Ask Hands-On Activities

[Maura Starwalk]

It was a beautiful day on Ithor. The sun was out, there was the occasional cooling breeze, and there was the perfect dusting of clouds in the baby blue sky. Maura was absolutely living for it, and she was more than happy to hang out in the weather even if she was going to have to spend part of it doing chores she didn't really want to do.

The blonde padawan was waiting by the entrance of the temple's gardens, practicing staying balanced while doing a handstand. She could maintain the position just fine as long as she stayed still, but it was a little more difficult to try and walk around on her hands. If she couldn't do it on solid ground there was no way she could do it while riding her skimboard, so she was determined to practice while she waited for the other padawan to arrive.

"Hold the core steady... move your center of gravity with your hands..." The girl took a few 'steps' forward, then felt herself start to lean and fall forward. With a huff, Maura let herself fall onto her feet, then launched herself back onto her hands. She wasn't going to let herself stop until the other padawan got here.

tag: @Aspire

 

[Erin Lux]

She was almost ready, having completed the simple but necessary tasks most human, or near human's performed to keep themselves sanitary. She was finishing tying her hair which she had washed completely out into a single thick knot of braid, all of it culminating to give her a very clean, and respectable aura. Erin Lux was by all means a young, and inexperienced padawan, but she was sharp, and a quick learner. All the same, she found some... Resentment, that she hadn't been paired with a Master yet.

Given, she didn't really fall behind in any one category because of this, still she wondered what exactly the reason was for it. She followed the rules, she paid strict heed to the code... Looking herself in the mirror, she offered a smile, and turned-on heel to leave her quarters. Today, she would be shadowing one Maura Starwalk. Another padawan, older, and as far as Erin assumed, more responsible. If there was anything more responsible than her.

As she left her quarters, she would adopt her normal walking posture, hands behind her back, clasped as the wrists; her back straight, and her posture giving nothing but credit to her heritage. It wasn't hard to see this girl was posh. She regarded everyone however with respect, and offered light bows to anyone she even remotely considered her better. After the short walk to the entrance, she would come into view of another padawan, practicing handstands it looked like. She smirked, but didn't immediately interrupt, until Maura fell back to her feet.

"Good Afternoon, I'm Erin. I take it you're Maura?"

She would ask, eyes searching over the other, and immediately coming to a sudden, but (personally) accurate assessment.

This girl was colorful...

@Maura Starwalk

 

[Maura Starwalk]

Maura had just reoriented herself back onto her hands when Erin finally arrived, so she shifted her weight to just one hand and used the other to awkwardly wave up at the younger padawan. "Sure is!" she answered from below with an upsidedown smile. She bent over backward, stood back onto her feet, then dusted her hands of the dirt and placed them on her hips. "Anyway, they want us to weed the garden."

There was a distinct look of boredom on her face at the idea, but she didn't seem inclined to just not do it. After all, the weather was perfect out. "But if we work quickly I bet we can sneak in some free time," she added with a grin. Using the Force from an outstretched hand, Maura summoned a small rake and shovel each and handed one pair over to Erin. "I'll start on the left side. You, the right."

With that she turned and wandered into the garden, crouching down among a row of root vegetables she didn't recognize. "So, do you have a master?" It was like the first thing she asked anyone. She was nosey.

tag: @Aspire

 

[Erin Lux]

The Garden? Again... Hadn't she done it with another just a week or so ago? In that moment, there was a millisecond of discontent on Erin's features, though it died as soon as it found her face. As much as she knew she should have been obedient and content, how could she pretend these tasks didn't feel like... Well, the kids tasks; which she was... Still... Erin looked over at the other as she spoke, making a point to let her speak in full before responding. She nodded in understanding where necessary, and so far, still kept her hands clasped behind her back.

"The Garden... Great."

She said, smiling faintly while also noting that tinge of boredom that found Maura's face. The feeling was mutual... She did have a point though, if they finished quickly enough, they could do something else. Good Luck getting Erin to rush a task though. It was deeper than just what they were instructed to do, she had been instilled with something of a code of perfection from a young age. It wasn't so much to just do it if it wasn't done properly. Though, she would much rather be studying, or practicing. Then, Maura did something Erin did not expect.

When she used the Force to get the tools, Erin was visibly surprised that she had done so, instead of just walking over and picking them up; though, equally aware how practical an action it was. After all, they could, though... She was always under the impression they were to limit their use of the Force until necessary. In any case, this girl was older; she wasn't going to sour the cereal on their first day. She did need friends after all, right?

She took the rake and shovel, turning and getting right into it. Then the question came... A Master...

"No... I don't."

She said flatly, shaking her head and causing her braid to shake with the action.

"I'm sure I will soon though."

@Maura Starwalk

 

[Maura Starwalk]

No master? Maura wasn't surprised. A lot of padawans never got a master of their own, so anyone who did was lucky to have one. Not that there was any lack of instructors.

"You should try just asking someone to," Maura mused as she dug her nails into the dirt and clawed out a grouping of weed roots. "That's how I got mine. I'm sure if you ask enough people someone will have to agree." Maura had, of course, failed to consider that it wasn't really how padawans usually went about getting a master. Even if she did, she would encourage Erin to try regardless. What could they say, no? Just ask the next one.

The blonde tossed the bundle of roots into a bucket and went in again at the next invading weed. She had decided that her hands were better than the metal tools at her side. After all, her claw-like nails were basically the rake, and her palm was just as good a shovel as anything else. She had dirt under her nails and on her clothes in no time. She'd worn old shoes at least.

But back to Erin because she'd never met the girl before and she was very curious about the girl. "How long have you been with the Jedi?" she asked. "I've been here since I was like, five or six." Which was... "Ten years now?" Maura didn't feel like counting.

tag: @Aspire

 

[Erin Lux]

Erin worked with the tools, not content to dirty her robes if there was no reason too. Though clearly her body language was inviting of conversation, and questions. She had her own questions, though Maura was very engaging, and kept her on the backfoot. It was a nice change of pace, and the youngling welcomed it. A droid lazily chugged behind them, to which Erin raised a shovel full of leaves and the like, tossing it into the opening atop the droid.

Just ask? That seemed like an oversimplification... The bond between a Master and a student was supposed to be special. Lifelong in most cases. Just... Asking someone, it felt like a shortcut; she didn't want to do that, but still, would respectfully turn and smirk in the others direction. Letting on that she thought it was a good idea, although she knew she wouldn't do it. Though with Maura mentioning that was how she got her own tutor, Erin would forget what she was doing for a second, turning to her and resting her wrists on the shovels handle.

The more she talked, the more the idea seemed... Well, she did have a point. Everyone couldn't say no. Maura had sent Erin down a rabbit hole of thought, locking her eyes somewhere off the left for a full twelve seconds or so until the next question came up. She shook her head and loosed a light murmur of thought.

"I... Was uhm... Maybe five? Six? It's been so long. I guess I feel like its been so long."

A brief image of her parents came to mind, causing her to smirk, though it was short lived. With that, she got back to work.

"I've learned so much, I don't want to seem ungrateful, but... Trimming gardens, and..."

She sighed a bit.

"I just thought I would be doing more by now. Something to actually help."

Erin noted, glancing over as if to gauge the others reaction to her comment, though did not stop working at their task.

 

[Maura Starwalk]

"Oh, cool! So you've been here a while then." She was going off the assumption that Erin was around her age. Fifteen or sixteen would be her guess, but who could know? Maura herself had a bit of a babyface, and she definitely knew some padawans that looked a year or three older than they actually were. Then there were the Rodians, Wookies, and other non-Human species. It was harder for her to guess their ages.

"You could try volunteering for some," Maura suggested as she yanked a particularly stubborn mess of weeds out from under one of the root vegetables. Particles of dirt flew up and stuck to her cheek, and she responded by wiping said cheek with the back of her dirty hand. All it did was smear the soil across her skin. "They usually aren't too exciting, but you never know! One time this guy Ferrin and I went to go pickup a shipment of food to bring back to Brighthome and we ended up crashlanding on Iridonia cause the crates were infested with killer rats." (@Altaris)

Maura shuddered. She hated rats. Yuck.

"What sort of things were you thinking? Like fighting Sith?"

tag: @Aspire

 

[Erin Lux]

She turned her head, nodding once at Maura to confirm her assumption, she had indeed been in the neighborhood for some time so to speak. Maura might have noticed Erin seemed very careful about not getting her robes dirty. Though still tried to work diligently. In turn, Erin had just now noticed that her new friend was clawing the dirt with her bare hands. Something clicked in her psyche, and she almost... Almost, commented on it; though, kept it to herself.

Volunteering was a solid option, though whenever she did...

"I have... Garden Trimming. Inventory, Kitchen duty... Nothing exciting."

She shrugged then, this being the only time she had cut into Maura's speech and proactively responded. Her next sentence only cementing what Erin already felt about the tasks they were eligible for. Then, she learned a bit about Maura.

"Killer Rats? Rats are disgusting..."

She said, her face twisted in disgust. Rats carried disease, and plague... Much less killer rats. She shook the thought from her head. Maura then asked another question, and Erin paused from her work yet again, looking over and thinking about the answer.

"I mean... Maybe."

Erin glanced around them, then delved into the topic a bit more.

"Jedi, and Sith have been enemies for thousands of years. Even before Master Rey founded the New Order. To be a Jedi, its.. Its to adopt that struggle as well."

She spoke. Showing again, she was young, but not a fool.

 

[Maura Starwalk]

"I know right? There's nothing really specific about them... I mean, I'm totally fine with mice." It was probably leftover trauma from her formative years living on the street and in a dirty orphanage, but Maura wasn't insightful enough to come to that conclusion. They just gave her the heebie-jeebies and it took a tremendous amount of effort to keep her composure around them.

"I talked to a Sith once," Maura revealed as she rose up from her crouched position to move onto the next patch of weedy plants. She aggressively brushed off her sweatpants even though she was planning to kneel right back in the dirt. "He just seemed... angry. Unhappy." She made a face as she remembered his irritating responses to her questions, paying no mind to the nuance of the situation.

"Oh! This was right after I fought in the Battle of Onderon. I had taken him to the hospital. It wasn't just a casual meet-up to debate philosophies," she clarified, ending with a laugh. "Though I was only thirteen so I doubt he was interested in having any convo at all." She absolutely wasn't supposed to be on that ship, and her master had definitely never intended for her to end up fight a Sith so young. But she'd gotten a lightsaber out of it, and it led to her passing her first knight trial. She had no regrets.

"But- " Maura started to speak, then fell silent for a few moments while staring at a clump of weeds in her hands. She wanted to warn Erin about the other side of getting to "do stuff." Facing death, losing friends, strangers, peers... It was hard. But feeling no want or need to ruin the mood, Maura cleared her throat and redirected herself. "I'm sure it won't be long before you get a master! You're my age right? Sixteen? Fifteen?"

No matter the answer, Maura would continue. "If you're bored of the menial chores just don't show up!" Maura, once known to be a serial class skipper, looked over and grinned at Erin. "I can show you how to skimboard if you want!"

tag: @Aspire

 

[Erin Lux]

She stopped for a moment, looking at the entire side that Maura had made her responsible for. She was making decent progress, but there was a bit more work still to be done. The chatter was helping greatly, considering the last boy was extremely quiet. She shook her head, scoffing at the distinction between rats and mice. As far as Erin was concerned, they were both pests.

The next statement caused the youngling to stop in her tracks and deadpan towards Maura, quite literally dropping the shovel and moving away from her area, moving directly towards the girl as she spoke, ears, and her very soul open to the other. She had spoken to a Sith? And gotten them medical assistance to boot? There couldn't possibly be anything more important than hearing that story.

Angry? Unhappy? Well, she could see that. She had learned that the Dark Side was a corrupting power. Easy to tap into, and rewarding in the short term, but lethal, and easily driving the practitioners to madness in the long run. It checked out that Maura would consider him Angry, or Unhappy. In any case, Erin stood there gawking at the other in amazement as she told her story; only canting her head in a sudden curiosity when she... She had held something back.

But what? It was the only time since they had met Maura seemed... Dimmed. As if something stole her light for a moment and ran away with it.

"Bu-?"

Maura jumped back to the bit about the Master, and Erin released a breath she wasn't even aware she was holding. This was an interesting first-hand account of Sith. She expected them to be blood-thirsty, crazed, and ready to kill anything that even remotely resembled a Jedi. And yet, Maura had... Well, near befriended one. She was half listening then, her brain spinning at max RPM.

"Right... Fifteen."

She said, swallowing and moving back to her side to continue her work. It was then Maura said something that really threw Erin for a loop. Just don't show up!? She couldn't do that.

"We can't just not show up, they expect us to be where we're sent, and do what we're asked to do..."

Her face mirrored her seriousness, although it was obvious this conviction was held to her, she wasn't about to go around telling tales on Maura, although she was clearly not comfortable with the idea herself.

"A skim-what now?"

She asked, raking more of the leaves, shrubs and weeds into the droid.

@Maura Starwalk

 

[Maura Starwalk]

"Sure you can," Maura replied with a nonchalant shrug. "How many times have you been called to pick up for someone who didn't show up for their chores?" Maura pressed her hands down into her weed bucket, condensing the plant material to give her more room to throw more in. "Or at least, I have a lot." Sometimes she was able to get out of it, sometimes she wasn't, but she took it to mean that she deserved to dodge responsibilities now and then.

But, enough of that. Erin didn't know what skimboarding was and that was absolutely unacceptable. "Wait, for real?" Maura blinked at her, wide-eyed for a few moments, then broke out into a grin. "Dude, I totally have to show you then! It's a hovering board you ride and can do tricks on."

The quicker they finished, the quicker Maura could drag Erin back to her little dorm and show her the board. So the padawan began pulling weeds even quicker, tearing them out with her hand and using her feet to smooth over and pack the soil back down as she went.

"I do not suggest skipping out on chores," the droid began Erin lazily droned on, a full ten seconds between then an when Maura had first suggested the move.

tag: @Aspire