Tea? What's That?

[Scherezade deWinter]

Commenor.

History flashed through Scherezade's mind as her foot stepped on the planet. None of the information was hers; just more of the things she somehow just knew, courtesy of her gradmother's information dump. Civil wars, Mandalorians (the mere thought caused the girl to shudder in disgust), war, trade... But nothing useful. Nothing from the last century or few. Can always count on you, grandma, she thought as her legs began to move.

It'd been about a month now since she'd left the pebble that had kept her safe through the Gulag and other things that had apparently plagued the galaxy. Things she was still learning about. Half the time, she wondered how anyone could have survived through them, since the galaxy being so busy and full of people, human and not, couldn't have happened too fast if everyone or almost everyone had been wiped out. On the other hand, she was filled with anger. Anger towards her grandmother, for taking the choice away from her. It would've been so much simpler to let her parents decide, go to sleep with them, wake up with them, with her twin... Instead, here she was, confused as ever, lacking her brother, lacking her parents, lacking... Pretty much everything aside for one aunt.

For the past week or so, she'd been heavily debating with herself about making a visit to Endelaan. Endelaan, the planet of her hopes and dreams, her ancestral home, where much of her family's history was... And where, officially, she was a princess.

She'd looked princesses up. She definitely did not feel like one. For one, she was really bad with people. Awkward bad. Getting people upset with her for no reason kind of bad. She also didn't really have anything. Sure, her aunt would've given her credits if she'd asked, but she had no home, no income, even the clothes on her back belonged to Katrine Van-Derveld, who was training her as a Mandagora. Even her abilities with the Force were still sorely lacking. On on average day, Scherezade felt more like a Lower Coruscant street rat than a princess.

So lost in her thoughts she was, that she hadn't noticed where her legs were taking her. Scherezade loved to walk. She'd walk for hours on Coruscant, taking in its artificial beauty. A far cry from the Endelaan she remembered, where the sun always shone and it was warm and safe, but it had its beauty nonetheless.

Slowly, her attention began to snap back to the presence, rather than various thoughts. She was on Commenor now, in Chasin City. Looking at the buildings around her, she gathered that was close... Close to the Royal Palace.

A thought jumped in the teenager's mind! Royal Palace. That meant that there were people in there, people who knew about this whole... This whole royalty thing. She was standing close to the gates now, her attire severely lacking for what she wanted to do; you couldn't just waltz into the palace of people you didn't know while you were wearing jeans and sneakers. Her mother could do that and had on occasion done it as well, but Scherezade lacked her mother's bubbly charisma. People wouldn't forgive her so easily for making such mistakes.

So two hours later, she was there again, this time clad in a proper gown. Of course, she still had combat boots underneath it, but it was long enough to cover that up.

And now... Now she just had to find an excuse to get in and get announced. That much she knew. Thanks, grandma, she thought again, her mind reeling as she tried to come up with a solution.


[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

The security guards on duty at the Royal Palace had seen a lot. Plenty of tourists would go by, some wanting tours of the grounds, but that hadn't been allowed for some time. Not since wars have sprung out in various pockets of the Galaxy. People kept warning them that it was only a matter of time before war reached them, but so far that hadn't been the case. And it was better to be safe than sorry.

One of them eyed [member="Scherezade deWinter"] as she stood at the gate, all dressed in a pretty pink gown that looked nothing like the regular streetwear of the Commenori. The look in her eyes gave them enough information to know that she was needing something. "Can we help you, Miss?"

As luck would have it, Kay was only just arriving. Her landspeeder approached that very gate the young lady was standing at. She raised a brow, puzzled at what she was seeing. A crazy fan perhaps? Or something else? More than likely it was the latter. Kay called out to her. "Are you lost?" The last thing that she knew was that she had no appointments for the rest of the day, no meetings. It was just a day to spend the rest of the afternoon in her office. There was no doubt that that was about to change.

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Scherezade's little time of existing had taught her several things. One, food was important, and yummy. Two, training was always required, even if she had the theoretical side of many things implanted in her mind, the practical side was rarely as easy at it seemed, and three, she was legendary bad at making good, sensible choices.

For instance, a sensible good choice would have been to find a way to get announced in advanced, in one or other form. Only now did she realize she was actually just standing there looking pretty but not much else, and when the guard asked her if they could help her, she opened her mouth and closed it again, looking more like a fish than a princess. Another sensible good choice would have been to have a reason for being here in advance, because "I'm looking for people to teach me this royalty thing because apparently I'm supposed to know it" was probably going to sound more stupid outside of her head than it did in.

And then a woman on a speeder stopped by. For half a heart beat, Scherezade was ready to say something silly. But that face... She recognized it! Because she'd looked over some information on the planet! Okay, that was a place she could start. Maybe. If she didn't make a fool out of herself.

"Commenori Queen, Lady Kay," she said, managing to keep most of the shake out of her voice, "it is an honor to meet you. I am Scherezade deWinter, Princess of Edelaan."

Inside her head, Scherezade clapped for managing to get the sentence out correctly. The problem was that as soon as the clapping ended, a raging silence began. Was she supposed to say something else now?

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Well @Sherezade deWinter knew one thing at least, and that was who Kay was. A brow was raised as she introduced herself. A princess? Well that would certainly explain the gown. It didn't take much for her to guess that this young lady was wanting to see her. Being the head of a trade economy, there were plenty of worlds and companies that held contracts with her own.

She glanced to her guards and nodded to them before looking to Sherezade while she stepped out of the speeder. "Lovely to meet you, your grace. I take it that you've come to meet me?" Kay bowed her head to her and then gestured for her to follow. "Let's go inside, shall we? I'll have some tea made up for us. You drink tea, don't you?" According to Kay, nearly everyone did.

One of her guards stepped near to Sherezade and spoke quietly, "If you've got any weapons, please hand them to me and they'll be returned to you when you leave."

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Scherezade nodded with enthusiasm and smiled from ear to ear. Yes! The queen in front of her knew why she was there! Or at least, a little about it. But she'd invited her in, and that was what mattered. Progress was made in baby steps, but it was being made!

Expect for when she was offered tea. "Tea?" the girl asked, the excitement from the baby steps still evident in her voice, "what's that?"

She couldn't find any mention of it in the information her grandmother had given her. Long lists of various wines and spirits, certainly, as well as lists of Spice and why to never use it. There was even a small segment on why Bantha Wings were her mother's favorite fast food dish. But nothing about anything called tea.

When the guard asked her to leave her weapons, Scherezade nodded and bent over while hiking her skirt up, revealing her combat boots while she was at it. With a swift movement, she removed the little Czerka knife that she always carried and had buried on the side of her boot earlier. Other than that, she was weapon-free. Officially, at least. She could wield the Force, but she really hoped no demonstration of that would be required.


[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay just blinked. Did she hear what she thought that she had heard? Did [member="Scherezade deWinter"] really not know what tea was? Her jaw dropped ever so slightly before she regained her composure. "It's a wonderful drink made from boiled water and different herbs and leaves."

There was plenty to discover about this girl, one being the fact that she had combat boots on. Was she even really a Princess? The gown obviously showed that she had dome money to her name, but still, it was all very strange.

Kay walked her into the Royal Palace and down the hallway. The building itself was grand, built in carved stone and plenty of dark woods, all in the artistic Commenori style. Uniformed security guards dotted the place, and staff would walk by, givong them bows of their heads while they passed. Soon they were at Kay's office, which was right behind her assistant Olivia's. Though the older woman wasn't there at that moment. Kay led Scherezade inside, the decor pleasant and not overbearing. Bookshelves, a spiral staircase, desk, chairs and coffee table all dotted the room. A side table carried all of her tea making supplies. "Have a seat and I'll prepare some Sapir tea for you. And tell me about yourself. What brings you here to Commenor?"

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

The description of the tea sounded somewhat alarming to the girl. Her mind reeled with the knowledge of Spice and certain types of it often referred to as herbs. Was that what the queen meant? Was Scherezade in danger of being drugged so quickly, without even letting on what she had, even if she had nothing?

She gulped, but nodded, making sure to keep a respectful appearance. She didn't have to actually drink the thing, right? Her mind boiled for answers on how to get out of the tea thing without causing a diplomatic crisis. On the other hand though, there was nothing threatening in the queen's mannerism or body language. Was that because Scherezade could't properly read these things, or was there something else?

Still, against what was probably anyone else's judgement in a similar situation, the girl followed.

Once inside the room, any notion of taking a seat was lost on her. There were books there! Heaps of them! Of course she knew what a book was; her grandparents had entire libraries on Spira and Coruscant, but both of those places blew up long before she was even born, and on Katrin'e ship, there was mostly grimoire stuff.

But this...

Only by the grace of mental lag did she realize she was being addressed. Turning, her back now to the books, she gave the queen a smile. "People," she answered with complete honesty. She already knew there ways to put to words things that had happened without actually needing to give all the precise details out, "I grew up very isolated from the rest of the Galaxy. I wanted to see what people in other parts were doing, how they were living, and such. I hadn't actually planned on coming here up until a few hours ago, and I'm incredibly honored that you're willing to even give me time. And tea." Her eyes, nearly bulging with childlike glee, went back to the books, "may I look through some of your books?"

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay raised a brow ever so slightly. [member="Scherezade deWinter"] seemed a bit nervous. Was it something that she said? Or maybe she was just intimidated. Some people were like that. They figured Kay to be some high and mighty Queen, but really, she wasn't that way at all. Some situations demanded protocol, but not always. She always tried to keep herself approachable by anyone, regardless of their station. That is unless they tried to kill her or something.

It was easy to see Scherezade give all of her attention to the books. Although there were no rare copies within it, something to deter thieves, she did have a variety of volumes. "Of course you can go through them. I have a lot of mystery novels in there, Commenori history, some kind of boring books on trade and finance. There's map books, some volumes on our agriculture and wildlife. Plenty of different books in there."

As she left her to do her search, Kay prepared the tea. She put the water to boil, and gathered the Sapir leaves from her tea pouch. She crumpled them up in the cups. "Did your parents keep you isolated? In some ways we're isolated here too. I keep my people out of the wars. The Commenori stay home. They are needed to protect our lands here. And in doing so they've been safe. This is a sanctuary in the Galaxy. A place of peace and freedom."

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Mystery novels, Commenori history, trade and finance, maps, agriculture and wildlife. Scherezade nodded as her eyes continued to bathe the book covers, looking, but not touching. Not yet. There would be a book that would call to her, she had a feeling like that. All she needed was patience. And time. The queen seemed kind enough, and if she had other meetings to attend at that moment she didn't let on about it at all.

Scherezade began to glide by the book shelves, slowly, taking her time, looking at the Queen every time she spoke.

"My parents loved... Love me," she said, her tone slightly defensive. Nessarose and Diomedes would have never isolated her. Not like that. She took a deep breath, forcing herself to remain calm before she continued to speak, "but my grandmother meddled, and won. I haven't seem them since I was a baby, and I can't go home. Not yet."

She'd loved the part the Queen had mentioned about sanctuary, freedom. About keeping her people safe. That was what Scherezade wanted too, but she knew her way would be long before she could even partially vie for the right to do so. There were so many questions she wanted to ask. Like how do you keep your people safe from external threats or how do you deal when inner turmoil occurs and some others. But they all sounded in her head as though they were trying to wriggle intelligence out, and that was not her goal.

"How did you learn the skills you need to be Queen in more than name?" she finally asked, her fingers now gently touching the book spines, still searching.

Towards the tea she cast a suspicious glance, deciding not to touch it until the queen had her first sip.


[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay poured the water into the cups once it was boiled. A quick stir with the spoon and then she carried both cups over to the coffee table, setting one down before she curled herself up on one of the comfy chairs, tucking her feet beneath herself. Her own cup she held cradled in her hands, waiting for the leaves to properly steep and disappear.

"Some families are like that, I've heard. Overbearing. My own children are off with different guardians, learning about the ways of the Galaxy before they choose on what they'd like to do with themselves. I won't force them to have to rule like I do. I'd only want them to do so if they want to."

She chewed the inside of her cheek a little as [member="Scherezade deWinter"] asked her about how she gained her skills. That could be a long answer. So Kay decided to try to keep it simple. "Well I started off as a Senator for Commenor when it was a part of the Galactic Republic. I didn't have much of a voice there as there were so many more powerful individuals than I. After the Republic fell and I was left the Senate, some Commenori convinced me to run for President of this world. I did so and won, doing what I could in securing trade deals and alliances with some of the more powerful government bodies out there. The Elders ruled Commenor and after they died I took their place, re-establishing a full monarchy. People liked the way that I did things, working to avoid confrontations and secure allies on all sides. So our territory just grew. People want safety and security without having to fight to get it. And I prefer words over weapons any day." She sipped her tea now that it was ready, the flavour not too sweet or too bitter. "I guess that being nice and accomodating, listening to people and being approachable has helped me out greatly."

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Overbearing. That was a good word to use, though Scherezade wasn't certain how accurate it was. She could've told never ending stories about her grandmother and her deeds, and she let them flash in her mind for less than a second before realized that despite it being a good word, it wasn't the one to use. Control freak was more like it. In her journey to make her descendants stronger and harder, she tossed them time and time again into the jaws of danger while at the same time keeping them from doing things they would've done in those situations.

Like protect their own children. Her parents had the power that was needed to keep both her and her twin brother safe. Yet it had been her grandmother that took the babies from their parents' clutches. Why? Why would she have resorted to doing that? And more importantly, how could she make sure her grandmother's claws never entered her life to ruin it again? But such questions were not to be voiced in this meeting. The Queen was a new contact, and one that Scherezade couldn't tell how it would develop with. Knowledge was power, and there were too many people who had power over her. She didn't need to go about adding more people who could easily manipulate her to the list.

The sentence about not forcing her children to rule did bring a smile to her lips though. On that front, at least, it appeared Lady Kay and her parents shared similar believes.

When she saw the Queen was readying to answer her direct question, Scherezade removed her fingers from the book spines and took a seat on a couch opposite of her, focusing her entire attention on the woman.

"And you found your voice in that sea of stronger individuals," she commented once the Queen had explained, "and still, you describe your path, but not the skills that let you walk it, how how you came to acquire them." There was no judgement in her voice, no menace. Paths were wiggly things, rarely taking the linear shape that hindsight tried to force on them. Scherezade didn't know what her path would look like. She knew of her goals, but not of the skills she would need to walk it. Dominating a mind or blowing something up were abilities, not skills. They would let you conquer, but not reign. Not truly.

The queen had taken a tea cup into her hands, and taken a sip. Scherezade took her own cup, letting the warmth of the cup give soothing warmth to her own hands. It had a somewhat calming effect, even if she hadn't been cold. The time to sip came now, and she still eyed her cup suspiciously. Nice smelling things were sometimes death traps waiting to happen.

"My parents acquired their position as King and Queen by showing their abilities," she explained, still eying the cup, "it took blood, sacrifice, and probably a lot of stubbornness. Endelaan is a place where power decrees the paths you can take, whether you can take any at all. But after they had done it, they made the place better. They didn't need to show their power because everyone knew they had it, and they focused on developing the tribes, re-introducing them to the Galaxy outside the Unknown Territories. And then the Gulag came, and Endelaan retreated back into its quiet corner to wait it out."

She didn't know why she was saying these things. Her grandmother hadn't told her almost any of that, that was for sure. But she'd held scraps of information, both from her grandmother about her parents, and some of the reading she'd done. She had drawn lines between the dots and figured out why Endelaan survived, because she knew it had.

With a sigh of longing, Scherezade finally sipped from her cup. She hadn't asked for any added sugar after learning that she despised the stuff. But this drink has a very mild sweetness to it that she found soothing, allowing her to enjoy the taste without choking on its sweetness. "I've never had tea before," she admitted again and added a smile, looking at [member="Lady Kay"] now, "this is quite lovely."

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. What voice did she have outside of the CSA? Not much of one. She had been to enough inter-government meetings to know for sure. It was far better for her to meet with them individually. But even then, it wouldn't be hard for the larger governments to wipe them out if they had wanted to. "I just...work on instinct. I try to be fair and I'm a firm believer of give and take. I read a lot, as you can tell. And I listen. That's very important. Everyone wants to be heard."

She had another sip of her tea while @Sherezade deWinter spoke of her parents. In some ways, they ruled in a similar fashion. Yet the culture was quite different; survival of the fittest. "Their abilities? Are they Force Sensitive?" In her experience, Force Sensitives weren't allowed to run governments. Such a thing wasn't trusted, so she had always kept her own abilities a secret.

Kay smiled as the young lady seemed to like her drink. "Yes it is lovely. I'm addicted to it. I've always found tea to be comforting, like a warm hug. Regardless of whether or not I'm alone, the tea is always there."

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Working on instinct. That was one thing Scherezade knew she was far from being ready to do. Her instincts were not honed. She made too many wrong calls. She had a list of facts about the galaxy, but not the tool to deduct from the correct things from them, so that bit was irrelevant to her, at least for now. The next was give and take. Her grandparents and her mother's godfather were amazing at that. They took more than they gave, but those they took from often believed they were getting the better end of the deal. She had to learn how to actually do that. And finally; yes, everybody wanted to be heard.

The problem was that not everybody had something worthy of hearing, and Scherezade at the moment belonged to that group. But she would build and carve herself out of that. Advance. It was just... Going to take a long time. A too long time.

At the question about the Force, she nodded to the Queen. "They are all masters of the Force," she almost whispered, knowing she herself was slightly aboe amoeba level, "I believe a lot of interfering was done in the past. We have not had a non-Force Sensitive child born in the family for at least eight generations that I know of. Perhaps more. Considering that up until then my ancestors lived in mostly barbaric circumstances, priests and priestesses regarded as Gods, I wouldn't put it past them to have removed any offspring they considered sub par until the bloodline began to produce only children with the potential of being worthy according to the old beliefs."

Endelaan had always been, and would always be, a place of violence. But the violence it offered was the warm and protective kind. And the violence was always used to make the place better.

Taking another sip from her tea, Scherezade looked at the queen, wondering if she'd able to read her true response to those words.


[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay nodded a little as she listened to [member="Scherezade deWinter"] speak about the culture of her world. It was...unique to say the least, and probably not unheard of. However Kay tended to experience the exact opposite. There were those, her father included, that despised Force Users and given her own sensitivity to it, he had decided to abandon her and strike her from the family's records. It was sad, but something that she learned to live with and overcome. There wasn't really much for her to complain about, given her place in society right now. Long ago she used to plan missions and free slaves in Hutt territory. Now she ruled over dozens of worlds. Of course her Force sensitivity was a secret. Letting that out in the open would be very bad.

"A planet full of Force Users...that's rare. Wouldn't such a thing also make Endelaan a target by those that want to rid the Galaxy of Force Users? The more extremist Mandalorians come to mind as they were the most recent ones to attempt it." She sipped her tea again. The Force always found a way to survive. Like any energy, it could never be stopped. Only transformed.

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Scherezade considered the words she'd spoken earlier. The Queen had deducted from them that the planet itself was full of Force Users. While Endelaan did enjoy a relative high percentage of them compared to the population averages, it was by no means a planet filled with Force Users. What made the planet rare in Scherezade's eyes was the culture, but she didn't really want to delve into the finer points of it with the Queen, who was still a stranger. This was their first meeting. If they would become friends, perhaps in the future the girl would delve into more detail. But not right now.

The mention of Mandalorians though, brought on a rage that could easily be felt by non-Force Users as well. The mere subject raged Scherezade. Mandalorians were her enemy, had been before she'd been born. There was blood hatred between the Mandalorians and the deWinters, which lasted for centuries, and would probably last until one side was wiped from being able to for the future.

"Endelaan is safe because its location does not appear on any records, and this has helped keep it safe for several millennia" she explained, the heat in her voice rising, "The Mandalorians are a blight upon this galaxy. They have gone after my grandmother time and time again, scarred her body, kidnapped my aunt, and tried to kill members of my family. As if that's enough, they lack basic comprehension as to what the Force is, and their attempt to genocide Force Users will end either in bitter disappointment. I happen to like this 'verse, and I'll protect it by wiping them out one by one of it comes to that."

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay nodded. Having a planet hidden from the records was a gteat idea. That is until it was stumbled upon by accident. Any ship could drop from hyperspace and see it. Or worse.. they could plot a course right through it.

Then [member="Scherezade deWinter"] went on, anger growing within her voice as she spoke about the Mandalorians and what had happened with her family. Of course Kay couldn't side with her on this one. Destruction of either side was wrong. But she was a neutral party and tried to always look at things from both sides. It was why she had members of her staff that were from various sides of the different conflicts in the Galaxy. Having different perspectives was never a bad thing.

"Not all Mandalorians are like that though...There are exceptions and the new leadership brings the promise of a better future." Kay wondered if she should let her know about her own adoption into one of the Mandalorian clans; a step taken to save her world from a hostile takeover by other Mandalorians. And it had worked.

Perhaps that was a conversation for another day.

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

"There are a few pet Mandalorians that could be all right," she replied almost instantly. The change from the girl who before that had taken the time to chew on every thought into one who replies with the speed of lightning was sharp. "but not enough. Never enough to redeem the sins of all the clans.

But what future does the new leadership have to offer? One that is great mostly for themselves, but not for others. One that will always include violence shedding without thought or plan. Imagine a galaxy run entirely by them. Imagine the destruction as they wreak havoc on the gentle balance that holds things together. Their crusade against Force Users must be removed thoroughly from the roots. Before that-"

Scherezade stopped herself and blinked, realizing she had just gone on what was nearly a verbal tantrum.

"I apologize, your Majesty," she said, her delicate tone returning, the red that had taken her cheeks over but a moment ago returning back to its paleness, "I did not come here to debate Mandalorians or open a debate regarding them. I'm sorry I got carried away."

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay frowned a little. So [member="Scherezade deWinter"] was one of the types that held everyone on account for the crimes of others. So many innocents are lost that way. Two wrongs don't make a right. But not a lot of people saw things that way. It was partly why there was so much death and destruction in the Galaxy. All except for in her little corner of it.

She sipped her tea while the Princess continued with her rant. Maybe she had a lot pented up inside. Letting it out this way was fine. It was safer than going after someone. And it was better too.
Kay cleared her throat a little. "It's alright. It only shows your...passion for certain subject. But to answer one of your questions, the new Mandalore wishes to learn from me and how my people have prospered without war. And the Crusades are over. They are not hunting Force Users anymore. I choose to give them a chance to prove themselves before rejecting them outright." And they were family. That in and of itself gave her influence over their leadership. Something that she was going to take special care of.

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Passion for a certain subject. Scherezade liked the phrasing of that, though she kept her head still to keep herself from opening the door that would lead to another outburst about Mandalorians and their spreading filth. Apparently, the new leader wanted to learn about ways to prosper without war. She had a lot to say about that. But she didn't. Not every thought deserved being voiced.

"May the odds ever be in your favor," Scherezade replied with a little smile after a short silence, doing her best to remain pleasant. Was she, though? Had she ruined it all with her little speech earlier? She didn't know how to judge the situation or gauge what could happen a moment from now.

She took a sip from her tea in the hopes that those few seconds of silence on her end would prompt the Queen to say something, almost anything, about other things.

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. Were the odds ever in her favour? She didn't think so. There were certain aspects of her life that were jinxed, she knew that. Yet trying to get off of her current path was difficult to do in the past. And now she had far too many responsibilities and obligations to even think of walking away or hiding.

She sipped her tea, mulling over a few things in her mind; pondering, just as [member="Scherezade deWinter"] was over parts if their conversation thus far. At least she knew of what subjects to tread lightly on.

"What about trade? What spurs Endelaan's economy?" That was always a better subject to work with.