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Thrawn was unusually agitated, to say the least. He had snapped at Faro twice, and it was only an hour past noon. He swung between seeming restlessness and complete quiet. He paced endlessly, his fingers twitching as he watched over the bridge in silence. No one dared to speak to him. Not even Eli.
It was only when Eli came into Thrawn’s office later that evening, after he had retired early due to Eli’s concerned convincing, and found him asleep at his desk that Eli’s concern shifted to alarm. “Sir?” Eli said quietly, padding over to Thrawn’s desk. No response. He tried again at a normal volume, “Sir?”
When that didn’t work, he gave up and closed the distance between him and his commanding officer and shook him lightly. “Sir, are you okay?”
Thrawn startled awake, jumping up from the chair and snarling. Before Eli could get a word in, he found himself slammed against the wall, Thrawn restraining him against the metal of the bulkhead. Eli stiffened in his grasp. He was far too close for comfort. Red eyes pinning him down, Thrawn’s cold breath fanned across his cheek. The way his body was pressed up against Thrawn’s. And it was difficult not to notice Thrawn’s musculature when being pinned under him; the way it took barely any effort for the man to immobilize him made Eli’s stomach do a flip.
“Thrawn!”
Thrawn blinked, realizing where he was, and slowly let off Eli, his right hand lingering a few seconds longer than necessary before he fully stepped back.
“I most sincerely apologize, Lieutenant, that was completely inappropriate of me. I was not… in a proper state of mind to understand what I was doing.”
Eli stared at him, still panting against the wall and half terrified out of his mind.
“Sir, I’m concerned for you. What is going on?”
Thrawn made a face, barely a twitch of his facial muscles, and averted his gaze.
“There has been a… supply chain issue with several products exported from Wild Space. One of which is the beverage I typically drink in the mornings: caccoleaf. I ran out of it yesterday,” Thrawn said measuredly.
Eli stared at him, slightly dumbfounded.
“Stars, that's what's going on? Caffeine withdrawal? I was really concerned that you were sick or something.”
Thrawn turned his head, those startlingly red eyes meeting Eli’s once again.
“Caffeine? No, caccoleaf is nothing like the caf your species so loves.”
Eli frowned. “Then what is it, sir?”
Thrawn took a minute to respond. “I do not remember the word in Basic. I was told caccoleaf was the best translation. But perhaps I still have an empty container somewhere.”
Thrawn turned and strode to the door to his private quarters, when Eli didn't follow, he glanced back.
“Come, Lieutenant. You are no stranger to me,” Thrawn said.
It took a couple of seconds for Eli to realize Thrawn was inviting him into his private quarters. He hesitated, unsure if he was crossing an unspoken boundary, but went anyway, Thrawn holding open the door for him to enter first.
The quarters reminded him of Thrawn’s side of the room when they were roommates at the academy. Plain, understated, and tidy. Except for the mini kitchenette, which looked like a ghost had taken up cohabitation with Thrawn. The cupboards were all ajar, several drawers were half open, and an absurd amount of items from the cabinets were lying on the counter in no particular order, like someone had been desperately searching for something.
Eli didn't dare comment on the state of the kitchenette, and neither did Thrawn, who calmly examined the mess and began to sort through it, searching for an empty container, no doubt.
After several minutes of Thrawn rummaging about the cabinets and Eli lingering awkwardly to the side, Thrawn finally pulled out an unassuming tin.
He handed the tin off to Eli without a word. Eli glanced over the label. Sugar, water, assorted natural flavorings— "Coca leaf extract?"
"Oh, yes, that's the word for it," Thrawn said somewhere behind Eli.
Eli read the label another time to make sure his eyes didn't deceive him. Coca leaf. Not cacao.
"Are you telling me you start your morning off with cocaine?"
Thrawn stepped towards Eli until he was nearly pressed against his shoulder—personal space be damned, Eli supposed—and looked over the label himself.
"Yes? Why are you surprised?"
Eli resisted the urge to grab Thrawn by the shoulders and shake him.
"Coca leaf— cocaine is highly addictive. It's Class One scheduled. It's illegal to own or import or consume in the Empire. You could be put in jail just for owning this!" He waved the tin of caccoleaf wildly as he spoke, nearly hitting Thrawn in the face with it.
Thrawn's eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly.
"I was unaware that the Empire took consumption of a mild stimulant so seriously—"
"Mild? Thrawn, this isn't mild; cocaine is serious stuff. Caf is mild. Green tea is mild. Cocaine? People die from overdosing on it all the time. And now you're telling me you've been drinking this every day and went cold turkey?" Eli set the tin on the table and stepped back, crossing his arms. "No wonder you've been acting like this," Eli muttered under his breath.
"I believe there must be a misunderstanding, Lieutenant. Coca leaf extract is regularly consumed by my people in such quantities, specifically as a mild stimulant in the morning—similar to why you drink caf. I have tried caf before and it does not produce the same effects on me that it does on you. I have come to the conclusion that Chiss must have a higher tolerance for stimulants—and most drugs—than humans do. Thus, I must drink something of a stronger variety to acquire the same effect that caf has on you."
Eli went silent for a long time. Long enough that Thrawn began to grow concerned. Until suddenly he laughed uncontrollably at the absurdity of it, throwing his head back, one hand pressed to his eyes.
"Lieutenant? I do not understand—what is so funny?" Thrawn asked, concerned.
Eli's shoulders shook with laughter, and he leaned over the counter to keep himself upright.
"You're telling me—" he spoke between fits of laughter "—your people start every day with a round of cocaine? Stars. No wonder you're like this."
Eli's laughter finally died down, and he managed to look up at Thrawn, who was staring at him with a perplexed look on his face.
"I—never mind," Eli said, waving it off. "You said caf doesn't have the same effect on you? I think I can figure out something that might work, because you can't keep drinking that."
Eli stood up again and motioned towards the door. "Here I'll show you how to work the caf machine in the officer's lounge."
Thrawn gave him a dubious look, but followed him anyway.
"Make it fast, Eli," he hissed, and something about the way he said his name made Eli feel a certain way.
When they reached the officer's lounge, all conversation stopped. People glanced warily at Thrawn; and several officers fled the room, likely having heard of or experienced his withdrawal-induced wrath from the morning. One of the few officers who stayed was Karyn Faro, who just raised an eyebrow at Eli and continued sipping her caf from the couch.
Eli made his way to the caf machine and turned it on with the press of his finger. Thrawn stood behind him, looking at the machine from over his shoulder. He selected the button for black coffee and then went to the espresso option and put it as high as he could. The limit was six shots, apparently. Probably not enough if Thrawn was drinking cocaine in the mornings, but he had a solution for that.
As the caf machine churned out the ultra-caffeinated coffee, Eli made his way to the fridge and searched through the energy drink selection, looking for whichever had the highest caffeine-to-liquid ratio. The caf machine sputtered to a stop, and Eli pulled out the cup, pouring it into a larger cup and combining it with the energy drinks.
"What in the ever-loving fuck are you doing, Vanto?" someone whispered from behind him.
Eli whipped around to find Faro staring at the abomination in a cup he had just made.
"Just wait, I figured out what was wrong with Thrawn. Once he drinks this, it'll be back to normal."
"Or send him into cardiac arrest," she whispered. "You sure you want to be responsible for the death of your commanding officer?"
"It won't," Eli replied and made his way over to where Thrawn had been caught in a conversation with one of the officers who clearly had not been warned about Thrawn's demeanor.
"Sir, your caf," Eli said, handing over the cup to Thrawn. "I can't promise how good it'll taste but you should feel the effects within thirty minutes," he added in a hushed tone.
Thrawn took the cup and chugged nearly half of it in one go. The officer he was speaking to raised his eyebrows and turned away as someone else tapped him on the shoulder, grateful for the excuse to leave.
Within two minutes, the cup was drained, and Thrawn handed it back to Eli with a nod.
"Thank you, Lieutenant. I must request that you teach me how to make that."
Eli grinned ever so slightly as he took the cup.
"Of course, sir," he said and threw the cup away.
Faro caught his eye from across the room, one hand over her mouth and her shoulders shaking lightly in mirth. Eli gave her an I-told-you-so look and followed Thrawn out the door.
Thank the stars for energy drinks, he mused.