(no subject)

[idontneedluck]

Chirrut spends long hours investigating his new home, exploring all the nooks and crannies that he's allowed to wander through. Some of the Elders think it amusing, a curious game for a curious child.

Chirrut finds the loose stone in the wall of a storage closet in the training hall. Behind a row of practice dummies, there's one stone that will shift if he works at it patiently enough.

He learned through trial and error that the adults don't notice things down low, consider them unimportant. This doesn't make sense to him, but he abuses this fact. He finds a stone that's not quite right - it is smooth where the wall here is rough, but it's the right size, and thin - he can create a space.

First he puts some dried plums there. Just the extras he had after dinner one night, that he didn't want to eat right away.


Then a tin of pickled... something, he isn't sure other than one of the other cans nearby had been opened already, and he could smell the brine of it. Pickled things keep for a long time, so it goes into the space.

Then a wrapped hard candy, one that he earned for a good practice.

Slowly more and more items make their way to Chirrut's stash, until he has enough that the thought of it settles his shoulders when he gets twitchy. If they get mad, if the food he's becoming dangerously used to stops coming... he'll be okay.

Comments

[iprotectyou]

Baze was already in the kitchens when Chirrut arrived, and hid from him. He's not ready to face his friend--friend? yes, friend--but he knows he has to. Baze can't let it end like this.

He waits until the opportune moment--which is never, there's never a good moment for this--and approaches Chirrut, his hands still wet up to the elbows from scrubbing mugs from the Elders' tea.

"Chirrut?" Baze says, and then the words all fly right out of his head. He scrambles for them, so they come out in a rush. "I'm so sorry. About your hand. And the food. And everything. Master Sheotar knocked some sense into me, so I won't bother you about it again. Okay? Okay? Is that all right? Can we be friends again? I miss you."

[idontneedluck]

Chirrut, turning from putting away the cleaned table linens, nearly stuttersteps into the cabinet with surprise.

He didn't expect...

He tries to scowl, but it comes out twisted and worried.

"She didn't hurt you, did she?" He asks, even if the idea of going toe to toe with Master Sheotar is beyond laughable.

[iprotectyou]

"W-What?" the eight-year-old stammers. He takes a step forward, reaching out, and then drawing back again. Eventually, he makes up his mind and takes Chirrut's hand, offering it a squeeze. "No, of course not. She didn't actually knock me around, just talked to me. And she was right. You're not hurting anything."

[idontneedluck]

Baze has his hand, so he can't bolt, but he freezes abruptly.


"She knows?" It's gone, then. He hadn't had time to start a second hiding place. He knew better, but... he'd thought it was safe.

[iprotectyou]

"Master Sheotar knows everything," Baze whispers reverentially, as if speaking too loudly about the woman will summon her. "But don't worry. She's leaving it alone."

He offers Chirrut a guilty look, one he forgets his friend can't see. "As will I."

[idontneedluck]

"It doesn't matter, people know now." He sighs, and resists the urge to kick the linen cabinet in frustration. His whole frame hangs dejected, though fierce unbending pride keeps his head up.

"Too bad, I had some good stuff in there."

[iprotectyou]

"But she always knew," Baze says, baffled by his friend's dejection--and thoroughly unhappy about it. "If she's leaving it alone, everyone will, and it doesn't matter that we know. Right?"

[idontneedluck]

"They know I have it." His answer is a long few minutes coming while he decides if he's actually going to say anything at all.

"If the food stops, they'll take that too."

[iprotectyou]

"Ohh," Baze says, as comprehension dawns. His eyes widen, and he shakes his head. "They're not going to stop the food."

He says this, and yet his friend is worried about it. Baze reconsiders his stance. He clenches a fist out of determination, which Chirrut can no doubt hear in his voice. "But if they do, we'll be prepared. We'll squirrel away so much they can't possibly find it all."

[idontneedluck]

Chirrut goes still in shock. He knows Baze trusts the adults here. Baze has had a good life, one that he deserves, and doesn't know about the things adults can do.

And he still wants to help.

He throws his arms around his friend, hugging tight.

"We'll have to teach you how to walk softer first - you can't hide anything if you're stomping around." He teases, and there's such relief and gratitude in that voice.