I sat at a table in the canteen with a coffee in my hand. It may or may not be my third cup of the day already. I stayed up way too late last night, but I can't say I regretted it. The pilot's company was actually quite pleasant. I learned a lot about him during our conversations, and couldn't deny that I felt the pull of attraction even more so than I had before based on his looks alone. He was funny, caring, reckless, stubborn, and overall just a good guy. I groaned to myself and put my head in my hands, wondering just what I have gotten myself into.
"Good morning to you too, sunshine."
I looked through my fingers to see Tash sit across from me. The dark circles under her eyes were accentuated because of her azure locks.
"Hey. How was last night?" I asked. She cringed slightly.
"Could you talk a little quieter please? I feel like garbage."
I laughed at my friend's pained expression. "Yeah I have no doubt you do. Lucky for you to have the day off today to recover."
"Thank the stars," she whispered under her breath before looking at me and raising a dark brow high. "Is that coffee? You never drink coffee." She took the cup from in front of me and took a giant gulp, sinking into her seat as she savored it before setting the cup back in its original position.
"I'm pretty tired myself actually. I stayed up way too late last night." I wasn't going to tell her why I had been up so late. It was far too early to be interrogated by a grumpy, hungover Tash.
"Let me guess, your research was just so riveting that you couldn't put it down?" She laughed at her own sarcasm, but then brought her hands up to her temples, rubbing the pressure point to alleviate her headache while closing her eyes. She opened one eye and looked up at me, ready to say something else when she sat up straighter and closed her mouth. Both her eyes open, she followed someone with them as they made their way across the room. I didn't bother turning around, figuring it was just someone attractive that had caught her eye.
How I wish I wouldn't have been right about that.
"Good morning ladies." A smooth voice heavy with sleep spoke from behind me. I immediately recognized it as the voice I had heard not too many hours ago. I turned to my right in minor horror as Poe sat down next to me and reached for my coffee cup. He brought it to his lips, taking a sip like it was the most natural thing in the world before returning it. "You better be as tired as I am, doc. I think I was over-served that wine last night." He smirked at me and I smiled sheepishly, daring a glance to the other side of the table.
Tash was sitting there with her mouth agape, her eyes darting back and forth between the two of us. If she were a droid, she'd be smoking from the ears.
I cleared my throat, "Good morning, commander. I believe you've met my friend Tash? She's a nurse in the med wing." I turned my head in her direction to see her trying to compose herself.
"Ah, yes we have met. I believe you're the one who helped me out after that burn incident a few months back. Unless there is another woman with blue hair that I don't know about," he said as he gave her a charming grin.
Tash sat up a little straighter and gave him a megawatt smile. "Yep, that was me! Good to see you again, Commander Dameron."
"Please, just call me Poe." He turned his eyes back on me. "That goes for both of you."
Tash cleared her throat causing me to look in her direction. Her eyes were narrowed at me, making me want to disappear into the floor. "So, Sienna, you were just going to tell me what you had been up to last night that made you stay up so late?"
This bitch. She had me backed into a corner and she knew it.
"Uh, well.. I did a good bit of studying and Poe stopped by to pick up his jacket, so I offered him some wine and we just stayed up too late chatting." I said in one breath. "You know me, someone shows interest in my research and then I can't shut up about it," I finished with a non-convincing shrug.
"Is that right?" she asked looking over at him. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table.
"I told her it was interesting." He said slightly rolling his eyes before glancing over at me. "You love what you do; no wonder they pay you the big bucks, right?" He bumped my shoulder with his as he winked.
Seriously, I thought Tash was going to spontaneously combust in her seat. I could see her scheming mind running with the information she was just given. Before she could continue her interrogation, Poe continued,
"Oh yeah doc, General Organa asked us to meet with her before work."
I furrowed my brows with a questioning look. "Why would she need to meet with us together?"
He shrugged. "No idea. I got the message right before I came up here."
I took the last gulp of my coffee before either of my companions could drink anymore of it. At least this was an excuse to escape from my nosy best friend for a while. "We can go to her now?" I asked him. He nodded and stood up, extending a hand to me. I hesitated for a split second before grabbing his hand and letting him help me up. Looking at Tash, who had a ridiculous grin, "I'll see you later. Go get some rest, love."
"Oh honey, you will definitely be seeing me later. We have much to discuss." She shifted her gaze to the pilot, "Lovely to see you again, Poe. I'm sure I'll see you soon."
"You too, Tash." He said as he put his hand at the small of my back with a ghost of a touch, leading me out of the canteen and towards the meeting room. I'm not sure what was causing the burning heat on my back- his soft touch or the lasers that I was sure were shooting out of Tash's eyes as she watched him guide me out. My chest was on fire, so I knew I was probably flushed. Shaking my head and clearing my throat, I quickened my pace to put a little distance between us.
"So, where is my little droid friend this morning?" I asked casually.
Poe chuckled as he answered, "He's just running some diagnostics on the T70 after yesterday's mission. He should be done at any time now." Just then, I heard a high pitched robotic sound, stopping both Poe and I. Turning around, BB-8 was rolling towards us, dodging around everyone's legs in the hall. I kneeled down as he came to stop in front of us.
"I was just asking about you!" I said as I put my hand on his head. He answered with a few excited beeps, making me laugh.
"Alright, alright we get it, she is your favorite. Now come on, we have to get going." Poe started to walk off, leaving me with the droid.
"You know BB-8, I believe he is jealous..." BB-8 was quick to agree with me, causing me to laugh even more as I stood up and walked side-by-side with the sphere.
"I'm not jealous of a droid," the man said under his breath as we approached the meeting room, causing BB-8 and I to share a skeptic look.
The General was looking at a projection when we entered and waved us over with a smile. "Ah, good morning you three. Thank you for joining me with such little notice."
"Of course, General. What can we do for you?" Poe asked while approaching the projection. I followed him, my eyes scanning over the images of a green planet.
"It isn't so much what you can do for me," the General stated, looking over at me, "but perhaps what you could do for the Devaronians. They have been hit with a sickness that is overwhelming their medics, and has claimed a number of lives in the last few weeks. They have sent out a signal asking for medical assistance. Their leader said that the doctor there has specifically asked for you, Sienna."
"Did they say what symptoms were occuring?" My interest had been piqued.
"All they said was that it started out as coughing."
"That could be a number of things then.." My brain was compiling a list of potential illnesses that occured with that when Poe cleared his throat.
"So what is it that you would like us to do General?"
"Commander, I'd like you to take Dr. Dreis to Devaron, if she's willing to go."
I looked up at the pair, determination set on my face and my earlier tiredness forgotten. "Of course I'm willing. When do we need to go?"
"As soon as possible I'd presume. Commander, what ship would be available for you to take?"
Poe looked over at BB-8, who mentioned a small star cruiser that could be commissioned pretty quickly. "Alright buddy, go ahead and start running diagnostics so we can see what shape she's in." The droid wasted no time taking off out of the room towards the ship. "Depending on what everything looks like, we could probably leave by this evening?" He looked over at me to see what I thought.
"That could work. I'll need to speak to Dr. Fannin about my absence so he can take the lead of the wing, and gather some supplies." I was getting very excited, but trying to hold it in since this was a serious trip. It had been so long since I was in a ship, even longer since in the sky. Leia's laugh brought me out of my thoughts, and I saw her shaking her head.
"I know that look, Sienna. Your eyes always get a certain glint in them whenever you are looking forward to something." Poe had a curious look on his face at the informality of her statement. "I've already spoken with Dr. Fannin, and he is prepared to watch the wing. This goes without saying, but please be safe. We know how unsteady it can be out there. Both of you may be excused, I won't keep you any longer."
"Thank you, General, and we will." I said as I turned on my heel, Poe following close behind me. Once we had rounded the corner out of the room, Poe reached for my elbow, causing me to face him.
"I'll send BB-8 for you when the ship is ready. You're sure you're okay to do this? The galaxy is a pretty harsh place right now," he said with concern.
"Even more reason to go. The Devaronians wouldn't reach out if it wasn't a serious issue. I'm one of the best doctors and you're one of the best pilots. Who better to go help them?" I said with a reassuring tone. Poe flashed his dazzling smile at me and slung his arm over my shoulder, giving a slight squeeze.
"That's what I'm talking about, doc! I'll see you this evening." He took off at a jog towards the hangar, leaving me shaking my head at his child-like excitement while making my way to the med wing.
I approached my office to find Ezra leaning against the wall waiting for me. "Good morning, Ezra. General Organa said she spoke to you about my travels?" I unlocked and opened the door wide, letting it remain so as Ezra followed me in.
"That's why I'm here. I need your notes for any procedures, discharges, et cetera that you have planned for the next few days. How long will you be gone anyway?" He asked while assuming his normal position, feet propped on my desk.
"I'm not sure to be honest. I guess it depends on how fast I can figure out what is plaguing the Devaronians and how I need to treat them." I gathered all of my notes and charts on the patients in the wing, flipping through the tops of the pages to ensure there was nothing missing. "Here are all of my notes; nothing major is planned for the moment. Just two discharges." I made my way around the desk, handing the pages to Ezra as he fingered through them, his eyes quickly scanning the pages.
"Seems easy enough," he said, settling the papers in his lap. "So, you flying yourself out there?"
"Ha! Definitely not. I probably could, but it has been far too long since I've flown. I'd rather not crash into any meteorites."
"So who will your travel companion be?"
I paused for a moment, sighing as I answered. "Commander Dameron will be taking me, along with his BB-8 unit."
Ezra narrowed his eyes at me, "Figures he would be the one since you two seem so close now. Or at least you did the other day when I walked in on the two of you."
"Please, you didn't 'walk in' on anyone. I was stitching up his face. I kind of had to be close to him in order to see what I was doing. Honestly, I don't even know why I'm explaining this to you like you're daft. You know better, Dr. Fannin." I raised a brow at him, praying he would drop the matter. To my surprise and delight, he actually did.
"Whatever you say, Sienna." He rose to his feet, gathering the notes and tucking them under his arm. "I'll cover rounds for the afternoon so you can prepare. Just be careful, okay?" He asked with genuine concern.
"I will," I replied with a crooked smile, thankful for the insufferable doctor's concern. With a nod, he exited the room. Leaving me to prepare for the trip. I had several hours before we would be leaving, so I took my time reading through illnesses starting with coughing and any other related symptoms I could think of. I had packed my med bag with numerous medicines, hoping that at least one of them could help. I had also made a pit stop to my room to pack some extra clothes, and went by Tash's room to let her know I was leaving. There was no answer, so I slid a note under her door, figuring she was sleeping off her hangover.
I was sitting at my desk a while later, going over some last minute treatments when a cheerful BB-8 rolled into my office, letting me know we were ready to go. I made one last check of my bags to ensure I had everything I could possibly need before locking up and following my round friend down the hall, adrenaline starting to course through my veins with each step closer we got to the hangar.