Turning Heads; Burning Glances.

[Connor Harrison]

Chastity pulled away, and internally he knew it was the best thing she could have done; to keep in control and keep her dignity. His hands falling to his side, looking around at a few turning heads; burning glances. The Jedi loved a drama, even at this early hour in the morning. He kept his voice low, aware of the danger he was in now both emotionally as as part of the Silver Jedi. If the Grandmaster heard about this...

"The Sith, yes. Broken Jedi - yes, those who have the Dark Side riddled in their blood and can't ever get it to leave."

He looked to the side, swallowing softly and nodding, pursing his lips with a raise of the eyebrows.

"You have my sincerest apologies Chastity Lunelle, and I will not stop you again should you wish to leave. I...I have some serious thinking to do about my place as a Jedi Master within these walls."

Exhaling, the pit in his stomach widened. Imagine what Syala would say, and even Corvus. She would be ashamed of him. Disgusted. Connor looked to his Padawan, at the moment.

"Don't give up on your path as a Jedi, Chastity. It's too strong to let those already broken ruin for you."

He lowered his head and stepped back respectfully, before raising and clasping his hands behind his back.

[member="Chastity Lunelle"]

 

[Chastity Lunelle]

She slapped her hand to her forehead and looked around in frustration as if some innocent bystander could clue her in to confusing male behavior.

"I appreciate the apology, but I don't know really know how to respond," she admitted. "One minute you kiss me, and the next, you say it's wrong. One minute you want me to leave. The next you want me to stay. I don't know what to expect. Except, well, the unexpected." She let out a sharp laugh and then frowned again. There was also the Force choking, but no, she wasn't going to touch that. Not yet.

A deep breath and a long, slow exhalation came. Chastity was young, and could be capricious, but in some ways, she was highly intelligent and observant.

"I get it, Connor. You feel like you're broken," she said. Her eyes narrowed as her anger broke through the numbness. At this point, still on the cusp of leaving, she had nothing to lose by simply speaking her mind.

"Stop wallowing in it, for Force's sake."

[member="Connor Harrison"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

Now it was Connor's turn to narrow his eyes. Being spoken to by someone with a mouth like Chastity wasn't what he wanted. Sure, he'd had a couple of drinks before on Lianna and now he was simply riding a wave of emotions, but this wasn't how it was supposed to be. He tapped his chest, contemplating her words.

He'd heard it before, the same confusion from others - yes, and no. Now, and never. OK, and stop.

"You know, you're right. If I keep wallowing....I'm going to drown."

Looking over his shoulder, the gawping eyes finally turning away, he smacked his lips and looked back at the young woman replacing the shadow of the little girl.

"We have reports of wandering fleets around Ziost, not Silver Jedi. I'm gonna keep an eye on it and start acting like the Master I was meant to be. Time to be me again. Can we...can we do this without...the eyes?"

Connor nodded at her gently, and turned to head back down the corridor. This wasn't a drama to keep playing out at all, never mind in the corridors of his sanctuary and home. What the hell was he supposed to do now? She'd put him in his place, and there was nothing else he could say that wouldn't confuse her even more. To hell with her; with them all - with anything.

Actions speak louder than words, or so the term went.

[member="Chastity Lunelle"]

 

[Chastity Lunelle]

Chastity watched Connor's expression change, hardening. It was a bitter pill to swallow, especially when it was the student delivering it to the master. He mentioned reports of some fleets over Ziost, and needing to look into it. If it had been anything else, she would have suspected it was an attempt to evade her again, but the news was ominous and disturbing, and she was just as worried about it as he.

"Go, then," she muttered, rubbing her eyes. It was late. She needed to go pack. He needed to put the Silver Jedi first, and rightly so. Their Holo soap drama could wait until the coast was clear. With a doleful sigh, she bit her lip as she watched him walk away.

He made it clear wasn't going to grovel at her feet, and she wouldn't have wanted that anyway. What she wanted more than anything was honesty from him. And, of course, she wanted things to go back to how they were before the ball. Hah. Like that was going to happen now.

When Chastity got back to her quarters, her limbs felt leaden, and her head ached. Fatigue had finally caught up with her, and she stumbled into bed, clothing and all.

[member="Connor Harrison"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

Connor had made it to his corridor and noticed she wasn't following - he hoped she would have to iron this out, but why would she? It was he who had to do the chasing, the apologizing, the blunt honesty. He sighed in defeat and looked down at his hands, flexing his fingers and seeing them as conduits of nothing but pain - conduits of the Force that should be used on his enemies, not loved ones.

Looking up to the eerily quiet corridor, Connor brushed his jaw bearing the signs of early morning stubble and started off for her quarters.

She could tell him to go, that's fine - he wouldn't know if he didn't try before they lost the night (morning!) and slept on nothing but sore heads and painful words and actions. His boots softly clicked on the marbled floor as he moved to the East side of the floor to reach her quarters. A knock would either signal her being asleep, ignoring him, or she'd open. He would knock once, and once only and respect her wishes.

Closing his eyes and shaking his head sightly, he raised his fist and knocked - rap rap rap.

Far more dignified than her attempt at his door minutes before.

[member="Chastity Lunelle"]

 

[Chastity Lunelle]

The rapping at her door came as a surprise. Her brow furrowed as she rose up out of bed. All she could think about were fleets over Ziost. Were they coming here? She stole a glance outside the window, but the skies over Voss were full of only glittering stars with a tiny sliver of sunrise over the landscape. No ships save for the occasional transport shuttle. It didn't fill her with as much relief as she had hoped.

The threat of war put things in perspective, of course. It was hard to be worried about matters of the heart when matters of life and death loomed over the horizon.

She opened the door with a hiss, locking eyes with the Jedi Master who stood in her doorway. A part of her wanted to slap him. The other part wanted to wrap her arms around him and tell him that everything was forgiven. Instead, she asked him a question.

"Are we being attacked?" she worried, every breath becoming quicker than the last.

[member="Connor Harrison"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

The door thankfully opened, and Chastity looked a mixture of emotions in the space of seconds; annoyed, happy, scared. her question was one that made him see how scared she was, and how the reality of being a Jedi wasn't all about masquerade balls and telekinesis games.

"Attacked? No, no we're not."

It was Ziost. It was already worrying her. He gave a small smile and folded his arms in the doorway, nodding to her window looking at the night sky.

"We'd know long before any invaders tried knocking on our door here, don't worry. If you mean Ziost it's just Rangers altering our attention to ships belonging elsewhere moving near the system. We will keep an eye on it, and the Council will take whatever action is necessary if our planet and resources are threatened. It's my duty to... "

He paused, swallowing for second at his patriarchal speech sounding laughable now.

"My duty to protect you as a Master."

Connor looked at her and sighed. He felt, of all things, calm in her presence. The least he could be was honest.

"Please don't worry, Chastity. I swear I will do my best not to let anyone hurt you ever again. Including me."

[member="Chastity Lunelle"]

 

[Chastity Lunelle]

It was a relief to hear that perhaps she had jumped the gun, and had let her mind fly to the worst case scenario.

"Come in, Connor," she said with a shiver. "It's cold."

Chastity left the door open and let him decide. She padded to the bed in her bare feet and fancy dress and perched on it, cross-legged. She had been sleepy a few minutes ago, but her Master's unannounced presence had the opposite effect. She was very much awake now. Wired, even.

She gave him a half-smile, warming slightly. His expression was earnest. Connor was trying his best, and she couldn't force answers out of him. No matter how hard she banged on his door, or flung his battery packs off his shelves. She ran her fingers through her hair, trying to tame some wayward strands.

"I'm sorry for acting like a child," she admitted. And she meant it. The waking light began to cast a severe light on her own bratty behavior, and Chastity was full of remorse over it. Her smile grew wider, more infectious.

"It's no way for a future Jedi to behave, champagne or no."

[member="Connor Harrison"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

Almost feeling the shoe was on the other foot, the student obeying a Master - a servant obeying a Queen - Connor lowered his head and walked into her quarters out of the corridor. The door closed behind him, and he glanced around discreetly at the room. Much like his own layout but facing the other way, it was still devoid of personality, but still more Chastity than the first time he'd brought her here injured.

Hopefully, it would continue to reflect her personality as she blossomed like the peach trees out in the orchard.

As she sat, and apologized, Connor kept his hands behind his back, hands tight on each other, and looked at her - he was attentive, and took in her words which pained him. No Padawan should apologize after having trust broken.

"Chastity, please - you do not need to be sorry for living your life. You are full of a zest for life and finding your path in the Silver Jedi Order, and that is what makes you unique. Don't be sorry for being who you are."

With a gentle nod, like addressing a royal in a court, he smiled softly, eyes flicking to her for permission to continue.

"You are a Jedi, Chastity. A defender of the innocent and a guardian of the Light. I swear to you, I will continue to train you if you will have me to - I will make you something great to stand beside as we do our duty, and to avoid falling at the hurdles I have, and many more will do. But you, you will stand tall and be a guide for others to follow."

He didn't move; no sweeping gesture or bold action - just honest words and a sincere face. Just Connor.

"You have my deepest apology for the things I said and my...actions. If you would prefer another Master I understand, but I will not force you to move on. I will be your Master still if you shall have me. You mean everything to me."

The last words trembled with a raw emotion rarely heard from the rogue. It was almost...pleading.

[member="Chastity Lunelle"]

 

[Chastity Lunelle]

The man who stood before her with his hands folded behind his back was the Connor that she trusted. The one that she knew would catch her in his arms, if she were to close her eyes and fall backwards. Apologies or not, this was the Connor that Chastity wanted to believe in. However, she had bore witness to another side of her Master, and it fractured her perfect picture of him. Perhaps it wasn't such a bad thing for him to fall from his pedestal. The last thing he needed was to be the object of hero worship by a naive Padawan. There was so much more to being a Jedi than lightsabers and talk of the fighting the Sith. There were difficult choices to make. Sacrifices. At any time, all could be lost against the Sith. Perhaps her protective bubble needed bursting.

Tarnished or not, the events evening didn't change her desires for him. As Connor spoke, she watched his lips and studied his hands. The more she fought her imagination, the more it haunted her. His final words made her heart leap.

"Of course I want you to be my Master," she insisted. "I couldn't imagine any other."

Her heart beating wildly, Chastity rose from her perch on the sleeper. Swallowing her inhibitions, she quickly closed the distance between them and, acting purely out of impulse, titled her head in and, cupping her hands on either side of his jaw, pressed her lips to his.

[member="Connor Harrison"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

He wasn't going to rely on the Force to read her emotions or thoughts - that gift was turning sour in his eyes and he needed greater hold over it. To differentiate him from Jedi Master and an everyday human, Connor relied on his senses and gut feelings to read Chastity. Picking up on the small signs - body movement, eye twitches and lip curling - all built an image of how she was feeling.

Thankfully, while pained by the recent events, she was appearing to give him the chance he had been lucky to receive to try again. A smile, a little nervous laugh of relief and a quick flash of the eyes signalled the Master was relieved after Chastity was going to stay on as his Padawan, but his body froze as she stood from the bunk and moved towards him.

She closed the gap and Connor welcomed her with arms wrapped around her waist as she kissed him, and a comforting internal sigh could be heard as she once more allowed him to show his feelings for her. Reciprocating the kiss while holding her body close, everything suddenly felt right - this was going in the right direction for once in his life. It seemed there was one out there who wanted to feel the same as he did.

"Thank you - " he gasped, pulling back to sweep her messy hair aside from the pretty face.

He moved into her and hugged her, resting his cheek on top of her head and allowing himself to feel the emotion of suddenly having someone you'd care for more in the galaxy other than your own foolish pride.

[member="Chastity Lunelle"]