IX: HOTH
Hoth was in the far Outer Rim - almost a week away. When Sanguis' mood failed to improve after the first day, Vette decided to make it improve, one way or another. Sulky Sith were never a good thing. She tried enlisting Quinn's help, but the captain was still rather inexperienced in the relationship department, so most of his suggestions boiled down to "We should do our jobs and leave her alone until she comes out of it." Vette gave up on him. He did have some success, though, if Vette walking into the meditation chamber one morning to find Sanguis kissing him passionately was any indication. Vette managed to leave before they saw her, with a big grin on her face and a mental note to knock from now on.
Vette's approach was less... physical. First she tried gossiping about Tivva's boyfriend, who had turned out to be no less than an Imperial Moff. However, speculating on the personal lives of high-ranking military officials wasn't something her companions took kindly to, so she dropped that. Sanguis did, at least, seem pleased to hear that Tivva was happy and doing well for herself.
The next topic Vette tried was Jaesa Willsaam and her experiences so far at the Academy - esoteric studies, weird trials pitting her against hostile acolytes, strange Purebloods snooping around. That worked a little better; Sanguis stopped training long enough to share some of her own Academy stories from the pre-Vette days. Then they realized that Quinn had no idea of how the Sith and the Twi'lek had met, so, of course, he had to be filled in, with much embellishment on Vette's part.
By the third day, everything was back to normal. Vette even managed to pry some stories out of Quinn - a minor miracle - including the truth behind the infamous Battle of Druckenwell. Apparently, Quinn had disobeyed the orders of a superior in order to save the day and was promptly court-martialed for it. Vette had to - grudgingly - admit that she was impressed.
At the end of the fourth day, they finally docked with the orbital station. There was a planetary briefing from Baras waiting for them when they dropped out of hyperspace. It could be summed up in three words: cold, cold, COLD. Cold enough to cripple both personnel and their equipment - including comms. Vette and Quinn looked less than enthusiastic about all this.
"Ugh. Here - see?" Vette held out her hands. "I'm already a very nice shade of blue. Why mess with perfection?"
Quinn was busy making up a list of supplies on a datapad. "It's even worse than I heard," he grumbled. "Back in the day, I managed to escape assignment here. It chills my bones just to be in orbit above this frigid planet."
"You're lucky. You've got someone to keep you warm," Vette said, giving Sanguis a wink before heading off toward the comm station. "I'm gonna let Tivva and Jaesa know we might be out of touch for awhile. You two go on ahead!"
"I -" Quinn began, but the Twi'lek was gone. He sighed. "She takes nothing seriously," he muttered to himself, going back to his list.
Vette's suggestion had apparently given Sanguis an idea, though. She ran a light hand along Quinn's shoulder, then leaned close to whisper something in his ear. His eyes went wide and he looked at her with a mixture of embarrassment and wonder. "You noticed."
"Assume I notice everything." She had yet to put her mask on, so he could see that her eyes were twinkling mischievously.
"But... my lord, you can't be serious. The heating systems are unreliable. Our quarters may be freezing."
"Then you'll have to keep me warm, won't you?" She turned for the airlock. "Shall we go? This Jedi won't track himself down."
He followed her, his embarrassment slowly giving way to anticipation. And curiosity. "But where did you...?"
"For a Hutt, Tivva's employer was remarkably generous." That was all the answer he ever got.
