#xaja does not like snow

[keldae]

Taking a bath together Xaja/Theron :D

The door slid closed, and Xaja wearily leaned back against it, still shivering too much to even contemplate removing her snow-caked jacket and soaked-through boots. Alderaan during midwinter was not for the faint of heart.

It also wasn’t meant for Jedi and spies who apparently couldn’t recognize that the snow shelf they’d chosen to traverse as a shortcut to the Zakuulan outpost for the Star Fortress wasn’t strong enough to support the weight of two human bodies. At least they’d only fallen a few metres when it broke and landed in the deepest snowbank Xaja had ever seen. It had been more than enough to bury her for several minutes until her squirming and Theron’s frantic digging had brought her back up to the surface. 

They’d finally made it back to the Alde “house” (which Xaja secretly thought more accurately resembled a palace) that they’d been granted lodging at, but Theron had been almost immediately accosted by one of his contacts. He’d sent Xaja up ahead to their rooms with a promise to be not far behind her. And Xaja didn’t think he’d be too long in talking- he looked to be as cold as she felt.

With a groan, the Jedi finally stepped away from the door and pried her boots off her feet, leaving them just out of easy-tripping range. Her sodden coat came off next, then her belt and lightsabers. She’d need to do maintenance on her weapons later, after she’d thawed out a bit. Wonder how good the hot water supply here is, she mused as she made her way to the refresher door, breathing on her freezing hands in an attempt to get some feeling back into her fingers. She palmed open the door and gasped in surprised delight- while she’d been hoping for a hot shower, the huge bathtub in the ‘fresher was a dream she hadn’t been expecting. 

Leaving a trail of wet footprints behind her from her soaked socks, she shuffled over to the side of the tub and found the control panel to start filling it with hot water. Whichever Alde noble had installed this tub, they’d spared no expense- it even filled surprisingly quickly for a tub of its size. Xaja used the time waiting to remove the rest of her sodden clothing, hissing as she caught a look at the darkening bruises on her hip and leg. Oh, Theron’s going to have that heart attack he keeps grumbling about when he sees that. Taking a second to ensure that there were towels nearby (and there was a giant, fluffy stack of them, probably courtesy of some attentive droid), Xaja sat on the edge of the tub and dipped her feet into the water, and groaned at the immediate tingling as the heat reached down into the cold she could feel in her bones. She slipped down into the tub, letting the water cover her shoulders, and sighed in blissful contentment. This was even making her bruises and sore muscles feel better. In no hurry to get clean and get out of the water, the petite Jedi sat down on a ledge, leaned back against the wall of the tub, and closed her eyes. Probably shouldn’t nap in here…

The door to their quarters slid open, and Xaja heard heavy footsteps enter the bedroom. “Xaja?” Theron had finally returned. “Where are you?”

“In here,” Xaja called back, not bothering to open her eyes yet. She listened to the sounds of Theron removing his own boots and coat, muttering an expletive or two that she barely heard over the clatter of his gun belt being set on a table, then heard the rustle of wet fabric and chattering teeth as he finally entered the ‘fresher. “Good chat?” she asked, still not opening her eyes.

“Yeah, but not as good as this view,” Theron said as he approached the bathtub. Xaja sensed him stopping right beside her head, heard the tiny splash as his fingers passed through the water to touch her shoulder. Even with the hot water, the cool temperature of his skin still made her squeak. “Sorry.” 

“Stars, you’re cold.” Xaja finally opened her eyes and reached up to squeeze Theron’s fingers. Looking up, she took note of his still-red face and how sodden his shirt was. “You know this tub’s big enough for two people, right?”

“This isn’t a tub, it’s a swimming pool.” Theron smirked as he leaned down to kiss Xaja’s cheek. “I’m not so cold that I can’t appreciate the view in here.” The hand on her shoulder drifted down to dance teasingly over her skin under the water.

“Yes, but my view isn’t as good.” Xaja gave him an exaggerated pout and reached up to tug at his shirt. “C’mon, get in here and give me someone to cuddle. Your Commander orders it.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Theron winked and stepped back from the tub. For a few minutes, there were the sounds of him peeling off his wet clothing, before he stepped into the tub beside Xaja and groaned pleasurably at the feeling of heat. “So just so you know, I’m never leaving this tub again,” he said as he slid down to his shoulders and sighed blissfully. “It’s so warm in here.”

“That makes two of us.” Xaja moved over to wrap her arms around Theron’s waist and pretend she hadn’t been shamelessly eyeing him while he’d been entering the tub and giving her a very nice view. “We’ll make Lana run things.”

“Yep.” Theron slipped his arms around her shoulders and pulled her tightly against him. “We like House Alde, right?”

“If we didn’t before, we do now.” Xaja rested her cheek on Theron’s shoulder and frowned at his visible bruises through the water. “Are you sure you’re okay? You fell hard off that snow shelf.”

“No less hard than you.” Theron gently ran a hand over her hip, which now was a dark purple instead of its normal fair shade. “I’ve never been so grateful for biosign readers in my implants as I am right now. I don’t know if I would have found you in time otherwise.”

Xaja shook her head into Theron’s neck. “But you did.” She closed her eyes and tried to forget the feeling of panic when she’d realized she’d been buried by the snow, trying to use the Force to figure out which way was up, and then squirming and trying to not breathe in the snow until she’d felt a hand grab her arm and yank her free. She was just lucky her attempt to Force-push Theron clear of the worst of the snow had apparently worked well enough. “You did, and we’re both here and reasonably okay now, and I’m just glad you’re not hurt more than you already are.”

“Frostbite and bruises- it could be worse.” Theron tilted his head to kiss her cheek again. “There should be kolto around here to treat those if we ever get out of this tub. Are you sure you’re not hurt otherwise?”

Xaja started to shake her head, then squealed as Theron shifted his own head against her in such a way that his left temple pressed into her cheek. “Gah! Theron, your implants are freezing!”

“Oops.” Theron grinned into her neck. “Maybe I’ll just stay here until they warm up properly-”

Xaja sighed in playful frustration and promptly pushed Theron’s grinning face under the water.