Solstice • The Mandalorian

Chapter 11~The Reason Why She Ran

   Hey beautiful readers! 

   Any Harry Potter fans here?

   What's your house?

   I'm a Slytherin!

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   The Mandalorian stared up at the ceiling of the cabin thinking about what Mena had said to him earlier that day. His helmet was finally off and sitting next to him on a pillow, and although removing it should have brought him some sort of relief, he couldn't enjoy the feeling because of the girl. Without saying a word to him she had packed up a blanket and pillow and gone to sleep outside on the porch, leaving him alone to finally enjoy a night's sleep without the hassle of wearing his helmet. He should have been enjoying his time alone, but he couldn't, not when the rain outside was battering so loudly against the cabin's windows. She must've been cold out there, she must have been freezing. He couldn't enjoy his comfort knowing she was freezing. But why should he care? Why should he care about her wellbeing? After all, she had been the one who had chosen to sleep out there.  

   The Mandalorian shook the thoughts out of his head and shut his eyes to force the sleep to come so he could finally forget what she had said. However, that didn't last long before his eyes were wide open again and staring at the ceiling that was beginning to sound louder and louder with each passing second. How could she think of him as a friend? He was her bounty hunter and she was his bounty, their relationship was simple so why did she have to complicate things? Why did she have to complicate everything? 

   He couldn't think of a solid answer to any of these questions. Afraid of what answer he might find, he couldn't even get himself to search within him to find his own truth. He didn't want to know if he felt something for the girl, because if he did then where would that put him? He couldn't care about her, he couldn't be friends with her, he couldn't even like her because he wouldn't know what to do if he did. 

   Why did she have to say he was a good person? 

   A clash of thunder suddenly shook the cabin. 

   Groaning, the Mandalorian sat up and put his helmet back on. He had decided to keep his armor on just in case the girl decided to come back in, but if her persistence was enough to withstand the raging storm outside then he knew he would have to go and get her. So, he walked to the cabin's door and swung it open where he found Mena. She was facing the cabin and very obviously struggling to keep warm underneath a blanket that wasn't doing much against the icy winds and thunderous rain. When he opened the door, she carefully sat up and stared at him. He didn't want to admit it, but her current state was enough to pull at his heartstrings and feel guilty for letting her stay out here for as long as he did.

   "What are you doing here?" She sniffled. 

   "Get inside," he said. 

   "No, I like it out here," she persisted, but visibly shivered when another icy wind blew past. The Mandalorian sighed and grabbed her by her arms, lifting her up and pulling her inside before shutting the door. 

   "Hey!" 

   "Look, I'll pretend you slept out there the whole night and you can keep pretending you wanted to stay out there," he said and walked past her back to his bed. "Just go to sleep."

   "Fine, but only because you care so much," Mena said and laid a fresh blanket on the ground about a meter away from his before laying down so that now that both of them were able to stare up at the ceiling.

   "I don't care," the Mandalorian said. "I'm just supposed to bring you back unharmed." 

   Yes, that is why he had brought her inside, because of his mission and not because he cared.

   "Okay," Mena said and turned her back to him to sleep. 

   Although the Mandalorian now had to sleep with his helmet on and was probably likely to suffer aches and muscle pain in the morning, he couldn't deny he felt more at ease now that the girl was inside next to him. The helmet was worth it. Still, now a new discomfort was forcing his heavy eyes to remain open. It was a question that he had managed to keep buried throughout their time together, but after hearing her admit her feelings of friendship he wanted to know more than ever. He needed to know, but he feared the answer. Because it was the answer that would either complicate things further or simplify them, it was the answer that would determine whether he truly cared. 

   "Hey," he said, checking to see if she was still awake. A part of him hoped she wasn't so he could get through the night without asking his question, but a part of him hoped she was so he could finally face the truth. 

   "Yes?" Mena responded.

   "Why did you run away?"

   Mena didn't move or say anything for a few moments causing the Mandalorian to think he had stepped over a line he shouldn't have crossed, but then she sighed and turned to face him, looking at him with those same saddened eyes he had seen when he had first found out who she truly was. He decided he didn't want to know anymore, not if she was looking at him like that, but it was too late the question had been asked.

   "I'm sure you know who my father is and if his profession isn't enough to tell you he's a bad man then all I can do is promise you and confirm that he is truly a bad man. But, that isn't why I ran away. I ran because I wasn't the child my father wanted," Mena said and rolled onto her back. "You see, my mother died shortly after giving birth to me, making me the sole heir to everything Starkiller Enterprises has to offer. My father knows that, but he also knows I don't agree with anything Starkiller does or takes part in. He's tried to influence me, mentor me, force me into thinking the same way he does, but I know what Starkiller does is wrong, and my Father knows if I inherit the company then I'll ruin it. I mean, he's right. So, instead of letting Starkiller fall into my hands he decides when the time comes, to sign it over to General Janos Notka; my father's most trusted friend and advisor, a man who is somehow more deranged than my father. Trust me when I say that, I've seen him crush a worker's skull in with his hands because he wasn't satisfied with the speed of production. Still, my father can't just let someone who isn't a Starkiller inherit Starkiller Enterprises, that would ruin the family legacy. So, General Janos Notka suggests marriage to me, so that the Starkiller name may live on in the form of tiny psychotic children with both the Starkiller and Notka name. I wasn't about to let myself be signed over to a terrible man to compensate for my freedom of thought, so I ran away the night before the General was to propose. So I could start a new life where I was free from my father's hold, where I could find a purpose besides producing heirs, where I could maybe even find love and marry someone who loves me." 

   The Mandalorian listened to her finish her story and had been watching her intently the whole time. She had been clutching the blanket in anger and trying to hold back tears of whatever emotion was overcoming her. He couldn't deny she was strong for what she had done, she was strong for taking matters into her own hands and escaping a life that had been forced upon her, a life she had no choice in. Much like him, except she was stronger than him. Where she had fought against her predetermined life, he had accepted it. 

   "I've been surrounded by bad all my life, but when I know something is good, I don't want to let it go. I know there's good in you, Mando. That's why I think of you as my friend and a good person even if you don't. Now that you know my story, I don't expect you to care, I'm not going to force you to think a certain way. What you think of it, whether you even choose to believe me or not is up to you," Mena said as a yawn took over her. "Goodnight, Mando," she turned away from him again. 

   The Mandalorian stared up at the ceiling, more awake than ever. Now that he knew her story, the number of questions he had tripled. But he had still gotten the answer to the question he wanted to most. As the Mandalorian stared up at the ceiling, accepting that sleep would never come, he accepted something else too; the Mandalorian cared for Mena Starkiller. 

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   I apologize for all the dialogue heavy chapters, I'll make sure the one's to come have more action in them!