Kyrimorut
He stood back watching her, looking so much like her mother. She was obviously pregnant now, with his grandchild.
He had a family, a bloodline despite himself.
And despite himself he was drawn to her, to know her better. It was a fine line that he was walking and kept asking himself why.
He was Mandalorian, Aliit had nothing to to do with blood and yet, here he was drawn to her again.
The older she got the more she resembled her Mother; then the occasional expression that reminded him of his own Mother, when he was young, before she distanced herself with her religious zealotry, leaving him to the hands of his father.
I wonder if the Null has told her.
The Null had to know about me, my family, the lengths they would go to, so he could take the necessary precautions. The kaminoans had made them loyal, to a fault sometimes but she would be safe. N12 would protect her with his life.
Unlike me.
.
Ryssa was in her calm place, despite the chill in the air.
The headache had come back again, which she put down to the party they were having to celebrate Omega's safe return. Kal was so happy. She was happy for them.
Eyes closed, she breathed in for five, held it for five and breathed out for five until she heard the crunch of boots in the gravel.
"It can feel a little intense in there, on occasion." A cultured voice commented; she started and opened her eyes turning to face the owner, not the person she had expected, when she heard the crunch.
The house was full, everyone celebrating and the Tihaar flowed. Rav brought a whole case over with Ruu and Cov to meet more of her brothers. Niner and Darman never moved from Kad's side and Rede, the new boy. He was subdued; he didn't seem to know what to make of it all.
Vau rarely spoke to her, she didn't think, it was a bit hazy at times. He had been off planet for a period since she came back but he found Sev, with A'den's help. In return for a favour he had given when A'den was searching for her. The last time she thought was when he had said some things after Umbara and again when he helped her on Coruscant with the Falleen after Tod died.
That surprised her.
"It's stuffy and hot in there, so I needed some fresh air but why are you here? I didn't think you were someone who makes small talk." She huffed.
"Would you believe I can make small talk with the best of them when needed, producing just as much hot air."
She raised an eyebrow.
"So what do you want with me?" She asked. "Small talk is fine." She looked at him before continuing, "Anything else and I've had enough for today. I'm tired, my feet ache, I have indigestion and a headache." She took a breath.
He sat to one side of her with a sardonic smile on his face.
So like her Mother.
"I wanted to say, thank you, for what you did for Sev back on Triple Zero, a couple of years ago." his voice articulate and patrician.
"You knew?"
"Of course. I knew. I trained them. I knew everything."
She couldn't believe that this was the Vau they all talked about, the one Sev was so scared of failing, which is why she treated him when she did.
"Have you heard anything from Sev yet?" She asked gently.
"Not yet." He said, quietly. "He didn't have to go back to Kashyyk but he was drawn. He could have stayed here and found something else to do but it's not in him. He is what I made him, a soldier, a fighter but I'm proud of him all the same. He survived, now I need to find his brothers."
"Did you tell him you were proud of him?"
His silence, she took as a no.
They both sat quietly watching the ripples in the pond, until Ryssa felt the need to break the silence.
"He's …..intense." She commented.
"He's a sniper, a loner. Only mixed with his squad. I trained my squads to be the best. They were the best of the best." Vau paused, "He appreciated your expertise."
"He liked me?" She asked, smiling and remembering his comments as she treated him. Satisfaction washed over her that she could now access that memory. She found that part of her recovery getting better.
"Appreciated your expertise." Confirmed Vau.
"Yeah, I suppose he did." Ryssa replied, they both went quiet again.
"I need to ask you something."
"Me?"
"Mij and Uthan are busy but I'd like an autopsy done on the Clone I brought back. What's been changed in him physically."
"Just because I can't operate any more, doesn't mean I need you to find me work."
"I thought you may like a challenge, instead of just sitting around."
The thought did appeal to her.
His hand reached out to the gold neck chain she wore and lifted it slightly away from her neck, rubbing it gently between his fingers. It brought back some unwanted memories and he had enough of those.
She gently pulled it back out of his fingers. "It was my Mothers, thank you."
"I know I saw her wear it."
Why had he said that?
He gave it to her; he was younger at that time, less world weary, more human until the galaxy finally removed the last trace of that.
"You saw her? You knew my Mother?"
Ryssa's heart leapt; perhaps he could answer some questions that her Mother never did.
"I did, a while back, an amazing woman." He watched as his daughter leaned forward, seemingly eager for more information.
He paused again waiting for her to say something, she didn't.
"In fact, I saw you a few times, the last time you had your hair in braids and your nose in a datapad."
True but she did not see him.
Still no reaction, so he continued. "You were a serious child."
He stopped again, waiting for a reaction, there had to be one. Perhaps not, he didn't know what her relationship with her mother was at the end but the message had said they were together and she wore the necklace, so it meant something to her.
Ryssa stared at him; she had so many questions now but where to begin.
"How well did you know her? When was it?"
Shab! Just like her mother, thinking through her moves.
"Very well." Vau answered, then continued, "She was one of a handful of aruetii women, I had time for, a great deal of time."
"When? What was she like?"
"Before Kamino." He was being deliberately vague about the timing, "She was beautiful and intelligent, an intoxicating blend, she could also match my arrogance and cope with it." He remembered with a smile.
It wasn't really what Ryssa wanted to know. She already knew parts of that.
They sat in silence for several minutes, until Vau moved to get up from the seat; she put her hand on his.
He looked at it, then her.
"You look a lot like her, except for the hair and that—." He started to say something and then realised who the hair reminded him of. Just like my mother. "— is nothing like hers."
Ryssa brushed her hair back with her fingers; it was growing again, "I always assumed I inherited it from my Father. Did she say who he is or was?"
"No!"
He regretted having to leave her but she had wanted more from him, more than he could ever give. It would never have worked. Then things got complicated by Jango and he never really went back after that; he finally ended up on Kamino for years. It was his choice.
Nobody had ever mentioned Vau having any relationships; they all thought he was a cold unfeeling shabuir. Especially after the way he treated his Clone cadets. His argument was he did that, so they would survive, and most did.
Ryssa remembered some of the men her Mother entertained; they were all a certain type, highly intelligent, masters in their fields, whatever it was. It was always about their minds with her Mother. So, she could not ever imagine her with Vau, although she supposed he was a master in his field of violence and he would have been quite handsome when he was younger and was a super fit soldier. He also sounded well educated, not originally from Mandalore she surmised, so it could have been possible.
"I don't remember you." She replied.
"Hah!" He barked out a laugh. "So much for that. It's the first time I've been told I'm not memorable."
She smiled, he didn't seem that bad and he helped her in the past. "So, how long were you with my Mother."
Vau looked thoughtful for a few seconds before replying. "Off and on for a few years." He paused here and looked, past Ryssa into the distance, eyes almost glazed over, as he retrieved some memory.
"I told you what I wanted and if you weren't going to provide it, I would find a way."
"So you went elsewhere?"
It wasn't supposed to come out as it sounded—jealous.
The flat hand slap across his face answered his question, and stung; if she hadn't been his lover and someone he respected and had a modicum of feelings for she'd be dead by now but all he'd done was grab her wrist to stop the next one.
She glared at him.
He stared at the test results. He had not been back for over a year. A lot had happened in the meantime.
"I didn't."
"But you planned this!"
"She's yours, and you know it but if you're showing this little interest, just don't bother, keep away! I can raise her myself. I don't need your help."
Her anger made her Coruscanti accent more pronounced, more dismissive; it always did with every argument. She had told him what she wanted but he had made an assumption; the wrong one.
He never replied, the decision was made.
He walked out knowing that he could never have a family; it was for the best. He had no good parental experience to draw on to bring to a family, apart from when he was adopted by a Mandalorian.
They would be better off alone— safer.
He walked out as two sets of eyes watched him, the Mother and the Daughter. He hadn't wanted the child to overhear the argument. That she wasn't wanted.
Then came Jango's call which he couldn't refuse, not this time and Kamino.
"Vau?"
He realised she was watching him even more closely now; her eyes brought back memories.
"Call me Walon."
"Okay Walon."
He anticipated she was going to ask the question he had been expecting for the last few minutes.
"Are you sure my Mother never told you who my father was?" She asked.
"No," he lied. "Your Mother never mentioned him."
Nobody else would ever know she was his daughter, not while his bastard of a father was still alive or any of his sycophantic relatives, who would do anything to stay in his good books. She nor any of her children, would ever be safe from his Father, if he publicly acknowledged her.
Shab!
.
Ryssa heard A'den come into the bedroom, she quickly put the glove she was examining in the bedside cabinet. She should have returned it, as soon as she found it but now the longer she held onto it the more difficult it was to return it to its owner.
She turned to face him, as the bed sank under his weight. She could smell the Tihaar on his breath,as he leaned over to kiss her.
"Cyar'ika, you never came back to the celebrations. Are you okay?"
"Yes, fine. I was getting too hot. Another pregnancy thing." She smiled, turning towards him.
"It's a small price."
"It is."
"I thought it was another headache." he tucked a stray lick of hair behind her ear.
"It was at first but it soon went when I had some fresh air. I feel fine now but I had a very odd conversation with Vau."
"Vau?" A'den leaned towards her, wondering what the older man had been saying.
"He's asked me to autopsy the body he brought back."
"Are you going to do it?"
"Yes. I can take my time, even sit down if I wish. It'll be something different."
"Okay." he said flatly.
She recognised his 'not happy about this voice. "It's my decision not yours."
"I know, I just—"
"Worry?"
"Yes."
"I'll be careful."
"I know you will."
"He said something else. He said knew my mother and talked about her. I thought, for a second, he knew who my father was but he said he doesn't know."
"Father?"
"Yes. I still can't believe my mother was with him. Would I be like my father? His character. That's not governed by genes is it? You're like Kal."
"Thank you. I like to think so." She threw the sheets back.
"Did he ever say anything to you, when you worked together?"
"No!" He lied and pulled her back to lean on him, resting his hand under her belly. He felt a kick and smiled, imagining how big his son was now. He memorised everything about the gestation period and he remembered the growth jars on Kamino but his son was squashed into his wife's body, growing. It was truly amazing how the human body coped with that, the Mothers internal organs moving to accommodate the growing baby.
"Vau! He's not exactly likeable."
A'den huffed, "That's an understatement."
"My father left my mother alone to have me and raise me. I don't like that."
"Perhaps there were reasons your father didn't stay. Perhaps he died." He leaned around and kissed the side of her neck.
"No! She said she called him when we were on Hypori."
This was one memory she hadn't lost.
She fidgeted in his arms and winced.
"You okay?"
"Yes. He's dancing on my hips tonight."
He moved her further down the bed, "Better?"
"Yes."
She held out her hands, looking at them, they trembled still; there had been no further improvement.
"What if this gets worse or moves to other parts of my body, so I can't look after him?"
"It won't." he took her hands in his and kissed her knucles. Every part of her was precious to him. "Everyone has checked you out."
"But—"
"If anything happens, we'll cope. I'd scour the galaxy to find someone to help you but you'll be fine. Now where were we?"
He turned her face towards his and kissed her lips, smiling as she twisted towards him and her arms reached around him, struggling to meet and getting even less around him now, due to her belly. Her legs tangled with his pulling him closer to her.
"So— how are we going to manage this?" He asked huskily, hands resting protectively on her belly.
"I'll leave that to your imagination." She whispered, pushing herself up to throw a leg over him to straddle him.
He laughed and pulled her across him.
"Oh, I don't know. I think you've already got it pretty much covered."
He held her steady, as she laughed; she hadn't done much recently and it was good to hear. More brothers were coming back and that prompted this; they had all relaxed a little when Omega finally came home.
He watched her as she leaned down to kiss him, her fingers reaching into the tight curls of his now longer than regulation hair. But he didn't mind that; he could decide to do whatever he wanted to do with his hair, just as many of the regs had done more recently. Even going so far as to grow beards. He had done that as part of missions.
He felt the familiar sensation in his lower stomach, as he became more and more aroused by touch of his wife; no longer a desperate physical need but an urge to please her, something natural that no one could ever take away from them.
He slid his hands slowly up her sides to her breasts, stopping to sweep his thumbs once across her nipples, already hard. She moaned into his mouth at his touch; they were even more sensitive than normal.
"Don't stop." She whispered, before kissing him again, harder; there was a part of him that liked her taking control—sometimes. He obeyed that order and was rewarded with more moans, as she ground down on him.
He searched for the bottom of her top, kissing her at the same time, until he pulled away from her enough to drag her top over her head. She sat back as his hands reached for her breasts, fuller than normal due to the pregnancy.
"You like them this big, don't you?" She gasped as he slowly ran the palm of his hands across her nipples, several times.
"Not gonna lie!" He grinned, mesmerised by them and watching her reactions.
He was fascinated with the changes in her body and was still attracted to her; he'd read about how some pregnant females libido's increased and he was reaping the benefits here.
She stopped moving, eyes closed and biting her bottom lip. He gently twisted her so he was now above her.
"Better?"
She nodded and reached for him, stroked his growing erection just as he liked it; his head dropped forward, unable to stop his own low moans, as his arousal increased, building up — he stopped her.
"Better leave that for later," he whispered in her ear, then slowly kissed his way down her body, feeling the tension mount in her as he paid particular attention to her breasts. He felt her lean forward towards him, gripping his shoulders tightly.
He teased one nipple with his teeth as he kneaded the soft flesh of the other before swapping around; she arched into him, gasping as she pushed her breasts towards him, squirming underneath his body, orgasmed before dropping back to the bed. He noted that had never happened before she was pregnant and he wasn't done with her yet.
He kissed his way down past her swollen stomach, as she regained her breath, unable to argue with him, finally reaching her and kissing gently along her inner thighs, desperately keeping himself under control.
"Den!" She cried out, as he used his mouth on her, holdng her down until she came again
He slid off the bed, pulling her towards him, grabbing her a pillow to lean on and holding her thighs, he positioned himself and pushed in slowly; he watched her throw back her head in yet more pleasure, before propping herself up in her elbows and watching him, eyelids fluttering in pleasure.
He never thought he would say this but the sight of her pleasure, increased his and despite his efforts at control, his thrusts became erratic and he came with a groan, holding himself above her, panting hard.
Ryssa leaned upwards and kissed him, arms reaching around his neck pulling him closer; he let himself gently down and rolled to one side. She followed him.
.
Ryssa turned to one side and watched as her husband walked to the fresher; his hair longer than it had ever been with specs of white in places but his muscles still well defined on his back, butt and legs. Not like when he came back from missions, when he hadn't eaten or hydrated properly in days and they were too prominent with veins standing out; the memories of those days on Coruscant with the waiting and the worry, came back to her. From a Doctor's point of view he looked unhealthy, post mission. Now he was healthy and relaxed, as much as they could be, being on the Empire's hit list.
She often wondered how he ever decided on her because she knew he had made the decision to pursue her.
"I know you're watching me." A'den said, as he stopped at the fresher door.
She huffed.
"Seen enough, Cyar'ika?"
"No. Never."
He guffawed, "Right answer." and disappeared into the fresher.
She smiled at his reply and leaned over, pulled open the drawer and looked at the black leatheris glove in her bedside cabinet, while she waited for him to finish.
There was a memory just out of reach; something that Vau had said triggered it but she couldn't retrieve it.
"I'll deal with that tomorrow." She murmured.