I don't know when but — [ She shrugs and looks away. How did she end up with people like Rhys around and more on the way? ] — they needed a place to stay. People are quarreling in their house. Royal in-fighting, I guess.
[ She doesn't really understand, but there was talk of kings and queens on the network. Maybe this will help your social-climbing dreams, Rhys. ]
[ she doesn't really understand, seeing as she has only ever seen one princess before, and they had both been small at the time. Jon sounded proper, Sansa called herself a lady, someone else said they were king, and another person said they were queen. A royal mess. ]
But the fighting seems bad, too.
[ Maybe royal fighting is always bad. Posh people can afford that sort of thing. ]
Huh. That's kind of cool--royalty, I mean. All of that stuff was finished years ago back home. [ Home again. Even if Rhys never really had one specific place he called home there, as a collective he's going to count it as one. ]
They're not staying over or anything, are they? We barely have enough room as it is.
[ She has the decency to look guilty. Saw's home had always been a revolving door for all types of people, and her tendency is the same, as much as pretends otherwise. ]
Maybe for a night, if they have to, but I'll give up my bed. [ and crash on the sofa or the floor or in Poe's spare room. She leans forward, suddenly earnest. ]
I'll get [ *steal ] something from the market to make it up to you. You like sweet things, yeah? We could go tomorrow.
[ Her readiness to actually make it up to him is surprising, not because it comes from Jyn in particular but rather the fact that no one back on Pandora would do something like that. Ironically...it was up on Helios that people would trade favours like that.
It reminds him of asking for Yvette's help with the Vault Key deal and promising her lunch in return.
[ Rhys is no stranger to accepting--or giving--bribes. He knows how this little song and dance goes and he is A-OK playing with with Jyn. It sounds a bit like a day on the town and he's really okay with that.
So at her lilt he winds up smirking, obviously into it, and makes a show of considering it. ]
I guess I could open up some time in my schedule for that. Always time for free food.
[ TOO LATE he already looks pleased and flattered, running a hand through his hair. ]
Oh, y-yeah, you like them? They weren't cheap or anything, I had them tailor-made back on Pandora. Most people don't usually notice that sort of thing unless they're trying to rob me.
[ Oh no, she doesn't have the heart to correct him, so she focuses on adjusting her scarf while he babbles. Sounds like an enormous effort on his part... ]
Huh.
[ She hums in thought, giving him a once-over like she's seeing him for the first time. Posh, she'd thought before, and he confirms that. Maybe she would rob him, if she didn't know him. Most people who remained well-off did so by serving the Empire. ]
You do stand out.
[ Another straightforward statement, not necessarily meant as a compliment. Call it an observation. The arm, the tattoos, the bright suits. Standing out has never been her goal. Quite the opposite, really, given that she hides her one valued possession beneath a weathered scarf. ]
[ Anytime it isn't something negative it's a compliment as far as Rhys's ego is concerned. So while Jyn rustles with her scarf Rhys just continues to look more pleased and flattered, smile widening. ]
Yeah? I mean--that's what the point of all this is. lot of cogs in the corporate wheel back home.
Or. There were.
[ That ended even before the Storm hit thanks to him. ]
[ When you're just one cog among thousands, sticking out pays off. Especially if you want to move up on ahead above of your peers--and nothing says "brand loyalty" like hacking off one of your limbs and replacing it with their tech. ]
I've worked in a couple of departments. Data mining, programming, closed a few deals... [ Don't think about the mining deal don't think about the mining deal ]
I was headed for VP of Securities Propaganda before things went...they didn't go as planned.
[ Data mining, programming — that's the sort of thing that she expected of him. Propaganda... was the department she and Reece infiltrated on Tamsye Prime. Securities propaganda, huh.]
Even before the storm?
[ things going wrong of their own accord? sounds about right. ]
Huh? Oh yeah, this was back before...uhh. Before I was "let go", so to speak. Bbut it's fine! That company was full of assholes anyway. I went ahead and started my own.
[ See: he literally destroyed the other company by accident while trying to open a pair of doors. ]
[ not gonna judge him for getting fired or be particularly impressed by him starting a company. are there loads of dudes with tech start-ups in star wars?? maybe. ]
Thank you. You know, it's always nice to receive a little recognition now and then. Let me tell you, starting up on a place like Pandora? Not the easiest thing.
[ Jyn earns +50 Atlas Rep and a very pleased, smug and oddly genuine smile from Rhys. ]
Planning on starting up something similar here soon actually. If you're interested.
I forge clearance codes and scandocs to get people and ships through hostile space. Illegally. And sometimes I steal things. [ deadpan. ] I don't think that's what you're looking for.
That's...not a bad skill set to have, actually. You think you could work that sort of thing with this planet's...whatever? Paperwork? They're so far behind they could communicate with smoke-signals for all I know.
[ Don't mind Rhys just casually being...callous. Judgmental? Both? ]
[ Lucky she's also irritated by the lack of advancements. She fishes for her passport in her satchel and flips through the flimsy thing to assess how difficult it would be to replicate. ]
I've never done it with low-tech. [ she doesn't sound resolute, though — more like thoughtful. ] But I was good enough to fool the Empire for years.
[ That isn't what Saw or Galen or Lyra would want for her, and she knows it. She should be fighting, not considering another career in petty crime. But it's hard not to consider it, when everyone who would encourage other paths is gone, along with whatever she would fight for. ]
If you can manage to find a way to do it here I can definitely think of a couple uses for that.
[ Rhys sits up straighter now and deactivates his palm display with a twitch of his wrist. ]
I've already got a job in that market place--I'm not as good with numbers as Vaughn is, but shipping trends? Business routes? Those I know. Gimme a few weeks and I'll be able to tell you anything you want to know about what's hot and what's not.
A few smart deals in the right place and we'll be in business, baby.
[ That's the general "baby" there, he's not hitting on her. JUST TO CLARIFY. ]
[ She looks up from the passport intermittently, assessing the sincerity of Rhys' words and claims as much as the paper documents. Her nose wrinkles over the general use of baby. Really, Rhys. She notes the name-drop, Vaughn, too. Must be an associate or a friend.
For her part, Jyn never mentions names, including her own — the one printed on her traitorous, little documents. Neat-lettered Jyn Erso staring up at her, daring her to do better. The thin line of her mouth twists down, more over her own thoughts than anything Rhys offers (which, she thinks, he might be able to follow through on). She doesn't know if she can forge by hand, no, but she didn't know she could replicate codes until she tried. ]
I'll think about it. [ and she will, although she snaps her passport shut and returns it to her satchel without another word. She had been leaning forward to appraise and indulge Rhys in equal measure, but she draws back now. Still, she doesn't allow herself to look sad, arranging her features into blankness instead. It shouldn't matter what she does here, not when nothing matters anymore.
Something burns pit of her chest, just as it had in the world before the storm, and she knows that she lies to herself, even now. ]
no subject
I don't know when but — [ She shrugs and looks away. How did she end up with people like Rhys around and more on the way? ] — they needed a place to stay. People are quarreling in their house. Royal in-fighting, I guess.
[ She doesn't really understand, but there was talk of kings and queens on the network. Maybe this will help your social-climbing dreams, Rhys. ]
no subject
[ Because that sentence could be taken either way considering the current state of the multiverse. ]
no subject
[ she doesn't really understand, seeing as she has only ever seen one princess before, and they had both been small at the time. Jon sounded proper, Sansa called herself a lady, someone else said they were king, and another person said they were queen. A royal mess. ]
But the fighting seems bad, too.
[ Maybe royal fighting is always bad. Posh people can afford that sort of thing. ]
no subject
They're not staying over or anything, are they? We barely have enough room as it is.
no subject
Maybe for a night, if they have to, but I'll give up my bed. [ and crash on the sofa or the floor or in Poe's spare room. She leans forward, suddenly earnest. ]
I'll get [ *steal ] something from the market to make it up to you. You like sweet things, yeah? We could go tomorrow.
no subject
It reminds him of asking for Yvette's help with the Vault Key deal and promising her lunch in return.
Rhys smiles. ]
I'm listening.
no subject
The corners of her mouth curve upward. She loosens up, undeniably pleased to have caught his interest. Got him. ]
Bit of exploring. Free food. [ with a sing-song lilt — ] You know you want to go with me.
no subject
So at her lilt he winds up smirking, obviously into it, and makes a show of considering it. ]
I guess I could open up some time in my schedule for that. Always time for free food.
no subject
Even if I don't freshen up?
[ She's definitely wearing the same outfit from prison, the sandscapes of Jedha, and crash-landing on this planet. No alternatives. ]
no subject
Oh...you didn't have and spares from the crash? I'm not complaining or anything. Just as long as nothing gets, uh, fragrant?
[ He doesn't smell anything but the clothes might be hella stale. He can't tell from over here. ]
no subject
I told you I know how to wash. [ huff huff ] Just don't expect anything nicer, like your things.
[ not that she really thinks of Rhys' suits as nice... but they're definitely in an upscale category. ]
no subject
Oh, y-yeah, you like them? They weren't cheap or anything, I had them tailor-made back on Pandora. Most people don't usually notice that sort of thing unless they're trying to rob me.
no subject
Huh.
[ She hums in thought, giving him a once-over like she's seeing him for the first time. Posh, she'd thought before, and he confirms that. Maybe she would rob him, if she didn't know him. Most people who remained well-off did so by serving the Empire. ]
You do stand out.
[ Another straightforward statement, not necessarily meant as a compliment. Call it an observation. The arm, the tattoos, the bright suits. Standing out has never been her goal. Quite the opposite, really, given that she hides her one valued possession beneath a weathered scarf. ]
no subject
Yeah? I mean--that's what the point of all this is. lot of cogs in the corporate wheel back home.
Or. There were.
[ That ended even before the Storm hit thanks to him. ]
no subject
She doesn't understand why it matters to stand out, but she allows him to have the moment. ]
What'd you do? [ she tips her head, suddenly curious. what sort of job does a person like Rhys have? ] Before the wheel stopped.
no subject
I've worked in a couple of departments. Data mining, programming, closed a few deals... [ Don't think about the mining deal don't think about the mining deal ]
I was headed for VP of Securities Propaganda before things went...they didn't go as planned.
no subject
Even before the storm?
[ things going wrong of their own accord? sounds about right. ]
no subject
[ See: he literally destroyed the other company by accident while trying to open a pair of doors. ]
no subject
I don't think I've ever had a proper job, so.
[ not gonna judge him for getting fired or be particularly impressed by him starting a company. are there loads of dudes with tech start-ups in star wars?? maybe. ]
Congrats. I guess.
no subject
[ Jyn earns +50 Atlas Rep and a very pleased, smug and oddly genuine smile from Rhys. ]
Planning on starting up something similar here soon actually. If you're interested.
no subject
I forge clearance codes and scandocs to get people and ships through hostile space. Illegally. And sometimes I steal things. [ deadpan. ] I don't think that's what you're looking for.
no subject
like a fungus ]
That's...not a bad skill set to have, actually. You think you could work that sort of thing with this planet's...whatever? Paperwork? They're so far behind they could communicate with smoke-signals for all I know.
[ Don't mind Rhys just casually being...callous. Judgmental? Both? ]
no subject
I've never done it with low-tech. [ she doesn't sound resolute, though — more like thoughtful. ] But I was good enough to fool the Empire for years.
[ That isn't what Saw or Galen or Lyra would want for her, and she knows it. She should be fighting, not considering another career in petty crime. But it's hard not to consider it, when everyone who would encourage other paths is gone, along with whatever she would fight for. ]
no subject
[ Rhys sits up straighter now and deactivates his palm display with a twitch of his wrist. ]
I've already got a job in that market place--I'm not as good with numbers as Vaughn is, but shipping trends? Business routes? Those I know. Gimme a few weeks and I'll be able to tell you anything you want to know about what's hot and what's not.
A few smart deals in the right place and we'll be in business, baby.
[ That's the general "baby" there, he's not hitting on her. JUST TO CLARIFY. ]
no subject
For her part, Jyn never mentions names, including her own — the one printed on her traitorous, little documents. Neat-lettered Jyn Erso staring up at her, daring her to do better. The thin line of her mouth twists down, more over her own thoughts than anything Rhys offers (which, she thinks, he might be able to follow through on). She doesn't know if she can forge by hand, no, but she didn't know she could replicate codes until she tried. ]
I'll think about it. [ and she will, although she snaps her passport shut and returns it to her satchel without another word. She had been leaning forward to appraise and indulge Rhys in equal measure, but she draws back now. Still, she doesn't allow herself to look sad, arranging her features into blankness instead. It shouldn't matter what she does here, not when nothing matters anymore.
Something burns pit of her chest, just as it had in the world before the storm, and she knows that she lies to herself, even now. ]
tmw you offer someone a job and give them emotional whiplash
it's the thought that counts...