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| - Leia smiled to Epin before turning to make her way toward the Palace. She made her way through the crowds of people and eventually arrived at the Palace itself, where she was halted by her father. "Leia, where have you been?" Bail said in a stern voice. He was wearing his usual formal dark blue robes with blue shirt and black pants. "Oh, hi daddy!" Leia said with a beaming smile. "Leia, spare me the buttery demeanor." Bail replied, holding up his hand. "You were supposed to be out on a Match. Where did you go?" "I was in the city, with Epin, we had lunch together." She said looking at him. "Well, how come you abandoned your match to be with Epin?" Bail said. "It's part of..." "Dad, that's just it!" Leia shouted, causing a nearby palace guard to jump in alarm. "My Match! Epin's not a match, he's different from them, and I'm genuinely happy when I'm around him." Leia stopped for a moment, amazed at what she said. She looked at Bail directly in the eye, took a deep breath and continued. "Dad, what I mean to say is, I don't feel like he's just with me because he has to be, because someone put us together. Or because he's after my name, or even..." She cast her eyes to the ground for a moment then looked back at Bail. "...Or even just because I'm a girl." Bail stood looking at Leia for a few moments, his face looking like he was thinking hard. He sighed deeply, then put his hand on her shoulder. "Well, if that's how you feel about him, that's fine." He said, sliding his arm around her shoulders, leading her inside the palace. "I cannot tell you who you should or should not be friends with, you are old enough, and wise enough to make the right choices for yourself." Leia said nothing, still in wonder at her words to her father. She listened, but wasn't really hearing him. "I know it's hard, I've told you before. But this Matching is tradition, and this is the way that it has been for years. It's just the way things go honey, and like I told you before, as a Princess, and someday as a Queen, you must think of your people before yourself." They stopped and Bail faced her, placing a hand on each of her shoulders. "Leia, just stay with it, for me, please. Make an effort, this is important for your mother and I as well. I don't want to have to discipline you, but if you continue to do things like this, I have no choice but to. Do you understand?" Leia nodded, hesitant to meet his eye. "Okay." Bail said with a chuckle. He kissed her forehead and exited into the main hall, where it seemed most of the people were. She wanted to be alone to think, so she made instead for the stairs and the sanctuary of her bedroom. Leia entered the room and noticed that it was empty. "Guess Winter is downstairs." She said softly. With nobody to talk to she instead walked over to one of her bedrooms windows. This one was different from the others in that there was a place where you could sit. The window was set into a depression in the wall, and it was possible to sit in this area and look out of the window. A bay window was the term she thought she heard used for it. She sat and pulled her knees up toward her chest, wrapping her arms around them. Leia's mind drifted for a few moments while thought about what her father had said, what she had said to her father, what happened in the city and what she had said to him about Epin. She thought about the Matching and how she was supposed to stay with it, as her father had said. Easy for him to say. Leia thought angrily. He doesn't have to feel the pressure that they're forcing upon me! Having to put up with the stuck up snobs that call themselves gentlemen. He doesn't have everyone watching him and asking who he thinks he would like to end up with, who he thinks is a good match or who would make a good king. A tear fell down her cheek and she hugged herself tighter. It's not fair. How can they possibly expect me to just choose someone when they're forced upon me like this? I don't like any of these boys. They don't want to talk to me about anything but galactic politics or how rich they are. Leia rested her head back against the wall and looking toward the farmlands, she let her thoughts drift onto Epin, and the afternoon they had spent together. After some time, the door swished open and Winter entered the room. "Oh, there you are Leia." She said as the door closed behind her. Leia wiped her eyes and looked in Winter's direction. Winter was wearing a simple red dress and had her hair tied into a bun, which she undid, her white hair falling to her shoulders. She then made her way to the closet for a change of clothes and as she did so, she questioned Leia about her day. "So what exactly happened with your Match?" Winter asked. "He came back in a temper, but he wouldn't tell anyone why." Leia huffed and turned to face Winter. "I ditched him because he was acting like a complete fool, that's why." Winter pressed a button on a panel next to the closet, which caused a part of the wall to open up. She placed her dress into the opening, dropped it and pressed the button again, closing the opening. Leia shifted herself, so she was sitting with her legs hanging over the edge of where she was sitting. Winter started over to her bed. "In what way?" She asked as she pulled back the covers. "He wasn't respectful to me." Leia said, remembering the way that the boy had talked to Epin. Winter sat down on the bed and faced Leia. "Well, what, did he do something to you? Did he say something offensive?" Leia got off the window and walked toward the closet to change into her bed clothes. Though she didn't bother to open the hidden panel in the wall, instead tossing her clothes into a pile on the floor. "He just..." Leia began, but her voice trailed away. She thought of how the boy had grabbed hold of her and of how it caused Epin to spring to her rescue. Leia collected her thoughts and took a breath. She was glad to have Winter as company to talk to, but at the same time she didn't really feel like talking. The events of the day, and indeed, the past few weeks had brought so many confusing situations. Walking with Epin to the Palace after he had been attacked by Arod and his gang, kissing Epin on his farm and then dinner at the Palace. There was also the incident by the canyon where Epin had frightened off the very same gang whom he had been afraid of, simply because she, Leia, had been in need of help. And of course, there was today for her to think of. "He just wasn't a nice person Winter." Leia said climbing into her own bed. "We'll talk about it tomorrow or something, right now, I just want to go to sleep. It's been a long day." Leia laid her head on the pillow and pulled the covers up to her chin as Winter shut the lights off. Epin awoke in the early hours of the morning as a result of going to sleep rather earlier than he usually would have. He rubbed his eyes and looked towards the chrono on his bedside table. "Four am." He said as he sat up, tossed the covers aside and swung himself out of the bed. "What am I supposed to do?" Go outside and train is what you will do. Kreia said. Epin looked around. The shutters on the windows weren't shut completely, so some moonlight made it's way into the room. Epin could just barely see Kreia. Though she wasn't alive, her transparent body had a curious glow to it and even though Epin knew she was friendly to him, he was still slightly unnerved by the sight of her in the moonlight. Come, let's go out and resume our lessons. Kreia said as Epin changed into a pair of black pants and a white shirt. He put on a pair of shoes and headed out, being careful not to awaken anyone. The pair made their way down the stairs and out into the field, which was empty as the Palace had purchased all of the livestock for the Matching. "What will you teach me today?" Epin said excitedly. "First, I would like you to answer a question for me." Kreia said. "Uh...Sure okay." Epin said slightly puzzled. "What is it that you want? Truly want." Kreia asked. Epin thought for a moment. He wanted lots of things. He wanted his father to accept him, for the gangs of Alderaan to stop attacking him simply because of his lifestyle, for Leia to... "No." Kreia said. "These are all things that depend on the emotions and mindset of other individuals. What do you personally want?" Epin couldn't really understand what Kreia was asking him, but he gave his best answer. "Uh, to be happy...?" He said questioningly. Kreia looked at him for a few moments. Or at least he thought she was, she had no iris or pupils after all, so she could have been rolling her eyes for all he knew. "I assure you that I was not rolling my eyes at you." Kreia said dryly. "Why did you want to know?" Epin asked. "For my own information." Said Kreia. "You need not know the reasons at this moment, but you may discover the answer on your own, in time perhaps." Epin looked at her, waiting for her to speak, as he really didn't have anything to say to this. "Okay." She said. "Let's start with the basics, you must be conceived before you can truly exist. First, we will discuss your encounter yesterday with the young Princess and her companion. I want you to remember what happened at the exact moment before the boy threw his punch at you." "Okay." Said Epin. He looked off to the side as he tried to remember that exact time the previous day. He took several moments then looked back to Kreia. "Uh. What do you mean by feelings?" He asked. "Like my emotions?" "Again I must apologize and ask forgiveness." Kreia said. She then sighed and continued. "I need to remember that I am not speaking with a Jedi." "Jedi?" Asked Epin. "Nevermind." Said Kreia flatly. "What I mean is how did you experience the event? Did you perhaps see it in your mind? Or was something telling you he was going to strike you?" "Well it was kind of like a hologram." Epin said. Kreia nodded her head. "I see. Very well, I will teach you how to use this to your advantage. If, of course, you indeed want to learn." "I do." Said Epin. "I mean, isn't that why I'm here?" Kreia raised an eyebrow and smiled slightly. "Is it?" Epin said nothing. He wasn't sure exactly what Kreia was doing, or if she was just playing some kind of game with him. "Ah, but all of life is a game." Kreia said. "It is up to you whether you win or lose, you just need to be a sufficiently skilled player in order to prevent yourself from being knocked out of it." The two stood in silence for a few moments, Epin not taking his eyes off Kreia as she stared up into the sky. After a time, Kreia spoke. "I'm going to teach you how to use your abilities to your advantage." She said. "Pay attention to me and you will be able to do more than just dodge a punch." "Okay! What do I have to do first?" Epin said with vigor. "Calm yourself." Kreia said. "That's the first thing you must do. If your mind is not focused on the task, you will most likely fail due to your inexperience. What I'm going to teach you is quite simple, though due to its simplicity, many people would deem it an insignificant ability, unworthy of an appropriate level of attention when performing it. You see, the fundamental aspects of anything are usually the most often overlooked, as is typical, individuals evolve in their skills and learn quicker or more effective ways to accomplish the desired result." Kreia paused and looked at Epin, allowing him to process the information she had just given him. "So what you're saying is not to forget?" Epin asked. "Not to forget the basics." Kreia corrected him. "Come now." She said. "Let us venture into the field and test your level of ability." "The fields?" Epin asked. "Yes, the fields." Kreia replied. "We are going to play a game with the animals there." "This is far enough." Said Kreia, as she and Epin came to a halt just outside of the farming district. The green grass of the fields they stood in reached for miles into the distance. A few hills here and there, with some large boulders, a few trees and a small lake completed the picture. A vast difference from Aldera's cityscape. By now, the sun had began to rise in the distance. Epin could see several animals grazing and sleeping and even some younger ones playing. He could recognize a few large fat animals called Grazers, whose hide was all skin. They also had a small tail and small head and their bellies dragged along the ground as they walked on four fat legs. Some variants possessed a sort of ridgy growth along their backs, which Epin guessed was used as a sort of defense. The animals were docile herbivores and could be approached without much fear. Epin also saw a single Grizmalt Nerf, which was a wild breed of Nerf that was almost impossible to tame. They were almost identical in appearance to the Nerf he dealt with on his farm save for the color of their fur, which was a darker shade of the usual brown. Another distinguishing aspect of the Grizmalt was that their horns were far sharper than an average Nerf. And of course, they were far more aggressive. Most Nerf were bad tempered to begin with, but the Grizmalt, Epin did not like the animals. "That animal is going to be your training partner for this exercise." Kreia said, motioning towards the Grizmalt. Epin scratched behind his ear. "Um, are you sure, I can't use one of the..." "No." Kreia interrupted flatly. Epin groaned. "So, what am I supposed to do?" "I want you to get it to attack you." Answered Kreia simply. "What?" Epin asked in alarm. "Calm your mind and focus on the task." Kreia said. "Focus on the animal and what it is doing." Epin took a breath and watched as the Nerf grazed. "Now..." Kreia continued. "Tell the animal that it is in danger." "What?" Said Epin, completely taken by surprise. "Tell it it's in danger? How?" "Reach out with your mind." Kreia explained. "Do as I said and focus on what the animal is doing. With that in mind imagine yourself being the animal. Do that now." Epin squinted his eyes in concentration as he imagined himself as the animal before him. "Now imagine hearing a noise." Kreia said. "Something sufficient enough to alarm the animal." Epin imagined a sound that would frighten Nerf. A sound that he himself heard many times when his own animals would often get into conflicts with each other. He imagined the deep growling sound they made as the animals squared up to each other before a fight. At once, the animal jerked its head up and looked around for the source of the noise. It spotted Epin and turned to face him, digging his front right hoof into the ground, kicking up dirt. Epin swallowed hard. The Grizmalt was preparing for a fight. Do not back down. Said Kreia. Imagine the animal seeing an adult Grizmalt making the same challenge. The Grizmalt halted his hoof digging as soon as Epin had done what Kreia instructed him. Now take a step forward. Kreia instructed. As soon as Epin did this, the Grizmalt fled. Epin raised his eyebrows as the Grizmalt disappeared behind a hill as it ran. "What..?!" Epin exclaimed, turning to Kreia. "The brain is where information is processed, yes?" Kreia said. "Uh..." Epin started. "So..." Kreia continued, emphasizing the word. "If the brain is told that the eyes are seeing something, then the eyes will see." "I understand." Epin said with vigor. "Do you?" Kreia asked, raising an eyebrow at him. "Just be sure you understand that your brain is susceptible, that is to say, vulnerable, to the exact same thing." "Yeah." Epin replied. His spirit had been lifted by this event and he was feeling very pleased with himself. Kreia smiled slightly at the sight of Epin standing confidently. Good boy. She said to herself. Leia awoke feeling distinctly unrested, as she had tossed and turned almost all night due to having so much on her mind. She opened her eyes and lay staring at the ceiling for several minutes until tossing the covers aisde and sliding out of bed. She stopped for a moment to look out of the window towards Aldera's farm district, wondering what Epin was up to. She smiled, remebering how she ditched yesterday to have lunch with him. "Sure would be great to not have these dumb Matching things to do." Said Leia heavily. Sighing, Leia slowly made her way to the restroom to shower and get ready for the days Match. "All those stuck up rich boys." She said as she reached for her brush which was sitting on the sink. "Who probably couldn't care any less about me as a person. It's so boring, I..." "Well, the boring boys are waiting for you Leia." Said a woman. Startled, Leia dropped her brush, which was picked up by Queen Breha. "Mom?" Leia asked as though Breha had no business being in the palace. "Leia." Said Breha as she walked into the room to stand behind Leia. She gently moved Leia's head so that it faced foreward and began to brush Leia's hair. A minute passed in silence before Breha spoke. " I know it can be difficult honey." She said. "But it is part of becoming Queen. Your father spoke with me about your feelings on the situation." Leia sighed and looked at the floor. Noticing this, Breha put the brush down and began to tie Leia's hair back into a bun. She then turned Leia to face her. "Hey, look at me." Breha said in a motherly voice. Leia looked at her mother. "I know all about having feelings for boys and..." She began. Leia huffed and turned away. "Mom, I..." She started an a choked up voice. She could feel herself on the verge of tears. "Breha! Are you up here?" Called a voice. Bail Organa entered. "Hey, they're looking for us downstairs. We need to be in the main hall in a few minutes to begin today's matching." Leia sniffed and ran out. "Leia wait." Breha said following Leia, but she made no response and continued down the hall and around a corner. Breha sighed, looked back at Bail, who was looking troubled and gave him a weak smile. Epin was in Aldera under Kreia's instructions to walk the city and attempt to see into a variety of people's minds while they were occupied with various levels of activity. "Let us try the same exercise with one of these people that we used with the beast out in the fields." Said Kreia's voice as they came to the edge of the city upon completing their walk. She was speaking into his mind, as was typical when they were in large crowds. Even though only Epin could see her if she desired, Kreia still felt it would be strange for Epin to be seen staring or motioning at something unseen to others. "You mean make them see a threat of some sort?" Asked Epin as he leaned against one of the city's surrounding walls, looking into the city itself. "Surely you would not think something of the sort would be advisable in such a large crowd, unless needed." Replied Kreia in an amused tone. "No. Beasts like the one in the field tend to posess less logical reasoning, so it might prove to be more difficult for you here." "Well, then what?" Asked Epin. "Like a noise or something?" "Yes, that would work nicely." Replied Kreia. "Choose a suitable subject." Epin scanned around the immediate area for someone that wasn't among others. He found a man digging outside of a store. Epin noticed a small tree and various flowers nearby, waiting to be planted. Concentrating, Epin imagined himself as the man digging. As he dug he imagined in his mind a whistling sound along the lines of a bird call. The man seemed to take no notice. "Perhaps in this city envirnoment, such a trivial sound is of no importance." Kreia said. Epin tried again, this time he imagined the sound of a blaster being fired. The man immediately dropped his shovel and froze. Epin smiled as the man drew a small knife like vibroblade from his boot. A man and woman passing by took notice of the man standing in his garden brandishing the knife. When the man who was digging noticed the staring people he told them of the shot he heard. When the two passing by told him they had heard no such sound, the digging man looked puzzled and slowly put away the knife. The man and woman went on their way and the digging man went into his home. "Very good." Kreia said. "Though perhaps a bit much. As now the poor fellow may be feeling a bit confused and perhaps might question his own mental state." "You think it was that much overboard?" Asked Epin, in a concerned voice. "Remember our discussion on sequences of events?" Kreia asked. "Uh, yes, yeah you said that people think differently depending on what happens to other people and how they think about stuff." Epin answered. Kreia sighed. "Well at least you remember." She said in a disappointed, though slightly amused tone. "Come, you've done well today, let us relax and review." The two began to walk back through the city and towards Epin's home in the farmlands. Alderaan Affair Part X - Part XII
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