Dead Man Walking

[Silus Xilarian]

A few months had passed since Silus' return from captivity on Telos IV. His recovery was moving along at a good pace. He was still pretty scrawny, but he was starting to get the first glimpses of his old look back. He was mostly clean shaven again, though he kept a permanent 5 o'clock shadow due to having to use an electric shaver rather than an actual razor. It wasn't optimal but he did the best he could. He was able to pass most of the physical fitness tests they gave him despite having a decent bit of pain in his right leg when he ran. He always lied about the severity of it. No matter what he did it was going to require surgery, but he would put that off as long as possible.

As soon as he was cleared for basic service he'd requested a transfer back to the Imperial Navy. At first he was overjoyed to hear that not only had he been accepted back, but he would also be serving on the ISD Admonisher. That cooled when he found out all the details. Due to his service to the Empire, he was told, he would be allowed to retain the rank of Commander that he'd had before transferring to Intel. This was completely ceremonial though. No one reported to him, and he had zero responsibilities. His only duty, apparently, was to do his physical therapy and see his shrink on a regular basis. He even found out later that the only reason he was on the Admonisher was due to Captain Ragnus being literally the only person who would accept responsibility for him.

Even though he was able to pass all of the physical requirements, he wasn't cleared for starfighter flight. This meant the sims were off limits to him as well. He'd asked Ragnus several times for access to just the sims, but the Captain wouldn't relent. At one point he'd lost his temper and threatened to put Silus on the rotation for shuttle pool and was shocked when Silus accepted the offer. He reneged at first, but after some back and forth he relented and allowed the assignment to go through. There were some conditions though. Supply transits only, no passengers allowed without special permission that was never asked for and wouldn't be granted anyways. Also, the first time Silus skipped a visit to his shrink (which he'd planned to do often) he would be pulled off rotation.

That was where he found himself now. It was menial duty and he probably should have been ashamed to do it, but it gave him something to do and actually got him flying again. It was early in the day and he was waiting on his first flight to come up. He didn't have any physical or mental therapy that day, so he looked forward to a full day of flying.

[Bette Davis]

It had been a few months since Bette Davis has risked court martial by acting on sketchy intelligence, flying across the “do not fly” zone into Alliance territory with a subordinate, rescued a previously dead man, and blew up an Alliance black site. To say that she had been on shaky ground for a few weeks was an understatement.

Her status had been ultimately decided by people up the food chain from Captain Ragnus. No discipline was handed down, though the operation had been retroactively classified above Ensign Jak’el’s paygrade. He knew enough to keep his mouth shut, however.

Silus had even come back to the Admonisher, only he‘d been avoiding her. The only way for them not to accidentally bump into each other at least once on the ship was active avoidance, and to be honest she’d been afraid to confront him. No matter what he’s said right after the rescue, she still felt responsible for his current situation. Surely some part of him must blame her.

However much she had intended to give him his space to heal, it had all changed when she’d found his name on the shuttle pool. Bette had pulled the last string she’d had with the captain to get Silus assigned to a bullshit flight to take her down to Cloud City.

She’d still almost missed the flight on purpose. Steeling herself, Bette stalked into the small shuttle in an off duty jumpsuit, and sat in the co-pilot’s chair next to him. He looked thin, but a lot better than he had a few months back.

”Hey,” she said, looking sideways at him, a half-smile on her face.

[Silus Xilarian]

"...Hey."

It was a rare event, but contrary to popular belief, Silus was capable of blushing, and he was doing it now. During his time on the Admonisher he'd actively avoided seeing her. Given their history, he hated for her to see him this weak. On top of that he was at the lowest point in his career, while she was kicking ass leading the Shadows. The last thing he wanted was to put any kind of damper on that.

"Sorry, I didn't expect to be flying anyone today. It's just a surprise. How have you been?"

[Bette Davis]

“Fine.”

Bette pulled the crashwebbing around her, tightening it for her small frame. “And you?”

Gods, Bette, what are you doing? You’re blowing it! Just talk to him!

She shook her head a little and cleared her throat. “Sorry. This isn’t how I wanted this to go.”

[Silus Xilarian]

"No it's okay I get it..."

He looked at the console for a moment. He'd done all the preflight checks, everything was ready to go, nothing would suddenly need his attention.

"I know Ragnus is still a little iffy on me flying shuttles. I didn't figure this would last, I just wanted to fly something, you know."

He paused for a moment as if gathering his nerve.

"I'm glad he sent you though, it's good to see you."

[Bette Davis]

Bette frowned. “He? No one sent me. Are you gonna fly this thing, or what?”

Silus stared at her for another moment, and she turned toward him, swiveling her seat. “It was going to be a surprise, but whatever. I’m taking you to dinner, dipshit.”

[Silus Xilarian]

Silus turned back to the console as if he'd been struck. As he fired the engines and prepared to clear the hangar, he glanced over at Bette, barely hiding a grin.

"That's Commander Dipshit, thank you."

[Bette Davis]

She almost sighed with relief, having already berated herself for her poor impulse control.

”Excuse me, Commander.” Bette returned the grin.

When he had them off the ISD and Bespin was growing larger in the viewscreen she added, “I haven’t really seen you since... you transferred back.”

[Silus Xilarian]

In hindsight it was rude to avoid her, even if his intentions were good. He thought of a million excuses to give her but considering everything she'd done for him he at least owed her honesty.

"Truth is, I kinda wanted to get back more normal before I saw you again."

From someone who basically survived his entire life by being way more cocky than he should be, he felt like he'd just admitted that he'd kicked a baby - one who didn't have it coming either. He couldn't abide the look for long though and his face brightened a bit.

"Lost the beard though, so that's progress!"

[Bette Davis]

“You look good,” she said quietly. “More like I remember you. Normal,” she added.

”But you didn’t have to hide anything from me, Silus. It’s me.” Bette sighed. “I already saw you on your worst day. And I’m sure you’ve seen me on mine. I’m your friend. I’m worried about you...and that’s okay. It doesn’t mean you’re weak if you lean on your friends.”

[Silus Xilarian]

"I...Thank you. For that and for everything else. I owe you everything."

He was truly touched by what she'd said, and he really did owe is life to her. At the same time he wasn't really equipped to process an emotion that wasn't cocky.

"I guess I need to learn to lean on my friends more. You know I don't make that big Shadow Squadron check now... What are you buying me for dinner."

He smiled and winked.

[Bette Davis]

Bette laughed. “There’s a couple places - Cloud 9 Bar & Grill is one option. Not too fancy. Used to have a great nerf steak. Some ritzy casinos, not really our style but if you want I am buying.”

They entered the atmosphere of the gas giant and were soon surrounded by pink and orange clouds. It felt like perpetual sunset in Bespin, and soon the spires of Cloud City were peeking up in the distance. A cloudcar buzzed past, but not too closely. The Empire practically had free rein on Cloud City, the Baron Administrator being extremely close with the Empress and a loyal subject.

”Maybe visit a club after? There’s one called Elysium I’ve been wanting to check out. Just for a drink - if you want.” Oh gods this is sounding like a date. Does this sound like a date? Is it a date?! No. No, just friends having dinner.

[Silus Xilarian]

"I don't need anything fancy, I'm happy with anything that isn't cafeteria food."

He looked over with almost a conspiratorial look on his face.

"A drink sounds good too."

Coordinates for the nearest shuttleport pings on his nav console and he brought them in with a smoothness that he was secretly very proud of. Before his recent stint, it had been well over a decade since he'd flown a shuttle and parking the clunky things wasn't really all that fun.

[Bette Davis]

Bette slipped out of the crashwebbing with a grin, stretching a little. "Nice landing, Commander. I see you haven't lost your touch. You always used to make me fly the shuttles, wasn't sure you knew how."

She winked and preceded him out of the ship, breathing in the clean air of Bespin. "So good to be off the Admonisher. Recycled air starts to get a taste after a few months." Bette turned to Silus. "Cloud 9 then?"

He nodded, "Lead the way, Commander."

Bette laughed, and they made their way through the city toward the restaurant. As they walked she tried to surreptitiously keep an eye on him, see how he was reacting to the crowds of randoms that populated the mining town. Here on the top levels everything was clean and well maintained, and the civilians were either obviously moneyed or well-dressed workers. The men seemed to wear a lot of capes, which wasn't a usual fashion choice for just a night about town. In Cloud City, however, it seemed to be a common fashion statement.

[Silus Xilarian]

Silus shouldered his way through the crowd without much issue, but he did find himself turning and dipping his shoulder for people a little more often than he was used to. As they walked into the Cloud 9 Bar and Grill he started to approach the hostess himself, but then remembered that Bette was taking him to dinner, and not the other way around. Of course, did that even really matter? This wasn't a date or anything, there was no reason to even think that, right? So did it really matter who approached the hostess? Ultimately it didn't matter, as Bette strode right up and held up two fingers.

The hostess smiled "Right this way!"

Their table was in a more dimly lit part of the establishment, and without thinking, Silus found himself pulling a chair back for Bette before taking a seat for himself. Though after thinking about it he didn't know why.

Just friends having dinner...

[Bette Davis]

Bette examined the menu for a moment, before closing it and giving the server her drink order. “Chandrilan red ale, and a water.”

She looked around the room as Silus spoke to the server, and raised an eyebrow when he was done. “I think they’ve upgraded since I was here last. Looks good.

”I...I have something to tell you. Dragging it out isn’t going to make it any easier.” Bette fumbled in one of her pockets, pulling out a piece of flimsi. “I just... you were gone so long. And, we, you know.” She raised her eyebrows suggestively, but seemed at a loss for words.

After a moment that seemed longer than it was she pushed the flimsi toward Silus. It was a hard copy picture of a happy, blond haired toddler sitting in a grassy field. “He’s got blue eyes. Like his father.”

[Silus Xilarian]

Bette seemed a little distracted as he ordered his drink.

"I'll have the same, actually." Silus wasn't much for ale or beer or anything like that. It all tasted the same to him. He was a bourbon guy, but this wasn't really the setting. He stayed silent as Bette took in the place. It wasn't until she slid the photo over to him that he kind of broke out of his haze. Most of what she said didn't really register at first. He listened and heard the words, and but his mind was still in the process of catching up when what she was saying clicked.

"Like his father..."

His mind went to a different world, so much rushing at him and once that literally nothing got through. He stared at the picture, completely dumbstruck. He looked up at Bette. Don't say the wrong thing, don't say the wrong thing....Okay don't just stare, say something...

"I...you?...and..." He pointed at himself then looked back down at the picture. He felt his face turning red.

Okay, talking's out, just reach for her hand...

He reached for her hand...

[Bette Davis]

Bette took his hand, giving it a squeeze.

”Don’t worry, I don’t expect anything from you. ...I mean, this kid isn’t even mine.” She couldn’t help the devilish grin that crept over her face. “She’s my second cousin’s, twice-removed or something.”

Bette tightened her grip on his hand. “I just want you to think of this as payback for that first mission we went on.”

[Silus Xilarian]

He continued to stare at her blankly. The look on her face registered before her words did as he realized he'd been tricked.

"You have got t...." He was interrupted as the waitress brought their drinks. She was barely turned away from the table before Silus grabbed his and knocked half of it away in one go.

"That's way worse that what we did. Plus you shot me... I owe you now..."

He was holding back laughter at this point, trying to figure out if he should be indignant about the joke or the fact that she pulled it off.

"I seriously owe you now..."

[Bette Davis]

Bette dissolved into laughter, secretly relieved he’d taken it so well. For a moment there she’d been afraid she’d gone too far.

She lifted her glass of ale and toasted him. “To you owing me one.” She tipped it back, drinking a good amount before putting it down.

”Did I really get you? I mean, she’s a three year old. I thought maybe you’d have questions first.” Bette grinned.

[Silus Xilarian]

Silus finally just laughed.

"Yeah, you got me..."

He sensed she was tossing him a bit of a lifeline, and he wanted to take it, but fair was fair.

"You just don't go telling everyone about this or I'll have to leave a snake in your TIE or something..."

If I could even get in the hangar... His mood started to dip, but he masked it behind a smile.

[Bette Davis]

She could think of a few different ways to spin his snake comment, but settled for a laugh. The server wandered back for their food order, and once she’d gotten it she disappeared again, leaving them alone.

Bette sipped her ale. “So. How are you doing? I can’t get anyone to tell me anything, so I figured I have to go to the source. And then the source was avoiding me. So here we are.”

She leaned forward, elbows on the table, looking at him expectantly.

[Silus Xilarian]

He took a sip of his drink.

"Well, I'm too skinny and my leg hurts when I run. Other than that, heh, I'm alive."

He gave her a small smile and lifted his drink toward her.

"Again, thanks for that."

[Bette Davis]

She shook her head at the thanks. “It was the least I could do, really. After leaving...” She didn’t finish the thought, reaching for her drink instead.

“Good thing pilots don’t have to run, hmm?” Bette winked. She couldn’t stop winking for some reason. It was starting to annoy her.

[Silus Xilarian]

"I'm not exactly a pilot anymore, shuttles don't really count."

He smiled, but there was a bit of sourness to it.

"And we went through this the night you rescued me and it's just as true now as it was then. If you'd have come back for me we'd have both been captured and the mission would have been a failure. In fact, you completing that mission created the political climate that probably kept them from just killing me." He reached over and put his hand over hers. "You doing what you did is the reason we're both sitting here right now."

[Bette Davis]

“Right, I know.” She squeezed his hand and then pulled away, reaching for her drink. “I suppose after raking you over the coals just now I should make it up to you.”

Bette waggled her eyebrows at him over the rim of her pint glass.

[Silus Xilarian]

Silus returned the look over his own glass.

"You should, and dinner doesn't count, you were gonna do that anyways."

He smiled and shot a wink in her direction.

[Bette Davis]

She chuckled, leaning back as the server arrived with their dinners and placed her bacon cheeseburger in front of her. As Silus paid attention to his own meal arriving Bette cut her burger in half, picked it up and took a juicy bite.

"Mmm, good," she managed, swallowing and pausing between bites. "Actually what I had in mind was you," she poked the bacon back into place on her burger, "coming back to the Shadows."

[Silus Xilarian]

Silus had become a big fan of food after living two years in perpetual starvation. At this very moment though he forgot about the plate in front of him. He stared at her for a moment then started to laugh a bit.

"Okay, the baby thing was funny, this is outright cruelty..."

[Bette Davis]

“No, I’m serious. I already talked to Ragnus. If you want in, you’re in.”

Bette took another big bite of her burger and chewed thoroughly, watching Silus’ expression.

[Silus Xilarian]

"They won't even let me shave with a razor..."

There was some confusion on his face, then realization.

"You're serious about this..."

[Bette Davis]

“Deadly,” Bette said, but her mouth was full of burger so it came out more like “Medmy.”

She set her burger down and washed down her mouthful with ale. “Completely serious. As soon as you’re cleared by your psych you can report to the squadron.”

[Silus Xilarian]

Just as his hopes were lifting his heart sank a little bit.

"And that's why Ragnus agreed to it. They'll have me lost in the puzzle factory until we're both old and gray."

He finally took a bite of his food. When he ate now, he found himself wanting to tear through food like a wild person, and took a few moments to make himself chew his food like an actual human.

"Mmm, this is good actually." He wiped at the corner of his mouth with a napkin. "I guess all I can do is do my meetings and hope they're happy with my progress."

After a few more bites another thought occurred to him.

"Are you sure you want this? You already risked your career to pull me out of Malastare, and it's been a long ass time since I've flown a star fighter. If I come back and fuck something up you'll end up eating the blame for it."

[Bette Davis]

“You won’t fuck it up,” Bette said. “If you do, I’ll have your balls.”

She took another long swig of her ale, and set the empty glass down a little regretfully.

“Maybe I’ll have your balls anyway.” She winked, and flagged down their server for a refill.

[Silus Xilarian]

"I'm not sure we can get away with desecrating a shuttle again."

He winked and tore back into his food, chomping down a few bites before bursting out laughing. He actually had to cover his mouth to keep from spitting his food out. Bette stared at him puzzled until he was finally able to swallow his food.

"We made a fucking mess."

[Bette Davis]

“Ah, well,” Bette winked. “Shore leave for us both tonight.”

She hadn’t expected that he’d want to pick up where they’d left off, but on the other hand he was sending some serious vibes her way. And she wasn’t inclined to refuse him for any reason that she could think of.

Bette picked up her refilled ale and took another long drink.

[Silus Xilarian]

"After all these grueling flights where absolutely nothing ever happens, I think I'm probably due for a good shore leave."

He finished off the rest of his food, and leaned back in his chair a bit. He started to say something else, but looked around for a moment and stopped. He just smiled instead.

[Bette Davis]

She noticed the look in his eye, and leaned back a bit, also taking in the room. Cloud 9 was bustling and even though there were quite a few other Imperials in the main dining area there were many civilians as well.

No one seemed to be paying them any mind, not even their server. A paydroid cycled up in the center of the table, awaiting credits.

”Ready to go?” Bette smiled at Silus, and authorized a chit for the meal, pressing it into the paydroid.

[Silus Xilarian]

Silus sunk into his own head for a moment. The years he'd spent with ImpIntel made him weary of being overheard, and just now he couldn't shake the feeling they were being listened to.

"Yeah, let's get out of here..."

He grabbed his ale and finished it off then wiped his mouth one more time, tossing the used napkin into the empty cup.

[Bette Davis]

Bette led the way out of the establishment, looking back once to make sure Silus was following. Once outside she did a little turn and faced him, letting the evening bustle walk around them.

"Where to next? More drinks?"

[Silus Xilarian]

He leaned over so he could speak to her without having to raise his voice, but his hand rested a bit more comfortably on her shoulder than it should have, and his face got a little closer to her neck than was probably necessary.

"Let's just get a bottle or two and go somewhere quiet."

[Bette Davis]

She grinned. “Sure thing. I think there’s a liquor store a level down.”

As they walked she noticed how he avoided any droids that might have been in their path. She didn’t ask about it, that would come in time...if he was ever ready to talk.

They passed a couple stormtroopers arresting a person who looked like a poster child for a misspent youth, and finally came across the store Bette has been heading toward.

A few minutes later, purchases in a bag she made Silus carry, they were outside the store and the troopers had already carted their criminal away.

“Come on,” Bette said, looping her arm through his. “I bet we can get a cheap room at the Holiday Towers. For drinking in.”

[Silus Xilarian]

"You have to let me salvage a little bit of my dumb male pride, I'll get the room."

He pulled her a little closer to him.

"I haven't been to the Cumulus before. Let's go check it out."

[Bette Davis]

"Cumulus, huh?" Bette leaned against him, fitting just so under his shoulder. "The Empire must have finally come through with your back pay. I think it's ...this way."

She slipped an arm around his waist and turned him slightly to point them in the right direction. "Should be a turbolift up around here somewhere, it's a topside establishment with lots of pretty towers."

[Silus Xilarian]

"I keep a little put away for situations like this."

It had been a long time since Silus had been to Cloud City, but he always enjoyed just walking around and taking in the sights. The walk to the Cumulus hotel and casino was probably a longer walk than Holiday Towers, but he found himself not minding it so much even if he was having to lug around a big bag full of alcohol. Once they made it to the turbolift and went to the upper levels the crowd became much thinner and easier to navigate. It wasn't long before they'd checked in and the Cumulus hotel and made their way to their room.

Once inside, both of them went about checking out the room. As a habit though, Silus found himself less interested in the amenities and more about where cameras and listening devices could be located. After a quick sweep of the room, he was satisfied that nothing was planted, and finally plopped down on the bed.

"I enjoyed dinner tonight, thank you."

[Bette Davis]

"You're welcome."

Bette was bent over the bag of liquor, and after a moment of rummaging she straightened up, revealing bottle of clear Kuati vodka in one hand and generic blumfruit juice in the other.

"Is there an ice maker in here or do we have to go down the hall?" She crossed to the dresser and set down her choices, grabbing a glass from the top of the small refrigeration unit.

[Silus Xilarian]

Silus slipped up behind her as she was examining the fruits of her rummaging. She felt him immediately behind her, almost pressing against her. She could feel him lean down next to her ear. A moment later his arm found its way around her and to the vodka bottle in her had. He turned the bottle in her hand slightly so he could see the label.

"This is good stuff. I actually got to visit the distillery while I was working for Intel."

He backed up and put his hand on her shoulder.

"I'll go find us some ice."

He gave her shoulder a light squeeze and turned for the door.

[Bette Davis]

Her breath caught in her throat as he came up behind her, and she tried to look casual as he commented on the vodka and walked out of the room with the ice bucket.

Bette licked her lips as the door closed and took a deep breath. He’s been a prisoner of war for two fucking years, try to hold it together Shooter, goddamn.

She undid her ponytail, tucking the elastic into her jumpsuit pocket and running her hands through her hair. Then she unzipped her jumpsuit to her navel, zipped it back up until her white tank top was almost covered up completely, and had it about halfway down again when Silus opened the door.

Bette leaned on the dresser, then grabbed the vodka and opened it. “Must not have been too far away,” she said lightly, smiling.

[Silus Xilarian]

"Yep, just down the hall..."

He had a small metal bucket in his hand that was full of ice. The bucket he'd found on a service cart not too far away from the icemaker. The positioning of it suggested someone had just delivered a bottle of wine in it, then snuck out on the fire escape to have a quick break. He'd simply dumped the old used ice on the table and refilled the bucket at the ice maker.

When he walked in, he immediately noticed that Bette had unzipped her jumpsuit a bit. His pulse quickened for a moment, but he kept himself under control. He couldn't just assume he could reappear after two years and pick right back up where they'd left off. She could have a boyfriend, he never even asked! Also, nagging at the back of his mind was the fact that he wasn't back to what he used to be, not even close. He ignored it the best he could, but the thought was persistently there. He walked up and set the bucket on the dresser, then took the bottle from Bette's hand carefully.

"Allow me..."

[Bette Davis]

“Sure,” she said, a little too brightly, grinning. “Don’t go easy on the pour.”

As he mixed the drink she watched his movements. While he’d put on weight since she’d pulled him out of Alliance territory, Silus was still quite a bit skinnier than she was used to seeing him. When he looked up and caught her watching, she quipped, “No limes, but blumfruit and vodka is pretty good on its own.”

He handed her the glass, and she held it while he poured himself a drink. “Should we toast to something?”

[Silus Xilarian]

“To being alive despite our best efforts to the contrary.”

He tapped his glass against hers and took a drink, making a bit of a face as it went down.

”Okay I shouldn’t be in-charge of the booze, I’m a terrible bartender.”

[Bette Davis]

"I don't care," she said, tipping back the too-strong drink and drinking half of it before needing to take a breath.

"Gah! You weren't kidding!" Bette made a face, and then grinned. "I'll pour the next one." She tipped back her glass again, draining it.

Putting it back down she poured more vodka and juice in, making sure the ratios were a little more palatable, and then took it with her to the bed, sitting back against the headboard. "I can't believe we're both here right now."

[Silus Xilarian]

Silus followed suit and killed his first drink as well, a little too late though, as the more experienced bartender in the room was already on the other side of it. He poured himself a second drink, this time going a little easier on the booze. He took a test sip, found it to be satisfactory, then walked over to the bed. As he sat down and got situated, he had to switch his alcohol to his opposite hand as Bette scooted over closer to him. She wasn't completely snuggled up against him, but he remedied that by putting his arm around her and pulling her on over to him.

"Shadow Leader...I'm still tickled over that. How are you liking it?"

[Bette Davis]

"It's a pain in my ass," she said, then grinned as he pulled her in closer. "I'm responsible for eleven other souls and it scares the fuck out of me every time we go out. When we lose people I get to read the eulogy."

Bette sipped her second drink.

"I thought training nuggets was bad. I mean, don't get me wrong, I love every second of it. But -" She held up a finger, paused, and then burped. "It's a lot of responsibility."

[Silus Xilarian]

Silus chuckled at the burp.

"There's no better person do to it. Remember that every time you take your crew out. No matter what happens on a mission, no one else could have done any better."

He hugged her a little more tightly.

"What it sounds to me like you're really trying to say though, is that you've learned an entire new level of respect for me that you didn't think was possible."

[Bette Davis]

Bette laughed and dug her elbow into his side. "That's what you took away from that?" She wiggled away from him, holding her drink out in front of her and keeping an eye on it so it didn't spill. Once she reached the edge of the bed she tipped the drink back and finished it off.

Getting to her feet she walked to the dresser, trying to get to it before the booze hit her system too hard. Bette scooped up the drinks and brought everything back to the bed, setting them on the side table. Picking up the vodka she scooted back onto the bed, right up against Silus.

"Shots?" Without waiting for an answer she put the bottle to her lips and took a swig.

[Silus Xilarian]

"Easy now, there's two of us that's gotta get drunk off this!"

He took the bottle from her and knocked back a drink, shaking his head to help ignore the burning sensation running down his chest. As Bette reached for the bottle he started easing it upward, keeping it just out of her reach. As soon as she rose to eye level with him he leaned forward and kissed her.

[Bette Davis]

She fell against him, letting him catch her with his free arm as they locked lips. Bette closed her eyes and leaned into the kiss, her hand slowly traveling up his other arm toward the bottle.

[Silus Xilarian]

The bottle of liquor in his hand was the last thing on his mind at this point, and he offered no resistance when she took it from him. With his hand now free, he brought it down and brushed her hair aside as they kissed. He felt her begin to draw away from him and, without giving it a second thought, started kissing the side of her neck that he'd just brushed her hair away from.

[Bette Davis]

Bette tipped back the vodka, feeling a delicious haze begin to settle down over her as Silus turned his attentions to her neck. Grimacing at the burn from the liquor, she leaned into him in order to set the bottle on the side table on his side of the bed.

"I thought about you a lot over the last few years," she murmured. "And about what we did to that poor shuttle."

He perked up, and she said it before he could. "How we left it a fucking mess. Yes, I know." Bette laughed, gently pushing him back into the pillows. "Get your shirt off."

She unzipped her jumpsuit and let it fall to her waist, hooking her hands under her white tank top and pulling it off over her head. Shaking her hair free she leaned in over him, kissing his chest.

[Silus Xilarian]

There was a moment as Silus pulled his shirt off that self consciousness threatened to overtake him, manifesting itself as the slightest of hesitations before being overridden by the healthy dosage of liquid courage he had been consuming throughout the night. If Bette noticed or cared, however, she gave no indication, as she wasted little time planting her lips on his chest. He leaned back a little and closed his eyes, letting a quiet grunt of satisfaction slip. He laid there for a few moments, just enjoying what she was doing. He wasn't so drunk that his head was completely spinning, but he was far enough along that his sense of touch was somewhat muted, filtering out anything minor like the touch of the bedsheets against his skin or a the pillows under his head. With all that washed away, it only highlighted and enhanced what Bette was doing to him.

"Hey, come here..."

As she looked up toward him he reached down and guided her back face to face with him. He took a few moments to get lost in her eyes before pulling her down and kissing her again.

[Bette Davis]

Bette overbalanced and fell against him as they kissed, and started giggling uncontrollably. She rolled over next to him, head on his shoulder, still laughing.

"I wasn't planning this, you know," she said, once she'd managed to quell the giggles. "If I was, I wouldn't have worn a sports bra." Bette chuckled again, her hair nearly covering her face as she snuggled against him.

[Silus Xilarian]

Silus put his arm around her and idly traced a path up and down her upper arm with the tip of his finger.

"Well one thing I'm well known for is being a gentleman, so I'll politely cover my eyes while you take it off."

[Bette Davis]

"Sure you will," she retorted, straddling him on the bed. "Really, you shouldn't watch, it's a nightmare gettin' these things..." Bette struggled a little, her hair snarled in the tight mass of elastic and fabric that barely fit over her head, "...off."

She tossed the bra over her shoulder, landing it almost inside the ice bucket, and bent down over Silus for a longer, deeper kiss that evolved into a much more strenuous activity.

A few hours later Bette was snoring on the bed next to him, a pillow clutched to her chest as she lay there, completely and utterly relaxed.

[Silus Xilarian]

It was the middle of the night when Silus rose gently from his sleep. For a moment he was confused about where he was. With the room dark and Bette laying beside him, he thought for a moment that they were back on that shuttle heading for Telos IV. As he sat up and got his bearings about him, he was able to piece his memory back together. It puzzled him why his mind would go back to that specific point, but then it hit him. This is the first good sleep I've had since then...

He looked back at Bette and for a moment considered prying the pillow out of her arms and waking her up for another go. The nearly empty bottle beside him, however, suggested that she could probably profit from a few more hours sleep. He slid quietly out of the bed, being as careful as he could not to wake her. He grabbed the bottle off the nightstand and carried it with him. There was a chair next to the bed and he silently pulled it along as well as he made his way to the window. He took a drink and set the bottle down beside him. The city below them was still bustling, but that wasn't where his attention went. Instead he looked up at the sky. The light's from the city drowned out all but the brightest stars, but Silus decided that the night sky was still nice enough to look at.

The offer Bette had made to allow him to rejoin the Shadows weighed heavily on him. Even after she'd rescued him from Malastare, Silus was convinced that his life had ended the moment he ate that stun blast on Telos IV. Until she'd made that offer, he'd considered himself a dead man, and had just been looking for the best way to make it official. Tonight, she'd given him another option. The coin now had two faces. Life or death.

He took another drink and sighed.

[Bette Davis]

Bette opened overly dry eyes and dislodged her tongue from the roof of her mouth. She rolled over in the bed, flopping her arms over to where Silus should have been and finding nothing.

She sat up, looking around blearily for something to drink.

"Water," Bette croaked, stumbling out of bed and padding around naked in search of a clean glass she could drink out of.

[Silus Xilarian]

"There's a few bottles over on the table."

Silus was still in his chair, looking out the window. Without looking back, he pointed over to the nearby table where two glass bottles of water were sitting.

[Bette Davis]

She grabbed a bottle of water, then snagged the sheet off the bed and wrapped it around herself as she walked over to where Silus was sitting. Leaning against the window near the wall, Bette looked back at him while she opened the water and took a long sip.

”Beautiful night,” she said.

[Silus Xilarian]

Silus was deep in thought when Bette moved over to the window, and it took a moment for him to register that she was standing there. As he looked over toward her, his expression softened into a warm smile.

"It has some competition."

He gave her a bit of a wink before lifting the nearly empty bottle of liquor off the floor.

[Bette Davis]

She drained the water and set the empty bottle on the nearest horizontal surface, taking a few steps forward and settling into Silus' lap. Curling up, Bette rested her head on his shoulder, the sheet haphazardly wrapped around her still.

"Credit for your thoughts?"

[Silus Xilarian]

He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her tighter against him, while the other arm draped over the side of the chair. His hand kept contact with the bottle on the floor beside him as if he were worried it would sneak away.

"I'm just thinking about what it will be like to be up there again."

It was partially true, that thought had certainly been on his mind. It wouldn't do either of them any good for him to put words to every thought in his head, so he decided to just give her the good ones.

"I hear you all are flying Defenders now. I remember back on the Relentless we Garrett would never let me have any because the tech was so new. I'd go in there and raise high holy hell and he'd say..." Silus added some extra gravel to his voice, "...Shadow Squadron isn't a bunch of gallo pigs!. You'll get them when i'm convinced they won't randomly blow up!"

He shook his head a little and laughed. As furious as he'd get with Admiral Garrett, he missed the old bastard.

"Then he turned around and gave twelve of them to Reaver squadron just to spite me..."

As they spoke his free hand had left the bottle alone and found its way under her sheet, idly rubbing her lower leg.

[Bette Davis]

Still buzzing from her earlier binge, Bette just let Silus talk. As his hand brushed up her leg and under the sheet she kissed his shoulder.

"There's nothing like being up there. You know how it is. The thrill of the chase." Bette snuggled closer as his fingers quested further up her inner thigh. "The feeling of the G-forces as you pull of a ridiculous move, putting the enemy in your sights." She put a hand on the side of his face to pull him down for a kiss, the sheet sliding down as his fingers made contact below.

"And when you get the kill you've been working toward..." Bette moaned a little, adjusting her position on his lap.

[Silus Xilarian]

“...it’s the best feeling there is....”

Silus moved past her face and started kissing her just below her ear. Every move his hand made elicited another moan from her, and hearing that was driving him wild. Somewhere in his mind, the broodiness that he’d been feeling only minutes before was now suffering a quiet death.

“...and after you’ve done it, all you want...”

His lips locked down on her neck again.

[Bette Davis]

"...is to do it again."

Bette arched her back as he kissed her neck, her half-drunk condition causing her to lose her balance on her perch and nearly tumble to the ground. Silus held her tightly, however, and she squirmed with pleasure from what he was doing to her.

"Oh gods," she managed, throwing her arms around his neck and pulling herself more upright against him, pressing her body against his and pulling his face into her breasts.

[Silus Xilarian]

With his face between her breasts, he happily moved his attention there. He planted a kiss on the side of her breast...

"...and again..."

Then the top...

"...and again..."

Before moving up to eye level with Bette again. They held eye contact for a short moment before Silus opened his mouth to speak, only to find himself kissing her once more.

[Bette Davis]

She lifted up and adjusted herself down on his lap, gasping against his mouth as they continued kissing. "I... I forgot what we were talking about."

Bette moaned into his neck, clinging tightly as they found a rhythm of existence that was theirs alone. The galaxy spun around their hotel room to a dizzying climax, leaving their bodies flushed with pleasure and damp with sweat.

[Silus Xilarian]

They spent a few minutes wrapped in each others arms, sharing the occasional kiss or caress but saying nothing, just enjoying the closeness while they caught their breathes. Silus finally felt his heart rate return to normal when he felt Bette nuzzle up against his neck to whisper in his ear.

"Got one more in ya, flyboy?"

The temptation ran as far as it could through his mind before running into a brick wall of exhaustion. He let out quiet laugh before turning to kiss her.

"If I go one more time you may have to carry me out of here."

He leaned up and kissed her lightly on the forehead.

"I'm gonna grab a shower..."

[Bette Davis]

Bette settled back in the bed as Silus made his way into the refresher, and was soon sound asleep again.