Alderaan - Love and Intrigue

He had just finished sharing the news his pending departure of the Turtle, for however long it will last. There was some time before the crowning ceremony began, and he would be surrounded by love and other things. All the better reason to have a drink inside him to help deal with that. It had been hard to control his feelings over the past few days, maybe it was due to the festival, maybe due to his leaving the Turtle for a little while, maybe because of Lana. Maybe it was a combination of every small thing.

It was frustrating that such sentimental nonsense was getting the better of him. Just had to keep it together for a little while and get off this planet before things got worse.

So, sitting at the bar, enjoying another whiskey, and maybe just enjoy a calm rest of the afternoon would do the trick.

The drink was placed before him first. This time it was something different altogether, but it still had that heavy dependence on fruity flavor she liked. Seconds after it was delivered Riss placed herself on the stool beside him. Turning toward him, leg swung over her knee, elbow on the counter, and head in the palm of her hand.

"Thank you," she says, rather simply.

He looked to her and nodded in her approach. He grabbed the fruity concoction before she had a chance to do anything and took a sip. "Different flavor profile, but still has that really sweet taste to it. Better aftertaste, however." He looked over at her and offer a polite nod before placing the drink back to her.

"How have you been since that day?" A small tone of concern came from him; it really was bothersome.

"I'm okay," she lied with a pleasant smile. Giving a look toward the bartender and holding up her index, and then all five, before pointing toward the counter in front of herself. With that signal given she looks back to Nudimsu. Digging around in her jacket pocket she produces the little earpiece thing he'd given her. Holding it out between them, "Nearly forgot this."

"I don't know if your Chiss friend ever told you..." He said, keeping his focus on at Riss. "...About our eyes." He looked at the hardware and nodded, taking it and placing it on the table. "We see partially in the infrared spectrum of light. Allows us to see well in the dark, since our planet is mostly filled with darkness. What he may not havea told you is that it also allows us a additional advantage."

He stared at her for a few moments, looking her over then turned away. "I can see the heat radiate off your face. It may not seem like much, but many of us use it to determine your state of mind, understand your emotions a little bit better. Those who are trained to use it, however, have a secondary ability with it." He kept his eyes focused on her deeply as he spoke his next sentence.

"We can tell when people are lying, although I'm sure any Chiss could tell it with the way your face is flared up." He then turned to his drink and went back to drinking it. "Hmm...your drink does not go well with whiskey."

"Neat party trick," she says, with the device placed on the table she takes the drink into the same hand instead. Taking a sip from it as she sits with a furrowed brow, "You know, the guy didn't speak much but the lady? Forget her name now.. kriff," she shakes her head, it didn't really matter. "Anyway, she liked to go on and on about what your special vision could see. Heat and all that? Well, it has fun uses in places," she smirks, chuckling to herself.

"Still," another sip of her drink. "Not sure you can rely on heat too much to tell if someone's lying, mm? Some folk can be stone cold about it. Seen it, done it," she smiles briefly, but it fades very quickly. "But yea, I'm lying," she shrugs. "Why wouldn't I, mm? You know well enough how I am right now. Spilled everything anyway.." she glances off down the counter, slowly sipping at her drink.

"It's not perfect." He says with a shrug. "For instance, find a way to increase your body temperature, like a a unusual amount of exposed skin in the sun and it's hard to tell anyways. Being sick also makes it hard. It also requires you know what it's supposed to look like when they are not lying. Lots of preparation to use it properly, but it at least helps me understand human moods a lot more over the years. You should have spoken to me 10 years ago; I was so lost trying to understand you all." He turned his head back at her. "But not the point, I would be concerned if you were okay after what you went thru. Should try to be more honest with your feelings, if not for others, but for yourself."

He sighed and shook his head "It's perfectly fine to feel the way you do. Even the Chiss, after the job is done, mourn for friends and loved ones; you are expected to grieve." Nudimsu then stared out at the bar for a moment. "My concern is not for this moment, but the ones after. Will you be okay a week from now? A month? A year? I don't know if I'm doing this 'supportive friend' thing right." He shook his head again. "Maybe I should leave it alone and let it happen. I just...rather not see another person end up like Craw and so consumed with grief that they cannot function; it is a waste of a life."

Riss sits there for a half a minute looking to him, measuring him. It was always a bit harder with Chiss, on account of those pupil-less eyes not quite giving a sense of emotion. Wasn't something most folk managed to pick up on in the moment, but it was always there and present. That instinctual searching for the emotion of the eyes just didn't quite work the way it was meant to, leaving that cold and unfeeling nature to them. Taking in a larger breath, a longer sigh, "I'll be fine. It's.. new to me, this," she gives a flippant wave of her hand as if to reference the situation in general.

"I'll figure it out though. I've lost my whole family before today, found out my boyfriend was ready to sell slaves to the Empire, I've.. I've bounced back and gotten this far so. I'll be okay," she says, looking away as she takes another long sip. Finding herself near enough halfway through the glass already. Which was good considering from a quick look down the bar her next was on it's way. "Thanks though," she says, glancing back with a brief smile.

"Wanna talk about your Craw and I'll talk about my crazy kriffed up stories, get a couple more drinks in and forget everything else for a little while?" she suggests with the rising smile.

[I'm thinking Scene toward talking for a while?]

His eyes continued to stare at her for a long moment as he considered her offer. "I never drink to get drunk." He said with a long stare. "But I'll get close to it today to ensure the mood is maintained, if that is alright. Best for one of us to be able to carry the other, if things get out of hand as well. Not to mention the rose ceremony in a few hours. Otherwise, I can agree to those terms." He paused again and looked at the comm unit and slid it back to her. "How about I let you hold onto it for a little while longer. It is still not yours to keep; I expect it back. So do not do what you humans normally do and get some sort of sentimental attachment to inanimate objects. Just know that I will return for it another day." He sat there in silence as he looked at the comm and looked to his drink, motioning for another whiskey to replace the one he had.

"So...Craw is a Mandalorian. Hired him out of desperation for a gunner while doing a mission on Nar Shaddaa. It was for the peace talks between the Empire and the Republic, and Durasay was hired to. Quite the large pain in the ass, he was. Married a Chiss before, but it was a rather large annoyance that he would just..."And so he rambled on for awhile about it for awhile about his experiences before letting Riss get in her tales. Probably the first time he talked about himself in a good while. Things were left out of course, even after he had his third whiskey, but he had wrapped up Bankor before he would finally let her get her turn in. But, he'd at least sat just as patiently and quietly listen to her rant just as much about her problems. Who knows, she may have gotten lucky in that he was able to understand why at least half of things she said were problems, but one should not get optimistic on these things.

((Sure, we can wrap it up))

"Considering I'm a Countess now, you'll know where to find me," she offers with a sly smirk, raising the glass before taking another sip. Settling back in to listen as he begins to spin his tale about Craw. Riss was attentive, as she was with most things when it came to other people. It was something certainly notable about her how she could take an interest in almost anyone and Nudimsu and his Craw were no exception. Though it was no concern here, no matter how boring the story the one telling it always had a way of adding that importance to it for her. At least in the moment. So she sat, drank, and listened for as long as he spoke and absorbed all the little details.

Of course, when it was her turn, there wouldn't be too much complaining directly as spinning the wild tales of her life. Some seemed unbelievable, but there was truth to every single one. Tales of her earlier life sparked the concern he was expecting but to his delight there would be equal showings of personal improvement in her later ones. Such as one particular tale of how she was the daring Captain saving a Jedi from war-torn Coruscant once. A tale she would, if he seemed to pick up on it, reference being about Katarzyna, her dear friend. Each was embellished just a little but it was easy to tell as she seemed to enjoy painting herself as something of a hero in all of her stories but she did so in an easily noticeable manner. Anyone with even the slightest critical thought about her story would realize this, as it's intention wasn't really to deceive.

By the end, she was still sober enough to walk out on her own but there was a certain warmth to her that was only accomplished by the alcohol. Considering she had nowhere to be for a while? They had quite a few hours to talk, and she'd keep going until he stopped her.

But what happened beyond that was totally left to them, as the screen raises up and then wipes.

/scene