Log:Baby Fever X 2
Baby Fever X 2
OOC Date: September, 2018
Location: Nar Shaddaa
Participants: Qadira Suuryet, Rheisa Dirleel, Atridusk, Tamrae
In which Rheisa meets the twins. It would seem that her wedding gift to Ax and Kadi had magical properties, after all...
Sunny days on Nar Shaddaa - a rarity. A break in inclement weather means that fewer passerby are driven indoors, which means that the Muse is not as busy as it could be. Kee'tch'ka, the protocol droid, is left to tend business and hold down the fort as oft he's made to do while the gallery's curator ducks out for a quick errand or two. Or three. She's found lunch. The Togruta is making her way back now with a suspiciously stained satchel full of lumpy, limp cargo and pauses just outside the display window to rub out a sticky set of handprints with the hem of her sash.
Atridusk wanders by hes heading for his normal haunt the Blue Light. His head on something else entirely obviously when he glances up and sees the Togruta standing there. "'Ello, there wha' are ya up to?" He asks curiously as he looks around for any escort she may have.
Kadi. Oh yes, Kadi. With anxious droids and security. Because it's Kadi. And it's the twins. And it's Nar Shaddaa. And that is the Art Gallery which is right where the new mother is going. Though she comes to a stop as she spies a certain Togruta out there. "Oh. Rheisa, hey!" she greets. "We came to invite you out for a visit." There's a small gurgle, and then a half wail from one of the two babies in the stroller.
Rheisa's hand drops it like it's hot - the hem, that is - when one of the pedestrians wanderers happens to address her so closely and suddenly. Her recovery's almost flawless from startlement to calm, collected reply and she turns her head to give the armored Devaronian a casual once-over. "Work," she answers simply and gestures vaguely to his pistol. "What you is doing? I hope is no trrrouble, coming in this ways." As her thick, gutteral accent betrays, Basic is /not/ her first language. Her head jerks sideways to indicate the gallery entrance. "Is no fights, inside. No weapon. Yes?" Maybe she's just a touch paranoid...
And then a certain little human and her droid entourage comes into view and Rheisa's eyes soften from shrewdly suspicious to bright and welcoming. "Kadi!" she shouts and waves emphatically with one arm. "I have been wanting to come see...you have thems---you DO have thems." The babies, 'thems' is, or so tells the heightening pitch of squeal forming in the back of her throat.
Atridusk turns to the source of the noise of baby like things and starts to back away to get a better look. Looking to Rheisa he pats his blasters and says with a laugh. "Nah nah ya aint go'a worry abou' me none, I aint lookin' fer no trouble. I carry the blasters fer work and ta defend myself i's a tough galaxy out there innit?" He asks softly to her. "No fightin' will be done bu' I don' think I can hand over my blasters in good conscience. My name is Atridusk bu' you can call me Atri or dusk whats yalls names?"
Kadi hears her name, so she takes her hover stroller that way. "Hey, Rheisa," she greets. "Yes, I have the twins with me. Though not for long, right?" She does let the stroller go to where the two babies, seriously, they're what? a month or two old? tops - are resting. They are awake, and occasionally one or the other makes a fussy noise, but for the most part, they're busy watching the world go by. "I'm Kadi," she says, with a nod to Atridusk who just introduced himself. "These two little ones are Blossom and Whyren."
A little trill of heightening excitement undertones Rheisa's reply. "Am Rrrreesa, Dirleel, of the Muse," she motions again to the building face they're standing in front of. "Was once only worker, now am owner. Is mine." She pats the weathered duracrete then can contain her impulses no longer and drops the satchel in favor of mobbing the stroller. The bag'o'rats thuds rather meatily on the ground but doesn't spill its contents. "Okay, I can hold, yes?" asked as her hands are already moving in to scoop up whichever baby is in front.
Atridusk nods his head to both. "The pleasure is mine ladies." He says with a smile on his face. "Well you got yerself yer own business Im tryina do tha' myself, bu' fer mine my business is on board a ship so Im savin my creds fer me own ship."
Kadi has a hover stroller with the twins in it. She is standing outside the Muse, with Rheisa and Atri, the three conversing. "Of course you may hold them, Rheisa," Kadi says. Though she doesn't look like she's about to offer the same to Atri - who she doesn't know anywhere near as well. Kadi's droids and security detail are on high alert. Kadi however is ignoring them, instead visiting with her old friend Rheisa, and new acquaintance. "What sort of business?" she asks lightly. "And what sort of ship? I'm a ship engineer, personally, so they are always interesting to me."
There's a screech that's heard before the thing that made the screech comes into sight. "Dammit, Adder, that's my ear right there. Yes, I know that Kadi is near, that's why we're heading this way you twit," Ax says to the small sand-dragon perched upon his shoulder. "You're a pain in the ass, you know that."
The tailring just nuzzles Ax's cheek, pulling a bit on the tether that links his harness to the Echani's wrist. "I see her," Ax says. "We're heading that way," he tells the winged lizard as Ax approaches Kadi. Ax seemed to have a sixth sense when it came to finding his wife. His pet tailring, Adder, was struggling to go from Ax's shoulder to Kadi's.
Two hands...two babies. The first gets lain to rest carefully over her breast and shoulder and balanced with so seemingly carefree a hand that surely Rheisa's juggled many an infant in her day. Surely. The left hand is then free to scoop up the sibling, arm slide along the length of spine and smooth, no-nubbed cranium cupped in hand. The twins are again side-by-side, nestled into a bed of beads and feathers and furry bits. Perfectly suitable for any 'gruta babe, so why not a pink little 'human'. Weird and funny smelling as their new perch might be, it comes with an added benefit of low-frequency vibrations, thrumming up deeply in the striped handler's chest.
"Is good to have freedoms of travel," is the extent to which Rheisa can empathize with the horned man's desire for his own vessel. She turns her back on the little group and begins to key her access into the Muse, opening it up to abduct the babies inside.
Foyer - Art Gallery - Corellian District, Nar Shaddaa The Muse has undergone a recent renovation - the change of interior design hugely noticeable to anyone whod been here when it was owned by the Yume brothers. Gone are the sterile, white walls and floors and posh rugs. Its been replaced by an earthier feel. The foyer is a soft shade of grey, a neutral canvas to showcase new works of local artists or a traveling show. A large, olive, reptilian skin serves as an entry runner, stylishly catching street grime on its rough hide. Three large, textured clay pots are deposited around the open space, serving as a base for tall columns of dried floral arrangements. A few plush, brown leather stools encircle each one.
A small rack to the left of the entrance showcases a few handbags for sale, stitched by hand from slick, black fur and some pebbly, yellowish hide. There's no label to tell what creature(s) was sacrificed in their making. A stout stone pillar to the right of the entrance serves as a perch for a seemingly solid, gold monkey-lizard. There is an archway in the back, leading deeper into the art rooms, and framed by small, carved wooden medallions of geometric design. In the far, right corner is a narrow door which remains closed and locked. From the left, rear end of the room, a polished, black ramp ferries visitors to a second story. Under the ramp is a sleek, black desk where the proprietor can keep an eye on folks or happily make transactions. A tiny, shimmering projection spells Rheisa Dirleel across the desk front edge.
Atridusk smiles at the ladies as he moves to follow them into the art gallery. "Well Im looking at a Moncalamari DeepWater Light Freighter." He tells Qadira. "You know anythin' aboutem?"
As the group ventures into the Muse, Ax is quick to come in behind them. Adder making enough noise to make sure that stealth was out of the question. "Hey ladies," he says as he looks between Kadi and Rheisa. Then, his attention is drawn towards Atridusk at the mention of the Deepwater. "Interesting ship, damned big for something with such a small cargo capacity, but it's designed as a scientific vessel more than a cargo hauler."
Kadi and her security, along with the hover stroller promptly follow Rheisa in, leaving the knapsack she dumped on the ground where it fell. That's Rheisa that dumped the squishy mess of ick that Kadi is just not going to think about. She grins at Ax, and tilts her head so that Adder can come to her shoulder if he so chooses, and Ax lets him. "Hey, Ax. Have you met Atridusk here?" she asks. She then turns back to the so named fellow, with a nod. "I'm - sure, a bit. Very familiar with CEC of course, being Corellian, but I've worked on any number of different models." The boy and girl little baby humans decide they are okay with the Togruta thrumming purr for now, even if it does smell a bit strange.
"Ax," Rheisa greets with her back still turned. Adder's quick motions and high-pitched shrieking elicit the same instinctive twitch of her head in that direction as it always does, but...Tailring is friend, not food. Also, her hands are full. "Is beautiful, Blosom and Whyrrrrrrn," she praises the quality of these two offspring while padding silently over the stone floor in her bare feet to the desk space under that ramp. Endorphins are sooo high right now. Umak would be insanely envious, were the four year old here. There's no red'n'white little heathen to be spied though. There IS, however, a Kee'tch'ka.
"Good afternoon," the droid chimes a bit behind cue, shuffling in from the adjoining exhibit hall. His head swivels left, right, and finds no record of the Devaronian's face in his memorybank. "I am Kee'tch'ka," he introduces his helpful self, neverminding that it interrupts the conversation in play with Qadira and Ax. "Guest relations and personal assistant to Mistress Dirleel. Welcome to the Muse. Please note the instructionals at the door. Is there any way in which I might be of service?"
Said "instructionals" are hand-scrawled signs no doubt written by Rheisa (a 10 yr old could do better) that are posted around the entrance and read: "No Fights" "No Shooting" "If Wet, Use Towel," with a downward arrow to indicate...an empty basket to the left of the entry rug. Lastly, "No Stealing". Cuz sometimes you just need to be clear.
It's actually the shrieking that coaxes Tamrae to peer inside. She recognizes it! Or at least, she's fairly sure there aren't a lot of tailrings around on Shadda, and she knows a person who has one of them. She perks as she sees Kadi and Ax, walking over. "Hi boss!" She peers, her ears perking forward at the presence of the small humans. "Oh! Ya brought 'em here with ya?" she says, smiling. She did note the 'rules' at the door. Also that someone seems to have ignored them and stolen all the towels from the basket. Because it's Nar Shadda.
Ax offers a bow and a smile to Rheisa and Tamrae. "I just came to tell my wife that the ship is packed up, I brought extra diapers and formula, plenty of clothes, and I found a perfect destination for us," he says with a smile before turning to Kadi. "I figure we'll leave out in a couple of hours. I just want to do a couple of last minute things before we depart for clean air, clean water, sunshine that doesn't give you skin lesions, and weather that doesn't make you drown in sweat."
Ax looks to Atridusk. "It was good meeting you," he says with a smile before turning back towards his wife. He leans in to give her a quick kiss. "I'll let you visit with Rheisa and Tamrae while I handle everything else." Then, back to Rheisa and Tamrae. "Sorry to run, but it's our first real trip with the kids and not dragging Kadi's parents along."
Kadi gets a quick nuzzle from the tailring, who then heads out with Ax. She nods as he explains. "Alright, I wanted to visit with Rheisa, and then we'll be ready to go." And then as he heads out, she catches sight of Tamrae, which brings another smile. "Hey, Tam," she greets. "You know Rheisa and Atridusk here?" Of course Ax left. "And this is Whyren and Blossom, Rheisa's got them for the moment." She smiles, settling against a desk and watching. "Let me know if you want me to take one or both of them back, Rheisa."
"Nah, is okay..." Rheisa waves off Ax and the actual mother of these children with a flick of a few fingers. One arm supports two rumps with a crossways hold and the poor kid that doesn't have a hand for extra stability in this moment DOES have a firm, muscular headtail draping there to prevent it from pitching over sideways. "You have not been keeping them on this moon long, then?" she arcs one hairless brow to Kadi over her shoulder while squatting down to fish something out from under her desk with a few nimble toes. Tamrae is offered a full second of eye contact to acknowledge her welcomed existence, too, but then it's back to inhaling the smells of the newly born. New enough, anyway. "I make somethings, for baby...is good for two, too." The foot passes the large bag to her free hand, which passes it to Kadi before helping to shift the infants' weights around. She sits, back against the wall, and gently lays them back in the bow of her lap, knees tucked up to secure.
From this vantage point she can more intensely study them, make comparisons, and peer into those foggy baby blues to get a read on the soul. "It is said that when two bodies are born from same womb, in same birth, they are same spirit. A spirit so powerful, it could not live inside one body alone. It is a rare thing, this..." Gotta love indigenous folk wisdoms. "It is known."
The Mom Satchel is full of other handmade things, including:
- 1 rolled up, fur blanket/playmat, with large beads and wooden animals attached via tassle at the four corners
- A small gourd rattle, painted white with red geometric patterns
- 2 strands of teething beads - big clay beads of varying textures and colors and shapes
- a generic, 4-legged herd animal-shaped creature cut from leather and stuffed to be firm enough to satisfy aching fangs...or wussy human baby teeth.
Tamrae giggles, waving to Ax as he heads off and nodding to Atridusk as he slips out after, before joining the remaining two women, her lower hands in her pockets and her upper clasped behind her back. "I think I've met her once before...she had her...son with her?" the Codru-Ji says curiously, regarding Rheisa. "Wow, ya really look like ya know what yer doin' with a baby. Or two." She perks at the bag. "Oh, neat! That's pretty!" she says, tilting her head. "Bag full of distractions an' stuff?"
Kadi blinks and reaches for the bag that Rheisa is offering. "Oh," she says first, eloquently. "This is beautiful, Rheisa, thank you." And she peeks inside, and has to laugh. "And it's got - all kinds of things for them, aww, Rheisa, this is amazing. Thank you!" A small four legged animal shaped creature stuffed toy gets pulled out, and shown off. "Absolutely wonderful. Yes, baby distractions for when they get a bit bigger." She glances over to Tam, and then back to Rheisa. "She does, doesn't she? Rheisa, you are very good with those two. They're not even crying yet. We haven't been bringing them here, no. It's not the safest, and they are too little to breathe in all the junk that is here. Maybe when they get to be as big as Umak."
"Mmm," Rheisa confirms all of what Tamrae's said with a simple hum. Her thighs jiggle rhythmically to keep the babies alert and on their game while fingers inspect their little outfits. "Is all Rrreesa was allowed to do, at home. Too sick to make the big hunts...too broken to make babies of her own. Just keep watch over others'." A touch of sadness slants her smile but vanishes as quickly as it'd come. "Is good, they stay away. Moon is shit," parroting as she's heard others describe. "Do not like to breathe it into my own." Can't argue with healthy precautions. "Maybe when you go back to Naboo, I come visit there. Brrring Umak. He is good with Boon, Heksash'kuri son." Very slowly she rises and ferries the younglings back to their magical basket (hover stroller). "I am sorry I cannot feed them. In another season, if I am near them enough, yes?"
Offering up your nips to feed a friend's offspring? Done without batting a lash on Shili world. And so it is that Rheisa doesn't think twice.
Tamrae ums. "...you can do that?" she says, flushing a bit at Rheisa. "I didn't know that. Um, well...she's not wrong." Tamrae scritches a cheek with her upper right hand. "I mean...I guess Ax an' ya could, I dunno, make like a room fulla plants that'll make the air better for where ya live, maybe? Hydrophonics stuff. Adhar just hired some Kaminoan woman ta help us set somethin' like that up on th' Business, maybe he could give ya her info and she could do somethin like that for ya too?" she says curoiusly.
Kadi blinks, going just a tad green. Because squishy stuff! seriously! Ahem. "In another season you - ah. I - thank you." She's discombobulated, but as her babies get back into their hover stroller, she take advantage of her opportunity to nod, smile, flee and translate later. "I should get these two to the ship. And find out what destination Ax has found for us. Thanks again." She waves to the two and makes her escape.
