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what2watch2night · 1 year

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What To Watch Tonight - The 2022 Series Edition

What a year! Some might complain we had more choices (too much?!) than ever but if this means we have the opportunity to watch a wide range of projects representing a diversity of people and genres, who are we to whine about something that does no wrong? Well, I guess this was also the year of FOMO and goodbyes since so many shows ended or got canceled… So we might as well enjoy the abundance of choices of series, miniseries, and other “made-for-TV” while we can as the future might look a little less generous.

So let’s celebrate and reminisce about some of those we liked this past year that brought us unadulterated joy when we needed it, got us SO emotionally invested and EMOTIONAL, pleasantly occupied our time in the background while maybe-doing-some-light-activity;), they were perfect for when we were bored/sick/relaxing/avoiding “extreme weather events” inside, they were here for us when we needed some fun cheering or a change of perspective, taught us a thing a two, and definitely entertained us to the max - and pluses and beyond!

BEST OF THE BEST

*best of 2022 out of around 150 selected shows…

ANDOR

10/10⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐

Well, this is definitely one of those rare flawless shows.

Sure it helps that this was one of this year's STAR WARS series and prequel to *The best* film ROGUE ONE and manage to keep the same unsettling, exhilarating, grounded yet powerful same vibe, and that intensity hitting at the perfect moment.

And of course, it was visual marvel bringing multiple Best episodes of the year(the end of that first Adani blinding bringing us to the sky, the INTENSE final, to the escape from Alcatraz Narkina 5... )

This show excelled in every aspect from banging sound and score (they introduced house music, and a marching band with RE-INVENTED INSTRUMENTS so people could lose losing their minds on Twitter accordingly) We also had as expected incredible special and practical effects, grandiose scenes, and a production design that makes you want to go back to some scene to appreciate all the little details and easter-egg in the background. On top of that, the costumes were probably some of the best ever seen in the series, from the space-chic cocktail dresses to the fashionable impeccable authoritarian uniform, or the creative outfit with wild fabrics and edgy elements, the out-of-this-world yet looking realistic and practical enough that we can just picture ourselves casually wearing them... Enough to say that every single cast member, including extras, was making some serious fashion statement!

ANDOR got it all but obviously the storytelling and direction thanks to CREATOR Tony Gilroy back from ROGUE ONE and all other formidable collaborators and crews, but last but not least the pitch-perfect cast - including the secondary characters - delivered “Oscar-winning” monologues after monologues from the like of Stellan Skarsgård, Genevieve O'Reilly, Fiona Shaw, Andy Serkis... With so many quotable lines combo best deliveries… and timing... “Never more than 12”...

HOUSE OF DRAGONS

9.5/10⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐

Ah yes, the BIGGEST show of the year that hopefully, everyone watched religiously every year.

This GAME OF THRONE prequel might have outdone itself despite being focused on fewer (non-male) characters, stories, and locations. Yet the feeling of returning to something we all cherished was incomparable. Much virtual ink has been spilled on this one so we do not need to tell you how everyone in the cast deserves laurels for best performance, or how some DRAMATIC scenes (mostly involving swords and/or blood) stayed with us long after the episodes aired, or how the tales transported us to Westorosi lands and made us google way too many nonsenses about GOT “history” or fam-theories and so forth...

But part of its charm was also undoubtedly the post-watch parties on social media with all the reactions and memes - so many memes - for years to come!

ATLANTA

9.75/10⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐

What a time to be alive indeed! This is what we told ourselves at the end of each episode (scenes!) of this last season of ATLANTA. The show we will definitely miss the most forever.

Sure last season was…A TRIP (to casually racist EUROPE lol!) but each entry of season 4 was wild wild rides unlike anything else out there and switched between styles, genres, and storylines...

But most importantly ATLANTA not only brought us the most incredible episode of the year but maybe the best ever with 'The Goof Who Sat by the Door'!

To talk about it would be to spoil the reason why it is so perfect but let's say every intrigued viewer was bewildered from the first second, jaws dropped to the floor, and we kept asking ourselves "WTF I am watching right now!"

(then probably followed by multiple “Oh Sh!!!!!iiittttt”!)

This was simply the most genuinely hilarious Brilliant and perfectly executed mockumentary or anything we had the pleasure to screen in 2022. So was ATLANTA as a whole.

It was a little touch of magic, fun, nostalgia, and philosophy every week, making us think and rethink various concepts and ourselves and we will now forever wonder if it was all real or a dream, and we are left with memories AND so many questions left unanswered ...

BETTER CALL SAUL

9/10⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐

Another show we had to bid a sad sad farewell to... and this one hurts really bad since it was so bittersweet and many of us “grew up”(at any stage of life!) with those characters for more than 10 years…

This show, although using formulas from its sequel/prequel BREAKING BAD reinvented the wheel and was groundbreaking in its own way, with perfect editing, musical cue, props and costumes, entertaining writing, menacing characters, relatable deeply flawed (murderous/criminal) individuals topped by shenanigans and mindblowing plotting with accompanied montages that will forever be seared in our brain.

We will miss Saul and all the beautifully executed scams by some of the most oddly bonkerz characters and we will miss the underrated Rhea Seehorn and all the other actors with their tour-de-force performances...

EUPHORIA

8.5/10⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐

Ha yes, it had to be here as not only was it a grandiose season but it was definitely one of the buzziest show/pop culture events of the year (with HOD) Returning for a second season even more unbelievable in every way than its predecessor. The show managed to be even CRAZIER and more bold, with incredible chases (mostly while high), tense dramatic scenes worthy of the most dramatic drama, uncomfortable yet powerful meltdowns, and crises, and important moments appropriate for teens, YA, and adults of all ages alike, hilarious youngster shenanigans (also while high), but also a full-on high-school Broadway production basically recapping the show…Very meta!

EUPHORIA aesthetic is surely here to stay representing a very distinct period of our era but its appeal is wider as it is equally style and substance. It is the sort of immersive show that makes you want to tune in every week! (Yes it would have been the most binged show if it was avail in full tho!)

Now, not sure how they can top all the coming-of-age/adulting foolish beguiling nonsense, and that rebellious teenage spirit attitude next!

RESERVATION DOGS

8.75/10⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐

We talked about this show last year but this is another case of sophomore season topping it up while staying authentic and fresh.

RESERVATION DOGS is one of those rare shows managing to be a true dramedy, with scenes that will make you chuckle non-stop and others that will make you want to ball out... Sadly, it took so long for this sort of show to be on our screens but anyone can see that the uniqueness of the narratives offered has such a universal appeal.

Powerful scenes delivered by a cast that “live “ their characters, bleeding facts into great storytelling sublimed by the perfect wicked sense of humor and a heavy dose of surrealism, this is our kind of show!

*Although we had a few projects with a strong indigenous presence this year we can only hope this will become the norm.

PACHINKO

8.75/10⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐

An epic tale about a Korean family fighting for its survival and success generation after generation. This series spanning decades set in Korea during the Japanese occupation, then in Japan, is a feat of cinematography and certainly a masterpiece.

Every episode looked like an Oscar-winning best picture, it was crafted with so much care and all actors elevated the already sweeping and potent material to new heights.

PACHINKO was a cinephile treat like no other...

THE BEAR

7.5/10⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Imagine the intensity of BOILING POINT in a series that you can binge in one go because you did not know any better!

THE BEAR made everyone who worked in the restaurant/hospitality industry justice, but also made some of us so glad we are not part of this special gratifying yet hellish work environment!

Despite being low-key and quite short it manages to bring the heat and make a mighty impact.

PEAKY BLINDERS

8/10⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Another show we wish we did not have to say goodbye to but hey at least we got a movie coming our way!

The aesthetic, the mood, the brooding, the FACKING AMAZING cast, the costume, the scenery, the sets, the darkness of it all... It haunted our screen masterfully

FIVE DAYS AT MEMORIAL

8.25/10⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A mini-series not for the faint-of-heart but of the utmost importance. Some might say it was too soon, but we can appreciate it even more now, particularly after these few years of pandemic and climate-change-related catastrophes. This show about helpers and all its heartbreaking complications is not one to overlook.

(Also not to overlook the incredible FX work and chaos of the set recreation of flooding)

THIS IS GOING TO HURT

7.75/10⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Would make for the most miserable double-watch if coupled with the previous, but this show is indeed one that'll hurt you if you care about the state of the healthcare system, may it be in the UK or elsewhere as it says a lot about societies and nowadays life at large.

FOR ALL MANKIND 7.4/10⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

We slept on this show for wayyy too long but for every space fan, history fan out there this will be the most fascinating show.

WESTWORLD 7.5/10⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I guess we also have to say goodbye to WESTWORLD. Despite the many changes and twists no other show will ever be able to replicate the viewing experience and effect, it had on so many...

Other must-watch and honorable series:

FLEISHMAN IS IN TROUBLE

ONLY MURDER IN THE BUILDING

UNDER THE BANNER OF HEAVEN

LITTLE AMERICA

INDUSTRY

OBI-WAN KENOBI

IRMA VEP

THE CROWN

RAMY

THE ENGLISH

SEVERANCE

HANDMAID'S TALE

RINGS OF POWER

MOON KNIGHT

THE WHITE LOTUS

WE OWN THIS CITY

SHINING GIRLS

BLACK BIRD

DARK WIND

DHAMER

WEDNESDAY

RUSSIAN DOLL

ARCHIVE 81

SHANTARAM

(with special mentions to the entertaining and must-watch show about the villainous “visionaries” and such disturbed individual

WE CRASHED

THE DROPOUT

INVENTING ANNA

PAM & TOMMY

SUPER PUMPED

CHIPPENDALES

PHYSICAL

SERPENT QUEEN

THE OFFER

*BONUS soundtrack of the series year

The White Lotus Opening theme - the remix

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hellothere-generalangsty · 2 years

Note

I just wanted to drop in and say thank you so much for your kind tags and compliments on my post! I really appreciate your thoughtful words, they really mean a lot to me, and I really appreciate that compassionate effort.

I wanted to respond in turn by sending some positivity your way, and just saying thank you so much for being so supportive, from my Ailani posts to my discussions on racism, you’re always there offering support, and that really means a lot to me. Your kindness is very very valuable and important and always appreciated!! I admire that strength and dedication to compassion!

In addition, you are super insightful and I’ve enjoyed seeing your Andor episode analyses, you’ve got great thoughts and ideas and I really enjoy hearing them. And I revisit your Begged and Borrowed Time comments multiple times a day, your insight and careful consideration is just honoring and incredible. It really lifts me up and inspires me, thank you so much.

I’m so thankful for your constant kindness, I’m so inspired by that show of care!

Thank you so much!

You had me tearing up here I hu...I don't know when was the last time someone said something so kind to me. I am holding your message close to my heart and it really. It really means a lot to me. I've read it like five or six times now really thank you.

I'm glad to hear that my support helps you, and I'm very grateful for your attention. I'm always trying to be kind, and to be a safe person for people to be around you know, and I'm always so nervous about being clumsy or doing something wrong, so your message is really comforting and very welcomed.

You reading my comments multiple times a day is one of the best compliment ever like- I don't have the words to express how happy it makes me, and I'm very honoured to hear that it inspires you and lifts you up. I'm on school break in like two days so I'll be able to catch up with the few chapters I haven't read yet (really looking forward to it) so you're probably going to see me reblog a lot of Ailani posts in the coming days krkrkrkrlr

As for Andor, I didn't think you were reading my posts so that's a nice surprise fozjfozjdoz I just finished episode 8 so once you'll have watched it you can always scroll here and see what I'm writing about it - feel free to tell me what you thought of it too, I always love to see your takes and opinions on the episodes as well!

Again, thank you so so much for this message, it really made my day 💙 thank you for being so kind and amazing and for taking the time to send some positivity!

#thank you thank you thank you #and if you ever want to talk more about Andor or if you need to talk to someone or anything reallt #you know I'm here #no pressure - you do what feels best for you what makes you comfortable - but yeah I'm here if you ever need anything <3 #💙

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ruby-red-inky-blue · 3 years

Note

Rebelcaptain #6!! (or #1)

ooooh thanks for giving me the whackiest option (whenever you sent this one in *lol*)

Reasons why you should #1: Acorns not getting any cheaper

[Read on Ao3]

"Remind me what we're doing here?" Cassian asks, stiffly repositioning his legs into what he hopes to be a slightly more comfortable position. The result leaves a lot to be desired.

Jyn rolls her eyes at him in a get over yourself kind of way, because obviously a derelict tree stand in the middle of the woods is a perfectly natural place for two grad students on a Sunday afternoon - in her world, anyway.

In his world, he is sitting an immigration law exam in exactly eighteen hours and thirty-five minutes, and instead of locking himself in with his textbooks like a sane law student (if such a thing exists, which is doubtful), he took a three-hour drive to sit in a forest in the ass-end of nowhere. On an incredibly uncomfortable bunch of logs nailed to a tree, and not in a fashion that he would describe as structurally sound.

Back in the day, when he was still in denial, he used to tell himself and everyone else that he was just being spontaneous. Eventually, of course, all his friends clued in on the fact that the very last thing Cassian is, or ever has been in all twenty-seven years of his life, is spontaneous, so that excuse went out the window.

Later, and only privately, he would tell himself that he was in love, and wasn't doing a bunch of really dumb shit for some girl who would never think of you like that in a million years the quintessential experience of being in your mid-twenties?

But the truth, Cassian thinks bitterly, leaning his head against the damp bark and staring at the heap of acorns across the meadow, is that he's probably just gone insane.

"No, really. Why are we here?"

“We’re watching for deer.”

“Yeah, but why?”

“Because I promised Baze before they went on their trip.”

Cassian sighs. “I mean why us?”

“’cause nobody else is gonna do it,” Jyn says with a shrug and holds out a bag of chips.

He accepts a handful and throws her a dark look. “No shit. You would think people would line up to sit on a wet instable ladder and freeze their balls off.”

She grins. “Quit acting like I forced you to come.”

She has him there. Then again, he certainly wasn’t going to make her go all the way out here on her own – this place, gorgeous though it is with the multicoloured carpet of leaves and moss and thorny evergreens, looks like the crime scene in every FBI procedural he’d ever watched, and he gets antsy about letting people he cares about drive alone at night. He’s not about to voice either of these thoughts, though; any reference to the accident would feel like emotional blackmail, and the rest just makes him sound like a possessive asshole.

He sighs. “I just mean... We couldn’t have waited for warmer weather?” Or a time when my degree doesn’t hang in the fucking balance?

Again, she shrugs. “Well, the acorns aren’t getting any cheaper.” She leans her head against the tree trunk and closes her eyes, basking in the weak rays of sunlight filtering through the branches, and he watches the curl of her lashes against her pale skin, maps out the fading freckles on her nose, and remembers that this is nowhere near the strangest thing he would agree to just to spend a few hours with her.

You’re fucking hopeless, Andor, he thinks, shaking his head at himself.

“I… I can’t argue with that.”

She blinks her eyes open and turns to look at him. “You’ll make a sorry excuse for a lawyer if that’s your limit.”

He huffs, reaches for the chips and says, in as light a tone as he can muster: “When I fail that exam tomorrow, we will never have to find out.”

Jyn rolls her eyes and starts rummaging through her backpack. “You’ll be fine. You just needed some air and sunlight, I’d go insane too if I’d lived like a damn shut-in for three weeks.” She resurfaces, brushes a stray curl out of her face with an irritated flick of the wrist, and holds out a thermos. “Here. Now stop whining about how you’re freezing your balls off, alright?”

“Coffee?” he asks hopefully, and she grins.

“Better.”

God, after all this time and in all this fucking foliage, he can’t believe he’s still this struck by her eyes, how perfectly green they are.

She hands him a steaming cup, apparently (hopefully) oblivious to his pathetic musings, and he inhales the heavenly smell of wine and orange and spices.

“See?” she says, still smiling. “Don’t say I’m not making it worth your while. And before you start, it’s mostly juice, and I’ll be driving back anyway.”

He wants to tell her she doesn’t have to bribe him with alcohol to stick around, not ever, that he’ll risk breaking his neck in a mess of wet brambles any time she wants.

He wants to kiss her. He wants to tell her.

But he just wraps his fingers more tightly around his steaming cup and says softly, nodding towards the acorn heap: “Bambi on your six.”

#my words #ask meme responses #therebelcaptainnetwork #this is the same 'verse as It's Tuesday i think #idk why it just works so well for these #also fall vibes!#(with all this talking and a crinkly bag they're never going to attract any deer but CREATIVE LICENSE)#modern au #cats and metersticks #jyn x cassian #rogue one

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kanerallels · 3 years

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May I request a Jyn and Cassian ficlet with the prompts 'princess carry' and 'pain'? *Grinning like a child asking Santa for a puppy for Christmas*

*grins back in evil author*

Pairing: Jyn Erso x Cassian Andor

Word Count: 2,525

Tags/Warnings: T rated (for too much angst for one precious boy. Kidding. It's for blood and angst)

Cassian had been working undercover missions for years now. He found them relatively easy-- slipping into another person’s skin, wearing their identity, acting like someone else. Some days, it was easier than being who he really was.

Things were different now, though. He’d usually been alone, before Jedha and the Death Star. Before he found his crew. Before Jyn.

A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth, and he glanced at his companion. Jyn strolled at his side, occasionally moving away to examine a stall or two, and was dressed in simple but warm clothing. The two of them were masquerading as a couple shopping on Hays Minor as they made their way to where their contact was waiting. Although it wasn’t as if it was all part of the mission.

Cassian didn’t know for sure how Jyn felt about him. He knew they were close. He knew that he told her things that he was barely able to admit to himself, and that he was the only one she would ever break down in front of (with the possible exception of Chirrut. But everyone could be honest with Chirrut). But they’d never really talked about anything. Barely even done anything, other than one kiss a few months before. But it had been in the name of not blowing their cover, which barely counted.

The fact was, they were both so busy. Running, hiding, fighting the Empire, collecting intelligence against them-- all of it consumed their days. It was hard to find a restful moment, and those were usually spent on sleep.

Maybe we should talk, Cassian thought as Jyn paused at a stall, pretending to admire the wares. Eventually. If we ever get the time.

But now is definitely not the time. Pushing aside the thoughts, he moved to Jyn’s side and offered her his arm. “Ready for something warm to drink?” he asked.

Flashing a wide smile that Cassian knew was fake, Jyn looped her arm through his. “I thought you’d never ask,” she said.

They made their way down the street together. As soon as they were out of earshot of the stall, Cassian said in a low voice, “Fulcrum’s agent is just down that street. She should have the intel we’re looking for.”

Jyn nodded, her expression returning to its usual focus. “Let’s get this done. I really need some rest.”

“Didn’t sleep last night again?” Cassian asked, pausing by a stall of hand-woven textiles to let an Imperial patrol go by.

Picking up a scarf, Jyn pretended to admire it as she said, “As if you did.”

She had a point there.

“Nightmares?” Jyn guessed, and a small sigh escaped Cassian’s lips.

“Always. Scarif this time.”

“Mine were on Lah’mu.”

The planet she and her family had lived on for years, before Krennic had found them. Which meant it had been a bad one. Catching sight of a stall selling hot drinks, Cassian moved over to it and pulled out a few credits, handing them to the Nikto behind it. He received two disposable cups of some kind of caf in return, and presented one to Jyn. “Best cure for it I know,” he told her.

Jyn gave him a smile, one of her real ones that he saw so rarely-- and treasured when he did. “Thanks,” she said, taking a sip. Tucking her arm around his again, she asked, “Where to next?”

“This way,” Cassian told her, moving towards an alleyway. With any luck, it would come out just in front of their contact’s house.

And it did. They stepped out of the alley and into a neighborhood of shabby houses huddled next to each other like they, too, were trying to keep warm. At the third one in the row, a squad of stormtroopers were standing, the door had been knocked off of its hinges, and Cassian froze as he saw them dragging out a Twi’lek woman.

“Tell me that’s not our contact,” Jyn said, but her voice made it clear she knew what the truth was.

Four more stormtroopers came out of the house, each dragging a victim. The first was a Twi’lek man, who looked furious and scared like his wife. But the third was a little girl, and Cassian saw the female Twi’lek lurch towards her as she was shoved to the ground and a blaster was trained on her head. Oh, no.

That was all he had time to think before Jyn was pulling away from him, her cup of caf hitting the ground and splashing everywhere.

“Jyn, wait--” Cassian cut himself off with a low curse. Pulling his blaster with one hand, he pulled the emergency beacon out of his pocket with the other and thumbed it on. They were about to need all the help they could get.

Already several steps ahead of him, Jyn didn’t hesitate. Whipping out her blaster, she shot the two troopers holding the little girl. Thankfully, they were caught off guard, and didn’t expect her to shoot two more, both of the ones holding back the Twi’lek girl’s mother. And then they reacted, lifting their blasters and pointing at Jyn.But then Cassian was there, blaster rifle blazing as he took out four of the troopers, grabbed Jyn by the arm and tugged her out of harm’s way, behind one of the other houses. Pulling away from him, Jyn hissed, “We have to get them out of there.”

“I know. One thing at a time,” Cassian said, jerking back as a blaster bolt zipped past his face. “I called in back up--”

“We don’t have time to wait for them,” Jyn said.

“I figured you’d say that,” Cassian muttered. “Fine. I’ll cover you, you go for the girl. Ready?”

Jyn pulled out her baton, opening it with a flick of her wrist as she said, “Let’s go.”

Cassian moved out from behind the house in one smooth step, lifting his blaster and firing rapidly. In the same moment, Jyn dove out of cover and charged towards the Twi’lek girl. As she ran, Cassian heard a familiar humming-- the sound of their ship’s engine. Relief swept through him as the ship zipped into view and started to move downwards, the rear hatch opening. Two figures stood there-- one wearing blue and red robes and holding a lightbow, the other wearing red armor and holding a huge repeating blaster.

But even as they moved closer, one of the stormtroopers lifted their blaster, pointing it at the little girl. Before Cassian could move, he fired-- and a blur swept past Cassian, knocking the little girl out of the way.

For a moment, Cassian had no idea what had happened. All he could see was Jyn, standing over the little girl, a hand pressed against her abdomen, looking shocked. And then blood started seeping between her fingers, and Jyn crumpled to the ground next to the girl, and it hit him. She’d taken the shot meant for the Twi’lek girl. And then Cassian was running towards her, barely even noticing the blaster fire flying past him as Baze and Chirrut took out the troopers facing them.

He crashed to his knees next to Jyn, heart pounding. Please, no. Cassian found his hands were shaking as he wrapped his hand around her arm and pulled her upright and into his arms.

Jyn’s torso was soaked in blood-- far too much blood. Her eyes were closed, and her face incredibly pale. “Come on,” Cassian muttered, yanking off his jacket and pressing it over the blaster wound. “Jyn, wake up. Wake up!”

To his relief, she stirred slightly. “Cassian?” she mumbled, and Cassian had never heard such a beautiful sound in his life.

“I’m here. I’ve got you, I’ve got you,” Cassian promised. “Hang on, Jyn.”

“The… the little girl.”

Looking up, Cassian saw Baze ushering the Twi’lek family onto the ship, with K2 and Chirrut watching his back. “She’s okay,” he promised. “I’m gonna pick you up, okay? This is gonna hurt.”

Sliding one arm beneath her legs and the other behind her shoulders, Cassian lifted her up with a grunt. A small cry slipped from between Jyn’s lips, and her fingers knotted themselves in his shirt. “It hurts.”

“I know,” Cassian murmured, settling her against his chest so her head rested on his shoulder, trying to keep his voice steady. “Stay with me. You’re gonna be okay. Just a little longer.”

The only reply was a small moan as Cassian started towards the ship. Chirrut met him halfway, a frown knitting his forehead. “What happened to her?” he demanded.

“One of the troopers shot her in the gut,” Cassian said, and how his voice didn’t break he had no idea. “Tell Baze to get his medkit.”

“He’s already there,” Chirrut told him as they boarded. The hatch hissed shut behind them, and Cassian felt the ship taking off as Chirrut led him to one of the rooms in the back of the ship, where Baze was setting up his medical supplies.

“Put her down here,” he directed without looking up, his expression grim. “Chirrut, pass me the needle and thread. Andor, get out.”

Cassian looked up from settling Jyn on the bunk. “I can’t leave her--”

“Out. You’ll only be in the way.”

“She’ll be fine,” Chirrut promised as he propelled him out of the room. “Baze and I will take good care of her. Make sure our guests are alright.”

Before Cassian could protest, the door hissed shut behind him, leaving him standing in the hallway, blood covering his hands and the front of his shirt. Jyn’s blood.

Stumbling back, Cassian’s back slammed against the wall, and he sank to the ground, burying his face in his hands. All he could see, all he could think of, over and over again, was Jyn crumpling to the ground, her pale face and stillness as she lay there.

She could have died. She could have died right there, and Cassian wouldn’t have been able to do a thing about it. Worse, she could have died before they’d talked, before he told her how he felt. It had always been true, but now it felt… real. Raw with the possibility.

My fault. I should have stopped the trooper, should have stopped Jyn, shouldn’t have taken this kriffing mission, shouldn’t have taken on a crew in the first place. Thoughts tumbled over themselves in his head, and Cassian took a shaky breath, trying to calm himself down. The smell of blood filled his nose, and he thought he might be sick.

A hand touched his shoulder, and Chirrut’s voice penetrated his haze. “Captain. She will be fine.”“How would you know?” Cassian knew he was being harsh, but the panic, the shame bubbling up inside him, was too much to handle.

“She did not die on Scarif. And you will not lose her now,” Chirrut told him with utter certainty. “The Force wills it so.”

“If I lose her--” Cassian choked on his own words, on the smell of blood filling his nose and mouth. “I can’t. I haven’t-- I shouldn’t have--”

“Sit up, and breathe, Captain,” Chirrut ordered him, his voice abnormally stern. Reluctantly, Cassian did so, facing the blind monk.

“It’s not your fault,” Chirrut said, and Cassian’s chest tightened. “It isn’t. She doesn’t need you to blame yourself. Focus on your mission. One thing at a time.”

Nodding, Cassian inhaled deeply. “Okay. I’m going to go talk to our contact. Let me know the minute anything happens, you got it?”

Chirrut nodded. “I will. Oh-- don’t forget to wash your face.”

Cassian lifted a hand to his face, realizing that he’d smeared the blood on his hands across his forehead and cheeks. “Right,” he muttered, heading for the refresher.

The next few hours seemed to drag by in a stilted blur. Cassian talked to their contact, collected the data Fulcrum needed, and started working on setting up a new place for the small family to stay. He fielded questions about Jyn, mostly by sending whoever was asking-- usually Bodhi or the Twi’lek family, who were incredibly grateful-- to Chirrut. Part of him couldn’t look at their contacts without remembering how still Jyn had been, the far too dark bloodstain on her coat.

He had no idea how he made it through that time. But finally, finally, when he was in the galley getting his fifth cup of caf that night, Chirrut reappeared. “She’s awake,” he told Cassian.

Dropping his mug, Cassian bolted out of the galley and towards the room where Jyn had been. As he arrived, the door hissed open, and Baze stepped out. Giving Cassian a nod, he said, “She’s doing fine. Just needs some rest, and according to Chirrut, some of that horrible tea.”

“Thank you,” Cassian said, not bothering to hide the desperate, grateful edge in his voice, and Baze nodded.

“Anything for her.”

Without another word, the older man headed towards the galley, and Cassian ducked into the room.

Jyn was propped up on about ten different pillows-- Cassian had no idea where they’d come from. Probably either Chirrut or Bodhi. She looked at him as he came in. “We got them out, right?” she asked.

For a minute, Cassian had no idea what she was talking about. He was so glad to see her alive and well and still breathing. There were so many things he hadn’t said that he should have, and he’d almost lost the chance. “What?”

“The family,” Jyn prompted him. “We got them out?”

“Oh-- yeah. They’re all safe,” Cassian said, moving to her side.

Exhaling in relief, Jyn said, “Good. I didn’t want to get shot for nothing.”

“Hey. Don’t joke about that,” Cassian told her. “I thought-- for a minute there--” he faltered, the memory flickering past his eyes again.

Jyn’s hand catching hold of his knocked him out of the memory, and he looked at her with surprise. “I’m safe,” she said. “You’re safe. We’re both okay.”

Nodding, Cassian said, “I know. Just… don’t do that to me again. I don’t want to lose you.”

“You won’t,” Jyn said, her gaze holding his for a long moment before she let out a cavernous yawn. “Baze gave me some kind of sedative, I think,” she mumbled, her eyelids drooping.

“Then you’d better get some sleep,” Cassian told her, starting to move towards the door reluctantly. But Jyn tightened her grasp on his hand.

“Don’t leave?” she whispered, her voice suddenly surprisingly vulnerable. “I… I’m worried about the nightmares.”

There was a good chance part of her honesty was because of the sedatives in her system. But if he didn’t have to, there was no way Cassian would leave her side. “I’ll watch over you,” he promised, settling next to her bed. “You’ll be safe with me.”

A smile crossed Jyn’s face as her eyes drifted shut. “I know,” she murmured.

Cassian watched her for a moment, then on instinct, lifted her hand and pressed a gentle kiss against the knuckles. She was home and safe. That was what mattered for now.

Tomorrow? Tomorrow was a different story entirely.

#jyn erso #cassian andor #rebelcaptain #rogue one #chirrut imwe #baze malbus #bodhi rook #k 2so #111 followers celebration #rogue one fan fic #posted on ao3 #it was dope. the end

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starfleet-jelly · 3 years

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Andorian Headcanons

Requested by: @irchocolate

Just like my last set of headcanons this has no base in canon really and just stuff that my brain creates thank you

* Andorian blood is also copper based, (I didn’t mention this in my last head canon post and I’ll probably add it to my add list but I think for Vulcans their blood has some other compound in it to make it green).

*Andorians are insectoids!

* Because Andorians live in caverns underground, the air can be a little thin at times.

* Andorians have a really high metabolism.

* Andorians are like radiators, they’re really warm! Perfect to snuggle with in the winter.

* Andorians also like to sleep in groups, it’s actually both cultural and instinctual. Because it’s so cold on Andor/Andoria sleeping together keeps anyone from freezing to death in their sleep, especially the children.

* Because Andoria/Andor is so cold Andorians have a mostly meat based diets, they have some plants that grow and they eat, but too much fiber is bad for Andorian stomachs.

* Andorians marry in groups of four or more, and the groups and consist of any combination of genders. Some Andorians marry in twos, but is rare and unusual. However, Aenar do only marry in twos.

* Because they all sleep in groups together Andorians have almost no concept of personal space. They love to be near each other. The only intimate touching is touching that is meant to be intimate and antenna touches.

* Andorians give lovers and offspring antenna kisses! Two Andorians stand close together and gently tap antenna together. It’s similar to kissing or hugs and is a display of affection.

* Andorians who aren’t well trained are horrible at hiding their true feelings, the antenna give it away! It’s a part of their body language.

* Andorian ale has a really high alcohol content, it can reach up to 80-90%. They can drink a lot of it safely because of their high metabolism.

* Shran most definitely watered down the ale he’d given Archer, no need to accidentally kill his new pink friend!

* Speaking of pink, Andorians have a very different way of seeing. They can see hundreds of more colors than humans can. Seeing more colored helped Andorians find more food in a planet that is covered in mostly white.

* They may be able to see more colors but unfortunately Andorians don’t have good eyesight. Living in caverns underground you really don’t need to see too far anyways. Their eyesight ranges at 20 / 30-20 / 70 based on a human snellen chart. (Better then my eyesight though >.>)

* Andorians keep pets too! There’s a giant beetle like creature (about half a foot to a foot long) Andorians love! They love their pets as close as family, so Archer’s love for his Beagle wouldn’t be too foreign to an Andorian.

* Andorians usually have between 1-4 children during one pregnancy. It’s more common to have 2-3 though.

* Unfortunately, during the end of the 22nd century and until the mid-23rd century a virus went around causing difficulty in pregnancy. This caused a steep decline in their population.

* Andorian bones are damn near impossible to break. They’ll sustain impact related internal bleeding well before breaking any bones.

* Andorians are really good with the cold and the heat, but obviously they prefer to be nice and cool

* Andorians are incredibly selfless, and loyal. More so to their own people than others, but if you gain an Andorian as a friend, I can guarantee you’ll have a loyal lifelong friend.

* When Andorians want to join the military they pair up and go to the surface for survival training. The surface is cold and harsh. A mild snow storm can blind anyone, only being able to see an arms length away. To pass training both Andorians must come back in an Andorian week alive. It’s a difficult test however Andorians are very motivated and with team work most are able to pass.

(This last headcanon is really iffy and I’m not sure if I like it or dislike it, the idea is interesting but I’m teetering)

* Ever wondered where Andorian silk comes from? The Andorians of course! Female Andorians can produce the silk from a gland inside their throats. This adaptation evolved to protect infant Andorians after they were born. The silk not only was strong enough to protect infants from small predators but also cold winds, and the silk had antibacterial properties that kept the child from getting sick. When the child gets bigger he will eat the silk. Childless Andorians can still produce the silk and often to do sale it intergalacticly but it is difficult to produce a lot and takes a lot of energy. This is why Andorians silk is rare and expensive.

#star trek #andorians #Andorian Headcanons #star trek shran #thy'lek shran #Andoria #Andor #Star Trek headcanons #I really love the Andorians and I will Stan til I die

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onthesandsofdreams · 4 years

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This Devotion I’d Never Known

Fandom: Rogue One Pairing: Cassian x Jyn Rating: T Summary: He watches the surprising tenderness she bears on her face, the one that the years alone didn’t break, only made her cover it up. The eagerness in which she throws herself into battle, as if she alone could atone for the sins of her father. The newly found hope she has, that hope that he knows it’s pushing her further than anything else has ever done. That indomitable spirit that’s there, that one that no one has been able to break or bend. He deep sorrow and grief that she feels when they’re told the plans are lost. The incredible relief when Leia, those who rescued her and her droid that bears the plans for the Death Star make it back to Yanvin. Words: 804 Notes: Written for Fictober-Event, prompt #12.- Watch me

Read @ AO3

Cassian has been watching Jyn since their return from Scariff. How can he not? She’s a ball of righteous anger and he, well, he is drawn to her like moth to flame. But he doesn’t mind.

He watches the surprising tenderness she bears on her face, the one that the years alone didn’t break, only made her cover it up. The eagerness in which she throws herself into battle, as if she alone could atone for the sins of her father. The newly found hope she has, that hope that he knows it’s pushing her further than anything else has ever done. That indomitable spirit that’s there, that one that no one has been able to break or bend. He deep sorrow and grief that she feels when they’re told the plans are lost. The incredible relief when Leia, those who rescued her and her droid that bears the plans for the Death Star make it back to Yanvin.

He watches the unadulterated joy that lights her face when they get news that Luke Skywalker has blown the thing to high hell.

That determination to finish what she has started. She will see the Empire crumble. And he will stand with her, all the way. He will thread paths unknown for that woman, he’s not afraid and neither is she. For they have one another. They have not spoken about it, but he knows himself and knows his feelings are not platonic in nature, neither are hers – her eyes give her away. Oddly enough, they don’t need to say it out loud; they speak in gestures and other silent ways.

He watches the rage that flares when news of a second Death Star hits. “I,” she says, vibrating with fury. “I will end those bastards. For my mom, for my dad, for you, for everyone who has suffered. For myself.”

“Jyn,” He sighs. “Jyn, you can’t fight the Empire alone. You can’t punch everyone into surrendering.”

Her face pinches. Then she relaxes, gives him a cocky look and says, “Watch me, Andor. I will.” And she walks away, to find the next mission and join it.

They battle together in Endor, and while he is busy trying not to die, he still keeps watch over Jyn. Watches the ferocity of her fights, the deadly aim she takes against the troopers. Yes, Jyn Erso is a force of nature, fortunately, it’s the Empire who gets to receive its blows. She’s unstoppable and he’s not able to look away, he knows himself enough to know, that he’d never walk away from her.

They fight until its over. And they find shelter with ewoks, Leia and Threepio have done a good thing and now they can rest easy. The second Death Star blows and Jyn cheers.

They join the party and Jyn drags him to dance, they dance and drink and celebrate. “What,” She tells him. “Did I tell you?”

He knows what she’s talking about. “That you’d fight the Empire,” he says dutifully. “And now, you’re near winning.” They know the Emperor’s dead and so is Vader. But the army remains, so do the sympathizers and the battle is not over. Neither will stop fighting until the army has surrendered, until the sympathizers have been removed from power.

Jyn nods, raises her drink. “This one’s for you mom.” She says and gulps the liquid in one go. “We’re nearly there, Cass.”

“Yes.” He agrees. Soon enough, the battles will no be physical, they might be able to retire somewhere. Wherever she chooses, he’ll follow. “Almost.”

Jyn grins, presses closer to him and says. “I’m glad I came home.”

He can’t avoid the smile that comes to his face, “I’m glad that you decided to stay.” He says. And watches, as her eyes soften and the grin she has is no longer one that would make people avoid her, instead is a kind one, one that she actually means. “And I’m glad I followed to Scariff.”

“Couldn’t have done it without you, thank you. You and the rest of the men, without Baze and Chirrut and Bodhi. I’m glad we made it out, I think the five of us have earned the peace we get.”

Oh yes, they do. He nods. “I might have to find something for me to do,” He says. “Or I’ll be lost. Too much time fighting, hardly remember anything else.”

Jyn nods, she understands. “Maybe we can find a place somewhere, some sort of business that will keep both of us busy.”

“Both of us?”

She gives him a look that says that he’s an idiot. “Of course, both. I’m not letting you go Cass. You’re stuck with me.”

He smiles. “Could think of worst fates.”

“Damn straight.” She kisses him.

And this is the sort of devotion, he'd never known.

#fictober20 #therebelcaptainnetwork #dailyrebelcaptain #RebelCaptain #cassian x jyn #cassian andor #jyn erso #rogue one fic #au: canon divergence

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coolcattime · 11 months

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Home and Free: Chapter Seven - Jordan

Characters: Captain Capsize, Sonja Firefox, Skipper Redbeard, Jordan Captainsparklez, Tucker Jericho, Tom Syndicate, Martha the Mystic, Mot Screziato, Alyssa Countybat, Waglington, Farmer Steve, Prince Andor, Jeriah, Lady Ianite (mentioned)

Relationship: Captain Capsize/Sonja Firefox, Captain Capsize/Jordan Captainsparklez (onesided)

AO3 Link

Full Story Tag

Jordan was not sulking. If there was one thing that he was certainly not doing it was sulking, because there was nothing to be sulking about. Sure, he was utterly humiliated by the woman he was meant to be marrying, and he didn’t want to see anyone because he was definitely going to be laughed at, but he was totally fine. He fired another arrow towards a target, hitting the bullseye as everyone before it had. At least one thing today was still working as it was meant to.

For once he was quite thankful for the fact that the training area was so private, as he didn’t want to see anyone right now, despite his normal desire for an audience. Even just the one pair of eyes on him right now was annoying him to no end.

“I’m not going anywhere, she humiliated me!” He said, not turning to look at Tucker who he knew was here trying to get him to leave the privacy of the training yard. Despite how he definitely wasn’t hiding or sulking, he still couldn’t believe it. She had rejected him. She rejected him! Threw him into the mud like he was some kind of animal. All that effort and she didn’t say yes. Who did she think she was embarrassing him like that? “I’m a disgrace, Tucker, mocked by the whole town!”

“Oh, come on, no one in this town would ever mock you,” Tucker said with absolutely no doubt in his mind that his words were true. While he wasn’t sure if Jordan was sullen, angry, or just embarrassed, he knew there was little reason for him to be. Sure, the proposal hadn’t gone great, but not a single person in this town was going to mock him for it. If anyone had anything to say about it, it was that Capsize was insane for rejecting him, and Capsize being strange wasn’t exactly a new conversation. Unfortunately, his attempts to persuade Jordan of this fact weren’t going anywhere. “You’re still the town’s hero, you just need to relax, have a few drinks, and remember that.”

“How will drinks help? I’ll still be the town’s laughingstock!” He said, notching another arrow and firing, the thump as it entered the target punctuating his annoyed tone. He’d been publicly rejected by the woman he was so clearly meant to be with, her stubbornness apparently knowing no bounds. How was he meant to show his face when he had failed to get the one girl he was interested in? He didn’t even understand where he was meant to go from here. He couldn’t back down, he said he was going to marry Capsize and he was, it was his destiny. He needed to continue his pursuits, making sure she does what Lady Ianite clearly wants just as much as himself, but he couldn’t let himself go through such an embarrassment again. “And what if we run into her? I don’t want to see her without a plan.”

“We won’t, she went on a walk out of town,” Tucker assured, deciding not to mention that running into her after such an event would’ve been incredibly unlikely anyway. She was hard to find at the best of times, which he was wondering now if that was an intentional avoidance as opposed to her simply being busy, there was little chance she’d be at any of the places he and Jordan frequent after today. He’d know that even if he hadn’t literally seen her walking out of town. Hearing his words did catch Jordan’s attention a little. If she was gone, he could easily spin the situation before she returned, making it far less embarrassing for him. That way no one would question his continued pursuit of her, see it as just a little bump in the road. Yes, this was the best news he could’ve gotten. He smiled, and Tucker did too, too happy at his friend showing any positive emotion to see the hints of malice in the expression. “I doubt she’ll go anywhere but home when she does head back to town. I mean, is there really any chance of her turning up at the tavern?”

“No, not with Redbeard out of town,” Jordan laughed, remembering the number of times the man had been dragged out while far too drunk by his sister. Even in those moments she still looked composed and beautiful, even when having to deal with that idiot. How the two siblings could be so close but so completely different was beyond him. It didn’t really matter anyway, he’d never have to worry about Redbeard again once he married Capsize, the man could very well act however he wanted. The fact that neither sibling would show up to remind him of the day’s failure got his mind settled. He could use some alcohol right now, not that he had sorrows to drown, it would just be easier to come up with what to do next when he felt more relaxed. He turned on his heel, with far too wide a smile for a supposedly heartbroken man. “Well, what are you waiting for? Let’s go!”

“Great!” Tucker said, happy enough that Jordan seemed to want to act more like himself that he didn’t say that, obviously, he had been waiting for him. On a better day he might point out such a thing to mildly poke fun at him, but not when he’d already had a rough day. Jordan barely waited for him, immediately striding for the exit, keeping his bow in hand and his quiver strapped to his back. If he was leaving, he wanted to do so quickly, before anyone could get the idea that he was hiding.

“Hurry up!” He called over his shoulder as he hopped the fence, right back to confidence and impatience. Tucker was barely a few steps behind, not that you’d be able to tell from the yelling. Jordan rolled his eyes as he jumped the fence a little more clumsily than he had.

The walk to the tavern was brisk, Jordan walking faster than he normally would. He wasn’t desperate to get there, but he was annoyingly cold. For once he wasn’t wearing his coat, as it was still covered in mud from Capsize shoving him into it. It better not be completely ruined, else he… well, she’d learn pretty quickly he was not the type of man you wanted to anger. Of course, he couldn’t do anything too rash, that’d ruin his chances of marriage, but he was sure there would be some way to teach her that. But, right now, he had other things to worry about.

“I swear to the gods, if anyone in there makes so much as a joke,” Jordan said with annoyance lacing his words. He didn’t want to hear anything of the sort, no matter how well natured they might claim to be. Frankly nothing about his crumbling future was funny. Tucker held back a laugh, knowing that would not be received well currently, but, well, sometimes it felt like he just didn’t know his own status in the town.

“No one’s going to make jokes, you’re like the main character of their lives,” He said, only half joking. Jordan grinned. That was the sort of thing he liked to hear. Obviously, he knew it was likely a bit of an exaggeration, but it still gave him enough of an ego boost for him to confidently throw open the doors of the tavern and stride inside.

Immediately there were eyes on him, something he was very used to and typically enjoyed. And it wasn’t as if he wasn’t enjoying it right now, but he was slightly on edge attempting to find any sign of laughter aimed towards him. He was ready to latch onto whoever tried and give them a lesson they wouldn’t forget, but it never came. That surprised him, had this happened to someone else, no one would’ve laughed harder than him. But not a single person made any noise even resembling laughter or a joke. Jordan smiled, maybe Tucker had a point.

“Next round is on me!” He shouted, met with cheers from the room. He had never felt so happy to hear that sound. How was his life this good? He obviously knew he was well-liked in the town, only a complete idiot would miss that, but he never really thought about how much that affected his life until this moment. Anyone else in town would have been left a laughingstock who had to hide themself in shame if they’d had someone react to a proposal like that, but not him. Gods, his life was great.

“See, I told you. They love you,” Tucker said, throwing an arm over his shoulder. If his words weren’t enough to let that sink in, his surroundings certainly were. There was an area set up by the fireplace for his exclusive use. Well, his and Tucker’s exclusive use as champions of the gods, but that was still a pretty exclusive club. Despite how in a time of relative peace and the gods barely being around the champions weren’t exactly doing great deeds of legends, he knew that he deserved his title. Clearly everyone else did too. And the area set up for them was nice, with three large armchairs and a low table, furniture that was arguably nicer than any of the other furniture in the place. Various hunting trophies of his decorated the place, which always gave Jordan a nice little ego boost to see.

“I suppose you can be right sometimes,” He said, his tone jovial enough, as the two sat down opposite each other. Drinks were hurried over to them, the staff not needing to take an order as they saw the two enough to know what they’d want and to know to make the drinks stronger considering the day Jordan had had. And Jordan began drinking almost immediately.

He was not drowning his sorrows. He didn’t have sorrows to drown as the whole thing was a fluke. It wasn’t as if Capsize wasn’t going to marry him, she just… didn’t want to. Admittedly that was a bit of a problem, but not nearly as big of one as the ego bruising that would happen if he needed to ask her again. He needed another way forward, for her to come around without being prompted a second time, but he had no idea how he would accomplish that. His frustration shone through as his grip on his glass was too tight, his brow furrowed.

“You know, I don’t think there’s a single guy in this town who wouldn’t want your life. Even today,” Tucker said, nursing his own drink. He genuinely meant that as, despite how they were both champions, there was something about Jordan that just drew people in. Everyone loved him, those who didn’t want to be with him instead wanted to be him. Even Tucker would admit, though not out loud and certainly not while still sober, that he himself could be jealous of all the attention the other man got. Of course, he’d never actually bring that up, it was an awful thing to think about a friend, especially when his life wasn’t bad. Just, gods, did Jordan’s seem great.

“Don’t exaggerate, no one would want to be me,” Jordan said, his tone not making it obvious that he was fishing for a compliment. It was a little subconscious as he was in a bad mood and getting an ego boost always cheered him up, but it was still fishing all the same. But seriously, who would want to be him right now? The only two Ianitees he had ever met, people sent here by the personal request of his Lady, and he’d utterly failed to win over the one that actually mattered. Sure, Redbeard liked him, but he was just a tag along and frankly there was no way that man had his Lady’s favour. It was Capsize alone that mattered. She was the one that was actually sent here, the one that his Lady so clearly wanted to meet him, but she was so needlessly stubborn about him trying to be with her. The whole situation was unbearable, he couldn’t understand how anyone could want to experience his life at this current moment. He downed the other half of his drink.

“Why wouldn’t someone? You’re the town’s hero!” Tucker raised his voice as he spoke, something noticed by Jordan, though he didn’t realise it was intentional. He wanted to get others to join in, to get him as distracted as possible from his problems by reminding him how great everyone thought he was. And he did successfully catch the attention of a few people.

“I’ve never seen a better shot than you with a bow! Think I could’ve trained my whole life and not be as good as you!” One man chimed in, lending on the back of the spare chair with his free drink in hand. He didn’t need to be bribed to compliment the town’s hero, but it certainly helped.

“Yeah, you must be the best hunter in this town’s history!” Another said, joined by a couple of cheers. Truly Jordan was a boon to the town. Obviously, he knew he was, but it never hurt to be reminded so he didn’t object.

“You’re the most handsome guy in town! I’d give anything for even a quarter of your looks.”

Similar statements were yelled through the tavern, anyone who could be heard was giving compliments to the man. The cheers and compliments filled the air of the tavern, all bringing a smile to Jordan’s face. Yes, while he may have had a bad day, he still had all his supporters. He could forget about his troubles for the night. And when he did need to figure out how to actually… persuade Capsize over to making the correct decision, well clearly, he’d have more than enough help to do so. After all, what was better to get someone listening to reason than a crowd?

🌹 🌹 🌹

Hours passed, the sun having set hours before, and the world had dipped well and truly into darkness. The tavern, however, was still lit up, full of life and cheer. Drinks were being downed far too rapidly, to the point that most of the crowd in there were drunk enough to have not noticed Jordan had stopped buying for anyone but himself a good while ago. Of course, he’d paid for a few rounds, as a little thanks for reminding him that he should be his confident self. However, the activities had long since devolved just into general drunken rowdiness. Not exactly an unusual state for the patrons of a tavern to be in, but not something he felt the need to fuel when they weren’t actively boosting his self-esteem. Still, the atmosphere was fun and carefree, something that seemed like it would be impossible to break until the doors were thrown open with a yell.

“Help! Oh gods, I need help!” The last person anyone was expecting to enter the tavern that night yelled desperately. Redbeard, who most certainly was not meant to be back in town for a number of weeks, half-stumbled into the building looking more a mess than anyone had ever seen him. He seemed to barely be managing to keep himself standing, his movement clumsy and frantic as he tried to get anyone to actually look at him. No one had any idea why this could be, though they had a very strong guess. But even Jordan had to wonder how being drunk translated to yelling like a madman. “Please, someone needs to help. She’s been imprisoned!”

“Whose been imprisoned?” Tucker asked, the first to speak above the half-worried half-amused muttering and murmuring of most other people in the building. He felt as though he already knew the answer. There was only one ‘her’ that could make him act like this, but he didn’t want that to be true. Redbeard turned upon hearing his voice, realising that his friends were here. Surely they’d help, they had to help. Attempting to move over to them was harder than it should be, as those in the tavern decided it would be fun to grab him, which wasn’t helpfully to his general distress in the current situation. Some were just watching, but they didn’t make him feel any better as despite his clear distress and confusion, they found how he was acting more entertaining than concerning, quietly laughing as he stumbled.

Jordan watched, twirling an arrow between his fingers, with a dull smile on his face. She’d actually gone off and hid. There was not a single doubt in his mind that, despite how Redbeard was acting, Capsize was perfectly fine. That after embarrassing him she had gone off to catch up to her brother and switched with him so she could be out of town for a few weeks and not have to confront what she’d done. And, of course, Redbeard was now going to spin some ridiculous tale to explain his return and her absence. Yes, it was clear to him that was what had happened. The fact that, unless something had already gone extremely wrong, there was absolutely no chance Capsize could’ve caught up to Redbeard when he’d had a day’s head start didn’t occur to him. Not to mention the fact that if she was confident in her ability to make the journey, she most certainly would’ve already been on the trip. Neither of these facts were so much a thought in his mind as Redbeard stumbled his way over. Instead, his focus was on having fun watching whatever ridiculous nonsense the man was going to spew, on seeing how far he’d take his story.

“Capsize! She’s locked in a dungeon!” He said as he reached Tucker, voice shaking from trying to keep even a semblance of calm. He took a hold of the man’s shoulders, clinging to him as if he was his only lifeline. With such close contact, it was impossible to miss that he’d clearly been crying, that his clothes were dishevelled and damaged. Jordan rolled his eyes at seeing his friend seeming to actually buy this nonsense, but he supposed not everyone could have as good a mind for spotting lies as him. “It’s all my fault. She just wanted to help me and now—now she’s—”

“Red just calm down, you’re not making any sense,” Tucker’s words made Jordan snicker. The man wasn’t going to make sense, it was clearly purposeful, and his concern for him was laughably unnecessary, so why not laugh? Tucker looked at him with brief confusion, an emotion that would’ve been shared by Redbeard if the man had been less panicked, if he was processing how people were looking at him. Jordan gave his friend a knowing smile which only confused him more. Shouldn’t he be concerned about Capsize? She must be in terrible danger if Redbeard was acting like this. But such an idea was not in Jordan’s mind.

“Please, just listen. There’s a Beast, a towering, horrible Beast, and—”

“A beast?!” Jordan said, his mocking tone lost on the other man. He’d never heard a more ridiculous notion, of a beast with the ability to imprison someone. It was a nonsensical claim that made it clear the man must’ve downed at least a bottle before bursting in. At least if he’d said ‘dragged off’ that might have been realistic. The crowd, hearing Jordan’s tone, turned to watch, quieting down a little in anticipation of what was to come.

“Yes! A Beast in a castle in the woods!” Redbeard said, his attention turned fully to Jordan. He had no idea of the man’s true intentions, that he didn’t believe his words, much less take them seriously. After all, Jordan was his friend, at least as far as he was concerned. Not to mention the man had proclaimed his love for his sister. Surely, he must want to help her. Unfortunately, Jordan had already decided what he was doing and helping was the furthest thing from it. “You can help right? You said you could hunt any animal. I don’t think I’d call it an animal, but I—I don’t know who else is going to be able to help.”

“Well, it really depends. How big is this beast?” He said, still twirling the arrow as he took a step towards the panicked man. He felt like playing, seeing how much he would say before he broke. He knew he was making things up, but he wanted to know just how far he’d go. Would he just keep saying more and more insane things, or break and admit at some point that he was making things up because Capsize was hiding in embarrassment?

“Huge! Bigger than me! Bigger than a bear!” He couldn’t tell if he was exaggerating. He could only remember through the layers of fear that stretched the true terrifying appearance of the Beast into something even worse. He could easily picture it looming taller than it did in reality, the fact it now held Capsize at its mercy only adding to the terrifying visage his mind had created. He tried to ignore the only half-stifled laughter from the onlookers, and tried to reassure himself that it didn’t matter. Jordan was listening, that was all that should matter because what he did, the rest of the town followed.

“And did it have horrible claws?” He questioned, taking another step forward to the point that he was almost too close for comfort. Redbeard was starting to feel unsure of his tone, as it sounded almost joyful in a way that it certainly shouldn’t. But Jordan didn’t care if he was being obvious, he was having fun, people were laughing. Frankly the man was a joke, he couldn’t get upset if someone took advantage of that. Perhaps he should try to hide his smirk, as to be able to keep the joke going longer, but he was enjoying himself far too much for that.

“Yes, claws and fangs…” He felt a little more hesitant, not quite trusting the look on his friend’s face. He glanced briefly towards Tucker, but he didn’t have the same concern as he did before. Of course, he was still worried, but if Jordan thought this was a joke, surely it must be. Sure, the state Redbeard was in seemed beyond anything anyone would do for a joke, but everyone else seemed to think this was funny, so maybe it was? Jordan himself was far too entertained, but he was annoyed to see the wavering. The man hesitating meant goading him was going to get less fun and he wanted to hear more about this apparent beast. “Please… please help. I don’t know who else can and… I can’t save her myself.”

“Oh, I’m sure you can’t,” He said, his voice almost dark and certainly mocking. He knew what he was doing, trying to get him to give in and follow him. He was probably going to shove him into the mud like Capsize did. Well, he wasn’t about to be humiliated for the second time today. If he thought he could play this kind of joke, well he was going to show what he thought of that. Only one person here was going to be humiliated and it wasn’t going to be Jordan. He was going to show he was on top just as he always had been. “Don’t worry, Redbeard, I’ll help you out!”

“Thank you! I can—” Redbeard’s voice froze cold as Jordan took hold of his arm in a vice grip. He tried to pull away but found the hold far too tight as he was marched towards the door. And, for the first time through his panic, he fully realised that people were laughing, that despite his words being true not a single soul in the building believed him. No one was going to help, a stark and terrifying fact only made clearer by Jordan throwing open the tavern door and shoving him to the ground outside. As he looked up more confused than anything, Jordan looked down with a smirk.

“There, you’re out! I trust you aren’t too drunk to make your own way home.”

“Wait, please, I’m not making this up! A Beast has Capsize! She needs help!” He begged, and in response Jordan laughed. He laughed harder than anyone should at the statement that the apparent love of their life needed help. Because, gods, he was really committed to keeping his sister’s whereabouts completely hidden by such a ridiculous claim. It would be a great show of loyalty if he didn’t sound pathetically insane.

“Oh, I’m sure she does. And I’m sure that once the market is over, she’ll miraculously escape and return fine as ever,” He said, to make clear he saw through this. He didn’t wait for Redbeard’s response, turning back inside and letting the doors slam. Though he didn’t actually do anything to stop him from returning inside, the resounding laughter from inside kept him out as well as any lock. No one believed him, not even the people he thought he could trust, or at the very least he thought would want to help Capsize. He felt lost, completely and utterly unsure of how to proceed if no one was going to help him. Completely drained of emotion and strength, he stumbled to his feet then towards home having no idea what he was supposed to do now.

Inside, Jordan finally feeling like himself again, returned to his chair. Another drink was handed to him as he sat down, a smile on his face. He looked to Tucker, expecting to see his friend in the same high spirits as everyone else, but instead found him frowning. Was he seriously still concerned after hearing that ridiculous story?

“Don’t look at me like that. You really believe that nonsense? If there was a castle and a beast of that sort in the woods, we’d know about it,” He said with disdain that he had to say the words at all. Sure, it was fun to listen to the man drunkenly spin tales, but there was no point in putting any thought into the reality of them.

“I know, I know, just… What if it’s a test? You know, you go out on a wild goose chase to prove you truly care about Capsize?” He was unsure, more just trying to justify the fact that he was concerned, that he wanted to go and see where Redbeard thought Capsize was. However, Jordan scoffed. As if he needed to prove his love for Capsize. Their connection was as clear as it was destined to happen. And even if she somehow didn’t know, well, he wasn’t going to do some test to prove it when she was the one constantly being stubborn about the two of them.

“No, she’s just gone to the market to hide from the embarrassing situation she created and got Redbeard to cover for her. Then that idiot came up with the idea of a beast because no one will go and check that. You’ll see, he’d probably tell us himself tomorrow,” He said, sure that the man would give up out of embarrassment in the morning. Frankly he knew Capsize loved to disappear and avoid him whenever things weren’t going her way, this was just the latest example of that. She’d be back soon enough, and this whole story would be forgotten as another ridiculous thing Redbeard had said. Which was a shame, if this beast wasn’t a fabrication from a drunken half-wit, he’d have no end of enjoyment in hunting it down.

#mianite #mianite fanfiction #cat's fanfiction #sonja firefox #sonja firefox/captain capsize #captain capsize #mianite batb au #jordan captainsparklez #tucker iijeriichoii #skipper redbeard

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self-proclaimed-chaotic-good · 4 years

Text

Falling Slowly | Cassian Andor x Reader (Oneshot)

Words: 5992

A/N: I don’t even know. I just love writing Cassian and reader being awkward messes. It was supposed to be a nice oneshot about a bubbly new recruit that’s assigned to work with Rogue One and Cassian has his reservations on them, but they prove to be really competent and they start to fall for each other. But then it grew into something else all because my brain wants to make things complicated, so it became something about letting go the past that’s keeping you from enjoying the present? So... enjoy?

Warning: Not much, just slow-burn, reader doesn’t know how feelings work

“Captain, the general has requested that we bring one of the new recruits along,” K-2SO reminded Cassian.

Bodhi’s ears perked up at that, stepping away from one of the mechanics to listen in. “New recruit?” he asked curiously.

Cassian sighed. “There has been more people siding with the Rebellion, sending in people that have no experience in warfare to help,” he said, dropping his backpack onto a bench in the U-Wing.

“You don’t look so happy about that,” Bodhi noted, earning a snort from Jyn as she walked up to the group, a bag slung over her shoulder.

“He never looks happy,” Jyn muttered to Bodhi. The pilot hid his smile with a cough, turning his attention back to the mechanics to make sure the ship was ready to go. “And when is this new recruit arriving?”

“You’re late, Jyn,” Cassian said with a frown, though when is he not frowning. “The new recruit is late. Even Chirrut and Baze were here early, and they always take their time.”

“I’m blind, not deaf,” Chirrut quipped, then added pleasantly, “Good morning, Jyn.”

“Morning, little sister,” Baze chimed in.

“Morning, you two. How long has Cassian and Kaytwo been complaining?”” Jyn asked them as she climbed into the U-Wing.

Chirrut answered with a sigh and a shake of his head. Baze made no comment, settling for cleaning his gun. Jyn set her bag down and plopped next to Chirrut, sighing impatiently. Cassian gave her a tired glare before taking a walk to think. Mon Mothma and Draven had given him another briefing for the mission with the addition of the new recruit to the plan. He had been fine operating on his own until he got K-2SO and was just getting used to having a full team of five to lead and now they’re adding someone who has no experience in the field.

“They’re inconspicuous and they know how those types of environments operate,” Mon Mothma reasoned with him.

He nodded stiffly, knowing that he couldn’t talk his way out of this. The recruit was a liability. Any signs of danger and who knows what they will do? Blow their cover or turn on them or run. Then again, he was cautious with having to work with Jyn during their first mission and she turned out to be an admirable ally and friend. Mothma and Draven wouldn’t send the recruit to him if they didn’t think that they were competent enough to get the job done.

As he walked back to the U-Wing, he could hear the team laughing along with a voice he was unfamiliar with. He stepped into the ship and saw the new member of the team sitting on one of the benches in the middle of telling a story while the others surrounded her, listening intently.

“You’re an hour late,” Cassian said, breaking the mood. Jyn rolled her eyes before sitting down across from you.

You shot up from the bench. “I’m sorry, Captain. Some of the mechanics were having trouble moving the new shipment and I stopped to help-”

“It’s fine,” Chirrut assured you.

“You’re just lucky that we’re not pressed on time for this mission,” K-2SO clipped, “but we do need to start to head out as soon as possible.”

“I’m so sorry,” you began to apologize again.

“Enough,” Cassian said, walking past you to the cockpit, “We leave now.”

You slowly sat back down, hands folded on your lap as you waited for the U-Wing to take off. Chirrut gave a comforting pat on the hand while Jyn gave you a smile. She scooted to the edge of her bench, looking at the cockpit where Cassian and K-2SO were arguing about something, then back at you.

“So, what happened afterwards?” she whispered, wanting you to continue the story.

Chirrut and Baze leaned in while Bodhi, seemingly busy taking inventory, was still listening in. You cast a cautious glance over to the captain before clearing your throat.

“So, anyways, where was I?” you whispered.

“The tourists were entering the forest at night when they heard something,” Baze prompted.

“Oh, right, so they ignored all the warnings given to them by the locals, thinking it was some silly superstition. They drank and littered, kicking the stacked rocks that were everywhere and just was being incredibly foolish. Then, they saw a light between the trees, followed by a whistle in the chilly wind-”

You went on to telling the stories you’ve heard over the years throughout your travels. It helped ease your nervousness for your first mission with the Rebellion and you got the feeling that the team knew that. When you ran through the hangar, looking for the U-Wing, Bodhi was the first to greet you. He flashed a kind smile and introduced you to the rest of the team. You’ve heard stories about Rogue One, so the fact that you were assigned to this team had put a lot of pressure on you. You weren’t a skilled mechanic or a talented pilot and you preferred not to have any physical confrontations. What you were good at was staying invisible, observing, and having a photographic memory. Apparently, this type of mission required people with your skillset and they promised that it shouldn’t be too dangerous.

“Okay, we’re here,” Cassian announced, landing the U-Wing. He walked towards the group and zeroed in on you. “I assume they had briefed you on your task?”

You nodded. “Gather intel on the target, then we find the target and escort them back to base.”

“No, you are gathering intel and reporting back to me. We,” Cassian gestures to the rest of the team, “will find the target and escort them. Once your task is done, you come straight back here and wait.”

You blinked. “Uh, okay. I gather intelligence on the target, report back to you, then wait here in the U-Wing,” you repeated almost mechanically.

Cassian seemed satisfied with this and went to grab his bag. You exhaled slowly, your leg bouncing as you tried to calm yourself, though it seemed counterintuitive to do that. You felt someone poke your forehead and looked up to see a smiling Jyn.

“You’ll do fine. Cassian’s always grumpy, but don’t take it too personally. He’s insufferable, but he’s capable. We’ll be listening in if you guys run into any trouble,” Jyn said.

“Okay… okay, thank you, Jyn,” you said, grabbing your small bag and following Cassian out of the ship.

“Stay close until we reach the inner city, then we split. I will be following nearby,” Cassian said as he held out a wired device to you.

You grabbed it, turning it around in your hands, not sure what to do with it. “Um…”

He sighed, showing you how to set up the communication device and hide it on your person before testing it. He adjusted his earpiece and you copied him. You jumped at the static from your end, the corner of his lips turning up in amusement before it disappeared. How embarrassing. You were an hour late for your first mission, always stumbling over your words, and now you’ve just shown how easily scared you were. He made sure the device was perfectly hidden before pulling away. It was strange how cold it felt when he did.

“Can you hear us?” Cassian said into the device.

“Unfortunately, yes,” Jyn said, “Are you there, (Y/n)?”

“Oh, uh, yes, I-”

“That’ll do,” K-2SO interrupted, “I hope you’re not going to be like this throughout the mission. Cassian would be better off taking Jyn or Bodhi and we know how well that went the last time.”

“I didn’t think it went that bad,” you heard Bodhi mutter in the background.

“You did great, Bodhi, don’t listen to Kaytwo. He’s just upset that he’s stuck waiting with us instead of going with Cassian,” Jyn said.

You purse your lips, not knowing how to respond to this, but ultimately deciding not to say anything at all. Cassian shrugged on his backpack and zipped up his jacket before nodding at you. He started towards the city, checking every now and again if you were keeping up.

The walk to the city was uncomfortable for you. The space was too open, easy for you to be spotted and picked off if you were alone. But as the two of you got closer, you could feel the energy radiating off the busy streets, the rumbling of the collective voices in one area, and the heat of all the bodies and factory structures. You felt your muscles slowly relaxed once you reached the edge of the city. Cassian looked over to you to start walking ahead first. You did so, slowly being swallowed up by the crowd. You knew that Cassian was waiting a few beats before following, blending in like you.

There wasn’t much to go on when it came to finding the target. You were told that there was a potential and valuable ally hidden within this city under a heavy watch due to his inventions and engineering abilities. The Rebellion wanted to reach him before the Empire could get a hold of any of his blueprints or prototypes. No one knew exactly who he was and preferred to work with anonymity, but rumor has it, he owed a local kingpin a lot of money and was now working under them to pay that debt. Where do you start?

As you walked through the market area, you asked simple questions that travellers normally inquire about, like the businesses in the city, places to stay, if there were any forms of entertainment, just to get an idea of what kind of system this place ran on. You walked over to one of the market stalls, buying a variety of fruits before walking over to a couple of street urchins here and there who only gave you short answers before leaving. One person with ragged clothes and a cloth covering their face remained, so you sat down next to them. You took one fruit out of the bag and munched slowly, taking in your surroundings. You weren’t sure where Cassian was, exactly, but you suppose that was the point. Just have to hope that he’d be nearby to intercept if something goes wrong.

“You're new here,” the stranger commented, eyeing the bag of fruit.

“Is it obvious?” you asked.

“I know everyone that passes by here,” they said confidently.

“Really? And what kind of people pass by here?”

“Give me a fruit and I’d tell ya.”

You eased them into a natural conversation, from the old lady that smuggle drugs in her baking to the young men and women messing with the local law enforcement. All the while, people passed both of you without a second look.

“So who runs what?” you asked.

They raised an eyebrow. “What you mean?”

You shrugged. “I’d assume there’d be a group in control of certain areas around the city. There’s bound to be what with the state of the law enforcement and the illegal dealings going on around here. It just seems civil on the surface, if you know what I mean?” You took out another fruit and handed it over to them while you continued to munch on your own.

They nodded. “So you from the slums, then?”

“Something like that, yeah.”

“We’ve got four main gangs around here; Feuer, Erde, Meer, and Luft. They broke their territories up by quadrants, which is what people call them as a whole. Everything was supposed to be equal with trade going through each quadrant. But,” they held up a finger, “there’s been something that threatens this peace treaty. Lotta noise coming from the Feuer gang and the others are on edge.”

“Noise?”

They looked around before leaning in. “Zapata,” they whispered.

You frowned. “What’s that?”

They shook their head. “Not what, who. Look around, look at all the smooth machinery and the clear sky. This place was a smoggy sooty mess before Zapata found a way to make clean and practically infinite power to keep the factories going. The Quadrants have been eyeing him and they couldn’t agree about what to do with him. One says let him be, others say that he would bring trouble, then there were the other two who wanted him to themselves.”

“Why?”

They hummed, holding a hand out for another fruit, which you complied. “What can you do with an engineer like that? Practically anything, and that’s a scary power to have. What starts as something of good intention gets taken advantage of for others’ selfish reasons.”

You opened your mouth to ask more about Zapata when Cassian’s voice sounded through the earpiece. “We’ve got company approaching on both ends,” he warned.

“Where is this person?” you asked the stranger.

They narrowed their eyes. “Why do you want to know?”

You shrugged it off. You could see two men with charcoal colored light metal armor on either side of the street. “Just asking,” you said before handing them the rest of the fruits, “Well, I gotta get going.”

The stranger spotted the men and stood up. They had a hand behind their back as their green eyes flickered back to you. “Who are you?”

“Just passing through,” you said.

“(Y/n),” Cassian said, urging you to move.

“You’re looking for Zapata, too, aren’t you?” the stranger went on.

Your heart was beating against your ribcage as the men were drawing in closer. You quickly grabbed the stranger’s hand and squeezed it.

“(Y/n)!” Cassian said harshly.

You ignored him. “Look, I can help him escape here,” you whispered, “Help me, please. I know you know him.”

Their eyes studied you for a minute. “You’ve got a ship, then? Protection?” You nodded. “Then follow me.”

They pulled their other hand from behind their back and revealed a small blaster. Before the men could spot the two of you, the stranger pulled you through a narrow alleyway. You hoped that Cassian would be able to catch up as you were lead through the streets, weaving around through every alleyway or shortcut that this person seemed to know by heart. When it looked to be the outskirts of the city in the opposite quadrant, they pulled you into a small tavern.

They walked over to a booth in the corner of the room and sighed. A waiter came and set down a tankard of some strong smelling brown liquid in front of them before greeting you. You settled for a glass of water before looking around the tavern. It was relatively homely with the fireplace on one end, comfy chairs surrounding it, and a bar at the other.

“Where are we?” you asked.

“We’re in the Meer quadrant, a neutral zone,” they said, pulling down the cloth from their face, revealing a man with brown hair and a salt and pepper stubble, “but we can’t stay here for long. If the Feuer gang grows impatient and desperate, they may try to come here and look for me.”

“You? So, you’re Zapata?” you asked quietly. He nodded. “I was told that you were under heavy watch.”

He shrugged. “They don’t expect me to be able to climb out of the window of a four story building, but I’m an inventor. I have my ways,” he said, taking a sip of his drink. “I love watching people. I love learning about their behaviors, their personalities. I grew to appreciate our… humanness. It was something that I took for granted when I was younger. Empathy. So I made it my goal to help people and to better understand them. I ran into a financial obstacle and asked the gangs for help, knowing that they cared about the people more than the law enforcement here. I should have known that something was off when my contacts were replaced with Feuer gang members. But it was too late, and I owed a debt to them.” He paused for a moment before clearing his throat. “Forgive me, I haven’t properly introduced myself. I’m Zapata, Julio Zapata. You can just call me Julio.”

“I’m (Y/n).”

“Pleasure to meet you, (Y/n).”

“And what do they want you to do for them?”

Julio shook his head. “Maybe we should wait for your friend to catch up, hm?” he said, taking another sip of his drink.

“How did-”

He tapped his ear. “Your earpiece. It’s hard to see for anyone who wasn’t looking, but I’m used to checking for those kinds of things.”

“No, just get the information and then leave, (Y/n),” Cassian said into your earpiece.

You purse your lips. “Is there a ‘fresher here?” you asked Julio.

He gave you an amused smile before pointing to the door on the opposite end of the tavern. You thanked him before rushing over, locking the door behind you.

“But I have the target here with me,” you told Cassian.

“I know, but if we can find out where they had been holding him, we could get a hold of his work and leave.”

“But aren’t we supposed to get him out of here. The point wasn’t to get his work, it was to get him, so they wouldn’t be using him.”

“He sounds like he already has an escape plan. He always does,” he added, then said, “we get his work, he leaves, then there’s no threat to deal with.”

“I think we’re his escape plan, Cassian. What’s going on? Besides, he won’t tell me any more information unless you come. He knows I came with someone. We might as well talk to him now, then move him to the ship together.”

“I am the captain here, (Y/l/n). Get the information, then we move on,” Cassian said firmly before ending the connection.

You ripped the earpiece out in frustration. This mission wasn’t turning out to how you thought it was going to be. But then again, Cassian was acting in a way that you thought that he wouldn’t. In the short time that you knew him and from the stories you’ve heard of him, he didn’t seem the type to cut corners. When he has orders, he does what he must to finish them. It wasn’t like the mission was completely compromised. If anything, this was easier, knowing that you had already found the target and he was willing to talk to you. You thought that Cassian would at least warm up to you more with how things have gone so far.

Julio was waiting patiently back at the booth, half of his tankard gone, but he still looked sober. You sat back down and took a couple gulps of water before sighing.

“Let me guess, your superior is being impatient?” Julio asked. You nodded. He huffed out a laugh. “He thinks I didn’t see him, but I did. When you live like the way I lived, you learn to be more observant of your surroundings. Not trust anything you see. It was easy to spot him.”

“You trusted me,” you noted.

Julio nodded. “You’re the most sincere thing I’ve seen in years. When I’m not working on machines, I’m working with people with masks that they show to the world. I suppose, I’m more aware of this when I’ve had a mask on even around the people that trusted me the most. I’ve paid the price for it, but I don’t want to be jaded by my experience. I have this hope, you know, that there are genuine people out there.”

“You mentioned that you saw him. How did you even know that it was him that I was with?”

“I knew him. Years ago, and I’m guessing… no, I know it’s the reason why he’s not going to come over here,” Julio said, playing with the droplets that formed on his tankard, “Understandably. But, I really do need your help and you guys were sent to help me. Is he still listening in?”

“I don’t know.”

Julio sighed, then muttered, “You wouldn’t put personal grudges in the way of your mission, would you, Cassian?”

The two of you were silent for a moment, until he started asking questions about you. There wasn’t much to tell, only that you’ve been travelling around your whole life. You didn’t know your family, and you guessed that made it easier to not settling, but it didn’t mean you closed yourself off to the rest of the world. You loved helping people, telling stories, and learning about others. Maybe that’s why it was easy to talk to Julio, due to your similar mindsets. He expressed that he wasn’t always like that, that he was bitter even as a child. After a fall out with a close friend of his, he decided to change himself. He didn’t want to answer any questions related to the mission, and you wondered if he was just stalling until Cassian made up his mind.

Then, the front door of the tavern opened. You saw Julio’s eyes trained on the newcomer, a ghost of a smile on his lips. You turned and saw Cassian walking over to the booth. He gave a frustrated glare to both of you.

“I’ve ordered Kaytwo to move the ship closer. Jyn will be meeting us there. You tell us where they’ve been holding you and we’ll get you on our ship, got that?” Cassian said. After Julio nodded, Cassian turned to you with a stern look. “Let’s go.”

Julio pulled up his cloth mask again and followed you and Cassian out of the tavern and through the streets until you found Jyn waiting a mile out of the city. She didn’t look too pleased with Cassian, but gave you a smile instead. After Julio told the team where he was held, Cassian told Jyn to ready herself to leave with him.

“(Y/l/n), you are to wait on the ship with him while Jyn and I get the plans,” he ordered, holding your gaze to make sure you knew that they weren’t to be questioned.

“Okay,” you said with a nod, “I wait on the ship with Julio while you and Jyn get the plans.”

Cassian grunted, not amused by this. You led Julio into the ship where the others were waiting. He sat down across from Chirrut and Baze when Jyn grabbed your arm.

“You did good,” she said before leaving with Cassian.

“So you guys just sit here while Cassian does his thing, huh?” Julio said. They all sighed, even K-2SO, which was enough to answer him.

“We’re here as backup and protection if anyone finds the ship,” Baze said.

“At least with (Y/n) here, we get to listen to stories while we wait,” Chirrut added.

Julio turned to you. “Stories? I’d like to hear one.”

You were finished with your third story when there was a rhythmic knock on the ship. K-2SO moved to lower the ramp, revealing a tired Cassian and an angry Jyn carrying Julio’s projects. K-2SO grabbed the heavier objects off of them and placed them on the back of the ship. Once everything was settled, Cassian looked over at you as you sat close to Julio, before making a beeline to the cockpit.

He hadn’t spoken to any of you for the rest of the journey back to base. In the meantime, the rest of the team got to know more about you and Julio, exchanging stories about your childhoods and for them, how they ended up with the Rebellion.

“So, how did you end up with the Rebellion?” Julio asked you.

You shrugged. “Well, as you guys know, I just want to help people. Figured joining the Rebellion would help me do that,” you responded vaguely.

They all seemed to accept this, though you felt that Jyn was going to question more about it later. Bodhi asked him about his inventions and he began to talk about how he got started in engineering.

Soon enough, the U-Wing was back at the Rebel base. Cassian never spoke to you after the mission was wrapped up. There were times where you tried to psych yourself up to confront him, but you either become speechless the moment your eyes landed on him, or he’d turn the opposite direction. You feared that by arguing with his decisions, it affected whether or not the Rebellion wanted to enlist in any future field missions.

The others were fine talking to you, it was only the captain that was hard to deal with. Jyn had told you to stop wasting your energy worrying about it and you honestly don’t know why it bothered you this much. You’ve travelled enough to know your fair share of people that were cold, mean, and guarded towards you. So why was Cassian any different?

Rogue One had gone on to continue with their missions and Julio was given a work space near the hangar. Then, you, having no other skillset to offer, began floating around and learning everything you could to help in some way. You came all this way to join the Rebellion. You didn’t want to become a burden.

You were in your first week of shadowing the medics when you heard a commotion enter the medbay. You jumped out of the way of the incoming stretcher, only seeing a glimpse of who was lying on it. The others that rushed in after him only confirmed who it was. K-2SO pushed past you and followed the medics into one of the rooms.

“Oh, (Y/n), you’re here,” Bodhi said, walking up to you.

“What happened?” you managed to ask as you felt a strange stirring in your gut.

“Cassian got hit while we were running back to the U-Wing. The damage looked pretty bad,” Jyn said, “How are you?”

“Well, I was doing fine until... ,” you trailed off.

“Yeah, and how’s Julio?”

You frowned, not sure why she would ask you out of all people that. “Fine, I guess. I’ve visited his workshop once or twice a week to check in,” you said.

Jyn tilted her head and frowned. “Only once or twice?”

“Yeah,” you said slowly, “Why are you… why are you asking me this? You can go check on him if you want-”

“So it’s just platonic, then?”

“Well, yeah. We’ve become good friends since we brought him here. Why are you…” You looked at Bodhi for answers.

He gave you an apologetic smile. “I’m going to go check on Cassian’s status,” he said, excusing himself.

“I’m sorry, (Y/n), I was just… trying to figure out what’s been going on in Cassian’s head,” Jyn said, “He seemed distracted lately. It’s not like him to be distracted. The only thing I could think of was you and Julio.”

“Well, I assume Cassian and Julio had some bad history with each other. He didn’t even want to bring Julio back when we found out who the target was, and he seemed angry at me because I kept arguing with him,” you tried to reason.

Jyn shook her head, knowing that there was something more to it. “When was the last time you spoke to Cassian?”

“Since the last mission and I’m pretty sure he actively avoided having me join on any missions after that.”

Jyn pursed her lips. “You did nothing wrong, (Y/n). Cassian’s being frustratingly stubborn as usual, that’s all. Maybe talk to him and find out what’s wrong. He wasn’t focused today and I don’t want to think what would have happened if we weren’t next to him to drag him away from incoming enemies.”

“I can try, but I don’t think he wants to talk to me,” you said, looking down the hall where they took Cassian.

“You’ll be surprised,” Jyn said, patting you on the shoulder, “I’ll see you around. I like talking to you.”

“See you.”

With your new tasks at the medbay, there weren't many opportunities for you to see Cassian. Or, at least, that’s what you kept telling yourself. What if he didn’t want to see you because you tried to disobey him? What exactly happened between him and Julio?

You were doing your rounds during your late shift and every time, you’d pass by Cassian’s room, lingering in front of the doorway before walking away again. When you came back, you heard voices inside, one of them was definitely Cassian.

“How many times do I have to apologize, Cass?” Julio asked, “We were young. Too young to even be a part of this fight. How do you expect a kid who had grown up in the lifestyle that I have to react when a blaster is pointed at their face? They fear death like everyone else.”

Cassian sighed. “I know.”

“Then why didn’t you want to talk to me?”

Cassian grew quiet.

“Well, I need some rest or else I slice my finger off the next time I’m in the workshop. I’ll come by later.” You hear the scrape of a chair as he stood up. “Oh, and talk to (Y/n). There’s been some misunderstandings going around and I’m not sure what started it. I just want things to be cleared up.”

You walked away as quietly as you could before Julio walked out. You sorted some papers out at the front desk and smiled as he passed by. This was the first time you’ve heard him mention anything about the small rumors going around base. You shrugged it off as joking around, but you made it clear that you and Julio were just friends. Granted, when he first settled down in the base, you were there to help him get used to the new place and stopped by to talk almost every day. Then, both of your schedules became busy, so those visits were reduced to once or twice a week. You could see why people who didn’t know the two of you well would misunderstand, but you never thought it was serious. Besides, what did Cassian have to do with it?

You still couldn’t bring yourself to talk to Cassian that night, and the night after that. Whenever you ended up helping a nurse in Cassian’s room, he’d be sleeping. You were off duty when he was discharged, rearranging your side of your shared quarters with Jyn after you moved in. She knew you hadn’t spoken to him yet and she refused to elaborate why you had to talk to him.

“This is almost the longest I’ve stayed in one place and that I actually want to stay,” you told her, “I feel… safe here.”

“Yeah?” Jyn asked with a small smile. She was about to add to that when a message popped up on her datapad. She read it through and she groaned. “Bodhi needs to get his arm fixed again,” she said, shaking her head, “I told him not to move anything heavy by himself. I have to go check up on him. Need anything while I’m out?”

“Uh, no. I’m fine. Thanks,” you said.

Jyn nodded, taking her datapad and made her way over to the hangar where Bodhi was. Once the door slid closed, you flopped backwards onto your small creaky bed and closed your eyes. This was where you’ll be staying for a long time, until the base relocated or the war was over. Home. That sounded nice on your ears. Maybe it’s going to be easier to get used to that now that you have found friends in Julio and the Rogue One crew. Well, except Cassian. That’s something you still have to deal with.

You hadn’t realized that you had fallen asleep until there was a knocking at the door. Jyn wasn’t back yet, so you quickly fixed your appearance and stumbled towards the door. You weren’t sure who would be knocking, but you assumed that they were looking for Jyn. What you hadn’t expected to see was Cassian standing there with his hand raised to knock again.

“Captain Andor?” you frowned. “Um, Jyn’s not here. She’s with Bodhi right now.”

He shook his head. “No, I came to see you, actually,” he said.

“Oh.” You blinked.

What was the proper etiquette for this kind of thing? Do you invite him in or go somewhere else to talk or…? You saw a mechanic pass by, eyeing the two of you curiously before hurrying away. You shuffled to the side and gestured for Cassian to come in. He tentatively stepped over the threshold and stood by the door as it closed behind him.

Cassian cleared his throat, patting his vest until he found the small cards he was looking for. He flipped through them with narrowed eyes, already regretting giving K-2SO and Julio permission to help him pick the words to say to you. Many of them were either insincere or too flirty to his taste.

“Is there something wrong, captain?” you asked.

“No!” he said quickly, making you jump, “No, no, no, no. I, uh, I’m sorry for the way I’ve been treating you lately.”

“Well, I did try to disobey your orders-”

“No, you did nothing wrong, I’m just… I’m just an asshole.”

Your eyes widened. “Captain-”

“Please call me Cassian. And… I was mainly mad at Julio during that mission. We knew each other when we were younger and we parted on bad terms. I was upset because I wasn’t able to let that go and when I saw you being close with him, I just… I don’t know. Then, people would talk about how you and Julio would make a cute couple and I just got… bothered by it. I didn’t know why, but what everyone has been telling me, they think it’s because I... ,” he cleared his throat again, “I like you.”

“Oh,” you breathed.

Maker, what do you do in this situation? Your heart was beating hard in your chest and at first it was kind of scary. There was no threat, it was just Cassian, but it gradually felt thrilling. Sure, you’ve noticed that the captain was a handsome man, but your mindset to do well on the mission got in the way of appreciating what you saw before you. It wasn’t like you had the time to properly get to know each other anyways.

“You don’t have to agree, but if you want, we could go somewhere offworld the next time our schedule is free, or maybe something simple like a walk or dinner-”

“Okay… I’d like that,” you said softly.

Cassian grinned, showing his dimples for the first time. “Uh, good. Um… good. That’s good. I’ll stop by the medbay later?” He slowly walked backwards towards the door.

“Sure.” You stepped forward and opened the door for him.

Cassian suddenly stumbled forward into you as Jyn, Bodhi, Chirrut, Baze, and Julio tumbled into the quarters. Cassian pulled you out of the way, his arm wrapped around your waist as he turned to see his friends groaning in pain and having the audacity to smile sheepishly up at the two of you.

“So… I’m guessing it went well?” Julio asked with a cheeky grin, carefully picking himself off the ground.

“We’ll see,” Jyn said, “If Cassian does anything to hurt (Y/n), I’ll hunt him down.”

“I don’t doubt that,” Cassian said, looking at you softly.

“What in the galaxy are all of you doing on the ground?” K-2SO demanded, framed by the doorway and blocking most of the corridor.

You sighed at this lovely chaos. You finally felt that this was your second chance at a new life where you could contribute to something good, somewhere where you felt like you belonged and wanted. You were tired of wandering. Tired of being scared to lose something or someone. You finally had people who you knew were going to stick with you.

Jyn walked up and looked over at Cassian with a smile before gently squeezing your shoulders.

“Welcome home, (Y/n).”

A/N: And Happy Valentine’s Day, I guess. Enjoy discount chocolate, buy yourself flowers, and sit back while you watch Diego Luna in Narcos: Mexico

#cassian andor x reader #cassian andor #cassian andor imagine #Star wars imagine #Rogue One #Rogue One Imagine #Oneshot

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astonishinglegends · 3 years

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Ep 197: Mrs. Hingely and the Mince Pie Aliens plus Listener Stories

Christmas tree element in the main image composition courtesy of Elekes Andor

"We come from the sky."

– 3 purported aliens to Mrs. Jean Hingely on January 4th, 1979, shortly before they attacked her artificial Christmas Tree and left with her mincemeat pies

Description:

Tonight's episode starts with the coverage of a strange and funny case involving aliens and holiday pies. On January 4, 1979, Mrs. Jean Hingely of the town of Rowley Regis in the West Midlands region of England was visited by three fishbowl-helmeted and friendly aliens with wings. After some spiritually uplifting exchanges, her holiday visitors thrashed her Christmas tree and nicked three of her mincemeat pies. The second part of our episode features heartwarming personal stories of hope from some of our listeners. These stories may not be proof of an afterlife for some, but for others, they may bolster the belief that our existence doesn't end with our physical death and that somewhere there is a world where everything we cherish is waiting for us, and proof that love is eternal and boundless.

Location:

The 12th century village of Rowley Regis in the West Midlands region of England, where Jean Hingely was visited on January 4, 1979 by three winged, benevolent aliens who trashed her Christmas tree and made off with three of her mincemeat pies.

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Credits:

Episode 197: Mrs. Hingely and the Mince Pie Aliens plus Listener Stories. Produced by Scott Philbrook & Forrest Burgess; Audio Editing by Sarah Vorhees Wendel. Sound Design by Ryan McCullough; Tess Pfeifle, Producer, and Lead Researcher; Research Support from the astonishing League of Astonishing Researchers, a.k.a. The Astonishing Research Corps, or "A.R.C." for short. Copyright 2020 Astonishing Legends Productions, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

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words-writ-in-starlight · 5 years

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Babe! Jyn/Cassian 29, 38, 39! Please and thank you!

Of course, babe! Also, canon is not my god and the river of denial is a beautiful place. For this headcanon meme!

29. Howdo the handle disasters or emergencies? Minor injuries? Sickness?

They handle disasters and emergencies like fucking professionals, thank you, they are spies and soldiers and have lived their entire lives in a constant state of emergency. When shit hits the fan, Jyn and Cassian are on top of everything. They’ve got it. They’ve even got it when the other is injured--once the immediate danger sorts itself out, you’d better believe they’re going to be glued to their partner’s side, but they’re exceedingly good at compartmentalizing. They’ll handle it, they’ll get on with it, and then they’ll hover to their heart’s content.

Even minor injuries are usually okay. Jyn tells Cassian not to be a baby, Cassian tells Jyn not to be an idiot, and the medics scream through their teeth about these two fucks who constantly leave early AMA and never agree to take pain meds. The medics knew Jyn and Cassian were soulmates the second they woke up after Scarif, when they both immediately started complaining about how the painkillers made it hard to think.

Sickness, though...yeah. Could either of them absolutely work through a crippling case of bronchitis and still get their jobs done? Sure, if the mission calls for it. Do they still act like they’re about to die of the Black Death the second they get a little snuffly? Yes.

39. Who initiated therelationship? Who kissed who first? When did they realize they were inlove?

Cassian realized he was in love with Jyn when she gave a speech about hope, and rebellion, and fighting, and then he went out and found her a small army and a stolen ship for her suicide mission. He figured he was going to die with her, but--well, fuck it. He’d pretty well decided he was going to die for the Rebellion when he was a kid, so dying with Jyn to save the whole lot of them seemed only reasonable.

Jyn realized she loved Cassian in the elevator. It was the first time in a long time that she wanted something for herself other than to be left alone, so naturally she figured it out around the same time she resigned herself to immediate demise by Death Star.

After their incredibly narrow escape from Scarif, Jyn is a little unsure of her welcome at the Rebellion at large, including with Cassian--she’s no more one of them now than ever, she thinks, and she doesn’t quite know how to deal with the phenomenon of wanting to be involved, of wanting to help, of wanting him, after so many years of being careful not to want anything. It’s Cassian who limps over to her cot in the medical bay, bacta patches on her face and arm where the flare burned her, his leg in splints where it slammed into the shuttle bulkhead during their escape and shattered his tibia. Jyn tucks herself aside and Cassian sinks down on the cot beside her and when he puts her arm around her, Jyn doesn’t fight him.

She kisses him the day he leaves the med bay, her face tender with new skin and his leg still stiff. It’s a fast, almost brutal kiss, clumsy, practically an attack, but Cassian loops his arm around Jyn’s waist before she can get away and kisses her back.

38. What are they like in the bedroom? Any kinks/fetishes/turn-ons? Anything they won’t do?

I am not the first person to come up with this but I do love it VERY much: Cassian Andor’s favorite thing to do in bed is to go down on Jyn. Absolute top number one favorite thing. Part of this is because he just...likes it, part of it is because Jyn was so obviously shocked the first time he said that he just wanted to do something for her, and part of it is because he’s a very service-oriented partner. It gets him off to get her off. Especially since Jyn was mostly used to unsatisfying sex for most of her life, hurried meet-ups in dark corners and the occasional tumble with another criminal, and the discovery that Cassian likes to eat her out (and is extremely good at it) was a massive change of pace.

Jyn likes to jump Cassian in--not public places, but semi-public places. She likes to tease him through a war meeting and then drag him into a storage closet right after, so that she can jack him off or blow him while he bites down on the heel of his hand or the curve of her shoulder so that they aren’t heard. She just thinks it’s incredibly satisfying to see the cool, collected spy, Captain Andor of the Rebellion, reduced to shaking against her and gasping through his teeth so that he doesn’t yell.

In terms of actual kinks, sometimes Cassian just needs...to be told what to do. His decisions cost lives every day, sometimes he needs to not be making the calls. Sometimes he needs to turn his brain off and have Jyn push him down and tell him exactly what he’s going to do for her. And Jyn, sometimes Jyn just needs to be held down and made to feel good. She’s been running for her life since she was a child, often from one disaster into another, and sometimes it’s hard for her to take pleasure as she finds it. She can’t stand to be tied down--neither of them can, they’ve got issues--but some days she craves the feeling of Cassian’s strength holding her to the bed and making her enjoy it.

#rogue one #jyn erso #cassian andor #rebelcaptain #jyn x cassian #star wars #otp: welcome home #starlight writes stuff #ask meme #headcanon meme #I LOVE THESE TWO SO MUCH!!!!!!!!#canon is fake and everyone is alive and okay #good talk #this was delightful thank you babe #the second and third questions are under a cut because this got very long #but i just love these two very much #a queue we will keep and our honor someday avenge #lathori #asked and answered

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joeybelle · 4 years

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Starlight - Chapter 26

Cassian Andor x Original female character

Rating: Mature

Warnings: Strong language, Violence

Size: 7300

The war room was incredibly busy and the air was heavy with tension. She wasn’t used to seeing it filled to the brim with people staring at unfamiliar holo-maps and blinking lights on screens, but she knew the concerned looks on their faces really well. The already intimate feeling of dread had accentuated and it seemed that she wasn’t the only one feeling it.

“It’s been brought to our attention that you know Galen Erso personally,” Mon Mothma said, looking just as poised as ever. “Could you tell us more about that?”

Cora had to make an effort to pry her eyes from one of the blinking screens. Her throat felt incredibly dry. “Well, I assume you know the circumstances in which I met him.” Mon Mothma nodded and Cora had to swallow the panic. If Cassian had seen fit to tell them about that, then something really bad must have happened. “Then you probably know everything already.”

She could see Draven fidgeting uncomfortably in the corner of her eye, but he kept silent. She wondered if Cassian had been able to somehow stop him from intervening; or was it all Mothma? Speaking of Cassian, where was he?

“What do you know about what he was working on? What do you remember?”

Cora frowned, making an effort to remember. “Some sort of new fighter ships, but I don’t know much about them.” It felt odd going back to being interrogated, although she could feel the atmosphere was nowhere as hostile as it used to be. “As you might have guessed, they didn’t really talk openly about this in front of a kid.”

“But you’ve looked at the files,” Draven chimed in, apparently unable to keep his mouth shut. “You must have seen something.”

She returned his glare. “The details of whatever the Empire was doing weren’t really my priority back then. You keep forgetting I’m a doctor, not a spy.” He shut his mouth and crossed his arms over his chest, his face going back to looking moderately annoyed.

“Do you think this was the only project he was working on at that time?” Mothma asked, a lot calmer than Draven had been.

The frown on Cora’s face deepened, but it was of little use. “No… I don’t think it was the only thing he was working on.” She closed her eyes, trying hard to remember the things that had happened such a long time ago. She’d never thought that they would ever become relevant. “I remember pretty well when they first came to Corinthia, because it was so unexpected to have another family living with us. It was a big deal for us too, because Krennic was going to coordinate this thing. He called this project my mother was part of his ‘pet project’ and that he was working with Galen Erso on something else. Something about Erso doing this as a personal favour… or something.” It wasn’t very convincing, but her brain was just patching together broken memory fragments. “He was regarded as a very good engineer as far as I know. I guess they could have had him working on more than one project at a time.”

“Did anyone ever talk about what this other project was in your presence, or might you have overheard something?”

“Not that I can recall.”

“Would you tell us, even if you did?” Draven mumbled and Cora could swear she saw him roll his eyes.

“If you ask nicely,” she spat back, but a raised hand from Mon Mothma silenced them both.

“You mentioned they lived on Corinthia?” She took back the reins of the questioning and steered it into less hostile territory. “For how long?”

“Six months to a year? I don’t really remember.”

“That’s a huge margin,” Draven concluded.

“I was a kid.”

Mothma ignored the interruption and continued as if nothing had happened. “So you knew them well.”

“His wife more than him. She was really motherly. I remember liking her a lot.” However, she couldn’t remember her name.

“And you knew his daughter too. Jyn Erso.” Cora nodded. “Were you two close?”

“As close as the only two kids on a warship can get.” Cora shrugged. “Yes, I guess you can say we were pretty close.”

“Did you ever wonder what happened to her or try to reconnect after your mother’s death?”

“No. I didn’t really have time to care about others that much.” She was pretty sure it sounded a lot more janded than she intended.

“Do you know Saw Gerrera?” Draven asked, looking a little impatient.

“No, who is he?”

“He used to be part of the Alliance,” Mothma explained, and for the first time Cora noticed a shadow pass over her features. “However, his views are a lot more extreme than ours, so he decided a long time ago to follow a different path. He’s caused us a lot of trouble over the years.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t know him.”

Draven snorted. “Didn’t they bother to at least teach you the names of those you were meant to kill?”

The level of annoyance was rising, but the anti-hangover medication seemed to have the secondary effect of mellowing her out, so what came out of her mouth sounded surprisingly detached. “I seem to keep having to repeat myself, General: even when I worked for the Empire, I was still a doctor. We’re not the ones doing the killing.” She turned her head to look at Mothma. “How is any of this relevant and what’s it got to do with me?”

“We know that Galen Erso left the Empire at some point and went into hiding. Sometimes after your mother’s accident, we assume. He did it with the help of Saw Gerrera,” Mothma explained. “After his wife was killed, he was forced…”

“We don’t know that,” Draven interrupted.

“He returned to his former duties within the Empire.” Mothma shot him an icy glare. “His daughter wasn’t captured, but was rescued and raised by Saw Gerrera. He trained her like one of his fighters. She fell off the radar for a while, but we managed to track her down.”

Cora nodded. She had to admit that she hadn’t thought about Jyn in years, and even when she did it was just a passing thought. She hoped she was happy though. From what she remembered, Jyn was a small and soft child, always afraid of Cora’s shortcuts though the darkness of the ventilation system. She would have never guessed that she could ever be trained to become a fighter, but time and circumstances change people. She was a prime example.

“Do you think it’s possible that she’d remember you?”

Cora had to once again pry her eyes from one of the blinking screens at the edge of her field of vision. “Perhaps? She was quite young and I don’t think I’ve made such a big impression, but she might remember me.”

Mothma nodded, but her expression was unreadable, besides her usual motherly vibe. “Would you be willing to talk to her?”

“Are you trying to recruit her?”

“It’s a little more complicated than that.” Cora waited for her to elaborate, but it seemed no further explanation was coming.

“And classified?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. She was really tired of being treated differently from everybody else. Although she was now one of them, she could still feel a cloud of suspicion looming over her head.

“Well, no…”

“Yes!” Draven interjected, taking a step forward. “All you have to do is talk to her, and get her to be a little more… cooperative.”

“I would really love to know what I’m getting myself into, General,” Cora said through gritted teeth. “With all due respect.”

“There’s been talk of a pilot,” Mon Mothma said, ignoring Draven’s protests. “An imperial cargo pilot has defected. He’s supposed to be carrying some news from Galen Erso for Saw Gerrera, regarding one of the projects he’s been working on. We’ve tried intercepting him, but he seems to have reached Gerrera already.”

“I see.” And there it was again, the sinking feeling that something really bad was going to happen really soon. Now Cora was convinced it wasn’t just an empty feeling. Once again, she was afraid. “So that’s where you’ve sent Cassian to,” she said out loud, before she realized that she had no good excuse for knowing that Cassian had already been shipped. Luckily, she was probably too livid to be able to blush in embarrassment.

“Yes,” Mothma replied, appearing to completely ignore Cora’s confession. “And as you might have guessed,” she sighed, “Saw Gerrera isn’t very keen on talking to us anymore, but we would like to know what sort of information the Pilot might be carrying.”

“So you need Jyn to talk to Saw Gerrera for you.”

“Correct.”

“And you need me to talk to her because… she might not be so keen on talking to you either?”

Mon Mothma nodded. “We think seeing a familiar face might make her a bit more willing to cooperate. Being surrounded by strangers might be a little intimidating. We wouldn’t want her to think we’re hostile towards her in any way.”

They hadn't been so thoughtful with her. Cora grimaced and wondered if Mon Mothma didn’t sense the irony in her own words or if she just ignored it. However, by the not so subtle roll of eyes from General Draven, Cora assumed that they were instead intended for the General’s ears. A warning, perhaps.

“Alright,” Cora agreed. “I’ll talk to her, but don’t expect much. I’m not sure she remembers me, or if my presence here can change anything really.” But she wanted to be there anyway, just in case Draven decided to bark at her like a rabid dog. She still remembered with dread how they treated her when she was first brought before them.

“Thank you,” Mothma said, with a slight tilt of her head. “We appreciate your help.”

“Yeah,” Cora mumbled. “Glad to be of use. Let me know when you need me. Anything else?”

“No, thank you. You may get back.” The smile on her face was probably the friendliest Cora had ever gotten from the poised senator and that gave her a little hope that at least she didn’t consider her a traitor anymore. She smiled and got up to leave.

“So you said found Jyn? How’s she doing?” Cora asked before exiting the room.

“We found her in an imperial labour camp,” Mothma said, following her to the door. “Not doing great I suppose.”

“Neither are we.”

“How so?”

“I don’t really know,” Cora said, embarrassed. She hadn't meant to say that out loud. “I just got this feeling that something bad’s about to happen.”

“You might be right,” she said, her face suddenly turning somber. She followed her outside of the war room, letting the blast doors close behind them. “There’s been this rumour that the project Galen Erso was working on is in fact a weapon,” she said, keeping her voice down so the passersby couldn’t hear. “A planet killer, someone called it.”

Cora froze in place, her eyes widening slightly as she turned her head to look at the Senator. The woman’s expression was just as unreadable as ever, but it had lost its usual warmth.

“Do we stand a chance against it? If the rumour’s real, I mean.”

“Of course,” she replied, and her face broke into a reserved smile. “We have to.”

Cora nodded, but she was sure her face reflected every bit of her inner turmoil. She really hoped that whomever spread that rumour had been wrong, otherwise she wasn’t sure what a handful of rebels could do against it. “I’ll be around, if you need me,” she let the Senator know, excusing herself. She needed a stiff drink.

“We’ll call for you. But until we know anything for sure,” Mon Mothma added before returning to the War Room, “there’s no need to cause any unnecessary panic.”

“Yeah, of course.”

Cora wasn’t sure how she managed to reach the med bay downstairs, for the world was a bit of a blur. It didn’t help that the shock had undone whatever effect the hangover medication had on her, and now her stomach was protesting loudly, threatening to expel its contents right then and there. She had to take a moment to regain her composure before she could move on to look for her friend.

“Are you feeling okay?” Lewella asked, concern pretty visible on her face, once she saw Cora’s livid face.

“More or less,” Cora replied taking a seat next to her friend on a supply crate.

“Eat something,” she said, pushing her plate of food towards Cora, but even the smell made her nauseous.

“No thanks,” she replied, grimacing and pushing it back.

“Rude,” Lew mumbled. “Are you really alright? You look awful.”

“Hangover,” Cora said in a really detached voice that didn’t really sound like her own.

“That bad?”

“Something bad’s about to happen,” Cora said, before she could stop herself. She knew she shouldn’t worry her friend, but there was no one else she could talk to and it was killing her. “Something really big’s coming.”

“That’s just hangover induced paranoia,” she said with a raised eyebrow. “Did you drink something weird? I swear, if Melshi’s brought anything weird from his missions again, I’ll ice him.”

“No, I’ve been feeling it for a while. It’s like… It’s like it’s always there in the back of my mind lately.”

“We’re all feeling things like that sometimes, you just learn to ignore it after a while,” she said, poking at her food, but Cora could see she wasn’t eating anymore.

Cora kept her mouth shut. It wasn’t something she could rationally explain, not without telling her what Mon Mothma had asked her not to. So she just stared into the distance, watching the ships come and go.

“Besides,” Lewella added, dropping her food to the side and inching closer to Cora so she could comfortably place an arm around her shoulders, “if anything is coming, we’ll be here to face it. All of us, together.”

Cora smiled and leaned into her friend’s touch, finding a bit of comfort in her presence. “Do you need help with anything? I’d like to keep busy for a while, keep my mind off things.”

“I could find something for you to do.” Lew yawned and hopped off the crate. “But I’m not letting you overwork yourself. By the way, weren’t you supposed to be working today?”

“Took a couple of days off,” Cora mumbled, remembering once again the reason why she did so.

“And you drank without me?” she said, looking completely bewildered, so much that Cora burst into laughter.

“It wasn’t a happy occasion,” Cora tried excusing herself.

“I don’t care, you know I can drink for every occasion! Have I told you about that time…”

Cora laughed, only half-listening to what her friend was saying, and ushered her towards the door, leaving the busy hangar behind.

It wasn’t until the next day that she heard anything from the War Room. The wait had been excruciating, her mind full with the wildest scenarios, weapons and armies and imperial warships. She tried to imagine what something called a planet killer would look like, but she failed. Her mental state hadn’t been in the best of shapes, so the new information had sent it into overdrive. But deep down, she knew she was afraid. Most of all, she was scared for Cassian.

She was always a bit wary when he was away, wondering where he’d ended up this time, what he was doing, in what sort of danger they were putting him. But right now she desperately wanted him back, safe. Because right now the stakes were insanely high.

She couldn’t understand, if the rumours of a weapon that could destroy planets were real, how they’d even stand a chance. How do you fight a weapon that has the power to wipe you, and your army, and the whole planet along with your base? As far as Cora was aware, and she was sure she wasn’t wildly off the mark, the Rebellion had nothing that could compare to that. It was still a small resistance against the might of the Empire. They had no chance, and yet she knew they would not give up easily.

She wished she could still be a coward, but unfortunately that time had gone. Her love for Cassian hadn’t managed to make her fearless, but had made her willing to confront her fears. She knew she couldn’t throw everything away, she couldn’t just jump on a ship and run anymore. She was here, where she belonged, and would be here until the end, whenever and wherever that might be. She only wished Cassian would be by her side too.

She was working when they called her to the War Room. There was an odd tension surrounding her, like the whole world was buzzing, but it could very well be that it was she who was the tense one.

“You’re currently calling yourself Liana Hallik. Is that correct?” she heard Draven say once she passed the blast doors, arriving in the middle of the interrogation. They hadn't had the courtesy of inviting her from the start, but it was better than never, she assumed.

A wave of conflicting emotions washed over her. Her mother’s name had been Liana. It was still painful to hear it spoken by someone else, but that also meant that maybe Jyn remembered the time spent on ISD Corinthia.

She moved closer, hoping to get a glimpse of the girl she hadn’t seen since they both only reached a stormtrooper’s knee, but instead her heart nearly jumped out of her chest when she saw Cassian leaning next to a screen. He was looking at her with the corner of his eye, and a discreet nod of his head took the place of hello. Cora smiled, despite the nervousness and focused her attention on the woman being interrogated.

She was about Cora’s age, which was consistent with what she knew about her. She bore very little resemblance to the little girl Cora remembered from her youth, but that was also to be expected. People change a lot in...sixteen? Seventeen years? That’s almost an entire lifetime.

Jyn looked exhausted and more than a little apprehensive, but Cora’d been in her position before and she knew how uncomfortable it could be to have all those eyes fixed on you. Especially Draven’s pronounced frown. And if she were to he honest, Cassian wasn’t really helping either. Over time she’d forgotten just how intimidating he could be to someone who didn’t know him. They were all ganging up on the poor girl.

Cora wished she could chime in, try to shield her a little from the assault, but she knew it wasn’t her place to speak yet. She trusted Mothma’s judgement, and if the threat was as big as they thought, they didn’t really have much time for pleasantries.

“We’re up against the clock here, girl,” Draven barked, looking annoyed. “So if there’s nothing to talk about, we’ll just put you back where we found you.”

“I was a child,” she defended herself, and Cora felt really bad for her. “Saw Gerrera saved my life. He raised me. But I’ve no idea where he is. I haven’t seen him in years.”

“We know how to find him, that’s not our problem. What we need is someone who gets us through the door without being killed,” Cassian said, and it was almost a flashback to her own interrogations. He really needed to learn how to be nicer.

They all explained to her what they’d told Cora the day before: there was an imperial defector—currently being held up by Saw Gerrera— that was claiming the Emperor was building a super weapon with the power to destroy planets, that her father was in fact one of the lead engineers and he’d been the one who sent the pilot. They promised her freedom and a clean record in exchange for her help. It seemed they’d become more lenient over time. Cora was only a little bitter about it.

There was more talk about the hows and whens and wheres, but to Cora those meant nothing. The details didn’t interest her because she wasn’t going to be included in the mission anyway. She just wished Cassian wouldn’t be involved either, especially with the looming feeling of doom still very much present. She watched him from the corner of her eye: he looked tired and worried.

Gone was the glow he had the day before. He once again looked older than his age, the lines on his face deeper than before and the dark circles pretty noticeable. He usually looked like that after long, tiring missions, but all this change in just a couple of days. She had to wonder what had happened.

Cora wished she could step closer, put her hands around his chest and hold him tight, tell him that whatever weight he was carrying on his shoulders she was willing to share with him.

“This here is Doctor Corinthia Enoch,” said Mon Mothma, pulling Cora back from her thoughts and reminding her that she wasn’t there just to spectate. “You might remember her from your childhood. She’s one of our doctors.”

Jyn’s eyes narrowed as Cora took a step forward, trying to look as harmless as possible although she knew the medical uniform could be just as intimidating as the military ones. But the girl smiled, even if it was half a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.

“You’re the girl in the vents,” she said, and Cora couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

“I’ve been called worse,” she laughed, which somehow eased the tension a little. Cora took a seat so she wasn’t towering over her. Draven had turned around and focused his attention on something else, so the atmosphere was a lot friendlier all of a sudden. As friendly as it could get in something called the War Room. Cassian was still frowning in his corner, but Cora knew that was just his work face.

There was an awkward silence between them, while Jyn carefully studied her. She seemed to consider whether to trust her or not, or maybe she was just trying to remember things about their shared childhood. Cora waited patiently for her to speak. She wasn’t sure what she was supposed to do anyway, as far as she was aware, Jyn had already agreed to work with them, so she was there only as a sort of moral comfort.

“Never thought you’d end up being a doctor,” Jyn said after a while. “I thought you were pretty set on becoming a pilot.”

Cora smiled a sad smile. “Yeah, well, life happened,” she replied. “Not everything turns up as planned.”

“And a Rebel?”

“That’s… a more recent development to be honest,” she smiled, a bit embarrassed. “But one I don’t regret in the least.”

“Really?” She looked at her with questioning eyes, and Cora didn’t know if there was distrust in them or not. “What made you change sides?”

That was an easy question with a very complicated answer. Cora took a deep breath, taking her time to find something to say. She could see Draven watching her from the corner of his eye, his back still turned to Jyn, but his whole stance told her he was listening. She wondered if she was there to help win Jyn’s trust, or prove her own loyalty. After such a long time, his distrust was insulting.

“I realized I was believing a lie. I had my eyes shut for a very long time only choosing to see what didn’t oppose any of my convictions.” She took a deep breath. “But once I started looking around and started seeing more than two meters in front of me, I couldn’t just pretend everything was alright.” It was all very vague, but being more specific would have taken a very long time and she assumed no one had time for that. “It still took a long time for me actually leave. Being kidnapped by a certain Intelligence Officer helped a lot in making that decision,” she concluded, pointing a finger in his direction. Cassian snorted, but he did a very good job keeping a straight face.

Jyn smiled the same half smile, but she seemed a little more relaxed this time. “Sounds like quite the story.”

“Yeah. Remind me to tell it to you one day,” she said with a smile. “When we’ll have more time and some… uuuh… better company. Hopefully alcohol too.”

Without Draven listening in and with Mon Mothma seeming to have disappeared, the atmosphere was a lot friendlier. If only Cassian would have sat down beside them so it would just be a talk among friends, instead of a negotiation. But he was talking to Draven in a corner, not paying attention to them anymore.

“Welcome to the Rebellion,” Cora said, smiling at the girl. Jyn blinked a few times in surprise, before mumbling a ‘thank you’. “Don’t worry too much about Draven and the rest. They put up a tough front, but they’re not bad people.” Cora hoped she was right. Unfortunately, Cassian and her few friends were the only ones she could genuinely say that about. Draven was still a mystery. “Anyway, if you ever need me, your best bet is the med bay.”

Jyn looked at her and nodded. She looked tired, but what else was to be expected from someone who had just been rescued from a labour camp. Cora wondered if she could end this meeting and save Jyn from it, since it seemed like nothing else was currently being discussed. She was still a doctor and she could always invoke the patient’s well-being, but she didn’t know if in this case they would listen to her.

Before she could open her mouth to say something, Cassian took a few steps towards the table. “We have to go,” he said, looking at the girl.

Cora’s heart sunk. “Already?” She was unable to hide the disappointment in her voice.

“Soon,” he replied, and Cora could tell he was looking away. “We still have some preparations to make, but we’ll be leaving soon. Thank you, Doctor, we’ll call you if we need further assistance.”

His eyes were cold when he looked at her and Cora wished there was no one around them so she could hug him until some life seeped back into them. She had hoped she could catch him alone for at least a couple of minutes before being shipped again, but that might not be happening.

She nodded and got up. “It’s been my pleasure. Captain Andor, Jyn,” she saluted, before excusing herself and leaving the room.

The feeling of doom followed her on the busy corridors until she entered the med bay. Doctor Crane was sitting at the desk, diligently taking her place since she was away.

“You don’t look too good,” he said, not lifting his eyes from the data-pad in front of him.

“I don’t feel too good,” she admitted, taking a few steps towards the window. It seemed like there was a different kind of rush that day.

“We’ll get over this too,” he said, after a couple of minutes of silence.

“You think?” Cora asked, not bothering to turn around. “A planet killer?”

“I trust the Rebellion and I trust you all. One way or another, we will win. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but one day, there will be light again.”

“I hope you’re right.”

She didn’t feel hopeful, if she were to be honest, but she trusted Cassian. She trusted him with every cell in her being. And if there was anyone to have a chance, it was him.

She tried piecing together the information she had gotten from Jyn’s interrogation. So there was a super weapon that Galen Erso had built, but he had also built a flaw in its design, so it could be taken down at the right time. And now he had sent someone to bring this information to the Rebel Alliance.

Cora couldn’t wrap her mind around how much this man was risking sending word from the middle of the Empire directly to the Rebellion. He must really have balls of steel not only to secretly work for years to sabotage an Imperial super weapon, but to risk everything by sending a cargo pilot to hand them the information. Cora was starting to get nauseous just thinking about it. Compared to these people, she’d never be more than a coward.

“Doctor Enoch,” she heard Mon Mothma’s voice coming from the other side of the room and turned to look at her. “Can I please have a word with you?”

Cora nodded and followed her out of the med bay. There was a sense of weariness as she walked behind Mothma. She wasn't used to get this much attention from the members of the council, all in the same day. She didn't like that she wasn't in the med bay anymore, the place where she felt most in control. But she followed her anyway.

“I know this comes very late, and I have to say I personally am very ashamed of this,” Mon Mothma said once they were safely away from everyone else, in the privacy of one of the personal offices—one that Cora assumed existed, but had never previously entered. There was another officer there holding the duffle bag she had taken with her when she had left her job on the star destroyer and ran away with Cassian. That was unexpected. “We’ve decided a while ago that we would be giving back the things that we took from you, but because of my personal negligence and the things that have happened lately, it seems to have slipped the minds of those responsible with giving it back.” She smiled, but there was no note of embarrassment on her face. “You will see that everything you had in it is still there, we made sure that everything was kept under strict supervision.”

The officer handed her the bag and Cora looked inside. As far as she could tell, everything was still there, including the healing field generator. Especially the healing field generator. She always assumed that they had taken it and given it to one of the field medics, but it seemed that somehow they respected her ownership over the stolen device.

“Lieutenant Marek has a list of everything that was inside at the time of your… imprisonment. You can both go over it, make sure that everything’s alright.”

“There’s no need, I’ll take your word for it,” Cora said, flinging the bag over her shoulder. “Why now?” she asked before leaving the room. “Why give it back now?”

“As I’ve said, we were planning to do it a while ago, but…”

“Yes, but why remember it today?” Cora interrupted her, knowing full well that she was being rude. “Ma’am,” she added, for good measure. “Why today? Have you all decided that you trust me enough not to try and run away or have you given up hope that the Rebellion will survive?”

“Neither,” she said, and seemed not to notice the snark in Cora’s voice. Or she had been expecting it. “You are free to leave whenever you want.”

Cora’s eyes widened and she burst into an incredulous laughter. “And my tracker bracelet?”

“It will be taken down whenever you wish. You have my word.” Cora still looked at her with wide eyes, not being able to fully comprehend the sudden turn of events. “If you wish to leave, we’ll ensure transport for you to a safe place in the galaxy. Also, we won’t forget the help you provided us with until now, so if you ever need us, we’ll be here for you.” The woman was smiling and sounded really genuine, dispelling any suspicion Cora might have had that this was some sort of test to prove her loyalty once again.

“I’m not leaving,” Cora said with determination in her voice. “I’ll be… in the med bay if you need me,” she said.

The amount of things that had happened in only one day was overwhelming. Cora was used to working and staying alert for 12 hours straight, but even on one of the busiest days at work she didn’t feel like there was this much information to process. First, there was the threat of being wiped by an imperial superweapon; then the knowledge that Cassian was being sent to fuck knows where to find a pilot who might have information on how to destroy said planet killer; and now, all of a sudden, she was no longer a prisoner and all her stuff had been returned to her… She was overwhelmed.

“Anything I can help you with?” Dr Crane asked, looking at her with a worried expression on his face as she dropped the duffle bag on one of the tables.

“Ummm…” she looked around her, completely lost. She had no idea what to do next, so she focused on the only thing that was clear in her mind: seeing Cassian before he left.

Once she’d decided this, it was like her mind was in working order once again. All the other things she needed to process were put on a mental shelf and left to be dealt with another time, right now Cassian was the only thing that mattered. She started unloading things from her duffle bag and checking them. Most of the medication and survival gear she had stolen from the Empire seemed to be in working order.

“Doc, can I borrow some supplies?” she asked, already opening one of the medicine cabinets and pulling some stuff out.

“Be my guest,” he said, smiling at the frenzy with which she was shoving things in her bag.

She knew Cassian would do some stupid shit, she was convinced of that. And even if he wouldn’t, someone else would, and he’d still end up injured. She knew, she’d treated him so many times before. And she couldn’t be there with him to save him, if anything happened. So preparing a bag full of survival gear was the best she could do. The portable healing field generator could end up being a lifesaver and she was more than happy to give it to him.

She was putting the supplies in order, deciding what to leave in the bag and what was just her own personal stuff when her hand touched the blaster. She’d forgotten about it, and she was still surprised they’d given it back to her. She pulled it out and checked it. It was still working and it seemed like someone even changed the energy cell before giving it back, making sure that it was fully loaded. Cora lifted her eyes to look at Doctor Crane, but he wasn’t paying attention to her anymore. She hid the weapon under her medical tunic.

“Doc, is it okay if I take half an hour off?” she asked, flinging the bag over her shoulder.

“Of course,” he said, still busy with reading something. “Grab something to eat on the way back too.” Cora nodded and made a mental note to stop by the mess hall, even though she wasn’t hungry in the least. “And wish him good luck.”

She smiled before bolting out the door and running towards the elevators. Hopefully she’d still be able to catch him.

The distress could be sensed everywhere, in the rushed way people walked down the corridor, in the weary way they looked at each other. Cora wondered just how much they knew. She doubted the rumour could be kept a secret for long and from the way they talked to Jyn Erso in a room full of people, they didn’t even try that hard.

She found Jyn next to the ER, heading towards Cassian’s ship. She seemed ready to go wherever the Rebellion was sending them, her face a mask of determination.

“Leaving already?” Cora asked, trying to match her pace. “They didn’t give you much time to rest, did they?”

Jyn nodded. “We are up against the clock, it seems,” she said, mirroring Draven’s snark and Cora couldn't help but smile.

“Do you know where you’re going?” Cora asked, showing just how much she didn’t listen to what had been said in the war room.

“Jedha. After that, I have no idea.” She shrugged. “To find my father, hopefully.”

Cora had heard about Jedha, but mostly since she’d joined the Rebellion. She knew it had become a dangerous place since the Empire’s occupation, with frequent fights between the locals and the occupying forces. Jyn had to be careful—well, all of them, but she trusted Cassian and K2. Jyn didn’t seem as seasoned, but maybe she was projecting her own insecurities on her. Her image of Jyn was still that of a frail, easily scared child.

“I hope you find him,” Cora said, and she was happy that Jyn returned her smile even if it was short lived. “And when you do, I hope you’ll both visit so we can all have a drink and laugh about our childhood.”

“I still can’t picture you as a rebel,” she said, and her voice sounded a bit sarcastic, but Cora brushed it off. “You were quite the Empire supporter back in the day.”

“Also young and naive,” she laughed, a little embarrassed.

Cora stopped and looked around, at the place that had become her home over time. She wasn’t sure when that had happened, when she’d started calling it home and when she felt like she truly belonged, despite Draven’s insistence to make her feel unwelcome. She didn’t even hate him anymore. She’d gotten used to him and his attitude and he didn’t intimidate her anymore, he was just an annoyance. But she was glad she had gotten the chance to stay and become part of the Rebellion.

“Anyway,” she continued, forcing herself to not get too lost in her own thoughts, “do you have any idea what you’ll be facing when you get there?”

“I guess we’ll have to see.”

Cora wondered if Jyn was really as tough as she tried to look. Probably not, and certainly not without a weapon. Cora had noticed that she hadn’t been given one, and since she had been picked up from a labour camp, she doubted that she had her own. Maybe Cassian would give her one once they’d take off. Somehow she doubted it, she knew he wasn’t the most trusting. But they couldn’t send her in the middle of the battle completely unarmed. Cora could feel her own blaster hard against her body.

“Here, take this,” she said taking it out and handing it to her. Jyn looked from the weapon to Cora and frowned. “I’ll want it back, but you can have it for now.”

“Thanks,” she said, still a little cautious, but taking the weapon nonetheless. It looked a lot more natural in her hand, Cora thought.

K2’s tall, dark outline caught her eye, reminding her why she was there in the first place. “Shall we?” Cora said, pointing towards the U-wing.

It didn’t take long to spot Cassian in the crowd, a little further away, talking to Draven. From the sour look on his face she was sure he didn’t like whatever the general had to say. No wonder Cassian looked so tired all the time. She sighed and waited for him.

“Captain,” she greeted once he had gotten closer.

“Doctor,” he replied, and the frown on his forehead relaxed considerably. “How are you?” he said in a low voice, as if anyone would be listening in.

“Oh, you know, the usual. This whole thing with the pilot seems to have stirred things up a little.”

“I’m sorry,” he said, looking down. “I wish I didn’t have to tell them anything about…”

“No, it’s alright,” she said, her heart filled with joy knowing that he really meant to keep his promise to her. “Glad to have been of some help. Though I’m not sure I’ve helped much. Anyway,” she said, trying to keep things short as she could see Jyn and K2 already seeming to be butting heads. “Got my stuff back today.” She took the duffle bag off her shoulder and showed it to him.

“They should have done that a long time ago.” The frown was back and although Cora appreciated his indignation, this wasn’t the time.

“Better late than never.” She opened it a little to show him what was inside. “There’s a healing field generator and some stuff that might save your life, so I'm giving it to you. Wait, where are you running off to?” Cassian had started walking briskly towards the U-Wing and Cora strode after him, fully determined to slap him over that stubborn head of his head once he caught up to him.

“Keep them. We’ll be fine.”

“Cassian! I know you and I know the state you come back to me in and I won’t have it! Take the bag.”

“Stop worrying for a second, will you?” he mumbled, still a few steps in front of her.

“Cassian!” she whisper-shouted after him, but the stubborn ass was still walking. “They said they’ll take the tracker bracelet off if I want to.”

Cassian stopped and turned around to look at her. His eyes darted from her face to her hand and Cora couldn’t understand why, for the briefest moment, he seemed scared.

“They said that I’m free to go anytime I want. They’ll take it off and I’ll be free to go.”

“Why didn’t you take it off?”

“I don’t know. Figured it might help me come back home if I ever get lost.”

“So you’re...”

“I’m not leaving. I’ll be here when you come back.”

Cassian nodded, but didn’t say anything, instead he turned around and walked into the ship.

“Cassian, the bag!” she yelled after him, still holding it in her hand. She heard him yell after the others to hurry and Jyn walked into the ship, leaving only Cora and K2 at the bottom of the ramp.

“Why does she get a blaster and I don’t?” K asked, in a tone that probably meant he was pretty offended.

“I don’t know, but I think you and I both should complain to Draven.”

“Maybe.”

“K!” Cassian shouted from the inside of the ship, sounding more and more impatient.

“Take this,” she said, handing the bag to the droid. “Please take good care of it and make sure it doesn’t get lost. I packed some things that might save your lives in case of an emergency. Please look after it.”

The droid looked at it. “Even mine?”

Cora’s words died in her throat, and for a couple of seconds she could do nothing but stare at the black, expressionless face. “I’m sorry,” she mumbled, and she could feel her heart aching.

“Don’t worry about it. Cassian will take care of me.” He walked up the ramp, towards and increasingly impatient Cassian, holding the bag in his hand. “I’ll look after it, Doctor Enoch.”

“Good luck!” she yelled after them, as the door closed behind him.

Cora stood in the same spot until Lewella came by her side, staring at the patch of sky where she saw Cassian’s ship disappear. She felt lost, like the whole world had shifted under her feet and she couldn’t regain her balance.

“Are you alright?” her friend asked, rubbing soothing circles over her back, as if she was trying to pull her out of her numb state. Cora nodded, afraid that if she’d open her mouth, she’d start bawling. “Let’s go get something to eat,” she said, guiding her back into the building.

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#cassian andor #cassian andor x reader #cassian andor x oc #star wars #rogue one

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