Private Stress Relief

[Aiden Porte]

Naboo
Royal Palace-Apartment
Kalantha

It was easy to tell, at least from his standpoint when someone was stressed out. Especially if you had spent enough time with them, essentially grown with them. With Inara, it was a second nature and as much as she tried to hide it from him. It was almost nearly impossible for her to do such a thing. He could pick up on it, in an instant. She had been faced with a multitude of things and well it could catch up with anyone.

Even someone as strong and talented as the Queen of Naboo.

Aiden had been in contact almost every single day, especially since her potentiality to become the First Chancellor for the High Republic. Her protection now was even more important than ever. Yet the sound in her voice, even how she sent a holo message to him suggested otherwise.

Stress....

He had advised her he would be by to talk, but more importantly than that he had left out a small detail.

He would be arriving with food, a pizza to be quite specific. Not just a regular pepperoni, but one that had the works. Almost every topping there was to offer. There was a good place in Theed that served such things, quite popular.

Aiden held the box, his hand underneath. And his other hand he knocked on the door to Kalantha's Royal Apartment.

Hopefully this would be a good surprise.

 

[Kalantha]

STRESS RELIEF
… Royal Apartment, Naboo

​

Inara sat with her legs crossed on the living room floor, cushioned by a little throne of throw pillows a few feet away from a small fire that burned lazily beneath the mantle. Summer was at its peak on Naboo, but the Royal Palace always felt chilly to her in the evening. She could have easily stayed in her office, but every hour inside those four walls felt like an eternity in brutal suspension. Her private chambers were far preferable, even though she had brought her work back with her.

The rug she was camping out on was covered in datapads and holobooks. There were bills to review, legislation to study - anything she could do to put the election out of her mind. Inara's eyes skimmed over a stack of proposals and committee petitions, almost glazing over at the amount of busywork there was to do. She looked to the clock and sighed. The results wouldn't be in for another few hours at least. She almost resolved to crawl into bed and force herself to fall asleep early, but a knock on her door dismissed the idea.

Inara rose to her feet and stretched, pulling the tension from her rigid muscles before heading to the door. She opened it with the expectation that a statesman or advisor was standing on the other side, armed with questions or unwanted feedback on her performance at the Hall of Perri-Teeka, but to her delighted surprise, it was Aiden Porte at her door.

"Aiden?" she asked, smiling but confused. "Is something the matter?" Her eyes trailed from his face to the box in his hand - fresh pizza, from her favorite restaurant no less. Her shoulders melted, pulling her regal posture down with it. "Oh, you didn't have to do that," she said with a grateful smile.

Tags: Aiden Porte​

 

[Aiden Porte]

Naboo
Royal Apartment
Tags: Kalantha

It was difficult to not sense, but that was the whole deal with being a Jedi. She was stressed, carrying the weight of Naboo and the High Republic on her shoulders. She was more than this, she was strong. She knew it, and sometime just needed to be reminded of it. We all did at times....

He thought about how he was during the several chaotic events that occurred during his life. How they left him, how he was found. Cold, hopeless, left in darkness until he was pulled out of that cold by several. The names of his friends, family, those that meant the world to him. He chuckled lightly as he heard the footsteps approaching the door and he showed a small smile, and he couldn't help but take a small peak in at the mountain of datapads and paperwork that was on the floor.

Aiden?"

"Is something the matter?"

"No, of course not, i just figured you could use a break. It's okay to relax every now and again. As your number one best friend I need to remind you of that." The Jedi chuckled lightly as he cleared his throat and offered up the box and she responded as he hoped she would. And that made him feel so much better. Her postured loosened up and he knew it was what the doctor ordered.

"Oh, you didn't have to do that,"

"Nah, don't be silly. You deserve it." Aiden took a small glance back in the room with a sly grin on his face. "Unless I should leave you and the datapads, and paperwork alone once more?" He giggled lightly as he offered up the pizza once more for her.

 

[Kalantha]

STRESS RELIEF
… Royal Apartment, Naboo

​

“Stars, no!” she mused, grabbing the box and turning to hold the door for him. The first thing she did was apologize.

“Sorry, this place is atrocious… I didn’t realize how much stuff I brought home with me.” Inara could see now just how much her nerves were shot as she gazed upon dozens of handheld devices and loose sheets of paper scattered across the floor like a child’s blocks.

She walked sheepishly to a small table near the balcony and set the pizza down like a precious treasure. That was when she realized that she hadn’t eaten since dinner time the day before. A hunger pang prodded her for the first time in hours, another reminder that she was human. It was strange how Aiden’s arrival always pulled her body out of the fog and opened her eyes to the basic needs she often denies herself. A soft smile touched Inara’s lips, one brought by the sense of relief she felt that her friend was here.

“I’ve wanted this more than anything, but the suspense is killing me,” she said, turning to face Aiden. “I’ve come to peace with the fact that in a democracy, there’s always a chance of losing. I already know what I want to do if that happens, and it’s quite exciting - I won’t be distraught if Sentapoth becomes the next leader of the Republic.”

She sighed. “It’s just the waiting game that keeps me awake. I can’t stop thinking about everything I said at the debate. Was I truthful the entire time, or did I blend what the people wanted to hear with what I knew was right? Do the people trust me? Do they fault me for the measures I took to protect them when I was Queen?”

Inara could go on and on, but it was useless. She knew that she had done her best with the hand she was dealt, a hand that few others could have played without crumbling, let alone play it well. She could hear her father telling her to keep her chin up, that there was no such thing as redos, and that an artist stands by their work - no matter how smudgy.

Her eyes drifted to the painting that hung above the mantle. It was the last one her father painted before he died, one that a young Inara begged to help him finish but ultimately ruined by knocking over the easel. You could see it in the way the trees smeared chaotically over the image of the Berenko estate. Inara remembered crying and crying, distraught that she’d messed up her father’s work.

All he did was smile, in much the same way that Aiden did now. Forgiving, understanding, and accepting. She hadn’t disappointed her dad then, and even if she lost the election surrounded by towers of paperwork on the floor, she wouldn’t disappoint Aiden, either.

Inara stepped across the room and wrapped her arms around him, burying her face in his chest. A silent stream of tears ran down her cheeks, absorbing into his shirt. She didn’t speak, not even sniffle. She simply melted into the safest place she’d found in months.

After a long moment, she pulled away. Her tears were dry but her eyes were pink. Inara smiled, and said, “C’mon. I’m starving. Let’s eat on the balcony, watch the last of the sunset?”

Tags: Aiden Porte​

 

[Aiden Porte]

Naboo
Royal Apartment
Tags: Kalantha

“Stars, no!”

“Sorry, this place is atrocious… I didn’t realize how much stuff I brought home with me.”

"It's not so bad, you are an important woman. Your gonna be even more important once the election results are announced." The Jedi said with an encouraging smile, the fact that all this was scattered like so. In truth it showed how much she cared, how much she cared for the people. To be able to invest what should've been her free time to continue to work on the things important to the High Republic. He followed her inside as she set the prized pizza down and she turned to him.

“I’ve wanted this more than anything, but the suspense is killing me,”

“I’ve come to peace with the fact that in a democracy, there’s always a chance of losing. I already know what I want to do if that happens, and it’s quite exciting - I won’t be distraught if Sentapoth becomes the next leader of the Republic.”

"He don't deserve it, you do." Aiden said with a strong and steady conviction. "Who has been with Naboo from the beginning. Who suffered losses just like everyone else did from the very beginning? Who is spending their days like this preparing, legislative messes and everything else in between?"

“It’s just the waiting game that keeps me awake. I can’t stop thinking about everything I said at the debate. Was I truthful the entire time, or did I blend what the people wanted to hear with what I knew was right? Do the people trust me? Do they fault me for the measures I took to protect them when I was Queen?”

The Jedi Knight shook his head and then laughed lightly. "Inara, I beg you don't do that to yourself. You know the kind of person you are, I know the kind of person you are. I believe in you, and a countless more do as well. Remember, when I told you don't look back on the doubt others may have for you. It's a poison, once you start thinking that and letting it in. It could consume you...."

It was then she moved forward to him wrapping her arms around him. He didn't say anything at all, just the strong hug and the bond they had was all that was shown. He held her, she cried into his chest and he didn't fault her or anything like that for a second. He told her long ago he would always be that comfort for her. Her guard, shield, friend, whatever she needed. He leaned in and kissed her on the forehead just as they broke apart.

“C’mon. I’m starving. Let’s eat on the balcony, watch the last of the sunset?”

"That sounds like a solid plan." Aiden said with a smile, looking on her face. He was so happy to see that smile again. It was enough to move mountains, and so much more. The Jedi followed her out to the balcony as a small gust of wind whipped up around the area.

"Gods, you can't beat this view." Aiden said with a big smile as he looked over to Inara. "I love watching the sunset, I do it all the time at the homestead." Granted it wasn't exactly the same, while had no company out there, here it was so much better.