Proceed with caution

[Loske Treicolt]

"Hm." She offered, drawing near to the idea of seeing her brother once again. He was a complete and total butt head, but he was her butt head.

Loske cringed at the mention of Naboo, and how easily [member="Cedric Grayson"] recollected the intentions of a vacation. Gross. And then right to murder. This conversation was as much of a rollercoaster as the day was. And it ended up with a new sister.

The comment on his sister's likeness to her was interesting, and immediately she wanted to meet this person. New friend, perhaps. Still, it was a curious parallel to draw. Hearing people's perception of others was a rare conversation - usually things were more focused on a higher scale, governments. Organizations. Power. An individual level wasn't something she frequented.

She looked over her shoulder, an evidential smirk displayed. He'd walked into a self laid trap, and Loske's next sentence was the bear claw clamping down.

"Oh yeah, what am I like?"

 

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That was a fun question.

Cedric's brow furrowed as he fought for the right word. A number of terms came to mind when he thought of Loske - he wasn't sure which were the right to say aloud, however. He fell silent for a few long moments, his chin resting upon his fist as he watched the speeder fly past them.

"You're..." he paused. Fun was the first word that came to mind, though it was desperately inadequate for the conversation at hand. How did she make him feel? He hadn't considered it before.

Warm, at ease perhaps. She was...

"You have an energy to you. Not the Force, just something else." The furrow of his brow deepened, as if it were capable of that. "You're funny, you don't take things very seriously. Very little gets to you and you see the joy in life. You make me laugh, and being around you makes me happy." He stated simply, listing off his feelings on the matter akin to a droid reading components off a logistics record. "But you're good too. It's cliche, but you have a soft heart. That's rare, but it's why I agreed to train you."

His gaze shifted toward her for a moment, the slightest hints of a childish anxiety playing at the edges of his features. Discussing such things was not his forte. "I'm not very good at this," he added, scratching at the back of his skull self-consciously. "What am I like?" He asked finally, playful curiosity lacing his words.

[member="Loske Matson"]

 

[Loske Treicolt]

Hearing what she was like from a semi-reliable source was an interesting experience. Loske smiled, lofting her brows as [member="Cedric Grayson"] offered more than one interpretation of herself. She'd supposed that after the time gap between You're and the first adjective there wouldn't be much more to say, but he kept going. The surging smile couldn't be suppressed, and she supposed he was owed the knowledge of how mutually happy he was making her. It was nice to hear she was a good person.

"Isar said my heart will got me in trouble, too big for my sleeves." The girl commented, further validating her passenger's evaluation. It wasn't an incorrect statement, shortly after he'd told her that, she'd accidentally accepted a job where they'd been ambushed.

The map blinked, pulsating rapidly to indicate their exit was coming up for their first destination. Loske dropped a gear, decellerated, and dropped from the streamline of traffic they'd been a part of and perusing to a lower altitude where the shops lined the streets. Now they had to keep an eye out for parking. "I'm going to have to quote you for a testimony on my person or something." She commented. "Those were some of the nicest things anyone's ever said to me." Not that she'd ever been verbally berated, but she'd never really been complimented beyond her piloting abilities before either.

"You are....the opposite of most the things you just said." She laughed lightly, accompanying her statement with a wince and shrug, as if bracing herself from an invisible strike toward her. The speeder navigated to an empty spot, and she turned the engine off. Rotating in her seat, she draped an elbow over the back of her seat to look at him.

"But, you're firm in your resolve. Dutiful. You know who you are, and your absolute necessity to completing your vision is empowering. I'll admit, I started this day off full with uncertainty about you, and what you were doing, where you were going and what it might mean or become but..I believe in you."

She ejected the keys from the ignition, pocketing them while remaining seated. "That said, I wouldn't want to be on your bad side. Your dedication to your practice has paid off." She gestured with her fingers as best she could the miming of a twisting lightsaber - from what she'd seen on weapon ultima. "And you're kind of intimidating."

 

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That was about as apt of a description he'd ever been given. Most of what Loske said lined up with his own self-image. Cedric went out of his way to potray himself a certain way to people. he'd been taught from a very early age that the key to changing oneself is to simply act as if they are already changed, and eventually that change will become reality. It had worked for the Jedi Master time and again, though the core of his identityt remained, buried beneath a mountain of beliefs and ethical codes.

He liked it that way.

"I believe in you."

The words struck him more than he might have expected. Of all his companions, Loske was perhaps the purest of heart. Most had been coerced into working for his cause, but the would-be Kiffar had chosen to follow him simply because she felt it was the right path. That was worth more than any conquest, any accolade. He could not help but crack a rather uncharacteristically large smile.

"You do?" He asked, a moment of disbelief in his voice, "And here I thought I was the only one that did." There was amusement in his words, but a warmth too. He turned to look at her as the speeder came to a halt, eyes narrowed as if he were appraising her, searching her for the lie.

There was none.

"I'm intimidating?" He cracked a goofy grin, chuckling lightly in such a way that was very much the opposite of imposing. "To you? And here I thought you were the bravest woman in the galaxy."

[member="Loske Matson"]

 

[Loske Treicolt]

She squinted and pulled back slightly, while his gaze searched for something invisible. Suddenly she was quite self conscious. Though, he seemed to not discover anything and his face relaxed. Obviously the army of Essonians spoke otherwise, so she didn't dignify that with a response. Silly

"Yeah, maybe I am for telling you that truth." She levelled, rolling her eyes and rising to loft herself out of the vehicle. Opening doors was significantly less cool than vaulting over the side of the door - that's why they had to have a roofless vehicle. It was all about image.

Absently, she rubbed one of her eyes - finding this perfect timing for some caffeine stimulation in a cup. The café they'd selected was warmly lit, and there were a few patrons peppered at the two seater tables. Those inside looked engaged in their conversations, their heads nodding at different intervals and beats of time -- all sharing the space, but completely oblivious to one another. This sort of normalcy and ability to be closed off and preserved in the moment at hand was worth preserving.

"Let's get this to go," she motioned.

It was stuff inside. A stark contrast to the coolness of the street. If she'd been sleepy before, it was like walking into a light blanket in here. She wandered up to the counter, absently observing the yellowed pastries behind the glass. They looked like they'd been fresh that morning, or perhaps the morning before, but now they looked about as real as the woman's assets behind the till. Not very.

"What can I get you folks."

"Erm.." she lifted her observations to the menu overhead. "Can I just get a steamed caf to go?"

"Anything in it?"

"No, thank you."

"Anything to eat?"

Loske looked pained by the decision. She loved eating. But those muffins had seen better days. "No..thank you." She mumbled remorsefully.

The lady behind the till turned her attention to Loske's companion, looking slightly quizzical as she did so. "And for......you?"

 

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Loske was all about style, Cedric was all about efficiency. There was no fancy slide over the door railing. Instead, the Jedi Master took his sweet time cracking the door open, and allowing himself to drop to the ground below with a certain degree of grace.

"That did take some guts," Cedric mused with no end to his sarcasm, flashing Loske a playful grin as they crossed into the caf shop. Cedric had been here a few times under various aliases. It was important for a ruler to be in touch with his people, and it was near impossible to do that whilst wearing the title of Imperator. Fortunately this woman did not recognize him from his previous outings.

"I'll just have the same. Healthy living and all that." The woman gave Cedric a raised brow and rather annoyed look. The Jedi raised his hands in mock defeat. Evidently his jokes were not as potent as he might have initially expected.

"This is nice," Cedric mumbled under his breath, just loud enough that Loske could hear. "It's been a long time since I just...well," he waved a hand about. "Did this."

[member="Loske Matson"]

 

[Loske Treicolt]

"A lot of people just do this." Loske reminded him, waiting at the opposite end of the counter for their coffee to be passed to them. The lady drew up their totals and the transaction was completed far quicker than it had started.

"But they don't delve to the depths of Coruscaunt within minutes of their first sip. If you're trying to trace yourself to normalcy, this is only partially close to it."

The lady announced the completion of their order, and Loske reached for the cups with an obligated thanks and handed one to [member="Cedric Grayson"] while she blew across the top of her scalding hot liquid, the steam opening the pores of her nose. "Or wait..what is this in your terms."

 

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"It's all about the baby steps," he snickered, taking the cup of caf with a grateful nod. Caffeine was one of Cedric's tiny handful of vices, but it had him gripped hard. He tried to take a sip, lacking the traditional Jedi patience when it came to caf, and promptly burned the hell out of his tongue.

The Jedi winced as he held the drink away.

"This?" He blinked, momentarily distracted by the singing of his flesh. "Oh...I'm not sure," he gave her a light shrug, "I suppose I just meant doing normal things, eh," Had he made this out to be weird. Oh Ashla. He sipped at the caf again. Still burned. The pain only made it taste better, and it kept him from continuing to talk from his arse.

"I spend most of my off time studying, meditating, or other..." his brow furrowed as he fought for the words. "Jedi things."

He paused, glancing about the diner, and found himself snickering at a recent memory. He'd met the Nightsister in a place like this just a few days ago. He'd attempted to show her the Ashla, and somewhat succeeded, but his efforts had been overshadowed by her rather...odd desires.

"What is it in yours?" He asked, turning the question around.

[member="Loske Matson"]

 

[Loske Treicolt]

Loske observed while waiting for her own caf to cool. She smirked when he burnt his tongue, not for want of seeing him suffer, but at recollection when she’d first done that. Now, she was a fast learner and all that, and waited just a handful of moments before she took her first slurp. It was far from tepid, and she would let it wait — fanning the opening gently while [member="Cedric Grayson"] stammered to explain himself without sounding too much like an arse. At least he’d responded with Jedi-things, versus politician sorts of activities. That’d marked him up to be quite the pain.

“Getting caf.” She replied plainly.

Not to be rude, the pilot continued “I’ve tried not to qualify things as normal versus otherwise.” She reached for two lids and handed one to her teacher, while continuing her thought. “Everyone has their own definitions of normal.”

Unknown to the pair, two patrons were also in a teacher and mentor type relationship across the table from each other. It was a weekly therapy meeting. This was normal. One person was speaking through their tribulations of childhood, while the other balefully listened. At another table, a pair were on their first date -- serial daters. At another table, in undertones, a discussion for the second heist of the quarter was being planned. All these words were lost in the sea of conversations, escalating upward as a pleasant, lively hum.

Loske mad a vague point over the lid of her cup as she attempted another sip, slightly constrained by the plastic. If Cedric were to follow her trajectory, it would be to a group of four sitting in the corner of the caf -- each wearing different outfits. One was dressed with accessories that indicated they were replicating a Porg, another a Varactyl, another a Loth-Cat, and the fourth...she couldn't tell. But most of them were furry. And this was normal. "All walks of life.." she murmured. Coruscaunt was a city, and it bred weirdness and uniqueness all in one.

 

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She had a point.

Try as he might to seem an average man, Cedric was a child of the aristocracy. His raising had been one of betters and lessers, of the elite and the common. He'd shaken much of that programming after taking on the title of Jedi, but some of that was still hardwired. It was difficult for him to relate to the common man or woman. He understood their troubles, sympathized with their plights, but the things that concerned them were of no consequence to the Jedi Master.

He saw the galaxy as a chessboard to be played as he saw fit, most only looked to what they might be having for dinner the next evening, or the holo-flick they might see on the weekend. They were galaxies apart from the last Knight of Ession.

His gaze followed her direction to the group of what were evidently cosplayers. Cedric had never seen such like in his life.

"Are you certain I am the Jedi Master here?" he lofted a brow, a hint of good humor in his voice. "You make good points. Much to think on," he added, sipping at his caf now that it wasn't threatening to sear his flesh. "I don't see the small-picture much, per se. I look to grand designs and plans to change the stars. I've never concerned myself much with the mundane."

His brow furrowed as his gaze shifted back to Loske. "Perhaps I should."

[member="Loske Matson"]

 

[Loske Treicolt]

"I dunno. Your track record for teaching today has been awfully blank." She snickered and angled toward the door, suggesting they might return to the speeder and start their adventure to the bowels of Coruscaunt. "That's another thing you're like, by the way, you're open to dialogue and...." she shifted her head from side to side, shimmying her shoulders in turn with the motion. "Sometimes humble. So, thanks for that."

Stepping into the streets once more, Loske stopped abruptly as she was struck with an idea. "Let's play a very pointed game of never have I ever. I'll list of a bunch of things that are, mmm" she waggled her free hand "so-called mundane, and you can tell me which you've done and which you haven't.

Then, you should try to do it.

Yay or nay?"

[member="Cedric Grayson"]

 

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Cedric wasted little time in following after her. The caf shop was interesting, but his curiosity toward what might linger beneath the underlevels was paramount. Whatever the imperials had been looking for, it seemed they thought it important enough to dethrone their late emperor. If it was of such relevance, perhaps it could be used to serve the Imperium's purposes. Ashla knew they needed whatever resources they could get their hands on.

"I have my off days," he gave her a shrug and a smile as they stepped out of the caf, back onto the busy streets. Life thrummed all around them; Cedric was keen to shut it out for now. So many conflicting emotions and motivations could be hellish upon his mind should he pay them too much attention.

"Never played," Cedric added, "But I'm game."

His gaze flickered around them, then back to Loske. "I've a feeling I won't be very good at this game," the Jedi snickered as he sipped at his drink.

[member="Loske Matson"]

 

[Loske Treicolt]

“You’re off to a bad start, given you’ve never played.”

The distance to close between the café and the speeder was short. Once again, Loske assumed position in the driver’s seat, all the while continuing to explain the rules to [member="Cedric Grayson"] before prattling on a list of things and starting the engines.

It wasn’t truly fair, given that a majority of her list she’d also not partaken in.

“Going to a holofilm.
Attending the light entertainment.
Making dinner.”

She pulled out of the parking space.

“Had a surprise party.
Given a gift.”

 

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He was definitely going to lose, though he wasn't particularly certain whether there was a way to win this game.

Either way, Cedric was happy to get in the speeder. As much as he found himself enjoying these rather 'mundane' things, the call to adventure was ever-present in the Jedi Master's mind. There were secrets to be uncovered, and possibly relics to be unearthed - his two favorite things.

"Holofilm. Can't say I have," his brow furrowed. "I've been to several bars and galas, so I have the entertainment part down. I can also make my own dinner - I actually rather like cooking." Not that anyone knew that. Cedric was a bit of a chef, though he only ever cooked for himself.

He paused as she continued. "Never with the surprise party - I gave my old padawan his lightsaber, if that counts as a gift."

He shrugged. "I suppose I have to go next, erhm..." he sipped at his caf as he watched Coruscant fly by.

"Ever played pazaak.
Been to a beach on vacation.
Uh, used a lightsaber."

That last one was pretty bobo; he was still getting a hang of the game.

[member="Loske Matson"]

 

[Loske Treicolt]

Everything was settled in it's rightful place. Her caf in it's cup holder, her passenger buckled in, the coordinates for the second destination entered. Once they turned into the stream of traffic, and started to peruse the skylines, Loske kept an eye on the RPMs as she played with the pedal. This speeder wasn't going to blow up on them any time soon.

"Where's your former padawan now?" Loske asked a semi-leading question, as if the outcome of the other person would somehow affect her own.

Most of his responses were straightforward. She'd only begun watching holofilms because [member="Amea Virou"] suggested she do so if she wanted to improve her faux accents. So far, she had Corellian close to nailed. Imperial accents were a little trickier, and she found she clenched her teeth too much to pass by it honestly enough to be convincing.

"I think a surprise party would be fun.." Loske lamented quietly, reaching to turn the radio up only slightly so it would provide background music as they descended on the cruise way another level. She made a mental note that once they got to past the thousandth level (out of 5127) she'd kick into overdrive. The day was waning, and [member="Cedric Grayson"] had a Snoof Pickles to meet in the morning.

"No, never. A few guys in my first squadron, before Rogue, wanted to play the adult version of it, so I've been pretty turned off the idea ever since." As usual, Loske gave a story with her responses. She had memories, that were her own, and as a test-tube-growth-baby, she was proud of that.

"No beach vacation......but I got Frank from Borealis, so while he was being manufactured I killed some time skulking around the island. There was some sand involved." Borealis was a hell world now.

"Oh, you mean the bespoke weapon of Space Wizards, which are largely untouchable to mortal man?" The girl drawled cheekily, her blonde hair whipping about in a tornado behind her as they accelerated and nosed deeper, taking turns sharply and swooping betwixt other vehicles on the track. "No. No light sabers."

Time to flip it and reverse it, ti esrever dna ti pilf. Their nose dipped, and they cut a sharp angle, Loske reached out absently to keep her caf righted and not spill. "Got in a bar fight.

Had a pet.

Had a favvvourite Padawan."

 

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The Jedi grew rigid when she asked of his last padawan.

Cedric had only trained a small handful of students. Most of them had gone on to join other Jedi Orders, and he assumed they were doing well. Cenric had been different. The young man had been a dutiful student, though his abilities with the Force were a bit lacking compared to most Jedi. He was a fantastic duelist though, and had fought alongside Cedric under the banner of the Rebel Alliance. They'd seen many successes in that endeavor, but eventually the Sith found their ways to the alliance's home base. Catastrophe had followed.

He drifted for a moment, losing himself in the music as a means of distraction. After a second or so, he finally spoke. "I don't know," he answered honestly, "I trained him for about a year. His name was Cenric - weird, I know. He was a good student, not very strong in the Force, but dedicated." A quiet sigh escaped Cedric's lips, "We fought together in the Rebel Alliance against the Sith Empire. It went well for a long time, but eventually one of our own betrayed us, and the Sith found their way to our hidden base. Many of us escaped, but Cenric and I were separated. No idea what happened to him. I looked for him, but he just disappeared - I didn't feel his death in the Force though."

It was an unpleasant topic, and Cedric was eager to change it.

"Adult pazaak? I don't get that," he gave her a quizzical look before moving on.

"I suppose that counts. Ession used to have beaches before the glassing. My family spent time there together, before the war heated up," there was nostalgia to his tone. "Something I highly suggest you do."

Then came the usual sass. It would be a lie to say that Cedric had not grown fond of it - Loske had a spark to her that made her a little endearing. Sometimes. He snickered at her words, eyes narrowing with faux annoyance as he met her gaze. "Yes, those weapons," he wasn't doing very well at restraining his light laughter.

Next question. Cedric scrunched his nose up in thought. "A couple, actually. Mostly on official business for the governments I've served. You'd be surprised how many clandestine meetings are held in bars."

Annnd another. "No pets. Just [member="Dak"], if he counts."

And the final. Cedric gave her an incredulous look, "In lieu of feeding your already rather enormous ego," absolutely dripping with that sarcasm there, "I think we already know who it is." Sarcasm dropped.

He had an easy smile as he deliberately looked out his side of the speeder, and easy smile on his face. "Ever fought a Mando?"

[member="Loske Matson"]

 

[Loske Treicolt]

Cenric and Cedric? That sounded like some sort of dynamic duo, with much brighter costumes than the one [member="Cedric Grayson"] don on the daily. She listened, thought kept her gaze straightforward as the speeder weaved. They'd breached several hundred levels by now, and she checked in on the GPS coordinates. Descending alone could take days. Shame the Lord Imperator didn't have a secretary to let Snoof Pickles know that his appointment may not be upheld.

"Strip." Loske interjected to clear up the confusion Cedric had about adult pazaak, before he continued with his response. Clearly he was a no on doing that too.

"Yikes, hope Dak's love for you is as unconditional as a pet's if he hears you refer to him like that."

Loske's grin was stretched from ear to ear and she looked over her shoulder at her teacher, replacing that grin with a smug smirk and a shrug by way of explanation "I just wanted to hear you say my name." She paused. "Isn't it kind of funny, how the one thing you need to feel like you are starting to know someone is their name, and then once you do know them, you super rarely say it?" She shook her head, starting to go down her own considerations of sentient interactions.

A mandalorian. "No..." she replied pensively. "Never outside of a star fighter....OH!" She took a hand off the wheel to snap her fingers at the recollection of her would-be-sister-in-law "Almost. RE: That would-be-sister-and-law. Didn't actually get too into it once she heard why I was hunting her...uh...down. Have you? And, while we're talking about you..

Ever got a tattoo?

Asked someone on a date?"

 

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Cedric made an 'OH' with his lips, the meaning of adult pazaak being wholly lost on his purposefully pure mind. He tended to simply ignore the more debauched activities of the commoners - as a Jedi, they did him not credit. That, and they just didn't appeal.

"He does, in his own way," Cedric snickered as he smiled and blew air out of his nose. "He's served my family for a few thousand years. No clue how he's managed to survive it, or whatever the equivalent for a droid is, but I'm glad of it."

No Mandos. "Probably for the best right now. Speaking in the terms of my soldiers ' they's a bit of a queen to deal with'."

He leaned forward, gazing this way and that as the world passed by them. Even with so many floors descended, Coruscant was still seemingly endlessly massive. A few thousand lay between the two Jedi and their destination. Enough time for the game anyway.

"I have one on my shoulder. It's very small," he gestured up toward his face, "And I have one planned here. It's traditional Essonian, won't be anything ridiculous. It's similar to the Mirilian markings."

Then came the final question.

"Sort of," his brow furrowed as he thought further, "Well, no, not specifically." That had been a weird situation all together, and one better left forgotten.

Two options presented themselves to Cedric. He flipped a mental coin on it, and the coin landed on the side of cowardice.

"Have you?" He added, "Been on a date, I mean?"

[member="Loske Matson"]

 

[Loske Treicolt]

"On your shoulder? What is it?" Loske couldn't imagine choosing to let someone draw on you, let alone getting it done on your face. She was rather relieved to be driving, it gave her an excuse to not make much eye contact at that point. Her mother had tattoos -- and had no idea when they had been added to her. Some sort of requirement for Kiffar, to indicate which tribe they belong to. Loske was relieved, for once in her lie, that she fell outside the parameters of family for that singular instance.

She gasped slightly when [member="Cedric Grayson"] flip-flopped on his date answer. Sounded like he'd shot his shot without much success. As curious as she was, that uncomfortable feeling from their bond suggested this be the one time she not ask too many questions. Family was one thing, you couldn't always choose that, but with friendships turned romance didn't work out the way you intended, that was a stinger.

"Explicitly? No. After the fact, could we call it a date? S-uure...one was a full on mission to some Sith Shipyards to collect blue prints. Really romantic." She smirked. It wasn't so much a date, as a constant flirtatious trip. She'd been a lot less confident then, and could barely keep up with Micah and his jibs. But oh man, was that ever a bad-boy sort of crush.

"Okay, this is driving me nuts -- this GPS is saying it will take for-ev-er to get to where we're going. You need to get someone to tell Mr. Pickles you can't meet him tomorrow morning. Before we lose service."

 

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"About as crazy as I get, just a symbol of the Jedi Order." As was to be expected of Cedric. His dedication to his causes were all he could see tattoos being good for. They were marks of service, much like any badge of station, only they were permanent just as the oaths that bound him to that service.

And it also might have simply looked cool. Perhaps.

"Sounds like my dream date," Cedric remarked half-sarcastically. The idea of finding the love of his life in the midst of a foray into the heart of the Sith Empire did seem a little bit more appealing than it likely should have. Best to keep that thought to himself.

"It is a bit far down," Cedric cringed. Ah, Mister Pickles. "Fiiiiine," he huffed, keying on his datapad. He quickly typed up a message to the Minister of Industry.

"Hello. There is an alien by the name of Mr. Pickles. I know the name is odd, no not question it. Anyway, I need you to let him know his appointment is rescheduled for the day after tomorrow, sometime in the morning."

Kind of pathetic, but it had to be done. Poor Mr. Pickles.

"There was a woman named Aes'ona. Old First Order medic. She saved my life after the Battle of Dagobah," His brow furrowed at the memory. "We did a lot together. Always friends though. Didn't work out the way I expected. Learned that our relationship was one that worked out a lot better as friends, and I'm glad for it."

[member="Loske Matson"]