Private Sprouts

[Auteme]

She found Amos first, bounding down the hall right into her arms, like he knew she had a treat for him, which she did. Next came the staff -- they'd been trying to trap the cat to make sure he didn't shed everywhere. They backed down after her assurance that she'd keep an eye on him, but in that way that grated at her, the way that her titles and such afforded her a particular sort of respect. She would have let him roam free, if she didn't also respect the appropriate hospital sanitation protocols.

And then the waiting room, and there she was, and Auteme saw the problem immediately. A paper takeout bag was thrust into Tansu's hands: pork buns and gyoza, easy and filling, somehow still warm. "Eat."

She sat next to her, giving Amos a few scritches, just long enough for Tansu to have dug in properly, before snagging a bun for herself. A treat from Coruscant; it'd be a while before she tasted it again.

"Y'know, I didn't know bacta allergy was a thing until I was like, a week from actually getting my degree," she said. "Very embarrassing for my supervisor. I thought it was something made up by people who did holodramas so they could have more dramatic hospital scenes, where you can, you know, touch the person without getting in the bath with them. I have a bacta allergy in TRAA. Sometimes, anyways. They did let Tithe in the bath one time."

She shifted Amos to be better in reach for pets from Su.

"So. Tell me about him."

Tansu Treicolt ​

 

[Tansu Treicolt]

​

Tansu had been staring at the floor, entirely unexpectant of any attention. She was so tired after so many sleepless hours that she jumped when the bag was suddenly thrust into her lap, the aroma the first thing to startle her senses, the sound of a familiar voice second.

"Wh—" What had her parents always told her about looking a gift horse in the mouth? "Aunteme!" She didn't know whether to hug her aunt or open the bag and rifle through it first. She opted for the bag rifling, given her elder's command.

She hadn't realized how hungry she was until the smell completely took over, and the soft press of her fingers to gooey tops gave way to perfectly roasted delights. She definitely drooled, and wiped it away with the back of her hand.

Auteme had the grace to regale her with an anecdotal reflection while she took her first few bites, giving her time to listen and not respond. She made a vaugely disgusted expression when she swallowed though, offended by the insinuation of the anti-bacta scenario in scripts. And shuddered rightfully at the idea of Tithe in a bath. That man had never not had white hair, right?

"Amy," she intoned, erring to sound disciplinary, "How'd ja get out?" The cat, of course, was complacent and unwilling to share any secrets.

"So. Tell me about him."

The suddenness of the question struck her. She didn't expect the ache that came with such simple, pointed interest. An ache born of a connection lost — she'd expected to giggle girlishly over crushes and boys with her sister after Atrisia but..that was no longer an option.

Regardless, Tansu still blushed.

"Talsin's wonderful." And set her half-eaten bun in her lap, leaning back in her seat and kicking out her legs to look at her toes for a moment. "He was one of the first people I met on Coruscant way back when, y'know. We hated each other at first. I accidentally bloodied his nose the first time we met." Her head tilted back, emphasizing the disdain and staring at the ceiling as if watching the memory of their heated collision like a holo.

"He wasn't wonderful then. He was an arrogant, pretentious, prick. Everything opposite from any boy back home, 'xcept for bein' well-mannered. And beautiful. He was the prettiest boy I'd ever seen.

But we hung out a bunch, all of us, and his edges smoothed down. He was still an ass time to time but his earnestness came through more 'n more.

Did I say his edges got less rough? I think it's probably better to say his walls came down. He was so used to keeping that side of him closed off because of the courts y'see, so," her toes tapped together "—I guess he got more comfy and showed more sides. And those sides were so great, Auntie." She rotated now, tucking her legs up and tucking them beneath her to face the former Chancellor to the side, all dreamy-eyed. The Tetan laid up in the hospital bed was her favourite subject, and she could have gone on and on. But she tried to keep it relevant and not give into her belly's warm flutter.

"He's brave, always steps into danger so others don't have to, lives by a strict moral code, stubbourn to a fault but I think that's something Pa would like, and he cares." Tansu fiddled with the bun. "He cares so much. About me, about —" And she knew why Auteme was here. She had to suspect it. "He cares about Talin. He really does."

Her eyes dropped.

"Even still."

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Auteme
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[Auteme]

Auteme smiled. “As a lover of some stubborn men, I approve.”

She let Tansu sit in that, for a while. That her sister was in her thoughts, even still, was a good sign — especially given the advice she’d given to Talin a few days before. There were things she wanted to say now, stories she could tell; she kept it simple.

“Have you talked to her yet?” She knew they hadn’t spoken since — the why remained unspoken.

Tansu Treicolt ​

 

[Tansu Treicolt]

​

Commiserative approval made her smile, broad, white and happy. All dimples and delight.

And then it fell.

"No." The answer came quickly, thoughtlessly. The why carried much more thought, and there were several beats before Tansu spoke aloud again. "No. I don't think I can. At least until Talsin walks out of here."

She didn't look away from Auteme, but her eyes became vacant and distant. Her mind travelled back to Atrisia, the memory of her sister ready to draw her pistol on her lover. Talin had been ready to kill him. To take his life. Tansu wouldn't have him anymore, nobody would — and for what? Talin's projections of Talsin's inception?

"She was ready to kill him, Aunty."

Another life taken thoughtlessly. Like aboard that space station over Coruscant. Tansu felt her lip curl back in disgust.

"She didn't feel like herself. I don't know who I'd be talking to, or what to say."

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Auteme
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[Auteme]

"Oh," but speech was overrated sometimes. She set down the bun in favour of a hug, the kind that enveloped body and soul alike; a kiss on the head, a back rub for good measure. She stayed there a little while, or maybe an hour, however long Tansu needed.

Perhaps it was ill advised to dig into another difficult topic so soon, but it'd serve as a distraction -- a bridge, a catalyst. She let Su start to eat again, if she still had the appetite, or a canteen for her thirst.

"What did you, ah, learn from Ta- Tilon," there were too many of them now, "that night. I know a lot happened, but- if anything stuck out to you."

Tansu Treicolt ​

 

[Tansu Treicolt]

​

Wrapped up in the loving circle of Auteme's arms, Tansu sunk right in. A low, long, sob-slash-moan sound slipped out and ended with a heavy sigh. Amos shifted around on her lap, doing his best to get a nibble at the unprotected bun. Absently, she moved her hand around the snack to prevent him from taking a bite without her offering.

When they parted, she rubbed at her eyes. More tears had started to gather. She was so used to their frequent appearances now that all it took was a quick wipe to clear them away.

A small twitch came to her lips at the absurdity of all the names gathered in that field.

"Was there some kinda celebrity in our parent's years that made everyone real interested in the T, L, I and N letters?" A small portion of the bun broke off, and she pinched it between her fingers for Amos to nibble at.

"The whole thing threw me off. I thought he'd wanna arrest Jon or somethin', but he just said he wanted to know who knew what and when." She watched Amos lick her fingertips, his sand papery tongue catching every bit of salt. "That part stood out.

I knew what Jon had done, and Talsin did too — we all knew at the exact same time. I texted Lin to get Jon to confess or somethin', Talsin wanted to arrest him then and there but I begged for time."

She frowned and looked up. "Tilon made it sound like time was a bad thing."

Her hand wiped down the side of her shirt. "What did you think?"

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Auteme
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[Auteme]

"Mm. What he wanted or not -- I don't think he was sure when he began. But he asked a question of you, of everyone; the kind you spend a lifetime answering. What do you do when someone you love harms someone?"

She had half a mind to tell Tilon's story -- bits of the war came back to her, the way they'd fought, the way they'd killed. But that was painful, and complicated, and not her story to tell. Not alone. She started smaller. A laugh played across her lips, even as an old pain creased her face.

"One of those, ah, stubborn men, was Ryv." It struck her she had no idea how much Tansu knew about that; perhaps a half-remembered story or two, but she hoped Loske was not in the business of telling her children the wild tales of the love life of a young Auteme, beyond, hopefully, gently correcting the narrative of any particularly slanderous TRAA episodes. "He was a hero, but he was a man trying his best, first and foremost. Sometimes he made mistakes.

"He hurt me more often than either of us would be willing to admit. When I was your age I was... timid, insecure, and I was surrounded with literal heroes of the Alliance who were running off fighting for freedom across the galaxy. More often than not I was alone on Peace -- old, ah, Jedi Praxeum -- doing nothing, praying for their safe return. Even after I managed to sort things a bit, Ryv was captured, once, and I didn't see him for months. Not his fault, but it still hurt.

"And then..." a smirk, at how ridiculous it was, "if I recall correctly, I was rather unceremoniously dumped- I don't think I really even knew at the time- for another Jedi, who, to be fair, was much more attractive than I was. Or the time he disappeared again, only to break into Chancellor Chandra's hospital room while I was there- I think that one was when I was the most mad. And, then, of course, when he died.

"Sometimes it wasn't his fault. Mostly he was doing what he thought was right, what was needed. Perhaps it’s not right to be hurt by those things, but it happens. And this happens- well, no, not to the same degree with everyone, I'll say. I have a habit of having strong relationships with people who will disappear from my life for long periods of time, but that's a me problem.

"Anyways. There were times he hurt me. There were times I hurt him, though he'd probably be even less willing to admit that. There were breaks, moments like what you're having now -- and sometimes it will be a bridge too far, where you need to step away. Sometimes that'll be for the rest of your life. But love is about growth. Most people know when they've done wrong, and sometimes they need a little forgiveness to take that next step. With Ryv…” she was about to say they were past apologies, but those final words pierced her heart again, and she chose to speak on something else.

“When I talked to your sister -- she knew she’d hurt you. Had no idea what to do about it. She felt awful, feels awful, and in that moment the best thing she could do, what she thought she needed to do for you, was to get as far away as possible. And- well, I don’t think that’s what either of you really want, is it?

“So, the question becomes, what do you want? How do you want things to be between you? You can set terms, it doesn’t need to be unconditional. But it’s about growth. What will make you both stronger?”

Tansu Treicolt ​

 

[Tansu Treicolt]

​

Dinner table conversations never delved into the intimacies of Aunteme's love life in her youth. Maybe all that conversation happened between her mom and aunt, when the girls got tired of hearing about the glory days and put themselves to bed. She often heard them laughing long into the night, but had no idea what could have been so funny. Now she got a glimpse. Just a peek. A sliver of another dimension to the former Chancellor she and Talin revered so, and it made her a touch cooler and infinitely more human.

Tansu couldn't help but smile at the homestead memory.

And it was a good thing too, she wore the pleasant expression as a holdover as her mind scrambled to see where Auteme might be going with her anecdotal, affectionate reflection. Was this about Talsin somehow? Her brows knit, quizzical, trying to follow and absorb at the same time.

Then she understood. Ryv was Auteme's closest relationship, and it was a parallel to her and Talin. Her twin, her other half, was the closest person she had in the galaxy. And yes, she made her mad, but more often she made her happy.

Of course Talin hurt her. She would have felt it stronger than any woe from her sister in recent years.

"She threatened to put a blaster to him." Tansu's jaw set. She felt herself tighten, tension drew through her shoulders. "She oughta feel awful, but more importantly she should feel sorry."

Her expression cracked, grief breaking through the hardness. She chewed the inside of her cheek.

"Do I have to answer that right now? I think I have too many wants. They're not concise. Even though I think about it all the time it's incoherent and.." She frowned.

"I want my sister back. That person on Atrisia was someone else.

I want her to acknowledge what she did was wrong, not okay. That she doesn't get to do bad things just because it's an emotional reaction. I want her to realize that there are consequences when bad things happen, especially if you're the one doin' 'em."

She let out a breath to keep herself from getting too wound up — she'd cried enough about this. She'd have to start taking steps to remediate eventually.

What she really wanted though, was to have Talin admit something dark was going on. She'd felt it. A darkness in the edges of her sister's mind.

But she would not tell Auteme the core of her desires. She couldn't. No matter how cool of an Aunt she was, how loving, she couldn't betray her sister like that. Not without talking to her first to see how far gone she truly was.

"I want to know if she thinks what she did, and what she was ready to do, is something my sister woulda done."

Because Tansu was on her way to convinced that Talin was becoming someone else.

"If she's honest, she'll be better off for it. And if I keep her accountable to it, me too I reckon. And we live with whatever way the chips may fall I guess, s'long as they're truthful."

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Auteme
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[Auteme]

Auteme listened, nodding as appropriate to draw Tansu further, a hand on her back to support her when she stopped. Ah, but she was neither's sister; as the other had held back before, so too did this one. That it was stirring in their minds was enough, she hoped.

"You've got time to think about it," she said. "And you don't need to get it right on the first try. But- well, don't leave it for forever."

No further pressing required. Talin had taken more convincing. That girl... the thought crossed her. "She was the one who had the idea first, wasn't she?" she asked. "To stow away. She's always wanted what she's wanted. No pretext, no ego, in the psychological sense. I'd never been sure until now."

Or perhaps it was that she'd never had the chance to see them like this. She was glad to see them grown, sad to have missed so much; she could imagine how Loske was feeling, with how much she'd missed of Damien, for all her efforts.

Tansu Treicolt ​

 

[Tansu Treicolt]

​

Forever felt like too long, but anything sooner felt like she didn't have the right words yet. Talsin kept encouraging her to speak to Talin but she just..didn't know how. It had always been so easy, to just share whatever was on her mind, thoughtless, free-flow, but she was worried now about coming off condemning. Or...create something irreparable between them.

"Yes." Tan answered quietly, giving an absent scritch to Amos behind the ears.

"She's not a bad person. She never means to hurt people..." her eyes squeezed shut and she sighed. "That's why it's so hard. Because it seemed like she meant to hurt Talsin back there."

A buzz in her pocket stirred her from her lament.

"Talsin's out from his speech therapist's appointment." She announced, typing away on the screen in response. "He'd love to see you."

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Auteme | Talsin Lota
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[Talsin Lota]

Auteme | Tansu Treicolt

Tansu gave him the details and soon enough the soft whirring of wheels on steel could be heard.

A moment later Talsin wheeled himself in.

"Hey, Tan, did you want to have din-" And his eyes widened a bit as he noticed the other guest in the room. "Oh, Master Auteme." He bowed his head towards the former Grand Chancellor of the Galactic Alliance. "It is truly an honor to meet you. Had I known you'd be there, I would have..." Talsin would have forced himself out of the chair outside and endured the pain in silence.

But he knew that wasn't smart, it would only hamper the healing process, which was perhaps why Tansu hadn't added that Auteme would be here in the room.

She knew him better than he knew himself sometimes.

"Well, nevermind. Are you comfortable and are you staying long?" Wheeling in a bit closer, a happy smile to Tansu, eager to meet someone who had contributed towards an age of peace in the Alliance that seemed so awfully far away now. He'd reach Tansu's side and lace his fingers through hers, squeezing there softly.

"The therapy went well. Still can't do full speeches yet without stumbling but... slowly, steadily, right?"

 

[Auteme]

Auteme paused, considering how Tansu had read her sister -- but suspended revealing anything else. Lin would provide things on her own time.

Instead her focus went to Talsin, starting at curiosity and moving to appraisal. She made up her mind quickly, stopping him at his would have.

"Just Auteme, Talsin. I'm no one's master. And- well, if we're going by the old formal rules of the Trials, I probably shouldn't even be a knight." Dueling Solipsis seemed a sufficient feat for a proper lightsaber Trial of Skill, but that was more on Resolve than herself. Ah, but no one minded those things nowadays.

"And no Chancellor, either. If you can do that for me, maybe you can work your way up to aunt." A smile.

The second mention of speech therapy gave her a bout of confusion -- his injuries hadn't quite been like that, had they? She'd just assumed it was his body taking its time to recover from the trauma. A closer look, and-

Crap, she thought, did I mess up? His throat still had a jumble about it, and it suddenly struck her that she might not have paid close enough attention when mending that specific part -- and they'd given her such respect, too. She hid the mild embarrassment under a nod and an earnest answer.

"I've got food. Though, I don't mean to intrude." A glance to Su, though the implication of the invitation was that she was meant to meet him properly, even if he was a little surprised.

"But it's, ah, your station, isn't it? If you've got something you prefer, lead the way."

Tansu Treicolt Talsin Lota ​

 

[Talsin Lota]

Auteme Tansu Treicolt

Calling the Chancellor aunt? That was both a terrifying prospect as well as confirmed to him why Auteme had been able to hold onto power for so long in a fractious coalition like the Galactic Alliance.

Disarming, gentle and charming.

He smiled softly and inclined his head. "As you say... Auteme." It felt weird to just use her first name, but he had been raised with impeccable manners.

One didn't argue when you were asked to use a particular name.

"My family's station." Talsin corrected politely before nodding once more and leading the way.

Out the doors, towards the mess hall. He made sure to stay close to Tansu though, subconsciously, at this point in time he didn't even have to think about it.

He drifted towards her like debris drifted towards a brilliant star. Gravitational pull so natural.

"Tansu has told me quite a bit about her family. She only casually mentioned you were a family friend however."

Food was ordered and they rolled towards one of the tables that had a nice view of the stars outside.

"The period when you came up with her family sounded chaotic... A bit like now. I guess nobody can avoid interesting times when they come calling?"

 

[Tansu Treicolt]

​

Tansu hated the dynamic of walking and wheeling together. Probably because it felt beyond unnatural and too hard a shift from the norm.

At least seated they were all on the same level.

"Some do, I reckon." She interjected casually "—For whatever their reasons. Bein' a hero is tough. Full of sacrifice." Her gaze settled on her aunt's, empathizing from the story she'd shared of lovers called to a cause, Damien's father and Ryv.

"What're your plans, Auntie? You're obviously welcome to stay here but you're the type that's always around where they're most needed." She gave a smile, and reached across to squeeze her aunt's hand.

The advice for having boundaries with her sister, and setting the parameters for how they'd move forward would be something she'd think on long after the coming evening. "Do you know where that is next?"

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Auteme | Talsin Lota
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[Auteme]

"I'm, ah, not sure."

She'd picked something light-ish, a sort of pasta she was unfamiliar with, some rich sauce that smelled good drizzled on top, with a few other garnishes about. She poked at it absently, thinking on Tansu's question, gave the hand a squeeze back.

"I'm meeting my son in two weeks- have you seen him lately?" She'd heard from Lin a bit about his doings, but she was still a little in the dark on things. The look from Su said no, though.

"I've some responsibilities- mm. Ha. You know, I'd rather not be a hero anymore. The, ah, interesting times are calling, but they're not really calling me." A smile.

"How about the two of you, though? Where are you headed? Once you've healed."

Talsin Lota Tansu Treicolt ​