Author's Note: Sorry for the delay, life has been kicking my ass more than usual. I've also been splitting my time between writing another fanfic because I am a menace who cannot stay on track. Anyways, I edited this chapter in one sitting so I apologize for any mistakes I just wanted to get this out as soon as possible. Hope you guys enjoy!

The silence was almost violent as it descended upon the valley, amplified by the fading sun and the shadows that came along with it.

The Mandalorian twisted the knife in the creatures neck as I stood there dumbly, holding the kid protectively against my chest. He was still breathing, his chest falling deep and even.

I couldn't make sense of what had happened. My mind was spinning painfully and I felt almost dizzy.

The harsh breaths of Mando cut through the silence as he limped towards me covered head to toe in a thick coat of mud, sparks flying from his chest plate.

"Is he okay?"

Following his line of sight, I stared down at the small green bundle in my arms.

"I- I don't know." I sucked in a harsh breath of air that did nothing to steady my heart. "He seems to be sleeping."

Mando didn't reply, he just stared, his breathing labored.

We were both confused it seemed.

It was good to know he had no idea what had happened either, if he had let me watch over a magical child with no warning I would have been more than a little grumpy.

"I need to get the egg." The Mandalorian announced suddenly, breaking the tension that had settled around us both.

"Right. Yes. The egg." I stuttered the sentences with a grimace.

Fucking Jawas.

Turning on his heel, he limped off towards the den of the creature that lay dead several feet away. Looking at the Mudhorn caused a weight of sadness to settle into my heart. She had just been trying to be a good mother, she wanted to protect her home and her egg.. And she lost all of it and her life.

Sucking in another harsh breath of air I shook my head, no, no, no. I can't think like that, I can't - when the Mudhorn seemed like it was going to win.. when I thought Mando was going to die... ugh!

Fuck, was his life always like this? Was this just an average day to him? My brain hurt, and I wasn't even the one that had been knocked around like a child's doll.

He seemed so calm, as if it hadn't almost been him dead at my feet.

Caressing the ear of the baby that lay sleeping in my arms, I worried my lip. If it hadn't been for him...

I shook my head.

We were all alive, that's what mattered.

Maker, I had wanted adventure.. and I sure got it. This had been one of those 'be careful what you wish for' moments.

The Mandalorian emerged from the cave, treading mud and clutching a huge and oddly hairy egg to his side.

I wanted to ask him if he was alright or if we needed to sit a moment, but his determined pace told me everything I needed to know.

Reaching to tap his vambrace at an awkward angle I was surprised when the pram started floating towards us. It was dented and the top was bent at a sharp angle. It definitely wasn't safe for the kid, but at least we could easily bring it back with us for me to fix.

The walk uphill was definitely worse than the journey downhill had been, and it wasn't just because my legs burned with each step.

The loose dirt stuck to the sticky mud of my boots, making me feel heavier, I couldn't imagine how Mando must be feeling.

He was filthy, and his cape alone had to weigh three times what it had before. How strong was this guy?

I chose to not ask any questions this time.

As we crested the hill, Kuiil and the sandcrawler came into view - the sandcrawler that looked like it was about to leave.

They thought we had failed, those little-

"Mando! Jax!" Kuiil waved, his demeanor brightening as he relaxed, relief showing clear on his face.

There was no way I was telling him what happened. Well, at least not the part about Mando nearly dying, I didn't even want to think about it let alone talk about it. Would the kid and I have escaped after that? Could we have outrun the Mudhorn?

No. Stop it.

The mudhorn is dead, and we are all alive. There is no use in dabbling with 'what-ifs'.

Inhaling deeply, I ducked my head to avoid the sun's rays. It was brighter up here, brighter than it had been down in the Mudhorn's domain. The sun had seemed lower, more muted, eclipsed by the bowl shape of the valley and darkened by the mud.

Clutching the kid a little tighter to my chest I released another tired breath. When was this long-ass day going to end?

I fell asleep shortly after we had set off back towards the moisture farm. It was a tight fit in the cargo sled with all of the stolen pieces of Mando's ship strapped down. But the exhaustion and stress of the day wore heavily at my body and mind, I probably could have fallen asleep cuddling with the damned Jawas with how haggard I felt.

Tucked back against the storage crate Mando sat upon once again, I laid onto my side, wrapped around the still sleeping child that had saved our lives.

Kuiil's voice saying my name is what woke me up. Night had come, leaving me nearly blind to my surroundings. The child was still nestled and unconscious against my chest. I could only hope he was okay. He didn't have any visible injuries, but who knew if anything internal had happened. I was no expert on magic, let alone magic babies.

I frowned as I sat up and looked around. I could make out the outline of a ship with the moonlight providing limited light for my straining eyes. I must have slept the entire journey back to the Mandalorian's ship.

Kuiil was still standing at the side of the cargo sled as I worked the lingering fog of sleep out of my brain. Once I felt more alert, he reached out handing me my light which I immediately flicked on.

"We need your help." He gestured over to the ship. "It will go much faster with you."

I nodded my head.

Turning to look down at the green kid I had moved to my lap, I moved to take off my protective poncho. Setting it down to the side, I folded it up until it made a makeshift bed. I still needed to fix his pram at some point before Mando left, I doubted his ship was baby proofed.

With one last lingering look, I covered his small body carefully and climbed off the sled, glow light in hand.

Moving closer to the Mandalorian and his ship, I was thankful it was warmer tonight and unlikely to rain again. Rain didn't often strike this planet twice in a short period.

Taking in Mando's back, I couldn't help but fixate on just how broad he looked, especially cast in shadows. He was fixated on the ship in front of him and I realized that this wasn't just a ship to him, it was his home. Probably his only home. Bounty Hunters would have to be on the move a lot considering their profession, It was unlikely that he had a home planet to return to, especially with Mandalore in ruins.

Turning my attention away from his form, I finally took in the ship in front of me. I couldn't help the gasp of excitement as I took several steps closer with my light.

"A Razor Crest?!"

I hurried forward, excited to get a closer look. I had only ever seen pictures of these before but their design had always been one of my favorites. I couldn't believe I was going to get to work on one. If it wasn't for the time constraint we were on I would have preferred to work on it alone. Not that I doubted Mando or Kuiil's skill, but I wanted to see every single inch of the ship. I wanted to map the hull with my hands and re-organize every wire and - shaking my head I pulled myself back to the situation at hand.

Shooting a glance behind me at the Mandalorian I noticed he was staring at me again, his helmet tipped to the side, as if he was curious about something..

"Where are your tools?" I wasn't about to waste any time, I was anxious to get started.

A bigger light flicked on behind the Mandalorian and I was thankful we had more light than my small one. I really needed to make some work lights for myself eventually. I'd work on that after the Mandalorian left.. that would be a good project to lose myself in, a distraction I would no doubt need.

The repairs took the better part of the night, none of us took any breaks. The kid slept on, unbothered by the noise going on around him. The work kept my mind and hands busy, kept me from thinking too much about the kid's condition. It was amazing how fast I had grown to care about the little guy.

I had caught the Mandalorian on several occasions checking in on him as well. It seemed I wasn't the only one that cared about the little bundle and I couldn't help but wonder just how long the child had been in the Bounty Hunter's care.

With how little he seemed to know about the child, I doubted they had been together very long. Which meant that the Mandalorian had fallen prey to him just as fast as I had. With how cute he was, I shouldn't have been surprised. I couldn't imagine many people not falling in love with his little face.

With a sigh, I stepped back from the Razor Crest to observe her in all her glory. She was still beat up, she needed more intensive repairs than I had the time for. She needed new parts too, that was for damn certain, but she would fly. I was almost sad we had finished, the likelihood that I would get to work on another ship let alone one like this was highly unlikely.

Mando led the way onto the ship with Kuiil and I following close behind.

I knew she would fly, but I could see the tension in the Mandalorian's shoulders. He was uncertain and worried. I could understand why though, even if I knew better. After all, if she didn't, he'd be stuck on this planet same as me.

A shit outcome.

Part way through the night, when all of the parts had been pulled from the sled I forced myself onto a different task. As much as I wanted to keep my hands on the Razor Crest the entire time, I had set aside some time to fix the pram. I hadn't made an changes to it, just made it child-friendly once again. Hopefully the little dude got an upgrade at some point. That thing was ancient, almost eerily so. And that wasn't a compliment either, the Razor crest was old, but it was a masterpiece. That pram? No.

With all of us in the cockpit, Kuiil and Mando focused on seeing if everything worked while I carefully set the kid in his pram once more. Tucked back into his old blanket instead of my poncho that I had been forced to put back on a bit ago as the sun rose further into the sky.

Turning, I heard the first engine power on and couldn't help but smile.

The second one powered on and I grinned.

I felt accomplished and energized, more so than I had been in a very long time.

And then a new feeling settled into my stomach.

It was done. The adventure was over.

I frowned at myself, I was being stupid. Life would go back to normal, I would still have Kuiil and the moisture farm and there would be no more Mudhorns trying to impale me.

Swallowing thickly, I shook my head, willing the disappointment to leave me. Turning, I took one last look at the kid, he was still in a deep sleep and I was sad that I wouldn't get to see his big eyes before they left. I wouldn't even get to know if he ever woke up.

Reaching towards him, I slowly rubbed my wrapped fingers over his ear.

"Take care little guy."

Forcing myself not to linger any longer, I was the first to climb down from the cockpit, heading to the side entrance of the ship, stopping just before the side hatch to wait for Kuiil.

They joined me moments later, and I suddenly found the side of the hull very interesting.

"I can't thank the both of you enough." The Mandalorian spoke, he was angled to face both Kuiil who I was all but hiding behind. "Please allow me to give you a portion of the reward."

Moving my eyes away from the hull of the ship, I glanced over at him once more, surprised by the offer. But I knew neither I or Kuiil were going to accept. Kuuil because that was just how he was. And me? I had no use for credits or anything of the like anymore, and working on the Razor Crest had been payment enough for me. A chance of a lifetime.

"We cannot accept." Kuiil spoke for the both of us, and I nodded my head in agreement. "You are my guest and I am therefore in your service." Kuiil continued.

Moving closer to the ramp, Kuiil started making sure the other two bags of supplies he had packed were ready to go for travel.

The Mandalorian stepped almost hesitantly in between the both of us standing on either side of the entryway.

"You know.. I could use crew members of your abilities." His helmet looked between the two of us slowly and I felt my heart pick up pace. "I can pay handsomely." He finished.

Before my thoughts could go further, Kuiil turned to the Bounty Hunter.

"I am honored, but I have worked a lifetime to finally be free of servitude."

Kuiil paused.

"Jax will go with you." It wasn't a question, it was a statement. And a firm one at that. He spoke strong and sure and I was floored.

"What?"

The words tumbled out of my mouth in shock. I knew that Kuiil would decline, he wanted nothing more than to be here on Arvala-7 with his moisture farm. He wanted for nothing else but a simple life and I couldn't blame him, not after what he had told me of his past.

I had resigned myself to the same. I wasn't going anywhere, I couldn't possibly leave Kuiil behind, not after all that he had done for me. He had become my friend, and as much as I hated this planet.. this was the best place for me to be.

Both Kuiil and The Mandalorian turned to look at me and I felt my face flush under the stare of both of them.

"This life is not meant for you." Kuiil explained gently. "You are meant for more. You will do better with this Mandalorian."

I felt dizzy almost, my brain was struggling to catch up with his words. I couldn't leave. I just couldn't. I had been dropped on this planet for a reason. This was my purgatory, a place to live out my days in peace. Somewhere far away from.. them.

I opened my mouth to argue but he beat me to it.

"I have spoken."

I closed my mouth, the words dying on my tongue.

He had said the words I couldn't argue with. There was no arguing with him when he said that. But could I really leave with Mando? It couldn't possibly be safe, there was so much more risk being out in the open.. but he was constantly moving wasn't he? This is a Pre-Empire ship.. It's a ghost. It's off the Imperial and New Republic's networks.

I bit my lip and turned to glance up at the Mandalorian. He was watching me, observing me I realized. Waiting for a reaction, an answer, anything other than my silence. Did he even want me to go with or was he just being polite?

And then there was the matter of my interest in him.. Close quarters might make that worse. But on the other hand there was also the child, I could stay with him too, I could take care of him.

I would also have unlimited access to the Razor Crest.

Hope bubbled in my chest.

Turning back to Kuiil, I sighed.

"I don't even have my stuff." I explained.

Kuiil reached out, holding one of the bags he had packed in his hand. I furrowed my eyebrows and took it, looking inside.

All of my clothes and specialty tools were packed inside.

With wide eyes, I looked at Kuiil once again.

"How did you know I would need my stuff?"

Kuiil raised those serious bushy eyebrows of his, staring me down.

Swallowing thickly, I realized there was no really deciding here. Kuiil had made up his mind and honestly, why would I turn this down?

I could make this work, I would be careful. We would constantly be on the move with him Bounty Hunting, it might even be safer that way. There was no guarantee they wouldn't find me here eventually. It was a gamble either way.

I nodded at Kuiil, turning my gaze to look up at the Mandalorian in front of me.

"Are you sure?"

He inclined his head in confirmation, giving no words.

I nodded. "Okay."

Both of us turned to Kuiil.

"I offer my thanks." The Mandalorian spoke first.

"And I offer mine. Thank you for bringing peace to my valley, and for giving Jax the chance at a life she deserves."

I swallowed thickly, touched by how much he cared. There was only one other person that had showed me that much care in my entire life, and he was gone.

"Thank you, for everything." I told him, clutching the pack tighter in my hands. He seemed to contemplate something for a moment before he took a step towards me.

"Trust him."

My eyes widened as I startled, I didn't have to ask him what he meant, Kuiil didn't know my whole story, but he knew what I was. And he knew how hard I guarded that secret. To tell me in such simple terms that he trusted the Mandalorian and that I should too..

He nodded his head after a moment, turning and heading down the ramp to mount his Blurrg, he offered his arm up in a wave.

"And good luck with the child, both of you." He glanced once more at me, a look of farewell. "I have spoken."

And then he was gone, and the hatch doors were closing.