Girl from Pantora
"Nuna! Sit next to me!"
"No sit next to me!"
The young Pantoran girl stared blankly at Emma and Claire as the two girls eagerly tried to get her to sit beside them. The young eight year old was sort of a favorite among the girls of the fledgling order. What with being the youngest and her lilac colored hair. But truth be told they were a little smothering in the Nuna's opinion.
Still, they were to be her friends and comrades. So she relented as she sat between them. The initiates sat on the floor, eating lunch off a large round table as the Kinnarans served them their meal. They spoke training and about the possibility of exploring the jungles of the planet and about the future. Nuna ate in silence between her classmates and enjoyed their company. She was a bit of a shy one, having never really interacted with anyone other than her grandfather.
"Nuna, want my Jalosh fruit?" Emma asked at her side. Nuna looked to the white hair girl before nodding. Emma handed her the sweet purple fruit that had come to be her favorite treat on the foreign planet and watched as the Pantoran bit into it. "Is it good Nuna?"
"Yes," Nuna said blankly. Emma couldn't help but watch curiously as Nuna's face remained neutral. She had thought she would have at least smiled a little.
"Does it make you happy?" Emma asked with an arched brow.
"Yes," Nuna said again, but with the same blank and emotionless expression.
Emma looked up and exchanged a glance with everyone else. They all just shrugged. They'd all noticed the oddness about Nuna. The young girl never seemed to show any emotion. She always kept her face neutral and voice mellow and monotone. They couldn't help but wonder if the young girl disliked them.
When Nuna finished her meal she turned to Emma. "Thank you," she said politely with a small bow. Emma smiled at her before finishing up her own meal.
With that the children were given some free time to themselves before their lessons continued. Everyone went about their own business. Nuna went to her room. She rummaged through her things before pulling out her most cherished possession. The thing was a book. An old book full of fairy tales her father had gifted to her before...
Nuna paused to swallow sadness. Unbeknownst to her friends Nuna was completely capable of feeling. She had emotions like everyone else. But she just didn't know how to express them. Nuna had been traumatized by a horrible event in the past. The death of her parents.
Nuna had been six at the time. And ever since she was young she'd been special. Gifted as her grandfather told her. She was Force sensitive. Born in a time after the destruction of the Jedi and the rise of the Empire. A time where Force sensitives were still being hunted down.
People had come to her planet, to her home in search of Force sensitives. A man in black...she'd felt him. An unnatural chill that seeped into her bones. And unfortunately he'd felt her too. Her powers had still been weak so he couldn't pick her out from all the other children. But he knew that a Force sensitive was among their town.
Her parents tried to get her out and away. To her grandfather who lived far out in the marshes. But they'd been caught. Stormtrooper, a red blade, it had all happened so fast. Her parents fought back, determined to not let her be taken. But they'd lost their lives in the process.
Nuna barely got away. She travelled through the marshes alone until she'd reached her grandfather's home. And she'd lived there ever since until one day she'd felt something. It was like the man in black. But this felt different. Warm, inviting, like a warm light.
That's when she'd met the Jedi. Rapunzel had found Nuna, felt her with the Force. She'd spoken with her grandfather and offered Nuna a chance to be a Jedi. Nuna accepted. Not for revenge. But because it was right. The Empire was bad. The Jedi and the rebels were good. And she wanted to do what her parents had done. Fight for defense of someone,everyone, else.
Something wet suddenly fell onto Nuna's hand. She blinked in surprise to find a droplet of water on it. But she soon found what it truly was. A tear had trickled from her eye. Brought on by memories of her parents' sacrifice. She missed them. And somewhere, deep down...she couldn't help but feel it had all been her fault. If she weren't born Force sensitive none of that would have happened. She'd still have her parents. Still have her father reading to her and her mother singing her lullaby.
"Nuna?"
Nuna gasped before looking up to see Emma and Claire peering into her room. "Are you ok?"
Nuna quickly wiped her eyes before nodding. Emma and Claire enter her room before taking a seat at her sides. Nuna's gaze fell to her book.
"What's that Nuna?" Emma asked curiously.
"Book of fairy tales. My parents gave it to me before they died," Nuna said softly. Emma and Claire's hearts went out to her. They could feel her sadness through the Force.
"Want us to read it to you?" Claire offered.
Nuna was slightly offended. She wasn't dumb. She could read. Do math. Knew where babies came from.
And yet the offer made her happy for some reason. She nodded, allowing Claire to take the book from her. The redhead opened it and turned the pages until she settled on a story. She began to read aloud. Nuna got comfortable. Leaning against Emma for comfort. The older girl smiled and wrapped her arms around her.
Nuna's face remained blank. But she was smiling on the inside. She liked her friends. Even if they were a little smothering and tended to treat like a baby. It made her feel like she were part of something nice.
And like many initiatives and young one who'd come before her she came to learn a truth about being a Jedi.
When you were apart of their Order, they became your family.
Amaya chan's OC Nuna. I rather like her.
