The Woman That Felled A Titan

[Alric Kuhn]

His lips pressed against flesh just above scrawling black ink.

They broke into a thin smile, then moved up, pressing softly into the warmth of her skin. Small points of punctuation would trail up her body, pushing into her skin again and again as Alric slowly made his way upward. His kisses planted along her spine, soliciting small goosebumps as he came to the center of her back. She bucked slightly, sighing beneath him as he lingered for a moment, moving on to between her shoulders.

He stopped at the base of her neck, letting his weight press into her slightly as his nose nudged the length of her hair away. Another kiss would find its way onto the nape of her neck. He rested atop her, pushing into her.

“You've given me everything you've ever promised.” Warmth breath would splash against her skin, sinking down as he slowly kissed his way onto her neck and just below her ear. “More than I ever knew I wanted.”

The truth of that was so cosmically astounding that he had never really thought of it until now. Silara had given him everything. She had given him her love, her name, her utter devotion. Everything she had had to offer had become his, freely offered, and now on top of it all, she would give him a child. That feeling, that knowledge, it made him ecstatic.

Happy beyond all belief and reason.

His hand sailed up as he lay atop her, gently parting strands of her hair in a slow caffuné.

“I'm so glad to be with you.” It was all that he could think to say anymore. The elation in his heart, the calm cool relaxation, the feeling of love fluttering through him. Some might have called him a fool, but in that moment he could have been the greatest fool in the galaxy and not cared. He had her. He would have a child.

He would have everything that mattered.

 

[Hailyn]

[media]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMesOOVke4w[/media]​

​

His touch wracked her body with an indescribable feeling, something she'd found was enhanced both by her loss of vision and adaption both through the force and because of its temporary loss. As he moved up her body she couldn't fathom how he knew where was good better than she did herself. For once, no, for the first time, their intimacy wasn't a moment of intense pleasure for the reason of satiating desires, it wasn't something to pass the time, to mash bodies up against each other in a sweaty fashion. No, this time there was a distinct lack of lust from her heart, from her mind, and she felt it the same from him - this moment was love and sensuality. It was still as exhausting as it had always been, still as exhilarating as he always made it for her, and she for him, but there was a certain control that she lacked before. His lips against the patch of skin just beneath the small of her back told her he was ready to lay beside as they had done several times in the past, usually for moments when she felt scared - moments of vulnerability - but this was a feeling altogether different. She didn't fear for their future together, her anxiety was at an all-time low, her trust astronomically high. Of course she jerked as he moved, their bodies together in their bed was creating an amazing moment that she almost couldn't contain.

It was love.

She'd felt obsession before, she'd lusted after men and women alike - she was no innocent little girl, as Alric very well knew by now, but this was different. Every fiber of her being, every synapse in her brain, with every beat of her heart drew her heightened emotions closer to him, and she knew he was already enamored with her. It was almost comical, the way she'd first decided she'd fall for him, long before he'd even grown into the phase of treating her as his one and only - yet here she was, the last to experience this feeling, the last of the two to fall in love. The kiss against the nape of her neck sent electrical surges through her being, and she shuddered with an audible sigh of happiness. Her smile started small, absent-minded while her eyes were held lightly shut, but quickly grew as her eyes began to open, though the world was still lost on her. The stroking of his hand against the side of her head, fingers pulling through the river of her hair that had been cut short the night before, was all she wanted at this moment, even as he pressed his body against hers. The pleasure of simply existing, together, was satisfying in and of itself, but the knowledge she had shared with him in excitement, just before their moment of ecstasy, had blown open their world and made it new again. She was pregnant, and they would soon welcome a child of their own into their world. For now everything outside of the room didn't matter, the Sith were nonexistent, the Krath weren't even an afterthought, and Empress Teta was now simply their home.

His confession brought her attention to the waking world, and with a pleasant sigh she rotated her body to face him, the memory of his face beside hers in that office on Coruscant briefly entering her mind as a way of envisioning what he looked like beside her now. "There is nothing more in this world, in the galaxy, that I want more than us, Alric." She cooed quietly, the rasp of her voice tickling her throat as she moved her hands up from his waist to his chest. There was no need for her to emphasize the plurality of their being, that she wasn't simply talking about him, with her, or she, with him, but as a family - husband, wife, child and all. She had once scoffed at the notion of having another child, hated to think of what pains it would bring her future - too many memories of mistakes on her part, of her horrifying failure of being a mother, catastrophically resulting in the death of her unborn child. She didn't forget those moments, she never could, but she knew they would never come again, she trusted Alric first, and the force along with him, that her life would pan out just as she had dreamed it would - just as she had hoped. "I can't believe we're having a baby, so soon." She whispered, her tone of excitement and joy. "I hope they inherit that stubborn honesty of yours, with a little of my beauty." Silara said with a smile, quickly adding in the last bit with a short giggle. Another contented sigh and she couldn't remember the last time she'd been like this, even with him. Thoughts drifted back to their first tryst together, but that was juvenile to this, an immature moment of lust and passion. She wanted to talk about their life, about their child's future, and though that child was now the most important thing in her life, she still had other things to discuss with Alric. "Did you have a place in mind? For the wedding I mean. I have a sister I want to invite, she's the only family outside of you I have." She said softly, quite curious to the thoughts he'd had on their wedding. He'd brought it up earlier like he'd had an idea already, and she hadn't even thought about it just yet - they hadn't even set a date until just prior.

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Silara Kuhn"]

His arms wrapped around her, his hands sliding around her body, one slowly moving up the back of her neck to tangle within her her auburn locks, the other gently gliding down to the small of her back. He drew tiny circles there, tracing with his index finger around that sensitive spot in the center of her back.

Alric smiled down at her.

There was no describing the joy that he felt at her words. No telling how happy he was to have her speak to him that way. There was genuine joy within her voice, her tone denoting a future dream. A dream of their children, of their personalities. He closed his eyes for a few moments, imagining their child. A smile spread across his face, growing wider and wider. “Well, you do have plenty to spare.”

Alric said to her comment about their childs beauty, kissing her only a second after the joke.

When she spoke of the wedding, his mind came to a halt. In his excitement, in his absolute mirth and joy, Alric had entirely forgotten about their wedding. His face went from surprise to a massive grin all of a sudden.

She would be his wife soon.

“My family’s old country estate.” The word country was a bit misplaced here on Empress Teta. There were sections of the planet not covered in city, but they were few and far in between. The Kuhn estate was in one of these sections. “It's private. A bit dusty, but I think you'll like it.”

He was surprised she had a sister, Silara had never mentioned such a thing before. Yet he felt no need to ask her or press the issue, he would meet the woman at the wedding. As for who he wanted to invite? She wouldn't come. He knew that already, the deep welling sadness that pressed at him told him so. Yet he would send the invitation anyway. “Invite anyone you want. If they're part of your life, if they're important to you, I want to meet them.”

Alric kissed her again.

She very well knew the situation with Danger, the only person that he would invite. He had told her how the two of them had fallen out, how he had made a mistake and before they could be friends again Alric would have to make it up to her. Silara wouldn't bring it up, she knew it would only hurt Alric.

“I want Red Velvet Cake.” He said suddenly, his hand halting the tracing circles on the small of her back. His face became a mock of sternness, His lips thin but clear joy still within his eyes. “Not negotiable.”

 

[Hailyn]

She squirmed a little, almost snorted even, at the tracing of his fingers against her back. Internally it was suddenly the most amusing thing in the world to her, so encapsulating, so totally all-encompassing of them that he knew the one spot on her that would bring her to her knees without even the slightest amount of effort, not quite so out of pain or pleasure but of something she never could quite describe - it tickled, yes, but she never really understood the word, words never came, only recently did imagery even appear for it, an experience at most. To find that the smallest of details, the most insignificant of moments, brought her happiness was only further testament to her that he was not only the right choice, he was her only choice. There was no other way, with or without him, and his rather unsubtle compliment, unrefined and as immature as he was, kick-started her heart into over-drive. She flushed with warmth as she blushed and her hands moved up his neck and eventually to his face. Perhaps he understood the reason why she did this - she didn't recall explicitly explaining this new habit of hers, it was second nature to her now - or perhaps he did not, but every bump, every groove, and every blade of hair that she felt formed a cohesive image in her mind of the man that was to be her husband and father to her child. She cupped the right side of her cheek and traced her fingers through the rough edges of his beard.

For a moment her eyes moved rapidly, as though she were taking in a lot of things at once, and the glassy look that kept their icy grip on them preserved the notion that she was looking through him rather than at him. In reality she was internally searching for a word, words really, when she realized she'd touched something that wasn't yet healed. She wanted to brush it off, ignore it like she ignored her own pains, but it was Alric, and he always had made it a point to confront those problems together. If he could lift her up when she felt uncomfortable then she could do the same for him, even if it meant making their moment of bliss dissipate. The change in subject, so abruptly, told her he wasn't comfortable speaking about the situation he'd told her of earlier, a situation she felt responsible for - her slip of tongue, however unintentional, was never meant to speak of their... past.. no matter how hard it was for her to swallow. She didn't personally know Danger, she didn't understand how she thought, but she knew how important she was to Alric, perhaps as important as she was. The possibility of a truth in that was unsettling, as though everything in her world would have hung by a thread if certain events had not came to pass. She had watched her world literally burn, she would not let him lose his. "Of course." Came her strained reply, swallowing hard as she tried to build up the confidence she needed to speak of it. He'd turned her away before, though truthfully under different circumstances, and she had always flinched in these moments. "Are you feeling better?" She asked, her question bearing a double meaning. It wasn't, however, a question followed by a provocative kiss or a caress, she wanted an answer from him before she decided how to act.

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Silara Kuhn"]

He smiled at her, knowing of course what she was referring to.

She was being indirect, but still asking, still caring. It was one of the reasons that he loved her. Even when he knew it made her uncomfortable, she still cared enough to ask him. His fingers flattened out against the small of her back, his hand pressing into her so gently push her closer to him. Their skin touched, and he immediately felt a small surge of warmth from her exposed abdomen.

“I'm fine.” He said, his words liquid honey.

“We're about to get married Silara.” His hand began to sail down her body, fingers trailing down her back, thumb stroking as he gently moved down her body. “I'm about to have you like never before. You'll have my name, my child, all of it.”

Truthfully nothing much would change. He already loved her, she was already having his child, and she already stood to inherit all of his wealth were something to happen. Yet marriage...it was a symbol for him, a sign of something. As if he were claiming her for all the galaxy to see, and she was agreeing.

He gave her the warmest smile he possibly could, she couldn't see it, but with her hand upon his face she would feel it. He did feel true joy at the prospect of their union, at the idea of them solidifying what they were. “That idea, that knowledge, that makes me happy. I know I have problems. I know I have to fix them, but right now...right now I want to focus on us.”

His tone was stern, serious, he wanted her to know this was not a time of worry, not a time of anxiety. They were to be happy, if only for a little while.

“I'm fine my little songbird.” His hand sailed over her rear and onto her hips, pulling her against him in a loving embrace. “I promise.”

 

[Hailyn]

His words, however intended, hit her hard. She was to have his child, children, everything. Suddenly her world wasn't all darkness and lightsabers, swords and blasters, suddenly her world was a lot more vulnerable; only just now was she realizing it. There would be no turning back, no manipulations, every last plan she'd made - aside from her last hurrah with Empress Teta and the Krath - would be shelved for the near conceivable future, if not forever. She'd been the insane follower of the dark side, a voice that shouted and screamed for her Dark Lord. She wasn't leaving it behind because she wasn't capable of it - she had made a choice, and choices had consequences. She would not bring harm to her children, to her family. She made a mental note to send in some sort of notification of her resignation - and another to double security on Alric and herself, she didn't trust her own people for good reason. She didn't believe that he was fine, either - one doesn't have a massive fight with their best friend and stop talking while feeling nothing at all.

Kark, she couldn't go a day without at least waking up with him.

Maybe he needed to let things go for a little while, perhaps he needed to relax a little more - like she'd demanded he do anyways - so in the meantime she would be his drug, his source of entertainment at least. "You've been rather excited lately." She said with a smug grin, burying her worry for him under the surface for a little while longer. She let out a short sigh, breathed in sharply, then slid up against him so her chest was against his, right leg swinging over his thigh. "I'm going to quit." Silara said quietly, her voice distant, worried almost. "For you, our child, children. The most I'm going to do is work with Koros and the Krath, I'm done with going out myself - I will be your wife and the mother to our child first, Sith Lord... well, maybe not even last." She continued, sliding both of her hands down from his face with one snaking around his back and the other on his abdomen. "I'll tell them something, but I'm going to disappear from their ranks for good - I think." She added, sliding up against him further until she was practically laying on him. "I was a bad mother to my first child, I need to be there for ours. I never forgave myself for what I did then, and I will never make that mistake ever again." Silara said firmly, pushing him over on his back and sat up, whipping her head back to push the hair out of her face. She smiled, their marriage was quickly approaching, they had a child on the way, and for now she had one last thing to do.

She rocked his world.

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Lisette Kuhn"]

Alric stood outwardly calm before a mirror, his hands fidgeted at his neck, tying the bow tie in place. In his head were a thousand thoughts, a thousand worries, none of them about Silara.

There was not a concern, not a doubt, not a thing wrong about his future wife. He was confident in her, confident in their union and what they were about to do. He had always been, and it had only been bolstered by what she had said to him days ago.

The words she had told him as she slid atop him had been stuck in his mind like bristles. They had encapsulated him, trapped him, and made him love her all the more. He knew what the Sith meant to her, he knew what her position meant to her, he knew it all. The fact that she was giving all that up for him, for their children, it was a mark of just how deep her love ran.

It was a love that he matched.

He smiled slightly as he looked passed himself in the mirror, remembering just days passed as she had...vigorously made her intentions known. Alric shook his head, finishing tying his bow tie and turning away.

There was a slight swagger to his step, a cheerful saunter. Everything seemed to be going right. Shil was taking more and more control in Titan, the company was fairing well, Silara and him were due to be married in just a few short hours. There was only one thing missing, one person. He frowned slightly, shaking his head. He knew that dwelling on her would only ruin this day. The invitation had been sent, but in his heart he knew that she would not be arriving today, or perhaps any other.

A few more steps saw him to the balcony.

It was a beautiful open space, massive actually. His father had used the terrace as an impromptu party location many times. Alric had clear memory of dozens of people standing on the veranda, each with a glass of some kind, each dancing and swaying, talking. Of course now he realized they were all Krath, all plotting and scheming.

Another shake of his head, and his eyes surveyed who was here.

He didn't really recognize anyone that Silara had invited, though one person did stick out. She sat calmly in one of the oddly ornate wooden chairs, her hands in her lap, her face obscured by the direction it faced. His wife had mentioned her days ago, In her motivation to be a better mother. For a second he stopped, looking down at his chrono to check the time. Slowly he moved over to her, coming up behind her with a slight patter of bootsteps.

“Lisette?” His voice rang out with that same confidence that always hung there, though there was a softness to it this time.

 

[Hailyn]

[media]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=desJKYvdq9A[/media]​

So boring. Her eyes rolled at entourage of adults that shuffled by, audibly yawning in the most insulting of ways - she wasn't here to make friends with a bunch of nobodies and suck-ups, and she certainly wasn't here to make her mother look good. Kark that schutta. The place looked nice enough, benefits of robbing the poor to build one's self up to become rich - another mark against her arms dealer of a step father. He fething worked as the Sith's dogs, the very people - like her mother - that she detested. Of course, that wasn't to say she couldn't be civil and attend her mother's wedding, if not to make her mother and everyone there hate her family more if they didn't already. She heard the footsteps, the sound of bated breath, and sighed just as a man spoke her name. She slumped forward a little, entering a brief slouch in posture with her eyes glaring up at the sky in annoyance, and turned her head to the side with an uncrossing of her legs. "Who are you supposed to be?" She asked impatiently, just before she realized it was [member="Alric Kuhn"].

She expelled another sigh and adjusted how she sat to fully face the older man and glared at him with signature disgust. She did not want to be around these people, she did not want to be like these people, but every waking moment of her life just drew her further and further into her mother's warped and corrupted world. Lis heard tales of her mother softening, getting married - but she knew her mother, how innocent she could be. This was all just a ruse to spend time selfishly with her new collection, a 'family' like she had been to her, and she'd simply return to the forefront of people's minds just as she faded away with just as much terrible might and cruelty as she was before she'd even began to drift away. It was just who the woman was, devious and evil. Nothing would change it, no one could. If she thought she could kill her, she would have - it would have been the only way to get rid of her. But Alric.. she didn't quite know anything of him, other than he was no Sith Lord to her knowledge, only some lecherous pervert lying somewhere between her age and her mother's, maybe ten years older than her at best. "Come to say hello? Save it. You, my mother, and all your rich friends - you're all a bunch of liars, thieves, and criminals. Murderers if you count my mother and her camp." Lisette continued quickly, not wanting to let the man who probably wanted her to call him 'dad' get a word in until she'd verily made her position clear.

She hated him, Silara, all of them. Worthless sycophants, all of them.

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Silara Kuhn"] [member="Lisette Kuhn"]

He let the girl say her piece.

Silara had told him of her, and he had done his fair share of digging as well. That was one thing he had always understood about war and the corporate game, know thy enemy. As odd as it was, this same principal applied here.

He knew that Lisette hated her mother, and he knew why. There was no arguing that she had good cause, there was no arguing that a sixteen year old girl likely would have hated her mother anyway, but right now that didn't matter to Alric. Silara had once been but a Sith Lord to him. She had been dangerous, deadly, and something altogether foreign to him. Yet that had changed. She had opened up to him, and she had changed for him, just as he had changed for her.

He hoped Lisette would be the same.

When the girl finished Alric smiled for a moment. It was not his usual smug smile, not the smile that he often gave her mother, it was not even the smile that he used to try and win people over. Instead if was a smile of amusement, not mocking, but simple mirth on his face.

“Liar? Most definitely. Criminal? Arguable, depends on whose laws you're going by. Thief? I've never stolen a thing in my life.” That was certainly the truth, all of it. Though he had never lied to Silara or anyone close to him.

There was much he could have said. He could have tried to argue with her, he could have tried to convince her, tried to tell her to give her mother a chance. Yet he knew that was a useless endeavor. Alric didn't know sixteen year old girls, but he knew when someone had made up their mind. Sometimes it was better to give a suggestion than a command.

Slowly Alric squatted down, making sure that his eyes were level with his own.

“You have every right to hate your mother, and every right to be skeptical about me.” Great start. “But I appreciate you being here, and so does she.”

He paused for a moment, making sure to catch her eye. “I know there is nothing I can say to convince you to forgive your mother. I know there is nothing I can say to get you to like me. You already made up your mind before ever walking through that door, and that's okay.”

“But the fact is your mother and I are getting married, and whether you acknowledge it or not, whether you like it or not, that makes us family.” He kept speaking, using the same tactic that she had used on him earlier. “Family means something to me. I lost mine. My parents, my sisters, even my cousins, all of them. Your mother, and now you, are the only family I have.”

He didn't mention their unborn child yet, it was bad luck to do so before enough time had passed and he would not have anything jinx it. As he continued to speak his voice became slightly more authoritative. “That means something to me. You don't have to like it. You don't even have to acknowledge it, just accept it.”

“Use it as you will. Ask me for money, for ships, for advice. Try to trick me, try to steal from me. I don't care.” His expression grew stern. “Just know that I am here.”

Alric knew that she would likely not believe him, that she would try to throw it in his face, that she would have a thousand words to say and a hundred arguments as to why he and Silara were evil. Yet he didn't particularly care. Lisette was his family now, just as Silara was family. He had made his point, and whether she believed him or not, whether she accepted it was now out of his hands.

Before she could berate or even speak to him, he rose from his squat, standing tall and turning away from her to take his place at the very center of the arrangements on the balcony.

 

[Hailyn]

Today was the defining moment of the rest of their lives - of hers and Alric's. She, they, were getting married, and everything was running just as smoothly as she had anticipated - even her estranged daughter had shown up and silently wished her well before returning to her reclusive habits of rebelling against general authority. Silara had found herself sitting on a stool in front of a body-sized mirror - one which she could not see to use - with her petite assistant, Leena, playing with her hair. The girl had gone from being her captor to suddenly being nothing less than family to her, and hopefully Alric. While she certainly had made it clear that she was the end-all-be-all of superiors to the girl, their mutual sarcastic relationship had turned into an endearing sort one would expect from siblings or even a mother and daughter. At first it had been amusing how the girl's parents had absconded their daughter to her as a personal aide, but slowly she realized that Miss Haven had been pulled into the Krath because of the way she had been raised. "How do I look?" She asked, her fingers intertwined with each other in her lap. "Your hair is so beautiful, and so is this dress, I don't think he'll even be looking anywhere tonight except right at you." Leena replied, rather matter-of-factly, carefully standing over her with both of her legs practically straddling the older woman's thighs as she applied the small amount of make-up that the Sith had asked for - simply lipstick and eyeliner at that. It wasn't quite often that the two spoke so freely around each other - at least not about personal things such as this - but the excitement Silara was feeling certainly helped her loosen up a bit.

"Don't you want to go mingle with the people who came to see you two get married?" She asked, curiously, while wondering what made the social butterfly of a woman hole herself up in the makeshift dressing room. "Not quite yet, the ceremony doesn't start for another half hour - can you lace up the back of my dress?" Silara replied, tapping the leg of the younger red-head to get her to move off of her. "Thank you." She added, not quite long after. "Of course." Came the teen's quick reply. "But don't you think you should live a little? Come on, let's get out of this room, it's the only way you're going to get your mind off of things!" Leena ranted, tugging the woman that was undeniably capable of reprimanding the teen without any form of resistance as if she had little to be afraid of - perhaps at the moment true, seeing as how she was quickly pulled out of the room with an exasperated sigh. "Now let's go get you a glass of something and make yourself known - Mister Kuhn can't be your publicist as well as your husband, you have an obligation as the owner of Koros and the leader of the Krath now." She quipped, looking for a place to grab a drink for Silara. "Let's not forget the motion you've put into play of you taking the seat as Empress of Teta - first one in a good several hundred years if I remember right." Leena added, absent-minded but still quite cheerful. "Yes, I'd nearly forgotten about my decision to take control of an entire planet. How easily such small things just drift from my mind." Silara replied dryly, every syllable dripping with sarcasm.

[member="Alric Kuhn"]

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Silara Kuhn"]

Alric stood on the balcony.

There was a smile on his face as a touch of wind ran through his hair. Unlike his wife he made no effort to speak with anyone or socialize in anyway. He had spoken to the one person that he had wanted to speak to today, or rather one of the only two people. Silara and Lisette. He smiled slightly, his fingers meshing with one another as he leaned over the balcony.

The courtyard bellow had been cleaned and cleared, the hedges trimmed and the grass cut.

He tried to remember the last time he had seen this place so full of life, tried to remember the last time that he had been here and had been happy. He found the memory tucked away deep within his mind. Alric saw himself standing in the courtyard below, his sisters speaking to him. Violet was waving her arms wildly, Fiona watching her with a bemused grin.

There were words attached to that memory, fading laughter. Alric smiled a sad smile, the memory of his sisters and him slowly passing away until the courtyard was once again empty. For a moment his eyes lingered on that spot, then slowly tore away, drifting back over towards the horizon.

It was a view that he remembered well, one that he hoped to share with Silara over and over again.

Silara and Alric Kuhn.

He mused within the names, smiling as he whispered them to himself. His eyes dashing down to his chrono for a few moments as he checked how much time was left.

There was an eagerness to him. An eagerness to hold his wife, to kiss her, to have her, to create new memories with her both here and elsewhere. He found joy in those thoughts, in the future that he and Silara would have. A joy that drove a low happy hum within his throat.

 

[Onrai]

An eyebrow was raised at the reaction of her 'sister,' quite the interesting situation. Vanessa herself was here to wish a marriage well, however much she disliked the situation. The part of her that was a Sith Lord deigned for Silara to have been her own, but that was not to be - she was here in the body of that woman's daughter, by all means healthier and happier. She had a new identity, a new life... Not to mention a new company with contracts as well. And yet the anger in her heart towards Alric, for his soldiers having stolen her mother from her at gunpoint... She was unsure if she could necessarily forgive such a thing.

Nonetheless, she still was here to enjoy the festivities of the evening, never one to pass up a good opportunity to enjoy a party. Already she was enjoying a mimosa that went down quite smoothly, all things considered. Wearing a black dress, backless to showcase her smoothed skin, she idly looked over her datapad for any updates, eyes occasionally lifting to eye the happy couple and her sister in question.

Perhaps they would say hello.

[member="Silara Kuhn"] [member="Alric Kuhn"] [member="Lisette Kuhn"]

 

[Darth Zilti]

Empress Teta. Koros Major. Koros. Cinnagar. Whatever you called it, Maja didn’t like it. She’d done what she always did when she travelled in space – she researched. Typically about the artefact or Sith Lord she was about to chase down or be entertained by. Or was that the other way around? She shrugged. She was in no mood for frivolity.

She’d spent the time memorising boring facts about a boring planet that was no doubt inhabited by boring people.

Was she being spoiled and petulant? You betcha she was.

Maja’s story was no worse than millions of others. Perhaps billions. But of course when it’s your story, it’s the most important one the galaxy has ever known. Raised on freighters as the lowest of the low, only having enough credits not to starve and one set of clothes to both live and sleep in, she’d been raised an orphan. A chance meeting in some back-street bazaar had not only identified her as Force Adept but also had awakened her Force power. And that night she’d discovered she’d inherited a Life Bond and on the other end of it was a sister.

The news was both awesome and crushing in equal measures. She’d clearly been abandoned as a baby – the story she’d grown up knowing was a lie. As was her name. Even Silara couldn’t tell her what her real name was. But for all the negatives, the positives were so overwhelmingly good. She had something of her own for the first time in her life – a sister. And nobody could take that away from her. Until now.

She sulked in the cockpit as the planet loomed up ahead. What was the point of having something all for yourself if you had to share it?

Share it? Karking share it? “WHO AM I KARKING KIDDING.” The ship reverberated with the sound of her voice. She wasn’t just invited to a wedding, if the service went on for too long, there would be a christening too! A sister held a special place in your heart but a husband? And a new baby?

Maja had met Vanessa. Her relationship with Silara didn’t threaten her. Nor did her knowledge of another daughter. Lisette? She cared little for their names. Names? Funny how everyone else gets normal names and hers was probably taken from some cargo manifest. Except she knew her real name now. A name she was going to share one day. She wanted to, no she needed to tell her sister what it was. But now was too early. Now was a month or two too early. She was meeting up with another explorer. Finally she knew what she had to do.

For Maja had spent the past six years roaming the galaxy, waiting for the perfect time to return to her sister and show her what she had become. She would have a gift and her sister would say she was worthy and allow her to join the One Sith with her blessing and life would be perfect.

She loved Silara as much now as she ever had. If it weren’t for her sister, that’s the only emotion she’d have – for it was on a god-forsaken ice planet that Maja finally was able to connect with her emotions. Her sister. Her clever, wonderful big sister had done that for her.

And now? She was allowing those emotions to eat away at her. The love never diminished but at times she’d stopped liking her sibling. But love always pulled her back. The reasons for the dislike? They varied. Her own frustration was the main one. When things got tough, she blamed Silara. Not even vaguely fair, but she did it anyway.

She stared out of the window as the estate grew larger in her vision. It was blurred due to the tears. Because she’d initially ignored the request to come. She’d even typed a variety of snarky messages declining the invitation. Of course, in between each one she’d composed one in which she shared her news and confirmed the love she had for her sibling. But none, of either variety, were ever sent.

Finally she sent a curt note. A begrudging acceptance. She knew it would hurt her sister and she wanted it to. She wanted her to feel the pain she herself was feeling. She needed to share the anger and the frustration. It was a cry for help. In truth, all she wanted was love. But the thing about a Life Bond is that you can’t turn it off like a tap. This was her sister’s big day and Maja knew she should be happy for her. For her husband-to-be too. That would be what Silara wanted. Needed. Deserved.

Instead she got a snarky, spoiled brat of a sister that she didn’t deserve or quite frankly need. Was it better she stayed away? Possibly. But deep down, all she wanted was for her sister to be happy. In a perfect world, Maja would provide all of that happiness. But this wasn’t a perfect world. At least it wasn’t Maja’s perfect world. And perhaps, just perhaps, she was beginning to see that Silara’s perfect world wasn’t such a bad place to be in. Except.

Except.

Except she couldn’t shake this feeling of jealousy. It consumed her and was in danger of killing her relationship with her sister. So the pragmatist in her railed against the emotion. And to date, the jury was out who’d win on points.

‘I was dreaming of the past
And my heart was beating fast
I began to lose control
I began to lose control
I didn’t mean to hurt you
I’m sorry if I made you cry
I didn’t want to hurt you
I’m just a jealous girl.’

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzlDcMkhPGs

[member="Enigma"] | [member="Alric Kuhn"] | [member="Silara Kuhn"]

 

[Hailyn]

[media]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K93CKVwxQ5Q[/media]​

Lingering in the corner of the room of her own party she felt mildly out of place. She was accustomed to large gatherings, showing off of success, and boasting of egos, but all of that was behind the iron curtain of her Sith name - reaching back to her time as an apprentice, a child without a name, she was quiet, reserved, and at the moment she felt herself slowly returning to that state of being. She knew her husband wouldn't mind, she rather enjoyed the quiet passing of time just sitting beside each other on the couch now, but the sensation of another arriving - albeit late - to the party, one whom she shared a strong bond through the force that had wavered only once, told her that regression was not going to be well-received. She felt the presence of another, her sibling, like a chill running down her spine. They'd had their differences, she believed in thrusting oneself into danger and coming out stronger - Maja was more dependent on instruction and aid, but she sent out her invitation with hopes of not only introducing the younger woman to her husband, but also to keep her close. Beside what currently rest within her, and the man who was going to place the ring on her finger, [member="Maja Vern"] was the most important person to her in the entire galaxy - almost like an adoptive daughter, even if she was her sister.

She moved to leave her quiet corner, utilizing the force to see as she had refused to do in the past, only to find herself standing face to face with another guest, someone of the Krath she assumed, and sighed internally at being delayed yet again. The actually wedding ceremony would start soon enough, and she wanted to see her sister before she took the Kuhn name, if only to thank her for coming. "Hello, Miss Vantai." Came the calm, pretentious, rasp of a habitual smoker. She felt the features of her face slide, as though she was about to frown, but held it back and forced a smile. "A pleasure to meet you, sir. I hope everything is going well for you?" Silara replied with a faux-cheerfulness, hoping their conversation would not last as long as she felt it would. "Ah, yes, a pleasure to meet you as well, and congratulations on your union with the mighty Titan Industries. I am sure you are reaping the profits of your marriage already." The man smugly nagged, his expression showing great pleasure in his words. However the man expected her respond to such shallow thoughts, Silara was immediately both furious and insulted. Marriage for a profit? Her? She'd sold her company when she didn't need to, been independent in most of her spending - slanderous injuries aside - and quite frankly the thought of her marrying a man to get rich was absolutely disgusting

If she was to marry anyone, it was because she wanted to be attached - money was so far from her list of desires. "Excuse me?" She hissed, eyes going wide. "Oh come now, it's clear why he chose you - you have quite the appearance, to say the least, as far as arm candy goes. Surely you accepted the offer because of his considerable wealth." He continued, still smiling as smugly as ever. She felt it before it happened, the immediate pressing of the muscle beneath her left eye and the quickening of her breath. The man gasped for air, desperate to breathe, and slowly sank down to his knees. "I am not some whore to be bent over and karked, I can assure you that much. I do not know who you are, or why you were let in, but consider this the last time I will ever tolerate your presence in our home, or in my sight." Silara whispered, her words like knives in the man's lungs. "Get out. Now." She hissed, immediately turning away to walk back to the room she'd changed in earlier. The wedding would be starting all too soon, and she needed to have her mascara re-applied and her face washed.

[member="Alric Kuhn"], [member="Enigma"], [member="Maja Vern"]

 

[Alric Kuhn]

[member="Silara Kuhn"] | [member="Maja Vern"] | [member="Enigma"]

Alric was blissfully unaware of those other guests speaking to his wife, had he known the man likely would have suffered a far worse fate than simply being thrown out of the party.

He had always had a hair trigger for things like that, had always sought to protect Silara. Of course it had lead to more than one argument between them, and by now he had learned from simple fact. His wife was no china doll. She was a Queen, an Empress. A woman to be sought and protected, but never sheltered.

The Titan smiled at the memory of her words.

It was odd how much he had learned since the two of them came together. How much she had taught him. He had known next to nothing about love, and yet here he was now.

His fingers wrapped around the banister of the balcony, his nails gently scratching at the lacquered wood. The sun had slowly began to set in the west, its pale orange light beginning to shine directly upon the balcony. When it reached the horizon, when the balcony was fully illuminated, that was when the ceremony was to begin.

His smiled widened and his humming ceased. With a slow turn of his heel Alric moved back into the party proper, cutting through large clouds as he moved back into the house.

He wanted to talk to her one last time before it happened.

 

[Onrai]

Still, Vanessa stood there, waiting for someone, anyone to come and share a word with her. Would it be [member="Maja Vern"], her aunt that found herself neglected in the strength of the Force? Perhaps [member="Lisette Kuhn"] would be the one who would share a few words with her, cursing their mother and her beliefs in ignorance of more righteous pursuits. Maybe if she was lucky, [member="Silara Kuhn"] herself would be the one to cross her path, reassuring her daughter through any last remaining dregs of jealousy the Sith Lord within the Vahla body had. Then again, it could've been [member="Alric Kuhn"] that she would run into, the one she had not talked with since his Titans took the woman known as Darth Vitium from her custody. Their exchange had been brief, nearly wordless, and she had been unable to do anything to convince him of her capabilities.

Thus she waited. Surrounded by people, and yet... alone.

 

[Darth Zilti]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SB3-hzI4Uhk

‘When we were growing up you always looked like you were having such fun
You always were and you always will be the taller and the prettier one
People seem to love you
They gravitate towards you
That's why I started to hate you so much
And I just completely ignored you’

Maja wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. It was a good things she never wore make-up. Except she knew her eyes would be red and bleary, so she moped her way to the shower. She’d come too far to turn around now. So she looked into the mirror in the bathroom of the ship. And both physically and metaphorically she didn’t like what she saw. Scraggy hair, black leather and red puffy eyes. She’d always been pretty whereas Silara was beautiful. Did she mind? In truth, yes.

They say an addict needs to understand their dependency before they can even begin to address the problem. Maja blamed Silara for everything that was wrong in her life. Being abandoned as a baby – Silara’s fault. Being shunted around the galaxy looking for training – Silara’s fault. Being a loner and an outcast – Silara’s fault. Except of course none of these things were down to her sibling. So her sister was prettier. So she seemed to have a social life when Maja hadn’t spent more than 48 hours in any single person’s company since she’d discovered she had a sister. So she was successful when Maja was sitting in a rented ship.

Why did that deserve Maja ignoring Silara? Blaming her? The road to sobriety was a long one, but it started with a single step. Then another, then another. So she undressed and took a slow shower.

‘I don't know why I felt the need to keep it up for oh so long
It's all my fault I'm sorry you did absolutely nothing wrong
I don't know why I felt the need to drag it out for all these years
All the pain I've caused you
The constant flow of all the tears
Believe me when I say that I cannot apologise enough
When all you ever wanted from me was a token of my love
And if it's not too late
Could you please find it deep within your heart
To try and go back go back to the start
Go back to the start’

As she washed the tears away, so she cried new ones. Except these were different. These were born of hope, not self-pity. For Maja realised all she wanted was attention. When all she had to do was call, or visit, or send a message. No…she’d spent these past six or so years keeping her distance, to make Silara do all the running. She blamed Silara for not making contact when that mirror clearly reflected she’d made no effort herself. Her sister had made contact, through their bond, and Maja? She’d ignored it. In truth, it was Maja that needed to seek forgiveness, not the other way around. Silara hadn’t gone hiding, hadn’t travelled the galaxy or ignored their special bond. Maja had.

The tears could have flowed and flowed. Admittedly some would taste of self-pity in with the salt – but more and more she was…growing up?

Maybe the challenge of living so long without emotions is that when she finally accessed them, she’d overdosed on them. Love was always the strongest and thankfully had endured – but the bitterness of jealousy had run it close at times. Maja sighed loudly and washed her hair.

It’s a funny thing – being an attention-seeker. She’d sent a begrudging acceptance at the last minute. She’d composed so many rejection messages. Yet she had a dress in the locker she’d bought especially for the occasion. She’d sent as strong a message through their Life Bond that she was at best ambivalent about the marriage, but she’d spent hours and hours learning to apply make-up and styling her hair.

Did her eyes tell the story of her tears? She stared into the mirror as she applied her simple but effective make-up. The tattoo created through some Sith magic was never going to be covered up – in truth she didn’t even want to. It was a part of her. Some men even found it attractive. As she toiled to get her hair just the way she wanted it, she smiled. It had been a long time coming. It wasn’t an expression of humour or cheekiness – the one she usually wore. No, this was about being happy. Genuinely happy. She hadn’t felt this way since…the day she found out she had a sister.

This close, she was sure her sibling would be able to feel the emotion. It was – perhaps for the first time – a feeling of shared happiness. Even that first time, the delight had all been about Maja. This time it was more complete – it was elation that both sisters were happy. That Maja was delighted to be a part of Silara’s world – and it didn’t have to be the other way around all of the time.
That cheeky, wicked grin borrowed her face for a moment. That wasn’t to say Maja couldn’t have things her way on some occasions. She still enjoyed being spoiled from time to time. But if sharing Silara meant she would also get to spend time with her nieces and her brother-in-law, what was so bad about that? The smile became a laugh – she was growing up.

She put on the dress and the high-heels she’d been practising wearing and popped her saber into her bag – she couldn’t bear to be without it – even Zannah deserved to attend the wedding. And then she stared into the mirror. Both physically and metaphorically she liked what she saw. Silara may be prettier, but Maja felt she had scrubbed up well. And the petulant child was now gone. She’d like to say for good, but like any addict, she could only promise herself to not abuse one day at a time.

The ship had landed and she stepped off to hear the sounds of a party in full swing. She knew where Silara was. It was inevitable – it seemed the most advanced Force Ability to cloak paled into insignificance when a Life Bond was in evidence. So she headed straight for her. Yet…and for the first time it seemed to Maja, she had ever had these thoughts…she was aware that others might wish to spend time with her sister. And definitely for the first time she didn’t begrudge them. Was she a little jealous? Maybe, but in a good way. But Silara would be her sister tomorrow and the day after and the day after that. She had a lifetime to make up for her misdemeanours.

Yet…something was wrong. Despite the challenge of the stilettos she speeded up, the emotion she was sensing from her sister was not one she’d associate with a bride-to-be. There was anger and sadness. And…tears. How Maja wanted to be the one to comfort her sister and despite her pace quickening even more, she made a conscious effort to return to her normal pace – albeit a brisk one. If she was first to arrive, she would be the sister Silara needed, wanted and deserved. If one of her nieces or Alric reached her first? As long as Silara was happy, that was all that mattered.

Of course, she’d still like to be the first to reach her!

As she got closer, a man brushed past her – and how he reeked of death-sticks. She could never shake her distaste for people that used them – and her hand went to her cheek involuntarily, remembering that beast-rider licking her face, the stench of his filthy habit filling her nostrils. Pushing the thought aside, she finally reached the door. Beyond was no doubt a dressing-room. Maja listened. Not out of a desire to eavesdrop, but if there was someone else in there, she would defer. She would not leave, but she would wait – patiently. As she paused, unsure if she should enter or wait, she had a terrible thought. What if Silara wouldn’t forgive? She had to accept it was a possibility but shook her head. No, she refused to accept the thought. Regardless of her sister’s judgement of her, she would convince her to start again. To go back to the Silara and Maja that both promised that they’d take the time to get to know each other.

‘And if it's not too late
Could you please find it deep within your heart
To try and go back go back to the start
Go back to the start.’

So she stood, and checked her dress. She’d only get one chance to make a good first impression. It had been a few years and she wanted her sister to be proud of her. No more and no less.

Spoiler

[member="Enigma"] | [member="Alric Kuhn"] | [member="Silara Kuhn"]

 

[Hailyn]

It wasn't quite coincidence that everything seemed to run together like words under water when it came to those who called themselves relatives to Silara. She had one true child at the moment, though she considered Vanessa to be her own at this point - she'd even taken a habit of harping over her dangerous hobbies and the like - though she hadn't exactly spoken with either of her children in recent years. It was easier to explain Vanessa, a clone of a stillborn, whom travelled and did as she pleased. Her other daughter, however, was one that she had personally abused in an effort to curb her enthusiasm for spreading the ridiculous notion that people should be treated equally - even those without the ability to prove themselves so. Perhaps she was right; not that it mattered now, what with having left her mother in the middle of the night after finally attaining freedom from her locked room. Force be damned, she had never been caught and had always eluded her far-reaching sight. Yet here was Lisette, casually walking about in her admittedly beautiful dress, hiding her smiles when she believed none were looking. Vanessa.. She was a slightly different story. She was the black sheep of the two, and Silara felt her lack of belonging right away on her return to her dressing room. It was not by accident that she tugged against her on the way there - she needed someone to fix her makeup after all. "Come with me." Were the only words to be hoarsely whispered from her lips before she hurried back to make sure she would be prepared in time for her own wedding. It wasn't every day you were given a ring to slip on your finger, not of the matrimonial sort.

She hadn't forgotten about her dear sister, however, nor her husband. She already knew by means of both sense and bond that her sister was fast-approaching both her and the room, and while she was more than happy to see her it would not be on the terms she'd wished for. She'd already felt that wave of anger and frustration at Naga Sadow's citadel that had effectively cut the two off soon afterwards. She couldn't baby her - that's what she wanted her sister to understand back then - and perhaps she'd paid for it. Her husband, [member="Alric Kuhn"], however, was not one she was interested in seeing before their vows were spoken, not at least until they were standing side by side. Superstitious as always, she believed it bad luck for the groom to see the bride before they were wed on the big day.

[member="Enigma"], [member="Alric Kuhn"], [member="Maja Vern"]

 

[Alric Kuhn]

Alric wandered around his own home, or what had once been his home.

He had every intent to go see Silara still, at least talk to her through the door while she got ready, if not that he would whisper to her when they stood across from one another. Yet for now he was content to wander around the home that he had once been raised in.

Memories trailed him, thoughts of the past.

It was haunting almost, hearing the voices of his sisters, his father, his mother. This place held so many memories.

Most of them were bad.

His father yelling, his mother screeching, his sisters and him cowering beneath the massive stairs of the basement. It was an odd time, and on reflection, his life hadn't been the perfect picture that he painted for so many others. He had always known that of course, but eventually, one started to believe their own lies, and compared to others, His own misery was nothing.

 

[Darth Zilti]

It was one thing to intend to wait – but quite another to go through with the plan. She felt the tears welling but could not allow them to spoil her make-up. She pulled a tissue out of her bag but did not use it. Some Sith she’d make with all these foolish emotions running riot. She shook her head gently.

And she remembered their last meeting on that ice-planet.

34. That was the number of expletives she’d used in that last conversation. Well, less of a conversation to be fair, more of a tirade – all one way. And she couldn’t even see her sister’s face. 34, which was precisely…34 more than she’d used in all the years of her life previously.

And then…well, the rest was history. Over time she’d realised her sister was...by definition, a Sith. And although she’d lavished gifts on her baby sibling, when it came to the Force and training, things were different. But Maja was too stupid, spoiled or stubborn to notice.

In fairness it was all three.

So, 34 curses and for what? At the time she’d not realised the consequences. There were two – distinct and life-changing. Had she had the time back she would have done it differently. Kark it, of course she would have done it another way. 35? Did that one count?

Firstly it connected her to her emotions. Without that she could not be the person that stood outside the door. Without it she would not have achieved all the things she had done. But at what price?

Had the younger sibling spoiled the relationship forever? How Maja hoped not. But she’d come to her senses late. Her emotions had run full gamut since that last meeting – some six years ago. Love pervaded but in-between times there was jealousy, hatred – even a desire to return and kill her sister. That was by far and a way the lowest point. Born out of one encounter after another with Force Users who promised to train her but never once fulfilled their promises. Blaming Silara was convenient. Easy in fact. But in truth there was only one person to blame.

So she’d swallowed some pride and once she had her crystal, sought out Sith to train her. A degree of secrecy was used – she wanted this to be a surprise for her sister. So from the nadir she had slowly but inexorably climbed. It had been hard. The beating from [member="Darth Vornskr"]. The scarring burns that marked her back from [member="Matsu Xiangu"] – no doubt visible in this dress.

Spoiler

She’d endured them all – not for herself but for her sister. Yet…she knew this was wrong – and the final act of growing up would be the hardest but the most important. Maja knew she needed to do this for one person more than any other, and it wasn’t her sibling. She had to want to do this for herself. If Silara sent her away, she had to want to be a Sith enough to join them anyway. It should not be dependent on her sibling’s approval – as much as she craved it. She was no longer a little girl and if she were to be strong in the face of the Jedi, she had to start right now.

Her voice firm despite the tears that remained in her eyes, she knocked and simply said, “Can I come in?”

[member="Alric Kuhn"] | [member="Silara Kuhn"] | [member="Enigma"]