Rion

[notallofus]

Come to Rion, they said.

See a tropical paradise, they said.

No one ever mentioned a monsoon season.

Meeting their contact in the open is going to look both suspicious and stupid, so he and Hera have taken refuge in a nearby cantina that mostly serves a billion varieties of caf. Seating by the window has just cleared out, and from there they can make visual contact with the Pantoran they're here to meet.

At least that's the current hope.

And hey, the chairs are pretty comfortable.

Comments

[for_everyone]

Hera, on the other hand, is managing her cover of a content tourist maybe too well.

(She grew up in a desert, okay? She enjoys the rain!)

But she has settled back in her chair at the ideal angle to watch Kanan, keep the other patrons in her peripheral vision, and listen to the rain beat against the window. That and the possibility of caf actually made for Twi'leks is leaving her little to complain about.

"What's up with you?"

[notallofus]

"Nothing."

Kanan taps his fingertips on the table for a second, then lifts his cup of caf to his lips without taking much of a sip.

"Just -- when the brochures talked about a tropical planet, I was hoping we'd get to do a little more walking outside. You know. Sightseeing and nature at the same time."

It's . . . true! Poor sightlines have got his hackles up a bit.

[for_everyone]

"It's not like we came here to sightsee."

She says, while still looking entirely too much like someone enjoying a vacation.

[notallofus]

"Seeing at all would be a blessing at this point."

He scowls out the window, taking another sip of caf and smoothing out his expression at the same time.

"You know, this drink is actually pretty good? Thanks for the recommendation."

[for_everyone]

"We can see what we need to."

She takes a sip of her own caf. "It's good to know you're not one of those humans who only likes the bland stuff."

[notallofus]

"They are the worst kind of human," Kanan says, the corner of his mouth quirking upward just over the top of his cup.

"I can't stand them, either."

[for_everyone]

"Well, maybe next time we can find a reason to go to Zeltros instead."

It is known for its spicy food, among... many other things.

[notallofus]

Kanan does not choke on his caf.

"I'd like to be able to leave the planet again post-vacation. That's an important part of the whole thing."

Seriously, Hera.

[for_everyone]

"It's still independent," Hera points out, mildly.

It's the polite way of saying every Imperial invasion has failed. "Maybe they're doing something right.

[notallofus]

"I'll wear the pheremone perfume if you will."

Because yeah, that would distract almost anyone whose species deals in pheremones.

Which . . .

[for_everyone]

Hera raises her hands. "All right, you win."

She started it, and now she regrets it.

[notallofus]

Kanan's work here is done.

Except it isn't, because they still have to make small talk while waiting.

"I didn't know we were fighting."

[for_everyone]

Hera reaches for her cup again.

"I think you will know when we're fighting."

[notallofus]

Kanan does not duck behind his cup, but the aborted instinct is there.

"I guess I can only hope?"

[for_everyone]

Hera only smiles again.

"You're really on edge."

[notallofus]

He snorts a little, picking up his cup of caf again.

"I don't like rain much. Generally."

[for_everyone]

"Why not?"

It's not exactly unusual, but she's still curious.

[notallofus]

"When I was first . . . "

They're in public, so . . . judicious editing is called for.

" . . . picking up odd jobs here and there, I ended up on a lot of rainy planets. You can't sleep in the street in places like that, the wet gets everywhere, and people are a lot more stingy with their creds, and there are a lot fewer of them walking around outside, too. It made scrounging to pay for a bed a lot harder than it had to be."

[for_everyone]

Hera's smile fades, and for the first time she steals an open glance at the other patrons.

"That makes sense."

[notallofus]

"But now I've got a steady job," he says, taking another sip of caf and not looking anywhere else around them at all.

"And can take a vacation in the first time in forever. So that's . . . great."

[for_everyone]

"I spent a lot of time growing up in a desert."

When she looks back, it's down to her cup. Her fingers tap the side of it.

"We didn't always have… regular supplies, so when it rained it was like some kind of miracle."

[notallofus]

He smiles a little, crookedly.

"I can understand that. If you want to stand out in the rain later, once we've eaten, I promise not to laugh. Or look."

[for_everyone]

She waves her hand.

"Maybe. If there's time later."

[notallofus]

"Isn't that always how trips go? You have everything planned to the minute, then you get distracted in a museum and there's a whole day gone. Or, you know -- "

He waves his hand at the window, water-smeared and a little foggy as the cool air in the cantina hits the moist heat from outside.

"It rains."

[for_everyone]

"I usually manage to stick to my schedule," she answers.

Which is true, but. Sometimes the schedule has to change.