We Wish You A Merry Life Day [The Je'daii Order and Friends]

[Lief]

Snow is not a commodity which graces the humid world of Aurum in large swathes; most of the landscape is covered in rich verdant jungles, and sprawling oceans, yet cast between the rising trees vast mountain ranges sit against the sky, their white capped peaks an oddity to behold.

It was among the smaller of these ranges that the ancient Order of the Je'daii had gathered, powdery snow crunching under boots, to celebrate the changing of the tide, the passing of the year. Compared to the warmth of their home, the air was considerably more frigid at their current elevation, and even as they stood around in quiet conversation snowflakes began to descend from the sky, coating everything in a fresh layer of pure white.

All around, merriment can be seen and heard, laughter rising from among their ranks, wide-eyed Padawans rosy-cheeked and tentative in their attempts at play with the startlingly cold substance.

With no set agenda in mind, all are encouraged to relax and enjoy themselves. Food and drink flow freely, nearby cabins provide shelter for those who seek to stave off the chill of the winter air, and music lilts throughout the crowd.

All are welcome to attend these celebrations, where only packed balls of snow can be used as 'weapons', and a general message of peace is extended to all.

Objectives and (Optional) Writing Prompts:

1. Eat, and be Merry! Enjoy the festivities, gather with faces both familiar and new, and have fun!
   
2. Let the snowballs flow freely! Participate in (or instigate) a snowball fight! Form teams, or go it alone, in this epic fight for the ages!
   
3. Wish someone a Merry Life Day, and spread a message of joy and contentment in these trying times.
   
4. Battle with the elements... Find yourself slipping on ice, locked inside a snowed-in cabin, or generally fighting off the chill. Surely someone has hot cocoa to go around?
   
5. Do you wanna build a snowman? It doesn't have to be a snowman...
   
6. Exchange gifts; giving is just as satisfying as receiving, if not more so, so spread that holiday cheer!
   
7. Walk on Water! Or simply Ice Skate... That works too. Careful not to crack the ice, though.
   
8. Cozy up by the fire with those you hold dear; after all - it's cold outside!

The world is your oyster, enjoy this event for what it is!

 

[Lothar Lundgren]

Ahh, snow! Lothar had been off his homeworld of Midvinter for months now, and the feel of snow crunching beneath his boots was so nostalgic. It was the first time in a while that he'd been able to wear some of the heavier clothes he'd brought from home. Now the Journeyer stood upon the range, warm drink in hand and large smiles all around. This weather did give him some homesickness, but that should be cured with some good old social interaction. The Valkryi currently stood alone, unsure of where to begin. He could teach some of the younger Padawans a thing or two about how to make snowballs... or perhaps how to take a hit by one. The thought of a snowball fight glistened in Lothar's mind for a brief few moments. Looking back into reality from his daydream, he gazed around at the faces of all those in the Je'daii Order who'd showed up today. While unable to put names to every face present, he was thankful for them all. After all, they were his new family; and they treated him better than he had ever expected. Still in his same spot, he was either waiting for somebody to approach him, or somebody to approach.

[member="Asha Hex"]

 

[Lief]

It had not been long since she and [member='Ar'ekk'] returned from the Smuggler's Moon to grace the world of Aurum once more. It had been a candid affair, and with her came more than a few new arrivals. Since then it had been full steam ahead, setting up the Sanctuary for those they had rescued from the black market, and bringing into the fold new Journeyers for their Order.

As such, this was proving to be the first day of rest she'd had since their lazy weekend on Nar Shaddaa. The journey up the mountain had been swift thanks to the technology they had at their disposal, and most of the event had already been set up prior to their arrival. It was strange to be an outsider in Order events, to be able to enjoy herself rather than worry over the general running, and so as she and Kipo made their way through the crowd, and as soft flurries of snow began to fall, she let out a content sigh and smiled.

So many new faces, some she had never met before, graced her sights, and she looked to each with a kind smile and a nod. Ar'ekk was somewhere among the crowd, no doubt seeking a drink to warm him up, so she took the moment to approach one of the new faces. Her head lowered into a respectful bow as she neared [member="Lothar Lundgren"] while the monkey on her shoulder chittered away, nuzzling his muzzle against her neck to stave off some of the cold.

In response she reached up to fuss behind his ears.

"Greetings," she began, once she was close enough for the stranger to hear her, "I don't believe we have met."

 

[Lief]

Snow did not bother the young Hex girl.

She watched in awe as it tumbled from the sky and coated the ground, how it crunched under foot, and tracked prints against the earth. Her life had been one of adventure, and uncertainty, she had traversed all kinds of landscapes, visited more planets than most did in their entire lifetime, and yet somethings still gave her much excitement no matter how many times she had witnessed them.

Leaning down, Asha scooped up a handful of snow and grinned. Packing it down into a ball, she turned her body and allowed her gaze to wander over the crowd in search of an unsuspecting victim... Holding the snowball began to freeze her fingertips, and yet the gloves she wore helped to stave off the worst of it, after all it would be worth it once she loosed the thing. The question was, though, at who?

And then she saw him, Jyn's beau, a man who hid half of his face behind a mask. She had no qualms with him, truthfully the pair had barely ever spoken but perhaps that ought to change. After all, if he and her best friend were dating then she'd see a lot more of him, no?

Throwing the perfect icebreaker at [member='Ar'ekk'], Asha could not help but chuckle to herself. The snowball whizzed through the air, headed straight for him...

She could only hope it would hit its mark.

[member="Lothar Lundgren"]

 

[Arekk]

Snow! He thought it was impossible to have this much white pouring down on their heads and bringing its cold breeze had left him short for words. As a Jedi, you'd expect a person like himself to have already seen this type of weather countless of times but you'd be wrong to assume that. From the acid rain of Dxun to Coruscant's foggy underworld you could say he had experienced most of it but never this, not for a chance.

His outfit had changed for the occasion as the people of Aurum and from the Jed'aii Order gathered to play and mingle nearby. An apparent large crowd too since everyone seemed to know each other and laughed to their jokes, drinks in hand and whatnot. Ar'ekk could never refuse a beverage which certainly would help in keeping his body temperature within an acceptable limit, the drinks offered being more than enough to keep him 'hot' and not feeling like if he were going to die from frostbite. But then, unexpectedly, the young man was hit by a snowball on the back of his head by a smiling girl that he had seen talking to Jyn for a few occasions now. They seemed to be close to each other.

He turned back to Asha and with a wide smile upon his face and spoke,

"You really did that?! You know I can start the biggest snowball fight here!"

Grabbing a handful of snow from the cold ground and shaping it into a ball, he threw it at full speed towards the girl who had targeted him for the initial strike. It was on.

[member="Asha Hex"]

 

[Lief]

For a moment, one insignificant second, Asha worried that she had made a mistake. After all, she had never really interacted with this man, she did not know if he had a playful bone in his body, or if he was stern and unrelenting in nature.

Despite the grin on his face, the first few words he spoke sent a shiver down the Journeyer's spine. She swallowed back her doubt, looked him straight in the eye... And then began to laugh. Force preserve her, she'd almost keeled over in fright, thankfully he took it all in his stride, rose to the challenge.

Before she could properly respond a ball of packed snow hit her right in the chest, knocking the air from her lungs and forcing a small breath of air to escape her, visible through the mist which left her mouth.

Cold... Frightfully cold... But so worth it.

"Oh, it is on!" she yelled, diving to the side, behind a table, and scooping up yet more of the snow to hurl it in his general direction. The only problem was, Asha wasn't really looking before she threw, and the Force was not an option right now, this was au naturale, so who knew who it might strike in place of [member='Ar'ekk']...

[member="Lothar Lundgren"]

 

[Arekk]

The snowball thrown by Asha almost reached an elderly couple standing near the drinks but the young Jedi managed to freeze the ball mid-air by using the Force, deflecting it towards its original thrower. Laughing as he moved into 'cover' behind a small monticle of snow, Ar'ekk swept a handful of snow from the cold ground and made several snowballs to increase his armament.

Looking over the edge of his alleged fortress he tried to spot Asha wherever she stood at and attempt to throw more snowballs her way. A barrage of snow would hit him soon and was already prepared for the following strikes. Like a child playing he continued to smile and playfully taunt his opponent.

"You can't beat me!"

[member="Asha Hex"]

 

[Lothar Lundgren]

Lothar was staring off, watching the beginnings of a snowball fight when one that he had never met approached him. She bowed, and the Valkryi immediately noticed a monkey on the stranger's shoulder. A little confused, the Journeyer returned the bow, keeping a smile on his face. "Greetings. I don't believe we have met either, my name is Lothar Lundgren, Journeyer of the Je'daii Order." Lothar spoke, still keeping a curious eye on the monkey.

The Valkryi looked off again at the snowball fight starting between his two fellow Je'daii, Lothar felt a twinge of jealousy. He was eager to get into it.

@Ar'ekk @Asha Hex

 

[Lief]

"Lothar" she responded, with a small smile, watching how his interest shifted continually back to the snowball fight which had started up. When she followed his gaze to see who the culprits were, she was both surprised and amused to find Asha and Ar'ekk lobbing hunks of snow at one another. She was grateful that the two of them were conversing, even if they were goading one another on.

"My name is Jyn, and this here is Kipo..." She gestured, of course, to the monkey on her shoulder, and then off to the fight which was beginning to take shape. A grin grew upon her expression, before she looked to Lothar and raised one brow in curiosity.

"Want to show them how it's done?" she then asked, lowering herself just enough to scoop up some snow into her gloved hands. A gentle chuckle left her at the prospect, after all this was a time of merriment and celebration... It was nice to relax, unwind, and have a little fun for once.

Without waiting for his response, she hurled the snowball straight at [member='Ar'ekk'], waiting for the confusion and surprise to wash over his expression.

He didn't see that one coming, now, did he?

[member='Lothar Lundgren']

 

[Lief]

There was no sound to accompany the hurled snowball, and so in confusion Asha peeked her head up over the table and saw them spinning back toward her. So surprised was she that they struck her straight in the face, and knocked her back into the snow, stunned right up until the moment that she began to laugh.

"Cheat!" she yelled, though the amusement in her tone was obvious, and moments later she crouched back up in the snow and brushed the remnants of the snowball from her face.

He wanted to fight dirty? So be it.

The young Hex spent a few moments compacting more snowballs, and then once she had a hefty store of them by her side she lifted them with the Force and hurled them straight toward [member='Ar'ekk'], watching from her place behind the table as they soared through the air toward him. If they struck, he'd find a little added punch behind them, and a grin upon Asha's face when she peeked over the table and pulled her tongue out at him.

 

[Arekk]

Ar'ekk was attacked suddenly from all sorts of angles with snowballs, finding it very hardous to find cover so he relied in defending himself by running in circles through the snow. His feet pierced through the snow and his pace became slow as ever which made him an even bigger target, because of that he would fall against the cold ground due to the many snowballs coming his way.

"Unfair! It's just me against all of you." He said, chuckling outloud as he went down with practiced bravado.

To be honest, it had been a while since the young half masked man enjoyed himself this much. Having encountered his old self was the greatest feeling in the world and quickly realized how things had turned ugly in the past. But now? It didn't matter. Life moved on.

[member="Asha Hex"] [member="Jyn Sol"] [member="Lothar Lundgren"]

 

[Lothar Lundgren]

Lothar nodded to both Jyn and Kipo after they were introduced to him. "Nice to meet you both. Jyn," He then smiled at the monkey on her shoulder, "And Kipo." Then the Valkryi watched and chuckled quietly as Jyn picked some of the white snow from the ground beneath her, quickly fashioned it into a snowball, and sent it flying over to Ar'ekk. He watched as he was barraged by snow, and humorously fell to the ground.

Lothar found it would be fun to even the odds a bit, so he jogged over to Ar'ekk's side. The Journeyer reached a hand out to his Je'daii companion. "I should help make it a bit more fair." Once Ar'ekk was up on his feet, the Valkryi bent down and began to scoop some snow from the ground. Almost with expertise from growing up on a cold planet, he created a very round snowball. With a smile on his face, he launched his projectile in the direction of Asha, watching its rise and descent.

@Ar'ekk @Asha Hex

 

[Lief]

It seemed Jyn's fella had found himself a friend. That made twice the targets!

With a grin, Asha flopped back into the snow and once again began to pack it together into tightly formed balls. Unknowing of what was about to strike her, she knelt back up and was whacked straight in the fact, with an oof. She looked toward the direction it had come from and spotted Lothar there.

Oh, it was on.

Bundling the snowballs into her pockets, Asha made a quick dash to the right and found another bit of cover ever so slightly closer to the pair of them. From the corner of her eyes she saw Jyn doing similar, only she was to their left, and with a nod to her best friend Asha began to unleash a torrent of snowballs upon the guys.

All around, bystanders watched the show with varied levels of amusement. Some openly chuckled, others tossed a few themselves, one or two rolled their eyes, but for the most part they seemed amused.

[member='Arekk'] [member='Lothar Lundgren']

 

[Lief]

Up on her shoulder, Kipo oo'd.

The little guy was confused, no doubt cold given the rougher temperature they were facing, and had spotted [member='Arekk'] out there in the crowd. He adored the guy, whenever the trio were together he spent a lot of time catching up on lost time with him, given that Kipo spent most of his time on Jyn's shoulder, so to see the pair 'fighting' seemed to shake him up.

Ducking down behind a table, Jyn ran a hand over the little guys fur and soothed him with a few quiet shushes.

"It's okay, my love," she assured him, and her connection to the fat monkey helped him to understand, "We're just playing. It's a game."

Picking up some of the snow for Kipo, she watched as he touched it and recoiled with an unhappy chitter.

"Yeah, it's cold but it doesn't hurt," she continued, kissing his head before throwing a snowball in a random direction over the table. It could have hit Ar'ekk, Asha, or Lothar, she had no idea.

And that was part of the fun of it.

[member="Lothar Lundgren"]

 

[Arekk]

Looking up at Lothar, Ar'ekk held his arm tight and janked himself onto his feet with his assistance. Brushing off the snow from his clothes, the man kneeled to grab a handful of snow and shape it into a ball once again. Patting his new friend's shoulder and giving him a smile, he spoke.

"Thanks, man. Let's show them how it is done, huh?"

Laughing faintly and taking cover behind one of the tables, the young Jedi peeked upwards carefully enough to spot either Asha or Jyn out there. The latter was ducked behind a table as well and speaking with Kipo, their baby fat monkey. As a malicious grin formed upon his face, Ar'ekk turned to Lothar and beckoned him closer.

"I will take Jyn, you do the same with the other one."

Finally, the snowball held in Ar'ekk's palm was thrown at full speed towards Jyn which hopefully would either land on her or touch the poor little monkey who certainly wasn't prepared to feel the coldness of the snow.

[member="Jyn Sol"] | [member="Asha Hex"] | [member="Lothar Lundgren"]

 

[Lothar Lundgren]

The Valkryi nodded at Ar'ekk's instruction. He reached down and picked up another handful of snow while ducked behind his cover. He balled it into another snowball, then peaked up and above; just in time for a snowball to hit him right smack in the face.

"Ah!" The Journeyer exclaimed, ducking back down again to wipe the cold snow from his face. A grin formed, and he quickly leaped to his feet and brought his arm back once again.

The snowball the Valkryi had packed was brought back, then launched forward; moving quickly in Asha's direction.

@Arekk @Asha Hex [member="Jyn Sol"]

 

[Lief]

Though she had thought she'd made more than enough to last, Asha soon found herself running out of pre-packed snowballs. Some, she knew, had landed against the ground, missed their mark, but one or two had whacked one of the boys or an innocent bystander. She might have felt guilty, but instead the same grin refused to leave her lips.

It was nice to kick back for a while.

She was beginning to feel the cold, though. Her gloves were soggy, socks and shoes soaked, her cheeks and nose in particular flushed bright red, and her poor freckles seemed lost within her pale skin. Every few seconds she sniffled, and the smell of hot chocolate which lingered on the air made her long for its warmth.

But the battle was just getting good.

Another snowball hit her in the side of the head when she turned to form some more. Some of it fell down her shirt, forcing a yelp of surprise from the young woman. "Damnit, Snowborn," she said, though the term was used somewhat endearingly and not with so much as a hint of malicious intent behind her tone, "So cold, so cold..."

Shaking to try and get it out of her shirt, she was quick to fling another one in his direction.

"C'mon, Jyn, don't get soft on me now..." She had noticed that no snowballs had left Jyn's coop... Looked as though she was fighting for two. With that in mind a volley of snowballs were once again sent toward [member='Arekk'].

[member="Lothar Lundgren"]

 

[Arekk]

Bracing for the incoming barrage of snowballs coming their way and sheltered behind a table, Ar'ekk was struck by the coldness of the snow straight in his face and head. It felt so frosty and it pierced through his skin which made him shiver right away, each breath taken became more difficult as the weather had gotten more heavier than before. The snow had slowly become more thicker and bitterly cold by the minute which made the need for a hot chocolate the most desirable thing in that instant.

"I give up! You win this round."

The half masked man said with a chuckle, coming out of hiding with his arms up to finally take the defeat in this struggle. As far as he knew, Lothar remained in the battle and could surprise both Jyn and Asha with a 'deadly' strike.

Walking over to a table that held many of the alcoholic beverages, Ar'ekk grabbed an empty glass and poured some of the finest ale that Aurum could offer. He was seeking to find a source of heat because the young Jedi was shivering, patting the side of his arms to cope with the low temperature.

"So cold."

[member="Asha Hex"] | [member="Lothar Lundgren"] | [member="Jyn Sol"]

 

[Lief]

Jyn never really had chance to join in the confrontation.

Before she could so much as think, a flurry of snow struck both she and poor Kipo straight in the face. The fat monkey squeaked in dissatisfaction and hastily burrowed himself down into her coat, whimpering all the while. With a growl she lifted her head over and looked to those who could have been responsible. Deep down she knew who it was, and so her glare made its way to [member='Arekk'] who was claiming he was finished.

"Don't worry, my love, we'll get him back."

Scooping up a fist full of snow, Jyn rose up and yelled "I yield, too!" before anyone had a chance to hit her. Then, secretly armed with her weapon of choice, she walked over to where her unsuspecting victim was sat, beer in hand.

She made to hug him, extending her arms into an embrace, before shoving the snow down the back of his shirt a moment later, provided he didn't stop her.

"Poor Kipo is shivering his little ears off," she scolded, at the same time.

[member="Lothar Lundgren"]

 

[Lothar Lundgren]

With a grin, Lothar watched Ar'ekk surrender. He thought he understood his teammate's idea, a simple distraction. Then, his new acquaintance Jyn gave in as well. His smile only seemed to grow wider, and in what seemed like slow motion, the Valkryi packed another snowball. Apparently too eager, he jumped to his feet and reared his arm back, ready to let his second snowball towards Asha fly when...

Smack.

Asha had let loose another icy shot before he had. Dramatically, the Journeyer's arms fell to his side and the snowball slipped from his fingers, returning to the ground from which it came. "You got me." He shouted at towards his fake adversary, with a jolly tone mixed in with feigned sadness. Nonetheless, Lothar trudged through the snow in Asha's direction. He extended out his hand for Asha to take, should she choose to. "Well fought. I'm Lothar Lundgren." He said, with a grin.

[member="Jyn Sol"] | [member="Arekk"] | [member="Asha Hex"]