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Chapter Fifty Four Tugging
gently at his clothing, Jae fidgets nearly the entire walk from Master
Mussiri’s chambers. He realized, too late, that he has never been comfortable
in dress clothing of any kind. However, tonight is a special occasion, and for
that he can endure the discomfort. Master Mussiri
begins to chuckle quietly to himself as the two men approach another corridor in
this labyrinth of connecting hallways in what every keeps calling, Sanctuary.
Jae notices that this hallway is less ornate than all of the others he has
passed through since his arrival on this world. Deciding to take his mind off of
the farce of his clothing, Jae asks Master Mussiri about the nature of this
hallway, “Master Mussiri, why is this section of the sanctuary so plain, when
the rest of the place is so remarkable?” Ceasing his
forward movement to ponder Jae’s question, Master Mussiri then turns to face
Jae with his answer, “There are many who believe that in order to reach a pure
connection to the Will or the Force, as you so choose to call it, one must be in
harmony with their surroundings, not fighting to control them or being
distracted by them. And so, they choose to live simply, without pomp and without
luxury. Master Dracul is one of these followers.” Jae considers these words
carefully, and realizes that Master Mussiri has just answered the question that
Jae really wanted to ask, without even saying so. “Master Dracul is of the
opinion that reliance on ones ability to manipulate the Force is the greatest
sin of all adepts. He finds that many students of our teachings place too high a
value on ones abilities through the Force, and not so much on their own skills
and aptitudes, thus destroying the advantages our touch of the Force enables
us.” Jae thinks
about this take on Force users a moment before responding, “Why is it that he
can’t ‘use’ the Force?” “Ah, well,
that is a mystery to us all, for as you can plainly tell, he is simply glowing
with its radiance.” Master Mussiri turns and begins to walk once more, with
Jae following close at his side, “It is believed that when he was marooned, as
a young man, on a distant planet that something there prevented him from being
able to touch the Force. And after so prolonged a time in that place, it also
affected his ability to call upon it. However, since he has found no use for it
since his departure from that place, he has also not sought out a method by
which he should be allowed to call upon it.” Master
Mussiri’s words, though making perfect sense in his mind, feel so wrong in his
heart. He cannot imagine a life without his special abilities. It has been his
only connection to the life that was taken from him so many years ago, that its
loss would certainly cause his undoing. At least in Jae’s mind it would. They continue
to walk a while longer, and Jae rolls over in his mind the information that
Master Mussiri has given him. But soon the Master stops in front of a
non-descript door at the end of the hallway in which they stand. It is then that
Jae realizes they have reached their destination. Master Dracul’s chambers.
Mees’ quarters. Reaching up to
activate the bell, Master Mussiri gives Jae a knowing look, but turns quickly to
ease Jae’s embarrassment. Almost instantly, the door opens to reveal the hulk
of a man, slightly in disarray, with one boot on and his sleeveless tunic
sticking half out of his trousers. “My apologies, Master Mussiri. Time got
away from me and haven’t quite finished getting dressed.” The man seems out
of breath as he gestures for the two visitors to come inside. “Please
Bowen, we are just a bit early. There is no need to apologize to such an old
friend.” Master Mussiri claps the man on the shoulder on a gesture that seems
far too familiar for the old man to Jae, but when Master Dracul gives Jae the
same greeting, he realizes that it may be a cultural thing. “Please,
Reklaw, welcome to my home.” He gestures for Jae to take a seat, “If you
will both excuse me, I will make myself more presentable for the company.” As
he heads off into the chamber in the back he calls back to the men, “Meesahran
will be out shortly, she’s just finishing getting dressed herself. The meal
will be ready to go once everyone arrives.” His voice trails off as he closes
the door between the chamber and the two men, but his words strike at Jae’s
heart. He tries to imagine that Mees could have changed so much since he knew
her all those years ago, but he simply cannot grasp the changes. First Vic
and now this! He thinks to himself, careful to guard his thoughts from all
present. His reverie is
broken when Meesahran emerges from the same back chamber, pulling her flowing
tresses from the inside of her tunic. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to let the time
slip away like that.” Rising to meet
the young woman, Master Mussiri gestures for Jae to do the same, “Quite all
right, my child. We are simply honored by your hospitality.” He offers his
hand to the young woman and then takes her in his, bringing it to his lips to
gently place a kiss upon the top of the hand. “Thank you,
Master Falion. And please sit, we are more than friends here.” She gestures
from the man to sit and then moves across to meet Jae. Taking him into a careful
embrace, attempting to show Jae that she is opening up to him, but that she is
also still very guarded in her actions. She then holds him back at arms length
to get a good look at this man. “Jae, who knew you could clean up so well?”
As she looks upon him she can see that the slate under tunic is of an
astoundingly fine silk, and that with the black suede outer tunic his eyes
sparkle just a little bit bluer. Jae blushes
slightly at her remark, “Well, I had a little hel-…” And just as he
speaks, she notices something about the sash tied around his waist. That blue
material looks very familiar. “Is that the
material fro-…” Jae returns the
interruption. “Yes, it is.” His words tell
Meesahran that he wishes her revelation to be between them alone, and she
quickly returns back to his other clothes, “So, who taught you how to dress
since the last time we were together?” She winks at him and he grows a little
more comfortable. “Well,
actually, it was Xana’s doing.” Looking around the room at how Master
Mussiri is dressed and even Meesahran, “Guess she thought my normal ratty
flight suits and jackets might look a little out of place around here.” “Sounds like
great minds think alike.” Her comment
confuses Jae. “What do you mean?” “Oh, well,
Master Mussiri and I were discussing taking you out tomorrow morning before the
big event to get you some other clothes. I guess Xana just beat us to it.”
Looking again at Jae, from head to toe, “And it looks to me like she did a
much better job anyway.” She nudges Jae in the arm a bit to try and ease his
tension. And just when
Jae is about to sit back down and relax a little bit more, the big man appears
from the back chamber, “Sorry that took so long, but this tired old face is
becoming more difficult to grapple with every day.” When Jae sees
Meesahran reach up and place the back of her hand upon the man’s cheek, his
unease has returned once more, “Well, feels like you at least did a good job
this time.” Turning back to Jae, “You should have seen the first attempt…
Looked like Griiser from the Monolith. You remember him don’t you Jae?” And
Jae indeed did remember the old spacer and his craggy face, even when he was
dressed to hit the spaceports, but that memory did not look anything like the
robust man before him. So, Jae just nods at her question. “I need to go
check on a few things for the meal.” She turns back to Master Dracul,
“You’ll let me know when the others arrive?” “Of course, I
will. Now get in there and get my food done. I’ve been smelling that stuff
since I got back to the chambers and it’s been killin’ me not to sample any
of it.” The man pushes her into the galley by her shoulders in a jovial
gesture. Hanging off of
the corner, Meesahran calls out to Dracul, “And you probably worked up an
appetite this afternoon too, huh?” Her
words once again cut through Jae’s heart. How can she be doing this? As
Master Mussiri and Master Dracul have an exchange on the opposite side of the
room, Jae thinks about this latest development. His dearest
friend and this old man; it simply was too difficult for him to fathom. One
the other hand, she does seem awfully happy right now. He tries to think of
a time since their reunion when she has smiled as much as he has seen in the
brief time since their arrival at these chambers. As difficult as it is for Jae,
he resigns himself to having to push aside his misgivings in favor of
Meesahran’s happiness. If this is what she wants, then so be it. Just as Jae
makes this cathartic decision, the bell at the door sounds, and Master Dracul
goes to answer its call. When the door opens, it reveals the face that Jae needs
to see above all others right now: Xana. And entering close behind her is her
newly discovered Aunt; Cherié Mehand. The two women enter the room and Jae and
Master Mussiri bow to acknowledge their presence. Cherié is the
first to speak, “Bowen, thank you for inviting us into your home, but I must
also apologize for my mother’s absence. She has many things on her plate right
now, and with her recent assassination, she is quite tired, so my niece and I
convinced her to rest this evening in favor of your company. Can you forgive
me?” Cherié winks her eye at the man and he takes the joke well. “Of course,
old friend! Besides, we already have an old man here, so the age thing is
covered for our little party.” Cherié and Bowen laugh heartily at their own
joke and Master Mussiri simply shakes his head. While the three begin an
animated conversation, Xana moves across the room to Jae. He takes her
hand in his and mimics Master Mussiri by placing a gently kiss upon the top of
it. Xana blushes slightly, but quickly recovers. “I see you found some use for
those clothes,” she says with an appraising eye. “Yes, and
thank you very much. I don’t believe I’ve ever gotten a gift quite like
this.” He looks deeply into her eyes as they both take a seat on the divan,
“Thank you.” This time she is flushed with the emotion in those words. Just then,
Meesahran emerges from the galley, “Well, since we’re mostly here, let’s
get started.” Turning to Master Dracul, “Will you escort everyone to the
dining area, please?” “You’re the
boss right now, so whatever you want.” Bowen bows to Meesahran in a mock
gesture of respect and she, in turn taps him in the middle of his massive bare
shoulder with her fist. Jae tenses a
little at the exchange, but when Xana notices it with a concerned stare, he
tries to play it off, “After you, mi’lady.” And he offers her his arm. They all enter
the dining area to find an enormous, ovoid table with eight chairs surrounding
it. And upon the table is enough food to feed a small army. Jae simply cannot
believe his eyes when he bears witness to such an astounding feat of culinary
expertise. Realizing that his jaw is hanging slightly agape, he tries to recover
his composure when Master Dracul gives him a nudge in the ribs, “She really
knows how to make a spread, huh kid?” That nudge is
enough to bring him back into his reverie, but he quickly responds, “When did
she have time to do all this?” Masters
Dracula, Mussiri and Mehand all laugh out loud at his exclamation. “Mees? Are
kidding? She started this the moment she reached the chambers.” Still in awe of
the prowess such a feat involves, “Yeah, but when did she learn how to
cook?” Master Dracul,
still laughing responds, “She took to it from the time she came to stay with
me. She’s just a natural, I guess.” Though his words were not meant to hurt,
Jae cannot help but feel pain at every revelation of Mees’ new life. When she comes
bounding out of the galley with a large platter in her arms, bearing a gigantic
nerf roast, she is smiling from ear to ear, and Jae puts on his best face, so as
not to worry his friend. He helps Xana to her seat and waits for Master Mehand
and Mees to takes their seats as well. As they sit down, Jae notices the empty
chair between Mees and Master Dracul, and then the one between Masters Mussiri
and Mehand. However, with no one else commenting on their inclusion, he decides
to keep silent. The meal
beings, and the conversations range from the state of agriculture on Corellia to
the latest crop of apprentices in Sanctuary’s training program. Jae makes
polite conversation when he is able to contribute, but his mind is still focused
on his misgivings about Mees. Soon it becomes
all too apparent to Mees and she leans over to ask him about it, “Jae, are you
all right?” Smiling, in an
attempt to play off his mood, “Sorry, just not used to this kind of
socializing.” She places a
hand over his in an attempt to comfort her friend, and he smiles at the gesture.
Xana, hearing the exchange, places her hand on his knee, in her own gesture of
comfort. And he covers her hand with his own to acknowledge her concern. As he begins to
release some of his tension, things get a little easier, and the meal gets into
full swing. And just when he reaches a comfort level, he feels the presence of
another enter the chambers. Looking up, he can see the others looking out into
the main chamber to greet the smaller man from the sparring match earlier today,
Master Timaji Rivendi. “Rivendi!
It’s about you graced us with your presence!” Exclaims Master Dracul. The smaller man
bows to those seated at the table, “Please, do not rise for such a tardy
individual. But as I can see, my message was relayed by the young one.” Master
Rivendi gestures to Meesahran, “Thank you, child, for not allowing my lateness
deter your celebration.” As he rounds
the table he places a comforting hand upon Meesahran’s shoulder before taking
his place beside Master Mehand at the table. As he pulls out the chair to sit,
he takes Master Mehand’s palm into his hand places a gentle kiss upon it.
“You will forgive my lateness?” Cherié
laughing at the gesture, simply says, “I could never fault you for a
shortcoming of my own. So long as you return the favor.” Sitting down
beside her, he bows slightly to her, “Of course, mi’lady. For one so noble
as yourself, tardiness is but a symptom of your station.” The two are
obviously of similar backgrounds in the aristocracy of some world or another,
and there exchange seems to almost mimic courtly behavior to Jae. And just as the
group is settling down from the arrival of Master Rivendi, another figure
emerges from the galley, “My apologies, but after such a long trip I was
sorely in need of a rest.” This time it is the striking visage of an achingly
beautiful woman. A woman that Jae has never seen before, until now. She has such
a familiarity with this place that Jae is somewhat taken aback by her presence.
As she crosses the room, Meesahran rises from her seat, “Please, don’t get
up, I just need to grab some things from the galley… I didn’t want your food
to get cold, so I kept it in the heating unit.” The woman
places a loving hand upon the small of Meesahran’s back as they pass one
another, “Thank you, Mees, but I am certain Maji is used to cold food, after
all of his travels with Bowen.” Laughing at the
joke, “That is a certainty, child!” Both Masters Rivendi and Dracul rise as
this strange and striking woman crosses to the last empty seat. As Master Dracul
pulls the chair out for the woman, she lays a hand upon his cheek and then
kisses him full on the mouth to the utter shock of Jae-Lee Reklaw. Seeing, or
perhaps sensing his shock, the woman turns to Jae after her lips leave those of
Master Dracul, “Pardon me, but we have been separated for far too long, and I
am not used to his presence again, just yet.” She takes her seat and then
looks up at the man towering above her slight frame, “His presence is somewhat
overwhelming, and until we have had more time together, I am afraid it is
difficult to resist.” She winks at Master Dracul as he stares back into her
eyes. Still
flabbergasted by this sudden development, Jae remains silent and speechless.
When Meesahran re-enters the room with two plates in her hands, Jae attempts to
recover some of his composure. The woman looks into Jae’s eyes and then speaks
up at Meesahran, “My child, is this the Jae I have heard so much about?” She
turns back to Jae, “He does not seem to have much of the charm you once spoke
of, and all of the color seems to have left his face. Is he well?” The
gorgeous woman laughs with a throaty voice that only accentuates her beauty. Meesahran looks
down at Jae as she places the plates in front of the late arrivals, “Jae, are
you all right? You look as though you’ve just seen a ghost.” He concern is
evident in her voice, but Jae is still unable to speak. Xana puts a
hand upon his shoulder to try and jog him from this stupor, “Jae, are you all
right?” Finally he is
able to break from the spell his shock has created, and he tries to speak,
“I… Uh… Um, well, I…” Master Dracul
begins to laugh from deep within his expansive chest and the sound is almost
like the rumble of thunder, “Wife! Your beauty has slain another poor soul!” Everyone around
the table begins to chuckle at the joke, everyone but Meesahran. Jae, hopelessly
trying to form an actual response, watches as Mees strikes the man across his
left shoulder: a shoulder that bears a tattoo. It is then that the pieces begin
to fall into place for Jae. The tattoo, there is something frighteningly
familiar about that tattoo, and as Mees comes around the table to see if Jae is
all right, he sees it: her left shoulder. The tattoo on her left shoulder is
identical to the one upon Dracul’s shoulder. And as he starts to figure it all
out, he can barely hear Mees’ voice, “Uncle Bowen, leave him alone!” She
kneels down beside him, “Jae, are you okay? Do you want to go into the other
room?” He croaks out
two unintelligible words and the confused look on his face tells him that she
did not understand, and so he tries to speak once more, “Your uncle?” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The confusion
is still in her eyes, but it is a different kind of confusion now. She heard
what he had to say, but did not understand why he was saying it. Standing
straight up in a start, she exclaims to Master Mussiri, “I thought you were
going to tell him?” His own
embarrassment begins to show on his ancient face, “My apologies, child. I
assumed you had already spoken with him, and so I saw no need.” Exasperation
shows across her face as she kneels back down to take Jae’s hand in hers.
“Jae, come into the other room with me, please?” His shock is still too
great for him to react right away, and so Xana rises from her seat and the two
women help him to his feet and lead him into the other room. Walking him
into the chamber that Jae believed to be the bedroom, he discovers that is in
actuality a gym, with an entrance to another hallway with three doors. Mees
opens the first door on the left and she and Xana guide Jae into the small room,
containing only a chaise and a dressing table. Simplicity. Jae can see it
now, see the similarities in their features, their carefree demeanor with one
another, their bond. His suspicious nature has betrayed his perceptions and led
him to make terribly wrong conclusions. As they help
him to find a seat upon the chaise, Jae can feel their concern for him rolling
off of them like waves on the sea. He tries to gather up his senses quickly so
that he may set their minds to ease, but he is unable before Mees begins to
speak, “I’m truly sorry, Jae… I thought Master Falion had already told you
about Uncle Bowen when he told you-… Well, about the rest.” The pain in her
voice as she struggles with those words causes Jae more grief than he thought
possible and he tries once more to speak, “Don’t… It’s… It’s just
hard to fathom that I have been searching for some piece of my past my whole
life and failed, but you weren’t even looking and there it was.” As he
finishes his words, he looks up into the emerald pools that serve as her eyes
and finds comfort there. She smiles as
she brushes a stray lock of white hair from her face. “Jae, sometimes what we
are searching for most is what is standing right in front of our eyes, we only
need to open them fully to see.” Feeling his tension and fear drifting away,
he lets go of his guard for just moment and then he sees recognition fall across
Mees’ face. “You really thought I would be with someone that old?!” She
cries out in shock and amusement. Fully
embarrassed by her verbal revelation of his fears, Jae turns seven different
shades of red, “Hey, I’m sorry! I had no real basis for comparison, so yeah,
that’s what I thought.” Mees just
laughs at his explanation, “Don’t worry, this never leaves this room… The
last thing I need is for Uncle Bowen to have something else to tease me with!”
She laughs a bit more as she walks away from Jae. Placing a hand upon Xana’s
shoulder before she walks out the door. “Do me a favor, and get him
straightened out before bringing him back to the table, huh?” Xana, her hand
over her mouth, in an attempt to hide her own laughter, tries to respond, “Of
course.” As Mees leaves
the room, Jae hangs his head in shame, “I can’t believe I just did that!” Xana crosses to
him and takes a seat next to him on the chaise, “It will be fine, Jae. I am a
very strong empath, and I did not pick up on your feelings until just now. I am
certain that none of the others knew what you were thinking.” She puts her
hand atop his knee and squeezes it in a gesture of reassurance. Looking to his
side and into her tender blue-green eyes, Jae finds his strength once more.
“Thank you,” he says tenderly and then leans gently over to her as he kisses
her softly on the lips. For just a moment, time seems to hold still for Jae-Lee
Reklaw, and this time he is glad for it. As their lips
part, Xana rests her forehead against his, “We really should be getting back
to the meal… Else they start to speculate what we are doing in here.” Her
cheeks flush with her words and Jae can feel the heat rising from them on his
face. “Yeah, I
guess so, do you think you could give me a little heads up on the deal with that
guy before we go back out there, though?” Jae says as he stands up and offers
Xana his hand. “Well, he was
part of an outbound space flight on their homeworld when he was young, and got
stranded on a strange planet…” Jae stopping
her before she continues with that part of the story, “Yeah, I heard that much
already. But is he really her Uncle? Or just part of her clan or something?” “Oh, well,
yes, his sister was her mother. When she was dealing with the Wasting Fever
epidemic on their world, a relief team was sent to assist the locals. One of
them was a Corellian Follower, who became Meesahran’s father. Since her
brother was believed lost, and the rest of her family killed in the epidemic,
her mother left their world for Corellia with her betrothed. En route she became
pregnant with Meesahran. They were were on Corellia for a time, but when the
fighting broke out her father was killed. Her mother stayed with friends of
Master Tofallin’s family but she soon succumbed to the second wave of the
Fever, leaving Meesahran with a woman whom she trusted.” Xana pauses a moment
to make sure Jae is following her. “Yeah, I know
the rest of that part of the story, go ahead with the stuff about Bowen and why
no one ever came for Mees.” Xana is
surprised by his sudden anger, but decides to continue on, “As I said, Bowen
was believed dead, the rest of the family was gone, and he had no knowledge of
his sister’s betrothal when he was finally able to return to his homeworld. In
fact, no one at Sanctuary knew of Master Tofallin’s marriage, let alone the
birth of a child, so no one knew they needed to be looking. The only reason
anyone knew who she was, is because of the symbol placed on her arm. Everyone
always thought it was Corellian, because of their penchant for tattoos, and that
her clan was simply wiped out by the epidemic, but it seems there are many
cultures involved in the creation of symbols on infants to mark their
lineage.” That statement
causes Jae to think back to his own tattoo, and whether he has been wrong all
these years about its origin. “I’ve never seen a Corellian tattoo that
elaborate before, so I always wondered if she was some kind of noble or
something, but another culture makes more sense.” He says while tugging at his
sash, to make certain it is back in place before returning to the table. “Jae, that
sash, I didn’t purchase that, did I?” She says with that appraising tone
once more. “Um, no…”
He fidgets uncomfortably, “It belonged to my mother… I think.” He takes
his hands away from the delicate fabric, “It’s all I have of her, since I
was very small when my father and I left.” Xana’s face
turns into one of puzzlement, “He left?… Your mother?” Jae realizes
his mistake and quickly attempts to correct it, “Oh no! We went out on… I
guess it would be considered an adventure or something. My father spoke to her
nearly every day, but her family had ideas of what to do with me that didn’t
fit his rugged Corellian nature and he said they had agreed to separate for my
own good. And that’s really all I know about her.” His face is somewhat
saddened by his revelation and it pains Xana, but it also reminds her of her own
family. Waiting just a
moment more before speaking, “This new galaxy has been especially difficult
for the children, hasn’t it?” That is when
Jae suddenly remembers that Xana too, is an orphan of this new world, this new
galaxy, and he places a comforting arm around her waist, drawing her into him.
“Yes, but it also brings us great promise, because without these changes, you
and I would have never met.” She smiles at his words and they both take deep
breaths before returning to the dining area together.
Creator: PtrsonsZOO (Jennifer)
*SPECIAL NOTE: Due to circumstances beyond our control, the rest of the story will be written by PtrsonsZOO (Jennifer)
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