A Short Hop

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Joza Perl"]

He did feel a little bit bad for steering the conversation as he had. The problem was that Asmus just didn't get knocked off kilter by things people said much. There was no paddling under the surface for the swan that glided across the lake serenely, that was Asmus gliding through life. So in turn, he often struggled to understand why things could peturb others. From his perspective he had made a conscious choice long ago to try not to get stressed out in life and had followed through.

Checks only took a few minutes. He radioed in to the control to ensure their launch slot was unchanged. It was. The young man strode back out of the cockpit, put a caf on and started to put some food down on the table. As they were on the ground he put out some fresh fruit and some bread baked just a few hours ago.

It wasn't long before his uncle, [member="Kairon Rees"], the ship's first mate [member="Jarrick"] and Mai the Cathar had returned and found their places around the table.

"Took on one passenger?" Kairon asked.

"Yes, a Jedi heading for Voss," Asmus replied, choosing to convey a particular subset of facts.

"Good," Kairon said with an approving nod. Jedi were good luck. They sensed danger, helped smooth over arguments, and tended to convince pirates to be elsewhere.

 

[Joza Perl]

Settling in didn’t take long as she didn’t bring anything with her other than the clothes on her back. A frown dusted Joza’s lips as she remembered the one item that had stowed away in her robes. Pulling out the silken black scarf, she tilted her frown downwards, directing it at the piece of fabric. It was probably the least Jedi-like thing she owed, but it could have been worse. At least it was a good conversation starter. Snorting to herself at the thought, she folded the scarf, the decorative gold coins jingling as she slipped it beneath her pillow. It didn’t bother her that [member="Asmus Janes"] had seen her dancing sensually and half naked on a stage—being a Zeltron she held a certain pride in her body and her ability to seduce, even if she tried her damndest not to use it. That wouldn’t be very Jedi-like.

She filled her time by lapsing into a quasi-meditative state, moreso her mind wandering off as she ran through the events of the day so far. Had she reacted appropriately for a Jedi? Probably not, but he didn’t seem to be put off by it. Now that she was alone and had time to think, she tried to pick a part the situation. He’d made her flustered with his teasing, having seen through her façade of being a wise Jedi. Would things have been different had she not dropped the scarf? Then again, who would take a teenage Zeltron Jedi that seriously?

A gurgle from her stomach reminded her that it was probably time to go and see about that food Asmus had mentioned. Sighing, Joza stretched for a few minutes before heading upstairs. She could just stay in her room and meditate for the duration of the trip, but she grudgingly figured it would be good for her to try and be more sociable. Drifting upstairs, Joza caught sight of a handful of people around the table. Adjusting her robes, the Jedi Padawan made her way over, nodding in greeting while taking a piece of fruit.

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Joza Perl"]

"Aha, everyone this is Joza, Jedi Padawan. Joza this is Jarrick, Mai and Kairon. He's the captain," Asmus said, making introductions. There was a barely perceptible shift of an eyebrow as the veteran, Jarrick, looked to him.

"Welcome aboard Joza," Kairon said in a fairly formal manner. "Asmus has shown you your cabin by the sound of it, but so you know please stay out of the cargo bays and the cockpit unless you're with one of us. Nothing personal, just for safety." He gave her a small smile, a curt nod and returned to spreading butter over a slice of warm bread.

Finishing a chunk of apple, Asmus shot her a curious expression. "So, I know you must get this too much but...can you really move things with your mind?"

 

[Joza Perl]

“Thank you for having me.” The Padawan spoke politely, tilting her head in a nod to Kairon. Her gaze settled onto the man as he spoke to her, warning her to stay out of certain areas unless accompanied. She didn’t feel the need to explore any parts of the ship, so a simple nod was her response. “Understood.”

She turned her attention back to the peach in her hand, having just bitten into it when Asmus prompted her. She took a few moments to chew and swallow, covering her mouth with the back of her free hand as she did so. A thin red brow arched at his question, unsure of how to answer momentarily.

A thought crossed her mind and a smirk tickled her lips, unseen from behind her hand. I shouldn’t… But the idea was too tempting. Instead of responding verbally, she held her hand out, concentrating on the apple in his grasp. Slowly, carefully, it would move—rising above him a few inches and hovering in mid-air before dropping suddenly onto his head.

“Oh,” She feigned mild embarrassment, a smile coming to cross her face. “My apologies. I’m still not very good.”

[member="Asmus Janes"]

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Joza Perl"]

"Hah!" Kairon exclaimed with a clap of his hands. "She can stay!"

Asmus flushed a touch, but he was relatively robust. If he was easily embarrassed he would have been a very different person. His hand shot out to catch the apple as it rolled off the table and he placed it back on the table before him.

"I imagine," he said slowly. One eyebrow arched up as he met Joza's gaze. A ghost of a smile cross his lips. "...that as a Padawan you work much more on your balance and footwork than telekinesis?"

 

[Joza Perl]

Joza’s lips pursed momentarily when she realized that she hadn’t managed to knock him off kilter as much as she would have liked. It was petty revenge for him teasing her, especially seeing as how the Zeltron wasn’t difficult to rile up. Still, she was a little impressed with how he held himself, even more so at how quickly he fired back. She wouldn’t admit it, though.

She tilted her head as he caught her gaze, her eyes hardening when that tickle of a smile registered. “We’re taught the basics, yes. But I suppose that balance and footwork come a bit more naturally to me. Then again,” She smoothed back her hair, attempting to tame a few flyaways. “Practice does make perfect.” The young woman would do her best to remain unruffled, especially in front of others. She considered it a lesson in Jedi demeanor.

[member="Asmus Janes"]

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Joza Perl"]

Joza was shot a well-practised smile as Asmus returned to his food. One hand smoothed his hair back behind his ear and then took up a knife. He spread a curl of butter across a slab of bread in a thick coating. The simple things like warm bread and fresh butter went a long way on a ship. He had half a mind to cheekily ask if she was better at moving things with her hips, but kept that comment to himself for now.

Kairon was already mentally sighing. Having a Jedi on board was excellent news, for all the obvious reasons. However he wasn’t sure exactly what trouble Asmus would land them in this time if he spent the entire time pestering the pretty young thing as he was wont to do. As if on cue Asmus spoke up.

“But if you do want to see the cockpit, I’ll be taking her out and you’re welcome to join me?” Asmus asked Joza.

 

[Joza Perl]

Subtly, Joza tried to regulate her breathing. In trying to banish all emotion, the Zeltron allowed herself no leeway which ultimately backfired. She wasn’t particularly uncomfortable or near having a panic attack, but she didn’t like being flustered. That wasn’t a very Jedi-like trait, right? Still, the easygoing nature of the young pilot irritated her. Put simply, she was jealous. How did he manage to speak so freely and remain unperturbed?

Tilting her head to the size, Joza took a few moments to smooth back her hair, adjusting a few pins at the base of her bun. As hard as she tried, she’d never be able to tame the unruly beast that was her hair. And no, she wasn’t going to cut it.

“I suppose.” The words slipped from her lips smoothly, and of that she was proud. Maybe she was overthinking her behavior, trying to win out over Asmus. It was a childish trait, something she’d yet to overcome.

[member="Asmus Janes"]

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Joza Perl"]

“Come on then,” Asmus said, pushing his chair out from behind him. “You don’t have to worry about your hair, flying isn’t a performance.”

“Hah!” the sardonic cry cut across the conversation. Kairon followed up with a deep chuckle and a shake of his head. “As if you could possibly be fit to lecture someone on fiddling with their hair!” he said, laughing again. Kairon turned to regard the Jedi, shaking his head yet more. “Don’t take that from him! He takes at least twenty minutes over his every morning and about an hour before we leave the ship when we come into port. It’s not healthy for a young man to spend as much on hair care products as he does, I’m sure.”

Asmus had turned a very dark shade of red. He very rapidly turned on his heel and headed for the cockpit. He should have had a witty retort for that one, but nothing came to mind. Instead he vowed to find revenge on his uncle in some manner before the day was done.

 

[Joza Perl]

A sour look began to break through Joza’s attempt at a stoic façade, but it was quickly replaced by a grin at Kairon’s interruption. Even though it wasn’t her doing, she felt a sense of victory at finally seeing Asmus becoming flustered, even if she only caught a glimpse of his reddened cheeks before he’d done an about face.

“Oh, really?” Bringing a hand to her lips momentarily, she couldn’t help but giggle. “If you need any tips or tricks, I’d be glad to help you. I bet we can cut that hour-long primping session down to forty-five minutes!” Nevertheless, she moved to follow him toward the cockpit, but not before flashing Kairon a brief smile. She definitely liked the man.

“You do have nice hair.” She commented as soon as they were out of earshot, a note of sincerity in her voice. Her smirk had faded, but a light of amusement danced clearly in her eyes.

[member="Asmus Janes"]

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Joza Perl"]

"Oh thank you," he replied quickly. He had a half eaten apple tucked into one hand still. He walked around the cockpit flicking switches and activating touch screen displays. "Have a seat," he said waving towards the copilot's chair. A low, resonant hum reverberated through the bones of the ship as she warmed herself up for take-off. She was in many ways a living, breathing beast of her own. Finicky too, sometimes she would refuse to behave for no logical reason.

Asmus slid himself down into the pilots chair, placing an apple core on its end on the console before him. He turned to face Joze, eyes linger for a moment. "Yours is stunning by the way," he said, managing the make the statement sound both incredible heartfelt and casual at the same time. He idly wondered if hair products counted as worldly possessions from a Jedi's point of view. Relatively ignorant in the ways of the Jedi code he was too embarrassed to ask. "It is naturally that shade of red? Lot of humans would kill for that shade without having to pass horrid chemicals through it." At least the colour of his cheeks had mostly returned to normal.

 

[Joza Perl]

[member="Asmus Janes"]

Joza followed at Asmus’ heels, barely restraining a cheeky grin from surfacing on her face. She considered it payback for him making her so flustered earlier—not that that was much of an accomplishment—even if she hadn’t been the one to deliver it. The triumph faded from her mind as the cockpit began to liven up, her head tilting this way and that to look at all of the unfamiliar buttons and screens. It wasn’t as if she’d never been on a ship before, it’s just that she was never up this close.

Slipping into the copilots chair, Joza crossed her ankles and folded her hands neatly in her lap. She managed a toothy grin at his comment on her hair, always glad to having her appearance praised. “Thank you.” She reflexively patted the side of her head, reaching to straighten out the bun yet again. “Mostly. I used to get it highlighted with a lighter pink to give it more dimension.” A frown brushed her lips as she brought a hand to her hairline. Her highlights had grown out by now. “Sometimes, I use a similar shade of eye shadow to cover my roots and blend it down to the highlights. That and a little hairspray goes a long way.” She shook her head, unsure of why she was telling him this, but in doing so she realized that it had been quite a while since she had truly and honestly primped.

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Joza Perl"]

"Yeah I bet that works well," Asmus said, imagining the bright pink highlights catching the light. "Worst bit of living on a boat like this is cheap sonic showers. Dreadful for the hair. I use a dry conditioner to try and make up for it," he said, before turning back to his console.

"Control, this is Quintessence. Are we good to go?" he said.

"Quintessence you are clear, transmitting escape vector."

On the display before them appeared a route from the Sullust base up through the atmosphere. Several points marked the positions of Alliance cruisers and stations.

The scoundrel reached forwards and pulled his chair closer to the controls. He gave Joza a look out of the corner of his eyes and flashed her a smile. "Shall we get you to Voss then?"

 

[Joza Perl]

“You should try Zenka’s Choice Hair Masque. It washed right out and help to lock moisture in, makes your hair nice and smooth too. I use it as needed.” She commented casually, inspecting her nails for cracks or chips. Her hands had been getting dry recently, what with more training and less moisturizing. Maybe she should take a trip to Zeltros soon, if not to party then to pick up a few sorely missed cosmetics.

Quieting down, Joza straightened in her seat and glanced at the console with a spark of fascination, never really having the opportunity to see the behind the scenes before. Surprisingly, she returned his smile, albeit with a bit less vigor as if something was on her mind. “Yes, please.”

After a few moments, she shifted slightly in the co-pilots chair. “I’m…sorry about the apple situation earlier. I just couldn’t pass something like that up, what with the whole dancing thing.” She leaned back and tilted her head towards him, a vague smile curving her lips as she remembered the levitating fruit.

[member="Asmus Janes"]

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Joza Perl"]

Asmus wasn't the most observant sort. Prone to saying the wrong thing at the wrong time, he didn't always pick up on the signals of those around him. However, Joza made it pretty clear there was something she wanted to say.

At her apology he took a moment to show he was taking her seriously before returning her smile. "Don't need to apologise for that," he said, his hand waving it away. "We do far worse than that to each other on a daily basis trust me!" he added. Whilst he was the source of much of the trouble, he was also generally the object of Mai and Jarrick's hijinks.

His hands moved across the controls in an assured manner. He didn't have the worn, calloused hands of the other crew members. His had long, delicate fingers. Quite dextrous and smooth to the touch. Asmus had grown up in relative luxury until his being caught up in Kairon stealing a ship from his own family. His mother, Kairon's sister had been furious. But misty eyed at Kairon's stories of adventure in the outer rim he'd stayed on the ship.

A klaxon sounded as Asmus flicked the warning alarm so those on foot could move to a safe distance. With barely a jolt they lifted up from the deck and swung around gently. She might notice just a twitch in the corner of his mouth and a mischievous spark in those gold-flecked emerald eyes. He pressed down on the thrusters harder than necessary and they accelerated out of the hangar at speed, rushing over the smooth obsidian terrain below before angling upwards.

He cast her a contemplative glance as they rushed through the atmosphere. "I'm assuming the whole dancing thing is just a way to express yourself whilst wrapped up in all the discipline and ceremony of the Jedi Order?" he asked.

 

[Joza Perl]

“Oh?” A bit of a chuckle rode on her voice, genuinely surprise to hear that—and the on second thought, she wasn’t. Her tight smile relaxed into one reflecting her relief, glad that Asmus had good humor about the situation. The young Jedi wasn’t the best at talking her way out of trouble, and as sincere as she was she could still be easily intimidated by someone with a stern demeanor. Knowing that this wasn’t the case, she allowed herself to relax a bit more against the chair. Maybe this journey would be more pleasant than she had initially anticipated.

No sooner had she begun to ease more comfortably into her seat did the ship jar, causing her to flinch and startle forward rather ungracefully. She instinctively glanced over at [member="Asmus Janes"], hoping that everything was alright, as inexperienced with space travel up-close as she was. Collecting herself, the Zeltron soon found her hands gripping at the arm rests of her chair as the vessel hastened forward. She struggled to keep her teeth from gritting for a few moments, adjusting to the strange feeling in her stomach during liftoff. If the pilot seemed unperturbed, then so would she try to appear the same way.

Thankfully, a distraction came in the form of a question. Unfortunately, it was about dancing. Taking the bait, she weighed his inquiry in her mind and tried to come up with a decent answer. “You could call it that, yes. A lot changed when I became a Jedi, and dancing is the one part of my old life that I held on to.” She tried to tread carefully, not wanting to get all feelings and whatnot with the young man. Joza still held a lot of confusing emotions since leaving Zeltros, not yet able to come to terms with the changes in her life just yet. Sometimes she wondered if she had made a mistake in leaving behind everything she knew, but she would sooner die than let him in on that.

“I hear that the Sanctum Jedi are more…lax.” She shrugged, probing him with a curious glance to see if he knew anything about that.

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Joza Perl"]

Asmus pondered this for a few moments, though he was mildly distracted by enjoying her discomfort. Taking the Quin out easy would have been perfectly possible, or in fact he could have dialled the inertial dampeners up to take the sting out of the acceleration. However, it tickled him to see the effortlessly beautiful Jedi perturbed once again.

In many ways he could relate to her issue. He still clung to many facets of his past, as did his uncle. They were both from a relatively wealthy family of merchants back on Eriadu. The difference was that Kairon had this life forced upon him and had been irrevocably changed by it. Asmus followed his uncle back into the outlaw life because, frankly, it excited him. His uncle was a changed man clinging to his past; Asmus had wrapped himself in a veneer of scoundrel behaviour. He wondered which Joza was. An interesting question.

“Wouldn't know,” he shrugged. “Don't much know any Jedi. Well [member="Jorus Merrill"] is a Jedi and something of a smuggling hero. Can navigate the ‘verse with the Force and no navcomp. But wouldn't be able to tell you the different between a Silver Jedi and a Republic Jedi. What do you reckon they might be more lax about?”

A contented smile settled on his face as they broke the atmosphere and angled away from the star. The roar of superheated air across the hull faded away and their view became an inky blanket filled with stars. Asmus liked the stars. Some part of him was still that we'll educated, spoiled merchant boy, but he loved his freedom and seeing all the possibilities laid bare before him in a view of the Galaxy was a big part of that.

 

[Joza Perl]

Joza chewed at her lower lip in thought, partially mesmerized by the beautiful view. It was a moment like this that made her enjoy the actual act of traveling, and not just the destination. It made sense that Asmus didn’t know much about Jedi—from what she could tell—but she was a bit embarrassed at her own seeming lack of knowledge. She was relatively new to this whole Force gig, anyway.

She’d heard that the Sanctum accepted all Jedi. Not just strictly light siders, but those who identified as grey and even dark Jedi. Essentially anyone who wasn’t a hard-line Sith. But she didn’t want to get into that, as Force alignments were too convoluted and serious for a discussion like this. She wasn’t one to delve that deeply into Jedi philosophy, and frankly she felt as though she’d misinterpret a lot of it. “Well…” She cleared her throat, absently smoothing the lower half of her robes.

“I hear that the Silver Jedi are freer to do as they please. Even the Grandmaster openly has a wife and son, as I’m told.” She paused for a moment as her cheeks tinted at the concept. “N-not that I’m going for that specific reason. I just want to see how their philosophy works. If they’re a better fit.” While Joza was no stranger to a nightly infatuation or two, she was still inexperienced with the concept of love.

“So,” She cleared her throat again, this time a bit louder. “How long have you been doing…all this for?” She gestured around the cockpit.

[member="Asmus Janes"]

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Joza Perl"]

Asmus' hands came to an abrupt halt, pausing their dance across the console for pre-hyperspace checks. One eyebrow slowly arched up and settled there before he slowly panned across to Joza. His gaze settled on hers, the corner of his mouth just threatening an amused quirk.

"More...lax. I see," he said, holding that eyebrow up for another moment before returning to his work. If there was strife between her Jedi code and her zeltron instincts it would be unfair of him to fan the flames wouldn't it? But then...danicing hips...

Just get keep your eyes on the console for now! he told himself rather firmly.

"About five years," he decided to answer her question. "I sort of got dragged along by Kairon really. He wanted to send me back to my parents. I kept on at him because I want to go seeing all the corners of the 'verse. Eventually his says: 'Fine, just one more trip.'

"We get to Nar Shaddaa, I see some sights. I try again until he relents and says: 'Fine, just one more trip.' Eventually he just sort of stops saying it and I keep flying."

Asmus flicked three switches and was rewarded with three green lights.

"Right then co-pilot, if you'd be so kind as to push the large silver lever there all the way forwards we can be on our way," he said. He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, slight twitch of the lips again. "If I'm boring you I'm sure you can meditate the rest of the trip away."

 

[Joza Perl]

Joza fought to keep herself from biting her lip, from showing an external signs of discomfort or embarrassment. But the way her spine straightened and how she avoided looking at him at all costs probably didn’t help her case. While she was adept at reading body language, she had trouble controlling her own when flustered.

To her relief, he took the bait to steer this conversation in a less awkward direction for her. Finally tilting her head toward him, she listened with a hint of curiosity in her eyes. She had to let out a soft chuckle at his explanation, the corner of her lips upturning in a small, toothy grin. “I can relate.” She commented, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. She’d gotten more than she’d bargained for after leaving home with the grandiose dream of becoming a Jedi, but she’d explored words she’d only heard about. Adventure lust was not something rare for their age. Why not get to it while young?

“Co­-pilot?” She blinked a bit dazedly, pointing to herself. “I don’t know…well I…” She turned toward the silver lever as it almost seemed to gleam with intimidation. You can do this. It’s just a lever, not a rancor. “You’re too annoying to meditate around.” She mumbled halfheartedly, still mesmerized with her sudden task. With the briefest bite of her lower lip, she grasped the lever with one hand and pushed it forwards with a bated breath. A part of her waited for the ship to implode shortly.

[member="Asmus Janes"]