Archive of Our Own ^beta

Lee has always been good with droids. He knows lots of smugglers like him don’t really trust anything that can be programmed against you, but what can he say — Lee is just that confident in his ability to make his droids hack-proof. Hester has been his best and main companion for his entire adult life; he’d rather lose an arm than lose her.

The two of them make a good team. The best, really. They navigate the galaxy, see so many planets that they blur together in Lee’s head, and always return home among the stars, where they belong. There’s no better feeling, in Lee’s belief, than watching the stars out your viewport with a drink in your hand and your best friend by your side.

His life is great. It’s routine, sure, and not much tends to change, but — he likes it that way. The last time his life was that kind of exciting — well. Let’s just say that there’s a reason Lee doesn’t like to stay anywhere too long, now.

He’s just finished making a routine delivery on a desert planet somewhere in the dregs of the galaxy — a hive of scum and villainy, really, but they’re the type of people Lee trades with, and he’s not one to judge — and he’s at the bar getting a drink when his wrist communicator beeps. Hester calling him back to the ship. They don’t have anywhere to be until tomorrow, when they’re picking up the next order at the trading port a few minutes’ walk away, so it’s an unusual request. Lee finishes his drink, winks at the pretty human man eyeing him, and heads back to the ship.

“I’ve received a distress signal,” Hester says without preamble as he boards the ship. “From Trollesund.”

“That ball of ice? From who?”

Hester pauses, which makes Lee very, very nervous. It’s never good when she needs to figure out how to tell him something.

“It’s Iorek.”

If Lee had been holding anything, he would’ve dropped it.

☆★☆

Of course he goes. He cancels his next order, apologizes and explains that an emergency has come up, and tries not to think about all the money he’s losing from dropping out at the last minute. The delivery itself, the loss of trust that this criminal underworld runs on… he’ll need to cross the galaxy to find someone to trade with and start building up trust again.

It doesn’t matter. For Iorek, he’ll do it, even if he complains every minute of the way.

Trollesund is a cold planet, constantly covered in snow and ice, with only a few scattered towns and outposts. The signal came from the largest town, and Lee finds a landing port there, run-down and on the edges of town.

As he docks the ship and dresses in his warmest clothes, he has to wonder how things got bad enough that Iorek would ask him for help. After last time, he didn’t think he’d ever hear from him again.

The town might be the biggest on the planet, but as far as Lee can tell, it’s not even big enough to have its own name. The citizens are tired-looking manual labourers shuffling aimlessly about in the cold; it’s a desolate, lonely place. Iorek’s message was simple — asking for help, with the name of the planet and coordinates on the planet surface. Lee can’t imagine why Iorek would even be here in the first place. Iorek likes the cold, sure, but there are cold planets much livelier than this.

He wanders through the town for a few minutes before he hears something that’s unmistakably bigger than the other citizens of the town. Loud footsteps, shuffling, breathing — coming from the metalworking shop. Strange. Iorek was a metalworker, sure, but mainly as an artist — there’s little need for that kind of manual labour in a galaxy with droids. He can’t imagine any art here.

He approaches the door to the metalworking shop, and there he is, Iorek Byrnison, his back to the door, a mass of multicoloured fur and bulging muscles, the distinctly non-human shape that Lee always found so appealing. It makes Lee sweat a little, just seeing him again.

“Iorek?” he says, and Iorek turns. And Lee can see immediately why he called for help.

His face is muzzled, like he’s a wild animal. Massive metal chains bind his ankles to the floor. His arms, currently wrestling a piece of metal into shape, are burned and injured at the wrists from old shackles. Lee is furious, down to his core, seeing Iorek brought down to this level.

He’s seen slavery before, of course. It’s the trade that makes the galaxy go round, and it makes him sick to his stomach, and he refuses to trade in it, like many other smugglers in the gray zone of legality where he made his career, but it’s impossible to avoid completely. It’s always terrible. But this, somehow, is worse. Not just that Iorek is his friend — but that Iorek is a strong, intelligent, free man who was somehow taken against his will. Lee doesn’t want to think about what kind of person would do this.

“Iorek,” he says, again, still reeling in shock, and looks at the chains, trying to figure out a way to free him. Somehow, somehow—

“Lee,” Iorek says, and hearing his voice again, saying Lee’s name, makes him feel young and stupid and ridiculously happy all at once. “You came.”

“Of course I did,” he says. “I always will. If you need me. You would do the same.”

Iorek bows his magnificent head. Lee bites down his rage at the old scars and new wounds around his head and ears. “I would. Thank you.”

“How can I help you, big guy? What happened?”

“I made a foolish deal,” Iorek says. “I’ve been here for a long time.”

“I can see that,” Hester says, and Lee jumps. He’d forgotten she’d followed him. “Hi, Iorek.”

“Hester,” he says, and bows his head at her. “Lovely to see you.”

“And you. How can we help you?”

“The man who runs this town keeps it under his thumb. No others are held like I am, but all suffer. He has a weakness for gambling. Perhaps, if you get enough drink in him—”

“—I can bargain your freedom.” Lee grins. “I was made for this, big guy. Don’t worry. I’ll get you out of this.”

“Thank you.” Iorek closes his eyes and Lee can’t help himself. He steps forward and touches the fur on his cheek. Just like he remembered, it’s surprisingly soft. Iorek opens his eyes, surprised, and Lee realizes how close they are and pulls back.

“I’ll get you out,” he says again. “I promise.”

☆★☆

Lee finds the man who runs this town quickly. He’s the one at the bar surrounded by friends and already drunk in the middle of the day. He’s carefree, irresponsible, uncaring.

Lee hates him instantly. He can’t stop thinking of the bleeding wounds on Iorek’s head and wrists, the muzzle made for wild animals strapped to his face.

But Lee is here to help, so he puts on a mask, and sets out to befriend this man. Buys him another drink, and another, and sips slowly at his own to stay clear-headed. Talks about business and games, and dodges the questions about who he is and why he’s on this backwater of a planet.

Eventually, he gets to what he needs: an offer of a game of cards.

“What do you have to gamble?” the man asks, his cheeks flushed with drink, grinning lazily.

“My ship,” he says. He’d considered Hester, but as confident as he is at his ability to cheat his way to victory, he’s not risking her. She makes a soft noise of happiness at his shoulder. “And you? What about that — that metalworking bear-like creature? He looks like a very good worker.”

“He’s too valuable,” the man says, flippant. “Pick something else.”

“My ship is valuable. Are you so sure you’ll lose?” Lee plays up the flattery, hopes he’ll take the bait. He’s a stupid, overconfident, vain man.

Of course he takes the bait. He roars with laughter.

“Of course I’ll win. Say goodbye to your ship, uh—”

“Lee,” he says with a vicious smile. “Just Lee.”

☆★☆

It’s the most terrifying game Lee has ever played.

He’s mostly sober, but he can feel every bit of drink that’s slowing him down. The man he’s playing is surrounded by friends; Lee has no one but Hester and his wits. He’s playing for Iorek and his ship. If he loses, he has no idea what he’ll do.

Time ticks by, hours and hours, and no one gains the upper hand. Night falls. Lee wonders if Iorek is still working, or wondering if Lee has gotten himself killed.

After a dozen rounds or more, the man leans back in his chair and laughs. “You’re good, Just Lee. Why don’t we just call it a draw? You’ve been a worthy opponent.”

Lee looks down at his cards. Better than he’s had before, and the man’s tells seem to indicate that his aren’t the best. He’s not completely sure, but his gut tells him that this might be the round where he’ll win it all.

“I’m all in,” he says, and the man laughs. He throws down his cards.

Clear winners.

“New plan,” Lee says, and Hester knows what that means. She speeds off, and as the man watches her go in surprise, Lee goes to his consistent plan B. He stands up, sighs, and punches the man in the face.

The brawl is quick. Lee is the only sober patron, and the man’s friends don’t care for him enough to keep getting hit on his behalf. It keeps going a little longer than it needs too, maybe, because part of Lee is still furious at seeing how Iorek has been treated. With every punch, he remembers seeing Iorek in chains, and hits harder.

Maybe five minutes later, Lee’s knuckles are split and bleeding and he’s surrounded by groaning bodies. He allows himself a moment of satisfaction, and follows Hester out into the freezing, dark night.

She’s already gotten Iorek free, and Lee sees them coming towards him and the ship. He goes ahead and starts up the ship, warming it up. He probably only has minutes before the man and his goons shake off the punches and come after him.

As soon as the door shuts behind Iorek and Hester, he guns it. It’s a rough takeoff, but he’s had worse — and he can’t stop smiling.

It didn’t go how he wanted, but he still saved his friend. That’s a victory.

☆★☆

Things don’t go perfectly after that, of course, because they never do. He sets a course for the other side of the galaxy, where he can pick up a job with someone who hasn’t heard that he flaked out on the last one, and they’re planning on spending the next two days in transit when the ship heater breaks down. Hester does what she can to fix it, but one of the core components has completely broken; they have to make do with the residual heat from the engine.

Lee keeps moving during the day — putting out metaphorical fires with the ship’s systems, keeping them on course, and checking up on Iorek.

His wounds weren’t terrible, just terrible-looking, but he still gets his best medical supplies and puts Hester on the job; he hates looking at the injuries. A part of him feels like he failed Iorek whenever he sees them. It’s ridiculous, of course — it was a mutual agreement to go their separate ways — but his guilt is so strong that he almost can’t bear to be in the same room when Hester is changing his bandages.

He makes himself do it, though, because Iorek is in pain, and Lee is going to help him, no matter what. He finds himself holding Iorek’s paw as Hester sanitizes his wounds, and neither of them talk about it.

That’s how he keeps warm during the day. At night — well.

It makes sense to share body heat. It just does. Hester sets up in the corner of the cabin that Iorek is staying in, blowing heat towards the bed, and Lee curls up against him and pretends it’s a very normal platonic interaction.

Iorek’s arm ends up slung over Lee’s body during the night both times. Neither of them talk about it in the morning.

☆★☆

“How did you end up there, anyway?” Lee asks the second morning, about two hours out from their destination. Iorek’s wounds are close to healed, but there are some parts of him that will stay scarred. Lee hates to look at it, but he knows it’s better than the alternative.

“Tricked me,” he says with a sigh, poking at the breakfast Lee made for them. (Heated up, really. He still made it.) “I made some mistakes.”

“Well,” Lee says, “it’s over now. I won’t let it happen again.”

“Thank you.”

☆★☆

The planet they end up on is a cold planet, still, perfect for Iorek. Lee asks him for help loading the order onto his ship — making it clear that it’s a request, not a repayment — and he agrees, lifting carefully with his injured arms.

When the ship is loaded, Lee’s faced with the moment he never wanted to go through again: saying goodbye.

“Where do you want to go?” he asks, hating himself for mentally filling in the answer. Wherever you are. Of course Iorek doesn’t want that. He’s sure that Iorek is reading those thoughts in his eyes.

Iorek just looks at him. “I don’t have any money,” he says. “My family and friends are far away. All I have is you.”

Lee’s heart jumps with hope. “Are you saying—”

“I know you have Hester,” he says, and smiles. “But would you like another partner?”

Him and Iorek. Travelling the galaxy. Together.

“Of course, buddy,” he says, and then remembers — those feelings. Those awkward feelings that Iorek surely doesn’t return.

If there’s anything Lee’s sure of, it’s that Iorek can read him perfectly. He looks at Lee for a moment, and sighs.

“You’re an idiot, Scoresby,” he says, and kisses him.

It’s a strange feeling. Their mouths don’t quite work the same way; it’s not quite a kiss. But it’s close enough, and it’s clear enough. Lee’s smiling like an idiot when Iorek pulls away.

“You and me, Lee,” he says. “Let’s go.”