Private You Just Walk In Like You Belong

[Kaile Vera]

Asmus Janes

Kaile gave a crooked smile, the corner of her right lip arching upward. "I reckon I could make time on my busy schedule," she sang wryly, finishing up her meal. Too many years in SIS and having to do undercover work meant that it still took some time for Kaile to savor her food and not eat so fast. Then again, there were times when Asmus would coax her that it was all about savoring and enjoying life's treats.

"I need to pick up some parts anyways afterward. See if I can barter for anything." out where they were, if there was a chance to pick up on what they needed, it was best to do so when they could.

The pitter patter of feet announced Brix's return. To her credit, she did wash her hands. The sonic toothbrush was still in her hand though.

"DONE!"

 

[Asmus Janes]

"Almost!" Asmus laughed.

He gave Kaile a glance. One look that told her that he would get Bix ready whilst she finished eating.

There was a lot going around his head as he got her ready for a walk. The Alliance was pushing its territory out towards the Rim, whilst the Sith headed back to the shadows. The Galaxy was a big place.

After all they had been through, they had lived a very risk-averse life. It was all a balance. Bix needed friends and a future. They had to take measured risks and Kaile was the one best placed to do the measuring.

They took their time meandering down the beach. It was low tide and Bix was already doing one of her favourite things: choosing her new favourite pieces of driftwood to carry. Their target was a deceptive shadow in the cliffs down the curve of the beach. Hidden inside was a ship. The Palila. Their emergency plan.

When she was out of earshot, he decided to drop another bombshell.

"Do you think...well...let's just say things do get better. You think we might think about when Bix might want a brother or sister?"

 

[Kaile Vera]

Asmus Janes

The surprise made Kaile's eyes widen, long lashes fluttering rapidly as she processed Asmus's question, unable to help herself at the little warmth of affection blooming over her chest. Her face turned towards him as they walked, lips parting only to close again in thought. Her hand naturally went reaching out to clasp his, fingers intertwining to give him a loving squeeze.

"You want to?" she asked him, wondering where the thought came from. Their last two pregnancies, while utterly beloved, were unplanned, with Quinn passing and Brix thankfully making it to term. Her first she had Kurt for the first few months to help, the second, Asmus used his brilliant mind to star chart his way back into her life in search for her, finding not only his homing star but that Kaile was carrying Brix.

It would be different. You know, planning for another child. Certainly not unexpected. How odd, the notion, to plan for the future. It was still something so new to Kaile.

"Reckon would be nice to give her a playmate other than Jay," she gave an awkward chuckle, still so vulnerable and unsure.

"I'm afraid," she murmured softly, turning her head towards Brix, the little girl happily running away from the rush of a wave only to pitter patter back, giggling in an attempt to capture a shiny shell brought forth by the tide.

It was still a struggle to work through her fears, but at least now she was doing her best to be a little more honest with Asmus and communicate her feelings. For a long while, she'd been keeping so much inside.

 

[Asmus Janes]

He had not been there when she had suffered the first real loss. Asmus had been so young when they had first met. Kaile had been a little broken then. He had been silly and charming and taken her mind away from the pain for a little while.

But he hadn't been there for the consequences that followed.

He was here now.

As Kaile watched Bix, he stepped in behind her and wrapped her up in his arms.

"Me too, but you're amazing. We'll be fine. Until she becomes a teenager."

"Bix!" he called out.

She looked up at him.

"Stop growing up."

"No!"

"For daddy?"

"No-ooo!"

And she went about her business, unperturbed.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Asmus Janes

The giggle snort at Asmus's silly demand for their daughter to stop growing spilled from Kaile, her laughing eyes rolling away as she gave a shake of her head.

"I reckon it don't quite work that way, tellin' them to just stop," she chuckled.

"Would be nice though," her head went lolling over to rest on Asmus shoulder. While they had lightened the mood with a joke, his previous query still meandered in her mind. There was lots to think about.

"How would you handle a female teenager version of you running around? " she joked, the trio making their way down the curve of the beach. The sound of waves were louder here, crashing along the jagged rocks towards the shore, where the sand would start to change to a more pebbly feature. On her chronowatch a small beep would flash, prompting her attention. It was a message.

"Huh, Peja wants to know if you want to be in the local bet to see which grav-ball team will win this season." nothing but local sport and a fun time to see how the games went. As much of an interesting thing to do this far out from the city.

 

[Asmus Janes]

"A female, teenage version of me?" he murmured. "Why would you say such things?"

Asmus feigned shock and horror. He felt a touch of fear as he pictured it.

He wanted a better relationship with Bix than he had with his own parents. He knew she would need a guiding hand, but he wanted to be someone she could always turn to. His parents had tried to set their own path for him and that had shaped his rebellious side.

The notion of a seventeen year old Bix taking off for the starts and trying to sleep with anything that had a pulse was a little bit scary.

"Huh, Peja wants to know if you want to be in the local bet to see which grav-ball team will win this season."

"Ah I completely forgot! I was going to set up a fantasy league on the holonet for everyone. I'll do that next season. Yeah I'm in."

Kaile knew that he had favourite grav-ball players. On the international circuit they were almost always a certain kind of togruta.

"You know what you don't talk about so much? What would a teenage version of you look like?"

 

[Kaile Vera]

“Me?!” Kaile’s eyebrows rose slightly in contemplation. Thinking back she would mull about her past.

Things were so different then.

The Rebellion had recruited her very young. Llord had been under the rule of the former Sith Empire. Her early life had been nothing but war and a desire to escape.

“You know, in the past I’d spin you a yarn and tell you a dozen different stories and versions of my life,” she began. It was hard being so forthright now. For the better part of her life, she very rarely had the ability to be honest about herself. Even though it’s been years with Asmus now, he’s never pushed but only encouraged her to talk about what she was comfortable with. That’s one of many reasons why she loved him so.

“But we haven’t talked about that part of my life yet, huh?” It was a fair assessment. Throughout the years she’s revealed bits and pieces, giving Asmus a better picture of her real life. Some of it exciting, full of laughter and thrills. Others not so much.

“You know the Rebellion recruited me early. I was an orphan. I don’t remember my parents or if I even had siblings. But I could pick up things and have a knack at figuring out how to fix things.” Around ten or so. “I could fit into tiny spaces you see…”

“By the time I was in my teens they’d already figured out it was because of the Force that I could do what I could do. Tie into that my natural ability to mimic people, it was just natural that I went from simply being a mechanic to undercover espionage. “

It had been a fun and exciting change. The thought that she could pretend to be someone else, meet new people, get out of one place and still help out the rebellion. Never mind that they exploited her early for that very reason. An impressionable young girl wanting a better life out of the dredges and using her to be the best little spy she could be.

 

[Asmus Janes]

Asmus had expected a little surprise at his probing question. What he didn't expect was for Kaile to show it so openly and then to actually provide an answer.

“You know, in the past I’d spin you a yarn and tell you a dozen different stories and versions of my life,” she began

In the recent past, he hadn't asked directly. Not since he had come to understand more about Kaile. Asmus had almost always known that she had no family, either through being orphaned or simply estranged.

Even young and naive, he had instinctively known a few things about her. Admittedly not on that first drunken night when he'd tried to bring her back to his bunk and she had been taking any opportunity to escape quarantine.

He listened intently to her explanation. And, at the end, he found that he wasn't certain what to say.

It wasn't a situation Asmus was typically found in. He didn't know if he'd expected something more shocking, instead of a story that just made sense.

"Thank you," he said. He took a step closed, let his arm settle around her waist and kissed the top of her head.

"You've got a family now," he said. The moment probably did not need such an assertion, but he made it anyway.

"We can save the stories for what you got up after that til later," he chuckled. Neither of them were shy about that side of their past and it become a fun game to recount wicked tales. A strange flip of Kaile's old life of chasing fantasy.

"Weird how we ended up on that same ship together," he murmured. Almost as if they had hit the middle from opposite directions.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Asmus Janes

You got a family now.

Hearing that meant the 'verse to Kaile. The Lorridan came to a pause, stopping momentarily to look up at Asmus. The wind gave a small gust, tossing the loose strands of her hair about her face. There was a softness in her expression. Affection, of course. Love, in spades. But also it reflected gratefulness.

Perhaps an odd emotion to possess at that time - what with Brix yelping a comical attempt at being a Bantha rider while galloping faster along the shoreline - but it made sense when Kaile came forward and shut her eyes, inclining her head so as to be able to press her forehead against his.

"Weird, yes. But I'm grateful." she admitted, murmuring with a smile.

"Grateful for the 'verse givin' us that chance. Despite everythin'.... I'm grateful you didn't give up." In his love for her. His affection. His search.

They would not have their little family now had Asmus not used the collective skills acquired over a lifetime and stubbornly came searching for her after they met up again. Every little thing. Every little decision. Every experience spent. From his time on the Quinn, to the Academy, the Alliance, SIS, and beyond.

When all the roads Kaile took brought her back to him, Asmus charted and followed the star map that led him back to her.

 

[Asmus Janes]

He'd known that phrase would spark a reaction. Asmus liked to imagine that much of his life - even down to the things he said - were spur of the moment decisions. In truth, he had always been more perceptive and more intelligent than he let people see.

The decision to track Kaile down was something that he could never lie to himself about. It had been planned out with single minded determination. A goal he had seen through, start to finish.

He sharply leaned away from Kaile, looking over her shoulder.

"Bix! Not so close to the ocean."

He watched intently for a few seconds and then pressed his forehead back to Kaile's. Into fathering mode and back to exactly where they had been.

Asmus placed a feather light kiss on her lips.

"Love you too much to have given up."

"Well, I guess we're officially at 'thinking about another baby'," he declared as he rose up from the sea of emotions and remembered where this conversation had started.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Asmus Janes

Kaile’s laughter burst out in a joyful bubble, making her eyes dance and the crinkles in the corners of her eyes upturn in delight.

“Reckon we are!” She exclaimed, wrapping her arms tighter around Asmus with an affectionate squeeze.

“Nooo!” A yelp in protest came from Bix then, the little girl running back to throw hersel at them, tiny arms going around to try and envelope them both. “Me too!” Demanding to join the group hug.

Laughing some more, Kaile drew back from Asmus then bent down to pick up their daughter.

“You get plenty of kisses and hugs!” She told her, scattering an example of them along Bix’s check and neck, resulting in a mass of giggles.

“Okay. Enough dawdling. Let’s get this done.” She said, nodding towards Asmus.

“Race you!” She suddenly yelled out, bursting into a run as she taunted the former squadron leader to a race towards the hiding place where the ship lay.

 

[Asmus Janes]

Asmus was left slightly stunned by the new plan that he had started. His mind went to many places as she held him tight. Potential names, sinful options for going about the process itself, imagining sitting before an oceanside fire with a hand on Kaile's swollen belly.

"Hey little," Asmus said, stroking Bix's hair.

He wondered what she would be like with a brother or sister. Asmus found that he was excited to find out.

"Oh you get back here!" he called out. She was already building up steam, flicking wet sand around and leaving a trail of footprints.

Asmus leaned into the run, pumping his arms to try and catch up.

"You're not going to....beat...me..."

Asmus was closing on her heels, but he didn't managed to pass her before they reached the rocks. He hadn't out everything into the run, but Asmus was rather aware of how out of breath he was.

"I need to get back in shape," he laughed.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Asmus Janes

Their laughter would echo, resonating with the harmonious giggles by Bix.

"Haha.... reckon you should be doing ab it more workin' out then," Kaile teased, wagging her brows in hidden meanings, filtered for the benefit of their child. The crash of waves would echo as they neared the series of cliffside caves. There, nestled with a low gaping maw of an entrance, lay the cavern where the Solaris and the newest addition to their bug out assortment lay.

This far out in the Outer-rim and distant location meant that they had to use their natural surroundings to try to keep a low profile. Neither of them had any money for the type of subterfuge that had been available to them while working with SIS. What went into their preparation depended on what the credits they could earn as much as what they could salvage and barter for.

Taking the time to deactivate the primative sensor array for protection against potential thieves was an easy endeavor for Kaile. Her stim implant had connectivity to do a remote deactivation with her cybernetics. Asmus and Jay also had the ability to remote activate and deactivate if needed. The question that they had been discussing was the potentiality of having Bix learn what she had to do if worse came to worse. Jay had piloting and security protocols in place. If anything happened to Asmus and Kaile... at least Bix should have the opportunity to be lead offworld to safety.

 

[Asmus Janes]

Asmus wanted Bix to become familiar with the ship. If they had to leave in a rush, the ship was liable to become home for them all. He wanted that to be as seamless as possible.

With every day, he started to hold on to this routine a little less. With every day he could think of less chances of anyone from the old wars still having an interest in the pair.

Asmus walked up the loading ramp. The lights flickered to life around him on backup power. Once a week he would power up the main banks just to be certain it would fly in an emergency.

He sat down on one of the main consoles, patting the next one for Bix to sit down. After Kaile had been quite specific on how the workout would be achieved, he was wearing an easy grin. A grin he could not hide and Kaile could not fail to recognise. Lorrdian or not.

"I'm going to check the main systems and the mailbox."

It was old fashioned, but Vo and others had a known advertising header to use on a holonet site. Anything there was a signal.

"Kaile."

 

[Kaile Vera]

It was the inflection in Asmus’s voice that made a sense of foreboding running through her spine like a share of ice.

Bix had no sense of what was going on, but the Lorrdian gave a pause, jiggling their daughter in their arms before Kaile came up behind Asmus to see.

Gone was the carefree laughter and giggles, in their place Kaile had a serious expression on her face.

There it was. The advertising header that would be the tell tale flag of someone reaching out cryptically. A nerve along her jawline gave a twitch.

“What else is there?” She asked, all the while setting Bix down while calling out to Jay, “Jay take care of Bix.”

[ of course.] He chimed, stepping forward for the young Janes to squeal and run around the KD droid.

 

[Asmus Janes]

Asmus pushed himself back from the chair. Kaile would feel the anger in his stiff movements. He had just allowed himself to take a breath of free air and consider expanding their future.

He used his fingerprint to open a hidden compartment. There was a code cylinder inside. Asmus returned to the chair and slotted it into the console. The words of the message started to change. One by one passed as whole words into the algorithm to change the message.

"Okay, okay," he sighed as the message came together.

"It's not a warning for us."

He turned and looked up at Kaile, placing his hand on her forearm. It was selfish but that had been the root of his emotional turbulence. The idea that Bix was in danger.

"It looks like some of the others have gone to ground in Sith Empire space. Lucy, Max and others."

 

[Kaile Vera]

Asmus Janes

Hearing that made Kaile’s pounding heart settle a bit, but not by much. Truth be told, much like Asmus, the Lorrdian had ven holding her breath in worry that perhaps they had been found out. To hear differently and confirm that their home had not been compromised was a mighty blessing.

Hot air flew from her mouth in a whosh of relief, then she bent closer to the holo screen, reading the rest.

Her lips drew into a thin line at the news that Asmus’s former crew went to ground in Sith territory.

“They are askin’ for assistance. Locked down tight without a way of getting off world.” That they managed to send this out meant that it was a high and likely pricey risk they were taking.

So many thoughts ran though Kaile’s mind. Biting her lip she mused over the request. Was it terrible of her that part of her didn’t want yo get involved? Would Asmus judge her for that? It was a struggle. They barely managed to get themselves settled after it all. He’d promised her that they would get back into another war. This wasn’t a war per se, but with it carried risks.

 

[Asmus Janes]

"We can't..."

He started to say.

Responsibility

He couldn't stand the thought of leaving Bix without a family. Not after everything they had put themselves through. Asmus leaned back in the chair. He rested one hand against the small of her back.

"I don't want to put us, put Bix at risk," he said. He did not know that they were having the same thought in that moment. That she was worried he would judge her for the same.

"We could reach out to Vo? See if there is something we can do to help?" he asked.

He felt responsibility for those people. They had all fought alongside one another. Suffered losses. Heavy losses. He wasn't the carefree smuggler Kaile had first met. They had moulded around one another in the years. Grown together.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Asmus Janes

Kaile drew a deep breath, chest rising and falling in contemplation only to exhale in relief that Asmus had spoken her thoughts aloud. There was reassurance in the way he would rub at the small of her back. Touch was such an important aspect to the Lorrdian. That alone conveyed more to her about Asmus’s mindset than anything else. He wanted to help, but not place them at risk to harm. Bix was their ‘verse now. This family they were oh so carefully cultivating. Planning for another child…

Something. Maybe we can do something.

If anything, Kaile’s skill set with slicing and espionage meant that she didn’t have to dive right head into trouble. Maybe there was something that could be done from a safer distance. Connections.

Even doing this made her nervous, but she knew what this meant for Asmus. He’d told her plenty of stories about them and their support for him looking for her.

“Okay. Let’s see what we can do. “

Gently urging him to sit up and move to the side, Kaile began to encrypt a message for her former Sullustan handler.

“Here’s hoping we aren’t interrupting his second honeymoon.”

 

[Asmus Janes]

"Wasn't he on his third marriage?" Asmus asked. He tried to keep his tone calm and even.

There were times when having a partner who could read every micro expression and inflection of tone was deeply frustrating. He could never keep secrets for long.

He was feeling overwhelmed. Two back to back revelations.

Vo's message was immediate. Almost as if he had been waiting for them to beacon a signal out that he could reply to instantly. The communication channel carefully encrypted and masked, but still a risk.

Life could not be lived without risks. They would not have arrived here without them.

The message was short and to the point. Vo wanted help.

Asmus knew his attitude. He was a holochess player. Every piece had to move to his plan. He might have grown more sentimental as he got older, but Vo was still that tactician.

Vo had a team to extract them from the planet, but he needed an unmarked ship and people he could trust to rendeavouz at a space station and get them back to friendly space.

"Feth," Asmus said quietly, looking over her shoulder at the message. He had taken a minute to amuse Bix before returning, wrapping his hands around her waist and settling his chin on her shoulder.