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“Looks beautiful,” Finn remarked as the Falcon approached. “What’s it called?”
“It’s not on any official charts,” Poe replied, “but the locals call it Exandria.”
“If it’s not on the charts, hopefully we can lay low for a few days.” His eyes sparkled as he turned back toward Poe. “Maybe make some new friends?”
“I’d say it’s supposed to be dangerous, but hey, we survived crashing onto Jakku. Still, I’ll take allies if I can’t get friends.” Poe stretched in the pilot’s seat. “Wanna help me guide her in?” He waggled his eyebrows at Finn, who couldn’t resist and slid into the co-pilot’s seat.
“Hmm, tech levels seem low,” Finn watched as Poe frowned. “But there are some interesting energy readings.”
“Might be worth a visit after all,” Poe agreed.
“At least it’ll make a nice change of pace.”
***
“Right,” Rey repeated, mostly to herself. “Get the lay of the land, see if there’s anyone to recruit.” No sooner had she finished saying that than three things happened: she caught a whiff of a fantastic aroma, her stomach growled loud enough for Finn to hear, and she read a storefront sign. “The Slayer’s Cake?”
“Could be a good place to meet someone,” Finn offered charitably. “Say, over a…” His stomach rumbled in chorus with Rey’s. “...whatever that is.”
A flamboyant young man with golden hair and goatee greeted them. “I, Taryon Darrington, humbly welcome you to The Slayer’s Cake. May I assist you?”
They bent over the display case, conferring and placing orders in rapid succession: “oo, those look good--” “--two please--” “--make it three, Rose will love it--” “--what about those?--” “--hey, is there anything savory?--” “--what if we just got what whole pie?--” --sure, we’ve all got to eat, right?--” “--how about a few of those?--” “--yeah, they look like they’ll keep”
“Oh, excellent!” Taryon clapped his hands together. “Your total comes to 26 gold, 8 silver.”
“Ah.” Rey began.
“Uh.” Finn continued. They shared a look. “How much is that in credits?”
“Mm. Perhaps another method of payment? That device at your belt, perhaps?”
Rey’s hand dropped to her lightsaber. “No.”
***
Luckily, Rose had arrived before Rey and Taryon could answer the question of which would win in a fight between a lightsaber and a Rod of Mercurial Form. Cooler heads prevailed, and another payment alternative had been settled on.
“Thank you for helping,” Rey said shyly.
“I’d be more annoyed if this droid wasn’t so fascinatingly primitive,” Rose replied.
“Doty,” the automaton replied feebly.
“I’d be less annoyed if Tary hadn’t insisted that ‘Tall, Dark and Handsome’s’ only contribution be ‘sit around and look pretty,’” she continued, wagging a grease-stained finger. “Although you have to admit he does it very well.”
“Are you two...dating?” Rey asked, unexpectedly nervous.
“Nnnooo? Why?” Rose panicked. “Oh, sithspawn! Are you into him? Are you into me? Are you reading my mind? I’m so sorry, I can’t help occasionally picturing people naked.”
“Um.” Rey cocked her head to one side. “Yes, yes, no, and that’s fine? Are you okay?”
Rose blinked as she processed what Rey had just said. “You know, I think I am.”
“Doty!” the robot concluded, apparently pleased.
***
“Hey,” Poe called, his voice a stage-whisper in deference to their surroundings. “We’ve been looking for you.”
Rose’s bowed head lifted. “Oh. Sorry. It’s just, I was exploring on my own, and I found this place.” She waved her hand at the mausoleum turned shrine. “It appears to be dedicated to a being called the Raven Queen.” She let out a breath. “Apparently the local manifestation of death.” She continued as Poe sat beside her. “I wasn’t much of a prayer before. But now…”
“I understand.” He leaned against her. “I wish I could say it hurts less, but it just hurts less frequently.” They waited in the sepulchral calm. “Those fig jam bars we got today? Just like the ones my mother used to make.”
Rose’s ears pricked up. “Tell me about her?” She watched as Poe stiffened, then slowly returned to breathing more easily.
“Yeah, okay,” he agreed. “First things first, she was an even better pilot than me…”