Lullabies and Goodnights (DLA Open)

[Meira]

The DLA was taking it easy since the mission to rescue Dutch. The pain of losing Erle was still strong in all their hearts and it just seemed like everyone needed time, and space. This was certainly true for Mo. She'd spent more time than usual out in the forest. She'd bring back kills every now and then. but they were afterthoughts, things picked off on her way back to homestead after hours out in the quiet of the forest. She liked it there, quite a bit. There was something to be said about the peace of solitude.

Mo'd wanted that lately. Each morning she'd wake up, move around homestead, eat her breakfast, talk with a few people. But inevitably she'd start to feel crowded, claustrophobic. The open air would call to her and she'd find a way to slip out unnoticed, up through the unused levels of the temple that was now their home, out the small, hardly noticeable opening at ground level, and then she was free. Out in the forest, she blended so swell. her green skin faded into the background of trees, bushes, and underbrush. She fit here, it was natural. She could climb the trees or dart about on the forest floor, it didn't matter. But she did like being up in the trees.

That day, Mo had found a lovely spot up in the branches. It was high enough to catch a cool breeze, but still within the canopy enough to remain concealed. The climb to this perch was ideal. The initial jump up into the tree was a bit tricky, ensuring that not just anybody could make it, but then after that the branches were like a spiral staircase up the trunk, all the way up to almost the top. Here, an anomaly in the tree allowed for the perfect place to sit. Some damage must have befallen the tree long ago. Part of the trunk was missing, leaving a lovely groove the perfect size for Mo to sit. She didn't have to balance on a branch or anything. It was perfect.

She spent most of the day here, just lounging and allowing her mind to wander. But as the sun began to sink down on the horizon, Mo knew it was time to say goodbye to this peaceful haven. As she climbed back down, and then made her way back to Homestead, she made sure to note landmarks so that she'd be able to find the tree again.

As the last rays of sunlight faded from sight, Mo came upon the rundown temple. Slipping through her entrance, Mo danced around the traps with ease. At a lower level, she came upon one of the DLA's kath hounds. With a smile she gave the hound a pat on the head as it sniffed at the plant leaves she'd held out for him. The kath hound gave a gurggling sort of sound, approval, and then wandered off and away from her.

The moment Mo set foot into the main areas of Homestead, she was immediately pounced on. The pounce was accompanied by a victorious cry from the small Zabrak boy as he latched himself around Mo's neck.

Where ya been Mo? I was looking for ya! He said, smiling up at her with his wide eyes. Mo gave Si'bul a hug before placing him onto the ground and his own two feet. She laughed at the boy, obviously proud that he'd been able to sneak up on her.

I was out, Si.

Did ya catch anything?

No, not today.

You weren't tryin' then, huh? You always catch somethin' if you want ta.

If I want to, Si'bul. Not ta. She corrected, giving the boy a playful flick on the nose with her finger.

Whatever. He replied, wiping the spot like she'd left something behind there. Well I'm hungry. Can we have dinner?

Sure. Mo said, then turned to lead the way to the dining area. Si'bul quickly caught up with her and took her hand, swinging their arms as they walked. Mo just smiled.

The two sat down to eat their dinner. Between too-large mouthfuls of food, Si'bul detailed his day to Mo, who nodded and gave the appropriate comments at regular intervals. He talked about watching Al and Kabira work on fixing one of the swoop bikes. About how he'd been so bored as Lily did some math with the children. Mo'd interjected there, reminding Si'bul of the importance of getting his lessons in. He shrugged the comment off and continued. Mo shook her head and chuckled.

And earlier.... *chew chew chew* Dutch, he said *swallow*...

Si, don't talked with you mouth full.

...he said to feed the hounds. So I took some buckets out to them and... and you know what Tiny did?

He ate your fingers?

Si'bul let out a snort of laughter that lasted for a few second. NO! He held his hands up as proof. I still got ten!

You have ten.

Yeah. But Tiny... he ate his food so fast like this! He put his head down to his plate and made munching noises.

You two are so much alike. The comment wasn't picked up by the child.

Then he BURPED IN MY FACE! Si'bul's expression was a mix of disgust and amusement. Mo laughed and the two continued their meal exchanging jokes and stories of their day.

After the meal was done, Mo told Si'bul to wash up and get ready for bed. After he was done, he came to her small room, asking if he could sleep in there. The look on the little boy's face was too precious to deny. He jumped up into her bed, dragging his blanket up with him. After he'd snuggled down under her blanket's, Mo laid his over the top and up by his face so he could snuggle it. She lounged there with him for a while as he began to fall asleep. But he was restless, and after about ten minutes Mo knew he'd need a song to help him relax.

Sing my song. He said through heavy eyelids. Mo nodded, wrapped her arm around him, and began to sing.

We were walking along the road
just watching the days come and go
and how you said the evening lies
I said never you mind
it's sure to be all right

We were dancing in the kitchen, oh
laughing about something we didn't know
till you stopped and said
'I don't ever want you to die'
oh, never you mind
it's sure to be all right

Never you mind
it's sure to be all right

Hey Si'bul
yeah we're doing ok
you're my straight six, baby
I wouldn't change a thing, 'cause I
watched your momma love you with all her soul
and the apple don't fall far from the tree
luckily for me
it sure to be all right

Hey Si'bul
yah, we're doing ok
I know what your saying but
I wouldn't change a thing

It's got to be a lovely world to sew
the likes of this boy I know
and may he,
may he sleep well tonight

'Cause it's got to be a lovely world to sew
the likes of this boy I know
and I hope that he
he sleep well tonight

Never you mind
it's sure to be all right*

By the time she'd finished, Si'bul was dead asleep in her arms. She smiled down at the boy, envious of how quickly and easily he slept. Even with all that had gone on around him, he was sleeping like a baby. She wished she could do the same.

As gently as she could, Mo pried herself away from the sleeping child and crept out of the room. She was far from tired and she knew she would remain that way for some time. So she made her way back to the common areas of Homestead in search of some caf and a comfy chair. She found both soon enough. With the warm mug in hand, she sat down and relaxed, watching the people move about as they went about their business.



*Song is "Sybil I" by state radio (link). Some words were changed to fit the song to the situation.

[Dutch]

"Nothing too big, we need discreet, easily hidden gear. Pistols,weapons that are easily assembled and disassembled, knives even- small grenades, we can not clue these bastards off until the second things go down. Got me Bosco? Nothing that sticks out, oh, and we'll need clothes that are formal, but easy to hide stuff in. "

Came the voice of Dutch Sampson as he turned into the common area of Homestead. Next to him as surprisingly often lately was the bulbous flying shape of Bosco. The Toydarian rolled his eyes as the young man went on. He placed a hand on Dutch's shoulder as his wings flapped and laughed.

"Yeh,yeh Dutch, I gotcha. Lotta small weapons means a lotta work y'know, tisn't easy to modify weapons so. You'll have your gear m'boy, just be-a sure that you all come back to ol' Bosco in one piece, yeh? Oh! Before I forget, the parts for the 'surprise' we worked out, have all arrived, I'll need your team to come find me so we can all go over assembly and activation, yeh?"

Dutch nodded with a slight grin. Slowly but surely, plans were being woven together, and the Sith would know that the DLA would not only take the blow that they dealt, but would return it two fold. Bosco uttered something about finding Grizzelda for some food and fluttered off, which left Dutch there at the entrance to the common area. Blue-gray eyes scanned the area, some played pazaak, a couple sat on a couch arm in arm, and a few ate together. Another rare time of peace among the DLA- and how sweet it was.

He caught the unmistakable visage of Mo, and Dutch hesitated for a minute. Even after all this time since he had gotten back from the Sith base, he had only seen Mo a couple times, and had yet to really talk to her. His last words to her were at Erle's funeral almost a week ago. What could he say? Would it even help? Dutch knew he was still in pain over what happened, and Mo was like a daughter to the man, so she had probably felt the same. Once Dutch thought of it, he hadn't even talked to Al about it yet. Since he had recovered, Dutch had been elbow deep in DLA business, but yet to talk to those who were closest to him.

A deep breath and a cleared throat later, Dutch walked at a slow pace up to Mo, a small smile touched his lips as he looked down at her. She looked like she was enjoying a nice cup of caf and a bit of a sit down. He hadn't really had time to sit and eat, but luckily someone had brought him a sandwich that still sat on the inside pocket of his jacket. He plopped down in the chair across from Mo and sighed before he took the wrapped sandwich out of his jacket pocket.

"Hey Mo, how are ya, uh, doin? Want half a sammich?"

He half-chuckled and pulled the sandwich out of it's wrapping, one half went right into his mouth while the other was held out to Mo. Dutch half hoped she'd turn it down, as his stomach twisted in a way that told him he needed food.

[/-Amy-\-Foxie Lady-/]

Kiala had had a long day. She had continued training Saerith and to a smaller extent Kabira. Saerith was no doubt sleeping, completely worn out from work and training. Kiala pushed her hard, but no harder than was needed. Saerith was already showing signs of improvement, wich Kiala was rather proud of. Kabira was a quick study, picking up on the technieks Kiala showed her with an ease that Kiala envied. After that she had worked on her bike, and went down to shooting range and fired off a few rounds. It had been a long, uneventfull day.

She had made her way to the comon room with a thermose full of hot tea, and a cup. She was dressed in her tight black leatheroutfit and gloves. As aways she was visibly armed with two MAP-77's one on each hip, and her beskad across her back. She was never seen unarmed. In her opposite hand she carried a large black metal case. She set the case on a coffee table and took the beskad off her back and leaned it against the chair. Kiala opened the case before takeing the guns from her hip's and set them beside the case. If someone looked in it they would see four more guns on the bottom and, along with cleaning tools. The top of the case was filled with clips full of ammo.

Kiala removed her jacket/blouse revealing her a dark purple tanktop. Her left arm was cybernetic from the shoulder down, and her right to have a tatoo of lightning striking a star. She sat down and took the metal cup from ontop of it, opened the thermose and filled the small cup with aromic tea. She took a small sip before setting to work on her guns, dismantaling and cleaning them with a practiced ease. She looked up once to see that she was sitting near Dutch, and a green skinned woman she had heard called Mo. The lead scout if she remembered correctly.

With a shrug Kiala went back to work on her guns, all slugthrowers. The four in the case were Mizrah Asp's, all four were in perfect condition, all four had been used to take lives. Kiala thought back on her day a bit more, to Si'bul watching her train with her sword. He asked her to teach him, and how upset the boy had been when she had said no. She glanced over at Mo, she remembered seeing the boy with her on more than one occasion, such as in the mess hall earlier.

She decided to introduce herself. She stoop up and walked over after closeing and locking the gun case. "I hope I'm not interupting...but I thought I should introduce myself..I'm Kia Starseeker". She held out her right hand, she had noted people seemed to be comfortable shaking that one.

[Meira]

Mo stretched her legs out on the ottoman, sinking her back further into the chair. She could feel her muscles ease as she sipped the caf. This was exactly what she needed. A warm cup in her hand, a soft chair under her body. This was nice. She'd have to enjoy it while she could. The DLA enjoyed down time, but it never lasted too long. They had a purpose, and that purpose couldn't be forgotten just because they were tired or needed a break. No, Mo was fairly sure that their next project was just around the corner. So it was important to enjoy it while it lasted.

As if the thought had brought her concerns to light, Mo caught sight of Dutch walking into the common area with Bosco hovering beside him. Dutch consulted Bosco often, but it was always a safe bet to assume they were talking about what the DLA would need on their next mission. This meant there would be another mission soon, just as she had expected. It wasn't rocket science. It was their life. Mo sighed.

Soon enough, Dutch changed his course toward her, Mo looked up to him with a smile as he approached. She nodded her head in response to his query of her well being. When he produced the sandwich, she grimaced slightly, knowing that his jacket couldn't exactly be the cleanest place in the world to be keeping food. When he offered half, she quickly shook her head, her already full stomach churning slightly at the thought. In any case, she was sure he'd be happy to pick up the slack. She knew he was likely just being polite.

A pause fell after his words as Dutch chewed the sandwich. This pause was awkward. The two hadn't really spoken since Erle's funeral. It was too raw of a subject. But she decided that it wasn't something that could be avoided forever. So she took another sip of caf and spoke.

How are you holding up?

But before Dutch could reply, a woman approached. Mo recognized her, but wasn't sure if she knew her name. It didn't matter, she introduced herself. Mo nodded and reached her hand out to shake.

I'm Mo. You're the one that broke the blockade right?

[Dutch]

Two-bites per half later, and the sandwich was decimated. A groan of delight sounded from him and he sat back and brushed a few bread crumbs from his chest. He looked into Mo's blue eyes as she spoke, and almost instantly, a brief look crossed his eyes, unless one knew him well, they'd never have caught it. It was agony. A pure second of utter despair and confusion, a glance of what was really roiling under Dutch's skin. If it had just been the two of them, like the rare times in their childhood, Dutch would have broken down, fell forward into his surrogate sister's embrace and just bawl like a small child. But he couldn't afford that in front of others. They couldn't have a person as a leader, Dutch needed to be a rock, a firm, unwavering force in the chaos that rocked Dantooine.

Luckily for him though a distraction would arrive. Kia Starseeker, someone Dutch still didn't know too well, but was vouched for by several DLA members. He nodded to the woman as she walked over to introduce herself to Mo. Dutch sat back and listened to the two women make their introductions to one another, he really didn't want to speak for that brief moment. Mo's question had actually been the first time someone had genuinely asked how he was doing, not felt. Anyone would know that he felt like someone had dropped a ronto on him, but living with that sheer amount of weight on one's shoulders, was just crushing. Dutch offered the ladies a meek smile before his hand went back into his jacket, and a small, shiny silver flask was retrieved from it.

Etched in the flask were the initials E.S., and the cap's edges had been smoothed down from years of Sampson men twisting the top off. Once more the top was screwed off and the latch popped open on the flask. The strong scent of alcohol wafted from the opening, and it was brought to Dutch's lips. He drank the fiery liquid deeply, the only medicine he could find for this condition. After his draft Dutch spun the top back on and placed the flask back. Dutch hoped that Mo wouldn't say anything about him drinking again, it wasn't a good thing that he was, but sometimes one just needed a drink.