#rancher!reader

A trail of gray smoke streaked across the sky at a downwards angle, eventually ending in the earth itself. Few noticed the line in the sky- it was early morning after all. There was work to be done.

Cattle rumbled awake as you opened the barn doors, giving them access to the hilly pasture. Today’s heat made the grassland wave and wind was nowhere to be found. The creatures lumbered out slowly, their relaxed pace mirroring your own. Occasionally one brushed its long muzzle against your leg through the fencing, causing you to chuckle and urge the animal on. 

Once you filled all the watering stations in the pasture, you moved to the small garden beside your home. While the cattle’s produce earned you a living, this garden supplied plenty of food. More than enough for one person. This heat, however, would test your green thumb. 

Droplets of sweat rolled down your forehead as you pulled out weeds, pruned overgrown berry bushes, and added damp manure to the garden’s soil. Two full watering cans later, and the ground was finally the right amount of moist. Dirt and grass stained your overall’s knees. By now you had rolled up the sleeves of your long shirt- worn for protection against the sun's harsh rays. But now you wanted anything to cool you down.

So, you dropped your spade and pulled off your thick gardening gloves and stood slowly, feeling the strain of your work on your back. You walked to your tall water spout- it was a simple pipe that brought fresh water from the far edge of your property directly to the farm. Beneath the spouts head you tilted your head back and closed your eyes, then pulled the lever.

Nothing.

“Oh fuck me.”

Pumping the lever delivered the same result. There was a clog, hopefully one near the farm. Today was too hot for the uphill trek required to fix an issue at the source. 

But it was not. Scans showed there was no water in the pipe all the way to the small pool.

Great.

With the trip now necessary, you stepped inside your home and gathered a few things. Because the pipe was clogged all of your water use today had been from the emergency stores. Those stores were now empty. So along with the supplies needed to enjoy a dip in the cool water, you carried a large ceramic jug on your hip.

The terrain was too wild for gravity plates. Bushes hugged the small foot path carved out of the ground from generations of use. You almost tripped on a large root on the way, causing a leap of panic in your heart. Eventually a sigh of relief escaped your lips as the familiar lake came into view. Thunderous water greeted you as you trudged up the steep hill the shallow pool rested on. This water came from a spring much further up the mountain side. The unique shape of this area kept the pool moving into another waterfall down the mountain side. Occasionally that current swept debris into the pipe system, until it was fully plugged. 

As you reached the crest of the hilltop a shift in the waterfall caught your eye. It was like the water was moving around-

You gasped, forgetting the fragile vase in your arms, and held your mouth to cut the sound from leaving your lips. 

But the sound of breaking ceramic defeated that point.

A man you had never seen before stood waist deep in the water beneath the falls, apparently washing his long hair. He turned at your noise, a reaction that seemed less like surprise from the expression on his face. But those dark furrowed brows relaxed upon meeting your eyes. He noticed the shattered jug all around you.

“Ah, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you.” Tawny skin shined as he stepped out from the shade into sunlight.

You relaxed as he approached. He genuinely seemed upset at frightening you.

Then he reached the part of the pool that sloped up. 

Blush burned your cheeks worse than the sun ever could, and you threw your hands over your eyes. More for your own embarrassment than his. “Uh, that’s okay but you-”

Water splashed and rapid apologies followed. 

“I’m sorry I didn’t even-”

“No no, uh, I’ll give you privacy.”

Despite covering your eyes all you could see was him. His blunt face, muscular body, that soft tummy, and- No. He was a stranger that’s way too intimate to think about. Even if he’s a very hot stranger.  

“You can look now, it’s safe. I promise.” An awkward chuckle followed his words. 

Slowly, you pulled away your hands and met the gaze of a tall man, now dressed in black pants and a red bandana tied around his head. Embarrassment darkened his face with a tint slightly warmer than the rest of his skin. A skull tattoo covered one half of that face. Damp curls fell forward past his shoulder as he walked towards you. Too much willpower went towards keeping your eyes up.

“I didn’t think anyone was around here.” He stopped at the cluster of broken ceramic between you. “Was this for water?” The man knelt down quickly and studied the pieces.

“Oh, yeah.” You squatted down beside him and began picking up the pieces, putting them into your bag carefully. The chunks were mostly large, you might be able to repair this. Then a sigh escaped your lips. “Looks like I’m in for another trek.” Your back ached as you stood again.

“My ship is half a kilometer away- is that closer? We probably have something that can carry water.” The man noticed your attempt to relieve pain by stretching out your back.

“Yes, actually.” The prospect of danger crossed your mind, but something about this man felt familiar. In fact, the more you watched his movements and listened to his voice the more familiar he felt. That was enough to convince you there was no danger.

Together you walked to his ship. Fallen trees forced you to climb over them, occasionally taking a hand from the stranger for help. Burn marks scarred the earth. The streak from this morning, it was his crashed ship.

“Hunter, good you are back. I have fixed the- who is that?” A man with goggles and black smudges all over his face and hands poked his head out from the ripped side of the ship. He wore the same black pants and was also shirtless. His words summoned two more shirtless men in matching pants to appear. As if it wasn’t hot enough.

The man beside you- Hunter apparently- gestured to introduce you but then froze when he realized he’d never asked your name. So you spoke up.

“The owner of the land you’re currently standing on.” You nodded your head to the ground beneath the group’s feet with a grin.

“Gonna kick us out?” The one with white hair and a reticle tattoo over one eye spoke next.

“No,” Maybe you’d seen them in the village before? “And all it’ll cost y’all is a water jug and some manual labor from this one.” You threw your thumb 

towards Hunter. He prompted the big one to grab a jug from the wreckage.

Entertained suspicion narrowed that reticle.

“These are my brothers. That’s Tech, Crosshair, Wrecker and..” Hunter walked into their little camp looking around. “Where’s Echo and Omega?”

“Out gathering firewood.” Wrecker answered as he dropped a large jug- larger than your previous one- in front of you. “Will that work?” 

You blinked at it. “Uh, yeah. Thanks.” You awkwardly grinned at the large man, who gave you a full smile.

“We’ll be back in a bit.” Hunter grabbed the jug and then turned towards you, waiting. 

As you walked away from the crash site that sense of familiarity kept nagging at you. Hunter carried the jug just a little ahead of you. You grew up on this land, yet he seemed right at home. 

Critters darted through the brush hidden from view. A few bird calls echoed over the mountainside. The forest was a lot more lively in the afternoon. All the sound grabbed Hunter’s attention. He stopped and listened, turning his head so his ears were towards the noise. 

“Nothing in these woods that’ll hurt y’a.” You confidently reassured him. He said nothing, instead only walking again once a fairly large gap had grown between the two of you. 

Hunter rejoined your side quickly with a light jog and silence fell between you. Sweat rolled down your temples and you groaned at how sticky you felt. Usually by now you’d have taken a break inside or dunked yourself under some water so the heat didn’t feel as intense. But with this side adventure you hadn’t had that break. You felt horrible. 

“Sorry for using your pool, by the way.” Hunter glanced your way. 

A dry laugh escaped your lips. “Just did what I was gonna do.” You huffed as the incline grew steeper. The sounds of a waterfall became louder. 

He rubbed the back of his head and laughed more like a long exhale, then shot you a shy smirk. “Nothing’s stopping you, you know if you wanted.” That last bit felt charmingly awkward and earned a real laugh from you.

You shook your head and gave Hunter’s shoulder a soft punch, saying “There’s a few things stopping me, you know.” You give the man a wink before continuing. “Besides, I’ve been away too long. There’s too much work left and not enough sunlight.” As you reached the crest of the hill you sighed at the shimmering water, imagining how wonderful a cool dip would feel. A cold shower after working would have to do suffice.

“We could help, you know. I mean, we did damage your land.” Hunter rubbed under his long mane. 

“Ain’t that funny.” You chuckled to yourself while holding the water jug so it’d fill, the filter keeping out large debris. “I was gonna say the same thing about your ship situation.” Another groan escaped you as you lifted the full jug and set it down on the shore. Then you walked to your pipes and started cleaning out leaves and branches from the opening. “If y’all need a place to stay I’ve got a few extra rooms.”

“Yeehaw!” Wrecker cackled as he ran through your pasture among your cattle, carrying the little one on his shoulders. He was nearly as effective a recall as the dinner bell, but you didn’t have the heart to tell the kid her job was useless. She was cute, but much younger than you expected when Hunter had mentioned a little sister.

“Right this way pretty girls,” You cooed to your approaching cattle, who slowed their light trot upon seeing you at the barn doors and, more importantly, the fresh feed inside. 

“We really appreciate this.” Hunter walked up to the fence beside me and leaned against it. “Tech, Echo, and Crosshair will be back with our things in a minute, is there anything else you need done around the farm?” 

You glanced up, seeing the evening sky turning purple as the sun grew nearer to the horizon. “Aside from getting dinner cooked and your rooms made up? That’s it.” You answered as the last cattle stepped inside the 

With the strangers’ help around the farm, all that missed time was more than made up. You closed the barn doors and watched as Wrecker helped Omega off his shoulders. His strength rivaled a wookiee’s and gave your back a break for the day. At the edge of the tamed nature of your property you saw Tech returning from his trip to the spring. You knew your systems could be upgraded, but Tech went and showed you systems that you had no idea even existed. He volunteered to fix up some fancy system that would not only prevent your pipes from clogging again, but also filter the water as it ran through the piping. Around the barn you passed Hunter, who was plucking extra vegetables for the extra bodies that would join you for dinner. Crosshair stood nearby, watching you with light curiosity as you gave him a nod on your way to the homestead. Inside you found Echo, looking perfectly at home while he fried some garden vegetables and boiled grains into a fluffy side dish.

“Smells amazing.” You grinned, watching the green vegetables turn brown as they cooked. “What is it?”

“A dish from Tatooine. Don’t remember the name. It’s nothing fancy; the secret is in the spices.” Echo answered

The building was nothing grand, but it was enough for you. Three bedrooms, one turned into an office, a single refresher, and a cozy living room that opened up into a kitchen. Technically, this was the guest property. Further back, closer to the forest, there sat a large house that you, and your parents, and your grandparents, had all used for storage. Somewhere down the line, someone in the family moved into this small building right next to the pasture and that left the true homestead empty for years. Now, all that extra space would finally see some use.