*//argo

maybe it was that piece of her that had always felt compelled to be better, to be the best than everyone around her that drove the words that came out of her mouth –– as it certainly did not come a place from any genuine belief. “and do you believe it doesn’t have the right leadership?” that was one particular point that second sister was not invested in. that was something that did not usually matter to her. “anything can fall under the right circumstances. anyone.“ that was obvious. “but do i think it’ll fall because of the resistance? unlikely.”

The senate building still smouldered in the distance; a low hanging cloud of ash not yet settled in the ruins. With the resistance now public enemy number one, Nessa found herself thrown into her job once again. Even though she had a new found heavier workload, Nessa set aside time to meet the mandalorian woman late that morning. Although the request to meet had been a vague one, she had an inkling of what the other wanted. The First Order had become a safety net, the irony of which did not escape her.

She turned her head to face the woman who sat next to her. “Fine by me,” replied the jedi hunter, “I’m all ears.”

merrin blinked at her uniform. unsure what she meant. she presumed she was supposed to recognize it but… it didn’t matter. merrin didn’t really care. not now at least, “merrin,” she said simply, eyebrows quirking up, “i… understand that, i suppose. this is all… just so confusing.” 

       maybe this wasn’t the best time to dig deeper into the first order. after all that happened, any good light shed on the resistance was turning away from them and the first order seemed to be the party of safety. she didn’t want to promise herself to them, but argo was inching closer and closer by the day. it was tempting of course, but she had her hesitations too. nessa was part of the first order; a jedi hunter if she assumed correctly? and argo figured that she would know the ins and outs of the organization better than most. 

        “i just have a few questions,” argo asked the acquaintance, taking a seat beside the other in the rather isolated city bench. “it you have time, or course” 

vicrul’s head canted to the side as he looked down upon her, clearly unimpressed. she reminded him of that damn redheaded mandalorian that he had the kriffing luck of running into on multiple occasions now. arrogant, but never in the setting where he could really do anything about it. not with the ceasefire. “i much rather show than tell. but you’re not worth getting arrested for. you’re not even worth the time.”

her disillusionment with the first order seemed to only thicken with each day that passed, as absolutely nothing came to light. but the thoughts were her own –– the only people, as far as they knew, that had caught onto it was cal and rix. as far as she knew, cal was not in any position to do anything with the information, wouldn’t intentionally put her in harm’s way. rix, on the other hand, benefited more from keeping it private as far as she could see. “they’re riding off the success of the empire,” she remarked, languid in her disposition as she leaned back in the booth. “offer enough power that cannot be defeated, and most will have the sense to fall in line.”

“not lost. i’m just… taking everything in i suppose,” she said simply, sighing some, “ not sure i like it. i wouldn’t come back,” she commented, shrugging. “who are you?” she asked, head tilting, “you seem like you’re curious then.” 

“Mandalore?” Bodhi asked, eyes widening for a second before he could school his expressions. He’d heard so much about the planet, mostly from other pilots back when he’d worked for The Empire. It was a place he’d always been curious but had never actually learned more about. As he was handed the resource given to him, Bodhi couldn’t help but stare at it. He’d spent the last week feeling lost, adrift. Maybe this resource, and the ones they would soon find, would help him feel more comfortable. Already, he could feel something bringing him back down, anchoring him. “What have you found out? What do you know?” Bodhi asked, looking back up. He hadn’t actually asked anyone anything, just listened from the shadows.

the reference that she was making doesn’t go beyond him –– but given the lack of reaction that vicrul displayed to the words, it may as well have. there were ways to get under his skin, of course, that just wasn’t one of them. he cared little about his physique. “if you would like to go through me, you’re welcome to try,” he sneered as he looked down upon her, his eyes narrowing. “but it’ll make a quick end of your life.”

merrin’s eyes flicked up at the woman’s briefly, confused why she was smiling at her. taking a breath, she raised an eyebrow at her admission. “i’m not. is it that obvious?” she questioned, slowly standing up, turning towards the woman. she paused some, “are you from here? I don’t know much about this planet.” 

“yes.” bodhi replied, more confidently. “both maybe? i want to learn more about everything. i used to know… but… i feel like so much has happened that i lost track.” he admitted before pausing. “i’m from jedha originally… moved around a lot though.” bodhi had almost forgot that the destruction of the holy city had happened long ago for everyone else. for him, it had happened less than a month ago. “what about you? where are you from?” he added, wanting to take attention off of himself.

       “mandalore” she answered, though interested in hearing about jedha before it was destroyed. “and alright... both,” argo repeated with a nod. “well... i am not entirely accustomed to coruscant, but this explains it briefly-” she handed him the resource in her hands before turning back to the shelves. “and... as for history?” she wasn’t the best at navigating libraries, but it was oddly easy here. “i suppose we could look around for another resource. “i’ve been asking people many questions... too many, i would say. but i still feel as if there is more to know.”

bodhi hadn’t really expected an answer from the woman next to him and his eyes widened as she replied. “um… both? maybe? i’m… new here.” he admitted. it wasn’t exactly a lie but he still felt bad. “but… maybe just… the library? I’m looking for… history. i guess?” bodhi felt like he should be more specific but he wasn’t sure how to be. should he just ask for anything related to rogue one? he always forgot what year it was now and trying to figure out dates based on that was hard.

       she could certainly tell he was new there. she was too to an extent, but argo caught on quickly. “history?” argo repeated, taking a step closer to look at the book he’d chosen. “history on... the city? i find myself looking for the same thing.” for instance, she was confused as to why she was even there to begin with. her allegiance was shifting, and she didn’t even know what position to take anymore. “where are you from?” 

gazing up at the never ending shelves of books and papers, bodhi’s eyes widened. he wasn’t even sure where to start. he’d arrived at the library in the hopes of finding out more about what had happened since scarif but as soon as he walked through the doors, he’d been overwhelmed. there was so much and so little time. he wasn’t the type of person who usually spent time in libraries but he had to know what he’d missed. “excuse me…” he asked, turning to face the person closest to him. “do you… do you know your way around this place?”

       she was only there to find a few reads to understand the city more and what led to it to become this. there weren’t many days where she liked being here to say the least. riffling through the endless array of books, argo heard a man ask a simple question. “do you mean the library or...” her hand waved as if to indicate the entirety of the city. “coruscant?” she’d been there long enough to get around, but the history still alluded her. she looked over at the section he was looking though which was somewhat similar to her own. “looking for something?” 

merrin hadn’t seen many creatures since leaving dathomir. something she hadn’t realized would intrigue her so much. and this fluffy one, was very sweet. a small smile on the nightsister’s face, she scratched under their chin. this made this better, in a way. a distraction that was pleasant. a new experience. 

however she paused, sensing someone new begin to watch. letting out a breath, she didn’t turn ,”is there something you want?” she asked, ready to fight if that was necessary, though hardly wanting to. she didn’t want to end up in the same place as cal or that other woman. 

       the other’s tone was defensive, and argo wasn’t sure how to properly respond without starting anything. but that ball of fur in the other’s hands put a grin on her face as she approached. “no, nothing.” argo focused on that little creature before turning her attention to the girl she was initially interested in. “you are not from here, i was curious.” argo was always blunt, but this was a new level for her all together. 

       streets were surprisingly loud and argo continued to be suspicious of any unknown face she came across. and the girl coming up had a strange sense about her. something unearthed and powerful, though argo couldn’t place a finger on what. she should have continued to walk by but her innate nosiness and curiosity made her pause for a moment, leaning against the nearest wall and allowing herself to stare for a second or two in attempt to figure her out. 

@mxrrin​

@knightofbyss​