Private Dust Never Settles

[Corazona von Ascania]

In the months following the Mandalorian invasion, Ukatis has begun to rebuild itself. A generous outpouring of aid had their work progressing at a rapid pace - and though some of the ancient architecture in the capital remained as cordoned-off rubble, several of the largest refugee camps had begun to pick up the rhythm of bustling towns.

Damerel was at the forefront of the restoration efforts. Quite a few tents had been replaced by permanent structures, erected by charity builders and Ukatain laborers alike. A makeshift marketplace had opened, and there was talk among some of the displaced civilians of putting down roots in Damerel. Many planned to return to Axilla once there was room to do so, while others made for the smaller villages and hamlets dotted throughout Ukatis where their relatives could be found.

Cora had remained on Ukatis since the first wave of donations had poured in, coordinating relief efforts for Damerel and Axilla. It was the sort of work that stretched so far into the future that it was impossible to see when it would end. There were rumblings that the Alliance would engage Ukatis in talks soon, and the recently passed Equal Rights Act complicated Ukatian's wary view of the galactic superpower.

A temporary office had been set up for her in the back of a pub - of which there were two already in Damerel. Her space was a small outlet at the end of a hall, three walls and no door, a chair and a roughly hewn wooden desk scattered with all manner of papers and datapads. It was a fraction of the size as one of her closets at the Ascania estate.

Cora sat, attempting to organize the chaos. Next week she'd return to Coruscant, leaving the reins of Damerel in several capable hands. She did not want to leave behind a mess.

Every so often, she'd pause to sip from a cup of instant caf. It had been positively revolting the first time she tried it, but Cora was too ashamed to admit that she'd actually come to prefer the taste.

Alicio Organa

 

[Alicio Organa]

Damerel, Ukatis
Cora's Office
​

A shadow darkened the entry to Cora's study, a quiet, assertive presence coloring the Force soon after.

Alicio looked characteristically himself, as he lingered just outside the Jedi's space, his hand folded demurely within his black cloak, which had managed to gather dirt at it's tresses from labor. A pin of royal Chalcedony adorned his chest, the badge of office a shining white amid the darkness of his wardrobe. As usual, the former Count's face rested with the corners of his lip downturned, some hidden tension tightening the muscles underneath his cheek.

It was times like this that the Alicio wished his future sight were more concrete. There were questions he needed answered. Threads that required review. If only he could map out this conversation in advance, to know what to say, and how to say it. But he knew, deep down, that it wouldn't be fair. It wouldn't be right.

Most of all, it wouldn't be him.

Alicio's eyes swept across the office, taking stock of Cora's work. She seemed to be organizing. An expertise of his. A light smile graced His Grace's features.

"Care for an extra pair of hands?"

- Corazona von Ascania -

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

Alicio's presence was felt the moment before he spoke. It was not domineering, but consistent with a quiet sort of strength to it.

Cora's scattered concentration broke easily, giving her enough time to turn her head and acknowledge her guest with a weary smile. Then, on second thought, she rose from her chair and offered Alicio a crisp bow of her head, hand over heart.

"King Organa - it's good to see you."

Her hand swept towards the tiny desk, motioning to two small, neat piles amid the chaos. Her expression softened into something a little more genuine, a little more knowing. A few years ago, she would've fussed and refused help.

"Please, if you would." She tapped the first pile, then the next. "Purchase orders here, and anything to do with inventory counts here."

Many of the papers were printouts on various letterheads from generous donors, but some were hastily scrawled documents from the rural tradesman who'd come from the further corners of Ukatis to help.

"I wish I'd realized earlier on that there'd be this much minutiae. It's almost the same level of detail that goes into planning a royal gala."

Her tone was airy and wry, but her focus couldn't fully turn back to the paperwork even as she studied a list of supplies from Bacta-Works. She passed the document into one pile. Alicio had been present during the rebuilding, getting his hands dirty with the help he'd brought. It was kind of him to come and check on things, especially given his new station.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?"

Alicio Organa

 

[Alicio Organa]

Alicio absently stood a little straighter as his new title was used, to keep himself from withering under it's weight. "I would prefer Alicio, Corazona. Every time I hear the word King, I think I get another grey hair," he returned, trying to match her energy, and falling a little short. He wasn't cold. But there was something heavy on his mind.

Orders were given, and Alicio nodded, getting to work immediately. He began categorizing the morass of paperwork, light fingers made quick work picking them up, and adding to the neat piles. He appreciated having something to do with his hands. It made what was going on in his head all the more easy to mull over.

"I wish I'd realized earlier on that there'd be this much minutiae. It's almost the same level of detail that goes into planning a royal gala."

"I know what you mean." Memories danced across the King's eyes, as he busied himself with the papers. "My first was on Tython. During the Hyperspace War. I'd helped with plenty of camps before, but... that doesn't prepare you for leading one. I was constantly worried we would run out of supplies, making sure the numbers added up, compiling more spreadsheets I'd ever made in my life. It was exhausting, and I was always second-guessing myself." At least he had the benefit of it not being his homeworld. He could only imagine how the Jedi felt.

"But it was also where I met Amani. So I know I did something right."

Cora asked him about his purpose. Alicio gave the question a proper pause, putting a medical inventory in it's place.

"You're leaving Ukatis soon. What are your plans, after this?"

- Corazona von Ascania -

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

Alicio, then.

Cora acknowledged his preference with a silent nod. There was something weighty in the former Count's expression, but she chalked it up to juggling his duties with the Alliance and Alderaan.

Nimble fingers made for quick work as they sorted through papers. "Thank you, Alicio."

She listened quietly at the description of Tython, a little smile peaking the corners of her lips for his silver lining of having met Amani. Cora was more familiar with her though their Jedi connections, and Amani had guided her through a particularly harrowing point in her marriage.

"I've heard stories about Tython. I'm - we - are very fortunate to receive the help we've had."

Cora's vision unfocused on blurry lines of text as her mind wandered to some of the lessons she'd received as a padawan, but her attention returned quickly. Alicio's visit certainly was not unwelcome, but it was a tad odd. Kings didn't routinely stop by on backwater worlds for the sole purpose of helping with paperwork.

"I'll return to Coruscant next week. That's why I'm sorting the paperwork I've neglected - I don't want to leave a mess behind for those who'll be taking over the day-to-day operations."

There was a tinge of regret in her voice. It was difficult for her to remain on Ukatis after what had happened to her, but she also found it difficult to leave after what had happened to her home.

"How fares Alderaan?"

Alicio Organa

 

[Alicio Organa]

"I've heard stories about Tython. I'm - we - are very fortunate to receive the help we've had."

An overcast smile took the king, as he straightened his stack of papers against the desk. "It's easy to forget, but... people do care. More often than not." Many in Alicio's position would have become jaded and retributive towards the galaxy. To be fair, he almost had.

But somehow, he still held onto hope.

Alicio nodded thoughtfully as Cora revealed her return to Coruscant, taking a moment to study a ship manifest. "Well, I'm glad to be helping whoever will be filling your shoes." He hummed under his breath. "You deserve to rest. Though I can't promise Coruscant to be very restful, at the moment."

It seemed Alicio was... hesitant, to talk about Alderaan. He mulled over a few possible responses, before deciding on one. "Alderaan stands. The transition of power was smooth, despite the rumblings of a few." His lip twisted. He intended to be proactive in keep them just that; rumblings. "We're building a defense force, and reinstating the Alderaanian Knights. So, hopefully, Alderaan will be able to do it's part in battle. And not just... pick up the pieces after."

"Endorsing two military bodies in my first year as king. It makes one wonder about what the history books will say about me." The statement was said with the lilt of a joke, but he wasn't smiling.

His mind had dwelled plenty on legacy, as of late.

"Are you done with refugee work after this? Done with Ukatis?"

- Corazona von Ascania -

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

Rest?

The thought hadn't crossed her mind, but now Cora wondered if that was how Ukatis would perceive her departure. Civilians could not take a break from being civilians, so why should she get a break from…?

"I didn't know that rest was apart of the Jedi code."

It was meant to be a jest, but perhaps the words sounded as bitter as they tasted in her mouth. She winced in apology before her expression faded into something more thoughtful.

"A smooth transition is a good sign." Her head tilted in acknowledgment. She wasn't familiar with how power traded hands on other planets, but it could be a bloody affair on Ukatis. "As with all things, time will tell - but you've a reputation for your good intentions and ability to follow through in serving the people. Those traits don't go unnoticed."

King Alicio Organa, The Warmonger didn't have the best ring to it. Cora pressed her lips together, suppressing an amused smile.

All traces of mirth fell from her face at the mention of leaving, and she swallowed visibly. The notion of being done Ukatis made her gut twist unpleasantly, even though she'd privately entertained the idea of severing all ties with the culture that had done irreversible damage to her.

A cold sweat prickled at the back of her neck, but Cora looked as though she was genuinely considering his words.

"I don't know." She admitted quietly. "I was raised to believe that nobles have everything that we do because it's our job to protect the people. Part of me still wants to believe that I'm needed in that way."

Her lips pressed together again, this time in a lackluster, tight smile.

"I took an oath when I became a Jedi. I’ll still be keeping tabs on things here, but from afar.”

Alicio Organa

 

[Alicio Organa]

Alicio didn't seem to mind the sudden sour turn in Cora's voice, deciding instead to create a faded, sympathetic smile. "Do you mean to tell me Valery Noble has never, not once, taken a day to herself?"

"If she is allowed to rest, you are too."

Cora's own words of comfort were met by a slow nod of the nobleman's head. He still harbored his worries- as much as he tried not to let perception- how people would remember him, compare him to Organas of recent history and mythic antiquity- affect him too greatly... it did. How would he measure up, after he'd breathed his last? Would his ancestors look upon him fondly? Would he be just another a cautionary tale?

Would they even remember him?

His question in return to her seemed to elicit a few different emotional responses from the Ukatian. Alicio paused his task, watching and listening with a steady grey gaze. She was stepping away. But he got the impression she wasn't leaving forever.

"I don't... know... everything that happened here. With you." The statement was intentionally vague. His eyes traveled down to the pages in front of him once more, to give the young Jedi a small measure of privacy. The moment of truth was nearly here. "But I don't believe continuing your Jedi training is the only way you can help the galaxy, either. You have influence. Allies, willing to bat for you. Doors left open, should you wish to cross them."

With each pause, the king seemed to consider his words, checking and double checking them in his mind. How could he convey everything he needed to? "If all you want now is distance from... this, I understand. But I want to see you succeed, Corazona."

"So... how can I help you?"

- Corazona von Ascania -

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

"Do you mean to tell me Valery Noble has never, not once, taken a day to herself?"

Cora dipped her head in concession. As Valery's padawan, she should've known better. Her Master always impressed upon her the importance of taking a break every now and then, lest she burn out.

"Ah, you've got me there."

Her tone was a little lighter, but her expression creased at the lack of levity in Alicio's next words. She strained to decipher the reasoning behind his careful tone so much that the meaning of his words were almost lost. With nobility, how something was said was often more important than what was said.

Her focus was suddenly too far lost to sort paperwork. In a measured movement, Cora reached for her cup and sipped at the caf. Swallowing it down took a noticeable effort.

"I see."

She fought to keep a flurry of panicked thoughts from grabbing purchase in her mind. Subtle signs broke through the cracks of her aristocratic bearing; the cadence of her breathing was less quiet and her fingers were less nimble as the fiddled with papers.

"Succeed as what?"

Her voice was soft and cautious. Cora's tumultuous marriage has hardly been a secret. Stretching back into her memory, she recalled Alicio and Amani present at her engagement party. What was more, Amani had helped her through the startling loss of an early pregnancy.

How much does he know?

She tried to turn her attention fully towards Alicio, but she was staring at a point over his shoulder.

Alicio Organa

 

[Alicio Organa]

"Succeed as what?"

Alicio didn't look Cora's way. He could sense her sudden apprehension, like a bloom of incense on his tongue. Unlike her, he continued to sort papers, hoping that his attention being elsewhere would take some amount of pressure off.

"Who you want to be."

He was yearning to ask. But he wouldn't. She would have to tell him. And if she didn't...

He'd still help her. Of course, he would.

- Corazona von Ascania -

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

"Why?"

The word rolled off her tongue, bypassing the checkpoint of her brain entirely. Cora tried to fight off a flush of embarrassment, but her cheeks were still a few shades darker.

She took a moment to compose her answer as thoughtfully as she could.

"What I mean to ask is…we've only met a handful of times. Why go so far out of your way?"

Cora was not naive enough to believe that she could entirely shed her influence from Ukatis. She was still, perhaps in name only, a Princess. At least in the eyes of the people.

Why would the sovereign of another world want to help her?

No, She suppressed that thought, but not entirely. He wouldn't use me in an attempt to exert his influence on Ukatis.

Right?

Alicio Organa

 

[Alicio Organa]

The Jedi's knee-jerk reaction wasn't lost on Alicio, either.

"What I mean to ask is…we've only met a handful of times. Why go so far out of your way?"

Finally, the nobleman turned his eyes on Cora, stone grey and labyrinthian. His brow had creased, but only slightly. He didn't quite understand the deeper meaning of why she had asked. Of course he would go out of his way for her. There had never been a question in his mind. "Because you have gone out of your way for them, Cora."

He paused. How could he help her see? "What inspired you to organize this camp? What did you expect in return?"

- Corazona von Ascania -

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

Cora's brow furrowed at his explanation. It wasn't that it was unsatisfactory - nor was she suspicious that Alicio really had nefarious motives - but she still didn't quite understand.

"Because it's what I'm supposed to do."

A pause, and her lips pressed together in a firm line. Cora had been raised a certain way, and it wasn't until she’d joined the NJO that she learn how divisively nobles were viewed in the galaxy.

"My father is not a particularly kind man, but he did impress upon me the importance of my station. Our reason for being is to protect the people in our territory, even if that came at a great personal cost."

Cora found herself biting the inside of her cheek. She'd cast herself into the fire for that notion before, and burned. This was different, she thought.

"So I leveraged my station to help alleviate the crisis. It's not that it was an easy or difficult choice to make - it was the only choice."

She sighed, sudden and heavy. It might've been the first outward sign that her mask was slipping.

"In a galaxy like this, the only thing I want in return is for Ukatis to be safe."

Still, that felt like too much to ask.

Alicio Organa

 

[Alicio Organa]

"Because it's what I'm supposed to do."

There was a beat of consideration from the King. A moment his eyes grew distant, his face saddening with thought. Despite gaining a wife he loved dearly, and two children who were rays of sunshine, some sliver of the former Count's saudade still remained, an ingrained part of him he would never shake.

Alicio's eyebrows bunched. It seemed he decided not to like Cora's answer.

"In a galaxy like this, the only thing I want in return is for Ukatis to be safe."

But he could see past her stated motivations. All he needed to do was push a little.

"Believe it or not," Alicio finally decided on saying, abandoning his sorting task altogether, "you did have other choices. You were an exiled daughter of Ukatis. Your duty was to stay away. But you didn't."

"You came back. Because you wanted Ukatis to be safe. And, I hope, because you care enough about the citizenry of Ukatis to start the monumental task of organizing their relief, despite whatever the Ukatian government has put you through, and expecting almost nothing, perhaps retaliation, in return."

"That's why I want to help you. This galaxy needs people like that. Like you. And... if I'm wrong, and all of this was nothing more than duty... say so. And I will finish sorting these papers, and let you work in peace."

- Corazona von Ascania -

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

Cora opened her mouth to argue. After a few moments of lingering in silence, her lips rested together.

He has a point.

"You have a point," she admitted. "I had a vision of Ukatis burning and broke my exile. I've been pushing my luck since then."

Where did her duty end and her love for the people begin? For most of her life, the two had intertwined. Now that they were slowly diverging, it made her choices all the more difficult because they required actual thought.

Finally, she turned her gaze to Alicio. Like me? Disbelief shone in wide blue eyes, but she kept quiet in thought. Idly, her fingers drummed against the tabletop as she weighed just how much, or how little to say.

"I became a Jedi at the behest of my father, because he thought it would help cement Ukatian ties with the Alliance. I believed that it made me important - but it didn't, no more than any other Jedi."

A whisper of a smile tilted her lips, recalling the brief spats she'd had with some of the more blunt Padawans over her arrogance.

"When my father negotiated my marriage to Prince Horace, it was hard for me to leave Coruscant. But I did so, because it was my duty. And that man…" Her voice lowered and she trembled once in a surge of nauseous anger.

"…took parts of me that I will never get back. I haven't set foot in the palace since, and frankly, I wouldn't have shed a tear if that building had burned to ashes during the assault. Not that I wanted anyone to get hurt, of course."

Cora took a sharp breath, letting her ire pass through her before it could truly take root. It occurred to her that perhaps she hadn't healed from her ordeal as much as she'd thought.

"And yet, I couldn't keep myself away. I don't know if that makes me brave or stupid or arrogant. "

Ukatis was like a lover that played hot and cold, always drawing her back in the end.

Alicio Organa

 

[Alicio Organa]

Alicio's dark expression persisted, even as his eyebrows loosened. The picture of Corazona von Ascania in his mind grew just a bit more complex. He was starting to understand.

Her musing on self-importance finally broke his frown. The former Count smiled coolly. "You managed to break free of our position's... disposition. The first home I ever knew was a shelter. I didn't grow up with the nobleman's lifestyle, and I am eternally grateful I never fell into that trap."

Alicio noticeably grew more still, more focused, as Prince Horace was brought up. Behind cloud-grey eyes, the nobleman was deep in thought as he pondered each of Cora's words, his palate sweetened by her anger. He didn't balk at it, he simply observed. She let it continue past, but he could tell it wasn't gone.

"...I don't know if that makes me brave or stupid or arrogant. "

Alicio raised an eyebrow, making up his mind. It was time to push harder. "You don't want to think of yourself as selfless, do you?"

He let the statement lie for a moment, before continuing. "I'm glad you've learned that your position doesn't make you, or your decisions, any more important than those around you, but there is an equally-important lesson to learn, too."

"Who you are doesn't make you, or your decisions, any less important than those around you, either."

- Corazona von Ascania -

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

The intensity of her expression eased at the mention of Alicio's start in a shelter. That struggle was something she'd never known - despite the harshness of her father's hand, she'd always had her basic needs more than met.

Selfless?

Cora frowned. Not entirely out of displeasure, but more out of thought.

"I've made selfish decisions. I'm not some…some paragon of sacrifice."

Not that he was calling her that. She rolled her wrist while searching for the words, but even those didn't feel quite appropriate. "Ukatian noblewomen are expected to be quiet and submissive. I only did what was expected of me, until I didn't."

There was a bitterness to which she spoke. Astute as Alicio Organa was, the fact that he'd come closer to the truth had her hackles raised.

Cora inhaled sharply through her nose, then let out a slow, audible exhale. She turned to face Alicio, hard blue eyes against stoney grey irises.

"You've heard the rumors, haven't you? About my husband's death?"

 

[Alicio Organa]

Alicio experienced immediate push-back. So he was right, at least in part.

He sat back, and watched Cora, care in the smoothness of his face, despite the calculating stare. He was an attentive observer, as he tried to fully absorb everything Cora said, every feeling she projected, every crease in her face, looking for meaning.

"Nobody is," Alicio responded evenly to her comment about paragons. Everybody made selfish decisions. That was part of... existing.

"Ukatian noblewomen are expected to be quiet and submissive. I only did what was expected of me, until I didn't."

"You've heard the rumors, haven't you? About my husband's death?"

Alicio considered the question in silence.

The King had found an ally in silence. He'd learned early in his career that people didn't like quiet in conversations. So if he waited, people would fill it, elaborate, share more than if he tried to steer the conversation.

Alicio nodded slowly, and waited for Corazona to elaborate.

- Corazona von Ascania -

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

Alicio nodded his confirmation, and his silence prompted her to continue. She wished that he'd said something, because she wasn't sure what to follow that with.

The awkward stretch of quietness compelled her to elaborate, and Cora's expression contorted - discomfort, uncertainty, and guilt all made a showing.

It would've been more tactically sound to dance around the issue for a bit longer, to draw out the specifics of the rumor he'd heard. There were many, but one prevailed among the whispers on Ukatis. She'd never outright denied it. How could she? The court knew it to be true, as did a few close Jedi.

"Have you ever been choked before, King Organa?"

Cora found her lips moving before her mind could catch up. No small part of her balked at having posed such a coarse question, but there was still an abrasive edge to her voice.

"That is what he was doing to me when I pushed him from the window of his study."

She wasn't looking at him, but rather focused on a hand-written invoice for lumber from Faron province. Idly, she rubbed the front of her throat with two fingers.

Horace may have been dead, but there were times when he was still present.

Alicio Organa

 

[Alicio Organa]

"Have you ever been choked before, King Organa?"

Alicio's lip caught a severe frown. Cora busied herself with her work, but his was left on the table. When he had been beating around the bush, he'd used the papers as a barrier between them, to give the exiled princess some comfort. But she had crossed that barrier. Now, he needed her to know she had his full attention.

He had heard the rumors soon after Corazona's extraction from the planet, both from his noble circles, and from being around Jedi so often. Even Giselle had told him as much, before this meeting. That the Princess had murdered her husband. But it felt more real, the moment her words found the space between them. That wasn't what hurt him.

The King's expression, should Cora try to see it, was entirely inscrutable. Sphinx-like. But in the Force, Alicio was surprisingly easy to read. He was sad. Deeply, grievously sad. "How often did he hurt you?" He didn't bother to sugarcoat.

Alicio thought a moment, one of the nobleman's hands cradling his jaw, covering his mouth.

"... I have, you know."

- Corazona von Ascania -