Deception, Protection... and Something Else-tion!

[Jannik Morlandt]

[Takes place between this thread and that thread...]

As confirmed prior to breakfast the other day, the day he had met his new - and hopefully permanent - master, the Jedi Order did not waste time. At least [member="Kira Liadain"] was of a sunny disposition, as it was something he could certainly do with on a regular basis. This new life was still very new, and it was all like a pair of trousers that was so big that even the help of a belt was questionable in its effectiveness.

Ahm sure ah'll grow in'ta it, he thought, bouncing on the balls of his feet, and landing on his heels, waiting in his still-new robes in a training area on his second day on Ossus, especially tae th'fact tha' missy Kira said thar'd be 'elp for this... thing in me 'ead.

He started to whistle a low tune, as he waited. It wasn't that she was late... more the fact was that he was early by a few minutes, having woken at daylight with a hunger. He had slept less fitfully the preceding night than the night before that and the night before that, and he considered that the calm of Ossus might have a little something to do with that. Away from all the hustle and bustle of Coruscant, it was almost as if he could hear himself think... thinking about what it was that the cheery Lorrdian blonde was going to set about putting in his head today.

It couldn't be any worse than what was already there.

 

[Kira Talith]

“Hey yoohoo,” would come Kira’s cheerful greeting over to [member="Jannik Morlandt"], to which she would throw one bright red apple at as the first initial test of his senses, specifically danger sense. Haha, ahh, if it hit his head, well she would have a laugh. If he didn’t, well she would know exactly where they would need to begin with that.

However, she had a feeling that with his seer affinity, he just might be okay.

A small crunch would follow as the apple in her other hand was eagerly bitten into. Breakfast of champions was always neat, but a snack never hurt anyone, and the Jedi Master had an affinity for keeping snacks and if all the more possible, fresh fruit handy. She was bright eyed and bushy tailed, with her hair looking as if she’d just rolled out of bed, finger combed it a bit, and was perfectly alright with that.

“’Morning!” she said, regardless if the apple hit his head or not.

 

[Jannik Morlandt]

If there was one rather common talent he seemed to have, it was catching things that'd be thrown at his noggin. His mates... his old mates, and he, were always throwing things at each other, the laziness of not bothering to get up, or walk across a room to deliver anything directly - except cans and bottles of ale. There were consequences associated with tossing closed containers of ale around.

Both hands went up and received the apple from the air that [member="Kira Liadain"] had thrown, and he examined its surface, as he always seemed to do, not so much for imperfections, but to see how it shined in the morning light. The red was striking.

"H'lo, g'morning!" he said in bright response, before biting into the apple with fervour, despite that he had already eaten that morning, chewing quickly and swallowing. He could get used to being plinked with snacks, especially if the fare was fresh like this. "Did ye sleep well?"

 

[Kira Talith]

Mirth and approval of his quick reaction went bathing Kira’s face at [member="Jannik Morlandt"] ‘s success.

“Well well well, guess you ain’t just all flutes and talk,” she said in teasing, munching on her own apple as she flashed him a playful wink. “And yes I did.” she ran her free hand through her hair again. It didn’t work so well at calming the bedhead, but it would do.

“You have some good reaction time. Question is, was it the the Force or your own quick sense at making sure you didn’t get your head clobbered?” she asked, “Walk me through it. What did you feel?”

Some sentients were just naturally able to pick things up easily, aware of their surroundings. With his precog, it made sense that this would only be heightened for him. Now she just had to make him aware of it.

Among other things. Control, Sense, and Alter. All the aspects would be covered to a degree. Along with some nifty ways of using the Force for starters.

Mind tricks, Defense and then maybe something else for fun.

The possibilities were endless and the day was just getting started.

 

[Jannik Morlandt]

Jannik took another bite of the apple and chewed thoughtfully, thinking over what went through his mind when catching the apple, and looking back on similar events in his past. Could he always catch, or did the Force simply give him the benefit? Swallowing, he smiled gladly at the news that she was well-rested, and gave her a response.

"Well, tha's prob'ly a wee bit 'chicken an' egg'-ish, innit?" He said, answering the question with another - albeit rhetorical - question. "Alas, we'll ne'er know."

He turned the apple, positioning for another bite, a one-note laugh coming out of him. The answer she was seeking was forthcoming, and he ran the tip of his tongue over the side of some teeth, a small piece of apple peel having lodged itself there, already. After a moment, and the success of dislodging it gained, he continued his reply.

"Ah saw it coming out the corner of me eye, as ah felt it, but... 'twas too close by tha' time. 'Twas fast. Ah knew what t'do, but me 'ands moved faster than ah could think tae move them. Ah felt th'where, an' th'when tha'th'apple would be in the right place, an' me 'ands went thar."

He then took another quick bite of the apple, chewed, and swallowed, one corner of his mouth lifting cheekily as he leveled a finger at [member="Kira Liadain"], shaking that finger.

"But ye almost got me in me 'ead."

 

[Kira Talith]

Well that put things into a better perspective. Okay, she knew where to go from here. She couldn’t help but laugh at his antics with the bit of apple. Ahh, she knew that pain.

Get a bit too excited and that could happen to anyone when nomming an apple. Mmm… apples.

Alright!

Kira tossed him another playful wink, “Well I do have fantastic aim,” she said in good humor, before wiggling two fingers to beckon him to her. Another crunch was heard as she took another bite, chewing quickly and swallowing before adding.

“Come on. We are going on an adventure!” she told him, and promptly spun on her heel to walk out of the training room.

Pause and glance over her shoulder, those bright blue eyes twinkling at him in amusement.

“You coming twinkletoes?” she asked [member="Jannik Morlandt"] with devilry reflecting upon her face.

 

[Jannik Morlandt]

At her beckoning, he set off after her. He'd been slightly confused at first - why ask him to meet her here, if only to leave and go somewhere else right away? This was a training room, wasn't it? Oh well.

Twinkletoes? Hey, now, 'ang on just a minute!

He grinned just as he caught up with [member="Kira Liadain"], taking another snappy bite of his apple, and giving her a look. He liked her vibrancy and attitude. The way she approached what seemed to be every moment did a great deal to redirect his mind to better places than playing the recent circumstances that had landed him here over and over in his mind. Once that bite was sufficiently masticated and swallowed, he shot back at her, an almost fun-making tone apparent in the brogue of his voice. He might have even waggled his eyebrows.

"An adventure, ne? Ah don't s'pose ye mean we'd be going out on a jungle safari, would ye?"

 

[Kira Talith]

“Mayybe!” she would say in a jovial manner over her shoulder to [member="Jannik Morlandt"]. A grin would flash and pearly white teeth would shine for a brief second.

“Got your hiking boots?” she would ask as she would continue down the hall, chomping down on her apple. Chewing, she would wave a finger at him before swallowing.

“First lesson will deal with the most basic of defenses,” she would tell him. “You already have a grasp of sense. But what you need right now is a bit of control.” she added.

She would start to trot down the stairs, blonde hair bouncing around her shoulders as she did so.

“While I can chuck apples at you all day, it might be a waste of apples.” she’d tease, eyes bright. “Might get one bruised….”

“So we’ll do something a bit more … inventive.” there was devilry in her gaze.

 

[Jannik Morlandt]

Maybe? Well, that was as good an answer as any, considering he had been mostly teasing - and it said good things to him that she rolled right along with it. Though he tried - honest to goodness - to not assume too much, he wasn't blind, she was attractive, and... well, considering the context of their nascient relationship, the entire line of thought was most likely inappropriate, andit was probably was causing his apple to disappear at a fair clip, such that one wouldn't think he had eaten already.

Get ahold o'yeself, Jan.

"Oh, boots?" He glanced down at his feet for a couple paces, then back up to the space ahead of him, and was half-taken by surprise to see that he had fallen back, while entertaining his largely out-of-place thoughts. "Afraid not!"

He trotted quickly forward to catch up, only to find a slender finger in his face.

“First lesson will deal with the most basic of defenses.You already have a grasp of sense. But what you need right now is a bit of control.”

No doubt about tha', he thought, with a bit of snark directed at himself, ah wonder if tha' involves anything t'help me sanity?

He took the stairs quickly, just behind [member="Kira Liadain"], watching with the slightest fascination for a moment as her blonde locks danced, then cracking out a look of partial shock to her fruity commentary.

"Bruised apples? We can't 'ave tha'," he agreed, chomping, chewing and swallowing another bite, and trying not to entertain the thoughts of what she meant by 'inventive', too much. "Alright then..."

He flashed a look at her that was one part curiosity and three parts suspicion, "...what's going on in that pretty 'ead o'yours?"

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Jannik Morlandt"]

A mischievous grin would go dancing across her lips anew, hair bouncing as she went down the steps that would lead to the outside courtyard.

"Lots of things Jan. Fun things." she'd say with a grin, as she jumped the last step onto the cobble stone path.

"I even brought a bit of help." she confessed, as she led him on yonder. Out in the distance, the faint giggling of younglings could be heard. There were four of them. Adkis, Berse, J'moc, and Vsrsi. One Twi'lek, Bith, and two humans.

"Jan, I would like you to meet Adkis, Berse, J'moc and Vsrsi." she would tell him in that order. One would wonder why she would bring younglings to this bit of training.

"They are here to help us out." That's when she would walk towards the four bushels of muja berries that had been collected..

Oh this was going to be interesting.

"Now you've got some nifty precog helping you notice when things come at you... but what happens if you can't quite catch what is coming your way? Or it is more than one item... or even larger than you?"

"The most basic of defenses in control... and is in controlling the Force to form a bubble of protection around you."

She gave a smile to the younglings, "Want to show him Adkis?" she'd say sweetly to the desert skinned twi'lek.

 

[Jannik Morlandt]

"Lots of things, Jan. Fun things," she said, mischief written across her face, to which he felt just a wee bit wary... a feeling that was quickly overridden by a slideshow in his thoughts of every fun thing his consciousness could dredge up, a slideshow that continued to the point that his mouth was clamped shut and he was doing his best not to blatantly stare at [member="Kira Liadain"]. "I even brought a bit of help."

He glanced at her, wondering what she meant by 'help', but he soon found out, the mental slideshow abruptly ceasing the moment the sight of younglings and the sound of their laughter came to the fore, and his mind switched to where it should be when there were children around. The way his new master teased him hardly helped. At all. He smiled to each of the younglings as they were introduced, before introducing himself.

"Ello, ah'm Jan - tha's short for Jannik."

They gave their hellos, but were quickly distracted by their eyes, heads, and bodies following Kira, right over to a few bushels of muja berries. Perplexion knit his brow faintly, until she began to explain.

"So, akin tae a shield, kind of..." He said, not asking, but thinking out loud. He nodded, understanding. "...that'll be useful."

Already his head was going through the myriad of ways in the past that such a thing would have been great to have known how to do. He looked to Adkis, and hooked his thumbs into his trouser pockets.

"Ye 'ave me full attention," he insisted, eyebrows raising slightly, and mouth bending into a somewhat fun smile.

 

[Kira Talith]

Adkis gave a rather excited and childish brush of pride at being selected to instruct the older padawan.

His chest gave a little puff out, and he went walking over until he stood in front of [member="Jannik Morlandt"].

“‘Ello,” came the semi shy greeting, apparently losing half of his confidence halfway through. Twin hands would come up, palms out.

“It’s real easy,” he’d say, starting out with a wiggle of his fingers. “You get all your energy, until it’s in your belly,” leave it to a youngling to explain it thusly. “Until it feels like you ate too many muja muffins.”

“Then you push it out all around, kinda like if you are blowing up a balloon.. or a soap bubble!,” a glowing sphere of iridescent energy would start to form over his small hands.

“And then you make it bigger… and bigger. ” the sphere would grow a little big bigger, until it encased his small body much like one would expect in the imagery he painted, “You can make it as big as you want… or small. It’s kinda like controlling how big you want to blow a soap bubble -- how much air you want to put in it determines how big it gets.

But instead of air you use the Force!”

 

[Jannik Morlandt]

It was a good thing, a very good thing that he had a poetic bent to him, or translating what the young Adkis was saying into action would have been considerably more difficult. It was adorable nonetheless, and he would almost have patted the lad on the head, if not for the fact that it could have been seen as patronizing, and thus dismissive of his pride. Jan thought that Adkis was rightfully proud.

On the basis of prior abilities he had learned (a few notes of basic telekinesis, for example) he drew into himself from the well of power that was the Force, until he felt he had enough - not that there was a measure, as this was more a matter of opening one's self up to the Force and letting it flow freely within - then slowly, tentatively put his hands out in front of himself, fingers splayed like a mime effecting being trapped in a box, and directed the Force out of his open-palmed hands, willing it to shape into a sphere, imagining the sphere, feeling, pushing the shape into existence as a globe of sparkly, faintly glossy light.

Then he raised his hands above his head, then spread them apart to either side of himself, the globe expanding around him like a balloon, falling over him like a curtain. He noted how it felt around him. Perhaps next time he could make it appear this large from the start. He settled his eyes on Adkis, and he gave the boy a partially cheerful grin.

"Like this, then?"

[member="Kira Liadain"]

 

[Kira Talith]

“Just like that!” came the excited exclamation from Adkis, who’s head would be lightly ruffled by Kira’s own hand as she smiled down at him in encouragement.

“Good job there,” she’d say, shinning that warm smile from the youngling over to [member="Jannik Morlandt"]. A wink would soon flash at his direction.

“Looks like you are better at this than I thought,” she’d tell him with a slight tease in her voice. Her hand would rise, attempting to push past the displayed sphere Jannik was controlling through the Force.

“Not too shabby… although there are ways to put this through the test.” there came the devilish gleam in her eyes again.

“Care to practice a bit more or try to protect yourself with what you can make so far?” she’d ask him.

 

[Jannik Morlandt]

There was something about that grin of hers, just now, that made him wary. So much so, that...

"Ah think ah'll practice a wee bit more," he answered... then, for the heck of it, a grin formed on his face, too, "then ye ken put it to th'test."

And he didn't waste time getting back to work, practising the formation and reformation of the bubble, starting with releasing the bubble already at hand. Then, as he had done before, with some application of will, the Force, and a bit of visualisation, another bubble came into being a couple minutes later, slightly better than the first. He repeated this a few more times, better, faster, and stronger each time. On the last repeat, his fifth bubble, he gave a nod after feeling out the protective bubble around him.

"That'll do," he said to himself. Then, looking to the younglings, and [member="Kira Liadain"]: "Alreet, 'ave at me!"

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Jannik Morlandt"]

That's when a maniacal gleam came to Kira's eyes, a devilish twinkle.

"Careful what you ask for..." came her sing song voice, already making eyes at the younglings, having secret conversations with a mere coaxing look.

In the next instant, giggles and fistfuls of muja berries went flying through the air -- straight at Jan! Time to see how well he was able to put up the barrier!

 

[Jannik Morlandt]

"Careful what you ask for..."

At that, his eyes widened to the size of saucers, following the look she gave the younglings. Without hesitation they were grabbing muja berries and pelting him with them! A panic shot through him like lightning, and he scrambled to get the protective bubble up again. He blanked! Berries hit him in the face, one and two to the forehead and barely missing his right eye, and a few more zipped past him, and bounded off his shoulder, and landed in his hair, before he gained enough reason again to get the bubble up and running, stronger than ever. The slew of the remaining mid-flight muja berries plinked against the shielding Force form as it erected into being in the space between one berry and the next, making the flying berries splat against the bubble if they weren't firm enough, and the rest fall to the ground one foot away from his feet.

"Well," was all he said, eyeing the younglings, as they dropped like flies to the floor in a fit of giggles. One straggler, his face full of fixed determination, let loose another handful of berries just as Jannik was considering releasing the bubble, but his mind quickly changed when the delay of muja berries came at him, causing the bubble to become fully firm once again, at which point he let out a few more words, "well. That was something."

He glanced at [member="Kira Liadain"], fixing her with a slightly grimacing look.

"S'a good thing those were just muja berries."

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Jannik Morlandt"]

Enter the laughter.

Oh the laughter that ensued. It came bubbling from Kira’s mouth with wanton delight. Oh she could barely bare it, holding her stomach with her arms as mirth made her eyes twinkle with unshed tears.

“Okay.. okay… Haha.. .I think he learned enough for today.” came Kira’s small chuckle, walking on over to Jan with a wicked grin on her face. Her hand came up to help him clean up some, plunking the purple berries that had collected on his hair. One was stuck on the stubble of his jaw, and her soft warm fingers would brush over it as she would wipe it clean.

“You did well.” she said with notable mirth, eyes crinkling in amusement. “My lessons tend to throw you out in the middle of the wolves, you see.”
“Alright, younglin’s clean up around here.. .I’ll be taking Jan to clean up a bit.” she said over her shoulder, still standing close in front of him as she returned her attention to her Padawan.

 

[Jannik Morlandt]

Once the last child had done his deed, and a laugh somewhat at his expense had, Jannik finally released the bubble, inventorying the smattering of berries that had managed to make contact with his person, only then laughing along with [member="Kira Liadain"], and dropping his hands, allowing her to minister to him in the removal of berries from the light, soft curl of his hair, and whatnot. He was glad for the children to have been shooed off of any further thoughts that might have possibly begun to form at any subsequent muja-flavoured peltings.

He was glad that these sessions were not so sombre, so serious. The laughter that he could bring her, and that she brought him? The levity went a long way to helping him endure that which he must. The berry that clung to the stubble of his jaw, inviting her fingers to free it, was a point at which his breath held a moment. It would be a bald lie to deny that his master was a very beautiful woman. Not... not that he acted on it. They had only known each other a mere matter of a few days, by this point. But she was nice, kind, joyous, and for that he was thankful.

"Well, thank ye, missy Kira," he said, genuinely, "Ah think th'experience was much better for it. Even with th'wee wolves."

He glanced only half-menacingly at the younglings, as they set about their task of cleaning. At least they were cooperative, as well as eagar. There were so many children, from his experiences (however few and far between) that were not.

"So, y'are going tae clean me up, are ye?" He said, just a tad lower than the younglings would be able to hear. "Be careful with y'words, lass. Such impressionable men as I might get ideas."

He gave her a cheeky grin at that, a twinkle of his own in his eyes. Their banter was another thing for which he could give thanks. Really, could he have asked for a better person to take him on this new road?

 

[Kira Talith]

[member="Jannik Morlandt"]

Enter another wink as she would flick a left over berry from his jaw. "Impressionable men? Is that so?" she'd tease, then two fingers would beckon him to her.

"Then perhaps it is time you find out exactly what I mean Jannik Morlandt!" she'd toss out with sassy cheer. "Come on, we'll get you cleaned up."

"I've still all manner of things to instruct you on..." enter a pause then a grin, "The second that which being after we toss you into the river to freshen up!"