Private Fighting With Less

[Kahlil Noble]

Alright. Actual lesson time. Kahlil glanced around the empty room, rubbing at the back of his neck. He'd taught people before, but just being in a classroom felt.. Stuffy. Learning in a room was for the academy part of being a Padawan. Or a youngling? His tutelage at a young age was in a very different kind of academy. Go out, learn in the field. It's what he preferred. Also knowing their capabilities so if things went wrong, and they usually did, he'd know how much they'd need help or if they needed to run and hide.

So, classroom. For now. Get in a lesson, see just what Thelma could do, then missions.

He straightened out a bit, glancing to the door. Hopefully she wouldn't be late.

Thelma Goth

 

[Thelma Goth]

Though her rushed look indicated she had been in a hurry to get there, Thelma still arrived slightly late. Her jumpsuit was clean, but not immaculately pressed the way it usually was. Strangely, she was wearing a hat. A hat which completely covered her hair, which had been tucked away out of sight.

She shuffled over to Kahlil, bowed respectfully, then waited for further instruction.

Kahlil Noble​

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Kahlil raised a brow slowly. Mostly at the hat.

".. Alright what's with the hat."

Thelma Goth

 

[Thelma Goth]

“Nothing.”

Kahlil Noble​

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Okay."

He didn't believe that for a moment, but if she didn't want to talk he wasn't going to make her. Instead, the lesson. He patted his saber for a moment before motioning towards hers. If she had it.

"I just want to see how good you are with your lightsaber. Teach you some Soresu. Sound good?"

Thelma Goth

 

[Thelma Goth]

Sighing in relief, Thelma adjusted her hat one final time while Kahlil was looking away, making sure none of her hair showed.

“Okay,” she replied. Removing her lightsaber from her belt, she fiddled with the dials, making sure they were set to the lowest intensity before she activated her blade and stood with her feet apart. “I think I may have already learned Soresu before, but I don’t remember much about it.”

Kahlil Noble​

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Kahlil took out his own saber to ignite the edge and nodded.

"Good. Hopefully it's like riding a bike and you'll pick it back up." Hopefully, anyway. The less time they had to spend in here the better for his teaching style. He lifted the blade, holding it in the classic stance.

"It's all about letting yourself trust in the Force. Small movements, defense. Letting your opponent wear themselves out." With that he'd actually start a couple drills. Nothing too crazy, but trying to help her get into the grove of it. Focus on the Force, feel it. That kind of thing.

Thelma Goth

 

[Thelma Goth]

“I don’t know how to ride a bike,” Thelma said lamely. “But—but I get it.”

Things started out slow and simple. She was able to block Kahlil’s blows with ease, though she did move a little too much at first. Gradually she eased up, defending herself with minimal gestures, falling into her own little groove with the Force at her back...

Kahlil Noble​

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Good. You're much stronger than you look, huh?" He hadn't thought about it till they got into the groove. His swings became harder, more focused. Testing her limits until his natural strength was behind every blow.

He was pretty sure she was still stronger than him anyway.

"Trust your instincts. Let the Force guide you." A bit more like that, just making sure she could do these kinds of things, and he was satisfied. She wasn't a fresh faced Padawan. Kahlil disengaged his blade, offered a smile.

"Okay. Wanna go on a mission?"

Thelma Goth

 

[Thelma Goth]

"Good. You're much stronger than you look, huh?"

Thelma usually tried to hide her strength, but as Kahlil continued to pack more power into his blows, she was forced to compensate until it became noticeable. “Yeah,” she murmured, thrusting her blade toward his left shoulder.

Eventually Master Kahlil stepped back and deactivated his lightsaber. He was smiling, apparently pleased with her capabilities.

Thelma was a little surprised at how quickly she had passed the test, but she nodded. “Okay. What kind of mission?”

Kahlil Noble​

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Nothing crazy. Relief mission, from what I understand anyway. There's a village with some crops that rotted and could use a replacement for the winter." Definitely not a job for Jedi, but that's what Kahlil said regardless.

He nodded to the door before heading that way.

"We'll take my ship. Already got it loaded with crops."

Thelma Goth

 

[Thelma Goth]

Delivering crops? Yeah, that sounded like a pretty boring, uneventful relief mission. Thelma was grateful for that.

She followed Kahlil to his ship.

Kahlil Noble​

 

[Kahlil Noble]

He raised a brow curiously as he glanced to her. No groans, no fits, no wanting to do something more than just delivering crops. No questions.

Oh boy she was going to be in for a surprise then.

Kahlil just snickered to himself on the way to the shuttle. There, he'd get the Bastion ready for flight. "Go check on the food for me, yeah? Make sure it's all strapped down then come back here and we'll be ready to go."

Thelma Goth

 

[Thelma Goth]

"Go check on the food for me, yeah? Make sure it's all strapped down then come back here and we'll be ready to go."

Thelma nodded, then headed for the cargo hold, unaware of her master’s snickering...

Kahlil Noble​

 

[Kahlil Noble]

The cargo hold was as expected. Filled with supplies. Though certainly some in need of actually being strapped down. Nothing too crazy. By the time she finished and came back to the cockpit Kahlil had finished setting things up. He flashed her a grin and gave her a thumbs up. "We're good to go. C'mon, strap in. Once we're in space you can run some drills if ya want."

Thelma Goth

 

[Thelma Goth]

“Master, some of the crates weren’t strapped down,” Thelma reported upon returning to the cockpit. But otherwise nothing had been amiss, and she seemed rather bored as she sat in her chair and buckled into her crash webbing.

They left Coruscant behind, the stars racing past them as they entered hyperspace. Kahlil suggested she run some drills. She didn’t really want to do that, and since he hadn’t ordered her, she instead retreated to her quarters, closing the door behind her…

Kahlil Noble​

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Okay. You strapped em down, right?"

Kahlil glanced over for a brief moment before focusing on actually get the ship in the air. Them they were off, soaring through the stars. He didn't bother her too much as they went. If she didn't want to work on her drills, he wasn't going to make her. Though she probably should. Should he make her? he mulled over the thought for all of a minute before shrugging it off.

They were still figuring each other out. No reason to force it. Least till they were close to their destination.

"Hey, almost there."

He knocked on her door.

"You good in there?"

Thelma Goth

 

[Thelma Goth]

“Of course.” That was what he had asked her to do, right? Make sure everything was strapped down.

As for her avoidant behavior, it may have come across as slightly moody. But Thelma was simply a solitary person, preferring no company. Well, there had also been a hair dye mishap that morning…

“Okay,” she called back to Kahlil at his knocking. Hastily shoving her hair back underneath the hat, she answered the door. “Yeah, I’m good.”

A wispy lock of dark green hair drifted against the side of her neck like a thin strand of seaweed.

Kahlil Noble​

 

[Kahlil Noble]

".. Oohh."

Okay that made some sense. The green hair. He didn't say anything else, just looked away and nodded back towards the cargo room. "C'mon. We're gonna get it all ready to unload. You should probably tuck your hair away if you don't want people to see it though."

Thelma Goth

 

[Thelma Goth]

Eyes widening, Thelma disappeared back into her room, frantically stuffing her hair back into the hat.

She appeared later in the cargo hold and started unloading the boxes. “What planet are we on, anyway?” she asked. A question she probably should’ve posed earlier, but better late than never.

Kahlil Noble​