(backdated) day: 37

[exhuxperation]

[ Hello everyone, here's a gentle knock or nudge on your mental doors. It's as polite and crisp as the person behind it– Hux is never one to overlook formalities, regardless of the fact that everyone is linked in the brain. So once he's relatively certain he has most people's attention, he'll get more to the point. ]

( If I have interrupted your activities, I do apologize. However, I have something I would like to pass across to the rest of you should it be of interest.

Considering the growth of the Nest that we've experienced, it may benefit us to begin coordinating efforts and communication on a larger scale.

I realize this may seem redundant when taking the mindlink into account, but for those who are newer or those who do not have as much of a handle on their newfound powers, it could be helpful. Moreover, the progress we've made collectively on this mission could be pushed with more cohesive organization. )

[ Does it sound like he's practiced this? He probably has. Anyone who might be familiar with him would recognize the speechifying. ]

( All in all, I believe this group is rather talented and driven, just lacking on the communication aspect. If you've input on any of these points, I would be glad to hear them. )


[ ooc: Hux is essentially seeing if people want to share power descriptions so it makes it easier for other characters to tap people for missions! This is completely optional. He'll also be making notes and probably being nosy I mean checking in on broods re: temperature checks. Feel free to volunteer if you want dad Hux to bother your character about their feelings about the nest : ) ]

Comments

[narcissithstic]

[His look is long-suffering, even with the offered contact there's little he likes about the concept of exercising patience.

But he trusts the General's logic, perhaps for the first time in five years at that. If they— even only as a team— gain the Nest's respect, they'll hold more power. More influence. Something they both sorely need, as far as he's concerned.]

Convince them of it; I'll do my part.

[Persuasion, coercion - those were the tools Hux employed. The scalpel's edge to Ren's blunt brutality.]

She asked me about you.

[exhuxperation]

[ The touch is to counter some of the impatience. Clearly it's not working overmuch, but the gesture was there.

At the very least, there wasn't an argument. ]

Of course, I have follow through. [ If nothing else can be said about him, this much is true. ]

Naturally it would come up. What did she ask?

[narcissithstic]

[Unfocused irritation aside, he makes no move to break the set of Hux's hand across his own, not even in the slightest. There's still a hesitation to it all, personal indulgence - but between the pull of the Nest and his own need for reassurance, it comes more easily.

If only just.]

If I shared your opinion of the Empire.

[exhuxperation]

[ The warmth of the light touch is oddly nice. He refuses to be distracted it, to give in to the urge for more. They'd indulged before and instead of feeling it leave his system, it settles deeper in his bones. Something that should be uncomfortable but isn't– he doesn't know what to make of it just yet.

Instead he turns his attention to the information. Facts and strategy. ]

Are you familiar with my opinion of it?

[narcissithstic]

[There's a twitch of a smile at the corner of Ren's mouth. Prideful and fleeting, as spoiled as he himself has been over the last ten or so years spent in Snoke's overly indulgent care.

He doesn't bother to look at Hux when he responds:] No.

I told her the same thing.

[exhuxperation]

Somehow, I thought not. [ Normally, he'd sound exasperated. This time, there's a tinge of amusement underneath of it as he runs his thumb along Ren's knuckles. After all, he already had a conversation with Mara about this, so it's not as though she was unaware. ]

I imagine she did some mental recalculation. Sometimes you can see it on her face. [ Only sometimes. Hux hasn't wrested much of her story from her, but he knows enough to have a rough image of what Mara who she is. ] She confronted me about you shortly after she got here. It felt like an interrogation, at first.

[narcissithstic]

How well you know her already.

[It comes with a curious quirk of his brow as Ren tilts his head to set his sights on Hux with renewed interest.

—And maybe just a touch of scrutiny.

Are you getting cozy with his Aunt Mara, Hux? Does she care for you?]

[exhuxperation]

Not quite. She seems to have come from a similar background of service. There's a foundation of understanding in something like that.

[ What's that look for, Ren? Hux draws his brows together at the scrutiny, moving his hand off of Ren's as if self conscious.

Maybe he likes Mara a little bit. She gets it. ]

[narcissithstic]

[How close Hux is to the truth— and how far. A shame Ren's given his word not to clarify, the General might rethink his stance on Mara Jade if he only knew her origin. Or at least the closest thing to it.

His lips thin out; he draws up his shoulders just slightly, elbow to the corner of the sofa.] She isn't like you.

[So don't get any ideas, Hux.]

[exhuxperation]

[ He gets the feeling Ren might know more, but if he wanted that information he would rather have it from Mara herself. They both worked under Imperial rule to some degree; or at least the ideals of it.

His expression suddenly relaxes as something dawns over him. ]

Are you jealous?

[narcissithstic]

What?

[What a stupid question. What a ridiculous notion to even bother chasing. For that he sits immediately upright, recoiling against the cushions in entirely unsuppressed offense.

Kylo Ren has never been jealous a day in his life, he'll have you know. And Han Solo definitely isn't dead.]

No. Why would I be?

[exhuxperation]

[ Maybe he's wrong about Ren's feelings, though the immediate offense—perhaps not. Still, he feels like he's going to head off some argument before it happens. Before Ren gets even more irritated and throws a fit, anyway. ]

Nothing, nevermind. [ Not even being subtle, he gets up from his chair and slides into the recently vacated spot next to Ren. ]

Come here.

[ They're already next to each other, so he means something else. ]

[narcissithstic]

[It's with that in mind that Ren moves slightly closer, heavy frame shifting the cushions at every minor adjustment where his weight manages to settle, broad palms braced on either side of him. Little less than an inch of room set between them though his shoulders are stiffly squared dead ahead.

Even in close company, he has no idea how to be anything less than a lumbering brute.]

[exhuxperation]

[ Ren may not be the most delicate of people, but there was something intriguing about all that power. Not even in the Force sense, either. He had a powerful build too, broad shouldered and tall. No matter what space he occupied he tended to fill it.

This fact had irritated Hux over many years, especially since Ren held a couple inches in height over him. That in their arguments, he'd use like some kind of extra weapon.

But that isn't so here. Ren is awkward, stiff, unsure. Hux can't say he knows much more about this, but he's always been one to go after what he wants. He shifts, closing the minuscule gap between them, one hand sliding to the back of Ren's neck to pull him down for a kiss. ]