Pausing in the drizzle outside the entrance, Andromeda pulled her poncho off, shook it vigorously to remove the rain, and then followed her classmates into the structure. The heady scent of incense, earthy and pleasant, lingered there. It helped Andy relax as she edged closer in after the others. She felt like an outsider among the others at the Jedi Temple, surrounded by the prestige and technology of millenia of advanced civilizations. But Andromeda knew about stone and earth and weather. She was, if not at home, at least not on edge. The sensation tugged at the knots of tension in her shoulders and neck and gut.
She quickly changed her shoes, tucking her muddy boots into a cubby and replacing them with a pair of simple clean soft boots. She hung her poncho on a hook, hoping the little remaining moisture wouldn't prove too much of a nuisance. Then, she returned to join the others.
There was a commotion ahead, some sort of problem with another of the students that she was too far back to see until the Jedi lifted him. Andromeda did her best not to recoil. Some aliens were more frightening than others to her ignorant eyes, and Sullustans, with their odd facial flaps and unfathomable, shining black eyes triggered some sort of genetic memory in her, an instinctive fear of deep water and the shiny clack of beetle wings. I was embarrassing, to be sure, and she was deeply ashamed of this unfounded fear, this undeserved prejudice.
The first step, she had been told, was acknowledging. Then she had to unlearn it.
She watched them take the Sullustan student away, and her attention turned back to the presentation.
Andromeda didn't know much about the history of the Jedi Order, and her grasp of current events was tenuous at best, but she knew enough to recognize when she was in the presence of a legend.
Romi Jade
, in the flesh, offering her years of experience and insights into the training of Jedi; it was enough to send a tingle of anticipation down Andy's spine. Her pulse quickened as she stood on her toes to watch. Andy was not inclined to contribute to the discussion on the hike, mostly because she had nothing against which to compare it, but she internally catalogued herself. Subtle aches in her muscles that had been used to climb up and across craggy rocks, to stabilize her on uneven grounds. An abrasion and bruise on her palm where she had broken a fall. A certain thinness to the air, a slight throbbing at her temples.
From the altitude, Andy slowly realized.
Her considerations were interrupted when the box of crystals was offered to her. Andy's eyes darted up to
Briana Sal-Soren
and, after a sheepish smile she murmured a painfully introverted "Thank you" before averting her gaze and taking one of the crystals. She cradled the cool stone in her left hand, and studied it, running the index finger of her right hand along the surface. Intricate carvings crisscrossed the milky white surface. Simply touching it seemed to enhance her experience somehow. Her breath caught as she inhaled deeply, calling on the Force. It felt freer, more refreshing. Her dark eyes closed and she sighed softly, the sigh of a woman refreshed and re-energized.