A Long Journey

[Haytham Kaze]

​

Ziost Dark Temple​

Vanitas's armoured greaves touched down on the ground outside of the Ziost Temple he had just finished investigating. For the most part, it had been stripped bare over the thousands of years of grave robbers that had thought it was a good idea to steal from past Lords of the Sith, and to acquire their artifacts. His teeth grated on each other from behind his helmet. But, he was certain that he had gone further than most, and because of that it had gotten more and more dangerous.

He had drawn heavily on the Force to protect himself from the phantoms of the Sith and otherwise other traps that would rob him of his existence. He was exhausted, but he still strode towards the shuttle that would take him up to the Heavy Cruiser in orbit of the planet. On the ship there was half a dozen soldiers provided to him by the One Sith. In total, there had been more than a dozen, but those that had entered the Temple with him had died.

The Sith Knight protected himself, not those that accompanied him. They were lost needlessly he knew, they were people who had families, or so he'd imagine, but he didn't particularly care about saving them.

They had meant nothing to him. In the long run of the Galaxy, they would mean nothing. Forgotten. Their names unrecorded.

The shuttle lifted off from the planet below, the repulsors throwing up dust around it's bottom side as it disappeared into the atmosphere above and into space.

Darth Vanitas's holodisplay blinked. There were quite a few messages on them. He went through them daily of course. He responded to those that he wanted to and ignored those he didn't. When he was done, he deleted them. So he did so now.

There were some however that would repeatedly find themselves in an unread file. Those were the ones sent by [member="Joza Perl"]. For the last few days, he had ignored them. Business had absorbed his mind. The Dark Side was something he sought to grow stronger in, but he knew it would corrupt him further, no matter what he said. Had he been hiding from the pink woman? Not entirely, it was also because of her apparent friend, [member="Nikias"] who had ambushed him on Cloud Nine, Bespin nearly a week ago.

Some of the messages read out as apologies for what had happened, how she knew, he could only guess, but anyone who had the sense to turn on the HoloNet News would find that there had been a duel of sorts in some Hotel on the luxury station. Of course, there had been regrets on Haytham's, or rather, Vanitas's part.

I should had been more prepared.

Despite his confident gait through the ship, every step he took gave him more and more pain. The Dark Jedi had torn a ligament in his leg, and Haytham was too arrogant and impatient to sit still and allow it to heal. No, instead, he sought out artifacts that would increase his power and hasten his growth in the Dark Side of the Force. As he had in the Jedi, he sought to teach himself. [member="Darth Orcus"] used him more as weapon rather than an Apprentice, he was a Sith, that was to be expected. However, there was little that he could actually show to him.

Or so Vanitas assumed.

On his wrist, there was a holodisplay. He had access to his messages there. He went through them and selected the one person who had ever been able to make things better.

:: Ziost. ::

Short and sweet was his reply. After Ruusan, he had decided that the person, no, the Sith he wanted to be was curt and businesslike.

If Joza was indeed in Sanctum Space, she would be there in a few hours he knew. But he wanted to be alone until then.

"Any ship larger than a corvette will be destroyed."

The only order he had left to those on the bridge before he disappeared in the lift and to his chambers.

The Force was weaved around his person as he undressed himself until he wore naught but his underwear and he climbed into the bacta tank that was within his room. He took the breather and slipped it over his face as he closed his eyes and submerged himself into the healing liquid and submerged himself in the Force. Wounds acquired from Nikias and his more recent adventure into the Dark Temple would finally begin to find themselves becoming closed.

 

[Joza Perl]

By the time Joza discovered what Nikias had set out to do, it had been too late for her to chase the Dark Jedi down and stop him. Perhaps that was a good thing, for the pink woman nearly exploded in anger when she’d come in contact with the Hellyni after his duel. If she’d been there, thing would have only been worse. Joza did have a knack for escalating situations, whether she wanted to or not.

She and Haytham were already in a complicated place, so the Zeltron was unsure of what to do initially. Her gut reaction, wrought by her natural racial instinct to nurture was to reach out to him and comfort. Perhaps earlier than she should have, she began to message the Sith Knight in hopes that he’d agree to meet her. Apologies face to face were far more sincere, or at least that’s what she hoped that it would convey. And when he didn’t contact her back she felt slighted at first. Joza, being who she was, was not used to being ignored—especially not by a lover. A complicated lover, but someone she admittedly cared for nonetheless.

Recognizing that he probably needed his space, her messages began to trickle but not halt entirely. Joza wanted him to know that she hadn’t forgotten about him, and that she certainly intended to talk things through.

Meeting with a Sith inside Sanctum Space probably wasn’t the smartest idea, but Joza was prone to making questionable decisions. Normally composed, her stomach was in knots as the unmarked Sanctum shuttle made its way toward Ziost. At least he’d finally acknowledged her flood of messages and what was moreso, had agreed to meet with her.

Her teeth ground together as she eyed what would no doubt be his ship. No going back now. She exhaled lowly before requesting safe landing.

[member="Haytham Kaze"]

 

[Haytham Kaze]

The ship was six hundred meters. The hangar bay had been cleared of a few starfighters to be replaced with a handful of shuttles and dropships with room still available to be used for other ships needing a spot to land. Wrapped up in the Force, Vanitas felt a familiar presence nearby, specifically entering the Ziost System with them. Once the ensigns and officers on the bridge had gotten everything sorted, and [member="Joza Perl"]'s ship had gotten into the hangar bay, it disappeared into hyperspace in a flash of light.

Once Joza disembarked from her ship, she would find an escort of a dozen or so Sith troopers standing outside of the ramp, six on each side, standing at attention. In the middle of the corridor they created was a sole human woman with short blonde hair in a crisp uniform standing with a datapad in her hands, waiting for the Zeltron to come down out of the ship. When she touched the ground of the Hangar, in a smooth motion the dozen stormtroopers would turn 90 degrees as the Major spoke.

"Lord Vanitas awaits you in his chambers. He awaits you... Patiently." The soft dulcet tone of Major Shaya's voice broke the silence as she turned on her heels, beckoning Joza to follow her towards the large lift as it started to descend when they group gets inside. Within a few moments they would've hit another level, and after the next few moments of silence they would find themselves outside a doorway with two huge herglics outside of it. His new bodyguards after the last two had been disposed of on Bespin, Cloud Nine.

Soldiers of the Triumvirate, though they were guised as HTE bodyguards, as was the beauty of most of the Triumvirate's goals.

Hidden.

She's come.

 

[Joza Perl]

The first thing Joza had noticed after disembarking was Haytham’s presence deep within the ship—or rather, it was the first thing she had attempted to sense. He’s injured. A frown tugged at her lips and her brows narrowed, but her face smoothed as she exited and laid eyes on the Sith troopers. Everything about this situation shouldn’t be happening, and she tried to rationalize it in her mind. She’d rather meet with him on his terms, as unsettling as they were, then to not meet him at all.

Straightening, she approached the uniformed woman and the armored soldiers, a brow arching as they suddenly turned sharply in unison. Her steps were even, back straight, eyes steely and face stoic. The “Jedi” was careful not to radiate too much hostility, though everything about her indicated that she would attack if necessary. Still, she both hoped and figured it would not come to that. Unless this was some sort of obvious ambush that she’d walked right into.

She nodded curtly as the blonde woman spoke, following after her shortly. As they appeared in front of what she assumed to be Haytham’s quarters. Must have made a decent name for himself. Mindful of the saber hilts on her belt, she turned to regard the pair of herglics at his door. “Am I to enter or are one of you supposed to do the honors?” She was unsure of how this worked, but intended to be as compliant as possible within reason. She was anxious, and Haytham would be able to feel it—she didn’t bother to hide it from him, as bonded as they were. As much as he felt her nerves, he’d be able to sense her sincerity along with it.

[member="Haytham Kaze"]

 

[Haytham Kaze]

The Sith Knight remained inside the bacta tank. Even when the doorway to his chambers opened just after Joza spoke, though no one outside had moved yet.

Inside, a few pieces of furniture could be seen. A holodisplay, likely where he would get his messages and holos from. Obviously. Behind that was a table and an assortment of weapons, tools, and pieces of armour scattered about it in no sort of order. Pieces of armour and weapons that he had ordered after his encounter with Nikias. He had been planning to purchase them for some time, but he had been hard pressed after being ambushed.

It wasn't going to happen again.

Even though he suspected it hadn't been [member="Joza Perl"] contacting him, he had still proceeded on arrogance instead of preparing himself completely. Huffing, in the middle of t he room there was a bacta tank and out of sight was a bed. From the rebreather, a handful of bubbles floated up from that huff and he waited for a moment.

Major Shaya and the rest of the stormtroopers waited outside as the Herglics entered the room. In the dimly lit room on either side of the doorway were two more hulking figures that were another duo of Herglics.

He pulled himself out of the tank, tugging the rebreather off of his face as that muscular torso was pulled out of the tank and landed on the floor beside it. An assortment of liquids dripping off of him as he strode across the room silently, a slight limp to his movements as he lifted up a towel from his bed and started to dry himself.

"Don't be unsettled." His voice was relatively dry, but he reached out to her in the Force. For the most part, his cold nature was for the company at hand. His reaching out was to comfort her. "At least, not completely." He said as he rolls his shoulders back, an array of wounds and scars, some of them not nearly as cleaned as they should've been as those muscles on his back were stretched and flexed.

"What brought you here?"

With those words, he turned to face her, his chest as riddled with scars as his back as he let his towel hang around his shoulders as he crossed his arms over his chest.

 

[Joza Perl]

Well isn’t this something out of a HoloFlick. The Zeltron would stride into the room behind the guards, tilting her head to eye the area, her gaze lingering on the table scattered with various weapons and armor. Keeping that in mind, she turned towards the center of the room as Haytham began to shift in the bacta tank.

She eyed him as he climbed out and began to dry himself, the combination of his blunt tone and his presence in the Force not lost on her. She’d intended to be all business from the start until she was alone with him. If she’d get to be alone with him. Glancing at the large whale like guards he had acquired, Joza figured that the security was in response to the event she’d come to discuss. Not that she could blame him.

Joza hesitated when he prompted her, eyes lingering on his wounds that had not yet healed. She longed to reach out and touch him, to trace her fingers along every scar but held back, not moving a muscle. That was, until a hand came up to tuck a stray lock of red hair behind her ears. She was still getting used to not being able to feel anything with her new prosthetic, and that probably contributed to her anxiety a bit.

You know why I am here.

“I’d like to speak with you about your most recent engagement on Bespin.” She spoke plainly, figuring she’d be square with him in front of his lovely new additions. “In private, if you will.”

[member="Haytham Kaze"]

 

[Haytham Kaze]

Haytham nods his head at her words slowly, but he didn't give the order to tell the Herglics to leave. Not yet anyway. They all came from the same place. The ones he had acquired whilst he had gone to Bespin, and these four that were present within the oddly spacious room. It was bigger than it seemed when you looked in from outside of it. It was near soundproof, but that was details for later.

"Did you see the news?" He said after dragging the towel off of his shoulders and threw it back to the bed as he put on a simple, plain black shirt. "Is that why you wanted to see me?" His fists clenched for a moment as he headed towards the table at the other side of the room. "Did you see the corpses of the two Herglics," he pauses to wave at the four beings around the room. "That were bisected by our mutual?" He hums, almost thoughtfully, though it was clearly sarcastic.

"They were my new friends, friends. I think they deserve to know why their friends were killed."

[member="Joza Perl"]

 

[Joza Perl]

Joza’s eyes narrowed a tick, but she stopped them before it could become a full-on glare. Why was he doing this? Regardless of the reason, she would answer in that same even voice, though he’d be able to detect a tinge of anger as her presence in the Force flared a bit to express her irritation.

“They were killed because a dear friend of mine was concerned over what you did to me.” She paused for a few moments, realizing that the words had more bite than she had wanted. “I do not control Nikias. I didn’t find out what he’d done until it was too late, but I assure you that I do not condone his actions.” She'd play his game, but she'd be as blunt as he was known to be.

[member="Haytham Kaze"]

 

[Haytham Kaze]

There was another room, slightly chamber. He was after all, a Sith Knight.

"Come," he said as he headed towards the side room. The Herglics only moved to reposition themselves at either side of the door, but neither entered. The doorway was too small for the hulking figures. Haytham huffs as he beckons her through the door, only to stop and to return to his previous table as he pulled on a pair of pants and tied his belt around it along with his assortment of weapons that usually found themselves on his belt, grappling hook, or better known as an ascension gun, trio of lightsabres, and his newly acquired Tsaisi that sucked the life out of him once a day.

His under armour was put on, then it was the over armour.

He stepped into the room behind her, but he kept the helmet off.

"He's psychotic. He didn't need to kill them." He was concerned for their deaths, but only because they had been unnecessary in the long run. In this other room, there was a long table with an arrangement of chairs. "Take a seat," he'd say, even going as far as to pull out a chair near the top of the table for her before he limped around it and towards the much larger, near Throne-like chair at the head of the table, slumping into it, he visibly sighed, but his tone still held that professional tone.

"I still don't know why you're here. To apologize for him?" The same dryness stayed in his voice. "I don't think he cares enough." He waves a hand at whatever response she could potentially have, and he'd sigh.

"Forgive me, Joza," he said as he straightened out in his chair and waves to the nearby wall, and a cart with an assortment of drinks. "Is there something you'd like to drink?"

"I almost forgot my manners."

[member="Joza Perl"]

 

[Joza Perl]

Joza couldn’t help but arch a brow subtly as he motioned to the other room, vaguely wondering how many rooms he had at his disposal. She followed him through when he motioned, arms crossed loosely against her chest. When he turned back to return to the table, her brows moved downwards smoothly in a furrow as she watched him dress as if he were going to war. She felt a subtle pang of wariness hit her, but she didn’t contact him expecting him to welcome her with a hug and kiss. She figured it was for show, anyway. She knew how the Hellyni Jedi fought, and after being taken by surprise by him she wouldn’t blame Haytham for taking precautions.

“Would you have had them stand down?”

She glanced around the room, musing simply on how much he had. A short nod of thanks dipped from her head as he pulled out a chair for her, though the limp did not go unnoticed as the Sith settled into his own seat. Ridiculous. She thought as she observed the opulent chair. She’d rather have met him in a simpler setting, like they had on Zeltros or Bakura. But those were different times, when they were different people.

For lack of a more graceful explanation, Joza had grown up poor. She’d lived in an apartment with her mother that was smaller than the room they’d previous been in, so a more lavish lifestyle indicated both power and wealth was attractive to her in a certain sense. Though the Jedi were taught to live a modest lifestyle, the Zeltron had been a teenager when she underwent her apprenticeship. Many lessons had not had their chance to sink in before she’d started to pull away. Even the modest flat on Coruscant she paid for with her own credits was something she was proud of, having earned her own space. Daska Voss paid her well, but a good portion of her earnings were sent back to Zeltros. Her mother was aging, after all.

Refocusing on Haytham and his question, she brought to mind his injuries once again. It would likely be best to approach that later, if the conversation would allow for it.

“I’m not here to apologize for him. I’m here to apologize because of him.” Crossing one leg over the other, she folded her hands into her lap in an almost dainty manner. “Nikias is a good friend of mine. While I appreciate his devotion to our friendship, I don’t approve of what he did.” Had she appreciated that the Dark Jedi cared enough for her to track down someone who’d hurt her? Absolutely. She could probably only name one other person who’d do such a thing, and they were in the room with her. Of course, that didn’t mean that Joza didn’t give Nik hell of her own after she’d tracked him down.

When he waved his hand in dismissal, she shot him a visible glare but held herself back from a biting comment.

“I’m not sure how he found you, given that he only knew the bare bones of the situation, not even your name. I’d done well to hide the evidence, but the surface of Sekalus is abrasively hot.” She referenced the point where her makeup had melted away to reveal the bruising.

Glancing over at the drink cart she’d somehow missed before, Joza shook her head. “No, thank you.” Letting out a low sigh through her nose, she attempted to catch his gray eyes with her own.

“Haytham, I’d like to apologize for what happened. Nikias had no right to insert himself into our business, especially without consulting me prior.” Her tone was formal, but laced with hints of sincerity. He’d feel it in their bond as well.

[member="Haytham Kaze"]

 

[Haytham Kaze]

Haytham huffs at her.

Would I had had them stand down? Likely not. When the first herglic had been bisected in front of the door by the force guided lightsabre, Haytham hadn't even needed to order the second bodyguard to strode forward and scour the hallway with electricity capable of shutting down a humanoid's nervous system. He wanted to see what he had been up against, a way to feel out the ambush that he had suspected. "They were bodyguards. Their job is to protect me," a faint haauuumm came from the other room as if confirmation were necessary. "So, no, I wouldn't have asked them to back off to watch their employer be attacked." A brown brow raised at her, "that would defeat the purpose of having them."

His grey eyes descended to her legs to watch as they crossed and she repositioned herself. He didn't bother to hide his wandering gaze. He'd seen it all already. Likely more than anyone else in the entire galaxy, mother excluded of course. It gave him cause to wonder what her mother was like, what she thought of the situation that they were in, which had then brought his own parents into the mix into his mind. He shook his head once and he sighed softly. "How'd you meet?" Curious if anything, Nikias came across as more as some righteous Dark Sider than an actual Jedi. Would any of the Jedi Orders actually accept him?

"He contacted me under the pretense of being you. To... Make amends of what had happened, needless to say, he underestimated how well we know each other." He shrugs. Underneath those words was the hidden message that he had also underestimated the foreseen ambush. But that was something to forget about.

And she did. She did catch his grey eyes with her own green ones and he bit his tongue to prevent himself from speaking.

"Who is he?"

[member="Joza Perl"]

 

[Joza Perl]

Joza glanced in the direction from where she’d herd the herglic affirm Haytham’s statement, gaze narrowing just a pinch at the thought of things not truly being private between them.

When he revealed that Nik had lured Haytham to Bespin under the guise of being her, Joza visibly winced. It bothered her that Nikias would impersonate her to do such a thing, but she held herself back. She’d already given the Dark Jedi a piece of her mind.

“We met when he first joined the Sanctum and issued a challenge to the other Padawans. I took him on in a duel and won.” She shrugged, eyes flickering at the memory. “He’s far stronger now than he was before. I doubt I could take him on now.” Inhaling deeply, she let her gaze settle on to Haytham for a few silent moments as if feeling the air between them. Emotional sensing and empathy were natural skills of hers, but they’d only grown with her training.

And then, she chuckled softly, her clasped hands seeming to loosen and her shoulders relaxing. “He’s a close friend. Probably the person I’m most familiar with in the Sanctum. And though I can’t imagine you’d believe me as I’ve given you no reason to—“ There was a slight tinge of bitterness in her words. “He hasn’t taken liberties with me.”

[member="Haytham Kaze"]

 

[Haytham Kaze]

Haytham nodded as he slumps further into the throne-like chair. He hums softly, the sound thoughtful as he stares into those green eyes that he thought so highly of. "I see," he says after a moment of thought. So he joined the Sanctum and challenged the other Padawans? He smirks at the thought. They were alike in a way. Under Kiskla Grayson's tutelage, Haytham had sparred many Padawans and had only lost to a twi'lek who employed ataru and two lightsabres.

Ever since then, he had decided it was best to always use more than one lightsabre. She had influenced his fighting style from so long age. He wondered what ever happened to Seraphina Shel'tah.

"I told you that I don't care about that anymore." He presses his upper back into, mainly his shoulders into the chair as he starts to rise up again. "Besides, he doesn't seem the sort to have sex with you anyway. At least, not without developing a relationship before hand." He didn't care if he was heard, it didn't matter to him anymore in that moment. Not to mention if he sounded crass. It just didn't.

"I still aim to kill him."

[member="Joza Perl"]

 

[Joza Perl]

Inwardly, Joza was slightly by him indicating that Nikias wouldn’t want her—she still had her vanity, after all. Only now, she wouldn’t let it come to surface as she was more curious than upset to see where he was taking this. Again, her shoulders would rise and fall in a shrug to indicate her indifference. “I’ve no way to be sure about that.”

At the mention of him killing Nikias, Joza sighed heavily and leaned forward onto the table, pressing her elbows onto its surface while pinching the bridge of her nose with one hand. After a few moments of contemplation, she would turn her head to face him.

“A short while ago, a Padawan and I were doing research on Felucia when happened upon a Sith and his…strange companion. They defeated us, nearly killing the Padawan in the process. It was Nikias who rescued us and saved his life.” She paused, rolling the shoulder of her right arm before holding it out to him. “He helped create this prosthetic arm for me after my hand was taken on orders of the Sith.” She spoke evenly, though there was a slight tremor to her voice as she remembered the event.

“If you aim to kill Nikias, I will be an obstacle.”

[member="Haytham Kaze"]

 

[Haytham Kaze]

He didn't answer right away.

He gathered his thoughts, nodded, more to himself than to anyone else before he spoke. But his mouth opened and closed as he caught sight of the prosthetic hand and he clenches his hands underneath the table, utilizing the fists he formed to push himself up to a straightened position. The same professional air about him as he had in the previous room.

"I have already figured that you would." He said softly, his eyelids closing for a moment as he pushes a hand through his hair. "Which is why the plan is for him to come back to me." Pause. "Again." He hums thoughtfully as he tilts his head to the side as he looked at her, "You do understand if I don't confide my plan in you, yes?" His lips tugged involuntarily and he had to make a conscious effort at suppressing the smirk that would've otherwise broke his lips.

That smirk wouldn't have been him, and his eyes tightened for a moment as he fought with himself to maintain that almost blank look on his face.

"I've been slighted my entire life. I can't - Will not, let it happen again."

[member="Joza Perl"]

 

[Joza Perl]

She watched him carefully, eyes narrowing in obvious suspicion and scrutiny of his words. She shook her head, leaning back into the chair.

“You’ve become more like a Sith.”

The words were spoken, or rather grumbled with exasperation. “You do understand that I’ll likely stand with him and you’ll have to cut me down as well, Haytham.”

She opened her mouth, lips parting slightly as her breath caught in her throat as if she had thought better of what she was about to say. Sliding forward in her seat, she exhaled slowly and closed her eyes. “As much as I don’t like it, he had a good reason to do what he did.” Her eyes snapped open, flashing for a moment. “And he’s never done me any harm.”

[member="Haytham Kaze"]

 

[Haytham Kaze]

Haytham sighed.

There was not much more to do.

"Get. Out." His voice shattered the silence that he allowed to spread throughout the room as he thought for a moment.

For a moment, there was only silence as those grey eyes of his bored into Joza's eye sockets. And then the four herglics in the other room moved in one and the door that was connecting the rooms closed. Even after they had left the room nearly a minute later, he didn't say anything as he just stared into her own eyes, as if willing her to look away from him, as if he wanted to insert his superiority over her. But whether she did or didn't, he turned his head away from her.

"I understand that you'll stand in the way. I don't blame you," he said before he brought his gaze back around. "I'm not asking you to choose. I already knew your decision," he said with an almost sad smile.

"We already discussed what I had done wrong on that day. I am to blame. He did have good reason to insert himself into something that didn't concern him. Something that had already been solved." At first, his voice was soft, but involuntarily, irritation and sarcasm leaked into his voice. He huffs again. He cleared his thoughts. And he lowered his right hand to the Tsaisi on his waist, he felt it begin to feed off of his essence itself. He did it so often now, he almost began to wonder how he was still alive. But it was not nearly enough to actually harm him physically, though it took a toll on him. The idea of what it could do to him.

"Do you want me to thank him for never doing harm to you?" His hand raised and wrapped around the edge of the arm of the chair.

Tensing.

Clenching.

Tightening.

Cracking.

"You want me to forget that it happened. To act as if his actions and threats never happened." Those grey eyes burned, and in the Force, in a way that he never had before, he reached out for her. It was a call to help, but deep within he felt as if he were too far gone to come back. He wasn't even sure that he wanted to go all the way back. I've gone too far. To go back would be a waste. "Tell me I'm wrong."

[member="Joza Perl"]

 

[Joza Perl]

As his words faded and his eyes caught her own, Joza did not turn away. She stared back, unblinking as if challenging him with her gaze. She didn’t like to be lorded over, especially by him. Whatever satisfaction he was after, if any, she was determined not to give it to him.

The corners of her eyes crinkled as he turned away, and she straightened out in her seat as if to crane her neck towards him. As he spoke she listened, hanging on his words. She was tired of playing games, not necessarily with him but in general. Considering the bond they shared, she’d be as open as possible while still retaining enough sense to guard herself. After all, they’d been on better terms before.

“Solved?” She bit suddenly, the word forcing itself from her throat harder and louder than she’d expected. Her eyes flashed for a moment, but she reigned herself in and remained silent after that. Mentally beating a dead horse, she allowed her thoughts to dissolve on the situation he’d alluded to.

Her nostrils flared and she exhaled sharply through them at his question. He’d be able to feel her anger flare but again, she kept it in check. Joza had wanted to approached the situation as adult as possible to avoid any bickering, but it was inevitable. Things had grown so complicated between them that there was always something to fight about, as stubborn as they both could be. It was a comparison as to how I trust him over you. She wanted to retort, but she didn’t want it to be that—a retort. She wasn’t so sure she would have believed her own words, anyhow.

Nearly wincing at the crack, she let out a heavy exhale through her mouth. “Haytham, that’s exactly what I want.” The hardness would slowly melt from her eyes as she leveled her gaze onto him. “But it would be unfair of me to ask that of you. Not after he attacked you.” She paused, her eyes sliding down to the Tsaisi on his belt before settling back onto his face. Feeling his call for her in the Force caused he to bite her lower lip, chewing on it in indecision. “To be frank, I don’t blame you. But I…don’t know what to do.” She was sure he was aware of how she disliked the situation.

“I don’t want to lose you.” A hand—her real hand—would reach forward and attempt to lay atop his own that was clenching at the armrest. If he allowed it, she would immediately release her pheromones, having them snake down her arm and twine up his own. If not, it would simply retract into her lap. “I only want what’s best for you.” She admitted as she spoke softly, sincerely in an attempt to soothe. Glancing again at the Tsaisi, she continued. “Are you suffering? You’re still injured. Haven’t you given your wounds time to heal?” She frowned, her voice taking on a bit of a scolding, motherly tone. It was foreign to her, but she went with it regardless. He always did seem to bring out a different side of her.

[member="Haytham Kaze"]

 

[Haytham Kaze]

He bit his tongue as he huffs.

He felt her pheromones wash over him and deep within he knew he wasn't going to listen to what she had to say in this instant. She wanted to keep two people that she cared deeply for safe. She didn't want to choose and it would give her cause to suffer as his left hand loosened on the pommel of the armchair, but his right continued to clench the Tsaisi before he finally released. He made sure to keep his palm face down, as he removed it and placed it in his lap.

"Forget it." He says, wanting the words to be biting, but they came out softly. He clenched her hand not aggressively as he stares into her eyes.

"Suffering? I am enduring," he says as he allows his thumb to brush over her knuckles. "The 'pain' is a reminder." He says. He left the part out that he used the Dark Side of the Force to draw strength from the pain he was experiencing. He also shook his head suddenly, allowing the wild hair atop his head to cascade over his forehead. He made a show of remaining strong, but deep within, he was tired of all... This.

She found a replacement for me.

"He's like me. Though, I left most of my arrogance with the Jedi."

I hate people like him.

[member="Joza Perl"]

 

[Joza Perl]

Joza’s frown deepens as he dismisses her words. She didn’t like being unheard, and had half a mind to turn her sharp tongue on him. But she couldn’t bring herself to, not right now.

The Zeltron moved to pull her hand away from his, but the sudden tightening grasp on her hand caused her to stop, the gentle caress of his thumb giving her pause beyond that.

Most of it. She mused vaguely in the back of her mind.

“You are both very stubborn, I’ll give you that.” She admitted softly, looking away from him. To have her words waved off caused her to feel embarrassed. He was the only one she’d ever opened herself completely to, but she would never vocalize that.

“I care for him, but I love you, Haytham. Just as I know that you love me.”

Her voice was even, eyes showing concern. Joza thought about closing herself off at this point, but again, it was something she could not bring herself to do. All she wanted to do was to reach him.

"Please," She pleaded. "Talk to me."

[member="Haytham Kaze"]