Nothing In The 'Verse
One-Shot: Space Bazaar Blues
Space Bazaar. Red Sun.
Rain shook her head, laughing softly to herself as Feather pulled on the short-haired brunette's hand to thread the couple between the milling people. How'd I ever agree t'this anyways?
Of course, she knew the reason, as sure as she knew her girlfriend's eyes, blue as a sun-filled sky, were sparkling with excitement over the colorful wares, flavorful aromas, and bustling noises that made up the busy marketplace corridors of the Space Bazaar.
Feather had been very insistent that Rain take her into the space station during their layover. She'd always dreamed of visiting it, and she knew Rain would keep her safe and in good company. Didn' take 'er long to figure out my buttons to push, she thought to herself wryly. Even t'overcome my hatin' of crowds.
She examined the woman who had managed to, slowly yet surely, break down so many of her barriers as she glided ahead of her. Rain had previously noted that she seemed to prefer wearing cargo shorts and simple tee shirts, like today's top which was a startlingly bright green, as well as functional athletic shoes whether onboard or off. For her part, Rain wore her standard shipboard outfit of cargo pants and baggy dark tee with oftentimes snarky sayings (today's proclaimed "Not Deaf Just Ignoring You"), as well as her button-laden flight hat, boots, and patch-filled flight vest, all in black. She'd managed to get a patch for each port they'd set down at, and by this point it was pretty well filled up. She also had her slim Beretta pistol snug in it's holster and strapped low on her hip.
While Feather stopped to excitedly browse through a stall selling colorful scarves, Rain stood by and watched the auburn-haired beauty amusedly. Never really been one fer scarves... Her head perked up suddenly as a strong emotion filtered through her mental shields. She was quite adept at keeping her barriers in place, otherwise she'd never be able to survive around crowds at all, but every so often something powerful enough would break through with a whisper that demanded attention.
Right now she was feeling fear, loss, and utter depression. She looked around curiously. What'd get a person that far down?
"Hey, wo de ai (my love), you okay?" Feather moved into her field of vision, a look of concern on her face.
"There's someone..." Rain trailed off uncertainly. She wandered over to the next stall, which was empty, and peeked over the edge. "Oh."
Feather looked over as well to see a young girl, maybe eight or ten years old or so, huddled against the front wall and weeping softly. "Hey there, what's the matter hon?" she asked gently.
"Please don' chase me off, I gots nowhere t'go," the small girl whimpered. She wore a simple brown dress and shoes and her dark blonde hair was tussled. There was a small knapsack at her feet.
"Don' you worry 'bout that none," Feather smiled. "What's yer name?"
"Abby," the girl replied. "Abby Jones."
"Pleased t'meetcha. I'm Feather, and this's Rain. C'n ya tell us what happened, Abby?" Feather asked, leaning over to pat her head. Rain had to smile at the tenderness her girlfriend was showing the little waif. S'pose she's had experience, as big a clan as the O'Toole's an' O'Donnel's are. Lots o' younger kids.
"I wuz travellin' t'get to my gran'parents place on Harvest," Abby sniffled. "An' I gots offa one ship here, an' then hadda pick up 'nother. But some hundan (bastard) stole my wallet this mornin'. It gots my money innit, an' my ticket, an' my IdentCard..."
Rain gave a little growl. I hate bullies. "C'n ya describe 'im?"
Abby nodded. "Skinny guy, black hair, kinda greasy. Wore grey clothes. He wuz workin' with another guy, they wuz pickpocketin' some folks, an' saw me watchin'." She sighed despondently. "He didn' even try to lift my wallet sneaky-like, just took it an' laughed. His buddy called 'im Burt."
Rain glanced at Feather and nodded decisively. "Alright Abby. Here's what yer gonna do. Know how ta navigate the berths here?" Abby gave her an uncertain nod. "Good," Rain continued. "You get yerself to number eighteen, that's one-eight, right on this level. You ask fer Dani, she's a nice lady an' my Kaasan (mother) t'boot, tell 'er Rain sent ya. We'll get yer billfold an' return it to ya there. Okay?"
"'Kay," Abby sniffed as she rose to her feet, holding her worn knapsack. "Y'sure this ain't a trouble to y'all?"
"No worries, Abby," Feather smiled warmly. "We gots this."
They made sure the little girl was headed in the right direction before starting back off, looking around warily.
"How d'ya think we're gonna find 'im?" Feather asked curiously. "Lotta folk on the station."
Rain came to a halt and looked around her at the seething mass of humanity rolling along the tight corridors of the space station. She knew the easiest way to do this would be the hardest for her. Gorramit. This's gonna gimme sucha ruttin' headache.
"Okay, wo de ai (my love). I need ya to just stand by nexta me, an' not ask any questions just yet. C'n ya do that fer me?"
Feather looked at her curiously, but nodded. "Sure, I c'n do that..."
"Alright." She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, held her arms slightly out to her sides...
And dropped her shields completely.
Immediately she was assaulted by images and feelings and desires... Anger, love, fear, desperation, greed, all the emotions across all the spectrums that a person could experience. She furrowed her brow against the searing pain, concentrating, filtering... Need to find the right kinda focus in a person, someone... right... there.
Her hand shot forward and grabbed the collar of a young teenaged boy who was just about to bump into them. He looked startled as Rain opened her eyes and grinned at him.
"Gotcha."
She hauled him over to the side of the corridor and in between two stalls. The vendors studiously ignored them as she threw him up against the wall. Feather followed her, puzzlement written across her expressive face. Rain had already pushed the incoming headache to the back of her mind and pulled her shields up into place as rapidly as she could. She wouldn't need them to deal with this little thief.
"Y'know, on some planets, pickpockets have their hands cut off still." Rain gave the teen a dark smile.
"What?" the boy sputtered. "I dunno what-"
"Save it," Rain cut him off. "How many wallets am I gonna find on ya?"
The boy didn't answer, just whimpered pathetically.
"Color me impressed," Feather giggled. "So what now?"
Rain peered into the captured boy's frightened eyes. "'Nother pickpocket named Burt. Skinny guy, greasy black hair. Know 'im?"
The boy gave another whimper and nodded quickly.
"There, see? Makin' progress already!" Rain beamed. "Where is he?"
"I dunno 'xactly," the young thief stammered out. "But I know where his best mate is right now. Right behind ya, service door there, takes ya to the halls that run behind the markets. Make yer first left at th'innersection, and through that doorway, he'll be waitin', name's Zeb. He's waitin' there, right now, I swear it. I ain't lyin' to ya."
"Oh I know yer not lyin'," Rain assured him. "Now hold out yer hand."
"But... but..."
"Now," Rain ordered sternly.
Trembling, the boy complied, squeezing his eyes shut. Rain reached into her pocket and placed a five-credit coin in his palm.
"Thanks fer the information," Rain said nonchalantly as she released her grip and left him sagging against the wall.
Feather linked her arm with Rain's, giggling. "That was kinda mean."
"Yep," Rain replied cheerfully. "But fun."
They entered the door that the young pickpocket had indicated and moved along the dim passageway. Partway down, Rain's comm chirped quietly in her ear.
"Rain, this is Home. I gots a lil' girl here who sez yer helpin' her out?"
Rain smiled at the concern in Dani's voice. She's always such a worrier. "Yep, we gots everythin' under control, Capt'n," she replied cheerfully. "Just givin' Feather a taste of adventure, as it were."
Feather barked out a laugh that was echoed over the comm. "Alright baobei (treasured one), you just watch yer pigu (ass) an lemme know if'n ya get in over yer head any. Dong ma (understand)?"
"Yes, Kaasan," Rain replied with a sigh.
"So's this's is all fer my benefit, then?" Feather giggled.
Rain grinned at the auburn beauty next to her as they came up to the turn in the corridor. "Yep. I like playin' the xiong jiao (handsome hero)."
Feather snickered as she leaned over to plant a kiss on Rain's cheek. "Y'are at that. An' my jue dai jia ren (prettiest girl ever), too."
"Stop that," Rain blushed. She's always gotta make me get embarrassed an' all...
Her girlfriend let out another giggle as she put her hand on the door in front of them. "Alright then, lian ren (sweetheart). You ready?"
"Let's do this," Rain smiled back.
They walked through the doorway to find a grungy-looking young man in a rumpled coat and pants leaning against the wall. His long hair was lank and a reddish color, and he glared up at them when they entered. "Whaddya want?" he growled.
"Well if'n that ain't the most unfriendly greetin' I ever did receive," Feather replied brightly. "You Zeb?"
"What if'n I am?" the man glowered back.
Rain sighed. Enuff of this pi hua (shit, nonsense). "Lookin' fer Burt. Where's he at?"
The grungy man barked a laugh. "Qu nide (fuck off) ya chou biaozi (stinking whore)."
Rain gave a growl and reached down to place her hand on her gun, but halted when Feather placed a hand on her arm. "I gots this, wo de ai (my love)," she smirked.
With one smooth motion, she turned and slammed her fist into the hoodlum's face. He stumbled back, surprised, and fell back on his rear.
"Gorram, girl, that's a mean right hook ya gots," Rain said admiringly.
The former waitress laughed. "Gran'pa never bothered with bouncers. Us family were always enuff. Now then," Feather addressed the stunned thief on the ground. "You gonna give us any more trouble?"
He shook his head wordlessly.
Rain crouched down to his level. "Where is he?"
"Yeah, okay, sure. Just don' let 'er hit me no more."
Rain smirked over her shoulder at Feather, who returned it with relish.
"Okay, yeah so Burt, he's gonna be at Marjorie's Diner right 'bout now. Always gets 'is meals 'round now." Zeb nodded his head rapidly, eyes shifting nervously between the two women. "I swear it, he's there. C'n I go now?"
Rain kept her smirk in place as she rose to her feet. "Yeah. Nigeiwogun (get out of my sight)."
The two women linked arms again and headed back the way they came, but Feather pulled them to a halt. "Ai ya, huai le (shit on my head), shoulda asked fer directions."
"No worries, lian ren (sweetheart). I 'member passin' it 'fore we came onto the marketplace. It's back towards the berths."
They started forward again and walked in silence for a minute. "So, gotta question fer ya," Feather said cautiously.
Rain sighed. "Ya wanna know how it works, right?"
"I'm curious, but only if'n ya wanna share."
"Okay." Rain slowed her pace and studied the ground. "Ever since I was young I could pick up on stuff. Feelin's and such. As I got older, it got stronger, an' I hadda start blockin' things out. It's why I hate crowds so much, makes it harder to keep my shields up an' block stuff."
"Sooo... c'n ya read minds?"
Rain shook her head. "Nope, it don't work like that none. Like I said, feelin's mostly. Sometimes images, 'specially if'n it's someone I'm close to. I c'n usually tell if'n someone's lyin' to me, an' if'n I'm used to a person I c'n recognize 'em when they're near me. Kinda like a radar, of sorts, but it don' always work. An' it's really hard to concentrate on one body when there's a buncha 'nother bodies nearby."
Feather laid a hand on her arm, bringing her to a halt. Rain looked up into her favorite blue sun-eyes, which seemed to be very intent on her at the moment. "What if'n there's nobody else nearby but the one body?"
Rain swallowed nervously. "Well, I s'pose I could drop my shields down an' see. Never done tried it like that."
"Couldya? Please?" Feather smiled sweetly at her, a look of trust and understanding on her face.
Rain blew out a breath and nodded. She closed her eyes, and slowly lowered her shields.
She was inundated by images and feelings of love and tenderness and lust, soft bodies intertwined and pleasuring... to her shock, she realized that her own face was on one of the figures, and it seemed that the other was Feather.
She jerked her head back and popped her eyes open, slamming her shields back into place. "Feather..." she whispered, shocked.
"Shhh," Feather said gently, placing a finger over her lips. "I just wanted ya to know how I felt, 'cause I've been too chicken to let ya know. An' I ain't gonna rush ya none, but it don't change what I think 'bout ya. Lots." She smiled, and removed her finger to replace it with her lips for a short but sweet kiss. "I'm patient," she whispered. "I'll wait fer ya to get there."
Rain blinked uncertainly. So that was... sex? Huh. Weren't like I'd ever imagined... "Um. Mebbe we c'n talk 'bout it... later? But yeah... I do wanna talk. 'Bout it. I don' think I'm ready yet, though..."
Feather nodded happily and slid her hand into Rain's, intertwining their fingers and starting them moving back forward. "I talked to Em 'bout it some," she said casually.
"Oh?" Rain replied intelligently.
Snickering, Feather gave her hand a squeeze. "Don' worry none, it was all confidential-like. Just asked how she thought we could, well, move forward, y'know? An' she had a really good idea, an' I'm hopin' yer gonna be open to it..."
Rain squeezed her hand back. "I'm always willin' to listen. An' willin' to try, leastways..."
"Well, she suggested we try just sleepin' t'gether in the same bed, with clothes on. Just to get used to bein' close t'each other."
Rain pursed her lips thoughtfully. That actually don' sound all that bad, really... She knew she was neurotic about... closeness. And other things. But if there was any one person who she could imagine becoming close to... "Okay. Yeah. Mebbe we could try it."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah."
The couple shared a happy look before they reached their destination. Giving Feather's hand one last squeeze, Rain reached out to open the door. "Right. Well, here we go..."
They entered the smoke-filled diner together and paused to look around. The place was dingy, dirty, poorly-lit and even worse ventilated. "What a diyu ban di difang (hellhole)," Rain murmured.
"Musta got some kinda appeal, though," Feather murmured back. The diner was fairly packed. Most tables or booths were occupied. There wasn't anyone to seat them, or any signs regarding such matter, so the two just started strolling along the aisles.
Halfway down, they found their target sitting in the back of a booth by himself, shoveling a plate of some kind of meat into his mouth.
They walked over casually and slid into the booth, one on either side to box him in. Rain took the left and Feather the other.
The greasy-looking man looked up, startled. "Wha-"
Rain had already pulled out the butterfly knife her sister Sara gifted to her and had begun twirling it in front of his face. "Shush now, Burt. We're gonna talk, an' yer gonna listen. Dong ma (understand)?"
Burt nodded, eyeing the knife nervously.
She stopped her motions with the blade snapped open and speared one of the morsels from his plate, examining it curiously.
"You sure you wanna try eatin' that?" Feather asked nonchalantly.
"Well, mebbe it's the food here that makes the place so appealin'," Rain answered, just as nonchalantly.
Rain popped the piece of food into her mouth. It was chicken, she believed, with a light sauce that was sweet and spicy at the same time. "Hmm. This's pretty good. You wanna bite, wo de ai (my love)?"
Feather grinned over at her. "Sure!"
She speared another piece and held it across. Feather gingerly took it in between her teeth and leaned back. "Mmmm, yer right. Tasty."
The pickpocket situated between the two women just looked back and forth, mouth agape and eyes unbelieving.
"So, Burt," Rain continued as she wiped her blade on the man's jacket with her left hand. "We're lookin' fer a billfold ya took offa lil' girl. I think ya know the one I mean. Where's it at?"
"Oh, um, sorry there, girls," he replied smarmily. "Already gave it to my handler, yeah?"
Rain glanced over at Feather and shook her head.
"May I?" Feather asked politely.
"How 'bout we both?"
"Sounds good!"
In unison, the girls brought their fists back, Rain's right and Feather's left, and slammed them into his face. His head bounced off of the wall behind him and then hit the table with a wet crunch of cartilage.
"Oooh, that sounded like it hurt," Feather said sympathetically.
"I c'n cut it off fer ya, mebbe make it all better?" Rain snickered.
"What... how would that make it better?" he wailed, sitting back up and clutching his bloody nose in one hand.
"Well, it'd make me feel better," Rain smirked. "Now, you wanna try yer story again?"
"Okay, okay, ching-wah tsao duh liou mahng (frog-humping son of a bitch), it's right here," Burt moaned, reaching into his rumpled coat and withdrawing a small leather wallet. Rain checked it and saw that the money was still inside, as well as a passenger liner ticket and Abby's IdentCard.
"See, now, that weren't so hard, were it?" Rain said pleasantly as she closed her knife and put it away. She noted that Burt was already beginning to show signs of two impending black eyes. "Better get yer nose an' those shiners looked at. An' we better not see yer face around again."
The couple slid out of the booth and headed for the exit. "Dao xie (thank you)!" Feather called out cheerily over her shoulder.
Fortune's Favour. Space Bazaar.
Abby was ecstatic to get her billfold back. The two women assured her it wasn't any trouble at all, really, but they were showered with hugs nonetheless as they stood there in the cargo bay.
"So then, baobei (treasured one), let's get you t'yer ship now, alright?" Dani smiled down at the little girl. She'd taken the urchin under her wing as she was apt to do. "What berth, an' when's it head out?"
"Ummm..." Abby looked at her ticket carefully. "Lesse... dockin' bay thirty-four, level eight... an' leaves at... oh no."
Rain shared a glance with Feather at the sudden despair in Abby's voice. It was pretty evident what that meant. "It already leave, hon?" Feather asked quietly.
Abby nodded in response, tears trickling down her cheeks.
"Well, now, don' be gettin' all upset there, sweetie," Dani said gently. "Where were ya headed towards?"
Abby gave a sniffle. "Harvest," she replied miserably.
"Yer in luck!" the lanky captain exclaimed. "We're headin' right by there! C'mon back, an' we'll get ya situated inna bunk, okay?"
Abby slipped her hand into Dani's and they headed back towards the rear cabins. "But I ain't got enuff credits fer 'nother ticket!"
"No worries, hon, you just gimme yer old one an' I'll take care of it. We'll get ya to where yer goin'."
Rain grinned at their retreating backs. Kaasan's such a softie. She knows gorram well we weren't headin' anywhere near Harvest originally.
En route to Harvest.
They departed Space Bazaar without further complications. Rain sat back in her seat, course already plotted in and set. Smiling to herself, she luxuriated in the trust that her Kaasan showed her by leaving the bridge operations primarily to her but helping out when needed or requested. S'pose that means I'm grown up some, huh?
Since she had let Feather so far into her head, without any shields, she felt much more attuned to her. Without even trying she could tell when she was approaching the bridge, like now.
Rain turned in her chair to see her auburn-haired girlfriend enter. Feather was dressed casually, perhaps in sleepwear of a sort, with sweatpants and a tee shirt. Her medium-length tresses were back in a ponytail and her feet were clad in socks only.
"Soooo," Feather drawled softly as she sat down in the captain's chair and tucked one foot under her. "I was wonderin'... you want me t'stay with ya tonight, when ya get off yer shift?"
Rain looked over at her girlfriend with a grin. "Yeah. I think I like the sound of that."
NOTES: Thought it might be fun to explore Rain a little more and her relationship with Feather. The more I write them, the more fun I have. I think I'm going to have to feature them more in upcoming episodes.
In the continuity of my ongoing Nothing In The 'Verse OC series, this is considered to have taken place directly after Episode 48.
Thanks for reading my third one-shot! Appreciate any reviews, and if you haven't picked up my ongoing series, please do!