Word count is my only motivation

Day after day had been work, repairs, sleep, repeat. Hannah was going to be very upset if she did it all for nothing. She really wanted to stay, and she couldn't explain why. The apartment hardly passed as a livable space, and the longer she stayed in one place, the easier she was to find. Nevertheless, she didn't want to leave.

As she walked into work, Hannah immediately received an earful from her employer. Every day, she'd walk in, get a few frivolous complaints from either her co-worker or her boss, apologize, and get to work. Her co-worker, Corina, was always against Mr. Grosu, but she seemed to make an exception when Hannah was involved. Most things they accused her of were inaccurate, but Hannah knew better than to correct them. She had been around too many people like them.

Work wasn't exciting, but it was certainly unpredictable. Everything from cleaning to stocking, taking orders to giving coffee refills. Most of her work was inconsistent. The only job Hannah knew she would be assigned to was taking out the trash. Not the most pleasant job, but it was nice to have a constant in a place of variables.

Halfway through the workday, Corina had gone home early. She claimed she had lost her voice, and couldn't take orders, and doing any other task seemed to be unspeakable. Unfortunately, Mr. Grosu thought the same way and expected Hannah to fill in for her while taking care of her own duties. More than ever Hannah wanted to argue, or explain that she couldn't possibly take on all the work, but she kept her mouth shut.

She was running back and forth between jobs, the whole morning, and it hardly calmed down during the afternoon. The only time she felt she could take a breath was in the evening when they were about to close. She finished up the task at hand and finally was able to leave the cafe. Now she just had to take the long journey home.

Hannah's feet were dragging with every step. The work of the day and the rest of the week combined had drained her energy, and she found herself wishing more than ever that she had a car. She knew it would be a mistake to have one though. People were found so easily by some "concerned citizen" remembering too many characters of a license plate or seeing a specific car pull into a location. Walking felt safer to her. The only thing Hannah had on her was a purse, but even that felt like it was weighing her down. There was no way she would go somewhere without it though; or rather a specific thing inside it. She reached down to make sure it was still there and, sure enough, the pistol hadn't moved. Hopefully, she would never have to use it, but there was always a chance.

She made it to her apartment building and trudged inside. With a look at the stairs, she groaned and sat down on a couch in the lobby. Hannah needed to recover before she took the trek up all those flights of stairs.

She had closed her eyes for only a second when she heard something behind her. She leaped off the couch and was about to go for her bag when she saw what it was. Who it was for that matter. A man was standing there with wide blue eyes and a panicked look on his face. His stance was stiff and ready to bolt for the stairs, and Hannah would've felt the same way if her legs weren't so tired.

She let out the breath she had taken when she first heard him. "You scared me half to death," Hannah laughed, trying to lighten the tense mood. He didn't respond, and she kicked herself for not speaking in Romanian. She translated what she had said, and this time he nodded.

"I speak English," he responded plainly. Silence.

"Oh," Hannah said. The sound hung in the air. Hannah was slightly tilted towards her purse, and the man's eyes darted back and forth between her and the bag. She stood up straight, pushing the bag out of her thoughts. "Well, is there something I can help you with?"

He shook his head. "No." Somehow, Hannah needed to make the situation less tense so they could both settle down.

"I know you said you speak English, but do you prefer Romanian?" she asked. Maybe he would feel more comfortable if she spoke his language.

Once again, he shook his head. "No."

Hannah pursed her lips. "You're quite the conversationalist," she joked. In response, he furrowed his brow and looked at the floor.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. Normally Hannah had no trouble being friendly with people, but something about this guy unsettled her. She couldn't tell if it was her being weird or him. "I guess I better get going," Hannah said as she slowly grabbed her bag and headed toward the stairs.

"You live here?" he spoke up. Hannah turned back around. What was she supposed to say? She certainly didn't trust him, and if he was a SHIELD agent, her answer could change everything. His clothes didn't look like SHIELD but she couldn't take any chances.

"No," Hannah lied with a smile. "I'm just looking for a new place. How about you?"

He pointed up the stairs. "Eighth floor," he answered. For a small moment, Hannah was relieved. He must've been the person who lived above her. She didn't know who else it could be. Still, there was something about him she didn't trust. How did he know that she was reaching for her bag in self-defense? Why did he seem so nervous?

It had taken her a long time to find the place; how much longer would it take SHIELD when they didn't have the resources they needed. Two years ago SHIELD had collapsed, pushing a handful of agents to work in the shadows. And yet, they still managed to make her life miserable.

She was tired of being on the run from the organization. One slip up at Harry's House of Horrors, and she might as well have walked into their headquarters begging them to arrest her. Hannah shook her head as she pushed the memory aside. This was her chance to lay low for a while.

The landlord had said there were many residents; (which Hannah had a hard time believing considering there were no cars parked in the streets, and the parking garage was 3 miles down the road) so she picked up her single bag and walked into the building to meet the supposed neighbors.

Unfortunately, the interior was worse than the exterior. There were dusty couches, flickering lamps, coffee tables she could tell were wobbly just by looking at them, and cobwebs in just about every corner. At least the outside had some greenery. Everything on the inside was brown, including the peeling, floral wallpaper.

As Hannah had assumed, there wasn't a soul in sight. No wonder the landlord made such an effort to make sure he got a good price off of her. She sighed, but she wasn't about to complain. It would be a miracle if SHIELD would find her any time soon, and knowing that was all she needed to appreciate the rundown building.

There was no one at the counter, but the key to her apartment was sitting there; so she grabbed it and showed herself up the stairs. The room that had been offered to her was on the seventh floor. She would have taken the elevator, but - to no surprise - it was out of order.

The door to her "new" home was old and splintered. She turned the key in the lock, but the door wouldn't budge. Kicking the base of the door didn't work, and neither did pounding the top. She dropped her bag in frustration and rammed her shoulder against it.

The door jerked opened, and Hannah would've fallen face-first on the stone had she not been holding onto the handle. She absentmindedly rubbed her shoulder as she scanned her new living space. There was hardly any furniture despite her purchasing it furnished. There was a couch, a small dining table, and a desk. All of which, looked like they could crumble if she touched them.

"Home sweet home," Hannah muttered as she pulled her hair out of her face. Normally, she wouldn't get settled in until she was sure that SHIELD wouldn't find her, but the room needed some serious TLC. She brought her bag inside and got to work. After giving the space a quick scan, she decided to work on the kitchen. One room at a time, she would get the apartment fixed up.

Hannah had made considerable progress with what she had. The kitchen was still in poor condition, but at least it wasn't covered in cobwebs and dead cockroaches. During the process, Hannah had heard noises coming from the floor above her. There must've been some residents after all, but she would have to meet them another time. It was getting late.

As she headed toward the bedroom, she realized that she hadn't been in there yet. Hopefully, when she turned the corner, there wouldn't be a family of moths she would have to evict.

After opening the door, Hannah stared at the room in disappointment. There wasn't a family of moths. There wasn't a window. There was hardly any wallpaper, but worst of all, there wasn't a bed. Of course, there wasn't. Of the few things Hannah was hoping for the most, a bed was one of them. This was the only problem, so far, that made her angry. She was used to staying in horrible places, but there was something about this one that made it more frustrating. She took a deep breath, and turned back to the living room.

Hannah grabbed a small worn blanket out of her bag and made her way to the couch. As she plopped down, a cloud of dust rose up around her. It wasn't the worst place she had slept, but it was still amazingly uncomfortable. Hannah closed her eyes, but the springs from the couch pressed into her back making it impossible to get comfortable. She ignored it the best she could but she didn't get much sleep that first night.

***

Because the couch refused her a good sleep, Hannah left early and headed to the store. She didn't want to get ahead of herself in case she had to leave, but she was definitely missing a few essentials. Food. It was the first thing she thought of and her stomach growled to tell it was thinking the same thing. Hannah grabbed her long, tan coat (It wasn't very practical, but it was the only one she had) and headed downstairs.

She walked for a while before she found what must have been the central place of business. There were buildings and stands for just about anything: Food, entertainment, information, relaxation. It was, conveniently, all in one place, but it also made the whole location jam-packed with people. Each restaurant had a slough of chairs just outside their building, and almost every seat was occupied.

Normally, Hannah didn't like being around people, but with so many in one place, it would be near impossible for anyone to find her. Hopefully, that was true, because as Hannah looked around, she realized she wouldn't mind staying there at all.

As her thoughts fizzled out, her gaze settled on a small restaurant that was neatly tucked away in between to massive buildings. Hannah's stomach growled once more, and without hesitation, she headed in that direction.

Hannah stuffed her face with the most delicious food she had eaten in months. In between bites, she compiled a list of necessities. Near the top she had written "Bed", but she frowned as she gulped down another bite of toast. Hannah's supply of money was nowhere near impressive. In fact, it was almost laughable. She had even felt guilty for buying herself a nice breakfast, but her appetite hadn't let her feel that way for long. If she didn't get a job soon, she'd be sleeping on the streets. It would be better than that couch, she thought. She chuckled to herself and finished her food.

After a long while of looking at newspapers, a few visits, and a few phone calls, Hannah finally landed an actual interview. It was hard to get people to trust her when she had to keep so much of her past a secret. She was on her way to a small cafe that was quite a way off from her apartment. Not very convenient, but she would take what she could get.

Hannah walked into the building with the newspaper in her hand. The lady behind the counter lazily turned toward her. "What do you want?" she grunted in Romanian.

That was welcoming. Not "Hello!" or "How can I help you?" Just a flat, halfhearted "What do you want?" Hannah smiled, showing the lady that is was possible to do so. She explained that she was there for an interview, and the lady rolled her eyes and disappeared through a door.

"What do you want?" Hannah heard a deep voice but she couldn't see where it was coming from.

A short wrinkly man emerged from behind the counter. "I said, what do you want?" he repeated in a more agitated tone.

"I'm Anna Bucur. I called ahead for an interview," Hannah explained, speaking in the foreign language. She hadn't used her real name in so long, it even felt strange to say it in her mind. Hannah Bates. Even when she was alone, she didn't dare say it aloud. That name was more foreign to her than any of the languages she had learned over the years.

"Fine," the small man huffed. "Come." He disappeared behind the counter again. Hannah followed him through the door to his office.  After he got situated on the pile of books that were on his chair, he began the interview.

"Listen, I don't have a lot of time on my hands," he growled. "I just need two working hands and listening ears. You have those, don't you?"

"Yes, Sir," Hannah replied hesitantly.

"Good, you're hired," he grunted and hopped off his chair. "Your first task is to use your ears. You will call Mr. Grosu and nothing else. You will not complain about the work I tell you to do, and you will not cause problems. Got it?"

Hannah nodded unsurely, but before she could say anything, Mr. Grosu continued. "Your second task is, emptying the garbage, so get to it."

Hannah was taken aback. For a moment she forgot how to speak Romanian, and she just stared at her new employer as he hobbled out the door. It was so strange, she just didn't know how to act.

She closed her jaw that was slightly ajar and she went for the door herself. Was it really that simple? Hannah took in a breath and walked through the door. The next thing to do was to take out the trash. Why complain? She knew all she needed because most of the information had been in the paper. She should've been grateful that it was that easy, but Hannah just couldn't bring herself to accept it. Maybe she was paranoid from being on the run for so long, but usually being paranoid is what saved her hide.

It hadn't taken long for the authorities to arrive. Headlights pierced through the darkness that the fire hadn't consumed already. Hannah looked at the tent that she had turned into kindling, and she did the one thing that was going through her mind. She ran. The ground was wet, from the rain that had fallen the day before, and the mud clung to her shoes as she stumbled in the dark. She had to find her friend.

"Stop!" a commanding voice sounded from behind her. She froze, her hands automatically rising towards the sky.

"Turn around," the voice continued. Hannah couldn't see a way out. No doubt, he had a gun trained on her, and there was nothing but an open field for miles. She slowly turned around, her heart pounding in her ears. As suspected, there was a man in uniform with a gun pointed straight at her. A few other agents swarmed in around their comrade. Out of the corner of her eye, Hannah saw her. Her friend. She was walking past the guards and looking at Hannah with panic written on her face. When Hannah made eye contact she looked away.

"Trish," She whispered to her friend. "You can't leave me here."

Patrica shook her head and continued toward her car without looking at her. "Get some help, Hannah."

Hannah couldn't catch her breath. Nobody seemed to realize that she was just as scared as the rest of them. She didn't know what she had done, and she never wanted to do it again. She just wanted to go home.

A tear ran down her cheek as she refocused her attention to the agents in front of her. They suddenly parted to let another man through, but this man wasn't in gear like the rest of them. This man wore a suit and tie, and sunglasses covered his face despite it being night. He walked right up to Hannah and removed the glasses.

"I'm agent Phil Coulson with SHIELD," he said. "Do you have a moment to answer some questions?"

Hannah knew he wasn't asking, but since he had, why couldn't she say no? What right would he have to arrest her for something he didn't know she had done? However, whether it was the guns pointed at her head, or the absence of a better option, she nodded.

The man smiled. "Thank you. If you would just follow me." Without checking to see if she had moved, he turned and headed back through the way he had come. She followed his path, avoiding the eyes of the agents around her. Agent Coulson led her to a van that had the logo of SHIELD painted on the side. He opened the trunk of the vehicle and sat down on the ledge. He gestured for her to sit down as well, and reluctantly she did.

"I don't know what you think I did--" Hannah started.

"Nobody said you did anything," he interrupted. "We just want to know what you saw."

Hannah could see that he knew what she had done. He was just trying to get her to trust him. "I didn't see anything," she lied anyway. "My friend and I were just going through the haunted house, and the tent collapsed on us."

"Where is your friend?" he questioned.

"She went home," Hannah responded quietly.

"We heard that the incident might have been caused by a powered individual," the man stated. "Did you see anyone like that?"

He had said it to get a reaction. Hannah saw right through his act. He knew that she had made the tent collapse, and he knew how she did it. Why was he playing dumb?

"I didn't see anyone," she lied again. "Can I go home to my family, please?"

"Well there's just one problem," he explained. "Your family died a long time ago, and you've been staying with your friend ever since. You said your friend left. Want to tell me why?"

"It's none of my business, and it certainly isn't yours," Hannah retorted. "If you know so much about me, then you know that I don't have powers."

"That's the thing," he countered "You keep insisting you don't have powers, but no one ever said you did."

Stop talking! The voice inside Hannah's head did nothing for her. She was digging a hole for herself. She was too flustered and fatigued to think before talking, and it was backfiring immensely.

"Maybe I'm just scared of guns you've had pointed at me the second I moved," Hannah pointed out.

"I don't like to use guns." It was the most sincere thing Hannah had heard him say yet. "Those are non-lethals, but they're still only for emergencies. Right now there are other people on their way to pick you up, and I promise you, their guns will kill. But, if you agree to come with us, we'll protect you."

"Yeah," Hannah scoffed. "Just hop in the back of a van, with a bunch of bad men in the middle of the night."

"SHIELD is there to protect people like you," he said. "I promise, we are the good guys."

"It's kind of hard to believe when all I can see is the barrel of your gun," Hannah snapped.

As Agent Coulson continued to explain, a thought formed in Hannah's mind. She knew she should push it away. It was ridiculous and dangerous, but she thought just maybe she could pull it off. She hadn't noticed it at first but the car she was sitting on, was vibrating and humming. The engine was running. There was someone in the driver's seat, but how big of a hurdle was that? If the guns weren't lethal, then what was stopping her from using them herself? Her thoughts were spinning at a hundred miles per hour, and she hadn't realized she had decided to do it until she already grabbed the lid of the trunk.

There was a handle that allowed her to pull the trunk closed while still inside, and she was going to use it to her advantage. She pushed Agent Coulson out of the way and slammed the trunk closed. She didn't have much time before the poor man recovered after his fall, so she stumbled to the driver's seat.

The man sitting there had already pulled a gun on her, but that was what she was hoping for. Because of the strange angle of his outstretched arm, it was easy to knock the gun from his hand. Hannah quickly grabbed it, closed her eyes, and pulled the trigger.

The man crumpled in the driver's seat. For a moment she thought that she had killed him, but he was breathing. Everything had happened so fast, that she didn't notice Agent Coulson opening the trunk. Without thinking, Hannah pushed a button and flicked a switch, and the door was closed and locked. She stared at the unconscious man taking up the driver's seat. The only solution she had was to quickly open the door, push him out, and take his place.

She put the car in gear and slammed on the gas. The wheels turned in the mud for a moment - spraying everyone behind them in filth no doubt - but then took off.

You walked down the street looking for the one person you knew that couldn't resist telling you everything; Even if it was for a price. As you passed by children playing in the streets, their mothers rounded them inside as quickly as they could. They knew your reputation, and though you would never hurt a youngling, it was probably best they stay out of your way. They watched curiously behind their mothers until you had passed their dwelling.

"If it isn't old Wrist Rocket!" Jung Powell's voice rang out signaling you had reached your destination. He called you that because a small missile launcher on your wrist was the only piece of pure beskar you had. It stood out, hence him picking it to distinguish you from other Mandalorians.

He emerged from his workshop and walked over to you. "Here to ask about the new Mando in town, eh?"

"Where are they?" You asked simply.

Jung laughed and squashed a bug underneath his foot. He was always easily distracted. "You know I like ya," he smiled. "But payment's been kind of high this month. Y'know how it is--"

"Fine. I'll get you a payment," you interrupted.

He chuckled and crossed all four of his green arms. "That's why I like you, but it's a bit different this time." You withheld a breath. If Jung wanted you to do something different, it was never good.

"I don't have time to chase down the people you squabble with," you argued.

"It's not a squabble," he countered. "He owes me money, and he won't pay up."

"So, a squabble," you huffed.

He waved two of his hands dismissively. "Ok, call it what you want. The point is I'm not very intimidating--"

"You don't say."

"But if you so much as walk in the door, he'll be at your feet with the money. I just know it." You took a moment to weigh out the options. It was just a simple debt collection. You figured it would be an easy job. Just get it over with and find the other Mandalorian.

"Fine," you agreed. "Who owes you?"

"Don't know if you've heard of him. His name's Kole. Never gave a me a last name, but he doesn't live far away."

He gave you the directions to your target, and you went quickly on your way. You needed to get this job over with so you could get the information you needed about the Mandalorian. You were almost jogging down the streets as you relayed the directions in your head. Left. Right. Left again. You stopped your mental GPS when you heard some kind of commotion. You took a deep breath. It was where your target supposedly was.

You armed the rocket on your wrist and slowly walked into the building. A man dropped at your feet and you instinctively aimed at him. He wasn't moving. You kicked his arm to make sure it was safe to continue.

"Who are you?" A voice made you whip around. Standing only a few feet from you was a Mandalorian decked out in full beskar armor. Every system in your body froze, and you had to remind yourself to breathe.

"You're a Mandalorian," you commented, ignoring his question.

"So are you," he added. He took a step towards you and you pulled out your blaster. He raised his hands slightly, but he didn't step back.

"What are you doing here?" you questioned.

"I'm just passing through," he answered. "I didn't know...I thought all the other Mandalorians were dead." You were glad the helmet you wore concealed the shock on your face. Either he was a lunatic or something terrible at happened.

"Why would you think that?" you asked.

He kept a hand raised as he crouched down at the man at your feet. "Because they all died," he quipped. You didn't quite know how to process what he was saying. You hadn't gone back to Mandalore in years, so it wasn't impossible that he was telling the truth. Still, you refused to believe that they were all gone.

He pulled something out of the mans pocket and stepped back once more. "What is that?" you questioned. The only reason you could trust him was the fact that he was a Mandalorian, and at the moment, that wasn't enough.

He crushed the device in his hand, making you wonder what it was even more. "Broken," he responded simply.

You rolled your eyes though he couldn't see it. "You better start talking, because this is my town. I'm not letting another Mandalorian put me out of my job here.

"I'm not here to take your job," he assured you. "I just came for him." He gestured to the unmoving man that was still at your feet. You figured by now that it was Kole. Your target.

"He was my job," you growled. He still hadn't told you why he was there or how the other Mandalorians had died. He wasn't telling you anything, and it frustrated you to no end.

"Well," he sighed. "You better hope your employer will take him in cold." He tried to walk by you and you were quick to block him.

"Move," he ordered.

"Not until you give me answers," you insisted.

"I was going to," he said. "Back at my ship."

"I'm perfectly fine discussing this here," you said pointedly.

"I'm not." He changed his approach, realizing that he wasn't getting through to you. "Believe me, I'm not going anywhere. I've been looking for another Mandalorian for a while. I just need to get something."

You both stared at each other as if you could read the other's expression through the helmets. That was always a problem with Mandalorians. They couldn't communicate without getting physical. The longer you stood there the heavier the tension in the air became.

A squeal interrupted your stare-down, and before you knew it, your blaster was aimed in the direction of the sound.

"Don't!" The Mandalorian cried. You took a moment to take in what exactly you were looking at. A small green creature with abnormally large ears was standing on a counter not far off.

"How did that get in here?" you demanded.

The Mandalorian rushed over to the creature and gingerly picked it up. "I don't know," he huffed. Then to the child he added, "I thought I told you to stay on the ship." It cooed in response and held it's hand out toward you. You still had your blaster raised, so you lowered it slowly and stared at it's three little fingers.

"What does it want?" you asked. Instead of responding, he put the child down on the ground, and it stumbled in it's oversized coat towards you. You tensed up as it got closer.

"What does it want?" you repeated with more urgency. The kid reached your feet and grabbed on to one of your legs. You froze, so you didn't hurt it by moving.

"Don't hurt him, he's just a kid," The Mandalorian said.

"I wasn't planning on it, but you need to get it off of me!" You raised the boot with the creature on it so he could take it off. He set it back on the ground, and it immediately started making it's way back to you. He picked it up with a warning and didn't put it down again.

"That's not....your kid---"

"No," he interrupted. "I just found him."

"A foundling," you whispered as you stepped towards the child.

The Mandalorian instinctively stepped back. "Yes. I've been keeping him safe."

"Hence my target being dead at my feet," you guessed.

He nodded. "Are you a guild member?"

"No, I get my targets from locals," you explained. "Something I intend to keep doing, so you and your foundling might want to make yourselves disappear."

"We're not here to ruin your business."

"You being here is ruining my business," you pointed out. "Right now, I get plenty of jobs. Why shouldn't I? I am the only Mandalorian in this town after all. Add another in the mix? eventually we'll be either splitting the load, or fighting for the best offer."

"I'm not here for the jobs," he said. "If I needed jobs, I could go anywhere. Like I said, the Mandalorians are gone. People will hire anyone. All you need is the armor."

"Speaking of," you said with a nod towards his armor. "You've got a pretty good set. What are the odds of the Mandalorians being wiped out and a single man making it out with full beskar armor? I'd guess pretty slim. Unless of course he helped kill a few so he could keep the spoils."

"I got this armor before they all died," he informed. "High paying customer."

"Must've been quite a bounty."

"Still is," he looked at the kid in his arms. "That's why I have to keep him safe."

You paused to take in what he had said. "That was the bounty?"

"If you lay a finger on him--"

"I'm not interested in the money," you snapped. "I just want to know how you got paid and still got to keep him."

"It's complicated."

You looked back and forth between him and the kid. "Alright. I don't care. Just get what you came for and get off my planet."

***

It had been days since your Mandalorian encounter and he still hadn't left. You would see him around town every now and again, and he was always with that kid. He insisted he was leaving, but he never did. It made you anxious. In just the few days he had been there he had stirred everyone up. You couldn't imagine what would happen if he never left.

You sat on the edge of a rock on the outskirts of your town. He claimed he had his ship parked somewhere around there. You wanted to check it out, but you weren't in any hurry. It was nice to be able to take in the scenery for a moment. You stood and took a deep breath. Calming down for a second was just what you needed. This Mandalorian had you worked up for nothing.

You turned around and froze when you saw the Mandalorian's kid standing right in front of you. For some reason, he always made an effort to find you. You liked to think the Mandalorian told it to, just to get on your nerves.

"Go back to the Mandalorian," you ordered. It titled it's head and continued to stare at you. "The other Mandalorian." It stayed.

"Look, kid, I'm not babysitting you. Go back to the Mandalorian that takes care of you, cause it certainly isn't me." Finally, he started walking. Unfortunately for him, he was walking straight towards the edge of the cliff. You put your foot in it's path and it looked up at you.

"Try the other way," you instructed. You nudged it with your foot away from the edge. It paused there for a moment, then turned around and headed for the edge again. You sighed and picked it up by the back of it's cloak. You really didn't want to touch it at all, but you couldn't leave it to wander off the cliff like that. You held it away from you as you continued to trek through the rocky area. Either you'd find his ship or you'd take the creature back to him directly.

A few moments later you saw smoke rising in the sky. There was nothing in that area for miles. The perfect place to land a ship. You picked up the pace, hoping that it was the ship you were looking for. Sure enough in the middle of the clearing was a broken down ship that looked like it used to be a Razor Crest.

"Please tell me that isn't his ship," you said to the child. It only gurgled in response. You set it down now that it couldn't wander off an edge somewhere, and it started walking to the ship. No wonder that Mandalorian was still there. He hardly had a ship to fly back on.

"Hey!" The Mandalorian came up behind you. "What are you doing?" he demanded.

"You intend to fly back on that?" you remarked. "That wouldn't make it off the ground, much less the planet."

"You think I don't know that?" he huffed. "That's why I've been repairing it these past few days. Don't worry. The kid and I will be out of your little town in no time." He stopped the kid halfway to the ship and carried him the rest of the way. You decided to follow, curious about the inside. You followed the Mandalorian up the ramp and took a quick look around the ship. It didn't take long since it was so small and cramped. You couldn't imagine living in it.

"Are you done with your little tour?" he grumbled when you had made it back to the ramp.

You shrugged. "If you don't want me to look around your ship, you should've had it off the planet."

"Unless you have a spare parked in a garage somewhere, that's not going to happen just yet."

"It might be easier if you didn't have a kid to look after," you pointed out.

"It's not that difficult."

"Oh really?" you smirked. "Is that why I found it about to wander off a cliff?"

You could see him tense beneath his beskar armor. "What?" he said testily.

You walked off the ship with a last comment over your shoulder. "I'll let you get back to work."

You sat outside the cantina with Jung Powell talking business. He always bought you a drink thought he knew you couldn't remove your helmet. He probably did it as a temptation to break your code, but it would never work. Instead he would just drink yours as well as his.

"You did great with the money Kole owed me," he was saying. "But you killing him gave a lot of people cold feet y'know."

You tilted your head slightly. "What about you?"

He reached forward to grab the cup in front of you. "I understand it was all in a day's work," he said through a chuckle. He emptied the glass in one gulp and slammed the cup back on the table. "So, if you're looking for another job, I'm the one to talk to."

"That's why I'm here," you said.

"This one's a bit different--"

"With how often you say that, it's starting to become expected."

"Right, I get that, but this really is something else." He leaned over the table enough for you to smell his breath. "Are you up for a cargo run?"

You leaned back and shook your head. "I'm a bounty hunter, not a mail carrier."

"Not even if the mail includes a high paying customer?" he bribed. You stared at him as you considered the offer. It was almost impossible for you to give up a good payment, and you knew that Jung never let you down when it came to those.

"Where to?" you asked warily.

"A dwarf planet a couple systems away--"

"Off planet?" you interrupted. "No deal."

"Come on, wrist rocket, it's getting harder and harder to get deals that stay on planet," he whined.

"Maybe for you, but I have other sources." You stood up to leave and he was quick to tumble out of his chair and stop you.

"No, no, wait!" he cried. "I promise it's worth your time! Plenty of credits! Probably enough to get you more than just a wrist rocket!" You froze. You couldn't lie and say that it wasn't tempting. Deep down you knew it was because of the Mandalorian, but you didn't listen to yourself.

Instead you turned back to Jung. "What do I need to take and where?"

He smiled and rubbed two of his hands together. "Glad you're on board." He gave you your assignment and you walked away knowing you just made a big mistake. Madnalorians were true to their word. If you said you were going to do it, you have to see it through. Now you took up a job out of what? Spite? It was a terrible idea. However, you pushed the doubt out of your mind and looked towards your goal. The only thing you needed now was a way off the planet.

***

"You want me to do what?" The Mandalorian didn't sound thrilled about your offer.

"I'll give you a cut," you assured him. "I just need transportation off-planet."

"I'm not towing you around to whatever planet you want for a small tip."

"A small tip and the repairs you need to get that ship off the ground," you corrected.

"No thanks. I'll repair it myself." He walked back into his ship, not letting you respond. You stepped back to see his ship was still smoking and hissing and let out a frustrated breath. You knew you could fix it for him, but you wouldn't do it for charity. You weren't getting through to him though. You cut your losses and turned around to leave.

Something grabbed on to your leg and out of instinct, you tried to kick it off. You heard the Mandalorian's foundling squealing so you stopped and looked down. Once again, the creature was holding onto your boot with a iron grip. Normally you'd pry it off and send it on it's way, but as it looked up at you with it's big black eyes, you had an awful idea.

Warily, you began walking it back to the ship. You heard the Mandalorian in the the cockpit so you waited for him to come down. When he did come down and saw you with the creature, he froze.

"What are you doing with him?" he said. You could tell he was tense, and his hand was hovering closer and closer to his blaster.

"Your little foundling won't let go of me," you said with a smirk that he thankfully couldn't see. "I tried and tried, but he just won't budge."

"Sounds like a you problem," he said. You thought you heard a hint of humor, but he was far too concerned about his kid for you to tell.

"It is until I go off-planet to finish out this job, and because I couldn't get him away from me, he tags along. That sounds very much like a you problem," you teased.

The Mandalorian clenched his fists. He scooped the kid off your leg and placed him in his bed. He closed the door and turned back to you. "Leave the kid out of this."

"I can't help what it does--"

"You're not taking him with you." Now he was getting upset.

You felt the kid grab onto your boot again and without looking down at it you said, "I don't think I have a choice."

"How did you--" The Mandalorian tried to take him off again, but the kid stayed put. "C'mon kid, let go."

Nothing.

The Mandalorian tugged harder, but the kid squealed, causing him to stop. He looked from the creature to you. For a second, your stomach flipped at the idea that he might actually kill you just to get his kid back. You quickly pushed the thought aside. He wouldn't. It was against the code.

He stood there considering his options for a while before he finally mumbled, "You'd have to get it to fly."

You smiled and gently took the kid off your boot. "Thank you," you said as you handed it over.

He took it and brushed past you as he said, "Just one trip there and back. No more." That was fine by you. You got exactly what you needed. Now you had to get to work with the repairs.

***

You and the Mandalorian sat in the cockpit ready to test out the repaired ship. His kid sat in his lap since you were taking up it's usual spot, so he carefully reached around it to flip switches and press buttons. He had instructed you not to touch anything, then proceeded to unscrew a small lever and hand part of it to the kid.

"We just repaired this thing, and you think it's a good idea to take it apart for that thing's chew toy?" you inquired.

"I know what I'm doing," he snapped. He pulled up, and the whole ship rumbled beneath you. For a moment you weren't sure it would make it off the ground. Then, with a low creak, the ship rose and started cruising forward slowly but surely.

"Hold on," the Mandalorian instructed. He increased the speed and the ship let out a number of complaints. It started rumbling and shaking uncontrollably, and you grabbed onto the seat so you wouldn't get tossed around.

"What's happening?" you shouted over the noise of alarms and groaning metal.

"It'll stabilize once we break through the atmosphere!" he responded.

"If we make it that far!" you snapped. You looked over at the kid on his lap. He was smiling and bouncing like it was some kind of ride to him. Something you would've found funny if there wasn't a good chance that you would all plummet back to the ground. A few moments later, space came speeding into view and the alarms switched off. Then in a second everything went from chaotic to completely silent.

"Told you," the Mandalorian said. "Now we just cruise over to your dwarf planet. I don't think we'll be able to jump to hyperspace."

"What?" you said louder than you had planned. "That could take us days, and that's if we don't come across any obstacles!"

"You're the one who wanted a ride," he quipped as he leaned back in his chair. "If you change your mind, there's always the eject pods."

It took every cell in your body to maintain your composure. This wasn't even a mission you were particularly thrilled about going on, much less with this Mandalorian. You felt at times that the only thing keeping you both from each others throats was the Mandalorian code, but according to him, all the Mandalorians were dead. What validity was there to that pact?

The creature on his lap kept looking at you with it's huge, pitch-black eyes. You didn't know how to react. It was hard not to stare. It's eyes and ears were oversized, and it's layers of clothes made it look like it was in a squishy cocoon. It was kind of cute. You smiled at it, and though it couldn't see, it gurgled and smiled back.

"How old is it?" you asked. The Mandalorian seemed taken aback by the question. You were almost surprised yourself. You didn't care about the kid. You were just curious.

"I don't know," he said after a while. "Somewhere around 50?"

"Fifty?" you asked surprised.

"Well, he obviously ages slower than we do," he remarked. You looked over at the kid and he looked back at you with wide questioning eyes. The Mandalorian stood up with the kid in his arms, and went to the lower part of the ship. "I'll be right back. Don't touch anything!" His command echoed just far enough for you to hear him. You rolled your eyes and reclined in your seat. You might as well get comfortable.

You had been twiddling your thumbs for almost half an hour, and the Mandalorian still hadn't come back. It was irritating, especially since you couldn't do anything on his ship. It clearly wasn't meant to be a livable space. It was just meant for towing him across the galaxy.

You had thought about traveling beyond your planet before, and the longer you stayed the more you wanted to leave. You had heard that it's the spirit of a Mandalorian to travel from place to place, but you never tried. Now you looked out at the black of space littered with stars. It had been so long since you had seen it.

A small, quiet sound roused you from your thoughts. You turned your seat around to see the kid standing there and staring right at you. A small chuckle escaped your lips.

"What do I have to do to get you to stop following me?" you asked half-jokingly. He babbled as if he was actually trying to respond. He walked closer and raised his arms.

"Sorry, but I don't think your dad would want me picking you up," you warned. It insisted and walked even closer. You rolled your eyes. The Mandalorian didn't seem to be coming back soon anyway. You granted the child's wish and picked him up. You didn't set him on your lap, but rather held him a good distance away from you as if he was toxic.

"Are you seriously older than I am?" you whispered almost to yourself.

"Hey!" The Mandalorian's voice cut through the ships low hum and made you jump. You almost dropped the kid so you brought him closer to you by instinct. "What are you doing with the kid?"

"Your kid keeps coming to me!" you explained angrily. "Besides, he's fine." You held the creature out towards the Mandalorian like it was some dull object. He was quick to take it from you, and he sat back down in the pilot's seat. You needed to say something. Anything. You were getting tired of constantly being mad at each other. After all, you were supposedly the last two of your kind. It probably wasn't best to be fighting each other with every word.

"I don't even know what I'm supposed to call you," you mentioned. It was a sudden thought that you had. You currently didn't call him anything. The way you got each others attention was by yelling at the other. Definitely not a good way to end the fighting.

His head moved ever so slightly towards you. "I don't really..." He trailed off and a long moment of silence passed before he spoke up again. "Why don't you just...call me Mando?"

"Mando?" you inquired. "That derogatory nickname that almost every Mandalorian gets?"

"It's not a derogatory nickname. At least, not anymore," he corrected. "I don't have anything else in mind."

"Well, Mandalorians get their nicknames by what they look like or how they act," you pointed out. You looked him up and down. "I guess that would make you 'Beskar?'"

"And what would that make you? 'Not beskar?'" he retorted.

"Ha ha," you replied unenthusiastically. "I'm seriously just supposed to call you Mando?"

"Call me whatever you want," he concluded. "It's not like we're going to be seeing each other after I drop you off." You couldn't argue with that. You certainly didn't intend to see him again, and you were positive the feeling was mutual. You laid your head back against the seat. This was going to be a long trip.

***

Two days since you had left, the dwarf planet finally came into view. You were relieved to be so close to your destination. Of course, the trip wasn't as bad as you thought once you actually talked to Mando without bickering. If you didn't leave room for an argument, he hardly said anything, but the few things he said were actually worth something.

"That's the planet right?" he asked.

"It is," you confirmed. "Are you sure this thing is equipped to land?"

"I guess we'll find out in about five minutes," he replied as he flicked switches and pressed buttons.

"Ship 4119, this is landing pad 7. Do you have clearance to land?" A voice from the intercom made both of you freeze. A small hologram appeared with a symbol that made your blood turn cold. It was the crest of the Empire.

"This is an imperial trade?" Mando hissed under his breath.

"Dank farrik!" you growled. "I'll kill you, Powell."

"Ship 4119, are you reading me?" The voice pressed.

"What do we do?" you whispered.

"Four minutes 'til we land," he started. "We stall." He raised his voice so the person over the intercom could hear. "Yes, I have clearance, but there's some bad interference. Let me switch you over to another channel. Stand by." He switched off the intercom and turned towards you. "That should buy us about a minute."

"Only?" you asked incredulously.

"What did you expect dealing with the Empire?" he scolded.

"I didn't know it was the Empire," you defended weakly.

"We don't have long to figure out what we're doing," he reminded you. "We can't land on the pad so we need to find an alternative."

"It's all trees," you huffed. "The landing pad is our only option."

"Ship 4119, you cooperation is required or you will be terminated."

"The landing pad it is," he sighed. "Hold on to the kid. It's not going to be a smooth landing."

You did as he said and waited. He lowered the landing gear and the ship immediately seized up. The shook and rumbled, and alarms started going off. The voice over the intercom had started a countdown until their "termination". Mando waited until the count of one to expertly roll to the side and half land half crash onto a separate landing pad. Guards were around the ship in moments. Stormtroopers.

"Step out of the ship with your arms up," one commanded.

"They don't know that there's two of us," Mando whispered to you. "I'll walk out as they said, then on my signal, you come in behind and start taking them out." You nodded, and he started to make his way off the ship. You watched him closely for the signal as you readied your rocket. One hit, perfectly aimed, would take them all out.

The signal, followed by your rocket going off, followed by a blinding white light filled the next few moments of your life. When the smoke cleared, there was hardly anything telling you there were stormtroopers there at all. You exited the ship with the kid still in your arms.

"Not bad," you complemented yourself.

"Yeah, yeah, you did good," he brushed off. "We're not entirely out of the woods yet. Spread out and make contact if you find the package."

You stopped. "I thought you were leaving."

"What can I say?" he said with a small shrug. "I'm bored." He threw a small communicator in your direction. "If you come back without the kid, you're as good as dead." Without another word, he jogged off to look for the package. You look down at the kid in your hands, and he tilted his head.

"Yeah, I'm confused too," you murmured. You jogged in the opposite direction already waiting to get off this planet.

What seemed like hours later, Mando contacted you on the communicator. It was pretty choppy, but from what you could tell, he either had the package or he would soon. You breathed a sigh of relief. You weren't comfortable being so close to the Empire.

You quickly found the river you had been following, and began heading upstream. The kid was getting restless. He wanted to walk, but the Mandalorian would have your head if you let him with so many stormtroopers around. So you continued. You thought all would be well, but out of nowhere a gun shot fired right next to your head.

"They're over here!" A stormtrooper yelled through the woods. You found cover and quickly opened your communicator.

"Mando, I'm under attack!" you warned. "South of the ship, not far! Hurry!" Shots were firing all around you and the child started whimpering in fear. You held him close to you as you fired shots blindly into the forest. "Mando!"

Stormtroopers yelled in the distance signaling help was there. You stood from your cover and came helmet to helmet with a camo trooper. He knocked his gun into your hands, sending the kid rolling across the forest floor. You fired your blaster and the trooper dropped to the ground. You heard a sickening splash as you realized the child had rolled towards the river.

Mando caught up with you and noticed you didn't have his kid. "Where is he?" he yelled. You ignored him and plunged head first into the river. The child was so small, it would've been carried away in an instant. When you finally spotted him, he was bobbing downstream with a wide smile. You swam towards him, scooped him up, and placed him back on solid ground. Thankfully there wasn't a scratch on him.

The Mandalorian had made it to you and the kid right as you pulled yourself from the river. You were ready for him to scold you, grab the kid, and walk off, but he picked up the kid and extended an arm to you.

"You alright?" he questioned. You hesitantly took his hand, and he helped you stand.

"Fine," you said quietly. A small hint of a nod from Mando, and you were both walking through the forest back to the ship.

Mando held out a metal rod laced with blue light. "This the package?"

"Yes," you said as you took it from him. "Thank you."

"We can't get back on the Razor Crest," he informed. "It's too banged up."

"What are we supposed to do then?" you asked.

He turned to you. "We need one of those Imperial Cruisers."

***

It had been a whole month since your run-in with the Empire. You and Mando successfully stole one of the Empires aircraft, and made your way back to your planet without a hitch. It was there that Mando offered for you to work with him for a while. You told him you had to think about it, but your mind was already made up. You loved the thrill of going off planet, and you wanted to go again.

You hadn't looked back until now. You were currently making your way back to that same dwarf planet to retrieve the ship you had left behind so long ago.

"Either the Empire will be completely flushed out--" Mando was saying.

"Or they'll have grown ten times their original size," you finished.

"That about sums it up," he confirmed. Working together felt so natural now. It was a wonder Mandalorians hadn't worked together before. They had similar expertise, making it easy to agree to and execute a plan. At least, that was the case for you and the Mandalorian. You found a way to communicate without fighting, and you only grew closer from there.

You liked being around the Mandalorian. You hadn't expected to become so close to him, but you didn't mind one bit. You were both at ease with one another and didn't need a lot of words to understand each other. You both had learned the micro movements that the other would use. A small shift of the helmet. A clench of the fist. A drop of the shoulders. Small things that meant so much.

"So, you run the kid onto the ship as I cover you," Mando said, going through the plan once more.

"I set off a distraction long enough for you to make it on the ship yourself," you continued.

"And we fly off the planet as quick as we can."

"Assuming it will fly," you quipped.

"All of this is assuming they've grown stronger," he reminded you. "I'm not sure the Empire is capable of that at this point."

"I wouldn't get my hopes up," you cautioned. The intercom rang out with the same warning you had received last time.

Mando kept his eyes forward. "Here we go." He ignored the voice and landed the ship on the pad. You picked up the kid and waited for Mando to leave the ship first. He walked out, guns blazing, and you were quick to slip out behind him. A few troopers saw you, but luckily they were terrible shots. You made quick work of them and moved the kid onto the Razor Crest. So far so good. Now you just had give Mando a distraction.

Before you could even think of anything, three TIE fighters let loose a rain of fire on the pad where the Mandalorian was. In a panic you fired a rocket at one, but it just missed the fast moving ship.

"Mando!" you called. "Get in here! We need to move!" You fired at as many troopers as you could without attracting fire to yourself, but it didn't help much. He was practically by himself.

"Fire up the ship and take off!" You heard Mando's voice over the communicator in your helmet.

"I'm not leaving you," you replied.

"Leave the ramp open! Trust me!" Going against your better judgement, you did as he said. The child was confused as to why you were leaving the Mandalorian on the planet, but he stayed with you. You tried to get the ship off the ground, but it wouldn't budge. You diverted power and fuel until you had enough of a kick to get it moving.

"Now would be a great time to get on board!" you informed.

"I'm on my way! Fly!" he responded. You pushed forward as the ship creaked. Would it be able to make it off the planet?

"Lower!" Mando's voice called out suddenly. You pushed the ship downwards and everything lurched forward. Including the child who was more than happy to be around all the buttons.

"Get back in your seat," you instructed him. His ears drooped, but he obeyed and crawled off the control panel.

"I'm on! Close the ramp," Mando said. You closed the ramp and tried to direct the ship upwards. TIE fighters noticed the attempt to escape and started firing making the ship worse.

"We're taking fire!" you yelled. Mando climbed the ladder into the cockpit, and you were quick to move so he could take the controls. The ship slowly climbed while taking shots from the TIE fighters. You couldn't dodge them without using much needed fuel to get away from the planet. The ship was rocking and squealing as it tried to break through the planets atmosphere. You grabbed the child and rushed him down to his bed. He would be safer there than in the cockpit.

"We broke through!" Mando informed you. You climbed back up to where he was.

"Then why are we still shaking uncontrollably?" you questioned.

"Those TIE fighters will be on us in seconds," he continued. "We need to jump to hyperspace."

"This ship can't do that!"

"It'll have to. Where's the kid?"

"He's safe."

"Then hold on." He prepared everything for the jump, but he looked over at you before he started. "It's our only option."

You strapped in as quickly as you could. "Then do it." Mando engaged the hyperdrive. Immediately you knew you were going to crash. The ship's alarms blared and the engine burst into flames. Pulling out of hyperspace, you saw a planet speeding into view, but you couldn't stop the ship in time. You crashed and slid on the icy planet before everything went black.

***

When you woke up, you could only make out the orange light of fire mixing with the blue light of the planet you were on. You tried to blink to make the world come into focus, but your eyes refused to comply. You took off your helmet for a moment and cold wind whipped at your face. The back of your head throbbed and you gingerly touched it. When you moved your hand you saw that it was coated in blood. You were wounded where no one could see.

You slipped your helmet back on before going to find the Mandalorian. You didn't know what to do except find him, so that's what you would do. You didn't have to walk far before you found the crashed ship. You picked up the pace as you called for the Mandalorian. You entered the burning ship and found Mando unconscious in the cock pit. You shook his shoulder until he finally woke.

"Are you ok?" he asked.

"I'm fine," you lied.

"And the kid?" he pressed.

"I don't know," you answered. You both quickly descended the ladder and opened the door to the sleeping pod. The child sat on the bed completely unharmed. You breathed a sigh of relief. You felt as if the kid was your own. You didn't know what you'd do if something happened to him.

"Any sign of the Empire?" Mando questioned.

"None," you replied. "But there's no sign of getting off this planet either. We really messed up."

"There has to be some kind of lifeform on this planet," he insisted.

"I saw the planet. It's all snow and ice. You'd have to be crazy to live here."

"We have to try anyway." He grabbed a blanket off the bed and wrapped the child in it. You all left the ship and stepped onto the freezing planet. Your hopes of finding a way off were low to non-existent, but you followed Mando. He'd find a way.

The longer you walked, the dizzier you felt. Your head hadn't stopped throbbing and you were finding it hard to focus. Whatever you had done to your head was slowly chipping away at you. Your legs felt weak, and it wasn't long before they gave out on you. You crumpled into the snow.

"Y/N!" Mando called. You couldn't register his voice. Where he was. What was happening. The fact that he had used your name though you never gave it to him. It was all just a fleeting thought that was drowned out in the pain. He held you in his arms as he tried to keep you conscious. You felt his hands at the sides of your helmet and you quickly held them away.

"It's against the code," you groaned.

He looked at his hand which was covered in blood from your helmet. "You're bleeding! I have to take it off to help!"

"No!" you insisted. "You can't see my face. You know that."

"I'd rather you live with the shame then die here in the snow!"

"I can't," you breathed. "I've never taken it off in front of anyone." He stopped and looked at you hopelessly.

"It's ok," you said. "Find a way off the planet and take care of the kid." The Mandalorian carefully propped you up in the snow then slightly stepped back. Before you could say anything, or even think of what was happening. He removed his helmet and dropped it at his feet. His brown hair blew wildly in the wind as he bent down to you.

"You..." you barely whispered.

"I'm helping you even if that means breaking the code, but we'll be breaking it together," he said. You felt him lifting the helmet off your head, but you didn't stop him. He placed your helmet next to his in the snow and gently moved your hair aside. You didn't have the willpower to fight what was happening. You let him work as the world grew fuzzy around you. It all seemed surreal. Especially when the next thing you remembered was the child dropping to the ground in exhaustion.

The world was coming back into focus, and the throbbing pain in your skull subsided. You looked up to see your Mandalorian unmasked and holding his child. Your hand instinctively reached for the wound at the back of your head, but there was none.

"He healed you." It was strange to hear the Mandalorian's voice outside of the helmet. It was softer and more real. "I don't know how he does it, but it drains his energy. It was the only way to save you.

You stood slowly, unable to take your eyes from the Mandalorian's. It was strange to think he was seeing your face just as you were seeing his. You thought you'd be more ashamed. After all you had broken one of the most important rules on Mandalore. You both had. But you didn't feel guilt like you had done something wrong. You felt what you could only identify as relief. Relief that you didn't have to hide behind your metal helmet in front of the one you cared so deeply for.

Mando picked up both the helmets, handing yours to you. "We should get moving." You stared into yours, not wanting to put it back on. You grudgingly did, and Mando followed. You both took moment to stare at each others expressionless helmets, then continued through the ice and snow.

When you finally found people, you recognized them as a rebels. There weren't many that were aware of the Empires presence and even fewer would fight. They wouldn't harm you. They brought you into a cave that was partially lined with metal and cement. They hadn't been there long. They were hesitant to let you in at first, but when they saw the child laying unconscious in Mando's arms, they obliged. They took the kid to care for him, and you could tell Mando was tense. You placed your hand on his shoulder and he turned to you.

"He's going to be fine," you comforted. He remained silent. "You...said my name. Back in the snow. Unless I was hallucinating--"

"You weren't" he confirmed. "I saw it on our first trip to that kriffing dwarf planet. I never meant to get used to saying it in my head. I'm sorry."

You shrugged. "I don't think you knowing it puts me in danger."

He took a deep breath. "My real name is Din Djarin."

"You didn't have to tell me--"

"From now on, we do things together or not at all. Deal?"

You desperately wished he could see you smile. "Deal."

***

A week passed on the planet you came to know as Hoth. You needed time to recover and so did the kid. The rebels were working on a way to get you off the planet, and the Mandalorian spent most of his time working to help them with that. He was getting more frustrated every day. You wanted to help him. Tell him they'd find a way soon, but the only option they had was another week of waiting until a ship flew in for supplies.

It was late at night when he came to you. He was broken down and stressed, but he would never tell you so. He hardly said a word to you during the whole week. But now here he was.

He walked over to you slowly and stopped. "I can't find a faster way off this planet," he said, his voice laced with defeat.

"It's alright," you assured him. "What matters is that we will get off. Eventually."

"Eventually," he repeated. "Eventually isn't good enough."

"We're alright here," you soothed. "Nothing's going to happen to the kid here."

"They have trackers," he pointed out. "They'll find him if we don't move--"

"Din," you said, using his name for the first time since he told it to you. You stepped closer so he was only a few inches apart from you. You removed his helmet without any objections from him and set it aside. You did the same to your helmet. You needed to talk to him face to face.

You pushed the thought aside, just happy to see him soon. You slowed your pace slightly when you got to the landing pad, and watched as the ship pulled in. There was a group of politicians waiting to speak with Chancellor Palpatine who Anakin and Obi-Wan had been sent to rescue. It wouldn't be very polite to charge through them; so you looked around them as the door opened. You could hear your heart pounding in your ears and told yourself to calm down. Your heart hardly listened to you, but it slowed as you waited behind the politicians.

The crowd swarmed Chancellor Palpatine when they saw him, and immediately whisked him away. After they had cleared, you saw Anakin jogging toward you. You wrapped your arms around him as he pulled you into a hug.

"Hello, Y/N," he greeted you. "I'm glad to see you, old friend." You hugged him closer as you realized how much you missed him. You wanted to be with him more often, but he was always off being a hero. Sometimes you wished he would just forget being a Jedi, but you knew it was what he wanted.

"It's been a while," you said more plainly than you had intended. Your mind had been wandering and you weren't thinking about what you were saying. You scolded yourself internally for your cold response. You stood there for a little bit thinking of what to say to make up for your rudeness. After an awkward pause your cheeks started to flush, so you turned and walked back inside. You heard Anakin follow quickly behind you.

"Is everything alright?" he asked. You wanted to tell him what you were thinking, but it wasn't fair to him. He chose to be a Jedi; no one made him. After a deep breath, you decided that you would push the thoughts of you and Anakin together aside so you could talk with him like you used to. You quickly regained your composure and smiled at Anakin.

"Yes, everything's fine," you assured him.

He smiled and walked beside you. "You know, I thought about you when I was saving the chancellor," he said. Great, that wasn't helping anything.

You laughed. "You must have thought about how much I don't like politics," you joked.  Anakin chuckled.

"Not quiet," he responded. "I was thinking that you would make a good Jedi." Your stomach sank. The thought of being a Jedi had never appealed to you. The Council had offered for you to train as one when you were young, but even then you didn't like the idea. You had hoped that you would find someone to love, and, apparently, you didn't care if they loved you back. Anakin saw the look on your face and tried to change your mind.

"Just think about it," he pushed. "You're already force sensitive and we could fight together---"

"It's too late for me to learn that," you pointed out.

He stopped as he considered what you said. "I could teach you," he said. "I'm going to be a Jedi master soon, and, even though you couldn't be my padawan, I could teach you some things."

You shook your head and smiled. "Anakin, I'm happy with my job," you said. You currently worked for Senator Amidala, mostly tidying up. It wasn't as glamorous as being a Jedi Knight and saving the Chancellor, but you appreciated it.

He shrugged. "It was just a thought." He nudged your arm and rolled his eyes. "And don't worry, my master has no problem telling me when a thought is, as he puts it, 'outlandish'." You laughed and kept walking, but when you looked behind you Anakin hadn't moved.

"Are you coming?" you asked. He was looking off at something in the distance, and you could tell he wasn't going to follow you.

"I'll catch up," he announced. Once again, you and Anakin wouldn't have much time to talk. It frustrated you that you couldn't even walk a hallway and have a nice conversation without an interruption.

You frowned. "OK, but I do have work."

"Well, I'll talk to you later," he decided absentmindedly. You wanted to point out that by the time your work would be done, the sun would have set, and you'd have to sleep. But, you knew that that was just how things worked between with him. You never really had time to have a real conversation anymore, it was mostly just pleasantries. Occasionally you might be able to ask for a word of advice, or a particular event that had happened, but that's all it ever was.

Anakin nodded, and you turned around and went to work.

You knocked on the door to Padme's room. You waited for an answer, but didn't get one. She had said she would be there, but when you walked in the room was empty. For a second you weren't sure what to do, but it felt wrong to just stand there. You didn't feel much like working though. You tried to stop thinking of Anakin, but the way he walked off unsettled you. Obviously he was busy, but there was something else. You could feel it.  You started cleaning, but halfway through the chore, the door opened. Padme walked in, but froze when she saw you.

"Y/N," she gasped. "I thought I left you a note saying to take the rest of the day off."

You looked around expecting to see it somewhere. "I'm sorry I haven't seen it," you said. You were distracted by the nervousness you sensed from her. Sensing emotions was one of your better skills and you knew you weren't wrong. Surely she wasn't upset that you had cleaned her room.

"Oh, well, you can go," she said as she made a strange gesture with her hands. You didn't think it was intended for you. She was less offering and more telling you to go home, but you suddenly didn't want to. It wasn't any of your business, but you couldn't help being curious. Nevertheless, you walked out the door and offered your help one more time. She declined, and the next thing you knew, you were out in the hallway with a door in your face. Why were your friends acting so strange? She was a senator, of course she must have secrets, but you couldn't shake the feeling that the secret was specifically against you. Was it possible you were going to be fired? That didn't seem right, but you couldn't be sure.

"Y/N." You jumped when you heard Anakin's voice behind you. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you."

"It's alright," you laughed nervously. "I actually wanted to talk to you."

"What is it?" he questioned. For the first time you felt Anakin being impatient with you. It wasn't in his tone, but it was in the air. Maybe you were wrong with what you felt this time. Maybe you sensed something else.

"Do you think Senator Amidala is alright?" you asked. This wasn't what you wanted to talk about, but you liked talking to Anakin about what was on your mind.

Anakin seemed to look right through you. "She seemed alright to me," he said. "I was actually assigned for her security. I'm on my way to see her now."

It was clear he didn't want to talk. You stood in silence for a while until he excused himself, and you started sulking away from the door. You weren't really thinking, but you were upset. Surely you hadn't done anything to make Anakin mad at you. Maybe he was just on edge about the whole mission, and needed some time alone.

You decided you would sleep on it. But soon you were in your bed tossing and turning all night not sleeping on anything.

It was still dark when you woke, but you found it impossible to fall back asleep. So, you got up. You still felt badly that you had judged him when he had done nothing wrong. An apology was definitely

You got dressed and went to see if Senator Amidala was awake so you could start work early. Before you were about to knock, you froze. Eavesdropping, of course, isn't something you'd ever try to do, but you couldn't help yourself when you heard voices behind the door. The voices were nearly inaudible, and you were practically lying on the door to make out the words. You heard Senator Amidala talking soothingly.

"It was just a dream," she was saying.

"I won't let this one come true." You froze. You knew immediately who was in the room with her though you didn't want to believe it. You knew he said he was protecting Padme, but surely that wouldn't mean staying in the same room?

"Anakin?" you barely whispered his name. After yesterday, you didn't want to jump to conclusions, but your heart was pounding. You knocked at the door more harshly than you intended. "Senator Amidala?" you called. You heard footsteps heading toward you.

The door creaked open a little bit and Padme Amidala's face appeared squinting in the hall light. "Y/N? It's so early, what are you doing here?"

"Couldn't sleep," you responded simply. "May I start my work early?" You bit your tongue as you waited for her response.

"I'm actually still a bit tired, but come back in an hour and you can start, okay?" She started to close the door, but you quickly spoke up.

"Are you okay?" you asked.

The senator opened the door again, and looked at you quizzically. "Yes, I'm fine," she replied hesitantly. You knew she was fine before she had said anything. You expected that answer.

"Then why did you call for Anakin?" It wasn't your place to talk to her like this, and you even considered dropping it and convincing yourself you hadn't heard Anakin. But that would never work because you knew it was him.

Padme stepped outside the door and closed it behind her. You thought you sensed panic coming from her, but your emotions were clouding your senses. "Y/N, I haven't called for Anakin." She put her hand on your shoulder and started guiding you away from the door. "It's early, maybe we should get you back to bed."

You quickly brushed her hand off your shoulder. "I don't need to go to bed!" you snapped. "I need you to stop lying to me!" Padme straightened her posture.

"I told you, I didn't call for Anakin. If you'll excuse me, I'm going back to bed." She turned around and went back into her room.

You felt like you had been punched in the gut and your head was spinning. You knew you were right. You stood there a while, caught up in such a mix of emotions you couldn't move. Jedi weren't supposed to have attachments, but being a Jedi didn't make you inhuman. Your eyes filled with tears and you hurried back to your room.

It hurt more than you thought it would. You would never have thought that Anakin would break the Jedi code. But he had broken it, and not for you. Not for someone he had known since the beginning of his apprenticeship. Not for someone whom he had shared burdens with. Not his closest friend. He chose a senator who happened to be your boss.

You were beyond frustrated. You were furious. You were angry at the Jedi and their codes. You were angry at yourself for not seeing this would happen. And most of all you were angry with Anakin. Maybe you shouldn't have been mad at him, but you didn't care. It was so incredibly stupid for him to be so blind about your feelings for him. No you weren't expecting him to like you just because you liked him, but you thought he would at least have the decency to tell you that he was already breaking the rules for someone else.

Would Padme still be expecting you to see her in an hour? If there was a chance you still had your job, would you even want to go back? Out of the list of people you were angry with, she wasn't one of them. It wasn't her fault; it was Anakin's. And any friendship you and Padme may have had was gone thanks to him.

You curled up in a ball on your bed and cried silently. You had to decide within the hour.

***

You tried for two days, but you couldn't continue working for Senator Amidala. It was only a few months ago you had quit, but, in your opinion, it was for the better. You found yourself a new job caring for younglings, and between the training and the childish mischief you never really had time to think about that morning. It was perfect. You loved your work and you hated looking back.

You were on your way to a group of younglings now. Their teacher had been called to an emergency meeting during his training session, and you were to watch them until he returned. It was a simple enough task in words, but you knew what young children could get up to, and you picked up your pace so they wouldn't be unsupervised for much longer.

When you got there, the younglings were all sitting quietly in their seats. It was strange to see. You were used to seeing younglings chasing each other around and causing a ruckus in the short time their masters were out. It took you a while, but you realized that with the war between the Jedi and the Separatists would be taking a toll on their teacher. Training was most likely not the most fun activity with your teacher so stressed.

You did your best to keep them busy, but something just wasn't right. They were all quiet, and you found even yourself being of low energy. There was something dark and heavy in the air, but you couldn't put your finger on what it was.

An hour passed before you started listening to your gut. The force was disturbed, which made you anxious. You tried to pass it off as paranoia, but you knew that wasn't the case. After making a quick, and admittedly terrible, plan, you jumped into action.

"Everyone listen closely," you addressed the younglings. "I'm going to find Master Jencil. I want you all to get behind the chairs and be as quiet as you can."

You stood at the door waiting until everyone was in their place. Once you were satisfied you left the room and quickly made your way to the council room. Empty. Your nerves were about as close to the edge as they could be. If they weren't in the the council room, they must be in the conference room.

You made your way there as quickly as you could. As you turned the corner to the conference room, you noticed the door was closed. You slowed your pace, scared of what you would find on the other side. You made your way over to the control panel and opened the door.

Nothing would have prepared you for what you saw. The whole conference committee was sprawled across the floor without a single sign of life. You could feel the coldness in the air, and a horrible shiver went down your spine. You closed your eyes as you tried to wipe the image from your mind.

You wanted to rush to them and see if there was any chance they would be alive, but you stood there with only one thought in your mind. The children. You had left the children alone and scared. Your head was spinning at the thought of what could happen to them. As soon as you could walk again, you bolted for the training room your younglings were hiding in.

When the doors slid open, exactly what you had feared was waiting on the other side. All the younglings, every last one, were on the floor unmoving. You froze as the breath escaped your lungs and the room spun. You had let this happen. You left them alone when you were supposed to be watching them. You were supposed to care for them.  Your eyes filled with tears as you fell to the ground, unable to take your eyes away from the still children. You felt this was all your fault. The sense of death was putrid, and you couldn't stand to be there. But you couldn't move. You had no choice but to sit there, terrified of what you were seeing.

It was only when your head had barely cleared when you saw him. A man in dark robes that fell to the floor was walking toward you. You couldn't see who he was at first, but when your eyes focused, your heart sank. Walking toward you, lightsaber in hand, was Anakin Skywalker.

You wanted to scream, but you had lost your voice. You wanted to run, but you were petrified. You wanted above all else for your eyes to be deceiving you, but there was no mistake. Anakin had murdered these children.

"Y/N," he said your name so softly you could scarcely hear him.

"You did this..." You could barely choke out the words. Anakin lowered his head, and you saw his cheeks were stained with tears.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. You didn't even have time to process what was happening before Anakins lightsaber was pierced through your abdomen. With a sharp gasp you crumpled to the floor. Anakin held you in his arms. You heard his sobs, but they were getting quieter as you slowly lost consciousness.

"Forgive me," he choked. "It was the only way to save her. I'm sorry." He held you close to him, and kissed the top of your head. "I'm so sorry."

***

After that night, you had spent years as a ghost dwelling with the Jedi who had died. At first you wished you would have just died and let that be the end. You didn't want to remember what had happened. You felt like one worthless ghost among other ghosts who all seemed to have a purpose. They always had someone to follow and guide, but you had no one. Your family had died when you were young, and everyone you considered a friend was just as dead as you were. The only "friend" you had who was alive was Anakin and he had stabbed you in the back.

Even though that was true you still wanted to see him. You wanted to see what had happened to him, and why he had done those terrible things. You were about to give up hope and wander around the afterlife aimlessly. But then you heard of Anakin's children; a boy and a girl.

Luke and Leia, you decided, were the ones you would help. You would guide them and try to keep them from their father's ways. Losing them to the dark side was not an option. The full twenty-three years you had been with the twins had led to this moment. Against all odds, Luke had brought the good out of Anakin, before he had died. And now Anakin was going to join the ranks of the fallen Jedi. Suddenly you felt the presence of something behind you. You turned around to see Anakin standing there. You stared at him for a while, not sure what to say. What was there to say? Good to see you.  Probably not. You felt your eyes fill with tears, and you looked at the sky to keep the tears back. You should say something before you fall apart. Apparently Anakin had the same idea and you both started talking at once.

"I--"

"Y/N--"

You turned your gaze to the ground and gestured for him to speak. Anakin stepped closer to you, and you impulsively stepped back.

"Y/N, please let me explain." he said. You wanted to hear what he had to say, but you couldn't hold back the scoff that left your lips.

"Explain what, Anakin?" you snapped. "Explain how you killed a room of innocent people? Explain h-how you murdered younglings?" Tears were streaming down your face as you stepped closer to Anakin. "Explain how though all we've been through together: Through wars, through pain, through distance, you could muster up enough strength to kill your friend just because she figured out your secret."

"No, you've got it all wrong---" he said.

"Have I?" you asked, appalled. "Do you mean to tell me that the trail of death leading to you standing over those dead younglings, and then killing me was all a big misunderstanding?" You threw your hands up in frustration. "I was going to keep your secret. Yes, what you did hurt me, Anakin, but I wasn't going to tell anyone because I loved you." You paused for a moment as you listened to the words in the air for the first time. They sounded strange now, like they didn't belong there. And it felt like that because of what he had done. "I would've kept your secret." you repeated. "You didn't have to kill me!"

"I didn't want to!" he choked out. He looked at you, and you could tell his eyes were pleading for you to understand. "He told me it was the only way to save Padme."

You had lost your voice and you could barely get your next question out. "Who told you that?"

Anakin took a deep breath, knowing that no answer would be a good one. "The Chancellor," he said, ashamedly. Before you could say anything he began explaining again. "She was going to die, Y/N. I saw it. Padme wasn't going to make it through childbirth. I had to do something!" he said desperately. "He told me that you and I were meant to be together, and the only way to save Padme was to get rid of you."

"And you listened to him..." you whispered.

"It was the only way." he breathed.

After a long moment of silence, you furrowed your brow and brushed past Anakin.

"Y/N, please. I-I'm sorry I never meant for all this to happen."

You stood up gave the lightsaber a few good swings, and scrunched up your face. "It's ok," you said and handed it back to Obi-Wan.

"Ok?" he asked in mock disbelief.

You nodded. "Yes, only ok. Not as good as mine, but I'm sure you could make it work."

He laughed, and you smiled as you brought out your new weapon. You turned it on, the blue light illuminating your face.

"We could go a few rounds," you offered. "Find out which blade is best."

Obi-Wan unpowered his lightsaber and stood up. "You know Master Qui-gon said we can't fight each other anymore."

"You're no fun," you huffed as you turned off your lightsaber. "Neither of us got hurt last time."

"We almost did," Obi-wan said.

"You mean you almost did," you smirked. "Besides, how else are we supposed to train." Before he could respond with a logical answer, the door slid open and your mentor walked in.

"I hope you two have learned your lesson," Qui-gon said. "A Jedi without his saber is just a wizard, after all, and we don't have need of wizards."

"We apologize, Master," Obi-wan said for both of you.

"I know you do, Obi-wan," Qui-gon stated. "But you, Y/N, have to speak for yourself."

"I'm sorry, Master," you said. You weren't necessarily sorry for what you had done, but you were sorry for the trouble you'd caused. That was what you apologized for, since Qui-gon, could almost always tell when you were lying.

Qui-gon nodded, satisfied with your apology. "Good. So, from now on, we leave the mudhorns to sleep in their caves, and no padawans get flattened." You were struggling to hide the smile on your face as you and Obi-wan nodded. You remembered you and Obi-wan trudging into the Jedi temple dripping with mud and missing your weapons. Qui-gon had led you both into separate rooms and given you both a lecture.

"It's no wonder we can't find a single Jedi willing to take you in, Y/N," he had said. The words rang out in your head. You would never admit it, but they had hurt. Ever since your mentor had died you had acted differently. You became more reckless. If you thought too much about something, your previous master's voice would echo through your thoughts, and it was too much for you to handle. Qui-gon Jin was an excellent teacher, but he already had Obi-wan to train; so the hunt for a Jedi that would train you was still underway.

"You have a meeting with Master Klyn in one hour, Y/N," Qui-gon said. "He has been looking for an apprentice for a while now. If you behave yourself, that could be you." Obi-wan looked over at you almost sympathetically. You lowered your head so you didn't have to look back.

"Yes, Master," you said.

"Until then, why don't you and Obi-wan make yourselves useful and empty the cargo ship that just docked in flight deck 16," Qui-gon continued. You both nodded and the Jedi left the room.

You turned to Obi-wan. "I'm sorry for dragging you down with me," you apologized.

"You didn't drag me into anything," he insisted. "I am perfectly capable of making my own decisions."

When you made it to the flight deck, an officer overseeing the droids greeted you both. "Are you the help they said they'd send?" she asked.

"Yes, we are," Obi-wan answered.

"I hope you can do a better job than these droids!" she complained. "All they seem to do is mix up shipments, empty crates, and get in my way. Come over here, and I'll show you what to do." You both followed her to the cargo ship, and she began teaching all the protocols. The droids gathered around as if she were talking to them, and she had to shoo them away multiple times.

"Sounds simple enough," you commented.

"Apparently not simple enough for a droid," she grumbled. "I'm going to leave it to you before I lose my mind to these tin cans." With that, she left the flight deck, leaving you and Obi-wan outside the ship.

"I hope she's not planning on staying away too long," you said. "We could have this emptied within the hour."

"I wouldn't be so sure," Obi-wan warned.

"We have the force," you mentioned. "Plus it's not as big as some of the other cargo ships I've seen pass through here." Obi-wan shook his head but didn't argue. Together you began emptying the ship.

Almost an hour later, and you felt like you hadn't even put a dent in all the work. You looked at the crates and boxes that were stacked along every wall of the ship and sighed. Using the force to carry multiple boxes at once was almost harder than carrying each box one by one, so you had stopped using it a while ago.

"I hate to say I told you so--" Obi-wan's voice teased from behind you.

"Oh, shut up," you said with a grin. You grabbed another box from one of the stacks and began taking it down the ramp. Half-way down a mouse droid wove into between your legs and you stumbled down the ramp. Despite your best efforts to keep the box in your hands, it fell to the floor with you right alongside it.

"I'm starting to see her dislike in these droids," you grumbled as you stood. Obi-wan appeared next to you holding a box of his own.

"Your package seems to have run off without you," he commented.

You rolled your eyes as you wiped your hands on your robes. "Hilarious," you deadpanned. When you looked down where your package had fallen, it was gone. "Where did you put it?" you questioned Obi-wan.

"I didn't put it anywhere," he defended. He placed the box he was carrying on the transport vehicle and turned back to you. "But I did see it wander into the ship."

You let out a breath of disbelief. "I don't suppose you saw where in the ship my package wandered to," you said.

Obi-wan smiled and started walking up the ramp. "I'll help you look." You followed him onto the ship, but you didn't have to go far to see what he was talking about. The mouse droid that had tripped you was speeding around the ship with the box on top of it.

"Hey!" you yelled at it. The droid let out a mechanical scream and zipped around the corner.

"Well, that's not helping anything," Obi-wan remarked.

"Neither are you if you're just going to stand there!" you called as you took off after the droid. You and Obi-wan chased the droid around the ship for a while before you both stopped. You were positive that the droid was hiding just around the corner. You silently counted to three and jumped forward. Sure enough, the droid was there, and it was cornered. You pounced for it, but it expertly wove around you and out the way you had come.

You huffed and stood. "I have never hated a mouse droid so much in my life."

"I'm going to have to agree with you," Obi-wan said.

You thought about two grown padawans chasing a measly droid throughout a cargo ship and shook your head. "I'll get that box later," you chuckled.

"Good idea," Obi-wan agreed. You both turned to get back to work when the door sealed closing you both in the room. "What's this?" he asked.

"I don't know," you said warily as you walked to the door. You pressed the control panel on the wall, but it beeped and showed only a red screen. "Great," you huffed.

"Let me try," Obi-wan offered as he took your place by the control panel. He got the same result. He turned and began looking around the room in confusion. "I don't understand why it closed and locked so suddenly."

"This is a cheap ship," you mentioned. "Maybe it's a broken door."

"Well, either way, we have to find a way out," he decided. Without a second thought, you pulled out your saber and turned it on. Obi-wan placed his hand on yours to keep you from using it. "We can't damage the ship."

"We can if there's no other way out," you argued.

"We haven't tried any other way." He sat down in the single chair at the back of the room and began working on the control panel. After a while, he came to a conclusion that made your stomach sink.

"Well, that's not good," he mumbled.

You stood beside him and looked down at the work he was doing. "What's not good?"

"I don't believe this is a room at all," he began. "It's an escape pod."

"We're trapped in an escape pod?" you asked worriedly.

"It should all be fine," Obi-wan assured you. "As long as it doesn't--"

"Escape pod jettisoning," the computer announced.

"Care to finish that sentence?" you quipped. He looked at you with wide eyes and jumped back to the door. He pulled out his lightsaber, but before he could use it, the pod launched throwing you both to the floor. You tried to grab onto something, but you were too disoriented.

The pod jerked to a stop. You and Obi-wan both stood shakily and looked out what you now realized was a window. There was nothing but space, and you turned to Obi-wan with a glare.

"What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything," he defended himself. "As you said; it's a cheap ship."

"Can you turn us back around?" you asked. His silence was all the answer you needed. "We're on a pod headed nowhere and I have a meeting in 5 minutes!"

"Believe me, Y/N, I wish I could take us back, but the controls aren't working." He walked toward you and placed a hand on your shoulder. "I'm sure Master Qui-gon will understand. We'll just have to wait for this pod to land before we can contact him."

You placed your head in your hands and sat down against the wall. "I'm going to be in so much trouble," you whispered. Obi-wan tried to comfort you, but you knew how this would end. Master Qui-gon had told you lessons on punctuality many times. It wasn't one of your strong suits, and he was extra strict about you showing up on time. The only thing you could do was wait, as Master Qui-gon became more and more upset when you didn't show up.

***

The pod had landed sideways on a rocky planet, and you and Obi-wan had to climb through a hole you made in the roof. You jumped off the crashed pod and took in your surroundings. Sharp rocks jutted out created a sharp slope, and it seemed to be the same throughout the whole planet. You both exchanged a look of dismay.

"What are the odds that we end up on an uninhabited planet," you sighed.

"Let's get to the top of this mountain," he said. "We'll be able to see more from up there." You started trudging up the plates of stone until you reached your destination. You had crashed near the top, so it didn't take too long.

"It's all rocks," you commented.

"Not all of it," Obi-wan said while directing your gaze to a gorge beneath you. In the gorge was a small village crammed into the open space on the bottom.

"Yay people," you cheered weakly. "How are we going to get down there?"

Obi-wan took a long breath. "The long way, I suppose." He turned back and began making his way down the mountain. You didn't argue and followed him down the rocks.

Obi-wan was right about it begin a long way down. It was sunset by the time you could even make out the village on the horizon. You and Obi-wan had, for the most part, been quiet, and the silence threatened to lull you to sleep.

"I can't help but feel this is my fault," you sighed.

Obi-wan met your gaze in the dimming light. "Of course, it's not your fault," he said. "You had no control over that pod. I told you Master Qui-gon will understand."

"No, he won't!" you cried. Your voice echoed through the walls of the gorge and your cheeks flushed with embarrassment. "Somehow, he'll find a way to make this my fault," you said in a more hushed voice.

"You need to put more faith in your master," he lectured. "Don't you trust Qui-gon?"

"I trust him, but he tries to find fault with me so he won't have to look after me."

Obi-wan stopped walking and looked at you with concern. "You don't actually believe that, do you?" You looked at the ground in silence. "Y/N, I have enjoyed you being his padawan with me more than I enjoyed being his only padawan, and I'm sure he feels the same way. I know that Master Qui-gon can be strict, but he cares for both of us equally."

"Then why does he keep trying to pass me off to his Jedi friends?"

"He only wants what's best for you."

"Maybe what's best for me is for both of us to be his padawans."

Obi-wan continued walking and folded his arms in concentration. "Have you spoken to him about it?"

"No," you admitted. "It wouldn't work, and he wouldn't want me."

"I already told you that's not true," Obi-wan said. "The least you could do is ask him. We just need to reach this village and speak to Master Qui-gon so he can come to get us."

"That simple?"

He smiled. "That simple." You returned the smile, but you couldn't help but feel doubt about the plan. You wanted to be a padawan beside Obi-wan, but Qui-gon was persistent in trying to find you a master of your own. You kept your thoughts to yourself as you and Obi-wan continued for the village.

It was late night when you finally reached the area. There were simple houses, but each one had a reinforced roof giving them all a strange look. Obi-wan walked into the first public building he came across with you following suit. You were both extremely tired, but you wouldn't rest until you had tried to contact Qui-gon.

"Excuse me," Obi-wan called to a man behind the counter. "Do you have any form of communication available?"

The man chuckled and shook his head. "There are no forms of communication anywhere on this planet. Even if we had 'em they wouldn't work with all the rock surrounding us."

Your spirits fell, and you gave Obi-wan a tired look. "There isn't anything we can do. We're stuck here."

"You've got that right," the man behind the counter confirmed.

Obi-wan refused to let that be the end. "Is there an inn we could stay in for the night?"

The man laughed again. "I don't know what planet you came from, but if we can't communicate to the outside worlds, then we sure don't have a place for outsiders to stay."

"Is there anywhere we could stay?" Obi-wan pressed.

The man shook his head doubtfully and leaned against the counter. "You could try the abandoned shack at the edge of town, but it would almost be better for the two of you to brave the outside."

Obi-wan sighed. "Thank you," he said and walked out the door. "I guess we have more walking to do."

"If he's right about that shack being as good as the rocks, I'm not going anywhere," you decided.

"I'm sure he was exaggerating," Obi-wan said.

"Either way, I don't want to walk anymore. I'm exhausted."

"I am too, but we can't sleep outside. We don't know what inhabits this planet, and we could be putting ourselves in danger."

You didn't want to admit it, but he was right. You sighed and continued through the town. You and Obi-wan held onto each other to keep one another standing and shelter each other from the cold. When you reached the shack, you trudged through the door and turned on the lights. They just barely flickered on to reveal a single room with cold stone floors and two small beds sitting against either wall.

"No blankets," you commented.

"They'll still be warmer than rocks," Obi-wan reasoned. You certainly couldn't argue with that. You both made your way over to one of the beds, and as soon as you touched the mattress, you were asleep.

Light shone through the holes in the walls, telling you it was time to get up. You were still incredibly cold and tired so you huddled in your bed instead, but Obi-wan didn't. He was already up and moving around the small shack tidying up what he could.

"There's no need to make this a permanent home," you mumbled.

Obi-wan sighed and sat down on his bed. "Unfortunately, you're wrong."

You sat up and blinked the sleep from your eyes. "What?"

"Earlier, I went out to see if there was any way to leave this planet or make contact with Master Qui-gon and found nothing."

Your shoulders sank. "So, we really are stuck."

"Yes," he admitted grudgingly. You put your head in your hands and tried to keep back a headache. It all seemed like a nightmare. You were stuck without resources, without help, and without hope.

"What are we going to do?" you whispered.

Obi-wan placed his hand gently on your shoulder. "I believe that Master Qui-gon will figure out what happened and find us. We just have to wait until then."

"We could be waiting for the rest of our lives," you pointed out.

"Or it could be a single day," Obi-wan countered. "We'll be able to tolerate it more if we hope for the better."

"I'll hope for the better," you said while standing. "But I'm expecting the worst."

***

Two weeks had passed since your crashlanding on the rock planet. There were still no signs of any Jedi coming to your rescue, and the small hope you had was fading. You and Obi-wan kept busy with repairing the shack, and it was starting to provide decent cover. You asked the people who lived there so many questions in just two weeks that they were already starting to become frustrated whenever you'd ask another. Obi-wan kept telling you that they would come, and you just had to be patient. You didn't know what you would do without him there to keep you moving forward.

You had just finished another round of questions in the trade building, and you trudged home unsatisfied with the answers you received.

"What did you learn?" Obi-wan's voice sounded from above you. You looked up in shock to see him standing on the roof of the shack.

"What are you doing?" you asked forgetting to answer his question first.

He sat on the edge and wiped his brow. "Avalanches," he responded.

"Avalanches?" you repeated.

He laughed. "I'm sorry, I meant Gloh Kon told me to reinforce the roof for avalanches. Evidentially, it's a normal thing around here."

"Our escape pod picked quite the location for us," you grumbled.

Obi-wan smiled sympathetically and extended his hand to you. "You can tell me about your interrogations while you help me with the roof." You accepted his hand, and he pulled you up. The metal felt weak and bendable under your weight.

"Is it safe to be up here?" you asked warily.

"Not yet, but hopefully it will be before dusk." After his answer, you immediately began working. You told him what you learned, but there wasn't much to say. The first week you had learned much, but the second week was slow and was doing a fine job of crushing your hope. The only reason you could continue was because of Obi-wan. You looked over at him as he fixed the metal to the roof. Normally you were the one that had to keep him going. Since when was he an optimistic ray of hope? You felt you should say something to him, but what were the right words? You knew the words you wanted to say, but you couldn't. Instead, you turned back to your work.

When the sun set behind the cavernous walls, Obi-wan sat on the edge of the now-reinforced roof. "Let's hope that will do the trick."

"Since when are you so hopeful?" you joked as you sat beside him.

"Since this," he said. "Since everything that happened. I can't explain it, but there's this feeling that's telling me I need to be here. I can't just ignore it and try to leave without knowing what I'm doing here."

"You think the force brought us here?" you asked. "What purpose could we possibly serve here?"

"As I said, I can't explain it," he said as he stared at the sky slowly changing colors around you.

You placed your hand on his. "If you think we're meant to be here, I trust you," you said. "I just hope you know what you're feeling."

He placed his other hand on top of yours. "I hope I do too."

It had been a month since you and Obi-wan had first crashlanded. You didn't want to admit it, but you were starting to become accustomed to life in a ravine. You still hadn't found a way off the planet, but even if you did, Obi-wan wasn't going to leave without knowing why he felt he should stay. You tried to talk about it with him, but he would go quiet until you could get nothing out of him. You didn't know what he felt or how to comfort him.

The only thing you knew was how you felt for Obi-wan. Your heart would race when he smiled at you, and despite you trying to push the feeling aside, it only grew stronger. It was forbidden for a Jedi to love, but your heart didn't seem to care. As time wore on, you became more at ease being with him, and you weren't so desperate to find a way off the planet. You wouldn't dare say anything about it to Obi-wan. He was so keen on the ways of the Jedi. What would he say?

Obi-wan opened the door to the shack, making you jump. "I don't understand it," he began. "Everything seems to be in order here, and I can't sense anything wrong with the force."

"Only that you should stay?" you asked.

He nodded and sat down on his bed. "It doesn't matter," he sighed as he rubbed his eyes. "Whether I'm supposed to be here or not, I'm stuck here."

"Hey," you said gently. You walked over to him and sat down on the bed. "I'm the one who says we're stuck here, not you."

"It doesn't matter who says it; It's true," he mumbled. You heart ached for him. This feeling that he had was always driving him crazy. The stress of it had quickly dashed his hopes, and he was beginning to turn back into his worrisome self.

"Whether it's true or not," you countered. "You're not stuck here alone. That has to be worth something."

He turned his blue eyes to you and held your hand. "I'm sorry, of course that's worth something. You're worth everything to me, Y/N."

A lump formed in your throat, and you quickly pulled your hand away. "Don't," you whispered.

"Is it something I said?" he asked worriedly.

"Yes," you said. "I mean no, it's not you."

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to--"

"It's not your fault," you interrupted. You could feel your cheeks burning with embarrassment. The feelings you had for Obi-wan were out of control. You used to be able to push them aside, and forget about them until the next day. Now, everything he said made your heart beat faster, and you couldn't calm it.

"I need to walk for a little bit," you said. Before he could respond you quickly stood and left the shack. You hadn't gone far when the door opened behind you and Obi-wan rushed out.

He caught up with you and started apologizing. "Y/N, I'm sorry." You kept walking trying to ignore the urge to talk to him about how you felt.

"Please," he pleaded. "I understand why you're upset with me. Let me explain."

You froze. "You don't know why, Obi-wan, and you didn't do anything wrong--"

"It's what I said," he explained. "And what I did. I am truly sorry. I should never have acted like that."

"It's against the Jedi code," you whispered. You took a breathe and looked up at him. "You don't need to apologize. It wasn't you that was breaking the code; It was me. Ever since I met you, I've had to keep my emotions in check. The longer we stay together the harder it gets, and it's exhausting. You're a good man, Obi-wan. Don't let me ruin your chances of becoming a Jedi master."

"It wouldn't be you ruining my chances," he said. He grabbed your hand, but you didn't pull away. "I'm not a good man, but you are remarkable. I would be a fool for not seeing it. Can you blame me for having feelings for you?"

Your heart pounded, and you couldn't speak. All this time you had loved Obi-wan, but hadn't told him in fear that he would rebuke you. Now you didn't know what to say or feel.

"I love you, Y/N," Obi-wan said. You stared at him in shock. "I don't care if you report me. You have every right, but I do love you."

You felt your lips pulling into a faint smile. Your face was red, and your heart was pounding. You didn't trust your voice to return the words, so you threw your arms around Obi-wan, pulling him into a kiss. He held you close as if you would vanish if he let go.

You pulled away, and looked into his eyes. "I would never report you because I feel the same way. I love you."

He placed his hand gently on your cheek, but his eyes filled with sadness. "What are we going to tell Master Qui-gon?"

You were about to answer, but something caught your eye. Behind Obi-wan, a ship was sailing through the air. Your stomach twisted and you looked worriedly at him.

"We're going to have to find out soon," you stated. Obi-wan turned around to see what you were looking at.

"They found us!" he said excitedly. He turned back to you. "Isn't that a good thing?"

"Normally it would be," you replied. "There's just the small problem of us breaking the Jedi code seconds before they did."

"They won't know that, and that settles what we'll tell Master Qui-gon; nothing," he decided.

"Are you sure that's a good idea? What if they find out?"

"They won't."

"What about the feeling that you should stay?"

Obi-wan smiled. "I was wrong. That wasn't the force at all. I just wanted to stay with you." He turned back to the ship as it landed not far from their shack. "Let's go. I'm sure Master Qui-gon is eager to see us." You both walked to the ship, so you could meet Master Qui-gon half-way.

"One month," he called when you were in hearing distance. "One month I was looking for you both, only to find you on the most deserted planet in this system."

"I'm sorry, Master," Obi-wan said. "There was a malfunction in one of the cargo ship's escape pods. We were stranded here without communication or transportation."

"So, for once this was not your doing, Y/N," Qui-gon concluded. Before you could respond he knit his brow and slightly narrowed his eyes at both of you. "Is something wrong?"

You began to worry, but Obi-wan answered calmy for both of you. "Nothing wrong, Master. We're just relieved to finally see a familiar face."

Qui-gon pursed his lips and nodded. "We can discuss this more on the way back," he said. "Get to the ship." You and Obi-wan promptly obeyed, but Qui-gon held you back.

When Obi-wan was out of earshot he explained why. "Obviously, due to your absence, Master Klyn has found a different apprentice."

You lowered your head. "I actually needed to talk to you about that, Master Qui-gon."

He raised his brow in interest. "Is that so?"

"I was hoping that I could continue to train under you alongside Obi-wan," you said.

Qui-gon folded his arms. "Do you honestly believe that's best?"

"I do."

He nodded. "I can't deny that I've thought about it." You perked up, having more hope that he would say yes. "It wouldn't be easy. Not for you, Obi-wan, or the council." He considered it a bit longer before saying, "I'll have to pull a few strings."

You smiled widely. "Thank you, Master!"

"Before you get too excited, I need to give you your first lesson." You furrowed your brow but nodded showing that you were paying attention. He leaned in slightly and lowered his voice. "You best watch your feelings, Y/N." Your stomach sank. He knew. You didn't know how, but he knew about you and Obi-wan.

You opened you mouth to deny it, but he stopped you. "You never know who might be watching." He looked knowingly at you, but he didn't say anything else. He walked back to the ship with you following silently behind him.

Obi-wan was waiting  on the ship. When he saw you he signalled for you to go over to him. "What was that about?" he asked worriedly.

"I think we'll both be able to train under him," you explained.

Obi-wan sighed in relief. "So, he doesn't know."

"Well," you started unsurely. "I'm not sure. Either way, I think our secret is safe."

Obi-wan smiled and kissed your forehead. "I told you he'd understand."

"You weren't talking about this when you said that," you pointed out.

It was a huge honor to be given the position. You had worked your whole life for a spot on the Starfleet vessel. Only a half hour ago, you had received your orders, but you were already eager to get things moving. You didn't like waiting around when there were things to be done – especially when one of those things was getting you aboard the Enterprise. You made your way toward the loading dock and chatted away with other crew members who would be boarding with you.

"Yeah, I'll be working with Dr. McCoy," you were saying to one of your crewmates and fellow doctors. "Do you know him?"

"Unfortunately," she scoffed as she rolled her eyes. Was he that bad? She must've seen the concern in your eyes because she chuckled and put her hand on your shoulder. "Don't worry about it. He's good with the medical side of things, he just needs to work on his people skills." With that she joined the line that was forming to board the docking ship.

You took a deep breath. Here we go.

When you were finally on the ship, you went straight to your room so you could get changed into the blue dress and black boots you had been given. You sat down on your bed and checked your tablet which, to your relief, was now plugged in. Your instructions were to go to Deck 10 where you would meet your chief medical officer, Doctor Leonard McCoy. The minute you were sure of your instructions, you sprang to your feet and hurried to Deck 10.

***

"Don't touch that, Jim, unless you wanna end up in the ICU for the next few weeks while we treat your collapsed lung and failing liver!" You heard a southern voice yelling not far from your work assignment. You turned the corner to see a dark haired man snatching a tool away from a lighter haired man who was wobbling around the sickbay. As you walked closer they both turned to you.

"And who might you be?" the blond man questioned as he looked you up and down. As he stumbled closer to you, you tried to hold back a laugh.

"Doctor Y/N L/N," you replied. "And you are?"

The shouting, southern man pulled him back. "Delirious," he answered for him. "Go lie down, Jim, you aren't doing well."

"I'm fine, Bones. Just let go of me, and let me stand on my own." Jim slurred. As instructed, Bones let go of him. Jim extended his hand. "Captain James T. Kirk, nice to meet you." Then he immediately dropped to the floor.

"Great," Bones huffed. He bent down and started half carrying, half dragging him across the floor. You wrapped the Captain's arm around your shoulder and helped Bones raise him onto a bed. "At least we might get some peace and quiet around here now." Bones remarked as he injected Jim with a hypo.

"That's Captain Kirk?" you questioned incredulously.

Bones nodded. "Unfortunately, yes, that is the moron that Starfleet chose to control a space-bound, flying vessel with thousands of lives on board. Not to make you nervous or anything."

"Okay..." you replied. "Hey, I'll be out of your way here in a little bit. I'm just looking for Doctor McCoy."

"You're lookin' at him," Bones answered. His brown eyes met yours and you forgot what you wanted Doctor McCoy for at all. He stared at you expectantly, and you tried to remember what you were doing there.

"Listen," he said before you compiled your thoughts. "If you're one of the doctors from Deck 13, asking to change decks because of what happened to Doctor Hiskan-"

"No, I'm actually here as Doctor Puri's replacement," you interrupted as soon as you remembered. Even though you were now a bit curious about what had happened to Doctor Hiskan.

Bones crossed his arms. "I'm Doctor Puri's replacement," he argued.

You shrugged. "Then I guess I'm your replacement," you decided, not wanting to start an argument. You knew you were there to fill in somebody's empty space. Whoever's place it was didn't affect whether you would do your job or not.

"Yeah, well, I'm not gonna need a replacement if we can't get Kirk back on his feet so he can lead the Enterprise." Bones looked over at the unconscious blond laying on the bed you had dragged him onto.

"What's wrong with him?" you questioned McCoy as you got closer to study Kirk's symptoms.

"Don't know yet," he shook his head. "Came stumbling in here 'bout an hour ago too weak to even talk." He stopped and considered what he had said. "I kinda regret fixin' that for him."

"Do you mind if I examine him?" you asked even though you fully intended to do so with or without his permission.

He gestured for you to continue. "Be my guest, but if we can't find out what's wrong with him and cure him in 2 hours, it's gonna be a real hassle explaining to the flight council why the Enterprise is still on the ground." He picked up a PADD and disappeared behind the door to his office.

You kept examining Kirk as you carefully ruled problems out. You tried to work quickly but the more you learned, the more likely it was that there wasn't a quick and easy solution. Your eyes lit up when you decided you had the answer. You went to get Doctor McCoy, but right as you were about to knock on his door, it opened and he stepped out.

"We need a solution now," he said quickly. You flipped the tablet you were using so he could see.

"Kaddu poisoning," you offered simply. He snatched the PADD away from you to study closer.

"Mind telling me what that is exactly?" he questioned.

"The Kaddu are a reptilian race and the females can breathe poison in defense against males who aren't their kin," you answered, remembering what you had read in Starfleet Academy.

Bones rolled his eyes. "Yeah, that's just like him. How do we fix him?" You looked over at Kirk who was still out cold.

"The best we can do is let it wear off, but that could take at least three hours," You didn't want the takeoff to be postponed over something that would heal with time, but if the captain wasn't well, that was that.

"We don't have that kind of time so you need to find a way to get rid of it sooner," Bones replied. You knew he was right, but trying to rush the restoring could give you more problems than what you had to start with. You started thinking of alternate options.

"Wait, couldn't we just get Commander Spock to do the takeoff?" you asked, starting to get hopeful.

"Not unless he has the permission of the current captain who, lucky for us, is out like a light," Bones huffed.

"Couldn't we bend the rules a little?" you asked exasperated.

"Maybe, if Spock wasn't a pointy-eared rule book on legs."

Before you could suggest anything else Hiraku Sulu entered the medbay. "We need Captain Kirk on the bridge," he informed.

"Get Commander Spock down here immediately," you instructed him. Sulu took a curious look at Kirk before rushing back to the bridge.

Bones shook his head. "You're not gonna get him to break the rules," he stated. You walked over to Kirk.

"You're right, so get over here and help me wake him up."

Kirk sat up in the bed mumbling to himself while you and Bones waited for Spock to arrive. His delusions were getting worse, and his slurred speech didn't make it any easier to know what he was saying. You looked over at Doctor McCoy who was slowly pacing the Sickbay. His brow was furrowed in concentration and he had a hand resting at his mouth. He looked over your way and your gaze snapped away. You had only just realized you'd been staring. Before you had the time to be embarrassed, Spock arrived, and you snapped your attention back to the project at hand.

"Took ya' long enough!" Bones greeted him. "Get over here and listen to your captain give you orders to start the flight."

"Doctor, I believe I am owed an explanation." The Vulcan inferred. McCoy explained the situation with no small annoyance and with a few of his own choice words. After Spock was all caught up, Kirk started speaking louder as if he was addressing a crowd. You tried to quiet him down while Bones and Spock argued in the background.

"Medical code states that the treatment and transport of a patient is to be determined by his attending physician!" McCoy declared.

Spock turned to you. "You are his attending physician?"

Were you? You thought Bones was. You glanced behind Spock to see Bones vigorously nodding his head.

"Yes," you said hesitantly.

"And what do you think is best for your captain?" Spock questioned.

"I'm your captain!" Jim interrupted.

"I think he'll be better if we can get this ship moving," you decided.

Spock was quiet for a moment before saying, "Very well. Captain, your permission is required for me to start the launch." Kirk suddenly stopped talking and stared blankly at Spock. "Captain," Spock tried again to get a response. Kirk suddenly reached forward and grabbed either side of Spock's head.

"How do you think with these on your head?" he affronted Spock has he examined his ears. You and Bones rushed to the Vulcan's rescue and held Kirk's hands down.

"It is not my place to question your diagnosis--" Spock began.

"You're right, it's not," Bones interrupted. "Jim, just say 'start the launch'!" he commanded as he struggled to keep the captain's hand away from Spock. Even with Bones's persuasion skills, Kirk didn't give the order.

Can someone just hypo him? you thought as you held Kirk's other hand down.

As if the doctor had read your mind, he grabbed a hypo and pointed it in Kirk's direction. "So help me, I'll hypo you again, Jim!"

That made Kirk hesitate. He stopped struggling and glared at the hypo as if he had a personal vendetta against it.

"Start the launch," he finally grumbled.

Bones rolled his eyes. "Was that so hard?" he queried. Then, without any warning, he injected Kirk with the hypo he held in his hand.

"Hey!" Kirk yelled before collapsing unconscious on the bed. Bones tossed the now empty hypo to you and shooed Spock out of the medbay.

"Just in the nick of time," you remarked as you looked at the time.

"Yeah," Bones snorted. "Good thing you were here. I wouldn't have figured that out in near enough time."

You smiled at the praise. "I'm here to help," you responded.

Bones raised his brow. "You can prove that by taking inventory on the new supplies," he said as he handed you a PADD.

You smirked. "Sure, and while I'm at it, maybe I can find some more lemons for you to bite into," you teased as you took the PADD.

Bones rolled his eyes. "I'll let that slide today because you were quick on your toes. But just today, keep that in mind," he added with a short chuckle before walking back to his office.

You turned around to face the supplies, and without another moment's hesitation you officially started your first day of work on the U.S.S. Enterprise.

***

It had been a month since you joined the crew of the Enterprise. It had proved to be just challenging enough for your liking. You were always doing something, always busy. Every day seemed to bring some new and exciting predicament into your infirmary.

It was a good thing that you and Bones made such good team. To cut the work in half you and Bones had divided the sickbay in two (one side for you, and the other for him). The two of you worked back-to-back in a pleasant rhythm.

You had just finished some last minute tasks on your side and looked over at McCoy. He was frowning at a PADD as he harshly pressed the buttons on it.

"What did that tablet do to you?" you teased as you walked over with a smirk.

Bones tossed the PADD onto a nearby bed. "It just stopped working, cold turkey," he grumbled.

"I guess I'd better get back to work then," you joked as you walked back over to your side. He followed you over and rolled his eyes.

"Not what I meant," he said as he picked another tablet up. "Have these things been workin' for you?"

You furrowed your brow. "Actually I think one quit on me yesterday," you informed. You hadn't thought anything of it at the time, but now it seemed a little strange. You looked around, and some of the nurses seemed frustrated with their PADDs too. "What do you think it could be?"

"I'm a doctor not a mechanic," Bones reminded you. You were about to try a different PADD when Captain Kirk walked into the med bay.

"Jim, our tablets aren't working down here," Bones complained before the captain could get one word out.

Kirk sighed. "They aren't on the bridge either. I was hoping for a different story here," he said. "How's the medical equipment?"

"Working. For now," Bones grunted. Did he really think they would go out too?

"If the medical equipment goes out we'll be in big trouble," you commented.

Jim looked over at you like he just noticed you were there. "Have we met?"

"Hardly," you responded trying to hold back a laugh as you remembered the last time you had seen your captain in person. "I treated you when you were high on Kaddu poisoning."

"Right," he said. "I guess we should pick up where we left off." He extended his hand to you. "Captain James T. Kirk." Bones pushed him back by his shoulder.

"Can you focus on the task at hand instead of flirting with every girl you see?" he growled. Kirk brushed him off.

"Ah, Bones, not every girl I see, just the good looking ones," he said with a quick wink to you. Bones rolled his eyes and grumbled something under his breath.

"Doctor McCoy is right, Captain," you said trying to direct Kirk's attention back to the problem. "Our PADDs are where we keep our medical records and files."

"I'll get Scotty on it." Kirk promised. "Until then, Bones, you'll have to fill out hardcopies of your files." You could almost feel your wrist cramping for the doctor. Even though there were some files you had to have hard copies for anyway, you knew that adding all the files you put on the PADDS to the list would make things much more difficult for him.

You heard Bones swear under his breath. "Listen, Jim, I'm a doctor not a secretary!" Kirk clapped Bones on the shoulder in mock sympathy.

"I'm sure it'll be no problem you being the chief medical officer and all," he taunted. "And if it is I might have to replace you with another more attractive option." He looked over at you and smiled. You would've blushed if you hadn't known his words were empty. With a final pat on the shoulder he added to Bones, "Don't take it personally," and walked out of the med bay.

Bones turned back to his side of the med bay grumbling to himself. You stared after him realizing you probably shouldn't let him sulk off like that, but you sighed and returned to your own work.

Later in the day Scotty and Keenser came to Sickbay and collected all the tablets. You watched as Bones grudgingly gave the tablets to them, and you couldn't help but feel bad for him. You knew that paperwork was no fun, especially when doing it alone. You walked over to Bone's side of the medbay.

"Doctor McCoy," you called to get his attention. He looked up from what he was doing, and walked over to you.

"It's Bones," he commented before letting you continue.

"Bones," you corrected yourself as a couple nurses raised their brows. "If you want, I could stay here and help you with the paperwork," you offered. You noticed by now that some of the nurses had cleared off his side of the room. Had you done something wrong? You started second guessing yourself, but you saw Bone's eyes go soft for just a moment. It didn't last long but you couldn't get the look out of your mind.

"Well it would be nice to actually get some help around here," he commented with a side glare to the nurses who had scurried away.

"See you later then," you said as you hastily turned on your heel and continued to work for the rest of the day.

***

It had been a couple weeks since the all the PADDS had been taken from you and Doctor McCoy. You both stayed late at work to fill out papers, and as a result you and Bones kept losing more and more sleep.

Nobody had expected the PADDS to be gone this long, and people had started noticing other electronic devices giving way. Captain Kirk had reported losing power on the bridge once or twice, which always scared people. But you had to be honest with yourself; you hardly even processed the reports from the bridge anymore. Your lack of sleep just made you more stressed during the day and it took a lot of focus not to turn into a grump like McCoy.

You looked over at him now. His hair was unkempt and his shirt was wrinkled, most-likely from not having enough energy to care about sleeping in it. He seemed to have a permanent scowl on his face even more than before. You used to pass the time with talking, but the only time you talked to each other now, was when you were so bored with paperwork that you finally resorted to social interaction. You felt a buzz on your wrist as your watch told you it was time to clock out. You shut it off and sighed, knowing that the real work had only just begun.

You walked over to McCoys office and opened the door to see him already drowning in papers.

"You should go to bed." Bones grunted without looking up.

"And you shouldn't?" you retorted as you pulled up a chair. "I'm not leaving you to do all this by yourself." You just then realized how much it actually was. It could have just been sleep deprivation talking, but you thought this was the biggest workload yet. Bones glanced over at you but didn't respond and you started filling out the papers.

Two hours of nothing but paper, pen, and ink drove you crazy, and you had to set the pen you were holding down and lean back for a minute. You didn't dare close your eyes for fear of falling asleep and Bones trying to finish this by himself, but you massaged your cramped wrist and stretched your back. You were about to pick up the pen and continue when the speakers in the office suddenly burst out static. You cringed at the sound but it eventually faded away and what came next was even worse. It had to be the corniest southern music you had ever heard blaring through the speakers filling the room. Bones stood up and gave you a questioning look before opening his comlink.

"Jim, what's this?" he yelled over the music. A groggy voice answered.

"What's what, Bones? Is it so important you had to wake me up?" Kirk questioned.

"Sorry to disrupt your beauty sleep, your highness, but could you turn this down or off," Bones scoffed.

"What are you talking about?" Kirk asked exasperated. The music was getting louder at the chorus and you scrambled to find a remote as Bones yelled at Kirk. When you found the remote, the power button didn't work so you had to just turn the music down. Looking up you saw Bones stomping over to you.

"He hung up, that little--"

"The music might actually be nice," you interrupted. "Something to occupy the other half of our minds?"

Bones grunted and trudged back to his desk. You sat down and grabbed the pen, but you couldn't seem to bring your hand to the page. The slow music in the background certainly wasn't helping you stay awake and you were about ready to fall asleep on the desk. You felt your eyes fill with tears and you buried your head in the papers so Bones wouldn't notice. You just wanted to stop doing insane amounts of paperwork every night. Sure you had volunteered in the first place, but you could hardly do it with two people let alone with one. You were about to crash and go to sleep right there when suddenly the music turned up. You looked up to see Bones extending his hand to you.

"You need a break and so do I," he said, prompting you to take his hand. "I actually know this song."

You wanted to just keep working and get the job done, but Bone's soft and caring expression drew you toward him and you took his hand. He pulled you closer to him and rested his hand on your waist. You placed a hand on his shoulder and let him lead you in a slow rocking movement. You held his hand firmly and let him hold you close to him so he could keep you from falling over from exhaustion. You rested your head on his shoulder and even though you felt tired enough to collapse into his arms your heart seemed to be wide awake and very excited to be so close to the doctor. You felt Bones rest his head on yours as he gently lead you to the rhythm.

"I can't let you keep overworking yourself, Y/N," he muttered into your hair. You lightly shook your head.

"Work is much more difficult when you're alone," you commented quietly. He let go of your hand and wrapped both of his arms around you. You hugged his neck and closed your eyes just for a second.

"Well, if anyone is going to help me, I'm glad it's you," he mumbled. You raised your head to look into his eyes. They looked back softly, and he pressed his head against yours.

"Me too," you agreed. He smiled and kissed you gently. You suddenly didn't seem so tired as you smiled into his kiss and hugged him closer to you.

"I love you, Y/N," Bones whispered.

"And I love you, Leonard McCoy," you whispered back. Bones took you by the hand.

"We can finish this tommorow," he decided. "It'll be easier if we're well rested." You nodded in agreement and followed Bones as he lead you to your room.

You stood in the doorway for a moment before saying, "Believe it or not, I may actually be looking foreward to the paperwork tommorow."

Bones chuckled and started walking back to his room. "Goodnight, Y/N."

"Goodnight." You turned around wondering how you would ever get to sleep now, but as soon as you hit the bed you were out cold.

You jumped awake to the sound of Captain James Kirk finishing an announcement over the speakers. Because you were still waking up, you didn't catch all of the annoucement, but you would just ask Bones about it later. You checked the time and saw that you majorly overslept. You quickly got dressed and rushed to Sickbay.

"Sorry I'm late," you said to no one in particular as you jogged through the door. Bones walked over to you immediately.

"Tablets are working again," he said as cheerfully as he seemed capable. "Something about accidentally stumblin' into an electromagnetic field? Fried a couple circuits, including some of the radios, but we should be gettin' out of it now."

You didn't really know how to respond to that. Obviously it was good news, but you wanted to spend more time with Bones.

He must've guessed what you were thinking because he walked closer to you and hugged you. "Hey, this isn't a bad thing. Now we can spend time together under not-so-stressful circumstances."