"Explain it to me."
"You sound awfully interested."
"I'm curious."
"You're treading into unorthodox territory now, General."
Her visitors still didn't know about Kylo Ren. Raina was going to try and keep that to herself for as long as possible. Tigani and Nami followed the conversation, heads bobbing in the direction of each voice when it contributed. Breakfast time as usual was opened with a fresh debate over the packed caf table; pastries, meat, eggs, tea, caf, toast. The Commander spared nothing.
"Perhaps if I understand it, I can tell you why you do it and I don't." Hux replied with something akin to a small shrug or the closest thing he would allow himself to it. He was still quite regimented weeks after his arrival though he had loosened somewhat and become more comfortable. It seemed a Republican base wasn't as smothering as he thought it would be. He had Raina to blame (or thank) for that.
"I know why I do it." The blonde responded coolly, tea in hand as per usual while the General remained faithful to his usual cup of black caf, no milk or sugar. Hux had become accustomed to Raina's usual morning attire (or lack of it) though he had convinced himself that wasn't the reason he enjoyed dining with her. "The fact is, General, we're all animals. Advanced animals, yes, but animals nonetheless. And as animals, we have instincts-"
"Animal instincts to breed are usually based on procreation, not pleasure." Hux interjected teasingly as he unashamedly plucked a pastry from the platter in front of him and wet his mouth for it with another sip of scolding caf. On Starkiller and Finalizer, he made a point of eating alone. It minimized the chances of being seen to be weak or to take pleasure in something; to be human. However, he had broken that habit since arriving on Andala.
"There are certain species that do. Humans being one." Raina argued as she set her cup down momentarily and broke a nuna sausage in two. One half was handed down to Tigani and the other to Nami who both gratefully accepted but would no doubt come looking for more. Her tea was reclaimed after that. "I do it because I enjoy it. I find it helps me focus and helps me cope-"
"Are you saying you can't cope with your command without copious amounts of sex?" Hux arched an eyebrow from over the rim of his cup and felt the tug of a smirk on his lip in response to Raina's look of playful offence; he'd gotten quite good at relaying her humour. Even if the last word did taste funny in his mouth. He finished his pastry before he continued. "Because if you are, Commander, you're not as capable as I thought you were."
"And when was the last time you dipped your wick, General?" Raina was pointed but just as impish as the original question in an attempt to turn it on him; whether she'd get a truthful answer, she doubted it but it was possible. "Ten years? Twenty? How much crust is your wife going to have to chip away on your wedding night?"
The General borderline choked on his mouthful of caf but managed to swallow it before allowing a huff of laughter to escape. She was certainly special; no one else would dare broach that subject but it seemed she was braver and brighter than any of the few he'd shared his company with before. And to think; if they had met in different circumstances a few months previous, they would most definitely have tried to exterminate each other.
"You and I both know marriage wouldn't suit me." Hux retorted but the amusement echoed through it; from the establishment of these conversations, they were never taken seriously, merely banter over breakfast. "My position is far too important to be disrupted by a wife and fatherhood."
"And yet; here you are, sitting on your ass, eating my food and doing nothing." Raina replied, thoroughly delighting in the conversation. "I would have thought it was expected of you? Marriage? Fatherhood? Passing on those magnificent genes of yours?" And he did have magnificent genes.
"The same as it would have been expected of you." He countered, skirting the question slightly but he figured she wouldn't let him get away with it. Another pastry was chosen with care and a sampling bite was taken; his approval was voiced in a small groan of contentment. "Marriage, children which would no doubt mean relinquishing your command."
"Well, that's not going to happen. And as you've rightly pointed out, I can't have both. So I'm not going to." Raina bent to the pressure from either side of her chair and broke another nuna sausage in half, passing each one to the Vornskr. "I've worked too damn hard to be where I am and it's not going to change for me to be shipped off to some backwater planet to be bred when some asshole has the chance. Not happening."
Hux had never really assessed the gender roles. Yes, there were women in command; most notably General Organa and of course, his fascination that was Commander Raina Von. Both were worthy examples but it never occurred to him that some of these women would regard marriage and having a family with disdain, even dread; that having a career was a more appealing option. Then again, his experience was limited. His mother had always been subservient and docile to his father, she had never complained about her role but it seemed Raina was constantly teaching him.
"Which brings us back to our original conversation." Raina sounded far more upbeat as the bottom of her cup met the table for the umpteenth time but on this occasion it was to shovel eggs onto a side plate for herself. "Screwing your staff: The best of both worlds."
"Yes but how do you do that without having them underestimate you when they've seen you in such an intimate and exposing light? How do you stop them expecting special treatment and such?" Once again, Hux rolled his eyes but keeping in with the light-heartedness of the conversation. His teeth sank into his pastry so he was almost halfway through it and already, he was eyeing another. His questions were justified. While the idea had never appealed to him but it interested him to learn how Raina kept the balance, which she did.
"Keep it separate." Raina shrugged, she was far more comfortable with the action than Hux had been earlier in the conversation. Simply because she could admit she was wrong when need be or had no trouble confessing when she didn't know something. Unlike the General who strove for perfection. "Alright, you've been around the base with me. Which ones have I slept with? Just from observing?"
"I don't know, Raina." The alien territory meant he said that expression a lot more now, Finalizer and Starkiller were comfort zones he didn't have anymore. He finished the pastry and snatched the one he had been eyeing before the blonde could get to it first. He knew the names purely from listening but couldn't pinpoint any extra tell-tale signs of who she had been involved with and who she hadn't.
"Of course you don't." Raina explained, pausing her fork to answer. "Because we're professional about it. Keep business and pleasure separate. No special treatment and if they start looking for it, dump that one and move onto the next one. It's not that difficult. I'm telling you, if you tried it you wouldn't be wound round so tight."
"Dare I ask what you're talking about?" Vida had joined them at last, cutting off Hux as he was about to protest and claim he wasn't 'wound round so tight'. The knowing smirk exchanged across the table advised Phasma she was probably better off not knowing but of course, her little cousin pushed on regardless.
"Sex with colleagues." Raina answered with a nonchalant tilt of her head to observe Vida's expression which had turned sour with almost scorn. As usual, the taller blonde took her seat on the sofa beside Hux, poured herself tea then helped herself to nuna sausage and eggs though didn't notice when the Vornskr shifted expectantly. "It seems it wasn't as popular on Starkiller or Finalizer as it is here."
"We do our jobs and follow our orders." Vida replied bitterly before biting into a piece of toast with enough egg on it to compose a mouthful. Hux chuckled quietly from beside her though Vida ignored him; her General and her cousin had gotten too close to ignore. In fact, Phasma couldn't be sure they weren't having a secret dalliance. However, Vida should have known Raina well enough to know that if there was indeed a dalliance that it wouldn't have been a secret.
"And I don't? Neither do my base staff?" The friendly discussion with the General had been just that: Friendly. Even Hux could see Vida's virtual disgust for the topic and had it been a serious debate, he would probably have felt similar. But little was serious with Raina; her cousin's reaction seemed to have offended her. "What violations do you see on my base? What codes of conduct do you not see upheld? Do tell me, Vida so I can have it followed up."
Phasma didn't answer. What could she say? Raina's base was pristinely run. The unorthodox practices were kept behind closed doors and off duty hours; from the outside looking in, there were no abuses of power (if one could call it that) going on. Aside of course from the three First Order fugitives seeking refuge illegally on the base.
"How is Kylo Ren?" Phasma changed the subject and palmed her cup of tea to warm her hands. "We've heard nothing since last week." Raina's stomach dropped. She'd been hoping to avoid this for as long as possible but if she lied, it would only be a matter of time before they found out.
"Well, the thing is….. Kylo Ren is gone." The clinking of cups, plates and cutlery silenced immediately while Raina tried to remain as casual as possible. The only thing to be heard were the warning swishes of Tigani and Nami's poisonous tails when they sensed the significant shift in the already tense atmosphere. They were ready to pounce and it didn't matter on whom.
"Gone." Hux repeated, dumbfounded or as close to it as he would allow himself to get. "Gone, do you mean dead?"
"No, he's very much alive." Raina wasn't outnumbered but she didn't want to fight these people. "But he's gone from the base; he's now in Resistance custody."
"Resistance?!" Vida yelped, wide-eyed as her plate went tumbling from her lap without her notice. One would expect Tigani and Nami to leap forward and hoover it up but they stayed loyally by their mistress should she need them. "How?!"
"I handed him over a few days ago-"
"But-!"
"At his own request." The First Order pair stared at her, open-mouthed and almost betrayed. "I gave him the option of going home and he took it."
"HOME?!" Hux exploded and Raina responded with a simple arched eyebrow in his direction. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN HOME?!"
Raina's head tilted in the opposite direction and poised her face as if she was about to say something but changed her mind. Instead, she shifted in her seat and heightened herself as much as she could (it wasn't much) but it lent itself to the intimidation she had nonetheless.
"You do know who Kylo Ren is, right?" Again, they just stared at her but with more curiosity than before. "Kylo Ren….." Raina cleared her throat and the Vornskr seemed to relax though the anger still radiated from the redhead. "His real name is Ben Organa Solo." She didn't take pleasure in watching Vida and Hux whiten in the faces but there was a small taint of satisfaction about it. "He's the son of General Leia Organa and Han Solo so…. I repaid my debt."
"Your debt?!" Hux seethed having regained his fury rather than just sitting there, slack jawed. "Your debt?! We needed him to-"
"I don't think you realize-" Raina cut him off sharply and cleanly with a venom they hadn't really seen since the arrived all those weeks ago. "That you've lost. Starkiller is gone. Kylo Ren is gone. The whole fucking galaxy is looking for both your hides! And I am at great personal risk, not to mention my career, just by having you here!"
No argument met her's. Phasma and Hux exchanged a defeated but outraged glance, as if one was silently asking the other if they had a plan. It appeared neither of them did. Raina sat back in her chair and looked between them as if daring one or the other to rise to her challenge. Neither of them did.
"The First Order is gone." Raina continued with a little more sympathy than when she'd started. "It's over. Finalizer has been stormed and those on board have been arrested, anyone who resisted was killed. I don't know what that means for Snoke but I can only imagine that when Kylo Ren is fully healed that he will be sought out and executed."
"What does that mean for us?" Vida asked quietly when the reality sunk in. There was little gain in blaming Raina. She had to protect herself and they'd known that when they arrived. "What do we do?"
"I think it's best advised if you stay here for a while." Raina suggested though she didn't sound too sure. "Let things die down. I doubt Ren will turn you over and General Organa doesn't know you're here." The blonde patted her palms against her lap almost in finality then got up. "I'm going to get changed. I'll let you discuss your options among yourselves."