Private Come Hell or High Water

[Starlin Dinn]

"Oh, I've tried brushing them out" he said with a chuckle, a deepening blush settling into his cheeks in the wake of Braze's claims that he was quite fetching. "They're unruly, they have a mind of their own, I swear, though you're welcome to try."​

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He more openly admired Braze's stark white hair, then his emerald eyes, before focusing on the device the man brought out of his pocket. He tilted his head this way and that as he tried to make sense of it, and even when the video was playing he looked confused about how it was playing.​

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Confused, and then... Starlin bit back a gasp, unable to look away from the looping video of Braze showing off his strength. It was... impressive, and Braze was

"Perfection" he he softly whispered, breathlessly, though which part of the video he meant was hard to tell. "Y-You're very impressive" he hastened to add. "A-At, erm... at push-ups."​

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Braze ​

 

[Braze]

Tags: Starlin Dinn

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Braze chuckled at that. “I can show you how I ‘brush’ my hair, maybe…or perhaps I could help braid a section of yours. It’s a tradition for Padawans to wear a small braid in their hair, accompanied by beads…or sometimes only a strand of beads.”

“That’s mighty kind of you to say. It’s one of the exercises I do to stay fit and coordinated, a sort of moving meditation. It’s important to remain aware and in control of yourself,” he explained softly, before adding, “Neat huh ? It’s all fancy lights arranged to show you a moving picture in holo-video format.”

He blinked, wondering whether he had misheard Starlin. His head canted slightly to one side as he replayed the words in his mind, until their meaning finally settled into place. Braze found the entire exchange rather endearing. He gently closed the compact and returned it to his pocket.

“You’ll learn about all kinds of fun new technology, I imagine,” he assured him.

Braze reached up and pulled his goggles down, letting them rest against the scarf around his neck. He slipped the tie from his ponytail and shook his long hair loose, running a few fingers through the snowy white locks before offering Starlin a smile.

“Well, all right. A deal’s a deal…it’s relaxation time now, right?” he asked playfully, having quite literally let his hair down to relax.

“As for your newfound homework, I suppose you’d better meet some new people, hmm?” Braze asked, wearing a coy little smirk. “But that’s all right…I’ll give you a week to find some folks to ask.”

 

[Starlin Dinn]

"Sure" he said insofar as showing was concerned, though his skin soon turned just the tiniest bit paler. "Padawans?" he asked, voice wavering. "I don't know if that's what I happen to be" he confessed, "I-I mean..." He and Jasper Kai'el had not discussed it in such terms, at least, just an agreement to teach and learn. The whole Padawan thing seemed more formal, structured, something that needed to be said not merely slipped into, and the last thing Starlin needed was to go around calling himself a Padawan when in truth he was just a student.​

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Either way, pale skin soon flushed and flustered pink. "I don't know what I am" he finally whispered, "but.. I think I would like you to braid a little of my hair all the same, please? If.. that's okay?" Starlin had never braided his hair before.​

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"Uncle Theryn had me meditate a lot" he confessed, "I thought you had to sit still and focus, this doesn't look very still but... very focused." He eyed the holo-vid a little while longer until the device snapped shut, at which point he sheepishly looked away with soft bright eyes. ​

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"Did you always know about all of this? This, erm, technology?"​

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Starlin watched as Braze slowly dressed down, going so far as to loosen up his hair. He more openly admired the man in the wake of it, cheeks a soft pink. Less flustered now, more content.​

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Still sat atop the hover cart, he leaned back to set both hands on the surface, legs crossed, and smirked. "Yup" he agreed, "Deal's a deal. Gonna wash my hands, then it's all fun and games from here, mister." He tried not to think about needing to meet enough people to ask the question to, or else he felt sure he might be sick.​

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Braze ​

 

[Braze]

Tags: Starlin Dinn

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"I think… you're very likely to become someone's Padawan if you're not already. A Padawan learner is what our little Jedi hopefuls 'hope' to become… it's the training phase before becoming a Jedi Knight. Typically, they're a young or inexperienced apprentice of the Order," Braze offered softly.

"Back in the olden times, a Jedi Knight or Master would select one student to become their protégé. That Padawan would train beneath them as an apprentice, learning one-on-one across a wide variety of subjects… the Force, lightsaber combat, diplomacy, fieldwork, whatever their teacher believed they needed to grow into a proper Jedi."

Braze smiled at that. "I would be happy to brain your hair... I'll show you a neat trick. Do you want any sort of Silka Beads ? To add in?" He asked curiously.

"Always? When I was little I had to be taught how to use everthing... Well I had to learn some how... We al do right? Remind me to show you the sink not to touch on the Mudduck. "

He selected a small portable scented hand sanatizer from his inner pocket and offered it over. The scent it carried was bright and effervescent, with the crisp sweetness of champagne, softened by ripe berries and finished with a hint of a citrusy tangerine.

 

[Starlin Dinn]

"The training phase?" he whispered, before his more sheepish smile strengthened. "Then, maybe I am? Mister Jasper has been helping me to train and to learn. I don't think he used that word, though. Maybe he did. It's been a weird month."​

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When Braze listed the various aspects of training to become a Jedi, Starlin was left feeling just a little bit dizzy. "That reminds me of all the things Uncle Darien says I would have learned if I had been able to go to private school." Starlin did not really know what private school was, but Dari had mentioned it before, spoke of its role in his own childhood with a fondness. "He taught me fencing because he said I'd have learned it if Zaathru had private schools." He grinned. "It doesn't."​

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Shuffling closer to Braze, Starlin nodded. "Sure, I like beads" he said, "Uncle Theryn sent me with some beads and some charms, said if I was going to learn to be a Jedi I might end up with my own lightsaber, and maybe I could decorate it." He swallowed. "I don't think I want to use his beads though, not in my hair, I don't want to lose them. Is that okay?"​

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Taking the sanitizer and applying it to his hands, Starlin tilted his head. "Oh, yeah, you know what? That makes sense. Like learning to walk or to speak. I guess I just more meant... Were you raised around it? Where I come from, there's nothing like any of this. It's all... I think the word's analog? Carts with wheels, and penned letters, and torches lit with flames."​

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He offered back the sanitizer, smelling his hands after the fact. "Smells like home" he admitted with a wistful sigh.​

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Braze ​

 

[Braze]

Tags: Starlin Dinn

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"You could always just ask Jasper~" Braze offered in a light, sing-song manner. "Zaathru? Is that where you're from? I'm not sure I'm familiar with where that is..." he mused softly.

"Yeah, that's fine... I've got plenty of fun little hair decorations. I don't mind letting you pick out a few you wanna keep." Braze offered easily. "I used to have a very long Padawan braid, and I decorated it quite a bit."

He paused then, considering what the cute blonde was actually asking him.

"When I was little, I lived in the lap of luxury... then something happened that led my father to leave me with the Jedi to be raised." His expression softened somewhat at the memory. "I was still given some of the best education and training available, just with considerably less luxury after joining the Jedi. So~ I suppose I'd consider Coruscant the galactic standard and tehy are pretty advanced compaire dto... wagons with wheels ya know?"

He smirked at that revelation. " You can keep that one if you like. "

 

[Starlin Dinn]

There was something about Braze's occasional sing-song tone that made Starlin's stomach sparkle, though this time the sensation was dampened by the suggestion itself. "Ask him... i-if I'm a Padawan?" He swallowed. "His Padawan?" He could feel years of social nerves bubbling up to the surface, a desire to bury his head in the sand and simply keep on going with the status quo. That was, admittedly, one of the more negative traits and influences he'd gleaned from his Uncle Darien, the man was a bit of a recluse, he had spent so much of his life on the run from a past that would swallow him whole if it had the chance that he shut himself away behind a curtain just to speak with visitors.​

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Starlin did not have the luxury of a curtain, and he did not have an Uncle Theryn on hand to soothe away his fears like Dari did. Just techniques the more social of the pairing had seen fit to teach him.​

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So breathe Starlin did.​

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"Y-Yeah, turns out that's where I'd been raised this whole time" he smiled. "My... sister showed me the way back. Well, she told Pluto, my droid, how to get there." His smile fast faded, and he rubbed a bicep; some of the light had fizzled. "You ever wait forever to see someone again, only to realize you wish you hadn't..?" The image of Eloise Dinn slashing up his cabin with her lightsaber replayed over and over in his mind; the lad looked spooked and heartbroken all at once.​

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Thankfully things got better fast, and Starlin was smiling once more by the time beads were the hot topic. "Keep? Oh, no, I couldn't possibly" he hastened to say, "But I'd love to try out the look for now, please."​

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Without thinking, Starlin reached out a hand to touch the back of Braze's when the man recalled his upbringing and the sudden shift from familial luxury to Jedi obligations. No words, not immediately, just that tender touch.​

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He again shook his head as Braze offered him something else to keep. "It's yours" he whispered, voice soft. Starlin was not used to accepting things from others, not out here in the Galaxy. Back home? Sure... but back home, he was the adoptive child of the contra-usul, it was expected of him.​

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Braze ​

 

[Braze]

Tags: Starlin Dinn

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"Yeah, there's no harm in asking a question... right?" Braze asked simply.

"I have, actually..." A few old memories rose to the surface, though he didn't seem inclined to share those experiences in any real depth just yet.

"It's a bit sorrowful when it happens, huh?" he asked softly, a tenderness slipping into his tone.

Braze nodded. "You could~ I like gifting all kinds of things to friends... I like sharing things I enjoy by giving people little trinkets, or food... I like giving people food too. Baked goods, fresh fruit..." His expression faltered slightly. "The last time I tried, it didn't go over so well for me," he added, glancing away with a small frown.

Then Braze felt the gentle touch of a hand against the back of his fluffy white locks. His hair was remarkably soft beneath it, without any coarse texture, just a dense plume of snowy-white strands, each one fine and silken.

Braze just about melted into the touch. His eyes fluttered closed, his posture visibly loosening beneath that gentle attention for a brief moment before he seemed to remember himself... and where he was. His eyes opened in a few rapid blinks, though notably, he didn't pull away.

"I... generally like seeing other people enjoy the things I give them."

He shifted, searching through his inner pockets before producing a small black box and offering it over.

"Besides, I have plenty~"

 

[Starlin Dinn]

"Not unless he finds it weird that I'm asking, I don't want him to think I'm being presumptuous..." The last thing Starlin wanted was to be sent back to Zaathru with his tail between his legs, where he'd have to explain to his Uncles that it didn't work out the way he thought it would. He could find other ways to help people, of course, but he'd really rather come to find excitement in the notion of training and honing these strange powers of his. The amount of good he could do if he dipped his toes in just a little deeper...​

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"It is" he said with a soft frown, not even trying to fish for information on Braze's experiences, not because he did not care or was not interested but because he knew how it was to not want things focused on. "I spent so long waiting to see her again, or, well, any of them, and..." He shook his head. "At least it made me all the more grateful for what and who I do have."​

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Braze's little frown as he looked away and lamented the way in which his last gift-giving attempt had gone awry made Starlin's chest ache, and while he had not initially intended on touching the man's hair his hand sort of drifted there. A gentle touch became an even gentler fussing, fingers softly curling as he scritched the way Uncle Theryn often did with him when he needed a bit of comfort.​

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"Then, I will accept your gift, Braze; thank you." He did not remove his hand right away, not when he saw the reaction it got from the man with downy soft white hair. That brief moment of eyes-closed peace before reality caught up with him.​

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"Would you accept a gift in return?"​

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As the box was offered out, Starlin took it with his free hand. He had no intention of removing that comfort from Braze just now, he still seemed forlorn and that made Starlin's heart ache.​

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Braze ​

 

[Braze]

Tags: Starlin Dinn

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"I'm sorry to hear that... Yeah... Absence can make the heart grow fonder, but Time tends to change everything in one way or another... Nothing really stays perfectly the same, and that can be pretty heartbreaking." He offered softly, letting out a content little sigh as he seemed to enjoy the touch, becoming increasingly lax beneath it as the last semblance of lingering tension gradually eased from him.

He perked up at the mention of a gift and smiled.

"Oh~? I would love a gift in return, but it's not necessary. If you want to give me one, though, I'll happily accept it." He chirped softly.

"If you pick out some pieces you like we can add them in... I'll even use my fancy trick for how I do my own hair unless... you want me to use my hands~"

 

[Starlin Dinn]

In the wake of Braze's contentment, Starlin tried not to focus on his eldest sibling... or any of the family who had unknowingly forgotten about him. Instead he kept up the tender scritching for a good while longer before both hands needed to come into play.​

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He opened the black box and found within it a vast selection of beads, elastics, and charms. His eyes widened at the sight of them, a tiny breathless gasp escaping his lips before he could stop it.​

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"They're beautiful," he said, so ardent and sincere as wide eyes became softer. "Look at the leaves... and the flowers, and..." His cheeks burned, before he peeked up at Braze and reached back out to tuck a strand of white hair behind the man's ear.​

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"Please, by all means, use whatever method you would like. You're doing me a service, and I couldn't be more grateful." He would have to think on a gift, of course, it would need to be meaningful he decided.​

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Braze ​

 

[Braze]

Tags: Starlin Dinn

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Braze seemed delighted to watch just how excited Starlin had gotten over the cute little charms. He couldn't help the faint tinge of heated color that rose across the bridge of his porcelain-pale nose and crept right up to the tips of his ears at the soft touch.

He stifled a breathless little laugh at the sentiment of it, unfamiliar with being on this side of such a gesture. His gaze slipped away for a moment before returning.

"As you wish~" he said, stepping back and raising a hand with a coy, knowing little smirk.

At once, the air stirred. A small gale curled around Starlin, gathering close before sweeping up through his golden locks in a cool, careful rush. Strands loosened and separated beneath the guided current, combed neatly into place before a slender braid began to form along one side of his head. It traveled back from near the temple, gradually drawing in small sections of surrounding hair as it went, each new strand folded neatly into the growing plait until it followed the curve of his head toward the back of his nape.

"There~" Braze said happily enough moving to take out his little comlink compact and opening it so there was a mirror Starlin could use to look at it with.

"How do you feel about that?" Braze asked gently.

 

[Starlin Dinn]

As the air began to sweep through his golden locks, Starlin's eyes oh so softly closed and his breathing softened until he was in an almost meditative state. The feeling of it parting and playing with his hair, even sans fingers providing physical contact, was sublime, and a tiny purr of satisfaction rumbled up from his core.​

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There was a very slight, very happy little wiggle accompanying the sound, that lingered for but a moment when Braze declared them all done.​

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Blinking his eyes open, Starlin exhaled slowly then looked to the compact mirror. He turned his head slightly to properly see the effect of the braid, then positively lit up in unadulterated joy.​

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"Oh, Braze," he said, "I love it, I've never done anything like this to my hair before." One hand lifted so a single finger might meekly travel around the bend of the braid, it was tightly set and expertly woven, and left Starlin feeling utterly radiant.​

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"I'm going to need lessons" he whispered, "Maybe not right now, but one day... please."​

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Braze ​

 

[Braze]

Tags: Starlin Dinn

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"It's fun to try new things, huh? My hair's been getting pretty long... I've only really been trimming my bangs lately, just to see how long the rest gets." He offered softly.

"I can teach you a few different braiding styles if you like, but it's generally easier with a bit more length. Some styles, like bubble braids, need quite a lot of hair to work with."

"I'd be happy to show you how to play with the wind too, but it's a little... abstract as a concept."

He moved toward the edge of one of the docks and settled himself there, glancing back up at the blonde from his new vantage. His gaze lingered for a moment, quietly admiring how he looked from the different angle.

"See anything nice you wanna add to it?" he asked curiously.

 

[Starlin Dinn]

"It's so soft and fluffy" he said of Braze's hair, eyes softening. "And long. Very long."​

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He ran a hand up through his own hair, careful to avoid the area with the newly formed braid, feeling the length before frowning. "It is a little short. Not too short, though, and you made it work." Starlin loved his curls specifically, they weren't tight but they were pretty even if they were hard to tame.​

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"Is it anything like playing with water?" he asked, as he gently flicked up a little of the water bobbing beneath the dock to try and splash Braze. He made sure not to be too harsh with it, and ensured it was only a tiny bit of water that would ultimately feel more like a misting than a spray if any made it to the Echani. "I like playing with water."​

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He hopped down from the repulsor trolley and padded over to where Braze had settled, quite enjoying the way Braze's gaze lingered.​

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"I'd love some of the flowers and leaves if that's possible? They remind me of my uncles." He smiled sheepishly. "And they'd remind me of you now too" he whispered. He hadn't sat yet, he stood with his hands on his hips and turned his face toward the sun.​

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Braze ​

 

[Braze]

Tags: Starlin Dinn

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Braze smiled at that, brightening a little. He brushed a hand through his bangs, briefly contemplating whether they really were very soft compared to more typical textures.

"Nah… it's gotten a little longer, but it's not super long. You should see Mister Matthew's hair. Now that man has some length to his man mane," Braze said softly.

"I like my hair being a bit longer… I would absolutely hate it if it were short. I know shorter is better for combat, but I haven't had anyone try to pull my hair so far, so…" He trailed off with a smirk, raising a hand defensively at the watery misting.

"Water is tons of fun… a little more difficult for me. I found out the long, and hard way how to draw rain from a desert sky," he mused, recalling youthful shenanigans with his brother-in-arms, Ko Vuto .

"Absolutely~" Braze practically purred. "You should see the flowers on Veridia. The whole planet is practically teeming with life and natural beauty. I fell in love with the flora there so much that that's where I…"

The Echani paused suddenly perhaps even awkwardly as his eyes shifted for the briefest look of contemplation...For the briefest moment, decided to spend my exile nearly made it past his lips.

"…decided to build my home."

His expression softened slightly as he continued pleasantly so.

"I even started making these pretty light dressings… almost like chandeliers. I made a bunch of colored glass petals to go around the lights and hung them from the ceilings. I love the look of flowers. They're so beautiful, and some of them can be simply deadly poisonous…"

He offered a hand towards him.

"If you hand them to me, I'll help secure them in those pretty golden locks of yours~"

 

[Starlin Dinn]

"Who's Mister Matthew?" he asked, before a giggle caught him. "Man mane? I've never heard it called that before." He hummed in consideration, then shook his head. "I bet yours still puts his to shame. It's so... white. Like Uncle Theryn's calla-lillies." He might have said like snow, but Starlin had never seen snow before.​

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Starlin didn't push the water play after that first misting, but his eyes were practically glistening with fond amusement. "I don't really know how to do anything else, but water... it's sort of been part of me, ever since I can remember." He chewed on the inside of his cheek, before dropping his voice to more of a whisper.​

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"Where I am from they... they once called me Inakhos. They believed me the embodiment of their God of Rivers and Water." He sounded nervous even speaking about it, but something about Braze made it easier to mention. His heart thudded though, and he was fidgeting with his hands. "My birth parents really leant into it, they said they were Gods themselves, and... They had the natives worshiping them." He shivered.​

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"When I was abandoned with my Uncles, they put a stop to it. They hid me from public view, and refused to let them worship me any longer. I'm glad, I don't think I would have handled the attention, and... I don't want to be worshiped." With a slow blink, the boy looked up - his eyes were a tiny bit misty but he hastily blinked it away. "But water? It always stuck with me anyway." A half smile. "Sorry... that was probably a lot."​

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He stepped over to where Braze was waiting, hand extended, and knelt down before him, weight set briefly on his toes. With great care he offered down the box of beads and charms, then smiled more brightly.​

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"Your home sounds beautiful, Braze," he breathed, "I love flowers, too. Uncle Thery is always growing them, the Ziggurat was covered, and he is always bringing Uncle Dari new blooms. They make me feel safe and secure, and... home." He shuffled closer, then turned to give Braze access to the braid.​

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"I'd love to see it some day-- only, only if you would want that, of course."​

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Braze ​

 

[Braze]

Tags: Starlin Dinn

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"Mister Matthew of Valendale ~? He's the uh... Damn it what does he do again? He's like... a uh... political figure I guess? He's one of the Far worlds Stewards and some sort of Centerran Knight. " Braze offered before listening to Star talk about his past and blinked at some old memories came to the surface... " So... You're related to Eloise Dinn then?" He asked gently as he started to gently tether a few charms in to the braid.

"I would love to invite you to the Aerie and show you around... Loomi and I ware planning to have a sort of... house warming party soon... I'll make certain you're invited too. "

 

[Starlin Dinn]

Try as he might, Starlin could not keep up with the words coming out of Braze's mouth when he spoke of this Matthew person, and it showed on his vacant expression.​

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"I'm sorry, really I am, but half of those words are completely alien to me." The boy smiled sheepishly all the same though, and shuffled a little closer. "A Knight," he went on to add, thinking back to the stories Theri had told him as a boy, "He must be good and noble then" he decided, "but even so, it doesn't matter - I like your hair."​

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As his hair was unintentionally played with in order to see the charms put into place, Starlin closed his eyes; not even talks of Eloise could break that fragile peace.​

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"She's my sister... technically. Eldest." He frowned when he uttered that last word, and drew a slow breath. "Doubt she'll see herself as that these days, though, not after last time we met. My old man abandoned me with a pair of his allies - I call them my Uncles, but, they're not really. I don't care, though, honestly? They're my parents. The real deal didn't want me, never came back for me. Replaced me with a, erm.. clone?, if Eloise is to be believed." He shook his head, it wasn't something he'd really gotten into before but saying it aloud right now was at least a little bit cathartic. In fact, he hadn't spoken it aloud beyond going over it with his uncles, so the word clone was particularly clunky on his tongue.​

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Thankfully Braze made it mighty easy for him to smile, and as he spoke of the Aerie Starlin exhaled a slow and steady breath.​

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"I would like that, thank you." There was just the briefest of pauses, before he peeked open an eye. "Who is Loomi?"​

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Braze ​

 

[Braze]

Tags: Starlin Dinn

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"Mnn… I'm sure you'll meet him one day. He's a very tall man with very long hair, and wings like a bird's on his back, but huge… way bigger than me," Braze offered softly, recalling what the man looked like. "He also smells really nice, too." He added that last bit almost as an afterthought, remembering the particular scent that seemed to cling to that sort of fellow.

"I may have said some pretty ignorant stuff in my youth about you to her, so I apologize if that ever comes up… I was a less-than-charitable kid, and I did some not-so-great stuff for attention."

Braze continued working little charms into the golden braid as he spoke.

"I'm sorry you're having problems with your family…" Braze offered softly. "I'm not sure I know much about your culture. From what little I gathered from rumors about your sister, it wasn't a very favorable situation overall…" His fingers slowed briefly over the braid. "She and I used to get into disagreements every so often. We've been better recently, though… on speaking terms, I'd like to think. She was very kind and helped me with a problem involving a Force-sensitive captive we had for a while."

He finished securing the last little charm before easing his hands away.

"But if none of this is a fun topic, we can talk about other things if you like~"

Braze leaned back enough to inspect his handiwork, then tipped his head slightly.

"There… how's that look~?"