Oh Look, Fate Again!

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The past few months had wrecked Graxin, tore him apart, and pieced him back together again. He had been imprisoned by the New Order. He had escaped and been chased by Mandalorian Bounty Hunters for months on end. The Jedi had taken him in, and Krag himself had shown up to be killed by his own hand right on his doorstep. Naboo had called, only to reveal his mother and a past that he had never known to him.

To put it simply, he was exhausted.

The Knight wandered through one of the many shopping markets in Theed. The massive market was located within an even larger mall. The walls were marble, terraces pristine, and the stores all well kept. Food was pedaled in the center of the massive market, and all of it was kept cool under a massive skylight. It was a sight to behold.

Graxin was taking his time just people watching on a nearby bench. He was adorned in the light brown and tan robes of the Jedi Order. There was relatively no protection, but he did not necessarily need it. The lightsabers hanging from his hip warded that off.

His eyes were squeezed shut, and his mouth partly open as he leaned back. If one were to listen, they could even hear him snoring.

[member="Corvetta Salvo"]

 

[Corvetta Salvo]

How long had it been? Corvetta had not set foot on Naboo in years, since before she had left her parents. That was unacceptable. Naboo was never a world to be missed if one could help it. Even those who preferred the boundless splendor of space could not resist at least stopping by to sip the sights of the perennial jewel of the Mid Rim. Something about waterfalls and pit stops...

In all sincerity, it was good to see the lush world from ground level once more. It had a classical personality to it, as if time had merely adapted to the world rather than the other way around. Sure, the souvenirs were ripoffs, but the place was still classy. They had queens and kings and stuff, after all.

Everyone also wore super fancy clothes, making the pilot feel very conspicuous. Even that bum on the bench over there was sporting his own robe. Corvetta just had her trademark coat. She was totally fine with that, but still, it made her kind of obvious. However, she was quite satisfied with her personal apparel after peeking into one of the market's dress shops. Fat chance she was going to be found in one of those crazy things at those crazy prices! Dresses just were not her style.

Where was Koko when she needed her? Taking a break from her meandering, the spacer chick grabbed a bench next to the snoring bum's seat and watched all the people with actual money float by. "There a pub around here?" she wondered aloud.

[member="Graxin Rade"]

 

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Graxin's string of snoring broke as Corvetta spoke. It was the familiar voice that caught him off guard. He didn't particularly look different; just a bit more scarred, and a bit wiser. A single amber orb opened halfway to stare at the woman. Yep, that was her. He took in a deep breath, and exhaled slowly out of the nose. "The Naboo don't believe in pubs. There are male strip clubs though, if that's your thing." He murmured aloud.

The no longer sleeping man yawned big and wide. He blinked six or seven times, and sat up straight. Even with the beard, it was clear he was still in the prime of his youth. His head tilted toward Corvetta, and a sleep smile was shot her way. "Hey Corvy. You found me again, good job." He stated simply. His arms fell down to his sides, and his smile grew as he became more aware.
His head tilted roward the young woman, and a hand went down to tap his lightsaber. The long, leatherbound hilt was unmistakable. It was the same one she had helped him build on Mustafar. "Or maybe this was an accident. The Force is weird like that. Are you gonna kiss me or not?" He continued. His words were laced with playful sarcasm.

The force certainly did work in odd ways. It was something to blame when the impossible or improbable happened. Those kind of things just seemed to happen to Graxin a lot.

[member="Corvetta Salvo"]

 

[Corvetta Salvo]

Male... What? "Nope, not really my swing, bud," the smuggler pilot responded to the unexpected bit of commentary. Then she jumped from her seat as her mind suddenly paired the voice to a familiar face. Not a moment later, he called her by name, confirming her suspicions. The presence of that lightsaber just was the icing on the cake. What a showman.

"Frakkit, Graxlerod!" was all Corvetta could think to say momentarily, utterly astounded by this sort of coincidence. What are the odds? Or should she be worried? Sith did lots of insane things, from what she understood. Her trust in him had already been tested last time they met.

Corvetta nearly choked in hilarity at his final statement. Was he serious? It was just like Grax to be so straightfaced. He was so difficult to read sometimes. If he expected a kiss... "You kidding me, Graxy?" She punched him on the shoulder, hoping it was 'just like old times' and dipped in humor. "I'd probably get clamped for treason and have to eat cubes for the rest of my life."

Though she continued to chuckle at their usual mode of conversation and teasing, the pilot could not help but feel slightly uncomfortable. "Should I be worried that you're here? I should, shouldn't I?"

[member="Graxin Rade"]

 

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"I'm with the Jedi now, so technically, no, you wouldn't feel free to just go ahead and do it." He stated with that blunt, possibly serious manner of speech he had always used. Talking wasn't his strong suit--yet he loved to talk. He set his hands on his legs and gave an over-exaggerated wince when the punch connected.

He sensed that unease. His abilities for empathy had been nonexistent when he served Krag. They were unnecessary and pointless to train at the time. Now, after spending so much time purring people back together, he could read people's emotions like a book. The fact that she seemed uncomfortable around him twisted a knot in the pit of his stomach. He didn't like that.

"I came here to see my mother. She was just elected the queen, actually. Feena Mason. I wanted to see the city...and before you say anything, no, I have no had access to the holonet and therefore have been unable to message you, and no, I did not know who my mother was until three days ago." He continued. His soft smile continued to beam up at her, even as he stood up to his full height.

The armored plates and the heavy blue robe only served to make him look bigger--not that he wasn't a head or two taller than [member="Corvetta Salvo"] already. "Where have you been?"

 

[Corvetta Salvo]

Corvetta raised her eyebrows. Graxin was being awfully inviting about a kiss. He had gotten rather strange last time they were together, and the pilot girl was not quite sure what to make of it. But she was starting to get the picture now and was not put any more at ease by what she determined.

"I'm not a good kisser," she said, rolling her eyes. That was not really a lie. Kissing probably required practice, and she had none of that. Besides, she needed to make things clear before this progressed any further. Her feelings on Graxin were muddled and confused, a mixture of fear and denial... and something she was not familiar with.

How he could convince her that he was no longer part of that creepy Sith deal was going to be difficult. Corvetta needed a little more proof. He had fooled her once before. "Where haven't I been? Been dusting around the wheel with some friends. A gundark couldn't get me to stop crankin'." She tried to loosen up some. He had never harmed her in any way, and his unwieldy, amusing personality had apparently not disappeared. Could he really be that bad, Sith or not?

"So..." Now was the time to dig for proof. And possibly see something awesome. A hint of a grin creeping from the corner of her mouth, Corvetta looked dauntlessly into the eyes of her old friend. "Your mom's a queen. Ya got a castle?"

[member="Graxin Rade"]

 

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Graxin slipped his arms over his chest and huffed a quiet, amused laugh. His gaze traveled off toward the center of the commons. A mass of people milled about. All were going about their daily business, and it was a bit enlightening to watch the people that passed through. For a moment, it seemed that he was dodging the question.

"I'm not a good one either." He finally answered. He tilted his head back toward his old friend, and flashed a small slip of a smile. "Castle...does a big capital building where my family lives count?" He raised an eyebrow, and motioned far behind her toward the rear exit. He had run into Corvetta again for a reason; he just had to find out what it was.

"If you want me to get you in, I can." He continued. He figured that he had read her mind--then again, that wasn't very hard. They were synced when it came to thought each other's thought processes, most of the time. "And....what's a Gundark? Is it some kind of Hutt?"

[member="Corvetta Salvo"]

 

[Corvetta Salvo]

"Well..." Corvetta took a moment to consider things, feeling out the situation. If he really was related to the Queen, then the pilot supposed there might be some merit to all he said. And also being able to say you had seen something when none of your friends could say the same was pretty fun. "Okay. Show me this castle of yours," she relented.

"And Graxlerod..." The spacer stood on her tipped toes to increase her height a little and loom closer to his face, raising one of her eyebrows in a comically aghast display. "How is it that I've run into ya in all the corners of the galaxy, and yet you have never heard of a gundark by now?"

[member="Graxin Rade"]

 

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Graxin flashed [member="Corvetta Salvo"] a satisfied little smile. He tilted his head toward the doors far down the hall, and shoved his hands in his pockets. "Oh, I will. It's real fancy." He commented. His gaze drifted down from the floor, to Corvetta's face. He and his mother had discussed the topic of women; odd and foreign to the Knight. He was starting to understand what she had said. "Little close aren't we Miss Salvo?" He teased.

A thumb was jerked back toward the doors, and his fingers wrapped around her forearm. He gave her a slight tug, and continued to hold that ridiculous grin. It was god to have someone around from his days under the Sith. Not that he didn't not enjoy his new life, but a complete rejection of the past was unwanted.

And it was Corvetta. Their friendship, though odd and initially formed on lies and credits, was something he cherished. he would, of course, never say it aloud.

"And I have heard of them, just never seen one."

 

[Corvetta Salvo]

Corvetta backed off a little at her old friend's mention of their rather close proximity. What was she doing? She should be more careful about these details. "Not any closer than we've already been. I think we should roll for your castle/palace/town hall thing." She was trying to keep things casual, but it was proving to be more difficult than normal. Perhaps she should just ditch Graxin and be on her way across town.

He grabbed her arm. The last time someone had done that--besides her loveable blonde buddy--they had ended up with a steel heel to their shins. That had been several years ago, and Corvetta was not sure what to make of things now. She never knew with Graxin. He had lied to her before, or at least omitted some major details--pretty much everything that might be really important to know. But there was something... looser about him now. What was it?

The pilot smirked as they continued on the topic of gundarks. "Probably didn't like what they smelled. Ya know."

[member="Graxin Rade"]

 

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Graxin sighed, though it was not out of anything negative. It was the odd flood of nostalgia that came over him like an uncontrollable torrent. The scent of the Wookie homeworld's forests and Corvetta's corny jokes. The rainy forests of Mytus. The temple on Mustafar when all of his deceptions had been revealed, and still, [member="Corvetta Salvo"] had remained. Even if he wanted to, he knew he would never truly be rid of her.

""Then we'll go." Graxin stated in that matter-of-fact tone he often used. He led the woman out of the massive building and onto one of Theed's many roads. The palace was not far, and it was easily seen at this distance. "It's a whole lot nicer than anything I ever lived in when I was u-" He scowled for a moment. The expression melted away leaving that same comfortable smile. "Before."

It was around this time that he made note of his hand still attached to her arm. It was unconscious, and he found it made his heart skip a beat. He let go a moment after the thought, and shoved his hands into his pockets.

"I'm sorry. About everything. Krag was going to execute my siblings--he did, but I was trying to keep that from happening." He stated out of the blue. "I shouldn't have kept you in the dark."

 

[Corvetta Salvo]

She was half-pulled along by Graxin, presumably towards the capital building he was talking about. She was starting to not give much notice to it when he suddenly jolted his hand away from her arm and pocketed it, looking all shy like a schoolboy. Like she knew what schoolboys did.

Corvetta did not find room to speak. Her friend was spilling things so rapidly now, telling her a sobering story of what had happened and why he had done the things he had done. It was quite a tale, but it did not have the air of a simple tale. There was something very real in his tone, and if he had maintained his hold on her arm, he would have felt a small tremor as she considered what it must be like to lose one's siblings. She supposed she could never quite fathom the idea, though. She had no siblings. Just some cousin somewhere, whom she had never met.

Corvetta had no words. It seemed that maybe Graxin was actually the better of the two. He had tried to do something noble; save the galaxy and all that. Meanwhile, she was just Miss Salvo, the girl who flies random stuff from Point A to Point B. What had she done with her life?

[member="Graxin Rade"]