Chapter Text
Luke Naberrie had zero interest in being a junior representative.
But it’s not like he’d had much of a choice with his mom being a senator and all. As far back as he could remember, he had always spent his time on Coruscant hanging on to her skirts and following her from gala to political dinner to public appearance. It’d always been just the two of them, and as much as Luke despised politics, he wouldn’t change it for anything in the galaxy.
He would change growing up on Coruscant, though, surrounded by all the other senators’ kids. Especially that one daughter of his mom’s friend who suddenly got super into Chandrilian Traditionalism around the time Luke was 14.
It’s not like he even did much, Luke dismayed; he’d been appointed as the borderline redundant representative of Thebes by Queen Dainé as per his mother’s wishes and against his will. The perfect start to a long political career.
At least Representative Binks actually had people to represent. Luke was just a glorified shadow of Senator Amidala and a hairbrained plan to increase Naboo’s presence in the senate. He never even spent enough time on Naboo to know what his constituents needed, even if they were more his mother’s responsibility than his. And on the rare occasion he did hear from them, his hands were tied by whatever latest restriction the Emperor had pushed through the senate. It wasn’t hard to see that he was just a political pawn to parade around at parties and nod along while senators spoke about empire overreach without actually doing anything.
Which is how he ended up watching a man in polished silver armour pulling himself up over the railing of his mother’s balcony in the middle of her Investiture Week party.
To be honest, he probably should’ve been more concerned for his own safety. The man cut an imposing figure, and if he knew anything about Mandalorians, he knew they were typically armed to the teeth. Luke could already hear his mother’s voice scolding him for not even reaching for the small blaster concealed under the folds of his robes. However, once the man had planted both feet on the tiled floor, the two of them just stared at each other like startled loth cats, obviously not expecting the other to be there. Well, Luke assumed he was being stared at, it was hard to tell with the helmet the man wore.
“The Mandalorian delegation is already inside. It would have been much easier to come through the front entrance with them,” Luke began. “But now I’m saying it out loud, I’m starting to realise that you’re not with them, are you?”
The man continued to stare blankly, the T-visor creating the visage of an unflinching gaze. It was strange, Luke thought; he was usually able to get a pretty good read on anyone, even the stormtroopers with their faces covered. But with this guy, it was like trying to gauge the emotional state of a durasteel wall.
Luke couldn’t stand the silence any longer. Fidgeting with the excessive fabric of the robes the family tailor insisted he wore, he ventured over to the railing to look over the side. “How’d you even get up here anyway?”
“Speeder” was the only response he got from the Mandalorian, and Luke eyed the navy air speeder idling a good 2 meters below and a whipcord wrapped around the balcony railing.
“Huh. Must’ve turned off the auto skylane adjustment. Impressive, that’s not easy to do now with the ‘troopers cracking down on that stuff,” and didn’t he know from experience. He’d had more than a couple of near misses over the past cycle. “I used to do it all the time, but mom keeps telling me it’s not worth it for the joy ride. Getting harder to cover it up, you know?”
“Do you always talk this much to strangers?” The Mandalorian responded in a monotonous, distorted voice, and Luke preened at the fact that his rambling managed to get him to respond with more than one word or blank stare. He’d take a win where he could, okay?
Luke shrugged and flashed the man a crooked smile, “I’ve never had a stranger climb over my balcony before, I’m embracing the novelty of the situation.”
The Mandalorian gave Luke a quick once-over before obviously deciding the junior representative wasn’t worth his time and began stalking over to the balcony door.
Luke panicked; his mother had been planning this evening for months, and everyone knew a good Vesty week party was the start of a good year in the senate. Even this morning, she was still fretting over the drinks list and whether the imported flowers were too over-the-top. There was no way Luke was letting this stranger ruin this for her.
Not knowing what to do, Luke slid between the Mandalorian and the door, ignoring the way the door handle painfully dug into his lower back. And if he wasn’t too busy trying to think of a good reason to stop the man from going inside, he probably would’ve taken the time to be more embarrassed about the way he pressed his hands against the cool metal of the man’s chest plate.
“You can’t go in there!” Luke stammered out, now keenly aware of the way the T-visor gazed down at him and the leather-gloved hand circled his wrist. He assumed the man was giving him at least some sort of disapproving look or raised eyebrow with the way he fixatedly stared at Luke in complete silence. Perhaps he was so used to wearing the helmet that he was wonderfully expressive underneath, with every little thought flittering over beautiful features.
… He seriously needed to stop watching those daytime holodramas with Aunt Sabé.
“I’m looking for someone,” the Mandalorian finally barked out, and Luke couldn’t help the pang of jealousy which shot through him and buried itself cold and deep within his chest. Of course he was here for someone else; it would be crazy if he was here for Luke. He’d never met the man in his life, and he was likely infinitely more dangerous than Luke was giving him credit for. Plus, someone would have to seriously have it out for Luke if this Mandalorian was here for him. Yet here he was, wishing to be whisked off this cursed rock by a complete stranger.
Slowly, the Mandalorian’s grip on his wrists tightened as he dragged Luke’s hands down away from his chest. While Luke did have the decency to feel a little embarrassed about the way he’d been clinging to him like some Nabooian maiden from his mother’s stories, he did feel a little pleased that the stranger refused to step back or break the intense eye contact. Visor contact? Luke wasn’t quite sure, but regardless, he couldn’t seem to ignore the sort of hypnotic pull the man seemed to have.
Freeing his hands from the gloved fingers, Luke cleared his throat and smoothed down the already flawless front of his robes. “I already told you that the Mandalorian delegation is inside, and we both know you’re not with them. Don’t you think they’ll recognise you?”
“They won’t pay any attention to me. Plus, it's a good cover for the other guests.” Luke couldn’t help but wonder about who he was so adamant about finding. They were likely part of the delegation, maybe a former lover? Current? “Move before I make you.”
A shiver shot down Luke’s spine, but he somehow managed to keep himself plastered against the door. “I don’t know, Viceroy Saxon is always itching for a fight. Last year at Senator Organa’s cocktail evening, he almost broke the wrist of one of the aides from Pantora.”
“A cocktail evening,” the man muttered, finally breaking eye contact to stare out at the traffic. It was obvious he didn’t think highly of Viceroy Saxon. Maybe he stole his wife?
“It’s Vesty Week too, so all the officers are attending because they have time off. You’ll probably get arrested if a fight breaks out.”
“I’m not leaving here without him.” Him? Ohh. Luke was no homewrecker, but if this guy’s husband was already running off with Viceroy Saxon, then maybe he had a chance.
Seriously, what was going through his head tonight? Three glasses of Nabooian wine, a mysterious man in armour, and suddenly, he was planning a spring wedding in the Lake Country.
“I could get him for you?” This was such a bad idea. “I mean, I know everyone in there, and it would be pretty easy for me to bring them out here.”
The Mandalorian’s gaze was fixated on Luke again, as if he was sizing him up for a second time. “I can’t ask you to do that.”
“No, really, I don’t mind. It’ll make it easier for you, and you won’t disrupt my mother’s party.”
“What about you?” Luke tilted his head at the question. “What do you get out of it?”
Huh. He hadn’t really thought about that. Sure, sparing his mother the embarrassment of a fight breaking out at one of the year's biggest events benefited him. But if (on the very rare occasion) Luke was going to be honest with himself, he’d always given all of himself for everyone else and never stopped to ask what he wanted.
“Take me with you,” he blurted out.
“What?” The voice modulator barely muffled the surprise. Apparently, Luke wasn’t the only one shocked by his outburst.
“Take me with you,” Luke doubled down. He’d already started entertaining the fantasy, and there was no backing out now. “If you’re leaving Coruscant, then I want to come too.”
“And do what? Travel around with me?”
“I don’t know? Maybe?” He shrugged. That didn’t sound like as bad an idea as the Mandalorian’s tone was implying it was.
“No way. I am not babysitting some rich kid who’s bored with his cushy life.”
“There’s no need to be rude!” Luke exclaimed, turning his head away from the man but still making sure to glare at him out of the corner of his eye. Sure, he wasn’t a Mandalorian, but he wasn’t totally inept either. His mom had made him take self-defence classes since he was a child, and he was a crack shot with a blaster. He even knew how to repair a speeder; surely a starship wasn’t too different. Unlike some of the other senators’ children, he wasn’t completely useless, thank you very much.
“It was just one idea. Honestly, I just need someone to get me off Coruscant undetected. I’ve been talking to this girl, Leia, she’s really brilliant, you know? Anyway, she’s part of the rebellion, and she said they can come get me, but they can only travel as far as the mid-rim.”
Even with the helmet, the man managed to level Luke with yet another disapproving look. “You want to join the rebellion because of some girl?”
“No, I want to join the rebellion because I’m completely useless here. And Leia is just a friend.” Luke didn’t want to examine too closely why he adamantly needed him to know that last part.
The Mandalorian finally sighed, seeming to give in, before beginning to pry off the fingers that Luke had unconsciously wrapped around his forearm. Using his now free arm, he reached into a worn pocket on his utility belt to pull out and ignite a puck displaying the husband of the Senator of Niamos.
Dank farik. He was a kriffing bounty hunter.
On the bright side, apparently there was no runaway lover.
Luke should really find a way to back out before he was in too deep. However, standing toe to toe with mysterious men seemed to completely short-circuit his brain, because for the millionth time that evening, he found himself opening his mouth to say something stupid. “That’s Senator Breva’s husband, I was talking to him earlier.”
“You could bring him out here then?”
There was no turning back now; all he could do was plaster on his best political smile and reply, “Of course.”
That smile never did quite reach his eyes.
Keeping his back against the door, Luke reached behind himself to turn the handle for the sole reason of keeping his eyes locked onto the T-visor for just a second longer as he slipped back into the party. But halfway through the door, he paused for a second; he couldn’t just leave without knowing who his soon-to-be rescuer was, could he?
“I didn’t catch your name before.”
“I never gave it.”
“You could give it to me now?”
“…Mando” finally replied Mando the Mandalorian. Luke couldn’t not roll his eyes.
“Creative. Mine’s Luke, because I have a real name like a normal person.” Surely he wouldn’t regret giving his name out to a bounty hunter.
Knowing there was no turning back now, Luke gave Mando a final once-over before finally slipping back into the party. But before he could close the door fully, those gloved fingers slid around the door, wrenching it open just wide enough for Luke to be face-to-face with the bounty hunter. He was suddenly so much closer, so close that their foreheads were almost pressed together.
“15 minutes, then I’m coming in. I’m timing you.”
All Luke could do was nod in response and ignore the heat radiating off his face and pooling in his stomach. There was no time for any of that; he had a job to do.
Oh, he was so incredibly fucked.