Another party was thrown, although somehow the number of remaining acolytes had been brought down to only five over the course of that trial, so there weren't many guests. Tali did what she could to liven things up, but didn't manage too well. Besides, the party guests got quite distracted by a rumour that started to go around.
Several of the experiments had been unsuccessful. This was leading to speculation that, since the following trials all hinged on the success of the experiments, there would be long pause before the next one.
Personally, Avrria wasn't too bothered. She was ready for a little break and was quite safe in the knowledge that Tali would liven up those weeks of doing nothing but attending inconsequential lessons. Some of the others seemed frustrated though, Mikul included. He sidled over to Avrria and grumbled to her, "Looks like the trials are on hold for a while then. More time stuck with this bunch of peasants...And you, of course," That small pause before he added his last remark puzzled her. They were meant to be friends now, but he acted like he still didn't know what to make of her.
She still didn't know what to make of him, either. But she had to admit that there could be more than to their friendship than just using him. She was starting to warm up to him. Well, she didn't loathe him as much as she did when they had first met. She couldn't explain why. Perhaps it was because he had toned down the condescension, at least towards her.
"Eh, so long as there's still something entertaining to do...We can always drive Harkun further into insanity. Or get Aunty Tal to help us terrorise the rest of Korriban," She suggested.
"Excellent idea. Having powerful relatives is such fun, isn't it?" He answered with a grin, "The opportunities it gives you..." He added, trailing off as he considered that thought. Avrria just looked puzzled, wondering what he could be thinking off. Every time they discussed their shared experiences, he managed to find some way to make them seem very different too. She didn't quite understand him, even when they seemed similar.
Tali watched them from afar again, still convinced Mikul was up to something. He reminded her of too many scheming troublemakers she had encountered throughout her own life. But she still wanted to watch Avie sort him out someday, so she didn't bother to interfere just now. She settled on giving him a nasty luck and wandering off to sample Jaesa's latest concoction of drinks.
It took a few days for all the victims of that to recover, but after the party, there was indeed a long break from any sort of trial while 'some fundamental errors were remedied', apparently. In the meantime, Tali recreated her K'lor'slug zombie army and had them fight some Tuk'atas for a little bit. Then she helped Avie acquire some more artefacts and statues that could made to fly well. There was also an infamous 'power cut' when several people found that their lightsabers had been sabotaged and no longer functioned, thanks to Tali showing Avrria how to take a lightsaber apart.
And Mikul ended up spending sometime with Avrria, under the guise of wanting to train with the closest he had to an equal. Tali considered that they were getting all too close to one another. She was fine with them being friends with one another, but they seemed to have become firm friends very fast, bearing in mind how little Avie had trusted him to begin with. She was beginning to suspect he had been messing with Avrria's mind. If that was the case, she would have to choke him.
So she took to following them around, keeping a careful eye on him at all times. They went to a few lessons, and, much to Harkun's frustration, Tali tagged along every single time. One particular occasion, eight months after the last trial, she was enjoying tormenting him quite a lot, and encouraging Avie to do the same. "I take it your head's finally healed...It'd be interesting to see if Av can do what I did to it, wouldn't it?" She taunted.
He gritted his teeth, "She can't." He insisted.
Av smiled sweetly, then raised a hand, "Are you sure?" She asked.
"Don't you dare!" He yelled at her, getting quite angry now.
Mikul joined in, "Oh, go on. Don't some people just ask for a little force power induced injury?" He encouraged. Tali gave him a curious look, but decided to ignore him to encourage trouble again herself.
"I'm sure you can manage it," She prompted Avie, who was hesitating, wondering if she should.
"I'm warning you, right before your trial wouldn't be a good time to jeopardize-" The ranting Overseer was cut off by Tali's smoldering glare. Then by the beeping of her commlink.
Everyone waited in silence, expecting her to have more to add to this conversation when she had finished her call. But at it's end, all she had to say was, "Well, this trial and this argument will just have to be postponed for a while. Darth Nox needs us."
Harkun was, once again, outraged, "You can't postpone the trials! Lord Sholkaar has ordered-"
Tali stepped towards him, "Oh, I can. And you won't get in my way, or something nasty will happen! Darth Nox has more say over this than whoever the hell 'Lord Sholkaar' is," She pointed out very sharply, then added, "Av, pack your things. Family holiday time." She turned after that comment, walking away with Avie in tow.
The Overseer was angry and stupid enough to follow her. She swung around to face him. "You can't-" He began to say again. But Tali had had enough of him. She ignited her blade and sank it into his stomach. "We're leaving," She reiterated to Avie.
The young Sith nodded as the body crashed to the floor, setting off to gather her things. Apparently it was time to see her mother again.