New chapter up. A little Aric and Kia bonding. Enjoy!
The hole in the wall dive Kia took Aric to was in the middle of what had once been blacksun territory. The outside of the establishment was old, dirty and not at all appealing. One would never guess it housed a bar or any other organization which required a certain level of general hygiene.
Jorgan half expected to find the place full of spice peddlers and mercenaries, but to his surprise, the only occupants were a half dozen senate aids loudly complaining about their bosses and two off duty Republic military officers, talking quietly over mugs of ale. The bartender, a green skinned Mirialan with diamond tattoos over his eyes, looked up from the datapad he was reading when they entered, smiling at Kia.
"Nice to see you again, Master Jedi. The usual?" He asked, already fetching a bottle of deep red liquor from the shelf behind him and a glass from below the bar.
Kia gave him a half smile as they reached the bar. "Yes, please, and whatever my friend here would like. You can go ahead and put them on my tab."
Jorgan leaned in and ordered a Corellian whiskey. Once the drinks arrived, Jorgan headed to a table at the far back of the bar. Kia picked up her drink and turned to follow, but then turned back to the bartender. "Keep them coming, will ya Stonni?"
Stonni nodded understandingly as Kia followed Jorgan to the quiet table, sitting across from him. No doubt he had heard about the service for Mia.
"I had no idea this place was here." Aric said, taking a long pull of his drink. "It's not what you would expect from the outside. Or from the neighborhood, for that matter."
"Very few people know about this bar. It caters to those of us who work at the senate tower. It's nice to be able to go somewhere and have a nice quiet drink. It's also good for discreet conversations, not to mention what you order is what you get. No watered down drinks here." Kia motioned towards the bartender. "Stonni is the cousin of one of the Jedi researchers from the senate tower. Good guy."
"You come here often?" Jorgan asked.
"Not normally, but as of late…" Kia thought about her words. "...let's just say, I've needed a quiet drink a lot more often. Meditation is fine and all, but sometimes I just want to turn off my mind. The emotions of the city are more negative than they used to be, since the Eternal Empire came on the scene. It's taxing for someone like me."
Jorgan nodded, closing his eyes for a moment, letting out a long sigh. He had been on edge since Kia drug him from the ceremony and she was pleased to see he was relaxing, even just a little bit.
"Better now?" Kia asked.
"I'll need more than one drink to feel better, but I no longer feel like yelling at the brass." Jorgan opened his eyes and looked at Kia. "Thanks for that."
"Not a problem. The way I see it, if Mia were here, she'd want us to stick together." She took a sip of her drink. "Besides, it's less worrisome for us to be drinking together, rather than alone. You drink with a friend and you're being social. You drink alone and you have a problem."
They sat in comfortable silence for several minutes. The bar had music playing, but it wasn't loud and the other patrons were being relatively quiet, by bar standards. The senate aids were starting to get drunk enough that their voice volume was almost a yell, but it was only one conversation, easily ignored.
"I did want to thank you for Elara. She's being forced out of Havoc, but I hear the supreme commander is assigning her to a personal task force he's putting together. I'm guessing you had something to do with her reassignment."
Kia chuckled lightly. "When I got your message, I spoke with Jace, yes. He's not totally against what's happening to former Imperials in the military, but he listens to me." She shrugged. "Of course, I have a bit more pull with the man than most. We've been sleeping together for almost six years."
Jorgan's jaw dropped. Kia had said the last bit quietly, but without any kind of hesitation. After a few stunned seconds, Jorgan laughed. "So that was what you and Mia were talking about on those occasions when she asked me to leave the room."
"And I would appreciate it if you would keep it to yourself. It's not like we can be public about it. The Jedi council still frowns on such things. It would be...complicated...for both of us if our relationship were to get out."
"My lips are sealed." He replied, finding a new appreciation for the relationship he had with Mia. They didn't announce their marriage loudly, but they didn't need to go out of their way to hide it, either. It had to be rough, keeping the secret and always having to be careful around each other. "So, instead of being home, being comforted by a man who obviously cares for you, you're sitting in a bar, getting drunk with a man you hardly know?"
Kia shrugged. "Pretty much. Mia would want us to stick together, and honestly, you're technically the only family I have left."
Jorgan nodded, having a new found respect for his wife's sister. He had always thought of Kia as a Jedi and little else. "Only family, until we find Mia."
"Until we find Mia. And we will. Mark my words, Aric, we will find her."
Jorgan raised his glass and Kia did the same, then they finished their drinks in a single gulp. As if on cue, Stonni returned, carrying a fresh drink for each of them, exchanging glasses, then returning to the bar.
It was going to be a long night.
Three hours later, Kia deposited Aric on her sofa, where the cathar passed out almost immediately. The two had matched each other, drink for drink, but Kia had been using a Jedi detoxification technique to keep herself reasonably sober. She figured, by the end of the night, her brother in law would need help getting home. As it was, she had to use all her strength and some of her Force powers to get him to her apartment.
Once she was sure he was situated, Kia took the throw off the back of her sofa, placed it over the sleeping man, then headed to her room to make a call. It was late, after two in the morning, but the holo only beeped once before being answered.
"Waiting up for me, I see." Kia said.
"Have a good night?" Jace asked.
"Well, I have an extremely drunk cathar passed out on my sofa, so not a bad night. He'll have a headache in the morning, but I think he needed a drink just as much as I did. I'd ask you to come over, but it's probably best if I just see you tomorrow. I told Aric about us, but I think waking up to one of your commanding officers when you've had one too many the night before would just be awkward."
Jace laughed, nodding. "You're probably right. Are you doing alright?"
"Yes, I'm doing surprisingly well. Ask me again tomorrow, after Aric leaves, and I might feel differently, but right now, I just want to sleep. Jedi detox removes most of the alcohol from your system, but not all. And trust me, there was a lot of alcohol consumed tonight."
"In that case, get some rest and I'll talk to you tomorrow. I love you."
"I love you too Jace. And…" Kia paused, sighing. "...thank you for today. I'm not sure how I would have made it through without you."
"I'm here for you. I always will be." Jace replied.
Kia could sense his honesty and love, even from the distance between them. She almost started to cry from the emotions. "Good night Jace."
The glow of the holo stopped and Kia quickly composed herself as she changed into something better to sleep in and climbed into bed. She only missed Jace for a minute before the alcohol in her system lulled her to sleep.
To Be Continued...