betterthanaplan | The Cape Rouge, Port of Fandom, Christmas Eve

As a rule, he didn't tend to do much for the winter holidays -- unless you counted "go somewhere it's not winter" -- but some combination of Fandom's festivities and the cold weather had actually put him into something of a Christmas-y mood this year, so the Rouge's deck was -- well. Decked. There were string lights and garlands all over the open deck area, especially around the table holding the big thermos of hot, buttered rum. He'd set up a little fire pit on the metal cargo-bay doors, and the door to the galley and lounge below-decks was propped open with a now-dormant loaf of yesterday's fruitcake, in case people preferred to go in where it was warmer.

As discussed, Duke had only mentioned the party to a few people since planning it with Rey. It was Christmas, though, so if people decided to wander up and say hi, he wouldn't turn them away.

[up early and ready for all the slowplay. A few people in the know expected, but as it says in the narrative, it's open for wandering in if you want, too!]

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"Nah," Duke said. "That's only two goals. It's almost New Year's, you could handle at least one more if you had to."

"What does New Year's have to do with anything?"

"Not if it hasn't already," Duke said. He took her mug and refilled them both, then picked up a small, slim package he'd tucked away on the table. "So I got you something."

"What, you thought irritating old Earth traditions ended with Christmas?" Duke shook his head. "Ye of little faith. For New Year's, the tradition is to make resolutions. Things you want to change or accomplish in the coming year. You know. . . . Goals."

Octavia rolled her eyes.

"I have a permanent goal of just surviving, that should count for something."

"You did?"

She had something for him, but she'd felt a little self-conscious about bringing it not knowing how big this event would be, contain all shock.

"Everybody has that goal." A beat. "Almost everybody. And before you say it, 'I'm not everybody' doesn't count in this case."

Hey, he'd told her it would just be a few people. . . .

"I did," Duke said, handing her the package. Inside she'd find a simple, wooden disc, inlaid with a spiraling labyrinth pattern.

"You'll have to wait a bit for yours," she told him, taking the package to unwrap, and smiling once she saw what was inside. "This is beautiful."

"That's alright. I wasn't expecting one anyway." Duke smiled at her reaction. "It's a labyrinth. A meditation tool. It's complex, see, but there's only one path through it. So you run your finger along the path, and it takes time and focus, but not decision making, so you free your brain up for other things."

"This is perfect," she told him, actually kind of surprised by that, and hopefully he'd learned by now that Rey was a hugger and that was the response he was getting. "Thank you."

You’d think he would have, but somehow she still took him by surprise. He gave an awkward chuckle and hugged back. “You’re welcome. Maybe sometime we can go find one of the walking ones, too.”

"Those plant maze things? We could do that."

She'd be way too good at one of those.

“We could,” Duke agreed. “But I actually meant one of these.” He pointed to the labyrinth. “They’ve got ‘em all over. You walk it instead of run your finger on it. Meditative walking.”

"That would actually be a really good exercise," Rey said thoughtfully.

“It is,” Duke said. “Hence the global popularity.”

"The rest of the globe probably couldn't figure out how to sense the way out," Rey said with a smile, and it should be said that she really liked getting to figure out how she could make all this stuff work for her.

Lucy waved, a little shy, and offered Rey a chunk of fruitcake.

That was friendly, right? Offering food?

"Octavia," Lucy said, giving her a wave and a bright smile. "Punch anybody recently?"

It was an honest, even enthusiastic question. A lot of her friends on the small box hit bad guys and that made them heroes. Which she just assumed that Octavia was.

Because of the punching, see?

"And if they are going to give me noodles and sandwiches, sometimes I can give them cake," Lucy said thoughtfully. "I won the fight and now we get to eat it."

As was right and proper.

"Wasn't going to."

Maybe.

She had to keep herself from pointing out not all of 'almost everybody' probably were quite as aware having that goal as she was, though.

"Besides, I have another one that's not unique, either." Though it was something new for her.

Some part of Octavia would probably have agreed with that assessment. But mostly she thought the violence just made her a person who did what was necessary.

She snorted. "Not recently." Not since the aquarium, actually. She paused, her head tilting just a fraction. "How have you been?"

It was a sincere question. Octavia had no interest in learning how to perform small talk.

"Thank you," Rey said, smiling as she took it. "You're Larceny, right?"

"That is . . . fair, actually." Look, he couldn't really argue with a simple trade, could he. "I'm sure it was quite a fight. One of those suckers nearly took out my ankle."

It didn't. He had a bruise at most. But some things called for drama.

"There is no -- you know what, it's not important." Duke shook his head and shrugged. "As far as I know, no one in my world can use the Force. You've got me there."

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The Cape Rouge, Port of Fandom, Christmas Eve

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