Head in the Clouds

[Kale]

Her weariness was palpable. And suddenly Kale thought of Lorca.

"I found another one," he said suddenly - it surprised even himself. Usually he wasn't one to spout off the first thing that came to mind, all appearances to the contrary.

"It was a while back," Kale added more reservedly. "We were traveling together, but we ran into trouble and got separated."

Trouble with green eyes and a purple lightsaber.

[Navaria Tarkin]

"I'm sorry," she replied with much empathy. Navaria understood how difficult it was to be separated by those you placed your trust in. "Where did you find one another?"

[Kale]

Kale hesitated. He had to remind himself he'd decided to trust her for the time-being.

"Coruscant," he replied. "That's where I grew up, actually. We helped each other out... we were the only ones we knew of, y'know... and we were on our way to Dantooine when we ran into a... someone we couldn't take."

He fidgeted with his fizzade and drowned the silence in another long sip.

[Navaria Tarkin]

Navaria nodded in understanding, knowing that Kale referred to a Dark Sider of some kind. She had come face to face with one on her own, but the outcome had been more positive then her young companion's here. "And you don't know if he survived or not?"

[Kale]

Kale shook his head and dropped his eyes to his plate. He started scratching at the peeling laminate on the tabletop.

"I just figured I needed to keep goin' on my own," he said. "It's what I'm used to. I've never been a fighter. Just a survivor."

A practiced observer would note there was more than just disappointment in Kale's voice - there was also guilt, and someone who stole for a living wasn't used to feeling guilty. But about that time, his survivor's stomach reminded him he had a whole bantha burger in front of him, and his appetite overruled his remorse. He took a ravenous bite and washed it down with an ample swig of cola.

[Navaria Tarkin]

"The galaxy has not been kind to us, Kale," she said sympathetically. "It shows little remorse in what has happened, but it has given us an opportunity to find one another over the last few years."

Navaria pour a teaspoon of sugar into her tea and stirred it gently. "Like now, and you should not regret the decisions you have made. There is nothing wrong with surviving until you find purpose in this life."

[Kale]

Kale knew she was being kind. Just the same, he rankled at the idea of her trying to absolve him, not even knowing what he'd done.

"Well," he said, not yet meeting her eyes, "I was kinda already on my way somewhere. My transport was headed for Subterrel. I was..."

Immediately, he wished he'd stopped two sentences ago. It had been hard enough to explain to Lorca; he couldn't very well tell a perfect stranger about it, even if she did buy him lunch.

"...lookin' for something."

[Navaria Tarkin]

"The past?" questioned the Jedi carefully. Kale's mind was not focused on the present fully and all to often, he would drift in and out of old memories. Which was not completely unexpected due to the nature of their conversation, but the past struck a certain cord in the Force when he mentioned his searching.

[Kale]

That made Kale look up, and he felt his ears burn bright red. What did she know?

A second later, his suspicion caught up with his imagination. For frell's sake, it was such a vague answer it could've meant anything! Why'd he have to go and tip his hand like that?

"Something like that," he mumbled. He wanted to leave it there. Knew he should leave it there. He didn't know this woman - even if she did seem familiar - for all he knew, she was just as bad as the Forcer they'd run into on the Orwell... but something about her, and something about the cool assurance of the crystal against his chest kindled a glimmer of hope inside him. It was just enough to make him take a deep breath and make a stab in the dark.

"Do you know anything about dreams?"

[Navaria Tarkin]

Navaria frowned at Kale's reaction. Instead of gaining his trust, she was putting him on defense, which was not her intent. The Jedi just wanted to boy to understand that she could relate to him on some level. Perhaps less reflection and more attentive ears were needed.

"What sorts of dreams?" She tilted her head curiously. "Dreams can take many forms as innocent images of the sleep, or hold more meaning for introspection. In some cases, it gives us a glimpse of the past or future."

[Kale]

That was more or less what Lorca had told him - so far so good. Kale braced himself for the next question, and if she showed a hint of patronizing him, he was out the door, free lunch or no.

"Have you ever heard of anyone... dreaming about someone else's past?"

[Navaria Tarkin]

Navaria pursed her lips, eyes widened in contemplation. "Personally?"

She shook her head, "No. But I was taught that if someone had a deep ... spiritual connection with another, it was quite possible for that person to do what you're asking. Especially if something unforeseen had happened to them."

[Kale]

That was it - she had Kale's attention now. But he couldn't decide all at once. He retreated to his bantha burger to chew it over. By the time he swallowed, he'd made his decision.

"When we're finished here," he said, "I've got something to show you. So, who do you like in playoffs - the Shad Furies or the Quent Assassins?"

Kale hadn't looked; he'd just known the waitress was coming to top off their drinks. He didn't venture any further on the subject of dreams. That would wait until they could speak more freely.

[Navaria Tarkin]

Sensing a tiny shift of trust form in Kale, Navaria smiled and gave a purposeful thought to his question. "Well, the Assassins have Ap Kormar for their center. It would be an upset if his team were to loose in the playoffs ..."

* * *

After a rousing hour of debate about sports statistics over dessert, Navaria led the young man to her personal quarters located in the general housing facilities for most of the factory workers. It was here that the Jedi could blend into common faces, unlike the upscale housing found over one hundred levels above. The pair spoke in relative silence, not wishing unwanted attention directed their way again, but most of the beings here shambled along, oblivious to who walked among them. Their minds were filled with work orders and families - they didn't have time to think of the new threat of Jedi their newly crowned Empress professed.

"Not much further now," she said as they stepped off the lift onto level 165, brown eyes offering reassurance as her face was covered once more. "It's a short walk into sector 4."

This level had two story housing with steel ramps and stairways connecting either floor, but it was the same white polished paneling devoid of any real emotion that could be found on some of the administration levels. the designers thought of practicality and how many bodies could they cram into each section since the station required thousands of workers.

[Kale]

Kale's eyes were always moving - not to the roofs of buildings and the arches and hanging gardens and cunningly designed vistas of the cloudscape beyond the city, but to alleys, fire escapes, maintenance access points, ventilation ducts, sewage lines, any path that wasn't a path. If he was going to be staying in Cloud City for any length of time, he wanted to know all the shortcuts its residents didn't, just in case he had to run again.

When they reached the housing level, Kale couldn't help but think of a little flat in the slums of the Santiago District on Coruscant. Of course, these were cleaner, brighter, with higher-quality graffiti. But the principle was the same - if it had four walls and a roof, you could call it a home and lease it to someone. Sometimes the complexes were owned by individual landlords who really did try to keep them in good shape. Most of the time they were just entries on the ledger sheets of some company housed as far away from the projects as possible.

Kale followed Navaria up a staircase and waited patiently as she fished out a keycard to open her apartment.

[Navaria Tarkin]

She swipe the keycard and then there was an audible click. The door opened enough to see, well nothing really. The lights weren't on. The Jedi Master pushed it the rest of the way opened and hit the light panel on the side.

There wasn't extraordinary about the room because nothing seen was tied to Navaria. The apartment was pre-furnished a couch, a couple of tables, bookcase, and holovid that doubled as a computer. The walls were bare and the fluorescent bulbs were on a low setting since she hadn't thought it a waste to spend money on shades. Towards the back, there was entrance way into the kitchenette and even further back, two doorways that led to the bedroom and fresher.

It was better then sleeping on the ground, so its purpose was served.

"Anything I can get you?" she asked, closing the door behind Kale as he entered and removed the hood and scarf. The Jedi felt like herself again, being free from the subterfuge required to walk freely amongst the beings of Cloud City. Her hair was a bit scraggly from the confinement. She combed it out with long fingers and threw the extra clothing on top of the bookcase.

[Taya Robbins]

Delete plz

[Kale]

The place barely looked lived-in at all. Which meant it was temporary, or she'd just gotten in, or she spent a lot of time on business. Kale would figure that out later.

He drifted into the room, not far enough to seem presumptuous, and found a seat on the couch, which crinkled stiffly like a couch in a hotel lobby. She didn't entertain often, either. He was about to respond to her question, but he was mesmerized for a moment by the sight of her fingers trailing through her hair.

"Um... no, I'm good, thanks."

[Navaria Tarkin]

With the bulky brown robe gone, Navaria wore a plain tan tunic and pants that matched, a white shirt and worn boots. He also saw a lightsaber clipped to her weapons belt.

"Want me to take your jacket?" she offered. "It can get stuffy in here."

She sighed and sat down, looking at the vents slightly perturbed. "For me it's no bother, but it might be for you."

[Kale]

He shook his head. "No, s'fine." His jacket was where he kept his credits, tucked in a hidden interior pocket he'd sewn himself. He just shrugged it off his shoulders behind him and swung his backpack down to the floor between his feet. His knees bounced with nervous energy.

"So... you're a Jedi." It was good to finally get the word out in the open, finally have something concrete to hold onto. "Can you prove it?"