The Little One smiled brightly as she heard the familiar vibraphone play in her ears. It was perhaps the millionth time she had listened to the song ever since the Mandalorian gave her the holoplayer, but she would never complain. She glanced at the Child staring up at her curiously, and she winked.
Then, her feet started moving underneath her, and guided her hands above herself in delicate motions. She'd balance on one foot as she moved her arms like a bird tenderly flapping its wings. Her steps were fluid every time they touched and flew across the floor of the Razor Crest. Her movements were almost effortless, and she couldn't help the smile across her face as she felt herself basically floating. When she perfectly landed a single fouetté, she nearly jumped and squealed for joy.
That was, until she turned around to see the Mandalorian at the base of the ladder.
Shrieking in surprise as she yanked out her earpieces, she backed away a few feet, her back hitting the wall. She calmed herself soon enough, but he held his hands out in front of himself.
"Hey, it's okay, I didn't mean to scare you."
She took a deep breath, nodding. Giving him a tiny smile, she then walked back over to the small room, and sat down on the edge of the bed, setting the Child down in her lap. She began speaking.
"Sorry, it's…it's just been a bit since I danced."
He nodded. "Well, it seems like you enjoy the one song on there."
She giggled. "I danced to it last year for a festival. For Trichonoms, dancing is a big part of our culture. The dance itself is important, but, really for girls, it's where we show the different ways we can wear our hair."
Her smile dropped momentarily, as if she was debating with herself. Before the Mandalorian could ask, the Little One dropped her hands from the baby, and tapped the middle of her waist.
"My hair reached down to here, so it took a while." She giggled. "My sisters curled it tightly and had me wear this crown of green daisies that had a veil attached to it. It was really hard to dance in, but it was really pretty." She smiled up at him, and then pointed to her head scarf. "My-my hair is red under here, and there's not a lot of people who have that color in my village, so I guess my sisters wanted to show me off."
"I see." He answered simply.
Odile nodded, her grin leaving again. "I'm…I'm kind of sad because I won't get to wear my hair like that ever again, even when it does grow back. But I think, even if my hair was cut off, my legs weren't, so I still get to dance."
After a few beats of silence, the Mandalorian nodded. "I think that's a good way of looking at it."
All the Little One could do was smile in thanks at him as she set the gaggling baby back on her lap. The Mandalorian then kneeled down in front of her.
"Hey, so you and kid are going to have to stay in here again for a bit. We need more money, so I'm going to have to take a job."
Her smile immediately fell. "The last time you took a job-."
"-I know." He gently interrupted her. "I don't want to do it either, but I can handle it. I was thinking too, because of the holoplayer, it'd be easier for you to stay put just for a little while."
She bit the inside of her lip. She wanted to stomp her foot on the ground and tell him no; tell him that he was stupid for doing it. But, all she could will herself to do, was pull the Child closer, and nod.
He sighed almost in relief. "Thank you. We'll be there soon, so get comfortable."
Odile scooted farther up the small bed with the baby in her arms, not taking her eyes off the Mandalorian. He stood up on both feet, and, with one final nod to the children, pressed the button on the wall outside to shut the door. Climbing up the ladder, he entered back into the cockpit, and saw how close by the enormous space station was.
Sitting down, he carefully guided the Razor Crest into the entrance, landing it with clearance. As he was about to shut the engines down, his eyes lingered on one of the switches.
Draping from the lever, the blue beaded bracelet Odile had made for him back on Sorgan. A bracelet she made out of thanks. The twine was fraying even more than it had been, and, upon looking down at the floor, he noticed one of the beads had fallen off.
Still, as he shut the engines off, he slipped the bracelet off the lever, and into his pocket before stepping out of the Razor Crest.
"Okay, just relax." Odile said to the Child as she hovered the earpiece over his green ear. He gazed up at her with his black eyes and tilted his head while babbling nonsense. The Little One chuckled, and pressed play on the holoplayer.
In her left ear, she could hear the familiar melody, and she soon saw the baby's eyes light up as the music reached his right ear. As the strings began, he was soon shifting on the bed in anticipation, and giggling as the music got louder and louder.
"You like that?" Odile asked. "I do."
As if to answer her question, the Child continued to jabber happily as the two of them listened to the music. In that small room with the stiff yet comfortable bed, even as the Mandalorian was who knows where, Odile hadn't felt at peace in weeks. Ever since they had left Sorgan, she would always feel as if something or someone was staring at her; awaiting for an attack.
When the music ended, Odile took out her earpiece and set the holoplayer aside. When she turned to look at the Child, she saw her Wookie doll's arm in his mouth.
"Hey," she whined, gently taking her toy away. "be nice to DeeDee. Ew."
He giggled at her sour face as her hand became wet from the baby's slobber on her toy's arm. Sighing, she pouted her lip out. Soon, after a few moments of staring down at the Child, the smile soon returned.
"How about we practice?"
Before she could wait for the baby's reaction, she set DeeDee back on the bed in a sitting position. Focusing all her energy on the stuffed Wookie, she stared down into the black eyes, and rose her hands up.
DeeDee began to rise up with her movements, and Odile started shifting her fingers. Ever so slightly, DeeDee's arms and legs began to swing rhythmically. The Little One grinned and looked back down at the Child.
"See?! She's dancing!" Odile cheered, and her smile only grew as she and the Child watched the stuffed Wookie move just barely.
The door slid open all of a sudden, and the kids jumped at the loud noise, causing the doll to drop.
"Knock next time!" Odile cried once she saw the Mandalorian.
He quickly shushed her and began speaking. "Okay, change of plan, they're coming in here."
She squinted her eyes up at him. "What?"
"The job," he clarified. "there are people that are going to use my ship for the job. So, you and the kid have to be extremely quiet, and I mean it."
Odile's face dropped at the realization. She shook her head. "No, no, that-that's not a good…that's a bad idea!"
"I can't do anything about it." He countered. "Just…stay quiet."
Before the Little One could refute whatsoever, he backed away, and the door was shut in her face. Letting out a low groan, she collapsed onto the mattress and glared up at the ceiling above her. The Child cooed curiously and tilted his head as he stared down at her.
Odile gripped the thin blanket of the bed in one hand, her breathing becoming rapid in anger. He even knows that it's a horrible, dreadful, no good idea…so why is he doing it anyway? Did everything that just happen not teach him anything?
Closing her eyes, Odile could faintly hear here one of the last things her mother said to her.
"I know you're scared, and I am too, but you need to breathe. Okay? If you're scared all the time, your 'magic' is going to hurt you instead of help you. So, do it with me, just like counting in dance, right? Breathe in, one, two, three, four. Hold, five, six, seven, eight. One, two, three. And release, four, five, six, seven, eight. One, two, three. Again, one, two-."
The Little One breathed in silently, and held for seven seconds, then released for eight more. She repeated like a broken record; breathe in for four, hold for seven, release for eight.
Breathe in for four, hold for seven, release for eight.
Breathe in for four, hold for seven, release for eight…
Opening her eyes, a tiny smile spread across her cheeks as she felt her body relax, and sink into the bed. She lifted her head up to see the Child frowning slightly at her. Still keeping the innocent smile on her lips, she said.
"I'm okay now, we'll be okay." She sat herself up, petting his ear. "We just can't be scared, get it?"
Even though the baby most likely didn't understand completely what she was saying, just seeing her brighten up was enough for him to smile slightly. Soon, both of their grins dropped once they heard sharp clanging coming from outside the door.
"Is…is that them?" She thought to herself.
Crawling over to the door, the Little One placed her ear against it, trying to make out the voices. Let's see…
Two boys, one deeper voice, one higher…A girl? Or was that a boy? The voice was deep, but not as deep to be a boy's. Like… there was some weird pitch to it.
Oh, there was the Mandalorian.
Before Odile could process it, she soon felt the ship suddenly shift harshly, and she gasped lightly as it moved. Covering her mouth, she leaned against the back wall, breathing heavily and praying that no one heard her.
Again and again, the Little One tried to drown out her worries with listening to the same song on her holoplayer over and over again. For the most part, it worked, and she'd even hold one of the earpieces up to the Child's ear. Like before, he cooed and gurgled happily at the soothing noise, sometimes even dozing off.
It was the faint noise of a loud 'thud!' that brought the girl's eyes up. Taking her earpiece out of her ear, and setting the other one down, she shut the holoplayer off, and listened. The thuds were becoming louder and louder, and she picked up the Child, holding him close to her as she could get.
"Shh," she leaned down and whispered into his ear. "we'll be fine. Okay? We'll be fine, we'll be fine, we'll be-."
She gasped loudly once the door opened.
Odile was met with three, new faces. One belonging to a human man who had no hair, one of a purple Twi'lek, and a red Devaronian, whose horns on his head made him look like the spitting image of what the Little One imagined a demon to look like. She held the Child closer to her chest, hopefully to hide him away from these people.
"What the hell?" The human shot his eyes over to the Mandalorian standing right next to the door. "Why's there a kid in here?!"
The man in armor said nothing. Odile had no idea whether it was because of him trying to remain in control, or if he did not know what to say. The bald man scoffed, shaking his head and returning his eyes back to the little girl. She shrunk under his stare.
"Hi, my name's Mayfeld, what's yours?"
She said nothing, continue to look up at him. He backed away, furrowing his eyes just a bit. It was then that the Twi'lek pushed past him.
"Let me take a look." She giggled, and kneeled on the floor in front of the small girl. Odile swallowed, forcing herself to look into the woman's eyes. The Twi'lek grinned, bringing a finger up to caress the Little One's cheek.
"Ah, a Tricho-rat, never thought I'd see one out here. I wonder though…" her finger trailed up to her headscarf. "what color are your locks under this?"
Odile swallowed, cringing at what the Twi'lek was insinuating of doing. The small girl glanced over at the Mandalorian in her peripheral vision.
"Help me…" Her eyes begged him as she felt the woman's finger stroke her scalp.
"What are you hiding?"
Her voice brought Odile out of her trance and looked to see the Twi'lek staring down at the bundle in her arms. The Little One immediately shook her head, backing further into the small room.
"Hey now," Mayfeld stepped forward. "we just want to see it, kid. We won't do anything, we're just curious."
Breathing through her nose, she felt as if she had no choice. Thankfully, she couldn't feel the Mandalorian's gaze on her as she brought the Child forward for everyone to look at him.
"Whoa, what is-?" Mayfeld began, but soon looked at the woman next to him. "Did you and Mando make that, Xi'an?"
"Shut your mouth before I rip it off." She hissed at him as if she was waiting for him to say that.
Mayfeld ignored her, looking to Odile. "Is that like your pet or something?"
Without hesitating, she nodded, now pulling the Child back to the safety of her chest. Mayfeld reached into the room, gently grabbing her arm.
"Now wait a minute, I didn't get a good look at him."
Odile felt her heart begin to beat faster as his grip tightened on her slightly. She shook her head, trying to escape his clutching hand. He only held on.
"Come on, just give him to me for a minute."
"No." She spoke without another thought.
"I'm sorry?" He asked, then looked up at who Odile assumed to be the Mandalorian. "Didn't tell me she could talk."
She swallowed. "You can't have him-."
"-Odile."
The small girl felt the air leave her lungs at his voice, and her name filling her ears. Stopping her struggle, she peaked out from the room she was in. She was met with the familiar helmet, nodding.
"It's okay."
The Little One looked down at the small eyes staring up at her. They were questioning, but also calm at the sight of the girl holding him tenderly. Then, she looked up into the eyes of Mayfeld, still clutching her arm, and waiting for a response.
In defeat, she pulled her arm away from him, and held the Child up.
"Didn't take you for the type to deal with children and pets," Xi'an taunted in the background. "maybe that code of yours has made you soft?"
Mayfeld chuckled, looking back at them for a moment. "Me, I was never really into pets. Yeah, I didn't have the temperament; patience, you know. I mean, I tried, but it never worked out." His eyes made their way back to the baby in the Little One's arms. "But I'm thinking, maybe I'll try again with this little fella."
Carefully, he took the Child away, and stood up straighter as the baby began cooing at the new person. Odile felt as if needles were pricking into her skin as she watched Mayfeld hold him. In the corner of her eye, she could see the Mandalorian take a few steps towards him, as if he was ready to incinerate the man where he stood. Looking over at the small girl, and then to the man in armor, Mayfeld acted as if he would drop the Child, causing Odile and the Mandalorian to flinch. All he did was chuckle at them.
"Dropping out of hyperspace." Came a droid's voice over the intercom. Soon, the entire Razor Crest began to shift violently, and everyone held onto something to keep steady. "Commencing final approach…now." He spoke again. "Cloaking signal, now."
Everyone dove forward as the ship made a sharp turn, causing Odile to fly out of the small room, and hit her head on the steel floor. The squeal coming from the Child right next to her managed to silence her loud cry as a stinging sensation ran through her skull.
Before she could even process what was going on, she felt two arms hook under her shoulders and knees, then carefully picked her up from the floor before feeling the familiar comfort of the bed under her back. She heard the baby's whimpering right next to her ear, then the shutting of doors.
Opening her eyes, she hissed at the bright light, then covered her pupils. Sitting up with a groan, she reached for the switch on the lantern, and pulled it down. Once she saw black through her eyelids, she peered her eyes back open, and let them adjust to the darkness.
"Baby?" She whispered. "Baby, where are you?"
The Child let out another whine, and Odile followed the sound until she felt his small form on her fingertips. Shushing him, she held him close to her once again, and kissed the top of his head.
"We're okay, we're okay now." She said over and over again, not knowing if she was trying to convince him, or herself. She groaned lightly at the pain in her head, and then laid down onto the pillow. It only helped her so much.
Slowly, the Child's crying began to lessen and quiet the longer she held him. Odile had tried so very hard to lay down and drift off into the escape of sleep; maybe everything would be alright once she woke up?
Perhaps the Mandalorian would wake her with a gentle knock on the door? Perhaps he would ask if she was alright? Perhaps he would tell her that he found her mother? Perhaps he would take them both home to Naboo? Perhaps Odile could be held in her mother's arms again?
Or…perhaps none of that would happen, and he would be dead? Perhaps she would lose all hope of ever feeling safe again?
Still, the Little One did not manage to gain a moment of rest as she tried her best to comfort the sobbing Child in her arms.
Even then, it could have been the feeling of lying awake in the darkness, but Odile felt as if it had been a long time since she had last seen the Mandalorian. Biting the inside of her mouth, the Little One sat up, and set the Child softly down. After shuffling her hands around the wall, they found the button, and she pressed it as the light from the outside bled into the small bedroom.
Scooting out, her feet reached the ground, and she stood up. Looking around, she noticed how, in fact, no one was there, and looked down to see a small gate opened, peering into the ship they were above at that moment. Swallowing, her eyes drifted over to the small armory.
The Little One, ever so gently, opened it up, and searched for the blaster she had used weeks back on Sorgan. Once she found it, she took it into both of her hands, and checked the safety; off.
Looking behind her, she saw the Child gazing at her with a look of puzzlement. She made her way back to the small room and kneeled down to his height.
"Hey, I uh…" she paused, trying to explain herself. "I'm going to go find him, okay? He-he might be in trouble and need help. So, I won't be gone for long, but you just have to stay in here, get it?"
The Child continued to look up at her, his face unchanging. Still, she took this as an answer, smiled, and pat his head. "Good."
Odile pressed the button on the wall next to her, closing the door to the room. Standing up, she then turned around and looked at the gate below her. The color was some sort of vibrant red. Before she could change her mind, she climbed down the ladder, and was soon enveloped in the color as she looked around.
The halls, though yes, were lit with red, had some other lights flashing a bright white every so often. The red, shaded like blood, only brought memories back to Odile when she performed on the stage at a recital for dance.
Usually, one of the boys or men would dress up as a monster of some sort, many times as a person of The Empire, and the stage would be coated in red lights.
Odile swallowed as she forced her feet to move throughout the ship. The hallways seemed endless, and the poor Little One felt as if she would go blind the longer she wandered around the ship. Once again, time seemed to slip away from her, and she could not comprehend if she had been there for only a few minutes, or a few hours.
Suddenly, she felt her feet glue to the ground. The girl listened all around her, a pit forming in her stomach.
"Something is not right."
She whipped her head around and saw a figure down the hall. Her mouth dropping open, she didn't even think as she rose the blaster up in one hand and took the shot. The firing kicked her back a bit, and she stumbled, trying to ground herself. The figure released a loud hiss and was now sprinting right at her.
Odile clutched the gun tighter and began shooting once again. With every pull of the trigger, the realization only grew as the figure came closer.
It was when she got close enough to sweep her legs, that Odile knew it was Xi'an.
The Little One fell, her head colliding with the floor once more. As she cried out, she watched the woman stand up through hooded eyes. As she saw the Twi'lek raise her foot up, Odile rolled away. The girl groaned as she stood up too fast and leaned against the wall. She was soon met with the alien's ghastly smile.
"Well hello there, Tricho-rat." She taunted. "What are you doing here?"
Odile stared at the woman, and her gaze soon shifted to the blaster on the floor close to her. As she attempted to race past Xi'an, the Twi'lek took a small knife out from her belt and slashed the girl's arm.
The small girl gasped at the pain, and quickly placed her opposite hand on her arm as it began to paint it the same shade of red all around her. Xi'an only tisked.
"Not quite the smart one, are you?" She taunted, then jabbing her knife back at the girl. Odile jumped away, dodging the blade. The crazed alien laughed, trying to stab her again, only for the Little One to jump away with another, strangled cry. It was as if they were performing a twisted dance with one another.
Which quickly reached its climax when Xi'an grabbed onto Odile's headscarf, and tore it off as she kicked her down.
The Little One screamed as she collided with the ground, and instantly brought her hands up to hide her hair as she curled into a ball. The Twi'lek halted her movements and stared down at the cowering child. Soon, a laugh escaped her mouth.
"My, my, my, look at you." She taunted, crouching down to get a better look. "Shriveling like a kicked puppy."
Odile ignored her, her tears dripping onto the floor as she clutched the hair on her scalp. If she could end everything at that moment, she would. If her village had known someone saw her cut hair, they would've ended her misery and shame she was being forced into.
Or perhaps…
Perhaps she could do something about it…
"Come on, I want to see-."
She was soon silenced the second Odile rose her hand up from the ground. Just as she did, the Twi'lek's body moved with it, slowly; vertebrae by vertebrae. Her body was stiff, but her eyes moved wildly from place to place in confusion. Odile, clenching her teeth, pushed herself up from the ground, keeping her hold on Xi'an.
Once she was on her feet, the Little One brought up her second hand, and curled her fingers. Xi'an released a cry as her body moved rigidly. She collapsed onto the ground, only to be brought back up again, her body shifting with the control of Odile's fingers. Odile breathed heavily as she continued her actions, forcing Xi'an to glide from one side of the hallway, to the other. It was as if they were performing a disturbing dance with one another.
Which was promptly ended when the Little One's eyes dropped to the Twi'lek's hand, and saw her headscarf still encased in it. One by one, Odile controlled the woman's fingers to release the scarf, and to drop on the floor. As she felt power draining from her body, Odile threw Xi'an away from her, and the alien's back hit a wall as she slid onto the floor.
Panting, Odile felt lightheaded as she rested her hands on her knees. Pulling her head back up, she dashed towards the blaster, picked it up along with the headscarf, and sprinted away.
Leaving Xi'an alone, nearly petrified from pure helplessness that coursed through her veins as she felt her entire body being controlled by a small girl.
The Little One peaked around every corner as she tiptoed throughout the ship. Her wound wasn't getting any better as she tried to find her way back to the Razor Crest, and she felt horror beginning to flood her body the longer and longer it took.
Or, perhaps that was the continuous red light?
She let out a small scream, aiming the blaster up with her uninjured arm when she saw movement in front of her. The man in armor raised his weapon too as he came around the corner.
The Mandalorian
Odile let out a yelp in relief when she saw him, dropping the gun onto the floor to cradle her wounded arm. Thankfully, after running from Xi'an, she managed to tie her headscarf back and cover any visible hair.
"What are you doing here?!" He questioned, his voice breaking. The man put his gun away and marched towards her. "Do you have any idea how dangerous this is? You and the kid were supposed to stay put, you do something like this, and now-!"
Before he could finish, the Little One threw her arms around his waist, unable to stop her sobbing. The Mandalorian tensed at her touch, it being the last thing he expected from her at the time. Soon, her crying registered in his brain, and he immediately got down to her height.
"Hey, hey, it's gonna be okay, okay?" He spouted off words, despite them perhaps not being true; just anything to comfort her. Not to his surprise, her crying wasn't letting up, and his eyes soon dropped to the deep cut on her arm. "Who did this?"
She shook her head, still weeping and now resting her head on his shoulder as her crying was filling his ear even louder. Gently, he rose his hands up and took her face into them.
"Odile, Odile, look at me." He said softly, and the girl opened her eyes glazed with tears. He continued. "We're going to get out of here, but I just need you to breathe so you can calm yourself down, okay?"
"I know you're scared, and I am too, but you need to breathe. Okay?"
Her mother's voice was in her mind as soon as the Mandalorian spoke to her. Nodding, she couldn't help but lean into his hands as her head soon felt heavy. Still, shutting her eyes in tiredness, she took a deep breath.
And then another, and then another.
He released a breath of his own and said with just a little proudness. "Thatta girl."
The Mandalorian let go of her face and stood up. Carefully, he took hold of her hand, and leaned down a little to say to her. "Don't let go of my hand."
All Odile could do, was nod. His hold on her hand was gentle, not like Mayfeld when trying to take the Child from her. All the hallways were the same as he led her throughout the ship, and, in no time at all, they made their way back to the ladder of the Razor Crest.
When she drew her eyes up from the ground, they immediately grew at the sight of a Twi'lek. Yet, once she got another look, she knew it wasn't Xi'an.
He hung his head in defeat as he was at the base of the ladder. "You killed the others?"
"They got what they deserved." The Mandalorian replied. The Twi'lek snarled as he brought up his blaster, but soon saw the Mandalorian had his up as well.
He pointed out. "You kill me, you don't get your money. Whatever Ran promised, I'll make sure you get it, and more. Come on, Mando, be reasonable, eh?" He dropped his weapon. "You were hired to do a job, right? So do it." The Twi'lek held out his arms. "Isn't that code? Aren't you a man of honor?"
He laughed as he stared at the man in armor. Odile dropped her eyes as he laugh, the sound being equivalent to an earsplitting noise. His eyes soon drifted to her.
"Aw, what made you so sad, Little One?" He asked, though still grinning.
"Don't look at her." The Mandalorian commanded, letting go of her hand to stride over to him.
He didn't let up, only chuckling in response. "I'm just asking her a question. Where's the harm in-?"
The Mandalorian's fist collided with his face, and the Twi'lek collapsed, the blow knocking him out. Odile shifted back a little, taken by surprise from the Mandalorian's actions. After staring down at the bounty, the Mandalorian calmly approached the Little One.
She didn't back away as he said. "Come on, let's take care of that cut of yours."
The Little One nodded again. Slowly, the Mandalorian let her go up the ladder first, and he soon followed after. At first, he was confused to see her completely stoic when he was up, but soon followed her gaze. There, standing in front of the Child in the small room, was Zero, the droid.
As the droid rose his blaster to kill the baby, the Mandalorian shot first.
The droid's body fell, and Odile instantly stepped over it to kneel in front of the Child. She hissed as she did, leading the Mandalorian to shuffle through a desk adjacent to him. Then, finding the small container, he held it out the Odile, who turned around.
"Here, it's Bacta. Just put it on, and I'll be down to help tie a bandage around it. I have to go get the bad man though, okay?"
Again, for the third time, all Odile could do was nod.
The Mandalorian sighed as he snipped the bandage off its roll. He'd gotten paid, and also had taken down both Ran and Quin at the same time. If he was alone, it would've been a good day.
But, he wasn't. He had two kids with him the whole time; one nearly being killed, and the other shell shocked.
"How's your head?" He asked.
The Little One nodded, not really giving him an answer. Still, the Mandalorian interpreted it as an 'Okay'.
Once he was done bandaging Odile's wound, he placed the roll down on the floor, and turned to the accelerator switch. Unscrewing the little ball, he soon turned around and gave it to the Child in his bassinet.
He humored. "Told you that was a bad idea."
The bounty hunter then looked over at the Little One, wanting to see her reaction. He quickly regretted it.
Her eyes showed nothing but fury towards him. Before he could ask, the girl stormed out of the cockpit, and climbed down the ladder. He put the Razor Crest on autopilot and followed after her. He heard the door to the small room close the second he got down. Bracing himself, the Mandalorian stood in front of the door, and knocked on it gently.
"Go away." Odile's voice was muffled.
"Are you alright?" He questioned.
"Leave me alone."
At that point, he was tempted to. At that point, he didn't want to try to get through to her. And yet, at that point, he knew it wouldn't be right to just leave her like how she was.
"What happened?"
There was a pause after his question. Growing slightly concerned, he moved his hand to the button, but her voice halted him.
"I got bored waiting for you."
The Mandalorian pulled away and looked back at the closed door. "Bored?"
"Didn't you hear me?" She simply stated, not an ounce of sarcasm in her voice.
"I did," he answered. "I'm just still wondering why you'd do something so reckless to look for me."
The moment he finished, he wanted to take it all back.
"Maybe it's because you don't listen to anyone but yourself!"
Involuntarily, he took a step back from the door once he heard her shriek. In the few weeks he'd known her, he never once heard her raise her voice. Yet, there she was, about to scream her lungs out.
"Okay? I told you that guy on Tatooine was bad, and you took the job with him! I actually said that taking a job with all these people was a bad idea, and you still did it! I had a gun put to my head the first time, and then a knife almost lodged in my stomach the second. What's going to happen the third time when I tell you something's a bad idea, but you don't listen?! I-I-I'd rather die than spend another second with you and I hope you know that!"
Over time, her voice would drop from rage, to more of despair. When she was finished with one final screaming declaration, her voice still rang through the closed door.
"They…they were scaring me today, and you did nothing. But…I don't know, maybe I was just too paranoid?"
The small girl reciting his previous words to her was the final nail in the coffin. The Mandalorian stood in place, rigid at what Odile had blatantly confessed to her. Swallowing, all he could manage was.
"I'm sorry."
No sound came from behind the closed door, and he sighed to himself. Moving closer, he soon turned around and sat against the door. Looking up, he began again.
"I'm not good at this, if you couldn't tell." He tried to add in humor but continued when he didn't hear her laugh. "I've just…never had to deal with anything like this."
"What," she asked. "kids or being a fugitive?"
He chuckled, shaking his head. "Both, so I guess you'd say I got lucky. I'm sorry again, you know, for…everything." He treaded lightly. "And you were right, I knew they were all bad ideas, but I still did them; and I knew I should've said something when Mayfeld and Xi'an were pestering you, I was just…" He paused, trying to find a word.
"Stupid?"
Again, he chuckled. "Yeah, stupid."
His chest felt lighter when he heard a small, muffled giggle come from behind him. Then, it was followed by more silence until he heard murmuring. Turning around he asked. "What?"
"I said I can't stop crying." She sounded tired at first, but her voice quickly picked up speed and strain. "I-I hate it, I can't do anything about it! I-I know you're annoyed and-and I'm sorry, but I can't stop. I tried!"
Even if the door was separating them, the unmistakable sounds of muffled sobs reached his ears. Still looking at the door, he spoke up.
"Odile…Odile, you're not a burden." He said. "I've lost count of how many years I've been doing this job, and I've seen so many things. But you…I don't know if I'll ever understand the things that have happened to you, or the things you saw…but, just know I don't think any less of you."
He turned his head back to stare at the empty space in front of him. A few more moments passed by in silence.
Then, he felt his back lean against the edge of the bed when the doors opened. Looking up, he saw the Little One scoot off the mattress, and plop down right next to him. She stared ahead at the space in front of them, and, after a few seconds, he turned his gaze away from her, and back to the space.
"He blindfolded me when he cut my hair."
The Mandalorian glanced back down at her, surprised to hear her talk about what must have been her worst memory. Yet, he said nothing.
"I-I had a teacher back on Naboo." She explained. "She lived in the swamp, and she taught me how to…you know, move stuff without touching it. She says that our minds try to fill in empty spaces, so I think that's why I see different people if I ever have dreams about it."
Odile brought her legs up to her chest, hugging them gently. "Mama, my friend Lavinia, and I were going to the ponds to bathe early. We…we heard this laughing, and my mother immediately told us to run. We did, but then I heard her scream…" She fell silent as if she could remember like it was only yesterday. "I left Lavinia and ran back to my mother. They caught us and forced us onto the ship. There were two girls that were mama's age, an old woman, and three men. I asked mama where the bad people were taking us, and she said that they were taking us to be sold as slaves. I…I remember some of the pirates teasing us, mostly me and my mama and the old lady, and then…and then…"
Just as the Mandalorian was going to step in, she put on a brave face and continued.
"They pulled me into a room, blindfolded me, and I felt them pull on my hair. I tried running away, but they kept holding me down, and then I felt hair fall onto my face as they began cutting it. I…I don't remember a lot of it, I-I just know that they dragged me out of the room and back to the cells. I remember my mother's face was sad when she looked at me, and I began crying. The old woman instantly made me a head scarf, and I wore it."
Soon, as if it felt like second nature to the both of them, Odile rested her head on his shoulder, feeling tired.
"My mother had me when she was eighteen, and still a sister. I-I've always known she hated the Trichonom. Some of my aunties said she tried anything to be exiled. She also has red hair, and the elders were more than okay if she carried it on to her children or grandchildren. She had me start dancing when I was six, and everyone knows how much Naboo loves the arts, so she thought that was our way out; you know, traveling with a company, performing everywhere for nights on end…I started taking lessons from a teacher outside of the Triconom, and when she told the elders I could start traveling when I was thirteen, they said 'We don't want girls like that.' So...I had to quit, and take lessons from a teacher apart of the Trichonom."
The Mandalorian waited for her to keep going, but she didn't. He looked down at her and saw her dozing off as she rested her head on his shoulder. Tenderly, he shook her a little, and she was awake, leaning away from him.
He began. "You're brave, you know that?"
Odile shrugged, her eyes still heavy. He tilted his head to the side and then stood up. He held his hand out to her, and she took it as he said.
"It's been a long few days, I think you should-."
"-I can sleep in the cockpit." She finished for him.
Legitimately perplexed at her statement, he said. "Your neck might feel weird in the seats."
She shrugged. "I don't want to be alone."
The Mandalorian swallowed, feeling his chest tighten just at the look of pure sorrow and tiredness in her eyes. He nodded.
"Of course."
And so, the two climbed up the ladder, and sat in their respective areas. Even after a few minutes of peaceful silence, the Little One's voice soon perked his ears up.
"Can I call you Mandi?"
The bounty hunter turned in his seat to look at the half-asleep girl. "Huh?"
"I can't just call you 'The Mandalorian' all the time, and the group called you 'Mando', and I don't like them; so, I think 'Mandi's nice. I know it's a girl's name but-."
"-No, I like it." He answered honestly and without missing a beat.
A tiny smile pulled onto Odile's lips, and she scooted herself more into the seat. "Okay, I like it too. Goodnight, Mandi."
"'Night." Was all he answered with politely.
As Odile shut her eyes, and felt the escape of sleep nagging at her, she wished and hoped the man was smiling under his helmet.
Hey guys! Happy new year!
Sooooo, I'm just trying to keep this year positive with everything still kinda going on, but it's going pretty okay for me!
This chapter was kind of a monster to write, and I sincerely hope I did Odile and Mandi justice when writing the little "Breakthrough/Confession" moment. I have a lot of more, exciting stuff planned for the future, and I can't believe I'm nearly done with season 1!
Few fun facts about this chapter:
1) When watching the show, my sister and I forgot that his name was 'Din', so we just started calling him 'Mandi' and it honestly stuck.
2) Odile's freaky force control of others' bodies was inspired by the art of bloodbending in Avatar: the Last Airbender. It's honestly one of the best shows I have ever watched, and it has a lot of Star Wars elements, and was coincidentally worked on by Dave Filoni as well.