Glitter and Glass

LSF Revan/Carth fluffthing… Revan considers all she's got.

Rated PG13 – Everything you think may be the culprit is.

Disclaimer: -disclaims-

Glitter and Glass

The city of Coruscant was bleak that day. Rain poured down in grim sheets, turning the entire city grey and sleepy. The once-glittering skyscrapers now bowed before the onslaught and the enormous waves of dark clouds that rolled in. Only the windows sparkled… shining with the water droplets and light within.

In a single apartment complex Relina stood looking out the window, her fingers pressed and spread against the smooth glass. Her abdomen was tilted forward with her legs crossed beneath her. The cold tickled her exposed skin and her parted lips had become rouged with the chill. The scene outside the window was almost endearing… It reminded her so strongly of what she had been… what she swore never to become again…

She could hear him breathing on the bed nearby. He had stolen the sheets again. There was no stopping him. He'd just wrap himself in a cocoon and set there, and not even the Force could move him. She could hear Canderous snoring the next room over. The crew had literally bought this floor of the apartment complex, getting themselves one room each while the droids patrolled down the hallways. It was comforting to know that a friend was just down the hall, looking out the window… into the rain…

A warm hand pressed against her stomach. Relina could feel a pair of warm lips against her neck… moving up to her temple and then to her ear.

"What's wrong, beautiful?"

"I was just looking at the city," Relina murmured, allowing herself to be drawn in against his body. "Isn't it pretty? It's as if it was carved out of crystal…"

"It's not as pretty as you," he murmured against her skin. His hand played at her thigh as the other tightened its grip on her. "But by the gods you're cold."

Relina could only smile. He was warm and comforting. He always had been.

"How long have you been standing here?" he asked, pressing his lips to her hair.

"An hour or so," she replied quietly, drawing a circle with the tip of her finger on the glass. "You stole the sheets again."

He chuckled. "Ah. I see." His hot breath tickled her ear. "You should come back to bed. It's too early to be up."

She could feel him drawing her back, away from the window. "Carth…" she murmured. "Wait… it's so beautiful…"

He didn't say anything. He just gently kept pulling her away and she finally allowed herself to be seduced, allowed him to bring her back into bed and hold her close.

"Get your rest," he told her. "You can look in the morning."

Relina nodded, and he wrapped her up in his strong, secure arms. As long as he held her she would be safe. She was sure of it.

------

Relina woke to the sound of morning. The sky was still its mournful grey but the lights no longer sparkled and the clouds were no longer thick. The rain had stopped falling and everything seemed to be stuck in a half-slumber mist. She studied the shimmering crystals that were the raindrops on the window. She wished with all of her heart that the windows still glimmered.

Canderous's comm. was buzzing in the next room, but he was either asleep or not there to answer it. The obnoxious droning was easy to dismiss as it was muffled behind the wall.

Relina carefully slipped out of bed, making not a single noise. The cold flickered across her near-naked body, and she longed for the warm bed, but she knew she could not go back. The carpet was soft and mercifully quiet beneath her feet and she glanced back at him… sleeping on the bed alone now…

Carth remained asleep, but he frowned when he felt her absence from his arms. She watched him silently, her eyes flickering over his features. His lips… his brows, which were furrowed in his sleep… the brown hair that fell in his face… and the characteristic stubble on his chin. He was handsome, and she loved him.

"Relina…" he mumbled quietly. A silent hand felt for her on the sheets.

"I'm here," Relina murmured back. She brushed his hair from his eyes and bent down to kiss him tenderly. He kissed back once, feebly, before she pulled away and stepped back again.

Reassured, he went back to sleep. He was gifted in the way of sleep; he was never plagued by nightmares; no horrible creatures from the past would slither from the shadows and rape him; no temptation sang to him and lulled him into his grave. She knew she herself had brought that peacefulness upon him – before they had become friends he had often cried in his sleep.

If she could give him that, she had a purpose. She could shed her lies and start anew.

And that was what everyone wanted. What she wanted. What Carth wanted.

Sighing, she turned her gaze out the window, where Coruscant was beginning to beat away the storm clouds, its skyscrapers standing tall once more, and the windows still glittered with crystal rainwater.

------

Author's Notes: I had originally intended to make a long fanfiction out of this one, but it never worked out. Now it's just a oneshot. And a kinda crappy oneshot, too. Ah well.

Decided I'd give you a break from Cortessa and stuff you up with Relina for a while. You'll see more of her, especially when I start making KOTOR I and II crossovers. Ohnoes.