Private I Solemnly Swear, I'm Up To No Good

[Lily Rhodes]

Of course she wasn't going to hurt her. Lily knew that, this was less about fear and more that she was in the presence of a legend. And she had also manged to piss said legend off.

Granted, now that Valery had her wallet back, she was more concerned with Lily's safety than she was with apprehending a criminal.

"Of course." Lily said, looking back up, her cheeks pink with embarrassment. "I knew that, i just...nevermind..."

She bit her lower lip, trying to recover her decorum and the confidence she had started out with.

The mention of the firefist galaxy seemed to pull Lily back into focus, her eyes lighting up. "Its amazing, kinda ended out there by accident but I got so much from it, a ship, a home, hellni even found family...sorta. And the nagai were terrifying but also really helpful and I am rambling, so I'm gonna stop."

She gave Valery a sheepish grin. "I am sorry, for stealing your wallet... just...always wanted to pick pocket a Jedi. Though I probably shouldn't admit that..."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Denon

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Outfit: Casual | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters
Tag: Lily Rhodes

"It's okay," Valery said with a soft sigh. "Let's just forget about what happened and move on, alright?" There was still the matter of Lily having stolen many more wallets, but perhaps being caught like this was a good enough lesson. If it wasn't, she'd hopefully find a way to earn credits without risking her own life.

But that was her own challenge.

At least the mention of the Firefist Galaxy seemed to excite her. Valery couldn't help but smirk at the reaction and gently shook her head when she apologized, "It's alright. You're clearly fond of that place and what it did for you." She then paused and glanced down at her wallet.

"As for this, it's alright. I suppose I should give you some credit for being able to snatch it. If you had tried a few weeks from now, I wouldn't have caught you either." She let her hand settle over her stomach and sighed. Pregnancy was going to slow her down quite a lot, so she'd have to be more careful.

"...I also hope I didn't get you hurt during the chase."

 

[Lily Rhodes]

Lily shook her head. "I've fallen over my own feet and down more damage, you're good." Her eyes flicked down to the hand cradling her stomach and a pang of guilt ran through her. It was momentary, there was no way she could have known, she couldn't punish herself for ignorance.

Now what? She had wallets crammed in her pockets, jewellery to be sold for more credits. Maybe this would be enough to fuel her ship? Maybe she could finally get off Denon. Right now, a Master Jedi was standing talking to her. there was an opportunity to learn, and Lily did not like to let those slip away from her.

"So I know this is gonna sound crazy, considering I just tried to steal from you, but...do you want to grab some food?"

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Denon

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Outfit: Casual | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters
Tag: Lily Rhodes

"As long as you're not hurt," Valery said with a dip of her head. The idea of losing her wallet of pictures, mixed with all the hormones and emotions of pregnancy, had made her pursuit perhaps a little too much. She usually wouldn't be so willing to smack around a thief, but even a Jedi Master couldn't always be perfect.

Not in her current condition, anyway.

Lily then made an offer that snapped her thoughts back to the woman. Grab food with her? After she just tried to steal her wallet? Valery blinked, then offered a smile, "Of course. You know any good places around here?" Perhaps this was a chance to help Lily, or at least learn to understand her a bit better.

Some company on this Force-forsaken planet was very much welcomed, too.

 

[Lily Rhodes]

Lily beamed in response. Not only had she successfully pickpocketed the Sword of the Jedi (yes, it still counted despite being caught) but she was going to have food with her too. It was an opportunity too good to pass up.

"There's a great noodle bar up not too far from here. Come on, I'll show you."

Lily led the way, her hands tucked in her pockets to resist the urge to swipe anything else as it passed them. She'd gotten enough for today.

"So, how come you're here, if you were attacked last time why would you come back?"

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Denon

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Outfit: Casual | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters
Tag: Lily Rhodes

"Noodles sound great."

Valery smiled in return and began following after Lily. Usually, a simple walk down the street was a relaxing thing for her, but out here on Denon, not so much. Her eyes scanned every alleyway and met the gaze of whoever stared at her just a second too long. As if she was daring them to try anything, and scare them off from doing so in the process.

Denon was perhaps the one planet where she could never be at ease.

This naturally sparked a question from Lily as well, and Valery answered, "A friend of mine lives here. I was visiting her and wanted to pick a few things up on the way back. But, for some reason, every time I visit this planet, something happens." The stories were wild, but she didn't want to trouble Lily with her personal hatred for Denon.

"Do you travel between planets? Or do you spend most of your time here?"

 

[Lily Rhodes]

"Your friend has terrible choices in living locations." Lily commented with a shake of her head. "I travel between. Denon was only supposed to be a pit stop, but a job fell through and I don't have enough fuel to get to my next one so..." she shrugged "Been here a couple weeks longer than I intended but I'm almost at a point where I can get airborne again and get off this dump."

The noodle bar was tucked down a side street, Lily scanned the patrons inside to make sure she'd not picked any of their pockets before ducking inside and picking a table close to the door.

She tucked on leg up underneath her as she settled into the booth. "I've been planet hopping for a solid year, didn't want to come here. Too much like Coruscant, and if I can avoid going back there, I will."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Denon

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Outfit: Casual | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters
Tag: Lily Rhodes

"I couldn't agree more." Denon was a nasty place, but she had already given a piece of her mind about it before. No need to anger herself again, thinking about how terrible this planet could be. "Ouch," Valery commented when she mentioned being stuck on this planet of all places.

"You know, fuel isn't really a problem for me. If you'd like, I can get you enough to leave this place behind." If it kept her from pickpocketing and getting herself in trouble, it was an investment worth while.

Meanwhile, Valery followed after Lily and plopped down in the booth herself. One leg carefully over the other, and her back comfortably nestled in. She already made eye contact with a waiter, and he was quick to turn and make his way over, "I'll take whatever she's having, and put it on my tab." She wasn't going to have Lily pay for anything.

Not with stolen credits.

"Don't blame you there. You should pick somewhere nice for your next stop. Plenty of choices, you know?"

 

[Lily Rhodes]

Lily was taken aback at the offer of fuel, she hadn't expected it, especially after what she'd done today. It completely short circuited her brain. She was still staring at her in shock when the waiter looked at her for her order.

"I... uh... two house specials." she didn't even look at the menu, handing them up to him, not taking her eyes of Valery. "thanks, but uh...you don't...you don't have to do that." Was it rude to turn such an offer down? Why was she turning it down? Pride? Shame? Probably both. "I've been saving, I should have enough."

Saving...stealing...same thing right?

Well it was in her case.

"There's a job waiting for me at Stennaros, when I do eventually get there. something small, but enough to earn me enough credits to be flying freely again." She wasn;t for one second going to tell Valery that it was a smuggling run....into Sith Order territory. She was giving her distinct vibes that said if she did find out, she'd find a way to ground her.

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Denon

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Outfit: Casual | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters
Tag: Lily Rhodes

"I don't, but I'd like to. You could use your credits wherever you go. It's better than just scraping by." Valery wasn't going to force Lily to accept the offer, of course, but she hoped that a little nudge — a small act of kindness — would resonate with the younger woman. Or, at the very least, that it'd keep her from ending up on planets like Denon. With her skills, she could make credits without risking her life.

Though, Valery had a feeling she was a danger magnet.

"Flying freely, hm?" Valery asked. "What are you hoping to see or visit? Or just going from one job to another?" Her husband had done something like that for a while as a spacer, so she understood the draw.

Not something she'd ever want for herself, but some loved that freedom.

 

[Lily Rhodes]

Lily found herself caught in a dilemma. You never turned down free credits, but she had tried to steal from Valery, so it came with a sense of...shame. It was like the Jedi she'd tried to pickpocket as a kid, that had caught her in the act and handed her the credits out of pity. It made her angry for she stupidest of reason.

She hated being pitied.

She started to chew her lip, trying to work out if she was angry at the charity or ashamed of it. Her eyes had slid to stare at the table, becoming unfocused, her attention inward. Until Valery's voice cut through her thoughts. Lily blinked and snapped her gaze back up to her with a shrug. "I just pick a direction and fly, sometimes there's work there, sometimes its just a feeling I'm following. I was taught to trust my instincts so I fly by them."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Denon

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Outfit: Casual | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters
Tag: Lily Rhodes

"No wonder you end up in interesting places," Valery said while she set back in her chair, "It wouldn't surprise me if your connection to the Force has guided you to places you need to be. Though I hope that's not what brought you here." She grinned and idly twirled some of her long hair around her index finger. It'd be a shame if the Force had helped her find Denon, but at the same time, it was the reason they met now.

Maybe it wasn't a coincidence after all.

"Is this connection you have something you're trying to explore more or learn more about?" Valery then asked. Uncontrolled use of the Force could be problematic, so who trained her?

Was she still learning?

 

[Lily Rhodes]

"Sometimes its really clear where I'm being pulled, others, the reason might take a couple of weeks to present itself." She gave a small smile. Adjusting herself in her seat to tuck one leg underneath her.

"The connection wasn't always so strong." she explained, brushing her hair behind her ear "I...um... something happened on Jaibrek, I helped a friend and the result was the Nagai telepaths inadvertently tore the connection wide open. So I trained with them, and also with my friend. It part of the reason I came back from the Firefist, to see what else I could learn. There are so many different traditions and pools of knowledge of the force and how to use it, that it seems like madness to stick to only one."

She shrugged. "I guess you could say that I'm just trying to figure out where I sit in the force, and what it is I want to do with that."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Denon

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Outfit: Casual | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters
Tag: Lily Rhodes

"That's very respectable and I encourage you to keep learning," Valery said with a soft smile. A Jedi's path was that of an eternal student, but even Force-sensitives who weren't Jedi should continue to learn. It helped them control what could otherwise be dangerous, and perhaps gave them skills that could help make lives easier. Not just their own, but hopefully that of other people as well.

But there were risks to consider, too.

"I... am curious, though," Valery then continued. "Have you been introduced to the Dark Side of the Force already? Either felt its call or dealt with someone or something that called on it?" She tilted her head and waited for the woman's answer without judging too soon.

It was an important conversation to have.

 

[Lily Rhodes]

Lily's eyes widened at the question, her mind racing back to Velok, to his destruction of the Toff raiding ship...the bodies he'd left behind, to the truth of the origins of his curse. "Um..."

She was graced with a few extra seconds to contemplate her response by the arrival of their food. It took every ounce of her self control not to fill her mouth with noodles to avoid answering her.

"Technically, yes. My friend...he..." she shifted uncomfortably, not wanting to get anyone in trouble before letting out a sigh. "He used to be a sith... he told me about the things he'd done in pursuit of power...he hated that I could forgive him so easily for them." She started to chew her lip nervously. "He's not a bad person... not anymore. So yes, I've seen it, I know of the risks. Which I am assuming that was where you were going to go with that?"

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Denon

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Outfit: Casual | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Blasters
Tag: Lily Rhodes

Valery's eyes never quite dipped away from Lily, even as she thought and seemed to want to avoid the question entirely. It was an important one to ask, especially with someone who had potential, but wasn't in an environment where people helped her control her abilities. Someone could try to corrupt her during her travels now, or perhaps she'd have her own encounter with the Dark Side and not know what to do.

Her answer, however, suggested that something else kept her from speaking about it. At least, for a short moment.

"You don't have to convince me that people can change, you know." Valery chuckled and reached for her food. "The man you saw on those pictures — my husband — is the son of one of the most dangerous Sith Lords in the Galaxy. He was once a Sith himself because of that, and now he's a Jedi Master. One of the leaders of the Order, even." She paused to take a bite from her food and offered Lily a smile.

"I only asked because it's good to be aware of what the Dark Side can force you to do. Who it can force you to be."

 

[Lily Rhodes]

"Oh." The tension that had built in her shoulders fell away. She had not expected that response, she had expected to be fighting to defend Velok. "I...Sonere still tries to warn my away from him. She's one of the Nagai Masters. I... thought you might try and do the same."

She wrapped a happier hand around her bowl, twirling noodles around her chopsticks before devouring them. She hadn't realised how hungry she was.

"Does the darkside really force you to do things, or does it just exaggerate desires that were already there?" She asked her eyes on her food, letting her thoughts run freely from her mouth without a filter. "I think its possible to use both, and not fall into the trap of becoming consumed by either."

Valery Noble