Chapter 1)
Disclaimer: See Author's Notes
Visper Jerre sat on her bunk onboard on the Ebon Hawk. She was tired, dead tired, her short cropped brown hair was slick with sweat, testament to a day spent under the hot Tatooine sun. Groaning she leaned forward and pealed her boots off one by one, sighing in quiet pleasure as her feet tingled in the clean air after a day in captivity.
The heavy boots hit the metal floor with a loud clang. She leaned back against the bulkhead, and closed her eyes, too tired to disrobe further. The day's events weighed heavily on her mind, the vision she had the night before, the meetings with the Czerka Corporation reps to gain access to outside the port, how she detested dealing with those greedy rats, running into the Dark Jedi…
Visper let out a sigh.
She was fooling herself. It wasn't any of that that had her so worn out, it was Bastila, it was always Bastila, the meeting with Helena had been a strain on her dark haired Jedi mentor slash adviser, and she was at a lost to help her.
Not that Bastila wanted her help; she had made that clear, if not in words. She could feel her discomfort radiating through the bond they shared.
After Manaan she had hoped Bastila had come to place more trust in her and might have even started viewing her as a friend.
Why that was important to her… she shied away from that though. It wasn't something she wanted to think about.
Stifling a grown she pushed herself off the bunk and headed towards the small crew refreshment facilities to clean up as best she could considering the cost of water on an arid world like Tatooine.
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Bastila glanced up from where she was cleaning the sand out of her Lightsaber, the elegant yet deadly Jedi weapon was in pieces on the main table in the common crew area, just in time to see a tired looking Visper trudge pass her in the direction of the 'fresher. While the day had been as long for her as it had been for her older companion she looked and felt as fresh as if she had stepped out of the Manaan Sea.
She made a mental note to offer to teach Visper learn how better to adapt to the harsh climates they were likely to encounter when she returned.
Turning her attention back to the task at hand she frowned, it wasn't strictly necessary to clean her weapon at this time, they were far from fragile, but it gave her something to keep her mind occupied.
While it did not show on her as it did on her companions, Zaalbar's fur had been literally drenched in sweat when he and Mission had returned from restocking their supplies; the day had taken its toll on her as well.
Seeing her moth… Helena again after so long had tested her emotional control. Her father was dead.
Bastila's hands gripped the saber's tubing tightly and she took a deep shuddering breath, gaining a questioning look from Juhani who sat at the other end of the table eating a ration bar.
Bastila waved off the young Cathar's concern and returned her attention to the small tool and her saber, carefully picking specs of sand from the grooves.
There in no Emotion; There is peace…
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Later that night under the Ebon Hawk in the chilling cold of the Tatooine night Visper stood shivering, her bare arms pointing away from her body as her hands came together in a classic meditative pose in front of her chest, well it would have been classic if she hadn't been shaking from the cold.
"Your body can survive in this environment," Bastila's calm voice rang in her ears as the old Jedi paced around her, "provided of course you can find shelter before it gives out, however you can not find shelter if you are incapacitated from the cold, your bodies reaction to the cold is to let you know what is wrong, like pain, however once you know there is a problem, you can disable those 'signals' from your body so you may work to resolve the issue unimpaired"
Visper clenched her teeth to keep them from chattering, and to keep herself from saying something rude. When Bastila had offered to teach her how to endure extreme environments, she didn't know the lessons would involve freezing her ass off in her underwear. At least the cold night had driven away any would-be spectators.
"However unlike pain, which you have already learned to ignore when needed, extreme cold and heat affect your entire body"
Bastila was now standing behind Visper; she around out slowed and placed her hands on the older woman's forearms.
"Do not think about the cold," The Jedi whispered softly, her head next to Visper's, "think about a fire, how it slowly fills your body with warmth"
By now Visper's eyes were closed and her breathing slow. The warmth slowly spread outwards from where Bastila's hands were touching her until her entire body was suffused with the warmth. She leaned back instinctively into Bastila. If she had been thinking clearly, she would have noted with surprise that Bastila tightened her own hold on the older woman.
Visper tilted her head up slowly and started to open her eyes…
*cough*
The two Jedi's jumped apart and spun around towards the ramp of the Ebon Hawk whereCanderous Ordo was standing, a smirk covering the Mandalorian mercenary's scarred face.
"If you two are done with your training, the evening meal is ready"
Visper glanced at Bastila who was already walking towards the hatch and shivered slightly. The warmth of only moments before was gone. As she followed the young Jedi up the ramp she glared at the large Mandalorian still standing there. As she passed him, she accidentally bumped her hip into his and gave it a slight push with the force, spending him sprawling off the ramp and into the dust.
As she headed towards her bunk to put on some clothes she could her Canderous's raucous laughter.
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Well there was chapter 1. I hope you liked it. I plan on update hopefully every week.