"i like large parties. they’re so intimate. at small parties there isn’t any privacy."

[realists]

♪ take me to church -- hozier (cover)

It's been a handful of weeks and things aren't going badly. Jyn is a good house guest since she takes up all of zero space and has an almost sad lack of belongings. But eventually she makes herself at home in the guest bedroom, going to so far as to use the dresser like an actual human being. She keeps the sparse apartment clean, she somehow has tea perfectly timed for when he comes home, even if it's early or late, she doesn't eat all his food, she washes the dishes when he makes dinner. When he is at work, she explores the sights and when he is home, he continues her pop culture education.

Breaking Bad is boring (if completely reasonable in her eyes), the Wire is the most incredible piece of television she's ever seen, she loves and hates Patch Adams, she doesn't get the appeal of Johnny Depp, and she will only watch the Motorcycle Diaries in Spanish with Cassian translating the entire movie for her.

Any time Cassian offers to buy her something she says no and one random day he finds the exact cost of her meal plus 20% tip from the day he picked her up from jail tucked into his wallet with a post-it note that says thank you in Jyn's fluid scrawl. She seems to get along fine without a job because she does seem to have money for necessities.

He tells her about a gala and she absorbs the information (he'll be home very late, chamomile tea), but dismisses it as something she needs to worry about until a couple of days later when he asks if she'd like to borrow money for a dress. Borrow, he's learning. That's probably when he realizes that she completely missed the fact that he'd invited her in the first place. She still refuses to take his money, but assures him she will look like a proper society lady, don't worry.

The day of the party rolls around and when he comes home to dress and pick her up, he finds her barricaded in his bathroom and very unwilling to come out. She's not ready!!! Which is odd coming from the woman that can get dressed in the back of a car in two minutes flat. Eventually she convinces him (demands upon threat of not going) to leave without her so he isn't late and she will catch a cab.

Which is what finds her running up the steps of the party ten minutes late. She edges through the door somehow -- she had a ticket! Who did it come from! -- and spends a bit trying to find Cassian in the crowd. When she finally does, she twists and twirls through the party-goers like a beautifully dressed ballerina before she steps up behind him and clears her throat.

"Hi."

Comments

[ouzel]

"Leaving is not the same as running," Cassian points out, but it's really just to say something; he isn't going to insist either way, and while he feels a little cornered by the idea of Senator Organa being present and possibly seeing him dance with Galen Erso's daughter, he's not ashamed of the idea either.

So.

"How many of those can you drink before I need to give you a piggyback ride across the floor?" The music is transitioning and so Cassian finishes his own drink before taking her hand and leading her back to the dancefloor.

[realists]

"When I find out, you'll be the first to know." Much like a magic eight ball, ask again later. Either Jyn's never been drunk enough to need a piggyback ride or she was too drunk to remember. Either way she doesn't sound averse to finding out.

(She's never been that drunk.)

"Will you get in trouble?" she asks, glancing back to see Organa chatting to, presumably, his wife and not paying them any attention at all. "I know I haven't made this particularly easy on you."

[ouzel]

"Okay." Just don't get sick, he thinks but doesn't say. Something about admonishing her in this situation seems less than ideal, and while he's had some interesting nights of drinking and dancing on an empty stomach he also is doing the exact same thing. So maybe they'll be fine.

"I don't know. Realistically? He's going to ask a lot of questions, but I told him I was able to keep in contact with you, so." Cassian puts his hand at her waist and waits for the music to swell. "He's seen you blow up my phone about the Wire."

[realists]

"I can't believe I spent my entire life without that show!" she whines, momentarily ignoring the rest of everything to have a deep, personal moment with her memories of the Wire. She was, in those moments, #blessed. Back to the topic at hand.

"I doubt he'd consider snogging at a black tie affair just 'keeping contact with me'. Although, literally, yeah." There was a lot of contact. As much as she finds Organa a distasteful reminder of all her losses and a perfect repository for the majority of her anger of her current situation (which has lessened tremendously thanks to Cassian being Cassian), she can't claim he doesn't do good with his position. She's just still afraid he's going to want to use her for some kind of greater good. Beyond that, she still hates the idea of Cassian getting in trouble because she is... her. "What are you going to tell him?"

[ouzel]

"I promised you I wouldn't tell him where you're staying and that hasn't changed. For the rest, I don't know. That I'm seeing you, I guess, and it's a recent development and it means that I'm all the more hellbent to keep you out of situations that aren't in your best interest?"

Cassian gives a one-shouldered shrug. Whatever happens, happens. He will handle it. It's not her fault, and he doesn't want her to worry even though he's touched that she does.

[realists]

"It should make me nervous, how well you lie without lying." Because none of that in untrue, it's just missing so much of the context of their relationship. Well, their friendship. She's not sure what it is anymore. Their thing.

[ouzel]

"It just means I'm good at my job." Should it make her nervous? Probably, but Cassian has already promised himself and whatever listens to his meagre prayers that he won't lie to her if he can avoid it and he plans to continue to avoid it even at high personal cost.

It's just a job, after all.

[realists]

"Was that, by the by, your subtle way of telling me to stop texting you at work?" Because she's not going to stop and she feels it might be necessary to illuminate him to that fact. Though she's pretty sure he knows by now.

She's contrary for the sake of being contrary.

[ouzel]

"It was not, in fact." Of course she isn't, and it's not like he minds exactly. It's nice that someone texts him at all? It's hilarious when that someone is ranting about television.

[realists]

"Good, because I'm done with the Wire but I think I'm going to start Narcos soon." Or maybe the Killing or the Fall or some other dramatic hour long show airing on Netflix that isn't Breaking Bad. She isn't a fan of comedies, it turns out, or superhero movies. (Huge fan of Disney animation however.)

[ouzel]

"Sounds good." What does he watch when he's home? Telenovelas and yes, Disney animation. Superhero movies are ehhhhn and comedies are just unrealistic or full of people being terrible to themselves and others for a laugh. No thanks.

[realists]

That settled, Jyn tucks herself a little closer. She's quite comfortable in his arms and she doesn't mind ignoring the rest of the world for an evening.

After a bit, she looks up again. "Maybe next time we just go to a pub instead of dressing up all fancy? Not that you don't look really good." A beat. "And smell good, too. But, you know, fish and chips and a beer would work for me too."

[ouzel]

"I can manage that. In fact, I think I would rather not eat here. All the food is tiny and I'll bet it is bland." Because this is a hoity toity rich white people party. Why would the food be anything but plain? Fancy, yes, but definitely not what he would consider seasoned.

But. She's talking of next times and doesn't look terrified and he feels good about that. "Or we could take turns choosing." Date nights in rotation.

[realists]

But tiny food is cute food. Probably all going to waste when the night is over as well. If she'd brought a purse she could smuggle some home and give it away, but purses aren't meant for high society functions. (Also she didn't want to waste the money to buy one for the night.)

"That sounds fair." He'll probably hate her choices, but that's his mistake.

[ouzel]

Tiny food may be cute but he doesn't think he's up for one more snide remark, and he'd rather leave before Organa finds a way to talk to them. Cassian can at least be getting paid for that.

Besides, he wants to know what she likes. There's no better way to learn that than firsthand. "I like to be fair."

[realists]

"That's not really a shock, I have to admit." He's sort of the poster child for fair as far as Jyn is concerned. Which is a strange thing in her life, probably why it always sets her a little off balance.

"Do you want to go now or keep dancing?"

[ouzel]

"Be the change you want to see in the world? Perhaps I took it too literally." It's a strange thing for him to be, really, when one considers the unfair things he's been an agent of in his lifetime.

"One more dance?"

[realists]

"Alright." Maybe she could pass it off as playacting a couple of lovebirds, but Jyn wouldn't have minded a few more dances. The thought of which makes a shiver of confusion skip up her spine.

He'd asked her out so obviously he likes her? But maybe he just meant that they should get out of the house more. Why is she still trying to fight what she knows is true? She kissed him and he kissed her back, that's it. He wants to date her even though she is a terrible person and will be rubbish for his career and probably life in general.

But she can't just accept it because then if he changes his mind, she'll be the one with the broken heart so she decides to keep him where he already is in her life (friend) and go on these dates with an open mind and a healthy consideration that he'll come to his senses. That seems safest.

"One more dance."

[realists]

c'est fini