Leg Day

[Joza Perl]

Joza snorted at her quip. “Don’t go assuming things about my anatomy. Though I do have quite the artificial collection if that’s your thing.” No wink necessary, as this was all honest.

At the mention of having something better than a bandage, Joza’s head tilted a notch to the side, watching Laira root through her jacket. Of course, her eyes wandered a bit lower to the redhead’s bottom for a brief moment in appreciation before unfocusing her gaze. She wasn’t particularly worried about getting caught looking.

Her gaze shifted to the pink kyber crystal in Laira’s hand, watching with an almost rapt fascination. She nodded slowly as the younger woman wrapped her fingers around it, gripping the crystal tightly as it emitted a faint glow and closed up the wound. Not entirely, but it made the thing more manageable and less liable to tear. “Oh?” She seemed a bit taken aback, surprised as Laira offered her the healing crystal. “Really? You’re too sweet. Thank you, Laira.” Taking the crystal, her smile grew a little bigger at the prospect of using it to heal. Not that she could imagine it would take care of large wounds, but it was something handy to have. Even small cuts could become tender and infected without proper care, and the crystal could come in handy should she be in a situation without sterile supplies.

“How did the crucitorn work out? Did you manage to reduce any pain with the Force?” Her gaze turned curious, questioning, slightly nervous that maybe she wasn’t a good teacher.

[member="Laira Vereen"]

 

[Laira Darkhold]

Laira raised an eyebrow and looked the Zeltron over with a skeptical look. "Its not an assumption, its a logical observation. Outfit doesn't leave a that much to the imagination. And no thank you, I'm fine for now." The redhead grinned broadly. The woman was a zeltron after all, so it wasn't exactly unlikely. Laira was intrigued, but not interested for the time being.

"Yeah, one of the neat little things you pick up travelling from Jedi ruin to Jedi ruin. It heals about as good and as quickly as a bacta tank, but its not. One medic I spoke to suggested using it for people with Bacta allergies, but its good for anything really. I normally wear one after a rough work out or fight. Helps me heal up quick without confining me to a tube." Benefits to being on her own, there was no one else to clutter up her ship, just her and all her things strewn everywhere. Laira was wary of guests and she didn't have many friends away from Alderaan at the moment. She was friendly with Joza but hadn't decided whether it was physical attraction or just a charming personality she enjoyed, though hopefully she would have the time to find out.

"Yes, some. Its not what I'm best at, but then again I'm not great at anything yet. Thank you for the starting lesson." Laira's eyes darted down for a moment, remembering her initial purpose for coming to the dance studio was to learn some exotic dances, which she had learned some basics. Maybe she would pick up a video set to keep practicing. Force teaching was different. "Soooo," she asked, letting some honey seep into her voice and getting a little closer to Joza, batting her eyelashes at the woman. She even went so far as to reach out to seductively brush her fingers along the woman's arm. "You got a lightsaber you can show me?" So she was willing to add a little excitement to the mix to get to see a laser sword for the first time in her life, who wouldn't?

[member="Joza Perl"]

 

[Joza Perl]

“Hey, you don’t know. I could be really good at tucking.” She let it drop with one last playful quip, brow arching as Laira turned on the charm. Joza didn’t pull away but she didn’t lean into her touch either, giving the younger woman an amused yes appreciative look.

She snorted, perhaps a bit gracefully. “Well that’s a bit forward. Buy me dinner first and we’ll talk.”

Normally Joza wouldn’t have an issue introducing Laira to the concept of a live laser sword—most of them, her own included had a safety switch and intensity knob after all. “Why’re you interested? Never seen a lightsaber before?”

In truth, she was a bit hesitant given that something odd had been happening to her own lightsaber—over the past few months, it had begun to lose its bright blue color until it had faded to a dull grey. She had no idea why given that it seemed to work as it normally had, just less…colorful.

[member="Laira Vereen"]

 

[Laira Darkhold]

"Buy you dinner? Please, I'm poor. I could only afford dinner for two if it was steamed, flavorless noodles or nutrient paste. You are the rich zeltron who wants to do right by the promising young beauty you've taken a fancy too anyway." Laira grinned, brushing the back of her hand against Joza's smooth pink skin as alluringly as she could manage without bursting out laughing. The redhead was poor by her own reckoning, so far refusing to live off the trust-fund her father had made for her and instead living off her own earnings. Earning she had just spent on pretty dresses and shoes from Joza's shop.

"And no, I've never seen or held one." Lightsabers were ancient weapons, and despite numerous 'advancements' to them, they had been relatively perfected thousands of years ago. Compared to the quadrillions of sentient beings in the galaxy, only a few actually had Lightsabers. Not even every Force Sensitive had their own lightsabers, and so the redhead had never even been this close to one as far as she was aware. Her father preferred Force Imbued weapons that he crafted himself, and she had relatively mundane weaponry that she used.

"I'd love to see yours though," The innuendos did not escape her either, which made keeping a straight face difficult. So difficult she had given up and was merely grinning foolishly at the whole conversation. "So? You gonna make me work for it or you just gonna show me? Most of the stories I've heard folks that have them like to show them off."

[member="Joza Perl"]

 

[Joza Perl]

“Please, you know those noodles are loaded with sodium flavoring to actually make them edible.”

It was actually something of a comfort meal to her, in the sense that it made her nostalgic for her childhood. She’d eaten those steamed noodles that come dried in their own cup on quite a few occasions, they were cheap and filling but not all that healthy. Now she was able to afford better food, but she still found herself hankering for crap like that once in a while. Moreso when she was pregnant.

“You do know that I’m one of the biggest galactic employers of showgirls and prostitutes, right? Could have my pick of the fillies.”

Not that she did but…what Joza did off hours was her own business.

She sighed though, relenting a little. She genuinely liked Laira as a person, and if she was going to be studying the Force then it stood reason that she should learn how to work a saber at one point or another.

“Alright, wait here.” It took a few minutes but Joza left for her office and returned, hilt in hand.

She held it…lower on the center of her body before igniting it, blue beam springing to life. Safety was on and the intensity was at its lowest setting.

“Girthy, right?”

Wider blades were, ahem, good for deflection.

[member="Laira Vereen"]

 

[Laira Darkhold]

"Yes, but I can afford them and that's the point." Laira always kept a few of those packages aboard the Outcast as a quick and easy meal that she didn't have to work to cook or wait on the food processors. They were cheap, and given that for the moment Laira wasn't touching her trust-fund account the Princess had to cut corners and budget in order to keep flying. Especially if she was going to splurge and buy sultry dresses from a Zeltron that were designer priced.

"I said taken a Fancy too. I would guess there are quite a few showgirls prettier than me, but," The redhead clasped her hands together in front of her, straightening her arms and letting her grey eyes melt into Joza. "Probably a lot less you like as much as me." She had to actively try to make her voice sound as sweet and innocent as possible, barely keeping the character up instead of bursting out in a storm of laughter. Most of that assumption was Laira's own pride, but the fiery princess had taken a liking to Joza and it was easy to assume the Zeltron had taken a similar liking to her, especially given how much attention the two were showing each other. Joza was sweet and kind, but far too wild and free for someone like Laira who had a strong preference for emotionally fulfilling romantic relationships before indulging in physical gratification, even if she didn't show it well with her behavior.

When Joza relented, Laira practically beamed with excitement, smiling and shifting her weight from foot to foot. She had to hold her own hands to keep from fidgeting too much and to restrain herself. The blue blade buzzed to life with the iconic snap-hiss the ancient and noble weapons were renowned for and the princess's jaw dropped in awe. "Yeah it is." She answered, only kind of paying attention to Joza at this point. "It's beautiful though." The blue light reflected off the stormy grey irises of the smuggler, slowly leaning closer to the weapon to inspect it closely, not even realizing where or how Joza was brandishing it. Probably looked a little more forward than intended.

"What kind is it?"

[member="Joza Perl"]

 

[Joza Perl]

Cutting the showmanship a bit, Joza drew the blade back and a few inches away from Laira so as to help prevent any accidents. Even on its lowest setting it could leave a nasty sting, but she hadn’t considered until now what sort of damage it could do to the eyes.

“It’s a kyber crystal. Standard for most Jedi, modified to produce a wider blade in comparison to other saber types. Good for blocking and deflecting blaster fire.” Though she could tell the difference between her two hilts, she’d grabbed one of them without much thought before coming back downstairs. “The other one I have is the same color, but thinner and better for dueling.”

It was less awkward than she’d imagined, and Laira seemed to hold a legitimate interest in the ancient weapon. “I collected the crystals on Ilum when I was a…when I was younger.” The world Padawan tasted odd on her tongue, like it didn’t quite belong to her. Her childish rebellious streak was curbed when she joined the Jedi, but exploded outwards soon after her first contact with the Dark.

Now, life was as she made it.

[member="Laira Vereen"]

 

[Laira Darkhold]

"Kyber huh," Laira eased back away from the arcane device when Joza pulled it away from her face. Not that Laira had any intention of sticking it in her mouth, no matter how wide the blade was, but she did recognize the potential for harm now that the initial awe of discovery was over. "I feel like I want one now, you know." The Princess had spent her whole life without one, and now had a deep desire to possess one. A nice one at that.

She'd need to look at a few holocrons to get an eye for constructing on, perhaps talk to her father about alloys and construction materials. Some electrum or aurodium might look good. "You got any tips for putting one together?"

"Isn't Illum under that Sith splinter Empire's control." Laira didn't know much about the Iron Empire, only what she heard occasionally from resistance cell members chatting aboard a vagrant vessel or in an encampment, or what she heard in shadowports. "Any idea if there is a safer option to go collect one, or is that part of the fun of it?"

[member="Joza Perl"]

 

[Joza Perl]

Joza had to pause and genuinely think about Laira’s question. It had been a decade or so since she’d collected her crystals and constructed her sabers, back when she was more of the astute Jedi type.

Times had changed, but the pair of sabers had remained reliable weapons to date. Though she was less of the superstitious type, she had to admit that it felt as if she’d grown attuned to them and vice versa. Sure, she’d repaired her own hilts quite a few times but helping someone construct their own saber start to finish?

She’d never done that, not even with younglings. As such, she didn’t answer Laira’s question.

“Ilum is under the control of the Iron Empire. I don’t think they’re particularly affiliated with the Sith.” At least they weren’t when they’d granted her a sponsorship. “I believe they’re allied to the Silvers.”

The Silver Jedi’s credentials were dubious to some especially after the Korriban incident and their isolationist tendencies kept them out of the hot zone concerning the numerous Galactic Alliance and First Order clashes. Criticism was thrown about, but Joza still had a bit of a soft spot for the peaceful order.

“There are a few other worlds where crystals grow, but I don’t know much about them. Ilum is bitterly cold and you can have visions while in the crystal caves, so I suppose that’s sort of a rite of passage. An interesting experience to say the least.”

Maybe there was a bit of a far off look in her eye as a bit of congeniality drained from her face. Sometimes remembering how things were did that to her, but she quickly stepped back into the here and now and deactivated her saber. The blue beam disappeared instantly.

“I wouldn’t recommend going alone, wherever you decide to go. Do you have any friends who also aspire to wield a laser sword?”

[member="Laira Vereen"]

 

[Laira Darkhold]

"Meh, I don't know much about them. Heard some rumors here and there about them, but I've not been out that way." Laira and politics didn't mesh very well, she heard things about this government and that, her mother and father had supported and opposed the Republic in its waning days. The Iron Empire was one she had only heard rumor of, not that she would be offering to help them with anything.

Getting to the frigid world might be difficult, but unless Ilum was interdicted and had extremely restricted access she would be able to manage it in her ship. But navigating the surface was another matter, not including the thing about visions within the caverns. "Ilum is probably the easiest to get in and out of under the radar. I'll have to look up some star charts, figure out how much security is in the system, and decide on my entry point." There were plenty of options, some of which more difficult or more dangerous than others.

Joza seemed to be worried about her, which was comforting in some way even if Laira wasn't short on protective parental figures. One thing she said really bit into her self-esteem though, especially when she tried to think of anyone she could ask. Other than her brother Theo, which was a possibility, she didn't have anyone she considered a friend. Acquaintances from the Royal Court, the occasional noble girl from finishing school, or a noble boy or knight that swore to win her affections those were in abundance. "Joza, I don't have any friends." That sounded painful to say out loud. "You are probably the only person in recent memory that I have any kind of bond with, outside family."

She turned bashful, looking down at the ground shuffling her feet, holding her arm behind her back. "Maybe, you know if you weren't doing anything important, you could come with me. I'm not really sure what I'd be doing out there without a little guidance."

[member="Joza Perl"]

 

[Joza Perl]

“They tend to keep to themselves in my experience.” Which was a bit of a disclaimer given that she hadn’t had much interaction with them outside of the emperor’s niece, [member="Aster Rose Baelor"]. Miss Baelor was pleasant and had been kind enough to refer to Joza as a fashion genius, so she was all good in the Zeltron’s book. She also saw the young woman helping the people of Togoria a short while back which made it all the better.

Joza’s face softened around the edges when Laira admitted to not really having much in the way of good friends which came as a surprise given how extroverted and generally likable she appeared. Though there was a genuine sense to the words and she believed them to be true, something told the Zeltron that something different was at play here.

Nothing inherently malicious, but she’d been around enough to know that lone spacers were often lone for a reason. Whether they were finding work, running away from something or trying to create a new start, there was often more to them than met the eye. That, and empathetic senses were second nature to her by now.

She smiled at Laira, the corners of her lips lifting in an understanding and gentle gesture. “I’ll have to check my schedule but I’m almost positive we could squeeze in a frigid getaway to Ilum for a day or so.” A hand reached out to rest on the other redhead’s shoulder and squeeze reassuringly.

[SIZE=11pt]“Just—and I swear to the Force—if you end up poking your eye out with your new saber I’m leaving you in the ice caves.”[/SIZE]

[member="Laira Vereen"]