Liquid Daydreams

[Bette Davis]

Strands of dark hair stuck to her face, and she laughed, belly down on her board and paddling into the waves for just one more! Bette wasn't new to the sport of surf riding, but she'd never ridden the waves in this part of the galaxy before. Chandrila was truly a beautiful planet. Val Torres was with her, although he was back on the beach, nursing a newly stitched forehead. His ride board had popped up and smacked him one in the noggin, showering the surf with a spectacular spray of blood.

Bette sat on her board in the water, waiting for another wave. The sun was setting, and the Silver Sea looked more like gold as the TIE pilot paddled with the next swell and set herself for her ride. A quick, breathless push, and she was on her feet, hands out slightly for balance as her board cut through the water. The wave chased her in towards the shoreline, and she laughed, grinning widely.

It was a beautiful day.

[Cirrsseeto Quez]

SPLASH!

A striped, tawny blur cut through the blue waves. Cirrsseeto planted his feet against the sandy bottom of the inlet, and stood chest-high above the surf.

The sight of a Cizerack cutting through the waves might be an odd one if one considered a feline's penchant for staying dry. But Cirr had always loved swimming. He shook the brine from his soaked mop of hair, and shook his ears dry, scanning over his shoulder for another wave shy of cresting. Unlike the board riders who mounted waves further out at sea, Cirrsseeto rode the faster, smaller waves close to the beach, and he rode them bare. Catching sight of a bulge of water 20 meters back, the Cizerack sprung off a sandbar and tucked his outstretched arms clean into a trough that had begun to depress in front of him.

As his body slapped through the water, the wave crested just behind him, pushing his half submerged body through the surf like a torpedo. Cirr stretched out, and kicked rapidly to accelerate himself through the wave, propelling him forward even faster.

[Bette Davis]

Bette ducked low on her board, forcing herself up the wave and along the crest for a few moments before dropping back down the face of it. A few more seconds of exhilaration, and then she fell off her ride board, and crashed into the surf.

The wave that had carried her moments before now pounded her into the sand beneath. The tether holding her board to her ankle pulled at her leg as she kicked powerfully for the surface. Bette broke the surface of the sea just in time to gasp for air and duck under another swelling wave, popping up and grabbing for her board which floated just next to her.

She was pulling herself onto it when a tawny striped figure nearly ran her over, splashing water everywhere as the being swam with the next swell, preparing for a ride to the beach. "Hey! Watch what the frell you're doing!" Bette didn't expect that he'd heard her, but it felt better to shout.

[Cirrsseeto Quez]

As the wave he rode in on receeded. Cirr pulled himself up to his knees, shaking the water clear from his hair. He looked back to see what or who he'd bumped into through the surf, and found an irate-looking human female glaring at him. He offered only a sheepish and lopsided smile at her, as he worked the water from one of his long ears with a twisting little finger. A foamy wave slapped him across the chest, and he replied by spitting a squirt of salty water into the ebb.

[Bette Davis]

Bette paddled towards the shore, the waves pushing her in until she was close enough to pick up her board and carry it in. "Hey, bozo, keep your..." She faltered, board under her arm, as the huge male Cizerack stood up shaking water out of his ears.

"Ah..." She glared at him one more time, and then walked up onto the sand. Bette looked around for Val, but he seemed to have gone back to the hotel. They had separate rooms, still working out what was actually going on between them. She frowned, setting one end of her ride board into the sand as she scanned the rest of the beach.

[Cirrsseeto Quez]

Cirrsseeto soon migrated over to Bette, and busied himself with looking over her board.

"How do jyou rrrjide on thjisss?"

Scratching his head, the Cizerack unroots the board from the sand, scrutinizing it more. It seemed too slippery to stand on, but seemed firm enough. He gave it a few knocks for good measure. Sounded hollow. He'd totally given the owner a miss, and gotten lost in his own curiosity.

[Val Torre]

Breathless and freshly drenched in sea water, Val trudged forcefully from the shore until he arrived at the dry end of the beach with feet resembling stale, sand-coated cakes. He had darted to Bette's aid having heard her cry coincide with one or two large waves and found himself pummeled to the seabed by the powerful tide.

"What the frell is going on here, pal?"

He addressed a figure crouched down in the sand admiring Bette's ride board while she stood, arms folded with a face like thunder. Upon arriving at his destination, he shot Davis a moments glance of protective concern.

"You alright?"

Then quickly turned his attention back to her unwelcome gentleman caller: "Hey!"

[Bette Davis]

Bette backed up a step in the sand as the huge Cizerack pulled her ride board out of the sand and started thumping on it. "Hey, watch it!"

Val struggled out of the waves to her surprise, and strode over to her side. She waved off his concern, but he was already focusing on the beast that seemed ready to punch his fist through her board.

Bette added her voice to Val's. "Yeah, knock it off!"

[Cirrsseeto Quez]

Cirr dropped the board suddenly, suprised at Val & Bette's outburst.

"Sssorrrrrrjy."

He mumbled, scratching his damp mop of hair with a broad hand. In retrospect, it did seem a bit silly to meddle with the waterboard without asking.

"Who arrre jyou? jI'm Cjirrrrrrsssssseeto!"

He smiled a broad, friendly smile, and his eyes began to trace down to the board again.

[Val Torre]

When Cirr stood to his full, monstrous height, Val unconsiously took a step back and briskly wiped the water dripping for his face in a vain attempt to restore his vision. It wasn't an optical illusion, he and Bette were face to face with a live and quite literaly larger-than-life Cizerack. He turned to the deckchair and whipped a towel around his waist before casting the hulking felinoid a cautious look.

"Erm--"

In spite of Cirrsseeto's friendly introduction and disarming smile, Val thought it wise to keep his guard up and kept to a distance he hoped was out of arm's reach.

"My name is Val." He placed his hand on his chest to indicate he was referring to himself as one would if talking to an infant then gestured to Davis. "And this is Bette."

He fought against his amused grin. "Do you like her ride board?"

[Bette Davis]

The board dropped to the sand, and Bette quickly squatted beside it, pulling it upright again and eyeing it protectively. She gave a half hearted smile as Val introduced her.

Before the Cizerack, Cirrsseetto, could answer the question posed to him by Razor, a pack of kids ran through the three adults, laughing and screaming at each other. The kicked up sand from their little feet coated Bette's wet legs from the thighs down. She glared after them.

[Cirrsseeto Quez]

Cirr ignored the approaching fracas, and set about answering Val's question. He returned his curious eyes to Bette's board, but this time stopped short of picking it up.

"jI don't know how jyou would rrrjide on jit. jI would fall."

He dropped to his haunches to get a better look, still stopping shy of touching. He then looked back at the water, rusty gears turning in his head as he tried to somehow meter out the physics of it all.

"jYeah, jI'd fall. Betterrr to ssswjim."

Digging clawed toes in the sand, he began to wiggle his toes about, sheathing and unsheathing claws with each flex. He looked back up at Val, and then at Bette, who'd managed to maintain the silent treatment. He squinted against the sun that hung over her shoulder.

[Bette Davis]

Her eyes were dragged down from protectively eying her board to the sand, where the Cizerack's huge claws were appearing and disappearing. "Uh, it's actually pretty simple, if you've got good balance..."

Holy flipping frell, stop encouraging him! Bette blinked forcefully and tightened her grip on her board.

[Cirrsseeto Quez]

Cirr stood on one leg, as if by cue.

"jI can do thjis."

Another child ran by, slapping into Cirr's tail as it provided counter balance. The felinoid fell face-first like a house of cards.

"Waaah!"

He landed face-first in the sand, and with Bette halfway stuck underneath him.

[Val Torre]

The innitial shock faded fast and grew into a string of laughter, Val had managed to see the hilarity of the situation but wisely decided to help the large Cizerack up and then Shooter.

"Easy there, big fella." He placed himself in between Cirr and Bette, the corner's of his mouth lifting treacherously and failing in sincerity he made an attempt to console the victim in all this.

"Bette, are you okay?"

[Bette Davis]

Bette held her side where the big oaf's hand had pushed hard on her ribs. "I'm a little bruised, but I've hard worse falling out of bed." She steeled herself against wincing.

"Man, you gotta get one of these boards." She addressed the Cizerack. "I can't wait to see you on the waves." Bette glared at Val for grinning, but joined him in his amusement even though she'd been squished. "I think it'd be a lot of fun."

She chuckled, and then groaned at the pain in her side.

[Cirrsseeto Quez]

It didn't take much of Bette's invitation to spark Cirr's interest. He immediately reached for the dry pouch at the side of his swim trunks, rifling through it for a few credits.

Cizerack were never parted far from their money, male or female, and you didn't have to ask twice to start up a little haggling.

Cirr paused, chits in hand, with a look that telegraphed his intentions. His mind seemed to hang up on the process of guessing how much Bette would want to sell her board for. Before he made a first bid, he froze.

Of course, a male didn't spend his female's money lightly. He'd have to get permission.

"jI have to go asssk about thjisss."

He shifted his feet nervously, but then reassured himself with a smile.

"Ssstajy rrrjight herrre!"

He pivoted on a foot, and sprinted down the sandy beach. Saa would know what to do.

[Saarrreeaa Meorrrei]

Laying in the sun... sunning herself in a giant sand box. Saarrreeaa had heard the last 'litter box' joke she intended to tolerate being told behind her, and was thoroughly grumpy. Where was Cirrsseetto?

She was ready to go back to the hotel and the mini bar in their suite. Chandrila had some beautiful grasslands, but this... beach was intolerable, with all the hyuu-mans and other riff-raff they allowed. Males had leered at her string bikini and g-string clad body, and she did enjoy the attention, but there was a limit to how long she wanted to be ogled.

She'd reached it ten minutes ago. Saa propped herself up on an oiled and tanned elbow, using her other hand to shade her blue eyes. Wherrre arrre jyou, Cjirrrr? Hopefully he hadn't found a dark and dirty club to fight for money in, again. Wajit... It looked like he was running towards her.

Yes, it was certainly him. Her hulking manservant skidded to a halt nearly on top of her towel, showering her with sand, which stuck with enthusiasm to the tanning oil she'd used. She looked up at him slowly.

[Cirrsseeto Quez]

Cirr's chest heaved a bit from the run, and he juggled the acts of talking to his mistress and catching his breath at the same time, with marginal levels of failure.

"Sssaa...jI...um...could jI....ssspend sssome monejy....on a waveboarrrd?"

He stopped talking, inwardly verifying that was what it was called. Satisfied, he put on a pleasant, expectant face, and smiled at his mate.

[Saarrreeaa Meorrrei]

She stopped brushing ineffectually at the sand stuck to her body, and looked back up at him again. "A what?"

Cirr explained, with wide arm motions and pointing, and she frowned, shading her eyes once more. "You'll brrreak jyourrr neck, and then wherrre would jI be?" Saa pouted.

[Cirrsseeto Quez]

"jYou can't brrreak jyourrr neck on waterrr!"

Cirr jested confidantly, shaking his head at Saa's prudish doomsaying. The confidance quickly fizzled. No matter how much he could convince himself, Saa could prove him wrong and did so often. He stood his ground, but with a nervous look on his face, waiting for the other shoe to drop and scold him for being an idiot.

"jIt looksss rrrealljy fun." He added, like a verbal cherry on the sundae.

[Saarrreeaa Meorrrei]

Saa waved her hand dismissively as he started to look nervous. She really didn't enjoy dressing him down. Undressing him, yes... "Go ahead. But don't sssajy jI djidn't warrrn jyou!"

She found herself addressing a cloud of sand as he sprinted away.

[Bette Davis]

Bette exchanged a look of amusement with Val, and then she winced again. "I think he might have cracked a rib." She didn't move her hand from her side, but looked in the direction Cirrsseetto had run. "Think he's coming back?"