Transition in Transit [TJO Recruitment]

[Rosario Perlyn]

"Uhm... The person who was frightening me ended up running away. I didn't know that could happen. You've gotta call that luck, too, I guess. I wouldn't have been here if not for that."

She listened attentively to the Jedi's words about following the call of the Force. She had heard stories and knew that that was what Jedi magic was called, but she didn't understand how that could be anything that could tell you where to go, or that it could have a will. Did they hear literal voices in their head? Or was this all just a metaphor, and the Force telling her where to go was just her mood, and the will of the Force was fate? Some people believed there was such a thing as fate. Rosario guesses she did, too, even if hers was kind of weird.

"But I like to think we make an impact for good." "I'd say you do", Rosario said with a warm smile. Her face turned pensive when [member="Zylah Dvale"] asked about her plans. "I don't know." She turned towards the window and leaned against it with her forearms, looking out in between them. "Well, I suppose I'll go home, try to find my brother and sister. I hope mother didn't screw up and they're doing alright. I guess I'll have to find a job. Not gambling again, too dangerous. People get mad at you, you know." She turned her head and there was again that mischievous smile, but this time as if it were tinged with sadness.

 

[Elijah Black]

Luck. Or the Force? Sometimes they were hard to separate. Luck was abstract and a trickier concept for Zylah to wrap her head around. To her it seemed like just another aspect and manifestation of the Force. "I think you were meant to be here. On this ship" Zylah responded, although sounding a little distant, as if she was saying it more to herself than anyone else.

Zylah returned the smile. Jedi intervention was not always appreciated, even when necessary. While gratitude was nothing she asked for or needed to get on with her day, it was nice to come across every now and again.

"If that's how you feel, then that's of course what you must do. However..." Ultimately, anything Rosario chose to do from here on out would be her choice, and Zylah would respect that. Anything else would be selfish and imposing her agenda and will on another sentient being without taking their input into account. This was after all her life. But Zylah believed the girl to be destined for more. She could of course be wrong, but to not take the leap and risk it seemed unwise.

"How would you like to come with me to Deneba?" She turned sideways to lean against the window while facing the young girl in front of her. This might be a lot to throw on her plate, but it seemed unfair to be too vague and withhold her thoughts. "I don't know you very well, Rosario, but I think you are special. I feel the Force flow through you, touch you in ways that it does not most people. What this means, what potential it has within you I cannot say for certain. But if you wish, I can teach you what I know, and we can find out together." Perhaps this was a rash and impulsive move from the also young Jedi Knight, at least without even consulting Master Kale on the matter, but it simply felt right. She could chat with Kale later, hear his thoughts. There was no guarantee Rosario would, or even could become a Jedi. But Zylah had made her decision. Now it was up to Rosario to make hers.

[member="Rosario Perlyn"]​

 

[Rosario Perlyn]

Rosario almost stopped listening at Deneba. She had no idea where and what sort of a place it was, but it didn't matter. What mattered was that the white lady had just offered to take her to a new place. To say that she had seen little of the galaxy was an understatement: the Indigo Quarter of Zeltros and the New Coronet on Trigalis were the only places she had ever lived in, and their surroundings the only ones she had ever visited. What forests and fields, mountains and seas were, she had only learnt through the HoloNet. Not that this Deneba couldn't have been another city, but cities, too, were varied and colourful, and even entering a new quarter could put one in a different world. Rosario had never expected to see much of the galaxy, and she was going to take any chance she could get; and it was going to be perfectly safe, too!

The girl was watching with wide eyes as the Jedi continued, an ever brighter smile growing on her lips, excitement and happiness sweeping through her like the golden light of the rising sun. "Yes, I'd love to!" she exclaimed and flung her arms around Zylah's neck. "Thank you so much!"

Rosario hadn't quite understood what the Jedi was saying about her being touched by the Force. She was starting to suspect that these Jedi had a thing for speaking in metaphors - or maybe it was only this one. Coming from someone else, her words might have been ominous and awakened distrust in the Zeltron. But in the face of her genuine warmth, Rosario had not a moment's doubt. On the contrary, there was a certain reluctance to Zylah, as if she was trying to contain herself to not overwhelm the girl or arouse suspicion, which Rosario found very endearing.

"So you think... I could be useful?" she asked naively.

[member="Zylah Dvale"]​

 

[Elijah Black]

Zylah could feel the waves of emotions washing over Rosario, and it was hard not to smile in return. These would be exciting times for her. Trying, to be sure, but there was an ocean of opportunity ahead of her, no matter the path she chose. Zylah's primary task, along with of course passing on what she knew and guide Rosario on her way, would be to make sure that she was not set upon a path of darkness and suffering.

Zylah had been caught off guard by the pink one flinging herself at her, and attaching to her neck. But it was a nice embrace, which Zylah returned without hesitation. "Great! It's settled then" It had always been Rosario's choice, and Zylah would have respected that. But it was hard for her to hide her own excitement with the decision the young girl had made, and so eagerly too! This could be the start of something great.

"Yes" Zylah said warmly, placing a reassuring hand on Rosario's shoulder. "You already are. You have a good heart, Rosario, and you don't need me to become useful. But with Jedi training, you can become a force for good." A beacon standing firm against the darkness. But perhaps best leave the darkness talk for later. She could worry about Sith and Dark Side later. Baby steps.

"Knight Zylah." the pair were interrupted by one of the medical staff leaning out from the doorway. "We will keep treating the Chagrian, but we anticipate a full recovery soon. Health checks on the others didn't reveal anything wrong. They just need rest." Zylah looked at the medic and gave a relieved nod. "That's good news. Well, suppose that just leaves you?" she turned to her newly made friend, and gestured for the pair to head into the med-bay. "They'll just run a quick test on you to make sure everything's fine. Shouldn't take long. How do you feel, by the way?" It was high time that someone asked her that.

As they walked in, and both equipment and Rosario got prepared to do the health examination, Zylah continued to talk. She didn't know how she felt about needles and doctors, but it might be a welcome distraction. "We will drop your friends off in Commenor space. Then you and I will travel to Deneba. There's a Jedi Enclave there." Yet another congregation of Jedi after Yutan had been made unavailable to them. Maybe one day she would show her the beautiful temple on Voss. However, the Silver Jedi found themselves embroiled in war on multiple fronts. These were hard times. Now that she had the well-being of more than herself to consider, travelling into the heart of a war zone no longer seemed like such a wise thing to do.

"We've got a fair bit of travelling to do before then. We could start with your training on the way" She was hesitant to use the word 'training'. It was after all Zylah's intention to make a Jedi out of her. But false hope could wound deeply, if Zylah turned out to be wrong. "But perhaps you wish to rest? You've been through a lot after all." Zylah had to reign herself in at the end there, before she got overeager herself. Wouldn't want to push Rosario too hard on day 1. After all, they were playing the infinite game and not seeking quick and easy individual victories.

​

| [member="Rosario Perlyn"] |​

 

[Rosario Perlyn]

"You mean... I can become like you?" Rosario asked hesitantly, but before she could receive an answer they were interrupted.

Somewhat anxiously, she made her way into the examination room, but then relaxed. It was a relief that the medical personnel on the ship were actual living beings. She had been subjected to yearly health checks and they had always been executed by droids, who were so cold to the touch and the heart. It was actually worse - they did not feel like people who were being cold, but at least had the potential for warmth; they felt like nothing at all. People could be cruel and terrible, but at least they were predictable and somehow, on some level, understandable. To be exposed and vulnerable in front of a droid was unsettling in quite its own way. She found it quite incomprehensible how so many people treated droids like persons or pets, abused them or empathised with them - it was all meaningless to her.

The doctor was a young human woman with straight blonde hair and a serious, but innocent expression. A volunteer from Commenor, she had signed on for a time with the Jedi Order just after completing her studies. She did her work with the outwardly visible diligence of the inexperienced. Still it took her two attempts to find a vein under the Zeltron's strongly pigmented skin, and Rosario winced.

***​

"Everything looks good, you'll be fine, no reason to worry", the young woman announced. "There's just the stress, obviously, make sure she gets a bit of rest", she added turning to Zylah.

The excitement of all that had happened had entirely eclipsed Rosario's tiredness, but it was slowly letting go of her as she prepared to leave the medical facility. "Well, I don't know for how long I haven't slept..." she pointed out with an apologetic look in her eyes.

***
​

Huddled under the blanked in the softest bed she had seen in years, Rosario felt a happy, relaxed heaviness in her body. She wondered how her siblings might be doing, and hoped dearly that theirs was be a more regular adolescence. But for all the good will she had for them, she felt not call of duty to find them as soon as possible and was quite content with the prospect of discovering more of the galaxy for herself now. She was certain that they wouldn't begrudge it to her, if they knew of her circumstances.

What awaited her now was a mystery, but she felt no anxiety in its face; to the contrary, she was intrigued. By the kind white woman's side, there would be much to be discovered. She only hoped not to disappoint Zylah, useless as she was. Although the woman seemed confident that she could become more than that. Sleep overtook her as she marvelled over how unreal that possibility seemed...

 

[Elijah Black]

“Yes. In your own way.” she returned with little hesitation in her voice. She wasn’t in the business of making Zylah-copies, although naturally the teacher would leave a distinct imprint on the student. “The path to becoming a Jedi is long and riddled with challenges. But I think you have it in you.” Yes. She thought to herself. Whatever may come to pass, she had to be honest with herself. She did believe in Rosario. Even if nothing was certain yet, she owed it to her to not hold back, to support her. Zylah watched as [member="Rosario Perlyn"] was taken in and treated by the ship's medical personal. Thankfully a swift and painless session.

With a appreciative nod towards the young human woman, and an "Of course", Zylah took her pupil with her back out again. Her pupil. The very first. One never truly felt prepared for these things, or so Zylah imagined. But prepared or not, she felt ready. And from this moment going onwards, any Jedi trial would not matter. She was still her pupil, in the sense that it was Zylah's duty to prepare her as best as she could. Right now that meant allowing the poor girl to rest. "You should rest. Take the day off, enjoy some peace and quiet, sleep, or spend time with your friends. I leave it to you."

***​

​

After Rosario had gotten some much needed sleep, as well as Zylah for that matter, the silver-haired woman waited in a conference room. It had a holo-projector at the centre of a long oval table, but it was not in use at the moment. Zylah had been granted the room for herself and Rosario, who according to their agreement should have been right in here with her. Where could she be? Perhaps she was still sleeping. If that was the case, Zylah didn't know if she had the heart to wake her up seeing as she only very recently got rescued from slavery. Hopefully nothing was wrong. Just a little while longer then...

Rather than rush out to go look for her pink friend, she instead sat herself down right there on the floor and prepared herself, easing her mind, body, and opening herself to warm currents of the Force.

 

[Rosario Perlyn]

Rosario had woken up for the third and final time this morning. Her mind was hazy, and she had been lying with her face buried in the cushion for some time, trying but unable to fall asleep once more. It was probably time to get up anyway. With some effort, she managed to push back the blanket from her naked body, and winced as the homely warmth went away. She jumped out of bed in an abrupt motion and ran her hand through her disorderly hair as she looked around dizzily in the small chamber. Her dress was lying on the floor in a sorry creased state, but as she was about to pick it up, she discovered that a set of clothes had been laid out for her. As she unfolded them, they turned out to be a simple loose-fitting tunic and trousers of light grey canvas. As she slipped into them, they felt clean, but also clinical; indeed they might well have been a nurse's clothes.

She finally managed to throw a glance at the clock, and a little shock went through her as she realised that it was already past the time she was supposed to meet [member="Zylah Dvale"]. She fiddled nervously with the hairpins she had put aside last night, trying to put some order on her head, but had to remove and replace them several times, hurriedly inefficient as she was.

***​

Rosario was on the whole about half an hour late when she apprehensively entered the room, which she had had some trouble finding, not remembering the way well. She was prepared to find a rather annoyed Jedi and apologise profusely, and was quite astonished and relieved when she saw Zylah sitting on the floor in perfect calm. The Jedi felt perfectly relaxed to her and not a bit impatient, which reassured the little Zeltron immensely.

"Good morning, Mistress Zylah", she said as she approached with new-found confidence and a bright smile.

 

[Elijah Black]

The sound of her light steps carried through the corridor. The doors did not need to open for her to see Rosario’s arrival. And in time, it would be the same for her. “Good morning” Zylah’s eyes opened up to her with that same warmness she had grown to know. There usually wasn’t much secrecy with her. What you saw was what you got, put on display up front and available. “Did you sleep well?”

Zylah imagined so, considering how she had been late. She couldn’t begrudge the girl to oversleep a little. What she had been through Zylah couldn’t even begin to imagine. And so she would grant her this without question or reprimand. Surely it wasn’t going to become a trend, right?

“How do you feel today?” Zylah asked, while gesturing for her to join her and take a seat. It felt as if an important first step, to grow familiar with her state of mind, her emotions and to guide Rosario to grow familiar with it all as well. Comfortable, calm. Then her eyes would open.

There is no emotion, there is peace.


[member="Rosario Perlyn"]

 

[Rosario Perlyn]

"Uh, it's complicated", Rosario said with a smirk, clearly meaning to be facetious. But it was also the truth. Her inner state was tumultuous.

She had found herself not only in a new situation, but in a situation of an entirely new kind. To be sure, this wasn't the first time someone was kind to her and cared to teach her things - the other girls, from whom she had learnt to dance, had mostly been nice enough with her, especially Alema'ani. But that someone with power would not try to extract value from her, but concerned themselves with her own best interest, that was an entirely new experience. Not for a second did she entertain the thought that Zylah might want to use her for a purpose; too great was her confidence - or maybe naiveté - in her positive first impression of the woman. Being asked what she wanted was unfamiliar, too; the question just didn't come up much for slaves. One thing did promise to remain a constant: that she would be told what to do a lot; and Rosario couldn't say she minded. It provided stability, and without it, she might have been entirely lost in a life that she was not used to controlling.

This change in circumstances naturally prompted a certain anxiety. Rosario didn't know the proper way to behave, and she had no idea what was expected of her. She was eager not to disappoint Zylah, but was at the same time clueless about how to avoid it. But the novelty of it all was also exciting, even exhilarating, and altogether Rosario was happy enough to just go with the flow of the situation and do whatever came to mind in the immediate moment.

As she sat cross-legged on the floor, Rosario looked up at the table, finding it rather odd to sit below it, and then turned her expectant gaze at Zylah.

[member="Zylah Dvale"]​

 

[Elijah Black]

Zylah noticed the look up towards the table, and smiled. It was indeed an odd choice of seating. At this point it had become a habit, her body accustomed to hard floors as opposed to comfortable seating. But it served an easy enough of a stepping board to start lecturing. This was going to feel strange.

“Jedi lead simple lives. We are taught to conquer materialism, and are encouraged to keep no more than a few essential belongings. Humility is important. Having fewer distractions helps a Jedi focus, but another aspect is the fact that we’re often on the move. Sometimes a mission can pop up and you’re expected to leave on short notice. It’s not uncommon for a Jedi to possess no more than they could carry on their person. But that’s not something I’ll enforce very strictly. Trusting your own judgement is important too. People are different”

Zylah watched Rosario keenly, realising she might doing too much too fast. Overwhelming her was the last thing she wanted, yet she imagined Ros didn’t know much of the Jedi. Zylah was eager to share to help paint a picture. “If you have any questions at all, don’t hesitate to ask. I’m hear to help guide you on your path. I understand it’s a whole new world for you and it can be a lot to take in, so don’t be worried, no question is stupid.” While that last bit was not entirely true, Zylah did not imagine Rosario would take her up on that challenge.

Zylah would take her time to explain anything Ros might want her to elaborate on. Then came the first lessons. “First I want teach you how to meditate.” and learn to commune with the Force. “Close your eyes. Focus on your breathing. Listen. Try to keep your mind from wandering, and draw your attention back to how your body feels as you breathe. Notice how you feel as you breathe in… and out. There is no emotion, there is peace” she recited the first line of the Jedi Code, while observing Rosario at work.

It would have to come from within herself in the end, but considering that she was new to both the Jedi and the Force, Zylah sought to ease her into it as best she could, by projecting an aura of calmness to help her relax. “Reach out with your senses. Be aware of your surroundings. Can you feel the room?” she paused, giving Rosario time to explore at her own pace. “The Jedi are swimming in the Force in our our every moment. Breathing it, tasting it, riding its currents to our unique destinies. Do you feel it too? It’s all around you. It always has been”

| [member="Rosario Perlyn"] |​

 

[Rosario Perlyn]

Zylah's introduction of the ascetic ideals of the Jedi had less of an impact on Rosario than it might have had on the many hopeful people her age with aspirations to make something of themselves. Material possessions had never had much significance to her, she had never had much in her life, and striving to acquire more than the necessities had never been something she thought she might do. Knowing well that this was a pursuit many people engaged in, it had simply never occurred to her that she, personally, might do the same thing. When her stomach had been full and her body covered, she had never minded being poor all that much. What seemed valuable to her was wealth in experiences, a new feeling or sensation was dearer to her than an object, and it was something nobody could take away ever again. Nothing in Zylah's words forced her to question this.

It was thus at the words first I want teach you that Rosario's eyes lit up. As far as she knew, meditation was a strange activity for strange people who wanted to become enlightened by doing... nothing. Some insisted that it was all made up and pretence, though Rosario herself was less inclined to be so mistrustful. Nobody she had ever known could claim any real experience with it. Rosario was intrigued. If meditation was something the Jedi did, there must be something to it.

Resting her hands on her thighs, she did as she was told, closing her eyes and attending to her breath. The first thing that was happened was that her breathing stopped, until she remembered consciously to resume it. She realised that it was actually quite difficult to breathe evenly, in a normal manner, while paying attention to one's breath, and the various unstable ways she sucked in and expelled air at first must have sounded quite funny to the observer. At first Rosario thought she had brought things under control, but in reality she had stopped paying attention to her breath again: a hair was tickling her skin behind her ear, and she raised a hand to put it away. It was odd that she should notice this now, she never did. And indeed, odd sensations began to spring up all over her body, she noticed muscles and areas of skin that she never paid attention to. It was as if everything in her was conspiring to prevent her from doing what she was supposed to, fighting for attention. Rosario noticed this with confusion, and steeled herself to ignore it. After a few more tries, she managed to keep a more or less regular breath, consciously controlling it and at the same time consciously thinking about the fact that she was consciously controlling it. A relaxed state, this was not; on the contrary, it felt very effortful, at least mentally. She did not know whether her muscles were tensed as well, and wondered - and there went her focus again.

"This isn't peaceful at all!" she protested. "It's bloody hard work." She smiled wryly to make clear that she was not being entirely serious, but managed to keep her eyes closed - at which point her attention latched onto that fact, and her perception focussed on the coloured patterns she was seeing with closed eyes. It occurred to her that her attention was not something under her control, something that she was, in truth, a victim of, or at least something she had to fight. Her attention wasn't something she was doing, it was something separate from her with a will of its own. It was a very odd and disturbing idea.

After several more minute of this continued fight, in one of the periods in which Rosario had again managed to keep her attention on her breath and her breath even, she was interrupted by Zylah's question. Rosario wasn't sure what to make of it. While he had been focussing on her breath, she had entirely forgotten about the existence of anything else around her. And how did one feel a room?

"Not... really", she answered hesitantly, as if ashamed. "I mean, I know it's there, I know where the table is and where I'd have to reach to touch it, but that's because I just saw it. I don't feel that the table is there in the same way I feel that you're there."

[member="Zylah Dvale"]​

 

[Elijah Black]

Zylah observed the process, watching over her as well as her mind while she struggled to adjust herself to a state of meditation. It was supposed to come natural and be relaxing, however, for Rosario it was not. Zylah couldn't blame her, it was her first attempt at anything like this. It would likely feel foreign and awkward. It was hard not to feel self-conscious when attempting something such as this.

"It takes some getting used to." Zylah returned with a smile to Rosario's remarks. She wasn't here to judge her harshly or slap her on the wrist for not getting it right on the first try. Jedi didn't strive for perfection, that was a quest more aligned with the ambition of the Sith. No, instead she would support her and help guide her to understand her own abilities and potential.

"Relax. We are in no great hurry. Don't try to actively stop your mind from wandering, just notice when it does and calmly reel it back. Notice how each breath is different from the other, how your body feels when you are breathing. Do you feel it in your chest? Stomach?" She watched her as she tried to take her instructions to heart. Zylah's own voice was both calm and relaxed, she did not appear a harsh master. "There is no chaos, there is harmony" she concluded with another passage from the Jedi Code, a Code young Rosario would have to get well acquainted with soon enough.

"I know it can seem strange. Feel the room. What does that mean? What we're trying to do is help get you in touch with one of your senses you never knew you had. A hidden sense that helps you see without needing to open your eyes." That too would probably take some getting used to. But in time they might focus on not relying on the Force too heavily, rather than becoming aware it existed at all.

"You said before you felt I am here?" She singled in on that, as sensing her presence seemed a task simpler and more natural. A good place to start. "How so? What do you feel?" Zylah made no effort at all to mask her presence within the Force, or even her own surface thoughts. She saw no need to make the task any more difficult than it already was.

| [member="Rosario Perlyn"] |​

 

[Rosario Perlyn]

Rosario listened attentively to her teacher's explanations. So maybe directing her attention wasn't really what she had been supposed to do, but rather simply observing. That made some amount of sense, she supposed, considering that she had just noticed that her attention was itself something that could be observed. It was very difficult to really comprehend all these words; language corresponded so imperfectly to the reality of experience.

Then they returned to the mysterious question of how to feel the room, whatever that meant. Zylah seemed to suggest that maybe this was in some way analogous to the way she was aware of other people and their feelings, but these, again, was just words. Rosario just couldn't imagine what that analogous awareness of the room could possibly feel like.

"Well, I don't know how to describe it, really... When there's another person close, I just know that they're there and I have some idea of how they feel. In a way I feel it myself, but it's not really like I feel it myself. I guess it's like when you imagine something, you sort of see it, but you don't really see it? So it's actually not just knowing. When I see a table and close my eyes, I know it's still there, but that's not the same as imagining what it looks like. And maybe this feeling isn't really like imagining, because I don't do it intentionally and I can't stop it any more than I can stop feeling touch. It's... not great when everyone around you is upset and anxious. It gets kind of contagious." Rosario noticed that she was rambling and bit her lip. Her thoughts weren't the most orderly right now.

"So you have that, but about the physical objects and the space that surrounds you... ?" she asked, hesitantly incredulous.

[member="Zylah Dvale"]​

 

[Elijah Black]

Zylah listened with care. She was preparing herself to become the patient teacher. And she would need patience. This was a whole new world for [member="Rosario Perlyn"]. Many things that she probably took for granted or didn't even notice was manifestations of the Force. And it wasn't a strange thing at all. It wasn't just that it belonged to a language Rosario didn't know how to speak, but one she did not even know existed. To expect her to adjust to that in a moment would be unfair. And something Zylah would have to take care to be aware of. Zylah had grown up, more or less, within this world, familiar with its language. Rosario had not. A really knowledgeable master might never be able to educate his students if he did not meet them at their level. Zylah had to avoid the pitfall of taking for granted the basic things that had since become second-nature to her.

The Jedi Knight nodded and smiled. Rosario might feel as if she was rambling, but Zylah picked up the bits and pieces that stringed together the image of a confused girl, unaware of her power that extended beyond simple intuition. "What you describe is the Force moving through you. I understand this might seem overwhelming and crazy. But in time you'll learn how to get in touch with it. It will be like a muscle or a sense you never knew you had. First you need to find it, feel it. Then you can learn how to further develop it." She really felt like she was trying to give her a crash course in how to be a Jedi. But she was confident that if she remained patient and devoted to teaching her, Rosario would grow into a fine Jedi. The more she thought of it like that, the more she felt reassured that this was the right way. "You already have the skill, but you don't know you are using it. You know it, even when you can't. It's more than a guess or an assumption."

Zylah paused, her eyes narrowing slightly as a thought popped into mind, and she jumped to another task. Or, perhaps, 'test' would be a better term. "I want to try something. And it's nothing wrong if you don't get it right. But I want you to explore the things you can do, and become aware that you can do them." perhaps this little introduction wasn't necessary. But she had felt like saying it, and so she had. She was hardly a pedagogical expert.

She raised her right hand up, palm open and held out in front of her. Behind it, hidden from Rosario's eyes, her left hand moved up. She held up two fingers behind the cover of her right hand. "How many fingers am I holding up?" she watched the face of the other girl, expecting to find confusion in some form. "Don't think about it. Feel. And speak" It wasn't quite pictures of cups and ships, but it was an improvised version of it. And provided she got it right, Zylah would do the same thing two more times.

 

[Rosario Perlyn]

Rosario listened attentively, and at one point she suddenly raised an eyebrow in surprise and with perhaps a bit of skepticism. You know it even when you can't. What did she mean to say, she couldn't? All Zeltrons knew how others around them felt, it was a perfectly knowable thing! An expression of worry slowly crept onto her face. What if Zylah was mistaking this perfectly normal mode of being for something it wasn't?

"But, Mistress... All Zeltrons can feel others' emotions", Rosario objected hesitantly. Then, as soon as she had spoken, she realised that she had never actually talked to another Zeltron about precisely how this felt to them. Their empathic abilities were just a given, assumed to be part of the natural order of things, in the same way as any other sense, and nobody had in-depth discussions about what it felt like to see or hear something. Perhaps it really wasn't the same for her as for others of her species... ? And it was true that most others weren't such lucky guessers as she was.

And that guessing seemed to be what the Jedi was returning to once again. Rosario looked expectantly first at Zylah's outstretched palm and then at her face. As soon as she had heard the question, a number popped into Rosario's mind and she had to control herself to not say it immediately. She had no idea where that number came from, and in the past, she had never thought about such things. Now this had, for the first time, become something not to be taken for granted, something to be investigated. "Uhm... Two, I guess." She looked pensive, but the Jedi went on to repeat the exercise. It kept working, and Rosario felt a bit silly. "Four." - "One."

After a moment's hesitation, she finally spoke. "Mistress Zylah, can we try something?" Rosario had started to wonder how precisely the ability they had just tested worked, and she had formed a hypothesis. Having been taught to pay much attention to her own body, and having learnt to copy others' movements just from seeing them, perhaps her ability to sense others' internal states had extended from emotions to the thing that Rosario had no idea was called proprioception.

"I want to know if this works", Rosario announced, more firmly now. "We both stand up and I turn around and look away from you. You just move in some way, arms, legs, body, whatever, and I try to guess what you're doing and copy it."

[member="Zylah Dvale"]​