See Me, See You: A Mandalorian Story

C H A P T E R E I G H T

THIRD PERSON POV

The Razor Crest descended from the clear blue sky and touched down in between the trees, camoflauging its presense. Once Mando turned off all the controls, he and Reina prepared to scout out the planet for a nearby town.

Mando took the iniative to give the impatient child some instruction while the bounty hunters were gone. "We'll be back soon. We are going to find some lodging and food, and then we'll be back for you. Don't touch anything. You stay. Stay right here. You understand?" In reponse, the baby babbled with his head cocked to the side. "Good." Mando confirmed, and followed Reina to the landing deck. "You think he'll be okay by himself?" Reina questioned, pressing the control to lower the ramp. "He'll be fine. There's nothing out here that can get him."

Consequently, once the ramp reached its lowest point, the baby stood proudly between the two hunters. Reina smirked at the sight while Mando sighed, "Oh, what the hell. Come on." And so, the three of them began their travel to a small bungalow where they served food. The eating place was full of simple folk, laughing and seemingly having peaceful conversations. A customary quiet atmosphere, much different from what the three were used to in the past week.

Except for one individual, a woman with ear-length black hair swept over the right. She wore thick chest-plated armor and gauntlets, her muscular biceps bare. Wrapped around her right arm was a tattoo both Reina and Mando were familiar with. She sat at a corner table quietly, sipping from a glass.

Mando picked a table not far from the woman's and gently lifted the child up onto a barrel that served as a chair, and then preceded to sit next to it where he had full view of the suspected person. Reina took her place on Mando's other side. A waitress approached them with a welcoming smile. "May I offer you anything?"

"Bone broth, for the little one." Mando ordered kindly, then looked over at Reina. "How about you?"

"I'll have one as well, thank you." Reina nodded and smiled at the server.

"How about you?" The waitress gestured to the Mandalorian.

"Just those two." Mando insisted, and then he turned his attention to the woman in the corner. "That one. What's her business here?"

"Oh, I've seen her around here for about a week." The waitress shrugged. "Business-wise. You won't find much business around these parts—"

Mando flipped a credit onto the table for more specific information, at which the server gawked before finishing with, "She doesn't strike me as a log-runner. Thank you, sir. I'll have those soups out for you two." She excused herself after accepting the credits.

"Mando, I wouldn't be so suspicious." Reina urged, trying to keep the peace. "She could be like us and just trying to find a place to hide out and—"

"She's gone." Mando jumped from his seat and stormed off, leaving his partner and the baby to exchange looks as Reina sighed in surrender. "When will he learn?" she wondered out loud, and in response received a babble from the child. Reina groaned as she rose from the table and handed another credit to the waitress. "Watch the baby, please?" She nodded, and then followed Mando outside.

"I've picked up her footprints." Mando updated her when she caught up. "This way." The two slowly circled around the bungalow.

"Mando, I still think you are assuming too quick—"

"They've stopped." Mando interrupted, baffled. Out of nowhere, the woman jumped down from hanging on a pole and began brawling with Mando with her fists, pushing Mando against the wooden walls. Reina tried to call it off with "Hey! Wait! Stop!", but preceded with a surrender of throwing her hands up with a disgusted groan. The woman was actually coming on top as she kicked Mando over her when he managed to pin her down. As they gripped each other's wrist, they rolled a few times before finally drawing blasters.

Reina stood over them with her arms crossed, the baby right at her feet sipping from his cup. "Are you two finished now."

Mando sighed and looked up to meet the woman's eyes. "Want some soup?"

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"So your an ex-shock trooper?" Reina nodded, sipping bone broth from her bowl in total fascination. "I've never met one before. What brought you all the way out here?"

"Call it an early retirement." Cara Dune shrugged as she too drank soup. She then preceded to rise from her seat. "Look, I knew you were both from the Guild. I figured you were after me; that's why I came at you so hard. So unless you want to go for round two to see if you can best me—"

"I call it a draw." Mando corrected quickly.

"Oh no," Reina cracked a toothy grin, resting her jaw on a propped fist. "She clearly kicked your ass." She and Cara then exchanged smirks. "Well, this has been a real treat, but one of us is going to have to move on, and I was here first." Cara decided, then finished off the last of her broth, nodded, and walked away.

"Well, looks like this planet is taken." Mando assured.

"Looks like it." Reina confirmed, and the two hunters glanced down at the baby, who just quietly gripped at the air above his head without a care in the galaxy.

It was nightfall by the time Reina and Mando fixed the recurring minor repairs on the Razor Crest, but just before they were ready to take off, they were approached by two locals, who begged the two of them, specifically the Mandalorian, for their service to protect their community and village from raiders in exchange of money.

"That's not enough." Mando rejected them as they shown what their 'entire harvast's' worth of credits consisted of. "Good luck."

"I'm sorry, guys, really." Reina nodded, genuinely wanting to help, but she and Mando were on the run and couldn't afford to stick around too long without security and cover to protect the baby.

The two farmers grumbled out loud as they started to trudge away, and both hunters caught "...middle of nowhere." from one of them, and Mando called them back, causing Reina to grin, for soon they struck a deal with the farmers in exchange of protection for lodging and the credits. "Hey, Mando." Reina had an idea to make the job even easier.

Eventually, the locals pulled their trailer with Reina, Mando, the baby, and Cara Dune riding in it along, on their way to their safehaven.