Author's Notes: So it's been a while since I updated. Due to injuries in my wrists I have been unable to write. While I am not completely healed, I will update as often as I am able. As always, all mistakes and errors are mine and mine alone. On with the story my fellow Reylo lovers.
Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars. I simply play in their world.
"She turns her mind
to countless things,
then back again
where it begins.
This restless urge,
and all it brings,
to be someone-
to do something."
-Michael Faudet
Leese has prospered since last I was here. It's no longer the tiny village I remember but a bustling city of commerce. I pause at a vendor's stall and watch out of the corner of my eye a pair of traders dressed in garb from the desert kingdom of Tatooine.
Bright wraps around their head, dyed indigo and vermilion. Their clothing, from what I observe, are folded layers wrapped around their body. Soft jade and indigo for the male, bright scarlet and mellow gold for the female. The woman's skin is dusky gold, her eyes a startling green. Her companion is darker than my brother Finn, his eyes a shade of cinnabar I've not seen in Alderaan.
I note the curved scimitars strapped to their waists, bejeweled hilts and sheaths catching the dying light of the sun and casting dancing rainbows upon stone and canvas alike.
I thought Tatooine was one of the poorer kingdoms, due to the vast desert and lack of natural resources and yet these two wear a king's ransom in jewels and toss coins to vendors as if they're rice grains.
Either Beaumont is slipping with his knowledge or something is going on in Tatooine that we are not aware of. Has Hux been sending delegates across the borders and if so, for what purpose?
It's times like this I wish we had a spy in the royal court. But so far all of our attempts to infiltrate the royal palace have been met with failure. I know Poe is grinding his teeth in frustration due to lack of vital information. Having even a single courtier on our side from the inner court would surely make a difference in this war.
But either Hux is too paranoid to allow new faces near him or he has someone at his side who is an able spymaster as Beaumont.
I was betting on the latter but I had no proof and it vexed me more than I care to admit.
"My lady? Do you intend to buy something or are you content to simply stare at my wares until Vesper."
I blink at the cross tone of the vendor and realize I've been dallying far too long in one spot. I glance at his wares, I've stopped at one of the fruit stands. I fish out a copper coin and pick up a lovely, golden apricot.
"Here, good farmer, I shall take this and be on my way."
He accepts my coin and his scowl turns into one of benign amusement. "Go on with you lass."
I nod and turn away, biting into my treat. Juice dribbles down my chin but I do not care. It has been an age since I last tasted the fruit and I admit I ate far too quickly. In a matter of seconds I reduced it down to the pit.
I sigh blissfully, lick the juices from my fingers and toss the pit into a compost bin the farmers will collect when they are done with the festival.
Lunch had been long ago and it was still too soon for an evening meal. I sigh and remind my stomach it does no good complaining. The small apricot would have to do for now. The two foreigners have disappeared in my brief exchange with the vendor and I shake my head in resignation. No doubt, with their bright plumage, I'll find them anon. For now I'll try a different path and see what else has changed in Leese.
Children dart out in front of me, the boy waving a wooden sword, the girl with her skirts tucked around her waist, also brandishing a toy sword.
"Can not!"
The boy yells, laughing as he runs to a nearby alley.
"Can too!"
The girl sprints past me, her twin braids flapping in the wind and I laugh to see them but a twinge of melancholy creeps up on me.
Such innocent joy is no longer mine to have.
I know too well how innocence can shatter in an instant, never to be recaptured.
I close my eyes against the memory but it comes like a wave and I drown beneath it.
Hot air...burning lungs...no voice to call for mama...the sound of thunder as it shakes the ground...I'm suffocating in darkness...
"Move!"
I snap my eyes open, the tang of smoke still aching in my throat. A rider is racing pell-mell through the streets as if demons are nipping at his heels. Like everyone else I jump out of the way so I am not trampled in his haste.
That's when I see the little girl from earlier fall, her foot catching on a loose stone.
"Get out of the way you wretched girl!"
The rider isn't stopping and no one is brave enough, or stupid enough, to grab her without risking death or injury themselves.
She's going to die because no one here will fight the fear.
I race for the girl, stretching out my senses to the natural world, willing it to bend to my will.
Come on, faster!
My feet gain wings and I grab the girl, snatching her into my arms as we tumble hard out of the way seconds before horse and rider descent.
The sparks from the hooves are so close to my face I can feel the sting across my cheek.
"Thrice-bedamned wench! Simpleton girl! If our paths cross again I'll have you whipped!"
The rider harries insults down upon my head even as he sped away towards the central part of the city without stopping.
"Buggering bastard, I'd like to see you try!"
A smothered giggle dims my anger and I look down to the small girl in my arms. Her braids are in dire need of combing and there is dirt smeared across her face but I see no blood, no bruising.
Nothing a good bath cannot fix.
I breathe a silent sigh of relief to see her unharmed.
"What does buggering mean?"
Oh great gods protect me from inquisitive ears.
Of course it's my fault for swearing in front of the child. But still, that wasn't the point right now.
"A good question," I tell her as we get on our feet and attempt to pat down her skirts from all the filth we just rolled in, "and one you should ask your parents."
"Mira!"
The girl squeals and tugs out of my grip, running for the boy whom she had been playing with earlier. At his side must be their parents. A woman with chestnut hair woven into a simple braid, the sleeves of her gown rolled up to the elbows, the flowing skirt covered in a white apron.
Tears slide down her face as she gathers her daughter in her arms.
"Mira! What were you doing in the street..." the rest of her words are muffled and I turn away from the scene.
The sight of a mother's tears is not something I can stomach. I have far too many nightmares in my head, I don't need any more reminders.
I slip into the crowd and allow the natural flow to lead me away.
At least I was there this time to stop another child from dying needlessly.
I clench my fist as faces dance through my memory of all the ones I could save. Because I hadn't been strong enough. Fast enough. Just never...enough.
I turn on my heel, intent on heading back to the inn. The rider and the near miss with the girl have spoiled my mood. I'm not in the right frame of mind and even if I could pick up bits of information, I'll not likely remember.
I still need a spot for my wares tomorrow.
Damn. That was the point of going out, to find a suitable spot where I would be inconspicuous but still able to gather intelligence.
"You lost again, miss?"
A familiar voice and I see the boy Kit leaning against a wall in an alley, sunlight dappling his face.
"Are you following me?"
I must be losing my touch if a mere urchin can sneak up on me unawares. The boy shakes his head, a gamine smile in a thin face.
"Naw, old man Jos about t'give his speech. Afta that, food and alms for blessing the people. Mebee the blessed lady spare some for us huh?"
I do not know whether to be aghast or amused that this waif would try to steal during a ritual.
"Where is the blessing taking place Kit?"
"Oh? You interested? Mebee I tell ya, mebee not."
I sigh and dig out another copper. "Perhaps this will help."
Greed alights in his young face and he moves closer, holding out his palm. I keep the coin in a firm grip. "Take me there first and you'll get your payment."
He rolls his eyes and toes the ground, sighing as if he has nothing better to do. "Come on then. Not far."
I follow after the scruffy boy and we disappear back into the market and as we wander I find a few spots that might work for my purposes but not for certain. Kit leads me back to the main square where the fountain resides in full splendor. The Lady of Blessed Rains carved in ivory beauty, the trickling water from her raised palm almost magical as it sparkles in the sun. Already a crowd has gathered and my head faintly rings from all of the excess energy.
Master Kenobi warned me of this as well.
I regret now my impatience when he tried to teach me the techniques to quiet the mind. All I wanted to learn back then was how to kill.
How to be the strongest.
Learning to choke knights and bring down war stallion's was useless against the pressure of the crowd and I grit my teeth, ignoring the pain and wade into the chaos.
Kit slips in, avoiding elbows and feet and I am hard pressed to follow. A dig in my side, a shove from another, a few curses thrown my way and I'm through the worst of it.
Kit is waiting for me, palm out.
I smile and toss him the copper. It flashes in the air and he squirrels it away before disappearing back into the crowds. He's quick and agile and it takes only seconds before I lose him again.
It's a wonder that boy hasn't been caught yet. Faster than a rabbit and twice as cunning as a morian fox. I am in the midst of the crowd and the heat is stifling and despite nothing but an azure sky above me, I wish for rain.
The chime of bells fills the air and the crowd goes quiet as a sonorous voice begins the invocation to the Blessed Lady of Gentle Rains. I cannot see the speaker, I am too far away but his voice carries through the air.
Must be the 'old man' Kit mentioned.
It has the same cadence Master Kenobi used when speaking of the Force, gentle and guiding. Tears prick my eyes and once more I wish I had had more time with the reclusive monk, not just a scattered handful of years trying to survive.
Even with my brothers and my friends, I still feel lost as if I'm stumbling my way through this life.
The ritual ends without much fanfare, just a call for donations to be tossed into the fountain, each to be blessed by the priest himself.
The crowd surges, pushing past me and my head is pounding like a blacksmith's anvil.
I have seen enough and all I want is the quiet peace of my room. I escape with relative ease, most people want to be closer to the fountain, not moving away.
My thoughts wander back to Kit and I wonder if he will manage to scoop away those blessings without being caught by the guard. Surely stealing from the divine is a punishable act.
Be well my little friend and may the Force be with you.
My walk back to the inn is uneventful save for the fact that I managed to find a decent spot to set up my wares in the morning. A few streets over from the fountain and as luck would have it, not too far from where the inn catering to the nobility is located.
"Good you're back before Vesper."
I glance up at the innkeeper, bemused as the vendor's words from earlier echo in my head. "Is there a problem being out after the evening bell has wrung?"
A sharp nod from the innkeeper as I follow him into the dining hall. He's behind the counter, wiping down the mugs. I can smell the food cooking in the kitchen, preparing for the dinner crowd and for the guests lodging here.
"Lord Pruitt has evoked curfew. No gathering's larger than five after Vesper unless you have permission from the council." He nods his head to the left and I see, on the main beam, a decree tacked up.
Something else I didn't know that had changed.
"Is it just Leese with the curfew in place?"
The innkeeper shakes his head. "No, a friend of mine who is a traveling bard, tells me the curfew is a royal decree to all cities in Alderaan. If you do not have special permission by the lord then you will be fined and arrested for acts of treason against the crown."
I curl my fingers tightly against my palms, blunt nails biting deeply but somehow manage to maintain my smile.
"Thank you, I will keep that in mind."
He keeps polishing his mugs and doesn't speak again until my hand rests on the banister as I'm about to climb the stairs.
"Curious how a merchant daughter of Aldea doesn't know about curfew."
His words send a chill down my spine and I stop to stare at him. He's still polishing mugs but his sharp eyes are watching me. A whisper of warning in my blood and I need to answer quickly.
"This is my first trip away from Aldea. Normally my brother goes abroad but he is newly wed and wishes to stay closer to home." The lie slips easily from my lips, "I begged my father to send me in his stead. I am certain they told me of the curfew but in my excitement, I must have forgotten."
The whisper fades as the innkeeper chuckles. "Reminds me of my own lass who decided to move away. Must have turned back a half dozen times, forgetting something each time. Ah, women. Go on then, supper will still be a few hours yet."
I hate playing the idiot but if it will alleviate his suspicions then I will do so. I give a nod and find my room, leaning against the door and sighing. My first day in Leese was already proving quite the adventure.
I need to be more careful from here on out lest I attract unwanted attention.
