It's A Wonderful Life (Day)

[Valae Heavenshield]

Life Day had arrived.

It was a very special day here on Kashyyyk, and the Silver Jedi would be celebrating along with the Wookies tonight. This holiday was a time-honored tradition, a time to celebrate family, joy, and harmony. Though the traditions of Life Day had truly spread to many corners of the galaxy, the Silver Jedi and their allies would have the honor this holiday on its home world.

The coastal settlement of Kachirho would play host to a large event hosted by the Order of the Silver Jedi. While this place had a long history of battle, tonight it would be a site of peace.

Strings of lights had been hung from the branches of the towering trees, fresh garlands adorned the docks, and there was even a fresh dusting of snow on the ground. At the entrance to the Life Day festival, there were rustic wooden crates full of woolen blankets that visitors were free to use. There was also a table nearby that was dressed in a red cloth, there were small wrapped gifts for each person to take as they came in -- a small token of appreciation.

The grounds would open up into a large clearing, where there were tables of festive food and warm beverages waiting. An empty table had been reserved for the cookie potluck, and participants would be directed to place their baked goods there with a small label. There were trees ready to be decorated, and one very special tree -- there were small wooden plaques with string tied to the ends. Here one could write a small wish for the coming new year or a special sentiment meant for loved ones.

A large bonfire sat in the middle of the open space, making a perfect spot for crowds to gather and enjoy the warmth. But there was also a large tent off to the side for those that wanted to seek a bit of shelter from the nighttime air.

All in all, it was bound to be a joyous occasion.

Spoiler

TLDR: Come enjoy some Life Day festivities! SJO and allies welcome. Don’t forget to grab a gift for yourself!
Activities:
Gather around the bonfire, decorate the Life Day tree with ornaments or handwritten sentiments/wishes, bring a baked good for the cookie potluck, enjoy some hot cider or hot chocolate, sing songs, and much more.

-------------------------
The Grandmaster had a red velvet sack slung over her shoulder, and she hauled it over to the Quicksilver, her ride for the night. Hefting the bag of toys into the snow speeder, she then jumped in herself. Tonight she was dressed in a red sweater dress with a pair of dark leggings, and boots that had some seriously pointed toes… there were even tiny little bells on the ends. The last piece to her ensemble was a green hat; it even had pointed ears sewn to the sides that were a bit oversized, to say the least.

Well, if even if she felt a bit silly, it was all for a very good cause.

And it was really nothing compared to the outfit that [member="Cassius Droma"] had to wear for the evening. Of course, like a good pilot, he had readily volunteered to drive the Quicksilver tonight. However, he had not been expecting to dress the part of Wyyrkrisoookringle -- a notable Wookie Life Day Figure. After some convincing, Valae had sent him away that afternoon with quite the costume – red pants with suspenders, a long red overcoat that was trimmed with fur, and a matching hat. There was also a long white beard. And a bit of extra padding needed to fill out the rather large waistband of the pants.

Valae had to say, he played the part well…but she did have to quickly stifle a chuckle.

“Thank you for being such a good sport about this!” Valae called up to Cassius, flashing an apologetic smile. “Well, the last of the toys have been loaded, so I think we’re good to go here. Ready when you are!”

The two would be making a grand entrance to the festival shortly. Along with the younglings from Silver Rest, there would be Wookie children from the nearby villages present to join in the festivities. Each would surely be looking forward to a visit from Wyyrkrisoookringle in person, and a special gift of their own. Valae clapped her gloved hands together, this was going to be quite a lot of fun.

Tag: SJO & Allies

 

[Cassius Droma]

When the Grandmaster of the Silver Jedi Order says she needs a pilot, you say yes. When she asks you to then wear a ridiculous costume that looked like someone had washed Jedi robes with a red flight suit, you hesitate for a second, then say yes anyways. As Cassius Droma, in the guise of Wyyrkrisoookringle, walked out to the Quicksilver snowspeeder, he had some serious reservations. He’d never really been the best with children, and not only was he supposed to be the center of their attention, but he was supposed to be getting into the spirit of a holiday he’d never even heard of until a few weeks ago.

Despite all that, he owed a debt to not only the Silver Jedi, but Master Kitra specifically. She’d overseen his treatment after his battle at sector 27-AJ, and had been a comforting presence when he needed it. So, he had on the big red suit, lined with white fur, a warm hat of the same color scheme, and of course, a shiny black belt and even shinier boots to pull it all together.

Apparently, the snow and cold weather was ‘festive’, but for a man that had grown up on Rinn, it was just… normal. Although, it did remind him of home, so he had to admit that it filled him with ironically warm feelings.

He eased into the pilot’s seat of the Comet-class snowspeeder, finding the controls easy to manipulate as it was a SEC product. Valae, in a similarly festive but not nearly as flamboyant costume, called up to him from her position supervising the toys. Cassius shot her a rather critical, if playful look. “Whatever makes the kids happy, right?” he asked. He fired up the engines, listening to the calming whine get higher in pitch as they became ready.

Cassius shot Valae another glance. “We’re even after this, by the way.”

Looking forward again, the young man took in a deep breath, trying to psych himself up. “Alright, here we go!” he exclaimed, gripping the controls. The craft lifted up, and they eased out of the hangar bay and into the night sky. They became silhouetted against the moon, invoking imagery reminiscent of the very mythical characters they were trying to emulate.

[member="Valae Kitra"]

 

[Stephanie Swail]

Part of Stephanie Swail was glad to not wear a dress today – not that she wasn’t getting used to it, but she felt a bit silly trying to look all glamorous and that. No; this was a celebration on home soil with the natives who had welcomed them. Kachirho was the stage, and Life Day was upon the planet of Kashyyyk which it was set. Time to celebrate her favourite time of year.

She had told Jody about the event, and hoped to see her Ranger friend have a few hours off at least. As for Leafy? He was rolling right beside her as she walked across the grass stretching away from the Silver Rest going down to Kachirho – the large nest of trees arching over the bay. Decorations had been hung high and colour was vibrant.

”Now this is what I call a celebration, huh Leafy? Look at that.”

”Heeehoooop.”

”Yes. I told you. Life Day. Do you never listen to me?” Stephanie shifted the crate she was carrying full of treats.

”Ooooorowwwww!”

Stephanie looked down at the BB unit and sighed.

”You aren’t going to be hung up anywhere as a decoration, will you stop? You’re worse than me. Just enjoy the atmosphere – you may even enjoy yourself too.”

She giggled, as Leafy shook his domed head. The pair walked – or rolled- across towards Kachirho and she saw many figures about now illuminated by lanterns, lights, torches and the roaring bonfire as a central point. Tents were erected for festivities to be held both inside and outside, whatever the people wanted.

The moon was rich and full and Stephanie smiled to herself at the warmth that wrapped around her from the Force. The natural Force, pulled in from the joy and unity of everyone at Kachirho. Would more of her allies be here? Would members of the Confederacy surprise her? Would she see [member="Srina Talon"] or [member="Darth Metus"] here or were they still shrouded in their wonderfully interesting dark auras. She smiled to herself – truly wonderful characters she had been lucky to meet.

Stephanie came to a table with a luxury red cloth and set the crate down and started unpacking small bags of chocolate, frosted with edible icing to look like snow. Bitesize treats for young and old, she set them out as Leafy took it all in around him.

[member="Valae Kitra"] | [member="Cassius Droma"]

 

[Red Guard Kaytia]

The Guard's Red Tie Interceptor suddenly came in from hyperspace, the hum of the craft echoed through out the cockpit the several different glowing buttons shining upon the Guard's cybernetic face her brown eyes looking upon the planet debating to herself whether to "crash" the Life Day party or to actually attend it. It had been a few decades since the aged woman had attend any type of party seeing them as a waste of her time. Regardless the Red Guard proceeded to fly towards the planet eventually the Guard spotted several bright lights in the distance.

Which had temporarily blinded the Guard but confirmed to her that their was activity on the planet after all, with her confirmation the Guard would try to find a landing spot for her shuttle which eventually the aged warrior did after a few minutes of surveying the area the trees around the shuttle would shake and tremble around as she slowly landed the craft underneath a pale of broken down trees and other vegetation of the sort. As the Red Claded Guard stepped out of the craft she would place her crimson red helmet and long robes on before making her way towards the sight of festivities.

[member="Cassius Droma"] [member="Valae Kitra"]

 

[Malok]

P R E V I O U S L Y​

"Master! We've been invited to a Life Day event!"

"It's too karking cold."

"But...this is an excellent opportunity to improve diplomatic relations with our new allies."

"We can improve our relations somewhere not cold."

"I suppose I cannot force you to go, but the Grandmaster invited us. We can't simply ignore it."

"She could invite us somewhere not cold."

A very long suffering sigh. "Well...I suppose I will have to represent the Confederacy in your place. Perhaps I will invite one of our comrades to accompany me? I wonder if Admiral Miles is busy...or perhaps High Sovereign Ice would attend? It is rather fitting to invite a man named Ice to a winter event."

"...Don't you karking blackmail me."

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Master."

N O W​

In true Srina fashion, she always got what she wanted.

To say that Darth Metus was not in the holiday spirit was an understatement. Some might say that his heart was three sizes too small at this particular moment. However. The young, alabaster woman had the Sith in a state of being wrapped around her gorram finger. As such, together, they arrived into the Winter Wonderland just as the festivities were beginning. I h-h-hope you're happy. seethed the Sith, hissing directly into the woman's mind.

And thus did the man garbed in two coats lead the way to the bonfire.

Because if he was going to hang around, he was going to thaw first.

[member="Srina Talon"], [member="Valae Kitra"], [member="Cassius Droma"]

 

[Srina Talon]

Srina planned to pick up two of the complimentary gifts stationed by the entryway when they left for the evening. In her arms, she balanced a gilded tray of fresh baked cookies made out of Namana Fruit extract and topped with sugar glaze. They appeared edible but whether or not they would kill someone was still up in the air. The kitchen that belonged to the apartment the Vicelord occupied in Golbah City looked like a disaster zone. There were dozens of failed cookie attempts with dough stuck to the ceiling.

The attendant droids had nearly imploded when she called for help with cleanup. They were probably still working on it and would be, very late into the evening. Srina herself felt like she was walking on air. Namana produced a feeling of pleasantness in small amounts but the apprentice had foolishly taken to tasting her creations. While the majority had terrible, horrible, and should have been marked as toxic waste, the effects of the Namana had compounded. She felt euphoric and more than a little silly.

In the end, Srina was just proud that the cookies looked nice, even if they potentially had the consistency of rocks.

The ground was covered with a light dusting of snow. Everything was beautiful. The small lights, the trees, the decorations all caught her attention. The full moon made her feel like a little girl again, attending vigils in the service for the Bright Lady, while the sound of laughter made her sigh. The silver eyed beauty glanced toward her Master, who was huddling in his coats, sulking like a surly youngling. Srina didn’t seem to feel the cold the same way he did, or, it just didn’t bother her as much.

Darth Metus hissed in her mind and the apprentice laughed freely, the sound high and lilting, like the silver bells that hung from tree limbs. “Don’t be such a baby, Master.”

“Smile. It won’t break your face. I swear it.”, Srina spoke aloud, breath appearing in small white clouds. She had dressed warmly, wearing red and white, with thermal leggings and a long sleeve tunic. On top, she wore a rose-colored cloak with white fur lining the hood. Equally white boots ran up over her knees and flaxen hair fell in loose waves, tucked into her hood.

“Let’s drop off the cookies and then we’ll get you something warm to drink. Okay?”, she questioned, letting her mind brush against his, trying to sooth away the bitterness.

Srina headed toward the area designated for the potluck cookie fest and set down her tray, before writing “CIS” on the tag, versus her name. They had arrived on behalf of the faction in order to show Confederate support.

Not to mention that if the cookies were doom cookies she could deny having made them. Turning back toward Darth Metus she reached out and linked her arm through his. “I can hear your teeth chattering. You really don’t do well in the cold do you?”

The small woman thought she saw [member="Stephanie Swail"] in the crowd but lost her a moment later, hidden somewhere between happy parents, and twittering children. Srina couldn’t help but enjoy the night, at least for now, before the chill set in.

And the Namana fruit wore off.

[member="Darth Metus"] |[member="Stephanie Swail"]|[member="Valae Kitra"]|[member="Cassius Droma"]

 

[Malok]

Don't be such a baby, Master.

Smile. It won't break your face. I swear it.

Much akin to a kitten that had been sprayed with a bottle, the Sith continued to hiss vehemently. With every peal of laughter came a sassy, telepathic retort...in addition to additional souring of Darth Metus' mood. In response, Srina Talon did the one thing that most kitten owners did after such a travesty. She reached out and attempted to soothe the angst away by petting his psyche. She was lucky that she had a tray of cookies in balanced in her hands, as it was the only thing motivating him to remotely behave.

Because, frankly, the cookies looked amazing.

Sadly, Darth Metus was woefully ignorant of the World War Cookie that had went down in his apartment. He had spent the afternoon attempting to find something that could withstand the chill of Winter; as he practically skipped out on the season every year. Geonosis didn't snow. Ryloth rarely had snow. And he grew up on a desert planet - Mandalore. Snow and Darth Metus simply did not mix.

As such, the Namara cookies were alluring. Enough so that, once Srina had set the tray down, he plucked one into his frigid fingers. "Fine, lead the way." he said, surrendering as she snaked her arm through his. Of course, before she could protest, he attempted to bite down upon the dessert...only to find the consistency of beskar. He paused...but mama didn't raise no Nuna. His sulfuric eyes bored directly into her skull as his canines shattered the cookie, before he forced the jagged remains down his gullet.

His expression was a cross between betrayal and "how the heck do you mess up a cookie?"

But he didn't fuss...Because, for some reason, it felt as though he had knocked back a glass of Corellian Whiskey. Well, not in the feel good burn way, but the why is that Hutt suddenly attractive way.

"I wasn't built for cold." he began. "So you're just going to have to thaw me out later."

[member="Srina Talon"] had unleashed a monster.

[member="Stephanie Swail"] | [member="Valae Kitra"] | [member="Cassius Droma"]

 

[Stephanie Swail]

”Rrowwwwwwweee!”

Stephanie turned her head to the skies as soon as Leafy made his exclamation, and the tails of what looked like a TIE came down - [member="Red Guard Kaytia"] - over the distance to where the festivities were going on. Her eyes narrowed.

”There’s a rogue TIE over the ridge of Kachiro – I want a Ranger unit there at once to take apart the TIE if it becomes hostile and intercept the pilot. Nothing is going to ruin our day, not even one of Graf’s lone wolves.” Stephanie looked down to Leafy. ”Stay on that TIE. If it fires up or moves, you tell me, got it pal?”

”Ooobbeboop!” Leafy tooted, rolling his body forward and back, domed head turning in the direction of the TIE.

Stephanie looked back for a few seconds, rattled at the presence of a possible intruder from the Empire. Her hands went back to sorting out the bagged treats, this time with a little more urgency until the crate was empty and she put it under the clothed table out of the way.

A chill was in the air, and while knelt down the Jedi looked up into the crowd. They were here. Some Confederacy representatives. The Sith and the apprentice. A small smile broke on her face and she stood, taking two small bags of chocolate and Leafy following as she walked.

She had never tried to find people in a close proximity with the Force, but every day she was learning and developing. The auras of Lord Metus and Srina were strong and stuck out in amidst the Silver Jedi and Wookiee guests, and she edged this way and that to see the unmistakable silver hair of [member="Srina Talon"] and the tall frame of [member="Darth Metus"] standing there.

”Welcome to Kachiro,” she called out, holding the two bags out for their guests. ”Happy Life Day you two.”

[member="Cassius Droma"] | [member="Valae Kitra"]

 

[Valae Heavenshield]

Spoiler

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkFVVQrA2ys

Valae only grinned at the remarks made by Cassius. As he turned forward again, she reached up and gave his shoulder a pat with her mitten-clad hand. She did suppose that this made them even now. Take off was smooth, but her hands gripped the edge of her seat the best she could. The even air met them swiftly, and Valae had to reach up and slap a hand across the top of her hat to keep it from flying free. But as she glanced a small glance over the side of their snowspeeder, she marveled at the sight of Kashyyyk from this height. With the glowing lights strung up all around Kachiro, it was lovely.

In fact, it was quite magical.

On the ground, there were small wookie children – joined by some of the younglings – running through the festival area. They laughed and sang and waited for Mr. Kringle to arrive. And as some of their gazes took to the sky, there were shouts of glee.

“I see him!” Cried out one of the Silver Jedi younglings. “He’s here!”

Together the group of young ones began to gather near the Life Day Tree. As the bearded pilot brought them down for a gentle landing, he would quickly find himself surrounded by the waiting children. Some would even attempt to climb aboard to hug him. Valae laughed at the scene playing out before her, this truly what it was all about. It was so heartwarming to see the light in the eyes of the wookies and younglings alike. And then hands were held up expectantly at Valae, acting as Kringle’s helper.

“Happy Life Day!” She called out, and reached into the red velvet bags to retrieve the small gifts.

No doubt, the festival goers would see all of the ruckus, and perhaps they would be drawn over for a chance to see Wyyrkrisoookringlein person, too. Spotting her apprentice in the crowd, near two very familiar CIS figures – Valae gave a desperate wave in her direction.

“Hey, Steph!” She hollered, “Can you come snap a couple of pictures for us?”

After all, this festive display needed to be captured for posterity.

[member="Stephanie Swail"], [member="Cassius Droma"], [member="Darth Metus"], [member="Srina Talon"]

 

[Kira Novak]

Kira walked among the trees of Kachirho, taking in the lights that had been arranged in celebration of Life Day. She wore her favorite casual wear: dark pants with a gray long sleeved tee. Her jacket was zipped up tight around her body to avoid the chill coming off the water of the coastal village. The crunching of her boots on the light snow below sent shivers up her spine. She hated the sound it made, and cringed with every step, though she soon found herself getting used to it. The Padawan stopped at a table and looked at all the treats laid out upon it. She settled on a toasty cup of egg nog. The liquid warmed her bones, sending the chills that had infested in them running for their lives.

She continued to sip from her drink as she walked the grounds. She nodded her head at all the others in attendance, too nervous to say hello, but wanting to be involved and be part of the celebration all at the same time. Where's Jyoti, I wonder? Her Master had told her she would be there, but as of yet she was nowhere to be found. I know where she'll see me, it'll be impossible to miss. Kira made her way over to the large Life Day tree. It was adorned with small wooden plaques tied to the branches with string. Many of them already had wishes written on them, and she took her time to read them all. She spied an empty one on a nearby branch and pulled it off. Kira turned it over in her hands, thinking about what to put on it.

"What to write..." she said to herself, oblivious to anyone her may be around her.

 

[Cassius Droma]

With his full Wookiee garb, Cassius would be nigh unrecognizable. He’d even had a small vocabulator installed in the throat of the mask so that he could roar some Shyriiwook. It wasn’t capable of more than a few festive phrases and basic interactions, but it would probably do. Maybe with all of this, he could actually enjoy himself and wouldn’t be recognized. He even gave a little effort to mask or disrupt his Force signature.

He could hear the sounds of the children screaming in excitement before he was even close enough in the speeder to see their faces. As he carefully set the speeder down on the landing pad, he could see that the children were barely restrained against their parents from rushing out to see the childhood fantastical figure. When the rails hit the pad, though, they burst forth, a few even clambering up the sleigh to throw their tiny arms around them.

Cassius, or rather, Wyyrkrisoookringle roared “Happy Life Day!” in the Wookiee’s native tongue, which tickled the children, and even some of the adults, to no end. The older Wookiees could of course tell that it was just a human in a well-crafted Wookiee costume, but the children were none the wiser. Barely managing to get his oversized feet out of the craft due to the little hands reaching up to him, Wyyrkrisoookringle emerged from the sleigh speeder, one child on each arm. He roared again, filling the air with corresponding whoops from the Wookiees and laughter from the other children.

Managing to put the two children down, he turned back to the sleigh and started grabbing presents from the pouch that Master Kitra had and handing them to the children that had now entirely encircled him. They were ripped from his grasp, tiny hands shaking the boxes to try and determine what was within before actually opening it.

[member="Valae Kitra"] | [member="Stephanie Swail"] | [member="Darth Metus"] | [member="Srina Talon"] | [member="Kira Novak"]

 

[Srina Talon]

Sometimes, she wondered whom, between herself and Darth Metus, was the Master, and whom was the apprentice. He was barely making sense, levying thinly veiled complaints and childish whining within her mind, as if she were responsible for the snow on the ground. While she would have liked to take credit for it, that was not a skill she knew, not yet, anyway. The pale-skinned woman didn’t really notice when the Sith Lord picked up a cookie, too intent on the sights, versus caretaking a fussy dark sider.

She did hear the intensely loud crunch and turned toward her Master, a little horrified, having vaguely suspected that the particular weighty object could be broken down and used to load a slugthrower. She could feel his accusing eyes boring holes in her head, and while many would have shrunk away from his temper, she merely painted on an innocently cheeky expression. “Perhaps it would be better with milk.”

No, milk would not help. Nothing would change the fact that once the cookies had set they seemed just about as sturdy as permacrete. Srina truly didn’t know what she’d done wrong. She’d followed all of the directions, double checked the ingredients but still, they would serve happier lives as a discus.

Normally, Srina might have felt guilty about it, but her attention span waned almost instantly. Her arm slid through Darth Metus’s and she smiled breezily, nose crinkling cutely when snowflakes fluttered down in front of her. A particularly large puff landed on the tip of her nose and her eyes crossed as she tried to follow it. It melted, and the little Echani she laughed sweetly, the sound spilling from her like a waterfall made of musical chimes, capable of warming the coldest of hearts that overheard.

The Namana fruit had clearly affected her faculties.

Darth Metus informed her that he wasn’t built for the cold and she made a small pitying sound in response. It was birdlike, a mothering chirrup, meant to soothe his plight. “Do not worry Master we’ll find some way to warm you up. “

“If all else fails we could just let the children tie you securely to a tree branch so we can roast you over hot coals. That should do the trick.”, she responded, seeming entirely serious as she walked beside him, waving a dismissive hand in the chilly air. “We’ll just have to remember to turn you so you bake evenly on both sides. I read that on the HoloNet today.”

Just as they reached the roaring bonfire, wooden benches lining the area, Srina felt a familiar presence coming toward them. She turned on a dime, feather-light, and instead of her usual elegant and poised greeting she embraced Stephanie, both arms lingering around her neck for a moment. “Oh, Padawan Swail, you’re here…”, the apprentice greeted her fondly, giving her an extra squeeze before letting go, once she realized that the dark-haired Hapan was trying to gift them something. “It is so good to see you!”

“Happy Life Day.”, Srina responded, warmth in her tone as she happily accepted her goody bag, positively tickled pink. It was very, very, unusual behavior. “Thank you. We brought cookies to share but I must admit they’re an acquired taste. They are made with sugar. And more sugar. Lot’s, of sugar.”

“The recipe also called for a teaspoon of love, but, considering it’s a little hard to find in physical form I added Namana fruit instead. It seemed a close enough relation.”

At least the rock-solid cookies would make people happy. If their teeth didn’t fall out from the first few bites.

Srina grew a little distracted when children started running and gathering toward the Life Day Tree. What landed made her squint. She’d never been to a life day event before. Winter Solstice was common on Eshan but it was nothing like this. Nothing so light and simple. The red-cloaked apprentice stilled when another, equally familiar presence washed over her, and she squinted further.

What she saw did not match that which she felt through the Force.

“….What in the seven sisters is Cassius wearing…”

Was she seeing things? When a small elfin creature yelled for the Padawan the wintry apprentice, pink-cheeked, and very full of confusion, blinked hard. Was the Grandmaster an imp? An imp that wanted pictures?

Srina backed up, feeling the wooden bench at the back of her knees, an abruptly sat down with her back to the bonfire. She cast her Master a sidelong look, half expecting him to be dressed as an Ewok, and blinked a little owlishly. She still felt fine, joyous, even, but she also felt impaired. Some may not notice. Srina did.

“I think I’ve had too much Namana.”

[member="Cassius Droma"] | [member="Valae Kitra"] | [member="Stephanie Swail"] | [member="Darth Metus"]

 

[Micah tol Powl]

[member="Darth Metus"] might be complaining, but the Beorni couldn't have been happier with the weather.

The polar bear stood out against the backdrop of Wookiees, his ursine form and snowy coloration quite distinct from the arboreal natives that clambered about and swung through the trees. Which was something he definitely cared not to partake in. Beorni did not clambered. And they certainly did not swing through trees.

But, back to the weather.

The cold was not only relaxing, but it also aided in appreciating the hot cider that the Beorni was presently enjoying. With enough to share if anyone cared to join him. And there was the obligatory fruit cake. Sugar cookies. Chocolate cookies. Shortbread cookies. And even some no-bake variety concocted of a nut butter of some type. Enough that the bear's puffball tail could be seen to twitch happily as he sat there surrounded by good food, good drink, and the warm company of friends.

...provided such wasn't on the warm planet. Honestly, the snow was quite refreshing.

 

[Katrine Van-Derveld]

It was no secret by now Katrine loved parties. Life Day Parties though were pretty high up to regular drinking and dancing parties though when Katrine had heard their allies were throwing a Life Day party on Kashyyyk, she didn't have the fainte4st clue how people off Dathomir celebrated theirs. Theirs was festive, full of decorations and dancings and crafting their own gifts. Mother and Father bought her gifts same as Nono Seth bought Mother so many gifts while she lived with him so naturally, Katrine assumed Life Day was all that as she left her ship and used her speeder to get to the destination.

"This is going to be awesome. I didn't have time to make a lot of gifts, Katrine told Katria. Her new friend had agreed to come with her, which was an adventure in itself since Katria didn't really seem like the type of girl to wear dresses, something Kat couldn't begin to understand but then she was a princess in a lot of regards. They had eventually compromised on a pretty little thing in her Mother's closet which Katrine was happy about. "You know you can keep that dress right? There are so many in the closet, it won't miss it. And it looks great on you," Katrine reminded Katria as she made the speeder come to a halt near other vehicles, stepping out in her festive boots and adjusting her cloak over her exposed shoulders. It was a little cold. Katrine wasn't much used to the cold due to habit more than anything else.

She did get a chance to make a few gifts for her friends, with the traditional making of gifts for her parents and siblings even though the latter bit had now collected over the last few years since she hadn't spent Life Day with any of them. But Katrine couldn't stop herself from making them gifts since it was something she had always done. Besides, it made her feel better when she made them, thinking one day she could give each of them all the presents she had made. Now though, she had left her wrapped gifts in the back of the speeder, covered with a light cover so she didn't spoil the surprise. Now wasn't the time to be giving gifts, she had decided.

The girl had originally wanted both of her new friends to come with since Life Day was a time to be celebrated with people you cared about, which Katrine took very seriously but Karna had proven busy which she didn't understand. Sure, she'd been dragging him away from his work a lot but still, she didn't get it. Life Day was a celebration, no one worked on Life Day. "Let's find some eggnog," Katrine pointed out after a beat, slowly making her way up the tree where the celebrations were being held. It was strange wearing her full heel boots, she was more of a needlepoint heel girl to be fair and she tended to be pretty good at them in just about any situation as far as she was concerned but she did read up a bit on the planet's terrain and Katria had been so unwilling to wear proper heels that she ended up giving in herself and wearing shoes she had never worn before. On the way in, she'd spotted gifts, reaching her hands out and pulling them to her with the Force, extending one of them to Katria as she caught them. "I think these are for us," she pointed out before she ripped into the wrapping, pulling out something she'd never expected to see. It made Katrine stop, staring at the design. "What is this?" She asked, confusion evident in her voice as she looked back.

[member="Katria Vekarr"]

 

[Katria Vekarr]

This was ridiculous.

Only as they began to make their way from Katrine's ship towards the party on the back of a speeder did she realize just how horrible of a mistake she'd made. The dress picked up more wind than a wind tunnel on the plains of Dantooine and, if it weren't for the coat she'd chosen to wear, she feared she'd have frozen right there on the back of the speeder. The very idea enough to bring her thoughts back to when she'd been pressed to observe a few dozen dresses on Katrine's whim; her selection one she hoped would be more reasonable than at least half the others.

"I'm fracking freezing," she fumbled into words as she carefully kept herself on the speeder long enough for them to get to their destination. That very note brought her to no response as Katrine offered her the option to keep the dress she'd selected, opting not to answer than to be insulting in any way. Sure she appreciated the time she was getting to spend with her new blonde friend, but there were limits to the agent's generosity; and parties were clearly one of them. "Not even your body heat is enough to fend off this cold."

Tactless? Perhaps. But as the agent leaned closer to the blonde, she didn't regret the choice of words as they pulled up to the location of the Life Day party. As such, with an air of reluctance, an almost obviously placed pout marred the woman's face as Katrine left the speeder before her. A thought she would have lingered on more heavily were it not for the unwelcome and strange sensation of her boot choice as she climbed off the speeder herself. It took enough concentration not to fall immediately without the full support of her heel to distract her from being sour over the absence of warmth.

Straightening herself as best she could, visibly struggling with the boots for a good few moments as she followed closely behind Katrine, Katria was more than willing to accept the offer of some kind of beverage. What she hadn't anticipated, aside from the far-from-choice attire, was the presence of several other women from their ally's collective that were clearly going to a friendly awkwardness. Shrugging off that feeling for the time being, however, the young agent focused on Katrine long enough to see her pull a pair of gifts to herself with the gesture to hand one to her.

Shutting out the momentary discomfort of remembering just how intimately immersed in the Force Katrine was, let alone the majority of the people that were attending the party, the woman accepted the gift. Only to tuck it quietly away in a small nook near the others she could find later when the blonde opened hers to reveal unexpected contents. That was a gift she would save for later, though not too late as to appear rude.

"A distraction," the agent scoffed as she brushed past the blonde, took her hand and guided her towards where she could only have guessed they kept some kind of alcoholic beverage to blow over the tension.

If she was going to survive this holiday adventure, she was going to need a vast amount of alcohol. Stat.

[member="Katrine Van-Derveld"]

 

[Stephanie Swail]

”Wwwwwweww, oooeeeb”

Leafy started to engage with the local children, tootling after them and letting them even decorate his dome with some decorations and playing chase.

Stephanie squeezed [member="Srina Talon"] as a welcome, that gentle warm smile on her face again and comforted to see her friend and even the amusing chilly figure of her Master [member="Darth Metus"] obviously out of his comfort zone. The small goody bags were handed over and she stood back, folding her arms and nodding at their festive spread.

”This is how we do things in the Silver Jedi, Srina. You knew we were a peculiar bunch from that start really. Or was that just me?” She chuckled and tipped her chin over to where [member="Cassius Droma"] was getting lots of attention from the children and now Leafy. ”And THAT is Wyyrkrisoookringle, a figure from the Wookie celebration of Life Day. You know, he brings warmth and cheer to all as well as presents. Only if you’ve been good of course.”

She waved to her elven looking Master [member="Valae Kitra"] and nodded.

”Just going to take some snaps – you help yourself to food and then we must catch up. It’s been forever, ok?”

Stephanie smiled and squeezed Srina’s arm before walking over to where the eager crowd was clapping for Cassius.

”Ok, Master, get in position everyone!” She snapped a shot on her hand held device that took pictures as well as operated as a datapad. ”Perfect!” She looked at the screen to frame the shots, especially amused by [member="Kiriko"] gorging on the fine food and drink. She took a few posed but also some natural. They would go down great for the families and across Silver space.

Turning around to save the pictures, she looked up at another ship that had touched down and more guests. She didn’t recognise the figures of [member="Katrine Van-Derveld"] [member="Katria Vekarr"] but saw they found their way to the greeting table and had already taken a gift. As glamorous as they looked, one seemed more practically dressed and she couldn’t help smirk at the cold they probably felt.

She kept her eyes on them until she was sure they saw her and threw them a wave and a mock bow as she called over with joy in her voice.

”I’m Stephanie Swail of the Silver Jedi Order. Welcome to Life Day!”

 

[Katrine Van-Derveld]

Her head tilted as Katria complained about freezing, adding a mention of her own body heat not being enough to fend off the cold. A small pout formed on her lips, reminding her that she did need to talk to Uncle Isley about getting Katria a second Life Day present. "You're right," the blond did agree, not disagreeing at all. Using body heat to warm wasn't strange at all, she was well aware of it. In a heartbeat, Kat had undone her own coat and put it around Katria's shoulders. "We share this one, it's pretty great with the cold," she admitted. It hadn't really hit her just how cold it actually was until her shoulders were exposed. After the initial adjustment though, she realized it wasn't super bad. Maybe something to cover her exposed skin would have been good but she'd been in colder climates. Grown up in one even.

"Not that bad actually," she admitted after a beat, "you can keep the coat for a bit until you warm up." It was fine, she could hang out like this for a while.

The sight of the sweater had surprised her, but she folded it back onto her hand, not really sure what she was supposed to do with it as they continued, hearing Katria say something about a distraction. "What?" She asked immediately, trying to comprehend before she was pulled off to the alcohol, realizing their destination once her sapphire blue gaze landed. "Eggnog," Katrine repeated her earlier mention, this time more in insistence. She wanted eggnog, she couldn't remember the last time she had tasted the tasty beverage. She could actually, it had been at least five Life Days ago, back on Dathomir. It was homemade, with smaller group of family members; small in Hawk terms meaning close to a dozen of her family members gathered around the house and chanting good wishes upon their clan and family and even the new year which was at least a hundred days ahead since Dathomirian years lasted a lot longer than it did on some other planets.

Her eyes landed on what she believed was the beverage she was looking for, moving to pick up one of the prepared glass of it and another which she offered to Katria before tasting the thick substance. It tasted different than Nona made it but it was tasty none the less. "Not the same but yummy," the blond commented after the first taste then took another one before she looked back at Katria. "What do you add into eggnog to make it tastier?" She asked after a second. There was something, a tiny bit of something which made it tasty but right now, she could totally do some more to make it even more warming. Though Katrine didn't know what.

Then she spotted [member="Stephanie Swail"] waving and wave back at her, forming the words hi! with her mouth entusiastically. She remembered her back when they'd met Europa, and she had once mentioned her to Karna though beyond that, she didn't know much of the woman.

[member="Katria Vekarr"]

 

[Katrine Van-Derveld]

Double post.

 

[Valae Heavenshield]

Valae grinned as [member="Cassius Droma"] put on a rather convincing show for those present. Based on the reactions of the little ones, he was a hit for sure. Giving her pilot friend a good-natured clap on the shoulder, she got into position to pose as [member="Stephanie Swail"] snapped a few shots of them. After handing out a few more gifts, the crowd seemed to be thinning. The younglings and wookie children were already busy ripping the wrapping off their gifts.

“Hmm?” she stood up on her toes to see [member="Srina Talon"] in the distance, sitting perched on a bench. Blinking, the Grandmaster wondered briefly if everything was alright. But she knew that [member="Darth Metus"] would be close by, and would keep a protective eye on his apprentice. Of course, Valae would make her way over to the pair before the night was done.

“Well done, Mr. Kringle.” Leaning over to Cassius, she spoke in his ear. “Thank you again.”

Once the remaining younglings had flitted off to enjoy the rest of the festival, Cassius would be free to change clothing. But of course, if he wanted to continue to roam the grounds in costume, Valae was sure that would be quite the conversation starter. Rubbing her hands together, the Grandmaster set her sights on the refreshments. The warmth of cider and hot chocolate was calling.

Waving, she left the jolly scene behind her. Having been born on the desert-world of Tatooine, she faired far better in the heat. This cold bit at her nose, but thankfully she was warm enough otherwise. As she moved into the square, she passed by the grand Life Day tree at the center and smiled as [member="Kira Novak"] pondered a note to attach. Spotting [member="Kiriko"] already enjoying the assortment of cookies, Valae chuckled and made her way over to the white bear.

Smiling a greeting, she plucked a large chocolate cookie from a tray. It looked delicious. However, she’d already eaten a few treats earlier in the day, and couldn’t deny the small pang of guilt that found her. Breaking the cookie in two, she looked to her bear friend.

“Hey, Kiriko…” She started, “Split this with me?”

Taking a bite of one half of the cookie, she offered the other side up to the bear.

 

[Micah tol Powl]

A challenger appears!

No sooner had the bear been lulled into a false sense of monopoly, er... security over the plate of cookies, than [member="Valae Kitra"] should appear.

Though, to be fair, the poor thing looked like she could stand to put on a couple of hundred pounds. Really, if humans only appreciated what a thick layer of blubber could do for body heat retention, then they wouldn't be complaining whenever the temperature dipped south of 15 degrees centigrade.

Sliding the tray toward the woman of negligible weight, the bear welcomed the lady with a toothy smile. Then, setting his own drink aside a moment, poured the young woman a steaming cup of cider. "I'll trade you," the bear offered in a friendly tone, looking to exchange the drink for the offered cookie half.