Stick, or unarmed?

The weekend after Thrawn was acquitted he called to invite her out, to help him celebrate and as a thank-you for her help. From the enthusiastic way he talked about the evening, she'd envisioned a night of music and food, perhaps a gymnastic or musical performance, and certainly a modicum of drink.

What she got instead-

She looked around her at the quiet patrons and the somber colors, at the neatly arranged hangings, pictures, sculptures, and drapings.

"An art gallery" she said, her voice flat. "You brought me to an art gallery."

"Of course" he said, giving her a puzzled look. "Where did you think we were going?"

"You said there would be insight, drama, and the excitement of discovery" she reminded him.

"There is." He pointed down a hallway.

"Where to next?"

"You want to see more?" Thrawn asked, frowning a little.

She shrugged. "We've come this far. Might as well make an evening of it."

She quickly came to regret giving him such an open invitation. By the time she called a halt an hour later, her head was spinning with names, images, and tactical inferences. "Okay, this is all very interesting" she said. "But near as I can see, nearly all of it is very theoretical. [] I'm a practical person, and when I hear a new theory I like to give it a test." []

She headed toward the exit. "Where are we going?" Thrawn asked as he caught up with her.

"My quarters" she said. "I do a little wire sculpting in my spare time to relax. You can study it and see how well you can read my personal strategies and tactics."

Thrawn was silent a couple of steps. "Are you assuming we'll someday be at war with each other?"

"Yes, and sooner than you think" Ziara said with a smile. "Because after you finish, we're going to go downstairs to the dojo and go a couple of rounds."

"I see," Thrawn said. "Stick, or unarmed?"

[Bold: headcanod]

[Photo: beanie, print by @poppourrico]

You can clearly see that representing Thrawn as always mad (like in 99.99% of the pictures) is misleading. When he is happy, he IS happy. He smiles often, actually. Definitely, he has very dry humor, but he does say jokes (in canon) or witty sarcastic notes. And he DOES call his best friend for CELEBRATE for a night out. He has his very own set of social skills and understanding, but he literally took her in the place that, for him, was the most fun ever. And since she is a wonderful wonderful woman and friend, she adapted. They are so brilliant together that I want to cry. And, yes. I'm literally commenting on my own post.