#debated finding a more gffa-ish way of saying pot meet kettle but decided it's fine this way

[queen-scribbles]

WAIT ]:          realizing the receiver is about to leave the room, the sender hastily reaches out and catches their wrist, preventing them from continuing their departure.

Unfocused

hoo boy, full blast pining!Arcann Ardrali fic for you. Like. High-key isn’t even a strong enough descriptor. It’s stratospheric. (ps this is post-Unbowed, so she’s pining too, but POV is all him :D)

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Arcann was halfway through stack of reports he’d agreed to review when the faint flicker of another presence disrupted his focus. He’d been so absorbed in his task, he’d failed to pick up the quiet muttering from the next archive aisle over until the individual moved closer. There was an intensity that gentled around the edges--white hot focus framed in soothing blue--which made him fairly certain he knew who it was.

Arcann let his gaze drift up from the datapad in his hand, biting the inside of his cheek as he debated whether it would be a good idea to interrupt her. There was a subtle flare of something... irritation? frustration? that broke his internal stalemate in the selfish direction, and he pushed out of the chair. He needed a break, anyway. 

The muttering stopped as he stepped around the end of the aisle, and Endrali met his gaze with a sheepish smile.

“Is something wrong?” he asked, managing to school his reactive smile into something more acceptable than it wanted to be.

“Not... really. Some information is eluding me. Sorry if I bothered you.” Endrali ran a finger around the hood of the search terminal in front of her. She cocked  her head and studied him. ”Though, come to think of it, this isn’t somewhere I’d expect to find you to be bothered.”

“I offered to look over the recent reports from Admiral Aygo’s men,” Arcann explained. “To see if I noticed anything in the unrest they’ve been handling that bears connection or similarity to the... incidents we’ve handled.”

Endrali huffed a laugh, which was a fair reaction. Tassar at least was more than an incident. “Ah, good idea. I’m sure that’ll be appreciated. You’re doing it in here because...?”

“It seemed the place I’d be the most out of the way while still having easy access to the information I might need.” He didn’t mind the prodding; this was hardly one of his usual haunts around the base. “And you? What information is proving so elusive?”

“Oh, I told Hylo I’d do some research on the Unknown Regions and people who had visited or explored them to see if there’s any leads on resources we could use.” She wrinkled her nose and played her fingers idly over the terminal’s keys. There was a tremor of something he couldn’t place to her sense before her gaze dropped back to the query screen. “One of the predominant explorers isn’t where he should be listed in the database...” Something flickered in her eyes. “Unless....” She tapped keys more deliberately, and her brow furrowed even as triumph flared through her sense. “There you are! “

It took a strong effort to suppress a laugh at her mingled pique and enthusiasm. 

Endrali plugged in a datastick to download what she needed and flashed another apologetic smile as she looked up, tucking hair behind her ear. “So it appears the archive staff need a gentle reminder on how to honor different cultures’ naming conventions when adding to our database.” She flicked a glance toward where he’d come from. “Sorry again if I disturbed you.”

“It’s alright,” Arcann assured her, fighting the urge to smooth back a strand she’d missed. “I was starting to see double, so a break is probably wise.”

She cocked her head. “Don’t work yourself too hard.”

I’d work myself into the ground for this second chance. Even if the care in her tone made his heart skip a beat, it was a rather pot meet kettle sentiment, and he couldn’t bite back this smile. “I won’t. The report I was reading happened to be more detailed than the previous few, and thus was a longer read. I’d planned a break when I reached the end, but I don’t mind it happening early.” Especially if it means I get to talk to you. He snatched the thought back, shoved it down, hoping it hadn’t resonated strongly enough for her to pick it up.

“Good,” she nodded, leaning one hip against the console.

“So I take it naming conventions are an interest of yours?” he asked, partly because her quiet passion had been endearing, partly to keep talking. “To be so frustrated it was recorded wrong.”

“You could say that,” Endrali laughed softly. “It goes with the love for archaeology and cultural history. I might be primarily focused on Jedi history, but other cultures are fascinating, too. And names are an important part of that; there are several where the naming habits are a clear look into their values. Family, status, class, that sort of thing. But it can get tricky keeping track of the family, individual, in some cases clan or ancestral name orders. And sometimes there are differences when the origin tongue is translated into Basic...” She shifted her weight. “So there are guidelines for how to weight aspects for archiving, and apparently at least one member of our staff is unfamiliar with them. So. A gentle reminder.”

The terminal beeped completion of the download and it was almost a shame to watch her reel herself back in.

“There we go,” she murmured, plucking out the datastick. She flashed him another warm smile. “I’ll leave you to it.”

“Endrali.” Arcann wasn’t sure what drove him to take a half-step forward and catch her wrist as she started to leave; something instinctive or selfish or otherwise.  It had his heart pounding in his chest when she paused, regardless.  “Perhaps we could help each other.”

Her smile widened and he almost dared think she’d been hoping he’d stop her. His grip was loose enough for her to easily shake and she hadn’t. “How so?”

“I’m familiar with the Unknown Regions to aid with your research, and you are an.. alternate perspective on the incidents I’m comparing with the reports. It would be a more thorough result for both. If you’ve the time?”

“Of course.” She shifted back toward him and he let go of her wrist. Her fingers flexed. “If you don’t mind the company?”

“Not in the slightest,” Arcann said, and he meant it, despite the one slight problem with this arrangement. 

Her smile as they headed, together for where he’d been sitting was going to make it very hard to focus.