Savouring Silence

[Aiwaz Khath]

Yuan House, Two Miles North of Voss-Ka City, Voss​

A warm, early-Autumn gold shone through the leaves of the man-made canopy that framed a quaint, limestone courtyard. The small, sand-toned enclosure, calm and neatly designed, was hidden behind a large, red complex that housed the foundation of a new endeavour from its owner. Within the high walls of Yuan House, architects and labourers worked on installing the upper floors and furniture of the cafe and meditation quarters, while outside the farmers toiled on the newly sowed tea fields, tending to the young seedlings of new and foreign breeds.

The building smelled of sawdust, paint and incense, and one could not savour silence in these early days with the unignorable knocks and grinds of woodwork surrounding the place. A man of tradition, the owner had it thus that the construction of such a grand building was to follow older techniques; nothing machine-built, all by hand. Such was expensive, but the inheritance from Auron Song's family had left him a wealthy man. All one could do to escape the bangs and whirls of construction was to travel through the central hall and find oneself in the tranquil courtyard found beyond the rear exit of the building, flanked to the left by a tower that would one day hold guests for temporary residence.

Thus Auron sat - silent in casual meditation - within his private courtyard, listening to the sparrows building families in the canopy above. Occasionally, he would sip from the small cup that sat in his palm, savouring the peace he was building around him. It was calm here. Quiet. And soon, he would be able to share such peace with others. He ruminated on the prospect and smiled.


[member="Arisa Yune"]

 

[Eugen Aker]

While she had returned to operating out of Kiribi in the Core, Arisa still frequented Voss as a member of the Silver Order. It was during her latest trip to the Outer Rim world that she learned about a new tea establishment operated by a fellow Silver, Auron Song. Something of a tea connoisseur, she couldn't pass up the opportunity for a good cuppa with an old comrade.

It was late afternoon when she arrived by foot, dressed casually in her normal trendy urban wear. She found the tea Auron's tea shop nestled within a forest set underneath a waterfall. While the location wasn't exactly a Force nexus, the whole site exuded with calming positive auras. She greatly admired the external architecture of the building, reminding her greatly of Atrisian aesthetics. All in all, Yaun House was a lovely addition to Voss.

Past the bridge and into the courtyard, and she came face to face with no other than Auron himself, looking quite content as he sat alone with a cup of tea. It had been a while since they had last crossed paths, Arisa herself having been a Padawan then, but he looked about much the same.

"Afternoon," she greeted with a smile and wave. "Quite a lovely setup you have here. Thank you for the invitation."

[member="Auron Song"]

 

[Aiwaz Khath]

Auron returned Arisa's smile with one equally as bright, and stood to bow gently to her.
"Arisa. It's so nice to see you again. Thank you for coming!" When he spoke, as always in recent times, he had an air of melancholy and exhaustion about him, for many things had plagued him. But he held himself calmly, peacefully. "It's been quite some time." Indeed, much had happened in a year. He had heard of the many exploits Arisa had accomplished since their last meeting, but felt he had little to show for himself. Regardless, he was building something within these walls that he hoped would give him a new sense of purpose and peace. "Please take a seat if you wish," he offered, motioning to a meditation mats and cushion that sat opposite his own. "Would you like a tea? I'll put a fresh pot on." Walking over to the counter that stood to the corner of the courtyard closest to the entrance, he clicked the side of a kettle and fetched a thick, mahogany tray holding small cups, pots and several bowls of fresh tea. On inspection, the wood was carefully and intricately designed in an ornate fashion similar to that of the architecture of the building, and as Auron brought it back to sit between them, he flicked a switch along its side that allowed it to float silently half a foot above the ground. As the kettle reached the optimal temperature, he fetched it back to stand to their side.
"This one," he started, picking up a small cup of recently cured green tea, "is one of the teas unique to here, grown as an infusion of Sapir and a rare blend of Surian, with extracts of Gesha. My first endeavour at making my own strain, if you would like to try?" He offered the bowl for Arisa to smell its lightly sweet scent, before beginning to brew it in one of the many pots dotted across the tray. After exactly thirty seconds, he poured full two round cups, offering one to his guest and holding the other in his palm.

[member="Arisa Yune"]