And a pinch of salt.

[Avalore Eden]

Sullust
Galactic Alliance Headquarters
Underground Facilities
Avalore & Stali's Apartment

He'd insisted on making friends.

The apartment was small - not much bigger than her old place back on Commenor, which made it all the more easy to adjust to despite being located in a complex deep underground. The walls were a clean, stark off-white and the furnishings a layout built around solid functionality. No extra things. No decorations. No pictures, no knicknacks, no curios--the lack of clutter gave way to a very spacious atmosphere and, Avalore noted after she cleaned the same counter for the third time that day, exceptionally easy to maintain.

Stali didn't care for the smell--sterile, synthetic, unlived-in--his super-human senses were sometimes more of a bother than a boon, so she bought a bouquet of flowers to set on the table. A purchase Avalore was beginning to question as she realized the strange little oasis of color and nature they created in the midst of great swathes of nothing. They seemed out of place, as if put there in some strange effort to appear normal, and really that's exactly what it was.

We can't pretend like we don't actually live here forever.

Avalore disagreed. Who knew when the winds of change would blow again? Sooner than she expected them to, of this she felt sure.

But he'd insisted on making friends, so a dinner had been planned. After Fondor, after the grit of tension had time to fade, the Healer extended an offer of dinner to the only two people she'd managed to make any connection with outside of those she trained in the Healing Hall. A man whom she learned was named Gabriel and a fellow Jedi (she was a Jedi, wasn't she? Avalore was having trouble remembering) named Chevu with quite the peculiar skin tone. Well, one sentence lead to the other and somehow, after some thoughtful commentary, Avalore had agreed to teach a man how to cook.

They would arrive anytime now and the anxiety was prevalent.

It had been a long time since Avalore made friends with anyone.

[member="Meeristali Peradun"] [member="The Revenant"] [member="Chevu Visz"]

 

[Gabriel Sionoma]

He recalled her face, her poise, in the dimly lit world of Fondor. Something about the smell was distinct, the preface of infection that seemed to spread from nearly dead to the living and spilled out onto the streets. The Alliance was stepping in where the mass exodus of the Omega Protectorate had left the border colony without defense against the stemming war, the constant conflict. Rag tags left for their own devices, Gabriel had sought a chance to help them. To offer the same sort of help he gave on Taris, albeit intentions entirely removed. He wasn't ready to enter the war, not like he had on Saurbi so readily, but he wanted to help in whatever way he could. Service came in many forms.

Avalore seemed nice, he thought, thoughtful but in her own way, hurt. Hurt like him, the sort of pain that ran deep and showed no scars. He had an assortment but they were merely illusions of a life he never lived, only suffered. And maybe she had suffered as well. The universe was filled with it in such times, no one was immune to it. Some people just hid it better. Like him. And to most, he was merely a man of confidence and sagacity and a murderous past, absent wounds. But he felt the ache all the same, the excitement of a life of freedom slowly changed into an emptiness that he would work to fill.

As he approached the door, he looked towards the Mirialan at his side. Her stomach showing more and more every day, he recalled her comments about an aching back. He remembered similar issues with Sylvia, pain and heartburn running through her entire body. But Chevu was different, her discomfort focused her towards her cause for the Alliance. And for every day he spent with her, he was reminded that she wasn't his wife. But someone that took the very same affection from him, a cursory smile thumping at his heart.

But at some point, she would have to accept the fact that a break would soon be needed. For their child, or was it children, he couldn't seem too sure. But he was starting to suspect. Her fingers curled around his arm, he smiled as his other hand wrapped around a bottle of sparkling cider. She couldn't drink, he had stopped since that night, but continued to do so in support of her. Not to mention, the Alliance wasn't quick to provide alcohol to the glorified prisoner.

"Should I knock or ring the door bell?" Stupid question. He shook his head as he asked, exhaling. Still, it remained.

[member="Chevu Visz"] | [member="Avalore Eden"] | [member="Meeristali Peradun"]​

 

[Chevu Visz]

Going on a dinner date was a strange occurrence for Chevu Visz. The MIrialan Knight was much more at home on a battlefield than in a stranger's home making small talk over courses. But ever since the incident on Onderon where a Sith apprentice had targeted the unborn children growing in her abdomen, the green alien girl had temporarily retired from operations off world, at least until the children were born. Consequently, Chevu had time on her hands, and boredom was setting in. When it came, she was grateful for the invitation to [member="Avalore Eden"]'s home, to have dinner with Master Eden and Meeristali Peradun.

She didn't know much of Avalore, only that Master Eden was once a Republic Jedi. As her own training was veering into varied Force traditions recently, Chevu was always looking for different perspectives on what it meant to be a Jedi. She herself had her doubts about whether or not she could follow in the footsteps of her now-dead Sullustan Master.

Chevu smiled at Gabriel's indecision and extended a green-skinned hand to press the buzzer on the terminal outside of Master Eden's small abode. Her arm hooked around his, the Mirialan clung to him more tightly as they waited. She ran the other hand nervously along the prominent bump of her stomach. There was no hiding her pregnancy from the rest of the Galactic Alliance anymore, but most knew not to ask her about the father's identity. They didn't have to. Word traveled as fast as light speed in the underground biodome that Alliance members called home.

"I haven't been on a date in...well, since Taris," she said, flashing a smile at the memory. She added a joke, something rare from the usually deadpan Mirialan.

"He was nice enough, but he doesn't hold a candle to you."

[member="The Revenant"] [member="Meeristali Peradun"]

 

[Meeristali Peradun]

That the apartment was as cozy as the last one didn't bother the Felacatian Knight at all. Though he was a big man, and at times a gigantic, terrifying feline, the closeness such small quarters gave him with Avalore made the limited space worth it; to top it all off, this was the kind of thing he was used to, though it did smell entirely too clean for his liking. He could really go for the scent of a jungle slipping in through the openings to the outside. Wasn't there products that could do that?

He'd known the couple was at the door, he'd heard them coming. Heard every word exchanged since they'd landed on his doorstep, and he could have surprised them by opening the door before they announced their arrival with the buzzer or a knock, but he didn't want to give himself away. Little secrets, small insights into their relationship, an un-admitted curiosity for how other couples differed from him and the healer he shared a modest, stark home with. Finally, the buzzer rang, and he padded over to the door on bare feet, not an uncommon thing considering what he was. He put on a smile, nothing too big, and opened the door.

"Chevu," he said, citrine eyes settling on the green-skinned woman he knew only as a former Marshall, "and... you must be Gabriel," a simple deduction as he looked at the otherwise unknown man, and he stepped aside, clearing the doorway to allow them ingress, "please, come in."

[member="Chevu Visz"] | [member="The Revenant"] | [member="Avalore Eden"]​

 

[Avalore Eden]

Avalore was grateful not to have to answer the door. She'd known better than to put herself in that particular situation. Answering doors to her home was not a practiced thing and from the few visits the Healer had received over the years she could remember some very awkward exchanges.

Stali was never awkward. Always moved with direction and purpose. Always so charming (if he wasn't trying to tear your throat out, she supposed).

Instead she set about getting everything ready. Pots, bowls and pans were on the stove, fresh ingredients sat off on a side counter. The table had been set for nearly an hour now: an arrangement of pristine white platterwear set atop some locally made woven placemats of soft hues. A platter of tapas she'd caught Stali picking sliced meat from more than once would need a small re-fill, Avalore noticed with a crooked smirk.

As the pair made their way in Avalore was just starting to peel potatoes, smiling wanely over the small island at the center of the kitchen, "Hello. I suppose I should have asked before but neither of you are vegetarian, right?"

[member="Meeristali Peradun"] [member="The Revenant"] [member="Chevu Visz"]

 

[Gabriel Sionoma]

He smiled as he looked towards Chevu, recognition of the joke. He was still coping with what he had taken part in, dealing with the consequences, but her moving on with the idea was therapeutic in it's own way. "Maybe we'll have to have a repeat sometime soon, I can cook for you." He had been reading up on cooking, though getting seafood on Sullust might be a tad bit more difficult than on Taris. But even with all that had happened, he held onto that interaction as something hopeful. Maybe once he got out of his cell, he could find a place more suitable for living. He enjoyed the idea of serving, especially for Chevu.

The door opened and they were greeted by a six foot six ruggedly handsome individual. Gabriel hadn't carried on the same preferences of his brother but even now, he could admit when something was striking. Giving a warm smile, he nodded to the man whom he wasn't acquainted. Though he recalled the name Avalore had given, an early introduction. "Meeristali? Thank you for inviting us into your home." His tone was nearly unquestioning. But uncertainty would always exist in the state between meeting someone and getting to know them. "It's a pleasure to meet you. You have a wonderful home." It was nice, cozy. Far better than the dank view he was afforded of Sullust through alchemic bars and a forcefield. Perspective gave him a more than positive view of the housing. As they entered the kitchen, Avalore busy with peeling potatoes, Gabriel smiled and set the cider down on the counter.

"No, not at all. But if you have Ice cream and pickles, I'm sure Chevu would appreciate it." He smirked, jokingly, as he clapped his hands together. "What can I help with?" It wasn't a matter of her letting him. The reading material provided by Jacen had made him giddy at the prospect of blanching vegetables and searing steak. Baby steps.

[member="Chevu Visz"] | [member="Avalore Eden"] | [member="Meeristali Peradun"]

 

[Chevu Visz]

"Hello," she said shyly as Meeristali, an enormous man, ushered them inside. The biodome, even with its artificial climate was chilly in places where the space was most cavernous, and the couple's home felt warm from the heat of the stove.

"Nice to meet you," she told the couple. When Gabriel made the joke about her appetite, she laughed and playfully gave him a swat on his muscular arm. Her pregnancy wasn't a secret now that she was far enough along to show. As sociable as she felt, behind her dark brown eyes was a noticeable worry. The Mirialan was unsure about what to do about the children, and her decision waffled from day to day. Just when she felt that giving them up for adoption was the best choice, she began to feel fiercely protective over them, especially after they were targeted on Onderon, and was sure that keeping them was the answer.

"Master Eden," she started. "How are you finding Sullust? How do you like our New Jedi Order compared to the Jedi Order of the Republic?"

When Gabriel moved to help with the meal preparation, she gave him a relieved smile. Chevu spent her childhood as a servant for a senator on Arkania. It was pleasant to be the guest for a change.

[member="The Revenant"] [member="Avalore Eden"] [member="Meeristali Peradun"]

 

[Avalore Eden]

Ice cream and pickles?

Avalore blinked, looking up from the potatoes, "Ice cream is a bit hard to come by around here, or so I've found..." heck, even ice was a rare thing, "but I did manage to find some fruit. What's that?" brown eyes curiously perused the container placed on the counter by [member="The Revenant"], faint smile pressing into her cheeks.

Ice cream and pickles...

That was a peculiar combination wasn't it?

"What can I help with?"

"Oh," the Healer looked around, wiping scarred hands on her apron, "well, I figured we'd start simple. Stew. Pretty easy prep work - veggies and meat. Meat stock. Bit of herbs and spices. How are you with a knife?"

"Master Eden. How are you finding Sullust? How do you like our New Jedi Order compared to the Jedi Order of the Republic?"

A long glance was given to [member="Chevu Visz"] at those questions, followed by a bare smile of acknowledgement before she looked back to Gabriel, "why don't you start by cutting up the potatoes once I've finished peeling," Avalore indicated the knife block off on the side counter, "halve them, then quarter each half. We need chunky pieces for the stew..."

She picked up another potato and began peeling, brown eyes looking once more back to Chevu, "Call me Avalore," she began, expression warm and imploring, "Sullust is ...well, different than any of the other places I've called home. Can't say I've ever lived underground before. Unless you count my cell on Coruscant."

Her lips thinned as she dug out an eye of her current potato with the tip of her peelers, "I wish I could really offer an opinion on the Jedi Orders but I'm afraid I can't. Healers are too few and far between - we're spread thin. We don't see a lot of interaction with the core of the Order, nor are we really sought out to be included. Most of us, the dedicated Healers, are too busy tending to the wounded that our warrior counterparts have to overlook while they fight the enemy ... or tending to the warriors themselves. And once our job is done it's on to the next patient, next victim. We're reactive soldiers in a pro-active war, so the segregation is self-evident."

A strained smile next.

"I couldn't even tell you the names of other Jedi in this order aside from the other Healers or my Apprentice. I don't even know if a Council exists or if we have a Grandmaster. The situation was fairly similar in respect to the Jedi Order of Ossus. I was not involved. I was rarely on Ossus. I was never requested for Council hearings, or asked after for anything of pertinent value to the Order. I just followed the path of carnage and did my job. After a while I stopped going to Ossus completely. At some point I determined it didn't matter if I was there or even considered myself a part of the Order or not. My membership or lackthereof made little difference to the duties I performed. The last ten years have been...difficult."

Avalore inhaled deeply, brows wedged in a discontentment with herself and her ability to cast a shadow over any conversation, "Clearly I just haven't had enough ice cream and pickles."

[member="Meeristali Peradun"]

 

[Meeristali Peradun]

He lingered at the door, just listening to the sounds of their voices, picking up the subtle scent of potatoes being freed of their skins, and taking some small joy in the fact that soon enough, the apartment would be filled with a scent. That there were people here, bringing their own smells, only added to it. The 'ice cream and pickles' thing made him grimace, though.

"The same, here, more or less," he said, speaking up after closing the door and wandering to put away a bit of armour he'd been working on maintaining when he heard their guests arrive, "I ended up following the beat of the Mando'ade for a while after that disappearances business," leaving off the why, as he returned to the kitchen area, "and I came around again when I heard the call of the Alliance."

He made his way over to [member="Avalore Eden"], hands wrapping around her shoulders in a soft, non-restrictive way, and he bent to lay a peck on the top of her head; there was one gentle breath inward, a small measure of intimacy for her scent, before he left her again and went to [member="Chevu Visz"] and [member="The Revenant"]. A cordial smile was given, eyes drifting from one face to the other - by the end of the night, a profile of their looks, their scents, and so on would be in his memory.

"May I take your coats?"

He wouldn't say how good it felt to be doing something so simple, so calm, but his tail would communicate this - if only anyone in the room could read such specific, non-universal body language. The carnage, the wars, would always be in the back of his mind, but this was fact from a young age, that he was as such so that others might have peace and freedom; the snippets he got were clung to as the most precious of things.

 

[Gabriel Sionoma]

He has already taken to the suggestion of the Jedi Healer, pulling a knife from the wooden block. He looked down the edge and back to Avalore, an act of silence that might suggest he had used a blade from time to time. In this capacity, with this body, no. But he imagined it couldn't be that hard, he had been reading about cooking. It was largely prescriptive and he had the dexterity for the task. Taking a peeled potato in hand, pinched between thumb and middle finger, he slid the chef knife between hand and vegetable. And pressed down.

As the blade hit wood, the potato halved and he looked up towards Meristaali. Gabriel had never been one for coats and even more so, he disliked them on Sullust. The planet was far too warm for it though with the temperature controlled biodomes, he could see the attraction to them. "Thank you...but I am fine." He said as he halved each half and placed them on the edge of the cutting board. Placing the knife down, he rolled up his brown shirt sleeves to the elbow, roughly, revealing an intricate detail of tribal tattoos and scars. Running across his arms, he squinted as if in self realization of the feigned representation of the tattoos. A tribute to his mothers clan, those who hadn't accepted him. Blinking steadily, he took another potato and began chopping again.

"So, you tagged around with the Mandalorians? What was that like?" He focused his attention on the potatoes and the man, who seemed to have a tail. Gabriel paid it no mind. While it may have seemed like small talk, he was interested in what the man might have to say. He had spent so much time in inactivity, listening came easy. On top of that, he had very little to say about the Jedi Order in the Galactic Alliance. With the exception that they had partaken in the punishment of Chevu, and that him and Jacen had grown to know each other seemingly well, he knew so little about it. He wasn't a Jedi Master, despite his leaning, he knew nothing of their culture or teaching. Another example of abandonment for a child, shown nothing from a driven and ambitious mother. "I've known Mandalorians, here and there. [member="Ijaat Akun"] holds a particularly special place in my heart...but for the culture, I have never known anything but what was gleaned from opposite side of the field." He had, though, lived with another race of warring people - The Yuuzhan Vong - and he didn't have especially fond memories of it. He wondered if Avalore and Meeristali knew of the true depth of his identity. Might not be the best place for that narrative. But he wasn't a liar anymore, he'd tell his story if asked. Albeit likely a condensed version.

[member="Chevu Visz"] | [member="Avalore Eden"] | [member="Meeristali Peradun"]​

 

[Chevu Visz]

Chevu gave Meeristali her leather jacket and made her way to the kitchen where meal preparations were underway. She stood nearby and ran her hand over the bump on her stomach, a convex growth of about four months, clearly visible through her cotton clothing. The Mirialan's pregnancy hampered her ability to fight the Sith, which was frustrating. Chevu had just started making headway with her training with Coren, and now that she had her own ship she could...she stopped that train of thought. It was too selfish to go jumping all over the galaxy to engage with the enemy. She could easily put her own life at risk, but never the lives of two innocents. It was hardly fair.

The young Knight's onyx eyes studied Gabriel as she listened to Avalore talk of the life of a Jedi healer. Once he'd emotionally healed from his own trials, Gabe was going to make a very good father. If only Chevu had the same confidence in her own parenting skills.

She hoped her reticence wasn't too noticeable. Silently reflective, Chevu had a quite a bit of weight on her shoulders, and witty repartee wasn't quite in her wheelhouse to begin with.

[member="The Revenant"] [member="Meeristali Peradun"] [member="Avalore Eden"]