The Princess Returns to Her Castle

[Rae-Anna Ku]

Rain.

A single, lonely rain drop slowly rolled down the window of the small Naboo J-Type Star Skiff. The vessel tore through the Commenor atmosphere at speed, one destination in mind. The flowing water continued to run, speeding up at a proportional speed to the small transport. The lights built onto the front of the vessel automatically turned on, lighting the path in front of itself.

It's crew paid very little attention to the running water, however the passanger looked sadly. She was home, however it didn't feel like home. It all felt so foreign to her, different to the rolling green hills and running waterfalls that she was used to. Naboo was her home, Commenor could never feel like home, however it was the place her family had relocated to.

The Princess got to her feet, wiping the tears from her face. She needed her game face, she needed to talk to the guards so that she could access the home of her mother, her adopted mother. It had been years since they had last spoken, years since the Sith slaughtered her adopted father and she was sent into hiding alongisde her brother, the person she had grown up with.

Then her brother had left her. [member="Bradshaw Ku"] had run away from their hiding place, she hadn't seen the man since. She had heard stories of course, heard stories that her brother had become the best man he could be. She hadn't seen him, she hadn't felt it right. Her brother was living her best life and so was she, she had settled down and was in love.

She missed her family dearly but she couldn't see them.

Then the Sith had attacked. She didn't know why, she assumed it was due to her name but she couldn't be certain. The man had butchered, slaughtered her family. Her boyfriend had tried to fight back and had been left lying on the ground, eyeless. Her unborn child was next to fall, stabbed when she herself was stabbed through the stomach. She herself had been left to die, however she had been found by a neighbour and saved.

She had lost everything.

The voice over the comlink sounded distant to her. She had drifted away again, lost reliving the moment. The pilot snapped his fingers at her, causing her to blink. She had to compose herself, she needed to sound believeable. What she would say was the truth, however if she broke down midway through the sentance it was unlikely the guards would allow her access.

Rae-Anna Ku hoped that [member="Lady Kay"] wouldn't mind being awoken in the early hours of the morning.

"I need to see the Queen. I need to see my mother".

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay was woken up by some knocking on her bedroom door. She was having a wonderful dream about travelling and camping on Bakura. Oh how she missed that place. So very much.

Groggily she rubbed at her eyes and then slid out of bed, placing her feet within her slippers and sliding a robe overtop of her nightgown. She headed to the door and opened it, raising a brow slightly at the guard waiting in the hallway. He carried a datapad in his hand. "Forgive me for disturbing you, my Lady, but there is a woman at the gate claiming to know you. She's asking for an audience."

"Now? Right this minute?"

The guard tapped the datapad and held it to her. Kay studied the face on the screen, captured moments ago via security cameras. "What do you want us to tell her?"

It took a few seconds before she responded. "Let her into the foyer. Have her checked for weapons. Have the guards posted and I'll meet them down there shortly."

"Yes, my Lady." The guard bowed his head and took back the datapad. As he turned and walked away, he spoke into his commlink to relay the Queen's orders.

Kay on the otherhand closed the door to her room once more. Oh she was going to need to make some tea. This was bound to be a long night.

[member="Rae-Anna Ku"]

 

[Rae-Anna Ku]

Cold.

It wasn't much of a walk between the landing platform and the main door. The Naboo J-Type Star Skiff kept her dry for most of the walk, however it did very little to stop the cold tearing at her skin, causing the hairs to stand in some vague attempt to keep her insulated. Naboo had been warm when she had left, when she had fled. She hadn't brought capes or jackets and she was starting to regret that, she wanted to be warm.

She was lead from the platform by two stern looking guards. They took her through the main door, stopping her once they had. She was searched, though she didn't know why. She had nothing on her that could pose a threat, she could hardly use two credits as a weapon. She allowed herself to be searched with little complaint, and then the guards left. She hoped that they had gone to get the Queen to visit her.

She did feel bad for waiting the Queen.

She took a seat slowly. She knew that this was home but it didn't feel like home. She closed her eyes, sighing. As a child, she could always feel the presence of her brother. She later found out this was due to the presence of the force. Both her and her brother had the force, both of them had the potential to be special. She hoped that she would be able to feel the presence of her brother now, however she couldn't.

He wasn't on Commenor.

And so she waited. She waited for her mother.

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Just as her tea was prepared, Kay was already dressed. She couldn't go out and meet someone in her nightgown, afterall. Who knows just who was waiting in the foyer to meet her.

With tea in hand, and after receiving word that all was well with the woman, Kay headed down to go and meet her. She sipped her tea along the way. The guards found it in their wisdom to not tell her about [member="Rae-Anna Ku"] 's claims. More than likely they had thought it to be a lie; a ruse in order to gain an audience straight away.

Kay spotted the woman seated in one of the chairs. She approached her quietly and cleared her throat a little before speaking. "To what do I owe the pleasure of being woken up at this hour? Is there something wrong" Her words weren't spoken in any mean tone. In fact it was more worrisome than anything else.

 

[Rae-Anna Ku]

She watched the Queen slowly.

Her mother had changed in thw twenty plus years since they had last spoken, grown older. Her eyes hadn't changed though, still the same caring nature radiating from her. She seemed worried rather than annoyed like Rae-Anna assumed she would be. Perhaps her mother was used to being awoken at an hour much to early for any single person to operate. Perhaps her mother knew what was going on, who she claimed to be.

The lightning cracked, casting blue shadows in the foyer.

Rae-Anna looked up. She hadn't planned this, she didn't even plan to be on Commenor until the butchery of her family. She wanted to know why her partner had been killed, she wanted to know why everything had happened. She wanted to know where her brother was, she wanted to see her brother. She wanted he.. No. She couldn't think of that, she couldn't make herself cry yet. She needed to control herself.

"Mother. It's been a while"

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay studied [member="Rae-Anna Ku"] as she took a bit of time before answering her questions. One could almost see the wheels turning in her head as one thought would progress to the next.

Finally the words came out and she nearly dropped her tea. Nearly, but not quite. Once again Kay studied Rae-Anna, her focus turning to her eyes, her nose, her hair. It couldn't be....

When [member="Bradshaw Ku"] had re-entered her life, he was full of such anger and nearly destroyed her office. And now here was quite possibly his little sister, appearing weighted down from some very strong emotions. They were nearly polar opposites.

"Rae-Anna? Could it really be you?..." The questions of how and why came to mind. Not to mention the feelings of guilt that Kay had had over what had happened to have caused their family to be broken apart.

History had very nearly repeated itself with her already. Or perhaps it already was....

 

[Rae-Anna Ku]

Awkward.

There was no other word to describe the atmosphere in the room. The awkwardness between the two was thick and lingering. The rain outside was starting to become heavier, louder. It could be heard smashing against the windows. Rae-Anna watched her mother for a few moments, not quite sure on what to do or how to act or even how to answer the question. The Queen knew exactly who she was, even if it had been years since they had last spoken.

Then she hugged her mother.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry for not returning sooner"

Rae-Anna stepped back. She run her hand through her hair, feeling the cold water droplets cling to her fingers like ice. Her hair was matted and horrible, cold and damp. She watched the queen, trying to keep herself composed. She couldn't cry in front of her mother, she wouldn't cry in front of her mother. She bit her lip, shaking her head to just try and keep herself together, try and prevent the breakdown.

"Everything I had was gone. I have nothing. They're all dead."

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

At first Kay's hug back was light, moreso due to the fact as she was trying to let it all sink in. Could the young woman holding her right now really be [member="Rae-Anna Ku"] ? Yes it could. Her touch was the same, even the smell of her damp hair.

And just as Kay was about to hold onto her tighter, Rae-Anna stepped back and did her old habit of fidgeting with her hair. She alwaus used to fo that. It was as though she always needed to be doing something if someone was staring at her, much like she was.

Tears brimmed Kay's eyes as her daughter apologized for not finding her sooner. How long had she of known where she was? "It's not your fault. I couldn't find you either. Daiq and the others hid you and Brad away from me, for your safety. I tried to get them to tell me, but they wouldn't..."

And then she spoke of what drew her here. Kay felt as though she was kicked in the gut. Everything is gone? They're all dead? Oh noo....It was a tragedy like that which tore them apart and now it seemed as though a similar tragedy was bringing them back together.

Kay wrapped her arm around Rae-Anna's shoulders. "Come with me to the sitting room. We'll get a fire going, get you some tea and a cozy blanket. Then you can tell me all about it."

 

[Rae-Anna Ku]

She walked.

Both of them sat down. Rae-Anna kept her eyes on her mother. It had been close to twenty years, if not more since they had last sat down together and had a conversation together. She needed to keep herself together though, she had woken her mother at stupid o'clock in the morning. She wouldn't cry in front of her mother as well, she was old enough to keep herself composed while she retold the story, retold her horror.

"After I was taken away from you, Bradshaw run away. I tried to go after him and found myself at our old house. I was found by a young couple who looked after me until I was old enough to take up habiting the old house. I fell in love with a boy from school, we were happy together. We both planned to run off, join the navy or something and explore the galaxy together. Neither of us could really fly a ship but we would have learned"

Playing with her hair, again. She had to control that.

"I heard on the news that you had become the Queen of Commenor. I hated that you had never tried to find me on Naboo but I was glad that you had moved on with your life, I was proud that you were the Queen, that you had done well for yourself. However, I can assume you made some enemies. Both myself and my boyfriend agreed it was too unsafe to move out, especially when Bradshaw's name started being dropped by the media."

She shook her head.

"We remained put for a few more years, for my safety. Two months before we planned to leave and travel I got some amazing news. We were going to start a family, I was pregnant with his child. Everything went so well, then one night while we were asleep I heard a knock at the door. I opened it and felt something warm stab through me. A blade, red in colour was forced into my stomach. I fell, left to die. The man, I don't know who he was entered my house and slaughted my boyfriend"

She wouldn't cry, she wouldn't cry.

"I woke up in a hospital bed. I had been in bacta and in surgery for weeks. I shouldn't have survived but I did. My child and lover were dead, I had nothing left. I knew it wasn't safe for me on Naboo, not now you've become such a big player in galactic politics. I fled, I fled Naboo and came to the one place I knew I would be safe. Commenor. Here, with you and Bradshaw."

She bit her lip, still playing with her hair. She wouldn't cry, she wouldn't cry.

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay took care of the fire, the tea, the blankets and everything while [member="Rae-Anna Ku"] just watched her. Once everything was ready, she made herself comfortable, still in a bit of shock over who she was sitting next to. Just wait until [member="Veiere Arenais"] got a load of this one...

First [member="Marcus Ismet-Ku"] and now...

Any happy thoughts faded as Rae-Anna told her tale. It was hard not to feel at all guilty over the bad things that had happened. And she could hear the blame in her daughter's voice as well.

"It wasn't my intention to become Queen or to rule over anyone. I was but a Senator until everything fell apart just before they were all beaten to submission by the Sith. And yes, I have made some enemies but it wasn't intentional.
How it was that they linked you to me in order to cause harm...I don't know. This was why you were hidden. And I did look for you. Both of you..." She frowned as she lowered her head, reflecting on the loss of a grandchild, as well as a son-in-law. "I'm sorry for what you went through. And I'm sorry for any part that I had to play in it."

Kay sipped her tea. The drink itself gave her little comfort however. "You are welcome to stay here for as long as you like, whether it's in the Palace or somewhere else. I can have security forces to watch over you and protect you." Trouble always seemed to find Kay. And now? Now it haunted her children as well. "I will do my best to stay out of galactic affairs. Force knows we have enough work here to do already. What else do you need? What else can I give you to somehow make up for what's happened?"

 

[Rae-Anna Ku]

She didn't know.

She didn't know in the slightest what she needed. She needed protection, she needed her family and her brother. She wanted to learn more about her mothers planet, about what her mother had done to upset a large number of people. She did't know what she wanted. She wanted everything and anything, nothing material. She wanted friends and caring people, she wanted people to reassure her that everything would be okay and everything woukd be alright.

"Where is Bradshaw? I know he returned to Commenor, the news mentioned that you named him Crown Prince and heir to the planet of Commenor. I figured I would have felt his presence by now but I haven't felt anything that would suggest his presence on the planet. He has a right to know what happened and a right to know I am finally back where I belong, back with my family. However, I can't tell him that if I don't know where he is"

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

[member="Rae-Anna Ku"] had a right to know the truth. The problem was that Kay didn't know all of it herself. And that disturbed both her and Veiere.

"I don't know where he is. Brad has a habit of just leaving and not telling anyone. After he found me again, he has left three times now. I assumed that it was always to look for you, to bring you back here. But now I'm not so sure....

He has demons of his own to face.
Whether or not he can win against them is another matter. Brad's always had a bit of a temper." And a violent one at that, sometimes. But Kay was never fearful of him. Only cautious when his anger had him so riled up that he could only see red.

"But we'll find him.
Don't you worry..." She placed her hand on Rae-Anna's and gave it a little squeeze, trying to reassure her somewhat. "I am glad to have you back. I've missed you so much.."