Return of the Wayward

[Gouyen Chee]

Gouyen had finally recieved landing clearance for the Mantis. It took long enough, and she had begun to wonder if she had been forgotten during her abscence.

"Okay, Manny -- take her on home."

"Aye-aye, mistress," replied the ship's intellignce, and deftly guided the ship into her acustomed hanger. A hiss of outgassing to equalize pressure and the hatch slowly lowered.

She stepped out, her faithful Cybernian wolf-dog companion Robi by her side, and took a deep breath of the Corellian air. "It sure feels good to be back home," she said as she began walking towards the main gate of the castle. She knew that an explanation of her actions was due and began going over them in her mind. She had just reached the main gate when someone familiar approached her.

[SashaKovalev]

Violet eyes looked sternly upon her for a moment before they began to sparkle with a mixture of relief and excitement. A broad grin broke over the young man’s serious features as he rushed forward and embraced her in a bear hug, swinging her off her feet.

“Where the hell have you been?” He demanded as he set her back down and held her at a distance comfortable enough to look her over. And look her over he did. Not in any sort of lecherous way – but in that of a brother – a very protective one – making sure his sister was quite alright.

“Hey Robi!” He called out, just as happily, and satisfied that for the moment, Gouyen at least appeared to be fine, he released her and stopped to give the wolf dog a good scratching behind the ear.

“Well,” He asked a second time, “Where have you been?” He had been sick with worry over her disappearance and though he hadnt admitted it to anyone, he’d been extremely lonely without her and Robi around.

[Gouyen Chee]

She grabbed him in just as strong an embrace and whirled giddily as he swept her off her feet.

"Sasha!" she exclaimed joyfully. "I was hoping I would see you first."

"Where the hell have you been?" he asked sternly, raking her over with his eyes to see if she was okay.

"Winternights," she began by way of explanation. "It's a very sacred time for the Assazi -- it's the time when the veil between the living and the dead is at its thinnest. It's a time of contemplation and celebration as the dead come to join the living for a few brief days. Mostly they return as fleeting phantoms visible only through the Force, but those strong in the Force can assume bodies and truly walk among the living. For me, it was a time of great learning, and so I lost track of time. Hours stretched into days, days into weeks, and I forgot my true home, which is here."

She embraced him yet again, a single tear of joy coursing down her cheek. "And I will never forget it."

[Robi]

Robi jumped up on her hind legs, eagerly pawing and licking Sasha's face. I'm so glad to see you again! she said through the Force, her tail wagging madly. She settled down so Sasha could give her a good scritch behind the ears, which she loved. A look of canine contentment settled on her features, her tail flagging slowly as she listened to her mistress' explanation.

[SashaKovalev]

He was crouched there scratching Robi as Gouyen explained her absence.

Winternights. It's a very sacred time for the Assazi -- it's the time when the veil between the living and the dead is at its thinnest. It's a time of contemplation and celebration as the dead come to join the living for a few brief days. Mostly they return as fleeting phantoms visible only through the Force, but those strong in the Force can assume bodies and truly walk among the living. For me, it was a time of great learning, and so I lost track of time. Hours stretched into days, days into weeks, and I forgot my true home, which is here.

At this, he stood and grinned and she embraced him a second time.

And I will never forget it.

He grinned.

“Good thing…” He replied, “Because if you take off like that again Im taking over your room and turning it into a full service bar and disco lounge….” He retorted jokingly. But beneath his joking words were emotions that he would not express. He had been extremely concerned by her absence, hurting inside, even, as he wondered if she would ever return. But it was likely that she knew him well enough to know his words were a front. It was likely she could feel them pouring off of him.

“So did you see any visions of phantoms?” He asked, wanting to know more about Winternights and her experiences while she had been gone.