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[Valeska]

News of the death of Captain Rook hit her harder than she expected. She had only met the man on a few occasions, but he always appeared genuine and kind. The reveal that it was caused by Sith was only a dagger atop the recent events on Naboo. She took a break from diplomatic duties and appearances for today, her head simply not in the game.

Her journey took her towards the rolling hills that had the Gallo Mountains as a backdrop. There was a particular overlook that granted a view of the great valley below with the mountains and waterfalls ranging in the back. It was a place she ventured to for years to find solitude and detach from her life as a princess.

Even today she was accompanied by a security detail, but she told them to remain with the speeder to allow her some reprieve. Val did the usual hike it took to get to the summit of the hill, wanting to take some time to draw in the crisp air and clear her thoughts.

@Mr. Teatime

 

[Hannibal Grayza]

One of the benefit of having a ship with a proper long-range holonet connection was being quickly updated on galactic news. Hannibal hadn't expected Roland Rook to be the face- or, helmet, anyway- he saw show up on the screen, especially not to report his death. The young Jedi had rarely met the man, mostly remembering him being at the Coruscant prison. He hadn't been lost in some grand action or attack, despite all the chances to have been felled under such circumstances, but instead another soul lost to the Sith-taken skies of Ajan Kloss.

May he find peace in death.

Hannibal had found himself amidst his wanderings visiting his childhood home of Naboo, although not for political purposes as some asked shortly after he landed. The reception here was troubling lately, even from some people who'd known him for a long time in Theed, so he only made a brief stop to the city proper before heading out into the mountains.

Up ahead of the hiking princess was of course the sound of rushing water falling from the cliffs. As she neared the summit an obvious flash of colour from bright robes and a flock of different songbirds was visibly displayed against the serene greens and blues of the Gallo mountains. A figure sat casually atop a large rock partly facing the falls. Some birds gathered on a tattooed arm to peck at seeds in the palm of the figure's hand, the opposite left sleeve left loose and empty in the absence of a limb.

The man didn't seem to immediately notice the princess' arrival.

@Sreeya

 

[Valeska]

Despite having hiked up to this spot many times before, it had been some time since she had been able to get away from her duties. Valeska was out of breath by the time she made her way up. She fully believed she was alone and had no concerns about loudly huffing and puffing as she scaled the last bit to the summit.

“Kriffing hell….don’t remember it being...so hard…” She half panted as she finally made it to the top. Val stared out over the scenery with a proud grin, hands on her hips, hair slightly disheveled, sweat lining her face. Her eyes panned over the horizon before they came to rest on a.. Was that another person?! Her eyes went wide and she suddenly felt sick to her stomach.

“Oh uh..” She managed awkwardly, never used to being caught off guard like this. She hadn’t expected anyone to even know this path, “I didn’t think anyone else knew about this spot,” Valeska mumbled quietly, hoping he wouldn’t recognize her.

@Mr. Teatime

 

[Hannibal Grayza]

With care the figure's head slowly turned to look toward Valeska as she spoke, an amused smirk clear on his face. A red bird tweeted in protest at the movement and jerked its head at him before going back to nipping at the seeds in his hand. Emerald eyes that almost seemed to shine with a strange brightness gave the young woman an appraising look.

"Public mountain, ain't it?" he answered with a spreading grin, gaze returning to the birds around him. Hannibal lifted his hand and the birds on it moved elsewhere, fingers opening to send seeds into the grass for them to continue eating. The hand settled on a thigh and he turned himself to properly face Valeska.

"It's a nice little spot, know about it basically forever." There was a mischievous twinkle behind his eyes as he spoke. "Come here often?" And with the exact same intonation as a stereotypical person confidently using a cheesy pick-up line in some club. It wasn't entirely obvious if he was kidding or not.

@Sreeya

 

[Valeska]

Valeska stepped forward to see him clearly, spotting the birds eating out of his hand for the first time. She had to bite back a smile - she had seen her sister do the same thing in the palace gardens. She drew in a deep breath and slowly exhaled to keep from panting as if she were dying.

She said nothing initially as he reminded her that this was a public place, “Oh, of course, you’re not breaking any rules,” Val muttered quickly. Did he think he was trespassing? But then the amused look on his face suggested he was quite comfortable where he was.

Being a princess meant she wasn’t used to pickup lines whatsoever, and she took his question at face value, “Not often enough as you’ve likely heard me breathing the entire way up here,” Val said with a sheepish smile. She took a seat on a boulder near him. She wasn’t used to having to share this space or any space really, but she had little desire to trek all the way back just yet.

Val didn’t miss that one of his sleeves only flapped in the wind and there was no visible hand there. She was polite enough not to stare, and she gazed ahead of herself instead, “The birds know you,” Val said without looking at him, “I’m surprised our paths have never crossed before.”

@Mr. Teatime

 

[Hannibal Grayza]

If anything the young man looked even more amused by Valeska's answer to his question but he let it go easily enough. She hadn't been terribly quiet huffing and puffing her way up the hillside but he wasn't going to judge someone for wanting to get away and see a little nature.

Hannibal turned back to the vast chasm and waterfalls, leaning his arm over his knee as he looked out over the terrain. Val's comment drew a glance over at her for a second. "Pretty ain't they?" A bluebird fluttered toward him and he raised a hand for it to land. His thumb gently stroked over a wing. Hannibal turned his head halfway to look over at the princess.

"Maybe we have n'don't remember it. I've been wandering this place since I was little." The young Jedi came out to this general area whenever he could, a habit that persisted to the present day. He'd always found open nature more his thing than the busy cities he often chose to do his work in, and it was nice to remind himself such places existed and were worth protecting.

"Doubt you'd recognize me. Didn't smile much."

@Sreeya

 

[Valeska]

Val eyed him with mild skepticism. She had been coming here for as long as she could remember, and she certainly hadn’t seen him before, “I would remember if I saw you before,” Val stated quite matter of factly. It was another one of those things that could be taken as a compliment or just a simple point of observation - her face didn’t reveal which.

She watched how comfortable the birds were with him, and it certainly backed the claim that he was no stranger to these parts. His accent was local Naboo, but it was far less formal than her posh dialect.

“Well, I suppose you’ll know all about where the bantha shaped rock with the red flowers around it is,” Val said after a moment, a single eyebrow rising. It was a well kept secret beneath one of the mountains. One had to take a particularly dangerous path to get to it, and it wasn’t exactly a landmark of any significance. It wasn’t marked on any maps or tourist brochures.

@Mr. Teatime

 

[Hannibal Grayza]

Hannibal flashed a grin and raised a brow at the woman but seemed to have no further comment on the remembering or lack thereof. To be fair the young Jedi likely would've remembered her as well. Uh, probably. Maybe.

Her question about a rock got her an openly bemused look for a few seconds during which Hannibal stared at her with those bright emerald eyes of his. Something seemed to dawn on him after a little while and he chuckled to himself, a sound that made the bird on his hand flick its head up to look at him as if concerned.

"The sorta hump-backed lookin' one with the wild lilies?" he finally said while looking distinctly amused, then thoughtful. "Bantha-shaped? Huh, I mean I guess if y'look at it kinda sideways..." The spot in question was indeed quite out of the way and was a bit of an adventure to get to but it was one of the few places that particular sort of lily grew in. They preferred partial shade over direct sunlight and the rock and surrounding mountains probably helped with that.

"What about the ridge where hawks nest, y'seen that?" Another hard to find place, though it wasn't named very inventively.

@Sreeya

 

[Valeska]

Val stared at him for a moment, her own emerald gaze meeting his. A grin began to form as she thought for sure she had him. However, he suddenly began to chuckle and described the location perfectly. Instead of a smug grin, there was a smile on her face as she nodded, “Those flowers are my favorite. If for no other reason than because of how difficult they are to obtain,” She shrugged. She often made the trek out just to collect them and sit there for hours in blissful solitude.

When he asked his question, Val almost opened her mouth to reply at once. However, she paused and had to really think, gazing away towards the horizon. She had been to several locations where birds nested, but hawks? She couldn’t remember the last time she had even seen a hawk. Seconds passed and Val was stumped.

“I...have to confess I have not,” She said sheepishly, glancing over at him again, “Will you show me?”

@Mr. Teatime

 

[Hannibal Grayza]

Her favourite flower? Well that was a tidbit of potentially useful information as well as an indication of good taste. Hannibal turned away from the woman and the waterfall to look toward a distant and higher-up bit of the mountains. He then looked back over at her with a thoughtful expression and a charming grin.

"Sure, why not. It's kind of a pain to get to, just so ya know, but it's not like I've got anythin' better to do just now." Mischief twinkled behind those bright eyes of his and the grin widened a little. "And I could ask for worse company than a charming young lady, am I right?"

Hannibal's bird wielding hand lifted to get the bluebird to fly off, which it did. Then it looped back around and landed on his hand again. The young Jedi stared at it for a moment and tried again, cobalt wings fluttering quickly as the bird flew up, turned and, and once again landed in his hand. A third attempt garnered no success and a complaintive peeping from the little creature.

"Fine, whatever," Hannibal sighed and transferred the bird to his shoulder before climbing down off the rock.

@Sreeya

 

[Valeska]

Val caught the smile he flashed her way and she gave a polite one back. As a member of the Royal family, she was used to people smiling prettily at her quite a bit. It was often all just for show, but she couldn’t deny this man wore his quite nicely. His words drew out an amused grin, moreso at the confirmation that he didn’t recognize her at all. It was normally considered an honor for anyone to have any time of the day with her, and here he was taking her somewhere simply because he was bored.

She extended her hand out towards him out of habit, expecting him to bow and kiss it as he introduced himself. However, she drew it back almost at once when she remembered civilians normally didn’t greet like that, “I’m...Val..” She muttered awkwardly, struggling to put on a front. Mercifully, the bird was distracting through a lot of that exchange.

Val walked alongside him when he began to lead the way. She looked over at the valleys below every now and then, “I can be a bit clumsy sometimes, so pardon if I slow you down.”

@Mr. Teatime

 

[Hannibal Grayza]

Hannibal either didn't notice or politely ignored the awkward way Val introduced herself, only turning to actually look at her again once he was fully off the rock and otherwise situated to wander off on their shared adventure. Luckily he did actually hear her softly voiced introduction.

"Name's Hannibal. Call me Hans though, it's easier."

And off he went, choosing to walk at a casual pace along the ridge that made of the waterfall basin. He was profoundly comfortable in this sort of place away from the cities. Although his bright robes contrasted with the greens, browns, and grays, he might almost seem to blend in with the general energy of their surroundings at times. The empty left sleeve blew gently in a breeze as he turned again to look at Val when she mentioned her clumsiness.

"We ain't in a rush, y'know. 'Sides, I'm down an arm if you hadn't noticed."

Very helpfully he picked up the sleeve in his right hand and waved it around with a similar, if somewhat more strained grin on his face. "Makes climbing a little more challengin'."

@Sreeya

 

[Valeska]

Val followed him as they began to walk. She had been around here before, but she certainly knew her limits. She hadn’t exactly worn the right shoes or clothing for an adventurous hike. There was a bemused look on her face that he wouldn’t see at the concept of not being in a rush. Val didn’t know how to exist outside of a schedule. Even this visit was a specifically allotted time.

She had noticed the lack of his arm, but she was far too polite to mention anything about it. Val had to move to keep up with him given how he was easily a foot taller than her. She focused on making her way over instead of conversation. Val was too proud to admit that she was out of her element and actually a little afraid.

They were making their way around a particularly narrow path along a cliff when she began to lose her footing. Val only let out a yelp as her foot skidded off the edge. There was nothing but the deep valley drop on the other side.

@Mr. Teatime

 

[Hannibal Grayza]

Hannibal might seem almost a little too comfortable in the natural setting. The young man really didn't look where he was placing his feet and instead found flying birds or wind-touched plants to observe as they passed them by. His feet found their way without the help of his eyes one way or another and although he went fairly slowly he was enjoying the peaceful walk.

Val cried out and Hannibal's head was already turning around toward, brows furrowed and brilliantly green eyes sharply focused. The woman began to fall from the cliff but, strangely, not very far or very fast. It was almost as if gravity began to work in reverse, slow and sluggish like passing through air as thick and fluid as the gentlest ocean. The feathery breeze of spring began to carry her back up where a tattooed hand was waiting for her.

That hand grasped her and she was gently guided up against the cliff wall, holding her loosely but away from the drop.

"Are you all right?" Hannibal asked, looking down at the ankle to see if it showed any signs of a sprain or similar. The casual manner of speech seemed to have vanished with the wind, for the moment at least.

@Sreeya

 

[Valeska]

Fear unlike anything she had ever known shot through her as she lost her balance. There was the sudden loss of any support beneath her feet and the realization that she was about to lose her life. The gasp became a loud scream, but she noticed suddenly that her descent had abruptly stopped. Wide eyes looked around as she saw the drop below, but she found herself instead tugged in the opposite direction.

Val stared up as she saw the extended hand and she grabbed it, using her other hand to hoist herself up. For a moment she hugged the cliff face, still very much shaken up from the experience. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, eyes still wide as fear gripped her. It took a few moments for her to calm down enough to look up at the man.

“How…” She began, but she paused, her eyes widening again, “Did...did you do that?” Val asked while still desperately hugging herself against the cliff. It was as if she would fall the moment she let go.

@Mr. Teatime

 

[Hannibal Grayza]

Emerald eyes rose from looking at the woman's ankle to meet hers instead, amusement clear on his face and the general aura of seriousness quickly melting away. Even so his arm remained where it was between Val and the cliff edge just in case while the rest of him was at a more respectful distance along the wall.

"I did," Hannibal answered with a cheeky grin, "Useful ain't it?" He paused a moment to look along the path they needed to move along on their little side adventure, lips curled in a wry smirk. "To be clear, I'm a Jedi. Not one of those spooky Sith types." Then back to Val again, moving on from that bit of information with an air of general unimportance.

"You against bein' carried a bit? No offense but those shoes ain't made for mountains." And Hannibal would rather she didn't fall and/or generally hurt herself on the way to see the hawks. The young Jedi backed off a little to give her some room, arm leaving her form but still staying nearby for the sake of reassurance.

@Sreeya

 

[Valeska]

Val only stared at him as he revealed that he was a Jedi. Her sister always maintained a friendly relationship with them, but admittedly that began to sour as of late. The princess remained silent for a moment, glancing down at his single arm after he proposed her being carried. She hadn’t let go of the cliff face yet.

“I…” She scrunched up her face in confusion, “Carrying me with one arm sounds horribly inconvenient for you, even being Jedi and all. But alas I owe you a favor for your heroic deeds in stopping my untimely death,” She stated very matter of factly as she finally peeled herself off the cliff edge. Val glanced down at her shoes, one of them already scuffed up with the bottom broken off.

She was envious of how sure footed he had been the entire time, but perhaps being Jedi explained it. Val kept close to the cliff’s face, awkwardly attempting to follow behind him. She gave up at one point and took her shoes off to walk barefoot. Even then she was too stubborn to turn back.

“The...hawk nest spot is close by, yes?” She asked after a moment, trying very hard to keep concern out of her voice.

@Mr. Teatime

 

[Hannibal Grayza]

Hannibal clicked his tongue irritably and looked at his left side where an arm was supposed to be. It was his main hand so the prosthetic needed to be fine tuned beyond the standard fare. Not to mention the socket implant needed to heal first before it could be used. In truth carrying her with just the one would be both inconvenient and frankly undignified so he let the idea go easily enough.

"Nothin' heroic about it, but thanks," was the first thing he said. The second was going to be a protestation of her owing him anything but he seems to reconsider it and shut his mouth instead. A certain rough-tongued Ranger had chewed him out for that attitude once and he hadn't forgotten it. "I'll accept the pleasure of your company then, will that do?"

Well at least he was trying. He walked on, slower this time and with shorter strides. Emerald eyes looked back a couple times make sure she seemed alright and he paused when she asked her question. Hannibal noted the new lack of shoes on her feet.

"Yeah, that way," he pointed up along a sloping bit of ground away from the center basin. "Y'sure you wanna walk all that way?"

@Sreeya