Private Fuzzy Friends

[Jonyna Si]

TAG: Mica Raha

Coruscant had become Jonyna's home, but rarely did she have the time to enjoy it. Today though, today she had called Valery Noble and taken the day off from normal paperwork duties. Instead, she had agreed to meet a new padawan by the name of Mica. Jonyna hadn't really been filled in on why the padawan wanted to meet her, but the cathar wasn't exactly shooting down any opportunities to make her face known to the younger generations of jedi. It was nice, to see the youngsters prosper where she struggled. To grow up in the comfort of the temple, a luxury she had been robbed of.

Walking into the massive lobby of the Temple, she looked up to the NJO banner above her, and couldn't help but smile.

She was happy to be in this future, for all it's trials.

Now she needed to find this padawan...

 

[Mica Raha]

Today was the day she was going to meet Jedi Master Jonyna Si — A Cathar. Like Fyrin.

Mica spent the morning in a fit of panic. She paced her dorm room over and over. She stood in the bathroom, hands white-knuckled, gripping the sink and staring at herself in the mirror. She aimlessly flipped through HoloNet channels on her datapad. She almost canceled, but imagined Fyrin and how disappointed he would be. Her stomach hurt. She couldn't eat or drink. Then before she knew it, it was time.

The halls of the Temple were bustling as always. Mica scampered down the hallway, adjusting her jacket and tucking loose strands of blue hair behind her ears. Finally arriving at the massive lobby, Mica saw her. She was hard to miss. Tall, auburn fur. Fuzzy, like Fyrin. Knees shaking, Mica finally approached. She was anxious, she was sad, she was happy, and she was a mess. "Are you Master Si?" she barely croaked out.

Mica felt like she was going to faint.

And then she did.

 

[Jonyna Si]

TAG: Mica Raha

"I..."

Thud.

"...am?"

Oh dear.

Jonyna looked down at the now unconscious padawan, seeming to have a bit of deja vu at her own first meeting with Valery Noble , as Jonyna knelt down to check that this padawan hadn't broken their nose against the floor of the temple lobby like she had all those years ago, before pulling a small bottle of water and pouring it into the padawan's face. "Hey kid, wake up."

 

[Mica Raha]

Mica was asleep when the first bombs fell. In the distance, buildings were collapsing. People were dying. The Dark Empire's invasion of Empress Teta had begun. Fyrin shook her awake, his feline eyes wide with fear.

Cold water splashed on her face and Mica jolted awake. She looked up and saw familiar Cathari eyes. Except there was curiousity behind them, not fear. It struck her as wrong. Didn't they know there was an invasion happening? Thats when she realized—those weren't Fyrin's eyes; they belonged to Jonyna Si .

Mica sat upright, face intact, and glanced at the Cathari Jedi. Without thinking, she wrapped both her arms around the nearest part of Jonyna Si's body. If there was any exposed fur, she stuffed her face into it or otherwise she felt it through layers of clothing. Either way, the fur had a familiar comfort. But the scent was different—cleaner and more pleasant.

As her eyes filled with tears, she made a mental note to ask what conditioner the Jedi Master used.

 

[Jonyna Si]

TAG: Mica Raha

The feeling of a child throwing her arms around her legs, it caused Jonyna to pause as she looked down to the padawan. "Hey...you're safe."

She knew the feeling of fear. Fear was an old friend of hers. Not in herself, but being around it. She didn't feel fear. She felt aggression. She felt righteous indignation. Fear froze the body, fear slowed the mind.

She couldn't feel fear. She needed to be better than that.

She knelt down, patting the poor child. "I'm here."

 

[Mica Raha]

Mica's tears fell freely as she hugged Master Si. But the flow stopped as the Cathar comforted her. Her words felt like warmth.

With trembling hands, Mica let go. She glanced up at the Cathar with red, puffy eyes. She felt so embarrassed in the middle of the massive lobby—being a big baby. "I'm sorry, Master. I don't know what happened." She lowered her eyes. "You just remind me of someone I know." She quickly corrected herself, "used to know."

Mica slowly rose to her feet. One hand crossed her body and gripped her opposite arm. "I'm Mica," she offered and nodded her head the way she had with Master Noble prior and it seemed like the appropriate greeting. "It's nice to meet you. Thank you for your kindness."

Jonyna Si

 

[Jonyna Si]

TAG: Mica Raha

"Hey, I get it." Jonyna nods. "I got a friends who sit in that same catagory. And you can just call me Master Si." The loss of a friend still stung. She wasn't sure if she had really gotten over losing hers, but that might just be because she tried not to think about it. "I take it your friend was a Cathar?"

The Cathar master offered Mica a hand up, and a nod in turn. Jonyna was never really one for tradition, but she also knew that it was necessary with her status.

Didn't mean she liked it though...

 

[Mica Raha]

"You do?" Mica asked inquisitively. She found she sometimes felt better when she didn't feel so alone. It contextualized her troubles, one of many people in a vastly larger galaxy. Everyone had their tragedies, some worse than others.

Mica's head tilted down and she started at the floor. She began fidgeting with her hands. "Yes, Master Si. He was a Cathar. His name was Fyrin. He looked just like you!" She glanced back up at her. "His thick mane was so similar. Darker colored, though. He was beautiful. You even have his eyes... and his ears..." she trailed off. "I haven't seen many other Cathar before and none since I... lost him."

Jonyna Si

 

[Jonyna Si]

TAG: Mica Raha

Jonyna knelt down, giving the girl a soft smile, before speaking in her own native tongue. While she wasn't sure if the girl could understand it, to honor the boy she had lost, she felt it fitting.

"Rah Vawufla eow Cathar" She put a hand on her shoulder, smiling. "So do I. a Jedi, and welcome on Cathar whenever you wish."

She had just met this girl, but her own culture dictated she saw her as a sister. If one cathar did, so she did as well.

 

[Mica Raha]

Jonyna Si 's use of Catharese was like an intangible caressing of Mica's soul. The familiar sounds felt like home. Fyrin wasn't an expert in his own native tongue, but he would often mutter phrases in times of frustration.

"Rah Vawufla eow Cathar," Mica repeated, with sloppy but passable pronunciation, thanks to some practice with Fyrin when he did speak the language, and copying Master Si. "What does it mean?"

Mica's whole energy suddenly shifted as she clasped her hands together in excitement. "Wait, really?? We can go to Cathar?!"

 

[Jonyna Si]

TAG: Mica Raha

"Of course." Jonyna smiled. "I'd be happy to show you the homeworld. You any good friend of a brother is welcome." Seeing another cathar elsewhere in the galaxy was so rare these days. Going home, it was pretty common, but out in the stars, they were like finding silver. Jonyna stood back up, offering the girl a hand to pull her up.

"As for what it means...He saw you was one of us. Is that not how he saw you? As a fellow Cathar?"

 

[Mica Raha]

Mica took Jonyna's hand, it's texture and size so familiar, and rose from the floor. "Mmm..." Mica paused, toying with a thought in her head. "But is it safe? Aren't there big, scary bugs and stuff?" Fyrin had told her stories about giant, ferocious beetles. She was never really sure if he was telling the truth or just sharing embellished, scary bedtime stories. She felt embarrassed to have to ask. But something told her even if it were true, she would be safe with Master Si.

"I guess so," Mica replied. "I don't think he was very familiar with his Cathar heritage, to be honest. He lived on Empress Teta most of his life, like me. He always wished he could go back home. But I think I was like a little sister to him. He was the only family I've ever known."

Jonyna Si

 

[Jonyna Si]

TAG: Mica Raha

Jonyna couldn't help but chuckle at the mention of big beetles. "Kiltiks, they're called Kiltiks. And no, we won't run into them unless you go pretty far off the beaten path. The only bugs you'll see are Ziios, which are friendly. Trust me, I won't put you in any danger. I got a ship in the hanger bay we can take, and I'll be happy to show you my home world."

The mention of her friend having never seen the home world did cause her posture to dip a bit. The thought of growing up away from where one could call home, away from the planet of your home species. It was an all too familiar story to a Cathar, but it was one that always broke Jonyna's heart. She grew up there, and she couldn't imagine not having the freedom to venture through the rich jungle air, to run through the savannah grass.

Where you were born, where you called home, it meant something.

 

[Mica Raha]

Mica could deal with rodents. Plenty of those pests on Empress Teta. But bugs? Hell nah. "Ziios? you're sure they're friendly?" she asked skeptically.

The thought of going to Fyrin's homeworld filled Mica with surreal elation. It might be her only opportunity to really connect with him one last time. "Wait, you're serious? We can go??" Though she knew Jonyna Si would keep her safe, Mica was ready to brave any fears if it meant she could go. Mica scuttled forward for another hug, wrapping her arms around the Cathar's leg, and pressed her cheek to feel that familiar feline warmth.

 

[Jonyna Si]

TAG: Mica Raha

"You know, I do need that leg." She joked, as the girl wrapped around her leg once more. "And yes, I can take you. You good to fly?"

She remembered the days when she first got used to flying. It was hell on her inner ear, and and awful experience for a girl who spent her first 5 years of life learning to climb trees. At least those were solid.

 

[Mica Raha]

"Oh, right. I'm sorry," a flush crept into Mica's cheeks and ears. "I need to stop doing that."

Mica had only flown the one time, on the way to Coruscant from Empress Teta, but her emotional state was one of grief and exhaustion, and so she didn't think much about it. She assumed she would be fine. "Yes, let's go!" Mica said excitedly. She started to hurry off, but quickly spun around after a moment, realizing she didn't even know where to find it. She still didn't know the layout of the Temple. "Um, I'll follow you," she said, feeling a little embarrassed.

 

[Jonyna Si]

TAG: Mica Raha

Jonyna chuckled, leading them back towards the temple hanger bay. "So what kinda stuff you looking forward to with the order? Any specializations that interest you?" Jonyna wanted to distract the kid as much as she could. More so, she wanted to understand what the kid wanted out of being a jedi. The Cathar had only ever wanted to be a hero, and yet she had specialized almost nowhere. Dabbled in being a Shadow, a Sentinel, a Guardian, even bits of being a Sage. Jonyna only really considered herself a master of the elements, and of nature. The traditional Jedi structure had eluded her.

 

[Mica Raha]

Mica was grateful for the distraction. So far Jonyna Si was kind and easy to talk to, though Mica couldn't help making things more awkward with her emotional outbursts. Be that as it may, the physical touch did help. The warmth of contact, especially of the furry variety, made her feel grounded and useful. No longer forgotten.

"I like to fight," she replied. She had some combat experience thanks to Fyrin. He taught her how to wield a vibroknife and use her small size to her advantage—using speed and agility to slip past larger foes and such. "That's it, though. Everything else has been kinda boring so far." She hated the abstractness of classroom learning. She wanted to touch and taste and hear. That's what living was. "Do you specialize in anything?"

 

[Jonyna Si]

TAG: Mica Raha

Jonyna snickered at the young girl's simple answer. "Fighting is good if you're doing it to protect others. I do...a lot. A jedi master should. But, my specialties are pretty easy to explain, at least. I run the group that goes in after the battle is won, and helps those who are trapped. I help rebuild, restore worlds to what they once were. I study nature, and learn to trust it as my ally. More than anything, the storm and sea are my best weapons against darkness. Find a friend in nature, and you'll never be alone."

More than anything, she was proud of her mastery of the elements. It spoke to her Cathar heritage, and led her to be who she was today.

As they entered the hanger bay, Jonyna led them closer and closer to a a corvette, marked with old Rebel markings. "Here she is, the Reaper, home of Jedi Master Jonyna Si."

 

[Mica Raha]

Mica grinned, happy to get a small laugh out of the Cathar.

"I've always fought just to protect myself. But I guess I'd like to protect others, too." When the Jedi Master talked of rebuilding and restoring worlds, Mica winced a bit, thinking of Empress Teta. She wondered how it looked now, if things were as she remembered them.

"What do you mean by 'find a friend in nature?'" Mica asked inquisitively. Jonyna was speaking as those she could control the weather or something, which to a small girl from the slums of Empress Teta, seemed impossible. But the Cathar spoke with such pride, it was hard not to be moved by her conviction.

As they entered the hangar bay and approached the Reaper, Mica's eyes widened. She'd never thought much of ships, merely viewed them as nothing but chunks of utilitarian metal. Looking at Jonyna's corvette so close up, she realized chunks of metal could be beautiful. "Wow, this is yours?" Mica tilted her head slightly at the shapes on the hull. "What are those markings?"

Jonyna Si