Chapter 31 - An Understanding

Fayra still fumed at Mando. She admitted to herself he didn't have to let her keep Blue. But it still didn't excuse him from always leaving her in the dark. Not letting her in on the plans and that wasn't even the most important part. The more she thought about it the more she realized she had no idea why she was here or what he wanted from her. She had a good guess, though. Since he didn't have any interest in selling her or allowing her to be taken by anyone else, he planned to keep her and use her for his own purposes.

She remembered when her step father realized the many things she could do. He began using her around their farm. Forcing her to work. He'd use her to the point of exhaustion. She'd be bleeding and completely useless the next day. But if she didn't get up and work, she wouldn't get to eat. Then the Niktos came along. Once they realized her powers were more than they bargained for, they locked her up. Fayra teared up. As Blue gently bumped into her she pushed the memories away. She patted the little droid on top of his head. He beeped at her and she offered the small droid a smile. Just then Mando walked through the galley where she was sitting.

She watched him as his armor glinted in the lights as he moved. She hasn't said a word to him since they left Errion. At first she was sure he was enjoying the silence, but the next day she could physically see the irritation on that emotionless helmet of his. It was quite satisfying to her, giving him a taste of his own medicine.

He came back through and stopped as she sipped her tea. "We're landing in a few minutes."

Fayra forced herself to keep her eyes on her cup and not acknowledge he said anything. After a few seconds passed by and a few sips of tea he turned and left with a low growl. She smiled at the fact she was correct and the silent treatment was getting to him. She wasn't naive though, she accepted the fact that she was playing a dangerous game. He could force her to talk at any moment he wanted, by any means he chose. She supposed it was a way to test the boundaries. She put her things away and headed to her room to wait.

A little while after the Razor Crest touched down Fayra adventured out. At first she thought she'd spend the time resting. She was still weak and the dizzy spells continued, but she couldn't stand to pass up the opportunity to see a new planet. As she passed the ladder leading down to the cargo bay she peered down. The outside light and a fresh salty scent filtered into the ship. She looked out the windows of the flight deck. She saw massive amounts of sand shimmering in the sunlight. The sand flowed in waves, but was suddenly cut off by a gorgeous mountain of trees in the distance. They swayed in the wind and the leaves shimmered. The contrast between the light brown sand and the shades of green was breathtaking. She couldn't wait to get out there.

When her toes hit the sand, she wiggled them and laughed at the sensation. She wanted to get a better look at the mountain, she leaped around and suddenly slammed into hard beskar steel.

She stumbled backwards, before she could fall to the ground Mando grabbed her by the forearms. Startled, she gasped. She hadn't realized he was directly behind her. Her eyes went to his leathered hand wrapped around her small frail bone. She had gained some weight since she woke from healing him, but she had a ways to go before she was back to the progress she made after they left Sorgan. His grip was like the steel he wore and when he didn't release her Fayra's eyes found his visor. Her stomach fluttered as his gaze infiltrated her. After a few heart beats he slowly unwrapped his fingers from her.

"I noticed you were low on ingredients for the tea." He said, cutting through the silence between them. "They grow here on the mountain, if you like, I'll take you."

Fayra wasn't sure how to answer him, she was confused on how she felt when he touched her. Even though she was angry with him, she didn't want him to let her go. She also didn't want her tea supplies to go unreplenished. She loved that tea. So she just nodded as she slid her arms through his hands, grazing her fingers against his. He walked past her into the ship and loaded himself with several weapons. As he passed back by her he secured his Pulse Rifle on his back.

"We shouldn't take long, looks like there's a storm coming in." He said and began walking. Fayra looked up, the sky was a beautiful blue, no clouds. Where did he see a storm, she wondered and began to follow behind him. She heard Blue rolling behind her.

They walked a long way, the mountain in the distance grew larger as they got closer. Fayra enjoyed the heat of the sun on her skin and the feeling of her toes sinking down into the sand with each step. Blue stayed by her side, but Mando walked many feet ahead of them. The wind was growing stronger, the sand blew around her, whipping her hair. She wished she was strong enough to control it at least enough to keep her long skirt from blowing up. The trees on the mountain were massive in diameter, she'd have trouble wrapping her arms around them. And they were so tall she had to stretch her neck all the way back to see the tops.

Just before Mando entered the tree line he went still. She stopped as well, watching him.

"Fayra," His tone was low and serious. It made her heart pound to hear him say her name that way, "get behind me."

Her eyes scanned the tree line as she obeyed. Something wasn't right, she thought. As she got closer to him she could feel the tension in his body. His stance went rigid, yet he was ready to pounce at any moment. She peered over his shoulder, trying to see whatever he saw. Then Fayra's eyes darted downward as Mando placed his hand on his blaster, ready to draw.

"Manny?" She whispered.

Without answering her he stepped back. She was forced to mimic his movement to avoid getting stepped on. Suddenly a shot fired from somewhere inside the trees. Hitting Mando, knocking him down. He groaned as Fayra fell with him. Blue whirled around. Mado shot back up to his feet, returning fire.

"GO!" He yelled.

Fayra was stunned, she didn't move. Mando jerked her to her feet. "GO!" He repeated, pushing her. She began running back to the Razor Crest. She heard more shots ring out, bursting into the sand around them. One large burst sent Fayra tumbling into the sand. Blue swerved to the side to avoid being squashed. Mando swiveled around dropping to his knee. Simultaneously, with lightning speed he unhooked his Pulse Rifle and aimed it. That's when Fayra saw the large group of men running toward them. Several of them burst into ashes as Mando began shooting. The wind picked up and the sand blew even harder than before. Fayra looked up to the sky, and gasped when she couldn't see it. It was covered with a sandy cloud, covering the top of the mountain and coming closer to them.

The cloud whirled and a ship appeared. Mando cursed, and turned his aim to the ship. He sent several shots its way. The ship lowered it's landing gear, making contact with the ground. Blue rammed Fayra and she jumped back to her feet. As she ran, she tried to make any connection she could to her environment. She called the wind, the sand and vegetation and nothing happened. She cursed herself. The air began to get thicker and her eyes began to sting and sand blew into them. The cloud was just over top of them, the wind began whipping Fayra so hard, she started to struggle to keep her balance.

Suddenly something hard hit her from her side. She toppled over Blue. A large figure loomed over her. He was covered in cloth robes and scarves wrapped around his head covering everything but his eyes. He reached for her. She screamed, kicking him. She looked around for Mando. He was far away taking a fighting stance, as he was being surrounded.

When he heard her scream, he looked in her direction and saw a man roughly snatch her up. She struggled against him, but he continued to drag her toward his ship. Mando blocked several kicks, rolled and planted a charge on one man, rolled again and slammed his vibroblade in the neck of another. The charge he planted exploded, taking out several men. It knocked everyone to the ground. As the sand storm came down over them he began losing sight of Fayra.

Fayra pushed against the man, he didn't budge. As she saw his ship getting closer her heart pounded faster. She twisted herself around and dug her nails into his eyes. The man dropped her yelling out in pain. She looked back to where Mando was and immediately regretted it. The wind slammed her eyes full of sand. She feared she might never see Mando again. Fayra turned back and could barely see her attacker, he was only a few feet away. He came toward her. She kicked at him, but he blocked it, grabbing her ankle and dragging her across the sandy ground toward him.

The man held something in his hand. Fayra thought it was a knife, and lashed out. He pinned her arms down and snapped a device around her neck. He released her, her hands flew up to inspect what he had done. She pulled at the metal collar tightly secured around her neck. The man mashed a button he held in his hand.

Fayra screamed, but it was cut short as the device squeezed tighter, cutting off her oxygen. She tried gasping for air, but her lungs wouldn't expand. He clicked the button, stopping the device. Fayra gulped in the sand filled air, and began coughing.

The man laughed. "Now, I control whether you breathe or die. It's very simple, girl. Do what I say and you'll get to breathe. Don't and you die". He grabbed the collar and jerked her up. The sand pelted her skin as he continued to drag her up the ramp of the ship.

Suddenly Blue popped up out of nowhere and slammed his little round body into the man. When the man hit the ground Blue rammed him. Fayra couldn't see how, but the man's body rocked with electricity as he made contact with Blue.

"Blue!" She screamed.

Then, a steel rope wrapped itself around Fayra's waist several times and locked itself in place. It tightened and yanked her off the ship's ramp. She hit the ground with an umph. It began pulling her into the abyss of the sand cloud. She couldn't see anything but a few inches in front of her, not even her feet as she dug her heels into the sand. She pulled against the rope, causing it to cut into her skin. It must be another bounty hunter, she thought. They were after her, all of them wanted her.

The sand in the air grew thicker, she had to squint her eyes to keep the sand out. She screamed as she felt arms wrap around her and she hit another body. She slammed her hands against his chest and felt the familiar steel. Her heart leaped for him. It was another bounty hunter, it was Manny, she thought. Her bounty hunter. She wrapped her arms around his neck and squeezed, thankful he was here.

"It's alright, you are safe." He said. Tears instantly fell down her cheeks at the sound of his voice. "We have to get out of here, this sand storm has only just started."

"Where's Blue?" Fayra asked, looking around.

A ship's engine roared to life, Mando tucked Fayra into him as the sand whipped around them. She thought she heard laughter as the ship lifted into the air, then the collar around her neck began tightening. She panicked as her breath was cut off.

"Fayra?" Mando released her and she fell back. That's when he saw her grasping at the collar, it was a Choker. A device used to control slaves, one that's been outlawed through most of the galaxy because of it's brutal cruelty. He unsheathed his vibroblade, unfortunately it was the only blade he had on him. All the others were dug into various body parts of the group of men that ambushed them. He had no choice, she couldn't breath and knelt to straddle her, pinning her arms down by her sides. Fayra squirmed trying to suck in a breath.

"This is going to hurt." Mando said as her body went limp. She passed out. If he didn't get oxygen to her in the next few seconds she would die. Mando slid the blade flat against her skin, getting between the Choker and Fayra. Her eyes popped open at the sudden severe pain as the blade sliced the top layers of her delicate skin. Blood trickled down and Mando cursed. Her body tensed and bucked involuntarily between the pain vibrating through every nerve of her body and the pain of her lungs imploding.

"Come on, come on." Mando grunted, trying to snap the metal collar. "Come on!"

The Choker snapped. Fayra gasped and sucked in the sand filled air. Mando acted quickly untying the scarf from her wrist and using it to cover her bleeding wound. It wasn't bad, but it would need cleaning. Her body trembled in his arms.

"We gotta get back to the ship." He said, pulling her up. He pulled his cloak around wrapping her up into him. The sand began pelting down harder than before. Fayra groaned and coughed as they began walking.

The wind and sand beat against them. A vortex of strong wind blew, sweeping Fayra off her feet and away from him.

"Manny!" She screamed, the wound on her neck stung deeply. She grasped desperately as her arms slid from his. Mando caught her by the wrists, keeping her from flying away from him. After a few seconds the vortex released her. He wrapped her back up and pushed on through the storm.

It felt as though the small grains of sand began stripping the skin from Fayra's bones. Every movement was painful, then another vortex whirled around them. Mando squeezed Fayra closer to him as it sucked both of them up toward the sky. He shot out his grappling cable and hooked it deep in the sand. The anchor slowed their elevation, but didn't stop them. When the vortex dissipated Mando and Fayra plummeted back to the ground. As they fell he maneuvered his body from hers to keep his weight from crashing down on top of her. They slammed back into the sandy ground.

Fayra immediately began struggling against the sand pelting down on her. Mando moved his body over hers, giving her some cover, but very soon it wouldn't be enough. She was also fighting to breathe. She couldn't take a deep enough breath to supply sufficient oxygen.

She was in no condition to make it back to the ship. Her body was in shock and her skin lacked adequate protection. Mando's forearm throbbed where he sustained the wound from the speeder bike crash. Not only was the sand irritating it, even through his armor, he took a hard kick to it from the ambush as he fought off the others. He wouldn't be able to carry her back. His emergency pod might work, though it was meant for one person but Fayra was small. It would be a tight fit, he didn't have much of a choice. He rolled to his side, tucking her body against his.

"Get as close to me as possible." He directed, pulling her up to his eye level. Fayra was sliding from consciousness and didn't move. Mando snapped the small boxed pod from his belt and placed it on the ground at Fayra's back and pressed the code. As it began to unravel itself around their bodies he hooked her legs with his and pulled her as close as possible. It only took a few seconds before the pod was complete and protected them from the outside elements. Inside the pod was dark, the ventilator hummed indicating it was working and Mando switched over to his night vision.

Fayra's eyes fluttered open, but they were only met with complete darkness. Panic struck her. Something was pinning her from all sides, she could barely move. She pushed against the arms and legs she was wrapped in and holding her tightly.

"M…Manny?"

"I'm here." Mando's voice cut through her panic. Fayra's trembling fingers shot up to his helmet and gently traced the contours of Beskar Steel. Though he was directly in front of her, she couldn't see anything. He was so close she felt his helmet vibrate with his voice. She felt Mando softly tense at her touch, but he relaxed a half a second later.

"Manny, where are we?" She asked, her voice sore and raspy from the collar incident. Her lips slightly brushed against the lower half of his T-shaped visor as she spoke. "I can't see anything?"

"It's an emergency pod." He explained, "the sand storm was getting too strong. We had to take shelter."

"Blue?!" She yelled.

"He's a droid, he'll be fine."

She slid her hands down to his chest. "You're holding me too tight, let go." She pushed against him again.

"I can't."

"Why?" She shifted her legs, unintentionally hitting him in the groin.

"This pod is meant for one person. So keep still." He growled.

Both were silent for a few minutes, but Fayra began squirming once again. She slowly rubbed her thighs against his trying to find some comfort. She slipped her hands under his arms and around to his back. But that didn't work, she began trying again.

"Be still." Mando commanded.

"It hurts!"

"What hurts?"

"Everything." Fayra shoved her hips away from him wanting more room, but she was wrapped in Mando's arms and the hard side of the pod had no give in it. She groaned and her neck throbbed. Her chest was pressed hard against his, restricting her breathing and his weapons felt like they were puncturing her stomach and thighs. She froze when Mando slowly drew his hand down her back. She resisted the urge to arch her back. He lingered on her hip for a moment, her stomach fluttered at the feeling of his leather fingers on her skin. He gripped his Blaster, unholstering it. He moved across her hip and up her back with the gun in tow.

Fayra coughed, her throat was so dry it was becoming very difficult to swallow it was painful every time she took a breath. Mando squeezed her closer to him with one arm and tried moving his hand up to his helmet. With his chucky and heavy armor he couldn't maneuver it.

She coughed again, and tasted something metallic. She groaned as she swallowed. At least the pain in her throat was dulling the pain on her neck, she thought.

"Fayra, move your hands up to my helmet." He directed.

"Why?" She asked, not only was it difficult to move, it was painful. She didn't want to.

"There's a small tube just on the inside of my helmet, I want you to get it."

She looked at him confused. He actually wanted her to reach under his helmet, she thought. That forbidden part of him that he never allowed anyone to see. She hesitated and began coughing again, this one a little more violent.

"Fayra?"

She nodded and obeyed. Her fingertips brushed the bottom edges of his helmet. She felt him pull back a little, his own hesitation for what he was going to allow her to do.

"It's just at the bottom edge. Grab it and pull it out."

She nervously nodded. She wondered if he'd lash out if she did something wrong or went too far. She slowly inched her way inside, her heart pounding. She began coughing again, the sand in her throat scratching into pieces. Her hands came down, bracing herself at the base of his neck. When the coughing subsided, she breathed heavily.

"Try again." He commanded.

She didn't have to go far before she felt what he described. "Is this it?" She roughly croaked.

"Hopefully. Pull it out, easy."

It didn't take much effort, the tube popped out easily.

"Now, put it to your lips and drink."

Her eyebrows furrowed.

"It's water, Fayra. Drink."

Water, she questioned. Her throat felt as though it was being ripped to shreds, she was sure she wouldn't be able to swallow, but she obeyed. When the cool water hit the inside of her mouth it sent shivers throughout her entire body. When she began swallowing, she closed her eyes at the sensations of the water washing away all the sand. She stopped and took a breath.

"Again." Mando commanded.

Fayra gladly obeyed.

"Better?"

She nodded, and she did have a little more room too, but wasn't more comfortable. She began thinking how grateful she was to be in his arms, how good it felt. Especially, how safe she felt. It didn't matter how terrifying and intimidating he was, when she was tucked into him nothing in this universe could get to her, so she settled down.

Fayra listened as the sand pelted down hard on the pod. She felt its rhythm and began moving with it. Mando watched her eyes close again and her lips continued to brush gently against his visor as she hummed the melody he'd become familiar with. Her fingers, once again at his back, made small circles at the nape of his neck, just under his helmet. Her touch coming dangerously close to his. She was falling into one of those trances. Mando had seen it before. He needed to stop her, but her body felt good next to him, caressing him, he didn't want her to stop. But the trance was building and he had no choice.

"Fayra."

Her eyes shot open and gasped, "what?!"

He took a deep breath, "I need you to be still."

She huffed, she thought she was being still. It was impossible to be his kind of still, she thought. Then a loud bang crashed against the steel pod. Fayra's eyes darted back and forth in the dark as her fingers pulled his cloak into her fists.

"It's alright, probably debris getting tossed around." He explained.

When it didn't happen again she relaxed. She began thinking about her earlier thoughts. She believed now might be a good time to ask him a few things, afterall he couldn't get away or avoid them.

"Manny?" She hoped he wouldn't notice the fear in her voice. "I have a question."

"Thought you weren't talking to me." He said dryly.

She huffed. Perhaps it wasn't such a good idea, she began talking herself out of it.

"Ask your question, Fayra."

She swallowed, because of the water he gave her, it was a lot less painful. Did he know, she wondered. He seemed to always be a step ahead. "Well, I was wondering why... you saved me?"

"Those collars are easily broken from the right angle-"

"No," she gently shook her head, "I meant from the Client. You did your job, you had the reward and you left. Why did you come back?"

Those lips gently caressing his visor was intoxicating him. Under normal circumstances he'd never let anyone so close. He found himself wondering what she tasted like, then her question pulled him from the daze.

He stayed silent for much longer than he needed too. He knew the answer long before she asked, he used the time to study her reaction instead. Her breathing hitched in her words and she was back to tracing circles at the back of his neck, she was nervous.

"I'm a lot of things, Fayra. Bringing an innocent girl to be tortured and murdered is not one of them. The way he touched you…" he paused for a moment. "He wouldn't tell me why he wanted you. I came back to see for myself, when I saw what he was doing- I took you back."

Her eyes lowered, "I thought you were going to sell me to that man, Comrad." She admitted.

"I know. I told you, you didn't have to fear that from me."

"That was before you knew what I could do." She kept her eyes down, "you'd be a rich man."

"I'm not interested in being a rich man."

Fayra needed to ask the next question, but she was losing her nerve. If he didn't want to sell her for riches that meant one thing, he planned to use her, force her to do his bidding. She forced herself to ask.

"Then… what is it that you want from me? What are you going to do with… me?" Her throat stung as she swallowed the last word. Even though it was dark and she couldn't see him, she kept her eyes down. But she needed to know where she stood, she was tired of guessing.

"When I took you back, I became bound by Creed to keep you safe or find a place for you to be safe."

She finally looked up. "Creed?"

"It's the way. Rules and beliefs Mandalorians follow."

"Then... it doesn't matter if you wanted to sell me, you can't."

"You need to stop thinking like a slave. That's no longer what you are."

"Then, I'm a rule you have to follow."

"I didn't say that." He took a deep breath, as much as their confined area allowed him. "Fayra, you're exhausted and need to heal. Get some sleep."

She didn't want to sleep, she couldn't after everything that just happened. She rolled his words over and over in her head. No matter which way she thought of them, she now knew he wouldn't treat her the same way others had. Unless he no longer wanted to be a Mandalorian, and she couldn't see that ever happening. It was everything he was and everything he held sacred, he would keep his word.

She felt his muscles clinch underneath her, she gyrated her hips against him in response. Then she felt his hand slide up to her neck.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm checking your wound."

"It's pitch black in here."

"Is it?"

She felt foolish. Of course he could see in the dark. Which meant he could also see the shame and embarrassment she tried to hide during their little talk earlier. She had thought she had the cover of darkness so she could be brave, she should have known.

"Manny?" She asked, "What will happen if you can't find a safe place for me?"

Suddenly a sharp pain in her neck caused her to flinch. She gasped, then everything faded away. Her hips and fingers seized their motions as she fell unconscious.

Mando admitted she had a legitimate question, but it was one he didn't want to answer. Hopefully she wouldn't remember her last question in the morning. He watched her for a few minutes, and felt every breath as her expanding lunges pressed her body into him. Then allowed himself to drift off.

Mando no longer heard the storm raging. He pressed the code and the pod began unlocking and wrapping itself back into its box. By his calculations it had been a full Twenty hours since they took shelter. The sudden appearance of sunlight blinded his vision. He turned his night vision off. After scanning the area, including the location of his Pulse Rifle and the droid, he turned his attention to the body molded to him. Fayra still lay so close to him every contour of her body blended into him. She was close to waking. He ran his fingers up her spine. He savored the feel of her one last time as she arched her back in response.

Cara was right, he admitted. He did enjoy her one way or the other. If she ever offered herself to him again, he'd take her up on it and enjoy her in other ways. If she wasn't under duress like the last time, he could. By Creed he was bound to protect her, from herself and even from his own self. Her offer had surprised him, he understood it though. It was all she had to offer. Much like himself she was prepared to do what she had to.

A moan escaped her lips as he unraveled himself from her. By the time he retrieved his rifle and dug the droid out of the sand, she was rubbing her eyes. When she heard Blue's excited beeps Fayra sat up. She felt a bit weak and groggy. She blinked a few more times before Mando and Blue came into focus. His strong hand lowered down, gripped her arm and pulled her up.

Her hand went to the twinge of pain in her neck, her memory of how and when she went to sleep were fuzzy. Suddenly she couldn't hold her eyes open.

"Did you... do something to me?"

His helmet pivoted down to her. "Like what?"

She said nothing, but she had a feeling he was the cause of her sudden need to sleep.

A couple days later Fayra looked into the mirror at her wounds. A ring encircled her neck where the collar had almost squeezed her to death. On the left side of her neck she inspected the wound from Mando's knife. Fayra adjusted the towel around her and turned. Mando stood leaning against the door frame.

"I wanted to check in on your wounds." He stated.

"They're fine." She said wrapping her arms around herself. She still hadn't been talking to him that much.

"Vibroblade wounds don't heal easily." He straightened and began walking toward her. She backed away a few steps. His hands were bare and her stomach fluttered at his touch. First, he lifted her chin to inspect the red mark around her neck. Then he turned her chin to get a better look at the knife wound. Fayra flinched at the small pain as her neck stretched. With his other hand he reached up and slid her hair away. He held her there inspecting the wound, scanning it.

"It's not healing well, have you been putting Omera's ointment on it?"

"Yes." She answered weakly.

He turned her chin sharply back to him. "That was a lie." He declared and he was right.

"I tried, but it hurt too much."

He reached behind her and grabbed the jar from the shelf. She gasped when she realized what he was doing. She squirmed, but his grip held her in place.

"A cut from a Vibroblade usually does, they also take longer to heal."

She grabbed his wrist trying to push and pull him away. "Manny, don't. It really hurts. Badly!"

"On the count of three."

"Manny-" She squirmed.

"One…" Then he pressed the ointment to the wound. Fayra hit his armored chest and screamed from the instant pain it caused. The lights began flickering

"You said you were going to count to three, not one." She spat as the pain throbbed. She hit him again. It didn't phase him at all.

"Sometimes the anticipation is worse."

"Let go." Tears stung her eyes at stinging in her neck.

"Your powers are starting to return."

Mando didn't release her until the pain began to subside and her breathing returned to normal. Before releasing her, he cupped her cheek and caressed her lips with his thumb.

Fayra watched him as he turned and left. She was very confused about him. She decided she was going to have to spend some time trying to wrap her head around his words and actions. Even more so with the thoughts and feelings she was beginning to have. She was still very angry with him. Especially since she was sure he had done something to put her asleep. But on the other hand he did what was necessary to keep her alive and safe. She was grateful to him. On top of all that, she had to come to terms with how her stomach fluttered at his touch, and the fact she was beginning to crave it, almost needed it. When he held her, she didn't want him to let go. She felt as though if he did, she would begin to fall and never stop.