"So what's his name, anyway?"
"I don't know."
Anwyn shot an incredulous glance at her helmeted companion leaning against the kitchen wall. She held the kid in her hands and bounced him up and down gently in her lap in a chair at the table. After activating the ship's hyperspace, he'd suggested they eat something, to replenish lost energy, and to give them the opportunity to talk, since there were a few things to hash out about their agreement.
"Ok, and...you didn't think to give him one?" She asked, and the man looked away. "You've just been calling it 'kid' and 'baby' this whole time?"
He muttered something under his breath, just barely picked up by the helmet's modulator, in a language she didn't understand. "Didn't feel like my place." He finally said with a shrug, leaving it at that.
The brunette said nothing, perplexed. It reminded her just how in the dark she was about everything having to do with him. And she figured maybe it was about time to fix that. They were in hyperspace for the next week. Not like they had much else to do to fill the time.
"You know, if I'm gonna be traveling with you, don't you think I should know about him and how the hell he ended up with a bounty hunter?" She gave him a meaningful glance, then returned it to the kid, dangling her fingers in front of its face. He tried to reach up to grab them, but she'd pull them just a little bit higher before he could. "Might help down the line in case things go bad and I need to make a cover story."
"Right..." He sighed, straightening from the wall and heading towards the cockpit. Anwyn watched as he returned with a small, black box in his hand. Then, after a moment, recognized it as a tracking fob that bounty hunters were often given for jobs.
"He was originally a quarry." The Mandalorian explained, handing her the box. It was inactive now, the red light dark, but she'd seen enough passingly to know how they normally worked. "The Imps hired practically the whole guild of hunters to find him, but me and an IG unit got to him first."
"Why did they want him so bad in the first place?"
"...Not sure."
She sensed the hesitation there, but forged on anyway. "And...why would you take a job to find a baby for the Imps in the first place?" She spat, shaking her head in disappointment. "You have to know they're no good place to hand over a kid."
"I know that." He replied with heat. "There was no puck, just a fob. The only information to go on was that they were 50 years old."
"Figures that they'd lie about a target to get you to take a job...lying bastards." She said in distaste, and he shook his head.
"They didn't lie." The helmet fixed her in it's sights, and she stared back with a frown, processing the information. Expression clearing, her gaze fell to the kid in her lap, looking at the child with a new sense of confusion and curiosity.
"He's 50? And still a child?"
"According to the Imps. And I'm willing to bet their info is accurate."
"So, what, you grabbed him and ran?"
"Not exactly." He replied, crossing his beskar-clad arms, then his helmet tilted down as he continued to tale. "I still did the job. The guild has a no-questions-asked policy, and so I didn't. Handed him over, took the payment, and left. It didn't feel right, afterwards. I went back. I betrayed the guild, and set myself on the Imps' radar to take him back and run. I regret letting them get a chance to have him at all, but I can't go back and change what happened the first time."
Anwyn wasn't going to say anything about how he, after learning that the thing was just a kid, still gave him to the Imps. This was the very reason she had a problem with most bounty hunters. They treated everyone so black and white. Never thought to consider options of gray. She thought it was a pretty questionable choice to go through with the job, but supposedly, he'd changed. Hell, even now, he watched her like a hawk around the kid, just to be sure he wasn't in danger.
"I've been taking care of him since then, protecting him." The Mandalorian finished. "Once I find them, I'll return him to his people. Though figuring out who they are is the first problem I'm running into. I've been at it for a few months but still haven't found anything."
The brunette examined the kid's green visage, her head cocked. "Never seen anything like him before...that's for sure." She muttered. "Maybe they're somewhere in the Unknown Regions? Some undiscovered species?"
"Maybe. Out there, I could spend a lifetime searching planets and still never find them, though. Someone somewhere has to know about his people."
Anwyn nodded, staring down at the little green creature thoughtfully. He simply looked up at her with those big, bright eyes. He cooed and reached for her, no doubt wanting to play some more. She'd never really nannied a kid before, but she couldn't imagine it would be that hard to learn how. Human baby or...whatever kind of baby he was, how different could they be?
Come to think of it, the both of them were remarkably similar, weren't they? Lost in the galaxy, looking for-
"You learned what you wanted about me." He interrupted her thoughts. "Now tell me about you."
"I already did, after you caught me."
"You told me the bare minimum. Like you said, I should know a bit more if we'll be working together. You may have good character, but I don't fully trust someone I know nothing about." He replied, and she cursed the way he used her words against her.
"There's not much else to it than what you already know, but ask away, I guess. Maybe I'll answer."
He paused, perhaps mulling over what he wanted to know the most. He was right to assume that she wouldn't sit there and let him play 20 questions. If it was something she didn't want to answer, she'd stay quiet. "You grew up in Ord Mantell. Family there?"
Anwyn sighed, thinking about how much she actually wanted to say. Her questions had all been business. His were a bit...more. They were starting the personal conversations a bit early into this partnership. But she knew that building trust required opening up a little, so she'd give him a few things to sate his curiosity. Again, lying hadn't crossed her mind at all.
"I've a stepfather, stepbrother, and mom out there. They run an antique emporium in the lesser part of town. Nothing special. I'm not particularly close with any of them."
"Why?"
The kid started to coo and fuss, so she started bouncing him in her lap again, hoping to quiet him down. She used him as a means of avoiding the helmet's unrelenting black visor. "My stepfather is stern. Always made sure I knew there was a difference between me and his son. Never abusive, but he just...made it clear I wasn't family. And Syron, he picked up that he was somehow better than me because of it. Like father like son, I guess."
"And your mother?"
Her lips tightened in irritation, refusing to look at him. "Reasons."
Thankfully, he didn't pursue that line of dialogue, but instead asked an equally personal one. "What about your birth father?"
"...Never knew him. Out of the picture. And I suggest picking a different set of questions, Mandalorian. I'm not fond of talking about my family problems." Was her bristling response.
He held up his hands in mock surrender, placating the bite to her tone. "Alright...how long have you been out on your own?" He switched to something a little less personal, which she was thankful for.
"About ten years, left home when I was 22. And before you ask, yes, it was because of family that I left. No, I will not go into details." She pressed, staring up at him. He simply nodded, allowing her to continue. "Picked up a knack for stealing when I was first starting out and figured it would be a useful skill to master. So, years of thievery and ship-hopping later and...here I am." She explained with a flourish of her hand, before wiggling her finger in front of the baby's face again.
Anwyn scoffed suddenly, shaking her head. "You're seriously not gonna name him?"
"If it bothers you that much, why don't you do it? You'll be taking care of him while I'm away." He retorted, but she raised her brows.
"I barely know him! If you don't feel right naming him, what makes you think I do?"
He didn't have a response to that other than a silent shake of his helmet, and the two dropped it from there.
Silence persisted, save for the kid's occasional coo. Apparently the bounty hunter didn't have any further questions or if he did, she was tired of waiting for them. Besides, something he'd mentioned before came to mind.
"We never talked about payment." She said, looking up at the Mandalorian after a minute had passed. "You mentioned it, but we never went into specifics. What sort of rate did you have in mind?"
"A quarter of my bounty earnings, if that's satisfactory." He offered, and she blanched.
"A quarter? I was only expecting..." She stopped herself, figuring it was not beneficial for her to disclose the low amount she'd expected him to toss her way, lest he change his mind. Her internal minimum was embarrassingly low. This arrangement benefited her more than him at it's core, she felt. Getting paid for it was just the cherry on top. Free rides around the galaxy for watching a kid was a small exchange. She'd take what she could get.
"Only expecting...?" He prompted, but she shook her head.
"Nothing. A quarter's good. No complaints."
He nodded his understanding, and went to leave for the cockpit, but she stopped him. "I should warn you, though. I don't intend to stop thieving. It's an extra income for me on the side that I'm not willing to let go."
"We don't need extra heat on our tail." He warned. "We've already got Imps scouring the galaxy for the kid. Don't make things worse."
Anwyn waved the concern aside. "Relax, I stick to credit wallets and small little things I can get my hands on. I'm not out to steal star cruisers and land speeders."
"And the transport on Rodia? A little bit bigger than a pickpocket." He accused. She pursed her lips, shrugging.
"It was...a calculated risk. Not my usual work. Don't worry about it. Hey, and who knows? I might steal something useful every once in awhile." She finished with a grin.
A sigh came from the modulator, and the Mandalorian left the room. Apparently he had no good response to that. Well, good. She didn't think this arrangement would work out if he didn't let her practice her craft.
The next few days were a strange mixture of avoiding the Mandalorian and trying to figure out how to take care of the baby. Not out of any conscious effort to not see her new companion, but he mainly stuck to the cockpit or his own quarters. Anwyn had quickly discovered that his natural inclination was silence. Unless prompted, he really didn't say much.
After that initial talk, he'd only really spoken at length once more later that day, showing her key places around the ship to get her acquainted with its features. It hadn't been a long tour at all. The ship wasn't that big, but still was larger than she expected it to be.
These are my quarters. If you need me for something, knock, but don't enter.
The weapons store is in the cargo bay. In emergency situations, use it. Outside of that, I'd leave it alone. The kid's keen. He might figure out how to open it without us looking.
Keep your hands to yourself. If you must steal something, do it at the ports. Not my ship.
That last one had amused her, but his tone had made it clear he was serious, and her grin had quickly disappeared as she agreed to the condition. Ah, he wasn't joking. Perhaps he'd had issues with that before? Best to leave it alone.
She'd noticed no other sleeping quarters besides his own on board, and asked about where she'd be sleeping. He sighed, saying all he could do at the moment was offer some bedding and put her somewhere in the cargo bay, as it would have the most room available. She looked around and shrugged. It didn't bother her that much, having grown used to sleeping in awkward spaces in a ship. Some extra blankets would keep out the cold, and it would give her a large amount of space to herself. Not bad, given the circumstance. At least this time she wouldn't be tethered to a railing by her wrists.
After the little tour he'd announced that he was going back to the cockpit, to do what she had no clue since they were still traveling in hyperspace, and she was left alone with the kid for the next week to adjust. Well. Better now than while they were running from Imps planet-side.
She found herself in this awkward in-between, unsure whether he would appreciate company or preferred to be left alone. They hadn't established any sort of social order here. And it just felt weird to ask him. Figuring it would sort itself out eventually and that maybe they'd come to some unspoken understanding, Anwyn decided to focus on the kid for the remainder of their journey in hyperspace.
The brunette had quickly learned it really didn't matter what she fed him, the child ate most anything edible. And, as with all small younglings, he had the habit of chewing on anything he could get his three-fingered hands on. Food or otherwise.
While she ate her food, which thankfully was no longer the emergency ration packs that the Mandalorian had fed her the first time around, she made sure to give small bits to the child while also wrangling away the small screws or metal bits he somehow always managed to find while she wasn't looking. Strange.
Most of the time, the child was remarkably well-behaved. Though, if he was 50 years old, perhaps he'd had some time to come to an even temperament. He cooed often, softly and with mild curiosity, but only seemed to get upset when she put him down for a moment or left him outside the door to the fresher for five minutes of alone time.
It was a job. Sure, he was cute. Adorable, in fact. But she always reminded herself that this was a responsibility she was getting paid for. It'll help in the long-run, she thought to herself. One day, if need be, Anwyn would be able to leave without feeling too much heartache. That was the plan, at least.
Those eyes were incredibly persuasive, though. She'd have to be careful not to start thinking she was it's mother. Anwyn had never anticipated being one, nor that she'd be any sort of good one. She'd protect him, feed him, and spend time with him enough to care about his well-being. But nothing more. A nanny is all she would remain.
Sleeping, the brunette soon realized, could be a difficult affair. The Mandalorian normally took the child once he was ready to turn in for some rest of his own, perhaps not trusting her or maybe because he preferred having him close. Anwyn wouldn't ask. It gave her time to herself without needing to watch the kid, and it was surprisingly comfortable down in the cargo hold once the bedding had been put down. That wasn't the issue.
The problem was once the child managed to get out of the Mandalorian's room and make his way back down to her, touching her face with his tiny hands. The first time it happened on her second day aboard, she'd startled awake in a panic. With the cargo bay lights off, she had no clue what had touched her. The child, confused why she'd reacted so harshly, had begun to cry, and in her haze she realized what was beside her. Anwyn sighed, picking him up to try calming him down.
"No, don't cry...please..." Anwyn muttered groggily, picking him up and bouncing him in her arms. Still, he didn't seem to settle. He squirmed around in her arms, unsatisfied with her attempts at consolation. In the dark, holding an upset child, she hadn't ever thought to find herself in this situation. What a galaxy they lived in.
This wasn't working. Throwing aside her blanket, she stood with child in hand, meandering around the cargo bay to maybe put him to sleep from the movement alone. She remembered her mother walking circles in the antique shop's front shop when she was little, the repetitive movement putting her back to sleep. Maybe the same would work for him.
Her socks did little to protect her feet from the cold metal flooring. Even after 25 or 50 passes around the cargo bay, he showed no signs of quieting down and all she got for it was no feeling in her feet. Anwyn huffed a tired and frustrated breath. There was no way to tell how much time had passed since she'd actually gone to sleep, but it felt like an hour at most.
"Come on...maybe the Mandalorian can help you." She murmured to herself, heading towards the direction she knew the ladder to the upper deck to be.
Her careful steps up the ladder in the darkness felt more treacherous this time, since she was carrying the kid on her hip. One tumble and she could accidentally crush him. Keeping a tighter hold on him as she ascended the last few rungs, she straightened and passed by the door to the cockpit.
The swirling colors of hyperspace greeted her through the doorway. Anwyn stopped to watch, not realizing just how much time she'd spent away from the view. Down in the hold, it was easy to forget they were in space sometimes. The kid quieted in her arms as he noticed the sight too. She looked down, watching him reach towards it with eager intent, cooing insistently. Well, alright. That solved her problem.
Stalking into the cockpit, she settled comfortably into one of the back passenger seats and propped the kid on her chest so he could see the lights. His coos had quieted to small whimpers. Quiet musings to himself, maybe.
"We'll stay here until you fall asleep again. But then you're going back to the Mandalorian, ok?" She whispered. He didn't put up any fight, so she took that as an ok.
For awhile, she just sat there, watching the hyperspace travel with him. It really was a beautiful sight. Most of the time she didn't get to see it from her spots stowed away in some random trader's ship. It always had to be somewhere hidden, with no view. Now, given free roam of a ship was...definitely different. A good sort of different.
Honestly, Anwyn was just happy that the crying had stopped. Maybe sitting wasn't the most comfortable position to rest, but whatever gained her peace and quiet was fine with her. Her eyelids grew heavy with fatigue, and eventually she gave in to the temptation. Sleep came quick and unexpectedly.
ns 15.158.61.20da2
