Work Text:
Cid stood at her bar, wiping glasses. Things had gotten back to normal: a few, quiet customers, Bolo and Ketch arguing, and her ledgers no longer being in the red. No calls pestering her for help, no glares as she took her share, no more broken glasses from too strong hands or stray practice bolts.
Cid scowled at the twinge of something uncomfortable in her gut. She had warned them! They shouldn't have run off! Goggles probably wouldn't even have died if they had just listened to her.
Another twitch of discomfort.
She pushed it away. She had never asked them to stick their necks out for her. She didn't owe them anything.
The door of the bar opened and Cid looked up. She almost expected Muscles to come laughing in, with Tiny hurrying to catch up. Instead she was relieved to see Phee. A good distraction from this mess.
Phee came up to the bar and flashed a smile. It looked- strange. It didn't reach her eyes like it normally did.
"So you're alive!" Cid said, pulling out a bottle of koja-rum. "Haven't heard from you in a while."
"Sure am." Phee said. “Just haven’t had time, you know?”
"Liberated any ancient wonders lately?" Cid asked as she passed a cup to Phee.
"Oh, here and there." Phee said.
"Hey Phee!" Bolo called. "Tell us where you've been!"
"Maybe later, boys." Phee said. "It was a tough trip back."
Cid frowned. Phee never gave up a chance to tell her far fetched tales. She seemed subdued as she sipped quietly at her drink. Then she glanced at Cid.
"Those boys on another job for you?" She asked.
"No." Cid said. "They ran off, the ingrates."
Phee's gaze remained even as she stared at Cid.
"Too bad." She said. "I liked them."
There was something in her tone that made Cid tense. She couldn't have known about what happened. She wasn't in contact with the squad. If she was, she would've told Cid, wouldn't she?
"Me too." Cid said. "They had the potential to make me a lot of money."
"Hm." Phee said. She ran her fingers over the bar in a thoughtful way. "Remind me. How long have you had this bar?"
"You know how long." Cid snapped. Something was wrong here.
"Fifty years." Phee said. "Must mean a lot to you."
Cid narrowed her eyes. She reached for the blaster she kept under the bar.
"Of course it does." Cid said.
Phee looked back at Cid and Cid was taken aback by the fire in her eyes. She snatched for the blaster and snapped it up, but Phee's weapon was already out. Cid cursed as Phee shot the blaster out of her hand.
"What the hell, Phee?" Cid snapped.
Phee stood. Cid had never seen her this angry, never seen her more than irritated. Phee leveled her blaster at Cid.
The bar had gone silent.
"Those boys did so much for you." Phee hissed. "And you stabbed them in the back when they just lost-"
Phee's voice broke on the last word. Cid stood completely still, watching as Phee regained her composure.
"They ran out on me." Cid said. "I told them to never cross me."
Phee laughed, but none of her usual joy and mirth was in it.
"You always warn your 'friends' not to get on your ugly side." She said. "Now you're seeing mine."
"Listen, if this is about Goggles-"
"Tech." Phee said in a harsh voice. "Say his kriffing name."
"If this is about Tech, I had nothing to do with that." Cid said through gritted teeth.
"No." Phee said. "But you sold them out after they came to you for help after their damn brother died. And now the Empire's got Omega. All for this bar."
Cid held her breath. Phee wouldn't-
But apparently she didn't know Phee as well as she thought.
Phee jerked her blaster and began firing into the bottles behind Cid.
The patrons started screaming as alcohol and transparasteel rained down. Cid stood frozen for a moment before lunging at Phee. Phee whipped her blaster back at Cid.
"It's either the bar or your life, Cid." Phee said, her voice calm. "Be grateful I'm giving you that choice."
The patrons were running. Phee continued ravaging the drink wall. Some of them caught fire. Cid scrambled away. Phee was standing between her and her office, where Cid's most valuable treasures were. Phee was done shooting the drinks and aimed at Cid again. The flames spread quickly, engulfing the old building.
"All this," Cid spat. "For those clones?"
Phee turned a cold eye to Cid.
"I've always known you were scum, Cid." She said. "But these last few years, I'd hoped you'd grown a heart."
Phee holstered her blaster and turned to leave.
"You're lucky I came, instead of Hunter or Wrecker." She said. "I really don't think they'd have been as kind."
Then she was gone, and Cid watched everything she had worked for burn.