Scene 23 – Interlude: Layers

[Author's note: No spoilers – but I hope that if you KNOW the spoilers, you can find some foreshadowing here! Let me know what you think.]

Darmas opened the door to his residence, then stepped to the side. "Can I get you something to drink?"

The outfit she'd borrowed from Arri was simple and didn't fit well. Vacy felt severely underdressed, but tried not to let her discomfort show too much. "Um, sure. You pick – something nice."

He nodded, gesturing to a long, low couch with overstuffed cushions. "Please, make yourself comfortable, my dear."

Vacy sat down, leaned back, and contemplated her next series of moves.

Things were just as complicated with Darmas as they were with Corso, but for exactly the opposite reason. With Corso, everything was straightforward – what you saw was what you got. He was so open. Darmas, on the other hand, was locked up tighter than a Mandalorian's sense of humor. With him, you couldn't be sure what you were going to get or even whether you actually saw what you thought you saw. Darmas liked to pass himself off as a gambler, but that was one guise that was fairly easy to see through. He lacked the gambler's itch. He never raised the stakes just for the rush, nor did he take unnecessary risks. No, Darmas wasn't a gambler.

He was a sharp.

This was both reassuring and intriguing. Gamblers were flaky at best – you never knew when that itch would hit and they'd fall through on you. On the other hand, a sharp was always working an angle. Darmas didn't seem the type to connect with others beyond a fairly shallow level – so why was he helping them?

He walked over, carrying two glasses, and handed one to her. Vacy leaned forward, reaching out to take the one he offered, holding her credstik out in her other hand. She smiled warmly up at him. "Thanks so much, Darmas. You're a real prince." As he walked over to a holocomputer at a desk along the wall, she watched him thoughtfully. Despite the lines on his face, he moved with the ease of a much younger man – perhaps not too much older than she was. She wondered what sort of difficulties he'd encountered that had aged him so quickly.

Probably the sort that don't get mentioned to near-strangers, she decided with a wry smile. She took a sip of the sweet, clear liquid in the glass, and swallowed carefully, feeling the smooth bitterness roll over her tongue. Definitely neither watered down nor cheap, she observed, making a mental note to be cautious.

When he returned the credstik to her, she smiled at him again and slipped it into a pouch inside the loose-fitting trousers. But she didn't stand, and a moment later, he took a seat next to her.

Vacy turned slightly to face him. "So what was going on with that dancer?" she asked.

Darmas shook his head. "No idea. I've never even been to that cantina – I most often am at the Dealer's Den, of course, and I wouldn't think of going somewhere other than the Senate District."

Shaking her head, Vacy grinned. "You're missing out, my friend. We went back and didn't even make it inside before we heard a firefight. Dunno if it was a turf war or just a bit of local color or what." She took a swig – a very small one – of her drink. "Spicy, but kind of a bummer. There was a fellow I was dancing with, and I didn't get a chance to get his holo frequency."

"I hope you won't be offended if I admit that I'm glad your evening turned out so poorly," he replied, eyes sparkling at her over the rim of his glass.

"Yeah, well." Vacy winked at him. "It ended up all right, I guess." She sighed, then, sitting up a bit more, and set her glass down over on a small table at the end of the couch. "But… there's somethin' I need to talk to you about." She chewed on her lower lip, a habit she had when she was nervous or deep in thought. Or both, like she was now.

Vacy reached out and took his empty hand in one of hers. Looking at him directly, she shrugged. "I like you, Darmas." She shook her head when she saw him about to interject, and continued, "But you've always got a bunch of gooey-eyed females clinging to you and batting their eyelashes and… I'm not gonna do that." She felt the stubbornness that always plagued her tensing up her jaw.

Amusement and tenderness mingled together when Darmas smiled at her, and he slid closer, squeezing her hand. "I have a hard time picturing it, to be honest," he said with a chuckle. "So what are you going to do?"

She chewed on her lip again, letting her uncertainty and confusion show freely. "I don't know," she admitted. "I mean, you've got your life here on Coruscant, and mine takes me all over the galaxy." Which was something of an exaggeration, but hopefully not for long. "And I'm sure you're not the type to get all mopey over some dumb girl, but I gotta say, I don't fancy having my heart broken either." Looking down at his hand in hers, she rubbed her thumb along the back of his knuckles. "I don't… I can't let myself fall in love, Darmas." And it wasn't until she actually said the words that she realized that some small part of her – the part that just loved a ruckus, probably – really wouldn't mind it all that much. Falling for Darmas would be colossally stupid… but it'd also be a very interesting experience.

So when he reached up and tilted her chin up so she looked at him again, the regret that was there was real – or at least, hopefully real enough that he'd believe it, she thought with a pang of guilt. She smiled uncomfortably, letting that show as well. "Sorry. I feel like I've kind of killed the lovely mood you set," she admitted.

He looked at her for a long moment, and her stomach fluttered. It was so difficult to read him – which was part of what attracted her, she knew.

"Don't … don't rule anything out," he said slowly. He sighed, smiling wryly. "You're right, of course. From a practical standpoint, we're on different paths. But, well…" He looked away for a moment, then back to her. "I find it's rarely a good idea to plan too far into the future," he continued with a shrug. "There are just too many variables."

Vacy nodded. "Right," she whispered.

Darmas set his glass down as well. "So perhaps it'd be better just to focus on what we do have, even if all we have is this moment."

Oh, Bubbi, if you could see your little sis now. Vacy didn't have to pretend to feel nervous and overwhelmed – somehow the space between her and Darmas had closed, and her gaze locked with his. "Right," she whispered again. Focus, girl! She shook her head. "I – I won't love you," she said firmly. Well, mostly. Her voice only wavered a little.

He nodded, and – was that regret that she saw in his smile? "I know you won't," he whispered in reply.

And when she pressed her lips to his and his arms wrapped around her, all she could think was, I am gonna get myself in so much trouble.

[Author's Note: This was SO MUCH FUN to write. Really. I love how similar they've turned out. They each have one (and only ONE) intentional, out-and-out lie. PM me if you think you've found it! ;D]