Private Luminous Shadows

[Velda Nar-Donna]

WEARING: xoxo
WEAPONS: The Dark Side
TAG: Cybelle Elyance | f.y.i Xander Blackmoore | f.y.i Brandyn Sal-Soren

It was a guilty pleasure watching a Jedi fall from grace, or from their point of view, become corrupted. To some others, that corruption could seem like an epiphany of freedom and embracing the decadence of power. To Velda, the perception of falling to the Dark Side was merely coping. And was, in reality, simply a choice.

In the case of Brandyn Sal-Soren he appeared to be somewhat entangled in the middle of that choice. He had anger, a bottomless pit of it, at least in Velda's presence, and in her opinion. Yet, he was still holding on to his dream. Ever the Jedi, ever the hero. And when The Jedi Order rewarded him with jail time and house arrest.

How long would it take before Brandyn realized the truth? That the chains he wore weren't those of the prison cell, but those of the Order itself.

On the other hand, Cybelle was an enigma. Now more than ever since Velda met her a while ago. Velda had a list of questions the moment she spotted her while she was leaving that doomed freighter in the throes of the conclusion of Exegol. Velda knew something was amiss with her. It wasn't until a short time later that she discovered the truth about what happened.

And yet, there still was that insidious unknown that surrounded the woman. Of all the things Velda, by rights, should have despised about her. The fact that she was a Jedi Knight. The fact that she was Brandyn's fiancee and set to be married to him. None of that really mattered much to Velda.

It was the fact that even to Velda, whose foresight was exceptional, Cybelle's fate was clouded. And that made Velda much more cautious than perhaps she should be.

Still, while caution was necessary, just not too much. Their correspondence had already begun through private channels. The exchange of messages, the calculated politeness, the pretense of civility—it had all led to this moment. A meeting. A day spent together, in each other's presence, rather than staring at glowing Aurebesh on a screen. And more or less an opportunity for Velda to sate her curiosity.

And, of course, Velda's interest in a potential vacation house on this very planet didn't hurt. She had entertained the thought more than once—a vacation mansion, perhaps next door to the Elyance Estate. A place for her and Xander Blackmoore to retreat to.

It would be convenient and delightfully nefarious. The Dark Side could take root here, spreading its poisonous influence and seeping through the very cracks of reality in the area and in the very stones of the Elyance Estate. Such delicious possibilities.

But today, none of that mattered. Today was for her and Cybelle. The pearlescent limo speeder purred as it pulled up to the estate's gates. Her personal driver, a shadowy figure who knew better than to speak without need, stepped out and approached the gate's security system. A droid appeared—standard security, no doubt. In time, the gate opened, and the limo rolled forward down the narrow, twisting road leading to the estate.

The limo finally made it to the parking area of the estate. As it crept to a stop. And its gull-winged doors came open with a hiss. Along with a step to make it easier to enter and exit the vehicle.

Velda's brown eyes gazed out of the open doorway to the estate from her seat. While she awaited Cybelle.

When Cybelle appeared, Velda greeted her, with a happy and warm smile, and gave her a hug.

“Hi!” She said, taking in her presence. “Good to see you Cy!”

As for the estate, Velda would not be going in. . .

 

[Cybelle Elyance]

TAG: Velda Nar-Donna | Brandyn Sal-Soren
ITEMS: Petal Blossom (Jade Bangle) | Green Lightsaber (Generic, Hidden)

Cybelle finished the last holo-note that she had tacked onto the auto-chef in the kitchen. There was a slew of them littered around the Elyance Estate for Brandyn to find when he finished meditating, though, he would be used to her affectionate oddities. She knew how he felt about being cooped up, especially, after the incident in the cave…So she did her best to make him smile. A plate of lemon bars was on the countertop, and the scent of sweet citrus wafted into almost every room. A glass cover would keep them fresh—But it wasn't as if they'd last long. The first note appeared on the glass.

"Eat me. But, not all of me or else!" – With a small rabbit waving an angered fist.

The one on the auto chef offered equally sage advice, coupled, with that same rabbit winking knowingly. "You can't eat spicy nuna wings every night…But I'm stocked with the ones you like anyway. You see, this is clearly love."

They would appear randomly, activated, by motion.

She'd stashed more than a few in places he frequented, often, changing the content. They could range from "you're this close to doing laundry for a week" on the banister to "love you to the moon and back" in the refresher mirror. Bran had been working really hard on keeping his mind steady and settled. On finding his path—Wherever it might have led. It was with that in mind that she didn't want to interrupt him when she was heading out for a few hours.

The door had one final note on the back of it – "I'll be back soon. Don't miss me too much."

The rabbit pulled down it's eye and stuck out its tongue to blow a raspberry.

It was overly sappy, but, Cybelle didn't really care. They had been through so much since finding each other again that she didn't want to miss an opportunity to communicate. Even if it was with…little rabbit holo-sticky grams. She also wasn't sure if Bran would even remember that she was going into town over the breakfast that he had mostly wolfed down. The droid network pinged to let her know that her friend had arrived and the Jedi Knight perked up while a bounce was added to her step. She emerged from the estate with a soft, welcoming smile, as mouse-brown hair tousled in a gentle breeze.

The Estate was peaceful…Even moreso than the homely house of Sprite Gate Shore on Naboo.

Cy was grateful for that. Grateful, to have some part of her history. Even if it was full of memories she couldn't recall. The warmth in topaz eyes was unmistakable as she walked down the few steps to greet Velda Nar-Donna and her smile widened. There was always something striking about Velda—Her elegance, her confidence—But Cybelle had moved past finding it intimidating. "Velda…", the name fell from her cheerfully, though, she hadn't expected to be embraced so swiftly. She returned it sincerely with a faint blush on her cheeks. Not from discomfort…Just surprise. Pleasant, surprise. Not everyone was so willing to befriend a Jedi.

"I'm glad you could find the time, I know how busy you must be…", the Hapani spoke, reaching up, to tuck an errant strand of hair behind her ear. Everyone was soooo busy. The Alliance was slowly migrating into a wartime state and even though Cybelle and Brandyn were still on mandatory leave…She still kept up with the news. "I thought that maybe we could do something different today—?"

She paused, blushing again, at her lack of manners.

"Unless you want to come in? Bran probably wouldn't be free for at least a few hours though..."

Cybelle thought it might do him good to see a friendly face, other, than her own and family. He claimed that it was enough but they needed some semblance of normalcy. She glanced down at her attire and couldn't help but make comparisons. Velda looked as if she'd literally walked right out of the Holo-Net while Cybelle…Could have passed for a primary school teacher. With a cream-colored blouse made of lightweight fabric and trousers that were a shade of muted green…The once "cute" outfit she had been proud of picking out felt exceedingly frumpy.

Worse than her robes.

Nervously, she started twisting a jade bangle that always sat on her wrist. There was a newer weight on her left ring finger that even though it was purely decorative…It offered far more protection. Her fingers brushed the cool metal before she launched ahead. Taking charge. That was one of the things they'd often talked about, considering, her tendency to defer to what others wanted more than her own wishes.

Cybelle breathed deeply and her smile came like sunshine… "There's a new market district and I thought we could do a little shopping…Then brunch? There's a nice new tea shop that I think you might like.", she paused, innocent eyes widening a little, "And me—I think I'd like it too!"

She didn't want Velda to think she was regressing, after all.