~*~
"Get down!" The Mandalorian yells.
She shuts her eyes, trying to drown out the sound of the building crumbling behind them.
"You alright?" She opens her eyes again to see him staring at her in, what she thinks is, concern.
She doesn't trust her voice, so she nods her head in reply.
There's shouting on the other side of the barricade, and she peaks through to see the Klatoonians sprinting over the water, raising their weapons in the air as they shout.
"Open fire!" Cara shouts.
Dessa, and the rest of the villagers who have blasters are shooting at the Klatoonians, and at the AT-ST without hesitation. The AT-ST fires back, its lasers light up the entire village.
She desperately tries to calm her breathing as the buildings catch on fire. She remembers her younger self, terrified as she ran through the streets by herself. And she ducks down, clutching the weapon closer towards her as she tries to calm down.
"Dessa, take a breather," the Mandalorian pats her shoulder gently, and she tilts her head up to meet his eyes. "Cara and I'll cover you."
Cara glances over at them briefly from firing her weapon, and nods.
"We gotta get that thing to take a step forward," Mando yells.
"I'm thinking!" Cara exclaims in frustration. "Give me the pulse rifle!"
"I'll cover you," he lends her the weapon.
Before Dessa can ask what was going on, Cara sprints towards the AT-ST, and jumps into the water.
"What the hell is she doing?" Dessa asks with worry.
"Trying to get a closer shot," the Mandalorian answers.
She can do this. She can do this. She shuts her eyes, trying her best to drown out the noise, and calm her frantic breathing. It's not enough to calm her down, but it'll have to do for now. If the villagers, who were scared at the very thought of fighting, were brave enough to run at the Klatoonians, she's brave enough to handle a bit of fire. She takes a deep breath, gets up, and fires her weapon.
"Come on, take the bait, you hunk of junk," he mutters under his breath.
Cara manages to fire at its eye, and the tin can groans and creaks as it finally takes a step forward, one foot in the water. It slips and falls on its side.
"Mando!" She exclaims as he sprints past her towards the smoke, and explosions.
A memory. Faint, but it's still there in the back of her mind. Just for a short moment, she remembers a boy. He's calling for her as the building's crumble around them. She pushes it away, too confused and worried for the Mandalorian to remember something she'd rather forget.
The smoke clears up.
He's alright. He's sitting beside Cara in the river. She sighs with relief. Thank the stars. He's alright.
"Was that the plan?" Mando asks breathlessly.
"Something like that, yeah," Cara laughs.
This time she doesn't hesitate. She climbs over the barricade, jumps into the water, and tackles them both into a group hug.
"You two are completely insane," she laughs, and turns to glare at the Mandalorian, "and you --"
"I know, I know," he greets her, tone laced with exhaustion. "I look and smell like bantha fodder."
"Yes, you do," she agrees, and quickly let's go of him when she realizes he's uncomfortable with the hug. "You stubborn bantha."
Cara bursts out laughing beside them. And Dessa has no idea why the three of them are suddenly laughing. Nearly dying is nothing to laugh about. For her, maybe it's the relief that they're both okay.
The sun is already rising, and none of them have gotten any sleep yet. She's absolutely exhausted, and she somehow manages to stay awake talking with Cara and the Mandalorian. The children were shaken, but were already back on their feet, playing in the water. And the next few weeks were spent helping the villagers repair their damaged hits, and helping them get back on their feet.
She, Cara, and the Mandalorian were huddled outside of a hut, waiting for Omera to finish cooking inside. The green creature approaches the odd trio and tugs on Dessa's shoes.
"Hello to you too, little child," she cooes at it, and lifts it into the air, in her arms. She catches the Mandalorian's stare and raises her brows at him, "what?"
"Nothing," he shrugs his shoulders.
"So, have you two worked it out yet?" Cara asks them as she takes a sip of water.
Dessa exchanges a quiet look with him, and raises her brows at the Mandalorian.
"We have, I think," she answers, and he nods his head in reply.
"What were you two arguing about anyway?"
"It's --" Dessa frowns as she tries to come up with an answer.
"Complicated," the three of them say in unison.
"Figured," Cara says with a roll of her eyes, "well, whatever the hell it was, I'm glad you two worked it out."
"Yeah, me too," the Mandalorian says, and Dessa smiles at him.
The child quickly got antsy in her arms, especially when Winta passes by asking to play with him for a little while. She agrees, her arms were getting sore, sets him down, and watches as he joins the other children.
Omera had walked inside the hut to get them some more water, and she comes back to fill their glasses. Both she and Cara thank her.
"Can I set you something in the house?" Omera asks softly.
"No, thank you," he says politely.
"He's very happy here," she observes wirh a small grin.
"He is," Mando agrees.
"Fits right in," Omera walks off, and the two women stare at him with grins on their faces.
"What?" He asks, once he notices.
She and Cara both exchange knowing looks, "nothing," Dessa says innocently.
"So what happens when you take that thing off?" Cara points at the helmet with the hand still holding her glass, "they come after you and kill you?"
She'd been wondering as well. She frowns at him. Did they have some sort of tracking device hidden in that helmet of his? She really should have paid more attention to Kuiil's stories.
"No," he answers. "you just can't put it back on again."
"That's it?" Cara scoffs. "So you can slip off the helmet, and settle down with that beautiful young widow, and raise the kid here, sipping spotchka?"
"You know we raised hell a few weeks back," he chose to ignore her answer. "too much action for a backwater town like this. Word travels fast. Gotta cycle the charts and move on."
"Would not want to be the one who's gotta tell him," Cara points to the green creature surrounded by the children.
"I'm leaving him here," the Mandalorian says. Dessa turns towards him with a look of alarm. "Traveling with me, that's no life for a kid. I did my part. He's safe."
"It's gonna break his little heart," Cara comments softly.
"Are you sure about this?" Dessa asks him, pulling him away from Cara. "Once you get attached to something-"
"He'll be fine here," he assures her. "He's got plenty of friends."
"Pretty sure you were his first friend the day you found him in that wasteland," she reminds him gently.
"He'll be fine," he repeats what he says, and walks off.
Her heart sinks, and she does not like the emotion that rises as he approaches Omera, who's smiling at him as they walk away from the group.
"I was only humoring him, you know," Cara says out of the blue, starling her out of her thoughts. Dessa squirms underneath the woman's piercing gaze, and smug grin.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," she lies, mouth suddenly dry like it always is in the desert even though the air is cool, and gentle here.
"I think you do," Cara insists.
"You're right," Dessa sighs. There was no use in denying it now.
"Damn right, I'm right," Cara smirks as she sips some water.
Cara frowns as she squints a the trees behind the two of them.
"I'm going to check something out," Cara says stiffly. "stay here, you might need to guard the kid, and the Mandalorian."
"Okay," Dessa frowns. She does not like the cryptic way she referred to them.
"You gonna tell the kid or is he?" Cara asks.
"I might as well," Dessa sighs. "He's kinda busy."
"Yeah," Cara agrees softly. "be back soon."
"Sure," Dessa says, and watches her as she walks into the forest. She frowns, and tries not to let it bother her as she approaches the children. "Hey, mind if I talk to him for a few minutes?"
The children stare up at her in confusion before they agree and rush off.
"Hey, kid, do you want the good news or the bad news?" she greets the little green creature weakly. It merely twitches its ears as they stare at each other. She really didn't have the heart to tell him the Mandalorian's decision.
A gunshot rings out through the entire area, and there were a few startled screams. Dessa searches for Mando in the confusion, heart beating fast as she pushes through the crowd.
"Dessa!?" He calls out to her, before she can call for him first.
"Here!" She answers to let him know she's alright. "Right here."
He rushes towards her without hesitation, and presses the palms of his hands against her cheeks, glancing over her.
"Hey, I'm fine, don't worry," she smiles weakly. "Are you alright?"
"Where's the kid?" He panics.
They both whirl around, only to relax when they see the child surrounded by its new friends.
"Who did that?" She asks nervously, "Who were they going after?"
"I have a funny feeling I know," he says gruffly. "Come on."
"If I hadn't shot him, he would have killed you and the kid," Cara says as they approach her.
"Thank you," Mando says. He kicks the dead bounty hunter, and finds the tracking fob underneath.
"Who are they tracking?" Cara asks stiffly.
"The kid," he sighs bitterly.
"They found him," she comments, testing the waters.
"Yes," he answers coldly.
"Then they're going to keep going after him."
"Yes," he answers, and stomps on the tracking fob until the beeping stops.
The next thing she knows, she's helping pack a few things, fully aware of the villagers watching them as they did. They're nice enough to even prepare some food for them for the journey back.
"You alright?" She asks after an awkward silence, watching him pack things away. He's been quiet since he found the tracking fob.
"I'm fine," he insists gruffly. "Why wouldn't I be?"
"You really wanted a life here," she says quietly, and he stops what he's doing for a moment.
"I wanted one for the kid," he says softly. "not for me."
She doesn't say anything more, and continues to help. She sets the child onto the cart, trying to ignore the frown it gives her.
"Sure you don't want an escort?" Cara asks after a tense silence between them.
"We're going to bypass the town and head straight for the Razor Crest," Mando answers.
"Sure you don't want to dump him and come with me instead?" Cara snickers at the Mandalorian's head tilt.
"Sorry, Cara," she apologizes, smiling at the two, "think I'll stick with them for a little while."
"I figured, well, If you ever change your mind," Cara grins, "you know where to find me. Until our paths cross."
She holds out her hand.
"Until our paths cross," Mando repeats, shaking her hand.
Dessa hugs her, instead of saying goodbye. But, like the Mandalorian, Cara is stiff and does not hug back.
"See you soon," Dessa says.
"See ya soon," Cara repeats, gives her an awkward salute, and heads back into town, carrying a sack over her shoulder.
"Thanks for everything, Omera," she smiles at the woman, and hugs her as well
"You're welcome," Omera returns the smile hesitantly, and unlike Cara, hugs her back, "Stay safe out there."
"We will," she reassures her. She glances back at the Mandalorian who has his back towards him. "For what it's worth, I think he likes you too."
"Thank you," Omera says gratefully.
She waves awkwardly, before sitting with the kid, who scoots away from her. She smiles sadly at the child. It stung but she expects it. It's quiet between the three as they make their way back to the Razor Crest, and settle in their seats.
"The kid's been pouting ever since we got on the ship," she inclines her head to the kid, who's refusing to look at them.
He turns back towards the child, "Would an 'I'm sorry' cover it?"
It blows a raspberry in his direction, and Dessa presses her hand against her lips to hide her laughter.
"You are really pushing your luck, kid," he sighs tiredly.
"Can you really blame him?" She asks. "He really liked that town."
"Yeah, I know," he answers. She notices that he's gripping the controls tightly. "What about you?"
"Huh?" She asks with alarm.
"Were you happy there?" He's staring straight ahead, refusing to look in her direction.
"For a little while," she answers. She did like that planet. There wasn't a desert in sight. But, it wasn't really what she was looking for, "but eventually I would have gotten bored, and would want to keep traveling."
"You're still searching," he says after a comfortable silence overcomes the two. "for that place you can't remember."
"Yeah," she admits. This time he does glance over at her, and they're just staring at one another.
"Come on," he gestures to his seat. "you're learning how to fly this thing today."
"You mean it?" She smiles.
She hesitantly sits in his chair, overwhelmed by all the buttons and switches. She hasn't flown anything since that landspeeder she crashed
when she was a kid.
"Should I be fearing for my life?" He asks beside her.
"Don't worry, I got this, Dylan," she reassures him.
"Don't call me that," he counters with amusement.
She wishes she could tell him she knows what she's doing, but she really doesn't.
~*~