Private Younglings, Calfs, and Foals

[Gabriel Pryce]

Gabriel stood, arms across his chest in the doorway of his home. Or rather, his family's home. His father, the Diktat of Corellia, had long been off-world helping coordinate Corellian Defense Fleet forces in the defense of the sector and the impending invasion of Coruscant. They hadn't spoken in years and so he hadn't been home in just as long. So when his mother had called and told him that she'd wanted to see him he thought she had meant for her own benefit. Yet here he was, his second day home on a nice, well-earned vacation from the Coruscant temple to find two run-away farm brats on his doorstep. Two farm brats that had somehow convinced his father to lay out this elaborate plan to get him home in time to meet them.

"Family friends" his mother had said. He glowered at the twins beneath bush brows and a not-yet groomed beard in a pair of linen sleeping pants and a white tank top. He hadn't even gotten his caf yet. He didn't want to let them inside but their presence was causing the nearby nerf to moo incessantly, the newcomers seen as a threat to the nerf's newborn calf. And it grated on him. He sighed heavily and gestured for the two to enter.

"Come in you two."

Talin Treicolt | Tansu Treicolt

 

[Talin Treicolt]

The Treicolt Homestead held no candle to Starlight Ranch. It was clear the place was built on hard work, love, and a big wigs GADF salary. The patriarch of the Pryce household had made an appearance in a handful of stories — but Talin had thought twice about his family until aunty Auteme had tracked them down, given a good lecture, and told they damn well better board the earliest shuttle to Corellia. Apparently, a fully stocked Enclave and your half trained cousin for your teacher did not quantify a well rounded Jedi education.

A glower had permanently set upon her face until they started the winding path to the manor. These folks were like them. Maybe this Gabriel guy wouldn’t be as square as she thought. Greeting proved it true. What kinda uptight Jedi Master answered the door in pajamas? Striding past confidently, clad in western wear, the elder twin did a spin to take in the foyer.

“Howdy.” She started, turning back to the unkempt man. “I’m Talin. We want to be Jedi. You’re like, obligated, as a master, to teach us, right? Or because Aunty Auteme said so and she’s the chancellor?”

The girl leaned forward on her toes, peeking down a hall. It looked like it opened into a grand dining room, mounted trophies on the wall.

“Your pa here, by chance? We’d love to meet him.”

Gabriel Pryce | Tansu Treicolt ​

 

[Tansu Treicolt]

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Tansu was leaning on the fence, waving to catch the attention of the livestock, when someone finally came to the door. Hurriedly, she scuttled over behind her sister and flashed her broadest, most innocent smile as she passed the bearded Jedi. It was odd he had a Qukuuf across his nose. They'd always known the Pryce name to be starkly Corellian.

​

"Howdy Master Pryce." She echoed Talin's greeting cheerily and extended her sister's question, adding on "..Whichever works, really. Got us here in the end, didn't it? Here we are and ready to learn!"

Side-by-side, the twins were identical. Only slight differences in posture and dress could be used to tell them apart.

Talin asked about Dracken, and Tansu nodded, but then realized that Gabriel looked like he'd just woken up and he might not know anything about anyone's whereabouts. He looked so scruffy it seemed as though he barely knew where he was.

"Looks like yer not an early riser. That's good! Us either. How do you sleep through those cows moo'in all morning though? They are louuud. Corellian cows are way louder than Concord Dawn cows."

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Gabriel Pryce | Talin Treicolt
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[Gabriel Pryce]

Tansu Treicolt | Talin Treicolt

“Your pa here, by chance? We’d love to meet him.”

Gabriel turned his head to look at the young girls and grimaced when he saw the state of them.

"Shoes off," he said.

"Looks like yer not an early riser. That's good! Us either. How do you sleep through those cows moo'in all morning though? They are louuud. Corellian cows are way louder than Concord Dawn cows."

"The same way I suffer all this chatter so early in the morning." As if on cue a hovering server droid floated by with three cups of steaming mugs. He took one and floated the other two into the twins' hands. "Meditation and caf." He took a sip of the Corellian brew and sighed, content for the moment.

"Follow me," he said and lead them towards the dining room. It was large, dominated by a table meant to seat a dozen or so. The Pryce brood was growing and would continue to grow. His sister had two children of her own and with how those two were, it wouldn't be long until there were great grandchildren running around, he was sure. To the left of the entrance, rather than a wall, there was a great window looking out on the plains and pasture of the ranch. He tapped the glass and a portion of it swung open like a door leading out onto a porch where he sat and waited for the two to join him.

Who even were these two? The name Treicolt sounded familiar, but he didn't know any at the Temple growing up. He took a sip of his caf, contemplative.

 

[Talin Treicolt]

For once, Talin took a hint. Silence allowed her to chug the cup of caf - her fifth one this morning, but she needed it with the hour. By the time they settled on the porch, she sat an empty mug onto the side table. The view was astounding - and the master got a whole thirty seconds of peace before the babbling resumed.

"So, how does this work, exactly? Ya know, our parents were at the temple and all, but given they were kicked out I don't really think it's a good idea to go there. We'd prolly lick the red off some old timer's candy faster than a hot knife through bantha butter. And plus - I don't know if we need that. We got them anclaves 'n all. And I don't care what Aunty A says, Kyric is as good a teacher as any!"

The heel of her boot beat against the deck whilst she rocked her chair persistently. The jitters were carrying her away.

"And, and, what do you really learn in temples anyways? Ma and Pa and uncle Ryv and Aunty A got all their experience in the field. And they're the best Jedi we know!"

An expectant glance flickered to Tansu for backup.

 

[Gabriel Pryce]

Talin Treicolt | Tansu Treicolt

Thirty seconds of peace. Thirty. Seconds. He still didn't even know how these girls had found his home, but as the yappy twin continued to gab she revealed to him the nature of their connection. Ryv. Aunty A? A hero of the Sith-Imperial Civil War and the Second Great Hyperspace War, the man who had killed Solipsis and set the Maw down a path of self-destruction. That meant Aunty M had to have been Chancellor Auteme. He would have to look at Jedi who were removed from the Order during that time to really pinpoint the parents of these two girls, but they were likely two of the young Jedi heroes of that age.

"You learn when and how to be silent and patient for one," he muttered under his breath, his eyes pinched shut in attempted concentration. He gave up with a sigh though and set his mug down. "The Temple has plenty to teach. The time of your parents was tumultuous and the Jedi then had little oversight. During the Sith-Imperial Civil War there were less than a hundred Jedi Knights active. Now there are over a thousand spread across the Alliance and beyond." His thoughts turned to his own master, Osarla Ridor and the places she'd taken him after the war's end. The people and Jedi he'd met along the way his path to Knighthood.

"There are a thousand more perspectives out there on the Force and what it means to be a Jedi Knight that will help you grow and...mature." He let that one sit for a moment to take another sip of caf but continued before the girl could get an edge word in. "Besides that, the Temple provides an education far better than what you'll find even in some of Coruscant's best private schools. It takes more than flying a starfighter and swinging a lightsaber and pushing some rocks with your mind to be a Jedi. I, for example, teach history and-" That was when it clicked. Treicolt. The Wolfpack Batallion. Ah- now it all made sense. He smiled. What was that old woman tying him into?

"Anyway, the Temple on Coruscant is good place to start. If you have the opportunity to train there I would take it." He shrugged. "But I know many a Jedi who trained at other temples and enclaves and ended up fine Knights."