Miss Me?

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Kurt half turned in his seat, proving to be amazingly flexible as he quickly brushed his lips against hers. "Why of course I don't, my love."

He lied.

"I would never ignore a request from you." He blinked his eyes innocently, giving her his warmest smile and half turning around again to make sure there wasn't any oncoming traffic barreling towards them. The Bike really was rather nice, and he didn't want to ruin it before they got back to the Manor...that would be one thing he was pretty sure would turn Jamie's father completely against him. "Would you repeat yourself? For me?"

He tried to play as innocent as possible.

It was difficult of course, mostly because Jamie would very likely see right through him, but that didn't meant he couldn't try.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

The eye roll was intense. Nostrils flared, lips thinned and pushed to the left side of her face, it wasn't pretty. There was metaphoric steam coming from the blonde's ears, and her face had reddened.

"You think you're so coy! I know you heard me! I know you understood me! And I know you ignored me until we got here!"

This would normally be the point where one would slap him across the face and tell him what a jerk he was, but despite her temper she was relatively docile when it came to that. Instead she just glared at him with piercing blue eyes that would make even the Manka Cat think twice.

"Just forget it! It's fine. Let's go."

Pointing ahead she directed Kurt. "Go three streets up, at the corner take a left. There will be five streets after. When you get to that intersection take a right and there will be a lot to leave the bike. We can walk from there."

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Kurt gave her an innocent smile, shaking his head as though he had no clue what she was talking about. It was better to have her a little angry right now then to have her crash the speeder bike and get them killed, though of course she'd likely bring this back up when they would be headed home...unless...he found a distraction.

"Okay Honey." Kurt said, his voice almost meek.

Almost.

He depressed the shifting pedal on the bike and sent them rocketing forward. He didn't go as fast as he had been of course, that would be suicide. instead they went zooming forward at a more standard pace. He took the turns exactly as instructed, dipping slowly into the turns and making sure to break the speeder whenever things got a little too hectic. Eventually they found the lot she had been talking about, Kurt pulling into a small space

"Here we are." He said happily. "Where to first, babe?"

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"To get your ears examined." She said quietly, under her breath, head turned away as she stepped off the side of the bike and fixed her hair from the wind having tossed it around.

"Market center is a few blocks north of here. Lots of open vendor stands with some neat stuff that changes daily. I used to stop there on my way to classes. It's on the way to the photography boutique."

In the distance she could hear the faintest sound of music. "It sounds like there's a performance going on too. If we hurry maybe we can catch a little bit of it."

Sometimes there were acts that performed in the streets for free, hoping for tips for their show. Jamie found herself late to class on numerous occasions due to these, but they were often so incredible that she lost herself watching until the end, realizing only then just how late she really was. More than once she was given after class work to do as make up for the time missed in study.

Gosh how she hated that!

"This way, we can cut through a few of these alleys and get there faster."

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

"Alright." He wasn't really at home here, so it wasn't like he'd be leading them anywhere. Theed was an interesting place, and much like every other major City Kurt had ever been to it reminded him of some sort of oddly complex maze. He realized the city had probably been planned out and build in such a way that things were actually correctly placed and ordered out...but it all seemed rather odd to him, especially since he didn't know any of it.

"Did you grow up in the city?" He asked her as they made their way forward. "Coming here all the time I mean."

He obviously knew she didn't grow up right here.

When he'd been a kid Kurt had always wanted to go to Mos Espa, almost constantly in fact, but his parents had never really let him. He wondered if it had been the same for Jamie, or if she actually got to explore and go everywhere at her own pace. Theed was likely much safer then Mos Espa, which...well it would make sense for her to wander around.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

The blonde looked at Kurt, somewhat confused. All of her studies took place in the city, albeit the wealthiest section of Theed, but the city all the same. Her fencing classes included, as well as the tournaments at the Grand Coliseum were held there. Perhaps he just wasn't entirely familiar of the concept of what the city actually included. Or maybe he didn't pay attention entirely to her when she spoke. Either one was likely. Her parents tended to block her out when she went on long tangents about subjects that didn't interest them.

"Yes. Every day since I can remember." She paused, waiting for a few speeders to continue past before she headed across one of the streets. "I studied here, both academics and fencing. I also volunteered for the YAFCIN." She realized Kurt likely had absolutely no idea what that meant, so elaborated. "It's an organization that works with children. It's full name is the Young Adults For Children In Need." There was a smile, she hadn't told Kurt about it before. "It's like a big brother, big sister kind of thing. You spend a few hours with kids under 12 who are orphaned, or sick, or came from troubled homes. You do fun things with them, take them places, play with them. That sort of thing."

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Kurt raised an eyebrow at that, but he didn't say anything. Those sorts of programs...didn't exist on Tatooine. Where he was from that sort of thing was really just called hanging out. Older kids and younger kids would generally run together, with the older Kids getting the younger ones in trouble by pawning off minor crimes on them. It was never anything big of course, stealing from a vending machine, grabbing a piece of meat off the table, something innocent that a kid wouldn't really get in trouble for. Kurt had never really participated in that sort of thing, he'd always been far too busy building up his Pod, but he knew that most of his friends had kept themselves busy that way.

"Oh." He said quietly.

"So you know your way around, huh?" His arm slipped around the small of her back as they began to wander. The sun beamed down on the buildings around them, reflecting off the limestone and casting everything in a warm glowing yellow hue. It was nice, not as Hot as Tatooine but instead pleasantly warm. Kurt probably could have gotten used to it, though the buildings around them still reminded him a bit of...aristocracy. Everything was build with grandeur in mind, he wasn't entirely sure how he felt about that. "Bit of a big shot?"

He shot her a grin, squeezing her side to tickle her slightly.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Reflexively her body arched away from the invasive fingers attempting to elicit a giggle from her, though there wasn't anywhere to really go, so Kurt received his desired reaction in the form of a few squeals and laughs.

"I know my way around, yes." Her hand raised and quickly fell, slapping away his hand from continuing its' ticklish assault of her. "Big shot? I'm not sure what you mean. There's no recognition for volunteering. No pay. You just do it because you want to. I just like children." Some people didn't. Most people in fact, didn't. They were very understaffed for the number of children enrolled. Jamie split her time with four children herself, but others had as many as six.

"They're all good kids, just victims of circumstance." She felt truly sorry for a few of them. It was part of what kept her going, even when she was on the verge of collapsing due to tiredness. "I just do what I can and hope it makes a difference."

Another couple of turns and the music that had been distant before was now much louder, though the performers themselves were shrouded by the rather large crowd that had gathered around to watch.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

He half wanted to say back that the kids in Theed probably weren't half as bad off as the kids in Mos Eisley, but he decided to keep that to himself. "Well..."

Kurt said looking a her.

"That's quite a view." The Courier half snickered, anything they actually could be seeing blocked by the crowd ahead of them. He wasn't exactly sure what kind of performers could be here in the middle of Theed anyway, especially since he didn't imagine fancy aristocrats gathering within the middle of the city to watch say...a juggler. He again kept that to himself, and instead decided to slowly begin looking around themselves. He quickly spotted a balcony to their right. "Look."

He pointed towards the stone outcropping, then a odd collection of stone figureheads tracing down the building leading to it. "We can climb up those and get on the balcony to see better."

The suggestion was classic Tatooine.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Looking up toward the direction Kurt had pointed out she paused. "Climb?" She asked. "Up there?" It wasn't exactly against the law or anything. Well, maybe it might be considered trespassing, but it wasn't likely something that would go much further than being yelled at by the owner of the place to get down. For once she let a bit of a mischievous side take over, nodding to Kurt.

"Okay. Sure." She wasn't exactly a skilled climber, so actually getting up there might be a bit interesting, if not entirely too difficult. "You first." That would at least give her an idea of how to do it.

The music was delightful nonetheless, even if she couldn't see whatever the rest of the act was. It sounded as if there were at least five instruments though, so it was likely a full piece band.

"But if we get into trouble I am going to blame it all on you. You know that right?"

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

"Pfff." The noise was almost a bit too much, but not really. "What are they gonna do, arrest me?"

He teased her with a reminder that he'd already been taken to prison once on Naboo. He wasn't exactly worried about going to jail here, plus if they got caught they would always just run away. Jamie apparently knew these streets like the back of her hand. He was more then willing to bet that they had a pretty good chance of getting away from any police officers that would do the chasing...not that he'd ever run from the police.

"Come on." He took Jamie's hand and dragged her towards the wall.

The Courier didn't waste any time, looking towards the odd stone heads and quickly assessing which ones were safe to climb and which ones weren't. He grasped onto the first one and quickly pulled himself up.

Instantly he was pulled back to a time when he'd climbed the outskirts of the beginning tracks of the Boonta Eve starting area. It was a good memory, he and his friends clambering up the side of the limestone wall so they could find a perch atop the wall. They had watched the races from there, just as he and Jamie would now watch the performers.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"Probably." She said. "You look like the nefarious type." There was a wide smile. "I'd arrest you." Her tongue poked out following that comment.

Watching Kurt scale up the wall was interesting. He looked to be somewhat adept at the task. Perhaps he'd done it once or twice. Not that she'd have been surprised by that at all. Settling her fingers into a few openings and cracks in the stone was simple enough, it was finding the placement for her feet that was the challenge. Her shoes were hardly meant for climbing, so they were more in the way than they were helpful. Once or twice she looked to lose her footing and need to adjust, but eventually she made it up to the balcony with him.

"I think next time I'll forego the shoes."

Her eyes fell to the crowd below, more specifically the performers. They were playing various instruments, but they weren't actually the main focus of the show. They served as background music for the two performers on the makeshift stage. One was clearly a Force wielder of some kind. The man moved his hands about as if some type of conductor for a symphony, though instead of instruments and players being directed it was the Force and a dancer. It was something unlike anything Jamie had seen before. The second performer was being levitated about a foot off the ground, performing an oddly choreographed air dance.

Interesting.

"Well, that's new." She wasn't sure how she felt about that. It was certainly odd, and intriguing, but it was definitely a slightly demeaning use of the Force.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

"Well, Miss Pyne. Do you have the handcuffs for that?" Kurt winked at her as he pulled himself up onto the balcony for the final leg of the climb. He stretched for a moment he reached there, then half turned around so he could help Jamie up onto the balcony and find her a proper place.

Then he turned to the performers.

It wasn't something that he'd ever seen before, that was for sure, and from the way Jamie spoke it was the same for her. He frowned for a moment, watching as the one performer levitated slightly off the ground. He would have called that feat amazing, if he hadn't seen Kaile do the exact same thing just a few weeks before. His eyes wandered over the other performers, watching them for some kind of trickery or street magic. That was common enough on Tatooine.

"Oh?" He said as he wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close as they stood on the balcony. "Not something you've seen before?"

Was this new to Naboo?

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?" As if she needed the answer spoken. It was written on his face. Not to mention the other things he'd already done had far surpassed the innocence of handcuffs.

She simply shook her head with a smirk.

"I've seen Force users before. Just," There was a shake of her head again, with a raise of one eye and a waive of her hand. "Not that." That was certainly new.

It was impressive for the majority, and would have likely been to Jamie, if it wasn't something relatively basic and simple, even for her. That wasn't saying much. Sure, she couldn't levitate much for very long, but she could definitely lift up a person for a few minutes. And if that was something he could do now, she wondered just how long these two had been at their act. Perhaps this was just a way of peddling spare credits for them while they hopped and skipped about the galaxy.

"Not very impressive if you ask me." Not worth wasting the day over, that was for sure.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

So it was the force, not cheap street magic. Interesting. He frowned for a moment, looking at the performers and trying to assess exactly why force users would be street performers. Were they trying to earn money? Why weren't they just doing something more...worthwhile. He'd never known force users to sink this low...well, if you could call street performing low. He knew that some actually took it as an art form. Kurt looked towards Jamie.

"Little bit strange..." Kurt sounded unsure.

An idea popped into his head...a silly one, but... "Are there any big events coming up?"

"Like a party." He looked at Jamie. "A Ball or something?"

The idea was a bit preposterous really, out of left field, but instinct struck him hard. There was something very strange about these performers, and the fact that they were force users? Well that sung certain alarm bells in his head.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie leaned against the closed and curtained window behind them, her hand on her chin, index finger tapping against her cheek as she pondered for a minute.

"Ummm." Her head bobbed left to right a couple of times. "There aren't any public fairs, or parades coming up." What about the courts or palace events though?

The girl felt the back of her shorts for her datapad, pulling the slim device out and waking the screen to check her calendar. All of the royal events open to the nobility were updated regularly and sent to her, not that she was ever excited to attend these things, but it was required. "Nothing from the royal party." She said, still scrolling through.

"There is a court fundraiser coming up. Mostly for the upper echelon of Theed to congregate, pretend to care about one another for a particular cause, donate a bunch of credits while striking deals amongst themselves, while a small handful of others actually do something for the cause."

She turned the device to Kurt so he could take and inspect it.

"Why?" She wasn't always the best at looking beneath the surface of things. To her they were just strange street performers wasting their talent on making petty credits.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

"On Tatooine." Usually when things started that way it was to point out a difference, but here? Here there was something strangely familiar. "The Hutt's hold a 'court' of sorts. They fancy themselves Kings so of course they have to have a place to congregate. There's usually a lot of people that hang out there. Mercenaries, smugglers, Bounty Hunters, but sometimes..."

He trailed off for a moment as he looked down at the courtyard. "Sometimes they have performers."

Slowly Kurt took a step back so he couldn't be seen off the balcony.

"They're not the usual fare though. They always have special skills. Acrobatic, flexible, move a bit too fast. They're innocent enough I suppose, or so I always thought, but one of the Guards told me a story about the Performers once." He remembered that day pretty well.

"Told me they weren't exactly Jesters." He looked towards Jamie. "Rather, they're assassins."

It was a pretty big claim, and he had no evidence save for the feeling in his gut.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

There was a skeptical look on Jamie's face.

"But that's Tatooine. Those are Hutts. Not exactly the shining example of law abiding combinations." She placed her hands on the metal ledge of the balcony, gazing down at the performers. "This is Naboo. Nobody hires assassins here. Even the nobles who hate each other the most would never stoop to such levels. Its' just not something that happens here." Jamie felt Kurt was being a bit over cautious about this. To her, they were just performers using the Force to scrape together a few credits, maybe swindle some people out of a few more with some sad tale or something. But assassins? That was a strong accusation for such an innocent act.

"I don't know about that. I think you might be overthinking this."

She watched as the performers continued, the music intensifying in the background as the female made an incredibly acrobatic mid-air flip.

"Besides, that's just hearsay from one person. How reliable is that? He was probably bored and just wanted to have an interesting conversation so he made something up."

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

He frowned, shrugging slightly. That was certainly a possibility. Tatooine was after all a harsh world, killings weren't all that common, but they weren't exactly rare either. The Hutts especially had a reputation for violence, though Jorga, the Hutt that had sponsored him for his first race and had looked after him in a way...well, he hadn't. The Hutt had been almost kind at times, though of course that had only been because Kurt had made him so much money.

Everyone had their motives of course. "I don't know."

Kurt looked seriously concerned. It was clear that he didn't feel well about this. It just seemed odd to him. Why would street performers use the force? Why wouldn't they go to the Jedi? The Sith? Hell, why wouldn't they use those Jedi tricks for something more lucrative? Kurt had seen what Kaile could do with the force, what Jamie could do...why would someone like that become a street performer? It was just so out of place.

"Nir wouldn't have lied." Kurt said finally. "Not to me."

The Gamorrean had been an odd fellow, far too kind to be working for any sort of Hutt. "I don't feel right, Jamie."

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Kurt was seriously pushing the subject. Why? They're just hustlers. "Well." She started. "What do you want to do about it then?"

They weren't police. They weren't Jedi. And Jamie wasn't quite the shining star of a Force user herself. Could she maybe subdue them if necessary? Sure, maybe. Could those performers, if actual trained assassins like Kurt suggested, kill both her and Kurt? More than likely. It seemed like a rather grim outlook for them regardless of whether they intervened. It wasn't as if Jamie had a lightsaber hanging around, and if they were in fact hired killers, they probably had weapons of their own. So that was strike two. The last straw was that they had no plan and no advantage.

"I guess we could follow them?" That was an option. Unfortunately Jamie had no idea how long they would perform, or where they would go after. They could very well waste the whole day chasing ghosts.

She shrugged, pushing the datapad back into her pocket. "What should we do detective?"

[member="Kurt Meyer"]