Private Healing Waters

[Kai Bamarri]

Coruscant

Kai’s first time in a bacta tank had reminded him of home. Not the Jedi Temple or the Reef, but his true place of origin. Submersion in the cold, clear sludge dredged up memories of being carefully lowered into mineral waters by his guardian.

On Chaldea, it had been to make him grow.

Here, it was to make him heal.

Much like before, he was pulled out before it was time, in this case to allow someone else to use the tank. A medical droid examined Kai’s body, determined the cellular repair was good enough, then sent him on his way. The doppelganger wrung droplets of bacta from his form, put on another Jedi jumpsuit, and headed outside.

Coruscant felt forlorn. The invasion had taken so much out of the ecumenopolis, and while it was already starting to bounce back (Coruscant always bounced back) it would be a long time before things were back to the way they were.

Kai stood alone on the steps of the hospital, looking like a boy again, but not a real one. Leaning his back against a pillar, he took out his datapad and started typing out messages to his friends, letting them know he’d been discharged...

Iris Arani​

 

[Iris Arani]

The fight wasn't something she relished. The.. Sithspawn. Floating eye thing. It was wrong. It did more than just blot out colors. At one point it removed everything for her. Not just black, but.. Gone. Even now the memory of how it suppressed the Force sent a chill up her spine. Even darkness was better than the void left by nothing. Her gaze flicked up towards the hospital. She had brought flowers for.. Someone. Right?

Lost in her own thoughts she'd easily gotten distracted by the vast colors around her. All these people, all together. Some hurt, some not. So many colors. She was lost in the swirl, smiling faintly. This was much better than the void. Her eyes closed, though the color remained. It wasn't until she saw something familiar in the swirls that she opened them again. All at once she turned her head towards Kai Bamarri .

Right, that's why she was here. She waved, smiling faintly.

"Oh, hey Kai."

 

[Kai Bamarri]

Kai looked up as someone said his name. He was so distracted, he hadn’t even noticed Iris standing nearby.

<Hi.>

He glanced down at the flowers in her hand, only vaguely understanding their significance. People brought flowers to friends and relatives when they were in the hospital, right?

<Are you here for somebody?>

Iris Arani​

 

[Iris Arani]

"Mm. I wanted to check in on you, really." Iris seemed to have forgotten the flowers, though as she glanced to her hand to follow Kai Bamarri 's gaze she blinked. Then held them up. "Right! Here." Why she brought them she wasn't too sure. Master Valery said it was good to bring someone in the hospital flowers. Or was that something she saw on the holotv? She wasn't sure, though her gaze drifted off as she got lost in her thoughts again.

"Are you feeling better?"

 

[Kai Bamarri]

Kai blinked. She was here to see him? That was unexpected.

Still a bit wide-eyed, he took the flowers she offered him. They varied in species and color, but harbored no scent beyond the vague “fresh” smell of florist-bought plants.

<Yeah,> he answered. <They discharged me early. Said they needed the bacta tank for more at-risk patients.>

Iris was starting to get spacey again, staring off into the distance as though tangled in a daydream. Kai scratched his head with his free hand.

<Why me?> he asked suddenly, clearly wanting to know why she had decided to visit him in particular.

Iris Arani​

 

[Iris Arani]

Why him? The question cut through the fog of her spacing out as she looked back towards Kai Bamarri . If anything, she looked more confused by the question than he likely was with her being here in the first place.

"Should I not have..?" She frowned. Not at him, but more towards herself. Retreating back into her mind. Was this incorrect? People were hard to figure out. "I'm sorry if I shouldn't of."

 

[Kai Bamarri]

Sensing he had made her uneasy with his question, Kai shook his head vigorously.

<No, it’s just that I’m not used to it.>

The bluntness of his admission was offset by the jagged edges of his emotions as he tried to explain. That eternal loneliness that had haunted him ever since he was born from a bolt of lightning striking marble—of course he wasn’t used to people knowing him, let alone showing care.

Okay, fine, maybe that was an exaggeration. But the people he knew who cared about him were very busy people. Damsy was the leader of the Sanctorium; Aeris was a Councilor; Claudia couldn't get around too well in her hoverchair, and Dag was… well, Dag. Some of it was his fault for not wanting to bother his few friends, but never in his life had anyone been there when he came out of the hospital. He had always walked home alone.

<People usually only do this stuff for people they know, but you and I have only met once before.> He looked at the flowers again, his brow furrowed and lips parted, then at her. <Thanks. I appreciate it.>

Iris Arani​

 

[Iris Arani]

Oh. Well. Iris smiled and nodded, clearly relieved that she hadn't crossed a line she wasn't aware of. It wouldn't of been the first time, though she'd never cared before. Learning to be a Jedi, learning to manage the colors she saw, it'd changed her. Huh. Her smile softened as the thought crossed her mind and she realized just how far she came since her unfortunate meeting with the slaver- Oh, she was drifting again.

She turned her gaze back to Kai Bamarri . Well. Now that there wasn't a constant threat it was easy to notice she never actually looked at him. Instead her gaze drifted around, looking towards the colors that emanated from him it like all things connected to the Force. "You stopped me from being eaten. Well.. Anymore than I was." Her voice trailed off as her eyes fell to her still bandaged forearm.

"Do you like them? I can't say I've ever gotten flowers for someone. Or been given flowers. I'm not sure how it works."

 

[Kai Bamarri]

Ah. That made a bit more sense. She was doing this out of gratitude, because he had helped her.

<They’re nice.> He cupped a hand around the bouquet, hugging it closer. His hands looked strangely unreal, like they were made from wax; an obvious facsimile. Ask any artist, and they will tell you that hands are the hardest part of the body to replicate in form.

As for the protocol regarding the giving of flowers, he shrugged. <I think you’re supposed to only give roses to people you love. There’s some other symbolism based on what type of flowers you give, but I don’t know if it matters that much or means the same thing across cultures.>

People were walking past them, entering and exiting the hospital. Kai took a step down the stairs, his descent slow as he was still talking to Iris.

<Do you live around here?>

Iris Arani​

 

[Iris Arani]

"Roses, huh.." She hummed, tilting her head to look around again. Scanning the world, the colors. Love? Were there people in love around here? Once more Iris's attention was pulled by just a single word, one she'd been curious about. That was a danger for the Jedi. Passion. Right. She'd learned that not too long ago. Oh. Kai Bamarri moved. Her gaze pulled back to him, watching for a moment.

No matter how much she drifted, his voice speaking in her mind wasn't something she could miss or ignore. "Ossus, not here. Truthfully I think we were just here to visit the temple and help. We'll be here longer though, to help where we can. Do you live close by?"

 

[Kai Bamarri]

<I do.> He paused, gathering his thoughts. <I used to live at the Jedi Temple here. But since it was destroyed during the Maw attack, the Jedi have been living in safehouses around Coruscant, or they moved offworld.>

Technically speaking, he’d been living in a designated safehouse—the Reef was listed as one, and a few Jedi had taken refuge there. On the other hand, Damsy had told him not to talk about the Reef with strangers. It was dangerous for non-Sithspawn to know about their little sanctuary.

Iris Arani​

 

[Iris Arani]

The Jedi temple was attacked? Iris frowned at the thought. Though, given everything else she'd seen and been told, didn't it make sense? The Sith had come here to kill. She didn't like the idea, but it didn't change the reality. "I'm sorry." It was all she could think to say.

It was only now she realized that Kai Bamarri was walking down the stairs. So Iris followed. She didn't have anything else to do, and 'talking' with him had her far more focused than any other conversation she had. Maybe she should le- oh!

"Can you teach me how to talk like you do? I think it might help me focus better."

 

[Kai Bamarri]

Kai inclined his head in uncertainty as he walked down the steps, eventually reaching the bottom. Telepathy was his first language, and he hadn’t learned it so much as it had been intuitive—the free and open sharing of his thoughts and feelings with his guardian.

<I dunno,> he answered truthfully. <I’m just a Padawan learner. I’ve never taught anyone else anything before.>

Jem Gaelor, another Jedi Padawan—and Dag’s apprentice, much to Kai’s bitter resentment—had belittled him for his use of telepathy. Other people seemed to find it odd at best, uncomfortable at worst. It overwhelmed them. Yet Iris thought it could help her focus better?

The more he considered it, it started to make sense. <I do this mainly because it’s faster and easier for people to understand me, and because I can control who I project my thoughts towards. I could be having completely different conversations with different people simultaneously, if we were all using telepathy.>

After a little while of walking down the street, he nodded. <Maybe I could teach you. When do you want to start?>

Iris Arani​

 

[Iris Arani]

"You control who can hear you?" That alone actually sounded plenty useful, for various different things. Actually, could he- No, she was in her head again. These questions were better to actually ask aloud. She followed after Kai Bamarri , hands clasped behind her back. Right, they were walking.. Somewhere? Her gaze drifted around, once more observing the colors around them. So many people, doing so many thing- No. Stop.

Then he offered. She blinked, focusing on Kai. Then smiled.

"Whenever is fine with you. I know you're still healing, right? So when you're better?"

 

[Kai Bamarri]

<I heal fast.> Kai looked around. <We can do it now. Probably not a good idea to do it here, though.>

His eyes moved upwards, toward the skies, then he turned back to Iris and held out his hand—clearly asking for her to take it. <I know someplace quieter.>

Iris Arani​

 

[Iris Arani]

Oh, now? Iris tilted her head, but there wasn't any reason for her not to go along. Sides, Valery would be happy if she learned some extra skills right? So she took Kai Bamarri 's hand, smiling and nodding. "Alright. Where?"

 

[Kai Bamarri]

Once she took his hand, Kai slung her arm around his neck and wrapped his arm around her waist. With his free hand he reached for the nearest rooftop; the flesh of his fingers extended like a grapple, hooking onto the ledge—and they were off.

His acrobatics around the city were the closest thing Kai had to flying, and as one would expect, he was utterly addicted to the glory of the wind through his hair and the feeling of weightlessness as he defied gravity. Iris needn’t worry; she was safely in his grasp. If she started to slip, he’d simply grow an extra arm to catch her with.

Eventually they reached the rooftop of a building overlooking the sea. It was indeed a quiet place, remote and somehow far from the hustle and bustle of the ecumeopolis despite existing right in the middle of it. It had risen above the city’s woes.

Kai set Iris down on her own two feet. <How’s this for a classroom?>

Iris Arani​

 

[Iris Arani]

Iris tilted her head curiously as Kai Bamarri hooked her arm around his shoulder. What was he doing? Oh, right. "What are you do-" And they were off. For a moment, she just stared blankly ahead. Too surprised to react at first. They were.. Flying? Something like flying. The surprise turned to full on joy. Her gaze shifted around them as they soared over people's heads, buildings, all of it. She'd almost fall out of his grasp simply because of that excitement. Trying to more freely feel the wind over her skin.

This was drastically different from when she was flying a ship. The glass kept her from feeling the air like this.

Then they landed. Iris stumbled half a step before standing up straighter. She was all smiles and giggles, grinning back to Kai. She wasn't even focused on the idea this was the classroom for what she'd asked. "That was great! Can you do that all the time?" Iris didn't wait for an answer. Or, more aptly, she got distracted again. Her head tilted to the side as she looked at him, his colors.

The colors around them. It was quiet here. Peaceful. But the swirling shades were everywhere. Not overwhelming like outside the hospital. Beautiful and calming. She turned from him, her eyes closing so she could just focus on the colors.

 

[Kai Bamarri]

Kai's mind was alight with laughter. <Yes! I get around like this all the time.>

Memories that didn't belong to him had made him love this pseudo-flight. He'd inherited it from a friend, if you will.

After a while of waiting for a response from her, he realized Iris had spaced out again. Hesitating, he rested his fists on his hips and finally gave up. <Let's get started. Telepathy is a little like a Jedi mind trick, except you make yourself known. You aren't fooling people into thinking your thoughts are theirs…>

Iris Arani​

 

[Iris Arani]

Oh, right.

For the first time in a while she actually felt embarrassed that she got lost in her own head. Kai Bamarri didn't bring her here to observe the sights, though she certainly wanted to stay here and paint at some point. Another time, for sure. Kai's voice as ever cut through the colors as Iris glanced towards him. "Oh, like a mind trick." She nodded once, smiling brightly.

"How do you do that?"