Mineral-Covered Fried Goods

[Kaili Talith]

[member="Mishel Kryze"]

Eyes had lingered on those golden lights for so long before Kaili had decided to step inside. It had been so many years since she had been at this particular fast food chain, and in many regards the biggest memory she had of one of these establishments was when she and her friends doused a Sith into total defeat when she was little older than maybe nine or ten. It was freaky to think that it had already been almost fifteen years ago at this point since then. Perhaps part of her wondered where Laura was, or Liam and Ibaris. Mira too for that matter. She knew that Mara had married, and as for Micah and Aela, well... They were her siblings.

So maybe she came here for nostalgia. Stepping inside she was immediately met by the oddly familiar smell of overheated frying oil and the edible variant of fake foods. Her tongue could practically taste the grease with each breath she took, and the sound of children eagerly tearing into fried goods and plastic toy packages alike was hard to miss. For a campus area this place seemed to have a lot of children, but then again Kaili's own equivalent of a college experience had seen her on a space station with Levantine Astrological Academy, it wasn't exactly like she was able to compare the establishments on each campus all that closely.

Picking from the menu available she picked whatever seemed to be the most at hand. There was a special kind of sacrilege to naming your meals after famed Jedi Masters and Kaili would most likely always grin at that. She got her meal handed to her on a small tray and headed out into the crowds only to realize that, given the establishment this was, the seats were out. An awkward grimace spread across her face as she looked around the room trying to find anything for herself.

What was this? Bring-your-kid-for-fast-food-day?

Ah right, that was every day.

There was one table, sort of. It was connected to another set of them. On the other end sat someone, a brown-haired woman that seemed to be focusing on a pile of books. A student, then? Kaili approached her with a sigh. Corporate architects could tell themselves they created an enjoyable experience all they wanted to, but this was just cruel. What was a socially averse girl meant to do in order to get her privacy, right?

The blonde woman took her seat and looked over at the books.

Geology. Interesting.

 

[Mishel Kryze]

Mishel loved McYodas on campus, it was large, unwieldly even it was unnecessary and yet completely necessary at the same time. She sat with a pair of headphones, black with orange sponges with a spray painted rebel logo on the ear covers. Hair down nearly touching the tip of the waist band on her pants, a phrik forged wedding band that was simple plain dazzled on the left ring finger. She chewed her rontho nuggets on one end of her mouth as a protato fry dangled on the edge of the other. Left hand over a notebook, and the right hand with a stylus as she scribbled something on the book. Notes written in High Sith and Eldorai, a stick figure screaming something on Auresh on the margins. No one seemed to mind or notice the lightsaber that hung on her hip.

Food chewed, she absent mindedly reached out for the milkshake and sucked until it started to pull in air. Setting the cup down her hand felt around for more fries and pulled one loose. Geology, minerals, dirt - rocks all of it related back to crystals, and that meant lightsaber crystals for her line of work. Her workshop was at a virtual standstill as was her Jedi training. She had taken her sister's offer to go back to school for a semester. Mishel's Corellian flight pants with the leather jacket hugged her figure a little more than she liked. Alessandra, her sister, insisted that this looked better than the mangled baggy mess she was used to.

Mishel wasn't sure if it was the shift in the bench's weight or the aura that she sensed that gave the blonde adjacent to her away. Still, the younger woman looked up from her notes and over toward the woman. She offered a smile and mouthed hello before going back to her studies. Mishel with manners in mind pulled her headphones down around her neck and went back to making notes.

[member="Kaili Talith"]

 

[Kaili Talith]

[member="Mishel Kryze"]

It was a mistake to take a closer look. A soft tan, hazel-green eyes, brown hair, Corellian bloodstripes, a lightsaber, and a wedding band. Kaili’s memories flooded the forefront of her mind of a different time and for a very brief second she let a small frown grow on her lips. She shook the nostalgic feeling and glanced over at the books again and the notes the girl was making. She had this other woman’s attention for a few seconds more, and something seemed to pull Kaili closer. Regret, maybe. Curiosity, for certain.

“Not every day I see someone with a lightsaber and Corellian bloodstripes.” Kaili sounded impressed more than anything. “So I take it you’re Corellian, then?”

Please say no.

Kaili took a small bite from her own meal and grimaced at the way the tastes seemed to flood her senses. It came with her heritage to have heightened hearing and senses but this was just insane. It was like eating a spoon of sugar doused in chocolate, except it was in a grease-slathered package. Her thumb and index finger moved up to clear part of the dressing that hugged the corner of her mouth.

She put the burger down and smeared the rest of the grease off on her pant leg. It was a bad habit, hard to drop.

“I mean, not that you need to answer. I should probably just eat, actually.” Kaili’s eyes darted away and then back to Mishel again. “But, are you?”

 

[Mishel Kryze]

"Not like officially, no," a small smile - mostly nerves at this point as she answered, "it's fine I get it a lot actually, um, my Master is Corellian and then the pilot for my ship is Selonian. I've seen the ball of metal often as well, but no these were a gift after one of the many scuffles on Corellia." Mishel grabbed a handful of protato fries and with due diligence of a street urchin scoffed them down. She looked away momentarily and finished off her notes regarding the formation of crysals in nature. It just so happened that the young woman looked over at the blonde again who looked like she wanted to vomit. It almost reminded Mishel of the first time she took Alessandra to McYodas. "There's uh, there's a Trader Solo's over there if you wanna try something... healthy."

Manda knew that Shia was always on Mishel to eat something that hadn't been drowned in grease. A slight use of the Force to pull the milkshake toward her, and there Mishel grabbed the straw and poked at whatever remained of the sweet treat before trying to suck the rest of it up. Although the blonde's curiosity did lead Mishel to ask, "so um, I mean, if I was Corellian where would that have gone - just out of curiosity?" A look back at her notes she flipped the page in her text book and turned the page over in her notebook. "Also, water really helps to uh wash the um... yeah." She motioned with her hand to her face, "taste."

[member="Kaili Talith"]

 

[Kaili Talith]

[member="Mishel Kryze"]

There was an inaudible sigh of relief as the woman admitted to not being from Corellia. As much as those particular memories were good Kaili did not like to dwell on them. She shook her head about the healthier attitude and looked down at her waistline as if to ask herself if she could afford this one cheat before she looked back at the brunette again. Yep, cheat day was a-okay. Kaili took another bite and gave the woman a look as she asked the one question Kaili hadn’t really considered herself.

“Nothing good.” Instinct had her nearly whispering ever so soft soft before she realized what she had done. “Uh-” Kaili choked on her words. “Because- obv- you know, you are married, and I am just-”

“My ex-girlfriend was awarded her bloodstripes after she nearly died and I was- it’s a long story.” Kaili took a deep breath and shook her head before taking another bite of her food. “You remind me a lot of her.”

“I-in a good way, or bad- or-” Kaili was on a roll with the stutter. “She meant a lot to me, but we were not good for each other.”

Second take on the second take. Kaili took a deep breath and let it all out slow.

“Sorry, I am not the best at…” She motioned between the two of them with her index fingers as if to indicate their conversation. “This.”

“Who did you say your master was, again?”

Why were they even called Masters who gave them the right to be called a master over someone else, right? What was the- right, listen to the woman. Kaili could do that. Unless she ran away in abject horror over the display the blonde managed to put on. That was also a possible outcome of all this.

 

[Mishel Kryze]

"Ooooh," the realization hit her, "yeah... I mean, you're cute but my wife's one point eighty meters of Mandalorian Rattataki and isn't known for sharing." The other woman's stammering was adorable and enough for Mishel to close up her books and turn to face her completely. Side straddling the bench she watched and listened as the other woman spoke about her ex. "Yeah there's uh, there's a lot of those, but hey listen there are plenty of other ladies in the galaxy. She gave the blonde a reassuring chuckle, "you're fine, it's okay to be nervous, or just y'know... " Socially awkward. It went without saying, "trust me there was a time in my life where I was definitely the socially awkward one."

"I still have my moments," she admitted, "but um... my master? Oh, Coren Starchaser."

His name was either good or bad, no in betweens. Mishel took the last few rontho nuggets and dipped them into the 'tangy' barbeque sauce or whatever passed for it out here. "Mhmmm, also," since they were getting a bit further and more personal with their conversation. "Mishel Kryze." The brunette managed between mouthfuls of food, "you from around here or...?"

[member="Kaili Talith"]

 

[Kaili Talith]

Mandalorian Rattataki. Uh-uh, nope, not good. Don’t want to upset that. At the very least the brunette seemed to have understanding for the situation in which Kaili had just placed herself in. There was another sigh of relief that blew through the blonde’s nose albeit this time audible. However, what started as a sigh quickly turned into a chuckle at the mention of that one name: Coren Starchaser. Kaili cleared her throat trying not to choke on her food as she gave the woman a lookover.

“Starchaser.” She said and grinned. “Good people, if a bit… Enthusiastic.”

“Kaili.” Kaili said. “Kaili Talith. I think my sister might have known your master.”

“So I mean, no. Not from around here. I just sort of wander and do what I can.” Understatement. “I was asked to hold a quick talk on the intricacies of developing Droid AI for specialized fields earlier. Saw this place and figured it was a while since I last visited one of these.”

“I take it you are studying geology, right?”

[member="Mishel Kryze"]

 

[Mishel Kryze]

A small smirk tugged at the edges of Mishel's grin as she heard Kaili's audible sigh of relief. A louder than anticipated cackle erupted from Mishel, she immediately clamped her hands over her mouth, and after a minute of gathering herself. "Um, enthusiastic is a word, yes." She agreed and looked over her meal noting that it was sadly gone, and that her stomach seemed quiet content with the greasy-addled meal. Sister? Well then it was good to know that she wasn't the only one who had to suffer siblings. "Ah okay, well not many people are from around here these days."

Varunda had its share of hard times but none more than others. Droid AI intricacies well there was a mouthful. "Mhmm," she acknowledged, "yeah, really looking to get more in-depth with crystals. Lightsaber crystals, I've got a small diary cataloging the ones that I've found on my travels with Jorus Merrill and Alkor Centaris, but wanted to really ... um, well learn the science behind it all I guess."

"Droid AI, huh? You tinker?"

[member="Kaili Talith"]

 

[Kaili Talith]

[member="Mishel Kryze"]

That had to have been a deliberate name drop to gauge for Kaili’s reaction. The girl obliged and grinned at the mention of Jorus Merrill. Between him and Coren Starchaser it seemed like Kaili and this other woman shared a lot of acquaintances, if Jorus was to be regarded as such. Kaili was at some point best friends with his daughter, but ever since marriage Mara had just sort of faded away from the galaxy for a bit. Not that Kaili blamed her in the slightest, there were many days when she wanted to do the same. That said, a friend was still a friend no matter how long time had passed.

“I dabble.” Kaili shrugged it off with a nod. “Used to own a company once, but the corporate world... That kind of attention and money for someone who doesn’t want it… Nah, it just didn’t appeal so I quit. Sold everything off and left.”

The blonde looked down at her half-finished meal and grimaced. It was filling, she would give it that. Or maybe it was her stomach telling her to stop. Either way she put the rest of her burger down and slid the tray away before she looked over at Mishel again.

“Given that I know two out of the three people you just mentioned, I take it we share similar stories to some extent. Acquaintances at least.” Kaili glanced over at Mishel's bag. “What made you interested in the lightsaber crystals, if you don’t mind me asking? It’s not a field I’ve heard many talk about.”

 

[Mishel Kryze]

Dabble. Mishel gave a quiet nod of acknowledgment while tucking away a smirk. "I see," not really, but she did understand wanting to leave and putting the past where it belongs. She watched the blonde a moment as she looked down at the meal and followed the other's motions. Grease-addled food wasn't for everyone and she often wondered what it said of her stomach that she could withstand it. It hadn't slipped by Mishel's notice that Kaili grinned at the mention of Jorus Merrill. It seemed they had a few aquantiences in common, two at the very least. "I think so," she agreed.

"Huh, not a question many ask me, actually, um...." Mishel looked away a moment and when she had gathered her thoughts she looked back at Kaili and with an ease, "curiosity, at the time I was living in a little riverside shack on Virgilla near the ysalamri forest. I was scrolling through the holonet and found an old Merrill guide, and after Mustafar... I needed time to myself, and with some money that I uh, borrowed." Stole. "I hired a pilot, and a guard." Jorus and Alkor respectively. "I wasn't able to use my legs then so I needed a lot of help." Short answer, Mishel was just curious about lightsaber properties. "But yeah, I just, there were so many properties to them and I wanted to know more about it and find out if there were more unique crystals out there - and turns out, there were."

[member="Kaili Talith"]

 

[Kaili Talith]

[member="Mishel Kryze"]

Curiosity. A most simplest yet best of reasons to do anything. Kaili nodded her head in understanding of that while trying to imagine herself living in a small shack by an ysalamiri forest. First part, great. Second part, not so much. Kaili liked the force, Kaili liked the force a lot. Ysalamiri was a hindrance for that.

“It sounds like it.” Kaili smiled back at Mishel’s remark. “I think a lot of people simply get the crystal that they bond with and don’t think too much of the rest. I mean, I am sure the Jedi has had research into it. Though I imagine you have already looked into that.”

Kaili’s eyes wandered to her food and then to Mishel.

“Okay, so this will sound weird, but…” Kaili tried her best not to grimace. “What about outside? Going outside, that is. You finished your meal, I am certainly not finishing mine, but I would love to keep talking.”

“It’s been a while since I met someone new that I had a good conversation with that didn’t also end with either one of us getting punched in the face.”

“Unless, of course, you would like to punch me in the face.”

“Please say no.”

 

[Mishel Kryze]

"Yeah, I'm digging into that - it's just a lot of information based on what the Jedi have and then getting a hold of Sith information," which would have been easier if some rabid-fish-Jedi didn't flood the library. "That's... not weird, at all?" Mishel's head canted slightly to the left. She eased out of the bench and took a moment to stretch as she gathered her belongings into a bag. "Yeah, I'm pretty much done for the day anyway, I'm only taking like two classes and both on holo. Stopped off to talk with the professor and get... these." She held up the books.

"Also, no, I'm uh, I'm not really in a punchy mood today." A wink followed her statement as if the jovial tone of her voice wasn't enough to indicate her jest. Mishel swept her hair to one shoulder while easing her bag on the other. McYodas wasn't that far from the square, the massive intersection on campus with lots of room for sitting, relaxing and general loitering. New Habat University was as beautiful as ever and Mishel made a note to snap a picture of it for her wife. "How have you been enjoying New Habat so far?"

[member="Kaili Talith"]

 

[Kaili Talith]

[member="Mishel Kryze"]

It was funny how much of a difference that a mask could make. While using her codenames and aliases for work Kaili could be anyone, imitate whoever she needed to be, but when it came to being herself she always seemed to fall flat on her face. Maybe it was the absence of any real risk, or maybe it was just who she actually was. Deeply insecure without reason. She had stared down droids triple her size and dominated it without a ounce of fear, yet when it came to interaction and talking to people she could hardly string two sentences together.

So, maybe weird wasn’t the right word, but it felt right to her at the time. The mood was letting up and the more she got to know and understand the other woman the more Kaili would let up not just in her interactions but physically as well. Her back didn’t try to hunch over and her shoulders didn’t try to push her head off of her neck. As they rose up she chuckled at the remark that she wouldn’t get punched and left it at that with a mock exhale and wipe at her forehead.

“I have enjoyed it. I studied at the Levantine Astronomical Academy, so the concept of having an actual campus of this size isn’t quite what I had expected.” Kaili nodded and stepped outside of the restaurant. “I mean, I knew they were this big but it’s not the same as I was used to back then.”

“I tend to sort of shift between planets these days as it is. The Core, my home, isn’t as stable as it was before.” She frowned. “Leaves plenty of work to be had out there though. Ship security, and security in general, is booming.”

“There’s something about bringing would-be invaders to justice that is just so satisfying. I take it Coren and Jorus were quite good at that.”

That wasn’t even subtle in it’s implication, or so Kaili believed. Mishel would connect those dots she assumed.