Private Atrisian Artistry

[Tae'l Vizsla]

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Iris Arani

It was a sunny afternoon in the capital on Atrisia. Tayl had dragged Iris to the city of Jar'kai on a sort of vacation, intent on getting to know the young Jedi a little better. For all intents and purposes, She was taking her on a date.

This had taken them to the Royal Academy of Arts, where Tayl had personally paid a prestigious professor to personally tutor her and perhaps Iris in Atrisian Arts & Calligraphy. Tayl herself was mainly interested in the calligraphy, applying the style to her own Mando'a writing, thought she did her best to create more visual artistry in accordance with her tutor. She was actually doing better than the old Atrisian man thought she might. For a Mandalorian, at least...

Every day, she and Iris would visit the old professor's home for lessons. After which, he would give them time alone to practice in a cozy little tea room once he had finished brewing for all three of them.

As today was a learning day, The two were fresh out of a lesson when Tayl finished her first pieces.



"Psst! Iris-" She smiled proudly, holding up a single sheet of paper that had what looked to be a stylized stick figure of Iris wielding a lightsaber. The lightsaber at least, had some color to it...

And one corner had a liquid stain from the cup of now half-empty Atrisian tea beside her. In her defense, sitting on the floor made it difficult to be neat. She was honestly impressed that the Atrisians managed it, despite having grown up with similar tea rooms on Roon.

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[Iris Arani]

One of the advantages of fighting in every war since Liberty's Gate was that when she wanted a vacation, no one would tell her no. Relax, breath. Foreign concepts outside of preparing for battle, a mission, anything where she had to get up and go. Fight, sneak, heal. Whatever she got dragged into.

Not so much here, though. Two months. Two months of actually relaxing. Not thinking back to the wars. Not worrying about her fellows, though she couldn't help but check in on Zak Dymo and make sure her Padawan was keeping up on his lessons for when she did get back. All to learn calligraphy. Painting with words, or something. A new style for her to explore, at least.

She say comfortably on one of the mats, drawing pad in hand. Humming as she drew. Not the lessons, they were on break from that. Instead, stretching her other artistic limbs to make sure she didn't get too focused on one style. Iris lifted her gaze, glancing to the stick figure. There was a second before surprise registered. Then genuine adodation. Only Vera had ever painted her something before.

"It's beautiful, Tayl."

Tae'l Vizsla

 

[Tae'l Vizsla]

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Iris Arani

Tayl continued to smile proudly as she set the drawing aside to swap it for tea, taking a few sips before scooting over to sit by Iris.
She spent a moment studying Iris' drawing too, but had come over to speak more.

"Well, I had a beautiful reference" She chuckled softly.

"I really do consider myself luck, you know? to spend the last few months with you like this. It's got me curious though... Why? after the garden, I kinda thought you weren't ready to try something like this? I... I know I wasn't exactly prepared myself, but"

She hummed in thought, still peering over Iris' shoulders at the drawing.

"I find your presence calming, I guess. And... you make beautiful artwork too"

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[Iris Arani]

"Mm, I've been ready, actually. Just.. You didn't seem to be. I'm big on having a relationship with equals. In your eyes, I was your savior. That's not equal." She'd already done being the object of almost worship once before. Iris continued her drawing, which was a black and white sketch of Tayl drawing. Dressed in Atrisian fashion, focused. There was a startling amount of detail and accuracy, down to even the signs of a nervous tick she'd picked up from the Twi'lik in this time.

"Asides, I need a vacation. And it's not like we're dating yet. I don't plan on actually being in multiple relationships. But testing the waters, seeing who's a good fit, that I can do."

Tae'l Vizsla

 

[Tae'l Vizsla]

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Iris Arani

The Twi'lek's unusually vibrant green eyes partially glowed in the slight shadow cast by Iris' shoulders. They each flicked softly from one place to the next, carefully studying each and every detail. Of which there appeared to be many.

She even captured the way Tayl's left-hand fingers would twitch and flex aimlessly in her belt or on her hip, as if she didn't know what to do with them when not fanning a gun.

She glanced away for just a moment, realizing she was flexing them against her hip in that very moment.

"Mm...!"

Her lips pursed in surprise at the Jedi's skill, but remained focus on her words all the same.

In your eyes, I was your savior. That's not equal."

"Asides, I need a vacation. And it's not like we're dating yet. I don't plan on actually being in multiple relationships. But testing the waters, seeing who's a good fit, that I can do."

"You forget, you were also prey when we first met" She snickered softly in a fanged smile, gently resting her head on the shoulder of Iris only unoccupied arm. Don't want to mar her fine work after all!

"Hmh. Big mistake on my part"

"I understand now. But you know... I am a soldier, right? Taking direction it's... what I was cloned for" She frowned slightly, looking off to the side. Part of her wondered; Was it the first time she had outright told Iris that she was a clone? She had never mentioned that she was specifically a strandcast, at least. Though, a small thought made her snicker again "It's also kinda hard to think of yourself as someone's equal that soon after they kick your ass"




"Mm. But I guess that's what this vacation is for, right? get to know each other better and outside our usual environment. Still not used to these people staring at me and not trying to shoot me after!"

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[Iris Arani]

"I beat up a lot of people. And save even more. If that was the basis for dating someone.." She hummed softly. Way too many to count. That's just the life of a Jedi though. Saving people, fighting others. There was no half measure or normal day. Not like these, anyway. These were nice. Relaxing.

"I kind of know the feeling. It's not often I get the chance to just.. Unwind. Even people bred for war need a moment to collect themselves. Always war is too tiring." Even Sith probably relaxed. Though how they relaxed probably wasn't a far cry from war and bloodshed anyway. She flashed a smile, glancing from her drawing to the Twi'lek.

"Course, I can always take some shots at you if it helps you relax anyway."

Tae'l Vizsla

 

[Tae'l Vizsla]

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Iris Arani

Tayl just shook her head and smiled.

"I beat up a lot of people. And save even more. If that was the basis for dating someone.."

"Course, I can always take some shots at you if it helps you relax anyway."

It seemed to Aloy that the Twi'lek always knew just what to say, And when.

It seemed to run in the family, that draw towards the strange yet comforting. The galaxy sent them through hellfire and chaos, but always, they came across a silver lining somewhere. And sometimes, it took the form of someone close.

"Careful, Some mandalorians are... into that~" she teased, grinning sharp as a knife.


Oh yes... Mattali Omenza had ensured that the young clone wasn't quite so ignorant about those things anymore. To say that it was a confidence boost in these situations, was an understatement.

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[Iris Arani]

Iris blinked slowly, glancing her way. Then back to the image she was drawing. Then cleared her throat.

"Right. That's.. True, I guess. I think I've met a couple Mandalorians like that actually." More than a couple. Even a brief stint helping her Master with the Enclave some time ago. Too many meatheads for her liking, now that she thought about it.

".. I don't want you to get any wrong ideas, though. This is fun and the vacation is great but.. Friends."

Tae'l Vizsla

 

[Tae'l Vizsla]

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Iris Arani

"Hmmh" Tayl exhaled softly while nodding "I know, I know"

"But can you blame me for trying?" She would scoot over just a little, brining her knees in close and resting her chin on them while she sat there. "I mean, if you do, you might actually have more confidence issues than me"

There was a nervous chuckle in the end, but something about was off. forced.

Then, a brief period of silence while she mulled over some of the many thoughts dancing inside that lavender head of hers. Still trying to process just why she felt this way right now, even if she had finally figured out how.


"You said this was about testing the waters though, right...?" She tilted her head towards Iris, with one painted brow raised in curiosity.
"Soooo...! Let's test them. Get to know each other a little better than doctor and patient, huh?"

"Twenty questions. each. You ask something, I ask something. If you don't want to answer, skip to the next. If we want to ask the other a similar question in turn, we just wait to mark a tally until the a new question comes"

A pen and paper was all she needed to keep a tally, and of course, they both had their own on standby. She was genuinely interested in getting to know Iris better before doing anything serious, so why not?

And, it was really the best she could come up with. Trying to think of better had her little purple nose scrunch as confusion overtook her little tube-baby brain.

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[Iris Arani]

"I- Well this is testing the waters. .. For me. The only other time I've spent days with someone was after getting shot down on an uncharted planet. .. I don't-" She cleared her throat, somewhat hiding her face behind the book she was holding. Iris was, honestly, terrible with relationships. Any aspect of them. Though, twenty questions? The Jedi let out a sigh as she lowered the drawing pad. Nodded.

Questions. There was no harm in that.

".. Okay, fine. Um. What's your favorite color?"

Tae'l Vizsla

 

[Tae'l Vizsla]

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Iris Arani

Tayl tilts her head as Iris begins to stutter a little, curious of what might going on behind those vibrant eyes of hers.

".. Okay, fine. Um. What's your favorite color?"

She smiled now that Iris was playing too, tilting her head to the opposite shoulder "Violet. deep violet"
Then she carefully too her ink brush and placed the first line on their tally. Might as well use the opportunity to practice her brush strokes too.

"Aaaaned what is your favorite color? I understand if you can't narrow it down though" She chuckled

Girl loved her paint.

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[Iris Arani]

"It.. Doesn't have a name. And it's not a color your eyes can see. Keshian can see all sorts of colors a lot of others just can't. I guess I'd call it.. Light." Light was what brought her out of the colors. The Light of a Jedi. The Light of Viera that brought her to the Jedi, for that matter. ".. Your turn. I don't want to ask all the questions first, you know."

Tae'l Vizsla

 

[Tae'l Vizsla]

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Iris Arani

"Keshian, huh? those tags make a lot more sense now"
She put her clawed thumb to her chin, unbaling herself and crossing her legs almost as if meditating on the thought. Of course, her back was a little hunched as she leaned forward to rest her elbow against her knee. It would have made for poor meditative posture.


"Ah!" Then her eyes flicked back up at Iris as the next question came to mind. "Where are you from? Not like, Keshians I mean, but you specifically. I'd be surprised if you were from Denon or Coruscant"

No, Iris cared too much to have been born to that environment. She had to be upper Coruscanti at the very least, and even then, Iris seemed vastly different from the politicians that came from the surface.

At least, based on her experiences between there and 1313.

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[Iris Arani]

"I don't remember the name. A small planet. A slum, actually. I lived in my own appartment for the longest time, taken care of by the others there while I was still lost to the colors until I got picked up by the Jedi."

She shrugged a little, then hunmed in thought. "I already know where you were born.. Where did you grow up?"

 

[Tae'l Vizsla]

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Iris Arani

"Oh...! I'm... sorry to hear"

She glanced away for a time, mulling over that surprising answer. It sort of explained a few things to the young Twi'lek of course, but it still felt odd knowing her friend had gone through all that and had probably been training since childhood not unlike herself.

Another mark is added to the paper with a delicate brush stroke as she nods, preparing to answer the next question.
"First Kamino for about a year, and then Roon"

"Started with boring white walls and never ending drills. But when we moved, Roon was nice. House Vizsla owned this little castle in the north? lots of snow, red trees. It was... pretty. Cold! but it was pretty"

It made her think of Venari Krayt as she glanced off to the side again, remembering the time they spent together as children, but also their reunion. And the Flashfire Virus.

"Hmmh... Anyway, you guys apprentice under someone, right? What was your trainer like?


Tally: 3

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[Iris Arani]

"Er.. There's nothing to be sorry about..? They were lost to the colors, but they weren't bad years. Not many can say they had the freedom to tag a slums and still get warm dinners." Spicy dinners, really. That much she could remember. Spicy food, always the one thing that could cut through the haze. Roon, though. Snow? Iris hadn't seen a lot of snow. Or seen too much.

She frowned for a moment. Right, too much. Being buried alive in a warzone took the wonderment of the snow right out.

"Mm. Master and Padawan. It's more than just someone training you though. Valery, er, Master Noble, she's like my mother. Or at least if I knew what that kind of relationship was I'd assume it was like what we have. She helped me become a Jedi, but really she just helped me become a.. Person, y'know?" Maybe she didn't. Not many could get that part. Living a life so distant from reality that they had to be shown how to exist.

"What's it like being in a clan?"

Tae'l Vizsla

 

[Tae'l Vizsla]

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Iris Arani

she just helped me become a.. Person, y'know

"A person..." The colors around her began to dim a little, even as she shakily added the next mark. It didn't turn out nearly as straight as she had hoped.

"Well, she sounds like a pleasant person to be around. I'm happy for you, that you had someone like that"
Even if she was a little jealous in a way.

"What's it like being in a clan?"

Then Iris asked about her clan, prompting Tayl to hum in thought while leaning over the paper, carefully trying to fix her linework, even if it would be a little thicker now. "Mmm, Well. I assume that, as a Padawan, you would have shared space with other students, right? regarded them as brother, sister, sibling?"

"It's kind of like that. Except, they really are your adopted siblings in a Mandalorian Clan. Vizsla especially, there used to be a lot more of us. And then some were intermarried with other clans, so there was never a shortage of cousins either"
She smiled ever so slightly, remembering better days.

"Everyone chips in. We had warriors, we had armorers who would stay home to create things. Farmers. Sometimes, some of our siblings and relatives were both farmer and warrior depending on the season"

"I have something of a sister on Kestri, actually. Venari Krayt . Wicked machine-gunner! But an even better baker"

With her momentary distraction, she finishes polishing her previous mark and retains that subtle smile
"Okay. A bit random, but... How clean do you like to keep your living quarters? I hear you can tell a lot by looking at someone's room"

Tally: 5

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[Iris Arani]

"Oh."

That made a lot of sense, actually. And more. It wasn't just being a warrior, then? More things for her to learn, eventually. Eventually. Certainly not right now. It didn't matter if her father was a Mandalorian or not, she was a Jedi first and foremost.

"Uh. I keep stuff clean I guess? It's usually a scattered mess, I guess."

Tae'l Vizsla

 

[Tae'l Vizsla]

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Iris Arani

She tilted her head and gave Iris a curious smile. It seemed to her that the Jedi's inner workings must be as disorganized as her little hidey hole on Denon. But it was something she could work with. Aloy Vizsla and Tan'yill Vizsla were different in their own ways, and yet their marriage was stronger than any Tayl had ever seen during her travels.

"In all chaos, there is calculation" Tayl hummed, both a quip and encouragement in it's own way.

"I'd like to think I keep my place neat. It's not exactly spotless, but most of my things have a place and a purpose"

With a slight shrug, she tallies the sixth question on their scoresheet while thinking up her next question. She could ask more basic things, like favorite drink, what music she likes, little things. But if they were going to test the waters, get a feel for who would fit the other, shouldn't she be asking her something deeper?


"Hm... You know, I've heard of these... force users, people who use both the light and dark side to further their studies, abilities"

"How do you feel about Grey Jedi?"

Tally: 6

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[Iris Arani]

"That's bold to suggest. I'm not really the calculating type, honestly." Mostly. At least in her own place. There were few places she didn't need to think out her actions and the consequences they brought like she could at home. Not that she had much of her own home. Her apartment with Briana Sal-Soren wasn't really her own space. Not like the place on Denon anyway.

A place she wasn't really going to ever go back to.

"Jedi learn light and dark. We're not limited from knowing the nature of the Darkside. The difference between us and people like the Grey are they decide to use the Dark, for whatever reason. The Dark is corrupting. Using it invites disaster."

Tae'l Vizsla