A Desert Rose

by Followthebeats

Summary:

Aria of Highwind was a daydreamer. Her afternoons were spent dreaming about adventure outside the walls of Highwind and creating these scenarios to an amused Nia. However, one flyer changed her perspective. Sandrock needed a new Builder, and she was perfect for it. Packing her things and saying goodbye to her home as she knew it, she was off, a new adventure awaiting. Her spontaneous decision did not worry her; afterall, it was only a year and nothing big happens in little podunk town like Sandrock.

Soon she learns that there's more to the town and it's people; and that her job was more than just taking comissions and building things around town. But most of all, she learns that love can be right around the corner.

Chapter 1

A Desert Rose 

Chapter 1: Aria of Highwind 

 

There’s a point in everyone’s road to independence where you are forced to decide what to do next. In Highwind, there were few choices: 1. University for Botany, 2. Join Civil Corps in Ethea 3. Get an internship in Highwind Electrical Company 4. Get out. And for Aria of Highwind, the fourth option was looking like the best option each day. 

 

If she was honest with herself she had little to complain about. She was the apple of her parents’ eyes as she had done everything they had asked of her. She got good grades, while shy she made lots of friends and overall was liked in her community. Highwind was beautiful, with its lush greenery and botany in the west and the warm beaches in the east. It had lots of flying transportation making it a hub for most travelers trying to traverse within the Alliance of Free Cities. And it was what many had asked for. However she felt empty. 

 

“You seem deep in thought, care to let me in?” 

 

Aria lifted her gaze to find a cheery green-eyed blonde staring back at her. Nia. She automatically smiled despite her problems. She was always happy to be Nia’s shadow. The blonde was her partner in crime, her confidant (who did not judge her too harshly), and someone who kept her feet planted firmly on the ground. 

 

“Hellooo! Anyone there?!” Nia teased waving her hands around and getting the attention of nearby Highwinders. 

 

“Shh!” Aria hissed, cheeks pink at the action of her extroverted friend. She tugged her to sit down beside her and shook her head “I was just thinking and I got distracted” 

 

Nia sighed. “You’re always daydreaming Riri” 

 

“This isn’t daydreaming Nia” Aria protested. “I’m actually thinking about my future” 

 

She finished her confession with a small smile on her face. Of the two, Aria was the dreamer, the one who often lost her train of thought over the smallest of things. Introverted by nature, she tended to wait her turn, be passive but very pleasant to be around. 

“Future? What do you mean future? Aren’t we going to the University of Highwind for Botany? We have those internships with Professor Luo!” 

 

Aria shifted her gaze. Yes, they both had been given the prestigious honor to work under the world-renown botanist that would guarantee a head start in someone’s career. Except. 

 

“Riri…you are taking the internship aren’t you? I thought you wanted this..” Nia’s pitch rose as did her eyebrows realizing that perhaps that was not the case. 

Aria sighed and rather than answering, she pulled out a flyer from her satchel. One that she’d been folding and unfolding for the first half of the day since she saw it.  

 

“I was actually thinking about this,” she shyly showed her childhood friend. 

 

“A…builder?” 

 

She smiled at Nia, her eyes just twinkling at the mentioned career choice. Because yes, while flying and working with Professor Luo interested her, nothing could beat tinkering. When Aria was a little girl, her older cousin had taught her how to tinker, to be creative with what resources she had. He was originally from Barnarock and in that city- tinkering was a necessity. The harsh weather bred creativity and so the trade was well needed. 

 

“Sebastian is a builder in Portia and he loves it. By Peach, he’s even decided to settle down there! I heard he is dating a Mayor’ daughter there. A redhead, if I remember correctly.”

 

“Right…but Sebastian was forced to be a builder by his Pa. You knew he and his mom had little choice. Life is hard in Barnarock and they had few options. Not like you…”

 

“C’mon Nia, Sebastian had been building things as a kid! Remember the summers he would come down south and would show us Old World tech he had rescued and rebuilt? And how I would love it before. Nia I even have a provisional license” Aria laughed. 

 

“Yeah he was always an odd duck” Nia mumbled ignoring the last bit. 

 

“You’re just jealous he didn’t fall for you” Aria teased, nudging the older girl. 

 

“Hush” Nia smiled despite her tone. “But seriously, Barnarock to Portia is like a dream! Portia is a nice town, lush greenery and everything he desires. But Highwind to…Sandrock?!” Nia exclaimed. “You’re just asking for danger at this point” 

 

Aria laughed.

 

“Nia, out of the two of us you’re the adrenaline junkie. I keep to myself. Nothing crazy happens in little towns like that” she shook her head. “I want to see new places; brand new places that have no clue who I am. Where I can just be Aria of Highwind. Not the daughter of the esteemed Captain of the Civil Corps. Can you imagine it? No pressure, no history, just me and some tinkering parts.” 

 

“My Light” Nia gasped. “This isn’t one of your hypothetical rants, you’re actually serious”

 

“I am Nia” she nodded. “I need a purpose, and botany with Professor Luo is not mine…you’re not mad, are you?”

 

The blonde paused and really took in her childhood friend. Aria was always a bit shy, and leaned heavily into her introverted self. She had a soft spot for animals but feared spladers. Was a good swimmer, but a granny of a flyer. But she was good, kind, loving, and her best friend. Aria was a big contradiction to her father who was the city’s hero. Nia sighed and reached over to grab her friend’s hands in hers. 

 

“I know you’re gonna be the best builder out there. My builder” 

 

The smile and tight hug told Nia all she needed to know. It would hurt to do something apart, but it’s about time the girls separated. Nia knew she would be having a long distance best friend. 

 

“How are you going to tell your Pa?” 

…

 

That Night…

Aria had not enjoyed her meal this evening. While it was always a delicious spread made by her mother; she felt that she could not eat more than a few bites. The nerves were getting the best of her. Especially as her father rambled on and on about what occurred at his work today. 

 

Sirius of Highwind was a popular member amongst Highwind society. He was born to stand out, with his towering height over most of the population, and his strength. He was never known to shrink into the shadows. Headstrong and direct, her father took command of any room he was in. In turn, her mother was in a similar light; Marina was a bright herbologist whose work in salves and soothers made her a pillar in their society. Always doing research on the benefits of plants in health care, she had a solution for any injury, cut or scrape. A typical foil to her husband except when it came to her only daughter. One that was figuring out the best way to break the news to them.

 

“Did you see Nia today dear?” her Ma asked as she picked up the plates. 

 

“I-I did” Aria mumbled. “We were talking about the future and what we wanted to do.”

 

“Oh? That’s a change of your usual days spent daydreaming” Sirius grumbled, earning a light slap on the neck by his wife. 

 

“Stop it Sirius” she scolded before turning to her only child. “Aria. I think it’s wonderful you’re looking towards the future. It’s good to get your roots set to succeed. Your father and I are very proud.”

 

Marina squinted. The half smile in her daughter’s expression made her realize that her daughter was trying to set them up for news. Not a good one based on the way the corner of her lip came up, showing a slight dimple. Oh, oh dear she needed to look into something stronger. As she tentatively lifted the wine, her daughter nodded signaling that some beer or wine might do the trick. Marina shuffled over with the bottle. 

 

“I’m only teasing” Sirius said oblivious to the silent conversation being had. “What’s in that big brain of yours my little cotton llama?”

 

 Taking a deep breath Aria knew this was the best it was going to get and so she slid the flyer towards her father. 

 

“This is what I was thinking about,” she muttered.

 

Both parents leaned down to take a proper look at the flyer before them. A small gasp from her mother and her father’s reddening face made her realize that perhaps she should have waited for the wine. 

 

“A builder…a builder? Of all things a builder?!” her father exclaimed immediately getting up from the table and beginning to pace. 

 

“Now Sirius” her mother tried to smooth things over “a Builder is a respectable trade.”

 

“Yes, for someone who doesn’t have as many options like your daughter has”

 

“Oh so now she’s mine” Marina mumbled.

 

“What about Sebastian!” Aria interrupted. 

 

 “ Oh true!” Her mother jumped back in “Sebbie is a wonderful Builder in Portia. You can’t deny that?” 

 

“It seems that the women of this house have lost their mind. Seb reluctantly took the job. And he’s not like Aria, he’s five years her senior!” Sirius walked to his daughter and caressed her cheek. “This is nonsense, Aria, my sweet panbat, you’re going into botany aren’t you? Your little blonde friend wouldn’t shut up about it.”

 

“Pa please” Aria frowned. “I want to be a Builder. I want to travel to a new place and make a name for myself. Sandrock needs Builders, and I think I can do it. You told me I could make a difference. Do you still think that or were you lying to me?” 

 

Her father looked gutted, and Aria knew that while she hit below the belt, she would get him to listen. From a young age, Sirius had told her how she was special, how she would make an impact in this world. And despite being the shy meek daughter of the Captain of the Civil Corps, she’d make a difference. 

 

“Of course he wasn’t lying to you Aria! Tell her Sirius” 

 

“No no,” Sirius shook his head. “Of course I meant it. I…was just hoping it was Highwind.”

Marina huffed, finally having enough of all of this.

 

“Aria, dear, please leave us alone for a moment will you?” 

 

Aria hesitated. Clearly she had her mother on her side, but she felt like she needed to say something and not just bend down to their will. “Before you decide, I want to make it clear, I am going to take this offer with or without your blessing. I care alot about your opinions and I would love to be supported…”she took a deep breath. “But I’m an adult and do not need anyone’s permission.”

 

Marina and Sirius gave her a stiff nod before they were left alone. The moment the door clicked closed, they were already bickering.

 

“Marina, I cannot believe you’re on her side!  Aria cannot go to a place as dangerous as Sandrock. It’s wild, unkept, dangerous and a girl like her will easily be prey. You cannot think her gentle disposition will be good out there.”

 

“You’re being ridiculous,” she scoffed. “Did you not hear her? Everything she said, the way she is making this decision on her own without any influence from anyone? I think it’s wonderful. And yes Sirius I am terrified, but my daughter is not as meek as you think she is. She is our child. While not the strongest or biggest, she has a huge heart and a passion to get what she wants. When has she ever failed?” 

“This is not the time to test that theory!” He hissed. “What if she fails? She hurts herself, is heartbroken, injured or dead?!” 

 

“She could experience that here and you wouldn’t be able to do anything about it. Do you think I want to see my baby go away? Of course not, but I can’t shield her forever. We cannot shield her from life. You and I were blessed by the Light to follow our passions for success. And I want her to get that opportunity.”

 

“I don’t approve” he mumbled.

 

“Whether or not we approve does not matter. What matters is that she is asking us to support her on this and I for one am. You can do what you want but if she refuses to speak with us, that is your fault” 

 

Sirius closed his eyes in frustration. “She is my little girl Marina. The one that was too scared to go swimming in fear of something swallowing her whole.”

 

“And she got over that fear and is a wonderful swimmer.”

 

“When the Pensky came into our yard?” 

 

“She cried but later befriended it!”

 

“The thorny jumper incident?”

 

“She got stitches and was all better”

 

“The flyer she was using breaking?”

 

“She managed to fly it to safety.”

 

“The rocket rooster?!” 

 

“She managed to take a few swings in defense before we came!” Marina again defended. “My point is being made here you know! All these things happened under our watch and she came out fine! She has always had a talent for problem solving and tinkering with things. If these poor people of Sandrock need a builder I think Aria is the perfect person.” 

 

“I don’t know…”

…

 

“She’s asking us to believe in her. Don’t you?”

 

Aria closed her eyes as she eavesdropped on the conversation. She knew she wasn’t the most aggressive person, or someone that thrived in the spotlight, but she had no problems facing challenges head on. She was introverted, not incompetent yet it seemed her mammoth father saw her as made of glass. Now, more than ever, is when she needed this change.  And if her father did not support her…well this would be the first step into being independent. She didn’t need their approval or blessing. Desperately wanting something and needing it were different things. And she was going to decide whether they liked it or not. 

 

Tired of snooping, she walked to her room and slammed the door closed. Aria needed to pack. One suitcase seemed like enough; when applying the papers stressed to pack lightly. They would be providing a place to stay, and one needed just one large bag of absolute necessities.  The first thing was her provisional license; the Sandrock recruiters explained that they would have a commissioner there to assist in supervising their work so their official license would be given when they arrived. She packed pictures of Nia, her parents, and sweet mementos she would need. Clothes was a bit of a hard pick as she had read the desert could be hot on most days but blindingly cold at night. A mixed bag was sufficient and with one scarf she was done. 

 

“You’re serious about this aren’t you” at the corner of her eye she saw her father leaning against the doorframe. She huffed, shoving another sweater before turning around.

 

“Yeah I really am and despite what you might think, I know what I want Pa” 

 

Seeing how upset she was forced the patriarch to come forward and really take her in. His sweet panbat was now an adult, who wanted to do things away from all she knew. It was painful and despite it all he knew he could not crush her dreams even if he dreaded her leaving. 

 

“As much as it kills me, just know you do have my blessing” 

 

As soon as Sirius said this she launched herself to hug him. He laughed, and pulled her closer, realizing that she was not going to change her mind. The most admirable and frustrating thing about his daughter was that once she set herself to do something, it was a lost cause. 

 

“How soon do I have to say goodbye to you?”

 

…

Three Weeks Later…

 

Aria could not help but feel a jittery as she took in the hubbub at the train station. She knew that despite all her planning and lists, it was inevitable that she would forget something and that she would be unprepared. But wasn’t that the exciting part? She dug her nails into her knees refusing to let her anxiety get the best of her. 

 

“Don’t hurt yourself” Nia hissed, pulling her friend’s hand away from her knee only to intertwine them with hers. “Do not get lost in that big brain of yours. You’re gonna get cold feet” 

 

“I-I already have cold feet” Aria muttered as she noticed her parents checking her packing to ensure nothing was missed. “I have to do this.”

 

“But that’s it Aria, no you don’t. You don’t have to leave, and move somewhere new. You want to, and you know what? I commend you for it. Remember what you said - you’re no one there, no pressure of promise, nothing handed to you.” Nia chuckled and squeezed her hand. “Your soft dainty hands are gonna become rough and cut. Ooo, these pink nails will not last long” 

 

Aria giggled at her friend and felt her shoulders relax. Nia was right; she wanted this so badly that she would not let fear get the best of her. 

 

“And Aria…you’re going to be my Builder, the best builder Sandrock has ever seen. And I’m going to visit you, as soon as my semester ends, you hear me? And if you go out there kick ass and realize that you hate it, you can always come back, with no judgment and lots of promise in another specialty.”

 

“You think so?”

“I know you have promise, and I know that as much as it sucks for me, it might be unlikely that you’re going to come back. You tend to get what you want in life. It's the most infuriating thing about you.” 

 

The girls smiled at one another. That is until the train arrived. The time had come. Sheepishly Aria walked to her parents knowing the most painful part was going to happen. Saying goodbye. Her mother immediately burst into tears which caused her to tear up. She promised to eat, to write and to do her best. Soon after being let go, her father engulfed her into a hug of his own, as he tried to not get choked up at knowing she was leaving.  

“Do good out there Aria of Highwind. Make me prouder” he gruffly mumbled before almost shoving her towards Nia.

 

“My Builder…promise to write”

 

“I promise Nia” 

 

“Promise me that Sandrock will realize what a gem they have in their grasp. And don’t take anyone’s crap. Got it?!” 

 

A choked laugh was all she got as a response.

 

“I promise” 

 

With a pinky promise and well wishes, a teary-eyed builder climbed onto the train. 

 

Shoving her bags above her, she sat down and made sure to take up the window seat. 

 

“Doors closed, Destination - Sandrock’

 

That was the last thing that Aria of Highwind heard before the train began to move. She popped her head out and waved as Nia ran to the end of the platform, waving like crazy.

“Kick Ass Aria! “

 

“Nia!”

 

“Sorry Miss Marina” 

 

Those were the last words that Aria heard from Highwind. For her life was going to be all about Sandrock. She didn’t know what to expect, but she did know that it would change her for the better. 

Chapter 2: Chapter 2: A Sandrock Welcome

Summary:

Aria has finally made it to Sandrock, but her excitement slowly dissipates as she realizes that this was a lot harder than expected. Her first month is defintiely an interesting one.

Notes:

Note: I made a few changes in order of things to create a better flow in the story but the playthrough of the day is essentially the same.

A Desert Rose 

Chapter 2: A Sandrock Welcome 

 

There was a certain beauty to Sandrock. It was not an immediate one like Ethea or Highwind, but its charm was undeniable. The spare trees here and there were not the thing that caught your eyes, but rather the big rock formations of coral and red rock.  Aria closed her eyes, wincing at the bright sun and warm breeze hitting them through the cracked window.

 

“You better be getting used to that ol’ sun” an old trolly lady chuckled as she handed out lollies. “Today’s is a nice day compared to most” 

 

Aria in turn nodded, and turned away. She was not really sure how to get out of the conversation, just filled with small talk. But the notice of the train arriving was the perfect reason to excuse herself. 

 

Murmuring an ‘excuse me’ the new builder and her things managed to shuffle out of the door. Looking around she was confused as to where to go, if only for a second. A pretty dark-haired girl had a sign with her name on it. Waving slightly, Aria greeted the girl. 

 

“Howdy! You must be Aria, I’m Mi-an, the other new Builder. I just got here a week ago. Nice to meet’cha!” 

 

“Hi Mi-an, thanks for picking me up!” 

 

“No problem! Feel free to leave your bags with Jensen! A Civil Corps member will take it to your new home for you. For now, I’m here to take you to the Commerce Guild. The retiring Builder and the Commissioner are there, let’s not keep them waiting! Follow me!” 

 

…

 

She let out a sigh as soon as she placed the wet cloth on her forehead and leaned back. Today was her first day and Aria was already exhausted. Whatever she was expecting on her first day, was nothing like what it was in reality. For one thing, Yan, her supervisor, was a piece of work. He seemed slimy and pompous but overall just unhelpful. And Mason? He was even less helpful. He seemed to think of her as an inconvenience and not willing to open up. Mi-an was a bigger help with teaching her the ways of scavenging and managed to build a few things with little assistance. A pickhammer, an axe, two chairs, a recycler and a small furnace were the first sign of life. 

 

The Desert Rose

 Aria smiled thinking about the name she gave her workshop. Getting her license and papers of ownership was amazing. And Matilda was very helpful. A friendly face never hurt, however she was curious where the actual Mayor was. And who the other inhabitants of Sandrock were. 

 

She groaned as her shoulders relaxed and dipped deeper into the tub. It had taken her half an hour to get enough water warmed up to properly bathe. It seemed that while Mason allowed her to take his land, he had made sure to sell everything inside it. She managed to keep the assembly station, the worktable, and a porcelain tub that was probably too heavy to sell. No running water was brand new to her, but she managed to use some to get herself together.

 

“No one said this would be easy” Aria muttered as she stared at the newly patched ceiling, She could still feel her anger simmering at seeing that Mason had even sold some floorboards and roof beams to get some more money in his pocket. She knew there was no point in growing annoyed but she couldn't help it. As more and more things came to light about Sandrock, the more she felt that she got tricked into signing the contract. 

 

One Year.

 

No matter what happened she had to stay for one year. She had put her word she would commit and there was no backing down from it. No matter how tempting it became when she met Pen and he roughed her up in hopes of making her ‘skinny arms’ stronger. 

 

“Men” she huffed angrily, finishing up scrubbing her hair. 

 

How was she to know that being able to fight was something people needed to know at first meeting? She swore, if Skinny arms would stick to her, she would get strong enough to beat the crap out of that church member.  Breathing out she knew she would have to get out soon, she was starting to get pruny and the water had gotten cold.  

 

After drying herself off and getting ready for bed, she realized that she had forgotten to bring her mother’s blankets. While not a big deal necessarily, there was not much to show that this was her home. There was no paint, she had no time to take out her pictures, and the bed had her sole rolled up blanket laying atop of the hard mattress. She felt like a child the moment she realized she wished she had her mattress from home. But it was true. She had not felt homesick until nightfall where she realized that she would not hear another round of loud stories from her father or her mother’s sharing of gossip around town. 

 

A knock on the door thankfully brought a distraction. Aria walked over and tentatively opened the door, only to fully open it and smile once she saw it was only Mi-an. Perhaps the most helpful person she met today.

 

“Hi Mi-an” she greeted.

 

“Howdy. Sorry to bother, I was just leaving Elsie’s place at the farm and I figured that before heading home, I would check in on you. May I come in?” 

 

Aria hesitated before nodding. “Yes, of course, sorry” she winced. “It’s not you, I just don’t…” she awkwardly signaling her lack of furniture. 

 

“Did Mason really not leave you a thing?!” she exclaimed. “I am so sorry. That is so unfortunate. Last week I also thought my home was empty, but this takes the cake.” 

 

The silence that followed made Mi-an start talking again. It was clear the girl did not like silence. 

 

“Oh! Here’s some bread and cookies! When I told Elsie and her mom about you they demanded I bring you something as a welcome gift! They’re some of the nicest people around. You know the first week I arrived, I was living solely off of beef jerky. So I figure you would need this since you don’t yet have a stove” 

 

“Oh” Aria was not expecting such kindness so early. “Thank you, you didn’t have to you know, but I am appreciative.” she paused. “Aren’t we competing? At least that’s what Yan made it sound like?” 

 

“No, well…yes? But, I think it would be poor sportsmanship to let you deal with a lot of new things alone when I didn’t. I would like us to be friends. Don’t you?”

 

“I’d really like that,” Aria admitted. “I’m sorry, I haven’t even let you in. I did manage to build two chairs, if you don’t mind sitting outside?”

 

“Absolutely! Lead the way, I love snacking under the stars.” Mi-an chirped. 

 

As both girls sat down on the functional chairs, they both stared up at the sky. Aria couldn’t help but admire how much more could be seen from here compared to Highwind.

 

“You know on nights like these I can’t help but think of home” Mi-an said as she tugged off her helmet to let her hair breathe. “I miss my parents, my sisters, Peach, I even miss my brothers” she laughed. “It’s always hard when you have to leave to go somewhere new. I’m the middle child you know, and my pa and brothers are builders. My family has a history of builders so there’s a lot riding on this. I promised my sisters I would do right by them. But the nights are still rough.” 

 

Aria looked over at Mi-an and knew the girl was trying to make her more comfortable. 

 

“It’s embarrassing to admit, but this is my first time really far away from Highwind. It’s usually me, my Pa and Ma in that house. Pa leaves for Ethea often for Civil Corps work and my mother works in research with botany. We’re a small family, but the closest thing I have to siblings are Nia and Sebastian. My cousin is a Builder who took a contract in Portia and last I heard  of him he loves it. I hope I do too.” she trailed off. 

 

Mi-an tilted her head and observed her. 

 

“I know this probably wasn’t what you were expecting, am I right?” 

 

“You’re right” Aria sighed. 

 

“You know, Sandrock is still well-known across all the Free Cities for being directly on top of an Old World metropolis. They say some old scraps even end up here on the surface when the wind blows. I know it might not seem exciting but I can tell you it has heart.” 

 

“I believe you,” she smiled. “With just the handful of people I managed to greet today showed me of the unique personalities y’all have here.”

 

“Exactly! You know the reason I came to Sandrock is because it's not doing so well for itself. Everybody in the Free Cities knows that. But I didn't hesitate signing that contract.I thought it'd be the best way for me to make a difference in the world. I bet you feel the same way. So let's make a promise, Builder to Builder. Let's take Sandrock back to its glory days during our time here. Let's give it our all, okay?” 

 

“Deal” Aria grinned, taking Mi-an’s firm handshake. 

 

“I think we’ll knock this out of the park” 

 

After a few chatter about the town, Mi-an took off towards home and Aria couldn’t help but be grateful for the help. Even if the conversation meant nothing to Mi-an for Aria it meant the world. 

 

…

 

Next Day...

 

The mornings were going to be rough without curtains. That was the first thought that popped into her head as light hit her face. She grumbled letting out a few curses before she had no choice but to get up. She had a lot to do, or so she thought, except without a routine yet established it seemed she would be functioning in controlled chaos. 

 

She knew the first thing she needed to do was to unpack. If she didn’t do it today, it would be procrastination and she refused to feel like this was temporary.  “Unpacking means settling down” she muttered to herself as she began to find fill her small bags into a wooden chest she had managed to scavenge. It was the best she could do as she was not going to spend her limited Gol on luxuries. 

 

“Let’s see…we have one tub, one bed, one chest, agitator, giant bucket for laundry, clothing rack with a broken leg.” she paused taking another bite of her bread and looking down at the book full of building plans. “Let’s see if I can build a dew collector to harvest some water…and something to store food.”

 

She jotted down the notes and was ready for the day. Today she needed to build those things, meet some new people and maybe look into ways of making money. After all this place wasn’t going to furnish itself. 

 

“Hi, I'm Jasmine! I was delivering your sample newspaper!”

 

Aria jumped as she turned to see a little girl greeting her from her mailbox. The girl was small, a sweet ginger girl who looked excited to see a friendly face. She smiled shyly and walked over.

 

“Good Morning Jasmine, nice to meet you, I’m Aria” 

 

“Aria, of” Jasmine squinted ‘of The Desert Rose ’, hey I like that! Much nicer than what Mr. Mason had.”

 

“Thank you!” Aria beamed, moving a strand of hair away from her face a bit shy. The little girl seemed to be really enthusiastic about her job and she couldn’t help but grin. 

 

“ Oh. Hey! I'll bet it's hard moving to a new place... I know this town like the back of my hand! Let me show you around! I'm a super good tour guide! I know lots of stuff about Sandrock!?” 

 

“That’s super kind of you Jasmine. Sure! I’ll be happy if you show me around!” 

 

…

The tour was very informational. From the highs of the Church of Light to the Myrtle’s oasis, Aria was a bit winded but excited to see that it was not as podunk as originally thought. Everyone tended to be kind to one another and so far she’d met a lot of good people. 

 

“Oh! You must be one of the new Builders. Aria right? Everyone’s been talking about you. Pleasure to meet you, I'm Amirah. I have the best selection of pottery and decors in town at the Ceramic Gate.”

 

“I am, but I am not as interesting as I’m assuming the rumors are.” she chuckled.

 

“You mean you aren’t a Builder from Highwind, father is a Civil Corps Captain and on your second day?” Amirah teased. “Mason probably sold everything in his workshop when he moved out, so why don't you take this? It's my welcome gift.”

 

“Is everyone usually that nice?” Aria asked murmuring thank you as she took the large ceramic pot. It was beautiful and while not colored, the talent was there. 

 

“We try to be” Amirah said with a smile. “To be honest, I know what it’s like being new, my brother and I moved here a few years ago and it was odd at first. But something you need to know is that everyone here takes care of one another. My house is up that hill, just behind the Town Hall, you should come up when you have some time. Saturday perhaps? Let’s have lunch!”

 

“I would really appreciate that” 

 

With a shared smile, Aria continued on her way. Amirah’s gift had forced her to return to her home and while trekking back to the town hall, she knew that perhaps she needed to go to the Commerce Guild. Perhaps she could make some money on some commissions. She smiled at the thought. 

 

Her thoughts were distracted as soon as she noticed the poster. 

 
                                                                                           

If she was honest, the first thing that caught her eye was the million Gol reward. But then as she looked at the poster she got distracted as she looked at the bandit. Like the cowboy stories her father used to read, there in front of her was a poster of a rebel. His white hair stood out just by how unique it was, much more than her hair. He looked about her age, if not a bit older, and she could not help but be curious as to what this person had done.

 

“Aria! Aria! I’ve been looking all over for you!  Did you get a message from Yan saying, "Emergency, come now!" as well?”

 

“Nope, nothing, I was just coming back from my home. I didn’t even check my mailbox today.”

 

“Jeez Aria, you need to make sure to check those” she scolded. “Matilda is holding an important meeting at 18:00 sharp so make sure to go. But whatever, I wonder what's the emergency...? !”

 

“Let’s just go”

 

…

 

Aria could not help but be annoyed at the situation. Her first commission wasn’t exactly what she was expecting. For one thing it did not sound like she was getting paid; Yan clearly delayed a project and now she and Mi-an were paying for it. Something that she did learn was that Mi-an was a little gullible. As they were leaving, Mi-an assured her that Yan clearly made a mistake and Rocky seemed a little bit of a hothead.  She thought quite the opposite; it sounded like Rocky waited long enough and Yan was slimy and waiting for them to punt the responsibility over. 

 

The only benefit that she did get was that she got access to the Eufaula Salvage for free. Even if it was only one week, she would work her ass off to make sure to scavenge the most she could and use it for tools for the Crane and later on for more projects. So this would be her new routine; sweating her ass off, hitting her tools onto the mixed junk. At least her furnace had enough material for bricks. Now she just needed copper. 

 

“You’re gonna pass out soon if you don’t take a break. Here have some water” 

 

She wiped her brow and saw Rocky walking over with his wife and a little kid skipping alongside. 

 

“Thank you Rocky…err Mrs.Rocky, nice to meet you” she greeted politely.

 

“Krystal will do” the blonde laughed, handing her a cloth to wipe herself. “I know you need to get some work done for my Rocky here, but please don’t overdo yourself.”

 

“My wife is right ya know” Rocky patted her shoulder. “I know you’re cleaning up Yan’s mess and I do appreciate it, but there's no reason to wear yourself out.”

 

Aria drank water and wiped her brow feeling better. If she was honest, she was getting a bit light headed from the sun and the scrap blowing on her face. 

 

“We’re about to take a break for lunch, why don’t you join us dear? I am sure Pebbles would love to have a friendly face around.”

 

Unable to pass up free lunch, Aria followed them. 

 

…

Everyone was so nice. That was the first thing that Aria thought of as she was bathing at the end of the night.  Rocky and Krystal were sympathetic to the shift and her cleaning up Yan’s mess. It was clear Rocky was not fond of her boss, and that's how they found common ground. At first she thought he’d be a big brute but talking to him made her realize that he was a giant softy for his family. 

 

At the fireside meeting, she met a lot of new people. First she met the Civil Corp members, Justice and Unsuur, finding Justice reminded her a lot of her father and Unsuur making her laugh at his clever yet odd quips. It seems Sandrock was protected by the two of them and a cat, which made her want to write to her father and let him know about it. She met the architect who seemed eager to expand Aria’s lands, (for the right price), and her grandmother who was a doll and gave her a lovely scarf. Amirah introduced her to Arvio who she found charming if not a bit too charming. But he did offer a discount on furniture that she was hoping to take. 

 

“Not bad for 48 hours” she sighed finally feeling her body relax. Tomorrow she should have had the necessary items to complete most of the crane. After that, her plan was commissions to get that furniture discount.

 

That was the last thing that she thought of as she crawled into bed.

 

…

One Month Later …

 

In one month, Aria was feeling more at home than ever. For one thing, she managed to complete her initial task with Rocky, and now was able to actively take on commissions, and if she was honest with herself, she was wearing herself thin. One day she had managed to wake up with large circles under her eyes as she had only slept 4 hours before getting up bright and early. Amirah had seen her and given her some face cream to at least look less exhausted but made it clear that she was worried about her. 

 

She had also experienced her first Sandstorm, and it was horrifying. Pen made it no better as he visited her first thing in the morning explaining the importance of sand gear. While it did make a difference, in seeing in the horrid weather, it did not protect her from seeing Pen cry and deny that his eyes hurt. The minimum amount she could do that day was collect the dew before it dried out by the sand, cover most of her machines after refilling them, and taking her first day off. Owen had given her a few omelets that Grace had burned and while salty, some steamed rice she made had made it palatable. She blushed at the thought of Owen; Grace had made sure to tease her as Owen had invited her to chat that night. 

 

In her month in Sandrock, she had people that she liked, people she tolerated, and the people who are quickly becoming her inner circle. Mi-an and Elsie were kind and if she ever wanted to do something fun, even if a bit childish. She appreciated the way Elsie would make Mi-an go play at the arcade. But Aria rarely joined, even when invited, as she wasn’t fond of spending money on games that had little successes. (No matter what Catori said). 

 

Most of her time off was spent with Amirah and Arvio. Aria had to admit that when she first met Amirah she was intimidated by how gorgeous she was. She knew of those kinds of girls that were nice to her face yet later say hurtful things for fun. The woman from Barnarock was nothing like that; Amirah was mellow and more of her pace as they talked about their interests. She learned that the young woman acted older than what she actually was due to ensuring that her little brother Arvio was staying on the straight and narrow. Though not much older than Aria, the girl made sure to act as an older sister. She tended to make extra tomato beef brisket for the Builder to take home, and in turn Aria gave her any extra bloodstones she would find. 

 

Arvio in turn was striking just like his sister. He was overtly charming and knew he was good looking. Oftentimes his amber eyes would have a twinkle after complimenting how good her skin looked or how impressive it was that she managed ‘to have delicate fingers despite her rough work.’ She knew most of the time he was flirting to get something out of her. For example, a compliment of her eyes she would agree to make some deliveries on his behalf. And when he wanted a good sale, he would compliment her skin and she would purchase another tube of sunscreen. It was nothing serious but he definitely was nicer than the Highwind boys that tended to ignore her. 

 

Today she would be visiting her favorite siblings as she was going to make good on Arvio’s promise. Furniture shopping. This month she had been smart about her money and had saved enough to properly purchase a few necessary items for her home. In the few weeks here she had patched up a sink, moved the tub over (with Unsuur’s help) to a better location, and upgraded her water tower so it would conserve water a bit better. Locking her door behind her she was off on her day. 

 

However, her trek was interrupted as she noticed the flag on her mailbox showed her that she had mail. She grinned brightly seeing that it was Nia: 

 

Riri,

 

Hey 'Builder!' Ah, it feels super weird calling you that! I think I'm just gonna stick with Riri. Your Ma said you should've arrived by now, but it's so weird, my mailbox is still completely empty! Huh, was I wrong to have expectations? (I'm not forgiving you).

So I know that you're currently crippled with grief over the abandonment of your bestest friend, but I hope you've managed to overcome that and settle in a little in Sandrock. In my head it's all howdy's and guns, but I reckon it's probably much, much more boring than that. I gotta admit though, it does feel a bit weird without you here. I even went to your house last night, I felt like such a doofus.

You remember when we used to play together? We used to get into all sorts of trouble. Ha! Over in Sandrock you got your Sand Bandits, we should have called ourselves the Air Pirates! Speaking of, there's no one to go gliding with me anymore! They banned co-flying recently, over 'health and safety concerns,' but that never stopped us before! So when you come and visit, (which you have to!) we'd be able to sneak out and do it I bet!

I hope you've managed to push through your missing me to be able to make some friends (not best friends, mind. I'm watching you!). How are the people there? All "yakboys," right? Hahaha remember the impression I made of Sandrockers before you went! Hilarious, but I hope it's not like that. Those Sand Bandits sound dangerous. You have GOT to be careful okay!? I mean, I'm not worried about you or anything. You still owe me 30 Gols!

My studies have been going really well, by the way! Director Luo told me I have a real knack for planting (I told you so!). Maybe I should try and be independent like you. I reckon I could go out somewhere, in those wild wastes, and become a real botanist! I heard they got someone over in Sandrock who's studying how to grow plants in extreme conditions. I know you think that's super boring, but it's actually really cool! I've always told you how similar planting and building is, but I swear, you never listen to me! Maybe some day you can show me those legendary desert flowers!

Speaking of which, I need to go and take care of my flowers. Remember that orchid I planted before you left? Well when you come visit you'll be able to see how much it's grown. It'll be a great reminder for how long you've ABANDONED ME! I'm joking. I miss ya!

 

Your friend forever,

Nia

 

She hugged it to her chest, promising to write that night. 

 

Walking towards Arvio’s shop, she was giddy at the thought of what options she might have. If Aria was honest with herself, she had not even bothered to look at the furniture in fear of becoming attached to something that she would not need or would no longer be there when she returned. 

 

“Good morning child” she heard in a warm tone that could only be Miss Vivi. 

 

Vivi was everyone’s grandmother, and while Aria never met hers, she had a soft spot for the old woman. 

 

“Miss Vivi, good morning,” she greeted. “It’s great that I ran into you, I have something for you”  Shuffling over her bag, “I found this while mining and I know you said you lost your last one. Here you go!” 

 

“Oh child, you shouldn’t have!” Vivi cooed seeing the magnifier that she had managed to  polish to the old lady before handing it over. “You are so sweet, why not come in for some breakfast?”

 

“I would love to Miss Vivi, but I can’t. I have a very important mission today.”

 

“Is that so?” Vivi’s eyes brightened in curiosity. “May I know what that is?”

 

“Of course! You see I’ve been saving some gols here and there in hopes of having enough money to purchase some furniture! Mason didn’t leave me much in that old shed other than a tub, a broken sink and the bed. So, I’d like to make it more like home so I feel like…”

 

“Like you’ve settled down! Oh that’s a wonderful idea dear. Well I won’t keep you long, just make sure that your next investment is clothes.”

 

“Clothes?” 

 

“Yes clothes! The desert gets plenty cold at night, you'd do best to get yourself some warmer clothes!”

 

She chuckled. “Yes Miss Vivi, I will make sure to do that by end of summer” 

 

“You better!” 

 

With a small wave her trek continued more towards the center of town and towards an excited Arvio. 

 

“Morning Arvio! What do you got for me?”

 

“Oh, Builder, are you finally taking me up on that offer?” he asked with a wink.

 

“I am” she leaned forward with a wink of her own. “I’d love to…to get that furniture discount you promised me”

 

It was Arvio’s turn to blush a bit before clearing his throat. “Ah yes, the furniture of course! Feel free to look at our selection”

 

Aria squealed a bit and began to inspect everything. The first thing she looked at was a new mattress; there were only so many more nights she could continue on that rock of a thing. Then a rustic cabinet to use in her kitchen, that way she had more storage of cooking items and had a table to actually do something. Then a proper bookcase for her collection of books and a retro fan to deal with the heat. Last little things she gathered were bedspreads and another blanket. 

 

“Those are great options!” Arvio exclaimed.

 

“Aria, remember that you do have a discount from us, so if you want to look elsewhere you don’t want to limit yourself to the cheapest thing” Amirah said as a greeting when bringing her brother breakfast.

 

Aria blushed. 

 

“Yes well, even a month’s worth of Gols does not mean I can go crazy with my purchases' ' she shrugged. “To be honest, I am using a thousand extra gols since my Ma sent me some in her last letter. And I already fixed the broken sink and two chairs that had been left behind.” she caressed a nice couch in the corner that itself broke the bank. Sighing slightly she still told herself it was good to be conservative with her money.

 

“This will be all for today” she said softly. “How much will that be?” 

 

“Well, it’s 1258 Gols” her face paled and Arvio noticed. “But! With the twenty five percent discount, it’s 943 gols” 

 

Aria nodded, thanking him profusely before counting out the Gols. “Do you mind letting me know when you get a usable table? I’d like to buy it next month, I’m tired of eating on the floor” she laughed embarrassed at her current situation.

 

 “Of course we will Aria” Amirah interrupted Arvio and a possible sales pitch on some expensive tables he had. “You know, if you need help, you can let me know. I don’t want you wearing yourself thin spending money that you’ll need later on down the road. You can even give Arvio half and we can take the rest next month. Right Arvio?”

 

“Wha-? Oh yes! Yes we can do a payment plan if needed” he nodded. “I just appreciate the business.”

 

“Absolutely not,” she shook her head. “I love you two, I really do, but you run a business, and I work on commissions to make sure I have money to do this. You already feed me as it is Amirah, I am not taking more from your family, especially keeping money from you that you’re planning on sending to your parents. Plus! With that discount, I can get something good at Owen’s! Once I get a cooler or something I can finally cook warm things. Just taking baby steps, but I promise I am good” 

 

With a hug to both, she was off, happy that Elsie had been smart enough to offer her a Yakmel to take furniture to her home. Despite it not being much, she was proud of her purchases with little to no help. Once home, she patted the yakmel to return to Elsie’s farm and began to set things in place. 

 

She huffed and puffed, moving it over to the proper places. Her biggest win was being able to throw the old mattress away. And throw the new one onto the bed frame. She threw herself against it in relief, groaning in pleasure as it soothed her back. She would no longer have sleepless nights tossing and turning. Making her bed, she knew that this was the best thing money could buy. 

 

…

“Thanks Owen! See you tomorrow!” she waved by to Owen before walking back to her home. Owen was a sweetheart and just a beautiful person inside and out. Not only was he charming and kind, but he really helped out his neighbors. When he had first heard of what Mason had done and taken a lot from the shed, he had told her that to save money, he would honor the lunch specials prices at any time of the day just for her. She figured that he had realized just how hungry she was during their first dinner when she had nearly cleaned her plate when he had invited her to eat. The 10 gols a day spent was little compared to the portions he gave her. 

 

She was smiling at the thought until she noticed there were people coming in and out of her home. 

 

“Hey!” she yelled running with her pickhammer hoping to defend herself. She already felt herself sweating at the thought of some Geeglers or robbers taking what she had just bought. When she got closer she paused, realizing just who was there: Amirah, Arvio, Elsie, Mi-an, Heidi and Vivi. . 

 

“What’s happening?” She asked meekly, scared about what she had possibly done wrong.

 

“Nothing child” Vivi was the first one to speak. “But the children told us of the predicament that Mason had left you with. When you had said that he had left you nothing, some thought you were exaggerating, but once Mi-an and Amirah let us know that you were not, well, we needed to make sure you felt like home.”

 

“What do you mean?” Aria turned to look at the door as Justice came out wiping his hands clean.

 

“Everything’s set, just let us know when- oh! Builder!”

 

“I don’t think they told us sir” Unsuur said behind his leader.

 

“Look!” Elsie stepped forward. “Lots of people be leavin’ town due to seeing this place as uninhabitable. But despite you being new, you get it. You understand the beauty and enjoy it.”

 

“Yes, Elsie is right, you are always chatting about what you found and the books you’re recovering.” Mi-an continued.

 

“You think of us when you're scavenging,” Arvio added. 

 

“Enough to bring us materials that make our job easier” Amirah chirped. “Do you know how much better my pottery is now that I am not struggling for bloodstone?” 

 

“This isn’t charity” Heidi said immediately seeing the way Aria’s face changed after hearing everyone. “This is furniture that old townspeople left and we got no place to keep it. No one is using it, no one is giving you something they were using. These are things that need a place to go, and you, you need a proper liveable place to stay.”

 

“Heidi is right, we would like for you to stay longer than a year” Justice smiled. 

 

“Now come on take a look!” Mi-an cheered, grabbing her hand and pushing her into her home. 

 

Once Aria walked in she could not believe what she was seeing. First of all she had a living room. It was a large hemp rug on the ground, with a cow print sofa and a bunny-ear chair and a rattan chair. In the center was a small coffee table that barely took up any room. She was then led to the kitchen where she found that her rustic cabinet had been moved completely. In its place was a stove, with a dent on the side, but still useful. Beside it were kitchen cabinets and a long table in the middle that made it seem like a kitchen island of sorts. Two small stools on the other side to make it save space. 

 

Continuing on, they actually moved the tub to the bathroom. With a curtain covering it and a door was in place to give her privacy. She felt her eyes water all the more when she walked to the bedroom. 

 

The rustic cabinet she had purchased earlier had been repurposed as a desk, with a small lamp on the corner for light. A chair in front of it gave her a desk, with quills and other writing utensils to correspond with her family back home. Her bed was now centered, with extra pillows and proper curtains on the window so she would not be blinded in the mornings. The corner held a cute sheep plushie that she knew was all Elsie, and a shiny rock that could only be Unsuur. 

 

Turning around she saw that they were all waiting for her reaction. And to her mortification, she felt her cheeks redden, her bottom lip wobble and tears just fully falling. She covered her face in embarrassment but she could not help but continue to cry. She had missed home so much, despite her playing tough; and seeing people caring about her just made her heart so full.

 

“Thank you so much” she hiccuped. “I-I never thought anyone would do this. I don’t deserve it” 

 

Immediately Vivi hugged her and she leaned against her, missing her mom more than ever. “Yes you do child, you do. Sandrock can be hard enough without your family, and nothing to call your own makes it even harder. You are cared for, child. You hear me?” 

 

She nodded shyly before hugging each and every member. They all told her that it was nothing but as Amirah hugged her tightly and reminded her to visit on Sunday, she knew that she was forming a family. Leaning against the doorframe, she waved everyone goodbye.

 

Closing the door behind her, she sighed.

 

“It’s hideous, nothing matches” she laughed, "but all mine.” 

 

She had not felt such happiness until now where she realized she’s cared for, loved and maybe a year will go by quicker than expected. Walking over to her new writing desk, she took out a quill and began to write:

 

Dear Nia,

I got your letter and I am so sorry that I did not write sooner. It’s just been super crazy. Sandrock is definitely not what you and I expected.  Let me tell you about what happened today…

As she wrote the rest of her letter she felt her eyes water once more.

 

Things could only go up from here. 

 

 

Chapter 3: Letters

Summary:

Letters are a great form of communication. Her usual correspondence is Nia or her Ma, but this time, it seems Aria might have a new penpal.

Notes:

I want to flip the script a bit on developing something. Please let me know what you think. Comments are appreciated, thank you

 

A Desert Rose 

Chapter 3: Letters 

The night was a perfect one; the heat had died down that night and it was comfortable and chilly. Aria felt giddy now as she was crossing out the last bit of her commissions to deliver that morning. If she was honest, she was starting to really have a proper routine. In the mornings she would deliver all her commissions that she could possibly handle in one day. That could be 2-3 a day, and it would be around 600 to 1000 Gols depending on the intricacy of the task. The only frustrating part of a commission was that a portion of it went back to the Guild and in the pockets of Yan who looked all too pleased as she did the math and handed him over his share. She had written to Sebastian asking him if that’s how it was back at Portia but he had not yet responded. 

 

After splitting the shares, she would look at commissions and see which ones would be good for her to take that would be worth her time, energy and pay. They varied and if she was honest with herself; there were certain commissions she would prefer over others. Nonetheless she took them all as needed to assist whatever townsfolk needed it. The evenings, when she felt like she was running out of energy, she would head home, check her machines, dust them off as needed and throw new raw materials in the recyclers. That night she would have dinner alone, shower and if the weather permitted, she would spend the last hour before going to bed on a new swing that she bought. 

 

Like now, as she sipped her tea, and took in the stars. Aria felt at peace, especially as she let her hair naturally dry in the desert heat, letting it fall down her shoulders to better air it. At this time at night no one would be passing, not even the wild Yakmels. Humming softly she crossed her legs on the swing, letting her bare feet on the fabric cover.  This was probably her favorite part, taking in the silence, letting her piece her thoughts together and just relax. 

 

She sighed happily as she relaxed against the swing. Her tea was cold, but she didn’t mind it, she knew she had a bit more time before she would begin to doze off and then she would head to bed. It was nice; she was not as lonely as she once thought and even felt at home. 

 

That is until she swore she felt eyes on her. The hairs at the back of her neck stood up and she straightened herself and looked around, but there was nothing. Not happy with leaving it be, she got up, slipped on her sandals, and grabbed her daggers ready to defend herself. 

 

“Don’t even think about it, you hear me!” She called out to the empty night. “I have weapons and you will regret coming to my property!”  

 

She was proud of how her voice did not shake one bit. Still, throwing off her sandals she switched to boots and jumped her fence, walking towards the direction that she felt the gaze was coming from, the grip of her dagger never loosening. 

 

Whatever she was expecting, it was definitely not the thorny jumper squeaking and running off. The moment Aria saw him run off, she swore a sense of relief came. The little bugger was probably scavenging for food. 

 

“Thank Peach” She muttered to herself before hopping the fence back to her own property.

 

This was enough, clearly she was starting to imagine things; and so she threw her boots by the entrance, and walked inside her home, locking it immediately as she got in. She would have to clean up the mess tomorrow, and she had left her tea cup outside, but so be it. She was starting to imagine things.

 

“That’s what you get for reading horror novels while bathing” she chastised herself as she crawled into bed. “It’s making you all paranoid” 

 

It didn’t take long for her to fall into a deep but uneasy slumber. In her deep sleep she had failed to realize that perhaps she wasn’t imagining things and that she was being watched.

 

…

 

The uneasy feeling had not gone away from the night prior. Aria felt tense as she went through her usual routine refusing to admit that the feeling would not be shaken away.  Getting ready for the day, she went over her usual routine; served herself a coffee and an omelet, checked her water levels on her tank, put some recycling in her machines and she was off to see what jobs she could pick up today. 

 

The reason for her feeling became pretty clear once she saw the ruckus near the train station. Justice seemed to be in the middle of an interrogation; there seemed to be a group of tourists, temporary workers and a well dressed young man all gathered around him. Justice was incredibly frustrated with the group that he was talking to and Aria wanted to know why. She had no problem walking to the group and trying to listen to what was happening. From what she could tell, it seemed like the Logan fellow that she had previously seen on the wanted sign had actually managed to attack the train, break a window and spook the passengers.

 

“I told you I don’t know anything else, just catch him!” One blue haired man exclaimed.

 

“So you're telling me you didn't see anything?” 

 

“I saw a fire in that man’s eyes…a burning desire for vengeance that sends chills through my very essence” another man shivered.

 

Aria raised her brow at the man’s comment. It was definitely not what Justice was looking for and she bit back a smirk as Justice’s frustrations began to mount.

 

“Alright…Did you see anything that could hold up in the court of law?”

 

The auburn man stuttered, and shook his head. “Not to that effect..no, I didn’t”  

 

Justice massaged his temples before answering the man once again. "So let me get this straight, none of y’all saw him take anything? Nobody got robbed?” 

 

“Excuse me, Captain, sir? Ernest, Atara Times. Would you be able to comment on all the wild allegations surrounding this incident? Who is this ‘Logan’ and what are his motivations? Do you believe he may be in possession of weapons of mass destruction?” 

 

Aria looked curiously as the well groomed blond was actually a journalist. And she inwardly winced knowing this would not be good on Justice to be interviewed in the middle of an investigation.

 

“Dang, you don't get out much, do ya pardner? First off, I'm the sheriff 'round these parts. Captain's the cat. Second, I'm the one askin' the questions here, not the other way around!” Justice shook his head “Dang reporters, almost made me lose my train of thought.” 

 

“The train” Aria spoke up, making the men finally take notice of her. 

 

“Train... Ah, yeah! The train robbin'. Or lack thereof. Well, we still got him for attempted hijacking', resistin' arrest, unlawful use of firearms... I'll add it to the pile.Y'all are free to go. And remember, if any of y'all think of any info you think we can use to catch Logan, run on back to the Civil Corps, double time!” 

 

As everyone disbursed, Aria stayed behind and patted Justice on the shoulder. “I would ask if everything’s alright but I got the gist from the conversation. They should be super helpful” she chuckled.

 

“Tell me about it?! How did Logan and Haru take the train on, hold them at gunpoint and then jumping off!”

 

“They took nothing?” she tilted her head.

 

“Well, not nothing, they took something, but what is unclear. I managed to spook them off but once they saw me, a smoke bomb went off and they flew down the canyon.” He shook his head. “Look, I gotta go, but if you hear something or see Logan you come find me okay?” 

 

“You got it” she saluted. 

 

“By the way, I think Yan is looking for you” Justice signaled over to the train station before he walked off. 

 

Just hearing Yan’s name made her blood pressure go up, but she walked over, being as respectful as she could.

 

“Mornin’ Yan, Justice said you needed me?”

 

“Ah hah! Wandering around aimlessly? That is so you! Great news, I've got something you can do right here!”

 

At his rude tone, Aria could not help but cross her arms and pursed her lips signaling her annoyance. Her relationship with Yan had not improved one bit, In fact, it was pretty clear that he was testing her boundaries and she refused to fail any of them. In the first month he quickly found Mi-An tended to be the more docile one of the two and it seemed like Yan wanted Aria to fall in line just like the other Builder from Tallsky. But that wasn’t happening, the only good thing about Yan was that he was a coward.

 

“Excuse you?” she asked interrupting him 

 

“Ahem, yes, I was hoping to run into one of you Builders; you see, that pesky Logan has struck again! More specifically, he's struck this here train window, and uh, yeah you know the drill. Guess who needs to fix it?”

 

“I’m assuming you’re refusing to?” she snarked.

 

He ignored her little jibe. 

 

“Jensen called me over all in a huff, "Wah wah wah, my poor widdle twain" normally I wouldn't entertain, let alone reward such baby-ry, but Matilda was standing right there, sooo... yeah, better get it done quick...But all of that is neither here nor there since you're here, clearly with nothing better to do, so you'll have no trouble accepting this commission, am I right!?” 

 

“I have no problem assisting Jensen, but do not assume I am not busy, I was about to take some commissions before this.”

 

Yan waved her off. 

 

“The train is stopped now at the station, just get some glass and fix the window. Should be easy as pie! Well, off you go then, scoot! Come see me when it's done for your pay!

 

Walking off she grinded her teeth, annoyed at how she had to listen to him. Jensen seemed to be worried so with a deep breath she promised it would be done in a few hours as she had some spare glass she could immediately repurpose. 

 

…

 

“Fixed that window, eh? Splendid! Another fine contribution to Sandrock on behalf of the Commerce Guild! I'm sure they'll have a few kind words to throw my way at the next fireside, eh, Aria?”

 

Giving a fake smile, she bit back some curses and walked to the board taking on a few commissions later than expected. 

 

Next Day…

Ri-Ri,

 

It's me again!

Sooooo, your Ma has already replaced you. I guess she got tired of waiting for you to come home, and instead found a smarter, more beautiful, kinder version of you. I was even at your house yesterday, she cooked a massive meal for everyone! During dinner they were telling stories about when we were young. A little embarrassing, if I'm honest, but it made me laugh regardless. Kept reminding me of how you left, though, I mean, not that I'm sad or anything. I just kinda miss our stupid adventures.

You remember that tree we used to climb when we were young? The one you fell out of and everyone was fussing over you? Urgh, I remember you got to miss a whole week of school, I was sooo jealous! Anyway, Director Luo somehow managed to revive it. It's started blooming and everything. He's been doing some research lately that'll bring dead trees back to life. I'm sending a photo of it, it's really awesome! You wouldn't understand though, so you just stick to your building, okay?

Speaking of dead things, how's Sandrock treating you? I heard it used to be an oasis, but then desertification killed everything, bringing in the sandstorms and droughts. It's actually super interesting how it happened... Well, I hope you don't get blown away in the sandstorms! I know you, there's no way you're hiding when they come!

Alright, I'm gonna tell you something but you have to promise you won't laugh. I learned to knit the other day. I know what you're thinking, but no, I'm actually pretty good at it! Your Ma taught me how (by the way, she told me to tell you to wear the t-shirt she made you!). Anyway, I've sent you a scarf I made. You have to wear it whenever there's wind or something, you can wrap it around your head like one of those stupid Old World cartoons you used to watch!

 

Right, my hands are starting to ache now, so I'm gonna stop writing. Don't miss me too much.

 

Your friend forever,

Nia

 

P.S - Are there any hot guys there?  Seriously if you answer anything this is the most important thing! 

 

Aria snorted, reading the letter that Nia had sent her. She had written as if she was talking and it never failed to make her laugh. Swinging under the stars, she wondered just how soon she could visit her family. It seemed pointless now, perhaps around her birthday she could find herself going? By winter 12, she assumed that the weather would have slowed down on their need, but who knew. 

 

Nia,

 

There is no need for you to replace me. Everyone knows that out of the two of us I am the most loved in town. I kid, but I do want to see you all soon. I was thinking that maybe on my birthday I could take a few days off? I would need to save up, and like I told you in my last letter, I did spend a good chunk of my savings on necessities here. I mean, I have to pay for water every few days. Water?! I feel so silly saying this since I never thought about how important it was until I got here. I realized that depending on the week the inflation here can really rack up prices on things. Burgess, the guy who sells them, tends to keep tabs on how much one could take. (Since it’s a necessity), but sometimes I am capped at how many I can buy during discount weeks which can be killer. I don’t use that much water except for bathing and the usual but my machines will overheat if I don’t get water on them soon. Thankfully a dew collector helps me save some money, but not by much.

There are some kind people here that try to spare me some money. Like Miss Vivi, the old seamstress in town. She’s everyone’s grandma and it makes me wish I had one to compare her to you know? She’s already sewing me pants I commissioned from her for winter. She’s worried I’ll get sick, six months from now. Can you believe it? But she’s lovely. 

Amirah is someone you would definitely get along with. She’s a ceramist and makes lovely vases and other art here. Some days she sends me a letter to go have dinner with her and Arvio, her brother. They’re kind of like my family sometimes here. (But they would never replace you). I told you about Elsie and Mi-an, I think they’d be more your vibe. They’re extroverted like you and just kind overall. 

Aside from all of that, you seriously want to ask me about boys?! Well…yeah there are some very attractive people. I’m only telling you this because I can’t tell anyone here. First there’s Arvio, obviously I told you before he’s a flirt. I swear he sometimes makes it a mission to make me blush when I’m buying things from him. But he’s sincere under all of that, at least in him being my friend. He has really nice hair, and a bright smile, but I don’t always believe the compliments that come out of his mouth.

Then there’s Owen, he’s the saloon owner here. It’s basically the only restaurant/hotel here. But he’s older, kind, mature and super grounded. He’s grown up in Sandrock and is the local historian. On Saturdays we have a few drinks and hear him tell stories about the town and its inhabitants. He’s big and brawny and just…handsome. Like classically handsome like those stars you know? Oh man, I’m embarrassed telling you this. But I think Amirah has a crush on him. Her eyes linger on his arms a lot. 

 

Aria’s face grew red as she described Owen. If she didn’t pick up that he had a little thing for Amirah, she would have tried to get to know him more. 

 

Justice is super cool. He's the Sheriff in town. Kind, helpful and strong he’s liked by everyone and does his best to keep the town safe. (As much as he can with a cat, and his second in command). He’s your type, if I’m honest. You know those that want to be heroes? That’s him and his relationship with the cat “Captain” is super cute. I like him and all as a friend, he’s handsome but not for me. 

The one that I’m really curious about is Fang. Isn’t that an interesting name? He’s a doctor, and a handsome one at that. He has long luxurious hair, and beautiful blue eyes. I have maybe heard him say 10 words to me since I’ve been here. I’m embarrassed to admit but I tend to go to his clinic on Wednesday to try experimental medicines just to see him. His crow is a little weird, but he tends to say what Fang is saying? I don’t know, and he’s awkward, but…really cute.

But I’m not here for boys! So moving on…yesterday  the train was hijacked! Well sort of-  Logan stopped the conductor at gunpoint, rummaged through something? And then he broke a window and escaped by flying through the canyon! Justice is investigating but I am curious to see what the outcome is. The only reason I found out was that I was assigned by Yan to fix the windows. Can you believe I only got 200 Gols after he took his cut?! I swear that man is stealing from me.

Anyway, it’s really late, but I miss you. And I hope you visit me during the summer break! You can then tell me all about the desertification of Sandrock. Also I want you to see me with your scarf that I will wear religiously. 

 

Love you,

 

Aria 

 

Putting the letter in the respective envelope, she made sure to shove it in the mailbox knowing little Jasmine would do her job and take it to the post office as needed. 

 

…

 

Matilda was a happy but unexpected surprise. Apparently she wanted to encourage her to go to the other side of the town to see the local caretaker of the Moisture Farms. Curiosity got the best of her as she realized there would be a possibility of her growing something in this arid weather. 

 

It took her about an hour to get across town (only because she refused to spend money on the Yakmel cart. 20 Gols were not worth it in her opinion and so she trekked on greeting everyone on her way. Once she got there she realized that perhaps, there was some danger occurring.

 

She had wished she had brought her sword and shield, but instead she had armed herself with some bronze daggers on her pants. Slipping them out, she gripped them tightly wondering if she would be fighting with Logan, after all he was seen earlier that week. Taking a deep breath, she rushed in only to be horrified by the scene.

 

Mutated lizards, Geeglers were lighting aflame everything around them. The smoke was unbearable and she squinted to get a better look at them. They were around a foot taller than her but nonetheless she needed to stop the destruction. Pushing through the smoke she found herself launching onto the Geeglers back and beginning to attack. The spurs in her boots thankfully locked onto the clothing the lowly Geegler was wearing and she managed to take it down. She gagged, feeling the splatter hit her face but she had no time to consider it as another one was now coming for her. Aria steaded her footing and waited for it to launch onto her, before he could, she kicked his stomach launching him overhead before attacking. This one was smarter and managed to hit her side with a lead pipe, sending her tumbling to the side as she was winded. Wiping her brow she attacked again, grunting in frustration as it would not fall. One push and he was down for the count.

 

Aria was shaking as adrenaline poured through her, but there was no time to consider what had happened as she noticed more were coming her way. She was by no means a professional fighter, but her father was a Civil Corps member, and he made sure she knew how to defend herself. (She had just never actually used anything she had learned in real life.). Thankfully, before they could attack, a man over taller than her came and took them all with a full punch. This must have been Zeke, the man who would show her desert farming. It was only until all the Geeglers were taken down that the Civil Corps actually arrived. 

 

Unsuur was rushing to try and use and extinguisher to stop the fire, as Justice and Zeke were throwing buckets of water. She shakily did the same and in a few moments, the fire was gone, but destruction laid in its place. She felt her legs buckle as she took in the area around her. 

 

Zeke bent down and patted her shoulder. 

 

“Thanks Kid. You had really good timing. You must be the new Builder, I’m Zeke.”

 

“Now ain't the time for pleasantries you big palooka! Look around, the whole Moisture Farm is trashed! I can't believe those darn lizardmen could be so audacious! This is a clear escalation!” Justice frowned. 

 

“The good thing about plants, Justice, is that they grow back. We'll be fine.” Zeke assured him as he gave Aria some water who gulped it immediately.  

 

“Is, er, that thing over there important, Zeke? It looks pretty busted up.” Justice said. 

 

Zeke looked very upset as he finally realized the damage. 

 

“Oh. Yes. The Hydrogel. All the crops will die without that.”

 

Everyone looked at the older man in shock.

 

“What?!” Justice exclaimed “You're joking, right? I can never tell if you're serious or not…”

 

“No” Zeke grumbled. “I’m afraid there’s nothing funny about it. Without a replacement we would be in dire straits. Our own crops will definitely die without the necessary environment and…”

 

“I can build another one!” Aria blurted out as she finished her water. “I might not be built to fight, but I can definitely try and build one.”

 

“This main part of the moisture machine... it's kind of rare. And it looks like we'll need a new one. Qi might know somethin'; you should speak with him, you know, sooner or later.” 

 

She nodded and Unsuur helped her up. 

 

“Are you sure you’re up to it? Maybe you should rest” Unsuur murmured. 

 

“No, I’m fine, the adrenaline,” she chuckled. “I guess I wasn’t expecting a fight after an hour of walking.” 

 

“Alright buckeroos, looks like we got ourselves a plan! Zeke, hold down the fort. Aria, you head over to Qi's and figure out how to fix that hydro-thing! Unsuur, you're with me, let's secure the perimeter.” 

 

“Yes sir!” Unsuur saluted before checking her and wished her luck.

 

She waved bye as Zeke and her were left alone.

 

“You don’t have to play a tough front, you know. It was clear you are not well after taking down those Geeglers” He murmured.

 

“I-I’d never actually killed something” she admitted. “Never hunted, any meat I get is from Mabel because I can’t…” she shook her head. “But my father taught me to defend myself and I did versus those monster that meant to harm us, the town, if not more. I had to.”

 

“No you didn’t but I greatly appreciate it” Zeke said with a half smile. “I think for now let's concentrate on what you do best. Go to Qi,  he may know a thing or two about the Hydrogel. For the rest of the damage here, I'll probably just ask the other Builder for help. Hey, you can recycle the old Hydrogel. Go ahead and whack it a few times with your Pickhammer, put it out of its misery.”

 

“I will sir, thank you” 

…

After meeting Qi and giving him a few data discs, she felt a pain in the pit of her stomach. He had asked her to talk to Justice about getting her access to The Breach:  ruins, closed down by the Civil Corps due to it being dangerous. She needed a Condenser to complete the Hydrogel and Justice seemed worried. 

 

“You need to enter the Breach? Huh... I dunno. The Breach used to be an Abandoned Ruins, you know, one without monsters inside. It was safe for ruin divin'. But recently, they started showing up again; so we closed it until further notice.We've been clearing it out, but there are still some monsters inside. On the other hand, this is a matter of life and death for us, isn't it? Well, I think I'll make an exception this time.  I know you can handle yourself. I'll open up the ruins for you tomorrow. But be prepared. We still don't know why the monsters suddenly showed up again, so be careful.”

 

Justice seemed to have more faith in her than she did. Monsters weren't necessarily like a rare occurrence for her in Highwind. Of course there were mutants from the day of destruction, but since Highwind was so developed they never got near the city. They tended to roam the unregulated wild outskirts, and if they dared come in, the Civil Corps (made up of over a dozen men) took care of that swiftly. She took this job to be a builder, not kill things. 

 

Walking back home she avoided all the townspeople by going through the alleyways of Sandrock. In her short time here, she had managed to find a lot of shortcuts. She usually used them to go back and forth from home, but today she was using it to purposefully avoid each and every person from the town. She could only assume that Justice had told people what had happened and she did not want to answer questions nor did she want to think about it. In fact, all she wanted to do was wash off the blood and whatever else was on her lock her door and sleep it off. 

 

Closing her door she leaned heavily against it and tried to get herself together. Perhaps these people were unfazed about killing things but for her…She ran to the loo and promptly threw up her morning omelet. Thank Peach she had installed plumbing the week before. Pouring out water to the small sink she washed her face and hands before slipping into a cold bath to just clean off. She scrubbed and scrubbed her skin until pink and dunked her head under. Changing the water once more, she climbed back in, and it was then that the waterworks started. 

 

…

 

Aria had put up a sign at the fence signaling that her shop was closed for the day. She had been unable to take commissions that morning due to her heading over to Zeke so she had no commitments to anyone. All she did that evening was curl up on her couch, and eat whatever candy, jerky and junk food she could find. 

 

It was only when she heard something slam outside that she found herself getting up. Geeglers where were first thought and she immediately got up, grabbing her daggers and ran outside. Except there was nothing out of the ordinary until…her mailbox’s flag was up. Tentatively walking forward she looked in all directions to ensure her safety until she pulled a scroll out. She rushed in and locked the door before finding the courage to open the thing.

 

Dear Builder,

 

I saw your heroism today at the Moisture Farms. It was impressive, but I also saw you trying to keep it together after stabbing your first one. The first one can be tough, I would know, I did it when I was ten. If it brings you any comfort, you had to do it. Around these parts, creatures here have little sympathy for us. 

 

So cry tonight but know if you’re going to The Breach tomorrow, you mind find more dangerous things. You did good work with the daggers but I would wield a bronze sword and shield - if your materials can support it. I want you to succeed, you know? You’re doing good for Sandrock and I appreciate you for it. 

 

Don’t bother writing back, ain’t gonna answer you. Just know, you’re doing alright.

 

Cheers!

 

She bit her lip as she took in the letter. It was encouraging and realistic and somehow it did make her feel better. Perhaps she wasn’t crazy thinking she was being observed. But the question was, who could it be? She couldn’t imagine any townspeople doing their hunting unless it was Justice? But Justice had failed to notice her own discomfort at what she had done. Zeke wouldn’t bother to do all that. 

 

Aria could not shake off the urge to write back, even if they said not to. 

 

Dear Anonymous, 

 

Thank you for your letter. While it’s a bit concerning that you’ve been watching me, I do appreciate you being honest and noticing my distress this afternoon. You’re right, I’ve never killed anything before, and having killed something so large and humanoid really turned my stomach. 

 

I did cry today in my house, I hope you didn't see that just because..I do need some privacy. 

 

She blushed hoping they had not seen her in the bath. 

 

But I have to admit your letter did make me feel a lot better. I’m not used to all the monsters, at least not so close to home. I don’t know how much you know about me, but in Highwind they tend to be in the outskirts and the Civil Corps tend to handle those things. I did not sign up to handle that so it’s concerning me at how much more will I be asked to do you know?

 

I’m not giving up, I can’t. I’m starting to feel at home, even if this isn’t something for me to do forever you know? In the one year I’ll be contracted here I want to do my best to make sure that people feel safe. And that Hydrogel…people need to eat so I need to get on that quick. 

 

I thank you for your advice and wisdom, it’s going to help me sleep at night. And I know you might not answer, but if you do, can I know more about you? Some clues? Do I know you? 

 

I hope you have a good night and sleep well!

 

Sincerely,

Aria

 

When she finished writing the letter, she licked the envelope closed and walked towards her mailbox, putting the arrow up. She hoped Jasmine wouldn’t take it, but it was a risk she was willing to take. Once she went back inside for hopefully the last time, she popped her head by the window, spying to see if someone would take it. An hour went by and nothing happened. As her eyes grew heavier she knew she had no choice but to go to bed. Tomorrow she had to forge a better weapon and head to The Breach. 

Had she waited an hour later she would have noticed a mysterious figure pick up the letter and gallop away. 

Chapter 4: Mysterious Friend

Summary:

Feeling the pressure of the food shortage, Aria is spiraling. But one letter, made her feel at center.

 

A Desert Rose 

Chapter 4: Mysterious Friend 

 

Aria wiped her brow and smiled as she admired the weapon she just forged. A bronze sword and shield perfect for her trip to The Breach. She changed to thick pants, boots, a t-shirt and her scarf for good luck. In her satchel, she grabbed a few jerky, first-aid, a canteen of water, and some daggers in case she needed a backup. 

 

Checking her machines once more, she hoped it would have enough water for the day as she had no time to get to Burgess and purchase water. However as she was locking up, she stopped at her mailbox. All morning she was wondering if her letter was still there and since it was a weekend Jasmine would not come by. But seeing the little arrow up, she looked surprised. 

 

Walking over, she popped it open and bit her lip seeing that it was a scroll and a little bag.  

 

Builder, 

 

I’m glad you took my advice and started forging new tools. It’ll keep you safe from the Geeglers and avoid some attacks. And I know you’re worried about today but I think you’ll be fine.  By the way, when you get in, let them come to you, you are not tall enough to really be aggressive first. 

 

Also I realized you are bad at listening to directions. You wrote me back, and the only reason I took it is because Jasmine could have seen it. But seriously don’t write back. I am looking out for you but do not be mistaken we are not friends. 

 

  Aria frowned at this part of the letter. 

 

And no, I will not tell you more about me other than you do not know who I am. I will write to you if I see fit, but don’t let it go to your head. I just don’t want a dead builder. Mason was bad enough and you seem to have a few more brain cells than him. 

 

This is probably my last letter for a while. I put a small revolver and some bullets that you might need. Take it with you instead of another backup tool. These are best used for far distances, or breaking security. 

 

Good Luck Builder you won’t need it. 

 

She scoffed but did as she was told. She put away the daggers, and put the revolver in her bag as needed. Not bothering to listen to their instructions, she wrote a quick thank you note and put it back, before heading towards The Breach.

 

…

 

Whatever Geeglers she was expecting, a giant hideous red Geegler ordering his ‘interns’ was not it. Thankfully, whatever was happening she did not need to take him on as he ordered his underlings to attack her. Before she could even realize what was happening, a larger Geegler and underlings began to attack. 

 

Remembering the letter, she took out her sword and shield, and took a firm stance, wincing as the first pipe hit her shield. Immediately after blocking, she turned and swung her sword, slashing his arm, and shoving the shield into their stomach to knock them down. She purposefully moved back letting one take the lead and seeming to try and corner her. When she saw the ladder, she knew that height would be her friend; using her full weight, she dug her sword under her and stabbed him in his stomach. A groan was a signal for her to climb up to the top of a metal frame and she took out the gun. 

Shakily, she squinted and pointed towards the other underling and immediately shot him, taking him down quicker than expected. Then, she turned to do the same for the leader, who was clearly seething that his team was taken down.

 

“Weak human” it hissed. 

 

He slammed his large hammer against the frame, shaking her footing but she gripped it tightly unwilling to fall. Aiming her gun, she shot his arm, earning a hiss. Aria could see him consider his options and before she could shoot, he let out a string of curses in his language and ran off. She looked around and finally found herself alone. 

 

Looking at the direction that he exited, she realized that this was why they were coming in and out of town. Biting her lip she took in the items around her.  ‘I need bricks, let’s see if I can harvest some tools to close things out’

 

An hour later, she tapped it, comfortable with it being properly sealed. This would help a lot and she finally scavenged for the condenser. It was a lot bigger than she expected, but she found rope to tie it around herself so she could carry it on her back. She winced a bit knowing she would have a sore back tomorrow. 

 

When she exited the abandoned ruins, she was greeted by Justice and Unsuur.

 

“Hey guys” she greeted tiredly trying to take off the condenser tied around her. 

 

“Woah! Hey, there you are! We were just about to come lookin' for you!” Justice said surprised. 

 

Unsuur thankfully untied the rope against her waist and helped her take it off. She stretched and rolled her shoulders smiling unphased at how Justice looked taken aback.

 

“Justice was worried about you.” Unsuur murmured “I knew you’d be fine”

 

“Uh, yeah. I started gettin' kinda nervous after sending you into The Breach by your lonesome... And, you know, a couple hours went by…” 

 

“Yeah, I mean I wasn’t expecting for it to take that long” Aria shrugged “There were a few hiccups. For one thing, man there is a lot of rock to mine through, and not to mention when I finally got to the center for the condenser, there were a few ugly Geeglers! One sounded like he was grabbing something as their leader. It was big and red and just” she shuddered. “But I managed to grab a few things to close it from them coming back in.”

 

“Wait, did you say, "Geeglers!?" And you fought 'em all by yourself? And then you closed the hole in there..”

“Mhm!” she nodded proud of herself. 

 

“I see..”Justice trailed off before guffawing. “You know, Aria... You don't have to make this action hero stuff up to try to make us think you're cool; I already think you're cool!”

 

“Yeah me too!” Unsuur nodded.

 

“But-” 

 

Justice interrupted her with a pat on the shoulder. “So you just take it easy out there, alright, pardner?”

 

Before she could say anything else, they walked off, clearly chuckling at her story. She put her hands on her hips in surprise that they thought she would make that crap up. Who would!? Looking to the side she winced knowing that the condenser would be an interesting thing to lug back to her place. 

 

“Fuck me” she muttered. 

…

 

“Thanks Owen, I really appreciate it” Aria smiled brightly as he placed the condenser down.

 

It seemed that on her way down the path to her place, Grace and Owen saw her and he immediately left Grace in charge so he could assist her with it. She wasn’t expecting any help, (the Civil Corps already had disappointed her), but it was nice to see how easily Owen picked up the thing like it weighed nothing.

 

“It’s no problem, I couldn’t let you lug that here all by yourself” he chuckled rubbing the back of his neck. 

 

“I must have looked pathetic for you to help” She laughed a bit embarrassed.

 

“Oh, absolutely not, in fact I thought you were doing great. But I would be remiss if I didn’t help out a lady like yourself.” He put his hand up. “Now before you get all huffy, it’s not that I don’t think you’re strong enough or anything. You’re a fantastic Builder, and you’ve shown it. But you’re a fine lady Aria and I am not going to make life in Sandrock harder by having you lug heavy and important things around all by your lonesome. You’re building that Hydrogel or whatever and so you cannot be worn out.”

 

Aria blushed profusely as he explained his actions. It was sweet how he did not ignore her femininity or think she was weaker, but her size and the size of the condenser was not something to be ignored. He really was the most wonderful man.

 

“You’re the best Owen.” she said sincerely. “I owe you, I really do. Next time I go sandfishing I’ll catch some extra for you!” 

 

“I will happily take that as payment,” he nodded. “Well have a good night!” 

 

Aria smiled, waving bye at the man before her eyes trailed to her mailbox. She casually walked over and popped her hand in expecting her old note that she had left. However, it seemed that she had a response. She bit back a squeal of excitement and walked back into her home. That is until she realized that it wasn’t from who she was expecting.

 

Aria!

Well I’ll be; when I got your letter, I had to do a double take as I saw that address. I cannot believe little ol’ you managed to get out of Uncle Sirius’ home and onto your own. To be honest, the only way I saw you getting out of the town was to get married! I know I know, that’s terrible but they’ve been really on you since I could remember. 

 

Portia is amazing, thanks for asking. The city is really nice, with lush green fields and farms all around. I even have taken a hand at farming and owning livestock. My wife and I tend to have a pretty peaceful life here. Well now we do.  

 

I gotta say, I am really proud of you for standing up for yourself and going out of town. Being a Builder is more than just taking commissions. Trust me, I have fought, killed and handled more dangerous tasks than commissions. It’s not for the weak, but I think you can absolutely do just fine.  

 

Sandrock is a hard town to take on; I’ve heard a lot of rumors here about how it’s become a dilapidated town. We tend to send water your way, did you know that? I’ll see if the next shipment I can send you some things. I know some items might be hard to come by, so please don’t be shy about asking okay? I have already mailed out a few clothes that I think might be useful for you. Thick but breathable. 

 

There’s a store here that I can commission things for you if you’d like. The struggle there is a lot harder than here so I want you to be safe baby cousin. 

 

But let me tell you about what my time was at Portia….

 

The more Aria read, the more shocked she was by what things Sebastian had to deal with in a glamorous place like Portia. Expanding the city, the ports, fighting monsters, realizing people were spies. It was clear that the Builder position was a lot bigger than she thought. She really got herself into a pickle didn’t she? 

…

The food shortage really freaked her out because the Fireside meeting only exacerbated the fear of Aria failing this giant project. The hubbub of everyone speaking out with their ideas on how to assist just gave her anxiety. And all that Aria could hear was that if she failed the people, they would starve. That night, she went over the diagrams and ensured her math was right. She could not fail, so she made sure to allocate her time to gather the materials needed. She was forced to build another furnace and a recycler to make sure she could speed things up and be able to make the Hydrogel on time. 

 

Everyday since the meeting, Aria had an unhealthy routine. She woke up at 5am, managing to do a few stretches before walking out to see what had been successfully forged overnight. She looked like hell doing it too; her hair was lifeless and just up in a messy bun at this point, her eyes had black rings around them signaling her exhaustion, and her body just sort of slouched if she managed to rest. 

 

Her biggest failure was her lack of donations to the food drive. With her building the hydrogel, she had no time to do some planting or even forage for anything. If she did go out of her home, it was to run to the mines to gather more copper and tin for bronze bars. One her second day with three hours of sleep, Pebbles had caught her passed out on the mixed pile. Rocky had made sure to carry her home and force her to cool down. 

 

No one asked her to slow down, knowing how time sensitive the project was. Mi-an was assisting by taking on the day to day commissions so Aria could only concentrate on one thing. But if Aria was honest, she was miserable. It did not help that Miguel would casually remind her of the food drive and if she was willing to donate. She wanted to snap at him and tell him that she barely had Gols for water. (She was using so much of it to keep her machines running).

 

On the third night, Aria wondered if her anonymous friend was now too busy to write to her; she had not heard of them in a few days and wondered if they were okay. 

 

‘ Well if they’re not going to write, what’s stopping you?’ 

 

Slipping out some parchment she began to write:

Dear Stranger,

 

 I haven't heard from you in a while and I figured I should take a shot and just write something and see if you would answer. A lot has happened since the Geegler’s attack. For one thing there's a Giant Food shortage which if you're a towns person you already know kind of what's going on. I'm really troubled by what my failure could mean for this town.

 

There's a lot more pressure than I was expecting. Recently I've been finding myself unable to sleep and if I do sleep it's inopportune times, like in the middle of digging through a mixed pile of junk at Rocky's place. 

 

I'm really tired and on a night like this, honestly I just need to vent.  This is probably why I'm writing this letter more than anything. I'm just so tired so so tired and I'm scared of failing and I'm scared that because of me we're going to have people that are going to be forced to leave this town and I haven't even been here 6 months.

 

They're currently having a food drive for the city in hopes of being able to support people who are struggling. I feel really bad for not donating for the cause. Most of my money is being spent on buying water. These machines take up so much of it and in the height of heat it's just nearly impossible to try and conserve.

 

 I even try to limit my water usage just so I can use it on the machines but I need to shower and my muscles need to relax. I feel like I'm not moving fast enough. Tomorrow I'll finally be able to compile everything and if it did the math right, we should be fine the day before the dance off that they're having in town.

 

I don't know how much you know about me but  my cousin Sebastian is a builder in Portia. He told me that a lot of his work is more than just taking commissions and building things as needed, which makes sense since we’re on the same boat. There are nights like these where he told me that things got tough but that I could do it and I genuinely believed him… now I feel like I'm wearing thin. 

I’m sick of answering letters to my Ma about how great everything is here. I’m lying now.  She keeps rambling about blankets she sent me weeks ago and if I’ve gotten it.

Part of me wants to write that yes, I got them just so she stops. 

 

I'm really tired, physically and emotionally. I think I'm in over my head sometimes, especially moments like now where if I quit, everything will just go to shams. I really wanted to last this year but honestly I don't think I could live with myself if I feel this doesn’t get built properly. 

 

She took a deep breath.

 

I am sorry for rambling, I think I am just running out of steam now. I should be done in  a day and a half if I just continue to buckle down. Hope you’re doing alright. 

 

Best, 

Aria

 

Dropping the letter off, she just crawled onto the couch, unable to make it to bed and she was out cold.

 

…

 

 Next Morning,

 

Aria leaned against the counter, pressing her coffee cup against her head. Feeling the heat lessening her throbbing head. She was exhausted, so much so she overslept. It was 10am and she had not even bothered to get out of her small home. The moment she got out of her home she would be beaten down by the sun sweating and hitting her hammer onto the metals. 

 

She let out a loud sigh. “Okay, we need to get out here” she murmured to herself. 

 

Pushing the door open, she paused as she noticed 10 extra large barrels of water right on her property. Burgess was about to walk off but she called him out.

 

“Burgess!” she called out waving wildly. 

 

He stopped as he heard her and jogged back to her place, a bright smile on his face.

 

“Good Morning Miss Aria” 

 

“Morning Burgess, what’s all this?” she asked, pointing at the large amount of water. 

 

The blond looked a bit confused. 

 

“Perhaps you have not been properly taking care of yourself Miss” he said concerned. “You put in the order last night! I got your letter saying that you couldn’t leave due to building the Hydrogel and if we could bring you some water. You even left us money” he chuckled, perhaps thinking of her as silly.

 

“Here is your change actually, Matilda insisted that since you were using it for the construction we give you a discount” he handed her 200 Gols. “I was going to keep the tab for you since you didn’t seem to be home, but glad I got to see you. The Church really appreciates your donations too! We got some meat and sandrice, which is super needed in these trying times. Remember tomorrow is the dance off, so make sure to attend” 

 

She was left gobsmacked as he walked away. 200 Gols, large amounts of water and she had not even left her home? Her eyes immediately went to the mailbox and she ran trying to see what was in there. 

 

A letter from her mother. Nia again. Confirmation of shipping from Portia and…there! 

 

Forgetting about construction, she ran inside and opened the letter. 

 

Builder, 

 

I gotta say, you really are going through the ringer right now. To be honest, I think you’ve been handling it well! Based on the conversation in town, I am told that they are none the wiser at how you’re spiraling. 

 

In regards to your first point, I knew you’d be fine with the Geeglers, so no surprise there. However I am surprised at how quickly everyone piled on so much on you with little regard to how much that can affect you. People like Matilda, Miguel, Yan, Justice and even Owen have seen a lot occur in town. Perhaps nothing as severe as the Hydrogel, but this food shortage is not the first one and to be honest not the last. I am upset for you having to deal with the pressure from everyone. How is no one assisting you more? 

 

It’s disappointing if I’m honest. However, a friend of mine did me a favor and got these waters for you. Important resources that you might need when finishing it up. I don’t see how the dance off is relevant in all of this, people can just donate as needed without a reward but whatever. I donated on your behalf too, so make sure to dance your ass off alright? I’ll maybe make an appearance. 

 

You’re gonna build that complicated build as needed. I don’t doubt that, but if you think that the town will fall apart without you, then they’re not good neighbors. Pace yourself, if you can take a day, take it. If you finish the day of the dance off, that’s fine, all that matters that it gets done. And you will. 

 

Aria, you are not the savior of this town, you’re important, I don’t doubt that for a second, but there’s no need for you to feel an insurmountable amount of pressure. They have lived years without you and if you decide to pack up and leave tomorrow they will figure it out. I don’t want you to leave, but you are not Peach’s incarnate okay?

So write to me when you’re mad, sad, or just need to be imperfect. If I can make a run to your place I’ll try. 

 

Take it easy alright? 

Aria pressed the letter against her chest, her bottom lip trembling after reading their words. She felt a bit embarrassed at her naivety; of course it was unfair that all they ever mentioned when talking to her was the importance of her fixing it. And how they would perish if she didn’t hurry up. Amirah and Arvio were the only ones who did change the conversation and asked for her wellbeing. Mi-an was too busy taking other commissions since she was unavailable. But this person, this stranger understood her struggle. 

 

Her heart was beating a bit faster at the kindness sent her way: 200 Gols, water for more than just the project, and telling her to slow down? She bit back her tears and tried to get ahold of herself. She wanted to thank whoever this was, tell them how much she owed them and be loyal now that she thought of them as a friend. 

 

“I will take a day off” she muttered to herself. 

 

Walking out, she checked her materials, refilled her water storage and checked her process. Tomorrow she would just add the bronze blades and she would be done. She wrote a quick note to Elsie asking to borrow some yakmels for transport tomorrow evening. And put the sign as closed before locking herself in her house. 

 

…

She spent the day pampering herself. Aria finally really washed her hair, wincing as she tried to untangle what she could. In annoyance she chopped about four inches of her hair due to it just being in the way. She didn’t mind it being below her shoulders, but cringed as some curls and waves were beginning to form. She did something silly too, painting her toes and nails with polish she found. Nia had apparently put it in her essentials bag. And she laughed and cried a little once she found it. 

 

Bright pink nails whose color would deteriorate in three days due to her work did not seem like a waste at all. Speaking of waste, she kept one barrel of water for personal use. She boiled water and sighed as she let herself prune in the bath. She let out the widest smile. She felt feminine, she felt clean, she felt at peace. 

 

The night ended with a giant t-shirt from home that ended up looking like a nightgown. It had a giant panbat on and she curled up on the couch, a pen in hand. 

 

Dear Friend, 

 

I don’t know how to thank you. Your frustration made me realize that I too was internalizing my own anger at the situation. Yes I would absolutely do anything for this town, but knowing that they could and have done things without me makes me realize that I am putting more pressure than needed. 

 

A little part of me wanted to run off the moment you ‘gave me permission’ on behalf of the town to be selfish. But what stopped me is also you. You made me realize that I need to not let my emotions and anxiety get the best of me. If I fought off those Geeglers I can do other surprising things. And I genuinely cannot be more grateful.

 

Your gift of freedom, water and some gols, honestly made my month. I have never had someone be as loving and giving as you. Whoever you are, just know you have a friend in me. If you ever need anything, please let me know. I owe you. 

 

Yours truly,

 

Aria 

 

P.S - Is there anything I could call you? If you’re at the dance off can you give me a hint? 

 

Folding the letter, she walked it to the mailbox and had the most restful sleep she had in weeks.

 

…

 

Next Day..

 

Pushing the Hydrogel was harder than installing it. It took four yakmels to carry it all the way to Zeke’s place. Cooper was about to demand she pay him, but Mabel refused to even let him ramble on. She stomped her foot and told him to be a good samaritan and he relented. He not only assisted but immediately left with his cattle once done.  

 

When she managed to get to the Moisture Farm, Zeke and her pushed it in place and she told him she could do the rest herself. Tying the rope of security around her waist she began to climb the Hydrogel. Drilling and hammering she managed to set it in place before climbing down and wiped her brow. 

 

“Great job Kid, I knew we had nothing to worry about '' Zeke patted her shoulder and she got 1200 Gols that made her nearly cry. She had never been paid so much for one commission.

 

She practically skipped home, with a lightness she had never felt before. Waving to everyone as she passed by, some were surprised by the brightness in her, and some enthusiastically greeted her. 

 

What stopped her in her tracks was a man with an interesting cat mask. He introduced himself as the Mysterious man who tended to bring elusive items from town to town. Before she could ask him about what he had, he had practically shoved a package her way.

 

“I owed a favor to my favorite builder in Portia, so he asked me to bring this to you. Make sure to write to him letting him know I did him this favor” he waggled his finger.

 

“He didn’t pay you?” she asked, looking at the tied package. 

 

“Well I didn’t say that” he muttered. “Anyway, open it when you please, now do you want to purchase anything?” He grumbled.

 

“Yes please” she smiled.

 

Showing his items, her eyes landed on a diagram of a vintage pistol. She immediately thought of her friend who had given her some before the day of the big battle. The thought of giving them something in return made her smile. 

 

“Can I please take the diagram, the pink scarf and that navy blue one please?” 

 

Pleased at her purchases, he immediately gave her the items and he walked off. Aria was happy at her own actions. Walking home, she unwrapped her gifts and giggled in glee at Sebastian’s care package. 

 

Dear Cousin, 

 

My wife Ginger and I wanted to send you a care package. I have to admit when she heard Sandrock she demanded that we visit soon since she has gotten healthy enough to travel.  But if we do, it will be when we have enough gols and commissions off our plate to get out of here for a week.

 

Haha! Anyway, Ginger thought that these things would help you a lot more in Sandrock. She demanded that they were fashionable and I confirmed functionality. I remember as a kid your favorite colors were blues and pinks, so I hope these clothes are well used. 

 

Love you,

 

Sebastian and Ginger 

 

Out of the package she smiled seeing dark blue jeans, that were just her size. And a few tanks, t-shirts and sweaters. She rubbed the fabric remembering that the llamas were common there. There were skorts, boots made of good leather, and she gasped seeing a beautiful pink sundress that would be something she would wear on a special occasion. Lastly was a cotton baby blue sundress that reminded her of her Ma. Hugging them slightly she felt like she had a kinship with Ginger and hoped she would visit soon. She made sure to hang them as they were nicer than what she brought from Highwind. It was clear her cousin was doing very well for himself. 

 

“ Aria! We have the Dance off tonight! You comin’?” 

 

Aria jumped before recognizing Elsie’s voice. She opened the door and nodded, running off with her and to the celebration that seemed to be a lot less tense now that food wasn’t as dire as before. 

Notes:

I don't know how common their letter exchange should be. Shoulder it be every chapter as tine passes? I hope to get some opinions.

Thank you!

Chapter 5: Hello Friend

 

A Desert Rose 

Chapter 5: Hello Friend

The Dance Off was so silly; the music was corny, the dancing was all over the place and yet she was giggling the whole time. She managed to win a few rounds and got enough tokens to actually exchange them for some cute clothes. She got an aqua skirt, a cute vest t-shirt combo and smiled tugging the bag around. 

 

The best part about the whole thing was the music. Some townspeople played music and it was both endearing yet a bit painful to her ears. 

 

“Here” Amirah walked over with a cup. “You’re gonna need it if we keep listening to this music”

 

Aria laughed and took a sip, wincing at the strong aftertaste of something else. Looking at her curiously, Amirah’s eyes were glittering in amusement. “Haven’t had some moonshine before? You need to relax, I’ll look over you. Just have some fun.”

 

Nodding, she had to admit the drink was getting more and more tolerable. She had never drank before but she had to admit she liked the numbing and relaxed feeling she got. Even the music was getting better to her ears. She was pulled into a hug by the older girl and she grinned.

 

“I am going to make sure you have fun. You out of everyone here deserves some fun.” 

 

…

 

Aria was drunk and she knew it. After all the dancing, Owen insisted that people go to the saloon to unwind. At the mention of hanging out with Owen, Amirah quickly pulled her along towards the location and sat her down right beside her in one of the comfy booths. 

 

Owen immediately rushed over to serve the girls, earning giggles his way that made him blush and hand over complimentary hard cider. Aria knew that with some time and maybe some matchmaking, Owen and Amirah would be a couple. Sharing more personal stories, they got to know one another better. The ciders kept coming and eventually, her cheeks felt hot, and she smiled a lot more than usual.

 

Amirah was so much fun; despite her usual stoic demeanor with a few drinks in her she was more outgoing. She was so funny, especially as she gave her little quips and gossip about the townspeople. It was just the two of them as Elsie was three months short of being let in, and Mi-an felt bad leaving her behind. Arvio was off dancing with everyone as the extrovert that he was. But for once, she felt so relaxed. 

 

“You know, I hope you can come to me when you feel stressed” Amirah murmured as Aria leaned against her. Amirah played with her hair and smiled looking down at her. “I think of you as a little sister and I feel like you still feel out of place. Be honest with me, are you happy here?”

 

“I am” Aria whispered. “And I adore you, honestly, you’re probably the one person who I feel the closest to. I just-I had a rough few days. The Hydrogel thingy and the stress of the food shortage really got to me.” She closed her eyes in frustration. “I’m getting better”

 

“Okay, I believe you,” the dark haired woman murmured. “But you do need to let me know when you need help, even if it's food. You know I always make a lot and I can always send Arvio to deliver you dinner if I can’t myself. Or I can ask Owen to start a tab for you.”

 

“No, no, I’m fine,” she admitted. “I write out my feelings and sent letters if something really needs to get out there”

 

“Oh? Anyone of interest? A boy perhaps?” 

 

Aria blushed and shook her head.

 

“No, no. Just Nia and my cousin Sebastian are the most common of people” she trailed off. “Amirah I’m sleepy”

 

“Have some water” Amirah giggled. Then their chatter continued.

 

…

 

“Are you sure you can get home by yourself?” Owen asked as Amirah and Arvio were leaning against him. “Grace can walk you, I mean I can ask”

 

“Nope, I’m good” Aria’s cheeks were bright red from intoxication as she leaned against a wooden beam. “No trains this time, it’s a straight shot home. M’good” 

 

With a thumbs up she began to wobbly trek home. The cold air was nice, she paused a few times to take a deep breath and just enjoy the area around her. She loved the chill environment, and spun around a few times with her bag in hand giggling at how beautiful the stars looked. 

 

Tumbling over the trail tracks she sniggered and saw her home but a few yards away. What made her pause was that someone was at her mailbox. 

 

‘Friend!’ she thought.

 

But apparently she said the word aloud as the figure froze and turned to look at her. She must have looked a mess, with her hair disheveled, her face pink, and her bag crumpled. She waved enthusiastically and stumbled forward hoping to catch the figure.

 

“Wait!” She slurred a bit, waving her hands around. “Please don’t go, I just-”

 

Something in her tone must have paused the figure as they waited to see what she would do. Looking up, she noticed just how tall he was. He practically towered over her. His face was covered, except for his eyes that in her blurred vision looked amused. 

 

“Are you my friend? With the letters?” 

 

Her delivery must have been childish as he snickered. 

“I guess,” he drawled. “You’re drunk as a skunk” 

 

“Hmmm” she smiled. “Kinda, first time too. I’m glad you visited” she gripped his arms and leaned up to look at him. “I was lookin’ for you”

 

He tensed as she grabbed him and he pushed her a bit away. She stumbled a bit but leaned against her gate, unphased by his actions. 

 

“I got stuff you know, just gotta make it. But I just wanna say thank you. You make life here all the better.”

 

The sincerity in her tone surprised both of them. Even in her inebriated state she felt the embarrassment beginning to rise.

 

“Imma go to bed now okay? Bye you” Stumbling through the gate.

 

“You sure you're okay?” he called out. 

 

“I will be” she smiled and waved before slamming the door closed. 

 

If she were to have been sober she would have died of embarrassment at how sentimental she was. But in her state she merely shoved off her clothes and threw herself in bed. 

 

…

Three Weeks Later…

Everything was going perfectly fine. The suspended cart had been placed easily onto the system and when Justice and her climbed on, her last thought was “This view is beautiful” before shit hit the fan. Then she saw everything go dark and Mi-an screaming. 

She groaned in pain, stretching her arms overhead and grimacing as a pop was heard on her shoulder. Justice was still out cold and she leaned over him, checking his breathing. Everything seemed normal, and nothing was displaced on his body, but the fire was getting a little too much. Pulling him as best she could, she grunted a few feet away when she heard Justice wake up.

 

“Where are we?” he asked, looking around.

 

“No clue, looks like a ruin” Aria murmured taking out her daggers as she heard hissing. “Do you hear that?” she whispered.

 

“Sure do. Here, take this, looks like we'll be fightin' our way outta here.” he ordered as he shoved a gun her way. 

 

Before she could even protest, about a dozen Geeglers decided that they did not appreciate their landing. 

 

“Fuck me” she whispered annoyed before starting to defend herself. 

 

The fighting was not bad, signaling that she was getting stronger from her last time she fought them. She was relieved she had upgraded her tools before coming as she had no shame swinging her pickhammer their way when one surprised her. Justice was helping her back, allowing her to concentrate on just one side of the attack.

 

“There's gotta be an exit around here somewhere, let's try to find it.” Justice yelled over the noise. “Aria, you take point, I'll cover you!”

 

Wasting no time, she rushed through, slamming her daggers to their sides if anyone tried to block her, while Justice used his giant hammer to make sure they were out cold.

 

“I didn't expect this, I thought I'd at least have Pen and a posse with me.” Justice muttered, loud enough for Aria to hear.

 

She squinted in annoyance. 

 

“Yes well, when I built the cart, I wasn’t exactly ready or excited to do this either” she snapped hitting one with her pickhammer. 

 

“I didn’t mean it that way” he snapped back, slamming his hammer down on a particularly nasty one. 

 

“I just wish I was more prepared, I don’t know if I can make sure you stay unscathed.”

 

“Well I-” she stopped for a second grunting as one fell on top of her when the mutant went out cold. “I am not asking you to protect me. I am doing just fine” she grimaced as she took out the gun and shot down the last one. “Do not baby me”

 

He nodded, realizing he had definitely misstepped. Still, Justice had to admit she had some backbone as she shot down the door with the gun he had just given her like nothing. He had not even given her instruction before she rushed though.

 

…

 

“I told you that it was real” she muttered. After all Aria and Justice ran through, they were essentially in the middle of the Geegler habitat. 

 

“Dang, I hate to say this pardner, but... I think our only way out of this thing is on the other side of that room with all the Geeglers…”

 

“Are you mad?!” she whispered, her incredulousness clear in her tone

 

“No, but we have no other options. It looks like they're all payin' attention to that big guy though, I'll bet we can sneak past 'em; follow my lead..”

 

Before she could protest, he pulled her along and she had no choice but to follow. She dared not make a noise and stared at the ground, ensuring that she didn’t trip on anything.

 

“My fellow Geeglers. Too long have we slithered underfoot; forgotten, betrayed...abandoned! It is time to take action! Let me remind you of a phrase from our Holy Book: They, meaning the man-creatures, are not fit to be the rulers of this world; they lie, cheat, and even conspire against their own! ...It is not enough to simply reach their level; we must destroy them or take them over, one city at a time, until we, the Geeglers, are sitting atop the world!” Aria paused as the giant ugly red Geegler continued. “Strong words of providence. Today will mark our first step in that direction, we're going to take over Sandrock and-”

 

“What the heck is that guy talkin' about... take over Sandrock?” Justice said loud enough for it to echo. Aria winced.

 

“Hey, who are those two back there?!” He boomed and everyone turned to face them.

 

Before she could even utter a word, Justice stepped out.

 

“Sorry to interrupt yer little world domination speech there partner, but there's just one little complication you didn't account for in all your plans and contemplations... That thing... is Justice!” 

 

Aria rolled her eyes at the corny phrase.

“I don't get it. Geeglers, wipe them out!” Their leader ordered.

 

Before they could even realize that they had over four dozen sizes of Geeglers, attacked them. Captain the cat seemed to push a button to blow them away. She was gobsmacked; perhaps it made sense why he was the captain of the corps. 

 

However she had no time to dwell as before them the so-called president of the Geeglers demanded they fight. Picking up a pair of scimitar from the ground that a geegler left behind she began to attack as best she could. Justice took most of the bulk of attacks as she climbed and attacked him on her own. With one push, both Justice and her were blown back.

 

“You fight well, humans! But you are too late, our plan is already complete! Behold!” The Geegler president hissed before jumping over a functioning train. “And now, to take over Sandrock, and then the world!” 

The makeshift train began to run and something in her snapped. Before she could even take notes about the situation she found herself running behind the train. She felt adrenaline coursing through her as she hopped on a few couches and barely made it to the caboose of the train as it pushed out of the station. 

 

.”Hey! Wait!” 

 

Was the last thing she heard as they zoomed out of the station. The speed of the train really made the dry wind painful against her skin. She dug her nails into the metal and pulled herself up. 

 

“You’re crazy if you think we won’t take you down!” She yelled at the ugly thing as she ran towards him with the curved swords. 

 

“You think those cuts make a difference” the Geegler laughed and slapped her away making her just bounce a few times on the train before barely managing to grip the pole.

 

“Take my hand!” she heard Justice yell behind her.

 

She was scared and to be honest, dizzy at the slap she received. However, the makeshift train was speeding up and she could no longer hold her weight. Biting her lip, she let go of the train and she closed her eyes.A tight grip on her waist and tugging was what she felt before landing on the horse. She gasped in relief and closed her eyes relieved at being alive. 

 

“I cannot believe you” Justice chastised her as he kept the horse running behind the train. “We will talk about this later” 

Before they could even get to the bridge, they saw it break. Her eyes widened as she realized that had she stayed on, she would have died.

 

“What the heck, guys?! I was worried sick!” They turned around and saw Mi-an and Unsuur running their way. “I was so anxious while you guys were in there that I fixed the trolley engines! Gah! You're lucky to be alive!” 

 

Unsuur helped Aria off the horse and she winced as he gripped her hips letting her down.

 

“You okay?” he asked, looking at the scratches. 

 

“Yeah, I am, just bruised up and in shock” she found herself leaning against him and he took the hint to help her. 

 

“Luck... ain't got nothin' to do with it…”

 

Aria rolled her eyes at his ‘heroism’.

 

“Let's go back and talk to the 'ol Minister. I guess we'll have to take the trolley again.”

 

That Night…

 

“We were all very worried about you when we heard that you and Justice fell into the Gecko Station. It's not your job to put yourself in danger as a Builder; don't let those Civil Corps fellows push you around.” Amirah scolded as she was putting alcohol on her wounds. 

 

Aria huffed, but winced when the older woman pressed the alcohol against her scratch. She did not need to be scolded while in a chest wrap. The moment they had arrived back to town Amirah had hugged her tightly and her and Arvio immediately took her to her home. 

 

Arvio was currently grabbing them something to eat as Amirah insisted that if she refused to go see Fang she would help disinfect her wounds. 

 

“Amirah, I didn’t ask for that to happen. I fell into that mine” she protested.

 

Her door opened and Arvio walked in with a large bag of food from the Blue Moon. He tried to act casual as he saw her in just a chest band, but placed the food down and threw himself on the couch.

 

“Is it true you jumped onto a running train?” Arvio asked curiously. 

 

“What?!” Amirah screeched. 

 

“Who told you?!” Aria yelped. 

 

Both women spoke at the same time.

“Justice was telling everyone what happened. He said that you started running after that giant Geegler the moment he said he was coming for Sandrock.” Arvio shook his head as he bit into a bread roll. “You Highwind girls are wild”

 

“Is he telling the truth?” Amirah asked surprised. 

 

Aria looked embarrassed. “It’s not my proudest moment, but it was the adrenaline! I’m telling you I had no plan to do it, my body just reacted and I ran! He very quickly swatted me off..” 

 

Trailing off she noticed that the Barnarock siblings looked in shock at her admission. Amirah closed her eyes and rubbed her temples as she took in the information. Arvio in turn was in shock before whistling approval. Getting up he walked over and handed her the plate. 

 

“So much for you being a shy little thing” he teased. “Clearly we have a daredevil in our midst”

 

“Shut up” She smiled softly before taking a bite of the quiche she was brought. “I’m not going to be running for a bit of time.”

 

“What the hell am I going to do with you?” Amirah sighed. 

 

“Take me to Fang’s tomorrow? I might need some pain medicine” she admitted.

 

A sigh was all she was given before they dug into their food. 

 

…

 

“Hey there, Aria!” Heidi greeted as she was walking by City Hall.

 

“Morning Heidi” she greeted. 

 

“Hope you had a better night than I did, haha. I'm about to crash... After the meeting with Matilda I went straight home and pulled an all-nighter working on ideas for the new bridge.” 

 

“That fast?” Aria was impressed.

 

“Oh yes, we have to be smart with our time. But it was worth it! I've got the designs right here to ... prove it! Come inside!” she ordered, signaling her to her building, “This is going to be a huge undertaking; who knows how long it's going to take...? But the only way we're going to make it happen is if everyone gives it their all!” 

 

She nodded, smiling slightly at Heidi’s excitement. 

 

“So! I need you to construct the bridge's Load Bearing Trusses for me. You know, the upper frame structure. We'll need two of this design to stretch across the canyon. Here's the diagram.”

 

Aria looked surprised as she was handed the blueprints. It wasn’t so much as handed as thrusted upon her. She looked at bit confused why it didn’t go through the guild but unrolled the scroll. 

 

“My team will be working with Mi-an as we build the base of the bridge- In the meantime, try to get that frame done!“

 

“What’s the expected turn around? I work best with having a realistic deadline” Aria murmured as she was taking in the diagrams.

 

“A week? I know I said this was going to take a while, but we've been consulting experts on how to speed up the process, so I want that frame finished even before we're ready to install it. Does that seem fair?” 

 

The builder nodded.

 

“I think it’s fairly realistic. I think if I don’t have to do too much, I can get to it a bit earlier.”

 

“If you do finish before us, check out the Commission Board, I'll be posting all sorts of bridge-related commissions, and every little bit helps!” 

 

Nodding, Aria gave her farewell before walking back to her home. Life was never boring in Sandrock was it?

 

Before she went to bed, she smiled satisfied at what she had completed. She felt so bad she had not heard of her friend for a while. She had even looked at him during the Dance-off but nothing.

 

She was not sure that he would be coming, but just in case she made their care package. One vintage pistol, three boxes of bullets, a dozen sweet apple, and the scarf that she had purchased from the mysterious man. She hoped that her friend would appreciate it and would get it.

 

Hello Friend!

It’s been a while since you’ve written to me, but I wanted to just tell you about what has occurred. Now I don’t know what story Justice has been telling, but I think it’s 

easier if it comes from me? I’ve noticed that he tends to inflate stories. 

 

Justice is not lying when he said I jumped onto that train. 

It was so stupid, but I swear something took me over and just told me to do that.

Most of my bruises weren’t even from the fall but rather the way it swatted me off the train. As much as it hurt, I am glad I did fall, because we would have never stopped 

the Geeglers and had I stayed on the ship, I would have fallen from the bridge.

 

Sometimes I have nightmares about falling but never like this. 

My bruises are healing too; Fang was kind enough to gift me a salve for my wounds.

Amirah is determined to make sure to put it on me as she thinks I would forget. 

(I am annoyed that she’s absolutely right). She’s the angriest about my foolish actions. Vivi chastised me but brought me some soup which was nice. 

 

But now as we’re pushing for that new bridge, I know that I won’t have much time for smaller stuff. So I want to make sure that if I don’t talk to you, you know I’m okay. 

 

Which reminds me, I looked all over for you during the Dance Off! The usual people were there which made me think maybe you were Qi or something, but nope, nada. If you were here later, I definitely don’t remember as the drinks I received really let me cool off. I didn’t even remember how I got home.

 

But anyway, in all the craziness I failed to properly thank you. So inside this box is a few things I think you might like and/or need for function. It’s not fair that I have your pistol you know.

 

I appreciate you friend and I hope one day you and I can properly meet.

 

Sincerely, 

Aria

With a smile on her face, she carefully packed everything and put the flag up. She hoped he liked it as she did. Turning off her lights, she got ready for bed and fell asleep. 

 

…

 

He was so handsome, and she tried not to swoon as she caught him distracted. The apple was thrown up in the air and caught each time. His blue eyes had gazed off, a hint of amusement on them. And she couldn’t help but blush as fix her dress as he rested on her armchair. His legs were too long and were parted and rested on her furniture like a big cat relaxing. 

 

“How was your trip? It was late at night” she squeaked.

 

He snapped his attention back to her and smiled in a way that made her heart aflutter. He was really such a handsome man. She tugged her ear in embarrassment.

 

“Princess Lumi, I hope I didn’t wake you” he drawled out, sitting up more formally when he noticed her. 

 

“N-no bother” she tittered nervously. “Just glad you came back safe. Those trips are dangerous” 

 

He chuckled and got up taking a larger bite of his apple looking down at her in amusement. Her breath hitched and tried not to fuss over him as he cleaned up the room as if wanting to make it clean for her.  She wanted to ask if he was hungry, but she tilted her head noticing that there was something different about him. 

 

“Is that scarf new?” She asked suddenly. 

 

He paused and moved his hand up to the scarf in a way that made her suspicious. His hands were never delicate on clothes, especially not for a scarf. 

 

“Yeah, I found it” he grumbled before taking a bigger bite of his apple.  

 

“It suits you,” she smiled. “Perhaps we can have a late night snack?” 

 

“Yeah, sounds good” He nodded.

 

Princess Lumi clapped her hands in glee and  grabbed his pulling him along. So long as he still needed her she would be there to assist him. However she did not that he kept starring at a paper for a while. If she was nosier she would have asked, but when he noticed her staring he smiled, making her forget what she was thinking. 

Chapter 6: Dreams

Summary:

Aria cannot stop the directions of her dreams. They're driving her crazy!

Notes:

This is the first glimpse of the more mature direction of the story. Let me know what you think! Thank you so much for the kudos!

 

A Desert Rose 

Chapter 6: Dreams

 

Today was a good morning. Aria was happy that she was almost done with the main bridge building; she just needed to inspect the quality and her portion of the bridge would be good to go. So today she would be helping Arvio with some deliveries and just take it easy. She was days ahead in her builds and she figured after the Geegler situation she really needed to slow down.  She was on her route to Arvio’s when she noticed Pen was standing by City Hall. If she was honest, she wanted to avoid him at all costs; apart from Yan he was the most insufferable man. He constantly criticized her body or took jibes at her skinny arms. The man was a dunce and she wanted to avoid as much as possible.

 

“There it is, the face of evil. Gaze upon it and know fear…” He said aloud pointedly looking at her.

 

She bit back a sigh. 

 

“No, who is it?” she sarcastically answered. 

 

“Why, that's Logan! The most low-down, rotten, no good criminal in all of the Eufaula! He would even sacrifice his own family to get what he wants.” he drawled on, shocked at her naivety. “This bandit roams the desert looking for the weak to prey upon. The lowest of the low... Oh, how I loathe Logan and his gang...!” 

 

“Hm..yes I can see that” she muttered.

 

“Anyway, he's been very quiet lately... too quiet! You'd do your best to be on your guard whenever you're out in the wild. You never know what kind of dastardly schemes he might be... scheming... schemily…” 

 

She chuckled. 

 

“Right, well good luck. I’ll leave you be” she began to walk away.

 

“Say... since you're here, Skinny, why don't you help me paste some of these posters around town?” 

 

“I wish I could but I have something else to do…” she trailed off.

 

Pen frowned.

 

“Ah, yes... I see how it is... I suppose poor Pen with his sore and swollen feet will have to trek all about town to finish this job. Poor Pen. Poor, poor pen!” 

 

His voice grew in volume and she felt her face heat up at how people were looking at the two.

 

“I-I mean I have a task I promised to help Arvio with. I need to make some deliveries since he’s behind.”

“You’ll be walking all around Sandrock right?” Pen tilted his head then snapped his fingers as if an idea came to him. “It’s perfect! Here! I made these posters super sticky, so place them around town as you’re delivering!”

 

“I-I” she stuttered.

 

“Matilda will be so pleased you helped! Have fun Skinny!”

 

She growled in annoyance as she was left with posters. When she walked to Arvio’s she couldn’t help but glare as he smiled down at her clearly amused.

 

“He tricked you again?” he chuckled before kissing her cheek as a greeting.

 

“Yes! I hate him so much” she groaned. “But he shoved these my way and Matilda…”she trailed off. “I wish I wasn’t such a pushover”

 

Arvio laughed and patted her head.

“Well today isn’t too bad on my end, just three spots.” he handed her the packages. “I tied them to Saraya my horse so you don’t have to struggle” 

She clapped her hands and shoved the posters on the docile horse. “Have I mentioned that I absolutely love you?” 

 

She hopped on the horse and grinned as Arvio rolled his eyes tried to look annoyed but failed especially as his cheeks reddened.

“Just come back by 4 if you can? I wanna be able to pay you and close as soon as I can.”

 

“You got it boss!” she saluted before lightly kicking the sides of the horse signaling it to move.

 

…

 

The last poster. 

 

As she was pasting it at the train station, she finally took in the poster

"WANTED: DEAD OR ALIVE

If you see this man, do not engage: report immediately to the Civil Corps. Any information leading to the arrest and conviction of this vile perpetrator will be rewarded handsomely, in the sum of 100,000 gols."

 

‘He really is cute’ she thought as she finished pressing the poster against the train station. 

 

She tilted her head and took the picture in. If Aria was honest she had completely forgotten about Logan. Apart from the broken window, she had not seen or heard him do anything that affected the townsperson.  Her eyes trailed as she went from the notice of the wanted poster, she looked at his eyes. The drawing was very kind to him and she found herself distracted. 

 

‘Such a shame’ she thought before shaking her head and headed back to Arvio.

 

…

 

Warm hands felt so nice on her chilly skin. They were hot and assured of their caresses. She hummed in pleasure, allowing herself to move to allow more access. It was a nice feeling; the haziness of wanting the sleepiness lingering like a drug. 

 

The night was a perfect temperature. A cool breeze coming through the window was a nice change. A thin tank top and a pair of boxers were all that the young woman needed to sleep. Not even a blanket was needed. Her night had been consistent in temperature, that is until a tug of a shirt, made her shiver. She grunted, refusing to open her eyes.

 

“Shhh Doll, I’ll warm you up right quick” he chuckled. 

 

She felt the graze of a smile against her neck before he shuffled off of her. She furrowed her brow, attempting to grasp the very nice feelings once more. 

 

“Don’t be impatient”  A kiss on her ankle, shushed her. 

 

Rough hands, traveled up, down from her ankles to up her calves, allowing them to part her legs, then thighs with minimal effort. Hot lips, pressed against her calf, followed up a little nip. She shivered as she felt him take a deep breath before he moved to kiss her inner thighs. 

 

She whimpered.

 

“Sh sh sh” he cooed before allowing his hands to move up to her hips. His grip was firm, and he tugged her down, hoping to part her thighs even more. She greedily agreed, humming as he stretched the elastic from her boxers, that had already slid up her thighs as she opened more. 

 

Yet her expectations would it for it to be remove, and hopefully soon as she felt herself flush in pleasure. But he did not move; She frowned, and hummed hoping to encourage the exploring. A chuckle was his response; but she was impatient. With the finesse of a person that was now just feigning sleep, she slid her hands up, to cover his larger ones. She attempting to slide his hands down and hope to take her boxers with them, but the grip on her hips tightened.

 

“What’s the rush Baby?” 

 

She breathed out, frustrated but slightly amused. The need to sleep had long left her;  she needed him to stop teasing. Sliding her foot up, she pressed it along his legs, up his thighs and now around his waist. 

 

He growled and she smiled. A warmth overtook as a his breath was against her neck, then a kiss at the earlobe before it slid down to her neck, nipping, earning a jerk in her body. 

 

“Kiss me” she whispered, afraid to break the spell. 

 

Firm lips landed over her plush ones, eager and happy to follow directions. She wanted to rush, express her passion and want, but he wasn’t having it. As he took control and slowed the kiss down; the fire still there, the simmer eager to extend it. It was almost a lazy pace, reminding her that she loved kissing him. She couldn’t help it, her hand slid up, her fingers eager to weave his hair through her fingers. His hair had grown a bit, she thought as she splayed her fingers though the nape of his neck. 

 

With a bit of rocking she got another thing she wanted. She moaned softly, as she felt his weight atop of her. She always found it comforting to feel his body over hers. And heat overtook her, until a cold metal pressed against her groin. She grunted and pulled away from the kiss. 

 

“Sorry doll,” he whispered as he pulled back from her. “Don’t move” 

 

She tried not to get annoyed, she could tell he noticed as he leaned in once more to kiss her briefly before sliding his lips back to her neck, where he nipped. She squeaked in surprise and he immediately licked the bit, attempting to soothe his lover. 

 

His hands meanwhile, moved from her hips up her waist, squeezing her sides briefly before they got to their destination. It was his turn to moan as he felt the weight of her breast in his hand.  His thumb brushed against her nipple making her shiver; she arched, pressing her breast more into his palm.

 

“Yes” he whispered against her collarbone

 

Her hands slid to her own hips, attempting to tug her shirt up and off. The one that was just thin enough to feel naughty was now being a disturbance to her own goal. To feel his warmth skin to skin. His hands seemed to reluctantly move from her breasts down to her hand and immediately ripped her shirt off. She hummed, before tugging his shirt off finally feeling his naked chest against hers. 

 

“You like that” he murmured against her lips. 

 

Opening her eyes she took him in, disheveled but pleased. His blue eyes were shining in amusement as she probably looked a mess. She lifted her hand to caress his cheek, where he turned to kiss her palm. The sweetness and surprise made her nipples harden and she knew she wanted more.

 

Aria sat up with a gasp gripping her sheets in surprise. She was disoriented, looking around trying to get her heartbeat down. Her body was elated, humming with an energy she had never felt before. She even had a small sheen of sweat on her. As the memory of her dream flashed before her, she felt her whole body reddened and she rushed towards the bathroom determined to get a cold shower.

 

“Oh my god” she groaned as she was throwing water over herself, trying to get her heart to regulate and the idea of what her subconscious dreamed up horrified her. 

 

It was not often that she had those kinds of dreams, she had sporadic dreams since her teens, but they never had a face. She had never felt it as real as it did now. At the very least she would wake up pleased, but never so raunchy.

 

“Seriously?!” she hissed at herself.

 

That stupid poster commissioned had bled into her subconscious. He was cute, but that made no sense. She had met lots of handsome men throughout Sandrock and she hadn’t dreamt about them. 

 

She scrubbed her body well, wincing as she felt her breasts felt overstimulated. She ignored the trembling and just showered and tried to just push it out of her brain. 

 

“Aria are you in there?” She heard Mi-an call out.”Ready to do the finishing touches on the bridge?! I’m so excited!” 

 

“Yes! Coming!” She called out shuffling and stumbling through her house trying to quickly put clothes on. 

 

“Hi!” she greeted, a little out of breath.

 

Mi-an looked at her and smiled softly, clearly seeing that  Aria looked a little disheveled.

 

“Rough morning friend?” 

 

“Don't even get me started,” Aria chuckled before closing the door behind her. 

…

 

She tried to get through the day as normal. By noon Mi-an and she had completed the bridge and were happy to note that the next step was inspection where a person would be visiting the town. It was a nice distraction, to just work on it and be able to not think about that embarrassing incident that morning. 

 

“You okay? You seem distracted.” 

 

At Amirah’s voice, Aria snapped back to reality, her cheeks already red. Perhaps having lunch with her friend was not the smartest idea, especially when she was reverting back to daydreaming. 

 

“I am, I didn't sleep too well” she admitted.

 

“Hmm…remind me to get you some tea leaves from Owen before you head back home” she sipped her water and squinted. “Why are you blushing?”

 

 “I am not” she gasped, covering her cheeks in surprise. 

 

Amirah squinted and then let out a slow smirk.

 

“Aria of Highwind, do not think about lying to me” she leaned forward. “Do you have a crush on someone?” 

 

“Peach, no” she laughed somewhat annoyed at the question. “When would I have time to even have a crush?!”

 

“You have eyes” she drawled out. “Why would it be so hard to simply let the eyes linger?”

 

Aria frowned, until she got an idea.

 

“Oh? So when you look at Owen your eyes just linger?” 

 

Amirah gasped in surprise, her own cheeks reddening at the blunt comment.

 

“Aria, this is not about me, I-”

 

“You like Owen, I’ve only been here five months and I already know that you like like him” 

 

“I-I do not” 

 

Knowing that she had her, Aria couldn’t help but ask:

 

“So if I had a crush on Owen you’d be fine?”

 

Her eyes widened and she looked shocked at the builder who looked back innocently. Aria could tell that Amirah bought it for just a moment before she saw her wink and growled.

“It’s not him?!”

 

“He’s not my type, but I know he’s yours,” she giggled.

 

The only response she got from Amirah was a pillow thrown her way.  

 

“Hey!” 

 

“But seriously? Have you ever had a relationship?”

 

Aria shrugged, her mood sobering for a moment before she grew a bit embarrassed. She wasn’t the most outgoing when young, both in fear of what would happen, and fear of rejection. 

 

“Any boyfriends to write home to?” Amirah continued.

 

She chuckled and shook her head. 

 

“No way,” she admitted with a slight grin. “I wasn’t the most popular girl back home. If you met Nia you would know who gets all the attention” she smiled. “There was one guy, sweet, a bit nerdy, but nothing came out of it. I had hoped when he found out I was leaving he would have said something…” she trailed off.

 

“He didn’t?” 

 

“No” Aria sighed with a resigned expression. “He barely said a word to me at my going away party. Not a stutter my way” 

 

“I can’t believe it” the older girl looked surprise.

 

Aria laughed.

 

“It wouldn’t have worked out anyway. He mostly cared about herbology like Nia, and he would have never followed me out here” she shook her head amused at the thought. “And he wasn’t worth staying behind for” 

 

“Well…then he definitely wasn’t the one”

 

“Nope” she giggled. 

 

…

 

Two Weeks later…

 

She was relieved that she did not have that dream again. Just thinking about it made her start blushing and wondering what the hell she was thinking. Work slowed down a bit once the bridge was built, but she was relieved by it.  She missed her everyday commissions, visiting Vivi, making a hat for Captain the cat, even forging a weapon for Pen was better than worrying about the consequences of not finishing things on time. 

 

“How’s it going up there?” She heard Catori yell. 

 

“Almost done Catori!” she yelled back before going back to placing the flags on the poles.

 

When she was asked to assist Catori, Aria wondered why Mi-an didn't just take it. It was not that she wasn’t fond of Catori, moreso she did not trust her. She seemed ambitious, not in a bad way except for she tended to make promises that so far weren’t kept. Mi-an and Elsie were more Catori’s speed.  Still as she finished she ensured the rope was tight before she descended, kicking the poll each time to get down faster. 

 

“Does this work for you?” Aria asked, looking up at the decorations. 

 

“Between you and me, I'm actually kinda surprised Matilda supported this endeavor. I guess that's what makes her such a great leader. Here's hopin' we get a lot more opportunities like this!”

 

“I think that this will be nice for the town to get through that bridge more often” she commented smiling at the whole thing. 

 

While she did not understand it, she happily supported anyone that had any interest in making life easier. 

 

“I hope so, come on, I’ll give you a lift back in town.”

“Thanks!” 

 

…

 

She laughed softly, as he rolled them over. Their afternoon makeout session had soon become hotter than she expected. The fan buzzed far off into the background, being the only noise in the room apart from the two of them. His hand moved across her back, moving her hair to the side to allow the cool breeze from the fan hit her naked back. 

 

“Thank you” she murmured against his lips, pleased to cool off a bit.

 

“You always run hot,” he chuckled. “What a city girl” 

 

The way he said it made her toes curl. He loved reminding her of how she’s not like him, how he protected her. He tugged on her hair lightly, making her lean back and let him graze his canine against her jugular, making her groan and rock her hips against his.

 

His legs parted as a reaction, her own thighs being all the more open, allowing more direct friction. Her hands lazily moved down his back, scratching lightly against his side making him jerk in surprise. 

 

“Don’t tease” she whispered, as her hands moved to his belt sliding it along with his pants down. There was no chance she was going to get a thigh burn from those rough jeans. 

 

“Never” he replied, before dominating their kiss, his hands following hers and taking off their last remaining pieces of clothing.

 

“You feel so nice” 

 

A blast, and tremble of the ground stopped whatever was happening in her mind as she jumped up gripping her bed sheets tight. Her breathing was heavy, her face hot and her body crackling with energy. She almost thought she had imagined it, until she heard a commotion and knew it was not her imagination. 

 

Jumping up, she tried to collect herself, throwing on a large t-shirt before running towards the door, to figure out what was going on. She almost hesitated in not taking a gun, before remembering where she was, and returned to grip it and ran out. If a Geegler had figured out where she lived, she would be ready to protect herself.

 

However, no such attack on her home was happening. Instead, her brain quickly registered where the blast had come from: Sandrock. Her eyes widened, as the westside of the town was on fire. It wasn’t just any building; the water tower was quickly falling. 

 

“Oh fuck” she whispered softly, evenmoreso as she saw a person on a horse running from the crime scene.

 

The galloping had caught her attention before she had seen him, but when she took him in, her eyes widened. The person who haunted her dreams was the one who had caused the commotion. Logan. And it seemed that he was going to get away with it, especially as he seemed to have taken a Civil Corps Horse. 

 

Justice’s actually; she realized it as she saw Justice and Unsuur running behind him. She could tell that Justice was yelling something. The chime of the train coming from the east made her look to her right.  Her lips parted in shock as Logan not only slid from the grasp of the Civil Corps, but did so seamlessly, enough to mock them by rearing the horse and waving his hat around.

 

He was but a few yards from her but he must have heard her as he immediately turned to his right and looked at her. Her breath hitched as he took her in; Aria saw him lazily lift his gaze from her naked legs, to the giant shirt that covered her boxers. She saw Logan smile as he landed on her left hand, the pistol frozen in her grip. His blue eyes quickly moved to hers and he winked, before galloping off. He did not even bother taking her reaction. She felt her face flush at seeing him ride off, especially as she heard the  Civil Corps wheezing off to the side.

 

“Oh my peach” she murmured, running to help the pair out who were overall safe, if not embarrassed at what just had occurred before her. “Are you two okay?”

 

She ignored the hot sand on her bare feet; the full heat had not yet arrived so it wasn’t too unbearable. 

 

“I-I can’t believe he did this”Justice wheezed. 

 

“Go to the water tower” Unsuur ordered her, as he tried to help Justice up. 

 

Aria was briefly surprise at his orders, but agreed with his suggestion as she ran towards town still barefoot and with a pistol in her hand. There she saw the town running to take in the damage.

 

“Burgess! Are you alright? What happened?” Matilda cried out, as she gripped her cloak that was clearly over her pajamas. It seemed lots of townspeople had been taken by surprise and unkept. 

 

Burgess looked really shaken up, looking desperately at the destruction before him. 

 

“Logan! He came out of nowhere! I... I couldn't stop him.”

He sounded so defeated; Aria bit her lip in nervousness. Everyone in town knew that there was nothing that he could have done, but no one dared say it. Burgess was the most gentle soul, not an ounce of fight in his pudgy body. 

 

“It's okay, as long as no one's hurt.” Matilda soothed, patting his shoulder, a gentle and sincere smile on her face.

 

Or perhaps not so sincere; at least that’s what Aria thought as her face hardened once she took a look at Pen, Justice and Unsuur. 

 

“Well?!” 

 

“The coward escaped.” Pen sneered. 

 

“He's gone too far this time…” Justice murmured, anger clear in his eyes from the way he gripped an old piece of broken wood that once belonged as part of the water tower. 

 

“I'm afraid you're right, sheriff.” Matilda sneered as she took in the scene. “Folks, I think we need to face the truth, Logan is no longer the person we knew. He and his gang... need to be brought in.”

 

A loud murmur grew before cries of agreements grew. Aria felt her shoulders sag as many expletives were heard. She felt guilt, yet she had committed no crime.

 

“For too long have we allowed him to do whatever he liked because we respected his Pa. But after the Temple incident, the hijacked train, now with this Water Tower, it's just the last straw!”

 

“That’s right?!” 

 

“He’s turned his back on us!” cried another.

 

“I knew it!”

 

“What's wrong with that boy?!” Cooper drawled out, his accent sounding rougher than usual. 

 

Grandma Vivi walked forward, eyes sad as she took everything in. “ Old man Howlett would've been so sad to see his boy actin' such a fool.” she shook her head, hands trembling as she bit back tears.

 

“We showed those Geeglers that Sandrock ain't nothin' to mess with; what's a couple of podunk, two-bit crooks to brave folk like us?” Matilda said loudly. A cheer was heard. “I say we get a posse together and make Logan pay for what he's done!’

 

“About time!” 

 

“I’m in!”

 

Pen stepped closer to Matilda and bowed.

 

“Say no more, Minister! Civil Corps, with me! Let's see if we can't track down that ne'er-do-well before the trail goes cold!” 

 

Aria bit back a sneer as the pompous ass quickly ordered the law enforcers of their town.  Pen didn’t even wait for the pair as he kept walking. 

 

“Hey now, as senior officer and guy who's been here in this town waaay longer than your Mr. Macho, protein-huffin' behind, I give the orders around here! But, uh, yeah. Unsuur, do what Pen said. Let's ride.” 

 

The other two ran off after him. And Matilda’s shoulders sagged. 

 

“Now, we need to get ourselves a new Water Tower in a hurry. Without it, our town can't easily access water from the oasis. The only solace I can find in all this mess is that at the very least the Water Tower was almost empty. Our next shipment of water ought to arrive soon, but before that…” she trailed off before looking around. “Where is that Commerce Commissioner...?”

 

“Right behind you, Minister!” Yan’s weasley voice was heard through the crowd and he scurried to her side. 

 

“Yes…” Matilda looked down at the man. “Yan, I need your Guild to help our town rebuild this Water Tower before the next water shipment. I trust y'all can handle it?

 

“Is the sun hot? Does sand sting?” he let out a wheeze of laughter. “Of course we can handle it, we'll also make the new Water Tower absolutely, positively Logan-proof! There is just one minor thing... the inconvenient matter of... the bill?”

 

If a glance could kill, he’d be dead.

 

“Of course, of course... I'll just put it on the tab! I'll have my Builders working on it by tomorrow!”  Aria wrinkled her nose as his gaze landed on hers. “Hear that, Builders? Oh, drat, where'd the other one go...?” 

 

Aria looked around realizing that Mi-an was not there. 

 

“Ey, Kid! Go find that slacker co-worker of yours and tell her to expect the job to begin first thing in the morning! Pronto!”

She glared his way before walking off. She could hear the Church hoping to calm everyone down.

 

“Alright folks, let's move along then. Nothing more to see here. Let's just trust in our Civil Corps that there will be no more of these incidents.” Miguel’s voice boomed.

 

“Indeed, y'all. Rest assured that everything is going to turn out alright in the end!” 

 

One thing was clear; Aria needed to find Mi-an and get started on the water tower.

Chapter 7: The One About Logan

Summary:

Investigating Logan really brought a different perspective that she could not help but wonder: Was there more than met the eye?

Notes:

SORRY I WAS GONE- With the game finally coming out soon I will be playing and get more headcannons in here.

A Desert Rose
Chapter 7: The One About Logan

 

“Honestly, it’s like he wasn’t raised here with the rest of us” Heidi frowned as she blew into the beef stew brisket that Amirah had worked on this morning.

Aria nodded as she murmured a thank you as Amirah served her. She had spent all morning looking for Mi-an and so far no luck in her endeavors. She had assumed the girl was probably in the mines working on something as she was not seen at the water tower incident. She knew she was going to look for her later but her standing lunch date would not wait. And it was clear, they had a lot to talk about.

Heidi had joined them, excited to make some time to meet with them. Aria really liked Heidi, she was strong and stoic and took no shit from anyone. It was refreshing to see, and when Heidi in turn found out she was friends with Amirah, the lunch date became a usual thing. With the promise of a night of drinking one of these days.

“I feel so bad for Vivi, did you see how she reacted?” Amirah said, leaning against her chair. “I didn’t know him as long as you had but this seemed so outta character”

“Do you think it was an accident?” Heidi asked, really not seeking an answer.

“He looked pretty smug when he galloped off” Aria murmured as she bit into her food, wincing as the heat of the beef burned her tongue. She clearly should have been more patient before taking a bite. But she was starving and her morning had started out stressful.

“Wait, you saw him?!” Amirah asked in shock.

“Mhm” Aria hummed as she took another bite of her food.

“That’s all you’re going to say? Mhm?!” Heidi exclaimed before laughing at the way Aria paused on her rice.

“Well…I mean I was in deep sleep” she laughed a bit embarrassed. “I heard the hubbub and ran out with my pistol. It was so wild, Justice and Unsuur running in disbelief as Logan stole his horse.”

Aria paused remembering the way his eyes glazed over her form. His attention to her naked legs, her pajamas and the gun on her hand. He looked amused however as he winked she felt herself blush once more.

“How…how did he look?” Heidi asked with a small smirk on her face. Clearly seeing the way her eyes glazed over.

“Huh?” she murmured, distracted.

“That hot?” Heidi giggled.

“Heidi!” Amirah gasped.

“What?! It’s what we’re both thinking.”

“I wasn’t!”

“Well” Heidi huffed. “I don’t only have eyes for the hunky saloon owner”

“Shut up Heidi! Your teasing is not helpful.”

“He was really hot”

The older woman paused their bickering, both surprised at Aria’s comment as she leaned against her palm a shy smile on her face. Heidi grinned widely as Amirah looked appalled before she snorted in amusement.

“He was always hot,” Amirah admitted, giggling.

“Psh, I always wished he would have dated around. He was so hunky even as a teen” Heidi fanned herself.

Aria giggled covering her warm cheeks.

“It really is a shame that he did that to the water tower,” she admitted after a while.

“Mhm” Both of them agreed nodding.

…

After a fulfilling lunch, it seems that Mi-an was closer than Aria expected. She paused her trek down to the center of town to take in the scene before her. Elsie and Mi-an were conspiring, and not very subtle at that.

“I'm tellin' you! Logan's innocent!” Elsie hissed loudly, her cheeks reddening in frustration.

“Wha...?! How can you say that after what happened?” Mi-an looked worried, a bit uncomfortable at going against Elsie.

Elsie stomped her foot.

“I know Logan! We practically grew up t'gether. He was always the goodie two-shoes! I... just can't accept that he would do somethin' like this…”

“...Um. Elsie. Everyone saw him bomb the Temple, and then the water tower, and then there's all the other stuff, I mean...!”

“I just want to be sure... Please?” Elsie’s voice softened pleading for Mi-an to clearly make some questionable choices.

Aria inwardly sighed knowing that Mi-an had quickly folded. Mi-an’s body tensed but she stood up straighter ready to move forward.

“...Alright, what can I help you with?”

Elsie’s eyes brightened, glad to have gotten her way. Clapping her hands in glee she began to scheme.

”See, I don't think he did this without reason. I want to take a look at his house, which is right here, and do some hands on investigatin'. For the truth.”

“Elsie, what do you need me for?”

The redhead looked embarrassed.

“Cuz…”

“Because?”

“Cuz you're smarter than me, okay?”

 

Mi-an’s eyes softened at the younger girl.

“Don't sell yourself short, Elsie…”

Elsie rolled her eyes.

“Aw, don't try to be nice, Mi-an, I'm dumber than a box of rocks, we all know it! The only way we're going to learn all the facts is if I can get your help!”

“I do want to help, but I don't think we can just walk in-”

“So we're in agreement, then!”

Aria was surprised as they suddenly broke the window. Mi-an screeched in surprise and she was immediately shushed.

“Hey, keep it down, you tryin' to get us in trouble?”

Elsie was gleeful, that is until she finally took in Aria. She cringed realizing just how long they were being watched and being clueless.

“Move along, Aria, you didn't see nothin'!”

Her tone was strong and dismissive. Very out of character and very unwarranted to the brunette who was less amused.

“Excuse me?” Aria said. “You think you’re being discreet in your stupid attempts to find him innocent?”

“See, we didn’t need your help or opinions so” Elsie waved.

“Elsie!” Mi-an said horrified. “She’s our friend.”

“Not if she thinks I’m being dumb” she grumbled.

“You broke a window in the middle of the day and you think that’s smart.” Aria shook her head. “Both of you are crazy. But whatever, if I’m not needed I’ll let you go. Mi-an, when you’re done playing detective, let’s talk about rebuilding the destroyed water tower”

Mi-an looked ashamed and Elsie looked put out at the comment. Both girls knew they were being rash, but Aria was not going to entertain assisting them at all. She might not be the most aggressive but she was certainly not going to go where she was not wanted.

“Wait- she didn’t mean it!” Mi-an called out.

Aria merely waved goodbye in a dismissive manner. She felt her annoyance grow and if she didn’t leave she knew she would say something hurtful.

…

Yan pestered her about where Mi-an was but Aria shrugged, stating that she assumed that the other builder was in the mines. She was only mad at Elsie and she owed Mi-an a lot so she wasn’t going to put her out in the cold.

If she was honest, she was a bit hurt at them not asking her for help and instead seeing her as a nuisance. She was reminded of her teen years, oftentimes underestimated and ignored. In that time Nia fought for her honor, but she was no longer sixteen, she was an adult and she was not going to let her day be soured.

…

Her day was soured. Her mood had not improved and she had nearly decked Yan when he took his share of her profits for that day. The only thing that soothed her was a warm bath and a good book.

A knock on the door interrupted her inner peace and she was forced to get up. With a huff she opened the door and saw the pair of the two people that she least wanted to see. She leaned against the door frame not bothering to let them in.

“Can I help you?” she asked, lifting her brow.

Elsie looked a bit put out, crossing her own arms, annoyed at being brought here; Mi-an in turn looked genuinely apologetic.

“We- wanted to apologize for today,” Mi-an started. “In our pursuit of finding out more about Logan and his innocence we were hurtful.”

“You Mi-an do not need to apologize for anything” she said with a shrug. “Contrary to popular belief I do not need to be involved in whatever hoodwinks you two choose to do. I however do not appreciate being dismissed and rudely shuffled off.”

Mi-an winced and Elsie herself looked a bit embarrassed. It was clear that they were apologetic but were not expecting her annoyance. The redhead took a deep breath and huffed.

“Fine! I’m sorry too!” she blurted out. “I just didn’t appreciate you callin’ me stupid when we were going to investigate. I know Logan is innocent okay?!”

“I wasn’t calling you stupid for your beliefs, I called your actions stupid because you’re doing it in the plain light of day. What if Justice caught you? Or Pen? They would have put you both in jail. Mi-an, did you think about your license? Elsie did you think about how your dad would react?”

“Fine, you gotta point,” Elsie pouted. “Are you gonna help us?”

Aria took a deep breath.

“Fine, come in”

Both girls immediately shuffled in and began to tell her all that they knew as she served them drinks. It was clear that they got a lot of information from his home and while entertaining she almost groaned hearing they forgot to fix the window. Still, what was clear was that things were not as they seemed.

“Look you don’t have you believe us now, but read this tonight and let me know what you think” Elsie drawled out handing her a book.

Aria looked down and caressed the front of it, realizing it was a journal. It felt oddly personal. Inside was a drawing, and she could not help but smile seeing the child drawing of Jasmine with Haru and Logan. Something in her softened seeing how well liked he really was.

“Fine, give me time to mull over this and we can possibly ask around tomorrow” Aria relented.

With that Mi-an hugged her goodbye and Elsie lingered back in her way asking if she could help her clean up the mess they left behind. She nodded and washed dishes as she patiently waited for her to get the bravery to speak up.

“You know…I really am sorry.” she began. “I just got sick of people not believing me about Logan. He was kind, charmin’, always helping anyone in need. Howlett was so proud of him and I-I saw him as my big brother. He cared about Sandrock and making his Pa proud.” she rubbed her arm self-conscious at her confession. “When I told him I wanted to do more than just be a farmer’s daughter he told me he believed in me. When Catori flirted with him the first time I remember he got so red, and I couldn’t stop laughing at his embarrassment. He just deserved more” her eyes watered. “He was supposed to be the best monster hunter out there and I was gonna be helpin’ him. I don’t know what he’s doing but I believe in him”

Aria placed the last dish on the dishrack and turned to look at Elsie looking genuinely tearful and shy. Sighing, she reminded herself that the redhead was only eighteen and was still learning about regulating her emotions. Yes she was a hothead but underneath that it was clear she believed in Logan.

“It’s okay, I promise to read the journal and…and help you out. I don’t know if you’re right but…”she shrugged. “I will help”

Elsie hugged her tightly before saying goodbye.

With that, as much as she told herself she was not going to immediately dive into the journal, she did so and curled onto her bed and dove into the person that was Logan.

 

Spring 17

Pa showed me the mines for the first time. I’d been pesterin’ him for a while and
I admit it was more than I was expecting. Monsters are real deal ain’t nothing fake about it.
When one was face to face I almost froze but he let me borrow a pistol and I took a shot at it.

And Zing! Perfect aim, I got him. It was exhilarating.
Pa said when I turn twelve I’m gonna get one for myself.
Can’t wait!

 

Aria smiled seeing the first passage of one of the books was a journal entry from when he was young. The words were slanted and some words misspelled. She caressed the lines, seeing how hard the pencil was used to write, clearly making sure to hold it tightly. It was so innocent, so full of excitement.

The clock striking midnight was enough for her to know she had read enough. If this is how he showed himself in his private thoughts as a young kid, she wondered what caused him to change. Shaking her head, she got up and got ready for bed.

…

The next morning was a nice day, she could tell from the breeze coming in through the window. Throwing on a skort, some knee pads and some tennis shoes, Aria had a plan of taking it easy until she got the new designs for the water tower.

“Howdy, Aria” Aria’s ears perked as she saw Elsie waiting for her patiently outside of her gate. “Didja get Mi-an's letter? Nevermind, it's a bit of a chore; here, check out these puppies! All the photos from yesterday!”

The brunette was surprised by the mention of pictures. That was definitely not mentioned at their little meeting. Still, she observed them, taking details of the pictures, notes, medicines list, bomb making.

“What am I going to do with these?”

“Well, look at ‘em of course. You didn’t hop in with us right? You need to know the same info we do. Ya know, I'd probably steer clear of that mail box of yours for today, but even if you didn't, and someone did write you a letter telling you to hold up on the investigation, you'd ignore it, wouldn't ya, 'cause we made a promise to get to the bottom of all this, didn't we!?”

“Mi-an is bailing on you?” Aria smirked as Elsie’s attempt at being casual were awful.

“Psh, what? I don't know what you’re talking about. Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to take these photographs here to the folk we talked about last night and find out what all they know!”

“You think they’d tell me?”

Elsie immediately nodded.

“‘Course they would. They really like you and they wouldn’t be suspicious if a newcomer was curious about his background. Hell, it’s all everyone is talkin’ abot. Makes perfect sense. Plus if it came from me, they’d go back to my Pa and make things worse”

She sighed. “Fine, Elsie, you reeled me in”

“Knew I could count on you!” the redhead jumped in glee. “Once we clear Logan's name, we'll be heroes! Maybe they'll hold a parade for us- But let's not get too far ahead of ourselves!” she looked at the watch and groaned. “I gotta get back to the ranch before my Pa notices there ain't nobody keepin' the Yakmel company. Let's meet up at the Blue Moon once you've got the scoop!”

Waving bye, Elsie ran back to her home leaving an amused if not annoyed Builder. Still, Aria slipped the pictures into her satchel, placed safely by Logan’s journal and was on her way.
…
So far, Fang was a bust, he merely looked at her uninterested and moved onto his path to the desert. Jasmine was sweet if not innocent in her responses. Nothing incredibly clear in terms of what had happened. Sitting by a bench, she looked into her satchel and smiled once more seeing the picture Jasmine had drawn before moving onto the journal.

Summer 16

We got some new members to the town of Sandrock. A pair of siblings from
Barnarock. I had no clue how they wanted to come here, but
they said it’s harder out there than Sandock.

One is named Arvio, he’s kind of annoying but Haru seems to have
formed a bond of some kind. Both got that business mind and the kid is interested in leading a furniture shop.
His sister…is very pretty. She’s quiet of the two, and I woulda talked to her,
but ya know I’m too busy with monsters.

Yeah, and I didn’t want to go after her like she’s new meat.
And she seemed uninterested in what Justice was throwing.

We’ll see?

Aria laughed softly reading that entry. She was not at all surprised at how taken he seemed by Amirah. She herself felt taken away by her beauty, and felt intimidated until she realized that he was lovely and genuine. The passage told her she should go to Arvio.

…

“Hello pretty lady, what brings you to my humble shop? Did you see the new hand cream we got? It will keep your cute little hands soft as usual” Arvio drawled, wiggling his brow as a greeting.

“You’re such a dork” Aria laughed before kissing his cheek as a greeting. She was no longer phased by his flirting, however she did take note how he hugged her closer than usual. Pulling back she shuffled his hair before hopping onto his counter and taking out a picture. “I come on official business”

Arvio looked curious at her expression only to then take notice of the picture.

“Oh boy... It seems my secret supplier has been revealed. Yes, yes, I told Mi-an that those recipes were company secrets... which was true! Only Haru and myself are privy to such knowledge!”

“Haru…Logan’s helper right?”

Arvio huffed and leaned against the counter, both now facing his shop ignoring the leisurely pace as townsfolk walked through.

“He was more than that. I hate that that’s what he’s remembered for.”

She frowned and took him in.

“He was your friend right?”

He nodded.

“When I first moved here, I was honestly just testing my luck on whatever could sell. Haru was the first person I truly made friends with in this town. He was an inventor like me and we soon did business. It's really so unpleasant what happened with Haru, not only because I consider him a friend of mine, but also because of his great mind!”

“You miss him?” she asked softly, reaching for his hand. He immediately intertwined theirs and he sighed.

“Yeah…I've even put aside what he'd be making... you know, if he ever comes back.”

She smiled softly and squeezed his hand. His grip on her hand tightened and she looked surprised as the cloud went over his face.

“You know, I never understood how Haru and Logan were so close. Haru was so quiet, and Logan, before his Pa…was not the most talkative but he was always kind. Seemed like a troublemaker but nothing that none of us wouldn’t do. It was sad to see him go after the death of his Pa…but Haru..”he shook his head. “He wasted his future chasing after his best friend.”

“I’m sorry” she murmured.

Arvio shrugged. “Eh, no use crying over spilled milk now is there? Now…about that hand cream.”

…

So far, Burgess had told her what he had seen the night of the incident of Howlett’s passing and if she was honest, it broke her heart. Logan had grown stressed over his father and rightfully so; that man was the only family he had in this world.

Hugo in turn had grown very defensive in her line of questioning and if she was honest she was not expecting that. Hugo liked her well enough, not as much as Heidi did, but clearly she ruffled his feathers. He treated Logan like a son and the thought of him taking Logan on when Howlett died was heartbreaking to hear.

“Oh Logan,” she murmured softly.

…

“Good afternoon Miguel, would you happen to have a moment?”

Miguel looked uninterested in her in general however he played along, if only for politeness sake.

“If I must,” he drew out lifting his brow. “How may I be of assistance?”

“Well, if you have a moment…um I wanted to ask about that incident in the Tower” she trailed off unsure herself. Miguel always made her feel like a nuisance and a child all at once. “Howlett’s passing to be clear?”

“Hm. You're looking into the Logan incident, eh? Dreadful stuff, quite displeased to see things turn out the way they did. Not to mention the fallout since.”
She nodded and waited for him to continue.

“But it can't be helped. To be blunt, if Howlett had stayed out of the ruins we all know are too dangerous to explore, he'd still be alive.”

“The ruins?” Aria asked curiously. “Like the ones I go to?

“Yes, those dreadful things. I know you go for material which cannot be helped but old Howlett was not a Builder, he was a monster hunter. He constantly went out on unnecessary adventures stating he was keeping us all safe. Following the Light and attending Church is more of a use to our town than any of that.”

“I see…” she trailed off. “How sick was he?”

His brow twitched and the ever present frown deepened.

“Very…it was not something that we had seen before.” He sighed. “Terrible stuff. But, I made the decision to put Howlett under quarantine. Yes, it did enrage Logan and drive him to madness. But I did what was best for the town. And I'd do it again if I had to.”

Taking in her sad expression he patted her hand like a child.

“It's not a pleasant tale, just like the state of our world, unfortunately. Do some to our Sunday Service why don’t you”

…

Winter 28

Girls are complicated. Amirah is nice but overall just…nice.
Nothing exciting to her other than pottery. Owen seems to have taken a shine to her.
I get it, I mean I did too but she’s not for me. Or any one really.

Pa’s gone off on some mission and he didn’t take me. That’s fine except..
he’s missing the Winter Solstice. I wish he was here, it seems less lonely.

Vivi made me a sweater and I ignored Catori hitting on me. It was very obvious and I-
I felt so embarrassed. She’s a beauty no doubt but I cannot help but think
she only likes me ‘cause it’s a game to her.

I saw some stars and even if Qi says it means nothing to do so,
I wish for us to be together soon.

“Hey there, Aria! How're you holding up?”

Aria jumped in surprise and closed the journal as Owen surprised her with food. She had spent all afternoon investigating more about Logan that by the time she finished, it was dinner time and she had no urge to cook. So the Blue Moon it was.

“Oh Owen, sorry you surprised me” she admitted with a sheepish expression. “I was reading this book and forgot all about my order.”

“Well I’m not the most voracious of readers but I do understand how it can happen. Does this all look good? I know your big assignments starts tomorrow so I wanna make sure you’re good and fed.”

She smiled sweetly at him.

“Of course, everything looks delicious as usual! Oh! Before I let you go, could you let me know about this?” She took out the photo and showed him.

Owen took the photo in and smiled sadly.

“Wow... where'd you dig up an old relic like that? Yep, that's me in the background! But I can't say I remember too much about this day... People were always getting married in the Blue Moon back then.”

“Is that Logan’s mom?”

“Sure is” he said and sat down across from her at the booth.

“No one talks about her…what was she like?”

“Logan's Ma? I can barely remember her face if not for this photo; she skipped town not too long after Logan was born. Shocked everyone with that move. Hardly worth mentioning Logan's old man, Howlett, took it the hardest.”

“That’s horrible. So it was just the two of them in this world?”

“When Howlett came back with the disease and was put in quarantine by the Church, Logan really lost it. He started shouting for them to release his Pa outside the Temple door. Understandable: Howlett was all he had his whole life.”

“I would have been distraught too. Did no one help him?”

Owen sighed. “We tried darlin’ we did. But he would not listen to anyone. You know…I once considered him a friend. Like a little brother really. It’s a real shame what happened to him…I hope he sees light and turns himself in.”

At her frown he lifted her chin and gave her a smile.

“Do not be sad about something you cannot control. You got enough on your plate. Now cheer up and eat your food before it gets cold. Else I’ll have Grace make you something”

That brought a smile to her face and she nodded. He patted her head lightly before getting back to work. Now she ate her food waiting for the others to get there.

…

“You made it!” Else jumped into the booth, draggin Mi-an with her. “What’d you find out?”

Mi-an went from confused to surprised to angry in a matter of seconds.

“Don’t tell me you continued this quest after I told you it was a bad idea?! Honestly” she shook her head and turned to look at Aria. “Honestly, after you mentioned my license I realized you were absolutely right. It was risky, and I refused to take part of this any longer.”

“Well there was no need, we did the dirty work and our other more courageous friend did the rest. Well?! What’d you learn?!”

Aria slowly told them everything. From Matilda’s sad expression recounting that night, to Burgess being worried that he did not remember a thing. Pen being…well Pen. And Hugo, Owen and Arvio expressing their mourning of sorts.

“All this to say…it’s too suspicious to clearly make him out to be the bad guy.” Aria trailed off.

“I knew it!” Elsie cried out.

Patrons that were in the saloon looked at the trio in surprise and Mi-an waved them off making an excuse as Aria shoved a piece of cake into her mouth. So much for subtly….

…

By the time she got home there were a few letters that she would need to read. She frowned seeing that none were from her friend. It had been a long time since she had heard of them and wondered if they were okay.

The first letter was from Yan, and she took a deep breath before taking in his unnecessary jabber:

 

Aria 

As mentioned yesterday, we're tasked with reconstructing that water tower. Qi just gave me the diagrams. So here we go! Mi-an will be assigned the Water Main and the Pump Station. Aria gets the Holding Tank, the Tower Support, and the Filtration Station. While I'm stuck with the unenviable position of the supervisor.

Furthermore, I saw it fit that I, the President of the Sandrock Commerce Guild, ought to share some words of wisdom and motivation! And to make sure you realize how important it is not to screw up!

Now you know me, I'm pretty much the nicest fellow this side of the Eufaula, but that Matilda! Whew! You don't want to get on her bad side! She cares a lot about this project, so believe me when I say, it's in my best interest to give this one your all!

P.S. Don't wait, start now. My Our reputation is at stake.

P.S.S. The diagrams are attached.

Making a noise of disgust, Aria threw the letter into the furnace and took the diagrams into her home. It seemed simple enough; just a lot of material would be taken up. She groaned knowing that the water usage would be bad.

“As soon as I have some breathing room I will upgrade my dew collection” she murmured to herself.

Throwing steel scrap into the furnace she knew that by sunrise she would have enough bars to start the iron plates. Making sure to prep for the night she curled up and began to read the rest of her correspondence.

She smiled as the first package was from Sebastian.

Dear Ari,

I hope all is well in Sandrock. Your Pa send me a letter worried about how you’ve
been eerily quiet about the work you’re doing out there yet your name is poppin
out of these newspapers. Apparently they are subscribed to the newsletter at Sandrock.

I would make fun of them if I am not also doing the same. You know I worry about you. Not because you are a child, or I see you as one. But rather that I know how hard it can be.

In this package I put some extra Gols for you. Not as pity, but more so a thank you.
I remember how you used to send me knits for winter in my time here and
the Highwind Fried Rice I was obsessed with.

Again, do not hesitate to ask for anything. Ginger was so happy to hear you loving what she sent. In her she packed a few more items saying that “you never know when you might need them!” or whatever. I also sent you some pictures of town here.

Gust is very curious about your builds as I had shown him the picture of the Bridge you built. I just had to show off. It was wonderful; you know…this Autumn, I am going to buy you a ticket to visit.
I know it’s not too far out, but I think a week out here might do you some good. Get some supplies, some shopping, make some new friends and get tips from me. (Not that I’m the greatest but I have seen some things!)

Overall I just hope you’re safe and happy.
Don’t be a stranger and reply back please?

Love
Seb

She smiled softly as she took out five thousand gols. She swore by Peach someone was looking out for her. Sebastian was good and wealthy, she remembered when she would get gifts from Portia on her birthdays. A trip to Portia would be nice, and she wanted to meet everyone in his stories. As she hid the nest egg she took in more clothes from Portia and hugged them close. Clothes were the last thing on her mind when going over budgets.

The last letter was from none other than Nia.

Aria,

Urgh, today is one of the days that I really miss you. (Not that it’s not every day but like some days are harder than others you know?) My classes are going well but that Orchid I planted has yet to sprout! It's been absolutely ages, and I can't for the life of me work out why. I don't want to ask Director Luo, 'cuz I want to try and figure it out myself. My Ma keeps calling me stubborn... I don't know, what do you think? Am I stupid for not asking for help?

Apart from that, I was seeing this guy, Chris. (I know, what a boring name?) But I really liked him. He works under your Pa and he introduced us. When I met him it was clear that he was hot and he knew it. So obviously I totally fell for him. I mean, tall, blond and handsome? Sign me up. Buut…yeah no. He apparently had a girlfriend in Atara. Can you believe it?! I really wish you were here to eat all the sweets with me and cry over it. Why is love so hard?

So send me something to think about. Any distractions? Hot men? A reason to believe in love again? I need something to know that there is more to life in Sandrock other than building and desire over water. PLEASE! Have you kissed anyone? Fallen in love?

Will you have someone introduced to me when I get there? I swear as soon as this semester ends I will be visiting you.

Alright, I'm gonna stop venting all my frustrations to you. I promise next time I'll write something happier, okay?

Your friend forever,
Nia

Biting her lip, Aria considered being honest with Nia. If there was anyone out there that would keep a secret it would be her. Taking a deep breath she moved over the rest of the letters and began to write.

Hi Nia,

I am so sorry to hear about you and Chris. I told you that those guys just suck so bad. Pa always made it clear that he would have loved me to settle down with one of his men but just something about them was just not for me. (Nevermind that I’m too shy to tell them I find them attractive!) I don’t see myself with a Civil Corps member you know?

Even the ones here think little of me. Or think of me as cute when I told them that I took down a Geegler. Like I jumped onto a moving train, I am not that fragile.

Anyway,...here’s a distraction.
I’ve been having dreams. Not like dreams of falling or stupid things like that.
No, sexy dreams. Ones that leave me breathless and embarrassed all at once.
I swear Nia if you tell anyone I will never send you a letter again! I just can’t tell anyone here!

Worst thing that it’s not just like the hot doctor in town or Owen the saloon owner. No, it's Logan. Yup, Logan the guy who basically has declared war on the town. Is that not cliche?
I wake up shivering wondering how the hell my imagination got the best of me.

Every morning that I wake up with those dreams I feel hot, empty and like I yearn for it.
I need to get laid but you know I don’t do casual things. No one ever notices me, even here, most of them are friends. (And some men here I despise).

But I would feel bad enough if he was just some bandit. I just…talking to people in town made me realize there’s more to him than just vandalism and crime. He has lost a lot, and he has more to him than just hotness.

Aria bit her lip embarrassed more than anything.

I was given his journal as a means to learn more about him. A friend of mine thinks of him as innocent but he burned down the Water tower so I don’t know. Reading more about him through his journal makes me want to know more. What happened? Why? Is he innocent like Elsie says? People loved him.

I’m going crazy, Nia. Please tell me that this is normal. Please?

This might bring you the distraction you asked for.

Stressed as always,
Aria

She huffed embarrassed at her own rambling but she couldn't help but be honest with someone. He was plaguing her thoughts. She had no clue what he sounded like, but she imagined his voice husky, with the cute drawl that most people in town had. She leaned back on her chair remembering the twinkle in his eye.

“Ugh I hate myself” she murmured.

She was about to go to bed until she got a bright idea. Sealing the letter she took out a new parchment and began another correspondence.

…

He knew that it was not wise of him to be within the city limits but something compelled him to go. Perhaps it was to see how the town was faring after the incident, perhaps it was to see the little Builder curled up on her bench with a tea in one hand and a book with another.

Aria.

A curious little thing who decided to ask around about him and the incident as he liked to generally call it. He wasn’t sure what annoyed him most, the way she was nosy and poked her nose where it didn’t belong or the way her eyes softened after talking to more and more people.

There was more to her than met the eye. Nothing that initially stood out either. Petite, was very introverted, shied about the spotlight but had no issues jumping to action when needed. She tended to be more open when drinking; he remembered the way she had thanked him calling him “Friend” loudly that one night she stumbled around the night. Or when she was half dressed looking at him in shock for coming to ‘destroy’ the city.

He felt the heat of her gaze right at the nape of his neck as he had ridden off; not before really taking her in person. Barefoot with a shirt too big for her frame with a gun loosely held as she took him all in.

‘She went around town asking about you. She had photos and everything. Matilda, Pen, Burgess, Miguel, Arvio, Hugo and Owen. I swear near the end when she finished with Owen she had a look I could not decipher.’

Grace had breezily told him from the letter he received via Coco. And so he took a chance and lept at the opportunity of going to her home. As he took her in from her window she noticed how she slept tightly under her covers; dead to the world. It was then that he perused the mail he noticed that he had a letter designated for him. And with taking his property he was off wondering just what was going on in her little head.

Chapter 8: The One About Aria

Summary:

Logan is learning a lot about the Newest Builder

Notes:

So I forgot about what happens in the game and now I'm trying to catch up and play the game to continue the story. Let me know what you think!

 

A Desert Rose 

Chapter 8: The one about Aria 

 

Logan considered himself a lucky man despite the unlucky circumstances he’d experienced. He had his own version of a makeshift family; Haru tended to be the level headed one, always reminding him of the consequences if he acted on impulse. He also had Andy, who he took in as one of his own; the poor kid had lost everything and despite the nuisance that he was at first, Logan didn’t have the heart to let a kid like that live alone. 

They had a pretty good hideout that provided them shelter from the sweltering heat, and gave them entertainment. Princess Lumi and her mutated gophers were pretty nice to get along with however one tended to give him a little cold shoulder. (He was not very good at being subtle).

These were the thoughts ruminating in his head when he arrived at his base after his late night run. As much as he knew it was risky to go out, see the town, check in with Grace, look at everyone from afar…he needed to. His heart was in Sandrock, despite how they destroyed his father. He could resent some people but not all. Not Hugo who was his godfather, or Granny Vivi, who would show him how to cook when little. Not Owen who would tell him stories about a Sandrock he never knew. 

Hopping off Rambo; he signaled him to follow as they trekked down to their makeshift home. He tried to be unfazed by tonight however the letter and package were burning in his bags. The Builder was different from anyone he had ever ‘met’ before. If he was honest with himself, he thought that she would not have lasted. 

He remembered how she had shyly hopped out of the train to be greeted by the competition (Mi-an). He remembered how expressive her eyes were, taking in the arid heat and just meekly following along. He was good at hiding; no one had noticed him taking in the scene as the young woman signed onto a year of working for Sandrock. 

 

Six Months Ago…

He was so annoyed anytime Grace came with unimportant news from the town. For example at this time, she was going on and on about the changes in town.

“I don’t get it; why do we need two builders? Mason was terrible enough and it’s not like there’s a lot of people with commissions here” he had scoffed at Grace when she was telling him about the town.

 

“Yes, well…they’re hoping to expand the town and bring life back to it. I mean you can’t blame them for trying. And I do think there are enough commissions for the two of them…so many people have left. Stores empty...Hugo can’t do the mines on his own you know?”

Logan chewed the gum and frowned. Hugo was getting older; it was clear that his blacksmith shop used to rely on him or his Pa to bring him supplies after a run.

“Why two little girls anyway?” He drew out ignoring the guilty feeling he had.

“I will pretend that you didn’t say that stupid misogynistic thing” she rolled her eyes. “I mean Mi-an is a good kid, eager to help. I don’t have much intel on the other yet, but she seems sweet.”

He snorted.

 

“Sweet. Greeaaat, another person to protect.”

 

“Give her a chance Logan, she barely started.” 

 

“Fine fine, I just want to know if they’ll be nuisances or not.”

 

End Flashback…

 

He had been very presumptuous in assuming who the brunette was just based on seeing her nerves. However, when Grace had given him more information he had learned a few interesting things about her. Despite being a shy little thing, she was not necessarily shy, just took things in. When Haru had mentioned her in his correspondence with Arvio it had piqued his curiosity.

 

“Arvio said that her name is Aria and she’s from Highwind. He likes her based on what he’s writing and Amirah has taken her under her wing. Seems like she’s fitting in just fine; parents aren’t usual people”

 

Arvio and Haru still kept in contact despite everything. While the Barnabock transplant did not like Logan, he swore to keep quiet to everyone in town for the sake of his best friend. So while Grace gave Logan interesting information, Arvio gave Haru gossip.

 

“Mi-an is the pushover of the two” 

 

“Arvio swore that the new Builder was going to punch Yan.”

 

“Elsie really likes Mi-an…I think I’d get along with her too, you know?”

 

Useless knowledge, all of it, however somehow it stuck in Logan’s head despite his indifference. Especially the night when Haru was reading him a letter.

 

Flashback…

 

“Logan, listen to this: Ami finally got it out of Aria that Mason had not only sold most things from his shop, but even some floor and ceiling boards. The only reason we found out was when she was buying new supplies at my store. (Terrible for her, great business for me). 

When Vivi found out, she demanded that we figure out how to help the newest resident. With enough scraping from abandoned places we managed to makeshift a home for her. It was hideous but she cried in happiness nonetheless. 

 

I gotta say, she is quickly becoming one of my favorite people. She’s shy, helpful and overall a nice change of pace from people like Elsie. (Don’t kill me for not adoring her like you do).  We hope after everything settles she does manage to stay; we need good people like her in Sandrock. Yours Truly Arvio” 

 

“So drivel as usual?” Logan snorted.

 

“Not drivel” Haru huffed. “Arvio is keeping an eye out on the town, is that such harm?”

 

“You mean keeping an eye on Elsie”

 

“Shut up” Haru stuttered. “What I mean is that this girl, Aria is gonna be a fixture of town. That’s good right? When everything gets resolved we’ll have a good builder to fix everything in town.” He grinned.

 

Logan rolled his eyes before patting the younger man’s head. “Sure kid. Imma go take a ride”

 

End Flashback..

 

It was that night that curiosity got the best of him and he had taken a trip to Mason’s old abode. It looked different; machines were dusted off and a shiny water tank had been upgraded. The two recyclers were running on whatever the builder had put in. And the Builder herself was sitting on a bench swing taking in the night. 

 

She looked a lot different then when he had last seen her. Her hair was long and wild, a few curls not sitting in the proper place. Her skin was tanner, with pink sunburn clear on her cheeks. She was wearing ratty pajamas consisting of an old Flying team from Highwind and possibly no bottoms based on how she sat crossed on the swing.

 

Nothing special except for one thing that caught his eye. A smile. Her shoulders were slumped as she looked up staring at the night sky and just smiling before she closed them. It was like she was taking in the desert beauty that many failed to see. She had made herself at home; that much was clear from the decorations, painted walls and a cup of tea sitting beside her. It was not until then that he realized he himself had been smiling. 

 

However, the moment immediately went away as he saw her tense up and sit up straight. He swore she had almost seen him as she got up and grabbed her daggers that he had completely missed at the end of the swinging bench.

 

“Don’t even think about it, you hear me!” She called out voice strong. “I have weapons and you will regret coming to my property!”  

 

As she had switched to boots and jumped the fence to defend herself he found Rambo pulling him along further away, but if Logan was honest he was fascinated. The little lady actually hopped the fence and was ready to attack him. He cracked a grin. She was definitely a spitfire. 

 

The thorny jumper had won her over and slowly when she thought she was safe was when he saw the gentler her. Her shoulders had slumped, she let out a giggle of relief and scolded herself for being jumpy. Once she rushed into the safety of her home did he feel the urge to move.

 

“Aria” he murmured amused at her reaction. Curious little thing.

…

Three swift knocks on her door woke up a confused and disoriented Aria. She stumbled out of bed and opened the door, not caring about how much of a mess she looked. There, in front of her, like a ray of sunshine was Amirah looking giddy - a new expression if Aria was honest.

 

“Wha-” 

 

“How are you not up?! You must get ready” the older girl said, walking in and making her way to her bedroom. 

 

“Ready? Ready for what?” Aria followed, rubbing her eyes as she took in Amirah filtering through her clothes trying to find her something for the day.

 

“Today Pablo is returning to Sandrock” Amirah smiled.

 

“Pablo?” Aria repeated, confused but just walked to her kitchen to make herself a coffee. Her brain was not computing what Amirah was going on about.

 

“Yes Pablo!” Amirah grinned as she walked out of Aria’s bedroom and put a change of clothes on the couch. “He, Heidi and I are the bestest of friends. He went off on his adventure for inspiration about two months before you came to Sandrock. But now that he’s back I want us to meet, have lunch and he can properly meet you!” 

 

“Is that why you had me do some satchels for you yesterday evening?” she asked as she sighed in relief as the coffee was beginning to hit her system. 

 

“Yes!” Amirah hummed softly. “I just know that he’ll like you a lot” 

 

Aria smiled softly. Amirah was the closest person to her in this new town and she asked for very little. If this meant a lot to her, then  it would mean a lot to Aria too. Finishing up her coffee she took a deep breath and just began to change her clothes. 

 

Sliding her top off, she began to change, making note that Amirah chose not just everyday clothes but clothes imported from Portia. Sliding on the light sundress and tight shorts under her dress (the winds tended to be strong in the mornings). With strappy sandals and a few earrings, she slid her hair up.

 

Amirah was trying to not rush her and Aria did not want to make her wait too long. “Let me wash my face but give me the low down”

 

She grinned.

 

“Okay, so Pablo will be here in about an hour? Heidi isn’t free until 3pm, but we’ll all regroup at the Blue Saloon to properly catch up. You and I, we’re going to meet him at the train station. I need to give him the key back for the salon and we’ll catch up there.”

 

Aria made a noise of agreement, wiping her face and grabbing her keys.

 

“Okay Amirah, I will take the day and be all yours” She grinned.

 

She clapped her hands and glee and soon the girls were off. A short walk to the train station they waited patiently for the revered stylist to arrive. 

 

…

 

She had no idea how she got here; Pablo had kept staring at her with a serious expression before Aria finally just asked ‘ Is there something wrong?’ . That small question had her now sitting on his newly wiped salon chair as she studied her hair. Amirah meanwhile was admiring her fresh haircut and going through the pictures that Pablo had brought for his catalogue. 

 

“Now when's the last time you’ve received a cut” Pablo hummed as he untied her hair to inspect it.

 

“Um….my Ma cut it about two years ago?” she replied confused. 

 

The startled gasp from Amirah and Pablo’s sheer disdain made her cheeks reddened. If she was honest, her hair was the last thing that took priority to her. When she started school, she had chopped her hair under her ears making sure she was good to go. But since then, she just let it grow and once she became a builder, her hair had gotten longer and it was more of a nuisance. 

 

“It’s not bad, just heavily neglected” Pablo tsked admiring the ends. 

 

“It looks good long,” Amirah commented. 

 

“Yes, the ends are very damaged.” Pablo frowned. “What do you want to do?”

 

“Honestly, do what you want” she shrugged. “I don’t really care about it.”

 

Amirah ooo’d in glee at the freedom that Pablo had been given. His haze eyes brightened at the chance to do his magic and with one smile, he turned her away from the mirror.

 

“I like you” he grinned, making her blush before he immediately began to cut. 

 

As much as she said she did not care, she found herself gripping the chair tightly as he began to cut. Her once flat hair soon began to fall all around her; her vision soon blocked and a second later she had a bang. Slowly layers began to fall around her and leaning forward, she smiled seeing her new hairstyle. 

 

She had a long side bang to her left side, and small braids down her sides, before she saw her hair, now wavy was layered to give her more volume. She smiled brighter as Pablo fluffed her hair, she could not help but feel pretty. 

 

“Oh darling you are more than pretty” Pablo leaned against her and grinned. 

 

It was then she realised she had said it aloud and giggled. 

 

“Thank you Pablo, I-I will definitely make sure to take care of it” she leaned forward and touched her hair. 

 

“Heidi is going to demand you help her,” Amirah giggled. 

 

Soon they were off.

 

…

Hugs and kisses were shared once they met with Heidi and they all were excited to catch up. Owen immediately went to serve them, and a glint arose in Pablo’s eyes. 

 

“Ooo, so let me get this straight, everyone was waiting for Aria and I to meet? Ami, darling things must be getting pretty serious if this meant a great deal for you.”

 

Aria blushed seeing Owen’s blush, while Amirah rolled her eyes, already used to the teasing. 

 

“Oh Pablo, if only I had half of your wit” 

 

“As do I! Were it so, you'd still have the second sharpest tongue in Sandrock...Owen don’t you think Aria and Amirah would make a wonderful couple?” 

 

Owen sputtered especially as he took the two of the girls sitting together looking amused. Amirah tried to look unphased and Aria simply smiled sweetly.He was not sure what to do with his hands, especially as he had poured the drinks all around.

 

“W-well yes, they’re both lovely, as are all of you” he complimented. 

 

“Thank you Owen” Amirah said sincerely. 

 

‘Run’ Aria mouthed and Owen took the hint and took off. 

 

“So I see some things have not changed?” Pablo murmured seeing Owen rush off.

 

“Why the third degree, Pablo? Sounds like someone's jealous...!” Heidi teased.

 

“Couldn't tell you. I've never had to be jealous.” He swept his hands in a fashionable way before sipping his drink.

 

“Well, I just wanted to let you both know that one, Pablo, honey, I missed you and two, Heidi, thank you for always being there even when busy.” Amirah smiled before placing boxes in front of the pair. “It's a small teacup, handmade, as you might expect. Look, I engraved your names on them too. Aria helped me create the Fragrant Satchels, so you'll always be able to enjoy a pleasant aroma that should pair nicely with any tea leaf…”

 

Pablo admired it from every angle before smiling. Despite the smirk, the shine in his eye was very genuine “Very personal, I approve.” He turned to smile at Aria. “You must join us for tea when we host it.  If not only for your charm, because I've grown weary of these two beauties... give me something new to look at!”

 

Heidi snorted. 

 

“Right back at ya, sunshine…” Heidi rolled her eyes. “But I have to say, Aria your hair is gorgeous.”

“Yes, do please join us more often. I feel like you'd be a suitable member for our tea party. Pablo, as he mentioned, is the leader, Heidi and I are his knights, and together we call ourselves-”

 

"The Fleeting Youth Tea Society." they all said in unison.

 

“Fleeting, as in "swift." We are all that remains of the vibrant artistic Sandrock scene that once was... so it goes without saying we're always on the lookout for new members.”

 

Aria giggled as they depressed their group.

 

“I’d love to join” she exclaimed smiling.

 

“So charming positive! But we already have "the nice one;" that role is fulfilled by none other than our alliterative architect, Ms. Heidi... Nevermind that, we'll play it by ear. Good find, Ms. Amirah!”

 

Amirah fake gasped. “Why, Pablo, can it be? Are you starting to trust my judgement?”

 

 ”First thing. There's nothing in the rules book that says we can't have two "nice ones...! Also, I’ve never been the nice one.”

 

“Really?” Pablo lifted his brow.

 

“She’s been nothing but a bully to Aria” Amirah teased. 

 

“You know it. But great! Well, today's on me then. I've always wanted to celebrate a new member!”

 

Amirah frowned. It was not a secret that Heidi was the wealthiest amongst everyone.

 

“Heidi... you can't keep doing this…”

 

Pablo waved Amirah off.

 

“Come on, Ami. Who are we to turn down our big fancy architect's kind offer? Quickly now, a toast before she changes her mind!”

 

“Toast what? This is child’s play” Heidi swirled her alcoholic drink before sipping. “Alright, alright. Well, to our success!”

 

Pablo huffed. “Success? Tch... come now, that's a given... Let's toast to something better!”

 

Amirah turned to face Aria.

 

“Aria, as our newest member, why don't you make a toast?”

 

“How would she know what we’d want to toast for?” Pablo whined.

 

“Pablo!” Both women exclaimed. 

 

Aria took a sip of her drink before smiling teasingly.

“Well…we should toast to…Friendship..”

 

“Aww” Heidi cooed but Aria continued.

 

“To Love” she winked at Amirah who laughed.

 

“Oooh, to love!” 

 

“And” Aria added in a sing-song tone. “To gossip about everyone and everything!”

 

“Ohhh I really like you” Pablo laughed.

 

…

 

Slowly the drinks came pouring in and soon everyone relaxed more.

 

“...You're just going to leave it there?” Heidi exclaimed disappointed.

 

Amirah pouted.

 

“Surely your story isn't over…”

 

Pablo smiled.

 

“When it comes to my own tea, I prefer sipping to spilling…”

 

Heidi whined. “Oh come on, now! Just a hint!”

 

Pablo shook his head.

 

“What happens in Walnut Groove, stays in Walnut Groove, my darlings…”

 

…

“What! She didn't!” 

 

“She did.”

 

”She wouldn't!”

“She would.

“Goodness…!”

 

“I thought she was a nun!”

 

“She was… ”

 

Aria’s eyes widened.

 

…

 

“ Soo” Pablo began with a smile that had lost his bite a few cups ago. “Little Builder…when you spoke about love…And who, dare say, is on your mind?”

 

“Hmm?” Aria’s eyes were hazy as she stared at everyone, deep in cups at this point.

 

“Is there anyone who you have the hots for?” Heidi smirked. 

 

“No” Aria’s eyes widened as she slowly sobered up. “I mean…there are a lot of people to look at” she giggled. “But I…I haven’t had the time.”

“Time? Time?! Darling you have to make time” Pablo exclaimed.

 

“Well” Amirah smiled. “We know what you do like?”

 

“Oh?”

 

Aria blushed. 

 

“I mean-yeah.” she shrugged. “I like tall guys…I guess.”

 

“Very tall” Heidi muttered.

 

“And light eyes” 

 

“Blue” Amirah smirked behind her wine. 

 

“I don’t really care about hair to be honest.” she shrugged.

 

“She’s partial to white hair,” Heidi added with Amirah giggling. 

 

“Oh? Seems like there is a specific person.”

 

Aria huffed. “Just because I said Logan was hot does not mean that he’s the only one I think about!”

 

“There’s more than one?” Pablo grinned.

 

Aria felt herself deflate. 

 

“He’s just hot, that’s it, I don’t know him, never met him.”

 

“Liar” Heidi coughed. 

 

“What?!” Pablo exclaimed excitedly by the gossip. 

 

“Fine, I met him but I never talked to him or anything”

 

“No, he just saw you in your underwear” Amirah smirked. 

 

“I had to run out! Justice and Unsuur were running about” 

 

“So they also saw you in your underwear?” 

 

“I was wearing boxers” she was embarrassed.

 

“Whose?”

 

“Mine!” 

 

“So…you like bad boys” Pablo laughed.

 

Aria covered her face and groaned. The drinks made her not as sharp as she would have liked. Still, she leaned into Amirah as she hugged her. 

 

“We’re only teasing” Heidi patted her hand. 

 

“I like you” Pablo said smiling. “Another round on me!”

 

“Last round” Amirah corrected. 

 

“You’re not fun” Pablo huffed. 

 

…

The night ended above Pablo’s salon as they were now attempting to sober up (and failing miserably). While he had the plushiest couches, they all were on a fur carpet with blankets all giggling over their shared preferences in partners.

 

“Okay, so I do like muscles but it's not the most important,” Amirah slurred.

 

“So not Pen” Aria whispered.

 

“Ew no! Ugh he is so gross. I like…kind eyes, a gentle giant if you will. Who understands that my first love will always be my pottery.”

 

They all nodded.

 

“Here here” Pablo lifted his glass of wine. He refused to slow down, after all he was home. “Do you think Owen is ever going to make that move”

 

If Amirah was sober she would have ignored hit, however this was not the moment and she sighed. 

 

“No…I wish he would though” she frowned. “I don't know how much more I can just pretend to ignore this…feel I have”

 

“Sexual tension?” Heidi asked smiling.

 

“Yes” she huffed. “He’s so handsome, kind, responsible and I just…want him to make the move.”

 

“He will” Aria smiled. 

 

“You?” Pablo shifted to Heidi.

 

“I’m currently having a fling in Portia” Heidi smirked before drinking her wine. 

 

“What?!” they all said.

 

“Seriously?” Aria’s eyes widened. 

 

“Mhm…there’s this guy in Portia. Gust. He was so uptight, so annoying so I just pinned him down and…well he’s good about knowing whose in charge” 

 

“I met him, he is a hot one, very snooty, I approve” 

 

The glint in her eye and her satisfied smile made Aria know that she was not kidding. She could not help but be impressed by her dominance. 

 

“I think my cousin spoke to him” Aria slurred clicking her fingers. “He never said he was handsome…I’m going to ask Ginger”

 

“Wait…Sebastian is your cousin?” Heidi asked “Handsome Sebastian?”

 

“He’s the one that sent me this sundress” Aria giggled. 

 

“He does have a taste in fashion,” Amira murmured.

 

“Wait, I remember him!” Pablo exclaimed. “ He is handsome. I tried to flirt with him and he definitely did not mind it but he said he had a girlfriend. Ugh”

 

Aria laughed.

 

“Yeah, he’s a charmer” she shrugged. “I’m going to visit him for winter” 

 

“You must bring us some fabrics” Pablo murmured.

 

“Oh I will” she nodded.

 

“So apart from this Gust rearranging your guts, is there someone here?”

 

Heidi thought about it. 

 

“I wouldn’t mind Justice or Qi.”

 

“Justice I get, but Qi?” Pablo wrinkled his nose.

 

“I get it” Aria murmured. “There’s something about him…he did not like you teasing him about the Gungam robot” she smiled. “I like how disheveled he looks”

 

“You get it” Heidi smiled.

 

“Now Aria, we know you like Logan, but he’s a lost cause” he waved off Amirah’s huffs of him being rude. “But what’s your love story?”

 

“No one” Aria smiled embarrassed. “Nia, my best friend growing up…she was the catch. She’s pretty, extroverted, smart…” she shrugged. “This one guy I had a crush on called her the sun…and he was right.”

 

Melancholy hit her and it was obvious. 

 

“Hey” Pablo’s voice softened. “You’re pretty gorgeous yourself” 

 

Aria laughed and waved him off, ignoring the tears that somehow were rising. 

 

“I’m not in a pity party, I’m just drunk” she laughed and whined as Heidi came over to hug her too. “Honestly, leaving Highwind was the best thing I did. I get to be my own person here…I get to be seen and I-I get to be myself.”

 

“Exactly, and the moon is gorgeous in their own right” Pablo’s voice seemed to have some sweetness. “They bring peace, they tend to be kind, and they highlight the stars.”

 

“I’m pretty sure the sun is a star” Amirah murmured.

 

“Shut up” Pablo stuck his tongue out. 

 

Aria laughed and wiped her tears. “Look I might have a chance here, you gave me a haircut and I feel pretty” she smiled. And I mean almost everyone is hot, I have a chance”

 

“Please” Amirah rolled her eyes. “Arvio has a crush on you.”

 

“He does not” Aria laughed. 

 

“He does…sorry Pablo” Amirah smiled.

 

Pablo rolled his eyes.

 

“I already told you, as cute as he is, he is not mature for me to even consider.”

 

“We’d be family” Amirah whined.

 

“We are family...who maybe need to stop drinking,” Pablo lifted his brow as Heidi spilled some wine on his carpet.

 

“I should go” Aria murmured, stumbling to get up. 

 

“You can sleep over you know” Pablo said.

 

“Yeah you can spoon with me” Amirah called out already curling up.

 

Aria shook her head. “No, I need to make sure that I try to start tomorrow morning. Catori is pushing me about this project I gotta finish.”

 

“I hate her” Heidi murmured. 

 

Aria laughed and hugged them all goodbye. With a kiss on the cheek from Pablo, she was off stumbling back to her home. She leaned against a few buildings closing her eyes along the way before hitting the main street. 

 

Sandrock was already dead. It was almost 2am, and while she was tempted to knock on Owen’s door to help her she didn’t have the bravery. Her legs were also so cold; the sundress that was once a relief to wear in the daytime was now very cold on her legs.

 

One cold breeze made her close her eyes and just sigh, taking everything in. She was drunker than she had ever been. The wine, mixed with cider, mixed with rum and more wine made her foggy.

 

But she was not looking at her surroundings, instead she looked up at the moon and really taking it in. It was gorgeous and big and bright and she smiled thinking about what Pablo said. She was not the sun; she wasn’t extroverted, open and honest. She was the moon, gentle, a little cold and introverted. And she was fine with it. 

 

It was when she was looking that she failed to notice the train track, making her trip and stumble down. She huffed embarrassed but unable to feel pain due to her drinks. It was hard to get up, but she tensed as she felt hands on her. Firm, strong hands that lifted her up like it was nothing. 

 

As she murmured a thank you, she managed to grab their arms, only to lift her gaze to take in the man who rescued her. Her cheeks reddened immediately as she noticed that it was not just anyone. 

 

“Logan” she murmured softly. 

 

“You alright doll” he murmured amused as he noticed she was drunk.

 

“You shouldn’t be here” she slurred, a bit put out that he was not afraid of her. But not upset that he had not let her go. 

 

“And you shouldn’t be out and about at 2 in the morning” he retorted. “Especially not tripping over tracks in a girly dress.”

 

She frowned and tilted her head. “I thought this dress was pretty” 

 

“It looks mighty alright. Now how about we get you home hm?”

 

“I can get there myself” she huffed.

 

“You can, but what kind of gentleman would I be if I didn’t walk you home.” 

 

He slid his hands from her shoulders to her hand and gently pulled her along. She followed confused at the gentleness of his grip. 

 

“Were you spying on me?” she asked.

 

He chuckled. “Not necessarily, got lucky I guess” 

 

They walked in silence, her grip tight against his hand wondering how her dream had come true. But it was true. He was there right in front of her and while a bit blurry he was as handsome as ever. 

“You’re really handsome,” she whispered.

 

She swore she saw his cheeks reddened and she felt her confidence grow at how he took her compliment.

 

“Thank you” He drawled out. “Now here we are” he said tugging her towards the home.

 

Before he could let go of her hand, something about the interaction made her feel brave. So she moved closer and took him in. His eyes were so pretty and she tilted her head smiling softly..

 

…

 

“Would you kiss me?” 

 

This was not what he was expecting when he was walking through the town. He had done his usual rounds around town making sure that everything was safe. He swore he was about to leave but something told him to look into the little Builder’s home. But as he noticed the lights were out, he grew curious about where she would be. It was late, but at this time she would have been reading under a light curled on her couch. 

 

So as he found her inebriated he knew he had to get her home. It was clear she had a good time and while Sandrock could be safe, it was not safe enough for him to feel comfortable and letting her go home alone. Her stumble was enough to reinforce that. 

 

But her asking him to kiss her, so gently and so softly, something in him snapped. Logan could think of a thousand reasons why kissing the builder was a terrible idea. But he never said he was a good man. 

 

“Say please” he murmured teasing as he leaned down. 

 

“Please?”

Chapter 9: Desire

Summary:

What saying please can bring you...and what being oblivious can make you miss.

A Desert Rose
Chapter 9 : Desire

She should have been embarrassed. But for some reason she wasn’t; maybe it was her curiosity to see what he’d do, or maybe it was the alcohol in her system but she meant it. She wanted to be kissed; she wanted him to pull her closer to just overwhelm her more than he already had. She felt her cheeks redden and her heart speed up when she realised something:

He hadn’t pushed her away. He had not laughed or shown any disgust. There was no motion to hurt her. Instead he looked at her with an intensity that made something inside her clench and made her shiver.

Her lips parted, about to say his name, tell him she was kidding and to forget about it until he actually spoke. His voice was low, tight and so attractive.

“Say please”

The gruffness in his tone made her move closer.

‘Why was he so tall?’ she whined. ‘And strong…and smelled nice.’

If she had any self respect she would have pushed him down, tried to pin him and take him straight to jail.

“Please” she whispered, before she even considered the consequences.

She had only seconds to be mortified until she felt him act. His hands moved from her shoulders down her back and pulled her closer to him. His large hands felt comforting and found a place on her tailbone and she herself acted on impulse. Her hands moved to his chest and she leaned up, eager to be engulfed. And she was. His lips eagerly met hers and she felt her toes curl.

‘Kissing is very nice’ she could not help but think.

…

Logan knew that he should have never felt tempted. But she looked so…vulnerable, yearning for him. And he should have truly denied it all, pushed her, scared her or something. She was not someone he should have been distracted by. But when he’d seen her fight: her grit, demeanour and just caring of his town made him look at her differently.

And while initially he wanted just one taste, her full lips and reaction to his simple kiss made him know she liked it too. A moan made him snap. In a flash, Logan lifted her and sat her on her fence. He took her in for only a second; she was flushed and panting, and the dress made her breasts peeking over enticingly. He pressed his knee between her legs, pinning them to straddle him more comfortably.

“Gorgeous” he murmured softly before pulling her head firmly towards him and covering her mouth with his. He felt her tongue lick the seam of his lips and he did the same, groaning at the sweetness of her mouth. His mouth moved over hers, his own head feeling fuzzy, upset that he could not hold his breath longer. She moaned again as his hands squeezed her rear and he wanted to be closer to him.

“She’s so soft’

So soft. He grunted as his hands slid from her tailbone to her thigh, the plushness of her body made him want to just devour her. He loved her fullness, feeling her muscles under it tense as she slid her hands up to grip his hair and pull him between her legs to get a better angle. When she squeezed her thighs around him, he rolled his hips earning him a whine.

‘She’s drunk’ his brain supplied after a while.

And he had to stop. He was many things but he would never take advantage of Aria or anyone in this state. He ignored the whining noise she made as he stopped. She tugged at his hair in a way that made him buck.

“Stop” he grunted and pushed himself off of her. “You’re drunk”

“I am” she murmured, her eyes shining, staring at him with a need that made him need to readjust himself. Then she yawned. “That was nice”

He cracked a grin. “It really was,” he murmured as he lifted her off the gate and settled her down.

Despite himself, he walked her to her door and stood there as she struggled to get in. Once she unlocked the door, he gently let her in, even turning away as she tugged off her dress to get ready for bed. He took a quick look around her place, finding the mismatched furniture and pictures looking homey.

“Are you decent?” he called out as he no longer heard her struggling.

“Mhm” she murmured softly.

“Good, Imma head out”

“Okay” she was half asleep but still managed to lean up and tug his head down so she could kiss his cheek. He bit back a grin, especially as she pulled back and walked straight to bed. Once she shuffled under the covers, she was out like a light.

Logan chuckled and gently closed the door behind him. This was not what he was expecting when he was supervising the town, but he was not complaining either.

…

Next Morning…

‘My head hurts’ was her first thought that morning.

She didn’t even want to open her eyes as she already felt her head pounding. Aria groaned and stretched lazily on her mattress not wanting to admit to herself she was awake. Still, she let out a lazy smile. Her body seemed to just want to vegetate a little longer.

As she laid down, eyes still closed she went over how yesterday went. Pablo was definitely an interesting person. Her first impression was that he was brash, blunt and a bit spiteful. And while all that was true, she also saw that there was a touch of care in his bite and a teasing tone to the comments. Then she was bantering alongside him, giggling and entranced by the stories and gossip about the neighbouring towns. She still was shocked about the story about the nun.

Being in the “Fleeting Youth Tea Society” she saw a new side of her friends. Amirah for example was completely different when with Pablo. Being with her, she tended to act as an older sister, always caring for her, making sure she was safe and fed. But in this meeting, she was relaxed, teasing Pablo and softening his critiques with a sly smile or a hug. Heidi in turn was always so kind but direct, resourceful and dry with her humour; in this outing she was brash, honest and lax about her sexual history. She lived by the ‘work hard/ play hard’ mentality. And seeing them drunk, fumbling over one another and just having fun was so much nicer to see. After all, they were her favourite people.

Sure Mi-an and Elsie were fun and young and closer to her age, but they were not in the same mentality. Aria cared little for spending her money at Catori’s or spending long horse rides in the sunset with the pair. The pair did not understand her like Heidi or Amirah. Aria liked how Heidi and Amirah were centred, down to earth and funny. She liked the feeling of being young but understood by people who knew who they were.

Her memory was a bit blurry near the end of the night. She remembered crying and no memory of how she got home. Shrugging she crawled out of bed and immediately filled her tub with the spare water she had. Dipping into the hot water made her sigh in relief. She wanted to just lay there but she knew that there was a lot that she needed to do today.

Today she would finish the water tower; a build that had been such a struggle and expensive. She had taken a few dives in different mining caves to ensure she had enough raw materials to create the bars she needed. She had upgraded her furnaces, processors and grinders to meet with the demand that this place was giving her. That had really taken a dent into her savings. This had been her biggest build yet, not in terms of size, but more so the importance of it. Without water the town would force people to leave and she could not live with herself if she failed.

The parts in this build had forced her to actually take the materials to the water tower locations. She had borrowed a yakmel from Elsie and Aria had to admit that she had grown a soft spot for it. It was cute, blue and had such a gentle demeanour. The only problem was her price; 25k gols would ruin her if she bought the yakmel now, but she was determined to purchase her.

Jumping out of the tub, she washed her face thoroughly and got ready for the day. A comfortable t-shirt and a skort was enough for her to get ready for the day and the heavy boots would protect her feet from the heat. Opening the door, she saw the cute Yakmel waiting for her.

“Morning Moonbeam” she patted the yakmel in greeting. She grinned at the little moo as a reaction and with a few tools in her bags on the sides and raw materials she was off to town.

The sky was burning her eyes, but she knew that it would not get better. Finishing the tower could not wait a day, especially as the water prices kept skyrocketing. Hopping off, she clipped the hooks on her boots and she was climbing the tower frame she'd placed two days prior, and began to hammer in the filter. It had taken three hours, but once she finished the water tank she felt a sigh of relief. Mi-an had joined her shortly after and she finished her last bit.

She smiled brightly at Mi-an, excited at the fact that they’d be okay. The girl danced around on the ground in glee, before assisting Aria down the tower. Aria’s glee grew more demure when she saw Matilda, to hold more grace, and completely disappeared as she saw Yan.

“You Builders did a mighty fine job once again! Just in time, too! I believe our next shipment of water is scheduled to arrive tomorrow! Our town owes you two our gratitude.” Matilda clapped her hands.

Yan rolled his eyes at their praises from Matilda and Aria felt like slugging him. Still the older women paid no heed and continued to compliment the pair.

“Commissioner, you really ought to handsomely reward these Builders for their efforts.”

Yan jumped once Matilda looked at him and nodded.

“R-right, I'll add that to the tab as well.”

With that, she felt weight off of her shoulders; the water shipment meant that the prices would go down and the town was safe once more. For a brief second while taking in the tower, she felt a flash of last night. With blue eyes that stared at her intently. She flushed, wondering what brought him on.

‘Maybe it was the Logan conversation from last night?’ she thought.

“We need to get you out of the sun! You are turning red!” Mi-an said with a concern that made her flush all the more.

“Y-yeah, maybe you’re right” she shrugged, thankful for the excuse.

“C’mon let’s get something to eat, on me!” With that Mi-an grabbed her hand and tugged her along.

…

Few Days Later…

One of Aria’s favourite things to do was to feed the strays; on slow days where she wasn’t doing giant builds, she’d spend time putting fish on the racks to make sure she had dried fish to hand out. She was not a fan of seafood, however, knowing how many cats there were in town, she made the sacrifice.

This afternoon for example, Banjo caught her attention, playing with a balled up piece of paper. Smiling, she bent down and handed the greedy little cat a dried Sandacuda. She petted him as he purred and walked on his merry way. Sighing, she picked up the trash left behind and was continuing on her way until Ernest popped out of nowhere running her way.

Ernest was not someone she saw often. The last time she had seen him was when he asked her questions about Logan, which she answered, with lots of limited information. He had mentioned that he was interested in staying and writing about Logan. Much like her, he grew curious about the outlaw of the town. From what she knew about him, he seemed a little…posh. Amirah had said he tended to buy her pottery for his sister and would spend money like nothing.

‘Must be nice’ she thought with amusement.

“Aria” he exclaimed. “That ball of paper… Can I… have a look? I think it might be mine.”

“Hi Ernest” she greeted with a sweet smile before handing him the balled up piece of paper with little push. “Did Banjo steal it from you?”

He looked a bit embarrassed but shook his head.

“Haha… no, I didn’t mean to litter, I’m sorry. I… “dropped” it out of my window in a fit of frustration earlier.”

She smiled softly, nodding.

“We all have those moments…I know I do when I’m doing my diagrams and they don’t turn out how I want. I just wouldn’t litter. You don’t want to be on Matilda’s bad side”

He let out a laugh, unexpected and utterly imperfect. She didn’t think she was particularly funny, but hearing him laugh made her warm. He was awfully pretty to have such an enthusiastic laugh

“Thank you. And you’re absolutely right. I’m too new to have an enemy here” he unballed the piece of people and gave her a shy smile. “It suddenly occurred to me that I’d written a particularly beautiful sentence on this piece. Haha, I’m sure it seems strange, to rifle through trash finding a single sentence.” He paused embarrassed. “But to a writer, inspiration comes at but a moment’s notice. But I couldn’t remember what it was I wrote…”

Looking down at his notes, he began to read what he had jotted on the scrap piece of paper.

“Let me see… "Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate…"

Aria felt her cheeks warm at the change of his tone. It was soft, genuine and kind of romantic if she was perfectly honest. She had never had someone be so open about poetry and well, whoever he was writing it about…she was lucky. He frowned after re-reading his piece.

“No… that’s awful… no one would remember that. What was I thinking?” He huffed, before continuing. “The stars glisten with the light of a thousand lives, a diamond, an oath, a promise…” He paused mulling over the second piece. “This sentence… what do you think?”

Her cheeks reddened considerably as she remembered Pablo’s comments about how she resembled the night. She knew the poem was not about her, but to think someone wrote that kind of love, that kind of beauty…she found it so-

“It’s really romantic” she murmured, embarrassed once his green eyes took an interested look at her comment. “I am partial to comparisons of night over any summer day. Lots of people express the warmth of the sun however the moon, the night specifically-”

“You understand! The night is oftentimes forgotten due to the constant romances of the sun. Diamonds and stars. Had they eyes, they would have witnessed the greatest of romance. Isn’t it a lovely thought?”

“Really lovely” she smiled softly.

“Thank you” He replied, his tone softer too.

She did not know the sudden lowered volume of the pair, but they fell into a comfortable silence. Aria was not good at flirting, never was, but the way he looked at her, as if properly noticing her for the first time made her stomach flutter. He tilted his head taking her in before a small smile rose from his face.

“You’re more than just a Builder…do I see an artist behind those pretty brown eyes of yours?”

She flushed further.

“No,” she laughed softly. “I-I like to write, but mostly letters or journaling. Nothing like the lovely prose of romance as you do.” she waved her hands back and forth embarrassed. And ignoring his comments about her pretty eyes. “I am known to carry a tune, but I do have to be pretty inebriated to do it.”

“Now wouldn’t that be a sight to see” he teased.

His voice still had that warm timber that made her thigh tighten and she knew she needed to change the conversation.

“Is this for your book?”

He huffed and shook his head.

“No, unfortunately not. This is for a new job, I’m writing a column for the Tumbleweed Standard.”

“That’s great!”

“Eh” he shook his head. “Since coming to Sandrock I’ve… “ he paused, displeased at his next sentence. “almost spent all of my savings. As a writer, I don’t have much of an income before release. So in order to stay here writing, I need an income to supplement my daily expenses. And I… I can’t just ask my family for more money.” he chuckled before taking a step forward and gently taking her small hand in his.

“So, my wondrous, amazing, kind Builder… I have a request. For the sake of helping those in dire straits, eating nothing but the “specials” at the Blue Moon… could I ask you for a discount next time I need your services?”

Her eyes widened at how he invaded her space. It was not intimidating necessarily. (She briefly got a flash of someone taller and stockier in her presence that made her shiver in something that was definitely not fear.) But her stomach tightened in a sense of embarrassment and disappointment at realising that he was likely flirting to get a cheap rate out of her. It made her feel kind of gross, and it must have shown in her face as he frowned.

“I-I am so sorry. Did I offend you?” his voice sounded sincere. “I was merely joking. I take your job seriously, you’re fantastic at what you do. I would never flirt…if not intended” He pondered for a moment before gently smiling. “How about a poem?”

“A poem?” she repeated.

“A poem, it will belong to you. You own it, totally non-fungible. Even if my sister sings it… well, she’ll have to pay you royalties! How about that, does it sound like a good idea? As an apology.”

Her eyes brightened; he did have a way with words. And who was she to say no, when she could get someone to think about her, write something for her.

“Oh ho! Is that a blush I see on your cheeks? You’re cute, you know that?”

She waved him off covering her cheeks horrified at how she fell for him again. She was way too tightly wound today.

“Okay, I’ll stop” he chuckled before taking a strand of her hair and sliding it behind her ear. “I need to finish this column. But thanks Aria for spending time with me and saving these lines.”

She smiled softly and waved, a little dizzy from how quickly everything ended.

…

“Let me get this straight -” Heidi began and grinned. “The cute blond writer told you he would write you a poem and you didn’t just tell him to take you to his apartment?!”

“Heidi!” Amirah huffed as she put their drinks on her table. “Why should she jump into bed with him when he basically asked for a discount for her services!”

“He was joking!” Heidi huffed.

“But there’s always a truth to a joke” Amirah rolled her eyes. “If he tried doing that to me, I’d throw a pot at his head.”

“Well he didn’t do that to you, he flirted with our sweet Builder, who needs to get laid.” Pablo interjected

Aria blushed brightly and covered her face at how freely Heidi and Pablo talked about her lack of sex life.

“Maybe, but I think Aria can do better.”

“Oh yeah? Like who.”

“Literally anyone that didn’t make that joke.”

“You guys” Aria interrupted their banter with some exasperation. “No one is interested in me.”

“Now I know you’re not that dim,” Pablo scoffed.

“Pablo!” Amirah swatted him.

“He’s right, Aria, honey, you are literally prime beef to the men around here.”

“Shut up Heidi” Aria laughed.

“She’s not joking,” Pablo rolled his eyes. “You’re pretty”

“Young,” Heidi added.

“New” Amirah admitted.

“Naive” Heidi murmured.

“Needing to get laid” Pablo added.

Aria covered her face. “You’re acting like I’m in heat or something!”

“You guy stop,” Amirah huffed taking her hand and comforting. “ She doesn’t want to just sleep with anyone. There’s nothing wrong with that!”

“You’re right, there’s not” Pablo shrugged. “But she could if she wanted to.”

“And when she’s ready she can do that with anyone…” Amirah said diplomatically.

“Except for Owen” Aria whispered.

The three of them turned to look at her in surprise at her humour before they all began to laugh.

…

“Um…are you sure Arvio? I’m pretty sure that it's not her birthday” she tilted her head confused as Arvio looked at her with a look of excitement and nervousness.

She had walked back to the city, tired after assisting Catori in her goal to get more people into her newest investment. However one her way back home, Arvio had pulled her to his shop, sat her down and immediately started chatting.

“Haha! Come now, I'm her brother! Oh, that's right! Maybe you're not familiar with our Barnarock traditions…You see, a while back, we all got together and thought, "One birthday per year is good, why don't we just make it two?" And thus, the custom of a birthday-plus was born!” He rubbed the back of his neck and grinned sheepishly. “You just take the original birthday, add three months, divide by the letters in their name, then... ah... carry the two, and, well, the important thing is: it's right around the corner!”

It was clear that Aria was not buying it. Her face must have said enough as he deflated and sighed, sitting back down and looking at her in a way that confused her but fluttered her stomach.

“Are you trying to find an excuse to make her feel special?” she asked meekly. “I know she's been working a lot and-”

“Yes!” he interrupted her loudly, making her jump. “She’s been stressed and I guess I want to celebrate with her.” His eyes softened. “She works so hard, always running around and helping everyone. And I feel like she doesn’t think she’s doing anything special, which is crazy!”

She smiled, feeling her heart clench at him speaking so sweetly about Amirah.

“Since we've been doing better than back in Barnarock, I thought we could splurge a bit for the occasion and have a masquerade party! You know? Like the ones written in old books!”

“I think that’s a wonderful idea” she grinned. “It’ll be fun!”

“Have you ever read about them? Everyone wears masks and fancy clothes, then they dance the night away! I've always wanted to try one out in real life.” Aria snorted at his comment. “My costume is still a work in progress... I'm torn between my desire to be mysterious and my need to also stand out! The struggle is quite real. In any case, you simply must come! You'd be the guest of honour!”

“Oh Arvio” she smiled, leaning over to cover his hand with hers and squeezed. “There’s no need for any of that. I would love nothing more than to help you with this task. You and Amirah are like the best people here”

He blushed, enough for the tip of his nose to turn to a cute pink colour. She smiled softly thinking it was so sweet that he cared so much and wanted to do something special for Amirah.

“So this Saturday?” she asked.

“Sounds great!”

“Sounds good Arvio, I gotta go, I desperately need to clean myself up.” she laughed as she tugged her shirt and some sand trailed off of her shoulder. “Sorry”

“No need to apologise! I will clean it up now.”

 

“You’re the best! Bye!”

 

….

That Night…

Aria frowned as she curled on the couch. She didn’t know what compelled her to go back to Logan’s journal. But with everything that had happened the last two weeks, she could not help but shake him off. Something just made him pop into her mind at random times. She wanted to see him. Wanted to talk to him, just to ask him to expand on what she’d heard in the past. Why did he do the damage to the water tower? Why did he abandon the village when they had wanted to help Howlett?

Spring 3

Pa is sick.

I don’t know what happened but no one let me see him.
I begged Matilda to let me see him but she said he was in quarantine.
I asked the doctor Fang to see if he could find something,
but they told me that Pa wanted to stay at Church for the safety of others.

Seems weird, he was never into the Church but maybe he’s right.
He always knows better.
He’s a strong man, he’ll be fine.

 

The hope in his tone, his wishing for things to be better made her heart clench. He didn’t deserve to have lost his only parent in this world. He seemed to have given a shit about the town before the loss of Howlett. She could not help but wonder ‘Would you be the same person if you lost your parents?’ of course not. She frowned thinking about it.

So yes, she had a silly little crush on Logan; big deal, everyone thought he was hot and well… so did she. Yes there were other villagers that were handsome: Ernest, Qi, Fang and even Unsuur sometimes. But none made her even feel the way that Logan had made her feel by just staring at her that morning.

“You do need to get laid” she murmured to herself before putting his journal down.

She had it bad, but something kept nagging at her, something that she seemed to have forgotten and that in itself gave her a headache. There was no use trying to figure it out - it was already 1am and she needed to head to bed - pronto. With that she turned off her gas lamp and was out like the light itself.

…

When she felt his lips pressed against her, it was unlike any kiss she had experienced before. It was heady, passionate, and made her thighs clench by the intensity of it all. She felt herself buckling, but his strong hands had easily lifted her onto the gate. She thrived in just being engulfed by him. She smelled his cologne, a small hint of cigar in his mouth which would have made her flinch, if not for the way he made her feel. He was everything she ever sought out for.

His hair was surprisingly soft, and his big frame made its home in between her legs. His hands were everywhere, on her waist, on her bum, in her hair pulling her closer. Never had she felt this hungry need to simply slip her dress up and just let him take her.

She wanted him, she wanted Logan and she had no shame in showing it by her moans. He groaned into her mouth too, seemingly enjoying it. That was made clear once he pressed himself against her core making her roll her hips in return.

Logan. Logan. Logan.

His name was the only thing in her mind. He was so experienced, and she just followed along, taking in his groans and grunts as yesses. His hands were good, especially as he squeezed her things, but she wanted them in other places. She wanted his hands on her breasts, up his dress and finding her need for him. She had never felt so wild in her life.

“Stop, You’re drunk”

Her eyes immediately opened and she sat up gasping. She covered her mouth immediately, and she closed her eyes, trying to remember the rest of that night. He had kissed her in front of her home, so intensely but did not take advantage of her. (No matter how much her subconscious wanted him to). He had taken her to bed, she had kissed him goodbye and he had left like he hadn’t committed any crime.

That's why she had flashes of him throughout the past weeks. That’s why she felt unfulfilled, yearning for more; he had stopped the best pleasure she had ever experienced in her life.

“Gorgeous”

That’s what he had called her and she flushed. Her toes curling at his memory. She wished she could have been sober enough to deny him stopping. She wanted his skin against hers, his lips in other places all over her skin. She trembled as she slipped off her top, allowing her to close her eyes and just imagine what he could have done, had she stopped drinking earlier. Her small hands weren’t rough the way his were but she repeated his words over and over in her head.

‘Gorgeous’ she was gorgeous and that itself made her pleasure come quicker than she had expected.

Chapter 10: Nia

Summary:

Nia has arrived to Sandrock and she brings some trouble along the way. But Aria was more than thrilled, especially with unwanted confessions.

Notes:

Please let me know what you think? I literally started a new play through to decide what I want to keep and what we can gloss over.

 

A Desert Rose 

Chapter 10: Nia 

“Please?” 

 

He groaned as he pushed the door closed behind them, and immediately pinning her against it. She was so much shorter than him, that he could feel the strain in her neck as she clung to him wishing to be closer. He patted her bum, and that was her only warning before he lifted her up. Aria immediately wrapped her legs around him, squeezing her thighs and groaning aloud as he pressed roughly on her.

 

This time she wasn’t too drunk and she was enthusiastically participating. She lifted her arms over her head as he slipped the dress off of her with minimal struggle. Her hands immediately tugging at his shirt to do the same. His hat? Long thrown somewhere so she could now get more access to his hair. He loved when she tugged his hair.

 

“Do you like this doll?” he murmured before moving down to nip her neck.

 

Her breath hitched and she nodded.

 

“I can’t hear you” he said before licking her neck and sucking, making sure to mark her so others could see.

 

“Yes” she groaned, rocking her hips against his. 

 

“And whose causing you pleasure huh? C’mon dollface don’t be shy”

 

“Logan” she groaned, rocking herself against him just to seek relief.

 

“Damn right” he tugged his belt buckle, cursing as it didn’t come off as quickly as he liked. He wanted to get in her, mark her and let people know she was his.

 

“Logan” 

 

“That’s right”

 

“Oh Logan” 

 

“Say it again”

“LOGAN!” Incessant knocking at his door woke him up from his slumber.

 

“What?!” He yelled back his voice clearly expressing his frustration and embarrassment at seeing the predicament between his legs.

 

“You wanted to meet this morning!” Haru yelled.

 

“Give me 10!” 

 

“Fine!”

 

Groaning Logan peeled off his sheets and went to take a shower, wishing to go back to the dream and finish it. That Builder had gotten under his skin and he could not get her out of his head. He hissed, feeling the cold water in his skin and tried to wash the memories of their interaction from his brain.

 

…

 

Aria! 

 

I heard from the Professor that there was a terrorist attack in Sandrock, something about the water tower being blown up. My heart skipped so many beats when I heard that! I was so, so worried for you! I didn't know you were okay until I read in the "Tumbleweed Standard" that no one was injured!

 

Later, I finally found the courage to tell your Ma about it... I didn't want her to worry. She told me everything's going to be alright, that you're strong. But I could tell beneath that calm demeanour, she was really worried, since this bandit is still out there.

 

I didn't sleep a wink the night I heard the news. I kept having images of the Water Tower burning running through my head. I decided then and there to go to Sandrock and see you with my own eyes to make sure you're okay! I already asked for leave from the botany school and bought a train ticket. If all goes well, I should be there around two days after you get this letter. Can you pick me up from the station? Pretty please?

I'm excited to see you...

 

Your friend forever,

Nia

 

“So…how are we feeling about this again?” Amirah said, handing her some tea.

 

“Excited I guess” Aria murmured before sipping her tea, hissing as the heat hit her tongue.

 

“Yeah…that’s my excited face too” Heidi grinned. 

 

Aria huffed. 

 

“Look…I’m genuinely excited about her visiting I guess. But I…I just wanted to keep Sandrock as my own place. My people…does that make sense?” She looked a bit sheepish.

 

“Absolutely” Amirah jumped in and grabbed her hand. “You are Aria of Highwind, you are important and loved and her visit will show you how much you’ve grown in the last few months.”

 

“Right, and it’s not like we’re going to like her like we like you!” Heidi laughed and shuffled her hair teasingly. “Open your world to her and let her embrace it. It doesn’t matter if she’s here or not, you are a Sandrocker and you are the most important Builder here.”

 

Aria blushed and nodded feeling a lot more relieved. 

 

“I’m picking her up tomorrow at the train station” 

 

“Okay fine - let’s host a dinner for your little friend” Amirah smiled.

 

“Good idea!” 

 

“Thank you” Aria hugged her.

 

…

 

Next Day…

 

At 7am, Aria waited patiently for Nia to arrive. It didn’t take long as the blonde immediately ran over and tackled her down.  She grunted at the impact, but could not help but smile as Nia’s bright laughter erupted.

 

“Sorry! I forget how strong I am” She laughed before pulling both of them up.

 

“Hi Nia” Aria greeted with a gentler hug.

 

Nia held her tighter and squeezed; Aria admitted that she had missed her friend a lot, especially as she felt a little homesick. Pulling back, Nia gripped her shoulders and observed her. 

 

“You look great! You’re so tanned and oh! Your hair is so long. Sandrock is doing you good!” Nia complimented her with a grin. 

 

“I have no complaints,” Aria giggled. 

 

“Good, now walk me to Blue Moon” Nia ordered intertwining her arms around her. 

 

“Yes ma’am”

 

“But seriously I mean that’s good, but what’s this all about bandits! Explosions, Geeglers?! It’s crazy to me how much you’ve experienced in such little time!”

 

“I mean yeah, it’s been crazy but…it’s worth it” she replied. “My friends here actually wanted to host a dinner for you as a welcome to Sandrock tonight!”

 

“Ohh! That’s so sweet!” Nia grinned. “But right now, let’s sit and eat. I am starving”

 

…

 

Aria smiled brightly as they sat down to eat. She knew people immediately noticed Nia- how would they not? She’s blonde and pretty, and her bright grin and dimples immediately caught everyone’s attention. Nia paid no heed, interested in Aria but Aria noticed. Even Owen, stoic and man clearly in love with Amirah was flustered.

 

“Owen what’s this?” Aria asked, smiling softly as he placed two plates in front of them. 

 

“This is on the house - any friend if Aria’s is a friend of mine.” 

 

Aria blushed, even more as Nia “oooo’d” at his sweet words. 

 

“Ari you told me there were attractive people here but not smoke shows!” Nia wiggled her brows as Owen stuttered and walked off clearly flustered. 

 

Nia giggled as Aria swatted her hand. 

 

“Stop” she hissed cheek red. 

 

“I’m only teasing Ari” She smiled and intertwined their hands. “I really did miss making you blush. How’s everything going?” 

 

With that opening, Aria talked. And talked and talked non stop. She spoke about the town structure, the people, the trades occurring, the dangerous things, rumours she heard and essentially everything her brain jumped to. Nia was the only person that Aria was the chattiest too, even now, with the newer friends, she tended to be a little shyer. 

 

“Wow” Nia said after a while. “You definitely have been experiencing a lot for only being here for seven months!” 

 

Aria nodded. 

“It’s definitely a little daunting, but honestly, I like being useful and I like the town”

 

“And the townspeople” Nia murmured eyes trailing to Justice as he walked by. 

 

“That too” Aria giggled. 

 

“Now you’re turn, how’s the internship going?”

“Well…”

…

 

Nia missed Aria a lot more than she even expressed to her young friend. Seeing the brunette run around, waving at people, introducing her with pride made Nia smile brightly. It was clear the people here loved her. From Miss Vivi at the clothing shop giving her an update on her winter garb, to the Mayor praising the new desk she’d built her, the town was enamoured with her builder. 

 

The blonde also noticed the lingering stares, not just on her being the new girl, but on Aria who seemed oblivious to it all. Her introverted friend ignored the way the writer teased her about the poem he was still writing her, and instead simply waved him off with a shy smile. Or how the water guy gave her a discount and offered to deliver it to her home tomorrow. 

 

She was so naive of what power she would yield if only she flirted back. She didn’t need to mean it, but Aria was just not like that, as much as it disappointed Nia. 

 

“Here you are” Amirah stated placing the food down with gusto. “Tomato rice, with barbeque brisket, salad and roasted potatoes for our esteemed guests tonight!” 

 

“Oh Amirah this looks lovely, thank you” Aria said with a gentle smile.

 

“Of course!” Amirah placed her hand on Aria’s head like a big sister, where Nia got a flash of jealousy before the gorgeous woman looked over at Nia. “A childhood friend of yours, is a new friend of ours, and she needs to see just how special you are here!” 

 

“Here here!” The woman Nia just met…Heidi, cheered. “Nia you got to tell us more about yourself”

 

“Oh yes, you are just as lovely as Aria,” the charming man, Arvio, flirted.

 

Nia smiled in return and even fluttered her lashes, yet his eyes did not move from Aria who seemed oblivious to his attention and instead was in awe of the food. Nia frowned if only for a second before smiling gently.

 

“Thank you, yes Aria is the loveliest girl” 

 

“Shut up Nia” Aria laughed. 

 

“I mean it! Honestly, Highwind did not appreciate her the way she needed to be. And I’m glad that you see how amazing she is”

“Oh absolutely, I mean you should see her with her dagger” Heidi whistled. “She is a menace with that thing! Zeke was telling me how you dispatched those things quickly.”

 

“I could never imagine you in combat” Nia looked in surprise. “And you didn’t sustain any injury?”

 

“Not more than surface level” Aria admitted shrugging. 

 

“Yes, most of her injuries are when she’s reckless, like when she jumped off of a moving train” Amirah added dryly.

 

Nia gasped and Aria glared squinting at Amirah essentially getting her in trouble with her mom’s biggest gossiper. 

 

“It was a fantastic story based on what Justice said” 

 

“It as so stupid” Aria admitted. “And I should have never done it! I admit, but what’s in the past is in the past” 

 

“What a politician” Pablo murmured behind his wine. 

 

“Wow, looks like you’ve done a lot in such a short time.” Nia commented with a bit of awe. “Now let’s see if you can avoid death for the five more months you’re here!”

 

After she said it, she knew she’d made a mistake. Aria turned red and looked down at the plate. Pablo was mid sip, pausing to look at their little builder. Amirah and Arvio looked confused then saddened and Heidi frowned. 

 

“I-I mean you’re only contracted for a year” Nia trailed off. “Not that she’s been complaining about here!” 

 

Aria didn’t say anything, instead looked down intently at her place.

 

“Let’s just have some dinner shall we?” Amirah as usual, was the more level headed one and they all ate with little conversation. 

 

…

 

Their walk back to Aria’s place was a bit awkward. Aria knew that Nia did not mean anything by her comments. Yes, she was right; she had signed on for a year, but in her short time here, she knew that a year would not be enough. She loved her time here, and she would not be leaving by the end of her contract. 

 

She also had a mortification of Amirah, Pablo, Arvio and Heidi looking put out. She had not had the conversation with them about future plans, but she didn’t think she had to. As much as she hated Yan, she would sign her life away for another year in a heartbeat for Sandrock. 

 

Opening her door she turned on the lights and moved to allow Nia to step in and take a look. She had insisting on staying in her home instead of the Saloon and Aria wasn’t necessarily opposed to that either. 

 

“I like this place” Nia said after a while once taking everything in. 

 

She paid close attention to the picture frames of their old photos and some new ones. Aria had recently put new ones up: one with Heidi and Mi-an after the new bridge. Amirah and Arvio with her at their picnics. Elsie and Mi-an and her during sunset in a horse ride. Her with the Civil Corps. Miss Vivi and her in a tea party with Jasmine. 

 

“You really like it here, don’t you?” Nia asked softly. 

 

Aria placed their cups down and smiled softly.

 

“Yeah, honestly, the desert is a beautiful place. And Sandrock…I never knew how much I needed it until now” she admitted with a smile. 

 

Nia sat down and frowned.

 

“Are you…are you ever come back to us Ari?” Nia looked at her sadly. 

 

Aria’s breath hitched. Flashes of her friends, Logan , and she simply decided to shrug. “Look… I only know that one year won’t be enough for me to finish all I want to do. Things come up, problems arise, builders are needed and Mi-an can’t do it herself. And I like them: Amirah, Heidi, Pablo, Miss Vivi, hell even Fang. You know they got me this furniture?” she spun around her room and smiled.  “It’s all mine.”

 

“You have a whole life here” she breathed out. “Will you…will you still have room for me in that big heart of yours?”

 

Aria tilted her head confused at Nia’s insecurity, that is until she realised that Nia had not gotten out of her bubble of Highwind until now. Grabbing her hands she pulled her onto the couch and gripped her hands tightly.

 

“Nia - you have always been my most trusted confidant. Lots of my firsts have been at your insistence to do things” she laughed. “And now I’m pushing myself to do things. I love you, you’re my best friend in the entire world. We’re like the moon and sun. You are the sun, and I need you to brighten me up.” 

 

Nia teared up and hugged her tightly, happy to know that she was not being replaced. The rest of the night was catching up on gossip, giggling over everything and her silly situations. It was until Nia kept yawning that Aria showed them the bed they’d be sharing. Nia crawled in and Aria followed both out like a light. 

 

…

The Next Morning…

 

By the time Nia woke up, Aria had done a lot; she had left to check any commissions, turned in some general items she had promised to make, had put metal scraps in her recycler and put items to work. She was in the midst of checking her water when Nia walked out, still in her pyjamas and yawning trying to get used to her surroundings.

 

“How are you up already? It’s 9am” she yawned.

 

“Morning to you too sleepy head” Aria laughed before walking over and heading back inside to make them coffee. “I start my mornings early you know? Lots to do!”

 

“But it’s a Saturday, and I’m here” Nia whined but muttered a thank you as she got her coffee. “You should make time for me!” 

 

“I have!” Aria shook her head, smiling. “I just don’t like breaking promises and I had to hand out the items I’d been working on. In fact - do you want to join me on a shopping trip?” 

 

…

When Nia heard shopping, she was all for it, until that is, they didn’t go into town, but rather walked to the ranch and walked to stables. The stench of manure hit her nose and she twitched confused as to what was happening. Still, Aria was excited, running to the stables to land on a big yakmel who mooed at seeing her best friend.

 

“This is our shopping trip?” Nia asked tentatively. 

 

“Yup!” Aria grinned excitedly. “I’ve been wanting this Yakmel specifically since the first few jobs I’ve done within the town. She’s so sweet and kind” the yakmel  mooed as if understanding her. 

“Ya finally came to pick her up?!” Elsie ran over greeting them brightly.

 

Aria grinned and did the introductions. Nia liked Elsie, she was much more cheery than Aria's other friends. 

 

“So…how’s that 25 thousand gols?” an older man meandered watching the builder be affectionate with the Yakmel. 

 

Nia looked gobsmacked. 

“T-twenty five thousand?!” Nia gasped. 

 

“Yes lil’ lady” Cooper said sticking his hand out to Aria. 

 

“Twenty-five?” Elsie frowned. “Didn’t Ma say you were gonna give Aria a discount? She’s been doing part time work here!”

 

Cooper looked put out as Elsie immediately jumped in and giving the builder a cut on the price. “How about 18 thousand goals?” 

 

Nia smiled seeing Aria near tears as she immediately shook on the deal. With some gols and notes exchanged, Aria had helped Nia hop onto the Yakmel named Moonbeam and they were off.

 

…

 

“I have to admit this is very nice” Nia smiled shyly as Aria was having them trek to town. 

The commute was a lot faster and the Yakmel was very domesticated. It was a pretty dark blue colour with a cute ribbon in her right horn that Aria had immediately placed. 

 

“I know! I promised I would send you to Zeke to talk about the plants!” 

 

…

“So let me get this straight,” Nia asked, laying on the hammock as Aria was sewing leather onto a few masks. “Arvio is throwing a not birthday party for Amirah and asked you to be a special guest?” 

 

Aria scoffed.

“Not a special guest” She blushed. “He knows Amirah and I are close and he wants my help to make sure her experience is a good one. She works really hard and I thought it was a nice to do.”

 

“Right…has anyone else brought up the party to you?” Nia raised her brow. “Like Owen or the other people here. Pablo or Heidi? Didn’t you say they were close to her?” 

 

Nia saw the brunette pause her work and looked a bit confused. It was almost painful for her to see her best friend be so naive about the possible intentions and trap she could be walked into. 

 

“No” Aria frowned. “Pablo was complaining that there was nothing to do this weekend so he was glad he was meeting you…”

 

“Hmm…I just think you my dear builder, is clueless to the fact that Arvio has the hots for you” 

 

Aria scoffed. “You know I hate when you joke about that stuff” 

 

And Nia did; except she was not joking. It really hurt her heart for her friend to be unable to realise she was not only attractive, but that she was a catch. She remembered their younger years and seeing that Aria showed interest in a boy, only for him to ask her help to get with the blonde. Nia rejected any boy that even thought of using her best friend as a cover to get closer. And that had very much affected Aria’s self-esteem. Hell, Aria’s first kiss had been Nia when they were practising kissing. Nia had found it quite enlightening and in turn Aria just thanked her for getting that taken care of. 

 

Once upon a time Nia herself had thought herself in love with Aria. How could she not? She was lovely, quiet, protective and smart. She had gorgeous brown eyes that had a speckle of gold in the right light. She had the best laugh, her giggles were cute, but when she truly got going she loved the way she swung her head back and properly cackled. But as Nia was comfortable in her own sexuality and fluidity she knew that Aria and her would have been a terrible match. Aria was naive, and mistook romantic advances as friendly interactions and it had been the newsflash that Nia had gotten to know that Aria did not see her as more than just a friend. And that was fine with Nia - it had to be and now the pain had all but gone. 

 

Nia wanted Aria to find love more than anything. She wanted to really take in her sexuality, to be her real self to everyone and have no fear of being judged. To take advantage of her allure to land her a good man. And so far, even if Aria did not notice it; there were men that really liked her here in Sandrock. Arvio had definitely been one of them. She saw the way his eyes lingered on her friend and her friend was none the wiser. The scientist too; as dishevelled as he was had made comments about the telescope and if she was interested in coming over to explore the stars. Not to mention the writer that had stopped them recently to boldly tease Aria in regards to a poem he was writing to her? 

 

Aria took everything in stride; blushing prettily and waving him off, earning a bright grin from him. It was not malicious but actual interest and Nia was very intrigued. Still the brunette paid no mind and it would drive Nia crazy. Was she purposefully this dim?

 

“I still don’t think it’s as simple as a dinner party for Amirah. Isn’t she going with Heidi to look at rocks or something? I swear they mentioned that at dinner” 

 

Aria froze and looked at Nia a bit frightened. 

 

“You don’t think-” 

 

Nia bit back a chuckle and nodded.

 

“I think it’s more” 

 

Slowly the brunette began to blush. It started prettily on the apple of her cheeks and travelled across her face and chest. Maybe she was taking it as seriously as Nia meant it.

 

“You’re crazy” Aria shook her head.

 

Maybe not. 

 

“Fine -  you know these people better than I do.” Nia gave up. “Let me know how it goes okay?”

 

“You’re not coming with me? It’s a party” 

 

Nia shook her head. “N’aw, Elsie and Mi-an roped me into going on a horse rise to see the sunset on the other side of town. She says I can see why you love this place so much.”

 

Aria smiled. 

 

“I’m glad you’re making friends.”

…

 

This was Aria’s literal nightmare. She had already felt silly enough as she had put on the mask, however when she was allowed in she felt herself tense up as she took the room in. For one thing, the background of his home was now with a hodgepodge of curtains with pinks and purple patterns with stars and moons. There were heart balloons thrown around everywhere and a dinner table with candles lighting up the room. Lastly, it was only Arvio standing in the middle of his room looking hopeful. 

 

“Aha! Aria, you wore my mask! You look absolutely wonderful in it. But welcome, welcome, welcome! To the first ever Sandrock Masquerade! Where are the other guests, you ask? Well, Aria, I have a confession to make!” He stepped forward “When I told you today was my sister's birthday-plus, it was all a ruse! I prepared this just for you!”

 

“For me?” she repeated a note of nervousness clear.

 

“There will be no other guests tonight. The leading roles will be played by only you and I, undisturbed by the outside world. And now! To commence the festivities, it is my honour to ask: "My lovely builder, may I have this dance?"

 

“O-oh Arvio” she stuttered. “I-I thought this was for Amirah -” she felt her face flushed at him looking at her so sincerely. “Why do all of this?” 

 

“Just…let us dance please? And I’ll explain everything” he gently reached out his hand and grabbed her smaller one. “You look beautiful in your dress and I hope you do me the honours?” 

 

Guilt and anxiety began to pool in her stomach and she couldn’t run away as much as she wanted to. And she really did, just pack her shit up and tell Nia they were running back to Highwind. But it was a childish need to flee. She could do this; they were friends and she had to just dance. What’s the harm in a dance?”

 

She couldn’t speak, so all he got was a stiff nod before he immediately spun her towards him. He took lead, thank the Light, and danced in a manner that she remembered Sebastian showed her as they were growing up. A Barnarock dance where they were close and moved in sync. She smelled his cologne and closed her eyes, cheeks red as his amber eyes took her in intensely. 

 

The music played in the background and whatever Arvio was hoping, her urge to throw up was probably not it. She did not dislike him and if this didn’t have romantic undertones she would have been okay. But no one was here and he just looked so into it. 

 

“This... is like a dream for me…” he whispered into her hair as he pulled her close. “This... is like a dream for me…”

 

“A-arvio” she whispered, horrified by his sweet words. 

 

A flash of silver hair sprung into her mind and she was horrified to realise she felt guilty. Shaking her head, she pulled back as he grabbed her hands tightly, making sure to take off their masks to properly look at one another.

 

“Aria” he began. “From the moment I saw you, I knew that you were something special. The more I talked to you, the more help you gave me, formed a question that was burning a hole into my heart. A-and today I built the courage to to tell you I can’t hold back any longer” 

 

“Wait” she whispered. “I-”

 

“Shh…please let me get it out” he kissed her hands. “You're kind, dedicated, eager to help... You're a leader and a follower, graceful in both victory and defeat... and..” he blushed. “I, ah-... I'm momentarily speechless trying to come up with adequate descriptions for you, you're just so grand!”

 

She flushed, her heart beating against her ears. He was so corny, but she knew he was talking sincerely and she felt guilty. 

 

“I digress. These past two days have been the most difficult of all. That burning question, finally, I can let it out! Aria of Highwind, will you... be in a relationship with me?”

 

He wasn’t asking for a date, or something small, he was asking for a full blown relationship. She felt dizzy at the proposal; a date was nerve wracking enough but he wanted to be her boyfriend?” 

 

“A-Arvio” she stuttered before taking a deep breath. “I-I have to admit that this came out of nowhere” 

He looked confused and hurt and she felt like shit.

 

“We haven’t even gone out on dates just the two of us. And I never knew you felt that way about me. Ever.”

 

“I flirt with you all the time” he placed his hand against her cheek. “I thought you knew. I lo-”

 

She pressed a finger against his mouth before he said a word he could not take back. Arvio was a romantic, and jumped into things without thinking. He never once thought about her more so confessing in a way that suited him. 

 

“Arvio, you don’t know me that well” she smiled gently. “I like you a lot, as my friend, but this whole time I thought you were just teasing. I never took our interactions as more than that. And I think you like me because I’m new”

 

“No, I’m sure I” 

 

“Arvio please-” she interrupted him this time. “I think we’re jumping into this way too quickly. I’ve never seen you more than a friend” 

 

“You don’t love me?” he looked so hurt.

 

She shook her head, feeling like crying. “I don’t love anyone.” 

“I see” he looked hurt. “ I can't say that I'm not a little upset... but I treasure your friendship more than anything.” He took a deep breath. “I understand. I came on too strong - I always do that.”

 

He looked so defeated. She felt so bad that she put her hands on his cheeks and stepped closer to kiss his cheek. 

 

“You meant well, and a lucky girl would love that…but just not me. Not right now” she admitted with a smile. “I adore you- you’re a great friend”

 

“If you don’t mind…I’ll need a little bit of space. But know I treasure your friendship more than anything…do you think perhaps some day, we could try again?”

 

She felt her shoulders sag. Did he not hear her rejection? But he looked so hopeful she nodded.

 

“No more surprises please” she begged. 

 

“I promise!” 

… 

 

“He what?!” 

 

“You heard me” she murmured horrified as she recalled her interaction with Arvio to Nia. Nia looked enrapt in her story telling and Aria knew her cheeks felt hot. 

 

“And you thought I was crazy?! Why don’t you like him? It’s just a relationship” 

 

She sighed.

 

“He’s cute, and honestly he was the first guy here who flirted with me but I noticed he did it to make better sales” she shrugged amused. “He said he liked seeing me blush. And well I got more comfortable with him when I realised it meant nothing but banter. So I got comfortable flirting back with nothing behind them.” She ran her fingers through her hair and sighed.

 

“You’re not answering my question.” Nia frowned. “Is it so terrible to have him as a boyfriend?” 

 

“Nia…I can’t take anything he says seriously,” she admitted. “He’s business minded, which is good but he’s childish sometimes and just runs into trouble without thinking about it. I-I think I’d be protecting him more than he would do me.”

 

“You want a protector?” she asked softer, curious.

 

Aria nodded. “I want someone who is capable of defending me, these parts are dangerous. I need someone more knowledgeable about himself and what he wants. He’s sure of himself and not of his looks” she shook her head. “Arvio knows he’s handsome, but I- I just don’t see him growing up. At least not for me.” 

 

“You really thought this through,” Nia murmured. 

 

Aria laughed a bit hysterically. “Plus he didn’t want a date, he wanted to jump to be my boyfriend. He knows nothing about me” 

 

Nia snorted and pushed the rum bottle her way. “We need to get you drunk” 

 

…

Aria was buzzed. Nia had done a good job of distracting her and the horrifyingly embarrassing moment that she went through today. They had laughed, danced, reminisced about old crushes and soon the blonde was out cold; clearly she wasn’t used to the types of drinks in Sandrock. So Aria tucked her in and walked outside needing fresh air. 

 

She sighed in relief feeling the cold wind hit her face. She felt her cheeks hot, and her body in a good buzz as she took in the night sky. It was nice to have Nia here, even if for a few days. Had Arvio confessed without her here, Aria would have likely have had a panic attack and would have considered just accepting out of guilt. 

 

“You got guests tonight” 

 

A lazy drawl got her attention and she whipped her head to come face to face with Logan. Her first reaction should have been to take out her pistol and threaten him; she really should have but-but instead she blushed remembering how their last interaction had gone.

“Cat’s got your tongue or- oh you do remember” He teased walking forward with purpose.

 

She wanted to look disgusted, scoff at his confidence, but her body hummed already. Remembering how she imagined him touching her, how she touched herself thinking of him. This was what she was missing when she was close to Arvio; the passion and the heat. Their mere height difference had her feeling lightheaded, Heat flared in her gaze, enough for him to gain the confidence to lean against her fence and pull her forward.

 

“Did ya miss me doll?”

Chapter 11: Lust

Summary:

Perhaps it was not all a dream and perhaps there more to people's actions than Aria realizes.

Notes:

Editor’s Note - Fun fact - actually super sad fact. I stopped writing this because I accidentally deleted ALL of my notes, plan, writings of the next 3 chapters and I got so mad I abandoned this completely. And I don’t know why but today I decided to start all over again. I literally don’t remember anything about what I had previously written, SO here’s starting from scratch. 

A Desert Rose

Chapter 11: Lust

By Peach, she looked so pretty. He didn’t know why he couldn’t think of a better word- gorgeous, enchanting, enthralling were all correct - but his mind circled back to pretty. Because she was just that - pretty. Her complexion smooth, a bit of redness on her cheeks that he hoped that it was due to him. Her eyes looked wondrous; the little light they had from the train track gaslamps made them look darker, soulful even. He couldn’t help but also notice the flash of heat behind them that made him want to move closer. Her lips were parted, whether it was due to surprise or anticipation he wasn’t sure. But when he’d greeted her he saw her change. 

 

“Logan” she whispered softly. He was even unsure she realized she had said something. 

 

“My, don’t you sound pretty when you say my name” 

 

If she was annoyed, he couldn’t tell, especially as she studied his face just as intently. Her eyes trailed…from his hat to his eyes, to his lips - lingering there a bit until she went back to his eyes. Distracted - he liked that. 

 

“So did you?” He murmured.

 

“Huh?” 

 

He chuckled and pulled her closer forcing her to let go of the fence and instead grip his shoulders so she wouldn’t fall. It felt natural, correct even, especially as she was pressed so much closer. Even with her feet planted on the first row of the fence, Logan could tell she was barely reaching his height. 

“I said” he paused to caress her cheek. “Did you miss me?”

 

She did not immediately answer; an air of comfortable silence fell between them. Logan didn’t know if it was due to the nature of the question or her shyness but the silence soon shifted to a heated glance between the pair. Aria did not look away, instead kept firm eye contact with him as if she was searching for something. 

 

“Ari-”

 

Before he could even utter her name, she had pulled him closer and into a kiss. If there was ever a doubt in the intensity of their first kiss, that went out the window now. The kiss was slow, deep, dirty and he groaned. He was by no means a virgin, but the heat and eagerness of this kiss made him burn hot. Much like his dream, his hat was pushed away, giving access for Aria to dig her nimble fingers into his dense hair.

In that moment he knew there was too much space between them and pulled her forward forcing her to wobble. But before she could move away to lower herself, he instead gripped her plush thighs to lift her over the fence and onto his side so she could sit pretty on the fence. He bit her bottom lip and she let out her own dirty moan that compelled him to part her thighs giving him a perfect angle to press his groin against hers. His dick desperately needed some relief. 

 

“Shit” he groaned. She huffed before tugging his scarf to let her breath fall against his neck. He had only a second before she licked him. “Fuck, this was not what I imagined when I came over.” 

 

“Really?” she hummed. “I’m sober-ish now. You don’t have to stop you know”

 

He would have chuckled, had she not rolled her hips in a way that had him buck into her and nearly toppled them over the fence and onto the ground. “Well” He breathed heavily. “Aren’t you a hot little thing? Man, I’ve been wanting to get a hold of these for a while” 

…

Maybe she was in heat. Aria immediately had that thought breeze on by as his tongue was shoved in her mouth. It claimed dominance as if she was hesitant in reciprocating his actions. Whatever moral compass she swore she had, was immediately forgotten as he’d taken her. He made her feel so small, but not made of glass. His grip on her was firm, sure of himself, sure of whatever this was and she wasn’t going to complain.

 

‘Not a complaint in sight’ she thought to herself in amusement. 

 

Her fingers found home in his hair, her breast pressed against him as he made sure they kept touching. If she claimed sober before she wasn’t sure now; she was drunk on him which was at first enthralling then dangerous. If he’d try to take her now she wasn’t sure she’d reject him.

 

It was not until she felt the breeze hit her breasts that she realized that she was not only cold, but out in the open. She should have been ashamed, especially as she opened her eyes to catch his gaze for only a moment before he ducked to grab her breasts. Blearily she could make out Sandrock, the train station being the main source of light as he cupped her breast, lifting it lightly and murmuring words before kissing the top of her left one. 

 

“You’re so pretty” he groaned against her ear and she rolled her hips as a thank you. 

 

“I want you” she murmured softly, finally admitting a badly kept secret. But damn it she did; no man had ever made her feel as wanted, and needy and desperate as he had. No man had ever deemed her as desirable either - at least not to her knowledge. 

 

Whatever more could have happened stopped immediately as a thump was heard in her home. She jumped, and he pulled back, nearly dropping her off her fence. He managed to grip her hips to steady her but the moment was gone. Dazedly she looked down at him. He looked so…

 

“Pretty” she murmured. “ You look so pretty on your knees” 

 

He bit back a groan as his eyes darkened. His hands slid down her thighs as a response. They both wanted to keep going. But they couldn’t, not when her brain was functioning again and Nia was clearly trying to do something in the dark.

 

“When is she leaving?” he whispered. 

 

“Two days,” She replied, sighing as she looked up at the sky. 

 

Their breathing slowed down and Aria knew she needed to head back, especially as something knocked against her window and a yelp was heard. 

 

“Look at me” he ordered and she immediately listened. “I want you to know….whatever happens from here on out - there’s a reason.”

 

Before she could ask more he pressed his lips firmly on hers, as if meaning she wouldn’t see him as soon as she’d hoped.

 

“Don’t hate me” he whispered before running off to where a mountain goat waited for him. She couldn’t look away as he galloped off - taking a piece of her with him.

 

Silence fell over her as the summary of her night came back to her slowly. Logan had come back, he’d visited her specifically and confirmed that no that was not a dream and yes, that had been the best kiss of her life.

“Aria?” she heard a drunken Nia call out. “It’s late…and I broke a cup…I’m sorry. Come to bed”

 

“Coming Nia” she murmured before hopping back over to her land ignoring the throbbing between her legs.

 

…

 

“He did what?!”

 

Heidi snorted at Amirah’s outburst, while Pablo grinned into his cup and Nia nodded enthusiastically, a tight grip on her cup.

 

‘So much for ‘I’m never drinking again’ Aria thought annoyed.

 

This whole interaction had been something that she had been dreading all day. Nia had been badgering her to meet with Amirah to let her know what happened and Aria had no reason to say no. For one, she knew she’d been acting odd all day. During their planting of the desert roses in front of her home, the blonde had seen her distracted, taking longer than usual to plant the seeds they’d purchased when visiting Zeke. Nia had assumed it had been due to Arvio’s confession, and in turn the brunette was too much of a coward to say no. In truth, while she had felt guilty at first, all that had been wiped from her brain the moment Logan had kissed her.

 

‘I am a terrible person’ she thought morosely. 

 

“Jeez Amirah, can you scream a little louder? I don’t think Zeke heard you” Heidi joked.

 

Honestly, while Aria had hoped to have had the conversation strictly between the two of them, that plan fell to shambles as she’d ran to look for Amirah in town. Of course she’d found her at a luncheon at Pablo’s salon. Her distress must have been clear on her face, because it took Pablo one look to close the salon and motioned them upstairs ‘for something stronger’.  

 

“I honestly didn’t see it coming,” Aria admitted.

 

“Seriously?” Pablo asked with his brow raised- skeptical as usual. 

 

Heidi cackled

 

“Ri-ri” Nia began with a tone of a saint, “I even saw it and I just met him two days ago.” she patted her thigh as comfort.

 

“We weren’t smoking up your ass when we told you he liked you” Heidi commented before wiping her tears of amusement. “I mean, come on, the boy flirts with you every chance he gets!” 

 

“But that’s just it - he flirts with everybody!” she exclaimed, cheeks pink. “How was I supposed to know that he wasn’t just pushing products my way when he complimented my hands or my face?!” 

 

“He’s not doing that with me, I can tell you that much” Pablo mumbled.

 

“You seriously had no clue? I think you even flirted back, kissing his cheek, taking his hands, hugging him tightly” Amirah sighed.

 

“Well in her defense-”Nia cut in. “Ri-ri is actually a terrible flirt when she means it.” she turned over to face her best friend. “I swear Aria, if you actually paid attention to men and flirted back with intention, you’d have them at your feet.”

 

“Cheers to that” Heidi and Pablo said in unison, clinking their glasses. 

 

She flushed brightly and waved the blonde off. Chatter broke out so fast that Aria felt her head spin. It seemed that she had let her anxiety build the issue bigger than it actually was. The giggles moved away from the living room and into the kitchen as they poured themselves more wine. 

 

“I’m not mad you know” Amirah sat beside her and grabbed her hands. “Arvio is always jumping into things head first without thinking about anyone else but himself. To be honest, when he told me that he liked you, I didn’t take it too seriously.”

 

“I like him Amirah, but I never saw him as anything but a friend. Honestly, had he asked me out on a date, I wouldn’t have been so spooked. Shoot, I would have even said yes! But he didn’t, instead he-”

 

“He acted like you don’t have other options and you’ve been waiting on him to make the move” Heidi interjected their conversation with a full glass. 

 

Aria tilted her head in confusion.

 

“I have options?” She paused. “Wait, am I seriously that dumb?”

 

“Yes” all the girls replied. 

 

“Whose been flirting with me?” 

 

“Well…”

 

“Ernest is not writing you a poem just because.” Amirah started.

 

“Oh he’s hot,” Pablo murmured.

 

 “I spoke with him two days ago and he kept looking at a vase and smiling saying that the color of it reminded him of your eyes.”

 

“That one professor too!” Nia exclaimed. 

 

“Wait what?!” 

 

“I thought he was asexual”  Pablo muttered.

 

“Stop it Nia” Aria huffed.

 

Nia ignored her.

 

“Did he or did he not invite you to look at the stars tomorrow night?” 

 

“Oh! I’m jealous” Heidi clapped her hands in glee. 

 

“Well I built it, he has to let me use it sometimes” Aria retorted.

 

“Babe” Heidi stopped her. “You are so brilliant when you build and help others…but you are so socially inept when it comes to romance. It could hit you in the head and you’d think it was a misunderstanding. You’re gorgeous”

 

“She’s not wrong you know” Pablo said, leaning over and lifting her chin. He turned her face from side to side as if he was studying her. “You have this softness that can’t be faked” 

 

It was her turn to roll her eyes at their teasing- that is until she felt Pablo’s lips on hers. Her eyes widened in surprise, at not only his action but the passion behind it. Nia squawked in surprise, Heidi hooted in glee and Amirah rubbed her temples. 

 

“What the hell was that?!” Aria exclaimed once he pulled away.

 

Pablo shrugged. “I just wanted to see what the fuss was all about.” 

 

“And?” Heidi asked, grinning.

 

Pablo went quiet for a moment, pretending to think before letting out a sincere grin. “Aria you are the sweetest little kisser.”

 

Amirah and Heidi looked at Aria’s reddening face as Nia attempted to protect her from any incoming kisses. 

“Do you want her to pass out?!” Nia asked, shooing them away. 

 

“Oh, like you never thought about it?” Heidi teased. 

 

“ I never had to,” Nia said smugly. “I was her first kiss” 

“Oh!” Amirah cooed in glee. “You have to tell us that story”

 

“ Well…”

 

…

 

“ These days went by too quickly” Nia murmured as they both stared at the train. “But I have to go back and take care of my plants.” she gripped her bag tighter against her. “You remember my neighbor raised a pig right? When that pig gets hungry, it gets really hungry. So you see why I’m worried…”

 

Despite how sad she felt, Aria couldn’t help but laugh at the image. 

 

“Hey! Don't laugh! If that pig eats my graduate project, I'm not gonna be able to graduate for another semester!”

 

She giggled and nodded. “No, we definitely don’t need you in school for longer than necessary” 

 

Silence fell between the pair as Jensen was organizing the bags into the train. Aria hated it; she hated that she had felt nervous when Nia was coming and she hated herself more for wanting to cry at Nia leaving for home. She swallowed.

 

“Remember to write?” she whispered softly, her hand reaching over to grip Nia’s right hand. 

 

“Stop being cute” Nia wrinkled her nose. “You know I’m obsessed with you”

 

“Just…”Aria took in a shaky breath. “I can’t promise that I’ll be back at the end of the year. And I can’t promise that I’ll be able to visit for my birthday, or dad’s. I-I wish I was a better friend to you, a better -”

 

“Stop” Nia interrupted, dropped her luggage to hush her. “Don’t you ever say that you’re a bad friend. Not even for a second. Aria of Highwind, I wouldn’t be caught dead coming to Sandrock if it wasn’t for you. I love you. You are lovable, incredibly so. You’re giving, funny, smart, and so sickeningly good that I initially worried what this place would change you. And you know what? I was right; it did change you. It made you tougher, wiser, wilder, but underneath that is still my sweet little builder. Who has lots of friends here that love her and that I’m so jealous they get to keep you for longer than this year.” 

 

“I love you too Nia” She smiled, eyes watering at having to say bye. “Please don’t tell my parents I’m not coming back when this year's contract ends. Let me tell them.”

 

“I promise” she crossed her fingers over her head. “Now… you promise me to be kind to yourself. Pay attention to people around you and for the love of Peach, please try to believe that you are hot.”

 

Aria laughed. 

 

“But-” Nia wiggled her finger. “Don’t fall in love without me being here” 

 

“Shut up” 

 

“I love hearing you laugh” Nia sighed before grabbing her cheeks and taking one more look at her best friend. “I love you ”

 

Aria fluttered her lashes shyly and blushed so prettily that Nia bit back the urge to kiss her. 

 

Train to Highwind, now departing. Train to Highwind, now departing. Please gather your belongings and board the train.

 

Their hug was a tight one; similar to the first one that they had when it had been Aria who had left. Nia ran into the train refusing to see her best friend cry but popped her head out the window.

 

“Goodbye my Builder!” Nia yelled as the train began to leave the station. “Remember to keep your promise!’

 

“I will!” Aria yelled back, waving enthusiastically.

…

 

When Aria had been picked up by Mi-an to go to the Moisture farm, ending up at an abandoned Gecko station was not something she’d been expecting. Mayor Trudy had this goal to bring more life to Sandrock, and Aria did not have the heart to say now. So they’d built protective suits, she had her weapons and now they trekked towards a more unforgivable terrain than they’d been used to. Moonbeam had been a great help, with taking supplies, and giving Mayor Trudy (a slow walker) a more steady pace.

 

“Mayor…”Aria began, wincing as the sun hit her gaze as she looked at the ship they’d intended to embark on. “How did you get up there?”

 

“Er, well, when I was here before, the sand was all piled up and I just walked up to that hole in the tail up there!”

 

“Not to worry!” Mi-an cheerily replied. “Us Builders can head back to our workshops and cook something up! A ladder? An elevator if we're feeling fancy?”

 

Aria nodded. “Moonbeam can take us back and we can build a quick ladder to-”

 

“Aieee!” Mayor Trudy squeaked as Zeke threw her up in the air and directly at the entrance of the wreckage.

 

Zeke turned to look at the two girls.

 

“Us?” Mi-an asked incredulously. 

 

Aria’s eyes widened. “Um, I can climb” 

 

“Don’t be silly”

 

If Aria ever felt fat in her life, that surely went away as Zeke threw Mi-an and her high and near the entrance. Mi-an being lighter landed prettily on the wreckage, but Aria stumbled, grabbing onto the ledge and lifting herself up. 

 

“Oh man, you alright there Zeke?” She called down as she saw him rubbing his lower back.

 

⁠”Zeke! Are you alright?” Mayor asked worriedly.

 

⁠⁠”Yeah.” Zeke waved their worry off. “Happens now and again. Can't throw 'em like I used to.”

 

“Do you want one of us to come down?” Mi-an asked.

 

Aria looked over at her wondering if she was crazy. 

 

⁠⁠”Nah. I'll just... hang out.” He replied leaning against Moonbeam. “I'll... climb up when I'm ready. Or maybe just wait...You guys head in, don't worry about me.”

 

“I don’t know…” Mi-an frowned.

 

⁠⁠”We've come this far, can't quit now. Alright, Zeke, just stay put, we'll be back for you!” The Mayor sounded firm. 

…

Either Aria was getting stronger or her partners were not as well versed in combat as her. That was a scary thought as Aria jumped on the back of a Hercules 2000 before it crushed her against the wall. These things were huge, and Mi-an’s daggers were good but her grip wasn’t strong. And Mayor’s Trudy’s guns gave them range, but the speed at which she shot made her a liability. They had taken on the Sandponies, which were a relief for the brunette as she could concentrate on cutting the wires of these robots. 

 

“Last one” she grunted as it fell forward with her sitting comfortably on top of it. “You two okay?” 

 

“Give me a moment” Trudy replied, breathing heavily on all fours as Mi-an attempted to help her. 

 

“I’ll scope ahead” Aria called out before entering a room that seemed to be a bunking area. A letter caught her interest. 

 

My dear Maria,

 

I hope you're alright on the Moon. It's been so long, but not for a moment have I forgotten your face. Every time I close my eyes, I still see that smile I fell in love with.

We've lost communication. It started with the lights, the shocks, then the ground came up. Our ship somehow ended up on dry land. No way of moving, no means to call for help. We don't know where we are, or what has happened. The only thing I wish, is that I may someday return to you.

I don't know if this note will ever reach you, though. The sky has been getting darker, and I've closed myself in my quarters. Kath took a group out to explore and look for help. We haven't heard back. Only the unluckiest remain, it seems.

I don't know how long I can hold out in here, I'm terrified of what happened to our world. I'm terrified of what might have happened to you. I want to find a way to reach you...

I hope this message reaches you somehow, but I fear I'm writing in vain. If I don't hear back in a week's time, I think I'll try to reach you, somehow.

 

I love you.

Teboho

 

Aria’s eyes softened as she read the letter from a lost soul. How long had it been? Poor Teboho, poor Maria. She took a deep breath and said a small prayer for the pair, hoping they found one another in the afterlife.

 

“The key is here!” Mi-an screeched.

 

“Oh good!” Trudy clapped her hands. 

 

Both women were oblivious as Aria folded the letter to her pocket.

 

“Good, that opens the room we’ve been eyeing- lets go!”

…

 

“Whew! That was a close one.”

 

Trudy was breathing heavily. “Is everyone alright?”

The air felt different once they’d defeated the monster. 

 

“Seems the gas has dissipated... Perhaps it was expelled as a defense mechanism meant to deter intruders...?”

 

“Wow, just like a real squid!”

 

“Haha, sure. Well, no. But sure!”

 

…

 

“Wow Director Qi, the stars are beautiful” Aria murmured as they took in the night sky. 

 

The night had been perfect. No clouds, no winds, a perfect night for the pair to look at the stars with the updated telescope she’d scavenged. 

 

“Can you tell me about the stars?” she asked softly, staring at him with a sweet smile.

 

Qi thought of something for a moment before snapping his fingers.

 

“You know, interestingly, when people believe they are wishing upon shooting stars, they are actually wishing upon rocks falling and burning up in the atmosphere. Stars do not "shoot." It is a common misconception.”

 

Aria smiled, and she swore his lip twitched in return. 

 

“What else do you wish to know? Perhaps an overview of the constellations? I will not peddle "astrology." but I know a thing or two about astronomy.”

 

“I’d like that,” she admitted with a smile.

 

“According to numerous studies, the Swan was originally a constellation that was used to guide sailors across vast distances. They could follow the movement across the skies to orient themselves.” 

 

“That’s kinda romantic”

 

“Ah, interestingly the scientific name for this constellation is Scalessium Major, which is a rare instance of the scientific name and layman's name aligning.” 

 

Aria moved the telescope.

 

“This was the first constellation I learned of. I was four at the time. This was a rare instance of scientific knowledge being shared from my parents, rather than my grandfather. Much like the Swan, it would help them as they were out fishing, providing a point of reference.”

 

Qi was handsome, if not more socially inept than her. Yes his stories were interesting, especially the constellations. Her father, Sirius (named after a star in a constellation) was big on them too and he’d taught her at a young age to navigate as a child. But hearing Qi talk was interesting if not a little robotic. She thought it charming. 

 

However their comfortable conversation was quickly shoved aside as he urged her to take the picture of what they were actually here for. The satellite. He rambled about his actually expectations before the curiosity turned to dullness as he stated the following:

 

“Since we're on the subject though, let me tell you about a paper I read a few days ago. "The Sampling of Digital Control Technologies of the Old World." What a read!

 

As he kept talking, she swore her head was spinning. She was by no means stupid, but this amount of detail to someone that preferred talking about being a Sagittarius was not what she wanted. 

 

“...did that make sense?” 

 

She realized he’d finally stopped and she’d not said a thing for the past few minutes.

 

“You’re a good teacher” 

 

“Thanks.” he sort of smiled. “You're welcome to talk to me about anything you're unsure about or interested in. I'll do my best to explain thoroughly.”

 

“Right…” she trailed off. 

 

…

Three months later…

 

Winter had arrived and with it came a huge shift with the town. The town had slowed down, nothing crazy (thank Peach), and no sight of Logan. She wanted to be put out, she wanted to see him, get news of him - something. But nada - not a peep. She tried not to let it get the best of her - tried to go on outings and say yes to more things. Especially as her birthday was coming up and she was weighing her options about going to Portia or not.

 

Sebastian had sent her not only the train ticket, but pocket money so she could come with no worries about anything. He and Ginger had been adamant that they had space and time to make her birthday an enjoyable one. Her mother too had pressured her to go home - her real home for her birthday. She figured that since her birthday landed in the middle of winter and her father’s was closer to Winter Solstice, she all but demanded she come home.

 

‘Aria - you cannot spend your birthday with strangers! Birthdays are for family and it’s near the end of your year!’ 

 

She felt a headache coming on. 

 

“What’s going on in that big brain of yours? Thinking about the trees?” Mi-an asked cheerily.

 

That too. After they had collected the goo, Zeke had started using the algae to start planning trees in the desert and so far…they’d been a success. Mayor Trudy had all but cried at the idea that something had gone right. Aria didn’t think that the Mayor was unpopular but Trudy could not stress it enough that she needed this to work. And based on what their secret check-ins were showing they were going to have that win. 

 

“No, but I should be?” Aria smiled and leaned her face against her palm before returning to her quiche. “Sorry Mi-an, I’m a terrible replacement for Elsie today”

 

Elsie had been grounded for doing, Peach knows what, so since Mi-an lost her shadow, she had asked Aria if she would join her for lunch. Aria immediately agreed, feeling guilty at the idea of sort of neglecting her builder friend since getting comfortable in Sandrock. There was nothing inherently wrong with her. Mi-an was kind, giving, a hard worker but oh so gullible. Yan knew to use Mi-an for any lowly favors that Aria would have scoffed at. She was a teamplayer in a one person team with Yan and Aria did not have the heart to tell the younger builder about it. Her people pleasing tendencies would be her downfall. 

 

“Don’t be silly, you’re a wonderful lunch date” Mi-an waved her hands good naturedly signaling nothing was wrong.

 

“I wish I could tell you that I’m thinking of something super important,” she chuckled. “But honestly, I’m just wondering what I’m going to do for my birthday. My cousin Sebastian wants me to go to Portia, to meet his wife and his friends. He has sent me the ticket and everything so I’d be gone for three days”

 

“Okay?” The Talsky girl asked, confused at the debate.

 

“My ma” she gave a half smile, “is demanding I go home to celebrate with them. The issue is…she thinks that since it’s near the end of Winter, I can simply take everything with me and I can just-”

 

“Return home?!” Mi-an interrupted right as Grace was dropping off their drinks.

 

The blonde paused and had no qualms about admitting she had eavesdropped.

 

“Aria you’re leaving at the end of the year?” It was not the question that surprised Aria but rather the intense look she was giving her. 

 

Grace and her got along fine- amazing even. She was a scavenger like Aria and so if anytime she found an extra motor she would not need, she would take it to the blonde during her lunch breaks. Sometimes if a week was slow they would tinker together. The brunette liked Grace but felt that there was something that felt…like a facade? Grace would smile but it did not always reach her eyes; she would sometimes state facts about law as if she was in enforcement herself. Aria had once called her out on it ‘You sound just like my pa’ she said with a grin and that had changed Grace’s mood. The cook knew that Sirius was in law enforcement and something about that weird interaction had remained in the builder’s mind. 

 

Like now, she looked at her as if she was surprised but disappointed? Grace always asked her a lot of questions about her but reciprocated with something of substance. It never mattered to Aria who tended to be a little more closed off than other people. 

 

“I’m thinking about it” Aria answered but smiling “not permanently, but for my birthday. My parents…don’t know what” She turned to Mi-an to bring her back into the initial conversation. “So that’s why I can’t really go back now” she twirled her hair - a nervous habit before sighing. “I also want to stay, I know we’re going to discuss what’s going on here and I want to stay. Plus if I go-”

 

“There’s no guarantee you’ll come back?” Grace commented off handedly, with a bit of a bite that was unexpected.

 

“Grace!” Owen chastised, clearly also having listened to the conversation. How could he have not - the saloon was empty right now. 

 

Grace waved him off unphased by his frustration with him. “I’m just saying, is your Civil Corps Pa gonna let you come back or are they gonna guilt you to stay back”

“That’s not fair Grace - Sandrock can be dangerous sometimes” Mi-an spoke up defending her friend.

 

“And the news coming out of here doesn't help the rumors” Owen sighed. “Aria can do what she pleases.”

 

Aria’s eyes darkened in frustration. Owen meant well but was placating Grace as well as giving her an out to say that yes she was leaving with no guilt.

“For everyone’s information” Aria growled out, very out of character. “My Pa hasn’t told me what to do since I became of age. And if I didn’t bend to their will when I had a full scholarship for a botany profession, what makes you think I’m going to do it now?” 

She briefly thought about her friend, how he had once told her that Sandrockers could be selfish sometimes and she kept going. “I was just wondering whether to go to Portia, Highwind, OR stay here for Trudy.” She slapped gols on the table before turning to Mi-an “Sorry I was a bad date - lunch is on me. Owen, just credit me for the meal for next time”

 

Purposefully brushing against Grace in annoyance before walking out and immediately wincing at the sunlight. 

 

…

“Oh she’s such a bitch” Amirah growled after Aria had told her what occurred. 

 

It seemed that no matter what kind of problem she was dealing with, she always ended up at the artist’s home. She currently laid on the couch, looking at Amirah who was adding paint to her last few vases. This was her therapy; laying on the couch as the older girl worked and heard her woes. 

 

“She was,” she nodded. “I don’t know why people think I am just going to leave.”

 

“People leave all the time - so I get her but that was not a conversation she was invited to”

 

“Fuck that” she huffed. “I have never given anyone the indication that I was only here for a year - I made the opposite quite clear when Nia had brought it up. I work every day in and out, making myself part of the community. I literally have Miss Vivi making me new outfits for Spring - I have extended my ruins contract to dig for another three months and still she had the gall to just say that I’ll fold to my parents.”

 

“Uncalled for” 

“Yes! Super uncalled for, especially since she isn’t privy to my personal life like you are. There was something in her gaze…I can’t place my finger on it.”

“Well I’m glad you put her in you place. But changing subject, are you leaving for your birthday? And if so, Portia or Highwind?”

Aria groaned.

 

“I want to go but Trudy-”

 

“When is she going to tell everyone about her outcome? She had us planting trees and it’s been some time then nada?”

 

Aria smiled. 

 

“I can tell you it’s going really well. We’re waiting for her to pull the trigger and let everyone else know. But Ami, I really think this is gonna work. And I kinda wanna be here for it.” 

 

Amirah finished her pottery and turned to fully look at her with a soft smile.

 

“It would be nice to celebrate your birthday with your family here.” she moved to the couch and shifted Aria over so they could sit together. “I could make us something nice, Heidi can get us good drinks and Pablo can lend us his apartment. Or you can throw a party and I can share you with others”

 

They both laughed. “I think you should go to Portia. Trudy needs to realize that not everyone hates her, we’ve just been in dire straits recently and she was off on another unsuccessful mission of hers.”

 

“Matilda is an imposing figure” Aria pushed back.

 

“I’m not saying she’s not. But she’s been here supporting us Sandrockers, and in the darkest times she’s been finding solutions, giving us hope. She gave us leadership when our Mayor hasn’t even made an attempt to properly integrate herself with everyone. Trudy lets Cooper throw comments her way and she bumbles with even retort.” she sighed. “I am not Trudy’s biggest supporter I admit, I like her as a person but as a leader…she could be better. But pushing that aside she does not need to rely on a twenty two year old to hold her hand during this. You should go to Portia, meet their people, kick Mason’s ass, and bring back new paints for me”

 

Aria giggled.

 

“You’re right - Portia it is. Sandrock can survive a few days without me”

 

…

 

My sweetest cousin,

I wish I could have written you with better news but at this time the idea of you coming to Portia for your birthday has to be put on pause due to unforeseen problems. 

I wish I was joking, but my closest friend, my first friend here, ended up being a Duvos spy. I-I don’t even know how to process it. Aadit - my sweet pacifist friend - he lied.

 

Remember him? I spoke about Aadit a lot- a refugee during this terrible war became an integral part of our town and then he just left. He left right after a Duvos attack, with nothing but a letter apologizing to me. Saying that our friendship meant a lot and sent me a stupid bear. He left a bear and a card in our mailbox. 

 

Ginger is inconsolable. The mayor is in shock and all our ports and trains are closed. We managed to send a large quantity of water to Sandrock before the shortage but- it’s just awful. 

 

We’re working on catching him, but as I said there is no way you can come my little panbat. Maybe you can come for my birthday? In turn, I am sending you some items for you.

 

Please be careful who you allow to get close to you- and if you meet a man named Audit, make sure to punch him square in the jaw.

 

Love,

Sebastian 

 

“Well I guess my decision is made” she muttered as she opened the rest of the large box.

 

Inside were fabrics, gorgeous blues, reds, purples, greens. A variety to allow her to make clothes for her and her friends. Then some preserved fruits, vegetables and drinks. The thick envelope was clearly money, that she immediately hid under her mattress. And at the corner of the box was the sweetest but saddest thing she saw: the teddy bear with the tag “Please give him a good home.”

She frowned and picked it up. It was so cute, soft and she hugged it close to her chest. She felt terrible for Sebastian, Ginger and the whole town of Portia. One of their own was actually hiding devious activities. She sighed. When would things just work out like they were supposed to? 

 

…

Maybe the town did hate Trudy. Aria had a huge frown on her face at the scene unfolding in front of her. Ernest was writing an article about Sandrock and the success of their little woods. 

 

“What's she done for us since she got back, anyway? Other than almost get both our Builders killed at the Shipwreck Ruins? Way I see it, person we ought to be thankin' other than Zeke is the good Minister Matilda!”

 

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” she ignored the gasp from Mabel. “I can take care of myself just fine”

 

“Now hold on a tick-” Matilda waived her hands around, with a fake sense of humility. 

 

Aria felt like she was living in an alternate reality. 

 

⁠⁠"This is our ray of hope... " Hugo murmured.

 

⁠⁠”Yeah, when I heard that, I was like: "Woah."” - Unsuur added with his quip of quirkiness. 

 

⁠⁠”I mean, Matilda has led us through some of the most troubled times I've ever seen in this town…”

 

“Owen” Aria whispered feeling so sad for Trudy who stood up there on stage taking it like a champ. But she saw the Mayor’s shoulders slump in defeat.

 

“I says we put Matilda on the front of one o' them funny papers! As a co-nema-moration for what all she's done in this town! All in favor, say "Aye!"” 

 

“ Aye !”

 

“Nay” Aria protested and others looked confused at her denial. “Minister Matilda is great no doubt. She’s done wonders for our town since I joined but Mayor Trudy has gone through the ruins with us. It was due to her exploration that we found the possible key to our reforestation. If Ernest does this article it has to include Mayor Trudy.”

 

“Pish posh. What do you know girl? You’re the freshest face here” Coope waved her off before turning back to Town Hall. “There ya have it! Ball's in your court, Mayor!”

 

⁠Trudy looked near tears but forced on a smile.

 

“Er, ah... sure! Haha, I mean, if that's how everyone feels about it... Minister Matilda, at the behest of our fine citizens, would you do us the honor of appearing on the front page of this article?”

 

“Oh, I couldn't...!” Matilda looked so pleased with herself. 

 

⁠⁠”The mob has spoken!”

 

⁠⁠”Really! It's alright; you've earned this, Matilda.” Trudy gripped her hand tightly. “As well as Zeke and our Builders. We couldn't have done it without you, either!”

 

⁠⁠Aria ignored Heidi’s grip on her shoulder. 

 

⁠⁠”Goodness, y'all, I'm at a loss for words... I... only ever wanted what was best for Sandrock; I was only ever doin' what the Light put me here to do! But if it'll make y'all happy, then, yes, I accept this exceptionally high honor! Thank you, Sandrockers!”

 

Everyone clapped.

 

“Conserve Water!” 

 

“Conserve Water” 

 

“Trudy's not one to be bothered by Matilda being put on the front photo for our article, but... it still doesn't seem right to me…” Amirah murmured. “Good on you for standing up for her”

 

“Yeah…” Aria had a bad feeling about this. 

 

Notes:

I literally could not get this idea out of my head. Sandrock is a wonderful game and as we get closer to the final update, I can't wait to see it flesh out more.