Private Healing Waters

[Valery Noble]

Carosi XII

​

Tag: Kahlil Noble

For a few long seconds, Valery stared at the hot springs in front of her. They supposedly had healing properties, and while she had already healed up for the most part, she still felt sore. Her skin was more sensitive to touch, and her muscles felt awfully tense. This would hopefully help ease away some of that tension, but what was far more important to her, was that her husband had joined her for this little trip.

Together with their Padawans, he had helped rescue her but his support would go far beyond that, as it always had. Looking over her shoulder at him, she offered a smile before finally lowering her robes, leaving her in a bikini that wasn't too horrible on her skin. "Come on, join me." She reached for his hand, and if he was ready, began to pull him along into the water, until the top of her shoulders were just barely making it out.

Instantly, Valery felt a strange but calming feeling passing through nerves, muscle and bone alike. A deep breath of relief followed, and her smile brightened up a little.

"There was a moment when I feared I'd never be able to do something like this with you again," she said as she looked into his eyes. A brief silence followed and she felt her hands trembling just a little as emotion surged through her body and mind. "Thank you for doing this with me, love." She smiled again, knowing she didn't really have to thank him for it. But she was just too happy to be together with him again.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

He stood almost stiffly close by, his gaze shifting between watching her and just observing around them. His life as a Sith had made him unnaturally paranoid, and for a while, as a Jedi, he'd learn to let down that guard. And now, after everything that happened, he couldn't help but bring it up again. Just a little, just to keep her safe. It'd been a nightmare for her to be taken and him to be unable to do anything. Even when Vera was stolen away, his paranoia wasn't as strong. He couldn't just appear by Vera's side as he could her mother's.

And yet, he hadn't been able to. He lost Valery.

Kahlil's eyes again fell on Valery as she took his hand. He gave a small, almost sheepish smile as he nodded. Stepped in after her once he was down to a simple pair of swim trunks. He sat quietly, just keeping his eyes on hers before reaching out to hold her to his chest.

"I'm sorry."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Carosi XII

​

Tag: Kahlil Noble

Ever since the rescue, she had noticed that something had changed a little. It had always been 'easy' for them to be apart because their bond allowed them to feel and even reach other in an insant, no matter the distance. But after having been cut off from the Force in that dark cell, they were reminded the hard way that things could be very different. It made her want to be close to him, as much as he wanted to remain close to her. He had watched over her while she spent hours on end inside a bacta tank, and even after leaving the hospital he was taking care of her.

Make sure she eats, rests and is safe with the family during the recovery period.

So it came to no surprise that he pulled her close in the water. Valery just wrapped her arms around him and rested her head against his chest. "None of it was your fault. I felt bad about this mission and should have listened. I should have been more careful." She looked up and into his eyes, searching for that connection with him.

"I love you and I'm sorry for putting so much stress on you and the kids."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"You have nothing to be sorry about. I should've been there, knowing that you had such a bad feeling. I shouldn't have let you go alone." That was probably the thing that ate away at him the most. They both knew she had a bad feeling, but rather than insist to at least be by her side, he let her go alone. They should've been fine on their own, of course. They were both Jedi Masters. They both had their own paths in it, their own responsibilities.

And yet he couldn't keep her safe. His own wife. His own family. The stronger he got, the more powerless he actually felt. And he knew it was dangerous to feel that way.

He met her gaze only for a moment before his eyes closed and he gently set his forehead against hers.

"I'm just glad you're safe."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Carosi XII

​

Tag: Kahlil Noble

"It's okay, I'm safe now and we're together," she assured him before her eyes closed as well, when her forehead gently touched his. Ultimately, that was what mattered the most to her - being with her family and making sure that they weren't leaving each other behind. Both because of the people who needed them - Jedi, their Padawans, their kids - and because of each other. She needed him, and after everything that happened between his disappearance from her life, and now her own dance with death, she was very strongly reminded of that.

"I think I'm going to take it easy for a while before I return to the Temple," Valery then continued, as she shifted and pulled his hand up between their chests to hold it. She then smiled, turned around and sat close to him with her back facing him, his hand now pulled up to her shoulder, as if asking for a gentle massage.

A slight smirk took over.

"Be with you and the kids, and talk to the Padawans as well." Others were likely worried too, so she couldn't leave them hanging for too long.

But as she sat there with him, there was something else on her mind as well. Something a little less comfortable than the comforting thoughts of being with her family.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

He didn't hesitate. The moment his hand was on her back he started to gently squeeze her skin. Work on the muscles as he gently as he could. Even after all that Bacta, he was sure she needed some kind of massage. And, well, he just wanted to spoil her. Loosing her, having her back again as wounded as she was, it was important to them both, really. "Take all the time you need. People can wait. I'll make sure they wait."

They were going to wait, as long as she needed them to. He wouldn't let anyone pressure her to do anything, not now.

".. But.. What's going on? There's something else, isn't there?"

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Carosi XII

​

Tag: Kahlil Noble

The moment he squeezed, Valery's whole body visibly relaxed. She needed it after all that pain, sitting in uncomfortable positions, and even after all that healing inside a bacta tank. But it was more than her body that needed it - her mind did too, and very few things made her feel as good as her husband spoiling her like this. Several long breaths escaped her lips before she finally looked over her shoulder.

"You're right...maybe we can send a message and I'll visit later. I just want to be with you and the little ones." She smiled warmly at the thought but it faded a little when he asked his question. Of course he knew something still bothered her. He always knew.

Valery remained quiet for a long moment, her eyes turning down to the surface of the water.

"Should I have killed him? I took his connection to the Force because I felt how evil he was...but was I wrong?" She frowned at the thoughts and wondered if she had perhaps lost too much of her old Shadow self.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

He didn't stop attending to her shoulders, her back. Just gently squeezing and rubbing where he could as he listened to her. It was a hard question, especially given what happened to her. What Danton probably would do to others. Kahlil let out a heavy sigh before wrapping his arms around her waist, holding her close. Squeezed gently.

".. I don't actually know."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Carosi XII

​

Tag: Kahlil Noble

Valery shifted until her back was gently resting against his chest, and placed her hands on the arms that wrapped around her waist. Even though her time in captivity hadn't been that long, it felt like an eternity since she had last felt this safe. In his arms, protected against anything and everybody. She softly sighed and leaned into him as a result, her body already feeling much better, but her mind still troubled by questions.

"I used to believe that any being who had fully submitted to the Dark Side was beyond redemption. I know I was wrong, and you especially have changed my view on it so much more than I ever could have imagined," Valery continued, her hands now gently squeezing his arms.

"But just recently, I visited two people in prison who I would have killed in the past. Danton was one, and the other was one of your brothers. The former so evil, while your brother felt so different. But I don't know where to draw that line anymore." She rested the back of her head against him now and sighed.

"I feel angry with myself for it, and I worry that next time, I won't be merciful when maybe I should be." She turned her head to look at him a little now, and clearly felt bad for bringing down the mood. This was supposed to be a moment of fun for them as well and now she was asking difficult questions. But perhaps they didn't even really have an answer, and all she needed was his support.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"You'll probably be wrong in the future."

It was the truth. As much as he wanted to make her feel better, Kahlil wasn't one to lie. Not to her. He squeezed gently around her waist, closing his eyes to hide his face in her hair for a moment. Remind himself that she was still there, still here with him. Real.

"That's our burden as Jedi. But we can learn. We have to learn."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Carosi XII

​

Tag: Kahlil Noble

That was an answer she perhaps should have expected but hadn't. One thing was certain though, it was the answer she needed to hear from him. She'd much rather have him be honest and tell her something that might not be easy to accept, than lie to her, knowing how much more pain it could cause when things went wrong. She was going to mistakes, and perhaps even more after what happened and how it shook up her views on it all.

But she would learn, just how she learned from him when she got out of stasis. Even now, she could remember the brief look of confusion on her face when he told her he was the son to a Dark Lord of the Sith.

"I will," Valery said suddenly with a chuckle. She felt him leaning in closer, searching for that reminder that she was really here with him, and turned around to face him again. Her hands came up against his chest first, before they reached up to cup his cheeks. "It might get hard but I know I have the support I need, and we're going to be more careful, hm? I won't let any of it happen again."

She closed her eyes now and finally leaned in for a long, but gentle and loving kiss. The reminder they both likely needed.

"Now let's enjoy some of this time together too, huh?" She grinned against his lips.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Kahlil blinked slowly at the kiss before smiling, just a little. He leaned into it, just for a brief moment, before wrapping his arms around her waist to pull her once more comfortably against him. Just to relax, hold her close. Relax, as long as they could.

"Yes. Lets."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Carosi XII

​

Tag: Kahlil Noble

"Hmm~" Valery hummed with a far more playful tone that likely gave away far too much to him. "You know what happened the last time we spent time together in some springs, right?" She asked, now grinning from ear to ear after he had pulled her close. Her legs moved around his waist now as well, and after holding him in a long embrace, she finally pulled back a little.

That fire in her eyes that had been dimmed was burning bright once again.

"Before we do some fun things and relax, let's go for a bit of... exercise first." She bit her lip, closed the distance and pulled him into a deeper, more passionate kiss.

...
"These healing springs really do work, huh?" Valery asked with a stupid grin, "But that was better." She rolled her shoulders, stretched her legs and let out a soft sigh after making it back out of the water. She reached for a towel and started to dry off a little while she glanced over her shoulder.

"Are you feeling like relaxing or doing something more adventurous? They have something called a Pleasure Boat here..." she snickered at the name. "But also lava surfing, which sounds intense."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Mm. Hotpsring, sure."

Kahlil snickered just a little before snaking an arm around her waist to squeeze and hug her close, just a little before letting her go. And laughed louder. Pleasure boat? That wasn't something they needed, was it? Not given the spring here, at least.

"Can't say I've heard of lava surfing. That'd be fun, I think."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Carosi XII

​

Tag: Kahlil Noble

"Well, I feel much better... but probably not because of the hot spring." She waggled her eyebrows and leaned into him when he pulled her closer for a hug. Ever since her rescue, there has been a lot of hugging and just holding each other. Both because she needed it, but she knew that it was something he needed as well.

"Yes!" Valery then excitedly exclaimed with a dangerous sparkle in her eyes. "...I mean, yeah. Lava surfing is definitely fun." She grinned a little, interlaced fingers and began to pull him along with just the biggest smile on her face. A smile she knew he had missed, and one that would stay for as long as he was with her.

"Come on, I know exactly where to go," she added, making it clear she had already prepared for this moment. "It's basically just like standing on a hoverboard... but over lava! Of course with shielding to protect us, but the 'track' is really exciting and dangerous. Wanna make it a little race, babe?"

It felt like an eternity since she could last be this happy about something so silly.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Kahlil was just briming with a smile as he watched her. It was good to see her full of life again, especially after everything that happened. Grant it, seeing her so excited to surf over lava of all things had him smirking.

"You enjoy danger too much, you know. But, lead on. Let's go surf over some lava."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Carosi XII

​

Tag: Kahlil Noble

She noticed the smirk he had, and just grinned her usual grin in return before she squeezed his hand, "I enjoy controlled risks," Valery clarified with a dumb smirk and a finger gently poking into his chest. "We'll be fine, as long as we don't do anything stupid." So with that said, she pulled him along, and made her way out of the Hot Springs and to the closest boat that could bring them to a small Island nearby.

One made specifically to act as starting point for lava-surfing.

"The idea is simple, we jump on top and go down the track. I'm especially looking forward to the waterfall of lava... or lavafall?" She blinked, smirked and tugged on his hand again to get him moving. At least, until they had a pair of boards waiting on them. Valery finally let go off his hand and jumped on top without any worry.

She was in her element.

"Little wobbly~" she teased. "You think I could manage some tricks on this thing?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Controlled. Right, sure." He teased gently in turn, squeezing her hand before they went off to the Lava Surfing building. Dock. Place. What kind of place was it actually going to be? Kahlil found himself oddly curious what that even meant as they walked to the place. He took up one of the boards once they were there, glancing it over. Fascinating, to say the least. And worrying. Just this between them and lava?

Controlled indeed.

"Oh yes, I'm sure you can control all manner of tricks on this."

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Carosi XII

​

Tag: Kahlil Noble

"You're not worried, are you?" She asked, her tone and expression somewhere in between teasing and serious. She did like to poke fun at him a bit at times, but she didn't want him to genuinely worry about her. Not now, after everything that happened. A part of her also just wanted to safely cuddle up at the couch or somewhere comfortable all day.

...but a part of her was still chaos incarnate too.

"Look, they have protective shielding," Valery said and the second she started moving on the hoverboard, it activated, "Both a integrated personal shield and there are projectors around the track that add layers as well." A lot would have to go wrong for shielding to fail, and even then, she was a Jedi. She'd make her own shield.

Slowly, Valery then moved away from land and began to float over the lava stream with a big grin. "Can you make a picture of me like this? Vera would love it." And probably ask if she could also do the same as mom, but not until she was older... and until dad wasn't looking.

Valery blinked, realizing he could hear her inner thoughts, and grinned at him.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Always, but one of us has to be worried about lava. That's not something we can just swim through, you know."

He once more chuckled, nudging her side just a bit as he fitted himself on his own board. Nodded once, though, to the picture idea. He waved over a camera, having it float before them both as he put an arm around her to take a picture. Both of them awkwardly on their boards, waiting to head off.

"Alright, alright. Lets get surfing before I talk you out of it, mm?"

Valery Noble