Last On: Ben and Rey were invited to a mysterious village on Calabria. Rey puts on the Dress, while Ben is suspicious of the invite.
Chapter 11
The village was small, with homes built from timber and stone. There was a well built in the center of town and gas streetlamps. Red ribbons were tied to every surface imaginable. The people there all seemed to be cheerful and smiled at the new arrivals as they walked into the square.
"Well, it is a village, and I don't see signs of a trap. How about you take your hand off your lightsaber and greet someone with a smile," whispered Rey. Ben's hand relaxed by his side, but he didn't smile.
Just then a man walked up and reached out a hand to Rey. He was a tall human, with a complexion similar to Finn's.
"I wouldn't!" shouted Ben, as he put his hand up to block Rey. His other hand was back on his lightsaber and a scowl was on his face.
The man's face broke in a smile, and he moved his hands to reveal a ribbon. "Greetings on this Amans 'Dies, may I tie a ribbon to the lady's arm." Indeed, they looked around and the women present all had a red ribbon tied to their left forearm. Ben took the ribbon from the man, and turned to Rey. He looked into her eyes, seeming to ask for permission. She turned her arm to him, and he wrapped it around her arm, tying it with a firm knot.
Then he turned back to the man, but he seemed to have disappeared into the crowds as quickly as he came. They walked further, and Rey noticed that a lot of the people seemed to be looking at them. Not staring, exactly, but quick glances aimed at nothing in particular seemed to gravitate towards them.
Ben must have noticed something too, because as they walked down the street, he moved his arm around Rey's opposite side. "Don't," she warned him before he made contact. And he pulled back to a merely protective distance as he eyed the crowd suspiciously. He stopped by what looked like a shop front and motioned for Rey to step inside.
Rey looked at the goods displayed in the shop. There was never much of a market on Jakku. Occasionally another trader would set up his shop, but Unkar Plutt's goons quickly drove them out of town. A couple of times she tried to trade with them, but they only traded in credits, and once they were driven off, their credits were worthless. Unkar Plutt saw it that way. And you can't eat a credit, can you? At this store there were more goods available than were ever available on Jakku. Though the shop was small, it was seemingly packed with items.
Ben paid little attention to the goods, and went straight to the shopkeeper. "Merry Amans 'Dies, and welcome to my shop," the shopkeeper greeted.
Ben nodded a greeting at the shopkeeper. "I'm looking for a ship part. An engine Cole-Noss Hub."
"I'm sorry, we don't have anything like that here," the shopkeeper answered.
"I have reason to believe one will be made available soon. And I will pay handsomely for it," said Ben.
"Even so, I doubt that it would be sold here. The people don't buy any technology here. We live simple lives. But if I do hear anything, I will find you. They call me Jinn," the shopkeeper said as he offered a hand to Ben. "Amans 'Dies is as good a time as any to visit. While you are here, try the inn, just down the street. Has the best food around. Is there an Amans 'Dies gift I can get for your lady."
Ben felt flustered at first, but then a whisper from the logical part of his brain said it would be convenient to just let them think you're a couple to avoid issues. After all, it's more normal for couples to travel together than uncoupled pairings. When he looked over at Rey, she was examining a hair care set, with a hairbrush, a few colorful clips, an intricately carved mirror.
"Perhaps she'd like a flower, for her hair," Jinn suggested.
"How much for the hair kit?" Ben asked. The fact that this gift had an obvious function made him feel more secure choosing it, though he still feared she'd reject it, as she rejected him on the supremacy.
Rey, however, accepted the gift gladly. She smiled when he handed it to her, and carried it in it's small bag as a lady carries a purse.
When the shopkeeper mentioned his price, Ben gave him the numbers to his account, which the shopkeeper wrote down with an old-fashioned paper and pencil. Before they left, he thought to ask how he planned to cash in, without any technology in their village, but he didn't want to cause any issues with the dealer clearly willing to accept payment. 'Maybe such technologies are secret here. Better not upset the natural course of things.' He thought.
When they walked into the inn, Ben leaned over and whispered to Rey, "Go over there, and ask if anyone is selling ship parts." Then he walked the other direction to a bar where several men were seated.
Rey did as he suggested. She approached a man at a service desk and said "Excuse me."
Before he turned around, a young boy came up behind her and tugged at her dress. He had a round face with blond hair and he was about ten years old.
"Hi," sad the boy.
"What are you doing!" said the man behind the desk, who'd finally turned around.
"Helping." said the boy with a confrontational tone to his voice.
"Go upstairs and get your older brother," said the man.
"He's busy," said the boy. Then he turned to Rey and said, "You won't find anyone around here selling ship parts." Rey's mouth dropped. "I heard you when you came in with your boyfriend." He started to walk away, and Rey followed him.
"Ah, he's not..." Rey started.
"But he tied your arm. This is Amans 'Dies." When he said this, Rey blushed, and the boy smiled even bigger. "You can sit here, this is the best table. My name is Ani."
"Making friends?" Ben said, as he approached.
"This is Ani. He was telling me we won't find any ships parts here."
Ani tilted his head to the side, "Doesn't she look like an Angel, in that pretty dress?" he looked up at Ben, expecting an answer.
"Uh, yeah, she does," Ben responded.
"You are too sweet," Rey smiled at the boy.
"And what has my bumptious boy, here been telling you." The man who was behind the counter approached in a server's apron. It was hard to catch, but he seemed to glare at Ani.
"Oh, he's been nothing but kind."
"Go," He says, looking at the boy. Young Ani obeyed. Then he said, "My name is Ben."
Rey's eyes reacted and she looked into Ben's eyes. "Another Ben."
"It's a common name," Ben said.
"May I get you something to eat? The house special, perhaps." Ben the server said.
Ben nodded, and the server left. "Have you seen anything, suspicious?" Ben asked.
"No?" Rey didn't know why he was asking.
"Like, perhaps how those two men on that rooftop," Ben pointed out a window, "keep returning to hammer the same tile of roof. Or perhaps how they all stop talking the second you approach, and smile at you like they're expecting a show?" Ben persisted.
"I think you're a poor looser. These people are nice, and you're just seeing things," Rey said.
Ben rolled his eyes, then said, "I did learn something from their feeble attempts at small talk. There is an old junkyard, from when this place used to take in tourists, east of here. It is a long shot, but..."
"It might have what we're looking for," Rey finished.
Suddenly the server Ben came back. He had a full meal on his trays, more than anyone else seemed to be eating. He also had two empty wineglasses, for which he apologized. "I'm sorry, but today we are bring your own on the drinks. If you have your own, I'd be happy to open it for you."
Ben looked over at the pleased face of Rey, who was eyeing the choices of food presented to her. He then nodded to the server and pulled out the bottle from his bag. The server poured their glasses, then left the table. Rey didn't notice the exchange.
Ben enjoyed the food, but he enjoyed watching Rey enjoy the meal even more. She ate more than he'd seen any woman her size eat. Each new food she'd try seemed to be a whole new experience for her. Some tastes she'd wrinkle her nose at, and he thought the expression was cute. Others she'd roll her eyes back and lick her lips wanting more.
Except for a haunting suspicion creeping up his spine, he would say he had a pleasant meal. What exactly caused his suspicions was hard to nail down. There were little things, like the men working on the roof. The fact that everyone was eating, even though he never saw the server bring out food for them. Yet if he brought it up again with Rey, he knew she'd dismiss him as being petty.
When they were almost finished eating, Rey pulled out the small mirror from her bag of supplies, and used it to wipe her hair behind her ears. While she looked in the mirror, she concentrated her eyes, and then looked up at Ben with a worried expression on her face. She turned the mirror to him and asked, "What do you see?"
Ben looked closely at it, worried that there may be a crack in the mirror lens, but he saw no noticeable flaw. He looked back at her for more information, and she turned the mirror slightly. He looked again, and saw an empty table. More, and he saw an empty bar. Then Ben turned around and saw that the room was definitely not empty. His eyes reflected the worry in hers. "Put this away," Ben said. Then he got up and looked around for an exit.
There was a man with a fiddle, playing badly, though no one seemed bothered. He kept circling their table in his course around the room. There was also Ben, the server, who seemed to be tending behind the inn's main desk. Every few minutes he'd turn around and put mail into slots behind the desk. Ben reached for Rey. Her hand became stiff to his grasp, but she did not pull away. Ben timed it so they bolted for the door wile the server was busy, and while the fiddle player was on the other side of the room. One of the patrons stood up as they were running, but they didn't stop.
Outside, the village seemed to be quiet. Villagers were standing around, quietly talking. Then one of them looked up and saw Ben and Rey. Suddenly the village activity increased, and the people started walking in and out of buildings and around the square again. Then a man, the one who first approached Rey with the ribbon, broke from the group and started walking towards them.
"Run," Ben shouted, and Rey didn't object. She just Ran.
"Wait," shouted the man, but Rey and Ben were not stopping.
They did stop panting about a mile away. "Still think they're nice?" Ben poked.
"No. I used to hear stories about men without reflections. It's said they're undead bloodsuckers. Do you think that's what they were?" asked Rey.
"I heard those stories too. And I don't care to find out," replied Ben.
"They WHAT!" shouted Luke. "This is a complete Disaster."
"Now, I don't think it was a complete waist of time," said Anakin. "We don't know why they left yet, but they did leave together."
"If you had stayed on script, you were supposed to be a young man, not a child."
"Children tend to stimulate the maternal instincts and encourage reproduction."
Oh, you and your grandchildren again! We're not doing this to make babies, we're doing this to save Ben. I know what sent them running, it was your 'You look like an Angel,'" said Luke.
"Hey, I'll have you know, I used that line on your mother," Anakin said.
Luke made a gross face, and shook his head at Anakin. "I did not need to know that!"
When I went to Google Translate and typed in Lover's Day, Amans 'Dies was the Latin translation. I thought I found gold.
