#well the first half of it anyway LOL

[im-no-jedi]

MLWTBB: Business Is Business

aka the (continued) journey into my self insert nonsense✨

chapter summary: while the Bad Batch is away on a mission, an oddly familiar Devaronian kicks Cid out of her parlor and takes it for himself, causing several problems for Hannah...

notes: this is a continuation of my story, “My Life With The Bad Batch”; I highly recommend reading that first before this one! I created a few new planets for this story. I’m also not 100% versed in SW terminology, so forgive me if some things are labeled incorrectly! each chapter will be rated accordingly, as opposed to the overall fic. lastly, there is romance in this story. hope you enjoy! 💙

add. notes: this chapter was edited and proofread by my sis @jam-n-ham! thanks sis!! 😋💙 also, in case it isn’t obvious, this story is my version of episode 13 “Infested”. I tried to stick to canon as much as possible, while also delving more into one of my favorite side characters in the show (please more of the Durand family in season two 🙏🏻)

Chapter 1, 2500+ words, rated G (there’s mentions of alcohol and that’s about it LOL)

next chapter

✨MLWTBB masterlist✨

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It was yet another slow Primeday at Cid’s Parlor. Hannah had woken up a bit late that morning, but thankfully Cid didn’t dock her for it. So far, only Bolo and Ketch were in the parlor, like usual. There was a bit of mess to clean up from the night before, but it didn’t take long for Hannah to get that taken care of. It was an extremely boring time, even more than usual.  

All Hannah really hoped for now was that she would finally see her friends come walking through the door again. They had been gone for a few days on another mission for Cid, something Hannah was quite used to by this point. But she was extra lonely this time and missed them more than usual. She thought about how she was going to give Omega the biggest hug ever when they all got back. She imagined Wrecker joining in and scooping both her and Omega up into a squeeze fest between the three of them. She pondered the sort of snide comments Tech and Echo might say about their mission, as they often did whenever they came back to the parlor. She dreamed about seeing Hunter again, the man she loved with all her heart, and telling him how much she missed him as she ran her fingers through his long, dark brown hair. It would be absolutely wonderful.

Suddenly, footsteps could be heard coming down the stairs towards the parlor. Hannah’s heart leapt into her throat, desperately wishing it was who she thought it was.

But it wasn’t. Not even close.

Several intimidating looking men in dark armor came flooding into the parlor, each of them carrying a weapon. Hannah bolted upright from the counter she’d been leaning against, unsure of what to do. Then another figure came stepping in, quite confidently. It was a male Devaronian with green skin, wearing a nice suit and holding some sort of small lizard creature in his arms. He was obviously the leader of this group. The room went silent as the Devaronian looked around, surveying the place.  

Hannah had a moment of panic at the sight of him. Memories of Volruna flooded into her head, with the man in front of her briefly being replaced by the visage of Vin Drazundr instead. She had to literally shake herself back to reality and exhaled deeply. Then she looked to Bolo and Ketch, who were completely frozen in place. With a deep breath, she gathered up all her courage and decided to approach the newcomer. “Uhh, hello! Can I help you?”

The Devaronian adjusted the collar of his shirt before answering her. “I’m looking for Cid. Would you happen to know where she is?”

Cid wasn’t expecting anybody today to Hannah’s knowledge. She knew what she was supposed to do in situations like this. “I might... who exactly is looking for her, if I might ask?”

“Roland,” the Devaronian replied proudly. “Roland Durand. A pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

The name didn’t ring a bell to Hannah at all. The way he was acting though made it out like he was important in some way. Regardless, she didn’t like the vibe she was getting from this guy at all. It unfortunately reminded her of Vin again. “Yeah, a pleasure. I’m sorry, what is your business with Cid? It’s kind of my job to ask so she doesn’t get bothered unnecessarily.”

Roland chuckled. “Adorable. You’ll be a fun bartender, I’m sure.”

Hannah blinked in shock. “Excuse me?”

Roland then made a hand signal to the armored men, who began searching the entire parlor. Bolo and Ketch tried to avoid them as much as possible, insisting they were just there as patrons; eventually, they just ran out of the parlor altogether. Hannah opened her mouth to try and retort to what was going on, but Roland silenced her. Then one of the men discovered the back room and alerted Roland about it. Again, Hannah tried to speak, but was stopped by Roland.  

“Be a dear and whip up some drinks for me and my men, would you?” he said as he walked towards the back room.  

Hannah stood in place, completely dumbfounded. She was wrong before; this guy was somehow worse than Vin. “Jerk didn’t even tell me what kind of drink he wanted...”

Despite her curiosity, Hannah kept herself away from the room, much to her discretion. She knew Cid had told her to stay out of stuff like this in case there was trouble, but she couldn’t help wanting to rush in and at least see what was going on.  

It didn’t take long before Hannah got her answer. The door to Cid’s room slid open, catching Hannah’s attention immediately. To her surprise, Cid was walking out of the hallway, hands in the air, with Roland and some of the armored men behind her.  

“What’s going on?” Hannah exclaimed.

“A simple change of hands, sweetheart,” Roland replied. “Nothing more.”

“More like a hostile takeover,” Cid retorted. She saw the concerned look on Hannah’s face and reassured her, “Don’t worry, Red. This ain’t permanent.”

“You’d like to think that, wouldn’t you?” Roland said slyly. “Get her out of my parlor, would you, boys?”

Hannah scoffed. “Your parlor?”

As the armored men began literally shoving Cid out, she turned to Roland, shouting, “You better not lay a hand on her, Roland! You’re not her type!”

Roland rolled his eyes and scoffed before turning to Hannah. “Congratulations, you’re now a part of the Durand syndicate. You can thank me by getting those drinks I asked for earlier.”  

Hannah was once again too dumbfounded to even move. She felt Roland step closer towards her and instinctively backed away.  

“Now, now,” he reassured her. “No need to fret. I’m not your enemy, I promise. In fact, I’ll gladly double whatever Cid was paying you before as a show of my sincerity.”  

Hannah scowled at him. “Why do I have a hard time believing that?”

Roland chuckled. “You’re a feisty one. Just do as I say, and you’ll have nothing to worry about.” He gave her a sly look before returning to the back room. A look similar to the one Vin first gave her at the Prism Palace.

Now Hannah knew she definitely had something to worry about.

*********************

The following day, Hannah decided to conveniently avoid the parlor as long as she could. It didn’t matter what Roland said, or even what he tried to do, there was no way she was going to work for someone like him. Especially while she was alone. Then again, that entire situation would never have happened in the first place if the Bad Batch were there. Hannah began imagining scenarios where the five of them had put a stop to Roland’s takeover of the parlor, if only just to keep herself sane.  

In the back of her mind though, she worried. Any number of things could happen between then and whenever her friends actually came back to Ord Mantell. And Roland’s words from the day before still concerned her. She tried to not think about it, but her worries were too strong. The fact that nearly everything about Roland reminded her of Vin didn’t help either.

Maybe she could just leave. She could find somewhere else to stay until the Bad Batch came back and fixed everything. Mrs Ygreu had always said her place was open if Hannah ever wanted to visit, maybe she could go there.

No, Hannah didn’t want anyone else to get involved in this mess unnecessarily. She had to ride this out on her own, as much as she hated it. Maybe Roland would just leave her alone if she stayed away long enough...

Suddenly, there was a knock on her door. Hannah’s heart skipped a beat. Initially, she thought it might be one of the Clones finally coming back. Nobody ever visited other than them or Cid. Maybe it was Cid. Hannah hadn’t seen her since the day before. Did anybody else even know where she lived?

Another knock on the door. Hannah’s heart began racing. She had to know who it was. Throwing caution to the wind, Hannah went over to the door and opened it without a second thought, hoping beyond hope it was someone she knew.

Unfortunately, it was the one person she knew that she wished she didn’t.

“Ahh, there you are,” said the recognizable voice of Roland. His lizard-like pet, Ruby, was in his arms and two armored men stood behind him. “I was worried when you didn’t come in today. Is there a problem I should know about?”

Hannah almost laughed. “It’s my day-off,” she replied, a visible scowl on her face.

Roland pursed his lips and hummed. “Good to know.” His eyes began scanning the room behind her curiously. “Interesting space you have here. Mind if I give it a better look?”

Hannah’s eyes narrowed. “Depends. What’ll you do if I refuse?”

A snicker escaped from Roland’s fanged grin. “I think you already know the answer to that, sweetheart.”

There was a familiar pang in Hannah’s chest. Her breath caught in her throat, and a shiver ran down her back. It took her a moment to remember that she was talking to Roland and not Vin.

Without waiting for a response, Roland pushed his way past Hannah into the room. The armored men stayed outside, but waited in the doorway.

“Quite the collection you’ve got in here,” Roland said as he walked through the space. “Although I doubt all of this stuff is yours.” He gestured to one of the large crates against the wall and chuckled.

“It was part of our agreement,” Hannah told him, her arms crossed with a stern look on her face.

“How noble of you,” Roland responded. He snapped his fingers and pointed at the crate. The two armored men came into the room and began dragging the crate out of the apartment. “And now it won’t bother you ever again.”

Hannah maintained the stern look on her face. She could see what Roland was trying to do, and it wasn’t going to work. “What do you want from me, Roland?”

The small lizard creature in Roland’s arms began growling happily as her owner rummaged through Hannah’s fridge. “A drink would be nice,” Roland responded, pulling out a piece of food for Ruby to munch on. “But apparently, it’s your day off.” He sat down on one of the kitchen stools with Ruby in his lap, happily munching on the snack she’d been given. “That’s alright though. You’ll have plenty of time to make up for it tomorrow.”

The hairs on the back of Hannah’s neck were beginning to stand on end in anger. She walked up closer to Roland from behind the kitchen island with a mighty scowl on her face. “I’m not coming back tomorrow. Or the day after that. Or ever again.”

A small smirk grew on Roland’s face. “Defiance will get you nothing but trouble, dollface. And really, what reason do you have to be that way anyway? I haven’t done anything harmful to you.”

“You stole Cid’s Parlor from her!” Hannah exclaimed, nearly slamming her fist on the counter.

“So?” Roland bluntly responded. “How does that hurt you, exactly? You’ve still got your job. Your home. I’ve even helped clean up this place a bit for you.” He snapped his fingers again, and the armored men returned to carry out another one of the crates from the room. “There, I just did it again. You’re welcome.”

Hannah shook her head, the scowl still firmly in place. “I don’t care. I know how people like you work. You’re not the first crime boss I’ve encountered, and I doubt you’ll be the last.”

“Living here on Ord Mantell?” Roland said with a scoff. “That’s for certain.”

Hannah took a few steps closer, now standing directly in front of Roland from behind the counter. Her tone was laden with malice as she spoke. “You can try to sweet talk me all you want, but it won’t make a difference. I work for Cid, not you.”

Once again, Roland snickered behind his fanged grin. “Quite the loyal employee, aren’t you? A good quality to have.” He took Ruby off of his lap and placed her on the counter between himself and Hannah. The little lizard creature looked up at Hannah and growled before snuggling up to Roland’s hand. “You’re better off putting that tenacity of yours to good use down at the parlor than trying to intimidate me.”

Hannah’s hands came slamming down on the counter so hard, it spooked Ruby. “Quit messing with me, Roland! I already told you, I’m not coming back! I don’t care what you do; take my whole apartment away if you want, I don’t care! I’d rather live on the streets than work for someone like you.”

The entire time Hannah was yelling, Roland’s expression remained calm. If anything, he seemed entertained by her outburst, with the small smirk returning to his face again. Once Hannah had finished, Roland chuckled to himself and began petting Ruby to calm her down.

“I wonder if Cid feels the same way,” he slyly responded. “I wonder if that’s why she’s stuck around.” He looked Hannah directly in the face, still smirking slightly. “I wonder... how things might change if she suddenly wasn’t around anymore?”

The serious determination on Hannah’s face began to fade. Her eyes went wide with realization, and she began to slink back away from Roland.

“I’m really not asking for much, sweetheart,” Roland said, shaking his head. “Just keep doing what you’re doing, and you’ll be fine. Cid will be fine too. It’s that simple. Or, we could make things more difficult, if that’s what you really want.” He slid off the stool and came up beside her, almost uncomfortably close. Hannah could just feel the smirk spreading across his face. “I don’t know about you, but I much prefer when things aren’t so complicated.”

Hannah said nothing and just stood still, absorbing Roland’s words and practically shaking from the weight of it all. Roland left her side and told her to enjoy the rest of her day off as he headed for the door with Ruby still in his arms. He paused in the doorway briefly to turn back to Hannah and said, “See you bright and early tomorrow, dollface.”

And with that, he was finally gone. Hannah was left alone in her kitchen, still shaken by the entire experience. She felt like crying and throwing up at the same time. With shaky hands, she leaned over the counter, resting her head in her hands and breathing heavily, with small sobs gradually creeping out.

In the back of her mind, she could hear Cid’s voice berating her for being so foolish. She wasn’t worth the trouble, is what Cid would tell Hannah. Save yourself, she would absolutely say. But Hannah couldn’t do it. She wasn’t going to sacrifice Cid’s life just so she could avoid working for Roland. Even Irridas back at the Prism Palace hadn’t been that cruel.

If working for Roland is what would keep Cid safe, then she would do it, no questions asked.

[grapefruit185]

gman leave the poor man ALONE!!!!!!!!

[13eyond13]

love it when a character that's hard to read intuitively for you has like a dedicated fandom interpreter who can just glance at their blank face in a panel and then give you a 3k word essay on their innermost thoughts & desires & fears and neatly tie it back into the themes & whatnot as if it's the most obvious thing in the world

[crossbackpoke-check]

Why I Am Not Coming In To Work Today [abridged], Jess Zimmerman

part one | part two

[e77y]

We did it Joe (OCD diagnosis)

[lunarharp]

wip thing...

of my bg3 avatar hellebore. i also did some casual nude studies of my 3 characters which i'll put under a cut... rather unlike me after all. (so WARNING for abrupt non-sexual full Artistic nudity lol...,,,,) (< won't be making a habit of this)

they mean the world to me

[itstimeforstarwars]

Got a comment today about how much the reader appreciated me putting space MSHA into my story and it truly made me feel sickos.jpg "yes haha yess!!!! Target audience!!! Hahaha!!"

[joelletwo]

giving up on going to bed proper tonight i am Not getting everything i need to do done in forty minutes [adjusted for time it took to write this post. 30 minutes]

[icewindandboringhorror]

finally finished all of one character's entire quests/optional dialogue/questions/etc.... 100,000 words... .... aughhh

[whereistheonepiece]

I commissioned @perfusio to draw Uta and my OC Papaya! Their dads are dating, so they're basically sisters now. At least in each other's books.

[sysig]

The most fun you can have, barring the pain and torture (Patreon)

[zymstarz]

yeah sure that's how i'll [re]come out

[fauvester]

bridgerton s2 was SUCH a clayhoun slay. thots in tags

[eternitas]

Unseen Varia - Profiles

(yaaay first of the new character profiles! Let's fill the Seconds in Command roster!)

Zarria Albo

Basic Info:

Full Name: Zarria Albo

Nickname: Zarri, Z, that sicillian woman, The reaper, (Tyrs) executioner

Age: 44

Birthday: [IN PROGRESS]

Gender/Pronouns: cis female, she/her

Sexuality: undisclosed

Ethnicity: italian, siccilian specifically

Height: 185cm

Flametype: sun, secondary cloud and storm flame

Weapon of Choice: Scythe

Affiliation: Varia, Sun Division

Position: Second in Command

Languages: italian (mainly sicilian dialect, +SL), spanish, french, english

Strengths: collected, serious, intelligent, strategic, observant, combat, poker and other card games, alcohol tollerance

Weaknesses: way too serious most of the time, depressed, unhappy, cynical, pessimistic, fatalistic

Character Summary:

Zarria has been a part of the Varia when Tyr had still run the place. She saw the takeover by Xanxus and even then knew that this would only cause trouble. She is a very mellowed woman, someone who alway seems serious and to not know any fun, however this is simply her work persona and she is known to have an outgoing and fun personality off the clock. she is someone who does not tollerate bullshit and she often loses patience with the younger members who in her eyes do not take things serious enough, however she also is one of the few that notices and realizes the game Bel plays with Lorenzo. She loves to use her analytical mind and prowess, oftentimes less into combat and more into mindgames, however she does do her work as a support as required. While she isn't great in healing she does have the necesary flame to open the healing boxes she is provided. Under Tyr she was more of a fighter and front woman, but after Xanxus took over she decided to get less involved in the organisation. While she will always reinstate that it was a rightful death in duel, she still seems to harbor some personal feelings regarding Tyr that she never elaborates on.

Background:

Born in Siccily Zarria was early on involved with the mafia, as her parents were already working mafiosi. Growing up in a rough place full of violence, shootouts and turf wars she became a formidable fighter and an exceptional strategist. Early on she managed to make money by outsmarting others and beating them in games, getting a reputation among the townsfolk and get eventually scouted by none other than Tyr himself. Seeing the potential in her he decided to offer her a life as a trainee of the Varia, especially once her parents died and her sister got adopted into a family in north italy. She accepted and became his personal trainee for a good while, learning to use swords before she settled on using a scythe and becoming his executioner.

When Tyr was defeated she should've been angry and pissed and taken revenge but unlike others she accepted his defeat and subsequent death at the hands of Squalo. However she was a long time against accepting Xanxus as a new leader and quite unusual for him, he did not dare to get in a scuffle with her. It took her some time before she decided to get back into the organisation and she took position as Lussurias second in command, even though technically like Lorenzo she has the possibility to become an officer. However she does not see the point in it. Since then she has watched from the sidelines and given her quiet commentary on Xanxus leadership. In her time she managed to make friends with a few of the members and even found a way to get along with Lussuria.

Fighting Style:

Zarria is not someone who enjoys fighting as much as others. For a long time she has been an executioner so her work is to get the kill and that's it. She despises to fight more than she needs to when it comes to work for the Varia, but when she is personally invested in a fight she might just take the extra time. Her scythe has a few anker points that she can use to angle ant turn the blade, but she mostly uses her muscles and agility to peroperly hunt somebody. Her outrageous intellect and strategic thinking also allows her to often outsmart her opponents and catch them unaware.

Trivia:

Zarria likes to play all kinds of strategic games and finds enjoyment in winning. She has battled everyone of her fellow seconds in command in chess, with Lor and Jaque being closest to beating her, but never actually managing. Ser plays with her the most

Zarria refuses to sparr with other members unless it is someone who she believes can stand her Scythe. These include, Leo (battle was interrupted by her), Raphael (also interrupted by her), Jaque and Squalo. The moment she managed to land a hit on Leos torso she immideatly stopped to treat his wound

Zarrias scythe is in fact so sharp it is known to cut anything, which is one of the reasons she will not fight for fun or sparr. It would be way too dangerous.

She wears special metal capped boots to not slice her feet off when she kicks her scythes blade

She speaks the sicilian dialect almost exclusively and will tell people to deal with it if the can't understand her

She does NOT regard Ava as a swordsman, and she hates that his sword that he so atrociously calles "pride" was made from the blade that defeated Tyr. In her eyes that is deeply disrespectful

She has a pretty high alcohol tolerance and likes to go out into bars. She also enjoys food a lot, tho she dislikes overly sweet food

She has strong opinions but knows that it's a waste of time to always voice them. When asked however she will tell them.

Zarria lost all contact with her sister until she found out that she has become a part of the Luna Famiglia. While the two of them don't really have a relationship she is still thankful to Sergey for at least reassuring her that her sister is safe and taken care of

She has met Sergeys oldest sister Maria and has a soft spot for her, which is why she def would cosign Sergeys deep desire to get rid of Marias husband.

Her pupils are pretty much slits, like those of a snake which only gives her even more of an eerie vibe

[keeps-ache]

'aside from all these things, i'm going to need a new helmet'

[traditional sketch below]

[plumdale]

Me rn bc other than reading my favorite free-time activity is playing sims but I don’t have my gaming laptop with me. Is this the time I should start learning how to crochet bc I’ve always wanted to…..