Private Kindling the Spark

[Valery Noble]

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Outfit: Jedi Jumpsuit | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Lightsabers

The quiet hum of the Jedi Temple's corridors was a sound Valery had come to find soothing. Sunlight streamed through the high windows, casting golden beams across the polished floors. Statues of long-passed Jedi Masters stood silently, their expressions serene and contemplative, as if they, too, awaited the arrival of a new student.

Valery stood near the center of the hall, her hands clasped loosely behind her back. She was dressed in her typical jumpsuit, though her lightsaber hung openly at her side, a subtle reminder of her readiness to teach and protect. Her amber eyes, warm yet intense, drifted toward the grand entrance where she knew the Padawan would soon arrive.

Today marked the beginning of a new journey, not just for the Padawan, but for Valery as well. Each new student brought with them unique challenges and opportunities — a fresh perspective that often helped even the most seasoned Jedi grow. She had read the Padawan's file, understood their potential, and sensed the spark of the Force within them. But no dossier could replace the importance of a first meeting, face to face.

Taking a slow breath, Valery allowed her gaze to wander briefly. The Temple was alive with purpose, Jedi moving with quiet determination, Padawans sparring in distant training rooms, and the faint murmur of discussions echoing through the halls. It was a place of both tradition and growth, and today, it would become a cornerstone for one more young Jedi.

Hearing the distant sound of footsteps approaching, Valery straightened slightly, her expression softening into a welcoming smile. She could feel the Padawan's presence growing nearer, a mixture of nervous energy and quiet excitement carried through the Force.

It was time.

Mica Raha ​

 

[Mica Raha]

For as long as she could remember, and possibly well before that, Mica had never learned to breathe properly. She lived through many hardships. Misfortunes. And it always felt like something worse was around the corner. A lot could happen on Empress Teta, after all, and most of it bad. So she went about her days and waited.

It felt like she was constantly holding her breath.

But she wasn't on Empress Teta anymore. She was on Coruscant, at the Jedi Temple. Mica's soft footsteps echoed. Her head was tilted down in her usual way, yet cognizant of her peripheral vision. Balosarian antennapalps were slightly protracted from her head, picking up the faint sounds of commotion and Jedi activity. She wasn't on Empress Teta anymore, but those streets shaped her. The lessons she learned were ingrained, like sculpted mountains shaped over a millennium of exposure. Practicing hyper vigilance while being inconspicuous was just part of her now.

She was told she'd be meeting Valery Noble, a Jedi Master. The Grandmaster. She didn't know what that was, but it sounded important. Mica was nervous and excited. She tried to push those emotions down, but try as she might, she couldn't. It was a welcome feeling compared to the grief she'd been experiencing lately, at least.

As she traipsed through the grand entrance, Mica's blue-gray eyes immediately found an older woman, clad in a jumpsuit, standing in the center of the hall. With a lightsaber hilt hung from her side, she stood with a protective poise Mica had never seen before. The woman's amber eyes burned.

Mica felt guided towards the woman. She knew that was who she was supposed to meet. She didn't know how she knew, but she did.

"Hello," Mica lowered her head slightly. She didn't know the proper etiquette, but it seemed appropriate. "Are you Master Noble?"

For the first time in what felt like an eternity, Mica exhaled.

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

​

Outfit: Jedi Jumpsuit | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Lightsabers

Valery's smile deepened as the young Balosar approached, her soft greeting carrying a hint of hesitation. The subtle dip of her head and the careful, measured steps told Valery much — this Padawan was both cautious and resilient, traits often forged through adversity.

"I am," Valery replied, her voice warm and steady, offering a sense of calm in the towering expanse of the Temple hall. "And you must be Mica." She inclined her head slightly in acknowledgment, her amber eyes meeting Mica's with a reassuring gaze. "It's good to finally meet you."

Valery's hands unclasped from behind her back, one extending slightly in an open, welcoming gesture. "I hope your journey here wasn't too overwhelming. Coruscant can be a lot to take in, especially compared to other worlds." Her tone carried a subtle invitation for Mica to share her thoughts, but Valery wouldn't press — she wanted their connection to unfold naturally.

"You're stepping into a new chapter, one that will challenge and shape you in ways you might not expect." Her eyes softened as she continued, "But you won't be walking this path alone. The Jedi Order, and I, will be here to guide and support you."

Valery stepped slightly to the side, gesturing toward the expansive hallways that branched deeper into the Temple. "How about we walk and talk? I'd love to hear more about you and what brought you here." Her voice carried gentle encouragement, a steadying hand offered as Mica began this important journey.

Mica Raha ​

 

[Mica Raha]

Valery Noble smiled and confirmed her identity. She inclined her head and glanced reassuringly down at Mica. Mica took that as a sign her own head nod was acceptable. The tension in her shoulders decreased. "It's nice to meet you, too."

Right off the bat, Valery was disarmingly charming. That, and Mica's fundamental impulse to look for a protective figure like Fyrin, caused her to uncharacteristically lower her guard. She didn't even realize it was happening.

The halls were towering and exquisite and overwhelming. Mica just tried to focus on Valery and her calming presence.

"Coruscant is nice," it was fine, so far. "Reminds me of…" she was about to say home. It wasn't home anymore. "It reminds me of Empress Teta, actually. I've never been anywhere else." She hated Empress Teta. She loved it, too. "Have you been?"

A new chapter. Mica tentatively liked the sound of that. She always had a spark in her. Everything in her life so far had threatened to smother it. Except Fyrin. He protected her little fire from being extinguished. He was gone… yet now Mica felt like she could breathe again and fill her metaphorically oxygen-deprived lungs. And the thing about oxygen was it fueled fires; an unbreakable natural law. She was ready for what comes next. Or as ready as she was ever going to be.

Mica wasn't really sure how to respond to that, though. She didn't really know what a Jedi was. She didn't know who "we" was. So she just nodded politely.

Mica walked down the hall beside Valery. "Well… uh, you guys brought me here. 'Cus of what happened on Empress Teta…" she trailed off. Her memories of the invasion were murky at best. What she remembered most was the time after, when she woke on an Alliance transport shuttle. She cried for what felt like days. The memory of that suddenly made her aware of her disarmed stupor. Her antennapalps protracted. Her gait lost vigor. Her guard rose up, again. "When do I get one of those?" Mica gestured to Valery's jumpsuit, clumsily trying to shift the conversation. She did actually really want one, though.

 

[Valery Noble]

​

Outfit: Jedi Jumpsuit | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Lightsabers

Valery smiled softly, the warmth in her amber eyes unwavering as she walked alongside Mica. She noted the shift in the young Padawan's demeanor — the way her antennapalps extended and her gait lost its earlier ease. It was a familiar pattern, one she had seen in others who had endured more than their fair share of hardship.

"Empress Teta," Valery repeated, her voice thoughtful. "I have been there," she said with a chuckle, "I even used to live there for a while with my family." Her tone softened further, a subtle acknowledgment of the invasion without prying into details Mica might not be ready to share.

As Mica's attention shifted to Valery's jumpsuit, she let out a light chuckle, grateful for the Padawan's attempt to steer the conversation. "This?" she asked, glancing down at her attire. "We don't have strict policies for clothes, as long as they are appropriate. Figure out what you like, and we'll help you get enough for all your training and assignments."

They passed by a large window, the view offering a sweeping panorama of Coruscant's endless skyline. Valery paused, turning slightly to Mica with a gentle smile. "It's okay to feel unsure about all of this," she said, her voice steady and reassuring. "Nobody expects you to have all the answers right now. All we ask is that you take it one step at a time, and trust yourself along the way."

After a brief moment, Valery resumed their walk, her tone lightening again. "So, tell me, Mica. What excites you most about being here? There's a lot to take in, I know, but there must be something that's caught your attention."

Mica Raha ​

 

[Mica Raha]

"You used to live on Empress Teta?!" Mica perked up a bit. "Why?" Her little brows furrowed.

She couldn't understand anyone choosing to live on Empress Teta. It was hard to imagine a world outside the dilapidated tenements and impoverished streets she used to call home. Who would want to live there? But no, that wasn't right. The planet had billions of inhabitants. So many people, so many different lives. She just got the short end of the stick. Death stick, more like. She wondered what Master Noble's life was like there and how it differed from hers.

Mica nodded as the elder Jedi explained the clothing situation. She tried to picture herself in a jumpsuit and imagined Fyrin laughing at her. The young padawan forgot herself and giggled. "I definitely want one of those."

The Coruscant skyline came into view. The buildings were majestic in their stature and design; a pretty pastiche of culture and time. Mica could even see the sun, airspeeders, everything. She could count on one hand the amount of times she'd seen the open sky. Now she could look at it whenever she wanted.

Mica nodded as Master Noble talked and felt grateful for her steady, reassuring words, though it would take time for her to understand the full weight of them.

"To be honest... I'm not sure. I don't really know what a Jedi is or what's expected of me."

Mica stopped talking when she felt a small tug at her stomach, then a rumble of hunger that went on for waaaay too long. Her cheeks flushed as her blue eyes bashfully ascended Master Noble's tall figure.

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

​

Outfit: Jedi Jumpsuit | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Lightsabers

"Why?" Valery chuckled and shrugged her shoulders, "At the time, it was quite an upgrade for my husband and I. We just had our first baby and we didn't have a home beyond his ship."

When Mica giggled at the thought of wearing a jumpsuit, Valery smiled warmly, glad to see even a flicker of lightheartedness in the young Padawan. "Oh, you'd look great in one. We'll make sure you get something comfortable but practical for training. And who knows — maybe it'll grow on you," she teased.

As they paused by the window, Valery let her gaze drift over the skyline. It was a sight she'd seen countless times, yet it never lost its beauty. She noticed Mica's silent awe and felt a pang of sadness for the girl's past. It was clear she'd been denied so much.

Turning back to Mica, Valery addressed her earlier uncertainty. "Not knowing is okay, Mica," she said gently. "Being a Jedi is about growth, learning, and finding your place in the galaxy. At its core, it's about protecting life and helping others. We each bring our own strengths to that goal, and along the way, we discover who we are. You'll figure it out, step by step."

When Mica's stomach growled loudly, Valery's expression softened further, and she suppressed a chuckle to spare the Padawan any embarrassment. "Well, it seems like you already know what you need right now," she said with a playful smile. "Come on, let's head to the dining hall. We can talk more over a good meal. Trust me, the Temple chefs make sure nobody goes hungry here."

She gestured toward the hallways leading deeper into the Temple and added lightly, "Besides, you'll need your energy. Jedi training can be exhausting, but it's much easier on a full stomach." With that, she began to guide Mica toward the dining hall, her presence steady and reassuring as always.

Mica Raha ​

 

[Mica Raha]

"But why Empress Teta of all places? Why not here, for instance?"

If Mica had even a smidge of galactic geographic knowledge, she could have suggested more idyllic or quiet places for habitation. Besides Empress Teta and now Coruscant, the only other planet she was aware of was Cathar. But Fyrin had told her of its treacherous landscape. There were monstrous beetles — carnivorous, and some even the size of towering buildings! Mica didn't know if she should believe him, or if they were just scary bedtime stories. Either way, it was hard to imagine Valery Noble , husband and child in tow, living there.

Mica giggled again at Master Noble's teasing. Since leaving Empress Teta, the young girl had barely cracked a smile. Now the elder Jedi had her laughing and acting silly.

Master Noble spoke so gently, reassuringly, and confidently, Mica didn't have room in her heart to doubt what she was saying. One step at a time, she'd figure things out. This was the first step. The second? well, thanks to Valery, Mica was confident she could be guided there. A deeper feeling within her confirmed this. She wondered what that was about.

"What kind of training?" Tantalized, an eyebrow piqued.

As the pair approached the dining hall, savory smells wafted in their direction. Mica's stomach rumbled and growled so fiercely she thought it might burst from her stomach. The array of food available was dizzying; Endorian chicken, bantha beef tenderloins, Chandrilan salad, red fruit burrata, seared Kashyyyk whitefish, and more. It was cafeteria-grade, of course, nothing a noble would even want a sniff of, but for a streetrat like Mica it was marvelous. She hadn't even heard of most of these dishes.

"I can just take anything I want?" she stared in disbelief.

 

[Valery Noble]

​

Outfit: Jedi Jumpsuit | Wedding Ring
Weapons: Lightsabers

Valery smiled at Mica's question, her expression thoughtful as she recalled that time in her life. "Empress Teta felt right for us," she began, her voice warm and reflective. "At the time, Coruscant had just been attacked, and as much as I love this planet, I didn't feel safe bringing my newborn here. Empress Teta was secure, beautiful, and offered us a chance to settle down as a family. It wasn't perfect, but it gave us what we needed then."

As they continued down the hallway, Valery glanced at Mica, noticing her curiosity about training. "Jedi training," she explained with a small smile, "Is a lot of things. It's about discipline, pushing your limits, and honing your connection to the Force. You'll learn how to fight, of course, but you'll also learn to heal, to think critically, and to use your abilities to help others. You'll even learn a lot about the Galaxy. It's not always easy, but it's rewarding. Every challenge you overcome shapes you into the Jedi you're meant to be."

The savory aroma of the dining hall grew stronger as they approached, and Valery chuckled softly at Mica's wide-eyed reaction to the spread of food. "Yes, anything you want," she said warmly. "And as much as you like. The chefs here make sure there's plenty for everyone, so don't be shy."

She gestured toward the serving counters, encouraging Mica to take her time choosing. Once the young girl had her tray filled, Valery guided her to a nearby table. It was set off to the side, offering a little more quiet and privacy amid the bustling hall.

Taking a seat, Valery folded her hands in front of her, her amber eyes shining with quiet encouragement as she watched Mica. "Enjoy," she said, her voice gentle but firm. "You'll need the energy for all the steps ahead. But for now? Let's just take it one bite at a time."

Mica Raha ​