<div align="center"><strong>~ Sasha Dearing, First Officer - Final preparations to disembark the Gamble - at Eavesdown Docks on Persephone ~</strong></div><br/>Noticing Griff frowning with a thunderous scowl at her hand as she gripped his arm, Sasha calmly released her fingers from their hold. Maybe it was the experience of dealing with her own intense fury and passions that allowed her to do so, but Sasha had never shied away from Griff’s anger, even at his most fierce. She respected him and knew his skills and strengths; but she didn’t fear him. Truth be told, there wasn’t much she feared...not any more.<br/><br/><strong>“I reckon your desires are might more powerful than mine, Sasha. Fine. You can have him.”</strong><br/><br/>Her eyes reflected her confused irritation at his tone and words for a fleeting moment before she quickly shuttered her expression. Griff’s terse, angry reply made her wonder if the Captain felt that she had overstepped her bounds by making her presumptuous request. Hell, at least she’d asked. As First Officer she led the crew - but only as second in command, compelled to follow the lead of the Captain. But Sasha had never felt she had to hold her tongue around Griff if she felt strongly about something, or that she needed to “play” him to try and get what she wanted. Treating him with respect and pulling no punches was the straightforward way she communicated with him, and she usually felt he offered her the same consideration. If the Captain had believed it was more important to have McPherson with him on his excursion, he would have told her straight up. But even so...it was obvious he was not happy with her request, even though he allowed it.<br/><br/><strong>“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have work to do.”</strong><br/><br/>Watching his naturally commanding stride as he headed down the loading ramp, Sasha felt a heaviness in her chest, but couldn’t quite place the sensation. Most times, Griff accompanied her on business procurement meets; it wasn’t unheard of for him to send her on her own, just not very often. She’d have Si with her of course, and the two of them would be doing double-duty, vetting the new guy to their satisfaction as well as hopefully procuring their next job. She’d have her hands full, that’s for sure. But as she watched Griff walk away, somehow she felt...empty.<br/><br/><div align="center"><strong>~  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~</strong></div><br/>The heavy, grinding rumble of a large vehicle approaching was loud enough to be heard by everyone still remaining in the cargo bay of the Gamble. Peering outside in search of the source of the noise, Sasha was a little intrigued by what she saw. Gradually making an appearance within the yawning doorway of the cargo hold, a tall dark-haired man walked backwards, his hands raised in front of him as he gestured to guide a large truck to maneuver safely up to the ship. Wearing only faded jeans and workboots, the man’s finely sculpted muscles rippled effortlessly along his torso and arms as he moved, his smooth tanned skin glistening with a light sheen of sweat. When the truck came to a full stop, the man lowered his powerful arms and glanced curiously inside the ship. Throwing a devastatingly sexy smile generously around to each crew member who happened to be looking his way, the man's (http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_cw3nwHF2m1g/TTP4OhHEQ6I/AAAAAAAAQqI/cu51S9NRwXM/s1600/Marcel3_590.jpg) alluring gaze seemed to linger on Lex for a few extra moments. Then with a friendly wave, he turned and headed down the docks back the way he came.<br/><br/>The big truck was nestled up close to the Gamble, the more peaceful low hum of background noise returning now that the thundering engine had been turned off. The truck was garishly painted a bright yellow, with the words “Happy Suck Truck” plastered in large letters on the side. The driver’s door opened and another dark haired man slid from the seat and hopped down to the ground. Although the driver also had dark hair, that physical attribute was where the similarities ended between this man and the beautifully sculpted dockworker who had assisted his arrival.<br/><br/>The tiny dark-haired Korean man wore khaki pants and a yellow polo shirt that matched the color of his truck, with headphones hanging loosely around his neck. Picking his way primly up the loading ramp and into the cargo hold, the little man looked a bit like an Asian leprechaun. His wide dark eyes peered intently around the large open space of the bay, a frown creasing between his brows. Raising one of his hands with a flourish, he dramatically pinched his nose closed with thumb and index finger, the remaining fingers fanning in delicate mute protestation. Strolling around the perimeter of the bay, he finally returned to his starting position at the cargo bay doorway.<br/><br/>Striding toward him with a displeased expression, Sasha stopped in front of the short man and glared down at him, hands on her hips.  “You are Ken Chow, I presume?”<br/><br/>The small man was not intimidated, however, and replied with a tinge of disdain in his own tone. “Yes, I am Ken Chow. Nobody said anything about gos se. I’m a cleaning up gos se, I’m a getting more money. Three more Platinum, I’ll get your poo smelling like new!”<br/><br/>Although she didn’t appreciate his manner, Sasha had to agree that cleaning up after a pack of dogs was a more challenging chore to tackle than the usual space dust and mud that got tracked around - and three Platinum seemed like a fair increase from what she had already agreed to pay. Gesturing toward Dani, Sasha led the disapproving little man toward the medic, keeping her eyes on Dani to make sure she would be able to handle the introduction as well as the oversight responsibility she had given her.<br/><br/>“Dani, this is Mr. Chow; he’s going to finally rid our cargo bay of it’s...odor. Mr. Chow, this is Dani - she is in charge of making sure everything gets done to our satisfaction.”<br/><br/>The tiny man had to look up at Dani as he was introduced, his wide dark eyes observing the quiet medic assessingly.  Nodding his head slowly, he spoke with a bit of a flamboyant lilt to his tone. “A closed mouth gathers no feet; yes, very nice to meet you Miss Dani.”<br/><br/>Sasha shook her head with a bit of exasperation, hoping that the small man (http://geektyrant.com/storage/post-images/ken-jeong.jpg?__SQUARESPACE_CACHEVERSION=1269280545298) was strong enough to handle the job he contracted to do. Finding Lex with her eyes, she tilted her head meaningfully to bring him over to Dani. As she saw him begin walking toward them, she looked Dani in the eyes. Slipping her hand inside her jacket pocket, Sasha took out three more coins to discretely hand to Dani, letting her hand grasp the younger woman’s briefly, giving her an encouraging squeeze. “All good here?” she inquired, knowing that Lex would watch over Dani in her absence, but he wouldn’t hover inordinately, allowing Dani her space to prove to herself her own capabilities.<br/><br/>As Mr. Chow headed back toward his truck to get started with the cleanup job, he pulled the headphones up over his ears and turned on his music device clipped to his belt. A bounce in his step and a waggle in his rear, the petite cleaner began to take care of business.<br/><br/>Making eye contact with Si, Sasha nodded her head toward the open cargo bay doors, knowing he would easily understand she was ready to go. Walking up to McPherson she raised her eyebrows as she asked him, “Ready, McPherson?”<br/><br/><br/><em>gos se = dog crap</em><br/>