Errant Errands for Peeping Toms

[Kallum Romanoch]

Kallum woke next to a puddle of vomit on his bedroom floor. He didn't remember falling from his bed in the night nor did he remember how he ended up on it in the first place. The air was pungent and the walls swayed like dancing jello. His head hurt so bad he reckoned it was his brain trying to get out through his ears.

"Frell you, Corvus," he groaned.

Slowly, he pulled himself to his feet, clinging desperately to the bedsheets. He was unsteady and stumbled across to the bathroom where he buried his head in the sink and lapped at the cold running water. A buzz came from the other room, it was the comm, and he called out.

"Who is it?"

[Tegan]

"It's Tegan." called a girl's voice through the comm.

[Kallum Romanoch]

"Tegan?" he spluttered.

He dashed from the bathroom and stubbed his toe on the bed. He hissed a choice expletive and rifled through his shirts, unceremoniously piled at the foot of the bed. One was blood-stained, one was mud-stained, another one stank and the last was torn. He settled for the one he already wore: beer stained. He pulled on his best jacket; the one with the built-in ammo straps.

"I'll be right der!"

He stashed his shirts under the bed and pulled his bedsheets crudely into place. He checked his fingers for his skull ring, his Silver Spiked Demon's ring and his Sabaac Play-offs replica ring. He dragged his footlocker over the patch of vomit, cracked a window, and ran his fingers through his hair. From under his pillow he took the bottle of cologne he'd stolen from Corvus, Engine Fluid, and sprayed it twice on his neck, once in his mouth, and once down his pants for luck. When the door finally slid open, he was lying casually on his bed with his hands clasped behind his head.

"'ey Tegs, come in."

[Tegan]

:: Tegan entered the room and sat down in one of the chairs ::

"You missed breakfast. You've been hanging out with Corvus again, haven't you?"

[Kallum Romanoch]

He shrugged with a careless frown and ran a finger absently down the wall, his eyes fixed on the fresh permacrete.

"So wha' if I 'ave?"

[Tegan]

"So I think you need some cleansing pills. You've got a hangover."

:: a tiny droid slipped in to clean up the mess ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

He shrugged again, feebly this time.

"I haven gorra 'angover. I don't ge' 'angovers," he said, gaining confidence as he spoke, "'ell, I can drink 'alf of 'em slimey dogs under de table."

He watched Tegan, expecting a flicker of suprise, but she didn't flinch. The droid wheeled over to his bed and yanked at the sheets. He stood, his head swam suddenly, and he grinned to hide it. He stumbled into the chair before he sat on it. Coolly, he propped his feet up on his footlocker and folded his arms.

"It's nice o' yer te worry, though."

[Tegan]

:: Tegan shook her head and gave her friend a warm smile ::

"Take these, only one at a time, or you'll be be bouncing off the walls and Sorsha will know it."

:: She handed him a small box ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

"Well, if it'll make yer happy."

He took the tin, opened it and popped two pills. He chewed them slowly, his face smug.

"Yer ever been 'ungover before? Not dat I'm 'ungover, but 'ave you?"

[Tegan]

"Zeltronian Spiced Wine." she confessed, grooming the stubborn bits of hair on his head.

[Kallum Romanoch]

For a moment he was tongue-tied, whether the pills were kicking in or the feeling of her fingers in his hair, he was stupified. The corner of his lips curled.

"An' I thought yer were a good girl."

He straightened his jacket so that the cuffs slid up his arms a little. His fist clenched and the gaudy rings shimmered in the milky light.

"Yer like?" he asked, and pointed to one of the rings. He looked at her seriously.

"I used to be in a gang, you know. We rode swoops... on Nar Shaddaa."

[Tegan]

:: She leaned closer, trying to appraise the gemstones on his hand ::

"What are those?"

[Kallum Romanoch]

"Tha' one wit de coins an' flasks an' stuff is one I go' fer bein' a finalist in de Cloud City Sabacc Play-offs. Tha' red one wit de devil an' spikes is de official signet of Nar Shadaa's Silver Spiked Demons. An' dis one..."

His finger hovered over the silver skull ring with black gemstones for eyes. He tapped it and his voice became quiet and serious.

"I go' dis one fer killin' a man."

[Tegan]

:: The girl looked at him dubiously ::

"You killed a man? Really?"

[Kallum Romanoch]

"Yep, wit me bare 'ands an' all."

He didn't break eye contant, in fact, he mimicked the murder with a demonstration of him choking someone with his hands. His face even twisted with faux strain.

"Jus' like tha'. Lef' 'im dead fer 'avin a go at me uncle wi' a knife. 'onest!"

He paused in the middle of his demonstration and gave Tegan an incredulous glance.

"Yer not scared, are ye?"

[Tegan]

"Not at all ..." she grinned, moving her face closer to his. Obscured from his sight, she drew a knife, and pressed it to his belly. "... because I could kill you, if I wanted to."

:: Her eyes danced as she stared him down ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

He took a sharp inhale of breath when the hard blade touched him but he quickly regained his composure. So that's how she flirts, he thought. His face was smug.

"Yer couldn' do tha'," he said, "Yer couldn' bring yerself to do me in. Yer like me too much."

[Tegan]

:: Tegan pulled the knife away ::

"Maybe not, but I could tell Sorsha what you do."

:: She smiled at him like she had a big secret ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

"An' what's tha'?" he asked dubiously.

"I never said I was out wi' Corvus an' yer 'aven' go' any proof o' tha'."

He folded his arms, and smiked.

[Tegan]

:: She chuckled mockingly, hands on hips ::

"I know you like to sneak around the bathhouse and peek. I wonder what Sorsha would do about that?" :p

:: She grinned wider as she took a step towards the door ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

His face turned to stone, he gave her a stoic look of puzzlement but turned away, unable to keep eye contact. He felt his face burn. He stared intently at his clasped hands.

"I don-" he squeaked, and cleared his throat, "I don' know wha' yer talkin' about."

His head snapped up and he spoke urgently.

"Where are you going?"

[Tegan]

"To tell Sorsha." she replied wickedly, and walked out the door.

[Kallum Romanoch]

"No! No!"

He crossed the room like a shot but the door had automatically closed. He thumped the panel next to it and it slid gracefully open once more. Tegan was halfway down the corridor. He sprinted after her.

"Tegs, wait! Yer go' it all wrong!"

[Tegan]

:: Tegan kept walking, and whistled to pretend she didn't hear him. Inside, she was laughing ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

"Aw, come on, Tegs!" he pleaded.

He had caught up with her now and jogged sideways to keep up with her brisk pace. He had finally exceeded her height so she no longer had the advantage of her long legs to keep an ample distance between them. His head bobbed this way and that to catch her eyes.

"Tha' wasn' me yer saw, Tegs. It musta been someone else. I don' even know where de girl's bathhouse is. Come on, Tegs, don' say any'n' to Sorsha."

[Tegan]

:: The look on his face was priceless. He wasn't such a hotshot now. A victorious grin played on her lips as she stopped ::

"I know it was you."

:: She took his face in her hand for emphasis as she stood nose to nose with him ::

"Nobody else has your beady little eyes."

[Kallum Romanoch]

"It coulda been..." he hesitated, wounded, then said, "Me eyes aren't beady!"

The light between their faces was dim, her eyes were big and dark and shimmering, her breath was warm on his lips. His heart thumped his chest with fear and excitement. He played it cool again.

"So," he said, and gulped, "What now?"

[Tegan]

:: She walked around behind him, lacing her arms around his neck, so she could purr into his ear ::

"Do whatever I say, and I won't tell Sorsha."

[Kallum Romanoch]

Kallum's eyebrows raised with interest. When he turned to face her, soft fingers held his chin in place so she could speak into his ear. It tickled a little but he repressed a grin.

"Tha' depends... wha' can I do fer yeh?"

He asked with mixed feelings of dread and anticipation; she liked to touch him but she also liked to toy with him. Content not to think about it, he just stared at her boobs.

[Tegan]

"I want to see you do it." she replied.

[Kallum Romanoch]

"Do... what?" he asked, mesmerised by the rising and falling of her perky bossom.

[Tegan]

"I want to see you kill a man, just like you said you did."

[Kallum Romanoch]

"Oh, yeah..." he said, breathless, then his head snapped up and he stared at her, bewildered.

"Yeh wha'?"

[Tegan]

"You heard me." she sneered, walking down the corridor again. They passed a Frog Dog, who looked at Tegan hungrily as she went by.

[Kallum Romanoch]

"Drizz off!" he hissed at the passing Frog-Dog, and booted it.

"Come on, Tegs!" he scoffed in disbelief, "Der's a limit. I'm no' killin' anyone fer tha'."

[Tegan]

"Aha!!!" she laughed, sticking out her tongue defiantly. "I knew you were lying."

:: The frog dog oogled her at a safer distance, not wanting to get kicked again ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

"I wasn' lyin'! I jus... wha' I mean... it's no' like..."

He sputted, fumbling for words while Tegan stood with her arms folded. Now she was the smug one. He scowled.

"Yeh reckon I'm dead stupid, don' yeh?"

[Tegan]

:: She laughed at Kallum, and mussed his hair ::

"Come on, we've got stuff to do."

:: Putting an arm around his shoulder, Tegan led the way to the upper level ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

They trapsed upstairs, taking a shortcut through droid administration where Kallum wanted to stop and watch a protocol droid being torn apart. Tegan dragged him away, he dragged his feet until they were passed under the grand archway and stepped into the heady morning warmth.

"Where now?" he asked, shielding his eyes from the sun, he scanned the barren horizon.

"Do you wanna flag a cab or should I?"

[Tegan]

:: There were the usual collection of Rodians at work, busily working the cargo skiffs from a recent shipment of goods. They walked past and Tegan pointed at one of the speeders ::

"Let's take that one."

[Kallum Romanoch]

He looked from Tegan to the speeder, and back to Tegan again, suprise in his face. His eyes narrowed.

"Yeh mean steal it?"

She nodded brightly and he looked at the speeder again. She's full of suprises today, he thought. He shrugged and causally swaggered over to the vehicle. He hopped inside and leaned out to call to her.

"Yer sure yeh wanna do dis?"

[Tegan]

:: She hopped in beside him before they were spotted ::

"Go!"

[Kallum Romanoch]

The activation bolt had been removed so Kallum was forced to tamper around with the speeders innards. He tore loose a panel under the control stick and in a moment, the engine hummed to life. A Rodian turned around, saw what was happening, and dropped the crate he was carrying. He yelled in his alien tongue but the youngsters paid him no mind as they sped past. As the sound of the whining engine faded into the distance, they disappeared behind a large sand dune.

[Tegan]

:: Speeding towards Mos Eisley, Tegan beamed at Kallum ::

"You do know a few things after all. Maybe I won't have to feed you to the Nexu." she teased.

[Kallum Romanoch]

The speeder swung out of a narrow carmine canyon and banked north with an adventurous tilt. Tegan slid sideways into him and put a hand on his thigh to stop herself falling any further. Kallum kept a straight face and pushed the pedal to the floor so that the speeder lurched forward into the bustling spaceport. Aliens and their market stalls whizzed by in a blur of colour and sound.

"Where we goin'?" he grunted.

[Tegan]

"To the townhouse." she replied, referring to the Desilijic Complex.

[Kallum Romanoch]

When they arrived at the townhouse, Kallum turned the speeder into an empty sidestreet and brought it to a steady stop. He climbed out, waited for Tegan to join him, then took the side entrance. Upon entering the building, full of multi-cultural banners and artifacts, he wondered how he ended up in this mess. As attractive as she was, Tegan was equally cunning and conniving. It was a lasson hard-learned.

"I didn' bring me gun," he said in a hushed voice, "Will we need it?"

[Tegan]

"No, nerf-brain. I need to fetch something."

[Kallum Romanoch]

"Wha' do yeh need?"

[Tegan]

"Chu leaves me a list of all the people I need to make visits to."

:: She was referring to the Nimbanese who served as Sorsha's Major Domo for the complex. He didn't seem to be around, but a datapad was left on the table for her. She sat down and started reading through it ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

Kallum twisted a chair around, and sat down, leaning forward on the back rest. He scanned the datapad over her shoulder, and sniffed her hair.

"So... are we gonna be givin' these turds a good smack?"

[Tegan]

:: Tegan rolled her eyes ::

"Who do you think you are??? :lol Corvus???""

:: Her hair smelled like honey blossoms ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

"Well," he said, wounded, "Tha' is wha' we're s'pose' to be doin'."

Feeling no need to continue the discussion, he left Tegan to her list-reading and explored the rear of the room where there were a collection of wall-mounted weapons. He ran his fingers down the length of an ornate spear.

"I bet these are dead expensive. 'ow much do yeh reckon it would go fer?"

[Tegan]

"No, we're supposed to be flies on the wall. If anything interesting turns up, we let Corvus know about it."

:: Tegan shrugged ::

"I don't know."

:: She finished up reviewing the list ::

"Let's get going."

[Kallum Romanoch]

Deflated, Kallum followed her back outside, not before taking a parting glance at the weapons. His head hung, and chin pressed against his chest, he watched his feet kicking dust behind Tegan's feet.

"Frellin' 'ouse calls," he grumbled, miserably, "Next she'll be takin' me shoppin'."

He thrust his hands deep into his trouser pockets and followed her out into the busy street. Tegan was wicked, he decided, and she knew how to truly torture a man. Instead of getting him into a scrap with a drunken wookiee, she was forcing him to endure the boring tasks. Cuts and bruises he could deal with but this was agony.

"Are we nearly der yet?"

[Tegan]

"Such a baby." she scoffed. "Did you whine like this back on Nar Shaddaa? I bet that's why they kicked you out of the gang." :p

[Kallum Romanoch]

"No," he retorted, sourly.

He picked up his pace and walked alongside Tegan, who kept her eyes forward and head held high. He cast her a bitter sideways glance and soldiered on.

"Deh yeh always ge' de easy jobs or do dee also make yeh knit woolly jumpers, too?"

[Tegan]

"I do what Sorsha tells me to. It's better than the life I could have had."

[Kallum Romanoch]

He looked up, Tegan stared ahead and said no more.

"Which was?" he asked, reluctantly.

[Tegan]

:: She stopped outside Kayson's Weapon Shop ::

"I was sold to House Desilijic, in a Lot of ten thousand slaves."

[Kallum Romanoch]

"A weapon shop! Great!" he blurted.

All thoughts of Tegan's story faded as he barged his way inside. The shop was narrow and long, on the left wall were melee weapons; scythes, vibro-axes, polearms, knucklers, stun batons, and fencing swords; on the right there were a variety of blaster pistols, light repeating blasters and sonic rifles. Down the centre of the shop were crates and shelves full of ammunition and energy packs. Kallum stood in awe of it all then made a beeline for the vibro-knuckles.

"'ow 'ave I never been 'ere before? Dis place is de drizzle!"

[Tegan]

:: A Barabel slapped a scaly hand on Kallum's shoulder ::

"No touching, Keeedoh. Underssssssssstand???"

:: It turned it's head in Tegan's direction in a grin of sharp teeth ::

"What do you have for me today, Teeegan?"

:: She gave the reptile the datapad, and a sharp look to Kallum that meant 'behave' ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

"Slimey lizard poodoo..."

Kallum skulked off further into the shop where the heavier weapons were stored. Tegan spoke quietly to the Barabel, who listened intently. He shook his head and lifted an energy pack to feel its weight in his hand, the shopkeeper hissed irritably and he dropped the pack back into the crate before he was seen. He caught Tegan's eye and sneered.

"Hi! I'm Tegan..." he mimicked her voice quietly, wandering away, "An' I 'ave datapads an' long 'air an' Sorsha loves me! Tee hee! Me brains are so big they make me 'ead look like a Mon Calamari... ooh, tee hee..."

[Tegan]

:: The meeting ended on a jovial note, with a mix of girlish laughter and reptilian sissing. Taking the datapad back, she indicated to Kallum it was time to go. Once they were outside, Tegan gave the boy a swift hard kick in the butt ::

"You Drannit! Don't ever embarrass me like that again!"

[Kallum Romanoch]

"Yeh wha'?"

Kallum's face screamed objection, it squished into a well-rehersed picture of irritation and bewilderment. He rubbed his backside and stared defiantly at Tegan. Words spilled out of his mouth with the unbridled force of water through a breached damn.

"Wha' are yeh talkin' about? I did nottin'! Yeh didn' 'ave teh boot me - I'm no' a dog! Anyway, yeh didn' look very embarrassed teh me, gigglin' like a frellin' schoolgirl wit dat lizard!"

[Tegan]

:: Tegan's jaw dropped in a mix of astonishment and amusement ::

"You're jealous!!!"

[Kallum Romanoch]

He actually retreated a step, wearing the face of one who'd been struck in the face with a brick. He looked at her for a moment, expecting her to deliver a punch-line but it didn't come. He found his voice, timid at first but it swelled into a booming roar.

"Jealous? Me? Jealous... Wha' 'ave I gotta be jealous about!?"

[Tegan]

:: She flipped her hair at him, and with a triumphant chuckle, pranced off towards their next stop ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

His jaw clenched, his eyes closed, and with balled fists he supressed the urge to scream. He saw a Twi'lek boy with sandy speckled lekku walking by with two friends, he glanced back at Tegan, her back was turned. He shoved the boy into his friends, all three lost their footing and barrelled into a famer's stall with a crash. A hefty keg tipped over and thick creamy Bantha milk glugged out. He left them soaked in milk and crying a chorus of foreign abuse and fell into step at some distance behind Tegan once more. His face burned and his voiced trembled with anger.

"Girls... I 'ate girls... all of 'em... 'orrible back-stabbin' smug... frellin' girls..."

[Tegan]

:: Tegan cast a look over her shoulder ::

"Come along, Drannit." :p

:: Then she spotted something in an alley way ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

There was the sound of a struggle; grunting, panting, and Kallum ushered Tegan quickly out of view. They hid behind a stack of empty boxes. A hulking Trandoshan stood over the trembling body of a little man. He clutched feverishly to a ragged satchel pressed against his chest. Kallum peered past the boxes in time to see the huge alien shove the man to the ground. He slumped against the container, dropped the satchel and nursed his bleeding nose. His bag was stolen by the alien and he whimpered.

"Vigo Kasajian will see you dead for this."

"Funny you should say that," hissed the alien.

He raised his arms, as thick as tree trunks, and his green scaly fingers coiled slowly around the man's neck. He attempted feebly to prize the enormous hands from his throat. The alien smiled with his jagged teeth and stared through unblinking black eyes as his victim gulped desperately at nothing. Just as his last breath was about to leave him, the man's neck snapped in the alien's hands. His arms fell limp, his head rolled and he collapsed to one side.

[Tegan]

:: Tegan popped her head up for a better look ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

Kallum pulled her down and gave her a stern look. He whispered.

"Are yeh tryin' teh ge' us killed?"

They heard the Trandoshan rummaging through the bag, muttering to himself in his native tongue. He sounded ferocious. Kallum leaned in close to her.

"'e's taken suttin' tha' belongs teh Sorsha. We 'ave teh stop 'im."

[Tegan]

"Ok, here's the plan. I'll be the bait, and you snurch the bag."

:: before Kallum could object, Tegan darted out into the open and walked towards the Trandoshan ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

He was half-tempted to follow her but knew it would be in vain so he pressed his back against the boxes and waited. He heard the Trandoshan utter something, and its heavy footfalls came close, then it spoke basic.

"Run along, girly, there'sss nothing for you here."

[Tegan]

:: Tegan swooned, and pretended to faint. She down at the alien's feet ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

He heard the thud and peeked between two boxes. The Trandoshan was dragging Tegan away by her feet. Kallum was incensed; the slimeball had hit Tegan, he thought, and he wasn't going to get away with it. He stopped beside the dumpster and crouched over her little body, eyeing her with greed. A pointed tongue flicked over his jagged teeth. Kallum realised what was happening. He jumped out from his hiding place and shouted.

"Gerroff 'er, bug-dung!"

His feet were moving, fast, and as the alien stood up and up and up, his heart raced.

[Tegan]

:: The Trandoshan planted a foot on Tegan's stomach, pinning her as it bared it's teeth at Kallum to back off. She continued playing dead, not daring to move out of sheer fright ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

He stopped dead in his tracks and realised the mistake he'd made. That huge foot would crush Tegan with little effort and now he stood, staring into bulging black eyes, frozen to the spot.

[Tegan]

:: The Trandoshan removed it's foot, and reached down to pick Tegan up. She would be better enjoyed in the confines of it's ship, it decided ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

"You don't want to do that!" he blurted.

The alien glanced up at him, its enormous hand wrapped around Tegan's waist. Kallum's face became serious and he put as much authority into his voice as he could.

"Do you have any idea who she is?"

[Tegan]

:: The Trandoshan dropped Tegan, and the bag. It was annoyed, and decided to get Kallum too ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

"Oh no, you don't."

He folded his arms and stood his ground.

"Your boss has a message for you."

[Tegan]

:: Tegan popped up and grabbed the bag ::

"RUN, KALLUM, RUN!!!"

[Kallum Romanoch]

He threw himself to the ground as the hulking thug turned. He saw Tegan with the bag and stepped towards her, except Kallum's arms were wrapped around his ankles, and he crashed into the ground. Up in a flash, Kallum grabbed Tegan's hand and ran.

[Tegan]

:: Tegan was laughing uncontrollably as they ran, and laughed even harder at the look on Kallum's face ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

At first, he ignored her laughing and assumed it was a nervous reaction but soon it hindered their pace. He looked back and saw the Trandoshan's bald head poking out above the crowd. He dragged her into a sidestreet.

"This isn't funny!"

[Tegan]

:: Tegan had a mad grin on her face, but kept quiet as they hid. The Trandoshan passed them by, distracted by the cooking smells from the nearby market ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

He panted and snatched the bag out of Tegan's hands. He shot her a scathing glance then looked inside. He rummaged carefully through the contents.

"Disks," he said, and handed the bag back to her, "Datadisks."

[Tegan]

:: Tegan gave him a kiss ::

[Kallum Romanoch]

He'd felt it but didn't believe it. There was a cool spot on his cheek as the warm air passed over where her lips had pressed. He forgot to blink and looked at her, touching his cheek gingerly.

"Wha' was dat for?"

[Tegan]

"For saving my life, Drannit." ;)

:: she mussed his hair ::

"Let's get these back to Corvus."

[Kallum Romanoch]

"Oh... okay..."

He idly followed her back into the busy street, his sluggish brain mulling over what could be going through her head. And all the way home, everytime her head was turned, he smiled.