Private Albatross

[Miri Nimdok]

Giselle’s eyes widened, unsure what had caused his offense. She fell obediently silent, listening to him like a child, as she had been trained to do whenever a man spoke. But behind those enormous baby blues was her own mind, her own thoughts, her own manipulations. This was her favorite game; toying with men who believed they held power over her.

She didn’t care about—what had he called it? Social justice? What a mouthful. But equality between the sexes would inevitably lead to equality between the classes, and that she could not abide. She preferred the fact that she was a noble to actually count for something. Besides, she was quite comfortable with the status quo. She had learned how to navigate the Ukatian system, using it to her benefit. It wasn’t her fault that other women were too naïve and foolish to figure out how to control the men in their lives.

But she kept all of this hidden away, shrinking fearfully down in her seat as the big bad Force User grew hot and fiery with righteous anger. Her rescuer had turned cold, perhaps even cruel. Did she make a mistake by agreeing to come with him?

He seemed to gradually calm down, but Giselle had already shifted gears. She was genuinely frightened. A slightly trembling hand took the datapad from him, settling limply in her lap. “Yes,” she murmured. “I will… do as you ask.”

The door slid open and shut as Inanna got up and left the room, making her desire for a private dialogue known. She wasn't sure what was going on here, but she didn't like it.

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

Giselle shrank.

That was unexpected. After he was done, Alicio reevaluated how he looked, what he said. He hadn't been angry with her, hadn't even thought he'd came across that way. The first sign of him showing passion, and she was scared of him. Part of him, a large part of him, felt a stab of guilt. Here was this young noblewoman, trained all her life to lower her head at men, and he was giving her the same fire he'd give on the senate floor to thousands.

Now, to be fair, he also saw the glint of cunning in her eye. And as much as he was trying to be gentle, he had to be firm, too.

Inanna left, and Alicio sensed that he should follow. But first, he had to say one more thing. He crossed his arms. "Giselle... You're allowed to disagree with me, you know. No harm will come to you. You are allowed to be your own person, have your own opinions. Show some fire."

"I apologize if I've scared you. I care about the people of Ukatis, of the entire Alliance. And I'm not afraid to let it show. Think it over."

Alicio stood up slowly, and left the room, closing the door behind him.

<I don't believe she's going to help us,> he sent to Inanna. His eyes were distant with thought. <If I didn't know better, I'd think Sycorax was planning to use her as a punching bag in the debate.>

- Inanna Harth -

 

[Inanna Harth]

Giselle did not respond to Alicio’s words. She seemed to be waiting for him to leave, whether because she was still afraid of him or just wanted to be free of his presence for now.

Inanna had taken a seat in the co-pilot’s chair of the cockpit, staring out at the stars streaking past. Her expression was tight, brows furrowed and eyes narrowed. In her hands was the earpiece Alicio had given her. She fiddled with it absently.

Her gaze flicked toward Alicio as he entered. One look at his face told her she didn’t need to chastise him for getting a bit fiery with a girl from a planet where the men beat their women into submission. He had already figured that part out.

<I don't believe she's going to help us. If I didn't know better, I'd think Sycorax was planning to use her as a punching bag in the debate.>

“I was starting to wonder whether Sycorax may have set this whole thing up to fail,” Inanna muttered, speaking out loud. The doors were sealed, no one else was around to hear them, and the earpiece wasn’t strong enough to tell the Senator of Necropolis what they were saying while in hyperspace. “But a punching bag, yeah, that’s it. She probably sees her as just a political pawn to be used and discarded.”

She continued to fidget. “I didn’t think Giselle would agree with us. When someone is born and raised to believe a certain way, it’s very hard to change their mind. She has to have a reason to support the bill. The fact that she happens to be female clearly isn’t enough.”

A thought occurred to her. Her fidgeting stopped, and she turned in her seat to face him. “This isn’t about getting the bill passed in the Senate, is it? We don’t need her for that. None of those politicians will dare risk being accused of sexism. It’s about bridging the gap between Ukatis and the Alliance, so we don’t wind up thrusting a law upon them that they have no desire nor will to enforce.”

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

Alicio's eyes had gone tempestuous with thought, though the storm only worsened as Inanna agreed with him. There was a lot to consider here, political ramifications, senate games... But all the Count could focus on was Giselle, defending her way of life. The way her hand shook when she took his datapad.

"I had... thought... her imprisonment, the attempted theft of her birthright, and the instability between the Crown and House von Ascania would be enough." It was obvious he'd spent some time deep in the think tank. "Or maybe that she'd see reason. But... She can't support the bill. Not openly. She'd lose her seat in a heartbeat, and gain nothing but the hatred of her people. Maybe... I had just hoped she would accept she's been mistreated."

Inanna's realization was met by a dull blink. The puzzle became a little clearer, but Alicio hadn't seemed to pick up all the pieces Inanna had. "How does having Giselle in attendance help? Is she supposed to push back against the bill, and create a more favorable version for Ukatis?"

- Inanna Harth -

 

[Inanna Harth]

"I had... thought... her imprisonment, the attempted theft of her birthright, and the instability between the Crown and House von Ascania would be enough. Or maybe that she'd see reason. But... She can't support the bill. Not openly. She'd lose her seat in a heartbeat, and gain nothing but the hatred of her people. Maybe... I had just hoped she would accept she's been mistreated."

Inanna scratched her cheek. “She did go with you willingly, right? Being here with us is clearly preferable to being the king’s captive.” She sighed, and chanced a small smirk. “If I say that I think the two of you both need to try and understand the other better, would that be unhelpful and cliched?” There had been too much pride in that room, she thought. It made Giselle haughty to the point of spiteful dishonesty, while Alicio fell to preaching.

"How does having Giselle in attendance help? Is she supposed to push back against the bill, and create a more favorable version for Ukatis?"

“Our current approach isn’t working the way we hoped it would,” Inanna said with an uncertain shrug. “It might be… necessary. To compromise.” She half expected him to give her a funny look at the mere suggestion. Surely she wasn’t implying that they should try and negotiate with these ass-backwards misogynists?

Maybe she was. Even when Giselle began to tremble, Inanna’s eyes all the while had been glued to Alicio. She had watched him stand there, towering over the girl, and in a tone not too dissimilar from that of an annoyed father laying down the law to an ungrateful daughter, had all but told her that her planet would either go along with the will of the Alliance or be forced to. But Ukatis wasn’t a child and the Alliance wasn’t a parent, for all that the comparison between a backwater agriworld to a galactic superpower might beg the metaphor. One was vastly more powerful than the other, and if they weren’t careful with how they used that power...

Or am I just a fool, giving credence to slippery slopes and moral subjectivity? Inanna wondered. Did she just not like the way Alicio had looked in there, a fiery politician so different from the gentle relief worker she had known years ago?

“Their king is dying. He has no heir. They’re already looking at a succession crisis in the near future. On top of that, they were invaded by the Mandalorians… They’re vulnerable, and they know it. But they're still proud. If we can somehow assure them that this isn’t the beginning of the end of their independence, that we aren’t trying to take advantage of their weakness and strip them of sovereignty while they're down…”

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

“If I say that I think the two of you both need to try and understand the other better, would that be unhelpful and cliched?”

Alicio didn't smile back. "Mmm," was all he could manage, a sign that he had retreated within to think.

“It might be… necessary. To compromise.”

Alicio paused. The corners of his mouth ticked, as if a few expressions were waging a silent war on his face. He stared into the streaking starscape beyond the viewport, eyes dark and enigmatic. He had retreated even further within, to the point he couldn't string together a coherent sentence if he tried. It wasn't outwardly clear if Alicio was even listening as Inanna spoke about kingdoms and succession. He certainly didn't finish Inanna's trailed-off thought.

He was listening. But one wouldn't be blamed for thinking otherwise.

It took a few breaths before he responded. His voice was quieter. Less sure. "I can't..." He paused again, rethinking his word choice. "I'm... struggling... coming to terms with compromising my ideals." Always, the Count had fought tooth-and-nail for what was good, what was right. Was allowing inequality to continue with his stamp of approval the most good, most right, thing to do?

Was terrifying a teenage girl for her indoctrinated beliefs any better?

"I know what you're saying is intelligent, and correct... I just... don't know if I can reconcile that."

- Inanna Harth -

 

[Inanna Harth]

She wasn’t sure if he had heard her. Alicio seemed very far away, lost in thought, but she was content to wait for his return. When he did speak, she was surprised by his response—and not just because it wasn’t often anyone called her intelligent. “I’m not even sure that I’m right,” she confessed. “I feel very out of my depth here.”

But he had already determined that what she was saying was correct. She inferred that he meant she spoke the truth, even if compromise wasn’t necessarily the right thing to do. But what was right, if not the truth?

She needed to get away from these confusing moral questions and back to the subject she knew best: diplomacy.

“If the bill were changed to accommodate Ukatis, it would affect other worlds as well. We can’t please everybody. What will satisfy the Ukatians may not be sufficient for, say, the Hapans.”

Those fabulously wealthy, fully modernized Hapans, with their magnificent fleet of warships that was actually capable of posing a threat to the other galactic superpowers. Those hypocritical Hapans, with their feminist origin story of abused victims rising up against their captors and vowing never again, only to become the same sort of monsters they had promised to defy forever. They were as cutthroat as the Ukatians, only they didn't bother to hide their ruthlessness under a prim and proper pretense. Alicio and the gang certainly had their work cut out for them.

"Why do people even write laws," she muttered, clearly joking. "Why does anyone do anything new or different ever? What a giant pain in the ass."

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

"Well..." Alicio's frown persisted, even as his mood lightened slightly. "If it makes you feel any better, I do too."

The conversation shifted, ever so slightly, from just Ukatis to including Hapes. Alicio let a hand travel up to his face, a finger lightly caressing his cheek as he held a palm over his mouth. "Both Ukatis and Hapes will only be satisfied if nothing changes. No matter what we do, what we try to institute, there will be pushback."

"Why do people even write laws? Why does anyone do anything new or different ever? What a giant pain in the ass."

Alicio sighed. Perhaps the closest thing to a laugh Inanna could hope for.

Alicio didn't leave the think tank for a few more moments. But when he did, something had changed in his eyes. "Neither Ukatis or Hapes would benefit from a bill that completely equalized the sexes. The unrest that would cause would be counter-productive. Doing anything less feels... ingenuine to me, but you're right, it's truly our only choice. But we can't bow to every demand their governments have, either. We find their line, and push it. And once the tension gives, push it further." It would have been a simple realization to most. But Alicio had always been uncompromising in his beliefs. It was a bitter pill to swallow, that for the sake of his ideals, he had to sacrifice his ideals.

"That's what I should have done with Giselle, too." Alicio's frown lessened. "Stars above, I'm an idiot."

- Inanna Harth -

 

[Inanna Harth]

"If it makes you feel any better, I do too."

“That makes me feel even worse,” she said, with a nervous grin. The whole thing was starting to get to her, and she felt a strange urge to laugh at it all, finding the entire situation absurd.

“Oh, of course. But you know what I mean—if we change something to suit a particular planet, it will affect all the others, perhaps in ways that would be detrimental.”

As it stood, Sycorax’s draft was rather vague, simply providing the Alliance Constitution with an explicit prohibition of sex-based discrimination: “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the Galactic Alliance or by any State on account of sex.” Chancellor Auteme had apparently tried to make the law more specific, adding references to gender pay parity, but the basic skeleton of the bill remained the same. All legal distinctions between how men and women were treated when it came to divorce, property, employment, and other matters would be erased. Such a dramatic change would likely cause chaos across Alliance space, but the problems it would cause on most worlds would be minor enough that they could safely be left in the hands of the local planetary governments, to sort out on an individual basis.

Ukatis and Hapes, on the other hand, were culturally and ideologically opposed to the bill on a fundamental level. Sexual inequality was woven into the very fabric of their societies. Inanna couldn’t even imagine what an equal Ukatis or Hapes would look like.

Alicio didn’t laugh at her joke, though he did sigh nobly, which was close enough. When next he spoke, he outlined a plan for how to proceed. It sounded promising.

"That's what I should have done with Giselle, too. Stars above, I'm an idiot."

“Oh no,” she protested. “You’re very smart, clearly. If you were an idiot, you’d never realize your mistakes. But you did, and now you can go about making things right.”

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

Alicio twitched a nervous smile of his own, but he didn't say anything. He was a humanitarian at heart- poli-ethical dilemmas were not his forte, any more than they were hers.

He far preferred refugee work to asking questions about how much equality was too much equality.

The Count continued to stare into the hyperspace tunnel ahead of them, the streaking blues painting the greys of his eyes with azure brushes. Inanna seemed to like his rough plan, going ahead, which filled him with a bit more confidence. Now, the question was how to safely introduce tension to Hapes, to Ukatis, was an entirely different matter. Yet another question to keep him from sleep.

“Oh no. You’re very smart, clearly. If you were an idiot, you’d never realize your mistakes. But you did, and now you can go about making things right.”

Alicio studied the Shi'ido with a half-smile, trying to decide whether she was ribbing him or not, before staring back at the doorway. "Do you think I should... go back in there? I don't want to cause her any more stress than I have already."

"But I do want to make this right."

- Inanna Harth -

 

[Inanna Harth]

Inanna was being completely sincere and earnest. Alicio was one of the smartest people she knew—and she had known professors, prodigies, and plenty of self-proclaimed geniuses. What they lacked, he possessed in spades: emotional intelligence and maturity. It was part of what made him so good at dealing with people. He wasn’t infallible, but he was a hell of a lot better than most at navigating sensitive situations.

"Do you think I should... go back in there? I don't want to cause her any more stress than I have already. But I do want to make this right."

“You could,” she replied, trying not to sound too eager. It was a tenuous, delicate situation, and yet she was in fact anxious to see what he would do next. Something amazing could come of his return… or it could make things worse. But she had faith in him, enough that she anticipated it would be the former rather than the latter. “I think you can.”

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

Alicio flashed a reluctant smile, picking up on Inanna's honesty. The Count had changed since stepping into politics for the first time. He'd become hardened by tragedy and difficult choices, lost some of his youthful optimism, found some self-assurance, some spine, somewhere along the way. But some things wouldn't change. He'd always try to help those around him, as much as he could...

And he'd always dodge compliments like the plague.

"I will."

The Count stood up quietly, and stepped towards the doorway. Before he went back in, there was some simple preparation he had to make.

"Peace offering."

He'd walked in quietly, sat down next to her, with a person of space between them. In the emptiness, he placed a simple glass of water. He didn't look at Giselle- instead, he kept his eyes on the wall ahead. But his gaze was still expressive. He wore his emotions honestly on his face. Guilt. Perhaps a little embarrassment.

Alicio let a puff of air escape his nose, let his thoughts escape his head. He didn't want to dance around it. "I'm... sorry, I came out swinging like I did. It was incredibly rude of me, and you didn't deserve it."

- Giselle von Ascania -

 

[Miri Nimdok]

Giselle was still in the same spot where he’d left her, seated on one of the armchairs in the lounge. Even the way she sat, “relaxed” with her chin perched on her hand, had a quality of composition as if she were posing for a portrait.

Her eyes darted toward Alicio when he entered the room, then she slowly sat upright, eyeing the water he placed on the table between them. She raised an eyebrow at his apology, a bit surprised perhaps, then reached for the glass.

“You are forgiven, Your Excellency,” she said. “I too must apologize. I have not been entirely truthful with you—or at least, I have withheld vital information. I wanted to, as the saying goes, hold all the cards. But now I see that keeping secrets is not only against your best interests, but mine as well.”

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

Alicio kept the shadow of guilt in his eye, even as Giselle assured him he was forgiven. He knew it wasn't that simple. It wasn't enough to exchange the right words, and cash in the correct response. He did flicker a smile, however brief.

"You can keep your cards, if you like." The Alderaanian finally looked at the young senator, a sparkle of humor undermining his serious countenance. "If you want to share them, maybe we can compare notes. But... I try to avoid games altogether, when I can." Another short smile.

He allowed a little time for Giselle to either divulge, or reconsider. While he waited, he tacked on one last thought. One that couldn't wait. "In the meantime, if I could offer some unsolicited political advice... After further review, you shouldn't consider backing the bill. Though... I imagine you already knew that."

Despite Inanna's assurances, Alicio couldn't help but feel like a short-sighted buffoon, in that moment. Maybe if he'd taken a moment to see things from her perspective, rather than defend his own with reckless abandon...

- Giselle von Ascania -

 

[Miri Nimdok]

Giselle anxiously awaited his response, and when it finally came it amounted to him giving her a placating smile and once again piddling about her choice to use game metaphors. She blinked in confusion, finding it utterly out of sync with how he had behaved earlier. If anything, it only made him seem frighteningly unpredictable.

“You may do with me as you wish, Your Excellency," she said, setting the glass down again. Her expression was gravely serious as she clasped her hands beseechingly. "But I beg of you, listen."

While Alicio and Inanna were engaged in private conversation, Giselle had been doing some soul-searching of her own. By the time he returned, she had come to a decision, and prepared a speech.

“I told you I had visited my cousin in prison. She was there because she murdered her husband, the Crown Prince. Whatever reasons she may have had to kill him, the fact remains that Ukatis’ sole heir was slain. Corazona's guilt was obvious, and His Majesty ordered her imprisonment.

"Then the Jedi intervened. They stormed into the palace. The king was bedridden with his illness; they forced the vizier to release Corazona into their custody. She escaped a beheading, but she has never stood trial in any court. All charges were dropped. That is why the king hates the Alliance, Your Excellency. Because they protected the woman who murdered his only son, and destroyed our future.”

All of this she uttered practically in a single breath. She closed her eyes, suddenly feeling exhausted, and her speech became slower and more careful. “I am telling you this because I believe that you are… a good man. Now that you have this knowledge, you may use it, if not to right the wrongs that have been done, then to do what is right.”

Divulging this secret bit of court intrigue was a calculated move, certainly. But she spoke the truth, and that was what mattered. Alicio would not leave empty-handed, even if Giselle was doing it partly out of fear of what might happen if she could not appease him.

Is this color easier on the eyes Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

"But I beg of you, listen."

That gave Alicio pause. He'd asked the same of Giselle. Of course, he'd return the favor.

Her following tale was one that... didn't entirely surprise Alicio. He'd heard the rumors, both in studying the climate of Ukatis, and in the halls of the Jedi Temple. It had never been confirmed to him though, and that confirmation made it all the more real. The Count frowned, staring ahead at the wall again.

Part of him wondered what Giselle sought to gain from telling him this. She didn't seem the type to mention it for polite conversation. It had been important that she tell him. Why? Alicio had resolved to see things more from the teen's perspective, but he was having difficulty understanding it.

"I..." Alicio's expression saddened. Not out of grief, but intense concentration. "I won't pretend to understand the full situation. But I do believe people should do right by their wrongs, no matter who they are. I will look into it when I have the chance." It made him wonder if that's what Corazona von Ascania meant to accomplish with her relief work.

Doing right by her wrongs.

"What do you think Ukatis' future should look like?"

- Giselle von Ascania -

 

[Miri Nimdok]

“Oh, but you must make haste!” she insisted. “The king means to use her murder of the heir and the Alliance’s failure to properly execute justice as a reason to bar Corazona from assuming the throne. If we are to have a queen, she must stand trial. She probably killed the prince in self-defense. Let the evidence speak for itself, so that she may be found innocent. Or if she be found guilty—then she is not fit to be queen.”

"What do you think Ukatis' future should look like?"

“I think it should be without bloated, bloodthirsty, lecherous kings who sire cruel sons that abuse their wives until they are compelled to push them off a balcony.”

Just like that, Giselle had seemingly switched sides. Whether she believed in equality between the sexes or not was irrelevant. She had seen the writing on the wall, realized she was better off casting her lot in with her cousin and the Duke of Alderaan than with the king, and promptly gave away His Majesty's plans to his enemies. More than that, she had given them a blueprint for how to strengthen Corazona’s claim to the throne, by removing the biggest obstacle that stood in the way of her becoming queen: the fact that the Jedi had whisked her away to safety, even resorting to circumventing the justice system, rather than allow her to defend herself in a fair and balanced court.

Propriety (and her indoctrinated beliefs) forbade Giselle from voicing her opinion in a truly honest way, but she did harbor a certain amount of resentment toward all parties involved. Perhaps this disgust was misdirected at Corazona, whom she saw as all too willing to play the victim. Her abuser was dead by her own hand, and yet rather than owning it and becoming Machiavellian like the rest of Ukatis' great women, she had fled into the arms of the Jedi, allowing them to coddle her. Perhaps she was simply a fool, like her brother. But a fool on the throne would be better than a monster.

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

Now, that was certainly unexpected. The Count's eyebrows rose in mild surprise.

It appeared as if Giselle had chosen her stance. Whether it was to placate him, or if she genuinely realized the cruelty of the current king, Alicio couldn't say. Still, he seemed... less enthusiastic than the teen.

"I wouldn't wish the burden of a crown on my worst enemy," he murmured, contemplative. The senator was known for his brooding frown, which he'd displayed plenty since meeting Giselle, but now it turned darker. More knowing. If he were Cora... he wouldn't want anything to do with the royalty of Ukatis, ever again.

"And... that's not exactly what I meant." Alicio's presence was still. Placid, like an Alderaanian lake in summertime. "You are in a unique position. The representation of your entire planet in the senate has fallen on your shoulders. That kind of... pressure... can crush a person. Unless you have hope for a better future. A worthy goal. Something you can help bring."

"So... What future do you want to bring?" This was where he should have started. Find her trajectory, and help her get there.

- Giselle von Ascania -

 

[Miri Nimdok]

"I wouldn't wish the burden of a crown on my worst enemy."

“That is a very noble thing for you to say,” Giselle said with a hint of an amused smile. “But it is of no help to the people in need of a good and just leader.”

He went on about responsibility and pressure. Her shoulders dipped slightly, as if she longed to slouch and heave a sigh. But proper ladies did neither, so she remained upright and held her breath until he finished his mini-lecture.

“I am not so foolish as to believe that Ukatis can avoid modernization entirely,” she began. “The longer we put off the inevitable, the harder we will make things for ourselves. I would confront it now rather than later, and on our own terms. If there is a way to take the beneficial parts of ‘progress’, and leave the ones which would be to our detriment or betray our values, I would find it before it's too late.”

Alicio Organa​

 

[Alicio Organa]

The corner of his mouth puckered. "It has been... on my mind, as of late." He could relate to the idea of bearing a responsibility for the sake of the people. But his statement hadn't been meant as an answer to them- if anything, it was a warning that Cora might not want the crown. A sentiment he would relate to.

Alicio forked his fingers through his hair as Giselle outlined her vision. A pause awaited her, then Alicio, still staring at the wall ahead of them both, nodded affirmatively. "If that's your goal, then... I would like to help you get there." Alicio didn't like the idea of slow, gradual, incomplete progress for the sake of traditional values. But Ukatis wasn't his planet, and he didn't understand it like the noblewoman did.

"In the short term, that mean keeping you safe. And that also means fighting this bill in the Senate." Alicio's grey eyes glanced down at Giselle, a bit of a smirk touching his face, as he pointed his chin at wherever his datapad had ended up. "If you can represent your people well, and negotiate some addendums, you may just earn the respect of your planet, and keep your seat."

- Giselle von Ascania -