morgan's other hand splayed across her lower back beneath her tank-top, brushing against the edge of the scar that wrapped around her side. Finger pulled back from his skin as she reached down and pulled her tank top up and off, tossing it aside along with her ID tags.

[Morgan Evanar]

Morgan and Mara were collapsed breathless in her bed. The sheets were half-undone (Mara) and the bedframe was slightly bent (Morgan). Hurricane Lust had struck everywhere in the small cabin. Morgan was on his side, back against the cabin wall. Mara was splayed out beside him and panted heavily. Both were soaked with sweat. His chest and back were scratched, and even had been bleeding in a few spots. Both floated on a cloud of endorphins and hormones.

"Wow." he finally managed after a deep breath. He leaned over and kissed her temple. His left arm ran across the top of the bed, and the right draped partially over her hips.

"I think we both needed that."

[Mara Tallen]

Amber eyes were dark and half-closed as he kissed her temple, but the feel of it drew a warm smile to her lips. The fingertips of her right hand traced an absent pattern on the wrist he had draped across her skin, while the other was propped up against his chest.

There had been all manner of half-formed words, moans, and purrs coming out of her since they'd begun - but nothing quite like the soft purr of contentment he could hear once she'd caught her breath. It took her far longer than usual to grasp onto a stray coherent thought, though at least it came not too long after he'd spoke.

"I think...you're right." she murmured, tilting her head to look up at him as her eyes finally opened. Her eyes widened slightly, catching sight of the marks she's left on him. Shifting slightly, the fingertips of her left hand traced along a particularly long scratch that had actually bled a bit.

Her breath caught in her throat as she traced another, and winced. "Morgan...I'm sorry..." Mara managed after a moment, her voice trailing off.

[Morgan Evanar]

Morgan laughed, and enveloped her smaller hand in one of his over-sized mitts.

"I didn't even notice till now. I was probably so high on adrenaline it felt good at the time." He said, playful and factual. It a statement without machismo or ego. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

"They're already starting to heal. If that's the price of admission I'll pay that ticket every time. You'd have to use your proper claws to hurt me. You won't even be able to see the regular scratches in five or eight hours, and these will be gone in less than 24. Seven thousand calories a day has to be good for something, right?" Morgan added, half explanation, half reassurance.

[Mara Tallen]

She smiled as she tilted her head up and kissed the corner of his mouth. "I'd say they're good for something alright."

Shifting her position to ease a growing ache in her lower back, Mara settled back on the tangled sheets. She couldn't remember the last time she'd so thoroughly lost control with someone. Even in the heat of the moment, she'd maintained some form of it over her feral side. Morgan, however, splintered that as easily as he'd picked her up.

Wasn't that something.

Mara purred softly, splaying her fingers out against his as he held her hand still. Another thing in his favor, she mused...extra talents indeed.

[Morgan Evanar]

Morgan watched her move. She probably hadn't moved her hips like that in a while, and her lower back looked stiff.

"Want a massage?" He offered. Partly because he cared, and partly because he wanted round two. Mara nodded, and rolled over onto her stomach. Morgan's fingers pressed into her various muscles gently. He felt for tightness along her lower back especially, and found it in abundance. Her forearms were tense, too. Sore calves were not a surprise. He methodically worked his hands and thumbs into her skin, eliciting sharp breaths followed by sighs of relief. She purred softly as he worked.

[Mara Tallen]

"Morrrgan, you are a saint..."

She murmured, heedless of how her purr rolled through the words and wrapped itself around his name. Amber eyes darkened and fell closed as his hands worked her over, pleasure rippling through her senses as the last of the knots were chased away. She shifted slightly as his fingers trailed down her sides, a shiver racing its way the length of her spine.

Mara tilted her head and opened one dark, glittering amber eye, gazing at him over her shoulder.

[Morgan Evanar]

She rose, a phoenix from the ashes that were the sheets. A sly grin graced her lips, and she pulled him back into the bed. He landed next to her oh his side with an exaggerated "oomph". Mara wasted no time asserting herself, and she put her hands on his shoulders and pushed his lanky frame flat onto the bed. He put up a token resistance, but it only made her more persistent. Morgan was playing a little hard to get, and that drove her inner apex predator wild. He ran his hands up her sides, and she grabbed him by the wrists and slowly wrestled his arms down to beside his head. She leaned in and bit his lower lip. Morgan shifted his arms, and the bite became a full kiss.

[Mara Tallen]

She had absolutely no idea just how long he'd indulge her, but she was willing to take what she could get. The strength coiled in his frame was evident in every movement he made, even the slight shift that turned her slight bite into a hungry kiss.

Mara's fingers tightened around his wrists as her lips pulled back from his, while the tip of her tongue trailed across his lower lip. Her lithe form shifted over him while her lips trailed across his jaw, then down the side of his neck.

Her purr, dark and rich, reverberated across his skin as her predator reveled in the taste and smell of it. That, coupled with the feel of him beneath her was enough to push her control of her beast rapidly towards the brink of delicious failure.

[Morgan Evanar]

Morgan continued to toy with Mara. She was strong for her size, which made it much more entertaining for him. He flipped her over, and she growled, her eyes feral. Mara refused to admit defeat. She wrapped her legs around his hips, dug her nails into his back and bit his shoulder. She twisted, and tried to bring his larger frame back beneath her. After the second attempt, Morgan complied. She put both hands on his chest and shoved him hard into the bed. One hand still on his chest, she brought her other to his face and kissed him savagely.

Mara's feral side knew exactly what she wanted: a challenge. Morgan was willing to give it to her.

----
Eventually, the beast subsided. They were both physically exhausted. No longer distracted, Morgan's stomach began to protest. Mara panted on top of him, her body purred softly. She lifted her head and looked up at him. Both of their eyes were glassy from exertion. It took a moment for gravity to re-assert itself.

"Mara." Morgan whispered.

"Mmmmm?" She replied. Words were still difficult. She did not want to move, instead content to listen to him breathe. Part of her was mad that he had the nerve to talk, and part of her liked the sound of his voice. He ran his fingers down her spine and she shivered.

"We need to get cleaned up, and I need to eat something, and I'd rather it not be your arm."

"My arm?" Words came back. She asked, tired but incredulous.

"I couldn't bear if anything happened to your legs or your lovely bottom." he said, and tilted. Mara's body slid off of his rising one into the bed.

"Noooooo..." She protested. Her hands trailed against his arms, too tired to make any real attempts to grab him. She hit the bed with a "humph" and watched him get into the sonic shower.

[Mara Tallen]

Sprawled out on her bed, she did watch him as he walked across the small space. Really though, it was so much more of an outright stare, vivid appreciation writ in her amber gaze. Her purr darkened as he glanced over his shoulder at her and she grinned wickedly.

Thoroughly and completely exhausted, but good gods...one glance from those eyes warmed her clear through.

Curling onto her side, Mara lingered in the warmth and scent of the sheets. Her beast was mercifully sated and quiet, the purr reverberating contentment through her entire body. With her hunt delayed out of necessity due to the Novgorod's mission, this couldn't have come at a better time.

Well. It could have come sooner, but who was she to argue over timing when the last several...hours had been so...spectacular.

Mara closed her eyes and stretched out, arching her back and twisting from side to side before relaxing again. She heard his footsteps before he spoke, a soft smile planting itself on her features.

"Alright...up with you." Morgan rumbled, stealing the sheet she'd pulled atop herself.

"Stealing sheets from a kitty is a bad idea, honey." she purred, stretching again before managing to leverage herself onto her feet. She wrinkled her nose in distaste at the state of her damp curls, uttering an indignant sound as he swatted her on the way by.

It turned into a breathless laugh as Mara shook her head and scooted out of his considerable reach and into the sonic shower.

[Morgan Evanar]

"I'll take my chances." Morgan said with a wry smile.

In an exceptional and unusually lazy show of ability, Morgan teleported a ration bar from his jacket to his hand. He leaned off the bed on the rare chance a crumb escaped and landed on the bed. Such trespasses would not do. He systematically devoured the relatively flavorless but nutritious food, and poured himself a glass of water from the tiny water spout next to the bed. Not that Mara's quarters or any of the quarters on the Novgorod were of notable size. He could nearly reach across the room from the bed. Mara's was bottom tantalizingly just out of reach.

Now less influenced by the pure physical, Morgan contemplated what had just happened. There had been an underlying sexual tension between the two of them ever since they met during Serena's rescue. It was safe to say there wasn't any sexual tension between them left. At least he hoped not. Sexual bliss, maybe. They were incredibly physically compatible. Morgan liked Mara, he decided. Beyond the mind-blowing sex, she was clever and hardworking, and had a sense of humor. He also decided that he wasn't going to really do anything about it right now. Live in the moment.

His stomach rumbled. He was ready to eat half a bantha.

[Mara Tallen]

Amber eyes closed as she stood there in the sonic shower, fingers absently tending to the mess her auburn curls had become. There was a considerable amount to think about now that need had been satiated and the pleasure was simply a soft echo rippling through her senses. Repercussions to consider.

Although there weren't many she could think of. Not even Glayde could fault her for liking Morgan, which, she discovered, she very much did. Well, likely he could, as disliking what she was doing seemed to be one of his favorite past times. But it was neither here nor there. Nearly eight months with the Pathfinders and countless discussions with the men she now considered some of her best friends had gone a long way to tempering her - he'd see it sooner or later.

She stepped out of the shower and sighed happily, brushing out her hair and loosely braiding it to keep it out of her way for the time being. Clad in standard cargo pants and a tank top in the official Alliance shade of olive-drab, she opened the tall upright cabinet near her bed. Fingers brushed over the matte gold painted armor, tracing the shapes of the familiar nicks and dents. She didn't have much occasion to wear it anymore, but didn't have the heart to send it home for storage.

It kept her grounded. Reminded her who she was and what she was doing.

Mara grabbed the belt she'd been searching for and threaded it through the loops, settling her pants low on her hips. Boots came next and then...she blinked, turning to glance at her bed. And Morgan.

She smiled and tilted her head, arching a brow as he pulled the fastener out of her hair to set her auburn locks loose from the braid. "Did you see where my ID tags landed? I can't exactly go anywhere without them..."

[Morgan Evanar]

Morgan stood, and found his underpants and pants. He closed his eyes.

"They're over there." he pointed. Mara's tags had slid into the corner of the room, next to the refresher. Morgan slipped his pants and underpants back on. He watched Mara bend over on all fours, and took a handful over her now-covered bottom. She made a high pitched "mmph" noise, and then grabbed her ID tags on the lanyard. She looked back at Morgan, who could only grin before moving his hand.

"What? He asked, shirtless and playing innocent.

[Mara Tallen]

"You know. I didn't say you had to -move- your hand..."

Mara shook her head and tried to keep a straight face, but ultimately failed, as her lips quirked up at the corner. She purred as she stood, taking her time and stretching as she did, her ID tags around her neck. A finger hooked into the waistband of Morgan's pants, while her other hand and Morgan's shirt were behind her back.

A sultry smile curled her lips, her finger tracing a slow path up his chest. "You need to eat...and I need to try and behave myself..."

[Morgan Evanar]

Morgan's stomach growled out loud
"I really do need to eat." He agreed, and kept his hands to himself, although he much wanted to do something else. Mara stood in front of him, still bare-chested, like he was. It was a very tantalizing situation. He could see his t-shirt in her hand.

"I think we should save some for later." He said, taking her hand into his. At this point, someone had to pretend to be an adult. Morgan smiled.

[Mara Tallen]

"A good idea."

Glancing up, she smiled back and twined her fingers in with his for a few moments. She took a deep breath and slowly, reluctantly, pulled her fingers away after kissing his. Handing him back his t-shirt, Mara slipped back into the black lace confection of her bra and her olive-drab tank-top.

She grabbed a sweater and pulled that on over her tank-top. Fingers pulled her ID tags out as she walked slowly towards the door, looking back at him over her shoulder through a curtain of her auburn hair.