The thunder obviously unnerved her; in fact, she looked and felt more on edge ascending the stairs than when she had been cornered by soldiers. With each boom her pace quickened until she almost collided with Rene in her haste to reach a room- any room- that had sufficient soundproofing to block out the noise. Solae had always found that people had some level of predictability. Whether they were sane or a victim of mental illness, whether they were narcissists or selfless like Rene evidently was, whether she found them admirable or reprehensible in their actions, there was pattern. Generally if you looked long and hard enough you could find some sort of logic to their behavior.

Storms, however, represented a great fear of Solae: a force greater than people that could not and would not be controlled. Meteorologists had become advanced enough to anticipate many storm developments but not all. Even the prime planets of the Empire still had, on occasion, a natural disaster. While they had the means to neutralize the threat, such anomalies posed they existed albeit briefly. On outlier planets such as New Concordia there were no resources to tightly control the whims of the wind and clouds. Nature was a destructive beast that could not be read and analyzed with enough precision to be conquered or controlled like people. Underestimating the wrong storm could lead to serious injury or death- and Solae had had more than enough of that lately.

"Seal the room please, Mia," Solae instructed breathlessly. She had not noticed the dimmed lights, the large bed, or the seductive music yet. Alloy metal slid out of the door frame where it had been previously invisible. There was a soft hiss of air as silicone padding also emerged and pressed itself between the door and the metallic edging. As the layers compressed it formed an air-tight seal that not only completely mitigated all sound from outside the threshold but also gave them an added layer of protection should they be discovered. Relief washed over Solae's features. Gone was the rolling cacophony of fury in the sky. Rationally she knew it still existed but right now, in this moment, she was allowed to pretend it did not. Tension eased out of her shoulders as she took a deep breath.

Solae turned to address Rene about sleeping arrangements and belatedly realized the tune playing softly over speakers. Her face flushed and words died before they managed to move her tongue. This was not a randomized selection chosen by Mia out of ignorance. Not all of Solae's time with Lord Armon had been innocent distant parley and Mia had learned from those experiences. To 'help' her guests she had started some of the favorites that she knew awakened latent desires in Solae most effectively. This caused a massive amount of discomfort in the marquise as Rene had made it clear he was disinterested and, even if he were, he was so horribly covered in bruises she could only suspect it would be incredibly painful. Not that she would impose herself on him. He had left the nobility and joined the Marines. This was a choice she assumed he did not take lightly and was indicative of a presumed desire to keep himself from the courts. A tryst with Solae would inevitably push him back into that realm unless they managed to keep a purely physical relationship.

"Mia, I appreciate the thought but I believe Sir Rene is not interested," she told the artificial intelligence system delicately. Anticipating some sort of remark on bodily functions and chemistry she avoided looking at Rene as she tossed off the covers to one side of the bed and sat down, dangling her feet over the side. "I'm sure it's in your directives to respect such decisions. I'm also certain that your scan of our vital signs indicated we could use some rest for recuperation."

There was a humming sound from Mia before the music was purposefully lowered to silence. Solae rubbed her feat, the abrasions and cuts that covered them causing a dull ache, before she lifted them onto the luxurious mattress. A second later, after pulling up the sheet and duvet to her shoulders, Solae sleepily motioned to Rene to make himself comfortable as he saw fit. "I think you're safe from further Mia commentary from now," she murmured drowsily.