Chapter 3: It is not my place to judge.

After getting dressed, I slowly head to the galley; hoping to find it empty. Luckily, it was. I start searching for something to eat, finding the cabinets filled with a variety of food. I’m unsure of what I can take so I just grab a ration bar and sit down at the table, starting to eat it. I feel... unsettled. I’ve never had a vision turn into a dream, or make me fall asleep during meditation for that matter. I let my head hang, a little in embarrassed. Darryl must have come to see if I was alright and found me asleep on the ground, unless I slept walk to the bed. I bring my head up and rest it against my hand, staring at the ration bar. Which, I kind of doubt since I was in the middle of a vision/dream thing. A smile comes to my lips. How thoughtful of him.

“ Whatchya smiling for?” I hear Darryl’s voice come through my train of thought. I turn my head to see him walking in. His face is covered in grease, kind of defining his very sharp, square jawline and I also notice his chin has a small dimple in it. He isn’t wearing his jacket so his tunic is also covered in grease, and revealing some of his bare chest. He wipes his hands with a rag.

“Oh, um nothing. Just thinking of some good memories from my time at the temple.” I hastily lie. Ugh. He gives me a disbelieving look but doesn’t pursue to question it.

“Hmm. Alright. Well, I’m working on your ship to pass the time till we get to Lothal. I could use a pair of hands?” He goes to the big chill box and pulls out some sort of drink, coming back over to the table to sit down. I watch him as he does that and contemplate whether I should ask him if he did in fact put me in my bed or should just leave it alone.

“Um... So... Uh did you put me to bed last night?” the words slip out before I even finished contemplating. Well, dammit. “ I uh only ask because I woke up in the bed instead of being on the floor where I was meditating.” He looks at me and takes a sip of his drink.

“Yeah, I did. I heard some noise from your room. I forgot to have you lock it so it opened up for me when I got to it and there you were, collapsed on the ground. I tried to wake you but you were dead asleep so I thought it would be best if I just put you in the bed.” He says nonchalantly. I nod.

“Ah. Okay, well thank you. That was... very kind of you.” I smile. “What else needs to be fixed on my ship anyways?” He scoffs.

“Plenty. The nebula really did live up to its name. I don’t even have life support back up yet because the engine keeps breaking somewhere else.” He narrows his eyes at me. “Do you know how to fix ships?”

“Kind of? I know enough to get systems up and running, but repairing engines and such... not so much.” He nods, taking another sip from the drink.

“Good. You can start on the systems for your ship then. I’ll keep working on the engines and hyperdrive.” He finishes his drink quickly and gets up. “And then maybe after this, we can start working on my ship.” He teases at me, smiling. He starts walking towards where my ship is and I get up to follow. We pass by a locker and he stops at, opening it up and pulling out some rebreather masks. He hands me one and I take it, putting it on. He puts on one himself and opens the hatch to where my ship is at, stepping inside. I follow after him, it’s a tight fit. I take a look around and the lights seem to be on but it feels...hollow in here.

“At least the lights work?” I say jokingly, the mask muffling my voice and Darryl doesn’t respond. He is ducking under a bulkhead and going to the back of the ship. I follow him, not really having to duck as much as him. The lights seem to get darker and go to a red color and we finally get to the engine pod area. The engines look like they took a lot more damage than the outer hull took.

“I can’t actually fit through the duct that leads to the cockpit because the other way is blocked.” He then turns around and looks at me sheepishly.

“Why do I get the feeling that I was gonna help no matter if I knew how to fix ships or not?” I fold my arms across my chest and lean to the side a little.

“Ha, you got me.” He rubs the back of his head. “What can I say? Can’t really change my height now.” I only give a grunt in response and crawl up towards the duct. I cast out my sight to see what duct I need to get too. I feel like a k owakian monkey-lizard swinging around to get to the correct duct. I pull myself up into the duct and crawl through it. He’s lucky that he is charming. I hate crawling through tight spaces. I let out an annoyed huff and continue to crawl till I finally reach the cockpit and slide out of the duct, landing on the ground behind the chair. I get up, dusting myself off and turn around to face the panels. They blink at random intervals and I go to the computer near the pilot chair, pulling up a systems report.

It reads ‘Engine pod 1 and 2 offline. Navicomputer offline. Life-support and environmental controls offline. Shields offline. Comm system offline’ The list continues on and I groan.

“Why don’t I just sell you then? Be someone else’s problem.” I ridicule the ship. Then sigh and start pulling up the systems I can fix.

After working for a while, my back starts to ache and I stretch, hearing my spine make some very satisfying pops. I shake my hands to regain some feeling in them and stand up from the kneeling position I got myself into. Tapping on the screen and pulling up the systems report, I read over what is still offline.

‘Engine pod 2 offline. Navicomputer offline. Shields offline.’ The list goes on for a bit. Ugh, I have only managed to fix life-support, environmental and maybe a few other things but there still a lot more to do. It does look like Darryl was able to get at least one engine pod fixed and I think maybe the hyperdrive. I should go take a break. I pull myself up into the duct and start to crawl back towards the engine pods. Popping my head through I only see Darryl’s legs poking from underneath one of the engine pods, bent at an awkward angle. I smile mischievously. I should scare him. I grab the bar ahead of me and pull out of the duct slowly, landing silently on the ground. Prowling towards him, I lean close to the opening where he is poking from.

“Hey whatchya doin !?” I hear him thwack his head against the engine, swearing something in Huttese and I hold back a chuckle. I move aside as he starts to move out from underneath the engine and he is glaring at me with strong intensity. His face is covered in grease, so I can’t tell if he injured but I can tell he wasn’t too pleased with being startled. I give him a flat smile. He shakes his head and stands up.

“What was that for?” Darryl rubs his face, making the grease smudge around. I snort a little and then clear my throat. “What?”

“Oh, nothing. You just got a little something,” I point to a part of my face to indicate where a smudge mark is at and he tries to wipe at the spot but it just makes a bigger mess. I smile again. “Yeah, okay. You got it.” He gives me a dubious look. “Sorry, I got a little bored. I wanted to see if I could sneak up on you,”

“Hmm. Well, that won’t happen again.” He gives me a studied look. “Oh, and you’ve got something here.” He points to my face, near my cheek and I touch there, trying to rub at it then looking at my hand. Nothing has rubbed off onto my hand and he just smiles. “Here, let me get it for you.” He tries to rub my face with his hand and I just jump back, yelping a little. He laughs at me and I sigh annoyed. Damn, he almost got me. How dare he try to turn around use my trick on me. I look away and feel something fall off my head. His laughter stops and there is just silence between us. “Whoa.” He finally speaks up.

“What?” I say, slightly startled by the break in silence .

“Your hair...” I blush now, realizing that my cloth hood fell off. I reach up to touch my hair, making sure it wasn’t wild or something but it only felt coarse and slightly greasy. I cringe. Ugh, I need to use the refresher.

“ I’m sorry, I probably smell huh?” I kneel down, grabbing my hood and standing back up.

“No, it’s just that... It’s nice.” He smiles softly. “Is that natural or dyed orange? And is the violet also dyed?” I feel a bit self-conscious.

“Oh, uh no. All of it is natural. It’s a rare trait among my people.... My parents told me I got it from my great-great grandpa. He, too, was a... Strong force user. It’s why I was sent to the Jedi temple actually.” He nods and reaches over hesitantly, undoing the tie that holds my hair back into a braid and my hair slowly twirls’ out and he tilts his head to the side. I try to read his emotions but they feel blocked or maybe I’m too nervous to sense them.

“You should keep it down. It really compliments your face.” he says in a low, alluring voice. I feel heat rising up to my cheeks and a ping go through my heart. I am at a loss for words when normally in this situation I am the one who acts like this. Well, maybe not so... direct. I smile finally and put the hood back on. My nervousness still there in my stomach.

“Maybe I will keep it down. I’ll... think about it.” I hold out my hand, waiting for the hair tie. Darryl hands it back and looks away, his cheeks look a deeper color.

“Let’s go take a break.” He starts to head out back towards where my ship is attached to his and I follow behind.

That’s when I get struck with a feeling of wholeness. An odd feeling, one that I haven’t felt since I left to become a Jedi. It felt... strange but nice. That’s when I realize, the heat in my cheeks hasn’t faded and I shake my head. No passion, no attachments. Remember? I sigh, tilting my head down. Plus, I just met him. Darryl probably doesn’t even think of me like that. I’m a Jedi and he is womanizing, lying, laser brain scoundrel. I grit my teeth together and trudge to my quarters. Before I reach my door though, Darryl grabs my shoulder gently and I look at him; he then lets’ go and smiles at me.

“Just so you know, the refresher is just down there.” He points to a door that is a few feet from the galley and I nod my head.

“Thanks...” He starts to walk towards there. “Wait.” He stops and turns around. “Do you have... an area where I can... possibly train?” He raises an eye brow.

“Why, planning on staying for a while ?”

“Yeah, probably. I mean, it’s going to take a while for us to finish my ship, right?” He nods. “Okay well, I haven’t trained for some time and I could really use the practice.” He smirks, and tilts his head to the side.

“Well I do have an area where I like to exercise. It should be big enough for you to practice in.” He starts walking towards the cockpit and I follow behind him. He takes a sharp turn before going into the cockpit and walks towards what looks like it was previously a storage room. It is filled with shut down practice drones, different weights scattered on the ground, a mirror covering one side of the room and some practice swords. The room even has a large mat in the middle to practice on. I nod my head slowly.

“This should do. May I use it?”

“Sure. Go ahead.” He smiles and heads back to where the refresher is at.

I walk into the room more and take off my hood, placing it near the rack of practice swords. I look at the mirror and stand up straight, looking myself over. My normal blue Jedi robes are charred mostly on the left side, the sleeve almost gone. I frown. I didn’t realize they were this bad. Good thing Darryl gave me that poncho before I went out looking like this... I look at my reflected face and see part of my cloth visor is burnt and pain aches through my chest.

A memory flashes by, Ly’lis coming up to me after we just finished our Jedi Knight trials and she seems excited. She hugs me and after pulling back from the hug, is holding out a box. I take the box and open it, revealing a red cloth with intricate gold patterns. I smile big at her and hug her again.

I touch where the cloth is brunt and a sad smile comes to my lips. I’m sorry Ly’lis . I bet if you saw this, you would just get me another... but I would just feel so awful if you had to go and spend more credits on me. I take in a breath and let it out slowly, grabbing a practice sword. I turn around and start to practice my forms.

About an hour later, I'm in the middle of practicing my second form when I sense Darryl coming to the doorway. I continue and he leans against the frame, watching me. I sense from him a feeling of wonderment. I finish the form and he comes over to me, clapping softly.

“Very nice. Do you wanna spar with me?” He smirks, smugness overcoming his wonderment from earlier. I look at him and notice he is in different clothes. The clothes seem to be a snug fit on him, the tunic being mid-sleeve and the pants coming up to about mid-calf. The outfit is all black.

“Can I change first?” I put the practice sword down.

“Oh, I only let that happen on the second date.” He waggles his eyebrows. I get a feeling of lust now and I seductively smile at him.

“You wish this was a date.” Slight shock comes from him but his face doesn’t show. I don’t blame him; shock is an understatement to how I feel. Whelp, that was kind of stupid but it looks like he didn’t mind too much. I start to take off my outfit, wearing similar clothing to Darryl, only the tunic is sleeveless and my pants come up to mid-thigh.

“Do you always come prepared to train if your clothes are too much?” He asks, tilting his head to the side.

“All Jedi do . ‘Be prepared for anything.’ First rule that was taught to me by my master.” I put the clothes next to my hood and come back to the mat, getting into a fighting stance. “Ready?” He gets into a fighting stance as well; one I slightly recognize. Huh, Reneji use to fight like that... “ Do all Chiss use that fighting stance?”

“No. Only special Chiss use this stance.” He says, starting to circle me. I circle with him.

“What does that mean? ‘Special’ Chiss ? Were you part of a cult or something?” He chuckles at my question.

“No.” He throws a punch at me and I dodge, countering with a leg sweep but he jumps over it, bringing his foot down to my head. I roll backwards and jump up. He looks back at me, smirking. “Hmm, very nice counter and dodge.” I smirk.

“Thanks. Now, what does it mean?” He comes at me, throwing punches again and I block them.

“If I tell you, will you judge me?” He hastily says. I block the last of his flurry of punches and round house kick toward him. He blocks, grabbing my leg, staring at me intensely.

“No. It is not my place to judge, especially since it seems like you haven’t judged me yet.” He twitches his lips to almost form a smile and flips me. I land on my butt, he’s about to get on top of me but I roll away just in time. Standing back up, I get into a fighting stance, he follows suit.

“I use to be a royal guardsman for the Queen of Csilla.” I look at him dumbfounded and he uses that moment to kick me in the stomach. I cover the area, letting out a cough and land on my butt again. “Don’t lose focus,” He holds out a hand to me, “Or your opponent will over-take you.” His smugness is washing over me like a tropical storm. I take his hand and pull him down using the momentum to pull me up. While still holding his hand, I put a foot on his chest to show defeat. I look down at him, smirking.

“I know.” He then smirks at me. I take my foot off him and back up a little.

“Huh, was not expecting that. I’ll remember that for next time. That is, if there is one.” He bows slightly. “Thanks for the sparring match. It’s nice to fight with an equal opponent.” I bow back to him.

“You’re welcome.” I straighten and look at him. “Is there any reason why you left? Isn’t being the Queens guardsman the best career you can get as a Chiss ?” I walk over to my clothes and pick them up. He hasn’t really moved, just staring at the ground. He lets out a steady breath and straightens up.

“There is but I don’t really want to talk about it at the moment.” He looks at me, and I see something haunting flash across his eyes and I just nod. “Thanks. I’m going to the galley to make some food; would you like me to prepare you anything?” He heads for the door, stopping at the doorway.

“Oh, sure. Just whatever it is you are having.” I say, walking towards him. We walk together into the galley and I break off, heading towards the refresher.

“Have a good shower.” He winks at me. I purse my lips together and head inside. I can’t tell if he likes me or is just giving me a false sense in order to get into bed with me. I shake my head at that thought and start taking my shower. I let the water just wash over me, I tilt my head down and look at my hands. My left hands looks’ scarred and slightly red. I close it into a fist and a dull pain comes through but I don’t feel anything else. That’s when it hits me. I haven’t had a headache today... I turn my head up and look around. I put my hand out, feeling the flow of the force go through my body and the water starts to slow down. I pull my hand back and smile, the water returning to normal. It felt nice to have the force flow through me again.

I hadn’t felt it this strong since I first landed on the moon of Yavin 4. It was where I had that dark vision for the first time and I pulled away from it. That gets me thinking... I hadn’t really had a full vision since then either. It was only that one I was having, and I kept running away from it. I bite my lip and realize that... I was rejecting the vision, rejecting the force. No wonder I couldn’t deflect that blaster bolt... I inadvertently cut myself from the force. I shake my head and smack my forehead. Idiot. I grit my teeth, and finish up with my shower.

I step out and realize I have to put back on my dirty clothes and I cringe. I grab a towel, wrapping myself up and then cast my sight to see outside of the door. I see Darryl still working on the food, seeming focused. I chew on my lips. My bag is in my ship... what is wrong with me? Why didn’t I grab the stupid thing while I was on there? I huff and open the door, quickly walking to the hatch that leads to my ship.

“Oh good, you’re done. I’m almost done with the food.” Darryl says, I turn around to see if he is facing me but he hasn’t turn around yet.

“Okay, good. I’ll be right back. I just gotta get something from my ship.” I say quickly.

“To get some clothes, I’m assuming?” heat raises to my cheeks again. Kriff , did he see me? I turn around but he hasn’t moved. “I’m just guessing since your other clothes are, you know, ruined?” I can sense sarcasm implicated in his tone and I let out a sigh.

“Uh, yeah. I’ll be quick.” I turn around and continue to the ship. Holding the towel close to me, I walk back towards the small cabin near the engines and look inside. My bag sits on the bed where I last left it. I open it up and pull out some clothes; a tunic that is teal, a grey vest to cover, a long black jacket, and a pair of pants that are a stiff light fabric beige colored, that are long. I pull out the boots that are black and very long and groan a little. That little womp rat. Ly’lis ... She must’ve switched out my shoes when she was saying goodbye to me. I huff and start to dig through my bag, not finding any other shoes. I let my head drop, accepting defeat and starting to put my clothes on, leaving the hood down from the jacket. It all fits snuggly and I stare at the boots for a bit. I could just go bare foot... Why does she do this to me? Maybe next time I should just double check my bag. I’ve kept my clothes so well clean but no I had to get them all messed up and everything. Wait... there isn’t going to be a next time... It’s fine... Just clothing I'm not use to... I remember when she used to go off planet, she would dress up in fancy or suggestive clothing. Ly’lis never actually did anything with other beings, that was just what she was used to, how she grew up. I smile sadly to myself a little and finally just put the boots on. Then I remember that I never packed an extra pair of cloth visors. I’ll have to see if a shop on Lothal has any.

I walk back to the galley and see Darryl already eating at the table, the food looking like some master chef made it. I reach the table and sit where a plate is already made up for me.

“Did you really make this?” I ask, picking up the three-pronged fork and poking at the food. Darryl looks at me, raising an eye brow.

“I’m not that posh. I know how to cook, and very well thank you.” He says miffed. I turn my head to face him.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it like that. I meant... well, you just seem so well off, why make the food when you can just have it already made and just have it rehydrated?” I say. He nods his head.

“Ah, well I hate that stuff. It tastes... bland. So, I try to keep more... fresher items on board.” He goes back to eating his food. I look back at the food and start to eat it. It tastes... rather good.

“Wow, this is... good.” I smile, taking another bite.

“Eh, you’ve been eating ration bars. I’m sure anything would taste good to you.” he flatly says.

“I’m offended that you would think I wouldn’t land on a planet to eat actual food every once in a while.” I teasingly say. He finishes his food and folds his hands underneath his chin.

“Oh really? Huh, thought you would’ve stayed away from market places and vendor shops in order to ‘stay on your path’?” He smiles teasingly at me. I purse my lips together.

“Well, maybe sometimes...” He chuckles at me.

“I’m going to ask you something, and please tell me if I am being too personal.” He looks at me with a gentle look. “How long have you been on this... quest?” I look at him, and then down at my food.

“You said when you found me it had been about two weeks, right? Well, before that I had been out for about... two months I believe.” I poke at my food now.

“All alone?”

“Yeah...” I rub my forehead a little. “When I left the temple... Not everyone agreed with how I treated the situation. They all thought of me as a...” I bite my lip, remembering the feelings I felt before I left the temple. Thoughts of being a traitor, and a coward came rampaging to me when the others found out that I was leaving the temple instead of choosing a side. I sigh shakily, running my hand through my slightly wet hair. Darryl touches my arm gently and I turn to look at his hand then at him.

“It’s okay. You don’t have to tell me all of it.” I smile a little and then look past him, the memory of seeing Ly’lis , Reneji and Aydgage coming to see me off plays in my mind again. The look that Aydgage gives me at the hanger bay just before I leave also plays in my mind, sensing his longing. My stomach twists in knots and I suddenly don’t feel good anymore. I pull my arm away from Darryl's hand and I put both of my hands into my lap. This is ridiculous. Why am I feeling like this? This isn’t like me... “ Hey, are you okay?” Darryl asks, breaking my spiraling pit of darkening thoughts. I shake my head.

“Yeah, I’m okay. Sorry.” I start to get up, grabbing the plate. “Just not feeling good. Thanks for the food.” I go over to the cleaner and put my dish inside.

“Well I mean that is one way to put that you don’t like the food.” Darryl teases, but I sense he is kind of hurt by it.

“No, no . I loved the food but... just remembering what happened at the temple before I left...” I look over at him. “Brought up... unsettling feelings.” I take a shaky breath in. “I’m gonna go... meditate for a bit.” I walk to my quarters and this time, lock the door.

I kneel down and sit on my legs and bow head down. My feelings are in a state of chaotic disaster and I am trying to calm them down. Maybe if I had followed Revan, my feelings would be less out of control. I’d be able to let them be free and express them without feeling like I am not at peace with myself. That I am burdening others and making them feel concern about how I feel. But... at the same time... letting my feelings just go rampant and unchecked could lead to bad decision-making and burden others with a mistake I have made. I rub temples, my hair falling forward. I rub hands down my cheeks, keeping the finger tips on my jaw and tilt my head up to look at the ceiling. I can’t even focus now without thinking that leaving was a bad idea. I let my hands fall all the way to my lap and then I remember Darryl touching my arm. I look back down at the arm he touched and I smile. I remember how I felt earlier and my smile fades away. I put my hands in my lap and try to focus on meditating now.

I listen to thrum of the engine and hyperdrive, trying to focus again. There is no emotion, there is peace. My emotions start to calm down but I still feel a knot in my stomach. I let out a steady breath. There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. I’m trying to clear my mind but Aydgage’s voice echo’s through my head, ‘... and may you come back to me, safely.’ The memory of him about to kiss me but instead kissing my forehead plays through mind over and over again. There is no passion, there is serenity. The fresher memory of Darryl pulling my hair tie out and touching my hair plays in my head, heat coming to my cheeks again. I clear my throat, shaking my head to get rid of the memory. There is no chaos, there is harmony. The message that Master Dauula gave me plays through my head, ‘ Master Reneji has fallen... He has fallen at the hands... Aydgage...’ I bite my lip then let go, taking a shaky breath. There is no death, there is the force.

I feel a little less overwhelmed but I still have the knot in stomach. I concentrate on my feelings I felt when Revan and a lot of the Jedi Masters’ and Knights’ came back from the Mandalorian war. I was only a pawadan at the start of the Mandalorian war and wasn’t allowed to follow. I think about it more and a lot of the younger Jedi Knights are the ones who are wanting to follow Revan. What exactly did they see that makes them want to follow Revan? Was it the power he showed the rest of us when he got back? His new lightsaber which was dark red? The fact that he was able to control his anger while fighting? I keep thinking of more and more possibilities, my mind racing down each path but finding no end. I hear the door chime. I look over at the chronometer and notice that a full night has passed by. I stand up quickly and go over to the door, tapping the button to open it. Darryl is standing there, using one arm to prop himself up against the door, dressed in a different outfit then when I last some him; wearing similar clothing when I first met him but his tunic is black now and he is not wearing his jacket still.

“Hey...” He softly says, standing straight now. I can hear him think he wants to ask how I am doing, if I am alright but he pushes those thoughts away. “I made some breakfast, would you like some?” I smile slightly.

“Sure.” He moves out of the way, gesturing his hands to let me go ahead of him and I go to the galley, Darryl following behind. I see that there is some fruit and gridle cakes on the table and I go to sit down. “Wow, shuura and muja fruit... I haven’t had these in years.” I start putting food onto my plate.

“Years?” Darryl asks as he sits down, perturbed. “I thought that the temple would have stock full of fruits and vegetables?” He starts piling his plate full of food as well.

“ Ehhh ... not really. At first, we did, yes.” I start cutting into my food. “As the Mandalorian war went on though, we had to start rationing food at the temple and sending out packages of food to the other Jedi who were fighting in it.” I chuckle to myself a little. “I remember making a package with one of the other pawadan’s , Ly’lis .” I giggle to myself a little. “We had finished packing it but forgot to put the label that it was food and not data pads !” I laugh a little harder. I feel Darryls happiness radiate off of him.

“Did you guys get to it in time?” I look at him, he is smiling, enjoying the story I am telling. I chuckle again.

“No!” I laugh, holding my belly. “Master Dauula came to us later on that week and told us what happened. We got in trouble!” I keep laughing and laughs along.

“Were you a pawadan as well at the time?” He asks after the laughter dies down. I nod my head.

“Yes, I was.” I start eating my food again.

“I’m assuming that Master Dauula is the same one from that message that you first watched?” I nod slowly, remembering I have one message left to listen to.

“Yes. That was him.”

“What was he like?” I purse my lips together and tilt my head to look at him. Wait a minute. Why are we talking about me? I want to know more about him. That’s not fair.

“How about you tell me why you wanted to become a smuggler and I will tell you about Master Dauula?” I challenge him. He stares at me long and hard and sighs.

“It’s hard to have a staring contest with a Miraluka .” he smiles a little and eats more of his food. I hold back a chuckle, trying to stay my ground.

“Well, I mean yeah. We don’t exactly have eyes to stare at or with.” I hear him laugh in his throat but he clears it to cover his laughter. “Don’t choke on your food there.” I smile finally, going back to my food.

“Ask me another time, and maybe I will tell you.” He finishes his food. “Besides, I want to know more about. It’s not every day I get to talk to a Jedi, a Miraluka Jedi at that.” I turn my head to look at him again .

“And it’s not every day I get to meet a Chiss smuggler, who was the Queens guardsman.” I take a sharp bite out of the gridle cake, but keeping my face turned towards him. He raises an eye brow.

“Alright. Fair enough.” He stands up, stretching a little. “But first, we work on your ship. I might tell you something after that. If,” he points to me, “We can get it up and running today.” He winks at me and grabs his plate, taking it to the cleaner. I sigh, slightly annoyed and finish eating.

“Fine.” I get up as well, grabbing my plate and going over to the cleaner as well.

“And no surprise scares. I managed to get rid of the bruise before it even formed.” He points to his forehead and I visibly bite my lip, smiling at the same time.

“Damn, okay. I’ll try not to.” I reluctantly say, pouting a little. He pushes my shoulder a little and walks to my ship. I follow behind him. I hear him think of a plan to get me back but then he remembers I can hear his thoughts and he no longer thinks of the plan. We walk up to the hatch and go inside.

“I’ll finish up the second engine pod and then see if I can bypass the door that is cutting us off from getting into the cockpit easier.” I nod my head and then stop, groaning. And I have to crawl back through those stupid ducts.

“ You get the easy job.” I mumble under my breath and head over to the duct I crawled through last time. I hear Darryl say something but I choose to ignore him and head to the cockpit. I land in the cockpit again and start working on bypassing the systems.

* * *

I look over at the chronometer and do a double take as I noticed hours have passed by. I rub the back of my neck and look back at the system I was working on. I’m almost finished. I pull up the systems report again and it reports that shields I am working on are still offline. I breath in through my nose and breath out loudly through it. I don’t think I can fix while we are in hyperspace. I’m pretty sure it’s a part that needs be fixed and it can only be accessed through the outside of the ship. I run my hand through my hair. It feels a bit... odd. I’m not use to yet. I put my wrist in front of me and take the tie off, about to put my hair back into a braid. ‘ You should keep it down. It really compliments your face...’ I hear Darryl’s voice echo in my head. I swallow a little and I pull my hair back into a ponytail instead. I start to pull myself up into the duct when I see the door open, Darryl standing there with a smug smirk on his face. I let go of the pole I was using to pull myself up and put my hands on my hips.

“About time you opened the door.” his mouth parts in disbelief and I walk past him, smiling as well. I hear him walk behind me.

“Well, next time you want to fly into nebula, I’ll just leave your ship alone then.” He teases at me, but I continue to smile.