Alexis collapsed onto the ground, laughing at the wounded expression on Atton Rand's face. It seemed she might have hurt his "man feelings" as Carth would have put it. "Don't have any muscle to bruise, do I?" He growled. He was rubbing the center of his chest where she had kicked him when they were sparring, looking pained.
Alexis continued to giggle. "I'll bet that there isn't a single muscle on you." Oh she loved how easy it was to tease this guy.
Atton turned on her and shrugged of his jacket and started to unbutton his shirt. "I'll show you." He muttered.
Alexis laughed even harder, twisting on the floor and holding her stomach. He redoubled his efforts, finally shrugging out of his shirt and staring defiantly down at her. His torso was just as heavily muscled as she'd known it would be, but it was so much fun to mess with Atton's mind that she couldn't resist joking about how lean he looked.
"Pppffttt. That's nothing." She continued to laugh and Atton looked as if he were about to explode.
The exile chose that moment to walk in. She surveyed the scene, Atton half dressed and clutching his extinguished lightsaber, Alexis on the floor, laughing hysterically, her lightsaber more than ten feet away, and she stared at them for a moment.
Atton looked slightly ashamed but Alexis just couldn't stop laughing. "He took off his shirt when I told him he didn't have any muscle for me to injure." She gasped between laughs.
Kalen grinned down at her and Atton said, "She kicked me in the chest!" He still sounded offended.
Kalen was silent for several seconds and it appeared to have dawned on Atton that she might be angry. He was staring at her apprehensively while Alexis tried to catch her breath. "Don't kick his ass, Lexi. He might take off his pants."
Alexis erupted into fresh gales of laughter and Atton gathered up his clothes and what remained of his pride and fled the room. Kalen waited until Alexis was able to sit up, breathing heavily and wiping tears from her eyes, before she spoke again. "You seem to be feeling better." Kalen was still smiling at her.
"I haven't felt this good in years… I guess having a real purpose makes all the difference." Alexis said. It was true. She hadn't felt so wonderful since she had been with Carth and Bastila during the Jedi Civil War, before they had known she was Revan.
"I happen to think that it's opening yourself back up to people that's making you feel so great. Especially Carth." Kalen said quietly. She looked suddenly sober.
"Carth's not even here." Alexis said quickly. Why was everyone seeing through her lately? Was she that transparent?
"No, but you wouldn't be acting this way if it weren't for him. You're happy again." Kalen's eyes bored into her for several seconds before she changed the subject. "You look so much healthier. In two weeks you've gained back enough weight that you don't look sick and your muscle mass must have doubled."
"You think I'm fat?" Alexis asked with a feigned gasp.
"Everything funny today?"
"Mostly."
"When do you want to go back?"
"I'm ready whenever you are. I think we've found everything here that will be useful. Certainly enough white Jedi robes to last a lifetime."
Kalen looked at the too large white robes Alexis had on. "White's certainly not your color, is it?" She asked.
Alexis tried to control herself, but it slipped out… "No, black is."
Kalen shook her head. "Force, Alexis… you shouldn't joke about things like that."
"I'm not joking! Look at my hair! What other color could I wear? Sheesh… just being honest and the Jedi girl goes for my throat… thought those Jedi people were supposed to be nicer than that…Can't trust 'em… Scourge of the galaxy…" Alexis muttered under her breath.
Kalen laughed again. "I can't do anything with you. Have you gotten into Atton's juma? Maybe found a stash of spice?"
"I would never poison my body that way," Alexis said half seriously, laying her hand over her heart. In truth, she didn't know why she felt so chipper either. Maybe it was just her way of dealing with the pressure that had so recently been placed upon her.
"How about we go back to Citadel Station right now? I can't think of anything else we need to do here. I know it's late but it certainly doesn't look like you'll be getting any sleep tonight and I know I'm not tired." Kalen said, offering Alexis her hand.
Alexis took it and rose to her feet. "What about everyone else? You can't tell me that Bao-Dur, Visas, and Mical aren't already in bed. I know that they've been asleep for at least an hour."
Kalen shrugged. "Then they've had all the rest they need. Jedi have to be able to live on very little sleep. We'll call it a training exercise."
"Oh, you are a cruel task master. Come, sister, let us wake the children." Alexis linked her arm with Kalen's and they marched off to gather everyone.
Kalen and Alexis emerged from the Ebon Hawk around three hours later. It was very late and Citadel Station looked deserted. The only people Alexis could see were two TSF officers patrolling the halls of the docking module. It wasn't quiet, however. The party inside the nearby cantina appeared to still be in full swing.
"Hey, Lexi, you… wouldn't like to drop into the cantina would you? I don't want to go back onto the ship just yet."
"Any particular reason?" Alexis asked. Kalen seemed a bit strained and Alexis didn't know why.
"Ah… not really," Kalen replied evasively.
Alexis shrugged. "I don't mind. We'll have to disguise me a bit, though."
"That's true. You look a bit too much like a Jedi, even when you're wearing a tunic and leggings. We'll have to do something about that." Kalen was eyeing Alexis speculatively.
Before the Jedi Civil War, no one had known quite what Alexis had looked like. During the wars, she'd taken to wearing a mask and heavy robe to disguise herself and perhaps make herself look a little bit more formidable. At the end of the Jedi Civil War, when she had been turned back to the light, no one had recognized her as Revan because no one could remember what Revan had looked like beneath the mask. When she had defeated Malak, however, they had paraded her around the Republic and now practically everyone knew exactly who she was.
"Let's talk to Mira. I'll bet she'll help us out." Alexis said. She was feeling a little excited. She hadn't been out in ages…
Another half an hour passed before they were finally ready. Mira had decided to join them, dressed in her old bounty hunter attire. She looked rather proud of herself. She'd put together Alexis's entire costume.
Alexis was wearing a pair of Mira's old gray leggings that fight surprisingly tightly considered the size difference between the two girls. She had a wide holster slung low on her hips with a wicked looking holdout blaster strapped to each side. She had on her own black knee-boots and a tight white shirt that had once gone underneath a set of Jedi robes. The waist and the sleeves were torn away, revealing Alexis's leanly muscled stomach and shoulders. A long pink scar was clearly visible on one side of her middle. Her hair was pushed away from her face by a thick navy blue headband and it hung down her back in loose ringlets.
Alexis felt a bit foolish. She never dressed this way. She was about as modest as they came. She did look a lot like a bounty hunter, however, and with Mira with them, she almost felt the part. Kalen looked a bit out of place in a loose-fitting flight suit, but she did look like a pilot.
On the short walk to the cantina, Alexis saw both of the TSF officers staring at her. Whether they were worried about her shooting someone or were admiring her costume, Alexis wasn't sure. She was still a little on the skinny side so she chose to think that they were watching to make sure she didn't cause any trouble.
Once inside the cantina, Alexis felt a little better. The people in here were too busy drinking and watching the dancers to notice her. Mira led them to a table and sat down. She pulled out a pazaak deck and tossed it onto the table.
"I didn't know you owned a deck," Alexis said idly, fiddling with the hem of her shirt.
"Nicked it off of Atton." Mira replied.
Kalen started when she heard Atton's name and looked up guiltily as the other two girls watched her.
"Hear something you like?" Mira asked slyly. Kalen quickly looked back down.
"Can I get you anything?" a voice suddenly asked. Alexis turned and looked up at the twi'lek girl standing over them. She was very tall for a twi'lek and she was speaking basic, which was odd for a twi'lek.
"A hit of juma for me." Mira said.
"Nothing for me. Dulls my senses." Alexis replied, glancing at Mira in a way that she hoped looked reproachful. It must have worked, because the waitress took a step back as if she expected the pair of them to lunge at one another over the table.
"Juma for me as well." Kalen said softly. She had picked up the deck of cards and was shuffling it idly.
The waitress disappeared as quickly as she had come. "A Jedi that drinks. That's a new one." Mira said.
Kalen nodded, staring at the table. "I learned to drink during the Mandalorian Wars. A General who wouldn't drink with her troops usually didn't win their loyalty."
Alexis stared at the table. She always felt guilty when Kalen talked about the wars. It was her fault the girl had gotten involved in the first place. It was her fault that any Jedi had gotten involved when they did.
"I notice Alexis didn't pick up that habit." Mira said in a deceptively conversational tone.
"I didn't have the time." Alexis said softly. She'd never had the opportunity to spend time alone with her troops. If she wasn't giving speeches to inspire whole groups of them, then she was devising tactics and battle plans with Malak and the Republic commanders.
They were silent for some time. Mira dealt a few hands of pazaak. Kalen won nearly every time. She was very good, or very lucky. It had been ten minutes or so when their drinks arrived and Mira put away the cards.
"How is it that you keep winning?" Mira asked Kalen. Kalen downed her drink in one swallow and looked at the table.
"Can I get another?" Kalen called.
"Make that two. And make it a little quicker than last time." Mira added. She looked back at Kalen, waiting for an answer to her earlier question.
Kalen didn't respond. She was growing more and more despondent with every hand of pazaak. "She practices a lot. She's getting personal lessons from everyone's favorite scoundrel." Alexis answered for her. Once again Alexis wondered what was bothering Kalen. It was probably Atton, but Alexis couldn't be sure.
"Let's not talk about him," Kalen muttered.
Well, that confirmed it. "What's he done now?" Alexis asked before she could stop herself.
"I said I don't want to talk about it." Kalen said firmly. Her drink had arrived and she downed that one just as quickly as she had the last. "Another." She muttered to the waitress.
It was clear that Kalen planned to get drunk. Alexis wasn't sure that that was such a good idea, but she really had no say in the matter. Mira didn't seem to want to stop either. She ordered another drink as well. Alexis resigned herself to being the responsible one.
They continued to drink and play pazaak for well over an hour. Alexis found herself winning more and more hands as they went. It seemed her companions were starting to lose the ability to count.
They were laughing together at something Mira had said when two men sat down at the table. Kalen fixed them with an owlish stare and Mira squinted at the one closest to her.
"Can I help you?" Alexis asked coldly. She hoped she sounded tough, but she couldn't be sure. It was definitely time to get Mira and Kalen out of here. They were attracting too much attention.
"I think your friends are drunk," the taller man said to her. Both of them were kind of scruffy looking. One had on the jacket of a fighter pilot and the other was dressed like a bounty hunter.
Alexis frowned. She wasn't frightened of them, of course. She knew she could easily defend herself and her friends with her blasters or her bare hands if she had to. She would miss her lightsaber, of course, but she could do it. She didn't want to be noticed, however, so she hoped there wouldn't be a fight.
"I think you might be right," Alexis said. Mira had fallen asleep on the table but Kalen appeared to be struggling to sober up. She was failing miserably.
The man in the pilot's jacket leaned a bit closer. "You look familiar to me."
"I get that a lot. Maybe we met on the job, hhhmmm?" Alexis said, leaning back in her seat.
"And what exactly is your job?" He was scrutinizing her body and clothing rather closely. The other man was finishing Mira's last drink, which sat untouched on the table.
"I'm a bounty hunter." Alexis said. She was starting to feel a little nervous. These guys could probably see right through her.
"Looking for work?" The man drawled slowly.
"Nope. I'm taking a vacation. We're leaving for Nar Shadaa in a few days to take a break." Alexis said. She'd never been to Nar Shadaa, at least as far as she remembered, but she knew its reputation.
"Maybe you'd like some company then?" He asked.
"You know, I don't think I caught your name," Alexis replied, trying to decide how best to get rid of her unwelcome guests. She could still see Kalen struggling to stay awake out of the corner of her eye. It seemed that Kalen could hold her alcohol very well for a Jedi.
"I didn't give it to you."
"That would explain it," Alexis watched as the man got even closer to her. She could smell the liquor on his breath. Well, that might mean that his mind was a bit duller than usual…
"So, would you like a bit of company or not?" He asked. She could feel the heat radiating off of his body.
"I think that you'd like to go back and watch the dancers," Alexis said, waving her hand lightly across the table. She hadn't tried to use the Force to persuade anyone to do anything in a very long time.
It seemed to work, though. The man stood. "These girls aren't any fun. Let's go watch the twi'leks dance. Maybe they'll be a bit warmer." The other man, who seemed a bit drunker than his companion, nodded and rose slowly.
The pair stumbled away and Alexis looked over at her companions. She sent her awareness into Kalen's mind first. She gave her the equivalent of a mental slap to shake her from her drunken stupor.
Kalen rubbed at her eyes. "Wake Mira up. I need you two to be able to walk back to your ship. I certainly can't carry you," Alexis told her.
Kalen looked confused for a moment before she realized what was going on. "You do it. Mira won't mind and I'm a bit to dizzy to crawl into anyone else's head."
Alexis shrugged and focused for a second. She was bit more gentle in waking Mira since she wasn't as familiar with her. :Mira: She called into the younger girl's mind several times before Mira opened her eyes and looked back at her. "Let's walk back to the Ebon Hawk."
Mira nodded and they all stood up. Kalen and Mira were a bit shaky on their feet and Alexis took the arm of each and started to lead them out. It took a long time to get them back to the Hawk and into bed. She left them fully clothed and didn't even attempt to help clear out their minds before they slept. They would both have a well-deserved hangover in the morning.
Alexis didn't feel like going to Carth's apartment, so she slid back out into the Citadel. She'd replaced one of the blasters on her hip with her lightsaber. The grip didn't look out of place in the holster. Instead it looked like any other strangely shaped pistol.
Outside of the Station, Alexis could see the sun starting to rise. It had been a long night, but she wasn't tired. She could feel Telos all around her as she hadn't since she first arrived. The planet's pain was seeping into her being. Malak had destroyed Telos and yet Alexis felt guilty all the same. Wihtout her, Malak wouldn't have fallen.
Alexis ambled down one of the corridors, idly fingering the blaster she still wore. It felt strange in her grip. She had no particular destination in mind, she just walked along the halls, taking random shuttles and letting her feet carry her where they would.
She found herself standing outside of the TSF's headquarters before she even realized where she was. An officer standing outside gave her a rather spiteful look and Alexis remembered suddenly how she looked. She flushed a bit and started to turn away, but the officer called her back. "Miss?"
Alexis turned back towards him. "Yes?"
"Is there anything I can do for you? You seem lost." His voice was hard, yet polite.
Alexis sighed softly. "No, I'm just taking a walk."
"It's a bit early for a walk." He replied coldly.
"I've been out all night. It's more like late to me," Alexis replied. Why was this kid bothering with her?
His hard demeanor dropped very suddenly. "Are you a bounty hunter?" He asked excitedly.
Alexis grinned at him. Why not? "You seem excited about it."
"Well, I've never met a bounty hunter before," he told her earnestly. His eyes were glowing. He seemed very impressed.
Alexis had been a bounty hunter once on Taris. She hadn't actually collected any bounties. In fact, she'd helped three people get the bounties on their heads removed. She'd still been a bounty hunter, though. Well, sort of.
It was funny to her how quickly this boy's official persona had dropped when she told him she'd been out all night. He didn't look a day over nineteen. Alexis suddenly felt very old. She'd never had the chance to be that innocent. At nineteen, she'd been getting ready to go to war.
Alexis smiled at the boy. "What's your name?"
"Doran Snider," the kid replied. "What about you? I mean, what's your name?" He was stumbling over his words.
"You can call me Lexi," Alexis told him. She offered him her hand and he shook it gently.
"If you don't mind my saying so, I've never imagined a bounty hunter as small as you are. You're hardly bigger than my sister and she's only twelve," he said.
"Great things come in small packages," Alexis wanted to laugh, but she held herself in check. If he only knew. "Look, I have to go. Maybe I'll see you again some other time, hhhmmm?"
He nodded enthusiastically, "It was very nice to meet you… Lexi."
Alexis grinned at him. "It was nice to meet you as well, Doran. Keep up the good work."
Alexis turned and walked away, whistling off-key. The encounter had left her spirits much lighter. She made her way towards Carth's apartment, a small smile playing on the corners of her mouth the entire way.
