Rumor has it

[Danger Arceneau]

T A T O O I N E
J U N D L A N D W A S T E S


So back to the Stronghold they were.

Word had it that they were at the very least a few days ahead of Rose, which left plenty of time for Alric and Danger to get settled in again. She had a few things to go over with Flynn and [member="Alric Kuhn"] would catch up with the few men he had managed to build rapport with. Even without that bit to keep them both busy, it was pretty easy to tell the sort of excited, nervous tension bold had. Alric did his best keeping himself together, but knowing he was to be on the same planet as his daughter who he hadn't seen in a long while set him a notch or two on extra awareness.

"You're gonna wear out my floor y'know." she'd call out to him from the acceleration couch on the open balcony facing the twin sunset off in the horizon. She held a small glass of whiskey in her hand, hair all wild and dressed casual this time around. Pants, a loose button up blouse with the top two buttons undone. Her bantha hide boots and a rawhide belt completed the look. Green eyes would follow the Tetan as he just couldn't seem to sit still. That's how he got when he was antsy, went from one place to another trying to keep busy while she took upon herself some liquid courage.

Maybe he needs some of this, she'd reckon with a slight amusement bathing her expression. So much so that she even extended out the glass for him to take a sip should he choose.

"It was a good year."

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

He perked an eyebrow.

"Remember the last time I accepted a drink you offered?" That had been...so long ago. It was a distant memory, but one that he still held firm in his mind. That wasn't the last time had had a drink, but it was the last time that Danger had offered him one. He smiled at her, though it was an odd smile.

The experience had been...an interesting one, and it had set off a chain reaction like none other.

In the end it had worked out, or Alric supposed that it had. He wondered if Danger ever thought back to that day, if she wondered how things would have been different, now things would have changed. He himself was sure that without that day, without her, things would have bee very different for him.

More than likely he would have ended up dead.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

“I remember that I didn’t offer you one as much as you took my glass and drank it all,” Danger would quip back with notably wryness at [member="Alric Kuhn"]. It was true. She had intended to offer him a drink of his own but instead he took hers, much like he had taken her cigarillo and then made it his personal mission to aggravate her.

“But I reckon a few sips or so won’t get you dancing on top of the table anytime soon,” an eyebrow would perk then a slow pause, her head canting just slightly to the right in amused appraisal, “Unless a few sips is all that it takes to get you going?” a forefinger went tapping on the side of the glass in pointed emphasis, and the devilry in her smile said it was a challenge of its own.

There was a gust of wind, dry and arid, but it felt cool against the skin. Tipping her head back, Danger settled comfortably along the couch, waiting to see the Tetan’s reply. Sooner or later the notice that Rose was now planetside would come, and in that both Alric and she had various options on how to progress. If Rose was anything like her father said, they wouldn’t have to do much.

She’d come straight to them.

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

"If you recall you did offer me a drink." He smirked at her. "I just decided to take yours instead."

That was true, though he couldn't quite remember why he had done it.

He was almost entirely sure it had been simply to push her buttons. He had always liked doing that, pushing her buttons. Back then it had been easier, much easier. He half thought that he was the only one who had gotten to her like that, or at least one of the few. He smiled at her now though, placing his hand around her own, wrapping fingers about the cup. He applied a slight pressure, but pushed the cup away. "Tell you what, today goes well, you can get me as drunk as you want tonight."

Alric wouldn't die from drinking too much, he wasn't Rose. He could stand to drink a moderate amount of alcohol, except the effects on him were quite...well amplified. One drink for him was five for others, it would have to be carefully regulated, but he could drink as much as anyone else...well, perhaps not Danger, but most people anyway. Not that it ever mattered much.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

"Now that would be a sight to see," she'd say with notable amusement, but very much aware that Alric would rather have all of his pistons firing rather than half. Bringing the glass to her lips so that his own hand would fall away, she gave a slight shrug.

"But I guess you'd do just fine with all the cold tea left." the corner of her mouth cracked a smile just prior to taking a sip of the amber liquid. It warmed a familiar trail down to her gullet, settled there nicely into a hot pool. Taking a deep breath, Danger swung her gaze off into the setting Twin Suns.

"She'll be here soon from what Erkard said." she'd say lightly, rocking her wrist a bit, the liquid spinning a lazy whirlpool within the glass.

"How you holding up?"

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

"Fine." He said truthfully. Alric wasn't too nervous about seeing Rose, he wouldn't be doing any of the talking. He wanted to, desperately, but he knew that she wasn't ready for that yet. Rose would ask to see him when she wanted to see him, not before. He would be happy waiting in the next room over, hearing her voice, seeing her through a camera or a small hole in the wall. All he wanted now was for his daughter to be happy, to hear the twang of joy in her voice.

"You?" Alric asked as he slipped closer to her. "You're the one that has to do the talking."

He knew that Rose would come to seek Danger out, that was inevitable. His daughter was headstrong, and with everything that had happened, everything that she had been told, she would know exactly where to go when coming here. There wasn't any worry in him about that, he knew that Danger would handle it well. Yet there was apprehension, a small pit in his stomach that he couldn't get rid of no matter what he tried.

It was because it had been so long.

His logical mind knew that, but it still clung to him even so.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

At that she took another large sip of her drink. A perk of her eyebrows, a deep intake of breath that had her shoulders and chest rising. "As ready as facing a Sand Demon I 'spose." she would answer truthfully. Her lips would quirk in a faint smile, small humor in her eyes that was edged in nervousness.

"We'll see what will happen." she would add, scooting over a bit to make room for the Tetan upon the couch. Curling up her legs, she swung them on top of the cushion, giving a half turn so she was sitting on the side with her back resting upon the corner pocket of the acceleration couch.

"I'll be interested in seeing just how well she can chart the Western Dune Sea," she admitted, aware of the dangers but knowing that Erkard was there with her. He knew the lay of the land and was as resourceful as she when it came to surviving the arid and near inhospitable planet of Twin Suns.

"How long you reckon it will take for her to get here?"

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

"Soon." Alric said with quite a bit of confidence. "She's gotten quite good at finding something she wants."

The last few months had seen Rose come into her own as more than just a force user. Most of her training as a child had been centered around the force, though some had been her own personal strength. Now however all of that focus, all of that self determination had moved to training herself in other areas. Survival, tracking, just living, that was why she had gone away, that was why she had stayed away, or at least in part.

She wanted to be something more than what she had been.

"She'll scoop up some information first, then come here." He said it with a sense of pride in his tone.

He knew what Rose had been doing, and though part of him feared for her every single day, another part shone with pride. His daughter was becoming self sufficient, she was growing up and doing something that even he himself hadn't done. Perhaps he took it as an indication that he had raised her right, or perhaps he was just happy to see her doing something that was just for herself.

Either way, he was happy.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

"Well, ain't like you can't see what you like from my room." she told him, a small gesture from her forefinger pointing back towards where her suite was. Security was a big thing for this stronghold, and there were enough cameras for him to view at his pleasure. While she knew the Tetan would hold to his word on not wanting to come face to face with his daughter, to a degree, she wished that he would.

Then again, she was a take action kind of girl. In her mind, if one wanted something, they should get it. It was ironic considering the predicament Danger found herself in, but everyone had their own demons to slay. She gave him a soft smile. Rising to her feet, the woman stood and leaned in to give him a brief kiss on the cheek. "I've some work to do, why don't you just relax a bit." she knew that was easier said than done, but the well meaning was there.

What happened next was ultimately up to the youngest Kuhn twin.

 

[Rose Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

"No no no no. No." Her voice echoed through the tiny alcove in the spaceport. "We're both going."

That was that.

"I need you. I know you don't like the desert, but that time on Geonosis was just a fluke." It was true, Rose hadn't meant to leave Erkard in the desert, it had been an accident! She had thought he was on the speeder when she took off...and well...yeah it went from there. Either way the Noghri no longer had a fondness for traveling in the desert, and he had offered up small protest in venturing out into another. Of course Rose wouldn't hear it, especially since apparently he knew the path quite well.

Perhaps he was just being silly.

The Noghri frowned slightly, but slowly nodded, confirming Rose's suspicion that he really was just being silly.

"Okay." She said quietly as she tightened the strap on her speeder. "You said two days?"

The black skinned lizard gave another nod and Rose looked out towards the distant desert. This wasn't her favorite kind of world, but it wasn't her least favorite either. She had found Felucia to be much worse. Sure the desert could kill you, the scorpions and small animals could, but if you were careful you didn't have to worry too bad. On Felucia, in the Jungle, nearly everything was actively trying to murder you.

Better here then there.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Rose Kuhn"]

"She's on Tatooine."

Those three words would float over to the Tetan sitting perpendicular to the bonfire between them. Flynn was the one who delivered the news, his low, terse notice taken in by the Queen of Trade with a nod and a grateful word.

The deep rise and fall of [member="Alric Kuhn"]'s chest relayed his acknowledgement as much as the state of mind. They'd taken to visiting nearby outposts by the stronghold to check for supplies and on word. It was hard enough to get any kind of comm to work out here on Dead man's land, what with the ore on the ground prompting a natural jamming of transmissions. But getting the heads up from Erkard meant that Rose was likely less than a day's away, depending on if the Noghri was the one guiding her or not, and on the specific day she had landed.

Few knew how to get to Danger's stronghold, and Erkard knew the path well. That might be suspicious to some, or perhaps just come by as a testament to his resourcefulness. Either way, "We can start heading back now, but odds are depending how quick she is, we might get there before, after, or catch her in between." In which case, well... with the small group of three other men they traveled with, could very well make him blend in as the forth.

As it was, odds were that come the next dawn or afternoon, she'd have one Rose Kuhn at her doorstep one way or another.

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

He mulled for a few seconds. They could head back to the fortress, maybe have time to do a few things before Rose got there, or they could try and intercept her. Alric frowned slightly, looking towards Danger. A smile crept on his face, and slowly he wandered over towards her, his hand slipping to the small of her back as he gently pulled her close.

"Well." He whispered in her ear. "If we get back soon enough, we might have time for other activities."

A waggle of his eyebrow hinted at what he meant. "Though if we stay out here we could...look at more sand?"

Alric had never tried to hide his...unwelcomeness to the deserts of Tatooine. He had agreed to accompany Danger because she had asked, and that had been enough to convince him to go.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

Well he normally didn't need to offer her more encouragement. However, Danger wasn't sure how well it sat with her the half chance of getting caught by his daughter halfway in the middle of things. Not literally of course, but more of how crude that might seem to the younger woman. Especially considering the fact that her mother had barely passed away less than a year ago.

Not to mention, Danger still wasn't sure exactly where things were between Alric and she. And if she couldn't answer that, then she sure as well couldn't explain it to Rose were she to ask or wonder.

It was being stuck between a rock and a hard place.

None the less, she sank into his embrace, drawing him close for a hug. The rest of the crew looked away, giving them as much of a measure of privacy as one could expect. Don't ask and don't tell when it came to the boss lady. They all knew that.

Tipping her head back, she gave him a warm glowing smile. It was a smile that emphasized the fine lines of her face, the crows feet at the corner of her eyes, and aged beauty that mellowed over the years. It was a smile of comfort.

"Reckon heading on back early enough can do us some good." she told him, rising to press a light peck against his lips.

A low chuckle came next.

"As would a shower."

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

His hands interlaced, pulling her closer.

"Shower, huh?" Alric sniffed the air. "Well, you are quite stinky."

His nose crinkled for a moment as he made a mock sign of unpleasantness, smiling afterward so that she knew the truth of the matter. That being that he was likely far stinkier than she was. "Good thing I know all the right places to wash."

He smirked again, though truthfully there were many other things on his mind, one in particular. His banter was a distraction. Oh he wanted her of course, that was a given, but right now the fact that his daughter was on the same planet as he kept springing to mind. Rose was here, she was on Tatooine, a day or so away. Soon he would be able to see her and hear her voice.

That caused untold anxiety.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

Favor was on their side; they made it to the stronghold prior to any appearance of the younger Kuhn twin. That brought a small measure of relief to the Tetan, but only wound the strange coil of tension tighter in the pit of Danger's belly. The scouts were to be on the look out for her, and not approach unless necessary. Going out of her way to come wandering into Dead Man's Land to find her quarry meant she'd have a purpose in mind; much like her father had over twenty years ago.

At the very least, Rose appeared to be a bit more logical and sane enough to do so with the proper equipment. So if the young woman were to meet any one of her security teams, or the Tusken guards... well at least they wouldn't shoot her on sight.

One could only hope she would return the favor.

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

Alric and Danger stood on the balcony, she before him at the railings while his arms snaked around her front and rested on her stomach. His chin rested on her shoulder, his eyes scanning the distant horizon. They had been waiting for nearly half a day now, having arrived some hours before. They showered and changed, Alric having washed all the right places. Now they simply waited.

He could feel the tension in her.

Danger's body was tense, every muscle trying to relax but not getting there due to her own nerves. Alric kissed her cheek. "It'll go well."

His words were barely a whisper, though loud enough for her to hear. The desert was always quiet during this time of day. Dusk seemed to bring a serene silence to Tatooine, and in truth it was the only time of day that he enjoyed on this planet. It wasn't cold, nor was it too hot. The air seemed a bit more crisp and time seemed to stand still as the twin suns began to set. It was calming relaxing.

Though it always made him feel as though something was about to happen.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

Danger sank against Alric's embrace, a small smile curving lightly over her lips. Her own arms would slide to rest over his, and a slight squeeze would draw him tighter. She knew he was trying to comfort her, to encourage her. Glancing at him over her shoulder, she gave a slight tilt of her head, watching him through the corners of her eyes.

"Are you now a user of that honky Force use to know so?" she would tease, giving a slight squeeze of her fingers against his arm. His breath would tickle at her ear, a slight nuzzle that would bring the slight rasp of his beard as well. His presence was a comfort. A solid foundation. Crazy how he had become such an important part of her life. How they were here, now. It was so strange, so surreal. A year ago she wouldn't have considered any of this to be a possibility. Nothing but a shadow of a dream. A distant thought that held no substance.

Her smile would wane, and she gave a steady exhale. Well, whatever came, whatever would be, she could only react accordingly. She had control over her own actions; and while she certainly could sway others, she didn't quite work herself up to attempt that should things go wrong with Rose. Maybe it was just the underlying fear of rejection. Danger knew how important his girls were, and if push came to shove, she would ensure that his and the girls relationship remain free of strain from her end. She'd take herself out of the equation.

Turning back to the setting suns, the redhead gave the Tetan's hand a small pat. "Come on, standing out here won't do us much good."

 

[Rose Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

Perhaps it was fate, perhaps it was luck, but just as Danger and Alric stepped off the balcony the drone of a Repulsor lift began to echo through the desert.

The high pitched whine seemed to bounce off the dunes, a great dust cloud escaping from beneath and behind the vehicle. Rose sat in the drivers seat, a pair of goggles on her eyes and a scarf wrapped around her face. The sand and dust was kicking up, and Erkard winced as seconds went on, clearly finding the desert air none too pleasant. She patted him on the arm, gaining his attention and pointing towards the fortress in the distance.

"Is that it?" She shouted over the engines, the black Lizard looking at something in his lap then giving her a nod.

It had taken nearly two days at full speed, though granted they had slept through the night and been had pressed to get up into the cold. The heat had been bad, and Erkard had nearly passed out a few times due to the sun striking him extra hard. It seemed however that they had finally managed to make it.

She hoped it would be worth it.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

[member="Rose Kuhn"]


Erkard would squint his tiny black eyes. From under the scarf that would shelter him from the desert, he took a few moments to study. What manner of thoughts lay behind were kept to himself, and instead he gave a nod. It wasn't just the fact that Erkard had no real love for the desert that had him hesitating. The assassin rarely had moments of hesitation, of wariness. It was because he had sworn a duty to another, while growing affection for his current charge. He had not corrected her on the assumption that he had been sent by her father. The knowledge that he instead had been tasked by the Trade Queen might be a bit more startling, as would the length of time Danger had both Rose and Lily tracked.

Rose may not take it well were it to come up in conversation.

His keen eyes would pick up what hers might not - security points, areas carved within the looming, jutting, canyons that surrounded them. They had already been spotted, and likely had more than a dozen scopes narrowed in on their position. But they were not being challenged to identify themselves. Which meant the boss lady knew they were on their way.

Nodding on, he would grunt out to her in his raspy voice to continue slowly. He began to figit around his belt, moving to take a small smoke grenade. Before she could comment, he yanked the pin then sent it scattering onto the ground. Bright orange plumes of smoke would burst out in a steady stream. It was a vibrant signal cloud meant to disclose and identify.

And not get shot at.

 

[Rose Kuhn]

[member="Danger Arceneau"]

She raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything.

Instead she pulled back on the throttle of the speeder, cutting how fast they were going by about half. There was a small clatter within the vehicles engine, but she was used to that by now. The Momentum hadn't been big enough to carry a speeder on its own, so Erkard and her had ended up renting one from a local vendor. They had gotten a fair price, at least she thought so, but the machine was on the cusp of breaking down.

For some reason she thought that most things on this planet were like that. Tatooine, unlike her homeworld, was not rich. It had an odd rustic charm about it, a small town feel that many worlds in the galaxy did not have. Yet everything seemed to be falling apart, or on the verge of it. Maybe it was simply the way things looked, the sand sticking to everything and the desert heat cracking things.

She supposed she would only know after living here.

Rose shifted as they came closer to the fortress, the speeder slowing down evne more as they came within two hundred yards.