Coruscant
Ryssa's Apartment.
'I passed the entrance exam. Now It's just have each module. Then I'm legal, re registered and can call myself a Dr again. Love you.'
She pressed the send key.
Ryssa couldn't remember exactly when she started leaving daily texts for A'den, ones that he could pick up as and when but it was habit now. She never just called, she didn't know what he was doing most of the time. If he could he would call back. So now he knew about Ordo and the Treasury Agent. The credit chip. Etain and Darman but not the baby that wasn't up to her. And a hundred and one other things that happened to her on a daily basis.
It kept her sane.
It helped her sleep.
After Thrawn and the night out with the boys, she decided it would be best to stay in. He wouldn't worry so much, plus there was her studying that she was doing for the re registration but after that, there was only so much cleaning you could do. She couldn't bear to watch some of the mindless holovids; Republic Med Centre being the worst. They got everything medically wrong. And don't get her onto the sanitising. She had taken up baking, finding it relaxing; the troopers, when she had any patients now and medics appreciated it, and she had just taken out some Warra Nut Slices from the oven. They did smell good, even if she said so to herself; which she did a lot.
The door bell chimed.
Kriffin hell!" She started, not expecting anyone to call today; A'den said it would be another month at least, before he could get back, and he would just enter. She wiped her hands on the kitchen cloth and went to answer the door, seeing who it was, through the view finder, her stomach clenched up in knots.
Please no!
She opened the door. He stood there, Helmet clipped to the back of his armour, face blank; the Clone default expression that had saved many of them from termination on Kamino, for whatever slight deviation they had committed.
"Ordo, come in." She turned away, tense, not wanting to be told anything on the doorstep, and he followed her in; she was putting off the inevitable. She could barely breathe and speak, her voice a whisper as she turned back to him.
"When? ….How? ….Did he suffer?" She was struggling with the words, as she watched his face.
Ordo looked at her with at best, a bemused expression.
"A'd….." she started to say and Ordo suddenly realised what she was asking.
"No! He's fine, as safe as any of us. Why did you think otherwise?"
She let out a long sigh and he shoulders slumped."Because...you have never been here before."
He realised now, what she meant, and it was something else he needed to bear in mind, with the partners of any of his vode, unexpected calls, of any kind would worry them, even momentarily. He knew Bes'ika worried about him, so, the other ladies, as Kal called them, would also worry, perhaps more so, as their partners were mostly off world.
Ryssa watched him as he was processing this, remembering it for future reference.
"Shall we start again?" She paused, trying to calm herself down slightly, "Good to see you, Ordo, How are you?"
"I'm fine, actually. Thank you for asking." He was Kal's son and he was polite.
"I act.." he started but she interrupted him, which was a feat in itself.
"Would you like a Caf and a freshly baked Warra nut Slice, not yet iced I'm afraid and still warm." And before waiting for a reply, she padded off to the kitchen.
"Make yourself at home." She shouted from the kitchen before he heard some banging and rattling and a few choice curses.
This wasn't his home, he didn't have one but recognised the idiom for what it was and looked around. There was a large squashy leather sofa, he sat down on that; he looked further around. It wasn't as neat and tidy as Bes'ika's apartment and was smaller. There were holos, in frames, of a younger Ryssa and an older red haired woman; he wondered if it was her Mother, they looked alike. There were flimzi books, actual books, on a shelf and plants, lots of green plants on a table in front of the window. This place looked as if someone lived in it all the time, whereas Bes'ika's was more ordered, more like her. He preferred Bes'ika's.
The enticing smell of the cakes hit him before she returned with Caf and the cakes piled on a plate.
"Help yourself!" She handed him a small plate, he was still uncomfortable in her presence and he didn't know why. Was it because A'den appeared totally besotted with her? And he couldn't understand why. He compared her to Besany and she failed on all counts. He couldn't even think he could be attracted to her, so he was trying desperately to see why A'den was. He always said something about her eyes, her laugh and that she needed protecting.
He bit into the cake
She was small.
He chewed the cake, good texture.
She was pleasant looking.
There were lots of nuts in the cake; he would pay for that in the morning.
With very long, very pale blonde straight hair.
The cake was excellent.
She was pear shaped.
He picked up another cake and bit into it.
Her eyes pale blue, …..no grey, …..no green…..very odd.
He chewed the second cake.
"Are you Ok, Ordo? Have I got something stuck to my face. You're staring."
He swallowed.
"Huh, huh er yes."
"What? Where?"
He looked at her puzzled.
"What have I got on my face?" She asked.
"Nothing!" She looked confused.
"I need to ask you a favour." He finished the cake and picked up another one.
"Of course, Ordo anything." That surprised him, why, if she needed protecting, would she agree to 'anything'. Mongrels, apart from Besany confused him a lot.
He drank a gulp of Caf, both were good, very good. If nothing else A'den would be well fed.
"Bes'ika!" Ordo declared.
Ryssa looked blank for a few seconds then realised who he was talking about. She still hadn't got to grips with the Mando habit of adding 'ika to people's names, so he was talking about Besany. A'den normally kept her up to speed on all the blossoming relationships of his brothers, but she had advised him of the interest there first. She realised she was, as much a gossip as A'den, they all were really. She supposed it was being part of a large family.
"Is she ill? I only really do trauma."
"Oh, no. But I worry about her. She doesn't have any family and doesn't seem to have any friends, who she can talk to. I thought perhaps…" he often found an unfinished sentence beneficial, people could read what they wanted into it.
"You thought perhaps I could go and see her. We could talk?"
"Yes. Exactly."
"Okay…..where does she live?"
.
Ordo dialled up his comlink as he walked away from his sister's apartment.
"Den'ika, she'll go tomorrow, so between us, work and Bes'ika you'll know where she goes a lot of the time."
He listened to the reply,
"Well, you can be sure now."
"And yes, I'll let Kal'buir know."
Ordo switched off the comlink and shook his head at his brothers obsession.
.
Agent Wennen's Apartment
The next evening she appeared at Besany Wessen's door armed with cookies, and rang the chimes.
Bessany answered the door and looked effortlessly immaculate, as she had every time Ryssa had seen her, whilst Ryssa looked like she had just done 10 hours at the clinic, which she had. She looked like she had rushed home, showered, put something casual on, picked up the cookies and jumped in a hover taxi, which she had.
"Hi, as we are practically sisters I thought we ought to get to know each other."
Bessany looked down at her and said. "Ordo sent you, didn't he?"
"Yes." Replied Ryssa sheepishly, "Did he tell you?"
"No, but come in any way."
"I've brought homemade cookies." Ryssa announced immediately. "I thought you could keep some for Ordo, for when he drops by."
"Thank you." Besany carefully took the tin off her and showed her through.
Ryssa saw they weren't alone. The blue Twi'lek she had seen with another clone, Atin, she thought, the one with the scar, was siting there waiting.
"Ordo?"
Ryssa nodded, as she sat down.
.
"A'den is very …. thorough." Ryssa announced, after taking another drink of the wine that tasted of fruit that Besany had brought out, when they first arrived. Ryssa had initially ignored it but then succumbed to the temptation. It did taste good. "He seems to know just what I want." This game of truth or dare was deteriorating, especially after the wine was opened. "But he does seems to think he should surpass himself every time."
It's not like the hard liquor and she had only one glass, she told herself, but it was enough to loosen her inhibitions.
"Wow." Said Laseema. "Atin's good, especially now he knows what I like, it took a few goes, but it's every time now, although I had to send him some light reading." She giggled behind her hand.
"Every time? Kandosi!" They collapsed laughing at the Mandoa phrase.
"Don't mention Atin, it could get competitive." Laseema warned. They both giggled again
The conversation had definitely deteriorated, thought Bessany. And she wasn't going to talk about her sex life. Or lack of it. Nothing had actually been said. They had met a few times, had some awkward conversations. A lot was implied nothing said outright but still he came back. Ordo obviously thought they were an item now.
She knew what she wanted but wasn't sure about Ordo.
"I'll bet Ordo's relentless isn't he." Said Laseema. "He's so focused."
There was no reply. All the women had soon learned to pick up on body language and Besany's was screaming at them.
"Osik!" Exclaimed Neryssa, she'd got the hang of swearing in Mandoa and looked at Laseema; and they both turned to look at Bessany.
"You haven't yet, have you?"
"No, we're taking it slow."
"How can you take it slow with a Clone?"
"We just are."
"You mean Ordo is. I think you need to push him a bit. When's he next due back on Corrie?"
She looked at them both, backwards and forwards, between the two, desperately wanting the conversation to end. She wasn't a teenager and that was another fact she had to get her head around. Although the two women in front of her had managed that quiet well.
"I know Mereel thought he needed some education; similar to what he and Kom'rk gave Corr."
"Atin says Corr's still learning. There are some space ports they haven't visited yet."
"I think we've got the best three; once Ordo's up to speed." Ryssa felt a lot more relaxed now. The second glass had gone down very well.
"So how far, so far?"
Laseema was straight to the point; Ryssa nearly choked on her wine. Besany looked distinctly uncomfortable. She was not happy to have their sex life discussed in detail. She didn't want to rush him. Corr had been sweet and just as naïve; Ordo was entirely another kettle of fish and she did not want to spoil it with him.
He was fearless.
Other men had admired her and she had been interested but they always backed off. Ordo was the first one to actively pursue her and she wasn't going to put him off by being too much. He was different and she knew that there were some things he didn't understand and one was her. But she had her own ideas of how her relationship with Ordo was going to go and she didn't need any help from these two.
Especially the 'Princess'.
"You need some liiiinnnngggeeerriiie." Laseema said.
Ryssa was suddenly feeling rather tired; ten hours on your feet and a couple of glasses of wine had done for her.
"We're going shopping!" giggled Laseema. "Ryssa, Do you know any good shops?"
"Don't think so...Besany?"
"I have enough underwear."
"Oh."
Laseema practically sighed.
"Is there something you'd like to do?" Ryssa asked Besany. She was trying to get to know the woman but it felt forced and the initial effects of the wine were wearing off quickly; she could feel the beginnings of a headache.
Laseema tried a few more times until it became quite difficult. None of them knew what to say to each other. They were strangers. Ryssa took the plunge.
"I really need to go…early start in the morning. Perhaps we could do a caf sometime?"
"Yes. That would be nice." Besany grabbed the lifeline and honour was satisfied by all. As she escorted them to the door, Ryssa turned "Just let him know that you're thinking about him, worrying even. That can't hurt. He worries about you."
Besany gave her an odd look that Ryssa couldn't quite decide what it meant.
.
The hover taxi swept through the sky lanes to the apartment Kal had rented for Laseema.
"That could've gone better." Commented Ryssa, "I don't think she likes me."
"I think she's lonely and hasn't had many women friends."
"Yes, perhaps so."
Or I made an absolute fool of myself.