Unexpected guests in the deep deep woods

[Gabriel Sionoma]

Sulon

Early Morning

Forested Apiary


He couldn't recall the moment. The one where he intended to grow wheat. He just knew that sometime between then and now, it had turned nearly to the harvest. The way it pushed over, beneath even the lightest step, he recalled it and the path he carved as he moved towards the forest. The same sort of path that would soon be forgotten with the high noonday sun, shining harshly on the orbiting moon.

Inherently a tactile person, having once known a life without the pleasures of it, he cherished every moment to touch and feel. The way it scraped against calloused fingers, rows of feather dusters cleaning dirty palms, reminded him that things had changed. Even as it touched against the raised edges of scars, newly minted through work with the alliance, he didn't feel that pain of failure that once seemed to loom over him like a shadow cast from a monument. It wouldn't stand the test of time, it seemed.

What had once been a few hives quickly turned into an industrial process, one often taken by multiple workers in suits and hands filled with smokers. Beginning his journey through the process, he had taken to the traditional methods of standard construction and practices. But as time went on, he soon began to appreciate a communion with the hives. Perhaps it was the carried over traits of his brother, the mind that tapped into the Vong hivemind and living biots, but it felt different here. No agenda, no mission, no crusade. Just simply a will to survive, a purpose to thrive. It was a mission he could appreciate.

The wheat filled turned over to a dark forest, the sort of cover that wasn't usually seen on Sulon. Regeneration of the Tap trees had made many things possible. The rampant growth of the woods was one of those things, though aqueducts were slowly supplying Baron's Hed with needed supply as an additional boon. As he cut in, he took to a path most traveled and lined with eroded soil and thick exposed roots. Hardwoods and evergreen trees slowly transitioned into a more colorful spectrum of trees: baffor, ankarres, force sensitive, and other trees that had since been imported. The powers of the Morodin species gave a discrete control to the cultivators, allowing for an ambitious uprising of otherwise irresponsible planting techniques. But with their trails of nutrient rich sludge, things had begun to change. Particularly, the disease resistance of the baffor in response to an adapting species of beetle and the force mutualism.

Placing his hands upon the gabled electrum cover, he lifted to inspect the hive. As he moved, he pressed his presence into the hive, informing the workers that he was simply there for janitorial responsibilities. They continued their work as he pushed through each frame, inspecting the virility of the queen and her overall stock.

[member="Avalore Eden"]​

 

[Avalore Eden]

It had begun as any other day in the nursery - a word used with some faint hint of irony as it would seem. Early to rise as she always was to tend to the needs of her growing children, Avalore had taken her morning run, fed the boys, changed and left for her rounds through the trees with strange haste this morning. Though she had never been known for her sensitivity in regards to the flow of the Force, something had called to her on the breezes today. The Healer could not explain the feeling that tickled at her senses and lured her from her usual routine. If asked she would not even be able to describe what had overcome her, compelled her to leave the twins as they played under the watchful eye of [member="Vaet"] the littling.

A whisper, perhaps. The voices of the baffoor? Something had called to her, insistently, urgently.

No one had known what to expect and despite her hours of research into Talon's kind, little had been recorded of the maturation of a seedling implanted in the ground to grow like a tree. Some had said it wouldn't grow at all. Others surmised it would never mature beyond a plant - too isolated and secluded to develop fully. Even a zelosian herself had claimed nothing would come of the seed.

It's impossible, she'd said, for a seed to grow on its own.

But grow it did. Petals and stems and roots - it had become a massive bulb surrounded by thick, fat green leaves. At the center sat a capsule encased by petals slowly catching hues that matched the color of the sun. When would it bloom? She remembered wondering as she worked to clear the weeds away. Would it bloom at all? Avalore had no way to know if she was nurturing the seed properly, but everything she did felt right. The baffoors would whisper to her at times when to add water, when to clear branches of the alcove to let in more sun, when to talk and when to sing as if they sensed when the seed needed comfort, but for a week now their utterings had gone silent.

The Healer began to worry and for several days she had not touched the sprouting seedling for fear of having done something wrong. Today she felt her heart sink when she arrived upon the copse of ankarres and force sensitive and baffoor trees surrounding the bulb. All color had drained from the petals, the leaves appeared dry and shriveled. The clearing was still and far too quiet. Dumbfounded and, for the first time in a long time, feeling lost for hope, Avalore felt her knees make contact with the earth and the sharp sting return to her eyes. She'd failed Master Vosra, she'd failed his Padawan. What would she say? What could she do?

Footfalls behind her, she knew Gabe was there without even looking. Avalore did not even have the ability to sense his presence, but she knew the sound of his quietude.

"Gabe," a sound far too pitiful escaped her throat accompanied by the taste of salt at the corner of her lips as large, fat tears dribbled down her cheeks, "Gabe...the seed..."

[member="Gabriel Sionoma"]

 

[Gabriel Sionoma]

This hive was one of the less temperamental ones. Finding the sweet spot between checking too often and not often enough, some had grow accustomed to his presence while others were far less accommodating. Aggravated by the disturbances, territorial and protective, their hive mind was far more difficult to tame - though they were tamed all the same. But this one, it was one of the newly establishing communities. As such, he had perfected care for it. He reminded the bees about the importance of hygiene, the importance of consumption of honey in times of threat to the hive, and the importance of tending to mites. Injecting the notion that there was an influx of parasites, an issue that was non-existent on Sulon, he sent them to work dealing with the care of the brood.

Two boxes, near max capacity, he made a mental note to set up new foundation and prepare a new box before the super. While he appreciated the swarms through the woods, to which they were considerably more common than he anticipated, they were still a complication that required his attention and time. And to be frank, he had enough hives for the time being. Already enlisting the aid of the immigrated Moridin and troubled teens, he dreaded the idea of searching for more help in the event of a new hive. Maintenance would put his mind at ease.

The training and patience distilled from the process had worked wonders for the kid's families. Particularly the one he had taken hunting on Naboo. The baron had been quite pleased with the maturity and sense of responsibility he suddenly sensed in his son, replacing the rebellious nature born from idle time. Idle time, Gabe was finding, was the cause of many problems as the mind wandered. As such, just like now, he filled his time with activities and healing.

With the barons recent donation of duracrete as a result of his son's change in temperament, Gabe had thoughts towards extending the aqueduct for additional outdoor structures. He worked over the notion in his head as he felt a tremor run over the surface of skin, staggering as he replaced the roof and stepped away from the hive. Just in time as a loss in focus like that, while elbow deep in a hive, could have made for an unfortunate day.

Turning to the woods, he squinted as he heard the delicate and sad expression of his own name. Carrying gingerly across the gentle breeze, he wasn't sure if he heard the words or simply the whistle of the wind. But that feeling, it was one that he recognized, comforting a dear friend as they stirred from a terrible dream. Rubbing his hands together, happy to continue his work later on in the day, he followed the faint footsteps into the woods. He knew this path, one that took him to the bulb to which Ava often tended and showered with attention. And no sooner had he made that realization did he see her on her knees, deep within the woods.

Hastening his steps, brown eyes darted towards what seemed to be an epicenter of famine. The ankarres, the force sensitive and baffor trees, all showing discrete signs of senescence across a stale wind. He hadn't understood what was truly missing before he stepped in front of the kneeling healer, placing comforting grip on her slouched shoulders as he took a knee. "What happened here?" With a warm smile, his hand moved to wipe away a tear, running down from cheek to chin. The soft sound of the Moridin growl echoed through the forest, oddly reminiscent of the noise born from old trees shruggin in a hard wind.

[member="Avalore Eden"]​

 

[Avalore Eden]

"I don't know," Avalore responded breathlessly, her eyes searching the alcove for what had just the previous day been green, vibrant life, "I was just here, just here only yesterday. It was healthy. Quiet, but healthy. I swear it."

The Healer wrung her hands, brow knitted so tightly over her forehead she thought she felt a migraine starting, "What...I...it...there's no manual for this! There's nothing! I've spent countless hours on the holonet, at the archives, talking to this seeds kind and no one knows anything about anything! I don't know what to do."

Frustrated, helpless, crestfallen. Oh, the ugly cry had arrived and Avalore was glad only Gabe was here to see it.

[member="Gabriel Sionoma"]

 

[Gabriel Sionoma]

"The seeds kind..." He caught everything she has said but in earnest, he was searching for clues as to what truly had occurred. Bordering on manic, he thanked the forest for it's soothing and calming aura in this particular time of need. While it seemed to do her little good, at this point, he could appreciate the tone of the woods.

Ugh, there was the ugly cry. He wasn't sure he would ever get used to it, having only ever seen it one time before. Between this and the guilt-ridden tears that littered her cheeks, following his fight with Kaine, he couldn't figure out which one he preferred. Neither, that seemed like the right answer.

Pressing his hands against her shoulders, he frowned as he stood up, lifting her to her feet. He couldn't stop the tears but he could at least remove her from the mud. "There's no manual, which is why you must create one." Ever the optimist, he turned and moved towards the epicenter of the void. Gnarled statues stood where once wholesome trees cast their leafs, now fallen to the forest floor. At the center, disturbed soil covered detritus at the rim of the bulb. Something felt wrong, but not in the manner that one might expect. He shook his head as walked and knelt, placing his hand down against the dirt. Moving about the plant, he searched for some sort of sign.

"Can you not feel that?" He turned his head towards her, motioning for her to come over with the hand not pressing against the soil.

[member="Avalore Eden"]​

 

[Avalore Eden]

The idea of loss weighed heavily on the Healer's mind as she was picked up from the ground, watery brown eyes attempting to watch the man but incapable of seeing through the continually flowing tears. Avalore wasn't sure she could handle much more loss, and the sting of it in her chest felt particularly sickening after such a long bought of goodness in her life.

She'd almost forgotten what it felt like. Almost.

"Can you not feel that?"

"...what?" she was wiping at her eyes with the sleeve of her Healer's robe, and peeked over somewhat curiously, somewhat incredulously as he stooped by the plant. A scowl replaced her grimace. Can you not feel that? Can you not feel that? Gabriel had a knack for hitting sensitive nails right on the head. Force Sense, a power she was particularly inept at, had left her numb to the majority of unseen feelings and sensations on the Force since as long as she could remember. She could not sense others on the Force. Could not claim to have any mystical powers that allowed her to read the intentions or emotions of others - nothing more than what the physical body and female intuition allowed. The fact remained that Avalore's connection to the Force was not strong and also very limited in its breadth of usable skills.

"Feel what? I can't feel things within the Force, Gabriel. What am I supposed to be feeling?"

[member="Gabriel Sionoma"]

 

[Gabriel Sionoma]

He would have laughed if the situation weren't so seemingly dire. There was a seriousness about that he couldn't further belittle with giggling. Instead, he stifled the laugh and looked the other way, towards the dead trees on the other side of the grove. It was unfortunate that the world seemed to rely so heavily on the force, that the other senses seemed to dull in its presence. Even more so, if Ava was removed from such feeling, he would have expected her to notice. The thought of loss must have dulled her perceptions. But for him, he could feel the abundance of life within these woods. It was hard to miss.

"Between where you stood and where we now stand, there's a difference in the temperature of at least...5 degrees." He looked over his shoulder. "Maybe 10, hard to tell. But it's radiating from the bulb."

He moved his hand from the soil to the plant, applying a gentle pressure. He imagined he felt a kick, similar to what an expecting mother might feel. Blinking, he heard the roar of the Moridin in the distance and couldn't mistake it this time. Wondering if they potentially had involvement, he reached behind him and grabbed Ava by the wrist. Pulling her forward, he pressed her palm against the plant.

"Life, Ava. You're supposed to be feeling life. You don't need the force for that." Furrowing his brow, he turned back towards the plant and tilted his head. He could see now, the trail of the beasts that lingered through the woods in patches and tufts of grasses that had no business being here. And now, standing dead with drooping seed heads, curtains of sunlight reflecting against the brown blades. "I suspect my friends may have had a hand in this."

[member="Avalore Eden"]​

 

[Avalore Eden]

"Wait...Gabe!" Avalore winced as Gabe grabbed her arm and pressed her hand to the bulb, brown eyes immediately growing wide at the heat radiating from it. How had she missed that? The Healer hung there for several seconds in a limbo of confusion, worry, and disbelief. She wouldn't realize it now but with half the homestead away on a dangerous mission against the Sith she'd been far too entrenched in her worries over their livelihoods to really be present in the here and now.

This was an alarming wake-up call.

She gave him a slow glance, unsure of exactly what she was feeling now that both he and the bulb had her undivide attention. Slowly she moved from her awkward hunched stance to bring herself to kneel before the bulb again and brought her other hand to join the first. Fingers laced with white scars gently smoothed and pressed over what had looked and felt like dead petals wrapped snuggly around the main bulb. Bump.

"Oh!" it was a sensation only like one she'd felt before; the gentle kick of a baby in the womb. Avalore was intimately familiar with it.

"It..." hesitating, she leaned in, "it's alive. It is alive!" another soft rumbling of movement came from within, causing the entire bulb to vibrate before it stilled for a moment and then began again. Several minutes of this passed by with the Healer and her companion watching over it, curious, before she gave a quiet yelp as the bulb suddenly bulged on the side, expanding and contracting.

"Gabe...I think it's....trying to bloom... what do I do?!"

[member="Gabriel Sionoma"]

 

[Gabriel Sionoma]

He smiled as he felt the kick, this time with Ava's response that followed. He was happy that her first inclination was the wrong one, that there wasn't more tragedy once again tied to bringing life into this world. While she may not have been physically carrying this presence, there was still something to be said of the nurture provided up into this point. In taking on a task so mysterious and unknown, it drew thoughts of life before civilization and even before communication. Just life attempting to persist.

He watched as the bulb bulged on one side, and transitioned to another side, and then to another. Working its way around the edges of the womb, looking for the weak spot. Ava was anxious and excited and it showed all over her face and Gabe was happy to return a laugh. Chewing on the corner of his lip, he shook his head and pulled his hand back.

"What do you do?" Narrowing his eyes, he exhaled loudly as he stood up, crossing his arms. With a moment spent chewing on the jagged nail of his thumb, he came upon conclusion with a gestured hand towards the bulb. "Well it's rather obvious, isn't it? Don't do anything." Rubbing his beard, he scratched the skin beneath. "You've given it all the tools and resources it would need to get to this point. But this is the last bridge, one it needs to cross itself."

Life was hard, survival the most paramount proof of the fitness of a being. If the bloom couldn't make it now, with the help from Ava and the help from the Morodin, it wouldn't survive. But with the power emanating from it, the dearth of life around it, and the heat pulsing from the surface: the Marshall had no doubt regarding the future of this particular creature. "What you should do is...have faith."

[member="Avalore Eden"]​

 

[Avalore Eden]

Unsure and plagued by the uncertainty of a past muddled in loss, failure, the Healer frowned at her friend's advice. On its own? Have faith? Avalore was so used to helping people and creatures, to being the reason for their continued livelihood, that the idea of just letting it go struck her as counter-intuitive. Shouldn't she do something? Should she be channeling energy into it? Should she be helping pull the petals away? Shouldn't she do anything at all?

Gabe's smile persisted, Ava bit at her lip and slowly looked back at the bulb, pulling quaking hands away. She eased back, settling onto her ankles beneath her, and let her hands come to rest on her thighs. Every fiber of her being wanted to move into action, to be the breath of life that brought this seed into the world. But this wasn't her child ... not really, and somewhere off in the galaxy for hundreds - if not thousands - of years, the Zelosians had grown and prospered all on their own. Rarity of its current circumstance be damned, it couldn't be the first and likely wouldn't be the last to come into existence this way.

Have faith.

She was learning it, now she had to live it.

Avalore closed her eyes, took a deep and leveling breath, then quietly sunk herself into meditation. Whatever would be, would be.

~~~~

The sun drifted over the skies of Sulon, warming the backs of the morodin as they grazed in the far meadow. Through the apiary the bees hummed endlessly, their tune carrying on the breezes back into the alcove. Avalore could hear it all as she waited for a sound, a sign, that life had found a way. It came first in the sound of gentle crunching, life freshly fallen leaves under bare feet. First one step, then another, slowly and then growing in vigor. Avalore was reminded of peeling corn for dinner - the way the husk leaves rubbed and crinkled as they pulled away.

A scent filled the air next - sweet like honeysuckle, heady like the earth after a rain. She pictured those footsteps carrying across the meadows in the evening hours to catch firebugs, search for wild onions and pick flowers.

The gentle cry came last - not urgent or frightened but almost surprised, triumphant even. Avalore opened her eyes and found before her the bulb half-bloomed, its petals gently folding open at the insistent pushing of a babe zelosian slowly uncurling within. Its skin was greenish, though not quite so verte as her son Destin - pale, even, like the stalk of a Morning Ivy. Curiously it had no hair that she could see and the squinted eyes had not yet opened but the way its tiny hands reached and searched spoke of growing awareness. Smiling, beaming so brightly she felt like the sun and radiated a warmth in the Force she wasn't even aware of, Avalore reached forward to carefully brush a loose petal from its crown.

"Hello ...little S'vora," a tiny hand closed around her finger, its small but mighty strength forcing tears of happiness to bead at the corners of her eyes, "you're finally here."

[member="Gabriel Sionoma"]

 

[Gabriel Sionoma]

He smirked as she sat down to begin meditating. To sit, to wait, to have faith. It seemed a difficult concept to her and he didn't need the force to see that. While performing her duties as a healer, she often wore a face far different than the one she donned at the homestead. Among friends and family, her emotions were vividly displayed on her sleeves. And here, she was uneasy and that was to be expected. The event was not far from giving birth and for those who hadn't seen it, there was much mystery involved.

Kneeling down, he pressed knees into the soft earth. The way it gave, the lattice of roots running deep beneath him, reminded him of the interconnections of life. Pressing his hands against his knees, he leaned against his heels and closed his eyes. "It'll be fine, Ava."

~~~​

​

He opened his eyes to all the sensations that would come with this birth. The sound, the feeling, the smells. That electric feeling across the air, the change in pressure. The way it seemed like the world itself had come to a halt to take view. Ava moved forward first and based on the tone of her words, he could tell she was smiling. Standing up, he approached slowly, peeking over the healers shoulder at the small child. Wrapped in foliage, still actively opening, and eyes closed to the world that would receive him. "S'vora..." Gabe smiled, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "That is a good name."

Looking up, Gabe found eyes hidden within the broad leaves above. Colorful orbs, like large fruits suspended from drooping twigs, that moved ever so slowly to the sound of a low hum. It wasn't the roar he was used to but softer, more feminine. And given the size of the creature that took possession of those eyes, from the deep camouflage green it once rested on, he knew it was the female. One that went by the name of Seltazee. And as he heard the hum, the translator on his hip spoke.

[THE CHILD. I FELT ITS BIRTH]

Squeezing Ava's shoulder, well aware that she might be disturbed by this, Gabe moved forward and around the blossoming Zelosian. Despite the Morodin's smaller size, she was still much larger than a human. As he moved forward, he placed a hand on her forearm. Lifting the translator to his mouth, he spoke quietly.

"Sel, thank you for the trails. Your help was appreciated."

[IT WAS THE LEAST I COULD DO. I HAVE BROUGHT A GIFT.]

Reaching over her back, she pulled at a bundle of roots and placed them gingerly on the ground. Tied in string, he couldn't puzzle together exactly how she did that, but he wasn't one to look a bundle of sticks in the twine. Looking down, he pressed a hand against it and smiled. Scraps of bark still clung to the tissue beneath, brown on the outside with burnt brick undertones. But the smell, the pulpy resin, it was unmistakable. "Bubse roots." He looked back up to the Morodin and smiled. "Thank you, Sel."

[member="Avalore Eden"]​

 

[Avalore Eden]

"You think so?" Ava asked without taking her eyes off the babe. She wasn't paying much attention to anything else. The entire exchange between Gabe and the Moridon went completely unnoticed by her. The Healer was enthralled in the process of birthing...nay, blooming by this tiny Zelosian baby. Too late to think on it, she wished she might have recorded it for posterity, for science and knowledge.

As the moments ticked by all things in the copse seemed to hold their breath, to stand still, to pause in the pursuit of life. The humming of the bees was distant and faint in the far meadows. Even the trees held their breath, stilled their leaves as the breezes grew quiet. One by one the petals peeled away to reveal the babe's lower half, curled within the cradle of the giant bloom.

"Gabe, I need towels...warm water...and nippers."

S'vora was covered in a sticky nectar film and, as she began to peel it away and expose him to the cooler air of the wood he finally began to cry.

"Oh sweetpea, it's alright, just wait until you feel the sun...I promise you're going to love it."

[member="Gabriel Sionoma"]

 

[Gabriel Sionoma]

Barely giving a response to Sel, Gabe looked over to Ava and smiled. "Of course."

The homestead was a hop, skip, and a jump from the birth tree. Clearing the field with a bit of haste, Gabe burst into house as he shuffled upstairs across wooden and creaking floorboards. He could have sworn Dick was wondering around the kitchen tile, but he didn't have time to consider that. Besides, he distinctly recalled that droid being out of commission...unless he was back at it. Mentally smacking himself, he opened the closet and pulled a couple towels out.

Running down stairs, he set the towels on the counter top and found a bottle in the cupboard. Holding it under the tap, he shook his head with a furrowed brow. "...Nippers?"

Squinting his eyes, the bottle overflowed before he could pull it away. Wiping it clean, he sealed it up and wrapped the towels around it. Stepping out through the glass doors, into the garden, he knelt down and found a pair of small shears. The sort Ava likely used, day in and day out, to clip the roses. Pocketing them, Gabe moved back up the field and through the forest line.

Following the trail, he was back with a resounding huff. It wasn't until he was back there, standing over her shoulder, that he realized what the nippers were for. But he was terribly lost, even with that bit of knowledge. One would think that being there for birth of four children, he might have the experience for this. But the unusual event had him off kilter. Holding the items like a scale, he balanced beside Ava. "Water or towels, what do you need first?"

[member="Avalore Eden"]​

 

[Avalore Eden]

"Both," replied the Healer quickly, "I need both."

She took them one by one as Gabe handed them over and placed the towel in her lap. The bottle's top uncapped, Avalore carefully lifted it over the infant zelosian and began to slowly pour the warm water down over his body, rinsing away the residual birthing sap that she assumed to act much in the way of afterbirth. Judging by her knowledge of the birthing process for most individual races, the sap itself was nutrient rich and as it collected within the cusp of bloom petals she made note to collect some in the bottle once it was empty.

S'vora continued to cry, a sound that grew steadily into a wail as the process of joining the world continued. Once mostly clean of the sap, Avalore gingerly lifted him free of the flower and cradled him in the towel, hushing the fretful infant with a low, warm voice.

"Gabe, will you cut the lifevine with the nippers?"

[member="Gabriel Sionoma"]

 

[Gabriel Sionoma]

He couldn't deny being nervous about the whole ordeal. Last time he was truly involved in the birthing of a child, he was sitting outside a brickhouse in the snow. The doctor had asked him to step out, take a breather, and the way Sylvia was lashing out at him, it made sense at the time. She wanted to have a home birth, despite all the technological advances that could be found in a hospital. So, in turn, Gabe had brought the hospital to her. And with the child wailing, the doctor insisted. Now Gabe, 3-5 minutes before we clamp the cord. It will help with transfer of nutrients and blood cycling. The doctors words went against common perception, snip as soon as possible. It was an experience he didn't get with Armaud and Destin.

Complications of the birthing of the twins left him idle when he should have been more involved. But the doctors ensured that things were being done properly. And here they were, two beautiful boys later and another child being added to the family. It was really something special, something easily taken for granted. The nervousness would stem from anxiety but also importance, particularly for Ava.

Gabe leaned forward, steadying his hands to cut what Ava called the lifevine. Placing his hand against the cord, he rested the nippers against it. With a tense and slight jerk, without ever cutting, the cord popped free from the belly button. Where it once was attached, a node sat, just as a branch might easily break away from the steam to avoid damage during wind. Gabe exhaled as the crying stopped, S'vora looking up towards him and then Ava. Little hands gripping at the sky, interspersed by lazy cries, soon calming to an expression of blind curiosity and heavy breathing.

"There we go..." He tilted his head, laying the remains of the vine against the petals. "All better now."

[member="Avalore Eden"]​

 

[Avalore Eden]

She was certain her frayed nerves were showing. Avalore was beginning to regret her Healer Robes - she was getting the nervous sweats and was beginning to overheat. Never did she ever get quite so worked up when Healing, what in the name of the Force was she going to do if she ever actually went through with her own childbirth again? A momentary wondering as she regarded the babe in her arms, interspersed with surprise at how easily the lifevine was unattached.

Hadn't even seemed to phase the zelosian infant, but instead comforted it. Having lost connection to the plant that had housed him for so long, he now was fully capable of connecting with the beings around him. Avalore was sure it was disorienting and frightful, but she beamed with warmth and calming energies - and not on purpose either. The Jedi couldn't help it, she was a proud new adoptive mother again and she felt near to bursting.

"He's here Gabe, little Talon seed...oh," tears were budding in her eyes again as she remembered her late Zelosian friend, "oh we have to get that other boy back here. Talon's old Padawan...he should meet him, he should meet you, S'vora. And you have to meet your brothers, and Stali, and Jacen and Kana and Spark..."

Avalore watched several tears drop from her cheeks onto the green babe in her arms and saw them linger before absorbing through his curious plant-like pores.

"Oh Force..." the Healer let out a deep and heavy sigh, eyes rolling up to Gabe with a tired but bright smile, "I'm going to need a Nanny."

[member="Gabriel Sionoma"]

 

[Gabriel Sionoma]

The glow of motherhood seemed to come no matter the action of birth itself. Though the way Ava cradled S'vora, cleaning him and beaming all the same, Gabe could hardly tell the difference. Between pulling the petals back, cleansing the child of sap, and removing the lifevine, this very well could have been as close as anyone gets to birthing a Zelosian.

He was a simple man, these were complex things, and he was satisfied simply being a part of it.

Laughing at her comment, he agreed with a smirk. The Homestead was quickly becoming asylum for those who sought it and those born into it. He couldn't think of a happier place to live, though given his past, he wasn't equipped with an assortment of examples. Dark places, evil places, Sulon was a shinning beacon among it all. Watching S'vora reach up, an exhausted sigh, he wrapped his small hand around the index of Ava's hand. More taken back by the moment then he would have expected, Gabe reached over, gripping her shoulder gently. Confirming that she was right, she was going to need a nanny.

"A firm grip, it seems..." He stated plainly, his other hand reaching up to glide through wisps of S'vora's hair. "I think I might know someone who will fit the bill." He caught eye contact from the newborn, more curious than anything else. Placing a thumb against S'vora's forehead, he wiped a bit of sap free from a mat of hair. "Welcome home, S'vora."

[member="Avalore Eden"]​

 

[Avalore Eden]

Several days later...

https://youtu.be/19bBGxf5k6k​

​

Sulon was warming into the summer season but they still had some days of spring left. Avalore appreciated the changes of weather and the lengthening days, as compared to the world of Sullust where sunlight was synthetic within the underground catacombs. Here on the Homestead the boys could play outside in the nursery while she tended the gardens, confident of their safety under the watchful boughs of Ankarres, Force Sensitive, and Bafforr trees.

The Moridon had grown curious with the arrival of infant S'vora and taken to perusing the garden edges, respectful now after given guidance from Gabe not too intrude too far. Avalore knew them to be gentle creatures and the boys were curious and happy for their presences, but she felt distance to be best given their large stature.

S'vora slept soundly within a crib under golden rays of sunlight filtering through the tree branches. Avalore had made the boy a bed of large leaves gifted from the bafforrs as the boy seemed to dislike the cotton blanket and pillow within. In his element with nature and she was left to wonder if this wasn't part of the grove's doing. In a way the trees had nursed him through to his blooming, no small wonder he had such a connection to the place.

The twins played quietly with blocks and other carved wooden toys in their pen. Avalore, exhausted from several sleepless nights, finally settled herself down on the ground beneath the oldest of the Force Sensitive trees, back leaning against the trunk, she quickly began to doze thinking of what she might make for dinner.

Gabe was due home soon. Perhaps he was bringing something to cook with him.

[member="Gabriel Sionoma"]

 

[Gabriel Sionoma]

"It's warm today..."
"You've a gift for the obvious, don't ya?"
"Well, we can't all pick our talents like you."
"Oh shush you."

The nearly toothless woman giggled as she rummaged through her wares. A head of white, wrinkled skin freckled with age, bobbed up and down through rows and rows of ceramic pottery. Gabe stood outside, looking through the aisles from the outside in. He was hesitant to move through it, considering his large demeanor. He might end up like a bull in a china shop, bouncing from one pile to another, all to the sound of a lifes work being destroyed by a clumsy Sheriff.

"Oi. Found it, ha!"
"You sure?"
"I still got it!"

Coming out of the aisles like a burrowing whistle pig, free of the dirt, she showed the item to Gabe quiet proudly. Offering it over, he took it in his calloused hands and turned it over multiple times.

"That's very nice."
"Yer damn right it is."

He made a noise, somewhere between a scoff and a laugh, as he handed it back over to her.

"Same deal as before?"
"Aye. The drink is quite good. Haven't felt this good in years."
"I noticed a bit of pep in your step."
"Don't you sass me!"
"Banish the thought." He spoke with a smile as he leaned forward, offering her a hug. The sort a son might give to a mother, the sort she had been waiting for.
"Don't be a stranger."
"Couldn't be if I tried."

Being a form of law in Baron's Hed, he couldn't avoid the market square if he tried. But today was a special day of the month: The High Sun Market. All the local vendors coming together, gossiping and chatting while selling their goods. It was something special to see and gave Gabe ample opportunity to make needed purchases. Like fresh vegetables, a large game bird shot down not 15 miles from the homestead, and an assorted array of spices and dehydrated dips. Satisfied with the haul, he made his way back to the speeder and headed towards the homestead. Based on his timing, he was expecting someone to show up about the same time as him.

Pulling into the homestead, there was no sign of her. He scratched his beard, looking up towards the early sun. Mentally shrugging, he took time to set everything in the house to remain cool. Vegetables in a bath of cold water for cleaning, spices in the cupboard, and the hen back in the fridge. His ears perked as he heard the subtle squeak of sneakers. Lowering his head, looking around, he shuffled quietly through the kitchen and the back door, into the gardens. Sliding the glass door shut, slowly, he looked out to find the twins playing quietly in their pen. And a small child laying in leaves beneath a tree. And just by that tree, a pair of feet poking out as someone rested against the trunk.

He approached quietly, spotting Sel in the distance and offering a wave. As he sat down, he leaned against another side of the Force Sensitive Tree. Rubbing the skin of an apple against his sleeve, he cut a sliver away.

[member="Avalore Eden"]​

 

[Avalore Eden]

"The front door's squeaking again," Avalore uttered from where she sat, bothering not to open her eyes. She could not sense Gabe within the Force - her abilities with the Force itself were far too narrow for those sorts of things - but she could tell it was him by the sound of his footsteps and the gentle greetings from the twins given as he arrived. There were scents specific to the man as well, though presently they were overwhelmed by that of flower bloom.

"Dick won't fix it because he says you won't let him into your downstairs."

The Healer silently smirked to herself at that one.

[member="Gabriel Sionoma"]