Edge of Town

[Jairus Starvald]

CORUSCANT​

APPARTMENT​

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[member="Irajah Ven"]​

--​

​

He could hear the cooing from the other room.

Raj and him took turns with them- this time it had been her turn and it didn't take long for them to calm down. At first the Sith Lord had assumed that he would never be able to calm them down. His presence too scalding, his fingers too rough and calloused, voice too hard and eyes too intense. But it had taken only one yank on his beard to realize... that these were their children. Even babies, smol, fragile little things with large eyes and larger hearts... they weren't afraid.

It didn't take long for her to return.

Didn't come as a surprise either- her breath was his, he could feel her heart in his chest next to his, after all. "I never imagined them like... this." His tone was quizzical and light, wistful. Jairus wrinkled his nose while rubbing against his beard. "Can still feel her yank though, she got both our spirits."

A stretch and Jai could practically feel every bone in his body slowly pop, tension loosening almost immediately after.

"Business first or family?" They had business to attend. Coruscant never slept and there would be developments to discuss. Their efforts, their plans, but there were other things to discuss as well.

Family matters.

Both of them important in their own way, but in shifted day to day what was more pressing.

 

[Kuzo]

Irajah closed the door softly behind her, holding the handle down until she could ease it shut- keeping it from clicking before turning her attention to him.
"She's going to be a monster, that one," she murmured with a chuckle, crossing the room back over to him. She moved gingerly, slowly.

The twins had come early, but that had been expected. Cerbera had recommended bed rest for Raj for the last month, making sure they got as far along as possible. Simply not enough room for two in there, in the end. They were small, too small- but healthy. Dark haired the both of them. Wide, fathomless eyes. When they weren't screaming their heads off, faces all screwed up and red of course.

"You know we can't keep calling them 'the she devil' and 'the good one' right?" She teased, sinking down next to him with a soft, uncomfortable sigh.

Just as bed rest had been ordered, Cerbera had also absolutely forbidden Jai from talking 'business' during the same period. No stress. None whatsoever. And that included updates on current events apparently. They had both objected but she was.... very persuasive when she had to be. Now though, she had left (just that morning), content with both mother and babies, leaving Jai and Raj to figure out just what this was going to look like now for all four of them.

"Alright, fill me in love. I know you've been dying to."

[member="Jairus Starvald"]

 

[Jairus Starvald]

[member="Irajah Ven"]

"Really? I already filled out the paperwork with those names..." Jairus teased right back as his arm carefully wrapped around her shoulder. It was... odd to him, how fragile life was. He had known back then- back when his crusade had took him all across the Core and left only destruction behind. A man died rather easily, no matter the words they draped around their shoulders. But it was holding your own child in your arms, those big eyes staring up at you, that it really hits home for you.

In a sense even more than Raj's death had been.

Part of him was still not entirely comfortable holding them- afraid that he'd shatter them with just the wrong move and that made his teeth itch. "Seriously though- I did want to think about names-" He hadn't wanted to before their birth.

Seemed like a set-up for failure.

A nod followed with a smirk. "Well, it wasn't half as fun doing things without you. Let me think." His head leaned back against the side of the couch, wondering where to start. There had been a lot of developments- some of them important, some less so. The ones that were the most interesting had already been shared with her. Mostly because it hadn't been their business. It didn't matter to them that the Sith Empire had shattered the Free World Coalition (besides the influx of refugees they had slowly funneled into their business one way or another), or that the Silver Jedi had crumbled and fled the Tingel Arm. Amusing, but it wasn't exactly something that really affected them.

"I have spotted a new development on my last hit." Scratching his beard, before shrugging. "The last couple ones were messy, bloody." She knew, she had helped him get clean (as much as it was possible).

"I have started to attract some sort of following."

Nothing more than rabble for now, but it amused him to some degree. "Oh- Matsu touched base with me a week ago, remember those socialites setting up the fundraiser for the Coruscant First movement? They resurfaced again, apparently they have some kind of new unique project based on Maena."

 

[Kuzo]

There had been none of the same reservations with names in Irajah as there had been in Jairus. Maybe it was because she was the one feeling the lives growing inside of her- and even with their connection it was not, and could not be the same for him. She had respected his desire to wait, nonetheless, because it was a kindness she could offer him.

“I’d be upset if they ended up being ‘Cerbera’ and ‘Matsu’- not because I don’t love them dearly but because can you imagine calling either of those two ‘Cerbera?’” She teased back.

Settling against him and closing her eyes, she rested, listening to his recitation of some of what she had missed. Honestly, most of it was fairly irrelevant to her and the things and people she cared about. Most of it.

“A following?” She opened her eyes, giving him a bemused smile. “That sounds like a recipe for trouble… or else fan-fiction. Have you seen some of the things on the holonet? Eesh no thank you.”

[member="Jairus Starvald"]

 

[Jairus Starvald]

That got another chuckle out of him.

“They are already incessantly smug…” The smirk Matsu had given him with the news of him ‘settling down’ had been quite something to behold. “...wouldn’t want to encourage that by naming them after them.” In truth it had nothing to do with that, but Jairus had always been more concerned about the esoteric side of things, compared to Irajah anyway.

He had been very concerned about naming them before it was time.

Before they were born, before their mind and soul could settle fully into reality. It was not a light thing… to be born. If anyone would be aware of that it was Jairus, considering the context behind his appearance in the Galaxy.

“Oh dear force no.” That made him wrinkle his nose at her a bit. The thought alone was just…

No.

“It is all a bit silly, but also amusing I suppose. They have started to recreate the way I have done my hits.” Well, tried to anyway. Some things couldn’t be replicated without also being a Force Master with the experience Jairus possessed.

“Tried to contact me too.”

For the obvious reasons Jairus had ignored that particular angle for now. “How conceited would it be to encourage them? I do find the idea of a cult dedicated to my name amusing.”

Eyebrow rose up in curiosity.

 

[Kuzo]

“Oh, so, copy-cats. And it would be completely conceited if you did, yes,” she said with a laugh.

Tipping her head back against his shoulder, she peered up at him from the wrong direction.

“Would you enjoy it?” She asked, honestly curious. There were some things that neither of them could truly understand about the other. This sort of thing fell under the category for Irajah. While she was fairly confident his answer would be yes, and she knew his reasons for why, they were too alien to her to fully understand them. Accept, yes. Understand? No.

But that was okay.

Irajah wasn’t interested in power for its own sake, or in followers of any ilk. Mostly, she wanted to be left alone to her work, to her friends and her family. It had been some time since they had been broken, and she was perfectly content at the moment with the quiet life.


[member="Jairus Starvald"]

 

[Jairus Starvald]

[member="Irajah Ven"]

There was an itch within Jairus. Within Carach. To be worshipped and glorified. It wasn’t the same sort of desire that ran through Carnifex or other powerful Dark Lords of the Sith, it was more… essential, more internal. A part of him that he had ignored for some time since they had been building their life here on Coruscant.
But it always came back to that.

Once he had controlled a fifth of the One Sith’s empire stretching out through the Core and beyond.

His word had been law, his face gold and heralded. Second only to the Dark Lord of the Sith, a Voss mystic, whose power had been beyond dispute. It had taken him a while to realize it wasn’t the control he hungered for. That had been the first assumption, but in truth? This hunger of him had deepened and deepened even while assuming the identity of Irani. Controlling vast corporate holdings and more…

Had not been the same for him.

“Yes.” The answer came without hesitation. “But if it was simply the need for enjoyment I have enough to occupy my mind.” His hand slipping down, curling around her hip and pulling her in for a soft kiss.

The hunger was there, but it was contained for the duration of the conversation.

“I think I have a need and it demands to be met.”

What that need would turn to… he wasn’t certain. “I might need your help with some of it, but I won’t expect you to be involved in every aspect.” A smirk played there for a moment. “We have different needs in these areas, after all, and that is okay.”

 

[Kuzo]

She kissed him back softly. In truth, she was too tired for anything more.

“You know I support your projects,” she said with a smile.

She didn’t have to say ‘as long as it doesn’t threaten our family.’ Partly because, in truth, everything either of them did could bring down scrutiny. Irajah was more careful in that yes, but the reality was that all they could do was be careful. There was no promise that could be made that an action would safeguard them all and it wasn’t fair to ask it. She did, however, trust him to be conscious of that aspect without needing to be reminded.

“I assume you’ll reach out soon then?”

Honestly curious what his plans were.

It was strange. They didn't need to speak out loud. Not anymore. But it was still the way she preferred it. He could have gone either way, she knew, but there was something normal about having conversations, and she cherished that.

[member="Jairus Starvald"]

 

[Jairus Starvald]

A smile answered hers as he inclined his head in acceptance.

Raja did always have his back and that made all the difference as far as Jairus was concerned here. Even when she was heavy with child- she still wanted to do her projects and help him to the best of her abilities.

It had been quite the period of time Jai thought.

“Possibly. I am going to see if they have what it takes.” Not about being ‘good enough’ to worship him. Starvald wasn’t that conceited…. Or maybe he was, but that wasn’t the point at the moment.

“I need followers, not dead weight.”

A shrug as he let his arms wrap around her waist and pull her against him more. “Let’s talk about us, love. Enough with business for today.”

It was odd- for the entirety of the time that they couldn’t discuss business? Jairus had wanted to, share, talk, discuss. But now that that was over? All that the Sith Lord wanted to do was talk about other things.

Strange.

He had never pictured himself here.

 

[Kuzo]

[member="Jairus Starvald"]

“Mmmm good. Does that include naaaaames by chance?” She asked with a smirk, tone teasing.

She respected his reasoning. But now they had two, healthy, sometimes happy, babies that couldn’t keep being thing one and thing two, or boy child and girl child. They were small and fragile, yes, especially when viewed through his lens. But it was overdue. With a laugh, he agreed. She had a number of ideas saved up, and as it happened, despite his unwillingness to decide in the months leading up, he had a number as well. They traded ideas back and forth, one occasionally making a face at the other.

Until, finally, they agreed on a pair that settled naturally on their lips and in their hearts.

“Elexa and Telani then,” she said with a contented sigh and a smile, tipping her head back again to lay a kiss on his jaw. “Starvald or Ven? Or simply let them choose when they get old enough?”

She knew her thoughts on the matter, but wanted his as well.

 

[Jairus Starvald]

The discussion was pleasant as they went through the options together.

There was no rush behind it, no stress or pressure, but slowly they narrowed their ‘search’ until the names resonated with both of them. “Telani and Elexa.” Jairus agreed with a nod, letting the names slip past his lips and enjoying the cadence of them both. Once more the Sith Lord nodded as those names settled into the room.

They were good, they were right and that was all that Jai wanted.

He hummed softly, leaning in a bit while pondering her next question. “We gave them their first name, they should decide the last name for themselves.” That, too, seemed the right course of action here.

Apply too much of yourself and you’d snuff out their identities before they could find their balance in the world.

Apply too little?

And they were gone to the winds, before they were ready. “Perhaps they will decide that neither fits them and that would be okay too.” It had taken him years of experience before his name had settled itself in his soul.

The Sith was not going to expect them to figure it out within a second or two.