The next couple of days went by as smoothly as could be expected from a trek across such harsh terrain. Conrad kept up well. Raven and Eeth felt that his tenacity in the face of his disadvantages was inspiring – not that they were going to tell him so; the kid was already far too big for his boots. He pointed out the various tracks in the snow to the Jedi as they appeared, and much to his delight they came across a wounded guinea bird that had recently died and frozen, providing Eeth and Conrad with meat for the next few meals. Raven did not begrudge them, but she did make a point of thanking her master for sending her out to look for tubers whilst he prepared it.
It was late afternoon on the fifth day that the snow began to show signs of thinning out, which meant they were getting close to their rendezvous point. They had split up again to find shelter as they were running out of light; Raven north-east, Eeth and Conrad north. Raven hadn't gotten far, barely a couple of kilometres, when she spotted a cabin. It was partially collapsed, but compared to what they were used to, this was like finding a penthouse suite. She was about to pull out her comlink to call Eeth when something odd caught her eye. It looked like steam but they were in the middle of a frozen forest, so, "Surely not?", she thought. She really wanted to look but decided to wait for Eeth lest he tear her a new one for walking into an unknown situation unnecessarily.
Walking was a lot easier that day than it had been before. The trees were scarcer and there was hardly any snow on the ground although the air was cold. The ground, however, was moderately warm. Eeth suspected that this was a result of volcanic activity associated with the mountain range they were skirting. Therefore, he was not surprised when Raven informed him of her find.
"It is probably a hot spring," he told her. "Check it out. Reach out with your senses and make sure that no creatures are near."
Raven fervently hoped he was right because, at this moment, she could think of nothing better than a warm bath!
As it turned out, Eeth was correct. The spring wasn't spectacular, but the water that collected in a rocky pool was warm to the touch and currently free from creatures, at least those that had teeth or the ability to infect a body; she seriously doubted that the tiny blue-and-red striped crustaceans that occasionally surfaced would prove hazardous.
Raven left the spring to scout the surrounding area, both for something to seal the cabin and to scan for life forms. Unsurprisingly there was a higher number of small warm-blooded animals here than she had encountered previously, not that she blamed them with the hot spring nearby.
Raven turned a second before Eeth and Conrad entered the small clearing where the cabin stood. She had used her time well and managed to enclose half of the open cabin with trees. "Our tarp should stretch to seal what's left of the rest," she said in the way of greeting.
Eeth nodded in approval.
"You did well," he said. "We gathered some food on our way. Tonight should be fairly pleasant. Did you find a hot spring?"
Raven nodded. She pointed in the general direction of steam which was now barely visible in the fading light. "It's a bit of a drop to enter, but I tested the water, and it is not boiling, nor poisonous, and is free from predators. Well, as long as you don't consider brightly coloured crustaceans of consequence, it's perfect to bathe in."
Conrad couldn't think of anything worse. "I believe I'll give that one a miss; baths are bad enough without sharing them with critters," he said.
"I, on the other hand, think you would benefit from a bath," Eeth remarked. "And the hot spring will be a good place to wash our clothes, too. We will probably arrive at the rendezvous point tomorrow afternoon, and I think it would be preferable for us to look and smell presentable. Padawan, you may take your bath first while we finish preparing the shelter and start making dinner. You look as if you are keen on it. And wash one of your uniforms so it will be dry tomorrow."
They had not been able to take more than one spare set of clothes each, plus a few additional underclothes, and while they had tried to keep their garments clean, opportunities for doing laundry had been nonexistent so far.
Eeth explained that this particular spring was caused by nearby volcanic activity; when water came into contact with molten rock, the high-temperature gradient heated it. He went on to say that in some cases the water might become so hot that it builds steam pressure and erupts into a geyser. Fortunately, the small hot spot Raven had discovered was nothing more than a harmless fumarole, heated by underlying steam that barely reached the surface.
Raven peered over the edge to judge the drop and grinned. It was more like a slide than a drop and looked like fun. Raven pulled off her boots, socks, and saber belt and tossed them into a pile on top of her clothing. Then she noiselessly slid into the warm water. It was bliss.
Meanwhile, Conrad had finished the jobs Eeth had assigned him. He didn't care for the man's insistence that he bathe, but apparently he wasn't being given a choice. "I need to relieve myself. May I go?" he asked, deliberately ambiguous about how much time he'd need. Doing so had usually afforded him five minutes with a little leeway, although it still rankled that he was required to ask.
"Yes, you may," Eeth said. "After that, I could use your help with dinner."
"Okay," Conrad agreed, shoving his hands into his pockets and making for an appropriate spot to do his business. There were a lot of tracks around now, far more than before, and he wondered if he might be lucky enough to catch something. He did have five minutes at the least, and it only took him 30 seconds to take a leak. The closest tracks led towards the hot spring but veered off before reaching the top, which was convenient as he didn't want to alert the human padawan to his presence. Conrad followed them until he spotted a small tuft of dirty white fur sticking out from behind a bush. He was about to pounce when something far, far more appealing, caught the Gelis's keen eye: it was the girl's lightsaber.
Conrad couldn't believe his luck. He could not recall a single moment in which either Jedi had left their weapon unattended, and he knew without a doubt that there wouldn't be another one. He couldn't pass up such an opportunity, at least not without kicking himself for the rest of his life. He would have to be smart about this, though. Thus, he crept towards the spot with as much stealth as he could muster and peered over the rise and down into the small spring. Raven had her head under the water scrubbing her hair. Conrad could see the track in the snow where she had slid from the peak, where her clothing was, down into the spring, and had to admit the ride looked rather fun. At that moment, the girl flipped her head up out of the water, her hair sending spray everywhere in the process. Conrad panicked. Seeing his only opportunity about to pass him by, he grabbed the saber and practically crawled on hands and knees to avoid sound as he retreated to a safe distance where he could figure out how to turn it on.
His first observation was that the thing was a lot heavier than it looked, but weight would not be a problem; Conrad had easily twice Raven's muscle mass. His fingers traced the hilt, noting the slightly worn furrows her fingers had left. Apparently, Raven spent a lot of time using her lightsaber, he mused. It was then that his thumb traced across a bump on the underside. This had to be it! Careful to turn the blade away from his body, Conrad thumbed the igniter and the green blade shot to life in his hands. It was an exhilarating feeling!
Raven sat bolt upright, her butt slipping on the rocks and sending her into the pool once again before she managed to scramble out. Unfortunately for Conrad, Raven had been training with that lightsaber and those crystals for years, and once Conrad had ignited it, it stood out like a beacon in the Force to her.
Logically, the padawan knew that streaking naked through the middle of a frozen forest was not exactly the best preparation to take on who- or whatever had her lightsaber, so she reached out to Eeth across their bond, pulled on the minimum of clothing that would make an encounter plausible on her part and took off.
Eeth was fast to react. Before Raven could even make it out of the pool, he was upon Conrad.
"Switch it off, NOW!" he barked as his half-clothed padawan came to join him, dripping wet.
"Padawan, get back into the pool before you catch pneumonia," he ordered. "We can talk about your carelessness later."
Raven looked from her ignited lightsaber to Conrad, who was fumbling around trying to work out how to shut it off, and reached out with the Force, effectively extinguishing the blade. It was hers, after all, and the girl knew it well. Then she met Eeth with a look that was a mix of horror and guilt and took off for the spring. Raven wasn't pleased at leaving her weapon behind, but nor did it appear she had a choice.
"Take your time getting yourself and your laundry clean!" Eeth called after her. "We will be busy for a while."
Turning towards Conrad, he took the lightsaber from the boy's unresisting hands and clipped it to his own belt. "Was there anything unclear about my order to keep your fingers away from our sabers?" he asked, and his tone of voice left no doubt that he was seriously displeased.
"No," Conrad replied, trying to sound confident despite the penetrating look Eeth was giving him.
"Why did you do this, then?" asked Eeth.
Conrad tried for nonchalance. "Who wouldn't? It's not like I'm going to run into Jedi every day," he reasoned. "This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so I took it."
"I hope what little use you could make of your once-in-a-lifetime opportunity was worth the consequences," said Eeth coldly. He pulled his knife from his utility belt, looked around and settled on a likely-looking bush from which he cut a sturdy switch.
Conrad didn't need to be a genius to work out what Eeth was planning to do, and he started backing up.
"Pull down your pants," Eeth ordered, his glare speaking volumes.
"Pull down my pants?" the boy reiterated incredulously. "You're delusional if you think I'm going to do that," he said, continuing to back away.
"Let me clarify your choices," Eeth said in a dangerously low voice. "You may either take down your pants now, or I will take you across my knee and spank you until you consent to taking them down, whereupon you will still receive the punishment I intend to give you. I will leave the arithmetics to you."
Conrad took another step backwards, only this time, instead of putting more distance between himself and the now stick-wielding Jedi, he backed into a tree. He contemplated making a run for it, but it was almost dark and he'd probably freeze to death. The fact that Conrad was seriously considering the latter as an option was all-telling.
When Eeth took a step forward, Conrad lost his nerve. His jaw tightened and his back stiffened, but he reluctantly began to comply. "You have no right. This is my father's responsibility, not yours," he claimed. However, despite the effort at bravery there was a tremble in his tone now; he was afraid of the pain, not to mention the fact that standing in the middle of a forest with his trousers down was not exactly comfortable.
"Unfortunately for us, he is not here at the moment," Eeth snapped. "Would you have preferred me to make a list of your transgressions and hand it to him when we meet him?"
Eeth knew that the Gelis had high standards of honour and held their children to them. Conrad's father would most likely not be happy to hear that his son had taken one of his rescuers' lightsaber against explicit instructions.
Conrad baulked slightly at Eeth's suggestion. He knew that Andrag Mitaivar was not a staunch authoritarian like Eeth, but if presented with a list of misdeeds, he would most certainly be displeased.
Considering the discussion closed, Eeth sat on a tree trunk, switch in hand. "Get over my lap," he ordered brusquely.
"This is entirely too juvenile. You do know that I'm nine years old, yes?" Conrad complained as he moved to stand by the man's side. He swiped sweaty palms on his jacket, ever grateful that it was long enough to retain his dignity for the moment.
Eeth did not dignify this with a response. He merely grabbed Conrad's ear and pulled him over.
Conrad did not appreciate this treatment, but unlike last time, he didn't struggle and fight, nor did he call Eeth every vulgar name in his lexicon. He had been stupid enough to get caught, and as much as he believed Eeth had no right to do this to him, there wasn't much he could do about it. Thus, he grabbed on to the log and grass as tightly as he could and vowed that he wasn't going to make a sound!
Eeth pulled up Conrad's long shirt with his left hand and pressed it against his back to keep him in position. With his right, he lifted the switch and brought it down across Conrad's thin underpants smartly.
The pain that followed was nothing short of impressive, and it was only through sheer pride and stubbornness that the boy kept from yelling out with surprise. It hurt more than he had thought it would! Just when he thought the sting from that first smack could get no worse, Eeth gave him another swipe and this time he grunted. It hurt more than any spanking he'd earned from his father, and even more than the time he'd been caught sampling his grandfather's whiskey, whereupon the old man had swatted him with his walking stick. As Eeth settled into a steady rhythm, Conrad's yelps quickly turned into yowls and by the time he felt the switch land for the sixth time, he was struggling against Eeth's hold. "Lemme uppp!" he cried.
Eeth paused for a moment – not to end the switching, but to scold. "You do not fool around with weapons," he said sharply. "Weapons of any description are dangerous. They are not toys and are not meant to satisfy your curiosity. You could have hurt yourself badly handling that saber. Remember this whenever you feel tempted to get your hands on a weapon that is off-limits to you."
With this, he resumed the switching.
"I know, it won't happen again! S-stop!" Conrad begged, absolutely disgusted with himself at resorting to pleading with Eeth, but, well, fuck, he wasn't sure he could take much more of this. Eeth wasn't listening to him, though, and when the next line of fire connected, Conrad started struggling in earnest, doing his best to remove himself from the Zabrak's lap. But nothing worked! Eventually, Conrad had exhausted himself and fell limp.
Eeth knew he was being harsh. He also knew that he would not have liked it if Conrad had managed to hack off his foot with Raven's saber, or worse. And with this in mind, he completed the dozen. Only then did he toss the switch aside.
"Alright," he said, releasing his hold on Conrad. "You may get up now."
Conrad practically fell off Eeth's lap in his haste to remove himself. Still, he was fast to scramble upright. He could feel the welted skin through his underpants and wondered how he was ever going to sit down again. He couldn't imagine it. It burned and stung! Not wanting to look Eeth in the eye after enduring such a humiliation, especially so while he was still sobbing, Conrad ran for their shelter where he planned to lie on his stomach and sulk.
Eeth let him be for the moment. He decided to talk to him later, and also offer some healing. For now, he made his way to the hot spring where Raven was busy washing her clothes. Sitting down on top of the ledge that surrounded the pool, he asked sternly, "And what did you think you were doing leaving your saber out of sight, padawan?"
"There was no one around, and I thought Conrad was with you," she explained. Raven had expected to be in trouble, but that didn't make it easier. She focused on scrubbing her trousers so she didn't have to see the expression on her master's face.
"And you think that is an excuse?" Eeth inquired sharply.
Raven looked at him and wrinkled her nose. "No, master. But that's why I left it there, I just didn't think anyone was around. I'm sorry. It won't happen again." Because, from Raven's experience, apologies and promises to do better were always the best way to start. Also, Raven did feel bad that Conrad had managed to get his hands on her lightsaber. He could have killed himself and that was not exactly a small oversight on her part.
"Well, you should never make such assumptions," Eeth replied pointedly. "I should hope it will not happen again. Were it not for your outstanding performance during this mission and the fact that this is your first real misstep in weeks, you would not be sitting comfortably tonight. Rest assured that if I ever catch you being this careless with your saber again, you will not like the outcome. Am I understood?"
"Yes, master, understood," Raven replied and summoned her towel. She looked at her saber that hung on Eeth's belt and hoped that wasn't a sign of things to come. "Do I get to have that back?" Raven didn't think it likely that he would keep it given the circumstances they were in, but she did want to know.
"Yes," said Eeth. "When you have your belt back on. I thought I had better keep it safe for you."
Raven was relieved but she didn't say anything more about it. "I heard you dealing with Conrad. Actually, I think everything within a ten kilometre radius heard that. Is he okay?" Raven knew Eeth would not actually harm the boy, but wanted to know if he was still upset and sulking.
"He will be," Eeth replied. "I will look after him now. Please finish up here. I would like to take a bath myself."
Much like Raven, Eeth was prepared to go without a shower and clean clothes for long periods of time if a mission required it, but he much preferred cleanliness if he had the option.
Conrad had withdrawn to the far side of the shelter and lay on his side, his arms wrapped about his chest and facing to the wall. He had just begun to settle down when he heard the sound of snow crushing under a heavy boot just outside the shelter. He did not turn around. Conrad was not the sort to hold a grudge for long, but he was still mad at the Zabrak for whipping him with that switch. His ego and wounded pride were fuelling his anger, although underneath the indignant façade he wanted reassurance and forgiveness.
Eeth stepped inside and sat down next to Conrad in a cross-legged position. He gently put a hand on the boy's back.
"No doubt you feel hard done-by," he said quietly. "However, if you had lost control of that saber, you could be lacking an arm or a leg now. And controlling a lightsaber is much more difficult than it looks. We do not even allow initiates and young padawans to handle real lightsabers until they are quite a few years older than you are, and those are youngsters who have been trained in the way of the Jedi for all their lives. You put yourself in serious danger just now, and that is why you were punished so harshly. Not because I wanted to take out my anger on you. Do you understand that?"
Conrad got to his knees so he was eye level with Eeth, but was not yet able to meet his gaze. "I do," he replied, and now he risked a look up at the man through his fringe. "I'm not meant to handle weapons at home without supervision either," he admitted, swiping a sleeve across his face, annoyed that the occasional breath was still catching in his chest. "It just seemed like a good idea at the time. If everything you said is true, I guess it wasn't very smart."
"No, it was not," Eeth agreed. "You frightened both of us, young man. It might be a good idea if you offered an apology to my padawan. As for me, I consider the matter closed. You took your punishment and you are forgiven. Would you like me to improve the state of your bottom?"
Conrad nodded and sat back, wincing slightly. "I would. And I hope you aren't disappointed in Raven because of my 'ingenuity'. Her stench aside, I'd feel worse if you were." The truth was that, although Conrad loved to torment the Jedi girl, he had also developed a soft spot for her and didn't think it was fair if she got into trouble because he managed to pull one over on her. He was about to lie down when his keen ears picked up something rustling outside.
"I just had a bath so you may dispense with the insults," Raven said, knowing perfectly well that bathing would make no difference to the way she smelled to a Gelis. She sealed the tarpaulin behind her and placed her wrung-out clothing aside for Eeth to finish off.
Eeth unclipped her saber from her belt and handed it to her. "Here you are," he said. "Conrad, bare your bottom," he instructed. "I will perform some healing. And then I will be the next to take a bath."
Conrad was happy to oblige. His ass hurt and he wasn't going to be able to sit comfortably for hours if Eeth didn't heal him. He flinched as the bacta was applied but otherwise, he did not make a sound. When it was done, Conrad righted his clothing and met Eeth with a grateful expression. "Thanks," he said, getting to his feet. He still wasn't happy at having been punished in the first place but he could concede that it had been deserved.
"You are welcome," said Eeth. "I will go to the hot spring now. After that, it will be your turn."
When Eeth left, Raven busied herself making some soup. It was obvious that Conrad had done quite a bit of crying. "He whaled on you pretty good, huh?" she commented. The question had been rhetorical; Raven had seen the welts herself while Eeth had healed him, but she knew that giving Conrad an opportunity to complain about how terrible Eeth was would help him get over it.
"I guess you heard, then?" Conrad said.
Raven wrinkled her nose. "It was kinda hard not to."
Conrad met her with an indignant expression. "He whipped me with a dirty great stick. Do you blame me?"
Raven snorted. "No. It hurts," she agreed. There was silence for a minute or so whilst Raven started cutting up the ingredients Eeth and Conrad had brought.
"Look, I'm sorry I took your lightsaber. I didn't mean to get you in trouble or anything," Conrad said when she had dinner at a point where it didn't require her undivided attention.
Raven met him with a penetrating gaze, trying to gauge if he was sincere. He was, and so she smiled slightly. "Apology accepted," the padawan said, her words sounding far too Eeth-like and masterly for her liking. "I didn't get in trouble. He just told me off. He's right, though, I should have been more careful."
It was now Conrad's turn to snort. "If anyone tried scolding me for something like that, I'd think they were out of their mind. You Jedi sure are strange."
"I'll pass that on. Here." She pushed a spoon into his hand. "Make yourself useful and stir this for me."
When Eeth returned, there was hot soup waiting. "What did you make of the critters?" Raven asked as he entered.
Eeth shrugged. "They are harmless," he replied. "And it does feel good to be clean."
He fixed a line between two walls of the hut and hung his and Raven's freshly washed uniforms up to dry. His hair was still wet and in tangles; he sat down and started pulling a comb through it as Raven ladled out soup.
"After dinner it will be your turn," he told Conrad.
Like previously when Eeth had asked him to wash his shirt, Conrad thought that if he stayed silent, the man might forget that it was his turn to take a bath after dinner. Of course, this was not the case. Eeth simply did not forget things.
"Go and take a bath now," he told Conrad as he stacked their empty cups.
Resigned, Conrad left the cabin in a huff, towel in hand and still muttering about not needing to bathe. "Do you think it's okay to send him over there by himself?" Raven asked.
"Yes, he will be fine," Eeth said mildly. "I can sense no danger nearby. I will check on him in a few minutes, though, and make sure he actually washes instead of just dipping in his toes."
The mental picture made her chuckle, as she too could see Conrad trying something like that.
Meanwhile, Conrad was reluctantly entering the hot spring. He hated washing and he hated baths even more. A couple of times he'd fooled his nanny by turning on the water but not actually getting in it which got him out of a shower here and there. That was until his mother had come to ask him something and it all went to hell in a handbasket. He planned to sit in the spring for ten minutes and then get out because his disdain for water aside, he really didn't like the shrimp-like critters sharing his bath; it was creepy!
When Eeth had finished washing out the cups, he made his way to the pool.
"Has the thought occurred to you to apply some soap to the dirtier areas of your body?" he asked Conrad.
"Great Galia's balls!" Conrad just about jumped out of his skin. He simply could not get used to the fact that someone as big as the Zabrak could walk through a frozen forest without him hearing it! And if that weren't bad enough, now he'd gotten his hair wet, something he had been trying to avoid at all costs.
"And you will be glad to hear that I brought you some shampoo. Wash your hair," Eeth continued. He dispensed with telling Conrad to wash his clothes; the boy only had one set of them.
Conrad was about to argue that he didn't use soap when he spotted the bottle of shampoo and sighed. "Fine," he said in resignation. He sat there doing nothing for a moment, but when Eeth didn't leave, he sighed again; he realised that was not going to get out of this.
Ten minutes later, Conrad emerged from the hot spring, clean from head to toe and looking like a drowned rat. "I don't like baths," he muttered again whilst towelling himself off.
"Now we are all clean, there will be chocolate for dessert," said Eeth, unperturbed. "I brought some for cases of emergency. As none of those have occurred so far, we might just as well eat the chocolate before we arrive. I do not want to have carried it around for nothing."
The mention of chocolate for dessert was a welcome surprise to Conrad given the bland, uninspiring choices they had eaten lately. He soon realised that chocolate was something of a special treat for Raven, though. When Eeth pulled out the bar, her exuberant expression made Conrad smile.
"When I get home, I'm going to eat a whole loaf of freshly baked haroun bread with melted cheese," Conrad said with a faraway expression on his face. He'd experienced more than his share of excitement for the time being and missed his family, not to mention the comforts of home. It was then that a thought occurred to him. "You will be joining us for a celebratory feast, I hope?" he wanted to know. Conrad had grown fond of the two Jedi, even though the girl smelled of bantha shit and her master could be pricklier than a dune cactus. Besides, he wanted very much to express his gratitude with more than a smile and words. He also knew his family would wish to do the same.
"If we are invited to a feast, we will not decline," Eeth replied. There was no pressure for them to return to the Temple fast, and if diplomatic etiquette required them to stay a day or two longer on Gelisia, there was no harm in it.
Owing largely to the thinning snow and slightly warmer temperature, the remainder of the trek to their designated rendezvous point was comparatively easy. Conrad's face lit up at seeing the familiar uniforms of their local law officers, his keen eyes picking out the bold greens and golds against the snowy backdrop far ahead. They had made it, really made it! And for the first time since having been kidnapped, Conrad could actually picture his life returning to normal. His smile grew even wider still, if such a thing were possible, when he identified the silhouette of his oldest brother, Jayan, striding down the ramp to meet them. His first instinct was to rush forward and plough into his brother's embrace, but he hesitated, glancing at his Jedi protector, the unspoken question clear in his eyes.
"Go ahead," Eeth said with a smile, giving Conrad an encouraging nod. He and Raven strode behind him at a more leisurely pace. They had made good speed and would be in Conrad's family's residence by late afternoon. There were no less than four speeders waiting for them, all of them well-armed. The meagre rebel force they had freed Conrad from had no way of causing any further problems. Indeed, as they heard from Jayan on their trip to the Mitaivar residence, a group of rebels had tried to leave the planet on a small shuttle but had been detected and arrested by security forces a couple of days ago. The rest were going to be apprehended soon, as soon as Conrad was completely safe.
Raven remained silent at Eeth's side as they flew towards the city. She was glad that nothing was asked of her because, truth be told, she was enjoying the opportunity to relax her guard a little. She did not mention this to Eeth, though, since she imagined that her reasoning would not go over well. After all, he had often reminded her that a mission did not end until they had returned to the Temple.
"They've received the signal. Our security forces are on route to the coordinates you provided," Jayan told Eeth, sitting down beside his brother and giving the boy's shoulder a squeeze. "Mother is not going to let you out of her sight until you are forty-five," he japed and privately had to wonder if there was more truth than joke to that statement.
As predicted, they arrived at the chancellor's hall of residence just before dark that afternoon. Raven followed Eeth from the speeder and stood aside as he did, allowing the others to greet the small group of family waiting for them. The scene was heartening. They were a close family, and as each parent and sibling took their turn to shower Conrad with hugs and kisses, Raven couldn't help but wonder if this was the sort of family she was born into. Were her family like this, or were they happy to have one less mouth to feed? The thought left her as fast as it had come.
Soon she was following Eeth as they were escorted to the guests suites. "You two deserve some time to relax without all this commotion. But please, I would be honoured if you both joined us in celebrating the safe return of our son this evening in the great hall," the Chancellor had told Eeth after thanking them for the third time that conversation. The gratitude in his expression had reached his eyes, as it had with all who had come forward to offer their thanks, and it made Raven smile.
"They didn't even flinch, unless of course you count the toddler, but that's hardly fair," Raven commented. The idea that the Gelis found humans so off-putting tickled her.
"They are a very hospitable and well-mannered people," Eeth replied as he opened the door to their guest suite and beckoned Raven inside. "Look, our luggage from the starship has been brought to our quarters. That means fresh clothing. And they gave us a suite with two refreshers. Let us take a shower. After that, I would like to talk to you about a few things." He picked a piece of fruit from a large bowl set on the table of their common room. They had not eaten anything but energy bars today; this was a pleasant change.
"Okay," Raven replied and left to do as told.
Twenty minutes later, Raven emerged from the bathroom, her hair slightly damp. She sat on the common room floor and flicked open her datapad in the hopes of finding a letter from Maris, a Zabrak girl she had befriended on a mission to Larivan several years ago. It had been Maris's turn to write, after all.
Eeth emerged from his refresher a few minutes later, dressed in an immaculate uniform, dragging a comb through his shiny hair.
"Any news, padawan?" he asked, sitting down on the couch next to her.
"It's from Maris. She quit school and started working with her uncle's new company." Raven smiled. "She was pretty cool under pressure."
"She was," agreed Eeth. He finished combing his hair and tied it into two shiny black braids. Then he patted the couch for Raven to sit next to him and gently started combing out her hair. This was something Drkai Luthan had first done, during a mission they had undertaken a couple of years ago, and he had noticed that his apprentice had seemed to enjoy the attention. Eeth had adopted the habit but he employed it sparingly, and only when they had a rare moment to relax. Usually it was a sign that he was pleased with her.
"Padawan, you really performed well during this mission," he told her. "You worked hard, and you were reliable, responsible and obedient. I could not have asked for more. I will make sure to mention this in the mission report. You really have grown."
Raven knew that she had done well because Eeth certainly wouldn't have said it if it weren't true. She smiled at his praise as he deftly twisted her hair into a neat ponytail.
"Thanks for saying," Raven said, her beaming smile now a more controlled grin. "I really want to be a knight one day, more than anything. Besides, I know how much you're looking forward to that second grandpadawan." Truth be told, the idea of taking a padawan of her own was such a distant goal that it rarely crossed her mind. However, the more Eeth exposed her to the universe, the more Raven found herself believing that anything was possible.
"Yes, that would be very enjoyable," Eeth replied, his face inscrutable. "More so for me than for you, I assume. Speaking of family: Are you aware that we are very close to your home world, Chine?"
Raven raised an eyebrow. "I am. Why do you ask?" Raven had an idea, of course, but she knew it would ultimately be up to Eeth and the Council to grant her permission to visit her home world, and if she were honest with herself, it had not occurred to her to ask. At least not until now.
"Your family has filed repeated requests to meet you," Eeth replied.
"They have?" Raven asked. This came as a complete surprise.
"They have, for a long time," said Eeth. "The Council routinely declines these requests when they concern initiates. Allowing young children to meet their birth families might create conflicts of loyalty and identity that they might find hard to deal with, given that we cannot allow half-trained younglings to leave the Temple and return to live with their families. Once an initiate becomes a padawan, it is usually up to their master's discretion to decide if and when they will be ready to meet their family. We usually wait for at least two years or so after the start of padawanhood, until the padawan in question is secure with her role and her relationship to both her master and the Order. Given that we are close to your home world and under no pressure to return to the Temple immediately, I might consider making a stop on Chine – if you are interested at all."
"I am!" Raven was elated, and she sat up a bit taller. "It could be a very educational detour."
Eeth raised an eyebrow, wondering whether this was merely a case of wanting to escape the rest of the academic cycle at the Temple under the pretext of doing something "educational." But then, it was a good sign that Raven did not seem overly anxious to meet her family. Nor was she reluctant; she appeared mildly curious, more than anything else. That was ideal. It meant the visit would be informative to her, but it would not raise self-doubts about her role and her future in the Jedi Order.
"I will ask your family whether they are ready for a visit from you, then," Eeth told Raven. "If they are, we can go and meet them on our way back, for no more than a week."
"I wonder what they'll be like." Raven mused.
"I will find out what I can from the archives on our trip to Chine," said Eeth. "But this will not tell you much about how they will receive you, of course. Try to get some rest. I assume the dinner reception tonight will take a while."
Raven sighed, curled up on the couch and closed her eyes. For about five seconds. "I see no droids or ceremonial robes so I gather we are safe from another Fenesteerian debacle. What do you think?" she asked.
"I have no way of knowing," Eeth replied. "But I think it will be more of an informal family dinner than an official banquet. This is Andrag Mitaivar's private residence, after all. Besides, he wants to keep the whole affair secret, which means he will not have invited any outsiders."
Satisfied with this answer, and more than a little relieved, Raven closed her eyes and was soon fast asleep – something that rarely, if ever happened. And Eeth let her. They had had little time to rest these past weeks, after all, and Raven was still growing. He busied himself writing a short report to the Council and replying to a few messages he had received during their mission. Only when it was nearly time to go downstairs for dinner did he wake her.
"Come on, padawan," he said, gently shaking her shoulder. "Up you get. We are expected in the dining room."
Raven reluctantly dragged herself to a seated position, her torso hanging and face pocked with marks from the embroidered cushion. "Five more minutes?" she pleaded.
"Go wash up a little and brush your teeth," said Eeth mildly. "Otherwise, we will be late."
"Argh," Raven groaned. But despite the overwhelming urge to flop back onto the couch, she dragged herself off to get ready.