Also if it hasn’t been asked, 13 for anyone and everyone you want :D
Oh yay! Let’s see those outfits! I'm going to highlight some of my favorite outfits from my true fashionistas (and a cruddy bonus) because they deserve it. Faro has been asked and I will delve into her in minute detail. And Qyrhu's outfits are here.
First up is my Barsen'thor Cyss Terena. I love her specific brand of Jedi fashion so much.
I especially love the headpieces. They'd need to be adapted a bit to better include the lekku, and everything needs to be more flowy. But yes. Jedi fashionnnn. To me, she is the Padmé of the bunch, every scene another choice outfit, but in Jedi style.
And then Cir've my Inquisitor with her feathers <3 Strutting around with them and and I imagine them fluffing up like with a ghibli character when she's surprised or excited lol
But she can also do differently with what I call SKULLKNIVES :
The molars on that headpiece. (I love them). How many things has she knocked over with those stupid gloves trying to pick up something?
This is not her only fits, she has also more regular ones, but those I find the most fun.
And then a bonus Tev with their favorite jacket (of which they have many). I do like the puffy neck with inbuilt lights. And the three old-style lucky coins on their belt... Also they were really not in the mood to be screenshotted, they are So Done with me lol.
for the ask game: 11, 24, 27 for tev, and 4, 13, 29 for qy? - just suggestions btw, feel free to ignore questions or give em to another character if you feel like it! wishing a speedy and full recovery to the laptop btw, ive been there o7
aaaa thank you, dearest knight! A good mix of question where I had to either think hard on it or just grin and blow on my fingers. I apologize for the length of this beast lol. I didn't quite manage to stop going on tangents.
[ask game]
Tevuuk
my genderfluid smuggler. they collect pronouns like they collect blasters.
11. Do they have any recurring nightmares?
Tev rarely has nightmares. The dreams he has are often just vexingly stupid stress dreams, like for instance Corso replacing the flight controls that were just recently painstakingly updated with quality scavenged parts, with a squeaky clean new one that doesn’t even fit the system and feels like shit in his hands. And being convinced that he’s done a great job, and Tev wake up growling and gnashing his teeth. He chews him out over breakfast (“How dare you do this, I’ll kick you out of this ship if you do that again!!” – “Capt’n, here, git your juice in first, it’s too early in the afternoon to be this pissed off.”)
There is one though. He cannot shake that one, even though it’s been years. It occurs so seldomly that he’s often lulled into a false sense of security about it ever popping up again. He wakes up from that dream soaked in sweat, his right hand cramping in acute agony; clutches his cybernetic fingers like they can feel again, a whimper in his throat. With trembling hands (they never tremble) he pours shot after shot, drowning the memories – an error in judgement, got caught skimming the wrong thing, landing in a backroom, where’s the money, cold-hot sharp metal biting tighter and tighter into the soft flesh of his finger joint – Lightheaded, he sits at the counter of his ship’s galley until the early hours.
24. If presented with the opportunity, would they accept omniscient knowledge?
Oh, they would see the cred signs, they would hear the katching katching. Knowing about all the lost and hidden hyperlane routes! Knowing all access codes, all routines and unexpected behaviours of guards and enforcement, knowing all crime bosses’ weak points. Just, oomph! They would be unstoppable. Please, they could have a beach planet with their name on it in two years tops!
“Captain, it’s for things like knowing what the purpose of life is and what happens after death and such.”
Confused and sceptical silence.
“…Who wants to know that crap.”
More seriously, it would be a hard decision. They struggle between life being exiting, and life being safe, and the balance shifts one way and the other like a wave-tossed ship at sea. In their earlier life, they would definitely bet on safety. They would be incredibly bored with their life, though. If they had a real choice, they would prefer not knowing what happens. It makes them feel alive. Even if they're also afraid, it makes them feel alive!
27. What do they consider real? Do they only believe in things they can see and touch?
She wishes life was that easy. What is real? The web of debt and fear, the way it keeps people ensnared, the way only the threat of it makes most of the work. She believes in power like that, because she lived under it for her whole life.
And unfortunately, even though you don’t want to believe in crazy witches crushing your windpipe from the other side of the room or making you feel like doing things you don’t wanna do, the disbelieve won’t save you and your throat at all. That’s something she had to learn the hard way. (she always has to learn the hard way…)
But the good news is, and that’s what she started to believe too, both of this can be countered with the power of incredible violence! Just play nice and meek, bide your time, and hit hard when the right opportunity presents itself. Keywords mean and dirty.
I love thinking about how a non force-sensitive can kill the wizards, and I want it to be hard, I want them to be a real, pants shitting threat to them (at least if we’re talking about trained force users). Being non force sensitive / force null doesn’t mean that you’re immune against the Force (That’s not how the Force works!). It means you have less defences against it. You are at a massive disadvantage. And I love the non-forcies who make it work by the skin of their teeth, with no dignity (bc it’s not an even fight) and no fucking mercy.
Qyrhu
The first two questions were tricky and kinda heavy, I’m not sure if I did them justice, but they were chewy. And the last question is just asking to open the floodgates of angst. You asked for it haha.
4. Do they believe some individuals are inherently more important than others?
He can never be oblivious to what his society taught him what the worth of people is. The Empire ranks its people clearly and ruthlessly. He has always been on the higher echelons of it, and he is very aware of it, it’s hard not to. He knows how much power he wields over others just because of that. He doesn’t think it’s just, even in his life before Korriban, he has seen enough how that power can be used and abused, whether it be callously, gleefully or even unknowingly. It isn’t just, but it is a reality, and everyone moves through space knowing it, including him.
What he struggles with, even though he doesn’t think it’s fair, is to formulate an alternative. He’s quick to think and talk of merit, as per Sith philosophy, people earning their worth with great feats and perseverance. But this rings hollow at times. Many did not have the same education, wealth, opportunity and able body as he had. Do they deserve their fate, then, if they don’t raise above their station? I think it’s fair to say that he is conflicted.
I wish I could say he is just a good personTM that instinctively knows the ‘right’ answers, but…. No. sorry. It doesn’t always work like that. I still want him to be good and kind, in his own way (those words in combo with Qyrhu are a bit… weird). But he has a lot of learning and unlearning to do, and ultimately, his actions will always speak louder than his ability to express his beliefs exactly.
Honorary mention of Vette showing him the mirror with extreme snark whenever his unaware privilege shows. He isn’t always amused, but he listens to her a lot more than she thinks. (those blasted Vette disapproves are cutting)
13. Do they see more value in individualism or collectivism?
Sith philosophy builds on individualism a lot. But the thing is, the old republic Sith are also a part of an Empire. And empires need its people to work for it, not themselves. I feel like that is something that some of the war focused Sith know all too well. You do your part for the war effort. You cannot just do what you please and waste your life on frivolities, you need to benefit the system. (I have in mind that little disparaging remark of Marr about a Sith Lord who spends too much time in his “agony dungeon” instead of doing real work, lol. I don’t think every imperial Sith thinks like that, there are many with their own little projects (see ambitious undertakings), and in contrast to the general imperial populace Sith still simply have more room to indulge their own passions within their service to the Empire because of their social stature.)
In any case, this is a mindset that was heavily imparted on Qyrhu, and while he has to have his youthful rebellion specifically against his family, and periodically show for the sake of his pride that he can do what he so pleases (and don’t you forget it), he still thinks that’s true, everyone has to do their part for the war, with whatever strength they have. Those who don’t are displaying a disdainful level of selfishness that has no place in the Empire. Rivalries and power games are part of the system and need to be navigated, but the fact that they often hamper or outright sabotage the imperial war effort is a point of frustration for him, especially the longer he is a player on the board and witnesses it firsthand. And perpetuates it, either unwillingly or sometimes as a little treat to himself (he is not immune to the thrill of competition, the satisfaction of triumphing over another arrogant Sith).
Qyrhu sees meaning in collectivism, especially pertaining to goals and campaigns (and those are basically his life). But on the other hand, he’s never felt like he has been part of an actual community, he only maintains a small circle, and isn’t very used to invest his private time in social community. In the Alliance he has a bit more possibility and leisure for it, but even then, he values his privacy and his ‘free time’ away from the group a lot.
The way he is a real boon for the Alliance is how he keeps people pointed in one direction and has no patience for internal divisions influencing the Alliance’s missions and goals (if they keep it out of the mission, they can squabble all they like, he doesn’t give a fuck. Honestly, he prefers the squabble over forced team building karaoke nights, you would have to drag him there in chains) (or just let Vette at him, that’s way more effective).
29. What is their breaking point?
I love the Dread Masters bit where they force the PC at gunpoint to tell them their greatest fear, and I love the warrior specific answer so much there:
Baras thought to use me as his weapon. I overcame him. But there are others, and I wonder if I can defy them all.
This is an almost primal fear for him, being unable to stop being used, having his freedom taken away completely, no wriggle room, no freedom to deliver the results in the way he wants, no possibility of change on the horizon (he still thinks he has a chance, somehow, he needs to believe this). This fear has been there since the start, the threat of it always there and growing the more powerful his masters became, the more complicated his situation.
So at least in this, game-canon is coming for his throat when Fallen Empire rolls in and Vitiate starts haunting him. He rebukes him and hisses at him and ignores him but inside he is frozen solid with fear. How can I get rid of him? It should be the priority, but nobody seems to know how, and there are other things that need doing, that demand his attention (and thank the stars for that, the distraction is welcome, give him a campaign against a technologically hyper-advanced empire over his empire’s worst ghost any day). (you have both). (shut up).
The worst thing to happen then is the Emperor taking over his mind. Qyrhu did not expect that he could do it like that, without him having to give over control first. But of course, he was a fool, he had forgotten Ziost, Vitiate grinning on cracked Jedi lips, laughing out of his mother’s mouth. He doesn’t know how he got out of this, how he regained control. (My mind, my rules? Really? It seems too easy)*. This experience creates one of the most crippling post-traumatic responses he’s ever had to deal with, will follow him for a long time after, making him think that he is actually still there, impotent, only living out a fantasy where he overcame this and they won because he can’t bear the thought of his body being taken over, his mind reduced to linger in-between abysses. Victory for the Alliance, mental problems for Qyrhu. Congratulations, you broke him. He’ll be picking up the pieces for the remainder of his life.
* this is mostly due to my own confusion and discontent about this stupid wishy-washy resolution so unfortunately, I’m making it my guy’s problem. sorry man…
Canon is a pretty harsh timeline, in the AUs where he isn't Valky's fave he's doing a lot better, has more agency from the start.
Also something that would change him forever for the worse is his crew (Vette, Quinn, Jaesa) dying on him. There’s a reason the True Wrath AU is the one where his crew all died on Quesh and he was the only survivor. He is ripe for being taken up by the Hand. Just use him, use him, he doesn’t want to think anymore, he doesn’t want to feel anymore. He might eventually find his will again, somewhere trampled and flattened in the dust. But it might also be too late by then.
headcanon meme fears, scars, safe, oc of your choice
Finally, here it comes! Idk if you even remember sending this ask a month ago lol, but Thank You so much for indulging me and sending it anyway, godbender, you're the best!
Honestly, still not entirely happy with Faro, but it's okay, I finally started her playthrough again (hitting me all over again on how the fucking imp agent is the most chefs kiss of class stories). But first, the smuggler:
Tevuuk + Fears
Many of the smuggler’s fears are tied to their freighter. And rightfully so, as it was the means for their financial stability, their first and successful foray into independence. Being a freelance smuggler wasn’t easy at first, they had to scrape by for a lot of it. All their anxieties turned around their ship. What if they don’t have enough money for the next fixing, what if it breaks irreparably, what if it gets taken from them? In their mind, this ship had become their salvation from the dregs of the underworld. They had had to start over many times in their life, and used to think that they were good at that, that if there was one, they would find a way to survive. But now that they tasted a life they actually enjoy, the thought of losing that is too horrible. They can’t do it anymore. Please no, please no, please no.
Prologue time was, predictably, a nightmare come true. Corso was surprised later on that Tev could relax and crack a genuine smile, because that’s not how he got to know them. Also, Tev was ready to tear Risha apart when they first met on the ship, and it took a while until they let her implement changes to the ship unsupervised (Risha rolling her eyes while going over regular calibrations as the Zabrak equivalent of a growling little dog scrutinizes her every move)
(they recognized what a godsend Risha was, being an experienced mechanic and pimping up their ship in a way they never could do themselves. They still were worried that she would either abscond with it or build in something she could then blackmail them over. But she never did. She knew all too well this was the captain’s baby, and she treated it like that. Surefire way to the captain’s heart.)
Even when they could afford new freighters, several of them, it was always out of the question to change that ship. Maybe the self-rending anxiety was lessened, but it still was kind of a superstitious no-go. I want to explore an old Tevuuk finally realizing that this ship cannot be fixed anymore and will never fly anymore, and how they have to come to terms with that. Or maybe it’ll go as they wish and they will die on this ship, flying apart as it does. But this is needlessly dramatic, as everyone keeps telling them.
Faro + Scars
Faro collects an assortment of scars over her career but is used to have the more egregious one’s buffed out by Intelligence. The still a bit visible facial scars she covers with a thick layer of foundation. For professional reasons, she doesn’t want to attract attention to herself with memorable facial features. (She briefly used to wish that the non-physical scars were as easily dealt with. It would be nice if they could be buffed out, too. But then she got ill at the thought of more tampering with her mind. Wish dropped immediately).
When she gets older, she starts to not care so much about her scars being visible. Starts being defiant to that part of herself that cringes away from being noticeable in a genuine way. It’s not really about the physical scars anymore, but letting others notice that she’s the ways she is, that she has her dysfunctionalities and quirks and damaged ways to do things. She’s letting her cool and smooth manner be a bit more grainy and scruffy, and a byproduct of that is the presentations of her scars.
Faro + Safe
She finds safety hard to define for herself. An impossible thing. You’ll hear her say: “Life’s not safe. Life is never safe. Might as well enjoy it until consequences finally catch up with you.” And mean it too. You’ll also catch her bunking in a shitty bolthole not coming out for months because she can’t take going outside for fear of being caught, of being seen by anyone, everyone could be reporting back to someone who shouldn’t know about her. She’s tossed around between the desperate want to provide her own safety, to never be dependent on organisations again that will all fail her eventually, chose their own interests over her when pressed. This need to be untouchable battling the desire of being involved. She likes to meddle, she likes to prove others that she isn’t a pawn, that she’s not someone that just lies down, she is terribly competitive in that sense, and so just disappearing somewhere to a quiet idyll is… not quite so satisfying. She can’t take it. She likes the game, the crazy play life can be, vibrant and bleak and brutal. Her life has made her very careful on how she goes about it at times, too careful sometimes. Mistakes were made. In her undeserved luck, they didn’t cost her everything. And so she keeps walking that tightrope as long as there’s rope, really, swagger in her step, throwing looks over her shoulder and then looking forward again smiling one of her dangerous smiles.
change for qyrhu, body for faro, time for tevuuk AND (because I must) dance for all three?
Thank you, squirrel! <3
Change: if they could see how much they've changed over their life, coming face to face with a past or future self, how would they feel?
Oh wow yeah, that’s A question for Qyrhu.
The Qyrhu of say, Onslaught onwards (37+ yo), has had to deconstruct a lot of Empire induced beliefs he held, has realized he doesn’t want to go back to the Empire, has had to face his disillusionment with it, and the identity crisis that followed. He has also managed to get over his wounded pride and his fear of appearing weak and work on his mental health (a bit. Not that he’s figured everything out, but he’s had to accept that he is not powerful enough, not unreachable enough not to fail on some major points of his life, and that reaching out and receiving help from other people can be very necessary in the process to get better).
Put that Qyrhu in front of his early class story self (22 – 24 yo) who is all about getting ahead, playing the power games, hell bent on conforming to the image in his head of what a Sith must be, putting his all in the war effort. They’re going to look at each other and both disapprove. This is really not what his younger self wanted to turn into, some washed-out weak traitor. Fucking embarrassing. What is he busting his ass for all these years, huh??? He will deny this to be true.
And the older self is sick of this self-absorbed idiot. While there are things that he is still proud of, and he will not be going around all remorseful either way, he sees many of his failings, the many ways he made himself blind or callous or miserable. And what disquiets him the most is that he doesn’t know if he has changed all that much. How easy it is to slip back into some of it. That’s… he wants to look away so bad. But he can’t quite allow himself to do it.
Also, he briefly marvels on what a tough bitch he had been, how did he do it back then, how did he manage, he’s getting old… (burning out and never entirely recovering is what actually happened).
Neither of them cares to be sympathetic to the other. Both are like: Stop embarrassing me!!!
Body: if they were made physically unrecognisable, what would they do?
On a practical standpoint, Faro would find this useful. Especially once she’s trying to get out of the Empire, suddenly looking completely different without all the hassle of a generator (or however those eagle network guys and Hunter do this) would make things much easier and less costly.
However, she would mourn her old body. She hasn’t always had the easiest relationship to it, sometimes she felt like her body dictated too much about what she was, how other people treated her, and resented her body for that. But she and it worked hard to find a comfortable accord, and now you take it away? That’s just rude! She’s probably not going to give it up without stabbing someone about it if that's at all possible. But she would eventually get with the times and adjust to the new looks. What’s one more thing, am I right??
P.S. Ok, maybe she would take it worse if it was the mind control plus her body being different at the same time. Like that might make her snap for good this time. (Hasn’t she already snapped? – Yeah, but, even worse, trust me.
P.P.S. I first tried to talk about her cybernetic implants, but although those changed the feel of her body, they haven't brought much physical altering.
Time: how do they feel about aging? do they worry about lost opportunities or miss experiences they can't go back to?
Tev hopes to get old and well set up. She can picture herself, liver-spotted, probably bald, smoking one (1) expensive cigar per week (just one, get off her ass, Risha), humbling the young’uns at pazaak, giving solicited and unsolicited advice in merc bars, knowing she has nothing to prove anymore, stars, that’s the life she’d want. Unfortunately, it sometimes feels like a pipe dream. Although her chances multiplied, unreachable still. Even among the stars it’s a brutal world. A brutal world heralds a brutal end. Every year she gets older is a step towards this dream, and that is a win to her. Financial stability has also a lot to do with it, and as that starts being a thing, growing old doesn’t seem bad at all to her.
She does worry about losing opportunities constantly but it’s all about her business, making bad calls, missing out on clients, overlooking a forming coup, stuff like that. Personally, she feels like she got farther than any possible other version of herself ever could, feels like she has cashed in on every nine lives or however many a Zabrak gets. She's not missing out. Sometimes, she gets brief vertigo at having gotten this far (it’s very brief but it’s there).
And I think everyone has seen my dancing monkeys (you had to, and I am eternally grateful :))
Hello! I have seen you mention them a couple of times now, so! (I am lying on my bed, chin in hands, feet kicking behind me) tell us more about Faro/Tev :3
For example, how did they meet, what drew them to eachother, how would they define their relationship, what does their relationship look like? And/or anything else you would like to share 👀
eeeeheehee nettles!!! Also kicking my feet and giggling :333 Thank you for asking! Thus follows my ramble (myramble) and hopefully you’ll have a bit more of a picture of them after that…
Faro and Tev meet early after the end of Chapter 3 because Faro has chosen Tev as a target for manipulation. She wants to get to something she needs (some data) within republic space through him. (Tev just has a face and file that says ‘easily manipulable’ to ImpInt agents apparently lol, r.i.p.). So there’s a long and convoluted con following.
[I’m still thinking about what exactly it is, whether it’s connected with Tev’s new position of the kingpin of Port Nowhere, or if it’s a side-gig he does as his republic-aligned privateer persona, many possibilities, and plot is a cousin twice removed from me…].
Tev can also use what she is trying to go for, so they're okay with the team up. Her cover is pretty tight, but they aren't the type to trust people regardless, it's just that they also know when to take risks. He thinks, well, if it’s the imps again, at least they finally got my type right. Tev definitely doesn’t know Faro’s identity, but they have an otherwise pretty good intuition about what they can and cannot trust her with. They make some errors, but not deadly ones.
Faro tries to make this about sexual favors along the way and Tev really does not want people he helps/works with feel the need to give back like that (been there themselves), so they turn her down and after Faro has gotten over the annoyance of losing her touch, they actually have a good time chatting and playing pazaak. Tev is telling increasingly convoluted but actually funny stories. Faro tries to be the encouraging listener that laughs at the right times (not that that's hard in this case), but Tev is persistent with asking about her own stories, so she eventually switches tactics and cobbles together her own tall tales and finds herself enjoying Tev’s reaction to them. She realizes that Tev is an attentive and shrewd listener, and that she has to watch herself to not blow her cover story, and the heightened difficulty just makes this more fun for her. There’s also some mix of admiration and envy on Faro’s part about Tev’s lifestyle. She can’t really name it at that point, but their apparent independence makes her feel like she’s outside a shopping window with her hand on the glass. And Tev, oh they know not to trust her, but she's fun, and not to mention gorgeous, and they will keep playing with fire. (yes, confident women who are smarter than them and who could kill them are their weakness).
Of course their mission ends in chaos and a fight where Tev shoots first and Faro dramatically absconds with the thing they both wanted and Tev lies in the dust and curses her (fake) name. Then they blow a kiss to the stars for her and sigh longingly. What a wamon…
Faro doesn’t forget Tev either, she admits having had enjoyed her time with them. So she starts to make them one of her little side-projects she does in her ‘free-time’ (as you do), infiltrating Port Nowhere and observing them in their natural habitat, making such a more detailed profile in her head than whatever Intelligence has on them (she never writes it down). Faro eventually gets found out by them, because she dared to play pazaak at the same table as them and Tev recognizes her lovely hands, because they always pay attention to everyone’s hands, where they are, what they are doing, and he has stared at her hands way too much to not recognize them now, even though Faro knows how to control her tics, but what tipped them off was the oh-so-slight tremors that they had noticed before and that overcame her at times.
So Tev confronts her in private, and Faro has a knife to their throat, angry at herself for being this sloppy, and there’s the question thrown in between them of “Why did you come?”. And they know they don’t really want to fight the other, and they notice that in the other. But they do want to do something else.
Faro and Tev become acquaintances who have casual sex with each other. Their relationship pre-timeskip is very much about the sex they have together. Faro comes to appreciate how Tev is really chill about what they consider good and proper sex to be about. Like he showed her his three drawers full of fancily arrayed dildos of all shapes and sizes (he shows this to all of his prospective sexual partners, a regular hit) but mostly, they end up having sex with clothes on, or one watching the other masturbate, and just don’t do a lot of (for the lack of a better word) ‘traditional’ sexual practices. Faro is in her ‘I can have sex the way I like it’ era and really it kinda starts with Tev. And Tev just has a lot of love to give, and they really like seeing their partner have fun, so they are usually really down with her ideas, in addition to having a few of their own that they present to her like precious shells collected for her pleasure. At the end of the day, Tev is just happy with her body on top of theirs, crushing them into the mattress (Faro is both taller and heavier than them). Faro is like Ok and positions herself so Tev’s face is completely smothered by her boobs and she just hears a muffled happy sigh beneath them, and she’s chilling there, checking her mails (“I once killed a man like that.” – “mmffhgh? Really??” – “No. …But I could have.”)
They don’t do this often, because they lead different lives with different responsibilities. Tev doesn’t even have a means to contact Faro, it’s always her who pops up, Tev just accepted that this is how they roll. And it’s not like they’re exclusive, especially Tev has their short-time lovers and his on-off thing with Risha (which is a whole other thing in itself. I need to map it out, but those two have a long while to find out how they want to work, Risha changes her mind a few times on whether she is okay with the non-monogamy, and Tev, as much as they love Risha, does not want to do the exclusivity, they tried for a while but they weren’t happy. The thing about both of them is that they love the business they both built up and always find common ground with that).
SoR times even has Faro and Tev working together, and Tev is finally seeing what he suspected for all these years (that she is indeed an active agent of the Empire), and it’s not that he’s completely offended but it brings a bit of a different drive into their relationship, and they are among others and have a job to do, so their past thing is put on ice. Faro is very different there, much more on guard, less outgoing and open (it’s bc of the Sith and the SIS guy). And eventually Faro has her unwise thing with Lana (she’s not two-timing that), and then she disappears completely from all radars, and Tev doesn’t hear from her for three to four years.
Faro comes knocking again eventually, this time with Theron in tow, both of them trying to recruit Tev to an alliance against the current hegemony. Tev isn’t eager, they don’t want to become the target of Zakuul, so they make the two spies jump through several hoops (professional favors). Still, they are really glad to see her, and even though they affect to turn down their alliance, Faro sees right through them, and thinks that they are sufficiently tempted to risk it, which is true. (one day, I'll need to fic this, it's a fun scene, with Tev in his kingpin element and the two spies coordinating their efforts in trying to turn his deliberately difficult ass)
I’m also still in the process of mapping their relationship’s progression in the Alliance. Tev isn’t officially part of it, but they are a big anonymous investor, and help out occasionally for the clandestine stuff. Faro definitely knows about all of this. Their relationship is not about sex during kotfe/te (only what's some innuendos among friends I guess), but they work together and hang out together and enjoy building up their friendship and help each other navigate all the other relationships they are having or attempting to have during this time (or attempting NOT to have, re Faro with Qyrhu and Lana). They really are the two friends who bitch about others together, it’s really good for them, especially for Faro who tends to just bottle it up, and Tev never really talked about the at times difficult balance with Risha (except with Bowie, but it’s different with him) (he can talk about anything with Risha but. sometimes things pertaining them is harder). They just share a lot more about themselves than years before, where their private lives strictly stayed at the door. And eventually they start to have sex again, too. Why? They just felt like it again. Sex is a nice joint activity for them, in Faro’s case especially with Tev. They wouldn’t really see themselves as a couple doing conventional “couple things” like living together and prioritizing the other above the rest of their relationships (well, seeing as they are also in some loose poly with Theron and partly Qyrhu and partly Risha, that would not work anyway). But they wouldn’t want to miss out on each other for the world. I really need to think on how they would call what they are to each other, probably just very dependent on the situation whether they call each other friend or partner or just some asshole (affectionate).
Tev is the partner who has the least (see: no) problems with Faro’s need for distance. Faro will always be someone who needs to live on her own (that Whoopie Goldberg quote ‘I don’t want somebody in my house’ you feel) and will sometimes disappear for a while (but always come back). Theron is much more of a yearning goober about that (but it’s fine, he knows it’s something everyone has to come to terms with loving Faro, and he has Qyrhu to hug him through the night). But yeah, Tev is on a similar ‘I cherish my independence’ front, though less strongly (they make concessions for Risha and find that they are really okay with it). Faro and Tev have a really ‘low drama’ relationship and are each other’s balancing effect oftentimes. I mean, maybe I’ll find some drama to inject in there still, but seeing as they have enough to deal with on other fronts, I think they can have this for now. They can just have each other in the capacity they can give, and they are both really happy with that arrangement.
Soooo 6, 18, and 34 for whoever inspiration strikes for (and feel free to change anything about those of course)
Beautiful prompts, thank you <3
Laughter
In neutral interactions it is not uncommon to never see Qyrhu laugh. His public face is severe and deadpan; he doesn’t feel obligated to smile out of politeness or to defuse a situation. When he smiles it’s usually threateningly, and when he does laugh, it’s mocking or sneering. In a more private setting and especially with people he likes, he smiles and laughs more, and more genuinely too, though it still sounds kind of mean (he’s stuck with that). It’s possible to make him silently laugh tears, interspersed with undignified snorts, especially if you’re called Vette. He often puts his hand in front of his mouth when he laughs.
Tev smiles a lot. It’s really all about the toothy grins and the huffs and chuckles. Xir smiles normally have something aggressive about them. Xe smiles to show everyone xe’s still standing and woe to them if they got something against that. Xe smiles to remind anyone that xe’s not afraid of anything. Honestly, when xe is trying to be inconspicuous or pass off as a regular normal civilian nothing to see here, xe tries not to smile, because xir smiles always have something provocative that just pisses people off. Xe doesn’t laugh out loud often, but when xe does, it’s infectious, because it’s just a dorky, hyena-like kinda laugh.
Oh, Faro, she smiles so sweetly. Laughs so softly. Truly one of her easiest ways to make people feel at ease, her smiles are So Nice! Of course, it doesn’t feel so nice anymore when she's got you at knifepoint, even though the smile is unchanged. It doesn’t change when she means it. You will never really know if she means it by smile alone. She doesn’t smile or laugh much in public or in a professional setting (all in true imperial fashion), but laughter comes to her easily all the same, even if it’s also for spiteful or bitter reasons, not only for joy.
Qyrhu + Winter
Winter in the Kaas City region means the rains are getting lighter, there is less flooding, less downpour. It’s never actually dry, the Dark Temple and its atmospheric impact are too near. Qyrhu’s opinion on winter on Kaas is that finally speeder biking is enjoyable again. Having the time of his life biking through dry but still highly active lightning weather meanwhile his caretakers want to staple his teenage ass to a wall in the compound during the entirety of the season.
Qyrhu got to know chilly cold, snowy winter once he went to live on Ziost for [handwavy preparatory military] school. He was much more sensitive to the cold in comparison to the locals, especially in the first two years, but he got used to it a bit. He’s still not a fan of cold climates but he knows how to dress to be warm enough (the running gag of Ziosti people is you will always recognize a Kaasi by the contempt and the three coats they wear simultaneously).
The Alliance base on Odessen probably also gets snow or at least cold, judging by the autumn colored trees we’ve seen… joy for Qyrhu.
Qyrhu + Affection
Qyrhu is reserved with showing affection. Even when he likes people, he can sometimes be a bit of a hardass to them. He can switch, and does, when he notices the initial approach is too hurtful or counterproductive. After all, he wants his loved ones to feel comfortable and safe with him. But otherwise, there will be ribbing (and he can take as much as he dishes out. mostly). As for receiving affection, he sometimes has issues when others are too gentle with him. It makes him feel weak, delicate like glass, like others think he can’t handle it otherwise, and he appreciates a little curtness and roughness more, makes him feel like he’s normal, taken seriously. It’s not always like this, he can appreciate gentleness too, when he’s open to it, when he can get over himself.
He is not what you would call a touchy person, but he likes showing affection physically. Sometimes words just tend to be… insufficient. It’s not with anyone, but with some people, he’s gotten used to a kind of physicality, to grip their shoulder reassuringly, touch their arm in passing, gently rub their back. Although he wishes he could be expressing himself like this a lot more than he actually does in reality.
its the first day of summer! (at least, up in the northern hemisphere LOL) so what's a better time than now to ask -- what are your blorbos up to when the sun is out and the weather gets warm again? :0!
Tis summer!!! And the hot days already have no end in sight where I live. I am trying to embrace it.
I feel like each planet has its own twist on ‘summer’ and I’m not actually figuring out all that, I’m just going to answer this for the Odessen temperate climate zone their base is located in. That’s where they have been living at for several years now.
And, I have to mention this first, both Faro and Qyrhu are crying because they cannot wear their several layers of black leather clothing anymore. Well, they can, but it comes as a cost (dying of overheating). Tev doesn’t care lol, they’re walking around in their linen shirts looking absolutely great and cool. He tries to get the other two to wear linen shirts but it’s a real tough sell. Really, they are idiots.
Qyrhu grew up on Kaas, so he is well-versed in wearing light but fully covering outfits that are not leaving him completely overheated.
Faro might just give up and walk around in a tank top. Everyone is rejoicing and jubilating or walking into telephone posts. (can ppl be normal? probably. can I be normal? no)
Qyrhu really appreciates the warm summer nights actually. Being outside in that balmy air, the crickets going off, there’s even fireflies sometimes. Going for a walk at night, everything teeming with life, is just bliss. He truly loves that the most about the Odessen summers. Then of course, speeder biking tours. They are easier in good weather and longer days. He has been known to rouse Theron really early in the morning, to drive with him to some viewpoint to watch the valleys get flooded with sunlight. Theron really isn’t enthused about getting woken up when he got into bed so late, but Qyrhu holds a massive thermos flask full of caf to his nose so Theron shuffles himself together and sits himself behind Qyrhu on the bike, hugs him so not fall off and nearly falls asleep again until the fresh air wakes him up in a delicious way.
Tevuuk is napping in the sun (their rhythm is sleeping half of the day away anyways), and his delicate spacer complexion is getting obliterated fast, then he keeps to the shadows slurping cool beverages. I think he is fucking this up every year… idk what else, they aren’t a big weather enthusiast in general.
Faro is probably going camping at least once in a tiny tent somewhere she can then observe some critter’s nesting ground that she read about existing. She also wants to go kayaking and does her tours on a lake and also a river. She manages to convince Tev to come with her in a double, and those two coordinating the paddles… when it counts, they manage it very well, but the amount of fooling around they do, they don’t get far and just end up floating in the middle of the lake talking and chilling. Tev of course is also holding a whole parasol due to their sun sensitivity so that’s why the paddling is harder. When Faro actually takes Qyrhu with her they are much more efficient, they tour the entire lake and discover cute little beaches along the way and get chased off by angry water fowl bc they were too close to their nesting grounds.
And everyone is going to take a dip into a cold lake somewhere off the base. Usually, the lakes are too cold, but in the summer heat, it is a wonderful cool-off. There are little stones everywhere that hurt their feet but once they’re in the water it’s glorious. And then they can warm up again on the slabs of sun-warmed stones on the shore. There’s probably a waterfall a way off and some idiots (Qyrhu and whoever he managed to persuade) are hiking up there and jumping down into the water (yes he checked if the water was deep enough before at least). And hey, maybe there’s some kind of large creature in the depth of that lake that comes to be nosy and tickle someone’s feet. For once I think it’s Faro giving out a massive yelp out of fright, and everyone is more shocked about hearing her scream like that for the first time in their lives (they’re never gonna let her live that down).
oc question time, yay! how about storytelling for tev, and dance for qy? (i do remember dancing as a thing he comments on in his companion post, which i thought was really fun :)
<3
i was asked twice about Tev and storytelling. what is it about them. Is this a smuggler thing? Now I kinda need to know about all of your smugglers and their storytelling...
Storytelling: do they have a favourite story or kind of story? why? are they in the habit of sharing them with others?
Tevuuk hangs out in smoke-filled cantinas and dingy watering holes a lot, by necessity and by choice. They listen and they talk and they listen some more. Among all the business talk and gossip and chatter, there are gems, gems, they’re telling you!, and those they love to collect.
And from time to time, when they are in a good mood, they like to whip one out on people. When there's nothing to do but kill time, waiting for nightfall. Waiting for a job to begin, nerves in the air. Or after everyone has scraped out their plates and are hanging about the kitchen table. They are from second-hand accounts (or third hand, or sixth), a ‘someone told me once’ that might diverge from the original teller with every mouth it leaves and every ear it reaches. And Tev does like to build on it; that’s half the fun. It’s not about the veracity of a story, but the entertainment of the listener. Good stories are never actually true, and they love a good story.
Some of these stories are also taken from their own life and experience. As all the other stories, it’s supposed to entertain, to be funny or engrossingly spooky. Reality, however, had been a lot more stressful and sadder. And that is what’s quintessential about Tev’s stories. The other thing is to see how far they can string Guss along.
