The One with the Best Friend

[Damon Riggs]

Coming by work wasn't always an easy thing, but with the tensions in the galaxy on the rise once again, Riggs was able to get his pick of work. His mind was a little less preoccupied these days now that he and Teyla had finally done something to address the tension between them. Work was going well, and things were going well other places as well. This new direction for their partnership had been the adjustment they had both needed. It had never really been about work. Their feelings for each other were way past that, and they were done trying to be professional about it.

Riggs sat with the infochant he's been getting his recent jobs from. Teyla was on the ship keeping things secure. He hated leaving her there, but with the Wookiee too, RIggs was much more easy about it. They had the big guy around for when they needed him.

The meeting was not going as planned. Yes, Riggs had the job, but as the infochant got up and left the captain, Riggs just sat there, stunned. She had given him news which came totally out of left field and completely unexpected. Several unaccounted for minutes passed before Riggs finished his drink and walked out of the Cantina. His boots carried him to the ship, but his mind wasn't there.

Teyla had been waiting for him in the lounge. It had taken longer than he told her. Normally Riggs would be the type to say something about getting the job, then kiss the woman. In stead he set the contract on the table and walked over to where they kept the liquor. Riggs grabbed a glass and a bottle. He returned to the table where Teyla was sitting. A glass was poured, but Riggs didn't touch it. He just stared at it.

"We need to finish this one as soon as possible," he said as he stood up and walked to his quarters, the ones Teyla now shared with him. He closed the door not paying attention to whether Teyla was following him or not. Right now... Riggs was still processing.

 

[Amz]

The Wookiee was cheating. Luck of the draw, her shebs! But she also remembered how Damon met Rafiki in the first place, which entailed something about cheating, and loss of limbs. Even if she thought it was the case now, she wasn’t feeling particularly daring enough to call the big guy out on his continuous, and rather incredible, stroke of luck. “Yeah, yeah, you win! I'll take dish duty this week...again.”

Rafiki looked pleased with the outcome, and roared something that sounded like approval as he left for his quarters.

Damon came in about the same time, the sound of his boots drawing up her eyes as a smile spread across her face to see him finally back. “Well! How’d it go? You know,” she thumbed lightly in the direction the Wookiee had left, “We really should fork out a few credits and get a new sabacc deck, that--” the smile from before quickly faded while observing his actions.

Her face fell in a pattern of brows, eyes and lips, looking down to the contract he’d casually flopped in front of her and then fixed on the glass he poured. Her jaw clenched, tension thickening, hoping he would not pick it up. Everything had been going relatively well lately, and she really wasn’t feeling up to having an argument with him, especially when she could tell something was clearly wrong, but that’s the territory this was headed if so much as a drop passed his lips. Much to her relief, it didn’t happen. His attention was elsewhere, on whatever it was that was eating at him.

She listened to what he had to say, watched him get up to leave, though didn’t say anything and stayed until he was gone.

Slowly, she swung out her legs from the booth and got up, taking the glass with her to the drain and watching the amber liquid splash into the sink as she poured it out and gathered her own thoughts together, allowing him some time before following after him with a bombardment of questions.

Fingers pressed in the code for the bunk they shared. “Damon?” she asked, going to him and reaching out, placing a hand on his backside. “Want to talk about it?”

[member="Damon Riggs"]

 

[Damon Riggs]

It was quiet fast. Teyla tried talking to him, but picked up on the idea he was not doing okay. He knew she woukd have kicked his butt all over the ship if he started drinking. The news made him want to, but even though he was in shock, Riggs had the sense not to put his new relationship in hot water.

When Teyla came into their room, Riggs was standing by the dresser holding holo image. It was Marcus Jenkins, his best friend. The image had been taken the night before “The Inquisitor” took its first flight. They’d be become fast friends, and Riggs had lost. Now there was news he was alive.

Damon turned around and handed Teyla the frame.

”The infochant... she said Jenkins tried taking this job...”

He got off the ship somehow? That’s the only way he could have been alive. Damon had seen the ship explode while Marcus was still on it. He sighed and walked close to Teyla. His arms went around her and he pulled her close.

”We have to prep the ship. I have to know if he’s alive. How soon can we leave?”

[member="Teyla Ee'everwest"]

 

[Amz]

One hand held the frame, but the other comfortingly grazed along his back. The holopic was one she had seen many times before, and between finding him like this and the alcohol? She didn’t need the Force to tell her this involved something with his past.

Teyla listened. It was a short explanation, but he didn’t need to elaborate for her to understand the depths of what he was going through. She already knew, and it was a lot to take in even for her. How was it possible?

A breath fell from her lips and Teyla held him while he embraced her. “Of course, I wouldn’t expect anything else, we’ll get answers to this, I promise. You really think it might be him? And roughly speaking, shouldn't take any more than twenty-minutes to get us into the atmosphere.”

[member="Damon Riggs"]

 

[Damon Riggs]

”My infochant... she wouldn’t...”

The woman knew better than to make stories up about Jenkins. He’d asked her to keep an ear to the ground about his old crew. Riggs had never stopped feeling responsible about them. Over the years since the battle which saw the ship lost he’d reunited with many of the survivors and even helped some of them out. The source was reliable, and Riggs knew it. Marcus Jenkins was alive in some capacity.

”She’s been listening for rumors of my old crew. This isn’t the first time she’s given information, and she’s never been wrong.”

Riggs nodded and let go of Teyla. They weren’t going anywhere if he just stood there holding her. That would only lead to something else that he was certainly not in the mood for, not until the shock wore off. They still had a job to do, so Damon composed himself, ran his fingers through his mane, and took a couple of deep breaths. His casual smirk found its way back to its place on his lips. Having Teyla along for the ride, this one especially, made him feel better. Riggs would never admit it, but his confidence, the roguish swagger, it was all a front to hide the deep insecurity he held since the battle.

”Did you manage to see the contract?”

[member="Teyla Ee'everwest"]

 

[Amz]

“Let’s hope she’s not wrong this time, either, then.” Teyla hoped that his infochant was right about the survival of Jenkins, knowing it’d mean the Galaxy to Damon if he was alive.

They unraveled from the embrace and Teyla stood on the tips of her toes to give him a quick peck before she headed for the cockpit.

After settling into her seat she started going through all of her routine checks, eyes shifting only to catch a quick glimpse of him while he spoke, then focused back to the work in front of her.

“I didn’t read it in detail, but a quick peek told me all I needed to know about the task and what we need to do. Have to wonder why Jenkins decided not to finish the job, seems easy enough and all. I know we don’t ask questions, but...I don’t know...something about it seems...off.”

With the ship powered to life and the clearance to leave, Teyla gave the yolk a slight pull and the ship lifted into the atmosphere. They were off.


[member="Damon Riggs"]

 

[Damon Riggs]

"No we get to ask questions with this one, especially if Jenkins had something to do with it..."

It was time to break some rules. Marcus had certainly done that when he punched him out to save his life. The man had his reasons for doing it, and Riggs had moved on with his life. He found love, even if it wasn't with the woman that Jenkins kept pushing Damon toward. Teyla was good for him, and better for him in many ways. He was drinking less with her around for starters, and she wasn't letting him bottle up what he had discovered about Jenkins. Okay, so maybe he wasn't in the mood to delay their take off, but walked back to her and planted a kiss on her lips.

"That's for putting up with me today," he said before heading to where Teyla had left the contract. He needed to see it with his own eyes. If something was off for Teyla, then something was off. Riggs couldn't explain it, but whenever she had strong feeling one way or the other, the woman was always right. He had learned to trust Teyla's gut. This was one of those times that he had to run with it, even though he could not explain it. Well, maybe he could, but right now he didn't want to go there. His lover was force sensitive, but he wasn't ready to say it out loud yet.

While Riggs grabbed the contract, Teyla started to prep the ship. He was strapped in by the time she was ready to take off, and once the ship was on auto-pilot, Riggs was up and about again. His eyes were pouring over the contract looking for anything that might be giving Teyla a reason to think something was off.

"This job has former military all over it... it's too good," he said once Teyla had found him again. A hot mug of caf was in his hand, the contract on the table in front of him.

"It's a set up... a trap."

[member="Teyla Ee'everwest"]

 

[Amz]

“Good, I’m glad to hear you say that,” Teyla agreed, sloughing off her jacket. “I didn’t want to go into this completely blind.”

“Let Rafiki know we’re about to hi--mmf!!” the kiss caught her off guard, and was over sooner than she would have liked. She cleared her throat softly, an inquisitive brow lofting. “Of course…” she answered, her voice soft and soothing as she reached over to give his hand a gentle squeeze, “We’re in this together.”

Once the coordinates were plugged in and the blue lines of hyperspace surrounded them, she set on the autopilot and swung around in her chair to face Damon, watching him go over the contract again and listening.

The brunette steepled her fingers together and brought them beneath her chin for support, shoulders hunching until both elbows rested on her knees, contemplating what they should do.

She knew that asking him to abandon the job wasn’t going to be an option. Not when information about Jenkins was on the table. Heck, even knowing that herself, she knew she couldn’t ask that of him.

Still, the thought briefly crossed her mind.

“Knowing it’s a set-up will help us gain a leg up on them. Maybe we can uncover some more information about who’s behind the job before we get there to help give us a better understanding of what we’re walking into, they had to be sloppy somewhere.”

[member="Damon Riggs"]

 

[Damon Riggs]

They were in it together, but with all the close calls this relationship had in recent weeks, it was a good reminder. The kiss hadn’t been long enough, he would have agreed with her if she’d said it out loud, but they were already focused on the job at hand. At least Riggs was. Maybe that wasn’t fair to her, but where Marcus Jenkins was concerned, Riggs had to find answers. That’s why he kept pouring over the mission logs to see if there was anything they could do, find, or come up with to give them an advantage.

”Not that I can see. I mean the minute we make contact I’m sure they’ll spring the trap. I’d just as soon we set a little trap of our own. We’re gonna need Rafiki...”

The walking carpet usually left them alone unless there was a promise of credits. At this point, Riggs didn’t care about getting paid for the job. Information about Jenkins was at stake. Damon knew Teyla wasn’t going to like the fact he’d be willing to pass up on the credits, especially when work had been thin these days. The two needed a big break.

He scratched the back of his head. Getting out of the seat he walked back to the lounge to grab a mug of caf. Turning the pot in he water for the liquid to brew. It needed to be strong, so he added an extra scoop of grounds.

”We can pick him up on the way... then hit Coruscant... I know a guy... Avalon Gray... the meet up is supposed to be in his Coruscant location for the Violet Blue. I think we found our in.”

He poured two mugs of caf, fresh and piping hot!

[member="Teyla Ee'everwest"]

 

[Amz]

“Avalon Gray.”

The name left a bad taste in her mouth.

“I know a guy, too.” she groaned. “We’re acquainted, and not in a good way. Might be best if he doesn’t see me with you. Used to give him a lot of chit when I worked for the CSF.” Teyla continued to explain, “We were never fast enough to catch him in the act, he kept his hands too clean. Be best if you take Rafiki with you and keep your comm on.”

She sighed, but gratefully relieved the mug of caf from Damon and took a cautionary sip.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Teyla brought down the Inquisitors Revenge at the Courscant City Spaceport after some frustrating back and forth between her and the air patrol. The freighter landed on the duracrete traffic platform with a slight ‘thud’ and a few seconds later the ramp was being lowered.

Teyla unstrapped from her seat, taking long strides to their weapons cache to pull out a couple blaster pistols.

“Here,” she said, shoving it into the inner compartment of Damon’s jacket. “If you run into trouble.” she pulled his jacket back forward and smoothed her hands over the front. “Lower levels of Coruscant aren’t friendly.” That was an understatement. Most of the city wasn’t friendly unless you were wandering the upper-class levels. She heard Rafiki bemoan something to that effect, and smiled.

“Remember, I’ll be listening in case of trouble.”

[member="Damon Riggs"]

 

[Damon Riggs]

The trip to Coruscant was only delayed by picking up Rafiki on the way. The walking carpet didn't like getting interrupted on his vacation, but work was work, and he never turned down credits or his life oath. There was something Teyla was on edge about, but she wasn't talking about it. RIggs didn't want to bring it up, but Coruscant did not hold good memories for either of them anymore. The planet had been hit so many times, and Riggs parents were not going to get lucky every time. News had reached him some time ago that the last attack by the Sith had seen his parents killed. It was just Teyla now. Teyla was all Riggs had, which was why the news about Marcus had him on edge with excitement.

Teyla stuffed another blaster inside his coat. Riggs eyes softened. His lips found hers, and his strong hands wrapped securely around her shoulders as he pulled away.

"Hey... nothing is gonna happen to me, okay? I grew up here, remember?"

Riggs kissed her again just before he and Rafiki walked down the boarding ramp of the ship. He hated leaving her alone on the ship, but if they needed a fast escape she needed to have the ship ready. Riggs also knew it was the safest place for her right now. Just walking on the platforms of the massive city planet had him on edge. This was not the home he remembered at all. Maybe Teyla had the right idea after all by stuffing the extra blaster in his coat. Still, nothing was going to keep him from finding out what Marcus had been up to that got him in trouble.

They walked into the Violet Blue, a near replica of the one Avalon had built on Zeltros in Paradise City. It certainly didn't disappoint. Riggs expected everything he saw from the naked Twi'lek dancers in the cages which dangled above several of the tables, to patrons strung out on spice. Mr. Gray certainly knew how to deliver whatever vice a person could be entrapped by. It was a good thing Avalon didn't have what Riggs wanted. She was back on the ship right where Riggs had left her, listening in.

"My my my... Damon Riggs, aren't you a sight for sore eyes... where is that pretty little fighter pilot of yours.... Russo... it's been a while."

"Married to some Jedi last I heard," Riggs answered as he sat down at the table Avalon had pointed to. Rafiki just stood near Riggs. He knew his job was look out.

"Shame... though if you're in need of the Hapan Hustle I've got quite the selection for a decorated officer like yourself."

"Not interested, Avalon. I've got a nice Hapan lady waiting for me back on my ship right now. You can believe me, this is the last place I'd come for companionship. Now, I hear you got some information about an old buddy of mine, Marcus Jenkins."

"Oh, my yes... Jenkins was in here the other day, agreed to run some spice out to my Zeltros location. He was supposed to pick up the goods a week ago and never showed. Not like him. He's been running spice for me since that pretty ex of yours cancelled our contract."

Riggs winced inside. Teyla didn't need to know that Riggs used to help Avalon avoid getting caught. She did now.

​"No, not like him to bail on a commitment. So what you got for me..."

"For you, a proposal. You make the delivery for me, under the radar just like before, and I'll give you the frequency of the tracker I placed on his ship, and last known location. Best I got."

"Seems like I don't have a choice," Riggs reached out and took the datapad from Avalon and pressed his thumb to it.

He stood from the table and started to walk off, but not before Avalon called out to him again.

"You tell that pretty little Hapan I said hello. It's a shame you didn't let me meet her."

Riggs rolled his eyes and walked off.

[member="Teyla Ee'everwest"]

 

[Amz]

Maybe she was paranoid, but could she really be blamed for that? Coruscant hadn’t left either of them with the best of experiences, mostly tragedy.

As it was, the city planet was still recovering from the last two invasions and she wasn’t willing to take no for an answer on the subject. “Even still, I want you to take the extra blaster. It makes me feel better. Don’t question it, just let me look out for you in the same way you loo--”

Damon cut her off with a kiss, Rafiki joining the scene with a growl and grimace that implied something along the lines of them ‘not having time for this’.

Teyla smiled, shaking her head.

“All right, then.”

She stood back, watching the duo exit the ship before heading back to the deck, turning on the shared comm frequency to listen in on the conversation with Avalon.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“I should've known!” Teyla squawked with a mock fury, craning her neck when Damon and Rafiki walked up the ramp, her smile giving it away. “You were making my job harder all the way back then! Scoundrel! Guess that means we’re headed to Zeltros? I plugged in the coordinates while listening in.”


[member="Damon Riggs"]

 

[Damon Riggs]

Riggs shrugged as he walked back up onto the ramp. He said nothing. Instead he he stopped in front of Teyla and planted a kiss on her lips.

"You weren't supposed to hear that... but clearly I've been in your life longer than you knew," he winked at her before walking past her.

The taste of their kiss still lingered on her lips. Knowing they were several steps closer to finding Jenkins had him in a much better mood than he had been several hours earlier. The fact Avalon was the one he was going to owe for this unsettled him a bit, but only because he was tired of working for the man. He'd quit the work long before meeting Teyla, and now he was sucked right back in because it involved a friend, a best friend. This was severely unfair, and the fact Teyla was dropping everything they could be doing to help, it only made him love her more.

"I love you, you know. You didn't have to drop everything we needed to be doing to chase this lead down, but you did. You don't know how much that means to me."

They closed the ramp and headed to the cockpit where they could set the coordinates for Zeltros, the party planet. Riggs hated the place, too many pheromones making people do dumb things. Once they were on the way, Damon looked over to Teyla...

"You know... we have plenty of time before we reach Zeltros if um..." he waggled his eyebrows and nodded toward their quarters.

[member="Teyla Ee'everwest"]

 

[Amz]

The kiss came as a surprise, but not unwelcome in the least. She allowed the luxury of a few more seconds, but was careful not to deepen the kiss. They wouldn’t get anywhere otherwise, and they very much needed to get themselves to Zeltros and follow up on that lead.

‘Clearly, I’ve been in your life longer than you knew.’

The thought bounced around in her mind. She’d never put much stock in the idea of destiny, but perhaps there was something to it after all? Fate was not something believed in on Naboo. Rather, it was said to be determined by the decisions one made. But looking at everything over the last few years, what else could she explain it as? “Guess we were meant to be, hm?” she returned in a lighthearted tone. Not even the idea of having to work for Avalon could seem to dampen her mood.

At hearing the words, ‘I love you’, the brunette released the controls to reach for his hand. “I know,” she answered, smiling at him from over her shoulder. “What’s important to you, is important to me...I...I would do anything for you.” She knew that if the tables were turned, Damon would do the same for her. Turning her attention back to the controls of the ship, the Inquisitors Revenge roared to life. “Besides...if it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t have you.” she owed Jenkins a good deal of thanks for that.

Legs uncurled from underneath her and the harness came off, once the course was charted, watching through the viewport as the blue of hyperspace surrounded them. She’d never get tired of that feeling of freedom. A carefree kind of freedom, where the shadows of the past could fall behind them.

Teyla chuckled at the suggestion then stretched to her feet, “Is that so?” she asked with a coy grin, padding over to where Damon stood and placing a hand against his chest. “Are you sure it will be enough time?"

Leaning up, she planted an encouraging kiss on his lips.

[member="Damon Riggs"]

 

[Damon Riggs]

She knew... of course she knew he loved her. It had taken them some time to get to the point where they could admit that to each other, but once they had, it was a freeing thing. The partners were so much more than than just a ship captain and a pilot anymore. They had been much more for some time now, and Riggs was happy. Teyla was right.

"We really do owe him for that, don't we? So let's save his ass."

Damon tutted at Teyla's doubt. They had plenty of time before they got to Zeltros for what Riggs had in mind, and rather than let her argue, Damon scooped her up and tossed her over his shoulder. His hand smacked her on the butt as he walked toward the bedroom.

"You and your appetite. I love it... and I fully intend on showing you."

There was nothing more said as the door closed behind them. He hoped that the rest of the crew had earplugs... they were going to need them.

[member="Teyla Ee'everwest"]