A Conversation

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Aela looked at her drink for a moment. A part of her still remembered Jamie's voice in her head telling her that the drink she had ordered was 'to get drunk' but another part of her also remembered just how good the drink had tasted. For a second she had a staring contest with her cup, and then finally she tipped her head back and let the rest of the glass pour down her throat.

It was at that moment that a voice in her head said. That was a mistake.

But Aela was already far too gone to hear it. So instead of worrying about it she slowly scooped up the rest of her chips, poured them into her backpack, stood from the table and took a long bow. For a second the man sitting next to her put his hand up, fearful that Aela was going to smash her head into the table, when that didn't happen his hand retreated, but Aela gave him a suspicious look. "I think that guy just tried to grope me."

She told Jamie, looking at the man who was utterly bewildered.

"YOU PEOPLE DISGUST ME!" Aela practically screamed as she turned around and marched away, grabbing Jamie by the arm to pull her along.

"I think that went well." She 'whispered' to her. "Pretty sure I won."

 

[Jamie Pyne]

The casino was moving. Not a subtle sway anymore, but a rocking, chopping ocean. He just tried to ... what? The words came through, but it took far longer to process than it should have. Grope ... You? There were several confused moments that flashed through her mind, before she had even responded with actual words or even an expression. The constantly shifting of the floor beneath her feet was drawing the majority of her focus away by this point. "He groped you?!" She exclaimed, taking it from one extreme to the next.

As Aela pulled Jamie off and away from the next table they had sat at the girl glared at the man she had accused. "You can't just go and feel up my friend, pig!"

She staggered, her head focused on one direction, her legs wobbly and pulled in another. Jamie tripped, nearly falling, but somehow caught herself and fell in line with Aela as the two walked towards the exchange counter to retrieve the other girl's credits.

"I think so too. Definitely won."

They still had to get back to the hotel they were staying at. That of course might be a challenge now that it was well into night time, and Jamie barely could have navigated her way in the daylight, nevermind complete intoxication. She bit her lip, almost panicking herself as to how they would get back now. Best to play it natural...We'll make it back. We'll make it...

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Aela looked around herself as they wandered towards the exchange counter, staring at the woman behind the large wooden table and thick plexiglass. She frowned and looked at Jamie. The woman...she looked a little imposing. "Jamie."

She was quiet as a mouse.

They were standing only a few feet away from the exchange counter now, with Aela not having the courage to move forward and Jamie being held up by Aela they weren't likely to make any progress soon. She stood there frozen, her legs a little weak and her eyes getting a bit sleepy. She looked around for a few moments and then leaned into Jamie once again.

"That woman." She took a breath. "Is terrifying."

In reality the woman behind the counter was actually completely normal, even nice looking. She wore a neat pair of glasses, her hair trimmed back, and her sweat had little Nexu on it that seemed to each be chasing a ball of yawn. "I don't want to talk to her."

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Was Aela looking at the same woman? Things were rather shifty, spinning about in ways she hadn't recalled in a long time, or, rather, if ever. But the woman behind the counter wasn't some Trandoshan, or Gamorrean. She was just a human woman with glasses and a terribly bored look on her face as she stared at her datapad reading news articles surrounding the planet and its' nearby star systems. Nothing terribly out of the ordinary. Aela, however, was seemingly petrified of this woman.

"Her?" She said, pointing directly at the woman. "Do you want me to go exchange your chips for you?"

Jamie set her wine glass down on the floor, because that is where she assumed it would be easiest for the staff to come and collect it.

Why? Because she was drunk and things didn't need to make logical sense. "Here, give me your bag." She started to tug the backpack off the girl's shoulders. "I'll talk to her for you!"

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Aela didn't object.

She really didn't want to collect her winnings if it meant talking to that woman, and since Jamie was offering to do it for her then she wouldn't be arguing with it. She allowed the bag to slip off of her shoulders, eyes slowly wandering after Jamie as the other girl moved towards the counter. "Careful!"

Aela yelled as though the floor was lava.

There was no actual danger here of course, aside from the danger that Jamie and Vrak could create for themselves. The Jedi Marshall stood in place, or rather she teetered in place once Jamie left her, swaying from side to side and looking as though she was about to fall over at any moment. Every few seconds she stuck out her arms and waved them about as though she were about to fall over, but every single time she managed to 'catch' herself, making for quite the comical sight.

Somehow Aela managed to remain standing, keeping vigilance over her padawan.

Very much vigilance. Such vigilance.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie braced herself on the counter top as she reached the exchange desk. "Yes?" The woman asked. The air between them hung in silence for almost ten full seconds before the woman leaned forward, closer, assuming Jamie had some kind of hearing impediment or something that prevented her from hearing the question at first. "Yes?!" She said, this time louder. Jamie blinked a couple of times, remembering finally what she was actually even doing. "OH! Right!" She lifted up the backpack Aela gave her and proceeded to cram it between the tiny space in the window that the attendants used to pass chips and credits back and forth.

It wasn't meant for leather backpacks. But Jamie forced it through all the same, despite the woman's quite audible objections to the contrary.

"CREDITS PLEASE. THESE CHIPS ARE BAD."

Was she asking for her money back or stating that the food service was poor? It sounded like both.

Jamie turned back to Aela and gave her a thumbs up. "That's my friend back there." The woman hardly cared, nor did she ask or inquire further. "We're Jedi." The woman scoffed, stifling back a laugh. "Super good Jedi." The woman calculated the chips as quickly as the machine would allow, passing back the Padawan a chit loaded with the original funds in an attempt to get Jamie to leave faster. "Oh thanks! You're not such a scary monster after all! Have a good night Jossephina!"

Rushing back to Aela with the empty backpack and a credit chit she handed each to the girl. "All done!"

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

"Oh good." She let out a sigh of relief as though Jamie had been missing for the past twenty years. A part of her had been filled with concern, wondering if Jamie really had left her forever. When she came back though Aela couldn't help but feel more than a little elation. She smiled at her padawan and reached out to touch her cheek, lightly patting her face as if to make sure she was actually there and not some specter of her imagination.

"Lets..." Aela continued to pat Jamie's face. "Lets..."

She wasn't entirely sure what she was trying to say, so instead of moving she just patted Jamie's face twice more, and then finally turned on her heel and began to walk out the door. "Lets get some fresh air."

Aela managed to finally say.

"Maybe some water." She stumbled forward, practically looking like she was about to fall on her face at any moment.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"Woah! Careful there tipsy turvy!" She called out after Aela, chasing behind. As she followed she rubbed the sides of her face, as if Aela had somehow hurt her by tugging on her cheeks.

Air was good. Not just for Aela but for Jamie also. In hindsight they probably should have eaten first, or maybe if Jamie hadn't offered up so much alcohol in one go. Regardless it was in the past and there was little that could be done by this point, save for perhaps sleep it off. For a second her heart pounded, realizing the next day they had to be awake to watch after the official again. Though as quickly as that thought came it drifted off again, replaced with the choppy waters of the ocean beneath her feet.

"Yes! AIr! Let's go outside A."

Her two syllable name was simply too much to say at this point. A single letter was just easier.

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Fresh air was about the most wonderful thing that Aela had ever experienced in her lifetime. As soon as they stepped outside through the doorway she took in perhaps the deepest breath of her life, filling her lungs with all the oxygen she could. A light breeze pressed against her face as she did so, adding to the odd ecstasy that ran across her skin. Her eyes closed, a bad idea given that she was almost falling over with them open, but somehow she managed to stay standing up.

Jamie cam crashing into her a second later.

The padawan stumbled into her Aela, catching herself upright until both of the girls were oddly intertwined, holding each other up as they enjoyed the fresh ocean breeze and the cool air that was carried with it. Aela let out a sigh, smiling slightly and opening up her eyes to find that the world was still more than spinning. "Okaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay."

She said loudly, a man on the street passing by giving her an odd look.

"Where..." Aela giggled. "Where do you want to go next?"

She had no idea what time it was, but it couldn't have been that late.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie looked around. It was dark enough that the street lights had turned on to illuminate the sidewalks for pedestrians. There was still a steady flow of speeder traffic, though in a city like this she simply assumed that it never slept to begin with. Most establishments were permanently open, never closing due to the sheer number of tourists that had the shopping and dining itch. Of course trying to read any signs that were further away than about ten feet were all but impossible, the darn things just wouldn't stay still!

And who thought it was a bright idea to put two of everything in this city, anyway?!

"Ummmm"

Jamie squinted, as if that would somehow bring into focus her drunken eyes. The dam and the opera houses were already out of her mind by this point, despite the camera bag still hanging by her side. Her brain simply couldn't retain that information in this state.

"Where are we?" She asked, finding that looking around was incredibly difficult.

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

"Uhhh." Was all the words that Aela could manage at that moment. She was still somewhat off, not being able to feel her face or most of her other extremities. Her cheeks felt like incredibly warm, though she could barely feel them, and as Jamie squinted about Aela gently began to massage her own face. She frowned for a moment as she tried to assess where exactly they had gone.

She remembered the map vaguely, but couldn't even remember where they had just been.

"Oh look!" She pointed up towards one of the massive spires that marked the residential district. "That's our hotel."

Aela remembered that well enough even when drunk, but a frown pulled at her lips. The buildings seemed really far away, like really really far. They wouldn't be able to make it back there in a million years, not with how they were now, even Drunk Aela realized that. She frowned for a moment and looked around, whipping her head back and forth as she tried to find a different path that they could take, something they could do while still drunk.

She frowned for a second, and then just started walking in the opposite direction of the hotel.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie lifted a hand above her eyes and squinted again, looking out to the massive tower in the distance. "Is it?"

There were quite a few tall towers, all of which looked the same to her in this state. Giant, varying sized durasteel structures of luxury stretching out over the horizon.

"Hey!" She realized something just then. "My hiccups are gone!"

Thank the Force!

Now if only she could do something about the constant double vision and shifting world around her that would be fantastic.

Aela looked like she knew where she was going when she turned and began to walk in the opposite direction. That was what it was to be a Jedi Master, right? Surely she knew what she was doing. Jamie shrugged, stumbling along beside the woman without so much as a peep of protest. It seemed like the idea of calling for a taxi to get back to the hotel was simply out of either one's head.

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

They stumbled through the streets quietly, Aela laughing every now and again as she thought of something funny. Each time she tried to communicate to Jamie just what was so funny, but the words were lost on her and she just started to laugh more because she realized that she didn't actually know what she was laughing at. Each time she burst out into another bubbly fit of laughter she either had to stop and hold herself against the wall or hang onto a less than stable Jamie.

Eventually, with the walk taking about three times as long as it should have, the two girls reached the edges of the damn.

Two massive staircases loomed ahead of them, each one spiraling up to the top of the massive structure. There was a turbo-lift as well, but it sat to the side and a little ways away from the stairs. Aela came to a stop, pointing at the massive construct. "Les...les go up the-."

This time Aela hiccuped.

As soon as she did her hand shot over her mouth, a giggle erupting from her, then another hiccup, then another giggle.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"You--You're drunk AELA!" She exlaimed, her finger pointing at the other girl as she hiccuped. A short burst of laughter came from Jamie as she looked up at what looked to be over one hundred stairs ahead of them. "Eep!"

That's a lot of stairs up!

Still, even in her silly drunken state Jamie wanted to see what it looked like from the top of the dam, and so began to make her way towards the staircase, completely ignorant of the turbolift off to the side that would likely reduce the time it took to get to the top down to one tenth.

"Come onnnnnnnnnnn drunksy!"

The wine was finally settling in with the shots. The sillyness factor was getting higher. Was public intoxication legal here?

I can't see straight anymore...Keep it cool, what's the name of this planet? I can't remember, but it's alright.

Starting up the stairs the blonde started dancing her way up, albeit terribly.

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

"AM NOT!" She clear was.

The stairs seemed like a rather daunting task, and quickly she began to take deep breaths as if she were preparing to run through a course in the galactic Olympics. For a moment she simply stared after Jamie, as if her friend was lost to her forever. Then slowly she began to climb. It was actually far easier than she had first thought.

"Right foot." She said to herself. "Left foot."

Aela quickly began to move up the stairs. "Right foot."

Faster. "Left foot."

Again and again Aela repeated the mantra, passing Jamie and quickly heading to the top of the dam.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"ARE TOO!" She yelled as Aela ran up past her. "Stop running!" She laughed "You're going to trip you idiot!"

In her head Jamie could already see the girl tumbling on her butt all the way back down to the bottom and knocking herself out.

"Slow down!" Ceasing her little awkward dance Jamie ran after Aela.

She's gonna trip! She's gonna trip! She's gonna trip! She's gonna trip!

The closer the two got to the top of the dam the more it looked like Aela was going to stumble off the staircase and roll all the way back down to the bottom.

Don't fall! Don't fall! Don't fall!

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Aela didn't fall, but that was mostly due to the death grip that she had managed to pull onto one of the side railings. She stopped just short of the top of the dam, her fingers wrapped tightly around the small metal bar that kept people from falling. She was breathing pretty hard, her chest rising and falling and her forehead lined with sweat. She looked back down at Jamie, for a second appearing as though she was about to be sick, then she spoke. "Slowpoke."

That was the only word she could manage.

"Drinking..." She breathed. "Running."

Another step. "Don't...mix."

She felt extremely dizzy, but somehow managed to take another step just as Jamie caught up with her. The younger Padawan was out of breath as well, but less than Aela who had practically sprinted up the entire length of the staircase.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"Am not! You just ran up like a dummy!" She stopped for a moment, hands on her knees to catch her breath.

Apparently it had been a race that Jamie didn't know she was participating in.

Had she known that..."I'll beat you to the bottom on the way back." She had a plan already concocted for that.

"Just you wait."

It was an incredibly stupid plan, but one that she was dead set on in her drunken logic all the same.

"Wow." She said, eyes widening as she caught sight of the full beauty of the dam for the first time. The massive expanse of water behind the massive wall, holding back enough to completely overwhelm the majority of the city for several stories. It was almost like a small ocean had been contained behind the stone wall that stood before the city.

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Aela somehow managed to drag herself after Jamie, practically pulling herself up by using the guard rail.

"Wow?" Aela repeated in question as she moved behind Jamie, her hands coming up to grasp onto the side of the dam. While Jamie took in the sights, Aela only stared down at her own feet. Her entire world was spinning, going around and around over and over again. She wondered for a moment how it was that Jamie could actually stand up, especially since her own sense of balance was way better than that of her padawans.

She frowned for a moment, then finally looked up.

"Oh." The Marshall said as she looked at the massive ocean being held back by Vineta's dam. Her world was still spinning, and her head lulled from side to side as she tried to get her bearings correctly. "That way is my house."

She pointed to the east, where several hundred miles away lay her childhood home. "I think..."

It might have been west.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie had been drinking alcohol at least semi-regularly since she was fifteen. Mostly with meals and during socialite events where it was customary and considered par for the course. She hadn't always liked the taste however, and came to find that wine was the most palatable kind of alcohol. Hard liquor like whiskey, rum, scotch, and brandy most often got her sick to her stomach and so she stayed away from those. The clearer stuff, vodka and tequila brought out the sillyness, and wine typically made her feel relaxed.

Perhaps she was simply more used to the feeling of being intoxicated than Aela, someone who didn't drink at all. While her eyes were still shifty and out of focus, it was still simple enough to appreciate the beauty of the dam.

"You live here?" She asked, though in retrospect Aela had most definitely told her that before, though it appeared to slip her mind. "You think?"

That didn't sound promising.

[member="Aela Talith"]