Aliquam Vitae (PM to Join)

[The Spark]

Location: Naboo, Theed City
Map - http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20140111071410/starwars/images/a/a9/TheedMap.jpg
Circa: 825 ABY
Character Location: Queen Yram's Needle.

Alyesa looked up at the needle that was dedicated to one of the only Queen's of Naboo who had done so much work for the planet of Naboo and the city of Theed, of course next to Padme Amidala Skywalker. Unfortunately, it was sad to also understand that the Queen was the last of her dynasty and because of it the Gungans came to distrust the Naboo people and a war broke out between the two denizens of Naboo. The one thing she loved about her homeworld was how rich and full of culture it was. The one thing she despised, even though she was apart of that part of society, was the rich and uppity class boys that wandered about and pretended as if they were better than those who were ravaged by the wars and the Gulag Virus.

Despite the virus itself being eradicated for the most part, it still had it's ramifications on people as a whole, and high society had a tendency to forget that. It was one of the reasons she entered into politics. One of the reasons she entered and successfully passed the Apprentice Legislation program. She had recently applied to the University of Coruscant and was waiting to see if she had gotten accepted or not, now that was nail biting. A heavy sigh escaped her lips as she moved away with the datapad in her hand, browsing over the holonews and the various feeds from around the Galaxy, especially the ones within the Chommel Sector. Politics from the galaxy point of view was about who could score the most brownie points with lobbyists and dealers, now her view was different. Who could she help first before she helped herself and what kind of impact could she make? What kind of difference?

A gentle breeze caused leaves to rush past her down the walkway as she headed through the Great Archways towards the Grand Palace in the distance. Whisps of silvery hair getting in her vision, causing her to stop and brush a few strands away that were loose. Sapphire orbs of curiosity stared into the datapad at the latest from the Office of the Supreme Chancellor, waiting for something new and exciting. Perhaps a humanitarian bill or some kind of funding to help the displaced from the past war. She groaned as he began giving his usual speech on how the Republic was and where it was headed before she flipped the datapad off.

"I'm a realist, don't get me wrong..." She said to herself, nodding in affirmation. She knew she'd be called upon to vote for war, in the best interests of the Republic and for her people. Freedom had a cost and to protect her people, it meant people had to die. She shuddered at the thought, continuing down the street towards the Grand Palace. She would support it in the interests of the Republic, but not for unjust reasons....that is if she ever made it that far in politics.

[member="Marcello Matteo"]

 

[Marcello Matteo]

The clean-cut, uniformed visage of Marcello Matteo made quick progress away from the Grand Palace. Running a large hand through his short blonde hair, the RSF officer mumbled a number of muted obscenities regarding the meeting he had just entertained. The typical career progression of pilots amongst the RSF was to, inevitably, complete some sort of administrative rotation prior to returning to an active unit for a middle-management tour as a Department Head. However, Marcello was pretty well certain that he was at least two years from that point in his career. "That shit's not happening."

Having only recently returned from a diplomatic escort operation of one of Naboo's influential nobles, the young Lieutenant had been recommended by his Commanding Officer for early assignment as a personal assistant to the Captain of the RSF. Ordinarily, that would mean that Marcello was just a stellar performer. Well, guess what? He absolutely was a stellar performer, but he was a stellar performer that had, apparently, broken the heart of his CO's daughter. The man knew that Marcello wanted nothing to do with anything administrative...hell he wasn't even good about submitting his reports and evaluations on time. "Whatever."

Withdrawing his datapad from his pocket, Marcello's glacier-blue orbs pulled up the several messages he had received during his forced interview at the Grand Palace. Perhaps it was time to start considering alternative career options.

[member="Alyesa Praxon"]

 

[The Spark]

Typical busy people, never looking where they were going....

*BAM*

Two bodies collided together rather harshly, except only one of them bounced off and hit the ground in a rather painful way. Alyesa saw stars and flecks of light as she impacted the stone of the street, she cried out in pain. "OW! Can you please pay attention next time!" She hollered at the man, her vision swaying a bit as she tried to focus on him. All she saw was this blonde headed blur looking down at her, mouthing something. She felt hands grapple her arms and lift her up rather quickly and abruptly. Her ears were ringing in spite of it all, drowning out what he was saying but only for a few seconds. He kept repeating himself again and again until finally the ringing faded and she could make out his words.

"Are you ok?" He said.

She brought her hand up to the back of her head, her vision finally coming into focus, her facial expression going from one of pain to surprise. "Oh, I know you!" Her hand came down from the back of her head as she pointed at him with a bit of excitement. "You're that guy who my brother went to school with..." And then her facial expression shifted again, to one of sadness. Her brother, Harmon Praxon II. He had also attended the Royal Security Forces training and died in a horrible accident in the swamp regions of Naboo. It took her a moment to realize he was no longer looking at her face, but at the blood that covered her fingertips, a slender eyebrow raised as she brought her hand back to her head again and then infront of her. The warm liquid slowly flowed down her fingers, drying as the skin absorbed it back within the pores like a sponge.

"Well, that isn't good..." Was all she could manage to say before her eyes rolled into the back of her head and she collapsed into a heap of limp body parts.

[member="Marcello Matteo"]

 

[Marcello Matteo]

There was...something within Marcello that gave him the feeling something was about to happen. Out of curiosity more than anything, the RSF Lieutenant looked up just in time to watch a diminutive girl with long hair collide into him and recoil onto the ground. It wasn't just any little over-exaggerated fall. It sounded like a pile of books had just been unceremoniously dropped onto the ground. "I'm so sorry!" He thought her retort about paying attention was a touch childish, but she looked like she was about sixteen years old anyways.

Rolling his eyes, Marcello bent down to try and help her back to her feet. "Are you ok?" By the time he'd gotten her on her feet, her expression seemed to change immediately along with her tone. Her excited exclamation about knowing him forced Marcello to arch a curious eyebrow. Then she completely explained how she supposedly knew him. You know...with zero percent detail. Just as Marcello was about to respond with a question, he noted the blood covering her fingertips. This time the mysterious warning came well enough in advance for him to do something. Lunging forward, he managed to catch [member="Alyesa Praxon"]'s slender frame in his arms.

Cradling the girl carefully, Marcello made quick work towards the nearest medical facility. Given their proximity to the Grand Palace, it was back in the direction he really preferred not to go. When he arrived, Marcello quickly gave the nurses and doctor a quick rundown on what had happened. They took her back to examine and work on just before directing him to the waiting room. Taking a seat, Marcello pulled out his datapad once more and tried not to think about what would happen if that girl ended up seriously injured.

 

[The Spark]

A silver polished droid exited the Emergency Room doors where the Doctors had rushed Alyesa through while talking among themselves just thirty minutes prior. The droid was carrying a rather large datapad that was not transparent like most datapads, most likely carrying patient data on the front. The stuffy 5Y-Q series droid scanned the area before it spotted Marcello, it's servos whining as it made it's way to him. Upon arriving, the droid held up the datapad and then brought it back down, it's voice modulator manipulating a feminine tone.

"Are you the man who brought Ms. Praxon in?" But before he could answer, the droid fired off another question. Taking a look at the large datapad. "Do you realize Ms. Praxon is a minor?" Again before he could answer, another question. "Ms. Praxon belongs to the House of Naberrie, has the House been notified?" Once more, another obnoxious interruption. "Are you apart of the House of Naberrie?" The droid brought the large datapad up infront of both it and [member="Marcello Matteo"] now patiently waiting for his responses.

 

[Marcello Matteo]

If he'd been siting there for thirty minutes, then he probably put his own datapad away about...oh...twenty-eight minutes ago. Since then, Marcello had simply busied himself by watching the routine programming on the medium-sized holotube in the corner of the room.

When a droid entered the waiting room directing its mechanical voice at him, Marcello's glacier-blue gaze watched the device. He'd started to respond, but the droid seemed to be in quite the hurry. After the final question regarding House Naberrie, Marcello just looked at the thing. "Oh I can talk now." With a shallow nod of his head, Marcello continued. "Cool. Anyways...no I didn't realize any of that. You're right though, I probably should have stopped to interrogate her while she bled out from the head." He'd explained what had happened to the nurse that drew up the initial paperwork anyways.

A sudden realization did dawn on him from the droid's rapid fire interrogation. House Naberrie. First of all...shit, not good. Second of all, she must have been Harm's little sister. Marcello had met her a handful of times years ago, but [member="Alyesa Praxon"] was much younger back then so...connecting the dots wasn't so easy in such a brief circumstance. Harm was a good guy, decent pilot too. Unfortunately it was a dangerous lifestyle and even the slightest accident could kill someone...even if the accident was not perpetrated by the victim. Staring at the droid, Marcello managed a smile. "So this is the part where you tell me how she's doing." Clearly his bedside manner needed work.

That would mostly be his curse his entire life.

 

[The Spark]

"Ms. Praxon is in stable condition..." The droid replied and looked down at the datapad. "Unfortunately, I cannot release Medical details to unauthorized personnel. If you do not leave the premises, I will be forced to call the Royal Security Forces." The droid stated, her voice modulator attempting to sound serious. A woman of notable social stature appeared to brush by the conversation as the name Praxon was mentioned and turned around with a small detachment of guards that followed her back to the droid before speaking up.

"Is that a problem?" The elder woman said, looking to the droid and then to [member="Marcello Matteo"]. Her head tilted to the side as she continued to examine the blonde hair man, her eyes narrowing as the droid began to speak and before it could complete a sentence, Lyndra's hand came up and placed it over the audio port of the droid. "Silence, before I have you melted down and turned into a statue in my garden."

"I know you young man, what is your name?" the elder woman said.

 

[Marcello Matteo]

Marcello had one reaction to the droid. That reaction was laughter; warm, vibrant, sincere laughter. They were in a hospital waiting room. In fact, he wanted the droid to call security. Unfortunately, some woman he did not immediately recognize intervened. In but a few moments, the woman had turned her attention to Marcello. He was popular with the ladies today, it would seem. This day just kept getting more and more ridiculous.

Coming to his feet, Marcello exhaled heavily. "Do you? Well apparently I'm the most well-known man in Theed today. Marcello Matteo." Raising his right hand slightly, Marcello stared at the woman with an empty expression. "Don't tell me. You knew Harmon." Clearly manners hadn't exactly been a huge part of Marcello's middle-class childhood. Or...any part of his adult life thus far. Just a rogue in a uniform. That was being punished for giving his boss' daughter the best weekend of her life.

He was going to give up his womanizing ways...never.

[member="Alyesa Praxon"]

 

[The Spark]

The elder woman laughed and one of the guards stepped forward and made a motion with his hand towards Marcello, rather quickly Taima stepped between the guard and Marcello and nodded. "It's alright, he is still as snarky as he was when he was a little boy." She patted the guards chest and motioned him away. The guard took a few steps back, allowing Taima some room to speak to Marcello. This woman was indeed an elder, perhaps in her 60s or better. Her body shifted to face Marcello fully, a sly smile coming to her facial features. "I remember when you were about as high as my knee, tromping through my gardens..." Her hands came before her, clasping them together tightly.

The smile still remained on her face as she continued to describe Marcello. "A somewhat spoiled child despite your parents best efforts to contain you..." Her hands unclasped and motioned him for him to follow. She turned away from him and moved towards the Emergency Room doors where Alyesa had been taken. "You and Harmon both destroyed countless artifacts throughout my garden.."

She stopped a few feet away, the guards fanning out in a typical military fashion. She looked back at [member="Marcello Matteo"], her smile turning to an unimpressed frown. "And you even set Alyesa's hair on fire once." With that comment, she turned back towards the doors and continued onward, with or without him.

"But of course you wouldn't remember..." She said loudly and abruptly. "How can a man who has probably been struck so many times in the head remember anything but which foot goes infront of the other?"

 

[Marcello Matteo]

Marcello's glacier-blue eyes looked on the quite presumptuous guard with barely contained irritation. What the hell was going on in the hospital? First he was going to get arrested, by his own people mind you, for waiting in a hospital to ensure the girl he'd benevolently brought in was still alive. Now, some guard was trying to muscle up on him, an officer with the Royal Security Force, for exchanging words with his boss? And this old lady seriously thought she was doing him a favor.

The cogs of his memory turned quickly. Truth of the matter...he never much even made an effort to get to know Harmon's family. He'd had a strong distaste of rich people since, you know, forever. They were his parents' friends not his. He'd dived into any number of full contact sports at his earliest opportunity. Needless to say those savage pursuits kept him away from any noble dealings. Though now that he thought about it...he recalled Harm's little sister having some ridiculous crush. Hah. She probably didn't get dessert or something. He'd always envisioned that was how rich kids got punished.

Pulling himself from his little trip down memory lane, Marcello looked at the elderly woman, his face completely impassive. "Yeah. Could be that, or it could be that I worked really hard to forget anything about my interactions with your family. You know...it got a little old being your less-affluent, bound for nothing of importance family friends." Marcello's view of the very sincere friendship shared between his family and that of [member="Alyesa Praxon"] was understandable given his young age at the time. "Then again maybe it's just sleep deprivation."

No he definitely just didn't give a crap. Exhaling heavily, Marcello folded his arms over his chest. "Now that her family is here, I suppose I can leave. Anything else I can do for you, My Lady?"

 

[The Spark]

Taima stopped dead in her tracks and turned to face Marcello, a smile coming upon her old features as she made her way back to him. "You know, I watched you grow up from a snarky little boy into a man who obviously has a wonderful life ahead of him..." She stopped a few inches away, her hands coming before him as she chuckled, adjusting her posture a bit as she reached up and adjusted [member="Marcello Matteo"] uniform. "Such a handsome man whom I'd hate to see reduced to nothing in the Royal Security Forces...a refresher scrubber? Maybe?" She said with a sly undertone as she patted his chest. "You never were a patient young man..." She continued to eye him up and down. "Now come along, I believe Alyesa will want to see you..."

 

[Marcello Matteo]

If the woman had been literally anyone other than someone his parents were admittedly fond of, he would have been very adamant about keeping her hands away from him. For a moment, he was transported to another time in his life when he was nothing more than a little kid, his mother fussing over some school uniform or another. At least he learned to wear a uniform properly, rather than constantly...modifying it just to be a non-conformist.

The elderly woman's threat, however, passed completely without reaction from Marcello. There wasn't a reason to engage in a battle of wits. He'd probably lose, and he really just wanted to get a drink. Clearly going along with the woman was his quickest route to that pleasure. Following, he idly commented, "Alright..." Marcello couldn't fathom why [member="Alyesa Praxon"] would want to see him at the moment.

 

[The Spark]

When they went behind the doors of the Emergency Room, it was relatively quiet considering the fact it was a Hospital in the center of Theed. The guards kept close as to try not to disturb the patients and flow of doctors and medical droids going in and out of medbays. They made their way around a few corners, walking for a brief distance before coming to a small semi-secluded area where two Royal Security Forces were posted at the entrance of one of the Medical Bays. Taima was stopped midway by a doctor who whispered something in her ear, causing her to nod sagely. "Of course, of course.." As they approached the entryway, the elder lady smiled and pointed to the door. "She has asked to see you.." she smiled and moved back over to the doctor and began speaking with the man again, the two laughing about something that sounded like family and gardening.

[member="Marcello Matteo"]

 

[Marcello Matteo]

Marcello afforded the woman little more than a fleeting glance before he stepped forward. The amount of guards in this hospital was freaking ridiculous. [member="Alyesa Praxon"] had been walking along the street completely on her on. Where had her guards been to keep her from splitting her head open? Now they were hear protecting her room...in a hospital that already had a security staff. Shaking his head, Marcello laughed softly. "Stellar."

Entering Alyesa's room, Marcello's glacier-blue eyes found the diminutive teenager's form. Managing a thin, roguish smile, he made his way over to the side of her bed and folded his arms across his chest. "Well. You're not the scrawny little girl with freckles that I remember, that's for sure." He supposed it was something like a compliment.

 

[The Spark]

"And you're not the chubby boy who caught my hair on fire cause I wouldn't give him a piece of my Spindel cake...." She raised an eyebrow in return to him, a smile creeping up on her lips and then a sudden burst of laughter. "I'm sorry about all the guards." She made motions around to the different guards within the room. "My House is rather popular in the upcoming elections and well having turned seventeen a few days ago, it's been somewhat of a hot issue..." She smiled brightly and held up a hand. "Not for Queen obviously, but for other things."

She reached out and gently took his hand, bringing it within her own. "Literally bumping into you reminded me of something, I never saw you at Harmon's funeral, how come?" She tilted her head out of curiosity, staring at him with deep blue eyes.

[member="Marcello Matteo"]

 

[Marcello Matteo]

Marcello arched a curious eyebrow at [member="Alyesa Praxon"]'s initial statement. "I haven't been chubby since I was like twelve, so I'm surprised you even remember." That was largely an irrelevant point however. To say that Marcello had no love of anything political was perhaps the understatement of the year. Elections...favored houses. Whatever. None of it truly affected him in the slightest, but he nodded along to the young girl's comments anyways.

When the conversation shifted to his friend's funeral, Marcello offered a swift response. "I was going to go, but it was...difficult." Marcello had been there, watched Harmon's fighter plunge into the swamp as he tried to avoid an illegal move that a fellow classmate had done in response to...the illegal move Marcello and Harmon had done. Sure, Marcello had been grounded for a short while for violating policy, but Harmon had lost his life.

It had been a tight pill to swallow. "I came later. After the crowds of friends and family that we're deserving of Harmon." Shrugging slightly, the young pilot did what he could to maintain composure. He pushed the limits frequently, living out on the edge, doing what was necessary to win. He was borderline reckless and most things he touched almost always ended up destroyed one way or another.

Little did Marcello know it had been the start of a personal conflict he would not soon overcome.

 

[The Spark]

Alyesa raised an eyebrow and shrugged it off. "Harmon knew what he was doing, and I read the report." She struggled and moved off the edge of the bed and over to him, grasping his forearm with her hands. "I loved my brother, don't get me wrong, but..." She patted his arm and looked it over with a smile on her face, trying to be reassuring. "I will always blame him for not coming home." She ran her hand up and down his arm before letting go. "You deserved my brother as much as I did, you guys were friends for life and apparently life is calling you elsewhere." She made a motion before moving back to the bed and sitting down. "Have you ever looked at leaving Naboo?"

 

[Marcello Matteo]

Marcello was, initially, surprised by the touch of [member="Alyesa Praxon"]'s hands. Her prior comment regarding Harmon had all but fallen upon deaf ears. He'd heard similar from just about everyone, but it would never change how he felt. He had killed his best friend trying to win, to be the best. His own thirst for glory had been not his undoing...but that of his best friend. What was his penance? A life without a friend but still a great life. It was like a cruel joke.

When Alyesa finally released her grasp, Marcello shrugged. "I guess." The truth was...not until recently. "I don't think about much I just...do." Glacier-blue eyes looked up with a brief spark that could have been mischief or just the natural reaction of his eyes to light. The glance was accompanied with his typical roguish, amused grin. "Creature of passion and impulse I'm afraid."

Which explained...a lot.

 

[The Spark]

Again, another chuckle. "I've accepted a position within the Republic Senate, one far away from here." She heaved a sigh and motioned to him, her head tilting to her side, a bright smile on her face as she spoke. "You seem to be comfortable here though!" Her hand fell quickly to her lap, the guards around her started moving, packing items they had brought for her and one even brought her a white dress, strapless with blue lilies in various places. She turned and nodded to him before her gaze fell back to [member="Marcello Matteo"]. "I mean, I could always use some company where I'm going?"

 

[Marcello Matteo]

Marcello laughed soflty at [member="Alyesa Praxon"]'s delcaration. Of course she, the surviving heir to nobility, would be leaving Naboo to make policy fo the greater Republic. Or at least, what was left of it in the wake of the Gulag Virus. Her follow-up exclamataion passed without more than a shrug from the large pilot. He was...comfortable, but that would change rapidly if he elected to become some desk-weenie.

As Alyesa's clothing was delivered, Marcello remained standing...somewhat uncomfortably. Her final comment, however, forced a pause into the air that was so thick it was nearly palpable. Focusing his glacier-blue gaze on the young girl, Marcello eventually allowed a thin smile to touch his lips. "Company huh? I'm not much into babysitting these days..." His tone indicated he was...mostly joking. "Where are you going, anyways?"