“Maybe she was hoping we were still ‘joint at the hip’ so she'd get to speak to both of us when she got through.” Aria shrugged and returned his smile as they fondly thought of the red-headed former mercenary who had been their companion for a short time during Bracknell and Soto’s insurgence, but whom they had not seen for some months since she had returned to Alderaan in order to spend more time with her children. Glancing briefly at the pair of Elders who walked just in front of them, she nodded her agreement at his suggestion.
“Definitely. We're long overdue catching up with Neta, and it'd be nice to go somewhere different.”
Investigation of Neta’s gift to them, however, would have to wait for another six hours. Since Roan had removed her to the Academy on Korriban, Aria had little contact with such lengthy and boring political exchanges. Now she remembered why she hated them. There were only so many times one could excuse themselves to go to the bathroom (and indeed only so long one could stall by making said trips at a slower-than-normal pace) before the other people in the room would get suspicious of the avoidance tactics, thus they were forced to look as interested as possible whilst trying not to fall asleep in their chairs. It was easy to see how a lot of diplomats (her mother included) ended up sipping more than too much wine during these meetings in order to dull the monotony of the whole thing. Unfortunately, no such wine was available in this case and instead the duo had to be content munching on the cashew nuts in the middle of the table. By the end of it, she was wishing there HAD been wine, and was more than glad to hear all they had to do was attend the signing ceremony in the morning.
__________
Neta’s gift was puzzling enough to FIND in the first place, but once they had found the correct terminal and travelled to the address in question, Aria found herself even more speechless. Turning around in a slow circle to admire everything around them, Aria responded to Yerbol's statement with a similar observation of her own:
“Jeez...you could practically eat off the floor.” which she quickly amended with a sheepish grin so as not to appear to be a slob. “Not...not that I'd recommend that, of course.” the datapad on the wall chirruped loudly to announce an incoming voice call, the familiarly sultry, cheerful voice that greeted them instantly occupying the duo's attention.
“Neta!” the Champion chuckled as she drifted further in, her face also reddening deeply at the former pilot's insinuations. “Nobody said anything about a wedding!” she protested quickly, glad that Yerbol was preoccupied going in the opposite direction towards the hallway so he wouldnt notice the chsnge in her complexion, while Aria instead made her way through to the kitchen area, finished with glistening black and white marble countertops and streamlined cabinets in a matching colour scheme framed around one of the walls, the front-most one that she currently faced also sporting a set of medium sized rectangular windows that gave a rather fantastic view of the skyline. Just off from the kitchen and living area was another set of glass doors that led onto a quaint little balcony that allowed an even better view of the city vista, the Champion taking a moment to admire it from the doorway before she headed back inside to better converse with Neta.
“...You really do enjoy dropping unexpected surprises like this on us, don't you?” Aria smirked good-naturedly. “I don't know how you're going to top this one, Neta….” she blew out a breath, shaking her head as she tried to put her gratefulness into proper words. “But, thank you. Really. I don't know what else to say.” Neta’s insistence that they should visit made the Champion smile even further. “We'll make Alderaan our next stop as soon as the signing is over, and Neta…” Yerbol was preoccupied momentarily by checking out the bedroom which allowed Aria to quietly mumble, still red-faced, “If there ever IS a wedding, I promise you'll be the first to know.”
That seemed to please the former spec ops merc, who cheerily signed off after a quick farewell in order to get started on dinner.
Prompted to join him in the other part of the house by his question, Aria sighed contentedly, wrapping her arms around his waist gently.
“No, I guess we don't...have you seen the view from the balcony? Leave it to Neta to give us a place that looks like it's kitted out for a Senator to live in, remind me to forbid her to give us anything else after this or else we might end up with a private wing of Alderaan’s palace as a holiday home!” the Champion shook her head fondly, still a little in shock from the generosity of their friend’s gift to them.
“We should have saved some of that wine from the ship.”
____________
Whether they did indeed procure more wine to accompany that evening’s meal certainly didn't put a damper on the duo’s spirits as they lounged in the (very comfortable) semi-recliner chairs which were positioned slightly to one corner of the balcony to allow the best angle of the vista before them, simply enjoying the peace and quiet (or at least, in comparison to the constant explosions and screams of terror that had been the soundtrack to their endeavours the last four months) and the option to actually engage in idle chatter for once before turning in for the night and getting a much-deserved and peaceful rest on a bed that was actually REALLY comfortable for once; not that their sleeping quarters at the academy had been UNCOMFORTABLE, but they were certainly designed to be economical (as they had to be, with so many rooms to outfit) and certainly wouldn't hold a candle to the comfort offered here.
Aria was almost disappointed to have to get up in the morning in order to attend the signing ceremony, but of course they had promised and they could hardly let the Elders down. It was difficult to judge how smartly to dress, given how momentous an occasion it was, but in the end they settled for something smart and relatively simple. The thought of being in an outfit drenched head to toe in sequins, complicated stitching and tight bodices that made it hard to even BREATHE made Aria flinch internally. She was thankful that the dark navy calf length dress she had managed to find amongst her possessions was none of those things. Twisting her hair up into as much of a braid as she could manage due to its shorter length, she pinned it in place with an ornate pin that depicted various native Onderonion flora, something else Cheriss had told her once belonged to her mother.
Turning to face her partner, who looked surprisingly dashing all dressed up in a suit, she was happy to note, the Champion smiled brightly and resolved to make the most of the situation as she linked her arm through his.
“I haven't had to wear this in years...not since my mother made me learn to waltz when I was sixteen.” she chuckled fondly at the memory of the last visit she had with her mother before she had died, the duo catching the next taxi from the nearby pad back to the the Alliance tower. “Before you ask, yes, apparently that's what ladies of mid to high class stature do on Onderon. They also do not yawn, sneeze or slouch, EVER (in public), nor may they step on their dancing partner's toes.” by the end of the sentence, all Aria's attempts at keeping a serenely straight face had failed and they were both laughing until they arrived.
The ceremony was thankfully a short one, comprised of Saresh and her aides giving a brief summary of the treaty’s agreements, and then asking the Qyaari to give a brief statement to address the people who had gathered to watch. Thankfully, her mother’s lessons in public speaking (“stand up straight, keep smiling and never look anyone in the crowd directly in the eye” were particular techniques she imparted to Yerbol beforehand. They helped lessen the anxiety a lot.) were good for something and Aria managed to apply some of her advice in order to successfully make it through the short public speaking stint (Ailel and Matt did most of the talking of course, but it was only appropriate for the younger pair to make a minor contribution to congratulating the people of Coruscant for surviving and successfully working together with both Saresh and the newly established Qyaari in order to make the treaty possible in the first place. Then of course the Elders had to actually sign the written document, and after the cheering had died down Saresh made another brief (as far as a Chancellor’s speeches could be concerned) closing statement and the ceremony was dismissed.
“Well, that wasn't so bad. Not something I'd like to make a habit out of, though.” Aria sighed as they returned to the tranquility of their newly acquired residence, where the Tuk'ata had been left to wait patiently. This, she had to give them credit where it was due, Chwuq and Taral had actually done without destroying anything.
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