Private Boxing Day

[Colette]

Thump… WHACK.
Thump… WHACK.
THUMP-WHACK.
Pant, pant, pant.
THUMP-THUMP-THUMP-WHACK-THUD.

The punching bag swayed back and forth with a violent creaking noise. This thing was a good friend to have when there were frustrations to air out, and despite how well Colette’s life had been going as of late there was still that nagging sensation at the back of her mind that frustrated her for no good reason. She was excelling at her studies, she practically breathed the concept of being on the move and up to something productive.

And yet that still didn’t feel like it was enough. Ever since she had come to the Jedi it just hadn’t ever felt like she did enough. There were so many lives in the galaxy that would have killed to have this chance that she had, and out of all the people in the order it was she who had been picked as Valery’s apprentice. That had to mean something, and while she didn’t know what that was yet, it was something that she always sought to answer.

Her body showed that, her reflexes and her mind showed it too. The girl pushed herself a lot, and when she didn’t push herself to her ends, she played guitar. Or she hung out with Vera, or the triplets, or anyone who was around the house.

Today was something different though. Kahlil had offered some kind of lesson in hand-to-hand. Valery had shown her some of that already, but Colette wasn’t about to say no to another reason to learn.

Besides that he was technically her father now. It still felt odd to refer to anyone as a parent. The very word rang so hollow with how little it really meant to her, but… Kahlil was alright. He was still just Kahlil, the same as Valery was just Valery (on top of “Master”) but Colette certainly treasured them more than most people.

“Kah- Da-...” Colette sighed in disappointment that she still couldn’t say something as simple as ‘dad’ to him. “Hey, Kahlil.” She smiled, crossed her arms, and leaned against the bag to play cool. The bag however was still an object attached to a chain. It began to move and Colette stumbled to regain her balance for a moment before she cleared her throat. “It’s really good to see you.”

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Whether he noticed her stumbling over her choice of words for him or not he didn't make it known. He did chuckle a little as she leaned too much on the bag and near stumbled to the ground, though. But that was the only change in the soft, calm smile he had on his face as he entered. It was through Valery that a lot of what Kahlil knew of Colette came from. The dyad between the Shield and Sword often made them near the same person.

And yet, they weren't the same person. Colette and Kahlil still barely knew much about one another. Which meant it was time to change that. given they were family.

"It's good to see you too, Colette. Your homeworld, they taught you to fight, yeah?"

Colette

 

[Colette]

Kahlil Noble

"Eh, not really." She said and shrugged. "We—" Was there really a 'we' at this point? She corrected herself. "They were strong believers in nonviolence unless absolutely necessary. Uh, pacifists as some would call it."

"But, I do know how to shoot a target at a two hundred yards and I could hold my own in small scraps before coming to the Jedi, but… Not really, no. Beyond what Valery has shown me, I don't know how to fight."

Quick correction necessary. She cleared her throat.

"Well, actually I am more than capable in a fight these days. I'm sure Valery has told you. But I still have a lot to learn about being in a real fight."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Ah, that.. Is surprising." He hadn't expected that she came from an overly peaceful group of people, given how in tune with nature she seemed to be and from what he'd heard of the planet and culture she came from. Though, perhaps they were just peaceful with other people.

"You are quite capable, though. Valery certainly has her praises for it. But, well. Just like Valery want's to teach you about her culture, her people, I want to teach you about the Epicanthix." He glanced to the punching bag for a brief moment, smiling faintly.

"You might hear a lot about them. Especially if the war with the Sith picks up again. Brutal warmongers who prioritize battle and the ritual sacrifices of their enemies by fire." There was no real reason to sugar coat it.

For better or worse Colette was now related to one of the most dangerous Sith in the galaxy.

"That's how my father, who's now your grandfather, has ruled the Epicanthix for over half a century. How the Zambrano have for even longer. But that's not our culture. The Seszil Bsaakik, er, Silver Blooded, have long believed that my father and how he's run the Epicanthix is wrong. And they, like Flii Bsaakik, were abandoned by the Zambrano when Panatha was destroyed. .. It's a bit of a history lesson I suppose, but I do think it's important for you to know."

Colette

 

[Colette]

Kahlil Noble

Colette calmly nodded along as Kahlil spoke to her. She had become vaguely familiar with the Epicanthix when she had first been assigned to Valery as a padawan, and she had even called them 'stupid' to Kahlil's face. For the sake of saving her own skin she wouldn't bring this up.

"Right, one loyal to Kaine and the other that is not." She said and crossed her arms. "It's almost kind of funny how different my culture and the Epicanthix can be."

"My people were more divided by nature. The forest tribes, the desert tribes, and the plains tribes." Colette eased out of her crossed arms. "We weren't big on eating meat, but we had it to boost the effect of our food. Meat contains a lot of new-tree-ents that we'd miss otherwise."

"So, we hunted as little as we needed when we came across the savannah and made sure that nothing went to waste."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"It sounds simple. There's peace in simple."

Though, not eating meat often sounded odd to Kahlil. The Epicanthix certainly enjoyed their feasts and the meat that came with them. Protein was a vastly important part of their own cuisine. Perhaps she might take more to eating meat with the Noble's now that she was here. Valery herself did like cooking steaks.

"Do you like meat?"

Colette

 

[Colette]

Kahlil Noble

"Of course!" Colette exclaimed. "It was just considered a luxury, and one that we had to savor when we had the chance."

"An animal died for our sake, and it was our responsibility to make sure that it meant something. Every animal taken from the world was a debt that we had to repay. The fat has many uses, the meat can be eaten, and the bones ground down into powder."

"So, I like meat, but hopefully that meat is also from an animal that was at the end of its life. You know, like the circle of life. Giving back to the world that you were born into."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Sinew can be used for string."

There were many uses for the parts of a animal. While the nobility of Panatha never bothered with it, he'd read of their planets hunters making sure to use everything they could. They couldn't afford to do otherwise.

"But it's good you like meat. That'll make Valery happy."

Colette

 

[Colette]

Kahlil Noble

"Yes!" Colette smiled, Kahlil was obviously going to be good with hunting and animals. It made sense that he had the background for it. Not because he was a man, or from a warrior culture, but because he was a diligent man.

"Anyway, you called me here for a reason, right?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Yeah."

Kahlil stepped over to the punching bag, setting a hand against it briefly. "Epicanthix are a warrior culture. We've our own style of fighting, and families often have their own additions to it based on the various cultures their ancestors might have hailed from. I want to teach you our style. Since you're family, it only seems fitting."

Colette

 

[Colette]

Kahlil Noble

Right, it was warrior culture. Colette frowned for a moment out of sheer habit or reflex. It didn't make sense but she was coming to terms with it.

"Style?" She asked and crossed her arms. "You mean like the Echani has a style?"

"In a way it doesn't make sense that you can just sort of punch people in different ways, right? Like it's just a punch. They all accomplish the same pain."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Yeah kinda though I wouldn't say that to another here on Niv Hani. Epicanthix are very prideful." There'd likely be some kind of comparison between calling a house cat a Bha'lir or such. Though, his expression did soften.

"Under my father's rule, you'd be right. But that's not why we learned to fight originally. It's not why we fight at all. That's the difference between a Silver Blooded and the Iron Blooded. Our style, why we fight, isn't to inflict pain but to end a fight before it cost more lives, or inflicted more pain. We fight to defend ourselves, our people. And the style I want you to learn was made for that exact reason, long before my great grandparents turned to the Sith and warped it."

Colette

 

[Colette]

Kahlil Noble

Prideful, right. Like when she called the Epicanthix stupid to Kahlil's face and got a staredown. It wasn't something she would forget. The only reason she even spoke so plain to Kahlil at this point was because, well, he had signed up for the worse parts of having Colette for a daughter.

"Alright." Colette said and eased up. She jogged on the spot to get herself going again. "So, any initial stance?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Yes. Hands up, fists curled. Feet apart."

He got into the technical side of it right away. How to hold herself, how to keep her hands up, when and where to strike out. How to defend herself. The concept was a simple one, especially considering Colette's affinity with water. Act like the waves, passive with the ebb and flow of combat, but come in like a crashing wave when the moment was right.

Colette

 

[Colette]

Kahlil Noble

Shoulder-width, straighten the back, hands at the ready. Colette focused on the calm and steady breaths that Valery had shown her in the first days of her education, and then she simply tried to follow along with Kahlil as he showed her what to do. It wasn't a perfect replication of his style but it was an earnest attempt.

"It's not that I don't enjoy violence," Colette said between movements. "It's that I don't want to be in a situation where I have to use it."

"It's a sign that reason has been lost."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Epicanthix don't enjoy violence. A lot of us enjoy the sport of it, where we can show off to one another and other likeminded people. But fighting to kill, to hurt someone, it wasn't how we were. How we are."

He only gave minor points here and there. For the moment, it was all about her learning the movements, the forms. She'd have to at least master the basics before they would get to the more complex things.

"Even then we know there will always be a time someone won't listen to words or diplomacy. When that happens, we fight without restraint to make sure they do not remain a threat for long."

Colette

 

[Colette]

Kahlil Noble

"Alright." Colette spoke between movements. "But why kill them?"

She continued to follow along with Kahlil. It was clear that she was paying very close attention. Not because she was getting drastically better with each second but because of the very focused frown on her lips as she followed along with his movements.

Colette wanted to master this, and fast. It would be a good card in her sleeve.

"Isn't that kind of wasteful?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Depends. Lets say you fight someone to defend the triplets. Someone who wanted to kill them, and there are people who will want to kill them. Would you risk their safety? Their only target is the triplets, and if you hesitate, if you mess up incapacitating them and they can get a shot off, would you risk it?"

She was getting a hang of it. She wasn't going to master it in a day, but once she at least knew the foundations she'd be able to practice on her own. Still, the topic was a heavy one, and one he didn't want to gloss over.

"This style is made to incapacitate any threat. While it can keep someone alive, the purpose behind it is to make sure you're alive, and the people you're defending. There's a lot to unpack with that mindset, though. I can tell you how the Epicanthix here will handle those situations, but you are also a Jedi. So don't hesitate to ask your mom about it. I don't want to step on what she wants to teach you, after all."

Colette

 

[Colette]

Kahlil Noble

The question made Colette, and even she noticed it. She was still stuck in the stance, but no movements mimicked Kahlil. At least not for a while as she thought about the scenario Kahlil explained. There was a lot of conflict brewing beneath her skin and it was clear in the way her brows sank.

"I would…" The words felt alien to her, like they were spoken by someone else and yet at the same time they came straight from her own heart. "I would kill anyone that threatened my family."

That was…

It was heavy. It was surprising to her.

Colette let out a sigh, her eyes blinked as if she tried to figure out where the hell she was for a moment.

"In that scenario, I would never allow anyone to lay a hand on the triplets."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Learn. That's the most we can do."

He could see the weight of the choice on her face. The conflict. She wouldn't hesitate if she had to, but it certainly wasn't something she wanted to do. So, he spoke. "The more you learn, the more you know, the more tools you have both metaphorically and literally, the easier it will be to spare a life that would try to take yours or those around you. For now though, the form. You've got a handle on the basics, so keep at it whenever you can. Make it a daily ritual."

Colette