Homestead

Chapter 2. Where Introductions Are Made

They did not return immediately to the farm.

The farm produced food, but it did not grind wheat to flour, nor did it grow sugar or sprout soap and fresh power cells from trees. Suu watched Cut carefully as he tagged along on her errands, only stepping up to buy a razor and a can of shaving cream for himself with a bit of the money he'd received for his day's work. He had rejoined her with a small, worn out duffel bag on his shoulder; Suu was convinced he was buying everything he had from the town's secondhand store. Nobody bought clothes that fit so poorly new.

He spoke little and watched everything. It was peculiar. Suu could find no reason to fault this, but it struck her as odd that a grown man would behave as though he was unaccustomed to counting out credits. The politeness continued. Women were 'ma'am'. Men were 'sir'. Suu could only imagine he came from a very strict sort of family, to raise him to be so proper. Funny in the head, but not hurtful. She hoped Chios' assessment would continue to prove accurate.

They reached the homestead shortly after sundown, the western sky still streaked heavily with bright brushes of red-orange. She gave him a narrow look as her speeder truck rumbled down the path home, the fields of grain empty now that the harvest was in. Cut's head was turning back and forth, from the front to the side to the front again, taking it all in with curious eyes. She returned her attention to the road, seeing the stubble covered fields. They'd leave the remaining stalks as they were, to decay and fertilize for next season. She was thinking corn in these fields next, rotating the wheat into the southern quarter.

As she parked the speeder truck beside a second one, she climbed out as the door to the house burst open. A small streak of peach and pale blue shot out, lekku streaming behind her. "Mom you're home!" Shaeeah shouted, as two larger forms followed her at a more sedate pace.

"Yes, I'm home, you thought maybe I wasn't coming back?" Suu smiled as her daughter skidded to a halt in front of her, then began to peer around her legs to get a better look at the parked truck and the man coming out of it.

"Welcome back," Arybas said by way of greeting, Ossa stepping up beside him. "Ossa came by this afternoon to help out, if that's alright."

"Of course. How are you doing, Ossa?" Suu smiled, allowing herself a quick glance towards Ossa's midsection, which was just beginning to show signs of swelling.

The female Gran chuckled, resting a hand on her belly. "All right, excepting the nausea. It's not too bad, but oh does it keep me up nights now! I'll be glad when it's over and I've got a baby instead of a giant stomach. I feel like I'm waddling."

"Give it a couple more months and then you'll really feel like you're waddling," Suu laughed in return. "Where is Jekk?" she asked, quickly grabbing the back of Shaeeah's collar to keep her from launching herself at Cut in a fit of curiosity.

"Aw, Mom," Shaeeah groaned, twisting a little to get away. Suu ignored this as Arybas replied.

"He refused to take a nap this afternoon and dropped off right after dinner." He turned from Suu to Cut, who was standing slightly outside the circle, clearly a little awkward at being an outsider. The three eyes of the male Gran gave the newcomer a careful look. "You'll be taking my place here, then. I'm Arybas."

"Er, yes. I'm Cut," he said, edging forward a little.

"You're human," Shaeeah announced, head tilted back to look up at the man's face.

"And you're Twi'lek," he replied, looking down at her. Shaeeah blinked once, then her face split into a grin.

"He's funny, Mom!" she decided, twisting around to see if her mother approved. Suu sighed.

"I'm glad you approve, Shaeeah. Have you finished your homework?"

"Yes," she said, somewhat glumly. "Arybas and Ossa helped me."

"Good. Why don't you go get ready for bed?"

"But I want to see!"

"See what? Cut? He's right here, you just met him. And he'll be here in the morning. You can wait until then to talk more. Go get on your pajamas. And don't wake up your brother if he's sleeping."

"Okay," Shaeeah agreed, a little reluctantly, dragging a little bit as she headed back into the house, casting long, sad looks back on the group of adults, as though perhaps they would change their minds if she just walked slowly enough. She paused reluctantly in the doorway, and when Suu folded her arms and lifted a brow, she sighed heavily and trudged the rest of the way inside.

"She's a good girl," Ossa said, laughing lightly.

Suu smiled. "She is. How she keeps so much energy, I don't know. You two must be tired."

Ossa placed a hand on Arybas's shoulder. "Perhaps we should be getting home. My family will start to wonder."

Arybas nodded, but kept an eye on Cut for a moment. "Are you sure you've got everything here alright, Suu?" he asked.

The two Grans did not appear alarmed, but they were watching Cut with a mixture of curiosity, wariness, and welcome. She appreciated their solicitousness. It was kind of them to worry for her and her family. "I think it will be alright," she assured, gesturing to Cut, and tried to give him a somewhat more formal introduction now that Shaeeah was not there to interrupt. "Cut, this is Arybas and his fiancée Ossa. They're neighbors, and live a few kilometers from here. They're old friends, and Ossa's mother makes some of the sweetest spice wine on Saleucami."

Cut straightened, extending a hand. "I'm Cut. Um, Lawquane. Just Cut is alright. It's good to meet you."

Arybas shot Suu a funny look as the name Lawquane came out, but he said nothing, grasping Cut's hand in greeting. The gesture was repeated a moment later with Ossa. Arybas did not move. Ossa sighed and her eyestalks wavered slightly in what would have been something like an eyeroll on a more human face. "Come on, love, let Suu get her new hand settled." She gave him a small, light shove towards the second speeder parked in front of Suu's house.

"If you need anything, Suu, give us a call," Arybas said as Ossa began to steer him away.

"Thanks, I will. Good night, Arybas. Ossa."

There were waves of farewell, the sound of their speeder truck roaring to life, and then Cut and Suu were left standing alone outside of the house.

"Come on," Suu said, quickly reaching into the back of the speeder and grabbing her rifle before turning towards the barn. "I'll show you your room." Cut resettled his duffel over his shoulder and followed. "As I said, it's not much. You are welcome to come into the house to use the refresher whenever you need it, except after I shut out all the lights for the night and lock the doors." She propped her rifle against the outside wall of the barn and unlocked it, then rolled the door open. "Barn door locks from either the outside or the inside. I recommend locking it after you go to sleep at night."

Stepping inside, she reached up and clicked on an electric lantern hanging just beside the door. Fluorescent white light cast the room into stark relief. A small main area in the center, with a pair of workbenches, the floor covered in a scattering of hay. It was full of the crisp smell of dried grass; Arybas must have cleaned out the eopie stalls earlier in the day. The stalls stood against the back wall, sleepy eopies dozing within. With one exception. Suu moved forward and placed her hand on the creature's snout. Its response was to lift its head and eagerly lick Suu's face in greeting. She turned to the side to avoid getting covered in eopie drool, though the persistent animal just began to nudge her playfully. "Just watch this one, she's figured out how to lift the latch on her door. She's harmless though, aren't you Oleary?" She scratched the top of her head and led her back into the one empty stall, latching it again once the eopie was settled.

Cut was standing in the center of the room, looking around and taking it in. Suu stepped to the side. One corner of the barn had been converted from a pair of stalls into one room. She pushed a grayish curtain back, and flipped on a second lantern, this one casting a somewhat softer, butter yellow color into the space. A cot with a pillow and thick, folded quilt lay against one wall. There was a small desk and chair against the other, and a narrow dresser with a bowl and pitcher atop it against the back. A rod was balanced between two rafters above, with a pair of hangers dangling from it. "Arybas cleaned it out last week, so the chest should be empty."

It was not fancy. Suu knew this. But she liked to think it was comfortable enough. The cot was padded, the quilt warm, the pillow soft. It was quiet, and though it was not large, it was not too small either. "We have a small heater that you can keep in here, and more blankets," she added, a little worried at the strange expression on Cut's face. "I know it is not much. You are of course free to change your mind if you want. I can take you back to town tomorrow."

The words seemed to startle him. "What? No. No, this is…" he trailed off, unreadable until he began to smile, looking at the handmade quilt sitting on the cot. "This is great, Suu. Thank you." He stepped into the room slowly, edging past her, to set the duffel on the cot. He lightly ran a hand over the top of the chest. When he turned to look at her, his expression was warm, and a little amazed. "Maybe this sounds weird, but I never had my own room before. Even if doesn't have indoor plumbing," he added with a grin.

It was hard not to return the warmth. She leaned against the wall, arms folded and feeling slightly relieved that she didn't have to go through the process of asking Arybas and Ossa to babysit again, to take another day to drive into town. Also relief for the thought that perhaps Cut would work out. "You have many siblings then?" she asked, amused.

Cut blinked at her owlishly for a moment, then guffawed. "Yeah. I've got a regular army of brothers." She chuckled at his joke, but the laughter died when Cut's expression grew serious. "Suu, I know you said you've got two kids, and it's just you on the farm. I just wanted you to know this, so you're not alarmed."

He moved to the duffel, and opened an outer pouch on it, first pulling out a small power pack and cartridge, showing it to her. Then, more carefully from the main section of the duffel, a blaster carbine. Drawing it left the duffel nearly empty. She went rigid, arms dropping to her sides, and automatically calculating how many steps it was to her blaster rifle outside the door, and if she could reach it before he could reach her. She shook herself for overreacting. It was unloaded, he was deliberately showing her, for her peace of mind. She wrestled down the shot of fear. Slowly, he set the power pack and tibanna cartridge down, and offered the remaining portion of the blaster to her. Her eyes flicked over it. Military grade, used. There were any number of places he could have gotten such a thing, especially with a war on. As a drifter, he could have worked doing almost anything before coming to Saleucami. It was a serious weapon.

She looked at him. He seemed nervous, but steady, waiting for her.

"You are showing me this so I know you are armed." He nodded. She breathed in slowly, deliberately, then nodded. "Thank you for telling me. I'm glad you are so honest. It's probably for the best." She glanced at the weapon again, shuddered, then looked away momentarily. Cut stood still, watchful. It was a gesture of good faith, his showing it to her. If he wished her or her children ill, he could very well use it to enter the house and take whatever he wanted. "Give me the cartridge and power pack," she said, stretching out a hand.

Cautiously, so that she could see his movements, he stepped forward, reached out a hand, and dropped the two boxes into her palm. Her fingers closed around them. "There is little law left on Saleucami, since the Trade Union came. If you remain with us, I will give them back." She wrapped her arms around herself, protectively. "Tibanna is flammable. The barn and my home are framed with wood." She struggled to keep her voice steady. "Things catch fire easily. You will not show it to my children."

Slowly, he pulled back. The blaster was set down on the cot. He did each motion with deliberation, so she knew his intentions. "I'll keep it in the barn, unloaded."

"Shaeeah and Jekk will not touch your things. They know not to touch my blaster, and I'll be sure to remind them."

"Is it really so dangerous out here?" he asked, face serious.

Suu kept her gaze downward. "It can be," she replied after a moment. "There are still a few predators. Of different kinds."

Sentients as well as animals, she wanted to say, but the words did not come. Her mouth was dry.

"I understand," Cut said, and when she managed to face him again, the hard look he wore indicated he did.

This is a fighting man, she thought then. A man who knew weapons and carried a dangerous one. She felt strange, constantly returning her attention to him for appraisal, but she was a lone woman with two children and her nearest neighbors were several kilometers away. She could not leave room for mistakes or afford to expend trust without reason. Cut was waiting. Watching her in the careful way she was beginning to see was his. He had the look of some of the old soldiers who had run the militia, but in too young a face. He couldn't be more than a few years younger than herself, though she was less accustomed to judging the ages of humans by their faces. He had no grey in his beard or hair yet. She knew that meant youth.

She could not make a judgment. He was too confusing. Honest, polite, a little strange, thoughtful, well armed. But everything he did was an attempt to earn her acceptance. She would lock her doors firmly and sleep lightly tonight, but she would keep him for now. A week's trial, she said. Some part of her had decided she wanted him to stay.

"I have breakfast on the table at seven. Mornings begin early on the farm. I will let you get comfortable. If you're hungry, I can bring you some fruit."

"I'm alright. I really appreciate this, Suu."

She gave him a careful look. He'd straightened, and some of the intensity had faded. She relaxed slightly and shifted back towards the barn door. "I'll see you in the morning, then."

"Good night."

She picked up her blaster and slid the barn door closed behind her.