Reunion (#3 Post-Order 66 Series)

Reunion - Part 9

Senna collapsed onto Rex's chest, sweat dripping from the tip of her nose as she tried to regain her breath. Rex smirked in between gasps, trailing his fingers along her spine as she relaxed all of her weight on top of him.

"You...you've gotten better at that...in the last year...and a half," she panted, and he chuckled.

"Had a lot of time to think."

"Think?" she teased.

"Yeah. What I'd do if you know...you were here."

"I see." She rolled off of him to lie next to him, patting his chest. "Well, you keep thinking then. Karking hells."

"Careful. I might get an ego."

She rolled her eyes as she pushed herself up on wobbly legs to head to the refresher. "I can live with your ego if you do that with it." Rex flushed, making every attempt to hide his grin.

"You're not so bad yourself," he said. "Where'd you learn that one thing?"

She winked at him. "Spent one night in a brothel when I couldn't find anywhere else to sleep. Picked up some tips and tricks while they let me crash on one of their couches." His eyebrows skyrocketed upwards and Senna let loose a cackle in response. "It was all tell and no showing, don't worry."

"Do I look worried?"

"You look surprised," she called over her shoulder before shutting the refresher door. Rex folded his hands behind his head, his breathing finally starting to level out. He smirked. We've both changed a lot in the last year and a half. His mind drifted to some of the other differences he'd noted as Senna re-emerged, pulling two water packets from his kitchenette and tossing one at him before climbing back into his bunk. She tucked her head into his shoulder, wrapping her arm around his waist and throwing one leg over his hip.

"You're thinking very loudly," she said, and he glanced down at her. Her blue eyes were somehow still sparkling in the dim light, but he could see a hint of concern in them as well.

"When did you start to be able to hear people's thoughts?" he asked. "You were right when you said you could barely move a wrench last time I saw you. You were getting stronger as you reconnected to the Force, but the things I've seen you do since we got back together are...something else entirely."

Senna sipped on her water packet before answering. "That was always something I was good at. In fact, that was how my connection to the Force first manifested when I was little. I was nothing more than a toddler, but I always seemed to be able to tap into the emotions of those around me. If someone was angry, I got upset as well. If someone was sad, I'd cry. I don't hear thoughts so much unless they're directed at me, but I am able to sense emotional states. I can feel when you're troubled or when you're angry. The manipulation aspect of that is something I learned when I was much older. I don't particularly care to use it, even on Imperials. Everyone has their strengths in their connection to the Force, some with physical manipulation like being able to push objects, others with their connection to living things. My mental connection has always been my strongest, whether it be empathetic or in my technical interests."

Rex hummed. "Maybe you're just smart when it comes to the tech."

She grinned. "Maybe."

He rolled onto his side to look at her. "I assume the communication aspect comes with the mental connection?"

"Yeah, that was something I didn't discover until I was almost ready to undertake my trials," she said, draining the last water from her packet before tossing it on the floor to be picked up later. "I can push thoughts or memories to other people when the time calls for it. It's not quite the same as the mind manipulation, more of a projection really."