Private Trying to get to you

[Aiden Rennek]

​

Aiden's eyes opened and for a moment, he believed to be in the afterlife — bright lights were shining straight down into his eyes, the walls around him were of beautiful white marble with golden decorations, and a soft, angelic voice began to talk to him the second his body twitched. A more careful second glance around made him reject that line of thinking though, as he recognized the various tools and equipment pieces of a medbay. The woman who started talking to him was a nurse and clearly relieved to see him awake.

He had survived, and all because of Briana.

Speaking of which, even after a third look around the room, he didn't see her, so he pushed himself up to a sitting position to try and understand where he was exactly. It instantly changed the expression on the nurse's face, who was trying to force him back down, but he resisted and let out a sigh, "I'm fine, just... leave me be." She didn't ease off but he wasn't a pushover and hopped to his feet despite the woman's warnings.

"You should rest," she insisted, while she readied herself to call in some help.

"Not here," he said as he stumbled his way out through the door, still in his hospital gown, and moved into the fresh air. He always hated the smell of medical rooms, and even though he wasn't quite sure where he was now, the outside air was already so much better. This planet was far more beautiful than Coruscant could ever hope to be, so if Briana somehow arranged this... he'd have another reason to thank her.

All that remained now was finding her before the medical staff could find him.

Briana Sal-Soren ​

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

​

Wearing: XoXo
Equipment: Lightsaber
Location: Somewhere on the streets of Hapes
Tag: Aiden Rennek

Aiden had come so close to death after the events on Coruscant that even after his precarious conditions improved, Briana was still an unsettled ball of nerves and anxiety. Waiting that final week before they could safely wake him from the medically induced coma was excruciating - and it didn’t help that it coincided with the reuniting of her family, which was all at once a happy, although messy affair.

For all intents and purposes, it felt like her family was trying to move forward, like the last six months had never occurred, or the last four years for that matter. No one was willing to broach the subject of her and Brandyn running away to join the Jedi, or the fact that there was a very real possibility that it might have been their mother who pulled the strings that got them accepted. No talk that their homeworld was gone, of Brandyn's investigations, or Breha's coma. There was so much left unsaid between them that she could feel the pressure building beneath the surface of each conversation and interaction, just waiting for that glass floor to shatter beneath her feet.

But today, Briana put all of it aside, focusing her attention on Aiden.

He was finally being woken up after the numerous doctors overseeing his recovery assured her that he was stable, though there would be more tests needed in the weeks that followed to make sure everything was functioning the way it should be.

Briana had planned to be there by his side when he woke up, to help him adjust to what she could only imagine being a very confusing and disorienting moment, only to find out that they’d decided to wake him ahead of schedule and consequently lost him as well. Luckily, it didn’t take her too long to locate him, as there were not many who could match the description of a half naked behemoth running around town.

“Hey there big guy, it's a bit blustery for a stroll in that sort of outfit, don’t you think?” Briana remarked as dryly as she could muster, trying to not let it be too obvious that she’d been overly fretting about his well being as she’d scoured the streets for him, the knots in her stomach finally unraveling as she crossed the distance between them and placed a hand against his forearm. “C’mon,” she said, more gently this time. “I have the speeder waiting, let’s get you out of here.”

​

 

[Aiden Rennek]

​

People were looking at him.

It wasn't exactly surprising, given the fact he was running around town in a hospital gown. With his hair and beard not taken care of either, he looked like someone who had escaped some kind of asylum, and the way he glanced around looking for Briana like a crazy person probably didn't help either. Aiden didn't care though, and paid no attention to the people here — he wasn't even sure at all who they were, or where he was.

So the idea that the women here especially were giving him very strange looks didn't really register.

Luckily, his suffering didn't last too long, as he heard a familiar voice calling out to him. He turned on his feet and grinned at first, but when he realized what he was wearing, and who was seeing him wear it, he seemed to get a little more nervous. "Yeah well... they didn't give me much time to get normal clothes." He began to look around again for a moment, noting that people were moving on now that he was being helped by her.

When his emerald eyes returned to Briana, she took his arm and began to move towards the speeder, "Where is here exactly? I don't remember anything since the rooftop," he admitted quietly before a question popped up in his mind. "What did you end up doing to the shooter?"

There was no need to ask if she had even gotten him — he knew she had, so all that remained was information about who he was, and why he was trying to kill Briana.

Briana Sal-Soren ​

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

​

Wearing: XoXo
Equipment: Lightsaber
Location: Hapes
Tag: Aiden Rennek


A certain warmth spread through her chest as they walked together in close proximity, truly relieved to see him up and about and no longer swimming in bacta. She smiled at his returned quip in regards to his state of dress, knowing that he'd left before giving them a chance to present him with clothing options, but choosing to keep that tidbit of information to herself. "We'll just have to find you something new then, won't we?" amusement flickered behind her eyes, knowing he was likely to protest the idea of shopping, even though it couldn't be helped. They'd already established that Brandyn's clothes wouldn't work for the beast of a man walking beside her.

"I brought you to Hapes," she responded, the smile she had been wearing only moments before fading as the topic shifted to a take on a more serious tone, "your injuries were beyond my capabilities... so I brought you to the medical experts under my family's employ where I could watch over your progress." She left out the part of how she'd come to the facilities every day, spending extended periods of time watching over him, usure if he even knew that she was there. Was it born out of guilt, or something else? It was difficult for Briana to say. All she could think was how grateful she was that Aiden was alive and well. That he was here with her.

The crowds seemed to thin along the broad marble streets the further up they went, Briana having learned in her first few months on this planet that this part of the city was never quite as busy in the early afternoon- a few couples strolling, some droids retouching the paint on the lamposts. It was a strikingly stark difference from the never sleeping world of Coruscant.

"I didn't do anything to him." Briana gave a frustrated sigh, "By the time I got to him, he'd already taken a cyanide pill. He died before I could get any useful information... but I was able to gather a little when I went through his belongs. I found out that the assassination order was beamed from... well, here." Briana shot him an apologetic look, her brow lofted. She'd brought him straight into a den of vipers and hadn't managed to pin down a single solid lead. She was sure it was not the kind of news he'd been hoping to hear. "Of course, I didn't find any of this out until after we'd already landed, and everything that might point me in the direction to where exactly it might have come from, or who gave the order, was already scrubbed from record. But- there may be a lead yet."

​

 

[Aiden Rennek]

​

"I definitely set myself up for a shopping trip, huh?" he grumbled somewhat in protest, but his grin made it clear he didn't actually mind too much. Normally, he would have because shopping wasn't his thing, but spending that time with Briana changed everything. He could watch grass grow in a park and it would be fun if she was there with him. New clothes, however, weren't the most pressing thing on his mind, so when Briana mentioned that she took him to Hapes, he focused on that part of the conversation a little more.

"Hapes?" He rubbed his chin and shifted through his memory — the name of the planet was familiar, mostly because of the rather extreme stances they'd had historically, but it didn't matter right now. These people saved his life when nobody else could, so he would always be thankful. "I'll have to express my gratitude to your family and the doctors when I get a chance. Maybe say sorry for running off as well," he said with a smirk, as they continued their walk.

Now that he was no longer having to put all his focus into finding her, he finally took a closer look around and silently admired the beauty of the planet. He had never been here before, or to any world that got even close to this. Coruscant surely did not, and the frontline worlds he visited... well, almost nothing remained of those.

"Hmm, a shame he died before you could question him," Aiden said in response when Briana began to answer his question. But at the mention of the attacker likely being tied to Hapes, he stopped walking and looked at her with a deep frown for just a moment. By coming here, she was definitely endangering herself, but that also showed how important it had been to her to bring him to safety. "I..." he paused and let out a soft sigh, "Are you sure it's safe to be out here like this?" He finally asked and started to walk forward again.

"I appreciate what you did for me, but I want you to be safe as well."

Briana Sal-Soren ​

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

​

Wearing: XoXo
Equipment: Lightsaber
Location: Hapes
Tag: Aiden Rennek


“At least you’re in one of the best places for it.” she teased with a light laugh, pleased that he was willing to endure one of her favorite pastimes, but getting the distinct sense that it was more for her sake. “I do hope you know what you’re agreeing to if we go. You'll be at my mercy, you know.” she commented, a glint in her eyes as she idly twirled a silken strand of her chestnut hair.

“And…if there was one assassin, there will be others. One way or another, we’ll get our answers.” Briana mentioned grimly. Such was the nature of Hapan society and culture. For all of its beauty, it was a truly dangerous place.

She looked back to the somber young soldier when he asked if it was safe for them to be out in the open, her lips pulled into a line. “No, I can’t be certain.” she answered honestly, “But I doubt they will sanction another attempt unless they believe they can be successful. Whoever ordered the attack believes that we’ve made significant progress in unmasking them and figuring out their plans… we just need to make sure we have those answers before they figure out that we don’t.”

When Aiden mentioned wanting her to be safe, Briana breathed out. While the sentiment left her feeling warm, truthfully, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d really felt safe. Even though she came from a well respected family, they hadn’t been universally beloved - she had enemies since the day she was born, simply because of her name and who she was. Never mind the additional complications that came with her position as a Jedi. It used to scare her, but now she found what used to be overwhelming fear was muted. Maybe she’d grown too used to the danger?

She turned to fully face him, brushing aside his lingering concern and attempting to placate him by feigning indifference with a cock of her head and a very genetic smirk, Corellian, like her father. “Well that’s why I have you here, isn’t it? To watch my six? Aren't you a man of duty?”

After a few more minutes of walking, a sleek, black hover car rolled down the streets, slowing as it pulled up to them. The overly-handsome Hapan driver was out in less than a heartbeat, rushing to the other side of the vehicle to open the back passenger door.

“After you,” Briana smiled, gesturing for him to go in first. He was the one who was half naked, after all.

​

 

[Aiden Rennek]

​

"I do hope you know what you're agreeing to if we go. You'll be at my mercy, you know."

"Oh I know," he said in response with an almost nervous smile. But he knew better than to say no, especially now that he was walking around in a hospital gown. There was just no way he could meet her family like this, so enduring the lengthy shopping trip was unavoidable. Still, though, he couldn't help but be worried about going out after an assassination attempt, and he knew Briana well enough to know that she wasn't going to let what happened stop her.

Briana was quick to pick up on his concerns as he voiced them and turned to face him, hoping to ease his mind a little, but Aiden's expression hardly shifted, even when she joked about him having her six. "I'll take a shot like that for you again without a second thought, Bri, and I know you don't really need the protection." She had always been strong, both mentally and now especially physically and with the Force as well.

"But just be a little extra careful, alright? I can come with you to wherever you need to go and your family can get you guards as well, right?" He had the feeling that being protected by guards wasn't something she'd really want, but unless the people responsible actually decided to lay low now, it might be for the best.

After their walk continued for a few more minutes, a hover car approached and Aiden took a noticeable, protective step ahead of her in response. Somehow, he had this weird feeling that a black-tinted window was going to roll down to reveal another shooter. But it turned out he was just being paranoid, and he was quick to offer her a sheepish smile before he'd step inside.

Now all he needed to survive was a shopping trip...

---

"You said two shops," Aiden complained as he looked around at the collection of shopping bags that were scattered around them inside the hover car. He wasn't quite sure how she managed to drag him along into all of those shops, but it probably meant he was too weak to resist her pleading eyes or persistence. "But I have to admit, the new jacket is pretty cool." He grinned and looked out the window as they approached quite the beautifully decorated Sal-Soren home.

"I remember your place being huge from when we played there as kids but... damn." He shot Briana a Corellian smirk and began to grab together the shopping bags, so she didn't have to carry too much herself. Corellian or not, he had it in him to be a gentleman as well.

Briana Sal-Soren ​

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

​

Wearing: XoXo
Equipment: Lightsaber
Location: Sal-Soren Estate, Hapes
Tag: Aiden Rennek

"See? And if we didn't go to those additional shops, then we might not have found it." Briana told him, grinning over at Aiden with a nonchalant shrug of her shoulders before admitting, "I might have gotten a little carried away."

As the Estate came into view, Briana leaned forward. "That row of trees over there is where my family's land begins." She explained, pointing out the perfectly positioned, delicately trimmed trees in an elegant pattern along the edge of the forest that surrounded the estate. "Right from those trees in the distance and then well beyond. You can see how far back our property goes on both sides of us, here."

The Estate on Hapes was sprawled across rolling green hills with the main house sitting at the top, visible from miles away due to its size and sheer grandeur, making it easily large enough to hold several hundred people comfortably without feeling crowded. Unlike their old home, the Estate on Hapes lacked in that old-world charm that was distinctly Naboo in it's architectural design, but remained no less beautiful. Roses and ivy veiled the manor, with patios and balconies and staircases sprouting from its sides. The grounds themselves boasted manicured gardens and fountains, all in shades of robins egg blue and white.

"I remember your place being huge from when we played there as kids but...Damn." Aiden told her, Briana watching as his eyes widened slightly at the sight and laughing softly at his reaction, one that was not too dissimilar from most who laid eyes upon the Sal-Soren Estate for the first time.

"It is something, isn't it?" she asked with a wistful, yet somber smile. Their once summer home, turned permanent residence, had been in her family for as long as she could remember. Even now, she felt a sense of nostalgia looking out the window as the hover car pulled to rest on a private pad outside the main entrance.

"Welcome home, Mistress Sal-Soren!" greeted one of the serving droids, its silver and white-gold plating gleaming in the never-ending sunlight as it approached the two of them. "How many times do I have to tell you, Toov? It's just Briana."

The droid paused at this new bit of information, its photoreceptors shinning with what she could only assume to be the droid equivalent of hesitancy as its subroutine tried to decipher the tone of her response. "Uh... apologies, Mistress Just Briana."

Her cheeks flushed at the droid's confusion, but managed to shake it off with a sigh as she thumbed towards the hover car behind them. "Thanks for the welcome Toov, think you can help with these bags and send them to the guest room?"

"Indeed!" he exclaimed, excited at the prospect of being given the chance to serve, "I'll have them cleared out in no time, Mistress Just Briana."
"Perfect, and while you're at it, why don't you go and get your circuits checked?" Briana responded with a bite of sarcasm that was lost on the logic drive of Toov, who promptly informed her, "Your concern is most moving indeed, but I am happy to report that I just had my circuits checked and they were simply splendid."

"Wow, what luck," she sighed with a slight raise of her brow, watching the droid totter off before turning back to Aiden and motioning for him to follow. "Come on, let me show you around while they get the bags settled," she nodded to the ones in his hands. "You can leave those there."

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[Aiden Rennek]

​

"It is something, isn't it?"

While Aiden didn't say anything this time, the way he looked at the estate really said it all. He had spent time here before when they were both young, but back then he just followed around Briana and her parents while they played and goofed off. Until now, he had never stopped to realize just how special it really was.

But a part of him wondered how it had changed for her, given what happened on Naboo.

Soon enough, the speeder stopped at the estate, and they were greeted by one of the serving droids. He seemed very polite in how he addressed her, and unsurprisingly, Briana wasn't having any of it. The droid tried to correct himself quickly, but in a way that got Aiden to snicker.

Briana was less enthusiastic about her new designation.

"I'd love a tour of this place... Just Briana," He looked at her with a shit-eating grin, dropped the bags so Toov could collect them later, and quickly started walking before she had a chance to whack him or shoot him a death glare.

"Are your parents home, by any chance?" Aiden then asked. "It has been a long time since I've seen them, so I'd love to say hi if I can." Her mother especially had always been very open to him coming over when they were young, and every memory he had of those times, he cherished. The least he could do was say hi after all this time.

Briana Sal-Soren ​