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Thrawn returned from his holomeeting with the admiralty bearing tight shoulders and low spirits. Faro noticed both as they walked together to his private quarters, but she didn’t address them until the doors were closed. She did nothing to preface her assessment. “It didn’t go well.”
Thrawn shook his head. “The other admirals don’t believe anything in the Unknown Regions is capable of threatening the Empire. They seem to think the Emperor only sends the Seventh Fleet to that area for exploration and future colonization purposes.”
And to keep Thrawn out of the public eye. If Thrawn were aware of that purpose, he didn’t mention it. “Vader was on the mission too. He dealt with the Grysk alongside us.”
“He was not present.” Thrawn flicked his eyes back to Faro as she circled around him. “It seems Lord Vader also believes there are more pressing tasks at hand for the Empire.”
Faro unlaced her shoes, kicked them off, and knelt on the bed behind Thrawn. “The Empire is a big place. There are problems everywhere. Most of the problems the other admirals handle are internal to Imperial borders. Of course they don’t want to hear about something lurking in the shadows beyond their scope of operation.”
“They are acting shortsighted. Nothing more.” Thrawn’s shoulders clenched around his neck. “The Empire isn’t alone in their decision to ignore the Grysk’s threat. Countless civilizations of the Unknown Regions made the same choice. They make no choices now, and I…” Thrawn trailed off. He turned around to face Faro. “What are you doing?”
Faro motioned for him to turn back around. “Sit down on the edge. I’m listening.”
“What are you doing?”
Faro shuffled back, pulling up the neatly-tucked sheets. “I want to rub your shoulders. They’re… tense.”
Thrawn narrowed his eyes. “I made no request for this.”
“You don’t have to ask for it. I’m offering.” Faro slid off her bent legs and sat on the bed in earnest. “Do you not want me to?”
Thrawn glanced around the room, using the pieces of art he had displayed around the room as focal points. Faro tracked his emotions by the pieces his gaze sought out: opening up to love from the returning soldier, seeking serenity from the meditating warrior, and comfort in intimacy from the nude Selonian. She had his answer before he offered it to her. “I will not refuse. May I continue to speak?”
Faro shifted to accommodate Thrawn as he sat on the bed. “You can keep going. May I remove your top half of clothing?”
Thrawn inclined his head. She could barely see the gesture from behind. “That is acceptable.”
As Faro reached around Thrawn’s neck to undo his collar, Thrawn continued to question the character of his fellow admirals. He laid into Grand Admiral Savit the worst; beyond striking down Thrawn’s proposal, Savit spent most of the meeting trying to change the subject. Faro could only pray the two never had to collaborate on a future mission. Thrawn would stay cordial around others, but Faro knew she’d never hear the end of it.
Rank plaque stowed away on a side table, Faro lifted Thrawn’s tunic up past his head. He had to pause mid-sentence and rise a few centimeters to allow her to remove the garment. Faro folded the tunic off to the side as well before untucking Thrawn’s undershirt.
She didn’t rush the process. Even before rubbing his back, Faro took the time to rove her hands over the thin layer of fabric separating blue muscles from beige hands. Still wound up from his meeting, Thrawn’s skin was warmer than usual at the starting point. She was used to other emotions spiking his temperature in their moments alone.
Her job tonight was a bit unusual in that sense. Faro didn’t mix anger with sex; it led to inserting aggression where it didn’t belong. Instead of heating Thrawn up tonight, Faro thought it best to cool him down instead.
Thrawn stopped again when Faro pulled his undershirt over his head. He tried to pick up where his rant had left off, but Faro’s hands on his shoulders distracted him. “Press harder with your thumbs. Most of the tension is there.” Faro complied with his demands, and Thrawn exhaled. “Correct. That is… correct.”
Faro smiled. She should have tried this weeks ago. Thrawn was hit or miss when it came to touch, but as long as they were alone, he was usually willing to indulge her suggestions.
Her thumbs dug into the ring of tension connecting Thrawn’s neck to his shoulders. The skin on the surface was warm and smooth, shining deep blue in the light. If she dropped her hands down to the small of his back, she’d find a nasty network of scars, each marked with it’s own slight depression into his skin.
“More than the actions of individuals, I’m frustrated with the Empire’s inability to think beyond its current borders. When I first arrived, the Imperial military was traveling to Outer Rim planets frequently. Annexation was commonplace. I believed I had come to a place willing to use its resources to look outward, not collapse within from bickering.”
Faro hummed. “Those annexations are the reason the Empire looks like it does now. It’s one thing to arrive on a planet and declare it for the Empire. It’s another to actually offer them the peace and security the Empire promises all its citizens. Rebels, pirates, and smugglers are all internal disruptions to order. Alone, no single organization is a serious issue, but put together, they take a lot of resources to sort out.” Faro increased the pressure in her left hand. “We’re fortunate to still be assigned to the Unknown Region from time to time. The Phoenix Squadron was scattered by Atollon. They will be back.”
“Hm…” Thrawn exhaled, deeper than before. It was almost a sigh. “I acknowledge your points. I tire of those rebels. Their plans are grotesque, reckless, and destructive towards Imperial and civilian lives alike. That each scheme does not end in a blazing failure for their perpetrators is offensive to me.”
“I hate it too,” Faro admitted. “I should have been there for Atollon.”
“Your mission was of equal importance. I would have asked for none other in command of it.”
Faro closed her eyes, savoring the moment. When the knots around Thrawn’s neck loosened, she shifted her hands across his shoulder blades. Even after knowing him for years, Faro couldn’t get over how perfectly Thrawn’s torso was sculpted. She loved every plane and angle of it. If someone had shown her a shirtless Thrawn a few months ago, it would have broken her carefully maintained cool to bits. She marveled at how long she’d succeeded in keeping her hands off of him… then marveled, equally intensely, at why she’d ever waited so long.
Unthinking, Faro wrapped her arms around Thrawn’s shoulders, closing the distance between them in a backward embrace. Hesitating at first, she leaned down and kissed below his ear. Faro’s hair tickled his jawbone, earning her a snort for her troubles.
“Who taught you your massage technique?”
“My parents. They used to take turns rubbing each other’s backs after a long day. Both would volunteer to go first because they wanted to be the last one massaged.”
“I see. You studied in an informal setting.” This time, Thrawn’s hum contained the note of a chuckle. “Do you expect me to return the favor, then?”
“You don’t have to. I never stated that expectation.”
“I have… an alternative.” Thrawn shifted so he could lay on his back at Faro’s side. He scooped her up in his arms and laid her out on his chest. Faro pulled back to remove her rank plaque, then settled back down on top of him. She stroked his side with her free hand, head resting on a pec muscle.
“This is nice. You don’t normally let me on top,” she teased before realizing how it sounded.
Just as Faro was about to clarify, Thrawn shook his head. “Not tonight. My energy has been spent on shortsighted fools.” He laid one forearm on the small of her back, clutching her close. “I appreciate your willingness to listen to me. Your efforts to relax me are considerate as well.”
“I’ll be in those meetings with you someday. It’s possible I’ll be just as frustrated as you are.”
“I hope not. Perhaps with our combined forces, reason can advance on the field of the war room table.”
“We’ll see.” Faro expected she’d be commanding ships of her own by then. She would have her own concerns to voice. While she would always be sympathetic to the Seventh Fleet, she may not have the option to second Thrawn wholeheartedly. Were she an admiral in her own right, Faro would need to prove her time as Thrawn’s first officer was in the past if she wanted the respect of the other admirals in those meetings.
But that wasn’t now. For now, Faro could rest firmly in Thrawn’s camp. Held fast in the commander’s tent, she let the beat of his heart lure her into a light doze. When she forced her head to tilt up, Thrawn’s eyes had narrowed to red slits, emitting only the faintest of light. That was the face of a man seconds away from nodding off.
Good. Rest may not solve any of their problems, but it stayed the development of new ones.
Besides. Thrawn made one hell of a mattress pad.