The Finding

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

"So this place," she had started haltingly, "... this place is where Dama sometimes comes?"

The view from the port window that they shared was concerning, in her opinion. It was an impressive space station for sure, but at the same time it just looked... plain. Zem had said that it was once an Imperial station, but beyond that there wasn't much he could tell her. And she had had a LOT of question. Each one had been answered with an 'I'm not sure' or a 'you should ask your mother when you see her next'. At least, that had been her interpretation. But now that they were out of hyperspace and drawing close to the station itself, things that had seemed so hand-wavy were now real and she could set her own eyes to them.

As their liner made the approach, the young Lupine turned once more to her traveling companion.

"Ok so," she started with a healthy amount of reserve, "this place. It used to be Imperial. And it didn't used to be here."

Zem's eyes looked down at her, and she could see that he wasn't sure about the final endgame of her line of thinking. All the more better for her. At least for now, she would start with the easy questions.

"How did they move it?"

[Zem Vymes]

Master Vymes looked at his charge with a raised eyebrow.

"Well, there was a large fleet sent to retrieve it from where the Empire had once placed the station. Alliance ships, mostly Cizeri if I recall."

Questions like this rarely existed in a vacuum for young minds, so Zem pressed.

"Why do you ask?"

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

She sighed, in the way that most young ones do. Except, she wasn't really a youngling anymore, was she? She wasn't an adult, but she wasn't a youngling; she was stuck between the two.

"I was just curious."

Another look out the port window, and she made a face.

"Dama never told me about this place. She never really tells me about a lot of the stuff she does for the Alliance, so I just... I just don't know."

Another inhale, and she let the exhaling breath out with a long, drawn out sound.

Finally, she turned her attentions fully to the man who now was her father.

"Have you ever been here?"

[Zem Vymes]

"Once or twice." Zem responded with a nod, watching the station grow ever-larger in the viewport. The inertia shifted suddenly as the pilot took his assignment from the port master, and changed course to approach the nearest spire.

"It sits at an important crossroads, in a galactic sense. There are a lot of starships that pass through the Hydian Way, and that sits between the Alliance and the Empire. Combine that with the Cizeri, you are certain to find interesting and unexpected things here."

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

His explanation was enough to send her back in time, to when her mother would take her to the Joffa Market on Cather. It painted a rather bright picture in her mind's eye, yet the station - from the outside - gave off no such airs. It just seemed like some dead creature floating in space.

"So it's here because of trading between the different governments," she finally ventured after a few moments of silence.

She had paid enough attention during her economics classes to get a general feel for how things mostly worked in the galaxy. Of course, it was still a bare-minimum.

Unconsciously, her hand slid to the side so that she could grab a hold of his own, holding tight as the liner began docking procedures.

"Do you think they have good food here?"

It was a serious question for her, as the young Lupine had begun to develop a healthy obsession with well-prepared meals. Maybe it was the biggest thing that set her apart from her mother? The elder s'Ilancy was perfectly happy with potted nerf meat heated over engine cowlings. The younger however, had begun to be much more discerning of the sort of meals she ate.

[Zem Vymes]

"That's right." He nodded to her question about trade routes. "But even without the border, the Hydian Way is a corridor of stable space that is relied on by trillions to easily move from place to place through hyperspace."

Maybe a discussion on stellar cartography wasn't as good a way to pass the time, and Zem grinned in a wordless apology. Undaunted, Teagan asked about more basic concerns, like food.

"I have no idea. I imagine with so many different people coming together, you're bound to find something good somewhere. The concourse is full of interesting vendor kiosks from what I can recall."

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

There was a slight rocking, followed by a jostling that signaled the liner's successful connection with the docking spire, and Teagan blinked owlishly as she stared through the viewing window that she sat beside. There was a flurry of automated activity as maintenance droids of all sizes swarmed about, making sure that all safety protocols were in place before giving the crew the all-clear to begin offloading passengers.

It wouldn't be long now, and she'd be able to explore somewhere new. She'd be able to see a few friends as well; Uncle Kes, and even the Major. Oh, she'd known that her Cizerack friend had been stationed here, on Jovan. It was that knowledge that largely fueled her desires to see the station.

Her eyes shifted back to Zem then, and she gave him a thoughtful look.

"How long can we stay?"

[Zem Vymes]

"We have two days. I have to attend to a few Jedi matters while I'm here, but we should have enough time to spend on the concourse if you'd like. I've already been assured by K'ohta'rrou Meorrrei that our quarters have already been pre-arranged, and she has a porter assigned to take our luggage there directly."

The Jedi paused, a bit of a smile on his features.

"I'm curious, Teagan. You've been spending all this time arranging for this trip. Why Jovan?"

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

"I've never been here before, and I remember that the last time she visited, Dama said that there was a lot going on at Jovan."

Making a face, the girl felt another small jolt of movement from the liner as it settled fully, and the sound of one of the attendants could be heard over the normal din of other conversations.

"Assaga Hyperliners would like to thank you all for traveling with us today. In just a few minutes we'll be getting ready to clear the shuttle, so please make sure that your carry luggage is with you and we hope that your stay on Jovan Station is a lovely one."

One last shrug, and she reached down to pull her small carry-pack out from under her seat.

"Besides, it's a nice break from Ossus."

[Zem Vymes]

"It's not a bad place to start." He agreed, tending to his meager luggage.

The pair took a moment as the passengers ahead debarked, and stared out the viewport adjacent to their seats.

"When I was your age, I'd traveled to at least two hundred systems. It was a different time, sure, and it's not like anyone will get to see them all, but seeing new places and meeting new people is one of the best ways to grow as a person. So let's make up for lost time."

The line thinned away ahead of them, allowing an opening to leave the ship. The conveyor corridor of the spireway gave each the surreal feeling of traveling faster than they walked, until they were at last met at the end by a crisply-uniformed Cizeri junior enlistedwoman.

"Ja irra korra'nai, Massterr Jedji Vjymess and Rrou'eita s'Ilancy. jI am Suun'da'rrou Inrraiye Ayurrdaala. On behalf of Commanderr Akjiena, welcome to Jovan Sstatjion. jI've been assjigned to be jyourr porrterr, gujide, and perrssonal attache forr jyourr tjime herre."

That part at least hadn't changed. Cizeri officers presented themselves so crisply and smartly as to make the finest pomp of the Empire seem shabby. Ayurrdaala's coal-dark hair was a wavy bob that bloomed out just below the rim of her cap. The deep dark tones of her skin contrasted with cerulean blue eyes, one of which was covered by a translucent pane of material connected to an ocular interface that clamped over one ear.

She politely extended a hand.

"jIf jyou don't mjind, jI'll brrjing jyourr luggage to jyourr quarrterrss."

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

Teagan looked wide-eyed at Suun'da'rrou Ayurrdaala, not exactly prepared for the crisp words and exceptionally sharp uniform. It was such a far cry from how the Marines on Ossus had dressed when they were stationed there. Of course, perhaps it was because they were there in a working capacity, and didn't need to wear fancy dress uniforms? As if in a trance, the girl handed over her carry-pack, and eventually blinked, giving a nod and a smile.

"Thank you," she managed.

It was so different here already! Different from Cather, different from Ossus, and different from all the myriad of other places that she'd been while traveling with Sanis, Feathers, and even her father.

Of course, the fact that she'd not eaten since leaving Ossus earlier in the morning guided her next words.

"Are there any good restaurants here?"

[Zem Vymes]

Suun'da'rrou Ayurrdaala didn't skip a beat, taking each of her guests suitcases while navigating foot traffic and answering questions.

"Therre arre overr thrree hundrred rregjissterred rresstaurrantss on the sstatjion concourrsse, caterrjing to mosst djietarrjy rresstrrjictjionss. Djid jyou have ssomethjing jin mjind?"

Zem, for his part, was content to keep quiet as he followed along. His attention stayed on Teagan, albeit passively. No teenager wanted to be seen with a guardian figure looming over them.

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

Over three hundred?!

The sheer number was enough to strike her momentarily silent, as her thoughts raced to think of what she might be interested in. Using the time spent getting into the lift, Teagan bit her bottom lip as she considered her apparent options.

"Well," her eyes went to their guide, and she let out a long breath.

"... I think we'd like something... easy? Definitely nothing fancy, but fresh for sure. Is there a Twi-Lek place here? They usually have really good food with lots of meats and vegetables."

In truth, she'd never even had Twi-Lek cuisine, but a few of the Padawans back on Ossus that had, spoke very highly of it.

[Zem Vymes]

The Suun'da'rrou's gait slowed ever-so slightly as she settled on an answer."

"Therre's Tondeela'ss jin ssectjion G, level fourr."

As Teagan watched, she began to figure out what was happening, as Irraiye's blue eyes juddered slightly back and forth, while the transparent eyepiece on her ocular shifted a phantom image as a personal assistant heads-up display.

Caught in the act, the guide's ears bobbed in what appeared to be a shrug, and a rare show of humility for a woman in crimson and gold.

"Perrssonalljy, jI haven't been, but jI know otherrss who have ljiked jit. Honesstljy, thjiss jiss mjy fjirrsst posstjing and mjy fjirrsst tjime outssjide of home clussterr, sso jI'm jusst sstarrtjing to trrjy ssome of thesse new thjingss.

How about Chandrrjilan. Do jyou ljike Chandrjilan food? Therre'ss a place...hang on...got jit. Dez Cannece. Ssectjion B, level one. jI went therre mjy ssecond week herre esscorrtjing the Chandrrjilan Conssularr Corrpss. jI have no jidea half of what jI had, but jI do rrememberr that everrjythjing came wjith thjiss thjing called bread."

There was a sincerity in her voice, and she even lowered her tone as if she was trading insider information with her guest.

"jI love brread."

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

The hushed tone, as if imparting insider knowledge, was enough to fire up her curiosity, and Teagan smiled wide at that thought. Suun'da'rrou Ayurrdaala seemed completely truthful, and it was enough to steer the young Lupine away from her original intentions. After all, she'd not heard of any of her friends having Chandrilan food before!

"Chandrilan sound amazing," she got out, reaching up to scratch at an errant itch on her earlobe.

"I've never had it before, so that sounds great."

Of course, she wasn't completely unknowing of the tone of their guides last words, and Teagan couldn't help but lean in closer, her voice dropping to a close whisper.

"Bread is amazing."

[Zem Vymes]

Her grinned broadened in the secret knowledge they both possessed.

"Well, jI guesss jyou have jyourr ansswerr then!" she pepped, resuming her leisurely-brisk pace that she used to get guests to their meeting places on time without giving the impression they were rushing.

"Sso, whjich one of thesse hundrredss of bjillionss of sstarr ssjysstemss arre jyou frrom?"

For Zem's part, keeping quiet and in the back was working so far. Already making friends.

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

For the moment, Teagan was absolutely taken with the Suun'da'rrou.

She matched the pace of their guide, her eyes going to either side before once more settling on Ayurrdaara.

"Oh, well, we come from Ossus," a fleeting look to Zem, and she returned her attentions to the Cizerack, "... but I was actually born on Cathar. It was fun there, with a lot of places to see in the markets."

For a moment she paused, but soon enough pushed onward.

"What about you? Which planet in the Cluster are you from?"

[Zem Vymes]

"Cana'daari ssjince jI wass verrjy jyoung, and Fey'dann beforre that. Mjy motherr wass a shjipbrreakerr forr the Rrojyal Sshjipwrrjightss, and jI enljissted jin the Navjy becausse we werre arround sshjipss all the tjime, sso jit'ss all jI've everr known.

Catharr huh? jI've rread about that planet. Wassn't therre an ancjient cjivjiljizatjion therre?"

To her credit, Irraiye could gab and move at the same time, and they quickly reached a stopping point at the consular residential block.

"Okajy, herre jyou arre." She briskly unlocked the door with a code cylinder, recovered the luggage, and entered to show the amenities and to place their bags in the closet alcove. "Djid jyou want me to sset a rresservatjion at Dez Cannece forr jyou?"

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

Momentarily distracted from looking about at their temporary lodgings for the next few days, Teagan turned a bright smile to their guide.

"Yes please!"

Her gaze went back to the small rooms. There was a living area with a sofa, comm screen, and a few chairs, and further back a compact kitchenette that looked like nothing but an afterthought, as if someone hastily made a small section of counter to accommodate a sink with a reheater on one side, and a mini cooler unit on the other.

To the side, down a short hall, were three doors. One led to a fresher, and the other two led to small bedrooms. Teagan inspected both, but only from the doorways. They looked normal enough, with a bed, nightstand, and small dresser in each. They reminded her of the rooms in the Padawan dormitories, if she was honest.

Turning to Suun'da'rrou Ayurrdaala, she smiled.

"Thank you so much, Suun'da'rrou."

[Zem Vymes]

Eyes still moving in small motions corresponding with the image in miniature in her ocular, Irraiye didn't get distracted in technology for too long.

"Done. jYou have a rresserrvatjion forr two jin one hourr, fjifteen mjinutess. jI've ssent confjirrmatjion to each of jyourr comm frrequencjiess."

At Teagan's thank you, the Suun'da'rrou's ears buoyed noticeably.

"Of courrsse. jIt'ss mjy pleassurre, Rrou'eita. jI'll ssend jyou mjy comm asss well, jin casse jyou need anjythjing elsse. jI'll leave jyou to get accomodated now. Ja'i ha'laauna."

And as expertly as she guided them, Irraiye disengaged, and made her exit, leaving Zem and Teagan alone.

"Well," Zem was already unpacking his modest belongings, "I'm going to meet with Commander Akiena and go over a few things before we eat. Until then, you can go walk around the concourse if you'd like. Here."

Zem glided from the closet alcove to the living commons, his long Jedi robes obfuscating the movement of his feet. He placed a bundle of credits in Teagan's hand.

"That's 50 credits. Don't feel like you have to use it all, but you're here to experience life, so get busy doing it. You've got my comm. Ping three times if you're in trouble, but by then I'll probably know."

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

Wide eyes went from the collection of credits now in her hand, up to Zem's face. Admittedly, as each day passed it seemed that she wasn't needing to look as high as the day before. The last time her mother had visited, she'd made a comment about growth spurts, whatever those were. Still though, the girl nodded as she let herself get lost in thought. What sort of things would she find on the concourse? Were there vendors there like at the Joffa Market? Were there little foodstalls? Maybe other kinds of shops selling things she'd never heard of? The concept of such a wide, wide world contained on this space station was amazing, and finally she gave a smile and a nod while pocketing the credits.

"Ok."

Shifting her stance, the young Lupine ambled her way to the door, and keying it open, she turned back to look at Zem.

"You won't be too long though, right?"

[Zem Vymes]

Zem grinned warmly.

"Don't worry. I'll be right on time. I wouldn't want to miss the bread, after all."

He winked, then paused, turning slightly wistful. Something about the way that she was standing just struck him, and he smiled.

"Oh. When did you become a young lady?"

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

His gaze and the words that accompanied were enough to make her pause. Was he reliving some old memory? By saying that she was a young lady... was he looking into the past, at how her mother used to be? It was enough to make her cant her head to the side in curiosity. He seemed somewhat unguarded in the moment, and Teagan used her chance to needle her way further into the bizarre, shut-off-but-not-really-but-weird creature that was her foster father. What did her mother see in him, anyway? He was honest and true, the girl knew that much at least. But there was just this strange old-world feeling about him that she supposed aligned with the elder Lupine.

Still though.

He was still looking at her in that memory-way, and she put one hand to her hip, pursing her lips before answering. In a flash of realization, she knew the vision that he was seeing in the moment, right now. It was probably an apparition from so many years ago, and she couldn't help the knowing smile that tugged at one knowing and conniving corner of her lips.

"You see her, don't you."

There was no need to name 'her'.

[Zem Vymes]

"Well, there's no denying I see a bit of your mom, sure. But that's not what I'm talking about. You're your own person. I feel like I blinked one day and you grew up."

Zem paused, and conceded with a grin.

"Even if you've always been a bit of an old soul. It just feels like time went faster than it should."

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

"Oh."

It was slightly heartening, that he didn't see only her mother in her. To hear him speak of her being her own person made her look away a small bit, and giving an accepting nod, Teagan paused for a moment longer. She smiled in thanks, and started forward to give him a grateful embrace.

"Thanks," she whispered.

[Untaaura Verratoa]

There were treadmills and grav bikes and other such machines in the station gym, but Untaaura hadn't changed in her habits - she still wanted to run with a change of scenery. There was running club that K'ohta'rrou Meorrrei had set up a year ago apparently, but Untaaura wasn't interested in running with a group. Instead, she ran alone, keeping to a path on level two that had been cordoned off for runners, nearest to the inner railing. She wore a Jaani'sarri-issued PT hoodie with matching shorts. Her low-cut running shoes were met by a pair of weighted ankle bands that added just enough resistance to make a long distance course burn. She wore matching weight resistance bands at her wrists, pushing them back into place briefly as they slid against the damp of her sweat-slick forearms. Already, damp was forming at her collar, armpits, and back. The saliva in her mouth felt thick, and she resisted the impulse to spit on the track as she weaved around a Togruta loping at a more leisurely pace.

Some people ran with music. Untaaura never bothered. The sound of rhythmic breath and slapping of soles against decking had an almost tantric effect. You were in control of your own cadence, and most importantly of all - you could let you mind go empty. You could think about nothing at all or what the meaning of life or the nature of the universe might be, and you might not find what you were looking for, but you'd come away with something for it.

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

Having made her exit about fifteen minutes previous, Teagan currently stood in the back of a lift, a gaggle of other beings having crowded in as well on their ways to their own destinations. There was a little bit of chatter, but for the most part she kept quiet and simply listened. Some talked about the meetings they had planned, and others murmured words of excitement for some place... a tea shop? It was a strange thing to hear, since a shop where people went to sit and sip tea seemed like a weird thing to be excited about.

The lift dinged, and without thinking, the young Lupine slipped her way out, thinking more of just escaping the crush of bodies than looking up to the level that they were stopped at.

It wasn't until the lift doors shut behind her that she realized her mistake, and Teagan scowled in sudden realization as she looked up to the Aurebesh number on the corridor walls.


2

Her shoulders slumped, and she lolled her head from side to side in slight defeat. Of course, the feeling didn't last long, and she opted to wait a minute or two before depressing the call button once more.

In the process of lifting her hand, she paused, the sound of bare feet on the floor reaching her ears from around a bend in the corridor, and holding back, she turned to look at who was about to come into view.

[Untaaura Verratoa]

Untaaura made it past the next spire junction, and checked her chrono. Two more junctions would make a rotation - her third and final one. She passed the lift by, catching a glimpse of a humanoid waiting by the call box. She wasn't paying attention, so the figure remained a tawny-haired blur in her peripheral as she went by. The trailing edge of her run was pushing her body temperature up, and at last she let her hood down to help cool her head. No taking anything for chance. She was six seconds ahead of her best. If she knuckled under, she'd break her mark. She needed enough reserves left to push to the finish. If she timed it right, she could burn her reserves to accelerate to the end. If she pushed to early, she'd get gassed and come up short. Figuring out when to make your move was one chapter of many in the book of knowing yourself.

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

Blinking in slight surprise as she watched the runner pass her by, Teagan immediately pulled her hand back as she whirled about on her heels, staring after the departing body. And then the hood came down, and her eyes confirmed the scent that her nose was picking up.

Mouth going dry for just a fraction of a second, she immediately regrouped. It wasn't how she'd wanted them to reunite, but sometimes the Force just threw things at you to see how you'd react. She'd made plans upon plans for this moment, and in the fraction of a second they were all dashed to pieces. Unable to help herself, she called out to the runner.

"Major?!"

[Untaaura Verratoa]

Even though the word was spoken on Untaaura's deaf side, she could still pick up enough to figure it out. Her stride briefly faltered enough that she could cast her eyes back.

"Teagan?!"

The shock threw her from her rhythm completely. Panting for breath, she thought about what to do next. The thumping of blood in her ears still rumbled like a war drum.

"jYou...jyou know the rrule..." she panted, wiping a drop of sweat off the tip of her nose as she grinned, "...don't...fjinjissh untjil jitss...overr."

Her grin grew into a smile, even as her chest heaved for breath. Untaaura turned, and picked up speed once more.

"jYou'd betterr keep up, rrough-foot!"

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

Mouth slightly agape, Teagan stared in shock as the Major whirled back around to continue her run. Hearing the call of her Cizerack friend's favorite running mantra was enough to jostle her into action however, and the girl grinned wide as she steeled herself. She burst forward in a sudden explosion of energy, and with a bit of muscle memory - it'd been a while since she'd last been able to share a run with the Major - she began to chew up the distance between the two. It was slower going than normal, since whenever they used to run on Ossus, the young Lupine was usually on all fours. Being on a space station made that a lot more difficult, so two legs it was.

A passing Wookiee sidestepped to allow her to pass, sending a disgruntled growl after her, but she paid no mind to whatever was said, focused intently on catching up to the Major.

Long legs were her savior, and her stride lengthened as she sprinted after the much shorter Cizerack. Had the Major shrunk since her time away from Ossus... or were her mother's words of a 'growth spurt' really true?!

That notion would have to be explored at a later time, as she was coming up to the Major, and after another few moments she'd pulled up alongside the other woman.

[Untaaura Verratoa]

It hadn't been a trick of peripheral vision. Not only was it Teagan, but Teagan had sprouted now running on a pair of legs that were considerably longer since she'd last seen her.

She pulled up to an even stride with Untaaura, who was now afforded a better look. What a change two years could make, especially at that age.

"Lookss ljike jyou...grrew jinto jyourr...feet..." Untaaura pushed banter between breaths, trying to keep the integrity of her pace.

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

She'd at least had enough presence of mind to fall into those old habits, remembering the many words and guidance that the Major had given her while on Ossus. 'Measure your breathing', 'pace yourself', 'don't give it your all until the last mile'.

With a grin, Teagan kept up with the Cizerack woman, answering in rhythm to the pounding of her footfalls.

"Yeah... Dama and Dad say... I'm a weed... "

Sneaking a hand out then, she gave a hurried poke to her abrupt-running-partner's side. It was a mimic of the times on Ossus when she would nip at the Major's calves in her own playful manner. Since she couldn't exactly Change on a station filled with eyes that didn't need to see her do such a thing, she had to make do with her only other option.

"Just wait... till Markos... is old enough... to run with... us... "

[Untaaura Verratoa]

Untaaura gave Teagan an affectionate little punch to her shoulder, "That'ss...sstjill a long...tjime to go."

The pair split, taking the inside and outside track to pass a pair of Ishi Tib who were definitely not interested in keeping a pace.

"One morre junctjion...then we go...all out forr the...lasst one." Untaaura cleared her throat, smearing a run of sweat from her brow. "jYou'd betterr...pjick up the pace. When jI make mjy move...jI'll leave jyou behjind."

Even through heavy breathing, there was a grin of amusement on the Cizeri's expression as she challenged her young Lupine friend.

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

Veering around the two slower runners, Teagan bared her teeth in a smile at the Major's words.

"You can... try... "

Her legs churned, her already long gait lengthening as the two rounded the juncture that marked the beginning of that last sprint. And as soon as they both turned the corner fully, the girl dipped into her reserves even more. It was true that she'd not been running for as long as the Major, but that still didn't mean that she was more comfortable on two legs rather than four. She got tired quicker, but she was also just as determined to keep up if nothing else. And truthfully, she didn't want to 'win', she just wanted to keep pace.

Which was exactly what she did, muscles pushing her forward to remain even with the older Cizerack woman. Booted feet hit the decking at the same time as the Major's bare feet, creating a beat that drove them both onward.

[Untaaura Verratoa]

To Teagan's credit, she kept pace the whole way. Untaaura wouldn't have kept alongside her out of being polite. Two hundred meters after the last spire junction, the Major turned to Teagan, winked, and emptied the tank. She gained one stride, two, then three, chopping up the distance at a pace just shy of a sprint. In Untaaura's head, the volume turned down to a muffled hum as her peripheral vision turned to grey. Her breathing sounded unnaturally loud as it echoed against the dull sounds beyond her own skull.

Still against the clock, Untaaura didn't look back as she put distance between her and the Lupine.

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

She let the Major go ahead, but only a few moments passed before she too surged ahead, and it wasn't long before she again grew level. All she focused on now were the sounds of both their footfalls, and she gave it her every last ounce of strength. She did just as she had always been told to do - pour your all into the last bit. Your soul, your spirit, whatever you had left... you put it into the end. You just knuckle down and roar your way to the finish line.

Which was exactly what she did.

And while it certainly wasn't a deep, guttural roar, the girl still let out a banshee-like warcry, as if giving a voice to her silently screaming muscles.

[Untaaura Verratoa]

Untaaura could feel herself losing it. Cizeri could run short distances very well. Long distance was always a struggle. It was a game of timing - knowing exactly when to push, for how long, and what you had to pay to do so. The urge to ease back into a jog was strong as they closed the final 100 meters.

Somehow, she begged, borrow, and stole enough energy to keep her pace to the finish. Untaaura crossed the threshold, immediately hugging a railing as she eased back down to a walk. Two seconds later, her comm chirped. The Major grinned, but didn't say anything. She needed to suck down air for another minute or two. That didn't stop her from grinning at Teagan as she also crossed the finish.

Eventually, Untaaura's breath returned to her.

"Beat mjy perrssonal besst bjy two ssecondss. Guesss jit helpss when jyou'rre chassed."

The Major wormed her way out of her damp hoodie, revealing a sleeveless shirt below. She tied the arms around her waist.

"What arre jyou dojing herre? Not that jI don't mjind the companjy on a rrun, but jI doubt jyou came to a sspace sstatjion forr exerrcjisse."

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

Having reached the end of the run, Teagan felt as her entire body simply... deflated. She copied the Major's actions of gripping the siderail, her own breathing ragged as her lungs sucked in deep breaths. It took her a few minutes to recalibrate herself before being able to answer. Still slightly bent over, the girl allowed herself som extra time to straighten back up, trying to walk in a few circles.

When a body isn't expecting a sudden bout of running, you had to baby it after the fact.

"Well," she blew out a particularly long breath, her eyes going to the Major, "... me and Dad are here for some sort of business he has on the station."

For the moment, she'd leave out the part about her own excitement for the trip, and the chance to once more see Major Verratoa.

[Untaaura Verratoa]

"Sso bussjinesss forr hjim, and holjidajy forr jyou, eh?"

Untaaura took a quaff of water from her canteen, swishing it briefly to loosen the thickened saliva coating her tongue, before taking two more big gulps. She promptly passed it over to Teagan.

"jI dunno, kjid. jI thjink jyou got a rraw deal forr jyourr bjig weekend out. Jovan jissn't exactljy what jI'd call holjidajy materrjial, though jyou could cerrtajinljy do worrsse."

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

Taking the canteen, the girl turned it up to splash a small amount of water into her mouth, swishing and sloshing it around before swallowing.

"Haaa," the canteen was held out for the Major to take back, "... yeah well, it's still a trip away from Ossus."

One hand reached up then, to tug at her earlobe as she twisted her torso, trying to loosen up suddenly-over-exerted muscles.

"Plus the food here is probably really good - " Untaurra was no stranger to the stomach cravings of her young Lupine friend, "... though when I was in the lift earlier, I heard some folks talking about a Cizerack teahouse. Didn't make a lot of sense to me though, since I kinda agree with dad, that tea is just hot grasswater and it tastes a little gross. A whole place meant to serve tea seems like too much."

[Untaaura Verratoa]

A chuckle halfway escaped before the Major stowed it. Rather than correct her, Untaaura was tempted to let Teagan's own momentum carry her away from the notion. Besides, it wasn't exactly a place that the Major felt comfortable being around. Still, Teagan was right about the age where you were supposed to find out about this sort of thing. That didn't mean that it was her job to bring it up. Forrda tended to be a little touchy about the subject.

Thanks for putting me on the spot, kid. She smiled tightly, taking another gulp of water.

"Well, jit'ss lesss about what jyou drrjink at that ssorrt of place, and morre about fjindjing companjy."

Untaaura took a few stretches, and began to walk a cooldown pace back the way she came.

"Overrated, honesstljy. The drrjinkss arre expenssjive, and jit neverr worrkss out the wajy jyou thjink."

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

"Oh."

Keeping pace with the Major, Teagan rolled her shoulders in a further attempt to re-stretch he muscles.

"So you look for friends there?"

She reached for the canteen once more, a wordless request for the Major to hand it over.

"Would it be a good place for you and I to go to?"

[Untaaura Verratoa]

"Negatjive. Ljike jI ssajid, overrblown and overrprrjiced. That, and jI doubt jyourr Arr'fai would apprrecjiate me takjing jyou therre."

Her pace slowed, and she pivoted back to look at Teagan with a careful expression as she passed her cantina over.

"jYou'rre ssweatjy, and jI'm a messs. Tell jyou what. Gjive me half an hourr to hjit the head, get cleaned up and drresssed, and meet me at Essk 23, level one. jI'll sshow jyou ssomethjing that jyou don't have on Osssuss." she promised with a wink.

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

A quick glance at her wrist chrono, and her better-self was drowned out by the immediate. She wanted to spend time with the major, she wanted to understand these feelings that she was having. They were the sorts of feelings that left her confused and concerned; she felt them when she was with Draiya, but the times that she was with Wyl, they weren't there. There was something there, when she'd been with Wyl, but it just wasn't the same. How did she even describe it?!

With a sigh of frustration, the girl eventually nodded.

"Ok."

A hand went up to rub her temple.

"Essk 23. Level 1."

A final breath out, and she looked to the Major.

"I'll find that place. Just don't be late, yeah?"

[Untaaura Verratoa]

"Forr jyou?"

Untaaura squared up to her with a serious expression.

"jIf jI'm not back jin...letss sspot me thjirrtjy-fjive mjinutess, then jyou sshould know that jI djied ljike jI ljived. Drrowned jin moonljight and sstrrangled bjy mjy own brra."

Before Teagan spent any more time figuring that one out, Untaaura retrieved her canteen, giving the Lupine an affectionate double pat on the shoulder.

"jYou'd betterr get the lead out too, jyoung blood. Double tjime."

She was back at a jog, leaving the scene with a raised, slightly curled tail. Untaaura stole a glance back to see what the Lupine was doing, and continued to the lift to take her to the officers quarters.

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

The tail. The tail. It was curled up just so. And the Major had looked back, which only made Teagan cut her gaze away to the boring walls of the corridor.

"Essk 23, Level 1. I'll find it for sure," she reiterated with iron lacing her tone.

A 'heh', and she half-turned on her heel.

"I'll beat you there!"

[Untaaura Verratoa]

"We'll ssee, rrough-foot!"

Untaaura made quick time to her billet, peeling off her PT's mid-stride through the living area before flinging them into the auto-washer hamper. She quickly took care of business in the sonic shower, then spent another five minutes making sure her lines were clean on her fade before making the sudden choice to wear civilian clothing. She settled on slightly flare-legged maroon pants and a cream & grey short-sleeved seersucker shirt. With a quick check to make sure that her hair was tightly-combed and coiffed where needed, Untaaura was out the door with five minutes to spare, and began to move down the concourse to Esk sector. Being on a higher floor gave Untaaura a good aerial view of the concourse sprawl, and she tried to pick out Teagan as she headed to the section 23 lift.

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

And just like that she was retracing her steps, sprinting all the way back to the lift that she'd initially gotten off of. Thank the gods that it dinged and opened back up not too long after she'd pressed the call button.

The trip back up to the level that her and Zem's quarters were on was made in relatively short order, and the girl burst back in through the door like some tumbling Tatooine dune-devil. She cast her gaze to either side, unsure if Zem was still here. She didn't see him, but that didn't mean he wasn't still here. Either way, she continued on like a nexxu intent on its prey, heading for the fresher.

[Untaaura Verratoa]

After a brief moment of glancing furtively about, Teagan quickly got the idea that Zem was out of the room, likely taking care of his tasks at hand.

Meanwhile, Untaaura eased back on her usual pace. Maybe some other time - hell, most other times, she'd go all out. This time, she wanted Teagan to get there first. As she watched the people milling below, Untaaura tried to figure out why that was.

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

She'd given herself a quick once over before leaving the provided quarters, making sure that she was once more as fresh as possible. It didn't take too long; s splash from the sink into her face, running fingers through her hair, and another pass with her deodorant to make sure that she didn't give off too much of a 'just-sprinted' smell. Of course, it didn't take too awful much. She'd not really run that far or that hard; certainly not like she did back home on Ossus.

Esk 23 was easy enough to find, but at the same time there were a myriad of beings that were all about, and the young Lupine slid her way through the bodies to a far bulkhead. She cast her gaze from left to right, and unable to spot the Major just yet, settled herself for the time being. A quick glance to her chrono, and she was reassured in the fact that she had enough time before dinner with her dad.

Unconsciously, she lifted her hand up, and blowing into her palm, immediately gave her breath a quick sniff-test.

Not horrid.

Good.

A second later, she sent her gaze back up to scan the passing bodies.

[Abarai Loki]

The Guild hub was unusually quiet. Loki waited in the empty room for Ygor to return to his post; somewhere, on the other side of the glass, he could be heard growling about stimcaf. The processing station was an uncluttered space by necessity, with a single row of fixed seats lining the perimeter, a holocam in every corner, and an empty space in the middle. It was empty, save for the man by his side.

Foster Skavish was a human male of 32 years, with sandy hair and a slim build. Wanted for defrauding elderly widows up to the sum of 120,000 credits and for the suspected murder of Dame Octofort of Taris, he fled arrest into the Outer Rim. Presently, he stood silent and dejected, with his hands in binders and a tracking collar around his neck. His face was purple with bruising, his right eye was black, and the left side of his face was swollen beyond recognition. A fresh trickle of drool oozed from the corner of his busted mouth and soiled the pristine floor.

“You.”

Behind the glass appeared an old Weequay with a steaming cup in his hand. He regarded Loki with his remaining eye, and then the man beside him. With a grunt, he lowered himself into his seat and made a wordless beckoning gesture. Loki had the bounty puck ready and deposited it on the counter.

“Foster Skavish,” he said, simply. From the puck rose a blue-tinted facsimile of the man beside him, he had shorter hair and wore a suit. Ygor gave the bounty another look.

“You sure? Barely enough left of him for a positive ID.”

“An exaggeration,” Loki countered, “My blaster malfunctioned. The stun doesn’t work.”

“Put up a good fight, did he? The old granny fucker?”

Another grunt came from behind the glass, but this time, there was movement. The heavy sealed door beside the processing station rushed open and out stepped a looming security droid. Beside him, he heard his bounty whimper, and his whole body tensed up. Under the droid’s influence, however, he quickly unraveled, as he was jostled through the door and towards the holding cells. If he had indeed murdered Dame Octofort, he may be executed by firing squad. But Loki gave no thought to that, instead he presented Ygor with a credit chit.

“That’s 12 large, with a guild fee of 2,000,” said Ygor, as he inserted the chit into a datapad and poked sluggishly at the keys.

“What’s hot?” Loki received his credit chit and cast a glance over his shoulder to a doorway illuminated by a red shield, which in turn led to the bustling posting agency. “Any tips?”

“You want a tip? Take a break, kid. You look like shit.”

Unimpressed, Loki left. With a tap of his security pass, the humming barrier dissipated, allowing him entry into a long dim space illuminated by faintly flickering computer terminals. Though still very much a part of the Guild hub, unlike the processing station, the posting agency was a space unconcerned with privacy, security, or general order. Tucked away on Resh 11, the agency was accessible to all, but the terminals within, available only to the few. The floor was dirty and marked with a chaotic web of footprints, once-glossy posters were peeling from the walls, and there were noticeboards thick with the contact details of unknown handlers and sketchy slicers. A haze of smoke circled slowly overhead, yellowed by ailing lights. In the corner of the room, a trio of Rodians were sitting on crates, they spoke in undertones and stole skittish glances from the gloom.

Taking his place at an unoccupied terminal, Loki inserted his keycard and waited for the bounty registry to update. A moment passed, then another. Then, with an obnoxious buzz, the screen turned red.

Access denied.

“I told ya to take a break, kid.”

From behind him came the familiar thunk of a heavy mechanical leg. Loki’s jaw clenched in frustration. Steeling himself, he turned to face his tormentor. Though weathered by age and injury, Ygor Ix had lost none of the presence that came with being one of the oldest and most experienced bounty hunters in the Guild. The skin on his face sagged like worn leather, but his grey eye remained as sharp as a vibroblade, and twice as cutting. And while the shabby rags hung loose from his bones, Loki suspected the old frame hunched beneath them was as tough as kingswood. In the time he had known Loki, or rather, Wexli Wallas, the alias he had adopted, old Ygor had made one thing clear: he did not suffer fools.

Ygor was not his handler - and had outright expressed he had no intention of ever taking on that role - but in the 6 months since Loki parted ways with his hunting mentor, Li Ho Fook, it would be fair to say that the grizzled Weequay had taken him under his wing. They had a taciturn sort of understanding: Loki never accepted jobs that were beyond his skills and experience, and in return, he trusted Ygor to direct him towards work that was both challenging and within his own hunt parameters – namely, targets that were guilty of violent crime to innocent people. It accommodated his own brand of justice: no jobs for crime lords, or Imperial agencies, or corrupt politicians.

And it was an arrangement that had served him well, until now.

“You did this?”

“I did. Take yourself out of the game for a few days,” Ygor’s trademark growl was reduced to a grumble. He did not seem comfortable with this degree of interference, “Get yourself some rest. Heal up.”

Loki frowned. There was a graze on his chin and a bruise on his cheek, all wholly superficial. He scoffed, “I’m fine. I just need to keep busy.”

“What you need is to get your head straight,” Ygor hissed through jagged teeth, taking a step closer.

“Ygor, you can’t do this. I-”

Faster than he ever could have imagined, the retired bounty hunter snatched him by the wrist and, with rough and bony fingers biting into his skin, raised his hand to eye level. There, around the knuckles and fingers, the skin was as black and purple as Foster Skavish’s face.

“It ain’t just your blaster that’s acting up, kid. Get yourself fixed. You have 2 days.”

With restrained force, Ygor released him, snorted his last ounce of frustration, and turned. Loki watched him pass through the barrier, frozen in place, and owlish with surprise. That look in his eyes, the hardness, the anger, he’d never seen it before. Not from Ygor. And now it was burned into his memory. In his memory. Hard eyes. Cold. He was cold. In his extremities. He couldn’t feel his fingers, his toes. He couldn’t feel the grass beneath his feet. He couldn’t feel the night air.

In section Osk 18, there was a stretch of engineering hubs that specialized in servicing the droids that kept the station running. Loki was familiar with the workshops, and the workers, but he struggled to recall why he was there, in the first place. He stopped and took in his surroundings. Greyness, and pale light spilling out from open doors. And then, a symphony of noise: clattering, clanking, buzzing, crackling. He remembered it, vividly. Ahead and to the left were Anauri’s workshops. But what was he doing here? He didn’t want to see Anauri. He didn’t want to see anyone.

He wanted food.

Unwelcome pangs of hunger dredged him from a stew of lethargic thoughts. Stew would be great about now, actually. There were places up on Esk, he recalled. There was a time when this station was a home to him. And for 2 days, he must call it ‘home’ again. Inside an unoccupied lift, he studied his right hand, warped by violence, with bruises blossomed on each knuckle like angry flowers. A damning testament. Get yourself fixed. Ygor’s words rang in his head like thunder. What did he mean?

The ride through the levels took minutes, with passengers filling the lift on the way. Loki kept his distance and fixed his gaze on the thin strip of strobing light that blinked by with each level. Most of the occupants spilled out onto Esk with him, it being one of the most popular and populated levels on the station. He swam through an ocean of sound towards his destination, carried on a current of busy people who were closer than he’d have liked; so close he caught the lingering spice of Cizerack perfume, the sour whiff of an overworked and undergroomed Besalisk chef, and the rot of Herglic halitosis. What did people smell when he walked by? In hindsight, a wash would not have gone amiss coming fresh off a job.

When he noticed a shop he didn’t recognise – some new place with buckets of fresh flowers outside – Loki stopped to get his bearings. The walkway above was the same, the tobacco and spirits place was the same, and there was the bulkhead. No, he was on the right path. If he kept on in that direction, he…

There. At the bulkhead. The girl with brown hair.

No. Loki snapped his gaze away and closed his eyes. A deep breath. He could smell the flower shop. When he reopened his eyes, she would be gone. Near the bulkhead, clusters of people congregated, and weaved, threaded at occasion by a couple of smartly dressed security officers on patrol. But there was no girl. No brown hair.

He pressed on, careful to avoid contact with strangers, mindful of his footing. There were younglings hidden amongst the crowd, there were always younglings, he could hear them. All it took was one misstep and someone could get hurt in a place like this, especially younglings. And one could never overestimate the stupidity of people in large gatherings. He dodged and he pivoted, eyes fixed upon his location, where a heavy concentration of humans dispersed.

There she was again. Brown hair, sharp features. She was standing by the bulkhead, waiting.

His gaze was averted again. He walked on, determined.

10… 9… 8… 7…

It wasn’t her. She looked different. Different, but similar.

6… 5… 4…

It wasn’t her. She wasn’t there. Not really.

3… 2… 1…

He dared another look and stopped dead in his tracks. There, at the bulkhead, with the brown hair, the sharp features, and fiercely inquisitive eyes. It was her.

Another deep breath, then slowly, he approached. As the crowds between them thinned, he assessed her situation. There was no-one around her, no-one she was talking to, and certainly no other faces that he recognised – she was alone. His pace left him. Their eyes met. He took one more tentative step closer until he was just out of arm’s reach.

Softly, he said, “Teagan? Is that you?”

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

She'd been scanning the milling bodies all about, trying to catch a glimpse of the Major. She was focused on finding a certain individual. Every bit of her attentions had been so attuned that when she met the eyes of the man who'd apparently become incredibly interested in her, she didn't quite register his features.

And in the next moment, those features coalesced into a rather poignant memory. The memory of someone older than she, who had ultimately given her the courage to put herself onto the path that she was now.

She'd brought him a peace-offering of stew. She'd asked him hard questions, and he had answered her in his unwavering fashion. It had been hard to hear back then, but in a begrudging way, she knew that his insight was needed and - though she was loathe to admit it, necessary. What he spoke of back then was what she'd needed to hear.

But, then he'd left Ossus himself. Left so many Padawans, and gone from her life as swiftly as Wyl had left her.

For a fraction of a second, she wondered if she was seeing people that the Force had brought into her life.

In the next moment, she swallowed. She was here, on Jovan. And now, Teagan found herself locking eyes with Abarai Loki.

She was already halfway leaning against a bulkhead, and now... she couldn't help but try to meld her body further into the durasteel slats.

Still though, he had asked a question, and that demanded an answer.

"...yes?"

[Abarai Loki]

“Teagan,” he repeated, setting the name in stone, “It’s me!”

He pressed open hands to his chest, and exhaled through his teeth. A tremulous flash of a smile. It was the first familiar face he’d seen in six months. Familiar was relative, of course: Teagan had grown, she had changed, but enough of her old self remained to kindle the spark of recognition. He was staring, drinking up the sight of her like a parched manka cat in the desert. And she was staring, too, with all the wariness of the nerf calf cornered by the manka cat.

It gave him pause. He gave their immediate surroundings a cautious sweep to make sure no-one was watching, then he met her gaze again.

“L…” He struggled, the word lodged like a jagged stone in his throat, “Loki.”

The last time they spoke, it had been over a bowl of shaak and tuber stew, which Teagan brought to him as… it was a peace offering. What did they speak about? He couldn’t recall. There was garlic toast – he remembered that – and freshly-picked periberries, too. Stars above, he was hungry. He could see her face in his mind’s eye, a mask of fractured hardness. But why? All he remembered was a feeling. Respect.

That was gone, now. Replaced with a kind of guarded curiosity. Or was it suspicion? Perhaps, he did smell, after all. Or maybe it was just him? He, too, had changed. He was older, he was taller, he dressed differently, and he was a little banged up. Maybe that was why she didn’t recognise him. Unless…

Unless...

What if he wasn’t who he thought he was?

He took a deep breath:

“Do you remember me?”

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

"Do you remember me?"

Of course she remembered him. Remembered his intense eyes and the conviction on his words. Back then he'd been like an unwavering rock to all of the padawans. Even to her, though she was loathe to admit it. It was why she'd sought out his help, after all. His experience and insight, while often-times harsh, was never without resolve.

"I... "

For the time being, the Major was forgotten. Staring at the face that'd been so once ingrained in her, she couldn't help but lose herself in those old times. When she constantly ducked and shied away from the sparring lessons that he so often taught. When she did her best to become like some Force ghost that no one could see. She'd never been drawn to the martial disciplines like Draiya, and even now still hadn't completed the construction of her own lightsaber. The Loki from back then would've scolded her for that, probably.

Now though, while older, he looked more than a bit removed from the hard-edged and rigid Knight that he'd once been. Was he desperate? Desperate that she remember him?

If only he knew that there was no way she could possibly forget him. His was a scent so unique. It wasn't like others, and even through the dirt and grime, there was still his particular smell.

"... I remember you left," she finally got out, her voice a hoarse whisper.

[Abarai Loki]

“Okay,” He said, mostly to himself, “Good.”

The falling feeling stopped. Inside his boots, his toes clenched, recalling the feeling of solid ground beneath his feet. His fingers, tingling from the electricity of a once-frantic pulse, hung limp at his sides like severed power cables, jolting from flashes of life. His breathing remained calm, however, like he practiced. If she remembered he left, she remembered who he was, which meant she was who he thought she was, and she was indeed standing before him. Everything in its right place.

Except not.

Teagan s’Ilancy did not belong here. Jovan Station was a bustling place full of strange people with strange intentions, and she was young and alone. His gaze swept over her once again, this time looking for any sign of injury or mistreatment. She appeared unhurt. And she would remain unhurt. Against every prickly instinct, he closed the distance between them and fell into rank beside her, where he leaned against the bulkhead. Now he had a good view of their surroundings, and while they spoke, his eyes remained fixed on the flow of strangers passing them by.

“What brings you to the station?” His eyes narrowed in thought, “Did you come here alone?”

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

He was so unlike how she remembered. On Ossus, he would've never come to stand beside her, let alone ask her anything. What had his time away been like? What had he done? What had happened in the span of time from when he'd left to this moment, where she now stood next to him? A myriad of questions paraded through her thoughts, as numerous as the bodies all around them now. Biting her lip, the young Lupine reigned in her own curiosity, returning to his own questions.

"I'm not alone, no," she answered, hands stuffing into her pockets. The fingers of her right hands clenched at the small collection of credits that Zem had given her.

"I came here with... " a pause, as she caught herself right before blurting out 'my Dad'. Instead, she gave a little cough and continued carefully.

"... Master Vymes. He had some business here, and I asked to come along for a sort of... vacation."

A pair of Chadra-Fan tottered by, chittering away between themselves in what seemed like happy tones. Behind them, a towering Ithorian lumbered forward, attentions firmly on a comm unit. A group of Cizeri officers, random humans, Twi-Leks, there were so many beings aboard Jovan that it reminded her of a much, much bigger Joffa Market, back on Cathar. Those trips with her mother had always been exciting, and now, here on Jovan with Zem she could feel the faintest tinge of that very same excitement.

She watched as a vendor passed by, eyeing the small cart of what looked like trinkets and charms, and her peripheral vision fell on Loki. Breathing in, the girl cast her eyes back down to the floor beneath her boots, and idly she scuffed the toe against a rivet-bolt.

"What are you doing here?"

[Abarai Loki]

The knowledge that Teagan had not come to Jovan Station on her own was met with a wave of relief. For a moment, Loki harboured the suspicion that she was at the station out of some misguided act of rebellion. A big assumption, perhaps, but this was Teagan s’Ilancy and his concern was not unfounded. In her youth, Teagan was a menace, and as she embarked on her teenage years, who can say what brand of chaos she may yet unleash? In any case, he was off the hook. It was not for him to concern himself with the whereabouts of wayward youngsters, or, more to the point, return them to their keepers. No, she was another’s burden.

Vymes. At the mention of the name, all of the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. It trickled like ice water down his spine. He was no longer leaning against the bulkhead, but stood rigid. Another cautionary sweep of the vicinity confirmed he was not around, and that was enough. Loki lingered on the name only for as long as he needed, and Teagan had already moved on. And now she was the one asking questions.

“I work here,” he hesitated, “In a fashion.”

For the first time since taking his place against the bulkhead, he afforded Teagan a glance. He thought long enough about his answer to realise that he did not care who knew how he earned his credits.

“There’s a Guild hub in Resh 11. I collect bounties, there.”

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

A... bounty hunter? He was a bounty hunter?! Her eyes grew wide then, as her gaze settled fully on him in a moment of unguarded surprise. And, well, a little bit of awe. Going from a Jedi Knight to a bounty hunter was kind of amazing to her, as her mind instantly tried to figure out how he more than likely used his Force talents to bring in his bounties. Her imagination instantly conjured up the vision of some gristled criminal with double blaster pistols, facing off against Loki who stood like a kingwood tree. And then, in dramatic fashion, out came his lightsaber, the blade igniting in a brilliant flash. And of course, it was on some rain-swept landing pad, with angry mountain crags in the distance, and lightning making flashes through the sky.

She blinked. The inner sight her thoughts painted was certainly impressive.

And in that brief moment, every ounce of her attentions were on Loki.

"That's so cool," she couldn't help but whisper out, awestruck.

A bare moment passed before she went on, her voice still low.

"Is it fun?"

[Abarai Loki]

The surprise was not unexpected, taking shape as it was across Teagan’s face. For someone like him, with his history, and their shared history, to become so far removed from his roots – well, it was odd. And it was a moment that had haunted his thoughts for a long time, to meet a ghost of his past and lay bare the truth of his new life, having forsaken the old. He reconciled this with the fact that at least he was no longer manhandling oily patrons of the teahouse. Nonetheless, he braced himself.

He braced himself, and still Teagan’s response sent him reeling. Inwardly, he tumbled, grappling for purchase on the truth of her words. Had he heard her correctly? Cool? What did he even say to that? As he attempted to make sense of it, and to gauge an appropriate response, Loki felt the corners of his mouth twitch in rebellion of his good sense. He turned back to the milling crowd and scratched his cheek until the embers of his smile were snuffed out. Was he actively trying to be cool, now? What did that mean? No-one had ever called him ‘cool,’ before.

And he hated just how much it meant to him. In that moment. He was giddy.

“It can be fun,” he said, then cleared his throat to give his voice a little more oomph, “It is a tough job. Dangerous, of course. But… I’m free to do what I want, go where I want, and I catch bad guys along the way.”

That last turn of phrase was curated especially for Teagan. Plucked directly from the Li Ho Fook playbook of words, instead of his own. Given the choice, he would’ve probably said something trite about making a difference, but Teagan had always lived for adventure. So it was with just the slightest hint of mischief in his eyes that he regarded the girl beside him, searching for the truth.

“Do you really think it’s cool?”

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

"Well, yeaaahh," she dragged the last word out in the sort of way that one did when confirming the most obvious thing in the galaxy. She even came this close to rolling her eyes at what she thought to be a silly question.

"I mean, think about it."

Her shoulders rolled as she used the edge of a wall panel to scratch at an itch that'd sprung up between her shoulder blades.

"... you get to go and capture people that do horrible things. Slavers, killers, robbers, all that stuff. It's cool because you do what you can to make sure bad guys get justice."

Pursing her lips then, she looked up at the ceiling high above them both.

"I was confused and a little angry when you left Ossus," an admission that she never thought she'd be able to give to him, "... because it was like you abandoned everything that you had told me to honor and be true to. But, now you're a bounty hunter, and it's like you're living the way that you were really meant to live, I guess. At least, that's how it seems to me."

Her head lolled to the side then, so that she could stare at him once more. Blinking owlishly, she decided to confess what she was sure would bring out the Loki-of-old.

"I mean, here I am, and I still haven't made... " her tone shifted even lower, so that only he could hear.

"... a lightsaber."

[Abarai Loki]

As Teagan waxed lyrical about the great bounty hunting life, Loki considered tempering her expectations with some truths about his own unglamorous experiences, lest she take him for some idealistic bastion of justice, like the characters in holos. He couldn’t do it, though. At first, it was because he liked the way she was speaking about him. For some reason, there was a weight to this kid’s opinion of him, and it stuck. And now that she thought he was cool, it was imperative he did not disappoint. A feat which was about to prove exceptionally difficult.

It stung when she spoke of his sudden departure from Ossus, not least of all because he hadn’t ever taken into consideration her feelings or the effect of his absence, in the first place. If anything, it came as a surprise that his departure mattered to her at all, but that wasn’t the important part; Teagan was making peace with his decision to leave by virtue of her own idealised vision of a bounty hunter. Did she think him something more? To take that from her would cheapen all she valued. Could he really do that when he had a hand in sowing the seeds of those very same beliefs?

Loki pressed his lips into a thin line as he considered his options. Teagan was owed an explanation that did not trample on her convictions. Yet, as he readied himself, she had one more confession to make.


“Your weapon is your life.”

Into each hand was thrust a heavy length of metal. One was coarse and hurt his fingers, the other was shiny and smooth. He could see the crystals winking at him from under Chek’s bunk, where they had skittered to a stop. Chek was too busy staring at his feet to notice.

“Without your weapon, you are defenceless.”

Master’s large hands struck him in the chest. He stumbled and crashed into the corner of the room. His borrowed robes hung from him like an old sack, and tangled as he scrambled frantically to his feet. The long sleeves made it difficult to hold onto the unfinished lightsaber, but he clutched it through the fabric as tightly as he could.

“Without your life, you are… what?”

Master’s voice was tranquil, and cool. From where he stood, he could see the hem of his pristine tunic. He hesitated, and was struck so fast he bit his lip. The sound of the impact rung in his ears. His cheek was on fire.

“I am dead, sir,” he said, holding fast onto the lightsaber parts, “Without my weapon, I am dead."


Teagan was looking at him like she’d just admitted to drowning a litter of loth-kittens. He gave her a shrug and smiled.

“It’s fine.”

He heard a tremor in his voice. His eyes were getting glossy. Arms folded, he pressed himself against the bulkhead and stared out at the eclectic and colourful congregation of shoppers. There was a quiet sniff, then he proceeded:

“I remember how hard you studied before committing yourself to the life. You wanted to make an informed decision. That’s an unusual amount of wisdom for someone so young. So, why the rush? Something tells me you’ll do it when the time is right.”

There was a revelation somewhere in those words. A confirmation of what he’d suspected from the moment he saw her through the crowd. It was in how she carried herself. He just knew it. And he braved a sideways glance in her direction to seek his answer.

“So… you have committed to it, then?”

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

She opened her mouth to answer, but a sudden poing reached her ears, diverting her attention. Snapping her head over to the side, the young Lupine watched as a bouncing ball made its way in her and Loki's direction. Behind the ball was a bundle of excited fur and fluff, as a Shistavenan cub gave chase. Small barks and yips, and the cub reached out with both paws to grasp at the toy that seemed to constantly remain out of reach.

Half-crouching, Teagan easily caught the ball, and the cub skidded to a halt in front of her. A smile, and the ball was returned to its owner with ease.

"Well," she stood back up, watching the happy youngling return to a waiting mother.

"... I have."

She pulled in a long breath, letting it back out slowly.

"Wasn't anything easy to decide on, though. But yeah."

Shoulders squared back then, as she pushed away from the wall. There was a small seating area a short bit away, and she was getting tired of standing. A quick beckoning gesture for Loki to join, and she went on.

"My mom left me and Markos on Ossus because she knew we'd be safe there, and also because she wanted me to see what it was like to be a Jedi, I think."

For a short moment she looked all around her.

"She comes here sometimes, you know. Something to do with resupplies and restocking or whatever."

[Abarai Loki]

Teagan’s confirmation made his chest swell. It was an unusual feeling, to be proud of something he had not achieved. And it wasn’t the old pride he remembered, swaddled in ego and hubris, but something wholly transparent, something honest. She told him it hadn’t been easy and he knew it to be true. For long, she wrestled with the decision, with questions upon questions. What he once considered Teagan’s indecisiveness he now recognised as conviction: the choice was hers and she made it.

As they walked, he stole a glance her way. So much of the girl he remembered remained: the inquisitiveness, the determination, it was still there, but it was blossoming into a well-rounded intelligence and a quiet confidence. Much like her mother. The life would suit her, but it would also shackle her, perhaps in ways she did not yet understand. And, as he watched, Loki could not help but feel a stirring of guilt that maybe he, too, had a hand in forging those shackles.

Trees stood at intervals, along the prominade, providing rare greens across a heavy canvas of grey. They had slim pale trunks that flaked in thin curls, and round fulsome canopies. Each boasted a circle of benches at their base, turning them into concentrated gathering points. They found a free bench and sat. On the neighbouring bench, a couple of elderly Mon Calamari shared candies from a neatly wrapped parcel, and to the other side, a rowdy family Ugnaughts; the mother nursed an infant with delicate utterances while the father corralled excitable twins.

Loki disliked their central location, which forced him to keep his back to strangers, but on balance, it felt safe enough. Even if it was just the illusion of safety. He wondered what Teagan’s mother would make of her wandering Jovan Station alone. As with Vymes, he tried not to dwell too long her, or on Ossus, or the life he had packed away into the dark recesses of his past. But with Teagan, he had to at least try. He followed her gaze, taking in their new surroundings.

“It does not surprise me your mother visits this place. It has become an important trade hub for the entire quadrant. If you can’t find what you’re looking for in Jovan Station, you will be hard-pressed to find it anywhere else.”

Spoken like a true encyclopaedia. Loki privately scolded himself. He would have to try harder than that, even if it meant discussing things he’d rather not talk about.

“How… are things on Ossus, these days?” He attempted a conversational tone, but it came out stilted, “It was never the easiest place to live, after all.”

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

Ossus not being the easiest place to live was a heck of a thing to say. It went leagues beyond stating what was already known, and as the two sat, Teagan half-leaned back as she turned an amused look his way.

"It's not much easier than when you were there," she found herself grinning.

"Things have popped up though, like weeds and asaha sha'ahga vines*."

For a small moment she had forgotten herself, lapsing into Bast'yr to reference the invasive vine that seemed to always grow up on the walls of her mother's family home on Schwartzweld. Uncle Rasmuss often complained about the daily battle to keep the things at bay. For a fraction of a second, she hesitated, but rather than try to explain, the girl forged on.

"The library is still being excavated, but there are a lot of things that have come up around the first camps. There's even a few cantinas around."

Her left hand came up then, to gesture in the air.

"The Whaladon is still where it was first landed," the gesture became a tight sort of twirl, then her right hand came up to cast a line from where the left had finished its little dance.

"But you follow the main travel-road, and the hospital is almost the first place you come to. Then a little further on and to the right are the dorms, but they're bigger now. And you keep going down the way, and there's lodging for the Alliance workers. That's where the cantinas are, of course."

Her right hand swept back around to the imagined point of the Whaladon, and pointed to the right.

"Knight Hicchoru has added a second growing plot to his first, and across from that is the water filtration plant. It's a lot bigger than it was when you were still there."

Teagan was now fully lost in trying to verbally paint a picture of Sanctuary for him, her hands doing their best to pull pictures from the air before the two.

"There's even a new park that the Alliance built, with ribbongrass from Ithor and sleeping-leaf treas. It's really pretty, and nice and quiet, and a bunch of padawans like to go there to meditate. The sandwhich guy is still there, even. Everyone is still afraid of him," came the final bit, with a particularly sharp upturn to one corner of her lips.

Both hands fell then, as she folded her fingers together in her lap. She had a particular question that from the moment she'd scented him, she'd wanted to ask of him. How did one even think to step up to the bowl for that? Bowl? Was it bowl? Maybe it was plate? Step up to the plate? No. It had to be bowl. She would step up to the bowl and put her question right out there for all the galaxy to see.

"Do you ever... you know... miss it, there?"








*Asaha sha'ahga vines - An invasive vine species found on the Lupine world of Schwartzweld.

[Abarai Loki]

“I try not to think about it.”

The answer came up, at once, like a shield. As if a single sentence could weather the volley of nostalgia Teagan had just fired his way. He saw it coming, as she attempted to soften him up by talking about the Whaladon and Anbira Hicchoru’s blasted vegetables, she even tried to throw him off-balance by bringing up new things like cosy meditation parks with Ithorian lazy trees or whatever they were called, but he was ready for it. The sum of all their shared experiences shrugged off like an old coat.

But he asked for it. Quite literally. How was it fair to expect Teagan to bear the brunt of such a clumsy knee-jerk response? It wasn’t, and that was why he hadn’t looked at her when he said it. Nor could he bring himself to picture the transformation of Sanctuary that she’d so vividly described – her words were heard, but they were not allowed inside.

He stared at the ground.

“Sometimes, I see things… a refugee camp on Junction, or an oddball droid workshop on Nar Shaddaa, there was a hydroponics lab on a starcruiser this one time, and I see Cizerack troops everywhere on this station. And I’m reminded. Yes, even when I see a particularly well-made sandwich.”

He smiled now, but it hurt. Memories were open wounds for the heartsick soul. At least, finally, he had enough strength to meet Teagan’s gaze and answer her question as honestly as he could:

“It was my home.”

His mouth tightened.

“I’m sorry I never said ‘good-bye.’”

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

"It's ok."

Her long legs came up then, to fold under her in a crossed position like some sort of knobby rockspider settling in for a bit of comfort.

"When we left Cathar, I didn't get to say goodbye to my nanny and all of my friends from the market. I miss them, and I'm still sad sometimes and I wonder what they're doing now, but I just remember all the good times that we all used to have, and it makes me feel a little better about it."

Her eyes set out to watch the bodies moving past, from families trying to find the best meal for their little ones to enjoy, to groups of merchants on their way to sell their wares, to Alliance and Pride personnel either coming off of their shifts or on their way to start those shifts. Her eyes still couldn't help but try to pick out the Major, since time was still creeping along. Loki however, once more drew her attentions, and she let out a long breath that seemed to deflate her body just a little bit. His tone seemed so tight and pinched, and she couldn't but try and soothe any worries he had over his departure.

"Don't think too much about it, though. After we left Cathar and were traveling with Sanis, my mom would always tell me that home is where we make it. She'd say that as long as we were happy, we'd always be at home."

A memory tugged at her then, and the young Lupine let out a soft laugh.

"I remember the first time Uncle Cirr made fried fish and potato spears and put them in a thin bread-wrap, and rolled it all up. He even made a Rodian chili jam dipping sauce for it, and cut up some green tube-onions to sprinkle on top. It was the best thing I'd ever had, and I knew after my first bite that I was happy, and also that I was at home."

She'd begun to rock slightly, going from side to side as she let her memories wash over her.

"As long as you're happy, I don't think it matters where you are. Happiness is home."

[Untaaura Verratoa]

At the last moment, Untaaura had done something rash.

She decided to buy k'yorrbaa. Two cups of it, in fact. She'd probably not had k'yorrbaa since she was a cadet on Cana'daari. It wasn't even something that Untaaura particularly craved, either. Even the small servings were obnoxiously tall, everything was brightly-colored, and sweet. Basically, all the things that she wasn't. However, k'yorrbaa was something that was both experiential as well as quintessentially Cizeri. That was a pretty good way to meet Teagan, Untaaura thought.

That being said, the Major began to question herself after seeing the line at the kiosk. True to form, business was brisk, even among the aliens. Hell, most of the people ordering drinks were aliens, Untaaura realized with an eyebrow that cocked for nobody. Instead of grinding her teeth in impatience at the Bith asking the kiosk owner twenty questions, Untaaura fixed her attention instead on the cycling holographic menu. What was strawberry? Her default frown shifted into an uncertain grimace. Half these flavors she didn't even recognize. Guess that explained all the forrda.

When it was her turn to order, Untaaura didn't dawdle. Even when ordering street junk food, she did so like a Marine - efficiently.

"Ja'irra, dri'anna va harreei k'yorrbaa fei. Urra c'affeei c'a n'yoorri."

By the time that she was done, she already had a chit keyed for 4.4 du'arri. If only the bored teenager taking her order had the same love of efficiency. Well, hurry up and wait was basically the Marine motto, wasn't it?


Five minutes later, and Untaaura was back to look for her missing Lupine, each hand now freezing and holding a cup full of an opaque thick beverage made of green and orange swirls, topped by a cluster of orange pearls, with a wide paper straw shoved alongside. Untaaura steered one of the straws to the corner of her mouth and allowed herself a little nostalgia as she looked for Teagan in the crowd. One thing was for sure, crowds were way less enjoyable when dressed like a civvie. It was easy to have personal space in crimsons and golds, even when short.

[Abarai Loki]

"As long as you're happy, I don't think it matters where you are. Happiness is home."

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

With the ghost of a smile, Loki gave a nod. It was a sweet notion, perhaps too saccharine for his soured sensibilities, but he would do his best to take it to heart. There was wisdom in those words that rang true even to his own experiences. Ossus had once been his home and, indeed, he had been happy, there. For a time. If only he’d tried to enjoy it more. In his mind’s eye, a small and serious boy was casting a long shadow, and a familiar creeping dread threatened to take a hold of him. He considered Teagan’s words, again – her mother’s words – deceptively simple, like all enduring wisdom.

“If your mother says so, there must be some truth to it,” he added, after some consideration, “She was one of the few people who ever made sense to me. I think you have inherited her intelligence.”

Amongst other unique traits.

Loki cast his mind back to a time when he joined Teagan’s mother aboard the Valiant, and there, inside her impressive office, Loklorian s’Ilancy divulged ancient truths of her people, the Losstarot Lupines. Even to his cynical mind, it had been wonderous to see the stuff of mythology thrown into sharp relief by historical fact. And Teagan herself was living testament to the miracle, revealed in all its glory in the shape of a mischievous pup that slobbered all over his first lightsaber. In times like this, it felt like he was reflecting on someone else’s life. And that made it easier.

And Teagan, despite their shared past, remained in many ways a mystery to him. She spoke candidly of her time on Cathar, her sudden departure and new found family in Cirrsseeto Raurrssatta and Sanis Prent; there was so much he never took the time to learn. He looked and spotted her casting glances into the crowd, and searching the upper walkways. Disregarding it for idle curiosity, he pressed on:

“It occurs to me now that there is precious little I know of your past. Were you born on Cathar? Was it difficult being different?”

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

This side of him was such a departure of what she was used to, back when he was still on Ossus. In those older times, he had never shown any interest in any of his students. He'd only been focused on showing them how to fight, and how to understand the ways that the Force spoke to them in those sorts of tense situations. But now, he was like some sort of whole new creature. It... it wasn't a bad thing, just so very different from the Abarai Loki that she had once known. Of course, their conversation since he'd approached her had been such a departure from what she remembered of him that she shouldn't have been surprised.

Still though, Teagan couldn't help the break in her searching to look at him in with slightly-raised eyebrows.

"Well... yeah. I was born on Cathar. It was a lot of fun, the times I can remember."

Shoulders hitching back, the young Lupine rolled her head from side-to-side as she felt her neck bones give a series of audible cracks. It always felt so good!

My mother used to take me to the Joffa Market, which was always fun. Sweet-treat sellers, and trinket stalls, and there were also meat sellers and vegetable stalls. Everything you could think of, it was there."

Finally her eyes shifted away, and she let her gaze sift through the myriad of beings all around them until one finally caught her eyes. There was a noticeable lift to her features, and the girl let her long legs unfurl, feet finding the ground as she rose to stand. With one hand going up, she waved at the person she'd spotted.

There was a quick look back to Loki, her expression lit up with an excited smile.

"You remember Major Verratoa, right?"

[Untaaura Verratoa]

Well this was...

"Abarraji Lokji."

...weird.

Abarai Loki, Jedi Knight. There was a bit of mileage and rough living on him, but Untaaura couldn't forget that face. One of the first aliens she'd met upon touching down on Ossus. He very quickly made an impression.

That seemed like a lifetime ago. The man before her still projected gravitas, but not the sort that lay behind Jedi vestments. Mysteries and mysteries.

And a moment later, the Major was self aware that she was in civilian clothing, carrying two huge cups of neon-colored sweetness.

"jIss thjiss ssome kjind of Osssuss rreunjion tourr?"

[Abarai Loki]

Loki was upright, rigid even. His shoulders square. How it happened, he could scarcely recall, but at the appearance of Major Verratoa, his whole body inflated to assume an old familiar shape. The major’s name tumbled from his lips like a recording, with a curt assertiveness in his voice that turned his blood cold. It was bright on the station, and the red clay blazed like flame in the morning sun, the air was still and his bare neck baked in the heat. Ahead, a landing barge loomed, wings outstretched like the great peko albatross of Nabooian legend, with columns of immaculate Jaanni’saari spilling from its innards. They got to work, at once, putting together a skeleton of support beams for a large prefabricated shelter. The major stood like a boulder, compact and muscular in her smart uniform, with a tall beverage in each hand. Green and orange icy swirls crowned with amber pearls, and a thick straw. Strange. Loki’s eyes narrowed, as he regarded the bright drinks, and the sight of the major in her flared trousers and striped shirt. She said something about an Ossus reunion.

“I certainly hope not,” he said, at once. And he meant it. A quick glance over her shoulder for any sign of reinforcements helped him put to bed the nightmare scenario, for now. Tension started to break off of him, crashing about his feet like fractured shelves of ice until he was light enough again to turn to Teagan. She was not surprised to see Major Verratoa. The confusion melted from his face as he drifted towards the first logical explanation:

“You came to the station together?”

[Teagan s'Ilancy]

She could feel his shift, and at his final question, Teagan couldn't help but let her smile overtake her features as gamely reached out to liberate one of the two drinks that the Major had with her.

"I wish," she got out before giving a quick shrug.

Whatever liquid concoction that the Major had brought with her looked incredibly enticing, and the oversized straw was just as equally interesting.

"The Major works here now, on Jovan."

Well, 'now' was subjective. Two years was certainly not 'now', but truth be told, it felt like her Cizerack friend had been gone from Ossus for at least ten years.

"Seems to be a pretty good place to be."

And punctuating that final bit, the young Lupine brought the straw to her mouth, pulling in a measure of the drink, and swallowing, her eyes went wide in surprise.

[Untaaura Verratoa]

The look of naked surprise eased on Untaaura's face, thawed into almost a smile at seeing Teagan's first try of k'yorrbaa. She didn't dawdle on the moment though, not with Abarai Loki in immediate company.

"No sshorrtage of actjion, and the farrthesst posstjing that doessn't jinvolve a galleon. jI'm admjittedljy sstjill gettjing ussed to cjivjiljian clothess."

He seemed tense, but in the few interactions they'd had, he was always a bit keyed up. As if she could talk. Still, Untaaura's brow knit slightly, wondering what this all meant.

"jI command the Marrjine battaljion worrkjing ssecurrjitjy alongssjide the Alljiance contjingent."

An unspoken Should I be worried that you're here? hung afterwards in pregnant silence, broken by the slurping of a straw.

"Teagan'ss a bjit of a galactjic cjitjizen ssorrt, and jI wass gjivjing herr a rrun of the thjingss jI grrew up wjith back home."

Untaaura shifted the cold cup from one hand to the other, giving it a break. She then gestured to the brightly-neoned kiosk with a queue.

"jIf jyou've neverr been to the clussterr, jyou ought to have the trrue afterr sschool experrjience."

She looked back to Teagan with a grin, explaining.

"A drrojid rrjicksshaw would wheel up to mjy vjillage'ss academjy fjive mjinutess beforre the fjinal chjime of the dajy, and would sstajy forr onljy half an hourr, then sserrve up to two hundrred borred and ssugar-sstarrved sschoolgjirrlss. jIf jyou took 31 mjinutess to get to the top of the queue, well, ssuckss to ssuck."

Untaaura came to a realization upon saying that, and laughed a little.

"Guesss that'ss wherre jI found out that jI ljike to fjight."