Private Batter Up

[Corazona von Ascania]

CRASH!

The nega-ball bat connected heavily with a small ceramic pot, shattering the crockery to pieces. Jagged shards scattered along the floor of the rage room.

Cora stared down at the remains of the vessel and heaved a satisfied huff.

The pot had almost been perfect aside from a handful of tiny chips. One on the handle, two on the lip of the opening right next to each other, and another scoring along the mount of the base. It had been painted with a rather fetching design of lilacs and lillies, lavenders and blues and greens intertwining around the smooth circumference.

It was a shame that something so very nearly perfect had ended up in a place like this. Cora felt a flicker of remorse for daring to destroy something so beautiful before she'd pulverized it into smithereens.

For the moment, it eased a minutia of tension from her shoulders.

Khalil had taken her to this very same establishment some months before, urging the Padawan to release any built up anger she'd developed against her father. It had been a deeply uncomfortable meeting at the time for two reasons.

First; visceral anger was not something that a proper noblewoman should show.

Second; he'd been made aware of the physical punishment her father had inflicted during her blunder at the Life Day ball. Family discipline was a deeply private matter to Cora, and it felt intrusive that someone she barely knew had access to such intimate details regarding her life. Even if she‘d consented to Valery sharing them.

Now, she'd come here after the disastrous engagement party on her home world of Ukatis. Cora was as upset with the arraigned marriage as she was the Jedi response to it.

Steely blue eyes honed in next on a delicate ceramic vase, but her gaze suddenly shifted as the door slid open.

Kahlil Noble

 

[Kahlil Noble]

He hadn't expected to see her here. Or maybe he did, and he hoped he would've run into her here. Kahlil really wasn't sure as he stepped through the door. He was all kitted out in the expected outfit, masked and padded up just as he heard the crash of pottery. Alright, good. She was at least willing to let her anger out instead of storing it up like a time bomb. Baby steps. Usually he'd be pretty calm about talkign to her.

Not so much after he punched her father.

"Hey. How're you doing, Cora?"

Corazona von Ascania

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

"I am well, thank you."

The response came out smoother than she imagined it would. There was a tiny edge to her polite tone, but one that Kahlil wouldn't miss.

"And yourself, Master Noble?"

Cora didn't realize that she was pointing the bat directly at him when she'd asked the question. At his head. She grunted, lowering her arm and turning her attention back to that stupid, delicate little vase that had no idea what was coming for it.

Or maybe it did, considering that it had been thrust into this room of destruction.

A heavy overhead swing shattered the thin, fragile porcelain in one blow.

"Taking a break from assaulting my family, are you?"

Cora winced. No, that was too much. Kahlil was still a Jedi Master, someone of his rank deserved her respect. Not snide commentary.

Kahlil Noble

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Ah.

Yeah. He deserved that. The Jedi Master practically winced at the snide thrown his way, leading him to just reach up and awkwardly rub the back of his head. At least she was being honest with her feelings. That much should be a good thing. A shame it was towards him. Or maybe that was a good starting point?

Kahlil honestly wasn't sure.

"I shouldn't have struck your father, as much as he deserved it. As a Jedi Master, it is my duty to be an example of calm. There's.. No excuse. I'm sorry. Especially if it made everything more difficult for you."

Corazona von Ascania

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

Cora regarded Kahlil with her full attention. The way she stared at him was almost unnerving—and for a moment, it looked as though she actually might yell at the Jedi Master.

Silence settled between the pair before Cora exhaled heavily, deflating where she stood.

Decorum won out and she'd held her tongue. He was remorseful for his actions, that much was clear.

"Thank you." Came her simple, earnest response after straightening up. "I understand now that you were only try to protect me. The way things work on Ukatis can get…complicated. Distressing even, if you're not accustomed to it. I should've warned you and my Master first."

Glancing down, she kicked a delicate porcelain shard before refocusing on Kahlil. The hat was offered to him.

"Want a go?"

Kahlil Noble

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"No, I think I'm done hitting things for a little while, at least."

Well, at least she was being honest with the breaking. Maybe not with her words, but yeah. He frowned, rubbing at the back of his neck again. He wasn't sure what to say. That was the issue with politics. People were too used to using their words effectively. Cora was doing the same, even now. Complicated? There was nothing complicated about it. But who was she speaking for? Her father? Her people?

Herself?

"What do you want, Cora?"

Corazona von Ascania

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

Cora looked to Kahlil, then to the bat between them. Her arm fell away, lowering the bat to the floor. The tip clunked against a shard of pottery.

“You’ll have to be more specific.”

She knew exactly what he was asking.

Kahlil Noble

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"We can do the political back and forth and dance around the topic, if you'd like. I'm a bit out of practice after abandoning my own royal line, but I'm not opposed to brushing up on the basics."

A turn of the hand pulled over something he could use as a seat. He wasn't planning on hitting anything, so why not sit?

"I know I didn't help. But I want to. I can't help if you don't tell me what you want."

Corazona von Ascania

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

Frustration tightened her gaze on Kahlil, culminating into a heavy exhale through her nose.

"I'm not particularly thrilled about being married at seventeen to a man that I barely know, to answer your question.”

There was an almost sort of weary humor in her voice when she said it out loud.

Cora rested the tip of the bat to the floor and placed both hands, one atop the other, across the handle.

"What I want most is to protect my family and the people of Ukatis. This marriage will do just that—refusing would cause backlash against them. Running away from the very people I've sworn to safeguard would be selfish."

Cora leaned against her weight against the bat and scrutinized the Jedi Master. In truth, she was incredibly embarrassed that this had all been made so public.

"Would you be able to support me going through with this marriage, even though you hate it? That is what would help me the most.”

Kahlil Noble

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Oh.

Kahlil stared at her for a moment, then settled back in his seat. Let out a sigh.

"You make a great Jedi, Cora."

Putting the many above the self. It was the duty of a Jedi, for certain. Self sacrifice from a child, a Padawan, wasn't something he was okay with, though. He crossed his arms. Closed his eyes. His knee even started to bounce as he tried to think the best way to tell her no. There wasn't, though. A reason to tell her no that didn't go against everything she'd been taught.

"I will not support you being sold as a slave, which is what this is. But I will support you helping your people, and your family. You will be named a Princess, which means you are royalty. Which means you will have the power to change things. I don't like it, but I will help you change Ukatis."

Corazona von Ascania

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

You make a great Jedi.

There it was again. First from Starlin, now from Kahlil. If anyone had said that to her a few months prior, she'd be beaming. Now it almost felt like an insult—but Cora was being uncharacteristically defensive. Abrasive, even.

She watched the Jedi Master anxiously as he wrestled with her request. Maybe Cora had only asked him something difficult in an attempt to drive him away, to push away the help because she was angry and didn't know how to make sense of her feelings.

The Padawan let out a heavy exhale.

"I hope you're right about that. About having the power to change things, I mean. I've got a hunch that my position will be more ceremonial than governing. You know, setting up charities and the like."

She waved one hand around in a vague gesture.

"Not that I think I'm above such work, of course. It's very important, but it'll hardly inspire a cultural shift. People on Ukatis want the luxury of modern goods and services while keeping the old rules intact."

It was a balancing act, one that she had no idea how to approach. Kahlil seemed to have an idea, though.

Kahlil Noble

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"You're absolutely just going to be a trophy wife, Cora. I've no doubt about it from what I've seen just from an outsider's point of view." No sugar coating it, not this time. Marrying the Prince wasn't a situation where they could dance around the subject. Not if she wanted to use it to leverage assistance for her people.

It still left a bad taste in Kahlil's mouth. But it was her choice. As much as he wanted to punch Marcel in the mouth again, what he said was right. What did Cora want, that's what he should support.

"Under my fathers rule those who spoke out against him were butchered. Not just killed, flayed, tortured, burned. It's barbaric. But easy to oppose. Easy to denounce as such, because people know about it. People talk about it. Your peoples traditions are no less barbaric, just easier to hide. If you want to change it, you're going to have to talk about it. Get the people to talk about it. And protect those that do. It won't be easy, and it will be dangerous. But staying quiet will only let people like your father think it's the right thing to do. Your brothers and sisters will grow up thinking it's the right thing to do."

He kept his gaze on her. He wasn't smiling. Not anymore.

"That's what you're going to have to face and put on your shoulders."

Corazona von Ascania

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

Cora listened to Kahlil intently. Her head cocked to the side, a small but present frown souring her expression when he'd called Ukatian traditions barbaric.

Inwardly, Cora wondered what Epicanthix traditions were like, what Kahlil and his people had suffered under Kaine Zambrano's reign of brutality. From what he'd described to her, it sounded like a bloodbath.

A finely manicured blonde eyebrow arched upward.

"Are you comparing arraigned marriage to…"

She shook her head. Cora didn't know how to put her thoughts into refined words. Her fingers idly strummed against the handle of the bat.

"I understand that your perspective of my home has been…limited to certain unpleasant customs. Arraigned marriages are often used among nobility to join families and seal agreements—not the most modern approach, I admit." She shrugged. "I don't believe them to be entirely uncommon in other cultures. As for what my father did to me-"

Cora sighed now. It was hard to take, and harder to talk about. Especially outside of her tight knit family circle.

"—that is not a Ukatian custom. That is simply the mark of a heavy handed man."

Kahlil may hate him, but Marcel von Ascania was still her father, and Cora's loyalty to her family was absolute.

Her face softened at the thought of them. Of her siblings. She chewed at the inside of her cheek.

"Would you perhaps be interested in visiting Ukatis again? Not the royal palace, this time. Not even the capital. I'd like to show you—and the rest of the Alliance, perhaps—that we are not barbarians. That we have some traditions worth protecting."

Kahlil Noble

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"I'm comparing a forced marriage of an underaged girl to it, yes. Do not misunderstand. I don't mind arranged marriages, provided you have a choice in denying it or not. Being afraid for your people and your family does not mean the illusion of choice you might've been given is real."

That was the key difference. And the fact that she wasn't even an adult. They could've at least waited another year to give her a choice. The fact they didn't, the fact her father decided for her and proceeded to hit her that same day, Marcel was very lucky all Kahlil had done was punch him. Then, his expression softened.

"That's.. Not what I was suggesting, Cora. I don't think your people are barbarians. I am.. Frustrated. That you are stuck dealing with this. It is not a position I want any Padawan, or child, or even just person in general, to be in. Our families should never be our burdens or duty."

Corazona von Ascania

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

It wasn't that Kahlil had spoken much—only a few sentences, really—but the contents of his words were weighty. Hands still resting against the bat, Cora lapsed into a thoughtful silence while she processed everything he'd said.

On one hand, she agreed. Arraigned marriages were tricky business. Cora had anticipated interviewing suitors, which would be followed by a courting period before any official proposals. The rules were different where the crown was concerned.

She was frustrated by it, too. It all felt terribly unfair, to lose her freedom and the life she was beginning to build all for the whims of one spoiled prince.

On the other hand, duty was ingrained into her blood. If she refused Horace, the consequences that could befall her family would be brutal. Protecting them was an easy choice, even if she suffered.

A sharp intake of breath tensed her shoulders, followed by a heavy sigh.

"I am frustrated as well. This…pardon my Zeltronian, but this sucks."

"But if you want to help me change things, you must understand my people and our customs better. Not just what you've seen at the royal palace."

Cora frowned, once again in thought.

"Forgive me if this is too forward, but…what was it like where you're from? Especially as a Prince?"

Kahlil Noble

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Sucks? That's what she had to say that she felt the need to be pardoned for?

Well, she'd make a good noble at least. It'd be funny, if it wasn't such a terrible topic they were talking on. He nodded. It made sense. Learn the people, then learn best how to help. Grant it, he wasn't a senator or even a leader of his people. The title of prince wasn't even something he believed in or officially held, he just used it now and then when it felt convenient. Probably a bad thing for a Jedi to do, but he was only using it to help people.

Mm. Not a good excuse.

"My sister killed me when I was four because she wanted my candy bar by throwing me off the banister. Then I was made as a clone, so technically I'm really Kahlil. Or I am. All the same memories, just a new body. Weird dilemma but not one to focus on. I was then marked as a vessel for my Father to take over whenever he might need to, turned into a science experiment of his, and isolated from my siblings. I never knew my mother, because she was a concubine, and generally being royalty, in your words, sucked. But what I went through, what my father did to our people- Horace seems like a jerk, but he's no Carnifex."

He paused for a moment, then reached up to rub the back of his neck. Frowned.

"It's not the same, but it's no less worse, what you're going through. It should not be legal, and no one should have to suffer because of your choice. I'd rather we find another way to protect everyone, than just sacrificing you and your happiness."

Corazona von Ascania

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

Cora blinked. Once, twice. Her own situation was not ideal—painful, even—but it paled in comparison to what Kahlil had been through. Part of her wondered how someone could come back from a life so awful, but she imagined that he hadn't even told her the half of it.

"That is…truly horrific, Master Kahlil. I'm so sorry for what you've been through, and at the hands of your own family, no less."

The Ascania children were not free of their own petty squabbles, but to be murdered for the sake of a candy bar?

"I'd rather there be a better way but," She shifted in place uncomfortably. "I don't see how there is. At least not now."

Cora was tired. She could feel the waning strength in her arms, and the creeping strain from how violently she'd struck the vase earlier. Mentally and emotionally, she was drained from what had happened on Ukatis, and from discussing the fallout.

"Thank you Master Kahlil. For taking the time to talk with me, I mean." The Padawan gave him a weary smile, fatigue wearing on her features. "It…means a lot to know that I'll have yours and Master Valery's support in this…situation. It seems that I have a lot to consider."

Kahlil Noble

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"What happened, happened. It's terrible, but it's not what matters. What matters is what you're going through." He motioned to her. His past he'd come to terms with. It's why he was a Jedi Master now, because he did. But for her, right now, being sold like she was, there was nothing okay about it. But.. He realized it now. Had, for a while, if he was being honest. Cora needed time to realize this all on her own, just how wrong it all was.

"Don't just consider. Let yourself feel. Let yourself be open about it. It doesn't have to be with Valery or myself, but do talk to someone about this. Just know it's not weakness to admit it's wrong. It's okay to feel scared, it's okay to feel unsafe. We'll make sure you don't, all you have to do is ask. When you're ready."

Corazona von Ascania