Private May Hapes It Be

[Brandyn Sal-Soren]

Lorell Hall
Hapes
Near noon

The painting was a bit big for Brandyn's liking. The subject matter could easily have been done justice on a canvas half its size. This was only his opinion, obviously, but clearly the correct one. The figure in the painting stood alone on a dirt path that was lightly garnished with tufts of green. From the sides of the path, and lifting over it entirely was dark forest that created the appearance of an arched window looking out over the lowly figure. Brandyn felt a kinship with the blurred, non-descript figure on the path.

Something had changed within the young Jedi. Something had broken. He did not know yet what it was, but for now just referred to it as simply 'different'. His investigations into The New Way had proven to be not only more dangerous that first thought, but harrowing in the soul. The organization put on a show of propriety and decency, but those that made it work, those beneath the public facing façade, those people harbored an actual bigotry. Still, the figure at the head of The New Way remained allusive.

His father had just been ransomed back to the family after months in the possession of mercenaries that looked to make a living off kidnapping nobles. The events on Naboo had been the perfect time for his father to have been nabbed, and also the perfect time for Brandyn to go 'missing'. His father was being checked over by the physicians and likely being doted on by his family.

Two Sal-Soren men, back from the dead, and all in the space of a week. Brandyn felt a pang of remorse for having put his mother through this. She had needed him by her side. Instead, he had gone off on some damned-foolish crusade. Undoubtedly, he would be reprimanded. And undoubtedly he would feel guilty. Such was his lot.

Out of the corner of his eye, a shuttle could be seen through the large windows of the Hall. It touched down with a grace that indicated a well trained pilot. It seemed the type of shuttle that his family might have employed in their prime on Naboo, but had they already acquired this much station on Hapes?

| Teyla Sal-Soren | Kha'la Daaray | Breha Sal-Soren |​

 

[Teyla Sal-Soren]

Appearance | XoXo
Location | Lorell Hall, Hapes
Tag | Brandyn Sal-Soren , Breha Sal-Soren, Kha'la Daaray

Teyla sighed, looking into the mirror one last time as she worked a few strands of the steely gray hair that'd started to crop up back into place, then closed her eyes. Grief had been an ever-present companion over the last six months, living through the worst fears a parent could face, knowing that she'd potentially lost not only the love of her life, but two of her children as well.

By some small mercy of the Force they'd been brought back to her, Breha, Baros, and Brandyn. And yet for all of her good fortune, she struggled to give herself over to fully feeling relieved. How many near misses and tragedies could they continue to survive before that streak of luck ran out?

When the news of her loved ones disappearance had reached her, she'd been too engulfed by her own agony to see beyond her own nose - spiraling further and further in desperate search of them. Had it not been for her sister Eline and her daughter Briana stepping in when they did, then surely they would have fallen into complete ruin.

The sound of her steady gait sounded in the shining halls of Lorell as she passed guard after guard, the chiffon trail of her sea-green gown gliding behind her until she came to a stop a few steps from her son.

The months had done a number on her, her face having become pinched and drawn close against her sharp cheek-bones like a veritable funeral mask. Deep shadows hung like half-moons under her mahogany eyes which lacked their usual warmth, appearing dimmed and dulled instead.

"Brandyn," she started, a soft tear rolling down her cheek and moving closer until her too-thin arms were around his shoulder, yanking her too-grown son into an embrace. "I'm so happy you're alive."

 

[Brandyn Sal-Soren]

Brandyn was unaware that he was maintaining his composure until the moment that he had lost it. Being embraced by his mother did not create any degree of discomfort, rather, he fell into her embrace with his eyes closing. It was the first time that he had felt safe in months, even though he hadn't truly been in danger for a few weeks now. The feeling of safety bled away as he realized how different the embrace was. His arms had long since been able to hold his mother, but now she seemed to disappear in his arms.

Brandyn pulled away from the embrace to see his mother as she was. She looked...frail. Brandyn's brow furrowed deeply a he observed the sunken cheeks, darkened eyes and greying hair. It was this moment that his composure departed him. "I am sorry, mother," he said in a wavering whisper.

He was sorry for the absence; for the silence; for thinking he was only affecting his future and wellbeing by putting himself at risk.

"You look. Good," he said, lying. Yes, her beauty and regality could not fade entirely, but the months of grief had wearied her to a point that he was not sure she would ever recover.

"Father is well?" He said, changing the subject as quickly as possible, "how did we come up with the credits for the ransom? Don't tell me Briana got a loan from the Hapans...or something." It was a poor attempt at humour.

| Teyla Sal-Soren | Breha Sal-Soren | Kha'la Daaray |​

 

[Aelin Erevos]

Derp.

 

[Teyla Sal-Soren]

Appearance | XoXo
Location | Lorell Hall, Hapes
Tag | Brandyn Sal-Soren , Kha'la Daaray , Breha Sal-Soren


She felt the emotional currents shift within Brandyn, her empathic mind long attuned to the fluxes of her children and their mental sphere. There had never been much they could hide from her - feeling his spirt crack long before she heard his words.

A frail hand came up to brush back a strand of loose hair from his face, the way she'd done many times during his childhood, before coddling his cheek, eventually letting go as the proprietous thing to do. "It's okay," she assured in a gentle but commanding tone, "I've got my son back and that's all that matters now. Though, perhaps you could inform us the next time? Before you decide to traipse off on your own?"

Brandyn tried to lighten the mood and a small, but tired smile pulled at Teyla's lips as she guided him down the hall.

"He's recovering, Blaire is with him. A few more dips in a bacta tank, some hearty meals, and he'll be back to his old self before you know it." her face fell in a pattern of eyebrows, cheeks and lips, her eyelids shutting to Brandyn's question about the ransom and more covertly, his sister. "Briana returned to the Jedi with Master Noble a couple months before we ever received any word about a ransom, but she inadvertently was the reason we were able to afford it. Not many of our families assets were lost after Naboo," there'd been enough tragedy in her life, that she'd long learned to never keep all of her eggs in one basket, "but enough that without an active hand to manage what was left, would have been lost. Your aunt Eline helped as well, and made certain... arrangements, with the Queen."

 

[Kha'la Daaray]

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Location: Hapes | Lorell Hall​

Tag: Brandyn Sal-Soren Teyla Sal-Soren ​

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"My lady, shouldn't we wait for the guards?" Kha'la's servant asked while he moved after her. But the Queen offered no answer and continued making her way down the long staircase leading up to the Lorell Hall. Brandyn had been on Hapes for some time now, and she had been in contact with relatives as well. But today, his mother was visiting to finally meet him again, so she believed it appropriate to meet her as well.​

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"My Lady...?"​

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"Please, not now," Kha'la said while she held up a hand to stop him from continuing. The servant nodded his head and quietly followed after the redhead, as she entered the hall to find Brandyn Sal-Soren hugging his mother. She had no desire to disturb their moment together and waited until they separated before she finally made her way over.​

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"Ah, you must be Mrs. Sal-soren?" she asked before a brief smile shifted from Teyla to Brandyn, "It's a pleasure to finally meet you," Kha'la said with a dip of her head. Looking Teyla up and down, she could appreciate the beauty and confidence the woman carried with her, even now that her exterior reflected the difficult times.​

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A Hapan's beauty would never entirely fade.​

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[Brandyn Sal-Soren]

Hearing his siblings names, and news of his father's recovery brought a noticeable loosening to Brandyn's shoulders. Briana being back in Jedi training was at once good to hear, but that pang of sibling rivalry was more than noticeable. He had put his training on hold to investigate The New Way. He could only hope that he had not so ingrained any new habits that he would be hindered on his much desired promotion to Knighthood.

His lips parted to speak but he was interrupted.

"Ah, you must be Mrs. Sal-Soren? It's a pleasure to finally meet you,"

A flash of irritation blazed across his face as he turned to see who had come between he and his mother's reunion.

"Exc..."

Brandyn caught his annoyance but too late for it to have been noticeable. HIs cheeks flushed red, which he tried to hide with a dip of his head in obeisance to the Queen of Hapes. "Your Highness. We are humbled by your presence. Allow me to introduce to you my mother, Teyla Ee'everwest Sal-Soren," he said using her full name which carried the weight of both Nabooian and Corellian nobility. Nothing to compare to actual royalty, but nevertheless generally impressive.

Withdrawing his hand from the introduction, and stepping to the side, Brandyn hoped to get into the Queen's periphery and have a moment longer to regain his composure. He had only seen the Queen on a couple of occasions, and only in public settings. An audience directly with the Queen was surely mostly to do with his mother's station. Perhaps the Queen had heard about how his family had been inculcating themselves among the Hapan people and making it their new home.

The Queen was graceful, and had a presence that demanded respect. She was clearly in peak physical condition, and carried herself in the manner of a practiced warrior. Needless to say she was strikingly beautiful, the Hapes Consortium was possibly the only part of the universe that could rival his home of Naboo for the beauty of its inhabitants. Queen Kha'la Draay did not disappoint. Brandyn found the not so subtle edge to her beauty to be the most alluring thing of all. As with everything in Hapes, she knew the life and death struggle of remaining on top.

| Teyla Sal-Soren | Breha Sal-Soren | Kha'la Daaray |​

 

[Teyla Sal-Soren]

Appearance | XoXo
Location | Lorell Hall
Tag | Brandyn Sal-Soren , Kha'la Daaray

Kha'la's words reached her first, bellying a voice that was gentle, kind, but also powerful, and as the woman to whom it belonged stepped into view, Teyla could not help but admire the beauty of this proud woman who boasted thick locks of fiery red hair and icy-blue eyes. The personification of Hapan beauty.

Teyla kept her reaction to Brandyn's nearly-mispoken words controlled and minimal, shrugging them aside as though they'd never happened as she stepped into the space he'd once occupied, cloaking herself in the robe of noble graces as her son collected himself. Years of guidance and careful refinement made it a far too easy role for her to don. "Our Most Revered Ereneda,***." She intoned, sweeping down in a well-practiced bow while ignoring the deep ache in her bones, showing her due reverence for the Queen Mother.

"You bless us with your presence, but the pleasure is mine." The woman's eyes rose as she came up from the bow, "I assume you've met my son, Brandyn?" a brief glance passed between her son and the Queen, making note of the subtle sense of budding familiarity. "We were humbled by the consideration you gave to our family's plight and the assistance you provided to see my husband returned home. We look forward to the day when we can return the favor."

Spoiler

Ereneda or Most Revered Ereneda was one of the titles the Hapans gave to their Queen Mother, whether they were the incumbent Queen or had abdicated. In their native language, it meant she who has no equal. It reflected how the Hapans almost worshiped their ruler.

 

[Kha'la Daaray]

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Location: Hapes | Lorell Hall​

Tag: Brandyn Sal-Soren Teyla Sal-Soren ​

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"Exc..."​

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The somewhat frustrated tone didn't escape Kha'la, and her head tilted slightly in response while ice-blue eyes to the Jedi Padawan to try and understand the reason for it. But when she noticed his embarrassment, she shrugged it off as a mistake and turned to Teyla instead. She was very much aware of how long the two had been separated, so it was only logical that anything or anybody interrupting the reunion wouldn't immediately be appreciated.​

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But Kha'la had a good reason to be here. ​

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"Our Most Revered Ereneda,"​

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A smile touched Kha'la's lips, but there was a shimmer of uneasiness in her eyes as well. While she had grown up within the Royal Family and gotten used to being treated differently, she had not been Queen Mother for very long, so the greeting was still something new she tried getting used to. "I've met him, but only briefly and not in private," she said, her eyes shifting to Brandyn to give him a quick look over. The smile lingered a second longer, but her expression shifted to something more neutral when she looked at Teyla again.​

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"We live in dangerous and unpredictable times, Mrs. Sal-Soren," Kha'la began in response to the woman's display of gratitude, "Perhaps more than ever before, differences must be set aside, and people must show a willingness to help each other. Hapes is no different, so it was my pleasure to help." She paused a moment and seemed to consider something.​

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"Your husband, is he doing alright?" she asked more out of personal interest. "I know what it's like to lose family, so I can only imagine how it feels for you all to be back together." ​

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[Brandyn Sal-Soren]

Awkward.

That is how Brandyn felt, and thought that he probably was doing a terrible job at it. Even the Queen's smile seemed to indicate she was somewhat amused by the way that he had behaved. And then his mother, schooling him again on etiquette without even trying, how he wished he was more like her. Was he like his father? Brandyn shuddered at the thought.

With the Queen directly addressing his mother, Brandyn found himself simply standing to the side, politely waiting for his moment to speak. He understood the social norms of Hapes. Men spoke only when they were spoken too. It annoyed him, but he was also glad for his family having a new home. Beggars and choosers.

As the conversation continued, Brandyn tried not to have his gaze linger on the Queen, but found himself captivated. With his mind in that state, it got awkward looking back at his mother, so he tried just to stare somewhere between them...trying not to have his eyes glaze over.

| Teyla Sal-Soren | Kha'la Daaray |​

 

[Teyla Sal-Soren]

Appearance | XoXo
Location | Lorell Hall, Hapes
Tag | Brandyn Sal-Soren , Kha'la Daaray


A quiet, knowing smile was held on her lips as she watched the exchange between Brandyn and Kha'la. The protective, instinctive part of her wanted to drill Brandyn about the nature of these 'brief' meetings, while the rational, level headed part of her, understood that her son was no longer a child that needed her to protect and coddle him - that he was becoming his own man who had grown without her these last six years.

It was past time to let go - even if that reality was a painful one to accept.

"So very true, you speak well beyond your years, your majesty." Her long fingered hands clasped together, resting in front her. "My husband is doing well, better now that he is with his family again and I'm sure it will bring his spirit joy to see and know that our son has made it safely home. It's been a rather long time since we've all been together." Teyla said gently, "In fact, I'd like to take Brandyn home now, unless there is something else you require?"