She stood tall across the room from him, her chin tilted upwards in that slight smirk that she could hold. He was slightly perplexed by that smirk. That one smirk was what had gotten him into his world of trouble that he was now in. And yet, he wouldn't have traded that moment for the world. The way she sauntered up to him, helmet under her arm and held tightly, her hair billowing slightly in the breeze of the planet he had been on. And then her lips were moving, and he found himself stuck as if he was under a spell.
"You look like an honorable man... Do you drink that honor away on nights where you feel alone and useless?"
The words had caught him off kilter, and he hadn't had a response to them at the time. But now, a year later, here she was once again, standing there in front of him. Albeit, she wasn't wearing her armor, just a tight fitting shirt and leggings, but she still held that sense of honor and hope in her eyes, as if her journey was still beginning and hadn't gone far. But she had gone far. He could see it in her eyes. She had seen many things. Things that many people should not have to witness, that he wished he'd never have to witness.
"I do," he whispered, causing her to blink in slight confusion. And then he was the one smirking towards her. "I do drink my honor away on nights that I feel alone and useless..."
Belted laughter met that statement, coming from the woman across from him, and she curled in on herself, her head shaking back and forth. "Some Jedi you are!" And then she was gaining control of herself slightly, her laughter dying down to little snickers as she righted herself once again, her smile growing as she crossed the room to him.
Of course, he couldn't see the color of her eyes, a golden brown. Nor could he see her brunette color of her hair, but that didn't matter to him. He saw a larger picture. How the Force wove around her and through her, but not a part of her in a sense like it was with Force sensitive people. And just that sight invigorated him greatly. How could someone of her flavor of life invigorate him as she did?
Upon her clearing her throat, he quickly came out of his thoughts about her and shook his head. Satisfied that he was once again listening to her, she let a smile grace her lips, "So, Jetii... Is this one of those nights? Because My honor is high an I'd like to drink it away... at least for a little while... No inhibitions!"
He floundered for a moment, taken back by her sudden proposition. Hadn't she been married the last time he had met her? Yes. He remembered clearly the male Mandalorian that wasn't far behind her, a show of adoration on his face for the woman that was in front of him. So what had happened? Where was her husband now? And why was she asking him this question of all things?
"Your husband?" He asked, his golden blond eyebrows raising slightly in his quest to fish information out of her.
Her smile slipped from her face, and he watched as the Force around her seemed to billow in sadness, as if a tragic event had happened. "He's... Not around anymore," she whispered, fingering at her throat where a ring was on a golden chain. And then she was spinning away from him, waving her hand through the air, "Forget it, jetii! It was a stupid question..."
"I lost my wife too," he murmured to her retreating form. Those words caused her to halt and quickly spin back to him, her eyes going wide. "A little over twenty years ago..."
And then she was sagging her shoulders, "Come. We'll drink to their memories..." Shooting back over her shoulders, she smiled softly, "Come, Askatofa... The mighty Altiera Cadera waits for no man! If you plan to drink with me, then you better shake a leg and fall in line!"
With that, she was leaving him standing there, his jaw hanging open. She was such a perplexing woman, and he loved that about her. He was brought out of his thoughts once again as his son came up beside him, looking in the direction that he was. "Father?"
"Je'lie," he cleared his voice, coming back to the present and shaking his head. "I am sorry..."
A small smirk upturned his lips, and he let a little chuckle leave his lips before he was patting Askatofa's shoulder ever so slightly, "Go after her. Altiera is a tough nut to crack, but once you get through that beskar armor of hers, she's nothing but soft... The challenge is daunting, yes, but the reward is worth every battle and hardship taken..."
"Honor and alcohol, eh?" Askatofa smirked for a moment before he went emotionless again, and then he was striding off after Altiera.
"Honor... and... Alcohol?" Je'lie mumbled, confused as to his father's last words. And then he was shrugging before turning on his heel and walking in the opposite direction, heading towards the meditation room to see if Reilik and Torian wished to train for a while.
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And another short story. This one deals with Altiera and Askatofa with a slight appearance of Je'lie at the end.
Altiera is a Mandalorian bounty hunter that is Torian Cadera's aunt. Of course, she's only a couple years older than him, but she is still a capable hunter. She's Torian's mother's younger sister. When Jincoln had taken most of the Cadera clan with him when he decided to go against Mandalore, Altiera stayed and fought for the honor of her clan. That's how she met her husband, Jason Ordo, who was the younger brother of the Ordo clan's captain Erik. Jason married her, not caring that she was an aruteii. He loved her and that's all that mattered. They had two beautiful boys together. But a year before the story starts, she looses her boys and her husband to an attack by the Empire. Her husband angered too many Moffs with his attitude towards them and their beliefs that Mandalorians are just dogs that should listen to their Empire masters. Je'lie, who she is amazingly good friends with, contacts her to rescue Ellona from Taris after she is shipped there by the Republic.
Askatofa is a Jedi Counselor that is Je'lie's father. He still looks amazingly young, and Altiera jokes with him sometimes about how he could actually pass off as Je'lie's brother. When his village was decimated by the Empire, he was told by the Jedi Council that his wife and child had been murdered by the Moff that had headed the attack. Devastated over the loss of his family, he tried to pull away from the Jedi, but they wouldn't let him. After making him see the light once again, he ended up becoming a mentor to Quaylish. But it always nagged at him in the back of his head, as if the Force was calling to him, that his son was still alive and out there. Finally, he could not take it and left the Jedi, disappearing from contacts and everyone. Of course, with help from his friends, Je'lie is finally reunited with his father.
I really don't have any inspiration for this one... It kind of just manifested itself in my mind and I ran with it. :)
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