Prompt: Honey I'm home
Ashley slumped into the co-pilot's chair.
Joker resisted the urge to look over at her, pretending to concentrate on his controls. Not that he needed to really. Space walks for Prothean data caches were becoming more than boring by now.
"So, Joker," Ashley said, tucking up one leg onto the chair and resting her arm on her knee, "Where's home for you?"
"Honey, you're looking at it."
She bristled at the nickname, as he knew she would, and he grinned under his hat. Would she rise to the bait and challenge a ranking officer?
"What do you mean?" she asked after a moment, apparently deciding to let it slide.
"If you meant to ask where I was born, sweet cheeks, that was Arcturus, but it wasn't home." Not by a long shot. Mom was there, but she was always fussing over him—the other Academy students and instructors always doubting him. No; that space station would never be home. "This ship," he said, rubbing a hand fondly over the arm of his pilot's chair, "is home."
She didn't reply so he looked up at her to find a huge grin pasted on her face. Her leg was still tucked up beside her, and he found himself wondering if she was always that flexible... Woah, lock that down, Moreau. NCOs are off limits.
"What?" he snapped, feeling grumpy all of a sudden.
"You," she replied, still grinning. "You are a romantic underneath all that cynicism. Makes me wonder what else you're hiding."
Joker swallowed, his mouth suddenly dry. "You don't even want to know, doll." He managed to say that last with his usual air of indifference.
Ashley stood up, stretching briefly, her toned arms strong in the dim light of the cockpit. "All right," she said, raising an eyebrow. "I accept your challenge."
Her boots were thumping away into the distance before he realized what she said.
This was a very bad idea, but somehow he couldn't keep the smile off his face.
