She nods. "I've been working on a plan to keep the dreamshard safe; I assume you intend to keep custody of it, so I'll need your cooperation with that."

"That is correct. What is your plan?"

"The main issue is how loud it is - I'm not sure what you know about Force-sensitives, but we have some extra senses and intuitions, and it's very obvious to those, I'd expect any Sith within a thousand miles to hear it and come looking. There aren't any other Sith that close, fortunately, I'm the only one on the planet, but I'll be surprised if we make it a year without someone showing up from offplanet, as is. There are materials that can dampen the effect, but I'm not personally familiar with them - I've been going through my notes looking for names, but if you need more information I might need to have a book shipped out - and that might be a good idea anyway, if it gets us more information on anti-Sith defenses. In the meantime I've been keeping an eye on it, and we're planning to get some droids to help with surveillance - we've been waiting on you, for that; they'll ultimately be staying with you, so you should be involved with the choice. The rest of it for right now is being ready to run - we could, probably, dig in here and make it Sith-proof, but I don't especially want to, and heading for the outer rim or Hutt territory will be safer anyway, and if someone shows up tomorrow with a private army that's the only sensible reaction."

Nod nod. "I'm not sure how dreamshaping interacts with the force or if materials that I make can interact with it. I might be able to feel the force through dreamshaping, but maybe your universe just has a different texture from my own. Your plan is a good one... Are Jedi not a concern? Or not one when compared to Sith?"

"Much less of one. I have less of an idea of what they'd do with the dreamshard if they got it, but we're very much in Sith territory, they'd have a hard time getting here alive even if they were specifically trying, especially with any sort of entourage. As to making material - I'll be surprised if it's a problem; that sort of thing does usually need special processing, but it doesn't require Force-sensitivity, just complicated chemistry."

"Oh, okay. In that case I should be able to make them as long it's specified enough for me to copy."

She nods. 'What do you usually need, for that?"

"Chemical structure, from a book is good, or a sample that I can be pointed at."

"All right. I can get that, but it'll take a while."

Nod. "Thank you. ...Should we discuss what to do in the worst case scenario of a Sith getting hold of the shard?"

"Mm." She softens a bit. "I doubt either of us has the imagination to come up with the actual worst case. But we can talk about that. Inside?"

"Of course." He follows.

So does Daisy.

The table has regained most of its usual  clutter, and the bins along the side wall have been rearranged to make room for a portal that shows the desert of her dimension. "Can we get you anything? Glass of water, something to eat?"

He glances at the desert.

"A glass of water. If it's no trouble. I'm not hungry, but thank you for the offer."

"No trouble." She and Daisy exchange looks, and then she goes to the sink to pour it. Daisy, meanwhile, gestures to Felix to sit, giving him his choice of where.

Felix sits on the nearest bench, being mindful of his wings. He is facing the portal.

Dusk comes back with a glass of water for him and one for herself.

"So - I get the impression that you're going to have trouble understanding just how dangerous Sith are."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, for one thing, you're still here. In this case that's the right option - and please don't run, it would be annoying to have to chase you - but if the only thing you know about me is that I'm a Sith and happen not to have an army to hand..." she shakes her head. "Sith have traditions, amongst ourselves, but the only rule is that if someone doesn't like what you're doing they might try to kill you, and compassion is the sort of weakness that gets a Sith killed. We aren't nice."

Slow nod.

"I don't especially want to scare you, but you should be scared, it'll help keep you safe."

Nod nod. "I'm... mostly scared on behalf of other people?"

He does not mean that in the sense that he doesn't fear Sith hurting him, but that he fears Sith hurting other people because of him.

"Yeah, that's - yeah." She looks back up. "But keep in mind that they aren't above using that to manipulate you, too, if they notice. 'Give me what I want and I'll let your loved one go' is the oldest trick in the book, just about. They might even follow through, if they think they'll get some use out of having you trust them later."

Nod. "I'm aware of the tactic and that the logical thing to do is... not allow it to be successful."

"Mmhmm. That's not the same thing as being able to do it in practice, though. - for the record, don't cave for me, I know exactly what I'm getting into here and I'd rather stop the shard from turning into a weapon in the war than avoid whatever they'd do to me if they got me. Not that they're likely to."