[open] so don't stop me now

[volitaunt]

who: Poe Dameron (and by extension BB-8) + YOU
what: Catchall log
when: The remainder of November
where: Multiple locations
warnings: None at the moment, will edit as needed.



i. perimeter guard: aerial survey & exploration

[ Poe is making out with getting to know the Intrepid. At the moment he's underneath the ship on a rolling dolly, keeping up a steady stream of commentary to BB-8 while he roots around in an open panel.

BB-8 is next to him, projecting a hologram of the inner workings of the ship. ]

--deflectors aren't bad, but this baby has nothing on an X-wing. No offense. [ That last bit is directed at the ship, which he pats before going back into its insides. ] I'm thinking we can squeeze a little more speed out of these thrusters if we modify the thermal vents. What do you think, buddy?

[ BB-8 chirrups his support for the idea as Poe emerges again, hair sticking up from sweat and face marked with grease. ] Need to clear it with Jim first. Man, if Jess were here, she'd go to town on this thing.

ii. also... perimeter.... guard..........

[ Poe isn't really the weight lifting type. It's boring, for one thing. A static exercise. If he can't be in the air, he'd rather be in motion.

Which is why he's in the Perimeter Guard's fitness area whaling away on a few of the standing targets instead. Kicks, punches, all relatively basic moves executed at high speed. He knows enough to get by in a hand-to-hand combat scenario, but he's no advanced martial artist. The moves he knows are enough to get him a full-body workout, and that's good enough for him. His accuracy isn't great, not when his muscles protest this particularly vigorous abuse, not with the numbness in his arms and legs that gives way to tingling pain somewhere close to the surface of his skin. It makes him grateful the First Order didn't go after his hands. He can deal with the time it takes for the rest to heal.

--Also, he's talking to BB-8 the whole time he moves, conversation punctuated with grunts and the sounds of impact. ] --can't let ourselves get comfortable, you know? We-- need to be ready to-- move at a moment's notice.

[ He pauses, and BB-8 rolls over to the edge of the practice mat with a towel held in one maintenance grip and a water bottle in another. Poe takes both, taking a drink and wiping his face, speaking while his face is in the towel. ] Need to figure out a high-speed way to get a hold of Rey and Finn, so if they line the portal up or whatever it is they need to do we can hit it together. A kind of emergency signal.

iii. a park

[ He's jogging, focused on the motion of legs and arms, entirely absorbed in the rhythm. BB-8 rolls along in his wake, the droid more interested in their surroundings and the things in them than keeping up. At least since they're in public he's not rambling at his droid this time??

But you can bet if BB-8 sees something interesting or someone familiar, he'll detour away from his owner. ]

iv. a bar!

[ Poe doesn't drink much, and he doesn't let his pilots drink either. It's too much of a risk when they need to be ready to move the second intel or orders come in. Still, he likes people watching, and bars are a pretty good place to do it. (BB-8 elected to stay at the communal housing building.)

He is definitely not trying to avoid sleeping, because he's definitely not getting more tense with every day that goes past. Old habits, though. He's nursing a tonic with lime, since it's what the bar tender suggested for someone who doesn't want alcohol. ]

v. wildcard

[ Something else? Hit me! ]

Comments

[paged]

[ She laughs more openly at that, making a face at the same time. ]

Please tell me that's the name of a cocktail and not the actual stuff.

[volitaunt]

You spend as much time as I do shoulders-deep in an X-wing and you're gonna get some of that stuff in your mouth. [ It's just the facts of pilot life okay. ]

[paged]

[ She covers her face with both hands now, giving out a muffled 'oh god' and 'nooo' while struggling not to laugh more. Her hands go out in front of her while she's talking, like she's measuring something invisible. ]

That's why you keep your mouth closed or you cover it, Poe. Oh my god.

[volitaunt]

I talk to BB-8! He keeps my maintenance records!

[ Also he just talks to BB-8 but that's beside the point. ]

[paged]

What the hell does that--who the hell is BB-8?!

[ She can't even finish a sentence. You are speaking in riddles, sir. ]

[volitaunt]

[ Poe grins. At least talking to Taako has given him a certain degree of preparedness for that question?? ]

My astromech. He's a droid, and it's easier for you to meet him than for me to try and tell you what that means, because everyone I've met here says 'so he's a robot' when I try to explain.

[paged]

[ ..... ]

But that's what an android is. It's a robot.

[ She just assumes that's what he means by "droid". ]

[volitaunt]

[ Poe shakes his head. ] They're not just robots. Robots--

[ Okay talking to Taako didn't prepare him as well as he thought. ] Here, hang on. Just wait here, all right?

[ He slides off the stool, angling toward the door. ] Stay right there! I'll be right back.

[paged]

[ She protests slightly, ]

Poe, what--

[ Turns on her stool to watch him go but she stays where she is, throwing her arms up and huffing. ]

Fine. Whatever.

[ Go get your little android, Poe. She's going to turn back to the bar and ask for a rum and coke this time tyvm ]

[volitaunt]

[ He hurries back, but the round trip still takes about fifteen minutes. Poe is muttering to BB-8 about how he should have just brought Karen with him instead of leaving her behind, but when he walks back into the bar she's still there, and BB-8 is trundling along next to him, whistling his interest in their new surroundings. ]

Oh good. [ He exhales, glad to see Karen hasn't left. With a tiny flourish, he gestures to the droid rolling up beside him, booping curiosity at Karen. ] This is BB-8.

[paged]

[ Karen, nursing her new drink, looks to Poe and then downward to BB-8. Her eyes widen and she rears back a little not sure if the moon whiskey is doing something or if she really is seeing this thing. ]

It's... a ball?

[ It's a fucking beep-boop ball. ]

[volitaunt]

[ Poe laughs, and BB-8 makes an offended noise at the same time. ] He's a BB unit, which I guess yeah, means he's a ball.

[ BB-8 repeats the noise of offense, louder, this time directed at Poe. ] Well you are, buddy.

[paged]

[ She gives a little start at the noise, not having expected a... response from the thing. But Poe is talking about it like it's more than just a robot so, guess she should try to do the same.

Even if Poe's laughter is a bit contagious, ]

I'm sorry I just... haven't seen anything like it--I mean, him. Like him.

[ That's definitely going to take some getting used to. ]

[volitaunt]

Most people here haven't, seems like.

[ BB-8 chirps a sad confirmation, and Poe reaches down to pat his droid before resuming his place at the bar. BB-8 tilts his head dome back to give Karen a more careful inspection. ] Bee's my flight partner. He's saved my life more than once.

[paged]

[ Her brows go up at that and she looks back down at the droid. It's still an odd sight but not a bad one. So, she gives it a try, talking to BB-8. ]

No easy feat, I'd imagine. He sounds like the kind of guy that gets into trouble a lot.

[volitaunt]

[ BB-8 gives a trill of confirmation that ends in a noise that is, undeniably, a sigh. Poe points an accusing finger at the droid with the hand holding his glass. ]

I'm not that bad.

[ Saith the droid, Beep Boop. ]

Okay, that wasn't--

[ Beep boopity boop. ]

Now, that's not f--

[ Beepity boopity beep beep.

Poe gives up. ]

Fine, you win.

[paged]

[ Karen watches the exchange and ends up laughing despite only hearing one half of the conversation. She's almost wheezing, ]

I have no idea what he said but I agree with him.

[volitaunt]

He's just lucky that stuff is classified. How am I supposed to defend myself?

[ Rude, BB. Rude. Poe shakes his head and takes a drink. ] It's not like I try to get into these situations.

[paged]

[ She's still laughing into her next swig but holds up a hand as she nods. Once the drink is down, ]

Okay, okay. I can actually sympathize with that a lot. I never plan to end up in a dangerous situation but it would always happen anyway.

[volitaunt]

[ Poe chuckles. ] I know someone who used to be an investigative journalist--she said once that if there was a planet where someone didn't hate her, it was just because she hadn't been there yet. Seems kind of like danger comes with the territory.

[paged]

[ Karen makes a face at that, almost wincing. ]

That sounds... pretty terrible. I mean, yeah, I get angry letters sometimes but when you're a journalist, you shouldn't be aiming to make people hate you. You should be following the story, trying to get to the truth so people can make up their own minds.

[volitaunt]

[ Poe... is bad at hiding his thoughts. He's as bad at hiding his thoughts as he is at lying. He hadn't realized he was still carrying a wound from what Suralinda did, from the person she'd become, but when Karen says that... It's like the surgical cut that prepares an uneven gash for stitching.

Poe just looks at her, silenced by surprise.

Finally, quietly: ] Yeah.

[ He looks down at his glass, not sure what else to say. ] I think you're right.

[paged]

[ It's hard for her to miss that kind of reaction. Even harder for her not to say anything about it. ]

Hey--are you okay?

[volitaunt]

[ He reaches over to rest a hand on her forearm, giving it a tiny squeeze. His smile isn't quite up to military standards, as it were, but he winks. ] That's classified, unfortunately.

[paged]

Bullshit.

[ But it's said with little heat, more softly than anything else. ]

I didn't mean to upset you if I said something--

[ Because she knows she can be opinionated in a less than considerable fashion at times. ]