Emilia Locke
Character
The speeder's quiet hum faded as it pulled away, leaving Emilia alone at the edge of the estate's gravel drive. She paused, breathing in the scent of Naboo's countryside, rich with flowering vines that clung lazily to the outer walls of the estate. The late afternoon sun cast golden lines through the treetops, their shadows stretching long across the manicured stone path leading toward the house.
She didn't go there, though. Not yet.
Instead, she veered off the walkway, cutting across the well-tended grass toward the gently sloping hill behind the estate. It led down to a private dock a modest stretch of wood that jutted out into the lake's crystal waters. The kind of place you could forget things. Or at least pretend to.
She kicked off her low-heeled shoes as she walked, letting bare feet feel the cool grass. The dock creaked under her weight, but held as firm as ever. Emilia dropped down at the edge, folding her legs beneath her, blazer shrugged off and draped beside her like a fallen standard. Rolled sleeves, wind in her hair, datapad silent and tucked away.
The lake stretched before her in quiet, gentle ripples catching the sunlight, bordered by tall reeds and pale stone. A pair of nesting birds flitted low over the surface, wings nearly skimming the water.
For the first time in what felt like weeks, she allowed herself to breathe without thinking.
Her thoughts wandered not to corporate scandals or political positioning, but to simpler things. Childhood visits. The way the air always felt clearer here. The summers where time moved slower. A small smile tugged at the corner of her lips as she leaned back on her hands, head tilting to catch the last rays of sun.
She heard an approaching speeder, her eyes turning toward the house before she shrugged and leaned back slightly. She didn't move, not right away. Just sat there on the dock, bare feet dangling over the lake's edge, waiting for her cousin to join her.