First Reply Forget all the rest (Light-Siders welcome)

[Aayla Shan]

Kashyyyk - Planet	Silver Rest - Locale
Training Room - Area	Morning - Time

Aayla leaned back against the wall in the training room, hands sitting demurely on her hips. Around her the sounds of training sabers whooshing about had become... Dare she say, annoying. One mistake, ignore one little order and you're stuck helping younglings with their training. How long ago was that? A year? Well, worse had happened. She never regretted disobeying those orders, considering lives were saved. Though, today, as she heard those training sabers firing up for the first time this morning, she couldn't help but feel a little over it. If she was such a feth-up why would they have her overlooking the training of younglings? She wasn't a Master... She wasn't even a Knight. She felt like a class president at this rate.


"Tam-.. Tamri! It isn't shockball, stop swinging your saber like a toy" The older padawan called out, pointing a finger to the young man in the back of the room. When she started doing her 'atonement practices' she didn't think she knew any of these kids names. Now here it was she knew all of them, even down to their habits, and preferences in eating. The Jedi Master that usually handled this class was not available for some time. Or so they said, she was pretty sure they were just punishing her for her blatant ignorance for the Chain of Command. Aayla happened to just be a happy go lucky person. Famously telling the Council that sometimes it was better to ask forgiveness than permission. People had been excommunicated for less, but Aayla (unbeknownst, or perhaps blissfully ignorant) was too skilled in saber forms to simply let walk. Instead, she would be repurposed for a time.

The result, which today, finally had started rearing its head? She was going to be so sick of it that she would regret, and refrain from disobeying orders in the future. She was good, but she couldn't be tasked how the Jedi needed if they knew she had the propensity to go off the rails for whatever reason she deemed acceptable.

Moving behind one of the younglings, Aayla used a finger to press at the back of the girls knee, and used both her hands to lift both of her hands a bit higher.

"We'll be doing these drills for another twenty minutes, then we'll move on to training droids." A collective groan emanated from the classroom, to which her face contorted. "Ohhh? So should I tell the kitchen to cancel the special treat that Iiii♩ specifically asked them to make for you today?" she questioned, to which the room became a dead silent.

"Another fifteen, minutes... Then we need to work on blaster deflection.." she compromised with them, still a bit... Over it, she had gotten to love these kids anyway.

The Masters that knew of her easily got to know her well, due to her spunky personality. She was the type to tell you exactly what she thought, regardless of the outcome. As such, it wasn't hard to figure out how to break her. Not punishment, not even threat of excommunication. Simply give her a task so redundant for her talents, she would feel like a fool for putting herself there in the first place.... It was working.

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

In another area of the training room, Kuxirra was sparring with her parents. She ducked under her mother's amethyst blade and lifted her phrik quarterstaff to block her father's yellow one.
"Kuxirra, focus!" Zenda chided when she noticed her daughter's attention straying to Aayla Shan . After a few minutes, she deactivated her lightsaber and placed it on her belt, turning to her husband. "Leehak, I think Kuxirra needs a little break."
Kuxirra put her quarterstaff on her back and went towards Aayla, leaning against the wall as she watched the younglings train.

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

(sorry about the double post lol)

 

[Aayla Shan]

The younglings had continued their tasks, resulting in Aayla slowly moving around the rectangle that the kids (in formation) made along the edges of the room. In her stroll, she would suddenly notice another staring at her, causing her eyes to brighten in surprise. "Oh, hello..." Aayla said, offering the other a friendly handshake. She thought she might of heard of this particular Togruta, but had never actually been in the same vicinity as the other until now. Her eyes had peeled off from the woman, as she caught one of the padawans tugging on the hair of one of the other students. Him and another were giggling about it in the back when one caught the glare Aayla was sending.

He gave her the look of a deer caught in headlights, to which his accomplice followed suit; after which they would continue their training, allowing Aayla to give the other more attention. This girl had her own saber, so Aayla doubted she was here to learn the basics of lightsaber control. Then of course, there was the pair behind Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri that seemed like Knights, or Masters. For a split second she wondered if this was just another incident of her peers coming to 'look down' on the disobedient Jedi, but wouldn't put words in the others mouth.

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

"Hi," Kuxirra said, smiling. "I'm Kuxirra. I was just sparring with my parents. I hope we didn't bother you." She said, gesturing to the two Togruta Knights behind her.

 

[Aayla Shan]

Oh, Aayla smiled at that, letting out a sigh. With that, she shook her head, her padawan braid flicking about lightly. "Absolutely not... I'm relieved I can talk to someone that isn't... making fart sounds with their hands, or on the cusp of crying because they didn't get it right the first time..." Aayla said that bit under her breath, looking at the two behind Kuxirra as she had introduced herself, and smiling at them with a grin and a wave.

"Well, welcome to training group Six. I am the temporary caretaker for these young prodigies... Well, hopefully temporary... " Aayla said, grimacing lightly. She inflected, then mumbled out "Its only been a year..."

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

Kuxirra shrugged. "You've been training them for longer than I've been a Jedi."
"In my opinion, it's an honor to train the younglings. A symbol of trust, if you will." Zenda said, smiling.
"They are the future. Perhaps you'll grow to enjoy it." Leehak added.

 

[Aayla Shan]

Oh feth, bright-eyed padawans. She responded with an immediate smile, but couldn't help but feel a little... underwhelmed. "Y'know, its funny you say symbol of trust..." Aayla said, folding her arms and turning her back partly to Kuxirra so she could keep an eye on the group. "I mean, don't get me wrong... I love these rascals... I'd die for each and every one of them... It just feels like I'm being held back, you know?" she asked, turning her head to glance at Kuxirra, mostly to gauge what her reaction to that comment would be.

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

Kuxirra shrugged. "Not really." She had a tendency to be blunt when she spoke her mind, which was often. It sometimes came across as rude, but it wasn't intended that way. "All my life, I've been pushed to my uppermost limits. If I didn't do as ordered right then, there could be consequences." She gestured to the scars on her midriff. "I refused to kill an akul, and when it lashed out, this happened. I was forced to kill it, but I didn't want to. I wanted to help it."
"Kuxirra was taken from us as a baby," Zenda explained. "She only returned about six months ago."

 

[Aayla Shan]

Aayla looked at her midriff, and grimaced lightly. "Ouch..." she responded, understanding where Kuxirra came from, though not fully behind it. Sometimes, following orders to the letter just didn't sit right, and for Aayla it was very important that the things she did were things that she could look herself in the mirror afterwards for. Also, back then the situation was different. Kuxirra would have to be a little more forward than that to be considered rude to Aayla, considering she was famous for her mouth. "I know that feeling... As Jedi we can feel much more deeply than the average person. Therefore killing can be daunting. Even though at times necessary.. Past that, that scar should be cherished... Its something to remember your mistakes by... So uhhh, Akul... They're from your homeworld right? Its uhm..." Aayla snapped her fingers a few times, trying to think about it, she knew this one. "Shili, right?"

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

"Yep. The psycho doc who raised me had one brought to the labs to see if I was ready for the field." Kuxirra said. "Of course, since I hesitated to kill an innocent creature, I wasn't quite ready. At least it died quickly and painlessly."

 

[Aayla Shan]

Aayla listened to Kuxirra, and nodded in response. Seeming to feel what she was saying, rather than just be listening. "It sounds like your upbringing was rough... Though that's all behind you... You're safe here, with the strongest Jedi in the galaxy at your ba-. Aayla would suddenly turn to the group, placing two fingers in her mouth and loosing a shrill whistle. "Everyone get into your groups, three training droids each... We'll play strikeout today. Miss a deflection, you're out... Every group will select a Captain, and whichever group has the most people left will be getting a special reward! Lets get to it!" Aayla said, clapping for the younglings.

She knew they hated it, but that was only because she loathed those damn droids herself. Though, it was necessary. With her saying that, she regarded Kuxirra again; nodding to her. "In any case, all I was saying is sometimes you have to do what you feel is right. I get it, of course; you have to follow the orders of the Knights, and Masters... Sure, but they wont always be the Knights and Masters. We should have more autonomy as the future of the Enclave" Aayla said, ignorant of the two Knights that accompanied Kuxirra...

Outspoken, if nothing else...

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

"A bold statement," Leehak said. "But accurate."
Zenda nodded in agreement. "Very. Nothing stays the same forever. However, one must respect their elders." Her tone wasn't chastising at all.
Kuxirra stayed silent, mulling it over. She did act impulsively sometimes, but she did what she felt was right. If someone was in need, she needed to help them.

 

[Aayla Shan]

"You don't know the half sis... Its my boldness that's gotten me this.... What did you say? Trusted position as caretaker here. Though, the other option was being cut off from the Force, and excommunicated. And... Well, I didn't like that option." Aayla admitted, smirking at the Togruta. She liked her... She was like Aayla, but way more reserved. In a way, Aayla should have been the one looking up to her, as far as obedience went.

"Now, now... Don't get... Me wrong. I do respect the elders of the order... Completely. I just... Tend to not listen to the things they say at times." She grimaced lightly, but smirked towards Zenda after that comment, noting sometimes she shocked even herself; but not really. She knew at least one Master had it out for her, but she knew how to walk the line. At the end of the day, no one was above recourse, including her. It wouldn't stop her from speaking her mind when she wanted. Then again, Aayla was a different case of Jedi. The only reason Padawan was allocated as her title was due to her blatant refusal to follow orders at times.

Therein another complexity of her personality. Aayla didn't really care for titles... She could care less if they called her Aayla-Senn Shan the honorary garbage woman. She knew who she was, and what she was worth, if they chose to leave her as a padawan until she was an old woman she would maintain dignity in her skill, and experience. In that regard, Aayla had a certain maturity that most padawan never find. True humility... The Order had seen all types she was sure, but to have a padawan that had no interest in raising their 'stature' they had to think outside the box to truly get through to her.

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

"Cut off from the Force? Why would anyone want that?" Kuxirra asked, appalled at the idea that such a thing even existed.

"There are many things in this galaxy that we don't understand," Leehak said to his daughter.

Zenda chuckled at Aayla's backtracking. "Everyone goes through that at some point or another. I'm not mad at you at all."

 

[Aayla Shan]

Aayla nodded in agreement. "Yeah, its possible... You could consider it a dishonorable discharge from the order... For Force sensitives, its torture. Something you take for granted, can be stripped away from you." Aayla admitted, secretly she thanked the Order for not following through on it. Sure, she didn't think she would go crazy or anything, but she couldn't imagine living and not being able to feel the Force around her. It would indeed be torture. The worst possible punishment, in her eyes.

When Zenda spoke, Aayla couldn't help but smile at her... "Tell that to the council... I feel like the trouble child" Aayla said, looking back over the crowd of padawan in their groups. The 'game' was almost done, and she would glance at the time. This class ran for about five hours, and after that she had her own classes to attend. Intermediate, to Master level Force applications, and Galactic Political Science. "You know, I've never actual been to Shili... Whats it like?" Aayla asked.

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

"It's a nice place," Kuxirra said. "The thimiars are really good," she added, causing her parents to laugh.
"It's best to travel with a group. You stand a better chance against akul that way." Zenda said.

 

[Aayla Shan]

Aayla for a split second, was about to note that she wasn't scared of a thing, but realized the level of insensitivity the comment would bring, considering the scar quite visible on the Togruta. Instead, she would just smile. "Maybe when this is all over you guys can take me. Sure an Akul stands no chance against four sight-seeing Jedi.... Sorry, what's a Thimiar?" Aayla asked curiously, her attention snapping back to Kuxirra as she had mentioned it. She felt like she should've known, but it was drawing a blank. At the very least, she believed that it must've been some type of food.

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

"It's a rodent. Togruta eat them. I'm not sure humans can eat them, though." Kuxirra explained. "It's a lot of fun hunting them."

 

[Aayla Shan]

A Rat! Aayla tried her best to maintain a nominal face, though outside of pure survival she would NOT eat one of those. She made a mental note to eat before a visit to Shili. Even though the reality was they may have tasted great, she was one of those people that could only truly enjoy new dishes if you didn't tell her what was in them. As far as how she would react to Kuxirra, she smiled, nodding a few times. "Yeah, I uhm... Sounds tasty.." she laughed it off, honestly it made her stomach bubble a bit just thinking about it. Different species though, different tastes. It wasn't exactly unheard of; in fact, there were far more questionable dietary choices in the galaxy.

For now, Aayla fell silent, pulling her lips, and licking both as she watched the younglings. "I never really... Got a childhood. I mean, before the Jedi Order. I was a slave when I was younger." she admitted, her face showed the pain of those words, more than anything else. Past that, though that could read body language, and voice cues could tell that it was a topic that got to her. In fact, it was that trauma that caused her to disobey orders back then.

They wanted everyone to evacuate, but Aayla just couldn't at the time. She wanted to liberate those that suffered from the disease of indentured servitude. It was her past ironically that had saved her from excommunication; it made it easy to see why she had gone off, though she still needed to learn a lesson in obedience.