Public Constellations No Longer Charted [Ossus]

[Scherezade deWinter]

Scherezade knew what he meant by interesting texture. That was all right. Not everyone had to eat the same stuff she did, and it left more for her. The real problem was that she now in a pickle, because she was quite certain that she didn't have anything else to offer, It was bad form, having guests over and not being able to feed them. She wondered if Ossus had any good take out services, maybe she could cover a meal for Avarice .

At his words though, she just sighed. "I've always found it funny," Scherezade said, "if there's something you don't want found, but don't ever intend to use again, why not just destroy it? All this hiding around… Sooner or later, someone like you or me is going to show up and uncover it."

When he mentioned his thirst for knowledge, her eyebrows shot up. "You should meet my sister," came a chuckle, "she likes those things too. Fancies herself a great and terrible Sith Sorceress just because she can rip portals between dimensions sometimes."

 

[Avarice]

"That’s, uh… terrifying," Avarice admitted simply, his voice carrying a wry edge. "Playing with the fabric of realm-space isn’t exactly safe. It tends to cause problems."

He tilted his head, eyes narrowing slightly in thought. "Is her name Madalena, by chance?" he asked, recalling a similar-looking woman, Scherezade deWinter .

"Sometimes destroying something can cause more harm than good," he continued lightly. "Backlash, echoes… consequences you didn’t mean. Keeping it intact, though, means it can be studied, understood, maybe even fixed."

His tone softened, more measured now. "The Jedi are seekers of knowledge. To truly know how to mend something, you have to understand it first , why it exists the way it does, and how it came to be in such a state."

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Terrifying. That was one way to word it. It was also true, her sister could be terrifying when she wanted to be. Scherezade loved her all the more for it. Even when her dimension portal ripping stuff went wrong, which it usually did. But she didn't see a reason to divulge that little morsel of information just yet.

But when her sister's name was mentioned, the Sithling froze in her seat, eyebrows shooting up. Now that… Had not happened in a very, very long time. Few were those who could connect the two, even on the off chance that they actually met the two. These days, it seemed Scherezade and Madalena were running in different circles more often than not.

" Avarice , Where in the Maw's butthole did you find my sister?" she finally asked, her voice just above a whisper. The fact that he had, didn't scare her. The fact that he had met her, and then Scherezade met him, was too much to be merely coincidental.

"Jedi don't mend anything," she snorted, getting back to herself a little, "they mostly hide their clutter behind shut doors and pretend that is somehow enlightening."

 

[Avarice]

Scherezade deWinter
"Met her through a friend," he mused lightly, though he never quite said where.

"You seem very convinced of that. You must've crossed paths with some pretty closed-off Jedi," he offered with a faint smile. He picked up the drink and took a long sip, savoring it.

"Mmn… have you been scorned by Jedi before?" he asked curiously, eyes narrowing just a touch in quiet interest. He reached in to a simple little pouch on his belt and produced several little wrapped up bars and offered her one. A crispy wafer with creamy nut filling coated in a milk chocolate.

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Scherezade mulled on her thoughts for a moment as she considered Avarice 's answer… and questions. She didn't like most Jedi, and that wasn't really a secret. Not that she had any actual problems with them though, her best friend had been a Jedi Master for the entire time that she'd known him. And she also had a few other friends who just happened to be Jedi. But the Sith boy across her didn't need to know that.

She gingerly reached for one of the bars that had been offered, and peeled it. Something brown. Probably chocolate. She sniffed at it in a strangely careful matter. It wasn't hard to see that Scherezade was a woman who liked food. It was hard to become as big as she was without it. But… She wasn't a fan of sweets.

Still, she took a bite. And then set the rest of the bar in the table, forcing herself to swallow.

A decision had been made.

Scherezade lifted her shirt. Don't worry, there was a bra underneath, the V sharp enough to show the part of her left breast that she had wanted to show him. All her skin was completely covered in scars, remnants from the days in which armor was a luxury she couldn't afford. But right above her heart, was the unmistakable mark of a lightsaber.

She also pulled her pants a little bit down, showing a twin scar an inch below her belly button.

"The work of a Jedi," she grumbled before returning her clothes to their place, "I was a kid. He didn't like my last name. Said I deserved to die for it. And then he almost succeeded in killing me."

 

[Avarice]

"I don't think they were a very good Jedi. Jedi are only supposed to resort to violence as a last resort," he offered simply.

"Unfortunately, not everyone lives up to such lofty standards… Most bad Jedi like to call themselves 'Sith.' Generally, it seems to me they do this once they stop pretending to care about what's right and instead embrace a more selfish existence," he chirped lightly.

"I'm sorry you went through that," he added softly, those red eyes trying to meet her gaze. "I hope you meet less violent jedi in the future. "

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

In all her life, Scherezade had only met maybe… Two? Jedi, that resorted to violence as a last resort. Her own lived experience had taught her that while that was something Jedi valued on paper, real life was a far cry from it. Her body carried more scars that proved it, but only the two she had pointed out to Avarice had been personal.

"No," she answered him, grinning again now, all notion of seriousness drained from her features and replaced with something more chaotic and more looking for fun, "I want to meet all the violent Jedi. I'm not the kid I was when that Jedi Master almost killed me. In this part of my life, I'm the one that kills them when the situation warrants it."

Of course, she didn't exactly go into what situations warranted it. But she'd known Avarice for a handful of minutes by now, and assumed he could guess.

"So what's your childhood trauma?" she asked with interest. No mocking in her voice, no nothing. It was a straight up question. Besides… Trauma bonding was sometimes fun.

 

[Avarice]

Scherezade deWinter

"My.... trauma…?" he repeated lightly. "There's a few, I suppose."

He thought about it for a moment. Aside from the semblance of crippling abandonment issues, one idea rose quickly to the surface.

"I really don't like spiders," he offered lightly. "I had a really bad experience with one that caught me and spun a cocoon around me, wrapping me up tightly to eat."
He had issues with dark confined spaces for that same reason as well. It always brought back unwelcome memories of that incident. He had admitted it almost sheepishly, perhaps revealing one of his biggest fears to her. He still wasn't 'over it'... not when it came to spiders.

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Scherezade couldn't help but giggle as Avarice mentioned the spider thing. It wasn't a fear (yes, in her mind he absolutely was in fear of them now) that she shared with him.

"No spiders," came a grin, "so I'm not going to introduce you to Peggy. Don't worry, she's not hiding in the ship either. I met her on one of my visits to Kashyyyk and we hit it off. I've got some yards of her web turned to silk somewhere. Makes for excellent snuggies."

Also sleeping cuddled against the stomach of a giant spider was a great way to ward off the cold that hit Kashyyyk during the night. She'd heard that most people feared the Wyyyschokk but she just found them cute and adorable.

"Okay, let's go for happy stuff then," Scherezade ceased her giggling, but her expression remained open and friend, "you know about my sister. Got any of your own? Brothers and others count too."

Avarice

 

[Avarice]

Scherezade deWinter

"Yes and no. My family life is… complicated." He paused, searching for the right words. "I don't know much about my blood relatives. But I have a sister...she's a Shard. And now I've got a new brother too." A faint warmth touched his tone at the thought of the newborn he couldn't be near right now.


"When I sleep, I've been seeing visions of my father," he admitted quietly. "I thought he was dead for so long… maybe he still is. I don't know. It's not a very happy subject, sorry." He tried to soften it with a weak smile.

"Things are difficult right now. I'm farther from home than I've ever been, and somehow I feel more trapped out here, in the wilds of Ossus, than I did within any walls I've known."

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Scherezade held her snort back as Avarice mentioned that his family life was complicated. She utterly loved that. Her own was as well, and trauma bonding tended to be a common enough experience for her. Still, she didn't say anything, not even when he said his sister was a Shard and her brain automatically repeated it as Shart inside her head.

The visions were interesting though. She'd had more than enough of those over her short lifetime, and people being dead but maybe not dead but maybe dead but… Yeah, it was another shared tale.

"So leave?" she suggested with simplicity, almost as it she was offering him to choose between another cup of cream and juice and water, "it's a big galaxy. There's stuff beyond it too. Absolutely no reason to stay here."

And then she had a thought.

"I can maybe help you find your father, if he's still alive," she murmured, "but my services aren't cheap."

 

[Avarice]

Scherezade deWinter
"It's easier said than done. My situation is complex. Doing so would likely cause more problems presently... Some times one must consider future branches before making such decisions when looking for a solution. " He offered lightly with a heavy sigh.
He quirked a brow at her. " Ah... and what do your benevolent services cost?"

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Cause more problems? Scherezade gave Avarice one of her impish smiles. "The one I'm about to offer is going to be a freebie," she answered, "we're going off planet for the duration of a day. You can pick where we go to."

Then she leaned back in her seat, content like a recently fed kitten, "but to help you find your father, I will require two things."

She took a sip from her drink before deciding she'd had enough of it, poured to contents into the ground, and re-filled it with just cream, "the first will be a few drops of your blood," she spoke casually, almost like she was talking about scheduling meni-pedi's, "it's sort of like a tag. Makes sure I can find you if you decide to run… or, if you get taken against your will. If I do this for you, you become my investment. Sort of. The second one, is a boon. You'll owe me a favor. You can negotiate the terms for that favor. If I haven't had to use your blood by the time that is done, you will get it back."

 

[Avarice]

Scherezade deWinter

He shifted, drawing a small object from his robes, something that appeared to be a compact mirror. He popped it open as if checking his reflection briefly, then snapped it shut and tucked it away once more.

"That is a generous offer… though I can't say I find myself desiring the company of a man who essentially abandoned me when I was young. I've grown a bit of resentment for this. There are presently more important things on my list of concerns than whether or not he still draws breath." He offered the words lightly. He didn't like the idea of sharing his blood with another Sith; he had seen some horrifying things that could be done with such a precious, life-giving liquid, even in the smallest amounts.

"Though perhaps you might enjoy something a little more… fun. We could play a game: dares for secrets. Either you do the ridiculous thing I name, or you owe me something far more personal. And vice versa."

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Scherezade didn't really need to say anything when Avarice turned her down gently. Either way, she wasn't invested in the story, so if he didn't want it, she had absolutely no reasons to pressure him into it. She was a bit disappointed about his decline to go hop elsewhere for a day. That was just silly.

But still, the game he offered… The glow of her eyes seemed to spark at the suggestion. There was no point in trying to hide it, he was perceptive enough to notice those things. Just as she had been perceptive enough to note the little compact mirror thing, but not say anything about it.

If curiosity could actually kill a cat, and Scherezade were a cat, she would have been dead at least ten times because of it. She was so in.

"I suppose you want to be asking first?" she purred at him with an excited grin.

 

[Avarice]

Scherezade deWinter

A crooked smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as he leaned back, crimson eyes glinting with mischief. He tapped a finger idly against the side of his cup, letting the silence stretch as a few thoughts churned.

"Mm… How about this," he chirped, tone deceptively light. "Let me blindfold you and take you someplace for a day~."

The sing-song lilt of his words could have come across as ridiculous, if not for the undercurrent beneath them. There was playfulness, yes, but also that subtle vibration of danger, as though the suggestion wasn't entirely a joke. He tilted his head, watching her closely.

"Of course," he added, leaning forward ever so slightly, voice lowering into a velvet drawl, "You'd have no idea where we'd end up until the blindfold came off. "

He paused then, letting the grin widen, "All you'd have to do is trust me for one day. Do you think you could manage that?"

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Scherezade snickered. Avarice wanted to blindfold her? Usually people paid for her dinner before she allowed them to do that. Oh, she was more than certain he had ways to make sure that the blindfold would do its job and keep everything secret until it came off. But the question…

No, she decided. She didn't trust him. But she trusted herself, and that feeling that would be considered very brazen (get it?) if she put it to words. She trusted there was little to nothing he could throw at her that she could not handle. And yes, judging by his tone, he was very much going to throw things at her.

"Challenge accepted," she grinned from ear to ear, and pushed herself off the chair. "Ready whenever you are!"

 

[Avarice]

Scherezade deWinter
He moved to take out a black satin sash and stepped behind her. He slipped the soft bit of cloth over her eyes and secured it.

In short order he took her hand and lead her aboard a ship and settled her in to a chair. With out further adue to they departed Ossus. Eventually they arrived at Centerra just past the Nebulae cloud.

Slowly they descended and landed some where in a lush field of blue colored grass. " We've arrived. "

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Scherezade permitted Avarice to put the blind fold on her, remaining true to her word. She managed to keep her balance without too many issues as he led her on foot to his own ship, which she only considered now that was a funny thing since he could've let her come aboard and then blindfold her, but sure. She liked her ability to see, but it wasn't her most important sense.

She wasn't sure how long their trip took, but made no attempts to wiggle out of the blindfold during it. There had been eating, there had been sleep, and there had even been private showers. All good without her eyes.

And then at last came the moment the blindfold was removed.

Scherezade blinked a few times, letting her eyes adjust themselves. Going from pitch black to normal seeing was never a fun experience.

She tilted her chin upwards ever so slightly and inhaled.

"You've taken me to the Unknown Regions?" she asked with a little smile. She didn't know what planet this was, and had probably never been there before, but she knew that feeling of home. And how close it meant she was to her own ancestral home, where she had not set foot since being a baby.

The serious expression gave way to a childish giddiness and joy as she jumped from her seat.

"Where here are we going?" she almost demanded, "what are we going to do?"

And there was zero presence of any worry or anything in her voice. Why be worried when a stranger took you to the Unknown Regions and you had no way of getting anywhere else unless they also offered to take you back?

 

[Avarice]

Scherezade deWinter


Avarice let his eyes trail across the landscape and breathed in deeply, taking in the wild expanse as if he were just taking it all in.

"The meadows stretch for kilometers out here," he said quietly, stepping forward until the tall grass brushed against his knees. "Look at it. Untouched. Unclaimed. The way the galaxy looked before anyone tried to carve their name into it."

The wind swept across the plains in a slow, rolling wave, and the grass bent in shimmering ripples. Each blade was tipped with a faint silver sheen that caught the sunlight and made the entire meadow gleam under the sunlight like a restless sea. Wildflowers in colors that had no names known to them, pushed up between the stalks, their petals soft and luminous as if lit from within.

Beyond the open fields, the land lifted gently into rolling hills. They rose and fell like the backs of slumbering beasts, each one draped in the same blue grasses and dotted with clusters of small crystalline stones that glinted when the light touched them.

He lifted his chin toward the distant tree line.

"The forest is older than anything built on Ossus," he murmured. "See how dense it is here? There's just no paths here.... Just about every trunk is wrapped in lichen that glows faintly at dusk. The canopy is so thick that rain hardly reaches the ground in anything but a soft mist."

Even from here, the treeline seemed to breathe in the slow breeze. Towering trees with rough textured bark lined the snare. Branches were covered in leaves the color of deep wines and were beset against a pale blue sky. A few rose higher than the rest, casting massive silhouettes crowned with blossoms that shed in the slow-falling motes of light.

"It looks like something out of a fairy tale," he added with a faint smile from beneath his mask. "A place where you could lose an entire week without meaning to. A wild world that does not care who rules the galaxy."

He turned slightly so she could see how the meadow curved toward a small ridge.

"If we cross that hill, the entire view opens into a valley. The river there is crystal clear, like poured metal, and the ground squishes under your feet with soft dense grasses and peaches of clover. The skies are amazing once the sun sets. That is where I planned to take you."

He looked at her with a teasing spark in his eye.

"Unless you have somewhere else you want to start."