Private Soft Universe

[Corazona von Ascania]

“What do you think of this one?”

Corazona and Isobel had first met in the fields that surrounded the Ukatian enclave’s temple. Among the newly sprouted crops, a lesson in consitor sato had taken place.

Cora pressed the cloudberry between her fingers, pitching it at the crown. The berry’s soft flesh gave, as she pulled it in two. One half popped into her own mouth, and the other was offered to the child strapped to her chest.

A year ago, Cora had stood in this very patch while she guided Isobel through manipulating the tall stalks and their adjoining vines. The cloudberry crop had been no accident; she’d craved them intensely during her pregnancy. The off-world fruit had taken root in their soil, steadily working its way into the Ukatian diet.

A sour note hit her tongue, and Lucy made a face. Cora retrieved a cloth, chuckling quietly as she wiped the saliva and discarded berry mush from her daughter’s face.

“You’re right,” she cooed. “That one wasn’t ripe yet.”

The crop yield of last year hadn’t been exactly meager, but the landscape had changed notably. Sparse, young crops now grew lush in the fertile valley. Some of it went to the temple kitchen, and the surplus supported the surrounding community.

“How about this one?"

A second berry was selected, halved, and given to the baby. Deep blue in color, soft in its sweetness. Luciana received it with no pinched expression, and her mother smiled.

The mists surrounding the temple moved in a way that was distantly familiar. They didn't act as a warning, nor a harbinger - but as a gentle indication that something (or someone) had arrived.

Isobel Serraris

 

[Isobel Serraris]

SOFT UNIVERSE​

LOCATION — Ukatis, Jedi Enclave
TAGS — Corazona von Ascania

The labyrinthal paths once trod now forged a different formation; the recalled steps only leading to the same exit time and time again without mercy to soften its blow. Strange, it. . . had once called to her, the enclave that stood like a lighthouse amid the dense fog. Was this but another brand inflicted by Bogan? A mark that tainted her with the rot that kept her from holding onto the Light for longer than a precious moment.

That is not to say she had not experienced it in recent days, the fateful encounter with Lysander von Ascania on Zardossa Stix had left her heart with a melody that almost echoed with Ashla's Light. But too faint to compose a lasting symphony in Her name.

The Serraris donned no armour, no acolyte's robes, merely a loose-fitting set of drapes, embroidered by the numerous flowers of hope and renewal; Irises, tulips and roses. Weaponry had been left with her droid 'Ser Sprout' on the ship, for must it come to battles, she would prefer them to be faced with the Force--or with words.

Memories had drawn her back to Ukatis, to the Enclave she had once felt at peace in, guided by the teachings of Cora as the roots of Consitor Sato had been planted within the garden of knowledge. It had felt akin to an eternity by now, but still, each time Isobel brought life into the flora around her part of her mind was lured back to the innocent encounter upon this planet.

Her patience was thoroughly tested as minutes bled into an hour, until at last the ruins of the castle came into sight--just as she had remembered them to be. Greenery woven into the eroded stone bricks, the distant stalks of cloudberries that still left a strange taste on her tongue. Not sweet, not sour.

The Force hummed in her ear with the warning of two signatures not far beyond her, one fainter than the other. . . Familiarity brushed over her being as she hesitantly stalked closer, one hand upon her waist as though her lightsaber were still within grasp.

Blonde hair that shone gold in the Ukatian sun, robes that seemed pristine in spite of nature's squalor and a long fabric stretched over her abdomen that cradled something close to her. "I can still recall them being no more than sprouts in the soil," Isobel maintained her distance, but drew ever closer to a crop of Hsuberries, one she had recommended during their first encounter. The tree appeared to produce its first fruits, and she instinctively reached out to one of the fuzzy berries to taste it, the long scar upon her arm visible in the moment.

"It has been some time, has it not, Cora?" The lady's eyes drew toward the gurgling babe attached to the Jedi's chest. "Too long it seems. . ."

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

Cora turned, but only halfway, her profile illuminated by the sun. Golden light traced along the line of her lips where they pulled into a slow smile.

"Proper tending," she mused. “Along with good advice.” Her flesh hand lifted to caress a trio of richly greened leaves. Then she turned, the sun now at her back.

Cora was not aware of the teen's foray into the Sith, but sensed the way the Force clouded around her - troubled, uncertain. She observed Isobel for a long moment, as if to confirm that there was no visible bodily harm to the girl.

Isobel reached for the hsuberries, and blue eyes narrowed at the band of scar tissue running along her arm. That expression dissolved as quickly as it had come.

Lucy squirmed in her sling, letting out a grunt. She didn't fancy being ignored.

Cora chuckled quietly, fingers stroking along a dark, wispy curl. "Too long," she agreed. "It's good to see you again, Lady Isobel. Truly. And this…"

Craning her neck down, Cora pressed a kiss to the crown of her daughter's head. "This, is Luciana. She's nearly six months old."

Little Lucy cooed, her doll-like blue eyes focused on their beautiful visitor. Her chubby arms waggled in excitement, lips splitting into a gummy grin.

Isobel Serraris