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“Hey-“
The Jedi woman paused. She slowly turne, looking at him over her shoulder, a smile slowly growing on her lips.
He wasn’t nervous, he didn’t get nervous helping out a friend.
“I have a couple of things, here.” Atton said, taking a small satchel out from inside his jacket. He held it out to her and she took it and opened it, peering inside. “Just some stuff.” He stuck his arms down at his sides. “Picked it up at Peragus, honestly forgot I even had it-“
She glanced from the medipacks in the satchel up to meet his eyes. Her’s her grey with a crystal clarity that could sometimes feel like a diamond drill to his skull. But now looking at her, all he felt was correct, complete, like he had landed in safe harbor.
“Thank you, Atton.” She said, tucking the satchel away in her robe.
“Don’t mention it.” He said, and tried to turn aside. She raised her hand and caught him gently by his jaw, and turned his head back to face her.
“I normally wouldn’t, but-“
The air between them felt thick and heavy. His heart beat sluggish and loud in his ears. She was running off into certain danger and he was staying behind. Again. He should say something, except he would probably stick his foot in his mouth. He should do something, except he had already volunteered for what he was best at, being a distraction.
He felt her hand grasp the back of his neck and push while she leaned in at the same time, pressing her lips to his. It was overwhelming and not enough. He reached out and grasped her by her hips, and smoothly pushed her back, aiming to have her up against the alley wall. Instead at the last second she maneuvered effortlessly around him, turning them and pushing him with his back to the durasteel.
She parted her lips and he took the invitation, swiping his tongue into her mouth. He slid one hand down to grasp her ass while the other slipped up and began to search for a way under her robe.
He just brushed his fingertips against her bare, flushed skin when she inhaled a sharp breath and pulled back.
“Sorry.” He said instinctively, shifting down the wall and away with his hands held out in front of him. She raised both hands to fix the pieces of her hair that had come askew, then gave him a look so heated he felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up.
“Thank you for the equipment.” She said, stepping backwards from him, her eyes fixed on his. “I’ll try to get in touch as soon as I know more about the yacht.”
Right. The yacht. The bounty, all that. It was good that she took that opportunity to disappear down the alley, otherwise he might have really done something stupid.
“Find a place for him, I don’t care where.” The Exile shook her head and stepped past Bao-dur and their new shipmate, the redheaded bounty hunter with the big rockets. One of their new shipmates, at least. They also had the giant floating black murder ball who the Exile was clearly trying to play nice with.
Atton didn’t plan on turning his back on the thing, if he could space it later he was sure it would do them all a lot of good. At least she wasn’t making cooing noises at it like how she treated the little astromech.
Atton stepped back, watching as the rest of their crew of oddballs approached her. It was impossible not to be drawn to her presence. He felt it, he was just better at resisting it. He could wait.
He leaned back against the doorway leading to Bao-Dur’s workshop, arms crossed. The iridonian strode past him, his eyes flicking over Atton’s face, but he went without comment.
He turned to look forward again and there she was, striding across the main cabin of the Ebon Hawk towards him.
“Hey.” He said, keeping his arms in place. Now that she was closer, now that she was looking at him, he could see that something had changed. There were bruises around her eyes from repeated exposure to the poisonous air inside the Jekk’Jekk Tarr and there was a slight bulge on her right shoulder where she nursed a large lump from being struck by a medical droid onboard Goto’s yacht.
There was something missing behind her eyes- something glistening, glimmering thing had slipped away, leaving behind eyes that were dead tired, despite the smile on her lips.
“Hey.” He said.
“Hey.” She tucked a thumb into the belt where her lightsaber hung. She leaned in towards him and he could smell the blaster scoring on the half-armor she had strapped on over her robe.
They were quiet for a moment, her eyes searching his face.
She wouldn’t kiss him here, would she?
She raised a hand to his shoulder and gripped it firmly, her fingers crushing the leather of his jacket.
“I met someone who said they knew you.” She said, tugging him towards the cockpit. Atton felt his face fall, felt ice water shoot through his veins. Suddenly, her dragging him off to a secluded room with multiple flat surfaces didn’t hold the same appeal.
She pushed him into the co-pilot’s chair but he caught himself, gripping her wrist as the doors slid shut behind them.
She twisted her arm around and broke his hold, pinning his shoulder to the seat. He lashed out with one leg towards her knee and she dodged it, but he was quick to jab his free hand against her side, just above her kidney. She grunted and fell against him, the pain she was feeling rolled off of her in waves. He could feel it as surely as he had hit himself.
“Tell me it isn’t true.” She said softly, her voice hoarse. “Tell me now.”
He stared back at her, his lips pressed into a thin line. Silent. Defiant.
She inhaled slowly.
“How many Jedi have you killed?” She asked.
“Less than you.”
Her fingers tightened on him and for a moment he worried he had finally pushed her too far. Crushing her lips against his did nothing to alleviate the tension between them, if anything it made it worse.
They embraced like they were fighting, scrabbling hands gripping at each other’s clothes, kissing with more teeth than lips and tongue. He felt a sharp sting on his lower lip and tasted copper a moment later. He tried to push her back, but her hands tightened on his shoulders and she shoved him hard against the holomap.
He opened his eyes and saw her face illuminated in the blue of the map, and stopped.
“What are you doing?” She hissed at him through clenched teeth, the light reflecting off of the unshed tears. “Stop.” She leaned in to try and kiss him again and he jerked his chin back. He watched her expression waver in a way he’d never seen before.
“What happened to you in there?” He asked, his voice raised only slightly above the hum of the Ebon Hawk’s instruments around them.
“Nothing happened to me.” The Exile said. She tried to turn away but he held on to her elbows, keeping her close. He knew she could have easily broken free, but she only gave a slight tug before she pitched forward and pressed her forehead to his shoulder. “I happened to Goto and his entire organization, and the Ubese, and Vogga’s men and I-“ She turned her head away from him, looking out into the endless field of stars before them. “When I surrendered my lightsaber to the council and left for the Outer Rim, I swore to myself I would never take another life. Yet here I am.” She dipped her chin. “Blood on my hands-“ Her eyes found his again. “And it was easy.”
“If it was easy, I don’t think you’d look like you’d been run over by the business end of a speeder.” He said, leaning back against the holomap.
She stared at him, then shook her head. She slid her arms around him and leaned in, pressing her cheek to his shoulder. He settled his hands on her back, stroking gently, his fingers taking in the rough fabric of her Jedi robe.
“What am I going to do about you?” She said softly.
“Let me fly the ship.” He said, “You can’t trust me? Fine. But you know I’m the only who can fly worth a damn.”
“Pretty sure Bao-dur has piloted a ship.” She murmured.
“Not this ship.” Atton said, tucking his nose against her hair.
“Mandalore, then.”
He scoffed.
“There’s always T3-“
“Please.” Atton squeezed her shoulders, and she lifted her head to meet his eyes. “I’m a killer.” He said, and she nodded. “So are you.”
“We make a good pair, then.” She said, and he smiled. He knew it didn’t reach his eyes, but then again, neither did hers.
Outside the Ebon Hawk, the Force moved in invisible waves through time and space. And when it wound itself around the two of them, it found them bound together.