Wires and Things

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

He looked at her with some surprise.

"Of course not." Would her name be valuable? He hadn't exactly thought about it until now, it hadn't seemed important. Of course if she was an agent for the Alliance then she would be worth something, but...well Munin didn't really care about that. He frowned for a moment, thinking about how just unlike that it actually was. Huginn would have thwapped him upside the head, but he realized that probably just this once...he wouldn't be telling her everything about his trip. "I..."

He pulled back from her for a second.

"No. You don't have to worry." That was that. No excuses, no long worries.

Maybe just this once something was off limits. She trusted him, and that meant something, even if they had only met hours ago. There were some things in this galaxy that deserved to be sacred, some things that deserved to be kept a secret, maybe she was one of them. Slowly Munin drew back against her, his lips pressing against the top of her head.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

She settled back against him, as if he never pulled away. Eyelids felt heavier. Must've been decaf caf. #irony

"Okay," she murmured against him. "I believe you. I....trust you." She still had a lot of questions. And she wanted to tell him more, too. In time. Maybe. #hopefully? They still had to talk about Kessel. And she wondered if they would part ways or if Munin had other plans.

She didn't have a place to go. Not really. Maybe she'd take an odd job here or there to stay connected. She'd need to visit the homestead eventually. When she was ready.

But for now, she was content to fall asleep against Munin, even sitting on that hard and cold, deck plating floor. Head drooped a little further. Her breathing became deeper and more rhythmic, little puffs of air hitting against his skin.

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

Munin didn't fall asleep, it came rarely for him. The Orphanage had been an odd sort of relapse back into a younger state, when he had often just slept away the days and nights to pass the time, on the ship though, with her in his arms...it was nice. He was tormented by nightmares, he wasn't caught and clawed at by odd blanks in his memories, he could just lean back against the crates of electronics and relax. His thoughts drifted off to half a dozen different places, but mostly, they settled on her.

She was an odd question.

By all rights she had interrupted him in his work. The Senator had been a means to an end, not just a simple grab for information, but a search for something specific. He and Huginn had been chasing this lead for months and Spark had just kind of...walked into it. He should have been mad, even furious, but...well he simply wasn't. There was also the fact that he hadn't even thought about his goal since they'd gotten on the ship. Another thing that should have bothered him, but again he didn't care.

He was enjoying his time with her, however odd and awkward it was. Though his thoughts focused on her throughout the night, he did eventually reach over and grab the small datapad from her hands, making sure that her arms ended up curled beneath the blankets. He kissed the top of her head as he began to search through the datapad, eventually finding the one item that he had been looking for. His lips thinned, and he spoke quietly to himself. "Jakku."

Huginn had been right, the Senator had been a part of the group they had been looking for.

Munin placed the datapad to the side, wrapping his arms around Spark again and letting his head lull against the side of the crate. He didn't sleep, he only closed his eyes and thought.

 

[Spark Finn]

@[member="Munin"]

The night terrors weren't as bad. She still had them. Hours later. But she didn't yell or scream. Head twitched against Munin's shoulder. Eyes moved rapidly beneath glass-lenses. A quiet whimper left her mouth. Then another. But she stilled after that.

#snooze

Blue-eyes finally opened. She took the brown contacts out before the shower but the writer forgot to mention it. #details She hadn't slept that well in a long time. She felt Munin's #Sawyer's arms around her and froze from her small stirrings. Was he sleeping? Very carefully and very gingerly, she tried to lift up his arm.

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

"Morning." Munin said before she moved him too move.

Sleep hadn't come to him, it hardly ever did. This place was far too relaxed and he had felt oddly...comfortable throughout the night. By all rights that was rather silly given that they had spent the night up against what was essentially the wall of the cargo hold, but with her in his arms it had all been forgotten. His mind had been drifting throughout the night, thoughts of what would happen next, what steps he would have to take and what would have to happen.

He knew he had to go to Jakku, that wasn't an issue.

Munin would have no problem getting supplies on Kessel. Huginn would be contacted and from there she could settle him with money, a new identity, and a ship. Of course, the biggest obstacle was the one currently trying to sneak her way out of his arms.

Where would she go? What would she do? Did she want to come with? Would she ask him why he was going to what was essentially a graveyard? They were all questions he had, some that he was afraid to get answers to.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

"Oh, you're awake," she smiled sheepishly. "I hope I didn't wake you...," voice trailed off. Hesitantly, she pulled out of his grasp to sit up and stretch. She immediately felt the absence of the warmth he provided. Was she already getting used to his arms?

#scary

Fingers pushed through her tangled brown-dyed hair. Eyes finally tracked to the datapad by his knee on the floor. It didn't take her long to deduce that he'd looked at the information last night. Chin tipped toward the device, eyes tracking to his face.

"Did you find what you were looking for?"

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

"I didn't sleep." Munin said without explanation, just smiling at her for a moment as he watched her. It was probably slightly creepy, if not just a little odd. The Information Broker watched her for a moment more, letting silence hang in the air until her second quesiton came.

"I did." He said simply. "The Good Senator wasn't very careful."

Surprising really, given the connections the man had.

Apparently he was a bit of a buffoon, or perhaps he preferred to have others do his work for him. Either way Munin had found the connection easily enough, the trail that had lead him all over the galaxy and now supposedly ended on Jakku. He wouldn't know for sure until he got there and trekked into the desert, but at the very least he was in the last leg of the race. He should have been excited about that, but for some reason...for some reason he only feared the end of this little journey.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

He didn't sleep?

Thin-lips frowned. And she thought she had a hard time with that stuff. #moresimilarities? Cheeks pinkened as she caught his gaze. But the color quickly faded as her attention grasped at his words with the senator.

Dyed-brows rose in interest. But he wasn't telling her anything. #nodetails Did he not trust her? Speckled gaze transitioned away from his face and instead to her feet. She wasn't going to push him on that. She wasn't going to pry him for more information.

"So...I think we're almost to Kessel. What then?" Gaze remained down as if the floor was very interesting. She was worried about what she might see if she looked up.

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

He looked pensive for a moment. It was a question that he himself had wanted to ask, but was afraid to answer. Part of him wanted to just say that they should run away somewhere, ignore everything, get to know one another better, but it was a silly and childish proposition. He and Huginn had been together for decades, they were inseparable siblings and he would never abandoned his sister, even with how much he liked just being with Spark.

"I." Munin began slowly. "Have to go to Jakku."

It was all that he could think to say. There was no way around it, he couldn't change that, but he didn't say that she couldn't come with, that she had to stay on Kessel or go somewhere else. He left that prospect entirely untouched, but instead coaxed her. "Do you...have to go somewhere? Home?"

It was a small, almost desperate question.

For some reason he thought that she had friends...family maybe that were waiting for her.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

"Jakku," she breathed, knees drawing up to her chest. Thin arms circled around them in a hug. Eyes finally tilted up to meet Munin's face - his blue eyes.

"I...," she thought about the homestead and Gabe and Ava and the twins. They'd want to see her and know she was alive. She thought about the job she just accepted. Before meeting Munin. She couldn't read Munin's tone. Or maybe she could? Thin-lips frowned and dyed-brows knit in thought.

"No, I don't really have a home. I mean, not really. There are some people that I'd like to see....eventually. They're probably worried I'm dead from the undercover work. Or rotting in some sith prison. But," she took a breath. "I...," she paused again.

How did she say this?

#inwardlysquirming #socialawkwardness

"Do you want someone to go with you? To Jakku?"

Did he want her to?

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

It didn't take a genius to figure this out, though apparently Munin had trouble enough grasping it. It was rather obvious what Spark was getting at, and the truth was he had been hoping for it all along. Yet there were still barriers to overcome, not the least of which would be...well the nature of what Jakku would be like. There Munin couldn't play the prey, he would have to be the predator. There were a dozen roving gangs on Jakku, and he'd half to confront half to get what he wanted.

"Do..." He started. "Do you want to come with me?"

The question was asked.

If she said yes, it would complicate things, but if she said no...well, Munin didn't want her to say now. He wanted to spend more time with her, talking to her, learning about her, having her sleep in his arms, even if that time had to be spent on a junkyard world like Jakku.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

She held his gaze, even when she felt heat flush into her face. How long could she wait to meet up with those at the homestead? She missed them. And she wanted to be fair to them. But the man before her...she didn't want to leave him yet.

#wasthatsilly? #Istillneednewclothes #andsunblock #lotsofsunblock

Chin fell to rest on the top of her knees, encircling arms around her legs tightening.

"Do...you want me to come with you?"

Yeah, she was just as dense as Munin in social situations.

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

"Yes." The answer came almost instantly, but a moment of hesitation passed before he continued.

He had to continue.

"But..." Huginn would kill him if he messed this up. They had spent months, nearly years on this...and if things were changed now...well it would all be for nothing. That would be hours and hours of work down the drain, everything they had worked for simply gone. Munin couldn't let that happen, but he also couldn't leave Spark behind when it was so clear that she wanted the exact thing that he did. "It'll be dangerous."

To say the least. "And you'll see me...differently."

A new face, a new name...more ruthless.

It would be an act, but one that he had to play on Jakku.

"And at the end." Why did he keep speaking, why couldn't he just shut up and take her with. "I intend to walk away with what I went there for, no matter what I have to do. I've been looking, searching for so long. I can't afford to leave it behind."

He reached out and took her hand. "But...I want you to come with...I want you to stay with me."

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

She looked from his hand and back up up to his face. See him differently? Do anything? She gulped. It made her nervous. Sith talked like that. Coren used to talk like that when he wanted revenge on the sith. Revenge on Sage Bane. Blue-eyes narrowed. Would she see a mask with a new identity of his? Or would this be a real side of him....just not one he wanted to admit he had.

Fingers squeezed tightly against his. Maybe more for her own grounding and resolve. She was scared again. #unsure

And what was he looking for? If it was another cube of enteched souls - she'd have no problem doing everything in her power to stop him. To release them. Even if it cost her...everything.

"I can do dangerous," she began. "But what are you looking for exactly? And maybe it would be better if I met you there? There are things I need to take care of." She still gripped his hand but she suddenly felt nervous.

What kind of man was he? He spoke of killing before. Would she be able to watch that - let it happen? She didn't know. She'd never know until that moment came.

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

For a long moment he stayed quiet.

Munin wasn't sure if he should tell her, if telling her would be betraying Huginn. He looked into her blue eyes, staring for a moment as a thousand thoughts whirled through his head. She had told him her name, had shared something so personal that he could very well use it to destroy her entire life. That was...that was a whole lot of trust, an odd level of commitment from someone that she'd only met a few days before. Couple with the fact that she had literally slept in his arms...he felt he owed her the truth. All of it.

"It's a device." He said quietly, in truth he wasn't exactly sure what it did...though he had an idea. "It was made by a group called the Star Cabal a long time ago. They were a clandestine organization thousand of years ago, they had hundreds of members...maybe thousands. Rich and influential people mostly, politicians and the like."

How was he going to explain this without sounding like an idiot. "They were...well they were irrational, hated force users. That's why the exi-"

He stopped quickly and then spoke again.

"I don't obviously." Munin squeezed her hand. "The device isn't any sort of weapon of mass destruction or something like that either, in case that's what you're thinking. I'm not like that. From what I know it's an index...or a repository...something they used for information gathering. I've been trying to find it for two years...but the trail is pretty cold. A decade or so ago the last remnants of the Star Cabal were completely destroyed, I don't know by what or who, but...well ever since then it's dead quiet."

The Information Broker looked down for a second, then back towards her. "I followed a trail of breadcrumbs which lead me to the Senator, and the information we stole there say that the Cabal's last base was on Jakku...The Senator was a member but quit the group before it all fell apart."

He stayed quiet for a second after that, then continued.

"If's true, and this thing does what I think it does. Then it's..." He paused trying to think of an analogy. "It's the ultimate trump card."

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

She listened quietly, wincing slightly when he talked about a force-hating group. She kept telling herself it wasn't personal. She had to trust him for this - whatever this was - to work. To even have a chance at working. And he was telling her a lot now.

#hopefullybeinghonest

Chin nodded slowly. "Okay." Top teeth gnawed on her bottom lip in thought. "Some sort of data storing device. Makes sense why you want it." She had no doubt it would be a goldmine to someone in his profession. And he's sell whatever was in there to the highest bidder. But what if it was something that could hurt one of her friends? The Alliance? The Outback?

She was no friend to the jedi but....that didn't mean....then again, he said he never worked with sith, so she didn't have to worry. Right?

Thin lips pursed as she pushed these thoughts away.

"Okay," she said again and squared off her bony-shoulders. "Here's what I'm thinking. We part ways on Kessel. I go let some peeps know I"m still alive and then I circle back to you on Jakku." Thumb traced the outside of his hand once. "How will I find you?"

#doyouwantmynumber? #canIhaveyournumber? #omgee

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

It was a good question. By the time he was on Jakku he would have a new name, new clothes, maybe even new hair and eye color. There were few things that he wasn't able to change about himself, it was part of what he did. He frowned for a moment, thinking, then looked towards the massive crate of electronics that they'd slept against. He frowned for a moment, then pulled himself up and away from her for a moment. There was a loud creak as he pulled open one of the large wooden crates and then a crack as the wood splintered.

He dug around for a second, then pulled out a communicator, still in the box of course.

Munin wasn't in the habit of keeping the same communicator or the same number for more than a few days. It was part of what allowed him to disappear so quickly. Huginn and he had long since established a system of how they could contact one anther, and it didn't require simply holo-messages. Rather they used a more complex list of forums, algorithms, and pre-arranged advertisements to reach and signal one another. The system was a bit convoluted, but it kept them anonymous.

Before Spark could say anything Munin popped open the box for the communicator and then pulled open the small device, he switched it on, the battery coming pre-charged and then looked up the number for the device. "I'll keep this with me."

He sat down next to her again.

"I'll be on Jakku in eight days." That would be enough time to contact Huginn, get everything together, and actually head to the planet. "You call me then, and I'll find you."

There were really only a few settlements that you could land in on Jakku, the rest of the planet was filled with crashed capital ships and other junk so abundant that it was hard to put a ship down anywhere safely, not to mention the sandstorms and blistering heat.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

Shifting slightly, she pulled a small datapad from her pocket. Leaning over Munin's arm, speckled-gaze copied the number from the brand new comm into her device. "Got it," a finger came up to push the center of her glasses back up her nose. She'd soon find out if this was all a con. It made her stomach twist.

"Eight days. I'll try to get there by then." She slipped her device back into the pockets of her oversized pants. Fingers found Munin's hand again and she gave them a squeeze just as an alert went off in the ship signaling their exit from hyperspace. They must be close to Kessel.

And suddenly, she felt like the last few days went by so fast. #toofast

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

It was a risk, a huge risk.

He was used to not having any connections, nothing to tie him down, this communicator stopped all that. If she was good enough, which he knew she was, she could use the comm to track him half-way around the galaxy, find him on nearly any planet as long as he was carrying it. If she was part of some enforcement group, or worse, employed by one of his former clients...well it could spell disaster for him. Munin was trusting her with what was basically his life, an idea that folded across his thoughts as the alarm went off.

His fingers flexed for a moment.

They would part once they landed. He would tell her that she could take the ship to wherever she needed to go, he would get another one after all. Besides that though...well he was afraid. He didn't know if she would sell him out, didn't know if she would change her mind and decide not to show. It was all a risk, and it was a situation that Munin had never thought he would find himself in.

An odd pit formed in his stomach. "Okay." He finally said, his arm coming up to quickly wrap around the small of her back.

Before she could object Munin pulled her close, gently yanking her against his lips into a deep and passionate kiss.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

Maybe somewhere deep down she realized he was taking as much a risk as she was. It was hard, though. She'd had people chase and use her, her entire life. And it was hard to believe that even this man didn't want to do that. That what he said was true. That his intentions were honest.

#facevalue

All those worries melted away as she was yanked forward. A small squeal of surprise left her lips before they met his in a rough kiss. Glass fell down the bridge of her freckled-nose. Warmth filled her cheeks. She kissed him back. A hundred percent awkwardly at first, until she relaxed into his embrace.

These kisses - like his first one - was one of the things she was really starting to like about him. She also liked when he asked. Both ways were...endearing. She'd never admit it to him, though. Not yet.

Maybe on Jakku. Maybe after Jakku if there was an after.