(D11, LE Manka Cats Rule) Settling in, Moving Forward

[Dhelih Dotaivi]

"I'm not sure that trust would be warranted a few months ago," she says thoughtfully. "I've changed so much. I'm just...in such different circumstances." She runs her hands gently down his back, warming her hands up, and frankly enjoying the chance to simply indulge her senses and explore with a happy hum in the back of her throat.

"I can understand that. Wanting to know where you came from. That history. Connection." She uses her, admittedly slight, weight behind her hands as she works, gently at first, slowly finding the tighter spots to apply more pressure. "Will you return to your homeworld at some point as well, seeking?"

[Deonis Harik]

"Maybe I trust too easily." He said with a frown. Or maybe he was more susceptible to pretty faces than he thought. Hard to tell "it is what it is. And I like where it's lead me so far." He said with a smile in his voice.

He made gentle noises of appreciation at the way her hands massaged his muscles. The box really hadn't been that bad but he did train his muscles daily and had probably never had a massage before "I may return. We shall see. From what I have heard the Sith of Tund are.....broken or mad. Too long in the dark side. Not enough training."

[Dhelih Dotaivi]

That last leaves her silent for a time as she lets her hands speak for her, bringing an elbow or knuckle gently to bear where some stronger pressure was needed. She dips down to kiss his shoulder before settling her hands to the gentle curve of shoulder to neck before speaking. "You'd be that way too, wouldn't you? If you hadn't been taken?" After a pause. "I'm just...so happy to have you with me, I thought for a moment, how lucky that you weren't still there...but it wasn't a lucky thing you went through to get here. I've been hating those that did this to you." She traces one of the pale marks. "But how can I hate the thing that let you find a better path?

There's a small huff as she runs her hands along his shoulders and down his arms. "Making assumptions about it being a better path, I guess."

[Deonis Harik]

he shivered a little at her kiss then a little sigh as she attacked the stronger points of muscle stress "Most likely." he just relaxed into the feeling of her hands on him for awhile "its something I've thought about. I would have been raised in a cult. Learned much about the Force their way. Driven mad by it eventually." he went quiet for a while "The life I lead was not much better. Tortured, trained, beaten, forced to hunt. forced to kill." air caught in his throat for a minute. his chest tightened thinking of some of the things he regretted most.

After a moment he cleared his throat "Then living spaceport to port running. hiding. at least I was free." another pause dropped in "There were times I wondered if I would have been better off. Left there on Tund to live like so many of my kind have, reclusive, secretive and mad." his hand came over his shoulder and rested on hers "It was recently that I decided it has all been worth it. Some of that credit goes to you Dhel. This life, these hardships. They lead me here. To the Resistance. To the crew. To you."

[Dhelih Dotaivi]

She digs the heels of her hands hard into the space beneath his shoulder blades as he goes quiet. As if she could somehow force out the memory of old pain that way. Then her hands are coming back to rest at his shoulders, stilling as he reaches for one.

"Then I'm glad. I can't be glad about *how* it happened." She eases down to rest across his back with a sigh, nuzzling along the back of his neck. "But I can be glad that you've found something that makes it worth it, glad I can be part of that.

[Deonis Harik]

Nuzzled against his back she likely can hear the beating of his heart if only just. "Everything happens for a reason. You haven't had an easy life either. But it's led you here. It's made you who you are. Shitty things happen. Horrible situations happen. It's up to us to do the best with it." He said softly as one large thumb gently massaged her hand under his.

[Dhelih Dotaivi]

She listens, breathing slow to leave room for the faint, reassuring sound, as relaxed as she ever could be. "Wasn't so bad for me. Had a place to live, people to look out for me." Her breath brushes against his skin. "But yeah, everyone's doing their best. I can't even fault some of the things, the cruelty people do to get by. It's the ones who're like that and don't need to be that I just..." there's a shiver of the skin along her arms, like a horse shooing a fly. "Anyway, don't need to think about them just now." Instead, she shifts slightly, knees curling up against his ribs.

"mmm, see, could sleep right here on you, very comfy," she says with an unseen smile, rotating her hand to grasp his.

[Deonis Harik]

He gently squeezed her hand "could get used to this." His voice rumbled out slightly sleepily the cuddles and massaging having their effect as he relaxes into her.

[Dhelih Dotaivi]

"I'd really like you to," she says, relaxing into that warm rumble with a content purr. Quietly, already half-asleep, "because I plan to."

/ft sleep?

[Deonis Harik]

The reassuring weight and warmth of Dhel on him mixed with the exhaustion from the past few days and the comfort of their quiet discussion meant he needed little more convincing. Soon hos breath came deep and regular as he drifted off to sleep.

/Fade to sleep