Private Just Checking In

[Cato Harth]

She wasn't wrong. He smirked, and snorted, "As long as it's your ship. Nothing about mine really says 'vacation'." His vessel was about as dingy and bolted together as the rest of Nar Shaddaa. Getting off planet was rare for him, as were good ships for sale. At least this one got him from one point to another. And nobody ever wanted to steal it.

In the room, McGill was making his daring escape, to which Cato rolled his eyes, "C'mon man," He raised a fist and pulled it back toward himself, bringing the mothman in tow through the Force. "Make this a little easier on the rest of us?" He then walked back out of the room, still telekinetically lugging McGill along with him. "We're moving out. Busy schedule ahead."

Inanna Harth​

 

[Inanna Harth]

Caught in Cato’s grasp, McGill howled loud enough to wake the dead. So much for secrecy.

“Let go of me, you fucking space wizard! I’m getting the hell out of here! I’m gonna be free!”

Cringing, Inanna grabbed the straitjacket, holding it out so that Cato could put McGill back into it.

Cato Harth​

 

[Cato Harth]

The shriek made Cato scowl, "For the love of- Alright-" With his other hand, he reached out towards McGill's mind, and tried to telepathically induce a deep sleep in the obnoxious Shi'ido. Provided that worked, he would set to straitjacketing him in a much less irritated mood.

In any case, once it had been applied, he gestured back to the door, "Now we can go? Unless you have any other strange people living in your closet that need to be dropped off?"

Inanna Harth​

 

[Inanna Harth]

McGill abruptly went limp, held up only by Cato’s telekinesis. The pair nonetheless managed to maneuver him into the straitjacket, which forced his body to demorph back to his natural form.

"Now we can go? Unless you have any other strange people living in your closet that need to be dropped off?"

“No, cais ned’jin, I do not,” Ishani hissed, slipping in some Shi’idese in her agitated state. “Let’s g—ah!”

A pale young man with white hair stood at the end of the hallway. He was holding a blaster set to stun, and as soon as Cato came into his sights, he opened fire.

Cato Harth​

 

[Cato Harth]

"What did you call me?" He asked with some amusement, only for his danger senses to flare up a moment later, "Inanna!" Cato lurched forward to catch her, his attention too split to mount any proper reaction to the shooter.

The stun fired, and just as the knight had reached for his saber, he fell backwards. Muscles flexed and twitched for a few brief seconds as the connection overloaded his nerves. Then, vision faded, and the scuffle was promptly over.

Inanna Harth​

 

[Inanna Harth]

As Cato collapsed and McGill likewise fell to the floor, Inanna’s shock turned to anger.

“Pygar, you idiot!”

“What?” Still clutching his blaster, the young man walked toward her. He was Pygar Hoole, Inanna’s recently rediscovered brother. “I heard strangers yelling and screaming in the house. What was I supposed to do, not shoot ‘em?”

He grinned cheekily, but he was trembling. Perhaps “rediscovered” isn’t the right word—Inanna had rescued him from a slow, painful death, and now Pygar was all frayed nerves and itching trigger fingers.

Inanna crouched down beside Cato, trying to rouse him.

“He’s a Jedi and he’s helping me,” she explained. “And this is McGill. I brought him here for questioning.”

“Ah, I see. You could’ve mentioned that to me, you know,” Pygar remarked. “Why did you bring them here, anyway? Seems kind of dumb.”

“I didn’t have a choice.” She lifted Cato’s head into her lap. “Come on, wake up…”

Cato Harth​

 

[Cato Harth]

Cato groaned, his eyes fluttering open a short time later. It was a brief knock out, but the stun effect already had brought a bout of grogginess and a rising headache. “Oi…” He suddenly jolted upright, remembering what had put him on the floor in the first place. He stopped mere inches to Inanna’s face, gazing at her for a moment before scanning around the room, and eventually noting Pygar.

“What? Whyyyyy-” He grumbled irritatedly, pressing a hand against his temple, “I thought there weren't any other strange people here.”

Inanna Harth​

 

[Inanna Harth]

“My brother,” Inanna said by way of introduction. “Pygar, this is Cato. Cato, this is Pygar.”

Pygar pulled an impressively grotesque face, crossing his eyes and sticking out his tongue.

“No one else is here,” Inanna reassured Cato. “Er, except for my mother.”

“She’s out.” Pygar finally put down his stun gun. “Sorry for shooting you. So, uh, what’s the deal with McGill?”

“We need to get him back to the Benandanti, preferably without being noticed.”

Pygar’s eyes gleamed. “Tell you what—how about I make it up to you by returning him for you? Sneaky is my specialty.”

Inanna raised an eyebrow, then glanced toward Cato. There was something faintly suggestive in her gaze.

Cato Harth​

 

[Cato Harth]

Cato stood up slowly, grimacing as the newly-introduced Pygar hit him with a strange face like an easily amused child, “Lemme guess, you’re like fifty?”

Both of them confirmed that the only other person living here was own, at last freeing him from any more surprises. Pygar apologized, and Cato smirked, waving a hand dismissively, “As long as you don’t do it a second time.”

Better yet, the man offered to do a bit of their dirty work for them. Cato mulled over it for just a moment when he caught sight of the look Inanna had given him, which was enough to make the decision. He looked back to her brother and gave him an unassuming grin, “Pygar, that would be the second best thing to happen to me today. Just don’t get caught,” He gave him a slap on the shoulder and began heading for the door, giving Inanna a playful nudge of the Force just as she had done to him, “Appreciate it! Now where is our ride…”

Inanna Harth​

 

[Inanna Harth]

“Fifty?” Pygar scoffed. “Damn, I hope not. I’m not a Shi’ido.”

“He’s adopted,” Inanna said quickly, and seemed in a hurry to move on.

The matter of taking care of McGill was swiftly settled, and Inanna felt a nudge spurring her on. She headed back toward the yacht, pausing along the way.

“You know, if we’re headed back to Narsh, I’d rather not take my ship. Don’t want to risk it getting stolen.” It may have survived their last trip, but it might not make it through a second. “Are you really dead set on not taking yours?”

Cato Harth​

 

[Cato Harth]

“Figures,” was all Cato had to offer on being wrong about Pygar’s heritage.

As they headed back to the yacht, Inanna made concerns about her own ship known, and Cato sighed, “Fine. Fair enough. I’m just warning you ahead of time, it's a bit outdated.” He then continued off to the yacht. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad.

Inanna Harth​

 

[Inanna Harth]

Inanna set a course back to the camp. “Believe me, I won’t mind.”

It was later in the day now, and the sky was starting to get dark. Her golden eyes scanned the horizon, then she glanced back toward Cato with a smirk.

“Could try to catch a glimpse of those sea monsters along the way,” she said, pointing downward. “It should be dark enough now. If not, there’s always other visits…”

Her smirk wavered, an unpleasant realization hitting her. But she didn’t voice it, instead heading below deck.

Cato Harth​

 

[Cato Harth]

The boat started up, and Cato cautiously looked down into the waters as she pointed, “That depends, they’re not gonna eat me are they?” He smirked, even if he did find the concept at least mildly concerning.

He did a double take over at Inanna, noticing the silent waver as she retreated below, “Inanna?” He followed curiously, trying to catch up with her, “What’s up?” Cato asked, giving the new floor a cursory glance as he did.

Inanna Harth​

 

[Inanna Harth]

“I wouldn’t let them eat you,” Inanna replied.

Below deck was a spacious lounging area with chairs and tables, though it looked largely untouched, as if it had never or rarely been used.

Inanna approached a wall, and with a wave of her hand she caused the metal screen to lift, revealing a window peering underwater. Cato’s voice reached her, sounding concerned.

“Oh, I was just thinking,” she murmured. “With you fighting crime on Nar Shaddaa, and me helping the refugees here on Erakhis, we’d be on opposite sides of the galaxy most of the time… Seems like quite the long distance relationship.”

Cato Harth​

 

[Cato Harth]

Cato walked in just as the window screen gave way to reveal an underwater display. He smiled faintly but returned to his more concerned state as they continued. Stepping over next to her, he leaned against the wall and listened.

"I… suppose that's true." He pursed his lips in thought, leaving an awkward pause as he struggled fo find either where this was going or what to say, "...So, what are you thinking?"

Inanna Harth​

 

[Inanna Harth]

“I don’t know. I was hoping you’d tell me it wouldn’t have to be that way, somehow,” she admitted.

Crossing her arms over her chest, she gazed out at the darkening sea. “It’s not ideal, is what I mean. Mainly because neither of our situations are temporary. There will always be crime on Narsh, and the refugee crisis won’t be going away any time soon.”

Running her thumb against her lower lip, she glanced back at him. “Oh, what am I doing—we only kissed earlier, and here I am talking about having a long-term relationship. I… Is that something you want?”

Cato Harth​

 

[Cato Harth]

He listened, nodding slowly as if mentally preparing himself for what was to come. Which was, at least far as he had been expecting, her trying to cut things off. But there was hesitance from them both. A want for something to work out in spite of their circumstances.

Cato looked up at her, almost surprised by the question. He said nothing at first, simply looking at her and swallowing, "Inanna…I-" he stepped toward her and exhaled, realizing he had no idea what he was going to actually say. But he knew what he wanted. He nodded, as if confirming it to himself, "...I do. I-If that's what you want."

The knight ran his palms across her shoulders, before settling on her arms, "You're one of the only decent people I've actually met since I landed on that rock. You opened my eyes to the rest of the galaxy, people and things I've been neglecting. I don't know how well it'll work, but… I'd really like to try." He tried to smile, even managing a quiet chuckle, "Worst case scenario… Nar Shaddaa can do without its vigilante for a little while, right? I… I can help the galaxy in other ways... right?" He nearly winced at the suggestion. It felt greedy, selfish. Was just wanting a bit of happiness that? Wanting something other than an endless cycle of violence and crime and corruption until he inevitably slipped up?

Maybe not. But he was having a hard time convincing himself of that.

Inanna Harth​

 

[Inanna Harth]

At his answer, Inanna felt as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She held his gaze, chancing a small smile. “I do. You seem like the sort of man I couldn’t get enough of, anyway.”

The rest of what he said further kindled her hope, though she detected hesitation in his tone. “You don’t really want to leave Narsh, do you?” she asked softly. “I can’t blame you for that. But you’re right… there’s always going to be people in need somewhere in the galaxy. Not just here, and not just there, but everywhere you look.”

She gently slipped her hand into his. “I won’t ask you to choose.” But someday, they might have to choose.

Cato Harth​

 

[Cato Harth]

Cato's mouth twitched into a dumb smirk when she agreed, "Can't get enough of, huh?" He chuckled, and nodded. Cool. Cool. One problem down.

Inanna read his internal conflict, which only seemed to grow with her question. Did he want to leave? It was more complicated than that. A beat passed before he answered, "The problem is I do. But-- Sometimes I feel like I can't." He had already put so much commitment into his work there. Nar Shaddaa was rife with criminals, but underneath it all there were still people who just needed help. The common folk who don't have anywhere else to go, anyone else to turn to. But at the same time, it was hard to feel like he was making much progress. There was always someone new to step in and fill the power vacuum. A truly endless battle.

But she said the words he needed to hear. There were other ways to help. Better ways, even. It at least somewhat eased his conscience. He looked down as she took his hand, then up to her face. Cato gave a single, firm nod, "We'll find a way to make it work. We will."

Inanna Harth​

 

[Inanna Harth]

That smirk. She bit her lip and wrinkled her nose, stifling a laugh.

“Oh, that’s what I meant.” She waved her hand. “I don’t think anybody actually wants to stay on Narsh. It’s a… an obligation. A duty one must perform, if no one else will.”

She felt the same way about the refugees. It wasn’t a job she enjoyed, nor even one she was really all that well-suited to, but no one else seemed willing to do it. So she stepped in to fill those shoes out of necessity—and though it had made her life much more difficult, even miserable at times, she couldn’t just stop.

But she was committing to try, and so was he. That was enough.

For now.

She started to lean in closer—only for the sound of something smacking against the transparisteel window to draw her attention.

“Well, there’s one,” she said, gesturing to a sea creature that looked like it had come straight out of someone’s nightmares. “Talk about a mood killer…”

Cato Harth​