Welcome to Gaia! ::

"NO. Nononononono." Dawson laughed. "I mean, yeah, there's a dude under there, he just has t'use a machine t'breathe, but no he don' get with the princess."

Was this for real? Was Maebe one of the few people on Earth left who didn't know one of the oldest plot twists in known cinema? Did she not remember who he was dressed as?

"Hush now, we gettin' important plot stuff."

Dawson, who thought of Finn, couldn't help but smile. "Why's that? You think I'd make a worse shot?" he whispered back, trying to sound offended.

"Better 'an this?" Dawson asked incredulously with a tug of his jacket. "Girl, you crazy." Crazier still that she really honest to God didn't know. And though he snickered when she let out that ohhhh, he parried any attempts at explaining himself, because in no way would he ruin such a rare chance of seeing someone exposed to that plot for the first time.

Obi-Wan's death, no matter how many times he saw it, was still heartbreaking to him. Maybe he really was just too much of a sappy nerd. But he caught Maebe's glance and cleared his throat. "He's one a'the only real good things 'bout the prequels," Dawson explained. "Real sass bucket, n' he's played by Ewan McGregor. Dude from Moulin Rouge." In case she saw that. "He was a good one. N' the last Jedi aside from Luke now, y'gotta remember."

"Battle station," Dawson corrected her gently, his gaze flickering between the screen and Talia's cage. She was getting restless from the loud noises of battle, and so he lowered the volume a little to avoid whimpering. "A lot. Tha's war fer ya."

He'd never honestly thought about it. Probably because the movie glossed over it in lieu of the spectacular and iconic explosion. Who cared how many were there because they were bad guys, right? His childhood had been about the X-wing fighters in constructed substitutes (or with his arms outstretched), light saber fights with stacked markers (his older brother would cheat and snap them off, really, who touches lightsabers with their bare hands), hours spent remaking scenes with his Legos...

He snorted at Maebe's comment but couldn't help but grin. As the credits began to roll, he rolled off the bed, making sure Maebe wouldn't get deseated in the process, and squatted down by the minipet's cage. "Aight, girl, you wanna get out fer a bit?"

Talia sniffed.

"Lessee here." He opened the cage and gathered the barghest into his arms, a ball of dark thick fur and pupil-less red eyes that seemed to looked everywhere her head turned. Dawson took a seat back on the bed and began to stroke her fur, saying to Maebe, "She's shy like I said, so don' make sudden movements. But she's a sweetheart."

"Heh. House was too big fer just me anyway." He heard Syn's soft scoff but ignored it as he always had, choosing instead to baby Talia.

"Maebe here's a close friend a'mine," Dawson told the minipet in a more hushed tone. "She's gonna be yer aunt, aight? You treat her nice n' she won' nibble ya."

Talia stretched her head out sniffed, cautiously putting one paw and then another on the bed. She wasn't a feline, but he still felt those long claws push through his jeans as she leaned forward, curious but unsure about leaving the safety of his lap. Eventually a cold wet nose bumped Maebe's fingers.

"I think talkin t'her helps," he offered. "Makes 'em used to the sound've yer voice, like babies in the womb n' s**t, right? Good thing I talk so much, huh."

Her other hand was investigated with a few quick sniffes. After a pause in which Talia got used to the way the bed leaned under her weight, she crept off Dawson's lap to sniff around Maebe some more, still appearing a little antsy as she wavered.

"Oh, hey, how'd you like the movie? Good stuff, am I right?"

"Two more in the trilogy," he assured with a grin. "Then a new movie came out real recent if ya wanna go see that too."

As Dawson switched discs, Talia grew a little more comfortable with Maebe and picked her way into the girl's lap, still sniffing away. "Watch her nails," he said. "Not sure if she'd let me cut 'em, they're so long." At least they weren't as sharp as a cat's.

"Man, can't wait t'see how you handle the twist in Empire Strikes Back..." Dawson all but wiggled in his seat. "Good s**t, the classics. You good on popcorn n' stuff 'fore we start?"

It struck him that he'd have to put Talia up, and that she might get upset again if the movie was too loud...

"Heh, wouldn' doubt it." One more weird comparison-slash-parallel to draw between her and the minipet. At least Talia seemed alright in her presence; her tail hung low and relaxed, twitching every so often as she investigated Maebe's fingers and gave one a few test licks.

"Hey now, no-no." Dawson made a kissy noise to call her over, and while the effect wasn't immediate, Talia did stop and looked at him expectantly before crawling across Maebe's lap to reach him. "Don' spread yer Hallowgerms around, girl," he chastised her ever so gently, running a hand down her back. "You let her lick ya too much, she starts thinkin' she can nibble it. I'll put her up now n' then we'll start the movie."

Despite being practically a lap dog, the minipet seemed averse to being picked up. Her claws hooked into the bedsheets as he tried to lift her delicately off without ripping anything. "Jesus, Talia, c'mon now..."