This is what comes from poking about in foreign kitchens

[lasting-justice.livejournal.com]

((set sometime shortly after this)

Fett did a few quick scans of the surrounding areas as the park continued to fall apart piece by piece. Nothing repaired itself, nothing reappeared in its proper place. He hadn't been so sure that the plan would work, in fact.

But even given that, he should have been prepared for every possible outcome.

He was only ever used to having a target, a purpose, and so he thought of it as one target at large as he continued down the sidewalks, firing his blaster rifle at windows, cables and offending signage. Fett made his way back to New Orleans Square with one thought on his mind.

If this did all go to hell, he hadn't had the chance to even ask Sunshine what she thought of it. That seemed almost morally wrong, somehow. She had been the only person in this place whose opinion had counted for something in a whole alternate dimension of madmen and impossible things.

He found her under her doorway, staring out at the changed landscape and looking... really exactly how he had imagined she would, given the circumstances.

"Are you hurt?" he asked on approach. As good a way to start a conversation as any, if you're a bounty hunter.

Comments

[grumpy-sunshine.livejournal.com]

She could...not hear, exactly, but sense somehow his surprise. She suspected very few people would've, and that, and the fact that he was surprised at all struck her painfully. "I don't know," she told her knees, then looked up and gave him a skewed smile. "I really doubt it'll be as simple as a hallway with a bunch of labelled doors beyond the locked one. 'This way to the universe with magic.' 'This way to the universe with spaceships.'"

"I guess life's not fair is a constant wherever you are."

[lasting-justice.livejournal.com]

Even if it were that plain, it wouldn't be simple. Her world, his galaxy. Small towns and cities that covered entire planets. Baking and tracking. How had they managed to come this far, even on neutral ground, was something of a mystery.

He unbuckled a wrist gauntlet, pulled the glove off his left hand and placed it in hers.

[grumpy-sunshine.livejournal.com]

Yes, that had occurred to her, too.

She squeezed his hand blindly.

[lasting-justice.livejournal.com]

He squeezed back. In fact, he nearly understood the point of it as he did it.

"I hadn't expected..." Any of it, obviously. But least of all her. Least of all a reason to stop in the middle of doing what he knew to go and do something he didn't.

[grumpy-sunshine.livejournal.com]

"I know," she said, rubbing the side of his index finger with her thumb. "It's been...I don't even know what to call it. But you're what I'll miss."

"I mean," she qualified, looking down, feeling she was getting too mushy, maybe, "It's been nice getting more sleep. I've come up with some new recipes, too, although I'd have to change the names of at least three of them. And the sun all the time, that's nice. But mostly, of the things that made this place okay, it's..." You.

[lasting-justice.livejournal.com]

"Yes," he said. To all of it, to the truth for once. He wasn't any better with words than he had been the day she met him, but at least he wouldn't pass over it the same way he had tried to avoid sugar at the beginning, like a disease or a vice, something he couldn't afford.

"I don't think I would have come out of this with my mind intact." It was too true for his liking, the way she'd grounded him in reality, even if it had been a highly distorted honey-colored one.

Suddenly everything went quiet and dark (http://community.livejournal.com/dizzy_land/317246.html). Fett heard the Doctor on the comlink at his belt: "Fett, if you can hear me… you can tell anyone who asks that there's a hole in the door."

And instead of doing the responsible thing, he switched the comlink off and left the others to find the news in their own way.

[grumpy-sunshine.livejournal.com]

It had been a honey-colored reality, here: a place of limited danger and long, indistinguishable days, with only the responsibilities she'd assigned herself. She'd tried to ground herself with the routine and hard work of making food, feeding people; she'd liked to think it was helping others, to have at least the reality of a good meal made by hand, but really it was structure, fear of drifting. She felt more anchored at this moment than she had in...years, maybe.

"They got through the door," she said, probably unnecessarily.

She could see in the dark. She would've almost preferred darkness for this moment, but she could see everything around her with inhuman, bewildering clarity: the movement of the water in the river that edged the restaurant; the small scraps of life that were the flowers in the vases at each table; when she looked down, their hands joined.

Her hand tightened in his. "What do we do? Do we just...wait?"

[lasting-justice.livejournal.com]

A hole in a door wasn't quite the same as getting through it, and Fett had to wonder exactly what they had discovered. His visor had gone automatically to night vision, but he found he didn't care for the eerie green light, and flipped a switch at the base of his helmet to get rid of it, leaving everything in shadows.

"There would seem to be few other options." He paused and considered, her grip on his hand keeping his mind from wandering. "Unless you wanted to go and see it." He hadn't thought to ask yet, which was stupid of him.

[grumpy-sunshine.livejournal.com]

"Not - " even a little bit she was going to say, but she found a perverse, unreasonable part of her was rather curious. It still wasn't quite enough to overwhelm the part of her that just wanted to cling to whatever safety she had left, for as long as she had it. " - unless you do," she modified.

"I've never really been the type of person to push the big red button that says 'don't push this,' not unless someone's holding a gun to my head." Which didn't stop her from getting caught in the ensuing big fiery explosion when someone else pushed the button.

[lasting-justice.livejournal.com]

And he was curious too, but Fett knew better than most how badly things turned out when there were too many people working in the same place. Different perspectives could be helpful, but not if they slowed others down. "Maybe. If it stays quiet for long enough."

At the comment about button-pushing, he smiles just a little underneath the helmet. "I don't typically unless someone truly aggravates me." Which was usually difficult unless the person was being exceptionally stupid.

[grumpy-sunshine.livejournal.com]

Sunshine nodded in agreement to this plan. Which still left the question of what they did in the meantime.

She couldn't see his smile, but his words brought out an answering one on her own lips. "I don't think I've ever seen you that aggravated," she said, in a faintly teasing tone. And then, a little more wryly, "Although Shiva knows, you've seen me lose it in all kinds of ways."

[lasting-justice.livejournal.com]

rethread!! (http://community.livejournal.com/dizzy_land/317464.html?thread=18307096#t18307096)