| abstract
| - Courtyard - Refrain of Anshalar This place is startling in its size and airiness, an open courtyard in the center of this space vessel. It is ringed by a pillared colonnade, fluted stone columns supporting an upper-level walkway that leads into various rooms. A wide staircase at the corner allows access to the upper ring, while exits fore and aft lead along flagstone walks to the extremities of this ship. Almost a hundred meters long and just less than that wide, the courtyard proper is a lush garden, curving beds full of unique flowers and purple-fronded ferns, hanging into the walkways. Multiple pathways wind through the garden, flat rocks spaced unevenly through the soft blades of blue- green grass. Small groves of short trees and vines partition off certain areas. A low to the ground stone fountain lies slightly off the centerpoint of the room, cold water sliding off the top of a single rock in its center. The ceiling of the room is angled in sections, glowpanels softly illumined to replicate the twilight hours. Dim but warm-colored, their 'evening' light filters down into the courtyard. A very soft, cool breeze dances through the place, rustling the soft mat of grasses and foilage. Aurejin walks in the empty space formed by two winding rows of blue-green bushes heavy with round buds, each of those spheres wrapped up tight in a hard unripe ball, new life brushing against him. He is wearing a plain gray jumpsuit that is unadorned, the sleeves rolled up: it is a working man's pair of coveralls and while not fashionable and even perhaps ill-fitting, Aurejin adds a bit of elegance to them. His hand waves as he passes through the last row of bushes and the Jedi emerges into the clearing of the _Refrain of Anshalar_. His beard is long and untrimmed as is the hair on his head, combed for dignity's sake but dirty. The lean Jedi pauses long enough to flick his dark eyes from side to side and guess where his wife is. "Jessalyn..." he calls softly on his approach, strolling swiftly through the garden toward the staircase landing. She was prepared to be subdued when Aurejin returned, to silence any irritation she might have had at having to spend these last difficult weeks alone. Alone, but not alone, surrounded by strangers and enemies and forced to make decisions and strategies that she was not sure were worthy of her supposedly high status. No, the gardener has been overwhelmed with too much reality, the galaxy closing in on the sanctuary of her imagined garden. But if Jessalyn thought she might be upset when she sensed him searching for her in the gardens, she need not have worried. By the time he's at the bottom of the landing she's halfway down the steps, smiling -- laughing, even, at his appearance. "Look at you! What a piece of work!" Jessalyn says, covering her mouth to stifle her giggles, then opening up her arms. "It is so good to see you, even if I hardly recognize you!" The tall man beams a broad smile back up at her and takes three steps at a time, eating up the distance between them with his long strides. "Oh Jessalyn. Fair and so..." Aurejin moves to embrace her, placing his hands on her hips and beginning to slide them around her but pausing there to feel the bulge along her front. Instantly he crouches and squints, running his long fingers delicately over that sphere of new life. He gives a low grunt, a thoughtful one, one that contains a large dose of regret and want before he tips forward and rests his forehead against her, mere centimeters from his child. Finally standing he continues what he had started and embraces his wife. "It has been so long," he asserts into her hair, eyes closed. The Jedi leans back after he's taken a long draught of her. "You look well! And worried. Let us sit, and tell me all of the people and plants you've tended and taught since I've been away." Still smiling though more somber as he gives her a closer inspection, Jessalyn runs her fingers through his hair as he leans against her, and gladly returns the embrace, relaxed and excited all at once, though his words make her sigh aloud as she leads him by the hand back up the stairs. "I look well? That's good to hear. I feel green half the time," she tosses back over her shoulder. "We still have our... friendly visitors." A few more steps and she touches the keypad to the private chambers. "Though with Simon there has been no change, and Mailyn..." She shakes her head grimly. "There's been no word from Leia. I keep expecting this Domani to make another move, but now I'm worried. There has to be some clue. What does he want?" The words reveal the source of her worry and she flops heavily onto a couch, staring hard at a vase of roses set in the center table. "I missed you," she adds after a long moment, looking up with with sad eyes. Aurejin eases alongside her, nearly flitting, these few moments of extra doting coming instinctively after such a long period away, as if they would somehow make up for an extended absence. He listens as hard and as intently as she speaks and eases down silently beside her on the couch. "I missed you too. And the baby." "Tell me of Mailyn Raines. I saw her ship. Is there redemption in her, still time to undo what Simon has done?" Simon is really an afterthought, an add-on, just a specific in Aurejin's mind in a larger pool of general darkness, hardly worth naming. At least not worth asking about now when so many other questions were on the Jedi's mind. The tall man rises and winds through the quarters. "Let me fix you something. Some tea." In a moment Aurejin has disappeared and the clicking of cabinets opening and closing is audible from Jessalyn's spot on the couch. "Nothing at all from... Domani? That is distressing." At some point, Jessalyn has relocated where the tea is stored. Stubbornly he searches every cabinet instead of drawing her attention again to his absence by asking. Jessalyn beams under the attention and gives his cheek a peck before shyly glancing down and placing her hand still curiously across her body. "There are those who have fallen harder who have found their way back to the good side," she notes, though her voice is tinged with doubt. "But she is a stubborn one. Her devotion to him clouds her judgment, clouds everything! Perhaps it is all my fault because I fell to Palpatine at a time when she could perhaps have trusted the Jedi." She shrugs and shifts her legs up onto the couch, stretching them out so her feet are propped on a cushion at one end and her head at the other. "In the back, on the left," she absently directs his search for the tea. "Find the one with ginger, if there is any." She frowns at the thought of being out. "She'll see things as she likes. If she chooses to see the galaxy through the lens that Simon has crafted then it is her choice. Every good wish of yours or mine is an evil manipulation, every good intention a murderous thought." Aurejin shrugs, clinging to the door jam and leaning into Jessalyn's line-of-sight from the galley. "It's more my fault than anyone's." He shrugs again and vanishes into the kitchen again. "More than Mailyn's, maybe, though she is responsible for her own view more than anyone." But Aurejin trusts Jessalyn, certainly would have to trust her to continue dealing with the abstract-thinking Mailyn, as his own presence seemed to set the squat Sith slicer on edge. "Ah ha," he murmurs. Water swirls, the heating rod glows, and soon the smell of ginger floats into their small living area. Jessalyn wraps her mind for the millionth time around -that- topic, weary of defending with words that sound hollow, but something has happened. Mailyn could either see through the fog of her own misconceptions, or wallow in the sheer overwhelming impossibility of the truths she had found out from Jessalyn's own mind. The vague but recent memory rises to the forefront of her thoughts, and she tips back her head to look at Aurejin in the small kitchen. "It's her hatred of you that she will have to overcome," Jessalyn states quite plainly, knowing he won't like to hear it. "And stop blaming yourself. Your son doesn't like it when you do that." That could have been a flutter she just felt, after all. While the ginger wafts through the air to fill the room with its scent, a small rap upon the open doorframe to announce the arrival of another. A moment later Kyyel comes into view, and the apprentice leans up against the side of it even as he look stowards his two instructors, "I hope I'm not interrupting..." He smiles faintly and then coughs once, clearing his throat before he continues on, "May I come in?" By the looks of him, he had just finished another training routine before he had come to the quarters of his instructors. Aurejin appears in the doorway of the galley with a large cup of ginger tea, heavily diluted to stretch the dwindling stock but warm and lovingly prepared. If *wishing it so* made the thing taste better, this tea would be positively heavenly. A drop of it is spilled before Aurejin positions the cup beneath the sloshing beverage. The Jedi is caught off-guard and blushes. "A boy!" he says, starting toward her but being careful to keep the cup steady. "Well." The man passes the container to his wife and puts two fingertips against Jessalyn's stomach again, this time more intent and probing. Though his touch is masterful, his face is full of wonder. "Well... I won't do it anymore," he promises them both, sincerely. "Come in, Kyyel," Aurejin calls from over his shoulder, his fingertips lingering on Jessalyn's swelling womb as he turns. "Learning more everyday, and growing in the Force. What do you have to say for yourself?" Jessalyn looks toward the door, surprised when it opens and sitting back up into a more proper position. "Come in," she says with a hint of sarcasm though she is smiling as Aurejin presents the carefully prepared tea to her and she cradles it carefully in her hands. She shoots him a look and chuckles, squirming. "That tickles," she warns, slurping the tea and appreciating the soothing flavor. "You are playing with me, you probably knew all along," she teases Aurejin. "A boy." "And... Kyyel is going to go with Han, looking for clues, I think," she puts in, raising her eyebrows at the Corellian for him to confirm this. A wide smile comes to Kyyel's face at the question, "I'm still climbing..." It is his only answer, but it was the most truthful one he could give. Stepping in closer, he looks down to where Aurejin's fingers touch his wife, and the smile upon their apprentice grows. Even he could feel the faint spark of life within Jessalyn. He turns his eyes towards both of them now, but then nods his head once as Jessalyn speaks, "I am, he's intent on leaving... and well... I figured he shouldn't go without some kind of help from us." He looks between them both for a moment, and then offers a faint smirk on his face, "Besides, if we're trying to get the galaxy to accept us... we're not going to do that by always waiting here on the Anshalar... they need to see us to accept us." Aurejin nods, leaning back but not all the way, some invisible glass behind his back leaving his spine ramrod straight. The Jedi places his hands on his knees and smiles. "Good, good. The Force is with you." He gives Kyyel an approving smile but lifts a cautionary finger. "Concern yourself more with your studies than adopting the task of public relations Jedi. That mantle is a heavy one and the mindset is one that will lead you astray. Where do you plan to search for clues first?" Polite, succinct and cold though his rapport with Kyyel has grown warmer since their first encounters. Aurejin turns to look at Jessalyn with an expressionless face. "I'm sorry, I should have asked. Did you want a girl?" With that he laughs, laughs easily, and grabs Jessalyn's forearm, but doesn't affirm or deny much. Jessalyn takes a few long sips of her tea, wipes her chin and sets the cup on the table, eyeing Kyyel at first. "Be careful and remember what you have learned. Keep your mind on the moment and not on what the others expect from you, or what you project." She nods in agreement with Aurejin's advice on the topic, and starts to reach for the tea cup before literally gasping at his insinuation and gauging his laughter when he grabs her arm. "Oh, you -- stop that! Arrogant Jedi!" she scoffs, but there's suspicion in her eyes that squint at him. Kyyel nods his head slowly, understanding in his eyes as he answers the both of them, "I understand. And I don't plan on being a public relations ambassador." He can't help but grin at Jessalyn's comment to her husband, but he bites his tongue back on a response towards -that- particular description. Finally his smile fades slightly, and he shakes his head once, "I have no idea where Han is planning on going. But I'll help him where I can. It can't hurt to take a look through Chandrila again, so I'll suggest that to him." Aurejin's expression betrays nothing but his lack of answer or explanation may be telling in some odd way. Even a Jedi as experienced as Jessalyn doesn't know all of the profound mysteries of the Force. "Well be careful. Have you talked with Mailyn Raines since she has been aboard, Kyyel?" Aurejin's tone changes, the smile draining from his face like warm water poured out of a vessel. For a strange moment Jessalyn is almost frightened, though that might be too strong a word. Perhaps too surprised by something that may have never occurred to her before, and she clears her throat and keeps her smile present as she shakily picks up her cup and finishes what's left with a gulp. "She's kept to herself a lot." This time what Jessalyn doesn't say is more telling than what she does, and she glances at Aurejin with an almost guilty expression. Kyyel's own smile fades, and then he nods his head once, "I've spoken with her twice when she first arrived, but not recently." He states, and then steps closer before he sits down across from them, "Mailyn is... troubled. She doesn't know what to think... or rather she thinks she does. She says she's convinced that the Jedi are the wicked creatures Simon has shown them to be, but I don't think she really and truly believes it." The young apprentice takes a deep breath, shaking his head once more, "Mailyn holds to these beliefs because of Simon, and partially because of her own pride. She's never liked being wrong. And she's followed this path for so long... it's all she knows anymore. "And your own anger, Kyyel? What of it, toward Mailyn?" Aurejin's voice is probing and interested but hardly accusatory. They had already had that conversation: judgement had been pronounced, sentences served, penance paid. But it was an important question nonetheless, the master swordsman curious about the inner progress and growth his student was making. Another question, curiously juxtaposed with the previous: "Are you staying within the square?" Aurejin turns to look at Jessalyn, scratching at his overly long beard. He didn't look quite dirty enough to have mites, but the thought does occur to him and he gives the red-haired witch a thoughtful smile and finally a wink. The rapport between teacher and student had matured; Jessalyn could sense the growth and influence that Aurejin's lessons had provided the new learner. It was almost as if Jessalyn were better equipped to help in the adjustment from having no knowledge of the Force, to finding the gift and accepting the path that led one's destiny to Jedi Knighthood. Sometimes that was the hardest task of all, but she knows that the deeper mysteries of the Force, the intricate skills of being a warrior, would not be lessons best learned from her. She ponders this, and a smile crosses her serious face in answer to Aurejin's wink. "If we show her trust, she could perhaps learn another way. But Aurejin is right. Her choices are hers alone to make. It wrong to to select someone's destiny for them." She drags her gaze away from her husband's dark eyes to consider Kyyel, waiting for his answer to the question posed to him. Kyyel nods his head once more, "Yes, they are hers." As the question is raised to him though, Kyyel's first response is to give a small, but sincere smile. He meets first Aurejin's gaze, and then Jessalyn's. He then speaks, his tone soft, "Yes, I am staying within the square. My anger for her is there at a different level. I am angry that she hurt the both of you, I am angry that she lies to herself so that she may stay with Simon." He pauses now, and then shakes his head once; no anger shows in his gaze, "Yet I am also sad for her as well. Sad that she has chosen this path. My anger for her is there, but it is not as strong as it was, nor does it control me now. As you asked, Aurejin, I am staying within the square." The Jedi stares at Kyyel, watches him evenly for a long time, and finally stands. He steps swiftly to Kyyel, nearly gliding, interested and absorbed in the apprentice's answer. Aurejin reaches out and grips the Corellian's face, cupping his chin with his sword-calloused hands and turning Kyyel's face slightly from side to side, examining it. "Hmm," he says interestedly, as if he were a doctor examining the size of some unknown feature. "Very odd." Aurejin releases him and turns away, drifting back to the kitchen with a glance spared to his wife. "The Force is with him, Jessalyn," he repeats, but the look is more serious and sure. "Yes," Jessalyn murmurs in response, standing up and giving Kyyel a long but distant look. She clenches her fists and follows Aurejin into the kitchen, calling out as an afterthought, "Do you want anything, Kyyel?" She raids the cabinets for food this time, and after a moment a considerable pile of containers and carefully balanced fruit is filling her arms. "Just so you... you know. When they find out where Leia is, I'm going to go with them. Maybe if Domani believes another Jedi wants to learn from him," she shrugs vaguely, not speaking her concern. It was the right thing to do. "It'll give us a chance to get on board, at the very least, if they are still on the Fallen Star." Kyyel doesn't move as Aurejin examines him, but then as both he and Jessalyn leave to the kitchen, a puzzled look crosses his face but he does not move to follow. With a shake of his head, he reclines back a bit where he sits, calling back out to her, "No... but thank you." He rubs at the back of his neck, finding a particularly tight knot of muscle there. He takes another deep breath, patiently awaiting the return of his teachers. Aurejin finds a glass of water which he keeps strategically positioned between he and Jessalyn as she shares this news. His face again is expressionless, betraying nothing. He keeps the glass between them and edges around her, nodding. "I think I'll go get rid of this," he says, tugging at his beard. "And these prison clothes." Aurejin lifts the glass of water to his mouth, drains in with three huge gulps and watches his wife with unblinking eyes that suggest he hasn't decided what he thinks of this just yet. "Stay within the square, Kyyel," Aurejin shares, his profound teaching for the day, as he passes by him to the fresher. Jessalyn returns the worried look with a pointed one of her own, then begins peeling back the thick skin of a piece of fruit she's procured, and takes a bite. "Good, good," she says, approving of the grooming changes and grinning stupidly to herself before placing her pile of snacks on the table and looking toward Kyyel. "Come and eat some of this so I don't feel like a bantha cow," she insists around another mouthful. Kyyel looks up towards Aurejin and nods his head pointedly, "I will." With that he looks up and begins to grin at Jessalyn's invitation, standing up and walking towards it, "Oh... if you insist." To be honest he was starving after his workout, and the thought of some kind of food was already making his mouth water. Taking a seat across from her, he reaches down to take a large handful of snacks, swallowing down several without chewing much at all.
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)