MHA #8, Thursday

[stykera]

Stark was still settling back in here. Things still felt odd (he still felt odd) but he was trying to work through that.

Today's attempt at ignoring odd feelings involved cleaning. His apartment was usually kept very clean. He liked it that way, liked that he could keep it that way. Since mid-January, however, he'd cared much less about that, and then he'd been gone for a few weeks and now there were certainly things that needed to be done.

Today he was starting in the kitchen. The fridge was questionable at best, right now.

[Expecting one but there is literally nothing to stop someone else from knocking on a door. I will be slow as always though because work remains a shitshow.]

Comments

[thedadalorian]

Radio had said that Stark was back in town and as such, Din was stopping in to check on him.

Also to bring the kid out to be social.

So, enjoy that knock on the apartment door, Stark.

[stykera]

Stark wasn't expecting a knock. Or visitors. Or... anything, really.

He stared at the door for a moment before opening it enough to see who was there.

"Oh. Are you alright?" Because social calls weren't a thing, right? There had to be problem of some sort. "I mean. Hello, Din. Grogu."

The baby got a very tiny smile, at least.

[thedadalorian]

"Hi," Din said, as the kid waved at him from his little baby bjorn that was actually just a satchel. "Heard you were back."

[stykera]

"I came back... Sunday," Stark confirmed, hesitating just a little as he tried to remember what day it was now. He'd had a stretch there where none of the days had names.

"I'm here, now." Obviously. "Did you... want to come in?"

[thedadalorian]

"If you're inviting us in." Because look at this kid wanting to come in, Stark. Look at him.

[stykera]

"If you'd like to come in, you're invited," Stark said, stepping back enough that they could come through the door. Were they going to spend all day being somewhat awkward at each other? Very possible.

"I wasn't expecting anyone. I've been trying to clean."

[thedadalorian]

"Did you... need help?" Because he could help. Poorly.

[stykera]

Stark shook his head. "No. It's not that bad. I don't think. Is it?" He was absolutely looking around now to make sure it didn't look like he needed help.

"I just...haven't. So I thought I should. And it was something to do. I needed something to do."

[thedadalorian]

Yeah, well, Din was basically that one summon in a video game that you could use on boss battles if you were nice to him once. So...

"Cleaning is a good idea," he agreed, letting the kid down to toddle around. And hopefully not eat anything.

[stykera]

Din would have been useful in Hyneria! But Din was probably good at cleaning too. He kept his armor all nice and shiny, didn't he?

"I can stop for now," Stark offered, turning a bit so he could see Grogu better. There probably wasn't anything too terrible lying around for him to swallow. Probably.

"Talking would be something to do instead." Or grabbing Grogu for a little cuddle and telling him about the other space baby he knew. "

[thedadalorian]

It was almost like Grogu had some kind of space magic because he was toddling over to Stark to make 'up' hands at him.

"Where did you end up going?"

[stykera]

Space magic combined with a guy who gave off extreme 'I need a hug' vibes!

"Back to Moya," Stark said, bending down to scoop Grogu up. "The ship where I was before I was here. I didn't...I didn't know where else to go." Because he had nowhere else to go. "They were in Hynerian space. But their version of the universe isn't yours, or anyone else's, so that means nothing."

"Hynerians," he added to Grogu, "are the ones who look a bit like you. But not so cute."

[thedadalorian]

"Are they--" Din, stop doing the dumb handwave to indicate space magic. "--like him?"

[stykera]

Stark shook his head. "No. Not that I've ever seen and I saw too many of them this time. I'd never seen anyone who could do any of that before I was here. Not the same way, at least. They're just small. And green. Rygel, from my ship, is one."

Zhaan had her own brand of space magic but if he started talking about Zhaan he was inevitably going to end up excessively sad again today.

[thedadalorian]

"Ah," Din said as Grogu patted Stark's hand gently. "Well, we're glad you're back."

[stykera]

"Thank you. I...I thought about staying longer. But it seemed like time. I was there longer than I was gone here and I needed to see if it would be better now."

It was. Some.

"And I didn't want to be caught up in anything else there. One coup was enough."

[thedadalorian]

"A coup?" What even did you get up to, Stark?

[stykera]

"It wasn't my idea," Stark said quickly. "I was just there and Rygel wanted his throne back and they made me go with them to meet his wife and then we were in a cell and...I don't go back often. Something always happens."

[thedadalorian]

"That sounds like quite a story," Din replied. "We just... ran out of caf here."

So not much missed.

[stykera]

"I could tell you if you wanted to hear it," Stark said. "It was a lot. There was a lot. Every time I go back something happens. I heard about the coffee. And the alcohol. We had plenty of that, at least, once we weren't locked up anymore."

[thedadalorian]

"That sounds like how things go here," Din admitted a touch dryly. Maybe it wasn't a great idea to check on home for him, but he was gonna end up doing it anyway.

[stykera]

"I don't get locked up here," Stark pointed out. The hole didn't count and he was trying so hard not to think about things that were going to make him unbearably sad, anyway. "There it's always cells. Every time I go back."

Din probably wouldn't end up in a cell, at least. Din had better backup.

[thedadalorian]

He just ended up getting pulled into politics in different ways.

"Maybe next time you bring someone with you there?" Because Din would totally shoot people on his behalf. Anakin might even too!

[stykera]

"I wasn't planning on going back," Stark said, looking down at Grogu. "Or on anything happening that did."

"I just needed to be somewhere else for a while."

[thedadalorian]

"And now?" Din asked.

[stykera]

"I came back," Stark said with a shrug. "I'm here now. I'm trying to stay."

Cuddling the little green baby helped.

[thedadalorian]

"Good. That's... good." Wow, great job at being good at emotions, Din. "We would miss you if you left."

That was better.

[stykera]

Stark had enough intense emotions for the both of them.

"Thank you," he said quietly. "I'd miss you too. Both of you."

[thedadalorian]

See, this was why he was friends with Stark! Emotions!

"Any plans now that you're back?" Din asked. "Other than the cleaning."

[stykera]

"I don't have any plans. I'm not..."

Stark wasn't making plans at this point.

"Better not to try and plan right now, I think. Why? If you need something, I could help. I could try."

[thedadalorian]

"No, no," Din assured him. "I was just curious. Mostly if you needed any help."

[stykera]

"Company helps," Stark said after a moment. "It did while I was gone. Once we weren't in danger any more."

Different sort of company, though.

"I just need to keep busy, I think."

[thedadalorian]

"Then we'll help you clean and keep you busy while we're here," Din suggested.

No, don't let the baby clean. It'd be too adorable to be possible.

[stykera]

"You don't have to help." But the baby cleaning would be excessively cute. Unless he just started eating things. But maybe he could make friends with the DRD?

"But I appreciate the company."

[thedadalorian]

"Anything that keeps that little guy occupied is a plus for me," Din assured him.

[stykera]

"There's a baby on the ship. On Moya. I spent some time with him. But he's younger. Doesn't run around on his own yet."

Still managed to get into trouble and almost get murdered and had some weird maybe magic powers. Like you do.

"His name is D'Argo."

[thedadalorian]

Well, that was just normal, right?

"D'Argo," Din repeated, nodding like it was a perfectly reasonable name. Because it was, okay? It was. "Maybe if you go back, Grogu can meet him."

[stykera]

"How would... oh. You want to go there?"

On purpose, Din? With the baby?

"You don't need to do that."