Young and Menace

[Akabane Jarvik]

Naboo, the Lake Country

Akabane found himself tumbling through the air towards a very large lake. Why? Well, his ship's pilot must've forgotten he was on the top of it. Why was he on the top and not inside? A bunch of pirates came after him and had enough crazy in them to jump from ship to ship. He was practically forced to go out there kick them off himself. The pilot, an astromech droid, knew nothing of him doing this so it tried to shake the pesky pirates off after hearing the sound of metal clashing above. While the droid's plan to shake off the pirates was successful, Akabane went with them. In the moment he just thought, really? A barrel roll? Then, the inevitable came next.

The falling part was most certainly a bad thing but he grinned anyway, pretending he was a bird and flapping his arms. He chuckled at his own carelessness before losing the grin. Akabane wasn't the kind of man who'd enjoy dying by water. No, he would say something along the lines of, "I want to die a valiant death. Me versus one hundred men." A death certificate saying 'death by water' would definitely not be valiant. So, the young man decided to save himself from smacking the water like a watermelon hitting concrete. Focus. In an instant the wind obeyed him and slowed his fall. The landing was expected to still be rough but at least he wouldn't be completely at a loss. Luckily, he entered the water headfirst.

He swam to the surface and then to the nearest land. Without any trouble he made it onto land and when he did, Akabane immediately threw off his coat. It was a shame he got his outfit all wet because that coat was one of his nicer ones. One that was specifically picked for today's visit to Naboo. He even had to fight with it on, though the only fighting he did was fall from the sky. It was soaked and needed to be dried if he wanted to feel comfortable again. People lived nearby and he was sure stripping completely in public is illegal, so he chose to only remove the coat and shirt. Now he would wait. Akabane sat down on the grass, leaning on both arms and legs laying flat.

"Ship gone, outfit temporarily ruined, and I'm half-naked. Things are going great for you Mister Akabane," he said sarcastically. First pirates and now he was half-naked by water that almost murdered him. Akabane fell back and closed his eyes. I guess I'll sleep until that hunk of metal brings my ship back... he was asleep in only a few minutes.

[member="Scherezade deWinter"]

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Naboo. A planet of... Green. Trees. And water. People claimed it was beautifully charming. Scherezade claimed the mosquitoes had to be burned in their nests, the swamps needed to be dried out, and that people gave the planet way more importance than it deserved. She hadn't planned on coming here anyway, but time had freed itself up and she could afford the gas, so she decided to go and find the mansion she knew her father had owned there, maybe find some clues as to where he might have been hiding or sleeping or buried. She hadn't. The place was still on his name, but it was rented out, all the paperwork run by a some legal company. Coming here had been an entire waste of time.

And in her rage, the young Sithling had punched a pole. It was just standing there, being all pole-like. It pissed her off. And now the pole was bent, her hand was bleeding, and she was hungry.

So, after buying herself a big bag of salted popcorn - because seriously, what sort of people eat sweetened popcorn, that's, like, a serious perversion - she headed off to one of the big infamous lakes, and sat down on a log, eating it, taking her anger out on the popped kernels, shredding them with her teeth.

She had been certain this would take what, maybe two minutes, and then she'd be out of excuses and have to take her ship back to CIS space and go on another silly mission. However, her attention instead had been utterly dominated by the crashing ship. Her bites were no more raging, but more surprising, as she stared at the thing go straight into the water. She was still tossing popcorn into her mouth when a man climbed out, took some of his clothes off, and lay on the sand.

A few seconds later, Scherezade was standing next to him, blocking the sun, still eating her popcorn. Her emerald green eyes just stared at him as he slept. And slept. And slept. She poked his shoulder with the toe of her combat boots.


[member="Akabane"]

 

[Akabane Jarvik]

It was unknown to the sleeping Akabane but his ship had plummeted into the water not too long after he'd entered his slumber. If he knew about it he'd probably be extremely mad and take it out on the lovely sand. Luckily, he did not so no sand would be harmed by an angry boy. No, Akabane was too busy dreaming about falling... an ironic dream for his situation. He wasn't scared of heights or free falling or anything like that. This dream didn't strike fear in the young man, it actually made him feel happy because Naboo was such a pleasant place to be soaring through the skies. A smile may have been on his face as he slept due to the dream. Something suddenly interrupted his happy time.

Akabane felt a poking sensation on his shoulder. Normally he'd go on the attack as soon he realized someone was touching his sleeping body, but he couldn't sense any ill intent. He acted as if he was only now waking up though he'd been awake for some time. Slowly blinking a few times and locking onto the green eyes that stared him down, Akabane raised up while still sitting and never averted his gaze. In the corner of his eye he noticed a crimson colored liquid on her hand which was apparently holding a bag of popcorn. Women are strange these days... He really analyzed her features and came to a conclusion that he knew her from somewhere. Ah, yes! Akabane remembered her from a mission that he kinda slacked on. They never really talked but he did recall seeing her there.

Greeting someone usually came first for most encounters but Akabane couldn't stand seeing a female bleeding, although she appeared to be just fine with her munching on popcorn. "You're hand, Miss... are you alright? It looks like you hurt it." While he was truly concerned, she didn't seem like the type to be fazed by a small wound such as that one. He still made an effort to clean it up.

[member="Scherezade deWinter"]

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

He might have recognized her from a mission they had both been on, but the young Sithling had no clue who he was. Now that his eyes were open and he looked at her, she remembered that her hand was in fact, still bleeding, but she shrugged it off. There was bacta on her ship and the blood loss was nowhere near to being threatening. It seemed to be an occurring theme for her - but never mind about that right now.

He mentioned her hand.

"I got attacked by a pole," she answered him, tossing another handful of kernels into her mouth, "it's okay though, the pole won't be bothering me anymore."

It was true enough, in a sense. Her anger had been spent on punching it, and now she was stuck here with nothing to. For some unknown reason, her mind had started to think about tsunamis when she saw how many lakes this place had, but she set those senseless thoughts aside. There were more important things to do at the moment.

"Do you want some popcorn, mister?" she offered, lowering the bag just a little. There wasn't much left. She'd have to get more, or find somewhere decent to eat soon enough.


[member="Akabane"]

 

[Akabane Jarvik]

Akabane couldn't help but laugh when she mentioned a pole attacked her. He'd heard something similar before so he got the message but it was funny every time to him. After his laughter had ceased and a yawn he cleared his throat as he was going to speak. "Poles are that dangerous nowadays?" Of course he was only being silly when asking such a question. Her whole persona looked to be silly to him so he thought it'd be funny to play along.

The offer of popcorn was odd to him, though he wouldn't be rude and laugh at the young woman's kindness. Akabane noticed there was not much left in the bag that she lowered slightly, he shook his head. His declining was for two simple reasons. He didn't want to eat the rest of her popcorn but he also didn't feel hungry at the moment. "No, I'm good. I appreciate the offer though, Miss." He laid back down using his hands as a sort of pillow.

After closing his eyes he'd speak once more. "What brings you here?" He wasn't worried about introductions, asking other questions instead because he thought they were acquainted.

[member="Scherezade deWinter"]

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

She nodded. Yes, poles were dangerous nowadays. Perhaps not in the classical sense, but they were dangerous to have around. He didn't want any popcorn though. Scherezade shrugged and grabbed the last bits for herself, chewing quickly. There was no trash-bin nearby, so she let the wind carry the paper bag with it. It wasn't as though there were any police droids around to fine her for it.

He asked what brought her there, and she decided that she'd had enough with standing. Taking a seat close to his head (but definitely not too close), the young Sithling shrugged. "Heard a rumor about my family, so I decided to check it," she answered. The man might have thought they'd already been introduced, but she was just talking to some stranger who jumped from the sky. Or the lake. She wasn't sure anymore. "The rumors turned out to be false, so I'm just waiting until my ship's ready to go."

She looked at the sky and saw nothing of interest. "What's your excuse?"



[member="Akabane"]

 

[Akabane Jarvik]

Akabane heard the crunching of grass when his eyes were closed. He snuck a glance, barely opening his eyes for a moment to see the woman sitting beside him. She gave him an answer to his question after taking a seat. According to her, she caught wind of a rumor about her family and decided to investigate. They turned out to be false and now she was waiting for her ride. "Sorry to hear that. At least you're on Naboo... a beautiful place isn't it?" He loved Naboo more than any other place and that was because of it's scenery. Being here let him feel like his younger self. Akabane came to this place for after his clans were eliminated. That was several years ago, definitely before he got into his twenties and that's why it had a special place in his heart.

The woman asked a question next, a question he'd have to hold back laughing at. The question itself wasn't funny but his situation was one to be laughed at. Seriously, what pilot kicked their crew off of the ship on accident? Maybe she'll get a kick out of it, he thought before answering her. "Well, my ship has run off." He said this without knowing that his ship was in the ocean. "Another ship was hot on our trail and some people hopped onto my ship. I carelesslessly climbed on top and took on the attackers, and well... I fell." He chuckled after admitting to falling from his own ship. "And now I'm here bathing in the sun."

[member="Scherezade deWinter"]

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

"Naboo smells," the young Sithling answered the first question first. She had no love for this planet. Her mind was already coming up with three million different ways to burn all the forests and dry out all the swamps and lakes. But those plans felt lacking. She'd need bigger plans, better plans. Something that would really piss a bunch of people off. But it was okay, she'd find the way, sooner or later. There was an ever growing stack of blueprints in her head, and she had no intention of ceasing to work on them at any point.

"Your plan was a bad plan," she resumed almost immediately after that, "if someone was on your ship and it's the kind of ship that can go through atmo', getting in and out of it would burn off anyone latched on the outside. People burn, droids melt." She'd gotten to that conclusion when she'd started piloting her own ship. "And if it's not the kind of ship that can get in and out of atmo', you need a new ship." She concluded.

There was also that whole thing about him bathing in the sun. Scherezade looked up at the sky. "Where were you planning on getting with that ship?"


[member="Akabane"]


[member="Akabane"]

 

[Akabane Jarvik]

Naboo... smelled? Akabane laughed. He figured she wasn't meaning that literally as in the sense of smell, but it still gave him a good laugh. Assuming she wasn't a fan of Naboo, he looked around and tried find a reason why she'd dislike the place. He couldn't find any, he was curious... what was wrong with it? Perhaps the peacefulness wasn't her thing? If so, he could understand something like that. Some women were violent and craved crazy, he'd learned that much over the years. Instead of giving a reply he remained silent in thought.

The woman claimed that his plan was a bad one. He knew it wasn't the best of plans but her reason for it being a bad one wasn't right. She said anyone who stuck onto his ship would've burned to death when entering the atmosphere, if that was the kind of ship he had. He owned a light freighter so it would seem like that was the case, however he was already on land when the attack started. Well, flying close to the ground rather. Nonetheless, the pirates had no issue getting jumping onto the ship and roughing it up. Akabane sighed before speaking, "My ship can go off world and stuff but we weren't that high up. We were actually traveling to the Lake Country when they decided to attack, so the crazy bastards got a jump on us while we were already low."

Akabane didn't realize it but he already answered her question when explaining the incident. "Here, ironically. I guess some things work out okay in crappy situations."

[member="Scherezade deWinter"]

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

"You still don't have your ship back though," Scherezade pointed out when he mentioned some things worked out okay. She would've raged if it had happened to her. The Giggledust might not have originally been hers, but she had grown attached to it. Very deeply. It was her home, the place where she put her head down at the end of the day. The place where so many firsts happened. She wanted to save up and renovate the inside of it to make it a more inviting and warm place.

But then remained a few questions. "What are you looking for here?" she asked, looking at the man again, "what's your name? Who are you? Why didn't you pull up with the ship anyway to make them jump on their own before you were tossed into the lake? This is all very bad planning."


[member="Akabane"]

 

[Akabane Jarvik]

She was right in that his ship had gone missing and that sucked. However he wasn't concerned because he believed it was still in the air trying to escape the pirates. All he was worried about was his soaked clothes. Once they were dry or at least dry enough to throw back on, he'd worry about his ship. Besides, he'd have no issue sleeping on a planet such that one. "It's okay. I can't ask for everything to turn out fine, can I?" He had no specific expression on his face when he said this. As careless as he really was Akabane still hated losing. That's why no grin appeared on his face.

Akabane laughed when she asked so many questions at once. She reminded him that his plan was a very bad one next. He attempted to make eye contact before speaking, "Well, Miss. Most call me Akabane and I'm currently working for a certain organization." He paused for a moment. "I'm afraid Mr Aka isn't as smart as you or he wouldn't be in this mess in the first place. So yes, you're right that I'm a bad planner." He agreed with her easily.

[member="Scherezade deWinter"]

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

"No, but you can demand it," she answered his first question with a shrug. He had given his name - Akabane. It didn't ring a bell. Not that many names did, considering she barely knew anyone as it was. But at least he was right in assessing that he wasn't as smart as her, and that he was a bad planner. Scherezade was an awesome planet. Her main problem was that people who were supposed to be her allies often kept her from bringing her plans to ripen.

"Well," she mumbled, thinking it over a moment. "My ship should be ready for takeoff pretty soon and I'm headed back to CIS space - Ryloth, specifically. Need a ride? If you try anything funny I will kill you."


[member="Akabane"]

 

[Akabane Jarvik]

Demand it? He couldn't see himself being a demanding person. Akabane considered himself to be laid back in most cases, unless he got punched or something. In that event he'd certainly not be relaxed... in his current situation there were no demands to be made anyway so dismissed her suggestion. "Demanding, are you?" He asked with a smirk slowly creeping onto his face. Akabane assumed she'd either take offense to what he'd said or agree and flaunt it. Whatever her response would be it'd provide him with some entertainment, he didn't mind if it costed his reputation... well, that was if she didn't think bad of him already. He doubted it but it was possible for sure.

The woman offered to give Akabane a ride to Ryloth as she was headed there and would be departing soon. He sat there for a moment to think about what he wanted to do. She also said if he did anything 'funny', she'd kill him. While he wasn't trying to make her mad by chuckling, what she said was hilarious to Akabane. He knew she wasn't joking and actually meant it but somehow he found it funny. After a moment he'd return to normal and stand up, decision made. "I like you, Miss." He grinned, stepping closer to the water and focusing on it. "You're cute, so I cannot deny that my mind has traveled elsewhere during our meeting... however my father showed me the right to act around women. I will do nothing to disturb you, I promise."

[member="Scherezade deWinter"]